A lot of knitting.

Lately, I have been quite busy. Whether this is due to general inspiration, or purely down to procrastination regarding my dissertation, we may never know (or until my hand in date). One of the things I am finding with spinning is the vast amount of time needed for fibre preparation, and its importance in the whole spinning process. Among the collection of fibre I keep stashed in my cupboard I have some soya bean fibres - a beautiful pale gold colour with the lustre of silk.

The long process of carding has guided me towards spinning directly from the roving, and whether the rules of spinning allow me to do so or not, I have attempted. So far so good.

I was considering keeping this yarn as a single instead of plying it, although I am unsure about the qualities of the soya bean fibres, so we may have a bit of a surprise after I set the twist in this one. Hopefully not.

Yet again, I think this will end up knitted into some kind of neck piece. These pieces are multifunctional for my personal wear and current studio work at the moment (on right: Little Boat at Sea cowl as soft platform). There is something wrong when you are knitting purely for aesthetic qualities, particularly with a handspun yarn. Too much time has been laboured into it to keep it simply as an object or decoration. The fabric needs to be touched and appreciated. However, it is enjoyable to see your finished piece in a different light, with a different use and with completely different ideas.

Little Boat at Sea

Here is my new yarn. After a few hours and minor repetitive strain I have achieved something that has worked well. Other than losing the function of pinching in my fingers, I think it was worth it.

Below, this yarn has been knitted into a long cowl which you can wear doubled up (like shown) or as one long piece, or wrapped around the neck three times. The blend of silk makes this yarn very soft and the silk catches the light. There is something interesting about knitting a cowl - whether it is the instant enjoyment you experience after knitting a quick piece, or the versatility of the item. I can say that it is easy to get hooked on making these and I am beginning to build up quite a collection.

It has been some time...

Over the past few months I have been busy working and saving and here is the result:

Ashford Joy (if a little blurry).

In my last photographic post I displayed a photo of some drop spindle spun yarn. Now, faster spinning - more wool shall be spun :D

So far it is going well. A little tricky to master the hand movement and treadling to begin with, but we'll get there! I am currently working on a silk/merino mix in sandy colours with a hint of sky blue and bright red. Hand carding is taking some time so I have my eye on a drum carder for my next fibre related purchase.

The pain of writing

Ok, so blogging is fair enough, but critical writing...well that's something different. We have been asked to form a contextual review about the influences for our work in the studio and it is CLEARLY stated that we cannot talk about our actual studio work. This has been such a drag. Sewing and knitting has been replaced by reading and writing, and although it has given me time to express my views on knitting within art, I haven't had much time to make anything.
I have been getting craft withdrawal. So, hopefully over the next few weeks, after my dissertation proposal has been submitted I will have craft time again!

Niddy Noddy

After realising my obsession with all things woolen, I decided to learn how to spin my own. This is my first attempt - some raspberry merino wool. I'm sure there will be many more photos to come.

Hello

I have started this blog in order to document things I've seen, made and basically to have another creative outlet. I will be posting some photos and texts about my studio work and exhibitions I have seen, as well as some other things too.