Maryland Sheep and Wool

This is how Yarn Noir Superfluity Kit knits up

It's less than a week until Maryland Sheep and Wool. Are you going? There is so much to see and do. So remember to check out the Three Waters Farm booth in the Main Exhibition Hall, booth B-23.

This week I'll be adding previews for things to see in the TWF booth, so keep checking back.

TWF's customers at Maryland will receive a coupon code for 10% off all my pattern PDFs (20% off Heart of the Lotus, my newest pattern). Purchase any of the beautiful fibers and yarns in the booth to qualify for the discount, good May 5-8, 2012. Use the coupon code to buy the patterns in my Ravelry Store Lynne Vogel Designs from your mobile device and download them on the spot.

Mary Ann will have many new and exciting colorways available in Superfluity Yarn Kits. See previews here. 

I'll have two original pieces on display in the booth. More later.

Heart of the Lotus

delicate, scrunched

 My newest pattern! Fabulous armwarmers with three variations: Ornate (bottom left), Delicate (top left) and Sleek (bottom right) written for both fingering and sport weight yarns.

Ornate is shown in Verdant Gryphons gorgeous merino/cashmere blend "Bugga!". See it as a project (Bugga Heart) on Ravelry.

Delicate is shown in Malabrigo "Finito". Project here.
UPDATE: Heart of the Lotus is featured in Malabrigo's Online Patterns . What a great resource!

Sleek is in madelinetosh "Pashmina". Project here.

Want the pattern? Buy it here.

sleek, worn long

ornate

two versions

I wanted to see the difference between the Sleek and Delicate versions in Pashmina, a gorgeous sport weight merino/silk/cashmere yarn. If you look closely in the bottom photo (two versions), you can see the Sleek version on the bottom half and the Delicate on the top. My friend Amy fell in love with these and had to have them, and since she preferred the Sleek version, I just ripped out the extra tier. Couldn't even tell it was gone. I want to try it with three tiers next.

Dubose 2012

HANDS ON COLOR: A SPINNING RETREAT

June 1-3 (June 4 optional) 2012

Have a special project you want to spin and knit or crochet? This year, Hands on Color is “pick your own project,” a true retreat where you can spin your own special yarns for your individual project and take advantage of Lynne’s expert guidance throughout the weekend. If you don’t want to work on a project, you can just come and join us for a weekend of spinning and relaxation. In addition, we’ll have a bonus day, Monday, for a bit more spinning, friendship, and project work.

We’ll start with a wine and cheese snacking dinner on Friday. On Saturday, midmorning, Lynne will lecture on how to plan for a project, from spinning the right amount of yarn to thoughts on pattern ideas and more. On Saturday afternoon, Sunday, and Monday (if you choose), you’ll be able to work on that special project, with expert help from Lynne on an individual basis as you need it, and with lots of sharing of ideas with others at the retreat. Come with your project pattern and materials or buy some beautiful colors at our market.  You may want to chose one of Lynne’s patterns, available on Ravelry, or bring your own. Work at your own pace throughout the weekend, taking advantage of the quiet walks and good food Dubose offers. Where else would you find such a wonderful mix of fiber, friends and hours of project time just for you?

For those of you who haven’t come to Dubose, we have a wonderfully large workroom, the Upper Room, to play in. There is room to spread out, so feel free to bring what you need. Know that the workroom is up a flight of stairs; so just don’t bring what you don’t want to haul up there. Those of you, who have a hard time carrying your wheel upstairs, know that we will help you carry your wheel.

Room and Board

The Dubose offers comfortable, clean and reasonable lodgings, meals, and plenty of space to meet and work. We’ll be staying in Bishops Hall, a motel style building. Rooms are either single or double occupancy, double beds with private bath. Local workshop participants may chose to come to class only, or class with meals (see meals package below). Those who are traveling from a distance and prefer more sumptuous accommodations are welcome to stay at any of the other motels or B and B’s on the mountain and just join us for class and meals. We just need to know by May 1, 2012 whether you will be staying or eating with us at Dubose.

