Crafts of Texture

Finally a day for wearing a my new hand knit jumper!

2011-12-06T09:51:00.001Z

Feeling nice and toasty today as I get to wear my new jumper. I finished it a while ago, but it hadn't been cold enough to wear it.

What have you made recently?

Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Sara's Texture Crafts Christmas Closure Dates

2011-12-01T09:06:00.001Z

I know a few of you follow and buy from me on other selling forums too, aside from the main website, so here are my closing dates...

Ebay/Etsy/Folksy/Dawanda/Amazon - close 14th of December

Main Website www.SarasTextureCrafts.com - closes 16th December

Everything will reopen on the 7th of January 2012.

After the exhaustive treatment I have undergone this past year and a half I really need to take a proper break. Until I close the shops I am here manning the stations ready for your orders, so if you need anything let me know.

I'd also like to thank everyone for being so supportive of Sara's Texture Crafts over the last year, I have enjoyed meeting many of you at shows and group event... even chatting on-line!

I wish you all a wonderful Christmas and a very happy new year!

Sara xx

Customer Photos: Helen's Shawl from my Alpaca Tops

2011-11-25T12:13:00.001Z

Today I'd like to share Helen's work...

Helen bought some of my Alpaca tops at http://sarastexturecrafts.com/category/206-felt-making-and-spinning-shop.aspx and hand spun a finer yarn than needed for the shawl pattern, as a way to aid the lacy effect she wanted. Helen commented that she found the Alpaca very rewarding to spin, although not the easiest fibre for her. I'm also the same with pure Alpaca, instead prefering to use it as a highlight blend... but there are many spinners who love to spin pure alpaca, including direct from the fleece. I would definately recommend trying it in top form if it is your first time and Helen found an easier draw from spinning from a 15" length, split lengthwise into 10 mini-tops... a finer top width in your hand can be easier to draw from on long staple fibres. It can also make lace spinning so much easier.

Isn't it beautiful?

If you'd like to try out the knitting pattern, it is called 'Shaelyn' by Leila Raabe and is available on Ravelry for $5.

Thank you for sharing Helen!

Sara x

New Handdyed tops in stock at www.sarastexturecrafts.com

2011-11-24T14:29:00.001Z

www.SarasTextureCrafts.com

The Frustrations on eBay for a Small Business

2011-11-23T11:54:00.001Z

Over the last two years I have heard a continuous rumble of discontent among fellow small businesses on eBay, some of which have led to shops closing their doors on the platform altogether. They centred their concerns on the new and more detailed feedback, top-rated and power seller systems, all of which I use daily. Whilst I remain completely sympathetic, my own experiences had been more positive than negative up until that point; both with the selling platform and its management. Yes, there aren’t always things I agree with, but generally I trade peacefully and with a high standard of feedback from customers… something that I strive for and pride myself on. This isn’t to say these other sellers didn’t do the same, just I think at that time I was able to see both sides of the new rules being implemented and whilst I didn’t agree they were fool proof (far from it, in their generalisations), I had up until the beginning of 2010 traded well for 4 years under Sara’s Texture Crafts.

During this time my relationship with the selling platform had also been a good one… I had helped beta test new tools and systems and I had been invited to meet-ups where a group of sellers were selected to talk directly with eBay representatives from the European eBay HQ. I felt a part of the community… a valued part of the community.

Since then my feelings have slowly changed and I find my experience with the platform deflating, unrewarding and increasingly and unnecessarily difficult.

Why the change? Well, I hadn’t set out to air my frustrations… I try to remain professionally up-beat as much as possible, particularly when I discuss business. I feel that this is tremendously imperative for customer relations… no-one wants to buy from a moaning-mini, right?! Far better the smiley face of a happy seller. However, I feel I need to explain the conclusions about my future presence on eBay and share what I feel many other small business sellers are experiencing.

First I should explain the (in brief) the areas of my concerns;

Detailed Feedback – Originally just a positive, neutral, or negative symbol with a line of explanation, feedback was at best something customer’s rarely filled out and felt they did not have enough room to express their full opinion about the service and products they received. This was revised a few years ago to include a number of sub-feedback bullet points that customers could score the seller in a way that they felt was much more informative… a good move on the whole and it saw an increase of fairer feedback and identified areas of improvement for the seller.

These included feedback for;

Item as described
Seller communication
Seller dispatch time (not to be confused with postal service delivery time)
Postage and Seller Charges

It did not stop those who used the feedback system to be unfair or abusive, unfortunately those unsavoury few remained… but that’s always going to happen and unfortunately Sellers will always suffer unrealistic approaches to buying and community from those few. Likewise it didn’t stop those sellers whose approach was more ‘couldn’t give a damn’ and ‘get it in, and get it out quick’, which had plagued eBay from the beginning!

This new system worked well, until eBay went further and instigated a newer version, which would see sellers’ item visibility on the main site highered, or lowered depending on their rating. This was to be called their Top Rated Seller Performance.

Again you would think this a welcomed idea… and for me it was at first, but not anymore.

Top Rated Seller Performance – Performance is rated souly on the detailed seller feedback system above and was intended to alert the buyer to those providing excellence in service. Sellers achieving this status are given much more promotion on the site, as a way I guess to free eBay from the ‘scam community’ reputation it has battled against and show off the best companies to purchase from. It also boasts transparency and buyer confidence.

Again I welcomed this… to me it was the perfect way to use my good feedback to help me sell more. However, I have since found that it doesn’t seem to work like that.

Late last year (2010) I was stripped of my Top Rated Seller badge. The reasoning was that whilst I had 100% positive feedback, some customers had given me low scores on the detailed feedback system. These were for postage and seller charges. Now I have never added any extra charge for a buyer, so it could only have been customer’s reaction to postal charge increases from Royal Mail. A little flustered and confused when eBay gave me a courtesy call, I explained that I charge less than Royal Mail actually charge to ship items and that customers either don’t understand the new weight vs. size pricing of Royal Mail, or they are being unfairly unrealistic. EBay fully agreed with me, not one of my prices could they contest and they felt I was being extremely clear about pricing. In fact in most cases they felt I was under charging by too much!

They presented an idea to me… free P&P options. Sounds great, right? Well, whilst appearing to be free to the customer; in fact I was asked to add the cost of shipping onto the item price. By doing this I would now automatically get top marks for those feedback criteria. I was astonished and disgusted… wasn’t this not only cheating the system, but misleading the customer (in some cases over charging them too); something I did not want to do. As an aside it would also mean that I would now be paying eBay more money each month (as fees are based on unit costs not postage costs, combining the two together increases the unit cost) and I was already dealing with a spiralling fee system. Was I now paying them extra to cheat? Was this not classed as unprofessional? Surely this was not transparent?

