Bamboolicious!

I LOVE my new handspun!!! It seems like it took me F-O-R-E-V-E-R to spin it up, but it was sooo worth it!

I bought 3.5 oz. of bamboo fiber from HollyEQQ a while ago...definitely last year sometime. I spun a bit up at a time...it spins up so quickly that I had to remember not to overdraft it..or the fiber would immediately fall apart from itself. The shine on this fiber is just amazing. I've tried to take a couple of good pictures of it, but I don't think it truly shows how fantastic the shininess is....or was.

I've realized that bamboo fiber (or at least the 100% bamboo that I spun) tends to halo after washing and, the more you handle it, the more it fuzzes. Now, with cashmere, angora and other luxury fibers, you want the fuzziness to happen as much as possible. Because I was so much in love with the exquisite shine of this handspun (during and right after spinning), I was disappointed when I started seeing fuzz.

I'm sure it will knit up beautifully and I still love the yarn...(and just bought more bamboo fiber)...but the loss of that bit of shine was a little sad.



The color was originally in a lilac purple, pink and peach, but (after setting the finished handspun) a lot of the dye came out during soaking. It's still got a very pretty rosy pink and very pale pink, but the purple was mostly washed out and the peach got overtaken by the pink. Not that I mind that!

My final yarn (which never fails to bring a little bit of happiness to my day) is about 450 yards of laceweight or fine fingering. I think I'm going to take Jackie's advice and knit up the Seafoam Scarf [Ravelry Link] with it. After seeing how beautiful Lora's came out, I'm excited to make one, too.



I'm calling the handspun, "Sexy Silky Bamboo". It looks to me like some sexy, pink panties you might wear on a very romantic evening. Or even a silky satin robe. Either way, it's bamboolicious!!!!

FO Friday: New Sleepy Eyes Patterns!!!

I'm SUPER excited to share two new Sleepy Eyes Patterns with you today. The first, is named after one of my closest friends, Laurin aka "La La", whose love of the Karabella "Boise" yarn (and the color purple) inspired me to design these mittens. (Well....also a new shipment of this yarn to Yarn and Fiber Co....he he)

The second pattern was a wonderful opportunity to spin up some of Sereknity's gorgeous hand painted fibers....which was a pleasure to spin as well as to feel. I used the handspun yarn to create a simple, but beautifully elegant scarf pattern...which reminded me very much of the owner/creator of Sereknity, my dear friend Heather.

Below are the new patterns and descriptions. Please feel free to download both (links on right under Sleepy Eyes Patterns) and I would love for you to email me pics of your finished projects. Both are also listed on Ravelry, so I'd love some comments on the patterns there, as well.

La La Mittens



Scrumptious, orgasmic yarn and a simple slip stitch cable pattern make these mittens perfect for a holiday gift for that very special someone. Takes only 1 skein of Karabella "Boise" and size 5 or 6 needles. Luxury and beauty without breaking the bank!

Note: I used size 5 needles because I am a pretty loose knitter, so try both in a gauge swatch and see which size is closer to the gauge. The pattern is written so that it's easily adaptable for dpns, 2Circs and Magic Loop. (I used ML for test knitting these.) The size shown is the smallest size, but comes in a larger size as well. The mitten is easily made longer on the wrist/arm by adding an extra inch or two to the cuff and making another repeat of the slip cable pattern on top of the hand. Very adaptable for any size hand.




Roman Princess Scarf



A perfect scarf pattern for your handspun yarn (or any light bulky yarn you are keeping for something unique/special) and knits up especially well with handspun of a semi-solid colorway. The ribbed/drop stitch/cross pattern is very elegant, but also simple and easy to remember. If you've been dying to try knitting up a project with your handspun or one skein of luxury yarn, this would be it. Looks wonderful for any occasion....I've even made a couple to go with various outfits I have. You deserve to feel like a Princess for a day!



Note: I used Sereknity's hand painted fiber in the "Bonfire" colorway for this pattern. I fell in love with this fiber and the way it transitioned from one subtle color to the next. Also visit her Etsy Shop for more fibers. For the pink scarf, I used a handspun angora/merino, which creates a soft, fuzzy halo the more you wear it. Very quick to knit!



And, finally, I finished spinning up, setting and finishing my handspun that I created from Oceans of Fiber's "Geronimo" wool/mohair blend. Did I tell you how much I enjoyed spinning that fiber? I MUST get more of this in another colorway. It practically spun itself!



What do you think? It came out to be almost 190 yards of 2 ply light worsted. I'm planning on knitting Tim a hat for the winter with it, to match the green mittens I'm making him in November (Month of Mittens!!!). I'm calling this yarn, "The Jolly Green Giant".

And, now, onto my two in-progress spinning projects:

1. Sereknity's "Lilacs in Bloom", 50%lambswool/50% angora fiber. I'm spinning it at a fine wpi....probably between laceweight and fingering. It's softer than clouds and I can't wait to feel the finished yarn when it's done. Sooo lovely.



