One More for March

Just a quick post to show a bit of spinning I finished before saying goodbye to March and hello to April.

I have had this idea for a specific yarn for a while and I finally got a small amount of fiber to test it out before committing to a larger purchase. This is only 1/2 oz of fiber but it did the job nicely of telling me that I do indeed love the color combo. Now I just need to knit a swatch to see if I love how it knits up too.

Late, but I wanted to show you anyway

This is the table runner I wove for my grandmother for Christmas. It was my first attempt at overshot and at warping anything longer then a couple of yards. It is the patten called Lee's Surrender from A Handweaver's Pattern Book. All in all I am pretty darned pleased with how it turned out.

March Spinning Goal - and it's Completion.

Well, I had my spinning goal in mind and got so excited about it I didn't take as many in progress photo's as I would have liked to.
With my specific goal of a hat for Jacob in mind I went 'stash diving' and finding no 'Jacob Worthy' fiber I resigned myself to having to buy some (a trip to buy fiber, gee darn - actually it was on the tail end of a detist appt.) I bought 4 ounces of some commercially processed Merino in the Denim colorway from Ashland Bay at the Lamb's Ear in Tacoma. That night was my monthly spinning guild meeting and while there I split the roving in two and spun half of the singles in the couple of hours I was there. Later that evening after getting home I was on such a roll that I spun the second half of the singles 'thick and thin.'
Yesterday I started the plying - I had already had the beads and had intended on stringing them on the thinner single but that idea was scrapped when I realized I would not be able to pull the single through all of the beads without abrading to too much.So plan B was a spool of 'denim' colored sewing thread (Thank you Alexis! - you let me have this after a sewing project we worked on here - it couldn't be more perfect) to make a 3 ply - the two singles I had spun plus the tread with the beads strung on.I finished up the yarn that afternoon and set it to soaking. It is just barely dry enough to photograph - another day before it will be dry enough to knit with. It is destined to be a hat for my Jacob - the self proclaimed 'Letter Prince' (apparently Letter King was not to his liking).

Edited to add: As Alexis just pointed out in the comments - the month isn't even half over and I'm done. Perhaps I will add to my spinning goal this month as this was a new aquisition and not directly from the fiber stash (but the beads and thread were).

The Sweater

The sweater is all done!!! I finished it last night, I even wove in all of the little ends that wouldn't have mattered on the outside but can be seen on the inside.
Overall I am very happy with it, especially since it's the first sweater I have made (that was not for an infant I mean). Having never made a sweater before I think I did pretty darned good, especially considering I made the yarn too. Knowing what I know now there are a few changes I might make (like adding some shaping to the waist and perhaps making it a touch longer and the neckline an inch or two lower) next time should I use the pattern again. I also realize I am not a size 36 but that is ok, I like my sweaters a little large anyway. There is just enough room in the sleeves that wearing a decently thick shirt underneath does not cause bulk or bunching at the underarms and elbows.

So there you have it, a sweater made almost 'from scratch' (I will consider it made from scratch when I have washed, carded and dyed the wool too).

Now, I need to find something to spin...

February Spinning

Well I did finish my meager spinning for February, while it was still February too:

The color quality in this picture is horrible but frankly today it is just going to be what it is.

In other news, I am almost done with my sweater...I have finished both sleeves, knit the lower body, attatched the arms and am currently on the last row of the cabling pattern that runs across the chest, back and arms. I hope to finish in the next day or so as I only have to finish the yoke, the neckband and the button bands. I think I'll buy the buttons today. Pictures when it's all done.