Knit & Spin Crazy

2008-10-14T16:50:00.000-07:00

This is our newest arrival. His name is Isaac Robert Matthews. My sister had him August 19th, and that is my son George holding him. Don't they look like they could be brother's or something? He's George's twin when he was a baby, so we've dubbed in LG (little George).

2008-10-14T16:48:00.000-07:00

Where in the World have You Been?

I've been working! Yes, working. I've joined the world of "real people" again, and went back to the grind. I love it though. You know what that means... no time to knit or spin or dye or anything fiber related anymore (NOT). I've been busier than ever doing all of the above.

This is a circular yoke sweater that I finished a week or so ago. That charts came from Sheila McGregor's book of Scandanavian Knitting. I then adapted them to fit me of course, and gathered up some shetland wool (purchase from Schoolhouse Press), and knit this sweater.

This is a full shot of the entire body of the sweater.

Also, this is some handdyed merino/bamboo that I just finished spinning up and ready to set the twist. I don't know what color I'm going to name it yet, but I'll think of something. It's 206 yards. So, It'll make something...

The pic above is a merino/tussah silk blend that I had gotten from Ashland Bay. It was a yellowish color. I just didn't like it, so I over-dyed it with these colors. And this was the wonderful result.

That's about it for now. I've got some other things to do, but will hopefully post again soon. I'm going to be also posting to my etsy shop in about a day some gorgeous new dyed merino/bamboo blends, and merino (Chocolate Princess colorway). Until then, happy knitting all.. :)

2008-05-15T13:51:00.001-07:00

2008-05-15T13:48:00.000-07:00

Today's pic progress of Leanora. I'm having a great time knitting this. The chart comes from a Turkish chart for knitting these traditional Turkish socks. I've always loved this chart and it's a 40 stitch repeat, so it was perfect for something like a sweater.

2007-08-29T04:20:00.000-07:00

And, I started another fair isle. I've been dyeing to do one for months! I've just been spinning and dyeing so much, that my knitting has gone by the wayside, and the knitting that I love doing the most has suffered. But on Sunday, I decided, that's it! I'm casting on and doing it. the wool is from Brown Sheep Company the Nature Spun! I love this fingering weight of theirs, and it's sooo soft! And they have lots of colors to choose from. I wanted some blues... it's fall, and I'm getting into the mode! Happy spinning and knitting all, and later!

I have also been working on another handspun lace project using shetland blended with silk that I carded at a ratio of about 85/15 and then dyed and spun up into this! Gorgeous huh? But take a look at that tube of Tiger Balm... you know what that's for don't you? Yep, good ol' Arthuritis has come to visit me! He just hangs around and bugs me daily... hands, wrists, elbows, whatever, knees. But the Tiger Balm is really good for it! Take that Mr. Arthurrrrr

I've been doing some spinning as you can see. The pic isn't very good, but you can get the gist of it... I love these colors..

2007-08-11T10:17:00.001-07:00

This is handspun sock yarn that I'm spinning for Yellowdog Knitting Shop. This is a sample that I've spun up of superwash and dyed (green of course). Knitting on size 1 dpns and using Tidal Wave pattern, but done toe up! I hope to be done with these by next week!

The second pic is of my new obsession! I've been spindling in my spare time. The small featherweight Bosworth has merino/tencel, and I've only got about and ounce of that. I'm spinning it lace weight for a scarf or something. The right one is a Greensleeves featherweight that I got at the spinning retreat in February. I'm spinning laceweight merino that I dyed a while ago! I've got about 3.5 ounces of this to get spun up. In my spare time! I'm doing many other things right now including a typing job. So we'll see what get's done!

2007-05-29T14:11:00.000-07:00

Weddings and Wool!

Here we are at a friend's wedding this last weekend. That my hubby and me having some awfully good chicken for a wedding... gorgeous girl and dress and good looking couple.

And so far, I've tried this again with blogger and I've only been able to post one picture correctly. I'm getting a little aggrivated here....

2007-05-04T08:29:00.000-07:00

New Blog Site!
I'm done with blogger... I just decided all of a sudden. Here is the new link to my new site
www.chocolateprincess.typepad.com/

Come on over and visit!

2007-05-04T07:52:00.000-07:00

Well, what's going on?
I so far can only figure out that this "google" thing is a pain in the butt. I can't post any pictures, and it's been a nightmare with my AT&T account! Changing all of my computer information and everything! Just so that I can post a blog? What is going on? I may not be blogging through Blogger anymore if I can't get this thing figured out. Sorry....

2007-04-10T14:52:00.000-07:00

LACE KNITTING!

Since I've been having problems with my hands and elbows and wrists, I've been mainly knitting lace. This is the lace stole that I've been knitting from the spindle spun silk hankies and the shetland/icelandic blend. And dyed up, and here is the result. The chart is from Barbara Walker's book of patterns and charts (blue cover). And I've found a very pretty border to knit onto it. I've got about another 3 - 5 inches left to go, maybe more, and then I'll knit on the border. I'm also still spindling the silk hankies just in case I need more. Fortunately, I know the dye recipe to get this wonderful color again and again....

