Adventures of a Fiber Addict

March Phat Fiber Box!

2009-03-18T22:28:00.003-05:00

A sparkly batt in reds and greys with loads of sparkles! This makes me think of Sweeny Todd. From Marajane Creations @ www.marajanecreations.com

Yummy 'Irish Moss" fiber bundle from Natchwoolie! I was keeping my fingers crossed for one of these! www.natchwoolie.com

A huge batt in emerald and burgandy and a pouch of angora from Giffordables @ www.giffordables.com

'Tartan" mini batt from Liberty fibers. A deep blue/green with little bits of super bright green sprinkled in! www.libertyfibers.com

I traded the multi colored one and forgot to write down the name >.< it is really pretty!

Gorgeous emerald green mini batt from Wild Hare, love the sparkles! www.wildhare.etsy.com

Stunningly gorgeous Merino/Tencel in shades of green from Spincerly Yours @ http://spincerely.etsy.com

Wow such a beautiful braid of fiber in green and brown from Cloudlover @ www.cloudlover69.etsy.com

Beautiful and colorful fiber braid from Feeling Sheepish @ www.Feelingsheepish.etsy.com

A gorgeous braind of merino in blue greens called "neptune" fromDanido @ www.danidocrafty.com

Purdy suri locks from Moonwood Farm, I love your fibers, they are always so soft! www.moonwoodfarm.com

A Mrs Dalloway wristlet pattern, perfect to use up sample skeins! from The Crochet Side @ www.thecrochetside.com

Some yummy handspun from Foxyie at the Fox Hop! I was keeping my fingers crossed for a batt but didn't get lucky this time, I'm a foxyie bat addict hehe

Some handspun in green and white from Wooliebullie@ www.wooliebullie.etsy.com

A stich marker with a silver heart and red beads from Ballee @ www.ballee.etsy.com

The most adorable white alpaca! I squeaked when I pulled it out of the box! from My Fair Bag Lady @ www.myfairbaglady.etsy.com

A cute pompom and magnet from Bananamigrane designs (love your name!) @ www.bananamigrane.etsy.com

and I got some coupons too!

Thank you jessie for putting together an awesome box!

I'm PHAT!

2009-02-20T16:57:00.015-06:00

I got my Phat Fiber box todat from http://phatfiber.com/ I was a contributor this month and sent in the mini skeins in pink, orange and chocolate so I got my own box free :) Thanks for all the hard work putting this yummy box together!

I was hoping for more spinning goodies since I don't knit but I'm sure I can trade some of my yarns with the other Phat people for some rovings :)

I love the envie the coupons came in, it has knit abbreviations!

The items below are in no particular order, but I wrote a short review about each one.

i think I'm in heaven! it is some stunningly soft creamy tan angora fiber! I can't decide if i want to spin it alone or card it in with something. i'm leaning toward the second so I can enjoy the feel of spinning it longer :) This came from Tracy @ www.home.earthlink.net/~tracyrios

First up is a very pretty pattern for some fingerless mitts. It is nicely printed in full color and she sent it in a sheet protector to keep it safe and easy to store. (I might have to bribe someone to make me a pair) This pattern is from Wendy of Ganiggle Knits. I didn't see a website but she did include her e-mail if you are interested in getting some patterns ganiggle@hotmail.com

A gorgeous knitting needle sizer from 7 Yaks Designs! I love that it is plastic because I'm a clutz and keep dropping things all the time lol. You spinners out there can also use this as a diz (and she offers one just for spinning too) She also included a 20% off coupon! You can find her @ http://www.sevenyaks.etsy.com/

This is a very generous sample of some squishy soft merino superwash in a gougeous colorway! I must have more of this and I can't wait to spin up my sample! This is the softest yummiest merino I've ever petted and it is so light and fluffy! There is a 20% off coupon to use too! This came from the Kangaroo Dyer @ www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=57917

Here is another generous roving sample is another gorgeous colerway! This one is in deep purples and blues and will be stunning when spun up! it is a BFL superwash named Iris and I will have to check out her fibers for more goodies! This comes from http://www.abstractfiber.com/

Wow this must be the second softest thing I've ever petted (second only to the 100% angora above!) It is a lovelygrey and lilac roving that is like petting a fuzzy kitten! There is a little sparkle and it is an alpaca/angora blend. Thank you for putting pics of the animals that donated this fiber, I think that makes spinning it very enjoyable knowing where it came from! This one comes from Moonwood Farm @ http://www.moonwoodfarm.com/

