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New Yarn Up

My new yarn on Etsy is called Bubble Gum. Check it out here!: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=11753389

Stirrup Cozies

So, I've started to make stirrup cozies for a woman who works at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Texas. It's quite fun and interesting. She asked the Knit for Choice group I started on Ravelry to do this. One person found a pattern online and I'm using that pattern to make the cozies. I will be sure to post them on here when I'm done. It's a great destash project. I have a lot of acrylic yarn, and it's a very, very quick project so I'll probably make lots of them. I have so much acrylic yarn, it's unbelievable! I've been looking for a quick project to knit because I'm focused on spinning.
Speaking of spinning, I think I'm going to buy a Greensleeves spindle. I need a new spindle because mine is cracking, and sometimes I get the urge to use a spindle. And I need to practice my spindle skills :)
Under the Sea is up now on Etsy, so go check it out: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=11727385

And, I got my first Yarn O' the Month customer!!! Yay!!!
All kinds of happy fiber news today!

Under the Sea

I plied with sewing thread for the first time today! I plied a new yarn called Under the Sea, which will be posted on Etsy in a day or so, after it dries. I'm quite excited about plying with thread! If I feel like it tomorrow, I'm going to go to Joann's and buy thread so I have some handy and I don't have to "borrow" from my MIL. I used almost an entire spool of her thread and I feel bad. I'll buy her a new one. The downside to plying with thread it that a spool empties fast. I had to use 2 spools to complete one skein. It's a small skein, but nonetheless, that's a lot of thread. But it's much easier to use thread than having to spin another single and then ply that. I really like the waving effect it gives it too. I always love learning new techniques as a spinner and a knitter. This one I'm definitely doing on a regular basis!

Roving Awesomeness!

So, I just learned the coolest technique! I learned how to turn my rolags from my hand carders into roving!!!! It is so easy and so fun! I dyed a bunch of fiber this week (and should work on more as a matter of fact!) and it is making a beautiful blend at the moment. There is blue, yellow and pink in the yarn and it looks fantastic! Now I need to figure out what to call it. I really love learning new techniques in spinning. I'm still a novice, even though I have done it for a year and a half. I've only had my spinning wheel for 3 and half months, so I still have lots to learn. The new yarn will go on etsy and I will post it here as well when it's done!

Economic Stimulus

I have plans for my economic stimulus money. First, I'm going to by a jumbo flyer for my spinning wheel so I can ply. I can still ply without it, but this will make it easier. Second, I'm buying a new hand spindle. I posted a forum on Ravelry and I think I'm going with a Bosworth. Third, I'm buying more dyes. I've been dying like crazy this week and I wish I had more colors to play with. I did buy more colors that came in yesterday and I have a pretty periwinkle and gorgeous emerald! I also bought some dyes for bamboo and cotton. I need to pick up some soda ash before I dye with those. When reading the containers, I was comforted to know that I'm working with chemicals that are deemed carcinogens in the state of California :) Got to make sure to use a dust mask!

It's off to lunch!

Buried Treasury

My mini's on Buried Treasury!

http://buriedtreasury.blogspot.com/search/label/Knitting

I'm adding the entire link to my blog!

Off Shoulder Tank

is finished! I'm very, very happy with it! There will be a picture coming soon.

I listed a new yarn again today called Orange Push-Up:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=11513882

New Yarn

I posted a new yarn today:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=11498482

I also bought this really neat tool that tells me the wraps per inch of my yarns I make, so I can tell customers the approx. gauge of the yarn and suggested needle size. It's very cool and very easy to use. I ordered it on Thursday and it came today! Most of the yarns listed in my shop now has suggested needle size and approx. gauge.
I plan on posting a new yarn tomorrow as well. It's drying as we speak.

I'm almost done with the Off Shoulder Tank and so far it's turning out well! I ordered some hand painted ribbon from Etsy that will go really well with the tank. That's all the fiber news I have for now. Good night.

Get Busy!

So, I've sold/traded 3 yarns in the past week or so and I only have 4 yarns in my Etsy shop at the moment. I mainly advertise my yarns so I need to get busy. I've traded for the first time a couple days ago and it's a lot of fun! I've also been noticing a trend lately. My avatar on my Etsy shop site seems to be selling first. I changed my avatar to Green Apple and I'm hoping that'll sell next. I hope to post some pictures of the dog hair yarn (cheingora) today. I made another skein last night and it's getting easier to spin. I just hope I can find a way to keep myself clean! But, like I said, I hope to offer the service one day. I need to practice on spinning the hair though. I hope to get my business cards today or tomorrow, so I can maybe hit up some dog grooming places to put my business cards out. Well, I better get to work!

