Tuesday, October 24, 2006

More pics from Sheep and Wool

Well I finally got around to posting some of the other pics from Rhinebeck. Blogger hasnt been to nice to me when it comes to posting pics,,, but now since I have the HTML down (finally) to put it in direct, NO MORE PROBLEMS!!

OK, now this guy up is a Jacob sheep. Very easy for me to remember since they look like Mutant Ninja Sheep with the 4 horns and all. Due to their color variations, I do know that if and when I decide to get an actual fleece (I'm not that brave yet), I want it to be one of these guys!

He was being so photogenic for me.

I havent a clue what this breed was, or the next two pictures. I had written them down for reference,,,but the paper, alas, got lost between all the bags I was schlepping home.


This one was a cutie too! I love their black little faces,,, and to think how nice this ones long greyish/silver locks must be once prepared into roving!


These 2 guys were sort of snubbing me. I guess they had their fill of having their pictures taken. Either that or the smell of Lamb Kebabs,, Lamb Chili,, and all sorts of lamb goodies, wafting in the wind, were making them real unsociable.

Now this was one of the guys I was begging my hubby to buy for me. Trying to convince him of the double duty that would be done by mowing our very large backyard (which needs it BTW), and supplying me with fiber each and every Spring to play with. This Alpaca was sooooo incredibly soft. Very nervous too, to a degree I imagine, by all the humming he/she was doing. I think it looked just adorable with its bandana on!

Hubby who thought he was being cute by giving me this special hand signal,, while I was begging for above Alpaca. Guess he felt his bag carrying duties were over for the day. WRONG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Here we are at VanCalcar Acres, Weaselrina on the left, Alerievay in the center (looking very nice in her newly knitted Ram's Horn Jacket) and Mikomiao on the right. Defendedtoclick was there with her sock kits that she designed for Vancalcar. This was at the Knitty meetup that was scheduled. So many knittyheads there! Lisa,, sorry I didnt get a chance to snap a pic of you or your sock kits! (Smacking myself with a wet noodle now!)
Labean (l.) and Cooknknit (r.) Two lovely ladies striking a pose. To think I had to breakup a conversation that was going on just to snap the pic!

And finally,,, I had completed my one Pedicure Sock just prior to Sheep and Wool that was taking me forever to complete while working (lunch hour isnt really an hour) and if I was lucky I knocked off maybe a row then,, and a few rows once I got home, if I wasnt too exhausted.

But the really amazing thing? I cast on for the second one really late last Thursday nite.

AND I finished the damn thing last nite! Just in time for my manicure and pedicure today! It was funny too, when I went to the nail salon. The women there and my regular manicurist were making such a fuss over them. I mean I just used yarn that I had lying around. There were warm tho,, except for my toes, lol.

Here's the gratuitous foot shot of my fat feet for any foot fetishists out there. Enjoy!


At least my Tat thats sticking thru a bit still looks good colorwise. Not bad for being 6 years old!

Only thing new going on now is that I ran into Big Lots by me yesterday,, Hubby and I had wanted to check what was in there. The had some yarn,,, Bernats Galaxy...at $1 a skein, so I bought 2 each of 2 colors. Checked it out better today (content and all) not much of it but it has mohair and alpaca in it and was oh so soft. Soooooo,,,, I ran back today and bought about 30 more skeins in the 2 colors I had already and one other color. Think I'll make a simple block style throw to keep me warm at night when I'm knitting away in front of my fireplace. My livingroom set is really comfy,, but its leather and can be a bit chilly (as I am finding out) as the weather turns cooler.

So here I sit now,,forlorn and depressed. I have to go back to work tomorrow after being off for two whole weeks. I did so enjoy the knitting and spinning and spindling that I've been doing the past week. Only thing left to do now is look forward to Friday!

Wheee, I'm spinning away or "The Spoils of War"


Well I survived Rhinebeck,,, plus still have money leftover to boot! Amazing! Naturally the air was cool and crisp! The views with the trees changing were amazing! Hubby and I arrived at our motel a bit later than expected, due to traffic,, but all in all it wasnt too bad of a trip. We went out to dinner to an amazing little place called the Hoffman Inn Tavern, built circa 1711. Beautiful ambience, great food, and even better dirty vodka martini's.

