Artis-Anne

The First sign of Spring...maybe !!

2012-01-23T14:46:00.012Z

It hasn't been a hard winter by any means, if anything it has been unhealthily mild but it still lovely to see signs of Spring in the garden in the form of Snowdrops.As always they remind me of my lovely Mum (do we ever stop missing our Mums?)

Mind you its still early days and we could still get some harsh weather so its just as well I have finished my lovely shawl and on the whole I enjoyed knitting it apart from the oh so boring knitted border,it seemed to take forever to do. Saying that I will do this again as its a lovely shawl to wear and the grey will go with a lot of things. There are times when subdued colours are far more classy than the brighter ones I find and this will become a firm favourite I know.

On the needles now I have some socks for SIL and then who knows I have a few things I want to knit and I haven't touched any spinning for a few days so the wheel is calling me.

Keeping my word

2012-01-16T11:44:00.013Z

Well I'm being good and adding FO as well as a WIP although they are in the wrong order !!
The first is my current WIP and I am loving it. I needed something which I had to concentrate a little on but not too taxing and this fits the bill perfectly. I need a shawl but I have gone off frilly beaded stuff (SHUSH I still have a WIP to finish of that ilk !!)and this pattern is called Winnowing and is perfect , I am doing it in some lovely 100% cashmere. This yarn is from my stash and I've had it years ,its very precious as they no longer produce this Scottish cashmere and I have been saving it for something special and I thought I deserved this at the moment.I made a cowl for Tony in this yarn and the more he wears it the softer it becomes so I can't wait to snuggle into this when its finished. Amazing how knitting something you know you are going to love can lift your spirits isn't it ?

Next is the tunic which I started whilst being away in the van ,this was such a quick knit and was finished in time for the lovely frosty sunny days we have been having lately.Not the best of pics and the colour is darker in real life.

I have made so many hats, gloves, cowls etc these last few months for craft fairs and gifts but I didn't have a pair for me .So I dyed this lovely alpaca silk blend yarn a gorgeous teal colour and these were done in a couple of night and are very cosy. Can't remember the hat pattern but the mitts are Susie's Reading Mitts. I like mitts and I think I will make myself another pair but this time with a flap that comes over when I don't need use of my fingers.

The list of exhibitors for Wonderwool has just come up and there seems to be more than ever this year;we are looking forward to it but I have to say I was very disappointed with the workshops they have this year and I'm not the only one to comment on this. They are all designed for newbies which is fair enough but you would have thought they could have at least one challenging one . Ah well we will enjoy the weekend whatever and it will be great to catch up with folks again. Roll on April and x fingers my health will have improved by then.

New Year New Beginnings

2012-01-03T12:09:00.014Z

Another new year has begun and I never make New Year resolutions but I am going to try this year to take pictures of what I am up to . Having sold or given so many of my handmade things this year and no records of them has spurred me into thinking this way. I used to do this many moons ago when I first started my blog but somehow life became more hectic and of course that was all before Ravelry which ate big time into my online time. Now that I have cut back on Ravelry (still love it for patterns and ideas ) I am going to spend more time blogging like I used to .

We had a quiet Christmas this year as I was poorly and then we went away to our fav spot on Anglesey for the New Year and there without any distractions I finished Tony's jumper at long last.

He loves this pattern and I have already made him one in it before but he wants another !! but I am not doing dark navy for a while as its a pain to do patterns in it even with my daylight lamp. Any way he loves it and the colour does suit him
Next is a cowl I made with some hand spun camel I spun over Christmas and my SIL has fancied this so it will probably go to her for her birthday later this month .

Then I started this mindless knit which I treated myself to a few weeks ago . It was perfect for sitting in the van and I was able to read a whole book on my Kindle at the same time(love my Kindle, although the whole 'real' book issue does worry me at times).This should be finished in a couple of days I hope . I find this style of jumper perfect for winter and have another pattern (Idlewood) planned for the next one.
We did manage to go walking on the beach a few times which is always lovely but on the whole we did a lot of this....
and this .....
So I have started well , lets see how I carry on LOL.

I have a date for my pre-op now in a weeks time so it looks like things are going as planned and that I will have my op soon ; I so hope I am doing the right thing but I have run out of options.

I am colour obsessive at times

2011-12-08T16:53:00.005Z

I am awful when I get a colour or colours into my head I just can't help but every time I get the dye pots out I go mad with the same colour theme. This lot has been inspired by the sunsets we have had up here in the last few weeks and I am so glad of this colourway now the grey of winter has truly come. Also we have had builders in over the last few days both upstairs and down and the house has been cold but thankfully they are nearly finished .Today its blowing a gale outside and they are forecasting snow tomorrow , we already have it on the hills but they reckon we will have lots more .

I have a plan for this lot when its all spun up as there is a garments worth all in all and the colours are enough to warm the cockles even its is freezing outside .

The same old complaint !!

2011-11-30T12:39:00.025Z

Well seeing as my DD took some pictures of the last craft fair we

did this last weekend I thought I might do a blog post !!

Here is our stall

I am ashamed of my blog as so many folks I meet ask when am I going to update it and all I say is 'I know , but I am just so busy !!'......the same old complaint ,never enough time .

Its a shame really as I have done some things which I have been very pleased with and now they are sold & with no pictures taken. I just wish I was younger and fitter to do all I want to do. Still I do enjoy what I do and without my crafts life would be very bleak.

We had a very successful weekend and it wiped us out of stock which was lovely but we have been asked to do another one at Easter which I hadn't thought about so that means I will have to get making again.It always surprise me how much fibre we sell at these craft fairs as there appears to be quite a lot of felter's as well as an ever growing spinning contingency in this area which is fabulous all round ;)

I have to say this craft fair in Harlech has such high quality goods for sale , a far cry from what it used to be and its all down to our lovely Kate whose blog is such a great read . There are also a few other who work diligently in the background to make all this happen and my thanks goes out to them also

Here are a few pics of other stalls , I tell you I spend half my profit at some of them ;)

I do have some fibres left and they might wend their way to our sadly empty shop at some point.

So that's it for a while and I must try and take more photos of things I make for my own sake if nothing else.I haven't been adding to Ravelry much either , again it takes up too much precious time. I also might not be around for a few months on here either (so what's new LOL ) as I am going into hospital at the end of January beginning of February to have some surgery . I am dreading this and have run out of options now but I am afraid it has to be done. Not an easy choice but I just have to hope that it will improve things for me in the long run.

In the meantime Nadolig Llawen i chwi oll a Blwyddyn Newydd Dda hefyd :)

PS : forgotten what a pain Blogger is for uploading pics grrrrrr I gave up . Its also doing weird things with my spacing so sorry about that !! Might yet migrate to Wordpress Kate ;)

I am still here !!

2011-10-03T11:28:00.002Z

Gosh where have the months gone ? Its been busy I know and the summer just flew by and a good one it was too on the whole. I have had a new camera for my birthday today so I will be back very soon with pics.
I also have another busy month ahead with the All Wales in Llanidloes next weekend on the Saturday then All Day Knit,Knatter and Spin in Harlech Memorial Hall on the Sunday and a friend is staying over plus DD . Then on the Wednesday we have other friends coming to stay for a few days and we have trips out to places like Colinette planned . Then the following week I am doing a Funky Yarn workshop at guild . I have done most of the spinning prep work , just need to finalize the handouts.
So you see I am not idle ;)
See you soon bloggers

Spring Madness

2011-05-16T13:22:00.008Z

Phew Spring has definitely been mad so far with so many things happening from Wonderwool to weddings and a whole more besides . I feel like I have just come out of a whirlwind and hopefully things will slow down for a bit.
Wonderwool was as always great and I was most restrained in my purchases this year ; I guess its because I have reached overcapacity with fibres etc
Our son also got married and that was a truly wonderful day for all concerned and the happy couple went to Japan for a couple of weeks . I was bit concerned about them going there with all that has happened there lately but they were far enough away from it all and they had an experience of a lifetime by all accounts and their photos are certainly amazing. It's a country which has always fascinated me and I would love to have seen some of the places they went to,such a mix of old and new. We could learn a lot from the Japanese and the values they have re their family,old and young; they certainly gave the newlyweds a wonderful welcome too.

I have of course been crafting during this time and I have to think about what I have been up to as I tend to, after something has been created to forget about it and move to the next 'love'

I am still making art yarns in preparation for the workshop and am enjoying the distraction of making them but I now need to begin to think of what I will make with them too .
This is the tailspun yarn I showed in the last post and I used to make a scarf . I had really intended to dye this in my fave blues but somehow it turned into this , but I love it any way and I am going to make a few of these for the next craft fair and possibly the etsy shop also.

Here are a couple of zany yarns hot of the wheel this week.

I know I have at least one FO but I am sure there is another lurking somewhere , I tell you I am losing the plot at times;)

This is one I have done and its called 'Among the Birches ' and its a lousy picture for a very warm and yummy wrap done in Rico Tasai Aran ;the pattern called for Noro but funds wouldn't run to that and to be honest I think this yarn was a good substitute and a great buy from the sale at BlackSheep Wool Shop and the first yarn ,apart from sock yarn, which doesn't count LOL, that I have bought in a very long time .

We have also been away in the van for the odd few days here and there and looking forward very much to our holidays in both Pembroke and then shortly after Scotland.
I do hope the weather picks up though as it feels more like April than May atm , and we have had a fire going most evenings this last week . April was truly wonderful with lots of sunny, even hot days l lets hope that wasn't our summer ? !
Ah well we will enjoy our hols whatever the weather will do and we might even go to Woolfest this year; not sure as yet as I am really not keen on the claustrophobic building they hold it in and if its hot then I will defo not be going as I have had a migraine the last few times we have been. Still it would be nice to catch up with folks who didn't make it to Wonderwool and there might be something different to see,who knows ;)

It's all about the twist

2011-02-27T02:18:00.013Z

I am so in love with spinning and it never ceases to amaze me what can be done with a bit of fibre by just adding twist to it. That is it, nothing else but its all in the way twist is added and I will never get to grips with all of the complexities I am sure but I am having fun trying.
There are days when all I want to spin is mindless roving/tops but that doesn't require much skill or creativity really so I need to find something more challenging. I recently bought Margaret Stove's DVD on lace spinning and I can highly recommend it especially if like me you enjoy spinning fleece primarily (there is a little about how she spins from roving but not much )
I had tried the washing lock by lock technique but not done it her way and it did make a difference. I wish I had taken pics of the fluffed up locks but I will with the next lot.Oh and the fleece was some very fine Cormo which I have had for some time.
Another thing that really amazed me was the wheel she was spinning on ,an Ashford Traddie ,okay the dvd was promoted by Ashford but she was creating the lace yarn on it. Which just goes to support what I have been thinking for a long time its the skill of the spinner which matters far more than the wheel.There is as always a lot of discussion on Ravelry re which wheel is better etc but if there is no skill there then its doesn't matter much which wheel you have, as long as the wheel is sound of course. I do agree that some wheels rather spin one weight over another but the skill is in trying to create the yarn you require with the tools you have and you know what they say about a bad workman ...
Tony was just as fascinated as I with the dvd and in my opinion is a far better lace spinner than I as he has more patience . When he had the little parlour wheel he did the most amazing lace spinning ,so with this in mind we have set each other a challenge. We will spin a single ply each and I will knit a shawl with the end plyed yarn and the aim is to get the shawl through our wedding rings . Can we do it ? This is my effort so far and I used the lace bobbin but that was it I didn't change the flyer at all .

I think I still might need to go a bit finer.
Poor Tony hasn't had a chance to start on his yet ,what with work and all the decorating and DIY we have been doing whilst he has been off.
I have also been doing a fair few art yarns lately and they are such fun to do . here are a few of them..

I love doing this tailspun yarn and this will be knitted into a scarf but I am not sure as yet if I will dye it or not. It does take some time to do this yarn ,the same as with the lace spinning !!
Some coiled yarn,I didn't have any merino and this is with Corriedale and its not as good in my opinion so I have ordered some with my next order.

Some loopy yarn

This is my fave , some light as air corespun in yummy colours

I have a few other techniques to do and I am then going to use these and other fancy yarns for various projects in either knitting, weaving or embellishing. This is to show that art yarns are not just pretty to look at, fun to do but they have their uses too . Whatever!! as long as I enjoy making them then I will continue ;)

Signs of Spring ?

2011-02-03T12:32:00.009Z

At this time of year I am desperate to see spring arrive and especially after such a hard winter as we have had. I know its not here as yet but we have had a few lovely sunny days in between the mist and rain which gives a glimpse that it might be on the way.
We went down to the beach with the dogs the other day .
The dogs had their first paddle and then the two went straight into the muddiest, smelliest puddle they could find .

This is Borth-y-Gest ,the village I was brought up in and lived until I got married at 20yrs old.

I have lived in a few houses here in our time there but my favourite was the one by waters edge ,which you don't see in the picture but its on the left .In the summer it was wonderful to go out of our back gate and straight into the sea ,swimming and sailing. We then moved into one of the houses up on the hill between Porthmadog and are on the right of this photo.Its still a pretty village but I couldn't go back there to live as it has ,like a lot of pretty villages here in the UK turned more into a holiday village and is dead in winter . I do think its sad when villages end up like this as I remember it full of life and we knew everyone and there were a couple of grocery shops and a butcher shop too. I guess it happens everywhere and nothing stays the same.
The dogs both needed a bath when we got home and then I saw another sign of Spring in the garden. There are clumps of snowdrops everywhere now in the garden ; I so love these little flowers as they remind me of my Mam .

Then as the sun was still shinning I took out my latest finished cardigan to show you. I did a fibre swap with UK Spinners on Ravelry and I didn't know what I was going to make with all the ones I got. I thought they were too bright on their own for me to wear and I plyed the carded single with a single of grey Falkland but I was still unsure about a garment and started to knit a blanket . I then fell in love with the yarn :) I had carded the colours in their different shades and added silk noil and bamboo to the blend and I loved how it stripped so thought perhaps I could live with the stripes . So the blankie got frogged and I made this one in less than four days .I LOVE the FO and will wear it a lot and have other wool in my handspun stash that I intend to use for this pattern .

How to cheer January up ;)

2011-01-19T08:52:00.009Z

I always find January a flat grey month after all the Christmas festivities and when I worked in mental health it was one of the busiest months of the year ,which I can totally understand.

So to beat the blues I have gone for colour and boy did I have fun , I mixed up a riot of shades in my pots !!

Here they all are airing

and guess what the sun came out !!! Want a closer look ?

I also had a wonderful few days with my closest friend, my beautiful daughter and we had great fun making art yarns . We had fluff and glitter everywhere and have created some fab looking art yarns with coils, loops, beehives you name it we did it LOL and I will take pics of when they are dry.

New Year,new ideas

2011-01-11T22:10:00.010Z

Gosh I can't believe it was August when I last posted on here. Life is, as always busy ,I never have time to be bored and as always I need more hours in the day to do all I have planned.Yesterday I spent all day carding glitzy batts and today I dyed a kilo of fibre and tomorrow another kilo and a half will go to the dye pots. The reason for all this dyeing is twofold. I have too much roving so will list some in the Etsy shop and some will be used this weekend when my darling daughter is coming over and we are having a few spinning days. She has had a wild flyer for her Suzie for Christmas and so we are going to do some art yarns . I received a couple of spinning DVDs for Christmas one which was Jacey Boggs Sit and Spin and it has given me new ideas re making art yarns. She uses different methods to do some art yarns from what I learnt so it will be fun to try these out,hence the batts ;)

Another DVD I received is Judith MacKenzie 'A Spinners Toolbox' When I told a friend I was getting a few spinning DVDs for Christmas her reply was 'why? you can already spin' my answer is 'there is always something new to learn' This is the very reason why I so love spinning as I am continually learning new ways to do things.Also I am finding that everyone has their own way of doing things, they may not all be right but its another way of looking and trying things.

Something else new I learnt these last few weeks was a better way to spin angora (rabbit). In the past I have just grabbed locks straight from the bag and spun it longdraw but then there was a discussion on Ravelry about how folks spun it and there was a suggestion to card it into punis and spin it longdraw so I tried it and it and gives a far better yarn.Okay it takes time to do the punis but I get satisfaction from seeing them all stack up ready to spin and boy are they satisfying to spin up:)

I then dyed the yarn green as there was WAY too much of the white stuff around us !!!!

(We had the worst snow in living memory up here in December and it played havoc with our lives.Plenty of pretty pictures but many folks had burst pipes and broken gutters etc So glad it has finally melted and lets hope the rest of the winter is mild)

Last year thanks to Amanda Hanniford's lesson on longdraw I have perfected my longdraw and this year I want to produce more woollen spun yarns and I want to use fleece.I so want to get down to using more of my fleece.I have been spinning fleece mainly over the last few months to make Christmas gifts but I want to make garments and have a couple of fleece in mind for them.I know prepping fleece is the big time consumer but there is no denying you get a far superior yarn than any roving/top will ever give you. So that is this years challenge ,but saying that on the knitting front I desperately need to knit up some of my handspun yarns;I have enough already to make three garments but as yet not found the right pattern.

I really must do more knitting:) On the needles atm is a jumper for Tony;bless him he is patiently waiting for a jumper which I abandoned knitting to do pressie knitting. So does this mean less spinning and more knitting is in order? crikey I hope not ...now where can I find more hours in the day ?

Three out of four ain't bad

2010-08-22T13:29:00.015Z

Well I have dug my camera out and some FO's too :)

The latest off the needles is Goodale

I had intended to make Cloud Chaser with this yarn but my gauge was off so I had to find a pattern for it and Kath pointed out Goodale and it works. It might be a tad thick but I love it and will make another. This is yarn I spun a few years ago and its merino/silk and I had been keeping it for for something special but then I gained weight and I knew it wouldn't be enough for a sweater . So I dug it out and chucked it in the indigo vat and I love the colour and how the silk has taken the dye differently .

This one is another I love, February Lady.Again I love the colour and its done in Paton's Jet from my stash

Another Leisl and a quick knit from some Falkland handspun

Now to one that didn't work as is too large so it will head for the frog pond as I so love the yarn and will have to look for another pattern for it. This is 'Anna's Shoulder Wrap' and I think it would have worked if the yarn was not so chunky. The yarn is some Corriedale fleece I spun and didn't need another beige garment so I dyed it.

I am in sock knitting mode atm too as I need to re-stock my handknit socks ready for winter. I have done at least 1/2 doz pairs in the last few months but I thought I would show the latest which are made from some dyed Romney locks and then navajo plyed . I am having an experiment with spinning yarns for socks which is most interesting so hopefully will add more photos when they are done.

Lastly a WIP . I am knitting Cloud Chaser in some Colourmart Fine merino and it did make the gauge when swatched , although it does look a bit loose when I am knitting it ;fingers crossed it will full out like the swatch.

Last but not least many thanks to all of you who have posted and with such supportive posts and messages too. I was so touched, as I did think my post might have offended and indeed it might do for some !! Still I am now much happier to be dyeing my colours and for my use too :). I am back on track in my creativity and much more relaxed about not having to produce things for sale. What I produce is what I would like and if I decide to sell them then thats okay too .
Talking of colours I am finding that I am going 'off' rainbow dyed fibres and yarn for garments at least and much prefer solid or semi solid colours now.
Do you find that some colours 'stick' in your head and you lust after them ? I do and in the spring I had thing for deep pink , lime green and olivey brown and I dyed and spun some fibre to make the Featherweight cardigan then I went to Wonderwool Wales and fell in love with some dyed fibre and it wasn't until I spun it up and added it to my stash that I realized that it is more or less the same as what I had dyed myself . So here I am now with two lots of yarns , enough to make garments with and I have gone 'off' the colours !!
I am seasonal in my colour taste and am now heading into my autumn colours . Any one else like this ? Or am I the only colour tart around ;-0

Okay I am back

2010-07-10T04:11:00.011Z

For those of you who have noticed ,I closed my blog recently as I just wasn't getting the time or the energy to update it nor was I following other folks blogs .I haven't been updating Ravelry either with photos of FO or any work that I have been doing. Again this is partially due to lack of time and would much rather do stuff than write about it . There are times when this online world totally irritates me,I guess I am not a 'virtual' person and would rather live in he 'real' world, also in my opinion there are so many large egos out there that need feeding especially on Ravelry that I tend to want to shy away from the whole scene. BUT its part of life and it has its good side too and one of the reasons I am back is due to folks say they miss my blog so I am back but I can't promise I will post about every yarn I make and stitch I do .

