Upholstering, Part 1

Over the next four weeks I will give you a blow by blow (do you really want to hear it???) of my Upholstering class. I won't be able to share any pictures, because I cannot take pictures during the class (and still get the work done). The pace is fast. Very fast.

Last night was class #1. There are eight of us. The workshop is fairly large and all the tools are supplied for the class. Our project is to build an ottoman from the frame out to finished fabric. The frame was built in the wood shop adjacent to the studio. We are using classic upholstery technique - hand tied springs - to make these ottomans.

Our instructor flew through (I mean he FLEW through) the list of tools one would need to set up an at-home upholstery workshop. I tried to take notes but gave up! I simply cannot write fast enough. But he gave us some source information, one online, in case you get interested.

We were a busy beehive last night! First step was to attach jute webbing to the frame. The goal was to align three strips evenly spaced from front to back. To make the jute webbing super tight, you need a webbing stretcher. The webbing is attached to the frame using staples fired from an air compressed staple gun. These guns are special to the upholstery industry in that they have special noses to get into tricky places and do not require two hands to use. When upholstering, one needs a free hand to facilitate pulling fabric tight. Attach the staples on about a 45 degree angle, which is best for long term wear. Guess who wants an air compressed staple gun. Like right now. So cool.

Once the first three strips are stapled down, attach two more, in basket weave fashion, side to side. Then fold the jute back on itself, trim to about 1/2 - 1" and staple the end down. Watch your fingers, the gun is powerful!

So far, so good. Until we got to the next step: arranging 5 coil springs on top of the webbing. Guess what: two of the eight students accidentally attached the jute webbing to the BOTTOM part of the of the frame, not the TOP of the frame.

I bet you can guess who was in that group, huh. Little old knithound. And how did we realize this? Only the top of the frame has interior corner braces. You know, those corner braces that make furniture stronger.... heh. DOH!!

Now the two of us are RACING to get new webbing put down but of course, the first layer of webbing is creating a logistical barrier and it's really hard working the air compressor stapler (large coil cord attached to the ceiling) around the nooks and crannies of the ottoman with now TWO layers of webbing...and the instructor says nay, do not remove the errant webbing.

Needless to say, my stress level went up and...is it hot in here? Is the AC on?

We got that done despite the added challenge round, and then had to race to arrange the springs. Spring arrangement is an art, the upholsterer uses his eye to make the alignment evenly spaced and just so. Focus on the bottom rung of the coil, don't worry about the tops. A little zen here, but very knitterly too, that focus on the task at hand thing, don't look at the big pile o' stitches, you know? You've been there. You know what that is. Make sure the knot in the top of the coil faces inward.

Once there, trace a circle around each coil using a marker, noting the start of the coil with a bar and number each circle, moving counterclockwise around the furniture, ending in the center. And while removing each coil, use your marker to tag the coil so you know which coil goes where when you sew it to the webbing.

Now, take your marker and go around each traced circle, marking three points evenly spaced, 1 -- 2 -- 3 with the marker. This is where the stitches will go to secure the coil. Make sure the third stitch marked will be adjacent to the next coil so that you minimize the amount of thread running between coils. Aha!

My knitterly experience kicked in again, and the sewing was not hard, despite the HUGE needle - I'd say it was 6" or 7" long? Once all attached, it looked not bad for a first attempt! Turn the piece over and tighten the jute thread between each stitch and tie off with what looks like a half hitch. Remind me to go look that up.

Next step is adding upholstery tacks, 2 at a time, on the frame, centered in front of each coil. So you have 3 sets of 2 tacks in our case, both on the front frame and the back frame. Total of 12 tacks. I am not good with a hammer. Never have been. My tacks were a little...not in a straight line.. we are not talking a soldier line here. But they will have to do, because there was no time to fix them!

By this time I was hungry. And I kept getting the sense that the instructor was not really happy about teaching. It didn't help that when we started banging with a hammer we were all girly with them. He just about jumped out the window, the noise telling him we were not holding the hammers and using them as a pendulum. Bang!! bang bang! WAAAAAHHHHH! Okay, practice the hammer thing. Be a bit macho with it. Swing it! Duly noted.

I felt like I had absorbed a ton and was a bit relieved when the class was ending. Making that blunder earlier set me back and is making it more difficult to maneuver around the piece. But once covered, it won't show.

Next up, find 3 yards of fabric, and oh, try not to buy a pattern. Don't overcomplicate things, okay? Yea, got it.

The Good News Just Keeps Coming

Yesterday when I posted that link to the New York Times Lens blog we thought that would be the end of it. We were grateful, even. It's not every day that the New York Times shows an interest in what we are doing in our 'spare' time.

The story, by David Gonzalez is terrific. He encapsulated alot of what Jose was thinking when he worked on this epic (and ongoing) project. The blog also showcased a few of the photographs from Jose's show up at the Brooklyn Public Library. And they look great on the blog. Let's face it, we are so thrilled. We did a happy dance and told our friends to check it out. Yesterday was a really good day.

Then, this morning, WOW. The story we thought was reserved for the Lens blog is also published on the Metro page of the printed New York Times! Whoa! Color photographs, big spread, JEEPERS! And they included a portrait of the artist. It was pouring hard that day when they took the picture. But Angel Franco got the shot! Such a pro, that guy. And loveable!

Anyway, in my quest for endless promotion of the biggest thing to happen at Chez Knithound in a long time, it is my sincerest hope that if you still haven't been to see the show at Brooklyn Public Library, maybe this will persuade you.

Well Deserved

Today is a different day than others for us at Chez Knithound. Today we celebrate a milestone of sorts. We celebrate the recognition of a lifetime of work. The culmination of years of honing a skill and sticking to what is passionate and real.

Today, the New York Times posted a story on their Lens Blog, "The Gowanus as Muse", with images, and it looks fantastic. Go take a look (full screen mode is pretty cool), leave a comment in their comment section, let me know what you think, too.

Nice going, Jose! Well deserved.

