Happy Thanksgiving

A very Happy Thanksgiving is wished to you and yours. 

Just some pictures to catch up with the last blog of no pictures.  I finally took the time today to snap off a few photos.

Camicia:

 

I ended up deciding on the Ashland Bay Trading Co Mer/Angora blend for next on the wheel:

Bluefaced Leicester skeins finally photographed.  The bottom pic is kind of blurry.  I have a very hard time getting color out of this digital camera, next spring I intend on treating myself to a decent camera.  When I do pick out the color, the photo is blurred so I try to grin and bear it.  :)

 

 

Camicia's in Progress and Fiber

The Blueface Leicester is done (and has been). It has been hanging on a chair from its bath for a few weeks now. I spun it 3-ply and when I was down to just one bobbin with fiber on it I navajo plied the remainder. I have to say that when I spin BFL again, I will opt to navajo ply it all. I really liked that small skein more than the three bobbin plied. It looks firm and more compact with a nice looking finish and I had forgotten just how much I like to navajo ply. I like the blend of color and I am not sure what I will do with this yarn.

Lately the spinning and knitting have been at the bottom of the attention ladder. I have been sewing. In order to get moving on my daughters 16th century Italian Ren SCA Court garb I had to get a camicia (chemise) done for her. So while I had the linen out, I cut out four and sewed them all with french seams and now I am working on one at a time to do the neckline gathering and hems. I have learned that with chemises and gomlek's (16th Century Ottomon Turkish type "chemise") if you make one, you may as well make a half dozen! Pennsic alone requires a few for weather and hand washing issues.  Already I am aiming at Pennsic 2011 as I will be there the entire two weeks so need to start planning now.  Back when I did primitive dolls for craft show selling, I was big into production sewing and would make 100 dolls at a time. I just finished the first camicia yesterday after dragging it to Pennsylvania with me this past weekend for a meeting. I used a 5.3 ounce linen.  It is a nice weight for warm Italian Ren but I am not so sure about summer or Turkish Gomlek's so will order the lighter weight for those and more summer weight camicia's. I heavily rely on three websites to find my way though this new territory of Italian Garb, again I will say I have no recollection why I chose Turkish at the time.  I think it was I liked the history more than cared about the garb.  Which is probably how it should be however.... I love fashion, so why not embrace it! Thank goodness for dressmaker blogs and websites!

My favorites (and where I go most for help even if I haven't really produced anything but a camicia!!  Lol.).  I am heavily dependent on these blogs right now until I have a sense that I know what I am doing.

Daze of Laur
Dress Diary of a Novice Renaissance Seamstress
Festive Attyre Chemise
Realm of Venus 

I do have a confession, I have no clue what Steam Punk is but I love seeing the very cool garments out there in blog world.  Very super cool and creative costumes that simply will amaze you.  Google and find out!

And now to decide what to spin next. I had to dust my spinning wheel. That is not a good sign. So I will be deciding on my next bag/box of fiber to spin. On my 101 in 1000 list I have an entry to spin 8 bags of fiber out of my stash before I purchase anymore. I am 2/8! I have a beautiful merino angora blend, maybe that will be it or...... I have about a pound and a half of corriedale roving sitting in a bump.... or..... well with my stash my choices are many!

And a favorite thing.  While I was in the kitchen making sauce and meatballs today, I was listening to the Scarlet Letter.  Heather Ordover does one of my favorite podcasts but I kind of got on re-listening to every Diana Gabaldon book BEFORE I crack open her new book which is beside me on my desk.  I am to book 4 but waiting for it to be available at the library.  I have all the actual books but I like to listen to audio books during my 10 hour work day at a desk.   Anyway, by reading the Outlander series, I got distracted from Craftlit.  What I like about Heather is she does a chapter per week depending and she really teaches what the book is about too.  I know I read the Scarlet Letter in high school (ages ago) and back then I just didn't care about it. But now I am enjoying it and have pointed my college age daughter to the podcast too.  Check it out!  It is fabulous!  And thank you, Heather!  I love your podcast!

