Tour de Flax…uh..no

July 8, 2009 at 8:52 am | In Crafts, Dye Works, Free Patterns, Handcraft, Handwork, Spinning, Weaving | Leave a Comment

I know I said I would try to spin up that flax…but you know what they say SpinningMerinoabout the best laid plans of mice and men… well, that includes spinners..lol And after all…it’s called Tour de Fleece…  not Tour de Flax…

I have this luscious Merino chocolate … and I can’t help myself.  It just begs to be spun.  And it’s in pin roving… sigh  So I am hereby officially changing my goal.  (That flax will just have to continue waiting until I get a little more ambitious than I am right now. ;o)  My goal will be to have it spun and plied by the 26th. 

I’m not sure what I will be making with this, but I’m pondering some glommits for next winter. 

WeavingPlaid

 

I bought some el cheapo acrylic yarn to try some weaving. Plaids are turning into my favorite pattern for weaving.  This project was to sample what some colors would look like together.  The Cotswold that I just finished spinning is destined to be woven, but the color selection for dyeing it was a mystery to me.  While I really like this, I’m still thinking more along the lines of multiple shades of blue…

Tour de Fleece

July 2, 2009 at 8:50 am | In Announcements, Challenges, Personal, Spindling, Spinning | Leave a Comment

tdf_2009_badgeIt’s time once again for Tour de Fleece to begin on July 4th.  I have decided to join in the fun this year and since Katherine says to set our own goals…  mine will be to finish spinning that pesky flax roving that is sitting in my stash basket smirking at me.  ;o)   I REALLY DO NOT LIKE spinning  flax.  Perhaps it will be like the first thing I ever actually finished crocheting… once that first one (that took about a dozen tries and a couple of years) was finished, I have never looked back and have made many lovely things.  I am hoping the flax will accomplish the same for me. 

This will be my first Tour de Fleece, but the challenge has been a yearly one since 2007.  Everyone is welcome to participate.  If you would like to enter the challenge, just click on the Le Tour de Fleece 2009 icon above and it will take to the  Tour  de Fleece   site.  Leave a message letting Katharine know you would like to participate and that’s it… ;o)

As for my pc… it returned home yesterday. And  is it ever wonderful.   Much faster, better graphics… the works.. 

 However, I did not get the Cotswold dyed.  Too much time spent putting together desks, etc… DH decided we needed to get rid of the large wooden desks and put up new smaller ones that can be swept under.  I have to admit to being a little upset over the deal since I really liked my desk… mess and all.   But in the long run, I have to say that I am actually happier now with the smaller one.  NO MORE MESS.  And Kevin, our pc guy, says that with the removal of the carpet and the change in the desks, our pcs will be happier too.  Less heat and less dirt .. hmmm  Still a lot of work to be done, so no pics today.  Maybe tomorrow…

My Computer Crashed…sigh

June 30, 2009 at 8:04 am | In Spindling, Spinning, Weaving | Leave a Comment

Well, so much for the terrific homecoming…lol  Oh well… I wanted a new one anyway.. I just hope that our pc guy can save all the favorites and photos.  Hopefully this will only take a couple of days, but if not it will shouldn’t be more than a week or so.

Anyway, I finished spinning the Cotswold last night.  Today will be a dye day and then I will see what form it takes as I try to do some weaving with it….

Hope all has a great day…

Wonderful Vacation…Grandma’s Spinning Wheel in Tucson, AZ

June 28, 2009 at 12:08 pm | In Crafts, Handcraft, Handwork, Knit, Personal, Spindling, Spinning, Teaching, Weaving | 2 Comments

We are home at last from two weeks of vacation.  Tired and happy.  We got to see that wonderful new grandbaby, Hannah, and what a little beauty she is… ChuckHannah2062009

Of course there is no way I could be a bit prejudiced…lol … but I truly believe she is the most lovely little girl since my own little lovely daughter.. who is still lovely after 4 grown sons!  

