Just some pictures

I have been taking some pictures of older projects and status of projects.  

Here is a pillow in overshot, using rag strips as the pattern.

Here is a piece of fabric.  I gave a warp demonstration and ended up with a piece 4" wide and just over 1 1/2 yards long.  What am I going to do with that?...And to top it off it is two colors, yes I just used the thread in the same size that was left on a couple of shuttles I found laying around.

This is a scarf that I made from some leftover yarn that I had been using for sales scarves.  On this warp I was trying to have the stripes show a distinct change and a gradual change in color.

This is  scarf that I wove with tencel.  I like the way the lace blocks show up.  I wove one for a friend, and one for me.

I was playing with making some knitting markers.  The shawl I am working on has over 20 repeats around the circle and I made matching markers to use.  Oh yes, I really need to have matching markers for my work,  And besides they are shine and look pretty.

I also made me some more  markers with some glass beads I found.  I made enough to give a set to another friend.

Here is a hat I made after taking a dye class at my LYS.  We painted some pre-knit blanks.  I had lots of fun with colors.  I did not want to do socks...that was what was suggested.  Instead I bought some solid brown of the same weight and knit a two color hat.  I made up the pattern as I went, shape from one pattern, color work from another source.  In knitting the sides of the hat, I thought the orange was too much so I cut off a big section of it.  I wanted the color work to balance a little more.  With the leftover orange, I made a cord and stitched it around the ridges.

This is a scarf that I wove using commercial dyed sock yarn.  I wanted to have the stripes look as wide in the weaving as they do in the socks that you knit.  I think that it worked well.  I also knit a pair of socks from the second skein I bought to use as weft.

Well, that's it...a bit of this and that.

Black Hole and Coming out of It

I feel like I have been in a black hole for the past month or two.  It has been a combination of depression, stress at work, stress at home, stress with health, so many things that it is a wonder that I have been able to function.  Some days I know that I was not functioning...

The past week, I feel like I am finally pulling myself out of it.  It helps to get a few days of sunshine that I can enjoy.  It is amazing to me how much it helps to get out in the sunshine for a few minutes each day.

Although I have not been working on my shaft looms, I have been playing with the little hand held looms that I have collected in the past few years.

I bought a couple of old Weave-It looms on ebay a few years ago.  It was a great deal, the looms are in great shape and they came with boxes and instructions.  I though that the little three-pin looms were fun to work on and I made several pieces using them.

When I was attending a conference, I found the new "Weavette" looms and bought a 2" x 6" loom to make book marks.  I had a great time making the bookmarks from left over yarns and samples of handspun, for gifts and sales.

Last year, I was able to purchase two more Weavettes.  These were used ones that the LYS was selling.  I managed to get a 2" x 4" and a 4" x 6".  This gave me an almost complete set of the three-pin looms that  were available.  I went online to find a 6" x 6" and after about 9 months I got an email asking if I still wanted the loom, I was on the phone and purchased it on the spot.  Now my set of these little three-pin looms is complete and I have recently started a couple of projects.

The first one I started is using all sizes of  the looms and I want to put together the pieces to make a jacket.  I am using a couple of yarns that I picked up on sale at my LYS.  I may need to add another yarn to get enough pieces to get a full jacket but I am enjoying making lots of little pieces.

I also started another project from left over yarns.  I am putting pieces together to make a shawl.  It is mostly black (because that is the yarn color that I had the most of), and has pieces of four other colors.  I am trying to construct the pieces into 8" x 8" squares and putting those together for the shawl.  I think I will also have to put a border around it using the black yarn.

I have also been working on a "mystery shawl" with about 1000 knitters around the world.  I am about one clue behind, but it is looking good.

The clue that I am just finishing has a beautiful arch, it is based on the look of "Rivendell".

The shawl is called Evenstar and gets the inspiration from Lord of the Rings.  The motif that shows the evenstar is beautiful and is placed a couple of times on the pattern.

I will be late in finishing it.  I have another clue to finish then we will be putting on a border with beads.  I will keep you up to date on what is going on.

The best part is that I am seeing a happier month now and the black hole is behind me.  I hope to keep it that way and not let the stress of life overwhelm me again.  I have lots a great help from my friends and family, I just need to rely on them when I need it.