Following the Magenta Thread

It’s almost time! I’m flying to San Miguel de Allende on Wednesday.

I’ve been thinking hard about what to bring in the way of craft supplies. I’m not sure what will be available in San Miguel de Allende, especially since I’ve heard from local weavers that there aren’t a whole lot of weavers there. (There are plenty of weavers in Mexico doing wonderful work, but the biggest concentration is in Oaxaca, a long ways away.)

So if I want to be sure I have access to something, I need to bring it with me.

Left unchecked, this dilemma would undoubtedly result in two suitcases full of craft supplies, plus a small carry-on with a few clothes. (Because having to go around naked is far better than not having that fourteenth pair of scissors, RIGHT???)

After much thinking and journaling, I’ve concluded that, instead of trying to weave, I’m going back to my trusty spindle. The only thing I know for sure about my series Pilgrimage (see the full set of blog posts about it here) is that it will contain a glittery or glowing magenta thread as a “through line”.

Every piece will have that magenta glow somewhere, woven with yarn hand spun on my drop spindle. I plan to take that spindle nearly everywhere – when weaving, when going about town meeting people, maybe even in Spanish class, if the teacher doesn’t mind.

The magenta comes from the strange magenta glow over the house on my last day in the old place. Here it is again:

I have never seen anything like that eerie glow before. I’m sure there is some meteorological explanation for it. But before dawn on the last day of the house I’d lived in for 13 years? That’s an omen, a pointer beckoning to the new life. A signal for change.

So I’m making that magenta the uniting element for the entire series. Whatever the piece, it will have at least a little (possibly a lot!) of magenta in it, always leading to the transformational path.

Towards that, I’ve been sampling a lot of different fibers and fiber blends. Here are some of them:

The white ones were spun with the intent of dyeing the yarn afterwards, but I also dyed a bunch of silk bright magenta (the bottom ones).

All of the skeins have some form of sparkle in them. Mostly holographic silver angelina mixed with silk or wool, but also two tiny skeins of magenta plied with an iridescent thread.

Unfortunately, the sparkle doesn’t show up in photos, because sparkle is caused by tiny eye movements and the camera captures an instantaneous image. So it’s hard to evaluate them based on a photo.

Of the skeins, I like the top and bottom pink skeins best. The top one is two plies of magenta thread and one ply of iridescent thread. The bottom one is magenta fiber liberally blended with holographic silver angelina (sparkle fiber). I haven’t yet decided which one to use.

I’m currently in the middle of spinning a larger sample skein of the magenta thread mixed with iridescent thread. The thread I’m spinning is quite fine, about 11,000 yards per pound. (Sewing thread is 12,000 yards per pound.) So the 92 yards I’ve spun so far weighs only 3.8 grams:

I’m actually using two spindles to make the yarn. The first is my “walking spindle,” which I use on my morning walks. Since I occasionally drop it onto the sidewalk, it’s gotten a bit battered.

The second one is a beautiful spindle that I just got from Golding Fiber Tools, which makes gorgeous, one of a kind spindles that are perfectly balanced and spin nearly forever. It has a gold plated Tree of Life on the spindle whorl, which I thought was perfect for this journey. However, it’s so beautiful that I hate to drop it on concrete, so I plan to use it indoors.

Here are both spindles:

I’ve spun probably another 100 yards between the two spindles, so it’s just about time to start plying with the iridescent thread. Because plying on a drop spindle can be awkward, I’m going to ply using the tiny Electric Eel Nano 2.1 electric spinner that arrived a week or two ago. It’s small enough to fit into my cupped hands, so perfect for traveling.

Those tools, the magenta fiber, iridescent thread and angelina fiber, and some cotton carders (for blending fibers) are all I currently plan to take. (I am debating taking some additional white silk fiber and some dyes, but I think that would be gilding the lily.)

I’m also bringing my laptop and iPad, of course, and intend to sketch out my thoughts for each piece along the way. I will develop them into finished work once I’ve settled into my new home (wherever that may be!) and have my studio set up again.

Off to follow that magenta glow!