Thursday, August 23, 2007

I need to make a video like this of Callay

Yeah, so the couple of days I just spent at home recovering from a work-related RSI, I got to yet again experience the typcial day for my greyhound, Callay. It was very much like this.

Friday, August 17, 2007

Another handspun

This one is also probably going to the market with me tomorrow. I finished it last week, and spun up the Cherry Cordial skeins to help me decided how much to sell it for. It is 63 yards, bulky weight, and weighs 1.75 ounces. It was an experiment in blending with my hackle and with the combs my Dad made with me.

umm, very un-originally called purple and cream.

First yarn for the Farmer's Market

So I decided, in order to continue to support my craft habit and to have more motivation for making yarn, to sell some of the yarn I have spun.

Of course, to do that I actually needed to decide what my time and efforts are worth. I want to send a big thank you to the ladies on the knittyboard who gave some helpful advice, and that this link from Abby's yarn is a great one for the enterprizing new spinner.

In light of the information in that post, and after timing myself on how long it takes to spin this sport-weight yarn, I have decided to sell my yarn based on yardage and material. It makes sense, it will take me a whole lot less time to spin up bulky weight yarn than lace weight.

This particular pair of skeins is spun from Brown Sheep Mill ends roving. The total weight is 6.65 ounces (so a material cost of $4.19), and the total yardage (both skeins) is 270. It will be sold at the local farmer's market or online for $0.20/yard, which with the number of hours invested in preparing it comes to around $7/hour for my work. I think that's reasonable, fair, and is properly respectful of the art that handspinning yarn really is. Check out the Heathen Handicrafts link at the left for more information or to order. More to come.

Oh, and it's name is Cherry Cordial.

Tuesday, August 7, 2007

Tofutsies done!

Oh so pretty!

I even bought shoes to show them off!


Yes, I do realize what a knitting geek I've become, that I'm buying shoes for the express purpose of showing off my handknits.

The pattern is my own, with my original (I think) idea of doing a crocheted toe and heel. Very comfy. Best thing about it? It used exactly half the skein! I still have about 50 grams left of a 100 gram skein. So you know what? I will be getting a second pair out of it! yay! I think I am going to try with size 1 needles, and I may do a short-row heel, just to be able to say I tried something else. And who knows I may like it even better.