Be sure to check out the article written on the Spinners Retreat here: http://www.kingscountynews.ca/News/2011-10-30/article-2787888/Spin-on/1

And now for the photos!

Kate teaches all about the Knitters Loom	Wheel Maintenance with Richard
Wild Carding!	Art Yarn with Kate
Fashion Show! Looking Great.	Kate, Eugene & Just Foster from Noah's Place, and Richard with the beautiful 30" Elizabeth wheel
Before....	....and after!!!!
Sharon and Marc discuss wheels	Heather and Joan discuss spindles!
Just a small sampling of the great group from NB	What could it be? What could it be?

Anne Bishop teaching Edith Zillig's Shepherd Hat	Her captivated audience
"Everybody squeeze in just a little more!" Group photo being taken by Manda	Richard signs Mira's Kiwi wheel. Mira was this years Jai Giroux Scholarship recipient.
Daniel checks out this neat wheel	Team Ashford and Gaspereau Valley Fibres: Richard, Brenda, Kate, Marc, Manda and Dave

Thanks again to everyone who helped make Spin Local 2011 so much fun. Keep those wheels spinning into the winter and spring! We’ll see you next year.

What a weekend! A HUGE thank you to everyone who helped make it a success. Richard and Kate from Ashford, and Marc from Harmonique were a great addition and we were so happy to be able to meet them and have them share their knowledge and joy of spinning with us all. If you have any photos, please send copies to brenda@gaspereauvalleyfibres.ca or post them on our Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Gaspereau-Valley-Fibres/150179068377264  We would love to share them with everyone and we hope to see everyone next year in Memrambook, NB!

The team at GVF

The Retreat is almost upon us and the excitement is building! We are very please to announce the recipient of the Jali Giroux Scholarship is Mira from New Brunswick. Here is a bit about her:

My name is Mira and I am 16 years old. I like to spin a lot, and last year I saved up enough of my own money and bought an Ashford Kiwi from you people who run the retreat. I like it a lot. It works wonderfully and is easy to use. I prefer to spin extremely skinny yarn and knit on tiny needles. … I would like to meet other spinners and learn more about spinning, I don’t know very much about it since I only started last year. None of my friends at school spin so it would be nice to meet other people who do. Here is a photograph of what I am spinning right now.

Below you will find the agenda of the weekend as well as the “Don’t Forget to Bring” list. We look forward to seeing everyone in two weeks!

Spin Local 2011 Agenda 

Friday:
3pm – Check in at the Hotel

4-6pm – Registration & Set up Wheel (The spinning room will be open and accessible from this point on until the end of the retreat)
*Please remember you are on your own for supper

7pm – Welcome / wine & cheese

8-9pm – Vendors open

Saturday: 

7-8:30am – Breakfast

9-9:30am – Registration with Jan Gnemmi for those attending just for the day or who missed the evening registration

Demos (no pre-registration required):

9-10am – Warping a Knitter’s Loom with Kate Sherratt (From Ashford)

9:30-10am – Spinning Wheel Maintenance with Richard Ashford

9:30-10am – Spinning for Absolute Beginners with Cape Breton Guild

9:30-10am – Tips for Choosing a Fleece with Potluck Spinners

11-11:45am – Fibre Prep on the Wild Drum Carder & Spinning Art Yarns with Richard Ashford

11-11:45am – Fancy yarn & Navajo plying with Kate Sherratt

10am – Morning Break

10:30-12pm – Vendors Open

NOON – Lunch (Vendors go first!)

1-4pm – Vendors open to the general public / Free Spinning

Demos:
2-2:30pm – Shepherd’s Hat with Anne Bishop

2-2:45pm – Fibre Prep on the Wild Drum Carder & Spinning Art Yarns with Richard Ashford

2-2:45pm – Warping a Knitter’s Loom with Kate Sherratt

4-4:30pm – Spinning Wheel Maintenance with Richard Ashford

4-4:30pm – Fancy yarn & Navajo plying with Kate Sherratt

3:30pm – Afternoon Break

5:30pm – Door Prizes announced

6pm – Group Photo

6:30pm – Supper

7:45pm – Talk with Richard Ashford

9pm – Fashion Show and fun in the Barn 

Sunday:

7-8:30am – Breakfast / Contest Winners announced

9am & on – Vendors Open

NOON – Check out & see you next year!

