A very fun evening workshop with Wendy.
Wool Applique Tag Workshop
Join us on Wednesday, March 28 to create a fun luggage tag for your spinning wheel. These tags double as business card holders so you will never again be without your Treadles to Threads Guild business cards to hand out.
Wool fabric, thread, needles, backing material, templates and Treadles to Threads business cards will be supplied by the guild. Wendy will demonstrate the techniques needed and guide the tag making process. We will have enough time for each person to put together a tag and start the embroidery process. Creating these tags is fun and addictive!
Please bring a pair of small sharp scissors as well as a thimble (if you have one). We will be making small cuts in little pieces of colorful wool that has been pre-bonded to fusible interfacing. We will then iron the pieces onto a precut tag to set it in place prior to stitching. The guild will provide ironing stations. The design choices are unlimited. Come to the meeting and join us in the fun!!!
DATES FOR YOUR CALENDAR - 2018
- Mar. 28, Treadles Meeting at the Library
- April 25, Treadles Meeting at the Library
- May 19, 21st Annual Spinning at the Winery
- Dye Day, date and theme [if any] still to be determined. Any input on this?
SPINNING AT THE WINERY
An update for the coming 21st Annual Spinning at the Winery: Date change from the usual first Saturday of June to Saturday, May 19. Everything else remains the same. Put it on your calendar and try to get the word out about the date change.
Remember, this is our big event of the year, make something great for the raffle, volunteer to work at one of the jobs for the day, and still lots of time to create something great from last year's T-Shirts. Lots were ice-dyed, but any kind of "decor" or repurposing is encouraged. Three $50 prizes will be awarded. No criteria, do whatever.
An update for the coming 21st Annual Spinning at the Winery: Date change from the usual first Saturday of June to Saturday, May 19. Everything else remains the same. Put it on your calendar and try to get the word out about the date change.
Remember, this is our big event of the year, make something great for the raffle, volunteer to work at one of the jobs for the day, and still lots of time to create something great from last year's T-Shirts. Lots were ice-dyed, but any kind of "decor" or repurposing is encouraged. Three $50 prizes will be awarded. No criteria, do whatever.
MEET THE SHEEP AT MERIDIAN JACOBS
Meet the Sheep is an annual event, now offered two days. Due to parking restrictions we now require reservations and a small fee per car--as many people as you want in your car. Your $10/car fee may be applied to a purchase of $20 or more (on the day of the event only). When you register use the number of vehicles (usually 1), not the number of people.
Go to the following site to make reservations:
https://www.meridianjacobs.com/module/class.htm?classId=246027
https://www.meridianjacobs.com/module/class.htm?classId=246027
Visit with the sheep that provide the fiber we all love! Lambs, kids (goats), and bunnies to pet! Farm Club members will be here to answer questions. Fiber arts demonstrations all day include spinning, weaving, felting, fiber preparation, and more.
Meridian Jacobs Shop is Open.
Meridian Jacobs Shop is Open.
DORIS HELPS OUT WITH THE LAMBING
As a Farm Club member, this is an annual activity where members are urged to come and help out. Here is Doris' photos and comments of the day:
"This is a lilac Jacob who was sired by Robin’s lilac ram. She was discussing his tendency to produce a slightly inconsistent coat on babies and pointing out these temporary kempy fibers ( above, you can see some white hairs overlapping the black spot to the far right). But look at that face!
While I was there, Dilly, a yearling ewe, decided to lamb a bit early. She had a single, small baby out behind a feeder before we knew it. We managed to get them in a pen bedded down with fresh straw. At 4.6 lbs she’s half the average size but twice the cuteness! They named her Dally, quite
While I was there, Dilly, a yearling ewe, decided to lamb a bit early. She had a single, small baby out behind a feeder before we knew it. We managed to get them in a pen bedded down with fresh straw. At 4.6 lbs she’s half the average size but twice the cuteness! They named her Dally, quite
Lisa also has a photo with one of the babies who has the most unusual markings. She has been named "Zorra" in honor of the mask Zorro wears! What fun to see how the Jacob babies turn out.
 |
| Lisa holding Zorra |
FEBRUARY 28, 2018, 7:00 P.M.
THURMAN CASEY LIBRARY, WALNUT CREEK, CA
President Reba Siero called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m We had one visitor, Jen, who was referred to us by Linda Ross. There were 11 members present.
Treasurer Pam Murdock said we have a robust treasury. Please think of speakers, classes, equipment, etc., that could a valuable use of this money for our members. Sonja went to a class in Truckee on indigo from a teacher from Montana. Sonja felt there was little chance that she would travel, however. John Marshall was mentioned in relation to indigo He needs a particular housing arrangement and Maureen and her “girl fort” might help with that.
