Two Blankets

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a finished project is one that affords much satisfaction. For me this is particularly true when it comes to weaving a blanket that started off in my house as dirty fleece. I do not, as a rule, process fleece into yarn with any particular project in mind. But when my shelves are full of colourful yarn and a particular idea comes to mind, there's nothing better than to just jump in and create a blanket.


Joel's Blanket

Last fall my nephew, Joel, was diagnosed with Hodgkin Lymphoma. There was a huge tumor in his chest causing breathing issues, and Joel needed to begin a cancer treatment that would leave him with all the typical, nasty side effects.  I wanted to do something (don't we all) and decided to weave a blanket for Joel.

Joel, is a very special young man. He has tremendous faith. Joel's witness is that he belongs to the Lord Jesus who died on the cross for him, and that no matter what happens, God is good. 
So I decided to weave a blanket that would tell a story.  A blanket with a straight twill weave, warped and woven off without a set colour sequence. The  colours, however,  would reflect Joel's confession of faith. 

It was December, and the colours of Christmas were everywhere. But for me the Christmas colours of red and green have always been combined with brown and white. So as I wove this blanket I thought of the wonderful work that the Lord Jesus came to do on this earth.
The browns reminds me of the Christmas tree, and the tree, the cross that Jesus died on; the red of the blood that He shed for us at Calvary; the green for the new life we have in Him; and the white of us being washed whiter than snow through the shedding of his blood.

You will be happy to know that Joel's treatment is almost completed and he is doing very well. God IS good! 


Gerald's Blanket

This blanket is a 'just because' blanket for a very dear friend on the other side of Canada. It has no special story and was woven for no special reason except that I just wanted to. So I did.
Again it is woven in a straight twill with no special planning for the colour sequence.
 

Here's 2 ewe, Gerald!

A trip to Cold Stream Ranch

It is very special to have friends who share the same interests as you. My friend, Grace, whom you met in my last post has also become a spinner. She says it's my fault, but honestly, all I did was do my own thing and spin some wool when she was over for a visit. She made some comments to show that she was interested, and before I knew it she was spinning a fine yarn. She caught on to the technique more quicly than I did!

Grace has been most helpful in reducing my stash of wool that was waiting to be spun. And when I started running low she went on a google search to find some local fleece. As a result we met two very lovely people, Mels and Ruthanne van der Laan. Mels and Ruthanne run Cold Stream Ranch which is close to Denfield, ON and raise Texel sheep, with a few East Friesians on the side. Both of these sheep breeds are Dutch just like their owner! Mels knows all about his sheep and has won various awards, and both he and his wife are spinners. You can read more about the ranch here: http://www.dutchtexel.on.ca/

On May 2 Grace and I went to Cold Stream Ranch where we a had a lovely visit with this lovely couple. And since Grace and I are also of Dutch background we just HAD to buy some Dutch fleece. The sheep had just been shorn four days before and the fleeces are just wonderful and fresh, very clean and with hardly any vegetable matter. When we put our hand in the the Texel fleece it came out glistening with lanolin. Needless to say, Grace and I are excited to wash our fleeces and see what we can produce on our wheels. We both bought a Texel fleece, and one East Friesian fleece to split.

Of course, a trip to the barn was part of the visit and Mels helped Grace a 'snuggle' with a lamb!