Tour de Fleece and current knits

 Have you heard of Tour de Fleece? No? Well every year during Tour de France, Spinners around the world challenge themselves in some way or another, often it is to spin every day that the cyclists cycle. Or to learn a new technique during that time. Teams are formed on Knitters and Spinners spaces like Ravelry or sometimes teams are hosted by vloggers and podcasters or fibre and yarn producers. They will often offer prizes or incentives as well as encouragement. Which is nice innit!

I have never taken part but this year, possibly to justify the TWO new wheels I bought this year I decided to join in. I bought a mystery kit from Hilltop Cloud - my favourite indie hand dyer. This consisted of a beautiful project bag in Tour de France yellow, and a 20g package of fibre every day (except the 2 rest days) and some fabulous chocolate. I'll be honest, I have not managed to spin every single day, I have had a few nights of spinning 2 or 3 of the little packages but I have loved it. Opening the little parcel every day and seeing what I have - and there has been some wonderful blends of different fibres I might never have chosen and playing with and admiring the feel and sheen and indeed smell of the different fibres has just been a joy! 

I have been spinning on my EEW6 a lot, this is my electric wheel, it's bobbins are huge and can hold a fabulous amount of yarn, it is so easy to use and takes up such a small amount of space. Here's a few pics of the little wheel and how I store it - which is in a sewing machine bag I got for a tenner online! 

might not be the most beautiful thing but so handy!

inside I can fit the wheel, the charger, all the bobbins when flat packed the foot pedal and lazy kate!

I have also been spinning on my Kromski Fantasia which I love. I have treated every day's fibre the same, dividing it in two down the middle spinning first one then the other then the next day plying the two sections together. I'm not quite sure what the little skeins of yarn will become but I'm enjoying looking at them and feeling accomplished. 

Well mostly accomplished, I made a major spinning error with one of my favourite of the bunch so far! How you make yarn is like this: you spin two or more strands of yarn (each called a singles) in one direction and then you ply them (spin them together) in the other direction. this makes loose fibre strong enough to make garments or blankets etc etc. I was not paying attention as I was watching the Golden Girls (because of COURSE I was!) and plied the two singles in the same direction as I had spun them. Which means all the twist I had put into the wool came right back out again. GRRR! I put it through the wheel another twice in the correct direction but it is far from perfect and I am still kicking myself! Anyway that will teach me. 

Obviously I have knitting on the go as well, though it is slower than usual, the 2 youngest kids have been home -one self isolating and one because their nursery has had a Covid case though they did not have contact. It is a loud, bored house with the two adults trying to work from home amid the chaos. The seemingly never ending summer vest is still nowhere near the armholes. This is a bottom up vest top, knit in the round to the armholes then knit back and forth. I'm knitting it on 3.25mm HiyaHiya interchangeable needles, and the yarn is from a massive bag I got on clearance years ago from the much, much missed Knit Studio. It is Adriafil Azzura the colour is the wonderfully named - 041 and it  is 70% wool and 30% acrylic. It is super soft and lovely to knit with. It is just taking so long to knit! I am a wide person so it is a lot of stitches! 

I am also so close to being finished these socks, I literally just have to graft the toes. These have been a long time in the making as I pick them up and put them down. I shove em in my handbag for work and forget about them often. I think the yarn is Opal but it is a guess as the tag is looooong gone. They are however absolutely lovely and when they are finally completely finished they will sit in an envelope for several weeks before I finally get around to posting them down to Wales for Iz. (Don't hold yer breath Iz!) I feel a cast on coming on, but I don't really know what I want to knit right now. I have another pair of socks somewhere kicking about. I hope they aren't in my yarn cupboard cos a fooking massive spider was in there yesterday and so the cupboard of joy is currently dead to me! Arachnophobia is a bitch people! 

