I have a new obsession. If you have been reading my blog for a while, you know that I purchased a spinning wheel right before Christmas. YIPPEE! Unfortunately, it was damaged in shipping and it needed to have a part replaced. So that whole process took forever. It took a few weeks for the wheel to arrive, and then another couple of weeks for the replacement part to arrive. I have had it for a few weeks, but I haven't had the time to practice/learn at all. My wonderful hubby put her together for me, and I must say I am in love. I purchased a Majacraft Rose, and she is absolutely beautiful. She was well worth the wait. It has been really rainy and overcast so my pictures are not very good, but I just couldn't wait to share her.
The wood grain is absolutely amazing on the foot pedals. So unique. The craftsmanship is utterly breathtaking, and I am so happy that I decided to go with Majacraft. I did a lot of research before I decided to purchase, and I couldn't find any negative reviews of their wheels.Now, let me be honest. I had no idea how to spin when I ordered this wheel which I know is totally insane. But I just fell in love with her, and I had tried to spin using a spindle which is as close to hell as I hope to ever get. I knew if I was going to spin I needed a wheel. So I figured I would just jump in feet first. Man am I glad I did!!
I went to the Spin In at Knitwitz over the weekend, and I took my Rose with me. The description of the event said that beginners were welcome, and I emailed the owner, Kathe, of the store to make sure a complete novice would be welcome. She was very sweet and encouraging, so off I went to the shop. It is about 90 miles from my house, but it was not a bad drive at all. I was so excited about the opportunity to learn to spin. Honestly, I was a little nervous. But all that went away when I arrived at the shop. Everyone was super friendly, and a wonderful woman named Jennifer sat with me immediately and gave me a mini lesson. She explained the process very well, and by the end of the afternoon I was spinning. Thanks Jennifer!!! You are awesome.
Here is a shot of my first bobbin of yarn. I used the scrap bag fibers I purchased from Funky Carolina.
I used about 1/4 of the scrap bag so far. I am going to spin the rest and then try plying it together. I had so much fun learning on Saturday, and the fibers were just so wonderful!
I bought some lovely roving at the shop, but I will share those another day. Like I said, I have so much to share that I could write a novel. :)Last but not least....a Mitten Kit Update.
I have knit about half of one mitten, and I am not happy with my stranding. I have started to use two handed stranding, and I like the evenness of the stitches it produces much better. So I am going to frog the mitten and start over. I am a perfectionist. So, no photos of progress yet, but I am off this week so I should have some progress photos soon.
