Lavender Cottage Fibres

A successful Craft Fair... and some sad news

2010-12-07T09:54:00.012Z

Well! The Craft Fair at the Fairfield Halls did turn out to be a success. And I must thank the ladies of the Croydon knitting Group for showing their support. The weather was incredibly cold, but the turn-out was a little better than anticipated. We were slightly disappointed at the lack of crafty stalls - there were a lot of people selling things like light-up plastic stocking fillers, commercial beauty products and even shoes. But there were some really special stalls, too. Our stall was in the foyer because the Angora bunnies needed a good supply of fresh air (Skye came on Saturday and Misty on Sunday) and both of them behaved absolutely beautifully, even when Basil Brush came out and disturbed the peace! (Please excuse poor quality of photos - these were all taken with my phone in the poor light available)...

Ice rink on the forecourt

Pretty! Bright lights from the Ferris wheel
on the forecourt

Tess spinning Angora fluff at our stall

My good friend Roz was there with her friend Anne, selling the most beautiful hand-embroidered cards, Christmas decorations and hand-made gift tags. Everything of theirs is so incredibly intricate and beautifully made! I now have a beautiful star decoration for my tree, some even more beautiful cards and the perfect tags for my gifts!

Roz and Anne's stall with hand-embroidered cards,
decorations and hand-crafted gift tags

There was also a lady called Joanne selling the most incredible hand-crafted jewellery all made with semi-precious stones and Stirling silver. This picture does not do her craft any justice at all, but I was drawn to it again and again. Unfortunately, she doesn't have a website, but I will update this as soon as I hear that she does.

So, the snow threatened over the weekend but didn't arrive until Tuesday and everything ground to a halt. It took me over three hours to complete the 13 mile journey home from work and, to make matters even more complicated, I arrived home to a FREEZING house as the boiler had broken down. Typical! As I am neither elderly nor do I have have small children I was not a priority case and it wasn't until yesterday, 6 days after the breakdown, that the gas man was able to come and replace the broken valve. Incredibly, due, I'm sure, to the breakdown and subsequent start-up of the boiler, I now have a leaking radiator in the bathroom and have to call someone out to fix it. Ugh. At least, though, the house is starting to warm up!

Snowed in!

The bad weather which kept me indoors over the weekend did, however, allow me to sit in front of an electric fan heater with a hot water bottle and finish a couple of Christmas knitting projects... Photos will follow after the recipients have received them!

The sad news I mentioned is that of Alfie, a 5 month old Labrador/Greyhound cross with a fatal liver condition. He has had four homes in his short life, all of which have passed him on after learning of his illness. It is treatable, but the surgery will cost £3,500. He is currently living with the kind people at the Happy Endings animal shelter in East Sussex. In light of this, I will be updating my Etsy shop this week, and offering a 10% discount on all purchases (details to follow). All proceeds will go towards Alfie's plight. I will also enter everyone who purchases in to a prize draw and the winner will receive a FREE(!) skein of hand-painted, hand-spun yarn. Yay! Please check back and I will update the shop very shortly with all sorts of goodies for your winter spinning, felting and knitting needs!

Emma x

Preparations...

2010-11-25T11:11:00.002Z

...are well underway for the Christmas Extravaganza at the Fairfield Halls in Croydon! All the yarns and fibre are packed neatly in their bags, and other small bits to make the stall pretty are almost done. There will be a plethora of yarns to choose from, as well as some knitted winter woolies, unique tree decorations and learn-to-knit kits with needles, instructions and a choice of yarn. The weather looks like it may even play ball, what with the forecast of snow (snow!) in the area over the weekend!

I have a LOT of holiday knitting to do. Some of which are to wing their way overseas before Christmas, so I have a lot to be getting on with. My Etsy shop will close over the weekend for the Craft Fair, but shall re-open Monday, full of lots more goodies, and a special offer!

Yay!

Ding, dong merrily on high and stuff

2010-11-18T13:44:00.003Z

Christmas is but 37 days ago. 37! That's barely enough time to prepare as it is! My handbag and my house and my desk are full (FULL!) of lists of presents to buy, cards to write, groceries, things to do... and on top I have a Christmas Craft Fair and Christmas Farmer's Market to prepare for! So, I also have lists of items I must take and things I must do in preparation. And that's all after my real job. Crazy!

