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When flax is spun, it turns into linen. Flax+twist=linen. Just like that. Flax is a bast fiber, which means it’s grown inside a plant and beaten out– the woody parts of the plant dried, retted (rotted) and removed, so that the long cellulose fibers remain. Ramie, nettle and hemp are also bast fibers. In the [...]

I have looked everywhere I’ve actually thought to look and my yarn winder is gone. I am also missing my knitting bag that has my nostespinne sitting in the bottom of it. I am center-pull ball incapable at the moment. That man, you know the one; he’s about 6 foot, lean, nice strong features, and [...]

I’m usually not so cranky with my color choices. Hindsight being what it is, I think I should have chosen something a little more uplifting than heathered gray merino to put on the wheel. During our morning errands I grabbed a set of paint brush pen things and a sketch pad for Lexi. I’m undecided [...]

Days really should be a bit longer shouldn’t they? (Pictured at left is the former Evil Clown roving, transformed into the kind hearted gypsy princess yarn.) It’s still winter and I live  in a valley. I should know by now that the day light will always be a little shorter for us, I just wish [...]

I ran into an old friend while cleaning out my cosmetics drawer. A bit of Tish and Snooky’s manic panic hair color in a shade called “Ultra Violet” I remember buying it a few years back thinking that violet would be a good change from my usual mandarin orange. As it turned out, I was [...]

I brought the Traveler out and cozied myself up next to the fire to spin some BFL and Josey asked if he could use the Traddy. Does a bear live in the woods? He armed himself with some wool, I set the drive band and tension for him, put a drop of oil on the [...]

365 days a year there’s a particular store that carries white worsted weight cotton yarn with green and red dyed bits, on the cone, for just under $7 a pound. I’m not terribly fond of it, I don’t ever consider buying it until I need something that is Christmas themed, and then when I do [...]

Just to refresh your memory, this is the before picture of the cotton that took forever and an hour to spin. It’s 3 ply green organic cotton. And to develop the green color it needs to be in an alkaline solution with some heat. Ready? This is the after picture of the same yarn. I [...]

I have soaked, simmered and developed the cotton, still waiting for it to dry. After all my work, all that time sitting and treadling until I thought I’d go insane, seeing the yarn skeined off was rather satisfying. For once I had enough foresight to take a before picture. It’s hard to see yarn that [...]

One more step. Develop the color by boiling in alkaline solution, rinse and dry. That’s it. And I’ll have two lovely skeins of cotton litmus test green yarn. I have to wait until after dinner for that final step. I think I feel a little post-project-depression coming on. I’ve been working with this cotton so [...]