Little Nubs

How comes that I have fallen in love with the look of something so utterly boring to knit as moss stitch?

At the Biella The Wool Company

On March 22 I went to Miagliano to visit the Biella The Wool Company. I will have more to say about it in the future, by now I have posted the photos. They are not the best quality because... Uhm, because I was taking them and because I forgot the camera so I used the cellphone.

Rakestroke

A few days ago I gifted myself a new toy: a rakestraw spinner. It's a sort of paddle that you can rotate to produce yarn: a sort of a spindle substitute. I am toying around with it, I probably chose the wrong project to start with: I have a packet of 7 rainbow minitops that I wanted to spin for a lace project, probably for the Rome Gay Pride. But spinning thin yarn with the rakestraw is not all that easy, since all twist must be added by hand. Yet, I have worsted-spun two colors already (blue and indigo) to about sportweight and plied them the Andean way to a rather lofty (for a worsted) sportweight. I like the resulting yarn, but it does indeed take longer and more effort, although I must admit that plying on the paddle allows more control than spindle plying (though you can't ply the same amount of yarn).

At the same time I finished the multicolor merino I bought in London this summer. it still needs soaking and a bit of blocking, but that will come in due time (I want to also finish the rainbow and another yarn I have on the make to do it all at once). I am satisfied with the result, but I also itch for some woolen spinning: I have been worsted spinning only for a few months, so as soon as I have either of the current yarns off a spindle I will start with some more of the Shetland from Deborah at last year's spinning workshop in Florence.

To help Japan

Purchase Olgajazzy's patterns. Until the end of the month Olga will donate the 85% iof the price for each of her patterns to relief organizations dealing with the earthquake and tsunami survivors.

May the cyanoacrilate be blessed

And blessed be the fact that drop spindles are such simple devices because a couple of days ago the hook in my Turkish spindle came off yesterday I grabbed a cyanoacrilate glue and this morning a drop of it fixed my spindle. Yet, in the worst case, I could have just picked the hook totally off and filed the top into a notch.
Spindle, such wonderful, simple and yet effective design, how I love thee!

Oops, I did it again

Sometimes you get a yarn and plan to just swatch and see how it works and in just one second a pattern emerges.

These are my new Fontana Mitts, called after the Fontana Sisters, the famous Italian coutouriers if the mid XX century and famous for their wedding gowns. Sunday night I was watching the TV movie that RAI produced on the (largely made-up) story of the three Fontana sisters and at the same time I was toying with the BTWC yarn I got for testing and almost of its own volition the two-ply (Oropa) started turning into this, and the accompanying pattern. I am now working for the second mitten and at the same time editing the small size version (The ine I am knitting). Next I will have to size them up (keeping track of everything) for M and L sizes, find testers... Geee!