Recent finishes

 This past weekend I got a lot of spinning and knitting done...

Most of the fleece from Bella is spun into yummy thin singles.  I'm doing wool that's about 15 WPI (wraps per inch) as a general rule, which makes me happy!  I found that the secret with this particular fleece seems to be: comb, comb and comb again.  The final wool from this fleece is much softer than what I was spinning up from the previous one.  There could be a couple of reasons for that:

• Greater time and care directed to the carding/combing process
• cleaner fleece
• more experience
• soft undercoat hairs distributed well throughout the wool

I'm getting better at the spinning part, too.  This fleece has been easier to spin straight from the rolags without pre-drafting.  Again, I'm not sure why that is.  I'm sure more experience will teach me.

In the meantime, I made the thrummed mitts above using purchased Merino roving (that I originally intended to do needlefelting with and now will probably just spin) from this pattern.  For those who are not familiar with thrumming, look it up!  It's Canadian!

The first time I saw a pair of thrummed mitts was a pair my friend Frances was wearing at an Elementary School assembly that we were both attending as parents.  In those days, Monday mornings would consist of walking the boys to school, then heading to the gym to watch the weekly school assembly...and catch up and visit with friends!  Considering the size of the community and the groups of parents who would routinely attend on those mornings, I think most of the behind-the-scenes connections for volunteer powerhouses such as soccer league, youth society projects, etc., were made during that brief weekly convergence at our kids' school.  Funny, I haven't thought about that in quite a while!  It was a real gift to be working at home during those years, to be able to attend things like that.

The other thing that got finished this weekend is my short sleeved cardigan...with wool that was a Christmas gift from my Mom and Dad. (THANK YOU!!)  I would link up the pattern here, but it seems to only exist as a Ravelry download.  If you are a member, look it up as 'Star-cross'd love'.  You should be able to find it through the pattern search function.  Or write me, and I'll hook you up to the .pdf.

I managed to get it done and blocked and was able to wear it to work on Tuesday this week...one of my co-workers, whenever I was working on it during my lunch break, would come over and say, "So, watcha making for me?"
The first time he did this, I said,"A vest, but I think it's going to be a bit small for you." We had a bit of a laugh, as he is quite a bit bigger than I am... and it became a bit of a running joke.  He would ask how his vest was coming along, etc.

So I made him a little vest.

A very little vest.  It measures about 1" wide, finished and worn by the little man at left.


Tuesday morning, I left it in his mailbox at work.

You see, he never asked what I was making for myself!
:)
Lisa

If you're not a fibre freak, turn off your computer NOW

A little magic happened here for me yesterday.  After spinning up several 50M skeins, I tried my hand at plying.

Mmmmmmm.  Yummy.

I've read a lot about plying and there are many good technical articles out there about HOW to ply, but nothing about WHY one should ply.

What I discovered is that - at least with this yarn - the singles knit up a bit scratchy.  Plying the singles into a balanced 2ply yarn made it squishy and soft.  That was the magic...the transformation from scratchy to soft.

I downloaded an app about spinning for my iPod...it's pretty cool, really. It's full of information and different calculators, twist, grist, etc.

My calculations were a little off. 

I thought that my roughly 13 wpi (wraps per inch) singles would ply into a 6 wpi yarn that would be a worsted weight...as it turns out, it came out more of a chunky weight.

I was so entranced with the squishy softness of this yarn, that I started knitting a toque last night with it...and finished it this morning.  It's sitting blocking now, waiting to go to it's new home.

My neighbour spent some time with me yesterday, carding up rolags.  Much of the wool he carded is spun up into this toque...



Yummy.

:)
Lisa

Yes, yes. There's always room for one more craft...

 My kind neighbour has become my new enabler - he gave me the fleece of one of his Icelandic sheep.  He had three sheep at shearing time this year: one brown, one white, and one brown and white.  Given my choice, I asked for the brown and white fleece.

Man I love fibre.  Who doesn't, really?

