Fairy Spun Fibers

One year later...

2010-09-19T23:18:00.015-05:00

my life has gotten even whackier since I last posted in October '09. I can't believe it's been that long, yet the time seems to've flown by. We 3 girls were so busy, last year and this, taking Mom from one Dr. appt. to another, sometimes 5 times a week. There was so little time for any of us to get much done. Knitting and spinning took a serious backseat to everything else - and is still there, sadly.

We were so busy, it even put our schooling behind a full month this year, so we had a greatly shortened Summer break, much to the kids' (and my) disgust. Not to mention it was a very hot, nasty Summer - ugh!

Well, things got vastly worse for Mom when she fell Aug. 1st and ended up with a very severe concussion, a broken upper arm, sprained wrist and ankle, and bruises from head to toe, literally :-(. She's still in rehab and not making much progress. She's so frustrated, and so are we, not being able to make things better. Taking life one day at a time is not the easiest thing to do for us - we "do" rather than talk about stuff. Well, most of the time. Getting older, I've discovered I "do" a lot less than I used to! But poor Mom can hardly do anything for herself at all, which is so disheartening for her. Our hearts break for her, for she is such a proud and independent woman. Now, she must depend on others for absolutely everything. Truly, being old and infirm is a great suffering; like no other, really.

I tried hard to spin a good quantity of my fibers, really pouring it on during the 2010 Ravelympics. I managed to get a lot done,...

but precious little serious knitting has happened at all this year. I managed to produce a few shaped hip wraps/neck "throws", plus a few hemp hand towels and wash cloths. (I designed something I named 'The Slink', but Shelly, Twist yarn shop owner, had to put it into a pattern form that people could actually understand...). I think she's got the pattern for sale on Ravelry, but I haven't gone to look yet. Maybe I should do that. One of these days...

I *did* manage to finish two pair of socks that had been on the needles for over a year, each. All they needed was binding off...good grief. No, no pics (yet) of the socks or The Slink and its variants. Maybe I can talk dd into taking some for me.

. The first sock is of Noro Kureyon sock yarn, S182. I started it sometime in '09, using the Crosshatch Lace from Charlene Schurch's More Sensational Knitted Socks book. Doubled the yarn for the Kitchener (sewn) bind-off, as the yarn seems SO fragile and inadequate for all that pulling through innumerable, tiny stitches.

The second pair is of Austermann Step (I think) yarn, and my dd calls them my Breakfast Socks - LOL. Well, I guess the colors DO look a lot like breakfast food: eggs, bacon, toast and coffee - LOL. The design is partly my own, but I used Cat Bordhi's top-of-the-foot increase found in "New Pathways For Socks" for the gusset (a 'V' with point closest to the toes). I 'closed' the gusset, after the heel flap, in another 'V' pointing upwards to the back of my knee. I really will try to get photos of that. This sock, as ugly as it is (I've never made such ugly socks in my life!) fits FABulously. They are, feet down, the best-fitting socks I've EVER made.

An eclectic assortment

2009-10-31T12:13:00.013-05:00

of pics. I finally got part of my act together and assembled various and sundry items for photographing. I'm so pleased with myself. I really, really hate taking pics. Mostly because I haven't got a clue what I'm doing...

On the left is some Merino superwash I spun up for sock yarn (Navajo-plied). It's the Rosetta colorway by FiberOptic on Etsy. They're supposed to be socks for my dd, but I have to take them to the frog pond and start over. The garter stitch was the latest attempt in a(n) endless series of attempts to create The Perfect Wide Toe. Take my word for it, garter stitch ain't it; it's way too thick for anything but work boots. To the right is a shot of my gorgeous birthday present from my sis (clear back in May), of the Koigu KPPPM sock yarn she got me. This is my FIRST KOIGU! I love it, but can't decide what pattern to use, so I'll hoard it 'til I know what it wants to be.

Next are pics of a couple of handspun yarns and the half-finished projects they're turning into. One is a thick-and-thin 2-ply heavy worsted from a scrumptious batt by Margaret of CrystalCreekFibers on Etsy. I guess they have color-issues in their photos, too, because their's shows a very green batt. When it came in it was a beautiful teal blue with tiny bits of green and deep blue Merino, and white and green bombyx silk streaks. So this is going to be a Christmas Present for a Very Special Person. Ditto the scarf/hat from the other bit of handspun.

The tweedy brown stuff in the pic has a very weird story. See, I have had this commercial top (combed fibers) from Ashford for just about forever. It's multi-colored and, in the top form, it's really quite pretty. Spun up, though... butt-ugly. The complementary colors in the top simply turned to mud, especially when I tried to spin it thinly enough for sock yarn. Major bummer for a (then) new spinner. I couldn't even give this stuff away it was so ugly. No one wanted it, including me. I knew I had to spin it if only to get rid of the stuff. Deciding to spin it thick enough to make a worsted-weight 2-ply, I figured I could at least make tweedy mud. Maybe it would be useable then. So, filling up a whole (Babe) bobbin with it, I sampled a bit twisted back on itself. Still ugly. Worse than that, it was blah. Dead. Boy, was I discouraged. Walking by one of my (many) bags and boxes full of spinning stuff one day, I spied a bag filled with full-but-as-yet-unused bobbins. One-offs, really, of singles I didn't know what to use for. I saw 2 bobbins filled with plain, deep chocolate alpaca just sitting there. A light bulb turned on somewhere in the deep recesses of what passes for the creative area of my brain and...grab! Hardly daring to hope, I ran into the living room, twisted both blah and plain together and...incredible. Beauty! Together, those 2 blah singles made the coolest, tweediest, warmest, yummiest yarn I have ever accidently created. It's subtle, but really nice. Craziest of all: it completely, totally matches my yarn/project bag/purse from Yo2 Bags (my sis makes 'em). Go figure.

Raindrop Shawl - DONE!

2009-10-29T14:32:00.007-05:00

Ta-DA! My first.ever.REAL.lace.shawl! With beads, even! I am so impressed with myself. Bless Shelly, owner of Twist Yarn Shop, for blocking it - I am NOT very good at blocking stuff.

This is the Raindrop Shawl, stitch pattern invented and shawl pattern written by Renee Strouts. And it's free!

Thanks to Becca, I got enough confidence to put beads at least on the edge, once she reminded me that I could use a crochet hook instead of stringing the damn things onto the yarn (which I refuse to do). Well, it was too late to put them on the body of the shawl (wah!), so I settled for just the bottom, but the next time...watch out! Beads up the wahzoo for me!

Introducing...Anabelle Marie!

2009-10-18T20:12:00.006-05:00

I'm so glad I remembered to do this. Not having blogged all Summer, since May in fact, I never got the chance to introduce a very awesome, cute Somebody. Her name is Anabelle Marie, my First.Ever.Dolly!

I hated dolls as a kid - couldn't stand 'em. Thought they were for "sissies", I guess - and there was no way I was ever going to be One Of Those.

My toys were trucks, capguns/pistols, ropes hanging from our backyard trees (I was Tarzan), the crazy swingset Dad made for us (on which I frequently soared into outerspace), crayons and books for rainy days.

No, sirree! No dolls for me, thank-you-not-at-all.

Until...one magical day at Twist, a very dear (and totally awesome) lady named Diane (it's a real privilege to call her friend) started pulling these...dolls, for pete's sake!...out of her massively capacious knitting bag. One of several, I believe. Doll, after wild-looking doll, came out of her bag. They were each a different color...no, colors. They were crazy. They were beautiful.

They were so cool.

They had bright-colored dreds! They had rasta hats! They had fabulous clothes! They were so different from anything I'd ever seen, that they didn't seem like doll-dolls. They were more like...doll-people. Yeah. Even though they didn't have faces, they seemed so person-like to me.

I don't know what came over me then. Instant Doll-Lust, I guess. I had to have one - now!

Well, it took some time after that before I could get the money together (not to mention my courage) and ask her if she could/would make me one that was allll me. I got together some cool yarns that I liked (mostly greens and browns, my faves) and before I knew it...

Anabelle Marie was born!

That's some gorgeous sock yarn dreds she's got, eh? And socks! Matching socks!!! Diane knitted those wonderful, itty-bitty socks! Aren't they fab?! They EVEN contrasting heels and toes - LOL! Diane knew I was The Socknut and looooved socks (well, still do). And that drop-dead, totally awesome rasta hat! OH yeah! [fist pump] A tiny, perfectly knitted, very full rasta to fit over those awesome dreds! Do you see that tiny orange flower in her hair? tee-hee. Diane didn't know it at the time, but I used to wear flowers in my hair :-) And I always wear skirts - so Anabelle Marie does, too.

Anyway...just braggin'. It's a Momma's right.

Can you autograph DVDs?

2009-10-18T19:56:00.003-05:00

I'm so anxious to get Abby Franquemont's new spinning DVD: Drafting: The Long and Short Of It. Interweave is allowing pre-orders, but it looks like it was available by the 14th of this month. I can't quite decide if I'm reading that right, or not - I hope so. If it's true, I might be getting it soon. Maybe this coming week (fingers crossed). Sure wish it was possible to get Abby to sign mine. That would be just SO totally cool!

Even cooler yet, I might be able to learn how to do REAL long draw! Woo-hoo!

Just to keep my oar in...

2009-10-16T01:30:00.007-05:00

and to have at least ONE more post done before the end of year... Okay, it'll probably not be the last post of the year, but just in case. Couldn't hurt. After all, my last post was in May, for pity's sake. Five months and one day ago! Geez lah-weeze!

So much to tell and so little time (not to mention so little inclination on my part to endlessly type). I've spun and knitted my fingers nearly off. But I never, ever feel as if I get enough spinning time, no matter how much time I spend doing it.

As is usual, though, I've hardly taken any pics of all the stuff I've made, or at least started. This Summer was a weird one, with weird and distinctly *un*Summer-like weather. It felt like it was 3 weeks' worth rather than 3 months. I think we were cheated!

I got several BSJs done, with 2 more needing to be completed. Started 3 shawls (finished one). It's not blocked yet, but I beaded it, using the crochet-hook to great effect. That's about the only thing I use those hook-things for. I WILL get a photo of that one - I promise. It's the Raindrop Shawl. I don't have the url handy, but it's a free pattern - and very well thought-out in terms of stitch design placement. Google it if you want it; otherwise, you might be waiting 'til a Really Hot Place freezes over before I get around to hunting it up for you (sorry).

I've started more than a dozen other projects (at least) but laid them down one by one as I became bored with it and went on to another project. I am totally not monogamous when it comes to knitting. Faithless is thy name, O Fickle One!

I've done a lot more knitting than what I mentioned, but mostly in the realm of playing around and then frogging the - at times - strange results. I don't think I got done but one pair of socks this whole Summer. Must be some kind of record or something.

Let's see...I've made a good start (with the kids' big help) on my Fiber Room. Of course, I have to share it with my son's Really Big Drum Set (cymbal stands up the wazoo), so I just kind of ooch around the perimeter to get to my shelves and drawers. One of these days, I'm going to ditch all the clothing in the room's closet - and the pile of wrapping paper and bows - and put in some organizers for the rest of my yarn still squirreled away in every room but the kitchen and bathrooms. I haven't rescued all of it from Durance Vile, yet. However, at least I haven't got any more shoved down coat sleeves and in my big canners. I gotta get more bins, too. Waaay more.

I had no idea I had that many knitting and spinning magazines! I've got TONS - you should see the stacks! One fell on me (a stack) and I nearly got buried. I thought my son was going to have to excavate to find me. No one warned me that magazines reproduced themselves...

Anyway - photos to follow (I hope) covering all sorts of things I've done, wish I'd done, started-but-not-yet-finished, started-but-decided-to-frog, AND ... one really awesome, cool thing made for me!

Yet Another Three Weeks!

2009-05-15T15:24:00.002-05:00

Well. From yakking it up nearly every day to just barely putting in a post-a-month. Must be some kind of record. I should get a reward for being so quiet. Didn't help that we all came down with walking pneumonia 2 weeks ago; we're still choking and coughing our way back to life. yuck.

In the meantime, I've knitted up what feels like tons of baby things (very simple things, mind), but I don't have photos of them yet. I've done a lot more frogging than I like - too much experimenting with my own patterns, I guess. I feel like I really haven't gotten all that much accomplished except to find out What Doesn't Actually Work. :::sigh:::

Still working on my Forest Canopy shawl, and trying to figure out how to make those color runs stay the same depth, even though the shawl gets wider and wider. So far, those runs aren't getting any longer, no matter how much wishing I do. Pretty soon, the rows are going to be so long the colors will change 4 times before a row is done! I keep wondering if there isn't a way to wrap-and-turn at the center stitch and work back. You know...work only 1/2 the shawl at a time to eke out the color runs for a bit longer? Without making the middle stitch of the shawl look really, really strange, of course. If anyone knows of a way...

Come to think of it, even if you do know of a way, I don't think I can frog THIS yarn. It thinks it's mohair - it has more more hooks than velcro ever thought of having. I took out 3 rows once. Never again. Ever. It's staying knitted, no matter what errors creep in...

Better Late Than Never. I guess.

2009-04-25T10:09:00.012-05:00

Wow. I can't believe I've let so much time slip by since I last posted; March 5th! Sheesh. I have a pretty good excuse for nearly 3 weeks of that, though. I was so dog-sick with the 'flu I couldn't have sat up in a chair long enough to play. No knitting, no spinning - and definitely no blogging - got done. However, since my almost-recovery (still coughing my head off), I've gotten quite a bit accomplished (for me).

I don't have much time to post a lot about each item (and aren't you GLAD!), so I'll just show you, instead. We received lovely news a few weeks ago that my oldest nephew and his sweet wife are expecting their 1st child after 4 years of trying. Woo-hoo! Everyone is over the moon about it. Rosie-lass has just begun her 2nd trimester. That kid's going to have more knitted and crocheted items than his/her mum knows what to do with. :-)

Anyway, the first pics 2 are of my first-ever Baby Surprise Jacket (BSJ) (EZ's pattern in Opinionated Knitter). I've wanted to knit one for a long time - now I have a perfectly good reason! I used Cascade's Venezia and Berroco's Inca Gold yarns for that one. I didn't realize they weren't machine-washable, so I sure hope Rosie doesn't mind. I can't believe I made a hand-washable item for a new mum! Way ta go, ya dork! I won't do it again - I promise! The 3rd and 4th photos are of my 2nd BSJ, using Berroco Comfort.

Because some of the Comfort skeins were spun 's'/plied 'z', it was really splitty for a 'throwing' knitter like me. I worked with it using a 'picking' style (German/so-called Continental) and it was a bit less crazy-making. Unfortunately, due to my slowness in 'picking' I'd have gone even crazier had I tried to knit that way through the whole thing :-) I've also nearly finished a third BSJ done in Comfort DK (properly spun for knitters!) in order to make a new-born size. I'm using traditional baby colors for this one, but he/she sure won't wear it long. It's tiny! It's pretty darn cute and I'll post it when I'm done. If I can just remember to take the photos...

And here's my latest project; a Forest Canopy Shawl by Susan Lawrence. I got the pattern on Ravelry, but I don't know if it's available elsewhere. I'm using Crystal Palace's Mini Mochi in the Autumn colorway.

Ooof!

2009-03-05T11:19:00.003-06:00

>Okay Connie, I'll understand if you are busy, but you need to pop in on the list just so we know you are okay :) We miss you!

Dang, Dori - I didn't even know you'd commented!!! Ack! I know, I know - it's been a freakin' MONTH since I posted or anything, but life has been INSANE, lately!

I can't believe, either, that it's been a month since I last posted. I can't believe I've been that busy! No, no pics to show for anything - yet. Just half-finished, half-baked stuff-on-needles (which may get frogged).

Just letting folks know I'm still kicking. Sort of :-)

Well. I dunno. More work needed...

2009-02-05T16:44:00.010-06:00

in my not-in-the-least humble opinion. It's "okay", BUT... I'm not satisfied. It's only 19 yards and it seemed to take forever to get it spun - and to stay together. One thing's for sure: Romney locks don't "stick" as well as mohair, not even to a mohair core (that's the white "string" you see on either end of the "skein". Is it even long enough to be called a skein? Probably not.). The photos came courtesy of Shelly at Twist (my dd took the photos with Shell's great camera) because - once again - I forgot to take pics.

Well - back to the carder and wheel! For what it's worth, here's the 'knewest' Knarly Knots attempt.

Where to get the Bee!

2009-02-05T09:25:00.005-06:00

Okay, I should know better than to write emails or post to my blog so late at night. I forgot to let ya'll know just where to get the Bee! There is a dear lady named Dori Ann who sells SpinOlution's Mach 1 and The Bee wheels (coming in March!), and their new, totally cool spindles (love those too). You can find her on her Feelin' Fibers Etsy shop. I have purchased from her several times and the shipping is very, very prompt! Plus, she has fab fibers, including Salish!

Dori Ann normally has lots of fibers for sale, but she's still unpacking from a very recent and exhausting move, so check back with her in a week or so - she's still coming up for air!

Here's a picture of SpinOlutions hand-spindles. I think they ought to be advertised more - they're cool - AND you can adjust their weight!

The Bee! By SpinOlutions

2009-02-04T22:39:00.007-06:00

Okay, this is getting hard on me - just how many wheels do I think I "need"??? All of them, apparently. Look at this darling new baby! I WANNIT!! Forget the Ladybug - I want THIS one! Yes, I still love the Ladybug, but...! You can't do super-bulky on it. Here's what SpinOlutions has to say:

The Bee has many improvements over current Spinning wheels available on the market. Some of the standard upgrades include:

* Open Orifice – allows thread of any size to be spun.

* Easy bobbin removal – no more hassles to change bobbins.

* 7 Ratio Speed Spindle – work at your speed.

* Multiple Bearings - for smooth and efficient operation.

* Heel rests – keeps the wheel in front of you, not across the room.

* Multiple rubber feet - for ultimate stability.

* Heavy duty construction – for years of dependable use.

* American made – what else can we say.

Ain't she CUTE!? Oh, golly - there goes another $600 as soon as I can afford it. Probably not for a long, long time but...

Blogger is rather limited on what you can do to space text so I'm having to show the Bee's specs in a different way from how it's shown on their site. Problems, problems, alla time...

