Spherey!

Introducing....Spherey!

Oh, this was even quicker and more fun than Squarey. Only a couple days to knit the whole thing....and, man, is he POPULAR! I took him (partially finished) with us to a restaurant for dinner and, since only his head was done, everyone kept looking at the head in my bag and smiling. Ben kept saying, "I want the smiley head!" and we would toss it back and forth. Spherey is a real happy guy ; )

DETAILS:

Pattern: "Spherey" from "Unusual Toys to Knit and Enjoy" by Jess Hutchinson.
Yarn: Lamb's Pride Worsted in pale greenish blue and red (only 1/2 skein of greenish blue and small bit of red)
Needles: Knit Picks size 8, 32" circ for magic loop.
Time: 2 days...1.5 days for "head" and only a couple hours tops for arms/legs.
Fun: A- (Really loved it...especially since you can use stash yarn for it and it's quick and adorable. Only thing was that sewing on the legs neatly wasn't AS fun.)


Wanna see what Spherey does in his spare time??



He LOVES the Grab-It Game!

Oh, I also finished my Wavy scarf on Wednesday night in the hot pink color of Ella Rae Classic. It's just as warm and wonderful as my other Wavy in the Cascade 220 yarn. Now, I just need possibly one more Wavy (in black perhaps?) to go with the other outfits in my closet. Isn't it great to be able to knit to coordinate with your wardrobe? It's awesome!

Speaking of finishing things...I also finished my entry for the One Skein Wonders book and I'm going to reblock it tomorrow and send it off ASAP. Please, please keep your fingers crossed for me. It would be the best and most wonderful event in my puny knitting/designing life.

I was also shocked to see that there are over 100 Amanda hats on Ravelry now! Isn't that amazing????

My very next blog post will feature:

-an interview with Caroline (an amazing knitting friend) who is on her way to knitting about 8 Amanda hats!

-pictures of the "prize swag" that the winners will receive from the contest

-since I'm not the one judging the contest (thank goodness, since they're all so awesome), I'm going to show MY favorite hats/pics so far.

And, remember, there are only 17 days left to enter hat pics!!!

I'm v-e-r-y slowly working on my other lace projects and UFOs. But, I'm happy to have finished these three things this week. Woo-hoo! Happy Knitting everyone!

Slightly Wavy

Whoa, I can't believe it's been almost a week since I blogged. I am BEAT! I still have my Christmas decorations up and my house is very slowly becoming a pigsty. Just enough so that I can feel it creeping up around me....damn dust bunnies and other crap!

Meanwhile, I've been working on no less than 5 PROJECTS at once:

-A new design using Heather's gorgeous Sereknity yarn in "Luxe", the 100% handpainted cashmere....oooooh....

-My Winter White Icarus shawl, which is about 12 inches long and coming along sooo beautifully. I just saw Hilary's last night and it's just lovely.

-My Wavy Scarf, shown above....which is about 2/3 done and coming along quickly. I bring this everywhere and I can work on it anytime...easy and mindless...compared to last time when it was kicking my ass. I think you get the hang of it once you make it once. I'm using Ella Rae Classic 100% wool, it's practically identical to Cascade 220.

-Tim's "Spherey" toy, which is also half done...in Lamb's Pride Worsted. It's going to be MUCH smaller than "Squarey", but very cute.

-A shop sample using SWS Oasis in Bistro for the Phiaro Scarf, found in the newest KnitScene. Very simple, but somehow this keeps getting pushed to the side. Must work on it more at work.

I've got the sniffles today and, thankfully, Ben hung out in bed and played with toys while I snoozed for a few extra minutes. I had lots of fun last night at knitting group, though we were missing some of our "regulars"....hopefully I'll see them on Friday. We had two new ladies join the group and I hope we didn't overwhelm them....we still had a HUGE group, even missing about 6 people.

I wish I could say that today I could rest, but I've got to take both kids (Tim's got midterms today so he'll be coming home from school early) to Exeter to get Ben's birth certificate. I can't believe I never got that! DUH! He's 5 years old now! Jeez...

AMANDA HAT KAL UPDATE

Gallery Photos: 40 HATS and more than 6 that I haven't had a chance to add yet....it's sooo cool! (BTW, the Gallery, I've just found out, is only viewable if you actually go to my blog itself here. It doesn't show up if you're on a blog reader, for some reason.)

