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These are spindles and lucets made by my husband. Not only does he do nice knotwork, but he also does nice woodwork!
This is Mary Anna's wheel. It's the wheel I learned on!
Mary Anna carries a nice collection of Cornish tin jewelry, too!
walnut shells that were sliced down and strung. Cool, huh?
The bags are called tagaris -- traditional Greek bags in which workers carry their lunches and other things. These are all handwoven by Mary Anna, who is of Greek descent.
These are two of the first shawls that our team made during sheep to shawl demos.
, and from the back, you can see piles of 
carded wool waiting to be spun for a custom job she's working on.
This is my friend Mary Anna's shop. It's on Market St. in Lewistown, PA. Our sheep to shawl team hangs out here as well, and we welcome anyone who is interested in the fiber arts to stop in and see us. And, of course, shoppers are always welcome, too!
She did all of the paintings on slate, including the Welcome sign with the hexes on it. We are in the heart of PA Dutch Country, so tourists expect to see stuff like that. Amish don't actually use them, though -- you're more likely to see it on an the barn of an Englisher.
Below is the view from the front door. Mary Anna has arranged the line of sight to lead directly to the handspun yarns. Misty Dell is her yarn and Fiber Space is mine. The picture to the left is a display of Misty Dell yarn.
Why I Knit
By Fiber Maeven
When I was given this assignment, I jokely responded that I knit because it keeps me from inflicting bodily harm. Although that’s not entirely untrue, it’s not the only, or even the biggest reason.
It all started because I needed a hobby that would keep me from snacking in front of the TV in the evenings. It had to be something that would keep my hands in perpetual motion but that allowed the rest of my body to relax. It had to be repetitive enough that I could still pay attention to CSI, yet interesting enough to keep me . . . well . . . interested. What were my options? Hmmm . . . solitaire . . . jigsaw puzzles . . . juggling chainsaws . . . and all fun things to do, but not one of them quite fit my criteria. Oh, yeah, I forgot . . . my holy grail of hobbies had to be creative and constructive.
I seemed to remember that my mom had attempted to teach me to knit when I was a child. I hadn’t been very good at it. But I’d been seven. Twenty-five years had passed. Surely I had acquired some dexterity since then.
Let’s explore a knitter’s psyche, shall we? I, like so many of my sisters, learned to knit as a child. My mother used to knit sweaters and doll clothes for me. I’m not sure who taught her, but she tried to teach me. Of course, she tried to teach me lots of things, but I was a typical kid who would have none of what the adults were selling. Later, much later, actually, when I was in my 30s, I got the urge, for no reason that I can readily identify, to learn the craft. My mom hadn’t knitted for at least 20 years, so I decided to take formal lessons.
My first project was a 2 x 2 rib scarf, but it quickly grew tiresome. I moved on to a baby afghan, which was actually good enough to give as a gift, and that is exactly what became of it. I made several more of those, and then decided that I was bored with making squares and rectangles, so I learned to knit hats in the round on circulars. Next came socks on dpns. Eventually I tried sweaters. Interesting but boring. And the finishing . . . my word . . . the finishing!!!
Apparently I have an issue with finishing anything, actually. My house is strewn with project bags containing UFOs. A sweater in the round for my dh that begs me to finish the neck; a poncho desperately in need of fringe; a plethora of other projects that only need to have the ends woven in. But it’s not knitting!
Knitting has a rhythm all its own. It has a feel and a mood. It puts me in a trancelike state of solitude. It’s Zen.
And did I mention that it keeps me from inflicting bodily harm?