Was eBay disbelieving their own policy? If so, why is it so hard to schedule a review process? But to be honest their stand point is contradictory at best. Whilst I am told I am an unfit seller, I am also told in the same breath that if I cheat the system I can be accepted back into the fold… I am at a loss to comprehend.

Threatened with closure and an already limited ability to sell, as eBay had started to hide my products from customers, I delayed my changes as long as I could. I looked at my competitors and found they were all hurrying to do what eBay had suggested… but I lagged behind whilst wrestling with my conscience and what I felt was my moral obligation to customers.

After a few months I finally caved in… it wasn’t something I wanted to do and it did not sit well with me, but lost business had already started to run into the thousands. In making the changes I did lose customers… I explained in newsletters my position and that those original prices would remain the same on my personal website www.SarasTextureCrafts.com, so ‘please shop with me there instead’... Some customers followed and some left completely. However, I did gain new customers and generally eBay business very slowly over the next 6-8 months picked up and I was rewarded back my Top Rated Seller badge.

Am I back to where I was a year ago? No, but I think this is for a few reasons… not only the recession, but there are now many more competitors in my area who have a higher buying power to discount retailing prices much lower than I and can also offer lower shipping prices, as they can court courier companies who wouldn’t entertain the size of my small business. As a result of eBay’s restrictions I feel I have also lost my footing in terms of sales there… the impact has been devastating.

Fortunately my business has grown dramatically on my own site and via other selling platforms, including shows, which compensates. I have also taken this further by now listing on eBay’s competitor sites, whose fees and rules seems to be generally more fair to both sellers and buyers.

EBay wrote to me again last week… and despite my continuing 100% positive feedback rating I have had 7 customers in the past 3 months give me a low mark for dispatch time and this will now lead to me losing my Top Rated Seller badge once again. Now I dispatch within 24 hours, as my terms state (bearing in mind I run a ‘cut to order’ product line, not a quick ‘pick and pack’ operation) and despite my recent illness every order has gone out on time, so I am quizzical as to why I have received these markings. I spoke to a couple of these customers who happened to email me regarding this (feedback rating are anonymous so I cannot track who left which mark), so I had the opportunity to ask. The replies showed that each low mark had been given for Royal Mail’s seemingly late delivery. Occasionally this happens and can in no way be avoided and if I am alerted to this, I always apologise on their behalf and do my best to sort out issues… but the fact remains that this part of the feedback system is not for grading the courier’s delivery service, but instead for how quickly I get items out to be delivered… something that a few buyers seem to completely over look, even when prompted by the eBay system at the point of feedback. In fact one customer wanted an item to reach her within 24 hours?! Yet she not only purchased a second class service, but had not accounted for my dispatch time (I work alone and have more than just one order per day), or in fact any of the information given clearly both at purchase and the following stages, which indicated exact time frames. Now I do realise you are always going to get the occasional feedback that is left unfairly and I accept this, but my problem is that while I retain a service level far higher than most, I am being penalised unfairly for a percentage target not achieved through low levels of feedback left (even though they are all positive) vs. sales.

How am I going to be penalised? Well I face 3-4 months of restricted selling on eBay, which at this time of year means a great deal of money lost and 6-8 months of hard work recouping the level of sales I will lose with these restrictions.

My question to eBay has been… How can this be construed as fair to the Seller? I have 100% positive feedback and at least a few of those sub-marks have been wrongly or unfairly given… exposing what I think is a very big loop hole in eBay’s Top Rated Seller system. Unfortunately the very patronising and ignorant answer I received from eBay is that buyers have the right to leave feedback as they see fit… they totally ignore that I am not arguing this, but instead pointing out where the system fails the small business!

Further to this I now question the realistic validity of the Top Rated Seller system as a whole. Let me explain further… As a buyer on eBay I have recently come across a number of larger companies who seem to be ‘playing the numbers’ in order to keep hold of a badge that should be rating them as a top professional seller, but instead hides the truth about their practises. This was further pointed out to me by a few customers who have congratulated me recently on being one of the very few sellers they have come across on eBay with a 100% positive feedback rating. This they say is to be commended… if only they knew!

An example… recently I wanted to purchase a few items for personal and business use. I knew what I wanted and searched the catalogue of eBay products… whilst I don’t always shop with Top Rated Sellers (preferring instead to look at the quality of feedback) I always have a look at what they are doing, just in case I can gauge a better practise that I could adopt. I was frankly very disappointed at the number of these so called Top Rated Sellers who had at least 700 neutrals and 700 negative feedbacks in the last 12 months… yet they still managed to retain their Top Rated Seller badge! Surely this is misleading to eBay customers?! Surely it defeats the point of the Top Rated Seller badge at all, especially if customers still have to wade through feedback positives, neutrals and negatives to see if they want to shop with a seller? Wasn’t it the point of the Top Rated Seller badges to highlight the best sellers to shop in confidence with?

Well it seems they are indeed ‘playing a numbers game’ to cheat the system and this is how it seems to work... They firstly have a higher turnover, so as the rating system is worked on percentages, bad feedback is percentage-wise much lower, than say if I (as a small business) had a bad remark left. So they are able to keep their rating high, yet not providing a great service in all areas… while the smaller business has to work a whole lot harder for the same results. It also seems that by allotting to give feedback automatically on a purchase from a customer, rather than on receipt of feedback as I do (as some customers don’t want to let their customers know where they buy their products) they are increasing their chances of feedback in return from customers. I have seen this work for a few of my main competitors and it artificially inflates feedback. It works in their favour to beat the percentages even if some of what they receive in feedback is either unfair, or justly neutral, or negative. As their business has grown, partly as a result of this I have seen some of their standards slip, which has been reflected in their feedback… not to be completely unexpected as the transition from small to medium size business and coping with work flow from just 1 employee to say 2-3, will always have suffer teething issues… though that is certainly nothing that can’t be rectified long-term. However, it does feel like they are playing a numbers game to stay top on eBay… I always hold the customer as my top priority, but what eBay are indicating I should do is cheat the system and ultimately cheat the customer. If I do this I am fully accepted as a valued member of the community. If I continue as I am… holding the customer as my first concern, I am looking to be closed down… not directly by eBay, but by the trading restrictions they impose against me.

