Nothing

   Ello folks, I have absolutely nothing to blog, zilch, nadda, not a single thing. Its been a very lazy week for me, I've not done anything yarn wise, no knitting, weaving or spinning. I did do a little gardening, transplanted and thinned some of my tobacco plants. 
  My sister is due down on Sunday so now I'm in a rush to finish weaving the scarf but the problem is I'm not very happy with the results so far so might not end up giving it to her after all. That's even if I can get it finished in time. I'll see how it turns out after its been washed but if I'm not happy I'll save it as a sample so I can see my improvements over time. I can always whip up a book mark or keythob on the inkle loom, love the inkle loom as its really quick to weave simple patterns.

  Hope you all have a great day, take care folks.

Wet and lazy week

   Ello folks, slow lazy wet week and nothing to blog about. I'm still weaving this darn scarf and having trouble with the edges on one side, I'm not sure but I think I might of messed up when I warped it. I think I warped it left to right then cut and threaded the holes right to left, not sure if that's a problem or not but the warps sort of look wrong at the back winding peg thing. The edge on one side isn't perfect but that's down to me and lack of experience, the other edge is very messy and I'm not sure why. The messy edge could be I have warped the scarf wrong, I seem to remember reading somewhere about using odd or was that even numbers of warps, maybe that's the problem. I need to read more me thinks.
   I'll keep at it until its finished and even though this one project has taken much longer than it should of done I'll jump straight back on the horse and weave another project making sure I warp, cut and thread all the same direction. Will try and find out if I need even or odd number warps too. Not sure what the next project will be, am thinking of dinner place mats for my moms birthday but will depend on what yarn I have around the house. I'd really like to weave something in a variegated yarn like my last project, that one was so much more fun than this one but that's probably because it went well with very few mistakes. Got lucky I guess.

  Hope you all have a great day, take care folks.

Dirty whites and shady greys

   Ello folks, a pretty slow week this week, got a little bit of this done and a little bit of that done but overall not much done really. I have been carding and blending some white and grey fleece, its all kind of mixed up with some dirty whites and various shades of grey. Once its all spun and plied the colours should be some what more uniform but not perfect, not that I want perfect. I do like the natural colours of some fleeces and with blending you can get some interesting greys, browns and blacks. Not to mention dirty whites. Once I've spun and plied this fleece I'll be knitting my fingerless gloves, Lord knows I could do with them here lately and for next month too.

  Hope you all have a great weekend, take care folks.

Love Hate

   Ello folks, hope you all had a great weekend. I got a tiny bit of knitting done and some weaving but had a small mishap. I messed the colours up on the scarf, got very frustrated and nearly took it all off the loom. Taking it off the loom would of been a waste of yarn and I hate wasting yarn. I'm not very happy with this piece really and carrying on is sort of a waste of yarn but the practise will do me good. In the end I walked away for a coffee and came back and unwove the colours and made a start reweaving. I've not caught up with where I was but am close enough, just lost a couple of days is all.

  Hope you all have a great day, take care folks.

A little knitting

   Ello folks,not much to report really. Got a little knitting done and a little weaving, I think the woven scarf will be finished sometime next week. I'll try and remember to charge the batts. so I can take some pictures and do a picture post. I'll get pics of the last piece I did and hopefully the scarf on the loom and finished off the loom too. I'm not sure if I have any knitted pieces around to take pictures of, I really should of taken pictures of my Christmas knits.

  Hope you all have a great weekend, take care folks.

Another short post

    Ello folks, another short post today because I have nothing to write about. I'm still trying to get back into the habit of blogging on a regular basis. I'm still slowly weaving the scarf, my hearts just not into this project though for some reason. I was looking at the last thing I weaved, I wasn't overly impressed when I first took it off the loom but its really grown on me. I think I'll buy some more variegated yarn for my next weaving project, what every that is.

  I've gotten a little knitting done the last couple of days, knitting the moss, seed, stitch scarf to go with the five fold aran braid cable pockets. I'm in no rush with this scarf and enjoy knitting moss stitch, doesn't require much thinking about and fills the time when I have a few mins doing nothing.

  Have a great day, take care folks.

Short and sweet

   Ello folks, still have nothing to blog about but thought I'd best check in and see if I can start blogging more often, even if I have nothing to blog about. I haven't gotten much weaving done on the scarf, I'm not 100% happy with the colours or the way its turning out. The pattern would look great in different colours, as for the way its turning out that's all my fault. I really do need to practise much more. The edges to the scarf aren't as even as I would like, the weaving in of the colour changes are pretty sloppy and the whole piece isn't as balanced as I had planned, I think that's a counting mistake on my part though. Well that's all for today, short and sweet.

