​The 2023 Tour de Fleece runs July 1st-21st, so you can expect to see me drop-spindling here and there. (Tour de Fleece spins to create yarn while the Tour de France is spinning their wheels in the race. I don’t spin on a wheel, but I still love to participate.) I am prepping some lovely flame-colored Cheviot-Tunis cross sheep’s wool—and the sheep’s dad is my beloved Chevy from the MetroParks FarmPark in Chardon, Ohio. I bought the fleece straight off the sheep, cleaned it, then dyed it last summer.
(Not Chevy here. I have not yet photographed the fluff.)

​July 8th & 9th, I will be demonstrating Handspinning at the Briar Brook Barn Sale. Come out and learn to make yarn—I’ll teach you how to spin on a drop spindle of the kind used since the Middle Ages, older than the Spinning Wheel. Come out to see what I make from fleeces of sheep and alpaca—even milkweed fluff! There will be measured skeins of handspun double and triple ply yarn, and fabric I have woven on my vintage Union 36 carpet loom. That's my Union below, displaying both the cloth I'm making and the handspun yarn I'm working with. This piece is now done, and will be coming off the loom this week.

My first event of July actually starts on July 1st for me, with a Pastel Painting Demo at the Ellwood City Festival Art Show. 1-3PM outside Trefoil Lodge, both Saturday July 1st and Sunday July 2nd. One of my subjects will be a Bald Eagle my brother photographed along the Neshannock Creek. Come and watch, hang out—and be sure to check out the Art Show, featuring local area artists of all ages. The Ellwood City Festival will be held in Ewing Park, Ellwood City, June 30th, July 1st and July 2nd. 11:00AM to 10:00PM Friday and Saturday, 9:30AM to 10:00PM on Sunday. There’s the Art Show, Crafters, Live Music, a 10K Race, a Community Worship Service, Fireworks, a strolling Mascot, and Little Miss Firecracker.
So, why the American Gothic photo? Well, to evoke the Grant Wood painting, and the Mill Creek MetroParks tee to honor Greg O’Neal, the Mill Manager for Lanterman’s Mill, who had just passed. Greg was instrumental in getting the Olde Fashioned Holiday at the Mill running again.

​One of the later events this July needs to be the first one prepped, because the t-shirts I am making for the Confluence Science Fiction Convention Art Show are hand-stenciled, and the paint I stencil them with needs time to cure. I’ve also sorted out my hand-cut stencils and my gently used tees for the Art Demo I will be doing on July 22nd at the convention. Yes, registered members of Confluence will have the opportunity to use my stencils to create their own t-shirts! Bring your own shirt, customize your Official Confluence Tee or create a custom shirt using the shirt I’m bringing. Medium, Large, XL—and possibly a 2X. I’ve got shirt boards, paints and stencil brushes. I even have a practice shirt—turned out to have a hole, and I usually wear those myself, but I will use it to show the process.