In the pink.....

Afternoon in the studio...

Pink epitomizes the pinnacle of quality, according to the http://www.phrase.org/ - Elizabeth I admired the variety of dianthus flower as we now know as 'pinks' where the idea of excellence comes in. Whether the colour pink came first or the flower can be argued, but the verb is rather interesting, and being all things to me are wrapped around textiles - the verb pink, means to cut or pierce - the edges of the flowers look to be 'pinked' - voila - pinking shears!

I have a fondness for pinks - my grandmother's garden had a mass of them, but it was the smell that swept me away. My first bouquet from my husband was a posy of pinks.......however, I love tulips as well and today this is what swept me away. That and pink of course - it is just that time of year I guess. And it is quite a wonderful colour I must say - I am quite tickled pink to be celebrating the colour.

The dressed window at The Loom - advertising the Spin In! at Providence Farm this Monday - which just happens to be Valentine's Day. 10-2

Come and spin wool for the new Textile Program at Providence using the farm's wool. Lunch and wool will be provided. Bring your spinning wheels and spin to your heart's content.

Now what else has been happening at the studio these days. I can see why people write regularly on their blogs, as it is hard to keep up with all the goings on. It is my students that are working the hardest these days. I know I am teaching, but what they are producing is nothing short of wonderful. Michelle is working on a blanket that is so rich that it

is almost hard to be near it! There are these little sequins that wink at me when the light is right - wool, rayon, and our new favourite yarn Berroco Lustra.........

The blanket is threaded to a goose-eye block - very electric!

One of the other fabulous students, Alison, wove her first scarves with beautiful Sublime and Little Flowers, Lustra and Mochi Plus. When I think of the fibres we had 35 years ago, so limiting that you had to spin for interest. Now with knitting being so popular, the fibres available are amazing. We are so lucky to have such a variety. Speaking of fibres - the studio is now carrying a line of linen - we have a distributer right in the Cowichan Valley.
Alison is now on her second warp for handtowels ready to weave her twill sample - a variation on each towel.

My best weaving friend Ann and I had a draw down night a couple of weeks ago, both hand and PCW - we had a great time, but one of the best parts of the night was this wonderful book on stripes which I will make sure I include the title in the next blog. I cannot remember the name of the author and I would like to quote some of the content - it is sure to make you look at stripes a different way. If I can figure out how to edit in after posting, I will edit it when I get to the studio. I used her 'harmonies' of stripes as an example of designing stripes with Alison and Kate (who hates stripes) - and the 'striping' they are getting up to is awesome.

And then my dear student Nadine....she has the ability to make things happen when they are supposed to - all the planets are aligned in the right order and the energy around her just makes things happen. Nadine had a warp on for some time to do cushion covers for her dining room chairs - a bold red and brown warp, with this electric blue thread running at regular intervals........but it just stalled. Along came Nadine and along came Gaye from the Loom with this wonderful sari strips all sewn together and wow - chair covers woven in no time flat and

they are fabulous. I look forward to seeing them on the chairs in her beautiful home.

I have so much more to write, but I am saving some for the next blog which I hope to do soon - my favourite Shetland wool will be celebrated with Alberta's most wonderful warp - stay tuned.

And I leave you with Gabriele's stripes - pre-stripe book - she has the stripes down - lovely Super 10 and a hint of cotton boucle....it will be a beautiful runner - perhaps the weft will be linen....

And don't forget to put the Unfinished Project Project on your calendar. February 26th and 27th at Whippletree Junction in the courtyard, 10-3.........bring your mug, lunch, projects, yarn exchange etc. etc.

email if you have questions or phone the Loom.

Happy New Year! Images from 2010 not yet posted

I just found some photos that I meant to post throughout the summer and fall, but was too busy to do so. The above photo is so pretty, and although out of season, I was drawn to the colours. The yarn is all from Eastwin Farm - my friend Ann's mohair which I love - I used to also have mohair goats and I have a soft spot for mohair because of it. The white skein is the original of the solar dyed yarn that it nests on. What rose is that? It could be Mary Rose, Constance Spry or English Garden - probably English Garden. I am still enjoying these skeins and have something in mind, but have yet to get to it.

