Yep, I'm crazy...

I was talking with SamuariKnitter on Twitter yesterday about the baby jacket she was getting ready to knit, as she was finding a replacement pattern for the BSJ. She found something that I had been wanting to knit for a while, and since I have a co-worker who is pregnant and due in the next few weeks, I asked if she was up for a KAL.
Instead of a KAL, she countered a knitting challenge, to see who is done first.

Pattern: b18-25 Jacket in "Fabel" from Drops (what creative names the Drops people have)
Yarn: Knit Picks Imagination in Mermaid Lagoon. I have 2 skeins, and I hope that I will have enough left over to knit a pair of booties.

Rolags of Fibe

Don't get excited. Just need to share with spunky club, and fastest way to get off my blackberry was to email to blog.
Sent on the Now Network� from my Sprint® BlackBerry

Handspun sweater to be.

I decided that one of my goals this year, to help make me a better spinner, was to try to spin yarn for an entire sweater. While I had goals of buying the yarn for this at fiber fest, and making it a goal for later in the year, two things happened that pushed this goal up to the top of the queue.
The wheel that I bought with my overtime check came with one lb of fiber to spend. Sure it wasn't the pretty pre-dyed stuff that I'm used to, but I put in a call to help to SamuraiKnitter (who has written dye your own tutorials for Knitty), and stocked up on Wiltons food dye and vinegar and made a plan.
This last weekend I dyed the pound of fiber that came with my new wheel (yes, I will get photos of the new wheel up soon). I forgot how much fun it is to dye in the kitchen, and dying fiber is not much different than dying yarn.

Last night was spent predrafting the fiber and rolling it into rolags for spinning, and I might have spun a little of the fiber. I think I have my first hand spun sweater started.

I fell inlove with Amy King's Tappan Zee pattern in the Spring Knitty, and decided to take the plunge. While I would love to have splurged on some of Amy's hand dyed Merino/Bamboo, I have to make due with what I have.

I'm hoping for a longer post tomorrow or Saturday.

Oh Dear neglected blog...

The crazy times at work are over, so I can start to give you back some of the attention that you deserve.

Months have passed since I have last had time for decent post. I've had a laptop break, and been upgraded. I've workd tons of overtime at work, and I've spent time at both Old Grouchy, my pre-WWII Lithuanian wheel, and my spindles.

The Ravolympics were last month, and I did manage to do one of the projects that I had planned, to spin and knit an entire shawl. The camera portion of my BlackBerry was dirty at the time, so I don't have any good photos, I need to re-take pics of the finished shawl. I spun the thinnest that I remember ever spinning in my life. The yarn wound up cobweb weight, and I left the Merino/Bamboo blend as singles. I could have made a two ply and kept it as in the laceweight category. I still have a large portion of the yarn yet, which I'm thinking of plying back upon itself to make it a two ply.

I've also started another mystery shawl. I know, I know, but I never finish them. I always get a late start, and fall behind, make a mistake, and never finish them. But I'm trying hard this time. Its the Evenstar Mystery KAL, designed by Susan Pandorf, who does such wonderful and complex shawls. I know, I've started (but not finished) a few. I'm using some of the Alpaca Silk lace yarn that Steve got me for Christmas years ago, the same yarn and color that I knit Aeolin with last year. So far so good. I'm only 6 rows from being done with the current clue, but there are over 520 stitches each row at this point, and I need to switch over to a longer circular needle.

Also on the needles right now I have Citron. When the issue came out in December, I didn't see the appeal of this shawlett. Well, besides the yarn it was knit from Mmmmm. But since I've been spinning, I have odd amounts of handspun yarns in small amounts of heavylace/light fingerling that I need to use up, and I'm unofficially participating in the 10 shawls in 2010 knit-along.

One good thing about all the overtime that I have had to work over the last 3 months is that they decided (for once) to pay us out for our time, as opposed to having us bank it in comp time. I wound up with enough money to upgrade my wheel. I am now the proud owner of an Ashford Kiwi, which arrived last night, and is sitting in pieces in the living room waiting until I can stein the wood and paint the wheel part.

Jan Spunky Club Fiber

Pomegranate. No idea how I'm going to spin this yet
Sent on the Now Network� from my Sprint® BlackBerry

Spinning, and Knitting, and other stuff

There's been a whole lot of spinning going on around here lately, and not much blogging.

I finally finished spinning the Midnight in the Meadows Falkland that I got back in May for Mothers day. I've wound up with about 500 yards of a heavy lace, light fingerling weight yarn. The color is really a bit muddier than the photos show, but I've already cast on for Haruni.



My awsome mother-in-law got me a subscriptin to the Spunkey Club for Christmas, and I've already spun my way through the first fiber. The December fiber is Wensledayle, and it was the first time I spun this fiber. It was a dream to spin, I did most of the singles in one day, and plyed it one night after work




I wound up with about 250 yards of a light fingerling/sportish weight yarn, and cast on for Abby




I've still been working on the Merino/Silk blend from All Spun up that I got for my birthday. I'm about 1/4 through the bump and loving every moment of spinning this. I think I'll get around 800 yards, which will be enough for a good sized shawl.

The Ravelympics are getting ready to start next month, and I've been trying to decide which event (s) I want to attempt. Defentely something spinning and/or lace related. I've been thinking of:
Fleece to FO Long-Track eventfleece (Start with fleece or roving and create a finished object)- Spinning a single out of some merino/bamboo blend (or the Jan Spunky club fiber) and knitting a small shawlett.
Flying Camel Spin eventflyingcamel (Just spinning…lots and lots of spinning)- for spindle spinning some silk which is in stash, and might be able to double enter the Fleece to FO spinning
Lace Luge eventlaceluge (Lace patterns and laceweight yarns), enter the Fleece to FO knitting portion.