Monthly Archives: April 2013

Spinning Day Lilies

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Sundays are for spinning. It is a most relaxing way to spend my Sabbath – especially when I am navajo plying.

I started spinning this gorgeous South African Fine Merino from the Spunky Eclectic Club a couple of weeks ago:

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February 2013 Club Day Lily

Because I was spinning it super thin, and because I also spent a lot of time knitting and mothering, it took me a long while to get this four ounces to look like this:

IMGP8915This is probably the thinnest that I have spun yet.

Navajo plying has got to be the most relaxing activity there is. I just love it. I love the yarn that it produces, too.

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I got about 415 yards of fingering weight yarn out of the one braid. Then I sold my other two to a fellow Raveller because, while I love this yarn, I have no idea what I would make with 12 ounces of it.

IMGP8918As it is, I have no idea what I am going to do with 4 ounces! It is very pretty and I am happy to let it ruminate in the stash for awhile. Maybe socks? Maybe a baby thing? We shall see.

As for me, I have moved on and already have a bobbin full of this months’ Spunky Fiber, a gorgeous BFL that has me completely over the moon (and not just because it is purple)!

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Asking Too Much?

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Is it too much to ask that one skien of yarn make three pairs of socks? Apparently it is. Meet my latest finished knit, the Asking Too Much Socks –

IMGP8868It’s a good thing that I like contrasting toes!

IMGP8871Asking Too Much Socks in Family Pendragons Armor Superwash Sock, Purteal, with Knit Picks Stroll Kettledyed, Eggplant
Ravelry Project page here

Family Pendragon Yarns is no more (a moment of silence, please……….), and so I really wanted to stretch the last few yarns that have from Melissa.

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I could rip them both back and make the toes the same length. I could work at it and make this pair of socks more pleasing to the eye. But, they fit well, I don’t care that much, and I am glad to be done knitting them so I am leaving them be. I will be wearing them with shoes anyway, right?

IMGP8867All in all, I think I did pretty good. I had already used this same skien to make some Turkish Bed Socks for a swap back in December, and The Bookworm got a slightly smaller pair of the same for Christmas.

IMGP8874It may have been asking too much, but I did get three pairs of socks out of one skien of yarn. Not too shabby, if I do say so myself!

 

 

 

 

Learning to Love Monogamy

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This week seems to be my week for finishing up languishing knitting projects. For some odd reason, I am in the mood to be monogamous with my knitting, and even though I have only four WIPs, that many unfinished works has been nagging me to distraction. This one took an exceptionally long time for a few reasons and I am mega-releived to have it off the needles, blocked, and ready to be worn.

IMGP8835Panda Silk DK Shawl in handspun BFL/silk from Spunky Eclectic, September 2012 Club, Pheasant
Ravelry project page here

Reason number one that it took me so many months to finish knitting this relatively simple shawl: I stink at estimating yarn requirements and yardage of my own handspun. After running out of yarn once, I ordered and spun a bit more. I kept back some of the fiber that I ordered the second time, thinking that I would love to see this yarn navajo plied. The I ran out of yarn again. Again, I pulled off a piece of the new braid, spun it up and kept knitting. And then I ran out of yarn again. Sigh. The top rail of the shawl is knit in Knit Picks Palette because I refused to spin up any more of that gorgeous fiber for this shawl! As it worked out, the black looks great and I still have one and half braids left to navajo ply. Win-win.

IMGP8837Reason number two that this shawl took me so very long to complete: all of that running out of yarn, spinning up more yarn, running out again, etc.. really killed my excitement in the knitting process. So with each setback, I became more and more reluctant to continue. Fortunately, the yarn is amazingly gorgeous, the knitting was boring enough to do while watching movies in the evening, and I really wanted to see the finished object and so I kept going, albeit with long breaks throughout.

IMGP8838Reason number three that it took and eternity to get to the end of this shawl: morning sickness. ‘Nuff said.

IMGP8836I am extremely happy with this knit. I love knitting with my own handspun and the finished work means that much more to me knowing that I took a lump of gorgeously dyed fibers and turned it into a useful and beautiful work of art.

Now I am off to finish another of my WIPs and get one step closer to being the monogamous knitter that I never knew I was.

 

Death By Monkeys!

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After putting together an amazing chore chart, I was accosted by six adorable short people who all wanted their very own knitted mini monkeys. So, yesterday I knit monkeys all. day. long. Seriously.

IMGP8827Sock Monkey Miniature for Blythe in various sock yarn scraps
Ravelry project page here
Though there are only five shown here, I assure you that I did knit six!

Each kid got a new, teeny-tiny monkey in his/her own favorite color. 

These monkeys have been played with continuously since coming off the needles – block houses have been built for them, blankets have been wrapped around them, and they are already filthy. The Fraggle has already misplaced hers. Happy happy kids. 

IMGP8822And the chore chart is working out pretty good, too!

 

 

People Say We Monkey Around

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I just created a super wonderful chore chart and put it into action this morning. It may or may not inspire the crew to get their chores done, but it sure is adorable. (Ravelry project page here. Because I knit and crocheted elements of it)

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The monkeys were knit following this pattern and the vines were a spur of the moment crochet experiment that actually worked. I used wool felt for the leaves and flowers and I watercolor painted a poster board for the background.

IMGP8820The idea is to have the monkeys climb up the vine (there are seven leaves, one for each day of the week) as each days’ chores are accomplished. The envelopes hold the chore cards – the left envelope is the chore to be done, the right is for when the chore is complete. When a monkey reaches the top of the vine, that kid has earned his reward (Sunday is “movie day”). There are a few other little rules, like what happens when you miss a day, and how to earn extra climbing, but that is the basic run down.

IMGP8819The only problem that I have so far is that everyone wants to have their monkey to play with. So, today I will be knitting some more of these cuties just for play. They are so quick, take the tiniest amount of yarn, and make my kids extraordinarily happy! I confess, they make me happy, too. I think I want a purple one.