MoonBound Podcast Merry Christmas Vlog

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December 23rd

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December 22nd

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December 21st

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December 20th

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December 19th

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December 18th

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December 17th

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December 16th

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December 15th

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December 14th

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December 13

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December12

Moonbound Podcast Vlogmas December 11th

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December 10

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December 9

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December 8

MoonBound Vlogmas Dec 7

MoonBound Podcast - Vlogmas December 6th

MoonBound Podcast - episode 8

Show Notes:

The Crochet market bag is done on a size H using the French Market Bag pattern from Ravelry.

MoonBound Podcast - Vlogmas Dec 5th

MoonBound Podcast Vlogmas December 4th

MoonBound Podcast - Vlogmas two

Applecart

I finished spinning this yarn at Wisconsin Sheep and Wool. The first photo is me plying from under a blanket, that is Friday morning at our campsite. The wind was strong and I was cold. I was in a sweatshirt, jeans, wool socks,and the blanket. I made many cups of tea but you cannot hold tea and spin! 

The yarn is cotton, 587 yards, 3oz two ply lace weight, with a WPI of 22. I also made a mini skein which is 46 yards, chain played, and 14 WPI which is light or sport weight.

Truthfully, I didn't enjoy this spin. It had lots of veg., noils, neps, and frustration inside. The finished yarn is lovely however and my affection is growing. 

Back to work

I had a wonderful time at Wisconsin Sheep and Wool, and before that the Walworth County fair. My work and food exhibited well at the fair and I learned a lot at Sheep and Wool.
I took a plying for knitting class from Jillian Moreno and while none of the things covered were new, her twist on a few of them immediately improved my spinning control. She is fun and I enjoyed the class. I bought her book and she signed it for me.
I picked up a bunch of one ounce samples of different breeds of sheep's wool and other fibers and some flax to play with.
I didn't buy any raw fleece this time. I have been struggling with washing my backlog all summer. I made progress but not compared to my purchase/acquisition progress. I have nearly sixty pounds left to wash. I have a hard time not buying if it is a good price or a youth farmer. So this year, I didn't attend the silent auction -though I was prepared to help a friend get her heart desire, a clun forest-blue faced Leicester cross from a specific breeder, but she didn't need help. I did walk through the private treaty sale, but so late nothing tempting was left. The washing and the studio is getting an update this week thanks to my dad and my husband making process suggestions.

Dyepot

The girls when picking dandelions for me, then I sat and pulled all the green bits off.

 All that work to get just the yellow bits. I have 135grams and the girls promised to go pick more later this week. These are going it the dyepot today!

Monday Morning

One of the things I do on my personal blog is write on Monday about what is going on what I am thinking and intending for the week. I thought that might be fun here. Over there I use a framework and I think I will use something like it here, but not the same one.

Right now I am...
In my kitchen drinking coffee, from the mug my Mother-in-law gave me. I have a fresh lemon and rosemary infusion scenting the air.

In Video Production...
I have one more section - the results - to work on for the green skein video I mentioned in the chatty podcast and then some minor edits. I am hoping to have it live on Wednesday. Shooting will begin on the New Mystery Spin video this week! I am really curious to see what is in the box!

On the Wheel...
Actually, right at this moment nothing but I am working on some test skeins of Corriedale Wool for a friend who will be knitting an Aran sweater. We are working together on this as a gift for (not telling) and I have spun an oiled 2-ply Spun Z-S, next is an oiled three ply Spun Z-S, then both again but Spun S-Z, then one (whichever she is leaning towards liking best) un-oiled. I am making her one oz samples to swatch and compare. This project will be fit in around other things.

On the Loom...
Will be a blanket, I have decided to weave and waulk a wool blanket, partially as a get to know the ins and outs of this loom, partially as a demo piece for The Rare Breeds Show at Garfield Farm Museum.

In the Dyepot...
More self striping yarn!

Papers and Bolts...
This week I need to send in the application for another show and get in contact with the guy who runs my farmer's market.  I also really need to update the Etsy and Square Stores!

Who I am watching... 
Mina at Knitting Expat. Grace at Spin Weekly. Rachel at Wool N' Spinning. And Kate at Milk Thistle.

Podcast Episode four

Is ready! The link is here.

Show notes:

Podcast Four

Knitting:

                In Progress:

                                Milk sweater-    Knit picks size 9 us or 5.5 mm

                                                                Gyre Cardigan in interweave knits spring 2014

                                                                Vicki Howell Craft in Carol colorway        

65-35 Organic cotton-Milk Fiber

I love how this is looking but dislike the way it is written, if you are working this pattern, just keep swimming. It works but it doesn’t seem like it will.