Bobby Awards: If you're on Ravelry, they are having a mini awards ceremony and The Amanda Hat is one of the chosen patterns for BEST FREE PATTERN 2007. Isn't that awesome??? If you're on Ravelry, I would truly appreciate your vote! Thanks!

Prizes: Pictures of the prizes are coming soon, so please keep a look out. If you have something you'd like to contribute, I'd be happy to advertise you and your blog/website, as a thank you. Anything knitting related is welcomed. Please email me if you'd like to contribute ; )

What Amanda hat is your favorite so far in the Gallery?

Frantic FO Friday!!! (and fiber!)

Whew!! I can't tell you how absolutely friggin relieved I am that the center panel of my "Large Rectangle" lace stole (from Victorian Lace Today) is done!!!

THANK, THANK GOODNESS!!! I thought I was going to go insane knitting those 10 rows over and over. I have some serious knitter's elbow and I was thinking maybe I'd snag Sarah and see if she'd work her magic on it. (Pretty please, Sarah??)

Here is just some idea of the agony of my lace knitting (though I did enjoy it overall...just not in parts here and there):

1. 360 ROWS!!!

2. Such fine, fine yarn (have I mentioned this already????? LOL!)

3. 18 non stop hours of lace knitting (approx. 1/2 hour per repeat)

4. There is one horrid mistake in the whole thing that I just noticed and it's near the beginning....and, no, Laurin, I am NOT frogging this baby!

Am I happy with it? Yeah, I have to say that it is incredibly soft and really beautiful despite the agony I mentioned above. If I can figure out the knitted on lace border and blocking, I'll be good to go. (I think.)

So, what else have I finished, you ask?

Well, I finally finished my Wavy scarf!!! (It only took 9 months to finish....nothin' to it! LOL!) Here is Tim modeling it for me:



I'm super happy with the outcome, but not sure if I'd ever make another one. If I did, it would be for some kind of payment (money or yarn) and definitely in a different color. Not sure how lovely Blogless Amanda has knit 3 (!!!) of them, but she must have nerves of steel or something.

Also, I dyed some Knit Picks Bare Laceweight yarn in a slightly varigated purples/blues/lilac colorway and will be using that for a special project soon. I was thrilled with this yarn! It is super, super soft and dyed very nicely. Only $3.99 for 880 yards!!! I'll definitely buy more. (one tip, though....this yarn is slightly thicker than laceweight, but not quite fingering.)



What do you think??

Here's my progress on spinning the bamboo I got from Cayli, who bought it from the fab-u-lous HollyEEQ. I WUV BAMBOO!!!



I can't believe how wonderful it is to spin...when they say it spins like "buttah"....it is SO true! It's like spinning tencel, but without the burn....shines brighter than silk and is so much easier to spin than silk. When drafting, it just floats out of your hands like ribbons of shiny clouds. I'd love a bed lined with bamboo fiber! Mmmm.....



I've only spun half the fiber so far, but I'm planning on spinning the other half and making a 2 ply fingering/sportweight yarn. If I get the yardage I think I will, I'm thinking of making a lace shawl out of it or mini Clapotis.

Hmmm...what else am I up to?

Oh, guess what I bought from Loop? An absolutely BREATHTAKING fiber called, "Kimono"....it's a handcarded 3 oz batt of alpaca, merino, sparkle and silk. You would not believe how gorgeous this is from my pic...click HERE to see better pics. It's driving me crazy....I don't know whether to just admire it, spin it or marry it. (I would. I really would.)



Oh, before I forget, my TWO NEW PATTERNS are now available in pdf form (free!!) on the right sidebar under Sleepy Eyes Patterns. Please check them out and print them out (full color makes them look REALLY awesome) and tell many, many people about them, okay? It's the "PicSock"....a cozy for your small digital camera or cell phone... and "Sweet Leaf" toddler hat. Comments?? Hugs??

Since Ian is still away in New Mexico, I am trying not to go insane. Tim is out of school now and....he is bored. My sons are both driving me to drink (well...just maybe some tonic water with lime).....all day long is bicker, bicker, bicker. No matter who I put in which room, how many hours they are out playing, or swimming or eating. Ahhhh!!!! (Jackie knows my pain.)

