Oooh, the Possibilities!

I have been having a lot of fun lately with my wool and felting needles. I have become a little obsessed with this lately. It is a lot of fun, and very forgiving! If you make a mistake, just tear it off and do it over. It doesn't take much wool and is very relaxing. The possibilities are endless. Just check out Pinterest.
There are so many really remarkable examples and ideas there. It is unbelievable what some people can create!

So far, Arachne Yarns and More has presented two classes on Needle Felting. Both have been well received and I have requests for more! One student went home and went a little crazy! she came back for more wool and needles. I asked her to bring some of her work with her. I was totally amazed. She has really been busy! I can't believe how good her work is in such a short time!.

Speaking of classes, I have been working on the schedule for next year. In January and February, I will be presenting two knitting classes. A lot of people have asked for a class on Fair Isle knitting so that will be one of them. The other will be a class on basic beginning knitting. They will both be held here in Clinton, MN so if you are in area and interested, check the Arachne Yarns Facebook page for information and registration.

I am also planning on more knitting and felting classes next spring. As we get into warmer weather and plants start to grow up here in the frozen north, I am also planning some Dye classes. Classes will include gathering dye stuff from the local landscape and preparing the fibers. I am looking forward to these classes. I have had a lot of requests for them and I think they will be a lot of fun.

I hope you can join in the fun. If you can't or are not in the area, follow along with the us on the blog. I will be hopefully showing more of the classes as well as new ideas and information.

Needle Felting Class

Arachne Yarns and More hosted the second needle felting class yesterday. Everyone had a lot of fun! It is amazing what was created by first time felters!

Participants learned how to form and felt a firm body and wrap that with colored wool. We then added the faces and created the nose and cheeks. Noses were especially fun... As the picture shows, each gnome has its own distinct personality. We then added the hats, beards, mustaches and hair. Each gnome then got a bell in his cap and a hanging string.

All those who attended the class went home with a set of felting needles, a foam felting pad, a rolling stick and a completed gnome. Several participants were already talking about their next projects. We discussed some good supply resources and some of my favorite needle felting web sites.

I decided that it was time to start scheduling classes for next year. So far, January's classes will be on Fair Isle knitting. February's will be on Two at a Time Toe Up Socks. Since Easter is so early this year, we will be needle felting bunnies and Easter goodies in March. Watch the Arachne Yarns Facebook page for more information on classes. I have lots of fun ideas. Your suggestions And comments are always welcome. You can leave them in the comments on this page, or you can put them on the Facebook page.

This is the last post before the Holidays.  I wish you all a warm wonderful time with family and friends. Also, the very best wishes for the coming year!

What's Happening..?

i just finished up the sale at the St. Lawrence Church in Milbank, SD. I met a lot of interesting people there and at the other sales I have been at. I love demonstrating and talking about spinning and dyeing with people who want to learn about it. This is unfortunately my last sale of the season, due to medical issues. I have been teaching some classes and will continue with those for now.

I taught a class in October on knitting in the round on two circular needles. Each participant received two sets of needles, 150 yards of wool yarn and a pattern I designed especially for the class. The only requirement was basic knitting, cast on, bind off, knit and purl. We learned how to cast on with two circulars, how to manage the yarn and the stitches, how to increase for a thumb gusset (we made fingerless mitts). Everyone enjoyed the class and several report they have finished both mitts!

A couple weeks ago, I taught a class on needle felting.
It is my latest passion. Everyone received a set of felting
needles, felt pad, and wool to play with. We felted
Christmas Gnomes. It was a lot of fun. I am planning
to do this class again in December.



I have taught myself to knit socke two at a time on a magic loop, using a very long cable needle. I am currently working on a pair of toe-up alpaca socks. They take a bit longer, but surprise! They are both done at once! Finally, I may get two matching socks! I have lots of one-of-a-kind socks. I have a real problem getting the second sock knit! I can see where this would be an excellent way to knit mittens, socks, and sleeves and anything else that you want to match closely. You are knitting both at the same time. Same mood. Same tension. Same increases and decreases. And, best of all, when you are done with one, you are done with both!

