I'd say "vanilla" means something uninteresting, kind of "blah"... But no idea if this is it!
As for natural colour wool, I love that kind of light greyish brown that is hard to define. Rosa Pomar has some really beautiful from Portuguese sheep. These colours just feel comfy and warm.
Crafting joys: just started my workshop on Museu do Oriente (1st session last Saturday), and it feels like an accomplishment! Kind of surreal. And am working on a messenger bag in overlay mosaic crochet. A lot of work but it's the kind of challenge I love. 😁
Cheers Ana for having a go at the trivia question this week! I'll let you know if you're right in my next Fiber Friday letter. :)
Those wools from Rosa Pomar sound lovely, thank you for sharing.
Congratulations! That's a wonderful accomplishment to have started your workshop. I'm sure your students loved every minute of the experience. A messenger bag in overlay mosaic crochet sounds fabulous. I look forward to hearing more about that! :)
I like the look of that eco-wool you’ve got there! The stitch definition is quite nice, I look forward to seeing what you make with it (especially if it’ll be a cabled sweater 😊).
Similar to you, I can beat myself up sometimes if I haven’t made “enough” progress though I’m getting much better at it. I’m in the middle of a project now that seems like it “should” be farther along but there’s no rush or need to push my hands to an extreme.
I agree, the stitches look good in the swatch. A cabled sweater would be a labor of love to be sure! I've got one ball so I'll knit up a hat.
So glad to know I'm in good company with feelings about progress. That's great you are being kinder to yourself and not rushing or knitting until your hands get sore. :)
P.S I keep sniffing the wool swatch, I can smell lanoline and it comforts me. It's one of the things I love about natural wool.
The Simply Wool in the swatch I did above feels quite fibrous when knitting. The wash and blocked swatch is much softer and the wool has bloomed. It has super fine strands in the finished fabric which a person with wool sensitivity would perhaps find itchy. I learned a trick about rubbing a yarn along the inside of your wrist to see if you can wear it close to your skin. I think it would be even better to feel a knitted swatch of the yarn, as the final fabric can change considerably after washing and blocking. Have you found any wools that you don't find itchy? I'd love to know more about what yarns you knit with.
I LOVE to knit with wool, even if it’s not for me. Right now I’m working with a Drops yarn- Alaska, I think- that feels fine but I know I couldn’t wear (It’s a sweater for my husband). I either do cottons, which bother my hands after a little while, or acrylics. Knitpicks brava is a standard choice for me because I know I can wear it. I have some lovely handspun alpaca in my stash that I am tempted to try, along with some well-aged Lana Del Oro that I think may work for me.
I’ve tucked swatches inside my bra to see if they’ll irritate me after length of time. Colder weather is less exacerbating than warm weather, but weirdly wool socks don’t bother me a bit no matter what the season.
That's a very helpful tip for testing the swatches against your skin. It's great you still get to experience the joy of wearing wool socks :) Thanks so much for sharing Katherine. :)
That's so good you've found yarns that work with your skin and that you still can knit with wool for others. I do so love Alpaca and I hope your handspun can be worn by you. :)
I love your yellow shawl!! I too am very critical of my progress and chastise myself for “not enough”. I am trying to remember that something is better than nothing, and as long as I am moving my hands and not scrolling I should consider it a win
Both your shawls are coming out beautifully! You make such beautiful color choices. I hear you, Jodie. Sometimes it seems our brains do a great job of portraying something as terrible, even when the said thing is just normal, innocuous or even nice.
One more joy: just yesterday understood how to do a square in overlay from the center out (in rounds), from a video by The Guy with the Hook. Always a joy learning something new. 🤓
Yippee! That's one of the greatest joys about making Ana, we are always able to learn something new. :) I came across the designs by The Guy with the hook and they are incredible!
I'd say "vanilla" means something uninteresting, kind of "blah"... But no idea if this is it!
As for natural colour wool, I love that kind of light greyish brown that is hard to define. Rosa Pomar has some really beautiful from Portuguese sheep. These colours just feel comfy and warm.
