Fiber Revival 2010

There is an historical working farm in Newbury, Mass., where this year's Fiber Revival was held. There is also an alpaca farm down the road that brought over a couple of alpacas for people to view - no touching or climbing on the fence!

But the horse didn't mind getting some attention, and there was this turkey wandering around, as well as some chickens. It's a farm!

It was also a gorgeous day. The vendors provided thoughtful opportunities to enhance your stash...

There were classes throughout the day - I took a class for spinners on the difference between woolen and worsted spinning, with lots of interesting tidbits thrown in for good measure. Barbara, the instructor, brought many bags of fleece, and showed us the differences in the fleeces from different breeds, and how these differences resulted in different types of yarn. Several of us were caught sniffing the fleeces, and had to admit that we really liked the scent of the lanolin in the unwashed fleece...

I don't have pictures of the class because I was too busy spinning and sniffing.

There was a shady area where spinners set up their wheels...

Notice the custom-made cup holders on each wheel!

After all, it's summer, and spinning is thirsty work.

Summer of Lace

My Icelandic Shawl languished on the needles for over two years. Now all it needs is blocking, but all the knitting is done. I like shawls that will actually keep me warm, and this one will be put to good use!

I changed the browns in the original pattern to purples and teal. The yarn was orderd from Sarah's Yarns - she offered to put up a kit of the necessary yardages for knitters - and there is enough yarn left for several other projects. I'm actually using the white and greys on another scarf/shawl - Clover Fields Scarf, which is part of a knit-along on Ravelry.

I used a skein of lovely silk yarn from Yarn Sonnets to knit 198-yards of Heaven, a small shawlette/kerchief that I've been wearing as an accent piece, and pinned in place at the shoulders to cover a neckline that plunged a bit too much!

This is a picture of the Dancing Cranes Stole actually blocking! It's done! I used two skeins of Jojoland Cashmere for this stole, which was also a Ravelry knit-along. I seem to do better at finishing if I'm part of some sort of group. The stole was knit along its length, which made for long rows, but the repetition of knitting the pattern repeat made it easier to remember. I could just keep knitting the row. I find that knitting lace requires more concentration to keep the pattern in mind, but that patterns with multiple repeats go relatively quickly. Especially since I seem to make fewer mistakes, thereby avoiding the frustrations of tinking or ripping back.

Most of my knitting this summer has been on lace patterns. It's like something clicked on in my brain that said, "Lace, lace, lace!" I'm fine with that. I've finished several projects and am almost finished with my Clover Fields Scarf, and there is something very satisfying about finishing a project!

Must Have, Had

Here it is - my Knitting Olympics entry - done. Finished by 9:30 pm EST on Feb. 28, 2010.

Patons "Must Have Cardigan."

Technical stuff:

I used just under 5 balls of Patons Classic Wool (475 gm to be exact) - I weighed the amount left on the fifth ball.

I didn't use a smaller size needle on the waist ribbing, since I don't need a blouson look.

I did go down one size (US#7 from US #8) for the button band ribbing.

I knit the size that would fit most of me and added bust darts to make it fit the rest of me.

I love the cushy feel of the wool.

The color in this picture is not very accurate, it should be greyer, but my photo editing skills weren't up to the challenge.

I made an excel spreadsheet to keep track of the pattern changes, increases and decreases. This made it very easy to make the back match the fronts. I'd also like to extend my personal thanks to the person who invented post-it notes.

First I knit both sleeves at the same time, then both fronts at the same time, then the back.

Although I knit continental (pick), I listened English - I completed all 17 disks of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows", plus 10 disks of Dorothy Sayer's "Murder Must Advertise."

That's it for now...

Knitting Olympics - the Sleeves

This time around, I'm participating. Last time around I didn't and then wished that I had.

So, when the Yarn Harlot announced on her blog that she was sponsoring the 2010 Knitting Olympics, I signed on.

I'd had the yarn, pattern, and even the buttons for Patons Must Have Cardigan for over 2 years, so this seemed the appropriate venue for this sweater (for those of you who are not Yarn Harlot fans, she knit this sweater and posted about it on her blog).

I "planned" two days for the sleeves, two days for the fronts, two days for the back, and one day to finish. Hah!

After eight days, I finally finished the sleeves.