I am planning several more classes this winter. Next spring and summer I will be teaching dyeing outside. I am hoping to do some extended classes. We can hunt and pick our dyestuff one day and dye the next. Lots of interest in those classes.

For now, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.

Harvest Festival at the Big Stone Apple Ranch

This was the weekend of the Meander..the Upper Minnesota River Art Crawl. There are over 45 different artist studios to visit from Beardsley to Granite Falls, MN. In past years I have traveled the countryside for three days taking in as many studios as I can. This year, I stayed in one place, the Big Stone Apple Ranch for the Harvest Festival. It was a new experience for me as a vendor.  The Apple Ranch is located 15 miles north of Ortonville, MN. It is set on the shores of Big Stone Lake.

The the Harvest Festival ran both Saturday and Sunday. There was lots of good food and fun. Live music and face painting added to the festive atmosphere. The Apple Ranch grows several varieties of apples, including Honey Crisp, Fireside, Cortland, Haroldson, and others. They also have fresh pressed cider, pies, jams, jellies, and a lot more. There were lots of goodies to eat, including a lunch wagon. Other vendors were selling home made cookies, pies and donuts. Mmmmm! There was lots of fresh produce, and lots of other items for sale.

 
Logan Johnson of Chasin' Alpacas was on hand from Rosholt, SD. He brought along a few of his friends. The kids (and adults...) had fun watching and feeding the alpaca. Logan had sells alpaca yarns as well as rovings. The yarns were beautiful. The rovings had my name all over them...

I am explaining to my friend, Nancy, just how lovely theses alpaca rovings are...demonstrating the wonderful softeness. I can't resist. One of the joys of working (did I say working...I should have said 'playing') with fiber is feeling the fiber...

I had a lot of yarn on hand and some finished items for sale. It is always fun to talk to all the people who come to the booth. Many people have never seen a spinning wheel or seen anyone spinning before. I love talking about my craft. I also like to let others take the wheel. Men and children are the most interested in trying it out. This young lady was the best new spinner on this particular day. I was amazed at how quickly she picked it up. She was a natural!

She tells me there is a spinning wheel in her grandmother's attic. I hope she gets it working. I gave her my number if she wants any help getting started.

The weekend was a success. Lots of people came to the Ranch to look around and buy things. I was invited to demonstrate at a craft sale on November 1st at the Ortonville Community Center. Sounds like fun. Check out my facebook page (Arachne Yarns and More) for a complete schedule of up coming events.

Dye Results

I was busy yesterday dyeing some yarn. I had some new things to dye with and was curious as to what the results would be. This is a photo of the results. Furthest left is Marigolds. Next is a mushroom called Dryad's Saddle (Polyporous Squamosus) over-dyed with Sumac. The lightest yarn is Dryad's Saddle alone. The one on the right was dyed with just Sumac. All the yarn was pre-mordanted in 8% alum. The Marigold had an iron after bath.

I had some Marigolds in my freezer that I had been collecting over the summer. I collected the flower heads, including the calyx. The Marigolds were the mid-sized plants with 3" orange flowers. I put the frozen flower heads in a dye pot and covered them with water. I boiled them for about 45 minutes. I then let them steep until cool enough to work with and strained the liquid, added a bit more water to the pot to accommodate the wool so it could move freely. I brought the pot to a low simmer and held it there for about 45 minutes. As I periodically checked the dye bath and wool for color I noticed some green developing. I decided to try to enhance this by making an iron solution to add to an after bath. I created the iron solution be soaking some rusty nails in a container of 2:1 white vinegar and water. I added a small amount if this to the dye bath and let it cool. The color change was significant.

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Next, I strained the liquid from the Dryad's Saddle. This had been soaking for a number of days in water with 1/2 cup of ammonia added. It was a fairly dark liquid.

I was hoping for more color, but was not unhappy with the light ecru color I obtained.
(Third from the left above).

