The in between things

You know, I have to be honest.  I'm really, really, really looking forward to September first.  The kids head back to school on September first.  This week has been full of everything and nothing all at once. The everything: kids needing this/that/the other, school supply runs, new pets, general house maintenance that keeps getting interrupted due to the kids needing me.... The nothing: fibre fun!  I've not made a single thing in the past week.... Did you know it's next to impossible to lace knit when your kids are all over you? Both literally and figuratively... But, I've got some pretty pictures of things I've made in the past few months heck, lets make that in the past year... So I'll share those, in hopes that I can remember what it's like to make things! ;)

This fibre is called Loons on the Lake, and was a part of the Heritage Spinning Box.   It was on 100% merino top.

This one has no name. it's just pretty... still on the merino top base... 

This is a swatch that is intending to show that this yarn would be suitable for a pair of adult socks. The fibre blend was 80%cotton 20% nylon (faux cashmere nylon).  This was for one of the assignments in the Level 5 work book of the Master Spinner program.

This one is a 50/50 blend of merino and baby llama! It's so soft! 3 ply.

See, I have been up to lots... just not lately... ;)  10 more days!!!  10 more days! 10 more days!!!! 

Happily Spinning,

~Kara

Pretty things

In lieu of a proper post with words, I give you a post of pretty pictures of pretty stuff. ;)  Just click on the arrows on the sides, you'll see all the pretty scarves I recently made!

~Kara

Found it Friday!

On a Saturday!! whoops!! Best excuse ever though. We went to the fair yesterday! And the pool, and the sidewalk sale and by the time we came home and I did all the things I needed to do but didn't because I was busy having fun with the kids, I was exhausted and completely forgot what day it even was....

Image Credit: http://foulawool.co.uk/foula.htm

So today I bring something @LouisebScollay shared on twitter! Foula Wool!  Another breed of sheep found on the Island of Foula, near the Shetland Islands.  I love discovering the crazy range of breeds of this amazing creature.  I'd love to get my hands on some, though from the sounds of it, it only comes as yarn. That wouldn't be so bad, because I do knit. Think of the fair isle sweater I could make with these Natural colours!
Check out their Story :  http://foulawool.co.uk/foula.htm  They even have a contact form, and I might see if I can get some wool to spin.  If it's as fine as they say, I bet it would be a dream to spin!

~Kara

today's contemplations

So I'm sitting here, with a sick kiddo sent home from school.  Seems he's caught the sinus infection I picked up sometime over Easter.  Of course the others are home too, but none the less, having that extra sick kid puts a different feel to the day.   It kind of slows things down.  And oddly enough with things feeling slowed, it gives me a chance to think.  Mostly I'm thinking about my final project.
I picked up the shawl again last night and knit for a couple hours, only putting about 10 more holes in the darn thing.   That pretty much set my decision to change directions, yet again.   So now I'm going to spin up the BFL in basically the same weight as the grey long wool, and knit up some of these Legwarmies.  The fibre's almost all prepped (just a bit more flick carding), now just to get my wheel set up and ready to go!  Shouldn't be long now.

So while I sit and think about my final project, I'm going to share with you a scarf I knit.

This is the Helix scarf from the pattern published in Spin Off, spring 2011.  I knit it with a merino possum blend yarn from New Zealand.  It was a fairly mindless knit, but took forever!  I suppose that is what happens when your needles are a size 2....   I'm going to send it to my Grandma.  Hopefully she doesn't read my blog regularly.  That would ruin the surprise of a scarf in the mail!

I'm also going to share these two gorgeous and unique drop spindles that were made for me by Blacksmith over on Craftster.org.  He came along onto the fibre boards and wowed us all with his wood turning skills, and I just had to have one, so I sent him a message and we set up a trade.  Well he sent me two!   I sent him a skein of yarn and some fibre on return.  The solid one is just so interesting to look at, and spins a nice heavy yarn.  The open one spins forever! It also give a heavier yarn, but not quite as heavy as the solid.  I love them and can't wait to sit and spin on the deck with them this spring once it finally warms up.


Okay, off to finish that prep... or just veg and cuddle with my sickie.

~Kara

Well, so much for that.

This is was my final project yarn:



It's coarse, it's uneven, it's not what this lovely BFL fleece wanted to be.  So I'm starting over. I'll make hubby a pair of uber durable socks out of it... if you can make socks out of 250 yards of 9wpi yarn.

So this extends my personal deadline, again, by probably 2-3 weeks.  Oh well, I'd way rather send away something I'm proud of, then something that I really don't like.