Nephew's birthday

Oh, I forgot to show you the pictures of my nephew's sweater! It's quite big on him, but he'll grow into it. And you can tell he's quite sleepy in the pictures. Long day for him.

Dog hair pros and cons

I finally started carding and spinning my dog's fur. It's a little easier than I thought, but there are definitely pros and cons to dog fur than wool.

Pros: Dog hair is easy to clean. Not as dirty as sheep.
It is easy to join. It catches fast and easy
It's free! It's my dog and I don't have to pay for it.
It dries fast.

Cons: It sheds like crazy!
It's a little hard to draft
It's clumpy, not like sheep


I really love spinning it. I can't wait to spin up more. The yarn I'm making is turning out great and I will be posting pictures as soon as it's done. I hope to spin dog hair for a other people soon!

Dog fur

Our dog was clipped today and now I have dog fur!!!! I'm in the process of washing it right now. I really hope it spins up nicely. A while back, I bought some fine hand carders for the dog fur so I can card it, so I'm all prepared to spin Cleo's fur. If it doesn't spin on its own I can blend it with wool. There's a lot more fur that I realized, but that's a good thing. It's not as clumpy as I thought it would be and that's a good thing too. I'm sure it'll spin up nicely. Now, I'm just trying to get it where it doesn't smell like dog.

I'm watching CNN and they are saying the rising price of food is caused by Ethanol production.

RME NOW ACCEPTED!!!!

I NOW accept RME (Revolutionary Money Exchange)!!!! A great alternative to PayPal! Are you a seller? Pay no fees! Yay!!!

Craft Fair

I would like to do a craft fair here. There isn't much opportunity for crafty people like myself to display my work in NW Ohio. There's art fairs, but several of them snub their noses at fiber arts. The closest alternative craft fair around is the Detroit Urban Craft Fair, but I would like something close by and run on alterna-crafters terms. Does anyone use the term alterna anymore, or am I showing I'm not hip anymore??? Anyways, I hope to get some interested people and go from there.

I just purchased the first Barbara Walker knitting pattern book from half.com. I opted to purchase the vintage version instead of the new version because I really like vintage books. There's history there in vintage books and it's fun to have an original copy!

My nephew's first birthday is today and his party's on Sunday, so I get to give him his cardigan that I made. I have to remember my camera so I can take pictures of him wearing it! I'm sure it'll be so cute. And the only time in his life where he can wear a bright yellow cabled cardigan....

Swimming

I have a lot of yarn. I really do. I was now looking for my light box to make my Nobu bag and I kept putting skeins in piles and I realized I need to get rid of a lot of yarn. I'm running out of room. Should I do a destash sale? Should I just use it all and make a bunch of afghans? (I have a LOT of acrylic yarn that I can't really do anything else with) One of these days, I'll have to sort through what I want and what I don't want and maybe do a destash sale. I'm buying more and more fiber, I need to make room for that as well. I'm just looking at this pile, trying to find a manageable solution to this problem of little room. See, I didn't say too much yarn :) Well, in the mean time, I'll just have to look at my stash in disbelief of how much yarn I have and how little room.

Fiber Fiend

So, I just bought a ton of fiber on Etsy, and I don't really need it. I bought some more superwash, I bought some bamboo and some cotton roving. I haven't spun cotton and I'm eager to try. I have so much fiber, it's ridiculous! It'll keep me busy for a while! I finished dying the yarn for my Nobu bag (my kitty) and now all I need to do is find a picture to pixelate and turn into a fair isle pattern. A lot like the Corinne Burns bag I have posted on here, but it'll be my cat. Oh, and I'm offering FREE FIRST CLASS SHIPPING from now until May 2, my birthday, so take advantage!

Don't forget to check out my Storque showcase!

Storque

Hey everyone!

I've got a Storque showcase tomorrow, so be sure to check it out!

I've been working on the Off Shoulder Tank from Vogue Knitting and I just ordered some Noro yarn for an item in the Joy book, which has some awesome patterns! I can't wait!