This is a brightly colored bit of bit of wool in a bright slightly verigated red. i'm not sure what kind of sheep it is but it is pretty and springy. i think i might card this little bit of fluff in with another fiber so I can enjoy spinning it longer :) it isn't as soft as some of the others but it has a very nice tooth to it that will make it a joy to spin. This is from Ewe to You @ www.fromewetoyou.com

This one is a super chunky and fun art yarn! it is a cream merino wrapped in a bright pink thread and it is super squishy :) I keep squeezing it and think it might be fun as a stress ball lol what can be better than squeezing a tiny skein of yarn! This is from Wooly Hands @ http://www.woolyhands.etsy.com/

I think i'm in love! This is a yummy handspun yarn in citrus colors and it is making me hungry!

I would love some more of this to play with and it is super soft. I also love how she put a keychain on it, maybe I should hang it from my spinning bag so i can pet it! This came from Kitty Grrlz @ http://www.kittygrrlz.com/

This is a generous sample oh hand dued sock yarn in purple, burgandy and rust. It is gorgeous! it is a 80 Merino/20 Nylon blend and the colorway is called Love. It also came with a 20% off coupon too. This came from Fire Lizard Studios @ http://www.firelizardstudios.com/

This one is some gorgeous sock yarn in pinks and browns called Sheen. it is beautiful and I'm tempted to get some to pet! it is a 40% Superwash wool/ 40% Bamboo/ 20% Nylon blend and would make some yummy soft socks. I would love to have a pair of fingerless mitts out of this!

This comes from Samantha @ http://www.sisyarn.terapad.com/

I got 2 fun skeins from this fiber artist! The top one is a chubby 2ply corriedale cross in deep blues and greens. it makes me think of a peacock! It is nice and squishy with a hint of shine and would be a dream to knit!

The bottom one is a 3ply domestic wool, and it isn't quite as soft as the one above but it has a wonderful texture and the colors are a muted version of the one above. it makes me think of a van goh painting.

Both these came from Melissa @ www.melissaskre8tions.etsy.com

This is an 80/20 Merino/Nylon blend hand dyed sock yarn in white/grey with tons of bright color spots! I think this would make some great socks especially for the kiddos or maybe even a guy too! This is from Teresa @ http://www.teresasdesk.com/

This one is making me hungry because I love strawberry and chocolate! It is a handspun and hand dyed Merino blend named "Sweetheart" It is a strand of brown and one of pink plied together and is yummy and soft! This is from Rebecca @ http://www.evergreencreations.etsy.com/

OMG this is the best fudge on the planet! I had to cover the corner with the business card so you didn't see the bite I took lol! it was promptly devoured before I even finished digging through the box! So very yummy and buttery and just melts in your mouth. I think I'm going to be an addict and must get some more when I'm no so broke. This comes from J.D @ http://www.jdmelaine.com/

I have no idea who this one is from, there is no name or website on the tags. It is a stunning 100% soysilk called Patina and I got 2 mini skeins.

The one on top is called Teat Treat and I'm thinking it is a solid lotion. It smells pretty but unfortunately i'm allergic to the lavender (I tried a tiny bit and it made my finger swell) So i will probably be gifting or trading it. Great product! I'll have to see if they have some other scents that I could use instead of this one. This is from http://www.desertgarden.etsy.com/

The second appears to be some lip gloss. i'm not going to be trying this one because it also has lavender in it :( Sounds yummy though! I'll have to check to see if they have some other flavor that I could try out and maybe trade with someone. This is a full sized stick and came from http://www.thelotetree.com/

This one is a gorgeous and comfy sock pattern. I love that it is printed on a leaflet so it would be easy to slip into a knitting bag and is printed very nicely! This is from Lynne @ http://www.avalonfiberarts.com/

This is a very pretty purple stich marker! it looks like it would fit different sized needles which is very nice! Unfortunately I dropped mine while digging through the box, so I hope I figure out where it went >.<. I think I'm going to use it for a cell phone charm since I don't knit. She also included a coupon code for a free gift with your order. This came from Marcie at In Stiches @ http://www.memarcierenee.etsy.com/

it is a lovely knitting themed notecard! The colors are much prettier in person. This is something you don't see often and I might have to pick up some to write notes in for swaps! She also included a coupon for free shipping. This comes from Knit it Up @ http://www.knit.etsy.com/

This was a little sample of yarn and also a very pretty neck wrap pattern! The yarn is super soft shiny. I would love a bit more to pet and tempt me to try to learn to knit.. yet again. The pattern is by Kathleen @ wwwbusydigits.blogspot.com and the yarn is from http://www.abstractfiber.com/

Carding Experiments (and a kitty!)

