Thursday, October 29, 2009

The Joy of My Socks

My comfort knitting is socks. When I want to zone out it's my socks that I turn to. My usual pattern is a knit 3 purl 1 rib. They always fit no matter what. My second favorite is the plain vanilla sock with a picot edge ala Carole. Over the summer I picked up a skein of Berocco Comfort Sock at Bella Yarns. The price was awesome and I loved the colors. It didn't take long and they were done.




I have two pairs of socks I am working on now. I have to have two pairs going at a time. Don't ask me why. Again - it's a comfort thing. Hmmm - maybe I can switch my love of comfort foods to comfort socks.

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

So What Did I Get?

With the missing of Rhinebeck I went to Stitches with a mental list and no guilt about buying anything: Find Socks That Rock, buy another set of those dp square needles, knit on the big sock, and possibly get some yarn for the Spiral Wrap (rav link).
Socks that Rock - check. I am thinking I will make my usual simple ribbed socks. I have to finish two other pairs first before I sink my teeth into this. I will, however, be using these:

I bought a set in 5" length. Not long enough for my liking. I bought the longer ones this weekend. Awesome I tell ya. Thanks for the suggestion Margene.

If I could marry this yarn, I would. It is Blue Moon Fiber Arts BFL Sport. It is so soft and it will be beautiful for my Spiral Wrap. But I can't start that until I finish Tasha Tudor. The shawl is easy to knit up. Till you get to the edging. Oh. My. Gosh. It is like cutting the lawn with cuticle scissors. Slow is all I can say.

Check out this little extra:

I had got the Zuma bag to use as a handbag as well as a regular knitting bag. I ended up not using it so much because it didn't have a shoulder strap. Loved the bag, but it didn't work for me. I caught this wallet at Stitches and had the great idea to use the strap for the bag.

I have used the bag every day since.

Monday, October 26, 2009

Text Between Friends

I love texting. I don't spend my day doing it, and I certainly can't beat my daughter's average (about 6000 a month),but I like that I can have quick conversations with friends and family throughout the day without interupting my work flow. I think it's a great invention. During my workdays I talk to Lisa and we keep each other sane. Imagine both of our surprises when I found out I would be having to take a little work trip - and Stitches East was in town! Texting immediately commenced and in the car we went. And then we landed.


Yarn overload is all I can say. I don't have many pictures - they are very strict about their "no photo" policy. One of the only places we were allowed to take pictures was at the big sock booth.

Yes - this geek did knit on it. I even got my button. I'm like a kid. But I mean, how cool is it to knit on what will hopefully be the biggest sock in the world? The sock will be coming to Rhode Island for anybody interested! You can get details on Ravelry.

So did I use restraint or did I buy lots of yummy stuff?

Monday, October 19, 2009

Why I Have No Rhinebeck Pictues

Last year was my first trip to NY Sheep and Wool. We made a "kamikazi" run. There and back in one day. The bunch of us figured we would save the hotel money and spend it on yarn instead. It's a long day, but very worth it.

Due to hockey commitments on Saturday I wasn't able to go till Sunday. No big deal. Unfortunately the weather forecast was not so great for that day. Lisa, Linda, Pat & myself conferred on Saturday and decided we would forge ahead and go, regardless of the cold, windy, rainy forecast. I got it all together Saturday night. I packed my camera, plugged the address in the GPS, printed out the map (because me being the control freak that I am still doesn't trust the GPS entirely), plastic garbage bags to put my purchases in to stay dry, and a change of clothing for the ride home. I set the alarm for 5 AM. I was actually up before the alarm, due to the excitement. I hopped out of bed. And then reality hit - I had a sinus headache from hell. You know the kind that borders on being a migraine? I couldn't focus, my head was stuffy, the right side of my face was red and hot. I got into the shower figuring if I took some tylenol (I can't take the sinus meds anymore - they don't work on me)and sat in the steam for a bit I might be OK. No chance. I got out of the shower, got partially dressed and laid back down. Sent texts to the girls saying I had a headache and that I would be 15 mins late for our departure. After 30 mins it was obvious that this headache was here for the day. There was no way I could spend 7 hours in a car with the pain. I wanted to cry, but didn't fearing the pain would get worse. I texted again and told them I was out. I couldn't do it.

Most of the day was spent depressed that I couldn't go and frustrated that I couldn't even focus to knit a stitch. I was aggravated. The pain did subside by about 4 pm. I knew I made the right decision to stay home as left out as I felt. Well, at least I can say I made it there once. And there' always next year.

And since you know how much I hate a post without a picture, I will share a new favorite of mine.

My favorite Yankee Candle scent of late. Farmers Market. Very similar to Harvest, but a little more fruity. I highly recommend it.

