WIP'd Up Wednesday

Hooray, finished projects to share! After a long (for knitting projects and me) and somewhat bumpy relationship, the Seaglass Wrap is finished. I cast on, the first time, all the way back in September 2011. Checking back through my photos, I started spinning the yarn back in the Fall of 2010. It seems longer ago. This isn't a great picture, no sunshine and blocking on the lounge but today is about catching up.

Edit: New picture of Seaglass Wrap (gosh, that dried faster than expected!)

Over the weekend, this was started and finished; Okay nearly finished. I need to clean up the tails and fringe.

The Islands in the Sea scarf. Yup, weaving is fast. I especially like from the bottom of the dip in the middle, moving up to the right.Yellow, green, purple, yum. All handspun yarn. The warp (the stuff that ends up making the fringes) is a merino/seacell blend top from Creatively Dyed Yarns. Most of the weft yarns were spun up specifically to play with color, using a rotation of 5 (I think) different colored tops from Ashland Bay. This is a technique I learned during Knot Hysteria 2011, during Judith Mackenzie's spinning with color class. In some places I changed colors fairly frequently, and in some places I forgot I meant to change colors, so got longer color runs. I think the stripier bits are the short color runs, and the long gradient bits were longer color runs. Then the resulting single is made into a 2 ply.

But I didn't ply all of it together with itself. The light purple bit, and the brown bit, those were spun from batts I carded at the same workshop. (We did this after dinner a couple of nights. Best. Dessert. Ever.)  And then plied with the aforementioned color study yarn. This is like playing with magic. Really really good magic. The kind of magic that pops open the little doors in my brain, throws wide open windows of opportunity. "Look! Look! Look what is possible." I'm a sucker for this stuff. Oh, the yarn that insisted I weave it? The browish colored bit over to the right. Impossible (so far) for me to photograph accurately, I'd love to make an entire garment from fabric just like this. A quest is born.

The Part that Comes After That Last Part (spinning)

Would you like to hear, rather than read, more about my adventures at Knot Hysteria? Use this magic link to jump over the Knitters Brewing Company blog and click on the Postcards From Fiber Camp podcast link. Wendy and Kelie invited me to be a guest podcaster, it was fun!

Otherwise, read on!

Every morning started with the (yummy) breakfast buffet and greeting our lively group of Hysteriacals. At 9 a.m. class started. We were divided into 3 groups  and each day we rotated to another class. I was in the blue group and we started our first day with Judith. Look what was in the middle of the floor when we walked in!

A rainbow circle of Ashland Bay top. Those 3 colors in the middle? They are dyer's primes, very similar to printers primes. If those colors aren't screaming off your monitor, they should be. Judith told us that with those 3 colors, plus black, white  and the shades you can see in a line at the top right of the picture, she could make any color she wished. In fact, she started our morning by talking about commercial yarn color choices, and how we didn't have to settle for what was offered to us. After all, why did we become spinners, if not to make the yarn we wanted.

We went over basic color theory. It was a color themed retreat, after all. We learned about experimenting with color combinations to make more interesting yarns. Then we practiced making those yarns, working across multiple colors of top. Worsted style 2 plys, and for the speedier spinners (not me) cabled yarns. Every time we did something to the yarn the interplay of colors changed. Achieving opalescent effects using shimmery merino/silk blends. Talked about how to create gradient yarns like this; (Ravelry Group, post #1) I really want to  practice making yarn like that.

Judith demonstrated using combs to blend colored fibers. Somewhere in there we ate lunch, and shopped at the Fiber Store. All the Blue Moon Fiberarts stuff. And the latest books by Stephanie and Judith. We spun worsted style  (wheeeeee!) and talked about using silk hankies in spinning. Judith is just wonderful. Class was supposed to end at 4:30, but we just kept going and talking and listening to Judith. Yeah, I'm a fan girl. I already knew that, this just confirmed it. 

Aside: I'm about ready to pitch my keyboard, it is really misbehaving.)

Just like breakfast, lunch and dinner was buffet style. But not just any ol' kind of food. Chef Dan put out a great spread, with careful consideration to everyone's eating choice or menu restriction. Me, I can and do eat everything, and I did. But my favorite thing, present at every lunch and dinner, I think, was the Mystery Bay goat cheese. I could give up just about anything else you can spread on bread, and just live on that cheese. And the bread. And maaaaaay (see there it went again!), and maybe some beer once in a while. And coffee in the morning.

I've rambled on. I thought I'd be able to fit all 3 days of class in one post, but that isn't working out so well. So there will be more parts after this part. At least that gives me time to check my class notes!