So many hobbies!

Just about ready

As I type, Galen is stalking Tyr through the livingroom.  Tyr is laying on the couch taking a bath and not paying the slightest bit of attention to her brother.  All of Galen's attention however, is on Tyr.  I'm having a hard time keeping quiet.  Aaaaaand... he attacks!  Remember Tyr, trust no one!  Especially an older brother.

My final yarn is finished and my yarn descriptions are written up and ready for the skein contest.  I am about as ready as I can be at this point.  Tomorrow, all I need to do is pack the car, pick up Sheri's camping gear, hard boil some eggs and make myself a sandwich for Thursday's lunch.  The house is clean, the litterboxes were just refilled with fresh litter, the laundry is folded and the dishwasher is running.  I'm just about ready to leave.

These are the entries so far

I'm still working on the spindle spun yarn but I've got a ways to go.  These four yarns are 4 entries into three categories:  2-ply dyed by some one else, 2-ply dyed by me and natural dyed yarn.  You can have a max of two entries into a single category.  I'd still like to enter a fourth category which calls for 100% wool from fiber you prepared yourself.  I'm leaning toward the Finn lamb fleece I've had for a couple of years and REALLY need to do something with it.  This is going to be a fiber-filled weekend for me.  Washing and reskeining yarn, scouring Finn locks, and spinning at least 2 ounces of scoured fleece.  I'm going to be busy this weekend!

The Merino/silk is spun and plied.  It just occurred to me I haven't counted the yardage yet but it's about 4 ounces.  It should be plenty of the lace section of Andrea's Shawl and three stripes up the body.

The yarn is soft and squishy and I really hope I don't ruin it when I dye it.  I think I've collected enough onion skins to make the dye bath but I need to weigh the yarn and then weigh the collected skins.  Wish me luck.

I so very much want this yarn!

 

It's called Zombie BBQ, dyed by Lornas Laces.  This would knit into an awesome pair of socks.  And the name is priceless!

Yarn!

 

I just love how this came out.  I hope you can see the gradient from light green through to pink/purple.  The sparkly bits in the yarn are from the 20% silk.  Now I just have to find the perfect shawl pattern.  I have two more bobbins to ply but they're a lot smaller and if I knit with both finished skeins I'll get striping that I don't want. 

It POURED last night, which naturally means there was water in my basement, so I don't have quilt pictures.  I need someplace dry to hang or lay the quilt for its photo shoot.  I'll get a pic next weekend.

This weekend is Maker's Fair Detroit.  I'm volunteering Saturday in the needlework tent (so I don't have to pay the $28 entrance fee... yikes!) helping anyone who wants to learn cross-stitch.  It's been quite a while since I did any cross-stitch but I'm pretty sure it's like riding a bike.  Some essential, kill-the-boredom knitting will be coming along just in case no one comes by during my shift (11:30 to 3:30).  I've heard some pretty impressive things about Maker's Fair so I'm pretty eager to check it out.  Sunday it's more blueberry picking.  They may be my only blueberries frozen this year so I need to make it count.  Wish me luck that it's a productive day!

What are you doing this weekend?

I broke my diet

I did really well for almost 6 months.  I didn't buy even a single ply of yarn that whole time.  Then I saw this shawl (Ravelry link) and my resolve was completely shot.  This is the next thing on my knitting project list: 

 

This is the variation has been knitted by a woman on Ravelry named Tesae.  It has more new things for me to learn, like nupps.  I have a problem, though.  I have two color combinations and I can't choose between the two.  Here's the first one:

 

And here's the second one:

 

(I know it's more or less a copy of what's already been done but I just love how it looks.)  I'm not a sports fan so the resemblence to any team colors are coincidence and frankly, I don't care.  I just like them.  So which combo should I choose? 

Can't wait to cast on

 

If I wasn't in the middle of a pair of socks, I would have already cast on for another pair.  The stats:  Merino/silk/bamboo roving from Woolgatherings on Etsy - two different colorways; after its bath, it ranges between fingering and sport weight; and from 8 ounces, I got about 760 yards.  This is going to make a gorgeous pair of socks and with the added silk, they should wear well.

 

Some new fabric for my stash; I fell in love with the colors.  (In case you're curious, it's Metro Cafe from Kona Bay.)  I want to make a blue and green quilt and the right hand fabric will be perfect.  Actually, the number of quilts I want to make is growing bigger than the time I'll have to make them.  I really need to find a way to become independently wealthy.  Work keeps interfering with my play time.

Fortunately for me, my local quilt store just sent me a coupon for 20% off of sewing machine accessories and I'll be using mine to buy a walking foot for my machine.   A sewing machine foot is an accessory, right?  I hope so 'cause the foot costs $110.   Since I keep making quilts, I'm going to need to quilt at least some of them or I'll end up in the poor house.  Walking feet are only good it you're quilting in a straight line so if I want any fancy quilting done, I'll have to hire out.

Galen found a new place to sleep.  It's where I store my handknits.  He's got good taste:

 

Mmm, tomatoes!

 

Today was a good tomatoe day.  Sadly, I don't think I'll get enough to can but I'll sure enjoy eating them.

 

This one's for my mom who wanted to see my tiger striped tomatoes.  This is a paste tomatoe but, unlike Roma tomatoes which have no flavor, this one has tastes wonderful.  It's an heirloom tomatoe just like the slicing tomatoes in the top picture.  The little grape tomatoes are awesome.  I usually don't get any of them in the house because I eat them as I pick.  

 

The Merino/bamboo yarn is finished.  I haven't counted the yardage but I'm pretty sure I have enough for a pair of socks.  It'll just have to wait until the 2011 for its transformation.  Next up is some of the BFL I bought at the Michigan Fiber Festival. 

 

I got nothin'... Um...  Yarn.  Blue ribbons.  Yay!

 

And a fab birthday present from my sister - more Castle Peeps fabric!  I just love this line!  Thanks, Yen.

Going to bed now.  This weekend there will be spinning and knitting.  Probably.

New Projects

I finally got around to reading the winter edition of Knitty yesterday.  I've fallen in love with the Burning Embers cowl.  Love!  It only uses 150 yards of yarn so I may be taking a vacation from my current SOP (socks-in-progress) this weekend.  This is the yarn I plan on using:

 

What I haven't decided is whether I'm going to use the darker for the bottom of the cowl and the lighter at the top or if I'm just going to alternate them for each row.  This is my handspun, BTW, that I dyed, overdyed, then overdyed again.  It's 80/20 Merino/angora.  The gauge calls for 12 wraps/inch and this is 13 wraps/inch.  It'll make a slightly bigger cowl but I can't stand having anything snug around my neck(makes my neck itch) so a slightly larger size will be fine.

I'm joining the Ravelympics again for this winter's Olympics.  I'll be on Team TARDIS and my event will be sock knitting.  Yes, you read correctly.  I'm going to attempt to knit a pair of socks in 16 days.  Between now and February 12th, I'll decide just how insane I am, meaning, will I knit with sock weight or sport weight yarn.  This is the sock weight yarn I've chosen:

 

This yarn is yummy... and a touch more purple than the picture is showing.  I haven't chosen the sport weight yarn yet.  You know, in case by the opening ceremony I've decided that I'm actually NOT completely nuts.  Oh, and I'll be using my plain vanilla sock pattern since anything fancier would just have me gibbering in a corner before the event is even half over.  I may be using sock weight, why push my luck.