moonfrog

Well, I met my scrubby goal and then some. I wanted four and ended up with six, but only three went to my mom. See, I was knitting away and one of my sons’ friends (you know the kind who grows up in your house along with your own?) says, “Hey, a loofa! I want one!” Then he explains how it will keep his face all handsome for the girls. Yeah, yeah. : ) So, I check the tulle scrap bag and find some black. Before Mr. Handsome can say anything, my son claims the black for his own loofa. What?! This boy never, ever wanted anything handknit. Guess the competition (Mr. H) had to be put in his place. So I dug around in my stash and found some medium blue. Of course, I couldn’t leave out second son, so he also got a blue one. Mom got three and was tickled pink. (Sorry about the lousy picture, but these buggers flew out of the house before I could get a better one. You get the idea, though.)

And thanks for the advice from everyone! It really helped me look at things more clearly (and quit whining.) Once I got stared making the scrubbers with a definite goal in mind, the plastic needles worked fine. As Chris pointed out, light and short are the two best characteristics for this job with these big needles, which is why I got these in the first place. Carrie K. also mentioned the lightweight advantage, as well as suggesting I wait for a winter try-out to decide on the hat. That’s just what I’ve decided to do. Then I went to www.random.org and rolled the dice. (Really, there’s a dice random number generator. I’m easily amused.) And the winner is comment number four. That would be Carrie. Congratulations! I offered either hat yarn or scrubby tulle. I hadn’t thought about an actual scrubby, but that is also an option to go along with the tulle. So let me know Carrie and we’ll work out the details. : )

My other projects are coming along great. Everything is almost done, not quite finished but getting there or making good progress. In fact, my Branching Out just needs blocking before it’s ready to wear. Well, it needs a bit of cold weather, too, but I can wait for that — no hurry on that one.

My Le Tour de Fleece challenge is going well, although it is a bit short of the goal, and the end is tomorrow, I think. My goal was three bobbins, but I am quite pleased to have so much done. I have a bit more to go on one bobbin, and I started with half a bobbin full.

What pleases me is that spinning is easier now. And can you see the difference in the two white spools? The one on the wheel is finer and more consistent. I’ve been working on that with this one. I have a question, though, for any spinners reading. Can I ply the two thicknesses? It seems like that would be fine, but I have to worry about it now, don’t I? After all, that’s what I do best. ; ) Plying is the next challenge. Maybe I’ll have conquered that one by the next blog post. Until then, hope you find time for some fiber arts in your days.

This year on Father’s Day, I was totally stumped for a gift for my dad. When I heard that his buddies who were going to rototill his garden hadn’t been able to do it, I knew that a gift of “helping hands” was what he really needed. So yesterday DH and I spent most of the day pulling weeds and tilling. We’re only putting in a small portion of his big plot, about 4 feet by 40 feet, but it gives him a place to put his winter veggies. We also dug up some volunteer potato plants and got to bring those home with us. New potatoes! Dad never lets us dig those up since he love to see just how big he can grow them.

After a pleasant round of hard work in the dirt, we settled in to Mom’s dinner of meatloaf and vegetables. Yum! While cleaning up, I noticed that her dish scrubber had once again been worn to a rag. Yikes. Time to make her a new one. I keep intending to make some ahead, but never get to it. So last night I got out the tulle and the big needles.

I bought these big (size 17) plastic needles just for making the Mom’s scrubbies. She likes the big size. I thought about getting some nicer needles, but opted for the cheap-o ones. Maybe if I got some really nice ones, I’d be more apt to knit more of these. At least these are lightweight. Another consequence of making the bigger scrubber is that I end up with leftover tulle. It takes more than half a roll to make one. I’m using up the scraps, which suits Mom just fine, but I’m going to set myself a task (which will also make it easier for me to make several of these at once!)

I checked the date when I made the last scrubby and it looks like Mom uses them up at the rate of one every two months. That means she needs about six a year.

My scrubby goal is to:

1. Use up all the scraps and
2. Refine the number of stitches and rounds it will take to use just half a roll and
3. Make four scrubbers total.

Otherwise, I’ve been working on the Nordic Sock Sweater. I started the 3rd ball, so I’m 20% done. *sigh* I’m still enjoying it, though. And I’m about halfway done with Branching Out. I had a sidetrack on that one, deciding that I needed a hat to match. So I needed to see how much yarn that would take.

Thus was born Foliage — the slouchy version.* I like it, but I don’t know if I’ll wear it. It feels bulky on my head — but it is summer and not a good time for judging these things. Still, I’m considering frogging and making something simpler and less . . . well, less big and slouchy. At least the yarn is set aside for the hat.

I’d love to hear what you think about whether I should frog this one. Also, should I buy some nice needles for knitting scrubbies? And what kind? I’ll even make this a little contest for my faithful readers. The best advice will get you either some hat yarn or some scrubby tulle from my stash. Let me know what you think!

*Modifications for the slouchy version of Foliage can be found on Ravelry. Otherwise, email for directions.

My challenge spinning for Le Tour de Fleece is going well. I finished a full bobbin of the Corriedale cross roving. That’s probably about 4 ounces out of 12. That’s going to take some time! The logical thing would be to spin another skein so I could ply it. Well, maybe not.

