From fleece to tote bag and all stops in between - part two

I have carded up a 100g batch of washed wool into cute little rolag 'nests.
Now for the spinning.....

Spinning can be seen as a science, an art or a craft. I like to think of it as a craft; I don't get too scientific or precise about it, I just spin.
So..I sit in my crafting nest in the lounge room and spin while I watch a DVD or just sit and enjoy the quiet. It takes me about four hours of spinning (broken up into movie length lots) to fill a bobbin. Then it needs to be plyed into a strong yarn.

All ready to spin...coffee; check....rolags; check.....spinning wheel......

Spinning wheel; check

A half spun bobbin of singles.

A full bobbin

There are so many ways to ply yarn, it would take me all day to explain them. I usually use a Navajo ply method which uses a single bobbin rather than two or three bobbins.

Once the yarn is plyed, I wind it onto a niddy noddy to make a skein which is then tied together and washed again to set the twist. This part is fun as I take the yarn out of the bath (as described in part one), squeeze the water out of it somewhat and then whack it against a post with some vigour. This gets my dogs all excited (maybe they think I've gone mad) and they all start barking like loons and jumping around.

A bad photo of me plying

Half a bobbin of plyed yarn

My niddy noddy

The finished skein (badly over exposed, but you get that with the flash)

Once the excitement dies down, I hang the skein on a contrived rack (on my wool cupboard) to dry, or I may decide to dye it first.

Part three is the yarn dying process.... see you then.


Glossary
Ply- Twisting two or more strands of yarn together to produce a stronger, thicker yarn.
Single - A single length of yarn, spun onto a bobbin, prior to plying.
Niddy noddy - A tool used by spinners to wrap wool around when making a skein.
Skein - A neat parcel of yarn, made by looping yarn in equal rounds.

Update on Teal'c the black faced cuckoo shrike; he's flying free

As is the way with such things, Teal'c is free. It is always a little sad to release my babies into the wild to fend for themselves, but they can't stay locked up (but safe) forever. We released Teal'c for  his first outside fly a few weeks ago (and I didn't get any footage), he came back that evening, and for the next four evenings, to sleep in his aviary. After that he stopped coming back.

I can only hope we have given him the skills to feed himself and that he has been adopted by a group of his own kind, as they tend to gather at this time of year. Alternatively, he may have been taken by a predator. This is the worry we face whenever we release an animal, but it's worth it to see them happy and healthy in their own environment, for as long as they can be.

Every time I take on a native animal to raise I face the same dilemma, if the animal becomes 'humanised' or friendly to us, once released they face the huge danger of assuming that all humans are friendly. I have seen people do some really cruel things to wild animals, and I don't want to have my babies in that kind of danger. On the other hand, it is hard not to interact with them and come to love them, they become part of our family for whatever time they are with us. We are very lucky to have good neighbors here, some who know a great deal about animals and are always available for advice, and others who appreciate the wildlife here as much as we do, so we usually allow the 'humanising' process to happen.

If you see any friendly wildlife in your travels, please treat them well, they may be one of my babies (or someone elses).

Teal'c in his aviary

Begging for food

Our friendly pied butcher bird; Roadie has also decided to leave home. One of our neighbors has reported seeing him at her house (begging for dog biscuits) but he hasn't come home for two weeks now. It is so quiet in the house without him singing to us at dawn and dusk. On the plus side though, all the little birds he has kept at bay are now flitting around in the yard again.

Roadie.

Caravan accommodation Tabulam – Lanikai Camping ground

Caravan accommodation Tabulam – Lanikai Camping ground



This is the property I grew up on.

It's well worth a visit.

From fleece to tote bag and all stops in between: part one

From raw wool to....

A hand knit and felted tote bag.

Lately I have been selling a few of my hand knit and fulled/felted bags and I have run out of pure wool yarn in base colours (black, brown and grey). Looking around my bomb site of a craft room I spied my fibre cupboard and found about half a fleece of old merino (probably from a sheep long departed) and decided to clear some room for more fibre, spin some yarn for knitting bags and tie up all available free time for the foreseeable future in one neat package; I will wash, spin and dye the old fleece.

So I invite you to join me in the adventure.

The process is as follows;
Pull the bag out of the cupboard.........

Dusty and dirty bag of wool. A memory of a sheep long past.

Merino wool is known for its crimp, or the number and size of the waves in the wool. Before wool diameter could be measured with lazers (microns) it was common to judge the quality of a fleece by the number of crimps.

Close up you can see the crimp in this fleece (and the dirt and vegetable matter). This was obviously an aristocratic sheep.

