(Insert David Bowie's voice here .... LOL.)

You may have heard by now that the Old Castlemaine Gaol has been sold and will formally change hands in October 2018. The new owner is an internationally respected artist and has great vision for the space, but unfortunately the Turnkey rooms will no longer be rented as studio spaces.

This big change has resulted in a shift in Fibrefaerie's operations and my personal motivations.

Teaching knitting and crochet has been a core part of my life for decades, and I have no intention of stopping now.

However the opportunity to shift my focus from group classes has arisen, and I am looking forward to building an online version of my studio so that I can help/reach more people via the internet. I have been accepted into postgraduate study, and am personally looking forward to this professional development opportunity.

Group classes and workshops will be put on hold indefinitely while my new business model takes shape. However if you and a group of friends want to book a Fibrefaerie Knit or Crochet workshop this can still be accommodated (minimum of 6 bookings).

Private lessons will continue to be available by appointment only.

I will be offering an online shop for knitting tools and accessories on my website and adding more patterns, instructional videos and content. My new website will (hopefully) go live after the Bendigo Wool Show.

I will be selling off handmade items and some shop stash in my online store as well.

I am also exploring a hand-spun yarn collaborative opportunity so watch this space as I create with other makers to make truly one-of a-kind yarns that are both gorgeous and sustainable, with little carbon footprint.

Of course monthly Stitch & Bitch social sessions will continue, on the first Friday evening of every month.

Isn’t it funny how life is full of twists and turns.

Like knitted cables, or front post treble crochets, experience winds around circumstance to create the rich fabric of our life.

A little while ago I was faced with a difficult choice. It was a matter of integrity, of ethics and honour. It would have been easy to let it lie and maintain the status quo, but instead I chose to stand up and face the truth.

Around the same time, I received some news. Events swirled around me like a hurricane of emotions, betrayal, honour, sabotage, isolation, failure, fear, desperation. I clutched to the walls around me, reaching for stability, for something tangible, for hope. I retreated into myself, and spent three days in bed without the will to live.

It wasn’t until I removed myself, and re-connected with the wild women within, by immersing myself again in my natural rhythms and channelling the earth in her sacred spaces, that I remembered.

I remembered who I was, where I wanted to go, and how I wanted to get there. Almost instantly, I was recharged. Re-invigorated. Energised.

Throughout my journey as a woman, and then as a mother, I have sought and maintained circles of women friends. Weaving in and out again through geographic change and economic flux, but still I have always sought the company of amazing women.

These sisters have sheltered me, nurtured me, encouraged me and at the same time learned from me, been emboldened by me and felt supported by me. Each exchange has almost always been accompanied by fibre, either through the act of knitting, crochet, hand stitching, felting or more recently spinning.

It is these connections, other than those of my immediate family, that sustain me, that give me life and purpose and will.

I want to give that connection to others. I want to give that soul-warming, life-affirming, belly-laughing connection of a sisterhood united in handcrafts to others.

So my path is veering. Veering from where I thought I was headed, off into a darker wood, a path untravelled, a future unseen. But my steps are light. They are rooted, yet floating, and my centre has become light and I am starting to glow again.

I know that whatever path I choose I will be supported by the women in my circle.

I look forward to where my steps take me. I am sharing in the hope that others who may be feeling the pull of darkness will see that sometimes in connecting to the earth and our natural world we can find illumination, and take steps out into the light.

May your path be filled with light, and your way be true and your heart be bright.

One of the most important parts of making a knit or crochet item is the finishing. It’s also the hardest part to perfect. Weaving in the ends invisibly and sewing up seams without puckering or bulk will give your project the Wow factor.

It is my privilege to teach these skills, and which variation of each technique to use.

Learning how to finish, weave in ends, seam items and how to finish your work at an exceptional standard is included in weekly classes and courses.

Just one of the many bonuses of learning knit and crochet from an experienced professional.

Winter arrived today with a wet blast of icy cold wind and rain up in the Macedon Ranges. It just so happened that it was also the day of one of my favourite sheep farm's open day!

Unfortunately the weather hampered our farm tour - no sheep to be seen ... but lots of fluff ... Maureen kept tables full of bags of fleece and there were stallholders aplenty.

Piping hot and decadent devonshire tea was a lovely antidote to the cold, but spirits were high anyway because of all the gorgeous fibre and fluff.

