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Anyway, I've been repeatedly pulling out my May Phat Fiber samples and petting them, even if I haven't been diligent with the blog. (Also, I've been working on new patterns! Yay!)
Can I just say, yet again, I am so thankful for crafts and art, especially when I get stressed out. Really, this is true therapy!
See? I am dithering!
First of all, I am sorry for the varying picture quality. Rather than set up our DIY light-tent I decided to bring the drop cloth outside to take advantage of the late afternoon sun. I ended playing a game of tag with the shadows and I got chased all around the deck. For some pictures I was winning, and for others...not so much. It brought me back to 7th grade English, Man vs. Nature at it's finest.
So here we have my stitch markers, which I think will either have crochet appropriate earring backs added, or will end up part of necklaces.
The tiny one is green and purple, and it's just precious. I have knitted socks, and I think a lot of the appeal was the cutey wooty widdle needles. It is from StrangeFruit.
The Lampyridae stitch marker has millifiore and a bead that looks like a purple gourd. It has an inclusion in it so I think it is either a real stone or glass made to look like stone? I guess it's sometimes possible to tell through licking, but I don't want to lick it.
Finally, the winemakersister stitch marker is more green and purple. It is also very preciouswith a little bell shaped flower. Cute cute cute! I feel like I should take up knitting with all these stitch markers, or rather, knitting that requires stitch markers. I am making a scarf for husband, but that's just a big tube.
Ohhh...soothing blues and greens. I do wish I had taken better pictures.
In the top left we have Delphinium by Smoky Mountain Fibers. It is merino, and a nice, generous, very squooshy sample. I know it's based on a flower, but it makes me think of Monet paintings.
On the bottom middle we have Flower Power, by the always fun Giffordables. It may or may not contain Romney, BFL, Sari Silk, Milk, fine wool (??), wool nepps, angora, Mohair, Silk Waste. It also might make my fingers itchy. BOO!
I had to look up Romney, but since I just got the Spinner's Companion
from the library I just had to flip to page 20. Apparently it's a medium crimp, moderately soft wool with good elasticity recommended for knits or blankets. So there you go!The sparkly green mini batt in the top right is from Hippie Penguin Fibers. It is so shimmery, and I love wools and yarns that are semi-solid. So...score for me! It is made of merino, mohair, firestar, lincoln, coopworth. I approve of coopworth, since it's what came in my Learn to Spin kit. It's very soft, and it has that slightly dense, marshmallow-y sort of texture that I just love. I think I might spin it up for some bracelets, and I will keep my eye on the shop for more jewelry appropriate blends.
Is that...pink and purple? It is, it is!
In the top left is, of course, Dawn's Cherry Blossom sample for her spin a long. I love love love the little slip of fabric that came as the sample for the bag. I have several yards of very similar fabric set aside, for the next time I'm near a sewing machine. It is superwash wool and bamboo.
Top right is another Moonwood sample. Two months in a row! Hurray! They look so perfect as little batts, I can't imagine spinning them would make them any better. I just want to keep them and pet them. This one is Red Bud, and it is alpaca, wool, bamboo and lots and lots of sparkle! It's like a fairy exploded on a tree. I think it also has some of Roo's handspun tied around it.
And in front is sparkleshan's pulled roving in Spring Garden. I had to look up using a diz, since I realized I didn't actually know what that meant. It was just one of those words that I had accepted as sounding a little funny and then moved on from it. It looks very time consuming! It reminds me of how the ancient Egyptians made gold thread, by pulling it through thinner and thinner holes. I had assumed it was a batt, but it really is a long, colorful roving. It is full of merino, bamboo, angora, mohair locks, wool and firestar. I love it! But I just can't picture what it will look like as yarn. Just 5 more weeks or so, and then I'll be drowning in free time!
The braid in back is from The Critter Ranch, and it called Lilacs in Bloom. I love lilacs, especially being from Rochester, home of the Lilac Festival. It's such a cute little braid, Husband said, "That person must have the most perfect hair!" It is made of Falkland top, which is not in the Spinner's Companion. According to the internet the cute little Falkland sheep don't need to endure dips or anything of that sort so their wool is very healthy for us to use.