Next socks-        I cast on Mina Philpp’s Pattern Grand Central from her NY collection.  The Collection is available on Ravelry for purchase and she is running it as a knit along.

                                I will be using Addi Sock rockets in US size 1 (2.25mm) with a 40inch cable, which is my go to for socks!

                                The yarn is Red Heart, Heart & Sole with Aloe. I finally remember how this got into my stash – this is a stash busting year for me – I bought a grab bag a few years ago and this was one of the yarns inside. This is not to my tastes but several of the other yarns in the bag, luckily, were. This is 70-30 Superwash wool-Nylon, The colorway is called Watercolor Stripe.

Cabin Afghan:    I have two new squares for the cabin blanket, and starting a third. While working on it during one of the camping trips we took this month I ran into a problem and have come up with a change in the project to deal with it. Each of the centers of the Log cabin blocks are six stitches wide, one for each member of the family. I want to use only my own yarn and many breeds and dye tests. I have a lot of bits that are big enough to do the center but not enough to do even the next course. Wanting to move forward with the project I decided staggering the blocks with a different block.

                Finished Objects:

Stash busting socks. Patons Kroy Cascade Knit Picks interchangeable size 2.5 us or 3mm. Reflections, I adjusted the Vanilla Sock Recipe to match the needles I had. I had received a pair of pretty socks that were tight and I was working against it. So these socks are bigger than they should be. I am otherwise happy with them.

Lime stripes. I dyed this yarn as a sock blank and spinning guild program. I love the stripes. I used Addi Sock rockets that I bought specifically for the new sock obsession I am working under.  I did not modify the pattern.

Pikachu Sweater. This turned out very well and loved. Mouse – I have long used these nicknames for my children, both in public media and in our day to day lives. Beaver he is 18, Mouse he is 12, Bunny she is 10, and Badger she is 8 – loves it. I have had to wrestle it back to wash it.

Spinning:

In Progress:                        I am working on a green yarn that will be covered in detail in the next video.

                                                I also decided to join the Completely Twisted and Arbitrary Spinning Group on Ravelry and their Spin the Bin Challenge. You collect –often from long ignored stash though that is not a requirement – fiber to spin, 12 lots of at least 2oz each but can be more, and photograph them together in a bin. You have the year to spin them, if you remove a fiber from the bin you have to replace it with two new fibers.  They have a few other rules and a chat group, it is a lot of fun and beautiful yarns are being made, check it out. So this is my bin, I am going to show off the bags now, but talk about them later. You can check out more info now at my Ravelry yarn page.

                                                Also ready and waiting is the next mystery spin!  

Finished Objects:             I sold the red wolle skein this Friday at Spinning Guild, but if you want to see it you can check out that video! I am hoping to get a picture of the finished object the guild member makes with it to show off to you.

The first mystery spin is done! I love the feel and am looking forward to knitting or weaving it up. I am debating yet, but leaning towards knitting it the Super Eyelet Shawl by Fiona Wright. I would love to hear your thoughts. http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/super-eyelet-shawl

Crochet:

In Progress:                        I have two long in progress crochet projects. A weather blanket, the idea is to crochet a row each days – I am about a month behind – with the color representing the day’s high temperature. 

                                                The other is a stash busting project in which I made a hundred flowers and am linking them for a cheerful summer garden throw.

                Finished Objects:             I have nothing finished to show you.

Weaving:

In progress:                        The new loom! This month I sold my Sievert’s loom, and bought a Kessenich Loom. The Sievert’s loom was purchased several years ago, the owner before me had converted it from a table top loom to a floor loom. I bought it kind of spontaneously, it did not fit in my car, and then it starts to rain. A random nice lady attending the rendezvous stopped and helped me. We loaded into her van and drove to a nearby friend’s house. She wasn’t home! Luckily she has a lovely big covered porched. I called another friend, who soon arrives with her husband and some tools. It was a good loom, but its usable weaving area was small – about 14 inches.  A lady in the weaving guild I belong to was selling her loom! So after thinking about it for a while and finding that a dear friend was interested in buying my loom, the decision was made. I am now the proud owner of a Kessenich Loom with a weaving area of about 36 inches.  The only difficultly was that I had just warped the loom for three scarves before making this decision. I ended up weaving like a mad fiend and getting them done in time to deliver the loom mostly on time.

As to first projects I am debating between making matching throws for an upcoming wedding or making a project for my house to get to know the loom with.

Finished Objects:             These three scarves are a project for the weaving guild. They supplied the yarn and we are all making scarves for the area homeless shelter. A chance to practice weaving and to do good at the same time.

