No, I'm not angry at Ian on our 13th wedding anniversary (Happy Anniversary, honey!)...I'm angry at Blogger. I've been trying to upload photos to the TWO long blogs I wrote about:
1. The Notions in Motions bags I made.
and
2. Our trip to the Boston Museum of Science on Saturday
and
BLOGGER WILL NOT LET ME UPLOAD MY PHOTOS!!!
ARGGGHHHH!
I've been trying all morning and the photos link will just sit and run FORVER and then crash. So, I'm breathing deeply (hyperventilating), waiting patiently (NOT) and letting go of the situation (cursing LOUDLY).
At least I have good news....
(listen to this....)
I got my 3 (count'm, 3!!!) skeins of Deep Red (which I call SINFULLY SEXY) Lorna's Laces Lion and Lamb (50% silk, 50% wool) yarn in the mail today!!! (yes, they are in my cleavage right now)
This means I can start my White Lies Designs lingerie tomorrow!!!!
(wish I could start it today, but MUST FINISH MY SECOND TREKKING SOCK!!!...deadline is tomorrow, people!)
I promise....as soon as I can upload photos, there'll be TWO blogs swiftly published!
Oh, also, before I forget, check out my friend, Jackie's, new blog: Hello Jackie. (we're both HUGE Hello Kitty fans!)
The life of an avid reader, vintage book collector and creative soul who knits and designs knitwear in her spare time.
Monday, July 31, 2006
Do Dinosaurs Wear SOCKS???
(finally, finally, thank the B*tchin Bloggin' Gods, I was able to post this!)
Spent Saturday with the kiddies and Ian (and Ian's mom) at the Boston Museum of Science...got lost despite Jackie's clear directions...at least Ian (the Make Mumbler) let me go into the gas station and ask for the right way!
It was SO nice and COOL there....outside was scorching HOT!
Wanna see my Trekking socks being eaten by a dinosaur?
Okay, okay...so he's not ACTUALLY eating it, but he's looking at it VERY suspiciously!
Finally "trekked" with my Trekking sock....I feel so guilty for not taking it more places. Bad girl!
Oh, you HAVE to see this....Ben and I found a place in the BMS (not a good initial arrangement, huh?...could be "bosoms" or "bowel movements" or "bums" or something like that....ahhh, my brains are leaking!) where you could make your own museum...a lesson on catagorizing, etc.
I found a space here on the top left shelf that I thought would be perfect for my own museum...
So, I designed my own museum (while Ben happily stacked wooden blocks and plastic spiders)....
Ha! The "Museum of Pink"! Never thought you'd see THAT, did ya??? (snort)
We had lots of fun and then, of course, got really hungry, so we stopped to eat in the museum cafeteria. This was our view.
Extremely relaxing and gorgeous....oh, so nice to eat looking at this!
Of course, I was also looking at this:
and this:
Which, to me, can't compete at all with that view....my beautiful boys are the hands down winner...even though Ben is grumpy. But, what do you expect....he's waiting for a hug while I'm taking pictures! : )
Spent Saturday with the kiddies and Ian (and Ian's mom) at the Boston Museum of Science...got lost despite Jackie's clear directions...at least Ian (the Make Mumbler) let me go into the gas station and ask for the right way!
It was SO nice and COOL there....outside was scorching HOT!
Wanna see my Trekking socks being eaten by a dinosaur?
Okay, okay...so he's not ACTUALLY eating it, but he's looking at it VERY suspiciously!
Finally "trekked" with my Trekking sock....I feel so guilty for not taking it more places. Bad girl!
Oh, you HAVE to see this....Ben and I found a place in the BMS (not a good initial arrangement, huh?...could be "bosoms" or "bowel movements" or "bums" or something like that....ahhh, my brains are leaking!) where you could make your own museum...a lesson on catagorizing, etc.
I found a space here on the top left shelf that I thought would be perfect for my own museum...
So, I designed my own museum (while Ben happily stacked wooden blocks and plastic spiders)....
Ha! The "Museum of Pink"! Never thought you'd see THAT, did ya??? (snort)
We had lots of fun and then, of course, got really hungry, so we stopped to eat in the museum cafeteria. This was our view.
Extremely relaxing and gorgeous....oh, so nice to eat looking at this!
Of course, I was also looking at this:
and this:
Which, to me, can't compete at all with that view....my beautiful boys are the hands down winner...even though Ben is grumpy. But, what do you expect....he's waiting for a hug while I'm taking pictures! : )
Notions in Motion Bags
Introducing the new bags that I created (with my own wacky non-pattern) for bringing your knitting notions around with you in your knitting bag. Check these out:
"Pink Oriental" bag (large) with fish applique and the "Blue Hawaii" (medium) Bag with outside pocket and blue ribbon bow.
"Boo-Whoo Ghostly" bag (medium) with White Star Lining and Divider, "Friendly Farm" bag (medium) with denim outside and yellow check lining and divider inside, and "Kimono Hello Kitty" bag (large) with pink printed fabric and divider inside.
This pic (kinda fuzzy) shows a close up of the "Kimono Hello Kitty" zipper charm...4 links and a black glass and silver wrapped.
Here is the inside of the same bag showing the "divider", for organizing your notions.
