Peacock Shawl finished

Happy Fibre Arts Friday! Today I have a finished project to show, yay!

This is a birthday present for my Ma who is turning 70 in October. I spun the yarn from some silver grey merino rovings from Bendigo Woollen Mills then dyed the yarn into mother's favourite colour. The whole project took a little over five months to complete, but I could have finished it much sooner if I'd worked on it consistently.

Pattern: Peacock's Tail by Rose Beck
Yarn: handspun merino and hand dyed, fingering weight, used 120g
Needle size: 5mm
My project page: here
Notes: I love the stitch patterns, they are very pretty and flow nicely from one into another. The construction is interesting where you increase at each end as well as fan out from the middle, creating a gentle crescent shape. The only thing I would change next time is to use a different cast off, the ones given by the pattern did not provide a stretchy enough border in my opinion as I had trouble blocking out the points. I might use EZ's sewn bind off if I were to make it again.

That's it from me, thanks for dropping by, please hop over to Andrea's at Wisdom Begins in Wonder for more fibre fun.

Getting back to "normal"

It's only been two weeks since we returned from our holiday but it all seems so distant now, sigh! The boys have gone back to school, I've started picking up bookings again and my semester will start in March, so things are getting back to "normal". It all sounds rather mundane, but it also means I'm getting back to play with fibre and yarn again, so that's ok :D

I have finally finished spinning the roving I started last July for TdF, the one started on my homemade Turkish spindle, well I cheated towards the end and finished the last bit on my wheel. It came out in a 2-ply laceweight, around 700 meters.

Although I've got (quite) a few UFOs that really need more attention, what with new year new start and all that I was too tempted to start something new. Especially since I finally got hold of The Unofficial Harry Potter Knits that Vivian kindly ordered for me - it's not available outside U.S., there are so many gorgeous patterns in this collection but I was really drawn to the Lestrange Cloak I had to cast on.

I don't particularly like knitting in black yarn so I found this fingering wool/acrylic blend in my stash in the Burgundy colourway, you can't see the pattern very well at the moment, hopefully blocking will make it look better. I'm planning to shorten the body by omitting one pattern repeat as I don't want it too long, I'm short anyway, also I'm a little worried about not having enough yarn. Fingers crossed!

Oh, by the way, Cat & Sparrow is hosting a Spin-along in our Ravelry group, all entries will get a chance to win this gorgeous drum carded batt by the end of the month. The batt weighs 100g and it's a merino/alpaca mix. Details can be found here.

Thanks for dropping by, there is more fibre arts fun at Wisdom Begins in Wonder. Indulge your creative side and join the party!

Murano Tric Finale & Topsy Turvy Cowl

I finished the Murano Tric cardigan, finally, yay!!

Pattern: Tric by Åsa Tricosa
Yarn: Murano from Bendigo Woollen Mills
Needles: 4mm circular
Yardage: 800m
Notes:  Tric is a lovely pattern, it appealed to me because it's knit from top-down, seamless and with simultaneous set-in sleeves. But I will say this is a tricky pattern and I'm glad it is finally done. I love how it turned out, although if I were to do it again I will add a couple more collar increases and lower the button hole to under the bust.
Mods: I didn't do the triangular pattern on the sleeves and shortened them to 3/4 length.

I hope my friend will like it.

One more project which was a really quick make, once I'd figured out how to do the mobius. This is the Topsy Turvy Cowl, a free pattern on Ravelry.  The yarn is my alpaca handspun that spun up during the TdF, then later I dyed in the crockpot.

I love how the same stitch produces two different fabrics purely due to the structure without your having to do anything. Love it :D

This MIGHT be my last Fibre Arts Friday post for this year, tomorrow we embark on our big trip: Around the World in 40 Days. I'm hoping to keep a travel journal along the way, so I can share my experience with you.

Thanks for dropping by, there is more fibre arts fun at Wisdom Begins in Wonder. Indulge your creative side and join the party!

Market Mitts and Tric progress

Yesterday I talked about Melbourne's weather being up and down like a yo-yo, and true to it's form today's temperature dropped 10℃ from yesterday's 26℃! Oh well, at least it wasn't as freezing as last Sunday when I was at the Gisborne market. It was a miserable day with rain and wind, my hands were so cold that I'd taken one of my handspuns from the stock and started making myself a pair of fingerless mitts. I only had a crochet hook with me so I started with a crochet mitts pattern, but my hands were so numb that I just couldn't continue to make the mitts to keep my hands warm.