 I wash the wool before spinning, although many people spin 'in the grease' and wash the yarn after spinning. I like the feel of the clean, soft wool slipping between my fingers so it's worth the extra work for me.
Washing or scouring wool is easy; all you need to do is soak the wool in detergent (I use cheap shampoo) and fairly hot water. At this point you have to be careful not to felt the wool by changing the water temperature suddenly or agitating it too much. I use a small tub and wash about 100g at a time. That way I don't waste too much water as I wash the spun wool yarn from the last batch first (to set the twist) then I soak the next lot of wool for spinning. I spread my wool out on cake racks to dry before spinning.

A pile of washed wool, ready to card and spin.

You can still see the crimp in the locks.

Now it's time to card the wool into usable rolags (a rolag is a little roll of carded wool). I got my carders second hand with my wheel. They work really well and probably will continue to be usable for several more decades.

Loading the carders

Carding involves moving the wool from one carder to the other while combing out the vegetable matter and knots.

The carded wool is then rolled up into a rolag

And finally curled up to be stored as a 'nest'.

Next step is to spin up a reel of singles....but that's a story for the next post. See you then.

Knitting socks for competition

I love knitting, it takes me to a different place. I learned the basic knit stitch from my mother and several aunties when I was a little girl, but I soon forgot them as I became interested in other things (horses, boys and horses). Two years ago I decided to try knitting again as a way to relax from study and the pressures of life; I loved it.

 My favorite thing to knit at the moment is socks, so I decided to try a fiendishly difficult pattern to enter in the CWA Land Handicraft competition. I have been dabbling in Fair Isle and stranded knitting for a while and I love the idea of painting a picture with my knitting so I decided on a charted pattern by Karin Aida called 'Gimmee coffee' (I thought it was apt).

The rules state that the socks must be of natural fibres and hand knitted, so I went off to the craft shop and spent a pleasant hour or so browsing and dreaming in the knitting isle while my (very patient) partner shifted restlessly from foot to foot, inspected his watch and cleared his throat at ever decreasing intervals. I eventually decided on a bamboo and wool blend yarn in cream and taupe.

I first needed to transcribe the chart to a written pattern, which took ages, and then I was ready to cast on. I used a really simple, toe up, two at a time, magic loop pattern with a short row heel (sock knitters will know what I mean) as my base pattern and just added the colour knitting in the appropriate places.

Basic sock pattern
I cast on 20 stitches (on each needle) and increased to 38 stitches (on each needle) using the method outlined by the tutorial (click on the heading above to access the tutorial).
I began the instep and sole patterns once the toe section was complete.

I made my toe colour A and my contrast colour B

Instep pattern
row
1- Knit all with colour A
2- Knit all with colour A
3- 3A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 4A.
4- 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
5- *1A, 2B, 1A, 2B, * end with 2A
6- 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
7- 2A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A
8- Knit all with colour A
9- 2A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A
10- 1A, 1B. 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
11- *1A, 2B, 1A, 2B,* end with 2A
12- 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B,  1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
13- 3A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 4A
14- Knit all with colour A
15 to 20- repeat rows 3 to 8
21- 12A, 13B, 13A
22- 2A, 2B, 6A, 17B, 6A, 2B, 3A
23- 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 5B, 9A, 5B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
24- 1A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 2A, 5B, 1A, 9B, 1A, 5B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 2A
25- 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
26- 3A, 2B, 7A, 13B, 7A, 2B, 4A
27- 11A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 12A
28- 3A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 2B, 4A
29- 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 15B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
30- 1A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 2A
31- 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
32- 2A, 2B, 4A, 18B, 7A, 2B, 3A
33- 9A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 12A
34- 11A, 2B, 11A, 2B, 12A
35- 2A, 2B, 8A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 8A, 2B, 3A
36- 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 9B, 9A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
37- 1A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 25A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 2A
38- 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 9A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 9A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
39- 3A, 2B, 10A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 10A, 2B, 4A
40- 14A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 15A
41- 14A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 15A
42- 3A, 2B, 8A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 8A, 2B, 4A
43-2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
44-1A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 8A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 8A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 2A
45- 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 9A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
46- 2A, 2B, 11A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 11A, 2B, 3A
47- 15A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 16A
48- knit all with colour A
49 to 54- repeat rows 9 to 14.

Sole pattern
row
1- Knit all with colour A
2- Knit all with colour A
3- 3A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 4A.
4- 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
5- *1A, 2B, 1A, 2B, * end with 2A
6- 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
7- 2A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A
8- Knit all with colour A
9- 2A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A
10- 1A, 1B. 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 2A
11- *1A, 2B, 1A, 2B,* end with 2A
12- 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B,  1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 3A
13- 3A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 4A
14- Knit all with colour A

Repeat rows 3-14 a TOTAL of 4 times, then repeat rows 3-8 once.