Specifications of the Bee:
Weight : 13 lbs.
Open
Height: 30 inches
Width: 19 inches
Depth: 13 inches
Wheel Size: 2-9 inch diameter
1.5 in thick

Folded
Height: 12 inches
Width: 19 inches
Depth: 9 inches
Wheel Size: 2-9 inch diameter
1.5 in thick

Number of Speeds: 7 Ratio: 1:5 to 1:36 (Approximately)
Material: Furniture grade Birch Plywood

Wheel 'n' "Knew" Knarly Knots

2009-02-04T13:17:00.006-06:00

As promised, the pics! First, my new wheel, named Betsy:

I can't believe how much faster it is making art yarn when you have the right equipment! I have no idea how much I've got on here, but I sure am having fun. I started out just blending some of the colors on my hand cards only a couple times to sort of mix the colors, and I liked it (yarn on right side of bobbin). Then, I made a monster batt on my drumcarder, where the colors got blended together far more (left side of bobbin). I do love the way the blend looks, but...not sure that's what Shelly wants, so I'll ask her.

I'm also going to experiment this time and ply it with something special - see what happens. If I don't like it...oh, well - then I'll know. Hopefully, it'll look really cool. DD seems to think it will!

WHOOT!

2009-02-04T00:41:00.003-06:00

My Ashford Country Spinner came in!!! Woo-HOO!! Yarn Barf, here I come!

Actually,she came in yesterday and ds put her together for me (bless the dear boy!). I spun quite a bit last night, but it was stop and go a lot b'c I didn't have a batt to spin from. I blended the colors on my hand cards rather than using my drum carder, so it was sloooow going.

I finally got a big batt made up late tonight of the dyed locks Shels sent home with me, so it should go quite a bit faster (I hope). No, I haven't got pics yet, so you can go here to see what one looks like. Mine is stained darker than I like, but who cares?!? I was so happy to get it for a bit over 1/2 price (wow!!) that it could've been painted pink with purple polka dots, for all I'd care. Of course...I'd have stripped that off PDQ, but...

...and so it goes

2009-01-31T17:01:00.004-06:00

Well. Got to Twist. Had my wheel. Spun four minutes. Tops.

*sigh*

Oh, well.

Let's talk about something wonderful, shall we?

A "Fearless Knitter"!

That's what I'm calling her, but her real name is Melissa. Even though I had no time to spin, at least another new knitter has gone home armed with new knowledge and more faith in her ability to do whatever she wants to do with needles and yarn. And that's so great! The regular teachers weren't there and the shop was swamped, so the poor girl got stuck with moi.

I love teaching (smart people, anyway) and this young gal was sharp as a tack. She only had to be shown most things once. Boy. Wish I could say that about myself when I was learning. She wasn't at all afraid to tackle big things. Things like a loooong skirt knitted in the round - gracious me! She'd just learned to garter, didn't know how to read knitting terms yet (!), couldn't read a pattern; yet, there she sat, determined to knit this lovely skirt!

When I got over the shock of realizing she meant to knit it right away, I realized she had something I never had as a new knitter: sheer guts.

She "knew" she was a "slow-learner" (I'd love to know who convinced her of that load of hooey) but she still wasn't afraid of anything that could be knitted. If she's "slow", then I'm dumber than a freakin' post.

If she keeps going like this, she's going to be a phenomenal knitter. She's really cool, too; I liked her a lot. I really hope we see more of her at the shop.

Withdrawal symptoms...

2009-01-31T12:57:00.003-06:00

are getting much worse. I have GOT to have some serious spinning sessions for the next 2 weeks, or I'll just crack. I know I will.

I'm still working on mom's mittens - they're more boring than I realized they'd be and I just do NOT do well with 'boring', even if it's knitting.

Hopefully I can get to Twist and spin for awhile...

Oh - I almost forgot!

2009-01-28T01:42:00.002-06:00

My mom LOVED her green Garterlac Leaf Scarf! She loved it!!! Aaaaand, that's not all! She's even asked me to knit her some wool mittens! I am so tickled that she wants me to knit for her! She even thinks fingerless mitts might help keep her little hands warm. She's so cold this Winter, especially after suffering from the stroke; it's just too hard for her to get warm and stay that way. Sure wish I had more time to knit: I'd have her smothered in hand spun, hand knitted wools and alpacas.

I've got one mitten done and the other well started. SO...if I can just get off the computer for most of tomorrow (er, today) I should be able to finish them up PDQ. I'm making them from some discontinued Classic Elite Waterspun merino that I've had stashed (and forgotten!) for years; a worsted-weight (more-or-less) single which is lightly felted (so it'll actually stay together).

The mitten is a plain-jane pattern, but I'm jazzing it up mildly. I used the Channel Islands Cast On - truly my favorite - and am knitting it up with some favorite Addi lace 3mm cable needles. Magic loop, of course - it's faster for me. I'm making it with the backs in a moss-stitch bordered with a simple gartered edge, from the wrist to just above the knuckles, and a 'swirled' closure for the fingers.

The only thing that is disappointing me is how the mittens are leaning to the left. It's crazy - I'm a spinner so you'd think I'd have remembered how singles behave when knitted! But noooo. *sigh* Well, other than the fact that the mittens look 'lean-y', they're lovely, feel great and now DD wants some, too. Of course. Pic will follow when I can get it taken.

FINALLY - some time to post!

2009-01-28T00:43:00.007-06:00

Oh, boy - have I ever been busy! It's now been almost 2 weeks since I've sat at my wheel; I'm having the shakes from spinning-withdrawal. However, it's been a pretty fruitful 2 weeks of knitting time, so that helps. That was a lousy photo of my mom's scarf - I think I uploaded the wrong one (well, of course I would do something like that), so here's a slightly better one:

While it shows much paler in the photo than in reality, at least the details show up.

- AND! - I finally finished dd's Wedge-Head Tam™ that I 'unvented' last week. I have never seen anything made quite like it on the 'net (or anywhere else for that matter), but that isn't saying much. Until recently, I never knitted anything but socks :-)

It took me forever to shortrow a wedge shape that would actually work with the human head. You should've seen my earlier attempts. ::shudder:: They wouldn't have fit anything recognizable on Earth.

I made this from some of my hand-dyed Merino top (by April of The Gourmet Sheep), which I'd Navajo-plied several weeks ago. I loved the way the colors just melted one into the other. Some colors are very bright and clear, others are more subtly shaded, providing a wonderful foil for the brights which just 'pop'. A simple idiot cord and tassel finished it off just right. Now...if only she'd let me block the durned thing to give it some shape! Darn kid wears it 24/7, practically.

So...when do I get to spin, eh?

2009-01-24T11:21:00.006-06:00

Argh - it's been over a week since I've sat down to spin ANYTHING. It's killing me! However, I have been knitting in my "spare" time ::snort:: and at least I have two things to show for it. Once again (this should be a given by now), I have to apologize for the poor quality of photos. They're all either over-exposed, under-exposed or out of focus! First, I made a Slotted Neck Scarf for my mom from some Rowan Felted Tweed, #146 Herb. It took just a bit over 1 skein (191 yds), so I'm guessing somewhere between 200-250 yards? No, I am *not* going to rip it back and measure it for you. I kept messing up on that thing nearly every step of the way and I'm not about to re-do it! Anyway, it blocked beautifully - hurray! I don't know why, but I had this awful fear that it was going to s-t-r-e-t-c-h uncontrollably once I got it wet. I don't know why! I just did!

"Winter Sea" scarf c'èst finis!

2009-01-13T13:47:00.011-06:00

I can't believe it - it's done! Xxxxxxxxx's Morning Surf Scarf (fourth one, for Pete's sake) is completely, totally done. Apparently, I'm almost as bad as the Harlot when it comes to obsessing about a specific pattern. Even blocking the fringe is done (body got blocked first b'c I didn't know how to do the fringe the way I wanted to - I figured I'd better finish what I could). I can't say who it's for (don't know if she reads the blog or not), so mum's the word for now. I hope she really, really likes it!

However, I can describe it (as if I haven't in a previous post - ha!). The moment I saw the fiber on Leah's Yarn Or A Tale site - I KNEW it was meant for X. They were her colors (mostly much paler than those colored words) and not anyone else's I knew. On impulse, I bought the only bag Leah had left, and it was a mere 4 oz. Hmmm - I wasn't sure what I could get from that, because it wasn't suitable for socks, being merino and short, cut silk fibers. Wouldn't hold together well enough for socks, I knew.

I could hear that lonely bag of fiber calling my name for months after I bought it, but I had so many other carding and spinning projects, I just shut my ears to its' plaintive cries. It would not be ignored, so in early December (I think!) I took it out of its' dark and (very crammed) drawer and began spinning it into a fairly thick single, wondering what it would become. I couldn't decide between two scarf patterns, both of which I loved, so I decided to knit a bit of both (see agonized odyssey).

Once I decided it had to be the Morning Surf pattern, I quickly knit it up, switching from one ball of color to the other (okay - so I was being picky - it was a gift!), trying to keep the integrity of the color changes intact. Fourteen freakin' ends later....

Anyway - I knew I wanted something special for the ends of this special scarf. All my other scarves, I just left 'as is' after casting off, but not this baby! So, I thunk and I thunk. For 3 days (at least) my brain overheated as I fingered the small leftover balls and pored over many books, mentally looking at - and discarding - everything I saw. Nothing 'fit' this scarf.

Then...it hit me: just make some simple, varied-length, twisted fringe and hang shells 'n' crap off it! Eureka! It would be simple, in keeping with the scarf's design and whole theme-thing going on: the Sea! So...whaddya think?

Ravelry's power is down - oh, my!

2009-01-06T15:40:00.011-06:00

Well, phooey! I'm finally remembering to get onto Ravelry more than once every 2 months (literally), and look what happens: they lose power, or something. I hope everything's okay - I've not heard that there were any major storms this week - wonder what's going on?

SO - I'm here to ~~brag~~ report that the Winter's End Morning Surf Scarf is about 95% done. It's blocking right now, on towels on the bedroom floor. It's so cold back there it'll probably take forever to dry. Better that than the dogs ripping it to shreds, or tromping on it, though. Now all I have to do is the special fringe I'm planning (and hoping it turns out really well).

I've taken my green Golden Lace socks (designer Jeanie Townsend) out of hibernation - it's been well over a year since I started on them and put them away to ~~obsess about~~ learn how to spin. For the socks, I'm using Cherry Tree Hill Supersock Merino yarn in solids (my favorite). I think the name is "Pesto" for the shade of green I've got. It's certainly not Lime or Loden (which I've also got stashed. Well, no. Lime's all used up - rats!). They're lovely, but I've already made a couple of mistakes and had to tink ('knit' spelled backwards) what I did. Gee whiz - the pattern's not that hard! No, I haven't got a picture of the green ones yet, but will try to get one posted sometime this week. In the meantime, here's a pic of my dd's Golden Lace socks in turquoise, knitted with (what else?!) CTH Supersock, also.

I've been a tad busy, otherwise...

with a stupid virus. My computer's been sneezing, coughing and groaning for a week or longer, and now I know why! I'm just hoping it wasn't a keylogger-Trojan (is there such a thing??) - but it was certainly a Trojan, darn it. Can't remember the name and I can't imagine how it got on my computer considering I have every virus protection/firewall known to man! And they all work together very, very well. Until they encountered an irresistible force...

MY TEENAGE SON.

Of course, no one reading this could imagine what I mean by that...not at all. A foreign concept to most, I would imagine.

:::coff, choke:::

I've had to change all my passwords and cancel my debit card. Still need to go get another one, or I won't be able to buy squat online (no credit card, which is usually a blessing, right?!). All in all, it took me a mere 8 or 9 hours to - hopefully - get things straightened out. Heaven help that boy if I have to lose any more knitting and spinning time! Not to mention, I was supposed to be making more stitch markers for the store that evening. Now that we've started schooling back up - there IS no real time to devote to my relaxing, better-than-Prozac ~~obse~~ hobby.

Oh - I nearly forgot to make another brag (a small one). Ravelry asked me if they could use my photo example of the Golden Lace socks! Apparently, no one had entered a Project using that sock pattern, so ... no photo for anyone to see what it really looked like. That's sad; Jeanie is a very talented designer, long past-due for more public recognition. She has her devoted followers (like myself) who eagerly await the next pattern, but more people ought to know about them! She's good - really good - and picky about how well her patterns are written and work up.

Christmas stash acquisitions

2009-01-03T01:04:00.012-06:00

Not to make you drool or anything, but here is some of my BFL Stash from Miss Babs. Chucked into the pile is some bright RED Fleece Artist...well, fleece. Roving, that is. I picked it up at I-forget-which-shop on the Yarn Crawl. No time to list all the colors - I'm yawning my head off and why I am still up?!? But I feel like I've been really behind on the blog - am trying to semi catch up.

Annnnd, these lovelies are from Ruth MacGregor, of course, of Spinning Forth (please see sidebar until I can put in all the links).

Again, I'm much too tired to list the colors, but I will, soon!

*** UPDATE 01-07-09 *** Silk colors, clockwise from bottom of left photo:
Silk spinning kit w/spindle - Garnet - 50g, Aubergine - 50g, Canard - 50g, Red - 50g, Sunspot - 50g, Coquelicot - 50g (middle)

Ruth told me, when I was enquiring about how much silk I might need to make a medium-sized project, that 50 grams of silk went much further than 50 g of wool. She said if you spin the silk fairly thin, it should get you a scarf that stretches from neck to waist (!). I'm assuming that means using large enough needles to get lace, but I didn't think to ask her.

Read blog post below for the Discussion Of The Scarves! You will probably have noticed that the poll has disappeared. There's a good reason for that...

Making a beginner's mistake

2009-01-03T00:37:00.006-06:00

Well. No question about it - it won't be the Garterlac Scarf, for sure. This thing puts the 'ug' in ugly. I think I know why, too. The yarn is much sturdier and thicker than the yarn I used for the first Garterlac scarf, so I had to go up at least 2 needle sizes. I also had to spin and ply it quite tightly as the fibers were short and yet I was (stupidly) spinning them worsted. That's the beginner's mistake I mentioned in the title. Yup. Why I didn't think to card the roving and go woolen is beyond me. Yes, I'm stupid - so sue me.

When I tried to use the original sz 6, the fabric was so tight that the yarn had no room to 'breathe'. The silk ended up making the yarn feel like soft, crackly paper - yuck! It felt worse than the nastiest 70's acrylic you could find. We all fingered it (at the shop) and agreed: bigger needles! I switched to a sz 7 - same thing, just not quite as bad.

Got home and pulled out the big guns: my Kollage 8's. Ahhhhh! The poor yarn breathed a sigh of relief as it found room for itself to look and feel like actual yarn. In fact, it feels wonderful knitted at this gauge. Unfortunately, the stitches are so large, that the whole ensemble just looks...odd.

Beginning from the outer end of the ball (without frogging the Garterlac so ya'll could judge for yourselves), I cast on for a narrowish Morning Surf Scarf. Glory. I think that's what it wanted to be. Granted, both pieces could look better, but they're not blocked yet - give 'em a break! So tell me what you think of this one:

Even though a few more voted for the 'lac than the Surf...we're going with the Surf, unless someone has an even better idea.

Agonies of indecision: Which shall it be?

2008-12-31T00:56:00.020-06:00

Shall I make another Morning Surf Scarf (free pattern!),

...or another Garterlac Scarf like the one I just finished?

for this:

Just FYI, the "Garterlac Scarf" is actually named "Slotted Neck Scarf with Entrelac Knitting" and is Suzanne Pufpaff's (Pufpaff's Fiber Processing) own pattern.

The stuff I am spinning is so lovely, with its many subtle shadings of blues, browns, melding into whites - all of them quiet, gentle colors reminding me of a late Winter's day, with the sky so blue and the brown Earth still covered in snow, but melting at last. The Garterlac Scarf would work so well to express that! But, then again...

I am reminded of the Winter ocean with her cold, blue waters foaming almost-white against the sandy, shell-strewn beaches. The Morning Surf Scarf would be perfect for this imagery.

Which, oh, which shall I make?!? I wish you could see this yarn's sheen and luster. I suppose you could, if only I was able to take good pictures. My camera-skills are legendary. For their poor quality, that is. In the skein photo, it appears as if some of the browns have a green-ish cast, but I assure you - they don't! That's just my lack of photog skills shining through. Guess I'd better have dd try her hand at it.

I wish you could feel the warm, silken hand and surprising drape. I didn't know a rather tightly-plied yarn would still have such nice drape! I had to spin it rather tightly due to the general shortness of fibers, and - being so eager to see it "done" - I then Navajo-plied the first bobbin (the second just barely begun).

Because of the extremely uneven character of the dyed areas across the loose roving, I knew I couldn't get a satisfactorily shaded (to me) 3-ply. Once again, I had recourse to the good old standby of Navajo-plying. I'm so grateful someone invented it; what an excellent way to keep color-runs together to obtain a certain effect!

If only I'd had 8 ounces of this exquisite 50 silk/50 Merino, I would make both! Does anyone out there have a preference, or should I just toss for heads/tails? Take my poll and help me out, here, please!

Winter's End:

I think I forgot to mention that this fiber came from Leah of Yarn Or A Tale - wonderful stuff! - and she ain't got no more of that particular dye batch :-( Dang it.

Entrelac (garterlac) Scarf done!

2008-12-28T20:03:00.009-06:00

Well - it's been simply ages since I posted. The days have just whizzed by. I got this scarf done 2 days before Christmas and got it to its recipient - and forgot to take pictures. As usual!

The fiber is Falkland from Laughing Rat Studios (thanks, Jenn!)

and the pattern is from Suzanne Pufpaff of Pufpaff Fiber Mill.

She has some really interesting patterns and I wanted to try her simplest one as I'd never in my life done entrelac. It was a weird experience, but I'm so glad I persevered! I changed her pattern quite a bit (mostly making it narrower), but it still looks much the same as her original one. I used size 6 needles (4mm) - and they were the totally cool Kollage square circular needles. WONDERFUL needles!

The biggest changes I made to the pattern was that I only knitted the leaves up to 30 stitches wide, and I changed the entrelac "rectangles" to squares by using garter instead of stockinette. Then, for the number of stitches in the squares, I kept them at just 8 stitches wide, rather than increasing them up to 10 or 11, as the pattern called for. But other 'n' that - it's just the same!

You know your house is cold when...

2008-12-21T18:00:00.005-06:00

you go to bed fully dressed (well, minus the boots), flannel pyjama pants on over the leggings, wool socks, thermal shirt, large wool shawl over the shoulders, heavy denim skirt, heavy wool scarf over the head and ears, 2 very heavy quilts and one heavy, double-knitted blanket. And you're still :::shivering:::.