Here's what's great about these bags:
*They are soft and sturdy...no flappy bags and not at all stiff.
*They will fit perfectly in your knitting bag.
*They are handsewn (I know, I'm crazy....just don't have a sewing machine!) with love.
*They have zipper openings, each with a cute zipper pull charm and exterior button/applique.
*Each made with 100% cotton fabric inside and outside with felt between (for sturdiness).
*The inside (or outside) divider on some gives more organization for your knitting notions.
*Great for sewing and crocheting notions as well.
Each "Notions in Motion" bag costs $15...custom bags (with specially chosen fabrics) will cost $18. (If I can manage to get a sewing machine at some point and cut the time on my sewing the bags, I will also lower the price as well!)
I will be making more in the next week or so...these are the 5 I have now. I'll be adding them to my Etsy shop in about a week or two. If you like any of the ones I have made already, let me know and you can buy it early.
Before I head off to finish my last Trekking sock (deadline tomorrow!!!!!), I wanted to show you a couple more pics:
Here are my finished Broad Ripple socks in purple Cascade Fixation (so super comfy and stretchy):
AND
The newest sock bag I bought from Jackie...the cutest pink and green reversible bag!...along with the two skeins of my own handspun called "Candy Lipsticks", from the alpaca, silk and merino fiber I got from Lisa of Yarn Botanika. Deliciously soft...definitely a Cleavage Hugger!
AND
The hand-dyed yarn I made for Carol in a colorway, "Winter Waters"....a medium gray and deep blue color...in worsted weight merino wool.
About to lose my mind as I'm frantically trying to finish my last Trekking sock by tonight, so please send some extra nerves and brains my way if you can. Mail to:
Emergency Nerves and Brains
100 Can't Bear It Avenue
CurseAllDay, NH
(Could also use an extra bladder, too....to hold all that extra booze I'm drinking...LOL!...only kidding)
"Pink Oriental" bag (large) with fish applique and the "Blue Hawaii" (medium) Bag with outside pocket and blue ribbon bow.
"Boo-Whoo Ghostly" bag (medium) with White Star Lining and Divider, "Friendly Farm" bag (medium) with denim outside and yellow check lining and divider inside, and "Kimono Hello Kitty" bag (large) with pink printed fabric and divider inside.
This pic (kinda fuzzy) shows a close up of the "Kimono Hello Kitty" zipper charm...4 links and a black glass and silver wrapped.
Here is the inside of the same bag showing the "divider", for organizing your notions.
Here's what's great about these bags:
*They are soft and sturdy...no flappy bags and not at all stiff.
*They will fit perfectly in your knitting bag.
*They are handsewn (I know, I'm crazy....just don't have a sewing machine!) with love.
*They have zipper openings, each with a cute zipper pull charm and exterior button/applique.
*Each made with 100% cotton fabric inside and outside with felt between (for sturdiness).
*The inside (or outside) divider on some gives more organization for your knitting notions.
*Great for sewing and crocheting notions as well.
Each "Notions in Motion" bag costs $15...custom bags (with specially chosen fabrics) will cost $18. (If I can manage to get a sewing machine at some point and cut the time on my sewing the bags, I will also lower the price as well!)
I will be making more in the next week or so...these are the 5 I have now. I'll be adding them to my Etsy shop in about a week or two. If you like any of the ones I have made already, let me know and you can buy it early.
Before I head off to finish my last Trekking sock (deadline tomorrow!!!!!), I wanted to show you a couple more pics:
Here are my finished Broad Ripple socks in purple Cascade Fixation (so super comfy and stretchy):
AND
The newest sock bag I bought from Jackie...the cutest pink and green reversible bag!...along with the two skeins of my own handspun called "Candy Lipsticks", from the alpaca, silk and merino fiber I got from Lisa of Yarn Botanika. Deliciously soft...definitely a Cleavage Hugger!
AND
The hand-dyed yarn I made for Carol in a colorway, "Winter Waters"....a medium gray and deep blue color...in worsted weight merino wool.
About to lose my mind as I'm frantically trying to finish my last Trekking sock by tonight, so please send some extra nerves and brains my way if you can. Mail to:
Emergency Nerves and Brains
100 Can't Bear It Avenue
CurseAllDay, NH
(Could also use an extra bladder, too....to hold all that extra booze I'm drinking...LOL!...only kidding)
Thursday, July 27, 2006
Can 6 1/2 hours be too long?
Okay, I never thought that I could EVER spend too much time in Barnes and Noble...my favorite store next to a yarn store. Alas, I think I have finally realized my limit....6 and a half hours.
Ian (aka The Make Mumbler) took the kids over to the beach to visit with his parents (here from TX for the month) and I had most of the rest of the afternoon (and night!!!!) to myself. For full time moms, you KNOW that this is literally a gift from heaven. Even though you love your kids to DEATH...their sticky fingers, their cute pudgy faces, their little toes and loving hugs....there is a moment (before screaming) that you just need SILENCE!
So, I enjoyed my silence from 2:30 until 3:30...ran my errands to the bank and CVS (got pics developed...of the kids, of course...bought some stuff, looked at the makeup, sprayed on some perfume...which I instantly regretted....gag....etc) I, then, decided to head right over to Barnes and Noble...thinking I was going to LOVE having extra time before my knitting group started to look at books, magazines, check out books for Tim (aka VideoGame Boy) and get a snack in the cafe.
