Fall in PE

The fall of 2017 has been a beautiful one - many trees in a blaze of glorious colour on a background of blue sky and few white clouds. If that sounds boring to you I assure you it's not. It's a really great time of the year filled with colour and I thrive on colour; I can't get enough of it.

Colour is like chocolate for me. Of course I like chocolate, no - I love milk chocolate. It's a toss up which I like more. I think colour because there are no calories.

That's why I like love picture painting, spinning, knitting and dyeing.

At this very moment, most of the leaves are off the trees except for a few yellow ones. I'm not sure what type of tree holds them. We have three very young oak trees and they turned a lovely deep red. We have a flaming bush at the corner of the house and it was brilliant crimson.

The temperature has gone low enough to give us frost at night then warmed up again to 22 or 25, then down to 18. The air is different here. I know it will get really cold, but somehow it is different. I can really feel how the ocean regulates the temperature. They say that about the great lakes, but it always felt either stifling hot or freezing cold in Ontario. Yah, I know, just wait for winter. Okay.

I've made a sweater, slippers, socks and now I am working on some colour work mittens. That seems to be what I'm interested in right now. So for the next while that's what I'll be doing - colourwork.

Bluejay feeding

Uppsala Slippers

Made with Scarfie. Paton's Leaflet #5002

A striking pic of our neighbour's place before barn removal.

I'm still unpacking and arranging my sewing room that also has my weaving yarns. My soap, lotion and makeup stuff will have to go in the basement after the heating is installed. It's a very small 8X8 room with two really large doorways and a window. Hardly any wall or floor space. Organizing there is a tough, difficult job.

I'm still painting and will begin on the bedrooms soon. The kitchen - well, I'm building myself up for that.

On the house end part of the news, well Greenfoot has insulated the attic and basement and is in the process of drilling. The 'unit' was delivered just this afternoon. This is so exciting!!

For dog training...well Bob has kind of been suspended until he gets his barking under control. This week with the workmen around here, I can see leaps of improvement with him. He's still not ready for class, but coming along well in my opinion. The ecollars we have are working well.

That's about it for now. Time for tea and cookies from a really great bakery in Brudenell. Sorry, don't know the name of it. Bye for now.

Project: Ile de France Sweater

This is the project I have been working on for awhile. It is a work in progress that has evolved from the starting point of the dyed fibres to blended fibres.

Blended in that nature dyed fibres have been blended with acid dyed fibres.
Blended in that Ile de France fibre has been blended with 'other' fibres.

Some of these other fibres are:

• Border Leicester
• Dorset
• Bluefaced Leicester 
• Merino
• Nylon
• and some I've forgotten because I just grabbed some colours
• and some unknown fibres
• all added to contribute less than 1% of the total

The total weight of fibre is 1048 grams.

I dyed the colours, both nature (osage, but very dark) and acid-very dark green and a dark violet.

After looking at the colours for a few days, I started changing the colours by adding in other colours on the drum carder. Finally I finished the batts yesterday.

The plan was to make a heathered yarn by spinning with three colours arranged in the palm of my hand and spinning back and forth.

This has changed to using a blending board and making rolags all in the same colour order, but not in measured amounts of each colour.

The wheel being used is my Canadian Production Wheel. Maker unknown. It has had the flyer repaired and the finish for the most part sanded off and has an oiled finish now. The Pittman has been replaced. It was purchased June 2015 from someone in St. Mary, ON.

It has a 30" wheel and spins like the wind on a blustery day! Double drive and single treadle.

Here is the work space:

Work space.

The batt colours.

Violet, Yellow, Green

Loaded Board

Dowels used to make a rolag

Rolags ready for spinning

Here is the wheel.

Canadian Production Wheel

Here is a bobbin of spun yarn.

Fine singles. Unmeasured.

As of this moment, the singles data has not been documented. I'm spinning it fine with a forward draw, but allowing some air to stay in the fibre as it is drafted. It is semi woollen.

I need practice doing Navajo* plying, so that's the plan. I will keep the colours separate with a little colour blending between the solid colours.

More to come in another post. More data. Plyed yarn. Knitted sample.

*This originally said Andean plying. I meant to say Navajo plying.

Gansey Socks

Just finished last night.

Will add to Xmas gift stash for a lucky lady with cold feet.  I just happen to know two young ladies that fit that description.

Gansey Socks

Also working on a new sweater project which will take me from unspun fleece to a finished sweater. 

This is a blend of Merino X Romney (which is incredibly soft), little New Zealand Merino, Alpaca top and Tussah silk top. 

As this time I am unsure about the colour - I may dye the skeins or maybe the carded batts will take a detour to the dye pot. Lots of time to decide. Right now I am at the sampling stage and carding.

Sample skein of Merino X Romney, Merino, Alpaca & Silk

The sample skein has been washed and I am waiting for it to dry to do the sample swatch. There are a few calculations to go through first. In another post I will go into more detail.

 

Fleece to Sweater Swatch

Warren's Quoddy Blue V Neck Cardie

Here it is finished. I got a 22'' zipper & sewed it in by hand today. It looks really very nice on Warren & I am sure he will appreciate it next winter when I try & keep the price of heating this place under control with the thermostat set at 68. It is 100% wool & I expect it to live up to its warm reputation.

Sweater Progress

Here is the progress on my cardigan. It is about 8 1/2" from the top of the neck ribbing & I am into my second skein of wool. My swatch did not work out to my hopes & since I did not want to go down another size in the needles so I decided to use the smallest size in the pattern. (My stitch count on the swatch did not have enough stitches in the 4" measurement.) Hopefully the size difference should compensate. 

I am not doing buttonholes, but instead a zipper. I am using a 4mm circular needle from my Denise set. 

Time out from socks for a bit with a cardigan being knit using Briggs and Little Regal 2 ply 100% wool.  This is Blue BW. I'm in the middle of doing swatches to get the right gauge. You can see the book, from 'Cabin Fever',  I am using for the pattern in a DK weight yarn which was brought to my attention by a friend of mine, Debbie O.

Deb also recommended the Denise interchangeable needle set. She loves it & has nothing but good things to say. So I got a set & now it is so much easier to just open this little case & get what I need in one spot. I must say they are very nice to use.

When this is done, I have more Briggs and Little yarn for a cardigan for my husband in Quoddy Blue.