Spinners, please help me!

I was struck by a sudden urge tonight to spin on a project I haven’t touched in months (with the exception of a brief and ill-fated attempt at the last spinning guild meeting - I blame the plying flyer I was using instead of the normal one). Middy joined me for a few minutes and Tad was able to fire off a stealth shot from behind the other couch before she got wise and ran away:

Anyway, everything was going along nicely - I was getting a really nice fine single without any trouble and humming right along… and I started to feel really excited about this yarn again, like there might be a possibility I could actually finish it in the foreseeable future. And then, the single broke. And the end disappeared into the bobbin. Now how in the hell do I find the end?? I looked for a good 30 minutes before giving up. Any tricks or tips to force it to show itself?

This is not at all what I had planned to post tonight - sidetracks are the name of the game this week I guess! Most of them have been fun and productive though, so I can’t complain. And if I can find the end of the yarn before I lose my excitement again, this too will have been worthwhile!

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Now playing: Mates of State - Mates of State - My Only Offer
via FoxyTunes

It’s positively impossible to be frustrated while listening to this song. The lyrics have a little more going on, but the sound - so light and happy!!

I completed the final bobbin last week and then there were three!

I’m getting better at loading my bobbins more evenly. Ironically, bobbin #3 (center in left photo, front on the right photo) has the most yardage (bobbins 2 & 1 have a bit of residual practice singles from other fiber on them that I was too lazy to remove), and is the least consistent - I was getting anxious to finish!

Yardage: @ 313 of 3ply yarn
WPI: ranges from 11-14; averaging around 12.5 (Sport to DK)
Weight: Imprecisely weighed at 3 oz. (There is a bit of bobbin #2 and #3 left for me to play with)

I’m quite pleased with the result, given that I’m out of practice. I do wish that I’d been able to make the gorgeous colors stand out a bit more though. Bobbin #2 with it’s mix of green-copper-chestnut-chocolate in particular seems lost in the mix. I do love the way the brilliant blues come out though. As mentioned in the initial post, I separated the roving into equal segments by color, then spun 1 bobbin of each and plied them together. I wonder what would have happened if I alternated strips from each section and then navajo-plied?

Spinners - any suggestions? What would you have done differently?

I am quite happy with this though, it’s very soft, and more balanced than the fire-y yarn; I think it will make some cozy socks! And I’m so pleased that the spinning mojo has returned. Almost pleased enough to dive back into the Ocean roving and finish that up - Almost!

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Now playing: Rosie Thomas - Let Myself Fall
via FoxyTunes

Two bobbins down, one more to go! Hurray!!

It’s been a busy week, and a messy week. The reading of this post by Felix this morning made me feel so much better about my messes (those both literal & figurative), and then this one by Ms. Half Soled Boots cinched the deal because they both rang so true for me. Thanks ladies, for sharing a bit of your lives and your messiness, and making me feel a little better - and not alone - in my own. Count me in on the messiness, and the posting of said messes. I have many more thoughts on the subject, but you’ve said it all already.

In the midst of the messiness, spinning has been soothing and fun. Look! Somehow these two just go together, don’t you think?

Bobbin #2 & Chrysalis #2 - fiber and yarn painted by Gryphon.

I hope your weeks were not too terribly messy (or rather, VERY messy indeed, if it means that you had fun, spent time with people you loved, and exercised your creativity - dishes be damned!)
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Now playing: Toad the Wet Sprocket - Windmills
via FoxyTunes

I mark 2007 as the year that I became a Knitter. I think we all have our own definitions, for me, I became a knitter when I learned to knit. I became a Knitter when I began to care about and enjoy Knitting as much as a craft - the history, the cultural references & techniques, the possibilities - as I did the act of making stitches itself. My spinning has taken a backseat to my knitting ever since I picked up a spindle, and I think some of that has to do with the timing of it all - I learned to spin a little over a year ago but I am as yet a spinner, and a beginning one at that. I enjoy spinning every bit as much as I do Knitting, but I still often fumble through the act itself - my feet treadle like crazy, I’m aware that I’m overspinning but can’t seem to stop myself, and sometimes my hands can’t keep up. I haven’t yet reached the point where my brain and hands connect and I have more control - and am ready to absorb all the background technique, history, and art that are involved in making a beautiful and useful yarn. It will happen - those brief moments where it all comes together give me confidence - but I think that as with my knitting, it will take a certain amount of experience and experimenting until I’m able to get to that point.

