Hampton Plantation, McClellanville, SC

Today a friend and I went to Hampton Plantation State Park for a spinning demo. Not a ton of people attended but we did our best to explain and try to lead others down the rabbit hole of
a spinning addiction. One ranger that Gaye had met the previous year, had a hand spindle
and was diligently working on learning to spin yarn. Ms. Ranger was gifted some plain white roving and a left over piece dyed piece to help her in her practice. I think by next year she will be on a wheel!  She was very eager to learn, which is always a good sign.

We were inside in the Ball Room, also known as the Long Room as it was 34 Ft. long. The enormous floor boards were 34 ft long as well I didn't see where they were pieced at all, (although truthfully I didn't cover the entire room). There was a fiddle player, indigo dyeing by a Ranger who had also worked at Mabry's Mill on the Blue Ridge Parkway! The plantation was known for growing a type of rice called Carolina Gold, not only because of it's reddish gold husk but also for the enormous amount of revenue it generated in its day. We mostly stuck around our section but did venture out at the beginning to see the Indigo dyeing process. There were some militia men in period garb and I'm clueless as to who or what else was there.

Here are some pictures I took while there. I did manage to spin a partial bobbin of lovely Jacob combed top and then start on the 2nd bobbin to ply, hopefully for sock yarn!

New Spinning

Someone in our Facebook Group, Low Country Spinners, posted a pic of some gorgeous recycled Sari Silk she had spun up for a weaving project. I was inspired to pull some out of my stash and have a go.



This what the sari silk looks like in the ball and on the bobbin.
















Sari plied with a wool and wound off the bobbin into a ball.

From the ball to the skein winder and 168 yds. of 50/50 wool/recycled sari silk.

I'm inspired to do some more now in other colors!  You can find this on the Handspun Yarn Page. It's ready to be adopted!

Hand Dyed Yarns

 Hand Dyed Yarns

Some Thoughts

There are many things to consider when purchasing hand dyed, Indie Dyed, Hand Painted, Kettle Dyed yarns. One of the 1st things is that no two dyers will produce the same things. I guess as you stroll along your journey into the world of fiber arts, there are certain paths we tend to gravitate towards. For some it is color, others prefer textures, there is the path of knitting, crochet, and weaving and spinning. Mine was color! Back in the 1970's there was a resurgence of home crafts and spinning and weaving were once again quite popular. For me it was spinning. I had already learned to crochet and knit and spinning was the next natural thing for me, after that it was dyeing and after that, weaving and for most of my adult life has been spent bouncing back and forth between them. 

One of the groups I am on in Facebook, had quite the discussion the other day. It seems someone had purchased some hand dyed yarn and part of the skein had darker colors and part of the skein had softer colors.  Said someone knit a pair of socks and they were noticeably different. I don't know where she purchased the product and I don't really care. The point is, everyone had their panties in a twist over the color variation. Hello?? It is Hand Dyed, meaning it was done by hand, and I have to assume here it was human hands meaning because of this, there would be some variation. In the first place, don't knit 2 whole socks and THEN complain about it. When you start to see a difference you are not happy with, stop knitting.  There were other dyers flaming said dyer over this. I have news for you, everyone's products are different. If you're going to knit socks and it bothers you that much, buy one of the well known brands or make your socks a solid color. Some responsibility falls on the knitter for not stopping when she noticed it.  I know of only a few dyers in the business that actually use formulas for their dye stocks and they consistently product luscious colorways. Chances are if you purchased from her last year and need more of a roving or yarn, it is going to match pretty darn close. 

I am a fly by the seat of my pants dyer and always have been. I usually dye 2-3 skeins of yarn in a dyepot and chances are they are not going to be exactly alike. I would be surprised if they were! Depending on which technique I have used, I have had 3 skeins come out that look nothing alike. Strange but true! I have had clients ask if I would be vending at this show or that and the answer has always been no. I am a solo operation, always have been and even in my younger days I wouldn't have done it. Now I don't have the inclination or the vehicles to carry everything. 

Every dyer produces a unique product just like every other dyer. Enjoy each and every one! Revel in the uniqueness of every skein! I can only hope that my clients will enjoy using my products every bit as much as I enjoy creating them!