  Hope you all had a great weekend, have a great day and take care folks.

Happy Easter.

   Ello folks, another short post today as I've nothing crafty to report. This weekend I'm hoping to make a real dent in the scarf that's been sat on the loom much longer than it should of. I'm not sure when my sister is due so I really need to get a move on and make sure this scarf gets finished otherwise she will not be getting a Christmas present this year.(eta for last Christmas)
  Apart from not being too happy with the way the blue and purple are going together in the scarf I'm also unhappy with the tails I weave in when joining a colour, I've made the tails too short and there not weaving in tightly enough creating little bumps. I'm not going to unweave what I've already done, I'll just make future colour join tails longer so I can weave them in better, all part of the learning process.

  Hope you all have a great weekend, take care folks and have a blessed Easter.

Short quick blog post.

   Ello folks, not much to blog about so just a short quick post tonight. I've switched off the stupid unreadable codes so anyone can now post comments. I really need to clean up the main page, things like projects and I should clean up a few of the other pages like current and future projects. Depending on anymore changes to blogger I might switch to another platform like wordpress, that is if I can get back into blogging more often again. Might not be worth my while to switch.

  Had a day off yesterday that I was planning to get some weaving done but ended up messing around trying to install TOR and get it to work. I didn't manage to get it to work but did learn how to use the terminal in linux better. I'll try again maybe this weekend, for now I have a live cd version of TOR so if I have to slip the .govs leash I can do.

  Hope you all have a great day, take care folks.

Lost my mojo.

   Ello folks, hope your all doing well. I've gotten very little weaving done even though I had all weekend free, kind of makes it hard to blog about crafty stuff so this will be a short post I reckon. I'm not 100% happy with the colours I'm using for the scarf I'm weaving, the light blue and purple are too close so the squares don't stand out as much as I'd of liked. I've started so I'll finish and next time pick colours that contrast more.

  The weather here is pretty wicked at the moment, high winds, cold, rain and we might get some snow over night. Tonight I really wish I had made a start on spinning, and finished and knitted the fingerless gloves I have planned. Oh well, I'm sure they will be ready for next winter.

  Hope you all have a great day, take care folks.

Lazy lazy day.

   Ello folks, seems to have been a good week for my blogging, just not sure I can keep it up. I didn't get any weaving done today as planned, I had a very lazy day sat in front of the computer catching up on tv shows. I gave up my tv in February but still like to watch the odd program on the computer, N.C.I.S, Sons of Anarchy and one I had forgotten about, The Mentalist which I caught up on today.I never really watched tv when I had it but had it on a lot as back ground noise, I don't miss it at all as it, usually, gives me more time to get on with crafty stuff.

  I'll get some weaving done tomorrow and I need to get some more knitting done on the five fold aran braid pocket scarf, I haven't knitted any since I decided it only needed to be done by Christmas. I still need to do some spinning for the fingerless gloves I want to knit, wish i had them now as the weather has really chilled the last two days and will be getting cooler next week. I have a tray of tobacco plants on the window sill that I hope are going to be ok with this cold snap.

  Hope you all have a great weekend, take care folks.

Weaving anew

   Ello folks, yep I'm posting for a third day in a row. Can't promise I'll keep it up though. I finished weaving the pattern in the sock yarn and cut it off the loom, wasted a lot of yarn which I hate to do but I really didn't like the way it was. I have saved the wasted yarn, it might come in handy for something, stuffing maybe.

  I warped a new pattern on the rigid heddle after I cut the old one from the loom, didn't really take me long which was good as warping can be a pain at times. The yarn I warped with is the acrylic stuff I got free with my old knitting magazines, its pretty soft stuff and nice colours. The pattern is a sort of check board with the solid colours forming a 4 square(purple) in the centre with solid colours coming off that into an x(Pink, lilac) shape. Not sure that makes sense, I'll try and get some pictures while its on the loom and when I've finished it. Using a pink, lilac then a purple as the main colour, wish now I had used more contrasting colours but it still looks good. I think I can finish this scarf pretty quickly, have plenty of time this weekend to have a real crack at it so should take me less than a week.

  Hope you all have a great day, take care folks.

Oh what a tangled web we weave.

   Ello folks, just because I'm posting for a second day in a row doesn't been I'm back to blogging full time but I will try and post more often again. Promise. Well I warped the rigid heddle loom and straight away I didn't like it but I started weaving to see how it would turn out. Not very well. As I said yesterday I was planing on working with sock yarn even though I knew it wouldn't be balanced because the reeds not set up for it, what I hadn't realised was that the warp patterns wouldn't show at all. I sort of corrected this by unweaving the rows I had done and re weaving them using double the yarn. With the double yarn the warps are showing better but not great. The whole thing isn't great, right from the start I wasn't happy with the warp, it just looked wrong.

