Category: Handspun

handspun yarn

EEW Nano 2 First Go

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What an absolute blast of a little device!! As a moderately experienced spinner, with a firm grasp of the mechanics of my Kromski Fantasia, there was zero learning curve here. All the expected pieces and parts are present, just tiny and lightweight and plastic! I had some rolags already prepped from a Fire on the Mountain bump from Blue Moon Fiber Arts that’s been in stash since Back in the Day, so I grabbed them and just started in on this.

I spun 27 grams of the purple blend on one bobbin, swapped to another one and spun up the 26 grams of the blue blend all in just a few hours (s-spun). I let the singles rest overnight, then two-plied on the Kromski this morning (I was concerned that the string wouldn’t all fit onto a third tiny bobbin, so I just went ahead and went big…z-plied).

Ended up with 53g/220y/208m of a heavy fingering weight smooshy polwarth! 🥳

Enamored with the Texture

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Because I believe in setting the tone, and I really wanted to get something spun and knit in our new home by the new year (happy year of the rabbit, all y’all who observe), I pushed over the last couple of days to finish the hat and this morning I got it washed and it is now blocking. ❤️‍🔥

Crochet cast on 140 stitches in that nubbly handspun from the last post, twisted rib on US4 for like an inch and a half, switched to stockinette and increased to 150 stitches (add one stitch after every 14 stitches).

note: I did kfb, which was a mistake. I should have done lifted increases. kfb left me ten holes I am so annoyed by I might actually go back and tie them shut.

knit until I felt a little bit like I was running out of yarn, began six centered double decreases every third round for slow curve in crown, beginning across stitches 12/13/14. all the way down to six stitches, then double yarn draw through all six. plenty of yarn left for complimentary stripes in something else.

Lightly felted with a little hot to cold to hot action in this new Eugenian home that has clean hot tap water that could melt wax, phew 😳

still need to dye it, maybe a little more toughening up and felting during that but as well.

and a little Eugenese and Seattleite eye candy! Been a busy couple of weeks. 🫶

A Little Comfort Spinning

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An s-chain-plied lumpy smooshy 180m (ish) of drum carded UNR merino spun in the grease and still tacky after one dish soap bath.

batts stretched into rolags for the z-spun singles
Drying after a single wash in the kitchen sink, will probably do another before a dye job attempt. or maybe a round of Soak now that the lanolin has been cut once? we’ll see. depending on tackiness after drying, I might just knit it as is.

An Introduction…

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A handspun shawl made of Masham wool from the Indian Feathers pattern, slightly altered bead placement.

This space is for celebrating the land that I love the best through creative fiber arts. Mostly, that means working with local fleeces and fibers when #handspinning yarn, and taking inspiration from our gorgeous landscape for palettes and from the weather for projects.

My name is Jess and I am a UNR grad living in the Willamette Valley. I spin yarn, knit, crochet, weave, embroider, and just about anything else you can do with string, and I have for decades. I occasionally write out my own patterns, and *often* just wing a project based on my experience with the geometry of fabric construction, resulting in unique and custom garments and accessories.

I will write about fiber preparation and processing, including scouring, combing, carding, and dyeing…

…spinning singles and plying yarn…

…and creating fabric by knitting/crocheting/weaving and I’ll be sure to post updates on what I’m making.

I do use the Instagram account for pictures, sometimes, and I have been was Tweeting my fiber adventures for years, using threads like digital post-its to quickly note decisions I’m making to change a pattern, or to jot down a progress photo or two. You can find me on Ravelry, but it’s better to email jess@silveryrills.com if you need to reach me. 🙂