I still couldn't continue with the piece after I got home because I didn't like the look of it, so I ripped it back and started again. The pattern I chose was the Garter Stitch Mitts by Ysolda Teague, it is a simple pattern worked sideways using short-row shaping.

I really like how they turned out, the handspun is very squishy and soft, they should keep my hands nice and toasty on cold market days. I only cast on 38 stitches and they worked up quickly. The project only used 58g of the handspun, so the pattern is a perfect fit for that single skein that you don't know what to do with. Raverly project page here.

A project update for Tric that I started back in August for my friend Elaine, it's been slow going due to the intricacies of the pattern (pattern recap: top-down seamless with collar and set-in sleeves worked simultaneously). At last I can report some progress:

Only the sleeves to do now so hopefully I will finish it soon. Some of the project notes on Ravelry noted that the piece grew after blocking so I'm keeping the length as it is and will take take when blocking so it doesn't grow too much.

Thanks for dropping by, there is more fibre arts fun at Wisdom Begins in Wonder. Indulge your creative side and join the party!

A hat, a scarf and a commission :-)

Welcome to my Fibre Arts Friday! I've got a few things to share this week, first up is a flat cap I knitted for Jelly who is playing Dickon from The Secret Garden in his school play. The rest of the costume was easy, or so we thought... as it turned out, the boy did not possess a single pair of trousers that are not jeans, trackies or combats. And he couldn't raid his brother's wardrobe because they are not the same shape. Luckily we found some in Savers, and we managed to find a nice waistcoat from another charity shop, so we are good.

Anyway, the flat cap. The pattern is Morgan from Knitty Fall 2008. It it a relatively simple pattern, you start from the centre and gradually increase out, the front of the cap is shaped via irregular increases. But once you are done with the main knitting the rest of the shaping is a bit fiddly but not difficult. The pattern called for two popper fastenings to hold down the top of the cap, but I didn't like the way it looked so I took those out and sewn the front edge to the peak instead. It's looks much better this way, I think.

The photo was taken in haste before school on the day the costumes were due in... the boy desperately needs a haircut!

I can definitely say I have caught the weaving bug! I finished my second scarf, this time using my handspun. You might remember sometime last year when I was exploring dyeing and carding, I made some hand carded batts called "I dream of Monet", I used the yarn spun from that for the weft and a commercial sock yarn for the warp.

Oh and I finished the spinning commission I took from the Gisborne market, I was quite nervous while spinning it, hoping that I wouldn't mess it up. I think it came out alright :-)

Before I sign off, Cat & Sparrow is running a promotion on Facebook for 10% off everything in our Etsy shop. Just click on the Facebook link to get the Coupon Code. For folks on the other side of the planet, the exchange rate with Aussie dollars will work in your favour at the moment ;-)

Thanks for dropping by, there is more fibre arts fun at Wisdom Begins in Wonder. Indulge your creative side and join the party!

Minty Fresh Lace and two new projects

Happy Fibre Arts Friday! Sorry I missed posting last Friday, I was running from pillar to post and by the time I thought about it it was late and I hadn't taken any photos. Anyway, I've got a few things to show you this week.

I have been playing with my mini combs, these are the fibre nests I made with baby wool and alpaca, both dyed some time ago.

These nests were so easy to spin, I was able to get a lace weight with ease. I love hand combed tops!

I started on two new projects this week, yes I know, I should really work on my WIPs but it's more exciting starting new ones!

The first one is Tric by Åsa Tricos, this is the adult version of the little Trici jacket I was making for my goddaughter. I run out of yarn on the Trici and my friend is trying to get more of the same yarn, so in the meantime I cast on for the adult version for her.

The yarn is the Bendigo Woollen Mill's Murano with long colour repeats. Sorry about the picture, I missed the daylight again so I had to cope with the terrible indoor lighting. The most tricky part of the pattern is the beginning where you start with one half of the collar band then work your way back to knit in the opposite direction for the other half of the collar band, then you start working on the back, and pick up to work down on one front side and followed by the other, and simultaneously working on the sleeve caps too... phew! just talking about it makes me dizzy, I'm about half way through the sleeve caps which means the complications are almost over!

