Yarn review: Franklin sock yarn

Well, that didn't work as well as I hoped. I was experimenting with Franklin sock yarn from Webs. It dyed up beautifully! But it is a little thick for my antique knitting machine. And, when I got a sock made up, it felt kind of dry and crunchy to the touch. I think this sock yarn is a little coarse for my sock making needs.

Come to think of it though, I think this yarn will be beautiful for making coiled basketry, where the feel against the skin won't matter as much. It seems nice and sturdy, and should hold up nicely for that use. (This picture is from a different brand of yarn, but you get the idea.)

Yup. Need to keep experimenting!

Basketry supplies, and Pinterest

Now this is going to be fun! This is a haul I got through Craigslist. There was a basket maker who had to move suddenly, and didn't want her stash of weaving supplies to go to the dump. I took them off her hands for $50. I think I won! That is 7 laundry baskets and 2 moving boxes full of reed, most of it already dyed. In addition, there is one basket full of basket bases, and some handles. One box alone is worth more than I paid for the whole treasure trove. I foresee teaching some basketry classes in the near future.

Now, I only have to figure out where to store this all. Um....hmmm. That might take some work. The shed is still stuffed full of gourds, leather, and fleeces.

In other news, I've started playing on Pinterest just in the past few days. http://pinterest.com/lissamc/ It is like my own digital bulletin board, except that I can share it with other folks too. I had looked at the site now and again, but didn't see a use for it for myself...until I realized that I could use it to draw together images when I'm researching a topic. To start with, I've begun a board for my Medieval felt research. Anyone know of any pictures of actual Medieval artifacts made of felt scattered around the internet? I'd like to add them to my board.

Grape Vine Wreath

It is spring time here in Phoenix! I spent some time this afternoon on mucking out the little pond in the front yard, and then went into the back yard. I noticed that the grape vines were sending out new leaves. Aren't they pretty?



Unfortunately, that reminded me that I still had a pile of grape vine prunings that I needed to do something with.



It seemed a shame just to chop them all up for the compost pile when I knew that grape vines made great weaving elements. So I went inside, hopped on line, and got a few tips on how to make grape vine wreaths. Then I went back outside to try it myself.

I found a long one and coiled it into a hoop shape. (The dogs were excited to have my company in the yard. Play time, Mom!)











Then I coiled a few more long ones around the hoop, trying to catch the ends.












When the wreath started getting unwieldy I hung it on a chair to work. Then I discovered that you can take the end of the vine...








...and shove it down in the wreath you have already made to lose that end.







Then I reached through the wreath and grabbed the vine...








and pulled the whole vine through to the other side. I rotated the wreath on the chair, and did that again, so the vine wrapped around and around the wreath, building up layers. I tucked the tail ends of the vine down in the wreath the way I did the beginning ends.




After awhile, I had a pretty respectable wreath built up! It isn't perfect, but not bad for a first try.







I added a bit of card woven trim for a tie, with a hoop threaded onto it. Then I pounded a couple of nails, and hung the wreath outside of the kitchen door in the back yard.


I tell you what, that looks so much better than a pile of yard waste! Now the rest of the trimmings that were too short to use can get chopped up for the compost, and I won't feel the least bit guilty. Hmm...I bet I could decorate the wreath too... But that will be a later day.