Winter Mountain Fiber Fix

I attended the Winter Retreat in Asheville, NC held by Friends and Fiberworks yarn shop at the Biltmore Mall Saturday, January 19. They offered a variety of workshops and had several vendors in a unique setting... a mall! Actually the empty stores were perfect places to hold small workshops. The organizers even arranged for rooms at very reasonable rates at the adjacent Comfort Suites which included an excellent breakfast!

A Mokume Bark Felt workshop with well-known felter fiber artist Chad Alice Hagen of Asheville was just the ticket... Chad was leaving the next day to take a bookmaking workshop at Arrowmount where she often teaches. She is often on the teaching schedule at John Campbell.

Mokume is a Japanese shibori technique which creates a bark-like texture and look on the needle felted wool fabric. The seven participants felted, stitched and resist dyed the pre-dyed wool batts and created beautiful scarves. I was delighted with the scarf I created and I'm looking forward to doing more. I've deemed 2013 the Year of Exploration on Felt!

A quick reunion with Esther Rogers, who came to Savannah give us an art yarn spinning workshop a couple years ago, was a delight! Esther hopes to come back to Savannah this spring to do a workshop at Jen's Frayed Knot. A shopping spree at Friends and Fiberworks to get some novelty yarns for the Taste of Nuno Felting workshop I'm teaching in March for the Fiber Guild of the Savannahs was very productive.

Sunday, after the workshop, was time to explore southern North Carolina's fiber arts heritage. A drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway to the Folk Arts Center was lovely and the work in the center was so inspiring! Weavings from traditional mats to fine tailored and funky textured clothing filled the shop and galleries. All of the work of the Southern Highlands Craft Guild: pottery, woodwork, quilting, glass, leather, was exceptional.

It was hard to leave... but on to Black Mountain for a walk around Lake Eden home of famous Black Mountain College (someday I plan to write the sequel to Woven: a Bauhaus Memoir where my alter ego Anna Werke winds up at Black Mountain College with the Albers -- so trips to the Asheville area must include stops at the college sites in Black Mountain) We then went into the town of Black Mountain for a visit to Nice Threads Fiber Gallery behind the red door... for more inspiration! (There are a great deal of talented fiber artists in this part of the world!) I picked up some yummy wool and bamboo top to spin and some colorful locks before heading back to Savannah.

What a wonderful weekend in the mountains with my hubby -- and a fiber fix, too!

BLESSED

Well... There ya have it...I feel blessed! My oldest daughter Kristin and I had a nice chat about the word after she proclaimed that she felt "blessed". I told her that word was used a lot in the South and I wasn't sure how I felt about it. I kind of feel a bit pretentious when I use it... But by her definition it's much more than "lucky" or "fortunate" and definitely has a spiritual component to it... And by that definition yes... I too, FEEL BLESSED!

I've been rather silent for months now. A lot has happened... Some great... Some not so great, but... I AM truly blessed: I have a sexy husband who continually makes me feel loved, four fantastic children with four amazing significant others, four adorable grandchildren, a wonderful family, supportive and nurturing friends, my fiber art which enriches my soul, a summer home on our sailboat on Lake Champlain, our beloved new city of Savannah that fills me with joy as I am able to walk the beaches at Tybee and under the spreading live oaks dripping with Spanish moss downtown, and my bike rides on windy trails through tall Southern pines and Palmettos.... and this is only part of what makes me feel blessed!

Last April I had news that rocked my world for a bit... But I refused to let negative thoughts rule the day. What I thought was a sore on my tongue due to biting it.. turned out to be squamous cancer on the left side of my tongue. Several doctor visits later we decided on a course of action... Quoting my rather young but very competent radiologist ... I decided to have my wonderfully talented ENT surgeon "whack it off"... and if necessary, Dr Doogie Howser would "mop it up later" if necessary. Surgery was scheduled for May 5... A mere 3 weeks from the discovery by biopsy of the cancer. I'm happy to report that I'm healed! Dr R was able to cut off enough of the side of my tongue that the edges were cancer free.. And so far so good... No recurrence!... And no radiation needed, which made last summer on the lake glorious! Taste has returned and numbness is almost gone... And LIFE IS GOOD. I am BLESSED!

I hope that the 2013 brings you and your family and friends many blessings. I will do my best to be more prudent in updating by blog. I'll add some collages I made of my Christmas knitting projects... 2 stuffed animals, 2 fingerless arm war,wars, 3 pairs of socks, 2 fair isle hats and a long cozy cowl.I've also been busy weaving... But more about that in a future post.

HAPPY NEW YEAR Y'ALL!!!