Craftlit

Sunrise and Blueface Leicester

I finally finished Sunrise! And this updates my 101 in 1001, number 44, 1 bag of 8 bags of fiber spun up and finished before I can buy more!  I have a few more skeins in a basket and need to measure to see what I have in total yardage and weight.

(Edit: I ended up with 2,304 yards and 8 wpi.)

Next up and half done is a beautiful roving of Blueface Leicester that I purchased from Three Waters Farm. It is a 4 ounce tip that I split into three lengths and spinning to 3-ply. I just started the third bobbin and will be plying soon.

 

Next is a bag of Corriedale top that I got with my Kromski wheel when I purchased it. It was a 2 pound bag and I have spun one skein of yarn from it.

The hard part - Getting started.

So.. it is time to think about getting to some serious seamstressing. So I was mulling over starting this Florentine dress for my daughter and I realize this is not going to be all that easy. Turkish garb is not all that difficult. I pour over dress making logs, have collected a ton of links and have found I am a picture looker and skim sites more than I read them and that is a tsk tsk on me. So, I have to settle down and do some serious research and I am making a list of starting questions to help me keep focused.

If you have looked at any of my posts, you might get that I am a "list" sort of person. You should see the post-it notes I stick everywhere with lists on them.

Preliminary Questions to get myself started:

Just what did a 1500's woman wear under that gorgeous dress we "see" and oooo and ahhh over?

What are and what are the proper names of garment pieces a woman would have worn.

Study each garment piece (once I know them): ie. what is it made out of. How will I duplicate it. Decide what they will be made of and produce a plan.

How do I drape. Read up more on garment construction.

There, that is enough to get me started. I do have 20 yards of linen to start a chemise for her (the Italian name eludes me at the moment). We did find the Florentine gown fabrics. I will post pictures soon. The sleeves we bought black velvet and the body is a very pretty rusty red color. I am one of these people that likes 100 percent natural fibers for any garb work. In this instance I didn't follow that.

101 in 1001 list update. - I did #100. We bought the Zelda game for the Wii. I used to play Zelda games so many years ago that the Wii is a new learning curve. I talk with my hands, I am not sure how many things I threw Link off of with that motion remote, haha. However, does this clash with "Learn to say no to self" and "Be frugal"? I did by a preowned copy if that puts me in the good column. :)

I am adding one to the Genealogy column. Go to 1 or 2 conferences. I do see my list is full of things that require big money. I guess it is time to stop thinking about a 2nd job and just doing it. :( Which cuts into my hobby time! Good grief.

101 in 1001

101 in 1001
October 1, 2009 - June 28, 2012

Personal
1 Blog more - - -
2 Cable bill - lets learn the due date.
3 Clean out PSP folders, tons of duplicates and this will be a big job
4 Dentist - start some needed repairs
5 Find a second job - plan to work 8 months.
6 Go to the Rochester Art Museum
7 Go to the Rochester Museum and Science Center
8 Go to the Strasenburg Planetarium
9 Learn more of the folklore of Scotland
10 Learn some Gaelic
11 Learn to say no to yourself.
12 Letterbox more
13 Lose thirty pounds
14 Move to a cheaper apartment.
15 Once a month - day trip with daughter
16 Pen Pal - so far these penpal sites look kind of cheesey?
17 Read 6 books - I buy books and don't read them anymore, I listen to audio at work (0/6)
18 Research cost of Scotland trip to build goals on. - Look at tours
19 Take a college course (or some kind of education) - history
20 Take better care of my legs
21 Visit Scotland. (Plan for August of 2012) - with Sheila.
22 Walk for 30 minutes twice a week

Finances
23 Fix them - need I say more?
24 Get $1200 in a savings account that I don't have to borrow on regularly.
25 Get HBSC 1 cc to zero balance
26 Get HBSC 2 cc to zero balance
27 Learn to be frugal
28 Save for trip to Scotland - DO IT! (Goal 8/2012)

