Rainbowthreads

Merry Christmas

2009-12-23T17:55:00.002+01:00

A peaceful and merry Christmas to everyone.

May all your wishes come true and may the coming year be a good and healthy one !

She's my brandnew toy....tralala

2009-10-30T14:47:00.008+01:00

I got myself a new toy:

Last week I ordered the brandnew Ashford wild drumcarder from diespindel . We have an old Luet carder at the museum, but it doesn't work well, especially with fine wool and fiber. So I decided to make myself an early christmas gift.

What a difference !!! You don't even have to fasten it to the table. It works so smooth and quiet. The clou is the packer brush, that is attached to the carder. The batts are narrower, but thicker than other carded batts, thats a plus for me.

All in all a great investment, if you like to mix fibers by yourself....

Just in time for the winter...

2009-10-27T13:41:00.001+01:00

Finally I finished my "Revontuli / Northern Lights Stole". The pattern is really nice and very recommendable for advanced beginners. It's a free pattern from a finnish knitter, but it's availible in english and german, too. You can find it here .

The pattern was fun to knit, but the yarn was a real nightmare. Itchy and so rough, my fingers hurt after a half hour of knitting.... I hope it will soften with wear and a few turns in the water..

SP14 revealed

2009-10-12T12:19:00.003+02:00

Last week I was on a short vacation and when I came home, there was a nice parcel waiting for me. It was the final package from Secret Pal 14. Now I know for sure, who the person was, that spoiled me quite rotten during the last three months. It's Giselle from Italy !!! Thank you so much for everything, you gave to me and for beeing the best pal ever.....

This is the "noble cowl" knitted in a very soft turqoise wool and then there was this super luxurios lace yarn, merino/cashmere mix in a gorgeous lavender shade.

I didn't take a picture of the orange flavored chocolate, that came within, since its already gone....

sadness and happiness

2009-09-09T12:58:00.003+02:00

You know, history repeats itself. Only worse somtimes.....

A few months ago, while the SP13, our family pet died. The same day I got my second parcel from my secret pal. I know, it was "only" a pet, but we were all very sad about it.

Now, during SP14, it seems as if history repeats itself, only this time much, much worse....
At 2am we had a call from my sister in law, that her husband had lost his battle against cancer. He was the older brother of my husband and died at the age of 53. He was at the hospital since last week and his condition grew worse since Monday.

Only a few hours later this morning the postman brought the second parcel for my dear secret pal. This was a very nice "band aid" for me and something to be happy about. She send me 4 balls of very soft charcoal colored lambswool, 2 balls of supersoft merino wool in turquise shades and gorgeous angorino wool top, which is a mix of merino and angora wool, in the prettiest shades, to be spun up on my new wheel. Thank you so much my dear pal, your gifts did a great job in brightening my mood.

a rose is a rose is a rose.......

2009-09-02T21:22:00.003+02:00

today a longstanding dream came true: I got my very own rose. She is so beautiful ! Just look at her......

I cant believe it......have to touch her every 5 minutes or so. The wood is incredible smooth and she purrs like a cat. The one extra, that I got for her is a lace flyer and the fast whorl.

I'm so excited. Probably can not sleep this night....

The only downside is, that I will have to part with my Kromski Sonata. There is simply not enough room for boths wheels. So if you know someone who would take good care of her, let me know.

getting hooked.....

2009-08-18T19:12:00.003+02:00

I had a really busy time for several weeks since my vacation. Summer break is over and school has started already.

So what better time to take up just another time consuming hobbie....

Last week I took a class on tabletweaving. This is something I wanted to learn for a long time. It's a perfect link between my volunteer-job at the museum and my hobbie as a reenactor.

The first meters of trim are finished and I'm really satisfied with how it turned out.

The other projekt that got me "hooked" is a little scarf I found on ravelry (where else....). The perfect pattern for a nice handspun yarn in dk-weight..here is a little appetizer...

I got a package........

2009-08-02T11:41:00.002+02:00

My secret Pal sent me a package!

The yarn is a gorgeous lace yarn, 100% new wool in stunning shades of petrol and blue. I love it!!
And then there was a great notebook, a wooden figure of an angel (I think this is a form for cookies), giant amaretti, a bag of VERY delicious chocolate and a cute little tin box with a measurement tape in it.

Thank you so much my dear pal !!!

I swirl, you swirl, he/she/it swirls..........

2009-07-31T15:22:00.002+02:00

today I got a creative flash and after digging through boxes and cupboards came up with some polymer-clay that I bought years ago....

I found a great site on the net with awesome designs and great tutorials and did some swirling...

I think, that's a nice idea to create buttons and such things for knitted goods.

filling up the stash......

2009-07-28T14:20:00.006+02:00

Today my order from world-of-wool arrived. Amazing stuff and they were sooo fast. I ordered on Thursday!