  Now I have no idea what to do, I'll weave a little more of whats on the loom just to finish the pattern once through then I will cut it off and just keep it as a sample of what not to do. For the next project I could still use the sock yarn but double it through the reed for a balanced piece but I'm really not keen on this sock yarn, its full of flubs and splits easy. Probably better to weave with it than knit with it though. I might have a go at a checked pattern using double sock yarn in grey and white, or I might see what else is in my stash that I have enough of to weave a scarf. I'll keep you all informed.

  Hope you all have a great day, take care folks.

A weaving week.

   Ello folks, you may of noticed I'm still not back to blogging full time, heh. I did manage to get a lot done last week, all weaving on my main rigid heddle loom. I warped and wove a pretty wide scarf using 3 variegated yarns that resulted in a nice mix of colours. The yarns were all double knits and the scarf drapes ok, maybe a little stiff, am still undecided. The scarf has been washed and I think its come out pretty well. Its all one size, no pulling in, but the selvedges(US selvages, didn't know that) are a little wonky here and there and I've missed one warp near the beginning. I also managed to do the hem stitch and it worked out really well with a nice tidy fringe that didn't need to be knotted.

  This week, tomorrow, I'm going to start a new scarf using sock yarns. I know about working out my set and balanced weaving but still need to learn about how things feel, drape. I'm not 100% sure of the pattern I'm going to attempt, have a rough idea in my head based on MaCleod tartan but not in those colours. I'll keep you all informed, I think with the sock yarn being so thin this scarf will take me longer.

  Hope you all have a great day, take care folks.

Quick updates.

  Ello folks, I've been slacking again and not posting to the blog. There isn't really much to post about, I've had to rip out the scarf I was knitting as the pockets for it are much smaller than I thought. I had been planing on giving this scarf to my sister as a late Christmas present but feel the pockets are too small for an adult so will give it to my niece next Christmas. Which means theres no real rush for me to finish it.

  I wove a phone pouch on the inkle loom for my mom, Mothering Sunday today, but its turned into a bit of a disaster. Well its not that bad really, I did buy her a candle as well. I wove a band at 3" but when folded and sewn over inside isn't 3 inches so that's not going to work, I also folded it all wrong so the nicest part of the flap wasn't showing and I also forgot to sew the velcro tab on before I had sewn it all together. I really need to work on my hemming and sewing as well.

  Lessons learnt from trying to make the phone pouch on the inkle loom, I should of made two bands and sewn those together and I need to learn how to weave tubes and attach those instead of hemming. I was a bit rushed for time as usual, this project would of been a good one to try back strap weaving, even without doing fancy pick ups and what nots. Its her birthday in a couple of months, maybe I can get around to it before then.

  Hope you all had a good weekend, take care folks and have a great day.

Long way to go.

  Ello folks, I haven't really got anything to blog about. The new seed/moss stitch scarf is coming along slowly, got about 4 inches done so far. I'm only doing little bits of it here and there, think it will progress much faster if I could sit down one day and have a real crack at it but just not had the time this week. Maybe this Wednesday I can put some real time into it, or maybe start one of the other projects I've been meaning to get on with.

  I really wish I had already spun and knitted my fingerless gloves, its freezing tonight. Had to crack ice on the dogs outside drinking water. I'll have to start spinning soon as its going to take awhile because I want to do a 3 ply yarn. Had an urge to get the rigid heddle loom out the other day, or should I say night as it was around 11pm. I've just not been in the mood to do any weaving during the day but making a start late at night isn't the way to go. Once the looms warped it will be ok but I don't fancy warping the loom just before bed.

  Hope you've all had a good week, have a great day and take care folks.

Scarf is finished, at last.

  Ello folks, I've finally finished the moss, seed stitch 5 fold aran braid pocket scarf. This scarf has taken me two years to knit, I started it as a Christmas present but didn't finish it in time so ended up knitting a baker boy hat in less than 24 hours. Once I had finished the seed, moss stitch scarf I knitted the five fold aran braid cable pockets but they were too small, after that I put the scarf down for about a year. The scarf should of been done for this Christmas but again I didn't get around to it, only now just finishing the pockets.

  The five fold aran braid cable pockets are a little large and somewhat heavy on the scarf, the scarf stretches a fair bit. Other than that the scarf is fine, meaning I'm done with it. No more work on this one, its washed and blocked waiting to dry, but I am now knitting another moss, seed stitch scarf to go with the small pockets I've already knitted. I had already started the scarf when I realised how heavy the pockets were on the first scarf, I'm hoping the smaller pockets don't weigh as much and stretch this new scarf. Now I just need to get it finished in under two years and all will be well, once I decide who to give it too. I still owe one sister a Christmas present so instead of weaving her a scarf I might give her this new one.