On our way through Arizona we stayed at Best Western Motels (NAYY) and guess what!??  You can earn points that make the prices cheaper for later stays… and the last room we stayed in was a suite.. for the price of just a regular room.. that was great!  And again… NAYY.  I just thought I would pass that bit of info on for anyone else who is planning a vacation… Check your favorite  motels and hotels out… they may offer the same savings…

I found a website online for a fiber, yarn and spinning wheel studio in Tucson, AZ.  We stopped and I was soooo tickled to get to meet another spinner.   

DonnaGrandma'sTucson2009

Meet Donna…of Grandma’s Spinning Wheel  in Tucson, Arizona.  She has been a spinner since the ’70s when the only thing around that talked about spinning was the magazine Spin Off.  For someone like me who spins because I love it, I found it amazing that she was a professional spinner who could spin a pound of wool in an hour! She took the time to show me the joys of spinning on several different kinds of spinning wheels. 

 One was a Majacraft…

LindaDonnaSpinning

This  was a great little wheel that would be wonderful for someone in a small apartment or house.  It doesn’t take up much space and boy! does it spin.  It has double treadles.. and that was new to me since my Kromski Prelude is a single treadle.  I really enjoyed the flyer on this little wheel.  It does not have hooks for your yarn.  Instead, it has a small curly-cue of wire that you hook your yarn through and when you want to move down your bobbin, you just press the two sides together and move it.  This gives you infinite moves to fill the bobbin  instead of the designated moves of the hooks.  Makes for smoother bobbin fill and more yards per bobbin…hmm

This is the Ashford Elizabeth.  

LindaSpinningAshford

 What a beauty!  Since I am accustomed to a single treadle, I really liked the large treadle on this wheel.  I suppose you could use both feet on it if you like.  I did find that it was a little stiffer to treadle than my Prelude, but in all fairness, Donna told me that I may have to fiddle with the tension a bit.  I could sure get used to seeing this lovely in my den..lol   Love the look of this wheel!

And now… my favorite of all… the Kromski Sonata…

LindaSpinningSonataTucson2009

This wheel also has the double treadles.  Donna had to remind me a bit to slow down my treadling.  But once I got the hang of it, boy was it smooth.  The treadles were smooth and easy … no stiffness,  hanging up or bobbing … great!  I have not wanted a castle style wheel until now.  I am thinking this will be my next wheel! 

There was such a selection of fibers! 

MerinoSilkTucson

I had a really hard time deciding which ones I wanted…lol  I finally decided on this beautiful merino/silk.  I’m sure you notice in the pic that I couldn’t wait to try spinning it…soooo… I had my son that lives in Mesa, AZ  dig around and find the spindle I made and sent to him..then I stole it..lol  (With a promise to send him another one!)   This stuff spins like a dream!  I think I have enough to spin up some almost gossamer weight that I will knit into a shawl.  I can hardly wait… (And yes… I am having a hard time keeping myself from knitting… I think I may have to just live with the discomfort in my wrist and arm…sigh) 

Did I tell you that Donna is a weaver too?

BoatShuttle2009

  With a Rigid Heddle Loom…  ;o)   She had a jacket on her loom when we were there…what a beauty.   Watching her was a definite inspiration.  So… I bought a new boat shuttle.  She said it makes weaving  much easier.  I have not had time to try it yet, but you can bet I will in the next few days.. ;o) 

The time to leave came wayyy too soon…

GrandmasSpinningTucson

I must apologize since I seem to have lost the card they gave me that has both their names on it… I showed it to so many people that I’m sure I have left it somewhere…sigh  Oh well… maybe they will stop in when they are in Tucson!  ;o) 

This was such a lovely place… warm, friendly and welcoming.  I was invited back for the Spin-In they have every Thursday and I had planned to stop on the way back home….but I think my sweet DH was really ready to start home and make some time, so on we came.  But you can bet that next time we are in Tuscon I will plan for it to be on a Thursday…lol

 

 

 

 

   

Quilt, Wool and Swiffers…. (free crochet pattern)

June 12, 2009 at 8:59 am | In Crafts, Crochet, Free Patterns, Handcraft, Handwork, Quilt | Leave a Comment

HappyFlowersQuilt

I’ve been working on another quilt for Hannah.  I found this 4 (or is it 5??) year old piece of fabric in my stash and was shocked… had forgotten I had it.

