crafts

2nd Fiber Festival

/ LDSVenus / 7 Comments

The pictures are so much better on my new phone!! I forgot to take pictures at the fiber festival again, :/ sorry. I also forgot to get pictures of several skeins of yarn I bought for my son to make socks on his sock knitting machine for his spouse Ev, who picked out the skeins of yarn for his socks :), and I bought some roving for my son to spin on his new E6 electric spinning wheel, was too exciting to remember some things, like taking pictures :p. I bought 2 needle felted zipper decorated pieces of art, but yeah, I forgot to get a picture of one of them before I gifted it, it was a beautiful nativity for a friend who collects nativity deco for her Christmas tree. The first picture is one of the needle felted zipper decorated pins I bought for myself, because I love sheep, I didn’t see an alpaca, but I love all things I can spin :).

The 2nd picture is a beautiful tweed braid of roving that I bought to spin, I love the muted colors!!! This will be fun to spin and knit up!

The 3rd picture is from a class my son signed me up at for the fiber festival, a needle felting class for felted pictures. It was so awesome, but I am going to need to practice a whole lot more, but it was fun!

I love Spring but I always forget at the front part it’s back and forth between cooler weather and warmer weather and all the storms and rain. But that is ok, it’s not below 0 and it’s not snow anymore!! I hope everyone is enjoying their weather where ever you are. 🙂

Hats for Warmth Project, Te Ara Fingerless Mitts and Other Things.

/ LDSVenus / 2 Comments

It’s toward the end of the month and I haven’t posted. After finishing the wedding shawl I took a break from knitting for a month and just lost my knitting mojo and didn’t even finish the Christmas gift I was working on for someone I knit a gift for every year. Then the day after Christmas I lost my dad, so last year, with the pandemic and 2 Derechos we had and my dad’s passing, was just not a very good year for motivation.

I have finished a hat for what I call my Hats for Warmth project, which are hats to give to the homeless shelter. And I did pick up the fingerless mitts I was working on for that Christmas gift. I can at least get those done before she doesn’t need them this year anymore :p. It is the Te Ara Fingerless Mitts pattern by Rachel C. and is a free pattern. I am using some left over fingering yarn from the wedding shawl and will dye it some shade of lavender and am using my ChiaoGoo 9″ size 3 needles, it calls for a 4 but I knit rather loosely and tend to have to go down a size to get any gauge close to correctly. I need to get another set of those in a size 2, I have 1’s and 0’s for socks but tend to use the 0’s for the socks :). The sizing on this pattern has a lot of negative ease and looks small but stretches out quite a bit so unless you have pretty large hands I suggest the small size in the pattern.

I am using my Mandalorian progress keeper Mythosaur (an extinct Manadorian dragon that they use to tame and ride or kill wild to prove themselves) and the frog stitch marker like the one The Child (Grogu aka baby Yoda) ate in the series, was some funny stuff :p. The progress keeper and stitch marker set makes me smile and has helped pulled me out of the loss of my knitting mojo. The Mythosaur was a gift from AdoreKnit on Etsy. I have just ordered a new set of her stitch markers with a Mud Horn (Din Jarin’s signet by killing that beast and it becomes a symbol of his clan of 2 given to him by the the Mandalorian Armorer ) and a stitch marker set with a Mandalorian figure progress keeper and and a bar of Beskar (metal that makes his armor) stitch marker. Can you tell I love the Mandalorian series? They are making Star Wars fun again :). AdoreKnit markers are so much fun to use and they are well made, if you haven’t checked out her store, you should go look at all the stitch markers and progress keepers she has and she even sews some bags :).

I picked up some more yarn for the hats and some baby sweaters at Hobby Lobby as it was their bi weekly 30% off yarn sale week :). I have also been working with a younger family member on sewing. I’m not a sewist, but I can do basic things and can kinda sorta follow a pattern. I bought her a decent sewing machine for Christmas and she was excited to start using it. So far we have just practiced threading it, winding the bobbin, and using the stitches with white thread on black cloth so she can see what she is doing and what the stitches it comes with looks like. She bought herself a pattern for a toy to sew, but of course it needed a furry fabric so I have convinced her to wait to make it until we practice on more stuff first. I thought maybe an easy quilt square she can frame to put up in her room or give as a framed gift. Something with straight stitches and pretty easy to sew but looks amazing when done for some self confidence before moving on to harder things :). I’ve always thought quilting looks like magic with cloth :).

Hoping for a better year and wishing the same for you all as well.

Blending Cloth Arrived!