Craft
29 Complete my first sweater - don't let it sit.
30 Duct tape dress form for me.
31 Finish duct tape dress form for Mackenzie
32 Handweavers Guild of America - Spinning CoE
33 Italian chemise - Mackenzie
34 Knit 8 skeins of sock yarn before anything more is purchased. 0/8
35 Knit a shawl for work - I am cold a lot.
36 Knit every shawl in Folk Shawls by Cheryl Oberle. 0/25
37 Knitters Guild of America - Knitting Masters
38 Learn to knit something you don't know how - cables
39 Learn to knit something you don't know how - colorwork
40 Learn to knit something you don't know how - lace
41 Organize Knitting stash - is your Ravelry up to date? Not.
42 Research the steps to make a Florentine gown. Just how many parts are there! Yikes.
43 Spin 10 minutes a day at least.
44 Spin 8 bags of fiber before buying more -srsly wtf - 0/8
45 Spin for every shawl in Folk Shawls by Cheryl Oberle. 0/25
46 Stop hording my angora bunny fleece. Blend with a nice wool and spin!
47 Turkish hats

SCA
48 Documentation - Italian Garb
49 Documentation - Period Natural Dying
50 Documentation - Spanish garb
51 Documentation - Turkish Embroidery
52 Documentation - Turkish Garb
53 Garb - Italian (1 complete outfit)
54 Garb - Spanish (1 complete outfit)
55 Garb - Turkish - add Turkish Embroidery to 3 En'tari's 0/3
56 Go to 2 Thescorre Events per year
57 Go to 3 Thescorre Meetings per year
58 Learn about Medieval Spain. Do I feel a persona change coming?
59 Natural Dying - period - for Ice Dragon/Pennsic A&S
60 Paint mirror box
61 Tent - decide and get one, or a Ger…
62 Turkish Embroidery - Complete Entari, Period - Ice Dragon, Pennsic by 2011
63 Turkish Embroidery sampler to get a feel for the process.

Genealogy
64 20 hours per month spent on family research
65 Be more dedicated to the Graveyard Rabbit Blog… slacker
66 Census records - Baldwin
67 Census records - Duncan
68 Find a good wall map of North Carolina
69 Find a good wall map of Scotland
70 Find a good wall map of Tennessee
71 Find a good wall map of Virginia
72 Find Baldwin connection to Connecticut
73 Find current day relatives in Dundee/Angus
74 Find-a-grave - Add the stones you have to the site.
75 Genealogist Certification? (long term project)
76 Get all photo's from Mom, identify everyone and get everything scanned
77 Get the Fender tree more complete for trip in 2012 - know what you are looking for when you go
78 Get to 3 DAR meetings per year
79 Get to 3 Genealogical Society Meetings per year
80 Go to Tennessee and/or North Carolina to find ancestor cemetery's
81 Learn the counties of Scotland and their history.
82 Random Acts of Kindness site.. VOLUNTEER
83 Take 4 online Genealogy classes to further my research skills. (0/4)
84 Trace Duncan line to the DAR, it is thought John Duncan was in the Rev War
85 Transcribe!!! Genealogy documents received.
86 Visit one cemetery every 3 months.
87 Volunteer for the Ontario County Genealogical Society
88 Write to Michigan cousins on a more regular basis
89 Write to Patsy every 6 months with updates.
90 Write to the Ohio family and make contact - it has been too many years.

Cooking
91 Canning - get back to it, use the farm markets
92 Cook Books. French (20 recipes) 0/20
93 Cook Books. German (20 recipes) 0/20
94 Cook Books. Italian (20 recipes) 0/20
95 Cook Books. Mexican cook book on the shelf (20 recipes) 0/20
96 Cook Books. Polynesian (20 recipes) 0/20
97 Recipes into Big Kitchen and make cook book… 2 years procrastinated so far??
98 Save for the ultimate food processor/blender

Entertainment
99 Buy a GPS
100 Find a fun game I will like for our Wii
101 Watch the Lost Series - the only reason cuz is is instant watch on Netflix.. =/
102 Watch the Madmen Series

