Meanderings of a Mermaid

  First the really BIG NEWS . I have registered a company in the name of Mermaid Knits . Is this my second career? We shall see how it goes. With more and more invitations to teach knitting and other fibre arts, I decided to formalize the work aspect. I've learned about the requirements for claiming US income on my Canadian tax form. I am about to learn about developing a web site. It's all very exciting for me. Wish me luck! And now on to current projects. The four balls of yarn here I spun up as energized singles. Two balls have Z twist and two balls have S twist. I deliberately spun them with a high degree of twist. It is quite unruly yarn. (wool and silk). I found this pattern in my favourite pattern source, Walker's Second Treasury. Here it is called the Lace Ribbon Stitch. I know it is called Ric Rac Stitch in another book I have. It is a lovely pattern and with a strong vertical element that I was looking for. Now here's what I'm doing. I am knitting...

First off. Early this morning a local fox decided to have a nap just outside our livingroom window. At this point she had licked one leg (it seemed she might have been limping a little). And soon after the photo she put her head down and dosed for an hour. And here is the rainbow jacket. It is knit using a shadow knitting technique. The diamond shape is only visible from some angles. Being wool, it will be a good fall jacket. For the last few days I have been staining the studio stairs and deck. This was a large task. The milk crates in the foreground are protecting some painted turtle egg clutches. Altogether we have about thirteen or so protected. They should be hatching any day now. The other big project is a small shed that will house new solar equipment. Panels will sit on the tall side of the shed. Today we got the shingles up on that steep roof. glad that chore is over too. BS is doing a great job building this.

Announcing the Wearable Art by Texas Artists show running from September 9-29, 2014. The  Arnold Gallery in Mason, Texas is hosting this show. Thirteen very diverse artists will be exhibiting and I really wish I could copy the pdf poster to show you who all will be there. On opening day there are special events running all day including a spinning demo in the morning and weaving in the afternoon. I only wish that I could be there. Instead I am sending four of my creations.   This  shawl is just lovely to wear with a shawl pin in front.  This poncho with a diversity of yarns was really fun to knit. One of the main yarns is a multi-coloured, multi-fiber yarn that I spun myself. Here, not only can you see the funky handspun (yes, me again with an art yarn) "collar". Not sure what to call it. I bet it would look smashing on the little black dress. I am also caught giving the photographer a lesson on how to take the picture.  These fun fingerles...

This winter I hope to have the opportunity to teach a few knitting classes. Three that have been formulated are introduced below. All designs are my own.   One class will cover how to add beads to your knitting. Here is a very simple beaded lace fabric used to cover a candle holder. I haven't thought of a good name for this little thing yet.  Students who would rather make a wristwarmer, can use the same pattern and wind up with some cool accessories. I called these Goddess of the Sea Wristwarmers. This Woodland Trail Sock was a joy to design and to knit.  The sock class is aimed at beginners who have never done a sock before. To make the heel during the duration of the class, we will be using worsted weight yarn.  And last but not least, the poncho. This is a study in cables, for the beginner. Two very simple rectangles. The easiest little cable you can imagine. A seed stitch border. It all comes together to create the Rocky Rapids Poncho....

A lot of crafty things are happening. Because I am so busy in the studio, not a lot of time is spent getting online. I have started to flick and card the white Rambouillet fleece. This was so heavy with lanolin that I have washed it on two separate occasions. So far the carding is going well, albeit slowly. Stay tuned for photos of that. I will be spinning it for a fancy sweater or jacket project.  I probably posted pictures of this quilt top last summer. At that point I had the central blue parts done.  The graphic design is called Tippicanoe. I am going with a marine theme for this quilt. It is a king sized coverlet. This summer so far I have added the narrow green frame around the blue blocks. Then I still wanted it wider, and so I found this medium brown. Plus I had just enough of the yellow and orange fabrics, from the centre of the canoes, to use in a big block in each corner. Today I did most of the machine quilting of this blanket. That is not an easy task...

 It's a wild and wet day and wouldn't you know it, some wet wildlife came to visit. Here is a yearling moose. I didn't dare get up off my recliner, so thank goodness my camera was close at hand. As he looked right at me, I tried not to move much as I took this shot. He grazed at the lush grass for a bit and worked his way across the edge of the deck. In a minute or two the encounter was over.  Earlier this spring a neighbour  and I have seen a mother and yearling in the area. Maybe this yearling is our previous sighting? Mother was no where to be seen today. Maybe she has let her young one know it is time for it to be on its own? If it wasn't for the rain and for the deck bench, it'd be a great shot.  And for the crafty amongst you, this is the third sock in the series of traditional Lithuanian socks I started knitting a year ago. The design is from Donna Druchunas and is called Compass Rose Sock. Here it is with the ends not sewn in and not yet blocked...

 The latest addition to the weaving studio is the Leclerc Artisat floor loom. It has a weaving width of 36 inches and will take the place of the Schacht Mighty Wolf. The latter is packed and will be heading up to camp to live in the studio there. Both of these looms are the same size and have the same number of shafts. The Mighty Wolf has convenient wheels that pop down when the loom is folded up, making it easy to move around. The Artisat, shown above, is made of lovely maple and is quite a sturdy loom. I couldn't wait to get a project going, just to test her out. This loom also folds up nicely to reveal more space in the guest bedroom.  This advancing twill pattern is a four shaft design. Although the Artisat has eight shafts, right now I only have heddles for four. This is a mercerized cotton warp and rayon slub weft. The pattern is a little subtle because of the variegated or dappled nature of the yarn, but I think this is an interesting effect. I am not sure what...