Accomplishments

Just when I think I'm finally starting to get on top of things, more things always crop up. So it was this week. When it gets crazy like this I often have the urge to completely shut down. Luckily, once I start moving on a project I can usually keep my momentum up to work on other projects, or at least finish the one I started. It's just a matter of finding enough hours in the day to sit down and work on whatever project it is and also fighting off the urge to just relax, unwind, and knit. It is helpful if your projects also includes some sort of knitting deadline. Then you can combine the best of both worlds.

My secret knitting project got finished in time but I still can't show you that yet. Soon, though. Very soon.

I finished the Trick or Treat socks.

These had nothing to do with "things that needed to be done" but were totally "things I wanted done." So I sat down one night and finished off the ribbing, washed, and blocked them. These socks, to me, embody everything quintessentially hand dyed. Both from the same skein but one pools and other doesn't. They have a variety of bold colors in a unique arrangement. I will have this color up for sale shortly in the shop. If you're in the Duluth, GA area then you can pick some up from Rare Purls Yarn Shop.

I mailed off my hand knits for the February/March charity group, the Adoption Center of Washington, yesterday.

That's 2 vests, 3 pairs of big socks, and 1 small jacket/sweater that I had made years ago out of acrylic (ACW isn't picky on fibers). The little tags have instructions for care on them. I'm quite proud of these items and I hope they find a good home with some children in the Ukraine or Russia. P.S. If you haven't been keeping up with the news lately Russia has suspended all adoptions to the U.S. following an incident where a Tennessee mother sent her adopted son (aged 7) back to Russia on a plane alone. You can read the story here. I know this is heartbreaking for parents who are trying to adopt (especially since adoptions from Russia are already difficult enough) but also for the orphans. There are over 230,000 children in state run orphanages and over 650,000 in some type of state care. This suspension only makes it that much more difficult for these children to get homes.

Now I'm working on finishing up week 2 of the next KAL that EEROP is hosting, the Road Scarf.

I actually had this on my list of things to do this week. As the moderator of the group (and designer and runner of the KAL) I feel it is my duty to stay on top of things. You can see that I've finished all of 4 rows there at the top. Here's a closer look.

Those 4 rows need to be 4 inches by tomorrow so I can start the next section of the KAL. It's not hard, just takes time, something I have been woefully short on this week.

Other than these knitting accomplishments I successfully administered the CRCT to 20 1st graders which is deserving of a raise (I think). And I taught a toe up sock class, started a Bible study, and dyed 4 samples of yarn for a custom dye job. When I put it all out like that I feel way more productive than I thought I was!

Next week is more Bible study, another sock class, more dyeing of sample yarns, more KAL, more sock knitting (for myself), and Stitches South! Looks to be another week of accomplishments.

What is This?

Looks like a little sweater. For someone special. My cousin, Jake, in fact. This summer he saw me knitting and wanted to learn. As soon as he had proven to himself that he could do it, he was off to something else. But not before he asked me to make him 15 sweaters in various colors. And 15 for his younger brother, Harrison, as well. I probably would have just dismissed it but a few months ago he asked me how his sweater was coming along. Hmmm...guess I should get started on that. So, 2 weeks ago I cast on for the Sailor's Rib Sweater from weekend knits. It's the perfect pattern and a fairly quick knit, as you can see. Hopefully I will finish it up by the end of the weekend. Then I need to start on Harrison's. If there's time, I might try and work the sizing for a wee little one for my newest cousin, Britt, who's only 3 months old.

I've also got a few things to throw in the shop once I get some better pictures taken.
Superwash BFL sock yarn in Hawaiian Hibiscus and
a new Aran weight BFL in Day at the Beach (multi) and Buttercup (solid).

A note about the shop: this weekend will be the last time that you can get my rovings for only $10! No coupon or codes needed. After Sunday afternoon (as long as remember to change the prices back) this sale will end.

Happy Halloween everyone!

Time

Time is a funny thing. Suddenly you find that one week has turned into two weeks and then it turns into three and before you know it a whole month is past. And then one day suddenly turns into two...and then three...And a whole day turns into just a few hours.

