Hush-Hush Handspun Hootenanny Questionnaire

1. How long have you been spinning? What skill level do you consider yourself? A little over a year, but on my wheel for about 2.5 months. I consider myself an advanced beginner.

2. What kinds of yarn do you create (singles/2-ply/3-ply/art yarn)? I love 2-ply and have recently begun 3-ply and N-ply yarns.

3. What do you spin with (spindle/wheel/both)? Wheel. Lendrum DT

4. What are your favorite fibers to spin with? Anything you don't like? I love merino (superwash or not) , BFL and alpaca. I've spun merino mixed with seacell that I adored, and merino blended with silk. Shetland was fun to spin, but I wouldn't call it a favorite. I love anything soft soft soft.

5. Who are your favorite crack dealers fiber sources (etsy or otherwise)? The Loopy Ewe has been posting some great fiber lately. I also buy from Crack, er, Crown Mountain Farms.

6. What kind of fiber do you want to try? Cormo, Llama, Qiviut, Yak

7. Are there any techniques you would like to learn? I still have so much to learn!

8. Do you dye fiber? If not, would you like to learn? I haven't yet, but will soon.

9. Do you have fiber prep tools (and like to use them) or would you prefer ready to spin fiber? Ready to spin, please. Haven't got the tools to prep fiber. (Yet.)

10. What do you do with your handspun? What projects have you completed? Um.. look at it? Take pretty pictures of it? Seriously though, I've knitted a pair of socks with one skein so far, and have plans for two others. Not enough time to knit and spin!

11. Are you in need of any spinning gadgets (WPI Gauge, threading hook, etc)? I'd like a new WPI gauge. I have the Nancy's Knit Knacks one, but I don't care for it.

12. What colors "fall into your shopping basket"? Any colors you just can't stand? I'm a sucker for greens, jewel tones, and naturals. I can't think of any colors I can't stand.

13. What is on your wheel/spindle right now? Sakina Needles Superwash Merino, "Dusty Cornflower" colorway. (Which is fun to spin and the colors are so pretty!)

14. What other crafts/hobbies do you have? knitting, photography, reading, cycling.

15. Other than crafts, what are you passionate about? my family

16. Do you have an online wishlist? My Loopy Ewe wishlist.

17. Is there anything that you collect? My husband says I collect fiber.

18. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What magazine subscriptions do you have? I can't think of any books at the moment. I suscribe to Interweave Knits, Spin Off, and regularly buy the Rowan Mags when they are published.

19. When is your birthday? October 11

20. What book or movie character do you most resemble in personality? Bridget Jones?

21. What is the climate like where you live around this time (need to know for careful shipments of anything meltable)? Minnesota is just blossoming into Summer weather. It's been in the mid 70s to mid 80s with lots of sun (and a few storms here and there.) But within a month it will be hot and humid.

22. Tell us one weird fact about yourself! I'm double-jointed in lots of places.

Favorites
favorite painting/picture(link): Beautiful Black and White photography. Doesn't matter who it's done by.

Candy: Reeces Pieces

Food: Snacks

Drink: Root Beer

Movie(s): Horror, suspense. Although, sometimes there's nothing better than a fluffy chick flick.

TV Show(s): Grey's Anatomy, Scrubs, Friends, Ugly Betty (I sacrifice the TV to my sons and husband, mostly. They hog it.)

Book(s): I love mysteries and horror!

Guilty Pleasure(s): Buying yarn and fiber when I probably shouldn't. And my Nintendo DS.

**Edited to change the fiber types that I'd like to try.**

Mother of Pearl

Ok, seriously, I know I say this every time, but I'm thrilled to pieces over this yarn!

This is The Dyeing Arts Superwash Merino in the Mother of Pearl colorway, 4oz.

I spun it very thinly, then Navajo plied it to keep the stripes intact. (But boy, did I go back and forth on whether I wanted to do that, or a regular barber-pole 2-ply.)

It wasn't until I saw the full bobbin that I knew what I was going to do.

This is my first big Navajo ply project (and only the 2nd time I've done it) and I'm so pleased with how it turned out!

4 oz, 488 yds, 21 wpi.

It's so soft!

This roving was a joy to spin. It was so effortless - no issues, no nasty ends. Just very smooth fiber that was easily drafted.

I have several of their other colors in my Loopy Ewe wishlist and hope to be ordering more sometime soon.