So again I ask eBay to consider not just the percentages, but the quality of feedback left. No seller with 700 neutrals and/or 700 negatives should be rated as a Top Seller… that’s just simply ridiculous! Likewise just because I am a small company, I should not be held to ransom over a handful of sub-feedback marks that have been left as part of a whole positive rating. There needs to be some kind of scale imposed that can set a balance that works for all levels of business. A fair scale that will help the seller to deliver a truly transparent and confident shopping experience.

Now I find myself in a quandary as eBay refuse to relook at their failing system… do I conform to yet another rule I do not agree with in order to avoid, or shorten the time frame eBay restricts my business? Do I play it by the numbers, putting customers second and in effect cheat the system?

I just don’t know how I can justify this to myself right now… where do I draw the line?

Power Seller Status – This is a seller reward scheme, mostly out dated now, but still in use to reward those sellers selling well (higher turnover) with a reduction in monthly fees.

It was a system that provided each rewarded seller with a badge against their user ID. It was originally intended to show customers those who were doing well, to help encourage further sales. However, it very quickly became apparent that this was not really relevant to customers as it only showed sellers who got discounts for selling more through eBay, it did not ensure you were buying safely. Whilst some sellers continue to use the badge as a boast to increase sales, it was regarded as outdated and meaningless very soon after its introduction. EBay later introduced the Top Rated Seller system, as what they hoped to be a true reflection of high service standards. Buyers were ensured ‘they could buy with confidence’.

The Power Seller badge is still in use behind the scenes and if you are doing well in volume sales, you can gain up to 30% off of your final value fees on eBay each month… which is great if you are able to maintain sale numbers, but sometimes this hits smaller businesses hard, particularly when sales fluctuate throughout the year between levels of reward. It makes fee paying difficult to indicate until the final bill appears.

Due to my current threat of restrictions I now face lower levels of power selling achievement. In these cases this will mean a lesser reduction in fees and a halt to reduction in fees if eBay stripped me of my Top Rated Seller badge. This leaves me in a position where I will struggle to list as much as I do each month, resulting in a very hard catch up at the other end… which does push me into playing the very numbers game I wanted to avoid. This leaves me sickened at the prospect of a business now out of my control… don’t get me wrong, I agree selling platforms and internet selling as a whole needs rules and guidelines, but I draw the line at dictations. Particularly dictations that go against what I regard as ‘good practise’.

Maybe I’m missing the point… maybe I should focus more on financial gain, but I’m not a ‘Dragon’s Den’ business, I wholeheartedly confess… I am a hobby business! That doesn’t need to be a bad thing, ok it won’t make me a million, but at least I can provide a solid service to my customers and produce some of my own products... I can even go and hand pick the fleeces I choose to work with. I can also stay working from home and live this business as a life-style choice. That doesn’t mean I work any less, in fact I rack can up around 11 hours per day, 6-7 days a week… most weeks, if not more. Despite this I am able to retain a passion for what I do and the customers I serve… something I would lose if I grew to a size where I took on a number of staff and a big warehouse… leaving my business faceless and out of touch.

So I feel pushed.

So where do I go from here?

I will find out at the end of the month what eBay’s ruling is and I’m told this is not contestable. If I am stripped of my Top Rated Seller badge, which will be without fair practise from eBay then I will be forced to reduce my presence there. I do not feel valued as a customer to eBay and I cannot see that the community they preach as ‘fair, happy and fun’ exists anymore. This may be contrary to what some of you believe, but my recent experiences have been building for some time to sway my particular view… A system with so many loop holes and bad practises is not good for a company’s image and so I will try to move away from this over the next year or so, unless eBay review their system. You will still find me on platforms like Amazon, Etsy, DaWanda, Ravelry and Folksy where policies are much fairer and transparent to sellers and buyers alike and where small, as well as larger companies are welcome. I will also be working on my website more as the main hub of my business, as it is now starting to be.

So find me at www.SarasTextureCrafts.comfor my full and varied range… here you pay the true price with fair postage costs as paid to Royal Mail.

Apologies to anyone who thinks this has been a very long rant… I couldn’t announce my decisions without some sense of ground work by way of explanation. I am frustrated, but know from other small business sellers that I am not alone in feeling this… so instead please view this as a reinforcement to myself of my decision to move on.

New Products at www.SarasTextureCrafts.com

2011-11-18T09:00:00.001Z

After the last of my shows this year I've had chance to sort out show stock and start prepping it for website sales. This is the first of the new products;

A range of Hand dyed Falkland wool tops at http://sarastexturecrafts.com/category/2493-falkland.aspx. Prices are £4.00 per 100g.

I also have some wonderful Blue Faced Leicester Fleece at http://sarastexturecrafts.com/products/21110--blue-faced-leicester-fleece.aspx, which is priced at £2.80 per 100g.

Finally I still have a few batts left at http://sarastexturecrafts.com/category/593-batts-for-spinning-and-felt-making.aspx. These are £3.20 per 30g batt and I do still have a bigga batt pack offer at 120-130g for £9.60.

All of these items are limited stock, so grab them while you can!

Sara x

Royal Mail's Last Post Deliveries Before Christmas

2011-11-16T09:04:00.001Z

It's that time of year again when I need to notify you of the last days of postage before Christmas that aim to arrive for the special day. I'm thinking here particulary of the overseas buyers who's mail takes a longer time in transit. I will release my own holiday dates closer to the time and talk about how this might effect your deliveries, if at all. In the meantime here is news from Royal Mail;

Last recommended posting services	Service
UK
Wed 14th December	Standard Parcels
Sat 17th December	Second Class and Recorded Signed For™
Tue 20th December	First Class and Recorded Signed For™
Wed 21st December	Parcelforce express 48
Thu 22nd December	Parcelforce express 24
Special Delivery™
Thu 22nd December	Special Delivery™
Fri 23rd December	Special Delivery™ with Saturday Guarantee
International Airmail
Mon 5th December	South & Central America, Caribbean, Africa, Middle East, Asia, Far East (including Japan), Australia and New Zealand
Fri 9th December	Eastern Europe, USA and Canada
Mon 12th December	Western Europe
British Forces Post Office (BFPO)
Fri 2nd December	Airmail to Operational BFPOs
Thu 15th December	Airmail to Static BFPOs

Here is the Royal Mail Link: http://www2.royalmail.com/greetings

Knit-Expo - 13th November Exeter!

2011-11-07T20:53:00.001Z

Don't forget I shall be showing at Knit-Expo;

	Sunday
	13th of November 2011, 10-4pm.
		Stall number: 26
		Location: The Corn Exchange, Exeter. http://www.knitexpo.co.uk/thebigknitshow2011.html
		Demonstrations: Spinning
		 
		Stock: Yarns and limited Fibres/Spinning Kits.
		It is also possible to pick up orders during these events, but please order
		these by email no later than 3 days in advance to give me chance to cut
		them.

