A LOT OF SNOW

I could say that I did not blog in the last 3 weeks because of the snow. But no, even if we have (had) a lot of it, the reason is just lack of time and more work than usual.


Anyway, I finished at last the center blocks for my confetti quilt, and a good thing too!

It should not take that long now to add the sashing but I still don´t have a clue what kind of border I will sew. We will just see how it develops itself.

Of course I spun a bit too. I MUST learn how to use that wheel, right?!
From some merino/alpaka top


I spun some thin yarn:
And from 2 different merino tops which I mixed,

I tried to spin some rustic (!) yarn. I mean that I wanted a yarn with some thinner and some thicker parts with character. At least it is a very soft squashy yarn and with 250 gr. I should be able to knit something bigger out of it.


That´s all for today. I will go and have a look outside now to see if the snow is still falling.
I can´t say I am a fan of snow!


Have a nice time and try to make the most of the weather!


Gwen

WISHES

I wish you all a very happy new year 2010. May it bring you health, inspiration and joy!

For my part, my family and I had a very nice Christmas with my parents.
My DM brought her latest quilts for me to see and of course I show them here too.
The first one is a present for my aunt.

And the second one was a quilt along project in my DM´s quilt group.
My mum hand-appliquéed the border. I especially like the use of the purple/white fabric for the binding. It is just like another frame.

As it was freezing cold here lately, I decided to knit a cloche for myself ( after having knitted hundreds of hats for my sis!).

I like it so much, I knitted another one for my mum which she took away so sorry no picture!




P.S.: I bet my sis will make a comment and beg for another hat!

4 WEEKS BEFORE CHRISTMAS

I know, the post title is not original! Just to remind you and me that we don´t have that much time left to make presents.
Today I will show all the steps from rovings to shawl.

First the two wool braids, dyed by me.The left one is blue faced leicester and the right plain German domestic sheep.

Then the one ply on the spinning wheel.
And then the finished object, a shawl with one detail below.
It was an enjoyable project and I learned a lot during the spinning.

Next is a small shawl I knitted from a sock yarn that I had dyed some time ago.


Maybe that one will become a Christmas present for someone (dear sis, don´t worry not for you!)
I will go back to my knitting now as I have had some special requests ( not only from my sis but from my niece too, like mother, like daughter I would say!)

I wish you a peaceful first Advent.

GWEN

7 WEEKS BEFORE CHRISTMAS

Things are getting repetitive here:

Yet another picture of my confetti blocks. I want to add one more row and then I can start thinking about the border.


These are the second pair of mits I knitted for my sister as she lost the first ones!



And this afternoon I made some jam like last year at the same time. This is pumpkin, vanilla and caramel (that´s just because the sugar burnt a bit!). It tastes nice though.
I ordered some wool from the UK so that I can dye and spin more. So expect some colours in the next post!

I wish you a nice week.

KNITTING, KNITTING AND MORE ... KNITTING!

It is mid-term over here and we used our free time to spend some days there.
It was fun, especially for my DS and we had wonderful sunny weather if only a bit too cold.
In the meantime, I knitted and knitted and ...
First I made a bolero thingy. It is very light (only a bit over 50 gr or 2 oz) and a nice blend of kid mohair and silk. Pure luxury!

Then I knitted a wrap out of wool which was given to me (always the best!)
It is the right thing to wear right now as it is very chilly in the mornings when I go to work and it fits well over a suit.
Then with the yarn I had shown last time (the thick one), I knitted a bowl which I felted. It is practical to put some more yarn and if the weather gets really cold I can wear it as a hat! ( it reminds me, my sister wanted a hat, I wonder if ...!)

In the two free days I still have, I intend to spin, to dye and to sew more confetti blocks. I wonder if I will manage all that.

I wish you nice autumn days with sun , sewing and knitting.

BACK TO THE SEWING MACHINE

I stumbled on this the other day and as I love using bits and pieces I had to try a miniature too.

This is the result. It was fun! It was fast (one morning) and it won´t be the last.
I just need to find some more frames!

I did not stop spinning in between and I managed to get a thicker yarn. This one is VERY thick and is about 110 meters for 100 gr. I haven´t got a clue what I will knit with it ( there would not be a sister around here who has an idea per chance!)
That´s all for today as I have to get up at 5.00 tomorrow.

I wish you nice weather and time to enjoy your hobbies.

FINALLY!

I have got one, I have got one!
And I find it really nice. It is small, silent and works wonderfully.
It is an Ashford Scholar, good for beginners they say.

Well, the beginnings were very funny as the lady who sold it to me, could not show me how it worked as she had forgotten. At her place we tried for one hour and only got very short pieces of rope like yarn out of the spinning wheel, all the while eating a lot of Haribo sweets because of the stress. I thought, well if it goes on like that at home, I will put on weight before I can achieve anything near a knitting yarn.
But I took the wheel home all the same.
And then, after fiddling with the tension, pushing the pedal for 30 minutes to get a feeling, that´s what I got:

Yarn! And a fine one at that!
I love it and I can´t stop now. I have filled 2 bobbins with a Blue faced leicester top which I had dyed before.


The only problem I see is that I thought I would make thicker yarn with the spinning wheel than with my spindle, but I can´t!
So I have to get back to it and spin some more and more and more,...

You know where to find me in the next few weeks!

I wish you a nice new week.