Happy Trails

A Glance Back and the Journey Forward

I've been avoiding writing this post for a while, even though I have been thinking about it since before Christmas. Christmas, by the way, was really great. A few shots from our week that we took off:

Handmade swift--a great present that I've been enjoying immensely!

Lobster Pot Pie....Mmmmmm, soooooo goood.

Oysters, eggs and grits--breakfast of champions!

Every New Year I like to look back at all of my finished knitting projects and achieved goals and make a plan for completion of some more. Glancing back at 2010, I really didn't KNIT much. Which in the end, was a surprise to me, and something of a disappointment. I suppose the default notion that I always have needles in my hand isn't quite as accurate as I thought. The projects that I did complete, however, have already gotten a lot of use, and the windowed wardrobe in our bedroom where I store handknit objects is happily becoming a bit fuller.

 

I did learn to spin in 2010, and that was a very happy accomplishment.

 

(Thanks to Mick for leading me to the mosaic maker!)

Spinning is amazing. I can't believe that it had never occurred to me before to engage in this most fantastic craft. Salmaan gifted me with a gorgeous wheel for my birthday, and it has taken off from there. Few things are more relaxing than sitting at the wheel. The mind wanders in a manner that for me is such a mental and emotional release. I joined a couple of fiber clubs, and now have more fiber than I can expect to knit even in this coming year. I love it when you have a braid of something beautiful, and you have no idea what it's going to look like all plied up. It's an exciting thing.

 

A couple of resolutions important to me last year were not realized. I did not learn to sew, I only cleaned my car once, and there are numerous patterns that I never cast on for. However, I think the big stuff...the important stuff that I wanted to address and change, did in fact happen.

 

As for what's important now, there are quite a few things. I've started a rigorous workout routine, and have started to eat better. Losing weight is a goal that both of us have, and getting active has been so worthwhile, not only physically, but mentally and emotionally. I think our financial motto as a couple this year is to eat out less, and save more. I want to concentrate on cooking more seasonally. As an individual, I'm just trying to take care of myself in general, and that has meant sticking up for myself more, and so far, I feel great about it.  I need to curb my yarn/fiber spending habits and knit out of the stash this year. A recent cleaning/organizing of my yarn study has yielded quite a bit of beautiful yarn and fiber that I had forgotten about. And until I get some projects off the needles, there's no need to add to the stash.

About the study--I'd like to share some pictures with you of how it has evolved from this, to this:

First there came the paint--we switched it up from the purpley-blue grey (which actually ended up feeling pretty cold to me) to a warm almond color.

I'm pretty proud of the paint job. I even did the ceiling, and ALL of the moulding, which was quite a task. In the end it turned out to look so crisp and fresh--definitely worth it!

The next task was filling the room with things that would inspire me, and make it a warm, personal space. Both the Hay bale and House Mountain paintings were huge purchases for us, involving a lot of disciplined saving. Both of us adore them, and make a point to enjoy them every day. The window boxes were on sale purchases from a couple of years ago, and I had no idea what I should do with them. Then one day, it occurred to me that they were meant to be filled with yarn.

The last few weekends have been spent organizing the closet and armoire with all things fibery. As that isn't completed yet, the doors are closed in this view, but it's a beautiful piece.

Perhaps my favorite wall--that's an antique spinning wheel, a last minute bid on ebay landed that on the wall. The cubbies are full of all my favorite skeins--reminders of all the projects in store.

I have to say something about this, as it's one of my favorite things in the study at the moment. Like a lot of you, I really enjoy trolling around etsy when I'm looking for inspiration, or just want to kill 5-10 minutes. A few months ago, I stumbled upon this shop, and fell in love with her work. Not only that, but when it arrived, everything was packaged with such care and creativity, I felt like I hadn't even paid for it--it was like receiving a gift! Check her out, for yourself or others--you won't be disappointed!

Work is going well, albeit busily. I am going to be taking on some new responsibilities this year, and am excited about that. Salmaan and I are going to take some weekends away, and try not to let ourselves get worn out with work. On that note, by the end of the summer, I'm hoping to share with you some very exciting news regarding Salmaan's career, but more on that later.

As for right now, it's time for some veggie soup, and a little bit of housecleaning. Happy Sunday!

A Panoply of Polwarth!

Okay, so maybe that's overstating it, JUST a little, but I honestly think that this spinning is magnificent, and given it's been such a long project, I think this post deserve the title. Thank you, for indulging me.

This post has been a long time coming, as this ended up being something of a mammoth spinning project. Part of the reason it was so protracted was I didn't have the time to sit down with it consistently. So, it has just been one of those things, and it being *nearly* completed feels like quite a triumph.

If you'll remember, a while ago I purchased two 8 oz. bumps of Polwarth from Crown Mountain Farms. One was dyed in the Black Sun colorway, the other was 12th planet. I was playing with the idea of plying them separately, plying them together, or doing a mix. In the end I split the baby, and here are the results.

