More Towels - Blue With Stripes

A Ravelry friend commissioned a set of towels to match her kitchen - she wants cobalt blue, with accents of brown and natural. I'm weaving hers with vertical AND horizontal stripes, and I'll do a few extra with only vertical stripes. I really love this color combo!

Extreme Plying

In the Southern Cross Fibre group on Ravelry, we're doing an Extreme Plying SAL (spin-a-long). None of this mundane single or 2-ply or 3-ply or n-ply stuff for us... the more extreme the better. I thought I'd kick things off (and wet my feet) with a 9-ply yarn. Thus far, the highest I've plied is a 4-ply (for Mr. Debbie's sweater yarn).

To this end, I split a braid of SCF Red Rock finn into 9 equal pieces:

 Then I spun each piece onto a separate bobbin:

They're pretty equal - some of the bobbins look like they have more on them, but they don't - they weren't empty before I started spinning. I just spun on top of leftovers.

The plan is to thread each singles through a rigid heddle to keep them equally spread, then guide them onto the wheel as I ply. I have no idea what I'll do with the finished yarn, but I think it will be COOL. :)

Handspun Kitsune/Harvest Sweater in progress

I cast on for my new sweater (Bailey cardigan - Ravelry link) last night. I have a self-imposed deadline for this one - I want to be able to wear it by the time cold weather arrives. Here in the Deep South, that's the end of November. :)

I'm sure it'll be finished before then - this yarn is such a delight to knit. I'm loving the fabric... the silk content added to the polwarth wool gives it a wonderful drape, and a subtle shine.

Tour de Fleece 2012

Here we go again - the spinning world gears up to ride along with the cyclists as they push themselves to the limit in the Tour de France. The Tour de FLEECE (Ravelry link) lasts for the same duration as the cycling race - Saturday June 30th through Sunday July 22nd. We spinners challenge ourselves, and race against no one but the calendar and our creativity. We make outrageous plans and try to complete as much as we can before the clock runs out.

My plans are skewed a bit this year by the fact that the Tour coincides with two weaving workshops - Rep Weave this weekend and a Saori workshop next weekend. Still, I'll have mornings and evenings free (and the weekdays in between) and I plan to make the most of them.

I have a big pile of fiber that I'm spinning on commission, and that will continue (I do my commission spinning in the mornings). I'll show you that giant pile of yarns soon, when it's finished. That doesn't count (in my mind, which is the only place that matters) toward my TdF spinning.

Here's the fiber I plan to spin up during the Tour. I dug deep into the Southern Cross Fibre, Hello Yarn, and Enchanted Knoll Farm bins - the teams I'm spinning for this year. I belong to all three clubs, and have squirreled away their fiber lovingly for years. I pulled out some golden oldies - well-marinated and loved colourways whose time has come to shine.

Southern Cross Fibre “Equinox”, australian merino, Club, October 2009

Southern Cross Fibre “Funhouse”, falkland, Club, December 2009

Southern Cross Fibre COMBO:
“Irises”, shetland, Club, June 2009
“Deep Thought”, oatmeal bfl, Club, November 2009

HelloYarn “Patchwork”, merino, Club, August 2009

HelloYarn “Red Velvet”, shetland, Club, March 2008

HelloYarn COMBO:
 “Throwing Stones”, rambouillet, update fibre, August 2010
“Pallid”, rambouillet, Club, November 2009

Enchanted Knoll Farm “Treasure Chest”, Hooves Batt Club September 2008

Enchanted Knoll Farm “Harvest”, Hooves Batt Club October 2008

Enchanted Knoll Farm “Pass The Pie”, Hooves Batt Club November 2009

 

 

Look for some of the resulting SCF and HY skeins to show up in my Etsy shop in August. Not sure of the yarn construction plans of these, though I know the Enchanted Knoll batts will all become sock yarn for me (which I'll then madly knit into socks during the Ravellenics following the TdF.) Wish me luck!

Kraken Sweater - Growing!

