steady progress

I mean to post a big woo-hoo post here when the wheel came last Monday but Blogger was being unbelievably wonky -- so I was lucky to get it up at the other blog.

So anywho, the official word is, it's here and I think I've finally figured out how to use it! I'm working through the thank-you yarn from heaviest to lightest -- I'm not quite brave enough to attempt fingering for a few more days, though I did spin a wee bit of silk to fingering weight the other day. I'm just really concerned about the quality of the yarn I'm sending out, so I'd rather feel more in-control, which (luckily) I am a little more every day. :)



That's the first or the thank-you yarn spun and plied on the wheel. It's soft! It's squooshy! And I'm pretty darn happy with it.

This has been such a great learning experience on so many levels....I'm going to miss my little stack of index cards when it's all said and done. :)

Thanks for the wheel, you guys!! I really, really like it.

It's coming!

And I have a bona fide tracking number to prove it. It's on a truck, left Redmond WA in the middle of the night, and is scheduled to arrive at my door on Monday, October 23.

Woo!

I'm trying to be patient

And really, I don't want to whine too much. I'm getting a wheel about a year sooner than I would have, thanks to the generousity of many, so I don't want to complain. But MAN! Could they take any longer?***

Just had to get that out.

I have two piles of index cards ever before me, and I'm happy to report that as of today, the pile of cards for those whose yarn I've finished is now bigger than the pile for those still in progress. That feels good!!

A loud and enthusiastic THANK YOU to those who have chimed in to say, "don't worry about spinning my yarn til you get the wheel!" It warms my heart and makes me a little less irritated about the wait. I'm still churning out the yarn, but not nearly as stressed about it. I would really, really hate to find out a month from now that Fricke has gone under and didn't tell their dealers, I won't be getting the wheel I ordered, and I have to handspin several pounds of yarn the month before Christmas. So while I won't be finishing by the end of October like I'd hoped, the end will be in sight.

***Holy cow, I have edited the rant, because I just talked to a real live person at Fricke, and it looks like the wheel will ship later this week! She was very kind and offered to e-mail the UPS tracking number to me as soon as it's on its way. Squee!!

it is what it is

So, I've resigned myself to the fact that my wheel may never come. And I just might have to spindle-spin all of this yarn. Not the end of the world, but after spindling over 2o00 yards in the past 3 weeks (and then plying it all) I'm reeeeally looking forward to not having to stop to wind on any more. Ahhhh, sweet speed. But I forge ahead.

I'd been putting off starting the larger batches of fiber because I was afraid that the wheel would come and I'd be stuck finishing them on the spindle for the sake of consistency. But now that I'm just pretending the wheel isn't coming at all (really, it probably will, I'm just being pessimistic and irritated at the slooooow pace and lack of communication in my wheel purchase process) I've started in on the more labor intensive ones. I think I have one more 50g batch to spin, then from here on in, there's a lot of 100-200g batches, many of them sock yarn. So while progress is steady, it may not be swift.

I'm not doing too terribly though! 6 people have received their yarn, and two more will go out Tuesday morning. Ten more await their yarn. I'll continue to add photos to the thank-you yarn album as I spin and dye.

Well what do you know!!

I'm buying a spinning wheel!!

If you've found your way here via a link and are looking to donate to my wheel fund, thank you! But I've stopped accepting donations because I've met my goal and I have a heck of a lot of spinning to do. If I hear of someone else who's using this idea and starting their own wheel fund, which I think would be fabulous, I'll post a link here.

Thank you again and again to all of the donors who've made my purchase possible. I'll be posting progress updates here, so you can have a general idea of when to expect your yarn. So check back soon! I'll be linking to yarn photos, but I won't post the photos themselves here in case you want to be surprised! :)

In case you're curious, I've ordered a Fricke S-160 DT spinning wheel. It's a good versatile starter wheel whose owners speak very highly of it. I'm so excited, and of course I want it NOW! But in the meantime...back to the spindle I go.... :)

here goes...

So I had this idea.

Short story: over there, in the sidebar ----->

Long story:
In July, I learned to spin on a drop spindle. I was initially hesitant to even pick one up because I'd heard how addictive it could be...and like I needed another hobby. But the lure of the fiber was strong...soon, I was hooked.

I actually took to the drop spindle well and find it a very enjoyable way to spin. But I'm discovering that in the same way I'm a "process" knitter, I'm a "process" spinner too. I want to keep learning, and I'm really, really looking forward to the day when I can purchase a spinning wheel.

I'll be honest...we're not rich, not poor. But the prospects of a wheel purchase are very, very dim. When I casually slipped it into conversation ("you know.....I think that someday.....eventually...I am going to want to buy a wheel") my husband actually laughed out loud. I know he's right; there's alist of $300+ projects as long as my arm that take precedence over a wheel. Plumbing, tires, yada yada. I've been surveying our belongings, considering what to sell on eBay...but there's not a lot left that hasn't been sold for the *Swingset* Fund. But that's another story entirely.

But as I was on the edge of sleep the other night, I had an idea. There's certainly no shortage of knitters on the Internet who like handspun yarn, right? And they're really, really nice people. At least in my experience. Perhaps some of them would help me buy a wheel...and I could spin them some yarn in return for their kindness.

So, *deep breath* in the hope that this will not crash and burn, here's what I'm proposing...I've put up a PayPal donation link to accept donations for my Wheel Fund. Any amount would be deeply appreciated! As a thank-you for every donation of $10, I'd like to send you a 50 gram hank of yarn, spun just for you. I'll send a thank-you e-mail along with a few questions about what kind of yarns you enjoy most.

First things first: We are passionate believers in tithing at our house. I'm convinced that the world would be a drastically better place if we all gave more instead of hoarding stuff for ourselves. We practice this in our everyday lives, teach it to our kids, and I'll practice it here too. At least 10% of all proceeds will be donated to Charkas for Africa, a most stellar cause! Visit the link in the sidebar to learn more about them.

Until I'm able to get a wheel, of course, I'll be spindle-spinning the thank-you yarn. So, depending on the response I get, I can't guarantee that you'll have it next week. But I'll be spinning my heart out until every donor has been thanked!

If you've made it this far, thanks so much for reading. If you're able to give, that's fabulous...even if you're not, you can always pimp my cause on your blog:



(save to your own photo host, if you would) That would be helpful too!

Thanks from the bottom of my heart. :)