107 Cookbooks

My friend Amy has a new blog in which she is cooking her way through her massive cookbook collection and posting the results for all to see. Last week I got to taste some of the goods at her birthday party. Mmmm, good!! Go take a look-see here.

Bobbins

This month's Club shipments featured some Shetland Top from David at Southern Cross Fibres and Amy at Spunky Eclectic.

Great minds think alike. I'd never worked with Shetland so I was eager to get started. Shetland fleece is obtainable at Rhinebeck...if I was so inclined...but first let's try it out.

It's soft, it's bouncy, it's easy to draft, this was nicely prepared top. Somehow, and I can't figure it out, the first bobbin ended up insanely overtwisted while the second seems a bit more even and calm.

I think I can overcome this during the next stage, when I ply these singles together. For now I am gonna let them rest a bit.

Progress on the Garter Blanket is not progress. Last night I composed a blog post that told the story, and was just taking pictures to illustrate my point, when I realized maybe I didn't have a point. This blanket is giving me fits. I finished the knitting, blocked the pieces and decided I hated it. That was two weeks ago. Then I started to reknit the thing, and blocked the first section and now I don't know if I was hasty in my original decision because honestly I saw little or no difference. Did I overblock the second version? I need to step away from this one. I cannot believe how hard garter stitch can be sometimes. For now, no pictures, sorry. I have to work this one out a bit before a big reveal.

Care to Knit-Along?

The other night after I posted all my newsy bits I sent a little message to Cosymakes, thanking her for the Snail Hat inspiration. Well. That Cosy is one industrious fiber fiend. She jumped up and down and said, "Hey! Let's do a knit-along! Wouldn't it be cool to see a whole bunch of these hats, all done up in handspun yarn?!"

I couldn't agree more. She got to work right away. She set up up a thread on Ravelry. The Hats-Hats-Hats group got wind within minutes and made this one of the July knit-along projects. And of course, Cosy put word on her blog. Through the magic of all things Ravelry and the Internet, kintters and spinners all over were jumping on the bandwagon and scurrying off to find the right yarn.

Do you have bulky yarn marinating in your stash? (I know you do, I can't believe I'm even asking). Do you want to destash a bit? Need a quick gift? Here you go, a classic hat style from the master of all master, EZ. Quick, fun, funky. And if you can make one in handspun, oh the joy. Give it a try, and post your results on Ravelry.

I saved the best for last, heh. Cosy is generously offering up a skein of her awesome handspun yarn as a giveaway if you post, twitter, join up, talk up, get the word out. How cool! I can't wait to see all the results.

For me, I will try the pattern with a commercial yarn and if I have the time, another handspun.
If you have questions you can post here or on Raverly.

Fit as a Fiddle

Whew! My laptop is back up and running and feeling better than ever. The new RAM and new wireless router combo really did the trick. Thank God, too. I can load photos quick as a *blink*, and I can surf the Internets like a normal human being in the 21st Century. Welcome, pilgrim! I am so relieved.

Lots of news.

After all the yarn spinning of late I assessed my growing collection and realized I had a Baker's Dozen in finished yarns! It sort of flabbergasted me, how in the world....oh yea. Like I might have been a bit obsessed lately?

Just as I was knocking around a notion to knit up something using handspun, lo! cosymakes went and made a hat using her own handspun. It was so cute! Shameless copycat that I am, I knew what I had to do. Just had to.

I used the Hello Yarn Thrive Corriedale from February and made this Snail Hat designed by Elizabeth Zimmerman. What a zing-pow-pop collection of color, I tell you! This is one joyful hat. On a dreary day this could come in handy for finding me in a crowd. Remind me to wear it if I plan on attending an event and I don't want to get lost...

My love for this yarn cannot be understated. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this yarn. It puts a smile on my face every time I see it. This color mix hits some sort of pleasure nerve in my brain. Pairing the yarn with this pattern, which to me hangs right on the edge of fuddy duddy... but not...well anyway, every time I put this hat on, I giggle. Wear it proud, I say.


And since I am on this spinning track more than ever these days, here's my latest yarn fresh off the wheel.

It's Bluefaced Leicester hand dyed by pumpkinmama and sold on her Esty store, Vines. I am really pleased with this one. 312 yards, 13- 14 wpi, really consistent and so soft and squishy. This one deserves knitting attention.

There's some exciting stuff happening in July, and I've been dying to tell you all about it. Being shut off from the Internet was so frustrating! Some of you might remember my 2009 goals included all things hand made. In addition to spinning and weaving (yea that's going to happen, really), I included upholstery!

After six months of waiting, I got an email two weeks ago announcing space in a July series of classes and I jumped all over it! Every Tuesday this month I'll make my way to The Furniture Joint on Great Jones Street in Noho for a few hours of hands-on learning. Visions of recovering my Hans Wegner Dining Room Arm Chairs! For starters.

And what if... what if... the weaving... the handspun... some fabric... chair covers... pillows... embroidery on fabric, fabrics made with with handspun yarn... what if... hmmm. There is the barest little plan formulating... Okay. Enough for now. But it just might be...a GrandMasterPlan starting to simmer in this middle-aged-bored-to-tears-with-corporate-life-brain of mine. Just to say, the Third Chapter could be really fun. Seeking.Fun. And the journey itself ain't disappointing either!

Curing what Ails You

My computer is feeling a bit under the weather.

First it had a serious memory lapse. It stopped remembering where it had put things and I needed to give it a big RAM booster shot. Boy what a difference, now it barely blinks before finding exactly what I need!

Next it got a terrible case of laryngitis. It got so bad that when it shouted across the Internets no one could hear it! Squeak! Over the weekend I got really concerned and decided to treat the symptom with a new wireless router. That router actually lives with Big Brother, but he got really cranky about making new friends and pouted in a corner all weekend.

So we need to coax and cajole the Big Brother into being a good sport and then make sure my computer gets on a new fitness routine involving downloading all the latest updates and patches.

It shouldn't be long now before the whole clan is back up and running. Till then, go out and enjoy the nicer weather!

More Yarn

Are you getting sick of it yet? Well, I'm not. Here we have two recent completions.