Bad idea.
At about 6 pm, my bottom was asleep, my neck hurt from looking down at knitting and sewing books and I'd had so many bottles of water that I had to pee so BAD! Having 3 huge bags with me holding all my various knitting stuff, I REALLY didn't want to take all that into the not-so-clean bathrooms at B&N. Luckily, I saw a table with knitting women (a couple of them being aquaintances) and begged for them to watch my stuff while I ran over to the ladies room. Being wonderful as most knitting women are, they agreed happily and I could use the bathroom in peace...and sans bags.
When Lucille arrived a little after 6 pm, I was OVERJOYED! Someone to talk to!!!! Woohoo! Human conversation....something to say besides: "Need a new diapy?", "Did you clean your room?", "PLEASE pick up that yogurt lying on the floor!" or "More wa-wa?".
After that, things were GOOD....Ericka came, Marion, awesome "Jackie of the Sock Bags" and then later, Marion's daughter, Heather, Dan, Sara, Denise, Donna and Chris....pretty much the whole group...except Amanda, Rose (who has the stomach bug...hope you feel better!) and Lovely Laurin.
I drank coffee (oh, yes....bad idea), talked, knit on my Broad Ripple sock, showed off my handspun yarn for Donna (see below), talked and laughed...everything you hope for in a knitting group.
Oh, I also did a mini-knit-along with Jackie to make the Perdita knitted bracelets with bead from Knitty. Jackie did the Lilies of the Valley in a spring green with green beads and I made the Lilacs in white with clear beads (not a good idea...can't see the beads AT ALL) and the Bluebells in baby blue with bluish/purple beads....WITH diamond-like buttons...see?
Both came out a little too big...I did the second smallest size...so, if I knit these again, I'd make the smallest size, I think.
Now, onto the Sleepy Eyes "Notions in Motion" Bags. I have a few pictures of them and I think they came out very well...soft, sturdy and cute. They're all made in a cotton fabric (with complementary lining) with a zipper and adorable zipper pull. Most of them have a divider inside the bag to separate your sewing, knitting or crochet notions. One of them has an outside pocket. I've got 5 made so far. Pics have been taken, but my camera's battery is dead at the moment, so they will have to be in my next blog. I'm asking $15 a piece for them and I'll be putting them in my Etsy Store soon. I may even take pics of the fabric if you want to order one special.
Before I head off to make lunch, I'll leave you with a pic of my boys...VideoGame Boy (Tim) and LighteningMcQueen Bwew (Ben...who says "blue" like "bwew")... in the pool.
(whoops...already posted this...but I just LOVE this one!)
One question, "How long do YOU think you could enjoy Barnes and Noble before insanity creeps in?"
Ian (aka The Make Mumbler) took the kids over to the beach to visit with his parents (here from TX for the month) and I had most of the rest of the afternoon (and night!!!!) to myself. For full time moms, you KNOW that this is literally a gift from heaven. Even though you love your kids to DEATH...their sticky fingers, their cute pudgy faces, their little toes and loving hugs....there is a moment (before screaming) that you just need SILENCE!
So, I enjoyed my silence from 2:30 until 3:30...ran my errands to the bank and CVS (got pics developed...of the kids, of course...bought some stuff, looked at the makeup, sprayed on some perfume...which I instantly regretted....gag....etc) I, then, decided to head right over to Barnes and Noble...thinking I was going to LOVE having extra time before my knitting group started to look at books, magazines, check out books for Tim (aka VideoGame Boy) and get a snack in the cafe.
Bad idea.
At about 6 pm, my bottom was asleep, my neck hurt from looking down at knitting and sewing books and I'd had so many bottles of water that I had to pee so BAD! Having 3 huge bags with me holding all my various knitting stuff, I REALLY didn't want to take all that into the not-so-clean bathrooms at B&N. Luckily, I saw a table with knitting women (a couple of them being aquaintances) and begged for them to watch my stuff while I ran over to the ladies room. Being wonderful as most knitting women are, they agreed happily and I could use the bathroom in peace...and sans bags.
When Lucille arrived a little after 6 pm, I was OVERJOYED! Someone to talk to!!!! Woohoo! Human conversation....something to say besides: "Need a new diapy?", "Did you clean your room?", "PLEASE pick up that yogurt lying on the floor!" or "More wa-wa?".
After that, things were GOOD....Ericka came, Marion, awesome "Jackie of the Sock Bags" and then later, Marion's daughter, Heather, Dan, Sara, Denise, Donna and Chris....pretty much the whole group...except Amanda, Rose (who has the stomach bug...hope you feel better!) and Lovely Laurin.
I drank coffee (oh, yes....bad idea), talked, knit on my Broad Ripple sock, showed off my handspun yarn for Donna (see below), talked and laughed...everything you hope for in a knitting group.
Oh, I also did a mini-knit-along with Jackie to make the Perdita knitted bracelets with bead from Knitty. Jackie did the Lilies of the Valley in a spring green with green beads and I made the Lilacs in white with clear beads (not a good idea...can't see the beads AT ALL) and the Bluebells in baby blue with bluish/purple beads....WITH diamond-like buttons...see?