The yarn:

And now, big progress:

There is nothing that I don't love about this sweater. The colors are gorgeous, the feel of the polwarth handspun is delicious, the knitting is easy. If I didn't also spin and weave, I'd probably be finished already, but the sweater has had to share time with my other pursuits.

The pattern is the Bailey Cardigan  (Ravelry link) and is very straightforward and easy to understand. It HAS to be - I needed a simple pattern for my first handknit adult sweater! I've knit children's sweaters before, with chunky yarn, but this one has to fit ME, and be useful for daily wear.

Since I'm knitting it in a light fingering-weight polwarth wool yarn, it will be lightweight, yet warm. I can see wearing it in the fierce air-conditioning of our local NOLA restaurants even in summer, and as daily wear in the winter. It will serve as indoor warmth in Montana, as well - and as a layer under a jacket.

I've used a little more than half the yarn spun - I'm thinking I'll need to spin more for the sleeves. I have a few more ounces of the fiber, no problem! Oh, the joy of being able to spin my own yarn - a dream come true!

Here's the post about the beginning of my sweater.

Kraken Ahoy!

The rest of the fiber for my handspun Kraken polwarth sweater arrived this afternoon. So gorgeous! I love this colorway. David of Southern Cross Fibre is a genius with the dyepots.

Now that I have all the fiber for the sweater, I'll split it all up and combine the two dyelots to ensure the yarn will be homogenous.

Along with the Kraken, there was a hitchhiker - a sneak preview of David's new semi-solid line of colorways. This one is "Dark Cheddar", a color that made this orange-lover swoon with delight when he revealed it in his Ravelry group.

There will be over 30 new semi-solids available over the next 6 months, in colors that will coordinate with so many of the colorways in my stash. My wallet may not survive!

Kraken Sweater - Beginning

After 11 years of dabbling, I'm still a beginner knitter. Oh, I can knit a mean (basic) sock, and I can knit/purl a ribbed scarf with the best of 'em, but to me, advancing past "beginner" will entail knitting real SWEATERS.

Now, I've knit two sweaters, but they were both child-size and the same pattern, in the round with a 3-needle bind-off at the shoulders. No piecing, no seaming. I knit them from Reynold's Lopi, for a charity serving Russian orphans. They were simple, WARM, and bullet-proof.

But an adult sweater has not yet sprung full-born from my needles. I've started one, the Oatmeal Cardigan, in (appropriately) oatmeal bfl, handspun of course, but the staggering neutral yardage bored me to tears, and it languishes in a knitting bag somewhere.

Handspun handpainted - now THAT's the way to go, to keep my interest during both the spinning and the knitting. So I joined the SCF & Friends Sweater SAL/KAL (Rav-link) because I knew the wonderful members of the Southern Cross Fibre forum on Ravelry would encourage me and give the kick in the pants I'll need when the going gets tough.

I chose one of my very favorite Southern Cross Fibre colorways - Kraken - and one of my very favorite fibers - polwarth.

 (picture courtesy of David at SCF)

(Isn't it scrumptious???) I have enough fiber for half the sweater, and David (one of the best dyers on the PLANET) was happy to dye more. It's shipping today (from Australia). I'll wait until I have all the fiber together, so I can split it all up to combine the dyelots, for a nice blend throughout.

Since this is my first real sweater, I knew I'd need a simple pattern - the Bailey Cardigan (Rav) is great for handspun, and has good clean lines. My friend Sandi has already knit it and I was able to see (and feel!) it in person on our last Montana trip. I'll knit mine in fingering weight yarn rather than in DK, because I want it to be lightweight and useful for indoor wear.

And since I want the sweater to be wonderful and perfect, I knew I'd need to sample and swatch. (Yikes.) I did both. I spun samples of 2-ply, 3-ply, and navajo-ply:

(My camera washed out the colors - they're actually rich and vibrant like David's fiber photo above.)

I really like the 3 ply best, but needed to knit a swatch, not only for gauge, but for the look and feel of the fabric. So I knit my first ever swatch:

(top, n-ply; middle, 2-ply; bottom, 3-ply)

I love the look of the n-ply, but for socks, rather than for a sweater. I prefer the heathered transitions of the 2-ply and the 3-ply. In the end, I chose the 3-ply, because its fabric gave me the look and feel I liked best. It's so soft (yet durable) and pliable, and it drapes nicely.