I then filled a pot  half full with sumac cones. The ones that I used were bright red and sticky.

I covered them with water and boiled this for an hour. I cooled the liquid and strained it through several layers of cheese cloth. I simmered some wool from the mushroom bath to overdue it. I also added freshly mordanted white wool. There was a difference in the depth of color between the over dyed yarn and the yarn dyed in just sumac. (Second and fourth from the left above).

All in all, I am happy with the results that I got. I will definitely use these again for dyeing.

Stashing

I have been unable to do much dyeing or spinning this summer because of my knee surgery, but that hasn't stopped me from 'stashing' for the winter! This is some of the fiber I have gathered. There is a bag of white and silver llama, a couple pounds of Merino, some rag wool, and also some silver-grey Shetland. I am getting so anxious to spin!

I have been steeping this mushroom in water and a bit of ammonia for about four days. The mushroom was given to me by a friend. It is about a foot across. It is called a 'Dryad's Saddle', or a Polyporous Squamosus (see previous post). A lot of color has developed in the liquid so I think it is time to try it out.

Today a friend, Linda, and I went foraging. We found some goldenrod. We also gathered a few ears of dried corn for the squirrels. We found some beautiful Sumac.

 We found about three bags full, careful not to take too many from any one place. Some of the reddest, stickiest ones I will save for 'tea'. The rest I will use for dyeing.  Add these new finds to what is already stashed in the freezer and I should be busy for a while! 

I have also been working on a pattern for some fingerless mitts that will be available soon in the My Patterns page of this website. 

It has been quite a summer. I had a total knee replacement the first of August. That has really put a damper on my activities! I have been learning how to walk and use my knee for the past four weeks. I thought I would be able to spin...I could treadle the wheel just fine, but I couldn't sit with my leg down for long. I spent the first week out of the hospital with my sister-in-law, Carolyn, and her husband and daughter. We were up in the Bemidji, Minnesota area. We made some short trips each day for exercise. One of these trips was to the Bemidji Woolen Mills. It was not what I was expecting. The only yarn they had for sale was Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride. Nice yarn, but I was hoping for something more unique. I understand the mill has been out of production for many years.

Another stop we made was to Northern Woolen Mills in Fosston, Minnesota. We talked with the owner, Stephenie Anderson. She gave us a short tour, due to my knee. It was interesting to see the mill. I also looked at some of her yarns and purchased some roving. It is so wonderful to have access to two woolen mills in driving distance. Northern Woolen Mills, in Fosston, Minnesota; Dakota Fiber Mill, Kindred, North Dakota (check it out on Facebook).

I also bought a llama fleece from a person I met while at a show in Battle Lake, Minnesota. I ended up with 2 1/2 pounds of beautiful roving, processed by Dakota Fiber Mill. I now have about six pounds of roving, some wool blend, Merino and Llama waiting for me to get my wheel out.

Yesterday, a friend stopped by and brought me a gift. She found this beautiful Polyporous Squamosus (also called Dryad's Saddle, pheasant back, or hawk's wing). This one is about a foot across and probably too old to be edible, but could be interesting in  the dye pot! I can't wait to 'cook it up' and see what happens! This was found on a stump from either Box Elder or Silver Maple. These can be found on living or dead hardwoods, mostly on the Eastern part of the country. We have had an extremely wet summer. There was a large amount of rain a few days before Linda found this. I am anxious to get out into the woods and see what else is out there. Should be a good mushrooming year!

Kombucha

I was visiting with relatives recently and the conversation turned to Kombucha.  My nephew and his wife make it regularly and drink it daily. I had never heard of it. I was interested in giving it a try and planned to look it up as soon as I got back home. The day after I returned, I received a newsletter from the food co-op I belong to, The Granary Food Co-op in Ortonville, MN. They announced they were having a class on making Kombucha.

I talked about this class with members of my knitting group that afternoon.  One member said she had been making and drinking Kombucha for several months and could even supply me with my own SCOBY! She also gave me detailed instructions on making it. A day later, I started my first batch.

