Wheel Love

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Happy Valentine's Day world. Nope, still not a big fan, but I love all of my readers and followers, so gush, gush, kiss, kiss.

Now that that's out of the way...

Last year I made it a resolution to learn how to spin. I spent part of my very short summer vacation trying to learn just how to do that. All I had was a spindle from Craftsy and another I'd obtained from somewhere else I can't quite remember. Anywho...it didn't work out too well. I did spin some fiber, but the spindle was frustrating to me because of the back spin, the constant starting and stopping, the multiple coordination skills involved... Basically, I just decided it wasn't for me! 

So I went on about my way, feeling that I had at least tried something new. But there was an empty place in my heart. A place that could only be filled with wool. Wool spun into yarn. And I wanted to do this special spinning using a traditional wheel. Which, in the world of wheel spinning, is called a Saxony. There are many different styles available; everything from modern electric spinners and pvc wheels, to more traditional castle and Norwegian styles. They all pretty much do the same thing, but it depends on what you're willing to learn and what you find attractive. 

I love the look of an old-style wheel. Rumplestiltskin always fascinated me (straw to gold? yes, please) and Sleeping Beauty is my all-time favorite Disney princess. Yes, I have some femininity in there somewhere. I even have a daughter named Aurora, though my intention was not to name her directly after the princess, it was just a happy coincidence. So I searched long and hard for my perfect match. Bearing in mind I only had around $450 to spend. I finally found her. 

I chose a Kromski Interlude for many reasons. 

A. She was priced just right at sale price of $460. These generally run around $529.00. I picked mine up at the Woolery on sale, so keep your eyes open. You can still pick up the smaller "Prelude" for about $399 unfinished at KnitPicks.com. 

B. She was beautiful. I would have to stain her, since the sale price was only reasonable on the unfinished style, but I could pick any color I wanted and bulk up my wood staining skills. (no, it wasn't fun. yes, I would do it again.) She was also in the traditional Saxony style I wanted without the huge price tag. 

C. The Interlude is a good beginner wheel. Easy to learn, single treadle, single drive, good size bobbins, and a good low to high ratio with expansions available for faster flyers. 

D. It's size means that I can travel with it fairly reasonably. The wheel comes off easily and remounts just as quickly. So I'm looking for that perfect, secluded place where I can meditate and spin. 

So after choosing my wheel, I was so pleasantly pleased with the customer service from the Woolery, their super-fast shipping, and excellent interactions that I have to put a little plug in here for them. They're on my list of go-to places for future shopping, since they carry a lot of accessories and wool.
It took me 2 days to stain it after I got it.

Out of the Box and ready for staining

 I chose a light pecan to go with the floor in my craft room.

Partially stained. 

After staining it, I used a lot of Yosemite Sam cussing, a video on YouTube, and the instruction manual to put it together in about 3 hours. I could do it in probably 20 minutes now, but I had NO IDEA what all the pieces were and where they went, so it was difficult to say the least! If I had to do it all over again, I would do a "dry run" on assembly, so I at least understood where to put everything and what portions should NOT be stained before they are put together. That was one of my downfalls, because I had to sand off some of the stain. The pieces are perfectly fit and even a 2 layer stain causes problems.

finished and put together

I also purchased a video on Craftsy called *Foundations of Spinning. It was fantastic and helped me learn not only how to spin, but about my spinning wheel.

The results of my first roving hank spun

 I'm about half way through it right now and have spun 2 1/4 bobbins from some roving I had on hand. Yes, you can find 100s of free videos online and countless books, but I always find that my Craftsy videos give me the most information and help me learn how to do something right! Plus, there's no searching around for it, it's just right there when I sign in. 

3 bobbins full 

First time the roving went ON the bobbin

The yarn isn't pretty and perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but it's taken me about an hour a day over the course of a week to get to this point. Not too bad, really. I was getting much better by the end of the third bobbin and spinning more consistently. Now I get to learn to ply!

If you really want to do something, and your heart desires it all of the time, you CAN do it. It takes practice, dedication, and persistence, but that's all in your desire to learn it. Anything you really want to do, and find worth doing, you can learn. 

