sweetgeorgia

Retreat

I need a vacation. Yeah, I know this is technically the end of summer vacation but… but… Astor is hosting a knitting retreat this Fall at Hollyhock on Cortes Island. Hollyhock is an educational retreat centre that hosts programs, camps, and workshops about everything from Tibetan Buddhism to Sea Kayaking to Poetry to Ashtanga Yoga… plus they also offer massages! That would be perfect… do a little knitting and then go for a massage… The retreat is called “A Pull of Wool” and runs from September 29 to October 2.

Unfortunately, I can’t go because I’m taking the three-day Colour Institute workshop with Michele Wipplinger as part of the Maiwa Textile Workshops. Actually, I’m taking dye workshops nearly every weekend in September, starting this Friday… I’ve got “Introduction to Dyes” with Anne Babchuk which will give an overview of all different kinds of dyes — including fibre-reactive (procion), acid (washfast and lanaset), and vat dyes (like indigo). I’m also taking “Natural Dyes” with Charllotte Kwon which should result in a reference book of 80 different natural dye samples. The class I was really hoping to take was “Precision Dyeing” which is all about using Procion MX to create a complete colour wheel… but the class falls on the same weekend as my five-year wedding anniversary… So it was celebrate my wedding anniversary or dye, celebrate or dye…

And there is weaving to do… I finally finished dressing the loom with some leftover silk warp and started this little stole. It’s 20/2 silk in a block twill. I basically threaded groups of twelve ends on shafts 1,2,3,4 or 5,6,7,8 somewhat randomly. This is really a test for a bigger silk shawl I plan to do and I just wanted to see how big the blocks might be and how it would look overall. But I was up until about 1 am last night fixing a couple threading errors and had to fashion my own string heddles to do so… very cool. I feel kind of empowered now. And using all eight shafts and ten treadles? Also very empowering. I like.

Oh, yes. And there is also knitting. In fact, I finished Sizzle. But there are no photos. Taking photos of yourself by yourself is hard work. So instead, I have photos of the Diamond Fantasy Shawl in progress…

Mmm hmm. And deadlines. And work. And more work. I’m tired. I think the very best news that I’ve heard in a long time is that we are returning from Hong Kong a couple days early (the travel agent’s mistake) and we’ll be able to squeeze in a surf trip to Oregon. It’ll be the very last weekend in October. The water will be cold but I can’t wait.