Larimer County Fair, 2023

I'm in the county's new system now, so I received an email on May 16 that the county fair was ready to receive entries.

The fair itself is held in early August, but I do appreciate being reminded that it's time to think about my entries and get them finished.  :-)

I downloaded several categories and had some thoughts about branching into several of them, but ultimately decided to enter in the following categories, which I have entered before:

• Photography
• Spinning and Weaving
• Knitting, Crochet, and Felting

As we got into July, I started setting items aside as well as washing and blocking the candidates.

The entries ended up being as follows:

• Minty Mitts - these are made well and match quite closely.  I also think the thumb join was executed well.
• Inigo Socks - these have two mistakes that I know of.  One can be viewed as a design feature.  Neither are obvious, in my opinion.
• Save Our Sheep Sweater - this has one obvious mistake, but I think the overall body of work and composition is good.  It should receive high marks for the variety of yarns made and used.
• TM 2-Ply Yarn - this is one of the better Chiengora yarns I've made.
• Peek-a-boo Photo of Wilma - I love the personality of this photo, but have no feel for how photos are judged and therefore placed.

The Minty Mitts and Inigo Socks are in the same class.  I only realized that one entry per class was allowed in the Knitting/Crochet/Felting department after I completed registration.  So it seems odd that the registration system allowed for and confirmed both.

So upon confirming with the Check-in Staff and then the Special Check-in Staff my second entry was cancelled.  Then as I was speaking with the Department Steward during Drop-off, She confirmed they were both allowed because socks and mittens should not be in the same class and they would be judged separately, but they would not let her break the class, so I re-entered the second entry.

There was also a change in the Photography Department to disallow matts, even though it is called out as specifically required in the Premium List.... and to be clear, I would not have mounted my photo unless the Premium List said it was required.

I also confirmed that the Premium List Posted still states the matt is required the morning after Drop off.

Annoying on both accounts but alas, all of my entries were dropped off to their appropriate departments.

Judging happens the day after Drop Off and is open to the public.  However, I've never been able to attend judging due to day job commitments.

Upon visiting the Fair over the weekend, I saw that my entries placed about where I expected them to.  It's always fun trying to find them in the display...

My Sweater was displayed prominently, with no ribbons.

I have to acknowledge that the Sweater Competition this year was quite good.  With the Brown one receiving the Grand Champion placement.

My Tibetan Mastiff yarn received 1st place and a Special Award.

The Minty Mitts received 2nd place.

The Inigo Socks received 3rd place.

.. and Wilma's Peek-a-boo photo was placed prominently in the Amateur Domestic Animal Display (directly under the Labrador/2nd place photo), with no ribbons.

So I am pleased that my entries placed about where I expected them to as well as looking forward to getting everything home and seeing what the comments are.

The written comments received were minimal.  I did not receive the written comments/score sheet for the Mitts, but I did receive some oral comments on the photo as I was checking out.... so I now have something to focus my attention on.

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Fiber Arts Friday: Minty Mitts, part 3

Since casting on Mitt #2, I finished the second wrist at a recent dog show,

 and finished the second palm on May Day.

At this point I have just shy of 6g remaining on the first skein.  So, plenty of yarn for the thumbs.

And the thumbs only used about 1g.

Modifications made were to make the wrist longer, stop the stockinette early, and keep the thumb and palm areas shorter.

These fit snuggly, which was the goal... So now I'm ready for more-comfortable computer work next winter. :-D

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Fiber Arts Friday: Minty Mitts, part 2

Since last time...I have been working on this project more than I expected to.... it's a simple pattern with an easy to remember repeat...

On April 11, I separated out the thumb and began working on the palm/hand.... I decided to start this earlier since the mitt was already wide-enough and I thought that any wider would be too loose.  Also the Twisted Rib pattern is more stretchy than stockinette and I would prefer to have a snuggly-fitting mitt.

As of April 13, I have a life-line prior to the Slightly Stretchy Bind-off to aid in measuring the second Mitt, bound-off the palm of Mitt #1 and have cast on Mitt #2.

So far, I think I can get both Mitts made from one skein.  There should be 1-2 grams left.

*fingers crossed*

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!!!

Fiber Arts Friday: Minty Mitts

I've been wanting to make a new pair of Fingerless Mitts for a while.

My Tibetan Mastiff Mitts are really too big to wear while working on the computer and the Alpaca ones that said Tibetan Mastiff remodeled a long(!) time ago hadn't been speaking to me.  These both used the same pattern, and I wanted something more fitted.

I had seen a sample of Possum yarn at one of our LYS's a long while back and neglected to purchase a few skeins then.  They did not carry it for long, so I had been looking, unsuccessfully, ever since.

So last fall (October 2022), when a friend came for a visit from Australia, she brought this gorgeous Possum-blend yarn along.

