Creativity with a Ten-Year-Old

Spring has been busy this year – busier than normal.  It all started with spring shearing.  Who would have thought that eight Shetland sheep could create so much fuss?  It didn’t help that the weather didn’t cooperate either.  Every time we picked a date to shear, it rained for 4 or five days and then we had to wait another few days for the sheepies to dry out.  By that time, it was raining again. We did eventually get it done, and then the washing began.  Heavy work, and with the weather being fussy, I still have two Shetland fleeces waiting to be washed.

I have also been preparing for the OHS Spinning Certificate Program in August.  Level Two starts soon and I am completing my spindle research paper that is due the first day.  Not overly worried about comparing five types of spindles in 4-6 pages and showing spun samples.  I can do that.  It would be easier if I could dedicate 4-6 pages each individual spindle since there is so much information!

Last week, however, I took a five-day break from all of this fun.  My niece, Abigail, came to stay with us.  Abigail is 10 and in love with animals and spinning. She has been spinning with Nanny and I since she was an infant.  She started on our laps while we were at our wheels, and then a few years ago, Nanny put a spindle in her hands.  Abigail and I spent last week adventuring in fluff.

We started with sun tea. Dyeing wool locks in jars was a fascinating experience.  Abigail checked on the jars every hour or so to feel the temperature and to see if the water was clear

Sun tea dyeing in jars.

yet.  She couldn’t wait for the jars of wool to be completely saturated with colour.  That evening, we took the locks out of the jars, rinsed them and laid them on a screen to dry.

While the wool was drying the next day, we went for a lunchtime boat cruise on Stoney Lake.  Abigail was impressed with the sizes of the cottages and all of the rocky islands on the lake. The cottage shaped like a castle was her favourite.  Ice cream for a treat on the way home. I think Uncle Jeremy enjoyed that part the best.

We also did some wild tie-dyeing!  And I really mean wild.  That young lady proclaimed herself the Tie-Dye Queen and her t-shirts came out great!  She even did three pairs of

Tie-Dye Creations by Abigail.
One of a kind.

Granddad’s work socks because she felt he needed some colour in his life. While there was more dye on the shirts than on Abigail (which surprised me the way she was flinging the tie dye around), she was uninhibited in her application of colours and designs. I was impressed at her enthusiasm and attention span, considering the technological age we live in.

I gave her a pair of hand cards to try when the sun tea fibre was dry.  She took to carding so quickly and easily it was like she had been doing it all her life.  It brought a tear to my

Abigail hand carding.
What a natural!

eye more than once to see how happy she was.  I am sure that Nanny is smiling down on us.  She would have loved to see Abigail experiencing all this spinning and woolly fun.

And on the final day, Abby sat on the couch with her spindle, spinning away to Harry Potter movies.  My husband and my father laughed over that for all the times Mum and I sat spinning quietly with the Harry Potter movies running.  I guess a tradition was started and is being carried on.

Abigail went home with almost a pound of carded wool, her spindle, and some wonderful memories.

Everyone has been asking me if Abigail wore me out while she was here.  I would like to answer yes, but the truth is, she didn’t. I was busily creative during the days and slept well at night. It was a pleasure to have her with us.

I had a very good week with Abigail.  It reminded me to relax more with my spinning and my new life on the farm.  I am more interested now in being fearless and playing and trying new things.  No one told Abigail that carding or dyeing or spinning was difficult, so when she tried it, it wasn’t.  I hope I can approach fibre arts with that same outlook.  It will make the process much more enjoyable.

Rainbow wool from the sun tea
jars. Very pretty colours to spin.

Next week, Abigail’s younger brothers come to stay for a few days. Got a few things planned for them, including tie-dyeing. Hmmm… wonder if I will survive with these two.