Sew what?

Shhhhh. Can you keep a secret? Of course you can. Come closer so I can whisper in your ear because if the knitting police get wind of this, they'll revoke my license. I've. Been. Sewing. Shhhhhhhhh. I've been trying to resist the siren's call for ages. I haven't sewn anything major in almost 15 years. I even learned how to walk through JoAnns and only buy buttons and notions. But after all of those years of rehab, I. Fell. Hard.

I blame Amy Butler and Anna Maria Horner for their deliciously beautiful fabrics. And Chef Messy for introducing these to me several months ago. And Amy Butler for coming out with her Rowan Sweet Life Bags



especially this one, the Ashbury

.
And I blame my Grandma for teaching me to sew at age 4. And I blame these cute books for luring me into plushie toys. And I blame these owls


And these cute baby shoes


Yeah, I know my lack of willpower is to blame but I can at least pretend to put it on someone else. I need to stage a photo shoot of all of the above patterns that have been sewn over the last couple of weeks. In the meantime, here's a quick shot of the monster I'm making my nephew...



I'll post about him another time because he's a special feature I want to show you.

Peeps, sewing is near instant gratification. And I love instant gratification. If it wasn't sew darn (ha ha - I crack myself up) painful - ouch, needle pricks hurt, ALOT - I'd go back to the darkside big time.

Yes, I have been knitting as some of you who have seen me in person can attest to. Here's a quick pic of what came off my needles a week or so ago...

Baby Pinwheel Jacket

More details on the mods are on Ravelry. I'll try to copy them over here in the near future.






Pretend all of those unwoven ends are gone and its sorta a FO. Me no likey weaving in ends. And I finished some Saartje Booties but haven't posted pictures yet. No bun in the oven at la casita de Muse. Just lots of new babies from friend's ovens.

I'm slammed these days with a grant from work, new school routine with the Things, a book submission and some patterns I want to post soon so I'll be around sporadically. But I've been reading your blogs and try to comment when time permits. Wishing many happy fiber adventures to everyone.

Birthday Boy

On this day, eleven years ago, after two miscarriages, lots of tears and angst and going two weeks past my due date, Thing 2 was born to the Muse family. What a wondrous gift, my boys are. I certainly shouldn't take them for granted though I know I'm guilty of doing so. This year, my "baby" enters middle school. Where has the time flown to? He is my little chef, artist, naturalist, quasi-vegetarian. Happy birthday, sweet boy. I hope they keep getting better and better every year.

I'm published

Edited to add: Sereknity is located in the Crystal Springs area of Roanoke (sandwiched between Famous Anthony's and the Post Office in the old Flappers location).

Trinity (the log cabin triangle) made it into the Summer issue of For the Love of Yarn. I'm so excited!

If you're local, I'm teaching a Trinity class this fall at Sereknity. Stop by the store during the grand opening this Friday and Saturday for more information.

Got two original patterns fresh off the needles (if you've seen them, please don't spoil the surprise). After some test knitting (Anyone? Bueller?), I'll have them available here. The creativity is flowing like hot lava these days. Yippie!

Hump Day hrumph

Its cold and rainy again and dagnabit its July. Where's my sunshine? I blame the lack of sun on my current blah state of mind. If you want to skip the rant, there's knitting content at the end of my post.

Guess who was the first one to say I'm bored? ME! The kids have plenty to keep them busy, namely, driving me bat shit crazy. I was told by Thing 2 while we were at the pool on Sunday that I take stuff too seriously and that I needed to "lighten up." How can I lighten up when I'm trying to work, corral them into doing chores and other meaningful activities, cook meals and clean all day long? If I'm not breaking up a squabble, I'm constantly being summoned or questioned - "WHY can't I?" is heard a lot round these parts. What I need is a "real" vacation where none of those aforementioned things are involved for a couple of days. Though we been to beach bunches of times this summer (I know you're saying cry me a river), I haven't had a break from being mom/wife/housekeeper. I HAVE mastered superbitch. Just ask anyone who lives with me. Why is the job of being Mom so hard and when did I become such a fun sucker?

