Carson Sierra Spinners and Weavers: Minuets for March 2011

SPRING in NEVADA

Carson Sierra Spinners and Weavers Guild meeting was held at South Valley Library March 8th 2011
Meeting started at 11 am with introductions.
Treasurer Report: Doris stated she was given 2 dues, we sold 5 spindle kits. The liability insurance, $519 was paid for the year, leaving the guild with a total of $2422.50 in account. There are currently 31 paid members.
Fair Report: The Nevada State Fair was canceled for the year 2011. The fair is working on paying debts for last year, and trying to avoid bankruptcy. The guild voted to donate $300.00 to the state fair to help. The vote was yes, so Doris will provide a check to Amy to give to the state fair board.
No Weaving Study update.
Denise Quirk was present as a representative of the Soroptomist Club, to inform us about the cowboy poetry reading event to be held at Bartley Ranch on August 19th and 20th. They are expanding the program to include a marketplace, and have invited our guild members to participate. Discussion followed regarding participation. If you are interested in being a vendor at this event, please contact Denise for resale information. If you are interested in participating with the guild, please let Virva know.
There is some donated equipment, specifically a tapestry loom, bobbin winders, and shuttles that will be made available for silent auction at our annual retreat in the fall.
Don’t forget the spindle retreat in Dobbins Ca, May 19th - 22nd. It looks like many of our members will be attending and it sounds like fun.
New Business: Carson City Farm Days will be held April 14, 15th at Fuji park in Carson City. There will be an area indoors where members from the guild will be demonstrating for the children. Toni and Ellen will be outside in the barn area with a llama and an alpaca. The children love this event. They ask great questions, and are usually very attentive. You are welcome to come and participate. Lunch is provided. Plan on being there from about 8:30 am to about 1:30 pm each day. Bring your wheel, or something else you thing the kids might be interested in learning about.
In the latest issue (spring 2011) of Spin off magazine, Stephanie’s helix scarf project is featured. It is a great article, and includes a scarf that Nancy Prior knit up. Also available through the interweave store is the Aldon Amos dvd (ready for pre order), and Stephanie’s spinning cotton dvd.
The date for the Celtic Fair may be changed. As of now, it is September 24 and 25th, but this could change. Update will be made available as soon as we are notified.
Jeanette Miller of Sierra Nevada Alpaca in Red Rock is looking for homes for some of her alpacas. If you or someone you know is interested in owning a couple of alpacas, please contact Jeanette at 775-969-3871 for more information.
Show and Tell: Mim - Shetland hats spun and presented as kits. Sharon - fabric purchased in New York sewn up into a pair of pajamas offered up for the raffle. Melanie- mink yarn, bone needles, ufo hat. Sharie - color dye books Wild Color and Color in Spinning.
The meeting was adjourned with a demo of a McMorran yarn balance by Sharon, and the second dvd Gentle Art of Plying by Judith MacKenzie to follow.
Those in attendance at the meeting were: Toni Strassburg, David Armer, Melanie Carr, Denise Quirk, Virva Porcelli, Sharie L. Jones, Carol Lopez, Barbara Greene, Victoria Klasch, Amy Shannon, Libby Hejny, Janet Drozd, Marilyn Clarke, Doris Woloszyn, Peggy Horan, Carolyn Thompson, Sharon Campbell, Mim Bullard, Jo Van Winkle.
Our next meeting on April 9th will be a pot luck at:
Bartley Ranch:. Drive .8 mile west from the intersection of McCarran Blvd and Hwy 395. Turn left (south) on Lakeside Drive and continue .4 mile. Bartley Ranch is at the north base of Windy Hill. Turn left on Bartley Ranch Road and continue several hundred feet to the main parking lot. Cross the covered bridge and turn right into the parking lot for the School House

Toni sent in a cool story about her "WINTER BLUES"

I got bored one day not too long ago because I think it was snowing outside and I could not go out and play so I decided to play indoors. It started with some roving I had been saving, bought at the SOAR marketplace back in 2006. I had finally spun it up. It was something put out as a special SOAR blend called Deep Waters, Dark Woods produced for Carolina Homespun to celebrate SOAR being held at Lake Tahoe. It turned out beautiful as singles, but I had some reserve about plying it together. I also wanted the 4 ounces spun up to go a bit further, so I decided to find something else to ply it with. I dug through the copious fiber bins upstairs in my wool room, and found some white tussah silk I purchased from Mim a while back. Just the right thing to pair with the mixed blend textured singles, but it was white. Who wants to spin boring old white when you can have say, blue fiber to spin? I dug out my big dyepot and the rest of my gear, and (CAREFULLY) set about mixing up a blue that would compliment and be reminiscent of the water at Lake Tahoe. Using Gail Callahan's Hand Dyeing Yarn and Fleece as a guide, I managed to put a nice deep blue in my white silk. I used a mixture of blue, violet, and black from a dye kit produced by Judith MacKenzie. After letting the exhausted dye bath cool, I removed the fiber and hung it along side the fireplace to dry. The next day I had blue silk to spin. I have since finished the spinning, and the yarn sits in a basket next to my chair while I decide what to make with it. I was a bit hesitant to dye fiber in the kitchen, but with the instruction from the book and attention to safety, it was a day well spent. Toni