A Gift from Laurel: My First Handspun Shawl

As the mother of three young children, I am very accustomed to being a giver. It is what I do. The occasional gifts I receive from my children are things such as dandelion bouquets, fruits and veggies from our garden, and handmade poems, stories, and drawings.

This year, however, I received a very special gift from our ten-year-old daughter, Laurel. It was the gift of spinning. For two years she had been asking me to teach her how to spin. The problem was I didn’t know how. I had already taught her the very basics of how to knit and crochet, how to embroider and quilt, but spinning was not in my repertoire. I am a prolific knitter and just didn’t think I had time or space in my life for any other yarn-related activities.

Joanna spun a laceweight singles at 2,500 yards per pound for her shawl from a handpainted top in the Zumba colorway from Enchanted Knoll Farm.