First Spunky Eclectic Club yarn - called Pansy. I kept it as singles because I loved the colors. This was maybe the most enjoyable spinning project to date. And I netted a whopping 422 yards, fingering weight. I am really happy with the results.

Southern Cross Fibres club yarn, Spring Forward. I tried my hand at Navajo ply, after the little lesson I took up at MASW. It's tricky and I do need some practice. The yarn is nicely bouncy.

Both yarns will likely be reserved for weaving, if that ever gets off the ground.

Legacy

It occurred to me last night that maybe all this knitting and spinning is deeply rooted in a desire to leave something behind that is really tangible. Having no kids, I don't have a true legacy. And sorry, but selling Data Networks and Telecommunications does not offer a legacy leaving proposition.

Making things with my hands. Things I can touch, things that are real. Making things that will potentially outlive me.

Little Skeins

Back when I bought some Gaslights Dyeworks fibers for spinning and gifting, Jacki was nice enough to throw in a couple of pretty little puffballs for some play fun. Like the bigger shipment, these puffballs have shiny bits and are a mix of different fibers.

I thought I would try them out on my spindle and quickly made up my singles. Yes, you are looking at singles wrapped on my very glamorous storage system: toilet paper rolls! Hey, the mantra is Reduce-Reuse-Recycle, isn't it?

To maximize the yardage I wanted to ply these with some silk threads. Last week I ventured over to Habu to see what I could scrounge up. Later that evening I plied both little bits into yarn and was surprised by my results.

First, the little blue puffball got plied with a blueish gray stainless steel yarn. This is my first time working with stainless and I was very pleasantly surprised by the smoothness and the sparkle of the thread. Once plied into the single, it added a whole new layer of shine to the yarn. This little skein is only 48 yards, 18 wpi. I like this one very much and will play with this kind of combination in the future.

The second little puffball got plied with a deep red merino thread/yarn. It's very loosely plied (further evidence I need to practice the plying part of spinning). I'm not sure I love the result, but it is soft, and very nice in the hand. If I were to do this again, I might not go for such a strong color but honestly there weren't that many choices in the sale bin.

I yielded 166 yds, 28 wpi with this batch. Sometimes I look at it and I really like it. Sometimes not. This one deserves a little knitted swatch to see how it looks worked up.

In both instances, these little skeins leave me thinking (yearning) I need to learn weaving. In fact the weaving bug is starting to get up under my skin alot with the yarns I am making. I think I can fit a rigid heddle loom in my work area. Hmmmm......

Progressions

Hey, look: the Cabled Yoke Cardigan, begun in October but put aside for other diversions until about a month ago. Picked up again in an attempt to overcome other knitting boredom (you'll see why, in a minute).

As of today, the back, both sleeves and the left front are done. In progress is the right front, with the cabled yoke coming last. Then the dreaded construction process. Maybe this will be ready by the time Autumn rolls around. Or, if the weather continues its current state, I may get a wearing of it sometime in July?

One observation of concern is the sheer size of the sleeves in proportion to the back and sides. I am hoping this comes together properly, once the Yoke section is attached. The little voice whispers something is wrong, but I have reviewed the pattern over and over and have visited other projects on Ravelry (of which there are few, sadly) ...and so I knit on, with a gnawing feeling in the pit of my stomach.

So why the need for the knitting complexity? This. A project of epic proportions in terms of size, and what I am coming to find out, epic proportions in terms of sheer boredom! God forgive me, I love Elizabeth Zimmerman, I really do. But all this garter stitch is killing me.

You are getting just a small peek at a Garter Ridge Blanket, from "The Opinionated Knitter" by Elizabeth Zimmerman. I am nearly finished with the all the knitting. It has taken me months to get to this point. I dread the piecing together and adding the border. This thing is huge. I don't want to resent it, I want to present it. As a gift. To a good friend. Hence, the cabled stimulation to overcome the garter stitch grind.

The Gowanus: Brooklyn in Transition

The Gowanus: Brooklyn in Transition
by Jose Gaytan

"A Photographic Essay of the Gowanus"

Brooklyn Public Library
1 Grand Army Plaza
Brooklyn, NY 11238
Grand Lobby

June 16 - August 29

Opening Reception
Wednesday, June 17, 6 - 8 PM
Dweck Center Lobby

www.josegaytan.com

Nearly a year ago I posted on this blog some fantastic news. It's been a year of hard work - shooting, editing, measuring, matting, you name it. In one week the public will get to see the culmination of all this work.

If you live in Brooklyn, you know there are lots and lots of stories these days about the Gowanus area potentially becoming an EPA Superfund site and the impact this could have on it's real estate development potential. It's getting politically heated because at the end of the day, everything in New York is about real estate. Good times or bad times, real estate is KING here in King's County. The Gowanus area is no different. It will change, of this there is no doubt. How it changes and what the area eventually evolves into is anybody's guess.

What Jose has captured are fleeting examples of the changes that have begun and will continue. His fascination with urban decay, urban change, bridges and waterfronts has culminated in a group of images I believe are some of the best he has ever created. I do not speak lightly when I say some of them take my breath away.

You owe it to yourselves to see this show. You won't be disappointed. I promise!

Yarn Perfect Not

The quest for perfection continues, because it's not evident in either of these samples.

Yarn #1 is 2 oz of Superfine Alpaca Top fiber dyed with Kool Aid, using Ice Blue Raspberry and Mango. Here it is pre spun.

I yielded 314 yards out of 2 oz - it's a very fine 2 ply laceweight and I think I'm getting around 24 wpi. Alpaca is slippery and I dropped my spindle more with this project than any other to date. I am pleased with the plying on this yarn (on the wheel, using my new Lazy Kate and untensioned toilet paper cores) .

What I am not pleased with is my own stupidity when lifting the yarn out of the bath: I accidentally wrung the water out of it! Hard. GAAAAAH! I must have been tired last night. The kinks I see are completely related to that incident because they weren't there before I soaked to set twist. I am really peeved at myself right now. Of all the yarns to do something as stupid as wringing, I had to go and do it to alpaca??? A fiber not as forgiving as wool, it doesn't have the memory to bounce back from such an abuse. Oh, man...