Friday, October 16, 2009

Wash, Card, Spin

This past spring I went to NH Sheep and Wool with one goal in mind. To get a Jacob Fleece. I love the different colors and I was told that this was the place to get the best fleece. Now if I was a real good blogger I would have the name of the booth, but of course I don't. For those who go to NH, just know that it's the lady towards the back of the festival in the stalls. She is on the corner and she has the most amazing Jacob fleeces you will ever see. I didn't want to get a huge fleece because, unlike the alpaca I bought, I had planned to process this one myself. I wanted to seperate the colors, wash and card it. So I got started this past weekend. Although dirty, you get the idea...



I love it. I got about 2/3 of it washed. After listening to Megan at Stitch It Podcast (you do listen to Megan's podcast, don't you? If not, I highly suggest it. She is a wealth of information on spinning amongst many other things) I realized that if I didn't get my butt in gear that I would have a hard time drying that fleece outside in the cold! Well the joke was on me because it already got damn cold here! Thank goodness for this;


It helps immensely with the drying process. And yeah, it's helping to keep this house warm because I'll be damned if I am turning my heat on in OCTOBER! After it dryed I started carding


They came out like puffy soft pillows. I am anxious to see how the other colors come out. I hate carding so it's going to be a long process.

Rhinebeck is this weekend and yes, we are making the one day kamikaze trip again. I am majorly bummed about the weather forecast but I am hoping it will change. We are going on Sunday so I hope the rain/snow passes by then. Not looking too good. For all who are going, I hope to see you there. It's great how many blog friends I am meeting up with. Have a great weekend, however you are spending it!

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

"I Don't Have Any Interest In Doing That"

I remember when I picked knitting back up after years and years of not doing it. I went to a Knitters Breakfast at Fabric Place (are any of them even in business anymore?). They had all kinds of demonstrations going on. Entrelac knitting, sock knitting, lace knitting. We saw some people spinning on spinning wheels. I thought to myself "why would you ever spin yarn when you can buy it in the store? I have no interest in doing that." And I ignored that demonstration. Well eat my words, because as we all know I got the spinning bug and 4 wheels later here I am.

After I became fully obsessed with my spinning I noticed the weavers. I didn't get it. "Why would you weave fabric when you can buy it in the store. Plus I am highly allergic to sewing, so I really don't have any interest in doing THAT."

And you can guess the rest.



Yes I am the proud owner of a Kromski Rigid Heddle. I took the plunge back in the spring and have been weaving here and there.



This was some singles I had spun and dyed. I am in love with the blues.




This was some mohair I had in my stash. See, one of the reasons I was attracted to knitting was the thought of what a great stash buster it is. And while I have no interest in any other kind of weaving but ridid heddle, I have learned to never ever say never.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

One of THOSE Blogs

I love following a good blog. I look forward to seeing my bloglines each day and checking out the latest and greatest in my blog friends lives. Most of them post regularly. Some more frequent than others. Then there are those that just kind of fade away. Nothing. I have become one of those blogs I fear. I have the greatest of intentions, but I don't take pictures, get too busy with other things. And now over 6 months has passed and I can't believe the entire summer went by with not so much as a single post!

For a multitude of reasons, while summer is usually my "down" time, it wasn't this year. There was lots of work, lots of little trips here and there with the family, there was certainly knitting, spinning and weaving (did I say weaving? Ah, yeah - a post for another day). I got hooked on Facebook, found Farmville (another addiction which needed an intervention), had lots of fun with my family - overall it was busy. Who doesn't have a busy life? Summer had been my "time to have fun and abandon work and structure". Now with the fall here I find myself trying to get a little more organized (another intervention sadly needed).

I found myself in a knitting slump for a while. I would sit down at the end of trhe day at 9 pm and have no energy to work on anything. I did accomplish some things though.

My entrelac shawl. I am in love with the colors and the way it looks. The way it feels - eh. Too much mohair. Lesson learned. It's not next to the skin, so I can live with the feel.




This was some Knitpicks yarn I had dyed a couple of years ago. I had bought a shirt in the beginning of the summer with the same exact colors. I knit on the socks fearing that the summer would either be over or I would stain the shirt and never get wear them together! I did finish the socks. I even got to wear the ensemble a couple of times. Guess what I did last week? Wore the darn shirt while my mother was dyeing my hair. And yeah - it got dye on it. Can you say "What were you thinking?" I love the socks anyway and wear them all the time.



I did some spinning too. Check out this brown Alpaca



Not sure what it's going to be yet. I originally planned on weaving a nice heavy blanket with it, but I found a nice wrap that might work. I have about 2 pounds of it.

We have a frost warning in RI tonight. I am looking forward to lighting the first fire in the woodstove and knitting on my shawl. And maybe making some popcorn too! Enjoy your day.

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