254 yards of light DK weight two ply in the Black Sun colorway. I actually had to ply the rest in a mini skein as the bobbin couldn't take any more yarn! I really like how this turned out. I think the colors are deep and moody, and I must say, I've really fallen in love with blue in the last few months. It's a color I've always strayed away from, but I've found myself drawn to it more and more, and this yarn cemented my feelings.

Lastly are two skeins of light DK two ply--these are the mixed skeins--the two colorways combined.

The first skein ended up yielding 209 yards, and the second, 216 yards.

In the end, I don't really think they ended up looking so different, unlike my inspiration yarn. I have left the last 4 oz. of Polwarth in the 12th Planet colorway on its own for right now--time to move on to a different color palette, so I'll appreciate it when I do get back around to it.

Those last two skeins have told me exactly what they want to be, and as I'm writing this, I have already cast on for the honey cowl. I think it will make a gorgeous fall accessory, and the polwarth truly is super-soft.

Up next on the spinning agenda is some merino from Squoosh fibers, and an experiment in bulky/chunky. Spin on!

FO: Richochet Falkland Wool

While I've been neglecting the blog lately, I haven't been neglecting my fibery pursuits. After something of a rough week this month, I sat down one Saturday morning, and picked up this beautiful roving purchased from Pigeonroof Studios.

This is 4.4 oz. of falkland wool roving, in the Richochet colorway. When I saw this initially, my first thought was that it looked like something from a carnival--but in a a really good way. (I actually don't enjoy carnivals at all--but this looked like everything a carnival SHOULD be...)

Spinning it felt like I was spinning pure happiness. The reds were deep and glorious, punctuated by vibrant purples and yellows. I plied this yarn over a period of evenings--one night I got up after having already gone to bed--I just couldn't close my eyes without having worked with it for a little while!

The result was 165 yards of light worsted weight yarn. I was actually going for a heavier worsted...but I tend to draft a bit thinly, so I think I'm going to try to address that in one of my upcoming spinning projects--there's a plan for bulky yarn on the horizon!

Not sure what this will become...right now I'm perfectly content just letting it live on my desk, as it makes me smile whenever I glance at it.

Hope you're having a great weekend!

 

 

Two Ply or Not To Ply....?

Okay, lame post title, but I couldn't help myself.

Finished up the first 4 oz. of Crown Mountain Farms Polwarth combed top in the Black Sun colorway last night.

Oh! And I found the blog post that I referenced earlier--the inspiration for the idea to ply the Black Sun colorway with the 12th Planet colorway in the same fiber. Check it out here.

I decided to go ahead and spin up 4 oz. of 12th planet so that I could put the bobbins beside one another.

But I also couldn't resist putting the finished bobbin against the rest of the unspun Black Sun, and second, the 12th planet fiber.

Any initial thoughts? 

I guess my only reservation in putting these two together is that I think they're both pretty gorgeous on their own, and I don't want them to cancel one another out, know what I mean?

Either way, I know I want to make a shawl out of this fiber. 

Happy Memorial Day!

There's Still Time for Spinning

Well, Jbear made it through just fine, and we're well on our way to an established routine. We've having a bit of difficultly in the housebreaking department, but we're sticking to the feeding schedule and know that it will all work out in the end. Every day River acknowledges Jayden more, and this evening they had an old fashioned romp around in the den. This is a shot that I captured yesterday that I LOVE.

 In case you're interested (and you're probably not, but I am completely starry-eyed with all things puppers related at the moment), here is where he spends most of his day while we're at work.

Which brings me to the subject line of this post--even with the new routine and extra attention, there's still time for spinning! This is what I'm working on right now--8 oz. of Crown Mountain Farms Polwarth Top, in the Black Sun colorway.

I really love this fiber. It drafts like a dream and is very soft. Check out the gorgeous new CMF colorways, as well--you'll die for them! I'm excited to get this 8 oz. spun up, so I can move on to the next 8 oz. of Polwarth Top in the 12th Planet colorway. After I get a bobbin all spun up--I'll be asking you to weigh in on whether you think I should combine the two colorways for a lively two-ply, or keep them separate. Either way, they'll turn into some celestial handspun...;-) I'm kicking myself a bit because try as I might, I can't seem to find the blog post that inspired this idea--I happened upon it while surfing through Ravelry, and a wonderful spinner had combined two totally separate colorways and the result was inspiring. I'm bad about putting blogs into my Google Reader...note to self--be better.

I'll leave you with a couple of images that I shot for my last photography class, which was this evening. I learned SO MUCH, and even so, have just revealed the tip of the iceberg of all things digital. Can't wait to keep practicing!

