Spunky Wool Rug

I just got an email from Habu indicating that they'll be at Stitches East. If you're headed down, they'll be in booth #813. They also sent a link to new yarns and designs that made my Habu-loving heart skip a beat. Check it out here. 
 
We had a great weekend up in Maine at my brother's place. Kevin and I came home with country life envy yet again.
 
I am working on a wool rug using Spunky Eclectic dyed unspun spinning fibers. It's going to be super soft. I am using several colors I had on hand, but am already scoping out some of Amy's painted organic merino top once I figure out how much I'll need per foot of rug. Project details to follow.

Fiber washing gizmo inspired by Beth Smith

Well I was going to do a nice little write up about Schacht Spindle Company's 40th anniversary contest and celebration, but the lovely and incomparable Beth Smith decided to do it for me (scroll past Miley to get to the good stuff). If you are a spinner and/or a weaver and you don't know Beth, well here are a few reasons why you should:
 
1. The Spinning Loft - This is my favorite place to buy beautiful fleeces, and right now Beth is having a sale, and I spent an entire month's paycheck. True story. 
 
2. This washing and spinning of fine wool article inspired me to make my own version of the tulle washing gizmo. In fact my love of the raw fleece is all thanks to Beth, brilliant spinner and enabler and Margaret Russell, brilliant weaver, fellow guild member and writer of the rare breeds column in Wild Fibers Magazine. Subscribe. It's fiber-y eye candy and excellent writing.
 
3. Her fantastic spinning videos. Beth's videos are 3-D. Ok. Not really. But it feels that way.
 
4. I saw her latest knittyspin design in person. It's lovely. 
 
5. And she wrote this awesome article about longwools and lace spinning.
 
6. She sells spinning fiber kits that contain a few ounces of several different breeds in one handy box. This is seriously the best way to get to know your fiber animals. The super fiber sampler contains 18 different breeds! 
 
OK, so I could go on and on about Beth and her overall brilliance, but don't take my word for it, check her out for yourself.

From Ralf Hartwell's stash

Two weeks ago I hit the weaving jackpot. Ralf Hartwell, designer of the official tartan of the State of New Hampshire and recent guest speaker at our guild meeting, decided it was time to destash. I came home with 21 pounds of weaving yarn and a stack of weaving magazines, and I'm embarrassed to say how little I paid. I now have enough linen and cottolin to keep me weaving for a long time, as well as a few good additions to my wool stash. Ralf is a lovely man and a talented weaver, and I am grateful for his generosity.  

Honeycomb Library Bag

My latest free project for the rigid heddle loom is posted over at Schacht Spindle Company's website. It's a shoulder bag woven in a honeycomb pattern using my 20" Flip rigid heddle loom. The cells of the honeycomb showcase some yarn that I dyed at NEWS this past July. It was actually just a bit chilly this morning, and this bag screams fall to me. I love fall. I'm going to go make myself some cocoa and get my loom dressed for fall. 

Someone posted a link on Ravelry to this very cool project you could easily weave up on a rigid heddle loom. I most definitely have idea envy and will be making a version of this bag for myself in the not-too-distant future.
 

Honeycomb weave on the Flip

We have been busy, busy, busy and it has been hot, hot, hot. According to our friends at the National Weather Service, it's 85 degrees F, but feels like 94 thanks to the humidity. There isn't a product out there aside from perhaps a coat of lacquer that will keep the frizz out of my hair today. Thankfully, my studio is in the downstairs section of our apartment, and seems to have a fairly even temperature year-round. Aside from running the AC every once in a while just to get my looms to un-swell, it is a lovely little sanctuary.
 

Woven picnic roll-up

Well it has been a busy few weeks. My studio looks as though it has been taken over by piles of fleece from various walks of life. I did manage to squeeze in time to create my latest free weaving project available through Schacht Spindle Company by clicking here. This is a set of cottolin picnic roll-ups - essentially a placemat/napkin type thing with a little pocket for your silverware. You just pop your silverware in the pocket, roll it, tie it and you're ready to go. I'm a bit fan of being prepared for eating at all times, so this project was completely selfish in that respect. The great thing is that it's just plain weave on a Cricket rigid heddle loom. Very, very simple to weave.

My Uncle Sam passed away yesterday after a very tough and well fought battle with cancer and complications from an organ transplant. He left behind an awesome musical legacy, and you can hear him singing and jamming on the guitar here. Guaranteed he's on stage wherever he may be. 

The whole kit and kaboodle

This is just a quick gallery of most of what I dyed up at my workshop with Vicki Jensen at NEWS.  I'm hoping to start spinning the BFL this evening. It's meant to be the weft to go along with the corresponding 2-ply wool I dyed to match. I'm really curious to see how the color plays out once I start weaving with all of this.

Ready to dye

Our last day of dyeing was intense. I was painting yarns and fiber like my life depended on it. There was no way I was going to waste a second of class time. We were focused on animal fibers today, and once painted they were rolled up in plastic wrap and set in a steam bath. It was such a thrill to unroll the finished product. Unlike the plant fibers we dyed earlier, the acid fast dyes we used for the animal fibers were completely absorbed by the material. I dyed 100% wool (both lovely soft stuff and rug wool), a wool/silk blend, and some BFL from Spunky Eclectic that I can't wait to spin up. 
 
None of this had time to dry, so into plastic bags it went for the ride home. Yesterday I had my creations drying outside the door to our apartment, and two different people asked if they were for sale. Not too shabby for a first effort.