When	Sun 13 Nov 10:00 – 16:00 London
Where	The Corn Exchange, Exeter. (map)

See you there!

Sara x

www.SarasTextureCrafts.com

November Show Changes

2011-11-01T12:56:00.001Z

Due to continued illness I have had to cancel a few of the November shows. The only event Sara's Texture Crafts will now be showing at is Knit -Expo, which is in Exeter on the 13th of November.

I may not personally be there, but the I will be represented by Darrin, who has very kindly agreed to help me out if I am not well enough to attend. So orders due for pick up are still possible.

Please check the website before you attend, just in case I have had to make further changes.

Sorry folks, I shall hopefully be back out on the road as soon as possible. Until then, the website is open as usual!

Sara x

Sara's Texture Crafts Sale on eBay, save up to 20% on selected items!

2011-10-28T09:34:00.001+01:00

The place: http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Saras-Texture-Crafts

The discount: 20% off of selected lines, including yarn, fibre and equipment.

Sale dates: 30th October - 12th November

Sara xx

Textile Fair, Duchy Sqaure for Creativity 5-6th November!

2011-10-24T08:29:00.001+01:00

Texile Fair

		Saturday
		5th & Sunday 6th November 2011.
			Location: Duchy Square, Princetown, Devon. http://www.duchysquare.org/
			Admission: FREE.
			Demonstrations: Spindle spinning/Knitting.
			Stock: Yarns, Fibres, kits and Equipment.
			It is also possible to pick up orders during these events, but please order
			these by email no later than 3 days in advance to give me chance to cut them.

When	Sat 5 Nov 10:00 – Sun 6 Nov 2011 16:00 London
Where	Duchy Square, Princetown, Devon. (map)

SALE on www.SarasTextureCrafts.etsy.com

2011-10-21T11:27:00.001+01:00

Winter is coming and so I thought I would help you stock up on the items you need for you Winter crafting. So I'm having a Sale on Etsy at www.SarasTextureCrafts.etsy.com.

Claim 10% off of every item you buy, by using Coupon code WINTER at the checkout.

Sale ends when stock runs out!

Here's more info on how to redeem your voucher... http://www.etsy.com/help/article/350

Don't forget you can also find other etsy marked down items at http://www.etsy.com/shop/SarasTextureCrafts?section_id=10322575 and you can still use the discount code on these to save even more money!

Happy crafting!

Sara x

www.sarastexturecrafts.etsy.com

Sewing my jumper together today!

2011-10-18T15:13:00.001+01:00

KTOG 5!

2011-10-17T15:16:00.001+01:00

We found ourselves in South Brent on Sunday to show at KTOG 5. A small but very friendly and creative bunch of Knitters and fibre addicts turned up to learn new techniques like spindle spinning and buy some new stash.

Here's a picture of the stall and D getting ready to play a game on his phone, before we opened... Zombie something he said... I switched off in search of things to buy on the next stall!

We had a fun day and really enjoyed meeting everyone... Looking forward to a possible KTOG 6, in 2012!

Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Tea break and the last sleeve of my Jumper

2011-10-14T15:25:00.001+01:00

Some more Yarn for Sunday's Show

2011-10-13T13:11:00.001+01:00

I think I'm almost done with stock for KTOG5 on Sunday... Just need to iron a table cloth or two!

October Show Changes!

2011-10-12T09:24:00.001+01:00

I have just heard news of some changes to an up coming event this week. So I thought I ought to drop you a line and keep your diary updated. KTOG5 will be held on the 16th of October only, rather than the whole weekend. I am sorry for this misinformation.

So to recap, the shows this month are;

KTOG5 - Sunday 16th October 2011 (10-5). Location: South Brent Village Hall, Station Approach, South Brent, Devon. TQ10 9AQ
WCE Annual Genral Meeting Saturday 22nd October - private event.
Yard sale of the 23rd has been cancelled due to continuing ill health.

Here is a link to my Event Diary which I update as things change http://sarastexturecrafts.com/page/5172-events.aspx.

Once again sorry for the changes.

Sara.

Sale!

Don't forget I still have plenty of items available in the sale at http://sarastexturecrafts.com/category/563-sale.aspx

Today I'm prepping yarns and Batts

2011-10-11T11:17:00.001+01:00

... For the shows over the next couple of weeks. Both will be much smaller than the national events I usually do, but important in their own way. So, I really want to make sure the stock is right for the audience and the tables.

I'll update you throughout the week and let you know how I get on.

Sara x
www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Cancelled Yard Sales & Royal Mail's Christmas Post Dates

2011-10-10T11:18:00.001+01:00

Unfortunately I have had to cancel the remaining yard sales this year. So please cross these dates from your diary;

23rd Oct - CANCELLED

20th Nov - CANCELLED

This is due to the long running hospital treatment I receive. Unfortunately it has gotten the better of me recently and while D is here to help me with dispatch (so that no delays occur), I cannot continue to run shows and events back to back over the coming weeks leading up to Christmas. I hope you will understand.

-----------

Last recommended posting services	Service
UK
Wed 14th December	Standard Parcels
Sat 17th December	Second Class and Recorded Signed For™
Tue 20th December	First Class and Recorded Signed For™
Wed 21st December	Parcelforce express 48
Thu 22nd December	Parcelforce express 24
Special Delivery™
Thu 22nd December	Special Delivery™
Fri 23rd December	Special Delivery™ with Saturday Guarantee
International Airmail
Mon 5th December	South & Central America, Caribbean, Africa, Middle East, Asia, Far East (including Japan), Australia and New Zealand
Fri 9th December	Eastern Europe, USA and Canada
Mon 12th December	Western Europe
British Forces Post Office (BFPO)
Fri 2nd December	Airmail to Operational BFPOs
Thu 15th December	Airmail to Static BFPOs

Here is the Royal Mail Link: http://www2.royalmail.com/greetings

Autumn and a New Cardi

2011-10-07T16:41:00.001+01:00

Look at me posing in the changing rooms!

£29.99 H&M (www.hm.com/uk)

I'm in love with the colour and patterning... Liking the boho look in the stores right now!

FLEECE FIRST, an exhibition at the Devon Guild of Craftsmen

2011-10-05T10:52:00.001+01:00

I received a message from the lovely Claire Crompton and I thought I ought to share the Devon exhibition she mentioned, so that you can pop by and see it.

