January 2006 Archives

Top: 1 ounce, 44 yards, mostly dk weight, not balanced (3 twists on the skein)
Middle: 1 ounce, 42 yards, mostly worsted, almost balanced (1 twist on the skein)
Bottom: 2-1/2 ounces, 95 yards, mostly worsted, almost balanced (1/2 twist on the skein)

"Mostly worsted" meaning the thickness varies. Also the ply. But I'm persistent, and I have another 2-1/2 ounces left of Peachy Pink.

I found a great resource on different sheep breeds that I'll be coming back to often. I've worked with Lincoln, Corriedale, Merino, Merino/Silk, and Coopworth, and I've been itching to try more--more!--varieties. Next up after Peachy Pink will be more Merino (purchased early last year, so I'd like to spin it asap), then some lovely Clun/Cormo that Mia gave me last year from MDS&W.

Some time ago I posted a request on the Knitter's Review forums about a good book on sheep breeds--information on the sheep and its fiber. Responses I got were varied, but the top 4 to come out of that particular thread were Jonelle Raffino (The Woolery)'s The Spinner's Notebook: All About Wool, Handspun Treasures from Rare Wools from a 2000 edition of Spin Off, British Sheep and Wool, and Nola and Jane Fournier's In Sheep's Clothing: A Handspinner's Guide To Wool. Thought I'd share these with those caught up in the spinner's bug right now!

Hey, week 13! Hey, progress! Or not. Take a look at the gallery, if you want a little push. You know there's that absolutely insane knitalong that Stephanie's hosting, right? That's 1,366 knitters, holy cow! I'll be watching from the sidelines...there are some sweaters I'm keeping my eyes on.

Sweaters & Vests
◊ Jen's in a holding pattern with Norma at 60%. Yes, she's in the crazylympics!
◊ Rebekkah's cranking out her Ingeborg. Read about it here and here. But she's also started socks! Well, you've got 3 more months, Rebekkah!
◊ No sign of sweater from Beth, although she did attend the mother of all knitblogger get-togethers at Claudia's house. Man, wish I was there!

Socks & Stockings
◊ Kate has converted her single stocking into her doggy's Christmas stocking. Cute, no? (I know, it's late. Bad hostess.)

Mittens
◊ Blogless Teri has joined our knitalong, yay! She just finished her son's reindeer mittens, which she designed herself (and even put in her son's initials). Here's a picture of them with another design, Norwegian Rose, for her daughter. Aren't they great? Teri will be knitting Selbu, colors not yet specified.

◊ Carie has joined the Knitting Olympics and won't be finishing her Selbus after all. But guess what she'll be starting on? Hadangervidda.
◊ Veronique's finished her Vinternatt mittens! She had problems with yarn and needles, but she's enthusiastic about more colorwork. You get an A for perseverance, Veronique!

Hats & Headbands
You hat people! You're great! You finished your projects!
◊ Andrea has finished Flenten! The added pompoms and tassels makes the hat, don't you think? Nice job, Andrea!
◊ Kim, who's got her Stashalong going, has a progress pic of her Sweetheart hat. What a progress pic--she's almost done!
◊ Sarah W has finished her Traditional hat! She's got an adorable picture of her boy and her lovely floats. Go take a look! Nicely done, Sarah!
◊ Eva of The Epicure Says has joined! I found her through the Norge Knit group and now she'll be knitting a Bea Ellis Traditional hat! Those Traditionals sure get around...
◊ Your host has a progress picture:

I'm starting the decreases tonight. I'm omitting 3 rows because when I tried on Let It Snow, I didn't like the way the corners jutted out so far from my head. (Maybe I have a squat head, who knows.) Anyway, I think I'll be done by next week. I'm *so* ready to move on to something else! I borrowed Barbara Walker's Knitting from the Top Down as well as Alice Starmore's The Celtic Collection. I know I want to knit a sweater; I just haven't made up my mind if I want to learn a new technique or go color-mad.

This lumberjack guy isn't thankful for his new kidney, he's bitching that all of a sudden he's domesticated. Well buddy, would you like to die instead?

If you live in Southern California and haven't visited the Getty Villa, you *must* go. This place is beautiful. Years ago before it closed for renovation I'd go there with my mom and we'd have lunch before exploring the rose and herb gardens. Now that it's finally open, make a reservation!

