Are hobbies just a distraction?

I like to knit and spin and (sometimes) weave. BUT. Sometimes I think that my hobbies are just a distraction, something to keep me entertained as I grow older. But what else would I want to do?

Well, there are a few things I want to tackle before I'm too old to do so: sort through all the photos I somehow "inherited" when my dad passed away; transcribe my journals; and play tennis.

Back in the day, I taught my son to play tennis, and he went on to be the number one seed on his high school team. So when my granddaughter showed an interest in tennis, I thought I could teach her as well. She has taken a few lessons from parks and rec, but needs to practice more.

Well, I am discovering that I need to practice even more than she does! I can't race around the court like I used to, I get out of breath rather easily, and my shoulder gets tired. But it is something I really enjoy doing, so I'm going to continue, just to have fun.

Knitting: The socks are about halfway up the calf now. I finished the knitting part of the L-Bag - it's large enough for me to wear as a skirt! Now I'm knitting a 12"x12" square to felt along with it, to use for pockets.

Spinning: Still working on the three-color braid.
Weaving: I am sort of finished with the circular weaving from last week. I have a tendency to go too far and ruin something, so I stopped where I am. I may do something more with it, but I'm letting it rest for now.

Here is a sweater I would love to knit or even purchase. The picture is from the cover of the local parks and rec fall catalog. I think it is a style that would work with my lumpy body.

Has anyone seen this sweater anywhere?

Fiber friends

I am an introvert, quite content to just stay home most of the time. But I know that it is important to have at least *some* friends. Of course, there is my SO and my family, which help a lot. But sometimes I just want to hang with some female agemates.

There used to be Women's Weekend, when a bunch of us mothers who knew each other in college would get together twice a year, sans kids, to drink wine, play cards, watch R-rated movies, etc. But all of a sudden, that stopped, I think in part because we became *more* busy as our children became adults. And some members moved out of the area and a couple of them passed away.

I joined the local spinning guild and weaving guild several years ago, which has introduced me to what I now call my fiber friends. For a smaller cadre of us, it is more, though. We sometimes gather at each other's houses to spin and knit and talk. Before the monthly spin-in at Little Shop of Spinning, we usually meet for lunch. We talk about more than fiber.

While I enjoy these gatherings, as an introvert they can be a bit overwhelming sometimes. Like yesterday. It seemed everyone needed to TALK. When I finally arrived home, all I felt like doing was sit and listen to the silence.

Knitting: The sock heels are turned, one of them twice (dropped stitch I could not recover from). I'm *still* knitting the bottom of the L-Bag; I'm pretty sick of that project.
Spinning: I'm on the third color of the three-color skein.
Weaving: Last night I got inspired and started a new circular weaving project. Circular weaving is good for using up bits and bobs of yarn from various workshops.

I thought I had a taker for the basket weaving supplies, but they were a no-show. It may be time for Plan B.

Going in circles

At tonight's weaving guild meeting, we are supposed to bring something we have made using a technique that is new to each of us. I posted about twining last time. I decided to finish the circular sample we started at the meeting on circular weaving as well.

My initial reaction was that this is too slow - this coaster took several hours. But after sharing with a fiber friend, I'm wondering if I would like circular weaving better with a heavier yarn. I won't give up on it... yet.

Knitting: I am on the verge of ripping back the basketweave socks. The yarn feels wrong for socks - not durable enough - and I hate knitting the pattern. The unmatched socks, however, are going well... if I didn't keep getting distracted by the latest L-Bag.
Weaving: See above.

The Fort Wayne Museum of Art is featuring an exhibit by Rowland Ricketts, textile artist and indigo dyer (with more than a little help from his wife, Chinami). We visited it last week. WOW! If you have the chance to see work by these artists, GO!

Besides getting tee shirts for guild members, another task I have taken on is creating a guideline for the judges at the county fair. From reading their comments on projects entered, they do not know much about fiber arts. I sent out feelers to see if they would be interested in some guidelines, and they said YES PLEASE. So now I am trying to pull that together, with input from various fiber friends.

The days are just packed.

Inspiration from guild meetings and books

The past two weaving guild meetings have been about new-to-me methods of weaving: twining and circular weaving. Sometimes when I am thinking I am not much of a weaver, I see a new technique and think, Maybe this is my path forward. I haven't tried twining yet, but at the circular weaving meeting we each received a cardboard loom (already warped) that we could practice on.


At an informal spin/knit-in/gab-fest, someone mentioned a book called The Joy of Yarn: Your Stash Solution for Curating, Organizing, and Using Your Yarn, by Marie Greene. One of her organizing methods is to group yarns by color. I once visited a yarn shop that did just that, and I found it to be a rather ridiculous but beautiful way to organize yarn. The author's other method is my method - by yarn weight. After all, how often does one mix yarn weights in a project?

I found the following charts from the book to be very useful, though.

I am really disliking the Cascade Yarns Heritage Sock yarn - it is very soft and feels like it won't hold up well for socks. However, if I double it, I think it would make a nice next-to-the-skin garment like a hat, scarf, or cowl.

Knitting: I have turned the heels on the non-matching socks. One of the basketweave socks is ready for a heel turn, the other close.
Spinning: I finished spinning the Tasman comeback singles. I also plied the latest merino/silk blend that I spun at spin-ins; I'm not very happy with it, would not enter it in the county fair, but I'm sure it will knit up into something nice.

Speaking of spin-ins, yesterday I planned to attend one. I packed up the wheel and some fiber, then decided maybe I would just knit. But after backing the car out of the garage, I realized just how tired I was. So back into the house I went, where I spent most of the day on the couch, reading (and crying through) The Women, by Kristin Hannah. If you lived through the Vietnam era, this is a must read.