Speaking of Ian....

well, he loves geocashing. And he brought his GPS to NM with him. He tells me this morning that he went out after work yesterday TO THE DESERT with only 1 bottle of water and his GPS to hike.

No buddy, no extra food, no cell phone, no hat, no sunscreen, no first aid kit or supplies and.... no one he knows for hundreds of miles knows where he is.

K.

He tells me that he didn't really feel like following any trails (UM....am I the only one who thinks he is more insane than me?) and might have gotten lost for a bit. Um...yeah.

Luckily, he found a trail and was able to make it back without dying and raced into a Subway to get some food and water. He was so dehydrated that he could barely talk to order his food.

OMG.

You know, I TRY not to be a worry wort, but when he tells me things like this, I can only think that I may have to kill him for doing such dangerous things.

(sigh)

Anyone wanna trade three fertile males for a female alpaca or llama or something??

My Birthday Haul

Holy Cow!!! I am the luckiest gal in the world!!! Not only do I have the sweetest family, but I have the BEST, BEST friends ever! And, the fact that they're all knitters, makes me even MORE happy!!!!! (do you like the tshirt that Ian got me?)

Wednesday was my birthday and now I am officially 34. (small cry) I can no longer say that I'm in my early 30s. But, now I am in my middle 30s. I have to say that I still feel 29, though. I still feel bright and young...and that's all that matters, right?

Ian and the boys gave me a small party the night before my bday with a PINK cake and...guess what??...Ian got me the coolest new CAMERA!!! It's essentially the same Canon Powershot as the one Ian has, but smaller, better quality, lighter in weight and all around BETTER! LOL! What a nice husband I have for getting it for me. And, an adorable bday card...with My Little Pony on it. (you see...for the past 4 or more years, Ian's been getting me cute little girl cards and changing the numbers on it...like when I was 31, he got me a card for a 1 year old girl, added a 3 in front and wrote some romantic things inside. It sounds freaky, but it's actually very sweet.)



Here's my fancy ass camera: (it is sooo friggin awesome!)



Luckily, my birthday fell on a knitting night...Wednesday (I was born on a Wednesday, in fact)...so the ManchVegas crew had a birthday party for me! I have to tell you that this was the ABSOLUTE BEST birthday I've ever had and everyone was so good to me. And, it wasn't just because of the presents....that was super...but even if not ONE person had bought me something, I still would've had the best birthday. I was with every one of my friends that I love...we laughed, we knitted, we talked like crazy (or was that just me?) and the energy was so positive. Even Body Talk Guy said "Happy Birthday" to me! (I feel so privledged!) LOL!

But, also on that note, I got some KICK ASS gifts! Wanna see? Of course you do!

-My best friend of all time, Jackie, picked out this Hello Kitty "cupcake" cake for me...here it is almost completely gone...DE-LISH!



-The HandMade bag that Jackie made for me...in this gorgeous brown and turquoise satin....it's got pockets on the back and the most incredible "mirror" glass-like bird pin. I LOVE THIS!



-The most amazing yarn in the world...and I think it should have been named after me....from Beautiful Blogless Amanda....Artyarns Silk Rhapsody....



-Luxurious, handdyed fiber batts from the one and only fabulous Heather in all sorts of pinks AND, AND...a hand made orifice hook...(yes, snicker now..get it overwith)...that she made with glass and crystal beads for my spinning wheel.





-Sassy Laurin got me a super duper knitting backpack (in pink), an adorable Kiki cat, and a pink sunglasses case...and chocolate. Niiiiice!



-Donna got me the STR yarn I was dying for and a to-die-for skein of Artyarns Silk in varigated pinks.....sooo soft!



-GiGi bought me a totally cool Hello Kitty pen that is also a pencil....WITH an eraser..something I always talk about. (couldn't take pic...using pen!)

-And, as a whole, the group got me......duh duh duh.....A SWIFT and BALL WINDER!!!!!! Never had one and now, I can finally stop winding my yarn on the back of my kitchen chair! Woo-hoo!!!!!



Can you BELIEVE how lucky I am????? Thank you, thank you, thank you, everyone!!! I love you all!

Oh, before I go.....a few things....

1. A pic of my family on my birthday....handsome, aren't they?



2. My parents got me an awesome bamboo fragrance oil set and a gift certificate to Home Goods! Wow!! Thanks, Mom and Dad!!! I love you!

