This, my friends, is the last time that the Beast will have kept me from blogging in a timely fashion due to totally eating my brain and whacking me about the head with a deadline... because it's done.

Done, finished, dealt with, packed up nicely and sent away. Of course, there were a gazillion little things we would have liked to change in that last read-through (mostly little glitches in style that slipped past us in the last Big Edit), and of course there were still some typos left (some of them quite amusing, such as a stray paddler trying to sell spices), but we refrained from fiddling with style (and the editor will deal with whatever needs dealing with, much to our joy and relief) and now it's done, done, done.

Which means that in the future, if I totally and utterly forget to blog in the morning, I will not have that wonderful scapegoat anymore. And you know what? I don't mind at all.

Before I toddle off into the weekend, though, here is a fitting link for the springtime that is in full spring at the moment: a brand-new system for beehives to harvest honey easily and without disturbing the bees. Fascinating!

And there's also some news on the Digital VAT issue - the Commission is rethinking the rules. There's hope!

If you are doing research, you'll know about paywalled journals. For those of us lucky enough to live near a university, many of the paywall problems can be solved with a library card and some quality time spent on the computer among all those books... but not every library has the stuff you need, and no library ever has All The Things, and anyways the beauty of online articles is the quick access right from your home workstation, and that is much rarer to get than a library card.

So it's extra nice that from time to time, some of the big paywalls open up and give out stuff for free. Like Maney, this week: You have free access to 43 of their journals about archaeology, conservation and heritage until April 26!

Why are you still here? Oh, right. Here's the link. I know where I will be spending my breaks today - there's still the typeset Beast to finish proofreading!

I'm back home from Backnang - it was a wonderful weekend, and I'm only sad that there was not more time for me to stroll around outside and enjoy the beautiful weather, or take a more leisurely look at all the stalls with fibres, tools, and (of course!) yarns.

This is where I spent most of my time in Backnang:




- right beside the table of Margit from Alte Künste:

 

I also had the pleasure of teaching medieval spinning to a group of enthusiastic and interested spinners on Friday and Saturday, and on Friday there were even two participants who had their very first experience in spindle-spinning. Both courses were sold out in the blink of an eye, a joy to teach, very well received and I'd be happy to offer them again in Backnang in 2017.

Today, though, my mind will have to get out of the wool-mode - I have to finish reading the typeset proof of our new book this week, and I hope to make very good headway today. There is tea, there is chocolate, there is a red pen - and it's nice weather, perfect to sit in the spring sunshine and reading.

The newest volume of Medieval Textiles and Clothing is coming out this month, and if you are inclined to buy it, I have something for you - there's a 25% discount with this flyer:

That brings the price for the volume down to 45$ or 26.25 GBP, from 60 and 35 respectively.  (Click on the image to enlarge for the description; if you don't want to use the order form, you can order online and use the discount code.)

I have finally managed to sit down and finish making that spinning instructions sheet to go with a spinning set for beginners - a bit of wool, a spindle stick, a whorl and said instructions. At the moment, they are just in German, but a translation will definitely be done.

The instructions are finished just in time for Backnang - which might be a coincidence... or a crazy random happenstance. Your guess here is probably as good as mine. Now I'll just need to proofread it and print out a few instances of the sheets so they can go into a spinning kit. Hooray! And after Backnang they can go into the online shop too - there's no way I can manage that before, though.

I also have to finish putting together a stack of distaffs for the weekend, as there will be the "medieval spinning" workshop, and the participants need to use a distaff there, obviously. The cat, meanwhile, is steadfastly refusing to help in any other way than purring and napping. Although she did help me get out of the bed this morning, with her tried-and-tested routine of saying "meow? Meow? Maaaaaau?" until I am half awake, then hopping onto the bed and settling down to be petted. Said petting is acknowledged by purring so loudly that I will not be able to fall asleep again. So I get up and feed her. Mission accomplished.

(I guess that cat paws are not that well suited to finishing my knitting, or hammering in teeny tiny copper nails anyway. Tough luck...)

The cat is napping, as usual; yesterday evening was spent with friends coming over for some gaming, as usual; the study is still quite messy but I am working to reduce the mess, with limited and changing amounts of success, as usual.

There are a few different projects that I am working on, and I am again able to divide work-time between them without getting into a crunch, and if I'm efficient enough there is still time for getting some other stuff done. This includes making sure I can meet my next deadline (getting things ready for the Wollfest at Backnang, a week after Easter).

It is a really nice change to feel like things are manageable again! Even though the cat still makes me jealous with her blissful napping for hours, right beside my desk, making small content sleepy-cat noises...

Springtime is a good time to take stock and plan stuff and get new things started - not just seeds. It's also a good time to make decisions about the future. And in this context, I'd love to have some feedback from you!

I've made more spindle whorls to replenish the much-diminished stock, and if you have bought whorls from me, I would very much appreciate to hear what you think about them, and if they are as good or better or worse than you expected. Or if they give you any trouble. I'm especially interested in some feedback about the disc-shaped whorls.

So if you have bought one of my whorls in the past, or used them, or if you are planning to and have comments, please let me know your thoughts either in the comments here or per mail to Diese E-Mail-Adresse ist vor Spambots geschützt! Zur Anzeige muss JavaScript eingeschaltet sein. - and thank you so much for your help with this!