300 gramm Bluefaced Leicester Sock yarn

300 gramm superwash merino laceweight

on the left 500 gramm superwash merino/nylon mix on the right 500 gramm merino/tencel mix

on the left 100 gramm 50/50 superfine merino/angora mix on the right 100 gramm baby camel

100 gramm A-grade mulberry silk

and last but not least....100 gramm superfine merino/alpaca/baby camel/mulberry silk mix unbelievable soft and spins like a dream.....

Home again....

2009-07-18T20:50:00.004+02:00

....after 2 weeks at the coast of the baltic sea. It was very relaxing. We had a gorgeous flat that was a few kilometers away from the shore, but was very quiet and luxorious. Altough the weather was unstable, we had a great time there.

Some impressions..

It was also great that the flat had wireless internet access. I was able to communicate with my up- and downstream pals and we had frequent mail-contact.

The best thing was, there was a little yarn store, just 3 kilometers away, that had drops, schoppel and other wool, I don't get here in our town and they even had nitpicks needles! Dear hb suspected, that I had chosen the flat only for this reason.

Due to the unstable weather I had plenty of time to knit. I made a bactus scarf and a pair of socks. Photos are coming soon.

Questionaire for SP14

2009-07-03T12:48:00.005+02:00

Here is the questionnaire for SP14. Please be sure to post it in a spot on your blog where your pal can easily find it. Since your pal will use this to help create your packages you'll want to have it posted to your blog no later than July 10th, but sooner would be better as it can be helpful to us in selecting your pals.

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?

Natural yarns, wool, alpaca etc. I don't like artificial yarn, except for the nylon in sock yarns...

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?

A needle case for the straight ones and a special case for the interchangeables.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?

With longer breaks for about 30 years. Would call myself intermediate.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?

Yes, but it's not up to date. Have to change that....

5. What's your favorite scent?

Vanilla, oranges, cinnamon.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?

Yes definately a sweet tooth. You could wake me in the middle of the night for oreos. I like dark chocolate, dont like milk chocolate and the white stuff.

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?

I spin more than I knit, actually. Sewing, especially garb for reenactment. Not much other stuff.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)

I like every music, except for rap, hip-hop and opera.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?

The whole "cold" color palette is ok, all hues of blue, gray, purple, pink and black. I don't like "warm" colors. I tend to look like drowned in autumnal and beige colors.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?

I'm married and have a 15 year old son. No pets.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?

Love scarves, hats and mittens. Don't own a poncho.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?

look above....

13. What are you knitting right now?

A bactus scarf and a revontuli shawl.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?

Shure

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?

Circular and dps for socks. I love knit picks harmony wood.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?

Both

17. How old is your oldest UFO?

Not shure, there are many....

18. What is your favorite holiday? What winter holiday do you observe?

Chrismas

19. Is there anything that you collect?

spindles

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

I have a subsciption to spin off. Never got my hands on the Wollmeise yarns, they are awesome.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?

Faire Isle. Got a kit for a pair of mittens from my SP13 spoiler. Will try it in time for the next winter.

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?

Yes, but not too much. I'm a german size 38.

23. When is your birthday?

June, 02

24. Are you on Ravelry? If so, what's your ID?

elora

Pattern for the Cirrus Shawl

2009-03-13T21:50:00.004+01:00

many people asked me, if I could write down an instruction for my cirrus shawl. This week I had the time and patience to do so.

Requirements:

App. 700m laceweight yarn

A pair of knitting needles size 3-4 mm

Cast on 106 stitches (or any other number that is a multiple of 10 stitches + 6 stitches) and knit 5 rows in garter stitch.

Follow the pattern and knit the rapport 10 times in a row.

Repeat row 1 – 26 for 15 times, or until length desired (knit on all uneven rows, purl on all even rows).

Knit 5 rows in garter stitch. Bind off.

(chart designed with KnitChart Maker © by Jacquie http://jacquie.typepad.com/Charts/knitChart.htm)

© Gabi Bersau 2009

Taschen - kann man je genug haben?

2009-03-04T15:03:00.003+01:00

Heute habe ich nach längerer Zeit mal wieder die Nähmaschine entstaubt und habe mir eine Tasche genäht. Drauf gekommen bin ich durch einen Thread im Forum der "Hobbyschneiderin". Das Schnittmuster ist eine PDF Datei.

Stoff musste ich merkwürdigerweise nicht kaufen, hatte irgendwie noch genug davon zuhause rumliegen. Das Zubehör habe ich am Sonntag auf dem Stoffmarkt in Opladen erworben (Schliesse, Karabiner usw.)

Hat mal wieder richtig Spass gemacht, zu nähen und das Ergebnis kann sich, denke ich, auch sehen lassen.....

SP13 revealed...

2009-02-26T15:47:00.003+01:00

A few days ago I got my 3rd and, unfortunately, last package from my Secret Pal.

When the postman handed it over, he said: “Hey, this smells really good, whats inside? My whole car smells of this stuff!”.

