Corespun Baby Cakes

One of my goals when I set out in 2010 was to play with corespun yarn. I finally sat down and made up a few samplers using a Loop Baby Cake pack purchased nearly a year ago. These were fun to make, and somewhat liberating in that I didn't get all hung up on perfection.

The blue/green one, which I named Ocean Reef Party, is probably my favorite. Because I love the colors, and it may be one of the better ones I made.

I'm not a huge fan of the glittery Angelina that many of these types of batts contain. And I prefer their use in moderation, not excess. Some of these had an abundance of the stuff. I am forever picking the individual fibers from the rug in the family room. Despite that one small drawback, I plan on making more corespun yarn. For now I am pondering how to incorporate these bits and bobs into future knitting projects.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I am grateful for so many things: health, gainful employment, family near and far, loving and being loved, my hounds, friends and of course all the fibery things.

Sunday Break

These last few weeks have been really crazy busy. After much cleaning, reorganizing and housekeeping these last few weeks, I took a break this afternoon to finish a pair of Fingerless Mitts (Ravelry project link). These are headed to the office for a work friend.

I love knitting with handspun. When I first started spinning, all I wanted to do was make the yarn. Now I often spin with a project in mind. This was the Double Dog Dare Shetland from Southern Cross Fibres. I made a 3 ply yarn knowing I'd be making fingerless mitts with it. It's destiny was set when my friend saw a photo of the un-spun fiber and oohed over it.

The pattern is pretty straightforward and has become sort of a handspun recipe. These were knit on US3 needles, to make a slightly firmer fabric (to keep out the wind). I cast on 36 sts and just winged the first one till I got it right, taking notes along the way, and then using the notes to make the second.

There's always a bit of trial and error when going this route, as I often need to knit something to a certain point, try it on and then make adjustments as necessary. In this case, once I finished both mitts, I realized they were too short at the top. Last night I ripped down the garter edge, inserted a few stockinette rows and then finished off the garter edge again. Much better now. I think mitts should come to the second knuckles otherwise they aren't warm enough.

I'm nearly finished with a sweater, which needed some modifying to get a good fit. Almost there; maybe next weekend will mark the end of this one.

My spinning group decided to do a little Sock Knit Along, to help a couple of newbies learn sock knitting. So I decided to make a pair for my Mom. I raced through the first one, and of course a week has gone by without casting on for #2. Good thing Christmas is still over a month away.