2009-02-19T21:47:00.002-06:00

Meet Lillith. He (yes I said he) has been sitting on the couch tonight watching me card with a look of smug amusement on his face. Sometimes I wonder what he is thinking and I'm hoping it he is not planning my doom!

I've been super busy finishing my samples for the Phat fiber Box for March and April. Here is a sneak peek at March, i forgot to take a pic of April before I boxed them up.

This is a little tiny bit os spinning. I spun up 2 samples of the rovings my partner in crime dyed and the one on the left is carded from a baggie of leftovers on my desk. It looks like someone barfed after eating fruit loops lol (lovely mental image isn't it?)

I got kinda bored today and was sick of yarn so I went in my closet and pulled a tiny bit from almost every yummy spinnable thing in my stash. Total is 10oz which I went through and sorted them into piles of colors.

Yay green!

Yay pink!

Yay white! There are others but I didn't feel like taking pics of all of them, you get the idea.

Then I took a handful of coordinating fibery goodness and pulled them until they were the same length and laid them out together. I'd say each fiber is about 8 inches long and a half an inch wide or less. Then I took my dog brushes and brushed off chunks from the end and carded them into cute lil rolags!

Aren't they adorable? There are more finished but I only took a pic of a few so they would all fit. I still have some of the little fiber piles left to card too. I wrapped each one in a piece of tissue paper to keep them seperate and they are ready and waiting for me to sit and card them up!

I haven't decided how to spin them, Im thinking about taking several colors and alternating them for an interesting yarn with long color sections.

I don't think I've even used half of the fiber pile, so there is a ton left for me to play with later :)

Started a Rav group for my shop

2009-02-17T16:37:00.001-06:00

Here is the link

http://www.ravelry.com/groups/jags-funky-fibers

I thought it was about time I got things switched over to Rav instead of the old icky yahoo group

More dyeing!

2009-02-15T15:15:00.002-06:00

This is some lovely BFL dyed by my partner in crime with food coloring. I think she called it "Fire on the mountain" it reminds me of hawaii and volcanoes. It is a lot brighter in person, it was getting dark out when I took pics

This is some corriedale dyed by me using food colors. This batch of corrie was a little rougher and did not want to split well when I seperated the roving.

The same corriedale as above in different colors

This is some of my yummy mystery roving! I really like the brown and the spots of yellow!

And this is some mystery roving also dyed by my partner in crime with food coloring and kool-ade! It is cherry and chocolate colored and is so much prettier in person!
The white spots are driving her crazy, but they spin up pink which looks great!

Something new for the store

2009-02-09T05:44:00.003-06:00

I've been working out a sweater inventory page for customers to browse for custom orders.

It's not perfect but I think it is a good start! I still have a ton of photos to take and probably over 150 sweaters to add still

lemme know what you think!

Here is the link
http://jagsfunkyfibers.com/sweaters/sweaters.html

ARGHH!

2009-02-08T00:26:00.002-06:00

I'm trying to learn how to knit... again ... I have all this pretty handspun that is too fine to use on my looms

My brain understands how its supposed to work and whats supposed to happen, but the rest of me apparently didn't get the memo. I'm trying continental this time and it feels better than english

i've spent a couple hours ofer the last few days and don't have a single row to show for it, although i did finally figure out how to cast on in a way that made sense to me

right now I'd rather jab a pointy stick into my eye instead of trying to knit with it again

*glares evily at teh pointy sticks of doom*

although if there are some more good vids of continental knitting maybe if i watch enough something in my brain will click and it magically start working

post links if you know of some!

Peachy and wicked!