Sewing:

In Progress:                        In sewing I have mostly doing mending, but I am toying with some design ideas for yarn project holders, after the tangle fest that was the intarsia of the Pikachu sweater. More on these later.

I am also starting a 1840’s era dress, for Garfield Farm Museum’s Rare Breed Show.

                Finished Objects:

Since Last We Chatted:                  I have been sick! All of March was illness! And April has been recovery and returning to normal – or at least as normal as it gets here – life. I have mostly being trying to keep up and to organize things, in the hopes of making the necessary life chores taking less time. I have had a chance to visit with a couple of old friends and plan to not let so much time go in between now and the next time we get together. Beaver has selected his college, here in the state, so there is a future of him shopping in our cupboards and bring home laundry to look forward too.

Show:                                                   I did a nice Crafts show in February and met some interesting people. The weather was very good, which is bad for an indoor show in winter. We did okay, and the people running the event were great. Here is a short video of our booth. My father and his woodwork are featured along with my Mother-in-law’s Lovely pottery and all my fiber-y awesomeness. The booth on one side was Harmony Specialty Foods, selling yummy and some unusual cheeses. One the other side was Opal Stone of Wild and Precious Prints, selling really pretty lettered signs. www.wildpreciousorint.etsy.com

Camping:                                             The husband and kids camped in the snow at our land up north while I was at that show. They had fun and were full of adventure tales when I got home. Since then we have gone up twice, once for a few days with the kids and once just the two of us. I love being there! Enjoy these pictures from our trips.

Videos and tools

 I made up a bunch of the yarn holder bracelets. They are a soft aluminum wire with glass beads and a swiveling clasp.

To get started you insert the bottom piece in a center pull ball or yarn cake, then clip the bracelet part on. 

You can then knit from either end of the ball - I prefer the center - and you yarn is neatly right there at your wrist ready to knit or crochet. I have used them walking and sitting and hanging from either wrist. If you are near a table, you can un-clip the bracelet and it will stand in place. I love them.


I also spent some time working on another video today! Coming soon! Right after I remember to charge the camera battery and finish the spin.

 ~Julia

Booth shots

Some booth photos from Spring Treasures!

Mystery Spin the First

The First Mystery Spin video is up. Link here. I hope you like the video.

Show notes:

Main skein – Wpi 13, 214 yards, 3.65 oz, DK

Small skein – Wpi 13, 30 yards, .50 oz, DK

I only lost about .05 oz in the processing and prep. One of the fibers had quite a bit of small vegetable matter within, which you saw me picking out. The mini skein is entirely the second strand plied onto itself and I think it would make a nice finishing edge. I am not entirely happy with this spin up, the second strand is less showy but spun up nicely  and I like it better. The combination of having both cotton and silk – I said they weren’t in the bin, but I was wrong, the soft creamy stuff in the unveiling section is cotton – made for a difficult spin. I have a balanced yarn here, but I am not as happy with it as I would be if the entire yarn was the second strand’s colorway. In deciding how I would spin this up I chose to put most of the angora, lighter colored alpaca, mohair, all of the silk and all of the cotton into the first strand. The darker colors (Merino, Lincoln Longwool, Wensleydale, alpaca and glitter) went to the second strand so set myself up for this issue, but I had a good reason, I wanted the stable length of the silk to help stabilize the shortness of the cotton. I do feel that this was helpful, but maybe not as much as I hoped.  I did go through the bin again to make certain (touch wood) that all the cotton and silk are out of the bin I have set up for my mystery spin selectors to pick from. I added some more stuff while I was there so I am looking forward to the next one.

I am working on my framing and hoping that some changes I am making to my set-up will improve the visibility of my hands in the shots. If you have suggestions, I welcome them, both in video and in what you would be interested in me working on. I have the next mystery spin box made, this time by a dear friend, and am working on a spin of brown sheep wool that I dyed and a silk blending. The next podcast will be a catch up chat so you can see more of what I have been working on!

The apron I am wearing in so many of the shots is recycled men’s silk ties. The silk helps the wool not to stick to me so I don’t arrive to pick my kids up from school looking like a sheep. My dad suggested making another in different colors might help the video, so I am gathering a few more for that project.

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/super-eyelet-shawl

I am thinking about either making the Super Eyelet Shawl by Fiona Wright or weaving with it. I would love to hear your thoughts.

Back in the saddle

I have been sick for a bit more than a month and am starting to feel better, but normal is not where I am at yet. I shot some video from that last show and I am working on some new podcasts. I want to thank everyone for their patience with me.

A picture of the new tablecloths I made for the last show. I will write more about the show next time.

