Tuesday 24 March 2009

back from Skipnorth 09

I spent the weekend in Haworth at Skipnorth, with a large group of knitters. I went via Texere in Bradford and got this.

Its James C Brett Kool cotton, a ball of dishcloth cotton and 2 circular needles.
On the Friday at skipnorth we did workshops.

I dyed 2 skeins of yarn using Koolaid and also did some modular knitting.
Later on there was a yarn swap with donations to p/hop too. I got this.
I'm going to make a top for my friends wee girl out of this.
On Saturday we got on 2 coaches and went yarn shopping. First stop was coldspring mill just outside Haworth.
I got 900g of this yarn (3 skeins) so there should be enough to make a cardi or 2. It was £2 a skein but no label, though at that price I'm guessing its a high acrylic content.
Next stop was the Skep and a haberdashery shop in Leeds.
I got 4 balls of the blue/purple sock yarn, it will become a stole or cardi, a ball of the bright sock yarn and 5 balls of mohair.
After all this we went to the KCG just outside Holmfirth, we got to see examples of knitting from the early 1900's and then were let loose on the 1p a gram yarn mountain. I was very restrained and just got this.

Its 5 x 25g balls of 2ply pure new wool in a light grey shade, enough for a shawl.

That night I improved my spindling and learnt to andean ply,

This is my first plyed skein of yarn , its somewhere between DK and Aran in thickness.

On sunday we went to Winghams and boosted by my spinning I got some fibre, so now I have a fibre stash as well as a yarn stash.

The grey and black is merino, the aim is to spin it and knit a scarf and gloves in grey with a black edging.

The blue is a wee sample of merino silk blend, I got it so I can see how different it looks when spun and plied, it will probably look a lot different.

The stash is all safely stowed away at home now, I reckon theres enough here to keep me going until woolfest at least.

Skipnorth was great, it was lovely to meet loads of knitters and pick up hints and tips, a big thanks to Lixie and Nic for organising it all.