In December 2016 I was all about the stamped aluminum bracelets.
The next level for this craft is using tools for alignment so the words come out straight every time. Pencil layouts can only take you so far.
I did have fun finding sayings that fit on the bracelets.
I crocheted several more rows onto LazyTCrochet’s circle vest pattern, past the “plus size” listed in the instructions. I followed the general feel of the pattern up to that point, and crocheted until I ran out of my hand-spun Teeswater yarn. It was still feeling small and tight.
I do have more Teeswater roving, but need to spin it up. I decided to tie off the row and weave in the ends, then give the vest a good soak with some gentle fabric wash. I laid it out to dry on a homemade PVC and nylon mesh drying rack.
The stitches relaxed and the vest increased in size.
It is now a wearable garment. The wool feels softer after blocking and has a beautiful drape. I call this my “Shave ‘Em Two Save ‘Em” vest because both Jacob and Teeswater sheep are on the Livestock Conservancy list of Heritage Sheep. Jacob is Threatened and Teeswater is considered Critical.
I’m rather excited that I have created something I will actually wear and supports farmers raising endangered heritage breeds.
Chicken update: I still have three chickens. I had a scare the other day, one of the hens tucked herself under the supplementary coop and didn’t move when I came to give treats. When I touched her tail feathers she woke up and was rather offended at being touched.
I had never heard of a cyanometer and was curious when I saw it scrolling my feed. It was invented in 1789 by Horace-Bénédict de Saussure and is used to classify the color of the sky. Gavin Gough has a good quality free printable here. My youngest is all about blue skies, so I printed her one and laminated it.
What my readings did not tell me, and what I had to discover in practice, was that you need a good light source on the cyanometer. Standing facing the sun, or in the shade, makes the colors too dark. I found using it with the sun at my back shining on the disc worked best.
Of course there are many other factors to collect when taking your reading: time of day, geographical location, angle in the sky, cloud cover. Painters and photographers use it as a reference. Overall an interesting little disc.
Every knitter or crocheter has their own preference for the form of their yarn. My friend prefers to wind her yarn into balls before she gets started. With purchased yarn, I dig into the middle and pull the yarn from the inside, then wind the remains as cakes on a winder, or nostepinne style balls. I have a whole bag of remnants that are balled and I am rewinding them as cakes.
I tried using my ceramic yarn bowl, but it isn’t up to the speed produced by the winder, so I dropped the ball into a basket so it didn’t roll around on the floor.
Critters and Craft 