Barnes & Noble Loves ME!

Hellooooo my lovely knitters!

After much frustration over my website blog (no one could leave comments! whaaaa?), I decided that I would just go back to my old friend, Blogger.

So...WELCOME!!!

There is so much that I would like to share with you. As you know, I LOVE lists, so I will start with that :D

1. I have almost finished all of my Kickstarter gift knitting (for those who donated to my Kickstarter project). I only have one more item to knit. Last week or so, I finished the "Ridgeway Pullover #302" by Cabin Fever for my friend, Chip. I loved using the Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Bulky yarn for this sweater (great color and nice to knit with). I really hope it fits him nicely.

2. I (if "I" means my hubby, Ian - lol) updated my SleepyEyes app (FREE on iTunes!) - so you can now purchase and download both the Wonderlace and Dreamscape books, as well as 4 other patterns (Mari Lace Cowl, Lisha Lace Scarf, Bobbi's Birthday Scarf, Lotus Heart Socks)...plus at least 15 free patterns, too :D

3. I've also started creating individual patterns from the Wonderlace book - the first being, The Loralee Cowl. It's available on my ETSY SHOP...yay!

4. I love Sparkle. Sparkle makes me very happy. With that in mind, I designed a very cute (and girly) scarf pattern called the "Princess Sparkle Scarf". I'm hoping to finish up the pattern tonight so I can add it to Ravelry :) You may not be able to tell how wonderfully sparkly it is from these pics, but it's soo great.

5. Keep checking back here and on my Sleepy Eyes Knits Facebook page in the next week or so for a new CONTEST! I'm trying to get more reviews on Amazon.com for my Wonderlace book (and Dreamscape) and I will be giving away a super awesome prize for the winner of the contest. PRIZE - a gift certificate to an online yarn store and PDF copy of both Wonderlace & Dreamscape (for you or for a friend).

6. I want to thank all of my supportive and loving friends for keeping me company at my trunk shows/book signings. Although it's incredibly wonderful to be in a yarn store all day to sell my book (especially when they store owners are friendly and helpful), it does get lonely and sad sometimes. There are issues of "When can I leave the table to go to the bathroom?", "Why does that lady look so irritated over my patterns?", "I wish someone would bring me lunch.", "Should I ask this person if they want to buy a book or not pressure her/him?" and, always, "Why does this person have to say that they dislike lace knitting (and give a million excuses why they don't want my book) while they are browsing through my book???".

When a friend comes to visit me, there's MUCH less of that and I have someone to talk to when the people working in the shop are busy. Usually, I stay all day at the shop, so even company for an hour or so means a lot to me. (PLUS, it gives the impression that my trunk show is awesome...lol) I want to thank Melissa W., Lora K., Heather H., Sarah S., Jessica L.W., Kerry P., Jackie W., Julie R., Patti V., Trudy & friends and Edith H. for visiting me, giving hugs and keeping me company. (I hope I didn't forget anyone!) You are wonderful friends!

When knitters come to yarn stores just to see ME and my book, it is AWESOME! I can't express how it makes me feel that someone cares about me and my work. It usually only happens once or less per trunk show but, when it does, my day is made. Seriously. It's like a huge hug - on the inside :D


7. I want to thank the incredibly talented (and super sweet) Joanna Johnson of Slate Falls Press for the interview on her blog last month - not only was it lots of fun, but it was such a thoughtful and helpful thing to do. I have all of her design books and I love them all. If only I had more time to knit every single thing from all of her books. I received my copy of the new "Green Gables Knits" and the book is really beautiful. I hope to do an interview of her on MY blog soon!

8. Last, but not least, I finally heard back from Barnes & Noble Bookstores and they are going to carry my Wonderlace book!!! I am THRILLED!!! Beyond the moon. After the rejection of my first book, I was discouraged, but my friends encouraged me to try one more time...and I'm very, very glad that I listened to them! Woo-hoo!

With love and many hugs,

Gina
xoxo


P.S. My Wonderlace book is available on my Etsy Shop, Amazon.com, Ravelry.com and Artfire.com...and, soon, Barnes & Noble! Yay!!

Happy New Year 2010!!!

Happy New Year, Friends!!!

I can't believe 2009 is already over. In a way, I'm totally glad. It was a good year for me, I think, but so so busy.

(Can't believe how BIG my boys are now, too!)



