He's sitting on my entire fiber stash right there. Sandra D, I need some help to catch up to you! (Actually, what I really need is some help in spinning this stuff into actual yarn. Does anyone know of a good book?)
Then he decided to eat the coned yarn I was skiening... this one earned him a time out locked in my husband's office to stand on his keyboard for a while.
Not all my fibery pursuits have been taken over by kitty, though. Here's a close up of the (former) raglan yoke of Phrog.
Instead of decreasing on the raglan lines, I'm decreasing up the center of the chest. While I like the overall effect, the cable join in that picture is just not helping. (Nor is the fact that the kitting is all scrunched up, but that's easily fixed!) True to its name, Phrog has been partially frogged again. I'm happy to say that the Silky Wool is holding up well to the knit/frog cycle. There is some grass to pick out, but that's a reasonable exchange for the nice feel of the yarn. (I'm told that processing the yarn enough to get out that last bit of VM is what makes some yarn feel odd.) I'm also thrilled with the yardage; I am going to finish the entire body in three skiens or just over! At about $7/skien, this is going to be a wonderfully soft, cozy, wonderful sweater at an impressively low price.
Lystessa, I'm so thrilled you like Phrog, and I'd be happy to write you out a pattern for your measurements. Phrog is actually a reasonably simple pattern, especially if you don't need a bust dart or a lot of waist shaping. I'm actually happy to write out a copy of whatever I've knitted for people, if they want it, just in exchange for asking nicely. (Bribery never goes over badly, either.)
Ummmm, the best help I had was the workshop I attended. But that said, I also found The Ashford Book of Spinning useful (except the author insists that greasy wool is the way to go, and I don't buy that; I'm doing just fine with clean roving). It explains, with photos, 4 different ways to draft and spin, including the one that most beginners (me included) seem to find easiest. It helped me to actually see someone do them, but the best thing is just practice. And when I realized that I could hold my hands a lot further apart than I would have thought was a big breakthrough. My left had quit gripping so tightly. I also have a book called In Sheep's Clothing, which is really about different breeds and types of fleece, but on page 204 they do a good job of explaining how to spin. (the latter may be hard to find; it's available at the craft shop of the John C. Campbell Folk School, there's a link on my sidebar) Also Hands On Spinning by Lee Raven. I'm still very much a beginner, but at some point in my first week with my wheel, a light bulb went off and it got to be a lot easier really fast. Of course, like all fiber pursuits, there's soooo much to learn, and I'm still very much a beginner. But it's addicting! And fun.
ReplyDeletePS - getting the fiber properly prepared is real important; the best advice I read for commercial roving or sliver is on page 65 of Hands on Spinning - how to condition it for spinning
Hi, I must have lost track of your blog, I just now saw your response to my comment. Your sweater came out wonderfully!
ReplyDeleteYou don't need to go to the trouble of making a pattern for me, but if you have your notes for the part up to the armpits I sure wouldn't mind trying to make a sleeveless version.
I feel really slack for not stopping in sooner. :^(