Monthly Archives: August 2023

Frog Pond: Punch Bug Beanie

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I pulled up my Ravelry and took inventory of what I had in my projects and queue. It was very indicative of my mental bandwidth. Several projects on the go but nothing that sparked my creativity. So I decided to do some clean up!

I had my Punch Bug Beanie started out of some Knit Picks Felici Worsted in the Punch Bug color. I had started this hat to match my Punch Bug Vanilla Socks. I was using Size 10 needles…..because I don’t know why. But I HATED the fabric it was creating.

So during a spirited game of Trouble with the kiddos, I ripped back the whole hat. I plan to find my US 8 needles and restart this hat. The socks are done and waiting for their sibling. Hoping this swabbing of the deck will help fuel my creativity. Happy Frogging!!

Witty Title Here

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The GFOA sock has re-entered the wild. Fall gymnastics have re-started and we have 60 minutes now to kill every week.

The first color repeat is officially now. I am starting the second repeat and have to pay attention now. My increases will start in the bright peach section. I have my first sock in the project bag so I can mirror the increases. I just need time and brain cells now, lol.

What am I going to do for heels? Who the heck knows, that is a future Rachelle problem.

Happy Knitting!!

Washing Poopy Floof

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Awhile back my winery friend gave me a shorn fleece. It’s not professionally done and pretty much all short cuts. But I thought it was perfect for practicing washing and other bits.

I canned some apple jelly earlier this week and had a ton of hot water that I would normally just dump. I had a flash of genius to use this excess water to wash a sample of this fleece!

I grabbed a few ounces and put in some laundry bags and into a water safe tub. I added the hot water with pour scour wool wash in batches to get all the poop and dirt washed off. It was HOT but cool to see the lanolin release.

I got a ton of dirt to release and I have fleece left with a TON of veg matter. Was pretty cool to see the change. And I’m not 1,000% sure I did any of these steps correctly.

I may have felted some parts slightly in this process with too hot of water and a little too much agitation from little miss PB. But I am going to comb a few bits to see if the veg matter comes loose or not. This is all pure experiment with no end goal in mind. Score one for scientific curiousity!

Happy Spinning!!

Apple Season

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Late August around here means APPLE SEASON! Our crop was small but might this year but I think I have enough to do two batches of apply jelly.

It literally dangerously hot here in Kansas with 100-110 degree temperatures without the heat index. But apples ripen when they want. I took my time to wash and cut out the bad parts and pressure cook out the goodness.

After the juice is complete I made the basic cooked apply jelly recipe from the SureJell boxed instructions. This batch set but a very soft set. Not enough that I want to recook but I think I will make some tweaks for the second batch. It’s too hot for that!

OOOH! And I did something very environmentally friendly with the canning and sterilizing water. Stay tuned later this week!

Happy Canning!!

Demo After Demo

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I am questioning my life choices, I agreed to co-project manage not one but two software projects. I am accountant….on a good day. So here I am for four weeks watching vendor demonstrations. Silver lining….knitting time!

Not a ton of progress yet, but I am SUPER close to finishing the first repeat of the rainbow. These are my 2023 GFOA socks and that name means I have been working on these since the end of May. The first tube is complete except for the heel. So all combined that is not bad progress considering I have zero mojo lately.

Happy Knitting!!

A Bag Of Dirty Floof

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A friend of mine runs a local winery where they use sheep for natural grass control and fertilizer. They normally only get hair sheep but a wool sheep snuck in as part of a hair sheep lot. They shore the sweet momma before she lambed and gave me the fleece!

My friend has ZERO clue how to sheer and this bag may all be short cuts and non-spinable fiber. But I think it makes the perfect way to practice fleece washing! I just need a weekend where we aren’t scheduled to hilt!

Happy Fiber!!