Tuesday Needlework: Cabling without a Needle

Based on a True Story

The scene: You are in a coffee shop and have just set down with your most recent knitting project and a
steaming hot cup of your favorite brew. You have worked hard all week for these few free minutes and
you are going to enjoy them. You are working along and you get to the beautiful cable section and you
reach for your cable needle. Oh, no! You've left it at home in your other bag. Suddenly your day has
gone from a relaxing, self-indulgent day of knitting to a tragic horror. It is all ruined. Or is it?
No, my friends, it is not. You can still work that cable! Do not give up hope! Relax and I will show you
how.

The first step is to decide if your cable is a front cross or a back cross. In other words, do the first set of
stitches cross in front of the others or do they cross in back? If they are front crossing, this is what you
will need to do.

Notice how the first set of stitches crosses in FRONT
of the others in previous rows

Front Crossing Cables 

Slip the first set of stitches purlwise to the opposite needle, in this case four, keeping your working yarn
in back.

Work the next 4 or set of required stitches.

With the yarn still to the back, take the left needle and slip the 4 slipped stitches onto it, keeping all of
the stitches on the right needle. Now pinch all of the stitches (8) and pull out the right needle from all of
the stitches, making sure you have dropped your working yarn so it does not pull out from your worked
stitches.

Don't panic! Your 4 slipped stitches should be on the left needle still, but the 4 worked stitches are kind
of hanging out there. Calmly take your right needle and place it back into the worked stitches, making
sure they are slipped on purlwise and aligned properly on the needle.

Now the hard part is over! Your four slipped stitches are crossed in front of the worked stitches. Simply
work them off of the left hand needle and carry on enjoying your project!

Rear (Back) Crossing Cables 

I tend to have a little more difficulty with rear or back crossing cables. The process is basically the same,
but to begin move your working yarn to the front as if to purl, then slip your 4 stitches onto the right
needle.

move working yarn to front of work

slip stitches, then move working yarn to back of work 

 Move the working yarn to the back and finish work your 4 remaining stitches.


 Here I like to drop my working yarn and turn the project around. Slip the left needle purlwise into the slipped stitches on the right needle and remove the stitches off the right needle as before.

Turn work so back is facing you to slip stitches, leaving working yarn in the front

Turn your work back around and slip the four loose stitches onto the right needle and work the
remaining 4 stitches off the left needle. Before you work the remaining four stitches, though, make sure that you move your working yarn back to the back and between the two needles.

Loose stitches

Pick up and work remaining four

Stitches worked, cable crossed to back

Your cable should be perfectly crossed as long as you remembered to move your yarn front to back and to work the slipped stitches from the back of the work. There you go! Take a well-deserved sip of that coffee/mocha/latte and smile. You, my friend, have been freed from the cable needle. It is a little more difficult if you have a large number of stitches in your work, but not impossible. Just remember to take your time, breathe deeply, and know that you CAN do it. Knit on sister! 

New Technique ~ Guest Blogger

HI! My names Ashley, I am here to tell you about my fabulous new technique that I tried out today/ I told my good friend Tammy about it and she suggested blogging about it to share, and HERE I am!!! A little bit about myself first, (kinda to credit my skills maybe?). I am the owner of a very small business called "SEW Stitches",  I sell handmade crochet, knit, and sewn items. I started it about 2 years ago, it has had 3 names, and SEW Stitches kinda just stuck since I do 3 different "types" of sewing (you all know what I mean lol). 

So back to the nitty gritty! I make oodles of hats with appliques on them in the winter and some of you will know what I'm talking about when I say this.. but it takes WAY TO LONG to hold eye balls and sew them on and PRAY they are in the right spot!!! 

Well I have been dreading the coming hat season because of this horrid applique issue, and one day while organizing all my quilt supplies and what nots on the craft table.. I got to thinking... WHY NOT USE BASTING SPRAY ?!?!!? Sooo this is how my new technique tutorial was born!!!! I have a few pretty not so pretty pictures for you! It was late and dark but you will understand! 

First! You will need your handmade items (I am using a hat for my daughters birthday present and she asked for a flower applique), basting spray (this is found with quilting supplies at walmart, hobby lobby, any craft store will have it!), something to put behind you so the spray doesn't get on your table (I didn't use anything in the pictures because I normally do it outside), scissors, and a needle to sew in the yarn. 

Second, you will select the part of the applique that you would normally sew onto the hat and get in your mind where your applique will be placed. I like my flowers to be a little free, so I only sew the centers on, but with eyes and noses you would sew the entire thing on so you wouldn't need to select a SPECIFIC part. 

