random driveby post

So, I had all these good intentions to blog more frequently this week.  I forgot I'm still covering for one of my coworkers, whose accounts are utterly filled with crazy people.  Those aren't the words I've been using all day today, but they'll work.  I'm too tired for vitriol tonight.

So, in no particular order, here are the things I photographed today.

In order to keep colors from blending where I don't want them to, I do a single color per day on each of these.  Today was yellow on concalls day.

I keep wishing for snow.  Thinking about snow.  Contemplating a nice fire and a white-out outside.  I think it has to do with these 2 above....  the left is knit with a single strand of elann baby peruvian lace and a single strand of elann silken kidd.  The right is knit in cashmere.  Touching them is like a pile of downy goodness.

As you can see, wishful thinking abounds here today.  Both of those are projects I'd like to see on the needles in short order.  But first I have to free up the 60 inch, size 3us needles for the red.

And finally I'm debating some possibilities for the 1 year anniversary.  I like this dyer a lot, and these skeins are random madness.  Gotta love me some random madness.

I actually want/need to do another thank you post because I got a buncha unexpected goodies in the mail today.  I can see that some of them were posted a while ago, so I know my main branch office has been behind(?) playing games (?) having a bad month (?) as well.  I'm just so touched, I owe them their own post.  I won't forget, but want to photograph in natural light so that everyone can see how cool and uplifting they are.

Hope your week involves keeping cool and knitting lots!

Fiber Festival Friday returns!

ETA:  this giveaway is now closed, but we have a new one up.  Also all folks who entered into this giveaway are being entered into the "I'm sorry my job is evil" giveaway as well.

This week has been insane to put it lightly.  I did get a little knitting in a park in Boston, but it's been yarn-light around here for far too long.

So first things first, our winners from last week's blog post.  Same short-guy generated winners,

First up we have Greywolfie, who posted:

Hi, the yarns are so pretty..!
I've not tried anything other then DK yet..so if I were to choose I'll go for the lace weight..

Next up, is lorraine, who said:

id have to say lace right now..im into making shawls and i love the yardage on some of these hanks..thanks so much fot the giveaway! 

And last, but not least, we have craftink who said:

I like both sport weight and lace. Oh you can never choose with yarn! evrey single skein is just adorable with unlimited potential!

Little man pulled, and we've matched up the yarns with the names and emails are about to go out to the winners.  Congrats to all!!

This week, I have some goodies from a dyer whose cycles I always miss online... the colors I love best are always sold out.  And for good reason.  I found the Dirty Water Dyeworks booth and did a happy dance.  Luckily, the nice woman there didn't run away in fear.  I suspect she gets these reactions from most of the knitters who manage to hunt her down in person.

She does some beautiful work, and the color depth is just luscious.  I've photographed these skeins separately, because photographed together I couldn't capture the beauty of the yarns.

First up, we have:

360 yards of glorious blues and greens in 50/50 merino/tencel.  Drool worthy colors, soft pet-able fibers.... what's not to love??

Next up:

 Such gorgeous blue.  A generous 401 yards, AND 100% superwash BFL.  Did I mention BFL, in superwash??  It's just lovely.  I'm not a big blue fan, but this I could not leave behind.

And finally, this cutie:

75% superwash merino, 25% nylon in sexy peacock greens.  It is lovely.  And an even more generous 464 yard hank.  Sure, you could make socks with this.  But I bet you know what I'd rather make with it hehe

So, because I'm a bad blogger but a good shopper, I got enough for me and enough for the blog!  One of each of these skeins will go home to a commenter.  Just leave a comment telling me who your favorite independent dyer is, and a method to contact you, and I will be posting one winner for each of the skeins next Friday.

Previous weeks winners can always put their name back in the hat.  If I get more than 15 entries, I use random.org otherwise little man chooses our winners.

Err, and I'll be back at home again next week, so I'll be able to blog more and have the winners up at a more reasonable time.  Congrats to all!!

Fiber Festival Friday, winners and next giveaway!

ETA:  This giveaway is now closed, check out the latest give-away here in this post.

Let's start the day off right!  Through the random magic of little man and a bowl full of strips of paper, the winners of the first festival giveaway have been revealed.  I was pretty stoked because the winners actually chose opposite yarns, and I don't have to make an administrative decision that might make someone sad.

So, name number one is Michaela who said
"Wow, this is really beautiful yarn, and the colours are prefect for summer. Suddenly I've got lemons and peaches on my mind :) I love the yellow/golden yarn- I think it would be perfect for a shawl such as "Citron"."