Okay so what have I been up to ? I am still loving dyeing though haven't done any for the shop and re the shop I am am having a re-think about that too !! there are so many more indie dyers popping up these days and I have to say so many are of such poor quality that I can count on one hand how many I would buy from. That's not to say it isn't great to see new dyers , it is ,its just the quality I have issues about and some have no colour sense at all .I also think the market is flooded with dyed 'one skein wonders' and it time to think of something new, again I am never a follower of fashion but go my own way .
I also have to admit to being poor and amateurish at taking photos which doesn't help with online selling although we can't complain at the sales we have had in the past , its just I don't think our photos do them justice . So I think I will have to invest in a better camera at some point .
I never intended to make a business out of my hobbies and I still don't want that as I know I would soon lose the enjoyment and my creative soul would soon dry up .
We have been doing pretty well with our craft fairs and but again I really don't want to do more than I can handle . I enjoy what I do and as long as it pays for my hobby , which it does I am more than happy.

Enough ranting :)......here are photos of some natural dyeing that we did when Kath came over last weekend . Some are destined for a waistcoat from 'Dazzling Knits' plus some handspun silk and merino was indigo dyed for the waistcoat 'Cloud Chaser'

Next on the cards are things to get ready for a local craft exhibition later this month I have been asked to take part in which is very exciting . Oh and as I write this at some unearthly hour in the morning I am awaiting the postie to hopefully deliver a new wheel. We decided to sell on our lovely Lendrum and get a smaller travelling wheel so the Majacraft Little Gem made sense as the bobbins , flyers etc from the Suzie would go with it. I do hope we are doing the right thing as I loved the Lendrum . The only consolation is its going to a lovely friend who I am sure will love her as mush as we did

ETA : natural dyes used madder, weld, logwood, cochineal, brazilwood, alkanet, , from the garden purple elder and hops,red onion which we got green from again and ordinary onion which we got yellow and gold and then an indigo vat the second day.

Home sweet home

2009-12-21T09:51:00.008Z

We went up to the Wirral over the weekend in the van to visit family and deliver gifts etc . It was great to see everyone but boy we were so glad to get back home on Saturday evening . Thankfully the Crimea Pass gets gritted regularly and was okay when we went over but I gather that later on it was a bit hairy. We foolishly hadn't taken the snow chains in our hurry to leave so it would have meant staying put somewhere until we could get over .

Sunday it snowed all day and it was so dark for most of the day . Not that we minded ; we were home in our warm cosy cottage and were busy putting our Christmas deccies up.

Yet more snow yesterday and this morning it all looked gorgeous in the sunshine but its lethal underfoot as it froze heavily last night. This photo was taken on Sunday and the snow is much thicker now.

This time of year is always one for reflection for me on the ones we have lost , or who are ill and suffering and when we worked at the homeless centre in Liverpool it was much more apparent who were the haves and have not's. Of course I am not talking about the material things, which it seems Christmas has turned into these days but the more important things in life like the basics of having a roof over your head,good health and a supportive family. We used to work all over the Christmas period , nights as well and it was very busy ; I wonder if the centres are even busier this year with fiances being how they are !!
So I give thanks for what we have, a warm cosy cottage and a loving relationship , they are the most precious gifts I could want for Christmas.

I wish you all the very warmest blessings for the festive season and for 2010

A yen to knit laceweight ?

2009-12-14T12:59:00.007Z

I haven't knitted any proper laceweight for quite some time now but I have so loved spinning this silk I bought from Oliver Twist at Wonderwool this year. Their silk has to be the softest silk I have ever bought and spun and I don't know what they rinse it in but it also smells divine It took quite some time to spin this and practically one day to ply it. I also messed up on the Andean plying for what was left on one bobbin so I lost another 9 gms of it :( but I am sure I will use it when I do some more felting.

There are 936yds to play with and I am thinking maybe the Aeolian shawl. There are so many lovely shawls to choose from these days but personally I don't like the ones that seem to have every stitch pattern thrown at them and in my opinion they look too fussy . I am aiming to get this knitted up before the next Wonderwool so that I can justify buying more ;)
I have been busy spinning some fibre purchases I made at the Trefriw Christmas Market we went to last weekend ; they too are destined for a shawl but a simple mindless one. The 'Faraway so Close' one and I am thinking of using up different plum/purple/pink colours of handspun that I have accumulated .

I also had a lovely parcel from my Secret Santa on UK Fleece Group on Ravelry and I just couldn't resist opening it ; well I had to have treat as this head cold is driving me insane atm :(
It has inspired me to order more grey shetland and some grey alpaca/silk to dye up so that I can make a garment with it all . Thank you Secret Santa ;)

On my Louet I am still spinning the Teeswater x Jacob for this vest I am knitting. I fear that I may not have enough fleece to finish it :( I bought this at Woolfest and on reflection it was a mistake. It was already washed and it looked lovely and indeed parts of it are beautiful but there is so much VM in it plus its been felted in the washing so there is huge wastage. Never again will I buy pre washed fleece ; my excuse is I had a migraine at the time of buying it and I was seduced by the lovely colour. X fingers I will have enough to finish it and the patience to card it all up !!!
Thank you all for your lovely comments, its so lovely that even after such a long abscenece folks still care enough to post. Thank you :)

Stop, Pause ........Re-wind

2009-11-18T11:54:00.018Z

I can't believe its over three months since I have updated my blog and all I can say is that I have been busy . So very busy , what with a summer with lots of visitors , a fab holiday in Yorkshire of which Masham Sheep fair was such a highlight .

I have been dyeing up a storm for craft fairs etc and even done a workshop in a local primary school on felting .I had forgotten how much I enjoyed teaching and the children created a wonderful wall hanging at the end of the morning and it now hangs in the schools main foyer. I was so pleased to have such great feedback from the head and staff.

We also had a Ravelry meet up at Harlech which was fantastic and we met up with some lovely people and I was asked to take some of my dyed yarns there too and did very well ;)
I so appreciate it when folks love my colours and there were one or two new combos I have come up with which flew out . The only downside to all this rushing about is that it wears me out but we did our last craft fair the other week until April and now I can do things for meeeeee:) We have been asked if we are having a stall in Wonderwool and the answer is a defo NO . I really can't afford to push myself to do more than I am able;it is so very tempting to try though especially as we have been doing so well. I have learnt the hard way that for me it won't work and also I would end up not having the time to do the things I want to do. I never wanted my hobbies to turn into a business but if I was younger and healthier then oh boy I would have thrown myself into it but at this stage in my life I shall be content to do the odd craft fair here and there .

I haven't taken any photos of work I have done and a lot has now sold too which is nice and I used handspun yarns for all my knitted stuff too.
So I shall now re-wind & show some pics of our hols and the fantastic Masham Sheep fair which will now be part of our annual holiday I think.

Lots of sheep :) and it was lovely to see so many different breeds there too

This one was definitely the cute one

and this one won the best fleece

This one was most certainly not the cutest

There were brass bands,Morris dancers but these were the dancers I loved and if I lived nearer I would join them ;)They certainly did seem to be enjoying themselves

I had forgotten what a pain Blogger is for loading pics :( So I will leave you with a shot of our stall at the last craft fair just to prove that I have been doing something during my absence .

So now will you stop bulling me to update my blog ? you know who you are ;)
I'm back and I will try and not leave it too long before I update again.

A few FO

2009-08-02T17:09:00.013Z

I have given up waiting to get photos of me wearing some FO before they get worn out !! so here they are on the hanger .
A Kimono jacket ,pattern by Liz Lovick , yarn Colourmart wool & silk. I think I will get a lot of wear out of this one when the weather gets colder.

Beaded waistcoat ,yarn and pattern from House of Hemp. I was initially pleased with this but it has dropped a lot so I am thinking of undoing a bit ;also I wished I had done it on smaller needles than the pattern said.

I wanted an orangey cardi 'like yesterday' to go with something and this was the only yarn in my stash that was remotely near. Its vintage Sirdar Nocturne with naff 70's 'bits'in it . I made the sleeves shorter and its okay . Love the style/pattern though so will make another in better yarn next time . Oh and the pattern is 'Liesel'by Ysolda Teague .

I think there might a couple of other knitty FO but I can't remember, did I do a shawl ? !! on the needles atm I am knitting another Elsewhere in blue .

Here are some weaving pics :
First is a scarf .The warp is commercial cashmere laceweight and the weft is hand dyed , hand spun cashmere , alpaca, silk. This has a lovely drape to it and 'might' end up as a Christmas gift !!

Lastly is a WIP as I haven't fulled this as yet as I am making another strip in the same yarns to turn into cushion covers for the kitchen chairs.
These are all hand spun yarns and are the ones I dyed in the indigo vat the other week(which by the way is still going !!)

Off to Pembroke this week which I am so looking forward to even if it will be hectic .

All work no play

2009-07-26T12:51:00.028Z

This post is photo heavy and silly Blogger has got them all over the place too? Do hope its legible !!

Tony has been working 12 hour shifts flat out since Woolfest which is good news in one way as it means that at least in some areas the economy is picking up and they have now taken on more staff this last week. But it was a relief to get away in the van last week albeit for only a couple of nights and we headed for Anglesey again .
The weather was on the whole kind to us and we did rest up as well as doing some walking.

I loved how the lichen drapes these trees and in the evening light they were quite spooky

.
We had a walk down at Porth Swtan or as the English call it, Church Bay

On a hot sunny day this beach would be packed with holiday makers but as we just had heavy showers of rain we had it all to ourselves.

These rocks are some of the oldest in this country apparently, a fact I hadn't realized until I read the notice board. I just noticed that they were all colours and looked great wet !!

There were plenty of sea anenomes in the rock pools and I love the structures of this kelp seaweed ; it reminds me of freeform crochet

I had never been to Parys Mountain before and as we were passing we thought we would go and see it. It is an old copper mine that dates back to the Bronze Age. I know that there is a lot of controvesy about the health issues re this mine and that it is still causing pollutants but I was overcome by the whole beauty of the place. It looked out of this world in its bareness and all the colours of the waste , stones etc. I hadn't realized how big it was either and I can only begin to imagine what a hellish place it would have been to work in with the fumes and the noise.

Wind power
Old :

and new:

The most important thing for us in these trips is to chill out together and we found this wonderful meadow which was perfect and again not a soul in sight .

I was able to play with my new Jenkins Turkish Delight spindle which had arrived the day we were leaving and I had brought Babylonglegs 'Clover' roving along ; very fitting for the occassion I thought.

I am now fully converted to Turkish spindles and will be getting a larger one but I do love this dinky little one which nearly fits in the palm of your hand .

So its back to normal and Tony is back to work for now but our next trip is back down to Pembroke to catch up with some very dear friends .

Tour de Fleece

2009-07-19T13:36:00.020Z

I don't know what I imagined Tour de Fleece would be about and as I have no interest at all in the Tour de France then I do wonder why I joined it !!
Still as I spin every day I thought I might as well. I did start as I meant to go on with fleece but after seeing such beautiful pictures on Ravelry of all the coloured yarns that folks were doing I succumbed to doing dyed rovings.
I am also playing on the new wheel so it was good to see what I could turn out on it, plus I have a new drum carder too to try out , a Louet Junior
So here as requested and promised is a photo of the Louet S15 and on the reverse is the metal hologram disc which weights the wheel and which has picked up colour from the flash on the camera

So what have I created on it this week ?
First of all I started on a gorgeous fleece I bought at Woolfest, its a Teeswater X Jacob and it so silky and lustrous. I have spun this in aran weight for a waistcoat

Then I had a play and did a navajo plyed fine single and then a thick and thin one with the same roving .

As I said I have a new drum carder as well. Am I happy with it ? well yes and no. I can see that it does blend better than the Barnett I have but I reckon the Barnett is better for fleece . Yet again not all fleece though as I tried this very fine cria alpaca fleece I had and the Louet was far better in prepping it.I was going to get rid of one but it seems I need them both , well for now any way !!
I guess overall I still think the Barnett is better , until I do find another ;)Wish we had the choices folks in the US have ; would love to try a Pat Green or the Straunch .

Right back to reality .....here is a small skein of the alpaca and again I have spun it in various thickness laceweight
a) to see if the wheel can do it and b) to see how the softness of the alpaca holds out . It held up really well even spun super fine and the only problem I had was in washing it as I nearly felted the skein. I didn't pre wash this fleece ,dirty though it was as I feared it would felt . So I will just have to cope with really dirty hands when I spin the rest;)

On the wheel now are some drum carded batts which have been chucked on lumps, bumps and all to use in weaving and will be plyed tonight .
I feel I have given this wheel a good test run this week and I still love it and I am still surprised at how a very simple wheel is so versatile .

I can't forget my Suzie though and this week I plyed the laceweight yarn I spun from Freyalyn'srovings bought at Wonderwool Wales. The biggest skein comprises of two rovings, one is finest English wool and its plyed with a kid mohair roving . I didn't spin the mohair as fine so had a lot of the other left !! 576yds on the large skein and 364 yds on the smaller.

I have realized that I have too many blue yarns and garments and that this rich plummy pinky shade actually suits me so I am going to do more in this shade and feel the urge to get the dyepots out soon .

I have also since Woolfest spun over a kilo of Alpaca roving from the lovely John Arbon at UK Alpaca to make a jumper and its about the only photo I posted on the Tour de Fleece group before getting bored with the whole event . Guess I am just not competitive any more ;)
I also haven't got out of TdF I was hoping for ie get a whole fleece spun so I am now going to get on with that instead but at least I have tested a new wheel and done good samples for future projects

My new Louet Love

2009-07-16T07:58:00.005Z

I have always hankered after a Louet S10 so when I was given the chance to buy an S15 , which I have to say I didn't know of until I read about them and found they are basically the same as the S10, I leapt at it . Now I own a Suzie Pro and a Lendrum (which DH has now claimed but I still use at times) and I have also owned an Ashford Traveller in the past , so I reckon I know a little about using different wheels. I had heard how good the S10 was and my spinning instructor who herself owns 6 wheels always says if she could only have one wheel then that would be her choice . So in a way I was expecting good things but in reality what I wanted in this wheel was a 'spin in the grease,chuck it on thick n thin ' yarn for textured weaving, plus I could take it to spinning demos and let kids play on it.
I thought it would probably be a clunky , noisy spin but that would be okay as I wouldn't be using it that much.So imagaine my surprise when after cleaning this dirt covered wheel which hadn't been used in a very,very long time to have a noiseless spin apart from the whirring bobbin and this baby loves spinning laceweight with no effort but can just as easily spin chunky too. To say I love this wheel is an understatement and I rate it as highly as my very expensive Suzie Pro . I love its simplicity ,its low maintenance (no oiling at all !!)and its versatility. I can more easily take this to guild with me without worrying about getting it dented and its far lighter than the Suzie.The only thing I have bought for it is a new stretchy band and I can't see the need for anything else; it came with three single speed bobbins and one smaller one (is that the standard one ?)
I bought this wheel at an auction for peanuts and the yarn on the bobbins indicated that it was once owned by a talented spinner . It has a lovely Celtic design painted on the front but on the back is a metal disc that I wasn't that impressed with & I was about to take it off until I realized it was there for a purpose, to weight the wheel :)
Call me sentimental but I always wonder about objects bought second hand and about the person who owned them and I wonder who or where this person is and why they got rid of this wonderful wheel but I am so glad I have come by it .
So it just goes to prove you don't need to spend much for a great wheel , it doesn't need to be complicated and you can produce any yarn you need ,you just need to be patient and keep your eyes peeled for a bargain, they are out there :)
I will post a picture just as soon as I find my camera !!

C'mon you blues

2009-07-05T15:08:00.012Z

It's been blue skies for weeks now and I love the colour blue and what better blue is there than indigo ? So I have made an indigo vat which I am hoping to keep going for a few weeks until Kath can come over to play with it.

Tony had never seen indigo dyeing before and as he said its a bit of alchemy in the mixing of it and the way it turns colour when it oxidizes.

A job for outdoors and the perfect spot just outside the kitchen

The end results in all their blues and the vat is still going strong so I am going to mordant more yarns and do some cochineal ,weld and onion skins this week and then over dye with the indigo.
Carrying on with the blue theme I have two blue FO's to show you. The first is a weaving I have just finished in hemp ,handspun silk and few beads here and there.

I quite like the finished effect but boy do I hate hemp now !! I still have to show you the beaded hemp waistcoat but I need DH to take pics of me wearing it and another two cardis I have done too!! Going back the hemp and the reason I hate ? It has no life, its like knitting with string and as for weaving it, it kinks but also limp and is hard on the hands. never again , my love affair with hemp is defo over . I have to say it does hang well and I am told it softens with wear but I ain't doing nothing else in the darned stuff, no sireeee, hate hate it !!! There do you get it ? No hemp for me again .

The next bluey, is a shawlette in some of the suri alapaca fleece I bought at Wonderwool and I love this quick little knit and its so warm too.

Technically its not all blue as I dyed the spun yarn with some purple too.

Talking of alpaca, I am spinning some I bought at Woolfest I was going to wait until Tour de Fleece (on Ravelry!! ) started but I couldn't wait ,so started this on Tuesday . I had two bobbins by yesterday and then today ,as I have been up from 3.30am I have done another bobbin and started the fourth. I guess this will be finished tonight and I will ply the lot when all the singles are done.
Its uber soft and I have done it DK weight and have just the jumper pattern lined up for it .

I was going to stick strictly to fleece for TdF but I haven't had any time to card the one I wanted to . Still it might be just the incentive I need to either finish last years Katmoget or carry on with the yummy Polwarth . I really should finish the Katmoget as there isn't much of it left !!
We had a good time at Woolfest but unfortunately I didn't see much of the show itself due to a migraine , it was oh so hot too but then I didn't need much and they are pretty much the same stalls as in Wonderwool .The highlight was meeting up with friends old and new and the impromptu evening gatherings were such fun too. I did succumb to the wonderful Oliver Twists again and of course picked up my fleece and ended up with another two unexpected ones . I really will show you samples of our fleece mountain next post plus more on weaving and Tony's new loom. Plus some more FO's maybe ;)

Pilgrimage (Photo Heavy )

2009-06-15T07:38:00.053Z

First of all I want to thank you all for your sympathetic post re Sue. It never ceases to amaze me how generous and thoughtful Bloggers are and I so appreciate your kind words.

We were in need of a break so we thought we would combine an unearthly early hospital appointment for a scan with a few days on Anglesey.

There are a few places I know that I would call perhaps mystical and have a calming, restful quality about them and I long to spend time there. Lindisfarne is one , at least not in the height of the summer season and away from the touristy spots; another is Ynys Dwynwen on Anglesy . Both of these are of course islands which are cut off on high tides. Dwynwen might not be as big as Lindisfarne but in its out of the way spot it is also very much quieter and just the place we needed to sooth the soul.
The weather was glorious and I knew I was in for a hike but it was just what I needed and the aches and pains were well worth it. There is a marked pilgrim path which we hadn't done before , longer but oh so worth it .

We started out through the forest

Then we veered to the estuary

There was an abundance of wild flowers . One of my favourites were the orchids in all shades of pink.

There was a wonderful bank of wild hearts ease in all shades of blues , white and yellow ; amazing how they cross pollinate. If only I could grow them in my garden ; here they thrive in the sandy soil. They certainly do ease the heart :)

Then miles of deserted white beach which in the sunshine and turquoise sea looked tropical. Don't you just love it when you get so much space all to yourself ?

Along the way we see some interesting things including a sculpture made with debris washed up in storms complete with photos from the sculptor.

Is this a crocodile hiding under the seaweed? See the ridges of its back ?

At last we see sight of the island or should I say islands. Also in the far distance out of camera shot is Ynys Enlli another island on the pilgrims list which is at the end of the Lleyn peninsula.

This is the view from the causeway looking toward the mainland off Anglesey and the beach of Newborough, again not many folks about .

Then the island itself.

We spent a few hours relaxing in the warm sun before the long walk back, happy but exhausted and I slept that night like a log. My thoughts that day turned to why islands are quite often holy or sacred places and I wondered if it was something to do about pushing the boundaries as far as we can, both physically and emotionally? I don't know, but I do know that I need to go to these places to get the 'balance' back in my life. It also brings out my creative side and I spent a lovely day yesterday dyeing .

Well blogger is being awkward and this is the third time I have done this post and I am hoping it will post now .

We have both been very busy creating and I will tell you in the next post all about the FO's , another cardigan finished , cowl, moebius ,beaded waistcoat, weaving . Ah yes weaving , another weaver is born and its not me, its my beloved other half . Oh and fleece, fleece , fleece overflowing from every corner; we are now officially the owners of a fleece mountain with so many beautiful ones . Catch up with you after Woolfest ;)

My dearest friend Sue

2009-06-05T07:18:00.003Z

After a long three year battle with mesothelioma our very close friend Sue passed away peacefully on the 20th May .
My heart is so heavy and I am totally at a loss with myself at the moment & I will miss her so very, very much .

Arghhhhhh two post in one day !!!

2009-03-24T12:18:00.007Z

Well I was shamed into taking photos of something that I have made to justify my poor old blog and before they wear out !!
Tony's jumper

Its a grey day here today after all the sunshine and I think he blends well with the background !!
Take your hands out of your pocket Tobo

That's better sweetie :)
One pair of hand dyed , hand spun socks in BFL superwash;the other pair is in the wash. Heck what do you want ?