Next to that is a goody bag of kid mohair from Blue Mountain Handcrafts. It is like touching a jar of lotion, or baby skin or...I don't know...goats. So soft! Husband managed to ruin the magic a bit when he said it looked like clown hair. And now I have shared the magic ruining with you!
In front is Serendipity Fiber Arts bearded iris inspired batt 'Gina the Gypsy'. As soon as I saw it I thought of one of my long time friends, and I actually flung myself towards Etsy because it's just one of those rare combinations that I know will work up just perfectly into a shawl for her. Alas, it was made JUST for the Phat Fiber box, so I am extra lucky to have what I have! I don't suppose anyone out there wants to trade for buttons? Spindles? I am hoping to order a custom batt or two in a matching colorway, so it will work out ok, I just need to be patient.
In back is the sample that helped cure my merino-phobia! It was just so soft, and the colors were so subtle, and it was right there, like a little toy, and did I mention it is soft? Once I predrafted it just ballooned outward and now it looks huge! I'm spinning it up to sock/laceweight ply-on-the-fly super soft yarn. It's by no means perfect yarn, or maybe even good yarn, but it is soft. That's because it's 19 micron merino in 'Peach Tree' by Natchwoolie. I ordered a full sized batt, even though I also bought woodworking tools, because it is soft. Let me say it one more time... it's soft.
(On a side note: Yay! I bought more appropriately sized tools for the spindle turning and wood carving, so I am practically giddy! I got my shipping notice as I write this, so pardon if I get a bit "excitable".)
In front is an equally soft, but in a way Husband might be allergic to, sample from Friendship Fiber. It is called Sveta in the Garden, and I think that picture might actually be Sveta. So cute! I love actually seeing where the fiber is from. It is an equal mix of angora and cashmere with a bit of glitz. It's hard to tell in the picture, but it's a very pleasing spring green, partway between celery and lime.
The bright yellow, green and black fiber is from Fleecemakers Fibers. It is dyed and natural Romney and Icicle. More Romney! Is there a Romney season? Probably not, sheep can get pretty ripe, but they're not fruits. I love the colors, so very springy.
Next to that is the two samples from Cozy Cove. The purple is 'Pretty Purple Posies' and it is a super soft blend of alpaca, bamboo, merino, and milk fibers with tussah silk accents.She always sends a little extra nest, and this one is possibly milk fibers, which Husband really likes. It might be the silk, if it isn't milk, but milk seems more likely to me. Last month he really liked the carbonized bamboo. The lovingly blended mini-batts? Naaah...he goes right for the little accent. The purple blip is some fiber from the package, but I liked the color so I saved it.
Last 3 shops! I'm amazed by how much was crammed into one box.
The lovely, tempting, jewel toned fiber is from WCMercantile, an etsy store that seems to have everything, with fantastic prices to boot. It is 75% BFL and 25% tussah silk and it really is just as pretty as it looks. This is another one that seems like it should be jewelry, but I've never spun BFL so I don't know how soft it would be.
Next to that is a palm sized pond of 'Water', from Counting Sheep Farm. It is 100% soysilk, which I am delighted to have a little sample of. I have milk and bamboo and now soy! They are all super soft fibers that I love to touch, but I haven't worked up to spinning solo yet. Seems slippery! This one is especially lovely as is.
The two little braids are from Spinning a Yarn. How lucky am I to have both Cherry Tree and Orangeberry? The colors are very bright and almost shimmery, with subtle gradients within the blocks of near-solid color. They are 23 um merino, and I think they will spin up perfectly to a nice, long, color-changing yarn. Think of the awesome scarves, shawls, hats, and cuffs those could make. I think Jessicah is located in NZ, where I hear there are a few sheep.
And.....I'm out of box. Well, at least there's plenty to keep me busy here!
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