After the process of dyeing, spinning and plying a selection of fiber, knitting with it is the absolute icing on the cake for me. This lovely lace shawl started life as a 4 oz length of natural BFL and silk roving that Carli dyed for me in her kitchen! I described my goals for the spin last year about this time in my Tour is On post, and showed …read more
Fiber made from milk? Well, it’s actually made from milk protein, casein to be exact. Although it’s a protein fiber, same as the animal fibers wool and silk – it’s made in a similar manner as bamboo and tencel. The raw product is broken down in a chemical bath, then extruded into fiber. And a lovely fiber it is too - smooth and silky to …read more
A fun new friend came to live at my house! She arrived in this over sized box. My new Schacht Ladybug Spinning Wheel! 
I impatiently pulled her out of the box in parts and got to work putting her together. In the process, I ran across my own sweet little ladybug mascot perched on the side. After a few false starts, I hammered out the …read more
Good Gravy! After finishing my latest spin, my first on the turkish spindle, I looked back to see when I’d begun and saw that I’ve been nursing this spin along for nearly 6 months! I am powerfully happy to have it off my spindle! And yes – I learned a valuable lesson I can share with you regarding a turkish spindle. The fiber was merino …read more
Okay Spinners, if you haven’t played with silk hankies yet, I have to recommend the adventure! Facing a stack of sheer , filmy silk hankies is such a fun and rewarding spinning diversion. Once you’ve created the sleek shininess that is silk yarn, you’ll have a whole new definition of luxury. The singles shine so impressively, that it’s …read more
Like many knitters, I faced the fact long ago that the amount of stash I have is beyond what I should. But acknowledging the fact and actually making a dent in it are two different things. I’ve been knitting almost exclusively from stash for the past year. I started with over 100 skeins, knit up 39 in 2012, made 6 skeins of handspun, bought …read more
I’m not sure why it took me so long to try spinning silk. I was intimidated by the idea, expected it to be slippery and difficult to handle. Nothing could be farther from the truth with tussah silk. The draft is smooth and with the long staple – 7″ or more – there’s no spindle hitting the floor! So beautifully lustrous, soft and strong – …read more
I took out a skein of my handspun this week and wound it up into a ball. It was my first true three-ply - A merino dyed by Wonderland Dyeworks in several shades of blue that had been given to me last Christmas by my son and daughter in law. It had taken me about three weeks to create it. I’d filled my spindle, wound it off, then filled it twice again …read more
I promised last week that I’d show you the secret to winding all fancy-like on a turkish spindle. We used to make God’s Eyes in this pattern when I was a kid at camp. It was impressive even with coarse acryllic yarn wound around crossed popsicle sticks, and taking it to my big girl craftland with handspun wool around the beautiful wood arms of a turkish …read more
Until I went to Istanbuhl last year for a nursing conference, I thought Whirling Dervish was a term used to describe my childhood behavior, as in “Please sit down, you’re jumping around like a whirling dervish!” Imagine my surprise when during my explorations in Istanbuhl, I saw signs advertising a performing group of Whirling Dervish! An online search turned …read more
