Lucky #13

Why hello out there.  Happy New Year.  Yes, I’m still alive.

We moved into a new house in October, so there was a long while there where every bit of creative energy I had was spent on setting it up.  We’ve made good progress though, and I can turn to some knitting and spinning again.

Last weekend was my birthday (my first 29th birthday) so I treated myself to some nice relaxing spinning.  I chose a Gale’s Art 50/50 merino/silk blend, which I got at Rhinebeck 2010.  I had started it some months ago, and the bright, tropical colors were a perfect antidote to a very cold winter weekend.

Before spinning it, I split it in half lengthwise, then split one half into many smaller strips.

Then I settled in for my first quality time with Penelope since we moved.  Fiona was so cold that she tolerated some bouncing knees to snuggle.

As a result of how I split up the roving, of course, one bobbin had much shorter color repeats than the other.  I really like what that does to the finished yarn (as you’ll see soon).

Despite not having spun since August, I’m delighted with how it turned out.  It’s the 13th yarn I’ve finished, so I guess it was lucky.

As soon as the twist was set and the yarn was dry, I cast on for Baktus.

I love the way the finished yarn shifts from green-dominated to blue-dominated because of the long repeats on one of the bobbins.  It’s snowing again today, but I don’t mind.

Rhinebeck 2011

Rhinebeck 2011 was awesome and may have re-ignited knitting fever.  It made me realize that not only do I enjoy actually knitting, I enjoy what knitting and Rhinebeck mean.

Rhinebeck means:  Pride in your work.

There are the competitions, of course. I did not enter anything this year, but Jacie tore it up, as always.

It goes far beyond the competitions. My favorite Rhinebeck tradition is the Rhinebeck Sweater (or shawl, or socks, or whatever).  What better place to debut an impressive finished object than with thousands of people who know what it means?  On Friday I packed two almost-finished objects, and I finished them both in our hotel room. Sunday I wore my Deep V Argyle Vest (which really deserves its own FO post later this week). More importantly, on Saturday I kept my vow and wore last year’s fiber.

Rhinebeck means: Tradition

Of course, Rhinebeck is about the traditions of fiber craft. I also love how groups and individuals form their own traditions. We began Saturday morning with breakfast at Pete’s Famous with Kris, as she and her crew have apparently been doing for years. Last year I declared my own tradition, that every time I go to Rhinebeck I will wear something made with fiber purchased the previous time.

That blue I bought in 2010, while I was wearing green that I bought in 2009. Keep a lookout for that berry color in 2012.

Rhinebeck means: Connecting

While I was wearing my 2011 Rhinebeck shrug, made from Spinners Hill fiber, I went to Spinners Hill to buy fiber for next year. I introduced myself to Lisa, the dyer, and told her that I would be back wearing her work next year.

In line for Sanguine Gryphon, Jenni talked to Stephen West. She ran into him again on Sunday, and showed him her Earth and Sky.

Rhinebeck means: Sharing

I spent most of the weekend with Jenni, Tracy, and Jacie. Jenni and Jacie were spinning, and Tracy was working with DPNs. Even at Rhinebeck, a shocking number of people stared, commented, and asked them about what they were doing. And they shared.

Rhinebeck means: Friends

I had an awesome time with Jenni, Tracy, Jacie and Lillian. I needed some gal time.

Rhinebeck means: Loot

I’m not done with the stuff I bought last year, so I tried not to go too nuts. I needed the fiber for next year, so I have two pounds of that berry stuff. I also bought two braids of Fiber Optic fiber, a 2 oz purpleheart Bosworth spindle for Navajo plying, and a penannular shawl pin. I’m very pleased.

I’m so glad I went.

Spin me like a hurricane

Fortunately, Hurricane Irene spared the Hartford area any major damage. It rained, and it was windy, but it was not that big a deal overall.

The forced indoor free time gave me time to finish my first handspun since my mom’s birthday in January.

The fiber was a Crazy Ball from Spinners’ Hill, which I bought at Rhinebeck last year. That’s the same fiber I used to make Shalom.

When I spun the yarn for Shalom, I was a brand new spinner. I thought drafting was so, so hard, and that I made amazing progress between that green yarn and my next couple spinning projects. But you know what? These Crazy Balls are difficult to draft. There were big chunks that were felted almost solid. Last time I thought that was normal, and now I know it’s not. As a result, the finished yarn is fairly uneven.

I still like it, and I intend to keep my vow to wear it to Rhinebeck this year. I ended up with about 380 yards of worsted to bulky

What should I make?

How Emilee got her groove back

I was in a mindless knitting rut for quite some time. After chickening out on the steeks for my Deep V Argyle Vest, I had been working on Imogen, Featherweight Cardigan, and Cecchetti, all dead simple miles-of-stockinette patterns. It was really boring.

