sick but true.

[2eclipse]

the sheer beauty of this shawl has decided the fact that i must learn to bead.
and spin lace.

i NEED one.
and i have a %30 off coupon at the yarnery. :)

Comments

[wanderingbastet.livejournal.com]

I'll be starting with Decimal, but I have my eye on both Aeolian and Shipwreck.

Knitty definitely blew it out of the park this season! :D

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

i like decimal except for the short sleeves.
i need sleeves to be either full length, or short. anything in the middle gives me the creepy crawlies.

LOVE shipwreck though.
and absinthe
and cachoeira
and reverie.
and i'll probably wind up knitting sourwood too.
this is an AWESOME issue.

*ponders whether decimal could be knit with full length sleeves.*

[frog-lady.livejournal.com]

Yeah, Aeolian is something I'm going to have to use for some handspun at some point. Time to spin more, perhaps.

FWIW, if you're having trouble spinning fine yarn, you should be able to get a pretty nice shawl out of fingering/dk weight. It'll just be bigger. And less delicate-looking.

[wanderingbastet.livejournal.com]

I'm sure it could - just continue the pattern for a bit longer before starting the shaping. :-)

I've become enamored with the half-length sleeves of late, because I can wear them to work in warmer months and they cover up my EVIL EVIL tattoos, while still allowing my arms to stay relatively cool. ;-)

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

i haven't actually spun anything except my crapwool yet. which is full of second cuts and so slubbiness is unavoidable.
and i'm trying to get enough bulky weight yarn for a sweater from it.
so it's a long haul.

i have been told that when i am done with this, everything else will be so easy my eyes will fall out of my head.
which i'm looking forward to, because i really would like to learn the difference (in practice, not in words) between woolen and worsted spinning, and how to set twist and is it really necessary, and what steps should i really be doing but have been to lazy because it really doesn't matter with the stuff i'm using.

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

ahhh. see there's the thing. i'm ALWAYS cold indoors in the summer.
i have never worked anywhere warm enough for short sleeves.
stupid AC.

[wanderingbastet.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I always have the same issue, but usually a light sweater is enough for me. :-)

[ashoe.livejournal.com]

Ooooh. Pretty!

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

that's what i thought too!

[frog-lady.livejournal.com]

I think it's a good idea to set twist anyway. Even when spinning crapwool. I have a fuzzy sense that it helps the fibers stay put in their new arrangement, and it is definitely helpful in distributing plying twist. And if you're not washing your spun yarn now, you're not going to know what your knitted yarn will do when it's washed.

Maybe you'd want to read Alden Amos's Big Book of Handspinning, so you know what to look for when you start paying attention to more details?

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

i actually have that book (on loan).
but i find that i have to take what he says with a grain of salt.
i also have a spinning group i go to once a month, who have varying opinions about setting twist and when it's necessary. most of them say that they do it sometimes, and that sometimes they only do it with water or wool wash, and that they almost never do any more than that....it is all very interesting. i want to find out what works.
but i will DEFINITELY be swatching this stuff and washing the swatch to see what it does. i have an endless supply of this stuff (the bag is as big as me) that i got for free. so if things are a little sloppy? i can always fix them. right now i have six skeins spun. ravelry link here (http://www.ravelry.com/people/eclipse/stash/crapwool-handspun)

[wanderingbastet.livejournal.com]

Now I'm locked in the eternal struggle of "Stop at AC Moore on the way home," or "Order much cheaper yarn from Elann but have to wait for shipping." Oh the angst! ;-)

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

i feel your pain.
how do you like elann? i've never ordered from them. or webs or knitpicks for that matter....knitpicks really tempts me sometimes though.
mostly i get yarn from lys's

[magaidhbhan.livejournal.com]

Merciful mother of crap! I *want* it!!

I've just cast on my first ever lace shawl, though, (the swallowtail), so I won't be starting another for a good while yet ...

[wanderingbastet.livejournal.com]

I looooove Elann. Their yarns are very good quality (from what I've seen), they generally have great color selections, and their shipping is really fast. I've used their Peruvian Highland Wool and Sonata before, both with great results, and am pondering Lara for the Decimal sweater. You really can't go wrong with $2.36 a skein!

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

oh the irony, i was PLANNING a swallowtail when this came out.
i will be changing my plans now.
the swallowtail can wait (although that's a great pattern).

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

good to know.
it makes a real difference to have recommendations from people you KNOW. :)

[magaidhbhan.livejournal.com]

I'm definitely sticking with the swallowtail for the moment -- for one, I have a skein of handmaiden seasilk that I'm SO EXCITED about I can hardly stand it, and I don't think I'd have enouhg of it to make anything else, but also, I feel like it's something that I can handle as a first lace project. That thing, however transcendentally beautiful it may be, looks *scary*.

But ONE DAY, it will be mine, and it'll be all your doing! :)

[plsurkity.livejournal.com]

*jaw drops*

ooh. that might have to be my bridal over skirt.

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

ugh.
so what did i do today?
i bought yarn and beads for swallowtail.
i want something orangy and silky pretty much just like this ravelry link (http://www.ravelry.com/people/larissa/stash/silk-lace)
but they didn't have it at the yarn store.
but i DID have a %30 percent off coupon and i needed stuff to make ross a hat sooooo....

[clare-dragonfly.livejournal.com]

I agree with this comment! Those are the three I most want to make. I also love Imagine. And if/when I have kids? Definitely making them Steggie :D

[wanderingbastet.livejournal.com]

Indeed! My good friends' 3 year old will definitely be getting Steggy for Christmas next year, and I'm trying to figure out how to shrink it enough for my one-year-old nephew. ;-)

[magaidhbhan.livejournal.com]

Ooooh, beautiful. I'm using the "bronze" colorway of the seasilk that's all gold and silver and a pinky copper -- I think it'll be nice. But that orange is *amazing*!

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

SOOOOOO gorgeous.

~quiver~

On an unrelated note

[zankoku-zen.livejournal.com]

As a Xmas gift, a friend has knitted me a hat. With bunny ears. In a nice blueberry color, so as I happily skip and jump through the spring breeze, my floppy bunny ears with waft in the warm air.

I will post pictures, because I am sure it is made of awesome. I can't wait.

Re: On an unrelated note

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

it sounds perfect for you. :)

blue?

Re: On an unrelated note

[zankoku-zen.livejournal.com]

It's this blue/purple color. Apparently the ears come down to about the shoulder, I think.

I haven't seen it yet, just been taunted with descriptions.

*sigh*

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

alas, i will never afford it.
but i can drool. oh yes, i can.
instead i wound up getting misti alpaca handpainted lace in the LP09 Senta colorway.
it is soft and squishy and i got hemetite colored glass beads to go with it. LOVE.
there will be pictures.

but that will not be the aeolian. i definitely want that in something bright.

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

also because i have to tell someone who will understand.
i will be going HERE (http://www.knitterspalette.com/store/pc/viewCategories.asp?idCategory=330) very soon.
they are about 40 minutes from my house and RIDICULOUSLY nice.
even though i can't go there often due to distance, every time i go, they know my name. they are friendly and helpful. they have awesome selection and a great group on friday nights. they also hire an alarming number of people named "pam".

[plsurkity.livejournal.com]

ooh, lookit all that noro! take pictures!

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

you do realize i'm about 30 minutes from the wisconsin border too right(4 hours from madison)?
i can take you to yarn mecca next time you go visit your mom.

[plsurkity.livejournal.com]

sweeeeeet.

[2eclipse.livejournal.com]

OMG.
someone just offered to trade me theirs for 2 skeins of sock yarn and $20.

~raptures~