What Have I Been Doing?

Fine. I'll come clean.

The reason I've been absent lately is because I've been busy launching a new venture and I wasn't sure I could really do this. I didn't want to talk about it until I knew for sure.

Turns out, I can, and I did.

May I introduce you to YARNDEAVORS.

That's right. I'm selling yarn. Hand-painted, hand-dyed sock yarn. One night in January, I just suddenly got the urge to dye. Colorway names and color schemes were flying through my brain faster than I could write them down. Ironically, very few match the colors that have actually been dyed. Oh well, saved for later.

So I did a little research... bought various skeins of yarn to try out, bought the dye, spent endless hours perusing the aisles of Big L*ts, the D*llar Tree and other discount outlets for supplies, then cleared off space in the kitchen and got going.

This is batch number one.

The dyeing didn't take nearly as long as designing the logo, the website, and wrassling Zen Cart for dominance (and I still haven't gotten the PayPal thing worked out yet).

This is all because I fell in love with surface design back in college, then took a self-striping and sock yarn dyeing class at Fiberworks a couple years ago. Yes, this idea has been marinating in my brain longer than a dye vat needs to exhaust.

I'm not sure if what I have to offer is completely unique or not. All I know is I have a sock fetish, I love dyeing fibers, and I think I have an unusual eye for color and blending them together. It's totally intuitive and artistic. I tried being scientific about it but that doesn't work for me (though I've been taking pretty good notes so the colorway concepts will, for the most part, be repeatable).

I have a funny story. Sometimes the solution is so obvious it's silly. All the books recommend if you're going to use acid dyes (I use Lanaset/Sabraset from ProChem), your dye pots MUST be stainless (or enamel) because aluminum leeches dye. Well, I searched high and low for inexpensive stainless canning pots to no avail. They are pricey! I had in mind one of those old wash tubs like Grandma used to have:



But I couldn't find any in stores and being the instant gratification type, I needed it NOW—I couldn't wait and hope to win a dozen eBay auctions or to hit the garage sales. I wracked my brain... stainless... flat bottomed... wide... cheap... holds about 10 to 16 quarts of liquid...

Then it hit me.

Livestock pans.

Well, TSC only had hog pans, or so they thought. The guy didn't think what he had would work. I almost gave up. And then I remembered, there are some pretty big dogs. A little online research—AHA! How about a DOG DISH?

I headed over to TSC, and lo and behold, I found a 10-quart size. PERFECT. And only $11. Quite a difference from the $50+ they want for stainless cookware at Big Box Store. (As an aside, Big L*ts is now carrying their store brand of 16- and 20-quart stock pots with lids, on the cheap—I own two now.) It's exactly the right size for immersion dyeing on the stove.

Everything I've dyed so far is up for grabs, except for one skein I can't part with. Yes, I know I can make more! But this one's special...





I don't know what it is about this one that makes my heart skip a beat, but it does, so... I'm keeping it for myself. I'll love it, and pet it, and call it Bluegrass.

So that's what I've been doing, among other things—coloring yarn and entertaining the cats' noses with the divine scent of pickled sheep. Head on over, visit the shop, and let me know if there is anything you like. I'll do custom colorways, too, if you ask.

I think I'll bring the herd of yarn in for Show N Tell at InsanKnitty this week if there are any left. ;-) Now, if I can just learn how to wind the hanks neatly...

Labels: dyeing, stash enhancement, yarndeavors

posted by Jeanne @ 12:36 AM 4 comments

God is GOOD! and Yarn

Labels: breaking news, estate nonsense, gratefulness, sockaholism, stash enhancement

posted by Jeanne @ 6:30 PM 3 comments

Serious Yarn Pr0N

*** WARNING—Photo Heavy Post ***

Araucania Ranco Multy #310
Destined to become a pair of Evelyn Clark's Retro Rib Socks (from Favorite Socks). The interesting thing is that Rocker Boy liked this colorway better than the browns. (He has good taste.)


















Araucania Ranco Multy #306
Destined to become... another pair of socks, pattern TBD. The autumn's afternoon sunshine lends a bit more red to the color than the yarn displays—the darkest parts are like Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate—rich, deep, woodsy, almost-black brown. Yuuuummmm. The photos toward the bottom more closely replicate the color, especially the third and fourth from the bottom. Can you tell it's love?

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Labels: sockaholism, stash enhancement

posted by Jeanne @ 6:55 PM 1 comments

I've Sock-cumbed Once Again

Yes, the Call of the Yarn has hypnotized me. Photos to come. Last night, at InsanKnitty, I sockcumbed to the call of the yarn and two skeins of Araucania Ranco Multy Sock Yarn wound up following me home.

I'd never heard of this yarn before, but the colors—OH THE COLORS—there was no resisting them. These swatches do not do justice to the tantalizing beauty of this hand-painted masterpiece.

My eyes first fell upon Color #310—which in the swatch appears to be dark blues. It's not. My hank is lilac, lavender, wine, teal, red, orange, fuchsia—a veritable rainbow of purply pinky blues. It reminds me of a Monet painting palette. Each strand is different. I cannot wait to see how it swatches.

I would have been satisfied with just 310, but due to a chocolate craving, #306 also found its way to the cash register. Here, the swatch corresponds more closely to reality, but IRL, this hank is the deepest, warmest, chocolateyest autumny goodness with hints of olive and yellow ochre blended in.

Here I was, all set to knit solid socks next. Then along comes Araucania Ranco Multy, and all my plans were tossed out the window. But what pattern? This is definitely size 0 Addi territory... perhaps a relatively plain toe-up to show off the multisplendiferous color variants? Would it lose the definition of a carefully-placed cable?

To be continued...

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Labels: sockaholism, stash enhancement

posted by Jeanne @ 7:19 PM 1 comments

Minor Update

The Big Secret
So far, things are moving along nicely. There are good reports arriving from points West. The timetable appears to have moved up by a couple of weeks—fingers crossed. It will be great.

Knitting
I know I haven't posted many photos here lately (of yarn, anyway). As a reward, I'll post some of my latest Stash Acquisitions, just for sticking it out this long. ;-) I have completed all 16 of my TKGA Masters Level One swatches. They just need washed, blocked, woven in ends, labelled, and packaged up. I'm in the middle of the hat. Yes, it's a low-key knit. But that's OK, as my mind is still a ball of mush and thinking (ie doing cables) is difficult for me right now. If I keep at it, I'll make my goal and have this out the door before the end of the month.

I'm also still working on the Waving Lace Socks and have added the Spiralling Sock from one of my KALs to the list. Too many socks. Not enough time!

