Finished and not so Finished Projects

I finally finished the headband/ear warmer that I made from Shunklie's yarn. I am very happy with the way it turned out. I had just enough yarn. I think I have like 5" or so left.



I will be listing it in my Etsy shop eventually. I need to find a model to model it for me.


The above is a felt bag I have made. I have yet to put handles on it. This was an experiment. I haven't done much felting in the past but am finding it very enjoyable, and very addictive. I find I think about what can I felt next a lot. My plan was to work on a bowl today, but I have run out of energy so I think I might just continue spinning.

I will be listing more items in my Etsy shop in the coming days.

I once again have to move. Because of lots of reasons, I have fallen behind in rent and other bills. The real estate agent has already brought two lots of people through the house, one just now and one yesterday. I think this place will go really quickly. It's such a nice house at such a good price. So tomorrow I will get stuck into packing again.

TAGGED!

Okay, seems like I am "it" thanks to esta sketch. Here are the rules:

1.List seven random facts/habits about yourself

2.Choose another seven bloggers to tag and list their names in your blog

3.Leave your seven tagged bloggers comments to notify them of their tagging and to direct them to your blog for tag instructions.


1. With my craft I am mostly self-taught. I have only had lessons in quilting and jewellery making. I decided jewellery making wasn't for me, I didn't enjoy it much (although I have a huge stash of beads). My Mum taught me to spin, my granny taught me to knit, other than that I either learnt at school or learnt from books and just trying stuff.

2. I love coffee. A lot. I probably drink too much, but I guess in a way it's my way of self medicating. I suffer from chronic depression and headaches/migraines, and the caffine seems to help.

3. I wear lip balm when I go to bed. I breath through my mouth and find my lips get really dry during the night. The lip balm definately helps.

4. I love camping and bushwalking/hiking. My parents used to take us when we were teenagers. We lived not far from the Blue Mountains so it was a regular thing for use to go camping in the mountains and go bushwalking. I always enjoyed that, and it's one of my favourite childhood memories.

5. There's two kids in my family, I'm the eldest and my brother is younger. He's 18 months younger than me. I've always called him "The Brain on Legs". He is a high school maths teacher in Brisbane. He's married, no kids. His wife is an English/Drama teacher.

6. I love animals. Always had. I've had numerous cats over the years, a couple of dogs and a rabbit. I currently have two cats. They have kept me sane. I would love to have a bunny rabbit again, but I am particuarly interested in an Angora bunny because of my spinning.

7. Last one. I collect anything and everything with sheep on it. I guess because I am a spinner/knitter, and I have a fondness for sheep as well. My grandparents used to have a sheep property and I spent a lot of time there as a child. I loved watching the sheep, helping at shearing time and also during lambing season. I would honestly have a real sheep if I could.

Okay, I tag Enthral, Kristie, Duet, castleman, SheKnits, redclix, and lessthanthree.

No pressure. :D

A Very Important Announcement

A few posts ago I hinted at something exciting that would be happening with my Etsy shop. Well, here's the details.

I am no longer able to sew because of my back. I have a bad back and leaning over makes it worse. So, no more sewing for me, unless I can find a way to set up my machine that is going to eliminate the pain I currently get.

Subsequently, I have been looking for things I can do to generate some cash flow for myself. At the moment I am unable to work because of my back and other issues. I will be going to rehab starting this week for my back, and hopefully they can help me with my chronic depression as well.

Anyway, that's one reason why I've gone back to spinning and knitting. I can sit and do that with little or no pain.

And here's the exciting bit, I have started making soaps and lip balms as well. These are items I can sell locally as well as through my Etsy shop.

I have listed the lip balm in my Etsy shop already. The available flavour is "caramel/vanilla", and it's very caramelly. Pic is below. These are also available in tubes. I am still working on labels for these so I haven't listed them yet.


I will be adding a range of soaps in the next few days. They take longer to set than lip balm does. Scents for soaps will include lavender and citrus at this stage. This range will be expanded as I can afford it, as will the range of lip balm flavours.

I will continue to add to my range of yarns as well. I'm enjoying this. I hope you enjoy what I am creating.

Fiber Keeps You Regular

I had bought a skein of yarn from Shunklies on Etsy ages ago, I think it may have even been my first purchase on Etsy. I rolled it into a ball and had no idea what I was going to do with it. It's a beautiful bulky yarn dyed in greens with a spash of blue and yellow. It's gorgeous!

Last night I decided to knit it into a headband/ear warmer. It has a cable running down the center. It's turning out really nice.

The reason I'm knitting on a circular needle is because I didn't have a pair of needles the right size. This small circular needle is perfect cause it's a narrow project.

The headband will eventually be for sale in my Etsy shop.

I also have received this skein of lace weight yarn from Shunklies. I'm still trying to decide what to do with it as there is only enough for a small project.

Be sure to visit Shunklie's on Etsy. She has some wonderful products, including finished items and some textile art stuff. I love the items I have bought from Shunklies, and I plan to buy more from her.

Something Very Important

I realised something very important yesterday. I enjoy spinning much more than knitting the yarn I create. I also can't wait to start spinning. It seems to be all I think about these days. Spinning is very important to me. It is my passion!

My mother introduced me to spinning when I was a teenager. She only spun for a while and then her wheel sat in the corner until she finally got rid of it. At the time I found it difficult, but enjoyed it anyway. And being a teenager I prefered to be outside playing cricket with my brother than stuck inside with my mum.

So now I am back spinning again, and loving it. I have two drop spindles, one of which is pictured below. I bought this one from castleman on Etsy. She does wonderful paintings on her spindles. She also has a great spinning and dyeing zine which I get. It is full of great information.


Anyway, I'm madly trying to get caught up with bills and rent so I can buy myself a second hand spinning wheel. I've done so much spinning lately that my arms are hurting. Problem is, I want to keep spinning but my arms won't let me.

Here is some silk fiber I found at home. The colour hasn't turned out very well, but it's verigated blues and a bit of blue/green. I spun it last night. It was an absolute dream to spin, and it turned out very nice.

Here is the silk on the spindle. I have plyed it and when it is dry from setting the twist I will share pics.

This is my current spinning project. There is 175 grams of beautiful multi-coloured merino roving here. It is a dream also to spin up. I've always loved spinning merino. They say it isn't a fiber for beginners to work with, but I don't agree. It drafts easily, feels beautiful and soft on your hands, and spins up lovely and soft.

I'll share pics of the spun fiber when I've done some more.

I'm Dyeing Here

My Aunt gave me a whole bunch of white wool roving. All I know is that it's wool, I don't know what sort. I spun some up with the intention of dyeing it and then plying it.


The above is 4 skeins ready to dye.

The above is 2 skeins dyed pink. I used Rit Dye from the pharmacy. I will be getting proper dye eventually when I am in a better financial situation.

I have two more skeins to dye, and will be dyeing those sapphire blue. I will share pics when they are done.

The above is some of the roving from knittydirtygirl spun up. I plyed it with rayon machine embroidery thread. The yarn is beautiful and soft. It is available for purchase through my Etsy shop.

Speaking of my Etsy shop, I have some exciting plans in the works. I won't share yet, but keep your eye out for exciting new products. :D