I've still got a list of 10 things that I really wanted to get done this year that I didn't do. Like:

- Finish Reconciling the checkbook
-Clean out Ben's closet
-Clean out art cupboard
-Organize my yarn stash (which I'm sure will be a month long project)
-Donate old toys
-Buy a pretty rug for the kitchen
-Get a knitting corner set up for me to relax in (with new comfy chair!)
-Finish all pairs of hand knit socks (at least 5 singles to do!)
-Clean out and organize my freezer (fridge part is done!)
-Force (a-hem) Urge Ian to clean out the garage

But...maybe I'll get to those things THIS year...right? (right?)

The list above aside, the Year 2009 has been very productive for me.

(sorry, few pictures at the moment and very few links - I was trying to get this post done fast!)

I've published and printed my FIRST DESIGN BOOK - "Dreamscape":



-At my first trunk show at Fresh Purls yarn store, I sold about 34 copies of my book! It was one of the most awesome weekends ever!
-In the first two weeks that I had my book available, I made all of the money back that I spent printing the 100 copies!
-Soon, I'll be able to have another 100 copies printed (with an ISBN number this time!)
-I'm so grateful for everyone who helped with the book and for everyone who bought a book or pdf...THANK YOU!!!!

I've knit and finished 54 PROJECTS:

(must remember to add the new ones to Ravelry!!!)

-Amanda Hat in Ivy Brambles Superwash Worsted (tulips)
-3 Crocheted Dishsoap Aprons (various yarns)
-Golle Molle Baby Cardigan in Rowan Pure Wool DK (white)
-Lizard Ridge Afghan in Noro Kureyeon (many colors)



-Tim's Felted Clogs in Cascade 220 (red and black)
-Ian's Felted Clogs in Cascade 220 (dark gray)
-Fabulous Scarf in Ivy Brambles SW Worsted (tulips)
-Lacy Recyclibag in Green Mountain Spinnery Organic Wool (natural)
-Spring Savasana Socks in Ivy Brambles SW Worsed (spring meadow)
-Amy Beret in My Handspun (reds and pinks)
-Hai Ryo for Tim in Berroco Comfort Worsted (red) and Berroco Lumina (black/red)
-Ericka Scarf in Noro Kureyon sock yarn (long and narrow)
-Another Ericka Scarf in Noro Kureyon sock yarn (wider)
-Baby Bear Felted Teddy in Berroco Ultra Alpaca Worsted (brown)
-Baby Yoda Sweater in Rowan Wool Cotton (light teal)
-Plain Jane Socks in Sereknity Sock Options (Berry)
-Monk's Sweater for Teddy in Noro Kureyon (226)
-Grown Up Booties in Reynolds' Lopi (fushia)
-Tiny Shoes in Bunny Blend Angora sportweight (lt. pink and fushia)
-Mya's Sweater in Bunny Blend Angora sportweight (lt. pink and fushia)
-Button Up Neck Wrap in My Handspun (glittery blue)
-Hap Blanket in This and That Farms' Cormo Silk chunky (natural and Sereknity "Escape dyed)
-Kraken in Cascade 220 and Cascade 220 SW (yellow and cranberry)
-Sea Urchin in Katia Mississippi 3 (hot pink)
-Spider in Cascade 220 (black and red)
-Buttercup in Elsbeth Lavold Silky Wool (bright blue)
-Icing Swirl Hat in Misti Alpaca Chunky (dk, turquoise)
-Mousie in Katia Mississippi 3 (gray and pink)
-Quant in My Handspun (various pastel colors)
-Octopus in Cascade 220 and Cascade 220 SW (turquoise and yellows)
-Elephante in RYC Cashsoft DK (gray blue)
-Sea Star in Cascade 220 (pink)
-Sea Star in Cascade 220 SW (yellows)
-Brown Lizard Ridge Square for Roger's Blanket in Cascade 220 SW (brown)
-Helmet Liner in Cascade 220 (camel)
-Cowl in Cascade 220 (camel)
-Horseshoe Cap in My Handspun (pinks and oranges)
-Sweet Leaf Adult Hat in Lamb's Pride Worsted (turquoise)
-Immortal Stole in Cascade ECO+ (red) and SWTC Jezebel (black)
-Immortal Stole (half and half with Kerry) in Cascade Eco+ (pale turquoise) and Ivy Brambles Shetland (dark turquioise)
-Lena Hat in Wollemeise Sock yarn Wool blend (Red Hot Chili)
-Roman Princess Scarf in Malabrigo Worsted (fushia)
-Amanda Hat in Malabrigo Worsted (butter)
-Persephone Beret in Cascade 220 (coffee)
-Persephone Beret in Anny Blatt Angora Super (pink)