Crafting joys: just started my workshop on Museu do Oriente (1st session last Saturday), and it feels like an accomplishment! Kind of surreal. And am working on a messenger bag in overlay mosaic crochet. A lot of work but it's the kind of challenge I love. 😁
Cheers Ana for having a go at the trivia question this week! I'll let you know if you're right in my next Fiber Friday letter. :)
Those wools from Rosa Pomar sound lovely, thank you for sharing.
Congratulations! That's a wonderful accomplishment to have started your workshop. I'm sure your students loved every minute of the experience. A messenger bag in overlay mosaic crochet sounds fabulous. I look forward to hearing more about that! :)
I like the look of that eco-wool you’ve got there! The stitch definition is quite nice, I look forward to seeing what you make with it (especially if it’ll be a cabled sweater 😊).
Similar to you, I can beat myself up sometimes if I haven’t made “enough” progress though I’m getting much better at it. I’m in the middle of a project now that seems like it “should” be farther along but there’s no rush or need to push my hands to an extreme.
I agree, the stitches look good in the swatch. A cabled sweater would be a labor of love to be sure! I've got one ball so I'll knit up a hat.
So glad to know I'm in good company with feelings about progress. That's great you are being kinder to yourself and not rushing or knitting until your hands get sore. :)
P.S I keep sniffing the wool swatch, I can smell lanoline and it comforts me. It's one of the things I love about natural wool.
How does the natural yarn feel? I have a wool sensitivity, sadly, and even with a shirt under I still get itchy with some wools.
The Simply Wool in the swatch I did above feels quite fibrous when knitting. The wash and blocked swatch is much softer and the wool has bloomed. It has super fine strands in the finished fabric which a person with wool sensitivity would perhaps find itchy. I learned a trick about rubbing a yarn along the inside of your wrist to see if you can wear it close to your skin. I think it would be even better to feel a knitted swatch of the yarn, as the final fabric can change considerably after washing and blocking. Have you found any wools that you don't find itchy? I'd love to know more about what yarns you knit with.
I LOVE to knit with wool, even if it’s not for me. Right now I’m working with a Drops yarn- Alaska, I think- that feels fine but I know I couldn’t wear (It’s a sweater for my husband). I either do cottons, which bother my hands after a little while, or acrylics. Knitpicks brava is a standard choice for me because I know I can wear it. I have some lovely handspun alpaca in my stash that I am tempted to try, along with some well-aged Lana Del Oro that I think may work for me.
I’ve tucked swatches inside my bra to see if they’ll irritate me after length of time. Colder weather is less exacerbating than warm weather, but weirdly wool socks don’t bother me a bit no matter what the season.
That's a very helpful tip for testing the swatches against your skin. It's great you still get to experience the joy of wearing wool socks :) Thanks so much for sharing Katherine. :)
That's so good you've found yarns that work with your skin and that you still can knit with wool for others. I do so love Alpaca and I hope your handspun can be worn by you. :)
I love your yellow shawl!! I too am very critical of my progress and chastise myself for “not enough”. I am trying to remember that something is better than nothing, and as long as I am moving my hands and not scrolling I should consider it a win
So true that something is better than nothing and keeping your hands moving and not distracting yourself with other things is absolutely a win! :)
Both your shawls are coming out beautifully! You make such beautiful color choices. I hear you, Jodie. Sometimes it seems our brains do a great job of portraying something as terrible, even when the said thing is just normal, innocuous or even nice.
Thanks so much Kavitha :) That's exactly it! I'm learning about the negativity bias. We are 'hardwired' to see the negative first.
One more joy: just yesterday understood how to do a square in overlay from the center out (in rounds), from a video by The Guy with the Hook. Always a joy learning something new. 🤓
Yippee! That's one of the greatest joys about making Ana, we are always able to learn something new. :) I came across the designs by The Guy with the hook and they are incredible!
Since I raise natural colored sheep I can’t pick just one! I love them all!
I can certainly appreciate you loving them all. What colors do your flock produce? When you spin them, do you blend colors or leave them separate?
I have white, moorit (red brown) and black. I do blend them to get other beautiful shades.
Ahh, so lovely. Thanks for sharing :)