Timing is Everything

My timing is impeccable.  I busted my ass all last week to finish the Starling yarn so that I could kick off Tour de Fleece 2012 on Saturday with new and shiny fiber.  So far, TdF is not exactly going according to plan.

On day 1, I spent almost no time spinning yarn.

Instead I spent hours at a different type of spinning--74 miles on my bike.  I feel like 5 hours on my bike in close to 100 degree temps was a valid enough excuse for my poor showing on day 1 of TdF.  Especially since the bike ride required a 4:30am wake up, and when we arrived home at 4:30pm, it was to a house without power.

I have no such excuses for days 2 and 3.  It's not that I've done nothing.  There has been at least some spinning each day.

Sunday:

Monday:

But I'm underwhelmed with my progress and particularly with my lack of enthusiasm.  I'm just not in the spinning mood right now.  Terrible timing since the next 3 weeks are supposed to be a crazy spin-a-thon. 

The upside though?  I'm totally stoked about my new knitting project.

Yup, I did in fact cast on Citron Friday night, and I've been knitting away furiously and loving every minute of it.  I have a sneaking suspicion that my love will wane once the rows get up to 500 stitches, and I'll once again want nothing else but to sit at the spinning wheel.  With my timing, though, that will probably happen the day after TdF ends.

Summer Wool

I really thought I would post several times during the Tour de Fleece. Clearly, that did not pan out.  I had a pretty successful first Tour--started out like gangbusters, had a minor flame out in the middle, but recovered and finished strong.

The final tally was five skeins and over 1200 yards. 

Successes:  Spinning over one pound of fiber.  Learning to navajo ply.

Where I came up short:  I did not spin every day of the Tour (those flame out days).  I did not even come close to finishing the skein I was spinning with my spindle.  I did not finish a laceweight skein.  

That just means I already have goals for next year.

I really did enjoy the Tour, and I'm still loving my wheel.  After three weeks of spinning almost daily, I do need a little bit of a break.  Luckily several knitting projects are scattered about the house to keep me busy.  Only one of them, however, is getting attention--the Oranje sweater. 
   

 

I flew through the sleeves on a road trip a couple of weeks ago, and I've continued to work steadily along since then.  I'm surprised that despite several 100-degree days, I'm still knitting along on a wool sweater instead of turning to a cotton tank top or something, but I'm not going to question productive knitting.

What I am going to do is go play with the puppy who keeps pawing the keyboard.  Either Juno really wants to contribute to the blog or she needs a little attention.  I'm guessing the latter.

Ready. Set. Spin!

On Saturday, the Tour de France began and right along with it, a fiber-enthusiast accompanying event--the Tour de Fleece. Every day the cyclists ride, you spin.  For the past couple years, I've seen bloggers write about the Tour de Fleece.  I admired the full bobbins and piles of skeins they produced, but I never thought I would participate.  I seem to be saying things like that a lot lately.

So on Saturday, I started spinning with the Tour.  Finished about 2 ounces the first day. 

Today was plying day.  Singles had already been spun, but 310 yards of 2-ply later:



I have high expectations for the Tour.  I probably have about a pound of fiber set aside that I've convinced myself I'll be able to finish in the next few weeks.  I'm planning on my first navajo-ply skeins, some spindle time, and maybe even trying to go as thin as laceweight.  As I said, lofty goals.  We'll see what happens.