TA DA!

(Fingers crossed.....)

Look what has arrived, just in time to be packed up and taken off to Cumbria. I am being very, very restrained and not diving in to either. Just a little toe in the water, I am not that strong-minded. But we are hoping to have a few days R&R around the delicious madness that is Woolfest, and these are ideal reading material.

By being away for the next two weeks, we are missing the entire Arts Festival, which is a bit of a bummer. And all but one day of the two Open Studio weekends at Northlight. The DSM is down there as I write, starting to get it organised for public perusal. We shall be back for just the final Sunday, but better than nothing.

Whoops, interruption to take in another parcel, this time of our new business cards. Nearly forgot to order them, and being so much last minute had to pay for express, dammit. Still and all, they do look very nice.

Projects are all lined up - the scarf/shawlette, some extremely vibrant Jitterbug yarn for the next socks, a couple of spindles and the Sidekick is coming with me. Enough? I hope so, but if not, I can always find more at the show!

Plying as meditation

Summer may be over. The last couple of weeks have been gorgeous, and I took the decision to spend as much time as possible sitting out in it. Knitting did come with me, and a fair amount of sock was done,but not all that much else. The shawlette I had cast on in an Araucania multi did not please me, so it got frogged. The next incarnation is much better. I particularly like the neck edge, described as 'I-cord' - it isn't, quite,but slipping the last three stitches of the pearl row, then knitting as normal on the knit row makes a fair representation of and a nice firm edge.

I did manage a few trips in to the studio, but at least with a return to cooler and damper weather I am doing a bit better there. Hence the title. I have finished spinning the very fine pygora, which then needed plying with quite a bit of twist. Even with the Lendrum fast flyer, a slow job.

I often listen to audiobooks when spinning/plying, but for some reason this time I didn't. For one thing, it was pleasant to tune in to the hum of people working and chatting in the other studios around me. We have all the space we need to get on with our own thing, but every one is quietly friendly and there is non-distracting companiability (is that a word?). And then, I just kind of drifted off. I had to concentrate sufficiently on what I was doing to achieve enough plying twist, as consistently as possible, but otherwise, I wandered.

Don't ask me just what went through my mind, though! A certain amount of just how not-consistent my singles was (no doubt being over-critical of myself!). But mostly just good useful rolling thinking stuff. Do not knock it - very good for one.

Only a week before we go to Cockermouth, and two until Woolfest. For once, we are not down to the wire on stock, spindles arrived a coupe of weeks ago and fibre on Monday. Plus the DSM, courtesy of the studio, has a good array of batts carded. It will be interesting to see how those go.

To finish, some random photos. Cats, and the boy Toby, who is now three months, and growing like a good'un. Oh, and the pygora.