Don’t forget to bring:

*Spinning wheel / drop spindle

Niddy noddy

Ball winder

Drum carder / hand cards

Spinning fibre (if you run out, I’m sure one of the vendors will have something that catches your eye!)

Plying yarn or thread

Spin Local skeins for contest (Hand spun skeins using fibre as local to you as possible). Please label these with your name, fibre content and approx. distance from your home.

*Name Tag

Item for Fashion Show

Walking shoes

Swimsuit

Camera

Bobbins (if you got some last year) if playing whipcord winos

Door prizes if you feel so inclined…

*Fun attitude

* Starred items are necessities

Anyone interested in being a vendor at this years retreat can now start to get in touch with us. Vendors are able to attend the retreat as just a vendor, and not have to register, or if you would like to take part in all the fun activities, you can register as well and be a vendor. Spread the word to any local fibre farms you may know as well, since this is a great opportunity to showcase the amazing fibres that our east coast has to offer! Call (1-877-634-2737) or email (brenda@gaspereauvalleyfibres.ca) the shop to give us your name, or for any questions or concerns.

Happy Spring Spinning!

Ideas have been floating back and forth between many people for games and events to have at this years retreat, and we are very excited to announce our contests and events for this year:

	Name Tags: This year, we are giving you the opportunity to create your own name tag.  Yarn, felt, spinning odds and ends, use your imagination! A minimum of your name is required, but feel free to put where you’re from or any other info you’d like it to say. The name tags will be voted on at the retreat and prizes will be awarded!
Longest Thread: We love this challenge and wanted to be sure to include it for 2011. This is a competition at the actual retreat where spinners are tested at their ability to spin without breaking. The one who can spin the longest thread wins. Get practicing and it could be you!
	Spin Local: This contest will have three categories – single ply, two ply and novelty yarn. The challenge is to use fibre grown within 50 miles (give or take) of your home! This is not limited to animals – keep in mind all of those great plants that can be spun as well. Flax, nettles, corn silk, milk weed and many others! This is a great chance as well to use what you learned last year at Spin Wild and maybe try your hand at carding some of your front garden into a local fleece. We can’t wait to see what you come up with!
Fashion Show: Calling all finished garments! This year we will be having a fashion show where we want everyone to take a few minutes and show off the amazing things they have created over the years. Do you have a piece that took years to finish? Or how about a project that was such a challenge you never thought you would get through it, or one that wasn’t any of these, but that you simply just love to death? We want to see them all. Please do not be shy! Garments that are made with handspun, or are local yarn/pattern/designer are encouraged, but all pieces are welcome.
	Jali Giroux Spinning Scholarship: This scholarship will be given to someone between the ages of 18 – 25 who would like to attend the spinners retreat but may not have the means of doing so. We ask that anyone interested send in a letter of application to brenda@gaspereauvalleyfibres.ca simply introducing themselves and telling us about who they are and why they would like to attend. This scholarship is in memory of Jali Giroux – an amazing fibre artist from Gaspereau Valley, who sadly passed away in 2009 from cancer. This award is provided by The Potluck Spinner’s, of which Jali was a longtime member, and Gaspereau Valley Fibres where she was a good friend and employee.

Any questions or comments regarding any of the above, please feel free to call or email the shop at 1-877-634-2737 (toll free) or brenda@gaspereauvalleyfibres.ca And as usual, we would love to see pictures of what people are working on so we can share them on here for everyone else to see.

Happy Spinning!

For those of you who do not have your registration form yet for this years retreat, you can now download it here.

