Monday, July 22, 2013

in progress and plans


 I haven't been spinning much thanks to work being a little busier and the temperatures soaring, but with just a little practice, I started getting more consistent:
It's been pretty hot here lately so wool just isn't drawing me in at the moment though I really want to get back to my spinning. So fun! =)

I have been knitting though. That skein I mentioned a couple posts ago
I started a wrap with it and yesterday was a lazy, hot day so I caught up on some podcasts and knit away in the comfort of my air conditioning. =)

This is what it looks like now:
I'm working on the 7th of 8 sections of my Wingspan. I'll have a finished pic for you soon!

Next up?
I picked up this gray/blue/white variegated cotton/acrylic (with a touch of sparkle) from the clearance bin this weekend and I'm thinking of a nice, lightweight summer cardi. Still deciding on a pattern.

I also finally caved and signed up on Instagram. Yeah, I should have done that a long time ago! If you're there, look me up... I'm stashless. =)

Monday, July 08, 2013

Christmas in July!

It feels like Christmas! =)

This is what came in the mail on Friday:
Christmas in July!

So... what goodies were in those boxes?

These:
my new toy...

Yep, I finally drank the Kool-Aid. I bought a Hansen minispinner!! I've been looking at these and travel spinning wheels for ages. Even the travel wheels I think would be too bulky for in the rv and I kept changing my mind. I've had one of these electric minispinners in my virtual cart multiple times and always took it back out... but not this time! lol I decided I was worth a splurge... and I don't regret it one little bit. I've already paid off the charges on my credit card so it's all good. =) I also bought a lazy kate to make plying yarn simpler. Yeah, I could rig something up, but if I'm splurging, I might as well get what I want, right? lol Every thing is very compact and fits well in the rv. I knew too that these resell for nearly as much as they go for new so I figured if I bought it and hated it, I could sell it again and get most of my money back.

Of course it showed up Friday while I was still fairly early in my work day. *sigh* So I left it all in the box. Since it's Tour de Fleece (running in conjunction with Tour de France, of course), many shops were offering sales so I then went off in search of some fiber to spin. The first package was to arrive Saturday, but I wanted to start on some less expensive fiber since I'm a complete newbie so I headed off to Paradise Fibers here in Spokane and bought some fiber. I can't say I was overly impressed with Paradise Fibers, but I got what I needed to get started. I opened the boxes when I got home and the spinner came with a small sample of the same fiber I bought, just in a different colorway.

After a few false starts (there's a learning curve here), I got going and spun up the sample:
first ever handspun!!

Yeah, pretty much what I was expecting... overspun, underspun, thick and thin. LOL But I love it because I made yarn!! =)

So then I started on the fiber I bought:
handspun

A little better, but still pretty wonky.

I spun more on Sunday morning and things evened out a bit:
Untitled

I think I might be a little underspun on a lot of this, but I'm finding my groove... and I love it!! I have 8oz of this fiber and plan to spin it on two bobbins so I can ply it together.

Once I get more consistent, I'll break into that awesome hand-dyed fiber I bought. =) I still need to get a bag to store it all in and I know the one I want, just deciding on a fabric. Now I just need my own sheep... or an alpaca. LOL


Sunday, June 30, 2013

sweltering sheep

I made it!

I was trying to get my sweater done by the end of June... and I made it!

I even really like it. LOL It needs to be blocked so the lace will open up more and I need to find buttons for it, but the knitting is done! =) I'll post pics later on once it's got buttons and it's not so dang hot outside that I can actually put it on for a picture without spontaneously combusting. Yep, 100% wool sweaters and 95-100 degree weather does not mix well. heh

I showed it to my friend and she said how pretty it was... then immediately went into what she would change. This is the same friend who's been suggesting I knit her a sweater. This one took me a month and a half to complete since I have had limited knitting time. Yeah, I think I'll stick to knitting for me. Totally selfish... and I'm okay with that. I do knit for other people, but I don't knit sweaters for other people. ;-)

Next up? Something with this:
Light and summery in both color and fiber content. =)

I've been in a much better mood this past week. Less work and more knitting... good for the soul!

Sunday, June 23, 2013

still slow... and not so steady

It's taking me what seems like forever, but I am making progress on my sweater...
 
 
I now have the body and one sleeve done and have started on the second sleeve. Once I finish that second sleeve, I'll be able to put all the pieces on one needle and work the lacy yoke. There's an end in sight! =)

Haven't played with the wheel yet at all, but I have been looking at spinning fibers online...

Friday, June 14, 2013

dancing with the wheel...

Since I'm guessing a lot of you don't know how a wheel like the one I got works (I didn't), I found a couple videos on YouTube of people using a walking wheel/great wheel similar to the one I found yesterday. It's like a dance:


And another view:


How very cool. =)

well, just look at that!

Look what happened to make its way into my life...



She needs a little work (and a name), but she's a beauty! I'm told this is from the early 1800s but I haven't done any research. The price was right though and I don't mind adding a little elbow grease to get her back into fighting (spinning) shape. :-)