Amy Singer was here, I bought stuff

So here's Amy being really silly. This was after she'd taught her Tuscany lace class at Knit Purl and she was a little punchy. Here she's modeling her new cotton sock yarn waddle. I really don't like how I look in pictures but I did want a one of me with Amy so here it is.
I did enjoy some fun new stash purchases. I went in with a little bit of a plan and being a true "one skein girl" I bought a few onesies.
Top: Brown Malabrigo worsted weight for a hat for my college bound boy who just moved to Alaska.
Bottom Left to Right: Brown Rio de la Plata for another hat for the boy. It is very cold there and he'll need one to wear and one to ... Scratch that. I don't think he'll wash them. If he does, he'll probably ruin them.
Next: Handmaiden Sea Silk in a one of a kind colorway. I already started the sweet Amy Singer design, Montego Bay, from IK Summer 2007.

Next: ShiBui fingering weight. This is already being knitted into a zigzag headband. I got the pattern at Knit Purl and already made one but I had to rewrite the pattern at the end because the instructions either just don't make sense to me or they're wrong. Either way, I figured out how to complete the headband and they are fun and quick and don't take very much yarn so I think I'll do up some more to use as samples of my regular stock colorways.

Last one, on the right: Koigu in a pretty colorway. Don't know what it'll be yet. Probably ankle socks.

And this here be two FOs! That's Abigail's brilliant four corners dishcloth pattern knit in kitchen cotton yarn dyed by me. I'm doing up more of these dyed cotton yarns so, if you have an interest in unique kitchen cotton yarn, keep an eye on my etsy shop.

That's all for today. I'll check in again soon with more spinning and knitting.

It's official...I'm a blogger slug

Has it really been that long? Summer is half over and I've not posted in so long I don't know where to start. There's been spinning and knitting and dyeing and S.E.X.! Oh, and I'm on Ravelry. I'm jenknits over there in case you want to go check out my stash and projects. I'm hoping to get the rest of my growing stash there soon so that I can keep track of on going projects and future projects.

I did spin up some 100% tussah silk that I dyed in brown, navy and gold. This was a combo I really wanted to try in a fiber I really wanted to try. I'm not terribly pleased with either the colorway or the spinning but I think it will be nice once it's knitted up. There's only 180 yards so I don't know what it will become yet...maybe a long thin lacy scarf.

Here it is on the bobbins. I think I just need more practice on silk to "get it". I'm not sure how much twist to put in and I think my plying could've been a little tighter as well.

Here's another spinning project. This is some 100% Merino roving that my friend picked up for me at Black Sheep Gathering. Of course I handpainted it. This is the Seafoam colorway spun in fractal stripes. That is, I split the roving in half and spun as is in rally long color repeats. The other half (on the second bobbin) I further split the roving in thirds to make shorter color repeats. This has been plied (no pic yet) and I can't wait to see what the striping does once it's knitted. I'm thinking raglan top-down baby jacket.

One Sideways sock done! Yippee! This is my shadows colorway.

Catching up

I've been hard at work trying to get at least one pair of socks finished for the 52 pair plunge. Here is my first pair. So far I'm only 5 weeks behind but I knew when I joined that I would be a turtle. These are Magic 28 socks knit in 1/1 rib. They will probably take a journey to Mongolia with my cousin and his wife when they return there in July. They live in a very cold, very poor area so these can be used by a small child in their community. I'm planning on this being just the first of a bunch that get to take the trip with them. This yarn is some worsted weight wool that I dyed. It felted ever so slightly when I rinsed it out making it unsaleable. I have enough left for a couple more pairs of these little cuties.Here is my "in between" spinning. This is gorgeous 75% mohair, 25% wool that I got at a fiber sale a couple months ago. The vendor is Sheep Hollow Farm. Since I absolutely L.O.V.E. red it is very entertaining for me to spin. I'm trying to spin it very softly and the two-ply is quite bulky.
This is my "in between" spinning because I'm spinning it in between spinning bobbins 2 and 3 of this gorgeous purple and violet superwash merino that I dyed myself. I'm planning on a 3 ply sock yarn with this and, amazingly, these bobbins weigh within one gram! of each other. I split the roving in thirds and I think it's pretty amazing that I split it so acurately.