First up is the software I picked up!

The bag in front is 100% wool roving, bag on right is wool with wool thrums and silk thrums mixed in. The last 2 bags on left are 100% Alpaca, and the teal bag is an Alpaca/Merino mix!


Skeins in back are all half pounders! Left skein a Merino/Mohair mix, 2 next to that one are 100% Merino. Last 2 are Corriedale! The bright colored one are 3 roving strips I bought of a Merino/Tencel mix. And of course I finally picked up a Spinners Companion for reference!

Next up is the hardware!
On the left baby camel with tussah silk, followed by 2 Bosworth spindles, and a Golding spindle. Above that 3 Dbl pt needle holder, 2-7", 1-5". Above that 2 of the 3 bobbins I picked up for my Joy, and to the right of them,, a Nancy's Knitknack knitting pouch (which was the only spur of the moment purchase that I actually made) with a container of Wood Beams to keep all my spindles in prime and glowing condition. I met Sheila Bosworth, who is a little gem all on her own, and a very helpful lady. I also ran into The Shizzknit (Maria) from the Knittyboards,,,who enabled me to purchase my 2 Bozzies,,, and put my name on the waiting list for a Moosie,,, when they are made next year!

This was other fiber that I bought that I didnt place in the groups above.

I couldnt wait to play with my new toys,,, first I went from this,,,,,


To this,,, This is the Merino/Tussah mix that I bought.


Then this,,,,,,


To this... This is a 100% wool,, actually I'm not sure what type this one was. No tag on it,, just a knitted swatch sample, which looked so scrumptious, that I had to buy it. A full pound of it too!


Oh, and that felted bag I was making on the Knify Knitter loom to use as a Spindle bag at Rhinebeck? Got it done the night before we left,, except for the felting. Hubby was not amused that we could not leave till I threw it in the wash and the cycle was done. Luckily too that I had this tall ceramic container for spaghetti,, lol,, it was used for blocking while it dried the whole day Friday,,,, but it was put into good use Saturday,,,,, held my fiber (in a ziplock) with the spindle on top of it,, with plenty of room to hold a couple of packs of cigs at the bottom, with space left over!!! Strap was a bit too long, but a knot in it took care of that. Colors came out very nice, tho the pic isnt the greatest,, you can see how it came out and the size as compared to my handy reclining chair!

Thursday, October 19, 2006

RHINEBECK IS 2 DAYS AWAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh, and I just cant wait! I've my shopping list .

Its broken down into two lists. #1 - Hardware,, such as spindles, bobbins and such.

#2 - Software,,, Fiber, fiber, and more fiber!!!

I sort of got sidetracked again (when do I not get sidetracked?), and I decided to make a pair of handwarmers. I dont think the first one will be ready in time,,, but I am attempting.


I am also attempting, of all things a Moebius Scarf. I cast on extra stitches that what the pattern I found calls for,,, and boy are things squishy tight on my circulars. Simple pattern tho, one row Knit, one row Purl. I can see how its coming out now. The half twist is very defined on it. Again, an experiment in the process.



I am bringing both the scarf and the handwarmer(s) with me to Rhinebeck, to work on tomorrow nite and at the festival (in between spinning hopefully!).

The other big project, well maybe not so big, but one that I am trying to get done tonite if possible, is a loom knit bag that I am furiously knitting up (the one thing I'm quick on) into a spindle bag. I had bought 2 skeins of Patons Classic Merino,, in a variagated colorway, that if all goes well, should get into the washing machine tonite! Either way I have a backup bag for my spindle that isnt quite as pretty,,, but it does the job.





Either way,, I'm so excited about Saturday! Planning to meet up for a bit with some of the folks from the Knittyboard,, including one woman who so to speak is in my neck of the woods. Cant wait to meet her,, or her socks and sock kits (Kudo's Lisa).