But I love Christmas. I love the cold (when I'm indoors and toasty). I love the smells of baking and cinnamon and nutmeg and the pine needles. I love the unexpected visitors who I ply with mulled wine and fruit-filled pastries. I love the crinkling of paper and the sheen of ribbons; the happy Christmas carols playing in every store and, if you're lucky, sung by groups at the train station; the beautiful light displays adorning street lamps and shop windows like crowns and the twinkle of fairy lights and the coziness of chunky, winter knits and the beautiful glow that a room full of candles gives. The season imparts such a wonderful feeling for me, so to be able to be a part of some lovely events which will help others get in to the spirit is wonderful.

So, in preparation I have been dyeing and labelling and making up learn-to-knit kits for kids and knitting all manner of cozy items to keep people warm and, generally, preparing for a pretty, Christmassy stall!

I'm currently spinning up a second bobbin of some beautifully soft merino and cashmere. I'm yet to decide whether this will be a two- or a three-ply yarn but, whatever it will be, it has to keep the soft bounciness that this fibre has. Hopefully, it will make a lovely soft cowl. I am really hoping for some slightly better weather this weekend so that I can take some photos. It's so dark when I get home that photographing is impossible.

In the meantime, Schnarf is here to let you know what he thinks of all the festivities...

News!

2010-11-16T10:01:00.003Z

Well! My exciting thing has materialised... My Etsy shop is now open!
Due to lack of light and, therefore, lack of pictures, the shop does not list a huge amount. It is a start, though! Hopefully, many more items will be listed there within the next few days. Wooo!

Exciting things!

2010-11-01T12:47:00.004Z

Well, the last week has been full of busy-ness and rushing and photographing and all sorts for something very exciting and (almost!) imminent... Hopefully just a couple more days and I'll announce what I've been up to.

Secondly, one of my favourite bloggers ever, Karen Walrond of Chookooloonks, has her book published. Karen is an inspiration of epic proportions - from her beautiful photography to her poetic lilt, I am an avid reader. Her book, The Beauty of Different, is available from Bright Sky Press and also on Amazon. This is going to be the perfect Christmas present.

A SHEEPish update

2010-10-11T14:51:00.000+01:00

Well, it was lovely to chat to Lesley of Devon Fine Fibres on Savile Row. I didn't realise that she is the main fleece supplier for the cloth weavers who supply the tailors of Savile Row. It shouldn't be a surprise, though - the fineness of her British rare breed Bowmont (Merino x Shetland) fleeces is second to none. At approximately 15 microns, the fibre is just beautiful. There was a woolsack full of the raw fleece which, I must say, looked very clean - it was just so beautifully soft.

This beautiful breed is has the Merino look, without the thick neck folds - and the finer facial structure of the Shetland. They all seemed plenty happy enough, munching on their hay and delighting the crowd with the hopping, skipping and jumping. "Spring is bustin' out all over" was playing in my mind. And in a small space like this it is easy to see how "sheep" as an adjective has come about. Where one went, the others followed all huddled together.

There was also a small flock of Exmoor Horn sheep - their fleece is significantly coarser, but still fine for knitwear. These guys seemed much more relaxed with all the crowds around, and this guy on the left looked as if he was having a real conversation.

These pictures aren't the best, as they were taken on my phone, but the trek across the City to see them was well worth it! Hopefully I'll get a chance to visit Lesley on her farm and see them in their 'natural' habitat. I would love to spin one of her fleeces but, it seems, there is just so much demand for them commercially - that would be why the Savile Row tailors are so exclusive!

Celebrating Wool Week

2010-10-11T11:02:00.001+01:00

It's officially the start of Wool Week and I am so excited! I work in London and there, generally, isn't much in the way of fibre-y "stuff" to see and do. Today, however, Savile Row (lauded for its impeccable tailors) is being turfed over and a flock of brightly coloured sheep brought up by Lesley from her farm in Devon. Even better, Lyle and Scott are sponsoring a Sheep Parade in Covent Garden tomorrow, which is even closer to my office.

