Catching Up...

Well HEY THERE. It has been quite some time since my last post. There have been so many changes here. We moved an hour north; I took a new job; and I have REALLY expanded my hobbies. I still knit often - my go-tos are socks and tiny baby knits, which are mostly for gifts.

But it's not all tiny knitting...

The new place has a lot more land, so I've also been into gardening quite a bit....

Which led me to figure out how to preserve my harvest, so I took up canning....

The new property also meant that I could finally get all the chickens I have always wanted. We couldn't have them before due to a town ordinance. Now we have plenty, and we can have roosters. We also starting raising our own meat birds. As much as I hate processing day, I have to say that it very satisfying to know exactly the type of life my birds led before ending up on our plates...one with sunshine, grass, bugs to forage, and in general, birds get to live their best chicken lives here. That goes for the layers as well. We enjoy fresh eggs from spoiled hens. All laying hens get a full retirement plan here; once they are done laying, their jobs shift to bug management and flock leaders.

Of course, having an excess of laying birds has encouraged us to open an egg stand...which doesn't sell very many eggs since we live on such a quiet street in a remote area. This means I give away an insane amount of eggs between about February through September. Given all the gardening and eggs, I have been saving up my money, and I recently ordered a Harvest Right freeze dryer. As of now, I am anxiously awaiting for the shipping date. I hope it will arrive before Christmas, so I can whip up some treats for our holiday celebration.

Covid happened, of course, which caused me to dust off the old sewing machine to mass produce face masks back when you couldn't buy them. This led to me trying other projects, like knitting project bags and eventually, totes, backpacks, leather wallets, etc.

As busy as I have been with all this, my job(s) for the last few years have been - as jobs often are - sometimes overly consuming of both time and mental bandwidth. Over the last several months, things have become much more manageable, which makes me believe that I can pick up this little project again. Oh...I also started a YouTube channel. I talk about chickens a lot, and sewing and knitting as well. You can check it out here: www.youtube.com/@WorldOnAString

Indie Gift-A-Long Blog Interview

As you may already know, I am a participating designer in the Indie Gift-A-Long on ravelry this year. It's been a ton of fun, and I'm so glad that I was able to take part this year. For those who aren't familiar, the GAL involved a period in November when designers offered patterns for 25% off, then knitters participate in knit-a-longs or crochet-a-longs, which involve lots of prizes. It also includes games on ravelry, which of course also included lots of prizes. It offers a great chance for knitters and crocheters to plan their holiday gifting (or their selfish knitting) and knit and crochet together for fun and prizes (or just pick up some great patterns at a discount and work on them later).

Today, you are in for a treat, because now that the bustle of the holidays has (mostly) passed, I have a blog interview of another designer to share with you. I was very excited to discover Lily Go's work, because it is amazing! I instantly fell in love with several of her shawl patterns. You can find Lily's blog here and her ravelry patterns here.

Here is what Lily had to say when I interviewed her:

How did you first learn to knit?

I was a crocheter first (learned to crochet when I was 5 years old). I only attempted to knit when I was a teenager but somehow I didn’t enjoy it as much as crochet (my tension was not consistent, and always dropped my stitch) so I stopped. Until one day about 8 years ago I learned about continental knitting. Never stopped knitting since.

What inspired you to start designing?

In 2006 stumbled upon a knitting blog where she offers her knitting patterns for sale. This idea fascinated me and motivated me to do the same. I managed to publish my first pattern, Sage Cardigan, in February 25, 2007.

What is your favorite yarn(s)?

I have no favorite brand, as long as it is natural fiber.

Which of your patterns make for really great gift knitting?

Most of my patterns are accessories, and I think accessories is perfect for gift because you don’t have to worry about the fit.

Do you tend to have several unfinished items on your needles, or do you prefer to have only one project in the works at a time (or something in between)?

I tend to work one project at a time.

Which one of your designs is your favorite?

For crochet, it is Gathering Leaves.

For knit, it is a tough choice between Dandelion on a Meadow,

Fox and The Grapes

and When The Flowers Bloom.

I would like to comment here with my favorite design of Lily's, which is the Heart on Fire shawl.

Do you get to do any “selfish knitting?”

Oh yes!! I am a very selfish knitter. Most of the time I knit for myself.

