Horbert here...
The Creator has been inspired by the generosity of fellow yarn shop owners and knitters. You see, him and Frank are coordinating the Men's Rocky Mountain Knitting Retreat. The weekend, I tagged along with him and Frank to Estes Park and Boulder to put up some flyers and talk to a few LYS. The Creator didn't expect to encounter a great group of local yarn shops there in Estes. Again, I wasn't very smart and didn't take photos of these encounters. I was way too into the fiber to remember to do such things.
In an interesting turn of events, one local yarn shop has donated a scholarship for one lucky fellow to attend. On top of this, she will be opening the shop for a small event with the guys (I didn't hear all the details because I found some Collinette yarn in a super fun color.) This is another scholarship on top of the already generous one we received from Skacel. Karin is a great supporter of the Men's Knitting Retreats. While we chatting and I was ogling the fantastic fiber (Did you know there are rooms on rooms on rooms at this place. All of it full of fiber!) While there, The Creator and Frank were introduced to a lovely woman from Interweave Press. I think she is an editor of some type and I didn't catch her name. Just just moved here. I tried looking up her name, but then, I couldn't find it on the Web site. I know. I should have been more attentive in my note taking. I am sure either Frank or The Creator will know who this lady is.
After meeting her, Susan, from the Stitchin' Den, marched us down to Neota Designs. It is another lovely shop of hand dyed yarn in some fascinating colors. The Creator bought a skein. If he would have asked me, I would have told him to buy two. He should know better. He is going to have to call and get another skein of it for 'NSYNC Gurl to love.
Frank and The Creator went back to the Stitchin' Den and they purchased yarn and patterns. The Creator has some stuff in mind. Susan gave him the last Knitting Traditions she had in her bag.
I think The Creator is still amazed by the generosity.
They stopped by Gypsy Wool and Shuttles Spindles and Skeins. Purchases and flyers were hung and I was pooped.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Blackmail and Dying
Horbert here.
Let me clear things up about this getting drunk while dying. Yes, I had little glass of wine. Just one wee-little glass. I have a photo of this and I will share it with you. Don't let Manny tell you I was sloshed. I never slurred. I just had one little glass. I was never over the legal yarn dying limit. It was still one little glass and I wouldn't have been stopped for overdying because I wasn't dying. So there. I was having fun. See here I am with my glass of wine and the dye:
Anyway, let me get on to the dying portion of the program. I'll deal with that Manny Quinn fellow later. He may find himself in a crazy tank top that I may borrow from his previous owner. Hmm... I have blackmail of my own!
So, dying is like the manicure for yarn. First, we put the fiber roving in water. It needs to soak and hydrate.This is some Wensleydale fiber The Creator picked up at the Fancy Tiger. I don't have a photo of the finished product yet. I will have it in a few. I have spun one piece of fiber. It is pretty. The Creator is a bit bummed that it turned darker than he wanted it but he still loves it.
Now, The Creator had three balls of this Shetland yarn that he purchased from World of Wool in the UK. The balls are just ripe for dying.
I got to play on this big yarn Ferris wheel:
I had to be tied down or I was going to fall off. The Creator skeined the yarn into a 3 foot skein. Ms. Skeindalous had all this cool stuff for everyone to play with and I got to go for a ride. Yes, it was before wine. I wouldn't want to puke all over the yarn. That isn't done as I take my skeining very very seriously. Two balls of the Shetland were skeined up for dying.
So, we had to let the fiber soak. So, I had some wine. I was a bit fun-woozy and forgot to take some photos of the next steps. I'd like to think I was high on fiber and chocolate as we had this scrumptious salted nut chocolate stuff to go with our wine. See, I ate something while drinking and all is good.
I remember The Creator mixing dyes like a mad scientist. He made some wicked purple and some true blue and some funky green. He seems to like those colors. He used all the dye with the three colors and then put it in the microwave, wrapped it all up and nuked it in the microwave. It smelled like vinegar. It may have been the wine I was smelling tho.
The other ball of Shetland yarn, he left in the ball as seen above.The Creator took straight food coloring and filled a syringe with food-coloring dye and just injected that in to the ball. He put it in a pot and put it on the stove to steep and mix and see what happens.
