Roberta all better

Broken flyer

 So, back during tour-de-fleece the flyer of my Roberta broke.  One of the arms just went flying across the room, (very glad it didn't hit me).  So the Jacob/Romney blend that I was working on went into hold.  All of the Jacob (2 pounds) was spun, and since that was my original goal, I counted the tour as a win.

A new flyer, the Roberta now has a jumbo flyer as standard and both regular size and jumbo bobbins come with it.  I had only the regular bobbins so I needed at least 1 jumbo bobbin.  The whole thing cost over 200 dollars so I had to save up.

Ordered the flyer and bobbin at the beginning of September, and the Woolery had to order the flyer so the whole order was forwarded to Ertoel, in Australia.
waiting...waiting...waiting...
And it came last Tuesday.

Jumbo flyer

And here it is the new flyer installed on the wheel.  The bobbin is not there because I had just finished the first plying of over 600 yards, and it was on the lazy kate waiting to be wound off onto the skein winder. It works really well, and I am happy with it.

 

See over 600 yards of Jacob/Romney.  Now off to the washer for a bath, then reskeining and the final measurements to call this part of the project done.  And on to designing and knitting sweaters.

Jumbo bobbin

Mystery clue 2

Fall mystery 2013 Clue 2

Closeup

At the end of clue 2.  So off to find something else to knit until Saturday.

Another mystery

Yarns

Angora/merino handspun

Fiddlesticks Exquisite

Starting the Fall mystery shawl from Goddess knits.  I was afraid that the pink would be too heavy since it puffed quite a bit when it was wet finished. 

But I tried both, knitting the first clue fist with the exquisite then with the handspun. 

OK, handspun wins, it is soft and smoochy and will be a warm shawl.  So the blue is heading for the frogpond.

What I have been doing

Stove Pad

Wood stove

First half merino/angora

2nd half started

 Last spring, after we turned the heat off, and had stopped using the stove, our new stove pad arrived.  It is slate and beautiful, and I love it.  It is also expensive and heavy as lead, needs 3 men and a boy to move it.  But it is wonderful,  so the rusted old stove just could not be used on my new stove pad. 

Since the stove was out on the porch anyway, Carl wire brushed, and used a chemical rust remover, and washed it down with mineral spirits,  Then I went out and blacked the thing.


Four coats of stove black and it looks like new, So as soon as there is another man to help move it, it will be back where it belongs and ready for cold weather.











On the fabric front I have been spinning laceweight merino/angora, this is the first 2.75 ozs.  on one of my new storage bobbins.  from here,  they have shafts that go into my pink electric screwdriver (isn't it pretty) it is also lightweight and comfortable for me to hold for 40 minutes while I wound that bobbin.  The screwdriver rotates slowly enough that I get to see and check every inch of the single.






The 2nd half is carded and I have started spinning it, hopefully finished by Friday, to ply and start a mystery shawl knit-a-long on Saturday.