I’m a 26 year old fiber addict from Muskegon, Michigan who is obsessed with soft fibers and intense color! I married my loving and supportive husband Eric in October 2007, and promptly found spinning and fiber two months later, my second love! For the past 2 years all things fiber has consumed my spare time, since unfortunately fiber isn’t my full time job…yet! My love of all things fiber then provoked me to open my Etsy shop, Uniquely Yours! in January 2008. I specialize in creative and one-of-a-kind spinning batts as well as hand dyed rovings and other fun “add-ins.” Occasionally a handspun yarn or two will pop up in the shop as well, but I primarily spin for myself.

My mom taught me the basics of knitting when I was in college. Of course one thing leads to another and I end up with some fluff and a drop spindle. NOPE, not for me. Proceed 5 years into the future when my co-worker mentioned she picked up a spinning wheel at an estate sale. I thought to myself, “hmm that sounds like fun!” I quickly purchased an antique wheel on eBay and then about a month later I also had a drum carder. Realizing the limitations of the old wheel rather quickly, I began my hunt for “the perfect wheel.” By this time I started seeing fabulous “art yarns” created by other talented spinners on Etsy, Ravelry, and Craftster. I wanted to spin those yarns! Research found that the Lendrum DT Complete was the way to go, so I placed my order. I could not be more thrilled with my Lendrum!

Being that up until recently I was a 100% self taught spinner, I am pretty proud of my creations. I did however recently take my first spinning class, Camp Pluckyfluff in Chicago with the ever-so-talented Lexi Boger of Intertwined fame! WOW what a thrill it was to be around other creative souls that shared my passion for turning piles of pretty fluff into out of this world works of art!

As I previously mentioned I mainly spin for myself. I enjoy spinning all different types of yarns, but my personal favorite techniques are corespinning, bulky singles, and Navajo plies. I currently own 2 spinning wheels, my go-to Lendrum DT which permanently has the jumbo flyer on it for bulky spinning and plying, and more recently I added a Kromski Sonata with Woolee Winder to my now growing “collection.” I love my Sonata for very different reasons than my Lendrum. The Sonata and Woolee Winder allow me to spin thinner with ease, plus the added benefit of the Woolee Winder allows me to pay no attention to the bobbin and just keep spinning! I have found that owning these two wheels really encourages me to use different techniques to create beautiful yarns.

Splitting my fiber time between spinning and carding (not to mention knitting and weaving) can be a bit tricky. Some nights I feel I should be upstairs in my studio carding batts for my shop, but at the same time I want to relax and spin for myself. I try not to let the “shoulds” or “have tos” drive me, but rather listen to my heart and only create things when I am truly inspired. I have always felt that creating something is a very personal experience and the finished product is a gift from the heart. Every batt I create and every yarn I spin has a little piece of my heart reflecting through it, because when I am creating a yarn or batt there is nothing else in the world I would rather be doing at that very moment!

I enjoy using intense color and unique fibers in my batts. I rarely make a batt of solely commercially processed and dyed fibers. I like to incorporate my own intensely dyed fibers along with natural local fibers, those dyed by other fiber artists, and any other unique colors or textures I can get my hands on.

I pretty much card on a whim, pulling random bits that go together from my wall of fiber and add-ins. I also like to put together kits that include a batt plus some fun add-ins for making your own art yarn, such as the “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” kit seen above. I do take notes occasionally and call those batts I can make again my “Repeatables.” Confetti Cake, seen below, is a much loved batt made with Squishy white merino and hand dyed wool neps and firestar.

I enjoy selling on etsy because I can do it easily on the side of my normal 8-5 job. I did however recently vend for the first time at the Michigan Fiber Festival this past August! It was great to meet other spinners at the event and get instant feedback on my creations. I was shocked at the outpouring of support people had for my outside the box batts and special add-ins! All of the wonderful feedback I received at the festival was not only encouraging but also motivating. I can’t wait to do it again next year!

I am always open to sharing ideas and creative processes so please feel free to contact me on Ravelry, Twitter, and Plurk as “PmpknPunk,” and be sure to visit my etsy shop at www.UniquelyYoursDesign.etsy.com and join the group “Uniquely Yours” on Ravelry.

“To CREATE one’s own world in any of the arts takes courage.” – Georgia O’Keeffe