Going Back in Time

Spring is coming and it seems that I should be moving forward, and I am, but... the desire to slow down is calling to me. Creating a blog has been something that has been on my mind for some time. Even creating one seems like I am going back in time by about 10 years, when personal blogs seemed to be so much more popular. 

I use a lot of my energy - organizational, analytical, and otherwise - at work to move things forward there. But I'd like to step back to gather my thoughts on something that gives me joy outside of that - spinning, knitting, and fiber. And with the rise of Ravelry, Instagram, and Facebook groups, and podcasts about knitting, wool, and fiber arts, it seems strange to be committing to this platform, but I am inspired by the people who have been consistently providing great information online for years through blogs and hope to start interacting with them more through commenting and blogging on my own. I feel like I can provide more in-depth information on here as opposed to snippets.

I present to you two projects today, one off the needles, which is "Leaving Cowl" with modified ribbed edges, knit in German "Noblesse" yarn - 70% Merino Extrafine, and 30% Silk. I used a new-to-me method of splicing ends as mentioned in the Rainey Sisters' blog post.

I enjoyed knitting with this yarn, the stitch definition was great, and the yarn was plump and strong. When I wet-blocked it, I could really feel the drape of the silk, as the cowl stretched so much. While knitting I could not tell there was much silk in it, except for the shine. This item will be given as a gift to a colleague whom I have worked with since the beginning of my career.

Another is a Border Leicester fleece portion which I have processed into a worsted-spun chain ply yarn. I have dried today 76g of worsted weight yarn which I hope is enough for a hat. I felted a portion of this fleece while washing, and it has VM so the spinning was less than pleasant, but I very much enjoy the finished yarn.

The long wool yarn was very lustrous and has a lot of body, which made the ribbing that I have finished very bouncy and elastic. I think it is next to skin soft, but that is also because I kept the singles twist as low as I could.

This is a gift to one of the owners at my work who will be moving away soon.

What I love about hand making, carding, knitting... is precisely that is takes time and is unique and thoughtful.

That's all for now... wish my luck on the beginning of my blogging journey!

J