2007-04-10T14:51:00.000-07:00

For about the last 3 days I've been spindle spinning the silk hankies you see in the background on my Bosworth spindle, and spinning icelandic/shetland to go with it for the blue lace stole that I decided to knit. In the foreground is the resulting dyeing of the plyed singles... I love this color.

2007-04-10T14:49:00.000-07:00

Here is a pair of handspun, hand-dyed socks that I finished last week. This is corriedale wool that I got from a local area farmer who raises corries. The fiber is nice to work with and very lofty. I love dyeing it too! It takes dye very well. And this is the result.

2007-04-05T11:03:00.000-07:00

This yummy looking stuff is 50 silk/ and 25 icelandic and 25 shetland blend. I spun it up yesterday. The silk was silk hankies that I got from Vicki! If you look back in previous posts (January or February) you'll see me spindle spinning the silk hankies. Well, I finally finished them, and then spun up some light gray icelandic/shetland that I've had for a while. I then plyed them together last night, and put this hank in the dyebath overnight. This is how it came out this morning! Yeah! And I got 520 yards. There was about 550 yards of silk on my spindle! Can you believe it! That's amazing. It's a Bosworth .05 ounce featherweight! I couldn't believe how much silk was on that thing. I just kept plyeing and plyeing! But, it was worth it. I think that I'll make a scarf, or something lacy from this. Pics will come soon....

2007-04-05T10:54:00.000-07:00

Here is 1060 gorgeous yards of silk/merinio handspun fingering weight yarn. I dyed the merino to match the hand-dyed silk roving that I got from Charlotte. I think I did pretty darn good considering she's had the silk roving for who knows how long. I happened to go over to her house last week and see this huge ball of silk in a bin, and she didn't want to give it up. But I did convince her to give me some of it, and she gave me about 2 1/2 ounces. And this is what I got from it! I love the sheen and the colors! Makes me want summer to get here right now! I'm selling it though on my etsy shop. Go take a look at http://www.chocolateprincess.etsy.com/

2007-04-05T10:49:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted any pics of my darlin niece Izzy in a while. Here she is playing "dress up" with my my daughter Katelyn. Isn't she just as precious as she can be? Look at those eyes.... they have me definitely mesmerized and wrapped around her little finger! (am I ashamed to say it? NO)

2007-03-27T10:19:00.000-07:00

FROG POND FIBER FROLIC!

It was a success! We had sooo much fun! We started at 10A and went to 3P. I couldn't believe how fast the time went. There is Elizabeth S., Vicki M., Chris, and Michelle) Behind them there on the counter is food, and lots of it! We had door prizes, and a swap table, trading fiber, and selling fiber, and books, and whatever else. I was so caught up in the fun, that I only took 2 pictures! So you'll have to go over and visit Jessica's blog at Clicketyclackewe.com to see the rest. We had (and I hope I don't leave anyone out) Michelle, (who is leaving us in about a month to go to Connecticut, boohoo), and Elizabeth S., Elizabeth L, Elizabeth M, Rebecca M., Vicki M., Janet King, Charlotte W., Chris C., Nancy P., Mary S., Stephanie D., and Jessica L.! We are all eagerly looking forward to the next one, which will be held at Elizabeth S.'s! Anyone out there living locally or close to us, come and join us!

2007-03-27T10:17:00.000-07:00

The Fiber Frolic was a "huge" success! That's my sister, who's first timer at one of these get togethers, and there is Janet King and Nancy. This is my front room/studio for my knitting and spinning. We got about 10 wheels in there, and about 12 of us all together. It was great. Wonderful day, wonderful food, and lots of fun!

2007-03-27T10:15:00.000-07:00

This is tussah silk that I'm spinning right now. I got a bit from Charlotte (she didn't want to let it go, but I convinced her) and I'm going to dye some merino or something to ply with... It's so neat to spin, and I love these colors! Makes me ready for summer!

2007-03-27T10:13:00.000-07:00

I'm also crocheting right now. I love to do lace doilies, so I pulled out one of my favorite Pineapple patterns and got started on this the other night. It's fun, and sometimes it helps to break the knitting frenzy for me...

2007-03-27T10:12:00.000-07:00

I'm knitting lace still, and I love this book, so I decided to cast on with some leftover handspun corriedale (I used this for the Sheep Shawl) and I think I'll have just enough for this gorgeous scarf.

2007-03-06T12:35:00.000-08:00

RETREAT!

