April 29, 2016

Etsy Update is Live 😍

The Etsy Update is Live πŸ˜„
 
 
 
Check out some goodies by clicking on my Etsy Shop link on the toolbar on the right!

Happy Shopping 😍

April 28, 2016

Etsy Update Preview!!

Just a quick post with a preview of what is available tomorrow for the Etsy Update! The below yarns will be available in limited quantities at 10am MST on Friday April 29!

My Old Black Powder - 5 skeins on Anna's Sock (80/20 Merino Nylon), 2 skeins MCN Sock (80/10/10 Merino Cashmere Nylon) and 4 skeins BFL Silk Fingering (80/20 BFL Wool Silk) 
 

Daydream - 3 skeins on Anna's Sock (80/20 Merino Nylon), 1 skeins MCN Sock (80/10/10 Merino Cashmere Nylon), 1 skein on BFL Sock (80/20 BFL Wool Nylon) and 4 skeins BFL Silk Fingering (80/20 BFL Wool Silk) 
 

Overcast - 5 skeins on Anna's Sock (80/20 Merino Nylon)
 

Purple Rain - 5 skeins on Anna's Sock (80/20 Merino Nylon)
 

All of these are reproducible but I'll be checking to see which ones are a favourite and they will be making odd appearances in future updates πŸ˜„

Happy Shopping πŸ˜„

April 23, 2016

A progression of spinning photos...

When I dyed up some fibre for the Fibre Shindig I was completely in love with Camping. These colors are so me! 



It was also my first time spinning Fine Shetland!



I had dyed up a bunch of braids with long repeats so you can choose to spin it as a gradient or you can spin I'm with long color repeats.

I chose to spin mine as a gradient, so I separated each color and spun each completely before moving to the next. Here's a progression of my spinning journey πŸ˜„















The roving was dyed marbled in shades of each color which when spun up gives it a semi solid look for each color 😍 

I ended up with about 241yards out of 4.2oz of fibre. I'm debating what to knit with it πŸ˜„

I have a few other braids that are dyed with long repeats. 


Clockwise from top left: 
Campfire on Fine Shetland, Old Rust Blue on Fine Shetland, Rainbow Brite on Falkland, Hyacinth on Fine Shetland, Tie Dye Prism on Fine Shetland and Royalty on Fine Shetland

Happy Spinning πŸ˜„

April 22, 2016

It happens occasionally...

It been a while since I've run into this problem, but it does happen occasionally!

I was spinning my Fine Shetland Roving and came across this problem. 



Now this problem has happened occasionally with all dyers even the commercial dyed fibre or yarns I've boughten in the past. The dye didn't completely set. Just in the turquoise. The rest of the dye colors has set completely in the roving. This was problematic but completely solvable. It was just a bit irritating. Before I have boughten yarn from a large commercial dyer and had this problem and it just kept weeping or leaching dye continually and I wasn't sure what to do with it. Now that I dye yarn I know what needs to be done. 



I grabbed a small dye pot added about a tsp of Synthrapol and about 2 tbsp of Citric Acid. You can buy citric acid at Bulk Bin or some grocery stores will have it. I had boughten citric acid in the past from Bulk Bin for $5 and if your not dyeing it will last you a long time. If you prefer you can use vinegar but you'll just have to use more. I would add about a cup of vinegar for a skein of yarn. Some peeps might say that this is a lot but I would rather have too much acid in the pot than have to redo it again, and again πŸ˜‰ You should be able to buy Synthrapol at Michaels or if you have an art store in your area. Which we have both in Red Deer πŸ˜„



I threw the yarn in the pot and turned on the stove to medium heat. I checked it occasionally to make sure that it wasn't boiling. Just a constant heat. The Synthrapol will remove excess dyes and prevent them from attaching to other parts of your yarn. The acid will react with the the acid dye and the heat to bond the remaining dye to the yarn. 



After a while it looked like this. The Synthrapol didn't bubble up or anything it just kept the water a little soapy. I left it to cook in the pot for about 30 min, just to be sure.



Then I turned off the heat and it looked like this. The pot was exhausted and looked pretty good. I let it cool down in the pot then soaked it in the sink with some more Synthrapol and some wool wash. And it looked pretty good after. No leeching or running dye πŸ˜„

This is pretty abnormal for my dyes. I had boughten a new turquoise dye from another supplier to try out and apparently it needs more acid to set it than my other dyes. So if you are the peep that bought the other braid of Camping at the Fibre Shindig send me a quick email if your having problems with the turquoise dye!

