Back from Vacation. Need a Vacation.

We were gone for 10 days: Michigan to NYC, NYC to CT, CT to NH, NH to ME for the 4th of July celebrations then back to NYC for one night to break up the drive and home again Monday. Our little man was a wonderful and patient traveler considering how many hours he spent in his car seat and how many different homes he slept in. The trip was fun but exhausting.
I did get to visit the Harrisville Designs shop. It was a total surprise. I didn't realize that we were in that Harrisville. The shop is very nice.

My knitting has been slow; very slow. I still haven't finished my Lacy Rib Socks.
I did however finish spinning my 8oz of Polwarth fiber. It yeilded 586 yds of 2ply (prior to washing). It turned out very nice and I will post pics soon.

Spinning Out of Control?

I've managed to get some amazing spinning done in the past few weeks by spinning 15-20 minutes per day. It was great. I finally feel like I've got the hang of it and am actually noticing more of the yarn's behavior as I spin. This is a pic of 8oz of Polwarth roving spun and 2-plied. I have yet to skein it up and wash it, but I may do that tonight. It is so much fun to spin I recommend it for anyone who loves yarn.



I need to keep a better record of the fibers I spin and I need more information on the variety of fibers. I want to check out Clara Parkes' new book The Knitter's Book of Wool to see if she provides good details on fibers that I could use as a reference.

Unfortunately I am going to go on a fiber stash diet. I have so much roving, locks, and silk hankies that I should be pretty busy spinning for a long time to come. My last purchases were 1lb of Jacob roving and 1lb of Rambouillet roving. The Rambouillet was no where near as soft as I thought it would be and I actually contemplated buying some hand carders to process them some more before spinning. I'm going to sit and think on that a bit since hand carders are pretty expensive.

I'm also putting my other gadget purchasing dreams on hold. I've been trying to win a bid for a Swedish bobbin winder on eBay but I keep losing. It seem as if the same people keep bidding on these winders and I wonder if folks just create multiple identities on eBay and bid to drive up their own prices. In any case it is so frustrating that I just prefer to buy a new winder. If I buy new however I will buy an electric winder recommended to me by Jasmin of the Knitmore Girls Podcast. The idea is to use the winder to store my spun singles onto plastic bobbins which are much cheaper than the Ashford bobbins. But I'm asking myself more and more, "Is this a need or a want?" It's just a "want" so it is going to have to wait perhaps until the end of the summer.

Our urban gardening is coming along nicely as well. Tomatoes, peppers and basil are all doing nicely. Unfortunately I was unable to find an inexpensive strawberry pot (you know the kind with the holes in the sides) so I just left them with the tomatoes and they took root in that planter (oh well). I should admit that I'm only good at growing mold and this is really my partner Luke's adventure. He of course has a wildly successful garden at the Department of Health where he works. I will post pics of that garden soon.
And finally my knitting has been a bit stalled of late, I'm still working on the Lacy Rib Socks (rav link) from Wendy Johnson's Socks from the Toe Up. They are very easy but I just haven't devoted time to the pattern. The 4th of July holiday driving odyssey will no doubt provide ample knitting time. I must plan carefully what projects I will pack for the road. I'm thinking the socks as well as my Noro Kureyon Leaf Lace Scarf and perhaps a few bibs and burb rags for the impending arrivals of my friends.

I also want to plan out some quick knitting projects for my friends in California. I haven't seen them since we moved and all our kids are 1 week apart. I was thinking about some cute vests with "gender appropriate" colors. I'd have to knit 4 plus one more for my little man so 5 toddler size vests by September. It seems doable.

Well it's back to work now. Happy spinning, knitting, and gardening!

Reviews: Malabrigo Sock/Berroco Sox Metallic/Knit Light

I've wanted to do product reviews for a while now but haven't had time. Actually I also wasn't sure what I would say about any given yarn. After all, having touched and sniffed the yarn before purchasing it (yes I sniff yarn), I pretty much already knew I liked it. Nevertheless I'm going to give this a try.

First up Malabrigo Sock: The yarn is a very squishy 3-ply light fingering weight and retails for about $19 for 440yds; 100% Superwash Merino Wool. One skein should be enough for an adult pair of socks but you may want an extra skein if you want longer socks.

Ok full disclosure time, I'm addicted to sock yarn. I just love that weight of yarn and not just for socks but for lace shawl/scarf patterns as well. When Malabrigo Sock arrived at one of my local LYSs I jumped on it. I now have 4 skeins. The colors are incredible and I don't think the pictures online do the colors justice. They are very rich but not too busy. The colors are so amazing that you can enjoy them in skein or ball form without ever knitting them up. I struggled to decide on a pattern worthy of my Malabrigo Sock but I've reminded myself that there is plenty of yarn out there so I don't have to hoard. That said I cast on for Wendy Johnson's Lacy Rib Socks from Socks from the Toe Up and I love the way they are turning out. The yarn is very soft, not at all splitty. I have found one knot so far which really surprised me but I'm not bothered by that.

Next up Berroco Sox Metallic: Fingering / 4 ply, 380 yds; 73% Superwash Wool, 25% Nylon, 2% Metallic. This yarn retails for about $15

I’ve always been a little wary of yarns spun with shiny metallic thread. In part because I just don’t like shiny fabric but also because the metallic seems to be a bit rough. It reminds me of gray hair (of which I am increasingly familiar). Sox Metallic is very pretty and softer after its been in the wash. Oh and it seems to hold up well in the washing machine. The color palette is fun and there are a few additional colors I would like to try out. I’m hoping that the Sox Metallic color palette expands perhaps to more subtlety variegated hues. This yarn knits up very nicely with great stitch definition.

Knit Light™from Nancy’s Knit Knacks retails for about $12. I was very excited about this product and bought it a few months ago. Unfortunately it is not as easy to use as I had hoped. It comes with a neck strap but is difficult to angle properly. I find myself adjusting it constantly. I think it will be easier to use with practice. On a positive note it is very lightweight and comes in a convenient little cardboard tube so I just keep it in my knitting bag. It also doubles as a pointer light so even if I don’t use it for knitting I can always use it when I’m giving a PowerPoint presentation. In an effort to save my eyesight I’m going to make more of an effort to use it.

I have a number of new skeins of yarn: Mother's Day and birthday gifts and my sister is sending me some linen from her stash as well as some choice finds from the Webs Tent Sale. I'm really looking forward to knitting with linen so I will likely review that yarn next.

Happy knitting everyone.