SpinSanity Spindles

Wonder Weekend Tomorrow!

2009-10-02T12:01:00.007-04:00

Saturday, October 3, 2009 10AM-4PM: Wonder Why Alpaca Farm Wonder Weekend! East Leroy, MI
Featuring alpaca, alpaca, alpaca! We'll be there (along with at least a few other Zombie Prom Date Knitters), with spindle demos and sales. We'll also have some weaving and wheel spinning going on. Come on out and join the fun!

meet, up close and in person
Sprite's SpinSanity of Wonder
born August 30, 2009

shop reopened

2009-09-21T09:47:00.003-04:00

I apologize for the abrupt closing of my shop and for the delay in shipping a few orders. As some of you may know, my older son had an accident early on September 9. I spent the following week by his side. He's doing much better now, out of the hospital and under outpatient care. I'm not completely back up to speed and won't be for awhile as I play nurse on-call (daily 3 hour dressing changes at home) or drive him back to the hospital for treatment and surgeries. We've still got a long way to go so please bear with me as I muddle through.

Thank you so much for your kind thoughts, prayers and well wishes.

Currently: New designs are appearing in the shop daily.

whew!

2009-08-30T01:14:00.003-04:00

In the passed six weeks, I've made more than eighty spindles, three dozen mini spindles and six lazy kates.

I have stolen some time with friends who seem to think I need a break every once in a while. And married off my oldest original (pre-remarriage) daughter.

Lost the last of my grandparents. Celebrated twelve years of marriage. Learned something about my stepfather. Registered my twins for fifth grade. Won a couple of blue ribbons in the county fair. Learned a little about weaving so I could help my youngest son learn how to weave. Listened to a whole lot of TV I didn't actually watch (the announcers on Ninja Warriors sound like they're swearing?) Been asked out for a drink by my ex-husband (does that sound as weird as it was?).

I have not cleaned my house, sorted laundry, straightened up my workshop or cleared off my diningroom table.

Lazy Kates are back in stock!

2009-08-24T14:20:00.002-04:00

You've asked for them so I took a break from painting and made some up. I'm now offering a couple of options...stain and extra bobbins.

upcoming dates

2009-08-24T13:53:00.003-04:00

Saturday, September 19, 2009: World Wide Spin in Public Day
I don't know where we'll be (maybe just hanging in our front yard or a local park) but you can be sure we'll be out there exposing the world to our fibery art!

Sunday, September 20, 2009 10AM-4PM: Spinner's Flock Fall Fleece Fair, Chelsea, MI
This is our first opportunity to participate in our guild's twice yearly sale. Em and I will be working all day doing various jobs. Spindles will be available.

Saturday, October 3, 2009 10AM-4PM: Wonder Why Alpaca Farm Wonder Weekend! East Leroy, MI
Featuring alpaca, alpaca, alpaca! We'll be there (along with at least a few other Zombie Prom Date Knitters), with spindle demos and sales. We'll also have some weaving and wheel spinning going on. Come on out and join the fun!

in the works

2009-08-22T14:30:00.005-04:00

These (some still in progress), and others, will be showing up at The Spinning Loft (Howell, MI) soon.

I'm working, Beth...I'm working.

Sock Summit

2009-07-05T18:00:00.003-04:00

No, I won't be headed to Sock Summit in August. I wish I was. But the lovely Rita, of Yarn Hollow will be and a selection of my spindles are going with her. Look for Yarn Hollow with SpinSanity Spindles in booth #925.

Since I'm a fairly small operation and haven't traveled across country as a vendor, I never really gave it much thought as to how one gets their stock from point A to point B. I have my stuff down to a couple of bins, a table, a large rug (to protect the spindles from concrete floors) that folds down quite small and personal belongings (clothes, toothbrush, spindles/kniting and travel wheel)...with some creative packing, it all fits in the back of my car. But Rita has a huge selection of fibers and yarns. HUGE. And driving that far with truck, trailer or motor home doesn't seem all that cost effective.

So how does it get from MI to OR? It's shipped. Her stock needs to go out on 7/27 in order to be in OR on time. My spindles need to get to her next week, in order to be packed in with her stock.

Yikes.

