My head is filled with empty clichés and metaphors at the moment and, yet, I’ve decided that “the time is now!” I’ve only had “Start Blogging!” on my task list for pretty much the entire last year. I have at least a dozen draft posts in my head and another half dozen topics in a note in my list app. It’s been three years since I quit my “real job” and more than two since I officially started Nuttle Fiber Art & Design. So why now? Because the cicadas have emerged! “Brood X” to be exact. For whatever reason, we seem to have more of our fair share of them. After 17 years underground, they have erupted over the last several days from their subterranean nests, shed their nymphal skins, and are preparing to seed the next generation under the same trees from which they arose.
Don’t worry, I’m not going to turn this into some weak metaphor for the periodicity of life. It really just comes down to having a bit of time on my hands. See, my original spring landscaping plans included tilling the very area from which Brood X emerged. Having already been delayed by a hail storm that shredded the siding on my house and pummeled my roof, the appearance of Brood X has stymied those plans altogether. And, so, I write.
I can’t promise that this will be the last time I speak of bugs here. My intent, however, is to use this space to document and share what’s going on in my studio, what I call my “exploration of cloth.” Cicadas aside, spring marks the beginning of a new season. The 2021 fleece harvest is complete and over the coming months I will skirt and wash, pick and card, spin and dye. At the same time I will continue to experiment with designing and creating cloth – both woven and not – and using cloth to create functional “things.” I commit to sharing what “works” as well as what “doesn’t” as both are essential elements of the overall process. So, please, check in every so often if you are curious. In the meantime, check out my new e-commerce site for “Only the Finest Yarns and Fibers” or follow me on Instagram or Facebook and drop me a note if you have a comment or question!