Here are the first two bobbins hanging out in front of one of my pretty azalea bushes enjoying the evening sunshine.And this, my friends, is softly spun slightly thick and thin yarn I spun from a batt created by Miss Violet of Lime and Violet fame. The yarn is pretty and sparkly. Not as soft as I like since the wool in it is coarser than I usually choose but the silk makes it kinda interesting and softens it up a bit. I can't remember what all was in the batt. I have to say I like my spinning batts a little more blended (prepared?) but I understand that she was trying to accomplish chunky bits of color and not tweed so it did work the way she intended. I'm just really like spinning combed top I guess. And I hadn't spun anything with Angelina fibers before so that was kinda interesting and fun. This color also blends perfectly with the skein I made using my ghetto hackle and the weight of yarn is equivalent enough that I think I may knit them up into a stripey hat and use the softer superwash merino/targhee blend that I made as the brim of the hat with this as a wide stripe. Pattern ideas anyone?
Oh, and here's a close up. It is very pretty don't you think?

I've been reading Lolly's journey the past couple weeks while she's been on her journey to good health and I was inspired to buy the book she recommended. It didn't take more than a couple pages to realize that "it's time". I need to get off caffeine and cleanse the junk out of my body. My muscles ache a lot of the time and I almost literally live on caffeine which makes it difficult to get really good rest and makes me pretty tense by the end of the day. I also have a very small upper torso making me a prime candidate for osteoporosis in the future which is also a good reason to occasionally reassess what I'm putting in my body.

Today I have a pretty bad headache. I started weaning off caffeine on Sunday and have cut my daily intake from the equivalent of maybe 6 large lattes a day (probably more) to 4 diet cokes a day. Maybe that's too quick of a shift but I'm guzzling water and eating healthier foods. I also cut out white sugar and white flour starting Sunday. I'm still craving sweets but I figure I need to take control so I'm just trying to keep busy and not think about food all the time. I do typically eat when I get headaches so today it's been hard. Right now as I right this it's almost time for a little caffeine so I'm hoping that will take the edge off.

I apologize if you came here looking for knitting or spinning news. I'm still dyeing for the local shop and developing new colorways on cotton yarns as well as trying out some of those great colorways that were suggested during the contest last week. I will continue to talk about my journey on the UltraSimple Diet so this is fair warning. It's only for a couple weeks so it shouldn't get too boring.

If you have any encouragement or caffeine withdrawal secrets I'd love to listen.

Be sure to go check out Lolly's inpirational journey.

And the winner is

My youngest child chose......

knitstiks

from the big white pot.

And my favorite was....

Caribbean Sunset

[If you're knitstiks or Jane, please email me and I'll let you know what to do next so you can go get your prize from my shop.]

I plan to create this colorway that Jane suggested. In fact, I liked all three of Jane's colorways. There were a bunch more that I really liked and I'm really excited about trying some new colorways in the coming weeks. I'm thinking of putting these little strips of paper in a bowl and just reaching in and choosing one once in a while at random to create.

I am soooo bad at naming colorways so THANK YOU to all of you who participated!

If you want me to create your yarn colorway please email me at quiltsATcyberisDOTnet or convo me from my Etsy shop and I will interpret your colorway. I have 100% superwash merino fingering weight that has a nice tight twist, a really soft squishy DK weight superwash merino and some super plush fingering weight brushed mohair/nylon (it's 90/10).

Don't forget, I'm still offering free shipping in the U.S. on all purchases.

Not yet

Did you come here looking for winners? I'm struggling to decide on my favorite so I'm giving myself until tomorrow to reveal the winners.

Oh, and did you notice the little date issue? Apparently I'm date impaired... or at least I was last week when I posted the contest. I realized it on Saturday but decided to just leave it and what I can't believe is that no one pointed it out to me. I guess all the talk of color and naming colorways was too distracting.