It was also the first time I've used the fast flyer that I bought for my Lendrum over a month ago. I was nervous to try it before, but the last yarn I spun I really had to treadle hard and fast to get the kind of speed to keep up with my hands. My poor wheel was shaking with fear at me.

Well, not literally, but there was a shimmy at some points.

So I decided I'd give it a go with this. I'm so glad I did! I was able to go much faster and actually spun far more evenly and consistenly than I have before. Yay for the fast flyer!


My husband thinks I should make something other than socks with this. He said it's far too pretty to wear on my feet. I agree - this is one that I think will need to be something I wear around my neck.

Just not really sure what that might be. I'll have to go digging through Ravelry to find something!

And just so you don't think there's never any knitting going on here anymore, here are the socks I finished for my husband for Father's Day.

Stroll Through the Forest Path

Oh my goodness, I had the most fun spinning this! I've been working on it on and off for about three weeks.

The fiber is a 70/30 Merino/Seacell blend from Creatively Dyed, Forest Path colorway.

I made a traditional 3 ply yarn and got about 564 yds at 17wpi. There were leftovers that got plied into two different mini skeins. One is a 2 ply and the other is a Navajo ply yarn.

This fiber spins like butter and the resulting yarn is just as soft! I love just running my fingers down the length of the skein.

I've got no idea what I'll make with this, but I'm immensely pleased with how it turned out.

The seacell provided a lovely sheen that my photos didn't fully capture. I do really like this one, with just the spill of the strands.


I took this on a trip with me last weekend! A friend of mine (who is blogless!), Nancy, asked our friend Aimee and me if we'd like to have a knitting/spinning weekend at her cabin. We went and had such a lovely time! Lots of knitting, a little spinning, and lots of relaxation!

When I got back, I set out to finally finishing this. I really wanted to see what it would look like when it was done, so I spun like crazy on Tuesday and plied like crazy yesterday. Skeined and washed it before work last night and woke up to beautiful dry yarn this morning!

It bloomed a bit in the washing, which I love. It's very squishy and soft.
**edited to add the photo of it in progress.**

Handspun Socks!

My very first project with my own handspun yarn.

Truly truly thrilling.

Needless to say, I'm very proud of these socks.

In a conversation with a friend last week, we were talking about whether we'd knit anything with our handspun or not. I said no, and thought how ridiculous that was.

So last Friday night I wound up the yarn and off I went. Sock #1 was done Sunday afternoon and Sock #2 was finished a day later. Literally could not put them down.

Details:

Pattern: my own modifications on Feather and Fan
Yarn: my own handspun, Blue Faced Leicester
Needles: Knit Picks NP Fixed, US 1, 2.5mm 32" circular
Started: Friday, May 30, 2008
Finished: Monday, June 2, 2008

They are so soft and squishy! And warm. I wore them around last night and while I was spinning. Love these socks!

Zombie Blogging

I'm *really* tired - might sound jumbled.

Sex and the City was amazing. Friend and I went to midnight showing. Absolutley amazing.

Everything I expected and more.

What I've Been Up To...

Spinning! (Surprise.)

A little bit of knitting, too, but it's a project for work and I'm not sure I'm allowed to show it. (It's a test pattern.)

But I can surely show photos of my spinning!

This is 4.5oz of Superwash Merino from Lorna's Laces. The colorway is Gold Hill. I spun it into a 2 ply sock yarn and I can't wait to knit with it.

I had a good time spinning this one. The roving came in a huge bundle of three-ish color blots of red, gold-orange, and green. I split it up into 8 or 10 long strips and spun them end to end to get the most out of the colors.

Plied from a center pull ball to get all the yardage in one big skein. (Kind of a fun way to ply, really.)


Next up is the chocolate-y mocha laceweight that I was working on when I last blogged.

The color in this photo is a bit lighter than the yarn really is. It's more accurate in my previous post.

This one was quite a challenge to spin! All that laceweight and all that time. But I really love how it came out.

I have about 400 yds here - enough to do a lace scarf with. I'll have to look for a great pattern for it.

As much as I like this one, spinning it was a bit of a bore. I really love solid color yarns, or even tonal solids, but spinning a solid is definitely an exercise in prolonged patience. I started with an 8oz bag, fully committed to spinning at least 4oz for the laceweight, and only plowing my way through 2.5oz. Oh well. *wink*


And now for the pièce de résistance!

