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The first article I published in Spin Off magazine, “Spinning Locally: Finding Local Sources for Sustainably Produced Fiber,” was in the Winter 2007 issue. I had been a SOAR (Spin Off Autumn Retreat) scholar the previous year, and editor Amy Clarke Moore suggested I write for the magazine. Since that time, I’ve written quite a few articles, patterns, and blog posts about many topics: cotton and cashmere to flick carding and fulled singles yarns.
It’s here! Check out the newest issue of Spin Off. Photo by Kate Larson
Spin Off editor emerita Anne Merrow began working on this Grassroots issue more than a year ago. As a life-long shepherd, I jumped at the chance to write an article about the literal grassroots under our sheep’s feet. What I didn’t know as I wrote that article was that I would be the editor of the issue in which it appears. I can’t imagine an issue I would rather begin this journey with than Grassroots.
Miriam Felton’s handspun yoke was a decade in the making. Photo courtesy of Miriam Felton
Some of the authors in this issue wrote about beginnings: Miriam Felton tells the story of her first fleece purchase that eventually metamorphosed into a gorgeous colorwork sweater, and Emily Straw shares her evolution from podcast listener to podcast producer. Other articles capture the ongoing cycles and symbioses between people, the land, and the plants and animals that produce our fibers: Rebecca Koon offers us a peek into fiber production in monastic communities, and Glenna Dean discusses some of the issues surrounding land use and the plants that textile folks love.
Where are your grassroots?
—Kate
Featured Image: Read about Brian McCarthy’s color and texture explorations in Natural Dyeing, Navajo Plying & the Australian Outback. Photo by Brian McCarthy