FO: Spinning

It started as this.

It ended as this.

And this ... if you can see, one bobbin is the first and the singles are a little thick and lumpy, so I decided to stop plying here and will navajo ply the two bobbins separately.  I won't get much yardage, but its good practice!

This skein, like the last one I spun is a little crazy energized, but I like the way the colors look together plied this way.

When I started plying balanced, it looked like this and I didn't like it.

Its now soaking in a wash to make it more compliant and get rid of most of the crazy springing and coiling it was doing fresh off the bobbin.

I got approximately 330 yards (you never really know until after its washed, I counted the times around the kniddy knoddy).

Friday Felines

One of the cats found their presents a bit early ... I'm looking at you Nikoh!

Friday Felines

Sticking your nose in everything that goes on in the house is very tiring work.

Friday Felines

"You want me to what?  I am not taking up half the couch!" Riley

Plying

Spinning singles seems to take forever ....

 

Even though plying goes a lot faster ... it seems to take forever too ...

 

The only thing that makes it bearable is the combination of colors coming together.

 

Its my favorite part of plying.

 

One of these days I'll have a skein ...

Friday Felines

How Willow gets her way ... every time.

 

"What are you doing?  I'm sitting here." Nikoh. 

 

"Oh no, Nikoh, get out while you can!!!" Riley

 

"I'm sitting here." Nikoh.  "And now, so am I.  If you want to keep your face the way its currently arranged, then I suggest you shut up." Willow

 

"Ahhh that's nice." Willow (notice how Nikoh is in the same exact pose as the first and second picture.

 

"Well fine, you can sit here, but I am using you as a foot stool." Nikoh.

Friday Felines

 

This is Riley when he was just a little babe.  He slept like this all the time.

He still does now, 3 1/2 years later.  If I had the camera a moment sooner he would have been in the exact same pose.

Beautiful to me

What is better than freshly washed fleece drying in a warm(ish) autumn day?  This was a few weeks ago (its not that warm now).  I was washing more fleece today, which is drying in the basement (with a space heater), but found this photo this evening.  I think this fleece replicated the soft, fluffy clouds that were in the sky that day!

I'm beginning to think I enjoy washing fleece more than spinning it ... hhhmmm no, maybe not.  But I do certainly enjoy washing it, which is kinda weird, no?

Friday Felines

Nimbus - a surrounding aura or atmosphere; an emanation of light surrounding a saint or deity

I always knew he was an Angel ... the other ones in the house are most certainly Demon Spawn.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I am thankful for family (including the furry ones), friends who think enough of me to bring me a wonderful gift like the poinsettia here and my knitting and spinning that keep me sane!

What are you thankful for?

Friday Felines

"Who threw this paper away?"

"Nobody asked me!  I was going to use this!" ~ Willow 

(everything in the house is her business)

Friday Felines

"Mmmh, I love when those talky-talky creatures put their fresh coverings on a flat surface for me to sleep on." Nikoh

Friday Felines

"Mom, I'm pretty sure there must be something yummy I can eat in that doohickey you're pointing at me." Riley

Harvest Time

Its almost time for winter.  This summer I bought a few herb plants.  We harvested them today.  By "we" I mean my husband went out in the rain and cut them, and I prepared them for drying.

I can clearly see that two scents I love ... look similar ... coincidence?  I think not.  Though they look the same, these bundles are rosemary (left) and lavender (middle and right).

I washed the dirt off the ends of the stems and tied them into bundles (with yarn left overs of course).

English Lavender.

Rosemary (OMG love the taste and scent!!).

Bundles dried (of water from washing) and ready to hang in the closet for a few weeks.  I've never cultivated (by that I mean buying and having hubby plant and cut) or dried herbs before, this is a first for me :o)

Friday Felines

And its still the best seat in the house.  When you are the boss of everyone, you get the bestest seat on the left :o)

Hitchiker

This isn't an official FO post.  I would like to get a better photo, but this is my second finish for this whole year!  So its very exciting, I don't know where my knitting mojo went, but I'm hoping with this finish it returns in full force!

Spinning on a little bug

I love my little Roadbug spinning wheel.  It is not a traditional wheel.  It doesn't have a drive band.  It truly is a "travel" wheel.  The flyer unscrews and fits onto one of the treadles, the other treadle also unscrews and fits on the side of the wheel.  I haven't taken it anywhere, but I would be totally comfortable doing so.