On the bright side, the yarn is pleasingly soft and lightweight. And the colors blended into a lovely light green haze shot up with light blue and yellow. It's a summery look that could be used nicely in a baby project or a small lacy shawl.

Yarn # 2 was started awhile ago and didn't finish till last weekend. I was waiting for that Lazy Kate to arrive (it took over 2 weeks of agonizing anticipation) so I could ply with a bit of tension. That was dumb. What I needed to do was ply with NO tension. To compensate for the overspun singles.

There are kinks in this yarn that displease me to no end. Because I expressly set out to make a well balanced, evenly spun yarn and for the most part, I achieved my goal were it not for these kinky sections that simply won't relax into themselves. I know I am picking nits here but they bug me. It will force me to be more mindful of my outcomes and plan accordingly.

The fiber is a Corriedale X. I started with 2 oz of undyed natural fiber and Kool Aid dyed the roving using Orange and Tropical Punch. I split the roving in half lengthwise and pre-drafted every bit of it before spinning. I used a short forward draw - worsted spun.

Aside from my plying error, I am very pleased with the even thickness, my 200 yard yield at 14 wpi, and the wonderfully bright happy color, which I simply adore.

Back to the drawing board. Or wheel. Or spindle. Whatever, you know what I mean.

CSA Farm Tour

Ever since I read* Michael Pollan's two extraordinary books on food, the food industry and how we eat - "The Omnivore's Dilemma" and "In Defense of Food", I have been aching to join a CSA. Community Supported Agriculture strikes to the heart of several things that make it super appealing to me: 1. Local food tastes better. 2. Local food has a smaller carbon footprint 3. Buying from a local farmer means we are cycling our money and energy back into the local economy 4. Buying local means we are helping to save land from overdevelopment. 4. It's sustainable agriculture, not factory farming.

Little did I realize when I signed up for the Carroll Gardens CSA that I would also get to meet the farmers growing my food supply for the next five months and see that food in the ground.

Last Sunday I bundled my Mom, two other CSA'ers and myself into the car and drove out east to Exit 71 on the L.I.E., made a left and then a right and arrived at the Garden of Eve Organic Farm. I am not the Hamptons type (ya think?!) so I am not familiar with the terrain out there. I was surprised and a bit worried to see one sod farm after another as we made the trip from the highway to the farm. Sod farms? Boy, talk about a monoculture! The epitomy of anti-environmental on so many levels. Subject for another posting, I think.

This farm pastures 1,200 chickens who produce countless organic eggs. The rest of the 130 acres is devoted to vegetables and fruits. Chris, the farmer took us all on a tour and showed us an infinite variety of plantings - early lettuce, peas, cucumbers, carrots, eggplant, potatoes, flowers, tomatoes, radishes, turnips, fava beans, string beans, and on and on and on. All organic, all grown by a small group of dedicated people who believe strongly in what they do.

And when we arrived at the farm, I was so pleasantly surprised to run into Christine, who was my next door neighbor till April when she packed up her apartment, stuffed it all into a storage bin and headed out to chase her dream of learning to be a farmer. HEY Christine, you are growing MY food!! Yay! Her original plans in North Carolina fell through so whoosh!!, she landed in Long Island and will be an intern on the farm for about a year. She, like so many people facing layoffs or just realization that corporate life is as awful as can be are making choices to strike out on their own and follow their passions. One of my passengers is doing just that this summer when she quits here corporate gig to study organic gourmet cooking.

My Mom thinks I am a bit nutty trying to eat more organically and nearly elminating our meat consumption. She focuses more on what food costs and not how healthy it is. At 85 it is hard for her to change her way of thinking, which is basically "if it hasn't killed me yet..." For me, now that I am a knitter, I think alot about renewable resources. For instance, if you kill the sheep, no more fleece! But it's also about humane treatment of animals. If I do eat meat, I want to be sure the animal was treated with respect before he sacrificed his life for me. I want to be aware of where my food comes from and how it was raised.

Speaking of animals, there were a few at the farm. Some of them, like the piglets are internship projects. These little ones were only one month old and already about 25 - 30 pounds. The goal is to raise these two and send them to slaughter. However, the intern gave them names. Somehow, I don't think they will make it to the dinner table. In the meantime they were doing a good job rooting around in the dirt which is what pigs do. Duh, it dawned on me why the pig snout is shaped the way it is. Little bulldozers. Gosh I need to get out more, don't I!?

This Tom Turkey puffed himself up and stayed that way - like he sucked in a bunch of air and would not release. Initially I thought he was struttin' his stuff for the hen turkey. Being macho and all. Upon reflection I think he was threatened by all the people and was in defensive mode. In any event, I found myself completely fascinated by this bird. I've seen my share of wild Turkeys but this guy's entire costume were something to behold.

I especially love the red and blue contrast, I see it in yarn and it appeals to me.

Of course, there were sheep. What's a farm without some sheep? Always sheep! And goats. I adore goats - those satanic faces!! Their curiosity!! Their willingness to eat anything!

For those interested, the sheep are Border Leicesters. The goats are Nigerian Dwarf Goats and the turkeys are Bourbon Red Heritage, (a rare breed!!). You can read more about the farm animals here.

So next Saturday starts the weekly progression of produce from the farm. We will be enjoying the production from now till Thanksgiving. I'll surely see Christine again -- she'll be doing the deliveries -- and we will get regular updates on what's going on down on the farm. Living the farmer life albeit vicariously from a Brooklyn brownstone.

*reading is really listening these days, thanks to my Audible account and the wonders of iPods.

Sheep Festivals

Last Sunday we drove up to Cummington MA for the MA Sheep & Woolfest. This is a small sheep festival but served as a terrific introduction to all things sheepy and wooly for husband, who was curious about this crazy passion of mine. "Oh, so this is what it's all about...very eeenteresting..."

Being a photographer, he amused himself with likely subjects while I rooted around in vendor stalls and had some great chats with the various sellers.

