Merino & Herdwick Mittens - Part 1

Over the weekend I have been busy, on Saturday the postman delivered my bi-monthly magazine, called YarnMaker, http://www.yarnmaker.co.uk/ by Dorothy Lumb. This is the first UK Spinning magazine and is about all things sheep. Every magazine has a project to make using handspun yarn, and this time it is mittens.

As the winter is fast approaching up here I decided to make these, as it will be the first time I have spun yarn to make a specific project (I have always decided on a project after making the yarn). I have chosen to use 2 very different fleeces to make these, the softest 100% organic white Merino, and a very corse dark grey Herdwick fleece. Herdwick are native to the Lake District, England and do not have much value as the fleece is not regarded as very useful. I am about to disprove this.....

The pictures below show you the first part of the project, I have spun the Merino and plyed it to create a yarn, and I am about to spin the Herdwick, which I am going to card to give it a fluffy feel when spun. keep an eye out for the finished mittens over the next few weeks..

Weaving and Spinning, Weaving and Spinning....

Finished the first tweed today, and its off the loom waiting for the Mill to come and collect it. It is a good job they collect as I have trouble lifting them, they are very heavy! A few pictures for you to look at below, the first is the tweed being taken off the loom, the second is it tied in a bundle and waiting for collection.

This evening I have finished spinning the Merino/Alpaca yarn, it justs needs washing to set the twist and its ready to use, I have spun it fairly thick so it will knit up quickly, look out for what I make with it soon.

A day of two halfs

Today I have spent the morning weaving, nearly finished this one, then on to the next. Had a few ups and downs with the loom lately but (touch wood) all seems OK now. This is the latest pattern that I have been weaving for Harris Tweed Hebrides, its a herringbone in black and grey.

After lunch we had a trip to Ness, to visit the colour factory, a fantastic place for all things crafty. The dog came too and we had a nice, if not cold walk on the beach at Port Nis, the waves were huge and the tide was comming in so we stayed with in running distance to the car, didn't fancy a dip in there today!

Now just settled down to spin some yarn, a gorgeous aubergine alpaca with 100% Organic white merino, a truly scrumptious blend, look out for pictures soon.



lots of Christmas knitting!

Well, today it is raining and cold, with breaks in the rain where beautiful sunshine shines through, so managed to walk the dog during a dry spell on the beach. I am currently sat inside, watching the next moody grey cloud develop, working on my Christmas knitting! I have given myself a challenge to make at least 1 present for each person this year, so have been busy, and I am now on the last (at the moment, until I see a lovely pattern or yarn that is begging to be a Christmas gift).

I am also planning the next few things that will be going on Folksy.com soon, so keep an eye out for some lovely warm winter essentials.

Wrap up and keep warm!

First Post, hmmm what to say....

Well Hello! and Welcome to my blog.

This is the first time I have ever used a blog so forgive me if I start altering colours and adding bits and pieces to it as I go, as I dont really know what a lot of the buttons do!

A little about me, I am a newly trained Harris Tweed Weaver, I did and SVQ that finished in May 2010 so I have not been weaving long! I am 25 and me and my family moved to the Isle of Lewis, Scotland in Sept 2009, as we wanted to escape the 'rat race' of a town in England. We have a croft, about 3 acres, and currently have 43 hens and 3 drakes. We are shortly getting sheep to add to this, oh and we have a dog, Milo.

I not only weave, I am a spinner, knitter and crocheter and I experiment with weaving on different basic looms with different fabrics. I have a Folksy shop, called Unique Chic Fibre Crafts, which can be found at http://www.folksy.com/shops/NikkiKnits

I sell hand made items, hand spun yarn and rugs which are made from waste frabric from the weaving process, that would other wise get thrown away.

Not sure what else to write today, so I will leave you with a picture of my lovely drakes..