Knit Me, I'm Irish - St. Patrick's Day getaway!

Grab your knitting needles, the Caldwell House Bed and Breakfast and the Cornwall Yarn Shop are marking St. Patrick’s Day by offering guests a chance to knit their very own Irish scarf using Irish yarn at the historic Irish inn throughout the month of March. “We’re excited to offer guests such a unique Irish experience in our newly opened ‘Great Room,’” said Dena Finneran, who co-owns the inn with her husband, John. “When we heard Gail specializes in traditional yarns, including traditional Aran yarn.

“This is a new approach for us,” said Gail Parrinello, owner of the nearby Cornwall Yarn Shop. “We usually teach at our store, it’ll be great fun to knit in the inn’s ‘Great Room’ with a roaring fire in the background.” The class is open to intermediate knitters, those who’ve already mastered the basics. Attendees will learn to knit an Irish Cable Scarf using traditional Irish stitches from Gail or her assistant, Meghan.

The Cornwall Yarn Shop hosts Sit and Knit, I Heart Crochet, and various other classes and events at its shop at 227 Main Street in Cornwall from mid-week through weekend.

The Irish scarf knitting classes will be held at the Caldwell House Bed and Breakfast at 25 Orrs Mills Road, Salisbury Mills and will take place on a single Monday in March, based on availability. On Mondays March 2, March 9, March 16 and March 23rd 2015 the class runs from 2-4 pm; on Monday, March 30th 2015, class runs from 7-9 pm.

The hands-on experience is available to guests through the “Knit Me I’m Irish package” but the class itself is open to the public independently with a $40 fee plus tax, which includes supplies. Knitters may return on a following week for a recurring fee.

The Knit Me I’m Irish package includes:

• -3-night stay at the Caldwell House Bed and Breakfast for the price of a 2-night stay (i.e. one night free!) 
• -Admission and all supplies for two to the Irish scarf knitting class 
• -Complimentary three course gourmet breakfasts 
• -Free WiFi at the inn so you can show off your new creations 
• -If your partner isn’t interested in knitting, they could always join others who will be watching the basketball tournament games on the 75” 4KHDTV 
• Package starts at  $530 per couple plus tax; the Knit Me I’m Irishpackage is available Sunday - Tuesdays in March 2015. 

About Caldwell House
The Caldwell House Bed and Breakfast was once a refuge to an Irish family fleeing the British during the 1798 Irish Rebellion. The Caldwells, including a dozen children, crossed the Atlantic to arrive in New York City in the early 1800s. They later scrounged to amass 50-acres of land in Salisbury Mills and began to recreate the estate they had left behind in Ireland. Over time and generations, the buildings were sold off. Innkeepers John and Dena Finneran have been steadily reclaiming the buildings, once again piecing history back together.

Today the Caldwell House Bed and Breakfast is a multi-award winning member of the prestigious Select Registry© and Diamond Collection© groups of Luxury Inns. Located in the heart of the Hudson Valley - just 60 minutes from NYC – and close to the United States Military Academy at West Point, the Storm King Arts Center, Brotherhood Winery (and many of the Shawangunk Wine Trail Wineries), and the Woodbury Premium Outlet Mall. Some of the Hudson Valley’s most beautiful hiking/biking trails are within walking or easy driving distance. Built in 1802, this historic inn is full of many original features, antiques and original paintings, as well as modern amenities. Each guest room includes its own private full bath (several with Jacuzzi tub for two), “Smart HDTVs” with Netflix/Hulu, free Wi-Fi Internet access, individual room temperature controls, iPads, round the clock coffee, tea, and snacks, and much more.


The Caldwell House Bed and Breakfast is located at 25 Orrs Mills Road, Salisbury Mills, NY 12577. To make a reservation call 845-496-2954 or visit www.caldwellhouse.com. Also at: facebook.com/CaldwellHouseBandB

Sheep and Wool Festival Last Weekend

My friend Kelli asked for company to go to the 

Sheep and Wool Festival in Rhinebeck this past Saturday.

It started off a bit cloudy but that did not keep the crowds away.

Over by the lamp post there was a vendor selling some type of artichoke goodness

that had a major crowd the whole time we were there.

Kelli is a hat person and this looked lovely on her! It is entirely made from wool and a 

few unusually striped black and white feathers.

There is as plethora of hand knitted, crocheted, woven and beautifully created

woolen goods everywhere!

I purchased a few quarters of wool from this charming lady. I want to try to

rug hook some of my art this winter.

As the day progressed, so did the crowd....

a quick trip up to livestock hill for a black sheep selfie and our day was done!

ps:

The artichoke crowd was even worse on the way out so I never did get to try it :(

Fooling Around with Fiber - An Adventure in the Wet Felting Process

Today we have a guest post from team member Kathryn Luciana of Huzzah Handmade sharing with us her recent visit to White Barn Farm and Fiber.

White Barn Farm Shop

Spring was barely in the air when I returned to White Barn Sheep and Wool near New Paltz, N.Y.  I'd visited this lovely shop and farm last year and signed up for a couple of lectures, but this time, I was there to immerse myself in a process called Wet Felting. I have always been intrigued by this process, and although I've been knitting and felting my work for years, Wet Felting is very different, and I wanted to learn more about it.