September - my "something is missing" month

September has been an odd month for me for many years. I feel like I should be doing something, anything and for a couple of years I couldn't put my finger on it. About 10 years ago I quit everything I loved and looking back realize .. well we can't go back and fix, now can we. Decisions sometimes are a good thing or not a good thing, we just never know when we step out of what we know. So I will admit for shutting down and I suppose it could be considered a depression, a long one. I hated the apartment I was forced to move so my daughter and I didn't have to give up our cat. I hated losing my house because I had not worked for ten years to be a homemaker for my family. I hated going back to the job market with a ten year hole in my resume and feeling like I had stepped back, not forward and I hated doing the jobs I do just because it is what I know how to do and not really what I love to do. Yes, I confess, I am one of those... I work because I HAVE to. I love to stay home and I love being a homemaker.

Over the last two years I have started to dig out. I am back to spinning and my my my... I love sitting at my Kromski going into my zone. Spinning has always made me feel grounded and where I should be. I am so surprised I almost sold all of my spinning equipment and supplies! Phew, that was a narrow miss!

September is canning season and I realized that is my problem. When I lost the house, I lost years worth of gardening. I had over ten varieties of thyme for starters. I grew 4 varieties of basil every year. I grew rosemary, oregano, name it, if it was growable in my region, it was growing in my herb and perenial gardens. I grew medicinals, I grew a witches garden... I just grew stuff. By the time I moved there were hundreds of lavendar plants bordering my beds that I started from seed. I started most of my plants from seed. January was planning month, my husband and I gardened year round, there is always something to do even with 3 feet of snow outside.

I am used to September being hectic. Thousands of tomatoes eyeing me until put in jars. We made salsa, canned tomatoes, apple butter, jellies, jams and more. If it wouldn't go in a jar, it went into the chest freezer. We planned a year round food source and was usually to the last of the frozen and canned foods as the new and fresh was coming in. The freezer would be stocked with every freezable vegetable we grew, the blueberries we picked, and well I could go on forever. I did this for years so it is no wonder I wander around my apartment wondering what I always do with myself, haha. We moved last November to this new place and the kitchen is huge and I like the apartment far more than I did the last one that I actually stayed in for 8!!! years. I think it is pulling out by inner canning spirit. I bought a canner! I am not sure I will get anything canned this year, jars seem sold out everywhere currently in my area but it is a start and I do have a jelly I want to make for Christmas. Maybe this means I am ready to reach back and snatch up the things I gave up in order to shut a door. I am not really sure why I did this but maybe it is a clue that I was not totally happy with some decisions I made but that is where we come up with that saying... "live and learn".

So, I did commit myself to something that has been fun so far (so far meaning day 2!), we will see day 500 when much of my list is not done! I am a list person, putting a list in front of me is like waving a red flag in front of a bull, I become obsessed. Tikabelle, from a podcast I listen to, Gives Good Knit, does a list called 101 in 1001. It is actually a good list. You can put some pretty lofty goals there with that kind of time frame and it helps you not forget things you might want to do but just seem to mull over on occasion. You know.. those "I should" and "someday I would like to" or "someday I might....". But it on a list, print the list and put it somewhere where you can see it often. You just might get to those "I should" and "someday I might"'s. So far I am to 50 plus and my starting date is today, October 1 and end date being June 28, 2012. Wow, 2012. I have lofty goals but that is just fine with me. I am challenged and there are things I have been dreaming of and intend to make real. Like, going to Scotland, my dream as long as I can remember. I set a date, I am going, I will work on the funds the next 2 plus years, period. I will post my list once I have all my detail in my spreadsheet and it is more complete.

One thing on the list is something I have been thinking about for a long time. I want to knit every shawl in Cheryl Oberle's Folk Shawls book and actually, I want to step it up too. I think I want to spin for every shawl and then knit it. So, that is going on the list. Like I said, LOFTY goals. But it keeps me out of trouble, right?

Sunrise update.. I am getting there! I filled 4 bobbins for the last time I think. I am going down to 2 bobbins now as I am fanatical about coming out even on bobbins. I like things even, what can I say.