/ LDSVenus / 8 Comments

 

My blending cloth came today from Howard Brush Co in ME, USA.  I ordered it this past week end and it was sent on Monday and I received it today,   I have to say not only is the quality excellent but the process was so fast!!  In the first picture is some of the fiber that will be spun on the 2nd bobbin for the yarn I am working on.  The 1st bobbin is pictured below (lol obviously way below.)  The 2nd picture is my first rolag, more on that in a moment.  The blending board DIY project is not hard, it will requite a 12X12 piece of blending cloth (mine is 72 TPI, teeth per sq inch), that seems to be a reg normal.  Cloth for finer fibers will have 90 TPI.  You will also need a wooden cutting board large enough for the 12X12 cloth, I got mine at Tuesday Morning it is a 16X13.5.  You will also need a dowel cut into 16 inch lengths (you should get 3 from one dowel, you will only need two 16″ lengths so one dowel is plenty) I had mine cut at Home Depot, which is where I bought the dowel.  I’m sure Lowe’s would cut it for you if you bought it at their store as well. If you already have a staple gun you are good to go, if not you will need to purchase one of those as well.  My staple gun was only $16.  Ok, big fopah there, my dad always taught me never to say only and money in the same sentence.  Sorry Dad!  Staple the cloth to the cutting board (DO NOT glue it) the cloth will need the flexibility of NOT being glued down.  You will need a stiff paint brush or if you don’t mind spending the money, Howard Brush Co has special tools you can use to push the fiber into the teeth as you put it on the blending board.  Total cost for me was Blending Cloth $52, Cutting Board, $11, Staple Gun $16, dowel $1.50.  I already had a tool to help push the fiber into the teeth of the blending cloth.  If you buy the blending board it can cost up to $200.  DIY is nice :).

I will put a link  to a video on youtube by the Knitting Expat for how to make and use your new DIY blending board :).  I follow her knitting podcasts but if you are only interested in the blending board info it starts at about 13.27 into this video.   There are many other video’s on youtube that you can watch as well for using the blending board.

Ok two lessons I have learned for using the blending board already: #1 DO NOT roll your rolags to tight when you are rolling them off the blending board or it’s a real struggle to get the dowels out, hahahaha  #2 be careful when using the blending brush with the metal teeth (or dog grooming tool if that is what you get), because the teeth on the blending board are not forgiving on your fingers!! :P.  Think I will get a stiff paint brush to test out as well :).  I’m sure there will be many more lessons.

  Ok earlier I said to see the picture below for the 1st bobbin of singles I just finished spinning.  I’m ready to put it in now, sorry I am a bit wordy when I try to explain things :P.  I wish the colors would be more true, it really is much brighter than this.   It is dark aqua (or light teal) and varying shades of purple.  This bobbin is mostly the purple.  The 2nd bobbin will have mostly the dark aqua with some purple running through it so it will contrast and and be more fractal.  Looking forward to seeing how it will turn out :).  No plans in my head yet as to what I want to knit with it.  I’m sure it will be next week before I have a plyed yarn, because tomorrow I have a young family member coming so I can show her how to make an fresh apple pie and apple butter.  🙂

General Conference – Happy Easter!!

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I hope everyone is having a wonderful Easter Day.  I am enjoying it as I watch our General Conference with many wonderful spiritual lessons, such peace!

General Conference is televised on the BYU channel and on the internet link supplied above.  It is wonderful talks by our leaders on Saturday and Sunday from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm central time USA and 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm (those times are for both days).  It is so uplifting.  General Conference happens twice a year, in the spring and in October.

While I am watching and listening, to keep my hands busy I knit.  I finished two dish clothes, In Thirds and a waffle stitch dish cloth I don’t have where I got it from but there are several on Ravelry you can chose from :).   I had started the dish cloths some time ago and never got back to and started another new born 2X2 ribbed hat.  I am using the beautiful heart stitch marker I purchased from Yarn Candy Studio and the beautiful enameled progress keeper that came with my order from Gretel Creations, you can also see the embroidered knitting bag I made myself.  What better way to spend these spiritual days than to knit charity gifts and listen to uplifting messages :).  Hope you all have had a blessed Easter week-end.

 

1st Pair of Socks – 2nd Sock Closer to Done!

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1st Pair of Socks almost done Ok, I am finally getting closer to having that elusive 2nd sock done :P.  I had to switch to double pointed needles for the heel flap and when I did I picked up a set of 2.25mm instead of 2.50mm and it absolutely made a difference, when I got the gusset finished it was quite a bit smaller making the sock shorter, so I had to go to the frog pond and “ripit”  sigh.  I have redone the heel flap in the correct needle size and will be picking up the sides of the heel flap and doing the gusset, then it’s all down hill from there with the foot and toe :).