I cannot wait to get started on this project! I'll keep you posted...

Everyone Likes A Discount, Right?

I'm nearing my 150th sale in my Etsy shop, and that's exciting and humbling at the same time. I'm so appreciative of the support that's been given my little indie spinning and weaving venture!

I've decided to reward my friends and customers (and I'd like to see that 150th sale, too!) so I've enabled a coupon code through Labor Day (September 5th) for 10% off any purchase in stock, on all items including handwoven scarves. I originally intended it for Ravelry but am pleased to extend it to any blog readers as well.

Enter the coupon code RAVLABORDAY10 on checkout to get your discount.

And shipping to the US is always free - and reduced to international addresses.

Thankful for the kind support! ♥

Placemats!

I finished these placemats this week and mailed them off to Canada. They're for an exchange WAL (Weave-Along) in the Jane Stafford Textiles group on Ravelry.

We chose a color scheme (either blue/green or red/orange) and decided on our own individual design. We were to weave 6, and send 5 to the exchange coordinator, who will send us 5 placemats (all different, but in our chosen color scheme) in return.

I adapted a pattern for a scarf from a recent Handwoven magazine, in a twill/huck lace fusion. I really wanted the twill ribbons to be vertical, which meant that I couldn't fringe my placemats and had to hem them top and bottom. I used 6/2 unmercerized cotton. I'm really pleased with the way they turned out!

Hello!

Here I am! Thanks to the dear friends who have emailed and asked for an update. Time passes much too quickly!
The summer is 2/3 gone, and that's a GOOD thing here in the South. It's too hot and humid to enjoy the outdoors - in fact, we rush from house to car to store to car to house, trying to limit our exposure to the heat index and get back into A/C as soon as possible. My family spends the summer longing for October. :)

Garden: Catastrophic failure. The plants COOKED inside the containers. When we watered (daily) we could feel the water coming out the bottom of the container was HOT, hotter than comfortable bathwater. The heat was built up and concentrated in the containers, and cooked the roots of our poor plants. Everything died without giving us more than a few measly peppers. We are planning a fall garden bed IN THE GROUND so it can maintain a constant dirt temperature. No pictures... too sad. :(

Knitting: I finished the Socktopus socks. They were a fun knit, with the sparkles and softness of the wool.

Spinning: Oh, goodness - I can't show it all to you, we don't have time or bandwidth for that. Since last I posted, I've participated once again in the Tour de Fleece and spun 18 skeins of yarn in 3 weeks, a total of 5100 yards of plied yarn (much of it thin 3-ply yarns) in 21 days. That was a concentrated spinning effort, but I still spin/ply an average of a,000 yards a week. This morning I plied a 730 yard skein of 2-ply laceweight polwarth/bamboo. Monday I navajo/chain plied a 440 yard commissioned skein of sock yarn. Spinning is one of the great joys of my life. :)

Weaving: I've woven several scarves in rayon boucle and tencel (one is in the Etsy shop right now), an Overshot runner, and a set of placemats in twill and huck lace for an exchange with some dear friends in Canada.

Personal: After nearly 8 months of retirement, I still love it. :) Today is my dear husband's birthday - he is the joy of my life and my best friend. And our move to Montana grows ever closer. Life (and God who gives it) = GOOD.

EKF Summer of Socks: 1st Up - Socktopus

The Summer of Socks SAL/KAL/CAL (spin/knit/crochet-along) in the Enchanted Knoll Farm Ravelry group has begun! It lasts from June 1 to September 1. I love spinning EKF fiber, and socks are what I'm most successful at knitting (and actually finishing) so this is right up my alley. Either handspun or commercial yarns are fine, and Josette is featuring sock yarns in her Etsy shop all this month, with free shipping.