And here's what is shipping to you:

And winner number two is GailGodin who said:
"the orange color is one of my favorites. I would make a shawl or something lovely to show off that gorgeous shimmer!"
Here's your care package waiting to go:

Contact is about to go out, and congrats to the winners!  I hope you enjoy it as much as I do :)

On to new business.  While I was at the fiber festival, I ran into one of my favorite fiber artists with a new name.  The artist behind Sereknity Fiber Arts has re-branded because people were having a hard time finding her with her original name.  You can now find her at Mad Color Fiber Arts.  Definitely check her out, she's going to be running contests and giveaways for a while to celebrate the rename.

While I was there, I picked up two skeins of lace-weight blue silk and linen yarn perfect for a summer weight something.  The best part about a silk/linen blend is that it will work even for folks with hair-fiber allergies.  Here's what I couldn't walk away from:

So, one for me one for the blog!

But while I was thinking about it, the prize stack seemed a little light.  To sweeten things a little, I went into my stash and pulled 2 of the artist's standard colorways.  This week, our giveaway is one skein of variegated blues in lace-weight silk and linen, one skein of superwash sock weight in colorway black pearl, and one skein of sport weight greens.  See, aren't they pretty??

As last time, one winner for each color/weight of yarn.  To enter, just leave a comment telling me what your favorite weight yarn is and why as well as a little bit on how to contact you.

Next Friday (June 3) I will announce winners on this, and put up the next batch of giveaway goodies.
Happy knitting!!

When time files...

Sheesh, I got snowed under again!

This is the knitting that's been going on in the meantime:

A hoodie, size 6 needs blocking and buttons sewn on

Pieces of Gudrid, actual color is scarlet.  I'd ask why I can't capture reds... but I think I should just accept it.

Let's get a closer look at that:

detail of unblocked cable, photo still 100% color inaccurate

And then there's this:

spring shawl version in pale green cashmere

 A little of this:

light fortifications:  1 oz peach schnapps, 6 oz gingerale, frozen blueberries

 So I wouldn't be afraid to do this:

Actually, not too bad a representation of the color.

This will be a sweater for meeeeee.  It was a ton of fun, and I have more dye-days planned.  Speaking of dyers check out Tanis!  She's having a giveaway, and the prize is pretty awesome.  Even if you don't see yourself wearing a Wispy cardigan in silk, I'm sure you  know someone who would and would love it.  Just sharing the love!

Next week should be more calm.  At least, that's what I keep telling myself....

Plans for the dyepot

Guess what I'm doing on Sunday?

Words fail to capture.... thank you!

Today, the mailman assaulted my front porch (a first, since the majority of this winter there have been 3 feet of snow blocking access).  It was completely unexpected, and I figured it was computer parts or something similar for the spousal unit.

Imagine my surprise when I saw a big box:

And it was addressed to me! 

I was caught totally flat footed, but decided to open it and see what was within.

On top was a back issue of Vogue Knitting that I didn't have yet.  And under that.... well take a look!

And the box seemed like Fibber McGee's closet of Mayhem... only pretty and yarn-like!  The more things that came out of the box, the more I found in it.  I suspect some kind of Non-Euclidean Geometry went into packing this box because it contained so much pure awesome it should have taken 2 boxes!

So, first let me show you how the yarn-y (and related) goodness ended up tumbling out:

I did take a shot of each yarn individually, but loved the composite shot best.

Ok, from the back to the front, left to right:
Vogue Knitting Winter 2004/2005, VK Spring/Summer 2006, and VK Fall 2004.
Blue Heron Yarns Rayon/Metallic (500 yds) in Sunrise, Jasmine 100% Silk (!!) color 7025, 8 oz of gorgeous Cream cotton/rayon from Robin and Russ Handweavers, a beautiful blue/purple wool/acrylic/polyamide by Niagara, a pretty spring pastel by Crystal Palace Yarns (Musique, acrylic/wool/cotton), and a fun beachy-Summery ball of Poppy by Tahki Yarns. 
In the very front is a flat of Vanilla block pillar candles (one of which I have lit as I type).

I am filled with awe, gratitude and glee.  This is like getting a box of pure fun, and I'm just fondling these and day-dreaming.  But I have to admit, you haven't seen everything yet.  I haven't shown you what was hiding in the pink paper under the card.

GASP!

This picture isn't as clear as I would wish, the hat has a really sweetly purl'd heart shape.  They are gorgeous and I actually cried happy tears when I opened the package. <3

I love them.