I'm bored. I can't start or even finish any major knitting projects because I'm constantly interrupted. Can't afford to go anywhere. Don't have much free time and when I do it goes way too fast. Most days, I can't even get a moment to myself in the bathroom. King Thing says I should be flattered to have the attention of three males. Um, wha? Maybe I'm just looking at the situation the wrong way. Or maybe its the hormones. Don't get me wrong. I love my family. And I'd do anything for them. I guess I'm just worn ragged right now.

Okay, nuff kvetching. Ravelry has me by the short and curlies. I never imagined such a neat tool could exist on the internets. I admit, I pooh poohed it (to myself) not knowing what it was all about until I got my invite. It has so many awesome capabilities. Just don't knock it until you've had a chance to explore it. It is truly worth the wait.

If any of you subscribe to my Flickr feed, you've seen me adding pictures for Ravelry. While I might not be blogging regularly, you can at least see some of the stuff that I'm working on regardless of whether you're on Rav or not. Here are a few shots of stuff that's come off the needles in recent weeks:



Handspun Blue Moon Fiber Arts mulberry silk/merino roving. Used in the diamond rib sections of Sahara


Sahara is still a WIP. Knit with Louisa Harding Grace that I hand dyed this shade of blue using Jacquard dyes. The diamond rib sections are knit with my handspun Blue Moon Fiber mulberry silk/merino roving. I'm still spinning the yarn to finish the sleeves and the bottom sections.


The best beach knitting ever! Not to mention, they're great to wear at the beach. I made mods to pattern to taper them and included garter stitch rows so that they'd lay flatter. The blue is my handspun and dyed tussah silk, salmon is Louisa Harding, the third one is my handspun and dyed merino/tencel and the tropical colored one is Laines du Nord Mulberry silk. Kinda like Pringles - you can't make just one.


Dream Swatch Headwrap on my head


Cheeky Monkey Socks made from Amy Boogie's Cheeky Monkey roving



First half of Knitspot's gorgeous Morning Glory Wrap/Stole still in its unblocked state. Made from my own handspun and dyed merino/tencel in the colorway I named "Hydrangea"


Morning Glory at the beach (Thing 2 and my nephew are playing in the background)


"Hydrangea" colorway

There's much, much more. Some designs are in the works and I owe everyone some serious updates. I promise more soon.

In the grips of Ravelry

Shhhh, go away boys, you bother me. Mom just got a Ravelry invite and she's trying to get her stuff uploaded to Ravelry. No, I'm not cooking dinner. No, I won't look at your high score on your blah, blah, blah game. Yes, I'm going to spend the next few weeks working on this until they pry the keyboard from my cold dead hands. So many things to do, so little time...

Skool's Out 4 Summer

Everybody, sing the song with me. Yippie! Thing 1 and 2 are out of school for the summer. They actually got out on Thursday but today is the first day that I've gotten to enjoy the full effect of sleeping in. Ahhhhh. Snuggling up in the sheets while the faint murmur of the Today Show lulls me back to sleep. On the one hand, I won't have to drive two plus hours each day schelepping them to and from school and to misc. activities. I REALLY get to flex-time with my job so the reward is if I get up early, I get to knock off mid-day and go to the pool and work on my tan - ha ha ha! And I won't have to make lunch, pry the boys out of the bed with a crowbar and yell like a pit crew chief to go, go, go so we're not late to school. On the other hand, I turn into slave driver and entertainment director for the next three months. Anyone want to take bets on when the words "I'm bored" are first uttered in this house? I'm hell bent on not letting them turn into couch potatoes and glaze over in front of the tv or video games. And yet again, I want them to have fun. Which means, I have to come up with lots of chores for them in the coming weeks. It won't be all business around here but I do have a paying job to do and I don't want to hear bickering, cartoons or video games all freakin' day. We'll see how good parenting skills rate in a couple of weeks. Don't place any bets on how good those are, Peeps.

I have some serious catching up to do and this is the one week in many where I'm not out of town for work and can do just that. Yes, I've been knitting. And I've also been spinning and workin' the dyepot and even dabbling with some designs. I've got many FO's to show you and lots of life stuff to share, too. The winds, they are a changin' round these parts so I have some adjusting to do but I'm up for the challenge.