In case you're wondering, dh looked about the same, but he has no knitted wool shawl, poor thing. Perhaps he will never again whine that his hand-knitted, Cherry Tree Hill, totally gorgeous, handknit socks are (hold your breath):

"too hot".

He's lucky not to have been moved out to the garage for that crack this Summer.

I really, really HATE Winter. Hate it. I hate and despise everything about it. I don't understand people who say crazy things like: "I LOVE snow and cold weather! I can hardly wait to freeze my tushie off!"

Me? I think they've cracked up. Totally. That's not freaking normal by any sane standards on Earth. Unless you're a penguin at the South Pole. Or something.

Bears are smart. THEY know when to stay in out of the cold.

I'll post about knitting and spinning as soon as my fingers thaw sufficiently. Right now I'm using a pencil held between my teeth...

just kidding, guys :-)

Did I ever show you this wheel?

2008-12-13T23:06:00.004-06:00

THIS is what I would love to have for a bulky/artyarn wheel! It's Pocket Wheels by Doug. Yes, I know - A Ladybug has my name on it...somewhere, somewhen, but it doesn't spin bulky - and that's what I'm needing. This Pocket Wheel is just too cool! I know - I'm beginning to obsess about a bulky spinner. I never thought I would want (let alone need) one. Oy. That's what I get for Spinning My Imagination: more flippin' wheels to buy. Hm. I wonder if Harvey could make something like this?!? Oooh - I'm going to ask him!

Also - on a VERY happy note, little "Charlie" (our new foster Brittany) actually came OUT of his crate and jumped up on me to lick my face! How about that, eh? Needless to say, I am so pleased! He might be even younger than we thought for him to try to make friends this soon. This is great!

One goes out...and another

2008-12-13T18:15:00.009-06:00

comes in. I am a bit discouraged - I admit it. This gets old really fast, people dumping their unwanted animals just any old where - no food, no water, no nothing :-(. I mean, what would be SO hard about taking their unwanted animals to a freakin' shelter, for crying out loud??? Are they afraid of "what people would say" if they used a shelter? That's what they're FOR!

"What people would say" is a whole LOT worse when they find an animal's been dumped! At least the poor animals get fed at a shelter. But they don't get fed when they're in the middle of a freakin' field! Figure it out, you selfish jerks!

I sometimes fantasize about slapping the irresponsible jerks into next week, after having starved them for a couple of weeks, first.... I find myself grinding my teeth into powder...

As well, my poor Meems has been sick as a dog (no pun intended!) almost this whole week with a hideous sinus infection. She rolled out of bed around noon today looking almost human. Her eyes were a bit unfocused, but at least the fever's gone, thanks be to God!

We finally found a Forever Home for our sweet, goofy little Brittany foster girl, Ginger. Yes, she really did lay like that. ALL the time :-) Isn't that a hoot? That denotes GREAT hip sockets, btw - probably no hip problems in later life. But I miss her so much! We all do, and the day's been kind of a bummer all around.

She left early this morning on her long journey to the North, all the way up to Michigan, where she will have 3 other Britts to run and play with. She'll have a 10-acre wooded area and fenced yard to run and play in (lucky little girl!). I can't help but worry about her, though: is she scared because her Family (us!) isn't there anymore? It makes me sick to think she might be scared. We took one of Dave's old t-shirts and rubbed it on ourselves and the other dogs (they miss her, too!), and sent along her big Barbie sleeping blankie (Meem's old comforter) with her and lots of treats and toys. I sure hope she will be happy and not miss us!

ANYWAY...we already have our next foster here. We don't know his name, of course, because his former owner apparently abandoned him up near Salina when the dog proved to be gun shy. Damn all "hunters" who don't know squat about being a REAL hunter! This poor dog had no collar (of course not) and is very thin, though thankfully not skin-and-bones like most of our rescues are.

It looks like the poor young fella was on his own for a good week before a REAL hunter found him, cowering under his truck, terrified of the gun shots. This was a hunter who used to raise his own Brittanys (and still has 5 of them). He took him back home to Andover with him and contacted American Brittany Rescue to let us know he'd found a dumped Britt who needed a home, then fed & watered the poor dog. Kept him overnight until we could get him (thank you, Larry!)

This poor baby is so scared of people, he just cowered and shook when he got here this afternoon. That means only one thing to me: he had to have been beaten and abused by his former "masters". Just give me a rubber hose and 15 minutes alone with him/them in a locked room. That's all I ask. Hell, I'll settle for TEN minutes.

We FINALLY got him to take a bit of turkey this evening (he loved it!), but he still won't look at us - doesn't dare :-(. He lets us pet him, but he just freezes, not responding to our strokes or anything. I could just cry in rage for what was done to him. He's around 2 years of age - this young'un should be silly, bouncing, frisky and into everything. He should be driving me distracted by tearing up everything he sees. That's a normal 2-year old Brittany: just plumb crazy. Not this pretty boy, though. Maybe he'll warm up to us a bit later tonight or tomorrow.

I've got to arrange for his neutering and chipping, asap. Boy - next week is already looking mighty busy! Forget the Christmas knitting - it ain't gonna happen. No way. *sigh*

I had SO looked forward to some relaxing spinning. But stayed tuned...I'll get back to the wheel soon. I've got about 4 of 8 oz hand-dyed Merino spun up (from April of The Gourmet Sheep). Lovely colors - not really pastel, but not dark, either. It should Navajo-ply up into a beautiful yarn - I hope! Yes, I'll get a photo posted - after the batteries are charged. I swear, those batteries don't hold a charge worth anything! I wish I could afford a plug-in power source for it!

IntroDUC ing...Knarly Knots™!

2008-12-09T20:37:00.007-06:00

That's what we've (Shelly and I) named it: Fairyspun Knarly Knots™. Whaddya think? It's definitely gnarly stuff. Looks like I stomped all over it before pulling it through my teeth.

Yuck.

No, I promise! I didn't! It just looks like it, I said.

Baaad roads out there, folks...

2008-12-09T18:47:00.003-06:00

Hubby said it took him nearly an hour to get home; his usual drive-time is around 20-25 minutes, shorter if he's coming home earlier or later than the normal rush-hour craziness. He said he slid alllll the way home :-(. I am so glad I didn't realize how bad the roads are - I would have chewed my fingernails to the elbows worrying about him. As it is, the day has been just crap. Just one of those stupid days that you hope don't get repeated very often. Almost everything that could go wrong, DID go wrong. Ugh.

If I believed in sleeping, I think I would go to bed early.

An adorable little Angel ...

2008-12-09T13:08:00.018-06:00

is wearing a hat her Mommy knitted up for her. Isn't her sweet little face so awesome?! She's Shelly's little three-year old girl and she loves to wear things knitted for her by her mum. She makes the hat look great, too - LOL!

Somewhere, Shells picked up a hat with the yarn barf on top - it is SO cool - which looks like dyed dredlocks! She asked me if I could spin something like that and, being the ~~idiot~~ intrepid spinner that I am, I said "SURE!" :::coff:::

Actually, I had been messing around with "novelty yarn" like this just a couple weeks prior (making a total mess around me, with mohair floating all over the place), and had achieved - sort of - something like it. She gave me a box of dyed mohair locks (oh, lovely!) to play with. It would have been pure pleasure to spin it up, except...neither of my Babes have bulky-yarn orifices! Oh, NO! They have tiny 1/4" ones which just don't like having 1/2" wads of mohair yanked through them! Don't ask me how I did it - *I* dunno.

After having managed to produce about 6 feet of wild, messy, pastel dredlocks, I had to felt it to keep it from coming apart, as Shelly was going to cut the length to several shorter ones. So, after sinks of hot and icy water dunks, coupled with vigorous palm-rolling, I had what - I hoped! - resembled the hat she'd already bought. She liked it! So...I get to do several more lengths!

My willpower is so strong...

2008-12-09T11:56:00.011-06:00

NOT.

I don't really have any spinning silk (well, none to speak of, neway) and I'm kind of scared of spinning plain, straight silk, so I've mostly avoided getting any. Until today.

Ruth MacGregor, of Spinning Forth - Temptress Extraordinaire and Enabler that she is - has just dyed up a fresh batch of her glorious silks. PLEASE go see her website! Not only does she sell gorgeous hand-dyed silk, but she's also got wonderful articles and videos on How To Do Stuff!

I fell resoundingly from my (pathetically brief) self-imposed Fiber Fast and ordered one of her spinning kits (spindle, her silk-spinning book plus 50 gms silk), and ... um ... several more 50 gm hanks of other colors. I hope Ruth doesn't mind my borrowing these photos 'til I have some of my own (I'll ask her!), but feast your eyes (hey, wipe yer slobber off her pics!) on these...

No, I didn't get ALL the colors. Just...most of them. I'm not saying just how many. Wouldn't want anyone to be jealous. Or anything. Some of these are new colors (I think!) - there are many, many more on her site. All of them glow like cut jewels - all of them. I will try to list the colors later, but I got Stuff To Do Today, so it might take awhile before I get the time to do it.

She told me that 50 grams of wool, as any spinner knows, doesn't go very far (she's right - it doesn't!), but with silk one 50 gm hank would make a hang-to-the-waist scarf.

Wow! I didn't know that, but I should've figured. The problem will be in ME spinning it thinly enough. Well, practice makes perfect, but the thought of barfing this up makes my stomach hurt. We'll see!

Now THIS is more like it!

2008-12-08T14:12:00.011-06:00

I am so loving this new yarn I've spun up - it looks EXACTLY the way I'd planned it - for once! I hope the photos show the rich and lovely color changes to this hand dyed Falkland top from Jennifer of Laughing Rat Studios. She called the colorway "Evening". Yes, I know...I get half my fiber from her - I can't help myself! I also just noticed that her Studio does NOT appear in my "Stuff I Can't Quit Buying" list (see sidebar)! So sorry, Jenn! That is now rectified! I guess I thought I'd gotten the link inserted everywhere, but apparently not.

I love how she chooses many different wools to work with, rather than just sticking with one type. I've gotten Merino, Shetland, Falkland & Finn from her (and probably others, as well), which allows me to find out the different characteristics of each type of wool. I find that I LOVE the Falkland for spinning worsted. It's so much like Blue-Faced Leicester (pronounced 'Lester', in case you wanted to know), that it is going to be one of my favorites - I can already tell. BFL is not always easy to find and, sometimes, darned expensive when you do! The Falkland fiber (similar to BFL and Shetland in length) is much longer than Merino, allowing for a more leisurely draft and a looser twist (if that's what you want). I didn't opt for that this time around, but were I spinning for a lace-weight shawl, you bet I'd want that for a nice, drape-y hand.

Isn't this stuff lovely, though? There are so many subtle, varying shades of browns, reds, teals and a bit of green, that I can hardly count them. I divided the top in half lengthwise and spun the first half, but couldn't wait to ply it, so I'm just now spinning the second half, and about 1/3 the way done with it. That is NOT the 'recommended' method for dealing with a project (can lead to very different twists between the plies), but so what... Its MY stuff and I just couldn't wait this time. Here's what it looked like on the bobbin:

Rather than merely hoping to keep the colors together by plying from 2 bobbins (this is always an iffy prospect when dealing with a many-colored top), I chose to spin a rather thin single and then Navajo-ply it. I wanted a worsted weight yarn with lots of twist in the ply - and it looks GREAT, compared to what I usually produce! I'm about 1/3rd the way through the second half of the split top, so maybe I'll be done tomorrow or the next day and can ply it up. I just wish I'd gotten a good 2 lbs (for a man's sweater!), as I'll only end up with around 360 to 380 yards, total. Darn it - not much after all that work, huh? Anyway, I am probably beating my drum a bit too hard, but I sure do like this stuff!

All I Want For Christmas...

2008-12-03T21:25:00.002-06:00

are these. Or these.

That's all. That's it. I could die happy if I had ~~a full set~~ some of them!

The only other thing I have ever wanted just as badly ~~was~~ is a Schacht Ladybug ::sigh::

Neener, neener

2008-11-28T19:32:00.007-06:00

Lookee what *I* bought from Tina from her Made For Ewe Etsy Shop. I snatched that puppy up the minute she let us know it was available. I ain't stupid; it would've been gone in a half-second, otherwise.

Tina's Shetland fibers are just lovely, and I just wish I could afford to have a whole "library" (okay - it sounds more dignified than stash) of all her gloriously-dyed Shetland locks. The colors glow like jewels lit from within - beautiful! These locks dye up as beautifully as mohair and Salish, and that's really saying something.

I ALSO got (I couldn't help myself) more fiber from Jennifer of Laughing Rat Studio. I hope to get some photos up soon.

I wish I could spin fiber as fast I can buy it...

Kindergarten Rug Shawl

2008-11-26T16:02:00.009-06:00

Well, it's been done for a good, long while, but it was in one of the windows of the yarn shop, along with 2 other Kindergarten Rug shawls made by my sis, Cass. It sure was fun to do, but I didn't think I'd ever get done. I guess I'm way spoiled making socks. They're ever so much smaller than shawls!

I chose a base color-range to work with (Fall colors), then I just dug through my yarn scraps to see what I had, plus Cass gave me a ton of scraps in "my" colors that she couldn't use for her own shawl(s). Aaaannnnd ... we were off and running! Ain't it kewl? And oh-so-warm! As you can see, I've got some crazy fibers in there: metallics, ribbons, tapes, chenilles, pom-poms, eyelashes, fuzzies, furries, bumpies, hand-spuns, sock yarns, bulky yarns...you name it - it's in there. I used up nearly all my handspun scraps - I'm so glad I didn't throw them away - I nearly had!

We both started with an "inspiration" yarn (Cass' idea) and dug around in our (much-bigger-than-we-realized) stashes to find yarns that would "go" together (okay, much in the same way horses and clocks "go" together...). I quickly discovered that if I used just Fall colors, the shawl just looked...dull, somehow, even though many of the colors were very bright. I realized I HAD to have some brights and lights in the mix to make it "work". Back to my stash I went and gleefully dragged out More Yarn.

Just FYI, we worked the shawl in the most simple way possible. Starting at the bottom, we cast on somewhere in the neighborhood of 3, 4 or 5 (I can't remember and it really doesn't matter) stitches and increased by 2 stitches on every other row, by knitting in the front and back (K1fb) of the 2nd and 2nd-to-last stitches. For example:

Using needles anywhere from about U.S. size 10.5-to-whatever...

CO 5
Row 1: K1, K1fb, K1 (or across until 2 st remain), K1fb, K1
Row 2: Knit
Repeat rows 1 and 2 until you're sick and tired of knitting. Cast off loosely and wear. You don't even have ends to work in!

You could use yarnovers, instead of K1fb, if you want holes along the edge.

You could also just increase by one stitch EVERY row, and make it way easier on yourself. I wish I had, because I was constantly forgetting whether I'd increased or not. Seeing that there is NO front or back to the thing - and seeing that I was too lazy to go get a freaking marker to assist me - I couldn't tell which "side" I was to increase on. Yes, I am that lazy.

The way we changed colors just depended entirely on whatever whim was driving us at the time. Sometimes we cut varying lengths of yarn (from 12" to a yard or two - or three.) of whatever yarn came to hand, either leaving it by itself, or combining it with 1 or more strands of other yarns. That depended mostly on how heavy the yarns were to start with. Mostly, we ended up with bulky-weight stuff, which made the knitting faster!

Other times, we'd start a crazy-looking yarn ball to work from later (tails sticking out everywhere), by grabbing some yarns, holding them together and say "yep, that looks pretty good" and cutting them off. We'd then tie strand/s after strand/s of yarn together, leaving 2-4" tails, using over-hand knots (important - NOT square knots!). We did this if we wanted to knit on the shawl somewhere besides our homes, because our scrap stashes were absolutely NOT portable in any real sense of the word.

Just knit the shawl from your short scraps of yarn, leaving the tails wherever they "land". I did go ahead and pull some tails to the other side if I had a bunch on one side and a big, bald, tail-less spot on the other.

Anyway - we added some fringe, et voila! Finis! A crazy-looking piece of fabric that would probably bring $120 - $150 in a boutique. And it's mine. Our shawls are just gorgeous!

The Most Obnoxious Handspun Yarn...

2008-11-26T14:56:00.013-06:00

in all History is now being made into an eye-popping version of the Morning Surf Scarf (my 3rd version!) for my daughter. It's being knitted from one of my earliest attempts at dye-your-own Merino top. SHE thinks it's "awesome". I get headaches just from looking at it. I need sunglasses. It's nearly twice as bright as the photos show:

I'm almost done with my second Morning Surf Scarf. Too bad I didn't spin up enough yarn :-(. I would've if I'd had more fiber, but I'll just have to treat this as a neck-tucker scarf. Darn! Scarves take up more yarn than you might think!

More Eunny Jang! Totally Tubular Cast-On

2008-11-19T18:21:00.007-06:00

I love being able to embed these cool YouTube vids onto my blog. Isn't it great? Interweave's Eunny Jang (Knitting Daily) does it again: a super-handy Tubular Cast-On video. I'll bet you've probably always wanted to know how to do it, but never got around to looking it up. It's a very easy-peasy cast-on (otherwise, I'd never have bothered doing one - ever!). Enjoy!

Yes, I am still spinning, but I have had SO little time to indulge in that most-loved pastime. I'm also knitting up that "Morning Surf" scarf again using more of my hand-spun. It's that bumpity, slubby, 50 silk/50 Merino green stuff that kept insisting (in all the photos) that it was BLUE. Well. It's still green.

Another Knitting Black Hole - NEW Scientific Discovery!

2008-11-18T16:24:00.005-06:00

There I am, finishing up (finally) my 2nd little 10"x12" afghan "square" (okay, so my I'm-going-to-do-it-myself design was sooo off on needed stitch count). I fiddled with the pattern and made my own as I didn't like the ones I was doing. What else is new.

Anyway, I cast on 54 stitches and increased to 68 to accomodate the 'pull' cables exert (as in: cables are a Force of Nature whose-influence-is-not-to-be-ignored) on any piece of knitting. That's an increase of just 12 stitches. Keep that '12' in mind. It's important.

See, there were to be 3 main sections to the 'square': 22 stitches on the outer design (Trinity stitch) and 24 stitches for the cabling. Twenty-two plus twenty-two equals forty-four. Right? RIGHT! Then add that 44 to the middle 24 stitches: that's 68. Even I can add in my head that much. To check, I used my calculator. We both came up with 68.