Among the wonders I picked up were some fiber (you knew that would happen, right?). These two beauties are from Spunky Eclectic - such vibrant color in her stall!

It was fun to meet Amy and big bonus, Adrian from Hello Yarn was there, avec husband too! Two of my favorite fiber enablers in one place!!

My friend Cathy turned me on to curly locks, so when I spied a whole heaping pile of them at Buckwheat Bridge Fibers, I had to get some of my own.

The dyed batch is all clean and ready to spin while the two natural colored ones will require some preparation on my part. I've never done any cleaning and prepping of fibers so this is a good way for me to dip my toe into that aspect of the spinning world.

I found some Jacob sheep roving and was delighted when the seller explained to me how Jacobs are the most intelligent of all sheep. They are a rare breed, probably ancient in history and are one of the few remaining breeds to still carry two sets of horns. I think they look even more satanic with the extra set of horns, and what with the intelligence factor, how could I resist? Besides, I love the idea of natural striping resulting from their spotted fleece.

Other indulgences included a bunch of lovely vintage buttons from a wonderful man named Jan Marek Raczkowski, originally from Poland and now making a home and studio in central CT. There were so many wonderful choices I could have blown my entire budget in one fell swoop but forced myself to stop with four cards.

Last but not least, my main goal was to find a wrap gauge and a smaller spindle. The Bosworths were there and Sheila helped me select this lovely little yellow spindle, made from Pau Amarillo -- just perfect for silk, sample skeins and other little projects. This thing spins like nobody's business! You can see how the yellow one is much smaller than my Bubinga Midi.

After I made my spindle purchase Sheila directed me to the next barn where I found exactly what I was looking for. Really, the whole reason I wanted to drive 3.5 hours up and back. This little walnut wrap gauge, which will help me categorize my spun yarn by telling me how many wraps per inch I have. I know I know, I could have easily made one for myself with a simple dowel. But I had been fantasizing about something really tactile and wonderful. And this little tool does it all. It has one-inch and half-inch sections. I likey.

Temptation abounded throughout the day. There were two fleeces calling my name. But I resisted, knowing that I am still a beginner and I have so many other things to do, it just wasn't practical. But I did learn lots more about fleeces. What to look for, the different breeds, fiber types. I see a fleece in my future, just not now. I also took a quick Navajo Ply workshop for a mere $10 while husband watched the Sheep Dog trials. Amazing dogs.

The weather held out until the drive home, when we drove right into a monster thunderstorm and we hydroplaned down Route 91 for about 90 minutes. Despite the precarious drive the day was superb and it was oh so nice to get out of Dodge for a day.

Late Introduction

BOYOBOY, this post is long overdue. Allow me to introduce you to my spinning wheel, my Kromski Sonata, living with me since early January, and becoming a major part of my life.

Getting a wheel was not in the short term plan. In fact, there was no plan. It was only October that I bought a little drop spindle, thinking I would tinker with it for a bit before deciding whether I even liked spinning I never mentioned wanting a wheel. I never even sat down in front of one. I had not attempted to spin on a wheel and quite frankly, I was a little wheel shy.

My friends kept telling me eventually, I would succumb. They tempted me by showing me their lovely yarns and clucking on and on about how.much.fun. it all is. I resisted temptation. I played around a bit with the spindle, but I didn't feel like it would really catch on. In fact, the few lame attempts I made with the spindle left me a bit...ambivalent. Like I just didn't think I was that into it. After a few weeks of dabbling, I went back to knitting, and simply put the idea of spinning on the back burner.

All throughout the fall months I was deep into other projects and then whoosh, Christmas was just around the corner so lots of little knitting projects were on my mind and on the needles. Oh, yea and then there was the complete collapse of the entire global economic system that had me feeling pretty pretty pretty gloomy. To say the least. I slogged through the Christmas season and figured, BAH - I gotz the knitting and that's enough for now.

So to say that receiving a spinning wheel for my birthday was a complete surprise is the understatement of the century. It is a rare thing to render me speechless, but speechless I was. Thunderstruck. Floored. Amazed. Incredulous. These words begin to approximate how my response upon learning the news that a spinning wheel was being delivered any day.

I mean, there were no whisperings of wheel desire, no wistful comments about wheels I had seen, no expression of serious intent to own a wheel. In recollection, there was NADA discussion whatsoever. So you can imagine how my husband blew my mind when he said he went on the Internets to research the options. How he landed on the Kromski line and chose it because "it looked pretty". He liked the classical turnings and the walnut finish. He thought it would "match our house nicely". Okay, WOW. He decided on the portable model after discussing with a dealer and realized there's lots of potential when one can have wheel and travel. Such a practical guy sometimes! What a great choice!!

Yes, I was amazed. And I was completely intimidated. Seriously. In waaaay over my head. But I didnt' want to admit that to him, so I said nothing.

The wheel sat in it's packing for a week or so until I could muster up the courage to unpack it and put it together. Then it sat in my little office for a week while I messed around with the treadles and watched a few YouTube videos on spinning. It was around this time that I got serious about the spindle. I figured I needed to learn how to draft the fiber and suddenly the spindle seemed a bit less intimidating when compared to the wheel. Strange, how my little brain works.

That's how the lumpy green Cormo yarn came into being. Call it the intimidation yarn because I made it almost as a way to avoid making yarn with the wheel. Crazy, right? Yea, thought so.

Husband kept looking at me a bit weird like he was trying to figure out when I would start spinning. I made some excuses about how I needed to practice on other things before diving in. He kept his mouth shut but I'm sure he wondered if he had made a mistake. I wondered it too.

Until I finally sat down late one Saturday evening and started to play. And before I knew it, I was spinning some singles. They were a bit of a mess, the tension was too high, the drafting was lame, the first attempts were not pretty. I imagine everyone's first yarns are similar.

But it was SUCH A RUSH. Like when I was back in high school experimenting with... oh, never mind. You know. That kind of rush. Only better. Oh man, I would spin for a little while and the intensity of so many things happening at once would reach a crescendo and I'd have to stop and walk away for a few minutes. My brain was exploding. It was too much to absorb and I could only take it in short intervals. I was up till around 3AM blowing my mind that night.