I felt like I was just learning how to spin all over again with this. It's merino in a peachy cotton candy pink (I swear it's not that gaudy) that I purchased some time ago. In an effort to expand my spinning abilities, I decided to try spinning a thicker yarn. This is the first ounce, yielding 34 yards of worsted/bulky. I certainly have plying down pat, as this was perfectly balanced off the niddy-noddy. Consistency in spinning a skinny single is easy; however, consistency in spinning a fatter single is tricky. I figured it's a matter of doing it enough until I just *get* it, right? (I do have 7 ounces left.) Anyway, I read somewhere that knitters who favor a specific weight of yarn will spin the same. Has anyone heard of that before?

More Corriedale. (Artsy-fartsy shot courtesy of the vertical blinds and a surprisingly clear and sunny morning, instead of the grey fogginess that sweeps in from the Pacific.*) June asked in this post's comments about the other Lendrum bobbins. As you can see, June, they were full! I plied these puppies and got a total of 482 yards. I have no clue as to project for this Corriedale, as I have another 8 ounces to go. Ask me next month!

Speaking of next month. You know the big yarn event that happens once a year? The one where you get to see a lot of vendors' great yarns and fibers in one place?

I'm not going (argh!) as BF's mom is visiting from Germany.

I'm fairly laid back in different--difficult? awkward? interesting?--situations but this was one where I was momentarily stunned. BF's mom, I think you're awesome, but why, in the five years that we've been together, did you decide you wanted to fly over *that* weekend!!! I'm laughing as I write this because it's classic timing. But I'm looking forward to seeing her and introducing her to my crazy family. Good times both here and at SW06. I'll just need someone to dive into the Manos pile for me this year.

Hi everyone, welcome to the hump! We're now halfway through our knitalong. I was lurking on the knitblogs when I came across the Norge Knit group, which, according to its description, is "a list for knitters who are interested in the techniques used for Norwegian knitting. We are specifically focused on Dale of Norway sweaters, but all comments about two-color stranded knitting, fair isle, and Scandinavian knitting are welcome...." If you're interested, feel free to join. There are lots of great topics there.

Sweaters & Vests
◊ Boy, Rebekkah is fast. She made up lost time waiting for her yarn in the mail by making lots of progress.
◊ Sydney has finished her pink and brown Ingeborg! (Scroll down for dancing pics.) See her finished pieces here. Beautifully done, Sydney!

Socks & Stockings
◊ This is *super* late, and my apologies to you, Jess! She finished her stockings *last month*, and they look great! Check out her little photo shoot.
◊ Jessica finished her first stocking and has already made good progress on #2. Nice job, Jessica!
◊ Liz has moved! Formerly at The Purling Prude, she's now at Poke You With My Sticks. Go say hi!

Mittens & Gloves
◊ Terri's got a mitten up! Well, a smidge of mitten. Read all about the secrecy!
◊ Virtuella has finished her mittens too! I love the moose pattern she's used on them!

Hats & Headbands
◊ Sarah has been cranking out the hats! Here is her fourth hat, with a great pattern on the lining. Sarah, it is really nice!
◊ Sarah W is working on her Traditional! She's trying to figure out the floats so if anyone can help, drop by and comment, will you?
◊ Your host is chugging along on Ufserud. This is the easiest of them all: the floats are 3 stitches or shorter (none of those 11-stitch floats, thank you), and the pattern itself is a 7-row repeat that is staggered. I did the second repeat without looking at the pattern. (blushes)

The lining used a crochet provisional cast-on. I'm going to unravel the chain and knit the live stitches on the next row. I remember that this was the fiddliest part of knitting (fiddlier than decreases) because the lining tended to curl due to the stockinette fabric, but the pain was temporary. I've waited a long time for this hat!

Thanks for the comments on the handspun, ladies! It's always nice to get kudos from knitters and spinners I know and respect. There were some questions I'll answer here:

Marnie, glad you like the yarn color. I was a bit surprised with the final plied yarn because, well, it was called "Rose" and I thought it would be more rosy-colored. But it's growing on me. You're right, it has a vintage feel. I believe Copper Moose has 2 pounds of this up for sale. Mmm....