Music
Hurrah for me, I've written a song. I'm 95% certain the latest edition of the lyrics is the final cut; but that could change depending on what my muse decides. (My muse being that great creative force in the sky.) Why this is monumental is because I haven't written a song since my parents became ill, let alone pick up my guitar. But I got all the recording gear set up, and Ron had emailed me some music needing lyrics, and one of them really struck a chord with me (no pun intended). I work in spurts. I listen, I hum along, I see where the melody wants to go. Then I mumble any snippets of words that come to mind. When it stops freeflowing, I stop, put it away, and let it marinate. I've been humming this song to myself for a week straight, watching it write itself in my head. I'm pretty satisfied with the latest version of the lyrics, but I'm not sure I've quite said what I want to say exactly how I want to say it.

Still, it feels good to be back in the swing of it again.

Horses
Do I have horses? I seem to have forgotten again.

Cats
All fine and furry as usual.

Estate BS
Still BS. But we're close to finishing up. Good, because I'm so tired of it. I want it wrapped up and the spoils dispersed equitably and ASAP. I've been living under the black cloud of this stuff for a full year now, following almost a full year of watching the parents go downhill. It's time for a positive change. It's time to get out from under the cloud, back into the sunshine, and live again. My horoscope swears that as of or around September 28th, I'll enter a fantastic period that'll last through May 9th where basically everything I ever wanted will arrive. Buh-RING IT AW-won!

Lottery
Hopefully I have the winning ticket tonight. We'll see.

That's all, folks.

Oh, yeah, pictures.


Dalegarn Tiur for the Winter Garden Socks (from Knit Socks!)


Sleeping Dragon Sock Yarn in Roses & Chocolate


Twisted Fiber Arts Arial Sock Yarn in Regiment


Hopefully these are visible and clickable. First time using Flickr to post (usually I use PhotoBucket). This is just a taste of what I snagged at Threadbear two weekends ago. Yuuuuumy. Sock yarn. *sluuuuurrrrp*

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Labels: cats, estate nonsense, horses, music, stash enhancement, the big secret, TKGA Masters Level One

posted by Jeanne @ 11:16 PM 4 comments

Sock Stash Knitting

It's live.

KFYSS 2008 (Knit From Your SOCK Stash) is live and bloggable. The template needs tweaking (danged free blogskins, the Blogger bar is missing from the top) but otherwise, we're launched.

The Rules are up. To summarize, once you've committed to KFYSS2008, you must use stashed sock yarn for all socks knitted during the year (until September 30th). There are a few exceptions—if you're in sock KALs like I am, you can buy KAL-specific yarn. But the rules are, I hope, structured in a way to prevent the workarounds used to justify sneak purchases.

If you buy it, you must use it immediately. That's the gist of it.

Please note: let's avoid the whole "trying to kill the LYS" nonsense that went around last year after the rise of the original Knit From Your Stash. I'm not suggesting we buy no yarn; merely that we examine our sockaholism and try to get it to a manageable level by curtailing the "buy now knit later" mentality that is so easy to get into when dealing with socks.

Socks are small, quick, and require one or two skeins of yarn. The very beauty of the sock is also its danger. It is so easy to lull oneself into thinking, "it's only ONE skein". But one skein leads to five which leads to a stash closet larger than one's wardrobe (including the "I'll fit into these someday" clothes) and pretty soon, well... it isn't pretty to watch.

Think about it. One skein of handpainted such as my fave, Mountain Colors or Lorna's can go for anywhere from $10-20 per skein. Let's use $15 as an average. Say that every weekend, you get your paycheck and go to the yarn store. You pick up one or two skeins of sock yarn. It's only $30, right?

Multiply that by 52 weeks in the year and you have spent $1,560 dollars (one thousand five hundred and sixty dollars) on SOCK YARN and you have 104 skeins of sock yarn in your stash.

If it takes you 20 hours to knit a sock, you'll need 2,080 hours to eat up that stash or 86 days—that's 24 hours straight—to finish them. If you can knit four hours per night per week (after work, not counting weekends), it'll take 104 weeks to knit through the stash. (Also note I'm not a math whiz—if you see an error, please correct it.)

So at that rate, a person can knit about one skein's worth per week (one pair). If you knit faster, I commend you. But I can't. So I see the danger. I probably have about 25 skeins or sock projects on the dockets (pre-Ravelry organization, it may be worse).

Something's gotta give. Besides my closet doors.

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Labels: KFYSS 2008, musings, ravelry, stash enhancement, yarn diet

posted by Jeanne @ 6:46 PM 1 comments

Knit From My WHAT? (A Novel)

My stash?

Um...

That Knit From Your Stash 2007 thingie?

Not working for me.

I set up my rules. I thought I'd be safe. I didn't count on a little thing called Sockaholism. Apparently, I need more than just a 12-step program and regular meetings. I need a goldurned Intervention.

My rules:

• sock yarn is exempt
• gift yarn is exempt if there's nothing in my stash already that'll work
• one Get Out Of Jail Free card
• yarn for dyeing experiments is exempt
• all UFOs must become FOs before COing a NUFO of a similar nature

My problem:

• I'm only knitting SOCKS. Sock after sock after sock after sock after sock.
• OK there are TWO hats (TKGA L1 project and a chemo cap for Yarn Haven).
  
• My stash = wool, alpaca, mohair, silk, acrylic and blends of all; my color range = purple, red, emerald, teal blue, black, hot pink. My gift recipients = allergic, itchy, cotton-and-acrylic-lovin' freaks who like yellow, orange, peach, acid green and other colors that on my body cause perfect strangers to hand me a bucket and run.
• I used my GOOJF Card in March, then I gone and dun it again two weeks later. True, the second slip up was mostly books and spinning fiber, but it was a hefty load of cabbage.
• Only six skeins (so far) for dyeing: two for the workshop, three cheapo Patons Classic Merino Wool and today, one skein that literally had my name on it:
  
  
• There are so many UFOs floating around here it looks like Roswell in 1947. Does that stop me from casting on again? Uh, no. No, it doesn't.
  

Then I went to Threadbear today.

Regrettably the purpose of my mission was NOT to attend Annie Modesitt's workshop though I would have liked to have participated. It was a bizarre coincidence that we were at the same place at the same time. I saw Annie, we made eye contact, but didn't officially meet as she was in the middle of her class and I was shopping. But I was surprised that she was much taller than I am (I'm 5' 8"). Yes, I should have thought to snap her photo with my cell phone, but I'm so new to this Knitting Celebrity Thing that I'm not yet in the cellpix mindset.

No, my mission was more mundane. My dear friend B's birthday is tomorrow. She's very much into stained glass, and Lansing hosts a rather large stained glass outlet. When I heard she was planning to trek up there, I mentioned the yarn store. ROAD TRIP!

I arose at 6:30 AM. Yes. The exact time I arrived home two weeks ago from the band meeting. B and I hit the road by 7:30. Had breakfast at a sit-down restaurant along the way. Did the grand tour of Michigan's rest areas (due to the coffee consumption). Visited the glass shop. She strangled her credit card and bought some glass and a kit. I was unaware of just how beautiful sheets of colored glass can be (almost as luscious as yarn). I planned out the cabinet inserts for my future dream kitchen, my bathroom, my foyer... uh... right.