Anyway, check back tomorrow for winners. See you then.

CONTEST!

I've determined that I get several hits a day (not a lot mind you) to this blog. More, of course, when I post. I'm really not much of a writer but I do like having some place to make announcements about new stuff in my shop. I just don't share much personal stuff or take the time to write about what's on my mind.

In order to maximize the hits I do get and thank those who are taking the time to visit I've decided to have a contest.

Leave me a comment with:

***A sock yarn colorway that you dream of. List off 4-7 colors and give it a name. I may or may not actually create your colorway but I'm interested in what you like and I'm terrible with naming them.

***Deadline*** Wednesday, May 1, at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time

***Two (2) winners - one chosen for my favorite colorway (the one I'll be dyeing to try) and one chosen at random.

***Winner gets*** Any one item in my shop. I'm working up some more of the sock knitting bags that will hopefully be up by then plus new yarns here and there as I get them done.

***Random Winner will be chosen when one of my adorable kiddos draw your name out of a hat. (Remind me to take pictures)

***Up to three entries per person in separate comments please.


I really can't wait to see what this contest yields. Will I even get one comment? Mia, are you out there?

That's not the way you're supposed to do it ...

... but I don't care. I tried to start toe ups using a bunch of different methods and just couldn't get it right. So I got out the Queen Kahuna pages I'd printed and did it that way. My cast on edge remains kinda garter stitch looking but it is closed and I know it will be inside my shoe so I carried on up the foot using instructions from the trusty FiberTrends Magic Loop booklet.

And the yarn!!! I just got in this fabulous soft cushy cotton/lycra sock yarn and I am IN. LOVE. It is soooo soft and knits really quick on larger needles. I'm knitting on US5's because I knit tightly, but most people would probably use 3's or 4's. I dyed this yarn using Procion MX dyes and was surprised at how light it came out. But I'm enjoying how it's knitting up...really soft and pretty.

Here's a pic of a bunch more of these cotton/lycra sock yarns that I'm putting up in my shop later today. They will be $20 with free postage for a big 110g skein. That's 435 yards (moderately stretched) of petal soft stretchy cool summer yarn. Just holler at me it you see one you like (quiltsATcyberisDOTnet).

Boteh

Feel the crochet love? This is Boteh from Interweave Crochet. I haven't crocheted in years but this is a super fun pattern so far. I played with some of my dyed yarn (This is Baby Girl - I have a skein in my shop) to make this swatch. Now I just have to decide what color to dye for a whole scarf. Crochet is FUN!

Ghetto Hackle in Action

In my last post I talked about my ghetto hackle that I learned about at Cidermoon's blog. Here are pictures of my little set up, the little roving puffs and some spun on the fabulous Ashford Traveller.

Too busy to blog

I've been a busy little beaver these past two weeks. Thanks to all the wonderful new customers who have given me great feedback on my sock knitting bags! I've enjoyed corresponding and creating lovely bags for you.

I've also been dyeing yarn again and even have a new base yarn I'm trying out that hasn't made it's way to the shop yet so if you're looking for a summer sock yarn check back. I'll only have a few skeins to start while I give it a little try and see how I like it. BTW, it's a springy cotton/lycra at about 375 yards per 4.25 ounce skein.

I also took Cidermoon's lead and made myself a ghetto hackle so I've been pulling roving through my little ghetto diz (the hole in the end of a plastic ruler) and I love how it's spinning. So fun. And I'd been wanting to try blending some fibers in just this way. I'm working with a really dark purple Targhee and white superwash merino to make a muted plummy barberpoley single. I'll get some pictures up when this rain stops and the house is not such a deep dark tomb.

Linkage:
Yarnival is here: NotScarlett
Which led me to: DIY hackle
My shop with pretty new yarns: Colorfullife

Pretty

Here's some gorgeous yarn I've been dyeing. More of the angora/merino fingering weight yarn. My friend has about 30 angora bunnies and she sends out the fiber to a mill who makes this beautiful yarn which I then dye for her. It is so pretty and soft I just wish I could keep some but, alas, she gets to take it all and sell it. Oh, well, maybe next time.

