TNT: Goat Loaded

 

Done. Now it can join all my other stacked critters. 

These to be exact. As soon as I find the backing and trim I'm turning them into the little pillows the designer intended them to be. There's more in the collection but I wasn't tempted although there might be a winter holiday one in my future. 

Matter's House's alphabet and right side fence are now finished. There's a bottom border still to do but I think I'll do the birdy looking thing on the right before I wind it up on the frame more. I can't really stitch it until I do. 

Alas, the Patchwork Automne re-do didn't get far. I realized I didn't have the colors I needed to work on that important center block. I hope to pick it up today when I go into town for a doctor's appointment. There's supposed to be a new Micheals down there somewhere so I'll have to go looking. 

All Wound Up Again

 

The socks I was knitting for one of the Grands were too small which was not a problem because look what happened. A knot. Ugh. I tossed that sad cuff right in the trash bin.

Then I took all of the rest of the sock yarn I had planned on using this week and caked it up looking very carefully for knots. I didn't find any more, thank goodness. That's the finished pumpkin patch puzzle in the background. I told The Mister I'd have it done by October and by golly, I did, with days to spare. 

While we were away this Kroy showed up in the mailbox. While winding it up I noticed it's thinner than the old Kroy I had been using. I never could get the yardage I needed for socks out of Kroy so I stopped using it but still had some in the stash. I'm hoping to get a pair that fit out of this. I remembered to measure and trace the Grand's little foot this time. 

I also tried a new pumpkin bread recipe yesterday. I used half the sugar that was called for and it was still very good. I wanted one that used oil instead of butter because I never have butter. I was so tired yesterday from all the weekend fun that my willpower was gone. I ate an entire little loaf in bits and pieces throughout the day while spending most of the day on the couch. Diet and exercise routine start again tomorrow.

Full House

 

Kids, kids everywhere. Little boys solving math problems. 

Little girls putting together puzzles.

Caged monsters discovering the joys of a good book and a newborn that was quietly taking it all in from a corner on the couch. Thirteen kids and the parents that brought them.

There was a lot of food. Too much. Daughter picked these beauties up on Friday as a treat for Middle Son and his boys. They are heading back north this morning. Goodbyes were hard. It was the first time in years that we had so much family in one place and it will probably be years, if ever, that it will happen again. 

All Wound Up

 

I only had a couple of sock toes to finish on the ride up to Daughter's yesterday so before I left I got out the fall yarn to wind up so it would be ready to go when I get home.

I didn't wind up the Felici but now that I'm thinking about it, I should. I hate surprise knots that ruin the stripe pattern and Felici can be very naughty.

I was cleaning up all the project baskets and bags and putting away all the leftover balls when I noticed how many I have. I've got a nice collection. I keep telling myself I'm going to do something with them but I rarely do.

Once upon a time I knit them all into a giant tube, cut it in half, cast off each half and had a pair of interesting leg warmers. I'm thinking I might do the same but this time graft the ends for a very interesting cowl. 

On the Road Again

 

We're off again today to Daughter's house. Not to babysit this time but to visit. Middle Son is driving down from Detroit with the Grands and we are all getting together over the weekend. I took yesterday off from crafting to get packed and to help The Mister work on this puzzle. I bought it for him not realizing how hard it would be and I really need it off the table by October since I have a Halloween puzzle I want to get started on. No complaints. I like a challenge and since I started working on it, I've become completely obsessed with it. 

Auxiliary Report

 

Thanks to my obsession with getting all those socks done this week, the auxiliary projects haven't seen much love. I did get started on the scarf I have on the loom. The jury is still out on it. It seems a little flimsy. 

I did get the wool strips cut for the latest rug on the frame and one flower done. This one won't take long to finish if I would just sit down and work on it. 

I had a scare with my big paper piecing project. That blue doohicky went missing. I need it to pop out the papers. I've tried other ways but this is the best thing for it especially if you want to save the papers for future use. When I went to buy a replacement, I realized that I've had it for so long that I didn't know where I got it or what it actually was. Finally I thought about using Google Search and it turns out this little doohickey is a die tool for paper cutting. I found another one and ordered it and then...sure enough, I found mine. Somehow it got in the bag with the Hexie Runner. 

This Hexie Runner to be exact. I'm happy to say I got to move the hoop this week and finished most of the hexies inside of it in spite of having all those socks to finish. 

For those keeping score: At this time I have 3 socks finished and 3 more to go. 

Wednesday WIPs: Sockapalooza

 

It's been all socks, all the time around here this week. I am determined to get these off the needles by the end of the month. All I have left to do are the toes but...

...in the midst of all this sock mania, Daughter sends me this photo of Baby Grand wearing a pair of socks I made for her Bigger Grand when he was little. Of course now she says Bigger Grand wants his own pair in blue so......

...I went digging in this stash and came up with the yarn for the pair I've started. I wasn't wild about this yarn so I ordered some Kroy in the Rt 66 colorway. It showed up last night but since then I saw it in the Singing in the Blue colorway and I liked it better but it won't be here until next week. I'm going to hem and haw about it for a while today and then most likely go ahead and cast on what I already have here because...why not?