Registration Form

For Mac users, just click the words “Registration Form” and it should download directly to your Downloads folder. For PC users, right click the words “Registration Form” and click “Save As”. Then choose where you would like to save it on your computer and click Save. The form was made using Microsoft Word. If you would like to register but do not have this program, and cannot open the file, please call the shop to register.

You can fill out the form right on your computer and email it to us at brenda@gaspereauvalleyfibres.ca , or you can print it out and mail it through the post office.

Please do not hesitate to call if there are any questions or concerns.

Happy Spinning!

Everyone at Gaspereau Valley Fibres has been very busy these last few months planning for October. While there are still some things to finalize, we do have some exciting news to share.

Richard Ashford has registered for this years retreat! He will be giving demos, teaching wheel maintenance as well as talking about the history of Ashford. Richard said “”it will be particularly interesting for me as Grandad was a preacher in Nova Scotia, and Dad went to school in St. John”. We are very excited to welcome him, as well as Marc and Kate from Ashford, to the Maritimes this October.

There are still lots of spots left, so be sure to call in and register. When you register it provides you with: wine and cheese social on Friday night, three meals and two coffee breaks on Saturday as well as breakfast on Sunday. This means you are responsible for dinner on Friday night when you arrive. The Old O’s restaurant will be open or you can visit one of the great restaurants in the surrounding towns. Paddy’s Pub, The Tempest, The Ivy Deck Bistro or The Port Pub are just a few examples of what awaits you.

Vendor information will soon be available, as well as games and contests. As the theme is Spin Local, be sure to keep your eyes out for local fibres in your area that you can create with.

Please feel free to call or email Gaspereau Valley Fibres if there are any questions or concerns about the retreat. Gaspereau Valley Fibres would also like to extend a huge thanks to everyone who has graciously offered to help with this undertaking. We appreciate all the help and enthusiasm.

Spin happy!

 

Gaspereau Valley Fibres and The Potluck Spinners are very excited to be hosting this years’ Maritime Spinners Retreat. The 11th annual will take place at the Old Orchard Inn in Greenwich on October 14, 15 and 16. The theme this year is Spin Local and we are focusing on all the great fibre that is just in our backyards!

Rooms are ready to be booked at the Old O, you can make reservations by calling 1-800-561-8090 or by emailing reservations@oldorchardinn.ns.ca Rates are as follows:

Single or Double: $115
Triple: $125
Quad: $135

Registration for the Retreat this year is $145. Please call or email the shop to fill out your registration form. Cheques can be made out to Potluck Spinners and can be sent to Gaspereau Valley Fibres PO Box 2368 Wolfville NS B4P 2N5. Credit Card users can call the shop at (902) 542-2656 or Toll Free at: 1-877-634-2737.

Ann Dilley with her new Aura spinning wheel!

#1 partial view of the whole gang

#2 partial view of whole gang

Rosalie Horn with her new Wild carder

Well it has taken me a few days to recover from all that spinning and talking and laughing. But now I am already waiting for next year!!!
Certainly hope that everyone else enjoyed themselves as much as Louise and I did!
And could you believe all the action at that carding table?! I am sure there are some spectacular yarns being spun from those wild carded batts.

If I get pictures sent to me I will try to publish at least some of them here for everyone to enjoy. Then it will be time to pass the responsibility for the website on to the team in the Gaspereau Valley.
Mark your calendars: October 14,15 and 16, 2011 at The Old Orchard Inn.

As you might guess from the title, things are getting a bit crazy at both my house and Louise’s house!
A huge Thank-you to everyone who is coming with prize donations. Spinners are such generous people!!!
And if you have not checked your e-mail – a warning – there is a DETOUR on the way to the hotel. Louise and I were driving out earlier and totally missed ALL the huge signs ( talking ,,, would you believe it?) But follow the signs and you will end up at the Rodd Mill River Resort.
I am wondering if everyone else has a house full of fluff and feathers and sequins and bits of fabric strips and pompoms and wild colors of carded batts and … and … and ….
It is SO much fun!