It turned all green with bits and bobs of color throughout. I wouldn't have throught green would have been the main color. Here's the skeined results of that.
Here is the blue/green/purple Shetland being rinsed:
And then here it is on Manny:
And then here is it skeined:
He also had some Alpaca Silk that he started with:
It turned out a minty green color that didn't even flatter the camera very well. Frankly, it looked like pistachio explosion. Something we don't like. See, Ugly:
Oh...here is a uglier minty green picture with Manny:
The Creator didn't like it. So he added some blue and teal to the mix and over-dyed it. He likes it much better and has started a scarf with that.
He has two more KnitPicks bare dyed for a hat. I don't have a pick of that. The Creator also overdyed Jean's Hot Mess color into something a bit more like Jean's Classy Mix. She liked it anyway.
And I like my wine. That is what I have to say and I'm sticking to that.
Let me clear things up about this getting drunk while dying. Yes, I had little glass of wine. Just one wee-little glass. I have a photo of this and I will share it with you. Don't let Manny tell you I was sloshed. I never slurred. I just had one little glass. I was never over the legal yarn dying limit. It was still one little glass and I wouldn't have been stopped for overdying because I wasn't dying. So there. I was having fun. See here I am with my glass of wine and the dye:
Anyway, let me get on to the dying portion of the program. I'll deal with that Manny Quinn fellow later. He may find himself in a crazy tank top that I may borrow from his previous owner. Hmm... I have blackmail of my own!
So, dying is like the manicure for yarn. First, we put the fiber roving in water. It needs to soak and hydrate.This is some Wensleydale fiber The Creator picked up at the Fancy Tiger. I don't have a photo of the finished product yet. I will have it in a few. I have spun one piece of fiber. It is pretty. The Creator is a bit bummed that it turned darker than he wanted it but he still loves it.
Now, The Creator had three balls of this Shetland yarn that he purchased from World of Wool in the UK. The balls are just ripe for dying.
I got to play on this big yarn Ferris wheel:
I had to be tied down or I was going to fall off. The Creator skeined the yarn into a 3 foot skein. Ms. Skeindalous had all this cool stuff for everyone to play with and I got to go for a ride. Yes, it was before wine. I wouldn't want to puke all over the yarn. That isn't done as I take my skeining very very seriously. Two balls of the Shetland were skeined up for dying.
So, we had to let the fiber soak. So, I had some wine. I was a bit fun-woozy and forgot to take some photos of the next steps. I'd like to think I was high on fiber and chocolate as we had this scrumptious salted nut chocolate stuff to go with our wine. See, I ate something while drinking and all is good.
I remember The Creator mixing dyes like a mad scientist. He made some wicked purple and some true blue and some funky green. He seems to like those colors. He used all the dye with the three colors and then put it in the microwave, wrapped it all up and nuked it in the microwave. It smelled like vinegar. It may have been the wine I was smelling tho.
The other ball of Shetland yarn, he left in the ball as seen above.The Creator took straight food coloring and filled a syringe with food-coloring dye and just injected that in to the ball. He put it in a pot and put it on the stove to steep and mix and see what happens.
It turned all green with bits and bobs of color throughout. I wouldn't have throught green would have been the main color. Here's the skeined results of that.
Here is the blue/green/purple Shetland being rinsed:
And then here it is on Manny:
And then here is it skeined:
He also had some Alpaca Silk that he started with:
It turned out a minty green color that didn't even flatter the camera very well. Frankly, it looked like pistachio explosion. Something we don't like. See, Ugly:
Oh...here is a uglier minty green picture with Manny:
The Creator didn't like it. So he added some blue and teal to the mix and over-dyed it. He likes it much better and has started a scarf with that.
He has two more KnitPicks bare dyed for a hat. I don't have a pick of that. The Creator also overdyed Jean's Hot Mess color into something a bit more like Jean's Classy Mix. She liked it anyway.
And I like my wine. That is what I have to say and I'm sticking to that.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Assignments and Blackmail
I must get Horbert in gear so that he may post about dying. He had such a great time with the girls. Of course, they did get him a bit tipsy. There is a photo of him a bit tipsy somewhere. Hmmm, I must find that for blackmail purposes.