This is my first jug of brew! You can see the SCOBY floating at the top. It is not unusual for it to float, lay sideways, or move around the jar. The jug is covered with a flour sack dish towel and sealed with a rubber band. You want the mixture to breath, but you must protect it from dirt, bugs, and other contaminants.

Kombucha is a mixture of black tea, sugar and water that is fermented using a SCOBY instead of yeast. A SCOBY (an acronym for symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast) is what causes the mixture to ferment. It is very much like the 'mother' used to ferment vinegar. Other kinds tea can be added for flavor, but you have to add the black tea. I use a decaf tea. Also, you need to add a cup of sugar. This is non-negotiable. It has to be sugar, not Splenda, Stevia, or any other substitute.  Good quality water and the SCOBY are the only other ingredients necessary. You can add fruit, juice, ginger, or other things for taste as you become more familiar with the beverage.

Kombucha is rich in probiotics. There are numerous other health claims about it, but few have actually been proven. It is generally thought of as a healthy drink. (There are some websites listed below for more information). There is a very small amount of alcohol in the finished product, but very little. However, if you are sensitive to alcohol you should probably avoid Kombucha.

This is my SCOBY after making two batches of Kombucha. It is ready to split the baby off the mother. (Remove the bottom layer from the top).

After removing the SCOBY from the jar, I strained the liquid into a gallon plastic jar. I put the cover on and let it sit a day or so on the counter until the container was obviously "bloated". That adds some 'fizz' to the finished product. I then chill it and keep it in the fridge and enjoy until it is gone. By then I hopefully have another batch ready! I was amazed at how good it tastes! I had no idea what I was in for, but I am hooked.

Here are a few good links with brewing information, health information, etc.
    http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-kombucha-tea-at-home-173858
    http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/truth-about-kombucha
    http://wellnessmama.com/8638/continuous-brew-kombucha/

I hope you will try this and enjoy it as much as I do! It looks a bit odd, smells a bit odd, but is delicious!

What's Up Wednesday...

It has been a while since I have posted anything.
I thought I would catch up. We went camping over the July 4th weekend. We visited family up near Bemidji, MN. Carolyn, my sister-in-law,  and I always take to the back roads and woods to see what's going on. These Lady Slippers were found in a ditch north of Bemidji, MN. There were hundreds of them!

We also found several meadows that were full of Yarrow, Birds Foot Treefoil and pink clover.
I took some video sweeps of the meadows. They were amazing to see.

Carolyn is also a gardener. She has an herb garden with a large amount of Comfrey, which she offered me a piece of, as well as leaves and stems to dye with. She also has some beautiful Hyssop that was in full bloom.




My nephew, John, and his wife Katy were there with their new baby, James. Here he is in a sweater I designed and knit from some hand spun alpaca/wool blend.

John and Katy live and teach school in a small village in Alaska. John brought me a box of moose antler to play with. I see buttons and who knows what else in that box!!!

On the home front, I have been busy spinning. I have several new yarns including the black alpaca spun with colored mohair locks. There is only a small amount, but it will work well with plain black to set it off.








I have also been blending dyed wool on the drum carder and creating some beautiful blended yarns. This latest is a base of walnut hull dyed wool with bits of other colors blended in. The neighbor boy, Nathan who is eight years old helped blend the
colors.


. 

Dyeing with Grass

One of the joys of summer is riding around on the lawnmower, smelling the newly cut grass.  Like spinning, it requires just enough of my mind to help focus without having to dwell on what I am  doing. Sort of meditative... My thoughts wander; I get sidetracked watching something happening in nature that I might miss if I was moving faster. Sun, warmth, vibrant colors, pleasant smells, all making for a good (if noisy, unfortunately) and necessary commune with nature.

This year, things are a little different. My mowers are all broken so, the neighbor has agreed to mow until they are repaired. I was sitting on the patio visiting with his two young children, watching the mowing progress when Nathan and Brittany spied the old wheel barrow and decided to pick up the cut grass. I was thinking it could go into the compost when I noticed a dye pot drying in the patio...

