Dyet Yarns: reuse, recycle, reinvent!

I’ve been experimenting with different types of fiber, different preparations, and using worsted and woolen spinning techniques. One great way I’ve found to try out these many different fiber options is to play with combining samples or to swap things I have plenty of (hand-dyed yarn) for things I don’t (batts!). Of course, there is [...]

Tags: batts, fiber, lessons, merino, phatfiber, roving, spinning, top, yarn

Last year I started participating in the Phat Fiber community, which is a lovely group of fiber artisans. Every month, they release a sample box with varying types of fiber goodness inside. It lets people see and feel first-hand the products of internet fiber vendors. I have gotten a few of those sample boxes, and [...]

Tags: design, Knitting, pattern, phatfiber, spinning

It has come to my attention that I have been neglecting you. I’m sorry. You fell by the wayside during my frenzy of learning about spinning, cranking through my stash, and dyeing new yarn and fiber. I really do care about you. But check out all the cool things I was doing when I wasn’t [...]

Tags: Citron, finishing, handspun, Knitting, lace, shawl, shopping, socks, spinning, stash, wool

This year I attended Rhinebeck with a couple of lovely ladies from a Rav swap group I participate in. We had a great time checking out the fibery goodness, meeting up with other Ravelers, and seeing the animals. Yes, I am poor. However, I got a job this semester and I am making enough money [...]

Tags: dyeing, hoarding, Ravelry, Rhinebeck, selfish, spinning, stash, wool, yarn

School is back on, and classes are great so far. This year I’m going to be keeping up with my dyeing; it’s a great creative outlet that doesn’t give me wrist injuries! I can intersperse it with my knitting. Speaking of which, I’m working on a Seaside Shawlette with some of my own recycled, hand-dyed [...]

Tags: dyeing, Etsy, fiber, pattern, phat fiber, polwarth, sampler, shawl, stash, sweater, thrift, top, wool, yarn

Well, I’m back from the vacation of pain (it was a good vacation at the beach, but my body hates me) and working on regaining my shoulder strength. I can spin very, very gently for a very short period of time or knit a few rows on something. I can type a little bit with [...]

Tags: dyeing, lace, pain, Ravelry, recovery, sick, spinning, vacation

After spinning some nice, fine merino on my spindle, I had two long bobbins of tiny singles. I started plying the two of them together as a 2-ply, and the yarn was just SO TINY that I decided I needed another method. I wanted a nice, smooshy yarn, so I decided to try making a [...]

This weekend we cleaned all the things. Well, almost all of them. We didn’t get to the bedroom because we ran out of time, but that part of the apartment is the easiest anyway; it’s air conditioned. The rest of the apartment is not, so the nice weather this weekend presented a pressing need to [...]

I dyed the last of my BFL top that I got earlier this summer. Or at least, I tried to; I was using food coloring, and trying to avoid over-acidifying the reds so they would actually stay in the fiber. Of course, this meant the dye mostly ran off the fiber and didn’t set! Grr! [...]

Spinning with a spindle is nice and portable (and cheaper than buying a spinning wheel), but there are some problems. For instance, if it is windy, or you have a fan on, or you look at your fiber in the wrong light… the fiber you haven’t yet spun can catch in the twist of the [...]