Gottit. I knitted. And knitted. AND knitted, cabling dutifully up the piece, finishing off 5 repeats of the blasted Celtic Knot figure. Still had 68 stitches. Good. I'm an expert at losing stitches.

Always mindful of making ends, edges and other things match, I carefully decreased - BY 12 STITCHES (yes, I counted) - on the first of the 6 garter row edging (to match the beginning 6 garter row edging).

I NOW HAVE 48 freaking stitches. Not 56. 48.

And the dadburned thing looks FINE! (other than being too freaking narrow thanks to my stitch number miscalculation.)

AND, I still have to make it wide enough so that it will BE a flippin' square. Do you know how UGLY adding side edgings to a 3-stitch (or any number-stitch) garter edge??? BUTT-ugly; that's how ugly :-(

::retires muttering::

I give up. I hate knitting. I'm going to take up stamp-collecting.

A Mother's unendurable grief

2008-11-12T12:56:00.005-06:00

My much-beloved cousin Sarah just lost her only son this past Saturday night in a crazy, horrible & totally unlikely traffic accident. No alcohol, no drugs, no reckless driving - on anyone's part. I haven't wanted to write about it, but I should, if only to acknowledge a Mother's terrible and unendurable grief. After my prayers, it is all I can do, and it is so very little.

My poor, sweet and kind Sarah is in total shock, and all I can tell her is "I'm so, so sorry and horrified. I love you!" I can hardly quit crying over it; yes, for HER sake; because my heart just goes 'thud' every time I think of what she and her husband are going through, as they buried their only son today at 1:00.

I can hardly stand to write or think about it, it's just so horrible. And no one can do a damned thing about it :-(

We have only 2 living children, ourselves, and I thank God every day that they are still with me. I cherish them more than I can begin to describe. But do I need to? You are parents, most of you. YOU know what it feels like to have your heart squeeze in love - and fear - for your children. I tell my kids that I love them ... every. single. day. I try to show it, too, with my actions, not just words (because talk's cheap, and kids intuitively know that). Because, one day, I might NOT be able to tell them - or show them - how much I love and appreciate them. They are more precious to me than my own life.

I would like to comment on what one poor mother said (to another grieving mother on another blog): that she "got angry" when someone told her that were sorry for her loss. That just blows me away. I wondered...what does she want people to say, instead? That they were GLAD at her loss? Of course not - she'd be justifiably horrified, hurt and outraged - and I don't know of anyone hateful enough to say something like that. I suspect there are those like that in the world, but *I* sure don't want to meet such foul, satanic monsters.

That poor, grieving mother has forgotten that most of us adults in this world ARE parents - and we have vivid imaginations. Oh, yes ...we can imagine -- far-too-easily -- the horror and grief we would feel if we lost one of our own beloved children!

Of COURSE we're "sorry" when we hear of another parent's loss! In fact, we are so horrified and devastated for that poor, bereaved parent, that we can hardly breathe. We're "sorry" because we're not God, so we can't do a damn thing about what happened. We're "sorry" that we don't have a magic wand to undo what happened. We're "sorry" because we KNOW that whatever words we say or actions we take will be cold comfort - at best. We know our hugs and helplessly-murmured whispers will mean nothing to the grieving parent, yet it would be worse - far worse - if we did not offer them at all.

We feel a cold, bony hand mercilessly squeeze our hearts when we hear of these things. Should such a thing happen to us, I know I would want to curl up and die of agonized grief, as would my husband. What an unspeakably HUGE hole in our hearts that loss would leave!

We know one of OUR babies could be 'the next'. :::shudder::: Oh, yes, we CAN 'understand' -- even if we have never lost a child. Any ordinary, normal, loving parent can't help but 'understand' - we have no choice but to understand, for the fear of our own possible loss is never far away; no, never.

We are, when all is said and done, not ever the 'masters of our fate', as some very silly people want to delude themselves into believing. We never will be in charge, either.

If you all would offer up a prayer for my poor Sarah & Simon - and for all grieving parents - it would be an act of Charity...and understanding.

Thank you!

A shocking and OUTRAGEOUS story

2008-11-12T09:00:00.008-06:00

Wow. I think I've heard it all with this one. Do ya'll remember the photo I took of the bobbin half-full of "art-spun" kid mohair? The lovely multi-colored mohair from an angora goat named "Sierra"? It's on Nov 7th's blog-entry: "Yes, I really *have* been spinning".

I am so upset by what that poor goat's owner has written me. What but a sicko creep would do such a thing?? I received permission from her to post what happened to them and do what I could to 'advertise' their existence. They don't have a website, but I imagine they're much to busy to mess with one anyway.

Steve and Melissa are just now beginning to recover from this senseless and horrifying act of hatred, but...well, read on:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dear Connie,

Thank you for taking the time to look me up..yes we still sell mohair on ebay and on etsy. My user id for both is farmgirlchic. I'm glad you have some of Sierra's fleece and are able to use it. We lost Sierra in a terrible fire we had here at the farm back in March. We lost her and 15 other does and their newborn kids. They believe it was arson. There wasn't anything we could do, and we lost our 60x40 1890's bank barn and everything we had in it. Our horses, sheep and several bucks were spared.

We have been slowly rebuilding and now have a new larger barn and we are back up to 23 colored and white angora goats as well as more sheep. They become addictive...! I have started to sell the fleeces whole and raw as the time it takes to skirt and wash is very time consuming. I would love to be able to have more animals and explore other fibery projects. Right now I have two 2nd cut meaning they were sheared in June for the 1st time and then they were just sheared again last weekend white kid fleeces. They each weigh approx. 2lbs. We will have several 1st cut fleeces avialble next May, will know for sure how many after the kids start coming in January. Now, they are from pure white kids but the fleece is raw (unwashed) so therefore it will appear cream even beige in some parts because it hasn't been washed. Washing if you are unfamiliar with it is very simple and I provide printed directions with each fleece.
[snip]
Steve and Melissa Verill
Feathers and Fleece Farm
1215 Bridgeton Rd.
Airville, PA 17302
(717)862-9777
mlverill@aol.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I know I've been advised to "keep to myself" any good mohair sources and I understand why (and normally would, probably!); super-kid being almost impossible to come by, and rather expensive when you DO find it.

But not now...not in this instance. That insane act of injustice outrages me to the point that I'm still spitting in anger and horror. Those poor little goats! Poor Steve and Melissa! They're probably just barely making it as it is (like so many today) - and then to have some foul monster kill their animals and burn down their beautiful, historic barn, has left me in disbelief. Surely, no one could be so monstrous! But there are jackals like that, far more "animalistic" than the poor, innocent animals could ever be. Fortunately, there are still good people in this world, and they came forward in a beautiful way to help Steve and Melissa. She went on to write in her last email that:

"In fact many of our goat breeder friends gave us many of the goats we now have as replacement for the ones we lost." (May God bless those kind folks!) And...

"It's interesting that you asked about reserving some of May's clip as we are contemplating starting a fiber CSA where you would actually become a member of the farm and be able to share in the fiber bounty, such as having first choice of what is sheared. Will let you know more details. We estimate having at least 6 white kids born out of approx. 30 in January and February. I'll make sure you have a choice. [snip]

As I told you before we now have 23 goats with approx. 30 due to be born in the spring and then we also have 6 sheep (4 Border Leicester cross and two Babydoll). It has been interesting almost having to start over with our herd as well as all of the equipment that we use...tractors, buckets, feeders, tools fencing gates etc. as well as the barn. All have had to be replaced and unfortunately insurance didn't cover the half of it. We certainly don't mind you using our/my name as we appreciate the "advertising"! With the CSA we would also be encouraging people to participate in our farm with a website, blog. farm visits and help in naming the newborns...maybe something like being able to pick such and such's clip."

I only included some of her last email so this entry wouldn't be too long, but I think I've included all the pertinent details. I would love to be part of a CSA - what fun! It's too bad they live too far away for me to visit them (rats!), but still...it'd be fun to help name the darling babies and be able to get one of their adorable fleeces!

Here's their eBay store: Farmgirl Chic
and their Etsy store: Farmgirl Chic

ANYWAY - that's the story. An' Ah'm gonna get me a loverly baby fleece one day! Ha - I'll probably just end up stroking it rather than spinning it, knowing me :-)

LEST WE FORGET: In Grateful Remembrance

2008-11-11T13:00:00.006-06:00

My Daddy, may God rest his soul, served as rear-gunner in a B-17E's suffocating belly ball-turret during WWII, in the Pacific arena. He would rarely speak of those horrible, frightening times. His was the only plane from his squadron to return. I and my sisters came so close to never being born.

My nephew, Austin, served as a re-fueler and returned last year from Iraq, in agonizing physical pain and under emotional stress that can hardly be described. And he was one of the "lucky" ones.

May God bless and heal all those who suffer,

especially those in faithful performance of their duty.

Amen!

LEST WE FORGET....

In Flanders Fields

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders Fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders Fields.

by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD

(1872-1918) Canadian Army

Knitting the Nupp: now we know...

2008-11-10T18:13:00.002-06:00

how to make the thing (see video below) and pronounce it, too. I always thought it was pronounced "nuhp", but it's "noop"! That's phonetically spelled, folks; it's still spelled 'nupp'. So advises Nancy Bush, one of my knitting heroines. I've got her book, Knitted Lace of Estonia: Techniques, Patterns and Traditions, on order from Amazon. Unfortunately, the publication date has been pushed back by SEVERAL months (waaah!).

SO...Knitting Daily is offering the Estonian Lace Scarf as a free download (you gotta join, though!) and you can purchase the Estonian Triangular Summer shawl pattern ("Lily-of-the-Valley" - only 6 bucks!) published in the July/August 2008 Piecework magazine (which is also in the book).

I must be crazy...

2008-11-08T18:06:00.004-06:00

to attempt typing anything today. I was up all night, 'til 7 this morning (insomnia). Hubby helpfully got me back up at 9:20 to go the Spinning Retreat Dawn was holding for her first students.

SO...I was supposed to get there at 10, with 2 passengers. Got there around 12 with NO passengers! How I managed to spin and talk at the same time is beyond me. Guess I can talk any time, though.

Neway, Rabeka and I left about 3:15 and went to Twist. Sat on the couch and drooled 'til Meems got off work at 4. I am soooo tired. And I can't even go to bed now, or I'll get up at 3 a.m.!

And poor Shelly sounds sooo sick. She sounds like a mouse, squeeking and whispering everything, poor girl. 'Tis the Season, I guess.

Yes, I really have been spinning...

2008-11-07T21:43:00.017-06:00

and to prove it, a few photos. None are completed projects as I'm always starting one thing, then another, then dropping those to go experiment with something else!

Speaking of experiments, I've got a really cool mohair single spun up as one of those totally hairy art yarns. I just HAD to see if I could do it. Don't know if I did it correctly, but I did it and *I* like it. The Angora goat (from Feathers and Fleece Farm - no website) was amazingly colored. There are, like, 5 or 6 colors (NOT shades..colors!) on this doe: white, cream, champagne, silver, medium grey, medium taupe - and several shadings of each one. GORGEOUS! I think this had to be yearling mohair, at least. Some of it was as soft as super-kid, even. You might have to click on the picture to enlarge it as not much detail can be seen, otherwise. I tried to take a good picture, I really did!

I have also done a bit of experimental spinning on four gorgeous silk hankies from The Yarn Yard in the UK, hand-dyed in glorious Autumn colors. There isn't much done yet, and my spinning is just terrible (I've NO idea what I'm doing when it comes to silk hankies and caps) and, of course, my photog "skills" are just total crap, but...in person this stuff just glows (literally). I think it would be very hard to ruin silk, regardless of how badly it was spun (or is that just wishful thinking?).

Lastly, I've got 2 full bobbins-worth of a spongy, down-like roving from "Shadow", a ram (wether?) on Nancy's farm, Naked Pines Ranch. I can't believe it, but I've forgotten what his breed is! It's white with lots of black fibers running through it, and my sis thinks I ought to make it a 3-ply. I've tons of it, so I guess I'll be spinning just about forever on it! Hope Nancy's got more, though - I really like this stuff :-)

I want one, too!

2008-11-07T18:08:00.005-06:00

Oh, these wheels are sooo COOL! I found them on Pocket Wheels by Doug. They would be perfect for lugging around with you, pretty much wherever you went! I wonder how they spin? And can you see the size of that orifice and bobbin? Now, THIS might make a very nice 'art yarn' spinner!

You can spin with anything when...

2008-11-07T16:05:00.006-06:00

you're desperate. Or can't find your spindle. Observe, mes enfants:

See? I rest my case. You can spin with anything!

What possessed me to spin with that, you ask? Well, I saw this fluff of pink stuff on the table. Seeing how the table is loaded with knitting and spinning crap (we usually have to eat elsewhere), I thought, "maybe I ought to start thinking of clearing it off." So...I picked up that pathetic 6" chunk of roving. Shut up. It was a start. Then, a chewed-up pencil caught my eye. I tied the fluff onto the middle of the pencil and gave the pencil a whirl. Wibble-wobble. Stuff slid all over the length of pencil. Wondered what I had that could stabilize it some. Nothing on the table. Wandered over to the 'frig and found that old baby carrot just sitting there. No way was it going to get eaten. Stuck it on the end of pencil (which actually had a point. NO pencil around here has a point - they're all perpetually broken off.) and there I went. Even self-plied it using the carrot-pencil spindle.

Daily Knitting's Eunny Jang...new video!

2008-11-04T23:46:00.006-06:00

Well, once again, I'm posting far too late to for my own good, but I just had to share the new video by Knitting Daily, of Provisional Cast Ons by Eunny Jang. GREAT video, and absolutely everyone should know how to provisionally cast on! It's easy, it's fun, like most of knitting is. Yes, I know - and have done - the 3 basic versions she gives us in the video, and several variations, but I sure don't mind having an occasional reminder of how to do it; especially the one using the cable needle. I am ALWAYS getting that one messed up, with the loops going every which way but the right one.

Oh ... I forgot! YES! I voted! Always have, in every election unless I'm totally sick. I knew I'd accomplished something today, but I'm so freaking tired, I couldn't remember! That's plumb scary, having Senior Moments long before the age of 65. Ugh!

Today was also our 20th Anniversary :-) Strange - I don't remember it EVER falling on Election Day before?!? I'm sure it must've, though... Yet another Senior Moment...

ugh...groan

2008-11-02T22:23:00.002-06:00

Well, like Meems, my day could have been titled:

"Let's See How Little Can Be Accomplished Today."

Answer: Not a DAD-GUM thang!

It was a nasty, yucky day, even with the glorious-weather-that-I-didn't-get-to-enjoy. I felt rotten all day long & so did Dave and Meems. I never even got out of my pajamas. I need a shower. ::sigh:: I don't care - I'm too tired to get one. I'm almost too tired to type. But I will, because I haven't posted in days! I've hardly spun, so busy I've been with doing other things this week. I need a spinning fix...and I'm too tired to even do that! This is really bad.

Gosh, and yesterday, the whole day was so great! The cup/cozy exchange at Cafe Moderne was a total blast. What-the-heck-happened to today, eh???

Anyway, there were about 12 people there (10 exchangers and 2 buddies). I got my own sister's cup! Hoo-rah! I'd been coveting it since she showed it to me, wishing and wishing I could just steal it from her. Then she'd have to go buy another cup in a hurry! ☺. Naw, just kidding. I was determined to be brave AND kind to the ~~turk~~ knitter who got her special cup. Now I ask you? Just how likely was it, that I'd pick the number of the bag holding her cup?? I mean, it was a 'blind pick' - couldn't see what slip of paper I was picking up, so...?!? WHOOT! It's a huge thing, this cup/mug. AND totally cool Retro! Yes, yes - I'll get you a pic. Unless you like Retro stuff, you'll probably think I should have my head examined, but then...I might think the same about you - for not liking it. So there.

Come to think of it, though: I DID accomplish something; I finished the Quilt block for Jan! No, no pics. I'm too lazy to even think of trudging around looking for my camera. Solly.

So...end o' post. I'm too tired to write anything else. G'nite, all.

The Harlot's Request

2008-10-28T15:21:00.015-05:00

The Harlot sez: (in this post)

PS. While I was in Jacksonville I met a knitter named Renee doing her thesis on knitting. (I bet some of you who were there remember her.) She needs volunteers to fill in her survey so that she can validate her theories. If you have a minute, can I ask you to help her out here? It's interesting work, and good for all of us.

The reason I had to copy part of her post, rather than just paste in a link, is because I've already taken the poll and - apparently - you can't go back to the link and get to the first page of the poll in order to copy the link! Weird, but whatever... Anyway - the poll was fun and I urge everyone to help out a fellow knitter and go take it!

In the meantime, I've been working away on my carder, still fluffing up the 50/50 silk/merino laps I got from Leah at Yarn Or A Tale. I've also been adding a bit of glitz and glam, and more silk noils. So far, it looks great, even if it is blue (and I don't even like blue usually), and I've named the whole shebang "Winter's Day". I wish the top layer showed up better - it looks kind of 'nothing' in the photo, but it's a very pale, pale blue. The next 2 layers are grey, and the bottom 2 are medium blue and bright blue. I still have to card up a plain white batt - wish I could find a brilliant true-white for this particular color mix. I'm afraid that a 'natural' white will just end up looking yellowed next to these clear, cool blues and greys. Any suggestions? Anybody? And don't say bombyx - I can't afford that (don't I just wish!). I also wish the opal, silver and blue Angelina fibers had shown up, but those are very hard to photograph. Oh, well. I tried. You guys know what a rotten photog I am.

Funny, isn't it, how one's color likes and dislikes can change drastically after you start working with fiber? I still can't wear blue, grey, purple or black (they make me look like I should've been buried yesterday), but I kind of like working with them. It's nice to not 'hate' certain colors - I was never easy with 'hating' colors as color has been such a huge part of my World Perception ever since early childhood. Color really can affect my mood (big time!), so it has been so freeing to quit 'hating' colors merely because I don't look very good in them.

I don't know yet whether I'll be keeping it to make up or just sell the batts on Etsy. It's a great honkin' wad, whatever I do with it. I soooo want to spin it up, but... there's something else I want even more. It's this and I need to save up (a lot!) to get it.