Fleece First features the work of several contemporary textile makers whose raw material is wool as well as exhibits from the South West wool industry, past and present.

Exhibition photos, by Devon Guild of Craftsmen

Venue: Devon Guild of Craftsmen, Riverside Mill, Bovey Tracey, Devon. Google Map to Devon Guild of Craftsmen

Dates: 24th September to 13th November, 10am to 5.30pm every day. There will be demonstrations of weaving every Saturday and handspinning every Sunday.

Images from the opening day can be viewed here, featuring some very relaxed Ryeland sheep: Fleece First Album

Ryeland... aren't they beautiful?!

I'm hoping to go myself quite soon... maybe I'll see you there?

Sara x

www.sarastexturecrafts.com Stock Update!

2011-10-04T12:30:00.001+01:00

Here are the details of my latest update;

Products

- New batt options, including custom made batts at http://sarastexturecrafts.com/category/593-batts.aspx

The option pictured is the Custom ART Batt at £3.25 per 30g. These are unique hand carded batts, made by me here in the studio with my carding machine. These are made to your Colour and Blend specification. You can choose; one base fibre, up to 3 highlight colours and a choice of several surface options, including; silk, bamboo, sparkle... Blended batts like this are great for feltmaking, spinning or weaving and can be used in different ways each time to create a multitude of blend options in your yarns, weft weaves or felted art.

- New hand dyed Fibres at http://sarastexturecrafts.com/category/709-hand-dyed-fibre.aspx

The option pictured is Shetland Humbug in 'Malachite' at £4.99 per 100g.

- Pick n mix yarns at http://sarastexturecrafts.com/products/14459--pick-n-mix-30g-balls-of-yarn-hand-dyed-and-hand-spun.aspx

A mix of hand spun and hand dyed yarns... these use fibres and yarns from my range, or discountinued products. As each of the yarns are a differing weight they differ in length, so I would recommend that they are used only for trimming, or patchwork knitting. They would also be great for tapestry and weaving, or surface embellishing.

- New knitting Equiment Pieces at http://sarastexturecrafts.com/category/632-equipment.aspx

Knitting gauges (as pictured) are £1.15 each.

Sale - http://sarastexturecrafts.com/category/563-sale.aspx

- Natural Fibre Company yarns are now in the Sale, along with several felting kits and some hand dyed fibres.

Features

- updated terms and conditions that relate to the new help details on the Contact page and new currencies - Euro €, USD $, AUS $, CAN $. Now you can buy in each of these currencies as well as the standard GBP £.

Stash I bought at Exeter's Stitch and Craft Show

2011-10-03T14:00:00.001+01:00

I managed to grab a couple of bags of yarn at a reduced price, Sidar's Click range. Some wonderful metallic sewing threads, that I'll use for plying my hand spun single yarns against. Then a hand made button, with a ceramic finish and a novelty 50g ball of yarn I might try to use for plying.

Did you go? What did you buy?

Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Photo from the Stitch and Craft Show, Exeter Sept 2011

2011-10-02T15:15:00.001+01:00

The lace work was amazing!

Photos from the Stitch & Craft Show, Exeter Sept 2011.

2011-10-02T15:14:00.001+01:00

The Lace and Clothing exhibition... Loved every piece!

Loom ready... Now to prep weft yarn!

2011-10-01T15:15:00.001+01:00

Phew, that took a few hours (4!) to finish. Now the loom is set up I'm ready to weave.

I'm going to start prepping the yarn I'm using for the weft now and call it quits for today.

Hope you are enjoying your weekend,

Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Setting up the Heddles

2011-10-01T12:26:00.001+01:00

So how's the weaving going you ask? To be honest today is the first day I've had chance to sit down to the Loom. This has meant that I haven't had chance to ask D to help me wind on my warp for threading. The meds I'm on have my brain and body all over the place today, so sitting quietly is the perfect opportunity to do this.

I'm not sure if I'll get chance to actually weave today, but if I can finish the threading that will be the perfect place to stop.

What are you up to today?

The Wool Sack Project

2011-09-29T09:42:00.001+01:00

I just wanted to give you a bit of info about http://www.woolsack.org/ which is a really fun project we can get involved in;

Woolsack is part of the Cultural Olympiad. The project enables anyone to contribute to making a cushion from British wool. It is intended that these will be given as a personal welcome gift from the people of Britain to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic athletes.

Those participating in the project include schools, colleges, community groups, individuals, craft groups, smallholders, farmers, breed societies, British Wool yarn producers and processors, hand-spinners, dyers, the knitting, crochet and craft press and media.

Making these cushions is designed to help people gain craft skills using a sustainable material and also to learn about the production of British Wool, on which the British economy and early industry were originally founded. The project can thus involve a wider range of people, able to be inspired by the 2012 Games, but not all able to participate directly in sports and athletics.

We'll be sharing this with the athletes by making personal gifts for them that are beautiful, functional and are a little bit of Britain to take home with them.

Please don follow the link to http://www.woolsack.org/ and get involved.

New products, features and Sale coming soon!

2011-09-28T09:44:00.001+01:00

I'm back... miss me?

I have so much to do after my holiday, a task of which is updates! So what and when can you expect updates? Well here's a list;

Products, will arrive daily over the next few weeks;

- new fleeces and hand dyed options

- hand dyed tops and yarns from teh shows

- hand spun yarns from the shows

- limited edition batts

- custom batt options/create your own!

- hand dyed silks and knops

- new sale items!

Features (over the next few months) will include;

- purchasing in Euros or US Dollars.

- fibres by colour option completed

So please keep coming back to me here at www.SarasTextureCrafts.com

The view of the day

2011-09-21T18:20:00.001+01:00

Taken at Dartmouth Fort

Moment of the day... Hello you!

2011-09-20T16:30:00.003+01:00

Taken at Dartmoor National Park

Moment of the day... Still coming

2011-09-20T16:30:00.001+01:00

Taken at Dartmoor National Park

Moment of the day... Still coming

2011-09-20T16:29:00.003+01:00

Taken at Dartmoor National Park

Moment of the day... Here he comes!

2011-09-20T16:29:00.001+01:00

Taken at Dartmoor National Park

D enjoying a Venison burger

2011-09-20T16:27:00.001+01:00

I made my own handmade soap at Dartington's Cider Press Centre

2011-09-19T15:24:00.001+01:00

D found this cool moth in Buckfast Abbey's Lavender Garden

2011-09-19T15:23:00.001+01:00

I fart in your general direction. Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of Elderberries!

