Livin' La Needle Loca

...because the strange just keeps on coming. I'm not going into any details because it's not something I want to share with the Internet. You'll have to take my word for it. 'K? The weekend was too hot to really get crafty. Finished spinning the Purr-ple singles, but had no energy to ply it. I did some stash diving can found several bums of fiber to spin for Tour de Fleece. I found some Falkland, BFL, Merino-silk, and Merino-Bamboo tops with names like Tidal, Just Beachy, Tropical Fish, Sea Nymph, and Shipwreck (I sense a theme...) Found a yarn to use as a warp for my Grape Jelly handspun . I I knit a little on the Fraggled Socks and the Eleanor de Plume socks, but it was really too hot for knitting. I read a lot and hung out with the cats on the tile floor. They sure had the right idea!

...getting sick didn't help. While my body recovered pretty quickly, my mind didn't. It wasn't until Thursday that I really felt that my brain was fully functional. I have managed to get a little knitting done. But remind me never to have 4 pairs of socks on the needles again, will ya? Because I am so bored with heel flaps, heel turns, and gussets...and only two of the four pairs are that far along! Ugh! It''s good that I have to gear up for Tour de Fleece 2009 . I can put the knitting aside for a while and spin my heart out! I need to finish up a few yarns and try and make a dent in my stash. Here's one of the things I want to finish spinning: Apricot Cinder Merino-silk from Yarn Wench . I started this at the Spin-In last weekend. My Tour de Fleece goal is to spin weft yarns that I can use in my weaving. I want to try to spin some warp yarns as well, but I have very few bumps of fiber that are more than 4oz. The most I've ever spun from 4 oz. is 440 yards ...

...I picked up some flu bug and stayed home sick yesterday. The fever was the worst part...when you feel your pulse in your whole head...ugh! I was very happy when that finally subsided. fever on a hot day = miserable No fever today, but the flu part has not completely worked its way out of my system yet. I'm taking it slow; I skipped going to the gym today. However much I wanted to stay home another day, I have a ton of work to do, so here I am. Needless to say, no progress on any craft front. That's all for now...

...finished another one! I'm really loving how fast these weaving projects are! Presenting the completed Mas-Acero Shawl. This was gifted to my mother-in-law on Sunday. Here's a view of it hanging on the tree so you can get an idea of the drape (taken after washing and before a little steam). Specs : Finished 6/20/09 Finished size: 81"L x 18"w, including 6" fringe each end; Warp & weft: Brooks Farm Mas-Acero yarn in Lakeside Shadows; Warp: 10epi, 95"L x 19.25"W; Weft: 8ppi; Loom: Ashford 20" Knitters Loom I had a great time at the Spin-in on Saturday...nothing like spending time with fellow spinners and knitters! The host and hostess were gracious, as always, and we enjoyed lots of yummy food! (mmmmm, pie...cheesecake...cupcakes...) I started spinning a Yarn Wench merino-silk top in Apricot-Cinder (I know, more apricots!) and finished about half a bobbin. No pictures yet, sorry! While I decide what the next weaving project will be, I'm wo...

...AKA "It almost looks like I planned it that way."(Another quick blog entry because I have another work deliverable due today. ARG!) I'm weaving this shawl for my mother-in-law using a sweater's worth of Brooks Farm Mas-Acero yarn (SW Wool-silk viscouse). The color is called Lakeside Shadows (blues and dark browns). It's very pretty and would have made a nice sweater, if I thought I'd enjoy knitting an adult-sized sweater (that's another topic that I don't have time to delve into now). Anyway, I warped the loom and magically the yarn striped! Hmmm, didn't plan that, but cool! Then I started weaving it. Hmm, it's striping in the other direction. Hey, it's kind of plaid-looking! Way Cool! Totally not what I intended, but it's looking really good! Color me happy! Up this weekend: spin-in on Saturday and Father's Day on Sunday. That's all I know right now...I'll just be happy the work week is over. It's been really rough.....

...lots of work and very little spare cycles this week. The quick WIP report: Third weaving project is underway; have about 16 inches of 80 woven Worked a little bit on the Eleanor de Plume socks [ Ravelry ] ; finishing up the heel flap Haven't touched the Fraggled socks [ Ravelry ] or Under the Sea socks [ Ravelry ] in several days Still haven't finished spinning the Lisa Souza Purr-ple batts [ Ravelry ] Back on Friday, I hope!

...poor Sirena is still sitting under her cover...I did absolutely no spinning over the weekend! I finished weaving the silk wrap Friday night. My intention was to fringe and wash it Saturday morning so I'd have the afternoon for spinning. Well, the fringing took forever! After working with the silk chenille yarn and looking at chenille throws that we have on the couch, I decided that regular straight fringe was not the way to go. Chenille fringe loves to tangle and twist itself up into a big glob. I did not want that to happen to this shawl! I went with a knotted fringe that took about 3 times as long to tie. [sigh] But I'm glad I did, because after a gentle washing, the remaining ends had twisted together and needed de-tangling. Before I knew it, most of Saturday was gone. However, I think the shawl turned out great...the length is perfect and the width is just right. Specs: Started: 6/7/09 Finished 6/13/09 Finished size: 82" L (including fringe) x 15.5" W Hand-dye...