I haven't done any spinning since I was a pre-teen.  Back then our family was given the use of a beautiful spinning wheel from one neighbour, and several raw fleeces from another.  I can remember washing wool in buckets in the greenhouse shed...picking crud and vegetable matter (VM) out of it, carding it with hand carders, and spinning it on the wheel.  I don't know how much I really did at the time, and have no wool left from then to show.  I remember the fella who gave us the fleeces when I was young asked me to knit him a scarf...and I think I crocheted him a hat. As an adult, I recognize his lovely social grace in accepting the hat rather than the requested scarf (wherever you are - thank you, Misha).

It's funny how pushing my hands into all this wonderful smelling wool brought so much of that back.  I remember sitting in the unfinished part of our basement (with radio plays from the 30s and 40s on my new 'ghetto blaster'), bits of frass and VM falling on my lap and the floor as I spun.  This is when I first learned about S-twist, Z-twist and plying.  Now, I can't help but wonder how my Mom knew so much about the process!  She is the one who showed me how to use the carding brushes, helped me learn to wash the wool without felting it, and set me up with the spinning wheel.  I have vague memories of her showing me how to use a drop spindle as well - a wooden, bottom/low whorl spindle. The spindle was frustrating, but the wheel was fascinating.

I washed this new fleece this week by filling buckets of uncomfortably hot water and submerging large handfuls of locks in it to soak.  Before the locks were put in, I put a little bit of dish soap in the water to help degrease the fleece a little.  Apparently lanolin melts at 107degrees, so I used as hot water as I could from the tap.  Each bucketful of locks was rinsed by the same method (sitting in a bucket of clear water), with as little agitation as possible.  I used the spin (SPIN ONLY) cycle on our front loading washer to get as much water out of the fleece as possible before setting it up on the rack to dry.  One spin is fine (on my machine it is 11 minutes), two begins to felt the fibres.  (Yes, I found that out the hard way!  Lucky for me the fibres are not so well on their way to felting as to be unusable for spinning.)

Because I'm not the most patient person on the planet when it comes out to new ideas, I elected to spin one spindle-full with unwashed wool (something spinners call 'spinning in the grease').
Some of the current web information about spinning is in favour of 'spinning in the grease' and some is in support of spinning with washed fibres. I love the smell of unwashed fleece and have concrete floors...so am not all that worried about having bits of VM and short fibres fall on the floor as I work.  I learned that there is a big difference between spinning 'in the grease', and with washed fleece in terms of feel.  The wool that I spun before washing is thicker and loftier.  I think that is due to the stickiness of the fibres (more stiff to draw), and the stickiness holding the wool together well enough that I didn't have to put quite as much twist in it.  For the technical types out there, that 1st skein has 42degree Z-twist, at approximately 10-13 wraps per inch (wpi), considered to be a heavy Aran weight.  It is quite slubby (thick and thin spots), due to my learning curve. I made about 40M/110g of yarn (single, not plied) in that first skein.  I washed it after spinning and skeining to set the twist.

As I have no proper hand carders any more, I bought a dog brush that matches the one from the cupboard to make a pair of ersatz-carding brushes.  In my spare time, I've been combing up diminutive little rolags.

The spindle I'm using is the one originally posted about here, modified by crazy-gluing two scratched CDs to the top of the whorl.  It's working surprisingly well!  At first I was spinning by predrafting each rolag and the 'draw and park' method shown here, but have since figured out how to keep the spindle spinning while I draw and am making much more even, thinner yarn.

The wool spun 'in the grease' and the wool spun from washed fibres ended up the same colour after the 1st skein was washed to set the twist.  I think I'll continue to spin from the washed fibres, just because I feel more control with the spinning process with the washed fleece.  The smell is not quite so sheep-y, and my hands won't be as soft, but the longer process before spinning makes for less seeds, dung and short fibres by the time I get to the spindle.

Washing ahead also seemed to make it easier to pick out the short, unspinnable fibres from the fleece.  Something I would do next time with a fleece is to take the time to spread it out and pick out as many of the really short fibres, burrs and dung bits as possible before washing.

I'm on my third skein now (each averages about 50M in length, and about 15wpi.

