Spinning & Felting

Tj and susan
My love affair with fiber began when I was 8. My father was a teacher and every summer he took a job as a counselor at a summer camp. We would pack up our old station wagon (long before the modern minivan!) with everything including our poor old cat, Tabby, and head for the mountains.

We were housed in the health/nursing cabin. During the day, the cabin was staffed by a registered nurse who was known to me as Grandma Casey. She would show up early every morning with her spinning wheel. When she was not helping campers, she spun and I watched. It wasn't long before she offered to teach me to spin on a drop spindle. I was caught.
When I was a junior in high school, my parents bought me my first spinning wheel for Christmas - an Ashford Traveler. I worked summers at the Old Stone Fort Museum in Schoharie, NY and occasionally at the Blenheim Breakabeen Power Authority Museum. Between tours and customers, I had time on my hands so I took my wheel to learn. I quickly learned that spinning is a great conversation starter!

I fell in love with fiber all over again when my husband and I started our alpaca farm 20 years ago. I have had the joy of regional and national fiber shows as a participant, exhibitor, and learner. I always came home with new ideas and skills (and the occasional ribbon! Pretty proud of that second place spinning ribbon at the national level!)

I am intrigued with the different properties of all kinds of fiber for spinning, wet felting, needle felting, knitting and fulling.

Spinning Wheels

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