Week before last I threatened to spin all the corridale tops, which of course I didn’t, since the dog calmed down enough for me to act fairly normal, although interrupted. 😉
My second colour turned out much fatter than the first while getting the hang of making slubs, so I decided to Continue reading “Corriedale(?) sweater(?) 1”
Not half bad for a day’s work.
While getting ready to reknit the bottom half of my ginormous blue tunic (scroll down to skip the chitchat and see what’s happening with that), I was pondering the conundrum of work ethic, focus vs. procrastination, efficiency vs. slow cloth. I feel like I’m flogging a dead horse by now, but apparently I’m a slow learner in some areas.
I’m having fun with this project of investigating my own reactions and preferences, so bear with me! (or skip to the images) Just a bit of thinking out loud as an add on to Wednesday’s post.
You know how I want to do ALL the things. Or at the very least, I want to learn about all the things. Which, if you give in to it, leads to either hurry, long hours or crappy jobs. If I had not given myself a deadline I would have re-padded Mimi to try on the sweater more often, with more lifelines, and been able to trust the result (I can’t fit knitwear succesfully on myself, that much I know), I might have not ended up having to frog. If on the other hand I’d not introduced a deadline, it could have taken me 2 years to knit instead of a month, because I would have gotten sidetracked by all the things.
So it turns out, it’s not only about beating procrastination and getting the job done, the focus also has to be on the quality. Goes without saying you think, but while I obviously want to do good work, my battle so far has been centered on simply the doing, finding a structure and discipline to make it possible to do all the things. In my head all/most of my interests are linked, and I’d like to keep it that way, even though I know I’m waving a shotgun rather than shoot with bow and arrow. (which I’d love to learn btw but I’m trying to save it for another lifetime. Like weaving. Ahem.)
Time is not of great importance with sweater knitting of course, since it’s just an innocent hobby, but I think I can use any activity to improve my general workflow and mindset. While efficiency is great, I need to be mindful as well, we don’t want to get run over by the stress monster (again). I still think one of the keys is to work more serial rather than parallel, so I have to be even more careful and focused about choosing each project. A change which in itself is a serious workout for Patience. Perhaps I should be content to not only set up my physical projects in serial production, but also the work with my inner issues. I just wonder if the list will ever stop growing! 😉
(yes, Arlee, I did read what you wrote on the practice instead of the performance)
Can’t have a Fiber Friday without show and tell of course, so here’s a smallcompilation for those of you not so interested in my little dance with Resistance. There are comments about each if you click the thumbnails.
This week I spun one of my silly batts, the one from the fluff box.
As I suspected, the really short fibers I carded had a hard time holding together as yarn. I could have spun it slowly and carefully, after all cotton can be spun. But I wanted a robust looking fluffy yarn, not a high twist rope, so I decided to try and spin it with a stronger core. Not actual corespinning, where you paint the fiber onto a thread by holding the two at a 90 degree angle, I just ran the thread along in my fiber supply while drafting.
I tried to take a couple of pix of how I hold the fiber in my right hand, then I do a short forward draw with my left basically pulling at the thread and letting the roving run loosely inside my palm around the thread. When I spindle spin I draft and suspend the spindle with my right, but since the orifice on the wheel is to the left I felt it was more convenient to switch. It didn’t really take a lot of time to get used to, so now I can do both.
I’m keeping it as a single as planned, since the colours were mingled quite well enough on the carder already. And the thread simply keeps the fibers from drifting apart.
I may do another post on spinning short fibers – when I get around to that. After all I have God knows how many pounds of that Dorset sitting around…
Yes, I know that I’m spinning in my riding breeches, I just can’t be having with changing my outfit 5 times a day. I also did not sweep the floor for the photo shoot. I really think there ought to be staff for such things – or is that children?
I made G put the driveband on my drumcarder before he left for the day, so I could blend some fibers for my current funyarn project, just a batch of purples that I got out a while ago and never blended. Meant to do it on the hackle – but that requires 2 thumbs as well; I’m beginning to see why dolphins never had an industrial revolution. Apart from being too clever of course. And yes, I’m still p***ed about my thumb progress which has been going backwards this past week – are you all bored to pieces hearing about it? <G> Perhaps I should challenge myself not to speak of it again until it’s completely healed….
Stephen Pressfield has an interesting take on why we get these clumsy injuries – I have to say, it certainly fits well with some of my posts! “Things” always seem to happen “to” me just when I think I’m on a roll, cruising along with the wind in my back, thinking I’ve finally found the sweet spot. Interesting.
Anyway, After carding the two batts for the project, I wanted more. Before I knew it, a couple of hours had passed and I’d been adding all sorts of silly things. When I ran out of obvious leftover bits of top, I got my fluff box (combing waste) out and ran a few chunks through the carder willynilly. I know it’s going to be neppy and tricky to spin, but hey, learning experience, right? Yarn that doesn’t hold up well because of short fibers can be felted…
I’ve wanted to make tweed yarn forever, I even have a bag of undyed silk noil sitting somewhere just for that. So that’s another future project for the carder. I thought perhaps I could use the fluff for tweed nepps first, with some long fiber like Shetland for instance? Right now, however, I need to spin some as part of my attempt at a structured work and study routine. And paint if I can find uninterrupted time, which I need for that. I still don’t know what’s happening with my desire to blog differently, so in the meantime I’ll just blather as usual.