Somtimes its good to be reminded

Found this on Judith's blog Z Street News and thought it was worthy of passing on.

It takes some people 50 years to learn these truths . . .

1. The badness of a movie is directly proportional to the number of helicopters in it.

2. You will never find anybody who can give you a clear and compelling reason why we observe daylight-saving time.

3. You should never say anything to a woman that even remotely suggests you think she's pregnant unless you can see an actual baby emerging from her at that moment.

4. The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age, gender, religion, economic status or ethnic background, is that, deep down inside, we ALL believe that we are above-average drivers.

5. There comes a time when you should stop expecting other people to make a big deal about your birthday. That time is: age 11.

6. There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness." (And any knitter will tell you that's true.)

7. People who want to share their religious views with you almost never want you to share yours with them.

8. If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the human race has not achieved, and never will achieve, its full potential, that word would be "meetings."

9. The main accomplishment of almost all organized protests is to annoy people who are not in them.

10. If there really is a God who created the entire universe with all of its glories, and he decides to deliver a message to humanity, he will NOT use as his messenger a person on cable TV with a bad hairstyle or in some cases, really bad make-up too.

11. You should not confuse your career with your life.

12. A person who is nice to you, but rude to the waiter/janitor, is not a nice person.

13. No matter what happens, somebody will find a way to take it too seriously.

14. When trouble arises and things look bad, there is always one individual who perceives a solution and is willing to take command. Very often, that individual is crazy.

15. Your true friends love you, anyway.

16. Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.

Well, I'm 40 and there are a couple of these I'm still learning and a couple I don't really agree with on principle but I still think its a good list and a good reminder for me to sometimes remember kindergarten and learning to share (as I occasionally forget that lesson too).

Knitting and dyeing and spinning and all those things are happening here. I am just not photographing them much and I find it difficult to write without a visual.

I joined the 52 Pair Plunge and I think there are a lot of baby socks in my future in order to just barely keep my head above water on this one. But I think it will be fun to play.

I sang to a gangster because the voices told me to

I've never met a gangster nor do I often hear "voices" but I do love to sing. Saw this on Michal's blog and considered myself tagged. Now it's your turn.

Pick the month you were born:
January------I kicked
February-----I loved
March---------I smoked
April-----------I dry humped
May-----------I choked on
June----------I murdered
July-----------I did the Macarena with
August-------I had lunch with
September---I danced with
October------I sang to
November----I yelled at
December----I ran over

Pick the day (number) you were born on:
1-------a birdbath
2-------a monster
3-------a phone
4-------a fork
5-------a Mexican
6-------a gangster
7-------my cell phone
8-------my dog
9-------my best friends' boyfriend
10-------my neighbor
11-------my science teacher
12-------a banana
13-------a fireman
14-------a stuffed animal
15-------a goat
16-------a pickle
17-------your mom
18-------a spoon
19-------myself
20-------a baseball bat
21-------a ninja
22-------Chuck Norris
23-------a noodle
24-------a squirrel
25-------a football player
26-------my sister
27-------my brother
28-------an ipod
29-------a permanent marker
30-------a llama
31-------A homeless guy

Pick the color of shirt you are wearing:
White--------because I'm cool like that
Black---------because that's how I roll.
Pink----------because I'm NOT a homosexual.
Red----------because the voices told me to.
Blue----------because I'm sexy and I do what I want
Green---------because I hate myself.
Purple--------because I'm cool.
Gray----------because I was drunk
Yellow--------because someone offered me 1,000,000 dollars
Orange-------because I hate my family.
Brown--------because I was high.
Other---------because I'm a ninja.
None----------because I cant control myself

Consider yourself tagged! And please, leave *your* results in my comments.