 

 

 
 

 

FO: Destroyed Super Fine African Merino

A while ago I purchased this bunch of roving from Pigeonroof Studios. I love her color sense.

This was 3.8 oz. of super fine african merino, in the Destroyed colorway. It became 204 yards of DK-fingering weight 2-ply.  

I spun this yarn on a different ratio than the Lady Cluck, and found myself achieving a much finer gauge, which is pretty cool--it really does work! 

 

I split this roving down the middle again, to try to get a striping effect. I overdrafted in a few spots on the second batch, and so I think the colors didn't line up exactly in a few places, but for the most part, they did.

As soon as I hung up this skein to dry, I was searching through my stash to find something to pair with it. It seemed to be the perfect weight for a shawl, so I concentrated my search on sock yarn, and found a great skein of Dream in Color Classy that I had been gifted to me by Sangeeta in thanks for helping her organize her stash after she had surgery a while ago. The grey and brown tones work well with those transitions in the handspun. The only question left was, what pattern to knit?

Given the time of year, I am stuck on shawls. We just booked our vacation for the first week of August (details to come!) and I know I'm going to want some handknit items to cover my shoulders on cooler nights, and that will dress up a more casual outfit. 

Finally, I found the perfect pattern--Daybreak, by Stephen West. Normally, this pattern requires a MC and a CC--I would have enough yardage in the Dream In Color, but not the handspun. So, when we went to Sedalia, I kept my eye out for a yarn that could essentially "stretch" my handspun yardage, by being just similar enough to possibly trick the eye.....

I completely lucked out, and found it.

The one on the right is a skein of sock yarn by Crazy4Dyeing. The colorway is Seaworthy, and it's perfect. I just have to get a few more things off the needles, and then I'm diving into this project, hoping to complete it in time for our trip in August! 

Sedalia, Part I

It's hard to believe that only a week ago we were at the 5th Annual Sedalia Fiber Festival in Bedford, Virginia. It was a wonderful festival, even better this year than the last, and the vendors were fantastic. Given that so many of the vendors are running their own small businesses, I want to post about the festival and some of my favorite people in installments, to give each one the attention and credit they deserve. Please visit their sites, and check out their incredible wares!

So, Part I will be a little more of an overview. Salmaan came to the festival with me this year, and I think he enjoyed it almost as much as I did! We got there as early as we could, bringing my wheel along to let my friend Shanda borrow it for a spinning class. I was very impressed with how well she did, this was her very first time at the wheel!

Her good time spinning inspired her to buy a Majacraft wheel that was being sold by Serendipitous Ewe. I'm so pleased that she's caught the bug. Here are a couple shots of their booth, I love the vibrant colors they use.

 

 
Of course, one of the most fun things about these festivals is having the opportunity to learn about and interact with the different animals that make our knitting and spinning lives possible. The gentleman who owned this particular llama was very kind and allowed us into the stall with them. We heard an incredible history involving horses and camels, but mostly were just enamored with their adorable faces.

On the Luck Front, some pretty neat things happened which I didn't expect! My Mom (that's holiday to you, fellow Ravelers), volunteered at the festival and headed up the Ravelry meet and greet, which was pretty darn cool. I was very proud of her. That's her in the background with the hat on. I was practicing my shifting spot focus here. 

Every Raveler who came and signed in was entered into a raffle for a prize. I won this awesome bag donated by Nantucket Bagg! The one I got was lime and pink, and it really seems like the possibilities are endless. I'm thinking this might be the perfect bag to take on a vacation, if you haven't started any projects yet, but want to keep your options open--there's so much room! I was fortunate that my Mom was the head volunteer, because she claimed the prize for me and ran down to the picnic area where Salmaan and I were having lunch to deliver it. I was also surprised to win something else:

FIRST PLACE in the beginner's handspun yarn category!!!!

While I had another skein in mind to enter into this contest, I didn't finish it in time, so I ended up submitting the first skein I spun on my Suzie--Bridle. I was so excited when they called my name and I realized I had won! To be completely honest, I'm not sure if there were even more than two submissions in this category, but as Dianne said, "Who cares? First place is FIRST PLACE, BABY!" 

Dianne and her team of awesome knitters did a great job organizing the festival this year, and I'm hoping this won't be the last Sedalia I get to attend. Hats of to all of you, thank you for such a wonderful experience!

FO: Lady Cluck Merino

I finished this project about three weeks ago, but was waiting to share it until it was given to its recipient--my Mom, for Mother's Day this past weekend.

 
This was the most fiber I've ever spun in one sitting--8.3 oz. of merino from Sheepish Creations. The two sets of roving were dyed at the same time, but one definitely had more yellow in it than the other.

This project represented the first time that I split the roving down the middle, and was super careful to spin each half in the same sequential order to get a distinct striping effect. I loved spinning this. It was so satisfying to know that when my Mom saw it, she would understand and appreciate how much time and love I had put into it for her. I think that she was pleased!