What smells that good, are 4 votive-candles (french vanilla and mulberry). Then there is a cute notepad, a big box of blue seed pearls, 2 skeins of Louisa Harding Kimono-Ribbon-Yarn in shiny light blue, 4 (yes four !!!) skeins of Rowan-spun yarn in pink and purple (amazing stuff) and 1 skein of really beautiful TYG Inca Lace Alpaca yarn in blue-berry (unbelievable soft and incredible colors) and a chocolate bar that is already gone……

Thank you so much Aija-Leena !!! You really spoiled me rotten....I loved every bit of your 3 packages!

Plan B....

2009-01-14T08:29:00.000+01:00

Also der Versuch, das Pullover-Muster in ein Handy-Cozy zu verwandeln ist gestern gescheitert. Es ist einfach zu klein, um vernünftig üben zu können....nicht das Muster, sondern das Cozy. Also alles wieder aufgeribbelt. Den nächsten Versuch in fair-isle werde ich etwas größer gestalten.

Dafür habe ich dann aus selbstgesponnener Wolle (graue australische von Wollknoll, Marke "toter Elefant", überfärbt und als Dochtgarn versponnen) einen neuen Versuch für ein Handy-Cozy gestartet. Erst gestrickt, dann gefilzt, auch etwas, was ich so absichtlich noch nie gemacht habe....

Das ist auch deutlich besser ausgegangen... ;-)

ok. it seems, as if the pattern from the pullover is not the right one for my cell phone cozy. It's way too small for a first project in fair-isle knitting. I frogged the whole thing yesterday.
The next thing I tried was knitting a cozy out of overdyed grey australien wool (..which looked very much like a dead elephant...). This was much better than the first try. After felting it had just the right size.... :-)

Update....

2009-01-08T19:03:00.003+01:00

Da hatte ich gerade eben den unten stehenden Post verfasst, als mich der Briefträger überrascht hat mit dem zweiten Päckchen meines Secret Pal.

Dies muss ein Fall von Gedankenübertragung sein. Da fange ich gestern an meinem ersten Fair-Isle Projekt an, und was bekomme ich von meinem Pal geschenkt? Ein Strick-Kit für wunderschöne Handschuhe in stranded-colorwork! Danke!Danke!Danke! liebe Ms. Snowflake! Wunderschöne Farben und herrliches Finnsheep-Garn

This has to be a case of "great minds think alike..." Just as I started on my first fair-isle-project, I got a package from my secret-pal. She send me a beautiful knitting kit for mittens in stranded colorwork. This is really gorgeous. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! dear Ms.Snowflake! I love the colors and the finnsheep-yarn.

gettin' stranded....

2009-01-08T14:06:00.006+01:00

Vor ein paar Wochen habe ich aus Yorkshire eine Tüte voll mit wunderbarem Shetland-Kammzug erhalten. Was kann man damit besseres tun, als etwas sehr traditionell schottisches, nämlich Fair-Isle Stricken. Das ist etwas, was ich bisher noch nie gemacht habe, aber immer schon versuchen wollte.

Also bin ich in der letzten Woche fleissig gewesen und habe Kammzug gefärbt und versponnen.

Daraus soll jetzt als Versuchsobjekt ein Cozy für mein neues Handy werden. Als Vorlage für das Muster dient ein Pullover aus der Knits vom Herbst 2007, Modell von S.59

Über den Stand der Dinge werde ich euch auf dem Laufenden halten....

Gettin' stranded......

A few weeks ago, I received some beautiful Shetland-Tops from Yorkshire. What better to do with it, than doing something very traditional scottish, fair-isle knitting. So I was really buisy last week and dyed some of the tops spun them up into several balls of colored yarn. As I never did stranded colorwork before, I decided to make a small projekt first. My new cell phone will get a nice little cozy. The pattern I chose from an Interweave Knits magazin, Fall 2007. I will show the results a.s.a.p.

peaceful christmas....

2008-12-24T17:07:00.004+01:00

Allen Freunden und Bekannten wünsch ich ein friedliches Weihnachtsfest!

Ich sitze grad hier, höre mein Lieblings-Weihnachtslied und denke, wie schnell kann das Leben vorbei sein. Darum, geniesst jeden Tag!!!

a peaceful christmas time to all my friends!

I'm just sitting here, listening to my favorite christmas-song and think, how fast can it be over. So, celebrate every single day!!!

Freud und Leid.....

2008-12-18T13:53:00.006+01:00

Heute war ein guter und gleichzeitig ein trauriger Tag.

Ich musste vorhin mit unserer Rennmaus für ein letztes Mal zum Tierarzt gehen. Er war schon sehr alt ( 4 1/2 Jahre) und hatte in den letzten Tagen immer mehr abgebaut. Nichts mehr gefressen und nur noch geschlafen. Wenn er denn wach war, hat er eigentlich nur noch apatisch dagesessen. Heute mittag war es dann so schlimm, da hat er nur noch hin und her gewackelt. Wenn ein Tier so alt ist und so lange bei einem war, dann hat es nicht verdient, so einzugehen. Jetzt ist er bei seinem Bruder, der im Frühjahr über die Regenbogenbrücke gegangen ist. Auf Wiedersehen, Harry.....