Fiber is BFL and was purchased at Shepherd’s Harvest in Lake Elmo, MN over Mother’s Day weekend. I bought two 3oz braids that had bits of green, burgundy, and lime green over undyed oatmeal.

In prep, I tore out all of the lime green sections (will later spin those pieces into something else) and split each braid up into 8 long strips. Spun them every which way to sunshine to get the colors to be as random as possible.

I’m very happy with how this yarn turned out. It’s my most even and consistent handspun yet!

And a before and after spinning shot comparison:
(click to embiggen)

More Spinning! And a Pair of Socks

Mmmm, this just reminds me of Sherbet all the way.

Fiber from The Loopy Ewe, Sakina Needles, Briar Rose, 8oz 100% Alpaca.

I *loved* spinning this. The second bobbin full went a lot smoother and more consistently than the first and I had quite a bit left over from itafter plying. I plied that one into a mini-skien and gave it to a friend of mine. She's going to knit it into a little hat for her 5 month old little girl.

Next up is this rich chocolatey Coopworth. The fiber is from Louet. Steven ordered a whole trunk show from them, and believe me, there's some beautiful stuff. I snagged a few bags for myself and this is one of them.

I'm going for laceweight with this, and I think I might have it. My singles are sewing thread thick (which when allowed to relax back on itself is a lovely two ply laceweight), but it's taking - f o r e v e r - to spin.

But it will definitely be worth it!

Another pair of Embossed Leaves.

What can I say, I love this pattern!

The yarn is Classic Elite Alpaca Sox. If you haven't tried it yet, I thoroughly urge you to run to your LYS and get some. It's lovely!

More Handspun!

I flew through this one. Alpaca just slides through the fingers!

My 3rd yarn. The name “Fairy Wings” came from a friend in my knitting group. When I brought my wheel there last Monday, she took one look at the drafted fiber and said it looked like fairy wings. It seemed a great name.

Fiber purchased from The Loopy Ewe. It’s Pastel Caesar (100% Alpaca, 4 oz) from Sakina Needles.

Approximately 216 yds. Wpi and other such info to come later. ;)

About 1/3 of the way through spinning this, the lightbulb went off in my head and I totally got drafting. Like really got it. So the last 2/3 of the fiber were spun very evenly, as a laceweight single.

Once plied, it turned into a light fingering weight, with some laceweight spots and a couple of sport/DK weight spots. Consistency is something I'm striving for.

Still though, I'm pleased like crazy with it. And it's a good amount of yardage, so I can actually do something with it.

Start to finish shots: (click to make bigger)

Look! I Made Yarn! (& a little Harlot talk)

My very first yarn on my new wheel.

I'm very pleased with how it turned out.

It's not perfectly consistent, but it's not bad.

The fiber is 100% Merino, roughly 56 yds. Not sure of the wpi - I haven't measured that yet.

This is the leftover fiber that I had after spinning with it last year. There was 4 oz originally. I think I used up most of it last summer when I got my Spindolyn.


And here's my 2nd singles, still on the bobbin.

This is 100% Alpaca. I absolutely adore spinning this. It just glides through my fingers with great ease. I thought it was going to be difficult so I was going to wait to spin this till I got better. But I decided to just dive right in yesterday. I'm so glad I did.

There's about 3 oz here on the bobbin. I've got another ounce to spin up later tonight when I get a chance to sit down at it again.

(And I've ordered another 4 oz of this fiber that should be coming in the mail later this week!)




Here's a couple of other shots (isn't the fiber just gorgeous?):









OMG, I have a bunch of other fiber I should have taken photos of. I ordered some the other day online, and then Steven also got a trunk show of fiber in from Louët. I got some beautiful stuff from that. Pics to come soon.

Spinning is sooo much fun! Just like Brandy said it would be. :)

Oh!! I forgot to TELL you! I went to see the Yarn Harlot speak in St. Paul on Thursday night. She was amazing!! We had so much fun. I'll blog more about that when I get pics from my friend.

It's Here!

Isn't it beautiful?

My Lendrum Double Treadle wheel. I'm already in love and I've only had maybe an hour to really play with it today. Shortly after it got here I had a couple of friends over to "welcome" it. ;) We all tried it and had a good time playing. Thanks for coming over!

I haven't spun anything seriously on it yet at all. I've just been playing with little bits of all of the fibers I've got on hand here. I do notice how easily it is to get an even yarn on the wheel as opposed to the couple of drop spindles I've tried and my Spindolyn.

