Back by popular demand

I won't even try to explain (in detail) what I've been up to for the past several months instead of blogging. There's been work, chores, school work, travel, volleyball, dancing, more travel, more dancing, and lots and lots of time with Mr. Darcy. There have even been some fiber-related activities. In short, I've been busy (I'm not sure that word adequately conveys how much I've been doing), and blogging hasn't quite made it to the top of the to-do list. But thanks to several factors (things settling down a little, Mr. Darcy's being out of town, being informed that I've been missed in the blogosphere - this was particularly touching - and the alignment of the planets), I'm back. And I think (no promises, especially given my track record) it will be on a regular and somewhat frequent basis!

Unfortunately, as behind as I am on blogging, I'm just as behind on going through photographs of my yarn, knitting, and other fiber endeavors. So it'll be a while for me to catch up. And it means that tonight, instead of writing about recent knitting, I'm going to tell you about my new hobby, because it's the only thing that's got a picture ready to go.

For well over a year now, I've been thinking about spinning. I really like the magic of knitting and all of the things you can do with yarn and sticks. But I'm also fascinated by the yarn itself, and how it gets to be the way that it is. One of the manifestations of this was my foray into dying (there are plans for more). Another manifestation is my interest in spinning. I'm deeply intrigued by the process that turns fluff into usable yarn.

For Christmas, my mom gave me a drop spindle kit that consisted of a small drop spindle and about half an ounce of purple roving. When I opened it, I immediately had to give this spinning business a try, and so sat there spinning until I'd turned that half ounce of roving into this:


It's not enough to knit into anything, really, so I'm just going to put it on a loop of fishing line and call it a Christmas tree ornament.

About a week ago, I got the spindle back out and started on some new yarn, but pictures will have to wait. And, even more exciting, I discovered that there's a yarn shop/fiber artist school only a few miles from me. I can't wait to take some classes and learn to really spin!