Summer Fair wrap-up and new work

Hello, friends. The League of NH Craftsmen Annual Summer Fair is a wrap! We had good weather and a very nice turnout. I met a lot of friendly folks and truly appreciate their support. I added some new pieces to my body of work after having been successfully juried in the “Stitchery” division of Fiber. This handbag, which I designed to highlight my handwoven wool fabric, was the first piece to find a new home:

Overshot textiles, shawls, and kitchen towels were among the most popular items this year. Here are a couple of snaps!

Since the Fair I’ve been working hard to complete custom requests and to prepare for my next event, the NH Wool Arts Tour. The rigid heddle weaving workshop at Harrisville Designs is also coming up in September. It has been fun getting ready for that, too! I’ve prepared written support material for the class participants to take home.

I am interested in continuing to explore overshot weaving structures with polychrome (varied coloring) warps. This sort of thing just really turns my crank. An overshot design is a pretty finicky business to begin with and while the color changes add to the complexity, I find that the color changes in the warp help to define the sleying and threading whilst warping. Maybe that is just how I see it. In any event, I am looking forward to doing more of this sort of thing. Here’s an example:

So there we are… And I’m busy in the veggie garden. The tomatoes are a bust this year (too much rain and chilly weather) but the cucumbers and eggplants are doing well. We have several very hungry and unmannerly woodchucks living around the property, so I am trying to dissuade them from dining on my flowers and vegetables. One of these deviants has learned to climb onto the deck and found the basil growing in a pot. I read online that Irish Spring soap can help deter varmints. Maybe some animals resist it, but the critters here actually nibbled it.

Be safe and well, friends.

Kate K.