I've also been playing a bit, finishing up some left-over stuff from the bobbins. I made my FIRST cabled yarn - and it's gorgeous! I made it from the tiny leftover ball of Z-spun singles I used to ply up for my Morning Surf Scarf (Finn top). It was so totally blah, I just about threw it away. Instead, a lightbulb came on and I thought: I've never made a cabled yarn - let's see what one looks like! I knew the original 2-ply was supposed to be really tight (and this was waaaay too loose), so I ran it back through (again, S-plying) onto another bobbin. Then, putting that tightly-plied 2-ply into a center-pull ball, I then re-plied it onto itself (Z-twist). Et voila! A gorgeous 4-strand cable yarn! I had NO idea it would look so lovely! The colors, rather than barber-poling (which usually doesn't look so wonderful), it becomes beautifully speckled and streaked - almost 'tweedy'. I never really liked cabled yarns before. I think I've found a new love ☺
Wanna see 'my first yarn'? It's in the photo, next to the cabled beauty. Actually the plain white strand was my first single I ever spun, and I later plied it with my 2nd-ever single, made from a colorful batt provided by my first spinning teacher, Dawn Jones of Custer Cottage! Dawn is a dear-heart and so very, very generous and kind.

As if one ache wasn't enough...

2008-10-26T21:32:00.006-05:00

I decided to add to 'em. Friday, a pile of us went on the Central Kansas yarn crawl (okay - HOP, but I think 'crawl' sounds more fun). Twelve hours later (a la Sponge Bob) we dragged our exhausted selves home after having had WAY too much fun, coffee and yarn! I hurt everywhere. My hair hurts. Even my Achilles tendons hurt - and I hardly walked anywhere! So typical of me.

We only managed to hit 6 of the 8 shops. Seems the yarn shops don't stay open 'til 8 or 9 p.m. like the quilt shops do during a 'shop hop'. Oh, well. Next year, we'll do better! I might even manage to get photos of each place we stop.

I was SO organized that I even remembered to charge up my camera batteries the night before. Loaded up camera with said new, freshly-charged batteries. Placed camera in knitting bag. Put bag in sister's van. Forgot to take photos of ANY place we stopped. ::sigh:: I guess I was too eager to inhale wool fumes. Didn't get much knitting done, either, I was so busy flapping my gums...

Anyway - dd and I had to go to the last 2 shops on the list (The Beadery and Heritage Hut). Yes, The Beadery has yarn! It's half lovely yarn shop and half bewitching bead shop! We had a great time making our own shawl pins at the Beadery, and snatched up a few BOGO yarn balls. SCORE! It was VERY difficult to get Meem's out of that shop (read: I dragged her out by the hair) and we had to go.

We toddled back to home turf (just b-a-r-e-l-y in time) and had a wonderful visit with Mary. We had a lot to catch up on as it's been ages since I've seen her. She's even got a new Irish Wolfhound pup! Her name is Maggie and we'll be going back to meet her - hopefully this week. Mary says Maggie works the Tuesday-Saturday schedule (lol), but she's still a silly pup who thinks every yarn ball is a toy. ha! I'll bet! Heck, our 2 Britt fosters think the same thing! Mary has to keep her behind a baby gate (that she could probably step over if she just thought about it), but one day she'll be trusted to 'work the floor' like a regular employee :-).

Well, it's way past my bedtime, and what-the-heck-am-I-still-doing-up??? G'night all - 'see' you soon. Will post photos of newest spinning stuff when I get a chance to breathe!

Ohhhh...my aching everything

2008-10-22T12:28:00.004-05:00

This is what happens when you get 'old': everything hurts when you use it even slightly too much. I ache all over. Even my poor head is pounding this morning - an unusual thing for me: I rarely (used to be never) have headaches. Strenuous activity is something I rarely (read: simply never) indulge in - for several simple reasons: I'm 'getting too old for this', I'm inherently lazy and I'm totally uninterested in exerting myself unless it has to do with spinning or knitting. I'm freaking tired, for Pete's sake.

This Family Unit's teenage Son decided to remove the paneling from his bedroom yesterday. With mom's help, of course. Yes, we should've done it years ago - but I sinply HATE decorating or re-doing anything, so of course it never got done. Son got tired of it - decided he wanted a room not decorated in the 60's (literally) like the rest of our house (no, I'm not kidding - it's hideous). So his Lucky Mommy is privileged to help. ::sigh::

Do you know what was UNDER that ugly paneling?? Freakin' PINK 60's living room/dining room wallpaper! The former owners of this house were too freakin' lazy to strip it (even *I* would have done that before I sold!), so they just threw up a very bad paneling job (you wouldn't believe how amateurish it was) to cover it up.

Thousands of pulled nails later...I ache. Every muscle, every joint, every square inch of skin hurts. I could hardly get to sleep last night because my legs ached so badly and the muscles kept twitching uncontrollably. UGH!

Okay...this is scary (semi)

2008-10-19T17:24:00.006-05:00

All I did was innocently take this for-fun test while minding my own business. I'm not sure how pleased I am at being pegged so accurately. harrumph

Your result for What Your Taste in Art Says About You Test...,

Concientious, Fulfilled, and Spiritual

9 Renaissance, 4 Islamic, 2 Ukiyo-e, -22 Cubist, -18 Abstract and 5 Impressionist!

The Renaissance was a cultural movement that profoundly affected European intellectual life. Beginning in Italy, and spreading to the rest of Europe by the 16th century, its influence affected literature, philosopy, religion, art, politics, science, and all other aspects of intellectual enquiry. Renaissance artists looked at the human aspect of life in their art. They did not reject religion but tended to look at it in it's purest form to create visions they thought depicted the ideals of religion. Painters of this time had their own style and created works based on morality, religion, and human nature. Many of the paintings depicted what they believed to be the corrupt nature of man.

People that like Renaissance paintings like things that are more challenging. ['more challenging' than what, for Pete's sake???]

They tend to have a high emotional stability. [Ha! They haven't seen me in the morning before I have my coffee, have they?]

They also tend to be more concientious then average. They have a basic understanding of human nature and therefore are not easily surprised by anything that people may do. [well, DUH. NOTHING surprises me anymore, except the exceedingly rare not-so-Random Acts of Kindness]

They enjoy life and enjoy living. [Well, who doesn't? Life is GOOD! even when it's awful, it's good!]

They are very aware of their own mortality but do not dwell on the end but what they are doing in the present. [Yeah, well. I ain't stupid enough to ignore it, either.]

They enjoy learning, but may tend to be a bit more closed minded to new ideas as they feel that the viewpoint they have has been well researched and considered. ["Close-minded", my ass! If we reject some dumb-ass idea, that makes us "close-minded"?!? Just on their say-so, eh? HA! Well, maybe it makes us smarter than the hoo-haw idiots who fall for any new idea that comes within their small-minded purview? This willingness to be "close-minded" is more accurately called having/developing Critical Thinking Skills; which skill does widen - and inform - the mind of the following: Truth vs. Dumbshit Ideas, And The Difference Thereof. Something an appalling number of people have never learned.]

These people are more old fashioned and not quite as progressive. [You mean, not quite as stupidly self-destructive, perhaps? You mean, perhaps, that 'these people' stick to things/ideas that actually work and have the virtue of making sense? 'magine that! helluva concept, what?]

They enjoy the finer things in life like comfort, a good meal, and homelife. They tend to be more spiritual or religious by nature. [It's called BEING GRATEFUL for everything we have - another wildly novel concept for ever-so-many people nowadays.]

Yeah, yeah, I know. I grumble a lot - mostly to hear myself talk, but truly...I am, perhaps [and-when-all-is-said-and-done], the happiest woman there is. Even when I'm not happy...there's that part of me that is always, always happy. I am sooo grateful for that, too!

They are open to new aesthetic experiences.

Take What Your Taste in Art Says About You Test at

The bumpies and noils of it all

2008-10-19T15:48:00.011-05:00

What a wonderful two days I've had, to be sure. I haven't had two nice days in a row in...um. I'm not sure when. There's even going to be BIRTHDAY CAKE later today - lol. I'm sure the Birthday Boy will share with his wife and kiddos.

Anyway, about the yarn. I'd gotten some buttery-soft 50%-50% Merino and silk laps/clouds - in greens, turquoise, white and purple - from Leah of Yarn Or A Tale and ran it through my carder last week. I put each batt through twice on the carder; in retrospect, one time through would have probably been better, as the colors got a bit too homogenized for my liking. It's still beautiful, though, with plenty of color separation. I love this yarn (heartbreakingly soft!) and wish it would tell me what it wanted to be. I've only got *180+ yards of it, though, so it can't get any fancy-pants ideas of being a sweater. I know - too bad - it would be a glorious sweater!

* I re-measured and missed a few yards, so it's actually 190 yds. Still...it isn't much to work with.

I've got more of the same laps in a white, silvery-greys and blues mix named (appropriately enough) 'Cloud Cover'. It's just lovely, but THIS time, I'm only going to put it through the carder once. I've also now got some lovely Angelina fibers in to put with it. I think I'll the use silver and opal - it should be gorgeous!

It's too bad my idiotic camera thinks that greens are always blues, but I tried really hard to MAKE it see green as being green. I don't know if you have to do something to adjust the camera, or what? Anyway, I didn't succeed, even though I took over 40 pics. I took them in every type of light imaginable, with and without flash. Either the skein showed blue or was totally washed out and looked nearly white. ::sigh:: Oh, well! Just imagine my new yarn as being true GREEN (a medium-bright, silvery green!) with silky noils and texture-y bumps of blue, purple, green and white. It's really very pretty, if I say so myself.

Since I wasn't happy with ANY of the companion singles I spun up (mostly white), I decided to just self-ply it and I'm glad I did - it looks very, very nice. I still don't get why Blogger keeps turning some of my photos to 'portrait', rather than keeping them the way I took them: sideways! Do you see how turquoise-y blue the singles look on the bobbins? That doesn't even begin to look like the real color. In fact, there's not that much turquoise IN the yarn and all the purple is just washed-out. However, at least you can see the noils and bumpies, which is why I kept the stupid picture.

Dye Day...in which I score another...

2008-10-19T14:58:00.006-05:00

Babe wheel! Yessiree, I truly lucked out yesterday, and I'll tell you all about it in a minute. But first! Our local Guild was holding a Dye Day (thank you, Marnie, for hosting us!), where we used mostly natural dyes. I'd never used them before so that was a great learning opportunity for me. My 2nd spinning teacher, Nancy Squire, told me a lot about indigo dyeing and supervised that dye pot. Good thing, because goodness knows what we'd have ended up with if she hadn't!

You have to be picky about how the brew (broth?) looks before you start dyeing with it, and it's got to have the 'mother' floating on the top, plus the brew itself needs to be pea-green. That 'mother' thing is a kind of molten coppery-looking stuff that floats on top. It's actually rather pretty, but I guess that's one of the ways the dyer can tell that the brew is ready.

When actually dyeing, you have to be verrrrry careful to let NO oxygen get down into the brew. That means NO splashing, no dunking stuff - or hands - right into the middle of the pot, no yanking out of fiber (or hands) - nothing like that is allowed! You have to s-l-i-d-e your fiber/yarn - and hands - into the brew against the side of the pot. Then, you carefully push your stuff to the bottom of the pot (even with gloves, it was hot!), and pull it out against the side, being careful not to let the excess dye simple drip back into the pot. Even the drips had to s-l-i-d-e down the sides to minimize the amount of oxygen being introduced into the brew.

I was so fascinated by how indigo works; it's cool watching one's yarns and fibers go from a really pretty green to a beautiful blue, all through the 'magic' of oxidation. Yeah - you read that right: the color rusted: from green to blue! One thinks of metals as being the only things that oxidize, but not so.

Do you know how many dips it takes to get dark indigo??? GOBS! I was able to dip some of my fiber up to 4 times, and it is NO WHERE near as dark as I'd have liked. You have to wait at least 20 minutes between dippings for wool, and 30 for cotton, so it just about took forever. But that's okay - the color is still gorgeous and I'll be pleased to use it just as it is. I now have a great respect for those patient, dedicated indigo dyers.

We also got to use madder (supposed to be red) and cochineal (turned out screaming fuschia). I got to grind up the little dried red bugs to make the cochineal. It wasn't gross, though. They didn't really even look like bugs. At least I couldn't tell they were bugs. Anyway, I dyed some pretty, light grey Shetland in all 3 colors. The cochineal hardly 'took' at all (I guess we needed more bugs!), the madder turned an incredible, bright solid PURPLE! and the indigo looks really, really nice. The 4th dipping made all the difference, as it's now a fairly darkish blue. My Lincoln locks are a glorious mid-blue - just beautiful! The Cormo roving is a disappointingly pale blue, but I only got to dip it 3 times. Oh, well. They sent me home with a jug of indigo so I could do more dyeing with it - if I dare! We'll see :-)

Et maintenant... le piece de resistance: a brand-new Babe Fiber Starter with double treadle! For only $75! I have been really, really wanting another wheel, both for the kids to learn on and so I could do more than one type of project at a time, if need be. Prayers have been answered!

On a very sadder note, though, I received my new wheel only because of the passing of another spinner - and that makes me feel bad. I will do my best to do right by her wheel. Her kids were stuck (as most kids are) with dealing with their mother's personal belongings. A son apparently knew one of our spinners and sent all his mom's spinning and weaving things with April, to see if she could sell them for the sibs.

This Babe wheel had been opened, but apparently never used - at least, it was still in its' opened box, receipt and all, in pieces. It works very well, too! I also purchased two of her sets of hand carders: one wool, one cotton/fur, for an excellent price.

THEN, I got to follow April home so I could Get More Fiber (like I actually 'needed' more?). Specifically, I needed silk noils and some kid mohair. I guess I'm kind of silly for thinking I know what I'm doing, but still...I have some ideas floating around in my head for some batts I want to create. In my mind, they are lovely. We'll see what the reality turns out to be :-) So, all-in-all, my day overflowed with simple joy and much pleasure!

To top it all off...today is hubby's birthday (Happy Birthday, honey!) Love you!

Morning Surf Scarf

2008-10-15T23:07:00.006-05:00

Okay, so I finally located the camera. It was buried under a bunch of junk on the dining table :-/ No, I haven't seen the surface in awhile. The camera was about half-way down through the rubble layer...

I sure wish I knew how to take really good pictures. Because I don't, you can't see the really pretty color gradations in the yarn. There's a heart-breakingly beautiful Montana blue in there, shading from light to dark. I usually don't like blue, but I love this blue. I kept wishing there was a lot of more of it, but mostly I have greens and purples - and they're pretty, too.

Anyway, this scarf was fun to make - and oh, so easy! I used a triple-twist cast-on, which gives a picot-like edge that is very stretchy. Perhaps too stretchy, but that's okay. I haven't blocked it yet, so I'll do that to straighten out the edges.

What's that cast-on, you ask? Oh - well, all you do is make a regular slip knot, leaving a small tail. Then, holding your needle in your left hand, twist the ball yarn 2 or 3 times around your index finger and mount the loop of yarn (over your finger) onto the needle! For a double twist, it's no problem to pull the yarn evenly and tightly. Unfortunately, this Finn really stuck to itself. As I was using a 3-twist loop cast-on, I had to pull very carefully to keep the twists from 'jumping over' each other and making a mess instead of a cute 'picot' bump. But, the extra bit of effort was worth it.

I then used a simple 2-stitch picot cast-off, which matched close enough, imo. I could have done a sewn bind-off - which I usually love doing - and just knotted the yarn around each stitch being cast-off, but I got lazy and eager to wear the thing! Oh, well. It's just a scarf, and it's not like I'm going to enter it into the County Fair or anything.

I really, really like this scarf! As I was finishing it, it occurred to me that I had never made anything for myself with my handspun yarns! I've hardly made anything with my own yarns, come to think of it. A hat for hubby, is all - I think. Most every yarn I've ever made, I sold or gave as gifts.

Jus' checkin' in

2008-10-15T16:42:00.003-05:00

Do you realize Christmas is nearly here??? Augh! What with all this fabulously warm weather we've been having for endless weeks (I'm not complaining!), it never occurred to me that I only have a bare few weeks to get some spinning and knitting done! ~whimper~

SO. I've been knitting up that gloriously-soft BFL yarn I made from the New York colorway (Miss Babs) into socks for my teenaged son. His feet sure are bigger than they were last year! Good thing I'm using a 47" needle - I'm gonna need it for the heels!

AND...I finished my Morning Surf Scarf - it's GORGEOUS! No, I haven't got a photo yet. You'll just have to wait. I've been much too busy spinning and knitting to even think of locating my camera. Besides. I sort of don't know where it is. And the ends aren't sewn in. Yet.

Hoo boy. I sure hope I don't pull a Yarn Harlot this Christmas season. You know - the closer it gets to the 'finish line', the later I will have to stay up. Then, before you know it, I'll be knitting a gift at 5 a.m. on Christmas Day. ::groan:: I don't think I'd live through it. The older I gits, the behinder I gits...in everything!

::cackle::

2008-10-13T21:13:00.003-05:00

Okay - I'm probably the last person on Earth to "discover" this Franklin Habit guy, but at least I did find him. He's a screech! Here's his blog, "The Panopticon". I'm, like, hooked...

Gotta see if Shel's carrying his "It Itches" book yet.

Where's the spinning or knitting content, you ask? Well, geewhiz!...we've been really busy this week! Okay, I'm nearly done with my Really Big Scarf (Morning Surf). I started with 392 +/- yards of my Hyacinth handspun, you know, but I made this thing a wee bit wide I suppose. SO...46 stitches may've been one design repeat (10 +6) too many. Should'a gone with 36 after all. But that's okay! It should still be long enough to tie around my throat and have decent tails left over. I hope. I'm not quite done and I am NOT going to take another pic of it 'til it's actually done.

As for the spinning, I've been messing around with some stuff I'd started ages ago and got bored with. After working with it last night for 10 minutes, I realized I was still bored with it :-( HOKAY. SO...I started on something else. A light pink bit of top - and THAT was deadly dull. I don't know what's wrong with me today. Maybe it's just not a Spinning Day for me. I don't know that that's ever happened before! Kinda scary...

My deepest dream (a paeon to spinning)...

2008-10-11T12:55:00.014-05:00

in my own little Fantasie Worlde is to be a...

Master Spinner.

(can you hear the harps and Angelic choir in the background?)

I can't believe how badly I want it. I want to learn everything there is to learn about spinning, about texture, about color, about...well, Everything Spinning! I would give SO much to be able to go to SOAR (Spin-Off Autumn Retreat) and take all those wonderful, awesome Workshops and Retreat Sessions, given by wonderful, awesome teachers! I'd be in 7th Heaven; I really would.

