Life...

...is getting in the way of life right now...but thankfully, life is working with knitting to keep me from going insane. ;) My enter key is not working, so there are going to be less paragraphs than there should be today.

Using a compilation of different fibers from my spinning career, I created a little shrug. It was just a rectangular piece of fabric that I sewed part of the long ways together. None of the fibers are dyed other than that big brown strip; that yarn was from a pair of socks I made for my mom a while ago. I am finding out I am actually quite enamored with the natural colors; I should buy more "regular" fiber! Every other strip was in k 2 rows, p 2 rows, and the intermittent strips were in garter stitch. It turned out rather well; this is the first shrug I've made that I wouldn't mind wearing in public.

I am also knitting a vest from the fall issue of Interweave knits; as you can see, the body is done. I just have to block it (the stockinette stitch really rolls!) and add the edging in the neck and arms. There also is supposed to be a strip to tie it off. I have found my interchangeable set, so the confusion of a straight needle being able to go around in a circle will not happen again. For anyone who is being super kind to me and continuing to read this blog, thanks so much for bearing with me. I have lots of other yarny "stuff" I'm working on, and will try to post as often as possible. I don't know how you seniors do blogging and knitting and school; I can barely keep up and I'm just a sophomore!

Dyeing of All Kinds (Plus a FO)

Rewind, if you please, to the Saturday before last.
The day before, a certain ceramic hand was picked up from a certain ceramics teacher's workshop. This hand seemed to enjoy following me around, so I let it pose in some pictures.

Also finished around then was the Picovoli cardigan. All I have to do is steam the edges, and I'm done. One more 4-H project complete!

Anyway, back to the Saturday before last.....
Mom and I were at a spinning guild meeting consisting of fiber, yarn, and tons of dye.
We had lots of fun.
A pair of snow-white silk caps, bought on the first of this year....

.....are no longer snow-white, nor caps. The orange and yellow has already been spun, and is a hairband, and the blueish purple one will soon be spun. (The brownish hairband was also knit with handspun flax during the trip. In fact, I'm wearing it as we speak.) Some lovely alpaca, soon to be a pair of gloves... ...is now a brilliant blue (although it was meant to be lavender. I don't know how that happened.)
Mom even got in on the action, dyeing a beautiful silk scarf! Mom is very proud of her scarf, and I am, too. It's a wonderful creative endeavor. She says she's trying to keep up with me. I think she's doing a terrific job. The next day, we left for Wisconsin, with the gerbils in tow. Annie wasn't feeling very well, and we thought it wasn't right to leave her behind, to be fed by the neighbors every couple days.
She passed on on the way up, and is buried up there. It's really pretty, right by a little lake, with lots of trees and sunshine.
Be a good little girl, Annie. We'll miss you.

On a lighter note....
When we got to the cabin, I did a bit of dyeing. The first try turned out quite atrocious, but with some Rit dye remover, I miraculously got a second chance, which turned out a lot better, and is what you see here.
This yarn is for three super-secret presents, each a different color, intended to be finished before Christmas. Shouldn't be too hard, right? (McCormick food coloring and Kool-Aid. Never lets me down!)

And, hmmm....I suppose I'm all caught up. Great.
I'll go unpack the spinning wheel now.

Questions And Answers

Hello everyone!

I am in shock. People actually read what I put up on this thing?? (I mean, othere than people who know me outside of the internet)
HDW asked me if I taught myself how to spin. Well, yes and no.
My mom's friend's daughter taught me how to spin on a drop spindle, and I sort of went crazy from there. I now have a Lendrum.
Tomorrow, I'll have pics of the pom pom maker I got, which is a lot different from the picture in Spin Off.

Summer Goals/07-08 Goals

Because of this contest (which is going to be SO much fun!), I am going to recite what I expect my FOs will be by the end of the summer./end of the year 2008
OK, let's see........

1) Finish the skirt for 4-H (only 1 3/4 balls to go, btw) Just need elastic 5/26/07....I finished the elastic 5/30/07

2) Make the Subway Sweater top in the light blue Touche DONE!!! I just need to fix the back a little... 5/26/07--Fixed back in July, DONE!!!

3) Make a pair of socks with yarn I spin; I found this really neat pattern in my Spin-Off magazine that I want to try. They will probably get more frogging than they deserve, as I have never successfully finished a pair of socks. I made a pair of socks for my mom, now to make a pair for me! 7/10/07

These goals were added 5/21/07
4) Patch up the blanket I've had since I was 4 (yes, it is my blankie, and yes, it is rather torn and messed up) Done! 6/something/07


5)Knit something in Fair Isle, preferably from handspun


6)Felt a little bunny toy and knit (design) little accessories for it Done making the bunny, now I just need to make something other than a scarf for it..5/28/07

This goal was added 6/2/07-deleted 8/3/07 on account of losing the pattern...
7) Make a blanket with each patch representing a different month

This goal was added 8/3/07

7) Knit a shawl with lots of lace and handspun/hand-dyed, enter it into the 4-H Fair

TA DA!!!

Not only did I cast on all 540 stiches, I also knitted 2 rows!!! Hooray!!

Note the beaded stitch marker. I got it from a spinning guild meeting. Since I usually use a piece of stray yarn, this is rather fancy for me!

Pictures, Pictures, Pictures!

Hi,

Earlier, I couldn't get any text down to a second line, and now it's working. Weird.

OK, here's the pictures I promised:

This is my spinning wheel, my Lendrum. The yarn on it now is just plain white merino, nothing fancy.

This skirt is not sewn up yet, I'll keep you posted.

And now, the yarns of the day.........

That will be the Subway Sweater. The bottom (skirt) will be...

This yarn! Please excuse the bad picture. It really does look good!

Both are very soft cotton. I was told that knitting with Touche yarn (the light blue) is similar to knitting with silk. This is going to be fun! I will keep you posted, but no promises on how often. It's the last month of school, so I'll be busy, busy, busy!

And Now, Information To Prove I Have Not Disappered Off The Face Of The Earth

No, I do not have any pictures for you today. Sorry!
I am, however, planning to have lots of pictures to show you tomorrow:
-Doll Skirt
-YARN!
-Spinning Wheel (at the request of my DA, or darling aunt)
See ya tomorrow--for real this time!

And Now, Back To Our Feature Presentation...

Well, here it is...
The skirt is a past project.....the shirt is the thing I made on just one bus trip. It looks low, but any higher and the shirt doesn't fit over her head. I guess that's why the companies always make doll clothes with a zipper or velcro.
I'm working on a skirt to match...
Yup, that's all I did.
And I might have to frog (rip-it, rip-it) all out.....I'm not sure if I have enough of this type of yarn. Oh, well. It'll keep me busy until I get my yarn for my other projects.
TTFN!

Something Changed.....

No, it's not your imagination, I did change the background. I'll be experimenting with backgrounds for a while, just to have a little bit of fun. If you have any thoughts on the types I am testing, please leave a comment. Thanks.

Testing....1,2,3..........

Hi, this is my first time with a blog, so you'll have to bear with me. Tomorrow, I'll show you a WIP for my little brother, as his birthday is coming up. No, I won't be giving it away. He already knows about it. In fact, he's reading over my shoulder right now. (Though he claims he isn't!)