Today was a good and also a really bad day.

I had to take our Gerbil Harry to the veterinarian for a last time....He was really old for a Gerbil (4 1/2 years) and faded away during the last days. He ate nothing, slept most of the time and if he was awake, he just sat there staring into nothing...Today it was so bad, he did not deserve this after such a long time that he had been with us. Now he is with his brother, who crossed the rainbow-bridge in spring. Goodbye Harry!

Als ich wieder nach Hause kam, hatte der Postbote ein Päckchen für mich gebracht von meinem Secret Pal !!!

Darin befand sich ein Natur-Potpourri, eine Tafel Schokolade mit Karamellstückchen, zwei seeehr gut riechende Teelichter, eine Karte und ein Strang wunderschöner Araucania Wolle in violett..... DANKE meine liebe Ms. Snowflake!! Das war ein echter Trost für mich heute.....

When i got home, the post had arrived and there was a parcel from my secret pal!! Therein was a nice potpourri, chocolate with pieces of fudge, very nicely flavoured candles, a card and a skein of beautiful Araucania wool in a super nice shade of purple!! I love it. Thank you my dear Ms. Snowflake!!

SP13 - question No.2

2008-12-17T10:27:00.002+01:00

Part A:

Are you doing any holiday knitting?

No, I had no time this year for knitting anything for the holidays

Part B:

Have you finished?

see above....

update...

2008-12-14T16:04:00.006+01:00

Mittlerweile ist meine Internet und Telefonverbindung wieder hergestellt, so dass ich mal ein kurzes update machen kann.

Hier dann mal ein Foto von dem "übersponnenen" Corriedale Garn:

und dann war ich auch nicht ganz untätig mittlerweile. Von meinem Lieblingslieferanten in England, Wingham Wool Works in Yorkshire, habe ich eine Lieferung wunderbarer Kammzüge erhalten. 500 gramm Shetland Wolle und 400 gramm Merino/Bambus/Soya-Mischung. Himmlisch weich und super zu spinnen. Hier 100 gramm von der Mischung beim Färben:

Sieht zwar irgendwie etwas unappetitlich aus, aber das Ergebnis ist sehr hübsch.

Den fertig versponnenen Strang werde ich dann fotografisch festhalten.

My internet- and telephone-line is up and working again, so I can make a short update to my blog.
The first is a picture of the "respun" Corriedale yarn.
Last week I got a parcel from my favorite vendor, Wingham wool works in Yorkshire. It contained 500gr Shetland tops and 400gr Merino/Bamboo/Soysilk-Tops. Amazing stuff....
The second and tird picture shows 100gr of the mix in the progress of dyeing. I'll post a picture of the finished skein soon.

SP13 - Question number one....

2008-12-02T13:28:00.004+01:00

A wee bit late due to the missing i-net, but better late than never...

This is the question number one from the sp13-blogspot:

Question Numero Uno

In keeping with the awesomeness that was SP12, I thought I'd take a minute to throw out a question for everyone to answer in a blog post...

Since we've just had Thanksgiving here in the US, I'm wondering what everyone is most thankful for this year. You don't have to be in the US or even celebrate Thanksgiving to answer. Just share with us! :-)

Well, in times as these, one has to be eternally thankful to be healthy, have a job and a home. I'm truly grateful, for my family and the friends that gave me support in times, that were not the best of my life.

Dank der fehlenden Internetanbindung...

2008-11-27T17:44:00.004+01:00

habe ich mehr Zeit zum Spinnen und Stricken.

Vor einiger Zeit hatte ich ein Tuch angefangen aus selbstgesponnener und -gefärbter Corriedale-Wolle. Leider kam das Muster so gar nicht zur Geltung. Gestern war dann Mr. Ribbles zu Besuch und das Tuch wurde endgültig zu den Akten gelegt. Aus dem violetten Lace-Garn wurde durch erneutes "Überspinnen" und anschliessendes Navajo-Zwirnen ein Faden in Sockenwoll-Stärke. Fotos kann ich leider erst einstellen, wenn ich wieder eine stabile I-Net-Verbindung habe. Ist aber nett geworden....

Ausserdem habe ich mittlerweile sehr netten Kontakt sowohl zu meinem Secret-Pal-Spoiler als auch zu meinem Spoilee. Wenn das Ganze so weitergeht, wird das eine ganz tolle Sache, schöner als die Swaps, bei denen ich bisher mitgemacht habe und die sich weitgehend als totaler Reinfall erwiesen haben, weil sich meine Spoiler immer davongemacht hatten...

Thanks to my beeing without Internet-Connection, I have a bit more time for spinning and knitting.