-Persephone Beret in Cascade Pastaza (white large)
-Persephone Beret in Cascade Pastaza (white small)
-Persephone Beret in Cascade Pastaza (dark gray small)
-Soleil Shoulder Wrap in Spunky Eclectic Lace Merino (Walking on the Sun)
-Spellbound in Gedifra Ayala (gray)
-Chimera in Valeria di Roma Angora (white)
-Chimera in Cascade 220 (pink)

I've spun 5 HANDSPUN YARNS:

(on my Ashford Joy)

-2 ply fingering of Sereknity 100% BFL in "Blue Hawaii" for DonnaD (355 yards)
-2 ply fingering (20 wpi) of Icelandic Lambswool/Mohair from Fresli Farm (hand dyed lt. turquoise by me) (515 yards)
-2 ply lt. worsted of London Wul Fiber Arts 100% Polwarth in red-pinks for Amy Beret (245 yards)
-2 ply DK of Sereknity's 50% Lambswool/50% Angora in "Lilacs in Bloom" (98 yards)
-Single ply DK of Ivy Brambles 100% Corriedale in "Fireball" for Horseshoe Cap from Spin Off (160 yards)

I've read 45 BOOKS:

(my favorites were BY FAR the ones written by Dorothy Whipple!)

-They Knew Mr. Knight by Dorothy Whipple
-Diary of a Provincial Lady by E.M. Delafield
-Someone at a Distance by Dorothy Whipple
-The Priory by Dorothy Whipple
-The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
-The Chinese Shawl by Patricia Wentworth
-Garlic and Sapphires by Ruth Riechl
-Charlotte's Web by E. B. White
-Fortune and Fate by Sharon Shinn
-The Tombs of Atuan by Ursula LeGuin
-Wuthering Heights (thank goodness I finished this one!) by Emily Bronte
-To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
-Hitty: Her First 100 Years by Rachel Field
-Jamaica Inn by Daphne duMaurier
-Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfield
-They were Sisters by Dorothy Whipple
-From May Sarton's Well by Edith R. Scharde
-Poison in the Pen by Patricia Wentworth
-Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri
-The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri
-Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri
-Teatime for the Traditionally Built by A.McCall Smith
-Olive Kitteridge by Katherine Strout
-Shanghai Girls by Lisa See
-The Cricket in Times Square by Gregory Smith
-Swiss Family Robinson by Johann Wyss
-Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
-The Secret Woman by Victoria Holt
-The Tree Book by Mark Ryden
-The Lady in the Lake by Raymond Chandler
-Journal to the Self by Kathleen Adams
-The Sweet Life by Laura Stoddart
-The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
-Hooping: A Revolutionary Fitness Program by Christabel Zamor
-The One Hundred by Nina Garcia
-The Black Opal by Victoria Holt
-Secret for a Nightingale by Victoria Holt
-Seven for a Secret by Victoria Holt
-Shivering Sands by Victoria Holt
-Daughter of Deceit by Victoria Holt
-The Shadow of the Lynx by Victoria Holt
-Quatrain by Sharon Shinn
-The Black Swan by Phillipa Carr
-Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger
-Handmade Home by Amanda B. Soule


I've also lost 93 POUNDS on Weight Watchers:

-Still an ongoing process, but I'm keeping at it. I'm losing much less per week and sometimes none at all. But, I'm not going to give up...and I WILL make my goal weight in the next 6 months!!!! (crossing fingers!!)

I want to let all of you know how much I appreciate all of your support, comments and love that you send to me through Facebook, Ravelry, my blog and email. You are all AMAZING and thank you so much for reading my blither blather every couple of weeks or so.

Have a TRULY MAGICAL 2010 and hope all of your wishes come true!!!!

Happy New Year!!!!!

(Here is my family and I at Christmas....Back L-R: Ian, my mom, my sister, my dad and me. Front L-R: Ben and Tim)

I can't believe it's been almost a month since I've blogged!!! Between shopping, wrapping, holiday parties and cleaning, I think I got completely overwhelmed with time - and blogging has suffered. Sometimes, I feel like making sure that my Ravelry is updated is more important than blogging. What do you think? Have you felt this way, too??

Anyway, Happy New Year!!