I had the kids fill the pot about 2/3 full of the fresh grass clippings. I then covered the grata with water and soaked it overnight. The next day I boiled it for a few hours, adding water as needed. I steeped it over night and strained it off the next day. I was hoping for something like the color of grass stains. I heated the pot again the next morning and checked the color as it 'cooked'. I was getting a sort of khaki green that kept darkening. Finally, I decided it was ready so I cooled the pot and strained off the liquid.

The wool that I added was spun into two ply and mordanted with alum. I added a cup of vinegar to the dye bath, hoping to brighten the color a bit. I simmered the wool for about an hour, till the color was deep enough. I then let it steep to cool and drained and washed the wool.

The color that resulted was not green at all! It was a very beautiful. Clear, yellow-gold. I am very pleased with the results.

Here is a picture showing the difference between the yellows. L to R: dandelion, rhubarb, leafy spurge, grass.

Rhubarb With a Twist of Vinegar

Last year I posted about how wonderful rhubarb is for dyeing. Not only does it not require pre-mordanting the wool (the leaves contain oxalic acid which is itself a mordant), but it is easy to work with, fun to eat and makes a great tea!

Last year I boiled leaves and some stems and got this:

 

I made a lovely scarf! (See posts from 6-5-13 and 6-20-13).

This year I did things slightly differently and got quite different results. I started with about 40 sticks of rhubarb. I cut off the root ends (I didn't dig the roots) and leaf ends of the stems. I used these for tea and baking. I put the ends and leaves in water. I tore the leaves up before adding them. I covered these with water and boiled them for a little more than an hour. I steeped them over night and boiled them again the next morning and let them sit in the pot. The next day (day three) I strained off the liquid. I soaked 600 yards of freshly spun wool yarn in water for about half an hour and then added it to the dye pot. I simmered that for an hour and a half and turned off the heat and steeped it over night.  The next morning (day four) I added about a half a cup of vinegar to the pot. I let this sit again over night and then removed the yarn on day five. I washed it in wool wash and rinsed it until clear. Instead of the lovely off white tan from last year, I got something much more yellows-green!

Here is a photo showing both:

Another Run at Leafy Spurge

I had such wonderful results with leafy spurge last year that I decided to try it again this year. Here in West Central Minnesota, leafy spurge can be found in ditches. It is best to get away from farm fields because farmers have worked to obliterate this weed. It is considered a noxious weed here due to its ability to thrive and spread. It can still be found growing in clumps in grasses along the roadside. Leafy spurge come into flower just as the first flush of dandelions is going to seed.

This year I picked the whole plant. I then chopped the stalks into five inch pieces. I covered this with water in a large kettle. I boiled this for an hour and then shut the heat off and left it on the stove over night. The next morning I boiled the pot again for an hour and shut off the heat. This time I cooled the pot until it was very cool and the strained off the liquid. I pre-mordanted the wool yarn in alum. I then added it to the leafy spurge bath. I brought this to a good simmer for an hour and then let it steep until it was cool. I washed the newly-dyed yarn is wool wash and rinsed it until clear. Below are the stunning results.

Dandelion Update

Here is an update on the Dandelion Yarn. It turned out to be a beautiful, clear yellow. I was a little worried when I put the yarn into the dye bath. The pot was yellow-brownish and cloudy. I was really amazed at the depth and clarity of the color that it turned the wool! Again, I apologize for poor color quality in the photo. It is more the color of lemon sherbet.









Here are some of the yarns I have been working on this spring. The lilac color is from a Cushing dye but hand spun. The rest are natural dyes I have cooked up at home.

Here you get a better idea of the actual yellow color of the dandelion yarn (furthest to the left).

The season for gathering wild dyestuff is just getting started here. I have noticed several new things along the road as I am driving.  I have identified some and nam going an a hunt later today...I can't wait to see what I can find.  Check back and see!