Un Chullo

jenjoycedesign© D's chullo 1

Another birthday chullo for my brother.  He just loves them so much, he wears them like hair.  For this birthday I chose to make an anniversary of last April’s Camino Inca Chullo pattern release, knitting from the pattern. This one samples the Incan wave motif, and I knit it up in some lovely soft Juniper Moon “Herriot” yarn, which is 100% undyed baby alpaca, and this baby is soft!    My brother likes the folk look of the ‘gnome’ crown, so I worked the option for slower decrease and it is just a bit gnome like…
jenjoycedesign© D's chullo 2

Its the tassels that my brother really loves, and with a brow/mustache comb that has needle-sharp brass teeth, I am able to comb through the pompom fringe and fluff up the fine hairs to a really fine furry puff …

jenjoycedesign© eyebrow comb

Voila!  I even tied on an extra bit of yarn to comb into a tassle at the tip of the earflap.

jenjoycedesign© D's chullo 3

This being the last of the deadline knitting, I am now able to spend some time experimenting with the traditional “mens”  chullo ~~ the varied regional methods of picot edges, and knit with needles traditionally made from  bicycle wheel spokes!     When time, opportunity & energy come together in the near future,  I will continue where I left off, and embark on a new chullo knitting adventure !    But for now I will leave you with an artful & inspiring short travel ad film  which gives glimpses of the wild landscape and colorful textiles of Peruvian Highlands that I have been so very drawn to …

 

Nora’s Christmas Chulo

jenjoycedesign©Nora-Christmas-hat

One hat, knit for one twenty-month old Nora, for Christmas.

jenjoycedesign©Nora's-Christmas-hat
Knit totally improvised,  over a couple of days, mostly during one Christmas party, and one long hike walking the hills.

jenjoycedesign©Nora's-hat

Now finished, and will send off in the mail. I love it, and I think she will too.  Made from one-hundred percent Peruvian alpaca yarn, who couldn’t?

Well anyway, this is the first of as many gifts as I can possibly knit up until Christmas, which will be all posted in succession.  Starting another immediately… something stripey & pepperminty.

Details on Ravelry here .

Purple, Straight-With-No-Chaser


Nearing the end of my scheduled project deadlines,  I decided to spin up the alpaca stash I’ve built up over the decades.  I have taken it upon myself to spin up a couple of skeins of yarn for Nora’s Mom, as I hear she is knitting now quite regularly, and I thought it an excellent opportunity to put to use some of the exotic and luxurious white huacaya suri alpaca I have.  Well I asked what color alpaca yarn would she like, and she requested purple.

I asked, not being familiar with a one-tone sort of roving dye experience,  ” might you like a reddish purple varigated, sort of plummy …. or maybe a blueish indigo-ey ???”

But Nora’s Mom’s answer was “… just purple “.

Well, Nora’s Mom, here is a nice straight-with-no-chaser PURPLE.

I am not accustomed to having ever before  dyed, spun, or knit anything ‘just purple’, especially in such complete unvarigatedness as this alpaca roving I just dyed.  Oh and in case you didn’t notice, I’ll point out that it is a bit felted.  I was impatient while dying, as I was trying to cook dinner at the same time ( I don’t recommend that), and managed to agitate the roving too much (instead of stirring the soup, perhaps I stirred the steaming dye bath ??)… so I’m paying for that by having to mess with the roving a bit before spinning it. (I think the technical term is ” pre-drafting “.)

Upcoming, a little skein or two of  ~  r e g a l   but sexy ~ and very purple handspun !