HRH Prince Charles is patron of the Campaign for Wool, a fantastic organisation which hopes to bring this wonderful resource to the forefront once more. british wool, and the cloth made from it was once the pride of the nation. Now, we are so consumed with cheap, throw-away fabric and our fantastic wool is burnt in huge piles as farmers cannot even cover the cost of shearing with the price that fleeces can muster. This versatile fibre can be used in all sorts - the finer, softer fleeces make wonderful knitwear while the coarser fleeces can make the most hard-wearing rugs and carpets. Or even building insulation! It seems heretical that such a resource is wasted year on year.

As a hand-spinner, I really appreciate a beautiful fleece. There is nothing more satisfying than knitting with yarn that I have spun, watching the project develop from raw (and often filthy!) fleece to a beautiful scarf or hat or sweater... one that I know will last an absolute lifetime.

Wool is wonderful... spread the word!!

Updates!

2010-09-03T11:56:00.000+01:00

Well, the sun stayed out long enough for me to take some pictures when I got back yesterday evening which made me so happy!

Au Naturel - 100g/345m Bluefaced Leicester sock yarn £9.00

Waterway - 100g/345m Bluefaced Leicester sock yarn £9.00

These next yarns are 80% alpaca and 20% silk and it is the most beautiful, softest yarn with a beautiful sheen to it. Each colourway shown below has two skeins of yarn as each 100g skein has 262 metres which I, honestly, feel is not enough for a pair of socks. Because of this, I will be selling them in lots of two hanks, unless people particularly want just one. Two hanks are priced at £21.00 and one at £11.00.

Apricot jam - 100g/262m Alpaca/silk sock yarn £11.00

Fuschia party - 100g/262m Alpaca/silk sock yarn £11.00

Inversion - 100g/262m Alpaca/silk sock yarn £11.00

Harlequin - 100g/262m Alpaca/silk sock yarn £11.00

Rosegate - 100g/262m Alpaca/silk sock yarn £11.00

I hope you all enjoy knitting with these as much as I loved dyeing them!

Happy September!

2010-09-02T10:46:00.000+01:00

I love September. Mainly because it means that Christmas is SO. CLOSE. (Although that means that I really have to pull my finger out and get on with the Christmas knitting.) But, also, because Autumn is coming, and I just love the short period of time when the leaves turn and the mornings are much crisper. Summer, my favourite season, is pretty much over. It's still quite warm out, but the mornings and evenings are far cooler now than they were just a couple of weeks ago.

The Bank Holiday weekend was far busier than anyone's long weekend should be. The Farmer's Market on Saturday was brilliant, and it was lovely to see Christina again. On Sunday I went to visit my friend Claire at her farm, and time just ran away with me! And Monday was spent dyeing LOTS of yarn. My space for drying is limited, so the hanks were in the airing cupboard to dry and, while it is relatively warm in there the heating is not on, (I refuse to put it on until next month) so the drying process has been slow. By the time I get home in the evening the light has all but gone, so I will be photographing all the skeins this weekend. This weekend I have a lot more to dye. I'm slightly upset that the fibre I ordered a week ago has not arrived. Yes, it was a big order but I have never waited a week for delivery. It's not as if I NEED it now, but the thought of the lovely squooshiness, which should be with me but is, in fact, either still with the supplier or squashed in a box all alone with Royal Mail makes me sad. What makes me happy, though, is that I will have some beautiful new yarns over the next couple of months, including alpaca/silk and merino/bamboo sock yarn . I love how the different fibres take up dyes so differently.

My alpaca is still on the bobbin, and I just nees to spin up some silk for plying. I also have a rather lovely camel/silk blend to spin, that I have been asked to make a scarf with. Whether I shall knit or weave it, I don't know yet.

Forgive my lack of yarn and fibre photos. I shall, instead, leave you with Schnarfums who managed to curl up in to a tiny ball and almost fit in to the brand new cat bed. Crazy creature...

Forgive me, interwebs, for I have sinned.

2010-08-25T10:49:00.000+01:00

It has been over two months since my last post! Working in the US is to blame. I am, however, full of updates...