I love these odd socks that I dye up for a quick spin/knit and they are turned out in three days tops . Also I spin them DK weight for the same reason, instant gratification.
Right I might be gone for some time now :)

you get what you need

2009-03-24T05:44:00.019Z

I have to say that I am pretty happy and content with my life and okay it would be lovely to have financial security in this un-certain world as we are facing yet more redundancy's in Tonys workplace BUT why is it at times we always fancy what we can't have ?
For example :
We went for a walk last week in all this lovely sunshine we have been having lately and I managed to walk for far longer than I thought I would be able to. We started from a lake near us called Llyn Mair(Mary's Lake)

We slowly climbed up and the views get better and better the higher you get

It was a bit hazy so we couldn't quite see our village on the opposite side of the valley but it is practically in the middle of this photo

Then in the middle of nowhere with a dirt track going to it ( we still can't figure how you get to it )was this cute little cottage and we both thought the same 'Wouldn't it be heaven to live in a place like this ? '

Don't the dogs blend in well and look at home ?
No electricity but they had a wind generator and solar panels plus a great log store

It was lovely to see that it wasn't a holiday home as so many of these out of the way places often are here . I have to quickly add, in case you think I am anti holiday homes that I have nothing against incomers at all in fact I welcome them but its sad to see villages dying due to so many part time occupancy homes. We could see that this home was much loved but we had to turn back the way we had come as the dirt road ended there and try and find out were we had got lost on the path we had intended to go on.
We had planed to go to the top lake Hafod y Llyn but I was getting tired by now so it was back down through the woods and we sat a while on this seat which I was certainly glad of and it had a babbling stream nearby which the dogs enjoyed playing in too cool off.

Then we followed the river down

until we caught sight again of Llyn Mair

It was a really lovely walk and totally unexpected in many ways, a real tonic for the soul . It's days like this that make life special for us both when you get the gift of being a part of the beauty around us for however briefly and its enough to satisfy a need and make us happy with what we have.

On the spinning front I had two deliveries of Cormo fleece last week, one was a kilo and came from Sue Macnivern which apparently comes from Tasmania and the other weighs 2 lbs and is from the USA and is a coated fleece. These purchases are a treat really as they are quite expensive for my purse but oh my they are both quite gorgeous
Here they are unwashed

The coated one (on the right) is so very much cleaner and far easier to prep but the other is finer . I am being very careful in washing these both , a little at a time in a small bowl and its paying off as they are the softest fleece I have ever had and feel just like cashmere . I am really looking forward to spinning them .
I also had delivery of the high speed head for the Suzie Pro last week and what can I say but WOW . I though the wheel was fast before but now its amazing and with even lower ratios it makes spinning laceweight yarn even simpler if that's at all possible. Tony says after trying the new set up that he thinks spinning on this wheel is cheating as it so simple to produce yarn and he may be right ;) I am spinning another yummy fibre at the moment , some Pygora which again I bought from the US. Now there is nothing wrong with all the lovely fleece we have in this country in fact I love them all,its just that ...... 'I want what I can't get' thing again !! I read on the net about fleece from Targhee , Rambouilett, Cormo ,Pygora etc etc and you think why can't we have that , what's it like , why can't I have ? Now I guess I can't have it all but I guess I will be happy with what I have and get what I need and enjoy it while I can :)
Oh and I still haven't taken a photo of Tony in his new jumper or the two pairs of handspun socks that I have done .What can I say, I am hopeless but perhaps one day ;)

I am still here !!

2009-03-02T14:15:00.011Z

There are times when I feel that I should quit blogging as I can't keep up with the photo taking, writing etc but then I think no, I really would miss it and it is a record of 'some ' of the things that I am up to. Ravelry takes up way too much time & energy these days and although I had been good at limiting my time there I find lately that its creeping up again so I am going to try and curb it once more. I go to look for a pattern etc and then get embroiled and then I am too tired to do anything else on the computer.

Right, what have I been up to ? knitting wise I have nearly finished Tony's jumper, I think sadly that I am going to have to frog my 'bog'jacket as its huge (not given up on it though). I have made a couple of pairs of socks and given them away without any decent photos !!
Here is one which I di take a photo of and which my little niece dyed the yarn for. We had a great time with her and Emily dyeing with Kool Aid over the half term.

Ffion also had a play on the drum carder and made a blend for me to spin so I made her a cowl with the yarn . So interesting to watch her choose which colours and fibres she put in too.

I have been dyeing a fair bit for myself too but alas no photos ;hopefully I will show you them in the knitting process. I have a thing for limey spring green at the moment , that and purple :)

I have also been doing a lot of spinning on the new wheel of course. It has been lovely now that we can both sit on the sofa side by side, nattering and listening to music :)

I love this new wheel its so well built and is such a speed demon ; this particular yarn I am really quite proud of.

Its 3ply and with 396yds plus another 40yds left over from the two bobbins from 100gms. has to be the most I have ever got from that weight. It was so effortless though ,which is what amazed me. I have always believed that you can spin any yarn on most wheels but I have to say that there are some wheels that its far easier on, and that's what I need with my joint problems.I have spun quite a few other skeins as well but no photos. The same day the wheel arrived so did a book I had on order. I have been after this book for a few years as its out of print.Its called 'Spinning for Softness and Speed by Paula Simmons 'and I managed to get a really cheap copy from Canada ; imagine my surprise to get a signed copy no less. I am thrilled with it and so I have been practising how to do it , very handy as you only use one hand leaving the other free for a G+T :)just need to practise now !!!

We had a great guild day last week making silk paper and these photos really aren't very good but I am including them any way; the two vessels look lovely with night lights in them . I can see that this craft will be very useful for a lot of things I have in mind for gifts etc

Right off to empty my dye pot, I have 500gms of cashmere bubbling away in a purple dye :)

Oh and I ave just remebered Amber gave me an award which I still need to put on the blog but I promise I will do that next time and it will be soooooooooon :) Thanks Amber but I really don't think I desrve it ;)

brrrrrr its cold

2009-02-07T10:51:00.010Z

Like the rest of the country we have had snow all this week starting on Monday and this is what it was like when we took the dogs for a walk in the woods.

On Tuesday we went down to Porthmadog and it was all clear down there but we still had plenty up here.
We live behind the Moelwyn's and you can see clearly the snow line.

Yesterday it was still snowing after a lovely sunny morning when I was able to walk the dogs . I meant to take my camera to the woods as the snow has gone into quite deep drifts in places and the dogs had great fun in them.
This a quick shot of the back garden and needless to say I haven't ventured into the shed lately :(

Today I am going to the Lleyn Christams dinner , we always have it after Christmas which is nice. I have to drive to Caernarfon and a I hope that the roads will be clear. We have had yet more snow overnight and showers again this morning.
All this cold weather has meant I have been sitting in front of the log burner a lot :) and am getting on well with Tony's sweater. Thank goodness we have a cosy cottage as I can't bear the cold and it plays havoc with my joints.

Roll on Spring

plying last night

2009-02-01T13:03:00.011Z

Not much on the knitting front this last week but a lot of spinning. I also went to the Lleyn SWD Guild on Thursday and it was spinning so I achieved a lot there .
All in all I filled my eight bobbins on the Lendrum and so I had to ply last night.
These have all spun up this week .

This was part of a Christmas gift from Kath and its lovely camel and silk and I have left it natural . I have 'Tudora' From Knitty lined up for it

Next was some lovely alpaca, silk and cashmere I dyed up and this will be a shawl , perhaps another mindless Forest Canopy . Again yummily soft but I just can't get the colour to show properly.I really do wish I could find a better camera that doesn't cost the earth . Any suggestions ?

I mentioned in my last post that I have started the Shetland Katmoget fleece and this is the first skein so far. I had intended for it to be DK but what I hadn't allowed for when I spun it as that is that it had a lot of lanolin in it (even though I did wash it )& after washing it all out it has 'floofed' up and I would say that its more aran weight now , but so so soft. Whatever its lovely to spin and the lanolin left make it a quick spin.

Last but not least Ursula and I did a fibre swap this last week and this arrived yesterday morning and in between cooking for DS and his GF I spun it up and then plyed it last night.
Lovely colours and I had intended socks but I guess I was nattering too much (what's new?!!)and I have done it DK weight so another cowl perchance ? Couldn't get the colours to show right on this one either :(

So now ALL the bobbins are free . I so love spinning but I really must get on with my knitting too . So I am going to try and steer away from spinning for a couple of weeks . Crikey this will be so hard, I tell much harder than dieting any day !!
The reason for my self inflicted madness is two fold.
One: I really must knit some of my WIP's .
Two: we are getting a new wheel :)
We have sold Tony's wheel at a very good price. It was a cracking wheel for spinning laceweight but not the most comfortable to spin on for long hours plus he has been eyeing up the Lendrum. So which wheel to go for, I love the Lendrum and its brill for fleece and thicker weight yarns plus great for in the van and guild etc. I have tried a few wheels over the years and I have to say I did like the Suzie Pro and again it won't take much room in our house so that is what we have gone for. It will be a couple of weeks before we get it as they are expecting a delivery from NZ . So I will be well ready for it when it arrives and Tony can play with the Lendrum in the meantime :)and I will have to knit !!

Santes Dwynwen

2009-01-24T16:58:00.012Z

Tomorrow is Santes Dwynwen day which for us is the Welsh equivalent of Valentine's day . For those of you who don't know about her here is a link to tell you all about her. Llanddwyn Island has to be for me one of my most fav places to visit on Ynys Mon (Anglesey)and we had hoped to go there tomorrow but we are going visiting instead as one of Tony's sisters is in hospital recovering from a heart operation.
Still it will be even nicer to go there when the weather improves which at the moment seems far away.
Yet another cold day here today so it will be in front of the fire later either spinning or knitting. I am spinning a gorgeous Katmoget Shetalnd fleece which I bought in Woolfest last year . I have no ideas as yet what I will knit with it but I am doing it at DK weight with the intention of getting it spun and knit up by Woolfest this year.
On the knitting front I have finished the back of 'the boggy jacket' but its on hold now until I finish Tony's jumper. I have nearly done the body which is coming on really quickly . Ah the joys of knitting in the round ;)
I also made another cashmere cowl for myself this week as I needed a grey one . Not worth a piccie though as its just a plain knit.
Well the dyeing muse has returned and with Dwynwen in mind I was inspired to dye these colours

My creation
Originally uploaded by murraymuddler

Not sure how to do these mosaic thingy's !! Think I need some lessons from Kath ;)

My favs are these but as usual the colours never show up well with photos.

Colour is definitely a therapy for me and I so love creating them through fibres. These have just been listed in the shop and it won't break my heart if they don't sell.

Blwyddyn Newydd Dda

2009-01-10T11:47:00.011Z

Gosh were did 2008 go ? and here we are halfway through January 2009 !!
I try not too look back but 2008 was a mixed year for us and the main worry is employment but then half the world seems to be in the same boat and I am determined not to worry too much about it. I do think though that the media does nothing to help re picking things up; its all doom and gloom on the TV so how can one feel free to spend money and thus start things circulating yet again ?

We had a wonderful Christmas and spent it with family and friends and I am so grateful that we are blessed with both . We did have an untimely end to the festive season though when we had to come home this way .....

Not a journey that I would like to repeat again . We had the most horrendous noise
coming from the van and the whole thing was shaking , very scary . Then we had to wait for over three hours at a service station near Lancaster until they eventually got the right loader for us . The weather was awful with freezing fog all the way . So we anticipated a rather large bill to start for us in 2009, but we were delighted to find out yesterday that it was a 'square wheel ' we had ; of course if it had blown on the motorway it could have been a different story .

Re achievements last year , with my spinning I was trying to go from spinning cobweb yarn to making DK or aran.It wasn't easy I found as I kept going back to spinning fine if I wasn't concentrating but I think I have it mastered now. Its funny but when you start spinning ,you long for your yarn to be as thin and fine as you can get but when you master it its so much harder to get the thicker weights. I don't want to be one of those spinners that only does lace weight especially as I have gone off knitting lace shawls at the moment. In fact I have gone off knitting fine things full stop and that includes socks; funny how I can spin fine without any bother but I can't knit it !!
I have knitted a couple of pairs of socks in DK now and I love them as they are so quick to make and great for this cold weather. I will try and do the finer weight yarns when the weather warms up and hopefully my joints will be better.

Kath and I also opened an Etsy shop in 2008 and we did very well although both of us are a bit off dyeing at the moment so its on the back burner but hopefully we will resume when the muse strikes. Saying that we did dye a couple of things the other day when she came over.
She dyed this roving for me as a gift which is to go towards a project I am doing and I love the colours .

We visited
Ursula and Phil whilst we were away and what a welcome they gave us . They had made a wonderful spread with the most delicious sausage rolls I have had in a long time . Ursula gave some pencil roving as a gift and I have dyed it up and again I love these colours too.

I have never spun pencil roving and I am not sure as yet if I will spin this up or knit it as it is and maybe felt it . So for now I will just admire it :)

I am enjoying my knitting at the moment too and after doing so many small projects for gifts its lovely to get my teeth into something bigger .
I have wanted to make something out of the book 'Maggie's Ireland' for a while now and this one caught my eye as a starter.Its called the 'Bog of Allen Jacket ' or as I have renamed it 'my boggy jacket '

I am using all handspun yarns and I am really enjoying it so far and hopefully its a quick mindless knit. I have done a couple of changes and have gone down a needle size and I am doing below the smallest size in the book but I do think its going to be a loose jacket . Do hope it will look as good as in the book !! This is how far I am at the moment , looks like a face doesn't it with two owly eyes LOL.

I needed a different yarn for a section so am spinning some up at the moment and rather than go back to knitting the boring shawl I have on the needles I started doing this for DH in some gorgeous Patons Jet which was going so cheap at Kemps Wool . I knew as soon as he saw this colourway that he would love it , again some alterations as he doesn't want a cinched rib and wants a big, baggy version .

After not buying hardly any wool in 2008 I have bought quite a lot from Kemps this last week or so and have two lots of Wendy Fusion, a yarn I have never used before but its lovely and soft , so I am on the lookout for patterns using it . Any suggestions ? I am hoping that the stripes don't make me look fatter :(
Plus I bought another two lots of the Patons Jet which I am going to make jackets with at some point. I felt a bit guilty about buying this lot as really I want to spin all of my yarns but it was so cheap and as I have gained weight since I bought a lot of my yarns I am going to have a destash of some this year that I won't use.

Talking of gaining weight I am going to diet this year too :( something I have never done in my life but I am a size 16 at the moment but its more than that , I feel uncomfortable and this extra weight is not helping my joints.My illness has meant that I have been up and down but I seem to be stable at the moment thank goodness so I am hoping that it will be safe to diet . Unfortunately I do seem to be getting some nasty side effects from this new drug and have been on yet more anti-biotics etc this last week and I am seeing my consultant next week to discuss things .

So folks that's it for now and may I wish you all the very best for 2009 and may it be a kind year for us all ; and if I were to make a resolution it would be to try and take more photos of FO ;)

Keeping up with the 'Mogs' ;)

2008-12-09T19:32:00.006Z

Two post in two days !!!!!!
I just had to show you my new toy . Courtesy of Mr Mog the instigator of 'the must have gadget'. Tony has been in the shed and built me a floor standing swift. Why, oh why didn't I have one of these years ago. Its a joy to wind the most twisted bulky skein up and it takes seconds

Now I understand why Amber raved about it and I can do it whilst sitting down too :-)

What knitting in black will do to you

2008-12-08T16:49:00.009Z

I am still plodding on with Christmas knits but I nearly threw in the towel making these three for some of the menfolk in my family.

Yes they are all different sizes and they are cowls which is what they asked for but in black !! Don't get me wrong I love black but its not easy to knit with at night , thank goodness for a daylight lamp otherwise I would never have done them. You can't even see the pattern on them in this picture either but they will be snuggly warm as they are done in pure cashmere. That and a return to dull grey days plus new dyes to try out and I had to have deep bright colours to see around me.
What do you think ? Bright enough ? I think they are brighter in real life too and some might end up in the shop if I can part with them .

More ?

These two are for a prize raffle that Shirley is raising money for the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation. Her target is £1000 after the sad loss of her Mum; go and read her blog and enter her raffle and help support a great cause as well :)

Then I had a purple itch that needed more scratching !! but I had this blue to try called 'Electric Blue' so that was added .I think it is electric too :))

The trouble with not posting regularly is that I forget what I have been doing ...heck I forget what I did yesterday !! BUT I did remember this little beauty thatUrsula made for me in a swap we had .

Its the most useful knitting bag I have and goes with me each time we go out any where and its bright too. Thanks Ursula I love it :)

Portmeirion

2008-11-18T08:05:00.015Z

On Sunday we went to Portmeirion to see an Arts and Crafts fair which a friend of mine had a stall in.
Portmeirion is just down the mountain from us and we only go in when its 'free' and this year the free vouchers issued have been like gold dust. Apparently 5,000 were issued and we were on their mailing list but we didn't get one and some were given to the local tourist office but some greedy so and so cleared the whole lot out in a day !! Anyway the kind gentleman on the gate had a spare one for us so now we can go free until the Spring:)

I have to say I also rather go there at this time of year as its generally quieter and I also love going there when the Christmas lights are all up , really magical. The fair was really good and I did buy a couple of Christmas gifts.
So here are a few photos of Portmeirion in all its Autumn glory.

>

The location is stunning with great sea views also

This last one is looking towards Ynys and the estuary

I took so many photos as the light was amazing on Sunday. There is something about the light at this time of the year and this year we have had so few rare days of them.
Portmeirion played a large part of my childhood as I was brought up over the estuary in Borth-y-Gest and we would sail, row, swim over and sneak in for free and had great fun playing in the woods or the beach. So some things haven't changed , I still can't afford the gate ticket !!

Since I last posted we have been away , staying with Amber and Bobs for a few days, We had the most amazing time and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We also went to see Cecilia were we were again made most welcome with a cuppa and that most famous cake. It was non stop natterings and I also met with Katia in person:) Then Ursuala and Phil came over and we all had a fabulous fun evening . Roll on when we can all get together again ; which will be at Christmas time .
I could live up north quite happily with companionable folks like these around :)

There has been knitting, but as usual I haven't taken photos. I finished a jumper , which I am really pleased with,whilst travelling up and I also made a pair of handspun socks whilst we were staying there.
Since then I have made three cowls and a pair of mittens,plus a wee bit of charity knittting in the form of a hand puppet and some squares . I am totally hopeless at posting or photing what I make these days and they usually end up not getting done but I will try and record them ...at least on Ravelry ....but I am not promising !! Way too busy making stuff ;)

Handspun Harvest

2008-10-21T02:35:00.012Z

I was amazed when I put all the yarns I had spun since the beginning of August together and this is not all of them as I have spun at least two items which have been gifted.One was the bamboo scarf and the other was a lovely soft suri alpaca shawl which I think I only took one photo of and posted on Rav but never put in a project !! before giving to a friend. I will have to make another of those as it was the softest yarn ever and the pattern was a quick easy one from Spin Off.

These are all the dyed ones . Some are laceweight with over 400 yds , some will be for socks and some for cowls,

My alpaca fleece collection . I have done another two skeins of brown since I took this photo. Most of these were small amounts of fleece which I had collected for some time and hadn't spun but seeing as I now have quite a lot of alpaca fleece to spin up I thought these would be ideal for small knits for Christmas.

My project spinning
The brown is Corriedale fleece which I bought at Wonderwool Wales this year and the white is tops of silk/merino which I bought last year at Woolfest !! They are really big 200gm hanks. Another plus on this wheel as the bobbins hold 100gms

Chunky spun Shetland shearling destined for a manly cowl and the lush, lush kiddie mohair from Cecillia's Katia. Looking forward to going back to this fleece again at some point. That's another reason I love fleece; get a really good one and its like visiting an old friend when you go back to do some more.

Did I tell you I love this fleece ? see the shine ? Go on,have a closer look...

Of course I have been spinning more this week. I did that yummy batt which was fun to spin and it will make gorgeous scarf, perhaps one of Anne Hansons's little beauties. That means I will have to get my needles out !! But I want to spin, I must spin , I can't cope a day without spinning !! ? My goal is one full bobbin which I can do most evenings.
I need more hours in the day; how can this be done ? Well the essentials of life are warmth and food so if I cut out the cleaning and the ironing mmmmmmm Also here I am again at 3 am wide awake perhaps I can go for a little spin ? Who knows I might fall asleep on the wheel !!

Bye for now and Nos Da or is it Bore Da ?