Reality. Sorry. I'm back now.

On to Threadbear. Thank you, Sarah, for that tip about the Quilt Shop. Without it, we'd have passed Threadbear for sure. First impressions: It's huge. It's bright. It's stuffed with yarn. I grabbed a basket and started with the dyeables. Then I inquired as to the location of the sock yarn. When the saleslady (whose name I've misplaced) directed me to aisle after aisle of sock... *sigh* yarn.... I actually felt woozy.

Guess what came home with me?

SOCK YARN. That's it. Juuuuuuust sock yarn.

Well, OK, mostly sock yarn. There were a couple of skeins for non-sock gifts as well.

Here's the scary part. I didn't just go grab random skeins from the shelves in wild abandon. No. I went with a VERY. SPECIFIC. LIST. The night before, I sat up late into the night and worked up a Sock Notes spreadsheet in Excel—after first working up a spreadsheet for my Ravelry Sock Knitter's Anonymous Group KAL (SKA) projects for the year:






I intended to stick to said list. I wanted:

• 2 skeins dark and 1 skein light of Lorna's Shepherd Sock for Scala
• the 5 skeins of Dale of Norway TIUR required for the Caspian Sea Socks (free download when you joing Knitting Daily) planned for SKA Project #2 (Toe-Ups)
• the 4 skeins of TIUR necessary for the Winter Garden Socks from Betsy McCarthy's book Knit Socks!) planned for SKA Project #3 (Nancy Bush pattern)
• some sock yarn to dye
• Lanaset Dyes (if available)
• size 0, 1.5, and 2.5 circulars (16"-24" for socks, natch)
• (OPTIONAL) one skein each of the required yarn for Cookie A.'s Pomatomus and Red Herring, Sockbug's Crooked Cable, and Domesticat's Zephyr (all socks)
• to look at the swatches for Kauni that had just come in (not doing the Rainbow colorway that everybody and their sister is doing—yes, the one upon which the Harlot has been slaving away)

What I acquired (in less than an hour):

• Yarn for Scala except there wasn't any solid Lorna's—I'm substituting either Drop's Alpaca or Lanett (six skeins total, two different color combos)
  
• the FOUR skeins of Dale of Norway Daletta* (four because I'm an idiot and just realized I forgot to get the second skein of Rose—gaaahhhh! and because Tiur is being discontinued and the colors I wanted weren't available in Tiur) for the Caspian Sea Socks
  
• the THREE skeins of Dale of Norway Tiur with an optional contrast color (because I couldn't decide between natural/rose/green or natural/rose/grey so I got green AND grey AND because I'm an idiot and again failed to realize I needed TWO skeins of green, not one) for the Winter Garden Socks
• some sock yarn to dye (Kraemer "Jeannie", with my name on it)
  
• no dyes (no dice!)
  
• no needles because I still can't justify Addi's
  
• (OPTIONAL) one skein each of Twisted "Arial" in Regiment and Sleeping Dragon Handpainted Sock Yarn in Roses & Chocolate intended for two of the four extra socks
• 2 skeins of mohair for a neckwarmer for B (she picked it out)
• one skein of Schaefer "Lola" for B—OMG! The Barry Manilow reference just hit me which is so ironic because B is the BIGGEST Manilow fan in the world ("her name was Lola, she was a showgirl...")—for a pair of toe-ups because she picked up a skein featuring a colorway that perfectly coordinated with the shirt she was wearing and I had to go and say "Oh, you need a pair of matching SOCKS, don't you?"
• the Summer Spin-Off (for the article "Dye your own self-striping yarn!") which for some reason I'm beginning to think I might have already purchased (for the very same article)
• a good idea about the Kauni swatches. For a more subdued but equally-effective Kauni, I'm planning to get the two colorways in the brown/gold/wheat tones—one is light, the other dark. It's special order so I can sit on that for awhile
  

*Actually that's 3 skeins Daletta and one skein Heilos that I'm trading in for the same color in Daletta because Heilos is scratchy compared to Daletta

Did I mention that I actually PUT BACK one skein each of Cherry Tree Hill, Colinette Jitterbug, Trekking XXL, another color of Tiur, and something else I've now forgotten?

Did I mention that I somehow I forgot to grab the second skeins of two colors I need for two of the patterns?

Did I mention the shop is two and a half hours away?

Did I mention that occasionally I have a synapse misfire that causes me to forget little details like second skeins of discontinued yarn that may never mate with their own dye lot again?

Following the yarnage, we scavenged for food but we nearly didn't get any. The Middle Eastern place we'd mapquested isn't open on weekends. We chose to drive down big roads that logically should have provided all manner of sustenance, but were riddled with questionable housing and a QD convenience store (Hot Coffee! Fresh Donuts!) on every corner. We were nearly to the highway entrance when we spotted a sign for Sahara's (no webpage). We were in the mood for Indian, but in a pinch, Lebanese will do. After hummus, pita, mango smoothies, samosas, chicken soup for B and green bean stew on rice for me, we hit the road again.

Since then, I've been battling with Flickr to acknowledge my coughing up the dough for a Pro account so I can have more than three measly sets because Flickr is the preferred photo host of Ravelrers everywhere (so I can move all my photos from PhotoBucket and cancel that account? Oy, the blog nightmare that will be). Flickr gladly took my money but has yet to change over my account. When it does, I'll be able to post the photos of yarn that I actually took this time! (Because I only want to upload them to ONE photo host because of the Ravelry thing.)

Oh.

You wanted a total?

Gee. I thought I could squeak by without divulging.

I paid cash. I "found" the emergency cash stash I'd forgotten I'd stashed away. Don't worry, I saved some of it. I only spent $192 dollars.

This is my official resignation from KFYS 2007. I give up. I tried all summer but that "sock yarn doesn't count" clause did me in.

Next year, I'm hosting Knit From Your SOCK Stash 2008.

Any takers?

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Labels: dyeing, knit from your stash 2007, ravelry, stash enhancement, yarn diet

posted by Jeanne @ 9:49 PM 5 comments

Thank Yous

It has occurred to me today that I usually sit here and go on and on about myself without thinking too much about the person on the other end reading this drivel. ;-) So I'd like to take this opportunity to say THANK YOU to my readers, for being my readers and therefore my friends whom I've never met IRL (yet). I don't always get to respond to your comments in person because of Blogger's annoying little "no-reply@" email address but I sincerely appreciate each and every one of you who takes the time to visit this blog and read my words. I also enjoy reading your blogs very much and gaining insights into your lives.