As a matter of fact, I love them so much, the first thing I did was... well, this:

yep, I still photograph badly ;-)

And then my husband caught me chortling around the house and captured this:

He actually caught me running around the downstairs and booty-dancing about in them.

I might be typing this out while ninja-ing.  The scarf/cowl is a long loop with no detectable seaming.  It's awesome as a long loopy cowl, and it loops perfectly 2 times around my neck.  Suddenly, I'm really stoked that we're getting freezing rain!

The person who sent this to me is just amazing.  They have a special eye for the world around them, and use their knitting powers for good on a regular basis.  I am very grateful to the Internet for introducing us, and am honored to have such a 'knit buddy.'  I don't know if they wish to be identified, but if they don't mind I will update with a more direct thank you to this post.

And, really?  Thank you.  So very, very much.

This made my month!

where did the time go?

Today's entry is brought to you by the letter V (as in Vacation and Vomit) and the number 3 (as in the average number of showers per day I've needed since Friday)....

Well, this week is school vacation week.  I took it off to spend some time with the kids.  In some ways I'm very glad I did, as trying to work while a 40 lb moaning creature lays on your lap can be somewhat detrimental to actually getting things done.  In other ways, I look at the knitting I refuse to touch while I am continually bathed in effluvia and sigh.  But, I did do my taxes, so that's something off my mind.

I've been busy.  Very busy.  It might be easiest to do this bit as a photo series.  These are photos of things I've been working on for the show in March at the local coffee shop.  I'm going to give some detail shots, but not too many of the full shawlettes.  I'm hoping they'll be a pleasant surprise for folks in the area who can check them out.  And anything that doesn't find a home from the shop will make it to my artfire store, so it's always possible you'll see them later on that page.

Let's start with this:

malabrigo silky wool in indicita.  Needs ends woven in

Something simple I could knit while being driven places on a weekend.  Which brings us to this:

same yarn, same colorway, testing a concept

Unfortunately, this segues me into these, which I'm debating for the full concept knit:

for the record, going with the bottom for the full size shawl

Yarn makes me think about other yarn.  This was the second package of my last yarn fling.  It had the very pale yellows and the green in the middle above.

I really do like their stuff

Those yellows make me think of a concept that I did out twice.  Once for the show:

detail showing the new increase.  I like this method better.  There aren't missing threads, there are dark beads between leaves.

That one is the shawlette version that uses some really dark red beads.  Then, there's the version that my husband inspired:

to show the natural colored yarn and the pink beads

None of this stuff is blocked, so it does look like limp noodles.  Plus, the two above are in cotton.  The second one with the pink beads is a full sized shawl, but I'm having trouble deciding whether it needs to stay with me as an example of the pattern.  Yep, example of the pattern.... that's my story.  I do not intend to pet it and drool (although we all know that's exactly what will happen).

This leads us to this one.  Same pattern, in a familiar yarn:

man, this is hard to photograph.  It is NOT neon in real life.

Again, showing the increase.  You get a full leaf at the top of each, which almost looks like a flower bud.  I like this effect much better, and have changed the pattern to reflect it.  This may look very familiar.  It is the same yarn I did the original Joie shawl in.  I had just enough left to squeak out a shawlette, so that's what I did.

Then, I think pink.

strawberry smoothie

linen yarn.  Yes, I made a linen shawl.  In worsted weight no less.

And finally, there are these:

don't look like much at the moment

That beauty above is a market bag.  It's made from cotton (also in worsted weight), and I can wash the silly things if the little man has a bad tummy  moment near them.  I love these bags.  I have a bunch, and there are 2 ways to knit them that create 2 very different types of mesh just using a yo, k2tog as the "lace" pattern.  I started with these because I found that the grocery bags you can buy are not typically washable... making them really heinous germ magnets.  I actually have 4 different sizes and styles that I make, and figured that since I can't work on 'ettes at the moment, maybe I'd see if the local coffee place would want these as well. 

Anyhoo, I am hoping small tummies are quiet tomorrow so I can 1 knit, 2 blog, 3 work on hang-tags.  All the fun things in life and cleaning the kitchen too!

Strawberry yarn-bons

So, I spent this weekend resting.  No real progress to report, so instead on this most red and pink day of the year... I think I'll share my last indulgence. 

mmm wooly bonbons

I know, I do feel a bit evil putting them up since I really don't have enough for the entire class this time.  But, but, you can always invest in your own bonbons!  These ladies run a classy affair.  Their colorways are humorously named and they positively glow.  These are kind of my last yarn hurrah for a little while.  But I can't complain, you've seen my stash.

