Knits from 2012

This post is going to be very short, considering the title.   I started and finished a total of two whole knitting projects last year.  I also did a little (very little) spinning.

I did finish some sewing projects, and did a ton of work in Photoshop for Project Life. (I have gone from totally not getting the point of digital scrapbooking to being completely addicted.)   Most of my accomplishments are in digital format – but I have printed a few photo books.    I have done a lot of art journal type canvases in PSE; it’s very cathartic for me – without a huge mess to clean up at the end!  I may share some here eventually.

Anyway, back to the knitting.   I made myself a super easy, color changing scarf using Knit Picks Chroma:

See details on Ravelry

Most recently I made my Dad a thin, soft, ribbed hat for his birthday in October.   I was worried about his temporarily bald head being chilly.  Luckily his new chemo doesn’t affect hair follicles and it is growing back.   He still likes the hat, though. :)   The yarn is Miss Babs Yummy Sock.

See details on Ravelry

The spinning was accomplished during the “Tour de Fleece” last summer.   I honestly don’t remember any details of these.  The last photo in the collage is the fiber I wanted to spin to reach my goal.  Ha!

I have also been eyeing my wheel again lately.   It feels so good to feel better.   Like my synapses are firing again, and the fog is lifting.    I can’t wait for spring to finally arrive.

Tour de Fleece, Finis

Although I didn't meet my goal for ounces spun during the Tour de Fleece, I am very happy with what I accomplished both in finished yarn and skills improved from spinning every day.

I wanted to put up a quick "stats" post but have been delayed by our first disaster of home ownership: a flooded lower level.

Luckily it wasn't feet of water, only inches, and we managed to save almost everything that got wet except for papers, a few books, and some holiday decorations. We tried in vain to save the carpet but it looks like we are going to have to rip up about 500 square feet of carpeting. (That we can't afford to replace right now; hello concrete floor!) So much for my cozy family room...

My new mantra is "It could be worse".

Anyway, here is my completed selection of Tour de Fleece yarns:





It is close to 850 yds total from 19 oz finished; the singles totaled ~1,500 yards.

I am looking forward to doing it again next year!

Tour de Fleece, Days 19-23

I'm still playing catch-up here. But I am very pleased to say that I did complete the Tour de Fleece by spinning every day and not forgetting about it halfway through as I have a tendency to do with these things.

Coming to the end, I started spinning some Mountain Colors Targhee Top my Mom bought for me at The Fold. I found it to be a little sticky and hard to draft. Not sure if this is because of the type of fleece, how it was dyed, or the fact that it has been crammed into my fiber storage bag for over a year.





I ended up pre-drafting a lot which I never really do anymore. But it made this somewhat enjoyable to work on instead of frustratingly difficult.





I chain-plied to keep the colors together but didn't do such a hot job. As I was making the loops I totally forgot about watching for the color changes. So it will be a surprise when it knits up... maybe it will still stripe.

Tour de Fleece, Days 17-18

On these two days I worked on spinning my first batt and "art yarn". It's no where near true art yarn, but it's the most outrageous thing I've down thus far in my spinning career.

I had a 3oz Hanks in the Hood batt from Paradise Fibers that had been marinating in my stash for a while.





I spun it into a lightly twisted, bulky single...



(sorry for the awful photo)


... and then plied it with purple cotton sewing thread.





The plying was definitely a learning experience. It took a few tries to get the look I wanted and even after that it's not very consistant.

I needed more twist in my original single - it drifted apart a few times as I was plying. I am a little afraid to use, but I think after a hot wash it'll be able to hold itself together. I can't wait to try this technique again.

Tour de Fleece, Days 13-16

I thought I'd spare you three days of almost identical photos of my spinning and share this fiber all at once.

..actually, I didn't feel like turning on my computer to post individual posts on each day. Is it any wonder my blog usually suffers?

I didn't spin at all on day 13. I was fighting a migraine and spent the entire night lying in bed in the dark, with earplugs and an eyeshade. I was able to function the rest of the weekend, so it must have worked.

On to the fiber. On days 14 and 15 I spun up two bobbins of Fiber Optic Yarns 50% superwash merino/50% bamboo fiber. Today I finished the last bit of fiber and plied.






I love plying. It's like magic to me. Suddenly, yarn!

It's about 13 wpi and I got 288 yards.

Tour de Fleece, Days 7 & 8

Friday and Saturday I didn't do any new spinning, just plying.





This is the Border Leicester fiber in "Spring Forest". It's a two ply, and I'm very happy with how it turned out. I made a decision to underspin the singles a little and then over ply them and the yarn turned out just as I hoped. Soft and bouncy instead of ropey and loosely twisted around each other. Hey, I'm actually getting better at this stuff!

I ended up with around 160 yards from 4oz. Not great, considering it's around worsted weight but not horrible either.

Tour de Fleece, Day 1

On Ravelry, I am participating in the "Tour de Fleece" this year. It's a fun non-competition where you spin yarn while the Tour de France rides. I've never joined in past years because, frankly, I know next to nothing about the Tour de France and I'm usually so far behind the curve hearing about these things that it's too late anyway.

