While I have been staying faithful to only one knitting project, I have managed to find a little extra time to spin and sew.
Sometime around Thanksgiving, I dyed up this BFL roving with a dye method that was new to me. I liked the end result enough to keep for me :). Yes, it's pink, but I think there is just enough orange in it to warm it up sufficiently for my tastes.
Anyone who knows me knows that I am not usually a perfectionist…. Perhaps that is why Tao appeals to me in the manner in which it does. I find if I think too much about the process something doesn't jive.
Take this yarn for instance. I spent some time chatting with Laurie after her class with Judith McKenzie and Judith's ideas about spinning correctly.
In the past, I have not been unhappy with the yarn I have spun. I have always found that once I settled into the rhythm of what the roving wanted to be, I am usually content with the finished yarn.
With this beautiful roving from Barb Parry , I thought I would try some of JMM's techniques. I started over thinking what I was doing and how I was spinning and I can freely admit that I am not happy with either the 2 ply or the 3 ply that I finished. The yarn is way over spun. Now……I'm not saying that JMM's ideas are not fabulous, because they work for so many people, but for me, I find if I just let my wheel and my fiber tell me how it needs to be spun, I seem to do better.
I am spinning this BFL a bit thicker than usual for a DK-Worcestered weight yarn. I am really trying not to think about my spinning this time and so far I am happy with what I am seeing. Of course the truth will be in the plying. I'll let you know how it finishes up.
There are times however when the perfectionist in me will not be quiet….and never more has that been true with Beetrice. (no..her eyes will not be yellow..eww…those are pins marking the spot).
Somehow the legs did not look right when I attached them. They were much shorter than they should have been. How can that be when I used a pattern? At first I thought…well, I will just give this one to McKayla, but it bugged me too much to let it rest. I did figure out how that leg came out shorter, so I recut a new one…but as I was cutting, I got another brainstorm about how Beetrice should look, so stay tuned…….. 🙂
I am off this weekend to Webs with Jean. Barb Parry is giving a dyeing class which I am excited to take part in. Jean and I decided to make a weekend of it. Perfect timing for the winter doldrums :).
The Woolen Rabbit 
Pretty yarn. Can’t wait to see your changes. Have a great weekend!
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The same thing happened to me with some gorgeous Abby batts — totally overspun. BUT, the final product turned out fine.
Have fun this weekend and give Jean a big hug from me!!
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I’m so envious of your living so close to Webs. Lucky you!
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Have a lovely weekend!
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I’m finding that there is a definite learning curve with Judith’s techniques. It doesn’t come quickly. (I just spun a SPunky batt and am not happy with the result. Overspun.) So clearly, I need to slow down my feet or speed up my hands.
I’m converted to her worsted technique, but I’m not sure about the woolen technique at all.
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You two have a good time! The class sounds marvelous.
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Swatch the yarn before you write it off. It may be that the yarn is better for a certain project than it is to just sit and look like a pretty and perfect yarn.
Have fun this weekend! I almost signed up and then, well there is a lot going on around here.
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I talked with Laurie and Margene a lot about JMM’s class. I’m intrigued but I’m not going to try any of that until I take a class with her myself.
I bet you and Jean will have a blast this weekend! I’m wishing I was there with you!
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Have fun with Jean! It sounds like a perfect fibre retreat.
I think you’ve got the right perspective on the spinning (although I’m not a spinner). Let the fibre be what it wants to be. Makes perfect sense to me. It sounds very zen, actually. Sounds like a good rule for life in general.
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I clicked on the yarn picture and can see that the 2-ply is overspun a bit in the singles, but underplied. I’d run it through the wheel again. Did you wet finish? JMM’s rather brutal treatment (hot soapy water with much plunging of fingers or potato masher, then into ice cold, back to hot, then cold, then “whacking”) can dramatically change a yarn. The 3-ply looked pretty good.
Thing is, you really do have to take a class or five before some of her techniques sink in and my guess is that you didn’t understand from a mere conversation with someone what was really supposed to happen. You have to SEE her do things. ( I highly recommend her Spinning Exotics video!) Having said that, and having taken MANY classes with Judith, there are still things “Judith says” that I just can’t do. And things that I do, rather successfully, that horrify The Great One. My advice is to go back to your old ways, but definitely try to take a class with her if you can!
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Have an awesome time with Jean. Wish I could be there too! Oh and what is “Worcestered weight yarn” ? LOL Forgive my loving ribbing ducks and runs Mwah!
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Oh, have a great time with Jean! Wish I could be there…
envy envy envy
Your doll’s legs might have been affected by the fabric’s grain. Cutting them out on-grain, off-grain, or on the bias can all give different sizes/shapes. It’s the stuffing that makes things go all wonky.
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I love the roving you dyed and are spinning. It looks beautiful! And Beetrice looks great, too.
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your spinning looks wonderful.
and I totally agree about letting the fiber speak to you as you spin it.
sometimes this means that I “waste” a few yrds here and there, but in truth, I end up using that stuff as accents in my weaving -0 and thus it is never a waste.
enjoy.
and dang.. you make me want to haul my wheel out of the closet!! Maybe this is the year I can really be able to spin once again 🙂
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Always listen to your inner spinner…your yarn is so beautiful and Ms. Beetrice is looking fab. 🙂
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Stay tuned? Stay tuned…..no no no no noooo….I want to see what your idea for Beetrice is! LOL
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Oh….I forgot to say in my comment…if you place the legs a little on the low side she sits better…if her legs sit ‘flush’ with her body she can tend to be a bit roly poly. If the backs of her thighs sit a little lower than the bottom of the body piece then she tends to sit on their ‘flat’ edge.
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The yarn looks gorgeous. No reason to fret! I love Beetrice. Just work on her today! I want to see her! Don’t you just lover her, already?
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