I’m not going to quilt as much on this one as I did on the other one.  The main reason for that is that I have be finished in 2 days…lol  

In the process of working on this, I found that if I am doing a small quilt, my 32″  Kromski Harp works really well for a quilting frame. 

Cotswold2plyYarnThere are  about 200 yards of the Cotswold wool spun up now.   I have to say that I really like it.  It has a soft fuzzy halo that the other wools that I have spun do not have.  When I have finished spinning all of what I have, the colors of the dye will depend on the design for the weaving that is planned for it.    If you haven’t tried this wool yet…do.  You will be surprised.

Last night I finished the knitted cloth I had been working on.  There was/is SwifferCrochetstill some of the blue cotton yarn left over so I decided I would make a washable cover for the Swiffer.  There are several   patterns on Ravelry, but it really is so simple there isn’t much need for a pattern.  However, here is what I did…

Swiffer Cover

Peaches and Cream Cotton Yarn  (not much..lol) 

Crochet Hook  size I  (US)

Starting chain and Row 1:   Chain 19, turn, sc in second chain from hook and sc across chain to end.  Ch 1 and turn.  You should have 17 sc in this row.

To make the turn back pocket that will hold the cover on:

Row 2-10:  sc across (there should be 17 stitches), chain 1 and turn. 

 To make the looped stitch mop area of the cover:

Row 11:  sc in 2 sc, loop stitch in next 13 stitches, sc in 2 sc.  Ch 1, turn.

Row 12:  sc in each stitch across.  (There should be 17 stitches.) Chain 1, turn.

Repeat rows 11 and 12 for 15 rows.  ( It will look like it is too short, but if you stretch it a bit, the looped stitch rows should fit across the bottom of the swiffer. )

To make the turn back pocket on the other end.

Rows 42-51:  sc in each stitch across. (There should be 17 stitches) ch 1, turn.

Row 52:  sc in each stitch across.  Finish off…

Fold back each end at the beginning loop stitch row and sew edges together using whatever stitch you are comfortable with.  I used a simple whip stitch.  Do the same to each side and both ends.  With a little pull, it should now fit your Swiffer.  

No 2 crocheters have the same tension… or if you use another size needle or yarn.. this pattern is very easy to modify.  Just increase or decrease the number of stitches or rows to make it fit your Swiffer.   If you do modify, remember that crochet is a bit stretchy, so put some stretch into it when you test size against your Swiffer size. 

I hope everyone has a wonderful day…

New Wool… at last… (free scarf pattern)

June 7, 2009 at 7:31 am | In Crafts, Fiber Preparation, Free Patterns, Handcraft, Handwork, Knit, Repetitive Motion Injuries, Spindling, Spinning | 1 Comment

We made a trip to Durant yesterday and replenished the wool supply.  I loveOzarkMillsWool to go to Ozark Carding Mills, LLC … the only problem is that I can spend us into bankruptcy in just a few minutes…lol 

The cotton in the upper left of the picture is just a small sample she gave to see if I liked to spin it.  She said it is much easier to spin in this form than the cotton balls that I have tried before.   As luck would have it, she still had some of the chocolate (she calls it moorit) merino lamb.. yayyy   This time I also bought some merino white.  There are no plans for any of this right now, but I thought I might try to blend some of the silk with the merino white… 8 oz white merino with 2 oz. silk.  I think that would make a terrific scarf in whatever color it decided it wanted to be.  Maybe even a small shawl. 

CotswoldSpinningBefore I took the above picture I had already pulled the Cotswold out of the bag.  This is the first time I have done Cotswold and find it relatively easy to spin.  This has rug planning written all over it.  This is definitely NOT for use against the skin.  I suppose it could be used for an over-the-clothes sweater, but the wrist and neck might be a bit scratchy.  Anyway.. we’ll see what it turns out to be. 

