Photographic images posted to 
Designer scarves and shawls added to 
Lovely buck from summer litters that carries chocolate gene for sale.
Dyeing, Dyeing, Dyeing!
Spinning a hand carded blend of my fawn angora, moorit wool and tussah silk on my Reeves Wheel
Posted in The Shop
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Gourd Bottle Necklace I may have discussed this before here, but not to any great depth. I know I occasionally mention festivals and the shop I'm planning, but I thought maybe I should explain just what we're hoping to do here in Meadows of Dan in the coming years. Yesterday I spent most of the day working on my sister-in-law's web site. Last year she set up a big tent and every weekend we set up our little craft booths and did demonstrations for the tourists that came by. I took my Reeves wheel and spun lots of yarn, selling most of my yarn stock out through the season. Sue is a gourd artist, and she showed people how much work it takes to make one of her elegant creations. The necklace pictured is one she made for me, a gift yesterday. It was lovely sitting out under the tent, enjoying the summer breezes and looking out over the beautiful fields of home. I've been crafting for a long time, but spinning and the German Angoras have been my most profitable venture in this line. I've had a little internet business selling books and collectibles for awhile, and the items I make do pretty well on-line. The natural expansion of this business was a physical shop somewhere. For awhile my partner and I searched for a shop building in Central Virginia, but we never located anything that suited both of us. I'm really picky about location; it's a lot easier to make a business work if the location is good. It's even easier to make a business work if the location is excellent. The family farm here is just off the Blue Ridge Parkway, within sight of thousands of tourists that pass by every year. I decided to build a shop here beside the house, designed to attract the interest of the passing trade. I'll sell books and collectibles, with some antique furniture, and set up my spinner's studio in one corner. In the meantime, my brother and sister-in-law were making their own plans. So now I have block sitting in my yard, waiting for warmer weather and the block man. Sue has contracted a cousin to build a large pavillion at the upper edge of the farm for her farm and craft market, and she's putting in an awesome corn maze that I think will attract lots of tourists because of the great theme and fun idea. I haven't discussed it recently with her but I think my brother has plans for musical events, maybe a stage, to have a home venue for his bluegrass band, The Lonesome River Band. We're planning to have paths lined with flower gardens connecting the shops, with benches and trees when we can afford them. Sue has a large market garden planned, and will be putting in a pumpkin patch and gourd garden as well. Sue is also planning festivals throughout the summer. They are all listed on my sidebar here, and on her web page with more detail. Each festival has an interesting theme, and last year they were quite successful, especially since it was the first year and it was hard to afford advertising. Making a living can be tough in a rural community. Many of the people in this area now are retired and have moved from a large city searching for the peace of the country. Those of us that are younger are searching for ways and means to stay on the family farms. Some people commute up to an hour to work in the cities, or have jobs in factories that are closer to home. Working in the tourist industry here is seasonal; winter weather often keeps travelers away, and the Parkway closes. For us trying to take advantage is an option, mainly because of our location and because of new tourism inititives in Virginia. It's the type of work we all enjoy, though, and if working hard can create success, we should be on our way! |
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