Moving Stuff

I am moving this blog to a new name. Please check out Whimsical Wearables See you there

New Family Members

Here are the two newest additions to our family. One the left is Riley a little girl, and on the right is Tyler who is the brother. We have been having mouse challenges and have thought that by having a cat we would be able to control it a bit better. Right now they are about 6 weeks old and not much bigger than the mice themselves. Notice in the picture of Tyler, my tennis shoe sticking out from the right. I wear a size 7.5 so they are not huge. that should give you an idea of tiny these little munchkins care. My daughters are the primary caregivers and i am hoping to give them a lesson in caring for babies, perhaps making life a bit more real for them as they are 14 years old going on about 30. HELP ME.
They have not discovered my yarn stash yet but oh man they are heading in the direction. right now they are content to torment my poor dog who is a 5 year old black lab. Toby wants to make friends in the worst way but these little guys are not really into that at this point. Toby needs to realize they need an adjustment period. they are so darn funny but will become great members of the family when they settle in a bit.

More later.. see picture of lovely daughters below. see why I am losing my mind.

Back again

It’s been a busy couple of weeks and there is always something that gets set by the side when you are hopping. Unfortunately it was my blog. Doesn’t mean I haven’t been busy though. I spun up a lb of a gorgeous corriedale cross into the thinnest singles I’ve done so far. The colors are super too. It’s fuchsia, mint green, and evening blue. The dye was RIT and I am really starting to like working with that. The only problem that I am finding is some of the darker colors bleed, unlike the Cushing’s that I have used in the past. .

Im pretty proud of the colors and and evenness of my spinning so far. This batch is going to turn into socks. Speaking of socks I found a super book. Twisted Sisters Sock Workbook.It’s an inexpensive book that talks about the process of creating designer socks with super dying techniques. LOTS OF PICTURES and great ideas. I am hoping to be working on a new batch of roving today with the new stuff I learned in it. Check it out if you like to dye your own roving, yarn or pre spun commercial yarns.

I also learned this week about Navaho plying. Wow that was a great time too. My plying wasn’t super even but I learned quick and it makes a nice strong 3 ply yarn. It doesn’t leave left-overs like a traditional plying and the colors come out so different. I am going to spin the next batch up SUPER thin and try to do a whole lb that way. It’s beginning to occur to me that I should be knitting something with all this yarn. Hmmm novel idea. Okay off to play mad scientist. More later…

Forest Dreams - Latest Accomplishment

WOW, I must admit that I love this.
THe picture simply doesn't do it any justice. It reminds me of the woods that I loved as a child. ALmost like looking up into the sky through the branches of the tall Northern Wisconsin trees. It's WAY WAY over dyed. (I know, that means something else but I used 5 packages of dye for one pound.) BAD BAD JEANNE. DH is wanting me to put this up for sale but I'll be honest, It's like parting with my children. You plan for them, you mold them, you color them and their thoughts. How could I sell something like that. I know Im a goof. But you know how us creative people are. I am beginning to wonder if it's the dying process or the spinning that enthralls me. However, could really use someone to comment. I am learning on my own with the help of an awesome coach who lives about a 1000000 miles away :) At least I have help. Im going to save this batch for myself. I should have about 400 yards when I am done. It still ends up a bulky weight but I will keep thinning things out. This batch is thinner than the last bunch. Okay off to watch Supernatural. Love that creepy TV. Night all

HE's a number one fan :) I made this sweater for the bear in the office at our school. The secretaries wanted to make sure he is dressed appropriately for game day. Im proud of this because it's the first thing I have done without a pattern. It's pretty basic but I am gaining ground with every new project. Wish I could stay home and just fool around with this.

Packer sweater for the office Teddy Bear. He is a packer fan.  

Lessons in Color

Finally got the new shipment of wool roving on Saturday. Spent a good part of saturday dying it. This is what I call forest dream. It's Cushings Perfection dye, Spice Brown, Copehagen Blue, Sky Blue, Myrtle Green, and Mint Green. Each package was supposed to dye 1lb of fleece and I used all 5 packages for 1 lb. (Note to self. STOP USING SO MUCH DYE) It's hard because I don't really know how much I should be using and I am afriad that I will not have enough on each group of fiber. I also dyed another lb using Rit dye. I havn't read to much about people using that for wool. Works though. I did one with Fuschia, Sea Foam Green, and Evening Blue. Colors are awesome. I will post the roving later as it is still drying. I actually ran it through the spin cycle of my washer and it took almost all the water out and has cut my drying time hugely. CHanged the texture of the fleece but since I am a beginner it made it easier to spin because it's not so slippery.

Went to church this morning and a woman from our congregation told me that she heard through the grape vine that I was spinning and she wants to get together and has since invited me to the guild she belongs to. FINALLY someone really close who I can work with. I think it will be great for me as I am learning so much through trail and error. I havn't knit much since I started spinning but made a cute Green Bay packer sweater for our office bear. The secretaries at my school are die hard Packer fans. Having trouble with pictures right now but will post one soon.

Im Spinning NOW!!

I seem to spend more time reading others blogs than creating my own :) I broke down and finally bought a Ashford Traditional spinning wheel and I am having a blast. I've spun about 5 lbs of fleece in the last couple of weeks before starting school again. I was told by a wonderful man who owns Winderwood Farms, that I am spinning way to thick and WAY to much fleece. Once I figured out what he was talking about I can see that he was right. I was spinning rope. Now at least things are a bit finer and much less fleece. This pink blob is one of the first skeins that I spun. I dyed it using Rit Dye and it's a wonderful cotton candy color. I have made a hat and mittens from it but honestly they weigh about a ton :) Should keep my niece warm through oh the sub artic temps of wisconsin. I am very pleased with the way it came out, though others may say it's kinda a mess. I spent about a week getting my spinning more even and went off into the world of plying and came up with some beautiful 2 ply wool. THEN, I dyed it. BIg mistake. You know the color of baby poop.. well this is about the color I have. I've come to the realization that rit dye just doesn't cut it for what I want. Bob, my friend from winderwood farm, sent me some Cushings dye and it's great. He uses a dry dye from a salt shaker and placement is very easy. I am still trying to find the best way to dye. I used an aluminum foil basting pan and.. well after about 5 batches the damn thing got holes in it and now my stove is a pretty shade of purple. Darling husband is a little miffed but has since taken to calling me "mad scientist". Ahh Pet names. This next picture is the baby poop plyed wool. I think I will end up with a lovely hat and mitten set as there is only about 400 yards. Actually the picture doesn't look so bad and perhaps when my next shipment of roving comes in I will be able to create more that will go with this strange color combination. I also have to remember not to wear new shoes and remember TO wear gloves as my hands and new white shoes are a lovely shade of yellowish brown. Oh well, live and learn. It's hard being a newbie at something with no one around to offer suggestions. Bob has been a great deal of encouragement and support. He also has lovely things and a joy to deal with. Well, I should do some house cleaning. NAH.... maybe plan for next project. Thank god for Fridays.

Okay, small fish but smiling.