More Handspun

This is a closeup of a skein of Organic Merino I just finished plying...the fiber came from Spunky Eclectic in Lisbon, Maine. When I received the package, I wasn't too happy with the colorway - "Storms of Jupiter" - a mix of red, blue, brown, and white. Not my favorites, at all. But spinning it was a delight, and once I started plying it, I loved the subtlety of the colors. I think this is meant to be a scarf - just not sure what pattern it wants.

Here's the entire skein. So soft. 222 yards in all, sport weight.

Here's another Spunky Eclectic skein, SWBFL, in the colorway "Ooh-La-La Tropi-Cal". This fiber didn't please me either, but I like the finished product a little better. This is a 3-ply, worsted weight. I thought the barber-pole effect would diminish through a 3-ply, but that, obviously, is not the case.

Now I'm working on yet another Spunky Eclectic - wool top I received way back in October 2009. The colorway is "Ribbons" - yup, lots and lots of red, with some blue thrown in for variety. I don't like the color, but it's pleasant to spin.

By the way, Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there!

Where Did The Time Go?

Wow...almost four months have passed since my last post. Bad me. But it's not for lack of activity - rather, too MUCH activity. I've been knitting and spinning quite a lot, and then there's the job, the family, the house, travel....

Here's some 2-ply Polwarth I just finished spinning up. The fiber came from FatCatKnits . It was a joy to work with, and the colorway, "Lotus", delighted my eye. I managed to eke out 446 yards from 8 ounces.
The blue handspun seen to the right is a 2-ply from fiber purchased last October at the fabulous New York Sheep & Wool Festival in Rhinebeck. The booth was Carolina Homespun, and the fiber is from A Verb For Keeping Warm. I wish I'd had the foresight to purchase more - the 4 ounces yielded just 160 yards. This fiber is Blue Faced Leicester.


My first attempt at a 3-ply came out rather well, or at least I THINK it did, looking at it from my novice perspective. I have just 3 bobbins, so I filled all three and then wound off one of them into a center-pull ball. Yield was 610 yards of a DK/light worsted weight. I purchased the fiber last October from the Tintagel Farm booth at New York Sheep & Wool. I love the finished product, a 50/50 wool-mohair blend, in the "Tide Pool" colorway.

As for knitting, socks have been the focus, with the occasional bolero and tank thrown in to alleviate boredom. Not that socks ever bore me! I've been trying some toe-up patterns from the Rockin' Sock Club at Blue Moon Fiber Arts, as well as some stellar Janel Laidman treasures, inspired by epic fantasy, legend, and folklore.
To the left, Tristan and Isolde by Janel Laidman. To the right, a not-very-good photo of Laidman's Secret Garden socks, the March 2010 Rockin' Sock Club shipment. The close-up does a better job at doing justice to the colors - pinks, greens, and soft blue.




More socks! Yes, I know they are my addiction. This is a photo of Nancy Bush's Canada sock. I've been wanting to knit these for YEARS...finally got to it this May. Well, that's it for now - thought I had photos of my Lothlorien socks, but they're on another computer. Next time! And the next time will be sooner than this was, for sure!

Alpaka Tunic

It's done! I started Deborah Newton's Alpaka Tunic (sp.) back in January, but other projects pulled me away. I'm pretty pleased with the result - a lightweight but very warm tunic to wear over a turtleneck or long-sleeved tee.

I guess I really like Berocco's Ultra Alpaca yarn - this is the third or fourth project I've completed using this yarn.

Now I'm reverting to sock knitting - I reorganized my sock stash bin yesterday. I have about 20 pairs to knit - a lot of Robyn Gallimore's Redbird Knits kits as well as a bunch of Blue Moon and String Theory yarns. I'm thinking of knitting some things from Cat Bordhi, Cookie A., Janel Laidman, and Nancy Bush. Specifically:

Canada - Nancy Bush
Atlantis - Janel Laidman
Rivendell - Janel Laidman
Pomatomus - Cookie A.
Bavarian Twisted - Cat Bordhi

Being a member of the "Lotsafos10" group on Ravelry, it would be GREAT if I could empty the sock bin this year!

Ravelympics Update

Here are my finished mittens! The pattern is Jared Flood's "Grove". I used my own handspun, a lovely 2-ply deep red wool. The fiber was purchased at Rhinebeck in October 2009 and spun in November 2009.

I'm very happy with the finished mittens - they fit my hand perfectly. I went down one needle size, but other than that, I made no changes to the pattern.

Crown Mountain Knits for Fun!

I joined the Crown Mountain "Knitting For Fun" Club this year. The first project to be mailed out was Linda Ellis' Shorty Tam, knitted with 2 strands of hand-dyed yarn. I chose their Artemis yarn in the "Dance of the Dervish" colorway, which matches my winter coat. It was a fairly quick knit, and the resulting hat is warm, yet lightweight. It sits rather far back on my head, but my ears are covered.

Here it is!

Ravelympics!

Believe it or not, I've yet to participate in a Ravelympics. That's all about to change. This year, I've committed to knitting Jared Flood's "Grove" mittens, from a cherry red yarn I spun myself. I've joined Team Knitmore and have been carefully following their training tips, including winding the skein into a ball and swatching. I'm fairly confident that the yarn will work with the pattern, and who doesn't need another pair of mittens???

I attempted to add a Ravelympics countdown clock to the blog, but for whatever reason, it just reads zero hours, zero minutes, and zero seconds no matter how many times I set the end date. Oh, well...

Right now I'm trying to knit Deborah Newton's Alpaka Tunic, using Berroco Ultra Alpaca in a similar charcoal gray, more or less successfully, depending on my level of optimism. I'm on the front, having worked the back already, but with each stitch on the front, I'm realizing the ugly truth - I have to frog the back. Groan. It (the back) is simply too big. I've gone down a needle size (from a 10 to a 9), and I'm knitting the front in the smallest size, rather than the medium I did for the back. Bummer. Nobody to blame, however, but myself!

The Snow Queen wears cozy socks

Way too long since the last post. 16 pairs of gloves were knitted and given away to friends and family. Still have enough for 3 or 4 more pairs, but that can wait a bit.

I finished "Unity", a Berroco sweater design, and I like it very much - warm but lightweight and soft.

Can't seem to keep away from sock knitting - I don't quite know why, given the fact that there are always two to make. Maybe it's the portability, but I think it's more because of the beauty of sock yarn and the huge variety of patterns available, many of which expand my knitting "envelope".

These latest socks are called "Snow Queen" from the book Enchanted Sole by Janel Laidman. I used the yarn suggested, Blue Moon Fiber Arts Lightweight in the "Winter Solstice" colorway. Had to go down a needle size to get gauge, but that's okay. The finished socks are, on my short calves, kneesock length - perfect for cold gray winter days.