Posts Tagged ‘fiber’

So, it is time to reveal the scarf that I made. Yes! I received words this morning that it had arrived safely at Katherine’s. Phew! When you mail something one-of-a-kind, good or bad, there’s a fear that it might get lost somewhere along the way. Now I can relax a little. As for how she likes it, you gonna have to read it on her blog. :-)

Here’s the story. (Did you read Ted’s Fiber to Scarf post?) Katherine sent Ted about 8 oz of dyed Polwarth fiber. (Sorry, I lost the post draft when I moved my blog to the current address. Trying my best to recollect details.) Randomly, Ted picked me to spin and knit a scarf for her. I was only given the info of the fiber (which she bought in New Hamburg, Ontario), and the person’s gender that the scarf will be for. So I thought I wanted something lacy for a lady. But I don’t want it too airy with too many holes, either. So I picked Liesel and started spinning the yarn with this pattern in mind. I aimed for a Worsted weight so that the scarf would feel more substantial. I also wanted it to be more woolen than worsted. I used a drafting style that I would call semi-worsted. The yarn turned out quite soft and bouncy. It’s about 12-13 wpi, DK weight. Over 800 yards I think. Lost that bit of info in that post draft.

After a few inches into knitting Liesel, I found it still too lacy to my liking. So I looked through the backup plans and decided on Brooke’s Column of Leaves. I chose to work on a pair of Clover bamboo straight needles, US size 7. I quite like the finished scarf. Still soft and bouncy, and it drapes really well. I stopped knitting at about 74″. It blocked out to be about 88″ or 89″. (Lucky numbers!) I didn’t use pins because I didn’t want it to stretch out too much and become… too lacy. I spread the scarf out on the blocking tiles and just let it bounce back a little when drying.

Polwarth is super luxurious. It has a micron count of 26-21. According to the book In Sheep’s Clothing, Polwarth fiber is suitable for use in baby clothing. Now that is soft! Does anyone have a good source for Polwarth? I really want some for myself. :-) The book also says that the yarn is best spun worsted or worsted-type technique for durability. Does semi-worsted count? :-) Oh, what do I know. I am really only a beginning spinner. This is actually my first knitted project with something I spun. I think a lot of luck was involved.

I took some progress photos along the way. Here are some of them:

Well, that’s pretty much what I did in the last few months with all that family and work issues. What’s next?

Tomorrow is GLASG’s May meeting, and… HOLY SMOKES! I forgot to post last month’s photos. And, it was such a fun, colorful event that I just have to get a few pictures up.

We had a “Kitchen Sink Batt” class with Janel. We carded scraps of leftover fiber together into colorful batts to be spun into unique yarn. (I’d bet there will be a lot of interesting yarn in tomorrow’s show and tell.) Guild members brought in their drum carders to share with the whole group. People donated TONS of fiber for the class. It was so much fun. And so much fiber! But it also fed my desire of owning my own drum carder. Tempting, tempting, tempting!!!

See more photos here.

Thanks to Jill for sharing these articles with the guild. These might make fiber enthusiasts uncomfortable. But they are serious issues. It’s better to know than not know, right?

I finally got control of my old domain name, forestmeditation.net!!! Took me over a year. Yay! Now it works seamlessly with forestmeditatin.com. I’d suggest that if anyone wants to get a domain name, don’t get it free with a hosting package. There’s no guarantee that they will release the domain to you if you decide to change hosting company. Ask them first before you commit. It’s better if you register it yourself with a registrar like NetworkSolutions or Register.com. I use MyDomain.com. You would be listed as the registrant instead of the hosting company. I learned my lessons!

I also started spinning again! Last time I touched the wheel was at the Bulky Singles Club Class in April. I decided to take the wheel to the guild meeting on Saturday. Had a bit of an embarrassing moment setting up the wheel. :oops: But I was able to find the rhythm eventually.

No particular project for this yarn. The goal is to get the feel of spinning back, and to try to get a 3-ply worsted weight yarn. This is a practice spin for the sparkly denim Merino. :-) I am using Ashland Bay’s Multi Dark Green Colonial Wool Top that I got when I first started spinning with a drop spindle. They call it dark green, but there’s very little green in it. Here’s a close-up photo with some unspun fiber to show you the colors.

Did someone want to see my “backside”? :lol: Well, here you go, with a look at the body as a bonus:

You don’t see floats on the backside because I wove in the unused strand every other stitch. (Edit: well, they are little floats?) Can you still call this “stranding”? What else can you call it? I really do prefer doing it this way.

The body will be mostly covered by the cuff when the hat is completed. Why bother doing a design on it I wonder? But it was good to practice. Now I contemplate on how to block the hat. It definitely needs blocking because the plain knitting parts of the hat are curling. Just lay it flat? Do stuff it!

This is the Merino/Angelina that I blended at The Fabulous Fiber Fest. You have to click on the photos to see the sparkles better. The second one shows the color of the light. Well. Sort of. Now that I remember what I bought the fiber for, I am glad that I didn’t put in too much Angelina. I’ll be using it to knit a cabled hat once it is spun. The Merino is Ashland Bay top in Denim. Angelina is Crystal Amethyst.

Oh, I want a drum carder. Maybe a Strauch Petite with the brush attachment? I am dealing with a client from hell. I can see it going on for weeks. Carding would help to relieve stress, no? :-)