2011-09-18T16:36:00.001+01:00

My Moment of the Day

2011-09-18T16:32:00.003+01:00

My Moment of the Day

2011-09-18T16:32:00.001+01:00

All ready to set and dry... Then weave!

2011-09-14T17:52:00.001+01:00

Colour Trends: Autumn/Winter 2011/12 and Spring 2012

2011-09-13T09:13:00.000+01:00

It's that time of year when I start to think about colours, shape and pattern for the new seasons. As an indie dyer and fibre artist these affect the way I approach my work... and it's always interesting to see how they come through to the high street, where most of us buy our clothes.

Normally I don't post this sort of thing on my blog, but as I already started following some local high street, knitwear trends last fall, I thought it might be nice to carry that through to projections for future seasons too.

Today I want to look at some trend information for Autumn/Winter 2011/12 & Spring 2012.

For the images and purposes of this blog post I’m going to refer to information readily available on the web. I will reference each source as we get to it.

Womenswear Autumn/Winter 2011/12 Colour – sourced from www.pantone.com/fall2011

Pantone suggest a cool palate punctuated with rich, luxurious colours.

Shaping and design details on knitwear and wovens fall into a few basic categories;

· Structure – Interesting pattern or stitch constructions taken to extreme to form interesting structure.

(designer Mark Fast)

· Lacy vs. chunky knits – From reversed thrum knits to obscure lacy patterning.

(designer Mark Fast)

· Graphic weave and knits – Using plains against graphic weave structures, there is a play on muted colours vs. bright and bold shades.

(designer Jonathan Suanders)

(designer Christopher Kane)

· Punctuating Colour – Wearing muted shades with one element of a bright or bold is key this season.

(designer Gucci)

A good source of show information and the above pictures can be found at http://www.fashiontrendsetter.com/content/fashion_shows.html and http://www.firstview.com/index.php and http://www.vogue.co.uk/fashion/trends/2010-11-autumn-winter/trend-report---autumnwinter-2010-11/gallery

Spring 2012 Colour – predictions from http://www.pantone.com/downloads/support/FCR/PANTONE_FCR_Spring2012.pdf

Over the seasons I will follow these trends and see how they are reflected on the high street and also how I have reflected them in my fibre, tops and yarns.

Keep coming back to www.sarastexturecrafts.blogspot.com for updates.

Sara x

Customer's Photos: Mammoth Woolies, yarn and felted hair falls

2011-09-12T07:36:00.001+01:00

Meet Mammouth Wollies, a new dread fall company set up by a customer of mine. The main shop is on Etsy at http://www.etsy.com/shop/mammothwoolies based in London. Each dread fall set is one-of-a-kind and you can also ask about creating a custom order especially for you!

I love this one... http://www.etsy.com/listing/77164767/kinkies-levi-felted-hair-falls-le Look at those crimped ends!

And this one I love for the colours... http://www.etsy.com/listing/75971698/kinkies-roses-violets-felted-hair-falls

If you want you own dreads at reasonable prices, visit the store today.

Love Wool UK: Day 7

2011-09-11T17:12:00.001+01:00

Final day... Not much done. Instead here's a photo of the headband I finished yesterday.

I've enjoyed Wool Week overall... I hope you did too.

Next week I'll catch up on some customer focused blog posts and some fashion trend research for the new season... I shall of course concentrate on all things wool related!

Bye for now,
Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Love Wool UK: Day 6

2011-09-10T18:03:00.001+01:00

I just finished my headband...

From my Limited Edition Merino blend top range.

I just need to press it and wear it. Loving the colour!

I might pick up my jumper project... See how the mood takes me.

Bye for now,
Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Love Wool UK: Day 5

2011-09-09T16:57:00.001+01:00

I didn't make it to the Crediton Spinning Group today, as this morning I woke up with a cold, all stiff and achey... So annoyed... I had been looking forward to seeing everyone after our August break, but I didn't want to pass this on.

So instead I finished work early and settled on the sofa... Needless to say I can't sit still for 5 minutes, so I started to prep my warp threads for the loom project. I have to say I was glad the ball of wool ran out half way through, as the process of warping the frame took it out of me.

I sat down again... Then realised that the yarn I had on the dryer out back was probably dry. So I've just done a few rows of a new headband, made from my Blackberry Bush Limited Edition Merino Blend at www.sarastexturecrafts.com

I'm back at the sofa now waiting to close up shop for the weekend at 5:30... After that I might ask to be nailed down... Otherwise I might get up and fiddle with another project!

What did you do today? Anything crafty?

Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Love Wool UK: Day 4

2011-09-08T17:28:00.001+01:00

So late last night I started developing an achy neck... a chill I thought and wrapped up. This morning I woke not really being able to turn my head as far as I'd like. It's very autumnal here and I think the cold has caught me out a little. Now by the end of the day the ache has spread across my shoulders and down my back... (I'm feeling old!)

The upshot of course is little progress to today's wool craft endeavours. Although I did put a final rinse on some more fleece, card some batts for a custom order and do a little hand sewing on my sister's Christmas Angel (still no sneak peeks, just in case she's watching!)

So instead of talking about my woolly efforts, I’m going to link to a couple of interesting blog articles, a local group and some wool industry news;

Shearer’s Girl talks to us about the MOT on her Rams today at http://talesfromthesheepshed.blogspot.com/2011/09/mots-for-rams.html

The independent talks about the wool industry and the Wool week exhibition at http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/fashion/features/ripping-yarns-celebrating-the-rich-heritage-of-wool-2349257.html

Here are some more details on Wool Modern, an exhibition by the Campaign for Wool in London - http://www.campaignforwool.org/woolmodern/

The Craft Hub in Exeter are celebrating an Eat, Knit, Love, wool gathering tomorrow - http://www.wix.com/thecrafthub/exeter#!eat-knit-love-wool

As for me… an easy night I think (no knitting, no spinning), because tomorrow is the Crediton Spinning Circle’s meet up! (http://sarastexturecrafts.com/page/5402-groups-tutors.aspx)

What did you get up to today for Wool week?

Sara x

Love Wool UK: Day 3

2011-09-07T17:51:00.001+01:00

Listing http://www.folksy.com/items/2010497-Crochet-Mystic-Baby-Elf-Hat?shop=yes

Ok, so day three and I began to ply the Shetland wool. I decided to do this against cotton, because I wanted to preserve the texture of the curl elements in the fleece and make the differences in colour of the fleece stand out. It plied beautifully, so I have one skein ready to set.

I started a new bobbin, but needed a break halfway through... Time to continue needle felting my Sister's Christmas fairy. I have taken some pictures, but I'm not going to post them yet as I know she occasionally catches up with me on-line and I'd like it to be a surprise.

