The kids and I headed up to Cedar Falls today to visit my parents. We’re staying for about 48 hours. Apparently that means I should pack four projects.

We had a busy day today. I spent an hour on the phone dealing with a home warranty issue. We went to the library. Audrey had a Girl Scout meeting. It made for good knitting time. I’m on the heel flap of my second Knit Spin Farm Little Known Holidays Yarn Club. The colorway this month is Inspire Your Heart with Art Day (January 30).

Are you knitting socks this week?

I spent some time to day working on a merino spin from Yarn and Dogs in the Sea Glass colorway. I’ve now spun with enough breeds to know that I don’t love spinning merino. I love knitting with it and wearing it, but I would rather spin BFL. I have two 100 g braids of this fiber, so I’ll be working on it for a week or two.

I’m also working on a spin with Audrey. We bought some raw fleece at the orchard we spend all fall exploring. I washed it and Audrey has been carding it. We’ve both been spinning it. The wool is not great, but it is a fun project to do with Audrey. She has requested to dye it yellow with marigolds and wear it to the orchard next fall.

I hope you had a cozy Sunday enjoying your hobbies.

Yesterday the kids and I got out of the house and headed to the Des Moines Art Center. I wanted to see the Justin Favela exhibition before it closes tomorrow. I also wanted to walk around a big building for a couple of hours to keep the kids busy because it was too cold to play outside last week.

The Favela exhibit was created on site and was inspired by other works in the museum. The kids thought the huge taco pizza was really cool. I really liked the tissue paper murals.

We all agreed that the pizza chandelier was really cool. We are taco pizza fans and art fans, so this really brought it all together for us.

I enjoyed talking about the art with the kids. Audrey loved seeing the paintings and didn’t want to leave. Elliot, however, was ready to go by the time we got to the last gallery.

I would like to be better about getting to the Art Center. They have a nice collection to explore. Next time I might leave Elliot at home with John.

I hope your weekend was full of adventures.

I finished John’s hat. He really likes it. He always asks for beanies, but I have finally figured out he wants skull caps. I am going to size down his hats in the future, as he really likes small hats. The yarn is A Yarn to Dye For DK in their Feasting At The Farmer’s Market colorway.

I’ve been spinning this week too. I spun some silk Marilyn sent me. I loved spinning it, and look forward to spinning silk again. It was so luxurious.

I finished my Hinkley spin, and continually annoy my husband by making him look at it and then yelling “I MADE IT” in his face. He is a patient man. I also spun some gray alpaca/silk (also from Marilyn, who is amazing). The fiber was so soft I would like to create a nest for myself out of it. I have no use for a personal nest, but I would do it anyway. I also plied some leftover singles into a random skein and I like it best of all. Go figure.

I hope you had a good week. If it is cold where you are, stay warm. If it is warm where you are, please step outside and feel the warm sun on your face for me.

Two months ago today I took my first spinning class. It’s hard for me to believe that I’ve only been spinning for two months, as it is all I want to do now. I’m sure the newness will wear off, but for now I want to spin all of the things.

After talking with my long distance spinning coach I decided to try several breeds. While walking around the fiber festival before my spinning class I picked up a British Breed Sampler Set from Honey Gold Acres. With ten different 25g mini braids it was a great way to try out different British breeds. The included breeds are: Blue Faced Leicester, Dorset Horn, Hill Radnor, Masham, Kent Romney, Swaledale, Teeswater, Wensleydale, Whiteface Woodland, and Welsh Mountain.

BFL was beautiful to spin, which I anticipated. I’ve spun it before, and I’ll spin it again. It’s lovely.

Dorset Horn was softer than I expected, and I found it enjoyable to spin.

Hill Radnor can kiss my ass. I did not enjoy this spin.

Masham looked so much like witch hair I scared my kids when I told them that is what I was spinning. It is not soft wool, but it was fun to spin.

Kent Romney was OK. I would spin it again, but I would not seek it out.

Swaledale feels like what I imagine it would feel like to spin wire.

Teeswater – oh my goodness such long locks! I liked spinning Teeswater, but I do not think I would enjoy wearing clothing knit with it.

Wensleydale flew off my wheel. I blinked and I was done spinning.

Whiteface Woodland was my favorite. It spun easily. It is very floofy. I love it. I want to spin this again. The Fleece and Fiber Sourcebook advices that Whiteface Woodland fleeces can vary significantly. I hope that the next time I get a Whiteface Woodland braid it is as nice as this one.

Welsh Mountain was easy to spin. It would be great in a rug or a wall hanging, but not in knitwear.

Now that I’ve shared my thoughts with you I think I’ll add notes to my Fleece and Fiber Sourcebook. I like to add notes to recipes in my cookbooks, and I think I’ll find notes on fleece just as helpful.

What super nerdy fiber things do you like to do?