I wanted to break my blog silence exactly one month after I had last posted. I hadn't originally planned to be gone for so long but then, after thinking on it, it seemed like something I needed to do. So I took a month. And then I had planned to come back on Friday with a little catch up article of the (few) things I have been doing while I was away. I was out with a friend but managed to make it home with moments to spare to tell you I was making a comeback. The comeback has been slow in coming though. I've thought of great posts all weekend but the time to actually put them down has skillfully eluded me. No longer! Where to begin...

Socially:
I've been hanging out with my friends a lot this past month. One of my best friends, Brittany, got married a few weeks ago which was pretty awesome.
Hope for single girls everywhere.

There were a few movie nights and an '80's themed game night in there too. Sadly, I don't have any pictures of those things.

Knitting:
I finished the secret project I've been working on for awhile. All that needs to be done is to sew in the ends and give it a little washing but I still consider it "finished" for all intents and purposes.

I finally have gotten around to starting the arm on my final item for Warm Woolies.
Notice I have started but not gotten a lot done on it. I did a count of items and this is my 10th piece. I just have to finish it!

I started (and finished) a sock.
This is some of my own hand-dyed yarn! My first sock from my own hand-dyed. I loved working with this yarn. It's BFL and it is super soft and silky and has a great sheen to it. The colorway is Raspberry and it's available from my shop. The pattern is the Japanese Feather Socks (free Rav download). Knit on US size 2 DPNs.

Dyeing:
There's been a lot going on with my dyeing. I just finished skeining some yarn I dyed last month.
I dyed more this weekend (since I had Friday *and* Monday off from work). My friend Stephanie even came over to get a crash course in yarn dyeing.
From left to right: Hayride, Hawaiian Hibiscus, First Buds, Edelweiss, and Unmasked

More from this weekend: Day at the Beach and Buttercup

I still have more colors to skein. Of course I have to label and post all these in the shop. The Unmasked roving are 4 oz. portions of some samples I sent into the Phat Fiber box this month.
I'm excited to be a contributor for October!

So there has been quite a bit going on for the past month but I'm going to (try) and set aside time at least 2-3 times a week to post. If nothing else than to help me remember everything I've been up to.

Penelope helping Stephanie by keeping watch over her bag of yarn labels.

All's Quiet on the Western Front

I have finished the large green and multi socks.
I used Cascade 220 Heathers in a light green held double for the cuffs, heels, and toes. Then I held one strand of the Cascade with a strand of Di'Ve Butterfly in a green and orange colorway for the leg and foot if the sock. Knit on US size 8 DPNs. A very quick and satisfying knit (only 2-3 days of real knitting time) and I love the colors. I bought three balls of the Di'Ve and 2 skeins of the 220 so I should have enough for another pair. We shall see.

I have finished the collar on the Mystery Sweater #3 for Warm Woolies.
Not really a huge feat considering I only had about 10 more rows to do before I knitchenered the sides together. It's an interesting construction though where you knit up the side then around the back and graft to the other side. I couldn't work it out in my head but it came out just as it should have. I haven't picked up stitches for the arms yet because I'm not in the mood. My knitting mojo has taken a brief hiatus so I'm waiting for it to return.

With the knitting mojo out to lunch the Rivulets socks looks pretty much the same. I feel as though I've been knitting on them forever. Really any time I pick them up I may do a row or two and then have to put them down again. Not terribly exciting but I am ready for them to be done. Nevermind that after I finish the first sock I have to make a matching one.

So the knitting frontier is pretty quiet. Watch out for tumbleweeds.

I am dyeing though. In fact, I've been trying to get my store looking a little nicer and my products listed a little differently (tell me what you think, please :)).

Last night I needed to do some dyeing for a function at Rare Purls on Sunday. I had a volunteer appreciation dinner at my church to go to first but when I came home I jumped right in.
What's that I spy with my little eye? Could it be...?
It is! Black, superwash roving! For free! I've been wanting to try mixing in some long lengths of black with some punchy colors but I figured it would be awhile before I got around to it. Then my roving supplier sent 5 oz. of it to me for free. I've got two colors that I dyed last night that I'll be mixing it with.