Great company and a great location, if a bit soggy and wet! I bought a few more bags of fleece. But I'll have to wait for better weather to wash it!

As the weather cools and the new craft class season approaches it's time for me to re-assess the teaching space. I am interested in stocking more materials for my clients to peruse and shop, so when the opportunity to grab some glass shelving came along, I couldn't resist! Until I started assembling it.

So fiddly! It took me an hour and a half just to assemble these three cubes .....

... and then another two and a half to assemble the rest ... and I'm not even half way there!

But they look fabulous! I had to stop because I ran out of the little joiners, don't worry I have boxes in the garage full of them .... but they will all be finished by next week's classes!! They are so sparkly and show off the yarn and notions I have for sale really well. They also don't encroach on the space which is great ... I'm thrilled! But I do wish they were a bit easier to assemble.

I will do a studio reveal once it's all finished. Or come in and see me one Saturday :) Just not this week because I am off to the Fairfield Finns Open Day at the farm in the Macedon Ranges!

And so we reach the end of another fibre-fun-filled year. 2017 has seen another batch of Fibrefaerie knitters and crocheters out in the world, and all are happily making and crafting and loving the creative ebbs and flows of fibrecrafts.

It has been my privilege and honour to help you all on your path.

The last month has been filled with Christmas decorations in knit and crochet and lots of discussions and planning for the New Year. here are the most important points to note for right now.

Fibrefaerie Studio will be closed over the summer.The next Stitch & Bitch will be Friday 2nd February.Open Studio Saturdays and private lessons will resume on Saturday February 10th.Learn to Knit & Crochet Courses resume after Easter.

There are lots of fun things in the pipeline too, like online memberships for video courses and support, sock knitting workshop, patterns and supplies, amigurumi club and lots more.

Here's hoping you have a wonderful holiday season, however you choose to celebrate, and I wish you all the best for the New Year and hope 2018 will be full of good surprises!

Can you believe it? 5 weeks till Christmas? Me neither! Starting next week I will be hosting Saturday morning workshops to make Christmas decorations.

I have curated a selection of knit and crochet pattern for quick decorations that can be used as ornaments or gift tags.

I have a large collection of materials we can use so juts bring yourself, and spend a few hours on a Saturday morning stitching in good company.

Details on the Book Now Page.

I have recently learned to spin. It's a very different form of craft. Apart from the initial frustrations and challenges of learning something new, I find it relatively easy. So easy, in fact, that I feel as if I am falling asleep sometimes while spinning. The rhythm of the wheel soothes, the hands are busy and the mind is free ... dare I say it ... it relaxes me even more than knitting?

Don't get me wrong, I am not hanging up my needles any time soon, but there is something about the brainless motion, the freedom to dream while that teeny part of you still focuses on the fibre in your hands and the motion of your feet.

And with practise and perseverance comes success .... every yarn I make is stronger, smoother, more refined. And I am still only a beginner, and loving the challenge of mastering something new. In the meantime, when I'm not spinning, I've been catching up on knitted and crochet gifts, toys and shawls and scarves and beanies, socks and blankets.

This year has flown by. I'm grateful for the grounding that handmakes give me, the time they carve out of each busy week where I can breathe and relax.

I have so many ideas for the New Year, and the New season of classes and courses. Sock-knitting, lace-knitting, needle-felting, garment making .... but for now I am enjoying the seasonal break that summer gives me, and the space to dream. Hope that somewhere, somehow, you are squeezing in some breathing space each week for yourself, too.

I started these socks on Boxing Day, and finished them the first week of January, 2017. They make me happy. They are a gift for me.

So often, as creatives, we spend our lives making for others. For me, it has always been the driving force behind my crafting. Whose birthday is coming up next? What shall I make for this person to say thank you, wouldn't this look adorable on .... you get the idea.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not resentful at all. I do it because I love it. Making something for someone else is a way to pour all the love you feel into an inanimate object and pass it along, hoping the recipient will gain some sort of inkling as to how important they are to you.

Problem is, I stopped giving to myself.

And my little hobby that is becoming a business has seen me making even more for others in making teaching samples and market items. Making for myself has become even less of a priority.

But ... one of the best things about teaching, the thing I love love love about teaching, is how I feel after I have helped a student learn something new.

