I want to share a little story about two community yarn shops and how I feel about them. There was a shop close to our house in Washington, and I shopped there on and off for two-and-a-half years. I also took a class on Fair Isle there. The ladies who owned and operated the shop were very nice, but none of them ever learned my name. I never felt that I was a part of the community there, that I would be missed if I stopped coming in. Now don't get me wrong - I wouldn't say that the place was cliquish or cold; they probably just had a lot of people coming in and out, and I was just one of the masses. I often thought that it would be worth it to drive further into Seattle to find a shop that seemed to "fit me" better. And then we moved.
Fast forward to today, in Corvallis, Oregon. There is one yarn shop in town, and soon after we moved I went to the shop to pick up some yarn. The owner was very friendly, and she invited me to an upcoming knit night. I went, and the small shop was overflowing with knitters and crocheters. I was warmly welcomed and had a great time. Conversation drifted toward spinning, and I mentioned a desire to learn. As luck would have it, a class was coming up at the shop on learning how to spin with a drop spindle. A full week later I called the shop to sign up for the class. While I was on the phone the owner saw my name being written down on the class list and I heard her say, "Oh, Amanda signed up! That's great!" *HUZZAH!!* That's what I'm talking about! That's the intangible sense of community that had escaped me for so long in Washington. Imagine my glee - I think I've found my place!
And now, on to the juicy bits. As you can guess from the above, I finally gave in to my longstanding urge to learn to spin. For about the last year or so I've been having secret thoughts about how amazing it would be to learn to spin my own yarn. But, I always talked myself out of it. "No. No no. I've only been knitting for a couple of years, and I really should concentrate on improving my skills before picking up a new hobby. And besides, I already have all of that yarn in the stash..." But I have also been inspired by other budding spinners, and I've been secretly wishing that I too could learn. And now, finally, I've taken the plunge and attended my first spinning class! My singles are thick and thin and horrifying, but I am so proud! I have made yarn out of sheep fiber! The idea of being able to go from fiber to sweater is so amazing and exciting, and I just can't wait to learn more.
Our instructor gave us three kinds of wool to practice with, along with a top whorl drop spindle made from a wooden dowel and two CDs. Neat! The fiber on the left is what is on the first "bobbin," and of course I completely forget what it is. The fiber on the right has shorter fibers, so it should be a little different to spin than the first batch. I am saving the purple pencil roving for dessert, which I have to earn by spinning all of the other stuff first. I almost bought some fiber from Blue Moon yesterday, but I decided that I have to earn that, too, by at least finishing my spinning class and learning how to ply. But I have to tell y'all, even though it's only a few days into it, I'm having the absolute best time spinning (such as it is). And I'd like to ask, Lord, please keep me from the wheels until after I finish my degree...
