deep freeze

As I am writing this at 1:13 am (why yes, I am a night owl), the temperature is -35 C (-31 F) with a windchill of -46 C (-50.8 F). Thankfully the cold snap isn't supposed to last too long. Warmer temps are forecast for Wednesday. Good. This is ridiculously cold. It makes a person want to just crawl into bed and hibernate until it ends.

Even though I haven't been posting much lately, I have been keeping busy. Shuttleworks had a sale on Louet products and I was itching to try a venerable S10 DT so I bought one.

My intent was to use it for plying so that I would have easy treadling with the Irish tension (bobbin led) and be able to get into a rhythm for consistency. As much as I like my espinners, I find that I have an easier time gaining plying consistency when my feet and hands are co-ordinated. In order to gain speed for plying fine high-twist yarn, I ordered a couple of fast bobbins in addition to the regular ones that came with the wheel.

I didn't really think that I would fall madly in love with the S10 but I have. It's a truck but it does its job amazingly well! I quite like the kate that comes with the wheel too.

Here it's plying some Shunklies Humbug BFL for sock yarn.

I liked the Humbug BFL a lot too so bought some from International Fleeces to play with dyeing. Here it is with the finished Shunklies yarn.

I have some lovely Cotswold locks from Wooly Wool of the West in my stash. I scoured and dyed some to play with boucle singles a la Judith MacKenzie.
After a bit of practice I was able to get the hang of spinning a thin core yarn with my back three fingers against my palm and using the thumb and forefinger with the other hand to pull out teased locks to wrap around the core. It's pretty fast once your hands "get it" and yields an art yarn that is quite usable as a single. It's light but strong.
Fun!

(The Roberta package is for sale again if you are interested. The price has been reduced to $1100 including shipping within Canada and to the US.)

a family picture plus one

I decided to take a picture of my spindle collection. I've been steadily accumulating spindles over the last couple of years and I love them dearly.

I rounded up all the strays that were tucked into project bags and set them all in pottery mugs and a jug. We had an exceptionally beautiful day today, not a common occurrence in January to say the least (it was less than a week ago that we were in the deep freeze), so I was able to take the picture in the sunroom (it was actually room temperature out there in the sunshine this afternoon!!*).

Aren't they lovely?

As I set about putting them all back where they started from I came across my beloved Bosworth Moosie. How could I have taken a spindle photo shoot and not noticed its absence? So Moosie gets its own picture like the star of the show.

*Days like today remind me of reading C. S. Lewis' "The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe" to the kids where it was always winter and never Christmas while the White Witch controlled Narnia. Today felt like Aslan was on the move and winter was starting its transformation into spring. Of course, days like today are anomalies and there is no doubt that winter is about to smack us all upside the head again soon enough.

a little happy camper

Normally, Bentley doesn't like it when I spin because I won't let him sit on my lap while I treadle the wheel. He is very happy when I spin on the Hansen miniSpinner though because my lap is available.

Notice the tongue poking out of his mouth as he snoozes.
He is a very entertaining dog.

combing merino

I bought a lovely merino fleece from Jean Near a while back and was at my wit's end over how to deal with it. Apparently I'm not the only one who has had this problem - a quick check on Ravelry revealed a number of people who have sworn off processing merino fleeces at home.

I didn't have any trouble washing it. Lots of very hot water and some Ecos HE laundry detergent (my new secret weapon for scouring fleeces) worked great, better than Orvus, dish detergent, or the specialty wool scours that I've tried.

Merino is a short fiber that doesn't lend itself to being combed with most wool combs. It's very fine and pills up if you look at the wrong way. Flick carding it to remove the vegetable matter resulted in many nicks to my fingers. I had resorted to hand picking it and then carding it but still got a lot of nepps in the batts.
I wasn't happy with the results and was starting to regret buying the fleece.

That all changed when I got the new Valkyrie Extra Fine combs. I already had the Valkyrie Mini combs and like them a lot for most of my combing so decided to try the extra fine ones. They are perfect for fine, short fibers like merino.
Mini comb on the left and extra fine comb on the right. I like to use both with the comb pad. These are not really mini combs; they're substantial and sturdy, especially the extra fine ones.

I clamped the comb pad securely to my kitchen counter which is a perfect height for me. Finding a really sturdy table is very important for the extra fine combs. There is a lot of resistance to the comb due to the narrowly spaced teeth.