Last fall, I stalled out with my Spun Stitches project (not with the concept, just with the spinning of this particular yarn), and felt incapable of setting it aside to work on something else. As a result, it has been on my wheel now for months, literally. I’m a bit embarrassed to admit exactly HOW long. Except for one brief hiatus to spin the local blend yarn (a very small amount of roving meant that it would be a momentary distraction and would not really divert my attention from the Ocean/Allison yarn). I’m in love with the Blues and Greens, the fiber and the colors and the concept of spinning for a shawl. But the merino-tencel, which I enjoyed spinning so much for the fire-y Kayley socks, was not playing as nicely this time around and required such extensive & obsessive pre-drafting to be able to keep a fairly consistent laceweight single going, that I simply lost my enthusiasm I guess, I can’t find a better explanation for it. I have missed my wheel though and I have been wanting to get back to my spinning for what seems like ages now. And so, finally, due to the wiles of the spinning of some very talented people, and the urging of a Twisted Threads member, who said, “Oh it’s no big deal! Just write down your settings and put it all aside for a bit! Spin something small and fun to get yourself going again! You can come back to your big project again when you’re ready.” I guess I just needed to hear it.

The antidote to my spinning ennui. 4 oz. (small & manageable!) of handpainted merino purchased at SAFF from The Sanguine Gryphon. I picked this roving because I fell in love with the colors, and it has all the depth and complexity of her yarns. Gorgeous. I realized when I began to spin it up why I loved the colors so much - they coordinate perfectly with many other colors around our home - my walls, chairs and table, pottery and pictures.

I folded the roving in half and split it apart roughly in thirds where the colors seemed to change - I’m loosely planning on a 3-ply for socks, one bobbin from each color section of the roving. The first section is primarily chocolate brown, cinnamon and blue, but also contains tiny glimpses of plum, and green which are repeated in larger segments in the third section (all the way to the right on the chair, and coiled in the picture on the lower right). The 2nd section is primarily cinnamon brown with traces of burnt orange and chocolate.

I think that my knitting will continue to come first most of the time - but for the moment, this is holding my attention quite nicely - and is drafting like a dream! One bobbin down, two to go - I think the spinning love is back, hurray!

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Now playing: These United States - First Sight
via FoxyTunes

Woo-hoo! I finished a spinning project - the Local Blend Yarn! And you know what that means - finished one thing, start another right?

No, I’m just kidding! The Pinky Swear mitts will be finished next & the pattern sent along to our friend the intrepid dyer Gryphon! (I love love them! The second mitt is nearly done - thank goodness, because just as we were warned, it was about 25 degrees when we left the house this morning - that’s a 40 degree drop from last week). But once the mitts are complete with pictures taken, pattern ready to be shared, and hands are covered, warm and at the ready, then I’m giving in to the urge and casting on for TWO new projects that have been calling me (and yes, I will still provide the promised WIP update! Soon - my poor neglected WIPs!).

I started spinning this yarn a day after bringing it home from my spinning guild’s annual swap, and loved the tweedy colors - chocolate brown with a bit of acid green and purple (hmm - somehow that doesn’t sound as nice as it looks - it looks lovely!). The fiber was easy and fun to spin, requiring no predrafting at all - just pure spinning enjoyment. I spun up the whole bit of it at once onto a single bobbin. A couple of nights later, I wound it off onto my hand to andean ply (next time, I will divide the fiber and spin it onto two bobbins - a bit easier, I think!). I had a few breakage issues where the singles were too loosely twisted, but as a result I did get much better at overlapping the broken ends and plying them in. I can barely tell where the breaks occurred now that the twist is set. All in all it was a (nearly) instant spinning gratification project - very enjoyable!

Source: Twisted Threads Spinning Guild Swap

Content: Romney, Alpaca & Angora (I think!)

Ounces: 2

Yardage: @ 146 yds.

WPI: 11

Weight: worsted/light worsted

Gauge: 20 sts/4 inches on US6 needles

Although this is not my most consistent or skilled spinning effort, I do believe it is my most balanced yarn so far! I can spy some spots where it is under-twisted or under-plied just a bit- but this is the first skein I’ve spun that has ever hung so beautifully straight for me. I wish you could feel this swatch - It knit up very nice & sqooshy- very soft, though probably a bit scratchy for neckwear. I believe it would felt readily, as evidence by the fact that it wanted to stick together in the skein and I had to gently tug the yarn to free it while winding it into a ball.

Now, what is it this little bit of local yarn destined to be do you think? A Zeebee or some garter mitts? Soft & cozy foot socks? Thrummed mittens?

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Now playing: Roddy Woomble - Every Line of a Long Moment
via FoxyTunes

Saturday is for sleeping in after a very satisfying concert Friday night (Bright Eyes at the Millenium Center in Winston-Salem - I was very much looking forward to it, but they were better than I anticipated!)

Bad cell pic of Heather, Tess & I (Tad’s the photographer) grabbing a bite and a drink before the show.

Saturday is for Sunshine….

