School and Stitches

Busy busy busy busy!

These last couple weeks have been super busy. Going to Stitches, working, taking care of Milo, and getting ready for school have taken up most of my time. 

Stitches Midwest was so much fun. If you don't know, Stitches is a huge yarn and fiber convention for knitters, crocheters, spinners, weavers and felt-ers. Stitches is organized by Knitting Universe, which is a knitting book and magazine company. There are dozens of booths full of yarn, fiber, books, tools, and tons of beautiful things to look at. Hundreds of fiber-folks attend, and a lot of people I saw were wearing lovely hand made sweaters, shawls, scarves, hats, and bags. It was awesome to see so much yummy fibery goodness and to be surrounded by like-minded folks. Brandon came with me, because he is the best boyfriend ever, and he even enjoyed feeling and looking at all the yarn.

Celeste's baby shower was also a ton of fun. Molly and I spent six hours baking and decorating coconut cupcakes and lemon cookies. For future reference- don't use cream cheese frosting to make roses. It does NOT work out well. Celeste seemed very happy about all of the baby sweaters and accessories, and I can't wait to see them on the baby.

School starts on Monday, which I am super crazy nervous about. I have all my books and supplies, but I still feel unprepared. They aren't lying when they warn you not to take time off school because you won't want to go back. I love learning but, blecccch...I am not excited to go back to papers and tests. But I have to go back! I am already going to be graduating a year or so after all of my friends due to switching majors, and I don't want to push it off any longer than that. They are all seniors this year and I am only a junior! 

Milo is getting huge! We made an appointment to get him neutered soon, because he is already three months old. He is so adorable and so much fun. He is definitely a very spoiled kitty- I can't walk anywhere in my apartment without stepping on a cat toy. 

I have been pretty monogamous in my knitting endeavors lately, so I have made a lot of progress in a couple of things, but it doesn't look like I've done much.

Finished Objects: 

1) I finally finished spinning and plying that Polwarth that I have been working on forever

I spun this very thin and chain (aka Navajo) plied it. The plying process was kind of difficult to get used to. Chain plying makes a three ply yarn out of one long single strand of yarn, and it involves basically making a huge crochet chain with lots of big loops. Since there is a lot of tension on the singles, it is easy for it to snap when you are plying. I had an interesting time keeping my yarn from falling apart a couple of times. I think next time I will try going a little slower. I ended up getting 460 yards of a fingering/sport weight yarn. 

2) I also finished my Dane shawl, and it is gorgeous.

I am so proud of how this turned out. There is nothing more satisfying than taking bare, undyed wool and dyeing it, spinning it into yarn, and knitting it into something beautiful. This is my second hand-spun shawl, and I think that they are my favorite things to make in the world. 

For this shawl I used Jane Tanner's Dane Shawl pattern and my hand-spun corriedale wool on size US 7 (4.5 mm) needles. This shawl is very warm and looks wonderful when draped or pinned around my shoulders. LOVE IT!!

3) I knit a little baby set for my future niece

I also knit a Poppy hat, but forgot to take a picture. I knit all of these on size US 3 (3.25 mm) needles and used Lion Brand Baby Soft yarn in lavender. For the booties I used Lucie Sinkler's Mary Jane Booties pattern. I made up the pattern for the mitts because I wanted them to match the booties. 

4) I dyed some yarn!

I used Wilton's black food coloring dye. I broke the dye, meaning that I made it split into the different colors that make up the dye. Wilton's black is made up of blue and red coloring with a little bit of yellow. Since red dye absorbs faster than blue, if you put dry yarn into the dye pot, the red dye with absorb first and then the blue will absorb after, giving the yarn splotches of blue and splotches of reddish purple. I think it's gorgeous. 

Works in Progress

1) I am almost done knitting a Henslowe shawl.

I am almost done with the edging, but I ran out of yarn! I ordered another ball online so hopefully it will come soon. This is Beth Kling's Henslowe shawl. I am knitting it with Knit Picks Capretta yarn in Celestial with size US 5 (3.75 mm) needles. The yarn is merino and cashmere so it is super soft and squishy. 