Yes! It's been a week already, and we've been and back from the spinning retreat! It was soooo fun! I met so many new people, and saw all kinds of different wheels. There was so much fiber, I thought I was in heaven, and there were so many different spinners. It's so nice to meet other people of the same caliber as yourself, ya know? And, we all had a lot of similiar things in common with one another besides just our love of spinning and all things fiber! Kids, and husbands, and cats and dogs, and many of them had farms that they run, and Charlotte was able to make some connections with people she hadn't met with different animals (sheep). And it was just very nice. There was no set schedule, except for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Which was too good! I ended up with a single room, which I was happy about, and didn't mind at all, and the weather was stormy and windy and yucky! But we were cozy inside with wool and wheels. I'm definitely going next year, and hopefully, some of our other friends will get to join! I'd love it if it was like a week long! Wouldn't that be fab?

2007-03-06T12:34:00.000-08:00

I had to get a closeup of Janet Kings wheel. It's hand-painted, Ashford Traditional, isn't is just beautiful?

2007-03-06T12:32:00.000-08:00

And here's Jessica (co-founder of Frog Pond Fiber Artists) and she is wearing her handspun merino Swallowtail shawl from Evelyn Clark that she spun from my hand-dyed fiber! She is a terrific spinner and an even better lace knitter! Talking about patience... she has it when it comes to the fine delicate lacey, lace!

2007-03-06T12:30:00.000-08:00

Here is Benita Story(left) and Sandy F. (right) spinning away. Sandy is also a beginner spinner, and she was spinning like she's been spinning forever! And Benita is the editor of our local Swift, which is published every three months. Great to put faces with the names.

2007-03-06T12:28:00.000-08:00

Patricia from Goshen spinning on a Bosworth! It's soooo neat! And she is a fabulous spinner. See that big basket behind her? That was full of fiber! And I think she just about got it all done too! That's Manda sitting beside her, from Southern Indiana, she's spinning on an Ashford Traditional, and a new spinner, but very good none-the-less....

2007-03-06T12:27:00.000-08:00

And of course I had to post a close-up shot! So you can get all the full enjoyment like me.... :)

2007-03-06T12:25:00.000-08:00

Here is a big shot of it all spun up and the twist set! Look at those colors!! I spun it on my Ashford Traditional because it has a large bobbin flyer, and because I didn't want to try to seperate the color repeats and then ply them together in sinc.... so I decided to spin this stuff into singles..... I think it's great! I'm working on the second bobbin now.

2007-03-06T12:23:00.000-08:00

This is Polworth that I purchased at the retreat from The Trading Post (Susan Markle). It's from Canada and feels delicious. .. 2 glorious pounds.... :) And I don't have to dye it!

2007-03-06T12:22:00.000-08:00

"Cloud" ready for sale. The twist has been set and all I have to do is put the label on.

2007-03-06T12:21:00.000-08:00

The Gray shetland from Gayle that I've since spun up and ready for some socks....

2007-02-20T08:44:00.000-08:00

SHEEP SHAWL COMETH!

I've finished the sheep shawl. Here it is blocked and ready to go to the Retreat on Friday.

2007-02-20T08:41:00.000-08:00

The Sheep Shawl - pre-blocked!

2007-02-17T10:14:00.000-08:00

Well, What a Week!

I went to the doctors on Wednesday. Mind you, this is the 5th doctor I've been to since January of 06. This one doesn't think that I have fibromyalgia, he thinks I've either developed lups or rheumatoid athritis. I just wish someone would find out what is wrong with me, and so I can move forward, instead of all these guesses and these medications. I feel like a guinea pig! "Let's try this one, let's try that one...." It's getting on my nerves. In the meantime, I'm dealing with wrist pain, hands swelling, ankles hurting, hips hurting, my neck is killing me. I'm have a hard time sleeping well. I've been uped on my dosage of medication, and they've added another one for anxiety! NO! I don't have anxiety do I? With 5 kids, 2 of which are not mine? What, can that really be?

Anyway, here is my progress on the border of the sheep shawl. Hoping to have this all done by the time I go to the retreat next weekend! Not that I'm not going to be looking forward to that!!! I've been looking forward to it for over a year. I'll post pics of that when I return. Take care all, and have a great weekend.... :)

2007-02-17T09:52:00.000-08:00

The sheep shawl from Evelyn Clark is almost done! I've been working on it between dyeing, and spinning and knitting socks, and hats. So, not bad! I'm on the edging... This is the handspun corriedale that I purchased from Copper Moose to spin for this shawl! I spun about 2,000 yards in total!

2007-02-17T09:51:00.000-08:00

This is my corner of the front room that is supposed to become my studio! Can you believe this? It's almost all fiber! There are only a couple of things of yarn in there. The rest is all fiber ready to be either spun up, or dyed up, or ready to be braided for sale, etc.! Where's the time go?

2007-02-17T09:50:00.000-08:00

I was thinking of this color to go with the silk! It has similiar color variations as the silk, we'll see. This is merino that I purchased from The Sheep Shed Studio and dyed last week. I love spinning this stuff! Very wonderful to dye too!