I'd say more, but really, I think I'll just let the pics speak for themselves.

(Better pics to come soon. Uggh, lighting was questionable . I'll shoot new ones tomorrow morning.)

Something Exciting

Absolutely can not. wait.

I ordered the beauty on the left last night and my tracking info says it should be here next Tuesday. It's a Lendrum Double Treadle Folding Wheel. I was lucky enough to try out a friend's Single Treadle Lendrum about a month ago and absolutely fell in love with it. Talk about a buttery smooth wheel! I knew eventually one would be mine.

*SO EXCITED!*

Ahem. So I've got some roving here (well, actually enough to keep me busy for a while) and I've got others bookmarked for future reference. ;) (Hey Brandy, got any good tips on some I should look into??)

Literally right now it's all I can do to be patient. And that's not working very well at the moment. Luckily I've got some fun distractions over the course of the week. The girls in my weekly Monday afternoon knitting group and I are all getting together Saturday night after I work. We're having our first Knit Night at a friend's community room in her apartment complex. We're going to have snacks, movies, music, and possibly a yarn swap. And maybe a little wine. Or a lot. Who knows? I'm really looking foward to it.

But really, my *must spin RIGHT NOW* desire is soooo strong. Is it Tuesday yet?

Dude...

I suck. SUCK.

My blogging habits of late are abominable. My poor little blog, which once was fun (and, to put it bluntly, frequent) has all but died recently.

Oops.

Make A Little Birdhouse In Your Soul

I think I've done something right. My son, who is knocking at the door to Age Six, is a They Might Be Giants fan.

In fact, his favorite songs are "Whistling in the Dark" and "Particle Man." He knows every word.

When I was in middle school and high school, their album Flood was huge with all of my friends. We would sing the songs from the album constantly.

And now my little boy loves their music. And not just their music geared toward young children, no. Their goofy-make-you-take-another-listen-because-you're-not-quite-you-just-heard-those-lyrics-right music.

You gotta love that.

My First Sweater

Here it is! Omgoodness, I absolutely love this sweater. It fits perfectly and is sooo cozy.

1. Angled Side View
2. Button Detail
3. Shoulder Seam and Set-in Sleeve
4. Hood Closure Detail
5. CPH
6. Set-in Sleeve Seam
7. Front Pieces
8. Mattress Stitch Seam
9. Front View




I wore it yesterday and I'm planning on wearing it to work tonight to show my boss and our regular knitters who come in for Knit Nite.

Details:
Pattern: Central Park Hoodie, Heather Lodinsky
Yarn: Rowan Kid Classic, Crushed Velvet (825), 7.5 balls
Needles: Addi Turbo US6, US7, and US8 circulars
Started: January 8, 2008
Completed: January 22, 2008

Modifications: Knitted sleeves 2 at a time in the round rather than flat. Only did 3.5" inches of ribbing on pieces instead of 4-5" as written. Made the back and fronts and inch longer than pattern called for. Rather than three needle bind off, I grafted the hood together until the last 10 stitches (5 stitches on each needle {this was the center tip of the hood}) then threaded the yarn through and pulled tight (like you would close a hat.) This produced a less pointy tip of the hood. Picked up for the button band in one large piece rather than separate. Also, paid no attention to how many stitches I was supposed to pick up for the button band and instead just picked up 2 for every 3 stitches along edge of whole piece. Worked out very well.

I really enjoyed knitting this. I can't say enough how absolutely thrilled I am with the way it turned out. It fits perfectly, the color is exactly what I wanted, and it's soft and cozy.

Rowan's Kid Classic was a wonderful yarn to work with. It was soft to the touch (and got even softer after washing for blocking) and has a lovely drape to it when blocked. I'm so happy I chose this for my sweater.

I have to admit, the seaming made me a little apprehensive but once I started I realized it's not that bad. I'd done mattress stitching before, so that was ok, but shoulder seaming and seaming the sleeves on was new to me. I bought a couple of great books: The Knitter's Book of Finishing Techniques by Nancy M. Wiseman (great book) and Interweave Press's Knitter's Companion, 2nd edition (excellent book!) Both were very helpful in the finishing of this sweater.

I can't wait to wear it to work tonight!

*Edited to add book links.*

*Grin*

Ladies and Gentlemen:

I have finished my first sweater.

Tune in tomorrow for the full story (with pics!)