2009-02-05T00:49:00.002-06:00

I finally got around to finishing spinning the Acapulco corriedale I got from TheFlyingEwe on Etsy!
This yarn came out looking yellow in some spots, peachy in others with hints of a rosey peach, just like the fuzzy outside of a fresh yummy peach! It came out completely different that i thought it would when I bought it and I'm so happy with the final result. I did a 2ply with this one and it looks good enough to eat :)

She has some more of this in her shop, so if you like it, go buy some to spin!

And this is the wicked roving that I dyed this morning, it came out stunning! I spun up a small sample and navajo plied it so I could see how it was going to turn out and I am incredibly happy with the result! Too bad it is going to be near impossible to duplicate, but I'm going to try it in some other colors later for some extra fun.

I ended up with a lot of green and not so much blue, but you can see hints of blue hiding in there.

What colors do you think I should do next? i think i'm going to go pick up some food coloring when i make it to the store, or at least more colors of koolade

OMG! Totally wicked dyeing!

2009-02-04T07:32:00.001-06:00

I couldn't sleep so I decided I would dye some roving in the microwave!

I tried out a different technique this time which looks similar to hand painted, but is still kettle dye

I used grape, blue raspberry and lime koolade for the colors on 1.2oz of my mystery roving
It came out absolutely stunning! i couldn't even wait for it to dry before snapping a pic

and yes my bathroom has pepto pink tiles... it came that way when we moved in and i love seeing the looks on peoples faces when they see it, priceless!

and i might be willing to split this yummy roving with a certain someone who lives 3 blocks away from me so they can spin some yarn for their traveling scarf thingy *hint*

The Plague!

2009-02-03T05:46:00.003-06:00

I have been afflicted with the evil plague otherwise known as strep throat, oh noes!

Which means I don't get to work on any yarns for orders or the store so I don't risk passing it on :( Sigh..

but maybe I'll start feeling a little better and get some spinning done!

I don't have pics at the moment but I'm spinning up some yummy corriedale in fire colors from TheFlyingEwe, the mardi gras batt from foxyie, the chocolate/orange batt from foxyie and the yak/merino/alpaca for a spin-along.

I'm hoping to get the firey one done so I'll have an empty spindle to spin that phoenix batt I made

I guess for now I'll go eat some cream of chicken soup and take another nap

More finished yarns and a trade!

2009-01-31T15:21:00.002-06:00

This is the finished koolade dyed polypay, it didn't make much and is on the rough side but it came out a pretty color (navjo plyed)

This is the pink and orange 1/2 of the batt from foxyie! I'm still spinning the brown half and hope to have it done soon so I can start on my Feb projects. it is gorgeous and really soft too (and navajo plied)

This is part of my trade from jane! It is faux angora, i'm not sure what it is made from but it really does feel like angora! I haven't decided if I'm spinning it as is or if I want to spin it with another fiber yet (I could do both i suppose)

And the other part (I'm not sure if this was part of the trade or the blog candy) is some stunningly gorgeous silk top! I will be saving some of this for batts and spinning some on its own for plying with some other fibers. Silk looks great plied with a pretty wool

I love all my goodies and can't wait until my spindles are empty again!

On the spindles, dyeing results, and Feb Ravelry SAL!

2009-01-29T17:15:00.005-06:00

Some polypay my partner and crime and I dyed with koolade. almost done spinning this and proably going to navajo ply it

1/2 of a bat from foxyie! One side was brown and orange and the other side was pink and orange. I was going to ply them together but the more I look at it I might navajo ply them and use them in the same project for a more interesting look

here is the other half

This is the unknown wool dyed with orange and fruit punch koolade. It came out a gorgeous peachy smoothie color. I dyed all the rovings in the microwave with koolade, water, and a tiny bit of vinegar and they came out awesome!

This one is BFL and it came out watermelon colored (cherry)

This is the unknown wool and it came out gorgeous! (Lime and blue raspberry)

This was some brown shetland that i dyed a mulberry tone with grape and fruit punch

Merino/silk that i dyed the water with blue raspberry and sprinkled dry fruit punch koolade on top

This is a tiny bit of bamboo I stuck in with the bfl to see what would happen. surprisingly it took some of the dye and in other places it didn't. I'll probably add this to a batt

I didn't dye this but it is going to be spun for the Spindlers group on ravelry. I'm doing the Feb SAL which is "Mardi Gras" This is a part of a foxyie batt that I added some yellow firestar too. Not one of my favorite batts from her, but it fits the project lol

i'm spinning this one for the Spinner Central group on ravelry. I'm doing an exotic fiber for the Feb SAL. This is a Merino/Yak/Alpacca blend in a gorgeous burgandy

Spinning, samples and bits

2009-01-29T05:30:00.002-06:00

Yay! I got all my samples finished, packed and ready to go out in todays mail! I hope everyone enjoys them :) These are for the http://phatfiber.com box and I can't wait to finally have one of my own!