What gives you the feeling that you got your money’s worth out of a pattern?

I haven’t bought knit pattern before. However, for crochet pattern, I only bought fully charted pattern.

What do you most enjoy about knitting or crochet?

I love that I can multitasking while I am knitting or crocheting. I love the process of knitting/crocheting, and if I have a gorgeous FO, that is a bonus. I also like the idea that even you don’t like the result, I can always frog and redo.

Winners on the blog...

Thanks to everyone who entered to win a prize through the rafflecopter giveaway. The contest has closed, and winners have been selected and notified. In other exciting news, I do have a new pattern release coming out very soon, so please watch for that to be announced in the next week or so. Thanks for following World On A String Designs.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Oh, that's right....I have a blog!

Well, here I am posting after quite an absence. I apologize, and I'll try to be better about that.

So, moving along. Back in May, I released a new design, the Masquerade Shawl.

The shawl was designed to show off variegated yarn by breaking up the pattern in different ways. However, when knit in a semisolid color, it makes the texture of the pattern pop instead of the color of the yarn,

As far as spinning projects go, I have been busy there also. I recently was lucky enough to have my friend Heather, also known as the fiberista from The Fiberista Files, and owner at Highland Handmades, invite me to spend the day with her at Highland Handmade Headquarters. She knew that I had some fiber I wanted to dye, so I brought it along, and MAN did we have a great time. Heather has also recently started offering puni-style rolags in her shop. She showed me around the blending board and how to use it. Then, she encouraged me to make some. This is what I came up with....

I'd never tried spinning rolags before, so once I got home, I couldn't wait to get started. Here's a pic of the singles.

I used merino wool on the blending board when I put these little lovelies together. This type of rolag is meant to be drafted out into a woolen-spun yarn, meaning that the fibers are not lined up side by side as in a worsted preparation. The woolen spun fibers result in a lighter, loftier yarn that contains more air and is a better insulator. 

The rolags made for delightful spinning. Here's my finished skein...

It is wonderfully squishy and smooshable. I definitely recommend trying some out. Now, keep in mind that this is one I prepared, and I have to admit that Heather has a much better eye than I do for color. Now, I know you all want to try rolags, too, and you're in luck, because Heather just so happens to have a bunch up in her shop right now.

One more cool thing I've worked on recently is the Wild Thing pattern by Susan Claudino.

The yarn I used is Highland Handmades Green Ash Worsted, which is what the pattern lists. The pattern was wonderfully written. This is the first pattern that I've knit from Susan Claudino, and I loved it. It was very clear, and I enjoyed the unique way the pattern calls for joining the parts and pieces. It's very easy, and no sewing required. I think the only drawback to knitting these adorable monsters was that my own little monsters got a little pushy about how much they thought I should be knitting. It's interesting how they rarely let me sit and knit....unless I am knitting toys for them.

A Little Spring, Despite the Weather

Technically speaking, it is spring here in Maine. For the most part, though, you would never have guessed. It's been bitterly cold, and we've been ruthlessly pounded with snowstorm after snowstorm. Everyone here is....well, READY for spring to actually arrive (in the form of milder weather).

While I have continued working on my two new designs that I can't show here yet, I have also managed to squeeze in some other spinning and knitting as well.

I made some rainbow socks for my daughter, using basic sock math. No pattern to link. She loves them, and plus they are bright and cheery during this 2nd winter we are having. There is enough yarn leftover that I will try to make another pair for myself, perhaps a toe-up version so that I don't run out of yarn before I get to the toe. This way, as long as I get past the heel, I can just stop when I run out of yarn.

Around December, right before my surgery, I realized that I had lost one of the convertible mitts I made last year.

The convertible mitts are great for feeding the rabbits in the winter. I then had my surgery right before Christmas and inexplicably with all that knitting time on my hands did not give a thought to my missing mitten or perhaps replacing it. By mid to late January, I was reasonably healed and found myself having to venture out into the frozen tundra with no mittens...or at least, no mittens that matched. It was about this time that I was feverishly trying to finish my husband's Captain America sweater for his birthday, which was clearly no time to be selfish and knit something for myself to keep my hands warm (despite hubby telling me there really was no rush).