The gift of friendships

2008-10-15T04:19:00.013Z

I truly am a bad blogger and have been seriously thinking about giving it up but then I would miss the friends that I have made and met through it. So before I begin I have apologies to make, especially to three friends who have awarded me these past few months and I have still not posted about them they are the amazing Amber who nominated me for 'Arte y Pico' , the wonderfully multi talented Ange awarded me 'Brillante Weblog' and if there is one blog that has me drooling with spinning goodies it has to be Cyndyand she has given me another 'Arte y Pico' award. Now I am sorry but I haven't done the cut and past bit with pics of these awards or forwarding them on either . Time and energy being what it is with me at the minute I have to forgo some things and please dear friends I am sorry but also I am so grateful for your awards and am humbled that you would even nominate me, Thank you .
Also I would like to thank the lovely Sarah who named me one of the blogs she loved to visit. Gosh I am really touched that folks go to so much trouble in naming me for stuff, when lately there is not much content on here !!

I have made tons of acquaintances in life but one of the greatest gifts I have had in life are great friends and as I said I have made a few very special ones through this blog and have met up with a couple this year and its as if we have known each other for years . Amber is a special one and the other is Cecilia. We have met a couple times in the past and again at Andy's open weekend in September . It was a great weekend with much nattering and laughing going on plus a bit of wool buying of course;)and a bit of spinning sadly no pics, too busy talking !! I met up with a few more folks and friends there too and again for me these gatherings are more about the people and the crafts and skill sharing!!
Amber and Bob then came back with us for a couple of days and then Cecilia and Graham came over to see us. Cecilia gave me some of Katia's curls and as usual with any new fleece I have to get it washed asap and get a bit on the wheel to try it out. Technically this is not kid mohair but boy its lush, so soft and shiny and I promise I will take photos in a few days time to show you.
Then October came and with it my birthday , would you believe I really, really had to think how old I was ; when did age cease to matter ? or is it the onset of Alzheimer's ? Do I care ?
I was taught to spindle spin by my spinning guru at the guild but never really did much as the wheel is so much faster but then I came across ZebisisDesigns . Oh boy she does have some gorgeous spindles and what a sweetie Maiysha is,plus we have a Welsh connection too :) So I ordered a spindle and then saw another so Tony said I could have it for my birthday. In the meantime Maiysha and I had been messaging back and forth and then she said that there would be surprise in the first order ,plus in the second parcel there would be a birthday gift !!
I have had to take all the spun yarns off these so that you can see their full beauty as the shafts are just as stunning as the whorls.
This was the one I ordered ........

....and then this came with it plus lots of yummy silk to spin.

Then came the next parcel and what a parcel!!
This is the green opal which so far has to be my fav apart from the fact that opal is my birthstone it spins forever

It also has abalone shell on the shaft

Also in the parcel was this one, great for laceweight.

and these stunning batts which I am so looking forward to spin

and this fibre which turns out to be carbonized bamboo and is so very soft.

Plus yet more silk !!talk about generosity, I was absolutely overwhelmed and quite emotional about all she had done for me, with such thought .
I am getting quite a collection of spindles now and have even learnt to spin from the point on a lovely African supported spindle. Also I can now actually spin angora (rabbit) so much easier on the spindle than the wheel !!
There are also a couple more spindles winging their way across the ocean as I speak ;) Ah, the temptation of Etsy !!but then I did say that selling stuff there was a way of enabling me to feed my habit didn't I ?
I have been doing so much spinning lately , and again I will take a photo of the ones I have yet to knit up; but this spinning was mainly for Christmas gifts and on the whole tops/rovings. I have to say that rovings are a quick fix as they are pretty mindless spinning and I did even buy a couple from other Etsy sellers to try but they really don't do much for me as I far rather spinning fleece .LOL shouldn't say that should I ? as I sell the stuff but hey different strokes for different folks and not all of us have the luxury or need to get down and dirty with a fleece ;) plus they are handy for guild meetings etc
So now my chore spinning is over I can go back to my pleasure spinning and I have a lot to finish too , plus I have added a few choice fleece these last few months.I am spinning alpaca at the moment to make a waistcoat ; hopefully I will have enough of the fleece left to do it .The trouble with me is I get another fleece and I get so excited to see what its like spun up (no way does roving give me this buzz ) but I am going to be organized and get one spinning project finished before starting another. I must look on Ravelry to see if there are any spinning groups that just use fleece as that would be interesting and maybe have fleece swaps !!? If any one knows of one can you PM me ?
Before I finish my thoughts on friendship can I just say how grateful I am to all the friend's I have made in life . Friends are there for us though good and bad and we may not always see eye to eye or even like the same things but we stay friends through thick and thin . I hope that I am as good a friend to others too , I certainly try to be and I guess that's all I can do. I have a very dear friend who is ill at the moment and in hospital again ; she has fought for the last three years with an awful illness but still she thinks of others. She is a true inspiration to me and may I ask that you please have her in your thoughts at this tough time ?

I have done a fair bit of knitting too but most I can't show as they are gifts but this is for the Solid Sock Kal on Ravelry and although I wasn't sure of them at first as I thought they were too bright I now love them and they cheer a dull day:)

They are in fact not as bright as this pic but I liked the posed shot as the pattern was Clementine !!

So folks bear with me, I might not post as much as I would like or be able to or show all the stuff that I make or do but I try ,and I will plod on with my blogging at my speed.

Thank you :)

Grey is the new black

2008-09-17T18:29:00.009Z

Today I have a bag full of this grey fibre.

We have two grey minature schnauzers , one curly and one not !!! A friend who could not distinguish one from the other made up a ditty.
'Islay St Claire has short curly hair , the one they call Skye is as straight as a dye '
Can you see which is which ? (DH is going grey too , he's the distinquished one in the middle !!)

So as we are going away and staying in the van and in close confines with the mutts they have had a shampoo and bit of a trim today.

Beautiful and soft and shiny . So who's coat is it ? Islay ,Skye's,or Tony's !!?

None of them ................ it's Gotland lambswool and its soooooooo beautiful .

(I think the dogs look as though they need that fire lit !!)
I had ordered it months ago and waited especially until they were shearing the lambs and it arrived today so i just had to wash it too :)
I have never spun Gotland fleece, before tops yes but this bears no resemblance to that dry, rough ,boring grey top at all.
Tops/rovings are okay in their place but give me a quality fleece any day and this is quality in all its shiny grey hues.

I gather that grey is in again this autumn ? well of course it will be with me at least ;) Give me grey any day , life in the old dog yet ;)and I LOVE grey.

another sleepless night

2008-09-16T03:32:00.013Z

So what do you do when you can't sleep? well this morning (its now 4am )I thought I would update my blog before I hit the road again this week . So needless to say this post will most likely be drivel so please dear reader just look at the photos and let me have a rant !! I've been up since 3 am yet again which is not good as it means another day of dragging myself about in pain.
Will I never learn ?!! There are so many things that need to be done but why oh why can't I get it through my thick skull that I can't do it all and just leave things be . Its has definitely been all or nothing for me and my motto has always been 'take it to the limit ' , well I think its time to change that motto !! I did at last stop yesterday but too late as I was overtired and felt worse if anything. It isn't even that I get much done , well as much as I want to do which is the most frustrating thing; it seems as if it just takes me longer to do the same things . So do I have to accept the fact that I am getting old ? well yes we all are !! but I am suddenly feeling older , at least physically . Throughout my illness I have fought to do things, I will not give in and I don't intend to now but I am seriously going to have to slow down and accept things as they are. I keep telling other folks to be kinder to themselves so why don't I do it myself ? This may just be a bad patch I am going through and things will hopefully get better. I also think this medication gives me a false sense of physical well being which I haven't had in a long time so I am aiming too high . I have forgotten how poorly I have been in the past when I spent days doing nothing but sit and knit and now want to rush to do everything. The one good thing is that at least I do stop now before ending up even worse or in hospital . I haven't been admitted now in a good few years which is brilliant as there was a time I lived there practically .
So yet again its time to re-assess things , organize my time better, accept I can't do everything and STOP feeling guilty & upset if I can't ; move out of the fast lane and give the dust time to settle. After all I am a big girl now who is going to tell me off if I haven't done it all ?

Right rant over , back to what I have been able to do lets concentrate on the positives..

Last week was almost like Christmas had arrived early what with my lovely parcel from Lin and then I had entered a spinners swap on Ravelry. This is the first time I have done anything like this and it was great fun stalking my partner and then a different person was stalking me . I so love buying for other folks and it was so lovely for someone to spoil me too with goodies I knew I would love as it was all done with me in mind and by someone who had the same passion for spinning and fibre that I have and boy was I spoilt. Take a look at this lot

There was the most wonderful squishy hand spun which will end up as a cowl . I love having other folks hand spun and as a spinner you know the time and effort that it takes to make it ,so it is extra special.

There was dyed fibre to spin plus some silk hankies for me to dye. Love spinning them :)

Fridge magnets , stitch markers, chocies, lovely Lush smellies, mug and the cutest little robot that had been made by Helen

I was totally overwhelmed by it all and so much thought had been put into the parcel. A big thank you again Helen if you read this :)
Funnily this last week a few Helens have entered my life with different things and one Helen has bought a few of our rovings and also kindly asked for commissions too which is very flattering. Its amazing the friendships that fibres bring into your life isn't it ? Another Helen has asked me to do another spinning demo and talk for her 'A' level students; something which I will have to think about as its a bit of a journey , but again it was lovely to be asked .

On Thursday I went to one of my SWD Guild were we had a willow weaving day and I made a plant support and a small willow hurdle. Great fun but back breaking and I would love to do some basket weaving at some time so have put my name down for that workshop !!

We had a wonderful sunny weekend so we spent all Saturday making a start on clearing the garden. Again a time to re assess and have a clear out and we are digging up( I say we, meaning DH !!) a lot of plants which are taking over and I can't manage and will replant with low maintenance things. Sad to see trees , shrubs and plants dug up but I am glad to say not thrown out , they went to our neighbours big garden and I can still see a few of them from our garden too :) Its the right time of year for them to move and they will have the room there to spread and thrive . I used to be such a passionate gardener and its another thing I have to learn to let go of. So we have now put the plant support in with a clematis to grow through , and the rest is planted with ground covering roses and patio roses and even when the plant support rots ,which sadly it will do, then the clematis can weave its way along the ground . I was so shattered after all that work that I didn't take a photo and now of course its back to the rain again but it looks good and even better we are getting more light into the kitchen and sun too (when we get it !!)

Talking of weaving earlier I still haven't photoed that rep weaving I made and have now warped the loom to make (hopefully) fabric out of my hand spun to make a waistcoat. I say hopefully as again I find it painful bending over the loom . I am not ready to give up on it yet but I might have to do it a bit at a time . On the knitting front I am making a really boring sweater with some yarn in my stash . I really need more jumpers but as I have gained weight I don't have enough yarn to make anything with a pattern :( and I am not buying any more yarn (in fact I am clearing it out )Also I am taking part in the Solid Sock KAL on Rav and making this months orange sock. The pattern I have chosen is frustrating me as I have had to frog it twice due to errata but I'll get there.Hopefully pics in my next post !!
Spinning is still my passion and saviour and I have been doing a lot of that. My goal is to give hand spun , hand knitted gifts to all this Christmas ; I see a lot of cowls ahead of me :) well they are the new scarf aren't they ? Or so I read on Rav!! personally I have always favoured them to scarves , much cosier and practical . I do wish I had one room that I could leave all my fibre paraphernalia out permanently as I am using the drum carder at the moment but will have to tidy it all up before I go away . I have a few small bags of alpaca in different shades with the intention of making some fair isle but I fell in love with a waistcoat pattern in the latest IK so am now blending some browns together and some white and fawn together in order to make it. I still also need to finish off the Corriedale too for that cardi I wanted . I never used to start one thing before finishing off what I started , what went wrong ? I need to get back to how I used to work and that would give me more satisfaction in seeing an end result. Definitely a time to re assess prioritize and then maybe I will sleep better without things buzzing around in my head LOL. Surely as a perfectionist in what I make it would be better to concentrate on less things? The only downside of that is that I am not always up to carding or weaving etc so have to take the easy route of spinning tops etc
Also I love the dyeing part of my life, hence the shop but that too must not end up as a chore , we have had quite a few commissions lately which is great but I do not want it to take over my life. I need to keep reminding myself that I am only selling stuff in order to feed my fibre needs and no more, I want time to do other things too . If I was fit or if DH does lose his job then it would be different(there are large redundancy in his workplace this week )

Well I will have time this next week or so to switch off and make a list of what needs to be done and what will have to go. I am off to DD and am so looking forward to it.It will be so lovely to be looked after , play with Miss Emily and DD and I always sleep better in the van as well :) Then it will be the open day at Andy's which will be fab as we are meeting up with Amber and Cecilia and lots of other fibre fanatics so it should be fun. Then Amber and Bob will come back with us for a few days and Cecilia will be in the area also visiting family so hopefully we will all have another get together.

Crikey life is certainly never dull and nor would I want it to be ,I just need to get back to my Libran balancing act.
Right off for another cuppa and I might go back to bed for a bit to see if I can at least rest a bit. Catch up with you in a few weeks time.

PS : If you have read this far, phew thank you :) and I have just this minute remembered I won an award from the lovely Ange which I will try and add before I go away. Diolch yn fawr iawn caraid :)

I won, I won !!!!

2008-09-08T13:29:00.011Z

I was over the moon to win a competition last week onLin's blog. I really do love reading her blog as she has the most beautiful photos and she is also such a talented lady ; check out her new shop Some lovely things on there to tempt us :)
So this morning it felt like Christmas had come early when her parcel arrived; look at all she sent !!

So very generous and all beautifully wrapped with lovely little cards. Where to start
Some lovely fibre to play with and I do so love spinning other folks dyed fibre too :)

There were a lovely collection of Etsy goodies of little bags and a cute notebook

A wonderful New Zealand Paua shell diz which I am can't wait to try out and some candles and a stone picked from holiday times spent in Cornwall to burn them on( I love that idea as I am always gathering stones )

A lovely green heart and wooden bowl with the most wonderful piece of origami I have ever seen

A little green frog isn't it gorgeous and what nimble fingers you must have to make that . He really doesn't show up well on the photo but I have tried to give you some idea of his size with my thumb in shot !!

So thank you so very, very much Lin oh Queen of Froggers I bow to your generosity and long may you reign :)

All of this after a really great weekend too, how lucky am I ?

Mam was right :)

2008-08-31T09:37:00.020Z

When I was a child I was very much into reading and would be totally lost in my own little world to the exclusion of all around me at times. My Mam would try and push me to go out saying that I would enjoy myself which inevitably I did. I am sure that if you have met me you would say I was very out going which is true and is a part of me but when I am feeling poorly then I hibernate and am happy left alone. So I wasn't really up for this holiday. But Mam was right again and it was just what the doctor ordered . True we didn't get as much sunshine as we had hoped for and even had two days stuck in the van but even they were productive and also the company and the laughter more than made up for weather: how can you be down when you have a view like this outside your van.

We had walks, BBQ's and a even a curry night . There were eight of us in total and five dogs and we all got on famously.
See, the dogs were in holiday mood.

Funny looking sheep they have down here though.

Know were we are ?

That's right Tregwynt Mill which is in a lovely location and has lovely woven material but a tad too expensive for me and most folks I should imagine. Shame really maybe if I win the Lottery !!
On the other hand this place was more affordable and we got a lovely blanket and a rug too and I will defo go back for more rugs next time.

When the sun shone it was glorious and the heather, flowers and the sea were an amazing colour combination.

There were seals too of course but not as many pups, as I think we were a bit earlier this year. We had one magical evening when we went down to the shore when four seals came so close to shore . I don't know who is the most nosey us or them !! ; one even came to say goodbye on our very last day.

So thanks Mam, yet again :) We both enjoyed ourselves and have yet more happy memories of Sir Benfro.
Oh and I do have some FO to show too
Morning Surf using handyed , handspun bamboo.

Another Forest Canopy using Colinette yarn which Kath gave me last Christmas .

Since I came home after the inevitable unpacking and washing I have been dyeing and have done 1,200gm which will be in the shop hopefully later today.

Holidays !!

2008-08-16T17:06:00.011Z

We are off down to Pembroke for a holiday and it's raining yet again here this evening:( I am getting fed up of all the rain we have had this summer .To be fair it has been lovely all day and quite close but I just can't seem to get in a holiday mood somehow. I always hate the build up to holidays. DH packs his clothes sorts the van out with diesel and water and says are we ready !!?. I am here washing ,ironing,cooking, cleaning the house ......now who else cleans the house before they go on holiday ? I always do it , make sure the bed is stripped and clean for when we get home and all the washing & ironing up to date, clean the oven, polish the cat blah, blah , blah and then I wonder why I am knackered when we eventually drive off. Am I mad ? I think so !!
I feel in way that this holiday has been thrust on us as DH workplace is closing down over the Bank Holiday due to costs and we had to use up the holiday time we had planned to go to Scotland with in September :(
We NEVER go on holiday in AUGUST !! Also we have house guests staying whilst we are away and I for a change would rather stay at home and play ;) Still they will be able to explore far better on their own and they deserve a wee break, don't you think ?

So this week I have been trying to cram in all sorts and its been hard going and I could sleep for the entire holiday the way I feel now.The natural dyeing day went well though and here are a few samples of what I did. Again its hard to get the colours to show proberly and they are richer than this photos shows.

I was wanting to try more of the blues , greys, mauve's and purples this time as I have plenty of plant ideas for the greens , yellows and russety shades. There were a few very surprising plants used and the one that surprised me the most was pansy's which gave the most wonderful blue. Someone had also managed to grow indigo and we were able to get a result, albeit not as dark as it can be but none the less it worked and it was grown locally .

It was a perfect summers day with blue skies and we all had such fun and a gorgeous picnic plus the location was perfect too.

So armed with more natural dye colours I did a few more rovings which I love and don't know if I can even part with . They are supposed to be for the shop but I would love to spin them all!! As I am going away I haven't listed any thing this week as it seemed pointless . If I do sell them though they will have to be slightly more expensive due to the amount of time it takes to make them.
As yet no names for them all

Can you believe that they are natural ? aren't they just lush ?
Here is just one of the acid dyed ones that I particularly like .

So we are off tomorrow on a holiday and I am sure that once I get there and sleep for two days I will be fine and who cares if it rains all the time ; we are meeting up with friends who are coming up with their van , we will have fun we will have laughter and we will probably wish we could have stayed longer !!See you when we get home :)

Be afraid fleece , be very afraid ..........

2008-08-10T18:35:00.003Z

Look what arrived in the post yesterday from Martin Hills

They are well worth waiting for as I have hired the SWD Guilds set for long enough so figure it would be cheaper in the long run to get my own set.
I have already had a play with them :) So watch out fleece here comes.........

I have also done some dyeing last week but mainly using natural dyes and I really love the rovings I have done but so far I haven't had the energy to photo them.
I am trying to slow down over the next few days as I haven't been too great and as we are away on hols next week I really want to be well.

If it ain't pinned down !!

2008-08-01T15:18:00.012Z

Well !! both Kath and I thank you so very much for your kind words and good wishes. It's bit nerve racking to sell things you have made and then when they have sold you then worry if the person will like it !! I am sure we will learn a lot along the way too !!
So after a very good start I thought I had better dye some more stuff up and if it ain't pinned down its in the pot !!
I am now trying to do repeats and this first one is the one I am coveting the most. I love it and have dyed 200gms of it and may keep one back.
Its called Tân Gwyllt which means Wild Fire and it a lush baby alpaca in shades of reds, oranges, browns and plum.I so want this colour to spin lace weight for a shawl as I love its fieriness

A few folks have asked if we would do some sock yarns so here is Tân Gwyllt in a really soft super wash Shetland. I wish I had bought more of this dis-continued yarn from Scotland when I had a chance as it is just so soft and has a great sheen too.

Here is just one more that I have tried to repeat which I have called Siwgr Plwm as this is what my dad used to call me. The spelling is not grammatically correct for all you purists out there :)but the Welsh word 'Eirinen' meaning plum, doesn't sound right and besides it wasn't what he called me :)

All of this excitement has taken its toll on me this week coupled with other things and I felt really washed out and a bit blue this morning so it was a wonderful surprise when this arrived from our lovely friends.

Amber and Bob you really shouldn't have. I really love it and have never had any of Posh's cobweb lace weight before, so lovely, the colour is perfect too but really you are so naughty ;but many , many thanks.I will have to get the perfect pattern for it as it has great yardage and I can make a large shawl :)

Part of the reason I am wiped out is that I have been doing a weaving course and what we are being taught is called Rep Weaving which I had never heard of before and doubt I will ever want to do again either LOL. Its a type of weaving were the warp is the main factor and the warping has been a flippin nightmare for someone who is mathematically challenged like myself,plus back breaking too bending over the warping frame. How on earth I ever worked in a bank for a while goodness knows . Still its done now and and on Saturday I will get it finished and post a pic of it , not my style at all but I have learnt a lot apart from counting !!
So all in all not much on the knitting front but I have been doing some mindless spinning using some of my dyed rovings and here is a colour combo I like and will repeat I think .