I knit a beret from the first 1.5 skeins off the spindle using a pattern designed to show off the loveliness of thick/thin 'designer' yarn.  It went together really quickly, and without incident my the slubby yarn.

Now to knit Todd a toque to say thank you.  Or maybe a scarf?

:)

Happy Saturday,
Lisa

Back again! With lots of knitty content!!

I guess the boys and I didn't get enough of camping with the family and had to - just HAD to - go back for more.
Much as we missed all the cousin action and the laughter, the lake was pretty tranquil with just the boys, one of their friends, and me.




The weather was gorgeous, not too much smoke made it down the valley, and we all got a lot of swimming time in!


When I wasn't swimming, I was beach sitting.  It gave me a great opportunity to get some knitting, journal writing and drawing done.   Every year, at least once over the past few years, I've drawn Saddleback from the vantage point of the beach.

Typically I've got watercolour pencil crayons in my bag, along with some coloured pens.







This year I also brought some pre-cut artist trading card sized cards of different weights and textures. 

And, because I'm that knitterly kind of girl, I finished up two projects that I've been working on for a while.







This shrug, from this pattern, has been on my needles for only about a week from start to finish - pretty big project considering the gauge!  The yarn is one of my all-time favorites, Noro Silk Garden Sock. It's a blend of wool, silk, angora and nylon meant for sock knitting, but I think it's far to lovely to hide in my shoes.

For the curious, I used colourway 268 - colours that coincidentally completely match this season in this area.   Something that doesn't really show in the photos is the beading in the cuffs.  This was my first adventure with beading in knitting, and it's spawned loads of ideas for my next projects.  Now if I could just settle on one and get started!

The other major project that I finished was this big red cardigan.  It was originally started as something to keep my hands busy while I sat on my rear recovering from my broken toe.

Please excuse the cheezy self portraiture - it's hard to set the camera, run around to the front and quickly look natural!!

For those who are interested in the process and modification notes of either sweater (or in seeing more photos of how they go together), there is a great deal more information on my Ravelry page.  Look me up, if you care to - you'll need to be a member or become one to sign in - you'll find me there under the username Threadsongs.

Ciao!
Lisa

Reflecting

It's late morning, DH has gone off to work after 3 weeks of holiday and the boys are still sleeping (one out on the deck, the other up in his bed).

I turned 40 last week.

The day itself was pretty anticlimactic, in a way, as lovely people in my life have been celebrating it with and for me for over a month already!

My dear girlfriends from Nakusp whisked me off to Lillith Fair in July to see amazing performers(Sheryl Crow! Erykah Badu! Sarah McLachlan!) and be silly for a couple of days. If it weren't for these girls I'd not know the what chicken gizzards taste like (yummy), that dollar store beads can colour skin in beautiful hues, or the multifarious meanings of the word 'Schrag'. I can't begin to say how wonderfully silly and profoundly deep my experience of these women is... but they've certainly been heavy influences in my growth and emerging adult womenhood over the past 15 years.

As we do each summer, we camped for a week with the extended Thiessen side of the family. I continue to be amazed at the connections made and tended amongst us all. I know I'm very blessed to have such loving and welcoming in-laws - ones who are not afraid to create some high silliness in honour of milestone birthdays! Two of my sisters-in-law also reached the 4 decade mark this year, and the family rose to the occasion with a ceremony complete with hand carved staffs, paper towel gowns, tiaras, champagne and (literally) jumping through (hula) hoops.

My own family honoured the day with lovely notes and calls, unexpected gifts and beautiful sentiment. I can't seem to write about how that made me feel without tears springing up.

Through all of this I've been knitting and drawing, jounaling and thinking, and just letting the summer soak into my bones. I've been counting my blessings and feeling deep gratitude.


Somehow I wanted to weave into this post something about my hands...just how grateful I am for them, how they have been the locus of my interaction with the world, the place I learn and the place I create. Though people flatter me with saying that I look younger than my 40 years, I think my hands show each day of that time. They're strong, wiry and capable. The skin is showing my age. And that's as it should be.