It was a late night when I got started working
so I fortified myself with a tasty beverage
which kept me going all night and into the wee hours of the morning until I finally crashed at 2:30 (a.m.). It was worth it though.
(Sorry for the poor lighting. It is a bathroom after all.) This is my first time dyeing a large quantity of superwash roving and I know I still have a lot to learn: 1. Superwash falls apart if you soak it for too long. So I didn't soak it for more than 2 minutes before applying dye. But since I soak my pre-dyed fibers in vinegar I must remember to add adequate amounts of vinegar to the dye before I apply it or the color won't take (because a dunk in sythropol and vinegar isn't the same as a half hour bath in the stuff). 2. Brown is a very splitty color. I'm going to try and heat the dye before I apply it, especially if I hand paint (it doesn't split hardly at all if it's kettle/immersion dyed). Since my hot water comes out scalding from the tap (ask me how I know) I'm hoping that will be enough of a boost to get the colors to all take at the same rate (on a side note: Did you know in England that hot water out of the tap is supposed to be hot enough to steep a cup of tea? And the hot and cold water comes out of separate taps? So if you are in an English hotel, and you need to wash your hands, turning on the hot faucet full blast isn't a good idea. Ask me how I know.). 3. Superwash will take colors very vividly but in order to get full saturation from one side of the roving to the next I really have to turn and paint both sides. But not too much or the colors bleed together.

This is all experimental right now and I'm hoping that at least some of my stuff is ok. This is all a learning process so it will only get better (and hopefully easier) as time goes by.

The dyeing frontier is a flurry of activity and it would be great if I could keep it that way.

Other than no knitting and lots of dyeing today I took a little trip out to the local Barnes and Noble to see my friend Amy.
Amy is kind of a big deal because she wrote this book called As You Wish (P.S. Jackson Pearce is her pen name). Back when I taught drumline at the local high school (and I was still teaching middle school band), Amy worked with the color guard. In fact, she still does. But she also wrote a book.
Which is pretty awesome. And she signed one for me.
And I didn't even have to print my name on a little post-it because she knows my name (and even how to spell it, not that it's really hard. But you'd be surprised...). Because, dudes, we're that close.
And I feel pretty confident that when (not if, but when) this book sells a billion copies and becomes a movie and Amy becomes a big, big star, as big as J.K. Rowling or Stephanie Meyer or Michael Crichton (different genres, I know, so sue me), she will still grab a pint with me at the Loafing Leprechaun. Because she's pretty cool like that.

And now I have something on the reading frontier as well.

Sidelined

I have this theory on flu shots. See, I've never had one. And I never plan to get one. I've adopted what I call the "Herd Mentality." Look at it this way: Suppose a farmer has a huge herd of animals, hundreds even. He can't afford the time or money to inoculate them all against every possible disease. Sure, he hits the major ones but there will always be a new outbreak to protect against. The farmer, being a smart cookie, figures out the percentage of animals likely to catch the disease and vaccinates only this percentage of his herds. It saves him time and money. The other animals (without the vaccine) are, essentially, "protected" because the chances of the disease a)hitting their farm and b) then hitting an un-vaccinated animal are now small. I see myself as being part of a "herd" of people in my community. If the right proportion of people get the flu vaccine then I'm protected by them. The downside to this theory is that, occasionally, one of the un-vaccinated animals gets sick. Case in point: myself. Last Wednesday I came down with a nasty flu virus. Thankfully the worst of it lasted less than 36 hours but those first 12 or so were pretty bad. I'm still not getting the vaccine though. Medicine isn't always the answer.

Before I got sick on Wednesday night (before I knew I was sick) I mustered enough fortitude to go to a friend's house for knit night. She's part of the Noble Knitters that meets at the Barnes and Nobles each week but she wanted to thank everyone for their support through the years (I haven't been around for all that time but she and I have become friends).
Here's a few group shots of everyone gathering in the living room.
And yes, all these people have been known to converge at the same time on an unsuspecting Barnes and Nobles cafe. We pretty much take over the place.

I went in for half a day of work on Thursday (thank goodness there were no children) only so that I could talk to my boss, get the rest of the day off, and call my doctor. The doctor gave me magic pills which made me feel a whole lot better but my body still wanted to recover internally. So Friday after work I came home, puttered around, and fell dead asleep on the couch at 7:00. I woke up just long enough at 2:00 to drag myself into the bedroom where I promptly fell back asleep until 8:00 the next morning.

I woke up Saturday with a plan to get things done so I pulled out my other dye apron
and got to work.

I'll have a more thorough update once the yarn's finished drying and I can reskein it but here's a sneak peak of one of the new colorways that I had a lot of fun creating.
Watermelon!

