Well, we're done with "Earl watch".  We had some ragged looking clouds all day yesterday and humidity you could suck out of the air with a straw but no rain.  The grass is crunchy again and the plants are curling up but I am against watering the lawn so crunchy and brown it will stay.

Here are some of the things I'm working on at the moment.  This is the Knitpicks pattern with the bamboo sock yarn from last months' club selection.  I love the colors and am enjoying the toe up pattern.  Only problem with it is that every row is a charted row and there are just enough different rows that I can't seem to memorize it.  It means that no movie watching while I work on these.

This is a skein of self patterning yarn I can't remember buying.  It's Jawoll superwash.  I started a small pair of socks for my  niece.  They're on 2mm needles and the fabric feels bullet proof but that should hold up to an active 10 year old.  I just love self patterning yarn.

This is the hem of my Wisesweater.  Sandi Wiseheart is having a kal for a yet to be seen cardigan.  It's mostly about how to take proper measurements and how to decide which size to make.  For someone like me who doesn't have a handy knitting posse around, it's helpful.  I put all my measurements into the spreadsheet and voila!  The pattern tells me how many stitches to cast on and where to decrease for better fit.  I chose the picot hem because I like it.  I'm using Knitpicks merino in Hollyberry.  I don't often use dk or worsted weight yarns so this feels different.  It's not too soft while you're working but the swatches (yes, I swatched twice!) washed up nice and soft.

Here is a skein of yarn I spun.  It's corriedale in a pretty garnet color.  It doesn't feel soft as a roving but has nice luster.  Once it's plied and washed, it softens up and blooms beautifully.  It's easy to spin and the color is deep and rich.  I think I'm going to use it for a holiday project.  I have a pattern in mind and I am hoping to have enough yardage when I'm through.

I have a bag of alpaca that we bought last year at the alpaca fest.  I'm going to try washing some of it today so I can play with it.  I have a bag of cream colored wool(?) and a bag of caramel color.  I tried to spin some of it without washing it and my hands and my wheel get so dirty and I get a pile of vm in my lap. 


I woke up today to a gloriously blue sky and lovely sunshine with a breeze and low humidity.  We're supposed to have a whole weekend of this.  I don't know what we did to deserve such perfect weather but I'll take it.  I can hear the bandsaw so I know Pk is ripping down some more tree pieces into boards.  He showed me the walnut pieces he made.  They may be destined to be my wheel.  They have to sit and dry out for a while but the color and grain are beautiful. 

It's laundry day and I have a bedroom to clean and a bed to strip.  And then I'm going to spend some quality time in the sunshine with the wheel. 

Oh, and I bought a single serve lemon pie.  A Tastykake (local baked goods maker) lemon pie.  I love them and don't indulge too often.

Happy Labor Day (whether you belong to a union or not)!