Updating

After a rather long hiatus, I'm back! I can't guarantee continuity, but I will strive not to leave everything hanging for 6 months. This year has felt fast paced and while that seems to be the over all trend as I grow older, I believe it is in part due to my feeling of always being behind. Next year will not overtake me. I will be prepared and then some for the onslaught of work, personal matters, and scholastic challenges that arise. 2010 will be amazing and perhaps, for the first time in my life, feel very directed. I've found something that I haven't tired of in over a year and that is still challenging me, which is pretty amazing considering my track record. Anyway, I'm trying to get some projects together and eventually get all of the equipment I'll need to do weaving independently (warping board, reeds, etc). For now, I've been knitting and teaching myself to embroider. There is something about embroidery that just strikes me as fulfilling, so I'm really glad I decided to pick it up! Next is sewing.... We'll see how that goes.

Dusting off the Keyboard

In some ways I've been busy in the world of fiber arts and in others I've been lounging about, wistfully thinking of all the projects I want to finish. I have started a tapestry (finally), but I haven't drawn out my plans for it... So, it just sits, waiting for me to take up some yarn and work away at it.
I have also come into possession of a fair amount of dyes. Tonight was my first chance to use them. I'm sure I could have made the time before this, but I like dallying when I've been out of the house all day. Unfortunately it was dark outside when I dyed my fiber, so I was unable to capture any photos for your viewing pleasure. I'm also unsure as to whether I should spin it up, or turn it into roving. Choices, choices, choices....
I would also like to create a collapse weave piece and a rug since I now have some absolutely beautiful rug wool. I will have to take picture of that as well. I need to get into some sort of spinning routine so that my production is more consistent and I don't loose my touch. It has been a bit challenging to spin soft-spun yarns seeing as I am used to adding extra twist for structural integrity, but it looks better as a single, so I better get crackin! My goal is to get myself a little stand in a local community market, or some space in a storefront, and sell my products that way. It feels more personal and I will most likely have less pressure to lower my prices. Well, back to dyeing.... :D

2am listings and whatnot

I'm very, very sleepy. I say this after finally putting up some of my handspun on Etsy (if you want to check it out, search for mustardseed11 under sellers). This process seemed to take forever, but I guess that since I've finally jumped the hurtle, all is well. Subsiquently, each item after the first was easy. I'm still trying to work out how to determine pricing, but I guess I'll figure it out through trial and error. I think my plan right now is to just spin until my fingers are worn through. I need a large amount of stock and so that means spinning, spinning, spinning! I also plan to sell handwoven goods at some point, but that will occur later in the summer.

Speaking of weaving and summer, I'm going to learn tapestry weaving! I've been looking over 2 books I happened upon, in hopes of understanding some of the techniques, which has caused more than a few "A-ha!" moments. I also plan to create a collapse weave project and a rug. A project for each month of summer sounds perfect. If I work hard, I may try for more, but I'm not going to push it.

Well, I'm off to cook some breakfast.... until later!

Oh Me, Oh My!

This has been one whirlwind of a quarter! While my academic pursuits weren't particularly strenuous, I did a bit of soul searching (for lack of a better term) and am feeling rather comfortable with graduating earlier than I expected. I will finish in December of this year and hopefully start the new year living in another place.


As for my animal adventures, I have procured 6 baby chickens! We have five Rhode Island Reds and one Barred Rock chick, which we have named Moonshine. Aren't they adorable? They are getting to the stage where they aren't so cute (losing baby fluff and gaining adult feathers). Beyond that, I still have baby chicken and now an adult Jersey Giant. Most of these chicks will be going to good homes where they can be loved and lay plenty of delicious eggs.

This week, I also procured a TON of yummy yarns for weaving rugs and wearables. I plan to complete at least two projects this summer - a rug and a collapse weave scarf or the like. I'll update again later in the week, when I have more time...

The Whole Kit-n-Kaboodle

So! It's been near a month since I've updated this blog, but a lot has been happening (including me losing the connector cable to my camera). The most recent drama is that somehow our chickens have been escaping. One was found yesterday, but the other is still MIA. The longer she is away from home, the more I worry we've lost her for good. I'll be calling shelters today to see if anyone has picked her up. If you're on the westside and have seen a buff orpington roaming around, please leave a comment or if you know me, give me a call.

Update: Still no word on our buff.... Perhaps she'll show up in our backyard someday, but for now, we've resigned ourselves to having lost our beloved Buffy.

Here are some shots of my blooming backyard:


...and...


So, here is what I've got going in the form of projects:

This is one of my specialty yarns....

And below is my first attempt at dyeing anything


Here is the same stuff spun up for my weaving project!

*Sigh*
Speaking of spun stuff, I need to get back to doing that. My goal is to finish the turquoise and then start on the blue so that I can switch back and forth between the colors on my weaving project. Back to the wheel!