Recently, I swapped for four ounces of batts from Sugar Bee Studios. I pulled it out instead of filling that second plain white bobbin. I just couldn’t resist — can you blame me? This is some pretty fiber. It’s extra soft merino with some tencel and angelina thrown in for sparkle. I’m not really a sparkle kinda girl, but this stuff is fun to spin. And the name? Mine is a custom color called Becky’s One Night Stand. So far it has lasted 2 nights. I think I’m in love! This is so well prepped that it slides right along. I still get an occasional slub, but not too bad compared to what I’ve been doing. I have no idea what I’ll do with this yarn when it’s done. It will probably just be a stash pet. That’s fine with me. : )

Oh, and my new spinning head came from New Zealand today, too. It is smooth and lovely, without a flaw — and most importantly — without a crack! Majacraft customer service is quick and very cooperative. I appreciate that.

I’ve been knitting away when I’m not spinning, but haven’t been monogamous so there’s no real progress to show on any one thing. I’ll have an update next week for sure since things are going well. It’s good to have the knitting karma back again. (Oops! Hope I didn’t jinx it!)

Here’s a meme that Carrie tagged me with, so I’ll take a moment to do it.
Rules: You must answer the questions using only one word. Then tag four others.

* 1. Where is your cell phone? Bag (Really? One word? Harsh!)
* 2. Your significant other? Sweet (Or where is he?)
* 3. Your hair? Bun
* 4. Your mother? *Smile* (No word required.)
* 5. Your father? Napping
* 6. Your favorite thing? Air (Gotta have it! Water is a close second.)
* 7. Your dream last night? Forgotten
* 8 Your favorite drink? Cocoa
* 9. Your dream/goal? House
* 10. The room you’re in? Cozy
* 11. Your hobby? Lots! (One word. Sheesh!)
* 12. Your fear? Surmountable
* 13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Here
* 14. What you’re not? Organized
* 15. Muffins? SweetCakes
* 16. One of your wish list items? Peace
* 17. Where you grew up? Here (In this cozy room actually.)
* 18. The last thing you did? Cooked (I know, it’s shocking, but true.)
* 19. What are you wearing? Apron (snort! Not!)
* 20. Favorite gadget? Headlamp
* 21. Your pets? Yarn
* 22. Your computer? Mahvelous!
* 23. Your mood? Satisfied
* 24. Missing someone? Always
* 25. Your car? Parked
* 26. Something you’re not wearing? Um . . . . *heavy breathing*
* 27. Favorite store? Co-op
* 28. Like someone? You!

* 29. Your favorite color? Red ( Official answer to a complex question.)
* 30. When is the last time you laughed? Now (Thanks, Carrie!)
* 31. Last time you cried? Yesterday (But just a little — all better!)

Now to tag 4 people: the first 4 who read this, please feel free to do this too!

I’ve been doing some swatching lately, and I have to admit that it was fun for a change. First I swatched some yarn I dyed for last year’s Dye-o-Rama. This was my trial skein that didn’t go to my swap partner. My goal was to end up with wide stripes, but how would I know without knitting it? I was ready to give this yarn away, but just couldn’t let it go until I knew if my dyeing had been successful, so I swatched it. Was I ever pleased with the result! This is just what I wanted — a wide stripe, medium stripe, and a narrow stripe in the middle. I can’t wait to make something with my skein, which is purple, red, and white. I don’t know why I waited so long to try this!

My next swatching was a detour, just something I wanted to make. The Miss Priss in the Renati Tibaldi colorway that’s been resting in my stash was calling out to me, so I gave in and started Something Red, which has been on my list for a long, long time. I decided to make my swatch the actual pattern. That way, if it worked out I’d have some of the sweater done, and if it didn’t I’d see how the pattern would actually look in the yarn. Well, after a few inches of the entire width of the raglan neckline, I knew my gauge was just too far off. So I made a little swatch with the next size needle. Now I’m ready to go when I get around to it. The yarn is a joy to handle and I like how it looks, even though it is a bit busy. It’s a beautiful colorway, but really hard to photograph well. So this is back in the ball waiting for its turn again. Swatching done.

Then I moved on to some real knitting. Instead of the many things that are on my priority list, I decided to join a KAL on Ravelry. It’s so much more fun to do something just for fun right now than doing what I think I ought to be doing. So I’m making a scarf — a lace scarf. Unusual for me, but it feels good. I swatched this knit, too, using some Socks That Rock in shades of red. Nope, it didn’t fit my vision of a scarf. I knew it had to be warm and wooly, not just decorative, or I’d never wear it.

So I pulled out some Queensland Llama Seta that I’ve had forever. I’ve had this alpaca/silk blend in my stash for so long that I almost gave it away last month as something that was never going to be used, no matter how much I liked it. Well, I’m glad I kept it because it is just right for my Branching Out. The lace is a ten row repeat, very simple, so I do some frogging and tinking, but still have some hope of finishing it. In fact, I’m about halfway done with it.

Oh, and I’ve joined another “along” only this one is a spinning challenge. It’s called Le Tour de Fleece and the point is to set a spinning goal for the time that the Tour de France bike race is happening. That would be July 5th through 27th. So, my goal is to spin three bobbins full of yarn — any fiber I choose. That is a challenge for me. I have lots of lovely fiber that is ready to spin — some new stash additions as well as some old. Oh, the theme of this year’s Le Tour is to spin from the stash. This is fine since my recent stash enhancements happened just before I discovered the challenge. I guess it’s a good thing I bought more wool, eh? *wink*

I’m happy with how well my fiber pursuits are going lately. Summer can put a stop to most of it, but with my work commute and extra days off lately, I’ve been quite satisfied with my progress. Wish me luck at meeting my spinning goal!