little forest

Check out my new hobby! Needle felting! This little button is only about 3 or 4 inches in diameter. I made this back during the holiday break, when I took a needle felting class at the Beehive Wool Shop.

I know you're all thinking, as if YOU need ANOTHER hobby, Nessa! And you're totally right, but still, needle felting is fun, and has many cool applique uses when used on knitted-felted objects. Plus, it's a great way to use up little left-over bits of roving when I am done spinning because, in needle felting, a little wool goes a long way.



One of my favourite features of this little felted forest is the bead stars! I heart them.

Anyways, I don't think I'll give up too much time to this new interest, but it is a rather fun way to spend a rainy afternoon.

GIANT YETI SIGHTING!

This giant yeti was commissioned by a friend (people just love yetis!). He stands about 24-32" tall (I didn't measure before I gave him away), as opposed to my previous yeti creations which were about 8-9" tall. Which makes him extra snuggleable.



Here he is sitting at the kitchen table, even yeti's like their afternoon tea...



Don't let the big claws fool you, he's really just a gentle giant.

~Nessa

I like mermaids

I have liked mermaids ever since I was a little girl. C'mon, what little girl doesn't dream that she is Ariel, at least once in her life...



So needless to say I immediately fell in love with Fleece Artist's gorgeous colourway called, you guessed it, Mermaid. Actually this was my favourite colourway for a long time, but then I found out the name & if it is possible, I loved it even more.
That pic up there is actually my first plied handspun (from Fleece Artist's merino sliver), snuggling up with my Imogen sweater-kit-in-progress. Am I a tad obsessed with this colour? possibly.



Oddly, I am not usually a "blue" person, but this blue is so rich, and the intermingled shades of green, brown, and purple make this colourway reminiscent of the colours used in some of my favourite Emily Carr paintings of the 1930's, like this one or this one.



I am ridiculously pleased with myself over this handspun. I used a shoe box, and empty tp rolls to ply this yarn, and it is now my life's goal to procure more of this colourway in the merino sliver... in fact, I would even be delighted to get this colourway in the silk/merino blend sliver... Also, there is some nice Mermaid BFL sock yarn that I am planning to purchase one of these days too...
Is it wrong to have one of every type of knitted item in this colourway?
I won't wear them all out at once, I promise!

~Nessa

back to school

I feel like this guy.
Why do the holidays never last long enough?
This semester is physics, and maths, so I anticipate much homework. In fact it has already begun.
My consolation is the belated Bitchybees Christmas party, which was cancelled due to snow, but is now happening this Sunday! So in fact Christmas is not yet over for me :-)
Hope you are all enjoying (as much as possible) your back-to-school/back-to-work/back-to-regular-life and are not at all feeling a bit of longing to back-up and go back-to-Christmas for a little bit longer.

COMING SOON!
Photos on my Christmas present project! It is "Imogen", a sweaterkit from Fleece Artist, and it's an alpaca-wool handpainted yarn! It's simply dreamy to knit.
Plus photos on my first ever 2-ply handspun! (you are dying of anticipation now, right?)

~Nessa