Duct Tape Dress Form

I have spent the last week skimming through online tutorials and this morning going through YouTube videos.  I liked one especially as it showed the actual taping.  So many did not show how they taped, we saw once the taping was done.  I recommend watching this YouTube video, I actually like the way they taped, it seemed to make more sense to me and I liked seeing the order of taping.  They are silly and I actually had to laugh a few times but it was very concise and I will be trying this method on my daughter.  She is the first duct tape victim of the two of us.  I would like to skim another 5-10 pounds before I do mine or I will be making one ever six months which is not a bad thing if the weight is going in the right way!

Another thing I found that I will use on ours.  I have read and watched so many construction methods for a stand or suggestions of a hall tree, etc.  The most simple I have found and cheap is a straight microphone stand which I saw here.  It is easily adjustable and I really liked how easy and clean this looks when it is finished.

For stuffing, I have been saving all those grocery bags over the last 8 months or so out of sheer laziness about getting them back to the grocery.  I did buy some of my own grocery bags, the ones the stores all sell to bring back and refill?  Well, my bags are always in the neat lower rack of the closet door rack, not in the car where they can be used!  So.. I will use the bags I have and finish off with poly-fill stuffing.  It seems most economical. 

One more thing and I can't remember where I read it or saw it. When cutting up the back, one person suggested a zig zag cut up the back as opposed to a straight up cut.  This ensures you are getting the form back together accurately.

And so, the first part of the project was done.  My daughter is small waisted and large busted and I was concerned about strapping her down but shaping does take place if you take the time to shape the tape.  We used 80 yards of tape.  I am almost wondering now if one more layer might have been better but we will see how the mounting and stuffing goes after we find a microphone stand.  Only one oopsy.  I cut her bra right off when cutting the model from her, haha.  I was so worried about keeping the scissors from hurting the skin that the bra was our only loss!

She said she felt like the tin man but all in all it was a fun project.

She has decided on her first SCA Italian Ren gown and that will be of the Florentine style, 1520-1540's.  I am very eager to get started on this project so time to find fabric, some playing around with patterning and getting that dress form done.  In another post I will give more information on her choice of gown.  I am brand new to Italian dress construction so I expect a lot of mistakes as I learn the ins and outs of Italian Fashion Medieval style.

 

  

 

Good day.. productive is a good thing.

Wow.. I did some of my to do list and even added a few things as I came upon them.

Alpaca. (added to the to do list)  I had gotten some baby alpaca a couple of months ago.  I was given a couple of ounces or so.. I will have to weigh the fiber once it is all dry.  There is a red brown like clay, a darker brown and a white.  I got it for an insanely cheap amount and in fact I had asked the woman if I was paying enough.  A customer had come into the booth and asked questions about alpaca fiber and the woman manning the booth was doing a favor for the owner who is a good friend.  So I told the customer all I knew about alpaca from the spinning perspective and the properties of the fiber.  So this woman was not inclined to recheck the price and I walked away feeling like I got too good of a deal.  Once it is weighed I will post but I only paid $8.25 for the entire lot.

 

Anywho... today I washed it all.  With the Salad Spinner Method!  This is fabulous!! I love it.

 

 

The List - -
Sunrise - Bobbin #5 is full and I plied one bobbin full skein from Bobbins #1 and #2.  It is coming out very nice and balanced (yippee) and I look forward to seeing it after it's warm bath to make it bloom.

Garb - My daughter decided on Italian Ren - Venetian.  So we are going to start with a Venetian Dress for her first SCA persona garb.

Knitting - Finished the scarf!  Gave it a warm bath too. This scarf is Crest of the Wave pattern and knitted from All Things Heather in Pink Camoflage.  It is 50/50 superwash Merino and Tencel.  I purchased it at my favorite online yarn store, The Loopy Ewe.

 

Crest of the Wave Scarf

Cooking - Went to the farm market and grocery store and got the necessary's for Zuppa Tuscana!!!  That is tomorrow's dinner.  Mmmmmm!