I'm spindlating as fast as I can.

ad spindles/Cherry Mandala

2009-06-23T14:09:00.004-04:00

I've had a lot of questions as to whether the cherry mandala spindle in my banner and Rav ads is still available and when I will list it. Usually, I create (or recycle) ads from spindles I've already made/sold or list them when the ad comes out. And then hear from those disappointed that they're not in my shop.

After much thought, and polling of friends and family, I've settled on this: if I use a new spindle design in ads and banners, I will list that spindle in the shop on the last day of the month the ad runs, at a specified time. I'll put an announcement both here and in an update in my shop.

So this month, the cherry mandala will be listed on Tues, June 30 at 3:00 PM EDT.

I has gallery!

2009-06-17T17:04:00.002-04:00

I've been meaning to set up a gallery of spindles that have gone out into the world for some time. I actually have a spindles set on the Flickr account I set up to use with Ravelry. Unfortunately, it's the account I use with Ravelry (and my knit/spin blog and this one)--it's cluttered. Since I have over 200 pics (how did I get over 200 pics?), every new pic I add drops one from view.

OK, so it's a work in progress. It's going to take awhile to fish spindle pics from my network storage drive. I always meant to organize pics in folders by month and year and then specifics within those but didn't start out that way so there's a lot to sort through.

Two Years

2009-06-01T14:45:00.006-04:00

It's been two years this month that I opened the Etsy shop. Crazy.

I had half formed a plan to celebrate the anniversary. You know how even the best laid plans go...

This is the kids' last week of school, Emily's graduation from high school is on June 7th, we have my husband's daughter and family coming in from NYC on Friday, my computer took a nose dive, yadayadayada.

I'll see what I can come up with once the dust settles. In the meantime, here's a peek at what I've been working on.

charity Craft In for the National Kidney Foundation

2009-05-01T17:49:00.006-04:00

When I offered Holly a custom spindle as a drawing prize for her Craft In to benefit the National Kidney Foundation, I wasn't sure what sort of design to do. Crazy flower? Regular flowers? Zombie Prom Date Knitter themed? Something more specific to the event? I consulted Holly and her dad, Marty (recipient of a donor kidney from his son).

"Put a kidney on it," says Holly.

"Kidneys are ugly," says Marty.

A challenge if ever I heard one...

Em looked at it and said, "Weird."

Abi looked at it and said, 'like...pretty kidneys!"

It's pretty kidneys, tree of life (the renal medulla "leaves" are flower buds for new growth and flames for hope), butterfly-ish (rebirth, new life) with a purple heart for courage and some lime green and orange thrown in because they're Holly's fav colors.

I predicted Holly and Marty would love it. The winner, maybe not so much. I planned to offer the winner a choice of this or a plain one.

As it turned out, a great time was had by all. The winner of quite possibly the only kidney spindle ever (though I have a request from Carina for a single kidney) loves it. She and Linda learned to spindle that day. When Linda's name was drawn for a prize, she was so disappointed the spindle was already snatched up, I had to throw in the one she was learning on as a prize. Of course, there was some fun commentary as to how no one else would want it after she parked it in her arm pit.

SpinSanity takes over the world!

2009-04-17T21:38:00.004-04:00

OK, maybe not the entire world but these went out to a fiber shop in Sweden yesterday...

Which is very cool. Especially since one of my mom's best friends when I was a teen was from Sweden (she's in Hawaii now and wants to learn to spin).

And this went off to its new home at the same time...

With winter finally fading, I'm back working on handpaints and you should start seeing them in the shop middle of next week.

St. Distaff's Day at Threadbear!

2008-12-30T19:46:00.003-05:00

We will be celebrating St Distaff's Day a bit early-- Sunday, January 4-- at Threadbear Fiber Arts in Lansing. We'll demo spindle spinning and have spindles available to try and/or buy.

It's also my daughter Em's 18th birthday so be sure to stop by and throw fibery gifts at her...or at least wish her a good one.

more new stuff

2008-09-19T15:48:00.004-04:00

A custom order for plying, this spindle is HUGE...