Happy Knitting or Spinning πŸ˜„

April 19, 2016

My favourite things from the Shindig 😍

So I was not expecting to be so busy during the Shindig. I had decided that I wasn't going to set any expectations regarding sales, as I didn't want to be disappointed in case it wasn't busy ect. So I brought as much stock as I could bring, or that my toddler and 4m old would allow me to do πŸ˜‰

I was super busy from the moment that the doors opened and it would come in waves. I just barely had time to get my part of the booth set up before the doors opened and then my stock started to go pretty steadily! 

I didn't even get a chance to take a photo of the booth I was sharing with Corina from KnittyPie!  Thank god she had a moment to take a photo in one of the lulls!



I think I did pretty good considering that I had to bring my 4m old to the Shindig. I'm still breast feeding and it would have been just easier for my husband, and I, if I took her with me. My husband would have his hands full with our 3y old toddler πŸ˜‚ 

My baby did fabulous and quite a few vendors and customers mentioned how good and quiet she was! She was very content, which made this fibre show really easy for me.

I was able to leave the booth quickly to get a couple items I've been coveting!



One I didn't need to go far to get πŸ˜‰ I saw Corina from KnittyPie's horse project bag and I knew it had to come home with me 😍 She is also a fabulous friend, as she brought me a beautiful hand dyed project bag as well! She included a pair of sewn shoes for my baby and a chocolate bar! How well she knows me, if even for a short time πŸ˜‚ 

I've noticed that she's created some custom listings just recently in her Etsy Shop! So you can choose your fabric for your project bags! So if you want to check out her bags, check out her Etsy Shop πŸ˜„

The next stop was Chasing Fire Ceramics for a Sheep Mug! She had posted pics on Instagram and I immediately contacted her for a mug! She was a sweetheart and held me one, just in case things got CRAZY at the market πŸ˜‰ I saw her mugs dwindling down fast so I bolted over there to pick up a mug fast πŸ˜‰ It was perfect for my morning coffee!



She had a couple left over after the market. Not many but a couple, that I noticed. So if you want one I would send her a message on Instagram or on Etsy to see if you can buy one πŸ˜‰

And lastly, but in no way any less important, is the Crimson Clover booth!! I have been creeping her Instagram feed for a while πŸ˜‚ Just kidding, I've been openly creeping her Instagram feed! She has the most gorgeous photos of her warps and WIP's on her Instagram. If you haven't checked it out, I'll give you some time to peruse her feed now. Don't worry, I'll still be here when your done....


Told you it was a gorgeous Instagram feed 😍 I had plans of buying a poncho or a wrap of some form. I was so completely undecided. So I went over at 4pm when the Shindig was really winding down, and had a few minutes to try them all on! She was kind enough and held my baby while I modelled some ponchos and wraps πŸ˜‰ I'm sure it was a hardship!



Like, really!! How am I suppose to choose just one?



I ended up choosing this cardigan wrap. And oh my god is it heaven! It's a bamboo and cotton mix and is so comfortable!! I loved it bc it was a bit longer than the other ones and of course I'm always drawn to purple πŸ’œπŸ’œ I absolutely LOVE quality made items!

She has some ponchos and cardigan wraps left, but she'll be making more! She keeps her Instagram feed constantly updated with all her new projects. So if you see something you like I would definitely contact her ASAP for a listing to purchase it. She's booked to do a lot of markets this year, so there's no guarantee it'll still be there after one of the markets. She has 7 more warps that she'll be doing before June. Just saying πŸ˜‰

Overall, I'm extremely pleased with the Fibre Shindig. The Shindig Planning Ninjas did an awesome job planning it πŸ˜„ I will totally do it again in the Fall, if they'll still have me πŸ˜‰ There were so many fabulous fibre artists and I loved talking to all the fibre peeps!!

One of my fav peeps is Morengo Wool!! She rides everywhere on her retro bike and has a custom trailer which she carries her wheel, fibre and yarn around on πŸ˜„ It is SUPER sweet!! She only spins with locally sourced wool and sells locally as well! She uses natural organic dyes and it's fabulous seeing how her yarn dyes up 😍 I'm sure if you see something you like, if you contact her on Instagram she'll sell you some πŸ˜‰ She is a fabulous spinner and I was mesmerized watching her spin at the Fall Fibrearts Fair! Follow her on Instagram, you won't be disappointed!

There were so many other vendors that popped in to talk to me at the show! I think they popped in to check out and coo at my baby πŸ˜‰ I would have liked to buy more but I'll have to make up for it during the Fall Fibre Shindig! 

