Spring time in the Rockies

Well I spent the afternoon getting all the kits together for the classes I will be teaching at the Snake River Fiber Fair this next weekend. My tatting class is fill to the brim. We will be learning how to make this card. We will also talk about how to buy threads and shuttles. I will also be teaching beginning knitting and rigid heddle weaving. There is still room in those classes and I'm sure if you showed up on Sunday you can join in on. For more info check out the web site.
http://www.srfiberarts.org/fiber_arts_fair_2012

Liney-woolesy

Wikipedia defines Linsey-woolsey as a coarse twill or plain-woven fabric woven with a linen warp and a woolen weft. Similar fabrics woven with a cotton warp and woolen weft in Colonial America were also called linsey-woolsey or wincey.

I define is as fun. So yesterday I spend a couple of hours playing around on my loom. I had it warped for finger towels but after I got started I found I had a major threading error and it really wasn’t easily fixable so I decided to just weave off the warp in plain weave.

Last weekend I spent a day demonstrating spinning. I had 4 ounces of Cotswold wool in a light grey that I was spinning as a singles at about 40 wpi.  I was able to get about 560 yards out of the bump. My warp was about 6 yards, so I just sat at the loom and wove plan weave.  I have to say there is something to be said about plain weave. There is such a calming rhythm to it.

Linsey-woolsey was used during the Colonial times and even through the Civil war and later part of the 19^th century as a basic cloth for clothing and household needs.  When linen was not readily available cotton or hemp was substituted.  In my case I used 10/2 cotton from Henry’s attic as the warp. I really love this yarn and how the fabric turned out and plan to make more of this cloth for a pair of pants for my husband as some point. Because the loom was set for finger towels the piece is a bit wide for a scarf and maybe a bit narrow for a shawl. But for an afternoon of just playing around on the loom it’s pretty cool.

Looking towards the new

 

It’s been a super long time since I have had them time to blog. For the past couple of years I have been really busy with life. I basically took some time away from most things fibery. I stopped teaching and working in a yarn store. I think I needed the break but I am happy to say I am back and what I love to do. Although I am not teaching as much as I did before and I'm not sure I will ever teach every week like I did before but it’s enough to keep it fun and keep the creativity going.

I am also happy to say I have started to design again. A few years back I did a lot of work for a local yarn store and sold some of my patterns in the store to later find out they were making copies and selling them without paying me. I must say when I found out I was really hurt and burnt. So I stopped designing.  I think that was about 5 years ago.  This time I plan to keep control a bit better on my patterns. I will be selling them on Ravelry and on a new website I plan to launch later this summer.  So please stay tuned to announcements on where and when it starts. I also plan to sell handmade items and hand dyed fibers.

I also plan to attend a few events through the summer and fall where I will be demonstrating the fiber arts in some manner. Below are the events that I will be at during the rest of the month of May.

May 19-20 the Snake River Fiber Fair in Idaho Falls. http://www.srfiberarts.org/fiber_arts_fair_2012

I will be teaching tatting, beginning Knitting and beginning rigid heddle weaving. I will also be judging the skein contest. If you are in the area please stop by and say hello.

May 27 the Fiber Train in Nampa Idaho http://www.fibertrainfestival.com/

Even though this will be a two day event I will be able to attend only Sunday. I will be in the Puffy Mondeas booth weaving, so if you are interested in learning to weave please stop by and say hello. By the way my husband will be attending the same event blacksmithing.  I do plan to attend the memory yarn class on Monday night.

Coming in June I will be attending the ye olde renaissance faire in Eagle Idaho. Please check back for more information and what Items I will have items for sale and will be donating some things totally cool to raffle off.   http://www.yeolderenaissancefaire.org

Summer Fun!

I know in some places it doesn't really seem like its summer but here in Boise school is out, so I am on summer vacation. Although there are no plans to take any trips. So I will have to find some fun things to do around here. Its kind of funny when you only work a few hours a day you would think you would have all the time in the world to get things done. Not so. Now that I have the month of June, July and bits of August to fun things to do. I have made a long list of TO Do's

*Dye and knit a natural dyed tam
*Natural dye Saxon green hat
*Knit mariners socks
*Knit Tamarack socks
*Knit blue hand spun socks
*Spin and weave natural colored shawl
*Weave organic cotton towels
*Weave Huck lace shawl
*Make bobbin lace for Civil War dress
*Spin BFL scarf
*Spin Angora samples
*Write up three patterns that have already been designed.
*Spin for sweater ( Tour de Fleece)
*Knit socks with self striping yarn
*Spin for sweater from Tour de Fleece roving
* Knit cable shawl collar sweater
* Tat some snowflakes for Christmas gifts
*Crochet a doily
*Weave coaster sets for Christmas


Yes, Yes I know its a long list. You will have to keep checking back to see how much I can get done before I go back to work. I will let you know that I have a few of these things either almost done for at least half done. 

I did I just see a UFO?

Call me crazy but I have a plan. OK more like a goal!
I am now working on finishing all my UFO's ( unfinished objects).
For the past month or so I have been diligently working on getting everything off my needles, wheels, hooks, and looms.
What I want to do is get everything all done before school gets out so that I can start with new projects for the summer.
So far I have finished
a crocheted afghan, mini pillows to match.
My February ladies sweater
placing a zipper in hubby's sweater

Things to be finished
Lent scarf KAL
needlepoint seat cover
towels on the loom
gold knee high socks
cream alpaca/silk sweater
green lace weight yarn on spindle
multi color socks

I am really hoping to get this all done by May 20. That day I am leaving to teach at a fiber fair and I would like to go shopping for a new project to start.
So yes I have and will be busy for the next month or so.
Stay posted for progress and pictures.

