That Spring Feeling

Add soundtrack of redwing blackbirds and robins. Delete thoughts of clouds of mayflies (which actually weren't bothersome when I took these photos early in the morning). Off to the Frolic in Toronto tomorrow.

Dress #1

After viewing the dresses on Sonya Philip's Instagram site, I just had to get sewing. Here's Dress #1 made from a crinkled linen mail-ordered from Purl Soho--the duties turned out to be reasonable for once. I used a batik fabric my local quilt shop for the bias binding around the neck and armholes and also for the pockets.

I had a lot of fun with this. Guess there's more sewing in my future.

Trip to Topsy

Took the ferry to Amherst Island and Topsy Farm with Joan of Purlin' J and my friend Deb. Joan went to pick up her load of Topsy wool to sell on her truck, and I tagged along in search of wool for an aran design. It was shearing time.

Sheared sheep in the field next to the cemetary. The sheep are mostly North Cheviot and Suffolk.

Pregnant ewes waiting their turn to be sheared.

Shearing in progress. Takes 2 1/2 minutes per sheep for a pro.

It takes three shearers working all weekend to shear the flock.

Skirting a fleece.

Joan enjoys a lanolin treatment for her hands.

Hoisting a bag of fleeces. The bags will end up at the Wool Growers' Co-op in Carleton Place.

View from the barn.

This is the new Wool Shed, where 2-ply and 3-ply wool skeins are for sale. There's aran knitting in my future. In addition to wool for knitting, Topsy sells gorgeous (so gorgeous they're for sale at Holt-Renfrew) blankets, and frozen lamb to take home for the barbeque. What a great half-day trip! Oh, and thanks for the huge jar of honey, Sally.

Tutorial: Splicing, or How to Insert Your DNA into Your Knitting

The Helium series of three cardigans I'm currently working on involves knitting with lofty, airy yarns at looser gauges. Quite apart from the fact that weaving in ends is a pain, for the two cardigans in Lett Lopi and Shelter, splicing the yarn joins makes for a more beautiful, uninterrupted finished knitted fabric (splicing is simply not an option with the slipperier Silk/Mohair). Both Shelter and Lett Lopi are perfect for splicing since they are spun from wools that easily felt, with "sticky" fibres that cling to each other. At first I wasn't quite sure how to splice the Lett Lopi--it appeared to be a single ply. Then I learned that it is actually lightly spun from two strands of Plotulopi (the unspun icelandic wool, made famous by Meg Swansen). Even though it looks as though it is a single ply, in reality there are two strands which can be separated and therefore spliced. Here's how to do it for either Lett Lopi or Shelter:

1. Break, don't cut, both ends that you wish to splice. Breaking will leave nice tapered ends which will meld into the splice.

2. Separate the two strands that make up each end, then break off one strand of each so that the ends are staggered.

3. Intertwine the ends of the strands, like this below.

4. You probably don't want to do this next bit in public. Spit or lick the palms of your hands, then vigorously roll and rub the overlapped strands into one. It will start out like this,

but very quickly will felt into a strand very like the rest of the yarn.

5. Proceed to knit with your newly joined wool. I don't recommend splicing in areas where extra strength is needed, like underarms or bind offs. Otherwise, just carry on and enjoy the fact that you have magically joined two ends of wool together.

Easter, 2017

Everyone is home for Easter. My new lightweight cardi is done, and named Helium, because it is SO light it feels that if I were to tie a string to it, it would fly up into the sky.

I'm working on the Lett Lopi version of it now. It's a bit more substantial, but still airy and definitely pretty in a shade of raspberry sorbet. Here it is sitting beside some more of the Hewephoria merino sock that is going to be turned into scarves eventually.

The weather has finally turned warm enough to wear our Audrey coats on their own. We discovered that Isabel's looks nice with an old tam, about 10 years old, I think, from Knitty.

Loblaws had its first pansies of the season and I couldn't resist.

Spent the morning making Victoria sponge cake, to have for tea this afternoon. Recipe below. Here is the cake, filled with raspberry jam, awaiting its light dusting of icing sugar.

Victoria Sponge Cake (eggless)

3 c unbleached flour, sifted

2 c plain yogurt (I used fat-free)

1 ½ c sugar

1 tsp baking soda

2 tsp baking powder

1 c canola oil

2 tsp vanilla extract

seedless good quality raspberry jam, such as Wilton’s

small amount of icing sugar

Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare round layer cake pans with cooking spray or (my preference) by buttering pans, dusting with flour, and covering bottom of pans with parchment paper.

Mix the yogurt, sugar, soda, and baking powder and allow to sit for about 5 minutes.

Add the oil and vanilla to the yogurt, then add the flour. Gently combine

Pour into the prepared pans and bake for 35 min or until golden on top and a wooden knitting needle poked in the centre comes out clean (new use for dpns).

Leave in pans for 15 minutes before turning out.

Heat the jam (I use the microwave) to melt it until runny. Place the bottom cake layer upside down on the serving plate, then spread it with jam, then carefully position the second layer right side up on top. When completely cool, dust with icing sugar.

  

And in a burst of culinary energy I also made curried cauliflower soup for lunch.

Curried Cauliflower Soup

1 onion, coarsely chopped

1 clove garlic, thinly sliced

1 potato, peeled and diced

1 head cauliflower, cut into florets

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp curry powder

5 c water

½ c milk (can be skim)

Heat the olive oil and sauté the onion until it is soft. Add the garlic, potato, cauliflower, and salt and continue to sauté until there is slight glaze on the bottom of the pot. Add the curry powder and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the water, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer, covered, until the vegetables are very soft. Puree with a hand blender until smooth. Stir in the milk and re-heat, but do not boil.

Wanted: More Colour in My Life

It must be the effect of viewing all those Instagram pages of Sonya Philips (see two posts ago). I'm craving colour on this Good Friday holiday. (BTW, don't you love holidays when everything is closed and you can't shop or do anything else but knit and write up patterns?) To remedy the colourlessness in my life I made carrot soup, and worked on some odds and ends.

Soup recipe here. Yum. It's like a bowl of sunshine!
Pink wool is Lett Lopi in (of course) Pink Heather, #1412. Didn't realize how much I adore this wool, especially when knitted at a slightly loose gauge.
Luscious purple is local, from Hewephoria, fingering weight.