Once my fun with dyeing was done I spent the evening on the couch resting. I finished my Warm Woolies Big 10 test knit socks.
Started a new pair of socks for myself.
Rivulets socks by Wendy Johnson
Bugga! sock yarn in Acrobatic snail
US size 0s

Today I started a baby blanket for my cousin Britt who's due in July.
Oat Couture's Prairie Blanket

I'm done with the "getting started" part and now I'm on to the "repeat until x" long" part so I should be able to get into a groove with this and just keep trucking along.

I'm feeling a whole lot better now so I'm ready to tackle my last day at work on Tuesday and then start my summer. It's already looking to be a busy one-there are a lot of new job opportunities that I can't wait to talk about but need a final seal of approval before they are go for launch. Expect a lot more dyeing though!

Breaking the Silence

So what have I been up to...?

1. Knitting
Warm Woolies Mystery Sweater KAL #2. This is a picture of the shoulder piece. I've actually joined for the first sleeve and knit a few rows. I think I may rip it out though, I recently learned how to pick up stitches and make it look nice (amazing how actually reading the directions in your beginning to knit book can help you).

2. A Wedding
Two of my close friends got married last weekend at Pensacola Beach in Florida. I'd never been to beach wedding before but it was beautiful and tons of fun.
Bye bye shoes!

My friends Kelly and Steve with Kelly's son Brayden during the sand ceremony. Lovely!
The McMansion (on the right) where the reception was held. Kelly's cousin lived there and it was basically on a private wharf/peninsula. He was a really nice guy and opened the whole house to the guests. The setting was amazing. I had a lovely time hanging out with friends all weekend and enjoying a mini vacation.

3. Guild...ing
Last night I drug Albert to the Atlanta Knitting Guild meeting so he could help me with my table of hand dyes.
It was the first time I'd ever taken the yarns on a road trip but I really hope that there will be more chances for me to do so. It was so wonderful to hear all the nice things people had to say about my yarns. And seeing them all laid out was pretty awesome too since they normally live in a plastic container in my living room. It made me realize that I actually have been productive. And I actually sold some things! This picture was taken after several skeins of sock yarn had already been made off with :) My wheels are turning with new ideas that I can't wait to try. Thankfully summer is just around the corner which should mean more time to dye.

4. More knitting and a little designing
Sorry for the horribly frumpy picture. This is the half and half sweater sans one sleeve. Made from all hand dyed yarn. It's a youth medium so it's a little small on me but only in length so I'm on course with size I believe. I'll be writing up the pattern and offering it in some form here and on Ravelry, but that's a whole other set of tasks.

Penelope wanted you to know that she "helped out" when I was labeling all the skeins for Thursday's meeting. (I'd laid the blanket out to set the skeins on to keep them clean while I labeled each one)
Technically I'm not *on* the towel.

Projects

So, I haven't just been buying yarn lately, though it might seem that way. I have actually been knitting some.

Exhibit A: Partial body and two non-swatch swatches for the Mystery Sweater Knit-A-Long #2 for Warm Woolies.
Exhibit B: Partial body of a self designed sweater in hand dyed yarn for a Warm Woolies sweater.
Exhibit C: One finished Space Monkey sock. The second sock has been started.
Exhibit D: A finished fair island sweater for Warm Woolies (sweater #4 of 10 for those of you playing along at home). I can fit it over my head, the body is long enough for me, but the sleeves are a little too short. I think it will fit a 14 or 15 year old pretty well. I had originally planned to write out the pattern for this sweater but I've had a lot of trouble getting the numbers to work out right so I don't think it will come to pass (at least not any time soon).
Exhibit E: Portioned yarn being knit into swatches for a Melissa Leapman cables class at Stitches South! (1 down, 2 more to go)
Exhibit F...almost: This languishing skein of Cascade 220 (this was before my addiction to Cascade yarns had come to fruition so I only have one skein of this lovely red) will become a swatch and then eventually (I believe) a project at a Sandi Rosner class at Stitches South!
So, as you can see, I have been accomplishing a little bit on the knitting front. I've got to finish up my swatches for classes at Stitches South and then plan my route through the market (gotta make sure I hit all the vendors I want to). I'd love to finish my self designed sweater this month as well but I also need to label yarns before the May Atlanta Knitting Guild meeting when I'll have my table for the very first time. For now it's off to finish those swatches and pet a kitty :)