Dyeing
Felting
Knitting
Go Diagonal!
Nurmilintu
I cast on another shawl! Nurmilintu pattern has a lace chart in it…eek! I’ve never knit from a chart before and so have written out the stitches in my knitting notebook and I started to get confused on the last 3rd of the lace rows, so I referred to the chart and was still confused. As it is my first lace pattern and working from a chart I can’t say there’s an error, but was pleased to read other makers’ notes that they were confused by the chart and they were experienced at lace. I fudged some bits and ended with the right stitch count at the end of the lace section. It will be interesting to see what happens on the next lace section and if I have the same issue.
The yarn is from Coastal Colours and is 50% Yak/50% Mulberry Silk….Oh my this yarn is BEAUTIFUL! The depth of the colours, the sheen of the silk, the drape of even the first small section…..ooooooohhhh I love it so far! It was £28 for 100g/400m, so double the price of normal indie dyed 4ply/fingering weight skeins I buy, but oh my it is luxurious. You can see I’m getting some puckering which doesn’t worry me too much.
Other projects
Such a Winter’s Day jumper is on hold until my Portuguese Knitting lesson on 7th September to learn the way to switch between knit and purl using that method (fingers crossed).
My hybrid of Rose City Rollers and Hermione’s Everyday Socks patterns were progressing well until I cast on the new shawl, I just love the feel of the yak/silk yarn so much it is hard to pick up the socks.
I blocked my latest pair of HES socks and they are still too small, so I have unpicked the toe section and I’ll re-knit those once my size 2 KnitPro needles are free.
Spinning
Weaving
I bought finer reeds at Fibre East so I think I am going to try a 3rd attempt with the 15 dpi. I also had a go with my boat shuttle and that works really well and is much easier than the stick shuttles. I don’t have a tool to wind the yarn on the mini bobbin in the shuttle so did it my hand and I need a quicker solution without buying the expensive Ashford bobbin winder.
Other News
I posted a brief blog post on Wednesday evening about an idea I had…not to buy any yarn in 2020! My thoughts are on that other post.
Other than that I’ve been doing more decluttering, dumping and donating. As is usual when I’ve been clearing out stuff I slumped into the blues by Friday. I think it was nearly 3pm before I was dressed and took the dog out ☹️ I’m not sure if it’s the throwing out that lowers my mood or it’s the things I feel guilty not chucking out. Anyhoo, I want to keep progressing with it because I want to get to a point were everything has a place that’s accessible without needing to empty half the cupboard to find things!
Oh I just remembered on Wednesday I did ALL the ironing…literally spent about 6 hours ironing. From now on I’m going to do it weekly!
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HighlandHeffalump 
Well, I think you are doing brilliantly with all your crafty crafting. I wonder if your blues slump is a kind of grief — probably overstating it, but you bought all those things for a purpose which is past or perhaps didn’t materialise? I find that, too, when I declutter there are a lots of things seemed right at the time, but not now. I make sure they go to good homes, and that makes it better for me, anyway.
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Thanks, perhaps you are right. One of the things I got rid of was a juicer, something bought during a health kick about 17 years and sat in a cupboard for 15 years making me feel guilty.
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All your projects are coming along amazingly well! I love the swirls in your felted scarf and all the colors of your Go Diagonal! And your hair looks awesome with the purple underneath 🙂
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Thanks 😀
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Your hair looks great with the purple in it.
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Lots of craftiness going on. I have a really hard time withe charts too….Being a teacher, I’ve learned what my style of “learning: is and it isn’t charts. I have a hard time teaching charts, graphs, etc….my brain is not wired that way. If a pattern only has a chart….I make sure to read it and translate it for myself. I also use an abundance of sticky notes!!!! I’m getting better at it…..I love that weaving project!
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I love the way you’ve dyed your hair. So fun with the color peeking out. And you look great with your Go Diagonal scarf! Pretty colors. Oooh… and Coastal Colors looks great made into that shawl. Your weaving is improving! I think your earlier towels looked great, but I can see that these are more even. How exciting it must be to see your own progress.
Interesting thoughts about decluttering/dumping. I started in again this past week going through things in our bedroom. I found it harder to do this time, but still could find items to get rid of. I find the process tiring emotionally, but your post makes me want to take more care to note what I’m really feeling. I think I need next to go through a space that is in serious need of clearing out to get a good feel for what I may actually feel. It’s all very much a process and emotions are tied to it for me, for sure.
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Wow. Just reading what you have accomplished this week I need a nap! Love the hair and love the colourful scarf. I am glad you sorted out the lace pattern. Having a stitch count that is off is certainly frustrating. Decluttering can cause some mood swings for sure – but it feels so good to be lighter of ‘stuff’. Carry on!
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The felted scarf is very pretty. Are they super pliable? Your chunky scarf is wonderful. Those colors will brighten you days during the dreary winter months. That new shawl pattern is very pretty too. I love doing lace but need lots of quiet so I can concentrate on the chart. Yet, I still manage to mess up most of the time. Just keep fudging it and it all will work out. Love the purple under color. Very smart so as not to have any roots.
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I make a variety of thicknesses on the scarves. Some are designed to be folded longways and them stand up almost like a collar, others are much thinner and cobweb like, this teal one is midway between the two.
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Again, such lovely variety of craftiness! You made me chuckle including your hair in this week’s dyeing. 🙂 It looks lovely. The Go Diagonal is fabulous — such fun colors.
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Where do I start? First off, I love the hair! I love your go diagonal scarf…so pretty with all those colors. Your new lace charted scarf is awesome! It looks like you’re doing a great job. Your felting and weaving are exquisite per usual. I love the yarns you’ve chosen for your socks too.
I can relate to feeling down after “de-cluttering” and I don’t know if it’s because of “letting go” of too much or too little. It’s a conundrum! Maybe you could reward yourself with something to boost your spirits afterwards? I’m all for rewarding myself if I have the means.
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I love the light line in your felted scarf, itis gorgeous. The stripey scarf is fun and looks good with your hair! The yarn on your new shawl looks so yummy too. I am trying to declutter too, itisso hard isnt it!
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That scarf is so colorful and looks really fab on you!
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