This is the second in my series of posts (and videos) about the notions and tools I keep on hand for different fiber crafts! Being able to spin out and about can be a joy - as long as you don't get sidelined by a technical difficulty. Today, I'm going to show you what I… Continue reading What to carry in your (spinning) notions bag
Tag: spinning
Sustenance
My goals for 2018 were:I hope to read new books, both fiction and non-fiction.I hope to see new movies & TV shows and not just rely on re-watching things that I'm comfortable with (but don't think this means I won't binge The Office or Dawson's Creek again - because that is ALWAYS an option).I hope… Continue reading Sustenance
Handspun Cowl Recipe
Update, 1/8/21: Now available as a PDF as well! Handspun Cowl Recipe For me, spinning is meditation that also makes yarn. Everything about spinning is restorative! There's nothing better than sitting down at my wheel with a braid of beautiful hand-painted fiber in my hand and letting yarn happen. My favorite way of spinning hand-painted… Continue reading Handspun Cowl Recipe
How I get the gross out of raw fleece
After I've selected & skirted a fleece, I usually wrap it up in the plastic drop cloth and store until I'm ready to wash. If there was a lot of VM that shook out, I will gather up the fleece into smaller bags and shake the VM off outside. Another thought about the VM -… Continue reading How I get the gross out of raw fleece
How I buy all the fleeces!
It's no secret: I love wool. I love soft wool, I love toothy wool, I love the texture of wool, I love working with wool. Sometimes, I even love the smell of it. I love the feel of lanolin on my hands after rubbing on a sweet sheepy face. But, as we all know, sheep… Continue reading How I buy all the fleeces!
Donita2018 – Sustain
My word for 2018 is 'sustain'. If you're thinking that 'sustain' and 'maintain' are very similar words, you'd be right. I like the direction we've both been moving and the direction things have taken for us (it's not without setbacks or disappointments, but you'll have that...). When I was looking for verbs that I could… Continue reading Donita2018 – Sustain
Donita2017 Reflection
My theme for 2017 was to "Maintain My Groovy Self". Maintaining what we've been working towards the last few years proved more challenging than we anticipated when I chose this focus. But I'm so glad that we did. Because we didn't have crazy ambitious goals and timelines in our minds, we were better able to… Continue reading Donita2017 Reflection
Donita2017 Q4 – The Home stretch
Well, it's time to shut 2017 down. You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here. I knit up a cowl for the hubs, to match a hat he made himself a few years ago. This was my first time knitting with Briar Rose Fibers yarn and this base was SO squishy and… Continue reading Donita2017 Q4 – The Home stretch
The Learning Fleece
Soon after I started spinning, I knew I wanted to spin for sweaters. And I love natural colored wool, especially the silvers and grays. That spring (2015), I roadtripped with the hubs and 2 gals from my LYS to the Great Lakes Fiber Show in Wooster. If' you're within a few hours' drive, you should… Continue reading The Learning Fleece
Donita2017 Q3
Summer has gone and fall has come. It's finally sweater weather and I couldn't be more happy about it! First up in July, I finished a top (that I started in May), because I finally found a pattern that I could use this yarn for! And I used EVERY. LAST. BIT. July is Tour de… Continue reading Donita2017 Q3
Donita Westman 