In Christ alone, my hope is found!

This post is more of an encouragement to all who are followers of Jesus Christ!

 About 2 weeks ago I was going through something emotional, and felt such a burden on my heart, so in order to calm myself down I began to spin some yarn...

As I was spinning the Lord began to speak to my heart, He said very simply...

Elisa, I am the potter and you are the clay, but let me explain this in a way that you will understand and can relate too...

I am like the spinner on a wheel and you are the fiber being spun from my hand!

This spinning wheel is like life, the wheel keeps spinning just like life keeps going... time stops for no man. I am the one who treadle the wheel to spin, because I am the Author of life, I hold time in my hands and am not limited by time...

During life you will go through many ups and downs... Like a soft fiber of wool, fluffy and extremely easy to rip apart.

 But in my hands you won't stay soft and fluffy... you will be turned into something strong. In order to come out more than a conqueror, victorious, and an overcome you must go through a time of drafting...

When you draft your fiber while spinning, you are stretching the fiber to the max that you want in order to get thick or thin yarn. You may feel as if you are being stretched to the limit, and you are hanging on to the tip of a string and feel as if you will break and collapse and not recover, but know this... I am the one holding you as draft your faith, I will not let you go. And if you break, I will cast you back on again, for I hold you with My hands.

While drafting there will be lumps in the fiber that you have to pick out and toss or else it will have an impact on the yarn in a not so great way... Same goes for you, there will be times that I will bring to your attention what things in your life needs to be plucked out that would stumble you or weaken your faith, trust Me when I say to let it go!


All this drafting and plucking in your life may hurt, but this is all temporary!For in the end you will be unbreakable like the twist of a yarn! 

Trust me, Elisa. You are in my hands and you will not be forsaken or forgotten, I hold you in my hand and gently draft you into something stronger, something better, and something valuable... You are precious to me and no matter what, I will never let you go. 

Be encouraged my dear, friends! To Him be the Glory!!!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Ice Storm February 2015, Tennessee

About 3 months ago my beloved husband and I moved from sunny California (I was born and raised there) to Knoxville, so this is my first Ice storm/lots of snow and I honestly thought i'd be panicking more than I thought! I was a bit nervous when it was happening, but other than that, I enjoyed seeing the aftermath in our neighborhood... It's a White Wonderland!

 So what do you think I did during all this cold? Yup, you got it! Made a whole new batch of dyed tunis/alpaca with some merino wool into the mix!

You know, after carding the already dyed wool, I was wondering, "Is there a way I can spin straight from the carder onto the bobbin?", so after some research and learned of different techniques, I decided to give it a "whorl" (HAHAHA! I crack myself up... C'mon... that was a real knee slapper.), and it was amazing!

Spinning straight from the carder onto the bobbin next to our fireplace in this cold weather... Heavenly!

I will admit, I was quite excited to have found the right technique for me that I asked my husband to record it...

But other than learning this new technique I had the most wonderful time spinning one bobbin (filled it all up!) and now working on my second bobbin in order to ply! The colors are more on the purple hue side with some tinsel to add sparkle! 

I just remember a dream I had not too long ago that I was sitting in a clear field with trees surrounding the field. There was only one tree trunk in the shape of a chair that I was sitting on, it was summer time because I could see I was wearing a summer skirt and top, and I was spinning at my wheel, but there was absolutely no fleece surrounding me, so in my dream I looked closer at what I was so intently spinning and what I saw had me in awe...


 I was spinning the sky! I looked up and saw vivid colors of the sunset on the clouds and I was spinning the clouds onto my bobbin and then the sky grew dark but I kept spinning, and the stars came out and I was spinning the stars onto my bobbin the stars looked like fire and diamonds mixed into the soft yarn made of clouds and the sky!

Twilight (50 yards) click on photo to be redirected to my Etsy Shop

I remembered that dream that the Lord gave me, and I was inspired by it and wanted to make something like what I saw in my dream... of course there is no stars, fire, or diamonds on this yarn... but there is sparkly tinsel! Close enough, eh? 

But beside all that I loved having fun in this cold wonderland! But I will admit one thing... Goodness I can't wait for spring!!!!!

While many are drinking hot coffee or hot chocolate, I drink an ice cold slushy during this ice storm... I too like to live dangerously!

I must brag about my beloved! He is so creative!!!! He is really interested in wood art/carving and this is what he made:

He burnt our last name into the wood a few months ago, but just recently he found what he wanted to burn above our name! Our home state and under the star he burnt it says "Home".

                                       and,

He made the shape of Tennessee from a wood pallet and burnt the words on it!

These two AWESOME items he created looks beautiful on our mantle!