Some time ago, I began knitting a luna moths shawl in selfspun and selfdyed Corriedale. Unfortunately the pattern did not go well with the yarn. Yesterday I had a visit from Mr.Froggles and ripped up the hole thing. The single thread, which was lace weight, was "overspun" and navajo-plied. Now it's a nice sports-weight yarn. I'll post photos, as soon as I have a stable internet connection. Suffice to say, it turned out very nice....

Meanwhile I've had very nice contact with my SP13-Spoiler and Spoilee. If it continues that way, this will be a very very nice experience. Much better than the other swaps I took a part in, because everytime, my spoiler fluked out on me.

...und weiter gehts

2008-11-19T15:31:00.002+01:00

Der Spass geht in die nächste Runde....

Heute haben wir Bescheid bekommen, dass wir am 4.12. einen Termin für den Neuanschluss haben.

Daraufhin habe ich sofort im Versatel-Laden auf der Matte gestanden und protestiert.

Was natürlich nichts gebracht hat. Dort blockt man alles ab und du stehst als Kunde da und kannst nichts machen.

Next round....

Today I got a message from the telephone company wich says that my telephone and internet will be dead until december, 4th.

It's unbelievable. You can't do anything about it. As a customer you are the last bit of shit...

Spass mit dem Telefonanbieter....

2008-11-17T10:13:00.000+01:00

Ich habe im Moment grossen Spass mit meinem Telefonanbieter, bzw. -nichtanbieter.....

Seit anderthalb Wochen weder Telefon noch Internet. Und das alles, weil ein völlig unfähiger Techniker der Telekom einfach unser Kabel abmontiert hat. Jetzt bekommen wir nach langem Hin- und Her einen komplett neuen Anschluss.

Vorläufiger Termin 21.11.

Ich bin total frustriert. Die Telefongesellschaften können sich erlauben was sie wollen. Es ist wirklich zum davonlaufen.

At the moment I have fun with my telekommunication- and internetprovider.

No telephone and no internet since 1 1/2 weeks. At that time a technician from the Telekom disrupted our line and did not fix it. After many negotiations we get a complete new connection.

Supposed date Nov. 21th

I'm totally frustrated. These telephone companies can do anything and you have no chance to go against them.

secret pal 13 - questionaire

2008-11-09T11:55:00.007+01:00

Hi everybody,

I've got big problems with my internet-connection at the moment. But I hope, this will change within the next days....

Anyways....

Here is the questionnaire for SP13.

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like
I like smooth and soft yarns, natural fibers. Nothing to thick, because I really can't knit with big sized needles. I don't like itchy yarns, those fuzzy eyelash yarns, pure artificial yarns and mohair.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?
I've got a needleroll for my doublepoints and a big wooden box for the cables

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?
I learned knitting at school, when I was 10 years old, that would be over 30 years ago. OMG. No that can not be true, I'm not that old !!! I would say, I'm an intermediate

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?
Yes (see link list)

5. What's your favorite scent?
vanilla, oranges, lavender, cinnamon

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?
Yes, I have. Much to my chagrin. I like fudge, dark chocolate (but not too dark..), oreos, and and and..... I don't like winegum and licorice.

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?
Yes, I spin, I'm the proud owner of a Kromski Sonata. I just started weavin at a museum.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)
I like every kind of good music (maybe except of german volksmusik...yuck). Yes, my computer plays mp3.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?
My favorite colors are berry colors, plum, blue, gray and black. Especially cold colors suit me.
I don't like warm colors. The autumn colors dont suit me at all and it I wear beige, I look like death on legs!

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?
I'm married and have a 14 years old son. We have a really old little gerbil.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?
I love scarves and mittens, hats only if it's very very cold. I don't wear ponchos

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?
Scarves, wraps, socks and mittens

13. What are you knitting right now?
I'm currently working on the Revontuli/northern lights stole.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?
Sure

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?
I prefer circular needles. My favorites are Knit picks harmony. My doublepoints are bamboo or also knit picks harmony.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?
Yes, both.

17. How old is your oldest UFO?
Must I say? 3 years......it's a pair of socks.

18. What is your favorite holiday? What winter holiday do you observe?
Christmas

19. Is there anything that you collect?
Does yarn and roving count? I don't collect anything else. Well, perheps books....

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?
Hmmmm. There are a few yarns from the states and canada that you dont get easy here in Germany. I had a subscription for Interweave knits. Currently I think about subscribing to Interweave spin off.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?
I would like to learn fair isle knitting and knitting two socks on a circular. I havn't tried this so far.

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?
Yes, I really like hand knitted socks. My feet are a size 38.

23. When is your birthday?
June, 02

24. Are you on Ravelry? If so, what's your ID?
My ID is Elora

OK, this is it for now. I hope, my connection to the world will get better by the week.....

Drachenbrut....

2008-10-27T19:26:00.001+01:00

ich habe gerade ein verstossenes Drachenei adoptiert:

Egg Laid on: Oct 27, 2008
Overall Views: 3
Unique Views: 1
Clicks: 1
Mother: Orilu Drahat-is
Father: Bezoar Drahat'is
Egg will die if it doesn't hatch in: 7 days

This egg has an orange aura radiating from it.

