This category details experiments with different types of fibers
The problem with knitting, for me anyway, is that it is a cold weather activity. I never think of starting a knitting project until after it begins to get cold (not cool, cold). And since, I start most knitting projects by spinning the wool, and I am not a particularly fast knitter, I never finish […]
Read more "The Problem with Knitting"In my last post, I left you wondering what had happened to the other 2 and a quarter pounds of my Finn fleece. Admit it, you’ve been worrying about it all week. So here is how it breaks down. 12 ounces of the fleece, I didn’t even bother to wash. The fleece had not been […]
Read more "Never felt this way before"My birthday was last month, and rather than sock the money I received away to justify all the little extra craft purchases I make, I decided to splurge on a somewhat larger toy. Enter the Drum Carder. A Brother Drum Carder to be precise. What is a drum carder? It is a mechanism for preparing […]
Read more "Batting a Thousand"Well, the passion for this week, (or actually two weeks ago, since I am running a few weeks behind in posting) is tatting. Inspired by the pattern for the paper roses that I posted around Valentine’s Day, I decided to try a tatting a rose. Tatting, by the way is a series of very tiny […]
Read more "Ratta Tat Tat (Part I)"The family has left after Thanksgiving. It was a really wonderful visit. And since my dad’s birthday is in early December, I was able to give him his present early. This should have been his present two years ago, but I got so frustrated with it that I put it away. It was an illusion […]
Read more "Deceptively Difficult"Ok, so I broke down and bought yarn. This is a double whammy for me because not only do I usually spin my own, but I’m supposed to be stash busting right now. Sigh. I couldn’t help myself really. There I was, cruising Ravelry for stash busting projects when I found this face. I just […]
Read more "How Much is That Doggie in the Basket?"This week I’m concentrating on using up materials I already have and finishing projects already started. This ones for my nephew. I hope it fits. BTW, the pattern is available on Ravelry.com. It is the Maze and Chevron Hat by Deborah Bennett.
Read more "Stash Busting"So the weather has turned cool again, and by the look of the forecast, it’s going to stay that way. It’s a good thing I just got my son’s hood and mittens finished. He is totally cold blooded and thinks he’s going to freeze to death when the temperature hits 70F. It’s not an inspiring […]
Read more "Just In Time"Several months ago I bought a sample card from Paradise Fibers with a whole bunch of different wool and silk fibers. I wondered, after Kaleeb’s and my experiments with natural dyes (in which the commercial wool took up the dyes much more intensely than my hand-spun), whether the breed of sheep made a large difference […]
Read more "Onions!"I’m having quite a bit of trouble with fiber preparation. I’m working on learning to comb wool for worsted spinning using a set of English combs and the kid mohair that my husband and friends conspired to get for me at Sheep-Con (that’s what my husband calls the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival) last year. […]
Read more "Fiber preparation"