Paula Kucera, owner of the farm, welcomed us to her studio and shop, which is housed in part of the white barn for which the farm is named. The shop is cozy, very well stocked with a wonderful variety of fiber, books, tools, and a nice selection of local handmade items. Featured is a good selection of locally sourced fibers in addition to her own luscious yarns from her herd of mostly Cormo sheep. She recently remodeled the "knit lounge" and the workshop area of the barn, so we had lots of light and space to work. She described the process, showed us various examples of finished pieces, books about wet felting, and described the materials that we would  be using.

Merino wool batts, and coils of roving

Very simply stated, Wet Felting is a process by which various fibers are arranged on a fiber background creating a design. Then the substrate and fibers are covered, and warm, soapy water is gradually poured over the piece. By rubbing gently with your hands, and adding water as necessary, gradually the fibers start to meld, but that's just the beginning! Several more steps and several more hours later, you have your finished piece.

In preparation for the day, Paula suggested that we find something to inspire our project, like a photograph, scrap of fabric, an image or anything we might find helpful as a jumping off point. I decided to choose one of my photographs. I found several that I thought might work, and manipulated them in Photoshop to make them more abstract. I took four or five with me, but finally ended up with one from part of my garden.

My batt and my inspiration photos

Paula was kind to us. She chose 100% Merino 19 micron wool, because of it's ability to felt more easily then other fibers. A great choice for newbies. The "canvas" on which we worked is called a batt. We had chosen our batt colors in advance, and Paula had a nice variety available when we arrived. The batts are basically soft, rectangular sheets of wool, and since we were going to be making purses or tablet carriers, the color of the batt would become the inside of the bag. I chose gray/brown, but more adventurous students chose lime green or turquoise. Other than that, our tools were humble: a towel, plastic bubble wrap, synthetic organza fabric, a plastic sheet, rubber stair tread material, a scrap of non-slip rug material, and a piece of a foam "noodle" like kids use in the pool.

Our tools

The "paint" we used on our "canvas" was Merino wool roving in an amazing variety of colors,  yarn, and various other fibers. We set about pulling off sections from the roving coils to create our designs. With my photograph nearby, I started creating my scene. As well as the wisps of roving, I also used a couple of colors of merino yarn for texture. Once our bag front was complete, we flipped the whole piece over and repeated the process for the back and flap. (Notice the piece of plastic inside the bag to keep the back and front from felting together). With step one, the bag front and back completed, we moved on to step two. Time to get wet! If you like getting messy, you'll love this process.

Step One, complete

Step Two is where the magic starts to happen. The front of the bag is covered with a scrap of organza fabric. Then, warm, soapy water is dribbled over the fabric gradually. It needs to get really wet. Squishy wet. As you add water, you start to gently rub the fibers with your hands, eventually covering the entire piece. This abrasion will start the felting process. Rub, add water, rub, check your progress by lifting the fabric. Finally, the fibers will be adhered to themselves and to the batt, so that you can lift the organza and flip the piece over to repeat the process on the back. I wanted to make a messenger style bag with a cross body strap, so I had an additional step. I selected a length of roving, allowing for shrinking, and using the rubber stair tread, I rolled the wet roving back and forth on it until it felted into a solid tube. As I worked on the bag back, I attached the strap to the inside, felting it as I rubbed the outside of the bag. The side seams are turned under and felted closed securely. After that, time for a quick lunch and a trip to see the sheep down at the barn.

Recently sheared Cormo Sheep

Organza fabric layer

Back to work, we now started the labor-intensive part of the process. Our pieces were sandwiched between two sheets of plastic, and one piece still remained inside. We placed our work on the bubble wrap, rolled them around our foam noodle, and tied the ends tightly. On top of our towels, we started rolling the package back and forth on the table, 50 times one way, then flip the package around and 50 times the other way. There is a stance one must assume to do this, and you quickly learn the meaning of the phrase "put your back into it." Using our forearms, we rolled and flipped and rolled and flipped. Paula assured us that it would only take and hour or so! I soon realized that I didn't have to worry about working off the calories I ate at lunch.
Every couple of hundred rolls, we had the chance to peek at the progress of our work. They were getting smaller and denser, little by little. Finally, we were ready to move on, but we were not done yet! 

Checking the progress

Rolling, rolling, rolling!

After deciding that our pieces were sufficiently felted, Paula led us to the sink, where we scrubbed them vigorously in a basin of hot water. After wringing out most of the water, we then got to use our rubber mats. Now, at this point, if you have any aggression to release, go for it. We grabbed our bags and threw them down on the mats repeatedly to finish the process. Wham! We were done!! Our bags were felted, but there was still opportunity for further experimentation. I took my bag home and threw it in the dryer on hot, so that it felted even more, and the strap was then the perfect length. My bag ended up being about and inch or two larger than an iPad, all around. I will add a lining and a closure. Other students were considering adding needle felted decorations, beads, leather handles or other adornments.

Hot water "shock"

Throwing down!

So, after 5 hours, lots of elbow grease, and three cups of Yogi Energy Tea, I have a small insight into the ancient process of Wet Felting. It was a great day, in good company with a patient teacher. A very satisfying experience.  White Barn Farm and Fiber Shop is located at 815 Albany Post Road, New Paltz, N.Y. You can visit Paula on the web at: whitebarnsheepandwool.com

My bag, with felting completed

Story and Photos by Kathryn Luciana of Huzzah Handmade