A To Do List - - of sorts

I am a post it note junky. I use them every day, stick them everywhere and depend on them heavily. That is probably not a wise thing to do! But I do it. During the last few days I have kept a list of things I thought of while working and made several 5x7 post it note to do lists.

This weekend is a 4 day weekend, I intend on being productive.

One thing on the list was a new look for this blog. Amazingly, I got home and the blog template I did have went poof. Who ever made it must have closed their photobucket account and there went the template. So! I used one of bloggers templates and personalized to what I like. So that is already crossed off!

Spinning - Sunrise - currently I am on bobbin #5. I think after I fill this bobbin I will ply the first 4 bobbins of my singles.

Garb -
1) Viking Apron Dress - figure out the sizing so I can order linen. Many in our camp had them or were going to make them. I think Dark Horde Moritu next year at Pennsic will be a lot of Viking Apron Dresses!
2) Encourage my daughter to figure out and pinpoint more in what she wants. She had decided on Italian Renaissance which excites me. I have always wanted to try my hand at creating 1400-1500's Italian Garb but I chose Ottoman Turkish for my persona. It was said as a joke by a friend but I just might be "Safiye of a thousand dresses.." LOL. I could easily dress in about five different periods and be very happy. I want to do some research on Spanish garb too. Oh, and Flemish... see? Don't forget the Viking Apron dress above! Middle ages fashion "ho"??? Ya think? Plain n simple.
3) Duck tape dress forms. (We plan on my daughters this weekend.)

Food -
I found a recipe for Zuppa Toscana based on the Olive Garden recipe. I hope it comes out just as good!

Knitting -
1) 6 rows to finish my scarf!
2) I need a new purse project. I think I have about 10 things started. I will pick up something that was abandoned.. I think.

Sunrise

That is the name of this sheep. It is a beautiful BorderLeicester that I purchased as a fleece back in......... 1997!!!! Or maybe 1996. My shipping copy shows they received the fleeces 12/23/97 and I got them back in June of 1998. I remember having a lot of fleeces that I washed but then decided to send them all to Ohio Valley Fibers to have everything scoured and pin drafted. I sent 7 in all I think then proceeded to move them, store them in a cubby in the hallway of my apartment building.. unheated. So in the winter is was in freezing temps, in the summer hot and humid temps. The fleeces were pin drafted into plastic bags and two were put to a box. And, they have all moved twice.



Oddly, when I decided to deal with them this year.. ie, downsizing 50 percent of what I own because I am tired of owning so much and want to simplify my life.... (Writers note: All these fleeces went on Craigslist in a harsh moment.. the ad was deleted 2 days later.. I know.. 2 days WAS a long time...). Anywho... I did get rid of a lot of stuff but decided to keep all the spinning stuff. Spinning was the wrong hobby for me to kull so I will work harder on balancing all of my very many hobbies! Plus, I bought the Kromski wheel that I coveted. I have no self control.

I did seriously look closely at these 7 fleeces I had sent off in 1998 and found one thing interesting. The three white fleeces were not as nice, got just a hair sticky over time and over all I did not like the way they felt in my hand. So.. out they went. The dark fleeces though were all super nice. Soft. This fleece is particularly soft and fluffs up with just a little tug as the pin draft rope lifts out of the bag. I have to say I am way impressed with the job Ohio Valley did. No rodent damage or bug damage for all of the years neglected and wow... it is just beautiful. This is a dark gray but it looks more a brown gray than a black gray.



Stats: I sent it to Ohio Valley as 4 lbs, 3 oz. It came back after scouring at 3 lbs, 14 oz. That is not bad at all knowing at home I probably did not get all the grease out. There is no stickiness to it after sitting. I will have a whole lot of yarn when I am done spinning this. It is not scratchy but being a mid weight it will be suitable for a blanket or a nice warm jacket type sweater. I see where my mind is going on this already. Too bad I haven't yet finished my first knit sweater!

Can we say... OMG! What were you thinking or were you?

