Knitster Chelle

MD Sheep & Wool 2008 ... the quick recap

So here's the quick recap on all the economic stimulating I did in Maryland yesterday. I'll followup with a more detailed description shortly.

      

Schacht Ladybug and 2 extra bobbins from Yarn Barn of KS
Colored 5lb fleece, Romney/Corriedale cross from Howell Hill in Glenelg, MD
White 3lb fleece, Romney/Corriedale cross from Howell Hill in Glenelg, MD
3 oz yellow pindrafted roving from Ozark Carding Mill
3 oz green pindrafted roving from Ozark Carding Mill
8 oz pink wool/silk blend roving from Wool 'n' Quilts/Triple 'R' Farm
4 oz red locks from Wool 'n' Quilts/Triple 'R' Farm
4 oz total of three colors (orange, green, grey) Border Leicester/Finn cross locks from Spinners Hill
2 4oz BFL rovings from Gale's Art
0.6 oz Slotted top-whorl spindle from The Drafting Zone
Color wheel, McMorran balance, spinning oil, WPI tool, and highlighter tape from The Mannings
Essentials of Handspinning from The Mannings
Handspindle...Not Just for Demonstrations Anymore from The Mannings

AND I took home $120! Don't ask, I don't know how I did it either.

A Fine Experiment

For the past month or so I've been taking a Beginner Handspinning class offered by the Philadelphia Guild of Handweavers. I'm enjoying it immensely. In preparation for the last class, I was supposed to spin two bobbins' worth of yarn on the loaner wheel. The loaner wheel was a lovely Louet S51. The problem was I couldn't get the hang of treadling at all. I mean I know how to treadle but not consistently. I would get going and then the wheel would change directions on me. Or it would rock back and forth like a Buccaneer ride at an amusement part. Or I'd think I got the right rhythm and I'd look at the bobbin and see corkscrew-y yarn barf tangled at the orfice. So the upshot is that I didn't have my homework for my latest spinning class. The dyeing class.

It was all good though, because my instructor, Pam,  suggested I dye locks as an experiment. Pam had a HUGE (like contractor size) bag of mystery locks/fleece. There were two distinct kinds, a long-stapled curly white wool and a short-stapled crimpy brown wool. The white wool is definitely raw. It's a bit dirty, has a fair amount of vegetable matter, and a barnyard smell. The brown wool may have been scoured, as it doesn't smell like much of anything. It appears to have only a small amount of VM.

So for the dyeing experiment, I took a couple of handfuls of the raw locks and teased them. I picked out the VM and aligned the tips. Then I headed into the guild kitchen where Pam had some dyestock set up. I think there was a teal green, a mustard yellow, and blue set up. The class mixed a bright red dye and topped off Pam's stock of blue. We were using acid dyes but I don't remember the specific brand. I choose the yellow and red dyes to make fiery orange locks. I used the drizzle and smoosh method of application. Then I wrapped the locks in a couple layers of plastic wrap and put my wool package in a big steamer pot. We steamed the wool for approximately 15 minutes. Because the class was only two hours, the rinsing and drying were our homework activities.

When I got home, I was so excited I made a couple of mistakes. My rinses weren't the same temperature (d'oh!) and I let the water run directly on the locks (double d'oh!). Still the experiment was quite successful, despite the imperfect finish.

Ta da!

      

Plum Loco

You ever get caught in a color jag? I've only recently noticed that I've been in a plum/merlot jag. Why do these things take so long  to register? I've been buying variations of the same colors since the beginning of the year. Wine and tobacco-y colors. Plum and mauve-y colors. Not that there's anything wrong with that. ;-)

And it's not just fiber. Apparently I'm also in drop spindle aquisition mode. I've been on the hunt for pretty and/or ornate bottom whorl spindles. There are plenty of beautiful top whorl spindles to be had. But bottom whorls seem to have a 'starter' stigma, so they're often heavy and utilitarian. That being said, my spindles range from feather weight to boat anchor, and I haven't scoured the far outer reaches of the Internet yet.