That would be by way of learning mostly Specialty Stuff in Spinning, with my "meat" being able to go to the Ontario Handweavers & Spinners (it's a Spinning Certificate Program) for the yearly almost-2-week Summer sessions. It can take 6 years to get through it all, with there being spinning assignments (O Heaven!) the rest of the year. A DREAM, to me!

What would I do with all that knowledge? LOVE IT! USE IT! TEACH IT! I would teach others to love the whole process of spinning yarns; to love the feel of all different sorts of fibers slipping through their fingers; to love yarns for their own sake; to love the end-use of their yarns, whether for knitting, weaving, crocheting, fiber art...whatever!

I would wish for my students to find what I have found: a lovely, peaceful, soul-soothing and actively creative process - very important, that. Some like to describe spinning as the 'new zen', the 'new yoga' (naw), or as being 'better than Prozac' (that's my favorite - lol), BUT...it's ever so much more than either of those things. Sooo much more.

Spinning is certainly soothing. Peaceful. Quieting to the soul. Harmonious and centering, very balancing. At times, far better than a mere chemical anti-depressant.

But what removes it from the realm of the merely peaceful and soothing, (not that those should be denigrated)? After all, wine and a warm bath can achieve that, as well. So...'what' is it? Two words (okay, 3):

(the) CREATIVE PROCESS!

The Creative Process does ... something ... for people who indulge in it. For me, it feeds my soul, releases anxieties, gets me 'outside' myself and into something more interesting than my bummed self. It 'grows' me, somehow. Don't ask - I can't figger it out, either. It just does. I feel as if I can b-r-e-a-t-h-e, move and think more easily. And - if my powers of observation are anywhere near accurate, I've noticed that it seems to do the same for others. When people are creating - no matter what it is - they are...happier...easier. More comfortable in their own skins, maybe.

SO...if at any time, someone can use the creative process to off-set (or even prevent?) depression from getting a toe-hold, or becoming worse - they should immerse themselves! Heck, even if they aren't depressed, dive in anyway!

Well, that's all the time I have for musings. I need to go do some more Creative Processing Stuff. Like...finishing my Morning Surf Scarf! LOL I'm almost half-done, and I'm really loving the...er, 'creative process', so I want to get back to it for awhile before I pick up the Dear Daughter Family Unit from work.

Morning Surf Scarf

2008-10-10T18:48:00.008-05:00

is about 1/4th done! I got the pattern from the Summer '08 Spin-Off magazine. The designer is Jackie Erickson-Schweitzer of Heart Strings Fiber Arts. I didn't realize it, but she offers the same pattern for free if you sign up for her HeartStrings Knitterly News email newsletter! She has GREAT patterns! One day...I will own them all. LOL Anyway, here's my progress so far, fuzzy shots and all:

I started it last night, using sz 7's, but decided I wanted a slightly tighter knit, so frogged and went down to a six. Went to bed late and was awakened at 2:50 a.m. by *someone* dinging the doorbell! Scared the dickens out of dd and I, while the MENFOLK snored their oblivious heads off. I made hubby get out of bed and "do something!" We figure it was probably some real jerk teenagers who live in the area. Little nerd-heads.

I was wrong. So what else...

2008-10-09T17:24:00.005-05:00

is new about that? After I washed and dried the Finn hyacinth skein, it puffed out a LOT and now it's actually DK weight...or maybe a bit heavier! Woo-hoo! I am sooo pleased with myself!

Naturally, I didn't full the skein as I'd spun it true worsted, but apparently the Finn hadn't heard, so it puffed out almost as much as if I'd spun it woolen! Not *quite*, but still - OH, so soft and cushy!

Finn top c'est finis!

2008-10-09T12:10:00.015-05:00

Remember the hand-dyed Finn top in the "Hyacinth" colorway from Laughing Rat Studios (Jenn)? I didn't ask her if I could use her photo of the unspun top, so the link only goes to what I'd done up on my own bobbin. That's what I get for not taking pics before spinning! Well, here it is, all 390+ yards spun up. I was trying to spin 2 thicker singles to get a light worsted weight. Unfortunately, it's more like heavy sock yarn, dang it. I want to make the Morning Surf Scarf from Spin-Off magazine. Sure hope there's enough yarn, b'c I haven't got a clue how much it calls for! I don't want some skinny, wimpy thing that only looks decorative. It's gotta at least be semi-warm!

A whole pound of frabjous fun!

2008-10-07T15:14:00.008-05:00

Heh heh. Aren't you jealous? I'm getting a whole POUND of this glorious (do I really use that word too much?) fiber blend from Leah of Yarn or A Tale! She's letting me use her photo (hers are far better than mine) -- thank you so much, Leah!

As can be seen, it is a pale fawn (in case your monitor's color tracking has gone nuts) 80% Suri Alpaca/20% Merino blend. O Heaven! Total luxury! A WHOLE POUND of it is on its way...to ME! Oh, joyful day when It arrives!

My almost-done Noro socks

2008-10-06T11:11:00.004-05:00

Wow. I can't believe it's been 4 days since I posted! Guess I've been busier than I thought. I haven't got much spinning done (when do I ever??), but at least I found time to nearly finish these Noro socks that've been on my needles since early this Summer. I'm knitting from both ends of the ball, so I'll have 'fraternal twin' socks, rather than the color-matched ones I don't much care for. After all, if I started with the same color for both socks, not all the colors would show and that would be sad! These socks will make me visible from at least a mile and a half away, don't you think?

In case anyone wonders, I just "plugged-in" the lovely-but-simple "Crosshatch Lace" design from one of Barbara Walker's Stitch Dictionary Treasure books. Book 2...I think. No, I'm not going to go look for you. Sorry - feeling grumpy and out-of-sorts today. Must be the grungy, rainy, cloudy, icky weather. I really like this stitch design - it is so easily memorized. As it's only a 6-stitch/8-row repeat it can be used for nearly any number of stitches needed for nearly anything. Thing is...it's best used in-the-round only, because there are no 'plain' rows/rounds between each 'design' round. That is, unless you're willing to turn your knitting hand around almost backwards in a purl-two-together-through-the-backloop in order to achieve the left-leaning decrease on the front. YUCK - I absolutely hate doing that stupid stitch! I will leap through hoops and avoid gorgeous stitch patterns just to avoid making that horrible, unnatural and rather painful movement.

I've been meaning to fiddle with the stitch pattern to see what it would look like with plain rounds/rows between each design round. Bet a million other knitters have done the same :-). It would be extremely easy to re-design the pattern to make it wider and taller, for larger items, such as sweaters and scarves, too. Problem is, most of those aren't knitted in the round!

I'll knit a few more rounds, then use a sewn bind-off for 2x2 ribbing to keep the edge super-stretchy, without it looking all stretched-out. I love, love, love this bind-off and find all sorts of excuses to use it :-) This'll be a short post, however (and aren't you grateful!), as we've got so much to do today. I have a dog with possible tumors on his fuzzy tummy, and I'm pretty worried about that. So, we're going to see the vetty-girl this afternoon.

I am now officially...STOOOPID

2008-10-01T22:01:00.003-05:00

Just another grumble from someone who is sick-and-tired of Never Being Right! That Finn I'm spinning up? From Laughing Rat Studios? The stuff I said was really short and would have to be spun on my smallest whorl, with a tight twist?

Yeah. Well.

WHEN will I learn that...

one does NOT test the length of fibers by pulling them out of the END of the roving???
they are almost always shorter (often 1/2 the length they should be) than the real length?

This is not good. I've got this fairly long fiber (over 4"!) now so tightly freaking twisted that I'm going to have to untwist it by quickly spinning it "S" (as usual I'm spinning my singles "Z"). *sigh* I just can't do ANYTHING right!

I think I'll go eat worms again.

Now we know why...

2008-10-01T18:13:00.021-05:00

I am not - nor ever could be - a corporate CEO. I would probably misplace the company and all its hapless employees :-(

Would you like to know what item I managed to mislay today? Oh, yes, indeedy! Connie-the-idiot-fairy strikes again! Connie couldn't find her own hind end with a flashlight and written instructions. Perhaps I didn't need to point that out, though...

Just today, I got in another roving from Jennifer of Laughing Rat Studios (Oh, yes, ratties really do laugh, especially when you tickle their fuzzy tummies. I've heard 'em on an ultrasonic recorder. In case you ever wanted to know.)

SO...Jenn didn't come up with Just Another Cute Name for her business - there is a Reason for that name! Besides...rats are hysterically funny and the best pets in the whole, wide world. I heard that. Quit making those comments about cats and snakes. Believe it or not, the rat nearly always wins, damaging both predatory species in the process. heh heh

YOU GO, FUZZ-BUTTS! (that was the name of my former Rattery. Not the "YOU GO", but the FUZZ-BUTTS part. Just thought you ought to know)

ANYWAY. I got that lovely new Falkland roving from Jenn - combed top, actually - in the colorway "Forest". About an hour ago. Inside 20 minutes of unpackaging it...I lost it. Of course. See, I wanted to take a pic for ya'll to ~~drool over~~ admire (pardon my lousy photo), and...it wasn't where it was "supposed" to be. Fortunately for my sanity - what little remains - I found it inside 4 minutes flat. I only had to race downstairs once and through the upstairs twice. I'm hardly even out of breath!

I also wanted to post my (rather slight) progress on the other roving of Jenn's that I finally found in the previous post. It is GORGEOUS!

Here's a pic of Jennifer's "lost" Falkland:

PLUS...I received a box of quite lovely, very soft Romney x Polypay fleece from Julia Redman at Sapphire Child. I "discovered" her on Dori Ann's Yahoo list, HandPreparedFibers. So, here's the pic of Jenn's Falkland and Julia's fleece.

Making progress...slowly

2008-09-30T21:38:00.005-05:00

Hey, Jenn! I am really liking this Finn! The colors are soooo nice and this is going to be one soft yarn, I can tell. I'm spinning it semi-worsted, using a long forward draw and just letting the twist 'snap' into the drafting zone. Fluffy stuff, indeed! I'm not even trying to spin terribly evenly and I'm trying my best to get thicker-than-normal singles so I might end up with a worsted weight yarn this time. Maybe.

I'll keep you posted on my progress, hopefully with decent pictures. My camera is so high-tech, even the kids have trouble with it; so you can imagine how hopeless I am with it. I can turn it on and point it at something. I can use the close-up zoom lens thingie. That's it. Oh, and connect the funky cord to download the pics. That is ALL.

I am freaking hopeless

2008-09-30T10:32:00.004-05:00

I need a Keeper. I really do. My poor dd does her best (which is a really most excellent 'best') to fulfil my needs for a Personal Secretary. But not even she can keep track of all my fiber; bless her for continuing to try. It's a wonder she isn't emotionally damaged from keeping track of her mother and all her junk. I've got fiber stuck EVERYWHERE in this house. It more resembles a jumble sale/barn/storage unit than a home, thanks to my Fiber Habit.

I found the missing fiber...top...roving...whatever...(from the previous post), late last night. Only to discover that some much-loved hand-dyed Finn top was now missing! I nearly had a heart-attack over that one. It was very precious to me, not only because it is gloriously soft and JUST the colors I wanted, but also because Jennifer of Laughing Rat Studios dyed it up. She does lovely work and her fibers are always easy to work with - and she's a such a sweet lady, to boot. I finally found the precious stuff after a frantic search up and downstairs a few times, yanking open drawers, doors, boxes and bags located in about 5 or 6 places ::pant! puff!::

Poor Jennifer - she about had a heart attack, too, as I'd written her a bit earlier (before my 2 mad hunting rampages through the house), asking the poor girl if she'd ever sent the stuff to me! You can have no idea how awful/bad/stupid & horrible I felt, having caused such heart burnings for this lady. She's had enough troubles lately as it is, and here I was causing even more :-(. My stomach still hurts thinking about what I put her through. Thank goodness it was relatively brief, lasting only about 20 minutes.

Fortunately for us both, my 2nd 'mad rampage' had the happy result of my finding the beautiful Finn top. Wanna know WHERE I found it??? Well, remember my freak-out over the itty-bitty moth? Where I used my Food Saver to vacuum bag lots 'n' lots of fiber? Yeah. In that pile. It was the very first thing I'd bagged. On the bottom of the pile. In my bedroom closet. Plain sight.

I can't believe God ever trusted me enough to give me 2 precious children - it's a wonder I haven't mislaid them as well, the poor loves. But my saga doesn't end here...oh, no...it gets better (and isn't that just thrilling?).

This morning I lost my new blue Salish locks I just got in the mail from Dori Ann! GAH!!! Somebody help me! Put me in a round rubber room with just my fiber and wheel - I'll be FINE! I promise! Can't lose anything in a round room, right???

Yes, I found the Salish. Finally. Don't ask. I'm not telling.

What a STUPID start to the day. Even though it began last night. The question I can hardly bear to ask myself is: "What else is 'missing' that I don't yet realize?"

Anyhoo - here's a pic I'm posting of the two "lost" fibers. I figure I ought to have the pics just in case these things (bite my tongue!) get lost for real. At least I'll have proof that I HAD them. Once upon a time.
Look how LONG those Salish locks are! They're about 7" inches long, but the fiber itself is SO fluffy and soft. I have no idea how I'm going to spin these up, let alone combine them with the Finn top, but I would LOVE to have a 3-ply yarn composed of 2 plies of the Finn and a single ply of the Salish. Thing is...the Finn is, like, majorly short-stapled. That means it will have to have a very tight twist just to convince it to be yarn, but the Salish will have to have a very low twist to keep it from turning into steel cable. I have NO idea what the plied result will be. Probably horrible, as most of my experiments are. I really hate sampling the Salish because I have less than 4 oz, but I've got to do it or I'll end up with yet another It's-Not-Supposed-To-Look-Like-This! yarn.

:::grumble:::

2008-09-28T16:51:00.000-05:00

Wonderful. I've done it again; lost a big pile of fiber that I'd gotten out to finish spinning up this week. AGAIN!

The family unit swears up and down they don't know what happened to it, don't know what I'm talking about, and didn't find it shredded to bits by the family dawg.

They're probably not kidding, either. I am so unorganized, I couldn't find my way out of a paper bag with a flashlight and written instructions. Heaven only knows where I've got all my fiber stashed, but I just KNOW I got it out to spin! An' it ain't there where I put it!

This roving was really pretty, too; a riot of Spring-y/Summer-y colors that I wanted to finish up before the snow flies (I just HATE, HATE, HATE Winter). Well, maybe I'll find it when the ice and snow have me so depressed I can't stand it any more. Then, those bright colors might cheer me up a tad. :::shudder:::

Did I mention how much I hate and despise Winter? I am so totally dreading it, like I do every year *sigh*

I think I'll go eat worms now...

2008-09-26T14:32:00.000-05:00

Okay. So the "best laid plans of mice and men oft gang awry". I should know that by now, especially for a non-expert spinner's plans. HOW I wish I could afford classes by a Master Spinner! I have just got to figure out how to take into account the effect TPI (twists per inch) has on both singles and the plied result! I know that how one spins the fiber; woolen, worsted or a variation of either type also has a big, big effect on the final result. I'm afraid that ONLY a Master could show me how and that's just exactly what I can't afford :-( Winning a lottery sure would come in handy about now. :::sigh:::

I really, really need to know how to create the type of yarn I need for whatever project I have in mind, whether it is sock yarn, lace-weight or uber-bulky stuff; whether for a single, 2-ply or a freaking 10-ply (yes, I have lots of bobbins...but where would I find a big enough lazy kate?!?).

Case in point are the last 2 batches I've spun and plied up; the all natural, 4-ply, marled yarn in the previous post and the one shown below (my son's 3-ply Blue-Faced Leicester sock yarn, purchased from Miss Babs).

Both yarns were spun worsted on my largest whorl (5:1 ratio), the one I always use for the long fibers. Apparently, I didn't spin each single very consistently, either, as is rather obvious from the way the plied yarn looks, darn it! Some areas are rather tightly and smoothly plied (the way it OUGHT to have looked!) and other areas are so loose :-(. Boy, am I bummed.

I feel so bad, having practically ruined a gorgeous, perfectly dyed BFL top. I WISH I had had the wit to take a picture of the unspun top first (before destroying it) - you should have seen it - it was GLORIOUS! The picture on her site doesn't even come close to the beauty of the actual fiber and dye colors she used. The pale, pale grey was an actual silver (!); the sheen of the BFL is just indescribable. I thought it looked a bit like like silk! I'm almost too ashamed to send a pic of this yarn to Miss Babs - she'd probably refuse to sell anything else to me. I just hope this doesn't look too crappy once it's knitted up. I also failed to strip and prepare the top correctly for the fractal stripe look I wanted so badly - and yammered about so much in an earlier post :-(. All around - this yarn is pretty much a TOTAL failure. Yarn it is, but NOT what it ought to be. I think I'll go eat worms now...

May the Spinning Angels have mercy, and come to my aid!

Wheee!!! It's DONE!

2008-09-21T22:12:00.005-05:00

It's done, it's done! You know that yarn I've been spinning (and blathering about) since time began?? The alpaca-merino-silk 'bumpity-bump' stuff (2 bobbins), the hazelnut superwash merino stuff (1 bobbin) (both fibers from Leah at Yarn Or a Tale), and the dark chocolate brown llama stuff (1 bobbin)? C'est FINIS! I am pretty pleased with the way it came out, too. It is 4-ply worsted-weight (more or less). I was going for heavy worsted, but I just can't seem to spin thicker singles no matter how hard I try! I was hoping that a 4-ply marl would be good enough - I just didn't think I had it in me to spin up a 5th bobbin to get a heavier weight! Anyhoo - I got exactly 800 yards (780yds from the original plying + 20 yds from the "leftovers") - an amount I could hardly believe. I filled up my monster plying bobbin 3 times before getting through it all!

Anyway - it has gone to its new home (to a dear, sweet lady whom I admire very much). I had hoped to get it done before the cold weather blew in; after all - one needs warm garments before Winter gets here, not after. As slowly as I go sometimes, I figured it would be Christmas before I finally finished. I'm quite slow when spinning worsted, and every. single. bit. was inch-wormed (oof!). I learned a lot (and how).

Below are some pics that the giftee took for me (as I'm too freaking stupid to remember to do it myself, bless her generous heart).

An update on the rain from over a week ago: okay - looks like the weatherboys were wrong (so what else is new?). We got about 9.5". But that was a LOT. I am SO happy we didn't get any more!

