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Labour Day Pancake Breakfast

23/8/2013

Labour Day Weekend Pancake Breakfast!

Join us on Saturday, August 31, 9 – 11am at MacKinnon’s Campground, East Lake Ainslie, for a delicious big breakfast of homemade pancakes, ham, juice, tea and coffee.

Adults $7
Children $3

The Scotsville School of Crafts would like to thank everyone who attends our annual pancake breakfasts. Our pancake breakfasts are an important fundraiser, allowing us to continue to foster, preserve and celebrate traditional craft knowledge and techniques.

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Local Artists & Craftspeople Wanted!

12/7/2013

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The Scotsville School of Crafts’ gallery and gift shop is being set up and we are looking for consignments of textiles, handmade soap, paintings, woodworking, sculpture, handmade candles, leatherwork, jewellery, and other examples of Cape Breton Island fine art and craft.

The Scotsville School of Crafts’ gift shop and gallery is open throughout the summer and autumn each year, and is a popular stop for tourists and locals alike. During the Celtic Colours International Festival we host several community events, including the Lakeside Impressions gallery opening, community meals, workshops and square-dancing.

The consignment rates are as follows:
20% for members of the Lake Ainslie Weavers and Craft Guild
30% for non-members

Artwork and crafts should be labelled with a tag indicating price (full retail price), maker, materials and washing/care instructions (if applicable).

Items can be dropped off at the School before Tuesday, July 16, or at the home of Elaine Panuska (Lake Ainslie, 258-3078) or Cate Lake-Thompson (Mabou, 945-2256). Pick-up in other local communities may be arranged by calling either of these numbers or emailing: info@scotsvilleschoolofcrafts.ca

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Spinning Retreat in Lake Ainslie!

10/5/2013

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Last year Eileen R and Eileen M spent a winter weekend at Eileen’s M’s cottage at East Lake Ainslie. We enjoyed it so much that we decided to do it again, only this time we called it a Spinning Retreat. Guild members were invited, but only the Eileen’s, and Eidere the Labrador retriever, were finally able to make it.
The cottage is a tribute to the hard work of Eileen Mand her husband Lauchie, it is away down from the road and just back from the water’s edge. What I find particularly inspired, is that when they decided to bring electricity down, they only brought it half way by overhead wires and then went to the extra trouble and expense to bury the cable to the cottage. So you have the convenience without the intrusion. Magic.
Eileen M was at the cottage early to get the fire lit and make it cosy and welcoming, and I phoned her when I left home so that she could meet me at the road side with the sled. Between us two Eileen’s we live with three yellow labs, as we had a Guild meeting the next day I only brought one of mine, the older guy who can be relied on to stay quiet and lie still. Eileen M left Riley at home because his hips are getting too old for walking in the snow; this caused many episodes of mistaken identity the next day, because people are used to seeing Riley with Eileen!
The spinning wheels were set up close to the wood stove and we settled in for some serious spinning. And then we went for a walk, snow shoes on the frozen lake and future plans to travel across the lake one day to the Duncraigan Inn. As we walked we were mindful that the wind was coming from behind us and it would be in our face when we turned around. What my dad used to call a lazy wind, it goes through you instead of around.
Eidere my big gentle dog finally got to chase sticks and bring them back, again and again. Usually his younger brother takes them of him, again and again. It was beautiful on the ice, but I still have a primitive fear that I will fall through; we have all seen the movie of the person face up under the ice, holding their breath and searching for an opening and air.
Back to the cottage through the lazy wind, and then the wall of heat from the stove bright with red embers. We really did spin our wheels, and the cottage hummed as the wheels turned. Eileen M had homemade wine and she kept topping up my glass, a cunning plan so she could win at Rumbold later that night. The dark came down , the opposite shore blurred and then redefined as lights came on.
After supper I went out with Eidere, the wind had dropped and there was an almost full moon, and a sky almost covered with clouds. With the moonlight and reflected snow bright , I did not need a flashlight. We walked up the hill to the road, then across the field and down to the water by the edge of the woods. Eidere was a black cut out of a dog running on the snow. I had wanted to go out, but walking back to the cottage, I wanted to go back in. With the light from the windows merging with the blackness outside, I was drawn like a moth.
The next morning Eileen got at her wheel, I walked with Eidere before joining in. My wheel was squeaking and Eileen said “Judy (Lincoln) wouldn’t let you get away with that”. “She would tell you to look after your wheel and find the problem”. I span and Eileen got on her knees and moved her ear around the wheel. We found the spot and harmony was restored.
And then it was time to go, the wheels were bagged up, attached on the sled and hauled up to the road. Eidere was determined to get our attention and kept dropping a stick in front of us, we could not go round him so we kept throwing the stick and moving on as fast as we could before he ambushed us again.
My best memory of the retreat was the restfulness. Nothing out of the ordinary happened, but it was good. Only when we realized we would be late getting to the guild for long draw spinning practice did the regular world of having to be somewhere intrude. We were late, but that was OK.