Leg pattern

The split in the middle of each row (/) indicates where I change from the front needle to the back one. I found that when knitting two at a time I had to knit the row up to the split twice (once for each sock) then go on and knit the row after the split twice.

row
1- Knit all
2-1A, 5B, 33A/ 5B, 33A
3- 7B, 6A, 13B, 12A/ 7B, 6A, 13B,B, 9A, 12A
4- 2B, 3A, 3B, 3A, 17B, 9A, 1B/ 2B, 3A, 3B, 3A, 17B, 9A,1B
5- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 5B, 9A, 5B, 8A, 1B/ 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 5B, 9A, 5B, 8A, 1B
6- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 5B, 1A, 9B, 1A, 5B, 7A, 2B/ 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 5B, 1A, 9B, 1A, 5B, 7A, 1B
7- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 2B/ 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 1B
8- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 5A, 13B, 11A, 2B/ 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 5A, 13B, 11A, 1B
9- 2B, 3A, 3B, 4A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 10A, 2B/ 1B, 3A, 3B, 4A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 10A, 1B
10- 7B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 11A, 1B/ 6B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11b, 1A, 2B, 11A
11- 1A, 5B, 3A, 15B, 1A, 2B, 12A/ 5B, 3A, 15B, 1A, 2B, 11A
12- 1A, 5B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 5B, 3A/ 5B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 5B, 2A,
13- 2A, 3B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 7B, 2A/ 1A, 3B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 7B, 1A
14- 2A, 3B, 4A, 18B, 2A, 3B, 3A, 3B, 1A/ 1A, 3B, 4A, 18B, 2A, 3B, 3A, 3B
15- 2A, 3B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A/ 1A, 3B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
16- 3A, 1B, 8A, 2B, 11A, 2B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2b, 1A/ 2A, 1B, 8A, 2B, 11A, 2B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B,
17- 3A, 1B, 9A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A/ 2A, 1B, 9A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B,
18- 15A, 9B, 5A, 2B, 1A/ 14A, 9B, 5A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B