Both came out a little too big...I did the second smallest size...so, if I knit these again, I'd make the smallest size, I think.
Now, onto the Sleepy Eyes "Notions in Motion" Bags. I have a few pictures of them and I think they came out very well...soft, sturdy and cute. They're all made in a cotton fabric (with complementary lining) with a zipper and adorable zipper pull. Most of them have a divider inside the bag to separate your sewing, knitting or crochet notions. One of them has an outside pocket. I've got 5 made so far. Pics have been taken, but my camera's battery is dead at the moment, so they will have to be in my next blog. I'm asking $15 a piece for them and I'll be putting them in my Etsy Store soon. I may even take pics of the fabric if you want to order one special.
Before I head off to make lunch, I'll leave you with a pic of my boys...VideoGame Boy (Tim) and LighteningMcQueen Bwew (Ben...who says "blue" like "bwew")... in the pool.
(whoops...already posted this...but I just LOVE this one!)
One question, "How long do YOU think you could enjoy Barnes and Noble before insanity creeps in?"
Thursday, July 20, 2006
Kitten Scarf Pattern
It doesn't get any easier than this, folks! This pattern is one of the easiest you'll find for a scarf...and the MOST sinfully soft, playful and closest-to-sex you can get. I mean it!
(This picture is bad...I might change it soon...but here's at least something for now)
INGREDIENTS:
3 balls of Berroco Softy in Violetta (or you fav color)
52% Dupont Tactel nylon, 48% nylon
104 yards, 4 stitches to the inch on size US 10.5 needle (I used a size US 10 to make the scarf a little tighter, but it's up to you)
1 set of size 10 or 10.5 needles
1 tapestry needle
Scissors
Measuring tape
DIRECTIONS:
Cast on 22 stitches.
Knit every row.
When you have 1 yard or so left, bind off loosely.
Weave in the two end tails.
Wrap around your face and snuggle deeply within.
Purr.........
(It's a super gift and there's beautiful colors available...I'd recommend only using this yarn if you want the feeling of its kitten softness...I've tried other yarns and it's just not the same. I think $30 is a good investment for years of snuggly, purring happiness, don't you?)
(This picture is bad...I might change it soon...but here's at least something for now)
INGREDIENTS:
3 balls of Berroco Softy in Violetta (or you fav color)
52% Dupont Tactel nylon, 48% nylon
104 yards, 4 stitches to the inch on size US 10.5 needle (I used a size US 10 to make the scarf a little tighter, but it's up to you)
1 set of size 10 or 10.5 needles
1 tapestry needle
Scissors
Measuring tape
DIRECTIONS:
Cast on 22 stitches.
Knit every row.
When you have 1 yard or so left, bind off loosely.
Weave in the two end tails.
Wrap around your face and snuggle deeply within.
Purr.........
(It's a super gift and there's beautiful colors available...I'd recommend only using this yarn if you want the feeling of its kitten softness...I've tried other yarns and it's just not the same. I think $30 is a good investment for years of snuggly, purring happiness, don't you?)
2 out of 3 ain't bad, right?
So, I have to admit, I didn't get all three things done on my list before the 24 hour deadline. BUT, I did finish 2...not too bad...considering I had laundry to fold, dishes to clean, beds to make, kids to feed, showers to take and dinner to prepare, right??? The first Cascade Fixation sock (Broad Ripple from Knitty) in "purple madness" came out great. I'm working on the other one now...I'm half done. Woo hoo for me!
I will have a pic of Donna's handspun yarn soon...probably tomorrow or Sat...it's drying and not looking its very best....very droopy at the moment. But, it's done and I think she's going to love it. Just her colors...deep and spacious blues and royal purples. I've decided to call it "Donna of the Deep Sea"...
This is a pic of the yarn store on the way home from Ogunquit (spelling?), ME...where we went to the beach last Saturday. On the way there, it was open...
(Me, excited) "Oh, honey, look...a yarn store....The Yarn Seller!...can we stop, please? I really want to go!"
(Ian) "Uh...we probably should hurry and meet my parents at the beach...they're waiting for us and we're late as it is."
(Me, crestfallen) "Oh...well, I guess we can try to go on the way back....if it's open..."
(Ian) "Uh, yeah....maybe...."
(Me, bitter)...to myself...."yeah, right"
BUT, he did stop (actually we went by it and had to turn around...he says "You wanna go check?" and I said "Oh, yeah!") for me and it was closed. I had to be happy with the picture....it looked like a cool store, anyway.
These not-quite-matching skeins of yarn are called, "Summer Wine", which I dyed especially for Julie's friend, Carol. The colors were gorgeous when I first dyed them, but something not-right happened during the steaming process and the red dye ran over the green...so one of them has a little bit of pine green and the other has practically none. Carol was an angel about it, still liked it and has asked me to dye two more skeins in a deep blue/dark gray...which I think will be FABULOUS! Talk about a sweetie...just like Julie!
This, lovely readers, is Jackie (the awesome, fun and super Jackie!) wearing her handknit sock knit out of none other than....my own Sleepy Eyes self striping sock yarn in "Denim, Lilacs and Lemons"...a hand-dyed, superwash merino fingering weight yarn. I think it came out great!