Lisa

finishing is so sweet

And now, for the knitters in our audience...

I finished it. That's right...the sweater I've been working on since the beginning of the year.

It's from a book by Martingale called Dazzling Knits. I bought the book for the cover sweater pattern after seeing photos of ones other people had done on Ravelry.

The whole sweater is made modularly(in small units that all fit together to create the whole). Part of my attraction to the sweater was the method, as I've never done anything like this before.

The pattern and book are well written - if a little preachy about colour- and well worth the read, if only for the tips and techniques that are of interest to us yarny-types.

For those who care about such things, I used Noro, Ella Rae, Gallway and some Jojoland wool. By the way, it was 30 degrees C outside while Youngest was helping me out with the photo shoot! Not the weather that I intended to be wearing this sweater in when I started it in January!

I guess there's something to be said for sitting on my duff for a few days - and my foot is doing much better, too. The swelling has gone down a lot, and it's no longer quite such a bright blue. I think it'll be better sooner than the doctor thought.

Happy stitching,

Lisa

Changes in plan

I had a bit of a mishap last night....and fractured a bone in my little toe. I caught it on a deck fixture that I'd been stepping around without issue, but as I went to start the BBQ, I nailed it good and hard, in full stride.

The upside is that I get to spend a bit more time knitting, I think, as this poor ped of mine needs to stay elevated. Knitting on the deck - doesn't that sound nice?

With school having finished, it was expected that things would slow down around here...but many, many things that had been put off for a long time clamoured in to fill the space. Some

days I don't know where all the time goes.

We had a houseguest for the weekend, which was part of why I was running out to start the BBQ last night - and the weather was perfect for cooking and eating outside. I had this

week set aside for more deep housecleaning, and lots of different plans for the boys. No more!

This is my new plan:

Sit. Knit.

Hopefully I'll finish the sweater in progress in the next couple of days. All that's left to do now are the sleeve cuffs.

:)

Lisa

June's end

I managed to finish up my final classwork for the last class of my diploma the other night. It seemed anti-climactic, somehow, to end two years' work by clicking 'upload', but that's the way online learning ends! Last year, at the college, we had a day devoted to closing, there were all the goodbyes and hugs and promises to keep in touch...

So, with my classwork done, I've been indulging myself in the activities I was putting off - such as knitting. It's the wrong time of year to work on a big, heavy wool sweater, but I can't help myself! The colours and texture of this project have been whispering to me for months, telling me to put aside my schooling and immerse my hands. I was so good, and resisted - but don't have to anymore. Last night I managed to add another long chevron and am looking forward to getting back into the rhythm of this project.

It's sunny and beautiful here as we count down the last few days of school. Oldest has been done since last week, but Youngest and I (because we are in the Elementary part of the system) close out our year on Tuesday of the coming week. The close of this school year marks the end of this job for me. Being a school district employee at the level I'm at means some uncertainty at this time of year, as I don't really know what position I'll be in come fall...and most of the students that I spent my days with are moving on to other schools. If I stay at the same school, it will be with other students; if I stay with the same students, it will be at other schools. Change is inevitable.

I think my 'to do' list for summer might be a little bit unreasonable, but who knows? Maybe I can get everything done. All the little things that have been calling out over the last few months are on the list, plus new things seem to be emerging daily. Today, though, I will have another cup of coffee, knit a little, hang out with the boys and take it easy. Summer is stretching out in front of us, and I think we should begin by taking it slow.

:)
Lisa

More knit love

My Mom-in-law recently finished a gorgeous aran knit sweater for my DH. In the parcel she mailed us, she included the 3 skeins of yarn that she had not used for it...and surprise, surprise...I had a project in mind that takes exactly that much yarn!

The project is from the Fall issue of Interweave Knits, and it's called the Every Way Wrap by Okmin Park. If you click on the link in the name, you'll see several pictures of the model for the magazine...something to notice is that the cabled area is actually reversible! I'm learning how to do a cabled area that can be enjoyed from either side.

Also, this is the first knit I've done using the technique that has no cable needle - in all honesty, I don't think I'll ever go back. No way. This is just too slick. I can cable MUCH faster this way than I ever could before.

