Hi! Goodness, it has been so long since I posted! So many changes at the Tranquil Cottage. The weekends, which are my only opportunity to post, have FLOWN by.
Since my last post I have taken a weekend trip with my bestie, the fabulous Rebecca from Wrapped in Wool podcast and blog. We enjoyed a couple days at the beach with her adorable toddler. The weather was lovely and the view was amazing. We couldn't have had a better break from the everyday grind.
She and I also attended the Shenandoah Valley Fiber Festival. Oh, so many pretties! We had a great but exhausting time. Her toddler had way more energy than she and I put together and I think it goes without saying that by the end of the day both she and I would have gladly taken a ride in the stroller that he protested against so much.
At SVFF I passed a vendor named Hipstrings. They had a ton of lovely supported spindles. Having had many a drop spindle fail I passed right by. Also, the sole item on my Christmas wish list this year is a spinning wheel. Still, it kept sticking in my mind that upon arriving at SVFF one of the first things I fell in love with was a braid of superwash merino. I passed it up since I had no way to spin it and wanted to focus on yarny goodness. Finally, I made the decision to pick up a supported spindle and give it a go. If all else fails, Santa has my letter. ( I sent it SUPER early!) Oh but I LOVE spinning on the supported spindle. Love, love, LOVE. It took a little practice but I think I really have the hang of it. Plying is the hard part but I am getting the hang of that as well. Below is the silver baby alpaca silk blend purchased from Hipstrings. It was my first attempt at spinning on my brand new spindle as well as my first ever attempt at plying. As you can see the plying was quite wonky but it doesn't look horribly hateful.
She and I also attended the Shenandoah Valley Fiber Festival. Oh, so many pretties! We had a great but exhausting time. Her toddler had way more energy than she and I put together and I think it goes without saying that by the end of the day both she and I would have gladly taken a ride in the stroller that he protested against so much.
At SVFF I passed a vendor named Hipstrings. They had a ton of lovely supported spindles. Having had many a drop spindle fail I passed right by. Also, the sole item on my Christmas wish list this year is a spinning wheel. Still, it kept sticking in my mind that upon arriving at SVFF one of the first things I fell in love with was a braid of superwash merino. I passed it up since I had no way to spin it and wanted to focus on yarny goodness. Finally, I made the decision to pick up a supported spindle and give it a go. If all else fails, Santa has my letter. ( I sent it SUPER early!) Oh but I LOVE spinning on the supported spindle. Love, love, LOVE. It took a little practice but I think I really have the hang of it. Plying is the hard part but I am getting the hang of that as well. Below is the silver baby alpaca silk blend purchased from Hipstrings. It was my first attempt at spinning on my brand new spindle as well as my first ever attempt at plying. As you can see the plying was quite wonky but it doesn't look horribly hateful.
The blue/pink/red is a wool silk blend from Gourmet Stash. It was a bag of Tribbles in the Ursa Major colorway and the colors were so lovely I just couldn't resist. It is quite obviously thick/thin yarn. My spinning had some inconsistency which was exaggerated by the plying as it seemed that all my super thick parts and super thin parts seemed to line up with their super thick and super thin counterparts. The result is a yarn that ranges from fingering weight to super bulky all in one skein. We will refer to this inconsistancy as "design element". Overall, I am happy with it as my second ever handspinning and plying attempt but I would like an overall more consistent finished yarn. This is destined to be a fun and funky cowl.
Finally, you see the purple bit. I have honed my spinning technique and am getting a fairly consistent twist and thickness. I am really pleased with this yarn. The colorway is Hurricanes and Butterflies, also from Gourmet Stash. It is 84% superwash merino and 16% stellina. I love this tremendously. Spinning is... fun.
<cough>and addictive<cough>
<cough>and addictive<cough>
Since the last post I also got engaged, planned my wedding and got married! Whew! It was exhausting but wonderful. We got married at our home, outside in the woods. My wonderful Aunt Fran did nearly every bit of the decorating. I did the flowers myself. It was intimate and lovely and just want we dreamed of.
| Finally, meet Oliver. He is a rescue and brings lots of love, joy and noise to our house. He is sometimes called Thunderpaws. I have never heard one tiny kitten sound like an entire herd of elephants running through the house. He is a joy though and fits into our family so well. |