That Lazy Kate!

Alright, if you spin, you know what kind of lazy kate I'm talking about! It is a tool used in plying (taking multiple strands of spun fiber and twisting them together for a 2, or 3, or 4 ply yarn) Well mine was an Ashford, meant to be used with Ashford bobbins. Now I have Abigail, my antique spinning wheel, and her bobbins were just too wide for my Ashford lazy kate. So after much begging, my wonderful husband did a little surgery and widened it! So as you can imagine I have done a little spinning this weekend. I just finished my second skein about 20min ago. Neither are washed, but you get the idea :)

The springy greens and purples is a Funky Carolina superwash merino. It came out right at worsted weight and 211 yards. The pinks, peaches, and browns is Romney dyed by me! It is a dk weight yarn coming in right at 200yards. Also in the collage is a lovely coffee mug I received for my birthday from a good friend :)

Adventures in spinning

So I have been trying to match up some of my compatible Phat Fiber Sampler Box fiber to get larger quantities of yarn out of them as well as practice different techniques. So I took samples from 1,000 Petals (Hydra on Breeze roving - YUMMY), H.A.Y. (Summer Day on Falkland), Smoky Mountain Fibers (Beach Glass on Merino), as well as some soysilk scrap from Funky Carolina. I split them all down and drafted them together to make a sort of hand pulled roving. Then I just went ahead and spun them into a relatively fine single. Here is where I was starting to step outside my box. I decided to navajo ply the single. I have only plied using this method say three or four times and I definitely need more practice. I ended up running the yarn through the wheel again after plying to get rid of some excess twist, which definitely helped quite a bit. I ended up with a light worsted weight yarn that is about 90yards and 2oz. Through a great suggestion on the ravelry Phat Fiber group I went ahead and cast on Brittany Wilson's Sweet Georgia - I think I am going to finish it today! YAY!


Also a pic of one of my other scores from the fiber garage sale last Saturday. It's a 50/50 Camel/Corriedale blend and the label seems to indicate it is from a personally owned bactrian camel - which I think is pretty cool! It's a good three oz and I got it for $3 due to some guards hairs (I have seen very few and I think they will be pretty easy to remove. I have never spun camel and think it will be a great adventure!

Just noticed that these two fibers have very similar colors to them....I must like them! lol :)


Again I am LOVING all the comments and I must say that it is pretty cool to see the number that have been left for me! You guys have been giving me great suggestions! If you haven't entered yet there is still plenty of time! The drawing isn't until the 23rd!

Thankful

Sometimes I let my own frustrations build and I forget how blessed I am. I have a wonderful husband who loves me and bends over backwards to care for me and his boys. Not only that but he listens, responds, and always squishes my yarn when I ask him too (I am trying very hard to reciprocate in the area of snowboarding....).

My toddler is two, and I think I am having my lack of patience constantly thrown in my face. I have been reading the book "Making children mind...without losing yours", (don't laugh) seriously seems as though the author wrote it personally for me. I had been doing really well, but being sick was seriously bringing me to my limits. I also felt like I was in a downward spiral of feeling too sick to do anything, but then feeling even worse because I was doing nothing. So I used the excuse of running out of milk to head out to the store. I was amazed at how much better I felt at just getting some fresh air. My head instantly cleared and I felt so much more like my normal self. I think it did the same for Corbin as he cheerfully (and loudly) sang his version of the alphabet down the aisles of Carrs Safeway. After groceries, dinner, and hot chocolate, we made our way home and things ended on a sweet note with me reading to both my boys before tucking them into bed. As things are tight right now I have no "professional" pics, but here are a couple pics I've taken this past month of my boys. I thank God for their health and the light they bring into my life.

Before getting my butt off the couch today I did make lots of knitting progress while watching P.S. I love you (A great movie) and Blues Clues - Blue's has a Baby Brother (yes, I could probably recite this movie to you). First, I finished the february baby sweater that I had started in January and I am very satisfied with how it turned out! I wish I had taken pictures when there was natural light as there is no "shine" to this yarn at all, nor is the purple so bright, but you get the idea. Secondly I finished one mitten out of my handspun, the yarn was a little hairier than I expected, but I think it will wear great and feels very squishy on my hand.




I dyed up quite a bit of my new yarn bases and can't wait until they are set and dried and I can share pics! They look very promising!!!

One skein down.....

11 more or so to go! I must say I am in LOVE with how this skein turned out. Looks like it should be the perfect weight and I should have more than plenty! This skein turned out to be 171 yards and three oz and looks spot on for aran weight (though I still need to check wraps per in). It has a delicious feel and I want to just start knitting it now!

Big project for the year!

I am dyeing, spinning, and then knitting some Blue Faced Leicester wool into this! I dyed the wool last night and it is drying now! I am SOOO happy with how it turned out! I kettle dyed it in charcoal tones with touches of burnt orange (which both are some of John's fave colors) so it should produce a nice heathered yarn. I would post a pic now - even though it is still wet, but John snatched the camera as he is out snowmachining with my Dad. So the pics will have to wait until tomorrow, plus then it will be dry!

This will be the biggest spinning project I have ever taken on! I dyed up a full two pounds to make sure I would have plenty for the sweater!

Through thick n thin

Finished up a custom today! Some super soft and squishy thick n thin merino in my "firecracker" colorway. These colors just make me instantly think of the firecracker popsicles!

It's been nice having John home today, and was able to get quite a few things done as well as getting in some good family time! It doesn't get better than that.

oh yeah and don't forget Phat Fiber Boxes go on sale February 15th! Only 10 days away!

Phat Fiber Sampler Box

Whew I finished all my samples for Phat Fiber for the next two months and they will be going out in the mail today! What is Phat Fiber? An amazing sampler box containing all manner of yarn & fiber goodness by indie artists. I am super excited to be a part of it! Especially since I am sending enough samples to get my own box! Jessie (the powerhouse behind Phat Fiber along with her hubby Marcus) even put up a YouTube video of what the upcoming samples were for January. Sixty-six boxes sold out in a manner of minutes and Jessie has set-up a sign-up list through which you can find out the secret stocking time on Etsy! Check out her website for more info and to see who's participating!

February's Theme: Romance & Chocolate
March's Theme: Celtic

I updated shop today as well