The connections you make

 One of the greatest treats for me as an artisan is to have someone show me how they took something I worked to create and used it for their own act of creation. I love chatting with people at the markets and shows, and of course hearing that people appreciate the work I do, but seeing the joy others get from working with my products to make something unique to them. So far I have only have two ladies show me their work, I have had people stop by to tell me how well recieved a gift purchased from me was.

Trust me, the craftspeople you see in the markets want you to not just buy our work we make, we want it to bring you joy, we want it to enrich your life. If it is a finished good we want you to love using it and remember why you brought it, who you were with, the beauty of the day and the experience of meeting the artist. If it is a supply, ingredient, or tool, we want you to use it, to touch it and have all those memories, to make with it or to make it into something that carries all those meanings with it.

So the next time you find yourself at a craft fair or farmer's market, stop by and tell them you liked the product or art work you bought, show us what you made, tell the farmer the tomatoes you bought at the end of the year made amazing tomato sauce your family enjoyed all winter, tell me your sister loved the shawl you bought her, or how much your baby enjoys crawling on the blanket. I won't be sitting there thinking "I hope she buys more" all though if you want more I won't stop you! I will be glad to know the energy, love, and work I sent out into the world is appreciated.

If you bought a skein or roving from me, I would LOVE to hear about what you made, how you liked the yarn, and what you learned while working on it! So a big thank you to this client for stopping by last week wearing the hat she made from the skein of grey scale yarn she bought two weeks before. You absolutely made my day and the hat looks great!

~Julia

In the studio, in the market

This is in process, I got this really, really dirty Cotswold fleece and after washing, picking, and carding it I started to spin it. It still had too much lanolin for me to be comfortable with so I stopped at a single and washed it again. It came out great. I am considering dying it now and plying it as a boucle or spinning the rest of the fleece and deciding then.

I have been working on a blind breed study with the ladies of my spinning guild. This one was fun to spin and knit. I am still not sure what breed it is but, it will make a great sweater.

This is another breed in the study and is soft and full.

This is a fun picture. The yarn is from the breed study, I am making it into a nice welcome mat. The sleeping cat is Racer, he is good company and well mannered enough to know that the yarn and roving is NOT a cat toy.

My both at the Westosha Market showcasing my new woven scarves. Also hats, hand-dyed roving in natural and acid Dye and some jewelry! That's Melanie in the back, she runs things at the market and is absolutely great with help and ideas.

Here is some of mine and some of Dad's amazing woodwork, he really knows how to let the wood speak for itself, shining the story of the life of tree into a functional bit of artwork. The crochet hooks are a dream to work with!

Very one needs a friend, someone to keep you company, talk you through the troubles in life, be there for the great things, convince you to let good of that which causes you no end of stress, inspire you to craft more and be the you you're meant to be, and watch your booth while you grab a lemonade or run to the bathroom. This is one is mine. Thank you Resee for always being there when I need you.

Notice the lemonade!

Pleasant surprises

I pulled this off the loom on Sunday night. A loose weave scarf I have been working on. I was excited to both get it done and to see what it looked like after washing. You may not know this but the weaving process is not done - really - until after the item is washed. The washing set the weave structure and reveals any lace patterns you may have played with. This is done in plain weave, so no lace to reveal, but because it is a loose weave the strands shrink and move in that first washing to it's final location. What you see while weaving is not exactly what you get. 

So this is the Scarf after washing, it lost about an inch and a half in width and is in general a tighter structure that it seemed on the loom. The process is interesting - to me anyway. This fabric that I have been calling a scarf is however not destined to be a scarf. I will be making three (hopefully) day purses from it. So on the the surprise purse line here at MoonBound ArtisanShip. They will be lined with a cross-body strap and maybe some leather detailing.

I have spent a lot of time - at least it seems so to my inner artisan who wants to be making something at all times and sometimes thinks eating is overrated - on paperwork issues this month. Typesetting a stamp for labeling and billing at shows, show applications, and web stuff. All of this is a necessary part of running a crafts business, some parts of which  are more fun than others. A dear friend helped me out with some photos for my storefront and I hope to soon be able to boost her signal for her Photography and other craftiness.

Some changes

Washed Cotswold wool

... and comes out the other side much cleaner and opened up.

Then I card it up.

Fluffy batt waiting to be spun.

The wool enters the picker...

I've been trying to decide what the right direction is for me as an artist, a businesswoman, and a Mom.  Hopefully the changes I am making will bring me closer to my goals. Check out the new market site. I'll be posting more show date as soon as they are confirmed.