Oh and I came home yesterday with yet more fleece , a HUGE Wensleydale and a lovely Moorit Shetland which are now soaking in a tub which is what I am going to do next ........but not with them ;)

News Flash !!

2008-07-29T07:39:00.003Z

We are finally open !! Find us here

Fun and laughter all the way

2008-07-27T15:25:00.010Z

We have had the most wonderful few days with Amber and Bob and the only downside was that it all went by far too quickly .We all got on so famously and didn't stop talking or laughing , the only time we stopped was when we ate !!. The weather was amazing if a little too hot,so at least they were able to see some of our surrounding countryside .
Amber and I did some dyeing which was such fun as we both love colours and got so excited oohing and aahing and Amber had specific colours in mind for socks for Bob, which we were able to get.I didn't take any photos but if you go to Amber'sblog then you will see what was produced. Wye Sue kindly sent us some Leicester Longwool fleece to dye up and they turned out beautiful so I am looking forward to playing some more with them. Thanks again Sue, you are so kind and I have never used this fleece before so it was great to see what it was like .
We all know how generous Amber is and they came bearing gifts and what gifts , I was totally overwhelmed and don't know which to start with.

Bob made this lovely Dream catcher for the van

and Amber made the snugly blankie for the van also. How did she know I needed one ? This will be perfect and now they will be with us in spirit when we are doing our travels.

Again I have been meaning to make a cosy shawl for myself. Well I have made a few but they tend to walk out of the door but not this one ,this one is special and so so cosy and mine, all mine; can you tell I love it ? . We went out in the garden last night watching the stars as it was a clear night and it came in mighty handy to snuggle into and a fitting colour too, midnight blue :)

As if all that was not enough look at this

another stunning elemental doll made by Amber but this one is a zodiac Libran one and see she has a spindle in her hand ; doesn't she look at home amongst the spinning wheels ? Again she is so very precious to me and I just adore everything about her; Amber has me well sussed ;-)
Oh and last but not least , if you follow Ambers blog you may have seen her range of individual dyed underwear and yes I too now have a pair;) I think its a fun idea instead of boring white ones and one which I am going to try out .

I have just this minute remembered that there were also a pair of dyed socks for Tony that I have forgotten to photo , so many things to remember!!
Thank you so much Amber and Bob for your generosity and especially for your company and we are both looking forward to our next meeting which won't be too far away.

Nothing changes, I am still busy :)

2008-07-22T11:29:00.014Z

I am still as busy as ever and this will be a quick post as we have friends arriving tomorrow . Who ? well its the lovely Amberand her equally lovely hubby Bob and they are staying for a couple of nights and I am so excited and I forsee that there will be a lot of wooly related antics going on ;) The only problem is .....how can we fit in all the things we want to do ?
Dyeing is on top of the list and hopefully the weather is now settling down so we must get out and about a bit too. Will try and remember the camera and talking of which here are some FO that have been done over the last few weeks.

These are the felted objects I made with the Torwen fleece I had from one of our local farmers. I did these for her open day. It was a fantastic day , sadly I forgot my camera but then I was so busy I hardly had time to draw breath.The Snowdonia National Park ,Woodland Trust,The Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group ,the children from the local school and so many more were there and there was a BBQ of their gorgeous Welsh lamb and strawberries and cream. I wish I could have gone for the guided walk as that would have been really interesting as her way of farming is inspirational and we have one of the oldest acidic oak plantations in the UK here on her land. Still Bini (the farmer) has said she will give me a special tour when I am up for it .I was busy spinning and also doing a peg loom rug and I had scores of folks having a go and apparently we are in the local paper so I will have to check that out !!
The Torwen is not the easiest fleece to felt but I love its rustic quality.

I love this bag and I have lined it inside with calico.

Some knits I have finished but I really should have had someone take a pic of me wearing them as they are not the best of photos. I am pleased with them both though
This one is from Spring 'Yarn Forward' magazine called 'Spring Things' if I remember rightly. There were a few erratas in the pattern but then its a simple quick knit

This a closer colour I think

This is done in Colinette Parisienne and is called Madelene and is great to wear over tee shirts.I hated doing this one as it done on straight needles using one small and one large needle.

Last pictures I have is of the Danish Shawl from Spin Off which are various handspun fleece from all around Wales and dyed with natural dyes. A simple but lovely pattern and I love the fresh colour of it .

I have been doing a lot of spinning lately as I find it the perfect wind down at the end of the day and I just had to spin some of the suri alpaca I bought at Woolfest . I picked the dirtiest part of it and washed it and have spun about 340yds of it so am making another shawl from the latest Spin Off . It has to be the softest fibre I have ever spun and I look forward to spinning the rest which is very much cleaner and just needs the perfect garment to be thought of to turn it into yarn!!. Also on other bobbins I need to finish the Corriedale for the cardi, I still need about 500yds for that; plus I am spinning a merino/silk blend which I have had in my fibre stash for some time and that is DK weight . Then there are the rovings that I am dyeing which I just have to spin as I love the colour so much and they only take a night or two to turn into sock yarn; which reminds me I haven't taken pics the last two pairs of socks I made .
I haven't forgotten the Etsy shop either and that is exciting as things have taken a different turn. After having a few bad days the other week I asked Kath if she would like to join me , as a mother and daughter team .She has been selling a few of her yarns lately too and had been thinking of an Etsy shop , so this would mean we can support each other. As you may know Kath and I have a very special relationship and we are the very best of friends and enjoy doing all the same things , albeit with a different slant at times which makes things unique to each of us ;so this all makes sense. The very obvious name for the shop will be called 'Mam a Mi' which in Welsh means Mum and I and will be opened when we get a few things sorted. Kath has designed a brilliant logo , so watch this space.

Until then keep your fingers crossed that we have glorious weather for at least a week so that Amber and Bob can see it at its very best and also that all our dyeing will dry on the line. We had one sunny day a week ago and I washed a fleece and since then it has rained every day until yesterday when it dried at long last, still it smells lovely now. I have one other fleece to wash, maybe I will leave it until they have gone home !!

and it's time, time time !!

2008-07-07T13:54:00.031Z

Before I even begin to write this post I apologise for the lack of some links , crafty photos etc , reason being:
As the song from Tom Waites 'Time' is what I am in need of at the moment. That and some energy!! I have just read my last post and I am tired just reading it LOL. This is normal for me at this stage after my injection to be feeling this way and cross fingers my energy levels will come back. I am also a bit concerned that I have a nasty mouth ulcer which will not heal up after a few months plus now a cold sore, something I haven't had in years and I feel totally washed out. This is one of the downsides of taking an immune suppressant medication, it impedes the body's ability to heal and fight infections.
We had such a wonderful time away and as usual I guess I have also overdone things since we came home and I have so much more to do. The priority at the moment is to get things ready for the organic farm's open day next week so I have been felting and spinning the fleece I was given and I have to say felting can be hard work at times and not something I will do a lot of in the future;also this fleece isn't the easiest but does have a lovely mix of colour. I have made a very rustic bag which needs lining and finishing off and I love it , plus another vessel.
I also made two other 'art' yarns using different techniques but before they were hardly dry they have been sold , and I didn't even get to photo them. Plus I have an order for some more ; also there is a yarn shop wanting to see more of my handspun. Although very flattering this is getting a bit out of hand and I will have to be careful that I don't overdo it and end up ill again. I really don't want my hobby to become a monster that is out of control. Being a Libran I should know , its all about balance !!
I am also wondering why the heck I am putting pressure on myself to do an Etsy shop when there are loads of others doing the same and better. Still I will go ahead with it for now as I have bought stuff to dye and I do so love dyeing and if they don't sell then they will end up as gifts;no pressure I keep reminding myself . I am still undecided at a name but am thinking of using my middle name of 'Eluned' as that is what I am known on Ravelry,that or 'Soggy Mountain Fibres ';a fitting name at the moment as its raining today AGAIN:( Thanks for all the suggestions and I did think of Welsh names but then I don't think they could be pronounced. I have to say to do it proberlly requires a lot of work and thought so again it will be on the back burner for week or two until I have been able to do it as best as I can.NO pressure is my mantra at the moment .

No pretty pics of goodies from Woolfest either as I was very good and stuck to my budget and bought mainly dyes,well apart from a fleece of white Suri alpaca which is so lush I just had to have and its spinning like silk and some will end up as the shawl featured in the latest Spin Off. Then a lady from Northumberland who I bought a fantastic fleece from last year recognised me and that was that, I just had to go and have a look in her pickup at what she had kept back. So a lovely grey Katmoget Shetland fleece was added to my purchases. But the highlight of Woolfest for me was meeting up with folks and that was such fun; especially as it wasn't as busy this year on the Friday as last year. We also had a 'knit-in' at Graysonside on Thursday and Friday night which was well attended and I thoroughly enjoyed myself as can be seen on Ravelry;-) Do I ever stop nattering and laughing ?!!
It was great to meet up with online buddies again and we were very lucky to get into the camp site after phoning the previous night and getting a place there.So thanks to all who organized it and great to see all the folks; all being well we will hopefully make it back there next year.See you then if not before ;-)

The person who I was most eager to meet at Woolfest itself was Amber after several failed attempts in the past. Isn't it strange when you are in contact with someone for years, get on so well but have never met ? Will we get on or not ? I need not have worried at all as we got on brilliantly as did the 'lads' . So now we are looking forward to our next meeting, hopefully in the very near future.
I didn't take a single photo at Woolfest but there are plenty to see on various blogs so instead I will leave you with some photos of our time away . Also I still need to take photos of several FO plus the cutest little sock keyring that Amber gave me.

So after Woolfest it was run for the hills, far from the madding crowds that was the order of the day and we spent a few more lovely days up in the wilds of Yorkshire and then the Trough of Bowland before sadly having to come home. Oh how I would love to live the roaming life but it is so not practical for me ,at least with all my medical needs and supplies. Still some can do it I guess and we still dream of it , who knows.
First photos of Lindisfarne , that wonderous peaceful place; well if you can get away from the crowds that were there this time. We did, and sat at the furthermost spot overlooking the sea and that was bliss.
From afar and bathed in sunlight

Blast too late tide is still in and we can't cross over

Never mind we will park here and watch the world and tide drift by. We don't want to end up like this guy .

There are a line of posts all the way to the island which mark the very ancient Pilgrims path and its amazing how fast and deep the tides run here. I really wouldn't like getting the time wrong if I was walking over.

One of the things I love about this area of Northumberland is the sky . Living as we do surrounded by mountains I can't get over how big the sky and the horizons are.

Lindisfarne castle from the priory . I have to say I found the village much more touristy this time, which spolied it a little but I guess folks need to make a living.They now charge to go into the priory and there are a few more gifty shops.

and nearer

and nearer

Love these old fishing boats that are dotted around , some used as sheds.

Inside,like the belly of a whale

The girls had fun on the beach

All of those are over a couple of days and I have loads of other photos which I won't bore you with but I must share this one of a hare crossing the river were we stayed one night . We saw a few hares whilst we away and at close quarters too & at times like this I wish I had a better camera.

I am obsessed with taking photos of sunsets and here are a few

I promise there will be more craft realted pics in my next post

PTA: Yikes just tried to spell check this and it all disapperaed , nearly cried as it takes me so long to type with my dyslexia. I was about to switch it off in disgust when it all reappered but I still can't check my spelling so sorry of its appaling but I am posting it errors and all !!!!!!!

It's all about Colour

2008-06-15T08:21:00.017Z

Life is good lately as this new medication seems to be doing some good. I do have a few lousy days after my injection but then I have far more pain free days than I have had in years and I have more energy too. I was very worried when I started this new medication as the possible side effects are scary but I am a person who lives for the now and now is GREAT :)
So I have been busy doing all sorts,very little housework though ;) Why waste precious energy doing boring stuff !! No I have been spinning and am well on the way for getting enough yarn to knit a cardigan and I have also been dyeing .
I have been thinking for some time of finding a way to fund my fibre habit and an Etsy shop was one thought . I have been asked to supply a shop before with my handspun but I wasn't sure I liked the setup there. So after Tutley Mutley's coment on my last post it again brought the subject to the fore and I have decided that I am going ahead and open an Etsy shop .It won't be for a few weeks though as we are away on holiday in a weeks time and I still need a name for it. I can't use Artis-Anne as there is one already on there so I need to have think , any ideas ?
So these are some of the dyed rovings that will eventually end up in the shop amongst other things. I have gone for strong colours on the whole in this batch and I like the way they turned out.

We also had a another natural dyeing day with one of my guilds and it was yellow and blue this time around and the first time I have used an indigo vat. Total magic and I am looking forward to doing more at home. I didn't experiment that much on the day as I fnd days like this can be a bit frantic at times and also I was too busy talking with the other ladies and sitting in a most beautiful garden that one of our members had and were it was held. She grew a lot of stuff for dyeing and it was so lovely to pick stuff and use it in the dyeing.

I also dyed this skein of lace weight cashmere, silk and alpaca that I bought off Andy at Wonderwool and it has turned out beautiful with the silk giving it a gorgeous sheen . I look forward to knitting a shawl with this yarn.

I also had an outing with the Lleyn Guild this last week to Norweft and that was really interesting to see how a small mill works and of course they had alpacas . They were adorable and there was a five day old suri which was so cute and so silky , you can just about see him with his mum.

They were all lovely

But this little one is the one I would have like to have brought home.

She had such a beautiful coat . Still I had to make do with a bit of fleece instead .
Talking of fleece I have been washing fleece all this week. Two angora goats which are so soft and silky . Half a grey alpaca fleece which Kath and I bought a while ago and I decided to wash it as we had been told it loved to roll were they had their bonfires and boy was the water black. It is now a lovely colour and will make yummy yarn and will be a joy to spin now.
Then a local farmer knew I spun yarn and asked me if I would like some of her Torwen shearlings and also some Welsh Mountain shearlings . So of course I said okay I'd come and look and have come home with more fleece , some of which will go to make another rug. I love the one I made last year and would love another but don't want to use some of my really good fleece . Saying that the fleece I bought bar one which I chose for its colour are all amazingly soft and would do for outerwear garments. This farmer has won many awards for her organic lamb and she has an open day next month and wants me to do a spinning and peg loom demo. So I need to get things prepped up ready for it ,so yet more fleece washing done today.
I took my art yarns to the guild this week and they loved them , so much so that they want me to do a workshop. Even the older ladies who I thought would think them a waste of time were really interested and when I told them about 'Pluckyfluff' they were in peals of laughter at the name ;) I also sold one of the them and could have sold the other but I wanted it for my weaving.

So as you see its all go and we are off on hols and then its Woolfest in the middle of them, which we are hoping to do one day . Not sure as yet which day we will be there as we don't know were we will be !! We never really plan our hols but are hoping to go around Northumberland area and I so want to go back to Lindisfarne again.
Here's hoping that I will have the energy to fulfill all the things I want to do over the next few weeks. Oh and I still haven't shown you two FO, that Colinette Parisienne jumper and a cardi. I have also nearly finished my Danish Shawl from Spin Off using the natural dyed yarns.
Ah well next time :)

Can't stop spinning

2008-05-28T08:23:00.008Z

Blogging taking a back seat yet again and Ravelry is eating my online time !!

Plus,since I bought my new wheel which has been named 'Lara' I can't stop spinning . The fact that I am more comfortable spinning has given me the incentive to spin for much longer periods at a time. Now I wonder how I coped using the Ashford Trav;of course my joints are the biggest problem and anyone fit probably doesn't have any problem using it, but boy it was much harder work to treadle and clunky compared to this smooth running wheel. So I am still very much in love with my wheel and a saying of my fathers keeps popping in my head 'proper tools for the job '. He was a most talented man and amongst his talents was model boat making and the detailing was superb and all handmade . His model boats are in a few museums around the world and his workshop was immaculate, a tool for every job and his view was get the best tool which suits you and the job in mind. He would most probably have been fascinated by my hobby and would have most likely tried to build a wheel just to see if he could.You are sadly missed Dad.

Well I am still spinning the Shetland shearling but I am not sure if its the fleece I need for what I have in mind. I have bought the book ' A Fine Fleece by Lisa Lloyd' and it had lovely patterns in it and the cardigan called I want to make would look better in a less stripey yarn .The Shetland having a few colours in it , lovely though they are is not the effect I want. So I have dug out the Corriedale I bought at Wonderwool which is beige with blond tips and I think that will look better . We will see when I have plyed it together which one I rather . Either that or knit a jumper from the book !!

I have also bought a book called 'Intertwined by Lexi Boeger' which is a fun book on spinning art yarns. Now I have no idea what I will use some of these yarns but they are such fun to do and I think if you learn a craft then you should explore all avenues of it ; plus its a break from spinning miles and miles of yarn for garments. So these are a couple of my efforts . I have called this one 'Welsh Black Blues' as its Welsh Black fleece and dyed Lleyn fleece

This is a go at spinning coils and its again the Lleyn dyed in various colours and spun in random and the single then spun on a core yarn .I am thinking of doing a couple more skeins of this and using it to weave with.

I have also been doing a fair bit of dyeing lately too ; both natural and acid . Kath and
Christina came over and we had a day of dyeing. A bit chaotic but fun :) Sadly I didn't take a photo of the whole lot of yarns dyed that day , way too busy but there were some yummy ones created.
I have to say my favs were the natural dyed yarns and inspired by that day I bought some Earthue dyes from Debbie and dyed up some of my handspun to make the Danish Shawl from the last issue of Spin Off. I had managed to get a lovely vibrant shade of green at my first attempt with bought yarn but sadly I didn't reproduce it quite the same with my handspun. Still I love all the shades I got .

This shawl is such a simple pattern but none the less lovely and I think that is the theme of this post. Variety is the spice of life they say ;-)

Wonderful Wonderwool Wales

2008-05-02T06:07:00.015Z

We had the most fantastic weekend at WW last weekend and I have to say the best fibre fest I have been to so far, bigger that Woolfest , well there were over 140 stalls there.It didn't feel as cramped and frantic as Woolfest either as the aisles were wider which was a blessing for me but then its a much bigger building so they have room to grow. Okay there was no Winghams or P&M but who knows, next year? I heard that Ruth from Winghams was there ;-) I have to say they weren't missed by me this time as I had bought stuff from them recently and I do love to see the smaller more diverse sellers at these shows. The likes of Freyalyn and Fyberspates, Forest Fibers (which I have bought off from E-Bay ) and so many more which get better each year in the range they sell.
The weekend started on Friday when we arrived at the show and we, and friends of ours were parked so close that it was an easy walk (200 yds )from the van. We were also lucky that we bumped into Wye Sue who told us to look authoritative and just walk in , which we did so we had a 'preview' of what was on offer when the doors opened the following day . So it was mad dash the following morning and in fact before the doors we officially opened that we were standing at Posh Yarns stall. It was amazing to see so much of that lush yarn and to be able to pick just what you wanted without it all having been sold . I haven't been lucky enough lately with their Sunday sales for yarns that I really wanted so it was a treat to get just the right shades I was looking for.

I have enough to keep me busy for a bit now in the shawl department;) and in fact I have cast on and nearly finished a Forest Canopy shawl after Kath was nagging me at what an easy pattern it was and boy it is. Totally mindless which is nice as I have just finished 'Laminaria' which wasn't difficult but needed concentration for the last part. Concentration is not my strong point at the moment due to this new medication but more on that later.
This is my haul, well apart from three bags full of fleece, which are still in the shed waiting for a sunny day and energy to wash them.

