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March 19, 2006
I couldn't resist...
Dear lord. I ordered my second spinning wheel yesterday. I wanted something I could take out and spin in public without worrying about something happening to my traveller. Since I didn't want to spend a lot of money on it, I went with the Babe Pedal Pusher. It'll give me the exercise of walking, along with the durability of PVC piping. Yeah, it's ugly as sin, but I don't need to worry about wood getting nicked up or anything like that. One nice little feature is the 21:1 ratio which wil be great for spinning lace yarns. Kirstie also pointed out that now we'll both be ableto spin when she comes to town.
I finished the Crusoe sock Friday. I shouldn't have shortened the cuff, as I ended up with a TON left over. There's no way on earth that you need 3 haks even for the larger size. It's okay though because I do wear shorter cuff socks. And I think I may make a cell phone cozy out of my leftovers eventually and then felt it up.
Posted by Holly at 11:47 AM | Comments (0)
March 17, 2006
Top 'o the morning to ya...
Happy St. Patricks Day! Just a quick update to show off my Crusoe progress. I made the larger size whick calls for 3 hanks of koigu and thinking I'd run out,I shortened the by about an inch. It now appears I am going to have a ton left over. Definately not a bad thing. I think I'll have to make a cellphone cozy finally.
My sock so far...
Posted by Holly at 12:00 PM | Comments (1)
March 13, 2006
Alpacas, Goats, Fiber, and Sock Yarn! Oh my!
My second secret pal gift came in this week! Two hanks of Koigu, a hank of Cherry Tree Hill Supersock, and 2 hanks of Cascade 220!! Not to mention, the coolest personalized note cards! I seriously seem to get the greatest secret pals ever. Thank you so much!
Gifts!
I was trying to find a pattern for the bright colors of the Koigu, and Knitty's Crusoe is just perfect. I'm going to alter the heels and do an hourglass heel instead of a gusset just incase it ever wears out, I can buy some more Koigu and replace the heel.
Mariah is on hold for a bit. I've gotten so burned out on the sleeve. I'll have it done by fall, so no worries. I'm just really in a sock mood. I also don't think I'm going to knit a shawl in time to enter in the fair. The plan right now is to eneter the shaped triangle and a hank of handspun.
Speaking of handspun... I did finish the sock yarn I'd spun up.
I've been on a bit of a fiber frenzy. I ordered a pound of tussah silk from eBay, and it's just wonderful. I'd played with Bombyx silk before, but never again. Tussah is just so much easier. I spun a bit on my spindle and it was love.
I can't wait to dye this stuff!
I have a new found love: Angora goats. Last week, we ventured out to Keonig Farm in Springfield. Like the instructions said, I did call ahead to make sure they were open. Since they knew we were coming, Kathy and Mark, the owners, prepared a bag of treats for us to feed the goats. The goats were so cute and soft.
Kathy then gave us a tour of the spinnery. It was really interesting. At least if you're a yarn geek!
The carder
The spinning machine
The skein winder
We also saw alpacas this week. Unlike last year, ths time we were armed with cameras. Of course, without the flash, the pictures are bit blurred. While most alpacas are pretty skittish, we met a few that gave kisses.
How can you not love these fuzzy critters??
Posted by Holly at 10:49 AM | Comments (2)