Knock, knock

... Oh, are you still there?

What can I say, life's been busy and I haven't felt very chatty.

OK, I'm just really embarrassed that I don't have any great photos of progress on Sashiko.

All right, I confess: the reason there are no great photos is that I haven't made much progress. (I have, however, completed two pairs of socks--but really, who needs photos of yet more socks?)

But recently a chat list discussion about bloggers and their commercial ties caught my attention. I have never received any gifts from a vendor hoping for a positive review, but it seems that this is a well-known practice. I have a practical outlook: people who make the kinds of things feral knitters like need all the promotion they can get. On the other hand, I do expect that such handouts would be revealed to readers. If anyone WERE to send me anything, you can count on me telling you about it.

I do like to pass on information about the places I do business with, though, and there are a number of very small vendors that I'd like to talk about today--the kind of people you might meet at the Maryland Sheep & Wool festival if you were lucky enough to attend last weekend. [Editorial note: I AM NOT JEALOUS. No SIRREE!] These are pretty much all people I know who are trying to make a living providing special materials for knitters and spinners, but you might not have heard about them. It's not that I don't drool over the KnitPicks catalog--it's just that I like my fiber work to be part of a larger web of concern, for want of a better word.

Sincere Sheep. Three women who I met at Deep Color Studio--Brooke, Connie, and Erika--have started a small, very personal yarn and fiber business. They travel to local shepherds and purchase the fleeces they like "on the hoof," so to speak. They then have the yarn or roving prepared by another small local business. And THEN they dye the yarn with natural dyes! Some of their yarns even have the name of the sheep that provided the wool on them. They are now working to get their retail sales set up for internet commerce. (Erika had her baby, by the way--a darling girl! We love us a baby girl!)

Toots LeBlanc. Michelle Camacho, a former Seattle spinning teacher, started a business selling natural colored yarns and rovings blended from angora, Jacob fleece, alpaca, and Romeldale or merino. These are the simple, straightforward, yet special basics that I think of as fitting the definition of "wabi sabi."

Designs by Romi.  Rosemary creates wonderful shawl pins of all sizes, colors, and moods. Check out her "how to wear your pin" page for ideas about adding style.

Lisa Souza Knitwear & Dyeworks. Lisa dyes wonderful yarns and rovings in seductive colorways--check out her new sock yarn! I'm spinning up some of her superfine merino dyed in the Deep Sea shades of blue and green--a joy to spin. Lisa is a dedicated spinner, too, and a charming, energetic presence. (Disclaimer: She invited me over to her house for lunch when I moved to California. And it was really good!)

Michael & Sheila Ernst Glassworks. Lisa Souza often uses Sheila's special glass buttons on her one-of-a-kind art-to-wear pieces, so I was pleased to meet Sheila at SOAR's market last year. Her buttons are indeed lovely, and I bet she'd bend over backwards to help you find (or design) the button that will fit your creative flight of fancy. I haven't ordered from her, but she is well-established.

Wild Fibers magazine. When the big knitting magazines start to feel a little too "slick" or fashionable, pull out a copy of this magazine to ground yourself. It's all too easy to forget the roots of our craft, the source of our fibers and the history of our tools.

Promises, Promises

In other news, I'm still keeping my resolutions about nutrition despite a normal chaotic life--down 14.8 pounds so far. I haven't been so regular about the water aerobics, though.

Good news and bad news

My little nephew Jake (he stopped growing, maybe, at 6'7") just A. turned 21; B. graduated from Army boot camp; and C. announced that he is getting married to a wonderful girl. (The bad news? The wedding is scheduled for the weekend of the Black Sheep Gathering and I sort of suspect that the entire family would be royally pissed off if I missed the celebration to go to Eugene. They are SO unreasonable that way!)

Comments

[Barb]

Yeah, funny how families are that way;)
I'll check out your links. I love seeing how people have turned their passion into a living and hearing different perspectives.
I salute your success with nutrition!!

[Theresa]

I've been pondering the commerical implications of knit blogging recently, and will probably post about it next week. I went to a Perri Klass book signing, and it was suhc a normal book signing - 20-ish people in an independent bookstore. The contrast between that and the Yarn Harlot signing madhouse I attended a couple of weeks ago was incredible. And while Stephanie is funny, Klass' book is much more impressive, more of a "real" book. It's the buzz . . .

[moiraeknits]

Ooo. Toots LeBlanc has some utterly lovely fiber. I'll totally check out those links today. Thank you! I'm debating whether or not to go to BSG. Last year was so overwhelming, and we did a lightening trip down there. If I go this year, I'm thinking hotel room and my wheel will come with, but I know my car won't make it down there. Decisions, decisions....

[kitkatknit]

(I have, however, completed two pairs of socks--but really, who needs photos of yet more socks?)

Me for one; I never get tired of seeing photos of other people's hand knit socks!!!

[Brooke]

Thank you for the recognition! It means a lot to us!

Glad to hear that you are doing well. Too bad you won't be at Black Sheep but it's for a great reason!

[Lorraine The Knitting Hammy]

Families, eh? What can you do? Feral Knitters are so misunderstood!
I had the peasure of meeting the Ernst's at a trade show, and was overwhelmed at the beauty of their artglass. The buttons are stunning, and the knitting needles are truly amazing- they're just for fun, of course, but I hope to see them again.

[Martha (another one)]

I can sympathise with missing the Black Sheep Show for a wedding. Been there. Don't they understand? (Perfect world solution: 2 Black Sheep shows)

[Steph]

Thanks for the links. I bought some yarn from Toots LeBlanc at Stitches West -- just lovely, soft yarn, angora blend. And Wild Fibers is an extremely well done mag.