the year in yarn

All of these images can be found on my Instagram!

It seems like the MOST cliche thing you could possibly say in a year end wrap up post, but I can't believe 2015 is over. It went by SO fast, and yet at the same time I can't believe that I made some of these things this year, not last year. One of the most special things about all of the things that I've created this year, they fit so seamlessly into my life, so comfortably into my wardrobe, it feels like I've had them forever.

More than ever, I've fallen in love with fiber arts this year. I knit my first sweater, started spinning my own yarn, started my handmade business, and really engaged in my local and virtual fiber friends. I finally found a knitting group that I love! I travelled to Asheville (twice!), returned to Rhinebeck, and knit so many beautiful pieces. I checked off all of the things on my Knit Years Resolutions for this year, which feels so good!

I get a little teary with gratefulness writing all of this out. I can definitely be hard on myself, choosing to see all the ways that I need to improve and grow, and don't spend too much time celebrating all the wonderful things that happen. And these were just the fiber-related things! This year the hubs and I also moved to a house, celebrated our first year of marriage, took trips all over the Southeast & Mexico, started the last year of medical school, passed the final part of medical board exams, and adopted our two sweet kitties who we can't imagine life without. 

This week is still a vacation week for me (hallelujah), and I'm really focusing and challenging myself with some big goals for 2016. So check back for that before the week is through. My family were so incredibly generous with me this Christmas, and I can't wait to get back to our house and set up all of the improvements to my studio/guest room! 

I hope everyone who reads this little blog of mine has had a wonderful holiday, full of love and family and hope. I'm blessed that you choose to spend some of your time here. 

two new yarns

We spent the week of Thanksgiving in Florida playing too many board games, drinking too much tea, sitting on the porch too long and eating too many turkey green bean sandwiches. And While there, I was able to finish two yarns that will be in the shop very soon, I hope! 

The first is a 2-ply yarn spun from a pencil roving I purchased at Rhinebeck, a great heathery brown that would be wonderful for an outerwear, something warm and hearty for the cold months ahead. The pencil roving was the first I've spun with, and was very fast to draft, though perhaps not my favorite fiber I have spun. The large skein I got from this 4oz was so worth it!

This grey yarn was exactly what I wanted to be spinning over a break from my regular routine. Thick and thin and altogether an artful, freeform experience. It's a wonderful blend of several wools, including a beautiful merino. 

I love these handspun yarns and the process of creating them, I hope to list quite a few new skeins headed into this new year. 

Lots of blessings from Chapel Hill this season!

 

 

off the needles: sweet magnolia handspun

"Sweet Magnolia" by Susan Gehringer, narrow long cowl

Started: September 2015

Finished: October 23, 2015

Fiber: Aztec handspun

Notes: When I finished spinning this braid of BFL/Silk I just wanted to keep working with it, so I went and searched my Ravelry favorites for a short pattern that would fit with the yardage I got this time around. The Sweet Magnolia cowl had been in my list since it debuted last year, and the narrow, but longer version fit the bill. The stripes in the colorway came out beautifully with the length of the cowl, but I kind of feel that the beautiful pattern got a bit obscured by all the color changes. It was fun doing the picot hem and all in all, I think it will make a lovely gift this Christmas. Just make sure to read the pattern carefully! The different version starting points tripped me up a bit at first but wasn't ultimately hard to read. 

I feel like it has been forever since I've completed a knitting project, with lots of shop prep and spinning (both wonderful), so it felt so good to finish this. Only a few projects left before I take on the winter beast that is Timberline!

natural dyeing: black tea

I think I may be falling hard for natural dyes. When I go to the grocery store, the farmer's market, I think about my menu for the week, and think about the natural dye properties of everything I'll consume that week. My freezer right now is half food, half dye materials (avocado, pomegranate and mushrooms, if you want to know). And on Friday as Brandon and I were in search of a piece of clothing for his Halloween costume, I found myself perusing the tops, looking for cotton or linen or wool that would be suitable to dye. 

I was successful, and brought home a 100% cotton tunic for my next project. Saturday I woke up and mordanted the tunic, an organic cotton dishtowel, and a small linen project bag for a few hours, and then brewed up a vat of black tea. In they went! I've noticed that though the process of taking the dye takes at least an hour, I can tell pretty quickly whether or not the color is going to really take in the materials I've put in the dyepot. Still, the anticipation is so fun as I come back every few minutes to poke the items around and watch the progress. 

After an hour, I took the materials out, let them drip out a bit, and then washed them in my washing machine on cold with a tablespoon of dish soap. And then out on the clothesline!
 

It's a bit hard to tell from the picture, but the organic cotton dishtowel took the color the best, followed by the project bag and then the tunic, which dried into a soft tan color. And although the tunic and towel were both labeled "100%" cotton, the threads used clearly weren't, and stayed pure white, which was something I didn't even consider. Lesson learned!

Though time-intensive, I loved this day because it embodied what slow fashion means to me in our life right now. Reducing waste by buying second-hand, seeing beauty in an old, stained garment at a store and naturally, organically turning it into something beautiful and functional. I know that my "tea-shirt" is something that I will value and love and wear to threads. And then mend, and keep on wearing. :)

Slow Fashion October is officially over for this year, but I know I'll carry the principles I've been reminded of and the stories and perspectives of everyone who participated with me into this coming year, and for that I'm grateful. If you need something to read during your lunch hour, I encourage you to go check out Karen's round-ups of some of the best of Slow Fashion October on her blog. They're so inspiring! 

handspun: alpaca cloud

Pure white is my favorite thing to spin. It's so calming, so beautiful, so simple. Ever since I started dyeing in my little kitchen, I have started to see such beautiful potential in white fiber. Would you like to be beautiful brown? Cochineal red? Pale pink? Mossy green? Indigo blue? All of these and more? It's possible. It's lovely, spinning potential.

This is about 190 yards of DK weight single ply alpaca spun from Echoview Fiber Mill Alpaca Cloud. The second time I've spun this in 2 months, which should tell you how wonderful it is. I don't have much experience knitting with pure alpaca, people say that it lacks the elasticity that wool is known for, but I could do a serious 180 on that opinion after spinning it for hours. 

Sorry about the unexpected blogging hiatus the past few weeks. I had lots of plans for posts for Slow Fashion October, and I hope to be able to post one tomorrow just in time for the month to end. It's been great seeing how so many people care about this topic and have jumped into the discussion with so much heart.