3. The music that I didn't get to name on the NEW PODCAST (see right)...is this:

-The "Austin Powers"-like song by 123456 and the instrumental music is "Callahan Tunnel" by the fabulous and talented Citizen Six...make sure to check out their website...it's awesome!

4. The Headband Contest is almost over so get your headbands done and send 'm to me!!!!!

Have a great day!!! : )

NETA Spa Weekend...Minute by Minute

To begin reading this post, you need to say the password. Password is: FrigginAwesome. Say it. Read on....

FRIDAY:

8:30 am Woke up with amazingly horrid migraine headache. Ian stayed home until 1 pm to watch Ben and I was able to join the land of the living. Felt better as the day went on. (MUST NOT MISS SPA!!!)

5:15 pm Melissa picks me up with her doggie, Rusty. We head to Portland, ME.

8:00 pm Arrive in at DoubleTree Hotel (we got somewhat lost...though I got a great tour of downtown...the online hotel directions SUCKED)

8:05 pm Eat giant, homemade chocolate chip cookie that I was given at sign in (oh, yes...everyone gets one....drool!)

8:20 pm Find room (wonderful!!!) and unpack a little



8:30 pm Eat at the hotel cafe (rosemary potatoes, pork loin with baked apples, chocolate/orange mousse, homemade french bread....yummy).

(sorry for the dark pic of the vendor area....)


8:45 pm Got name tag, entered in door prize contest, and did a tiny bit of shopping. Met the amazing Amy King of Spunky Eclectic and tried not to make a fool out of myself...gushing about how much I love her stuff. (I say, "tried"....not "did")



9:15 pm Get my first EVER manicure with Angela (she's like everyone's idea of a best friend...sweet, cute, friendly, outspoken and funny as hell) and it was fantastic!

9:45 pm Chris and Erikca found me as I finished with my manicure.

9:50 pm Won a door prize! Opal sock yarn in yellow, white and parts black. (anyone want to swap for this? Not sure if I like the colors...)



10:00 pm Met Julie and Carol in the hallway.....was so happy to see them and felt like we'd been friends forever.



10:05 pm We all went to the conference/gallery room (where everyone sat to knit and spin all weekend) to, surprise, surprise...knit and spin! I actually got 1 or 2 rows done on my Wavy scarf. Rest of the time...gabbing with everyone and having the BEST time! (Here are Julie and Carol being all funny...."Kiss me!")



11:30 pm Happily surprised when Heather arrived early to meet us. (I thought she wouldn't be at SPA until Saturday...woohoo!)

Midnight (approximately) Everyone goes to up to their rooms and chats a bit more (learned that, as Heather and I gabbed about bunnies and such, Julie and Carol were giggling like school girls up stairs all night).


SATURDAY:

7:30 am Got an amazing, hour massage from Betsy and almost died and went to heaven. My feet, back and hands were in love with Betsy.



8:30 am Had a truly yummy (though HUGELY costly) room service breakfast with Heather before heading down to spin.



8:45 am- 1 pm Alternately spun my new Spunky Fiber in the "Swamp Monster" colorway, talked, and shopped. (Amy and her mother laughed every time I went back to the Spunky booth, saying "She's back!",...may have been 5 or more times...so about every hour)



Noonish? Melissa drops by with her handsome brother, Vicki (my Spinning Godmother) sat and knit with us for an hour or two, and Julie's friend, Brenda, joined us....very friendly and fun. After I did a mini spindle demonstration (I'm not a very good teacher), Brenda and Julie both did some spindle spinning...and, boy, they caught on quickly. Much more quickly than I did!



1:00 pm (or was it 2:00?) Had lunch with everyone at the cafe (delicious macaroni & cheese with keilbasa, big salad, cookies and lots of water)

Somehow, the rest of the day was a blur....of spinning and chatting...



6:15 pm Chocolate Pedicure (with all chocolate scented products....legs rubbed with salts, slathered in a mask and rubbed with lotions...and then on to the pedicure with Princess-tastic (or some similar name) sparkly pink polish for my toesies...see above) with Heather and Ericka...that's her feet that Angela is holding.



8:00 pm Went out to dinner with said group to some beer-ish pub where I knit a bit on my Wavy scarf and had Terayki chicken breasts with mashed potatoes. Heather and I shared the chocolate peanut butter cup pie and the key lime pie. I liked the Key Lime better...very tangy!