Somehow in all this sock drama, I did manage a few minutes to sew the neckline steek and pick up the shoulder stitches for the 3 needle bind off. I'm supposed to do it with the sweater turned inside out so it doesn't leave a bump. I'll take the designer's word for it because I've never done this before and will have to spend some time learning to do a 3 needle bind off. At least I don't have to cut that neck steek yet which is a good thing. There's been way too much knitting drama around here this week and I need to hit the re-set button first. 

TNT: Fallish

 

It might be fall but I'm not working on re-doing this autumnal disaster-yet. The fabric I ordered wasn't the right color even though it's exactly what I bought before. It's too light and not mottled enough. I've ordered more from other vendors so I have my fingers crossed for a better match. 

I did dust off Matter's House. I get it out every fall and work on it until the Halloween projects come out. This week I've been working on the alphabet. I hope to get the bottom section finished this year.

Goat Load needs the last little goat to finish it off. 

Funky Flower had the center border done and now I have to decide which of the outer flowers to work on next. 

Block E4 of Dear Jane has its pieces covered but I haven't had time to sew them together. 

And finally....I have the third border close to being finished on the Patchwork top. This may have to go on break for a bit while I sort out that sweater I'm steeking. It's all over the sewing room right now so getting those paper pieces ready for appliqueing isn't going to happen until I get the courage to finish steeking that neckline.

The First Cut

 

I found the time this weekend to start the process of turning this heap of knitting into a sweater. 

First up was the sleeve steeks. So far so good. 

Before I could sew up the shoulders I have to steek the neckline. I used the neckline of a sweater I wear a lot in the winter as a guide.

I used a basting thread to mark out where it should go but that's as far as I got. I need to think about it for awhile and then come back with fresh eyes. This could go badly pretty quickly so I'm not going to rush it. 

Tis the Season

 

The Skellies are popping up all over the place already.

I suppose if you spend that much money on them you want to get the most out of them. 

Those Skellies are jumping the gun on the spooky season a bit. It still feels and looks like summer out there. It's been hot and very humid this week. My mini rose is loving it but it's killing me. 

Questions and Answers

 

I had a couple of questions yesterday about my wheels so let me explain. I bought this one first in 2007, before I even knew how to spin. It's an Ashford Traditional. It was used and traveled all the way from New Zealand. It was an impulse eBay purchase and was very inexpensive considering the shipping involved. That was a very long time ago so I doubt you can get those kinds of deals now. 

When they offered me the Traveler with the same deal, I jumped at it. Now I could work on several fibers at once without pulling bobbins on and off. It's sheer laziness that made me want more than one. 

Then in 2011, the kids surprised me with this brand spanking new Shacht Ladybug as a retirement gift. Compared to those two other old rickety wheels, this one spins like a dream. I only use commercially processed fiber on this one to keep her clean. The wonky fleece goes on the other two.

I was also asked about my spindles. Goldings are hard to come by these days but if you look for a 2" whorl weighing between 0.4 oz to 0.9 oz, you'll have what I would consider the perfect size and weight for a beginner. I also recommend staying away from Merino or other soft, slippery fiber when you are first learning. Get the woolliest woolly wool that you can find. It will slow you down until you have good control. Don't forget to pre-draft. Practice pulling that wool apart until you can see how the fibers line up just before they drift apart. It takes a bit of practice but knitting something from yarn that you made yourself for the first time is a feeling you'll never forget. 

Friday Fluff: The Right Stuff

 

Earlier this week, one of you asked me about the equipment I have for spinning. The answer is lots. Lots and lots. Too much, in fact. This is what my spinning corner looks like during the TdF. I've got three wheels. An Ashford Traveler, an Asford Traditional and the Schacht LadyBug that the kids gave me when I retired. 

I started out with spindles. All kinds. I've got drop spindles and support spindles. If I saw one I didn't have, I bought it. 

My first expensive purchase was a Bosworth. I've got quite the collection but tbh, they are not my favorite. Too light. They don't spin long enough for me but they are very popular. 

The Goldings are my favorite. They are light but spin like crazy. If you are a beginner this is the size and weight you need to start with and not the boat anchors I started with years ago. 

That's the boat anchor at the top. Beginner me thought bigger was better so I bought a learn to spin kit that featured this monster. It didn't go so well. I would have given up right then but that year's MDSW showed me the way. The spindle booths were full of folks that offered lots of help and had me sorted out in no time.

It wasn't long after that I was doing a lot of this. Buying fleece fresh off the sheep and washing it. There is nothing more satisfying but it's hard work. 

I don't have it in me anymore so I buy things like this to spin instead. This was taken at Rhinebeck. I haven't been there in ages. My big dream when we retired in 2012 was to get an RV and travel to all fiber fests all over the country. That dream didn't last long. Aging parents, old pets and a creaky old Mister that needed lots of replacement surgery upended that dream I'm sad to say. I'm lucky if I even get to the MDSW every year. 

I really love getting my hands into the fleece and am lucky enough to still have bags of it to run through the drum carder. I don't even care if it amounts to anything. It just feels so good to feel that fiber running through your fingers. It's a meditation. It's a connection to something barely understood and it feels important.

Well....thanks for attending my spinning TED Talk and thank you to the person that asked. You gave me something to post about on a day when I could barely move from all the kid wrangling this week.

Now go get yourself a bit of pretty fiber and a little spindle. You won't be sorry.