When I’m stressed out, I love that I can clear my head by focusing on knitting. My mistake was was working on projects that were too easy, so they didn’t take my mind off anything.

A couple of weeks ago, I decided that I might as well wind up Slither, my Rhinebeck ribbon yarn.

Within a couple minutes, I cast on for Bitterroot.

This has been exactly what I need to get back in the swing of things. I am very proud of Slither, and Bitterroot is a great pattern, so I can barely put it down.

It’s just involved enough that I have to watch what I’m doing, and have to clear my head. It’s not hard enough to be frustrating. Perfect!

Five Years

I started this blog five years ago.

For quite some time, I had planned for my fifth bloggiversary post to be a goodbye. I have not been blogging in awhile, obviously, and it seemed like a good idea to just close up shop. I started a new, intense job and I barely knit at all for months. I could not see myself getting back into it.

But then I realized something. I don’t have to be a “good” blogger. I don’t have to write long, witty post three times a week. I do have to keep knitting. Taking an hour out of my day to do something that makes me “me” can be more refreshing than that extra hour of sleep.

So. Here I am, back in action. Here’s to another five years.

Instant Gratification

Once again, I’m in a blog drought because of long-term secret or hard to photograph projects. The lack of any visible progress gets frustrating, so I decided to return to an old hobby (beading) and whip up a little something.

I went from this…

to this

to this…

…in under three hours. Instant gratification!

The purple beads are amethyst, from Sugarbeads in West Hartford Center. I used clear seed beads as spacers.

It’s about 54 inches long, so I can wear it wrapped twice…

or three times.

I’m very happy with it, and I think it’s totally work appropriate (which, sad to say, is true of almost none of my knitting). I see more beads in my future!

Kink

As you may have heard, Connecticut had a record-breaking snowfall yesterday.

It was the perfect opportunity to finish a little short-term project that I’ve been working on.

Pattern: Kink, Knittyspin First Fall 2010
Yarn: Handspun Singles, from Corgi Hill Farm Merino/Silk

It was really fun to knit, and I think it was a very good use of that yarn. I especially love that I FINALLY finished something, after spending so much time on as yet unfinished long term projects.

Yes, the singles are uneven, but the pattern works with the unevenness rather than against it.

It’s not exactly my usual style, but I can pull it off.

Happy Birthday Mom!

It’s my mom’s birthday, and she loves the color red.

When I saw this fiber at Rhinebeck, I knew that it had to be hers someday…

Frabjous Fibers Silky Cashmerino (70% superfine merino, 15% cashmere, 15% mulberry silk) in Chocolate Cherry

…and now it will be.

I got about 290 yards of sportweight yarn, with fairly short color repeats. I split the roving the long way into eight or so segments and then did a two ply. The red was really bright on the bobbin, so I’m glad it mixed in nicely with the other colors and toned down a bit.

I haven’t been spinning all that much lately, but I think it still turned out well. I think the weight will be nice for a scarf or something.

My mom can knit, but seldom does (actually, I ruined knitting for her. That’s a story I should tell some day). I told her that she could use it herself if she wanted, or I could make something for her. Either way, I’ll post an update on what the yarn turns into.

Happy birthday Mom!

Happy New Year!

Wow, this is my fourth (1, 2, 3) year-in-review post.

It was a big year personally. I graduated from law school, took the bar and was admitted to practice law in two states, and went to Australia.

The big fiber news from this year is that I really started spinning. I guess I learned in 2009, but it was in 2010 that I finished my first yarn and got my wheel. As such, the handspun shawl I made during the 2010 Winter Olympics is the all-star project of the year:

The project that delivered the biggest bang for the buck/hour was the Skull Garland for my sister.

The item that I like the best and wear the most often is my Shalom. I love the idea of buying fiber at Rhinebeck and wearing it as a finished item the following year.

In 2010 I finished…

Three other shawls:

Multnomah

Citron

Coquille

Four other tops:

Honeycomb

February Lady

Orangina

Katarina

Three toys:

Smith

Catnip Bunny

Pasha

…and two pairs of socks:

Monkey

Handspun Sleeping Socks

I made good progress on two crochet afghans:

Babette

Hexagons for Caroline

I also did a lot of spinning.

I haven’t been blogging lately, but I HAVE been knitting and crocheting.

I spend most of November and early December working on the Deep V Argyle Vest. I am just about ready to cut the steeks, but I’m a chicken and haven’t worked on it for a few weeks.

I have been making good progress on the hexagon afghan for my sister, and presented it to her at Christmas. I still need to do an edging, then I can do the big reveal on the blog.

On a recent family trip to Illinois, I started Cecchetti.

I haven’t spun much lately, but I’ve been getting the itch to spin again. I’ve also been getting the itch to blog again, so you should see more of me around here.

Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of my friends in knitblog world. I’ll have some actual crafting to show soon!