Unborn dragons are actually ready to hatch early on in their development cycle. However, they choose to remain in the safety of their own egg rather than leave it. If a developed dragon is forced out of its egg prematurely, it will usually run away or hide immediately.

Get your own!

Bin mal sehr gespannt, was draus wird.

Endlich ein bisschen Zeit....

2008-10-22T22:09:00.005+02:00

...hatte ich in den letzen Tagen. Die habe ich genutzt und habe ausgiebig gestickt. Ein Paar Socken nach einer sehr schönen Anleitung von Sweet Paprika Designs, einer sehr netten kanadischen Designerin, sind fertig geworden. Die Cranberry-Biscotti-Socks. Der Clou ist ein Rezept für absolut leckere Kekse, das zur Anleitung gehört.

Free time.......was, what I had during the last few days. I used it for knitting. A pair of socks are finished, the cranberry-biscotti- socks from sweet paprika designs, a very nice canadian designer. The clou is a recipe for very yummy bisquits.

Dann habe ich gestern einen schönen Neckwarmer begonnen, nach einer Anleitung von Jared Flood. Ein sehr talentierter junger New-Yorker. Sein Blog ist immer einen Besuch wert. Heute habe ich dann den Nachmittag genutzt und das gute Stück zu Ende gestickt. Sehr nette, nicht zu anspruchsvolle Sache. Fotos folgen noch, die Akkus der Kamera sind leer.

Then I started a new projekt. A very nice neckwarmer after a pattern from Jared Flood. He is a very talented Designer from NY. His blog is always worth your while. Today I finished the neckwarmer, it was a nice project, not too tough. I'll post a picture later, the camera went dead.

Secret Pal 13

2008-10-17T17:15:00.004+02:00

Ich habe mich für den neuen Secret Pal 13 angemeldet. Mein Erster.....

Bin schon enorm gespannt wie das alles so abläuft.

Yeah, I signed up for secret pal 13. My first SP......

I'm very excited.

man lernt nie aus.....

2008-10-04T17:45:00.008+02:00

...und darum lerne ich jetzt etwas neues dazu.

Vor ungefähr 2 Jahren war ich zum ersten mal in der ehemaligen Tuchfabrik Wülfing in Dahlerau. Mittlerweile ist dort ein Museum entstanden, bzw. entsteht immer noch, das Wülfing Museum.

You keep on learning your entire life....and thats why I'm learning something new.

2 years ago, I visited the cloth factory Wülfing in Dahlerau for the first time. Meanwile it becomes a museum, the Wülfing-Museum.

Als echter Wollsüchtling war ich von Anfang an fasziniert. Mittlerweile bin ich ein ehrenamlicher Mitarbeiter dort und darf etwas lernen, was mich schon immer interessiert hat, das Weben.

As a real fiberaddict, I was fascinated. A few weeks ago I became a volunteer for the museum and get to learn something, I wanted to learn for a long time. Weaving.

Die Museumsmitarbeiter, fast ausschliesslich ehemalige Mitarbeiter der Tuchfabrik, weihen mich in die Geheimnisse des Webens am Flachwebstuhl und am Jaquardwebstuhl ein. Das ist ein absolutes Highlight für mich, das für diverse Zitronen entschädigt.... ;-)

The people who work at the museum are mostly retired workers from the cloth factory and they show to me the secrets of weaving on a floor loom and on a jaquard loom.
Thats an absolute highlight for me, that is worth a dozen lemons.... ;-)

Staubwedel raushol.......

2008-09-30T18:02:00.004+02:00

Puh, ich kann kaum glauben, dass mein letzter Post schon fast ein Jahr zurückliegt, aber es ist tatsächlich so.

Im letzten Jahr ist viel passiert. Schöne Dinge (leider nicht so viele..) und nicht so schöne Dinge (die Mehrzahl). Ein Sprichwort sagt "Wenn dir das Leben Zitronen serviert, mach Limonade draus.." Naja, man kann sagen, ich hab noch einige Zitronen zu verarbeiten, und schon diverse Kästen im Keller stehen.

Ich habe auch beschlossen, wenn ich diesen Blog weiter schreibe, werde ich ihn zweisprachig halten.

Also hoffentlich wird hier in der Zukunft wieder etwas mehr los sein.

Getting the duster out....

Oh my, I can't believe that my last post is already a year old, but it really is !

During the last year a great many things happened. Good things (not really much...) and not so good things (the majority). They say "if life serves you lemons, make lemonade"...suffice to say, I have still a lot of lemons left and already many bottles in the cellar.

I decided, if I will go on with this blog, it will be bilingual.

So, hopefully there will be new posts here in the future

Cirrus-Stole

2007-10-06T11:11:00.002+02:00

Last week I was on a short vacation with my son and had lots of time to finish my latest knitting project.