And I'll leave you now with a photo of my darling baby wearing her super cute fabric shoes! She's been wearing them non stop since Corina gave them to her 😍



Happy Knitting πŸ˜„

April 18, 2016

Fibre and Yarn Update is LIVE...

I had a super successful day at the Fibre Shindig this weekend! I was able to meet so many yarnie' sand Instagram peeps!! I was completely overwhelmed by the positive response I got from my yarn and I promise that for the next Shindig I'll bring more πŸ˜‰ Thanks so much for the ❤️LOVE❤️

I'm super excited to have some braids and some yarn to post for an update today! 



There's 18 braids of roving in the Etsy Shop in Falkland, Fine Shetland and BFL Superwash! 



These are the last few beauties from the Shindig! There's som BFL Sock, Wild Rose Sock, MCN Sock and Anna's Sock. There's also a couple skeins of BFL Silk Fibgering and Merino Silk Fingering left. They would make an awesome shawl!!

Happy Shopping πŸ˜„

April 15, 2016

Fibre Shindig Preview!! 😍

There's been a rumour going around that the Fibre Shindig is Cancelled. 

THIS IS NOT TRUE!!!

It's still on!! So if your in the Calgary area tomorrow (April 16) pop in and take a look at the fabulous vendors!! There's going to be a total of 30 vendors!



Now staying true to my promise! 



These are the gorgeous colorways I dyed up for the Fibre Shindig! 

Blue Heeler in MCN Sock


Lilac Dreams on MCN Sock, BFL Sock and Anna's Sock


Ring of fire on MCN Sock, BFL Sock and Anna's Sock


Puddles on MCN Sock, BFL Sock and Anna's Sock


Daydream on Anna's Sock


My Old Black Powder on BFL Sock and Anna's Sock



I have a large selection of Snagless Stitch Markers that will be available. As well as wristlet key chains with sheep on them πŸ˜„  

I have a limited supply, like very limited supply, of progress keepers or locking stitch marker sets. I have about a total of 14 sets of both and that's itπŸ˜„





I look forward to seeing you all there πŸ˜„

April 12, 2016

Have you RSVP'd yet? πŸ˜‰

Have you RSVP'd for the Fibre Shindig yet πŸ˜‰ if not check out the details HERE on Facebook! Check out the vendors and location details. 

There will be at least one door prize as I'll be donating some stitch markers for a giveaway!! I'll be donating a complete set of Small, Medium and Large  stitch markers!

Pop in and check out all the vendors and be sure to pop in and say hi to KnittyPie and me 😍




April 11, 2016

My workspace for the weekend...

This was my workspace for the whole weekend:



I was able to get approximately 150 Snagless Stitch Marker Sets completed over 3 days. It involved a lot of help from my husband and some cartoons for my toddler πŸ˜‰

My yarn order should be in today so I'll be busy dyeing up a storm the next couple days. I have 30 skeins to dye up land I feel that it's totally attainable! I'll just get a couple pots going at a time and I'm sure it will pretty much dye themselves πŸ˜‚

Be sure to come and visit me and KnittyPie at the Calgary Fibre Shindig this Saturday!! We'll be the table with the cute babies πŸ˜‰


April 08, 2016

Dyeing Overload!! 😍

The Fibre Shindig is getting close!! It's 1 week away and I'm in dyeing over load!!








I'm finishing up my fibre dyeing today then I'll be onto dyeing yarn 😍😍 Nothing gets the creative juices flowing than dyeing! Then if I have some time left over I'll be making up some more stitch markers πŸ˜„ I'm going to be loaded! 

I'll be sharing a booth with KnittyPie so be sure to stop in and have a peep or gander and some chit chat!

Now back to work for me πŸ˜‰

April 06, 2016

I ❤️ Dyeing

I got an order of roving in yesterday!! My supplier has been low on my bases so I ordered roving on a whim. Now I've only been dyeing roving for myself previously. With some successful results. So this is my first chance dyeing yarn for my business! 



I had a lot of fun trying out some dyeing techniques with roving. Some came out beautifully on the first try and some required a couple additional steps. Overall, I'm happy with how thy dyed up! I just need to be more comfortable with white space. I'm like a colour addict and as soon as I see white space I automatically want to cover itπŸ˜‚ 

More photos soon πŸ˜„

April 05, 2016

Etsy Update is Live!

The Etsy Update is Live!! I was also able to update the Etsy Listing photos as the lighting was perfect this morning πŸ˜„ Etsy Link HERE









Happy Shopping πŸ˜„