Cochineal dyeing was another whim my daughter and I had this past summer, which was really fun - but our favourite was hydrangea blooms - a lovely green. I have had second thoughts about dyeing with cochineal - something like 5000 pounds of the bugs are imported from South America a year - I really wonder if this is a good idea....would love to hear some comments on this.

The darlings of Eastwin Farm - aren't they so beautiful? I have to say, they are my favourite fleece animal. They have such dignity. My friend Sandy makes the most amazing little needlefelted goats that capture their sweetness - she also makes wonderful alpacas, sheep (Shetland, Churro, Romneys...). I remember reading in my old goat husbandry book that mohair could protect you from nuclear fall out!!!!

And a beautiful Queen Anne's Lace which is one of my favourite natural dyes - with just a handful of pennies to bring out that lovely green.

Gates, windows, doors - I love the symbolism of which they portray......Eastwin Farm again......

speaking of churro sheep...

During my days in the studio or working at The Loom, I am often visited by shepherds, especially my favourite shepherd, as I call him, my own personal shepherd - he brings gifts to me, like a truck load of Churro sheep, the Navajo rug sheep - my goodness they are lovely and the fleece colours are remarkable. I have quite a lot now, and although it is long and seemingly soft, it spins up coarse - a rug one day I am hoping. The history of these sheep leave me in awe...spinning this fibre connects me to the past.

Ann and I love to 'talk' weaving and pushing the structures into different perspective - don't know how to explain it, but between us we have about 75 years of weaving experience. We have both done sampling until we look like those samples - great little squares of weaving. And if you have studied in Banff, we all have those green binders full of samples that dear Mary Snyder made us mount and of course in the days that I was there, there were no computers, just hand written and well, some of the samples are pretty ugly.........when I teach, I encourage my students to sample, but the samples are project based. So Ann and I wanted to push the envelope around corduroy - instead of rug weaving, we were heading for towels............using cottolin and and linen naturally - our favourite fibre after mohair....this is my sample - when we were 'sampling', everything around us took on the look of corduroy - Ann phoned me on her way home one day to tell me that she was passing the vineyards and they looked like corduroy - we were obsessed - what better thing to be obsessed about, eh? I challenge all of you to take your samples and mount your favourites. I mounted the vineyards onto a painted canvas - used french knots to attach the little piece and the sample is there, a pretty little piece mounted - some of the corduroy is cut and some not. By the by, we made some face mitts, washed and dried and they are very soft and held up well. Now the next little 'sample' I am still working on after making a few scarves, is just a 6 shaft basket weave, but my sample is yet to be woven - I want to use text as the weft and just haven't figured out what to use - lots of ideas, just have to step into it - crossword puzzles are part of it though. It was an interesting little bit of weaving - used alpaca and silk and alpaca blend with a little ladder yarn and then Mini Mochi as the weft - the blend was quite lovely - sold in a heartbeat of course - hadn't had quite enough of it.

Anyway, it is time to end - I have lots of pictures of the last few months, but I will add them to the next blog - which should be soon, due to the sale at the Loom. I will endeavour to bring everyone up-to-date. Spring is on the way, it is getting lighter every day. Still have bulbs to plant, however!

Comfortable in Contradiction: Ode to materialism

www.leolasstudio.blogspot.com

Open House at Leola's Studio

This weekend, we are having an Open House. Come and join us or have breakfast at Pioneer House, stop for a bit of fudge at Beaver House Fudge (yum - they have the best Fudge Twizzlers...) and then have a coffee at Black Coffee and check out the paintings by Theresa Shand and some textile pieces by me, check out the yarn at The Loom, collectibles at Abby Gabby, consignment clothing at Gigi & Lulu's, the wonderful furniture, antiques and thrift store.........AND, Leola's Studio!!!!! where we will also have refreshments. Maybe Whip Whip Whippy the cat will be there and Bun Bun the rabbit! They appear when least expected, but do keep an eye out for them in the parking areas!

I will try to post a little more after this weekend, it has just been so very busy - lots of new ideas coming in all the time and many a wonderful student, learning about the fabulous world of textiles.

Craft fair-itis!!!