In the meantime, I leave you with a random picture I took while visiting Raleigh last month. They were selling these sock monkeys at The Gap. I got bored while Thing 1 tried on the millionth pair of jeans so I snapped their picture. I should have bought all of them because looking at their picture makes me laugh every. single. time.

ISO of cheese to go with my whine

Warning! Kvetching ahead. Duck and cover if you know what's good for you.

So much stuff has happened recently and its hard to know which end is up most days. The Tech tragedy was bad enough and while I know I wasn't directly affected, I WAS directly affected. Add to that coming home from spring break to the sad news from our friends who were pet sitting that one of our beloved fluffy-butt guinea pigs had passed on to the other side. She was 6 so I'm sure that it was old age but it was still a sad moment for all of us. Needless to say, I've been a puddle of nonstop tears for the last month.

The canine fluffy-butt, Mavis, came home from the kennel after spring break having a hard time getting around and I can tell that her back legs are bothering her. We're giving her pet meds and trying to keep her off all of the stairs but I fear that her time with us is growing short. She's 14 and has had great health most of her life so we feel blessed that we've had her as long as we have. But I'm having a hard time envisioning the day my sweetie won't be there to greet me at the door.

And the other fluffy-butt piggie has been sick for the last two weeks with some mysterious illness that has left her back legs swollen. The vet has run a bagillion tests, she too is on MANY pet meds and is only marginally better. I literally fall apart when small animals and kids are suffering so this trifecta has nearly done me in. Guess I'm just a whimp like that.

Work is kicking my butt and I'm on the road every week from now until August. Gas prices rose 10 - 20 cents in the time I drove the kids to school and back home this morning. The vet bill. OY the vet bill. My joints are inflammed again for no apparent reason so its hard to exercise. I'm on the pill again to get my hormones back on track. So far, its not working so great. Thanks to the pill, my hoohas are ginormous. And I'm fat and summer's right around the corner. Yeah, I need a huge slab of cheese for all of this whine.

Okay, now that's off my chest. Yes, I am able to see the silver lining of life every now and again. I have wonderful friends, most of them fiber friends. They keep me sane and feed my fiber addiction. Sedalia and Maryland Sheep and Wool were wonderful again this year and I've got the goods to prove it (more in another post I'm afraid). My family is doing well and have been so very loving. Got to see Mom, Dad and Grandma last weekend. All of the Things gave me a SpaVA gift certificate for Mother's Day (pedi, mani & massage here I come). I wake up every day to the song of birds, the warmth of the sun and surrounded by the love of my family. I am grateful for so very much. I'm just having a hard time digging out of the dumps right now.

So I'll try to come up for air every so often and post a little something. But don't be surprised if I'm MIA for big chunks of time. I AM knitting and spinning and I promise to show you soon what I've been up to.

Anyone going to Maryland Sheep and Wool this year?

I haven't seen much buzz in bloglandia about Maryland Sheep and Wool this year. Are any of you planning to attend this year? If not, does that mean that I won't have to stand in long lines to get close to The Fold, Koigu and Tess' booths this year? Will I actually get my hands on a skein of the illusive Socks That Rock yarn? A girl can dream, right?

Sanguine Gryphon is organizing a blogger picnic on Saturday and Sunday at 1 pm. For more info., click HERE! I'm going to wear an IndigoMuse button to identify me so please don't be shy and say "hi". Just so you know, this is what I look like...


Sheeps 06 with Heather and Zira

I'll be hanging with H, Ei, Kel and Donna this year. Can't wait to see everyone. But I'd love to meet some of you bloggers out there. Drop me an email at indigomuse (at) verizon (dot) net or slip me a comment if you'll be out there this weekend.

On Friday, I'll be working at Strawberry Festival. If you're looking for an excuse to visit the Roanoke Valley, this festival and the Chili Cookoff downtown on Saturday are two really good reasons. Come out to the festivals and enjoy some great food and fun, stay at the Hotel Roanoke, visit the Mill Mountain Star and bask in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. I guarantee that you'll want to come back again in the fall. Hope to meet some of you this weekend!

Last day before the Chichi prize drawing

Today is the last day to purchase a Chichi pattern and have your name entered into the prize drawing. I'll announce the winners later this week. If you knit Chichi, send me a photo. I'd love to see how your piggie turned out. Thank for your continued support of this Heifer project.