  Hope you all had a great weekend, have a great day and take care folks.

Two pockets done.

 Ello folks, sorry I've not blogged for a few days, am still struggling to get back into it. I finished the last five fold aran braid cable pocket at the weekend. The pockets are not attached to the scarf yet, I had planned to do that today but life happened instead. It might end up being the weekend when I finish this scarf now.

  I've ordered another ball of the yarn I did the seed/moss stitch scarf and pockets in, I'm going to knit a thinner scarf to go with the pockets I had originally knitted. At the moment I'm not sure how to knit the scarf so might stick with moss/seed stitch again, can be a bit of a pain to knit but will match the pockets better as they have moss stitch borders. There is no real rush to do this scarf, it will be a fall back project while I work on spinning yarn for the fingerless gloves and weaving another scarf.

  Have a great day folks, take care.

No knitting.

  Ello folks, just a quick post today. Still trying to get back into the habit of blogging, that's why the times for posting are all over the place. I've not managed to get any knitting done this week so the pockets still only a third done. I'm hoping to get the pocket finished this weekend so that I can start spinning the yarn for my fingerless gloves, its going to get cold again this weekend.

  Have a great day and take care folks.

One pocket done.

  Ello folks, I've finished one pocket but only managed to get about a third of the second pocket done. No knitting done today and I'm not sure I can get any done tomorrow, if I can it will only be a few rows. Hopefully I can get most of the pocket finished on Wednesday, maybe even finish it off and get it all woven in and sewn onto the scarf then I can wash and block it.

  The weathers picking up, not sure if winters now over or whether we'll get more cold weather but will make a start on the fingerless gloves just in case. I might wait a week or so and see what the weathers doing then make a start on some seeds for the garden. At the moment I'm not 100% what I'm planting this year, tobacco again for sure. I think potatoes, few tomatoes, carrots, onions, herbs and this year I want to plant some wheat.

  Hope you all had a great weekend, have a good day and take care folks.

Future projects.

  Ello folks. No knitting today but I did get much more done yesterday than I had planned. I think two more inches on the pocket and it will be done, or maybe I'll add an extra inch. I figure by the weekend this pocket will be finished and I'll have made a start on the second one. Don't want to put a time on it but I think I can finish both pockets and have them sewn onto the moss / seed stitch scarf by Monday. Famous last words.

  Once I've finished this late Christmas scarf I should start to weave a scarf, another late Christmas present, but think I'll spin up some yarn and knit myself some fingerless gloves. The weathers been really cold here so think the fingerless gloves are more important and they will take me awhile, couple hundred yards of yarn, 3ply, no dying and I think about a weeks worth of knitting. Should be able to get them finished before the end of Feb.

  Once I have my fingerless gloves done then I can get onto weaving the other scarf, going to be a very late Christmas present. Its the thought that counts. Planning on a balanced weave using a variegated double knit yarn. No idea how it will turn out but should be interesting.

  Hope you all have a great day, take care folks.

A me day.

 Ello folks,
             I didn't get any knitting done yesterday but have plenty of time today. I'm planning on curling up on the couch under a nice warm blanket and knit while watching a dvd. Reckon I should get 2 to 4 inches done, then I'll have more of an idea how deep I want the pockets. With the recent cold weather we have been having the last week or so I'm thinking very deep warm pockets. Just hope I can finish the pockets before summer so that they will be of some use.

  Hope you all have a great day, take care and keep warm.

Here again.

  Ello folks, just a short post today while I try and get back into the habit of blogging. I managed 4 rows of knitting on the five fold aran braid cable for the pocket. Its still only half done I think, the more I knit it the more I think it should be a deep warm pocket, or maybe that's because of the really cold temps we are having at the moment.

  I've really been struggling to get back into knitting recently, seems more of a chore than a hobby and chores are never any fun. Hopefully once this very late Christmas present scarf is finished I can relax and start to enjoy knitting again. I do have plans for some future projects, I want to finish up spinning some yarn and knit myself some fingerless gloves.

  Hope you all have a great day, take care folks.

Back?

  Hi folks, sorry I've not blogged in a long long time but think I'm ready for a come back. You know how it is, the longer you leave it the harder it seems. All is well over here, a little chilly at the moment though. I'm still knitting but not as much, my hearts not been in it lately. Currently working on a very late Christmas present, knitting pockets for a moss / seed stitch scarf. Working on the five fold aran braids, got about half a pocket done so far.I did knit another scarf as a Christmas present, a reversible aran cable scarf,sorry no pictures.

  Hope your all doing well, keep checking back and I'll see if I can start posting regular again.