Will post the Kitten Scarf pattern next...
Happy Knitting Night!
I will have a pic of Donna's handspun yarn soon...probably tomorrow or Sat...it's drying and not looking its very best....very droopy at the moment. But, it's done and I think she's going to love it. Just her colors...deep and spacious blues and royal purples. I've decided to call it "Donna of the Deep Sea"...
This is a pic of the yarn store on the way home from Ogunquit (spelling?), ME...where we went to the beach last Saturday. On the way there, it was open...
(Me, excited) "Oh, honey, look...a yarn store....The Yarn Seller!...can we stop, please? I really want to go!"
(Ian) "Uh...we probably should hurry and meet my parents at the beach...they're waiting for us and we're late as it is."
(Me, crestfallen) "Oh...well, I guess we can try to go on the way back....if it's open..."
(Ian) "Uh, yeah....maybe...."
(Me, bitter)...to myself...."yeah, right"
BUT, he did stop (actually we went by it and had to turn around...he says "You wanna go check?" and I said "Oh, yeah!") for me and it was closed. I had to be happy with the picture....it looked like a cool store, anyway.
These not-quite-matching skeins of yarn are called, "Summer Wine", which I dyed especially for Julie's friend, Carol. The colors were gorgeous when I first dyed them, but something not-right happened during the steaming process and the red dye ran over the green...so one of them has a little bit of pine green and the other has practically none. Carol was an angel about it, still liked it and has asked me to dye two more skeins in a deep blue/dark gray...which I think will be FABULOUS! Talk about a sweetie...just like Julie!
This, lovely readers, is Jackie (the awesome, fun and super Jackie!) wearing her handknit sock knit out of none other than....my own Sleepy Eyes self striping sock yarn in "Denim, Lilacs and Lemons"...a hand-dyed, superwash merino fingering weight yarn. I think it came out great!
Will post the Kitten Scarf pattern next...
Happy Knitting Night!
Monday, July 17, 2006
It was a BERRY good weekend...
Finally got the motivation to finish up a few of my projects....first, I finished the soft-ilicious periwinkle Kitten scarf (my own pattern....directions to come with picture next blog)...
Then, a mini sock for our knitting group, ManchVegasKnitters...which we will be attatching pins to and wearing on our shirts as a "name tag"...a fantastic idea thought up by Rose (who showed off her lovely little sock last week)...pick either your favorite yarn OR a yarn that says "YOU"...knit it up (I cast on about 20 stitches using size 0 needles and used an ultra soft, 100% pink angora yarn)...and add a biggish safety pin on the back. Voila!
Look at THIS!!!
I decided to put all other things aside and make this adorable Very Berry hat and mitten set (by FiberTrends) for our friend, Richard's baby girl...Katharine. I used only 1 skein each of Lamb's Pride worsted in Fushia and Pine Tree. That's it! Super fun, cute and fast!
In between teaching yoga, giving Reiki treatments and knitting, I was able to go with Ian's family to Maine, for a quick beach day trip. Here is the Broad Ripple Sock (from Knitty.com...sorry, too lazy to link) I'm working on (along with Jackie!) in Cascade Fixation....using a really neat varigated purple colorway...so sproingy and soft!
Can't help myself...must show a couple of pics from the beach of my family....
Here's Ben frolicking in the sand...
And one of Ian, building a sand castle for Ben...
And, one pic of the kids in the pool (it's all set now!!! it's awesome....so cool, blue and clean!)...
I know...this blog was neither witty, nor funny, but a simple account of my BERRY good weekend. Here is the list of things I hope to get done today or tomorrow:
1. Finish the dyed yarn for Carol
2. Finish spinning Donna's blue/violet merino 1 ply yarn
3. Finish one of my Broad Ripple socks and cast on for the other
Bets on how many of those I get done???
Then, a mini sock for our knitting group, ManchVegasKnitters...which we will be attatching pins to and wearing on our shirts as a "name tag"...a fantastic idea thought up by Rose (who showed off her lovely little sock last week)...pick either your favorite yarn OR a yarn that says "YOU"...knit it up (I cast on about 20 stitches using size 0 needles and used an ultra soft, 100% pink angora yarn)...and add a biggish safety pin on the back. Voila!
Look at THIS!!!
I decided to put all other things aside and make this adorable Very Berry hat and mitten set (by FiberTrends) for our friend, Richard's baby girl...Katharine. I used only 1 skein each of Lamb's Pride worsted in Fushia and Pine Tree. That's it! Super fun, cute and fast!
In between teaching yoga, giving Reiki treatments and knitting, I was able to go with Ian's family to Maine, for a quick beach day trip. Here is the Broad Ripple Sock (from Knitty.com...sorry, too lazy to link) I'm working on (along with Jackie!) in Cascade Fixation....using a really neat varigated purple colorway...so sproingy and soft!
Can't help myself...must show a couple of pics from the beach of my family....
Here's Ben frolicking in the sand...
And one of Ian, building a sand castle for Ben...
And, one pic of the kids in the pool (it's all set now!!! it's awesome....so cool, blue and clean!)...