What did you make in wool today?

Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Love Wool UK: Day 2

2011-09-06T18:02:00.001+01:00

I was out an appointment for most of the day, so I didn't get any spinning done... Although I did put some more fleece on rinse.

What I did achieve was buying some yarn for the warp of my first loom project... This goes well with my hand dyed Shetland, which I will later spin for the weft thread.

Last night I also started what I call my next 'mindless' knit... Simple stitches, simple jumper. This is using James Brett's marble chunky in a purple/fuchsia marl. It's not wool, which I feel guilty about blogging during Wool week... However, with the weather so gloomy and Autumnal chilled I'm desperate for an easy, machine wash knit. So forgive me!

So not all wool today, but I am finding that I am enjoying Shetland wool in it's various forms this week!

For Shetland fleece, roving and yarns visit me at www.sarastexturecrafts.com I locally source, so fleeces are hand selected direct from Farms I visit and rovings/tops are British milled.

Bye for now,
Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Love Wool UK: Day 1

2011-09-05T17:05:00.001+01:00

Here is my first bobbin of Shetland fleece being started... Dubbed the 'Farmer's Daughter's Hat'... im spinning directly from the washed fleece. I left just enough lanolin in it for ease of spinning. I'm also leaving the texture of curls in it. I figure that she will want to recognise her sheep's own fleece and hopefully that will make the hat all the more special.

So far its spinning up well.

What have you been making today?

Sara x
www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Exmoor Fleece Fair, a Loom and late Lunch

2011-09-03T17:02:00.001+01:00

Today has been a very busy Saturday...

I got my new Loom! I went for the Ashford 4 shaft, 24" width... As you can see I am one happy Lady!! I just need to put it together now...

I also made it to the Exmoor Fleece Fair... Well we just made it, as we nearly ran out of petrol (oops!) Fortunately a very kind car dealership in Dulverton stayed open an extra few minutes for us (thank you!)

We were a little late to the fair so stocks had been ravaged, but I did find myself two more BFL fleeces full of curls and great for dyeing. These will be in the shop as soon as I've finished them.

D and I did watch the expert spinners having a go at the longest thread challenge... Spindles and flyers spinning furiously! We couldn't stay to the end, but I think it was possibly a very close call between some very fine spinning.

The fleece fair was the idea and hard work of Lesley Prior, of www.DevonFineFibres.co.uk and it is part of her local initiative for the Love Wool UK project this week. It was a fantastic local show... and a great start to the week of wool promotion locally. Also great way to buy fleeces direct from the farmer.

Turn out was good, so my ear is to the ground hoping there is a future event. I definitely recommend it.

By the time we left it was almost two o'clock and bellies were rumbling! We thought we might make it back home, but succumbed to a cute little inn www.the-Exeter-inn.co.uk in Bampton. We definitely recommend the food. I had chilli and garlic infused Rainbow Trout and D tucked into Lamb leg steaks with mint jelly... Mmmm.

On the drive back we came across www.covegardennursery.co.uk a really nice little garden come arts and crafts stop, complete with an artist in residence!

We were taken with Wicked Willow's willow garden...

This is me worried about the black clouds gathering ahead!

What did you get up to today?

Bye for now,
Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Love Wool UK: Prep for Week of British Wool!

2011-09-02T09:47:00.000+01:00

Ashort while ago I mentioned the Love Wool UK event (part of the Campaign forwool. Blogpost here.) Since then I have been thinking about what I could do as mymain 'play along at home' project... and then I remembered!

Ona trip to visit a Farmer for some fleece, he mentioned that he had just oneShetland fleece... would I take a look at it. I did and of course I feel inlove with it immediately! He then mentioned that it was his daughter's petsheep and she'd always wanted a hat from the fleece, but couldn't spin orknit... did I know anyone who'd be able to do it for her? Always a trickyquestion, as most spinners and knitters I know are knee high in wool stash...so I offered my services, if I could buy the rest of the fleece for the shop. Ithink he was a bit surprised he'd be able to sell the fleece, as Shetland wasnot his main breed and after explaining the value I think he was much morerelaxed about taking money for it.

Havinghad such a busy summer I haven't had chance to start on the fleece, but nowSeptember arrives I have a little more time to play. I sorted and prepped thefleece for washing a week or so ago and have been washing small, manageablechunks of it... just waiting for it to dry. I love the fact that the sheep hada touch of morrit in her fleece and I think I might play on that in thespinning.

Anyway,that's my plan for the Love Wool UK project 5th to 11th of September. I shallblog as I go.

Whatare you making?

Sarax

Don’tforget you can buy British fleece, tops and yarn at www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Campaign for Wool -www.campaignforwool.org

LoveWool UK -www.facebook.com/lovewooluk

Customer Photos: Verity Isabelle Baby Gifts

2011-09-01T07:02:00.001+01:00

http://www.folksy.com/items/2171753-Crochet-Baby-Girl-Mystic-Elf-Hat?shop=yes

Aren't these just the cutest thing ever?! You can find the shop at http://www.folksy.com/shops/VerityIsabelleBabyGifts

These were knitted with some of my Boucle yarn;

I was thrilled to get these pictures... what a wonderful way to use the boucle yarn! Thank you very much for sharing.

Sara x

Customer Photos: Carolina's Rune Bag

2011-08-31T07:57:00.001+01:00

Carolina used some of my wool to spin and make her wonderful rune bag. You can find carolina's shop at: http://www.etsy.com/shop/magickshop

Thank you for sharing Carolina!

Sara x

Customer Photos: Pauline's Batt spinning

2011-08-30T07:46:00.001+01:00

I love it when customer's send me pictures... this is one from Pauline, who bought the above Zwartbles blend batt.

You can see she has captured the shine and beauty of the Zwartbles and retained the blended colour as a feature... I love it!

Thank you for sharing Pauline!

Sara x

www.facebook.com/lovewooluk

Celebrate Wool Week with LoveWool UK

2011-08-29T08:59:00.001+01:00

Anybody can be part of LoveWoolUK and they can do anything – felting, spinning, weaving, knitting, crocheting or crafting.

To join in, they simply have to do something with wool during Wool Week and the venue is anywhere! Living-room, coffee shop, beach hut, cliff top, schoolroom, library or why not put your pyjamas on and have a knit-over!

Signing up on-line at campaign for wool.org (online from mid-July) is free and entitles you to free knitting patterns from Rowan and Jamieson & Smith, the first 100 will receive a felting pack from British Wool too.