No better way to end a cold day than cuddle on the couch with the fire on, snow falling from the sky outside, and our sadie girl snoring peacefully inbetween us on the couch as we have our family devotions! 

I'm DYEING to PLY! Lousy joke... I know.

Both dyed yarns being plied together! Gorgeous!

Last post I showcased the carding, blending and dizzing, now comes the part i've been waiting to do and share with all who are reading... the dyeing and spinning! Good golly, miss molly! I'm excited!

 All right, so after dizzing my wool into roving I at first was going to dye it then spin it. But before all that I forgot to add that I test dyed a batch of roving I made and all the softness and perfectness of the roving was a mess! I have to re-card to get the softness back. But, I wasn't sure if it was "me" that maybe messed up the dyeing process of that test batch, so I decided to be more careful about it in the next batch... 

As I was getting things prepped to being the dyeing procedure, a light dawned on me... "Elisa" I told myself, "You don't know what you are doing. So why not ask people who have done this before!" Well, that seems smart! So I put down what I was doing (to the relief of my soft perfect roving) and went on my laptop to the most awesomest sight I know! Yes... "awesomest" is a word in the dictionary of "Elisa" established 2015. 

I went to Home Steading Today , and there I asked the fiber arts people, should I dye before or after spinning? I explained my situation, and promptly I was blessed with wise responses! Pretty much they said, "Do not dye after you have carded and dizzed into a roving. Because all that work will just go to waste. Either dye after you washed the raw wool and before carding/combing. OR dye after you spun already carded/combed wool." 

 If unsure always ask!

 I was more than happy to postpone the dyeing process, because I was itchin' to spin!

 Because I want to spin for the spring/summer seasons coming up, I didn't want to spin bulky yarn of any sort, I really wanted to strive for fingering weight. So I needed to spin single lace weight so when they are 2 plied I can achieve fingering weight. How on earth could I achieve that?  With this:

Rosie's Precise Spinning Control Card

This helped me keep consistent on how thin or thick I want to spin my yarn. At this point in time i'm not looking to spin "Art" yarn, but consistency in texture and looks! This card is something I believe every spinner should have on them, next to them, in a place you can grab because you will use it!

Lace weight singles

After spinning an awesome amount I got to experience first hand what alpaca/tunic processed all the way by hand feels like spun... it is so extremely soft and springy, meaning quite a lot of elasticity and strength at the same time!

In it's natural color

After I spun, I got the dyes ready. I wanted to mimic something natural. I love taking photography, so I remember seeing this gorgeous birds nest and some moss lying around the ground and those colors just popped in my mind and I had the dyes to try and mimic those same colors! 

Photo I took that inspired me.

So when I dyed the first batch of single yarn, I didn't keep it in the water soaking the dyes for very long. I didn't want it "vivid" but mossy/bird nest like color:

I left it to dry, and began to spin my second bobbin. This time I left it to simmer longer in the dye to give it a stronger green. Here is what I used to dye my yarn:

Before I dye the yarn, I let it soak for up to 2 hours. If I was dyeing roving it would be much shorter than that, but because I spun it, I need to make sure all air bubbles are out so that my fiber is completely soaked so that the dye can penetrate and no "white" spottings anywhere, that's not what i'm going for.

Left to soak for up to 2 hours)

Less is more when adding dyes! First add vinegar then dye away!

Once the water was simmering, the dyes began to go to work, I let it set for about 15 minutes, making sure the water did not boil (if it boils for too long, your fiber WILL felt. ).

I made sure the water was "clear", meaning that when I poked my dyeing spoon in there I could actually see it in the water. That means the dye is stuck to the wool.

Carefully I took out the yarn and with warm water (I didn't use cold water, because drastic change of temperatures from extremely hot to cold will also felt it) and gently squeezed out the water and let it dry.

After making sure the yarn was COMPLETELY dry, I went to work! Plying! It is soooooo much fun, if you know what you are doing. If you don't, you may catch yourself in a tangled mess or bumpy yarn when you really want it smooth! The colors came out very lovely and rustic and a natural that pleases me immensely!

Mossy Nest ( 60 yards ) click to be redirected to my Etsy Shop

Mossy Nest (80 yards) click to be redirected to my Etsy Shop

The beginning of it all...

 "... And here I knitted a shawl out of yarn my daughter in law spun from alpaca yarn..."


 I turned around from what I was crocheting in my advanced crochet class in an adult school in El Cajon, CA, and what this sweet lady was holding up was a simple knitted shawl but it wasn't the shawl that caught my attention, it was the words she spoke... hand spun? Alpaca? 

My drop spindle

 I have been crocheting for a whole year and never thought about where my yarn have come from, I was just used to going to Michaels, Joann's or Walmart for my "cheap" yarn and never thought about where yarn really came from, what types of wool were out there and the different kind of fibers: Protein and Vegetable. I just wanted to finish crocheting my bohemian shawl and that was it.

