Spinning WIP

Here is my current spinning project.  It's JulieSpins Targhee in the colorway Cinderella.  It's 5.9 oz and its very soft and spongy.  I can't wait to see how it will n-ply (Navajo or chain ply).  I tend to run out of yarn when I split the yarn and try to 2 or 3 ply it.  You can find JulieSpins yarn and fiber here:  https://www.etsy.com/shop/JulieSpins  She has a contest

Purchase any yarn or spinning fiber from the JulieSpins shop between now (10/17/14) and December 1 and complete a project with it, post a picture of the FO by December 24th, and you could win a custom-dyed skein or braid of the same yarn or fiber.

 http://www.ravelry.com/discuss/juliespins/3048848/1-25#20

Knitting Process

I have a tendency to use a lot of index cards.  Lost of times there is no need to print out a pattern.  If its short I can just write it out on an index card which goes right into the project bag.  Here is one.  I write the needle size so I can remember where to return it.  Some are so well used that the needles doesn't have the size on it any more.  I also write down how many rows and any changes so I can note it down on my Ravelry project page.  I helps me if I do the same pattern and a few people have found it helpful seeing my notes.  This pattern didn't tell me how many decrease rows so I wrote it down.  I also noted the hours so I can figure out my rate to price my handknits.  Here is the finally project.

Here is my project page:  http://www.ravelry.com/projects/AtPlayWithFiber/blank-canvas
Here is the pattern:  http://emmasanimalcreations.weebly.com/1/post/2014/05/free-pattern-blank-canvas.html

Happy Thanksgiving!

Here is a link to some great fiber/pattern sales for the weekend:  http://www.marlybird.com/black-friday-cyber-monday-deals-2/

By the way here is the pattern for the turkey:  http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/tiny-turkey

Squirrel!! By That I Mean Distractions

"Squirrel!" gets yelled out at our house.  It refers to Dug the dog in the movie "Up".  He's a dog and squirrels distract him.  I'm very much like Dug when it comes to crafting (or my husband would say "life in general").  I should be focusing on finishing Christmas gifts as I have probably said in the last few posts.  I also spend too much time on Ravelry.  Anyway, one of my favorite publishers Cooperative Press is doing a KAL (knit-a-long).  http://www.ravelry.com/discuss/cooperative-press/3078452/1-25#19

She has a free pattern up and the deal is that its basically a pattern for a scarf.  Free pattern here:   http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/icehouse

Now she would like people to knit it up but you can knit it up as a cowl, hat, double knit or any way you like.  A shawl came to my mind and below is my idea and a page of the pattern (its like 3 or 4 pages long!).

Finished GAL Objects

When I should be finishing Christmas knitting, I joined the GAL (gift-a-long).  It's basically a knit-a-long that is done with patterns by designers that gave a 25% discount on their patterns.  They have been giving away patterns with trivia questions, picking people who post on Ravelry and asking people to reply to posts.  I won one of the random pick and answered the trivia question right!

I do plan to give some of the items I've knitted as Christmas stocking gifts.  Here are some of my finished objects.

Work In Progress (WIP)

 



To say I have a "few" WIP is an understatement.  I have over 20.  Now some are going to be WIP for a while.  I have 2 leftover blankets.  One for me and the other for my youngest.  They are made out of the really nice yarn that I have leftover.  I started some cardigans and then had to rip them out since I've lost almost 40 pounds since I started them.  Me and cardigans don't get a long.  I had finished one last year and just got to weaving in the ends and putting buttons on it.  It's pictured below.

Socks take me a good 1.5 months when I'm focused and a year when I'm not.  I tend to get distracted by test knits and my other crafts.  I tend to get bored too if its a bunch of just stockinette so I usually have a bunch of WIP.  Sometimes the pattern is complicated so I can only do a bit of it at a time.  I tend to keep my knitting bags and needles busy.

Finished Object

 

I managed to finish this test knit shawl.  I haven't been able to do much because I managed to get a lung infection.  It's making me very tired so hence nothing to really post on the business front.  I really like how this shawl turned out.  I ended up using 4 different yarns.  It was suppose to be a 2 color shawl.  It's got bits of sparkle too that you can't see in the picture.