Today was Pennsic laundry day. Today also required a nap but that was a different story. My daughter and I dragged mundane laundry, bedding and our garb laundry to the local laundromat with a stop at Starbucks on the way. Necessity, of course. *grin*

Filling the machines and then waiting.. when transferring to the dryers it was then I saw what I did! At Ice Dragon in 2008 I had purchased this gorgeous length of wool. Granted not my persona really but raspberry purple and deep forest green, I am so there. So I bought it and coveted it for the perfect project then decided that project would be a Turkish coat that I could keep the chill off at Pennsic and for winter garb wear. So.... boldly! I went at this piece of fabric with scissors and a picture in my mind of how I wanted it to look when finished and came out with a finished garment that was not to shabby. It was just the outside with the plan to line it this winter and it was oversize which I really liked and planned on making it super warm to wear. We needed it one night at Pennsic, I froze all night. (Air beds get cold and stay cold - which is another Pennsic camp box project. A wool blanket for a mattress pad.)

I have been working with wool for 15 years. I know the properties of it, know how to spin and felt it. Know how to take it from sheep to spinning wheel bobbin.... and apparently, today, I did not know NOT TO WASH IT IN A WASHING MACHINE! There, the ugly truth and confession... I agitated my wool Turkish coat! I know you wool experts feel my pain!

It did full rather beautifully though I didn't want it that way. And it might not be a total wash. While not an oversize coat (Ferace) like I wanted, it just might be a toasty warm Yelek though not silk that is lined but... fulled wool! So while not a total tragedy yet.. it just went with the vein of the day. I had a brainless day, it took two rides around the block to actually remember I was going to the bank... the look on my daughters face was priceless by the way.. so why not wash that wool!

Pictures:

The OMG, look at this moment.

As you see, it did full nicely!

The left over pieces were sewn into a rectangle shawl. This is not washed as you see.

Hrm.....

Kromski Polonaise

I am a blog fader of the WORST kind. I am not a teaching blog, I have nothing interesting to tell the world at large and I am not trying to make a statement of any kind. I just type what I am doing or what is on my mind and I am kind of breaking out of a 10 year, yes.. 10 YEAR.. slump. What a waste of time.

See same complaints, different blog: Conversations with Ancestor's Past

Recently I moved. I moved 9 years ago from my house that I loved and into a crappy apartment that I didn't love. There is the slump marker. I moved from crappy apartment to a nicer place in a very small City that I have always loved going to and actually closer to my workplace than I was. When moving way too much stuff, I made the firm decision that I was downsizing 50 percent of what I own. The recession calls for it.. do I really need all the stuff I own?? (Uhm, yarn/fiber stash is exempt from all downsizing discussions, period. It doesn't count.. this is all my 401yarn plan.) I will confess I decided the spinning had to be downsized and I sorted through all the fiber I have had for 10 years! sitting in boxes and being ignored. All of the fleeces I hand picked and skirted myself then sent off to be processed into pin draft. Moved them twice now and still never been spun. I had 6 huge boxes that I boldly put on Craigslist. (Note: every hair, every fiber is back in their plastic bin with smell good repellent.) I cracked.. I couldn't part with any of it so I did the next best thing. I bought the wheel I have wanted for too many years. A Kromski Polonaise. Couldn't afford it, should NOT have afforded it but I did it... it is now part of that 401yarn plan. *big smile*

I will say that even in a 10 year slump, every first weekend of May I ache for Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival. I went once, fell in love and every year want to go but why? I fell out of the fiber world, sort of.. knitting is still a struggle, I am not great but I am still doing it! I have never been to Rheinbeck? Why? I live in Rochester NY. Tsk.

So spinning on the new Kromski yesterday, oiling it, aligning it, getting the feel of it as I start to break it in.. I would like to know why that Louet S-90 is so neglected that sits in my living room. Am I back to spinning for the NYS Fair, or Maryland Sheep and Wool? I did pretty well back in the day. Seeing all of the indy dyers out there.. (I have tons of their sock yarn..) I am looking forward to trying their rovings. I am looking forward to being re-introduced to "Dot", the Borderleceister fleece I have three sheerings of and so on...... <~~~ Fiber junkie here, I confess! And so.. beauty.