~Kara

Drum Cardin'!!

dude!  I received my drum carder yesterday!  And I have to tell you, there just isnt' enough fibre in the world, nor less is there enough time in the day to card!
I got home with the box, with only enough time to open it up and pull it out of the box before having to get my kiddos from school/the sitters.  Let me tell you, there was bubble wrap a flying!  It was like one of those videos you see of a kid ripping into a Christmas gift, where there's a terrible mess everywhere afterwards.  I was so excited to finally have it!  So of course I had to leave my new Kitten at home to get my kids, and there it sat until I stuck the pizza in the oven.  I set the timer and told the husband to listen for the beep and take it out when it was ready.  Downstairs I flew, with a handful of random assortments of fibre (I've been collecting the remnants of my tops and rolags, the stuff that didn't fit onto the last bobbin in a cubby in the entertainment unit for a while now) And then this happened:



Don't worry though, I managed to get the whole thing cleaned off and looking almost brand new again.
This is what the final batt looks like, chunky funky and down right hideous.




But hey, it's my first try right, and I was just experimenting with what would happen if I do this, or that or what ever?
Then supper was ready.  Boooo!  And then Hubby went out to wing night.  Double boo!!!  And THEN the kiddos refused to stay in their beds!  Triple BOOOO!!!!  So of course I got no drum carding in at all after that, and before I went to bed myself.
But this morning, I made these ones, while the kids watch Thomas the Tank engine and Cailou movies.



I'd say that's a pretty drastic improvement, eh?  I've discovered that I need to manually feed the fibre onto the top of the carder in order to not waste as much of it... But somehow I think that's wrong, and I'll be asking the kindly folks over on the Fancy Kitty Lovers group on Ravelry.com why I'm ending up with so much "waste".  "Waste" I will spin into something cray cray.

Anywho, This has really been keeping me distracted from what I really should be doing, my homework.  But I'm still bound and determined to be done by April 1.  I've signed up for level 2, so I really do need to finish!

~Kara

Fleece sections

One of the modules in the Master Spinner Level One workbook has you look at an entire fleece and study it.   Now, I had originally thought "A sheep is a sheep is a sheep".   And that idea went straight out the window when I attended Fibre Week last year.  During the class last year we looked at individual fleeces, and kind of examined them section by section.  But it wasn't until I sat down and did the module that really showed me just how varied a fleece can get!  The staple length varies, section to section. As does the crimp structure, and the texture, and even the lock structure.
So the next time you get a whole fleece, dump the whole bag out on your kitchen floor (because it's going to be a dirty process) and look.  If your fleece was bundled up nicely, chances are you can un roll it and see just how it came off the animal.  I'm guessing you'll be as surprised as I was!


~Kara

Wool type matters

Well,  I caught a tummy bug that took the life right outta me for 3 days.  I'm only now, 5 days later, feeling like I can do much of anything.  It was ugly.  But no details because, well,  eww.

The really sad part was it set me back quite far back in my homework.  Do you know how much washing I could get done in those 5 days?  4 breeds.  I could have pretty much had my breeds all washed and ready to go.  Oh well, I suppose this is the point of the 'Of Mice and Men' quote.
Anyway, before I got sick I managed to get a worsted merino, woolen merino, and a woolen teeswater skien spun.  And the knit swatches of the merinos.  I only managed to get a picture of the woolen teeswater and woolen merino side by side.  It's what I find to be most interesting anyway.  Check this out:



Now, let me explain.  Both skeins were originally wraped around the same part on my niddy noddy, both were finished by fulling, and both were hung without weight.  Look at the first picture.  LOOK!  Isn't it cool?!  That crimp, the energy in the merino, makes the merino look that much shorter, but look how much it stretches! (in the second photo)  So cool, I say.
Now, some may wonder 'why does this matter?'  The finished fabric made with these wool types is going to be infinitly different.  Take a pair of socks for example.  Make a pair of merino socks, they will be stretchy and snug.   Make a pair of teeswater socks, and those babies are going to sloutch, and not stay up very well.  They'll be silky and nice but it you don't like slippery socks, then don't be spining them teeswater.
On the other hand, make a big flowy shawl for something like a christening or wedding.  You're going to want the teeswater, as this breed will give you the drape you are after.   Merino will be bouncy and would work too, but the teeswater would just look nicer, given it's lustor.
I suppose this is why we do the breed study.  To see these amazingly interesting differences in breeds.  It brings out the Sustanabilityist in me. It makes me wonder why we need extruded fibers, chemical fibers, fibers that cause polution.  Why do we need those things, when we were given wool, from many different breeds of sheep, that suit so many different purpose.  And lets not forget other natural fibers, like silk, cotton, and linen.  Heck you can spin nettle too, if you know how to get at the fibers in it's stalks.
... Mother Nature is amazing, isn't she?


~Kara

"The best laid plans...

...of mice and men often go astray."   Or at least that's how the original quote goes.  But I'm not a man or a mouse, so this wont apply to me when I make this list of things that need to get done, right?

 The List, the big list of what I need to accomplish before March 1.  Why March 1?  March 1 is the day registration opens for Fibre Week 2012.  I'd love to finished the homework I'd planned on being completely completed by now before I sign up for Level 2.