The Creator has started yet another project. After a failed attempt at making a cabled scarf pattern, he started the Hilingar scarf. Here is the Ravelry Link. There are several things he is learning with this scarf. A provincial cast on and lace. The Creator has ripped this thing out twice before finally having a go at it. I tell you, if I had arms, it would be perfect and I wouldn't have had to rip it out. I couldn't take a photo of it as he left it in the living room. But one day, it will be in my room! (I must also see about him cleaning this place up. He left it like a 13 year old leaves a bedroom.)
His other projects are just languishing. Those socks he started, sit in the bag. The sweater vest he is so close to finishing, remains on the coffee table. He could have had that completed by now if he would have not started this silly lace scarf project. What is he thinking? I will say, I do like the yarn The Creator started this scarf with.
Oh, and The Creator and the Yarn Girls went to a fiber place over the weekend. I sent Horbert, but I think he had issues with the Mexican food. The Creator didn't. I need to talk to Horbert about his reporting styles and get him posting things. This is why The Creator rescued him from that lonely little sugar bowl. This may be a good use of blackmail. I should also have a talk with The Creator about this as well. I can't do it all. And now that 'NSync girl has found the internet, all she can do is watch YouTube videos. I don't know how many times I can listen to that silly song. Let it go sweetie, that was the early 1990s.
The Creator has started yet another project. After a failed attempt at making a cabled scarf pattern, he started the Hilingar scarf. Here is the Ravelry Link. There are several things he is learning with this scarf. A provincial cast on and lace. The Creator has ripped this thing out twice before finally having a go at it. I tell you, if I had arms, it would be perfect and I wouldn't have had to rip it out. I couldn't take a photo of it as he left it in the living room. But one day, it will be in my room! (I must also see about him cleaning this place up. He left it like a 13 year old leaves a bedroom.)
His other projects are just languishing. Those socks he started, sit in the bag. The sweater vest he is so close to finishing, remains on the coffee table. He could have had that completed by now if he would have not started this silly lace scarf project. What is he thinking? I will say, I do like the yarn The Creator started this scarf with.
Oh, and The Creator and the Yarn Girls went to a fiber place over the weekend. I sent Horbert, but I think he had issues with the Mexican food. The Creator didn't. I need to talk to Horbert about his reporting styles and get him posting things. This is why The Creator rescued him from that lonely little sugar bowl. This may be a good use of blackmail. I should also have a talk with The Creator about this as well. I can't do it all. And now that 'NSync girl has found the internet, all she can do is watch YouTube videos. I don't know how many times I can listen to that silly song. Let it go sweetie, that was the early 1990s.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Works from around the room
I have been spying on what the creator is working on.
There is this blanket. It looks like it is half done. The Creator works on this every Saturday morning.
He is also working on this vest. He has another 2 inches before he splits the back from the front and adds a stripe.
He is also working on a cardi for his Grams. This is pink. He started it a few weeks ago. He zipping right along with it. I should find pattern details. They are in a book somewhere in my messy room. I should have 'Nsync girl clean this up.
Last, there are a pair of socks. They are coming along. I don't think he is happy with them. They may be a wee too small. But then, it will be good. He can always gift them to someone. Here is a photo. Check out that texture. He knits these with the girls. I don't think I like them. I can't model them. I may have to find a leg model to stand in and model these for me.
And that is what is on The Creator's needles.
There is this blanket. It looks like it is half done. The Creator works on this every Saturday morning.
He is also working on this vest. He has another 2 inches before he splits the back from the front and adds a stripe.
He is also working on a cardi for his Grams. This is pink. He started it a few weeks ago. He zipping right along with it. I should find pattern details. They are in a book somewhere in my messy room. I should have 'Nsync girl clean this up.
Last, there are a pair of socks. They are coming along. I don't think he is happy with them. They may be a wee too small. But then, it will be good. He can always gift them to someone. Here is a photo. Check out that texture. He knits these with the girls. I don't think I like them. I can't model them. I may have to find a leg model to stand in and model these for me.
And that is what is on The Creator's needles.
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