Jobo Designs

Feeling a bit like spinning today?  Well I certainly was!

I had a million things on the go today, so the thought of knitting and having to get up all the time was annoying.  I find spinning is a better activity for starting and stopping, since usuallly I have to stop every so often to pre-draft some more fiber.  I hear that hand combed top is so lovely that you don't even have to pre-draft at all... hrm.  I guess I will have to get some combs sometime.  Between loads of laundry and checking on the pot of split pea soup I was simmering on the stove, I managed to spin up 2 of the big poofy batts of Polwarth that I had dyed last month with Tea and Blueberries and then blended on my Strauch Petite.

The end result:  a 2-ply barberpole type yarn, with subtle bits of cream, dusty purple and caramel running through it.  I had hoped that the colours wouldn't muddy and blend too much, and it appears that the individual strands have quite a bit of simple colour to them.  It's hard to tell in the skein, but I am hoping that when I get around to knitting it up that it will remain kind of tweedy and stripey in the finished product.

Here are a few strands along with a batt... just to show the colours.  For some reason this colour combo is difficult to photograph (kindof like the water in the carribbean)  I have tried natural light, fluorescent light and my Ott light... but still am trying to find a pic that shows it best.  My 2-ply technique tattles on me... that my spin still isn't as even as I would like on thinner yarns... and that perhaps the spin in my plying is the same.  I will have to continue working on that part.

Here it is in natural light, looking very oatmeal-y

My plan is to spin up the other 6 batts (about 8-9 ounces worth) and knit a shawl out of it since it is so soft and light.  Maybe a gift for one of the Grandma's for Christmas.  Depends on my ambition.  Some days I think I can knit the whole world Christmas gifts... other days it seems I can't knit a few rows without swearing!   I also have a quilting class coming up - hand piecing hexagons - which I am teaching at the local quilt shop, so I have to get my lesson plans done before I start any new projects.  Or at least that is what my logical brain tells me... I may have to ignore it and follow my heart (it tends to get me in more trouble hehe)