Weekly update 8/3/08

I’m a week behind and am terribly sorry! One of my good friend’s father died last Friday and I just didn’t have it in me to blog. I was going to get caught up in the week and didn’t. So here I am today.

I finished both of my squares for a blanket the group is making and started knitting the Baby Surprise Jacket (again! BSJ v1 took a trip to the frog pond after too much talking while knitting then the “fix” I tried to implement made it 5x worse!). I’ve still got my clapotis on the needles as well as my Hourglass sweater.

Yesterday I tried spinning and it was rolling right along until my ever faithful assistant came to help me:

Please note the arms under the treadle:

Hopefully I’ll have some actual knitting to show you next time!

SP12 question of the week

My lovely SP12 hostess has asked us to answer the question of the week:

What’s your favorite summertime beverage?

Hmm, I think I’d have to say hands down sweet ice tea. However a really good margarita comes in a very close second!

Also, I thought I’d provide my spoiler a link to my old blog that has a wish list on the sidebar.

Now, I must go about spinning up some yarn for my momma and maybe even some yarn for my spoilee…

Picture Time!

OK, here’s a load of pictures for y’all since you’ve patient sat through several picture-less posts.

First off, here’s my pomegrante:

Here it is with a skein of Cascade 220 for comparison:

Here’s December’s fiber club fiber. It’s titled Party Dress. And even though it was taken at night with poor lighting, yes, it really is almost that bright. It’s kinda fun:

Lastly, here’s the latest on the wheel. The picture does Nothing for the color. It’s called Sandstone and is a lovely blend of merino, tencel, firestar and angelina. It’s orange and gray and sparkly and much prettier than I’m making it sound!

corrections

Two corrections to yesterday’s post:

It’s “pomegrante” not persimmon (that should teach me to type before I reread the label but it won’t!) and it’s approx. 435 yards. I think I smell socks!!!!!

Pepper love

Pepper is a Cat. Yes, Bartholamew may look like a cat but he doesn’t act like the stereotypical cat. Pepper does. So I bought my Cat a Cat Scratcher… Thankfully, she loves it!!

I found it from Crazy Aunt Purl’s blog. And thankfully, Pepper uses it for scratching not just lounging too.

I’m still not knitting. I can only manage this because I discovered I could spin easily in my brace.

Maybe too easily:

That’s the jumbo plying head flyer/bobbin thing too that’s cram full. The “joy” now is transferring to the niddy-noddy. Its only like eleventybillion yards… (phrase also somewhat borrowed from Crazy Aunt Purl).

The fiber is some I got at SAFF unknown wool, the colorway is persimmon. It’s been fun to spin. And honestly I am interested in knowing how many yards it is.

Lastly, I’d like to direct you to Dotty’s blog. She got her prize package from me today!

Pie for Everyone!

Need a piece of pie? At near to 300 yds (278 specifically) I probably have enough to share but I’m not. This is the kind of pie that a girl can hoard and not feel bad about!

Also, I bring you super secretive project #2:

It’s a knitted tea set!

If you’re on Ravelry I’m going to post more pictures of the tea set. (I think I’ve said it before but I’m “Nikki” there.) The girls who received it loved it! (As did Darby the Dino’s new playmate!) For the record, little E did name him Darby but the ladies the LYS and I thought he really looked like a Percy.

And that’s all I’ve been up to lately! I’m hoping to finish up a few projects before I start something new.

2007

I know, everyone’s doing year end recaps so here’s mine:

2007 wasn’t all bad but it certainly wasn’t all good either. Quite truthfully, I’m glad in few hours it’ll be gone.  I learned to spin and how to make lucet cords (which I need to do some more of since it’s so fun). I hope to keep increasing my spinning knowledge too. There’s so much out there to learn, to try… 

I knit a lot. A LOT, I mean look at that list on the sidebar. Wow. I learned how to do new knitting techniques. I’d like to keep learning those too. 

On a personal level, I made some great friends and plan on keeping on meeting new people and spending time with my friends and family. I lost my uncle and have a cousin that’s in pretty bad shape. I have friends who lost loved ones and with my remaining grandparents as old as they are and in the shape that they’re in, I know it won’t be but so much longer before I lose them. I know, it may not be this year but I certainly won’t have them another… (hmm… almost told you how old I am ) so many years… 

But on a lighter note, my nephew was born and he’s so beautiful and I can’t wait to see what kind of person he becomes. 