So,,,, with all this going on this weekend, I still have one more week before I go back to work! Cleaning of the house is on the agenda - I took it really easy all this week, but between the cleaning,,, all that spinning I can do with all the new toys I'll be buying myself!

Now if I can only convince Hubby to buy me an Alpaca! :)

Sunday, October 15, 2006

Can one person ever have enough?

Well I ran to Michael's for there yarn sale. Went to really get a book and one or two skeins of yarn,,, but,,, that never happens. I did get a book and had a coupon for 40% off, which is good,,,, but I ended up walking out of the store with 4 shopping bags of which was 99% Woolease,,with a few balls of other yarn that was on sale. My time off is turning into a Yarn Vacation if nothing else!


I was checking out blogs online, knitting of course and came across this . Can we say their face recognition program has a lot to be desired? I thought for sure Roseanne would have been one of the photos popping up.


I should only hope to look more like these women!

Another pic I wanted to show was what I am not driving for the next TWO WEEKS!!! This means so much to me right now. With being on the job for almost 6 full years, this is the first time I've been able to take 2 weeks off in a row. So with that I am saving.

1. 3 hours a day traveling time, to and from work,,, for a total of 21 hours a week,, 42 hours for the 2 weeks I'm off.

2. 75 miles traveling one way, 150 miles a day, 750 miles a week,, grand total 1500 miles that I dont have to drive for 2 weeks. And thats without the daily driving I do on my bus normally every single day.

Oh, and my bus. For those not in the know, here's a pic of what I normally drive. Btw,,, I can park and back up this baby better and easier than I can my little VW.



The amazing thing is all the other drivers out there. You would think they would be somewhat wary around a vehicle thats 40 feet long, and weighs about 8 tons empty. But no,,, I get people making right turns from the left side of my bus, passengers getting out and walking in front of my bus as I proceed to leave a bus stop. I mean, do people really have that little common sense? I guess in today's "Me" world,,, they really dont.

I'm a busy little bee,,, just not with knitting

Well I decided to use my blue toned "Days End "roving that I got from Abi at Praire Fiber. It is spinning up so thin, I just cant believe it! The color really reminds me of faded denim blue jeans!














I attempted some knitting on my Storm Scarf with the Seasilk. Geesh do I have to get used to laceweight! The first row looks awful to me,,,and my nail tips dont help to much either,, but I'll give it a shot, a little at a time. Spent to much money on that yarn to give up on it!

Karen tried to give me a hand with my blog. I am having much trouble at points with it. But since with vacation in full swing,, and no alarm clock to set for the morning, I have been experimenting a bit.

I redid it,,, transferred everything from the old one to this,,, lost my comments. Not that I had that many at all. And of course everything is dated that I transferred as of yesterday.

But I think it looks much better, no messed up sidebar. Its going to be a long slow arduous process I think.

I decided today was going to be a casual knitting day. Which means, I did a row here,,, a row there, in between driving around with hubby, getting coffee and hanging out and enjoying the sunshine. There is the Oyster Bay Oyster Festival going on,, and I hope to convince him that we should go tomorrow. I hope to go. I have an urge to eat some oysters and such that wont go away that easily!

Once home from our drive,,, I laid my needles to rest for a bit. I decided that I wanted to make some stitch markers,, so that when I decide to pick up Clapotis again,,,I'll be ready.

So here's what I've gotten so far.














Such pretty blue beads. They remind me of Earth from space!















The completed set.

2nd set......














Last 2 to make into sets. I love these beads and colors because they are the colors of my birthstone, Periodot.















I did make it in earlier to work on Friday. I wanted a totally stress free day if it was possible, with it being Friday the 13th and all. Not that I am superstitious, but what the hell, better safe than sorry. So I went over to the Yarn Girls store and picked up some new double points (5" ones at that!), and 2 more skeins of Noro Kureyon in a different color than what I used in my Noro Hat. It is destined to become Noro Hat #2. Beautiful colors,,, I just love Noro now!

My Secret Spinning Pal Surprise!