We had a few bargains like the 2.8 kilo of black alpaca pencil roving from Andy at Blueface.com. 5oogm of undyed 4ply superwash Shetland wool from Scottish Fibre for £12, Two skeins of alapaca laceweight for £3 from UK Alapaca . I bought a few skeins of undyed laceweight including a lovely one , again from Andy which consisted of baby alpaca., silk and cashmere. I needed a few shuttles to go with the inkle loom which I bought a few weeks ago from someone at our guild , a book on weaving using the rigid heddle loom ,latest copy of Yarn Forward which is really good, one of Prudence Mapstones book which she signed for me. So many lovely things for sale and so many talented folks out there. The atmosphere was really friendly and again more laid back than Woolfest due again I think to being more space and I saw so many people that I knew and so many Ravellers and Bloggers as well. It was also lovely to meet up with new folks and make new contacts as well . The only downside for me was the Hogg Roast which was disapointing with hardly any meat at all and in fact they ran out of hogg :( but again the company was wonderful and we topped up with food later !!
A group of us went to Prudence Mapstone's workshop and it was brilliant. What a lady she is , always smiling, always gracious and generous with her time and I just wish that the workshop lasted longer , maybe next time. I bought another of her books which she signed for me, along with the other book I had brought with me and I also bought a handbag form to make my own funky bag.
I am glad that we were there for the two days and being on site I could retire when I was tired but even so I still didn't get to see it all thoroughly as I kept getting waylaid with chatting to various folks and going in the opposite direction I intended to. Then that is the fun of these events I think , the meeting and chatting with folks which is like a big family gathering and if we do go to Woolfest then that is what I will go for, the meeting up with folks .I certainly don't need any more 'stuff' as I have more than plenty to keep me going for years. I am really, really trying now to buy just what I need as I have arrived at saturation point with 'stuff' I have been really good and have organized my stash of yarns and Tony has built me a cupboard which covers a wall in the small bedroom and now I can see what I have which is a great help as things got 'lost' before and I forgot half the stuff I had .
One of the interesting observations I have made in these fibre fests , shops etc and indeed in my own stash is the increase of exotic fibres like alpaca , cashmere , silk etc and how we all lust after them I do wonder how ecologically sound they are when we have lovely 'homegrown ' stuff . I did read on Ravelry how one stall holder overheard someone commenting on how she thought the yarn was expensive and there were replies that said, rather nastily,that if she wanted acrylic then she had come to the wrong place. Now I too love these luxury fibers but that is what they are , luxury,and there will come a time when I can no longer afford them and indeed a lot of folks I know and admire in their handicrafts grew up in a time were things like this were unheard of but their skills more than made up for their lack of material choice. It seems as if there has developed a snobbery about yarn as in other things in that what you have been able to 'get' somehow classes you as better but these yarns are just another acquisition of what you have and not what you are and indeed some never get used or see the light of day again. What a waste and how sad a world we live in and I too have been just as guilty of it and of course the Internet feeds this 'must have' mentality as each new pattern yarn etc is released. My excuse was 'it's a bargain ' well I am afraid its only a bargain if it gets used and so from now on I am committed to buying only what I need.
Right end of grumpy old woman rant and lets talk about what I 'needed' LOL.
I wanted to spin my own yarn from my teenage years after seeing photos of my Hen Nain (great gran )spinning and I guess its in my Welsh blood ;-) but I could never afford it whilst the children were growing up and so now is 'my time' My ambition was and still is to be able to spin all my own yarn , something that has got a little lost lately . When I see garments that some of the guild members both male and female have made from scratch I am in total awe. So when I bought my Ashford Travellar I was thrilled , a dream come true at last . Now I had tried lots of wheels but there was one I hadn't and the very week after I bought my new wheel I knew I had made a mistake . The wheel was a Lendrum and it was the smoothest wheel to treadle that I have ever used. You don't see that many of them but those you do all the owners are thrilled with them. True I have created lots of lovely yarns on my Ashford but there were things that always annoyed me. I kept knocking my legs of the bar , it really isn't as portable as all that but it does 'travel' well when spinning at speed !! I also could never find a comfortable enough chair to spin in for long periods . Well the opportunity presented itself when in passing I mentioned to someone that I was thinking of selling it and she said she would buy it . Thankfully I didn't lose much on it as it was just over a year old and the lady is well pleased too. So there I was without a wheel apart from borrowing Tony's . So I phoned P&M Woolcraft and spoke to Martin and said I wanted a Lendrum but that I also did like the Majacraft Suzie and he said, go for the Lendrum and that I would not be disappointed .I thought that was really good of him as I would have spent more if I had gone for the whole deal on a Suzie. So I bought the deal where you had the jumbo and fast flyer as well and I also bought the bag to carry it all. Now I have the perfct wheel for me, that does it all and packs down brilliantly for taking in the motorhome and guilds. The fast flyer is superb and I have never been able to spin yarn so fine and have I said how smooth it is to spin, so easy ;-)? Oh and I can spin whilst sitting on the sofa watching TV which I am so happy about . It is also very quiet unless I am spinning at speed then the flyer humms and as Kath says , it sounds like a bee . The one thing I have had to get used to is to slow down my treadling as I was used to treadling more on the Ashford so now I can spin for longer without the aches and pains. I also love its solid clean , uncluttered,contemporary look which is far more solid than the Ashford and the bobbins are so much smoother. Have I convinced you yet that I love this wheel ?
Here she is

I have had a spinning frenzy of course since I received her a couple of weeks ago and we have already created some lovely yarns which of course I haven't photographed (must get more organized )

This is 100gm of merino/tencel tops which I have spun 2ply and there is 385yds so enough for socks but sadly not enough for making the shoulder version of Laminaria which is what I had hoped. Talking of Laminaria here it is

I do have other FO's which I haven't taken pics of or put on Ravelry either so will try and remember to at least put them on Rav for my own record at least.
Next week we have a dyeing (acid) day with the Meirionedd Guild which should be fun and I am taking loads of lovely soft homespun to dye up. Then two weeks later it will be Ziggy, the famous lucet tutor at the Lleyn guild. So many things to learn and look forward to.

Health wise I am still up and down . I inject myself every 15 days and now that it's down to one dose I don't get the headaches as bad but they still last about four days. Not sure as yet if this treatment is doing me any good and I am trying to weigh up the pros and cons of it. As far as my joints are concerned as it is originally a medicine for arthritis,it hasn't shown much improvements which is a shame as I was hoping for more mobility and boy I need it after Wonderwool . I have paid for all my hyper energy at the weekend!! Still I will keep at it for a while longer as I really don't want to go back on steroids if I can help it Oh and the nurse came to visit me the other day to make sure I was injecting myself correctly and said that each dose cost £400 yikes !!

Time out

2008-04-02T19:12:00.002Z

Sorry folks however much I may want to , I am just not getting the time or energy to post these days so I am taking time out . My new medication is wiping me out !!
See you at Wonderwool Wales maybe :)

Weeks....months fly by !!!

2008-03-09T21:18:00.023Z

Well I can't believe were the time has gone to and how much of a back-seat blogger I have become ;shame on me when I have been awarded this by:

Mrs J
Lynne
Kath (my darling daughter )
and Christina
What can I say folks ? I am so touched by all your kind words and I will try harder to keep this blog up. I am so late with this post that forwarding this award to any one who hasn't already had it is impossible but to all those who read my blog and to those who's blogs I read , you all make my day and although I have not been posting it's the Blogging/Ravelry world that I owe a huge debt to for keeping me crafting on .

And I have been busy crafting whilst I have been AWOL and have been waiting to get some decent photos but again we seem to have been too busy with one thing or another.

Well here are my FO's even if the photos are not up too much :(
First I made a waistcoat using Sirdar Click and why this took me so long heaven knows . The only thing I can say is that the majority of it was moss stitch and after 'Roam' I was fed up with doing moss stitch. Still it's a great waistcoat and I am pleased with it.

Next I made 'Jawbreaker 'out of Interweave Knits and I love this cardi even if I did run out of yarn doing the collar;it should have been a tad longer but I did do the body longer . The yarn is the lovely Manos del Uruguay and I have come to the conclusion that I rather this sort of variegated yarn instead of the stripey 'Noro type'. I have more of this yarn in a different colour so I think I might make another Jawbreaker with it.

Oh and a pair of socks . Yarn ,Colinette Jitterbug and pattern from SKNS.Wonder how these will wash/wear ? !!

On the needles now I am making a jumper out of Colinette's Parisienne and I will be glad when that is done as I am doing it on straight needles.(can't you tell I am trying to use ALL my Colinette yarns up !!) I DON'T do straight needles any more but this pattern calls for 4mm needles and one 10mm needle . Its a pain and I am so slow doing it grrrrr feels like one big banana in my hand and the other needle just gets in the way too.

Being 3/4 sleeve the Jawbreaker was exactly what I need to wear when I was making this next lot . Both of the SWD Guilds that I am in had felting days this last month and I really had fun at both and have been doing a lot more since. I have also borrowed an embellishing machine which is great ; apart from the fact that I broke four needles in the space of half an hour !!
This is a pair of slippers for me and I have a pair to make for DH and hopefully will make some for Miss Emily also.

A pot/urn ? !!

These cobweb scarfs are so quick to make

I have been finding it hard to concentrate on doing one thing at a time lately and have had a few things on the go at the same time which is not like me. I usually like to start something and finish it before going on to something else . BUT I have a new passion, crochet :) I am hooked (pardon the pun )
Well it all stared with the fact a few of us are going to Prudence Mapstone's workshop at Wonderwool . So I thought I would have a go at doing some freeform . Now the hooks I had were fine but I was finding they really hurt me so I have invested in some Clover Soft Touch hooks and they are superb so much easier on painful joints.
I have made a few of these in these colours and want to try and incorporate them in a shawl in some way.

Then I thought I would make a freeform waistcoat so I knitted the back and then I made a template for the front and have done loads of bullion shapes .

I love these bullion shapes they feel so organic and done in my chunky spun yarn I think they look lovely.The next thing is to get them together !! Mmmm will have to think about that.
In the meantime I really wanted a red crochet cardi I saw in the shops but couldn't really afford. I have never worn red but I fancy it for some reason . But I just could not justify buying any more yarn either
; lets face it I do have too much and I am trying to work my way through it. So when I won a pack of chunky red yarn at the Guild raffle prize I was thrilled . Okay I didn't really want chunky but hey its free and its 50% merino !!
So I am trying to do this cardi out of 'Happy Hooker'. Well the pattern any way and I want it longer and possibly with longer sleeves also.

I am not sure if its working as its not as lacy as I would like and I am not sure if blocking it will help. So there is another pattern that I have just found so I will try that and if I rather it then I will frog this one.

Well that's me done for , ready for a cuppa now and a collapse on the sofa.Catch you all soon and I promise it will be soon ;-)

Sometimes I wonder why !!

2008-01-20T15:59:00.000Z

Another week goes flying by and last week was really busy and Kath and Emily came over for a couple of days too. My hospital appointment was cancelled due to the fact my nurse was off on hols this week and she didn't want me to have these jabs until she is there in case I get some severe reactions !! Apparently I will have four the first week ,then three the following and so forth until it's down to one and thereby it will be one weekly for as long as it agrees with me and of course gives benefit.So a new date has been set for Feb 5th. I was all geared up for it and now its cancelled if feels like a bit of a reprieve in a way. I know its silly after all the various drugs I have been on and am still on but I am a bit apprehensive of this new one . I shouldn't have read the side effects and of course it's new so I feel a bit like a guinea pig. On the other hand nursie sounds really excited as I am her 'first one ' !!

Back to my title . I do sometimes wonder why I bother knitting and especially when I have a FO like Roam. Now it was a great fit with plenty of stretch and I really liked it and then I washed it, and now its lost all of the stretch and the sleeves are way too long and overall it's just limp and the collar weighs it down.Posed it looks okay until I move and then it just flops and gapes.

It was done in Colinette Cadenza and I have come to the conclusion that my love affair with Colinette is coming to an end. I am always seduced by their colours at the mill shop and I forget the other disasters I have had with a few of their yarns ( how can I forget Silky Chic ? for one !!) plus even at sale prices it's not cheap yarn. The quality is not that great either in my opinion and as for losing colour when you knit it , my hands were black with this one after knitting it, and washing it even stained the sink !! Why can't they fix their dyes properly or rinse the excess off ? So this is for the frog pond with the other two Colinette FO's which is so annoying after spending precious time and agonizing joint pain to knit it,as well as money. So I vow never to buy any more Colinette to knit a garment with again ; it might be okay for socks scarves,shawls etc but I am not going to be disappointed again. I still have some Colinette yarns to knit up , Giotto and Parisienne and the one which has a big question mark,Jitterbug ,to be knitted up as a cardigan. Will that too drop or lose so much colour that its not as vibrant as the colour I fell in love with ? I think I will knit some socks in it before making a garment . I am just hoping that now that the yarn has dropped in both this yarn and in the Tagliatelli that it will knit up okay second time around. Now I know there are other makes of yarns that have done this and Kath had the same experience with a Jaeger yarn. I also bought some of the same yarn in a different colour but after her experience I have yet to even try it. So it begs the question , do we need to skein and wash our yarns before knitting them up just in case they 'grow' or do we just dry clean them? I don't think so !! unless the yarn is labelled as such.
I was so fed up with my FO and of course Kath was here and had finished her gorgeous new knit and so when we went shopping I actually bought a new cardigan as a compensation. Tony said it was lovely and also said 'surely you could have knitted that' my reply was 'Yes, but I want it now and this fits and looks nice ' Plus at the sale price I couldn't have bought yarn that cheap. It's only my love of spinning and knitting that pushes me to keep trying to accomplish the perfect, unique to me, garment.

Right rant over, here is FO I do like and will make again.

I also made Penny , as Emily has named her some new clothes.Not sure what Islay thinks of her though .

On Thursday I went to the Lleyn Guild which was great,even if I didn't manage to stay as long as I would have liked. I love these guilds as you meet so many talented folks ,and I come home with so many new ideas. It was a spinning day and I was able to do some, albeit boring white tops . My wound is healing at last so I will be able to spin 'proper wool' soon. I have just ordered another of those yummy coloured Corriedale fleece which was so well prepped; you can tell she is a spinner herself. The last one spun up so well and in fact was the best fleece I have bought so far.It is so soft and I need another for the commission I have been given. The lady who owns them ,shears usually in January so booking a fleece is essential as she doesn't have that many and they get snapped up quickly.I may not get it until Wonderwool though unless a friend of mine sees her before then, I am too mean to pay for the postage;)

I also had a lovely surprise this week from Amber

Isn't she fab? I totally love her and her fiery aura inspires me to be positive and just looking at her cheers me up. Thank you so much Amber , that was so kind of you,I will treasure her; what a talented lady you are.
It never ceases to amaze me , the kindness of Bloggers and thank you all who commented on my last post. Its so lovely to know that there are folks out there who care enough to post. Thank you all

Blwyddyn Newydd Dda

2008-01-11T13:16:00.000Z

Happy New Year to you all and may 2008 be a great year for us all. It wasn't such a great start for me as I ended up in A&E in Haverfordwest on New Years day after being bitten by the farm dog. Not the best of places to spend the day I can tell you; just glad it isn't my local hospital !!
I had gone to wish our host a happy new year and she came to the door with her Jack Russell on its lead ; now she never brings it to the door usually as it's not a friendly dog at all, but a great little guard dog, which she needs living were she does . She is an elderly lady and the dog pulled her and she stumbled , so I reached to support her with my right hand and the dog got my left hand , that easy. Flippin painful too and also a great hindrance !! She was more upset than I and I just cursed the little 'B' for 'biting the hand that feeds'. It is now on the mend and I will have a lovely scar as a holiday memento.

This is were we were , right on the coast by Strumble Head .

It was a mixed Christmas really and I was glad to get home as I wasn't too well all in all. I had an appointment with my consultant this week and I am going to start a new treatment next week. This is a new drug and I will be the first in our area to try it out. I will have to inject myself weekly with it and although there are possible awful side effects I must give it a go and also it can help arthritis as well so fingers crossed. Who knows I might be able to whizz through all my knitting in a few weeks time :)

On the knitting front I have finished Roam and it just needs a zip .I have also done a few other bits like Ice Queen but the thing that is fascinating me at the moment and bringing out the 'child' in me is knitting this.........

She is from the book 'Knitted Babes' by Claire Garland and I love her .
I never had a doll when I was a child as I was too much of a tomboy , having four brothers I had no choice !! Of course these are for Emily ;) but I am so enjoying making clothes for her and plan to make a couple more dolls too. Such quick little knits and great for using oddments of yarn up and I have bits of fabric lined up to make clothes for them also.

I have started knitting a waistcoat for myself and I so want to get to do some spinning too but until this wound on my hand has healed I will have to wait.

Days of dyeing

2007-12-04T18:17:00.000Z

Kath and I had a great time last week with our dyeing , carding and spinning
It was good to have some time together and just 'play', although 'Miss Emily' was much missed ( but not at 6 am !!).
This is a photo of all the dyeing that took place; although not all of the fleece we dyed are on display , just bits of them to show the colours.
At the very front is a plain washed and extremely soft BFL x fleece which we picked up from the Wool Board at Porthmadog.That's a story for another post ;)

At the right is a collection of the yarns using natural dyes. The dyes we used this time were onion skins, madder and copper/ammonia. Its amazing how many hues you can get with only a few dyes. I need to get more pans for natural dyeing as we had hoped to do some weld, red cabbage and cochineal but ran out of time. The yarns we used were some hand spun and some undyed boucle . I love the way that all natural dyes blend so well together. Some are destined to be a waistcoat and I don't know what Kath is going to do with hers.

To the left are all the acid dyeing we did. Some were sock yarns and others are more hand spun.There are some gorgeous colours here I think, but as usual the camera never quite gets them all right.
Having the large boiler means I can now dye up large quantities of fleece to made a solid colour for a garment which is a bonus. Although some of this is destined to be used as a single ply for lace knitting.It's a Teeswater fleece which has a minimum staple length of 10 inches and the lady I bought it from has given me some tips re spinning a single ply.

We also had a go at the English Combs and although they do look lethal they make a fantastic thin roving which makes spinning a breeze.
The stand is clamped to the table and then one of the combs is secured to it . The fleece is then flicked on to the tines either on the tips ,which I think is easiest or the butt. I then move the comb to the side position as I find it easier. It's then a matter of combing it until the majority is off the clamped comb.

What's left on the clamped comb can either be teased and carded again or used for felting or disposed of. You then put the full comb on the stand and comb again. I usually do three passes but it depends on the fleece.
You then use the Diz and with a crochet hook to pull a thin roving through the hole and gently pull through all the fleece into a fine roving and wind into a ball and 'voila' your good to go.

I have been doing more spinning than knitting lately due to the fact that my joints but especially my right shoulder and arm have been too painful.I have been doing a little Xmas knitting but even knitting a few rows is uncomfortable so it only frustrates me more. I just hope that resting will help as I have so much I want to knit. I can't take any more painkillers so I guess a trip back to the rheumy doc will have to be done if things don't improve. Either that or I will have to commission someone to knit all my lovely hand spun up :(
I do have some FO pics to show you but I think I have gone into photo overload in this post !!
X fingers that by next week normal knitting will resume !!

I'm still here , lurking !!

2007-11-24T12:30:00.000Z

I thought I would just pop in to let you know that I am still here and still busy. If anything busier than ever; it is amazing just how much you can do by cutting down time spent online. I have made a few FO's but no photos !! Some have been sold at a stall I had which was very encouraging and some are wrapped up for Xmas gifts. I totally got out of the habit of taking photos of every knitting and spinning task I did/doing.
I have been spending a lot more time spinning as well and have made some yummy yarns, again some were knitted up and sold and I have even been commissioned to spin enough coloured Corridale fleece to make an Aran sweater !! All of this came after I was invited to do a talk about my year of spinning and dyeing to a group of ladies, paid of course , yikes!!. I have to say that even if I was a teacher in the past, I was a bit nervous in the beginning,seeing a wall of faces looking at me .There were over 40 apparently but thankfully I soon relaxed and got lost in my enthusiasm of all things fleecy. I had really lovely feedback after and have been asked would I go back again at some point . I have also been asked to do a talk and demo to some A'Level students by their Art teacher and a group of ladies have asked if I would do a spinning workshop. I guess once a teacher always a teacher ;) It has all been most flattering and I have said 'yes' to all but after Xmas and it depends upon my health ;which is still not brill at the moment , good days and bad :( but hey I'm still not on steroids so that's positive .
So after doing all the work for that talk and sale table I can now relax and concentrate on yet more Xmas gifts . I am in the middle of a pair of socks and have a few other things to knit for others and then I can think about knits for myself. I have still not completed 'Roam' , the back and the fronts are done but that it. I nearly frogged it a week or so ago as I wasn't sure I wanted a hoodie but then I thought I could leave the hood off if I want .
Kath is coming over today for a few days without Emily and we are going to have a spinning and dyeing few days . I have on loan from the SWD Guild a set of English Comb's and they are brilliant, if a lethal looking, so I will take some photos of how we use them . I am tempted to buy some but for now I think I will stick to using the guild's as they are quite expensive . They are brilliant for the Teeswater fleece that I am using for single ply lace weight and you can spin it fine blindfolded , its that well prepped.
Other than that , what have I been up to ? I met up with some Ravellers at Colinette a few weeks ago ,see the lovely Joy's Blog and it was great fun , with us all yakking and laughing . Of course I came home with some yarn, Jitterbug to make a jacket and Kath bought me some Cadenza as a Xmas gift to make a Forest Canopy shawl . I have never been inspired to make this shawl before but I loved the one Joy was wearing and she 'enabled' me to buy the yarn as I enabled her and Chris to make the same jacket that I am going to make . So a lot of enabling went on all round :)
Oh and whilst we were on holiday we went to 'The Wool Clip' and I spent a lovely couple of hours doing yet more talking to the ladies there about Woolfest etc and I suggested that a 'Blogger's Corner' might be a good idea at the next one. I think they are going to try and do one and it will be by the knitting section I think and also I suggested that maybe a notice board would be good, to see if there are any names that we will recognize . What do you think ?
Well that's it for now but I will be back soon and this time with photos of our efforts of this following week. I have been reading a few blogs and I promise I will now try and catch up with you all gradually and I bet you have all been busy as well.