Well it is that time of the year when one must be prepared to assist in the Christmas madness - at the studio we are just mad! Lots of activity, what with students wanting to learn how to weave and make a couple of projects for gifts, getting ready for craft fairs, packing up, setting up, packing up, and setting up - such joy there is in taking the studio out into the world - and the feedback we get is fantastic, so it is worth the extra work I suppose, but mostly I just want to be in the studio to create, explore, teach and share the world of textiles - that is my joy. Thank you all for contributing to that joy - without you it wouldn't be as exciting and fun.

The Fleece and Fibre Show was fabulous and thanks to Annie and her committee, it was a success. We did have fun and I met so many people - thanks everyone for being so supportive and encouraging. I met with the committee for next year and I am very excited - more on that when we have information - just be sure that it will be great and inspirational.

There has been so much happening that I can hardly think of what went on. Suffice it to say, that a lot of creating has happened - we have new spinners and weavers in our midst and the world is richer for it. Watch out weaver's guilds, as you will soon have new members. Oh, on that note there is a Tzouhalem Weaver's Guild Show and Sale in Mill Bay until December something

Fall Ahead!

Fleece & Fibre Fair

Saturday October 23rd

10 - 4

Island Savings Centre

Duncan

Before I forge ahead, I want to remind all of you about the Fleece and Fibre Fair in Duncan this coming Saturday October 23rd at the Island Savings Centre - 10 - 4. See you there!!!

My friend Annie has done a superb job in organizing it and I saw her today in all her finery looking so very glamourous. Thank you so much for all the work you have done, I can hardly wait for Saturday - wish I were more ready!!!

It has been some months since I have written - not because I didn't want to, but because I have a difficult time finding time to do so. I was told recently that I should write something every week, but I can't work it in in my style of communication I guess. I value those blogs that are always updating - it is so interesting to read other's adventures but I cannot always read every blog either.

So I will try to keep this under 3000 words! Lots of pictures and how much time I have - my man towels are waiting to be hemmed!

The summer included lots of great discussion - one being the tea towel debate....having only sold traditional hand towels, I was surprised at what other weavers were selling their beautiful tea towels for. Poor Daphne and Karen had to listen to my diatribe for some time about the value of the weaver and the fibres and the structure and the length of time that they last whether cotton or linen etc. etc. So I held my ground and have sold all my hand towels for what I asked - weavers, you are skilled whether it be a tea towel or a scarf, towels should not go for less than they are worth - and they are a thing of beauty - a small art piece that women and men can use every day in a functional way - ahhh, such pleasure. Enough said.

The resident cat, Whippy, was scarce through the summer, along with Bun Bun the one-eyed

rabbit. However, they would appear when most of the tourists had gone for the day or early in the morning. I planted catnip in the spring for the cat, but it wasn't until this one day he finally found it and plopped himself next to for the whole afternoon, next to the cat teapot planted by Annie..........oh Whippy, you are a silly cat and so loved.

One of the best things I have had happen, is to have this wonderful young woman drop into the courtyard garden - Taryn, my new apprentice. Hardworking and a total joy to have in the studio, she is so very enthusiastic in learning anything and everything to do with textiles, especially weaving. Her very first warp was wonderful, she wove her first blanket in pink and the second blanket in natural colours and just recently purchased by a First Nations woman to wear in the Big House - now that is an honour.

This summer also presented me with a woman who is making a Leola's Studio adjustable weaving bench made from sustainable wood from the Cowichan Valley. It is a reasonable price and they are lovely. I will be bringing a couple to the Fleece and Fibre Fair this weekend - hey I will have a booth there too - I hope to see you there.

I have a few things to do before tomorrow morning so I am going to end here for now and continue after the Fleece and Fibre Fair. Leola's Studio has been open now for one year and we hope to have a little gathering open house near the end of November to celebrate the year and to have a Christmas show and sale as well - but more on that later. Hope to see you this Saturday! If you are interested in classes, let me know and we are still meeting on Sundays for knitting and spinning or crocheting or just come and have a chat.

Sundays at the Studio

I have the good fortune of having a lovely and lively group of women that meet on Sunday to knit and spin and 'yarn' about anything and everything - and learning something new every time. I invite you to come and enjoy the fabulous women (so far no men, although the travellers that pass through have many comments!). We usually begin around 10 and stay until we tire. I pick up my Cowichan Knitting Sisters, and then the day begins.....