Cabana Tee

I finished the Cabana Tee in this quarter's KnitScene. At first, I wasn't sure, but as I'm looking at the pictures post on Ravelry and here, I really like it and I could see making it again in different color choices. It turned out really well. I'm quite proud :) I made the key hole a little smaller because when I was knitting it, I realized that it was going to be quite deep, so I altered the pattern. The Tropical Fish color worked really well with the design with the Natural color. A nice little top for summer!

Noro Joy

I heart the new Noro book--Joy. I just purchased it today from Royal Yarns because the patterns look frakin amazing! I cannot wait to buy the yarn and start a project! I still need to finish my Cabana Tee. I started making sock yarn yesterday with the pencil roving I bought on Etsy and dyed. I will take pictures of it soon, because it's so pretty.

Etsy shop promotion is going. I'm sending out yarn promos tomorrow to someone in North Carolina who is attending a craft fair there, so I'm excited to get some exposure to a different audience. I'm keeping my eyes peeled for the Detroit Urban Craft Fair application because I really want to be a vendor for that. I went as a patron last year and loved it and now that I sell, I want to be part of that awesomeness! I'll keep you updated.

Outside in Ohio

I really like taking pictures outside. They turn out great! I just listed a new tampon case and the pictures really turned out spectacular! I wish it were sunny every day! We have a great set of deck furniture that worked out great as a prop and it was much better than taking pictures indoors. From now on, I'm going to take pictures of my stuff outside. Now, if I can figure out where these frakin' ants in the house are coming from...

Tampon Cases!!!!!

I added a new item to my Etsy store last night: Tampon Cases!!!! I only have one up, but will be posting more. I made another one last night during the West Wing, but got too late to add to the Etsy website. Plus, I like a little natural lighting when I take pictures. The one I have up now is a long and slender one and the one that's not up yet is a rectangle, so you can put pads in there too. I'm really excited about my new product and hope you will be too!

Shop Promotion

So, I've decided to try and promote the hell out of my shop. I'm trying to become more involved in forums, I even joined an Etsy Team today--EtsyFAST, which is the team for fiber artists. I also want to start a couple teams myself. I just emailed someone looking for promos for a craft fair and I will be giving her some yarn samples to hand out. I'm still looking to do more to promote my shop and I'm getting excited to do so. I think my shop needs work and I think if I post more items and become a better participant on Etsy, they will come. I'm also looking to do craft fairs soon.

New Yarn, Cabana Tee

There's some new yarn on my Etsy page and some new ones coming in the next couple days. I am working on the Cabana Tee from KnitScene and it's turning out great. I am also making a new jumbo bath puff that will be listed soon. Please check my Etsy page, Misfit Yarns.

Black Swamp Fiber Fest

Check out all the fibery goodness I got today at the Black Swamp Fiber Fest! The top picture is Icelandic wool from a Bowling Green farmer, who was very nice and invited me to come see her farm. The middle picture is Alpaca, and the last photo is a wool, alpaca, angora blend. I'm washing the Icelandic wool now and it cleans up very nicely! The fiber fest was fun. It was my first time walking through one and I had to walk around a couple times to figure out where I wanted to shop. I can't for another fest!

The nephew sweater is about done. I just need to get up the energy to buy buttons for it. It turned out great. I really hope it fits! I think it's too big, so that's good.

Ribbit, Ribbit

I had to frog my nephew's sweater the other day. Once I got to the neck shaping, I realized I made a mistake shaping the armholes. I'm now back on track, though, and I'm now to the sleeves. I already grafted the shoulders together and it looks like it's coming along nicely. I think it's too big, but that's a good think because he can wear it for a long time. I've never knitted a baby sweater before, and it goes pretty quick.

I'm thinking of buying a Babe spinning wheel, probably the Pinkie. I want a traveling wheel, but can't afford a Joy, so this one will look like it'll do. They are made out of PVC pipe, and I think they look fun! I would love to teach people how to spin one of these days, or start/join a spinning group, so i think the babe is ideal for that sorta thing. We'll see what happens. Saturday is Market Day! I'm excited to buy local fiber!

Popsicle Socks

Here's my first handspun pair of socks! My husband calls them the Popsicle Socks.

Funky sock yarn

This is going to be some funky ass sock yarn. This is my first time making sock yarn. I had a few breaks (I blame some of them on my niddy noddy, so I purchased a new one today) but it ended up great. I'm going to start on my socks tonight. I bought a spinning stool today from Kromski. I also decided that when I have the money, the next wheel I'm going to buy is a folding one and a Kromski. I also got my yarn to make the Cabana Tee in this season's KnitScene. I have a lot of knitting ahead of me.