2007-02-17T09:47:00.000-08:00

I'm still spindle spinning the silk hankies from Vicki M.! I'm truly addicted. I have to physically make myself put it down and get my other stuff done! But I love it! Aren't these dreamy colors? I'm thinking of dyeing something like merino or a mohair/merino blend to ply with this for something lacy.... we'll see!

2007-02-03T16:52:00.000-08:00

FROG POND FIBER FROLIC AND Spindle Spinning Silk!

Yes! I learned to spindle spin silk today from Vicki! She brought these silk hankies and showed us how to work these mugs! And boy let me tell you, I am HOOKED! I could sit in my bed spinning these all night, but I had to stop so I could post. This is 2 silk hankies so far on my spindle! Can you believe it? It's like spider webs, but sooo strong, and I'll be spinning all the hankies that Vicki gave me from now until December! Especially since I've decided to do this project with my spindle. I am getting this silk down to like a thread in thickness, so I love it! Later! Stay warm, hello! -30 degress! What? Stay in and stay snugged....

2007-02-03T16:47:00.000-08:00

Look! We did it! We braved the cold and blowing snow and went to Jess's for the Frog Pond Fiber Frolic today! And let me tell you, it was worth it! We all arrived around 11-ish, and didn't leave until like 4P! We just couldn't help it! Let's see, from left to right (Katy, Peggy Coffey!, Jessica, Susan, and Svena) What a group huh? And then there was me, I'm not in any of the photos I took of course, but we had merry group! And food, and chit chat, and fun. And spinning silk hankies with drop spindles, and trading fiber, and etc., etc. It was just wonderful! Wish you all could have been there... maybe next time. It will be my turn to have the next one at my house in March. Date and time to come.....

2007-02-03T16:45:00.000-08:00

There is Vicki and E! Chatting it up. And look in the background... do you see E's beautiful Hap Shal, and in the center, is Jessica's absolutely gorgeous shawl that she just finished from Sharon Miller, and my shorty little Flower Basket on the other corner! We had to of course display our achievements for the month....

2007-02-03T16:44:00.000-08:00

We have Carol and Aubrey! Carol is knitting a gorgeous lace scarf, and Aubrey is almost done with her mystery stole, just a couple more rows to go!

2007-02-03T16:42:00.000-08:00

Spinning wheels, and wheels and more wheels! This is bliss! And fiber, look at it draped all over the place, hanging off of wheels,.... what a wonderful site!

2007-02-03T16:41:00.000-08:00

The swap table, look at all those goodies! Can you believe it's all for swap? We know exactly how to trade! And I'm telling you, it's all so wonderful! Hum, I wonder what I got? Can you guess?

2007-02-03T16:40:00.000-08:00

Vicki's "for sale" basket of hand-dyed yarns and various other things. Yummmmmyyyy!

2007-02-03T16:38:00.000-08:00

Here is the Flower Basket Shawl. It's draped over my bed on display...

2007-02-03T16:36:00.000-08:00

Look at my "door prize"! A NORO BOOK! And look at this sweater? I'm knitting it!

2007-02-02T08:36:00.000-08:00

Norgi Vest!

Yes, I'm still knitting the vest. I had picked up around the armholes and knit down about an inch in pattern and didn't like it, so I decided to just go ahead with the vest idea. I'll finish up the armholes and neck today and block it for tomorrow!
Frog Pond Fiber Artists are having a Spin-In, Knit-in, Crochet-in or whatever in at Jessica's house! I'm too excited! My only worry is the weather. It's supposed to start snowing this evening. Maybe it'll quit just so we can go to the spin-in, and then start back up later.....(what do you think?) I'll hopefully remember my camera so I can take pics of everyone there!

2007-02-02T08:34:00.000-08:00

Working on a sock that is dorset X that I dyed and spun up just for this project. I actually wanted to see what the dorset would feel like knit into socks. It's kindy of sedgy feeling, and I don't think I'd like it next to my skin. But, for socks, it's great. I think it's going to be pretty hard wearing. Pretty colors too!

2007-02-02T08:33:00.000-08:00

I've finished my hand-dyed, handspun Flower Basket Shawl by Evelyn Clark, and it's pinned out and blocking, I'll post another pic when it's dry...

2007-01-19T11:00:00.000-08:00

Dyeing Again!

Yes, I've been dyeing again. My superwash merino order finally came in the other day, and I couldn't resist the 2 lbs. just sitting there begging to be dyed. So, below you see the yeild! What was I to do?

And then, Vicki M. of www.simpleknits.blogspot.com/ asked me to do a "little" dyeing for her! Well, after an email or two, it was decided that she had about 5 lbs. of various breeds, (white and gray) fiber that she needed dyed. So, she and Elizabeth S. of www.esknittingandspinningblog.blogspot.com/ came over and brought those lucious 5 lbs. of fiber. I then got out the pots! (yes I said pots) and got them a cookin... I was dyeing superwash and shetland until 10:30p last night. Look at those glorious colors below! yeah, and of course I had to keep a little out for myself to try out the superwash merino, so here it is below pre-drafted and ready to spin (I'm already spinning it)!

