Blog detox in Orange

In Orange, 300 kms west of Sydney over the Blue Mountains,

purple is the new black.
At least that is what 500 fibre and textile loving people
who gathered for the Textile Forum think.

They love purple. That was the theme
and it was embraced with gusto. Never seen so much purple in
Orange and so many funky textile creations.
The hats!

I joined export knitters Jenny Dowde and Lynne Johnson for a week
of yarn and loopy fun. They had stash.
So much yarn with textures of all kinds
and the trade shows had me spinning.

An intense week of skill based exercises brought my knitting
up several grades, but the guerilla remained. The forum is based
in a chic private school estate with lawns tightly manicured
and senses of humor to match.

This little statue is given to the lucky "teacher of the week" and
resides with reverence in their brand new state of the art staff room.
Teachers eyed us suspiciously as we invaded their space,
and the beanie on this guy lasted about two hours
before a complaint was lodged.
It may be a personal record.

Orange may have been purple that week, but what it didn't have
was Internet connection. It was cold turkey. No internet. No blog.
I was forced to be present and accounted for in real time.
Luckily there were many laughs over champagne cocktails at five,
after a frenzy of yarn purchasing and tiny beanie making.

A tree got dressed, with other adornments appearing

in woolly friendship, more cocktails were
had and I got to see crab apples.

ooh! Something just arrived in the mail
It's a funky stencilled box from the US.
Help me unwrap it.

A parcel wrapped with knit

Gorgeous paper and card...

It's from Ms. Luggage!

A hand made journal with juicy soaky heavy paper
and bound by her!
Quick lets grab our stuff because she has just announced
her online class, Layer love. Go see.

"I believe that we are put here in human form
to decipher
the hieroglyphs of love & suffering.
There is no degree of love or intensity of feeling
that does not bring with it the possibility of a crippling hurt,
but it is a duty to take that risk & love without reserve or defense."
— allen ginsberg