Rainbow Towels in Progress...

I spent the weekend in the company of wonderful friends, the Weavin' Chicks - learning to weave Advancing Twill. We wove a scarf from bamboo, and learned that "Advancing Twill" means "a zillion picks per repeat"! We managed to get some lovely scarves woven - here's mine, before fringe-twisting and washing (I promise a better picture when it's done):

Happy to be able to report some progress on the Rainbow towel warp. Since I have 12 towels on this warp, I decided to weave 6 pairs of weft colors. The first two towels are PINK:

The second set of two towels is PURPLE:

And the third set is BURGUNDY:

I'll weave more tomorrow - I'm hoping to finish the whole warp tomorrow and Wednesday, so I can bring it to show off at the Saori retreat this weekend. A group of us are meeting at my friend Cheryl's Weavin' Place Saori-Style studio-in-the-woods for a Saori "Kai" ("sharing time") retreat, and as a special treat, my dearest friend Sherie is coming from Amarillo for the weekend! I can't wait to see her again.

I've also made great progress on my husband's sweater yarn - I've got two 4-ounce bobbins spun, and am working on the third (of four). This will be my first 4-ply yarn, and I can't wait to start plying, because the colors are gorgeous (pictures tomorrow, I hope!)

Roc Day 2012

I joined the New Orleans Weavers Guild in November 2007. I found the local guild via internet listings, and begged them to teach me to spin. :) Two months later, they introduced me to the Roc Day tradition. We celebrate it on the first Saturday of January every year. The hosting of the event is rotated among the Gulf Coast guilds in our area. We have a great big Spin-In, and there are vendors (yay!) and we share lunch, door prizes, and tall tales. :) This year it was held by the Lake Charles area guild, the Spinners and Weavers of Imperial Calcasieu. A number of us went on a girl's road trip and had a great time. :) On our way to the area, we visited Running Moon Farm, where our friend Margrett keeps a flock of Gulf Coast Native sheep.

It was a lovely weekend. The sharing, the camaraderie, the laughter - I'm so glad I found this great group of fiber friends!

Kraken Sweater - Beginning

After 11 years of dabbling, I'm still a beginner knitter. Oh, I can knit a mean (basic) sock, and I can knit/purl a ribbed scarf with the best of 'em, but to me, advancing past "beginner" will entail knitting real SWEATERS.

Now, I've knit two sweaters, but they were both child-size and the same pattern, in the round with a 3-needle bind-off at the shoulders. No piecing, no seaming. I knit them from Reynold's Lopi, for a charity serving Russian orphans. They were simple, WARM, and bullet-proof.

But an adult sweater has not yet sprung full-born from my needles. I've started one, the Oatmeal Cardigan, in (appropriately) oatmeal bfl, handspun of course, but the staggering neutral yardage bored me to tears, and it languishes in a knitting bag somewhere.

Handspun handpainted - now THAT's the way to go, to keep my interest during both the spinning and the knitting. So I joined the SCF & Friends Sweater SAL/KAL (Rav-link) because I knew the wonderful members of the Southern Cross Fibre forum on Ravelry would encourage me and give the kick in the pants I'll need when the going gets tough.

I chose one of my very favorite Southern Cross Fibre colorways - Kraken - and one of my very favorite fibers - polwarth.

 (picture courtesy of David at SCF)

(Isn't it scrumptious???) I have enough fiber for half the sweater, and David (one of the best dyers on the PLANET) was happy to dye more. It's shipping today (from Australia). I'll wait until I have all the fiber together, so I can split it all up to combine the dyelots, for a nice blend throughout.

Since this is my first real sweater, I knew I'd need a simple pattern - the Bailey Cardigan (Rav) is great for handspun, and has good clean lines. My friend Sandi has already knit it and I was able to see (and feel!) it in person on our last Montana trip. I'll knit mine in fingering weight yarn rather than in DK, because I want it to be lightweight and useful for indoor wear.

And since I want the sweater to be wonderful and perfect, I knew I'd need to sample and swatch. (Yikes.) I did both. I spun samples of 2-ply, 3-ply, and navajo-ply:

(My camera washed out the colors - they're actually rich and vibrant like David's fiber photo above.)

I really like the 3 ply best, but needed to knit a swatch, not only for gauge, but for the look and feel of the fabric. So I knit my first ever swatch:

(top, n-ply; middle, 2-ply; bottom, 3-ply)

I love the look of the n-ply, but for socks, rather than for a sweater. I prefer the heathered transitions of the 2-ply and the 3-ply. In the end, I chose the 3-ply, because its fabric gave me the look and feel I liked best. It's so soft (yet durable) and pliable, and it drapes nicely.

I cannot wait to get started on this project! I'll keep you posted...

Everyone Likes A Discount, Right?

