Work in progress

Last week when I only had one project, turtlegirl76 "kindly" offered some of her own. Never fear, multiple -projectitis has struck again! Currently I have a lace weight Pi Shawl, a Danish tie shawl in a handspun Peruvian Merino, dyed by yours truly last weekend with a bunch of lovely people.


Next I'm gearing up for some flip top mittens which need designing and making.
the first pair will be this:it is really much darker in real life...

This yarn used to be a thrift store sweater:

I am still combing out my fleece so it will be ready when my wheel gets here.

The former sweater above will become another shawl of some sort, along with two other sweaters that still need to be torn out. then there's the embroidery ( sorry, lighting sucks and so no pictures) . And there are about six bags floating around in my head that need to be sewn up soon...

And there are some other things that will be talked about later...


OH! and I got my wraps per inch gauge from Karatstix (etsy shop name) last week too!

there. that's better.

Finished

My brother graduated from college in three years this weekend, a sister couldn't be more proud! It was a crazy, non-stop weekend and the ceremony was wet and cold, but I am glad I went, it was worth seeing him walk across the stage.



I also finally finished this bag: it has been hanging around begging for buttons and button holes for a good while. The straps are recycled from an uuugly bag I found in a thrift store ( looked like a dirty dairy cow). I am quite happy with it and will post it up on my etsy store very soon.



I have also started the Pi shawl by Elizabeth Zimmerman, it is my first EZ pattern, and I have to admit, I'm totally obsessed. It really got going the morning of the graduation ceremony, and I've been rocking it every moment I can get. I also made it a special stitch marker I'm so excited about it!

Being outside

Here is the black and pink roving I dyed last weekend all spun up, I think there is about 40 yards, not exactly sure, haven't felt the need to get exact with it yet. It is the Romney wool that Tvini shared with all of us, it spun up nicely, and is a think and thin 2 ply yarn now. I'm happy with it.

And speaking of happy, I was outside at the park the other day and took this photo,

Aren't roses lovely?

Before I forget to post this photo again, here's one of my newest fiber friends... Guess who it is!

People are Dyeing EVERYWHERE!

Well, maybe not everywhere, but yesterday a lovely group descended upon tvini's lovely home to paint and Crockpot dye yarn and roving and generally have a wonderful time.

There were large pots

some bamboo cooked in the Crockpot and came out beautiful after the mad scientist figured out the chemical maneuvers


Yummy goodies

Jetsyknits with her wrapped up colors ready to be steamed while Knitdiva painted away

And then turtlegirl ( the mad scientist mentioned earlier) made an amazing thing on her roving experiment

The results were a cloth line full of beautiful fibers and a bunch of happy knitters!

Here is what I came away with, the red and blue-green braids were painted and the lavender gray was done in the crock pot over 3 batches.


Now, tell me that's not a great day! I would've liked to get better pictures of the finished roving, but it's a yuck day out and none of my lamps are great for lighting, oh well, can't have everything!

Threads and Oats

Yesterday I pulled my muslin out of it's container and slapped my new hoop on it and started tracing a sketch on it. Didn't like that one, turns out, the idea behind it is one that needs to get fleshed out and built upon more before I can start. More drawing, more tracing, more scratching of the head and lots more erasing. So instead I started this:


Will keep you updated, promise.

This is another week o' practice for S, so I decided to go to the grocery store and buy lunch stuffs, a girl can eat salads only so many days in one week. It was there, trying to decide what it was that I wanted to eat for lunch tomorrow that it hit me. I can make COOKIES! I haven't be able to for one reason or another ( a grosssssssssss nasty ass studio kitchen being one of them.) Happily I gathered my supplies, and these delights just popped out of my oven. They are, in the words of the little sister of my life, Ms.L., yummish! interesting note ( or not) this is the first food I've posted about. go figger


And to finish up, two finished projects:

Stole for mah momma

and a hemp market bag

And on Wednesday, she dyed.

So... What's a girl to do when she comes across nice, soft wool, on sale, a very very good price for her small wallet, but it's a yucky yellow-brownish color (mustard perhaps)? She buys 6 skeins of it of course, thinking that the answer is in her crock-pot.

And so the yarn comes home, gets put in the sink, some math is done. Crock pot is turned on while the dye dissolves, the kitchen window is wrassled open ( it was painted shut) so any lingering vinegar smell is gone by the time S comes home (hates HATES the smell of the stuff-and for good reason). Yarn is put into the crock pot, cooks and cooks for 40 minutes, is rinsed, squeezed ever so gently and *poof* mustard turns green!

Yucky Yellow:


Cooking...

Much Better!


Drying on the roof

It has been a most happy morning.

(The yarn is Araucania Natural Wool, in color number 37. Now it's number pretty)

This one is a lot of talking.

Need to get some thoughts out of my head so I can think about them, it's all good stuff, no complaining, but it is rambley.

I've realized something in the past week or so... I've reached a new point in what I know about knitting, my confidence in what I can do with two pointy sticks and some yarn and what I'm willing to try, mess up, and fix.

I'm making my mom a present. It has a lace-type panel in the center and at one point I forgot what I was doing, looked at the stitches that I had just knit, the row below it, and read the stitches correctly!!! I knew what they all looked like, and was able to figure out where I had gone wrong and found my place again. I'm sure that I've been doing this for a while, but actually realizing that I can read stitches was amazing. It is a huge boost of confidence to know what I can do.

Then we went to the book store, specifically to buy a book ( not just browsing!), probably on knitting, and I realized that none of the books that this store had were any that I needed anymore. I can work out my own patterns, I look at what people are wearing, have knitted, sewn, and go home, figure out how to make it fit me best, change this and that and make it... this new realized freedom from patterns was exciting, but at the same time I was left feeling a bit ... sad... I'm the type of person who just can't buy stuff to buy it, I have to use it. ( so i can buy yarn and fabric without knowing what i will do with it, but knowing that i can make something with it means i can buy it, heehee). So this kind of meant that I don't need books anymore. At least not pattern books. Now I need reference books, full of images that are inspiring, that don't necessarily have directions in it, well, except for techniques... but even then I like figuring them out on my own and tend to refuse to look it up until I'm ready to scream.

Anyways. Lots of good things to figure out, lots of good things are happening in my life. I can feel things falling back into balance and I have to say, its kind of exhausting getting back on track. :) I can't complain. I just got a job at a local yarn store and i can't wait to see what will happen then! I'm selling my buttons, going to start seriously pounding pavement to get my other art out there, and I have met so many amazing fiber people already, I am thrilled to pieces. I am a lucky, lucky thing.