Starting off with a bang today.
Handspun superwash merino, 95 yd
TheYoYo.etsy.com
I thought the world may have caved in when I bought this yarn. On occasion when the mood strikes, I've been known to dye a bunch of superwash merino roving for sale in my etsy shop... Alyson aK(a): TheYoYo bought the "glass philemon" braid and spun up this lovely for HER shop. I waited about 2 seconds after seeing it, enough to ponder if it was too much of a mindf*ck to buy it (and the over/under of some sort of tear in the knitting/spinning continuum if I pressed "add to cart"), and succumbed.
And I'm glad I did! Check this out.
95 yd of bulky, shiny, squishy yarn... 4 oz of yarn packed into 95 yards! I have to admit I am no-good, very-bad jealous over how nice this *thick* yarn looks... I really want to spin a thick, even yarn and here Alyson comes to taunt me with hers. Someday! (Maybe she'll share her secrets with us.)
For now her etsy shop has some other beauties-- from sock to worsted to novelty. Check out her yarn tag:
It's a moo card (right?) with a pic of the top of her Blue Moon Fiber Arts *thighhigh* wedding Bellocq stockings, strung with ribbon and adorned with a freshwater pearl stitch marker from my shop. Maybe teh knitting internets did cave a little. :)
How about some dimension, paperwise?
Pudgy cat waiting, Splashing koi and Happy thoughts cards by tatsuko.etsy.com
Not my first (or last, I'm sure) card purchase from Tatsuko-- she has a nice range of cards made from her handcarved stamps and chiyogami papers, as well as sushi, origami and taiko jewelry. I love the raised bit of paper paired with the raised, embossed koi. Even the positivity/happy thoughts card, while "only" stamped, has the dimensionality of the others as she's used heat embossing on the card to raise the image.
More 3d action? You know how I love 3d.
Yeah, it LOOKS cool, but big deal eh?
Closer...
Handwoven card by 51greenwich.etsy.com
51Greenwich takes different recycled papers, prints them using soy ink with their own designs, and "weaves" the papers together by folding them. There is NO GLUE used to secure the raised design-- the paper weaving holds the design together. (Click for big, you know you want to.) I love how well thought out the card is, from the printing to the folding placement it looks wonderfully cohesive... also dig the little secret of its construction, something people may not notice if you didn't tell them.
An oldie but a goodie...
Pound of soap from FrostFishCoveSoaps.etsy.com
I admit I am a handmade soap junkie, and it's all etsy's fault. One of my absolute favorite dealers is Frost Fish Cove Soaps. They make lots y lots of different types of soap, and when I say different I don't mean the fragrances are different, but each ingredient formulation of their soaps is different. (Check out their product list and blog if you're curious.)
This is one of their pound guest samplers-- 11 different soaps from scrubby to chocolatey to bright and sharp. I think this is a great gift (esp. from me!) since what I think someone will like and what they actually do is usually miles apart (but fun to discover). I also dig that you're not committed to a few scents you haven't tried-- you can try out a bunch and later pick your own pound of scents when you find some favorites (they usually relist the "choose your own adventure" pound of soaps, so if that link sells just check back or convo Tory.)
Their supernatural lotion rocks, too.
That's it for today :) I need to work on some stock for my shop-- once the sun rises I'm sure I'll be outside spinning (caught the bug again). Have a good one!
Handspun superwash merino, 95 yd
TheYoYo.etsy.com
I thought the world may have caved in when I bought this yarn. On occasion when the mood strikes, I've been known to dye a bunch of superwash merino roving for sale in my etsy shop... Alyson aK(a): TheYoYo bought the "glass philemon" braid and spun up this lovely for HER shop. I waited about 2 seconds after seeing it, enough to ponder if it was too much of a mindf*ck to buy it (and the over/under of some sort of tear in the knitting/spinning continuum if I pressed "add to cart"), and succumbed.
And I'm glad I did! Check this out.
95 yd of bulky, shiny, squishy yarn... 4 oz of yarn packed into 95 yards! I have to admit I am no-good, very-bad jealous over how nice this *thick* yarn looks... I really want to spin a thick, even yarn and here Alyson comes to taunt me with hers. Someday! (Maybe she'll share her secrets with us.)
For now her etsy shop has some other beauties-- from sock to worsted to novelty. Check out her yarn tag:
It's a moo card (right?) with a pic of the top of her Blue Moon Fiber Arts *thighhigh* wedding Bellocq stockings, strung with ribbon and adorned with a freshwater pearl stitch marker from my shop. Maybe teh knitting internets did cave a little. :)
How about some dimension, paperwise?
Pudgy cat waiting, Splashing koi and Happy thoughts cards by tatsuko.etsy.com
Not my first (or last, I'm sure) card purchase from Tatsuko-- she has a nice range of cards made from her handcarved stamps and chiyogami papers, as well as sushi, origami and taiko jewelry. I love the raised bit of paper paired with the raised, embossed koi. Even the positivity/happy thoughts card, while "only" stamped, has the dimensionality of the others as she's used heat embossing on the card to raise the image.
