Day 22 of the Eco Craft Challenge

A friend of mine came over on Friday and loaned me one of her spinning wheels. I've been spinning everyday since. My large ball of white plarn is now broken down into several smaller, but still large, spun balls. I have also plied some of them with VHS tape. I really love how it looks.

I also brought my 12 harness table loom into my craft studio today. I want to start weaving again. Simple weaving. I say simple, because I love ikat weaving. That is what my senior thesis was on. The picture above is at my senior gallery show. The 4 piece 1 foot x 7 foot weaving of water was sold that week to a surgeon in Little Rock, AR. That paid for my loom and warping board. Ikat weaving is when you dye the threads in a pattern before you put them on the loom. It took me 2 to 3 weeks of pure concentration and work to produce a single ikat weaving. Since having kids, I don't have time for that anymore. I hope to go back to it one day. However why not still use my loom for more basic weavings? It would make gifting scarfs so much easier and much more unique. I want to weave my new plied plarn and VHS tape. I'm nervous since its been a few years since I've used it.

I have 8 days left of the craft challenge. I am not going to go spending crazy. I'll hold off on buying the Navajo spindle since I am borrowing the spinning wheel. I might purchase a ball winder. I will definitely be purchasing size US11 double pointed needles to make some Mary Jane Slippers. However I have really been feeling the hurt of the economy this past week. I bought nothing for myself, but still struggled with money. Is it just me or are things more expensive?