8.3 oz yielded 379 yards total. There were three skeins, 137, 113, and 126 yards, respectively. I think it's a DK weight yarn, although I need to get one of those WPI tools so I can start to be sure.

I loved how it was cheerful without being garish--the result ended up looking surprisingly earthy to me.

I included the Milkweed Shawl with the yarn, thinking that pattern would show off this yarn nicely. Can't wait to see it all knit up! Happy Mother's Day, Mom!
  

FO: Bridle Superfine African Merino

A while back, before the arrival of Ms. Suzie Q, I purchased 5.5 of this super fine african merino from Pigeonroof Studios. The colorway is Bridle. Gorgeous!

I was a little nervous to try this fiber out on the new wheel, mostly because I liked it so much, and was afraid I would screw it up. Well, those fears were unfounded, because I got some of the most even, shiny, well spun yarn yet!

   

This is 231 yards of DK weight fibery goodness. I actually learned A LOT from spinning this batch of roving. First, a while ago I noticed in one of her posts that Amy specifically noted how she split up her fleece before she started spinning--and, normally, she doesn't do that. So, I inquired--how does she normally do it? And she provided me with a wealth of information and resources--mostly focusing on how the colors will pool or stripe, depending on how you divide your wool. I was fascinated, and completely enlightened. 

 
That all happened AFTER I started to spin this batch, though, so this was created in the same way all my others were up to this point--I basically folded the long strip of roving in half, and pulled it apart. Then, I split each of those two strips apart, and probably once another time for good measure. So, the striping that COULD have occurred was completely diluted, resulting in what I am guessing will be a more mottled purpley-brown fabric.

 Apparently some people do this on purpose to achieve said result, and truth be told I'm perfectly happy with the color. I also like the weight of this yarn--which I'm completely pumped about because I was only ever able to make bulky yarn on the other wheel! Playing around with the ratios and tensions was a learning experience. It's tricky, ya know, having so many things to adjust, and even the SLIGHTEST adjustment to the tension can make such a huge difference! In the end, I spun this at one of the middle ratios (middle of the whorl, middle of the wheel...I haven't figured out how to express them numerically yet (READ THE MANUAL, LAURA!)) which gave me a nice thin yarn that still has a lot of strength.

I still can't get over the sheen. Yay for the first skein!

 

Day Off

It's mid afternoon, and I'm sighing with contentment as I sit down to write. I took today off. A nice, simple, uncomplicated day alone at home, doing the things I love best. 

This morning I enjoyed eating my breakfast (cereal with fresh, organic strawberries) in the backyard, admiring our recent handiwork while observing the progress in the garden.

Salmaan and I are both particularly proud of the new fence we installed around the garden. It may look like it was easy, but it wasn't. I have to say though, I really did enjoy taking out my frustrations on the fence posts with the large rubber mallet we purchased for this job. Talk about cathartic...only thing was, I got a little carried away, and Salmaan almost burst about fifty blood vessels as he wrenched some of the unlucky few back out of the ground. He was a good sport about it, though.

I used some of these in my lunch today--see below--yummy.

The radishes were the first things to come up. I'm hoping I'll have better luck with these than last year. I think I got better seeds this go round, so we'll see.

This is a row we're particularly excited about--a half row of fennel, and a half row of swiss chard--both first tries for us. On the far left, you can JUST see the row of leeks--another veg of first impression. I wish they were all a bit further along, but I know I planted late, so we'll see how they do. Regardless, the fact that they came up is quite encouraging!

And now, what I've been waiting to share for nearly a month!

Introducing, Ms. Suzie Q. 

This is my birthday present. My amazingly generous husband's brainchild, with a contribution from my parents. I. Am. In. Love.

The pedals on Ms. Suzie are dreamy. They're smooth and soft and don't make any noise. I love the color of the wood grain as well--New Zealand Remu. 

I have to admit, I've been getting to know my new wheel for a little less than a month now. It arrived in a huge box that couldn't be hidden, and Salmaan couldn't say no to my pleading eyes. He helped me put it together (an education for both of us in all of the parts of a double treadle wheel), and stood back watching while I went nuts and marveled at how quiet, smooth, and just generally gorgeous it was. 

I'm on my second batch of roving--here's a sneak peak: This is over 8 oz. of merino in the Lady Cluck colorway by Sheepish Creations.

Most of today has been spent plying. The first of what I think will be two skeins is hanging drying right now, and I'll have a go at round two in a little while. I'll share my first completed skein with you in another post, otherwise this one might become a bit epic!

Lastly, here's a shot of my delicious lunch before it was quickly devoured.

You'll never guess from looking at this (or tasting it) that it's only 5 points on Weight Watchers. A great day off, and it isn't even over yet! Happy Friday, everyone!