Courtesy of both the real thing and of Cosy, who I’ve just found recently, but is such a gem. Thank you Cosy, the feeling is completely mutual. Your blog never fails to make me smile!

Saturday is for Spinning (and slightly obsessive predrafting)….

Sunday is for sleeping in again (this is rare for us!) after our 2nd annual horror fest with a few friends, incredible hospitality provided by our friends Peter and Martha (We watched Bug and Severance - I’m sure Tad will share more details!)

Sunday is for Starting (I know it doesn’t look like much, but that’s the first three rows of the Festjakket - all 300+ stitches/row! Must make a note to update the progress bar to .02975% complete….)

And Sunday is for the Sweeter…. Who is a little under the weather & is catching some z’s. I think she needs a snug!

I hope you all had a great weekend!!

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Now playing: Bright Eyes - Bowl Of Oranges
via FoxyTunes

It’s Socktoberfest! How about some socks?

My Kaylee’s are finished, and thus also my very first handspun, handknitted project (and it’s been a long time coming)! I know that this is just a tiny knit, and that there are amazingly talented people spinning and knitting positively gorgeous things with their handspun all the time*, but to me, this very first one feels a little like a graduation (not like grad school or anything - maybe more like kindergarten?) I spun a quantity of yarn that could be used to knit something other than a coaster! And I knitted socks with it! Damn!

My apologies if I seem a smidgen carried away - I’m just thrilled! I love spinning - I loved the whole concept before I ever tried it; and when I sat down with a drop spindle nearly a year ago and somehow actually made a tiny skein of yarn, I was completely overwhelmed and amazed. It wasn’t pretty, it certainly wasn’t even (to call it rustic would be kind), but there it was…. YARN! Fiber turns to string, loops of string become cloth, fabric that takes shape as a wearable article… It’s all a bit of magic worked by human hands. It’s so exciting to have these little socks on my feet and think that I made them! And not only that - I made the yarn that made them! I’m still grinning from ear to ear (and clapping my feet)! The yarn, it is not perfect. Neither is the knitting. But damn if these aren’t wearable - very cute - handspun socks!

The next step is to go from start to finish!! It’s time to tackle those alpaca and shetland fleeces that have been hiding in the attic until I gathered the courage to do something with them!

Oh yes, I’m getting carried away. This is an FO post isn’t it? I almost forgot!

The stats:

Pattern: Kaylee by monkeytoes

Note: Kaylee is really more of a roadmap built around a lovely stitch than an actual pattern (information only, not a complaint). The .pdf is a one pager, really more of a guideline. No gauge is given, and no specific instructions on the toe, heel or ribbing. This made it a bit fun actually, a little choose your-own-adventure. I’m supposed to start with the toe - how do I do that? I think there was a reference in the Summer IK…. Hmm, found a couple articles on Knitty as well - what about the heel, how does that work, exactly? I had fun researching and figuring out what to do here. I think patterns like this build on all the great information out there, and make us industrious knitters. If I wanted to knit something very specific (Chuck’s for instance?) more details and specific instructions would be necessary.

Gauge: 24sts/4inches in stockinette

Needles: US2 DPNs (the pattern is written for 2 circs, but can easily be done on DPN’s)

Yarn: My own! Blogged here and here, Calendula by Bonkers! - 50/50 Merino/Tencel. Navajo plied and divided into two balls of equal amounts by length.

Mods:

• My gauge was larger than the pattern intended - or written for bigger feet, thus I removed the 2 knit stitches from each side of the instep pattern to fit my foot. In hindsight, this was probably not necessary - the socks don’t feel tight, but the stitches do seem a little stretched width-wise.
• I chose to continue the lace pattern across the back of the leg after completing the heel.

New Skills:

• Eastern Cast-On (from Ann Budd’s Article, Working Socks from the Toe Up, Summer IK 2007) - I had trouble finding an online resource for this, please let me know if you know of a good one.
• Short-row heel, from the same article.
• Invisible sewn bind off, I have a couple books and magazines with this technique, but there’s a great tutorial here.

Verdict: Love ‘em - I’ve mentioned before that orange has never been my color, but since I first saw the roving these colors just made me smile. Now I have happy feet!

The evolution of the Kaylee Socks:

*seemingly gratuitous links? Check ‘em out, seriously. If you haven’t seen these yet, you should. You won’t be sorry!

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Now playing: The Shins - Turn A Square
via FoxyTunes

P.S. Amazing show Friday night - I have to admit that I don’t enjoy their latest album as much as the older stuff, but when they played the newer songs live, they sounded great and I felt like they held up well. Love the live music!