This is the "Cirrus-Stole", based on a pattern from the book "Lorbeerblatt und Zwetschgenkern". The yarn is a Wool/Alpaca/Polyacryl mix. Knitted with 4 mm needles. The finished size of the stole is 55 x 160 cm.

finally finished!

2007-09-26T11:13:00.001+02:00

I finally got around to take pictures of the finished yarns, I made during the last few weeks.

So here are the skeins of the falkland-merino-mix:

closeup:

the purple is merino 43 gramms / 245 m and the colored is falkland/merino 102 gramms / 623 m.

The other yarns in warmer colors:

and closeup:

The eggplant one is pure merino 130 gramms / 507 m and the colored is falkland/merino 124 gramms / 586 m.

I'm not sure what to knit from these yarns. Maybe they will end up as pretty soft and warm scarfs for the upcoming winter......any suggestions?

long time - no see

2007-09-12T09:26:00.001+02:00

Hi @ all,

it's been a while, since my last post.

The first is my new DIY-lazy-kate that I made last weekend. On the left spool is some handdyed falkland tops (yeah, finally was able to get some from the UK) and the right spool is handdyed merino. I'm in the progress of plying them togeter.

This is also handdyed falkland-top. I think this will end up with some eggplant-colored merino, but I'm not sure.

Next week the skeins will be finished an I will post pictures...

Tour de fleece 2007 - Finale

2007-08-05T10:47:00.001+02:00

I'm finally back home from my summer vacation.

This is what I spun during that time. It's called "northern shores".

Inspired by some beautiful yarn Artsygal spun on craftsters fiber-friday, I tried to create something really thin and variegated. This took the hole 2 weeks to split the roving, spin the singles and finally twist it...

....and it was soooo worth the ordeal....5 3/4 oz and 1065 yards of New Zealand Lambswool .

I am so proud of myself. This is defenitely the best yarn I've ever spun.

Tour de fleece continued

2007-07-19T23:00:00.001+02:00

Hi @ all

Althoug I did a bit of spinning during the last days, I havn't got pictures to show. I spun up some samples of Shetlandwool and Blue-faced-Leichester. Beautiful stuff.

Tomorrow we will start our vacation and there is no internet connection. So this will be my last post for the next 2 1/2 weeks.

I will take my spinningwheel and try to spinn a bit everyday.

I hope, everyone has a good time during the second week of the tour.

See you all...

Tour de fleece day 6 - 8

2007-07-15T15:45:00.001+02:00

Puuhleese. It's so hot here. Over 90 degrees. Everything gets sticky.

During the last few days I spun handdyed Tussah-silk. This was a challenge for me, like the first mountain-legs for the boys in France.

The finished skein is about 2 oz and 257 yards.

Tour de Fleece day 5

2007-07-11T21:37:00.001+02:00

Today I'm really excited! For the first time I spun some "beaded" yarn. I wanted to do this for a very long time, but never got around to do it. A few weeks ago a friend gave me a piece of merino/mulberry silk mix. This was by far the softest fiber I ever touched. Yesterday I dyed it and today spun it up with seed beads.

here is a closeupBecause was just a small piece, I plyed it with a white tencel.

I think it turned out quite nice, although I don't know, what I will do with it. Maybe an accent-cuff for some gloves.

Tour de fleece day 3+4

2007-07-10T17:34:00.001+02:00

During the last 3 days I spun up a braid of superwash wool, the last of my handdyed ones. Today I finally plied it. The result is not really as I imagined I think it's a bit boring. But anyway, it's nearly laceweight 300 yards and maybe a nice pattern will do the trick...

During the next days I will "destash" a bit and spin some of my "ready to spin" stuff and will try to dye some more wool.

Tour de Fleece day 2 - London - Canterbury

2007-07-08T21:53:00.001+02:00

Today I got some real quality-time spinning. The family was off to somewere else and I had a really peaceful afternoon.

I had a nice braid of ashford-deyed superwash-wool that looked like I got it out of a barbie-store....

This is the result of a peacful and productive afternoon.

Maybe I can finish it tomorrow. I'm not jet decided, if I make a 2-ply or navajo-ply.

Tour de fleece day 1 - Prolog London

2007-07-07T19:46:00.001+02:00

Hello everyone,

since I'm a few timezones east than the rest of the peloton, it looks like I'm the first to post a result. Today we had a meeting at our local spinning guild, so I had a really nice prolog-day.

Here is a pic of the first skein:

2.6 oz superwash wool, about 146 yards.I'm so looking forward to all of the different results.Cu all tomorrow....

restart

2007-06-14T17:15:00.000+02:00

After a long while, I think it's time to reactivate my blog.

I did a lot of sewing, knitting and spinning in the last few month, but will not post the MASSES of pics I took with my new digicam.

Unfortunately I discovered a new vice, wich steals a lot of time http://http//www.guildwars.com/

Really nice way to meet a lot of people all over the world.

