More of my handspun...

Some of my recently spun yarns:

This one was a gorgeous batt from Copperpot Woolies, part of her "The Good Stuff" range:


Hand-dyed by me. Originally pencil roving and spun to a chunky single. Stupidly did not make a note of the fiber content, but I am pretty sure it was soy-silk:


Originally a batt from SplitRock Ranch, the batt was 3oz of 50% Wool Top, 20% Mohair, 20% Tencel, 10% Tussah Silk. Gorgeous!





"Eclipse" colorway, Romney fiber from Spunky's fiber of the month club. I had a double dose of 8 oz, spun both as chunky singles. Used 4 oz to make "Bag for Sophie" and still have 4oz in stash:



Another one of Spunky's fiber club offerings. This one is in colorway "Acadia", and is Finn. It became the "Herringbone Wrap."

In my defense, it has been a busy year!

I knew I had completely neglected my blog, but had no idea it was a year since I had posted! And whew, what a year it has been! I stopped posting soon after moving from the UK to the USA. That was quite the adventure, and with pretty much starting anew here, working full time, and starting on my Masters degree, I have been very busy!

We are due to move house again at the end of the week (still staying in Arizona, just a different part of the city), but I plan to spend more time updating my blog. No more neglect!!

So let me start by posting my latest FO. I got a gorgeous batt from Butterfly Girl Designs. It was 3oz of 60% merino, 30% bamboo, 10% nylon firestar. Truly gorgeous, soft, and squooshy:


Which became:



It then became the Darkside Cowl:




It was actually made for me, but I have a ready and willing model in DS, so he is kindly demonstrating finished item. This was a fast and fun project. The firestar in the yarn makes it appear like it might be a bit rough or scratchy, but the merino and bamboo are actually super soft. Love it.

Brights Thick n thin spun

I got this beautiful fiber from splitrockranch on etsy. It was a gorgeous 2oz batt of 80% wool and 20% bamboo. The colors are far more vibrant than they appear in these photos, with red, green, yellow, blue. It just reminded me of a circus, so bright and wild! I decided it needed to be spun thick & thin to keep that vibrant nature. It looks gorgeous spun, and the texture of the tick & thin works really well with the colors.




I also got another 2 batts, and joined her 3 month roving club so I receive 4oz of fiber from Brenda for 3 months. How exciting! I am thrilled with all of the fiber I have received, they are all truly works of art, just gorgeous. I highly suggest checking out Brenda's site splitrockranch on etsy. She obviously loves what she does, and to top it off, is a really nice person (which I think is always a bonus! I had a few questions when I bought the batts, and she responded immediately sorting everything out for me. Great customer service counts for a lot.

I will post some more pics of the other fibers later. I am currently spinning a gorgeous wool/bamboo/tencel batt from her. Maybe socks? Who knows!

Circling the wagons

OK, so I have already explained the concept behind this yarn museum challenge here.

This is my entry to the challenge below:


It is 50% Corriedale, 50% Masham, 99yds approx with 7wpi.

The concept behind circling the wagons is protection. I therefore knew I wanted to heavily feature the color white, which is generally regarded as the most powerful and protective of colors, and that I wanted the yarn to be warm, soft and squishy. I am new to spinning, and only discovered Pluckyfluff and Holly's blogs this week after buying Pluckyfluff's new book "Intertwined". I was struck in Holly's blog by the beauty of her beach photos. It is obvious that the beach not only brings her inspiration in her work, but is also very special to her. In honor of this I dyed aqua ocean colors to ply with the white.

Have a look at all of the other BEAUTIFUL yarns in the challenge here. I was just so impressed by the colors and textures, just so beautiful. Actually, I have to admit that I saw some of them before I entered mine, and nearly didn't email the details off as I felt mine was so inferior to theirs. But then I remembered that we are doing this to raise some money, gave myself a slap and sent my email!

If you see one you particularly like, then please go and buy or bid here! Remember that all of the yarns are donated by the spinner. They were spun with love and the hope that we can raise some cash for Holly.