So, there it is. Thank you for being a friend... in a time in my life when I have never felt lonelier (after losing my parents), you've made all the difference. When my Mother died, I thought, who is going to listen to me yak on and on like she did? And then came you. My blogfriends. Bloggers and their readers are amazing people. Who would have thunk it, that a medium would come along that allowed complete strangers to pour out their souls for anyone to read? And that these online journals would become fascinating to the readers?

I'm grateful for blogs, and for Ravelry (which if you believe the small bit of negative hype means I've joined the ranks of the *snort* "elite" upon getting my invite), and for all the wonderful networking centers that allow us to truly connect with one another.

It makes all the difference.

**********
In other news, today was basically a complete blow-off day. Apparently the Universe decided that's what I needed, and I enjoyed a day up in Toledo that was blessedly free from estate worries, bills, fires to be put out, and cleaning/organizing. Today was all about pampering.

My hairstylist is starting a side business at the salon doing facials. Since I design her business cards and other promotional stuff (bartering is so great), and since she needed to practice on a few models before doing it for real, I got my very first honest-to-gosh facial today and let me tell you.

It was unbelievably awesome.

It lived up to the hype, and it took years off my face! I'm usually skeptical but it was free, so... well, I'm hooked. That does it. Every 45-60 days, I plan to do this. First, my face was cleansed, then sprayed with a moisturizer thingie that helps the moisture absorb better. Then I got a honey and almond oil scrub which smelled like cookie dough—yum! That was followed by a facial massage with some other oil, then acupressure points were addressed (Reiki?). It was the weirdest thing—when she pressed on the sides of my nose just under the eyebrows, warmth coursed through my body. When she pressed into my temples, it felt like cool refreshing water draining from my head down through my arms. Weird. But really relaxing.

Then I got an ice-cold seaweed mask complete with eye thingies. While that dried (mummified me), I got a neck and shoulder massage, then a hand and arm stretch and massage. Then more cleansing and spraying of the face.

That worry wrinkle that is perpetually there between my eyebrows? GONE. I look like I had Botox or something! The lines around my mouth? GONE. The pain in my fingers? GONE.

I wish I could have my entire body done.

All day, I've felt completely at peace, relaxed, happy, and that frown line won't come back no matter what. My completely non-complimentary male friend (her brother) who always says "Don't expect a compliment because I don't believe in blowing sunshine up people's @$$es" took one look and did a double take. He said "you DO look younger. Or maybe just not worried."

It's worth the money to do this, I believe. I told my stylist today, "I'm practicing for when I'm rich and can do this every day." Yep, that and a mani-pedi and I'll be living the G... L... A... M... O... R... O U S....

After that, I went to her brother's to pick up my recording equipment that he'd had for about a year but used twice. Then I went to the LYS to pick up my double treadle kit for the spinning wheel (yay) and somehow a gorgeous hank of Mango Moon one-of-a-kind-colorway recycled sari yarn fell into the bag.

I had a good three hours of downtime between that and the weaver's guild meeting, so I beat the heat at Michael's (some yarn is on clearance for two bucks so there was minor S.E.X.), chatted with the salesladies about the Beatles Tribute concert this weekend, then treated myself to some Indian food at my favorite restaurant (been going there since 1985). The leftovers went into an Igloo that I'd been wise enough to grab from my old house nearby, and then I went to the meeting. And now I'm home, enjoying my Notoxed completely-relaxed face and the wonders of A/C.

It's time to sit with the cats for awhile before hitting the hay. It was a good day today. I hope this is a harbringer of days to come. This is the good life. This is how we are meant to live.

Labels: gratefulness, musings, spinning, stash enhancement

posted by Jeanne @ 11:49 PM 5 comments

I Won the Yarn Wars

It took two days of detangling, but I WON.

These are my mini-cakes of self-patterning sock yarn that I dyed in the workshop two weekends ago. The color motif is turquoise with white flecks to teal green/emerald to chartreuse to violet. This was taken at night; the flash makes the chartreuse look more yellow than it actually is. The base was Gems Pearl (or Opal—what's the dif again?). As always, click if you want a close-up.



And since I'm all photo-happy and the room is as clean as it may ever be, I present you with my beloved corner desk, revived, resuscitated, and reinvigorated:


The view from my desk (this is my creative studio, I guess, because it contains my graphics studio, my loom, my sewing stuff, and is where I'll do most of my designing):


Finally, the Stash Closet:


About the closet. It runs the full length of that wall (basically to the edges of the photo). There are huge tubs hidden behind the walls that the sides of the bookcases are up against. You can just barely see the ones to the left. There is another whole set of them on the right and yes, they all graze the lower shelf.

But there is still a little room for more... muwahahahaaaaa!

Bookcase to the left: all knitting, weaving, sewing, fibers-related books. Bookcase to the right: all designing books (software manuals, How-To's, design concept books).

I love books. I love yarn. I have more books. They are in one case and two towers in another room. I need a library.

Well, tomorrow is my birthday. I'll be 29 again for the 15th time.

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Labels: dyeing, loom, sewing, stash enhancement, workshops

posted by Jeanne @ 10:25 PM 4 comments

Spend Much?

First, the cat update:
Everyone is fine so far *KNOCK WOOD*. But being in the cat food aisle at the grocery store today gave me pause. Very few brands of canned food remain. Large signs in the empty spaces proclaim in all caps "PRODUCT RECALLED". What remains has been picked over thoroughly. I did what I'm sure everyone else has been doing—reading the labels looking for the dreaded words "wheat gluten" then putting the can back on the shelf—and managed to find a few flavors hidden in the very back of the foods that had no WG in them.

After completing my trip around the store, I was about to head to checkout when my cart veered wildly and, as if being pulled by a magnet, it dragged me first down the baby food aisle, then over to canned human-grade meats. Baby food is TOO DARNED EXPENSIVE!!! How do you mothers manage to stomach paying a dollar for the smallest jar of food (like two tablespoons) I've ever seen? It's a racket, I tell ya, a racket.

The human-grade meats section had more than just tuna. Being a non-seafood eater, I had no idea there were so many offerings in cans. Yes, I know human food has too much salt. However; when faced with the choice of feeding commercial cat food that has God-Knows-What in it and might be potentially poisonous, versus feeding them from a can whose ingredients are: "salmon, water, salt.", I think I'll risk a little extra salt in the diet.

So the kitties will be dining on premium chunk chicken breast (in a can), salmon (in a can), and albacore tuna (in a can) until this all blows over and it's safe to come out of the people food section. I'd go for the mackerel and sardines but I can't stomach the smell. (I put the cat food back on the shelves.)

Stash Update:
Well, today was the Spinner's Guild Market Day at the Fairgrounds. My plan was to have 9 scarves woven, washed, blocked, fringe knotted and trimmed, priced and of course sold.