I know...this blog was neither witty, nor funny, but a simple account of my BERRY good weekend. Here is the list of things I hope to get done today or tomorrow:
1. Finish the dyed yarn for Carol
2. Finish spinning Donna's blue/violet merino 1 ply yarn
3. Finish one of my Broad Ripple socks and cast on for the other
Bets on how many of those I get done???
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Virtual Vermont Visit
The trip to VT was eventful, to say the very least. Did I have fun? yes. Did I buy some cool yarn? yes. Did I get lots of knitting done? no. alas, no.
Mostly, the reason I didn't get alot of knitting done was because of this:
Yes, the pool. Not the best pool I've ever been in but, strangely enough the most alluring (if you were there with me this past weekend, you know what I mean). Not only was it private, super clean and out in the very middle of the courtyard of the hotel (also beneath the almost full moon at night), but it was WARM!! Very much unlike my newly renovated pool (which had the EXACT same liner as the pool at the hotel...weird!), which is freezing! I spent most of my time in the pool...even the very first night we got there, which was at about 10 pm....I thought I was in heaven laying the pool and looking up at the stars. Talk about relaxing!
On the way to South Burlington (where our hotel was), we stopped here:
The Quechee Village shopping area, which had this wonderful old fashioned merry go round, a cool diner, a blacksmith shop and a Cabot cheese (which is my husband's favorite) store...not one of the stores was open...but it was fun to take pictures...
Very close by we (by that I mean Laurin and I) found a restaurant called the Black Angus and we had the most amazing, yummy food...the appetizer was DELICIOUS!
Dumplings with Spicy Peanut sauce...oh, god...like heaven!
After the food, nothing very exciting happened on the rest of the way to VT (except a slight NH/VT exit confusion, which Laurin and I refuse to talk about until after we're dead).
The next morning, while we were waiting for Dan and Heather to arrive, Laurin and I went to Knit and Bolts, the yarn store that sells A Piece of Vermont sock yarn.
Sadly, there were only about 5 skeins of this yarn available and a few were the same color. I did find a super cute pink colorway for my friend, Jackie. I also bought two or three sock patterns from Fiber Trends, 2 skeins of a varigated purple Cascade Fixation, a felted bag and cute baby hat pattern and 2 skeins of Lamb's Pride worsted for the hat. The shop was small, but had a nice selection of yarns and everyone was friendly.
Next, we headed out to the Vermont Teddy Bear Company which was very cool....the cutest building, lots of kids and ADORABLE bears...which I decided to buy one each for Tim and Ben...dark chocolate bears with personalized tshirts. (Laurin was very patient and waited almost an hour for me while I designed, stuffed and personalized the bears...thanks, Lovely!)
Finally, we got back to the hotel and we met up with Dan and Heather....
We were all starving, so headed out to the Silver Palace chinese place (just down the road)...which was super fancy, wonderfully yummy and very friendly. I was in love with the appetizer plates....I just had to take a picture of it to show you...
The next part of the day was very frustrating (in more than one way) and also very hot...well, hot for a NH person. We headed out to Kaleidescope Yarns (sorry, but I'm not linking to it...I'm still too upset).
As soon as we pulled up to the store parking lot, a woman came out to dispose of some trash...she saw us drive in...no wave, no hello...I ran out in front to take pics of the store and noticed a tiny sign on the door...it said "Closing today at 2 pm". I looked at my cell phone....it was 2: 05 pm. I tried the door, I knocked at both the front and back. I called the store from my cell phone. No answer. I was very upset. This was the store I was DYING to visit....the one I couldn't wait to see...and it was closed. I had called a couple of days before to get times and it didn't close until 5 pm. To say I was disappointed is a HUGE understatment. I felt so bad that we drove over 3 1/2 hours and I wouldn't even be able to visit this store I had such hopes of "raiding". I was angry because the woman who saw us drive in could have politely said they were closed early or gave an explanation or something...or even opened the door for me so I could ask if we could just sneak in for 10 minutes. Poor Dan drove up all that way to visit this store and one more....but since we couldn't go to this one, only visited one store and had to drive all the way back home! Ugh.
ANYWAY....we headed out toward the last store opened on Saturday....Knitter's Laine (sorry, no website)...it was the only store I forgot to take a picture of...and it is so cute, too. The woman who owns the shop is very nice and friendly and was having a great sale on Cherry Tree Hill (and other) yarns. I got 2 skeins of Cherry Tree Hill supersock in Green Mountain Madness (does anyone have 2 other skeins of this colorway laying around that I could trade some handspun, handdyed or other for?), 1 skein of laceweight Jade Sapphire 100% mongolian cashmere yarn (in hydrangea), more patterns and 2 skeins (on sale) of some funky, pink Classic Elite Tinsel yarn. Here is the cashmere:
The only thing I didn't like about this store (which Laurin did) was that all the yarn was arranged by color. Don't get me wrong, it was PRETTY, but I couldn't find a darn thing. All the skeins were crammed in together in one cubby and I had no idea which yarn was which. I was overwelmed trying to find what I wanted...didn't get the KnitKnack cards or Euroflax linen either...bummer.
Back at the hotel, Laurin, Heather and I ordered pizza for dinner and ate (and knit) by the pool. We invited a friendly South Carolina stranger, Steve, to eat with us...here's Laurin and Heather knitting...
