Holiday Yarns July 2, 2009

Banana Soy Wool Roving

I discovered a new store yesterday, Holiday Yarns.  I was at a quilt store here in town and the woman gave me a card for a new store in one of the disintegrating malls.  I went in yesterday and have discovered a new treasure, she sells hand dyed yarns, socks, bats, looms, spinning wheels and sheep oriented buttons, pins etc..  I bought a small ball of alpaca rovings just to try it out.  I also purchased four oz. of what she calls “Build a Bat”.  For 6$ an ounce you pick out fibers of your choice with wool as the main fiber, and while you are shopping she cards it on a drum carder and gives you your bat of mixed fibers.  I picked some gorgeous undyed soy silk and some banana fibers  to mix in.  I now have two gorgeous soft luxiourious bats of moss green rovings.  I spun off all of my hot pink rovings just so I could try out my green, oh it is so lovely to work with.

Wool June 22, 2009

I love the smell of my rovings, that particular sheep smell.  When I spin with it and later as I knit with it.  I breathe in through my nose and the smell is like fresh baked bread in that it is almost intoxicating.  I try knitting a sweater for a stuffed animal with my first attempt at drop spindle, then the thinner more springy second attempt.  I look at my first attempt on the spinning wheel, Bad Acid, and am doubtful anyone would buy anything made of such ugly yarn.  I am spinning the Raspberry Sherbert, its twist more regular and less springy, the weight more regular.  I can go for quite some time now without having to rethread it.  There is a deep satisfaction in making my own yarn.

Spinning June 6, 2009

I am feeling very amatuerish after reading a book about spinning, spinning woolens spinning worsted, who knew.  I always thought woolen described the type of fiber ie from wool.  And worsted described the size of the yarn.  HA!  I have no idea what I am spinning, I fan the roving spreading it out in a triangle from the spin, sometimes long lines of fiber gets twisted in.  It is thick it is thin it is bumpy and long long lines of smooth even twist.  Oh dear I have no idea what I am doing.  Michelle asks what are you going to do with all that hot pink yarn.  Make a baby sweater I say – at least my mistakes will only be worn for a short period and then put into goodwill.  I will not label it with our business labels.  I will not lay claim to my early morning foibles and frustrations.  I have a confession this Finn sheep yarn seems to spin itself.   It is so soft I want to bury my fingers in the rovings.  I touch the yarn on the spool.  Oh it is so glorious and gorgeous.  I stop to pick out bits of hay and start again, steady even feet.  Pedal, pedal fan and twist.  I spin for a long time, better hot pink than 70’s turquoise, orange and brown – ick.  I will call it Raspberry Sherbert and the other Bad Acid.

Tatting May 31, 2009

Several years ago I had asked an older family member of a family friend to teach me how to tat.  Apparently tatting with a shuttle is quite difficult and few people can do it any more much less teach it.  Today I had the opportunity to learn how to needle tat with the Crazy Quilting maven Ms. Connie Ostness.  I found it relatively easy because it is quite similar to a knitting cast on stitch I just learned from the great grandmother of one of my elementary students.  I am really thrilled that I am learning how to do this.  Now if only I had the time to enjoy all of the wonderful things I now know how to do.  Including spinning some of the fabulous Finn Sheep yarn I bought from Elizabeth at StillMeadow Farms, a gorgeous rose and a lovely “blue jeans” indigo color. 

Finn Sheep Rovings

I want to mention this excellent book by Barbara Foster called Learn Needle Tatting Step by Step.  It is a great book with excellent photo directions.  It is very clear and easy to use.  I think I prefered to have a human teacher to show me the first steps but I know that if you are trying to learn needle tatting on your own, this book is the one to go to.   You can see my first loop, loop chain and flower with loops and chains.  I think I did really well.

First Attempts at Needle Tatting

A fellow spinner at the craftshow May 3, 2009

Elizabeth from Still Meadow

I didn’t sell very much at the craftshow today but I did meet this marvelous spinner named Elizabeth. She breeds Finn sheep, and sells fiber from her animals (and lamb meat).  Her farm is called Stillmeadow Finnsheep.  I picked her brain and I guess her fingers on how to spin and different wheels and fibers.  She also knows the woman from whom I purchased my spinning wheel.  I told her at the end of the day that although the craft show wasn’t worth it from a financial standpoint, meeting her made the day worthwhile.