I asked her to choose 2 skeins of which ever color she liked in the weight I preferred.  Sometimes it's fun to use things that others choose for you... it helps to mix things up a bit.

This yarn has a subtle blue color, dyed over a brown-ish base.  It has character and I was anxious to start working with it.  So I swatched right away, but then did the responsible thing and set it aside because I was trying very hard to reduce my number of WIPs.

After contemplating patterns for a while, I settled on this one called, Hidden Gusset.... Crazy, I've been on a Twisted Rib run recently... (Baker's Hat, Twisted Rib Stocking Cap, and a yet to be discussed here, design idea)

The colorway is called Peppermint, thus why I am calling these my Minty Mitts.  :-)

The Brushtail Possum does not shed nor is it shorn.  They were originally exported from Australia to New Zealand for the Fur Trade, and then became invasive in New Zealand.  So the use of their fur is part of a control program for an invasive+destructive species.

Possum is a hollow fiber, like alpaca, so it is valued for both its softness and warmth.

I finally cast on at the end March 2023, as our Temporary Housing Stay/Remodel was coming to a close...

This yarn is a blend of merino, nylon, possum, and alpaca and has excellent stitch definition.

Merino is a breed of sheep.  Sheep are sheared annually, as are alpaca.  These haircuts are performed manually, do not injure the animal, and are required as part of responsible husbandry.

Nylon is a petroleum product.  The extraction and manufacture are generally not good for the environment nor is the finished product biodegradable.

Wools such as Merino, Alpaca, and Possum biodegrade and add to the health of our soil and air.

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Fiber Arts Friday: Multiple Projects Again

At the end of March, while our Remodel and Temporary Housing were coming to a close, I had worked down to one project (the red one), but decided to cast on two others... in one day. lol.

The red one is a long term, simple, project and was starting to need mental breaks.... It is ready to be the travel project, which was the goal.

So I cast on a pair of socks and a pair of fingerless mitts that had been in the queue for a while.

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Fiber Arts Friday: Tibetan Mastiff Fingerless Mitts, part 4

Ultimately I made a few adjustments to the Fingerless Mitt pattern, mostly in length and with the thumbs.

As I suspected, the lace detail is nearly invisible with this yarn.  Although I find it interesting to see how pronounced the columns are with the opposite-spun yarn in a standard-knit project.  This might be a fun effect for a future project.

They've already gotten some use.

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Fiber Arts Friday: Tibetan Mastiff Fingerless Mitts, part 3

Thanks to the Life Lines, I was able to make progress and take some risk.

I started counting stitches and thinking about the YO row while I'm doing the knit row.... this may sound simple, but for some reason I hadn't really done this before.

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Fiber Arts Friday: Tibetan Mastiff Fingerless Mitts, part 2

I mentioned last time that I need to practice lace.

I don't know what it is, but lace is my nemesis.

I had a hard time getting past the first iteration of this small lace panel.

The first time I was nearly finished with the last knit round and realized I neglected to do the second half of the last yarn over (yo) round and also dropped a stitch.

The second time I was nearly complete with the first knit round and accidentally pulled half the yo round off the needles.

sigh.  Thank goodness for life lines.

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Fiber Arts Friday: Tibetan Mastiff Fingerless Mitts

My current fingerless mitts were modified by Gunnar (a few years ago) and again by Wilma this past year.

At least they both worked on the same mitt, but they are too far gone to repair now.  So I am making a new pair for myself.

This pattern has been in my queue for a long time.

Since I love the opposite-spun 3-ply TM I used on the Twined Mittens, I decided to use the left-over yarn for these mitts, but in standard knit.

Since I'm using my own handspun yarn and different needles than recommended in the pattern, a swatch is necessary.  To be honest, a swatch is always recommended, especially for a fitted garment.  But in this case since since both the yarn and tools are different, I need to decide if I should modify the pattern so I can make it out of my chosen yarn.

Details:
Gauge: US2 needles, 7 sts/inch
Palm Circumference: 7 1/8 inches

Based on this, I will make the M/L version.

This pattern has a small lace detail.  I don't think it will show very well in the finished piece, but I need to practice.

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Fiber Arts Friday: County Fair 2019, part 2

I did enter 4 items into the county fair, but not all were in my plan.

Top to Bottom:  Clun Forest, Navajo-Churro,
Black Welsh Mountain, Tibetan Mastiff,
Twined Tibetan Mastiff Mittens

The Twined Mittens are here.

The Copperbranch Shawl is not.  It's been too hot to work on something this large, and it's too big to travel with now, so it has had no work in the last several weeks.

The Clun Forest yarn is here, along with Navajo-Churro and Black Welsh Mountain... all of which were grown in Colorado.

My photo is not here.  I had it printed... twice.  It's not as good as I initially thought, so it was not entered.