That night, I swam some more in the moonlight...got eaten by mosquitos and we all watched a comedy show in Laurin's room. (We won't speak of the "other" events on the web, will we?)
The next morning, we headed out early (after I got in ONE more swim!), had breakfast at a very neat diner (where they were having Hawaiian day)...here is a pic of our waitress, Mary...
Our very last stop before going home (well, we did stop quickly at a NH gift shop which was open that Sunday) was Creative Habitat (which does have a link, but doesn't ever work for some reason). I thought it was a yarn store, but it's actually a division of Ben Franklin craft store...the store itself had TONS of great crafty stuff...the yarn department was similar to ACMoore. Not really a TRUE yarn store...but I got a couple of patterns and some neat 100% merino New Zealand nubbly wool in a fantastic neon green to make Ben a hooded vest. I also found some other crafty items to bring home to the kids as gifts...AND they took my 40% off ACMoore coupon...cool! Here is Laurin pointing out the sign...
Oh, I forgot my pic of my Trekking socks in Progress...trekking in VT...or actually swimming, I guess....
Oh, forgot another pic...this is the totally beautiful knitting bag that Heather made for me. You can't tell how nice it is until you look inside...lots of pocket and fun, sparkly accents/fabric. What a great bag!
Yawn...okay...your eyeballs are dry from reading and my fingers are falling off. Hope you enjoyed reading about our VT trip. I had a fun time, but couldn't wait to get home to the kids. I missed them so much. Happy Knitting!
Mostly, the reason I didn't get alot of knitting done was because of this:
Yes, the pool. Not the best pool I've ever been in but, strangely enough the most alluring (if you were there with me this past weekend, you know what I mean). Not only was it private, super clean and out in the very middle of the courtyard of the hotel (also beneath the almost full moon at night), but it was WARM!! Very much unlike my newly renovated pool (which had the EXACT same liner as the pool at the hotel...weird!), which is freezing! I spent most of my time in the pool...even the very first night we got there, which was at about 10 pm....I thought I was in heaven laying the pool and looking up at the stars. Talk about relaxing!
On the way to South Burlington (where our hotel was), we stopped here:
The Quechee Village shopping area, which had this wonderful old fashioned merry go round, a cool diner, a blacksmith shop and a Cabot cheese (which is my husband's favorite) store...not one of the stores was open...but it was fun to take pictures...
Very close by we (by that I mean Laurin and I) found a restaurant called the Black Angus and we had the most amazing, yummy food...the appetizer was DELICIOUS!
Dumplings with Spicy Peanut sauce...oh, god...like heaven!
After the food, nothing very exciting happened on the rest of the way to VT (except a slight NH/VT exit confusion, which Laurin and I refuse to talk about until after we're dead).
The next morning, while we were waiting for Dan and Heather to arrive, Laurin and I went to Knit and Bolts, the yarn store that sells A Piece of Vermont sock yarn.
Sadly, there were only about 5 skeins of this yarn available and a few were the same color. I did find a super cute pink colorway for my friend, Jackie. I also bought two or three sock patterns from Fiber Trends, 2 skeins of a varigated purple Cascade Fixation, a felted bag and cute baby hat pattern and 2 skeins of Lamb's Pride worsted for the hat. The shop was small, but had a nice selection of yarns and everyone was friendly.
Next, we headed out to the Vermont Teddy Bear Company which was very cool....the cutest building, lots of kids and ADORABLE bears...which I decided to buy one each for Tim and Ben...dark chocolate bears with personalized tshirts. (Laurin was very patient and waited almost an hour for me while I designed, stuffed and personalized the bears...thanks, Lovely!)
Finally, we got back to the hotel and we met up with Dan and Heather....
We were all starving, so headed out to the Silver Palace chinese place (just down the road)...which was super fancy, wonderfully yummy and very friendly. I was in love with the appetizer plates....I just had to take a picture of it to show you...
The next part of the day was very frustrating (in more than one way) and also very hot...well, hot for a NH person. We headed out to Kaleidescope Yarns (sorry, but I'm not linking to it...I'm still too upset).
As soon as we pulled up to the store parking lot, a woman came out to dispose of some trash...she saw us drive in...no wave, no hello...I ran out in front to take pics of the store and noticed a tiny sign on the door...it said "Closing today at 2 pm". I looked at my cell phone....it was 2: 05 pm. I tried the door, I knocked at both the front and back. I called the store from my cell phone. No answer. I was very upset. This was the store I was DYING to visit....the one I couldn't wait to see...and it was closed. I had called a couple of days before to get times and it didn't close until 5 pm. To say I was disappointed is a HUGE understatment. I felt so bad that we drove over 3 1/2 hours and I wouldn't even be able to visit this store I had such hopes of "raiding". I was angry because the woman who saw us drive in could have politely said they were closed early or gave an explanation or something...or even opened the door for me so I could ask if we could just sneak in for 10 minutes. Poor Dan drove up all that way to visit this store and one more....but since we couldn't go to this one, only visited one store and had to drive all the way back home! Ugh.
