Hangtown Yarnival and Pluckyfluff Adventure

From August 31st-September 4th I had the opportunity to participate in one of the best, most exciting fiber events EVER. Lexi Boeger, of Pluckyfluff, hosted a fundraiser earlier this year so that she could build "Pluckyfluff Headquarters"- a studio space dedicated to spinning, teaching about, and showcasing fabulous yarns. The grand opening was this past week along with her traditional spinning workshop. It was by far the most exciting fiber event I have ever attended.


The studio turned out so amazing! It's full of fiber and yarn, but it's clean, bright, and the perfect place to get creative!




My fabulous friend, Craftypuppylover, and I shared a booth together where we were selling out yarns, fibers, and hand knits. We were also fortunate enough to get to camp right in the orchard of the Boeger Winery where the event was hosted. We celebrated all day and spun late into the nights, woke up early, made some pancakes, and started it all again. It was a dream come true!


Me with Debra, Esther, Lexi, and Amy

And the best part of it all is that Ashley of Neauveau Fiber Art created a documentary of the event! Carrie and I were interviewed together and that starts at 44:30. Check it out! It's pretty amazing.


You can see the rest of the pictures I took at the event in my Flickr Set.

So how about those goals?

Way back at the beginning of 2010 I set some knitting goals for myself, things that I wanted to accomplish in order to progress to the next level as a knitter.

I wanted to knit a full sized sweater.

I wanted to knit a pair of socks.

And I wanted to knit something lacy.

I wouldn't say that I succeeded in knitting the most complicated or the most impressive projects for those 3 categories, but I definitely accomplished something in each category.

The Sexy Sweater only took me a year and a half to knit. You may laugh but I say: A project done is a project done, regardless of how long it takes. I finally finished the sweater in June 2010 I used the Aran Off the Shoulder Sweater pattern and Classic Elite Wool Bamboo. I really loved both the yarn and pattern! I knit the sweater in the round instead of in pieces, and in the end the neck pulled off the shoulder to much so I stitched elastic thread around the neckline.

My other 2 projects have TERRIBLE photos, so I apologize.

For the lace project I started one thing, the rose scarf I think? Well, I still haven't made much progress on that. Tiny needles and I just aren't friends. So I decided to do something a little easier. I took 238 yards of my own handspun in a worsted/aran weight and set out to knit a shawlette for my mom's 60th birthday present that I named Boheme Flourish. I finished knitting it in late July 2010. I used the Flourish pattern found on Ravelry.com. I'm really happy with how it turned out. It's a little small, but I found a gorgeous shawl pin to go with it so it stays in place.

The socks turned out to be a big letdown. I went on a cross country road trip from Seattle, WA to Madison, WI with my friend Carrie 2 weeks before Christmas 2010. I decided to surprise my husband and knit him a pair of socks so that he'd stop asking me about it. I'd always wanted to knit him house socks using the Log Cabin Socks pattern. It was a great pattern. But I didn't think much about the yarn and just got what the pattern recommended, Cascade Yarns Pastaza. BIG mistake! It's wool and llama, no nylon to keep it in shape and the llama is so fuzzy! The sock stretch terribly every time my husband wears them, the yarn fuzzed so much that you can't see the cables and it attracts pet hair so much and it's impossible to get out! Boo! I guess at least I can say that I knit my husband a pair of socks, and I got them done in 10 days.

Goals for 2011-2012: Knit the boatload of superwash yarn I got for baby knitting for a baby that hasn't even been made yet. Again with the overachieving....

New Ventures and a New Pattern

I'm a classic overachiever. My husband say's I work best under a lot of stress and here is how I've ensured that my stress levels will stay sky high for a long time: on top of running a fiber business, spending time with my husband, and doing crafty projects for myself, I recently got a part time job working for Colorsong Yarn. A part of my job is the opportunity to work on pattern design.

But before writing patterns using super luxurious yarns from Fleece Artist and Handmaiden Fine Yarn I wrote a fun pattern using low yardage bulky handspun and pairing it with a commercial single ply wool. It's called "Facet" and it's available on Ravelry and in my Etsy shop:




SIZE
One Size

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS
Laying Flat: 11 inches wide and 8 inches tall

MATERIALS
16-inch US 10.5/6.5mm circular needle

Notions required:
Stitch Marker
Tapestry Needle

Yarn required:
MC Crystal Palace Yarns Iceland Solid 100% wool; 109yd/100m per 100g skein; Color: 1219 Color Name: Fuchsia, 1 skein- you will use roughly half
CC 40 yds/ 37 m +/- of Hand Spun Yarn with 5-7 wraps per inch. Shown in Craftypuppylover Corespun Art Yarn which can be found at http://craftypuppylover.etsy.com/

GAUGE
12 sts= 4” in pattern stitch after being blocked, it will be slightly tighter before blocking
11 sts= 4” in stockinette stitch in Crystal Palace Yarns Iceland Solid
9 sts= 4” in stockinette stitch in Handspun Yarn