I have been spinning! These are all Falkland wool:

Scotch Mist - approx 200g £30

Heathered - approx 200g £30

Wunderland - approx 200g £30

And, my, I have had SO much fun with these fibres!

This Wensleydale was a joy to dye. The colours were just slurped up, and it has this lovely sheen to it.

That's not cheese, Gromit - 100g £8.00

And these two braids of BFL/silk should, I'm sure, be spun and then plied together. The photos do them no justice, unfortunately! Squishy and so soft...

Wenceslaus - approx 100g £9.00 SOLD

La bohème - approx 100g £9.00 SOLD

Oooh! Merino! Unbelievably fluffy.

Nymph's grotto - approx 100g £9.00 (two braids available)

Lady of the Lake - approx 100g £9.00 (two braids available)

And, my favourite of all, Falkland. I honestly couldn't come up with a reason why it would be my favourite. I mean, it's not quite as soft as Merino, is not lustruous like a longwool, nor is it as bouncy as other breeds from merino, like Corriedale. But there's something that keeps me coming back to Falkland each time. I love its qualities for both spinning and dyeing.

Antheia - approx 100g £8.00

Kleio's lament - approx 100g £8.00

Rhodanthe - approx 100g £8.00

Spill - approx 100g £8.00

And, finally, I have a couple of sock yarns to add. I have a lot more, so will be taking photos this weekend and adding them very shortly.

Ember - approx 100g/375m Merino £9.00

The Fisher King - approx 100g/375m Merino £9.00

It seems that the summer is well and truly over. The evenings are drawing in and there is a definite chill and dampness in the air, which is a bit of an impediment when it comes to dyeing - my airing cupboard will, no doubt, be working overtime! I am dyeing up some new sock yarns this weekend - a beautiful medium-high twist 80% alpaca/20% silk sock yarn - and I hear that the showers should be intermittent. Hopefully, I can manage to dry them with relative ease. I am also spinning up some BEAUTIFUL alpaca fleece (photos to come). I started when the weather was grotty, so decided against washing it first and am just flicking the locks out and spinning them. I'll just make sure that the yarn is very well washed as they just love to roll in the dust.

The next few months are looking rather exciting! I continue to attend the farmer's market at Shabden Park Farm and, whilst the number of knitters and spinners who attend is limited, there is such a huge interest in the old art. Strangely enough, quite a lot of yarn was bought in July, on what was probably the hottest weekend of the year! In addition, I will be attending Heathfield Ecology Centre's Green Fair on Saturday September 18th, (such a worthy cause) and the Christmas Fair at the Fairfield Halls November 27-28. This is not to mention Unravel in February. Lots more to come!

Open Day at the farm

2010-06-14T10:18:00.001+01:00

Well, yesterday was the first Open Day of the year at Shabden Park Farm, and what a roaring success it was! Most of the usual suspects were there with their stalls, including Peter McCarthy, (probably the best baker in the county) Anila's, (I love their goan curry paste) Pimpernel Fisheries (mmmm... crab rolls!) and A Gem of a Cake - although I didn't get around to buying any cupcakes as I was pretty busy on the stall, I was eyeing them up! The Epsom spinners attended, and it was lovely to meet Jill and Christina. There was a straw bale climbing frame, tractor rides, shearing demonstrations and all sorts for the whole family. And the weather was beautiful throughout! We really couldn't have asked for more.

I have a large stock update to do, and will definitely get down to that this week. The days are much longer now, so I should still have plenty of light by the time I get home!

Away with the fairies

2010-04-22T09:20:00.000+01:00

I wish it was the fairies I've been away with! It seems that real-life has called and I have had no time to update here. I have some more yarns and fibres to update, but will wait until Saturday evening as I am going to be at the Shabden Park Farmers' Market on April 24th! Mayfield Lavender, one of my favourite places locally, will be at the farmers' market, too.

No doubt I will have lots to update with. In the meantime, everything in previous posts that does not say "sold" is still available.

Lots of fibre!