1. Wash all the wool -  well, most of the wool.  At least the amount of wool required to complete the workbook requirements.  All of it would be nice, but that's like 10 pounds of wool...
2. Spin my homework-  not the stuff I bought that would be sooooo much fun to play with.  I need a big electrified barbed wire fence to surrounding my "for fun" wool.  Temptation is the Devils best friend, don'tchaknow?
3. Proof read and type up the written assignments-  that doesn't sound all that hard, right?  But for me that's probably going to be the hardest part.  Good to know though, that a friend who is a teacher offered to proof read them for me.
4. Mount my dyed yarn samples-  on the nice black 12x12 scrap book paper I bought just for this purpose.  
5. Pull together all the stuff and create the final version of my Workbook-  This is the big finale. I can do this.  Right?  right.
6. OOPs! Nearly forgot.. Nature Dye a bunch of yarn-  That I spun.  Likely for my final project.  Speaking of final project... socks?  scarf?  rug?  hrm.....

Sounds do-able right?  To be honest, it kind of makes me nauseated to think of it all.  And that I have set this 2 month time line for myself.....

Who wants to hold me accountable?  Who's going to poke me in 2 weeks, and say "Hey,  are you doing your homework?  Better be."  Because honestly I think I'll need it.  I'll keep you all updated on my progress of course.    

So here I go, to clean the kitchen so I can get at the sinks and wash some wool....  The dreaded Blackface will be first I think....  ... Apparently AFTER I feed the kids, and get the not-so-baby-anymore-baby up out of bed.  

~Kara

Dye day

Today, its cold.  And it's raining.  Yes, raining.  On November 10th... Where's our snow?!   But when it gets dreary, I like to spin, and boy do I ever have a lot to spin right now!
On Sunday, I dyed up nearly 3 lbs of wool.  It was the first time I've done a huge batch like that in years.  Literally.   Sure I've done some quick stick it in a jar solar dyeing, but nothing like hand painted rovings, or kettle dyed locks.  My first two rovings turned out quite hideous, but sometimes a hideous roving turns into a beautiful yarn.  I call it the ugly duckling effect.
Anyway, enough words.  Time for a whole bunch of color!

Four different colorways here, left most 2 are merino top, and the two on the right are Cotswold roving.

 These are a  few of the beautiful BFL locks I hand washed. They took color beautifully.

 8oz kettle dyed merino top. It's spinning up quite wonderfully.

 These first two are the ones I'm considering ugly ducklings.  The yellow in the back is not an ugly duckling, it's beautiful.  It's all Cotswold.

Some of this will be spun up, and some will be sold as rovings,  mostly for thrummed mittens, as I'm not certain there's a single spinner up here, besides myself!  Though I do intend to change that, by having a few drop spindle kits at the craft fair on the 20th!

Anyway, back to spinning for me!  Hope you are having a wonderful day!

~Kara

6 lbs to go....

Today I start the daunting task of washing 6 pounds of Blue Face Leicester fleece lock by lock.  I've decided that even though it's a greasy fleece I'm only going to wash it, instead of scouring it.  But maybe, just maybe I'll change my mind and scour it anyway.  I just know that it will take a good long time to dip each of those locks 4 times.   Spinning a slightly greasy fleece isn't all that bad.  Once upon a time I wondered why on earth anyone would even touch a greasy fleece.  Now it's something I enjoy!  It's fun to see the pieces of the sheep, to be able to lay out a dirty fleece and identify the parts, sort them and spin them into just the right yarn.   Okay, so I can't quite spin just the right yarn yet, I'm not there in my learning, but that's the whole point of becoming a Master Spinner.
Anywho, wish me luck because the washing isn't  my favorite part, but it's something that must be done!

~Kara

Colour!

Time sure flies when you are having fun, doesn't it?  

I've been taking advantage of summers last hurrah.  No, not the beach.  I've been solar dyeing!  I plan to do one round of 6 jars every day until the temps go back down again.   One can never have enough color.
Jars of color! (yep, we like pickles.... >.> One day I'll peel those labels off.  Promise.)




My scarves and hankies:



Wool:



And speaking of dyeing, this past week my sister and her family were up here to visit.  We went into the forest for a hike and I came across quite a few things to harvest for natural dyeing.  Check out these awesome mushrooms!   I think they might be these ones.  If you know for sure, because you are an awesome mushroom identifier, let me know!

I also got a big bag of some type of moss/forest floor green stuff I hope will give me an interesting color.
And a friend of mine has these mushrooms popping up in her yard, and is giving them all to me.  They promise some great greys and green greys.


Another most fabulously fibre related development, I bought a double treadle kit for my Traveler!!  And it's here!  She's just as excited as I am (yes, my wheel is a girl.  She hasn't told me just yet what her name is though....)  I've also got 4 more bobbins!  Wewt!  More yarn can be made!  I can switch projects more often!   I had half a thought to paint the treadles with pretty things, but i want those on faster then fast, so a quick coat of varnish it is. 




Yep, it's been quite the busy week for me! What with the oldest back in school, "real work", and the visits from family, I'm surprised I got this much accomplished! I hope summer lasts a few more weeks for most you you out there, it's said to end tomorrow up in these parts.

~Kara