Art Yarn For The Harrogate Knitting and Stitching Show 2016

Handspun "cloud" yarn 

After exhibiting for a second time at "The Knitting And Stitching Show" in London's Alexandra Palace this year, I thought I would pack up my trunks and travel with them to their northern counterpart in Harrogate, which is between the 24th and  27th of November 2016. Now, I've spent a couple of wonderful weekends in Skipton and Haworth in Yorkshire, but I have never really been to Harrogate before, and I'm really looking forward to it! 

So, I have been busy making pretty things to take with me, including some fun new art yarns. 

Me and my beautiful Mum (Karen) at the Spring Knitting and Stitching Show

Super Coil Yarn 

 I've mostly been experimenting with super coil yarns. These guys are seriously fun to make! Firstly, I gather all my ingredients ( hand dyed roving in merino and corridale, hand dyed wensleydale locks, glittery bits, Llanwenog farm fleece  for texture) and carded myself some big chunky batts. Then, I spun a thick n thin singles yarn, making sure to add slightly more twist than I would normally. THEN, here comes the fun bit, I plied it using a strong cotton weaving yarn, and kept pushing the yarn up and up and up until it created these gorgeous jumbo coils.

Art Yarn

I just love they way they have turned out! It is pretty crazy yarn. I've taken to immediately winding them into skeins and then.. trying them around my neck as they look like arty necklaces to me. :-)

I also think this yarn would look gorgeous needle felted in lengths on a plain background , then cut and sewn into accessories- you could easily weave this too, making sure to weave some plain yarn in between rows to space it out a little, to really show off the texture.

The picture at the top of my post is another favourite yarn of mine I've called "cloud yarn" because the little white coils look like clouds! This is a similar techniques but with the super coil only in certain areas.

Hand dyed roving 

I've also been dyeing some Polwarth fibres, and carding my lovely balls'of'fluffness (AKA batts) in a rainbow of colours to take to the show.
This batt was made from merino, corridale, BFL locks, and chunky angelina in corals, midnight blues, purples and aqua. Yummyyyy.

Hand carded batt

Art Batt for Spinning and Felting 

Perhaps I'll see some of you in Harrogate. :-)