I was able to fill the comb about 2/3 full of fiber.
I spritzed a mix of water with a bit of baby oil in it and then starting combing just the tips, working slowly up to the comb, then transferring the fiber from the working comb back to the stationary comb in the same way. I could get more nice fiber if I used my other hand to help pull the last of the long bits with the working comb. There was a lot of waste but about half of it was free enough of vm to save for future carding projects.

Here is what was left after a few passes-
beautifully uniform and silky merino.

I dizzed it off and coiled it into a little nest of super soft, perfect sliver.

Here is what I had after a few hours of work. I weighed these little nests and found that I had only produced 29 grams or about an ounce. It's definitely not a fast way to produce fiber but the results are exquisite!

happy new year!

Yet another You Tube video but such a lovely one. I'm showing my age again but I love ABBA.

We saw the new year in with our good friends Rhonda and Al and my sister Darcie and family. Dan and I have spent every New Year's Eve but one with Rhonda and Al for about 30 years. We are blessed to have such dear friends. It's always a nice quiet evening, very comfortable and laid-back, with a casual supper and board games. Even Darcie and Dallas' kids Christopher and Katie made it to midnight last night for the first time.

Happy New Year everyone! May 2011 bring peace and tolerance to the world.

Hallelujah Chorus -Quinhagak, Alaska

The teacher in me loves this. The human in me loves it too.

Merry Christmas everyone!

winter solstice lunar eclipse

I have told you before that I am an incurably nocturnal being. That meant that I did not have to set my alarm to see the lunar eclipse early this morning. I saw it before I went to bed!

This picture was taken at about 3:30 a.m. as the eclipse was waning. So beautiful! It was cold outside and taking a picture was tricky because I didn't want to take off my gloves but I managed to get a good pic out of a lot of duds.

Most information out and about says that the last lunar eclipse that occurred at the same time as the winter solstice was in 1554. Apparently that's not entirely accurate. At any rate, it's a very rare event and we certainly won't see another one in our lifetime.

fly by posting

Just a couple of pics to share with you today.

Anthera posing over a plate to show the design. I used my handspun Cormo/Sheltie/Targhee/Angelina yarn.


A couple of Gotland nests of combed top. I used my Valkyrie mini combs with one clamped to the table, Dutch comb style. They work better than the Majacraft combs for this longer stapled fiber.

for your weekend's entertainment

who needs diamonds?

When I took the dogs out late last night, the ice storm had ended and there were strong winds blowing a skiff of snow over the ice crystals. The back yard glittered in the yard lamps. It was so pretty that I ran back into the house and grabbed the camera.

You really need to click and embiggen these pics to properly see how lovely these little crystals are.

blogging malaise

I have no excuse for my break from blogging. I don't know why but I've had blogger's block. It's not that I haven't been doing anything - I've actually had a lot of fun the last few weeks.

I've been taking Cooper to dog classes and we've been having fun getting a taste of obedience, agility, and flyball. Cooper's favorite is agility so I've signed us up for an agility class starting in January. This dog has a lot of potential with appropriate training. I figure fate sent him to me to get me off my duff. He needs to be kept busy. The challenge will be finding the balance between his needs and my aching body some days.

I've also been taking an intermediate spinning class and challenging myself to spin yarn that is outside of my comfort zone. Here are a couple of projects that I produced for the spinning class.

220 yards and 80 g of 2-ply cotton and silk noil. Spinning cotton is not my favorite thing to do so it was good that I forced myself to practice on this yarn. I have to admit that I am much better at it now. I dyed it with periwinkle acid dye and was surprised that it took the dye so well. I thought that only the slubs of silk would take it but there must have been more silk distributed over the entire yarn as I spun than I thought. You can see a bit of the wool yarn that I tied the skein with on the upper left side of the picture to see the difference between this blend and pure wool.

Then there's this:
so far out of my comfort zone that it's scary.

It's Spunky Eclectic Tuxedo Rose Romney, the September club fiber. I wanted to see if I could anchor beads into a singles yarn. I pre-threaded the beads onto thin strips of the fiber and then spun the strips right into the singles. By incorporating twist into the fiber before and after each bead as well as beside it, it is quite secure. Lightly fulling the yarn after spinning helped too. I have 173 m and 114 g of the plain singles (top) and 88 m and 103 g of the beaded one (bottom - you can see the beads more clearly if you click on the picture). It was an interesting project to spin but I have absolutely no idea what I'm going to do with the finished yarn.