I'm nearing my 150th sale in my Etsy shop, and that's exciting and humbling at the same time. I'm so appreciative of the support that's been given my little indie spinning and weaving venture!

I've decided to reward my friends and customers (and I'd like to see that 150th sale, too!) so I've enabled a coupon code through Labor Day (September 5th) for 10% off any purchase in stock, on all items including handwoven scarves. I originally intended it for Ravelry but am pleased to extend it to any blog readers as well.

Enter the coupon code RAVLABORDAY10 on checkout to get your discount.

And shipping to the US is always free - and reduced to international addresses.

Thankful for the kind support! ♥

Last Yarns of February

I finished spinning the lovely birthday gift batts from Sherie. The yarn is 500 yds of 20wpi 2-ply softness - lighter than air and super-soft. I'm going to knit the Twilight Scarf/Stole from 'A Fine Fleece' with it... someday. :)

This is 200 yds of 9 wpi 2-ply bulky yarn I spun from Polwarth dyed by David of Southern Cross Fibre in his Teresa colourway. Very squooshy and soft, and for sale in the Etsy shop.



Currently spinning Amy's Spunky Eclectic Club offering for February: 'New Day', in yellow/orange/red/brown corriedale. Very nice - I'm aiming for a heavy fingering or light sportweight, and a lovely pair of thick socks. :)

This and That, Weekend Edition

Finished twisting all the fringe on the Sister Blanket, and am working on the crocheted edging. I plan to do some sampling in double-weave for next time - I really don't want to seam panels together to get a wider blanket in the future, and there is no room in my budget (and home space) for a wider loom (yet!)

Today I'm warping for a pair of kitchen towels in "monk's belt". It's a pattern from Handwoven's 'Design Collection 18 - A Treasury of Towels'. It calls for cottolin, but I'm using cotton. The warp is 10/2, the weft is 20/2. Using a 12 dent reed, 24 epi, with 24 ppi in plain weave areas and 48 ppi in pattern areas. I can't wait to see how this turns out - if it's really nice, I plan to weave more for gifts.

Spun up another skein of handspun for the Etsy shop - 'Grape Juice', superwash merino, 160 yds, 10wpi. My camera has a hard time with purple for some reason - I'll post a picture when I have some better light.

I'm halfway through the lovely orange polwarth/camel/silk batts that Sherie carded for me. I call them "Pumpkin Spice" and I'm hoping for enough 2-ply yardage for a lovely shawl. Spinning the singles at 30 wpi, looking for a 20-ish wpi.

Lastly, I scored some gorgeous fibre in David's 'Southern Cross Fibre' update - woot! Polwarth and Shetland - yum!

Gifts From More Dear Friends

I was so very pleased and delighted with the generosity that was showered on me last week. So I was flabbergasted to open my mailbox today after work and find two more packages. Obviously my mailman wanted to space out the presents and lengthen the celebration. (Or he was hoarding the packages for himself - in which case he's in deep trouble.)

First, from Josette/Farm-Witch of Enchanted Knoll Farms, a beautiful ounce of Tussah silk roving in her gorgeous ‘Johnny Jump Ups’ colourway. It's so lovely - the spindles in my spindle vase are eyeing it and jostling for first dibs:

And from David of Southern Cross Fibres, 4 ounces of Polwarth (my new obsession) dyed in his beautiful ‘Snow Gums’ colourway - the subtle shades of green and blue and grey are delicious:


I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Fibre friends are the BEST.

Tomorrow: pictures (hopefully) of the blanket I've been weaving for my sister on the Macomber...

Gifts From Dear Friends

Last week I got some lovely birthday gifts in the mail from dear friends far away. Amy Boogie of Spunky Eclectic surprised me with some delicious Corriedale/Alpaca in her "Riverwalk" colorway:


Sherie from Amarillo, my dear Swa(m)p partner in the Spunky Eclectic Swa(m)p, sent me a delightful package. Inside - her beautiful scarf/stole handwoven with her handspun Pumpkin Juice (a Club fiber from Enchanted Knoll on Etsy).




Also in the box: a lovely pair of fingerless mitts, knitted by Sherie in Debbie Bliss cashmerino. They are soft and soooo warm - perfect for my Reynaud's. They keep my hands warm while typing, knitting, weaving, or spinning.


Lastly, Sherie conspired with David from Southern Cross Fibres in Australia - he dyed the fibre and she blended it - polwarth, camel, silk, and a little glitz - and she carded it into these spectacular batts:


I've already started spinning them into what will be a lovely 2-ply laceweight yarn. They draft and spin wonderfully.

I am so blessed with great friends and an abundance of equipment and supplies for my obsessions passions and hobbies. This is a lovely journey - I am certainly enjoying the ride!