quietly creating

Barbara Wanhill

recent posts

  • Conditions

    22 years ago, I left my home province to begin teaching in a large city in a neighbouring province. My ulterior motive at the time was to join a Mahayana Buddhist temple in this city and eventually “leave home” and become a buddhist nun.

    About a year and a half into living this dual identity, I realized that the latter career idea was not going to pan out. One of the monks mentioned to me that no matter how hard I tried to go through with my spiritual plans, it seemed that I did not have the karmic conditions for it to become a reality in this life.

    Fast forward to present day and surprising to me: I still live in this city and am now entering my 22nd year of teaching with the same school organization I started with.

    I was thinking about this a couple of days ago as I drove home with an impulse purchase from Kijiji. As is sometimes the case with impulse buys, the Lazy Kate I purchased was not quite what I expected. Yet, the seller was so effervescent, and I, in such a hurry and committed to following through with my plan, brought something home that will take me a bit of work to get to a serviceable status. However; I welcome this new to me, slightly neglected non-human item into my creative space. I look forward to seeing how we will work together.

    The used Lazy Kate I purchased. It was advertised as an Ashford, though compared to one of my newer Ashford bobbins, this set appears quite a bit older. B. Wanhill. September 2024. iPhone 13.

    Conditions. The condition of items we hold in our life and decide to let go of because of loss of value or meaning. The condition of our relationships to others and the condition of past experiences that lead us to choose one direction over another. Also, to be honest, I haven’t fully let go of the idea of something bigger than me having a hand in also setting conditions for my life. Yet, I prefer now not to name it and I am learning to no longer use it as an excuse for determining how and why I am in this world. That piece: a work in progress.

    The conditions for spindle spinning continue to be great for me! The portability, the varying ergonomic possibilities and the artful variety of support spindles has me completely enamoured. Also, it is such a beautiful way of working: slow, rhythmic, meditative.

    Here: two spindles I am currently working with. The cherry wand style is from Mawdsley Fibre Arts and the maple and purple heart cauldron style is from Woodland Handcrafts.
    I feel the fibres I have chosen to spin on each match the personalities of the spindles. beautiful, rustic, natural Babydoll Southdown pin drafted roving from The Small Bird Workshop fits the cherry wand well and creates an airy, springy yarn. The luxuriously peaceful Polwarth and Eri silk rolag from Crafty Jak’s sings on the Woodland spindle. As the spindles fill; I will now be able to transfer them to the Lazy Kate bobbins for future plying.

    Support spindles and the beginning of yarn. B. Wanhill. September 2024. iPhone 13.
    The practice of spinning has become a daily activity. Even for a few minutes, it brings me happiness and a sense of calm.
    B. Wanhill. September, 2024. iPhone 13.

  • Did you lose this?

    I have to give my parents credit for blasting through their 50s with such energy and conviction. (Or perhaps they were very good at hiding it.) So far, I haven’t felt as successful.

    At the end of March, we rented a well-appointed Airbnb cabin in a forest in the mountains. It was 3 days of very limited device use (a couple times to check the weather and once to deal with a pet sitting minor emergency… a bit more time to take photos on a few walks, to document our accommodation, to record my spinning progress).

    During one of our outings to explore the property, we waded through ruminant pruned shrubs and I was admiring the Kinnikinnick while wondering if a bear or moose would crash through the trees when I stumbled across an antler:

    March 27, 2024. B. Wanhill. iPhone 13. Edited with Pixelmator Pro.

    When I got back from our mini-staycation, (of course) I posted the photo to the ‘Gram and let people know that I was going to continue my new device free lifestyle for the foreseeable near future. This lasted less than 10 days.

    I’ve been thinking about this unexpectedly peaceful antler encounter and the juxtaposition with my return to the consumption-driven digital world so quickly.

    I feel this is no longer an exceptional experience. I know very few people who can navigate this world without digital accommodation. And yet, I wonder if it is contributing to my overall feeling of unwellness as I age.

    Answers to questions sometimes appear when we let the problem sit for a bit. So, I’m still quietly creating: to combat the increasing chaotic activity of work and the news cycle; to make room for slower thinking; to exercise the chance to ruminate on creative possibilities and attend to something that doesn’t (as far as I know) care what I think about it.

  • 100 days of spindle spinning

    Since December 1st, I’ve been participating in an Instagram driven maker challenge hosted by Drea Renee Knits, using spinning spindles. As I am prone to do with some things – especially in the winter and when the temperature drops to -34ºC – I have jumped right in. So much for promising myself I would spend maybe 5-10 minutes a day on this!

    Along with the Turkish spindles I had renewed my interest in this past summer, I have recently acquired a couple of supported spindles. So far, the one in particular, created by Helen Mawdsley, has both captivated and confounded me – I’m a beginner spinner all over again!

    To start, Youtube videos were helpful; however, I soon found I needed more help, so signed up for a subscription to School of Sweet Georgia. Under the virtual guidance of Debbie Held, I have gained some greater insights into this beautiful way of making yarn.

    Below are some images of the beautiful wooden tools I have acquired and the resulting yarns I am slowly developing. I am hoping that my interest with this will continue to hold after this challenge and winter ends.

    My collection of spinning spindles. January 24, 2024.
    This Sci-Fi Turkish spindle by Scott Snyder has been a favourite for several years.
    Scottish Dealgans by Scott Snyder (bottom) and Fox Mountain Spindles (top).
    My first supported spindle by Helen Mawdsley. At first I thought it was going to be too heavy, but it has quickly become my favourite. The customer support I have received from Helen has also been fantastic.
    Small samples of plied yarns all spun on spindles. The lightest one shows how lofty supported spindle yarn is.