Delays

 

My copy of WEFT arrived and I neglected to book the guild room for another 'weavers gathering'.  However, it looks like this coming Sunday, August 24, 2025 is available and the room/key person is willing to come open the room for me, so...even though I delayed getting the word out, people may show up.  Or not.  

The relationship with the US is about to change in really significant ways.  I have no idea how the saber rattling Mr. Trump is doing is going to affect people like me, living in Canada, shipping articles with woven examples,  in order to get our things across the border.  Things are going to get crunchy after Aug 30, 2025 when the minimus threshold is eliminated and every single parcel mailed/shipped to the US will need to be examined by customs and then a tariff assigned for the recipient to pay before they can get their parcel(s).

What a mess.

I am aware that there are big changes coming down the pipeline and how it will all play out is still a mystery.  

However, I have articles in the upcoming issues, and since I have a subscription to the magazine, I will keep fingers crossed the print copy I requested will actually arrive.  

I am back to weaving (took a couple 'extra' days of 'light duties') plus I have accomplished a few of those 'light' duty things.  September is almost upon us, the fall sales will be beginning the end of October, plus if the guild has a sale in the room in December, there is a chance of making a few sales.  

Because I've shut down shipping to the US until we know what, exactly, is going to happen.  As usual, my books are printed in the US so they can be purchased there, either print or pdf download.

I finished assembling the cards yesterday, plus I started printing out care instructions on labels and then sticking them to the hang tags.  I'm going to print out the cotton/linen labels and get those ready.  Then I need to write out price stickers, and tag the tea towels with a care tag.  Since my energy continues very low, I figured I had better get started on those now, not wait until the stuff is needed for the booth set up.

Yesterday I finished the first section of the warp (7 towels) and at the end I wove a 'small' sample using the single 6 highly twisted yarn.  I wanted to see how it was going to behave.  I've used it before, but ages ago, so I wanted to experience both weaving it (high twist = pig tails in the weft) and then wet finishing it.  Do I compress it as part of the wet finishing, or nah?  To be determined.

We continue to have 'variable' days, but we (here) have been 'wet' enough we haven't been dealing with horrible levels of smoke.  So far.  Of course that can all change in a heartbeat.

In the meantime, I try to get up and get to the loom twice a day (or do some other tasks).  But I find myself still wrestling with getting any kind of sleep and very low energy.  OTOH, maybe I'm just old, finally?  I know it is a privilege to make it to my age.  Not everyone does.  More and more I find myself tired.  But I still get intrigued by some aspect of weaving and that is enough to get me up and to the studio.  

Time to print out the cotton/linen care instructions.  I can put them onto the hang tags on 'breaks'.  Or at dark o'clock, like this morning when I could not sleep.  Again.  

Getting old is not for sissies...