HGA Reno convergence 2018. Joan Anderson and Reba reported that there will be a $10 per day pass available at the vendor hall that would also cover the galleries. Saturday will also feature a Sheep to Shawl contest. T2T has decided to provide a lip gloss tube for the goodie bag for HGA attendees as requested by CHCH. These will be ordered in quantity for the best price and Vilija will design a label to identify our guild as the donor.
Spinning at the Winery 2018. Will and Kate brought the bookmark sized notices to be distributed by members. This year’s date of May 19, 2018, is being well received after the change from June. Joan will begin bringing work detail sign-up sheets to Monday spinning. Morgaine’s schedule will be a little tight to get set at the winery after an out-of-state show. Please start working on the items for the raffle as it is our major fund raiser for the year.
Announcements: Will also brought the year’s schedule for the Crockett Train Museum. Forrest Home Farm, San Ramon, will have their shearing day, April 21. Reba and Doris Bergman will be the contacts for this year in Wendy’s stead. More information later on this. Barbara Shapiro will be the featured speaker at Valley Stitchers this month. She will share her expertise and experiences about natural indigo dying. There is a $5 guest fee. Vilija found 57" wide fabric of 60/40 hemp and silk at Dharma. Megan has a broken foot.
Show and Tell: Although there were few of us, there were marvelous things shared.
Program:
Vilija brought in her AV equipment set-up and showed the program from Interweave’s newsletter/blog. This video showed the hard work that Dan Carver and his wife have put in on their 50 square mile ranch on the Columbia Plateau in northeast Oregon. The Imperial Stock Ranch is in it’s 147th year of farming. Sheep have been part of the ranch all along. By careful resource management, the ranch runs on rotational grazing and dry farming with careful water management.
When Ralph Lauren’s Polo brand was looking for American producer’s to manufacture the Sochi Olympic regalia for out athletes, the Imperial Stock ranch was contacted. The Polo group came to the ranch and worked with the Carver’s to get yarn spun, fabric created and clothing designed for the Olympics. Hats, mittens and some clothing was used in both the Sochi, Japan, and South Korea games. The Imperial yarn business was sold in 2015, but the ranch is still in business. The reconstructed ranch house, the Richard Hinton home, is on the National Register of Historic Places, as it was set up along the Oregon Trail.
Then type in "American Wool Wins for U.S. Olympics"
MOUNTAIN MEADOW WOOL MILL
Will and Kate visited this mill not too long ago and told us a bit about them. It is also where Jacob Meridian sends their wool to be spun. Its not a viable alternative for us home spinners after purchasing a single fleece, you need 400 lbs to get something done, however, they have an interesting story and a great on-line shop. It is worth it to support these kinds of businesses if we want the fiber industry to make a comeback in this country. This article excerpted from Interweave Knitting Daily.
"In the shadow of the Big Horn Mountain range sits Mountain Meadow Wool, an American spinning mill dedicated to preserving and protecting the American wool industry. In 2007, Mountain Meadow opened its doors offering fair trade prices and ecologically friendly practices to local Wyoming ranchers. Mountain Meadow is known for its unique Mountain Meadow Merino™—a springy, rustic, and unexpectedly soft wool.
"This story of Mountain Meadow began more than 30 years ago when owner Karen Hostetler signed up for a weaving class at Colorado State University. Her love affair with fiber extended to knitting and spinning, which sustained her fiber passion while she raised seven children. In 2002, when her kids headed off to school, her interest in fiber expanded from personal crafting into a small business venture.
"After visiting several yarn shops, she noticed that there was little-to-no fiber available from Wyoming, which piqued her interest. Karen began researching and to her dismay discovered the American wool industry had plummeted over the past 20 years, threatening the tradition and culture of local Basque sheepherders—shepherds of the windswept plains of Wyoming since the late 1800s.
"Karen partnered with a friend, and together they set out on a journey to revitalize interest and added value to the sheep ranching industry while educating the public and offering top-quality, ecologically friendly yarns. Initially, they bought 400 lbs of wool from a local rancher, packed it, and hauled it up to Canada (the closest available wool processor at the time). Here, they were promptly stopped at the border crossing by several confused Canadian patrol guards. “They thought we were trying to smuggle something in the wool!” said Karen. After three hours of questions and searching, they were allowed passage into Canada returned home with 200 lbs of white, clean, beautiful wool, but they didn’t know where to go from there.
"Through a period of trial and error, help and advice from experts, and six grants through Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR), Mountain Meadow Wool was born. Karen currently works with sixteen local ranching families—each skein of yarn produced can be traced back to the source, connecting the knitter to the West and the story of Mountain Meadow Wool.
"To learn more about Mountain Meadow Wool, the mill, their LEGACY YARN CLUB and to sample their yarns, go here to their website and discover a gateway to the West.
To view a 4:26 minute, great video of the Mill and its workings: https://youtu.be/QXf1mYsv6Bo