Party hat

I used my handspun "80's party dress" superwash corriedale from spunky's December fiber club shipment to create this "party hat" for DS.





It seems to be warming up here in AZ now, so not sure if he will really wear it, and I don't think it will fit next year, but I just couldn't resist. It is so cute! He loves it, has been wearing it around the house all day.

The pattern is from Last Minute Knitted Gifts, and is "Kim's Hat's", the earflap version. My yarn is bulkier than that required, so I followed the Babies size of the pattern to come out with the measurements of a child size. I got the thing done in 1 night, it was a very fast knit!

Koolaid!

I had a turn dying roving with Koolaid the other day. I dyed up some Masham and some Corriedale, using the tutorial here (it is very good!).

Anyway, this is what I ended up with:



The red in the first pic is slightly redder, and the second is more green and turquoise. Camera just won't take any pics with accurate color!

They smell pretty (fruity!) and overall I am happy. You can't get much easier than dying with Koolaid in the microwave! I will check which flavors I used, and update later. Just can't remember at the moment!

My pretty wheel...

OK, so I finally got around to taking some pictures of my beautiful wheel that Santa brought:



I just LOVE it! It is the Ashford traveller, double treadle. We had our first "outing" yesterday. I went to the Arizona Desert Weavers & Spinners Guild (ADWSG), and took my wheel along. What a fantastic meeting! We had a talk by Bhakti Zeik who is a fantastically accomplished weaver. I do not weave myself, but her work was just so inspiring and beautiful, and so fascinating to listen to!

After the meeting I stayed behind for a little to spin. I started my January fiber from Spunky's fiber club. It is 4 oz of Icelandic wool in the colorway "Snow Squall". Wow, it is gorgeous! I carried on spinning when I got home, and as it was so beautiful, I sat in the garden. (I know we are in Arizona now, but still can't get over sunny weather in January!!) The fiber comes into it's own in the sunshine, when it appears magically metallic. Just so shiny and silvery, like some magic fiber from Hogwarts or something! Anyway I went from this:


to this:

I got it plied and skeined today while watching the Superbowl pre-game festivities (our 1st ever superbowl!), but didn't get any pictures yet.

After the inspiration from Intertwined (see last message), I went out and bought some goodies that I might want to add into my spinning. Yes, that is a ball of eyelash yarn you see, and no I haven't gone crazy! All will be revealed later. There is also pink & white wavy ribbon, and an assortment of beads. Can't wait to play!

Intertwined

I went to Borders yesterday. As always I checked out the knitting books, even though I already have any that interest me. Yesterday was an exception however. There were a couple of new books that caught my eye, but this one in particular I simply could not put down. It was actually so irresistible that although I had a 40% off coupon at home and the store is only down the road, I could not possibly wait. I had to buy it there and then!It is called Intertwined, and is by Lexi Boeger, aka pluckyfluff. What a fantastic book! Essentially it discusses methods and includes some patterns for spinning and then knitting/crocheting with "art yarns". It is more than a "here is a pattern, go follow it and create this item" book though. It is a real source of inspiration, and honestly has made me look at spinning in a whole new way (although I got the book yesterday, I read the whole thing as soon as I got in last night. I could not put it down!). It is not a read it once and you're done book either. The book itself is so beautiful, just looking through at the pictures is inspiring!

I went onto pluckyfluff's site for the first time this morning, and read about a challenge that is running until next week see here. The challenge has been organised in the theme of "circling the wagons", as all yarns entered are being donated by their creator to be auctioned off. The money raised will go to Holly of hollyeqq.com, who has some medical issues to deal with at the moment, and I gather could really do with the extra cash. Again, I only discovered Holly's site this morning, but I am definitely going to contribute. Every little skein helps, right. Which is why everyone should try to contribute something. Details of the challenge are on the yarn museum website here. All entries have to be in by Sat Feb 9th.

Let RSC 2008 commence...

and wowee, Tina has truly done it again!

Honestly, I was aware that the first package of the 2008 Rockin Sock Club would be sent out in January, but I have been so busy spinning (with a few knitting projects on the side :) ) that I just haven't even been thinking about when it would get here. So I was surprised to find it in my mailbox just now!

