Dying

The colour changing kind I mean. I bought Mum a sock blank dying kit for Christmas from Etsy. We got it out today and dyed it up. It was great fun, an almost magical thing, changing a white machine knitted blank, in to a colourful creation. Mum's turning it in to socks as I type and it's looking beautiful. Really gradual colour changes and subtle variation.
First you disolve the dye, this was a bit of guesswork as the pot dyes 2lbs of fibre, way more than we had so I just made it up!

Then you just paint it on however you like

This was the end result.


On the spinning front, over the last couple of days I span this up.

300m of fingering weight BFL, occasionally under plied, but buttery soft, I'm really happy with it

A shopping trip

No not for clothes sillies, though that is happening tomorrow, I am in desperate need of some new underwear after teaching has caused a not inconsiderable weight loss. The boob fairy came and visited but has decided not to stay!

This shopping trip was far more fun, I'm visiting my parents for the week and they live close to The Threshing Barn so we nipped over to get some fibre in preparation for a couple of people wanting to play on my wheel.
We bought this

Some blended Shetland, 100g for £3
Some natural BFL 100g for £2

Some blended merino silk, 100g for £5, I'm really looking forward to spinning this.
We also bought this to have a go with, 35g of White Faced Woodland for £2.

This feels a little coarser than the Shetland and BFL so we will see what it's like spun up.


Coming up, a photo of the tree's we chopped down on Sunday, Dad is being dispatched with a camera tomorrow, and Mum and I attempt dying....

Like the blind leading the blind

The idea of me teaching anyone to spin yet seems quite laughable. After all 1 month ago the idea of owning a spinning wheel was a bit of a dream but not looking likely in the near future. Of course I then was very lucky and given a wheel, and the rest as they say is history!
It's half term holiday in the UK this week and I've come home for a bit of pampering and a cheap holiday. I bought my spinning wheel with me as Mum really wanted a go and as it turns out one of her friends who also knits is coming over for a go and my Aunty wants a go. I've no idea if how I spin is even right so teaching other people seems a little odd. However I do produce yarn that looks like it should, which really is the main idea, it doesn't really matter how you make it (I hope!). It's a bit like the right and wrong way to knit argument. As long as you produce a knitted item that's all that matters not how you do it!

Mum had a go last night, and actually was annoyingly good, I think she might be a bit of a natural.

Like looking in the mirror

This post is inspired by a post written by Antonia over at Whoopee. She was describing some of her former teachers, which got me thinking. I have yet to over hear a conversation where the kids describe me. All kids talk about their teachers, after all we are the most important people in their lives....
My inner vanity likes to think it's as that hot young teacher, my professional side likes to think of it as a firm but fair yet still slightly cool, my more evil side likes to think exactly that, the kids believe i am some kind of witch sent to Earth to torture them! Then my inner common sense tells me it's maybe best I don't know!

I promise no snow

Well maybe a little, we still have snow, this makes 10 days now, longer than I have ever experienced in my lifetime. Just thought you might like to know!
Have just got back from Rainbows where we made tye dye tea towels, you'd never think a 5 year old id them (with help it's hard to wrap an elastic band tightly with little fingers. We're going to sell them to raise funds to send books to Africa as part of Girlguiding Uk's Change the World Challenge. After that I want my knitting group, knitting in a pub, what could be better! Speaking of knitting, a knitting meme. You bold anything you have done and italic things you plan to do in that time old fashion!
Feel free to steal!

Afghan
American/English knitting
Baby items
Bobbles
Buttonholes
Cable stitch patterns
Cardigan
Charity knitting
Combination knitting
Continental knitting
Cuffs/fingerless mits/arm-warmers
Darning
Designing knitted garments
Domino knitting
Drop stitch patterns
Dyeing spinning fibre
Dyeing with plant colours
Dyeing yarn
Entrelac
Fair Isle knitting
Free-form knitting
Fulling/felting
Garter stitch
Gloves
Graffiti knitting
Hair accessories
Hats: Cuff-up
Hats: Top-down
Holiday related knitting
Household items
I-cord
Intarsia
Jewellery
Kitchener stitch
Knitted flowers
Knitting a gift
Knitting a pattern from an on-line knitting magazine
Knitting and purling backwards
Knitting art
Knitting for a living
Knitting for pets
Knitting for preemies
Knitting in public
Knitting items for a wedding
Knitting on a loom
Knitting smocking
Knitting socks (or other small tubular items) on one or two circulars
Knitting to make money
Knitting two socks on two circulars simultaneously
Knitting with alpaca
Knitting with bamboo yarn
Knitting with banana fiber yarn
Knitting with beads
Knitting with camel yarn
Knitting with cashmere
Knitting with circular needles
Knitting with cotton
Knitting with dog/cat hair
Knitting with dpns
Knitting with linen
Knitting with metal wire
Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
Knitting with self patterning/self striping/variegated yarn
Knitting with silk
Knitting with someone else’s hand-spun yarn
Knitting with soy yarn
Knitting with synthetic yarn
Knitting with wool
Knitting with your own hand-spun yarn
Lace patterns
Long Tail CO
Machine knitting
Mittens: Cuff-up
Mittens: Tip-down
Moebius band knitting
Norwegian knitting
Participate in an exchange
Participating in a KAL
Pillows
Publishing a knitting book
Purses/bags
Rug
Scarf
Shawl
Short rows
Shrug/bolero/poncho
Slip stitch patterns
Slippers
Socks: toe-up
Socks: top-down
Steeks
Stockinette stitch
Stuffed toys
Swatching
Sweater
Tassels
Teaching a child to knit
Teaching a male how to knit
Textured knitting
Thrummed knitting
Toy/doll clothing
Tubular CO
Twisted stitch patterns
Two end knitting
Writing a pattern


Not bad for a year of knitting!

More of the same

There is still snow on the ground here, in fact not just on the ground but still 3 inches on next doors kitchen roof. Surprisingly I drove down to the city centre to go to the cash and carry yesterday and all the snow has gone, just shows what difference a bit of height makes. We might have more coming, we might not, they seem to be unable to make up their minds.

The house is filled with all sorts of bad stuff, I had to go to the wholesaler yesterday to buy the food for the club's trips to Scotland that are coming up. I'm not going, I don't do Scottish winter, too much cold, too much wind and usually too much rain! Plus I have to go to work the following Monday after a night when I get maybe 4 hours sleep, no thanks!

Todays plan, make some progress on all the knitting projects i have started.... serious startitis going on over here, and play on my spinning wheel.

More snow

I sense a theme developing here.... after being in yesterday school officially opened today and closed an hour later after only 10% of the pupils made it in and the snow was still falling.

First thing this morning as I was leaving.

The commuters who will be in for a surprise when they try and get home.


The road down to school.


and what the side roads looked like on the way back up the hill going home.
Plans for today surprise surprise include knitting, spinning and generally relaxing. Maybe I'll have something to post about other than snow soon!