Grandmas’s Spinning Wheel April 19, 2009

Of course since my Mom is a quilter I visited several quilt shops in the Tucson area.  I picked up some lovely fat quarters of various Southwestern patterns, petroglyphs, hands, and kokopeli.  I told her ahead of time that I was wanting to stop by a spinning shop and there just happened to be one in the shopping center with a quilt store.  Grandma’s Spinning Wheel carries a variety of yarns, fibers, beads, jewelry, handbags, spinning wheels, spindles and fiber.  I told the very personable and helpful owner that I was looking for fiber that was unique to the area and she pointed me in the direction of some Navajo wool, ready to spin and dye.  Also some locally raised sheep of a gorgeous grey color.  I will post these in the coming days.  For now some photos of her shop. 

Bats from Grandma's Spinning Wheel

Entrance to Grandma's Spinning Wheel

Various Fibers from Grandma's Spinning Wheel

A wonderful day April 6, 2009

I finally got around to hot gluing the spools for my spinning wheel. The ends were popping off which the previous owner warned me about, telling me that the woodstove dries out the wood on the spools and causes the glue to fail over time.  It was a simple task, given that of course I have a glue gun, two in fact, one high temp and one low (hahaha still burns the crap out of your fingers).  Once repaired wow the spinning wheel was working again.  The tops being loose is a problem because they spin on the spool instead of remaining still when the tops are on tightly it allows the yarn to wind onto it while you are spinning.  I have been watching some youtube videos of spinning and think I am doing okay!  I had to wind some yarn from a broken spool onto an unbroken one to be able to glue it and noted that my yarn is not too stretchy a good thing and also that it wasn’t breaking when I was winding it, strongish but not yet great.  I am pleased with my progress.

I wanted to post these images of the quilts that were hanging in the show yesterday.

detail of white on white handsewn quilt

Holly Hobby quilt

detail of quilt

embellished quilt

detail of quilting

A Spinning Wheel March 6, 2009

Okay so I did it but not exactly as I expected it to be…I have been saving slowly for a spinning wheel, five dollars here, ten there, a couple twenties leftover from selling paintings, and a part time job at Mission Rose.  But as I researched the cost I knew I had a long long ways to go before I could afford a spinning wheel.  Then a couple days ago, as I headed into the food co-op, a locally owned organic grocery, I noticed a sign for a used spinning wheel with carders, sheep fiber, a lazy kate, several spools and an Ashford Traveler.  I called the woman immediately because the price was unreal, compared to what I was seeing for a new wheel – alone.  I went to her home and she was lovely, really I felt immediately connected to her and she was like a little drop of love from the universe.  As she said, everything happens for a reason, and god (or is it God) brought you here today.  Anyway, enough of my spiritual gobbledygook.  So I bought it!  I have to repay my savings account when I get my check from working on the school yearbook, but I saved at least half what it would have cost to get a new one.  I came home and immediately tried it.  I have a thing to say here. I DESPISE the color brown, I dislike brown leather coats, I dislike brown leather purses and I only tolerate brown leather shoes because you cannot wear black with navy blue.   Just for the record I have never liked brown or orange.  Orange is the one color I just cannot stand.  It is ugly, I only like it in pumpkins and oranges.  Seriously.  But for some odd reason people always buy me stuff or give me stuff with brown in it.  I don’t mean to look a gift horse in the mouth and I am sorry to rant here…but gees’.  Now that I have a two sided closet that I do not have to share with anyone I have everything brown on one side and everything I actually wear and use on the other.  So someone gave me some roving, again I don’t mean to be persnickity but it’s brownish orange…really?  Oh yeah.  But I saw it as a blessing today…what perfect roving to practice on with my new spinning wheel.  So I did.  I did okay too.  My yarn is bumpy and it broke a couple times but I was really getting the hang of it and it really beats the drop spindle by the power of 10 – at least.

A used Ashford Traveler Spinning wheel