2) I started spinning some BFL

I bought this wool for the Wool Peddler on Etsy and I am spinning it to make a fingering or sport weight two ply yarn.

Stash Enhancement

I saved up a hundred dollars to spend at Stitches, so I bought a LOT of stuff.

Knitting Notions Classic Merino Bamboo, Aubergine 490 yds

Shaky K Fibers BFL, Desert Jewel, 4 oz

Madeline Tosh merino light, Baltic, 420 yds 

Verdant Gryphon Mithral, Autumn Oaks, 750 yds

Carolina Homespun Mixed BFL 4 oz

Newton's Yarn Country 2.2 Softball, Crimson, 1350.5 yds

Lisa Souza Grace, Portsmouth, 774 yds

Tiffany Yarn Sock, 420 yds

Tiffany Yarn Sock, 420 yds

I am rewatching Doctor Who, so I am off for a marathon! I love it!

-Nicole

LONGEST POST EVER!

I have a ridiculous amount of stuff to talk about, and I don't want to bore you, so it's going to be mostly pictures today.

I have been a busy little bee the past week. I am going to start with finished projects this week.

Finished Objects

1) I finished my first "Truly Different Vanilla Bean sock" 

These might be my favorite socks yet! I am using Wendy D. Johnson's Toe Up Socks with a Difference pattern for the sock, and Emily Locke's Vanilla Bean recipe for the stitch pattern. I am using Jo-ann Sensations Truly Pattern yarn in color 2280, and am using size US 0 (2 mm) needles (wooh, these are tiny!).

2) I finished my Zu Zu's Petals with my hand -dyed yarn.

I have crazy alien eyes...

I loved knitting this pattern, and I was very happy with my yarn, but I'm not sure how I feel about the finished product. I think that I may have pinned it out too tightly after I washed it, so it might be a little less stiff if I wash it again and don't block it as strongly. 
I used Carina Spencer's Zu Zu's Petals pattern with, size US 9 (5.5 mm) needles, and Malabrigo Merino Worsted yarn in Natural, which I dyed with Kool-Aid and food coloring.

5) I dyed some fiber with Easter egg color pellets!

I split it into three strips for easy spinning

This is the faux cashmere (100% nylon) fiber that I purchased from Yarn 2 Spin on Etsy. I have been collecting Easter egg dyeing kits since after the holiday (at 25-50 cents a box!) and I used 3 pellets of blue and 2 pellets of purple (which was really more of an indigo), which I mixed with a couple drops of red food coloring, and quite a few drops of blue food coloring. I added 3 tablespoons of vinegar to each cup, and filled it up the rest of the way with water. I soaked the fiber in water and a little vinegar, put it in a large baking dish, and poured the dye mixtures over it. I then baked it (lol) in a 200 degree oven for half an hour. It is beautiful! 


4) I finished spinning and plying my BFL roving.  

As mentioned in previous posts, I purchased this roving from Three Water's Farm on Etsy, spun  half of the undyed fiber on my drop spindle, dyed the other half with Kool-Aid, and spun the colored fiber on my spinning wheel (except for the first few dozen yards, which I did on my spindle). I then plyed the two colors together. I had quite a bit more of the colored singles, so I plyed them from a center pull ball (so that I could ply the two ends together). I ended up with a small skein of around 83 yards and a large skein of around 283 yards of a fingering/sport weight yarn. I loved it so much that, after washing and drying it,  I immediately had to cast on a project!

Works in Progress

1) I cast on a beautiful shawl today.

This is the Cassiope pattern by Alexandra Beck. I am knitting this with the hand-dyed, hand-spun BFL yarn that I mentioned earlier. I cannot express how awesome it feels to create something beautiful from start to finish. I sincerely recommend anyone that loves knitting to learn to dye and spin. It makes me feel like such a Renaissance woman!  I AM SO HAPPY!