I've been practicing the most on my 1.1 oz Schacht Hi-Lo spindle. Schacht spindles are an excellent choice for newbie spindlers. They are widely available and come in three different weights. They have the versatility of being either top or bottom whorl. At around $17 US, they're affordable for most. The light wood and clear finish gives them a sleek, elegant air, I think.  And most importantly, they spin wonderfully well. My only issue with the Schacht spindle is that I've had the whorl shift on the 1 oz version. Most likely the result of me dropping it so many times. The crazy rollercoaster winter hasn't helped either. While the whorl still fits tightly to the shaft, I'm going to secure it with some glue.

I haven't mentioned it in my infrequent posts but I'm still spindling. Park and draft. Not quite ready to freestyle. Something about the handoff from twirl to draft gets me all jacked up. My practice fibers are Blue Faced Leicester and Targhee. Not a blend. Targhee on one spindle, BFL on another. So far, so good.

All the best dressed chairs wear handknits.

      

I finished some stuff! It's about time, those socks were killing me. I've worked on these Fortissima socks for what seems like forever. Considering they're knit on double zero metal (1.75 mm) needles, it's no surprise that they took some time to complete.

The sock yarn is Fortissima Colori Socka color number 2419. Yarndex has its name as Kolibri, which means hummingbird in German. The put-up of this particular colorway is 50-gram balls, which I think accounts for their fraternalness.

I think I've already described the seed stitch scarf but to recap. I used three balls of Karabella's Boise. It was a dream to knit with, like buttah! It's cushy, squishy, and wonderfully warm.

Challenge Accepted!

WARNING: If you're not into felines or the fabulousness of soft kitty paws, you may want to skip this post.

The resident mountain lions have accepted Ruby's challenge. Knitster Chelle is owned by three mini mountain lions.

      

 

First post of 2008

Yes, I know I've been a lax blogger, but that ends now. My only knitting resolution for 2008 is to post once a week. Now on to the updates. I finished the green tweed sweater. Still have to weave in ends and block. I finished my Boise scarf. I need to weave in the ends. Notice a trend? My end-weaving mojo hasn't kicked in yet. I have a pair of socks in progress as well.

            

The Ravelry invitation arrived shortly after the last post. I totally fell down the Ravelry hole. I've been sucked into the vortex. M.A.J.O.R. timesuck. That is a big part of why I haven't posted. I've been wading through the ocean of fiber fabulousness. Browsing the groups and forums. Updating my library, adding projects and stash. Ah yes, the stash. Slowing but surely, I'm uploading to Flickr and Ravelry. It's going to be a while, I have a good sized stash. The images below don't even include my sock stash.

      

Waiting patiently ... knitting with lotion

I signed up for Ravelry a few weeks ago. I just checked my status and

I am  #45083 on the list.
2392 people are ahead of me.
9450 people are behind me.
78% of the list has been invited so far

<Sigh> I guess my invite will arrive soon enough. In the meantime I'm knitting a scarf out of lotion. Okay, not lotion, Karabella's Boise. OH. MY. GAH. 50% Merino 50% Cashmere. So soft and silky, it certainly feels like lotion. Handling it is a dream. Makes my commute ever so pleasant.

      

I haven't abandoned the tweed sweater. Just finished the front and I'm due to cast on a sleeve either tonight or tomorrow. I'm considering knitting both sleeves at the same time on a single circular, but I don't think it will be worth the aggrivation of constantly untangling the yarn. Don't forget I have three feline assistants for any yarn project. I may work the sleeves the same way I do socks - cast them on separately and alternate. Eh, we'll see.

Waiting in the wings is a baby surprise jacket for my niece. Looks like a peach ruffle right now. I want to get little pearl buttons for it. I even went to a nearby notions store but was so completely sidetracked by the overwhelming cuteness of these pacifier buttons, that I forgot to get them. I'm using Dawn's cheat sheet because Elizabeth Zimmerman's pithy instructions are a little confusing in places. Oh and here's a post that will show you what a BSJ looks like in its early stages as well as how it comes together in the end. Thank goodness for the innernets!

Drama Knitting

Some serious family drama has arisen so I couldn't post but I have been knitting. I was so preoccuppied, I could barely string together two sentences. Now that things have stabilized somewhat, I can tell you about my current projects. The Simple Jacquard socks are almost done. Just about ready to start the toe decreases. These socks are my commuter knitting. They're such scene stealers. I'm amused by the sly sideways glances they garner. Occasionally I'll get direct inquiries about my knitting. Mostly though, sneak peeks.