Julia, I honestly didn't think of setting the twist on the single first. I always thought it was best to set handspun *after* plying. But I don't know. I'd like to know what other spinners think. Now, if I could only spin Manos singles like you...

June and Kerstin, the other 3 bobbins that came with the Lendrum were full! Anyway, I thought it would be kind of cool to spin all 4 ounces onto one bobbin--I like that overflowing look. But you know, I shouldn't have been too cocky...

Jillian and Terry, I usually wait until the 2nd or 3rd generation of a particular computer model before I buy; I like to have as many kinks as possible worked out by the engineers before plunking down my money. Especially since Macs aren't cheap!

On to the rest of the post!

Take a look at my "new" wool cards, purchased from Susan, whom I met at the GLASWG event late last year. There was a bit of fluff left on the combs and I proceeded to pick them out. I emailed Susan to tell her that the I had figured out how to get the fiber out (by using my Mason Pearson hairbrush, of all things) whereupon she promptly replied that the little bits are good for the cards! Who knew?

I guess they keep the teeth clean. Anyway, I fell in love with them: the worn down edges, the crooked teeth, the "L" and "R", the shape of the handles. The cards belonged to the mother of the woman who sold it to Susan, and she had used them for 25 years. Wow, yeah?

Watching: This link stolen from Monica of the dumbest dog video that you've probably already seen!

Have a wonderful weekend, everybody!

So. My first enabling of 2006 would be to tell you that Habu is having a sale. It would not do for you to miss the Habu sale. You know Habu is eclectic, artsy-sort-of yarn, so you don't want to miss it! (Thanks to Kitty Kitty Priscilla for the tip!)

Fiber: Rose Merino/Tussah, 4 oz
Purchased from: Carolina Homespun booth at Stitches West
Yield: 601 yards
Weight: Lace to fingering

Lurvely homespun Barberpole Rose! I am so pleased with how it turned out. It is a tad darker than the roving, but I think that may be a general rule of all multi-colored roving. It's particularly dark here, but only because the photo was taken on a gloomy day.

The photo above is more representative of its colors. My singles were slightly uneven, ranging from sport to laceweight, and the plies are a little tighter than usual. I attribute that to my learning to spin from the fold. The yarn is shiny, too. I'm thinking shawl or stole design with this.

After washing, I usually lay my handspun on a drying rack, without any tension. IThese 3 skeins, however, had only one or two twists in the skein, which I'm rather proud of. But why 3 skeins, you ask, when you only had one bobbin?

This. Happened.

I decided to do a 2-ply (Navajo plying would have resulted in a thicker yarn and I wanted this thin) so my first step would be to wind it into a center pull cake for plying. I wound the single with my winder, not noticing that some lengths somehow spun out of control until I pulled the yarn cake off the winder. I decided to rewind the yarn, but of course unset singles will wind over each other until they make a snarling mess. I stopped. I cried. I walked away. I got over it a day later and mustered enough courage to cut the offending bits and tied together as many lengths as I could salvage. The 3 skeins were the result. *sigh* While I'm glad it turned out well in the end, I wish I would've been more careful. I would've gotten one big fat skein that I'd be dancing around the apartment with, but I got careless with winding. Lesson learned. On to the next 8 ounces!

Salivating over: Apple's new MacBook Pro. Yeah, I need a new laptop.

Hallooo! KAL host here. I have been absolutely flaky, but for good reason. I had been fighting the flu and bronchitis, and this week will be all about catching up on everything: work, freelance, knitting, spinning, and blogging! I imagine there has been a lot of activity on the KAL front; here are your latest updates. Don't forget to check out the gallery; there are quite a few finishers now!

Edited to add: I seem to have missed a few names here and there in my prescription drug-addled mind. My apologies to those KAL-ers, I'm updating this entry as you read it!

Sweaters & Vests
◊ Sydney has finished Danger (I know, I told you that already) and she has pictures of the finished sweater which, by the way, was for her dad. A beautiful job, Sydney! AND she's written about her progress on Ingeborg and has a really helpful article on steeks. Thanks, Sydney!
◊ Beth has posted an article with lots of helpful links on Poetry in Stitches. It's a book by Solveig Heisdal, and she has some of the most beautiful patterns I've seen. Worth checking out.