My reality was that I had a major issue with my first warp that I didn't post about. I learned the hard way why we put butcher paper, cardboard, wallpaper, or corrugated around the warp on the back beam as we roll it on. It keeps the warp threads separated; this is especially important when using a sticky warp like wool. Let's just say I found this out 20 inches into the first scarf when the warp tension went all wonky as I advanced the warp. Oops.

With limited warp, no extra yarn, and limited weft yarn, I couldn't just cut it off and start over. Nope. I had to unweave—FROG—the entire 20 inches and untie from the front beam. Then I had to unwind the warp and find the problem.

Welp, a few of the threads (yarn) decided to hang, which meant they were shorter than the others by the time I got ready to tie the front. I thought I'd wound the warp wrong and cut everything even (slap me now).

So to fix my grievous error, I had to rewind the warp, being very careful about tension, and about how much paper was between it. Then I re-tied up front. I lost a good two feet of half the warp. *sigh* That meant I had to forego one of the three scarves.

After I did all that, I began weaving. Finished one scarf. Finished the next. Wove a small purse. Pulled it off the loom. Came out pretty good—slightly wonky in a few spots but nothing I couldn't massage into place and tweak gently. Now, I thought I was measuring my progress every foot very carefully. So why did I wind up with one 6-foot long scarf and one 8-foot long?

*SIGH*

Washed in the Eucalan, blocked, dried. Took them to the Market Day. I still have them. But I arrived midway through the day. Apparently the fiber vultures (not my term!) arrive first thing in the morning. Ah, well. Learning experience. I didn't make any money.

But I sure did SPEND some.

Yeah, I'm avoiding adding to the yarn stash. But other stashes are fighting for equal time now. I came home with:

• four books
• two 4-0z lavender llama rovings
• one 30-oz multicolor romney roving
• a bar of lavendar (YUUMMMM) handmade soap
• a second Harrisville shuttle, small, like the one that came with my loom

Granted, I won book #4 in the door prize drawing, but I sure did spend. I don't spin. Yet. Guess I'll have to learn now. I really need to post photos, don't I?

The books are:

• Doubleweave: On Four to Eight Shafts by Ursina Arn-Grischott
• Mastering Weave Structures by Sharon Alderman
• A Weaver's Book of 8-Shaft Patterns: from the Friends of Handwoven (Carol Strickler, ed.)

I have an 8-shaft loom and I might as well learn what it can do, eh?

The book that I won is Lessons in Bobbin Lacemaking by Doris Southard. Now, I have never been interested in lacemaking. But I won the book for a reason. So I'll let you know how it goes. Any of you do Bobbin Lace?

ANyway, yup. I killed a few trees today writing checks. But I met a lot of nice people, pet some wonderful fibers, inhaled the luscious aroma of fresh wool—pelts, raw fleece, et al—and got my first taste of being on the selling end of the arts & crafts circuit.

All in all, a good day, and a nice end to the month.

Must do my project for class Tuesday. Have a great rest of the weekend!

Labels: cats, stash enhancement

posted by Jeanne @ 7:59 PM 2 comments

Ponderings: a (Long) Musing in Three Acts

Act One
Today I'm having a hard time relaxing. It's Saturday. I'm free from school for a couple of days. Oh, sure, I have Econ, Law and C&I to read, and scarves to (try to) finish for next week's Market Day, a house still in chaos, cats needing attention, and chores to do, but I'm not "busy" as in obligated elsewhere. I'm on my own time. I should be kicking back and breathing while I can.

Yet, I can't. My focus is off. In my head, I'm weaving, cross-stitching, sewing up the knitting needle case I bought fabric for last week (forget the yarn stash—I'm feeding the addiction with other sources, such as fabric and floss!), reading, having a beer on the deck in the warm sunshine. In reality, I'm procrastinating on the computer, sending myself on a "mission" to Big Lots for bins with wheels to contain the newspaper/plastic recycles in the closet (rather than all over the house), reading old newspapers and doing Sudoku puzzles (my newest obsession) rather than doing actual work (studying, cleaning).

What is my mental block about? I wondered.

Ah. That's right.

Doing Sudoku, for example, is to me a good mental workout and something to focus on while my brain resets itself. It's important. It's also fun. I remembered as a child having a preoccupation with Word Search Puzzles and Fill In The Blanks, buying books and tearing through them at a pace so fast that the publishers couldn't keep up with me.

To my Mother, such activities were a waste of time, non-productive, and the equivalent of "just sitting around all day". (I know I criticize her a lot, but I did love her; she was just a very, um, difficult person to please sometimes.) She didn't see the value in it that I did. As I've said before, she was a painter, an artist—she was a CREATIVE, for goodness' sake—she should have understood how the creative mind works.

Perhaps she did, but she had her own blocks about it, and tried to pass them on to me. I seem to have inherited a lot of them. She would pass by me on the way to the laundry room, see me sitting there working a puzzle or teaching myself a foreign language and comment, "Are you just gonna sit around all day doing nothing? How about you either help me a little or go do something constructive?" ("Constructive" meaning chores, or studying, or, well, anything but something that I wanted to be doing, it seemed.) It always irritated me that she said that, and I felt guilty for "just sitting there"—even if that's what I really needed to be doing right then after a hard week at school.

I still feel guilty and irritated, but there's no source. It's all internal. Today I realized it's because my internal tape repeats the Motherisms: do something constructive; do your work first, then when it's finished you can go goof off for awhile; you'll never get anything done if you just sit around all day with your nose in a book. So my problem is, I feel compelled to finish ALL my work—every last bit of it—before I can "allow" myself to relax or do something I enjoy just for me.

Trouble is, the work is NEVER done. I could clean from dawn til dusk for three weeks straight without a break, and maybe the house would be closer to what I envision (if I survived it). My studying is finite, thank the Universe, but everything else, household chores, bills, cleaning, repairs, errands—it's continual until the day we leave the planet.

Hence, I'll never get to "go goof off for awhile". Because this work stuff will never end until I end. And it doesn't go away just because I ignore it.

Now that Mother is on the other side, if there is consciousness there, I wonder what she'd tell me now. Would she stick to her living beliefs (do the work now, play later after it's done)? Or would she tell me, "I was wrong! Play now, enjoy every minute, do a little work every day but don't make it the focus of your day because life is short and the work is unending anyway so learn to live with the mess and just focus on what really means something to you"?

Act Two
Ah, there's the rub. I want to spend my time knitting, weaving, sewing, playing with dyes and yarns, spinning, writing music again, playing guitar, riding my horses, learning to quilt, learning all sorts of things and making lots of beautiful things for myself and others. Most of what I yearn to do doesn't exactly fall under the category of Gainful Employment (although if you refer to my earlier post, I think some of them can transmogrify into GE), and honestly, I really just want to win the MegaMillions Jackpot (even if it's "only" $12 million) so I can avoid working a J.O.B. and spend my time doing the things in the list above. I really resent that W.o.r.k. would intrude upon my life 40+ hours per week and get in the way of living. I mean "resent" in a deeply profound way to the extent that the thought of re-entering the world of 9-5 makes me physically ill.