2. Sereknity's "Smouldering Embers", romney/corridale/merino/leicester lamb/silk blend in such rich, deep colors. This yarn will end up being a bit "tweedy" and since some of the fibers are a bit on the short side, I'm spinning it more of a sportweight single at the moment. I'm in love with the way it's coming out and think that this might make a really gorgeous sock yarn for the winter, once I'm done with it.



After I finish these two, I still have to finish poor Donna's Ashland Bay merino from WEBS and I'm DYING to spin up more Lambie Locks (in aqua and fushia) from Oceans of Fiber. Mmmm.....

Having a bit more trouble with my "tennis elbow" and it gets worse the more I knit. I'm trying desperately to finish up my Sahara and Tim's sock is just about at the toe. I'm frustrated because, after organizing all of my pattern collection, I realized how many fantastic patterns I have and want to knit and.....THERE'S NEVER ENOUGH TIME!!!!

I guess I could stop reading, but....that would be MADNESS! I tell you, MADNESS! Speaking of reading and books, Laurin has finally enabled ME for once and got me to join the new site, Good Reads, which is like Ravelry for bookworms. Not quite as spectacular, but I'm addicted none-the-less and have been going there almost as much as on Ravelry. Eeek! If you're ever on there, add me as a friend- I've love to see what you're reading.....

Okay, well, it's almost time to get ready for work and, if you can believe it, I am REALLY excited about it! Well, of course you can believe it. The Yarn and Fiber Co. is soo great. Remember, if you're ever in the area (Exit 3 off of Rt. 93 in NH), please pop in for knitting and shopping on a Friday night. Would love to see you!

Have a great weekend! G : )

Fibergasm!

I finally got it!!! My Bee Fields Stole Kit from Wooly Wonka Fibers in the luscious colorway of "Buckwheat Honey". The price of the kit was very reasonable...great even....and I am so happy to finally have it. I'm not sure when I'll be starting it, but most likely in the later fall. (Which would actually be a great time to knit and wear it...)

I was thrilled to get another fantastic package in the mail last week. One of my all time favorite fiber gals, Holly EQQ, sent the fibers I ordered (plus a little extra something...which was so nice!) from her out-of-this-world shop, Oceans of Fiber.

Wanna peek?

GERONIMO

A brilliant, bright, and startling mix of greens...I love it! It's dyed using Brown Sheep's Wool/Mohair blend.



So easy to spin, though a bit "hairy". I love the way it's coming out. I'm actually almost done spinning it all up and just have to ply it. Not sure what I'll use it for, but I'm thinking either mittens for me or the kids.

PURPLE RAIN

A super shiny, silky soft parade of purples. You can't tell how shiny and soft this is. 100% Bamboo.



Once you try spinning bamboo, you won't be able to stop. Easier than spinning silk, as soft as silk and as shiny as tencel. I've almost spun up the other batch of bamboo I got from Holly last time....Bali Hai in peaches and pinks. A little goes a LONG way!

SKUNK

Yup, you read this correctly! S-k-u-n-k! And, no, it doesn't smell at all like one. I'm pretty sure it's just a wool blend, but it jumped right out at me and I just HAD to have it!



If anyone has any ideas of how I could spin this up, I'd love some suggestions. It will have to be something really special! The contrast of black and white is something I've never done before. A new experience....

And, if that weren't enough, Holly threw in some gorgeous deep purple locks for me. I love her locks!



(Forgive this picture...it looks a bit...intestinal, don't you think????)

My other treat was to pick up a skein of Heather's new colorway, "Pumpkin Patch". It's a soft, muted and beautiful color...in a bamboo/superwash merino/nylon blend! I can just imagine how wonderful it will be to knit this up. Mmmmmm.... You can check out some of her other 'selling-like-hotcakes' yarns and fibers here and here.



In the midst of "Weekend Madness" (Jackie knows what I'm talking about, right?), I had two ideas:

1. I must organize my patterns.

2. I must make a list of winter-knit-to-dos.

So, here is what I came up with:

1. Patterns- I bought 3 pretty 3 ring binders and I'm going to spend one day this week sorting through them all and putting them in appropriate catagories (yes, I'm very picky, perfectionist and...well, detail-oriented). I think some of the patterns are REALLY outdated and some I've totally forgotten I had. Before I go buying more, I think it's a good idea to just take stock...and then proceed. Anyone else thinking that, too?

2. Winter Knit To Dos- This is my list of things to knit before the end of the year...necessities in my mind. (These are totally new projects, not ones I've got OTN...like Tim and Ben's sweaters...sigh....)

*Mittens for Me (to match my Tassled Hat)
*Mittens for Tim
*Mittens and Hat for Ben
*Holiday Stockings for all 4 of us

Not sure if I'll be able to get ALL these done....with all the other things I need to do, but the mittens are pretty easy projects and I think I can do a "Month of Mittens" in November. Yeah! Actually, I will do a contest for it! So, start putting patterns and yarn aside...you can join me and win some free yarn to boot! What do ya say?? (I'll make a button that you can put up on your blogs, too.)

Is that all? Hmmmm....I think so. I just cooked a 3 lb. chicken with potatoes, carrots, and celery for lunch and now I'm sorting through the grosstastic stuff that's left so I can make homemade chicken soup for lunch tomorrow. YUM!