Sheep Fleece

I'm just now washing the last bit of sheep fleece I received in the mail yesterday. I bought it from Skyline Farms in Idaho. This is my first time purchasing raw sheep fleece and I have learned a few things in the process:
1. There is a LOT of fleece! I only bought a half-fleece, which came to 4.5 lbs, and I didn't realize how much fleece that actually is. Trust me, it's a lot!
2. It may seem expensive when you buy it, but when you get it and think about it, it's actually not that expensive. Like I said, you get way more than you expect.
3. Sheep are dirty! With the fleece, you have to wash it, and wash it and wash it. Just to give you a sense, I've been washing since 8pm yesterday.
4. You can't get all the vegetable matter out. You'll still have grass and other musings. Just try to pick out the huge pieces. I'm hoping the carding process will help a little with that too.

In the midst of all the washing, I did manage to make a hat out of some shetland wool I spun and dyed. Of course, I have to make a winter hat in the tail end of winter. Right now, we're having a huge snow storm, so my hat may still be needed.

Yarn o' the Month Club

Yarn o' the Month Club is now up on Etsy!!!

Yarn Club and Elizabeth Zimmerman

So, I have a copy of Knitting Without Tears somewhere. when I first read it, I didn't get it and I want to try it out again. Since I bought the book, I have become a better knitting with more understanding of garment construction. I love knitting in the round and i'm not a huge fan of seaming, but I will do it I think it would be a great book for me if I figured it out. I also need to find it.

I'm thinking of possibly starting a yarn club on Etsy. I would sell a club membership for 3 months; the buyer gets x number of skeins a month, my choice of fiber and color, and it'll be all good. I don't know, we'll see if I get myself in order. I'll keep you posted if I do decide to do this.

Think Small

Spinning the bamboo is getting much better. I'm getting the hang of it. I think the trick is to use smaller strips as you would with wool. It seems to be working much better. I can't wait to see it turns out and soaks up dye.

Let's give bamboo a chance

I finished the quirky yarn I was working on tonight and decided to not give up on the bamboo. It seems to be getting better and I'm learning tricks to try to prevent it from breaking every time I draft. So far, it's working. I didn't think bamboo would be harder to spin than wool. Speaking of wool, I have some raw wool coming soon! I bought it from a farm in Idaho and I'm really excited to learn how to card. It will give me practice before my goat angora comes. We have a Chao and I would love to spin her hair, so hopefully when my husband's parents get her clipped, they will save the clippings for me so I can spin her fur. Now, I'm going to set the twist on this skein I finished. Will post when it's dry.

Back Break

I really need a new chair for spinning. The chair I use hurts my back so bad, it's hard to spin for a long time. I don't really know why, but it does. I should look on websites to see what they recommend for chairs for spinning.

I tried spinning bamboo today and it was tougher than I thought. Since the fiber is so fine, it's hard to draft and keep going. I'm going to research it more and go back to it. I really wanted to make my best friend a hand-spun, hand-knitted headband out of bamboo, but since I'm not that experienced in bamboo, I will have think of another plan. Right now, I'm spinning this great batt full of different colors. It's turning out really cool and I think I'm going to make a headband out of some of it. I need to get started on Sarah's headbands soon because she is coming home this weekend and I'm going to visit her next weekend. I'm really excited to see her. She lives in Belgium with her husband, who is in the military. I also have to get stared on my nephew sweater. Lots of projects ahead...that's good, because I need to stay busy.

Corinne Burns Bag

This will be on sale on Etsy once I make another one

Eunny Jang Deep V Sweater

Spinning away

I started a new spinning project today. I bought some shetland wool from etsy a while ago and I've decided to spin it and I've also decided to ply it. I'm going to dye it as well. I got some great new colors a while ago and I can't wait to try them out. I finally received my ravelry invite and got started on that. I don't have any knitting projects going on right now, but I will post them here and on ravelry when I do.

Operation Camera Swap Accomplished!

So, I finally have a working camera. I've been taking pictures practically all day and haven't had a problem yet (knock on wood). It's quite the battery hog, so I need to get an upgrade on my rechargeables. Here's some pictures from the camera:




This is my wheel.
this is the wheel treadle.
And these are the kick ass kitty ears.

Broken!