Knitting for Hokies

As many of you have pointed out, there are several Hokie knitting projects including Project Hokie Hope (PHH) that have popped up since last week. I'm a firm believer in NOT diffusing charitable efforts (Non-profit system and community building are a huge part of my day job). My goal with PHH was to get knitters and other fiber friends from around the world to help the families heal. However, I prefaced my efforts by stating that I don't have a huge blog following and wasn't convinced that I'd have the numbers to pull off such a large undertaking. Considering the widespread support and following that Mosaic Yarn Shop has both industry wide and through its customer base (and the fact that they're actually located IN Blacksburg), I believe that our efforts should be channelled into the Hokie Healing project that was launched over the weekend. Visit the Mosaic blog post for more details as they are different than the ones originally set out for PHH. I've already begun knitting several squares for the project and based on the outpouring of support, am sure that it will achieve its goal of providing blankets for each of the victim's families.

Project Hokie Hope will continue with a different and less ambitious goal. Yes, you are welcome to still send in donations and thank you for your support. My thought is that a fiber art piece could be made and then raffled or auctioned off with all of the proceeds going to the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund. However, I'll consult with those of you make donations before a final decision is made. I'll keep you - the blog reader - posted about its progress periodically.

Many thanks to everyone who wants to help with the healing process. It is so wonderful to know that people from around the world are wrapping their arms around one little town in Virginia.

Project Hokie Hope

*** Updated 4-26-07

As many of you have pointed out, there are several Hokie knitting projects including Project Hokie Hope (PHH) that have popped up since last week. I'm a firm believer in NOT diffusing charitable efforts (Non-profit system and community building are a huge part of my day job). My goal with PHH was to get knitters and other fiber friends from around the world to help the families heal. However, I prefaced my efforts by stating that I don't have a huge blog following and wasn't convinced that I'd have the numbers to pull off such a large undertaking. Considering the widespread support and following that Mosaic Yarn Shop has both industry wide and through its customer base (and the fact that they're actually located IN Blacksburg), I believe that our efforts should be channelled into the Hokie Healing project that was launched over the weekend. Visit the Mosaic blog post for more details as they are different than the ones originally set out for PHH. I've already begun knitting several squares for the project and based on the outpouring of support, am sure that it will achieve its goal of providing blankets for each of the victim's families.

Project Hokie Hope will continue with a different and less ambitious goal. Yes, you are welcome to still send in donations and thank you for your support. The requirements for submission, etc. will remain the same but now my thought is that a fiber art piece could be made and then raffled or auctioned off with all of the proceeds going to the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund in lieu of knitting for the families. However, I'll consult with those of you make donations before a final decision is made. I'll keep you - the blog reader - posted about its progress periodically.

Many thanks to everyone who wants to help with the healing process. It is so wonderful to know that people from around the world are wrapping their arms around one little town in Virginia.

**********************************************************************************
Original Post

I'm always comforted and impressed by the support of my fiber friends. You've been so kind to extend an offer to knit for the victims families. I was afraid to take on such a project because I don't have a huge blog following and worried that only a few people would want to help out. What I've learned through your words of wisdom is that no matter how big or small this project is, it will still promote peace and love in the world. And that my friends is what I'm all about.

So on this day of worldwide Hokie Hope (thanks to everyone who's wearing orange and maroon today. It's a lovely site to behold.), I'm launching Project Hokie Hope.

Why are you doing this IM? To show the 32 families who lost loved ones on April 16th that the fiber arts community not only grieves with them but believes in the hope of tomorrow.

What can I send? You can help by sending your expression of hope in the form of something fiber related. Crochet a square. Knit a panel. Weave a triangle. Embroider a rectangle. Tat a circle. Cross stitch a sentiment. Quilt your favorite design. Use your creativity and feel free to express yourself however you are so moved. I'm not putting restrictions on shape, size or fiber art because I personally think it will be very cool to show the diversity of the fiber art community through these memorials. So there is no contribution too large or too small. If you're not the creative type, knit a log cabin square or one of my Trinity log cabin triangles. I'll be sure to post additional ideas as they come in. FYI - Hokie colors are burnt orange and maroon (and sometimes white) but you are not required to use them in your piece. Don't want to make something? Send yarn and I'll pass it on to someone who will make something for the project with it.