Going to hibernate for a while

2007-10-16T12:15:00.000Z

Again I have had a far too busy week with visitors etc and I am feeling totally washed out so I have decided to take a few weeks off from blogging as I am in need of a break; also my Crohns is playing up big style. We are going away on Friday for a couple of weeks in the van which should at least relax me . As usual no idea were to, but 'up north ' some where !!

I just can't keep up with blogging and trying to post on forums etc and end up feeling guilty because I can't,so I am not going to go on line as much but spend more time chilling out(if possible !! ) & catching up with 'real' life .
I have so much knitting stuff I want to do as well and I haven't yet cast on for the Secret of the Stole and there are two clues to do so far and of course I will miss the next three !!

Winghams visit last week at the guild was great and yes I did buy more than I intended!! It's always the same ; get a room full of fibre freaks wowing at this and that and you can't resist; plus it's unbelievable how much stuff they bring with them . I bought stuff for my felting workshops, some BFL for DH to spin as he is ready for some more now that he has practically finished the Gotland .The rest was yummy merino /silk in various coloured 100gm hanks , destined to be Xmas gifts. A fair bit of silk in one form or another, some dyed some not . I met Anne Campbell at the all Wales gathering and we were nattering about silk spinning and she gave me some ideas I want to try out, so I bought a silk brick too.

On the knitting front I have made Claudia's Moebius and I love it . The only way I can describe the colours is ,like oil on water but none of these photos do it justice. Her service is amazing and I can't recommend her highly enough. I will be back for more of her yarns for sure.

So that it folks for now. I will try and pop in on blogs as & when I am able and I will think of you all and of course there is also Ravelry :)so I will post my FO as and when !!
Take care all and see you soon
Anne x

Life is so exciting at times

2007-10-08T08:22:00.000Z

Thank you all for your lovely comment's & birthday wishes on my last post .
I had early visitors on my Birthday. I had just had my breakfast in my jammys, after a gentle start to the day and there on the doorstep was Kath and Emily at 9 am in the morning !!
Emily had her bunny ears on and a party dress and was shouting 'Happy Bifday Nain , I got flowers fo you' She was so excited and what a lovely surprise it was to see them both; the best pressie ever :)

So plans changed and we decided despite the weather that we would go and get some sausage and chips and go down to Black Rock sands and eat our lunch down there. It was great fun and even though it was blowing a gale Emily and I still made sandcastles ..... well I made sandcastles !!

and Emily flattened them

Sometimes the simplest of things are absolutely the best and that day was one of them. Thanks Kath :)
I had some lovely pressie's including flowers and a cake,two Elsebeth Lavold books which I wanted ( I love her cable work) some new jim jams and cosy socks,another lovely wooden shawl pin, pennies from DH ; some of which I spent in Llanidloes on Saturday and some will be spent on Thursday at our Wingham day with the guild.
I am also expecting a parcel from the lovely Claudia with yarn to make 'that' moebius with . I have wanted to make this one for a long time and Claudia very kindly sent me the pattern some time ago and I have wanted to make it with her yarn so I have been trying to choose which colours to do it in.
So after much to and fro wing of e-mails between us ,and of course she has opened a new shop too and has been very busy( do go and check it out as there are some fab yarns there) I have left it up to Claudia to choose for me . All I know is that it will be blues and greens and I am so excited as to what she has chosen for me. Do hope the postal strikes won't hold it up too long !!

We had the most fantastic day on Saturday with the all Wales Guild and I met up with loads of folks I knew and some I knew online but had never met. So there was a lot of talking, laughing , oohing and aahing going on all day .

Here are just some of the photos I took:

Meirionedd Guild's plastic yarn , mine is the bottle carrier on the left;actually its carrying an empty bottle of tonic water !!

My shawl on the left in one half on the Meirionedd Guilds display

The Lleyn had camel to work with and here it is . I made some of the triangles

Here is the display of work and my weaving is one of those on the top

There was so much to see and I have taken loads of photos and such a great atmosphere, as always when we crafty folk get together.

After lunch we went to a talk by a lady called Jenny Balfour-Paul , all about Indigo. It was a truly fascinating talk and slide show and I learnt a lot more about indigo from around the world.I am definitely going to do indigo dyeing in the very near future as I was given a kit of natural indigo by a kind guild member. If you are in the Brighton-Hove area there is an exhibition in the
Brighton Museum until January and then I gather it is moving to Washington DC. I would love to see this exhibition as, lovely though the slides were and the fantastic fabrics she brought I am sure it would be worth a visit to see all the other things collected together.
Of course there were trade stalls there as well and I was fascinated by all the wonderful buttons that 'The Threshing Barn' had so I bought a few of them; they were either porcelain or glass. No idea as yet what to use them for apart from the sheep ones which Emily will definitely have. I was ages there trying to decide which to have and still wish I had bought some others. I LOVE buttons.

Now I thought I had done well as I wasn't going to buy any more fleece but then my dear friend Rita dragged me off to see a couple of her friends and so I ended up buing a lovely coloured Corridale 1/4 fleece in the most lovely colour combination of greys and fawns, a 1/4 fleece Corridale shearling in brown with blonde tips from one friend ;both of these are very clean and soft with a fab crimp,so will hardly need any prep at all and can be spun as they are without carding.
She then introduced me to another of her friends and I fell in love with her alpaca fleece so had to have some of that in a lovely mink colour with blonde tips . I have already started spinning this as it is so soft and it was tempting me to get my hands on it asap.I want to make it soft and bouncy ,so I am not putting too much of a twist to it when I am spinning it and it will be fairly chunky too. I have spun alpaca before but it was no where near as good as this and I am truly enjoying this fleece. I have to say that when you do get a good fleece it makes spinning it a joy. I also met up with another friend of Rita's who has Wensleydale sheep,so I have put my name down for one of next years shearling fleece!! Must spin all of the lovely fleece I have now over winter :)
I am not buying tops to spin from Winghams but for felting instead as we have two felting workshops planned with both Guilds over the next few months.

Tony's sister is coming over tomorrow for a few days ,so another packed week ahead for us .

Oh and Kath has told me to tell you this. I needed another skein of the lovely Bowmont Braf from Glasu to make something for Emily and thankfully they were there and as we were chatting I was asked if I was Welsh speaking and had I knitted what I was wearing which I replied 'Yes' to both and then he asked me would I go to Ally Pally this Thursday ? S4C our Welsh TV channel would pay for me to go and be interviewed as they wanted a 'trendy !!! young !!! Welsh speaking knitter ' to interview . Well I laughed and thanked him but declined as he was only right in one thing ; I can speak Welsh, but I was very flattered to be asked LOL.

PS: In ALL my excitment HOW could I forget to show you the gift that Kath, not my Kath but this Kath sent me. It was so beautifully wrapped and with a lovely card too which was made by her . I love this pin and it matches my new shrug perfectly. Thank you so much Kath, you are such a sweetie and so talented; I will treasure this gift.

I am getting old :)

2007-09-30T11:23:00.000Z

It's over a week since my last post and I don't know were the time has gone !! Emily had a cold when she was here and Kath started with it and so did I ;so I felt really rough all last week with blinding headaches and sore throat etc. It still lingering but I am much better.
So I haven't been able to do as much as I would have liked but I did manage to get to the Lleyn SWD Guild where we had a spinning & and weaving day which was fun. They have accepted my weaving for the all Wales exhibition , so now I have two items with two different guilds on display!!
I have finished the merino/silk batt I bought at Woolfest and I do love the end yarn but unfortunately there is not enough yardage for the Tangled Yoke Cardi from IK . I have 928 yds and it requires at least 1337 yds so another project will have to be thought for this yarn.

It wasn't an easy yarn to spin fine as the silk was very nubbly but it does have a lovely tweedy effect
On the wheel at the moment I am spinning sock yarn which has nylon added to it ; this is another Woolfest buy.

I am trying to use up all the stuff I have before Saturday :) as there will be a lot of trade stalls at the all Wales SWD Guild meeting !!

Also the following week Winghams are coming to the Meirionedd SWD Guild so there will be YET more temptation thrown in my path. See I told you a few post back that October is going to an expensive month for me!! Well ,I do believe I have to make the most of opportunities that come my way ;) and the all Wales is held every other year so nothing there next year and also having Winghams arrive at my doorstep , what is a girl do do ?
Also it is my birthday this week , hence the title and if I don't get these things now ; when will I ? Do I feel guilty ? Well a bit, as I really should knit up what I have at the moment . It's coming up to a year this next month since I started spinning and to say that I am hooked is an understatement. Yes I have spent a fair bit here and there on my new hobby but its worth every penny ,as not only has it opened up a new world where I have made so many friends in my own area and online but it has also lifted my spirits no end and I feel, that once again I am being creative.

So with all this forthcoming spending I was trying to save on some things . Both Kath and I are doing the Mystery Stole which starts next week and we needed yarn ; so I bought some cheap merino lace weight off E-Bay at £4.99 for 3 skeins with 900yds in each skein. It was a slightly variegated light brown but no longer. It went into the dye pot and is now a lush chocolate brown and I bought some copper beads to go with it which I like and hope that Kath does too .

Also I dyed that vivid yellow Jitterbug yarn and it now looks like this.

Talking of Colinette.On the last trip I bought some Cadenza to make Roam and so I thought I would wind the skeins this week only to find that I was one ball short :( No wonder really after our chaotic shopping with Emily . Fortunately they still had some left so they are posting me some , phew !! Lets hope it matches as it was out of the sale room.

I have a FO to show and I have to say I hated knitting this as it was done on 10mm needles. It should have been a quick knit but I found it very painful with my joints to use such large needles .

Not sure if these shrugy things suit me but its a light throw on and great with jeans.

So as I said it's my birthday this week and although I never really think of age or
that I am getting older, of course I am and Clarabelle gave me food for thought re ageing with a post of hers.I certainly don't want to be called 'mutton dressed as lamb' and I too get a shock when I see myself sometimes in the mirror or in a photo!! but hey I will go down fighting.I have always loved eccentric old ladies ,so I guess I am just working my way there . Hopefully not too quickly,(I will be 56 this time ) but I do love wearing a LOT of purple :) , is this a sign ?
I just love this poem and I will end this ramble with it, in defiance of ageing

-------------------

When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
With a red hat which doesn't go, and doesn't suit me.
And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves
And satin sandals, and say we've no money for butter.

I shall sit down on the pavement when I'm tired
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells
And run my stick along the public railings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.

I shall go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick the flowers in other peoples' gardens
And learn to spit.

You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat
And eat three pounds of sausages at a go
Or only bread and pickles for a week
And hoard pens and pencils and beermats and things in boxes.

But now we must have clothes that keep us dry
And pay our rent and not swear in the street
And set a good example for the children.
We must have friends to dinner and read the papers.

But maybe I ought to practice a little now?
So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised
When suddenly I am old, and start to wear purple.

by Jenny Joseph

FO's & again photo heavy !!

2007-09-19T17:50:00.000Z

The weeks seem to fly by and Kath and Emily have been, and gone home today :( but we had a good time and we were on the go every day and exhausted by the time Emily was in bed .
So in this post I will show some FO's and some yarn purchases !!
This is another wall hanging I made with the Lleyn SWD Guild,again with Eta,before we went on hols and I used bits of shell and driftwood I picked up from our Scottish trip. So that is what I made, a sea scene; great fun doing these and instant creative gratification.

Then I made another mobius from Cat Bordhi's book ; I think I will make a few more of these as its a quick knit and I so love to wear them as they are cosy without weight.

I didn't do much knitting whilst we were away, far too busy having fun with our new friends but I did do these two boleros with my own hand spun yarn (BFL, silk and kid mohair). I had finished Emily's and as Rosemary had a grand daughter the same age I chanced there would be enough yarn to do another and just by a whisker I made it , although I did it slightly different(its the front one which is wet and blocking ). I have since been told that little Molly loves it.

This is our darling Emily in hers.

I have also finished the cardigan with the yarn I bought on the Isle of Skye and I love it. It took me longer than expected as I thought I had finished and then found I had made an error on BOTH !!fronts so had to frog back . I will definitely knit this pattern again as I like the way it is fitted and the sleeves flare out a bit, and it's a lightweight knit, something which although takes longer I far rather wear.I have bought a lot of 4 ply lately with this in mind and of course they are better for layering as well.
This is it before blocking and its now blocked and looks even better.

Kath and I went to Colinette this week and I had a yarn in mind to buy so I was well pleased that I managed to get some, Cadenza in a gorgoeus rich green colourway I liked in the sale room and I think its destined to be Roam from the new Knitty, but I might change my mind !!

I also bought two skeins of Jitterbug again from the sale room and the lary yellow is destined for the dye pot LOL although I think Kath likes it :)and will keep hers as is .
Then there are two skeins of Parisienne which will be some sort of lacy scarf. Quite a restrained shopping there I thought ; for a change I bought what I had in mind when I went and no more LOL.

We had a couple of sunny days whilst they were here and we went out with a picnic and a walk around Trawsfynydd lake which Emily seemed to run most of the way around.Thank goodness this gate slowed her down a tad , but JUST a tad !!

Then one day we went with Eta and her daughter and grand daughter to a farm in the back of beyond and picked up a bag or two of free Welsh mountain fleece.(He has loads to give away , any one want any ? ) I wish I had taken my camera as the location of this farm was stunning and the house dated back to 1490 and was right by the river Cynfal. Again Miss Emily was a bundle of energy and was really enjoying herself picking up smelly fleeces and shouting 'an dis one ?' and trying to stuff them into bags; guess that's my family's farming background coming out !!

Well that's my FO's . I have a shrug on the needles at the moment knitted with Wendy Allegro which I bought whilst away in 'that' wool shop and I forgot to take a photo of and I am also knitting a pair of socks for a dear friend in the US for her birthday so I can't show them until she has received them.
I have also a lot dyeing to do with various yarns, including some yummy cashmere I have acquired ;)
Oh and I really want to get that rug I am weaving finished as I want my drum carder back for other finer fleece.
Plus I need to finish spininng the 660gm merino& silk for another project, nearly there with that one and that is a lightweight DK too.
So that's enough to keep me busy for the next week I think.
In the meantime,thank goodness I won't be up at the crack of dawn tomorrow with young Miss and the peace in the house at the moment , ahhhhh the peace , I am savouring that :)
Oh and I nearly forgot , my wrap has passed the test and will be in the all Wales SWD Guild exhibition; I have to say I am thrilled .

Back to Earth

2007-09-12T16:30:00.000Z

Before I begin I must thank you all for all the lovely comments re my wrap , so very much appreciated. It is going to the Guild with me tomorrow to see if it will pass the scrutiny of the members to be entered in the All Wales meeting at Llanidloes.
Also thanks to Kath for giving my blog a fresh new look whilst she was here today for one night only, a flying visit with Emily. She will be back on Sunday when we will be getting up to all sorts of mischief ;-)

Now a warning ; this post is PHOTO HEAVY

Well we have had a glorious , relaxing break and the weather could not have been better. A real 'Indian Summer' and it felt more like the Mediterranean than Pembroke with azure blue seas and hot sun. We had planned on touring but we found a great site at Strumble Head near Fishguard ,right on the coastal path with stunning sea views and that was all we needed. That's the great thing about taking 'our home' with us as we are totally independent and as long as we can dispose of refuse and take on water we are okay , so it means we can stay at very basic small farm sites, like this one. This is a view of the sunrise taken from our pitch,one morning when I got up way too early;well worth a sleepless night & an early rise for me. After this morning I am glad to say I slept late in every morning which is unheard of from me.

We met up with a lovely couple staying at the same site and we spent the rest of our holiday with them having days out and had so many laughs; they were just so easy and fun to get on with and I am sure we will meet up with them again .They had two dogs also, so ours had a great time too and all dogs were wiped out by the end of the days.
We went on the little coastal buses and then walked various walks back to the farm; a great way to do the walks if you are ever in that area.

There were wild flowers everywhere and I have taken loads of photos of them. Both Rosemary and I loved looking at them in detail and so our walks were easy rambles that took hours and of course there was an amble packed lunch , which had to be rested after . So many other things to see as well with coves full of seals and their pups and we could even hear them for the little bay nearest our site. I kept clicking away with my camera and I do have a video as well and when I can figure how to edit it I will show you it, if any one is interested.

I zoomed in quite a bit so the quality is not that great but you can see the white pup behind Mum , who is keeping an eye on me. I actually whistled and she looked up directly at me. We didn't go too near as that would not be right, especially with there being pups with them but we did hear of some folks who had very close encounters with them whilst swimming . In fact we saw a lady swimming and up popped a seal right by her; she got out of the water pretty quick I can tell you. I'm not sure if they would harm you but they are certainly curious but there were also huge bull seals around which I would not wish to meet up with !! Of course dolphins would be another matter as there are plenty of them around also but alas we didn't see any ; they always seemed to be in the next bay around the corner,according to folks we met along the way !! The path meanders up and down and around the cliffs so although as the crow flies it isn't far, in actually fact its a longer walk than you first think.

Here is one of the bull seals swimming in this cove too.

This coastal area is a National Park and they have taken sheep off the land and introduced wild Welsh Mountain ponies which are hardy little beasts and are better for grazing than the sheep for conserving the flowers etc.

They are pretty tame on the whole but we did have a narrow escape when three ponies came galloping along the path towards us , in a hurry to get somewhere.We just about managed to get off the path in time.

Plenty for the bird watchers to see here also . There are plenty of Choughs in this area ; we do have them here at home but there were a lot about on this part of the coast. This bird is extinct in the rest of the UK apart from Scotland and it also thrives in Ireland as well. Very acrobatic birds which are fun to watch and are distinctive by their red beaks and legs.

We noticed this flight of steps cut into the rock going down to the sea.If you enlarge the photo you will see them, pretty hairy don't you think ?

This is the light house at Strumble Head and the ferry over to Ireland from Fishguard in the background.

Fishguard is a nice little town with some nice gift shops and smashing little yarn shop with a great cafe next door . They are run by identical twin sisters and the choice of food was as diverse as their choice of yarns. I was tempted by both and did succumb to both also ;0 surprise , surprise !!
But not as much as I could have, as my wallet is in for a real clout over the next few weeks ,as I will tell you about later.

Well this has been photo heavy and I did take hundreds of photos and could have gone on posting more but this is the last !!
Sunshine on the sea on a very hot day at the beach.

Hardly any talk of yarn is there ? Well that's for another post were I will show FO's and oh I nearly forgot we also went to an Angora farm where I bought a kid mohair fleece at such a bargain price. It was one of her prize winning kids but it had got very muddy , needless to say it isn't now, it's white and glossy & there is enough for two garments .Oh and we also went to a working woolen mill called Tregwynt and I got some fab remnants which will come in useful for making something; either cushions or handbags.

A FINAL Wrap !!

2007-08-26T17:13:00.003Z

Many thanks for all your lovely compliments re my wrap; hope you like it now in its new colour !! As per usual even in sunlight its hard to get this colour shown right . So this is the best my photographer could get of the shade, bless him :)You might see that it still has its variations of shades, but they blend better now I think.

As you know I spun this yarn and in general it's DK weight , and there lies a tale!! This was my Scottish holiday spin , which I did most evenings. Now I don't drink much as a rule , two G+T's and I am happy , three I'm delirious . Hence I can tell, and see where those lovely, hazy night's of spinning took place :) So beware if you want even spinning don't drink & spin !!

This will be a much loved wrap I think as it can dressed up or down and I do love purple; plus it will be very warm too.
Oh, before I forget check on my sidebar all those who love making stoles . There is a mystery stole KAL, not sure of the closure date but it begins Oct 5th. I did sign for MS3 but never got around to it and to be honest seeing it finished its not my style , guess I am just not a shawl girl, I love my wraps / stoles . You can also follow it on Ravelry , as with all other things it seems :)

So that's it .......a FINAL wrap.

Adieu until we return from our break

It's a Wrap

2007-08-25T15:02:00.000Z

Yet another busy week with lots of visitors coming over to see us; which is great if a bit tiring. So not much done in the way of crafting ;although I have finished my wrap.

Now I love it BUT I didn't like how some of the striping came out, as its uneven; see on my right shoulder . This was the first time I had dyed a large quantity of unspun yarn together for a project and I didn't have a big enough pot then really , so its been a learning curve . Now it might have been fine for a jumper but I just felt it didn't work for this as there was one spot that really stood out in my opinion. So now I have the Burco boiler and it can take large items I have over dyed it today and now I do love the colour , its a rich purple but you can still see variations of colour. I can see I am going to have fun with this boiler !!
It's blocking at the moment, so when its dry I'll show you a photo of it .
Well this week I was getting fed up, as I still hadn't received my Vogue Knitting fall issue and as I never received the Spring/Summer issue I thought I would mail them to see if it had been posted, and they said it had but they would send me another.
This was on Wednesday .....guess what arrived today ?

