Wheels and needles

Here are some other thingys I have been working on of late. The shawl is of handspun superwash from Paradise Fibers called "Sebastian". I have a ton of the stuff spun up so it should be a big shawl.
I think a part of my problem is that I tend to spin more than I actually knit, oh well, with all this fiber and yarn my house is well insulated for winter.

Spinning is the most satisfying hobby I have ever tried, and stuck with. It's claming and relaxing. You can watch Tv and spin at the same time or you can listen to some nice music. You can zone out completely and just let your feet and hands do thier thing or you can think about the generations of women who have done the very same thing in the past. What thier lives were like. What alot of people do today as a hobby (obsession!) was an every day chore for women in the past.

Still it's a magical thing when at the end of your labor you have some lovely yarn that you can make into something else or use to decorate your home with by piling it up in baskets.

The other picture above is my Kromski Minstrel Castle wheel. This is a terrific wheel. It has no plastic parts on it and works like a dream with copious oiling. It's so wonderful to have something that is a functioning machine but also a work of art in it's own way.

Housewifery

Make me, O Lord, Thy spinning-wheel complete.
Thy holy Word my distaff make for me;

Make mine affections Thy swift flyers neat;
And make my soul Thy holy spool to be;

My conversation make to by Thy reel,

And reel the yarn thereon spun of Thy wheel.
Make me Thy loom, then; knit therein this twine;
And make Thy Holy Spirit, Lord, wind quills.

Then weave the web Thyself. The yarn is fine.
Thine ordinances make my fulling mills.

Then dye the same in heavenly colors choice,

All pinked with varnished flowers of paradise.
Then clothe therewith mine understanding will,
Affections, judgement, conscience, memory,

My words and actions, that their shine may fillMy ways with glory and Thee glorify.
Then mine apparel shall display before YeThat I am clothed in holy robes for glory.
Edward Thomas (1642-1729)