My goals for 2008 – besides what I’ve already said?. Well, I do have some I’m not really planning on sharing but I’m going to cut back on my consumption of goods. Yes, this means yarn and fiber too. I’m not going all out I’m still in my fiber club and will still buy yarn and all but for at least a few months I’m going to spin what I’ve got and knit what’s in the stash. I bought that yarn for a purpose and it wasn’t to sit all closed up in a box. 

Oh, and since she’s showing an interest, I thought I’d teach Pepper to spin: 

Which is good, I’ll need more yarn because apparently Bartholamew has finally seen the light and is all about enjoying fine hand knits:

You’ll have to look under his head and feet to that is my Noro scarf there keeping his Highness warm and providing a soft place for him to take a nap. 

Be safe, y’all. Have a good 2008 filled with joy, love, and enough fibery goodness to get you through the rough spots!

thanks for reading…

I’m likin’ this spinning thing

embiggen (for those of you that don’t read the same blogs I do, that means click to make bigger to enjoy the beautifulness that is this bobbin of singles)

(ok, embiggen actually means to click on the picture to make it bigger but still…)

ETA- apparently this whole “embiggen” thing isn’t working anymore… but I still hope you enjoy the beautifulness that is that bobbin of singles)

edited again – thanks to Mary’s help embiggen/biggerize is up and running!

bad blogger…

Yes, that would be me, a bad blogger. However, today I’m going to blame the holidays (and my new wheel and my super secretive knitting). Yeah. That’s it.

Well, OK, it probably does have a lot to do with it. And in a more realistic goal starting in the new year I’m going to try to post 3 times a week.

Since I haven’t plied any yarn yet on the wheel, I can’t show you that. The 2nd bobbin of the gobblin eyes looks pretty much just like the first so that’s not a good picture.

Can’t show you the knitting…

Oh, ok, here’s a picture of my finished felted back pack. I like it. The straps are a titch long… that may be something I fix or something I just get over. I’m leaning towards “get over”

It now has a “I want it all!” Christmas pin a friend gave me on the front.

Oh, and how about a happy cheesy ass picture for you?

Back in August I reached my 5 yr anniversary with this company. They add the names to our board in the Library at the end of each year and my friend who also hit the 5 yr mark and I took cheesy pictures pointing at our names. I blame the sugar high we were on from all the desserts. Yeah. That’s it.

I’d show you the pictures of our snow storm that turned into an ice storm but well, that didn’t happen. It sleeted a little but then it all turned into rain. And well, pictures of a wet parking lot aren’t that exciting.

Hope to see you again soon but just in case – I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas!!!

(this post was brought to you by the letter *B* as in Blame or passing the Buck)

Another catch up

Well, I went to work for a little OT this morning and stopped at my LYS – Needle on the Square on the way home. After getting lovlingly chastised by not one but two employees – cough Mary cough cough Becky cough – I thought I should give you a little update on what I’ve been doing.

I haven’t been knitting. My poor Marvelous Mitts have sat almost neglected – although they did go to our Knit Night Christmas party for a “coming out” show.

I spun this:

It’s nice gray wool from some of the sheep at the Farm where I got my wheel (still unnamed BTW).

And I spun this:

It’s Goblin Eyes from Spunky Eclectic’s Fiber Club (October. Received the DAY I shipped the old wheel off to it’s new home). I know dimes and quarters seem to be the norm when showing off singles but a nickle was all I could dig up out of my change pocket.

However, after I go try my hand at washing a fleece, I’m going to get back to knitting on my mitts. And this:

It’s part of a top secret project (that you’re not supposed to tell anyone about Mary and Becky!) that I got at NOTS today. The other part I have here already. I’m aiming on it being done by Christmas (stop that mad laughing!) but if not then it’s OK.

Now, I must go get all stinky and greasy before our company Christmas party this evening… (can we extend the holidays for like another month so I don’t have so much crammed into such a short time period??)