Meet Tillie...

Four and a half years ago, POSSLQ secured his title of Best-Gift-Giver-Ever and bought me a beginner's spinning wheel for my birthday. After some very frustrating hours learning to spin, I was off!! Add a few bunnies, a few sheep fleeces, and you have a very happy ME. Then, at a fiber festival in September of 2008, I met a Kromski Sonata spinning wheel. I wasn't even shopping for a new wheel, I promise. I sat down to help a woman who has having a tremendous amount of trouble at a busy vendor's booth, and spun for about 5 minutes. I was sold, but it's been a long road to try to save the money for this pricey little beauty...

Thank you, Paypal, for being an enabler and offering me financing I couldn't refuse. Of course I'm going to take advantage of 0% interest for six months... Especially on a wheel I've been lusting after for so long. Thank you, Copper Moose for having a great deal on the wheel and extra flyers. I ordered on Sunday, and that lovely package arrived on Thursday. I was so excited I hugged the UPS man... I'm only a little embarassed by that. And I unpacked it at work, so I could leave all that packing material in the recycle pile.

On my way home from work with the wheel packed carefully in her super-uncool bag, her name came to me - Tillie. When we were kids, sister dear and I watched An American Tale about three times a week. There's this great little part where the sister says, "Popa, they changed my name to Tillie, maybe they changed Fievel's name to Filly!" And I thought, what better name for my imported Polish spinning wheel?

Speaking of Poland, ask POSSLQ about the poor Polish child slave who (he thinks) made my wheel, his impression makes me giggle... In actuality, she was handmade by a member of the Kromski family, then imported to Georgia. I know the day she was made (and might throw her a birthday party) and she's signed by the maker, just like a Cabbage Patch Kid! She folds up all nice and neat and travels beautifully - I took her out to the coffee shop this morning for a little Saturday morning spin-in-public, and a meet-n-greet with my spinning buddy Liz.

Last night I oiled her up, figured out how to use the braking and tension systems (which are totally backward from my old wheel), and spun up 88 yards of lovely dark grey wool. I'm going to make a little tiny sheep for Tillie. Then I added some patches to un-dork her travel bag a little. I only need a million more to really make it mine...

This morning, I started working on some BFL that POSSLQ got me for my birthday over a year ago. It's been waiting for the new wheel...