2) I started knitting a cotton tank top

I am using a GIANT (400 grams) skein of Bernat Handicrafter Cotton that Brandon bought me from Jo-Ann's. I am using Jennifer Miller's Pixie Vest pattern and size US 7 (4.5 mm) needles. 

3) I have the toe of my second Vanilla Bean sock done, that I mentioned above

4) I started spinning the Faux Cashmere that I talked about above, but I haven't gotten very far yet.

Stash Enhancement

I got a few new yarn that I forgot to mention last time, and one gift from someone on Ravelry!

Bernat Handicrafter Cotton in natural

Lion Brand LB 1878 in Claret

3 skeins Queensland Sugar Rush in silver

I am a member of the Random Acts of Kindness group on Ravelry. Each month members post a wish list of yarns, patterns, notions, treats, etc and other member send them or buy them something, without asking anything in return. I usually buy patterns for other people, but I will occasionally also send yarn that I don't want. This month someone (I don't want to link her, in case she is sensitive about her privacy) sent me three skeins of this beautiful Knit Picks Gloss yarn in Scarlet. There is nothing like the kindness of strangers to brighten your day!

Other Stuff

I also baked some delicious chocolate chip and coconut cookies this week with Molly, but we ate all of them before I could take any pictures.

Brandon and I made some AMAZING ground turkey shepherd's pie this week, as well. AMAZING!

OMG AMAZING!!!

We used this Easy Shepherd's Pie recipe, but used turkey and chicken broth in place of the beef in the recipe. We also added garlic, cinnamon, and cumin to the stew, and sour cream to the mashed potatoes. 

Whew, I think that's the longest post I've ever written! It is rainy and cloudy outside, so I believe it is the perfect time to relax on the couch with my knitting and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (this is the 8th time I've read it....sheesh)

Wishing you a happy (and dry!) weekend!

-Nicole

More fun with Kool-Aid

I don't know why, but I really haven't been feeling like knitting lately. 

I will start knitting, and then put it down after ten minutes because my hands start to hurt, or I get bored, or I get frustrated. I don't know if it is just that the project I am working on is a little monotonous (I have been mostly working on my striped shawl), or just that I am a little knitted out, but I have been wanting to work on other crafts instead.

So the other day I decided on a whim to dye some yarn. I had a skein of undyed Malabrigo Merino Worsted lying around, so I mixed up one package of Lime Kool-Aid and one of Blue Raspberry, plus one tablespoon of vinegar, one tablespoon of blue food coloring, and a couple of drops of red food coloring in my crock pot and got to work.

I soaked the yarn in the sink with hot water while boiled some water in my tea kettle.

Then I mixed the hot water with the dye mixture, gently squeezed out some water from the yarn, and dropped it in the dye.

After half an hour I filled the sink with hot water and Eucalan wool wash. I gently pulled the yarn out of the dye pot and let it soak in the sink until the water cooled down. Then I rinsed the yarn and hung it on a hanger to dry. 

After drying for about 24 hours it looked like this:

I was trying to get a sort of greyish blue, and I think it worked out pretty well. I really like how the color turned out.

I have also been spinning a lot the last couple days. I decided to predraft all of BFL wool that I have been spinning, meaning that I went through all of the wool and separated and pulled it apart so that it is easier to spin. I then made tiny little balls with the roving. 

Doing this makes it a lot easier for me to spin because I can spin an entire little ball of roving and then either keep going to easily set down the spindle without worrying about losing the end of the single or having to draft more fiber. Plus, I like to pour out all of the little bundles and smoosh them because they are SO PRETTY!

In other news, I just got my tax refund back and, after putting a large amount in my savings account, I am going to use some of the money to BUY A SPINNING WHEEL!!!!! I can not even express my excitement.

After doing a lot of research, I have decided to buy a Lendrum Single Treadle spinning wheel. I will let you know more as this story develops.

I hope that you all have a wonderful and productive end of your week!

-Nicole