I will receive your finished piece(s) and depending on how many are sent in, we may be able to make wraps or blankets for each family. However, I'm prepared to make small memorial gifts with fewer submissions such as pillows or wall hangings. *** Just wanted to clarify that the pieces (unless they are themselves a complete piece such as a shawl) will be joined together to create fiber gifts for each family. So each gift has the potential to be a very lovely work of mixed media art.

When you've finished your contribution(s), please be sure to securely package them and include the following on an index card (your information will not be shared with the families or anyone else unless you specify that you would like for me to include it) :

Your name
Mailing address (if international, include the country information)
Email address
(optional) personal note

How long will you accept submissions: April 20th to June 25th *** Just wanted to clarify that the goal is to send these gifts to the families of victims during the summer. From what I've been told by several university staff, students and friends, the outreach on campus right now while greatly appreciated, is very overwhelming. The staff are focusing on the students, graduation and the getting through the next couple of weeks. I figured that waiting until later in the summer, it would give everyone plenty of time.

I'm aware that there are so very many worthwhile Hokie knitting projects that have begun in the last week and its not my intention to duplicate efforts. Where possible, I've already inquired about how I can work with other projects so that the knitting community isn't overwhelmed with requests. Other projects include:

Hokie Healing sponsored by Mosaic in Blacksburg. Drop off your 8 x 8 squares now through the end of May. For more info., visit Gina and the Mosaic Yarn Shop staff HERE

Mary Read Memorial Scarf KAL in honor of Mary Read both a VT student and a knitter. For more info., visit the blog that has been set up HERE

Knitting for Virginia Tech which is collecting hats, scarves, mittens, etc. for the students who will enter or return to the VT campus in Fall 2007. Visit the blog HERE for more information.

Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund which is the official Virginia Tech fund that has been set up to aid in the healing process. Visit the site HERE to give a donation to the general fund or to give a scholarship donation in the name of a specific victim.

Where can I send my donated piece/contribution? Email me at indigomuse (at) verizon (dot) net for the mailing address. If you're in the region, perhaps I can arrange for you to drop them off at one of the local yarn shops around the area (I'll be happy to stop by and pick them up) and save you the postage. *** Needle on the Square (in Roanoke, VA), Knitting Sisters (in Williamsburg, VA) and The Yarn Lounge (in Richmond, VA) have offered to be drop off sites. I'll add to the list as I find out about other locations.

How can we keep track of progress? I'll take pictures of the pieces as they come in and post them here unless there's significant interest to start a Project Hokie Hope blog and/or Flikr group. I'll also arrange with Virginia Tech to make sure that each one of these get to the families. I hope to add prizes for a drawing in the coming weeks just to show my appreciation for all of those who support this effort.

The sky greeted me bright and early Wednesday morning with this awe inspiring orange and maroon sunrise.



How can you not have hope after seeing something this beautiful?

Still Numb

I woke up this morning feeling like a blank slate. I honestly didn't know which end was up and then the news quite vividly reminded me of the senseless events that had happened the day before. Some of the major events of my life took place in Blacksburg and on the Tech campus. King Thing proposed to me on the marble slab on War Memorial Chapel. Thing 1 was conceived and born in the Burg. We met our very best friends in the entire world there. I got my first job there. The Things attend summer camp there. We're proud members of the "Hokie Nation" and strut orange and maroon every chance we can get. And while I refuse to let this tragic event "define" VA Tech, Blacksburg and Hokies, there's a lot of healing ahead. Thanks for all of your virtual hugs and sentiments. I know that these families need lots of prayers now and for a long time moving forward.


I turned last night to the only thing that comforts me in the face of adversity - My knitting. Oddly enough, I started making some Hokie Trinity log cabin triangles a couple of months ago with the thought of eventually making a Hokie blanket out of them in time for football season.



They've called to me from the UFO basket and want to be a memorial blanket. I'm going to make 32 of them, one for each of the victims. And while in my heart of hearts, I want to make a blanket for each of the families who lost someone to this tragedy (and realistically know that there are not enough hours in the day to do so without some help), I can at least remember them in the only way that I know how. Damn I wish this numbness would go away.