I usually try to do this blog post on New Year's Eve, but we got home pretty late (details on what the heck happened next) so this was the very first year that we missed watching the ball drop in NYC and I forgot to blog somewhere near the end of the year. Ugh.

Christmas Vacation and Pics

Our trip to visit Ian's parents' new house in SC was pretty crazy. House is very nice, though.....huge ceilings, great big yard and the kitchen is amazing....here's a somewhat obscured view of the outside.



The trip there started with us leaving the house at 4 am to get to Boston. Even though we had 1.5 hours before our flight boarded (and had no bags to check in), we got on the plane with 5 minutes to spare. Although, we managed to get to D.C. with no trouble (it was Ben's 1st time on a plane and he loved it!), our connecting flight was cancelled and Ian had to scream and yell to get United to pay for our hotel room for the night (we'd been waiting in the airport for 5 hours at that point). The hotel was beautiful and the amenities fantastic (Holiday Inn in Dulles....AWE-SOME!) - here is the pool area with Tim waving to me- so it actually worked out for the best.



We had a nice visit, like I said...Ian's sister, Felice (see her pic below with the Felted Tote that I made for her) and his grandmother were there, too...and the weather was gorgeous - warm and sunny. A nice change from the freezing cold. Took lots of walks, went shopping, and Ian and I got to stay at ANOTHER beautiful hotel at the Clemson University (where Ian's dad is Head of the Graphics department) - it had a dining room, kitchen, living room, 3 sinks!! and the most comfortable beds/pillows that I've ever slept on in a hotel. It's called the James F. Martin Inn. I totally recommend this place!



The phone reception in that area wasn't great (no reception in their house) so I was lucky to be able to use my iPhone (a Christmas gift from Ian!!!) to check Ravelry and my email while I was there. Really - it was SO cool! (Jackie was so sweet and checked on Cocoa the Bunny and Jack the Cat while we were gone-thanks so much!!)

The trip home was pretty interesting. We left the hotel at 7:30 am and didn't get home until 7:30 pm. (It was supposed to be a 2 hour direct flight) Come to find out, the airport was 2.5 hours away, the flight was slightly delayed, the flight (once we got on) couldn't land in Boston due to the snow, we had to detour to Albany for a while and then we were finally back in Boston. The ride home in the snow was v-e-r-y slow going. We were soo glad to be home last night. But, then, as I said, we were too tired to stay up to see the New Year. At about 9 pm, I poured seltzer water in 4 fancy glasses (didn't have anything else in the house except water) and we clinked glasses....and fell asleep. ZZzzzzzzzzzz...

How was YOUR night??? Hope it was more exciting than mine! LOL

To end this very lengthy and blabbering blog post, I wanted to share some of my finished projects/handspun/books read for the year...with pics sprinkled here and there.

Knitting Projects Finished in 2008

Click here for Ravelry link to all of my projects....

1. The Amanda Hat (3...and pattern) by me
2. Squarey by Jess Hutchinson
3. Icarus by Miriam Felton
4. Christmas Eve Mitts (in pink) by me
5. Hello Kitty Monster Hat by Insubordiknit
6. Wavy (pink) by Sarah Smith
7. Spherey by Jess Hutchinson
8. Lobster Claw Mitts by Morehouse Merino
9. Moose Hat by Bea Ellis
10. Dragon Scarf (Puff) by Morehouse Merino
11. Phiaro Scarf by Katie Himmelberg
12. Forest Canopy Shawl by Susan Lawrence
13. Swallowtail Shawl by Evelyn A. Clark
14. Mountain Scarf by Amy King of Spunky Eclectic
15. Cocoon Lace Scarf by Evelyn A. Clark
16. Lisha Lace Scarf by me
17. Kirby by me/Jess Hutchinson design- inspired
18. Meta Knight by me/Jess Hutchinson design-inspired
19. 1 Poseidon Sock by Tsarina of Socks
20. Clapotis by Kate Gilbert
21. Sarena Cashmere Cowl by Tonia Barry
22. Felted Tote by Two Old Bags
23. Armando Hat (3...Tim wearing his below...and pattern) by me

24. Presto Chango by Valerie Wallis (buttons to be changed to wooden ones)

25. Reverse-Bloom Flower Washcloth by Cindy Taylor

26. Branching Out Scarf by Susan Lawrence

27. Mr. Frosty by Michele Wilcox


Completed Handspun Yarn Created in 2008

1. "Cantaloupe-I'm Already Married" (Globe Mallow by Spritely Goods)
2. "Dragon Flames" (Smouldering Embers by Sereknity)
3. Random handspun (Rolags from different colored corriedale by Halcyon Yarn)
4. "Sexy Silk Bamboo" (Bali Hai bamboo by HollyEqq)