Our classroom is on the second floor. The classroom is huge and well lit and we’ll be able to easily accommodate up to 30 people and their wheels. There is no elevator but there will be plenty of help to get your wheel up to the classroom Friday afternoon and back down at the end of the retreat. Motel rooms are on first and second floor walk-up levels. We’re sorry everything isn’t ground floor as this workshop is not handicap accessible, so apologies in that regard.

The classroom is convenient to lodgings and restrooms and there is plenty of parking and convenient drop-off for lodgings and class. Weather should be nice then and there are many nooks both inside and outside where we can retire to knit or just relax. Dubose has a swimming pool, but it is unheated. Sometimes it’s warm enough to swim by mid May. We’re not promising a warm pool, but you never know.

Workshop participants should plan on arriving Friday evening, June 1. We’ll have wine, cheese and other noshes to graze upon, open market and a casual spin-in on Friday night beginning at 7:30 p.m. If you don’t think the wine and cheese event will be substantial enough, there are other dinner options in Monteagle, from McDonalds to High Point, including 2 good barbeque restaurants and great local pizza/Italian at Papa Ron’s.

The retreat starts at 9 AM Saturday and Sunday mornings and goes till 4 PM with an hour break for lunch. Please let us know if you have any dietary restrictions, as the kitchen is happy to accommodate. Participants who would like meals must purchase entire package. Options for food on the mountain are expanding somewhat, but it’s really nice to have the option to eat at Dubose.

Deadline

Deadline for Registration is May 1, 2012.  A non-refundable deposit of $25 is required upon registration. Balance of class fees is due two weeks prior to class, May 18.  Those of you who wish to pay by credit card may do so through PayPal ahead of time. I will send you an invoice upon request.

We’ll follow up with reminders of what to bring and other information on Sewanee and Monteagle. If you would like to register, or have any questions, please contact:

Lynne 

or her assistant:

Jan Quarles

Bertie and the Purler

I learned a new word this week thanks to Bertie Wooster, P.G. Wodehouse’s famous character of Bertie and Jeeves fame. I just had to reread Code of the Woosters again, considered by many to be one of the all time greatest comic novels. As Bertie would say, “and it did not disappoint.” It’s a veritable Gordian knot of plot twists and it shakes me loose of all encumbering baggage. Good medicine.
In C of the W, Bertram is a guest at Totleigh Towers, country estate of Sir Watkyn Bassett, father to “God’s Daisy Chains” Madeline Bassett, betrothed of newt fancier Gussie Fink Nottle. The betrothal is in jeopardy, along with another upcoming union between Stiffy Bing and Stinker Pinker and Bertram has gone to save the day. But Sir Watkyn suspects Bertie of intentions to purloin his newly (but unjustly acquired) antique silver cow creamer. Sir Watkin turns the thumb screws on Bertie to the degree that Bertram reflects:
Life at Totleigh Towers had hardened me, blunting the gentler emotions, and I derived nothing but gratification from the news that Constable Oats had been meeting with accidents. Only one thing could have pleased me more -- if I had been informed that Sir Watkyn Basset had trodden on the soap and come a purler in the bath tub.

And here’s the word.
purler
noun Brit. informal
A headlong fall: the horse went a purler at the last fence.
ORIGIN nid 19th cent: from dialect purl ‘upset, overturn’.

Of course, the image of Sir Watkyn possibly coming a purler is so incredibly delightful because he’s really asked for it and one can’t help but fall into the soup with the possibilities. But purler?
Remind you of something? It’s even spelled like the purl stitch.
I did a web search to try and find more about the word, but the origin is murky at best, it being a colloquial expression. So if anyone has any light to shed here, please come forth. I did find that Aussies consider a purler to be something mighty fine, but that is about all I could really find.
Meanwhile, when I overturn a knit stitch to make a purl, I will be thinking about Sir Watkyn slipping on the soap and falling oh so ingloriously headfirst into his bubble bath in his dressing gown and doing a slippery, blubbery somersault in the drink. And since everything always comes out well in the end of a PG Wodehouse, I can be confident that no injuries will be sustained, only the sublime indignities so justly deserved.