But that's beside the point. So say I did win the lottery or found another way to be financially secure, and spend my day learning and doing and making pretty stuff. Then what?

One day, I'll die, and all the knowledge/learning I've gained will die with me. All the stuff will become A Problem for my heirs, something to be sorted, organized, inventoried, priced, appraised, stored, tossed, or otherwise distributed, much to their chagrin and likely with much annoyance on their parts at the intrusion my leftovers will make on their lives. It's possible that 90% of it will have little to no value to them. Things that I put my heart and soul into will be labeled with Post-It price tags and dumped onto a card table at a Yard Sale they'll be pissed they have to waste a good Saturday on. Maybe somebody will see the value in Great Aunt Jeanne's hand-dyed handspun cat hair, or my stacks of notebooks filled with sketches or lyrics; but the reality is, almost everything I create will become dumpster fodder when I leave.

Why do it?

Why work so hard to learn, when the learning is finite?

I suppose the only way to make it "worth it" in the global sense of the word is to do my best to pass on the knowledge moreso than the stuff. Maybe I am destined to leave a legacy of learning in some area.

I hope so, because I hate to think of the volume of yarn, floss, fabric and UFOs my poor grandnieces will be buried under when I die. It's truly reached SABLE* point. Imagine how bad it will be after another 40 years (God Willing).

Act Three
I hope that as time passes, so will the rawness I sometimes feel when I think about my parents. It's an odd juxtaposition of missing them profoundly, yet feeling like I'm dealing rather well (better than anticipated, I'm not falling apart at the seams or bound for the nuthouse). I'm able to talk freely about them, if in past tense, and I don't exactly hide the facts nor do I make it my introductory opening (nor, hopefully, do I dwell on them too much).

But I know it freaks out a lot of people when they do find out (mostly the younger set who still believe they are immortal), and there are unexpected moments that make my eyes sting. Not the things you'd think would trigger emotions; rather, it's the more mundane things that get me. Like an incident several weeks ago at a restaurant while awaiting the arrival of my dining companion.

A waiter, who couldn't have been more than 20-21, rushed over to say goodbye to his parents, who had been dining there. They were all of five feet from where I was sitting. I listened to their very ordinary conversation—you know, the usual—when are you done with classes, will you be coming home next weekend, how was your test, we'll send you a check, etc. And the young fellow's responses, slightly embarrassed yet pleased, the caring bond evident between the three. He hugged both of them firmly and waved cheerily as they turned to leave.

I felt my heart swell, and my eyes prick with tears. I couldn't understand why such a common exchange would elicit such a reaction from me.

When my friend arrived, I relayed this story to her and posed the question "why". She said, bluntly, "because you know you don't have that anymore and it makes you sad".

She was right.

So to those of you who still have one or both of your parents, I say, cherish the mundane. Enjoy those irritating little sayings they impart upon you, their annoying habits, the endless criticisms about your life, the small moments of everyday conversation that seem to mean nothing. Once they are gone, you'll miss it, and you'll realize it meant everything.

**********
* SABLE: Stash Acquisition Beyond Life Expectancy

Labels: estate nonsense, family time, musings, stash enhancement

posted by Jeanne @ 9:22 PM 4 comments

I Broked It

My commitment to Knit From Your Stash 2007, that is.

OK, maybe I really didn't break the commitment, because the yarn in question will never see a knitting needle (only a loom). It just feels that way.

Yesterday, I went to my LYS. I was on a mission. Mission Accomplished. I returned home with 18 balls of yarn. All of them are different. I spent over $200.

Why would I do this, you ask?

Well... the Black Swamp Market Day is coming up at the end of the month, and my weaver's guild is hosting a booth. I'll be manning the booth with some other members for a few hours, and that means I can sell stuff. Stuff of my own. Woven stuff.

At our last guild meeting, one of the members drooled for the third time over the scarf I'd woven during the two-day weaving workshop I took in October. It's just a simple Basketweave pattern, but I guess my color choices helped. The droolee loves the way they form a sort of checkerboard effect he's never seen before (and he's seen plenty of these scarves, it's the pattern used in every one of the beginning weaving workshops). Well, that got me thinking.

If nobody else is putting together yarn combos this way, and it's striking enough to be droolworthy... maybe I should try a few more, eh? All it takes for a scarf is one skein of Brown Sheep Nature Spun, one ball of GGH Amelie (or similar), and one skein if desired of mohair.*

I'm now armed with enough to make about a dozen scarves. I'll be smart about it, though. There are three warp colors. I'll make two or more scarves per warp (production weaving!). For the Roasted Coffee (brown) warp, I have four or five potential weft combinations in mind. So, I'll warp enough for four or five scarves, then weave one, add some sheeting to separate, weave another, add sheeting, etc. Much faster than warping for each individual scarf.

If it's nice tomorrow, I'll do a photo shoot. I'm pooped now, after spending the day finishing my other mission. Since I'm Master of the house now, it seems fitting (as well as a necessary rite of passage) that I occupy what was my parents' bedroom and move out of my childhood bedroom. After two days of emptying the closet, sorting, organizing, washing the clothes (dust—OMG the dust!), packing them in bins, moving the bins to the storage unit, vacuuming, wiping down the woodwork, and mopping the parquet tiles with a good hot dose of Murphy's... THEN singlehandedly moving the box spring and mattress from my old metal frame to the green French Provincial I inherited from Mother (yes, I moved them All. By. My. Self)... it's official. I've "moved". The last bit of my parents' stuff has been packed away (the noticeable important stuff, that is; the stuff that declared them as "here").

My loom now occupies the spot where I slept for the better part of 35 years. It's behind me right now. My old bedroom becomes my fibers workroom.

There is no guest room. I somehow left out the guest room in favor of a fibers room, a bedroom, and a TV/guitar/knitting hideaway in the 3rd bedroom. Tough on ya, "guests". (Nobody visits anyway except the Phamily. Who knows if they'll visit now that Mom & Dad are gone? Besides, they took all the extra sleeping furniture.)

My Dad was right. Jobs like this go better after a beer (or two). All Hail Corona. I'd forgotten how nice it feels to sit outside on the deck on a warmish spring afternoon with a beer in hand. Oh, I saw one tiny yellow crocus that has bloomed. Spring is finally here.

Well, I'm pooped. Y'all can go ahead and Spring Forward all ya want. Me, I'm going to shower and Fall Back into my "new" bed. G'night!


*Note: these are my personal opinions, not paid-for endorsements. Just so ya know.