5" whorl, 15" shaft, weighing in at 2.5 ounces

current projects

2008-09-09T14:35:00.009-04:00

a custom order

another quilt inspired, echoing some previous designs

My youngest daughter, Abi, has a passion for "boney men" (she's been studying the human body since before she could walk), has recently discovered Skelanimals (Diego is her fav) and Halloween is her favorite holiday.

Day of the Dead-ish,

the first in a series inspired by Abi

busy, busy

2008-08-30T18:27:00.003-04:00

We had our family vacation in the Outer Banks the first ten days of the month. Then the Michigan Fiber Festival the weekend after we returned. My friend, Rita of Yarn Hollow was kind enough to carry my spindles. In order for her to do that, I actually had to make some spindles. Which I did, in the week before...while also dealing with my daughter's entry at the county fair (she won a blue ribbon!).

Now, we're heavily into back-to-school activities...two 4th graders, a high school sophomore and senior and a college freshman.

I'm trying to get some new stuff in the shop while also working on custom orders and trying to build up stock for Northern Michigan Lamb and Wool, the end of September. I hope you're all saving up for this one...Em's dying up lots of lovely fiber to bring with us!

Here's a peek at what I'm working on for the shop...

Coming Soon

2008-07-16T16:10:00.009-04:00

Celestial series I and II

Last Thursday, Em had all four of her wisdom teeth out (her older sis--Kait--moved out the same day). Em managed to dye a couple rovings the night before (Stepping Stone is sold but Acanthastrea is still available) but it's been rough for her so she's just easing back into things. Start looking for some new rovings later this week.

As for me, I've been working when I can...in between family and friend obligations. I created Americana for Knit with Snot's rockin' Independence Day Fest at the Grange, where she dragged me to demo spinning (and my shortest family members to ride through horse shit in the parade, but that's another post for another blog...though we all had a seriously good time--good friends, parade with horses, free food and drink, spinning...how that not be fun?--and I'm pretty sure one incredibly cute little curly blonde boy in cowboy boots is still begging his parents for a spinning wheel).

Doodle Flower

and Pennsylvania Dutch inspired Floral

both sold almost as soon as I put them up. I plan on doing more PA Dutch inspired designs in the coming weeks. Also, watch for a new spindle spinning kit next week.

Fiber Arts & Animals Festival

2008-06-09T09:46:00.003-04:00

I just heard about this little festival, even though it's practically in the neighborhood. Its focus is primarily educational but there's a great group of vendors scheduled. Come on over and join us!

Saturday, June 14, 2008 • Marshall, Michigan • 10 AM - 5 PM

New spinning kit...Hydrangea

2008-05-28T16:03:00.007-04:00

This one includes 1.5 oz of hand-dyed and blended to coordinate wool/bamboo blend batt.

Batts by Em!

2008-05-27T14:11:00.005-04:00

My daughter, Em (AKA Spinningin360 on Ravelry) has been trying her hand at the dyepot and carder with gorgeous results...

Go see these--more coming soon--now listed in my shop.

I'm also working on a new spinning kit that'll be listed tomorrow.

the trouble with working at home

2008-05-20T15:22:00.001-04:00

It's just after noon. Since 9 AM, I've packaged three spindles for shipping, glued together and applied the first coat of finish to three more, rubbed (with steel wool) and recoated three others, put in two loads of laundry, cleaned the livingroom carpet, responded to email and Etsy convos, let the dogs out several times, emptied the dishwasher and sketched out some potential new whorl designs.

I'm still in my pajamas. Oops.

Now, I need to go open and adjust hooks and stain three square-whorled spindles. And mop the kitchen floor.

laceweight

2008-05-15T12:31:00.001-04:00

I spun this

about 36 wpi 2-plied

on one of these

.5 oz featherweight spindles

Now available in the shop.

silence is an illusion

2008-04-26T19:33:00.003-04:00

I haven't been posting, not because I'm not working but because I'm crazy busy. In addition to my Etsy shop, my spindles can also be found online at Yarny Goodness and at brick and mortar stores: Threadbear Fiber Arts in Lansing, MI, the Smoky Mountain Spinnery in Gatlinburg, TN and--as soon as I get some to Beth--The Spinning Loft in Howell, MI

I seem to have a blue floral theme

going on at the moment

Newest Spinning Kit

2008-04-14T12:13:00.003-04:00

Now working on very special Spinning Kits!