Anyhoo, that's what's got me busy in the evenings right now. That, and looking for renters for our house in Nakusp.

Cheers,

Lisa

Summer green, finally finished

It's been moved from place to place, unfolded, refolded, moved again...and now it's finally finished.

I posted a picture of this sweater back in July, when I was still actively knitting it. Sadly, it has been shuffled about, claspless, until last night.

The main thing was that I thought I'd need to reinforce the front bands with ribbon, but, after trying to sew one on last night with no real success I thought, "finished is better than perfect" - and just put the pesky clasps in place.

I love it.

I loved the yarn to begin with (Ella Rae wool from Romania? I think?)

I spend a silly amount of time just enjoying the weight and texture of the sweater. This is done on 4mm needles, much smaller than the leftovers vest of a previous post. Somehow this needle/yarn combination just hits that textural 'sweet spot' that can be so elusive.

Hopefully I'll get called into work so that I can wear it out! Classrooms can be chilly, you know, and shorter sleeves ensures that I don't drag them through a student's (or my own) work.

And it fits.

Hooray!

The little clasps are from Fabricland (which a friend of mine not-so-affectionately calls "the F store")... *blush*

Cheers,

Lisa

Knit love...

I'm waiting for some wool to come in. While I do, I've been using up odd skeins that have been hanging around...


This is 'Leftovers' from Knitty. My modifications include the fact that I didn't realize there were any body increases - whatsoever - and had to 'make up' the neck decreases and armhole shaping! It's not blocked yet, and there are a few ends to weave in, but it's pretty much ready for going back to school/work next week.




My winter coat will be Heroine, in red plum colour. Currently I'm biding my time waiting for the wool by making a Lucy bag. Chances are I'll have to make something else, too...there's got to be some sock yarn around here somewhere...

:)
Lisa

Fully fulled - ready for winter...

Well.
Perhaps blogger and I just plain disagree on how photos should be presented.
Perhaps something fundamental has changed in the software since I was a regular blogger.
Perhaps I just have lost my 'touch' for these things.
Regardless, here is the story of fulling my slippers (shown in last post) in reverse order:

Finished!

It's a good thing that I looked into the washing machine when I did, as the slippers were fully fulled to fit my foot. There is absolutely no stitch definition left, and they have a delightfully squishy, nubbly texture. I had given up hope on them by the time I'd thrown them in the washer with a bunch of pairs of jeans for agitation.

The photo above is the penultimate desperation point, when I gave up on being gentle and just went for it with the plunger and HOT water in our bathtub. The slippers were seeming to just stretch at this stage, so I thought I could put them in the washing machine as I had nothing to lose by it.

Here is the cold shock I gave them, hoping to make them start to lose stitch definition - or SOMETHING.

The photo above shows how gently I started. The bucket is filled with crazily hot water and a little bit of mild soap. Having accidently shrunken knitwear before, I thought it best to start with caution. Somehow the idea of abandoning the slippers to the front loader seemed a bit too rash...

At this stage I was still thinking it might be safe to throw DH's new sweater into the washer (these slips are using up a couple of the last skeins from that project). Now I know that would be disasterous.

And this, last and first photo, shows how big they were in proportion to my feet before I started the fulling process. I love the not knowing part, the excitement and anticipation that's all part of projects like these.

Now I'm ready for winter. Which is only 3 months away...

:)

Lisa

No, I really do still make small stuff, too....

I've been knitting a little over the past month since school let out. I started with these socks just around exam time - they're going to take a while. I'm actually further along on them than the photo records as I would work on them during breaks at work. I was calling them my 'grad socks', but I think they're more like my 'lunch break socks'.


While DH was away on a five day motorcycle trip over the Canada Day week, I knit a skirt:




And before that, I tried my hand at knitting a shrug:


Right now I'm working on these slippers (they'll be fulled down to size) using the leftover wool from the sweater I finally finished for DH. I put the book in there for size reference. These badboys are knit on 7mm needles - I feel like I'm knitting with cordwood!