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Labels: boring household crap, loom, stash enhancement

posted by Jeanne @ 9:25 PM 3 comments

A Near Miss

Today I went to Michael's to pick up some floss for my surface design project. Guess I'd better explain that: we have been dyeing and stamping fat quarters, using a piece of fruit as our inspiration (I chose a pineapple). We had to research the fruit to find out some history and lore.

Did you know that the "eyes" spiraling around the Pineapple's exterior do so in a Fibonacci sequence? TRUE! Starting at the top by the leaves, if you count clockwise and down (which would technically be spiraling to the left), there are 8 eyes; if you count counterclockwise and down (technically spiraling to the right), there are 13. Young pineapples have 5s and 8s. Since I seem to be fascinated with Fibonacci sequencing with regard to color, this was an exciting discovery for me.

Back to the floss. So we dyed/stamped our fat quarters and now we are to embellish them. The finished piece will be a sort of quilt. It will have the artwork layer, then batting, then a backing piece, and the stitching embellishment will go through all three layers. We can use beads, make them 3D, whatever we want. Mine will have all of that. So I went to Mike's because last time I was in there buying regular floss for my latest cross-stitch extravaganza, my eye happened upon some amazing new floss: DMC Color Variations. Basically, it's subtly variegated floss. After I got home that day (of course), it occurred to me that it would work perfectly for the project.

I grabbed about a dozen different colors in the Color Variations. Then I grabbed just as many of the new DMC Light Effects floss—it's reflective! They come in iridescent pearl tones, jewel tones, antiques, metallics, fluorescent, and even—get this—one glow-in-the-dark! What a trip.

Then I got a package of cardboard floss bobbins (I prefer cardboard because I can write on them with pen).

Here's the "near miss" part. Those sneaky rascals at Mike's positioned the clearance Fun Fur bin right next to the entrance door. On my way in, four skeins of atrociously-colored but marked-down-to-two-bucks Fun Fur dove into my basket. They even convinced me to make sure they matched up with the Microspun I have at home. (They are for chemo hats. I have the patterns but can't off top of my head remember whose blog is running the hat party.)

But I already have a stashload of Fun Fur type yarn at home that I'm going to make into chemo hats. I didn't even like the colors they had left! But those four skeins got what they thought was their farewell-tour of the store. Until I arrived at the register and really noticed them for the first time. I held them back while the floss was rung up. The floss itself, well, it's specialty floss therefore not a quarter a hank—it would have been cheaper to buy yarn! That decided it for me. I shoved the Fun Furs aside and said "I've changed my mind about the yarn". The skeins squawked indignantly. But I turned a deaf ear to them. They would be spending yet another night with their littermates in the clearance bins.

It was a near miss, but I managed to escape with only $50 worth of fancy floss. Whew!

I also went to Target and finally found a decent slouchy messenger bag in army green canvas, and to Books-A-Million where I picked up Julia Cameron's "The Artist's Way" (so I can return my well-overdue copy to the library and pay my fines) and David Allen's "Getting Things Done" (same). And I'm proud to say that I haven't done a lick of anything remotely homework related all day. I knit, I organized my latest cross-stitch project, and now... I'm off to watch the L-Word!

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Labels: knit from your stash 2007, stash enhancement, yarn diet

posted by Jeanne @ 9:34 PM 2 comments

School Daze

OMG. So tired. Long day today. Law, Econ, Surface Design, Weaving. Four classes.

Happy realization, though—I get the two "urgh" classes out of the way first, then I get to play with dyes and yarn the rest of the day. Much better to look forward to the last two classes than to sit there all day dreading the yucks. The yucks are overwith before I'm fully awake. (Actually the first two classes aren't all that bad, considering the subject matter is not my cup of tea.)

Weaver's Guild Meeting Tuesday night—I'm a new member, we had a potluck, it was nice, we had a scarf warp exchange. Fun. Each member warps yarn for a scarf, puts it in a plain bag, then we choose randomly. We take home the warp we get, put it on our loom, choose the weft yarns, and weave a scarf. Then we return it to the original person at a later meeting. The one I got has some interesting colors—maybe I can use some of my stash!

Bought more yarn. Not a lot. Two skeins of mohair in reds. Intended to blend with the red yarn for my attempt to do a Red Scarf Project scarf. Not sure it'll make it. I'm a bit late finding the charity. Anyway, I can justify that yarn by project, or I can use it in a school project.

OK. I'm dead tired. Must sleep. Just checking my bank balance and somehow wandered over to Bloglines (mistake). See you all later... *yaaawwwwwnnnnn* OH, excuse me.

'Night.

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Labels: college life, stash enhancement

posted by Jeanne @ 1:40 AM 1 comments

Victory is MINE

The Plan:
Go to the LYS. Grab two balls of RYC Silk Wool DK for the Fetchings, #6 DPNs if the order was in, and find out how to fold my loom. If that one hank of Anne that I lusted after is still there, I can get it only because Anne is one-of-a-kind dye baths and it's sock yarn. Avoid direct eye contact with any other tempting yarns. Hold breath. Leave quickly. Get into car, drive away fast.

The Reality:
There was a hitch in the plan—a potential pitfall of grand proportions.

The Pitfall:
I arrived at 4:45 PM; the person who knew how to fold the loom was not due in until 5:45 PM—meaning, I had an entire hour to kill, or... a return trip at a later date (and exposure to temptation yet again). I almost panicked.

Then I remembered, hey, I have an entire readership of blogfans out there (all not-sure-how-many-of-you) lending me psychic moral support. "I can do this," I thought. "I can resist the Enemy."

How It Went Down:
First, I ambled slowly back to the sock yarn department. Mountain Colors called out to me by name. From the corner of my eye, I noticed Opal beckoning me provocatively. Rowan winked at me and reminded me of the 30% off sale. The entire Classic Elite Choir sang sweetly as I passed. I tucked my chin into my chest and pretended I didn't notice. Their cries of dismay and rejection haunt me still.

I caressed each skein of Anne as I searched for the coveted dark violet blend. Two errant hanks jumped into my hands, begging me to take them home (danged pound puppies)—one was an enticing blend of eggplant, wine and chocolate; the other was an earthy composite of brown, rust, and brick red. They were clingy little suckers in desperate need of attention; I humored them and let them sit in my hands as I continued my quest for the subtle dark violet blend.

At last, I found it, still on the bottom of the heap where I'd last left it—waiting... patiently waiting... just for me. Our reunion was interrupted by a saleslady. "Have you seen a pair of black reading glasses? Someone came in, and who knows where they could be..." I held tight to my Violet Anne and her two itinerant friends while I helped the saleslady hunt down the glasses, silently breathing a thank you for the moments of distraction from yarn that the pursuit of spectacles provided. (They were nowhere to be seen. No pun intended.)