Video and a walk

My new video is up! Link here. In this video I take you through the dyeing, processing, spinning, and plying of Eiderwolle into yarn.I hope you enjoy it.

I am making tablecloths, cleaning up the studio, working on changes for the shop, and took a lovely walk through a local crafts market to see if it would be a good location for me. I am looking around yet but the market was very nice and I found several things to go back and buy as presents for family members.

Ducks in a row

That is what I am working on this week! Getting all my ducks in a row for this weekend's show. I am really looking forward to Spring Treasures this weekend at the Waukesha Expo!!! I have two new videos in the works and some organizing and labeling to do. I also need to make new tablecloths!

Spring Treasures
Waukesha Expo Center
Saturday 10-4
Sunday 11-4

See you there!

Podcast episode one - introductions are in order

Link to video here!

Intro

Me

Welcome to The MoonBound ArtisanShip Podcast, I am your host Julia. As this is the first episode I want to start out by chatting a minute about me. I am coming to you from Wisconsin in the US, where I live with my husband, Jim, four kids – 8-18 – and one aging cat who hasn’t come to terms with having no upper canines. My degree is in Anthropology and Museum work and my training in Archaeology. I am interested in most anything. Especially, if it used to be commonly done and now produces something most people just go buy. Among those interests are Spinning, knitting, weaving and all things fiber-y. I also brew and bake and regularly get it in my head to try something I am reading about. Sometimes this leads to a great (or not so great) recipes, sometimes to spending a week learning how to weave fishing nets. I intend to chat with you about all of that!

Why I am starting these videos?

I dream of owning a little brick and mortar gallery and teaching studio. The kind of place where people wander in to see a work up close and end up staying for a cup of tea and taking a class or just chat and craft all day. I long for the ideal of community involved in a quilting bee. Having drawn this feeling from the podcasting community I have decided to join in. Hopefully, you will learn from me and I from you.

Knitting

On the needles

                I have three projects on my needles right now.

Mouse’s sweater

Elizabeth Zimmerman’s Percentage system

Key number is 162,

gauge is 5 stitches to the inch.

Junghans Wolle, thifted and old 79cents a skein.

on fourth skein and have four left.

knitpicks interchangeables in nickel size 4 us or 3.5mm

Second tryat knitting a Pikachu Colorwork into the yoke

                                                Socks!

Mina Philpp’s Two at a time sock pattern – morphed into her vanilla sock recipe

Mystery stash busting – inventoried all of my stash yarn and ordered buddy balls for sock yarns I found there.

                                                                Patons Kroy Cascade

                                                                Knit Picks interchangeable size 2.5 us or 3mm

                                                My Milk sweater

                                                                Knit picks size 9 us or 5.5 mm

                                                                Gyre  Cardigan in interweave knits spring 2014

                                                                Vicki Howell Craft in Carol colorway         65-35 Organic cotton-Milk Fiber

                                                               

Finished

I have finished exactly zero knitting projects this year! But I did inventory my yarn stash so that is something.

Spinning

On the wheel

                Montadale sheep’s wool that I picked up at Garfield Farm Museum’s rare breed show from the sheep farmer she had the fiber processed mildly some done into roving some mill spun and was selling them to support her daughter’s 4H project. I really enjoyed spinning this wool, it is fluffy and wanted to spin very fine, I used a supported long draw to spin it and Navajo or Chain plyed it. I also talked about the cabin projects – log cabin style knit blocks afghan and welcome mat – using breed study fibers.

               

Finished

                Confetti Skein

                                66 yard

2oz skein

Bulky thick thin

Kettle Dyed

One more lot

Spin box

                Inspired by Grace Shalom Hopkins’ Spin Hanukah series, I have asked my kids to put this box together. Hoping it will be a regular series here. I gave them a bin of random stashed fiber from my stash, Nope not letting them loose in my stash! Some of the fibers were leftovers some from a guild member’s de-stashing event where I bought a big box of random, mostly at least partially unlabeled stuff. I did not include cotton or silk hankies, but there was angora, alpaca, multiple breeds of sheep, and rose (rayon), plus sparkle. The only rules for them was the final weight had to be about 4oz, if they chose to add sparkle they could only pick one color, and they needed to tie the box up with string and return unselected fibers to the bin so I could not guess. I was then kicked out of the kitchen and went to take a shower. My rules, I have to use whatever is in this box to make one skein of yarn, I can’t skip anything but VM, if present. Everything was washed but some of the fiber was not milled.

Acquisitions

                Hat block

                Fancy light box for better pictures – I forgot to mention this so I will add it to the next one!

                Sock yarn for matching to stash inventory yarn