There's Nothing Like a Little Water...

2008-09-12T15:58:00.000-05:00

to get trapped in one's neighborhood. "They're coming, they're coming! We can't get out, we can't get out!"

::coff:: Forgive me. I've read LOTR too many times....

So far, we've had over 10" since it began raining overnight, with plenty more to come. Oh, well - more knitting time! More spinning! More mopping! Unfortunately, the roof is leaking by the chimney *sigh*. And it isn't a little leak, either. grrrr! However, that isn't as bad as the poor people who've been flooded out of their homes already. Poor souls! I just hope and pray that doesn't happen to us: my fiber! my yarns!

:::gasp!:::

2008-09-11T10:25:00.000-05:00

I saw a moth. A tiny, brownish moth. Next to my fiber room :::shudder::: I tried to chase it down, but it evaded me. Dear Heaven! I don't know that what I'm seeing is a wool-eating moth, but...oh, man. My stomach is just doing flip-flops.

I am so sick with horror I can't even *think* straight. There is no room in my freezer to store the fiber. No room at all! Unlike the Harlot, we are NOT vegetarians and so it's, like, totally full of actual food. HALP! Somebody! Anybody!

On another depressing note, it appears that I've divided my "New York" BFL top incorrectly! Now, why did I have to start this new experiment with my favorite colorway??? Only *I* would be so intrepidly stupid. Couldn't I have just tried it on some other, less favored, roving?!? But, noooo! That would have been too freakin' smart!

Heaven only knows what this sock yarn is going to look like, but it probably won't be as nice as it would have been had I paid attention to what I was doing :-(. I am such an unhappy camper this morning! That's what I get for having had a good day yesterday.

Almost done!

2008-09-11T00:12:00.000-05:00

Well, okay - the plying won't start for a few days - maybe even a week or a bit more, but...! I've only got to finish up the chocolate llama single, and that's about halfway done and then... and then...! Woo-hoo! Skein-winder, here I come, done at last! And just in time for cool-weather knitting! Just to let you know, the chocolate single is not as dark as it's showing up in the photo, but I forgot to use my flash. Stupid - and so typical of me. I will try to do a better job of color management once the plying is done. I promise.

Okay. Maybe I'd best not crow just yet. My luck, something horrid will happen and I'll have to start all over :::shudder::: It doesn't bear thinking about! I haven't said much about this lovely chocolate llama, but I got the roving from Nancy Mercer of Naked Pines Ranch. It's a great little place, and her husband's even put up a wool-processing and dyeing shed! It couldn't happen to a sweeter person, though. Nancy's a lovely lady who is very talented and one of the busiest women on the planet, I swear. I can't imagine how she gets done HALF the things she does, yet she's cheerful, no matter what's going on. Me? I'd be a basket case. NO doubt (just ask my better half).

To take a small break from spinning the llama, though, I thought I'd try out some new stuff I got from Miss Babs; a glorious BFL (and you all know that one of my favorite wools is Blue Faced Leicester, right? (that's pronounced: Lester, btw). It makes a fabulous sock yarn; strong yet soft.

Well! I thought I knew everything there IS to know about BFL. Boy, was I wrong! This stuff is actually shiny! And the colorways Babs dyes her fibers in are just wonderful! Here's the direct link to the colorways. In some of the photos, the shine shows up a bit, but still doesn't do it complete justice. I have 6 of her rovings and only wish I could have ALL of them!

What I'm hoping to end up with is a 3-ply fractally-striped (wish me luck!) fingering-weight yarn. This effect creates a yarn in which the colors mesh into subtly blended stripes rather than plain, ordinary stripes. Usually, to get a bold, but ordinary, striped look, one has to Navajo ply the yarn to keep all the colorways more-or-less "together", but - fun as Navajo plying is - I don't want to do it that way. The only other way (and ridiculously difficult) is to take infinite, painstaking care to spin each single EXACTLY alike (groan!), which is a near impossibility. Yes, I know it can be done - I've done it! - but never again, if I can help it. LOL

Anyway, I'm trying it out on the New York colorway: very pale silvery grey, med-to-dark grey shades, dark green shades (sorry I don't have a pic, yet). I'll try to put one up sometime this week, if I get time. I know the colors sound strange, but they are breathtakingly beautiful in 'real life'. The colors are so subdued, quiet and peaceful (which is not really a "me" thing; subdued, quiet and peaceful, I mean), but they work together beautifully. I really hope this turns out well! I'd like to knit one of my men some socks from this! My poor son keeps growing bigger and bigger feet (and hubby does not appreciate handknit woolen socks - I know...he's baffling), so my young fella will probably get these. He'll love them, too. He nearly weeps every time he outgrows yet another pair of his beloved handknit socks.

Getting back on track.... To get one kind of fractal stripe effect, separate the roving/top lengthwise into 3 pieces of equal width. Set one 1/3rd strip aside to be spun as is, with no further separation. That will provide you a single with looong color stripes. For the second 1/3rd strip, split into 2 equally wide, lengthwise strips. There, you'll get somewhat shorter (but same-colored) stripes for bobbin #2. For the third single, separate that last strip into 3 equally wide, lengthwise strips. This last single gives even short stripes because... (No, I'm not deliberately insulting your intelligence here! Just being thorough.), because the amount of fiber in those skinnier strips is less than the roving strips for bobbins 1 & 2.

Spin up 3 singles (now quit whining - you know it's worth it) and ply them together, gloating over how lovely your fab yarn looks. And how NO ONE ELSE on the planet has yarn quite like yours!

Tip: I like to "finger crochet" all my strips (not together though!) and keep them bundled and marked for which single they go to. It would be just like me to mistake a strip #2 for belonging to the pile intended for bobbin #3. I would be SO ticked at myself if I did that. Well, that's all for now, and my eyes won't stay open any longer. G'nite, all!

Just to put things into perspective

2008-09-09T00:27:00.000-05:00

My frantic feelings for the 'loss' of my nearly-full bobbin has very quickly dwindled into utter vapidity in comparison to the very real loss of my friend.

I refer to Rabeka, whose baby girl died one day after she was born. The wee one's name was Josephine Kay. And so...'Beka and her husband, John, had to make the long, sad trip back home from a special hospital, empty-armed and aching, sorrowing for their pretty little girl. Dear God! What sorrow!

I hope it is a good, long while before I even think of complaining about 'loss' again.

May our good God grant them comfort and hearts' ease, in due time and in bountiful measure, once their storm of grief has calmed.

May Our Lady, Whose birthday it is today (Happy Birthday, Blessed Mother Mary!) also comfort Rabeka and John, wrapping them and their young boys in Her gentle care, ever pointing them to Her Son; "Do whatever He tells you." Mary Most Holy, pray for us, now and at the our of our death! Amen

So...how many times am I allowed...

2008-09-04T15:44:00.000-05:00

to change my mind? Having eaten my heart out over the 'loss' of that almost-full bobbin of alpaca, now that it's found again, I've decided that it isn't dark enough! three weeks of heart-burning for nothing! It's lovely - oh, very. It's a glorious, glowingly-warm, mostly cinnamon-brown color, mixed with just a hint of brownish Shetland (to make it hang together b'c the alpaca is sooo slippery). The Shetland really isn't a brown-brown, but more of a grayed-brown, which goes well with the 3 other bobbins.

BUT! It ain't dark 'nough :-(. I've got a gorgeous baker's chocolate llama roving that is nearly as soft as the alpaca, and I've spun up a bit of it 'just to see'. Wow. Not only is it MUCH easier to spin, what a difference that darker shade makes in contrast with the three other, much lighter, singles! I think I definitely have to go with the dark chocolate llama! Yummy!

I need a swift kick in my...

2008-09-03T18:04:00.000-05:00

um. You know.

o-kay there. I found my "missing" bobbin full of alpaca/shetland. You know. The one that was the 4th single of what was to become a 4-ply gift of yarn? Thought I ought to mention something about it. In case anyone has been feeling sorry for me. Not that I wasn't doing a great job of that already.

Yessirree! There it was, hiding under some freshly-spun BFL that was very, very similar in color to the alpaca blend. Apparently, the 2 colors were so similar (at the first careless glance, that is) that I didn't realize I was hiding one with the other!

I am soooo stoooopid.

*sigh* I will now FINISH the freakin' thing before I manage to lose it again.

Another ::sob::

2008-08-23T21:36:00.000-05:00

Okay...this is just killing me. I have lost - repeat, LOST! - a most important spinning wheel bobbin. The 4th bobbin to complete a 4-ply yarn gift! This bobbin was a-l-m-o-s-t full. ::waaah!:: One more decent spinning session would have seen it done so that I could finally begin the plying. I am SO wanting to cry. Where, O WHERE could my bobbin be? I keep wondering if I didn't somehow lose it as I was transporting my wheel to/from Twist. If I lost it there, it probably rolled into the gutter. Maybe. And there're very few people who would figure out what the heck that strange thing was :-(. Oh, I am just beside myself! I can't believe I lost a dadgum bobbin! Full of yarn, no less - yarn that I NEED!

THIS has been a difficult week, I tell ya! What with that stupid dawg destroying all that fiber, my bobbin disappearing, no damn sleep, and some other things going on, I am ready to scream! THIS is not what I signed on for!!!

I wonder if that dumb animal TOOK that bobbin and hid it?!? Come to think of it, he did try to trot off with one of my empty bobbins about 3 weeks ago, carrying it like a bone. I had a heckuva time getting it away from him - he was evidently convinced it was a Good-To-Eat Thing. He is, like, soooo dead....

AUGH!!! My resident fiber gourmand

2008-08-18T17:31:00.000-05:00

Did I ever mention that we're a Foster Family for the American Brittany Rescue organization? No? Neglectful of me perhaps, but generally not something one would post on a spinning blog. Not that my spinning and knitting buddies all of a sudden actually need to know that about me, it's just that...being a Foster Mum has suddenly begun cramping my 'style' (read: my personal spinning and knitting time) in a HUGE way lately, which is probably why I haven't been posting much. It's been an uphill battle for 5 weeks now. See...this dog we're fostering...well, he LOVES my yarns. And my rovings. And my fleeces. And batts. Not to mention my bumps. Anything soft and fuzzy, apparently, along with paper and books. He has destroyed (so far):

1 expensive knitting book (waaah!)
5 balls of SOCK yarn
5 rovings (or is it 6, now?)
3 batts. No...make that 4 (30 minutes ago)
several knitting magazines ::sob::
1 luscious 'bump' of silk, alpaca and merino (that I know of)
My Mother's sock (one of a pair that I was repairing!)

Um...what else? I'm sure there are other items, but my mind is just numb... It doesn't help that I generally get no more than 2 to 4 hours of sleep a night. Ugh. I HATE getting old!

He is the sweetest dog on earth - really, truly! - but total hell on this fiber-lover, for sure. His name is Sam (or "No, No! Bad Dog!"), and it seems that all he ever really bothers is MY stuff. Not my hubby's stuff. Not the kids' stuff. No. Just MINE. I feel like cussing a blue streak (out of sheer frustration), but that wouldn't be nice or helpful, so I won't do it on my blog.

SO...because of this dog's strange ingurgitatory habits, I have hardly been able to get anything done in the way of spinning! No sooner do I pull off a hard-won batt from my carder (it takes longer to make a really GOOD batt than one might think!), than the phone rings (or the door bell, or the kids need me, or hubby demands my instant attention, or, or...), so the batt gets laid down somewhere "safe". I come back 30 seconds later and it's literally shredded (and globbed with LOTS of dog-spit...yuck!) to itty-bitty bits of fluff on the carpet. :::sigh::: I'm past being mad about it. I give up. I don't know what to do about it, short of keeping the poor sap in his crate 24/7. Which I wouldn't do to even the worst dog, let alone this sweetheart!

So, I am sitting in my little corner and whimpering a bit. I am feeling so very sorry for myself at the moment. Another beautiful batt (alpaca, OF course) gone to hell. To make it worse, it was the final batt needed to finish off the 4th bobbin for a lovely (I hope!) 4-ply gift to Someone Really Special. I am struggling VERY HARD to be kind to Sam right now. And, of course, feeling guilty because I'm all upset with him :-(

Thanks for list'nin'. I am so bummed. Maybe someone will adopt this hoo-haw by next week?

Yes, yes, I'm still here!

2008-08-02T14:28:00.000-05:00

It's just that I've been so freaking busy. I've been spinning as much as possible, but don't have a lot (yet) to show for it. I did get a bit of Polypay done, in this rather bright rose-pink color. NOT my favorite color by a long shot, but it was still fun to work with something not-naturally-colored. I love how soft it is to spin up, but the neps! Oh, the neps and junk buried in the roving was just awful. I finally gave up trying to get it all out, and ended up with a very lumpy, unevenly-spun yarn :-( I am NOT happy about that, but at least it went to a good home! Kris (a fellow spinner and knitter) bought it, and I really hope she likes it.

There's nothing like frequent posting...

2008-06-28T17:32:00.000-05:00

to bore your devoted readers, right? So...one shouldn't post too often...right? Sounds good to me. Too bad that Deep Thought doesn't square terribly well with Reality, however, due to the fact that I would happily read the Yarn Harlot's blog daily, even if she posted every hour on the hour. :::sigh::: Well, maybe it's for the best...at least I don't have thousands of readers depending on me for their daily dose of hilarity. I'd die under the pressure. Besides...that's her job - thank God! - not mine.

I can't believe how many days it's been since I've posted. I've had SO much fun with my new carder, but I've also been crazy-busy (but who isn't these days???) with this little thing called 'life'. Like, life with a hubby. And kids. And errands. And just stuff going on. I've hardly had time to spin, which really makes me Miss Grumpybutt. I'm embarrassed to admit that I can't survive without being self-indulgent. This also means that I'm STILL working on my Bumpy Stuff (alpaca/tussah/merino) and the contrasting superwash Merino lambswool - all from Leah at Yarn And A Tale. I had ordered 2 lbs. of both those fluffy concoctions, and they came in early this week - oh, joy! I now have a good start on the 2nd bobbin of the alpaca/silk, but haven't done any more of the merino superwash, yet.

Something NOT so joyful for me was yesterday's good-bye party at Twist for Angelique, a dear and darling little pixie of a lady. All who know her love her. Just being her friend is a gift. It is SO hard to say goodbye to such a dear person. Every time I think about it, I have to work at not crying. However, she's going on to a more fulfilling life in New Mexico, working as a Dr. (Radiologist) on a Native American Reservation. The climate should be more salubrious for her health, certainly, than here in the Land-of-Totally-Miserable-and-Wildly-Inappropriate-Weather (Kansas). Hm. Maybe I should go with her?? Just to make sure the place is safe for her, and all. Yes, that would be good.

The kindness and generosity of friends...

2008-06-28T15:29:00.000-05:00

can never be quantified or replaced, can it? I guess that's a rhetorical question, because the answer is a great big "NO"!

The two lovely - and totally sweet, thoughtful, generous - girls who went to the Estes Park Wool Festival (remember Angelique and Shelly? I was almost sick with longing to go, of course.)...and look what they brought back for me!
It never occurred to me that they would bring home something for me, so the surprise gift just blew me away! I have never received such a glorious, beautiful and thoughtful gift as this - simply never!

I feel sorry for those of you who can only drool over, but not pet, this heavenly fiber. Oh. My. Gosh! It is to-die-for soft; it makes angora feel scratchy! Okay, maybe bunny fur would never feel scratchy, but you get the idea.

Angelique, Shelly...dearest girls!...THANK YOU! From the bottom of my heart, I thank you! I kiss your feet in gratitude, and I wish I knew what I did to deserve such a fabulous, unhoped-for gift! Because I'd do it again. Shamelessly.

I think I'm going to verrrry carefully blend it with some beautiful alpaca that Angelique gave me a few months ago (it's just gorgeous!: a fawn-colored 'paca from Alpaca With A Twist - oh, yum!). I'm just hoping that the paco-vicuna fiber won't be so short that it 'floats' to the bottom of the longer-fibered alpaca. That's a worry, so I'm going to think - hard! - about this before wasting so much as a single fiber of my p-v! Stay tuned...but first I have to get more of my Bumpy Stuff finished!

It's HERE!!! (another easy title)

2008-06-18T20:03:00.000-05:00

Well, as you probably can figure out by just the title, my Howard Brush "David" model drumcarder is HERE! Wow - it's BIG! It's even nicer in 'person' than in the photo. I've been playing with it a bit, but Dave made me come eat dinner, darn it. Now I've got to let you all know about it before I can get back to working with it. I did some easy stuff just to 'break it in': some pre-dyed roving from the Yarn Barn that I really wanted to card up with some tussah and just a hint of sparkle. Trying to do it on hand cards not only gave me a major mess that was impossible to spin, it wasted some of my fiber! Good thing I wasn't using anything too precious, huh?

IT'S ON IT'S WAY!!!

2008-06-16T12:58:00.000-05:00

Ha! I didn't have a problem coming up with a title this time, did I? Jane, from Howard Brush, just called to let me know my carder is shipping today!!! Of course, I'd cherished secret hopes (many of 'em) that it would ship on Friday, but it turns out they don't have Friday shipping (I didn't ask why). Oh, well - it's on its way, and my heart is going pitter-patter. I am sooo excited!

I hate thinking of titles!

2008-06-16T11:07:00.000-05:00

I mean, I'm just not that clever. I wish I were. I wish I were a word-smith, like the Harlot or my very dear friend Marianna. Now, they can write - really, really well. They have wildly-differing writing styles (not to mention wildly-differing subject matters), but both can 'grab' me with what they say by how they say it.

Well, that's all I've got to say about that.

All that angst was by way of trying to figure out a title for yet-another-fiber-spinning post. After all, how many times can one use "What I'm Working On Today" as a post title?

I'm working on two projects here (which is so not fun when one has only one wheel). Now there's a post title for you: "I Need Anudder Wheel!" ANYWAY, I've been trying to make a companion single for that single 2 posts down. You know, the alpaca/tussah silk noil-y/merino bumpy stuff. The same fiber-pusher, Leah, of Yarn Or A Tale, ALSO has these fab superwash Merino laps (did I tell you this already?). You can see them here; just scroll down to the bottom and look for the superwash merino lambswool laps. I'm going to see if she'll let me "borrow" her photos to put in here. Warning: I've got dibs on 2 pounds from her, so I hope there're some left for youse guys :-). Nota bene: She said "Yes"!

