Spinning: my precious

I admit, the title is influenced by my recent bout with Lord of the Rings.
Without Disc 1 of the extended version of Two Towers I wouldn't have made the progress I did on my Topsy Curvy top. I might get it done in time for the "tropical" weather we are supposed to get after the weekend ;-)

So, what is precious?

First - the arrival of Joy!



Joy has joined Emma and together we share spinning adventures.
Emma is currently holding an undyed single out of fluffy merino for a dye experiment. To make it more fun I'm going to n-ply the yarn - another first for me.

And I have found a wonderful pattern I'm going to try out:
Pretty Twisted

It's a wonderful pattern to showcase subtle changes in sockyarn and those special buttons many of us have sitting around. Why not make an armband out of it? I'm planning on making several different ones!

Joy is holding a thin single out of Shetland top. It's the thinnest I have spun until now and the difference between a bobbin-led (Emma) and Scotch-tension wheel (Joy) is amazing. There is no pull! Something to get used to!

And yes, that's my view of our living room when I sit down and spin. Our dining table is right next to me, with my coffee mug in reach. Hey, has anyone ever seen a spinning-inspired mug? If you have - holler!!!

What do you do while you spin or knit?
I love to listen to music when I spin. I find myself listening to either folk or progressive-symphonic rock. Nice rhythms to treadle to, upbeat and enticing.

Audiobooks and movies are for knitting. Yes, I do take some easy knitting into the cinema with me, why? As long as I don't have to count or follow a more complicated pattern it's fine. No lace or cables in the dark, thankyouverymuch :-)

Audiobooks are great for sit down and consult pattern type of knitting.
If anyone has suggestions - I like (epic) fantasy, some mystery and also novels. Young Adult is fine, thrillers are not really my kind of genre. I would love some more female main character and more crafting in my novels, please!

Another precious is this batt I carded. It's two batts, to be precise. And they are fluffy and delicious!



Alpaca, several sorts of silk, cormo, merino, Firestar, Angelina...and this one is ALL MINE!

If I would card one for sale it would be rather pricey due to the fibres included...but maybe I can make mini-batts....

I have lots more of the alpaca, plus some grey Gotland - possibly enough for a bolero or cropped top! With the batt spun in as an eye-catcher...My new banner is a close-up of the batt. I could cuddle it all the time - if I wouldn't get fibres into my mouth constantly ;-)

I leave you with a picture of something that could possibly go BUMP at night ;-)

Spinning: Down to the core

It's 10 o'clock and all is well :-)

Waiting for the postman to arrive, eventually, with hopefully two parcels for yours truly.
One containing the latest member of this household, a lady named Joy. She will be accompanied by a freedom flyer.
Which makes her an Ashcroft spinning wheel :-) Bet you didn't see this one coming.

The other parcel contains more than a kilo of roving, fleece and locks. Hey, I have to practise!

And practise I did! This time corespinning. What an adventure!
Not my strongest point yet, but it's fun. I haven't found the best thread to use yet, I would like some fishing stuff or weaving thread, but I don't have any of that around, so I got me some white crochet thread.
Which I have plenty of.
I don't even like white.
It's been a gift from a lady who had to stop crafting when age made it impossible to see and move hands. She thought it's in good hands with me - and I will try and honour that.

So, what did I do?



Not enough for anything. But very colourful!

Wait!, I thought, I know exactly what to do!

Once upon the time I had bought this beauty of a brooch, which didn't get enough outing.

So, on went the creative mind and the hands followed:



And it's been worn to the local bee market in a neighbouring city, where it got some attention - we went knitting in public and in public transport together :-)



Knitting-wise I have taken on the challenge to finish as many WIPs and UFOs until the 22nd of July as I possibly can. Not that I don't have any lying around here :-)

If just the thread of stunning new projects wasn't so...alluring....

I just got notification that my copy of Knit, Swirl shipped from the US.
So many stunning designs and I'm looking forward to incorporate some stunning art yarn as well.

Also shipping is a copy of The Fleece and Fiber Sourcebook.

Some yarn dyeing went on and some carding, too! But I leave those tales for another time!

And no, still no postman :-(