Since my husband moved to Vancouver in 2006, we made a point to travel to Tofino, BC, each year but the last time we were there was 2013. It was New Years and we were hoping to have a quiet retreat with our then 1-year-old son before welcoming the final addition into our family in March 2014. From about Midnight on New Years Eve until sometime in the early morning hours, I walked along Long Beach with our croupy son. He was quite sick and being an Emergency nurse for quite a number of years, I knew how to manage him in the remote place that we were. He slept and rested in my arms throughout those early morning hours, the mist of the ocean helping his cough to remain settled and keeping me from having to wake my husband to take us to Ucluelet (pronounced U-clue-let) where the nearest ER is located (about a 30 minute drive from where we were). It gives me chills thinking about that night even now. The sound of the ocean waves, which are quite loud along Long Beach, as you walk closer to the jagged rocks that hug the shoreline, are forever imprinted on my mind. They were hypnotic that night.
While it was not an experience I want to re-live, those early morning hours gave me a chance to think about how our life was changing with our young family in tow. It was a pivotal moment in my years of transition to motherhood and I remember very clearly thinking about how my creativity informed that relatively still-new role in my life. And as such, has continued.
© Rachel Smith /
SweetGeorgia Yarns 2016
© Rachel Smith /
SweetGeorgia Yarns 2016
This month’s club brought all of these thoughts and emotions back as I spun thoughtfully on my spindles this month. I chose to divide the fibre into 4-25 gram nests, further dividing each 12 times by stripping the fibre vertically. This resulted in 2-50 gram skeins that I am going to knit into two toques for each child this summer for next winter. It feels very appropriate, particularly being superwash Merino this month and highly washable for two busy, active young children who tend to get quite dirty!
After I had spun my singles onto my Large Capar spindle by Natural Knot Wood Designs, I wound up to plying balls. I have had many questions about how to wind a plying ball and, therefore, I recorded a short video this month of how I do that! I sincerely hope you enjoy it and find it helpful. The spindle I am using to ply on in the video is a Snyder Spindles Steampunk, which I have really enjoyed for plying.
Have you delved into June’s club yet? How are you spinning it? Please share over on the Ravelry group or Instagram, and tag your projects with #sgyclub and #sweetgeorgiayarns.
Until next month – Happy spinning!
