Last spinning lesson

Saturday was the last of my spinning course lessons sadly. I learnt so much from Linda and Albert - advocates of starting with the fleece and preparing it using traditional techniques, then dyeing it (they use natural dyes), hand carding the fibre and finally spinning it. Linda is a seasoned knitter and crocheter and Albert is a weaving and braiding guru. And I'll also miss the lovely spinners I met there - hopefully I'll keep in touch with some of them.

Yvette being the bravest of us and having a go at using the lethal-looking combs.

Albert holding a distaff of flax (or a young maiden's locks?)

Linda spinning flax from the distaff

You'd think it would be possible to learn how to spin from books, or from YouTube, or from asking questions in forums and it is. But it's only when you meet people who have so much experience and so willingly pass on their intricate knowledge and tips, that you appreciate how much there is to the craft and how much there's still to learn.

On to kitty news. We think our little tabby may be a girl so she's been renamed Mabel - although Skein Prince still calls her Squiggles. She may be the cat with two names. Never did Honey, her mother, any harm to be called Honey and Smitten.

They're getting more playful by the day. It's not a good idea to have bare feet or legs unless you want to be in a lot of pain with little claws being tried out. The all black one is the advanced one, the black and white one is the monkeyist and the tabby one is... pretty lazy but very gorgeous.

Three weeks old today

Must... not... become... too... attached.

What's that? You don't want to see any more kittens? You want to know about yarn? And fibre? Well, the next shop update is scheduled for 11th June and did I say before that it'll be a big one. Happens to coincide with the two-year anniversary of Skein Queen, so I'll see if I can arrange a little competition before the big day.

Meet Squiggles

Isn't he (pos. she) cute? We're keeping this little one. Two and a half weeks old. I can't get over how big the kittens have grown in such a short time. They're trying to escape from the box and Honey's not too happy about that. The all black kitten is going to a good friend but the neighbour didn't want to take the little black and white one when she saw her and I fear I'm becoming more and more fond of her. Must.... remain... detached. So, if you know of anyone in the Berkshire area looking for a particularly gorgeous kitten - when she keeps still, I'll get a non-blurry photo for you.

The weather has been downright tropical here. After my spinning lesson, we had a go at washing an unidentified fleece using the method my spinning teacher, Linda, had shown us.

But it wasn't good news - the wool was like brillo pads when it dried. I mixed it with some white BFL and put it through the drum carder, but sadly I think it's going to be unspinnable.

Saturday night was an impromptu Britain's Got Talent party, BBQ and pool party with Skein Princess going back to a friend's for camping in the garden.

On Friday, we went to the Children's Art Festival in Reading organised by Jelly and then onto see Coraline - which, be warned, is not for children of even a slight sensitive nature unless you want nightmares.

Yesterday, me and Skein Princess got all my spinning fluff scraps and drum carded them into this little cloud of colour.

Then I decided that I didn't have enough knitting projects on the go, and because Linda had asked us to knit up our samples of kid mohair and angora, I decided to start another Zig and Zag pram blanket using all my handspun samples.

Other than that, still working on the Cloud Nine socks in Summer Pudding Plushness for my friend, Sandra. Not much progress there.

Have been dyeing today and the next update will be a large one and will include the long-awaited launch of Exquisite - merino, cashmere and nylon - and the equally long-awaited launch of SQ tops (roving) for spinning.

Honey and her incredible hugging kitties

Thanks for all your interest in our new arrivals. Honey is a brilliant mum and they are thriving and getting bigger by the day. We have a home for the all black one, and a possible home for the black, white and ginger one and are keeping the little tabby. I'm trying not to get too emotionally attached to them all!

Skein Queen does fibre and Cloud Nine socks pattern

I haven't got a huge amount of fibre to bring along to Socktopus on Sunday (I have got lots of yarn), but I thought I'd show you some of what I have got - any name suggestions are welcome. The top one sort of reminds me of my Apple Cider colourway. What do you think? They're all superwash BFL tops and lovely to spin, especially for beginners.





Here's a sample of the Irish Queen I spun up. A little bit overspun but should give you an idea of the intensity of colours.


Ever wanted a pair of socks to make you feel as if you are floating on Cloud Nine when you are wearing them?

Maybe these are just the job - another free pattern - this time to support Plushness, as it is a thicker-than-normal yarn for socks.

Cloud Nine seemed appropriate, given that Plushness knits up into a dense, cosy, warm fabric and also the pattern works on a repeat of nine stitches. The lacy pattern contributes to the light, airy feel of the socks without them being too thick on the body. They are a cuff-down design and I used Nevermore Tree colourway.

You can find the pdf file under the Free patterns tab on the right-hand side of the blog.

And in between the stream of visitors for the kittens and Loftplan man coming, I managed to get another photo - again of the little tabby. Not great, but sure there'll be more in the coming days.

Anyone know when's the best time to find out the gender of the kittens? Someone said in the first few days but Honey's not keen to let them part from her for even a minute.

Three little mittens

Honey had her kittens last night - three of them. They're very dark in colour - one black, one very dark tortoiseshell with a bit of ginger and white on her leg and one tabby. If you look very carefully, you can see the tabby one in the bottom right-hand corner. The kids are thrilled and I think we'll be keeping one of them and have possible homes for the other two. Didn't she do well!

Sorry about the rubbish photo but she was getting a bit anxious and protective when I was taking the photos and I didn't want to upset her too much. There'll be plenty time in the next few weeks to take more photos as I'm sure they're going to be little rapscallions!