2007-01-19T10:38:00.000-08:00

And baby blue and baby pink! and lilac. This will make something nice and soft and cuddly. It's a nice 5 ounces too!

2007-01-19T10:37:00.000-08:00

What would be a good name for this? It's just soo, something! But I like it!

2007-01-19T10:36:00.000-08:00

Jewels in superwash, 5 gorgeous ounces....

2007-01-19T10:35:00.000-08:00

Here is the Chocolate Princess superwash merino! Came out nicely I think.

2007-01-19T10:33:00.000-08:00

Vicki! here is the first dye job of the gray shetland from yesterday! Ooooohhhhh! Don't you just want to touch it? To spin it? To do something with it? It's a wonderful 5 oz............ (it's waiting)

2007-01-19T10:32:00.000-08:00

And Vicki! I was in the pink and green mode, and here is the corriedale! Yahhhhhh....

2007-01-19T10:31:00.000-08:00

Vicki!!!! Look at this!!!! I couldn't wait to let you see it, so here you go! I'll bring it next week! But this is only some of the shetland....

2007-01-19T10:29:00.000-08:00

Natural Dark Gray Shetland dyed green/blue! Isn't it lovely? I had to use the left-over dye batch from the light shetland of Vicki's that I dyed.... Can't wait to spin it up....

2007-01-11T10:49:00.000-08:00

TURKISH VEST/SWEATER!

Yes! I still knit! This is 2 days worth of knitting on this vest/sweater. I decided I couldn't do it anymore and had to caston for something with color and charts. Here it is! I finished this much at 2A in the morning. The charts are from the Anatolian Knitting Designs book from Schoolhouse Press. However, I still haven't decided if I'm going to make this a vest or a sweater. I'll decide as I go... Happy knitting and spininng (I have superwash coming.... for dyeing, 2lbs. But I can't let myself be detered, I must finish this!)

2007-01-11T09:13:00.000-08:00

TURKISH VEST/SWEATER!

After going to bed at about 2:00A, this is what the vest/sweater looked like! 2 days worth of knitting on this baby! I love it! I'm like mesmerized by the patterns! These are 2 different patterns from the book, and one put together are creating a whole different pattern! It's gorgeous! I'm proud of how it's coming out! Would anyone be interested in knitting it along with?
Let me know if your interested in a KAL. Although, I'm not quite sure how to do a knit along, but we'll figure it out as we go.

2007-01-11T09:10:00.000-08:00

Look! It's a chart! I know, hold yourselves back! You didn't think I knit anymore did you? But yes, I do! I was itching to get another color patterned project going, and so I found these charts in the Anatolian Charts book from Schoolhouse Press, and made some copies, and did some calculations, and cast on for a vest/sweater. Don't know yet if I'll just make a vest or sweater, but I've been working on it for 2 days, no dyeing(maybe a little) and no spinning for 2 whole days......

2007-01-11T09:09:00.000-08:00

Sock Yarn for Sale! This is 75% Merino and 25% Nylon sock yarn. I've dyed a bunch of it up. I have it on my Etsy store for sale, but thought I would post it here too! Each hank is 231 yards, and they are $12.00/each.

2007-01-11T09:06:00.000-08:00

This is Baby Spice! I don't know if you all remember him. But I've spun him up now for going on 2 years. He's lightened quite a bit, but is still a beautiful fawn color. So I had some left from my last "natural" spinning of him, and decided to try and dye it to see what it would look like! Well, as you can see.... gorgeous, and look at the shine! I used purple, teal, and saffire blue dye, and I think it took very well. This is lace weight, and I have another 4 oz. of this to spin into lace weight. What will I do with it? I don't know... I'm very attached to Baby Spices fiber :)

2007-01-11T09:04:00.000-08:00

Waving Lace Scarf! almost done!

2006-12-30T20:37:00.000-08:00

Here is a quick view of the dyeing I did today. Don't look at the pink tile! I hate it, but it'l have to wait until the basement and various other jobs are done. But back to the subject, I used natural sheep gray for the 2 darker colors. And an alpaca blend for the bright one in the front. I like the dark colors. I'm also dyeing Blue Faced Leicster now, and superwash merino, and merino/silk blend. I'm spinning the merino and silk right now. I LOVE IT!

Here are the kids. Of course, Tyler (my nephew, who is back with us, and his brother Trayton on the far right) are huge! Well, George (far left) is getting to be a big guy himself. Of course poor Katie is by her lonesome being the only girl. And Luke is in the middle (as usual). :)

Oh, my red wall finally got painted, now I'm waiting for that long hallway there to get done. And then the family room is next! Yeah

Skittles! That's what I named this one. I've just been busy around the stove, dyeing away. Check it out on my online store at Etsy.

www.chocolateprincess.etsy.com

2006-12-13T20:37:00.000-08:00

Dye Day and Sock Yarn!

