yarn yarn yarn

Guys, I made handspun again.

As with every single thing I spin, this is the greatest yarn I have ever spun in my entire life. (This is the one perk of being an inexperienced spinner.)

This is 50g of Fleece Artist Wool/Silk (65/35), 154m of roughly fingering weight yarn. This was my first successful try at spinning fingering weight yarn, as well as my first try spinning anything with silk in it. I had an absolute blast – the merino made it not-that-difficult to spin, and it’s soooooo shiiiiiny all spun up. Plus, I think I’ve got enough that I could pair it with another skein of fingering weight and actually make something. Possibly another tiny Daybreak.

I’ve also been knitting, lots and lots. But right now, it’s the most shapeless blob of purple stockinette you have ever seen. I’ll take some photos of it when it’s a little more interesting to look at.

fo post: bellevue!

Even though I’ve been knitting for close to six years, I still get such a sense of awed surprise when I finish a sweater and it actually turns out the way I hoped it would. In other words, my Bellevue is done. And I bought a remote for my camera, so that I can take pictures of myself in it!

This is the fingering-weight version, made with Malabrigo Sock in “Impressionist Sky.” It’s the first fingering weight sweater I’ve knit, and I’ve got to say, I’m pretty well sold. I think this will hold up a lot better than my Featherweight did, but it’s still got that light, drapey feel that I think means I’ll be able to wear it in warmer fall and spring weather.

The one change I made to the pattern was to include full-length sleeves, because I really like sleeves. (I was one of those kids in high school who stuck their thumbs through the sleeves of their hoodies, okay? It’s a thing.) This was dead simple to do, since the pattern already has directions for cropped sleeves, but for the interested, I’ve written out notes in my Ravelry entry for this project.

But, overall? This sweater is awesome. It makes me really happy. I’m thrilled that it turned out the way I hoped it would, and someday – when it’s not summer anymore – I will wear it lots and lots.

new york!

I went to New York this past weekend! I went with my family, and it was a fantastic, fantastic time. There was an awful lot of walking around Manhattan, and some photographing, and maaaaaybe a little pretending to be Serena van der Woodsen when nobody was looking.

(Many more photos here, for the interested.)

I may also have stopped by Knitty City, where there was so much Madelinetosh, they could not fit it all on the shelves. Luckily, a very nice fellow customer – who knew nearly every colourway by sight – helped me go through the bags and pick something out for myself.