weekend knitting

It's been a busy weekend between the garden and a new knitting project. Today Garrett and I dug up all of our bulbs, sorted them and put them into storage in the basement. We also cut down all of our dead tomato plants, pulled up their cages and started to sort out that mess. I have to confess it will probably never be completely sorted, rather I'll just begin with what I have in next year's garden this up coming spring.

This project has kept me pretty involved the past few days. This is a sweater called "The Fan" and it comes from Marianne Isager's collection: Japanese Inspired Knits. I saw this sweater on display in a local knitting shop and I wanted to knit it then and there. The yarn I'm using (of course) comes from Crosby Hill Farm's "Hetty Yarn" Collection. This is the 2 ply mill spun DK worsted weight in soft gray; 100% CVM Romeldale yarn.

Love it. Love the scalloped pattern and the repeats of garter stitch. So far the pattern repeats bring to mind witch's brooms. Something very appropriate for this time on the calendar. I'm hoping to have this project complete for or around that holiday. Next weekend I'm going on a craft retreat so I should have lots of time to dedicate to knitting.

I haven't just been knitting though, here's a bobbin from my spinning wheel. This colorway is called "Barn Raising" an old favorite here at tendril and twine. We plan on updating our etsy shop with more colorways as soon as possible.

This yarn is going to be a set of baby booties and a cap, I think. We'll see how I feel once I spin up another bobbin and ply the two together.  For now I'm just trying to keep my feet on the pedals and take each project one stitch at a time.

Recent events here are that we painted the kitchen red and we really love it. The dried flowers in the background are all that remain of last spring's alliums - one of the first flowers to greet us after spring thaw.

feeling festive

We want to give a big shout out of thanks to everyone who visited us at our stand last weekend at the Cambridge Fiber Fest. The event was a success and we're hoping to return next year with more fleeces, fiber and knitted objects.

We sold a lot of our painted combed top, so we'll be updating our etsy shop with next season's colorways (and our old favorites too) as soon as we can all gather at the farm again.

We hope to see you all again soon and in the meantime keep your stitches on your needles and your spinning wheels happily humming along.

Oh, I almost forgot! Speaking of our shop, we've updated our mill spun yarns. Check it out. This is a sample of our mill spun 2 ply DK/Worsted weight yarn in a lovely cabled back panel.

Perfect for that special holiday handknit.

cambridge fiber fair

This upcoming weekend - October 13, 2012 - we'll be at the Cambridge Fiber Fair with our yarn and fiber. Please come and visit our stand, we plan on discounting our raw fiber and yarn. It will be a great chance to get some fiber for your winter projects and holiday gifts.

We'll also be selling our painted top. You can check out our selection at our shop on etsy. 

Come and see what we've cooked up!

harvest time

I've been working on this yarn for quite some time. The skinnier the yarn, the longer it takes to spin. I was going to try to triple ply it, but in the end I didn't have the patience. I am happy with the resulting double-ply yarn.

It's more of a hefty fingering weight yarn that could be perfect for a fast-knit pair of autumn socks or a soft baby sweater that will remind me of the bright orange-red maple tree on the corner of our block.

This colorway is called "Killer Tomato" and it's a blend of 60% CVM romeldale wool and 40% kid mohair.  Soft, pliant and glossy.

Pumpkin's from my sister and her family's farm.

shalom

I started a new project. A sweater for myself using yarn from our farm.

This sweater has been very popular on Ravelry, and I've seen a lot of flattering versions on other knitters, so I'm very excited to try this one out myself.

Ashley and I dyed some fiber this weekend. We're calling this colorway "Fairy Queen." The flashes of gold amongst the purples and deep blues remind me of something a fairy would wear.

Should be fun to spin up.

Autumn flowers. 

Autumn decorations from the garden.  (Some of them.)

september hobbies

Labor Day usually signifies an end to summer for most. We start to pack away our summer skirts and pull out our wool socks and mitts. A crisp breeze means more time indoors, perhaps knitting and spinning, or just snuggled on the sofa with a hot cup of tea and a good book.

For all of those spinners and fiber enthusiasts out there Crosby Hill Farm has their 2012 fleeces for sale. Come and see our beautiful natural fleeces from our CVM Romeldale sheep. I'm always amazed by the subtle hues and plush softness of this fiber.

Supplies are limited, don't miss out!

chickens are pretty

We went to the state fair today with my sister and brother-in-law. It was a nice day, so the fair was packed with people. Despite the fact that I was with three other adults we managed to lose each other in the crowd at least a half dozen times.

I liked the Arts and Crafts building (where one of my sister's quilts was hanging) and the Fine Arts building, but really after dealing with such massive numbers of people I feel like I can go without revisiting the fair for at least five years.

As you can see I finished my rooster booster sweater. It turned out soft and beautiful. It will be the perfect fall sweater for my niece.

This yarn comes from fiber from Crosby Hill Farm. You can purchase some fiber to spin yourself here. This colorway is called Rooster Booster.

This blend of 80% CVM Romeldale wool and 20% kid mohair is a joy to spin and the colorway is a constant adventure to knit.

Chickens are pretty.