The second project I started is the Rosemary Cardigan by Cassie Castillo, I'm using Country Silk by Cleckheaton which has been in my stash for a couple of years. The needles are square which should be interesting, I've never used square one before. This project is a treat for myself, but I suspect it will take a while as other projects will no doubt take precedence, but I'm in no hurry :)

Now what have you been up to this week?

Thanks for dropping by, there is more fibre arts fun at Wisdom Begins in Wonder. Indulge your creative side and join the party!

Hand Dyed Rikke Hat

Welcome to another Fibre Arts Friday!  I am still in the mindless projects only phase, this week I'm showing you a very simple hat that is in progress. It's the Rikke Hat by Sarah Young, pattern available for free on Ravelry.

I'm using a skein of unknown yarn from my stash that I dyed sometime ago with KoolAid. I wasn't too sure about it when it came out the dye pot so it's been sitting in my stash...

When I was looking for the perfect yarn for the Rikke Hat this skein screamed at me and practically jumped into my hands, so here it is...

It's a bit hard to get the true colour which is somewhere between the two photos. The pattern itself is very easy although some might say that knitting garter stitch in the round is a bit tiresome, but it is a mindless project regardless which is what I need right now (No, the trial is still not finished but the end is in sight, really!). I also learnt to do the German twisted cast on as recommended by the pattern for a more stretchy edge. There are many videos showing how to do this on YouTube, I followed the instructions by TheKnitWitch.

Now show us what you've been doing in the wonderful fibre arts world :)

Thanks for dropping by, there is more fibre arts fun at Wisdom Begins in Wonder. Indulge your creative side and join the party!

Oh My! Is it end of the year already?

There must be something wrong with the calendar, how can it be 28th December already?! It only seemed yesterday that I was making plans for 2012, it feels like I haven't had a chance to carry out my plans. Heck, I can't even remember them! Still, now that Christmas is over it's time to reflect on the time past and looking to the year ahead.

First thing first, my final FO: Purple Leaves of Summer Vest

          

Pattern: Leaves of Summer Vest by Doris Chan
Yarn:   Panda Regal 4ply cotton
Hook:  5.0mm
Note: I couldn't get the hem to come out right according to the pattern so I winged it with a simple border and made some ties just under the bust. This is my final entry for the IntSweModo2012 challenge, my 12th!! I must have been mad when I signed up for the challenge, although I made it (just!!) it was a real struggle. Was I pleased that I'd done it? You bet I was! Would I ever do it again? I'd have to be totally off my head!! like my new mannequin ;)

Reflecting 2012:

It has been a busy year, and not just because I made 12 sweaters (have told you that already? :P), looking at my projects page of Rav I count 30 completed projects, that's not too bad, right? Plus I have acquired a new passion - spinning :D 

            

I'm excited about 2013, there are so many avenues to explore in spinning and dyeing, and I have many knitting and crochet projects lined up already. But one thing is for sure: I am NOT making 12 sweaters!

Happy New Year Everyone! May 2013 bring you much joy and happiness in whatever you do!

Thanks for dropping by, there is more fibre arts fun at Wisdom Begins in Wonder. Indulge your creative side and join the party!  

The Beginning of a Sweater ....

Last week I told you about my visit to a sheep farm and the fleece I bought to make a jumper for the old man, this week I can report that I had started the long arduous process of making that sweater. I say arduous not because it's really that hard but the reality presents various difficulties...  The concept is easy right? First you spin some yarn, then you knit the sweater. Well that's the idea, but as soon as I started spinning, no, as soon as I was about to start spinning I realised that I had some decisions to make.

First of, since I started spinning two months ago my yarn has got progressively thinner and thinner, to the point that I was spinning lace weight pretty much all the time. I have no intention of making a man's sweater in lace weight yarn, or even finger weight yarn. But if I were to have at least double knit weight yarn with my regular lace weight handspun I would have to make it into a 8 ply, and that would be very time consuming and tedious. Also, the fleece/wool has a shorter staple than the corriedale and BFL I have been using and it's really quite fine, therefore making it a little hard to spin fine yarn (for me anyway). So I thought I would try a semi woollen or semi worsted approach in the hope that a) I would get a thicker yarn; b) it would be quicker to spin. So now I have a plan.