This is a teensy tiny skein of silk top, its almost thread fine and has been navajo plied

This is the romney I finished spinning and also navajo plied for the Spinner Central group on ravelry for the January spin along

I got the most gorgeous mini rovings from verdabliss on etsy in one of the scrappies she sells, its 4oz of stunning leftover roving pieces. i think it is the softest thing I've ever spun!

This is something I've been toying with over the last few days. I end up with a ton of leftover short bits from taking apart sweaters and I hate to throw them away! I've taken some and they are in bits from 1-5 or so inches long to be added to a batt or some roving for a funky art yarn. Do you think there would be enough interest in this for me to sell them on etsy? They are filled with sweater yarns, handspun bits and even the occasional commertial novelty yarn. the one in the pic is blues and greens. I'll try to spin some up in the near future so see how it will look

Also i spent the evening making a huge pot of clam chowder from scratch and it was soo yummy! While i was waiting for it to cook I dyed some roving in the microwave with koolade :) I'm still waiting for it to dry so will get pics of the colors in a day or two

OMG!

2009-01-28T19:03:00.002-06:00

I found an amazing deal at one of our local thrift stores today!

I purchaced a bag of cream colored roving (8.9oz) for a whopping $0.94 plus tax!

It feels like it might be a romney blend, but it's pretty soft with a shorter staple, more like a merino staple. It looks like it has been processed at a mill somewhere, but other than that I have no idea where it came from

i'm not sure exactly what is in it but it will spin up beautifully and I'm going to be kool-ade dying it in 1oz sections to play with. for that price if I screw it up it isn't the end of the world lol

I'mm off to finish the frist batch of dyeing and to go finish making the giganto pot of clam chowder!

Crazy carding fool!

2009-01-25T00:24:00.004-06:00

I was insanely bored tonight and raided my stash of roving tearing off little bits and pieces off of many of them to make some purdy batts to spin! Its a great way to fix up some wool that you don't like the color or are just plain tired of looking at it lol

These are my 2 dog slickers and they are awesome! There is a button that lets the bristles move to inside the brush whish makes getting the fiber off the brush sooo easy. it pops right off the smooth surface

The batts all have a lot of different fibers in them, anything from: Merino, corriedale, firestar, alpaca, soy silk, silk top, and who knows what else i tossed in the basket!

They started out as handcarded batts, but I decided to pull them into more of a roving shape to make it easier to spin

I seperated them out into different piles to make 4 yummy spinning goodies

This one has some rougher wool in it so it ended up as rolags. it is in shades of mostly purple and white with a few other colors sprinked in here and there. 1.1oz/32g

I couldn't get the colors to photo right for these. mostly in shades of pink, purple grey and black.

i call this one Peacock! done in greens, blues and purple with a little sparkle. 0.9oz/26g

And my most favorite of all, Phoenix! The camera dosen't do this one justice, its all sparkly fire and sunset colors with lots of yellow firestar mixed in! 0.9oz/26g

Crazy carding!

2009-01-20T23:48:00.003-06:00

I took the gallon baggie of roving scraps I've been saving up and carded it into one big bat! Its mostle merino, but there are other fibers including silk, bfl, romney, soy silk and whatever else was in the bag. this is a pic of the bottom side. I used 2 really nice dog slicker brushes to hand card everything and layed it out into a batt

and on the top I sprinkled firestar in yellow and purple for some sparkle!

and I spun up a tiny sample and it looks really neat!

then i went to go get a piece of tissue paper to wrap it in and the cat attacked it... grr so its not as pretty now lol

Playing with plying!