Well, I caught the chatter about it in time this year and realized that there really isn't a strong connection (or at least there doesn't have to be) between the Fleece tour and the France tour. You just make yarn.

It helped that the Tour started a week after I took three spinning classes, and have been itching use my wheel more. My personal goals are to spin every day the Tour rides, finish a least six stash fibers, and try new things.

Today, July 2nd, was day 1. I tried something new by using my new mini turkish drop spindle to spin a mini art batt (from a Phat Fiber box) and ply it onto itself. I'm impressed with myself that I actually used a spindle to make yarn. I usually just end up frustrated in a tangle of fiber.





If I do manage to stick with this every day, it could do wonders for my blogging as well!

Making Yarn.

During the last few weeks I have had an irresistible urge to spin some yarn. I haven't done any spinning in a while, since last year, since I have been working on other projects and didn't want to "drag" my wheel out into the middle of them. (Incidentally, this is also why I have a huge pile of sewing projects waiting in my closet on top of my sewing machine case.)

But my desire to spin won out over my desire not to feel buried in things to do and my wheel has been in the living room ever since. My hubby could care less, as long at it not blocking the TV. I've spun two braids of fiber so far*:

This Spunky Eclectic Club Fiber, which is a gorgeous naturally dark BFL with some rich colors added:



a singles yarn, about DK weight, about 350 yards I think


and this Montadale wool fiber from Esther's Place and the Illinois Wool Co-Op:



two ply, heavy worsted weight, not sure on yardage yet


I really loved spinning the Montadale fiber. It seems to be kind of a rare find and I think I am going to have to go back to Esther's Place to find more. I have some ideas of what I want to spin next both in regards to fibers and styles of spinning. I want to try a three-ply sock weight yarn, a two-ply lace weight yarn, and a bulky singles yarn. "Try" being the operative word in there, since nothing I've ever spun has really turned out as I planned yet. Still need more practice!!

I've also been plugging away on Dad's Christmas Sweater. I am almost to the second and final set of neck shaping short rows. It it going sooo muuuuuch slooower the second time around. I think I finished the entire yoke in the three days before Christmas. Of course, that's probably why it look so much better this time around!

And a little hint: if you are knitting a garment for someone as a surprise and you know that you are going to have to rip it out to get the fitting right, do not weave in all of your ends, especially the kitchener under the arms, to the very best of your ability. It will take forever to find and pick them out. I know this from experience.

*Sorry for the lousy blurry, flashy photos. We haven't had much sun lately, and I never remember to take photos while it's out.

Key Chain Sock Blocker

I bought this adorable little sock blocker keychain from The Loopy Ewe a few months ago, and just got around to knitting a little sock for it.




(I realize that I forgot to put anything in for scale - it's about 2.5 inches tall)

The yarn for this little sock was leftover from yarn I spun for my mom. (I still need to take some decent photos of her yarn.) I had some thin singles left on one of the bobbins and chain plyed it just to clear the bobbin for the Neapolitan yarn I wrote about yesterday. It turned out very soft and squishy, and looked a whole lot like sock yarn. I was very excited since while I've seen a lot of gorgeous handspun sock yarn, I didn't think I'd be capable of it for a long time. Maybe I will give it a try sooner.

I have been home sick from work for the last two afternoons. (I've gone in for the mornings since some work just had to get done.) I hate missing work; I haven't had to take sick time in over a year because I don't usually get sick. I am feeling pretty bad and am just hoping I don't have the pig flu. Ugh.

Finished Yarn: Neapolitan

I've been itching to do some spinning since I purchased the alpaca fiber last week. I have a growing stash of nice fiber, but haven't had the nerve to spin much of it for fear of 'ruining' it.

In my defense, it's not like knitting - if I mess up, I can't just un-spin it. (Would that be nips? Like tink?)

Anyway, my desire to make yarn took over and I got out some Neapolitan Blue Faced Leicester fiber from Spunky Eclectic. I tried spinning from the fold for the first time, in an attempt to get a little softer, loftier yarn than those I have previously spun.






It worked so well. Much easier than I anticipated, and it seemed to go quickly too. I ended up with around 114 yarns of semi bulky yarn from 4oz of fiber. I haven't measured the wraps per inch yet, but I'm guessing it's around 7 wpi.

I think I am going to make a cowl or short cabled scarf from it.

Finished: New Day yarn

I finished spinning and plying my Spunky Eclectic roving Wednesday night. Unsurprisingly, it didn't end up looking anywhere near what I was imaging but I'm sure that will improve with practice. (Whether my spinning improves to match my expectations or my expectations become more reasonable is anyone's guess.) I haven't decided what I am going to make with it yet, but it has been sitting beside me all evening. It's very nice to pat and squish every now and then.

Specs:
Fiber: 4 oz of Spunky Eclectic Club February '09 "New Day", Corridale wool
Ply: 2-ply
WIP: 7-8
Yardage: ~220
Started/Finished: March 14 - March 18

Projects I'm considering include a hat (Abalone by Woolly Wormhead?) and a simple lace scarf. Whatever pattern I choose needs to be able to show off the colors well.