Friday, July 2, 2010

Fiber Arts Friday: Finishing So I Can Start

I don't mind having a couple of works in progress, but I've had way too many projects lately.  So with the Tour de Fleece (Ravelry link) starting tomorrow, I wanted to get some finished.  Which means I've been working like a mad woman for the last couple of weeks.  Here's a run down of what is now complete.

Duck Feet:

I finished the duck feet!  Woo Hoo!!  The second foot (on the right) is much better than the first and I think it's just a little bit smaller. So I may make a third and keep the first for posterity.  But I am very happy with my first pair of socks.



Black and White Hat:

I've already made a version of this hat once which was is a bit small.  I really like the pattern, so I embarked upon a second, larger hat.

I thought it was going to be too big, then I thought I was going to run out of yarn.  Fortunately the hat turned out just right, and I had just enough yarn to finish.


So I added a tassel.


The yarn is a llama/wool blend.  It's a little bit scratchy, but I really like the finished hat.  I like how there's a little point at the top and how the white is just a shade off-white.  Maybe I should call this my just right hat.  :-)

Irish Hiking Hat:

I finished the cable band several weeks ago.  I stitched the ends together and picked up the rows so I could knit the crown.  The first round was quite difficult.  Either I didn't pick up the right piece at the end of each row or I knit the rows too tightly.


Once I finished knitting the first round, the hat went very quickly.

This yarn is hand-spun, alpaca.  The fiber is from my teacher, Keyla, but was shorn and spun before we bought her.

Spinning Wool-Mohair:

I started spinning this in December and have only worked on it a little here and there.  I need the bobbin for the Tour de Fleece and a little spinning practice was motivation to finish the skein.


I finished the bobbin, set the twist and ended up with 151 yards.  This was the first time I have measured what I spun.  Which means I now have a good gauge for how full I need to make the bobbin for my BFF hat.



Spinning Cotton:

It was hot last summer and I felt the need to spin, but all of my roving was in storage.  I found this natural cotton at Village Wools (the place I learned about spinning and weaving) in Albuquerque.  I thought it would be fun to try cotton out, even with the very short staple length.  I left it on the bobbin because I thought I might add to it, but I would prefer to spin it thinner.  So I skeined it and now have 67 yards of a thick and thin cotton.



Ready to Start:

Having these projects complete means I have only two other projects in work; my shelved Twitter Knit Along Shawl and my Plumber Sweater.

Have a lovely Fiber Arts Friday, take a look at what the others are working on and Go Team of Wonder! (Ravelry link)

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

I really need to finish a few WIPs myself! I just cast on for a new project and have another I plan to cast on soon. Oops. :)

Dutch Hollow said...

Ooo I've been wanting to try spinning some cotton. How did you like it?

Kristi aka Fiber Fool said...

What a pile a FOs! Well done! Your spinning is looking fantastic as well. If you ever get a chance to take a spinning class from Maggie Casey of Shuttles, Spindles and Skeins in Boulder do so! She is a phenomenal spinner and teacher!

Kathryn Ray said...

@DutchHollow - Since it's naturally colored cotton, the staple length is really short... ~ 1/2 inch.

The whole time I was spinning it, I thought I should be using a drop spindle instead of a wheel. The cotton and resulting "yarn" is very soft though. I want to practice with it more.

@FiberFool - thanks for the line on Maggie Casey. I will look into classes there.

WonderWhyGal said...

Beautiful FO's! Well done. I love looking at all my finished projects and thinking, "Hey, I am productive!"

Looking forward to the start of Tour de Fleece and I can't wait to see the yarn you create for your friend's hat.

Lindy and Paul said...

Lovely projects and yarns!

AllyB said...

Your handspun looks sumptious. Can't wait to see what you create with it. The hats are nice and I especially like the black and white with the tassle.