Today I dyed for about 3 hours. I also did some spinning, no knitting! But, I have handspun yarns and hand-dyed fiber online at a new store called....
http://chocolateprincess.etsy.com

I think if you click on this it will take you to my shop! I'll be adding things about twice a week as they get done! Feel free to shop away! Or just give me a feedback comment! Here is a pic of my Skittles dye that I did yesterday, and dried this morning, and ready to spin....

2006-12-12T07:14:00.000-08:00

DYEING! FOR SOCKS!

So if you've been wondering what I've been up to, here it is! Dyeing and spinning like a mad woman! For the last week here are the results! Nothing but dyeing and spinning, dyeing and spinning, all day long! But, I'm very pleased with the outcome! These hanks are all about 300 yds. , which is enough to make a good sized woman's pair of socks! If anyone is interested, these hanks are $25.00 each! Just let me know if you'd like one. They are one of a kind and spun by me:) Back to spinning....

2006-12-12T07:12:00.000-08:00

This is a "test" sock that I'm knitting to see how my handspun/hand-dyed sock yarn is coming out. And this is the result! Stripes! I'm thrilled! Which means that my dyeing process, and spinning process is correct! Yeah! :)

2006-12-06T04:17:00.000-08:00

I Dyed Last Night!

It was about 10:30P and I was suddenly struck with the mood to dye! So I went and fished out the rest of the merino that I had left (about 8 oz.) and proceeded to do this dye job! I love the colors! Especially the yellow! Oh, excuse me, Gold Ochre. You'll be seeing more dyeing this week as my second shipment of dyes are coming! Yeah! So, I've almost gotten all of the Knit Picks dyes! Only 5 more left after this..... and I've been spinning it into sock weight yarn to boot! Later.... :)

2006-11-25T20:46:00.000-08:00

And this is singles merino! I had soo much fun dyeing and spinning this! Don't want to give it up, but....... :)

2006-11-25T20:45:00.000-08:00

I ordered a bit of BFL to dye and spin. Look at the colors!!! Brilliant and vibrant. This is a definite keeper. I think I've gotten down my 3 wools for dyeing and spinning! This is one! The colors took very well. This is spun about a dk weight to sock. Single ply however. And only this one hank!

2006-11-25T20:43:00.000-08:00

I've got about 1/2 lb. left of this merino two-ply to spin, and this will be ready to go! It's wonderful to dye this merino and then spin it! Came out great!

2006-11-25T20:42:00.000-08:00

These are two experiments with spinning sock weight yarn. Came out pretty good I think. I'm going to knit them up and see how they come out for socks. But the colors! Love em' :)

2006-11-25T20:41:00.000-08:00

This was fun too! This is 1lb. of merino! Gorgeous and soft. I spun this kind of bulky. And then dyed it! I'd probably use a 9-11 size needle! It's ready to go also... :)

2006-11-25T20:39:00.001-08:00

It was sooooo hard for me to put these in the bin "for sale". I LOVE these colors together! I knew I would when I started dyeing them and seeing how they were coming out! But, they have to go.... :)

2006-11-25T20:39:00.000-08:00

More greens, and blues....

2006-11-20T10:25:00.000-08:00

Norwegian Gloves!

I looked through Sheila McGregors book of Scandanavian knitting and found this delicious star pattern. So I thought it would make a wonderful pair of gloves. I'm on the second one and set of fingers as you can see. I've just got projects going everywhere. This yarn is Knit Picks Telemark in Black and Cream. Size 1 needles. I think that I will write and post this pattern if anyone is interested. I'm trying to figure out how to write the pattern in Adobe and put it on the blog to be accessed. If anyone knows how to do it for sure, let me know! Thanks! Happy knitting, spinning, and whatever else your doing.... :)

2006-11-20T10:24:00.000-08:00

Knit Picks sock yarn, and socks... (aren't we always knitting socks????)

2006-11-20T10:23:00.000-08:00

Here's Baby, on one of his rare posing days. I couldn't believe this shot! So I had to post it. He's now 8 years old! (almost), and still a rascal!

2006-11-20T10:20:00.000-08:00

I've not posted in a couple of weeks, because I've been in my kitchen doing this! Isn't it wonderful? I've been dyeing corriedale, merino and BFL. I ordered dye from Knit Picks to try out, and I think it's a definite go for these dyes. And they are only $3.99 each. So, I'm going to slowly but surely get them all... So far these are the only six colors that I ordered. And of course they are greens, blues and purple, with the bright yellow added. Came out great I think....

2006-11-10T12:40:00.000-08:00

SWEATERS FOR SALE!

Hi all! I've been sooooo busy! Knitting and spinning and dyeing! I'm also selling these sweaters..... It's more of a bidding type system. I'm starting the bid at $95.00 for each sweater. They are all sized 38" - 44" womens. One is a a unisex and is a 45" - 48". The norwegian ski sweater is for a (small woman or child) 34" - 36" women's or a child's size for about age 10 -12. And everyone who would be interested in one can submit a bid to me at my email address : elizabet.matthews@sbcglobal.net or here in the comments section. If you know of anyone else who would be interested, please let them know. Thanks, I've got to get the stock replenished and replaced which will be with other things.... (like what?)

