Merry Christmas, everyone!

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! =)

(Ravelry link)

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!

(Ravelry project details)

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. =)

Christmas in July!

It feels like Christmas! =)

This is what came in the mail on Friday:

So... what goodies were in those boxes?

These:

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:

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:

A little better, but still pretty wonky.

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

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

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

(Ravelry project page for details)

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!

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! =)

(project details on Ravelry)

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

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. :-)