I got my Christmas present early. It's a Louet Victoria.
Shuttleworks has them on sale. It's a very light wheel and very easy to tote which my body appreciates. It treadles lightly using both feet or just one foot. So far I actually prefer to use it as a single treadle which surprises me because I usually find double treadling easier. Spinning my default fine worsted yarn is effortless. It's not a wheel for chunky or art yarns though but I certainly don't plan on churning out art yarns any time soon. The beaded one above was enough to hold me indefinitely.

The Victoria folds down and tucks neatly into its bag which can be carried by handles, a shoulder strap, or as a backpack. Louet planned this wheel very well.

As I sit here typing I can hear ice pellets hitting the windows. We are having yet another winter storm with freezing rain which will turn into snow overnight. I'm sick and tired of winter already and it doesn't even officially start until next week.

I'm including the Environment Canada weather warning for your perusal. It seems that knowledge of punctuation and sentence structure isn't a job requirement for the person who writes these things.

Freezing Rain Warning

Issued at 10:24 PM CST Tuesday 14 December 2010

Summary

Another hour or so of freezing rain.

Details

A major storm system continues to affect much of Southern Saskatchewan this evening. At 10:20 PM radar indicates that the leading edge of the precipitation is just pushing into Melfort..And approaching Yorkton from the west. The precipitation generally is falling as a mix of freezing rain..Ice pellets..And snow..With the major area of freezing rain now affecting the Regina-Estevan area. Highway 1 has now been re-opened between Moose Jaw and Rush Lake. However in general most highways in the affected areas are reporting ice-covered, slippery conditions..With travel not recommended. The remaining areas under the freezing rain warning will likely see freezing precipitation continue for another hour or two..Before changing to snow or ending. As the precipitation tracks eastward tonight it will change to snow as it moves into colder air. Total snowfall amounts of 10 to 20 cm are forecast by noon Wednesday over portions of the eastern grainbelt.

not a weather post

It seems that all I've had to blog about for the last few weeks has been the weather. Today, however, I have some fiber things to share.

I finally finished up the gift socks for my physiotherapist Rachel. I used yarn from the stash, Nova Sock Print color 303, doubled. I bought the yarn from Golden Willow Natural Fiber a while back and it's quite nice - I should have bought more at the time; the price was right. The socks are thick and warm. I hope she likes them and that they fit.


I also finished up the yarn for the shawl. I posted a picture of the first singles of merino, silk, baby alpaca, sheltie, and angelina that I carded and spun woolen in the summer. It took me quite a while to spin up the second singles of worsted silk brick; I don't like spinning silk by itself so it was slow going. However I do like the finished yarn.

The finished yarn on the bobbin:

And after being fulled in the bath:
I haven't decided on a pattern yet but there are lots of contenders.

it might as well be January

It's been cold here. We seem to get a new dump of snow every 3 or 4 days. It's hard to believe that it's still November when I look outside.

I think we've had just about as much snow already this year as we get all winter in other years but that might be stretching it a bit.

Although the shelties still like the snow, even they start lifting up their chilly paws soon.
I took a couple of pics of Austin and Robbie before they got too cold this afternoon. I had to use my gloved fingers to snap the pics.
B and Cooper weren't as co-operative about the picture taking today. Poor little B almost has to swim through the snow drifts and comes into the house covered with snow. I don't think Cooper slows down long enough to get cold.

Dan got bronchitis which developed into pneumonia even though he was on antibiotics already. He missed a couple of weeks of school. His lungs can't tolerate the cold so we have really appreciated that Geoff has been clearing the driveway and sidewalks. Geoff will be moving out at the first of December. Dan and I will become empty-nesters for the first time. I told Geoff that he wasn't allowed to move out until the snow stopped falling. I don't think he is going to listen to me.

I've been taking a spinning class at Golden Willow and loving it as usual. Cooper and I started a dog class introducing obedience, agility, and flyball. He thinks it's great fun, especially the agility part.

I had a request to make a little video for Ravelry showing how the Hansen MiniSpinner can be used as a bobbin winder/quill with my trick of using a chop stick and an orifice reducer. It was my first attempt at recording myself using my laptop so the production quality is less than stellar to say the least. I learned a lot in the process though. Some of my spinning class friends asked that I post it here too so here it is for anyone who is interested.

snow finished for now

This snow storm wasn't nearly as bad as the one we had a couple of weeks ago. No snow bomb this time. We had about 18 cm (just over 7 inches) of snow as of yesterday. Again, the shelties are happy. The forecast is for cooler temperatures so I'm afraid this snow might be here for the duration of the winter.