So, I got my new camera today. Everything was working just fine until the camera started turning off randomly. Then I realized, my camera is...BROKEN! I'm going to return it and get a different one at Circuit City tomorrow rather than wait for one in the mail again. I'm going to try the same model again. I'm sure it's just a weird fluke. Until then, I did take some great pictures of the bath puff and washcloth set before it broke.

Bath puff

I'm getting my camera today! That means I will be posting pictures and adding new Etsy items. I have made a bath puff and washcloth set that will be featured soon and will be making more of those sets. I love my handmade bath puff and I think that more people need handmade bath puffs. The ones I make are 100% cotton, so they are eco-friendly. You need to buy one when they are up!

My husband and I are going to an All Species Ball tonight and I made cat ears for it last night. They turned out great and I can't wait to show them off. I ordered the yarn for my nephew's sweater and that is coming today also. I can't wait to go home and play with my new toys!!!

Ordered

I ordered my camera!!! I got a Samsung S85 Silver from Amazon. It's gotten really good reviews and it sounds like an awesome camera, so hopefully it lives up to the hype. I bought extra memory from Ebay as well. Once I get it in, I'll be able to take pictures of my stuff and start listing things on Etsy again. I just finished a dish rag to sell and will be making more of them. I also finished another skein of yarn (not for sale) with my spinning wheel and it's soaking right now. It turned out great. I can't believe how easy it is to use a spinning wheel! It's much easier than a hand spindle. It was a wise investment and I am very happy with it.

I need to go through my yarn and see if I can do a destash sale. I have a bunch of white yarn I can hand dye. I am going to dye a skein black because I want to make my Corinne Burns bag to sell on Etsy. I will post a picture when I get a camera again.

Nephew sweater

I think I'm going to make this for my nephew. It looks like something that can be worn all seasons except summer. And it looks pretty easy.

Refashion

One of these days, I am going to do this.

Camera Obscura

The sweater turned out great! A little longer than I thought it would be, but it still looks very good. When I knit things, I always forget how short I am. My torso may not be as long as everyone else's, so it may be longer than designed. Nonetheless, I am very happy with it and cannot wait to wear it.

You'll have to wait on pictures because I have decided to buy a new digital camera. Mine's on the verge of being five years old and I think it's time for an upgrade. I'm looking for a baby sweater/outfit to knit my little nephew for his first birthday in April. I'm itching to knit something new.

Finished

The Eunny Jang argyle sweater vest is finished and drying after I blocked it. I finished it yesterday and it's drying quite quickly. I'm always quite restless when I block, because I'm afraid that I have stretched it somehow and it will not fit. Most of the time, projects usually turn out ok, so I just have to be patient and let it dry. The sweater turned out AMAZING! I will take a picture of it when I get my camera back and when it's dry. I just started a dish rag for the Etsy store and I'm going to start focusing on adding more to the Etsy store. Be on the lookout for new merchandise! I am also wanting to branch out in local areas of commerce. My husband has an office in the arts building in Toledo and I can use his space to showcase my stuff during art openings. I hope to have business cards soon to advertise.

Ahh, Goat Shares....

Yesterday I bought a goat share. That's right, a goat share. There is this small farm on Martha's Vineyard who is doing a Yarn/Fiber CSA and they are selling shares on Etsy. Check it out here.
They responded quickly to my questions and were very nice. I really like the idea of small farms doing this, because this way, the spinner/knitter knows where the wool is coming from and the small farm is thriving because of shareholders like me. I hope more farmers will do this.

I now have a spinning wheel. I've had it for almost 2 weeks and I absolutely love it. I named it Wilma. It was the first name that came to mind. It is a Fricke S160 Single Treadle with a Scotch tension drive and it is very easy to use. I've made three skeins of yarn already.

As for knitting, I'm working on an argyle vest by Eunny Jang. It can be found here. I just cut my steeks yesterday. What a nerve-racking experience! I don't really like to crochet, so it was a little hard for me to do, but once I got it over with, a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. I still have the ribbing portion to do and I'm afraid I'm going to run out of yarn again. I had to wait for a ball in the mail because the place I ordered my yarn from didn't have enough balls in stock. I'm going to call around local yarn shops to see if they have any in, so I don't have to wait.

Welcome to my blog!

I've wanted to do a knitting blog for a long time now, but haven't really had the will to set one up until now. This blog will catalog my trial, tribulations, and triumphs as a knitter and spinner, and it will also give updates on my Etsy store. Stay tuned and I will be posting more!