Next step...

[zcat_abroad]

So, what's the next step? Here, I have three hanks of spun yarn - the first straight alpaca, and the other two alpaca and silk mixed.


You can see the gradation of colour which I was aiming for, but it is very subtle. I'm thinking I might not end up with 100% blue, but instead have a dark blue/white ply. I've still got HEAPS of alpaca, and it looks like I've got plenty of yarn.

So, I guess I have to wash this, to set the twist - which is scaring me, because I don't want to wet this! Then I should start crocheting it up. Here's my test swatch:


This is using a needle about 3 sizes up from the one in the pattern, but it's nice and dense, so should be good and warm. I'm aiming to make this:


(Yes, I'll have to keep a close eye on sizing. I rarely follow patterns as they're written though...)

I was planning on gradually going darker as I worked my way out, showing the development of my spinning as well. Now, I'm wondering if I should just work a range of stripes, so it comes out as a light version of this:


Any suggestions? Also, how should I roll that spun yarn into a ball? I'm not sure I want to over-handle it - I guess I'm not entirely trusting my spinning yet!

Comments

Things what you probably know, but just in case...

[untonuggan]

The bonus of a niddy-noddy, besides avoiding answering the door when you are entrapped by yarn (yes I have done this, too), is that you can measure how long your yarn is. Each twist around the niddy-noddy is usually somewhere between .5-1.0 yards long, so then you just count the number of loops, do a bit of math, and bingo! You know how many yards of yarn you spun. Genius.