Roxanne Eberts (left) holds a felted wool purse created by the needle-punching technique, and Pat Wilson holds a woven scarf she made at Woolderness in Hessel, where people can make these items, as well as the woven runners and place mats at right. Stepping into the Woolderness Fiber Loft in Hessel feels like stepping back in time.

On the second floor of a former, century-old feed storage building, the honey-colored wood floors and rough lumber walls surround hand looms and spinning wheels. Carders are piled in a basket on the side of the studio, while soft, colorful piles of combed fleece hang in baskets from the opposite wall. In preparation for an open house, a large pile of raw wool sits on a table in the middle of the studio, and the heavy scent of lanolin rises from it. The wool will be washed, carded, and spun or felted in a demonstration of the possibilities available at Woolderness, where two women are preserving the ancient skills of handmade fiber art.

It is not really a store or retail business, managers Roxanne Eberts and Pat Wilson said, although patrons will be able to buy yarns, fleece, and handmade items by local artists. The unique loft will be a working place where people can learn to hand-process wool, spin, weave, and make beautiful and functional fiber art like rugs, table runners, and woven tapestry. They emphasize the studio's motto, "It's all about ewe," that Mrs. Eberts said truly reflects the mission of the studio: to bring fiber arts to anyone who wants to learn, and to provide a place where people can learn a craft on the studio's equipment before investing in buying a loom or spinning wheel.

"I like the term studio, because it conjures up images of a place where you can come and work," Mrs. Eberts said. "We really hope people will come to the studio and spend time working and creating."

Mrs. Eberts and Mrs. Wilson are working with local artists like themselves to offer affordable classes at the studio, where participants will leave with a completed project like a scarf, purse, or skein of yarn. Classes are expected to cost $10 to $30. One of the first they plan to offer, a basic spinning class, will cost $30 for four hours of lesson time and a pound of wool.

For anyone who wants to venture beyond a class, the studio will offer blocks of time using the equipment for $2 per hour. Users will reserve blocks of time and should be able to complete their project in that block so the equipment is available for the next user. Most projects can be completed in one sitting. A rug, for instance, can be completed in about two hours.

Understanding that people can be shy about their talents, Mrs. Eberts said fiber is an especially easy medium to work with because "you can't really make mistakes."

"That's what I like about spinning," she said. "It's not a perfect art. All you really need is the desire."

Participants in classes or studio time will be able to spin, weave, comb, and sort raw wool, dye wool, make rough and fine yarns, make felt, and felted wool projects. A newer art form called needle punching will be offered, and literally involves piercing wool with a special needle until it turns into felt. The resulting felt is used to make mittens and purses, among other items.

"We want it to be a fun place," Mrs. Wilson added. "We don't want people to be afraid to come up. We're open to just about anything, including flexible dates. If we can, we will."

The two women have much experience to offer, and a network of fiber artists through their membership in the Eastern Upper Peninsula Country Spinners and Shuttlers group.

Mrs. Eberts started working with fiber eight years ago, before moving to Cedarville. She learned to spin from an Ann Arbor area spinner who raises her own sheep to provide wool for her craft. Mrs. Eberts has learned to process wool "from fleece to finished product," teaching herself to knit and make felt. She calls Pat Wilson her mentor.

Mrs. Wilson, a Hessel resident, has been weaving and spinning for 28 years, picking up the craft to lend hands-on experience to her writing when she penned "Revolutionary Fires," a book about a pioneer woman's life and adventures in the Midwest.

"This is an age old craft that is as old as mankind," Mrs. Wilson said of her interest in learning the craft because of its importance to her heroine.

Mrs. Wilson elevated her experience through five levels of master spinner classes, and she also learned to dye wool and yarn with natural plant and mineral extracts. Some of the dyes she has created come from local plants, and surprising sources, like seeds and insects. Both natural and conventional wool dying techniques will be taught at the studio.

Both Mrs. Eberts and Mrs. Wilson hope people who visit will find a craft or learn a new skill that will provide a lifetime of enjoyment, and they want the studio to be a place to find companionship and new ideas among fellow fiber artists. They soon plan to start a used equipment exchange, and will have a board where people can post items for sale or trade. Tea, snacks, and toys for the occasional tagalong child will be kept in the studio for users.

"Sometimes things are a labor of love, and that's really what this is," Mrs. Wilson said. "Working with fiber is addictive."

The Woolderness Fiber Arts Studio will host an open house Wednesday, November 15, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., when the public will be able to tour the studio and learn more about the place.

The studio will join other local businesses Saturday, November 18, by hosting another open house from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Regular hours for retail and studio use will be Tuesday and Friday, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Wednesday, from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., Thursday, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Saturdays "by chance." Custom dates for classes, and other times may be available simply by asking Mrs. Eberts or Mrs. Wilson.

Woolderness is on the second floor of 138 Pickford Avenue in Hessel, above Pickle Point gift shop and The St. Ignace News office. The entrance is at the rear of the building. There is no access from the inside of the first floor.