Saturday, November 13, 2010

Soldier Socks and cap ready to mail


I finally finished another pair of Soldier Socks and a matching cap. Should be in the mail tomorrow to SFS. In the box, I also packed 9 bars of beautiful "American Pie" goat's milk soaps from Jenness Farm, and some soap savers. So pretty, I don't want to mail it, but I will. That's what pictures are for.

Saturday, July 10, 2010

Tour De Fleece 2010, Week One

I am doing the Tour De Fleece again this year, and the first week went pretty well, although I did not get as much done as I had hoped.  We were painting ceilings last weekend, but I still combed and spun about 2 ounces of some Cotswald I had dyed magenta and blue a couple of years ago.  I was experimenting with color-blending on Viking Combs.  I am very happy with the results!  I hope to get more done this weekend.  It was so hot and humid this week, I did not feel much like spinning after work.  I am on Team Raw Power this year, and my goal is to comb and spin at least one pound by the end of the Tour, July 25.

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Lopi sweaters washed to put away for summer

A few weeks ago, I washed the 3 Lopi sweaters I have knit over the years, to put them away for summer.  Here they are, drying on a rack.  The green one is the Astrid Pullover from The Best of Lopi book, and it's mine.  The 2 brown ones I knit for my husband, before knitting had much of a web presence, so they are not in my projects page on Ravelry.  I suppose I could put them in retroactively, but I don't remember the exact dates I knit them.  I remember what I was doing and what my life was like when I knit them.  "Knitted Memories" as Brenda Dayne says.  I started knitting the big one on the top during one fall/winter a few years ago, when I was working up in Augusta, Maine on a project, and away from home during the week.  It was comforting to have something from home with me to work on.  The one on the bottom was knit in the early 90's, from my first hand-spun yarn, which I spun on drop spindles, from fleece I painstakingly washed and hand-carded.  This was when we lived in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, a very pretty, quiet suburb of Philadelphia.  I listened to folk music on the radio (WHYY).   It really kept me in the present moment, and I remember that feeling vividly.  My husband loves these sweaters, and even though the oldest one is getting a bit ratty, he still wears it quite frequently, just around the house, or to shovel snow.  These sweaters are super-warm and comfortable, kind of like sweatshirts.  A winter staple in our house!

Monday, January 18, 2010

Knitting Flat: The Professor Vest


I hate seaming, so I haven't knit flat in a long time.  But for some reason, The Professor Vest by Elizabeth Morrison took my fancy.  Maybe it's the cute model.  Also, my husband recently did a career change, and is teaching at Community College.  Well anyway, I started knitting it with some very New-England-Yankee type stash yarn.  Very sturdy and warm.  It required some knitting math, as it is not the same gauge as the original.  But, I'm fairly happy with it.  The pattern stitch makes kind of a chain-mail on the wrong side, which I reckon will be perfect for staff meetings. I have finished the back, and one side of the front.  This yarn is multicolored and heathery (doesn't really show in the photo), and has bits of straw in it still, I love it!