Chuck no. 2 was cast on in the company of the fine Chapel Hill Stitchers Monday evening while I decided what to do about the toe of Chuck no. 1 (I’ll elaborate properly in the FO post - I learned so much about socks with this project - and I even conquered kitchener stitch!). After getting some advice from master-kilt-hose knitter Heather and sleeping on it, I completed Chuck no. 1 last night, toe and all, and it is safely hidden from The Sweeter to avoid sock-tastrophe. And, as I’ve already got a start on no.2 (which commits me to finishing it), I felt like I could take a little knitting break! The title of this post does indicate that it will be about spinning of course, not my Chuck’s socks.

“Deep Ocean” Merino Tencel from Bonkers! in the background, and “Allison” Tussah Silk from The Flock Bransonas (sadly, their domain has expired):

They are both very fun to spin, in different ways - The silk is sticky and conducive to cobweb spinning; The merino-tencel soft and slippery.

I’m thinking….. Melanie’s Hanami? Anne’s Bee Fields? Gabriella’s Catalina? So many gorgeous choices, so many talented designers! Oooh - or Frost Flowers & Leaves? I guess we’ll have to see what kind of yardage I have to work with, and how the sample knits up. I anticipate that this will be a long term spinning project - I began working with the Bonkers fiber in July and still have an ounce or two left to spin, as well as most of the tussah silk. I’ll fit it in as I have been - predrafting a bit in car on the way to & from work & spinning a bit in the evenings here and there when I need a break from my current knitting project. I’m finally getting the hang of switching back & forth between my knitting and spinning, and it makes for an enjoyable change of pace, though it does mean that it will take me awhile to finish anything at all!

1. Into Indie movies? Go check out Tad’s review of Once. It was terrific. Loved it & the music too.
2. While we’re on the music topic - great shows, coming our way. There are rumors that Cloud Cult may also make their way southeast this fall - now that would be amazing.

• Okkervil River
• Tegan & Sara
• Stars
• The Avetts (again! SO sad they went to ticketmaster though. damn.)
• Ani (if we can manage a road trip to Knoxville!)

3. More Spinning! This is a practice skein of tussah silk from the Flock Bronsanas, plied with some more Bonkers Merino Tencel…. I’m in love, again. Shooting for shawl-worthy laceweight. And can you believe it, this one’s under-plied! Guess I’ve been feeling a bit more mellow

4. Reworking (Bobble Blue - removed the buttons and ribbing and trying diffent edgings - no good pics to share yet):
5. Still working with the Fire/Sunset handspun - just cast on for real, I think. I’ll keep you posted! It’s very strange for me to have so many projects actively in the works at once. You know what that means, it will take me forever to finish them!
6. Dying to get out & go hiking. Especially after seeing where Elizabeth’s at this weekend. Damn. We’ll have to settle for a 60 mile walk on pavement for now.
7. Which reminds me - Contest!! (yes, didn’t I bring this up weeks ago? Well the time has come my friends - I’ve got prizes & lots to talk about. Check back at my 3Day page in a day or two for details.) We did 10 miles yesterday (plus an hour of yoga for me!)

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

I never thought it possible. I spun, plied and blocked almost 4 oz. of roving in one week. In the grand scheme of things, that’s probably not much, but it’s all relative. For me, this is a huge accomplishment. It’s amazing what total brain overload can produce when combined with the power of procrastination!

The fiber is Bonkers 50%/50% Tencel/Merino purchased from Maryland Sheep & Wool this spring. I could go on & on about these colors - I just love ‘em! They make me happy

Loves:

• The feel of this fiber - The merino/tencel blend was so soft and yummy
• Pre-drafting - it’s my new best friend.
• Navajo plying - what fun!

Not so much:

• It’s totally overplied (and probably overspun, too. Good learning experience. I still love it though!)

Once I learn more about twist/grist/ etc. etc. I can provide more gory details, but for now, you just get more pics!!

As I was plying my way back through the yarn, I noticed that the bobbin went from predominantly reddish/orange-ish with small sections of yellow, to very predominantly yellow with very tiny sections or red or orange. I can tell exactly where in the drafting process I started to pay attention to the order or size of the color variations - trying to control (to some extent) when the color changes occurred to make sure I wasn’t getting repeats that were too long (or repeating too quickly) I was hoping for more variegation, but not actively working toward that end for the whole process. The resulting skein could be used strategically for a project that would show off the transition of colors, but it really wasn’t my intent.

I was still thinking about socks, but if my maths are right (you know that’s always up in the air where I’m concerned), I have just shy of 200 yards of sock weight yarn (Is that it, really?? I have no concept yet of how many ounces should spin up to what ply & weight of yarn) So, socks would probably need to be anklets, if that. I’ll give some thought to it. Any suggestions? I have not yet made anything (other than swatches) with my handspun and I’m determined to remedy that problem with this yarn!

*Edited to Add:

Lookie!! Traci from Bonkers left me a comment - I can get more! Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!