Check out the newest post on lynnevogel.com

My New Website and Retrospective Gallery

I'd like to announce that I have a new website, www.lynnevogel.com. I wanted to have a place where I could post a permanent gallery of my retrospective work, and have a central hub for blog, store links, etc. This will remain my blog and you can access it from my webstie.


Of course a website is always a work in progress. But it's kind of fun to unfold one thing at a time. Recently I"ve been digging out photos of my earlier work. This piece (modeled by my friend Leah in Taos, NM) was one of the pieces I sold at the Santa Fe Weaving Gallery back in 1986ish. It's all knit from yarns from La Lana Wools in Taos, and I believe this was a combo of Potpouri and Moonmist Forever Random Blends  and Onion Skins on Silk. Those yarns were so gorgeous in intarsia patterns and the colors resonated with the desert with a special life that glowed there more than anywhere else. Talk about native dyes! For more retrospective work, check out my new Gallery page at lvdotcom.

Coloring Books

Nostalgia. Watch out...it's habit forming. Heady as my mom's perfume of the same name ("The first perfume to orbit a man"), so long forgotten I can find no description of it on the internet. In fact there is a new one to replace it by somebody named Veigt.  I don't know what the new one smells like but the orignial, by Germain Monteil, was tart, sour like a green plum, with rose, lily, sandalwood, leather. Where do I remember it most? In the car, with a cigarette going and the windows rolled up within an inch of closed, in all weather (forget air conditioning). The year: 1957. The place: Los Angeles, Westside. The car: a Chrysler Windsor, white with blue interior, push button transmission (so much fun to punch, going nowhere, hands reaching up to the enormous plastic wheel), and big wings that my brother and I rode up the driveway, slippery as hanging on to ice.

That was the year I went completely insane over coloring books. I couldn't get enough. Crayons, first the 24 pack (with both parents artists there was no 8 pack except in school), then the 48 pack (oh, crack the top and sniff the virgin perfection of wax (twice the colors, twice the aroma) drink in the hues, both radiant and soft). There was orchid in that one, and periwinkle, carnation pink, cornflower blue, spring green. Then finally the 101 colors. Gad! Died and gone to heaven. But it was a rip off of sorts cuz it had multiples...five blues, two blacks, three reds. I guess if you were going to have that many colors, you were going to wear some of them to nubbins and we did.

It was in 1957 that mom took me to visit our former next door neighbors. While Gladys and Serena drank coffee and talked (booooring), Kitty and I poured over coloring books in the breakfast room flooded with afternoon light. She had a Ginny doll coloring book (cuz she also had a slew of Ginny Dolls). Kitty pronounced "Ginnydoll" like it was one word. Ginny appeared on every page in a polka dot dress, smiling like Doris Day. The polka dots were tiny, even by little kid standards, outlined in black. The lines were finer than the cheaper books I was used to. Kitty took advantage of this by carefully tracing the outline of each shape (like the dress for instance, blue this time) in heavy but flawless color, like lipstick applied by a pro, then filling in the shape with half or quarter tones of the same color. She never went outside the lines. I thought the effect was breathtaking, partly because it looked kind of three dimensional, and partly because I couldn't for the life of me do it like she did. I particularly loved the halftones and started practicing them, later to use them to build layers of colors, to mix colors by overlapping.

I also thought it was quite amazing that she had perfected such finesse at the age of 6. Hadn't it only been about 3 years since we were scribbling? Two for me. Back then we exercised our motor skills with crayons on newsprint, metal skates on sidewalks,  jumping over boxwood hedges, cutting out paper dolls. Does this take you back?

How did you color? Do you remember? Say when you were 5 or 6...first gradish. What did you love to color? How many colors did you have? Were they crayons or something else? You don't have to say the year unless you want to.

Starry Nite Scarf "Blazing Star"

 As I sit down to write, it has just started to snow. In these first few minutes of snowfall, the coin sized white flakes provide a frosty screen for a colored landscape. Tree trunks are mahogany and raisin, with a few tea colored leaves still hanging on, evergreen shades of ivy, pine and privet prevail. At the rate it's snowing, I wouldn't be surprized if most of that color disappears within the hour, leaving charcoal, evergreen and white.