LinhsIvyScarf2

I’m afraid the Linh’s Ivy Scarf will have to be put on hold indefinitely.  My right hand and arm have developed something quite painful… I think it is a combination of the constant computer use and the small knitting needles… We are no longer doing the LRRP Ranger Association newsletter so that should help some.   I have decided to put all the small needle knitting aside until I see for sure what is happening.  Sure hate this… I was really looking forward to seeing this finished… hand spun wool plyed with polyester machine embroidery thread (very shiny)… (This pattern was found via Ravelry… one of my favorite places on the web… ;o)

HandknittedWashcloths

 

Using the size 10 knitting needles to do these two cotton wash cloths didn’t seem to hurt my hand as much as the smaller needles did, but can’t honestly say it was painless… sigh..  Oh well.. will just have to leave the knitting alone for a while. 

 

Flax2ply

 

This flax was removed from my spinning wheel so I could begin the Cotswold.  There isn’t much of it, but I find that spinning flax is just not my thing right now.  This is very stiff and I am thinking that is because it needs to be woven and then finished with a hot water wash.  I think I will make a bookmark on my small loom and see how it turns out.  I don’t know if tea or coffee will dye it, but I’m sure going to try it….

 

It’s a lovely day outside today… sunny and green… what a lovely Sunday… Hope everyone has a good day…

EZ Pi Shawl Finished…and A Surprise for Hannah

June 2, 2009 at 6:48 am | In Books, Crafts, Free Patterns, Handcraft, Handwork, Needlework, Personal, Quilt, Sewing | 2 Comments

The EZ Pi Shawl is finished… re-dyed…blocked..  Ask me how happy thatEZPiShawl405292009 makes me…lol  The re-dye was done with green Kool Aid and there are some yellow highlights, but not as much as this picture shows.  This was done using handspun mixed wool and corriedale  singles.  The edging was done in a cluster stitch crochet and it helped immensely with the rolling of the stockinette stitch bind off that I did… like a real knitting newbie…lol  I have to say that I am very happy to be finished with this…  For the longest time I really, really wanted to know how to knit…  What I didn’t realize was that I already new how… duh… Just had never put those knits and purls together in a pattern!  Now it seems I can’t stop!

We will finally be seeing Baby Hannah soon.  I am almost beside myself with all the waiting.. sigh  I spent yesterday out in my workroom.. and this is what I have come up with…

HannahsBook1

Now what is that????

HannahsBook2

More!

HannahsBook5

Birdie wants to see…

HannahsBook3

HannahsBook4

This little book is something I have wanted to do for  a long time.  It was easy to do, but took a while since  everything is appliqued …. so very worth the time spent.  It is totally washable, the pages won’t tear and hopefully she will have it for a very long time.  

The little bird was made yesterday using the pattern for Little Bluebird  found here..  on the Spool website.  I wanted to make her a toy she could hold on to… and this little bird is just the thing.  It will fit right into her little hand. 

At Loose Ends

May 28, 2009 at 7:42 am | In Crafts, Crochet, Embroidery, Handcraft, Handwork, Sewing, Weaving | Leave a Comment

After the death of my sister last week, I find myself wandering around the house, start this project, pull it out, start another project, take it apart… This is a very difficult time and I find that just the process of crafting of any sort is comforting.

This tissue cover was a quick 20 minutes in the sewing room.  I have wanted to make some of these for a long time…just never quite got a round tuit..lol

This is the sampler that was woven using my wooden heddle.  There is a group both in Yahoo groups and in Ravelry of crafters who work with weaving and I am correct in saying that this type of weaving should be warp faced… Mine turned out weft faced.  I will be trying this again and pulling it narrower, beating a little harder and see if that is the problem…  I was really looking forward to the pattern the warp face would make…lol  Guess patience is a virtue…!