19- 29A, 3B, 3A, 3B, 1A/ 28A, 3B, 3A, 3B
20- 16A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 7A, 7B, 2A/15A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 7A, 7B, 1A
21- 16A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 8A, 5B, 3A/15A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1A, 1B, 8A, 5B, 2A
22-1A, 5B, 9A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 5B, 3A/ 5B, 9A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 5B, 2A
23- 7B, 8A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 8A, 3B, 3A, 1B/6B, 8A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 8A, 3B, 3A
24- 2B, 3A, 3B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 2B/1B, 3A, 3B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 1B
25- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 2B/ 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 1B
26- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A,1B, 2A, 1B, 9A, 1B, 3A, 2B/ 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 9A, 1B, 3A, 1B
27- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 3A, 1B, 3A, 2B/2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 3A, 1B, 3A, 1B
28- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 8A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 6A, 2B/2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 8A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 6A, 1B
29- 2B, 3A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 4A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 2B/1B, 3A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 4A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 1B
30- 7B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 13A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 8A, 1B/6B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 13A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 8A
31- 1A, 5B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 10A/ 5B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 9A
32- 1A, 5B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 10A, 5B, 3A/5B, 2A,1B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 10A,5B, 2A
33- 2A, 3B, 4A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 7B, 2A/1A, 3B, 4A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 7B, 1A
34- 2A, 3B, 11A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 3A, 3B, 1A/1A, 3B, 11A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 3A, 3B
35- 2A, 3B, 12A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A/1A, 3B, 12A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
36- 3A, 1B, 7A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A/2A, 1B, 7A, 2B, 90A, 2B, 2B, 1A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
37- 3A, 1B, 6A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A/2A, 1B, 6A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
38- 10A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A/9A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
39- 11A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 7A, 2B, 5A, 3B, 3A, 3B, 1A/9A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 7A, 2B, 5A, 3B, 3A, 3B
40- 12A, 2B, 16A, 7B, 2A/11A, 2B, 16A, 7B, 1A
41- 31A, 5B, 3A/30A, 5B, 2A
42- 1A, 5B, 25A, 5B, 3A/5B, 25A, 5B, 2A
43- 7B, 6A, 13B, 6A, 3B, 3A, 1B/6B, 6A, 13B, 6A, 3B, 3A
44- 2B, 3A, 3B, 3A, 17B, 4A, 3B, 2A, 2B/1B, 3A, 3B, 3A, 17B, 4A, 3B, 2A, 1B
45- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 5B, 9A, 5B, 3A, 3B, 2A, 2B/2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 5B, 9A, 5B, 3A, 3B, 2A, 1B,
46- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 5B, 1A, 10B, 1A, 5B, 3A, 1B, 3A, 1B/1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 5B, 1A, 9B, 1A, 5B, 3A, 1B, 3A, 1B
47- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 1B, 3A, 2B/2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 1B, 3A, 1B
48- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 5A, 13B, 11A, 2B/2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 5A, 13B, 11A, 1B
49- 2B, 3A, 3B, 4A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 10A, 2B/1B, 3A, 3B, 4A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 10A, 1B
50- 7B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 11A, 1B/6B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 11B, 1A, 2B, 11A
51- 1A, 5B, 3A, 15B, 1A, 2B, 12A/5B, 3A, 15B, 1A, 2B. 11A
52- 1A, 5B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 5B, 3A/5B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 4A, 5B, 2A
53- 2A, 3B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 7B, 2A/1A, 3B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 12B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 7b, 1A
54- 2A, 3B, 4A, 19B, 2A, 3B, 3A, 3B, 1A/1A, 3B, 4A, 18B, 2A, 3B, 3A, 3B
55- 2A, 3B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A/3B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
56- 3A, 1B, 8A, 2B, 11A, 2B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A/1A, 1B, 8A, 2B, 11A, 2B, 2A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
57- 3A, 1B, 9A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A/1A, 1b, 9A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1b, 2A, 2B
58- 15A, 9B, 5A, 2b, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A/13A, 9B, 5A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
59- 29A, 3B, 3A, 3B, 3A/26A, 3B, 3A, 3B,
60- 16A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 7A, 7B, 3A/14A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 7A, 7B, 1A
61- 16A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 8A, 5B, 4A/14A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 8A, 5B, 2A
62- 1A, 5B, 9A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1a, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 5B, 3A, 1B/4B, 9A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 5B, 2A
63- 7B, 8A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 8A3B, 3A, 2B/5B, 8A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 8A, 3B, 3A
64- 2B, 3A, 3B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 3B/3A, 3B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 1B
65- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 1A/1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 6A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 3A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 7A, 3B, 2A, 1B
66- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 9A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 1A/1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 9A, 1B, 3A, 1B
67- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 3A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 1A/1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 7A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 2A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 3A, 1B, 3A, 1B
68- 1B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 8A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 6A, 2B, 1A/1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 8A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 1A, 1B, 4A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 6A, 1B,
69- 2B, 3A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 4A, 1B, 5A, 1b, 3A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 3B/3A, 3B, 2A, 2B, 4A, 1B, 5A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 6A, 1B
70- 7B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 13A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 8A, 2B/5B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 13A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 8A
71- 1A, 5B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 10A, 1B/4B, 2A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 9A
72- 1A, 5B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 10A, 5B, 3A, 1B/4B, 2A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 10A, 5B, 2A
73- 2A, 3B, 4A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 7B, 3A/3B, 4A, 2B, 5A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 7B, 1A
74- 2A, 3B, 11A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 3A, 3B, 2A/3B, 11A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 9A, 3B, 3A, 3B
75- 2A, 3B, 12A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A/3B, 12A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 4A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
76- 3A, 1B, 7A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A/1A, 1B, 7A, 2B, 9A, 2B, 1A, 1B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
77- 3A, 1B, 6A, 1B, 1A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2A/1A, 1B, 6a, 1B, 1A, 2B, 7A, 2B, 1A, 2B, 3A, 2B, 2A, 1B, 2A, 2B
78- knit all.

At row 31 of the instep pattern

At row 31 of the sole pattern

At row 43 of the instep pattern

At row 43 of the sole pattern

At row 54 of instep pattern

At row 54 of sole pattern

Row 60 of the leg pattern, front view

Row 60 of the leg pattern, back view

And they are finished.

What a long term project this was.
I will send them off to the craft show, but I don't see myself winning; my eldest daughter tried to put them on and I have not left enough give in the legs to make it comfortable to put them on. This is a common problem for me when I do stranded knitting, I think I don't leave enough of a loop at the back of the work when I carry the yarn. Oh well, next time I will do better.

Teal'c the clown; a funny clip

Teal'c is such a clown. We managed to get this short clip of him 'showering' with the help of my daughter. He is enjoying the sun and the water running through his feathers. I hope you find it as funny as we did.

Happy Mabon to all

It is time for Mabon; the Autumn equinox. At this time of year we celebrate the second harvest; the making of preserves and dried foods. Unfortunately we didn't get to meet up for this Sabbat this year but we celebrated at home with a special meal and the lighting and extinguishing of a symbolic candle.
At this time of year the masculine forces of nature (sunlight, flowering, heat, etc) have faded noticeably and the feminine forces (fertility, darkness, cold) begin to take over. We symbolise this by sending our Lord to the underworld; covering the Lord's mask with a black veil and extinguishing a candle. We give thanks for the riches the year has bought us and hope for more to come.