I should have posted this last week after I had received it,,, but was just so busy with everything I had going on. Well first up are these 3 fine fiber items. 4 Oz. of Coopworth roving. Leicester Longwool roving "from a sheep named Lester" lol, and 100% silk roving. Along with this came a card and a nice little note from my SP.




Next up is Raw unadulterated Llama, which I will now have to read up on scouring and to get those dog brushes out to card the fiber.





Last but not least is the 100% Silk Noile.




Thank you Megweaver! This certainly was a surprise,,,, one meant for me to hone my prepping skills for the first time!

Just hope I dont f%&k it up.

Now I'm just curious if my SP that I sent stuff too, figures me out!

I'm as happy as a clam today!!

My Sea Silk and my fiber order both came!!!

First up is my Sea Silk. This arrived last week Thursday,,, and between running and driving around,, I hadnt had the chance to post it.







The is my skein in the Wildflower colorway in the front.














This is the Autumn colorway on the left, with Wildflower on the right. Dont they look just delish???








This is my fiber just delivered today (or rather yesterday). I had ordered from Prariefiber.com,,,, I had emailed Abi (the owner) prior, asking about her ugly batts. She kept in touch with me as she said she would, on when she would have new ugly batts and days end roving available. As soon as I got the particulars from Abi, I paypal'ed her 1, 2, 3, on Sunday nite. Here they are just 3 days later! OMG all I can say is I never expected to get this delivered this fast!






This big old Batt (sitting comfortably on my comp chair) is UB 136 colorway.
















Said "Batt" slightly opened up to reveal the interior. I've got at least two sections of colors that I can play with!














I ordered Abi's Days End roving in blues. This is what one pound of roving looks like also sitting comfortably on one's computer chair!!






I'll post on here how it goes. And just think, Rhinebeck isnt even 2 weeks away. Thank heavens for credit unions and money that gets squirreled away just for events and items like this!

I've been planning my shopping list. DH already thinks I'm a nutcase. Well maybe I am,, just a fibery one!

I also received my Secret Spinning Pal package. Tomorrow I will post up the contents!

Plodding along,,,,,,,,,,,,

I am really starting to hate the internet,, then again,, why cant I just hit the lottery so I can just spend time ordering yarn and fiber online, and spend the rest of my time either on my front porch swing,, or backyard patio knitting and spinning?




My order from Knitpicks came.
Bag #1












Back of bag #1, along with Bag #2















Ok,, I'm jumping on the bandwagon,,, It'll probably take me forever,,,,,,, Here is the start of Clapotis










Its finished!!!

My Noro hat!!!
















Ok dont laugh. Me and Noro looking like a mugshot,,,a chubby one..







Other than this work still sucks,,, so to speak, or at least traveling back and forth to work is what really sucks. I'd rather spend my commuting time of minimum 3 hours a day, either reading, or knitting or playing with my spindle but kinda hard to do at 70 MPH plus.

The Knit-Out, Part 2




Here we have from left to right, Alerievay,
Cooknknit and Mikomaio.






Artysgal,,, TheShizzknit












I finally got to meet Bean,,, I'm just sorry I didnt have a chance to spindle with her!













The girls having some lunch before I had to find my girlfriend (who I'm trying to convert into a knitter!)


It was a gorgeous day for the Knit Out,,, I totally enjoyed myself. I even ran into Lisa who owns the Yarn Girl Yarn store on Staten Island. I only recognized her due to her carrying her felted bag which looks like a bouquet of flowers! Sadly, I was rushing, she was rushing,, and I didn't get to snap a pic of it.


After I found my girlfriend,, we had gone to lunch at Cosi's on Broadway. So nice to have lunch and sit outside (dual purpose,, knitting, and smoking, lol). I saw Amy Singer go by, walking down the street,,,, I let her be,,, seemed like she was enjoying her quiet time.

One thing tho I had to take a pic of.

Only in New York do you see someone walking their dog in a doggy baby carriage.


You decide tho,,,

Model or Ho?

I havent a clue anymore!









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