I had Friday morning off from my reg duties and decided to so some errands.  I went to go to a store I visit several times a year only to find it had moved, hmmm.  I went next door and they told me where it was now located, and NICE, it was now closer to me.  I was headed out of that store to go to the new area and as I got in my car a lady who was parked in front of me got out and came over to me.  I thought, did she hit my car?  what?  She preceded to tell me that she just had to let me know what her 10 year old daughter had said.  As I was walking out of the store, her daughter said “Mom she looks just like Elsa!!! Does she know she looks just like Elsa?”  What a nice surprise!  I told her to tell her daughter that she had just made my day :).  I know, the picture on my blog is about 10 years old and since then I have quit coloring my hair (my hair started turning silver before I was 16) and I let it grow out (now to my waist and I keep it braided most of the time to keep it out of my way), so I guess my hair color and the fact that it was braided made me look like Elsa to her, what a great day that was :).  I have had people ask me if I am Scandinavian because of my hair color, and actually just found out via dna that I am 17% Scandinavian :), the other part is from England/Scotland/Wales and Ireland.  That accounts for my hair color (dark alburn) before all the silver 🙂  Sometimes one really good day can make up for a lot of otherwise harsh days. 🙂

Soon I plan on getting back to sewing some bags for my etsy shop.  Summer happened with little ones :P.

 

Owl Knot Bag :)

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Owl Knot Bag a

Owl Knot bag b

Well a special family member loves owls and asked me for a bag to show her love for those little critters.  So we went shopping for the fabric and there were two she had a hard time choosing from so I bought them both and used the larger print for the outside and the smaller print for the inside, tho it’s reversible and she can change it if she wants :).

I am knitting on the Mother of All Shawl and only have 1 1/2 mini skeins to go.  Hopefully I will be done by Sunday :).  It’s really a fun and relaxing knit and is really pretty.  I haven’t taken an updated picture but will take a picture of it when it is finished and blocked. 🙂  Then I can get back tho those socks I am almost ready to turn the heel on.

Yarn Therapy Knot Bag

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Yarn Therapy Knot BagAnother knot bag is finished and in my Etsy shop.  This design was fun to embroider, tho because of the number of stitches in the embroidery and the number of color changes was time consuming, but I think it turned out pretty nice :).

The Jasmine scarf I’m working on is coming along, I’m closer to finishing it.  Hopefully it will be soon and I’ll post a picture of it before I mail it out to my friend.

Sheep Bag Added to Etsy :)

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Medium Sheep Knot Bag I finally had some spare time to embroider and sew a new bag for my Etsy shop :).  It is a cute little sheep, what better to grace a knitting/spinning project bag than a cute sheep :).  I have another bag I have embroidered and will finish sewing tomorrow to list in the shop, and fabric for two more large bags, cute stuff :).

This time of year, with Spring not far off, I sure miss getting ready to start a garden and growing all the wonderful things it produces :).  Going to try to get some squash plants to grow on my balcony again, maybe they will do better this year.

2 New Knot Bags & Knitting a New Hat

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Got Fiber Knot Bag

 

 

Stress Zebra Knot Bag

I put these two bags in my Etsy shop.  I’ve made the Stress Zebra Knot Bag before for a friend but this one is for my shop, it’s just so cute.  Don’t we all feel like this sometimes?  The alpaca design looked very good, but it’s a pain to sew out because  of all the thread color changes, even tho some of the colors are the same.  Still it’s a nice looking design.

Basia Hat for JadeThis hat, Basia, is a very nice knit and the texture design is pleasant to look at.  I’m making this for a special family member who requested a hat from me.  She said she wanted lavender, so I ordered the Lilac Jacquard acid dye for 1 of the polypay skeins I still have (only about 4 more skeins tho, have thoroughly enjoyed knitting them :P).  I love the way kettle dying comes out, instead of one solid color they are usually shaded, no complaints here :).  You can also see on the hat the beautiful stitch marker I got from MekaMika on etsy.

The mega snow storm missed us except for a trace of snow.  I won’t complain, I didn’t want 1 or 2 feet of snow :).  I love the El Ninos that come every few years, they make for a much more pleasant winter here :).

Let It Snow Knot Bag

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Let It Snow Knot Bag This will probably be my last winter bag, tho I’ve been known to change my mind before :).  I liked this embroidery because it has a swirl that looks like a winter wind swirling around some really pretty snowflakes :).  We finally started getting snow this month.  I’m ready for Spring already tho. 🙂

Time to get my eyes checked again, I think I need new glasses for close up work, sigh.

Still working on the comfort shawl, have about 1 & 1/3 skeins left to knit.  I know, I know, knit faster :P.