Weekly spinning: artsy curly

I keep saying that since I do not knit with art yarns, I do not really see their use (but surely, for baby hats, neck-warmers, edges, accents, fpr special effects in weaving they do have their uses), therefore I do not like them...

However, once in a while, I do them, I have to admit, I do enjoy the process.

Like with this turqoise/orangey little number, for which a friend of mine selected for herself the fiber, and I promised I will make her something fun for her, that could be used as an accent in weaving...

It took me a while to actually do it, but here is a proof that sometimes I do fulfill promises like this. 

I hope she likes it.

Topsy-turvy pictures

The yarn festival organized by the publisher company that owns Barkafonal now is called Kacskaringó, that would translate to... well I don't really know... meandering, or topsy turvy, the way a yarn is meandering rolling of a ball...

Last year, because of my shcool engagements I was there only for the second day, this spring I was there for both days.

I have my reservations about the event, especialy the organization of this spring, but I am no going into this here, whetever needed to be say I said it to the organizers, believe me :-)

The fun was that I've been put next to my friend, Adrien, whom I thaught spinning with the DROP spindle ages ago, and we are friends ever since.

It was also fun, because many came to see me, and those who told me they came especially to see what I brought was especially heartwarming.

I finally have a spinning wheel picture, not that I am satisfied with how I look on it, but never mind. A serious weight loss regime is looming at the horizon.

And the day of wool, the event so close to me heart, not only because it was the first of this kind of events, but also because I've been there sonce the very first one, that was held back in 2011 or so.

And the next one will come in a couple of weeks, and I just cannot wait.

Evening Breath

When I first met with the editor of the magazin, I wore one of my Forgetmeknot shawls I crocheted fom DROPS Delight....

She loved it from the first moment, and I grew to like her while working together...

So I decidet to make her a similar shawl... 

Slightly even brighter colors (i think they suit her even better), and this time using the Evening Breath pattern from DROPS.

It took us a while to arrange a meeting (we usually do things through the phone), so I could actually give it to her...

Pattern: Evening Breath from DROPS Design
Yarn: DROPS Delight
Hook: 4.00 mm
Pictures: Christopher Laurent Deli

Weekly spinning: crazy alpaca rainbow

I already mentioned that doomed alpaca project..in which there came a time, when I got so angry that I randomly throw the fiber into the owen and dyed it as it was... part of it was used to make some felted flowers, and other parts of it...

I tried to spin it from the lock (without carding it first)... I was still not happy with it, however I managed to get through the colors of the rainbow twice, and sat around trying to figure out what to ply it with...

If I ply it with itself, then it would be so little, and not anyough for anything, even a fun decorative addition... then I dyed some lace yarn, with the color of the rainbow, but really short repeats.

It did ended up to an interesting, crazy effect, just short of some clown barf.

I don't have it, as someone just bought it at the yarn festival las weekend. Who knows, maybe I should do crazy spinning more often.

Inspiring

 Ever since I've knitted the Inpira cowl a few years ago, I had this idea to make the broken corrugated rib into a sweater design. As usual I had the yarn, just as that long (I think that is partly the reason to my gigantic stash...I have the idea, I get the yarn, then I can't find the time, or loose interest, and/or a new prject or idea takes residence)...

 However, sometimes the time comes for a yarn, or idea to become a real sweater.

 It is a top-down sweater, started at the neck, which is intentionally wider, looser, a bit like a cowl/funnel neck.

 The yoke is knitted in broken corrugated rib.

The wide cuffs that are becoming my trademark, and the edge at the waist are knitted with simple 2x2 fair isle rib.

I am thinking of writing up the pattern....

Yarns: DROPS Delight (purple) and Fabel.
Needles: 3 mm for the gray and 3,5 mm for the stranded parts.
Photoes: Deli Christopher Laurent

Barber pole

After last my last week's side comment about not really liking the barber-pole effect I've been asked what is THAT?
Well appareantly ever since someone invented razors (probably in ancient Egypt or so), there were people who were shaving others for money.
From about the middle ages, advertise themselves instead of a signboard, they used striped poles. The stipes usually run in a  spiral (helix). In most places the stipes' color were red and white, symbolizing blood and clean bandages.According some articles in the US the color blue is added.

In spinning by barber pole effect we mean, when (or more) different color meets when we ply the yarn, and the difference between the clors, and the twist in the yarn plies causing a similar spiraling effect, much like in this yarn between the pink and the red colors.

The bigger the contrast between the colors the stronger the effect will be.
Some like it very much.
When spinning with the fractal technique this effect is very pronounced.
I personally do not like it too much, maybe except for when the contrast is not to strong, the colors are rather close, like in the yarn I showed last week:

Now you know what I mean when I mention barberpoling effect.