But I digress. This is a post about color, nevertheless. I just finished a new version of my Starry Nite Scarf. (pattern is available on Ravelry and Etsy). I call this one Blazing Star because (as most Starry Nites knit from handspun) this is one of a kind. The yarn in this version is heavier than the original, more of an aran weight than a dk. That means that the stars are larger, the edging wider. And since the yarn was spun long draw from the fold, the colors are completely different and the feel much cushier.

There are four colorways (well, maybe a touch of a 5th) in this scarf. All are from Three Waters Farm BFL in Gloaming, Oaks and Hickories, Indian Corn and Cinco de Mayo. I believe I have a touch of Fall Apple Redux too, or Fall Apple Redux plied with Indian Corn. But the scarf would look just as stunning without that colorway included. BTW, Three Waters Farm was just reviewed in Knittyspin's Winter 2011 Fiber Fiesta. Check it out!

The beauty of spinning long draw, taking tufts of color and spinning them in sequence, is that the color bands in the yarn are very long and the colors change gradually, almost in a painterly gradation. I really love this scarf. I also deleted the triangles that turn the neck. Those of you who already have the pattern will know what I'm talking about.
I'm offering this finished scarf for sale on Etsy, just in time for Holiday gifting. This is the first time I've ever sold a finished Starry Nite. It's a gorgeous piece, and the finishing is sublime (like my finishing usually is). But if you want to spin and knit a similar one, you can get the colors from Three Waters Farm. If you don't see them listed, just convo Mary Ann and she'll fix you up.

A Little Taste

Twist

Over this week I"ll be posting a few glimpses of my new work for the Studio Tour. You can see my last post for full details about that event.

This piece is called Twist. It's part of the Full Cast show at the SAS Gallery. This show isn't fully up yet...hope the curator's OK. It seems to be a season of too much to do and not enough time to do it in, a feeling of flood, of being caught up in powerful waters beyond our control. Nevertheless I managed to get a quick snap. The darling little rock that is dangling at the top of the frame is from another piece sitting on the shelf above awaiting placement. I like this pairing, casual as it is, because the colors and textures of the handspun yarns in the wrap spring from rock, bark, trunk and lichen. The  little rock hangs suspended so that we don't forget our Gaia, prime mover.

December 3-4, 2011 CAST/TACA Studio Tour

 It's only a week till the Studio Tour! What a quick year that was. Last year I opened my studio to visitors on the CAST/TACA Studio Tour in Sewanee along with Sharon Bandy and Jan Quarles and a good time was had by all. This year I'm going to be flying solo because my studio is so tiny and I have more work to display. Jan will be there to assist, but won't be showing this year, mainly because she put all her available time and energy into launching Fiber in the Boro (and what a great show that was!). Sharon will have her own fabulous space at St. Andrews Sewanee. BTW, Sharon has started weaving and she is a natural, so please go check out her stuff...nice! Such edges! But I digress.

Superfluity

This year the Studio Tour is on the weekend of December 3 and 4. You can find a printable brochure complete with map of Sewanee showing all the lovely studios here. It includes all the artists on the tour from Sewanee to Monteagle and inbetween. Also, don't miss the Full CAST Show at the St Andrews Sewanee School Gallery.

Lattice Felted Scarf

Felted Knit Saddlebag

If you come to my studio you will find an array of fine wearables and accessories, mostly knitted from handspun yarns, some felted. There will be scarves, wraps, cowl, cuffs, fingerless gloves, bags (large and small) and jackets. There will also be some handdyed sock yarn, both my AuNaturel semi solids and some multicolored handpaints.

Also, Studio Tour is always on the same weekend as Sewanee's Festival of Lessons and Carols. This immensely popular event takes place in All Saints Chapel in the quad of the University of the South. They festoon this gothic hall of stonework and stained glass with evergreens and candles and then fill the air with song and pipe organ music. So there is much to see and do on the mountain Studio Tour weekend.

Black Friday Weekend Savings

Fern Spiral Socks

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! There is certainly so much to be thankful for. Life is good!