I dug out some pillowcases I’ve had for about 5 years that have been waiting patiently in my work room for me to decide what to do with them.  Well, this is it.  This is crocheted edging that I started yesterday.   This pattern is from a booklet put out by Coats called Edgings.. A Collector’s Book. I love this book.. It has a selection of crocheted, knitted and tatted lace edging patterns.   There will probably also be embroidery, but that pattern has yet to be decided… As Scarlett O’Hara said… I’ll think about that tomorrow…

Hand Made Heddle, Shuttle and Turtleneck Cozy

May 26, 2009 at 5:53 am | In Crafts, Handcraft, Handwork, Knit, Spinning, Woodworking | 4 Comments

I started working on this last week sometime.  I don’t know why I decided to do this, but for some reason I just found it necessary…lol  So while at Lowe’s with DH one day I picked up a 1/4 “x6″x24″  piece of poplar and decided to give it a shot.   I love it… However… immediately after this picture was taken I sat down to work with it again and dropped the shuttle… Voila!  swoosh to a new 2 long prong, 2 short prong shuttle…lol   The tiles on the floor are a little hard on shuttle prongs… I found that it works wonderfully well but will have to make me an inkle loom now.  I have caught the woodworking bug!  More pictures of the process at my Flickr site here…

I am in a Tea group on Ravelry and everyone is making a cozy for their teapot.  This is what I came up with.  A turtleneck….lol  The turtleneck is handspun, kool aid dyed mixed wool.  The body is hand spun, kool aid dyed mixed wool/alpaca.   It’s made to fit my favorite teapot and the necklace was handcarved for me by my uncle…  All in all.. I love it…  ;o)

Busy Week….

May 19, 2009 at 7:24 am | In Card Weaving, Crafts, Handcraft, Handwork, Historical Textile, Sewing, Weaving | Leave a Comment

CardWeaving05162009I’ve found that I can use my Harp Rigid Heddle Loom to do my cardweaving.  This is my first try and I’m sure I can come up with a way to make it more user friendly, but the truth is that I really enjoyed this.  I am having a problem with keeping all my warp threads equal length and wind up wasting a lot of thread because I will find that one or two threads are about 6 or 7 inches shorter than all the rest… oh well..  Learning is good thing… ;o)

CardWeaving052009 055

 

Another problem I find is that as the weaving goes along, it gets looser for some reason .. note how the pattern gets larger as it goes…  I’m not sure what that is all about, but I think it has something to do with using a little cardboard thingy for my shuttle… So a poplar shuttle is in the works in the shop.. More on that…

 

EZPiShawl05192009

The EZ Pi Shawl is almost finished.. Of course by the time it is done I will have accomplished putting the finishing touches on my carpal tunnel syndrome in my right arm and   hand!  :o )   This is my last ball of handspun in this color, so it will be used to put the border on… It now has 1,248 stitches per round with 7 stitches per inch… That should make it 178.3 inches circumference.. before border and blocking.  Now I have no idea how to find the diameter using those numbers…too many years since geometry..lol  If anyone else knows, please leave me a note…   (OK… I just looked it up online.. circumference divided by pi (3.14) equals diameter… So.. this  now has a diameter of 57 inches before border and blocking… I think that is big enough… phew! )  And then comes the re-dyeing… Not sure what color yet..

RigidHeddleShuttle105182009

Have spent some time in the shop working on these two things… a rigid heddle that can be used for inkle weaving and a shuttle.  They were both cut from a 6″ wide piece of poplar and when I left them yesterday, this is what they looked like.  More work to be done today.  All the rough cuts are finished and the finishing work with the Dremel, sanding, staining (if that is what I decide to do) are what is left.  These should be finished today… barring unforeseen you know…lol

RiceHotColdPads05182009

You thought I was really kidding about the carpal tunnel syndrome, didn’t you?  Well, I don’t know about carpal tunnel but my right arm has really been upset with me for the last couple of days… so when I came in from the shop yesterday I went to my workroom and put together these two rice hot/cold pads.  I love the longer one.  It has sections sewn into it and that makes it wrap more easily around places like elbow and shoulder… keeps the rice in the right positions.   I had some flannel left over from some baby blankets made for the great grandchildren, so I used that to make covers for these.   Really used them yesterday… May have to make many of these for Christmas!

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