“We really want to give wool its wings and we hope that all those wool lovers will join in and make this something really great.” Bridgette Kelly at the British Wool Marketing Board said.

www.campaignforwool.org

LoveWool UK is the exciting new promotion from the Campaign for Wool (CfW). It is a free-style event for the knitting and craft enthusiast and will happen all over the UK during this year’s Wool Week from 5th to 11th September.

The aim is to have a huge celebration of wool at a grass roots level and show the real people power behind this amazing wool promotion.

The CfW knows that many people want to show their support for HRH’s The Prince of Wales’ initiative to celebrate this fabulous natural fibre from our amazing sheep.

New stock at www.SarasTextureCrafts.com

2011-08-27T20:16:00.001+01:00

Ok... I have been listing away and here is this weeks update of new stock;

1 - Sewing and embellishing Shop. I have listed lots of new equipment pieces at http://sarastexturecrafts.com/category/644-equipment.aspx These include Fiskar scissors, rotary cutters and a really good 12-in-1 tool (pictured).

2 - Knitting and Crochet shop. I've listed some smaller sundries, such as stitch markers, row counters at http://sarastexturecrafts.com/category/632-equipment.aspx and some circular bamboo needles (pictured) at http://sarastexturecrafts.com/category/631-needles.aspx

3 - Feltmaking and Spinning shop. I have listed some more fleece at http://sarastexturecrafts.com/category/592-fleece.aspx which includes some Wensleydale (pictured) and Shetland.

I also started to list some new handdyed fibres like this Finger Roving in colour Bohemia at http://sarastexturecrafts.com/products/8560--merino-silk-finger-roving-hand-dyed.aspx

There will be lots more to see next week, so do come back when you can!

Sara x

Company of Weavers - Autumn Term Courses

2011-08-26T07:28:00.000+01:00

I recommend this...

If I had the time I'd be there... Fantastic courses by a very good tutor.

Bye for now,
Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

NCFE Fibre and Textile Courses at Bicton College

2011-08-25T07:34:00.000+01:00

I saw some of the student's work at Fibrefest... Wow!

So I picked up a leaflet to pass on the info to you.

Bye for now,
Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Devon Guild of Weavers, Spinners and Dyers Exhibition

2011-08-24T07:27:00.000+01:00

Do pop along if you can... They are a very talented group!

Bye for now,
Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Filling up with Hand Dyed Fibres

2011-08-23T12:22:00.001+01:00

Taken at Www.sarastexturecrafts.etsy.com

Limited Edition Blends back in stock at www.sarastexturecrafts.com

2011-08-22T15:09:00.001+01:00

Fibrefest Day 2

2011-08-21T19:45:00.001+01:00

Wow, what a lovely day! The sun came out and that brought lots of people to the show.

I finished my demo, a spindle spun yarn in Blackberry Bush. I enjoyed spinning this and talking to new spinners as I did so.

I just want to thank everyone who came today. It was lovely to meet you.

I can see I have lots of stock to prep over the next few weeks for the website ;)

Bye for now,
Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Fibrefest Day One

2011-08-20T20:02:00.001+01:00

I just had a few bits to tidy up this morning. So we went in early.

Good job really, as it gave me enough time to buy some fleece!

Then it really poured with rain, so much so I was surprised people made the effort to come... A resilient bunch, those fibre addicts!

By the afternoon all change and beautiful sun (and a hog roast bap with apple sauce), had us feeling a bit brighter.

We had a really lovely day, catching up with friends, customers and meeting new addicts... Thank you very much for coming to say 'Hi'.

Bye for now,
Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Spindle Demo for Fibrefest

2011-08-18T11:57:00.001+01:00

Final prep day today, so I'm freeing up my spindle to make room for my demo at the show.

I'll be honest and say I've been suffering from a headache for the last couple of weeks (I'm so over it already!), so I'm not sure how much I'll get done... But I'm hoping to work with some of the new blends I had made up this year and some carded art batts.

If you get chance pop by and see me!

Sara x

Big Thank You to D!

2011-08-17T17:44:00.001+01:00

He has been home helping me today. He has taken much more of an interest in carding and after selling the few batts he made for Fibre-East, he's been looking forward to making for the next show.

He managed half a box, which is a great help... So thanks D!

Sara xx

Finishing My New Yarn Cowl For Fibrefest

2011-08-16T09:18:00.001+01:00

I really want to get this cowl finished for Fibrefest at the weekend. I'm using it to show how one of my new yarns will knit up... And of course something to keep me warm this winter! I just need to get the buttons on...

My moment of Truth captured by Bev

2011-08-15T10:34:00.001+01:00

The rather lovely Bev, a fellow student captured my 'cutting off the weave' moment yesterday... Very pleased with myself!

I'm hoping to start finishing the ends this evening and considering which way to wash the piece. Fortunately Louise Cottey (our tutor) has given us some really good handouts, so I'm feeling in safe hands.

Thanks for sending me the photo Bev!

Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Weaving Day 4.

2011-08-14T18:36:00.002+01:00

Today was a chance to try some new weave patterns and finish off our weaves.

I tried Herringbones, balanced and unbalanced twills. I just need to finish the piece and my sampler is complete.

My head is now full of pattern, colour and texture ideas... I just want to get a loom now! I think I'm going to get the Ashford 4-shaft table loom, possibly 60cm width.

I had a really lovely day and made sure to ask Louise Cottey (our expert tutor), if I could add her details under the community section of my website at www.SarasTextureCrafts.com ... I think it might be www.louisecottey.wordpress.com I shall add the details soon for you, as I know there were still 3 places left for the September term. I really do recommend Louise as a tutor, she is very patient, knowledgable and inspirational.

I really loved working with the small group of students too, everyone had a different approach to their weaving... Exactly the sort of mix you need for a good group... And I'm looking forward to seeing all of them next week at Fibrefest.

Bye for now,
Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Weaving Day 3

2011-08-13T16:55:00.001+01:00

Today I got to start weaving my weft threads. Louise Cottey (our tutor) walked us through basic tabby (plain) weave and simple structures using our warp design. Remembering which shafts to lift was hard... I think I relied on the 'talking to myself' method!

Later in the afternoon we started balanced twills, which I forgot to photograph. This was probably my favourite stitch patterning so far.

I also love finding that different warp designs would give us different effects with the same weft structure.

Everyone in the class has such lovely work, every one of us is quite different in our approach to colour and texture... This makes learning from each other just as inspirational as my individual journey.

Last day tomorrow :(

Sara x
Www.sarastexturecrafts.com

Weaving Day 2

2011-08-12T17:54:00.001+01:00