There are four items are in two classes.  The Clun Forest, Navajo-Churro, and Black Welsh Mountain will be competing against each other in the same Plied Wool class.  The Tibetan Mastiff Yarn and Twined Mittens are a single entry for the Non-Woven Project using Handspun Yarn class.... and everything is in the Spinning and Weaving Department.

Everything was dropped off on Tuesday evening.  The judging occurred on Wednesday, and the Fair opened to the public on Friday.

As usual, Hubba and I went over on Friday evening.

The display is two glass cabinets, a wall, and a (new) free-standing frame.

The competition is fierce... our county has an active guild and is home to both Interweave Press and the Estes Park Wool Market.  Which makes any recognition I receive all the more special.

So I am very excited that my mittens were awarded Reserve Grand Champion!

Tibetan Mastiff Twined-knit Mittens

This means that they won 1st place in the Non-Woven class, against 6 other gorgeous entries, then won Champion of the Spinning Section, then Second place to the Grand Champion of the entire Spinning and Weaving Department.

The Grand Champion was a gorgeous, finely spun yarn with pearl beads.

It appears that each of my yarns also won ribbons.... I can't wait to see the judge's comments.  As usual, I am primarily interested in the judges comments.

Black Welsh Mountain

Clun Forest - I feel like the red ribbon was
left in the cabinet by mistake, since the
BWM also has a red ribbon

Navajo-Churro

... Now that I have everything at home, there wasn't much in the way of comments, but the judge did rank my skeins in the same order that I did.

L-R: Clun Forest, Black Welsh Mountain, Navajo-Churro

I don't know why there are two 2nd places, but the Clun Forest was awarded one more point than the Black Welsh Mountain.  All three of these skeins were entered in the same class and as far as I can tell, they were also judged in the same class.

Tibetan Mastiff Twined Mittens and Yarn Sample

So not only did my mittens win Reserve-Grand Champion, and a special award from Shuttles, Spindles, and Skeins (one of my favorite local yarn shops).... they received a perfect score!

Holy Cow!! I know they're not perfect, but wow.... this is my first perfect score.

Now I really have to decide what to do next.  ;-)

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Fiber Arts Friday: Twined Mittens, part 6

One more post with better photos of my Twined Tibetan Mastiff Mittens.

They have been washed and blocked and the finished mittens have a lovely halo that the yarn does not have.

I find this whole process magical.... what starts out undercoat that keeps my dog warm, is shed when he no longer needs it, then turned it into yarn and a useful pair of warm mittens.  As I write this, he's in the process of shedding his current winter coat.  This is the ultimate in sustainability.

The mittens are quite soft, even if they have a small amount of prickle from the guard hair that made it into the batts.

I love them so much and I can't wait to gift them to my friend... and now I really want to make a pair for myself.

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Fiber Arts Friday: County Fair Entries, 2019

The Premium List for our County Fair was released yesterday.

I already knew that my Tibetan Mastiff Twined Mittens would be entered.

I have a skein of handspun Clun Forest yarn in the process of being plied that I'd like to enter.

I have been thinking about entering my Copperbranch Shawl as well, but the amount of work remaining, may not be accomplished before the end of July.  Per usual, I put together a plan that is doable, but aggressive.

Finally, I have wanted to enter the photo competition, but was never quite organized in time to get the prints made.  So as of today, I have selected the photo I plan to enter... we shall see if I can get it printed and matted in time.... yes, I know that's not a lot, but there's a lot going on in my world right now, and this is pretty low on the list.  ;-)

If all goes well, I'll have four entries in this year's county fair.  I will definitely have one entry, but most likely there will be two.

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Fiber Arts Friday: Twined Mittens, part 5

Knitting is Finished on my Twined, Handspun, Gunnar Mittens!

The ends have been woven in and the lifelines have been removed!

I chose not to try to match the more tightly wound section due to the multiple rip outs on mitten #1.  Mostly because I didn't realize how far along I was until it was too late.... ;-)

I love working with this yarn, and especially appreciate the subtle variation of color.  This 3-ply, handspun yarn has a lot of character.  My cell phone camera and bright light don't capture it well.

The finished mittens are quite soft and the fabric is very dense.  I'm looking forward to finally gifting them to my friend.... after the County Fair later this summer.  ;-)  The mittens and a yarn sample will be entered in the handspun/finished goods class.

I first queued this idea is September 2015.

I started spinning for this project in June 2018 and knitting began in October 2018.  I have published 28 posts over the last 11 months.

Thank you for hanging in there with me and Happy Fiber Arts Friday!


Final Status:
Total Fleece Prepared:  11 3/8 oz

Singles to be Plied:  3/4 oz
Finished Yarn Remaining:  2 1/2 oz
Yarn in Mittens: 2 5/8 oz

Carded Fleeces Remaining to Spin: 5 1/2 oz

Fiber Arts Friday: Twined Mittens, part 4

Both mitten tops are now complete.

Now, I have only two thumbs to go.

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!