Books Read in 2008

1. Firebird by Janice Graham
2. Child Goddess by Louise Marley
3. Secret Garden by Frances H. Burnett
4. The Little Princess by Frances H. Burnett*
5. Mandy by Julie Andrews
6. Bridge to Terabithia by Katharine Peterson
7. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte*
8. Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse*
9. True Confessions of C. Doyle by Avi
10. Witch of Blackbird Pondy by E.G. Speare
11. The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley (strangely enough the name of the woman who owned this house before us)
12. Ann of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery
13. Emily of New Moon by L. M. Montgomery
14. Lady Audley's Secret by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
15. Down the Garden Path by Beverly Nichols
16. A Thatched Roof by Beverly Nichols*
17. A Village in a Valley by Beverly Nichols
18. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
19. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini*
20. The Age of Innocence by Edith Warton
21. Kissing Christmas Goodbye by Mary Higgens Clark
22. My Antonia by Willa Cather
23. My Life in France by Julia Child*
24. Julie and Julia by Julie Powell
25. The Monsters of Templeton by Lauren Groff
26. Season of the Witch by Natasha Mostert
27. An Innocent Gentleman by Elizabeth Jolley
28. The Book of Air and Shadows by Michael Gruber
29. From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg
30. Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
31. An Incomplete Revenge by Jacqueline Winspear
32. Bitten by Kelley Armstrong
33. New Day Revolution by Sam Davidson
34. The Velvet Room by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
35. The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry
36. Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
37. The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander
38. Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander
39. The Castle of Lyr by Lloyd Alexander
40. Tender to the Bone by Ruth Reichl
41. Comfort Me with Apples by Ruth Reichl
42. The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox by Maggie O'Farrell
43. The Clue in the Old Album by Carolyn Keene
44. The Mystery at Larkspur Lane by Carolyn Keene
45. What Tarot Can Do for You by Barbara Moore
46. Tarot Tips by Ruth and Wald Amberstone
47. The Host by Stephenie Meyer*
48 Twilight by Stephenie Meyer*
49. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
50. Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer
51. Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
52. The Mystic Faerie Tarot by Barbara Moore
53. Strawberry Girl by Lois Lowry
54. Shoo Fly Girl by Lois Lowry
55. The Curse as Dark as Gold by E. Bunce
56. The Kitchen God's Wife by Amy Tan
57. Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
58. Rebecca by Daphne DuMaurier*
59. Gorgeously Green by Sophie Uliano
60. The Book of Yarn by Clara Parkes
61. Miss Happiness and Miss Flower by Rumer Godden
62. Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
63. A Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes
64. Heidi by Joanna Spyri*
65. Three Bags Full by Leonie Swann
66. A Beautiful Blue Death by Charles Finch
67. Out by Natsuo Kirino
68. The Kabul Beauty School by Deborah Rodriguez
69. The Painted Veil by A.S. Maugham
70. The Gentle Art of Domesticity by Jane Brocket
71. The Magicians and Mrs. Quent by Galen Beckett
72. Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson
73. Mason Dixon Knitting II by Kay Gardener and Ann Shayne
74. Mah-Jong, Anyone? by Kitty Strauser
75. French Milk by Lucy Knisley
76. Candy Freak by Steven Almond
77. Cat Among Pigeons by Agatha Christie
78. Destination Unknown by Agatha Christie
79. The Good Husband of Zebra Drive by Alexander McCall Smith
80. The Cat Who Went to Heaven by Elizabeth Coatsworth
81. Sarah Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLaughlin
82. The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman
83. Miracles on Maple Hill by Joan M. Blos
84. General Winston's Daughter by Sharon Shinn
85. The Conjurer by Cordelia F. Biddle
86. Watership Down by Richard Adams

(*denote my favorite books of the year. I wasn't able to finish 2 of the books I planned on finishing (Animal, Vegetable Mineral and Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver) and didn't get to the other 6 books on my list for the year (Treasure Island, Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury, Tombs of Atrean by Ursula LeGuin, Fire Study and Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte), but I think I did pretty well for attempting my book goal. I'll add these books to next year's list...which has 25 books on it so far.

Have a wonderful New Year's Day and hope this year is EXTRA good to you ; )