wool/mohair sample skein

I got some new fiber. I'm pretty excited. It's a gorgeous mohair/wool blend. I spun up a little sample of it. Since I'm not working I've been having trouble sleeping. So I stayed up late spinning this. It's a very small skein...really just a sample to see what i can make. It's about 32 yards/two ply.












I have a friend who wants me to spin up something for her to do lace knitting with. I need to show her this and see what she thinks. I think it's a little big still. I should go finer in the initial spinning so that plying leaves it a little finer. But otherwise I love this skein. The fiber takes dye extremely well (although i had to rinse A LOT after i spun it because it rubbed off on my fingers while i was spinning it up. Blue tends to be the worst for this I think. When Amanda did her science fair project about we found that blue takes the longest to adhere. It is the biggest molecule. Of course, this was just blue food coloring but it is an interesting point.

This little ornament is (of course) Brenden's for 2006. I'm really pretty proud of it. I designed the little mitten myself. I don't think I've ever seen a pattern that places the design on the diagonal and utilizes that as part of the design. I'm sure someone's done it but I've never seen it. As usual I'm late--I haven't done Amanda and Stephen's yet. That's next. Along with my second sock which is moving right along. Rather slowly. I have the first 6 rows of the ribbing done.









But I did take a break and create this little mini-stocking. I didn't have a pattern so i guessed at how to do it having made 3 whole socks before. OK. I'm a fairly optomistic. Or something. I tend to jump into things thinking--I can handle that. I often succeed. Everythings fine until i do something like decide to learn to play harp in 6 months. I think it turned out pretty well. All except the cables which i had no clue how to do and just guessed. NOT perfect. I did something different with the toe and actually like it. I just joined the two live stitches into one (knitting through the first two stitches on each needle together). then i knitted an additional row and cast off. It probably wouldn't be comfortable in an actual sock but it worked well here.