Imagine husband's relief when weeks later I announced to him how much I LOVE spinning yarn with this wheel and how this is the perfect wheel to learn the craft. He did good. Really really good. My friends look upon him with a sense of amazement (he digs that big time).

It's safe to say I have since succumbed to the siren call of the fiber. I joined fiber clubs and started to receive the most amazing shipments of rovings and dyed fiber. I started stalking independent fiber sellers and cruised flickr to see what gorgeous yarn was possible.

And I got a bit more serious about learning more. I turned to two books in particular, "The Intentional Spinner: A Holistic Approach to Making Yarn" by Judith MacKenzie McCuin and "Start Spinning: Everything You Need to Know to Make Great Yarn", by Maggie Casey. These became my subway reading for about a month. People stared at me. It's not every day people are reading books about spinning yarn while commuting, let's face it. Most people are content with consumer novels and Sudoku puzzlers. I'd go to bed with these books and fall asleep reading passages over and over, committing the information to memory.

So. In these months I've thought lots about spinning and knitting. What they mean to me. How I relate to them. Knitting was love at first sight. I fell head over heels in love. I took that first class and there was no looking back. That was three years ago. It became my salvation in many ways, too many to go into here. Spinning on the other hand, was a slow burn. I needed to be around it a bit before I made up my mind. I needed to spend time getting to know spinning. This is a love that grew over time. It's still growing and still evolving. Both kinds of love work. Both endure. They arrive at the same place from different paths. And I have room for both.

Handspun AND Handknit

This neck warmer is all goodness. It's the hand spun Kool Aid dyed BFL from three weeks ago. Just a tube with garter rows at the start and finish, easy peasy. But look at how nicely it striped up! I could try to BS you all by saying "oh, I planned that. It took me weeks of calculations to work it out, blah blah blah...." Yearight. Pure luck. Honestly? I would have preferred that kind of luck when I bought that loser Mega Millions ticket instead. Bah!

Realizing it was gonna be a bit large I backed up a row or two and borrowed the yarn to make an I-cord. After a quick dash to my local yarn store for a big button, it took about 30 minutes of fiddling to get the proper placement.

I really didn't want to reknit the whole thing with fewer stitches because I feared that purple stripe would morph into a purple spiral! Nosiree, I liked it just the way it was, so folding it was my solution to adding warmth. And in a Icannotbelievethis moment, I ended up with literally 6 inches of yarn to spare. Close shave, but soooo satisfying to see it all used up proper.

It sort of matches the ancient, worn out tank top I was wearing during the ahem, "photo shoot". I promise you, that was not intentional. If I recall, I had just finished sweeping all the rain borne tree stuff from the front, and in my usual glamorous approach to these photo sessions, I chose that moment to grab a few shots before the light faded. Tired, sweaty, no make up grab shots. Living the vida loca, I tell you.

Goo Goo Eyes

This guy is my little lover boy. Rudy Valentino G.

We adopted him as a stray in December 2004. Lola is still outraged.

He is one happy happy dog. His tail is perpetually wagging. Even in his 'sleep'. He can appear to be passed out, but if I walk by, his tail starts to thump thump thump on the floor. Cracks me up every time.

Rudy always greets me when I come home at the end of the day. Soooo happy to see me. Missed me so much, where have I been all day? Let's play with the squeaky squirrel for a few minutes, okay?

I love his cheerful personality. This guy reminds me to laugh a little. I've come to really appreciate his clownish antics in the last few weeks. Thank you, Rudy. Right back at ya, Rude Dude.

Some Knitting, Too

Lest you think it's only spin, spin, spin around here, (the name is Knithound...), there's been knitting, too. First up, the shawl that took the Internets by storm over the winter - Ishbel, by Ysolda Teague, a very talented young designer. Just about everyone I follow on Flickr and the blog world made one. Every week someone else popped up with a gorgeous shawl and I was overcome with shawl envy. As soon as I finished whatever project was preventing me from moving forward (um, memory fails again, again) I succumbed to temptation.

Lucky for me, the extra simmer time allowed me to ruminate over which yarn to use and to resist all temptation to purchase new yarn. You see, the yarn stash is stowed in a dark guest room closet and this sometimes causes an out of sight out of mind phenomenon. In between all the knitting and spinning I decided it was high time to document the stash . That meant one Saturday furiously photographing a huge batch of yarn in the brief hours of cooperating light. There's more work to do in that department, but I digress.

So, when digging through the sock/fingering bin (some sweet choices in that bin I tell ya), I realized this yarn, Sundara's Silky Merino, would make a wonderful Ishbel. And the colors might even have a bit of spring in them, what with the yellow and greens. She calls it The Life Aquatic and it was a Club shipment back in December. Lurve this yarn. Super soft, nice stitch definition, beeUteeful color.

It took about three weeks to finish, and around the time we had a freak summer weekend (90 in April?! Fried Daffodils!), I cast off the zillions of stitches, whew! At one point, somewhere in the second repeat of Sections A & B, Ishbel and I had a come to Jesus moment. It was all out war, I tell you. Ishbel almost won but I would.not.give.up. It was all knit a row, tink back two. Knit two rows, tink back three. Over and over and over. Hair ripping frustration ensued. About the same time I was stomping on this project, Ashley was having the very same scene over in her neck of the woods.

In the process, I may have discovered a teensy little error in the written pattern. Mind you, this was NOT what was causing my little battle, but Row 1 of Section A, end of row says: "...k1, ssk, yo, k3". But the chart says and this would create a perfect mirror to the start of the row: "...ssk, k1, yo, k3". Whatever. I sure wasn't about to rip back hundreds, thousands of stitches for this little indiscretion. My fault for not comparing the written pattern to the chart. Nice of Ysolda to provide the option anyway!

By the way, when knitting lace are you a chart follower or a written directions follower? It occurred to me I usually follow charts, probably because that's what is provided, but this time for some reason I followed the written directions. I have NO idea which I prefer. I think I can adapt to either. It's just something I thought about while knitting this. Wow, deep thoughts, huh? Jeez.

