Wow, sure has been a LONG time since I last posted a blog.

I have been busy with work and some knitting, crocheting, and spinning things.

My Knitting:

I designed some fingerless Mitts (Horseshoe Mani Mitts) to match my Horseshoe Pedi Socks.  Completed my first shawl (A Certain Shade of Green).  I have started another shawl (Gingko Shawl) and finally a pair of socks (TARDIS Socks) that I will keep for myself.

Here is a pic of my completed "A Certain Shade of Green" shawl (pattern by Erica Jackofsky - Fiddle Knits)

My Crocheting:

I designed a new hat (Bonita Bonnet).  It has a center whole in it for the sole purpose of a pony tail to come through it.  The pictures on Ravelry show it with and without the ponytail.  I'm also in the process of designing an afghan.

A pic of my wonderful DD modeling the Bonita Bonnet:

My Spinning:

I did Tour de Fleece (TdF) for the first time and actually did more than my goal of at least 15 mins per day.  Doing the TdF has really sparked my spinning enthusiasm and can't seem to stop.  Not that it is a bad thing or anything :)

Here is all I have spun for the TdF:

I also finally got a WooLee Winder and a total of 3 bobbins for it!  I'm so excited to use it.  I did a 2-ply of the two bobbins to get this:

I also plied the two spindle fibers together to see how it would look:

Here is what I am spinning now:

It is from Funhouse Fibers called PANDA (SW Merino, Bamboo, and Nylon) in the color way of "Santa Fe".  I am actually spinning it really thin on my wheel.  I usually only get it this thin on my spindles.  I'm trying to spin it thin so I can do a 2-ply for socks.  I hope that when plied it will be fingering weight.  I think it is looking good so far.  I'm so excited.  :)

My next thing to try at spinning is with beads.  I got Gypsy Dancer beaded yarn spinning kit from Funhouse Fibers and will give it a go once I'm done with the PANDA fiber.

And with all this going on, I have been busy getting things ready for my baby girl to go off to college.  She has a 7 yr plan for a Doctorate level Physical Therapist degree at Carroll University (WI).  Freshmen move in day is August 26th so things are really coming to an end (or beginning, depending on how you look at it) fast!

What's on my needles:  Gingko Shawl and TARDIS socks

What's on my wheel:  PANDA fibers

What's on my hook:  New afghan design pattern

What's on my iPod:  Betrayed: House of Night series (book 2) by P. C. Cast & Kristin Cast

Attended Sheep in the City 2011!

This past weekend I attended the Sheep in the City Getaway 2011!

Friday:  I took the Beginner’s Drop Spindle class which was taught by a wonderful instructor named:  Lindsay O’Neill.  She was great!  I bought some BFL from a vendor and an Ashford spindle in the class and made a cute little skein. She walked us through making a single.  Next we took it off the spindle using an empty toilet paper roll to make a center pull ball.  Then we plied it using the spindle which I haven't done before.

The reddish fiber is in the School House colorway by Happy Hands Hand Dyed Fibers (BFL) and the like grey, purple'ish fiber is in the Dusk colorway fiber by Fluffington Farms (bamboo, soy silk, black bamboo, perendale wool, yearling mohair, firestar, & angelina).

I'm really liking the School House colorway - really pretty.  :)

The close up of the little skein is next to a tealight candle in a glass holder to show the size. 

Saturday:  I went back to walk through the vendors and see the two symposiums they had.

While walking around the vendors, the Village Spinners guild were taking the fiber from combing or carding, to spinning, to a knitted scarf.  I asked if someone could show me how to comb the fiber and then I to experience the combing myself.  When I was done combing I used a Diz to take the fiber off the comb and ready for spinning.  It was a great experience.  Never done that before.  So much fun!

I did a little shopping and got the following:

From Samantha in Stitches I got some pretty sock yarn she dyed, a wooden shawl pin, and some of the most wonderful hand lotion!  I love this stuff!

From Sun Valley Fiber Farm I got a really nice looking shawl (one of my goals this year is to make my first lace shawl) called Gingko Shawl and some of her hand dyed yarn to make it with.  This yarn is Merino Cashmere Nylon and feels wonderfully soft.  Can’t wait to start this, hopefully this week.

Antique Sock Machines from the Smithsonian – The speaker, John Loeffelholz, had done research for a book him and a coauthor wrote about the history of the Sock Knitting Machines.  He went to Smithsonian and was able to look at all the different types of models they have recorded and collected over the many years.  Unfortunately he didn’t bring in one to actually see, but the discussion was very interesting!

Nordic knitting in Estonia Symposium – Two women, Mary Germain and Sandy DeMaster, where inspired by a Latvian friend to work jointly on an article and pattern on Latvian knitting that was published in Piecework magazine.  Together, they traveled to Latvia in 2001 on a knitting trip.  Again on 2005 they traveled together to Estonia, another Baltic country, located directly north of Latvia, where they attended the Nordic Knitting Symposium along with 80 other knitters mostly from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Finland.  They brought in some examples of this type of knitting and showed a slideshow of their travels.  It was a wonderful discussion to attend.  Makes me want to travel there too!

Well, that was my weekend.  Whew!  Time to rest now.