Spinning lesson #2.

So, this week's spinning lesson was, yet again, predictably wonderful -- the above photo is only my second attempt at the wheel, but I can't even begin to tell you how much more smoothly it went! Of course, only using three colors instead of a dozen helps to make it look a bit tidier, but I swear the whole operation felt less like a 3-ring circus. It's funny, and fitting, that when you are plying the single yarns together to make a two-ply yarn, you are twisting the beginning of your efforts (in this case rather lumpy and cumbersome) together with the last work you've done (surprisingly consistent!). You can see this result in the center of the photo, where you have the natural/light pink with the dark pink. I like how it balances things out...kind of a compromise?

The second part of this week's lesson was learning to use a drop spindle -- the most affordable piece of equipment I've purchased in ages. I won't get into explaining this method of spinning, because you can look up any number of videos on youtube that would do the trick more efficiently than I could, and a visual helps (here are a few of varying quality). I found it much easier to get a consistent yarn using this as a beginner, because it's a much slower process. Really, really slow.

My greatest excitement about learning this skill is it's major portability! I bet it's the perfect travel companion, though it would open the door for all sorts of annoying conversation (which you could in turn spin your way through, so...perfection?).

Recycled sweater scarves.

Here are some of the scarves that I've made from the sweater yarn that I've been tirelessly (tiredly) unraveling the past couple of months. I put a couple up on my Etsy site and have more on the loom currently. I am really happy with the results! It's so satisfying to be able to produce something you're happy with without introducing more new materials into the big mix. This has always been one of my greatest crafting dilemmas and I've been spending a lot of time trying to figure out my way around it -- yet another point for weaving (I'm so smitten).

More dyed wool...mmm, autumn.

I'll post an actual, complete project again soon, but here's more for the list of "things I'm excited to start messing around with when I get done with...".

I spent quite a lot of time thinking about sheep yesterday and turning my hands kind of grey. Enjoyably.

Yarn forests (or waves, perhaps).

I've never been much of a photographer, but I have been so crazy about taking close up weaving and yarn photos lately. It all looks like something to dive or get lost in. Not a lot can go wrong at that short distance, I guess.

(This is the warp of recycled sweater yarn that I'm putting on the loom this afternoon.)

Dyeing Experiments #1

Yesterday afternoon I got to do some experiments in dyeing at a great studio in Nashville (Indiana). I will give some more info on the studio (and the super helpful/knowledgable woman who runs it) as I get more pictures together, but for now, I just really wanted to throw some pictures of my new yarn up!

It's a two-ply wool that is fairly coarse. I thought it looked kind of like a huge mess while I was painting the dye on the skein, but spun up in a ball it looks edible! I also dyed a warp, that is on my loom now, with a lot of the same colors, so we'll see what the look like when they intersect.

At this point in my weaving education everything is still a huge surprise -- a lovely feeling.

We used to be sweaters.

In an effort to make weaving more affordable (after the rather extravagant purchase of a floor loom) and to introduce less newness into the world, I have been unknitting some quality sweaters in order to harvest their yarns. Sounds quite reasonable, if I do not share how many hours of my life this is absorbing. Nonetheless, it is exactly the kind of tiresome, time consuming activity that I can really get behind. In this photo we have some wool, cotton, camel hair, angora and a tiny bit of cashmere. Finished projects to follow...eventually.

Before I cut into it...

So, I've been learning to weave all summer and this was my second weaving project ever! It's about 4 and a half yards of wool, mixing twill and plain weave. It will be a coat sooner or later. Autumn is in the air, so that should serve as inspiration, however, the idea of cutting it up is a little nerve wracking. (The yarn is Bartlett and, I believe, I set it at 8epi.)