Livin' La Needle Loca

...last finished items for September. This is Seaglass [ Ravelry ], a lovely camel-silk handspun: and the close up: Specs: Started 9/1/14; Finished 9/27/14; 4.0 oz. Camel-Silk top from Greenwood Fiberworks; 230.7 yds. chain-ply, 14 WPI I absolutely love the camel-silk top from Greenwood Fiberworks. It's a wonderful to spin, nice and soft. I'm not sure what I'll do with this yet...it might become part of my next weaving project. I've been thinking about weaving a table runner in ocean or water colors. Seaglass would go nicely in that project. I need to stash dive for some other handspun in blues and greens to see if I have enough to do a table runner. Maybe this weekend... .

...as did the weekend. I managed to post Eye Candy Friday on Facebook, but not here.  Oh, well. The short story: Saturday = Finished the Seaglass handspun, did the laundry, went to an anniversary party, and watched the mid-season finale of Outlander. Sunday = Grocery shopping, did some needlepoint, spun more of Lilac, and cooked dinner. Yeah, it doesn't look like much, but it filled my whole weekend. I hope to post pictures of the finished handspun tomorrow. .

...it's been a busy week. Between fire drills for one client and design work for another, I've been crunched. I've been ready for the weekend since Tuesday... As a result, not much craft-wise has happened. I tried knitting on Tuesday night and fell asleep in the middle of a row. Reading seems to be the safest thing. If I fall asleep in the middle of that, it's no big deal. I hope to have a regular Eye Candy Friday tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed. OK, break's over. Back to work! .

...I'm so ready for autumn food! Being that it's one of those weeks already, you get top-of-the-waves Tuesday today. I baked gingerbread cookies for Spin-In on Saturday and only kept 5 for home. Win!   I finished spinning the singles for Seaglass [ Ravelry ]. They are resting for a few days before I will ply them. Camel-silk is very soft and I'm afraid that without the rest, it might fall apart during the plying process. We'll see how that goes.   I started spinning Lilac Rose of Sharon [ Ravelry ], a Merino-Bamboo-Tussah Silk from Miss Babs.   I declared Sunday to be Needlepoint Day, mostly because I didn't feel like working on any of the other WIPs. I had to frog a large section of the border because I was off one stitch. It was not something I could ignore, so out it came. I'm still off one stitch elsewhere, but it's in a section that is filled with specialty stitches and I think I can make adjustments to handle it. I might run out of one of the ...

...let's hear it for the weekend! More new flowers from our garden. Verbascum chaixii album. (I know...that just rolls of the tongue!) Abutilon: Lucky Lantern Red: Blue Mist Spirea Up this weekend: It's Spin-In time again! I'm looking forward to spinning with the group again.  I need to finish the Seaglass Camel-silk on the wheel. I won't get it plied on Saturday, but I'd love to finish the singles. I'm not allowing myself to start spinning something new until I finish these singles. I'm in think-mode with the quilt. I can't decide how to stitch the border of the quilt or how to quilt the insides of the blocks.  I hope inspiration strikes soon because I'd like to finish this quilt so I can resurrect "Going Snow Global" from the UFO pile! No other specific plans...we'll just see where the crafts take me! .

...with a new WIP to show. This is the Alcea Cowl that I'm making for Loopy Academy: It was surprisingly hard to get a decent photo of this WIP. I don't know if it's because the colors are so intense or what. It took me about 20 shots to get this one less-than-great photo. Even the shots I took this morning in natural light were slightly blurred. Boo! WIP Roll Call WIPs in Rotation: Alcea Cowl [ Ravelry ] Knit about 5 inches....at least 44 more inches to go! I'm Just Mad About Citron Quilt (quilting) Did all of the stitch-in-the-ditch quilting; on to quilting the insides of the blocks Seaglass handspun (spinning) [ Ravelry ] About 3/4 done with the singles Tuscon Twilight (needlepoint) 50% done with the outside border; added more inside separators. (getting really tired of brown) Stealth project Small amount of progress WIPs, no play this week: Beyond Antares, aka Equatorial Nights (knitting) [ Ravelry ] Ghouls, ghosts, and witches...oh, my! (cros...

