Spinalcat's Crafty Adventures

Multicolor Navajo ply Originally uploaded by Buxtrosion . I'm pretty happy with my first shot at Navajo plying (also my first time plying on my wheel). By the end of the bobbin, the hand motions became pretty automatic. Sometimes I had trouble keeping the tension on the strands of the loops so they wouldn't ply back on themselves. If I had a real lazy kate to get more distance between the bobbin and my hands it might help. Anyway, I love getting the rounded look of a 3-ply while keeping the color changes in the single. Alden Amos calls Navajo plying "more of a stunt than a technique," but who cares? The big question is what to do with it. It's only about 60 yards.

Multicolor singles Originally uploaded by Buxtrosion . First spinning on my new wheel. I just got a mini tripod like Caro blogged about on Splityarn, so hopefully I can get nice photos more easily as long as the camera cooperates.

Ashford Traveler Spinning Wheel Originally uploaded by Buxtrosion . Double drive, double-treadle Ashford Traveler finished with Formby's tung oil. I finally got it finished, assembled, and oiled. I tested it out by using a short singles yarn left over from the knucks. I added some twist and plied it. I'm really looking forward to spending time on this wheel!

Traveler flyer assembly Originally uploaded by Buxtrosion . Double drive flyer assembly from my new Ashford Traveler.

Ashford Niddy Noddy Originally uploaded by Buxtrosion . Niddy noddy for making skeins, bought when I ordered my wheel. I tested out the finish (Formby's tung oil) on the niddy noddy before my wheel came in.

Knucks from Knitty Originally uploaded by Buxtrosion . Knucks pattern from knitty.com. Done in a wool/alpaca blend I had left over from my first attempt at the cabled hat for my brother. I first tried the textured cuff, but it wasn't quite stretchy enough and the crab stitch crochet edging just didn't agree with this yarn. I don't really crochet except for edgings, but I practiced on smooth yarn and it looked fine. When I tried it on the glove, it just looked lumpy. So I went with a plain ribbed cuff (it's black and fuzzy- really no need to get fancy anyway). Ended up using a plain k1 p1 bind-off. When I tried the sewn bind-off recommend in the pattern, the sewing yarn fell apart! I'm becoming quite picky about the way I cast off, often redoing it several times using different methods. There's no reason to spend hours knitting something only to have an ugly edge!

Knitpicks Dancing sock Originally uploaded by Buxtrosion . Closeup showing garter rib cuff and heel stitch on the heel flap. I think I prefer eye of partridge stitch, but I gave heel stitch a shot.