ANYWAY....we headed out toward the last store opened on Saturday....Knitter's Laine (sorry, no website)...it was the only store I forgot to take a picture of...and it is so cute, too. The woman who owns the shop is very nice and friendly and was having a great sale on Cherry Tree Hill (and other) yarns. I got 2 skeins of Cherry Tree Hill supersock in Green Mountain Madness (does anyone have 2 other skeins of this colorway laying around that I could trade some handspun, handdyed or other for?), 1 skein of laceweight Jade Sapphire 100% mongolian cashmere yarn (in hydrangea), more patterns and 2 skeins (on sale) of some funky, pink Classic Elite Tinsel yarn. Here is the cashmere:
The only thing I didn't like about this store (which Laurin did) was that all the yarn was arranged by color. Don't get me wrong, it was PRETTY, but I couldn't find a darn thing. All the skeins were crammed in together in one cubby and I had no idea which yarn was which. I was overwelmed trying to find what I wanted...didn't get the KnitKnack cards or Euroflax linen either...bummer.
Back at the hotel, Laurin, Heather and I ordered pizza for dinner and ate (and knit) by the pool. We invited a friendly South Carolina stranger, Steve, to eat with us...here's Laurin and Heather knitting...
That night, I swam some more in the moonlight...got eaten by mosquitos and we all watched a comedy show in Laurin's room. (We won't speak of the "other" events on the web, will we?)
The next morning, we headed out early (after I got in ONE more swim!), had breakfast at a very neat diner (where they were having Hawaiian day)...here is a pic of our waitress, Mary...
Our very last stop before going home (well, we did stop quickly at a NH gift shop which was open that Sunday) was Creative Habitat (which does have a link, but doesn't ever work for some reason). I thought it was a yarn store, but it's actually a division of Ben Franklin craft store...the store itself had TONS of great crafty stuff...the yarn department was similar to ACMoore. Not really a TRUE yarn store...but I got a couple of patterns and some neat 100% merino New Zealand nubbly wool in a fantastic neon green to make Ben a hooded vest. I also found some other crafty items to bring home to the kids as gifts...AND they took my 40% off ACMoore coupon...cool! Here is Laurin pointing out the sign...
Oh, I forgot my pic of my Trekking socks in Progress...trekking in VT...or actually swimming, I guess....
Oh, forgot another pic...this is the totally beautiful knitting bag that Heather made for me. You can't tell how nice it is until you look inside...lots of pocket and fun, sparkly accents/fabric. What a great bag!
Yawn...okay...your eyeballs are dry from reading and my fingers are falling off. Hope you enjoyed reading about our VT trip. I had a fun time, but couldn't wait to get home to the kids. I missed them so much. Happy Knitting!
Monday, July 10, 2006
Blugger Anyone?
Back from VT (more details in next entry) and have TONS of pics to share (and stories!), but have very little energy to do that today. Promise to be bloggerific tomorrow.
Anyway, I have a slight problem. I dyed a skein of sock yarn the other day and it came out...well, less than pretty and not at all what I was hoping for. Now, it's just sitting there and I've begun to have a smoldering hatred towards it. Here is where you guys (aka gals) come in...
Here is what I'm offering...the next person to email me (see link at very bottom of page)...not comment the blog (though you can still comment!)....but EMAIL me...with the conditions set below agreed to...will receive this skein FREE (even shipping is included).
What'd'ya think?
YARN INFO:
80% superwash merino 20% nylon
400 yards fingering weight
color: Blugger*
*This is a word describing how I feel towards this yarn*
CONDITIONS:
1. You must really like the yarn or at least find it appealing in some way....I know, this is the most difficult part...if I don't like it, there might not be a lot of you who will....right?
and
2. You must agree to knit up at least 1 sock with the yarn within a 2 month period so that I can put the pic on my blog...for a before and after...yarn and sock. Pattern is completely up to you...though if you design your own pattern and want to "get the word out", I would be happy to link the picture and pattern of your sock from my blog to your blog or pattern address or email...whatever. (This is not required, though)
Here is a close up of the colors...fushia, blues, black, gray, cream....
The question is....which of you will be brave enough to be the Blugger Babe/Buddy? I DARE you! ; )
Anyway, I have a slight problem. I dyed a skein of sock yarn the other day and it came out...well, less than pretty and not at all what I was hoping for. Now, it's just sitting there and I've begun to have a smoldering hatred towards it. Here is where you guys (aka gals) come in...
Here is what I'm offering...the next person to email me (see link at very bottom of page)...not comment the blog (though you can still comment!)....but EMAIL me...with the conditions set below agreed to...will receive this skein FREE (even shipping is included).
What'd'ya think?
YARN INFO:
80% superwash merino 20% nylon
400 yards fingering weight
color: Blugger*
*This is a word describing how I feel towards this yarn*
CONDITIONS:
1. You must really like the yarn or at least find it appealing in some way....I know, this is the most difficult part...if I don't like it, there might not be a lot of you who will....right?
and
2. You must agree to knit up at least 1 sock with the yarn within a 2 month period so that I can put the pic on my blog...for a before and after...yarn and sock. Pattern is completely up to you...though if you design your own pattern and want to "get the word out", I would be happy to link the picture and pattern of your sock from my blog to your blog or pattern address or email...whatever. (This is not required, though)
Here is a close up of the colors...fushia, blues, black, gray, cream....
The question is....which of you will be brave enough to be the Blugger Babe/Buddy? I DARE you! ; )
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)