Seattle Weavers' Guild

My teacher asked me to attend a SWG meeting with her this week and it was so much fun! The presenter for the program was John Marshall who apprenticed under a mater dyer in Japan. Learning about his work has really inspired me. Next year will be all about fiber arts (gasp! I know it seems contrary to my previous plans, but I've got to follow what I'm passionate about, right?)

I've got so many pictures of the event I don't want to post them all, so I will list a few. All of them can be found on my other blog if you're interested...

More Awesome Fibery Goodness!

Yeah! I went to the Shepherd's Extravaganza over the weekend and found some delectable fibers. They were all alpaca and alpaca blends.... I found this lucious suri alpaca:


...as well as this nice silver/gray alpaca:


...and tussah silk/faun alpaca blend that I'm going to spin up and weave into a delectable scarf for John:


Speaking of weaving, my loom is finally here and I hope to set it up sometime this week!

I have to say that I really love what I'm doing and Brenna (my bestest friend) and I have been scheming about what we will do when we move to California. I have to say I'm wishing more and more for that day to come. 'Soon!' I cry, 'Soon!'

It Has Been a While....

...but not to worry! I've been busy. The past two days have been dedicated to cleaning up the yard. This week and last I was busy ordering dyes, fiber, and other odds and ends. I'm so excited! My father bought me a drum carder as a gift (seeing as he is so excited as well).... Here is a picture if you're curious:


Tuesday is when my loom will be arriving as well.... A 42" loom for only $250!!! Holy cow! I'll be taking pictures of that as well when I see it this weekend. I've been spinning lace weight yarn lately and to be honest, I never realized how easy it was! I have also come to understand why merino is the way to go for such fine threads.... the crimp and softness is just wonderful!



The blue hued bit is some of a silk hanky and the white is my lace weight single - and boy is that some lightweight stuff... I was able to get it as thin as thread once I got into the swing of things (sorry for the crappy picture though).



This is my 'specialty' fiber, which includes two types of bamboo fiber, cotton, ramie, soy silk, tussah and cultivated silk, camel down and nylon. This does not include my 3 pounds of wool and pound of mohair.... I'm gonna be a busy girl, no doubt!
Next weekend is when all the fun really begins. I need to order some more things for dyeing, but as soon as I get them, I'll be ready to test them out... The first part of this quarter has been a bit slow, but I can see it picking up a lot of steam by the end. Next week, I'll talk more about my garden and the out of doors.... The past few days have been marvelous with their sunshine and warmth and cooling breezes - I can't wait for more!

Finally!

So! I've started my ILC blog which you can find here -> http://spinweavedye.blogspot.com/

As the quarter progresses, I hope to be posting some pretty looking things... and perhaps some disasters, but that's learning, right?

Anyway, I've also (finally) set up an etsy shop! Once I get it all nice an' purty I'll provide a link... Until then, know that I'm working hard to get it all up and running!

Life is gonna move quickly this spring - I can just feel it. Can't you?

Buffy the Worm Slayer!

Well, it has been a blast being sick, but I think I'm ready to leave the party. As of late, I've been surviving off of tea, pancakes, Buffy and Xena. Yeah, you read that correctly. I finished DS9 and had nothing else to turn to... Don't judge me too harshly!

Anyway, I haven't done much work in my garden as of late with all the deceptive sunny days leading into frosty nights of doom for seedlings. I'm watching my little ones break through the soil of their little paper pots and attempt to reach the light. How vigorous and single-minded they are! Tomatoes, eggplant, and artichokes all clamoring to reach the "sun". Soon enough there will be an entire slew of little plantlets to put out in the soil and encourage...

As for fiber arts, I'm pulling everything together for my Independent Learning Contract this spring. I'll be doing some serious spinning, dyeing and even learn how to weave! How awesome is that?? My father is so excited he is willing to pitch in for a drum carder and even a loom!!! That is, after I've gotten around to learning how to weave..... Thank goodness the college seems to have an ample supply of looms at their disposal. Poor things need homes and fingers to work their threads; instead they mostly seem to sit around collecting dust. I'll be posting more as things progress and will actually have a second blog chronicling everything I learn and cover next quarter.

My newest project is a baby blue and yellow pairing. I used the navajo ply to practice my skillz and this is what came off my bobbin:


Unfortunately I didn't get much because I used my new wheel to create this and we fought the entire time. I like the colors and I think I may try this again... I just hope I can get more that 18 yards off at a time!

Next quarter is shaping up to be exciting. I will be not only learning new techniques for spinning, but I'll also be learning how to weave! How sweet is that? Anywho, I gotta start getting my cash together so that I can buy accessories and all the other supplies I'll need. If you want lessons or want to buy any hand spun yarn, let me know. Soon enough I'll set up an etsy account for everyone to enjoy!

Time to drag myself to class... ugh

Well then!

It has been a while, but for a bit I kinda stalled out on creating stuff... The lack of fiber didn't help though. Anywho, I finally finished my eggplant/moss green ric-rac ...