I finished his sweater on February 21st, and honestly I was concerned that it was going to get warm before I could get a replacement mitt. My options were:
1) Pay $27 for yarn and shipping to get the same yarn and knit one mitt to replace the one I had lost.
2) Knit a mitt out of a different yarn and live with mismatched mitts.
3) Knit a new set of mitts in a different color and have a new set.

I was convinced that all the cold weather would be gone by the time I could get the first mitt done, let alone a set. I did end up going with option 3, and I finished the set on March 10th. Let's just say that I have gotten PLENTY of use out of them so far.

I used a combination of the patterns for Broad Street Mittens and Podster Gloves. I really liked the pair I'd had before, but I decided I wanted the thumbs to flip open also. The yarn is Mountain Maple Sock, which is 100% superwash BFL from Highland Handmades. The colorway is called Immutable, and it was the January feature of the Snapshots of Maine yarn club. I've already received the February and March shipments as well, and I've been thrilled with each one. I would definitely recommend checking out the website. I've loved everything I've gotten from there.

As for spinning, I have finished my August 2013 Roving of the Month from Purple Fleece...4 oz  each of superwash BFL (what can I say, it's just been a SW BFL kinda month) in the colorways Mountain Laurel and The Grass is Always Greener.

I spun this up intending to knit socks with it, so it's got a generous amount of twist, and since I wanted to preserve the color changes in the Mountain Laurel fiber, they are chain plied. I am very pleased with how it came out...now to pick a pattern. Any suggestions?

In other (non-fiber) news, I have only 4 workouts left to become a Couch to 5K graduate. Hopefully I will be posting soon that I finally made it through the program...plus I am signed up for a 5K on April 13th.

Progress...

First things first. The Captain America Hoodie is finished. My husband decided he actually didn't want it to be a hoodie after all, so now it is just a Captain America sweater. I like the way it came out, and yes, I made him pose outside in February in Maine so I could get a good picture. At least it was above freezing today.

He also got his hair cut today after this picture was taken, and I admit I sort of want to drag him out for another photo shoot.

Now that this project is finished, I am free to knit other things! I do have 2 super-secret projects on the needles right now that I can't share....they are both new designs. I will also be picking back up with my Celestarium shawl. In case you aren't familiar, this is a circular pi shawl with yarn overs and beads. Each yarn over/bead combination represents a star, and the finished shawl is an accurate representation of the night sky as seen from the North Pole. This just tickles the science nerd in me to no end.

I am knitting mine with some handspun, and I promise a lengthier post with all the fibery details at some point in the future.

As for spinning, the Lannister batts are all spun, washed, dried and skeined. Here they are in all their crimson and gold glory:

The batts are from Camelot Dyeworks. They were carded with their very own farm-fresh alpaca fiber as well as merino, bamboo and angelina fiber. I have to say that this was absolutely delightful to spin. Since they were themed batts (House Lannister from the Game of Thrones series), I also went to the trouble to listen to the series on audiobook as I spun them. I hadn't ever put on an audiobook when spinning before, and it's sort of awesome. I would highly recommend it.

Next up for spinning is the superwash BFL from the Roving of the Month club at Purple Fleece.

I am planning to make socks out of the Mountain Laurel braid, and I am unsure what I will do with the Grass is Always Greener braid. If I do end up making sock weight with this one, too, then I will likely do a contrast heel and toe on the socks. It's nice and soft, though, so maybe it will be a next-to-skin project instead.

Finally, just an extra bonus...I have some amazing fiber from Highland Handmades.

 This one is the colorway Endpapers on Polwarth and is destined to become a gradient skein.

 This one is Heartstrings on a blend of merino, superwash merino and silk. The fibers all take dye differently, and this gives it that lovely streaky effect.

I do have some fiber in the queue ahead of these, but I wanted to mention this fiber, because Highland Handmades has a coupon code out currently. The code ATLORBUST will get you 20% off at her shop through February 28, 2014. Check it out...you won't be disappointed. You will also find her at Stitches South in April this year! I first discovered Highland Handmades at KnitEast 2013, and trust me when I say that being able to see the amazing dyed colorways and squish her fiber and yarn in person is a thrill. If you'll be at Stitches South this year, be sure to visit the Highland Handmades booth!

Oh, one more thing! I completed the Week 3, Day 2 workout from the Couch to 5K program today...still plugging away and no major issues on the horizon. That's all for now!