The original idea was to knit this up for use with my spring raincoat. No sooner did the heat wave dissipate when we had endless rain for two weeks so YESSSS, I did get to road test this for a few days and I can state with complete assurance, this one is pure WIN.

More Spinning

The yarn you see resting so sweetly on its pillow started out like this:

On it's journey it looked like this:

This one was a tad challenging. The fibers were not neatly aligned. This is Cotswold / CVM (two sheep breeds with what turns out to be very different fiber). The two breeds were not blended in, but rather "folded" together. The bright gold was the softer of the three colors. I don't know which breed it represents, but drafting that fiber was slipperier and they were more aligned. The red and mustard fibers were more 'rustic' and I found myself drafting 'from the fold' somewhat.

I suppose it would have been easier to pre-draft lots of little clouds of fiber and then spin, but instead I stipped long sections and then pre-drafted as I pulled onto the wheel. I was using a long backward draw to get a woolen draft. There are lots of slubs and bumps in this yarn and they displease me somewhat.

My fingers felt a bit waxy after each turn at the wheel. I think the fiber had some lanolin in there. That was interesting. And might have made the spinning a bit more challenging too come to think of it. We're not talking fluffy and smooth here.

I have about 156 yards, 55 grams (just under 2 oz.), spun 2 ply, about fingering weight, . This is the last of the Rhinebeck purchases. Not sure what this yarn will be yet so it will sit in the little handspun pile for now.

Getting the Hang of It

It's getting better every time. Getting better all the time.

100% Romney, 2 oz, purchased at Rhinebeck last year from Fox Hill Farm. Semi-woolen spun yarn, 2 ply, about 106 yards. Looks like either a DK or Worsted weight.

Blue Faced Leicester, 2 oz., Kool Aid dyed by my friend Sarah and gifted to me for my birthday. Woolen spun, 2 ply, about 118 yards. Looks like either a DK or worsted weight.

My proudest spinning achievements so far.

Iceland in Spring

A couple of months ago the cousins got together for a reunion Pot Luck dinner. It was fun catching up with them and it gave me the chance to get to know some of the spouses I'd never really spoken to in the past. In thinking about why, I realized our usual reasons for getting together are either weddings or funerals. With those events, everyone is distracted, or the crowd is large, or it's just not the time and place to simply relax and let a conversation flow. So it was a real treat to just come together for dinner and catching up. It was also oddly liberating to have none of the Aunts and Uncles around.

During the evening cousin Patti and her husband Neal talked about experiences out West and good friends who own a sheep farm in Oregon. They were all excited about my knitting and described the Icelandic sheep on the farm - cute and really wooly little guys!

That was all I needed to remember I had some wonderful Icelandic yarn in my stash and the next day I pulled out my options and started swatching for some fingerless mitts. In addition to the gorgeous gray and Mustard dyed Icelandic I picked up in Rhinebeck, my friend Rosie G decided to sell some fingering weight yarns from her stash. At the time I was in an Icelandic state of mind and snatched them up immediately!

At first glance one would not think these fingerings to be complimentary. The yellow is a variegated with mint green, apricot and pale blue - overall it leans toward the pastel side. And the purple is a dusky tone, with just enough shading to make it well rounded, interesting, lively.

All winter long I've been hankering for some fingerless mitts and was afraid that using just one color as a stand alone would not stretch far enough. So colorwork it is.

Initially I thought I would use these for some Endpaper mitts and try my hand at colorwork. I made a valiant effort, and every time I sat down to work a few rows of the pattern, I would put the project down and stare at it. Something just didn't work for me. Something about the fuzziness of the yarn bothered me when worked up in this pattern. Looking at the half finished mitt now, maybe it wasn't the yarn so much as my knitting skill. I need to practice the two color fair isle technique. Ahem.

I kept going back to my little striped swatch. Finally I succumbed to the siren call of the stripe. Oh, the stripe, you know I love thee. The project certainly took on a quicker pace once I switched over to the stripe. And maybe that's what I needed: something finished. Something I could use at least once or twice before the Spring finally made them unnecessary till months from now.

The mitts fit great. And that Icelandic wool - it's really warm. After finishing the mitts I realized there's enough yarn left over to whip out a slouchy hat. Many are the mornings I am racing out of the house to work and my hair is still wet. The 5 blocks to the subway can get mighty cold, but wearing my other hats gives me a serious case of hat head. Why not a slouchy hat to protect the hair from icing up without smashing it like a pancake?

The hat borders on the frumpy and it's key to wear it with a bit of slouch and some hair hanging out. Otherwise it takes on a look of 'shower cap'. Not a good thing. But I am happy with the way it turned out as it will serve it's wet hair purpose nicely.

Now if I could just find an easier way to model my work and shoot it at the same time. I need to find out if this little camera has a remote control. My arms are just not long enough!

Piecing It All Together

Remember all those knitted squares I made about a month ago, destined for the Afghans for Afghans project? Well, the squares are steadily arriving at Prospect Perk, the designated drop off point, all donated by so many charitable knitters in the Knit PH group - it's simply amazing! At last count we have enough for four blankets and the squares keep on comin' on.

It's time to piece them together and prep these blankets for shipment to A4A Headquarters. Tony dropped the squares off (two bags full!) at Eliza's house this morning and later on Liz and I joined her for some homemade scones (yum!) and sewing in her bright, sunny living room.

This one is more of a hodge podge than the next one, which will be all crochet in more muted colors. I learned that sewing crochet squares is more difficult than sewing knitted squares. There's still lots to do before these blankets are finished: weaving in the ends, possibly adding a simple crochet border...

There's talk about continuing this project for months to come. Everyone has lots of leftover yarn from projects and this is a fantastic way to use it up. Knitting squares is very enjoyable and I am seriously considering a personal project using handspun or maybe working up some sampler blankets like the ones Barbara Walker suggests. It's a fun way to try out different stitches and the squares are portable.

All in all this is a fun project and it's a great excuse to get out of the house on a beautiful day and spend some time with friends.