Now what have I been doing this month? - a month of plenty and some changes also. My studio is expanding!!!! Well, a little room is all, but what a difference it will make - but renos are a big upheaval and so far I have been patient, but I am getting antsy. The reno, the heat and the many tourists that have come by, have made the studio exceptionally busy. However, it will be great to have all the floor looms (except my Cherryville loom, as she needs to be the centre of attraction - she's my best friend in all the world and we have been together since I was 16...) in one room, the student table looms will be in the entrance and near the best light, the warping area will be in the floor loom area as well. And the little sewing room is in the new part - a very small space, but it works.


The teapot garden is growing more teapots! One week, there were seven new ones and even today I noticed a couple of new ones. Thank you to all that may have 'planted' one. Yesterday a family of ladybugs moved in....



August has been a continuation of dyeing. My friend Ann and I have gone just a little crazy since our cotton dyeing escapades, which we continue as we design double corduroy and discuss the 'king's road' in great detail and the whys of pile and shag rugs and how they might translate to other functions and uses. It seems we have gone more crazy with this but we are having a heck of a good time and I have to blame her for sleepless nights - it is just too stimulating.
We dyed a lot of wool, but we started dyeing these wonderful blankets that Ann gets woven in PEI from her mohair.........although we have only technically dyed three blankets, we have already prepared and designed about 50 more! Horse troughs and block and tackle are some of the future ways of assisting us in our elaborate designs. For the most part, we had a wonderful time and our artistic needs were being met.


These goats are the inspiration and their mohair provides many a spinner, weaver and knitter quality fibre to create beautiful projects. I miss having mohair goats - I still have fibre from them, but they have since passed on and I am fortunate to have Ann's goats to fill that emptiness. Aren't they so pretty? Oh yes, the blankets......well, when these blankets are wet and hot, they are heavy and uncomfortable to move around, so we had great fun dealing with this, and Binder Bob the dog, didn't help much either - he moved too close to the burners and singed his hair and continued to 'help' us throughout the day - we kept putting him outside, but forgetting there was another door open and getting back to dyeing these heavy blankets and there he was again. Gave us yet another laugh though.


We likened the blankets to Tony Onley landscapes - please forgive us for this, but there are shadows where we would dip the blanket in a little more, a little more and so forth, that would then give us all these hills and valleys - and you just have to have been there I think - we weren't sure that they were really weird or really beautiful - it is quite wonderful to work big though....

We managed to fit in some time to pick some transparent apples, the whole time planning the next project, the next dyeing binge, and the next weaving exploration. We met again to put a warp on and when we realized the extent of this one small technique - and the endless possibilities, we were like two children just discovering Christmas or something - luckily there were no witnesses to our dancing and screaming outside the studio - or maybe it would have been a great thing to see!


I had brought some apples to a regular Whippletree friend who told me all about the blackberry/apple pies she was making but had no more apples................well, the next day I received a pie which I shared with Ann - have you ever cut a pie in half with a pair of scissors?? It works like a hot damn.

I am also teaching younger textile students and my youngest, Hannah came for a class after holidaying, and made a great bag that was a felted wool sweater and needlefelted it with polky dots....we had a lovely afternoon together creating and also planning the many things one could make with a shrunken sweater. Never, ever, throw out a shrunken sweater!!!

One the most important part of August is the big sale at THE LOOM!!!! 20% off all regularly priced knitting yarns.......lots of beautiful fibres. It is not too late to get more for your stash collection if you can't decide what you need! Karen and I put a display in the window of all the new beautiful cottons, linens and cottolins available too - although not on sale, there are some lovely new colours. There is some new Fleece Artist spinning braids just in too, although I have one student, not to be named of course, that seems to be able to smell the new Fleece Artist fleece!!!!


Well, I think that is about it, there is so much that happens on a daily basis at the Studio, that I can't get it down - the conversations and the connections that happen surely would blow anyone's mind is about how I can only describe my daily life - everyone contributes to the creativity of the universe and I am so very grateful that I can be a part of that. The generosity that abounds is most amazing. Thank you all for being a part of it. I leave you with the latest solar dyeing - tansy and queen Anne's Lace. I put a pinch of iron in the tansy and the jar of liquid turned it squid inky and the queen Anne's lace is light celery green. It has pennies, but I think I will put a pinch of copper in with it to give a better mordant............has anyone heard of the pennies and ammonia method? Hope to see you soon.