Last term, I had a student who was desperate to learn new knitting skills but thought socks were way out of her reach.

By the end of the term, she was making socks. Beautiful, gorgeous, woollen, perfect, snuggly socks. She knew how to make them on double pointed needles, and how to make them on circulars, using the Magic Loop method. I knitted along with her each class, demonstrating and explaining the different methods and tips for turning the heel and picking up the gusset ...

and a wonderful thing happened.

Not only did she feel proud (rightly so!) and achieve a goal she had thought beyond her, but she gave me a gift in return.

Inspiration.

On Boxing Day, after the madness of Christmas died down, I picked up my needles and cast on some socks.

Just ... for .... me.

I embellished them with some improvised stitches ... just ... for ... me.

And the whole time I made them, I poured love into them, like I do for all my other gift recipients, but this time I imbued them with love ... just ... for ... me.

Maybe this year, in my pursuit of mindfulness, I will find a better balance between filling my own cup and filling the cups of others.

My wish for you, dear readers, is to find the joy in making, and gift some of it to yourself, too.

Much love,

Fibrefaerie.

There is a funny story about how I learned to crochet.

My mother swears that she taught me to crochet when I was a small child, but I don't remember. I was much more fascinated with knitting toys and Barbie fashion, at least, that's what stuck in my memory.

The time that crochet really grabbed hold of my attention was actually when I was a uni student.

I had gone camping to the beach with a friend, probably to de-stress after a round of uni exams and assignments, and one thing after another went wrong and we ended up landing on my old Aunty's doorstep nearby. (Lucky thing still swims at the beach everyday!)

She graciously provided us with a roof, food and good company, and a pair of crochet granny square slippers the next morning! Both of us! That's FOUR slippers she made in one night. I was intrigued. I ended up staying with her another night just so I could learn how to crochet these slippers, and I will admit that i did not get a single slipper finished while there. LOL. But, to excuse the expression, I was hooked.

Crochet is simple to get the hang of, and fast, and the patterns are relatively easy to follow (once you've learned the lingo) and did I mention, quick? It uses more yarn than knitting, earning it the "yarn-hungry" label, but you can often knock out a project in an evening, instead of weeks.

And let's face it, who doesn't love a colourful granny square?

The problem is, there's a hiccup with crochet. The US uses their own terminology, which is different from the rest of the world, and that can cause confusion in a global world of YouTube and the Blogosphere. There's also LOADS of new tricks and tips for crochet that our Nanna's never knew, cos crochet has become hip and cool again and is ALL OVER the fashion catwalks and in the modern, sophisticated homewares section.

The thing is, when you try to learn yourself on the internet or from a book, you don't have the benefit of my Aunty looking over your shoulder, correcting your mistakes and helping you to decode your stitches. Or explaining the pattern in several ways till you understand. I mean, most people don't have the time or the energy to sit up night after night decoding and analysing written instructions and working out why your square is not so square after all!!

That's where I come in.

Happy Hookers Crochet Classes are a weekly class to take the stress out of your crochet journey. I can show you how to get the most out of your crochet, and inspire you with new and improved techniques and provide you with a whole heap of patterns to inspire you to create.

I have taught hundreds of people to crochet, all over Australia. Children, teenagers, Mums, Dads, Aunties, Nanas and too-cool twenty-something hipsters. And I never get bored of it!

Because I want you to get hooked. I want you to see that gorgeous cushion in a Melbourne furniture shop, or that amazing poncho from a New York runway, or a funky tea-cosy from an art gallery and know that YOU CAN MAKE THAT, too. With the right foundation of skills, you can create ANYTHING.

Save yourself the stress of learning all by yourself. Do something nice, just for you. Make something tangible that won't be destroyed and will last for ever. (We still use my grandmother's blankets) and most of all, give yourself permission to share the load. Let someone else (who is freakishly addicted and spends all her waking hours researching and collecting and stitching) help you.

Let me teach you what I know.

I'll hook you up.

Hee hee! Sorry. (Not really. I love a good pun)

Happy Hookers classes are on Tuesday nights at the Studio in Castlemaine from 7-9pm. Bookings are essential though, cos let's face it, if no-one shows up I'd rather be home with my family, making something beautiful with a hook and a piece of string.