Cathy's Tee

Finally - it's finished. The little Tee that took me 2 years to knit is done. With a lot of 'frogging' and some heavy duty math, it's completed.  I love the little rose decoration that Lee gave me - it really makes the sweater!  Yarn is Bamboucle in rose. 

Shetland Chic

Finally! I have spun and fulled the fleece that Christine gave me. It's actually turned out quite lovely.  I used my new e-spinner and got a very concise spin. There were some lumps that happened, but - oh well, gives it character.  This was not the nicest fleece to work with.  Short, sticky fibers with some debris and lots of lanolin.

I decided to full the yarn. This was my first fulling attempt and I think it turned out rather nicely.  Soaked the spun fibers in hot water with wool soap. Let it sit for 20 minutes. Rinsed out twice with warm water until the water was clear.  Squeezed the hank just slightly until it wasn't soggy dripping. Then took my anger (not that I have any) out on the fleece and whacked it against the tub walls. Very satisfying, I might add.  I got most of the water out this way.

Took the yarn outside to dry, since it was a nice sunny day.  And here is the result. A wonderfuly, soft, fuzzy yarn, that will be excellent for my new herding hat.

Doing the Math

Did I mention that I used to be good at math?  Well, I was very good at Algebra, geometry....but please, don't give me any word problems!!!

And that's what knitting is....word problems.  I finally figured out what was going on with my sweater for Cathy. The beautiful little Tee made with Bamboocle.  I've ripped it out 3 or 4 times and I think this time I've got it.  I had to do some heavy duty math.  How many stitches per inch do I have with the pattern size needle; size down; still too few sts/inch.  So calculate how many sts I have per inch on the smallest size I can knit and still have the cloth look good, then multiply by the number of inches needed for the width I want and voila - I'm down from a size 20 pattern to a size 16. But my sweater diameter will be perfect.

Finished the back and am now working on the front. It may not get done for her birthday, but it's already 2 years late, so what's another few weeks.

Fleece

I've had some fleece from a friend that isn't particularly very good. It's got some vegetable matter in it and its not been washed or carded particularly well. It's been sitting in the basket for a good year now.  I've decided that I'm going to just go ahead and spin it, lumps and all, full it, then knit myself a nice hat for herding outside in the cold.  I'd like to felt it, so I'll knit it rather big. Pictures to come.

Continued...

I'm struggling with those heels and have put them aside for a while until my friend and trusted knitting companion gets back from Oaxaca.

I wonder if I've taken too much away in trying to get rid of all the worn yarn. I may have to ditch the project. A shame because I really love the lace on the top of these socks.





 Meantime, I struggle with gauges. I've been frustrated with my sister's sweater size. I think I've ripped this thing out at least 4 times and tried other patterns.  I've changed needle sized and dropped to the lowest size and I still get something big enough for 2.

As you can see, I have 5 sts/inch, and the pattern calls for 6 1/4sts/inch. This is the back and it should measure 20 1/2 " at the bottom edge and it's 30". So you see my problem. When I did my gauge it came out perfectly. I must get looser as I go. This time I'll try 2 sizes smaller needle.

Long time break

We've had a break from lessons and sheep. It's been raining so hard that Lora's sheep are wading in mud. And, she's had an outbreak of lambing. There will be lots of cuties to see next Wednesday.  Meanwhile, Jill and I continue to walk, play ball, learn respect, and go to daycare.

We had lots of snow last weekend - Jill's first REAL big snow. She was so happy she did laps around the yard in ecstasy.

 Waiting for that perfect ball throw.

The child in David comes out. Snow ball flights of fancy. Jill didn't get it. She's going "but...where's my ball, dang it?"

"And you're going to throw the ball...when??"

Perfect picture from the porch. We got 3" of snow that day. Then the sun came out. I love sunny snow days.

KKnx clinic Feb

Kathy Knx clinic up in Arlington, WA. Feb 23/13. We worked Jill in the round pen, she's too green and so am I to work in the open field yet. There are NO fences out there! Better to be safe in a round pen.

So I started off in the morning and was very nervous.  Jill did her typical lets run straight for the sheep and they got stuck in a corner, where neither she nor I could get them out.  OK, here's what I should have done.  Take her on leash first, walked around the sheep to get them to move off that corner, then let her go. But being nervous, my brain wasn't working.

I let Kathy take over. Issues are:

1. On her first flank she always heads straight towards the sheep
2. She is not listening to me with her brain as we enter the ring.
3. She will pull and tug and almost jerk me on leash trying to get into the arena

First thing was to get control of the brain. Kathy made sure she didn't get her sheep when she didn't get out.  She also showed me how to snap the leash on her to 'wake' her up. Kathy worked her both times Saturday and in the morning Sunday.  I took over Sunday afternoon session.

I always learn better watching someone else work, getting the idea firmly planted in my head, then giving it a go.  I did pretty well, I think. I also think that Jill was responding to my corrections. It helped that we walked in on leash and stayed on leash until her body softened a bit. She was still very tight, but not as much. Great improvement.