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Chocolate Day

10/2/2013

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Chocolate Day! Posted on February 10, 2013 by Cate

Due to this weekend’s snowstorm, Chocolate Sunday has been postponed. Our new Chocolate Day will now be held on Wednesday from 1 – 4 PM at the Scotsville School of Crafts. Stop by and learn to make homemade artisan chocolates with a variety of molds and fillings! A delicious assortment of chocolates will also be available for purchase, beautifully gift-wrapped just in time for Valentines Day! Valentine craft workshops will also be taught and we have a Valentine gift basket full of goodies that will be raffled off.

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February 06th, 2013

6/2/2013

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Craft Dinner

Posted on February 6, 2013 by Cate

Knitting needles were clacking, spinning wheels were whirring, shuttles were flying, and a legendary amount of pasta was consumed this past Saturday at Craft Dinner, the Scotsville School of Craft’s first open-fibre crafting potluck of 2013. Occurring the first Saturday of every month, members and friends of the School are invited to spend the day working at their high-fibre craft of choice.

This month, beginners and experts alike had a fun time knitting, weaving, hand-spinning, needle-felting, and carding; some especially interesting attractions included the carding of wild mountain sheep fibre by Eileen Rickard, Alison Mustard’s knitted Swedish mitten technique, locally-grown flax being spun on a drop spindle by Vicky Quimby, and a card-weaving demonstration by Bill Quimby.

The next Craft Dinner will take place on March 9th from 10:30 AM to 3 PM. Members of the guild as well as the the public are invited to drop in and work on a project, learn a new craft, or see what’s happening at the School.

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January 31st, 2013

31/1/2013

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Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!Posted on January 31, 2013 by Cate
Happy New Year to all the knitters, weavers, quilters, spinners, painters and crafters out there!

The Lake Ainslie Weavers and Crafts Guild held their AGM and monthly general meeting on January 19, 2013 at the Scotsville School of Crafts. There was a good turn-out and we settled in the weaving classroom to plan for a successful year ahead of fundraising activities, fibre and craft workshops, and community cultural events.

Keep an eye out for us in various community locations around Inverness County throughout 2013. We’ll be hosting several pancake breakfasts this year at MacKinnon’s Campground in East Lake Ainslie, as well as Easter, summer and Christmas raffles throughout the county. Last summer our gift shop did well and we had an interesting mix of crafts for sale; we hope to operate the gift shop again this summer if we can hire a student. This spring, our team will be competing in the International Back-to-Back Wool Challenge, in which we will shear a sheep, spin the wool into yarn, and knit a sweater all in one day. Our team will compete against other teams from all around the world and raise money for the Inverness County Palliative Care Society. During Celtic Colours, we will be hosting our annual Lakeside Impressions Gala, complete with an exhibition, workshops and other events. Our Christmas tea and sale will also take place in November and we will be calling out for craft vendors at a later date.

Classes at the Scotsville School of Crafts will begin in the last week of February, and several fun community events are being planned in February. Spring classes and workshops for 2013 include beginner and intermediate weaving and beginner knitting, bobbin-lace making, lace knitting, split-ash basketry, and internet and email for beginners. In addition, on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, everyone is welcome at the school to learn to play and Euchre and Tile Rummy!

Several special activities are planned in February at the School. On February 2, an Open Fibre Day will take place at the School from 10:30 – 3:00. Everyone is invited to bring their knitting, weaving, quilting, crochet and spinning projects! If you’ve always wanted to learn a particular craft, bring your needles/hooks/yarn/fabric and a friendly local crafter can teach you the basics and get you started! If you need some assistance with a current project, bring that along and someone should be able to help you figure out that mystery stitch. Maybe you have a half-completed project and need some incentive to finish it off? Don’t forget your lunch and we’ll provide the tea.

“Chocolate Sunday” will take place on Sunday, February 10th at the School. Participants can learn to make hand-made chocolate, including fancy filled chocolates and some Valentine-themed crafts! Homemade chocolates will also be available for purchase as a fundraiser for the school. Check our February blog for more information.

Finally, Inverness County Volunteer Week is coming up, and we are pleased to announce that our volunteer of the year is Liz Smith! Liz, an avid weaver and knitter, has been a guild member and secretary for several years and is always willing and able to roll up her sleeves when things need to get done.

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Labour Day Pancake Breakfast

Local Artists & Craftspeople Wanted!

Spinning Retreat in Lake Ainslie!

Chocolate Day

February 06th, 2013

Craft Dinner

January 31st, 2013

Happy New Year!

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