Diversionary Tactics

There are moments during my day job that can drag and let's face it, become plain dull. Sometimes I need to take little escapes to keep myself from burning out. I've been doing this gig a long time so it's not a huge intellectual challenge. There are other challenges to it, but intellectual is not one of them.

To keep myself from completely passing out in boredom or during long conference calls when I have little to do but "listen", I find myself stalking fiber sources. It all started innocently enough. First I was just posting photos of my newest obsession - yarn making - on Flickr. Then, I started linking to other fiber enthusiasts. Then I figured out some of these Flickr friends had Etsy sites selling their fiber. Oh, man.

It's a slippery slope, I tell you. With a click, click, confirm and send I am amassing a small arsenal of fiber fuel. I swear, the combination of Etsy and Paypal will surely spell economic doom for me! Small consolation that I can completely justify these purchases as my little contribution to prop up the economy. And of course, it is a wonderful diversion from the mind numbing portal based web enabled workflow systems we are forced to use in our daily existence. Process monkey for hire!

These fiber balls tickled my retinas when I stumbled onto Yarnzombie's Gaslight Dyeworks out of Ohio. They are mixed with nylon sparkle, curly locks, bamboo, tencel, alpaca, wool, you name it. They delighted me so much I went back the day after they arrived to place another order for Cathy's birthday. The gift arrived in time, the service was superb, thanks Jacki!

Last weekend at the spinning party (I mean, what better way to have a birthday, anyway!) Cathy suggested these would be fantastic done as core spun and I really like that idea. Something ropey, to be used as trim for upholstered pillows?

And this lovely fiber is Bluefaced Leicester combed top dyed by Pumpkinmama on Vines. Erin dyes her fiber up in MA and does some amazing spinning, too. I've been admiring her work for about a month or so, and when this one popped up on Flickr last week, I zoomed over to her site to make sure it would be headed my way. She sells out quickly, so you gotta pounce! This stuff is so pretty, very soft colors. I envision a shawl in fingering weight yarn, or maybe I will use it as a weaving project? Soon, soon.

Weaving? Spinning? Oh yea, I am in deep. Way way deep. And all day long there's a little compartment in my brain churning out ideas, considering options, conjuring ways to make these raw materials into things that please me and keep me amused. Anything as a daytime diversion.

Some Progress

It's a learning curve to be sure. This yarn was made entirely on the new wheel. Oh, did I forget to mention? I have a spinning wheel, a birthday present in January. Here it is, the end of March and I finally got up the gumption to spin yarn on it.

More on the wheel some other time, when I have a chance to photograph it and get into all the details. For now I will just show you the first completed yarn on it. This is Hello Yarn Thrive. I love the colors. It's cheerful and makes me want sunny days and blue skies.

As with all the spinning, there's alot to learn and in this case, the plying needs practice. I found out yesterday the unintentional method I achieved was spiral plying. Which is okay, but not what I really wanted! I love this yarn anyway and someday it will be a hat.

It's a busy time round here, so little blogging of late. Back to you all later...

Performance Art with Sheep

This is simply amazing. Take a moment to watch, you won't be disappointed.

Sign of Spring

Tonight on my way home from the subway I looked up to see three Canada geese flying in formation, heading north. And it was still light out. Ah, Spring.

Handspun Introduction

Hello, I am Knithound's first handspun yarn. I am made of Cormo, which is a lovely breed of sheep that makes a wonderfully soft and fluffy/fuzzy wool. I was spun and plied entirely on a Bosworth midi spindle.

Knithound bought that spindle and the roving at Rhinebeck in October. But she was so intimidated by the spinning process it took her awhile to get the courage up to spin me. I'm glad she did it because I like being yarn.

I am thick, I am thin. I am overspun and I am underspun. I am all over the place. But I am yarn! And I will soon be something squooshy and warm and I will wrap around Knithound's head or neck and I will make her proud and I will keep her warm and I will be loved forever.

Lace Sock Wrap Up

FINISHED! Finally, these are done. A bit of a slog given that I had to make those changes mentioned a couple of weeks ago. That slog gave me enough time to think that this may be the last pair of socks for a short while. There are so many other things I want/need/want to do, for the first time since this journey began it felt like I was wasting my time. And that made me restless and anxious. But knitting is supposed to be relaxing! Ha. As if.

Maybe the yarn, a disappointment, contributed some anxiety. I wanted a solid color yarn to show off the lace pattern with no distraction. Unfortunately, this stuff is a bit splitty, doesn't have the sproingyness I like, and started to show a fuzzy wear after all the ripping and reknitting. It just didn't feel that great going through my hands. It better soften up in the wash or I will be thoroughly pissed.

Decision #1 involved the cuff and yes, I DID add the missing 4 rows. The perfectionist in me just couldn't let that one go. Besides, they felt a bit funny when I put them on - like one was shorter than the other? Or maybe I was imagining that just to satisfy myself that the correction needed to be made. Not that it was easy, by the way. Ripping out a cast on is NO fun and it made my blood pressure rise on several occasions. The bind off is a very loose, purl bind off and it seems to match the first sock well enough.

Decision #2 was all about the toes. Since I knew I had to rip back sock #1 to add a lace repeat, I had the opportunity to reconsider the shaping. In the end, I decided to go with the toe as written in the pattern. Even though it looks a bit weird. I am one willing to try anything at least once. In that spirit I have eaten some mighty strange things, altered my mind more than once, gone places considered a bit dodgy...I mean, that's how I roll. Odd looking toes? Camel toes? Okay, why not?

From covering feet to covering hands, I am on to the next project, a pair of fingerless mittens, wherein I get to play with stranded colorwork. Colorwork is one of the 2009 goals, so maybe it won't feel like such a burden.

The Specs:
Pattern: Socks for Veronik, by Mona Schmidt
Source: Interweave Knits, Holiday 2007
Yarn: KnitPicks Essentials, Granny Smith - most accurately depicted in the first photograph.
Needles: size 1 US dpns
Started: 1/30/2009
Finished: 3/8/2009