I did have another pink and red combo that I wanted to upload pictures of but somebody small who shall not be named (lest the house knitter become vexed and then need to soothe herself with more yarn...  mmmm..  more yarn) apparently ran around the house while I was resting taking photos of feet, flooring, and other items of 4 year old interest.  Killed my battery, whomever that was.

Anyway, I hope today treated you well.  I'm off to put He Who Shall Not Be Named to bed.  Little stinker.

long time no post

So, I got my cast off on Thursday and discovered that getting the arm freed was more unsettling than being in a cast.  I lost 2 days of work more or less (I did show up to do some necessary things, but had no stamina at all) and have been laying down contemplating that old chestnut "be careful what you wish for." 

When you get a cast removed, the underlying muscles and tendons that usually do a bunch of work holding your limb up and making it go have generally shriveled into unhappy immobility.  Plus, the skin underneath is used to being protected so there's a huge amount of sensitivity.  It translates into I lost 2 days of work because I couldn't move the arm without curling up and whimpering.

Lots of warm water/compresses/gentle stretching exercises later, I'm starting to feel a little more human.  Thank goodness.

Meanwhile, not a lot has been happening on the knitting front.  I'd feel bad, but the first 2 days not a lot happened on the being able to get dressed front...  it's good to remember.

Since the current knitting looks like this:

vine and ivy pattern test-knit in dye for yarn's tussah laceweight

and my Mom and Dad went through all the gyrations of setting up some of these beauties so I could store the stash without weeping, cursing, or forgetting what I've got, I thought I'd show you how stash organization is coming.

For now, the newly christened wall o yarn is sitting in front of the (functionally useless) hearth in my 'yellow room.'  Once I get a bit more mobility and a bit more wherewithal, the stash will be moved to the newly enclosed porch where it will trouble no-one, and I can sneak out and bask in it when things are frustrating.

Here's the left side:

currently, our not-yet-unpacked cds are in the bottom providing ballast

So here, we have mainly lace weight/fingering weight yarns.  The basket at the top has enough worsted weight yarn (cotton fleece) for 2 sweaters and (bartlett wool) one vest.  Top shelf are my mohair yarns and some jojoland lace weight in a clear glass bottle.  Next shelf down gets looted a lot.  It's my natural colored yarns, used to test patterns.  Plus a sweater-worth of yarn I plan on making myself a festival sweater out of... by May... hahahahaha.  Yeah, sometimes the delusions are too fast and fancy for even me.  Next shelf is cobweb weight yarn on cones, and a buncha fingering weight.  Current bottom shelf has a bag of still unsorted yarn and a basket for 'land of lost socks.'  Those are sock weight yarns that I had originally thought of making into shawls, but am likely going to make socks out of instead.  90% of this wall came from the Woolery, now that I look at it. 

That being explained, here is the right wall o wool.

mmm yarn

So, here we see a  testament to the fact that I apparently want sweaters in no small way.  Top shelf, 3 sweaters worth of yarn.  Middle shelf 5 sweaters worth of yarn.  Next shelf, random fingering weights.  Last shelf, one bag with single skein of sock yarn and an unsorted bag of yarn.

Three years of hoarding, but I could knit all of this within 18 months if yarn stores suddenly went away.

This is where I'm keeping the expensive stuff:

silk, silk, silkedy-silk

The majority of what is in this shorty glass-front bookcase (total cost 78 USD @ IKEA) is silk, silk blend, or one of a kind dyes from fiber artists.  That bottom shelf is ... another sweater's worth of lace-weight yarn.  Ahem.

superwash fingering weight

This matching bookcase has my alpaca teddy bear and about 7 shawls worth of fingering-weight madelinetosh yarn.  The bottom shelf is natural malabrigo yarn that I got for 2 USD per skein. 

Looking at all this stash, I probably should feel guilty instead of gleeful.  But, I don't smoke, drink, invest heavily in makeup or clothes (unless I'm knittin' 'em), or travel much.  Yarn is my extravagance, my therapist, a friend who doesn't mind if I come downstairs and pet it at 3 in the morning, and a way for me to tell the people around me that I love them even though I'm a complete social klutz.  (Not many people can get their foot as far down their throat in a lifetime as I can in 10 unguarded minutes.)

Also, I'm putting this up for posterity.  The counters aren't as uncluttered as they were last night (still have coffee making things on them), but they're cleaner than they have been since I broke my radius and ulna at the wrist.

lest I forget it can be done

And I organized the spices that my husband must have by the stove at all times because I got tired of being dive-bombed.  Getting whacked on the head by coriander does not count as an "exotic culinary experience."

the rolling island, and my antique 1852 keys,

Anyway, the shorty is asking me to play with him so I'm going to stop here.  Thanks to everyone who makes it to the bottom of this long-winded post.

