Aeolian Shawl Knit

Completed knitting the Aeolian Shawl today! It took a month to knit and four days to spin. Now I just have to block and it will be finito!

Holly Dragonheart Wand

12", Holly Wand, Dragon Heartstring Core
You scored 37 wisdom, 39 bravery, 16 emotional, and 22 public service!

Holly is a powerful protective wood that good for use against evil, but it also represents dreams and fertility. Your dragon's heartstring core makes your wand very effective in hexes.

Ravenclaw Witchdoctor Wristlettes

One of the assignments for Quidditch in the Ravelry Harry Potter Knit/Crochet House Cup is the creation of wristlettes.

I spun up a wild fiber skein and incorporated it in crocheted Witchdoctor Ravenclaw Wristies.

Tour de Fleece 09 Day 3

Aeolian Shawl

I spun for the shawlette and am knitting the last edge section. Good thing too because I am running out of beads!
The fiber is an alpaca silk blend in bottle green purchased from Little Barn at Rhinebeck 2007.

I spun the first half less uniformly, was in a rush to start! Definitely take your time spinning, the infinitesimally tiny changes in diameter make a massive difference between getting the bead on or not. I would have been done knitting long ago but for spending all that extra time wrestling on the beads.

The pattern is straightforward until you get to the edging. Be sure to count the 5 repeats on each side of the middle section.

Ravenclaw Pom

Get Ready for HP HBP!Soar Ravenclaw!!

Le Tour de Fleece 2009

It's that time again, oui, oui- Le Tour de Fleece 2009


This year, Le Tour de France begins in Monaco.
Running from Saturday July 4th to Sunday July 26th 2009, the 96th Tour de France will be made up of 21 stages and will cover a total distance of 3500.
And again, will be the concomittant Spinning competition, Le Tour de Fleece!

Eligibility: Any spinner who would like to take on a spinning challenge during the 2009 Tour de France bicycle race.

Concept: You will set yourself a personal spinning challenge. You will begin spinning on the first stage of the Tour (July 4th), and finish on or before the last stage (July 26th). You, of course, may spin on those days designated rest days for the riders.

Rules:
1. The idea is to set yourself a challenge. It doesn't matter what the challenge is -- it could be spinning fine for the first time, or producing an artsy fartsy yarn as an exercise, it could be spinning enough for a specific project. If you've always wanted to spin a little every day (say, a spinning meditation practice), but never seem to find time for it, perhaps that could be the challenge -- spinning every morning of the tour. What matters is you set out the challenge, and meet it during the specified time.

2. There will be no spinning before the start of the first stage.

3. You must finish spinning before the last stage ends.

4. You may sample and do other research as needed beforehand if it helps you decide on your challenge, or will help provide you the tools and information you need to meet the challenge.


The Maillot Jaune (Yellow Jersey)
You meet your challenge = Malliot Jaune, or you don't.
Finishers will get a button for their blog, which will be essentially the same as last year's version. Of course, there is the immense pride in undertaking the Tour and riding -- er -- spinning to completion.

Entering the Tour de Fleece 2009
To enter the Tour de Fleece 2009 spinning challenge, please leave a comment here stating your name (nicknames are acceptable) and the URL for your blog or the webpage where you'll be reporting your spinning progress during the running of this year's Tour de France bicycle race. You can also submit your entry by e-mail via the link in the sidebar -- make sure you put "Tour de Fleece" in the subject line.

Entries will be posted on the TdF blog -- check the list for your entry, allowing a couple of days from the time you submit it for the list to update.
Although the aim is to start on July 4th, as in past years, if you find TdF late, you can still feel free to hop aboard -- just set a challenge that will be appropriate to the time left before the end of the Tour.