I cast on my first pair this morning. I've discovered sportweight socks - they knit up quick, on large needles, and give me a satisfying finished pair in a short period of time. This pair is for Jessica - she appreciates my handspun handknit socks, so she's worthy. :) It's from my handspun, an EKF batt in the "Blue Ring Octopus" colorway, 300 yds of 2-ply sportweight. Size 6 needles, 40 stitches, magic loop, David's Toe-Up Sock Cookbook. We'll call it "Socktopus":


My goal is 3 pair - one per month. I have spinning and weaving to do this summer, so I don't want to be overly ambitious.

Also, today is my dear nephew Michael's birthday. He's 19 - how fast time flies!

I love October.

October means the sweltering heat of our 5-month summer is behind us. The humidity drops a bit, the high temperatures dip down into the 80's, and we actually get temps in the upper 60's at night. We celebrate by throwing our doors and windows open to air out the house and relish the DRY. :)

I've been on vacation from work this week, recharging my batteries and reorganizing my space. My "studio" (that means my corner of our large living room) had become cluttered and was stifling my creative breath. With things put away and neatly stored, I have room to move and play and dream. :)

Weaving-wise, I've finished (finally!) the Huck Lace dishtowels - I love them, with their earthy organic cotton colors and thirsty texture. Now to hem and wash (finishing is my weakest link).


I've also been weaving some cool cotton openwork scarves on the rigid heddle looms. It's leno with a 'twist' - the entire scarf is twisted while weaving, creating a lovely fishnet effect. I'm working on a variation this weekend that includes bands of plainweave - I'll post pictures of that one when I'm done.


Spin, spin, spin - you know I always have yarn in progress, since my wheel brings me balance and sanity. Its treadles are my footrest in the evening, and the repetitive motion is so very soothing. I've finished lots of yarns, some for the Etsy shop, some for custom spinning requests (yes, I take them - I can spin fiber you've purchased elsewhere... just drop me a line for details) and some for ME.

(as always, click for big)




Oh, and I attended a cotton-spinning workshop with the guild - had fun sharpening my skills on spinning cotton yarn. I chain-plied my samples into one yarn - fun! I'll have to weave a little something with it as a memento.


And knit: I'm knitting along with the Camping Shawl KAL in the Southern Cross Fibre group on Ravelry. I'm using commercial yarn for this one, a lovely heathered brown in Knitpicks Shadow called "Redwood Forest".


My lace skills are beginner, definitely, but I'm excited to be knitting my first circular shawl. It's nice to have knitting in my lap again, now that the weather is cooling - did I mention that???

Love you, October!

Tour de Fleece

For the past two years, I've participated in the Tour de Fleece on Ravelry. It's great fun and great motivation to spin more and document one's spinning escapades. I don't need much motivation to spin more :) but I could do a better job of documenting (yes, Blog, I hear you) so I look forward to participating again this year.

I haven't done much in the way of goal-setting yet, other than deciding that I'll be spinning from my favorite four dye artists (Enchanted Knoll, Southern Cross Fibre, Spunky Eclectic, Hello Yarn). As the time grows closer, I'll narrow down some specific goals (which fiber, which challenges, etc.) and post them here.

I've joined two 'Wildcard' teams - Enchanted Elves (for Enchanted Knoll) and Monkey Farts (for Spunky Eclectic).

In case anyone wants to join up too, here are the (non) rules:

This year the Tour de Fleece starts Saturday July 3rd and runs until Sunday July 25th, 2010.

Guidelines (NOT RULES):

1. Spin every day the Tour rides, if possible. Saturday July 3rd through Sunday July 25th. Days of rest: Monday July 12th, Wednesday July 21st. (Just like the actual tour)

2. Spin something challenging Thursday July 22nd. (The Tour’s toughest mountain stage from Pau up the legendary Col du Tourmalet)

3. Take a button if you want one. Then we can use the button on our blogs in show of solidarity. Take it from here or grab a clean one from the flickr pool. Come join the flickr pool!

4. Wear yellow on Sunday July 25th to announce victory. Why not wear yellow on any day you feel particularly successful? (Yellow is the color of the race leader in the Tour - but here we are all ‘race leaders’)

5. Other colors if desired: Green (sprinter - think FAST), Polka-dot (climber - as in uphill), and white (rookie)