...I keep hoping to get back to a Monday-Wednesday-Friday posting schedule, but Mondays just seem to fly by and it's Tuesday before I know it. Weekend report: I managed to work on a few things on my list: Continued spinning the Seaglass [ Ravelry ]. I'm getting close to finishing the singles Did all of the stitch-in-the-ditch quilting for "I'm Just Mad About Citron" Continued to stitch the separators for Tuscon Twilight needlepoint Started the Alcea Cowl [ Ravelry ], one of my Loopy Academy knitting assignments. I need a clever name for this one...something Brazilian to go with the color name "Brazilian Emerald." I did order another skein of yarn for the Raspberry Mittens [ Ravelry ] that I'm knitting for Loopy Academy. This is Lost in Plum, another Dream in Color Classy yarn. I think it might be a little easier to knit as it's not quite as dark as Amethyst Ink, and there is no question that this meets the color requirement. I t...

...I don't know about you, but I'm so ready for the weekend! Today's eye candy is brought to you by the colors yellow and orange. This is a Sunrita (gaillardia): a bi-color sunflower: and wallflowers: These are some of the new plants that the Husband bought for me. More next week. Up this weekend: I have no specific plans, but there are several things I'd like to do. There's just not enough time in a weekend to cram them all in. I'd like to: Finish spinning the camel-silk [ Ravelry ] that is currently on my wheel. Start machine quilting "I'm Just Mad About Citron" Work on the cross stitch mermaid Work on the Tuscon Twilight needlepoint Start one of my Loopy Academy knitting assignments Knit a few rows of Beyond Antares [ Ravelry ] Plan the next weaving project And, of course, there are those mundane household chores that must be done like laundry, vacuuming, mopping, and grocery shopping. I need at least a 3-day we...

...no updated pictures of the WIPs, but this fiber is currently on the wheel: in the WIPs-to-be category, my yarn arrived for the Loopy Academy projects! Here's what I'm using. For the Cowl in a multicolored (2+ colors) fingering yarn, I'm knitting the Alcea Cowl [ Ravelry ] in La Jolla yarn by Baah!, using the Brazilian Emerald colorway: For the hat in a designer new to me in a sport or DK yarn, I'm knitting the Wurm hat [ Ravelry ] in Tosh DK by Madelinetosh, using the Lepidoptra colorway: For the mittens in a solid or semi-solid color in worsted weight, I'm knitting Raspberry Mittens [ Ravelry ] in Dream in Color Classy. The yarn I ordered for them might not be right, so I may need to order another. This is the color I bought, Amethyst Ink: It's very dark with amethyst undertones so I'm not sure whether it qualifies as semi-solid color. I love the color, so it won't be wasted! WIP Roll Call WIPs in Rotation: Beyond Antares,...

...I finished something over the weekend! This is Holly Berries [ Ravelry ]: and the close-up: Specs: Started 8/23/14; Finished 9/7/14; Merino-silk top (4.6 oz) from Wonderland Dyeworks; 219.6 yds chain-ply, 11 WPI Top-of-the-Waves: On Saturday, we took the train to San Francisco and met the Daughter for lunch. We walked down the Embarcadero to a little Peruvian restaurant and made a meal from their small plate selections. We walked around the Ferry Building for a bit before heading home. It was a gorgeous day in the City with only a little wind here and there. A wonderful way to spend the afternoon. Because the train trip was over an hour, I spent the time knitting a cowl. This could end up being a gift, so I'm not posting a picture here.   I walked 13,589 steps on Saturday, a personal best for me! And I paid for it on Sunday with very sore hips and calves!   I joined the Loopy Academy , which requires that you finish a set of 3 projects in 3 month...