Yup :) plus the Interweave Knits. There are great knits in both so I am really pleased but I will not re-subscribe to Vogue via the US again as I have had
nothing but hassle and its impossible to check your status via their web-site..

Well, we are off on holiday at the end of next week and so far the plan is for Pembroke but all this could change LOL. We did think of going back to Scotland but with only ten days felt it wasn't enough time . We did think of Northumberland , or Yorkshire , or Derbyshire or Cumbria but hey we haven't been to South Wales for a couple of years now and at this time of year is great to see all the seal pups in the coves along the coastal path . Plus ,being a short journey it will give us more chill out time . We haven't booked any where as we never do , but go where the road takes us or the sun maybe , we'll see .
Take care and catch up with you when we return

Commiunication is what we need ;)

2007-08-19T08:18:00.000Z

Before I begin this week post I must start by saying I have had two more awards and these two really,really touched me and make me feel that I am so lucky in having such lovely blogging friends. It still amazes me that folks even read my blog let alone post on it; there are such amazing blogs out there and this is a real community where we keep in touch with each other and care about each other also. There are times when I feel its a struggle to update my blog if things are not so good with me but I so love to post on others blogs and see what they are up to and that is what this award is about I gather .

It's a the Schmoozer Award:

Schmoozing is the natural ability “to converse casually, especially in order to gain an advantage or make a social connection. Good schmoozers effortlessly weave their way in and out of the blogsphere, leaving friendly trails and smiles, happily making new friends along the way. They don’t limit their visits to only the rich and successful, but spend some time to say hello to new blogs as well. They are the ones who engage others in meaningful conversations, refusing to let it end at a mere hello - all the while fostering a sense of closeness and friendship".

I have been given this firstly by the very perceptive Seahorse/Claire who's blog is so full of many things apart from her great crafting, she is a great cook and her pics are just to drool over; the only criticism I have is her obsession with 70's memorabilia LOL, you make me feel old girl ;-). No not really, but it sure is a trip down memory lane when I see all your collections.
Next the Yarn Pron Queen herself Gilraen/Margaret gave me this award too. As I said to you Margaret in my e-mail I do think there should be an award out there somewhere for the blog that has THE most lush yarn on it and you would defo be my tops and you are also such a sweetie and thanks again :)
Ladies you are both awesome and both deserve this award your selves..

Now these awards are fun and its great to receive them and I just wish I could give them to ALL who post on my blog but in the spirit of fun I will nominate.

1. Kath Now I know that you are not always able to keep up with blogging as much as you would want to,with all that goes on in your life, but I know that your heart is there and besides, what I have ,you must have ;-)

2.Kat as yet again she is just so supportive and I see her post on so many other blogs too, bless her :)All your lovely comments do mean so much to me , thank you.

3.Clarabelle I love to read her blog as not only does she make me laugh , she also makes time for a lot of folks. More about her later !!

4.Wanda is one busy lady and I found her blog by sheer chance and I love looking at the beautiful photos of her part of the world and reading all about the hard work she and Ed do in making & selling all their beautifull things , such a great team together, BUT she will always reply back when I post . If there was someone from far away that I would just love to spend an afternoon spinning with it would be Wanda .

5.Ang is another who always posts and she again is so supportive and fun lady who has time for so many others; one of these days North must meet with South ( Wales )?

There are so many, many more and this has made me realize that yes its great to have a blog but its so much more fun when you get posts and post on other blogs. It just shows you care and in my opinion , the world needs more of it; communication !!

Right on to knitterly stuff . Remember this ?

Well now its this :

Why ? well I never liked it from the beginning and those tie things never lay properly even with blocking and they just got in the way ; it just wasn't me, full stop. Remember how I said I hated working with this splitty yarn and how I would never work with it again ? BUT I hate waste and when I saw what Clara had made with it , I thought, yeah okay I hear you on the stripey issue but heck at least I might get wear out of the thing. Let me tell you this yarn is a swine to frog too, drove me nuts and took nearly as long to frog as to knit and now I have yet more yarn to knit up !! I blame you Clara for looking so good in that jumper , fancy knitting another for me ;-)?

I haven't been that busy this week ; its been one of those weeks , lets move to the next !!
The shawl is coming along and I should get it done this week all being well as I want it finished so that I can get my cardi done. I'm not very good at having more than one thing on the needles as the other keeps calling me , sad I know !!

I still can't get the colour to show right , what is it with purple and the camera , or is it me ?
In a way I wish I had knitted this up and then dyed the FO as I am getting stripes as I am knitting so I might over dye when its done, not sure as yet. I love Anne's designs and now that she has brought out the 'Honeybee Stole ' I had to have that one too as I have all her other stole patterns . I don't think I will do it in the yellows though but I love it in the black that she has also done it in . Now there is another lady who ALWAYS replies when you post on her blog; she is so helpful and her patterns are just great to follow.

I have done a little bit more on the rug weaving and its looking good but harder work than I thought it would be but I love the stripes I am getting , just hope I have enough rubbishy fleece to make one as large as I would like . Tony was very pleased to hear that folks liked his sock blockers and says 'Thank you ' and all those went to Kath so now he has more to make for me :)
He went to his nephews wedding yesterday but sadly I wasn't well enough to go but he went to see Kath on the way home and look what my darling daughter made for me
Aren't they ever so pretty ?

A fair swap for sock blockers I reckon :)

What is HE doing in there?

2007-08-12T17:06:00.000Z

What is it about men and sheds ? Well some men :) Tony can spend hours and hours in the shed and I knew he was building a peg loom for Kath and I but then he went up there the other night and I heard the jigsaw going ; just when supper was nearly ready and I was thinking 'typical he knows supper is about to be served and he starts doing something in the shed !!! mutter, mutter , flippin men !!. No point in calling him as he wouldn't be able to hear me and I was too tired to go up there,so I went upstairs and looked out of the bedroom window and look what I saw hanging in the shed window.
Sock Blockers !! Bless him he has made three pairs and has given them all a few coats of varnish too & all before supper; may I be forgiven for grumbling about all the time he spends in the shed !!
So now I can wash and block more than one pair at a time. I do find that they keep their shape much better if they are left to dry on the blockers.

So on the same theme. I thought if you can't beat them , join them :)
So I set up shop in MY bit of the shed . I clamped the peg loom and started using up the fleece and its great fun . I am a bit concerned that bits will come off the rug when its done even though I am twisting the fleece as I am weaving it in.So after finishing it I was thinking of chucking it in a pillowcase in the washing machine to felt it slightly. Any one with any thoughts on this ?

Talking of felting , see what's beside the peg loom ? My recent acquisition from one of the guild members having a clear out ; its a Burco Boiler and apart from using it to dye large amounts of yarn to make jumpers etc I thought it would be brilliant to felt things like bags , slippers etc in .
I have all my dyeing stuff in the shed now and its great. I have collected a lot of natural dyeing things as well and am looking forward to having a play day very soon.

I had a new book delivered this week and I have to say I am disappointed in it . It's 'The Twisted Sisters Knit Sweaters by Lynne Vogel' I so enjoyed the other book that I bought this and thought it was such a bargain price but now I see why. I guess for a basic design book its okay but I can think of a lot better books on designing knitwear, pretty pictures though :)
That's the downside of buying a book before seeing it !!

On the knitting front I have finished half of the 'Morning Glory Wrap' and have started the other half and have nearly done the first half of the front of the cardigan ; so all going smoothly on them.

Now this news gave me the fit of giggles ,I have been given an award by a girl who really does rock Ang Thanks hun and I am honoured but as I said in my post to you I think it's more a case of crock than rock for me at times LOL ; but one tries , doesn't one ;-) ? So I will wear it with pride .

So now I have to award four others

The first to come to my mind has to be my wonderful daughter who without her help and support I would never have even got into Blogging so Kath this is for you my angel, you truly do rock.
I would also like to give one to Carrie Anne even if she is taking a summer break from blogging. I hope she reads this;not only is her work inspirational but her podcast is fantastic and I look forward to seeing her return .
Next I have to give one to Kat . I swear if I had a sister I would choose her as she is such a great,fun girl and sunshine just seeps from her.
Last but not least I award Kendra I am in awe of her lace work but more than that her warm ,honest and caring personality comes through on her blog in bundles ( one of which is due soon !!).
There are so many more I would like to give an award to and some of you have already have had one of these but for all of you that read my blog ,I think you all rock :)

I'm in a purple haze daze

2007-08-07T14:28:00.000Z

Life still busy here and the weather has been great for Kath,Barry and Emily's visit.
So I have been washing yet another fleece ; this was a Lleyn and has to have been the dirtiest fleece I have ever had and it was such hard work as its a big fleecebut its lovely,soft & white now ; only one more to do , another Teeswater and I think that will be enough to spin for winter!! Although I have met a new lady in our guild who has Icelandic fleece and I might be tempted by one of them as they sound gorgeous :)
I was looking at all the fleece I have had this year and now that I have learnt what to look for , I can see such a differnce in quality from others I had last year; some which I won't bother spinning now. But they will not be wasted , oh no !! as Tony has built both Kath and I a peg loom each which we still didn't get a chance to use this visit either !!

On the knitting front I am still knitting 'Daphne' but I just had to have some lace to do as well, much though I wanted a plain knit I have to say I am finding it rather boring, but perfect for TV watching.

So I have started on the Morning Glory Wrap and I love this pattern and such a quick knit it will be as well. This photo doesn't show the true colour at all but it has grown in a couple of days :)

I think they will both go well together when they are done and this will be a very wide wrap when its blocked , so will be great for the Autumn instead of wearing a jacket
This is closer to the colours of both

This is the Giotto top that I made ; its okay but nothing to rave about. I have gone down a dress size and still losing weight thank goodness (fingers crossed I stay off the steroids )but I am still not happy about wearing strappy tops so will save the other lot of Giotto for next year seeing as so far we haven't had much of a summer here

Well Ravelry is brilliant & totally addictive: Kath has been on it for hours & hours LOL and has been up-loading all my FO and goodness knows what else and I have strict instructions to keep it all updated. It's great to see so many folks on there I know and of course there will be many more to follow . Both Kath and I totally love it and it is such an useful resource .

More purple ,but from the garden this time.

A hectic life

2007-07-30T09:05:00.000Z

I really need to slow down as life is way too hectic at the moment and I am need of a chill out.
We had a great time with Kath & Emily but didn't get to do all we wanted to as 'Little Miss' is far too full of energy to sit down for a second and then when she went to bed we were too exhausted to do much else . We went to the Rabbit Farm where I could have easily come home with a few fluffy bunnies ( fibre yummy fibre ) a cute puppy or maybe a goat ?

We went to the beach which Miss Emily loved and Kath ran around trying to keep up with her whilst Nain and Tony tried to have 5 mins kip !! No way castles to build , holes to dig, water to carry !!

We did some bargain charity shopping & got some great craft books so Kath went home laden with goodies :)

On the knitting front,I have finished the top in Giotto and I am happy with it although I did do a few alterations ; photo will follow soon when DH masters the new camera :)
I have also finished the back of my cardigan and I have also knitted up my bit of hand spun, hand dyed camel for the Lleyn entry to the all Wales guild exhibition( all very secret LOL )
Re spinning : I have spun the re-cycled plastic for the Meirionedd Guild entry which I can't say I enjoyed, lots of white Llanwenog and this yummy boucle yarn which is destined to become a bolero for 'Little Miss' .It is very shiny and soft and the kid mohair has given it a lovely halo and I think when she has outgrown the bolero this yarn has to be re-cycled ;)

It's BFL & silk and plyed with kid mohair.

We had two days of sun this weekend ( in fact it still shining today sshhhhhh) so I have been fleece washing and boy is it hard work I have done four & I still have two more to do.The Teeswater was the hardest as it's a big heavy fleece ; it is such a beauty soft,lustrous with a staple of over 12 inches and I want to single ply some of it to use as lace weight .Plus I am picking up five more fleece from my guild meeting on Thursday but only one will be for me thank goodness.

So for the rest of this week I am going to do as little as possible as Kath, Barry and Emily are over again on the weekend for a few days and I haven't even cleared up after the last visit properly !!They are having days out together so x fingers that the weather will be good for them.

Last bit of news, I have just had my Ravelry invite, yipeee :) so now I can see what all the excitement is about .I may be gone for some time !!

Dyeing Heaven

2007-07-21T08:03:00.001Z

I had such a wonderful day with the Lleyn SWD Guild on Thursday but before I tell you all about that I want to show you some goodies I received from the lovely Andrea

It was all beautifully packaged and one even had 'sheepy' paper :)

I am using my new camera here and haven't got used to it yet so photos are not great. There is a note book, which is aptly named ,I don't do mornings ;) a beautiful stitch marker that Andrea made herself , a tube of lush hand cream , a necklace and last but not least and you would have to enlarge the pic to see it better, is a hank of lace weight in yummy purples and burgundy's which I have just the pattern for. A BIG thank you Andrea for a most thoughtful gift .

Now my dyeing day .
Wednesday turned out to be a really hot sunny day and for me to be out of the house by 9 am is saying something. I didn't sleep well the night before as I was a bit apprehensive about the driving ; I used to love driving at one time but since my illness I have lost confidence, so it's another thing I am trying to re-claim back.
Well I did get a bit lost but I have to say I enjoyed the drive along the small lanes and the scenery was lovely . The cottage where it was held was just above the sea , a stunning setting and I wish I had taken my camera along with me . I was a bit nervous about meeting a lot of new faces but I need not have worried as they were all lovely and I felt right at home immediately, although it will take a bit to remember all their names . We had such fun and laughter and a fabulous buffet lunch which we all added to .
I have made notes of each dye bath and it was like being a kid in school playing about with this pot or that and as the day progressed the hedges became strewn with all different shades . I was in totally wonderment as to how many shades you could get out of basically four dyes and using different mordants and modifiers.

These are my efforts of the day and I can't wait to knit them up but I have to be patient as we are all bringing our skeins at the next meeting for a group photo. Also, of course I have yet to do my dyeing day with the other group and so I should have even more choice of colours to use.

I think I am hooked on natural dyeing and will certainly experiment more with it in the near future.
There is a wealth of talent in this group also: so now that I have joined,I have two SWD guild meetings to look forward to each month. I am going to the all Wales gathering with them as they are providing a coach which passes my door nearly,so it will save me the hassle of trying to find the place were it's held and have fun nattering with them on the journey. All guilds are given a fibre to create something with for the show and then the finished item is judged and in the Meirionedd Guild we have re-cycled plastic bottles which spins okay but as I have missed the last meeting I am unsure what we are doing with it as yet. In the Lleyn Guild they are using camel so it will be fun to work with both projects. I have already spun my piece of camel , a fibre I had never used before and it is so soft and now I need to dye it for the piece of work I have been assigned to do .

The rest of the news I have is that Canon got back to me re the camera and even though the camera is nearly four years old its a known fault with this edition and they will repair it free of charge , Brilliant:)
I am also keeping my promise of trying to do more walking . On our doorstep we have so many lovely walks and there is one in particular I have wanted to re-do for a few years now, but as its an uphill climb to get back I have been putting it off as I know it would be hard for me. BUT, we did it the other day and I was so chuffed with myself even if I was aching all over after .
Here is Rhaeadr Cynfal (Cynfal Falls)

It was in full force but as there are so many leaves on the trees now you couldn't see it all so I will have to go back in the Autumn. I took a lot of photos and in one of the meadows we walked through there were so many wild flowers and then in the trees the variety of mosses ,ferns, lichens and mushrooms was far greater than I have seen at this time of the year , due no doubt to the heavy rain we have had this year.All of this area is a nature reserve and is one of the oldest and unspoilt woodlands in Wales and was featured on TV programme recently.
Tony took a picture of me hugging a tree !!

Look what I found a few minutes later

Which goes to show that if you hug a tree it will give you a little of its heart :)

On the knitting front I have nearly finished the back of the cardigan and am also half way through knitting Ophelia from the Colinette Femme Fatale book,using the frogged Giotto so X fingers that this will look okay knitted up. I am hoping it will as I need an outfit for a family wedding and have fabric to make a skirt to match and I have the 'Blimey Limey' shawl to go with it too.

I tell, you its all go here :) and Kath and Emily are over tomorrow hence why I am updating my blog today . Kath has had an exciting week too but I will let her tell you all about that( when she gets time !!) and Tony has been busy in the shed with wood and drill and bits making something for us girls to play with, hopefully over the next few days, all being well.
So will tell you all about that in my next post.

Of mice & men

2007-07-14T17:02:00.000Z

Well as the saying goes the best laid plans of .......
This week has been a bit of a mix and our dyeing day was cancelled by a very sudden and unexpected bereavement for Gwyneth, the lovely lady who's garden we were going to. So that puts life into perspective doesn't it before I start ?
It will be held again in the future but no date set as yet so I didn't have to rush with my spinning and will have more than enough for this next weeks dyeing . All being well I will go but it's not held at their usual meeting place but in the wilds of the Lleyn peninsular; I'm still not sure exactly where the cottage is ,and its a warren of little roads in that area and a good hour and a half's drive from me but I need to do something creative and I so want to learn as much as possible about natural dyeing. So I am keeping fingers crossed that I find the place :)

So spinning has been fine but I wanted to knit but who wants a strappy top when all we have had is rain, rain rain with just one odd day of sun, my heart is not in it .I am not sure I even like it & I think it was designed for a stick insect !! I only have a few inches on the back straps to do and I will finish it but I think it will leap straight back in the frog pond. Any one got any good patterns using 3 balls of Colinette Giotto? which would look good on Fiona from Shrek ? ;)
So in consolation I turned to Eva's cardigan and sat down with a log fire on a wet Friday to do some switch off medative knitting. BAH!! I was up until late, trying to figure what I am doing wrong ; it starts with casting on 408 st for the back as there is a ruffle before its a simple rib pattern and then shaping for a fitted waist after the decreases but I can't get the amount of stitches to add up right for the pattern !! Why is it that the simplest things are some times the hardest ? I have undone it at least four times thinking it's me and was so sick of counting ,I have even had DH count them. I have had poor Kath on her first night home from her holidays yesterday do the math with me and we both agree there is an error. So I now need to either get in touch with Eva or just do my own thing with the pattern; its just that it was meant to be simple

Well we did have a little good news , the camera shop phoned up and said that they had been able to recover some of our lost holiday photos so we scooted down there and saw the thump prints on their computer and thought great & paid up but when we viewed them at home, they are all jumbled up and their photo numbers don't correspond with the photo on screen and photos are cropped , pixilated etc but there are some stunning ones too which has to be good news.
Bad news is the camera is at fault not the card so I have mailed Canon to see what they can do ; we can still take photos with it but we may lose them again.The camera is about 4 yrs old and we spent nearly £500 on it then, technology has moved on since ; although this camera still has features not on the modern one that we bought the other week at a fraction of the price.Meanwhile Tony (the self confessed Luddite )is muttering that his old Ricoh camera still works fine & takes great photos, which it does .

I thought I would share a few more shots of our Scottish trip , mainly on Skye this time
This is above Fort William and were Scotland begins for me

Here are the girls in their tartan harness's outside Eilean Donan castle, and why is it that the tide is out yet again when we stop there?

The bridge over to the Isle of Skye

It so hard to try and pick a few photos to show ,as none truly capture the panoramic beauty but here are some of the shots of my spinning evenings at various spots on Skye. What makes you think I love mountains :)

The last is Kilt Rock waterfall again on Skye which is nearly a 300ft drop , amazing and I felt dizzy looking down at the sheer drop.

I have so many,many other photos;of a croft museum with a weaving room and old spinning wheels ,an old working weaving loom, colour filled shots of yummy yarns from Shlasdair, the Old Man of Storr pinnacles ,coastal shots,stunning sunsets , castles. I could go on but I do think I might bore you a bit put I am going to add them to my Flicker site at some point if any one wants to view them .

But I have to add this one in as a wee joke :)
Tony and I at home on our croft

Now for the draw ,each post was numerically listed ,and the winning number drawn by Tony from his own hat;which he later ate as he didn't win anything but I have kept a special chocie for him as well , duh what are men like !!

The winner is number 14 which is Mrs J and if you would leave me your e-mail addy below I will contact you to get your address & send goodies your way. You do like chocie too I hope & of course wooly stuff:)

PS : Apologies to ALL stick insects ; I have been one of them at one time too. One of these days I will dig out photos of me over the last few years and you will see how I have been all extreme sizes at one point, SCARY LOL
Oh and I have just been on the phone to Shilasdair and there is an error in the pattern