Now, as a spinner, I'm very prejudiced against superwash fibers. Yes, I know - ugly of me. In all fairness (to me) though, many superwash fibers are horrid-beyond-words to spin. They're plastic-y feeling. They...squeek (yuck)...when you handle them. There's almost nothing ickier to a spinner than trying to spin plastic. But this superwash is incredible! Not surprisingly - it being merino (lambswool!) - it's as soft as a cloud and amazingly easy to spin. It flies through the fingers effortlessly and is very controllable. Providing one uses the right-sized whorl, that is. Unfortunately, I spun nearly half of the sample she sent with my 'bumpy' alpaca order (that's how she 'hooks' new converts to her superwash laps, don't you know) on a too-large whorl. When I went to 'sample' it with The Bumpy Stuff , it literally fell apart every few inches. This is a lesson I thought I'd already learned: one must - simply must - spin short, fine fibers with appropriate twist! Yes, indeedy! For the third time, I've learned that lesson. ::sigh::

The color contrast it provides with the bumpy alpaca/silk/merino mix is really, really nice. It isn't so high a contrast that it's going to look terribly marled. I'm hoping the contrast will be fairly subtle. If it isn't, all is not lost. I'll just spin a very smooth single of more fawn alpaca/tussah (from my own stash, probably) to provide a textural contrast, rather than a color one. Then, I'll just spin up the superwash into some glorious sock yarn. I do wish the color variations would show up in a photo, because it is truly lovely. Unfortunately, my photo-taking abilities are laughable. I can hardly turn the stupid camera on, let alone figure out how to use it :-(

My second project is using more Cormo, but this time I want to try to make a 2-ply worsted weight. Wish me luck, won't you? I'm going to need it. Not that I deserve it. I concentrated so hard (when first learning to spin) on learning how to spin very thin singles, that I can now only spin that way. I am NOT HAPPY with myself. I was warned. I can't say I wasn't. Books warned me. People warned me. I told myself that it didn't matter because that's the only way I wanted to spin: thinly! (do we see the operation of the devil's 'virtue' called PRIDE, here?) :::sigh:::

Just call me short-sighted (if you wish to be kind). I'm just going to call me 'stupid' and be done with it. Now, I know perfectly well that some of you at this point are saying, "Yes, but...! You can make a worsted weight yarn out of thin singles. Just use 3 or 4 plies." Riiiiight. That means filling up the requisite number of bobbins, and 3 or 4 times the amount of work. That's discouraging, to say the least! This isn't a special project (though it certainly could be, I suppose). I just need to make more yarn to pay for my rather expensive passion of spinning!

There ain't no humility...

2008-06-13T18:09:00.000-05:00

without humiliation! I feel so chagrined. Here I was burning with green-eyed envy because Leah got to knit socks while working at the fiber mill. Turns out, she has to run this big ol' commercial sock-knitting machine, which is giving her major fits, as it doesn't seem to want to knit socks! She's got a high level of frustration at work because of a stupid hunk of metal. However, when it's working right, she CAN actually knit socks (for real) or even bring her spinning wheel! Wow - imagine a job like that! I think that's only fair, though, since she has to put up with stupid machines, don't you? I still kinda wish I could get a job like that...

Sinking to new depths...

2008-06-13T10:34:00.000-05:00

of jealousy. I have just learned - via email - that Leah, owner of Yarn Or A Tale, not only has a job at a famous fiber processing mill...

SHE GETS TO KNIT SOCKS for her job!!!

I am trying not to be overtaken by sick, insane jealousy. I think I need to go lay down.

Jealousy is very childish...

2008-06-12T23:22:00.000-05:00

this, I know. No one needs to tell me that. I hardly even remember the last time I felt jealous of anyone for any reason. Consequently, I am rather chagrined to admit to the jealousy I am feeling right now. Why? Because I cannot attend the ONE PLACE on Earth that I've been dying to go to ever since hearing about it. It's synonymous with Heaven on Earth for fiber-lovers everywhere: the Estes Park Wool Market.

They have People there, people. Important People! Galina herself will teach a class there, for Pete's sake! How the HECK did they get her??? They have Paula Vester! Donna Druchunas! Donna Brown! And I'M NOT THERE! This isn't even to mention the animals that will be there. There will be ... Paco-Vicunas, people. AUGH!! :::whimper:::

There are times when it just doesn't pay to get out of bed.

Bumpity-bump! or...What I'm Working On Now

2008-06-12T15:08:00.000-05:00

Well, I wasn't sure how much I was going to like making 'bumpity' yarn (silk noil-style bumpy), but it turns out to be fun! I got this soft Fawn Alpaca/Merino/tussah silk (and noils) from Leah at Yarn Or A Tale. The stuff I'm using can be seen here on her Premium Fibers page. She has the ideal job in my opinion: she works for a well-known fiber processor! ARGH!

Anyway, I'm really getting into this bumpy stuff. I never know when to expect the next bumpy to come skipping through my fingers - it's totally unpredictable:
No, there isn't any more. I bought it all. So sorry. Not. I realize this might make me come across as a supremely selfish fiber hog, but I just don't care. I take my fiber acquisition duties very seriously, you know, and this was an urgent mission. Leah might have sold the rest of it without my knowing it. It doesn't matter that she has 50 tons more fiber in stock. I will attempt to acquire every bit of it. Eventually.

::sigh:: As close to owning a woolie as I'll ever get

2008-06-11T12:45:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Rhonda's blog, I now have my very own sheepie! (thanks, dear!) You can see my lovely pet, Fluffy Woolytush, over on the sidebar. You can even feed him! Unfortunately, this will probably be about as close to owning one as I ever get :-( I would almost kill to have a couple of sheep.

I keep telling Dave that he wouldn't have to mow the lawn anymore, but he isn't impressed. He says he wants to keep his flower and veggie gardens intact, thank-you-very-much. I think he's just being stubborn - he doesn't realize how much cheaper it would be to have some sheep and an alpaca. Or two. Just think of the savings! I wouldn't have to buy expensive roving! Well, I could cut down on the fiber expenditures, anyway. WHICH is why I got my carder, so that I wouldn't have to buy expensive top and roving all the time. Or so my theory goes. Wonder if he would buy that...?

Why Do I love the yarn harlot?

2008-06-11T11:23:00.000-05:00

Been thinking about that lately. It comes down to one, simple reason: she's Every Woman, as far as I'm concerned. Her insane daily schedule - her utter hatred of all things involving housework - her seemingly total lack of organization in trying to get everything done that needs to be done right now - her passion for knitting and spinning - her wonky hair ... she could be me. Or I, her. She's so much like me (only way cuter and funnier, not to mention WAY younger!), that it's downright scary. But you know what? I have to bet that she really isn't "like me", so much as she is like...Every Woman.

There. That was my philosophizing for the day.

My sis is coming over soon; the poor girl has lost power in her neighborhood. And, OF COURSE, the electric company has NO IDEA when it will be up. Of course not.

I just hope the contents of her 'frig will be okay. I've lost whole refrigerators and freezers of food twice. Oh, my aching pocketbook!

Dancing for mad, mad joy!

2008-06-11T10:33:00.000-05:00

YYYYYEEEESSSSS!!! I am having a hard time not whirling like a dervish, I'm so excited and happy! My poor stomach is doing flip-flops. I got to place my order for my very own, highly-coveted, long-dreamt-about Howard Brush drum carder!!! I am so excited, I can hardly stand it! It won't be shipped out 'til tomorrow, they say, because they are sooo busy. :::groan!::: I guess they can hardly keep their carders in stock; they're just flying off the shelves. The prices are incredibly reasonable (for carders), and the carders are very heavy-duty. They have two models; the Lindsey and the David. The David is a triple-drum carder, and I chose the fine cloth as that is about the only type of fiber I use: fine!

Hopefully, the cloth will even be fine enough for cotton, should I ever get a wild hair and decide I want to spin that, too. I really love the colors of the organic colored cottons that are now out. They're nearly irresistable! I could card that up with chopped tussah (very, very short strands) silk, or cashmere, or silk noils, or angora, or, or...anything! *sigh*

I hope I don't die of impatience before it gets here! I've got sooo many fibers that need to be worked into batts, it's not even funny. I'll bet I could spend the next full month carding and not be done!

NOW what do I do...?

2008-06-10T13:46:00.000-05:00

Um...how'm I supposed to keep up with spinning demands?? I now only have 2 offerings left - that's a really pathetic showing for an Etsy page! A very dear friend of mine bought the Apple Blossom, plus the 'natural' skein (not sure what else to call it!) that is on an earlier post. I hadn't even had a chance to get it up ON Etsy before it was gone! I'm really thrilled that somebody likes my yarn, but still...!

What the heck am I gonna do?? I would love to have Etsy pages full of stuff, not 2 stupid little skeins!

I am SO CRANKED!

2008-06-10T00:53:00.000-05:00

I can NOT believe what happened last night (my time), very, very late. I am still so excited, I can't sleep! I finally decided to open an Etsy shop. After all, one can't sell one's yarn by simply wishing on a star. Well, I can't anyway. Stars ignore me.

SO...there I was, having FINALLY finished listing my glorious Cormo (that I didn't really want to get rid of :sob!:). Took me forever as I kept updating the information as I would think of more stuff to say. Then, I more quickly uploaded the photos of that Spring Flowers Targhee yarn I'd spun up. Hit "FINISHED" on my Etsy page and... {{{gasp!}}}

NO CORMO!!! IT'S GONE!!!

ETSY STOLE MY FREAKIN' CORMO and CHARGED me for it!!!

WAAUUGHHH!!

My poor heart pounding like a trip-hammer, I hunted all over my pathetic one-page "store" with ONE ITEM on it. Nope. No Cormo picture. Still gone! I checked somewhere on my account to see what Etsy was charging me for a 'disappeared yarn', only to discover...

I SOLD THE STUFF! FOUR FREAKIN' MINUTES after it was listed!! Can you believe that?!? I about fell out of my chair! ROFL! I just can hardly believe this! Surely, I tell myself, I will wake up and all will have been a pleasant - but silly - dream.

I hope I don't wake up TOO soon...

World's Ugliest Yarn Contest!

2008-06-09T14:42:00.000-05:00

Another weekend "find" that I wish had remained hidden. Forever.

I have quite possibly created the World's Ugliest Yarn. Yes, it is, don't argue with me (if you're actually trying to). No, no; don't try to make me feel better about it: I absolutely HATE this Yarn Barf. I don't know what I was thinking when I bought the roving - and I certainly won't say from whom I purchased it. It's not HER fault that I wasn't a good spinner (or planner) at the time. It wasn't her fault, either, that I was just sure that the 3 colors actually went together in anything that would resemble 'good taste'. Maybe she thought they did! Sadly, any of the 2 colors together might have turned out okay. Maybe. But the "Mardi Gras" (that was the colorway's name) colors are ALL wrong for Mardi Gras. The gold is actually baby-poop yellow (ask me how I know this). The purple, while rather pretty, is mostly too greyed out. Nothing "royal" about it. The teal is...um...not green. At all. It is a vivid, intense TEAL that hurts the eyes to behold it. Teal is not, the last I checked, a Mardi Gras color.

A real kicker to all this is that it feels Heavenly and has a great drape to it (thanks to the overly-loose plying I decided on). *sigh* I was only wanting to get it over with.

Let me show you the hideous stuff in all its, er..."glory":

What a long weekend!

2008-06-09T13:02:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm finally done plying the Apple Blossom and there are 422 yards - whoot! Plenty of yarn to knit up socks, and it looks like the yarn is a fairly consistent fingering weight. Wow. I have to say, it turned out better than I thought it would. It's almost as consistent as my 2-ply Cormo. I'm no big fan of Navajo-plying, even though it's great fun to do, but I really dislike the way a Navajo-plied yarn does not like to ply nicely right up against the next loop. It's gets loose and "ugly" (imo), even though it won't show up in the actual knitting. I added in quite a bit of extra twist just for that reason, hoping there wouldn't be too much. Will wonders never cease?...there isn't. Another reason to celebrate! Here's the finished product:

I also discovered a woolen-spun, 3-ply (not Navajo-ply, but the 'real McCoy') worsted weight skein I'd spun up early this year (January, I think), squirreled away in one of my fiber drawers. Good Heavens. I remember being so impressed with myself that I'd gotten a whole 425 yards (before fulling). I ended up with 397 yards after fulling. Not bad, but I'm going to quit fulling my yarn :-) Everything but the kitchen sink went into this one, but all the fibers were soft - even the Shetland.
I was going for a next-to-the-skin, if i could manage it. I stuck with all natural colors, using black Merino, brown/grey Shetland, cream and brown Finn-Lincoln (VERY soft and fluffy) fleeces, and (I think!) some of my oatmeal-creamy Bluefaced Leicester. Heaven only knows what else I found to throw in there!

It all turned out quite nicely, much to my amazement. At the time, I was a new spinner of only 2 months, and felt that everything I did looked crummy and had a 'why would anyone want to buy that junk'? mentality.

All hail the Blog Queen!

2008-06-06T19:26:00.000-05:00

Just in case anyone else feels like banging their head on their computer desk, before you do, go here and learn how to do cool stuff with your blog! In desperation, I contacted Sherrykins (found her on a help search in Blogger). She answered right away and helped me to put some "buttons" in my sidebar. Simple for most people...maybe. But not for this dummy! Thank you, Sherry, a thousand 'thank yous' for all your help!

A LESSON LEARNED...

2008-06-06T11:31:00.000-05:00

NEVER - but never! - Navajo-ply delicate Merino singles. harrumph.

I'm nearly done plying the Apple Blossom. I sure hope it fits on my one bobbin! I think I'm going to have to swear off using only Merino to spin with, as it just really wants to float apart during plying, even if I use a high twist to spin the singles. It's SO frustrating to have it break during plying, but it's ten times worse if you're Navajo plying - augh! One needs a minimum of 3 hands to fix it, and 4 would be better! When I'm doing this, I make SURE one of the kids is home to help provide the needed extra fingers.

Apologies for the blurry photo of the 2 bobbins. I DO wish I could figure out how to take good closeups!

Apple Blossom - a Reprise

2008-06-04T14:33:00.001-05:00

Okkkaaaay ... remember those photos of my current work-in-progress (Apple Blossom merino roving) that just 'disappeared' into the aether the other day? Well...! There they were. Big as life. Right on my camera.

Even though we'd deleted them. Even though the camera swore up and down that its card was empty. Even though they were downloaded onto my computer, never to be seen again...

There they were! Sheesh. SO...for an update and a photo upload of what I had gotten done:

Yes, I know. They're blurry and the photo-coloring seems (to me) to be slightly on the 'yellowish' side. I don't know what's wrong with this Canon S5IS, but probably nothing; ten-to-one, it's operator error...or just bad lighting. The bobbin is now full to capacity as I've only 2 feet left of roving. I'll try to post a completed pic as soon as I can (after I've plied it).

My 'Baby' from Babe's Fiber Garden

2008-06-04T13:28:00.000-05:00

Just thought I'd bring out my 'brag book' photos so you could all admire :-) Go here to see the tons of stuff Babe's Fiber Garden has.

I don't understand why more of my spinning buddies haven't gotten themselves one of these wheels. These 'Babes' are total work-horses! Nils Wiberg (the manufacturer) wasn't kidding when he called them 'Production Wheels'. They work extremely well, are VERY easy to use and maintain, and very affordable. For those on a tight budget, what a Godsend! I only paid $204 - including shipping - for this model. Granted, it isn't gorgeous, but that's fine by me. I'd rather pay 200 dollars for a good wheel, and use the rest of what I'd have spent on a wooden one, on a big pile of fiber! It's also highly portable, being light-weight. Yet the base is nice and wide, thus eliminating the 'walk' or 'creep' that so many other Castle-style wheels have. My Babe doesn't try to walk away from me as I'm treadling.

Me and my Babe have treadled thousands of miles since we first met last November - and we're both still going strong with nary a problem.

Did I mention how much I love my Babe...?

Fairy Spun Fibers

One year later...

An eclectic assortment

Raindrop Shawl - DONE!

Introducing...Anabelle Marie!

Can you autograph DVDs?

Just to keep my oar in...

Yet Another Three Weeks!

Better Late Than Never. I guess.

Ooof!

Well. I dunno. More work needed...

Where to get the Bee!

The Bee! By SpinOlutions

Wheel 'n' "Knew" Knarly Knots

WHOOT!

...and so it goes

Withdrawal symptoms...

Oh - I almost forgot!

FINALLY - some time to post!

So...when do I get to spin, eh?

"Winter Sea" scarf c'èst finis!

Ravelry's power is down - oh, my!

Christmas stash acquisitions

Making a beginner's mistake

Agonies of indecision: Which shall it be?

Entrelac (garterlac) Scarf done!

You know your house is cold when...

Did I ever show you this wheel?

One goes out...and another

IntroDUC ing...Knarly Knots™!

Baaad roads out there, folks...

An adorable little Angel ...

My willpower is so strong...

Now THIS is more like it!

All I Want For Christmas...

Neener, neener

Kindergarten Rug Shawl

The Most Obnoxious Handspun Yarn...

More Eunny Jang! Totally Tubular Cast-On

Another Knitting Black Hole - NEW Scientific Discovery!

A Mother's unendurable grief

A shocking and *OUTRAGEOUS* story

LEST WE FORGET: In Grateful Remembrance

Knitting the Nupp: now we know...

I must be crazy...

Yes, I really *have* been spinning...

I want one, too!

You can spin with *anything* when...

Daily Knitting's Eunny Jang...new video!

ugh...groan

The Harlot's Request

As if one ache wasn't enough...

Ohhhh...my aching everything

Okay...this is scary (semi)

Concientious, Fulfilled, and Spiritual

The bumpies and noils of it all

Dye Day...in which I score another...

Morning Surf Scarf

Jus' checkin' in

::cackle::

My deepest dream (a paeon to spinning)...

Morning Surf Scarf

I was wrong. So what else...

Finn top c'est finis!

A whole pound of frabjous fun!

My almost-done Noro socks

I am now officially...STOOOPID

Now we know why...

Making progress...slowly

I am freaking hopeless

:::grumble:::

I think I'll go eat worms now...

Wheee!!! It's DONE!

There's Nothing Like a Little Water...

:::gasp!:::

Almost done!

Just to put things into perspective

So...how many times am I allowed...

I need a swift kick in my...

Another ::sob::

A shocking and OUTRAGEOUS story

Yes, I really have been spinning...

You can spin with anything when...