Well, I made it to TWO posts, I can hardly believe it! Go me, and go you if you got to the end especially if you are not a knitter or spinner, I'm surprised how many of you there are! Oh and tonight I am going to spin like the divil and watch the Loki finale and I can't wait! See you next time <3

Geordie Shawl Knitting and Spinning Blog

God I miss knitting blogs, we have all moved to YouTube and Instagram and FB and discord and all of the other many social media sites but I really miss sitting down with a cuppa and my knitting and reading about other knitters live's and knitting and spinning. So here we are, if you are like me and miss blogs lets see how long I can keep this up for. 

Though I have tons of pics OF my knitting I could only find this one of me knitting from 4 years ago on the DFDS ferry from North Shields to Amsterdam. Helluva sunset! 

Introduction I guess, I'm Stacey I have been knitting for a long time, it is about 14 years since I became a Knitter with a capital K. Like most folks my Nana taught me to knit when I was about 6 or 7. Both my Nana's were ardent knitters, and helped and encouraged us. My Nana Frances had terrible arthritis and when she couldn't manage her needles anymore she moved to a knitting machine so the gene is strong in me. When I started knitting again I mostly used straight needles with the right needle tucked snugly in my armpit, just like Nana. I rarely held the needle and was pretty fast actually but over the years I have moved to using mostly circular needles - they are much easier to shove in your handbag! One of my favourite things is that I have a pair of my nana's knitting needles (she died 30 years ago this year I think) which are bent to the shape of her body. I love those needles.

my Nana Frances with me my siblings and cousin in her back yard. Late 1970s

The only photo I can find right now of Nana Kathy. This is after her stroke. She died in 2008.

A few knitting preferences for me - I always find this stuff interesting so hopefully you will too:

 I love knitting on circular needles but I do not like magic loop. I never magic loop if I can help it -I will very occasionally for sleeves if I don't have DPN's in the right size but that is all.

last finished item. A mix of handspun and Jamiesons

I love DPN's I can't fathom why everyone doesn't. They are logical and easy and practical. I always knit socks on them and always top down. I do not like toe up socks, I am all about the cuff down.

I don't have a ball winder or a swift. I LOVE hand winding balls with the skein either looped over my knees or round a kiddos arms - the kids are less keen but bah, I feed clothe and house them so they can suck it up! I really love the yarn moving through my hands and I really feel like it is the starting point in a project for me. If I absolutely need a centre pull ball - I currently can't think of a good reason why - I have a nostepinne and I use that to wind my ball.

I am an not a monogamous knitter. I always have multiple projects on the go, usually a few pairs of socks (at least 3 at the moment) and a main project which at the moment is a vest/tank top.

I knit English style but can also knit continental, if knitting with 2 colours I will knit with a colour in each hand.  

I am also a spinner. I've been spindle spinning for about 8 years and got my first wheel about 3 years ago, it is a Kromski Fantasia and I LOVE him. He is called Marty McFlyer for a good reason but that's a story for another day. I also have a Electric Eel wheel nano, I was part of the Kickstarter for it and though I like it I don't LOVE it. But I did also join the Kickstarter for the full size Electric Eel 6  electric wheel which came a few months ago and I absolutely love it. I also was very much hankering for a traditional style wheel and got a Ashford Traditional wheel a few months ago (he is called George McFlyer because of course he is!) and we are getting to grip with each other. It is a learning curve and I don't find spinning on him easy like Marty. So yes, wheels are addictive and expensive so be careful! 

Marty McFlyer

Lorraine McFlyer and Cat

lovely Hilltop Cloud fibre for this years Tour de Fleece

I have not processed any fleeces myself and don't own carders or combs. I tend to spin commercial fibre but I have been watching a lot of youtube videos about processing and though I said I would never go there - I think the day is coming! :-D 

I love spinning a lot but knitting is my first love, I don't really feel right if I don't at the VERY least have knitting on me, in my bag, on my knee just nearby, so yeah, I have a problem but right, I could stop anytime! 

Always knitting! 

Oh and I decided to call this blog Geordie Shawl because I am from Newcastle Upon Tyne and I thought it was funny! :-D