Spring Break?

Well as I write this blog update its Sunday evening of my spring break. I have been off along with all the kids this past week. There are some really cool reasons to have a job at a public school. Spring break being one of them. So you might be asking your self what did she do or where did she go for spring break? Well sad to say I didn't go anywhere. With hubby being unemployed for 8 months there just wasn't money to travel to the other side of the valley let a lone some where warm. Happily hubby is now employed with a really good company. So while the kids and I stayed home he went off to work. So now you are asking what did I do for the week. Well I busted out as many UFO's ( unfinished objects) as I could. I am happy to say I was able to clean out my knitting, spinning and weaving bags. I am now down to just three things to finish up. My plan is to get them finished up in April so that I can start on something new. I have no idea what the new things will be. I'm not looking at pattern and I am also trying to not think about it until they are done.

This past week I was able to finish:

 a sweater for my hubby ( put the zipper in)

my February Ladies sweater

My spinning for my stash down ( see above)

get caught up on my Lent scarf KAL

weave some towels

make 2 bobbin lace books marks

Spin a skein of cashmere to replace a cowl I knit last year

So now I am down to finishing up an afghan and pillow that was start two years ago for Christmas. A needlepoint pillow and a second knee high sock.

So I guess you could say I really didn't have a break this week, but the good news is its spring anyway.

I need a new hobby like....

Really I barley have time to do all the things I want to when it comes to spinning and knitting and crochet. So what is a girl to do. Learn to Weave!  I recently took a class on double weave with my local weaving guild, and totally fell in love. So I was fortunate able to purchase a baby wolf loom from Schacht. I decided that I would go ahead and get the 8 harness. Other then its a be heavy I am so glad Idid. My weaving guild is hosting a weaving workshop in a week with Robyn Spady. The workshop is called Extreme Warp makeover.  The real reason I want to take the class is to learn to make corduroy. Not to say I won't enjoy all the other things I will learn over the three days. As a matter of fact my husband and I just checked to see if the loom would fit in the car. It did. Yea! 

Because a Baby wolf is a bit pricey, when it got here I decided that I would wait until my workshop. I thought I should see how it works. So here is my first project. The yarn is hand spun, I'm not sure what it is. I know the red is wool and I think it comes from Ashland bay. The grey  I think is angora and wool. Because its grey I'm sure the grey angora is from on of my bunnies. I'm not sure if its from my current rabbit or the last one.  The pattern or draft comes from Handwoven May/June 09. The pattern called for alpaca but I found something from my stash.

My next project that I just finished was face cloths. I used pearl cotton and some thick and thin cotton. As I am writing I washing them to see how they hold up. The pattern came from issue 3 of Weaver's Craft.

I know its seems like all I have been doing of late is weaving but I have also been spinning and knitting. For my February stash down was what might look like a bit of under achievement. But really it wasn't. I chose for this month to spin pagora. I have never spun this fiber and I have to say I love it. I don't really like mohair so I wasn't sure how I would like it.  The grey is 100% pagora and the blue and pink is a mix of pagora,glitz and alpaca. I plan to knit cowls with each of the. They are lace weight and only an ounce. I ended up with about 200 yards each.

I am also doing so knitting. I have finally started my February sweater. I have had some shoulder pain for the pas few months and haven't really done all that much knitting. I did finish a basic sweater for my hubby and its now waiting for a zipper. My February sweater is being knit with red nearly sold handspun. As a matter of fact its the yarn I spun for my stash down in Jan. I am hoping to get this finished in the next week or so.

My plan for the March Stash down is to spin some of my current bunnies wool. He is about to get another hair cut so I'm thinking its time to spin some for myself. I also want to get started on a sweater I have been wanting to spin for.

Stash Down and a bit of the other

 Yea I met my first goal! Spindlicity stash down for January!

 I know I know this picture of my finished yarn its horrible. But I have a reason. My camera is on its way back to the maker to get fixed so I have to use hubby's cell phone to send a picture to my computer. For some reason I can't send pictures on my phone, which by the way has a much better camera. Anyway the finish yarn looks  more like what's on the bobbin. I ended up with 1100 or so yard of a 2ply. My plan is to us it to knit the February sweater. Yes this is my first stash down fiber, and it was complete with time to spare. I have been having all kinds of trouble with my hand so I am just glad I was able to finish it before the month was over. I bought this fiber at SOAR 09 form a vendor that I don't remember who it was nor do I know the breed of wool it is.

I can't wait to get to the knitting part of it, but I first have to finish a sweater that I have been working on like forever. OK its just form November but it seems like it anyway. I am really hoping to get it all finished before my new toy comes in a couple of weeks. I will tell you that its a loom but I'm not saying anything more until it gets here.

The whole weaving thing started when I was having lunch with Sarah Lamb at SOAR 09. We were talking about weaving and I was stating the case that one I don't have room for a loom nor do I have the time. Well needless to say I have been thinking about it ever sense. I took a class a couple of weeks ago. Really it was an intensive with my local weaving guild and I woven on the loom of my dreams. So I now plan to order it in a week or so. I have also signed up to take a extreme warp class from Robyn Spady in March. Well I figure if I'm going to buy a loom I might as well learn how to use it.  So stay tuned to find out which loom I bought and how its going with the whole weaving thing.

On another note I found out this week that I will be teaching a couple of Knitting classes at the Snake River Fiber Fair in Idaho Falls. So if you are in the area of Idaho falls round them please sign up or stop by and say hello.

By the way I am still working on what my goal for February will be I am thinking something exotic keep a look out in the next day or so to find out what it will be.