      

I started the Green Tweed SWeater. Ultimately, I opted for a long sleeve pullover with a placket neck. I chose to include a collar, waist shaping, and an ease factor of close.  I've completed the back and am halfway through the front. I took the risk of not reknitting my swatch. So far, so good. There was the possibility that I'd repeat the mistake of the Nature Wool sweater. Gauge looks good, knock on wood. So I'm cruisin' right along.

      

Now that I'm getting back into the swing of things, I decided to reacquaint myself with the spindle. This decision has nothing to do with positively radiantly delicious Optim roving I spied at Rosie's Yarn Cellar. Nope, no connection whatsoever. PBT!! Yeah, right. While I nearly swooned at the sight of it, my heart sank a little because my spindling skills are not up to the task. But I'm going to rectify that so keep an eye out for fresh spinning content.

Fall Lineup

I haven't been as slack as my nonexistant posts suggest. I've been knitting and stash building while settling into the house. But since my focus is on the house, my projects have been small and/or mindless. The Mineral Socks were finally completed. It only took the entire summer. Actually I finished them mid-July but realized the foot was too short. I cast them aside and didn't rip and reknit the toes until last week. I also finished a very cute hat/booties set to accompany the baby surprise jacket Ceme made. I cranked out a few squares for Project Linus. Last but not least, I whipped up a teeny-tiny preemie bootie for my new niece, Tiara. The bootie was so small I was kinda weirded out and dragged my feet knitting the second one. Since Tiara's early arrival in mid-July, she's done fabulously well and is now regular infant size (7 lbs). So I can knit more familiar baby stuff.
   

Now that I've established the new knit spot, I've been hankering for a challenge. This is the year I knit myself a sweater. Of all the things I've knit for myself, I haven't made a sweater. A cotton tank, yes. Sweater, no. I cruised the local yarn shops for inspiration. Truth be told, I fondled the fall yarns. I'm a fiber fondler! hee. After a serious run-in with a plumber, I'm eyeing my stash with renewed interest. I have four potential sweaters in my stash. Actually five or six when you consider striping options. So the fall lineup includes a simple and a challenging sweater. <Clearly I'm delusional. It took me a whole summer to knit one pair of socks, but I'm going to make two, count 'em, two sweaters this fall. Yeah...right.> The pattern for the simple sweater, Green Tweed SWeater, will come from the SweaterWizard software. Right now I'm thinking of a long-sleeve pullover with placket neck and waist shaping, but that may change. I'll use celery green Tahki New Tweed from my stash, pictured under Mango's head, to knit it. I think Tahki still makes a New Tweed yarn, but this composition/blend is discontinued.
 

I'm using another discontinued yarn for the challenging sweater. I have 15 balls of KFI Cashmerino in a lilac color. KFI Cashmerino was a clone of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino DK at a slightly finer gauge. I found a fabulous pattern that calls for a DK-weight yarn with a similar put-up, gauge, and drape. But the sizing doesn't go large enough for me. My challenge is to upsize Sublime's Temptation pattern. (Head's up Lisa and Courtney, I'll probably be hitting you up for help.) Two major projects are set and I have several smaller projects as well. I'm making a baby set for my niece, a couple of luxury neck warmers/gaiters, and of course socks. That's all the news for now, sorry it's been so long since I last posted.

Hiatus Continues

The half-assed hiatus continues but I've had the chance to indulge in a couple of knitting activities. I went to Stitch 'N' Pitch. It was great fun. Albeit muggy, sweaty fun. It was insanely hot and to top it off, my seat was facing the setting sun. A cooling breeze made it bearable, but just barely.

The Stitch 'n' Pitch event was the first baseball game I've attended. I was very pleasantly surprised by the experience because I hate watching baseball on television. But the ballpark is nice and the crowd was fun. The Phillies' victory over the Reds only added to the positive vibe.

            

I finally blocked the Irish Diamonds Shawl and gave it to my stepmom. While this seems like the wrong time of time of year for a shawl, she sometimes finds air conditioning too aggressive. Last but not least, I scored a pair of vintage circular needles. I happened to come across them in an architectural salvage yard, draped over a nail. I got them along with the glass pitcher for $5.