A Tale of Two Sweaters

At just about the same time last year (2008), I was putting the finishing touches on my 'Rhinebeck' sweater - the fabulous "Wisteria" designed by Kate Gilbert and available at http://www.twistcollective.com/

I love, love, love this sweater. It fits. It's comfortable. It knit up so quickly that I was amazed. The yarn I used, Steadfast Fibers Wonderful Wool in 'Columbine,' is an Aran weight, so the sweater is a little denser, which made all the difference between warm and cold at Rhinebeck, because it was a chilly, windy weekend. I also fell in love with what I considered the opalescent qualities of the color, and kept going back to Windsor Button Shop in Boston and buying a skein or two at a time, until I saw Wisteria on the Twist Collective website, and I knew immediately, what I had been buying the yarn for!

I must admit that I enjoyed all the nice comments about the sweater that I got, and I was thrilled to run into Kate Gilbert wearing her Wisteria, not once, but twice!

Now it's 2009, and I have a new 'Rhinebeck' sweater. This one is a stranded pattern based on Andean motifs, and knit in Plymouth Paca Tweed. It is a sample knit for Donna Druchunas' upcoming book, "Ethnic Knitting Discoveries." She provides the ethnic motifs and worksheets and then the reader gets to design their own sweater! It works! Really well. The sweater is steeked at the neck and armholes. I was a little concerned about alpaca being a little more slippery than wool, so before I sewed and cut the steeks, I hand-felted them a little. I had no problem with the steeks or with picking up stitches for the armhole and around the neck.



Once again I happily report that the sweater fits nicely (I am very short-waisted), is extremely comfortable, and since the weather report for the weekend sounds like it will be even colder, and perhaps wetter, than last year, I'll let you know how well a double layer of alpaca works.

From Cradle...

Sequelle, ma belle...

I used to breed and show Bombay cats. Sequelle was born in 1991 to Danielle - her second litter. She achieved kitty fame as a TICA Supreme Grand Champion, had two litters, and was a sweet cat who liked to sit in my lap and sleep drapped over my head (not always so sweet). She was also a great mom, and when Daisy Mae decided she was an emancipated female, Sequelle stepped in to take care of her kitten, Poke. Bombays are 'contact kitties,' and Sequelle loved to hang out in my lap. I'd be sitting, reading, and suddenly realize that I was too warm, look down, and lo-and-behold! there was at least one cat on my lap!

At the beginning of the summer Sequelle had a stroke, or something, she lost her hearing and sight, but could still find her litterbox and food, and drape herself across my head at night, so I hung on and waited. Finally, it was time to say 'good-bye' after she had a bad seizure late Wednesday night. I sat with her on my bed, and Daisy Mae and Fiona lay nearby, and Thursday morning my sister drove me to the vet. She gave me hugs and kleenex while we were there - both of which were badly needed and appreciated.

I was there for Sequelle when she was born and when she died. I miss her alot.

New Places

I've decided to tell you about my adventures as a Yarn Sales Rep - at least a few tidbits about the yarn shops I visit. The one thing I do really enjoy is visiting yarn shops. The way each owner has set up their shop makes each one unique, and can give you a quick insight into their aesthetic. What sort of yarns are displayed and how, what colors catch you eye first, what's on shelves...yum!!

Well, today I drove into Rhode Island to visit Mermaid's Purl in North Kingston. It's a great name for a gem of a store. It used to be "And the Beadz Go On" but the new owner, Lizzy, is having her Grand Opening soon - the store is open now and full of great yarns. It's a small store in a gathering of small, artistic stores with a small town, comfortable ambiance. If I wasn't 'working,' I would have loved to cruise through the yarn, the buttons, and beads. There were neighboring stores that would be fun to explore, too.

Of course I must remember that if I have to drive south, through Boston to go to Rhode Islalnd, and Google Maps tells me the trip will take 1 hr 36 min, that I had better keep in mind the volume of rush hour traffic and make myself leave at least 1/2 hour earlier. Checking the gas guage is a good thing, too.

I didn't print out reverse directions - and, no, I don't have a GPS device...yet, so, of course there were a few circles and wrong turns until I got myself pointed in the right direction (I do ask for directions!).

If I keep posting about yarn stores, I'll try to remember to pack my camera so maybe I can get some pictures to post.

Oh, and I've started what I hope will be my Rhinebeck sweater - Farmer's Market Cardigan from Fall 2009 Interweave Knits - using yarn from stash, pictures to follow.