More 3d action? You know how I love 3d.
Yeah, it LOOKS cool, but big deal eh?
Closer...
Handwoven card by 51greenwich.etsy.com
51Greenwich takes different recycled papers, prints them using soy ink with their own designs, and "weaves" the papers together by folding them. There is NO GLUE used to secure the raised design-- the paper weaving holds the design together. (Click for big, you know you want to.) I love how well thought out the card is, from the printing to the folding placement it looks wonderfully cohesive... also dig the little secret of its construction, something people may not notice if you didn't tell them.
An oldie but a goodie...
Pound of soap from FrostFishCoveSoaps.etsy.com
I admit I am a handmade soap junkie, and it's all etsy's fault. One of my absolute favorite dealers is Frost Fish Cove Soaps. They make lots y lots of different types of soap, and when I say different I don't mean the fragrances are different, but each ingredient formulation of their soaps is different. (Check out their product list and blog if you're curious.)
This is one of their pound guest samplers-- 11 different soaps from scrubby to chocolatey to bright and sharp. I think this is a great gift (esp. from me!) since what I think someone will like and what they actually do is usually miles apart (but fun to discover). I also dig that you're not committed to a few scents you haven't tried-- you can try out a bunch and later pick your own pound of scents when you find some favorites (they usually relist the "choose your own adventure" pound of soaps, so if that link sells just check back or convo Tory.)
Their supernatural lotion rocks, too.
That's it for today :) I need to work on some stock for my shop-- once the sun rises I'm sure I'll be outside spinning (caught the bug again). Have a good one!
14 comments:
Lovely yarn...but I was really taken by the delicious selection of handmade soap...and I'm really not a special soap person. I'll have to look into that Etsy store!
Yay! Thanks *blush* ;-)
I love my Moo cards - I should have ordered more of that one, though, because it's my favourite.
That soap....mmm. I'm supposed to be on a soap moratorium....but I'm also supposed to be on a roving and sock yarn moratorium, and I'm willing to bet you could take a guess at how that's working out.
Okay, so spinning bulky - the best way I've found to do it - and it really works well with superwash merino - is to let the fiber take control. I split this roving, I think, right in the middle, then split each half longways maybe three or four times. I drafted out a bit, attached it to my leader, and treadled somewhat slowly on a lower ratio setting (I think I may have used the lowest - all my spinning is starting to run together.) Basically, rather than keeping a pinch with the forward hand and drafting with the back hand, I just used my forward hand to guide a bit and my back hand to draft out, without taking too much control of the fiber. If you start with a bulky single and let the twist travel (slowly) down the fiber, it's kind of just going to automatically pull that same amount of fiber, and if you get a thick spot, you can slow down and let it out a bit. The fact that you're treadling slow at a lower ratio means that the twist isn't hitting the fiber so fast that you can't control the working fiber, and backing some of the twist off if you need to is easy to do...does that make sense at all? I used a similar technique with soy silk; I've found that with certain fibers or desired weights, it's easiest to let the twist travel down the fiber rather than trying to confine it to the drafting triangle. (I wonder if I'm a spinning heathen for doing that?)
Ok, I'm picturing your house starting to look like an etsy warehouse. :)
totally checking out the soap!
Oh how I love your etsy Friday posts - but my bank account is screaming!! That handspun from your roving is delicious!
Uh, oops....just bought two pounds of soap.
And some laundry detergent.
Heh. Heh. *shrug*
I think that's so cool that Alyson bought your roving, spun it, and you bought it back! That's something I'd do! It is gorgeous. She does such a great job spinning. I'll have to puruse her shop when I get back from my vacation. I've never knit with hand-spun before...
Well at least we know that if everyone other etsy shop mysteriously disappears, you and Alyson will still maintain each other's shops ;)
And that worsted yarn? Yum. When I saw it on Alyson's blog, I drooled a bit...
Thank goodness I'm heading out on Vacay tomorrow otherwise I'd be on etsy right now! I am exercising restraint though because who knows what cool stuff awaits during the road trip. Ya know?
Hello Aija! Congratulations of your work and your Etsy store's success. I am a fan! For your Etsy Friday posts, do you actually buy the items you put up?
Anyway, I enjoy checking out your Etsy shop for the beautiful stitch markers and roving as well. (I do not spin, but would be very interested to learn how).
LOVE that squooosy yarn!
I was at work yesterday and someone said "hey, it's Friday! Etsy Friday!" You're a rockstar!
Thanks for the Frost Fish Cove recommendation. I've been meaning to try them. Have you tried Daisycakes Soap yet?
I'd love to hear what you think of each of the soap "flavors" when you try them! That handspun almost looks like Koigu!
Thanks for all the cool etsy shop links!
all set.
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