Upcoming 2024 Events

I will be getting out and about to do some book signings and other interesting things. If you want to join me at these events, here is the list:

March 8-9  Carolina FiberFest.  I will be signing books and doing a reading. Book signing is both days. The reading is on Saturday, March 9 from 11am-noon. North Carolina State Fairgrounds Expo Center. www.carolinafiberfest.org

May 4-5 Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival.  I will be signing books both days–check the schedule. Howard County Fairgrounds, West Friendship, MD   www.sheepandwool.org

April 20  Fiber Festival at Scotchtown, home of Patrick Henry.  I will talk about and demonstrate cotton and flax-to-linen throughout the day. Beaverdam, VA.   preservationvirginia.org/historic-sites/patrick-henrys-scotchtown/

July 5-7 Landis Valley Farm and Museum, Lancaster, PA.  I will take part in their Summer Institute, particularly helping with their flax-to-linen class.  This is still evolving, so check their website for more details as they are posted. Landis Valley Museum – Landis Valley Museum

This list is available on the events page on my website at www.HomeplaceEarth.com. As more events come up I will post them there.

Come and see me!

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October 2023 Virginia and New York Events

My new book, Homegrown Flax and Cotton: DIY Guide to Growing, Processing, Spinning & Weaving Fiber to Cloth is off to a good start and I’ve enjoyed meeting people who are excited it is finally out. My last scheduled events for 2023 are very soon. I will be processing flax (breaking, scutching, and hackling) and signing books on Saturday, Oct 7 at Scotchtown, home of Patrick Henry, in Hanover County, VA from 10am-4pm. The next day, Sunday Oct. 8, I will be at the Fall Fiber Festival in Orange County, VA doing the same thing from 11am-4pm. This is a great time to see how flax straw is processed to line flax that you spin. Once flax is spun it is called linen.

Cindy at the Virginia State Fair 2023

Then on to New York. On October 21-22 I will be at the New York Sheep and Wool Festival, otherwise known as Rhinebeck. Merritt Bookstore has a large book signing area in Building B where I will be, along with many other authors. Their schedule will show the times I will be there on both days. It will be my first time at Rhinebeck and I am excited to be going. I will travel by train, which I can catch a few miles from my home, and meet up with friends from Indiana. That alone will make for a fun time, but I am looking forward to meeting folks who are interested in the possibilities of growing their own clothes and hope I can be of help.

If you can’t make it to these events and want a signed copy of my book, you can order it from me at www.HomeplaceEarth.com. If you live far from these events, check out fiber festivals in your area by doing an internet search. When you go, be sure to engage in conversation with the vendors and demonstrators and learn what they have to share. Inquire about fiber groups near you. Immerse yourself in all that is going on. You never know what you will take away from that experience. Look for me in 2024 at the Carolina Fiberfest in March and the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival in May.

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Homegrown Flax and Cotton–the book is here!

My new book, Homegrown Flax and Cotton: DIY Guide to Growing, Processing, Spinning & Weaving Fiber to Cloth is here! If you want to learn how to clothe yourself from your garden, this is the book for you. Even if you never grow your own clothes, it is interesting to learn how one could do that.

Learn when to plant the seeds of flax and cotton and how to go about getting the resulting fiber into something to wear. (Once flax is spun it is called linen.) To go from seed to garment you need skills in gardening, spinning, weaving (or knitting and crocheting), and sewing. In the case of flax, you will need to break, scutch, and hackle. This book leads you through all that and suggests resources to help you along the way. It even includes detailed plans to make a tabletop flax brake. There are also plans to make a one-yard swift that can be adjusted for the skeins once they have shrunk from scouring. Homemade hackles are covered, also.

You can order autographed copies from me at www.HomeplaceEarth.com or come and see me at one of my book signings. I will be at the Ashland Farmers Market on Saturday, July 1, from 9am-noon. On Saturday, August 12, at 11am I will be at the Ashland Branch of the Pamunkey Regional Library giving a talk and signing books. In October you can find me demonstrating flax-to-linen and signing books at Scotchtown, home of Patrick Henry, on Saturday, the 7^th, and at the Fall Fiber Festival at Montpelier Station, VA the next day on October 8.

Monday, September 25 visit me at the Horticulture Pavilion at the State Fair of Virginia from 10am-2pm. I won’t have books for sale, but will be talking about my work and have equipment and my homegrown clothes on display.

All these events are listed on the Events page of my website. As more things are scheduled, I will update the page, so check back regularly. You may possibly find me at the book signing tent at the New York Sheep and Wool Festival in Rhinebeck, NY in October.

When I first started on this adventure I often had trouble finding answers to my questions. Sometimes I just had to figure it out for myself. I wrote Homegrown Flax and Cotton to help you have an easier time of following this path—and to have more people in the know to play with. Hope you join the fun!

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