Sometimes the Problem is Behind You

Spinning for Spinzilla was awesome - but I did run into a slight issue. I was being lazy and didn't want to bring up my blue folding chair from the basement. The kitchen chairs we have are about the same seat height, so I thought one of them would work well. 

Do you see the problem that I didn't notice until the second day, when the back of my left arm started throbbing? The high back + knob thingy was hitting my arm as I brought it out for long-draw spinning. OUCH!

Learn from me, kids. Don't change your gear right before the long race.

Spinzilla Sunday, in Photos

...and then both my bobbins were full and The Walking Dead was about to come on, so, I had to stop!

I'm Going to Sioux Falls! + Spinzilla, Day 4

Or, rather, coming back to Sioux Falls, and an LYS was a second home to me when I lived there.

When - Saturday, 11/1/14 from noon to 2 p.m. Followed by a book signing until 3.
Where - Athena Fibers, 3915 S. Hawthorne, Sioux Falls, SD. 57105Contact - 605-271-0741. Space is limited, pre-registration is suggested!Price - $40What - Lara’s favorite heels you may not have knit before: Thumb-joint Afterthought, Balbriggan (top down) and Joined Flap (toe up).Students should bring smooth yarn of any weight and needles that work well with that particular yarn. The needles should be the same type that they use to make socks (dpns or circulars). Students will also need a spare circular needle of the same size or smaller than their working needles.


I hope to see you there!

Spinzilla Update

I spun for about an hour and a half last night and almost finished up batt #2. I don't know if I'll get any work done tonight, because we already have our tickets to Dracula Untold. I'm super psyched!

I was going to ply batt 1 and batt 2 together, but now I'm thinking I'll just self-ply both of them. What do you think?

Batt 2

Batt 1

Spinzilla, Day 3

I started spinning up my second batt. It's a bit larger than the first and is basically lovely blues, whites and a little tan.

I'm not sure how much I spun, but I got more than halfway through it. More tonight! 

Spinzilla Update: The Chaos Art Batt

I studied Physics for four years of college, so I know what Chaos really means.

In this case, it means this art batt. It's lovely, but to enjoy spinning it, I've really had to embrace the chaos. I have control-freak tendencies when it comes to spinning, so I'm making myself have fun with some long draw spinning and let the bumps fall where they may.

It all started on Sunday, when I broke the batt up into fauxlags. My rule to myself: chill out. Let it be what it wants to be. (Beautiful, beautiful chaos.)

SPINZILLA!

The nice folks at Schacht Spindle asked me to join their team this year! And, they asked me some questions about Spinzilla. My answers are over on their blog, but I'm going ahead and putting them here, too.

Why you are doing Spinzilla?
I'm doing Spinzilla this year as a way to kick-start my spinning. It's had to take a real back seat to my knitting and online activities in 2014 since I was finishing my book, Sock Architecture, and, now that it's out, I'm spending a lot of time letting people know about it! Last year, I had a pretty good rhythm going of spinning at least once a week, and I hope this week of really committed spinning will help get me back to that.

What you plan to spin that week?
I know I should spin from my stash, and I guess my most recent purchase counts as stash, since I bought it 6 months ago! It's a gorgeous art batt from a local shepherdess. The colors are kind of autumnal, but there's also some bright pink in there. I can't wait to get it open and see how it spins up.

What do you plan on doing with the yarn you spin?
If I can get a nice worsted-weight yarn out of the batt, and I think I will, I will probably weave it up on my Flip into a scarf. Weaving and handspinning go so well together. I like to knit, mostly, relatively plain yarns. With weaving, I feel I can get a little more "out there". If I don't find the right warp for it, right away, I'll just display it in my home. A lot of my former art batts are now art skeins. They look lovely just resting on a bookshelf.

What do you like about spinning?
It is super-relaxing, but still creative. I avoided spinning for a long time because I thought I wouldn't want to give up my knitting time to do it, but I'm really glad that my friend finally loaned me a wheel and talked me into trying it. When everything is set up just right, and the fiber is just flowing over my fingers like water, that's just heavenly.

What are your thoughts on Spinzilla?
Spinzilla is so much fun because I love seeing what other people are doing with their spinning. Unless you happen to live somewhere that has a spinning group, it's rare to really see other people's work in an up-close-and-personal way. Spinzilla makes it easy to feel really connected to other spinners. There's that competitive aspect to it, too, and I hope I don't let my team down too much! I was a "rogue" spinner last year because I wasn't sure I could really put in the time. I'm still not sure, but I guess I can't resist the invitation to be a part of the team!

Spinzilla Day 1 results: I spun up a whole art batt! More on prep, etc., tomorrow....

An Awesome Hidden Perk of Writing a Knitting Book

I have a legitimate excuse, nay, a responsibility, to visit EVERY single yarn store.

Friday, Dee and I hit the road for scenic Stillwater, MN, to check out Darn. Knit. (Anyway).

Yarn-bombed tree in front of Darn. Knit. (Anyway)

It is such a cute shop! I spoke with one of the owners, Jennifer, and got to browse a bit while she looked at my book. She seemed excited about carrying Sock Architecture in her shop and we talked about scheduling a class or two in a few months. Stay tuned.

The big event was Saturday. We packed up the socks (very light box) and a few cartons of books (VERY heavy box), and headed out to my first official book event, a book signing and trunk show at the extremely charming Northfield Yarn.

I kind of got camnesia inside the shop, but I shot the sign they made out front for me.

They spelled my name right!

But, seriously, someone is really good at drawing books.

A bit of a family thing has come up on the original weekend that I was supposed to teach at Northfield Yarn, but they were nice enough to reschedule. The new date is Sunday, November 9 from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. The full details are here. 

The signing was a blast. We laid out all of the socks on the table and chatted. There is something always so nice about being with people who "get" you. One knitter even let me use her hand as a sock model when I was explaining why I love the Balbriggan heel. (I used it in the Boostrap socks.)

There are so many really fun little towns less than an hour's drive from the Twin Cities. If you live in the area and haven't gone exploring - do it! They each have their own characters and great shopping and food to offer. All of those NLYS (Nearly Local Yarn Stores) would love to have you visit. A quarter tank of gas seems like a tiny investment, to me.

Spinzilla - I AM spinning this year. I'll give you some updates starting tomorrow...

Anyone Else Psyched for Spinzilla?

Oh, I REALLY am.

This is not me.

The photo above it from a museum that shall remain nameless because, I guess, it turns out that you're not supposed to take pictures there. Oops. The only information on the wall was "Cherokee Woman with Spinning Wheel." I guess "Badass Cherokee Woman with Awesome Spinning Wheel" was too long. Osiyo to all of our foremothers!

If you don't know what Spinzilla is, but you are a spinner, it's not too late to sign up as a "rogue" spinner. Get thee to the signup!