My main project, though, has been this little 3/4 length sleeve cardigan. I really started the slippers as a break from the seed stitch (don't enjoy doing it, but love the way it looks once done). I'm in love with the colour, and with the texture of this particular knitted fabric. It's knit top down based on this pattern. I've made quite a few mods, though, and will probably pick out the cast on row at the neckline and do something different there. We'll see, I haven't decided.


What do they say...idle hands are the devil's..what? Idle hands don't get sore? Idle hands still have nice fingernails? Hm.
I just can't remember.
:)
Lisa

Mom's Day fun

I got to spend my Mom's day relaxing and working on things I wanted to do...one of which was a set of stitch markers for a friend at school. I hope she likes the star ones...the large one is the row marker one.





When we were in Nelson on Friday I'd picked up a few sets of charms that were destined to become stitch markers, as well as some other lovely jewelry-making tidbits.



I made this other little set for myself...I'm going to have to start a marker-heavy project of some kind. I've found myself looking at lace patterns (shawls, mostly)...is it completely backward to start on a knit project JUST so that I can use lots and lots of markers? Nah, I didn't think so either.

:)


And last night I finished my Noro socks...the first pair...and started my second pair.

This wool is too yummy for words, now I know what the fuss is about. I love it, too.

A little abrasive to work with (with the occasional stick or twig in there), but it softens up considerably.

The next pair are also Noro (a different colourway), using the Jaywalker (may only be available to Ravelry members) pattern. I'll stripe them working from opposite ends of the skein....love that look on other's projects, can't wait to see what it looks like on this one.

Happy stitching,

Lisa

Stitch markers tutorial (photo heavy)

It's been a tremendously long time since I did a tutorial, hasn't it?

I've been using some lovely stitch markers for my knitting, ones that I bought at Hide and Sheep. Today, as I was dozing off, I had a brainwave of how I could make stitch markers myself...I've been missing my big round nose pliers for several months, so have not taken a plunge into doing this, thinking I'd try once I found them again.

I just couldn't wait...and it turned out, there was no reason to.

You can see the basic supplies in the picture at right:
silver wire (half hard, 18 gauge)
Various beads, bead caps and spacers
mandrel
wire cutters
chain nose pliers
round nose pliers (in this case, mini ones)


Start out by making a teeny, tiny loop in one end of your wire with your round nose pliers.




Next, string on your beads. Remember that the first bead you put on will be at the bottom of the stitch marker....








Using your chain nose pliers, make a right angle bend in the wire above the beads. Notice in the photo that I'm just holding the wire with the pliers and making the bend ABOVE the jaws of the pliers. This is important, as you want to have room to work later, and this builds in a little space.



Next, still holding the right angle above the beads in your pliers, wind the wire around your mandrel. This will give you the round top that your knitting needle will go through later, so make sure it's big enough to accommodate your favorite needle size. You'll notice in the picture that I'm holding the mini chain-nose pliers in my right hand underneath the mandrel. I want the loop to be as close to the right angle as I can get it.







Now, hold the loop in your chain nose pliers. wind the tail of the wire around that space you made below the right angle (trust me, doing it is so much easier than trying to explain it). Wind it around and around, keeping the wraps tight, until you run out of space. Use your wire cutters to cut off any excess wire flush with the wraps. If you leave anything sticking out here, it will get hooked up in your knitting! You can always use those chain nose pliers to force any 'stick-out'y bits into submission.

Et Voila! You have a stitch marker!


And you know me, I can never make just one....




















Or just one variation, for that matter. The next set were done using a blown glass bead, bead cap, end, barrel spacer and wire with the same method. I think that's 20 gauge silver though, as I ran out of the 18 gauge.


Oh..and a quick credit to my oldest, who helped take photos of the 'in process' tricky bits above.





Oh, and who are these happy, happy people?

Me and my DH....happy landowners, leaving the lawyer's office. I had to get a snap of us in the first couple of minutes after we signed the final property transfer...after trying to take 3 pictures myself, DH took the picture. Like many things, I should just leave it to him. Really.

:)

Lisa