The weather in this neck of the woods varies wildly from moment to moment. At any given moment can bring rain, sun, or a mix of the two. A few days ago we were on the way “into town” - headed to the lovely town of West Jefferson, NC, when we spotted this lovely Pride Eve beauty… We took a moment just to enjoy the incredible beauty inherent in a world full of variety and connectedness! If you haven’t been to West Jefferson, GO! It’s such a delightful town with lots of shopping, a number of breweries and restaurants, and some incredible murals. They also have a hoppin’ little art scene!

HVAC Adventure Begins

This week we’re beginning our HVAC Adventure! Shoutout to Carolina Comfort - a company in Sheri’s hometown, not far from the cabin. They have been so professional, responsive, and easy to work with.

The studio cabin has never had whole house HVAC. While it’s definitely much cooler up here in “The Coolest Corner of NC” as Ashe County is called, it is also humid. The cabin’s location in a rainforest, and next to a creek can definitely amp up the moisture in the air! In prep for dyeing, hosting folks, and teaching, we’re getting this whole house system put in. It’ll make the dye studio space - and the rest of the cabin MUCH more comfortable!

If you’re old enough to remember Murphy Brown, we’re beginning to feel sort of like Murphy - the people working on the cabin are becoming so familiar as to feel like fixtures in our lives.

Yesterday brought the cutting of holes in the floor - and the installation of the metal things called “boots” that connect the holes with the duct work.

The ductwork in our lower level studio space kind of reminds me of the “worms” in the Dune movie series. We preferred the Dune: Part Two, by the way…

Chillin’ on the Sleeper

We ordered a really cool sleeper sofa from Carolina Chair Co. In our quest to create spaces in the cabin that are welcoming, interesting, engaging, and as thoughtfully designed as possible, we found Carolina Chair Co. they are a decades old company that makes furniture on demand - and their process allows for customization of many elements of the pieces you order. We chose the Henley sleeper sofa, to give us an additional sleeping space if needed, and we opted to cover it in a dark blue denim. It’s a fairly timeless shape - but with plenty cushion to make it super comfortable. You and I both know that when you’re lying on a sofa, completely chilled out, you can get some pretty great ideas! Or sleep. Either one is great.

Here’s their product pic:

That’s the dark blue denim. I love it because it’s not “brand new mom jean blue.” I also love it because…denim is our jam. Custom throw pillows are also on our order. The backs will be made from the couch denim, and the fronts will be made from denim patchworks I’ve created from up-cycled denim. Here’s one of the front panels:

And…We’re in Spin Off Magazine!

I wrote an article for Spin Off Magazine’s current issue - Summer 2025. The article is all about how to take “ugly” braids and spin them into something beautiful! Here’s a link to Spin Off. It’s published by the amazing team at Long Thread Media. I’ll leave you with some yarny eye candy… To learn about the process I used to create this palette, visit spinoffmagazine.com and read the current issue!

Bricks

We had to move our first retreat to June. For full details check out the retreats info page on our website. We’ll open up for a group of four for a knitting retreat in June. We aren’t doing cattle call retreats - we’re keeping things cozy - for people who like to have a bit of breathing room.

Toward the goal of hosting retreats, we’ve been installing the front walkway. When we bought the cabin it had no walkway - just a dirt path to the front steps. Being the creative reuse maven she is, Sheri pulled pavers, reclaimed bricks, and other materials from her hardscaping “stash”. We added a handful of antique bricks from the cabin property, and after a bit of planning (and hauling 1500 lbs of materials up the mountain in “Big Red” - Sheri’s truck) - the process of walkway building began. Sheri got to it before I did - as I was still in the Piedmont for a bit before making my trek up the mountain. But, for the last few days, we’ve worked on the project together.

Before she could even head up the mountain, Sheri had to cut a chain to use to secure the materials in the back of her truck. The walkway is really looking great! There will be gravel coming soon to round out the driveway, and go along the edges of the walkway.

Mirrors - and Bugs

I had the opportunity last week to watch several really great documentaries on YouTube. Honestly, I prefer documentaries to most other kinds of shows/movies. First on the list was 12 Fascinating Jobs Done by Women Around the World. I didn’t expect there to be Cochineal farmers in the mix on that one! Their stories are fascinating. Cochineal is a bug used for creating red dye. One fact to note is that it takes somewhere around 70,000 bugs to make a pound of cochineal dye powder! Oh - and it’s in everything from yogurt to lipstick. Not just in the naturally dyed yarn you buy!

There were also Cambodian silk weavers, and Dhokra weavers who drop spun jute - one of them using a piece of rubber tire tied to her leg in order to get the fastest spin from her drop spindle. This is a documentary worth watching. Many fiber workers, but also farmers, tailors, and food makers.

Another documentary, Still Standing from Business Insider shares the story of a woman in India who took over her family’s ritual mirror making business when her father passed away. Undaunted by everyone who told her she couldn’t do it, she has kept the business going through all manner of challenges. The mirrors are made with metal - not glass, and the process is really interesting. What’s more interesting in the very obvious resolve of the woman who owns the company. Truly inspiring.

Socks (and a Shawl)

Finally, I cast on a pair of socks - two at a time knitting at its finest. I’m doing scrappy knitting to use sock yarn I have on hand. I could have dyed some yarn for my project as we’ll be in the studio next week preparing yarn for orders, but I opted to use what I have instead. This photo of the socks looks like a hot mess. After sitting on the cabin deck working on this - using four balls of yarn in order to stripe these fun, quirky socks, I opted to put all the yarn into a box, making it easier to manage.

One other fun thing I’m planning to do is use black walnuts Sheri’s dad gave me last fall to dye some yarn next week. It’ll require setting up table and burner outside as Sheri is allergic to walnuts. The grand plan is to add the walnut dyed yarn into the Lost River Shawl I’m knitting using handspun yarn. I have a good length of it knit in natural. Next will come the section knit with handspun yarn dyed with beech nut hulls in January of this year. After that, the walnut yarn. It’ll be handspun as well - and a deep, rich brown. Below is a photo of the natural and beech nut hull dyed. The pattern is on Ravelry here.

We also got some non-superwash yarn made with Shaniko wool. Looking forward to dyeing that as well. It’ll be an experiment. We’ll let you know how it goes!

Lucky!

I’ll leave you with the find from yesterday. In spite of my absolute frustration with the password reset situation on Substack, the Universe decided to hand me a reminder. Seven four leaf clovers just outside the studio door at the cabin. Thank you, Universe. I’m grateful! Goes right along with my morning practice, learned from @coachwithsteff on Instagram. She shared a video from a guy named Bob Proctor. You should try it! When you get up in the morning and you’re having your morning beverage - or sitting quietly, name ten things you’re grateful for. Send love to three people who bother you - yep, that’s what I said. AND - sit quietly for at least five minutes and ask for guidance for your day.

You’ll be glad you did!

I’ll catch you next week!

Ladianne

xoxo