New Wheel

I stopped off at a semi local spinnery this weekend to pick up a used Schacht-Reeves 30" wheel in Ash.  I had been looking for one and since this one was barley used, less than a year old, it was perfect. 

I am amazed at how nice the singles are turning out.  The extra twist this wheel adds makes a much nicer lace than my Joy.

I still have my Joy, though.  It is a great wheel for travelling and it really does make a nice yarn, but this is so much nicer.

Sammy Six Toes

Sammy Six Toes showed up at our house last week.  She is a polydactyl cat (6 toes on each of her front feet).  She also has 5 toes on each of her back feet. 

Spring

We found this little guy in the basement:

 This family was in the driveway:

These beauties decided to stick around a while and are nesting:

and this is a LOT of water, we have had more water this year than we have ever had since we moved here in 2003.

New Babies, the human kind

We have a new addition to our family, a little girl.  Since Dear let me go wild in the closing yarn store, I had to look for something to make for the "new girl."  My mother-in-law wanted me to make the same dress I made for another baby, but I wasn't really feeling it, I knit it twice before.  So, I found a cute little hoodie called Roo by Kate Gilbert. 
I decided to knit this in the round instead of pieces because I hate piecing knit projects.  Here is the progress so far.

This sweater is made from Debbie Bliss Rialto.  Rialto is a DK weight, 100% extrafine superwash merino wool.  The yarn is very "squooshy" and feels nice on my hands.  The stitch defenition is pretty good too.  I chose this yarn because it is wool, so it will be warm, and because it is washable.  I have some of this for sale in my etsy shop.  It retails for almost $9, I am selling it for $8 and free shipping.  I have a few more colors, but I am only adding new ones as the other sell.  If you are looking for a specific one, convo me at etsy and I will see if I have it for you.

Socks? Never Say Never

I never thought I would ever knit a pair of socks.  I mean, what a waste?  I can buy them cheap and they get holes in them and worn out really fast.  Right?  Well, with the closing of my favorite yarn shop, I bought some pretty sock yarn (Alpaca Sox by Classic Elite).  Then I searched for a free sock pattern on Ravelry and found the Artichoke socks by Megan Humphrey.  I went back and forth between the socks and Rosebud's Zauberball dress

 and finally finished them in 2 weeks. 

These are the softest, warmest socks I have ever worn.  My toes are always cold, even in the summer, but yesterday, wearing these socks, my feet and toes felt as warm as they do burried in warm sand at the beach.  Now, I am not the most consistant person in the world, probably the least, so the thought of handwashing these socks does not really bother me now, but a few weeks from now??? I don't know.  Anyways, I loved them so much that I went back and bought the rest of the Alpaca Sox yarn and purchased a book by Cookie A. .  She is famous for her sock designs, in the knitting world, and I have already begun the first pattern in the book.