Blue weaving and different lines

Note to future self: don't weave with single ply even if you think it is going to look pretty. This wasn't fun to weave and as a result took forever. And one warp thread even wore through... The end result is nice, but probably not worth the angst.















And this has been super fun to knit, it grows apace.

Tea!

The Tea Centre has just opened it's first shop in Melbourne in the new 'Emporium'. And I'm afraid to say, having had a wander around yesterday, between the shops and the food (and the tea store) The Emporium' is now my third favourite place in Melbourne.

In the Tea Centre I wanted to buy this

And this:

But instead I bought most of these:

(Only partly joking...)

Fun fur on the loom.

I have slowed right down with weaving on the new Knitter's loom. There are a couple of reasons for this. To start, it is not as easy to use as the Cricket - I love that the size gives me more options for the final product, but it takes up way more room and isn't as inviting to use.

Also, the second project I put on it was a bit time consuming in that I pulled the fur of the fun fur warp out of the weft as I went and it was a bit fiddly. I bought the fun fur to crochet a wookie - but it defied crochet and almost brought me to tears.

But it looks kinda cool as weaving.

Definitely looking forward to experimenting some more.

Ocean shore

I returned the gorgeous little 10" Cricket loom to its delightful owners and warped up the 20" Ashford Knitter's Loom I just got from the Handweavers and Spinners guild. I decided to buy the 20" in large part because that is what they had there, but also because the next size up wouldn't have fit on my work table.





















 I think I still like the Cricket more. It was so handy and I could use it anywhere around the house and it fit quite neatly into one of those sturdy shopping bags if you wanted to take it to a friend's house.

This project was done with 6 skeins of Lorna's Laces sock yarn. They made up a kind of gradient set that I was originally knitting into a stole for a friend, but I didn't really love the lace pattern (looked great, bugger to knit) and it had been stalled for about 6 years. The biggest mistake I made was unravel the yarn that had been knit and not wash the kink out of it (I didn't want to wait for it to dry, I wanted to start right away). It played merry hell with the tension which made it quite challenging to weave. Even harder than the silk/cashmere.

Weaving with cashmere is a pain, but the result is so so worth it.

My main obsession continues to be weaving. I still have raggedy edges, but the fabric! Oh the fabric. This was the next project on the 10" cricket (which I have now returned). The next project is warped on the 20" Knitter's Loom I bought at the Handweavers and Spinners Guild. I had a few hiccups with the Knitter's Loom, and I found the Cricket sturdier and more fun to use, but I am getting used to the new loom (and the amount of table space it is taking up).
















I am still half-heartedly poking away at the Tardis shawl. I mucked up the lace across the back, but I think I have fudged it and now I am knitting the Tardis(es). I am interested in the end product, but the getting there is a bit of an uphill battle and is losing out to the weaving most of the time. 

The sock blanket has had a bit of a comeback, too. I have been knitting this on and off (mostly off) since the start of 2008, but something about it has lit a fire under me recently. I'll probably get in a few more diamonds before my attention wanders again. I have no urge to start any new knitting projects right now (which feels weird) because my mind is so taken up with the possibilities of weaving.

A new Fibre obsession

So, I have been knitting a little, but it has gone from my main hobby to my hobby that comes in after banjo and dancing and reading and other things. But then over the weekend I borrowed a rigid heddle loom from friends (and got an excellent lesson in how to use it that set me well on the path to obsession) and all other things (including sleep) have been relegated to secondary importance.

This patchwork-y scarf was a great way to start. It gave me a lot of information about how weaving works.

And I have been eyeing off this green yarn for weaving potential for years.

If the spirit moves me, I may embroider it.

Resolution

I decided (last night) that 2014 should be the year of the chocolate cake. I think one a month should be plenty:

Flourless chocolate brownies with hot chocolate sauce.

Bacon Brownies.

Honey Chocolate cake.

Tropical Chocolate cake.

Chocolate meringue truffle cake.

Girdlebuster pie.

Chocolate pudding.

Glitzy Chocolate pudding.

Chocolate Olive Oil cake.

Dark Chocolate mud cake.

Molten Chocolate Babycakes.

Christmas-Spiced chocolate cake.