I'm going to start by offering handspun/hand-dyed yarn (merino, and corriedale and other natural fibers).

I will be knitting mostly baby items now. And hats, and gloves, mittens, scarves and socks. The one of a kind sweaters will be only once and awhile. It's just to hard to move them. Cost and all you know....???? Happy knitting and spinning to everyone! :)

2006-10-30T11:36:00.000-08:00

Prisis Fair Isle

Here is a close up of the new fair isle that I started last week. I've been knitting along on it some. I've actually been working on a little sweater for my neice, and finished that up last night, so I can get back to business on this. I've not decided if it's going to be a sweater, or a vest. It's going to depend on how the pattern comes out though I think. I'm using a size 3 needle and shetland yarn. It's 24st. pattern repeat, so easy to memorize. Happy knitting to all!

2006-10-22T20:39:00.000-07:00

NORWEGIAN SKI SWEATER DONE! AT LAST (kind of)

Well, all of the knitting is done! Yeah, and it's blocking right now! Yeah, however, I still have to order the clasps. I didn't decide until I finished it that I will go all the way traditional with this one and put norwegian pewter clasps on it. I order them from Schoolhouse Press. They have a vast array of beautiful clasps, and I just love the way they look and make the garment look. So I will do that first thing in the morning. Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend, and a wonderful upcoming week! :) Knit On

2006-10-19T10:11:00.000-07:00

Norgi Sweater!

It's almost done! I did the sewing and cutting open this morning, and put the first done sleeve on. I think it's come along nicely, and it fits! More pics later :0)

2006-10-17T14:51:00.000-07:00

Norgi Body Knitting Done!

I've completed the knitting on the body of the Norgi sweater, and have started on the first sleeve. I LOVE IT! I was going to transpose the white and black snowflake at the top, but changed my mind and decided to just keep it in the contrast! Cool, who would ever think of black snowflakes? No one, usually... and I have decided to cut it open and make it into a jacket. The giant snowflake pattern is from Meg Swansens Wool Gathering for this fall. She made her grandson a cutie little jacket with this main snowflake pattern, and I just loved it. And I had to incorporate it into the norgi, so here we go... Thank you Meg! And fortunately, it fit exactly into the number of stitches that I had for the body. So I didn't have to increase or decrease to fit it in. Happy knitting and spinning....

2006-10-17T14:50:00.000-07:00

I started the sleeve last night, here's the progress so far... :)

2006-10-15T21:41:00.000-07:00

We're Home from the Hospital!

Luke was sent home today from the hospital! Yeah, I am soo relieved. But it's still a little scary because he is so weak. His immune system is at it's lowest right now because he is still fighting the virus. But, the good news is he's keeping down solid foods, he doesn't have that blasted fever, and he is able to sit up for longer periods of time. He won't be able to go back to school for about a good week or so, and is going to have to go part time for about 2 weeks maybe until he get's his strength back. He lost about 10lbs. over this ordeal! The culture came back negative for bacterial menegitis though, so that's all we were worried about!

I was able to do a bit of knitting while sitting at his bedside for 3 days. Here is my progress so far. I thought I would get more done, but between nurses checks and Dr. visits, and getting Luke the things he needed to keep him comfy, this was all that I got done. But, I'm almost at the top of the neck, and ready to start doing the shaping there. I think I may end up cutting this thing open! I'm loving this and seeing it as a cardigan!
Thank you to everyone for the kind words of encouragement, and well wishes for Luke. And he said to tell everyone thank you, and thank you for thinking about him. (even though he doesn't know you :) That's teenagers for ya... happy knitting and spinning to all :)

Hug and love your kids! Every chance you get!

2006-10-13T05:08:00.000-07:00

Menengitis

I won't be posting anything for a couple of days or so. My son went into the hospital last night and he was diagnosed with viral menengitis. We were in the ER from 3:00P - 1:00A when they finally admitted him. He's been sick since last Friday, and the Family Dr. thought that he had Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. (I mean, whose ever heard of that just out of the blue?) Anyway, he wasn't able to keep any foods or liquids down anymore, and his fever was up to 102.8, so I said that's it, he's going in. It's a good thing too! I didn't like the fact that they had to tap is spine to find out, but that's the only way. And things are different now with spinal taps. They are really less invasive and dangerous than they used to be. It took the Dr. only about 8 minutes from the time he put the tap in, to getting the fluid in the vials. So, Luke will be in the hospital for a couple of days so that they can monitor his brain stem, and his fever and the nausea, and hopefully, he can come home on Sunday. Take care all, and keep a close eye on your kids, we think Luke could only have gotten this from school!