2 week countdown

 Let me lead off by saying that I look a lot younger than I am.  The bone doctor was a little concerned about the speed that my arm is healing last week.  He said it wasn't as rapid as he thought it should be, and that I am in this cast for another 2 weeks before he'll replace it with one that will allow me to shower without acrobatics. 

Part of my youthful appearance is the fact that my naturally round face has very few wrinkles thanks to the extra weight I carry.  Part of it is in my genetics;  all the women from my Mom's side of the family look 10-15 years younger than they are.  Part of it is that I dye my hair.  No shame there, it's my nod to vanity. 

When appraised of exactly what portion of my 30s I'm in, and how many children I've had suddenly my arm is healing at a reasonable rate. I wonder if I explain that I'm going through early menopause and that my nerves (which were severed 3 years ago now) have come back alive, if he'd realize exactly how amazing the recovery is.

So, two more weeks in the cast.  I can live with it.  Since the cast completely changes my knitting tension, anything I start now must be able to be finished within 2 weeks.  HAHAHA.  Yeah, right?  I did finish the silk shawl I posted about earlier.  It now looks something like this:

working on the increases in the leaves to make them more graceful in the pattern

Noodles.  But it will block out beautifully.  I have faith.

I've also been working on these:

bulky!

These are to be felted.  They are a fast project which I can finish quickly.  The local coffee shop is planning on a spring craft show of some kind in the not too distant future.  These will look like pretty water colors once finished, and I hope they're something I can put in.

I have 3 spring patterns in the works:  2 stoles and another triangle.  I know, I just like working triangles.  They're flattering to wear, and I find being able to see visible progress very satisfying when knitting.  I'm tentatively planning them in these yarns:

silk, kid mohair and silk, cotton and silk...  hmmm tend?

We'll see.  The red one is from the Dye For Yarn shop.  I look forward to doing a review of their yarn, their sister shop and its yarn, and my experience with them.  It's always good to find someone who makes a quality product with good service, so I will be happy to review them once I have a sample in their yarn to share.

Finally, I leave you with one of my favorite projects being appreciated by one of my other favorite projects.

shorty cowl, in kids size, fresh from the outdoors

Conan, what is good in life?

Where to start.  Hmm, how about here?

Ah, sweet caffeine, with knitting beyond.  This is good in life.

Wait, let's get a closer look at this

Chocolate coffee???  This is GOOD in life.

What else is good in life?  I'm personally fond of quick projects in alpaca.  Something like this:

Knit by mom, worn and loved by boy.  This is good in life.

Shorty announced that this was the best small scarf ever because he doesn't trip on it.  That boy has a way with words.

Then there's lace projects in bulky red wool that photographs like crap even with a renewed flash.  (flash is another story, and I think I'll pretend it didn't happen so that I won't get a facial tic or toss it down the stairs shrieking "knitter smash!" in response)

Scarlet in real life, this is my bulky project.  It's also the only photo that shows the yarn color for the peacock medallion.

This was once enough yarn for a size 10 sweater.  It was my perfect 10 denial sweater, in that I'll never be a size 10 again.  Heck, I haven't been a size 10 since I was 17, so reality and I were clearly not on speaking terms when I bought it.  On the other hand, it's knitting into a niiiice stole... so I guess it wasn't a bad purchase after all.

Interestingly, the peacock is too dark to be seen, the red is closer to right, and the pattern shows some tentative plans.

Medallion stole thoughts are good in life.  I love things that keep my mind busy.

What else?  Oh yes Fleece Artist blues in a new shawl start are good too!

color is good on this one

Love Fleece Artist.  I might have mentioned it in the past, but it's still true.

This is also good in life, especially now that I'm not knitting on it any more.  This one needed a knitter intervention, and I lost a few days of knitting due to exhaustion in my arms from holding it up.  It's almost 3 lbs and all of that in the pearls.  The antique tinted beads in the main body were not that heavy....

teaser pic, this deserves its own post.  HEAVY

And that's sort of where I'm at.  I was thinking I'd take porch pictures but was disheartened by the snow.  Perhaps tomorrow, when I'm not working I'll grab a few for here.  Snow isn't much fun for building, but it does encourage knitting (and coffee!)

Speaking of which, time for more COFFEE!  MMMMMMM.