...and have moved over to knitting for the time being. Next quarter I may have plenty of time to create yarn and whatnot. So, below I have posted pictures of both a belt I've been knitting and the beginning of a patchwork afghan. It should turn out cute with a mix of yellow and purple patches.

The belt kinda makes me think Christmas, but the colors work so well together and I needed to use both yarns up so... Also, the belt has been knit on some wonderful bone knitting needles that I received as a gift and love to use :)


I'm going to stitch the yellow and purple patches together to make a cute afghan or something like that. I've been addicted to the color yellow lately. I even plan to paint my room yellow... but I'll leave one wall blue so I won't be overwhelmed with its brilliance :)

Garden Edition

I'm just biding my time, waiting for things to warm up a little more and hoping that this year I'll actually get a real garden! Right now my plans are either to work on the college's organic farm or focus on spinning for a quarter. Either option is more appealing than just sitting around my house with nothing to do or continuing to take the program I'm stuck in this quarter (no offense to my prof).

Anywho! I'm reading a book by Carol Deppe titled Breed Your Own Vegetable Varieties and I must say I'm excited. I'll give you a more thorough review when I get through the book. It seems at first glance to really help you understand selection and the genetics behind it. Spring brings me back to pursuing my passions - gardening, fiber arts, apiculture, and interest in some day owning fiber producing animals. I'd most likely want to start with satin angoras as their fur has a more satiny sheen than traditional angoras and they are small and easy to manage. I mean, I'd love to have alpacas and sheep, but that takes land and money that I don't have at the moment. One day.....

More exciting news is that the Obama's are bringing back the tradition of the Victory Garden. I can't imagine something more "real" to bring people back to their roots. As some of you may know, my interest in food has become something of an obsession. I attempt to buy local as often as possible and grow some of my own food. In reality, we cannot support everyone becoming "locavores", but with just a percentage of everyone's diet made up of homegrown or locally grown produce, we can help support local businesses and more importantly the people working hard to make it happen. I mean, before the 50's, most people still had chickens in their back yards and now it's almost unheard of.... but slowly such things are growing in popularity. I'm glad this movement has grown and that I see people of all ages participating in the movement toward better, fresher, and more local foods.

Whew! Now that I'm done with that rant, I'll go start on my homework...

Update on Project

Bam!!

I thought I would play with coils (0r worms...) with this yarn and I love the look of them. I can't wait to try my hand at a fully coiled yarn (check it out on etsy.com if you're unfamiliar with the term/look).

Also for your entertainment I present Yarn Ball! Yarn Ball just happens to be a cousin to Beard Ball. If you haven't met Beard Ball, be thankful.... :)


I'm excited to say that I will be receiving two fleeces on which to hone my skills from John's mom. It will be a fun challenge to work from fleece to yarn. Next up will be an eggplant and moss green ric-rac yarn....

Stay tuned!

In addition....

I decided to catch up on some of the yard work that has been taunting me since fall and although I thought I was going to do all the work alone, I found myself assisted by two feathered friends...


I can't say I minded because Buffy (pictured above) is great at both tilling and fertilizing my garden beds. On the other hand, Buffy's offspring (cleverly named Baby) hasn't quite gotten down all the skills her mother possesses. She's not that great at finding bugs in the dirt and gets confused when I offer worms to her. I just tell myself she still has time...


Sufficed to say, they proved to be both entertaining and invaluable while I was cleaning up the back yard.

Now! I finished one yarn and am excited to say I'm going to practice my skillz with two new colorways.

Finished:

This Image doesn't do the yarn justice. The colors I plied the blue with are much more noticeable in person...

New colorways:

Eggplant and moss green


Orange and gold

The orange and gold brings to mind shag carpets.... No matter! The final product will be beautiful!

New Spinning Wheel!

After only a few months of spinning, my teacher has recommended that I start to teach in my own right. Of course I was flattered, but also a little nervous. To encourage this, she gave me information on a used spinning wheel and accessories for about $200. How could I pass this opportunity up? What I got was this:




A loverly Ashford Traditional spinning wheel in near mint condition. No large marks, no malfunctioning parts. Just pure, simple spinning bliss.... In any case, I now own two pretty wheels and am ready to go crazy with spinning. The colorways are swirling in my head and I can't wait to get them out of my head and onto the bobbin!

Alright, so I haven't updated in quite some time, but I definitely haven't forgotten about this blog. I have decided to mostly focus on my gardening/food production (from seed to meal) and fiber arts projects (spinning, awesome fibers, and lace as well as "regular" knitting projects). From time to time, I'm sure I'll provide pictures of my three adorable, pint-sized cats and chickens!

Right now I've only completed two projects:

A 2-ply pink/black skein made with alpaca and wool (which I only plied)....

...and a 2-ply undyed wool yarn.

While my fiber production has been a bit slow, I've been moving right along with my knitting projects. Soon I will post pictures of a scarf as well as a lace piece I'm working on. Also! We'll be getting two new chicks, so I'll have to put up pictures of the fuzzy lil' babies.... :)