 I walked over to the lady and asked if I could see her shawl, she allowed me to touch it and with that one touch, I was zapped by the fiber bug!

What I blended, spun and crocheted my first time!

 The feeling of fresh spun yarn on my fingers and seeing how "imperfect" the yarn was, it wasn't spun absolutely perfect like you would get in commercial yarn which intrigued me! So, when I got home from my class I googled, "How is yarn made?", and I was hit with different spinning techniques and history of spinning, and different items used to spin wool into yarn!

 My class was promoting a yarn crawl, and on the list was an alpaca farm! So I asked my mama, " Mami, i'm going to an alpaca farm this week. Want to come with me?" Of course she did! 

My parents blessed me with an Ashford Kiwi 2 Spinning Wheel for Christmas 2014

 The day we arrived on this tiny farm, the smell of alpaca and fresh air was very earthy and invigorating to me! The lady who owned the farm was already teaching another person who to spin alpaca wool on a drop spindle. Right away, I rush over there and asked if my mother and I may participate, to the delight of the lady, she sat us down and began to teach us how to spin yarn.

 I was horrible at it. OH, was I HORRIBLE! But my mom and I were giggling and making fun of eachother how bad we were, and having so much fun learning! My yarn came out over twisted, and under twisted and I was spinning clockwise at one point then counter clockwise another point, the lady just shook her head and said,  "You both may need some practice.".

This is what I woke up too, Christmas Morning, 2014!!!!

My first handspun yarn!

 After that hour I decided to purchase a "beginning spinning" package for $12. It came with 2 ounces of alpaca wool and a simple drop spindle. I  took it home and never took it out of the package. I was afraid of that wool, as God is my witness I was deathly terrified of it! I was a "perfectionist" when it came to crocheting, so obviously I would be even harder on myself when it came to spinning wool into yarn that I would crochet with!!!!! 

 For 2 months I never broke the seal of my starters kit, I wanted too badly, but again... I was intimidated. My mama invited me to a yarn festival and of course, I being an avid crocheter HAD to go!

Blending hackle my beloved husband created for me (with the help of my daddy) under $20, instead of spending $200 for one!

 I was in heaven, all these freshly hand painted and hand spun yarn everywhere was like candy to a child to me! Everywhere I went I saw women spinning on their spinning wheels, and all I could do was sigh wishing I could be like them, but I couldn't even gather the courage to use my drop spindle!

 I walked by these two women who were spinning on their spinning wheels, and one of them looked as if she could do this in her sleep! She looked so peaceful and confident that I couldn't help staring. She saw me and smiled and with a sweet southern accent said, "Well hi there, darlin'! Come on closer if you want!".

I approached and watched her spin. I then said, "Sigh, I so want to spin! I just got curious about it, and I have a drop spindle but I just can't get the hang of it. It seems to hard and confusing (as the lady at the farm wasn't very patient, though she was very kind and humorous with us!) and intimidating!", her friend came close with a drop spindle and said, "Oh honey! Spinning is the most simplest thing you can ever do! It is YOU who can make it complicated if that is where your mind is! Watch me..." and in 30 seconds she showed me the most simplest and easiest way to spin on a drop spindle!! I was amazed how quickly I understood watching her!

 That night I went home and decided, "I won't let this beat me! I want to spin and spin I shall!"

 In 1 hour I ended up spinning almost all of my fiber!!!!! My confidence went through the roof and right there and then, my passion for spinning and for wool sky rocketed into the heavens! I wanted to be a spinner, that was my calling!!!!

This was back inbetween August and early November!

Blended roving! Forrest Sunset is what I call it

 Day and night for 3 months I would be looking at youtube videos on spinning (wheel and spindle), recognizing different fibers (protein and vegetable), spinning technique, blending hackles, carding (paddles and drum), dyeing (natural and acid) and even spinning newspapers!!!!!! I was hooked!!! I would not shut up about spinning to my parents and husband, to the point my husband was curious about it and asking question and even got into researching sheep...

 A month before we moved out of state to Tennessee,  my husband and I have been talking about the future (he always wanted to be self sufficient and homestead and even one day have a mini farm) and he said that he really wants to have a small sheep farm, to support my spinning and for meat/milk as well!!!! 

Me! with the slouchy I blended, spun and crocheted! Thank you for joining me in my new adventure!!!

 So now he and I are now into sheep more than ever! We are still in the process of researching and learning more on homesteading and sheep, and in this learning I definitely want anyone reading this to join us in our adventure!!!!


This is the story how it all started with me and spinning... join me in this spinning fun!