Dyed Bluefaced Leicester Top - Carding and then Spinning.

I enjoy spinning with a variety of colours, so the next step for me was to dye my

 own fibre. I began with my favourite fibre - Bluefaced Leicester. I used natural combed top.

Trying to decide which colour to make first is the hard part... mixing up the powdered acid dyes into solution is the fun part! For example, to get the pistachio green (top right in photo below) I used yellow, turquoise, magenta and a tiny speck of black. For rose pink (top left in photo), I used magenta, red, and a tiny speck of yellow. Hand dyeing can be unpredictable, as the colour of the dye solution often turns out differently when it's fixed to the fibre. With just a handful of dyes, the range of colours that you can blend is amazing!

You need vinegar or citric acid to fix the dye to the fibre, and I prefer to use citric acid which you can buy as crystals and has no smell. You need more acid for stronger, more vibrant shades. The dye and acid need heat to work and there are many ways to do this. 

As I dye small batches I prefer to use the "space dyeing" method, where you use a microwave. I find it quick and simple to do, but you need to have a separate microwave and utensils, kept just for dyeing.

After rinsing and drying the tops, the next step was to blend the fibre on my drum carder, I chose four colours from the selection of dyed tops - the three pinks and a touch of pistachio. I made two soft fluffy batts ready for spinning.

The colour changes worked really well during spinning - after leaving the yarn to rest on the bobbins for a while, I plied them together to make this pretty skein. The BFL was soft to use and spinning from a batt made it extra fluffy!

Dyeing your own fibre is really fun - my next project is to start from the raw material and process a BFL fleece that I bought from a farm in Hexham, Northumberland - where the Bluefaced Leicester sheep has long been a popular breed.
Emma x

Recycling Wool

These colourful creations were actually a scarf belonging to my daughter, and after many winters of keeping Hollie warm and cosy, the scarf wasn't used any more, so I got thinking - how I could reuse the wool as it is such a lovely combination of colours, and it would be shame to waste it.
Whilst carefully unpicking the scarf (lots of patience was required!) I decided to crochet a mini heart cushion for Hollie's bedroom. The yarn which is an aran weight was lovely to work with and as the colour changed quite frequently it gave a striking effect. After adding three buttons for decoration, we were really pleased with the cushion!

For my next project I crocheted a cover for an old jam jar using the same wool. Working out how I was going to crochet a lid cover was easy; I began crocheting a spiral and continued until it was big enough to cover the lid. After a few rounds without increase the number of stitches, I finished off with some scalloped edging! I also added one of my favourite spiral charms to complete the look. I decided to use the cute jam jar to store some of my lovely buttons - simple and easy to make!

I still have 30g of yarn left to make something else, so any ideas?
Emma x

Egg Box Sunflowers Update

So I'm back with an update on the sunflowers that started their little journey back in May, when they were only little seedlings... Now look at them!

Some were eaten by the naughty snails and slugs in our garden, some were damaged by the wind, however this proved to be the tallest sunflower in our garden! 

As soon as the petals unfolded, the bees immediately homed in on the sunflowers, and took quite a liking to them judging by their frequent visits! Also later on I'm sure the birds will enjoy the sunflower seeds to eat!

Bradley and I have really enjoyed watching these sunflowers bloom, and they have brightened up our garden this summer!

Emma x

Egg Box Sunflowers

My son Bradley has been growing plants at school recently, and as it's now Spring time, we thought that it would be fun to grow some giant sunflowers at home!

I gathered empty egg boxes for him to use as mini plant pots, and he (not so carefully!) filled each section with compost, adding a seed in each one! After embellishing each box with a beautiful drawing, we left them in a sunny warm spot indoors!

6 days later, the seedlings had sprouted, and Bradley's really excited to see the seeds turn into huge sunflowers! He has already given some boxes to the family for Easter, and they very much enjoyed their gifts!


Once the weather has turned warmer, we will plant them in the garden as I'm pretty sure they will out-grow these egg boxes soon! We'll update you later in the season to see how much they have grown! 
Emma x

Cosy Wool for Birds Nests

As you may know from my previous post, I have found a new love for spinning my own yarn! As it is the nesting season, I thought it was an ideal time to share with you an environmentally friendly tip! 
With all the excess strands of fibre that I can't use for my spinning, I have collected together and loosely placed inside a weaved basket I made whilst I was on holiday. After that, I simply hung the basket up on my shed in the garden (hang it where it is visible, and the birds are able to perch nearby), and waited for the birds to appear! The soft wool is a great material for the birds to take away and use to line their nests. 


To my surprise, the very next day, a bird had already taken a liking to the fibre, and was on its second visit when I took this photo! I hope you've found this tip useful! 
Emma x

Spinning - Making My Own Yarn

Since my love of Alpacas began, I thought about the process from fleece to yarn, and that's when I became a spinning fanatic! I was then lucky enough to receive my very own Kromski Fantasia Spinning Wheel as a present from my family! To begin with, I found this skill quite hard to grasp. 

My first skein of yarn didn't quite turn out as I wanted it to! It was uneven in places, and it wasn't really how I imagined it to look! But as I have discovered, with most crafts practice makes perfect, and slowly but surely my technique improved along with the standard of my yarn. 

My first attempt was with natural Swaledale (beige) and Teeswater wool (cream) 

Experimenting with assorted fibres is a great way to give your yarn a beautiful intricate texture, so once I had mastered the basic technique, I moved onto new fibres. 

I used died Merino in two tones of duck egg blue with Tussah silk 

From fibre to finished yarn! I spun the two colours of Merino together, and the silk separately. Then I plied them both together, and voilá!

So here is my yarn! Looks so much better than my first attempt, don't you think?

Emma x

Flower Power Pot

The perfect give idea for someone special is this hand-decorated pot! Using a cross stitch cardboard pot, I covered the removable disk in the lid with cute polka-dot material and added one of my own crochet flowers - they are really easy to make! Last but not least, sew a button on top as the finishing touch! Whats great about this
cute and useful gift is that you can customize it yourself! You can paint or decoupage the box, or add your own

 personal touch with an over-sized button! 
Emma x