Rug of the Week - White Handspun by Sally Yazzie

by John Aldrich

Blindness would seem to be the most tragic affliction that could beset a weaver. Yet, despite their failing vision, many of our Elders who are so affected continue to weave since it's so much a part of who they are. Sally Yazzie is a prime example of what a blind weaver can accomplish with determination.

Sally is one of the Big Mountain Elders who relocated to the Sanders area of the reservation. Her solution to dealing with blindness has been to weave rugs of one color, usually white. She is completely traditional in that she weaves with wool from her own sheep that she has cleaned, carded, and spun herself.

Here is a new addition to the catalog, a white handspun rug of exquisite softness and beauty:

This rug measures 32" x 60" and is selling for the remarkably low price of $450. It always seems surprising to me that handspun rugs, with all the extra time and effort involved, typically sell for less than comparably sized rugs woven with commercial yarn. The catalog listing is 7296.

There are currently two of these white rugs in the catalog. In the unlikely event that they remain unsold until the rug show, they are not likely to last long there. Sally's rugs are featured in the Heart Rug area of the show and usually sell quickly.

In 2009 Sally was the recipient of a generous gift from Barbara Spelman and Mary Weinzirl. They were able to locate a rare hand powered machine that cards yarn and presented it to Sally at the spring food run that year.

See this 2010 post for more information about the rug catalog.

Notes: Every effort has been made to photograph and present the rugs with as accurate rendition of color as possible. It's not possible, however, to be certain that your computer won't show some variance. Where two prices are listed in the catalog, the higher represents what the weaver hopes to receive and the lower, the minimum she will accept. As has always been the case at ANE all the proceeds of every rug sale go entirely to the weaver. Prices are set by the weaver, and since there is no "middleman" they are typically very reasonable.