It is truly truly scrumptiously gorgeous! Colorway is "dragon dance" (printed on the inside of the ballband is my dragon's name: Norbert!!! I love it!!!!) The colors are red and burgundy and pink:


I know I say it with every RSC package, but "this may be my absolute favourite color!!!"


The pattern is "Serendipity" by Adrian Fong :The intro to the pattern reads:
Take a simple lace stitch,
and a handpainted yarn
Sometimes, magic happens.
It's "Serendipity!"


We also got our usual mini-keychain skein of yarn. We also got 2 fantabulous badges (if you're English like me) or buttons (if you're American).


The pic below shows the badges again with a bumper sticker we received:


I should really finish some projects before starting this one, but I just can't wait!!! I shall be casting these babies on immediately!

Sorry for the lengthy absence...

I have just been so busy! The biggy news, I got a beeeoootifoool spinning wheel from Santa! It is an Ashford Traveller with double treadle, and I just love it! Haven't gotten around to taking a pic of it yet, but will do so soon and get it uploaded.

I have spun up a few skeins of yarn now, and overall am very happy with them! These pictures are of Romney in colorway "goblin eyes", the october fiber from the spunky fiber club. I am so in love with spunky's fibers. I love that every month we get not only a radically different color to previous months, but the fiber is different too! Having the opportunity to try new fibers and new colors is just so important with spinning, as I have quickly learned that the finished yarn often bears little resemblance to the roving! This is a picture of the roving:


Single on the bobbin:

2ply skeined:

December's colorway was a very bright "party dress", fiber is Corriedale.
I basically got two skeins from the roving. The first is red plied with green:


The second is green plied with turqoise:


I don't think there is a spinner on the planet who doesn't buy from Spunky, but just in case you happen to be one!! check out her website here. She truly created works of art in her fiber, the colors are always just beautiful. She also has a blog here which I have found so useful as a new spinner. There are a few tutorials as well as some free patterns etc.

RSC Raven

So Octobers kit arrived from Rockin Sock Club (a few weeks ago actually, but I have been busy and haven't found time to post...) It is from the Raven series, and is a beautiful deep burgundy color. The pattern that came with it is inspired by the Edgar Allen Poe poem "The Raven". Although I love the pattern, I don't think I will use it with this yarn. We will have to see...


Funny story about when it arrived. As you may (or may not) know, we have recently moved to Arizona from North East England. In England about the worst insect you can find is a garden bumble bee. Nothing scary at all. In Arizona however... between rattlesnakes, black widow spiders, scorpions, tarantulas and a host of other nasties, it is a different story. To say I am jumpy about insects is an understatement. Can you imagine my reaction then when I opened this months kit to find 3 HUGE spiders in there. I kid you not, I froze with fear and could not BREATHE for all of 5 seconds, I THOUGHT THEY WERE REAL! Afterwards thought it was hilarious, but for that space of time (which felt a whole lot longer than 5 seconds) I seriously couldn't breathe! It was a little gifty from the Blue Moon ladies in celebration of Halloween (kit arrived a week or so before Halloween).

On another note, I have finished one, and am past the heel on the other Summer of Love Lace sock in Rockin Sock yarn, Nodding Violet colorway. I haven't grafted the toe on this one yet. I am pleased with how they are turning out. The color pools on the lace cuff, then feathers beautifully around the foot. They will be a gift, need to hurry and get them finished in time to post for xmas. Should make it OK (although knitting time is severely reduced lately by pesky situations life throws at you, as well as time spent on spinning, my new found passion!

Aspen spun...