I'm still not ready for winter but I don't think I ever will be. However it seems like a non-issue compared to what so many people have endured and continue to endure during wars. I am very fortunate that my life is so peaceful that only worry about the weather. I am forever indebted to the many who have fought for that peace.

it's ba-ack...

So if

Red sky at night,
Sailors' delight.

and

Red sky in morning,
Sailors' fair warning.

are true, is this true too?

Purple sky out there,
Much snow in the air.

purple rain?

After a few days of record-breaking warmth, we had showers today and we are getting some snow this evening. Right around sunset I called the dogs in from the back yard and noticed that everything was purple.

These two photos are exactly as the camera took them with no editing or retouching.

I don't remember ever seeing the sky that color before. It started snowing soon after so the heavy, cool clouds must have affected the colors in the sunset. Nature never ceases to amaze me.

now that's more like it!

What a difference a few days can make!
It feels like spring. Most of last week's snow, except for where it drifted or got shoveled into heaps, is already gone. I'm so glad. I wasn't ready for winter just yet.

It was 12 degrees C today (54 F) and the forecast is for more warmth. Bring it on!

a beumb

I shamelessly stole that title from a clever column by Regina's own Ron Petrie of the Leader-Post. Go ahead and read it for a giggle. I enjoy Ron's columns. Apparently we share the same twisted sense of humour.

If you didn't go read it just now I will translate. What Clouseau called a "beumb" is indeed a bomb, weather bomb that is. It's the weather equivalent of a hurricane only it happened inland. It was responsible for the storm that was dropped on us this week. Environment Canada's senior climatologist, David Phillips, called it the "king of storms". I certainly don't ever remember a weather bomb on the prairies. This year has been nothing if not unusual for weather in these parts. Our forecast is for a warm-up next week and I sincerely hope that this snow melts. It is too soon for winter to stick around just yet.

Dan and I went to the Reba McEntire concert last night. It was very good. I'm not a die-hard country music fan but I like Reba. I still liked Blue Rodeo's concert better though. More my style of country music.

Just in case you aren't tired of my links to the Leader-Post here is one more. Dr. Roberta Bondar arrived in Regina during the storm and had some interesting comments.

brutal

Winter has made its early presence known with a vengeance. Here is a picture taken through my kitchen window yesterday afternoon.

And here is one from this afternoon.

The RCMP closed the Trans Canada highway for a while because of the poor visibility in the blowing snow and the icy conditions. A good portion of city streets were impassible as well and others were blocked with stranded cars. I was quite happy to cancel my appointment this afternoon and hunker down at home.

The snow has now stopped and the wind has calmed down. However the temperature has dropped. The wind chill factor is now -16C (3F).

Considering that most of October was lovely and warm (I didn't need a jacket when we went out for dinner on Friday evening), this has been a huge shock to the system. I'm holding out hope that it will warm up enough to melt this snow. Dan doesn't think it will get warm enough to get rid of all of it.

first winter storm

We woke up to the first winter storm of the season.

Weather Warning

Issued at 10:32 AM CST Tuesday 26 October 2010

Summary

5 to 10 cm of snow today into tonight with occasional blowing snow.

Details

A powerful storm system over Central Minnesota late this morning continues to intensify, and is bringing the season's first snow to Southern Saskatchewan today into tonight. The snow is accumulating in most areas from Saskatoon and eastward, along with strengthening northwest winds, now gusting into the 60 km/h range. Wynyard has reported 10 cm so far, with many other areas approaching 5 cm. The snow will continue tonight before tapering off early Wednesday. General snowfall amounts of 10 to 15 cm are expected over eastern regions, with possibly as much as 25 cm over the higher elevations of the moose mountains and duck mountains. Lesser amounts of 5 to 10 cm are expected in the weather warning area including Regina. In addition to the snow, strong northwest wind gusts will likely strengthen into the 70 to 80 km/h range, and compound the situation with poor visibilities in heavy snow and local blowing snow. This will be the season's first Major blast of winter weather over Southeast Saskatchewan so residents planning on travel today and tonight should be prepared for treacherous winter travel conditions including on the Yellowhead and transcanada highways especially towards the Manitoba border. Environment Canada continues to closely monitor this situation and will be providing updates through today and Wednesday as the storm develops. Please refer to the public forecast for further details.

There are many unhappy motorists today but there are some very happy shelties.

When they got the zoomies even Bentley joined in although his little legs had to really plow to get through the thick, heavy snow.