FO: seaman’s cap.

This pattern was made for handspun. And for boys. This is a simple hat with a serious fold-over brim. What do you think about this particular hat for a (grown-up) boy? Are the reds too rosy and not enough burgundy? It was rainy and overcast yesterday, so these pictures were taken in less than ideal [...]

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last night, and the night before last.

(I’ll not say which ni-i-ight.) A seaman friend of mine…
I can’t help it. Whenever I sit down to work on my handspun seaman’s cap, I hear Billy Bragg and Wilco singing “Walt Whitman’s Niece,” the first track on the first Mermaid Avenue album (the project sets Woody Guthrie’s words to music).

Late (very late) last night, [...]

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jowly.

Yep, that’s a word. In fact, it is the perfect word to describe this dog.

Let’s look at that face from the other side, shall we?

Boh is actually using his paws to support all those wrinkles on his face. Being jowly is tough. It’s a wonder he’s able to get through the day.

I started another handspun [...]

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yarn cakes.

Last night I dumped all of my handspun out on the couch and tried to think about what each skein might want to be when it grows up. I’m realizing that I need to start thinking more strategically about my fiber acquisitions, because most of the things I want to knit require more than 1 [...]

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soul windows and sunset: skeins!

I am in LOVE. 426 yards of 3-ply, from 4 oz of 90/10 corriedale/nylon from the Spunky Club. LOVE.
This skein made me so excited that I just kept on spinning.

Here’s that cvm, waiting to be plied, along with the resting jacob bobbins.

cvm plied…

hanging to dry…

and skeined.
188 yds of 2-ply, 12 wpi from 2 oz. of [...]

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400+.

Hooray! My math skills tell me that I have at least 400 yards of 3-ply here (426, to be precise). I’ll figure out wpi once the skein is dry, but I am thrilled! There should be plenty here for a pair of socks.
I gave this an extra long soak because of how energized it seemed. [...]

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dillweed/milkweed.

Dillweed. (In the pickles. These are half-sours, from The Joy of Pickling.)

Milkweed. (Shawl by Laura Chau.) I’m only 8 rows in, but I’ve decided that although I am way more comfortable with written directions, I’m going all-chart, all-the-time on this one.
I went back to the LYS having the sale yesterday to get a smaller hiyahiya [...]

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hiyahiya.

Whoa. Yesterday I felt compelled to do something about those needles with the other-than-smooth join. They were driving me crazy! The internets told me that a LYS is having a sale on everything this week, so I dropped by to look ONLY at needles. I was debating between 12 and 16 inch addis, and the [...]

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kip: kraut-in-progress.

Exhibit A: 1 gallon pickling crock, acquired on ebay.

Exhibit B: Kraut-in-progress. (Note: this is not an exercise in instant gratification. While sauerkraut requires regular checking, skimming, etc., it takes several weeks to be ready to enjoy.) This is my first attempt at kraut, and I am so excited. I always LOVE kraut made by friends [...]

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granny gear.

You know, the smallest (third) chain wheel on a bicycle with at least 3 wheels (a triple crankset). It makes it easier to ride uphill. I rode my bike across the country seven summers ago. 4200 miles, a handful of mountain ranges, and the realization that Missouri is not flat (I had conveniently forgotten the [...]

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