Secondly, I needed to decide whether I wanted to spin in the grease or to scour it first. Since the fleece is a coated one and there is hardly any VM,  my lazy streak kicked in and I started with spinning in the grease. But somehow this fleece is a bit too greasy for me, so I scoured it. And because it's so fine it matted (not felted thank goodness!) in the scouring process, therefore I had to card it rather than just flick it before I could spin. One thing led to another and before I knew it I was making rolags, which turned out to be perfect for my purpose! It's all part of the plan of course, ahem....

There you have it, in the picture above from top left to bottom are the steps I've been through this week: scoured fleece, card it into rolags, spun yarn (semi worsted & N-plied) and a swatch! Yes, you are not seeing things, I did make a swatch. I spun this sample mini skein to check whether it's doable before I start on the mass production, and it seems to have worked. I'm pleased with the navajo ply which gave the yarn some body, but my yarn is not consistent as you can see from the swatch, the bottom part is wider than the top part, that's because that length of yarn is thicker. Keeping it consistent is going to be a battle of wills between my fingers and my brain!

I also started a new project this week, well I really didn't have a choice if I were to complete the International Seater-a-Month Dodecathon 2012 (IntSweModo2012) challenge. Whatever possessed me to take up the challenge is now back to haunt me as we head into the last month of the year and I am still two sweaters short!!

Project Name: Fern Amiga Cardigan, project page here
Pattern: Amiga by Mags Kandis, free from Knitty spring + summer 2011
Yarn:  Fern by Moda Vera in pink colourways
Needles: 5mm circular

Although it's officially summer tomorrow you can never be sure with Melbourne's weather, for example the mercury hit 39C degrees (that's 102F for you folks from North America) yesterday, down to 24C today and will be lower still tomorrow, so a cardigan is always useful. Just hope I can get it finished in time, and then there's the matter of one more!!

Thanks for dropping by, there is more fibre arts fun at Wisdom Begins in Wonder. Indulge your creative side and join the party! 

I'm a lucky winner, and some FOs :)

I received an email during the week from the wonderful Denise of Voie de Vie that I was one of the lucky winners to receive her new eBook: Accessories: Autumn 2012. This was such a lovely surprise I was over the moon! All the designs in this collection are gorgeous but I'm particularly taken with the Piaf Scarf and the Enveloped Cowl. I can't think of any yarn in my stash that I want to use for these projects (naturally!), but hey, I can spin now! So I'm going to spin some yarn, maybe home dye too, off to the drawing board to make plans... will report back later :)

On the knitting front I managed to finish couple of projects, a sideways jacket for my aunt and a hat for my goddaughter.

Sideways Jacket:

Hat for Ericka using my rainbow dyed yarn :)

That's it from me this week! Thanks for dropping by, there is more fibre arts fun at Wisdom Begins in Wonder. Indulge your creative side and join the party!

Millgrove Sideways Gloves and Hat

When JJ brought back the list of items he needed for his camp to Millgrove a week before he was due to leave, I nearly had a heart attack - on the list there were specific requests for a woollen jumper, woollen gloves and a woollen hat. Whilst I have been a knitting addict for the last 3/4 years I have never made any pure woollen items for my own children, partially there doesn't seem to be the need for these in Melbourne... Okey it does get cold here but the boys are happy with their fleeces which can be easily washed and dried... Anyway, the note says ALL items on the list are MUST, and woollen clothing was especially chosen for its ability to keep warm when wet and the note says they WILL get wet. OK, fair enough, but how on earth am I going to finish a woollen jumper, a pair of gloves and a hat all in a week? Luckily the old man had a flash of brilliance (he does that occasionally) - the Savers! Indeed it saved us,  luckily we were able to find a 100% woollen jumper that not only fit him but also got his nod of approval, which was a huge relief for me as I was psyching myself up for a week long super knitting marathon. We weren't so lucky at finding the gloves and hat, but I was confident that these were more manageable.

I remembered seeing gloves made sideways on Ravelry and thought they would be a better choice as I didn't fancy fiddling with making fingers when under time pressure, so I chose this sideways gloves pattern and cast on using some sock yarn from my stash. The glove pieces took 5 days to knit and 1 day to sew up, I really enjoyed making them as the instructions are clear and simple and the construction ingenious. In fact I think I will be making more of these for my charity knitting this year. The hat only took one day to crochet, I didn't use a pattern but mildly based the design on this sideways hat.

Overall I'm quite pleased with the results and JJ was nonchalant as usual, oh well, what can you expect from teenage boys!

The finished items:

Millgrove Sideways Gloves

Millgrove Sideways Hat