2008-03-20T10:59:00.000-04:00

This is the first of my new spinning kits, including everything you need to get started or add to your collection--

1. Hand-painted paisley flower spindle (.8 oz, 10.5 inches tall), and 1 oz of easy drafting Michigan border leicester roving, all packaged in a lovely paisley floral divided box with room for 2-4 spindles and fiber.

lookie

2008-03-19T20:04:00.000-04:00

It's one of my spindles at Crafting a Greener World! How cool is that?

Thanks, Autumn.

my spindles in Australia!

2008-03-15T14:01:00.002-04:00

Back in July, PR, a Knitty Coffeeshop member bought one of my spindles. She came back for a custom design. Since I knew a little of her tastes, I consulted her on a kind of crazy spindle (black w/pink filigree, which was inspired by a design on a tshirt which I then learned was the trademarked logo of a certain band) I made but wasn't sure I could sell. She bought the spindle before it ever hit the shop--proclaiming it perfect for her Australian friend who was coming for a visit and wanted to learn to spin.

Emma, the recipient of that spindle, really took to spinning (YAY, another one bites the dust!). Back home in Australia, Emma ordered another so she could teach her mother to spin. Then she joined a spinning and weaving guild, taking her spindles to meetings. Her guild members (apparently mostly wheel spinners) were fascinated. Recently, I shipped off an order for six Simple Oaks--purchased by members of Emma's spinning guild.

And I received the following email...

Hi Shannon,

My name is Marion and I am President of the Nambucca Valley Spinners & Weavers Group that received your spindles. I was wondering if you could email some back-ground info on yourself and your spindles. Photos would be great so that the girls know a little more about their spindles history.

After using heavy bottom weight spindles we are finding out that "drop spindle" is just what we are doing, but we will get it together. We also have 2 more names for spindles so when we have a few more we will order through Emma.

Thanks for giving us a renewed interest in an old craft.

Marion

Wow. This is the coolest thing ever. Really. Thank you so much, PR, Emma and Marion.

stay away, bad paint juju!

2008-03-07T13:21:00.000-05:00

I'm really liking this one

here fishy, fishy, fishy

2008-03-05T18:03:00.000-05:00

custom order

Hey, it's notched!

finally!

2008-02-21T12:41:00.000-05:00

Some new stuff in the shop...

This was meant for the shop as well

the shaft end

(turned on the lathe by my son Alex)

but I love it so much

I couldn't bear to part with it

I'm sorry.

It has a lovely spin

(kid mohair)

I set up my photo shoot area but still need to work on quality...the backdrop is the same in each of these pics but all are different colors. Part of that is from my playing with editing software but they should all be the same if I did the same edits, right? Wugh.

New stuff coming

2008-02-15T20:47:00.000-05:00

I worked on some new spindles (including a couple with hand-turned shafts!) today but ran out of heat before I was able to finish. I'll have a propane refill this weekend and should have some listed by Monday.

I've also been working on a light box set up so I have someplace other than my rumpled bed to take pictures. Hopefully, that will be functional in time for the new listings.

Valentine

2008-02-11T20:45:00.000-05:00

2/13 Update: It's not a secret anymore...

go check out Copperpot's Blog!

I noticed she doesn't seem to have

a link to her shop on the blog--go drool

This was for a friend. She asked for a special Valentine design.

I'm not sure whether it was supposed to be a secret

so I won't mention who, or what it's for.

Custom Orders

2008-01-04T11:04:00.000-05:00

Etsian brondesjen asked for a sunflower

and another based on the 12 star Flag of Europe

(with temperature changes, my paints weren't cooperating...I had to make this one twice)

Etsian knittycat81 really likes my stained flower spindle but prefers her spindles a little heavier. I was happy to make her a double flower whorl that topped out at 1.99 ounces

I don't usually like spindles much over an ounce

but this one has a great spin.

I even tested it as a bottom whorl

To use a top whorl as a bottom-- spiral the yarn up the shaft toward the shaft end, wrap the yarn once around your thumb (as always, click for big)

and slip over the tip of the spindle, like a backward loop cast on.

I'm very pleased with the spin and am now offering this as a special order.

I'm going to have to make one for myself.