Please pray for our community today

If you believe in prayer, please pray for the many families of those injured, killed or affected by the shootings that occured on the Virginia Tech campus today. The Muse family are diehard Hokies, King Thing and I attended VA Tech and my heart weighs very heavy with this tragic news. What's even sadder is that this is the second shooting incident on campus this school year. I can't even begin to comprehend what has happened. But I do know that our community will never be the same again after this incident.

A pig, Heifer, prizes and a new pattern

First, the pig. Introducing Chichi, the felted pig...



Mom to the little needle felted piggie I made to celebrate Chinese New Year earlier this year. Many thanks to La (email me, I have a free pattern for you) who suggested that I name the little piggie Chicharon (Chicharon is Spanish for fried pork rind). With that inspiration, I settled on the nickname "Chichi". So many fun names were submitted but this one was just perfect.

Chichi is my first (drumroll please) published IndigoMuse original pattern. I'm so proud of how she turned out. Not only is Chichi a whimsical pattern but she also offers a sampling of intermediate techniques making it a delightfully fun skillbuilder pattern.

However, other than periodic donations, I've never felt like I made much of an impact with my knitting which is in sharp contrast to the non-profit work I'm engaged in as part of my job. That all changes with Chichi and is where the "Heifer" comes in. 50% of the net profits from Chichi will support the global efforts of Heifer International. Specifically, Chichi will provide the gift of (hopefully) several pigs in the coming months for deserving families. Heifer is an organization near and dear to my heart because recipients become donors through their "teach a man to fish" philosophy. I'm sure that many of you are familiar with Heifer but if you aren't, please take a minute to visit their site and read about the incredible work that they are engaged in.

Did someone say PRIZES?!? Why yes I did. So far, I have this loverly skein of handspun merino/silk. Its 50 yards of worsted weight fushia yarn. Zira is bathing in the remaining 3 oz which is just enough for another 100 yards or so that I'll also spin up to be given away. Its a beautiful fiber just perfect for a lux version of Chichi, wrist warmers, a baby hat - imagine the possibilities. You are automatically entered into the drawing for these yarns (and more) when you purchase the Chichi pattern between now and April 30th - just in time for you to make something PINK for Project Spectrum! The drawing will be held on May 1st. Purchase the pattern, send me an email with "Chichi drawing" in the subject and you're on your way to winning these goodies.

And so by clicking below, you can purchase the pattern. Chichi is a Pdf. download that is emailed to you once you have completed your purchase (You will need Adobe Acrobat 5.0 or later to open the file). Thanks for your support of this worthwhile project. Enjoy!

Chichi

© Tanya Brooks 2007

* For non-commercial use only. Wholesale/retail inquiries,

email indigomuse(at)verizon(dot)net

Yarn:

Manos de Uruguay, Malabrigo, Rio de la plata or other kettle dyed chunky yarn

Needles:

1 set US 10.5 (6.5 mm) double-point needles

Gauge (unfelted):

3.5 sts/20 rows = 4" stockinette stitch

Finished Measurements:

Body - 9.5" circumference

Ears - 1.5"

Legs - 2"

Nose - 1"

Tail - 5"

$3.95

Effective March 2008, a flat rate of $1 per pattern sold will be donated to Heifer projects. Donations will be made quarterly. Thank you for your continued support!

Cheeky Monkey

You know I can't resist a fiber named "Cheeky Monkey" especially since I like all things monkey and have my own Cheeky Little Monkeys. Plus I figure that it will distract you from other things that I was supposed to have ready by today.


See the Cheeky Little Monkeys?

Amy over at Spunky Eclectic had this fiberlicious goodness in her shop and it had to be mine. Yup, I didn't stop at ordering the Finnsheep fleece. There have been other LOFAD purchases over the last couple of weeks (she says smiling sheepishly).




Sumptuous merino/silk dyed in brown, pink and peach. It reminds me of those Brach's candies whose name escapes me now.

A little less than 2 oz of that fiber became these singles ...




that became this sock weight yarn ...





that will become socks. Yes, socks from she-who-doesn't-love-socks. But it screams to be socks and I have to listen to the fiber or they've all threatened to pack up and run away and we can't have that.

