So, it’s a new year!

The latest Mythic Fiber Club is finally mailed out, the latest big update is up, and… the world turns. Which means it’s time to talk about the future. Gnomespun’s and mine. Don’t worry, I’m not closing it down. I still have to pay bills for the foreseeable future.

However, I have something new starting. I’m going to be volunteering in a toxicology lab at UMass Amherst. This is definitely a good thing.

After all the up and down and back and forth over jobs, I’ve ended up going 2 years without active science on my resume. This is not so great a situation for trying to get a job in this economy with the government cutting funding to just about everyone who funds biologists. So now that’s ending, and I’m putting active science back on the resume, getting a new letter of recommendation, some new skills, etc. If I’m really lucky, maybe I’ll even get a new publication.

It does mean my time will be compressed. This is pretty much a full time position, plus 2 hours of commute every day. So, what does this all mean to you guys? It means there won’t be a winter Mythic Fiber Club. I’m still hoping to do another one in spring. There will be updates, but I don’t know right now how frequent or large they will be since I will be dyeing on nights and weekends.

So! Gnomespun will continue to be around, but slightly different for the next 3-4 months.

That’s all for now!
~The Gnome

So, a couple people have asked me how to be as up to date as possible on Gnomespun shop updates.

Updates will hit here first, with a post to the blog. So if you follow the RSS feed (say in Google Reader) then you’ll see it there.

Within a minute or two after, there will be posts on the

Ravelry Group
Twitter Feed
Facebook Page

So that’s how you keep up to date.

~The Gnome

Hello again. Dyeing continues apace, and I’ve actually finally gotten to something I’ve wanted to do for the site for a while now.

I’ve added a reference page for breeds and fibers that Gnomespun has carried. It includes classifications of the breed, general descriptions of loft, fineness, softness, good purpose, etc.

As I note in the page, it’s not unbiased. It’s totally affected by what things I find each fiber to be well suited for, which sometimes does not match with what other people think.

So, here you go. Let me know if you see any problems or have any questions.

The Fibers

More updates coming!

~The Gnome

Gnomespun now has gift certificates.

Whee!

Sorry it took so long to get them. But, on the main site, you can now click on the button in the navigation bar to purchase gift certificates.

~The Gnome

So! Friday I dyed a whole bunch, and Saturday I got to play with spinning friends.

Today, I will update the fiber part. Tomorrow I’ll update the spinning part. And I’m currently dyeing more fiber as we speak… type… read… you know what I mean.

First a bit of housekeeping. I updated the home page a little, cleaned up formatting, made it more clear what I carry. Did the same for the shop. Nothing big.

The largest of the batch was more Wensleydale, so we’ll start with that. Most of these are on the shop. Some, however, are getting mailed off to a real brick and mortar store.

Friday was… a bad day. So I was exceptionally cranky, and barely let Self have any time at the dye pot (don’t worry he’ll get some today). Apparently when cranky, not only do I go for warm, I apparently go for BRIGHT.

I was on an orange kick. Because the Daylillies colorway wasn’t bright enough, I made it brighter. Pretty, if intense.

Bright Daylillies: 4oz Combed Wensleydale Top

Then, I decided, that was nice, but not bright ENOUGH (I swear that wasn’t what I was thinking, but sometimes my dye hands do what they want). And out came the summer flower Trumpet Vine.

Trumpet Vine: 4oz Combed Wensleydale Top
This one will likely get mailed

Finally I got myself to switch out of intense orange phase, and try some browns. Mmm brown!

One thing that always comes with summer, for my family, is rhubarb. And with rhubarb comes… strawberry rhubarb cobbler. Mmmmm… shiny like the steamy fruit…

Rhubarb Cobbler – 4oz Combed Wensleydale Top

And another spring/summer visitor, the purple finch! Softly colored, but with a bright warble. They make me smile. A good thought for a bad day. I love the subtle gloss of this one.

Purple Finch – 4oz Combed Wensleydale Top
This one will also likely be mailed

Then I figured, why just do inland birds? Another summer bird (ok, any time, but I don’t end up at the beach much in the winter), the sandpiper!

Sandpiper – 4oz Combed Wensleydale Top

Now on a real brown kick, I went back to an old method I haven’t used since another fiber an age ago…

Brass Dreams – 4oz Combed Wensleydale Top

And finally a repeat of a colorway that never got to the shop, but was mailed to another event.

Summer Calls – 6oz Combed Wensleydale Top

Now we get into the non-Wensleydale fibers.

My last bit of the Alpaca/Merino/Silk, a small bit for a bit of lace perhaps? Back to those oranges again!

Daylillies – 2oz Combed 50% Alpaca / 30% Merino / 20% Silk Top

An ever popular colorway, a little different each time, and always different on different fibers, War for the Oaks. This fiber ate the brown and was not playing with the green.

War for the Oaks – 4oz Combed Merino Top

And a softer version of another colorway I’ve done before, one I like personally because of the images it evokes.

Forest Shadows – 8oz Combed BFL Top
This one’s probably getting mailed

Aaaand, finally, the first part of the next Spin-A-Sweater.

Moss – 1lb Carded Romney Roving
The next piece(s) will be in Earth and Stone

And that’s all for now. Off to update the shop!

Oh right, and this creepy little guy crawled out of the pages of my sketchbook! Watch out, he’s got long fingers for fiber!