2010-04-01T09:46:00.000+01:00

It's taken a while but here are my latest additions:

Iris - approx 100g hand painted merino/silk (70%/30%) £9.00

Stargazer - approx 100g hand painted merino/silk (70%/30%) £9.00 - SOLD
Unassuming - approx 100g hand painted Corriedale - £8.00 - SOLD

Burnished - 100g merino sock-weight yarn (approx 375m) - £8.00

Spring forward - 100g merino sock-weight yarn (approx 375m) - £8.00

Inferno - 100g merino sock-weight yarn (approx 375m) - £8.00

Jellybabies Picnik - 100g merino sock-weight yarn (approx 375m) - £8.00 - SOLD

Sunkissed - 100g merino sock-weight yarn (approx 375m) - £8.00

Persephone - 100g merino lace-weight yarn (approx 715m) £8.00 - SOLD

All of these are available now and, seeing as it's Easter, if you place an order over the long weekend (before midnight Monday April 5th) I will waive the postage/packing fee for home (usually £1.00 for one item) and international purchases (usually £2.00 for one item)! Just email lavendercottagefibres [at] googlemail [dot] com with your order and I will contact you with PayPal instructions. Your purchase will then be mailed to you next Tuesday.

Happy Easter!

Demonstration

2010-03-26T13:39:00.000Z

I've been asked to do a spinning demonstration at the Sutton Community Farm tomorrow. Apparently, one of the things that participants really wanted to learn about was spinning and dyeing. Tess and I are more than happy to spread the word about this wonderful craft! I will be taking along some yarns, too. Hopefully we can get quite a few people interested!

Aftermath

2010-03-22T13:41:00.000Z

The craft fair was really quite an enjoyable day out. It was great to meet some Ravellers and members of the Croydon knitting group. Thanks to all for their support! The spinning fibre and sock yarns went down very well. I do wish I had taken more yarn - there were a couple of disappointed faces when I said that was the last of it. Skye, the Angora bunny seemed happy enough being admired. She really is a dab-hand at all this show malarky.

I was a little disappointed at how un-crafty the show was. There seemed to be an awful lot of bought-in 'gifts' rather than hand-crafted items which, I thought, defeated the object. Also, there was absolutely no advertising for the event. There were, however, some DELICIOUS cakes! I bought enough cupcakes to feed an army, plus the nicest cake I've had in ages - chocolate and Baileys.

This week I'll be updating here with some more sock yarn, spinning fibre and some lace-weight, for those of you who are so inclined.

Back soon!

What's been cooking

2010-03-17T08:58:00.001Z

The steamer has been working hard over the last few weeks, and I'm hoping to dye some more fibre and yarn before the craft fair on Sunday. These are merino rovings, all approximately 100g:

Oceanus - SOLD

Floralia - SOLD

Sophocles

Fish pond - hand-painted 2-ply merino DK, 100g (approx 300 yards) - SOLD

Oceanus - hand painted 2-ply merino DK, 100g (approx 300 yards) - SOLD

And this is about 100g hand-painted Falkland roving spun up to approximately a DK weight called Jellybabies' Picnik. It was chain plied to preserve the colours which came out very prettily.

I don't have any yardages, but will definitely be measuring these and updating when I post again with my newest hand-spun. Am so looking forward to the craft fair on Sunday!

Spinning and more...

2010-03-16T15:26:00.000Z

Well, the past couple of weeks have been filled with major fibre shenanigans, (updates and photos to follow, I promise!) including spinning Falkland and merino/silk blends and carding some GIANT batts. My lack of updates here, though, have been down to all the preparation, following through and post-processing of another project which came to a head on March 6th when I was my friend Hannah's wedding photographer. Here are a few of my favourite shots of the day:

Back to fibre-y stuff: I will be at the Fairfield Spring Fair in Croydon on Sunday March 21st! My wares will accompany those of my friend Tess of Silkwood, and one or two of her Angora bunnies. The fair is only on for one day, and will be open from 10am until 4pm. It promises to be a great day!

Normal service will resume this week.

