Leaves

I peeked out the kitchen door this morning, into the seasonable but bitingly cold air to hear the cheerup cheerup of the robins staking out their territories and was startled to realize that the leaves on the beech tree were large. They are big enough to cover a hen's egg, drooping down in a limp and shiny spring green shade that can surely only last a few days before the darker color of maturity arrives.

I thought "Spring has gotten away from me" and almost laughed out loud. As if I were in control of the advance of time, season or entropy.

But it is time - time to start the silkworm eggs a-hatching.

I took a good pinch out the fridge, wanting 20 to 25, but O think I have more like 50 incubating now. At any rate, I'll take out a pinch, of the different cross-breeds, every week until I know I'll have some ready to spin on the second Saturday of June. That will take me up to the Mannings' Spinning Seminar, where I will deliver my Queen of Fibers dog-and-pony show once again.

Riches

My daughter Alyson has been on a spinning binge, and I am the happy beneficiary. A few weeks ago, just when her last full-time job went away she needed a project to occupy her oh-so-clever hands. She brought up from the basement a big vacuum bag (space bag) full of soft white roving, probably merino. So I said, “Knock yourself out” and she just went to town.

Ten or so days later, she had spun up every ounce into a soft, slightly irregular two-ply with an exquisite cashmere-like hand in creamy white. I had already cast on the diamond-shaped “Shoulder shawl in cherry-leaf pattern” from Jane Sowerby’s Victorian Lace Today.

After finishing the first project, she uncovered another bag containing mostly some fine grey finnsheep in a combed sliver. Two-ply again, but this time Alyson spun a smooth, lustrous worsted at 1000 yards per pound (knitting worsted weight).

The white yard averaged 1100 to 1150 YPP on my MacMorran yarn balance, so both are about a ‘light worsted’ weight. After the shawl, including a lace border, is knit up, there will be a lot of the white yarn left. I still haven’t decided what I’ll do with that.

The grey yarn is quite definitely lustrous, firm and compact. Right now, I’m considering making it up as cabled sweater or perhaps a vest.

Just look at these luscious balls of handspun!

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Knit on, in confidence and hope, through all crises! (EZ)