I recently spun up my September fiber from Spunky Eclectic club. It is a beautiful Merino Tencel fiber in "Aspen" colorway. I spun it on my new drop spindle, and had so much fun with it! It was just gorgeous to work with, and the colours are amazing! The tencel gives it the most beautiful shine! This isn't the greatest picture to show off the colors, but here it is as a single:


As I don't own a wheel yet, my only option for plying is using my drop spindle. I really would have liked to ply it with itself, but I decided I wouldn't have enough yards, and as I was using the spindle it would be a lot easier to ply with another yarn. I therefore decided to ply it with some Rowan 100% Alpaca that I already had. The alpaca is the larger ball underneath the Aspen:

I have already plied and used the yarn to make a cowl, which I LOVE! Not sure how much use I will have for a cowl in Arizona though :) I haven't taken pics yet. I will take some soon and get them uploaded. Things are pretty hectic still (hence I haven't really posted since before we moved!) but hopefully we will start getting more settled soon...

I also recently received Octobers fiber from Spunky:


It is called "Goblin Eyes" and is Romney. The purple is less blue and more deep purple than it appears in the picture, but other than that the colors are pretty true. Haven't started spinning this one up yet, but the pictures from others on the Spunky club site look gorgeous!

New Drop Spindle

Yesterday we visited Kathy from Unique Designs by Kathy at her shop in Tucson, Arizona. What a fabulous time I had! The shop is adjacent to her home, which meant that she was able to show us around introducing her animals, whose fibre she sells in her shop both as handspun yarn and roving. We met her llamas, sheep and goats, who all seemed so happy and content there. It was great to be able to "put a face" (so to speak!) to the fiber in the shop.

She then showed me her work in the shop. There were beautiful wet felted pieces in the form of bowls, hats, bags and landscapes to hang on the wall (check out her website here for some pictures of what she sells), as well as knitted items, and of course the yarn and roving. Kathy is just so friendly and helpful, I am a new spinner and I learned so much from her in our short trip yesterday! She also sells a line of handspun yarns that she calls "hidden treasures" Wow! (see pictures on her blog here, although they don't do the yarn justice! Has nothing to do with Kathy's photos, you just can't capture in a picture the textures, colors and beauty of these yarns). There is a mix of fibers in there for a textured effect, including ribbons, and then periodically there are beads, buttons, feathers etc. Truly wonderful works of art. I felt so inspired being around her store and seeing her work.

I bought a GORGEOUS new drop spindle from her. It was made by a gentleman from Kundert Spindles, and I am just ecstatic over it! It is Maple, with accents of Red cedar, Maple and Bloodwood on the whorl. It is truly a beautiful piece of art, and was hand turned to create such a well balanced spindle. The one I was previously using was a homemade DIY job, which worked well, but oh my gosh! After using this new spindle last night, I could never use anything else again! The quality of what I was spinning increased ten-fold and it was such a pleasure to use! I feel like a real spinner now!


I also bought roving from Kathy. The brown and black in it is from her llama, then I think she said the colored fiber was Shetland. It also has some angel tinsel through it. I started spinning it last night, and am really pleased with how it is turning out. It looks silvery grey, with flecks of the tinsel shimmer, then tweedy bits of orange and white.



What a cutie model demonstrating my new spindle:


As a note, if you happen to be around Tucson, Arizona on Saturday 3rd November, Kathy has organized the "Tucson Wool Festival 2007" to be held on her property.

Rockin Sock yarn shipment

Upon arriving in Arizona, one of the immediate benefits was that I had a shipment from the lovely Blue Moon ladies waiting for me... some of my favorite yarn! I just LOVE Rockin' sock yarn! There are others that I really like a lot, but I think this is my favorite for socks. It has such a lovely smoosh and spring to it, and the colors are always so fabulous!


I got (in order from top to bottom):
Sugarplums in Mediumweight
Mesa in Mediumweight (seeing as I now live 'round the corner from Mesa!)
Nodding Violet in Lightweight
Philosopher's Stone in Lightweight (possibly my fave colorway of them all!)

I also got a skein of "Downpour" in lightweight, which are nearly a pair of Cedar Creeks.


They are a little big for me as they will be a xmas pressie for my hubby (hence just a plain cast on edge instead of the pretty picot edge in the pattern). I am really pleased with how they are turning out. They are fun to knit, and I got into the pattern straight away, didn't take long to be able to knit them without referring to chart.