...and I'm ready for the weekend! Today's eye candy is brought to you by my sister and her husband. Yesterday was my birthday and they sent me a beautiful flower arrangement. Here's a closer look: a white rose: some white daisies a pink carnation and some purple flowers: The Husband bought a bunch of new flowers to plant in the garden just for me. You'll see pictures of them next week. He also gave me two braids of spinning fiber, one SW merino and one polworth. He's getting pretty good at picking colors I like. :) Up this weekend: We're going to continue my birthday celebration and have lunch with the Daughter. Also this is the weekend of the  Mountain View Art & Wine Festival. We try to go to this one every year. I have plenty of craft things to work on, so I'll have a pretty full weekend. We'll see what catches my eye! .

...more reading this month than finished craft items. Finished: 8/24 Deep Teal Dream handspun (spinning) [ Ravelry ] Merino-Silk top (4.5oz) from Wonderland Dyeworks;  294.1 yds. chain-plied, 14 WPI 8/30 Toulouse handspun (spinning)  [ Ravelry ] Merino-silk top (3.9 oz)  from the Yarn Wench; started on the spindle and finished on the wheel; 379.7 yds chain-ply, 16 WPI Books: The Art Forger, Barbara Shapiro NYPD Red, James Patterson Dark Waters, Shannon Mayer Poison Promise, Jennifer Estep Blood Games, Chloe Neill Veiled Threat, Shannon Mayer Tracker, Shannon Mayer Blind Salvage, Shannon Mayer Shadowed Threads, Shannon Mayer Raising Innocence, Shannon Mayer Started: 8/23 Holly Berries handspun (spinning) [ Ravelry ] 8/30 Stealth project Worked on: Beyond Antares, aka Equatorial Nights (knitting) [ Ravelry ] Ghouls, ghosts, and witches...oh, my! (cross stitch) I'm Just Mad About Citron Quilt (quilting) Mermaid of the Pearls (cross stitch...

...in which I have two WIPs to show.  Granted they are not the best pictures in the world, but you'll get the idea. This is Holly Berries [ Ravelry ], a merino-silk from Wonderland Dyeworks: This is I'm Just Mad About Citron right after I finished pin-basting it. It's now trimmed and ready for machine quilting. I also started a new handspun: Seaglass, a camel-silk braid from Greenwood Fiberworks. The colors are soothing blues and greens and I'm in love with the camel-silk blend! WIP Roll Call WIPs in Rotation: Holly Berries handspun (spinning) [ Ravelry ] I'm Just Mad About Citron Quilt (quilting) Ready for machine quilting Seaglass handspun (spinning) [ Ravelry ] Just started on Monday Tuscon Twilight (needlepoint) Still stitching the design separators Stealth project WIPs, no play this week: Beyond Antares, aka Equatorial Nights (knitting) [ Ravelry ] Ghouls, ghosts, and witches...oh, my! (cross stitch) Mermaid of the Pearls (cross stit...

...welcome to September! It was a very productive weekend. For today's finished objects, here is Toulouse: and the close up: Specs: Started 7/7/14; Finished 8/30/14; Merino-silk top (3.9 oz)  from the Yarn Wench; started on the spindle and finished on the wheel; 379.7 yds chain-ply, 16 WPI It took forever to ply, but I'm very happy how it turned out. Spinning is the best craft to do while watching the latest episode of Outlander, so I also spun quite a bit of Holly Berries, a merino-silk from Wonderland Dyeworks. Photo tomorrow. On the quilting front, I pieced the backing for the quilt and finished the quilt sandwich for I'm Just Mad About Citron.  Photo tomorrow. I worked on the Tuscon Twilight (needlepoint) for a bit. My goal is to finish stitching the outside border so I work on the interior separators. I also worked on a stealth project...my target is Thanksgiving, so there's no great rush for it (yet). The mermaid didn't get any play...