I purchased it at the 2012 New Hampshire Sheep & Wool Festival after trying it in person.  I had been coveting it online, but really wanted to test drive it before dropping that much cash ... and for a wheel, its actually very inexpensive ($200-$300 less than a traditional wheel), but still an investment as hobby equipment.

Though it is not a "Traditional" wheel, it has all of the important components of a wheel.  A drive wheel, treadles, a flyer and an orifice ... that's all you need to spin.  It also has 3 ratios.  It can be used as a single or double treadle.

After getting it all oiled up and practicing treadling, I started on some roving to try it out.  It spun wonderfully.     It was easy to use, easy to set up (moving from its resting location in the room to in front of my chair).

I spun and spun and finished half of the roving that I had.  Then I started on the second half.

I'm almost done the second half of the roving and can't wait to start plying!

Friday Felines

Watchin' leaves fall from the trees.

Episode 33: Parade of WIPs

Episode 33

October 14, 2012

Updates & Housekeeping

·         Welcome newbies, if you are returning, thanks!!

·         Take 2

·         Noise?

·         Lighting

·         Fall Fiber Study

o    Still trying to finish up what’s on the wheels

§  What’s left on the roadbug

·         Quinn Spinning Brushed fiber

·         Co-Worker missing me

o    Knit Picks

·         Temperature

Revelations

o    Hitchhiker

o    Halloween Socks 2011

o    Spinning

o    Goal – spin 15 mins a day

String Theory  

o    Socks that Rock

Scrolls

 

o    Cast On Bind Off

Heresy

o    UFOs

o    Icarus Shawl

o    Modern Baby Blanket

o    February Lady Sweater

o    Achilles HEAL

o    Summer Wind

o    Niantic Rose Shawl

o    Ribband

o    Ebony Jewelwing Bag

o    Reversible Cable Scarf

o    Wendy Knits Mystery

o    socks

Delusional Jabber

o    TV

o    Bones

o    Grimm

o    Revelation

o    Haven

o    Angel Season 1

o    Reading

o    Work

o    Fiber

o    Cadbury Screme Eggs

o    Slippers

o    Loop Gift

o    Sushi

Closing

·         Ravelry: delusionalknitter 

o    Ravelry Board: Revelations of a Delusional Knitter Podcast

·         Blogspot: delusionalknitter.blogspot.com

·         Gmail: delusionalknitter@gmail.com

·         Etsy Shop  http://www.etsy.com/shop/delusionalknitter

Out of Control Stash

I have evicted my fiber stash from the craft room closet.  It was taking up way too much space, it needs to find another home.  

What's more troubling to me is that I have quadrupled (and then some) my stash since Spring.  My stash used to fit in one of the plastic totes.  Then I bought two more matching ones ... this was still OK for me, but at that time I said, no more!  Since I couldn't buy any more totes (notice how I left off the what in no more) I found some totes in the house and re-purposed the large clear one and the small purple one to fit additional stash in.

Below is the overflow that won't fit into the totes.  Its not good to squash fiber, so there is a bit of air space in all of those totes ... a bit.  

This is what my fiber stash looked like only a little over 6 months ago!

In my defense, I did attend two fiber festivals this year :o)  Doesn't matter that only 14% of this stash came from festivals ... the festivals spawned the additional internet purchases ... right ... right?!?!

Friday Felines

And this is why I love this cat so much and she gets away with murder!

Mini Spinning

This is a Trindle, better known as a Nano Trindle.  Its only 5" long.  I am currently spinning some of Quinn (my angora bunny) on it.  Its going very well and I'm spinning it very fine, which I'm not so sure is the best for  angora, but it hasn't broken on me yet, so it seems to be holding up well.

Armpit Knitting

Seriously though, cool tutorial.  I believe this way of knitting was used a lot in Victorian times, but they used a belt to hold one of the needles.

Friday Felines

Even when he's still and quiet, you can still see a little bit of crazy in those eyes ...

Friday Felines

What's more amazing than a cat's eye?

Friday Felines

Can you see the downright crazy in those eyes??  He truly is the craziest cat I have ever know.