To show my thanks I am offering 25% off all my patterns in on Ravelry and all items in my Etsy Store today (Friday, November 25, 2011) through Sunday (November 27, 2011).

Ravelry patterns will be automatically discounted 25% at checkout. Just put the pattern in your cart to see the savings.

Etsy: please use Coupon Code BLKFR25 at checkout to redeem 25% off everything. Sale ends Sunday midnight.

Cheers!

Party 4 Paws

Party 4 Paws is tomorrow evening and we are all bustling about in preparation. This is Franklin County Humane Society's annual Fall Fundraiser and it's a good party! 6:00 - 8:30 PM, Saturday, November 19 at the Sewanee Inn in Sewanee, TN. Ticket price of $30 entitles you to swing up to a full bar, enjoy a fabulous buffet from the finest local restaurants,  and bid on the best silent auction we've had yet to date. There are some really fabulous items in that auction this year, such as a weekend at Three Oaks Guest House, a massage, a tarot reading, pottery and fiber art items from well-known local artisans, an auto winterization from Sewanee Auto, a cat spay or neuter, and lots of lovely Christmas items, and much much more. This year I started thinking of stuff I would want to bid on (the massage in particular, but many of the other items as well) and started asking around for these donations. Other members have been creative in their quest for auction items as well, and I am so happy to say that folks from our county and beyond have been particularly generous this year. Thanks, thanks, thanks to everyone who has helped to support FCHS and Animal Harbor!!! See you there!

F in the B

 Fiber in the Boro was a great success last Saturday. What a gorgeous day it was, too, with tons of color everywhere. Brain child of Jan Quarles of Daily Fibers and friends Darlene Dralus, and Meredith Kermicle of Knaughty Knitter in Murfreesboro worked their buns off to bring everybody a great show and it paid off. I heard nothing but positive remarks all around. The arena was well lit (how rare is that?) and warm (also rare), full of quality local and national vendors, outfitted with clean facilities. Food was delicious and very reasonable. All in all, a great time was had by all.

My corespinning class was too short. We all wanted to stay another hour, but it wasn't to be. Nevertheless, everyone had a happy time spinning beautiful fibers. We tailspun some of Kim and Jane Caulfield's cotswold locks (top photo) from Far Out Farms(that's Jane smiling in the second photo). Lisa Olsen of Alpaca Atlantic in Manchester provided us with some really luscious barely blended fiber, carded from several animals. So we had camel/cream, camel/charcoal/cream, and charcoal/silver/cream and every blend was labeled with the names of the animals from whom the fibers came. Carol Larsen of Rivers Edge Fiber Arts from Michigan (that's Carol at the Sidekick wheel in the 4th photo) provided the class with gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous purple blend of merino, tencel, banana and milk fiber plus 7 colors of dyed bamboo for our handblending. She also provided me with spindles to teach an inpromptu overflow class in beginning drop spindling! Thanks to everyone for their generous support.

 I heard we had an "agility llama" at the fair. This photo is of the only llama that came as far as I could tell, so hopefully this is the one and only "agility llama". Since I was teaching most of the day I didn't get around to the vendors as much as I would like. I spent some time in the Daily Fibers booth (photo #3) while she set up for her sold out wet felting class. She had one vivid and luscious array of fiber, my handdyed silk scarves, and handwoven scarves, handspun and fabulous photo note cards by Christina Consiglio of Blue Leaf Arts (who also took all these photos here). Darlene did a fantastic job of holding down the fort between the arena and the classroom and although she dropped her mini walkie talkie about a hundred times, it still worked by the end of the day.

Tons of people came and everything is in place for a repeat performance next year, so if you missed out last Saturday, remember us next October!