Mittens
◊ Katie has finished her beautiful Frostrosen mittens! She finished them last year, in fact. Aren't they awesome in black and white?

Stockings
◊ Phoebe of Knit Happened has joined us! She's waiting for her Folk Socks book as she's knitting you-know-what, she may even knit a Bea Ellis hat for her nephew too.
◊ Liz A has joined us as well! Do I need to tell you what she's making? 'Nuff said.

Mittens
◊ Nanette has finished her Selbu mittens! They look great in red and white. Go take a look! Nanette's told me she may do another pair or try stockings next.

Hats & Headbands
◊ Jillian finished her Telemark headband, whee! You know, she has another headband kit, but she's busy with the Lady Eleanor KAL.
◊ Caitlyn of Knot Without My Knitting is knitting a Traditional. And she's hooked! She may try a headband next. Go, Caitlyn!
◊ Sarah W of Knitting Addiction is the latest to join. Yay, Sarah! She's ordered two hat kits: Flenten and Traditional.
◊ Tiffany has made a good start on her Traditional for her significant other. Looks great so far, Tiffany!
◊ Susan has made progress on her hat too. Check out her lovely progress pic!
◊ Michelle has finished her daughter's Reindeer hat and she's got pictures! Pictures with and without pompom. It looks great either way, Michelle!
◊ Nancy has finished her Traditional hat! Just in time for that San Diego winter, right Nancy? :-)
◊ Kim has joined the knitalong and wants to knit Adrian's Pirates hat as a warm up to her Dale sweater. Go, Kim!
◊ Your host is on her third--and last--hat! This is for me, Ufserud in green and cream. I really love the grassy green-ness of the cotton lining yarn (look at Susan's). I have a feeling I'll have enough leftovers from all 3 projects to make a new hat pattern. Whee!

Lastly, the KAL is still going strong. I mentioned a while back that it's only going to last for 6 months (who wants to do wool sweaters in the summer anyway). We're 2 weeks from halfway, but that doesn't mean you can't still join. Of course you can! You know who you are. ;-)

Happy New Year! What better way to start the year than making an appearance on JenLa's Second Annual Knit Blog Awards, woohoo! At number 21, "Biggest Evolution in Their Knitting: MJ at Yummy Yarn. You’ve come a long way baybee!!" Thanks, Jen and La!

(Still kinda flu-stricken. When you walk from your car to Trader Joe's, and you're exhausted and coughing from all that exertion, and have to sit on the minestrone display to catch your breath.... you might still be sick.)

Because I knit a lot for other people last year, this year will be about knitting for moi. Other than Boyfriend Socks and maybe the occasional Birthday Something-Something, all my projects will be for me. I could make up some kind of long explanation, but really it boils down to me being selfish and making pretty things for myself out of all the yummy yarn I've been stashing! He he! And I've been stashing, yes I have. So without further ado, here are my resolutions:

Knitting:
1. I will have no more than 3 knitting projects going on at the same time.
2. One of these projects will be my own design.
3. At least one of these projects will incorporate a new technique.
4. I will buy yarn with a project in mind.

Spinning:
1. I will spin at least 8 ounces from my fiber stash before acquiring more fiber.
2. I will spin different varieties of fiber.
3. I will spin different weights, not just laceweight, fingering, and sport.
4. I will spin with a project in mind for the resulting handspun.

I finished spinning Barberpole Rose. I love a fat bobbin of yummy laceweight singles. I dedicate this picture to Cara and Pixie Purls, who *finally* bought their wheels (and Lendrums they are). Whee! Marnie, Julia, are you ready to take the next big step???

Poppy seeds! You want to know what poppy seeds really look like? Surprise, they're not round.

What does 250 pounds of Silly Putty look like? Google staffers know.

If you're a designer and *quite* picky, you'll really appreciate this article about using typefaces in movies. Basically the beef is that some movies use typefaces that weren't invented at the time the movie was supposed to have happened (such as Good Night and Good Luck, based in the early '50s using Helvetica, which was created in 1957). Geeky, huh?

Have a beautiful, healthy day.