Now you will very carefully spray the smallest amount of basting spray onto the selected area. Please be very patient and BARELY touch the nozzle, because this stuff sprays fast wide and is VERY sticky and hard to get off! So just gently tap to spray and do it in little spots. (Remember you are sewing this so the spray doesn't have to be your PERMANENT glue, you wont need much to hold it in place for 10 minutes while you whip stitch around)

Now that you have your basting spray applied your going to put it on the spot you want it to be PERMANENTLY PLACED! Once you have placed the appliqued piece on your hat it will be sticky, so moving it as little as possible is best!!!! 

Now VOILA!!! whip stitch, sew, or however you normally attach your applique around without having to re-position a million times and pray that its in the even position you aimed for!! 

Normally I would show you the finished hat, but I have not finished it as its midnight and I have a party to plan and a dress to make for the birthday girl! Sooo I will share another hat finished using this technique, it was actually the one I tested this technique on!

Any questions, comments, or what not please be free to ask!!!! You can do so here.. OR.. I would LOVE for you to *Like* my page on facebook and share with all your friends and family!! Thanks for taking time to read my tutorial, hope you like it, learn something, or that it helps you in someway!

https://www.facebook.com/pages/SEW-Stitches/451950041492278

Tatting: The Resurgence of Age Old Techniques

What is tatting? Tatting is a form of needlework in which a person makes lace items out of thread using a needle or a shuttle. It's one of those needlework traditions which at one time was very popular among the ladies to add lace accents to towels, dresses, linens, hankies, and other items. Like many other forms of needlework (knitting, crochet, embroidery, crewel work, etc.) it fell out of popularity once women went to work and trims were mass-produced. There is nothing wrong with women working or buying commercial products, but handwork is a obsession hobby of mine I enjoy finding "new" things to learn based on long-lost techniques.

Recently tatting has had a resurgence of interest among needle workers and manufacturers. About 4-6 years ago I discovered shuttle tatting and made a few pieces. I didn't really enjoy it though, finding the shuttle difficult to control and work with. I wanted to try needle tatting, but mostly due to trying other techniques I never pursued it.

This past weekend, though, I bought a set of tatting needles. Of course they were from Hobby Lobby, my go-to place for most everything.
I already had some tatting thread from my previous venture. I sat down and searched for videos and tutorials on the web, finding the included directions a little hard to follow and really only good for one pattern! You can purchase a video or a book, but they run about $24 and I wasn't prepared to spend that much right away if I didn't want to pursue this new hobby.

Of course, you can't look up anything having to do with tatting and not run across some popular names in the field! Tatania Rosa, Totus Mel, and Georgia Seitz are all big names on Etsy, Pinterest, and through Google search. I honestly think that Totus Mel has the BEST tutorials and videos for learning to needle tat. You can find her on Instructables and YouTube or her blog I linked above.

Now, back to my experiences. Having some experience with the shuttle, I already knew how to make a ring, picots, chains and double stitches - just not with the needle! After a few tries I made a flower that turned out pretty good.

Tatted Flower

So then I moved on to making a bookmark, since I felt I had a pretty good idea of rings, chains, and picots now. It turned out pretty good, although I did miss a picot join, which messed up the end of it. But it's ok. Once I have it between the pages of a book, no one will know. :) 

bookmark

I took on a little more of a challenge and made a Cross bookmark. This was a bit more challenging because it involved directional changes and motifs. Yep, I messed it up here and there, but it is also just a test piece, so I'm not worried about it either. I view it as a great way to try out new techniques and figure out what works and what doesn't work. 

Cross Bookmark 1

Before I could give up for the day I tatted a second cross bookmark. This one involved split chains, which means using up the tail thread to make one half of the split ring and the ball thread to make the other half. It was fun and challenging. Again, small mistakes from inexperience! 

Cross Bookmark 2 with split rings

So that is a summary of my tatting adventures! I'm always wanting to learn new techniques and improve upon my skills. What is fun is that it seems at some time in the future I end up putting these techniques to use in other things. Tatting is great not just for bookmarks, but for making jewelry and adding lace accents to sewn items. Yes, I can even see them being used in mixed media pieces and art quilts! It's great to see traditions resurrected and new applications made with them. It's always better handmade!