I know, bloggers that don't blog are a big pet peeve of mine also. Aside from not knitting for the last month due to increasing numbness in both hands while knitting ( carpel tunnel sucks) I have been dyeing fiber and yarn like a nut and spinning. It's odd that spinning doesn't induce CT symptoms but I'm not looking a gift horse in the mouth.
As far as the Christmas gifts, my mother loved her mittens and my mother-in-law loves her slippers. My dad as it turns out has some top of the line elk hide slippers so I didn't need to knit him a gift. I got about 25% done with my FIL's slippers and I couldn't finish due to the CT. He ended up getting a plate of deviled eggs (seriously, he was more excited about those than the slippers, go figure).
About 2 weeks ago our whole family became sick. The critter had a double ear infection and a cold. DH came down with a cold that developed into walking pneumonia. I had a cold that lasted about a week, and developed a 3-pack a day voice that made my mom laugh her butt off every time she called for an update. We are finally better and getting back to normal.
I managed to spin a couple of skeins of a merino kettle-dyed top I've been meaning to get to.
Plus I found yet another 8 oz of that Coopworth roving I had spun up last year. I did manage to get it spun and plied, but not washed yet.
Today is our 7th wedding anniversary, and we are spending it with DH working late and I washed a pound or so of Cormo fleece I picked up at last year's Shepherd's Harvest. Check out the before and afters:
I usually use Dawn to wash fleece, and that is why I haven't washed fleece for about 2 years. There is so much rinsing involved even with vinegar. I tried the roaster pan method Judith MacKenzie McCuindiscussed in the last issue of Spin Off. Didn't care for it. I lined up the locks in the lingerie bags and used a plastic storage bin that came with holes in the sides and I added 5 more to the bottom to facilitate drainage. The true secret to wool washing/scouring is using the right detergent/wash. I have had a bottle of Kookaburra Scour stashed under the laundry sink for about a year. What a waste, I could have been washing my stashed fleeces this whole time. It works so well, I giggled with glee and went back into the basement to get more wool to wash. This Cormo was covered and very free of VM but has a healthy amount of grease in it. I found that 2 washes plus 2 rinses (each lasting about 10 min) was more than enough to really clean the fleece using the hottest water out of my tap. If you have fleece to wash, order this product right now. I mean it.
As I mentioned I have been dyeing like a nut have have been updating the etsy shop over the last couple days, and still have yarn to be posted. I can't stop dyeing wool. It's like an emotional high for me. I love the magic of the color play. If you've never dyed wool before, try it. You will love it too!
Oh, and by the way, we have visual confirmation via 2 ultrasounds that Critter #2 will be a girl. And is perfectly healthy. That is the best gift of all.
