spinning and learning

I’m so happy to have these days off. Today was a good day.

Spinning

I finished up the first ply of the 2 ounces black Merino that I’m spinning and started the second. This is true combed top so I am spinning from the side to do more of a supported long draw. Spinning goes much faster that way and more air is trapped in the single, ultimately making the yarn squishier and warmer.

Learning

My work hours are such that it is impossible to take classes or attend a knitting group on a week night. So, the alternative is online learning. And there are a lot of things I want to learn and online learning allows me to learn what I want, when I want. Today I took advantage of that.

Lynda.com – Online software training & tutorials – I have Adobe Creative Suite CS3 and only really know how to use two programs included in the Suite – Premiere Pro CS3 & Photoshop CS3. Today, I did some training on Illustrator CS3 – the ‘One-on-One: The Essentials‘ training. Adobe software can be a little intimidating, but I’ve learned that perseverance and time will get you to the skills you need to learn so you can do the fun, exciting, creative stuff you want to learn.

Beaducation.com – Online jewelry making tutorials – They have several free classes, which I watched today. Much better than reading instructions that, like a knitting pattern, can be confusing. I finally saw someone do the basic jewelry techniques that I’ve been reading about – and for free! I can only imagine that the paid classes are even more in depth and I look forward to trying them out. The class I found most intriguing is the Byzantine Chain. Oh, the possibilities!

Never stop learning! :D