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The spinning corner isn't going to see much action for a while. I'm all spun out but I did pull out the next bit of fiber that will be spun on the Ladybug. It's more Polwarth in the Canyon Camping colorway from Kim Dyes Yarn.
Before I could use the Ladybug again, she had to have some repairs. One of her foot pedals had come loose. She was limping along on those last few miles of the Vuelta. It was just some screws that needed to be tightened, thank goodness.
She was a present from my kids the year I retired in 2010. If you are wondering why she's called a Ladybug, here is why. Every one of them has a hidden Ladybug somewhere on it. Mine is right behind the big red wheel. I think I gasped out loud when I saw the price of what they are selling for today. Yikes. She's a great wheel and I treat her with the most respect, only spinning the finest of clean fiber on her. Now I'm thinking I may need to take an insurance policy out on her.
For the first time in months I was able to open the windows. Tuesday's high was 74 with only 51% humidity. I don't think I can remember such a long stretch of hot weather. The temperature starts to creep back up today but I'm very happy to have had a few days of being able to touch grass.
Speaking of touching grass, look what I just bought. My old printer was giving me fits and as someone who HAS to enlarge every pattern or chart I really needed one that worked. Thankfully the weather and my mood was good when I had to go through the rather lengthy set up process. Talking to machines usually has me pulling my hair out but this little baby was very cooperative. I can even print from my phone now. Imagine that.
Too small. Too big. Just right. Getting the first sleeve the right size gave me fits this week after I realized the stitch count from the pattern wasn't going to work for me.
Of course I made things harder for myself by being too lazy to unpack Bon Ami. That's the sweater I knit out of scrap yarn to see if I could actually turn the Chestnut cardigan into a pullover. Bon Ami was a complete success. It fits perfectly so I should have pulled it out before I started the Chestnut sleeve so I could get the correct stitch count. Since I always wear layers under my sweaters, I like my sleeves big and baggy and I should have remembered that. I'm on the right track now but it took several days and nights of obsessive knitting and re-knitting to get there.
My goal this week was to stitch the words on the center panel of the Stitching ABC sampler. I stitched "Handcrafted" at least four times because it didn't look right. It's going downhill. A lot. My brain kept saying this can't be right but....
...it is. I'm not going to argue with the designer. I think it will look better when the outline is stitched. That will be this week's job.
Dear Jane gave me fits this week. I'm thinking that Elmer's must have re-formulated their glue sticks because I can't get the paper pieces out of the triangles. I have to shred the paper and use tweezers which is not good because it also shreds the material. Usually the papers pop right out. Not with the new glue sticks I picked up during the Back to School sales. This is a real problem going forward.
I'm on the next to the last big block of the Patchwork quilt and I feel like I've come full circle. It was two years ago this Halloween that I started it and by this Halloween I should be working on that border. I still can't believe that this random idea actually came into being. I'm very good at planning things but never finishing them. I've got boxes and bins of abandoned ideas to prove it.
The Vuelta de Espana doesn't have the same importance in spinning circles as the Tour de France but I'm never ready to give up my daily dose of fiber when the Tour ends so it's always on to the Vuelta. I love seeing the beautiful Spanish countryside go by and hear all the tidbits of info from the announcers about the historical sites. It's the best of armchair tourism and I look forward to it every year.
That's a pretty big pile of finished things since, for its first few hours, it's usually just background noise while I go about my morning chores.
I can't wait to get that newly plied skein of Shaniko Tweed washed and dried so I can get it on the needles. I've decided it will be yet another Pimpelliese. I've made this so many times that I have my own cheat sheet for the free pattern. It's a great pattern with an unfortunate name that can make even the wonkiest of yarn look like it was meant to be. Pimpelliese? According to Google it doesn't translate to anything but the AI feature thinks it's an adolescent skin condition. I really don't think that's what the German designer had in mind.
And excuse me for calling this Shinook fiber on Friday. It's is SHANIKO. My brain can't seem to handle that new to-me-word so I've been calling it everything but. Shaniko is a Merino/Rambouillet cross that's between 19 and 21 microns so it's as soft as Merino but retains some of the Rambouillet loftiness. This is the second time I've spun it. Both were tweeds so I'm now very interested in getting my hands on some that isn't tweedy.
We have to get down to the Farmer's Market at the beach when it opens at exactly 8:00 so The Mister can stock up on his oatmeal whoopie pies from the Amish stand. He's in a competition with another elderly gentleman to see who can get there first and clean the place out. It's hilarious. Pup and I go along, make our selections and then go sit under a shade tree while The Mister stands in the lines to pay. I didn't need to sit under a tree yesterday because believe it or not.....there was finally a cool breeze.
Exhibit A. Watching this guy try to control that sail was very entertaining. He was getting blown all over the water. That breeze plus the cloud cover made for a decent morning to be out and about. It wasn't quite window opening weather but it was a marked improvement.
The good thing about being at the Farmer's Market when they open is that I don't have to fight the crowds to get some photos. The gourd bin was very pretty but I never know what to do with them so I never buy them.
It's apple season so I brought home a small basket of them.
The multi-colored mums are back. I'm always tempted but know I would have a pot of dried sticks before fall even got here. It doesn't show up here anymore until Halloween or later.
It was a good year for corn. I've been making chowder at least once a week all summer.
Along with the corn and the apples, I bought another beautiful cauliflower that I roasted with garlic and a single zucchini and red pepper that became a dinner frittata. By afternoon the muggy, buggy weather had returned but it was good to get a glimpse of what's to come.
Woo hoo...my new drive band is here for the bobbin winder and I've been winding like crazy and putting more inches on the towel.
The gold wool also arrived this week and I've been cutting it up. I think this is my favorite part of the rug hooking process. There is something so satisfying about cutting up wool.
The color is off in this photo but I think that it's going to work well with the other colors I want to stripe it with. Thank goodness football is back on TV. I've got a lot to do and without The Mister always getting in the way, I just might get some of it done.
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