10:00 pm - 11:30 pm More spinnning and knitting and chatting...Chris and Ericka came to our room for more spinning. I helped Ericka get her newly spun yarn (on her new, lovely Louet, double treadle wheel) wound on the niddy noddy and she soaked and hung it overnight. Came out wonderful...good job to her!

11:30 pm Sleep


SUNDAY:

8:30 pm Breakfast arrives (less costly this time)...but I wake up with ANOTHER migraine (ughhhh!!!) and couldn't eat any of it.

8:30-11 pm Heather takes care of me (such a loving, wonderful friend) and goes out to do some yarn shop-shopping and so I can have some quiet and rest.

11:10 pm Manage to s-l-o-w-l-y come downstairs to checkout (pay the bill, etc and order cookies for the kiddies to take home) and was able to say goodbye to Julie and Carol....oh, I wanted to stay and talk to them more!!! (Did I tell you how Julie is even more friendly, sweet and funny as she is in her blog?) Went back upstairs to sleep.



12:00 pm-2:30 pm I sat with the last spinning ladies left at the hotel (and then later with Chris, Ericka and Heather)....spun more of my "Swamp Monster" fiber...coming out so cool!....and was able to be almost human again.

Here is Heather spinning her beautiful red pygora fiber...



2:30-4:00 pm Chris, Ericka, Heather and I go to a Mexican restaurant for lunch (the blueberry empanadas (sp?) with vanilla ice cream were GREAT!) and then Heather and I headed over to Portsmouth for my argyle sock class with Jackie.

5:15-6:30 pm During class, I knit maybe 2 rows. Everyone really liked my first finished sock and that made me happy. The other socks were looking really wonderful, too. Such great colors!

6:30-7:30 pm Jackie and I headed home, talked, laughed and vented on the way. I had missed her a lot over the weekend (she was planning to go with me and then had so many plans at the last minute that she couldn't come...poor Jackie....but she's totally going next year!) and she really liked the yarn I'd picked out for her from Amy's booth....it's called Neopolitan with very light pink, cream and pale brown colors.

Rest of the night: Kept hugging the kiddies (I'd missed them so much!) while Ian took a much needed break and put Ben to bed.

Overall, with migraines aside, I had the BEST weekend away I've ever had and I can't wait until next year. If I can manage to go on Thursday night, I will...not sure if that's possible, though...have to beg Ian.

Here are some pics of other things I may have missed talking about:



1. The finished handspun yarn (fiber from Yarn Botanika in the "Fresh Berries" colorway) I made for my pal, Cayli. I did a 3 ply navajo with it and it came out to be a sportweight yarn....about 207 yards....and it is very shiny and soft. I think she liked it! (See her blog for more pics of the goodies I sent her...including a photo scrapbook of the steps I took to spin her yarns!)



2. The needle felted doll created by the woman of Grafton Fibers...it's a mermaid...and she is holding another, smaller doll in her hand. Amazing!



3. My new spindle...a blue tiger's-eye type....for laceweight yarn spinning...it's gorgeous!



4. Heather getting her massage...

5. My bag, my Spunky yarn to make a sweater (Amy's own pattern), two Spunky fibers for me (Midnight Runner and Shark) and one for Cayli (Berry Pickin').







6. Chris, being very philosophical....



7. Ericka at her new wheel....



8. Heather examining Ericka's spinning...approvingly....



9. More of Amy's Spunky Eclectic yarn and fiber....booth, yarn and fiber...



drool over the yarn...



squeeze those fibers...



10. A little gift for lovely Amanda (whose birthday is this Wed!!!)...



I also got a "Bag o' Bunny"....angora/silk fiber mix in a beautiful colorway, but the photo just did not come out well...it's in soft toffee, pumpkin and gold colors...something I don't normally pic, but thought would be beautiful spun up. I'll show it in a later post.

Though I'm happy to be home, I had such a wonderful time and met such sensational people that I wish I were there again now...but, I guess I'd be completely alone...since everyone is gone. But, next year....I'm SOO there! Maybe you will, too!

Next post will be showing you my handspun "Swamp Monster" singles yarn that I'll be knitting into my own sock pattern...I can't wait!!! Until next time!