2009-01-20T10:08:00.002-06:00

Some merino in blood red tones plied with a brownish/brass cotton sweing thread (this one did not want to photo well) it came out a gorgeous lace weight

This is a little bit of undyed bfl from windrose plied with some silk top from jacksbluejane it came out gorgeous!! The silk is so slippery to spin, but it comes out so fine

and this is some ramboulette from jacksblue jane that i navajo pied! I looove navajo plying and plan to do it a lot more in the future! It isn't near as hard to do as it looks and I love how it keeps the color sequence unlike regular plying does

I also spun up a sample of merino/silk from TheFlyingEwe and navajo plyed it, but it got kidnapped before I could get a pic lol. i ordered some black merino/silk and can't wait to get it spun up and plied with something colorful :)

Currently on the spindles: I'm spinning up a custom batt from foxyie in orange and pink and brown! I split it down the middle so one half is brown and orange and the other is pink and orange. that is gonna ply up absolutely gorgeous!

I'm also still spinning that pink romney, i'm convinced it is breeding in my spinning bag and will never end lol I think i'm going to navajo ply it because it would be pretty!

Dyeing to Spin!

2009-01-13T19:19:00.002-06:00

This one is some Finn/llama that I got from Jacksbluejane on Etsy! Didn't it come out pretty!

if anyone is interested in my handspun i'd love to trade for some pretty fibers to spin!

This is some polypay dyed with Grape and Tropical punch kool-ade! We kettle dyed it and came out with deep plum with spots of lilac. Can't wait to spin it up!

This one is some rambouillet dyed in the same pot, but it was added a minute or two after the other one so it came out much lighter. Lighter plum tones with lots of lilac!

We had a blast dyeing and can't wait to get more stuff to experiment with! We dyed some yarn too in blues and greens, but I wasn't able to get a pic at the moment

Yay Spinning!

2009-01-11T23:39:00.004-06:00

I haven't gotten a lot of spinning done this week, some of these are from last week too.
In adition to spinning these below I've been making tiny sample skeins of each of my stash rovings so I'll have a better idea of what they will end up looking like when I flip through my inventory book

This one is a tiny skein of a verigated canary yellow merino from OnTheRound on etsy
The color was driving me insane so I ended up giving it to my friend to spin

This one is some coopworth in gorgeous purples that I hand carded. It has a lot of halo and feels like mohair. This one is from sdspin on etsy, she has some of the most gorgeous locks to spin

I finally finished that pink superwash merino! i've been spinning this stuff for forever lol It ended up being a gorgeous lace weight and came out very even

This is a custom batt from Foxyie on etsy, its called Dragons Mouth. it did not want to photo, I took about 20 pics before i got one that was okay >.<

I'm not sure exactly what this one is, it was a sample goodie from jacksbluejane on etsy. i'm thinking its alpaca and firestar or angelina

From upstairs

2009-01-01T11:06:00.002-06:00

I had someone ask me how i keep track of my fibers. I use baseball card sleeves, cardstock for the cards and then baseball card sheets to put them in binders. I use the card sleeves so they are easier to take out of the sheet and move around! On the cards I put the fiber content, name, and who and where I got it from Makes it really easy to keep track of what colors I have too. I also have a similar set up for keeping inventory of my store with a few inches of each yarn so i don't have to go upstairs every time i need to see a specific yarn. Also makes it easier to take the book to a knitting meet.

This is a pic of how i store the yarn from my shop. Plastic tubs on my shelves! I have the whole upsatirs of the apartment to myself. (our house came with a 2 story apartment in th back yard) I haven't got the rest of the rooms organized, so pics of that later

This is my small walk in closet devoted entirely to sweaters that are going to be taken apart. No i haven't counted, but I probably have over 200... thankfully hubby never goes up there! And I loooove the 4 thrift stores here!

And my little friend Ebony was upstairs with me today :) she is half poodle and half chihuahua. I have her sister too (pepper) and a black pomeranian (shadow) but my batteries died before i could get pics. we have a cat too, his name is Lillith (yes a boy cat with a girl name lol)

What's on the spindles this week?

2008-12-31T13:10:00.004-06:00

I found this awesome bag at a thrift store for a whopping $0.27!

It will easilly fit 3-4 spindles and some small baggies of fiber, I looove it!

This was a little piece of roving that got in a package from sarawood3587 on etsy. She wanted to show me what a fairly felted piece of wool looked like and I was brave enough to spin it! I love all the goodies she sent me and couldn't be happier with my custom order!

