New yarns from the weekend . . .

So, I didn't get quite as much spun this weekend as I was hoping to as I just wanted to laze around instead! But, I did get a TON of pictures taken for all of the hand knits that I need to add to my Kitty Grrlz Knits shop and also did get some yarns spun.

First, here are a couple shots of the hand knits. I will slowly be adding more shawls, scarves, and wristwarmers throughout the week. I'm editing the pictures slowly as even though I re-did my set-up, I'm still not getting the quality I want - but, for now, this is the best I can do.

Mocha Swirl Hand Knit Scarf - knit with a nylon/tactel yarn (Gedifra India)

Earth Mother Hand Knit Triangle Shawl - knit with Gedifra Poesie yarn (nylon/polyester/microfiber)

Then, there are the yarns! The first ones I have to show are a second round of the "Spring Break" colorway - this is actually the "Hot Tropics" color hand dyed by the Yarn Wench. This was my second batch (the previous two yarns have sold). Even though I thought this was the lighter batch, I actually think it is darker. I spun in a TON of green, purple, and yellow angelina for sparkle in these, along with novelty yarns in green, purple, and yellow. Then, I plied it with purple thread. Here they are:

106 yard skein:
108 yard skein:
The next batch I did was the "Cherry Peacock" colorway, also dyed by the Yarn Wench. This was Falkland wool and I absolutely loved this color and wished I had more! Very difficult to get the true colors, but here is a shot of the one available skein (the other is reserved):

I also spun up this yarn, it was a "test" for a custom spin I am doing. This one has a few colors/yarns in it that won't be in the "final" yarn, which also means this one should be listed and available later today. It was spun from the "Forest" fiber batts from FeltStudioUK.etsy.com I didn't spin in the sequins as they will be used in the second skein. This is a small skein of about 62 yards, with lots of novelty yarns in shades of green and black spun in, and plied with metallic green thread.

I also spun up two Spontaneous Spinning batts from Loop yesterday! I will wait to show those as I'd like to get better pictures. They will both be listed later today, though. One is "Purple Progression" and the other is "Creamsicle" (though my yarn names will probably be different. They were great to spin - lots of different fibers like wools, bamboo, alpaca, silk, and more! Look for pictures of them tomorrow!

It's been too long . . .

and I have so much I could post but no time!

I've been spinning up bamboo fiber and will continue to do so this month, but here are a couple of shots of what I did this past weekend:



And, here are some other new yarns that are now listed:

As you can see, I haven't been doing many of the art yarns lately - I WANT to, but feel I need to expand my variety a little, plus I am preparing for upcoming shows, which means - knitting shawls!!



The shawls are really becoming a priority as I will be doing a show at the Hilldale Mall in Madison, Wisconsin on May 3 and 4 called "Artistic Accessories" and I really want to have the shawls in as many colors as possible.

I also am trying to spin up the rest of the bamboo fiber I have - it is on special this month for my newsletter subscribers - and I think it will be good to have some non-wool yarns for these warmer-weather shows (well, if it IS warmer by April 12 and May 3/4!).

Oh! One more thing (well, two) . . . here is another new yarn. It is one of my "Rocky Roads" yarns which is a bulky single plied with thread with occasional coils/beehives along the way . .
And, I also just checked, and I don't think I posted this new art yarn! "Compendium" is merino wool spun up with lots of novelty yarns snippets and plied with thread. I plan on making more in this colorway, too, just haven't gotten to it yet:


I've also listed some new hand spun single ply yarns, too! (They are also on special this month for newsletter subscribers only - if you'd like to be on my newsletter list and receive ONE email a month with specials and updates, please EMAIL ME ) Check it out at kittygrrlz.com or my shop on etsy!

Wow . .

has it really been a week since I last posted???? Shame, shame!

But, I've been busy. I had a show on Saturday so of course spent last week getting ready for it, which basically meant forcing myself to KNIT! I don't know why it is so difficult for me to get working on a knitting project - once I complete them I'm always happy - but once again it was down to the wire as I tried to get two Triangle Shawls done . . . and it paid off as one of them sold! Here is the other one . . . they are *really* difficult to photograph. I realized this time that the problem is the only open/bright/white background space I have is by our window - which doesn't work too well when you are trying to take pictures having the light *behind* just isn't conducive to getting a good picture. So, I will have to work on trying to find another space. Right now I'm thinking I need to find a white sheet or something that i could drape over the TV or something, then I could use that as the background . . . but, I digress. Here are a couple of shots of the shawl - but they are much better in person!

I also took pictures of two more scarves that I knit from hand dyed yarn - this yarn is Austerman Samoa nylon microfiber yarn that was hand dyed by Lynn aka the Yarn Wench, special for me. Both of these scarves are listed on my WEBSITE and also my hand knits etsy shop, Kitty Grrlz Knits. (The shawl will be listed later today.)

CopperBurnt Sky:

Ruby Sky:
And, of course, there has been lots of spinning! I spun up some bamboo recently, but the first one I did on Friday and it just didn't turn out well - I mean, I like it, especially the color, but it was spun much too unevenly and, well, here it is so you can see for yourself:
I guess it just turned out thicker and more over-twisted than I like. For comparison, here is another bamboo skein that I spun up on Sunday. It is much thinner, and more even (though I still get Wraps Per Inch varying between Sport and Fine weight), but to me, it just looks much more "professional":

This one should be listed later today. I'm still not sure if I'm going to list the other one. I may use it for my knitting experiment, we'll see.

I also spun up two Navajo 3-ply Yarns this weekend! Mostly done at my show. They are both available on my website or on etsy. If you click the pics below it will take you to the etsy listings.

This is "Sabrina's Garden" and is 160 yards. Merino wool.

This is "Fuchsia Cocoa Citrine", 116 yards, merino and silk blend hand dyed by the Yarn Wench.

Both are priced a little less than normal as they were mostly spun while at my show. Which, by the way, was an okay show. I sold a few yarns and the shawl, made my fee and gas money back with even a little to spare! Yay! Now, I don't have a show until April 12, and the main thing I want to have done by then are MORE SHAWLS, and more bamboo yarns.

Finally, I just have to say WOOHOO! I was on the front page of etsy on Sunday night! Here is a screen shot of part of the treasury that was curated by SteppingStones. Thank you for including me and yay for it making the front page!


Oops, ONE more thing, then I must get to work. Here is a sneak peek at a new yarn I spun last night. It is merino wool hand dyed by the Yarn Wench, with lots of specialty yarns spun in, and plied with rayon thread. 114 yards and 4.1 oz! AND, I still have more of the fiber so will be spinning a matching skein (will probably be smaller, though) tonight. This one, though, should be listed later today, once I get a chance to take some better pictures!