The search abandoned, I turned my attention to placating the stray sock yarns and telling them why they couldn't come home with me this time. I assured them that certainly someone will come along and give them a good home—just be patient, and sit up nice and tall when a potential victim new Mommy walks by. As I was explaining this to them, my name was called out from the front room. The skeins and I walked quickly to the front of the shop. A saleslady had called the loom folding expert while I was petting the sock yarn and she was on the phone. My spirits lifted—was I saved? Would one phone call solve my problem and allow me to escape the LYS unscathed?

Several minutes were swallowed up by the conversation, which ended with the determination that the only way to illustrate the folding process was by demonstrating it in person. Therefore, I would have to wait for her arrival. Alas, not saved.

I returned the poor, neglected stray sock yarns to their homes. I gave them time to say goodbye to their Violet friend. We moved into the next room. I headed straight for the RYC bin and quickly located two balls of my project yarn.

I almost made it past the notions display, but the sock blockers, uh, blocked my path. Size small? Don't need. The others are probably medium like I have, right? Good. So anyw—oh, crap. They're large. Exactly what I need for the socks for She of the Enormous Feet. I sighed heavily in defeet defeat. They joined our merry little band, as did a package of jumbo stitch holders (the ones shaped like padlocks that I adore and had never seen that big before). On to the register, quickly now!

$81.18, in cash. Exact change.

And it was only 5:05 PM.

The store was empty save for me and two salesladies, who retreated to the classroom/knitting area after ringing up my sale. They invited me to sit with them while I waited for the loom folder. Whew! It was like a Safe House. No yarn to be found, except for the projects they were working on. I folded my arms securely (to prevent creeping yarn fondling) and focused intently on the conversation, which was largely about recent New Year's activities. Time flew. Suddenly, my saviour arrived. We went to the back room and I got a lesson in loom folding. (It's easy, but they really do need to provide an ILLUSTRATION or photograph because the process does not easily translate into words.)

Soon, my purchases and I were safely out the door and in the car. I managed to escape without further additions. I got out of there with:

• two balls of RYC Silk Wool DK for project completion (belated Xmas gift)
• one skein of coveted Violet Anne sock yarn
  
• one pair of size large sock blockers
• one tiny package of stitch holders
• info on the upcoming Weaver's Guild meeting next week (free)
• the #6 DPNs are still MIA so I couldn't buy them
  

Sock yarn doesn't count; tools are exempt. I pretty much stuck to my resolution, I think. Agreed?

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Labels: Christmas knitting, knit from your stash 2007, stash enhancement, yarn diet

posted by Jeanne @ 12:04 AM 4 comments

Merry Knitmas!

It was a rather uneventful and brief trip to visit the PA relatives. I met my other Great Niece for the first time. My niece (Allergic One) and her DH had tried fertility treatments for years to unsuccessfully conceive, then opted to adopt a girl from China. LL came home in October 2005. Two weeks later, my niece discovered she was five weeks pregnant. KU appeared in July 2006. So my niece and her DH have two children under the age of two. I feel for them. ;-) KU accompanied niece to Mother's funeral because she was still on the nipple. LL stayed home with Daddy because she was "a handful". So this was my first occasion to meet LL. Quite a precocious, smart, engaging child. Still not enough to put the long-dead batteries back into my biological clock, though, LOL.

I'm taking a much-deserved and much-needed break from knitting after the Hellidaze/Knitmare Before Christmas I experienced. On top of knitting abuse, I managed to whangle my other hand yesterday. Don't ask me how this happened. All I know is, as I was exiting the car at yet another rest area, my arm spazzed and threw my left hand into the latch part on the car—the thingie the door hooks into. I'm now sportin' yet another bruise and a big bump and pain. *SIGH* The things I do to myself. Are they sure about my birthdate? I mean, I've had enough mishaps to qualify to be a Saggitarius rather than the Cancerian homebody that they tell me I am. Anyway, I expect to resume knitting in a day or so, because of the two remaining gifts I need to get ready for friends.

In gifting news:
Two of the five knit recipients were absent. The other three gifts were well-received. Allergic One didn't seem to notice the presence of 25% wool in her scarf and was quite taken with the design and the fact that it doesn't need to be tied (since it's made that way). Her DH appreciated the half-scarf he got, and Sister's sock fit perfectly. Hopefully I can make another one just like it. She said she hadn't been expecting one with such an intricate design ("Monkey"). I guess she would have been thrilled with a one-day stockinette jobbie. Oh, well. Live and learn!

And last but not least, what I got:
BOOK STASH ENHANCEMENT!!!

Sister is a former knitter. Apparently she understands my needs. In lieu of clothes, I requested that everyone "please visit my Amazon WishList". My library now includes:

• Vogue Stitchionary Volume 1: Knit & Purl
• Vogue Stitchionary Volume 2: Cables
• EZ's Knitter's Almanac
• Designing Knitwear (Deborah Newton)
• Fair Isle Sweaters Simplified (Ann & Eugene Bourgeios of Philosopher's Wool)
• Color in Spinning (Deb Menz)

The kitties got a tub of the Nip. Now that's what I call the highest form of enabling (on all fronts)!

Self-gifting:
Of course, I gifted myself a bit more, since I'll be on the Yarn Diet and all in four days. I've decided I need to go on a Book Diet too, because I am weak when I enter a bookstore. Leaving without at least a magazine is nearly impossible for me. I keep Amazon.com in business. Therefore, I declare an addition to my rules:

1. I can buy a subscription to a magazine I read regularly IF I have read two of the issues of said magazine cover to cover in the past two months.
2. If it's a pattern-oriented magazine, and I can't find it in the library, I can only buy it if three patterns are REAL possibilities (not "yeah, I could knit that one day" fantasies) such as for a gift or upcoming event. If it's just another cabled sweater, I have to weigh how vital it is that I have THAT sweater, or if it's just me succumbing to the appeal of the layout, color, fuzziness of the yarn, how cute the model looks in the photo (wearing the sweater meaning I will look the same meaning I will magically drop 75 pounds, grow two inches taller, and reverse-age 20 years the moment I bind off)
3. I can buy a book only if it:

• can't be found through my local library
• can be found there, but I'm fourth in the queue for the hold
• contains a technique not available online for free that I need right now for a project I'm currently working on (from my stash, of course)
• isn't similar to something I already have on hand (technique, stitch dictionary)

God, I hope that covers it. Because today I ordered:

• Cat Bordhi's Socks Soar
• Yarns to Dye For: Creating Self-Patterning Yarns for Knitting
• The Twisted Sisters Sock Workbook

and while at Books A Million after lunching with an old friend, I picked up:

• KnitLit the Third: We Spin More Yarns
• the latest issues of Spin-Off and Handwoven
• Believe: A Horseman's Journey (Buck Brannaman)

No, I haven't bought any more yarn.

Yet.

Labels: Christmas knitting, family time, stash enhancement, Xmas, yarn diet

posted by Jeanne @ 7:53 PM 2 comments