Now that the holidays are over, the kids are back in school and I'm caught up on my custom orders, I really will be working on some new designs for the shop!

If you love Kai's alien spindle, look for a clone of it soon.

Christmas Spindles

2007-12-26T00:52:00.000-05:00

Abi's

The underside

(because I couldn't decide between the butterfly or flowers)

Kai's

New Spindles

2007-11-20T18:12:00.000-05:00

I've been working...

Like this?

Stop in at Threadbear Fiber Arts, though it may have found a new home by now.

I need to make another for the shop.

Check Threadbear for "Purple Heart" (right) as well.

(filagree hearts is listed)

"Black Sheep" (inspired by the following spindle) will be listed as soon as it dries.

This one's a special request for my daughter, Em.

And this, a custom order for a friend.

Old Spindles

2007-11-19T15:45:00.000-05:00

These were custom orders or gifts...

my work space

2007-11-10T15:34:00.000-05:00

All my whorls (other than the red stained flowers) are cut on my drill press.

The really messy table (it's even worse now than when this was taken) where I glue, drill, Dremel, handpaint (when it's warm enough), add hooks and generally create more mess.

My husband made the drying rack for me. It only holds five spindles.

So I put this together...

I need to move it inside, now that it's winter.

I also need to hone my skills on this...

It's a little embarrassing that my 14 and 16 year olds

are better at turning shafts on the lathe than I am.

in the beginning

2007-10-30T11:16:00.000-04:00

I'm mom and stepmom to way too many kids--between us, my husband I have nine, including our twins. My mom first taught me to crochet when I was five and I learned to knit (mostly from a book) when I was twelve. For many, many years, my "LYS" was Walmart's craft aisle and the like. My hooks and needles saw sporadic use--sweaters for neices and nephews, afghan wedding gifts. A few years ago, my next-to-youngest daughter, Emily, asked me to teach her to crochet and then to knit. We discovered knitting on the net, knitting in public, knitting books, real yarn stores and the overwelming joy of natural fibers. True passion was born.

Em and I learned how to spin after buying a couple of spindles in August 2006. Mine was a 1.4 oz Kundert and I only had that one spindle for months. In February '07, I bought a lighter spindle.

My youngest son (then eight, with mild cerebral palsy that affects his hands) wanted to spin so he borrowed that second one. Once you have more than one, how do you make do with less? I had to get it back!

My husband ordered some toy wheel spindles on Ebay, enough for ALL the kids . They were too heavy and wouldn't spin. I--owner of exactly two spindles, with only vague knowledge of the use of power tools (OK, my grandfather taught me how to refinish wood furniture one summer when I was a teen and I'd done quite a bit of that sort of thing since so not entirely unfamiliar with wood) --decided *I* could do better.

Thus began my quest for the *perfect* (OK, reasonably inexpensive, fairly light, decent spinning) spindle for my kids to use. I made the first at the end of April. It was a toy wheel spindle, the wheel itself stained a lovely cranberry...

and it didn't spin. So I tried other toy wheels, including spoked ones.

Those were better, still not great.

By the middle of May, a lot of people in my life were getting darn sick of hearing "spindlespindlespindle" and my ideas for "spindlespindlespindle." Except my husband-- he just kept buying me more tools in response to my, "This is what I want to do, how do I do it?" questions. And then some of my friends stopped tuning me out and actually looked at my spindles again. They tried spinning with them. "Hey, these are pretty cool. You should do something with them. Sell them or something." What else was I going to do--I gave them spindles.

By early June, I had spindles everywhere--my desk, kitchen table, nightstand.

I decided I needed more fiber to spin with all these spindles...oh yeah, and some for the kids. While shopping for fiber online, I wondered if anyone would buy my spindles? I started setting up a shop, just for the heck of it, before I lost my nerve. And one of my spindles disappeared from my shop while I was still setting it up. Where'd it go? A glitch? I clicked the wrong thing? No. A sale.

And here we are...

To be honest, I don't really make much money from this venture (when I asked my husband what, exactly, he expected from my spindle-making, he replied, "Enough to support your fiber addictions"...he's a good man!) because I put way more into each spindle than I would ever charge for them. But it's not all about the money.