Dear Chris, I bet you wondered, any time you read the birthday letters I wrote to Ed after he died, whether I’d write them to you, too, when you were gone. You never asked me, but I bet you wondered. Well, so. There are ways that losing you is harder than losing Ed. My father […]

My father wrote: 2 March 1977 Chinchero We passed a quiet day watching the rain and mud. I managed to get a couple of hours in practicing doing a Loraypu with both hands, that is picking up from either side towards the middle. When the sun finally began to shine, we sat out by the […]

I’ve been sorting through papers and putting old field notes into chronological order, when time permits. This morning, I found a single page in my mother’s handwriting, tucked into a book of field notes from 1977. I’m transcribing it here in full because I’m thinking a lot about my parents right now; in the next […]

It is with tremendous sorrow that I must formally announce the death of my mother, Dr. Christine Robinson Franquemont. Having traveled to Cusco, Peru to attend the 2013 Tinkuy de Tejedores at the Center for Traditional Textiles of Cusco, Chris arrived Monday, November 11, and spent time visiting with close friends and family and preparing […]

You knew this was coming! This year, as last year, we’ll be doing goodie bags, and giving out door prizes at the Friday Fiber Bash and the Saturday Spin-In. And all the best such things come from Stringtopians, including those fine folks who wish they could join us in person, but can’t. If you’d like […]

Stringtopia 2012 Registration is HERE. Here’s what you need to know ahead of time. Read this whole thing BEFORE REGISTERING; you will need to in order to get the link to register. Here’s how registration will work. This is everything we think you need to know; if anything isn’t covered, please send email to BOTH […]

Shelly and I are just thrilled by all the excitement we’re hearing about Stringtopia 2012! We’re working on getting the registration forms ready to go and really starting to feel the spirit of things coming along. So, let’s start by giving you the class descriptions. Let me just say that this class lineup knocks my […]

…is coming! Watch this space for more info to be released throughout the weekend, and registrations starting sometime next week, the week of February 13-17th. Here’s what I can tell you right now. What is Stringtopia? Back by popular demand, Stringtopia this year is a 3-day event with a spinning focus, along with some weaving […]

…where I had a wonderful time teaching a customized 3-day Spinning For A Purpose: Being The Boss Of Your Yarn. I love teaching this class, partly because it’s challenging and partly because it’s never the same twice. This was a particularly good time, because the folks at Foothill Fibers Guild were just fantastic hosts. The […]

…this crazy thing, where I got up in the morning and got in my car, drove less than an hour, ate breakfast at a nice breakfast place, and then went and worked all day, with a break at lunch. Then, at the end of the day, I came home to my house, where my family […]