Something New

Last night I took a yoga class.

My friend, A.P., just joined a new fitness center and asked if I'd like to come as her guest for a class. We decided on "Fitness Yoga", though neither of us had ever taken a yoga class before.

With the word "Fitness" in the class title, I wasn't sure what to expect, but of all things I didn't expect was how much I would enjoy it! I was nervous at first (I mean, I've never even set foot in a gym before), we were among the last few to arrive to class and therefore had to be in front, and I didn't know how my super-competitive personality would do if I couldn't stretch and pose the way I was supposed to, or how everyone else was.

But the instructor was very good, the music was relaxing but not overbearing, and after about 10 minutes into the class, I became totally unaware of my surroundings and just moved and posed and breathed. And I loved it. I discovered that I am very flexible and had no trouble getting into the poses and even adjusting to try most of the more advanced ones.

During the end of the class final relaxation/meditation period, I was so very very relaxed and probably felt the most inner-calmness that I've experienced in months. It was truly exhilarating.

What started off for me as a class to go with a friend might end up being something I'd like to pursue on a regular basis.

2007: A FO Report

Looking back at my knitting in 2007, I feel it was a productive year.

- 10 pairs of socks
- 6 hats
- 6 scarves
- 3 felted bags
- 2 lace stoles
- 2 pairs of Mrs. Beetons
- 1 vest
- 1 shrug
- 1 pair of sleeves for a sweater I co-knitted with my boss
- 1 Woodin

WIPs carried over from last year: 5

Not too shabby!


Happy Belated New Year to you and yours!

Here's hoping 2008 will be a good one.

Tis The Season

As I sit here, slowly sipping a nice glass of good wine, I'm thinking how relieved I am to be completely done with all of my Holiday shopping and knitting.


Whew! Believe me, it was getting down to the wire. As of three days ago, I still had everyone to shop for, and a couple to knit for. But after a few days of marathon shopping and major speed knitting, I can say that I'm finished!

Holiday knitting started off being just a pair of socks for my MIL. (I'd long ago abandoned cozy images of knitting a pair of socks each for my sons, some fancy colorwork hats for both of them, and a pair of socks for my husband. Those were pipe dreams. Maybe next year. Or birthdays.)










Then a couple of days ago, my brother timidly asked me if there was any way I could knit him a hat for Christmas. Of course! As he's a huge Chicago Bears fan, he of course wanted Bear navy blue and orange.

This is the first time I've ever done any real colorwork (other than practicing on swatches) and I'm pretty pleased with how it came out. Most importantly, the floats have plenty of give so they stretch nicely when donned.










As for other knitting, I made another pair of Mrs. Beetons. I ended up giving the brown ones that I'd made to Steven for the shop, so I needed a pair for me again.

This 2nd pair I made in white with the most delicate frosty white beads. They are so adorable and will be a nice touch to my Christmas attire.

I also made myself my Onduleux Cables Cloche. This one is in a burgundy red angora yarn that really shows the pattern well and it's so next to the skin soft.

I suppose I should have really made this for someone for Christmas, but I really wanted one of my own and I don't think it's to the taste of any of my female family members.


I found myself being a little gun shy this year as far as knitting anything for anyone on our gift list. The two items I did knit were both requests. Oh well. Again, maybe next year.

Mmm this wine is good. Off to enjoy it. Happy Holidays!

Mrs. Beeton Goodness

Another finished object! I've been working on these little projects all week and they are flying off the needles!

Pattern: Mrs. Beeton, knitty
Yarn: Adriafil Carezza (angora), Brown; Rowan Kidsilk Haze, Ice Cream
Needles: Addi Turbo US 7 32" circular, Addi Turbo US 5 32" circular
Started: December 6, 2007
Finished: December 7, 2007

These are so cute! They were quick little knits, too, and would be perfect as a Christmas gift, if I were to give them up. But I'm keeping them.

I changed things up a little bit. I didn't bead the MC cast on (as I didn't have beads that would fit over the Carezza angora.) Instead I beaded the CC cast on using a cable cast on and beading every third stitch with a tiny crochet hook. It was a bit fiddly at first, but I really like the look of it. I also didn't pre-string the nine beads on there to go on the top of the bells on the Top Bell Edging. I added those with a tiny crochet hook to each stitch as I came to it.

I also changed the picot edging, making the picots line up only over the purl stitches in the ribbing.

I know I'll make these again.