Laffing Horse Crafts

OK, so it’s not a can, it’s a truck. And it’s not worms, its stuff…. piles and stacks and boxes of stuff.

We got it here. We sold lots. We didn’t buy much. We should be able to fit it all back in, right. Right?

Lessee… lathe (that’s new), compound miter saw, drill press, scroll saw, belt/disc sander, dremels and accessories and tool boxes, lotsa wood, router table (also new), pad sander, drills, circular saw, coping saws, 2 spinning wheels (we brought out 3, 1-7′ TriLoom with stand, 2- 1′ TriLooms, 3 rigid heddle looms with 4 stands, yarns, clothes (some are new, but we’re leaving some), shawls, scarcomputers (my eMac and Jen’s notebook), printer (throughout the course of the faire, I called the printer “my scribes” and told people my scribes were named Hewlett and Packard <grin>), lotsa fibers, some drop spindles and crochet hooks and knitting needles, 2 large tents (one is new), three dogs, an electric skillet (new)…

But for all we’re taking, we’re leaving a lot, too… bed, desk, wardrobe, tarps, display racks, some clothes, coffee pot, and more.

Hmmmmm….

My suggestion to Jeanette was to leave it all, get on the road and replace it later. I don’t know what we’d use to replace it as money seems to be all spent on bills, but packing sure would be easier.

Where’s Scotty and the cargo transporter when you need ‘em!?!

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I teach thousands of people, literally,¬† and to spin every Summer. Usually, I have a five-minute presentation¬†and that gives ‘em all they need to know to start spinning. I know that’s not really enough. That’s why I include a written lesson and my contact information so they can get follow-up “tech support.”

After I’ve taught the first 500 or so, the presentation kinds sounds like a drone… I can whip it out in about 2 minutes flat! That’s when someone asks a question I hadn’t thought of and I have to modify the presentation.

It’s great! I add questions to my lesson… sort of an FAQ.

Every question makes my teaching better.

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Things down on the farm seem to be going well enough – now that we think we have the aforementioned hay crisis averted.

In fact, things are popping up all over.

http://augelena.blogspot.com 

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We hear the phrase “You’re living our (my) dream.” quite frequently. We can appreciate that… after all, until we began living it, it was our dream, too.

But it’s not all wine and roses, mead and cakes, beer and pizza.

For instance, when we lived in Colorado we bemoaned the drought and what it did to the hay prices and the availability of hay. This year, in Arkansas, we found hay early and bought lots of it cheap. You might have seen some of the pics of the hay hauling in Jen’s blog. We toted it up the hill and stacked it neatly in two small stacks, built a fence around it and tarped it securely… securely for Colorado…

Then it rained, Arkansas style. When it was done raining, it rained some more. Just to wrap things up a bit, there was some rain.

A lot of the hay, no matter how well it was tarped, molded and rotted. Short of having an ark or a HUGE barn on pontoons, it was unavoidable and no one’s fault.

Turns out we weren’t alone… when the trip was made to the feed store to get some supplemental hay,¬† people were standing in line… seems they hadn’t been able to tarp hay any better than we had.

We’ve got it arranged now… there’s more hay scheduled for delivery and the rains led to a very nice, if a bit pricey, quick, second cutting of hay.

It’s events like this that make me want to tell people that dreams are fine, but reality… well, it’s real. Be careful what you ask for… be careful what you dream…

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The Colorado Renaissance Festival is almost over… just two more weekends. Can you believe it?!?

Now our time is spent split between making stock, cleaning up to pack and load, and asking that question: What next?

Our options include:

• Head straight home and get back to work.
• Detour and visit friends and family on the way home.
• Detour and visit potential new venues on the way home.
• Get home, turn around and leave again for another show.

But it’s not just what to do… there’s also what to make. Granted, it’s not like I’ve been really and truly keeping up on orders (I’m about 7 days behind as I write this… oh, but I have some excuses I could share ) but I find the mad scientist within seeking an opportunity to break out. What should I create next?

Maybe, before I let you answer that, I should tell you what I have started making.

Cabled crochet hooks – Ta Da

…and really HUGE hooks

That’s a 22 inch long size Q afghan hook!
I’ve now got orders for 48″ long hooks!!! Wow!!!!

I’ve also started doing some real carving at the ends of the hooks. I’ve done roses, deep twists and flames (I really, really like the way that one turned out, but I can’t find the pics here on Jen’s PeeCee). And, I’ve started making Turkish drop spindles with an eye to simplicity. Can’t post pics of those as they’ve sold as fast as I’ve made ‘em.

I know there have been requests for modular looms, square looms, modular adapters, rectangular looms, wall stands and different loom stands. I’m working on all of those. However, I’ve already got people waiting in line for spinning wheels…

Ah… what to do, what to do… any ideas? let me know…

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I often forget to give thanks to the people around me that encourage and inspire me… and volunteer to test my inventions and ideas.

Jeanette, of course.
Robin and Summer.
Elena.
Julia.
Anita.
Sandy.
My Mom and Dad.
And many others I may have forgotten…

Thank you all!

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Turn, turn turn…

That’s what I’ll be doing soon as I now have a lathe. Sure, I’ve not turned anything since I was a wee lad, and sure, the lathe needs a bit of work and oiling. But it’s a lathe!

Now, if only everyone reading this blog would send emails to Jen telling her I also need a jointer, shaper, planer, bandsaw… you know… the works… I might get the woodshop up to speed.

Before that, though, I should have a vacuum system to get the sawdust out… that, I think, Jeanette would love.

Maybe someday… <sigh>

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Most of us live with the perception that what we are doing is real. They call the other stuff imagination or illusion. Somehow, we’ve managed to blur that line.

What’s that?

We’re living in a drafty old sixteenth century castle with no running water, teaching spinning and weaving – renaissance arts, and selling yarns, fiber, drop spindles, spinning wheels, looms and Spirit bells. Jeanette wears a chemise, skirt and overskirt, sandals,
and bodice. I’m dressed in knee-high boots, tights, poets’ shirt, sashes and a foppish hat with a plume. Our speech is even affected… m’ladies and m’lords and good morrows pour out with lilting accents.

It’s a fantasy, right? It’s just a craft show with a twist…

Not for us! We live it! Maybe only for eight weeks in the summer and another six weeks in the winter and maybe a weekend here or there, but while we’re doing it, it’s real.

Almost…

In spite of the castle and the privations (we have to walk a block to get the the privies and another in the other direction to the showers), we’re not totally uncivilized.

Not totally…

If you look a little further into the booth, you’ll find a television with VCR and several hundred movies – these were donated by our friends and benefactors Robin and Summer in an attempt to keep us entertained. You’ll also find dozens of books, two computers, my complete woodshop, a wardrobe, a desk, benches and chairs and stools, and a rather comfy bed. A microwave, electric skillet, fan, refrigerator, crock pot, electric cook top, and a five gallon stainless water tank make up the kitchen.

See? We may be barbarians… or Rennaisance craftspersons and villagers… but we’re not uncivilized… or terribly uncomfortable.

Oh, yeah, and now – after much research and many trials and tribulations – we’ve got the internet and I can post my blog a little more frequently

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