 

Merlfleece

 This one is for all you dog lovers out there. Ten years ago I was on the board of our uber-local animal rescue organization Sewanee Animal Rescue League. At that time we kept all the dogs in an alpaca barn that was maintained by volunteer labor, my own included. So many great dogs came to us then and almost every one of them got homes. There was a litter of 8 tiny fuzzy puppies that were nearly bald from mange. Pat and Anne dipped them for several weeks and nursed them back to health. One of my fellow volunteers fell in love with and adopted one of those pups while he was a student here at Sewanee and named him Merlin. Now Merlin is 10 and has been by Smith's side all this time through thick and thin and I have to say has heard a lot of awesome live music in his time as well. (Yay, Smith...my kinda guy). Smith asked me recently if I would spin some of the "Merlfleece", a fiber in abundant supply, since Merlin grew into a 70 lb collie/shepherd/? mix with a full and luxurious coat. Of course I agreed and here's the yarn. The marled yarn is one ply Merlin, one ply gorgeous drum carded alpaca from Lisa Olsen, who separates her fleeces and processes them by hand. The dark skein is 100% that same alpaca. The yarn on the bobbin is 100% Merlin. Dog hair and alpaca can at times be nearly undistinguishable and both have the same drape and hand.

Smith followed my instructions and combed out all of Merlin's undercoat, keeping all the fibers neatly arranged. Then he gave Merlin his usual summer doo (a buzz cut) and saved that fiber as well. As I suspected, the shorn fibers were too slippery and coarse to be spun, but the undercoat was divine, very downy and extremely soft and warm. The few guard hairs that made their way into the mix will soon fall out with wear. The yarn is so soft and really gorgeous. And it smells very clean indeed.

I have to laugh at this because so many spinners just won't put dog hair through their fingers. I've even known spinners who really don't like animals all that much and certainly wouldn't touch a dirty one straight from the barnyard (you know who you are). But why put down the dog? They are domestic animals, much cleaner than their barnyard cousins as a rule (mine certainly is). Have you ever smelled a goat? Yet that's where we get cashmere. Camel? Peeeeyoo. How about silk? It's the saliva of a worm...come on! Handled properly and combed from the proper breed (or mix) of dog, doghair is a luxurious and super warm addition to the spinning stable. The smell? I took the skein to my spinning group last week and nobody guessed what it was until they had exhausted all other options. So Merlin, you have now been immortalized in a skein of handsome yarn. Attaboy!

Fiber in the Boro

 Fiber in the Boro is just around the corner. On October 29 we'll have a new fiber festival in Middle Tennessee thanks to Jan Quarles, Darlene Dralus and crew. It's a one day fair at the Lane Ag Center in Murfreesboro. Most of it is inside, which means no rain, no cold, no wind. Ahhhh, comfort and loads upon loads of fibery goodness. Check out their website for more info...vendors, classes, etc. In addition to some of your favorite local vendors like Daily Fibers and Far Out Farm, you'll find the spectacular Rivers Edge Fiber Arts from Michigan with all their fun blends.

I'll be teaching a corespinning and tailspinning class at Fiber in the Boro. You can sign up now by going here. We'll start with basic corespinning from beautiful layered batts, then move on to handblending for color studies and myriad variation, then how to handle fleece and spin it for maximum curl and dangle. Three hours will go pretty fast. Bring your wheel with the largest orifice and hooks/guides. Know how to spin.

 And yes, I know it's been a while since I blogged. So much has happened lately. Monk got his picture in the paper...and a big one at that...on the front page of the Metro Section of Chattanooga's Times Free Press a couple weeks ago. He was Cassy Englert's posterchild for her marvelous Chattanooga Canine Rehabilitation and Wellness . You can see it at the Times Free Press website in the Moment section. But it was a couple weeks ago, so you'll have to scroll down to past "moments". You'll see a bar of photos entitled Past Moments. Go back a couple weeks till you see a photo of a spotted red dog in an underwater treadmill. There is audio! Complete with heavy breathing.

Then (as Darlene so succinctly put it) I "cleaned up" at the Tennessee State Fair spinning competition, taking home first prize for both wheel and spindle speed spinning. Guess I got a bit giddy, cuz I went and rode the mechanical bull, albeit very very slowly. No, I wasn't drunk. Just full of myself. Loved it.

Last but not least I helped to rescue 8 cats that some heathen dumped at Greens View in Sewanee last Monday. A mama, 5 adorable six week old kittens and two beautiful 6 month old females. One of those females has a marvelous home as we speak, thanks to someone in our local spinning group. But the rest need homes. These are great cats, folks, so if you are in the middle Tennessee area and would like to give a very sweet cat a home, let me know.

