A Ball of Yarn and Knitting Needles

Recently I received an email from a customer who had been to the Bay of Fundy
and taken some of our work back with her to the States...
... she wanted to know if I made any earrings with a "Ball of Yarn and Knitting Needles"...
at first I hesitated... I hadn't done any like that....
a challenge ..
well, I could try.... why not...  may be fun...
Worth a try anyway... 

...after some experimenting...  and lots of bent and twisted wire....
I began to think of how I could do them...

These are some I came up with.. 

above... a antiqued copper ball with some little needles inserted through the ball..

... and a separate ball of yarn with two hammered, textured and antiqued longer knitting needles....

...a little dangly and made a nice little clink when you moved... sounded pretty.

She also wanted a pair that included a "Book and a Ball of Yarn" for a friend
who does podcasts of reading for Craft Lovers..

I liked that ...
...you get to do any Art or Craft Work that strikes your fancy and she will read to you...  

Just my thing...

I loved how they turned out and she did too...  I sure would love to see them being worn.   

  ... Sterling Silver and Copper earrings 

... top photograph background is Kaffe Fassett's "Glorious Knitting" Cover. 

I once knit that sweater from my handspun sheeps wool and Angora goats mohair that I  hand-dyed..it was rows of stars in changing colors...  

most amazing sweater I ever did.... wish I still owned it.

Norwegian Star Mittens

These Mitts are ones I knit years ago... I am putting them away for the season ... I surely hope I will not need them again this spring...

They are warm and made of wool.... The black is from the Briggs and Little Woolen Mill in Harvey Station, New Brunswick.... The white I handspun from the fleece of my Border Leicester sheep.... At that time I had 2 sheep and 3 Angora goats that provided lots of fleece... I sheared them myself with a pair of hand shears which looked like big primitive scissors... slow job... the sheep once a year... the goats twice a year...

This Norwegian knitting pattern originated in the Selbu, a small northerly district where Norway's oldest knitting tradition is two-stranded knitting... which creates a warmer and thicker mitt due to the two layers of wool trapping the heat....

The sjenn-rosa or the eight petaled rose, is a favorite pattern... known as the "Norwegian Star"... classically knit in high contrast colors such as white on black....

I love the design and the black and white against the snow...

...but just before I put them away I better mend a couple of holes as they have become a little thread bare on the palms... I also might try a little watercolor of them and maybe post it tomorrow...