Hopefully I will post more often in the next weeks.

Bra WIP/Tutorial finished!

2006-10-26T13:40:00.001+02:00

Unfortunately I destroyed my digicam. But I was able to recover the pics from the storage-card.

So, here are the last steps of the bra WIP:

after I added the channeling and the underbust-elastic, I sewed the finishing-elastic to the straps and armholes in the same way, I did with the underbust-elastic.

I added finishing to the upper edge of the cups as well, so the girls will stay in place ;-)

Next step is to sew the closure to the ends of the band. Do not confuse the sides of the closure! Best way is to lay the bra flat out in front of you, like you do when you put it on.

If you decide to do a bra with adjustible straps, you have to add rings and sliders at this point.

Sew the ends of the strap-elasic to the back of the band. Measure from the side of the cups to the back.If you sew closer to the middle of the back, the straps won't slip from your shoulders.

Last step is to insert the underwires (if you want to use some) and close the channeling in the front with a close row of stitches.

Tada!

You did it!

I am not able to add a foto of the finished bra, because of the camera disaster. But it fits!

work in progress...........

2006-10-08T19:33:00.001+02:00

Today I had not so much time to sew, but anyway, I got a few stitches done.....

The next thing I did, was to join the two pieces of the bra-band. I added a small piece of non stretchable fabric to the frontpiece.

Afterwards you work with the two layers as if they were one. Same thing applies for the cups.
Next step is to insert the cups into the band. You will use a lot of pins ;-)

Ok. Looks like a bra.....

Now you apply the channeling to the seam allowance of the cups (from the cupside). Align the channeling with the seamline, use only one pin at the start. Leave the channeling 1/2 inch longer in the front. Sew careful along the inner edge of the channeling, lay the curve of the channeling as you sew.

Now I added the underbust-elasic. Align the edge of the elastic with the edge of the fabric. Plush side up, picot faces away from the edge. I left the front unstretched and only stretched the elastic from underneath the cups to the back. Sew the band in the middle between the edges. Use an elastic-stitch or a small zig-zag.

Flip the band to the inside and sew over with a triple-zigzag.

Now you can sew the second edge of the channeling. Again, sew very careful along the outer edge.

So much for todays sewing.

Stay tuned.....

work in progress.....

2006-10-07T16:04:00.001+02:00

After a little break

I started assembling the cups. First i put together the lining cup,

then the outer cup.

Now it gets tricky. The shoulderstraps are padded and have an inserted lace edge. So I had to pin together the two layers of fabric and the strap of lace the right way.

After a few tries I got it right. Now I had to add the padding to the sewn shoulderstrap and finish it with a triple-zigzag-stitch.

Not easy, but it makes a world of difference in the look of the finished bra. Here are the assembled cups with attached straps.

So much for today, girls. Tomorrow I will sew-on.

Stay tuned.....

work in progress.....

2006-10-07T13:00:00.001+02:00

ok. I promised some girls on craftster that I would post a "wip" about making a bra for curvacious girls. Today I started a new one, so here it is:

First step is, to assamble the stuff you will need. The pattern I use is from a dutch designer named "Merckwaerdigh" http://stores.ebay.de/Merckwaerdigh. It's pattern no. CupL16. I took the model B, a bra with a 3 pieced cup and underwires. The fabric is a heavy dessous jersey knit in ivory, lace in ivory, strong powerknit in flesh color and plush elastics for straps, finishings and underbust.

I traced the pattern pieces on fusible lining because its not as slippery as paper on the fabric. It's really important to cut out the pieces of fabric very acurate.

A very helpful tool is a rotary-cutter. The smaller, the better. I use a 18 mm cutter from Olfa.

As there is no such thing as too much support, I decided to double the complete bra with powerknit. So I had to cut out many pieces

After cutting out all those pieces I need a break.

to be continued....

gimme lace, babe.....

2006-10-06T20:52:00.001+02:00

Inspired by some beautiful lace knitted projekts, that I saw 2 weeks ago at an expo for non proficient sewers and craftsters in aachen(germany), I started to knit again (wich I had not done for a few years!).

I dug in my woolstash and found some skeins of fluffy pink kid-mohair. It screamd nearly to knit it into a lacy scarf. I could not resist. So here comes:

the "moebius-scarf" - 15 inches wide and 55 inches long. The pattern is a "fan and feather". 75 gramms of kid-mohair knitted with 4 mm needles.

It's sooooo cozy and warm. I can wear it as a scarf or as a shrug.

I was so excited that i started a second project immediately.

A kind person explained to me, how a "birch" is to be done. I never had the curage to knit one, I thought it might be to complicated. But it is so easy. Here is the start:

It's not AS red in real live. The yarn is an alpaca/lambswool/polyacryl-Mix, really thin. This should take a bit longer than the moebius-scarf.

Testpost

2006-10-04T11:16:00.000+02:00

Dies ist ein Test!!!!