Spinning Floss

I've been dying and spinning embroidery floss for my latest projects. I've been using a tightly wound single. This allows me to twist the fiber tighter or looser depending on the effect I'm trying to achieve. I've had a lot of fun experimenting with dyes.

If you want to see some of my handspun in (embroidery) action, check out my Art Therapy blog.

Handspun Linen Crocheted Bags

I used all of my handspun flax. I made a few sturdy bags with some of it. I like a crossbody net bag for farmers' markets and vacations.

It's light and strong. It was easy to make. I didn't bother with a pattern. I improvised a single crochet bottom, double crochet body, and a single crochet strap. I can't wait to take this baby to Korea this summer.

Flax, just like a fairytale princess

I got my grubby mitts on some flax and I've been spinning like a bewitched princess.

While I prefer animal fibers, I don't mind the flax.

I spun a few hundred yards dry and it's very twine-like. I've been wet spinning since then. Instead of keeping my hands in water for hours, I've been slathering myself in cheap-Christmas-gift-lotion. It works better than water at tucking in ends, and it washes out when I boil the yarn to soften it.

I'm crocheting a topdown raglan in laceweight merino. So far, so fun.

Looking Busy

He'll be home in 5 days. I'm getting anxious. I've been spinning a lot because it's relaxing. I took a bunch of leftover fibers and spun this guy. I call it "Saturday Morning Cartoons." It's about 250 yards of sport weight, single ply wool. It self-stripes in large, uneven color runs. It's the yarn equivalent of a casserole.

I'm getting ready to warp my loom again. I'm knitting another pair of socks. I'm finishing a hat. I'm dyeing some wool. I'm baking bread. I'm organizing my yarn. I'm doing laundry. I'm writing letters. I'm planning menus. Mostly I wander around the house, picking up one task and dropping it almost immediately. I make lists and lose them. I walk to the bedroom and forget why I went there.

I was much more patient waiting for Santa Claus when I was eight.

Ants in my pants. Just 5 more days.

Passing Time

10 days. He'll be here in 10 days.

I finished a blanket. It's Paton's Classic Wool held double on a 5 dpi heddle. I did one side in a rigid pattern and the other in a spontaneous plaid. It's 8 ft long by slightly less than 4 ft wide. The selvages are a bit wonky, so I'll probably add an attached I-cord to the sides. I tried a crochet edge, but it looked wrong.

The only thing I don't like about this blanket is the bulky, puckered seam down the middle. Good thing I'm so proud of myself that I'm able to ignore it.

When I warped the loom, I used the direct method and pulled a loop from the red through the slot and a loop of brown through the holes. That way everything is doubled and the heddle is only threaded once. The thing I did wrong is that the warping peg kept falling and the warp got tangled. I need a better place to clamp warping pegs.

I picked a color to use for the second ply of my Bedtime Story yarn. I like it so far.

I knit something. Srsly.

I finished a pair of socks for Sgt. Husband that I started before Thanksgiving. They are boring, but I love having plain socks to work on in those little moments here and there. The yarn is Patons Kroy Stripes. I tried Kroy a few years ago and thought it was scratchy and lacked elasticity. I don't know what changed, but this yarn is bouncy, smooshy, and happy. I hope he likes them.

I also got my spinning wheel out for the first time since my husband left for Korea. The wool is a handpaint I did this summer. The colorway is "Bedtime Story." I dig it. I can't decide if I'm going to ply it on itself or spin another bump of inky, midnight blue. I'm thinking.
I hope you had a great V-Day. I ate an unladylike amount of chocolate and went to bed early.

Green and Purple Nurple

Today I convinced all three kids to eat Brussels sprouts. Then I made this yarn.

I finished a pair of Lizard Ridge Socks (Ravelry link) this weekend and they are blocking. I will always think of them as Purple Nurple socks because of the color and the short rows. They got much softer and smoother after a bath. It's been one of the most exciting blocking experiences of my knitting career. (I live a very quiet life.) I can't wait to wear them and get some modeled photos.

Card Trick

I have been packaging up my roving for the shop. I like to pick over each piece to pull off imperfect bits and ugly parts. Then I throw the scraps in a box and card all the colors together at random. I grab the batts at random and start spinning.

Spinning batts is very different from spinning combed top. The fibers feel lively and springy with chunks of contrasting textures. I am so in love with this process and the resulting yarn. Every inch of spinning is a surprise. I chain plyed the single to keep the colors somewhat grouped together. I can't wait to make some ragamuffin mittens with this.

Fun.

S is for Super Bulky Spinning

I've been spinning yarn for a coat. I high school and college, I used to wear a vintage USSR Navy coat. I loved it. It was wool and tailored and had great buttons. I've wanted a knit pea coat to replace it for while, but I didn't see a pattern that really appealed to me. I love the stitch and the style of Teva Durham's jacket.



Spinning super bulky yarn isn't as easy as it looks. I have to spin slowly to avoid getting too much twist and I often need lap joins to repair super skinny spots.
I am impressed that the spinning went so well. I am getting perfect gauge so far. Usually I can't get gauge even with the recommended yarn.





I'm used to my personal style being sloppy and comfortable, but this stitch is really sophisticated. I hope the finished coat will give me a little more winter style than my current red puffer coat.

R is for Roving

Roving is fun to dye. My first attempt (about a year ago) felted awfully. I barely got the pieces ripped apart enough to use for mitten thrums. Since then, I've gotten more confident and competent.