One Gorgeous Skein

Mary Spanos just sent me this skein she spun from some of my fiber from Dubose in May. Mary couldn't make it to Dubose as she had planned this year, so Mary Kaiser took her my OOAK hank of "Blue Smoke" superwash bfl and this is what she spun from it. Gad zooks! Anybody want to wager a guess as to how many yards are in this skein? It's in line to become a lace stole at this point. Now I want to see the stole!

Mary is a Textile Anthropologist at the University of South Alabama, working primarily in Native American textiles. You can read more about her here. She has recreated some of the clothing worn by local tribes. And she's a consumate spinner with the most amazing skill and aesthetic.

This fiber was dyed in an immersion bath. Those of you who will be in my Harrisville Class two weeks from today, we'll be working with this particular technique on this exact fiber. I love it because there is no repeat pattern...color hits entirely at random. It can be so subtle, even subtler than this, or much wilder. It's all in the hand of the dyer.

Fern Spiral Socks

Fern Spiral Socks

 I had so much fun designing fingerless gloves that I completely forgot about socks. Me? Forget about socks? Pish. Anyway, here's my new sock pattern, Fern Spiral Socks. It's a mate to my Fern Spiral Fingerless Gloves. You can buy this pattern at my Ravelry Store even if you aren't a member of Ravelry. Purchase gives you immediate access to a downloadable PDF! Cool, huh. Of course you can buy it at my Etsy Store too, but you'll have to wait for me to email you the PDF. I love the Ravelry Store.

Like my Fern Spiral and Spiraling Leaves Fingerless Gloves, the spiral pattern twists in opposite directions on each sock for a mirror image effect. This is a very fun sock to knit. I knit mine with Ashland Bay La Grande 100% superwash merino sportweight yarn. If you are a handspinner, you would shoot for a wpi of 16. Yarn buyers, look on your yarn labels for a recommended gauge in stockinette of 6 1/2 sts per inch on US 2/2.75mm. Some great yarn subs are Shi Bui Sock, Dream in Color Smooshy, anything dyed on Louet Gems or La Grande. I dyed mine with eucalyptus leaves and madder root, au naturel.
If you have tiny or narrow feet, you can knit the sock with finer yarn on US 0/2.00mm or US1/2.75mm needles. As shown, these socks fit a women's medium to large foot.

I wrote this pattern for double pointed needles because it is the best way to keep track of your lace pattern. That makes this very user friendly to those who are new to lace in the round. We like user friendly.

Enjoy!

Fern Spiral Fingerless Gloves

A Perfect Knight

I know a lot of you have been following Zel's progress, so here's a current Zel update. Yes, she still needs a home. No, it can't be ours. But I have definitely had a good time knowing and training this gregarious and happy little dog.  Every time I have worked with a shelter or rescue dog I can't help but look for each one's particular talents. And although most dogs adopted here in Franklin County, TN end up as family animals, there is still room to put these talents to work to some degree. Zel is kind of like a knight on horseback, charging off to slay dragons. If you are familiar with the personalities represented in the tarot, you might call her the Knight of Wands. Always ready for adventure, new experiences, travel. Not your sit at home kinda gal, at least not till adventures have been had and it's time to rest up for the next one. I think she'd make a great police dog, a cadaver dog, or an agent for the DEA. She'd love the job and is definitely trainable. Nothing escapes her attention and she's learned that she's happiest as a team player, though she still needs to be reminded of such.

On the 4th of July, I took Zel to our Sewanee Mutt Show. It's one of those Andy of Mayberry type events, full of nice folks with their kids and dogs. Tiny children dress to match their pooches and parade around the ring for prizes. It's always so amazing how well behaved the dogs are at this event and I think that they actually really enjoy it. So I dressed Zel up to look her best in these lovely grandes fleurs. Zel was great both in and out of the ring. As she paraded around, children reached out to her, a sea of little hands, and she licked them all as she passed. She made quite a splash, but nobody took the plunge to take her home.