This was 2 colors of merino that I drafted together at the same time!

I also finally figured out how to properly draft when spinning! I still prefer the park and spin a lot more, it works better for those with short arms ^.^

This is some finn/llama from jacksbluejane on etsy, This stuff is so fun to spin and I love all the little bumpy bits!

This is some romney that came with my ashford spindle! See how nice and even it's coming out?

This is a lovely superwash merino! it is coming out very fine, I can't wait to ply it!

This was a custom batt from foxyie on etsy, i can't reccomend her enough! She did a super smooth bat for me that i haven't started on, and this one is a lot more textured and is coming out really wild! It didn't want to photo very well for some reason

this is some silk from jacksbluejane, I'm getting better at it! I predrafed the roving so it would be easier to spin (and ouch I managed to cut myself on the silk!)

Sorry for no updates!

2008-12-30T12:01:00.002-06:00

Cut my thumb which makes spinning interesting >.< I finally got it all figured out for drafting without using it as much and got a bit of spinning done

Plus i've been icky and sick with some kind of virus that's been going around

and between the virus and my normal sinus headaches, its giving me migranes >.<

ah well, I'll survive and get around to getting some pics of what's on the spindles for y'all!

Yummy yarns and rovings

2008-12-20T04:44:00.003-06:00

I'm not feelin that great tonight, think I'm coming down with a cold and I couldn't sleep
I finished up that Shocking Rose silk sushi from jacksbluejane, it came out very thick and thin and has an interesting texture. I need more practice and can't wait to get my new ones and spin them up!

This one is a Holly Berry corriedale batt from yarntospin. It came out darker than I thought it would, but it is gorgeous! You can't see it in the pic, but it has some sparkle to it

This is that bit of pinkish merino I was spinning. It's a really short bit, but I'll be mailing it to a friend for her to play with

I made a scarf on my knitting loom as a present for one of my other friends, do you recognize the yarn I used? Its that merino I finished the other day!

I decided to take some pics of some of my stash, i got most of it in the last few days

This is a lovely Mixed Berry merino from windrose on etsy, its so very soft I'm having to restrain myself from petting it. it came with some matching firestar too but I forgot to put it in the pic

this is Acapulco corriedale x from TheFlyingEwe on etsy. The pic dosen't do it justice, all the lovely firery colors!

This is a 5 for $5 pack (sunshine group) from souptoknits on etsy, I think it might be a romney blend.

This one came with my spindle, its just under 2oz of romney goodness from blackethelcash on etsy (I'm thinking about getting another ashford spindle from her, I'm really liking it so far)

Lovely Appetizer bats from Evonnewee on etsy, such cheery colors!

Peach sorbet carded fiber poofs, she sent a diz and hook too. I'm going to turn this into pencil roving at some point. It's from claydancer on etsy

I have bunch of merino for that 1lb lot that hubby bought me, but I didn't feel like digging it out of the box >.<

I think thats it for now, I'll be stalking my mailman for more!

New spindles!

2008-12-18T04:24:00.003-06:00

One of my friend on the okiefiber yahoo group suggested finding some wooden wheels at at the craft store to use for a spindle! I was able to make 4 spindles for under $10. they weigh a little under 2oz

I took a dowel rod and cut it into 12 inch lengths, a wooden wheel from Hobby Lobby, a cup hook and some tiny rubber rings from the plumbing section at Lowes. The rubber rings help hold the wheel in place, but if it is still a little loose just use a little wood glue. all but one of mine were tight and the wheel dosent spin around.

This is that merino that was on my spindle, its a tiny little skein, but so pretty

This is one of the spindles I made and on it is some blue and green merino that I drafted together. its coming out a really pretty verigated color

This is my Holly Berry corriedale batt i got from yarntospin on etsy! It's my first time working with a batt, but I ran across a good video on youtube that showed me how to turn it into roving. This one is green and burgandy with some white shimmery firestar

This is another tiny bit of merino from that pound hubby got me, its pinks and reds

And this is the Shocking Rose silk sushi I got from Jacksbluejane on etsy. this is coming out thick and thin, but I love the texture and the shine! It's bright pink and neon green, I don't know how in the world to get colors so bright, but its awesome!!

I like having multiple spindles going, I have a short attention span sometimes and I like to switch around between different ones to spin so I don't get bored ^.^

Yay Insomnia!

