Because I've moved!

Over the past little while I've been working pretty hard on opening up my own yarn and fibre shop! I'm very nearly ready to go, but in the meantime I'm blogging at the new URL and I'd like everyone to come and join me:

http://www.dyedinthewoolhandmade.com/blog/

See you there!

Our friends have gone and the house is quiet. Debbie and Randy are so easy to live with (even in a house with only one bathroom) that the visits always feel too short. Today I took a long nap to try to recover from the weekend's drinking and staying up too late.

Tomorrow we're celebrating my mom's (belated) birthday by spending the day and having dinner over at their place with them. Then I've got SnB which I'm really looking forward to.

This weekend I learned that I'm really no longer a smoker, even though it's been 6 months and 13 days since my last cigarette. We had a little get-together on Saturday and all the smokers refused to smoke anywhere near me. Even though we were all outside, they left the deck and went to stand in a smoking section of their making. Believe it or not, but I felt totally left out. I know that everyone was being respectful and kind, but I wanted to shout, I'm still one of you! But I guess I'm not. And while this is a good thing; indeed a very good thing, it's disconcerting and weird.

I am without social subculture.

Tomorrow afternoon my Jersey friends arrive and the drinking begins! I have about 24 hours left to get the place in shape, and I'm almost there. But first, I there is procrastination to be attended to. Like checking out the new Magknits. Only one thing appeals to me, though: Lemonade. I love this! I'll probably go with wool and make it long-sleeved for fall wear. I'll probably have to redesign the whole thing to make it work for me, but it looks pretty straightforward and easy. I love the shape and the neckline and the single button.

I don't know when I'm going to make it, since I seem to be way more interested in spinning lately than I am in knitting at all. I'm on a fat singles kick since they're so fast and fun. Here's the yarn I spun last, the polwarth I mentioned before is on the left and on the right is a skein of corriedale (both hand-dyed). The yarn is lighter than worsted weight; I'm having some trouble making the singles fat enough. I'd like a worsted to heavy worsted single for felting. So far, corriedale is my favourite fibre to spin this way. The skeins are about 4 oz. each. I spun them on the Lendrum, which I am starting to prefer for thicker yarn now that I have the two wheels.

I also just finished this merino 2-ply. It's a squishy worsted weight, maybe a bit on the heavy side. I didn't measure WPI or YPP or anything on these yarns. I'm trying to keep a notebook with these kinds of details but it's hard to force myself. I dyed this fibre too, in shades of peach and silver-grey. There's lots here, 218g. It turned out just right. I love this one.