When I try to envision the perfect home for Zel, I keep coming back to one thing. She loves to play rough. This can be a good thing if you have another dog who needs a hard-playing companion. This is not such a good thing if you aren't strong enough to handle her. She needs a lot of exercise. This is a good thing if you are a runner or bicyclist (she loves to run beside my husbands mountain bike, on lead). Not so good if you want a couch potato dog for the kids to use as a pillow. When she's feeling her oats she tries to get her way by going into an alligator roll. So she'd be perfect for a closet alligator handler.

But I have to say that this girl has really made progress. Thanks to the help of Lucia Dale and her obedient pit/greyhound mix Star, we have both learned a lot about working as a team. Zel and Star have had some great play days at Lucia's house (Star likes to play rough too) and some really nice long obedient walks together. And she's been such a good girl. Thanks so much, Lucia! I've had so much to learn, since Monk has spoiled me rotten! Zel isn't the only one that needs a new bag of tricks.

Here's Zel's Petfinder Page if you'd like to learn more about her.

Something Primal

Spinning fibers into yarn is one of the most ancient crafts. In these days of easy access to anything and everything we don't often put a lot of thought to our first ancestors, who developed this craft before the written word. Yesterday as I was spinning, I wandered back in time to try to imagine how the first thread, yarn, rope was spun.

Usually the first image I get is that of someone rolling hairs against a surface and discovering twist. I guess this is because I have a dog, and I perform this motion on a daily basis. I've even make short lengths of yarn for dog owners from their pets fur in this manner, usually at dog parks where I never have a spindle handy. But there are other ways to discover the strength of twist. Have you ever broken off a twig of something like mulberry or maple and had the bast fibers in the bark hang up on you? You start twisting and twisting to break the stem and it just gets stronger and stronger. I even picked a long blade of Johnson grass last weekend as a makeshift leash for Monk when we found ourselves at the 4th of July street dance without a regular leash. That's one tough grass, but it's tougher when twisted. And imagine being the first to pull on a silk cocoon to find that, unlike spider webs, the fibers didn't break. How did that happen? Did one fall from a tree into a cooking vat and start to expand? Stew spoiled, most beautiful fiber in the world discovered.

All this is fascinating in its own right, but what really impressed me was the fact that before twist was discovered, clothing and binding came from the hides of animals (paper too). Imagine how many animals were spared when humans found other sources of food and clothing. This very discovery was the beginning of conscious civilization. No wonder spinning, knitting and other fiber arts bring us back to our core, help us be present, centered, help us feel like we're really accomplishing something tangible.

Harrisville: August 1-5, 2011

Just want to get the word out that there are still some openings in my Harrisville Designs "Dye, Spin, Knit" workshop August 1-5. This is a rare opportunity due to this slower than slow year for us all. This class is usually full in December with a waiting list. But this is a different kind of year. If you've wanted to join us and haven't been able to get in these past years, give it a try. Call the Weaving Center at 603 827-3996 to make your reservation.

This year we're going to have the opportunity to do a little immersion dyeing. In past years we haven't been able to swing this, but I think we can do it this year because I will have the marvelous assistance of Jan Quarles who has been in this class as a participant for all but one of my 5 years. We'll also work a little bit with fleece this year...a touch of curly fleece, the kind that makes great tailspun and curly lock-spun yarns. They are amazing dyed both in immersion and by direct application, so you'll get to try something new in addition to discovering and experimenting with many ways to use handpainted rovings in your spinning.

It's a one of a kind experience too. Great company, laid back atmos, historical setting, great food. And long uninterrupted hours of fiber play. mmmmmmmmmmmm. Remember that this is mainly a spinning and dyeing class. You should know how to spin and be comfortable spinning a stable yarn on either a spindle or wheel. You don't need a lick of dye experience. You'll get that when you come. Knitting is just an adjunct to yarn design...so if you are a weaver or crocheter, hooker or felter, you can get a lot out of this class and even try your yarns and fibers in your favorite medium. I like to think of my class as having enough structure to keep you going but not so much to hold you back:-).

cheers!