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Down to the Buttons

denisemor 2 April 24, 2016

The Chone Burr project is off the needles and fully assembled!

And I am pleased 🙂

It turned out well, I think, and fits nicely, though the sleeves are a little slim (Or maybe my arms are just thick)

I’m glad I went with the 44″ size for the shoulder space, but it could probably have used a bit more waist shaping, as it is a little boxy.
But I do love it. And it is 99% done.

Here is a shot of the collar detail-

And here is one of my lovely sleeve caps-

I used to be a little afraid of set in sleeves and sewn together sweaters, but I think I’m finally getting the hang of it. It was actually almost enjoyable putting this together!

(You are not imagining things, the cap of that sleeve is a bit darker than the neighboring pieces. A little natural variation in Chone wool coloration that I didn’t notice until it was all assembled.)

So it was another good Brooklyn Tweed pattern experience. And I even learned a new technique- the stem stitch bind-off (used around the buttonband and collar). Work out great and might come in handy for other projects.

Now I need the perfect buttons.

I’m not sure what that means yet, but I’m sure I’ll know them when I see them.

Wool Washin’ Weather

denisemor 2 April 17, 2016April 17, 2016

It’s been a beautiful weekend.

So much to love about this time of year.

Blooming trees

ohmygosh- look at those tiny figs!

Baby chickens venturing forth into the yard-

And lots of fresh wool to process!
I made a start with Wynette, a little Gotland/Finn/Shetland cross from Schoonover Farm

So pretty and soft and fluffy. And gorgeous mix of black, gray and white. Going to have to find something really neat to make out of my lovely Wynette fleece.

And then also got some Edgar washed up-

Lookin’ good Mr. Edgar!

I’m also getting really close on my Chone Burr cardigan.
Working away on the button band and collar. Once that is done it’s only a matter of setting in the sleeves and sewing some seams.
Pretty darn sure I’ll have something to show you next week 🙂

Chone Burr Update

denisemor 0 April 10, 2016

The Chone Burr project is moving along at a pretty good clip!

I’m close to finishing up sleeve number two (last piece piece in of the pattern), so to keep things going I am blocking the back and fronts.

Hopefully they will be dry when I’m ready to start assembling and picking up stitches for the button band and collar.

I estimate that blocking, assembly and finishing will take approximately 20 hours, so there is still much work to do, but I feel like it’s coming together nicely.
But I still need buttons. Hadn’t even thought about that until just now!

And then there is the wool.
I have all these lovely fleeces to wash up.

I wonder what they want to be.

Rainy Day Shearing

denisemor 0 March 27, 2016

Yesterday was beautiful. So sunny I think I got a little bit of a burn.
Today not so much.

But the icky weather did provide me with an opportunity to get some shearing done. The boys were hanging in the shed to get out of the heavy rain, and I jumped at the chance to relieve them of their fleeces!

Frank and Griff were not exactly thrilled to be getting the beautyshop treatment (even with lots of rubs), but were pretty cooperative once I got the halter on them.

Felix was kind of a bugger, and the quality of his haircut reflects that. He just wouldn’t let me get that last bit of scraggly wool off his rear end. So he gets to walk around looking really silly and unkempt for a bit.

Felix and Frank were quite felted again. But Griff’s was awesome. Crimpy and fluffy and massive. Man, that boy grows a lot of wool!
Here is the wool take (after skirting out the positiveley not useable stuff) drying in the shop.

And Friday I got to help out with shearing over at Schoonover Farm. It is always so neat to see Eifion Morgan work, and I brought home a lovely little fleece from Wynette, a sweet little Gotland/Finn/Shetland girl. Here she is being sheared-

and here is the woolly goodness.

Part white, part black, part steely grey. Fine and soft, with a bit of Gotland sheen. Going to be so fun to play with!