Hands in Delight

A “Yarn Explosion” in the Historic Triangle? (Part II)

September 4, 2010 at 11:49 am Leave a comment

My vacation to the Historic Triangle continued to be filled with various fiber- and needle arts-related adventures. Surprisingly, while touring Jamestown, I ran smack-dab into another Raveler! I was drawn immediately to her “work in progress” as she knit during the tour of the Jamestown settlement.  Gosh….I was jealous. Why didn’t I bring a skein and hook along too?!?

Well, of course, we got to chatting about yarn – what else?!? She mentioned that this particular project that she was working on originated out of a “scrap yarn party” that she attended at her favorite LYS, Yarn Explosion, in Roanoke, Virginia. Everyone puts their scrap yarn in the middle of the floor and then each person picks up enough yarn to make a ball. You never know what bits and pieces you will get – imagine a ball of yarn filled with different colors and textures. What fun! Apparently, this is going to be a weekend-wear scarf. I can’t wait to see the finished project.

Later that same day, my oldest daughter and I tried spinning for the first time. ATTENTION all LYS owners, I am happy to report that you have nothing to worry about – you are not losing this valuable customer. Yep LYS owners, your revenues are safe. Your bottom line will surely not suffer in the slightest bit. It appears as if I must continue to spend a lofty amount on yarn as I was absolutely terrible at spinning! Nevertheless, it was great fun!

And my finished product……let’s just say, I won’t be quitting my day job to sell my handspun yarn any time soon . Yikes!

Before I close, I want to share some more needle arts-related highlights from my trip.   

• We attended a hand-sewing lesson in Yorktown which illustrated the methods used in the 18th century to create women’s wear. I was particularly drawn to the lovely workbasket resting in the sun during our chat with the young woman who was demonstrating these techniques.

• We also visited the millinery at Colonial Williamsburg. This amazing gown was hand-sewn, taking a mere 180 days to complete. Apparently, each gown would have been custom-made on the woman requesting the garment – think a live dress form. The fabric was pinned onto the woman’s undergarments according to the desired design, removed, and then hand sewn to fit.

Well, that’s it for now. Stay tuned for Part III. The last stop on our trip was definitely the “cherry on top.” I seriously augmented my stash, and with the good stuff!

Entry filed under: Crochet in History, Crochet in the News, Potpourri. Tags: .