Ready for Chart B ~

Now that I have repeated Chart A 7 times, I am ready for Chart B of the Celaeno Shawl. I love this yarn (sad that Panda Wool is discontinued) and I love these Signature Needles (that I am babysitting for a friend while she is on vacation - she's the "visitor" on my blog's side bar from Paris!!).Such a fun knitting project, and here we are on the sunny back deck, enjoying some rare summer weather in June!

BFL and Tussah ~

The winner is.....blue faced leicester and tussah silk blend. These were one ounce samples from Serial Knitters, my favorite yarn shop. The samples are such a great idea for a new spinner, as it helps me practice on many different fibers without buying an entire four ounce rope.Although, some are so beautiful that I buy all the samples....for example, I bought all 3 of these......and here is the initial spinning. The purple and lime green are amazing, the purple is so deep and saturated, I love these colors! This fiber is a bit messy with the silk fibers, yet still very soft to spin. I had to adjust my drafting as it is a bit different than the superfine merino, but all is good practice for me! I can't wait to get back to this spinning!

Knitting as Art ~

I was taking my babysitting charge out for some air and a change of scenery. The occasion was the beginning of Cross Country practice, so I get one hour of knitting time while I wait for practice to end. (Hurrah for Cross Country practice!!!)As I sat and knit, I noticed someone in the seat across the cafe sewing some big BIG piece of knitting, and I realized that she was part of the group that knit and created the wonderful Socks (below) in our town.She was working on a grand scale project in Seattle, and it is so amazing! click here and here to see the photos of the Seattle display!

Superfine Done ~

I have finished spinning and plying all the one ounce sample of superfine merino. I would definitely spin with this again, as it was fun to spin, not messy and the colors are lovely.Here are the two spindles full of the 2 ply.Here is the lovely 2 ply all washed and ready to knit. Isn't it lovely?!!! Hurrah!!!!! What should I spin next?

Dear Secret Pal ~

Tuesday: I just opened this very sweet little bag that was on my desk this morning….
My phone was ringing when I walked in this morning, so the bag went off my desk as my day raced into action…. And I just came back from my 4th (or 5th?) meeting, and I saw it sitting sweetly on the floor…. So I picked it up, thinking how light it was… must be a gift card? Or a sweet poem…then noticed the bag, “Renaissance Yarns” and my heart started beating a little faster…as a FIBER gift card is really something to get a bit jazzed about……then I opened the bag and was blinded by sequins and beads and fuzzy soft mohair…and SILK…..OMG……I think I stopped breathing………..I was afraid to reach into the bag, as I was sure, SURE it was a mirage!!!!! Who in the world would give their secret pal the most luscious combination of mohair, beads, sequins and SILK???? In the softest colors that would cause the most relaxing experience for the lucky recipient…… who in the world???? How lucky am I to have the greatest Secret Pal of all times? (Extremely Lucky!!!) One with knitting savvy and amazing taste in yarn, and perfect color sense for me….How did I get so lucky??!!!
P.S. Once I started breathing again, I noticed the cute pattern for a scarf! Ooooh la la! I think I will be casting on tonight (after my night meeting!!!) Hurrah for you!! You are the Best Best Best Secret Pal, EVER!!!!!!!! Can I have you next year, and the next year??Dear Secret Pal,
I wanted you to know that since Tuesday, I have been carrying this amazing yarn home and then back again each day, just in case it might vaporize and truly be a dream…. As I look to my left, I can see the silky sparkles peeking out of the bag… I took a picture of it with my phone, and sent it to my knitting friends – and they are wondering how could I be so lucky to have such an extraordinary secret pal (I don’t know the answer to that, but I am so happy about how lucky I am). Today two of us were, again, marveling at how lovely this yarn is…. My co-worker said I could just wrap the skein around my neck to have a ready made necklace that I could view all the time…. I want you to know how much your gift is appreciated, and all the joy it has already brought me before I’ve even cast on one stitch!!!! Perhaps, if I can bear to wind it, I will cast on a project this weekend….. Again, so many many thank you’s to you – you are so fabulous!!!!!!!!

Plying Success ~

Oddly enough, I thought of my plying success when I was into my big superfine merino tangle while plying this weekend. My plying bits were still hanging after being washed a month ago, so here they are....can you see any improvement in my spinning and plying?Here is the first lovely green fiber of which I finished spinning and plying 4 ounces, my blue faced leicester, given to me my JitteryKnitter (aka The Enabler). This was a dream to spin, and I learned a lot and improved a lot during this spinning and plying.Here is the 100% tussah silk, given to me for Christmas by sweet Marion. The reds and pinks are so saturated in this fiber ~ just amazing and lovely! Silk was fun to spin, and oh-so-soft running through my fingers. I'm exciting to spin the rest of this amazing fiber.Here is the 50% merino 50% tencel blend which I found as a sample from Serial Knitters, my favorite yarn shop. It is more lavender than this picture shows. I loved spinning it and next time I was at their shop I bought the remaining two samples of this blend! I can see some improvement in my spinning and plying!!! Plus I am enjoying this, too!

Superfine Saved ~

I made it through untangling my superfine merino. It took a long time, but the results are so beautiful! Some of the colors barber pole against each other, and other colors line up to be one color.I was so excited at this ply that I've taken a picture of it wet!!!It is still lovely wet! I'm wondering what I can knit out of 83 yards of handspun! I'll have to check Ravelry for those great little patterns, especially for handspun!