Hope that distracted you enough. If all goes well, I'll have permission to move forward with my project later today. If not, zee Muse has many, many rabbits left in her hat...

I suffer from LOFAD*

Yes, I suffer from a disorder that thousands of fiber enthusiasts around the world have been recently diagnosed with - Lack of Fiber Anxiety Disorder* aka LOFAD. You know who you are. The worst afflicted are the ones who think that sock yarn doesn't count. It grips you when you least expect it, causing one to hemorrhage cash for no rational reason and hide fiber in boxes, under beds and in the dark corners of closets. To date, there is no cure.

Severe LOFAD sufferers usually have plenty of fiber in their lives. I give you exhibit A.



This is most of the yarn and spinning fiber in my knitting room. Note the over abundance of fibers especially the spinning fiber on the bottom shelves.



Check out the baskets that contain several pounds of washed fleece waiting to be carded. You can't even see that 5 lb bag of llama that is lost somewhere in the garage.



And yet for some reason, I had a panic attack over some Finnsheep. A week or so ago, I thought that I'd washed the last of the fleece that I bought a couple of years ago. So I ordered some commercial Finn top thinking that it would be wonderful to just spin it without having to wash it, pick it, card it, yadda yadda yadda. I've waxed poetic about the wonders of Finn before and couldn't wait to just spin this ethereal stuff. But when the commercial Finn arrived, I realized quickly that all Finn is NOT created the same. Yes, its very nice stuff but its. not. the. same.

Panic set in. I started gasping for air. What would I do if I didn't have some flurfy Finn to spin this year? I immediately started combing the internets to see if I could locate a fleece. Ack! Most of the fleece for 2007 has already been claimed. It seems that everyone loves Finn as much as I do. It didn't matter that I don't NEED more fiber. I couldn't even get past the panic. A couple of hours later, I finally found some online and faster than Brangelina can adopt another child, I bought a Finn lamb fleece and its due to arrive any day. Crisis narrowly averted. All is right with the world again.

And then I found the rest of the Finn fleece that I thought was all gone.



And there's quite a bit left. Double crap in a can! This just illustrates how severe LOFAD can get the best of you. Now I have even more fleece coming and there aren't enough hours in the day to wash and spin all of this stuff. I know I need help and trust me, I'm trying to stop but its so hard. I've knit most everything I've shown you so far this year from the stash so I AM working through it.

In the meantime, my answer for LOFAD is to give some of my over abundance away. I gave a bunch away to Thing 1's class this week. They worked hard for it. I did a spinning demo for his class and then gave them CD spindles that King Thing and I made. And all nine of his 14 year old classmates learned how spin. ALL. OF. THEM. It brought tears to my eyes. How can you not give kids your fiber when they do something magical like that?

Here's what I've spun up so far this year and some of these kiddies (and many others who haven't even been spun yet) will find new homes with some of YOU!!!



More detailed swag info will be revealed later this week (even if it kills me. I hate paperwork and that's what I'm working on right now related to this project).

And some of the fiber is intended for charitable endeavors. I can at least use my knitting and spinning powers to heal and not to harm, right?

*** ETA: BTW, I've suddenly lost the ability to reply directly to your comments. They come to me by email but your return email addy is "hidden". So please know that I read your comments and truly enjoy them but simply can't jot a quick note back to you. Hopefully Blogger will fix this bug sooner than later.

Fiberlicious Foto Friday

(Warning: Photos of fiber p0rn ahead)
Okay, sing-a-long with me to the tune of "Fergalicious". It's Fiberlicious. Don't know the song? Um, guess I've been watching too much MTV Jams.

Thanks for all of the kind words about piggie and the Zune cozy. I couldn't help but laugh out loud regarding potential names for piggie. And I thought that I had a twisted sense of humor. I'll announce his new name next week in addition to fun surprise.

In case you're just tuning in, one of my goals for 07 was to dye with the intention of spinning vs. playing with colors with nothing in particular in mind. First, gotta make sure you have the right tools.

Free weekend with nothing on my agenda?

Check!