Shameless Promotion

edited to add pics of completed bag (fabric not available)

I've had a lot of interest in my spindle/sock knitting bags in my Etsy shop so I thought it would be easier to post the pics of the available fabric choices here rather than posting pics in a convo there. So here's the fabs...

Above: Fabrics for the outside of the bags - I have lovely coordinating fabrics for the inside.

Edited: The two crossed out fabrics are available. I crossed out the wrong ones!

The two not crossed are unavailable.

Above: Gorgeous Kaffe Fassett fabrics - also with gorgeous coordinating fabrics for the inside. Some of the coordinates are KF, some are solids and some are my handdyed fabrics.

Above: Two more of Kaffe Fassett's prints. These can be for the main fabric or I may use

them for the inside.

Above: Here's three with their coordinates. These are from Heather Bailey and Amy Butler.

Above: On the right is another KF and on the left are a couple of Heather Bailey's new line - a main fabric with it's coordinate.

Edited: Black print on the right taken

Above: These are really pretty oriental style prints with a lovely pink coordinate.

Above: Another two really bright sets. These two are finished and ready to mail.

If you are interested in any of these bags they are $15 with free postage in the U.S. Just shoot me an email at quiltsATcyberisDOTnet and let me know which one(s) you fancy.

Head's up fiber buyers

The Spring Fiber Sale is tomorrow in Oregon City at the Abernethy Grange. Information and map are here.

Struggle

I've been struggling to spin heavier yarns.

I tried to spin worsted weight singles

and ended up with a beautiful worsted weight two-ply.

Okay, try something else.

I tried to spin bulky thick and thin singles

and ended up with bulky two-ply.

Hmmm Back to reality.

Here's some lovely superwash merino. LOVE.

This will be three-ply fingering weight.

So much less stress than trying to spin something I'm just not good at. After I've had my reprieve with a little teeny tiny spinning, I'll go back to trying to learn to spin bulky. Later. Not today.

Wee Tiny Sock Swap

One teeny tiny sock for the WeeTinySockSwap. This one is Mohair/Merino handspun by me in a two-ply fingering weight knit on size 1 addis.
Pattern: cute little picot edge
4 stitch repeat in a lacy ribbed pattern from Sensational Socks on 20 stitch repeat
Kitchnered toe on remaining 8 stitches (just didn't like the round pointy one)
Only picked up 5 stitches on heel gusset (making for a nice narrow foot)
Verdict: LOVE! I loved knitting with this yummy handspun. I enjoyed the pattern (although the tiny picot about slayed me). I love the cute little Kitchnered toe!

This is 65 yards 50/50 merino angora that I've spun three ply. Two plies are the angora blend with a third ply being hand dyed silk thread strung with champagne colored glass beads. It is very pretty and very soft.

Everybody's Doing it

That is a Monkey sock in progress out of my own handdyed sock yarn in the PDiddy colorway. This is a very fun pattern and I'm enjoying working the simple chart. I did rewrite the chart on graph paper so that the repeat is 18 stitches over a couple more rows to accomodate the increase in stitch count to 76 stitches around.
This colorway is a shop exclusive to The Purl District (currently without a website) which is the shop I dye for. I have a few skeins of their exclusive colorways to sell on Etsy but once we really get the dyed colors going at the shop, they'll have to be exclusive the them only. I do have one skein of this colorway available right now. Email me if you want this 450 yards of muted purpley/denim for $22.

What's all that!?!

That is a big bunch of white stuff! I finally got all the yarn blanks I need to update my Etsy shop! I'm so excited about some of the new colorways I have rolling around in my head and on sample skeins.

I'm a little frustrated with my supplier though. See those two really big cones? Those are supposed to be exactly the same yarn and the greige goods don't even match! What?!? This has happened before from the same supplier and when I dyed them together they turned out exactly the same. But it does frustrate me that he can't pick up two cones off the shelf that look the same. How hard is that?

Rant over.

Here's another pretty.

I love this hat. It looks like a little cupcake with fluffy white frosting. I think the sides are a little too long but I haven't tried it on a toddler yet so I'm not entirely sure. Any input?