highlandheffalump

YOP9 – Week 15/52

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A busy week this week…I know, what’s new there?!

Dyeing

On Wednesday I did some fibre and yarn dyeing!  It’s been a long time since I have done any.  
 
If you’d like to see my fibre I dyed for BritSpin, please check out my BritSpin progress post.
 
I also had a go at making a Christmas sock yarn (as per my YOP list), which I’ll knit as part of Amy Florence’s Festive Sock KAL.  Next week I will get it wound into 4 balls and I’m thinking of making 2 pairs of short socks…I maybe need to find a toe up pattern to maximise the yarn usage/length of leg.  Any suggestions?
 
 

Felting

I constructed the lampshades, that I’d felted the previous week.  I’m such a numpty, I forgot to photograph them before I wrapped them in the protective plastic, so here’s a dodgy photo of them.  One is a Highland landscape with 5 sheep. 🐑😁  the other is a Highland Seascape, this time with some seaweed on the sand.  The one with the sheep sold within 10 mins apparently, by the time I got home from dropping it off it was sold!  Plus 4 fairies sold last week.  So you know what I’ll be doing next week!
 

Knitting

Almost no knitting!!!!  I’ve been in discussion on the Ravelry forum regarding my Such a Winter’s Day jumper.  I’ve split for the arms, done 3 rows and it is too snug under the arm and is really stretching the stitches.  I’m a novice to knitting garments really, this is my first jumper, after 3 cardigans.  The row gauge is ever so slightly out.  I think I need to rip back the 3 rows, add 3 without the increasing width and then separate for my arms.  That or add more under arm stitches to later decrease.  Any tips welcome.
 

Spinning

BritSpin started 9pm on Wednesday and I’ve been spinning like crazy.  I’ve spun 50g of Cheviot, 50g of Rambouillet, 108g of Perendale and haven’t yet finished my 50g Whitefaced Woodland yet.  At the time of writing this in BritSpin calculations (you count the length of each single plus add another length for the spin to ply, so 2 ply yarn you multiply the finished length by 3) which means I’ve spun 1,118 meters/1,223 yards.
 
I’ve done some separate BritSpin posts if you are interest, there’s a Prep post and a Progress post from Friday.  I’ll be doing a wrap up post on Tuesday.  Here’s a skein I haven’t yet posted about.  This is my Perendale large skein.
 
I forgot to mention, this is being done in aid of charity, this year’s BritSpin charity is Alzheimer’s Society and Alzheimer Scotland.  If you are interested in donating then here’s the link.  If you do, please write ‘Team More Enthusiasm Than Skill’.  (Each year there’s a winning team and they get to choose the charity for the following year.)
 
 

Other News

Early in the week I did some batch cooking, making a huge pot of vegetarian chilli and a butternut squash and lentil soup, and froze it all in portions.  We’ve had a freezer sitting in the garage unused the last few years and had considered throwing it away, but with all the scare mongering about Brexit related food shortages I thought I’d switch it on and use it.  So it’s now stocked with bread, chilli and soup!  I’m going to buy some discounted fruits and freeze those too.
 
I’ve kept one shelf free for fibre and yarn.  I keep reading about people freezing their new acquisitions and as I’ve got this fleece I am processing I thought I should definitely freeze that fibre as part of processing it.  I’ve already found a tick and a cocoon of some sort in the raw fibre!  Eek! It’s kept in the garage so far, thank goodness. I washed another few batches of it this week.  Not confident about how long it will take to dry in the greenhouse now it’s autumn.
 
I also thought I’d do some baking this week, not like me and, as I’m currently at the heaviest I’ve ever been, probably not wise.  But I made some gingerbread biscuits with my autumn cookie cutters.  Over baked but still tasty.
 

 

I’ve basically tried to keep my mind as occupied as possible.  The sale of the lampshade and fairies has given me a wee mood boost. 😁

 

This is a Year of Projects update.  If you would like to find out more about the Year of Projects Group on Ravelry, or you’d like to join in, please follow the link for details.  To read what the other members of the YOP Group have been getting up to please click on the latest weekly folder and follow the links to their blog posts.  This is a friendly group with a wide mix of skills and crafting interests.

10 comments

  2. Those lamp shades are fantastic. I can see why the landscape with the sheep sold so quickly. It was adorable. Your Christmas dyed sock yarn is a great color. I agree, you need to do toe up so you can use each precious gram of that yarn. I do not have any suggestions for patterns though. I haven’t done toe up in ages. I think a nice plain sock though would be great to show off the colors of the fiber. Congrats on your items selling so well. You should be very proud of people loving your handmade items. You have quite the talent. COOKIES! Those look so yummy. I haven’t made cookies for a while for the same reason you hadn’t. I eat them. Darn things just jump into my mouth as I walk by them. Your gingerbread ones look quite inviting. Love the piped icing on them too. Have a great week!

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  3. Your lampshades are lovely, no wonder the sheep one sold so quickly. The Christmas wool is beautiful, will make wonderful socks. Those cookies look so yummy and cute, I would have no self control either and that is why I dont bake unless it is to be given away quickly!

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  4. Those lampshades are gorgeous and I can definitely see why they sell out so fast! Your Christmas yarn is awesome! I tried dyeing once and need to get back to it. Good for you doing all that cooking. In this crazy world today between storms and governments one can’t be too self-sufficient! Your cookies are darling! Good luck with the sweater!

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