Maybe I'll spin it. Maybe I'll resurrect my Etsy shop. It's so fun.

N is for Niddy Noddy

My husband made this niddy noddy for me this winter. What a sweet guy.
He used scraps of PVC pipe and really stinky glue. The one I had before was heavy and I ended up bruising myself when I used it. (I'm a bit of a klutz.)

I started spinning the tweedy roving I bought in Nebraska. I have enough for a sweater, mittens, and hat and I still have three and a half 20 gallon buckets full of roving. I need to get busy.

My best friend from Missouri is coming for a visit next week. I'm really excited! There will be a lot of fiber mayhem to be sure.

Bison in Sheep's Clothing

I finished the 50/50 wool/bison yarn. It's lovely.

I have 215 yards of worsted weight yarn. I'm not sure what I'll do with it. Because I picked the down myself, there are a few guard hairs left here and there, but they don't seem irritating like alpaca guard hairs are.

If you have any suggestions, I'd love to hear them.

Izzy had to have a buffalo of her own. His name is Spike and I'm not allowed to
knit with him.

Buffalo Yarn

I've started carding and spinning the buffalo fiber.

I washed and carded the buffalo/bison fiber and ended up with 2 ounces. I mixed that with 2 ounces of brown wool. Because the bison and wool are so different in micron count, the blending with carders looks like cat yak until I reach the 10th pass or so.

The rolags resemble the nasty brown hair clots my biological mother used to pick out of her hairbrush and leave in the toilet.

Fortunately they are lovely, shiny, soft, and lofty when spun.

Plying should soften the yarn even more.

Collecting Wild Bison Fluff

I thought I should post some quick pictures of my fluff collecting. Some of it was found while hiking. Some was just lying on the ground next to the road. Some was sticking to tree bark and fence posts.

The animal in the Capri pants is me, not a strange colored buffalo.

Ba donka donk. I'll have to thank my husband for that.

Yes, sir. Yes, sir. Three bags full...

We made a trip to Brown Sheep Co in Nebraska. I bought some wool.

I got 18 lbs of roving mill ends for my spinning pleasure. The roving they had on top of the mill waste was a candy cane striped chocolate brown and creme-colored swirly dream that my husband insisted that I buy. I can't wait to spin it into something tweedy and fun.

I also got some sock yarns, some Prairie Silk (for a gift for my BFF) and some Lamb's Pride Bulky that I plan to make a Juliet with.

I have a dyeing scheme planned for the Bulky. It involves using the family trampoline for a niddy noddy. Hmm.... we shall see.

By the way, nights in Yellowstone get down to 38 degrees Fahrenheit. Mosquitoes get really frisky when the evenings are cool.

Still on vacation

I am still camping. I've been camping for 10 days. I've been through snow, winds, hail, rain, heat, insects, and sunburn and I'm super happy. I've been collecting specimens of wild bison down from trees and fences along the way and I have enough to spin a souvenir yarn when I get home.

Big Summer Plans

more cat pictures

Through a series of unavoidable events, I have never met my mother-in-law in person. I'm going to drop my stepchildren off for a few weeks with her and this will be our first meeting.

Some of my anxiety about meeting her is the result of Cindi (my stepdaughter) complaining about me to her grandmother constantly. Also, David's mom was mad at my husband for marrying me. I am David's third wife (and best wife--I have to add that) and she was really upset that he was getting married (again) to someone she's never met. Oops!

Fortunately, I am coming bearing gifts! I knit a pair of socks with Maizy. I knit one from the top down and one from the toe up. I actually do that a lot if I'm knitting stockinette socks because I get bored. The yarn was a complete pain in the rear, though. It split constantly. My short row heels have little holes where the wrapped stitches are because the yarn lost its elasticity. I am in the process of sewing every little hole closed. Still, they are summery and cool. The corn fiber really breathes.

I also knit her a small scarf/neckwarmer out of some handspun Merino/Tencel blend in peachy/yellow colors that David swears she will love. Isabel doesn't mind being photographed with bedhead and jelly-face, so she volunteered to model.

Spinning Hack

Here is a quick little hack for spinners. My Lazy Kate isn't tensioned, so I have started using my needle gauge to tame singles while plying.

Enjoy!

Easter Egg Dyed Roving

easter egg dyed roving , originally uploaded by alexcateye.

Spring? Is it here? Really?

We ignored Easter. David was at Mark's funeral, so we barely acknowledged it. I snapped up the bargain dyes from the Commissary and had some fun. I used citric acid from the health food store instead of vinegar because I'd tired of the stink.

Taking Responsibility for My Own Happiness

Maybe it's just the Prozac talking, but I've been feeling lately that happiness and fulfillment are not abstract concepts I'm yearning for, but something I have.

I don't want to be an artist. I am. I just am. I'm a stay-at-home mother and my life is filled with art. I'm exploring my emotions through embroidery, expressing my love for my family through fiber arts, and instilling passion for craft and self-expression in my children.

I wasn't forced into marriage and children. Nobody forces me to stay home. I made a choice to do so. I make a choice every day to enjoy it and to feel complete because of it. My job is beautiful and important because I make it so.

Someday, there will be other phases of me, other options. Right now, I'm happy where I am. I am content to know that my work is meaningful.

I thought I'd also post some pictures of my latest yarn. It's a failed attempt at boucle that I wound into a center pull ball and cabled for a very interesting aran weight yarn with a lot of drape and texture.