2006-10-11T06:44:00.000-07:00

Norwegian Pullover

I started the Norwegian pullover yesterday and was able to get this far! The yarn I'm using is Telemark from Knit Picks. I forgot that I had ordered this awhile back. I was going through the closet and there it was! Yeah! I love having yarn that I forgot about, and then pull it out and it's ready to go! This has been going pretty fast. It is based on EZ's EPS system with a co of 180 sts. for the ribbing. 2x2 ribbing at the bottom for 3". Then increase to 212 sts. for the body and begin pattern after knitting a short row across the back. I also snuck one in after the second set of lus. It's going great, and I'm also darning as I go. Saves time at the end. Happy knitting to all!

2006-10-11T06:42:00.000-07:00

The fair isle is drying nicely. It blocked out to 39" chest and about 7-8" arms! Yeah, I'll be ready to wear it tomorrow to the meeting.

2006-10-10T10:51:00.000-07:00

And the whole sweater. Before I've darned in all the ends and blocked. I will post the pics of the completed and modeled sweater later:)

2006-10-10T10:50:00.000-07:00

A close up of the yoke of the sweater with all the pretty colors.... I really enjoyed working on this!

2006-10-08T20:06:00.000-07:00

Fair Isle Yoke Sweater Progress

I've attached the sleeves to the body of the sweater. I ended up with 288 sts. The first pattern fits evenly into this number, and so does the second! Yeah! More progress to come...

2006-10-07T13:44:00.000-07:00

NO Computer!
Where in the world have I been? Well, that's what happens when your coomputer just decided one day, that "hey, I'm tired, and I don't think I'm going to do this anymore!", and just shuts off! No warning, no asking, no nothin! Just bam! And who of you have a thousand or so just layin around for you to go out and buy a new computer? Well, we don't. Our little bit of savings is for "Emergency" sake only! So, we had to wait a couple of weeks and finally last night were able to go and get a new computer. My husband went to Staples and purchased this one for $599, with a 20" monitor and it's an HP Pavillion. However, let me say that this is the floor model! Who cares? I didn't. It's not like we're web masters or something. But I do say, that when you want to go online for something, not having a computer really sucks! Why is it that our lives are so dependent on computers? I mean, what did we do when there wasn't such a thing as home computers? I remember that, don't you? And no cell phones. Now it's like, "Oh my God, I forgot my cellphone, or Oh, my computers down!!!!" The whole world practically stops, and you don't know what to do. And you run out and take whatever extra 2 cents that you may have to make sure that you get a new phone or a computer! It almost made me not want to get one. But then, after about 30 seconds, I changed my mind! Anywhewww, here we are. So I'm back in business! Until later people, happy knitting and spinning...... :)

2006-10-07T13:38:00.001-07:00

I decided to knit a Fair Isle yoke sweater this week because of the weather starting to change over! This is shetland, and I am using Elizabeth Zimmerman's Fair Isle Yoke sweater from her book Knitting Workshop and VHS set. Her and Meg (Swansen) knit this together on the tape, and Meg knit it in gray. I don't have enough shetland gray, so I decided to knit a cream one, and put their pretty yoke pattern in it. I've not decided yet if I'm going to make it blue tones, or red tones, or fall tones. Fortunately, I have quite enough time to decide while I'm knitting this slow bit of the body of the sweater. I love to knit circular yoke sweater because of the natural curve around the shoulders. Usually when I knit sweaters with drop sleeves, I look like a football player! ha, ha, ha, ha,. I've also decided to knit a raglan cardi with the beautiful silver wenslydale that I spun up last month. Pic progress later....

2006-10-07T13:38:00.000-07:00

Finished sleeves just waiting to be added...

2006-10-07T13:36:00.000-07:00

I began knitting another "double hat" with the corriedale X singles. Here is my progress so far.

2006-10-07T13:35:00.000-07:00

here is a closer view of the yarns (which are all very nice to spin and make great singles)

2006-10-07T13:33:00.000-07:00

I've been spinning this wonderful corriedale X (dark stuff), and the different creams are 3 different fibers.... BFL, corriedale X, and merino! Can you tell which is which? They are all spun singles. I love to spin singles, and I prefer to knit singles because of the stitch definition it gives....

2006-09-17T00:11:00.000-07:00

Not Much Knitting...

I've had a bit of a set back for the last week or so. My fibromyalgia has flared it's ugly head in a big way with the weather being what it has around here lately. Wet and Cold! Yuck. Well, I've been cramped up and flared up for days. So, I'm just now getting unstuck and trying to press on. Fortunately, I was able to finish the vest and other sweater for the festival at Prairie Winds Farm on Saturday. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to make it. So my dear hubby and son took the garments to Charlotte for me. I haven't heard how it went yet, but was very disappointed I didn't get to go. I've been looking forward to that festival for months now, and wouldn't you know it! I was down... huh.... hopefully I'll be back up and running in no time. Got too much knitting and spinning to do!