There has been spinning...

But the lingering presence of The World's Worst Cold (TM)* has made documentation a bit of a struggle. However, over the weekend I finally managed some photos.

When previously spotted, this fiber looked like this:

Now it looks like this:

Mystery top, which I think contains some silk along with maybe merino?
Spun worsted, short forward draw at 9:1, plied at same ratio.
3.1 oz/305 yds of 26-20 wpi yarn after a hot soak (laceweight, although there are some mutant 16 wpi bumps in there).

This stuff was lovely to spin - quick, easy to draft, the perfect mindless spinning for someone who spent far too much brainpower and creative energy on Christmas knitting!

It's already been balled up as well - I'm thinking a lacy little scarf of some kind. This picture is probably the best representation of the color. Plus you can see my MacGyvered ball winder set up. So it waits patiently on the top of the active stash, waiting for inspiration to strike.

* I got the flu twice over the holidays, the first time three days before Christmas, the second time on New Year's Eve. My second bout morphed into TWWC(TM), which is only now starting to resolve. However, I have discovered the wonder that is the Hot Toddy**. And it snowed last week, rendering my presence at work somewhat optional. I'm betting I'm completely well for my scheduled doctor's appointment on Wednesday.

** The version I've been enjoying includes honey, single-malt and the juice of half a lemon, filled up to the top of the mug with hot water. Mmmmmmm...two ibuprofen/paracetamol and a hot toddy = happy sleeping sick Porpoise.

FO: Ply by Night cowl and mitt set

Pattern: cowl blogged here, mitts just made up out of my head using linen stitch and more or less the same made up pattern I used for the manly mitts.
Yarn: handspun BFL singles from Chris at Briar Rose Fibers, blogged here in its final form. I used about 3/4 of the yarn, lets say 180 yds for the pair.
Needles: US 5/3.75 mm
Start/finish (for mitts): 12 December - 14 December 2009
Comments: No mods because it's my own pattern. I cast-on 47 stitches and worked in linen stitch pattern for 2 inches. Then I increased one stitch at beginning and end of row (2 sts increased) every third row five times, working new stitches in pattern. worked for about 2 more inches, then put 10 extra stitches on waste yarn, rejoined and worked 2 inches. Bound off in purl. Picked up 10 extra stitches plus 3 more and worked in linen stitch for 0.75 inches around the thumb, then bound off in purl.

Thankfully my mom's hands aren't too big, because the linen stitch has very little elasticity. But the set was very well received!

FO: Hat and mitten set

Back to the Christmas rundown. This was certainly the year for handspun gifts.

The hat was knit in July, and I had enough of the yarn (blogged here) to make some matching mittens.

Pattern: Robin's Egg Blue hat by Rachel Iufer, inspiring matching mittens
Yarn: Hello Yarn Fiber Club superwash BFL in "Night Sky", 2 skeins bulky weight, 245 yds. I used probably 200 yds for the set.
Needles: US 10/6.0 mm - next time I'll go down a needle size on the mittens - they were a bit loosely knit.
Comments/mods: I've already blogged the hat, so I'll just comment a bit on the mittens. I figured out the number of stitches I wanted for the folded over cuff, and worked that like the band on the hat. Then I knit a generic mitten shape, with an inset thumb (as opposed to a thumb gusset deal). The mittens are a bit loose, but I think they can work with liners if it's really cold.

The buttons came from some I salvaged off my Mountain Mohair sweater when I turned it into spaghetti. I think they work well, and the receipient seems to like them!

Happy New Year!

Another year gone by, another year to come, with lots of fibery pursuits. Here's the rundown:

Finished in 2009 (knitting):
6 scarves/shawls
10 pairs of socks
4 hats
8 mittens/handcoverings of some sort
7 sweaters (mostly for the girls)
2 blankets
6 other (earrings, mini-socks)

And five new published designs, one of which is actually for sale. That's actually more then I thought I'd accomplished, so I'm pretty pleased. But I think for 2010 I'd like to get 12 pairs of socks, and a couple more sweaters for me and/or other people - now that we live in a climate where sweaters are actually useful, Ironman has deigned (read: I've managed to twist his arm until he's agreed to let me make him one) to request a cabled sweater. We'll see whether it's out of handspun or I break down and buy some nice yarn for it.

Finished in 2009 (spinning):
Yarn School merino, 4 oz
Sunshine of Your Love SW merino, 8 oz
Preppy Yarn School Masham, 4 oz
Hello Yarn Night Sky SW BFL, 8 oz
Yarn School BFL, 4 oz
Alpaca/merino/silk blend, 4 oz
Ply by Night BFL, 5 oz
Yarn School Corriedale, 1 lb
Hello Yarn Thrive Corriedale, 4 oz
Devil's merino, 8 oz
Hello Yarn Air merino/tencel blend, 4 oz
Spunky Eclectic BFL, 4 oz
Hello Yarn Norway BFL, 4 oz
Natural Brown BFL, 4 oz

That adds up to almost 5 lbs of fiber spun. Hmmm...I think I'll aim for more next year. I'm already planning on spinning two sweater lots worth of yarn in January/February - the purple stuff I dyed last year for Ysolda's Vine Yoke Cardigan, and my Hello Yarn Winter Storage pile (20 oz) for some other sweater thing, pattern as yet undecided.

I hope everyone has had a wonderful, wooly and fibery holiday with plenty of time to spend with friends and family. Here's to a fabulous 2010, and thank you for reading!

FO: Handspun manly mitts

Pattern: my own, a simple k6, p2 rib for the body of the mitt, with 8 stitches increased for the thumb gusset.
Yarn: Handspun BFL from Spunky Eclectic, detailed here
Needles: US 3/3.25 mm
Start/finish: 2 December - 6 December 2009
Gauge: ~6 st/inch
Comments/mods: Made for my brother, who lives in DC, where it gets cold, but not really really cold. I suspect he won't wear these much in the winter, but they'll be good for spring/fall transitional times.

I worked four rows of k1, p1 ribbing before switching to the main stitch pattern and worked for 2.5 inches before starting the thumb increases. Then put thumb stitches on waste yarn and worked the body of the mitt for another 1.5 inches before ending with 4 rows of ribbing. Then picked up thumb stitches plus 4 more and worked four rows of ribbing. Done and dusted (in the local vernacular).

I hope everyone has a great New Year's Eve tonight!