Productivity

2010-03-01T16:30:00.000Z

The weekend was really quite productive. While I didn't dye as much as I had hoped, (only about 500g of spinning fibre) I did manage to spin up over 200g of Falkland wool, half of which has been plied. It's looking rather lovely, in a sock-to-DK weight. The light was terrible all weekend, though, much as it has been for many weeks, now, so the opportunity for photographing anything did not present itself. It seems absolutely typical that, today, the sun is shining and there has not been a single cloud in the bright blue sky and I won't get home until it is dark. Before the end of this week I will definitely have more photos to show.

Meanwhile, the socks seem to be coming on well enough. While I love the colours and the striping of Noro, I am fast falling out of love with its unyielding rigidity once knitted. There just seems to be no give in the sock I am working on right now, which disturbs me a little. Well, only time will tell so I had better finish it off quickly...

Socks

2010-02-26T14:23:00.000Z

I love knitting socks. Absolutely LOVE it. The almost-instant gratification of a small project that knits up in such a short space of time that someone will actually wear is enough to make me go all fuzzy inside. I always knit on dpns and tend to stick to top-down sock knitting because it just makes more sense to me (although I have knitted toe-up socks with success in the past). Yesterday, however, I decided I'd see what all the fuss was about knitting socks using the magic loop method on circular needles. I ended up frogging the 3 rows I managed because I had dropped a stitch somewhere and, although I immediately cast on to my double points. I will head back to the circulars over the weekend, possibly for the second sock, although right now I can definitely say I prefer knitting socks over 4 dpns.

Inspiration

2010-02-25T14:37:00.001Z

I have a LOT of fibre to dye. It's just, now, going to be a case of finding just a smidgen of time in which to pull out the dyes and my steamer. Steaming the dyed fibre works best for me, seeing as my space is limited. I am so inspired by the new rendition of Alice in Wonderland by Tim Burton. All of the pictures I've seen show these dark and moody but incredibly saturated colours which just look so opulent and fantastic:

The colours in these images have really struck a chord with me, and I can't wait to get in the kitchen and start experimenting!

Bedtime reading

2010-02-24T05:19:00.000Z

I got home to an Amazon surprise; "Intertwined", by Lexi Boeger, better known as Pluckyfluff. The book is absolutely lovely, with great images of some incredible art yarns, covering everything from thick and thin yarns to coils and corespinning with patterns for each of them. While I am less likely to obtain masses of inspiration from spinning shredded paper, the book is definitely a worthwhile addition to any spinner's library. Now I'm off to bed, new book in tow!

Hand spun

2010-02-16T16:34:00.000Z

Well, it has taken me longer than I had hoped to post some of my yarns and fibres but a full time job means that I have much less time to spin and dye than I would like. I have, however, got some hand spun and hand painted yarns to show you:

This is hand painted Falkland wool, spun to a heavy DK to Aran weight. I have called this Mephisoto's Magik and it is one of a kind. There's approximately 200g here (I will update the post with the exact weight).

Aphrodite's Arboretum is also hand painted Falkland wool, hand spun to a sport/DK weight yarn. Also soft and squooshy and approximately 200g.

Lastly, this is hand painted Falkland wool hand spun and plied with hand spun Yak down. This is so, SO soft. It's chunky weight and again, approximately 200g.

A lot (although not all!) of my hand spun yarns are Falkland wool. It's a hardy sheep of mainly Corriedale (and, more recently, Polwarth ancestry) and I like it not only for its softness but also for its staple length and the fact that it will knit up very comfortably as singles just as it does plied. It really is my favourite wool to spin.

All of these yarns are for sale. I have not priced them yet, as I haven't got the exact weights to hand, but this info will be available very shortly. If you're interested in these, or any other yarns or hand-dyed fibres for spinning, I am generally able to accommodate! Please contact me at lavendercottagefibres(at)googlemail(dot)com with any queries.

The start of something new!

2010-01-27T11:53:00.000Z

Hi there. My name is Emma-Jane and I'm an indie-dyer of beautiful, natural fibres for spinning and knitting. The area of the South-East of England that I live in was once covered in lavender fields, and is the inspiration for the name of this blog.

Over the next few weeks, I'll be adding some of my hand-dyed wool tops and yarns, and hand-spun yarns, too. These will all be available for purchase. Keep checking back!