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by Hannah on January 11, 2012
Over the past few weeks Birch Bay evolved from an unspun batt, to spun singles and then to a two-ply yarn. Today, I finally finished knitting it into a delightful slouchy hat (a bit slouchier than I intended, but more on that later). I know that I was imagining a red and black hat last time, but I decided to start at the opposite end of the ball and wound up with an (almost) entirely vivid blue hat instead! I love that the colors shift into the dark magentas towards the crown and the shiny strands of sparkle really pop too. |
Category Archives: spinning
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by Alison on January 10, 2012
I had a little bit of relaxation time during the holiday season, and it was nice to be able to sink my teeth into some fiber projects (both new and old). I did start a bunch of knitting projects, but I also had time to take my spinning wheel for a, um, spin. |
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by Hannah on December 14, 2011
Birch Bay is a very, very bright Layered Spinning Batt from Hanks in the Hood. I usually gravitate towards those cool, milky blues or soft, grassy greens like Hoquiam or Mercer Island. Not this time. Birch Bay was calling to me like a hot coal, fresh from the fireplace. Really, in the end I was mostly curious about how the colors would transition and how that fiery red would look plied with the icy blue further inside the batt. |
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by Knit Picks Podcast on December 8, 2011
This week, Kelley talks about the other half of her fiber life – creating handspun yarn with a spinning wheel! Hear all about Kelley’s advice for those new to spinning with a spindle or a wheel in addition to all of the possibilities you have by making your own yarn. Kelley also reviews the books Learn to Spin by Anne Field, and Color in Spinning, by Deb Menz. Next, Kelley talks about all of the wonderful fiber options you have for spinning and reviews several Knit Picks roving blends. Finally, Kelley catches you up on what kinds of projects are on her needles and spinning wheel. Books & Rovings Reviewed: Learn to Spin by Anne FieldColor in Spinning by Deb MenzWool of the Andes RovingFull Circle Roving 3 easy ways to listen… |
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by Alison on December 8, 2011
Love the look of spinning fiber but don't you don't spin? Do you have a ton of fiber odds and ends that are too precious to toss, but aren't quite enough to make a skein of yarn? I bought a pack of empty clear glass ornaments at Target - I think it was $6 for a pack of 9 ornaments, although I'm pretty sure you could find them cheaper elsewhere. In the office, we have samples of the Hanks in the Hood layered spinning batts that just launched on the website, and they come in a really beautiful spectrum of colors and textures and sparkle. |
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by Hannah on November 8, 2011
The idea that a simple walk down the street or through a park can take you past a dozen different plants able to color your yarn in a stunning range of shades has piqued my interest since I was gifted a guide to natural dyes two years ago. Since then I have tried onions, indigo, coreopsis, goldenrod and scotch broom to dye my handspun. |
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by Alison on October 20, 2011
I recently finished spinning a bunch of the roving that I had dyed with Greener Shades dyes back in February. I was trying to work my way through a bin of older fiber before I allowed myself to play with my new goodies - thinking about it, it's kind of weird that I create so many rules for myself while working on tasks that are supposed to be purely recreational. Anyway, I ended up pulling out several braids of dyed Merino that seemed the most fun, then spun them each into a lofty 2-ply bulky weight yarn. I had split each braid in half and then predrafted the fiber without splitting it further, resulting in long color repeats for each single ply. When I plied them together, I got a nice barberpole effect that should work up as subtly shifting stripes. |
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by Knit Picks Podcast on October 13, 2011
During the last weekend in September, the Oregon Flock & Fiber Festival took place here in Canby, Oregon! OFFF is one of Alison's favorite fiber festivals and this year, she was able to get Kelley, who has never attended OFFF before, to join along! Hear all about the different fibers, yarns, animals, and other treats Alison and Kelley discovered at OFFF. Next, Kelley talks about about reworking a pair of socks currently on her needles and shares her own stitch pattern that she created for the socks (see pattern below). Lastly, if you have too much fiber or undyed yarn that you have spun up, Kelley reviews two books on natural dyeing and how you can use what you find in your backyard or kitchen to create unique yarns. Books Reviewed:Harvesting Color by Priscilla Gibson-RobertsDyes from Kitchen Produce by Setsuko Ishii 3 easy ways to listen... |
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by Jenny K on September 21, 2011
Last week, we posted about the book signing event for My Grandmother's Knitting that was being put on by Andersen Fiber Works in Gresham, Oregon. A bunch of us from Knit Picks were able to attend the event and it was such a wonderful evening! Not only did I get to visit a new yarn store, but I also got a chance to hang out with other knitters and see Jen who does the Hanks in the Hood batts for Knit Picks. For me, the evening started off by wondering around and admiring all of the yarn and fiber. Then, we moved upstairs to see Larissa Brown, Chrissy Gardiner, Leigh Radford, Joan McGowan Micheal, and Stevanie Pico for the book signing of My Grandmother's Knitting. Kelley (and Xena), Alison, Hannah and myself found a cozy spot to settle in and work on a bit of knitting as the karaoke was getting started. |
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by Kelley on August 1, 2011
Yes, I know, that is really thick yarn! It is a photo of two irresistable braids of 80% Merino/20% from Wonderland Dye Works that were my first purchase of the day. After sorting through my stash a couple of weeks ago, I realized that I still had fingering weight sock yarns from the first Sock Summit! The good news is that I was still completely in love with those yarns. That got me to thinking about the first Sock Summit and what I say to people when they ask me about it. I always explain it as being like visiting a large art museum. Each independent dyer has her, or his, color sensibility. Seeing booth after booth made that clear in a way I couldn't resist. Sort of like Monet and Picasso and Degas. |
