Lemonade Day 37: Preparing Cat Fibers for Spinning and More!

. I'm taking the opportunity of this unplanned time off to connect with the many artists and creators in this wonderful city that I love. Come with me on my 100-day odyssey of art and creativity in Long Beach. I call it .

August 7th was Day 37.  It was a busy day of stamp making, batting kitty fibers with sheep's wool and experimenting with sheet copper.

Friend Mary got here early today, and we spent all day working on various crafty things.  So much fun!

Stamp Making

I thought I'd get to actually using the stamps I started yesterday, but instead friend Mary and I set to work making stamps with some wood (that I'd retrieved from an ATM installation) and nature's discards: horsetail reeds and pine needles. 

We made three stamps with different textures of natural materials, but since we used water-soluble glue, Mary will bring her spray varnish so that we can protect the stamps before we actually try to use them with water based inks and paints.

I also carved a fish outline from the that I'd gotten from the Long Beach Depot for Creative Reuse.

Did you know that ATM installations are great for finding scrap wood and thick pieces of foamy plastic for carving?  The ATM arrives in a giant box supported by many wooden lengths. The ATM's glass is padded with thick foamy plastic.

Dried horsetail reeds make a pretty good sandpaper that can be used on soft wood and soapstone.  I discovered this at the when I was there in May, and was pleased to demonstrate this to my friend.  I tried it out on some balsa wood which came from a BSA Space Derby kit that I'll take to the pack campout with me when I go on Saturday.  It worked very nicely, thank you!  I can't wait to show the cubs!  I took some video as a demonstration.

Preparing Cat Fibers for Spinning

Then there was the task of processing Himalayan cat hair, gathered from three years of brushing Mary's kitty Caesar.  This may sound unusual to you, but it's all fiber.  Many spinners limit their fiber to wool from sheep, alpaca, goats and other more traditional fibers.  There are, however, some who weave the fur from their cats and dogs. 

In the Small Expressions exhibit at the Long Beach Museum of Art, there is a beautiful, delicately woven collection of "leaves" made of human hair.  If I recall correctly, it won a first place prize. The exhibit was part of (and sponsored by) the Handweaver's Guild of America Convergence.  It runs until August 12th.  When you go, be sure to take advantage of the fabulous view from the garden!

Most of the afternoon we mixed the kitty hair with sheep's wool as had suggested last week.  It was necessary, both due to the texture of the kitty hair and the shortness of the fibers.

Other Stuff

While Mary was busy with that, I puttered around and tried hammering some copper with various tools, just to see what would happen.

Oh yeah, and we made some yummy banana bread!

Want more lemonade?       

Tidbits, Things, Trails

• Although the rubber did sort of take to the wood with the silicone rubber cement, I'm a bit disappointed.  It seems as if it's coming away at the edges.  I'll try adding some more cement, but may want to seek out another adhesive.
• Mary took away with her a bag of blended wool and Caesar fibers that she's dying to show her mother... and spin on her hand spindle.  If she has trouble, we'll break out my hatbox spinning wheel that I bought a few months ago.
• Johanna from the Queen Mary called while we were doing a flurry of things.  On Thursday I will go to check out the Princess Diana exhibit at the Queen Mary!
• I've been meaning to go over there (to the Queen Mary)  to get some shots from various angles.  I've been trying to persuade Bujinkomix to do some pen and inks of various Long Beach scenes for me.  You might want to check out the daily additions to his Deviant Art portfolio!  I especially love the new Princess Leia drawings!
• I badly want to try out my stamps, but really would like to do it with my friend. I'll continue making more stamps and wait until we can meet again.  It's so much fun to craft with friends, isn't it?

And Tomorrow...

I get to hang out with another friend, Kimmi... Kim Dwinell... who has an MFA from CSU Fullerton.  Kim is an artist who has worked for a big-name animation company.  She surfs, runs and is always active.  In Kimmi's online comic, surfer-girl Sam shares her thoughts, friends and her life with the readers.

Need to contact me?  info@handmadepenguin.com

Trish Tsoiasue writes as herself about creative and maker topics for and as Handmade Penguin for the Handmade Penguin Blog.