Soy Silk Handspun

I've been spending some time spinning. I finished up the soy silk I bought (splurged) on vacation. It's 100% soy silk, dyed by Conjoined Creations in the Age of Aquarius colorway. I only bought 4 ounces of it, and I wish I had bought more--it's really nice.



Well, it's really nice once I figured out how to handle it--I spun it from the fold, and it took me a while to get the hang of the joins. Swearwords might have been heard issuing from the Spinning Corner in the early stages. The dye they used did not penetrate all the fibers and a lot of the inside fibers were white. This produced a more swirled effect in my singles and when I plied it, but when I set the twist, there was a lot of bleeding, with the result of a more blended color, which varies from a grayish blue to bright turquoise.

This is the most even yarn I've produced so far. The pictures do not do the drape and sheen of the soy silk justice. It's just really lovely fiber, soft, silky, eminently pettable. I encourage all spinners to try it!

I met a fellow knittyperson!

I got to meet Kathrows today! She and her friend came to the hotel where I work for a little stitch and bitch session. Only it was more like a stitch and compliment session. She is so cool! We have a lot in common, I think, and she will soon be sorry she agreed to meet me as she won't be rid of me so easily! Some knitting was done, some mistakes were made and fixed, a lot of conversation whiled away two and a half hours. And, which is so great and unexpected, she brought me some hand-made stitch markers!!!! Thanks so much Kathy! And it was great to meet the other person in the world who doesn't have air conditioning in the car.

I know, I know. Too many exclamation marks there, but it's so great to meet fellow knitters, and to meet such cool, kind and compatable fellow knitters, well, I'm all a-flutter!

Summer Orchid Cardigan

So I finished my Summer Orchid Cardigan. This was the first sweater I designed entirely from scratch. It's in Knitpicks Shine Sport, which is really nice, by the way. I love a yarn that looks better after you machine wash and dry it. All in all, I'm pleased with the results. The only glaring fault is the arms are about an inch too long. This is particularily annoying since I ripped the first arm out after it was a bit too short and made it a bit wider and longer. Obviously I only needed to make it wider. Otherwise, I think I'm really going to like wearing it. If it ever gets cool enough to wear.

And here's a detail of the front panels. The lace is Gull Wing and the bobbles are Nosegay, both from Barbara Walker's first stitch dictionary as was the edging, which is called Open Star. I love stitch pattern names!

But why is it so wide and short you say? Because I made it to fit me! That's right. Wide, short and sassy. Ok, not sassy, but you know what I mean!

Now that I'm done with this, and I must report that I knit it monogamously, starting May 16 and finishing July 3 (yes, I am slow), I must start work with the next big thing: short sleeved sweater in fingering weight periwinkle bamboo. I anticipate being done by the time the snow falls.

Look, Ma! I made some yarn!

So I finished spinning and plying my merino top. I got two nice-sized skeins from it and it came out to about 270 yards. Now to figure out what to make with it! It came out ok, a little uneven still, but all in all not bad. And I love the color--a beautiful teal with blue, green, purple and a little yellow. Lovely!

SP 7 Heaven!

Hooray for Secret Spoiler! My secret pal from Knittyboard's SP7 really came through on the goods. That's a skein of the softest, loveliest, greenest Malabrigo. It's more fabulous than mere text can describe. Not to mention a huge block of Ritter Sport (with coconut, which I have never seen before!) and, glory of glories, a Jane Austen Action Figure. With Lapdesk and Quill!!!

I love it all and I love my Secret Spoiler!

Chester and Nellie are enjoying themselves, too.You'd think I had them pose, but they are the world's nosiest hams!

"For what do we live, but to make sport for our neighbors, and laugh at them in our turn?" Too true, Jane, too true!

Spinning and Knitting = Good

I've been spinning up some wonderful Merino Top I bought while on vacation in the Smoky Mountains. It's a beautiful blend of teal, blue, green, purple, and a touch of yellow. I have almost a full bobbin spun up and can hardly wait to get another one done so I can ply them together. I bought 8 ounces worth. I hope to get enough yardage to make a shawl or shrug type thingie. This is my first real attempt at making a useable yarn, and I'm dying to see how it will knit up. I also splurged on some Soy Silk. I have no idea how it will spin up and what I will do with it, so I'll wait for inspiration to strike on that.

I'm enjoying knitting monogamy this week with my Summer Orchid Cardigan. It's out of Knit Pick's Shine Sport in Orchid, and it's the first sweater I designed myself from start to finish, without using any sort of pattern. It has a lace border and will have a nosegay cable/bobble panel up the front sides. I'm almost done with the back and I'm really pleased. The yarn is soft and has great stitch definition.

I've been enjoying both spinning and knitting so much, it's hard to switch back and forth between the two.



This was last summer's sweater: Elmseed Cardigan in Saucy Sport. I made it for my sister, and the pattern was partially mine and partially software-written. All in all, it came out well, but the arms are a little tight on her, which just goes to show how important measurements are. I'm really hoping that this summer's sweater will fit me like it was made for me--because it was!

All Right, All Right, I Give In

Ok, already! The world has been clamoring for another knitting blog. I've got the knitting stories. I've got the knitting photos. I might as well have the knitting blog. But I just want you all to know that I'm making a great sacrifice. When Blogs first made a big splash during the last Presidential Election, I scoffed openly. Fad, I sneered. Will never have any staying power, I sniffed. So? A girl can change her mind, can't she? Well, I can anyway. Welcome to my Reluctant Blog.