Monday, August 20, 2012

Courting 'Disaster'



The photo shows the hem area and a bit of the pattern at the end of the tea towel that I wove yesterday.  Looks good on the loom.  But I am courting disaster because the weft is one of the Fox Fibre yarns and it is going to change colour during wet finishing.  This particular yarn is the 25% green, and I've found the green changes much more dramatically than the brown.  So after wet finishing this towel might be quite fuggly with the green crossing the grey (which looks a bit purplish).

I'm also courting disaster on a couple other levels today.  I bought a new yarn for AGY: Rayon.  A yarn which I've never used for warp before and which will be used for warp.  I have given it the 'snap' test and it seems quite strong.  I've abraded it quite severely with my thumb nail and it seems quite stable.  So I'm going to go ahead and take the plunge and assume that it is going to behave as warp and put on the entire run for the samples for AGY: Rayon.  And hope.

Another front is that I'm about to send a sample and quote off to someone who wants yardage for a very specific purpose.  I'm not entirely sure I can supply them with the quality they want, although they seem willing to work a little harder on the sewing end to work with handwoven fabric.  Whether or not they like my sample, a quick and dirty rendition of what I speculated they needed for their intended purpose, only they can decide.  Whether or not they will be willing to pay my price?  Ditto.  Whether or not I actually want to make said yardage?  Hmmmm....   But it sure would be nice to have some steady income.

We are facing a very busy show season beginning next month and I'm tired.  I've been doing the show circuit for a good many years.  I'm not 30 or 40 or even 50 any more.  Some days I feel like I've been rode hard and put away wet.

Generating one's income from the craft fair circuit is amazingly hard work and a crap shoot.  Will you sell anything?  Will it be enough to cover your costs?  Will it be enough to pay for the show fees, most of them due in February-April of the following year (the time of year when there is practically no income to speak of).  A nice steady contract means you don't have to scramble every month to cover the bills.

With Doug 'retiring' soon my income will become even more important because we have not managed to put much of anything 'away' towards retirement.  Life is uncertain, this I already know.  Having a tiny bit of security from a source that would need my fabric during my slow time?  Potentially a god-send.

But until they see my samples and prices, I won't know if even that bit of income is a possibility.  And so I need to write that letter, include my samples and wait to see what they think.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

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