hat trick

There was a stretch of grey, dreary days a few weeks ago. I decided a few "Bling Berets" would cheer me up.

My sister had emailed me with a picture of a slouchy beret, and asked if I could make her one. She also requested mitts for my niece, as she keep stealing hers. In the email she really laid it on thick, telling me what a wonderful sister I was, etc... The pattern she sent was for a plain beret, but I decided the Star Crossed Slouchy Beret would look better in the yarn I had in mind.

I used yarns I spun from Enchanted Knoll batts and 'millie roving'. The plum-grey one is for my sister. The yarn is a single, spun from 'Crazy Making' millie roving. The purple-blue one is for me. I spun a bulky 2 ply from 'Cat Woman' millie roving. Josette's millie rovings are a treat to spin, if you haven't tried them, you should. The pink beret is for my niece. I used Ann Budd's 'Basic Tam' pattern from The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns (I love this book). It is knit in a 3 ply bulky yarn, spun from 'Roses in the Snow' wild card batts.

I finished the 3 hats in about a week. They helped to chase away the dreary, grey days. The sun has returned. Unfortunately, it is now bone numbing cold. At least I have a warm, sparkly hat to keep me warm.

mitered mittens

Seems like everyone is knitting mitered mittens from Elizabeth Zimmerman's Knitter's Almanac. I love how this pattern looks in handspun. I chose some yarn I spun from Poppy Flower Fibers (Falkland in the Emi colorway). It was spun woolen for warm, lofty mittens. I followed the modifications Kathryn Ivy posted for a gusset thumb. They were a fun, quick knit. Watching handspun knit up captivates me, I really love knitting with it.

once in a blue moon

There was a blue moon on New Year's Eve. Whyboy and I stood outside, shivering and looking at the moon. He has always been drawn to the moon. It was one of the first words he learned to say. He would look up in the sky and say "moon." As his vocabulary developed he would also announce the phase. We were both born under a winter moon.

To celebrate the moon, I started spinning "Winter Moon" the November 2008 installment of Enchanted Knoll's Happy Hooves Club. It is lovely and sparkly. It looks like the moon dancing on the snow in our backyard. Last night the moon was so bright, it illuminated the back yard, and I thought of these batts. They are a lovely, smooth spin.

My birthday was this week. This combined with the start of the New Year puts me in a reflective mood. I am grateful for my family and my friends. I am thankful that I have a creative outlet, and am able to play with fiber. I am thrilled that people actually are interested in reading about my fiber and life adventures, thank-you.

I don't make resolutions. I plan to start 2010 as I mean to go on....laughing, playing, eating well, exercising, knitting, and spinning.

enchanted places

In October we went to Door County for a few days. We were hiking in Newport State Park, and came across these amazing rock formations. It was like being in an enchanted forest. Whyboy collected ferns in case we ran into any dinosaurs. Mostly we enjoyed the quiet space, together.

Christmas 2009

Merry Christmas to all!!

I hope you enjoyed a joyous day with family and friends.

down to the wire...

Mittens for Eloise (Stormy Sea BFL)

Remember in October I posted about my Dad's scarf, and how maybe this year would be different, maybe this year I would not be knitting like a maniac at the last minute? Well....I would have been done, really I would have, but I decided that I needed to knit from handspun this year (yes, I know there is a knitting store worth of commercial yarn stashed around my house).

A hat for my friend's son (Blue Ring Octopus Mernio)

A scarf for my Mom, in 'Dingo' polwarth.

Mittens for Susan ('Sari' Enchanted Knoll farm raised roving).

Maine Morning Mitts for my sister (Shetland /bamboo in Banksia from The Thylacine). She saw a picture of me wearing mine and asked...er, demanded a pair. Yes, she is spoiled.

A Ribbed Beanie for Jacob (Shetland roving from Baby Long Legs)

Now, I need to get back to knitting...2 neck warmers to finish and maybe a hat. Next year will be different......really!

handspun socktober

The Snobby Spinner's group in ravelry was having an informal "Handspun Socktober" SAL/KAL for the month of October. I started with this beautiful BFL combed top, 'Prism' from Freckle Face Fibers.


Spun it up as a heavy fingering/sport 2 ply:

Cast on 52 stitches for toe-up socks, 2 at a time, using David's Toe-up Cookbook on ravelry. I used green Dale Heilo for the toes and heels, because I wasn't sure of my yardage and I liked how the green brought out the other colors.

Knit along rather happily, loving how the yarn surprised me along the way. This was perfect baseball knitting (we will not discuss the heartbreak of Boston's early exit). Bound off using Elizabeth Zimmerman's 'sewn bind-off' from Knitting without Tears. I finished on November 2nd...but I was watching the October Classic, so that is close enough for me.