Dyepot? (make sure that it is EXCLUSIVELY used for dyeing fiber. Don't want to poison the kiddies)

Check!



Presoaked fiber?
*** I soak mine in a warm bath with a touch of Dawn and vinegar for around an hour.

Check!



Dye tools?

*** Color wheel (lost my favorite one for a few weeks and had to use one printed from the internets), gloves, foam brushes, The Dyers Companion, fibers to test colors, various cups and measuring tools, Prochem acid dyes (these were already mixed so I didn't need a mask), vinegar, distilled water and LOTS of newspaper and plastic to protect my very WHITE kitchen island.

Check!



Alright peeps. Let the dyeing begin. I did a dye study of some of the few Noro yarns in my stash. Unlike most knitters, I can't stand the itchiness of Noro but I LOVE the colors. The fibers are obviously spun into the color bands that you find in the skein vs. dyeing them once spun so I thought that I might strive to dye some different color gradations and then spin them into Noro like yarn. I wanted bright saturated color so I mixed fairly strong batches of dye.

As far as the fiber, I used the domestic wool (breed unknown but probably Shetland or Jacob) that I bought in Asheville at Earth Guild. Each mini batt that I dyed is approximately 1 ounce of fiber. I also dyed 2 ounces of merino/silk that I bought at Rocktown Yarns (a new knitting shop find for me in Harrisonburg, VA back in January). I began by practicing with a 20 yd sample skein of the domestic wool that I spun and plied on the Asheville trip. I aimed for grades of color from pink to dark blue and pour small amounts of dye on each section of the wool and ended up with a rainbow. It was all wrapped in plastic wrap and steamed for 30 - 60 minutes (I honestly lost track).



I love how this fiber takes the dye. Not only does it have a slight sheen to it but it dyes very evenly. I only wish I knew what it was.

Once I figured out how much dye to use to get the deep color saturation that I wanted, I started dyeing the wool batts. First out of the dyepot was this batch.



I was shooting for Hokie colors (VA Tech Orange and Maroon) for the top batt and am fairly pleased though the colors aren't quite as true in person. The bottom was supposed to be teal and green and I ended up more with turquoise and green. Can't complain because the colors are incredible and exceeded my expectations. The dyes were poured onto these batts and they were steamed for over an hour (seemed to take longer for the dyes to set). There were some other batts that I forgot to take pictures of but they ended up looking like this once spun.



Fiber on the left is the rainbow yarn above. The yarn on the bottom is dk weight singles that I knit into a Trinity log cabin triangle just to see what would happen if you used a variagated yarn.

Next up, some very dark chocolate brown roving that I called "Woodland". I was very curious as to what colors a dark roving would produce with heavy concentrations of color. I used dark orange, royal blue and black on this batt (which weighed 2 oz) and ended up with this very interesting color combo shown as braided roving, spun singles and plied yarn.



Doesn't look much like orange, blue and black does it? I spun this up and plied it so that Catie could see how it looked at our March spin/knit in. Very interesting how that yarn dyed up. The jury's out on this one.

Next out of the dye pot was a small ball of forest green roving that I called "Morning Dew". I rolled the roving into a tight, layered ball, soaked it in dye, double wrapped it and steamed it for at least an hour and a half. The resulting varigated color was incredible. Alas, I forgot to take a picture of it before I carded it with the angelina. Doh!



After it was plied, all I could do is gaze at it in the sunlight. It truly reminds me of morning dew glistening on grass as the sunrises in the morning. I may need to add angelina to all yarn from here to eternity. I love sparkles in such a bad way.

Next out of the pot, my favorite and what I called "Blue Ridge Dusk". Its the 2 oz. of merino/silk dyed with violet, forest green and turquoise. I'm such a sucker for purple and green together. I'm going to have to play with these colors more in the future. This merino/silk spins like a dream, like cotton candy, like heaven. I can't wait to dye more.



Believe it or not, there's more but I'll wait until I've spun some of it up before I flash you with it. I've ordered some additional dye colors from KnitPicks and as soon as they arrive, there will be much more dyeing in my future. If the dog and the kids aren't careful, I'll dye them too if they sit still too long.

I'm cooking up some good stuff for ya'll in the near future. Stay tuned...