2008-12-17T05:55:00.003-06:00

(close up)

I couldn't sleep again, so I finished the last bit of blue multi colored merino I was working on.

I am so incredibly happy with how it turned out!! Nice and even except for a spot here and there, and baby soft :) you can really see the bits of pink and yellow after it was plied.

I forgot to measure the yardage, doh! I'd guess somewhere 75 yards or more

not bad for only spinning for about a week lol

enjoy!

Newly spun and on the spindles

2008-12-16T21:44:00.003-06:00

These were sample rovings so the yardage is really short, but they turned out gorgeous!
This was an experiment I had started a couple months ago before I decided to spin. I took a plastic bag and cut it into one long strip (actually 2 for this skein) then I spun and then plied it. Came out really rough and scratchy, but would be awesome for a scrubbie or a pouch for the beach (because wool and sand don't mix lol)

Some silk I spun from jacksbluejane. This was completely different to work with compared to the wool, I draft about 2 feet or so at a time and then spin it, that seems to work pretty good. towards the end I started to get the hang of it and am almost brave enough to start on some more soon! One thing I learned is to use lots of lotion or it will stick to your hands.

Some soy silk from windrose! This was a little more difficult to spin because the staple length is pretty short. I had to use my cd spindle becuse my other was way too heavy. it came out so soft!

On my heavy wooden spindle: Some blue and multicolored roving I got off of ebay. This is coming out fairly even and has been a joy to spin so far. I think it will end up a fingering weight when it is plied.

This is some multicolored merino that my hubby bought me (came in a 1lb lot of odds and ends of merino) there isn't very much of it but it is too pretty not to spin. Thats the bottom of my cd spindle ^.^

I tried a bottom whorl spindle first time I spun, but personally I'm liking the top whorl a lot better. I like to roll it on my leg to get it going, so it works quite well sitting down. it's not as wobbly to spin with as some of my friends told me it might be, its all in how you get it spinning i suppose

Better pics!

2008-12-16T21:41:00.002-06:00

I finally got my camera ro cooperate with me so I retook pics of my yarns and the undyed BFL from windrose

The mocha merino from windrose

The corridale Cranberry Ade from TheFlyingEwe

The purple mystery yarn

The antifreeze mohair from windrose

argh

2008-12-16T06:47:00.002-06:00

I was going to have a post for you today, but my camera seems to be on strike..

I'll get some new fiber goodness posted as soon as I can get some pics!

My first spinning experiments!

2008-12-15T02:19:00.010-06:00

I'm sorry if these pics aren't the best, my camera was being really wierd tonight...

(All Etsy shops can be found on the right)

My first was this lovely BFL (Blue Faced Leicester) from windrose on Etsy. This fiber is a dream to work with, and came in a lovely cream color! I still have some left that I haven't spun yet. It came out a little thick and thin, but I love textured yarns, so its perfect

This is a mocha colored merino also from windrose. It came out really textured with bunches of thick and thin spots. Its so pretty!

This is my favorite so far! Its called Cranberry Ade and comes from The Flying Ewe on etsy. It spun very smooth and came out a lot more even than my previous 2 tries!

This one is some mystery pencil roving I got on ebay. It came out pretty but wasn't much fun to spin. It was a pencil roving that was practically spun already.

This is my other favorite! Also from windrose on Etsy. This is a mohair in a neon green, I call it my antifreeze yarn lol. it came out nice and even, but with some little bumps here and there. Definately a challenging one to work with so far.

this is what is currently on my spindle. it is a blue and multicolored merino I found cheap on ebay. It is so soft! On the left is the roving and the right is what I drafted into pencil roving. I like to predraft the roving so i don't have to fiddle with it to much while I'm spinning

Here are my 2 spindles! The top one I made with things aound the house. (a dowel rod, a cup hook, 2 cds and some leftover putty from fixing some plumbing) It spins nicely and is a medium weight. The orange on top is where i wrapped some yarn around the dowel rod because I cracked it when the cup hook went in.

The bottom one is one I got on Etsy, its an Ashford spindle and weighs a whopping 2.8 oz. its a bit heavy, but it spins for forever.

I'm wanting to get or make a nice lightweight spindle I can use for fine yarns. I tried to spin some soy silk on the bottom one and that was a disaster >.<