Here's a stack of links with nice things that you might enjoy!

The medieval manuscripts blog tells you how to survive the winter, medieval-style.

Medieval Books shows analog apps from medieval manuscripts.

...and Neil Gaiman reads "Green Eggs and Ham":

Even though it is still not very wintery outside (read: not wintery at all!), the holidays are fast approaching - and I am very, very much looking forward to some nice, quiet time with family and friends, enjoying good food and spending time together.

There are still a few last odds and ends to take care of, but I'm hoping to have them all finished this early afternoon - and then I will be going on a lovely, long-looked-forward-to winter break. This also means that there will be no blogging until January 9.

Thank you all for a wonderful year 2014! It has been a pleasure blogging here, and I'm looking forward to more of it next year. I hope you will all have nice, relaxed and happy holidays, with friends and loved ones, only nice surprises and lots of laughter.

Have a wonderful festive season and a terrific start into the new year - I will see you on the flip side!

For a change, I actually am remembering my blogiversary on the day this year.

On Monday, December 8, back in 2008, starting a blog seemed like a really good idea. It's Monday, December 8, 2014 now, and I would like to tell my past self that yes, starting a blog? Brilliant idea.

This morning, I looked at the visitor stats for the first time in ages - and I found out that I seem to have leveled out regarding both the views per year and the average RSS feeds that are taken from the blog. That means I'm at least interesting enough for a given number of people - and since you are one of them: Thank you for coming here (or getting the feed) and reading my blog! (Including enduring all the boring posts.)

Because without readers, a blog won't work. And meeting some of you readers is the best thing about blogging for me, by the way. When I meet somebody somewhere - at a conference, for example, or at an event, and somehow the blog comes up and the other person says "Oh, that's your blog? I read that!" I usually feel about 10 cm taller. Every time. (Good thing I only feel that way, or I'd be way past the record tallness for humans now.) It's nice to know that what you are writing goes out into the world, and even nicer that it is sometimes considered really helpful as well - posts like the one about untangling a skein of yarn or the series about fair prices in crafting get read again and again. (And now I'm possibly making them even more popular by linking them again.)

So. Thank you for reading. Thank you for all your comments, too, and for linking to this blog whenever I manage to do properly interesting stuff. I'm still enjoying the ride. (Or should that be "the write"?)

Here's to the next year of blogging - may my writing stay interesting enough for you to enjoy!

I am back home, and still tired. The car is mostly still packed, too - but I will change that, or at least make a start at unpacking it, soon.

The fair in Stuttgart was very interesting, and we had a lot of fun there - but both Margit and I felt a bit out of place with our yarns and tools and things, as most of the fair was more catering towards non-yarn-related crafting. Our things were well-received, though, and we certainly did get a lot of curious looks for the spinning with a distaff!


After four days of fair, though, I am now looking forward to having a few calmer days and getting all kinds of things back onto the track they belong.

I also got to see a real life Ashford handspindle. And the very brave and very stubborn person who actually managed to spin actual proper yarn with that.... thing. I feel the urgent need to do a tool talk about that. Tomorrow, though, not today.

It actually is Friday already! While there have been weeks when I was looking forward to it finally being Friday, this week I could have used another three or four days inbetween. Maybe three Thursdays? Or two extra Wednesdays and one extra Thursday?

Anyway, since I'll not be getting a few extra days, it is time to go cracking down on the list of things to do, among them the wrap-up of the Textile Forum (there are people waiting for an email), and some more preparation for the Kreativ. One of these days I'll end up on top of things and not feeling behind! (Or so I hope. Hope springs eternal.)

And speaking of being behind: Here's a post about Heraldics from the Medieval Manuscript blog from a good while ago. Enjoy!

I have safely returned from the week-long madness that is the European Textile Forum, and it was wonderful. That conference still is the ultimate mix of intense research and exchange of knowledge plus having fun with friends and colleagues who are really enthusiastic about historical textiles and textile crafts.

The programme was wonderful, we managed to run our experiment, there was playing around with hemp and tow and woad and chalk and fructose; there was fingerloop braiding and embroidery and puzzlement about how things were made, back then, and some solutions or at least big steps towards them. With the help of science. Which was also... fun. There's even picture proof of that. See?



There also was chocolate, and songs were sung, and one was even written to tell about the Forum. New friends were made, too. And when I came home, I was about as tired as it had been wonderful, so you can well imagine what was very high on my list of things to do. That's right. Sleeping.

Now normal life, and normal work, wants its dues - there is stuff to be taken care of, and stuff to be prepared. More about that tomorrow.

The books that were due are back in the library, my lists are all written, and stuff to pack is accumulating. It's time for the Textile Forum!

It's also time for eating pumpkin everything. So in case you are celebrating (or taking any excuse to have pumpkin foods and other delicacies): Happy Halloween! And happy Halloween weekend!


Oh, and since I will be spending the whole next week in plant-fibre bliss at Mayen, there will be no blogging until Wednesday, Nov 12. (Time to recover. It's vital. Or the only thing I can blog about is little "z"s...)