Go Ahead - Leap!

I'm sure you've heard the meme - Leap and the net will appear.

It is scary looking into that chasm.  It seems like a long way down.  What if that net doesn't miraculously appear to at least break the fall if not out right save you from the consequences of that risky decision?

So it was with some trepidation I made the decision to leave off doing fibre festivals selling yarn.  So it was when I decided to not do 'real' books anymore.  (Not that I couldn't do them, the shipping costs were killing sales.)

So, especially, was it when I made the decision to become a professional weaver in the first place, knowing very little about being a weaver or being in business for that matter.  So it has been, over and over again throughout my career.

Each time I made the decision to leap, however, a net did appear.  As a consequence I have had a varied - and very fulfilling - life.

As mentioned previously, I'm no longer in my 30's, but double that.  Over the past 6 years I have had to come to grips with the fact that I am not a young immortal.  The myth of my good health broke with a bang. (It is just about exactly 6 years since I found myself in emerg being assessed for coronary artery disease and 3 years since the lymphoma diagnosis.)

But I still love weaving.  I love teaching it.  I love writing about it.

And that net I mentioned?  Less than 24 hours after posting yesterday, an offer I could not refuse dropped into my inbox.  It came completely out of no where (as far as I'm concerned) and while it doesn't pay a lot, it pays a little, steadily.

The contract is already signed, I'm just waiting on a few more details before I do the reveal - and permission to do so, of course.  The other party may wish to wait until they are ready.

In between taking care of that bit of business I started dressing the loom with one more sample for the Big Project.  It's a worsted wool and it very clearly shows that residual twist has been left in the yarn.  This is common with worsted yarns and makes them a little more, um, challenging to work with.  It took some care to beam the warp, although once everything was straightened out it didn't take too long.  It is also a bit hairy and densely set so that also presented some challenges for beaming.

But worsted cloth is stable by the nature of how densely it is set, not by fulling during wet finishing.  This is going to be a true worsted cloth so it has to be built that way in the loom.  Knowing that it was going to take some care, I didn't hesitate to carry on in spite of the challenges.  The bit of extra attention to the details of dealing with this fine, twisty, somewhat hairy yarn will be worth it for the results.

And sometimes you just have to go ahead and leap into the deep end....