Stephenson County Fiber Art Fair

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Glossary

1

Fiber art

Craft and textile practice built from animal, plant or synthetic fibre - spinning, weaving, dyeing, felting, knitting and needlework - and the maker discipline the Stephenson County Fiber Art Fair is built around.

2

Fleece

The full coat shorn from a sheep, alpaca or goat; vendors at the fair sell raw fleece by the pound, often skirted (cleaned of the dirtiest edges) and graded by breed and staple length.

3

Skirting

Sorting a freshly shorn fleece on a skirting table to remove dung tags, short second cuts and vegetable matter before sale or washing - a standard demo topic at small fiber fairs.

4

Roving

Carded fibre drawn into a loose rope with fibres running in mixed directions; sold by fiber vendors as a ready-to-spin preparation for woollen-style yarns.

5

Combed top

Gilled, combed fibre with all locks aligned parallel, producing a smooth worsted yarn; usually labelled by breed such as Corriedale, Merino or Bluefaced Leicester.

6

Batt

A thick, airy sheet of carded fibre peeled off a drum carder, sold for spinning directly or for felting; often blended with silk, alpaca or sparkle fibre.

7

Carding

Opening and aligning fibre with hand cards, flick cards, combs or a drum carder before spinning; the fair's vendor tables and demos typically show hand cards and drum carders side by side.

8

Drop spindle

A weighted shaft used to spin yarn without a wheel; the lowest-cost entry point into spinning and a common beginner workshop at community fiber fairs.

9

Spinning wheel

Treadle or electric wheel that draws fibre into yarn; dealers at the fair display single-treadle, double-treadle and e-spinner models, with test-driving usually possible at the booth.

10

Wraps per inch (WPI)

A quick way to estimate yarn weight by wrapping yarn around a ruler for one inch; spinners use it to match handspun to a knitting pattern gauge.

11

Warp and weft

Warp is the lengthwise, tensioned set of threads on a loom; weft is the yarn passed across them. Rigid-heddle and inkle loom demos at the fair show both at once.

12

Rigid heddle loom

A compact, affordable loom with a slotted heddle that raises and lowers warp threads by hand - the most common first loom for new weavers and a typical vendor item at this fair.

13

Wet felting vs needle felting

Wet felting mats fibre with soap, water and agitation; needle felting locks fibre with barbed needles. Vendors stock both supply sets, plus prefelt, foam pads and felting needles.

14

Mordant

A metal salt (alum, iron, copper) that bonds dye to fibre so the colour holds; sold alongside natural dye extracts and indigo kits at dyeing supply tables.

15

Acid dye

A dye class that bonds to protein fibres such as wool, alpaca and silk when heated with mild acid (usually white vinegar or citric acid); the standard choice for hand-dyed yarn sold at the fair.

16

Guild

A regional spinner, weaver or fiber-arts club that meets monthly to spin and share equipment; guilds typically exhibit at small fairs and recruit new members at the door.

17

Spin-in

An informal gathering where spinners bring their wheels and spin together, usually open to the public and free with fair admission.

18

Jane Addams Community Center

The Cedarville, Illinois community venue at 430 W Washington St that hosts the fair, sharing grounds with Lions Club Park; the indoor hall keeps vendor tables and demos weatherproof in April.