Christmas 2010

I can't believe that Christmas is already here and gone. I hope that you had as much fun opening your presents as Max did. He had 4 presents this year and he knew which ones were his. He does a great job carrying presents if you tell him who they are for, he will also assist you in opening your gifts if you need help.

All the shopping and preparation and it is all over so quickly. I did very little Christmas knitting this year. Just a pair of socks for my cousin, a hat for my BIL and two pairs of mittens for the girls that live next door. The socks were men's size 11, but surprising they knit up pretty quick. The hat I knit several times because I am a perfectionist and didn't like my color choices. The mittens knit up quick and turned out great. I am going to cast on a pair for myself soon. No pictures of my FO's for this post. Hopefully some to follow soon.

I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas and that you will all have a safe and Happy New Year!!!

Rhinebeck - Day #2

The festival didn't open until 10 AM on Sunday. We arrived about 15 minutes after opening and there were already a lot of cars parked on the lawn. I was hoping that it would not be as crowded so we could check out the Spirit Trail booth which was mobbed on Saturday. Another bonus was that the weather was 10 plus degrees hotter than it had been on Saturday. No fingerless mitts or hat needed. As soon as we entered the gates there was a parade of alpacas and llamas. Luckily I was able to get some really good pictures.


This one had some serious long locks. I was kind of jealous.


My favorite part of the parade was the little ones. They were so cute!!!


Once the parade past we went back through all the barns/booths to see if there was anything that we absolutely had to have before we headed home. Of course there was and I was able to spend the rest of my money. I tried to buy things that I couldn't get on-line, at my LYS or items that were hard to find. Luckily the festival was not as crowded so we did get to go back through several of the booths that were really crowded the day before.

After all that shopping we decided that we better get some food and decided to try the chicken pot pie line. Just as we stepped in line one of the ladies selling the pies said that they had 50 left and that we probably wouldn't be able to get pies. They smelled to good to give up that easy so we decided to stay in line until the last pie was sold. Thankfully, we were able to get 4 pies with plenty left for those in line behind us.

Mmmmmmm!!! It was as good as it looks. With full bags and full bellies we decided to call it a day and head back home. What did I bring back with me you ask?

Earrings from Jennie the Potter. I love pottery of any kind. I took several pottery classes when I was in Art school. I think I need to buy the matching necklace too.


Bugga from Sanguine Gryphon. Andrea and I both fell in love with this color but there was no name on the tag. Andrea (andiRN) asked Gryphon what color this was because it did not have a name on it. She explained that it was one of the one off colors and asked Andrea if she wanted her to name it. Of course Andrea said yes and Gryphon named it Andi Bug after Andreas Ravelry name. I am so excited that I am one of the few to have the Andi Bug colorway.


More Sanguine Gryphon, Edios base in the Eleatic colorway. Such a pretty green!!!


Lace weight yarn in the Cove Creek colorway from Creatively Dyed. I'm planning on making the Featherweight Cardigan with this. I can't wait to cast on.


Shelridge Farm DKW wool for a hat and fingerless mitts.


Some beautiful roving from Gales' Art. It is Blueface Swirl in the color Moldy Pumpkin. I need lots of practice spinning before I'm ready for this.


A beautiful drop spindle from Journey Wheel. It's made of walnut and weighs 28grams/1oz.


Finally, something for the pup and his paws that usually crack in the winter.


I had a great time in New York at the Sheep and Wool Festival and would definitely go back again. Thanks, Tina, Andrea, Alison and Jessica for a fun trip.

Last, I will leave you with one of the hi-lights of my trip. We always talk about knitted shorts or pants in my knitting group. Well, in New York I did see someone wearing a pair of knitted shorts. Really I did it was at the Ravelry party at the Elk's Lodge and you can see them here. I think this is one of my new favorite blogs and I have to say that Steven worked those shorts. Now I just need to find those pants that I was knitting. ;o)

Rhinebeck - Day #1

I was lucky enough to go to New York Sheep & Wool Festival in Rhinebeck this year with a great group of friends Andrea, Tina, Jessica and Alison. I had no idea what to expect. I have been to fiber festivals in the past but none of this size or this far from home. We left early Friday morning because we had an 8 hour drive. The drive seemed to fly by because we were all so excited to get there. Tina and I managed to stay up the whole time chatting which was a good thing because Tina was driving. Andrea, Jessica and Alison were sleeping in the back and we have the pictures to prove it. Too bad they are on Tina's phone and not mine or I would show you.

We stayed at the Comfort Inn in Saguerties. We were a bit worried because it was suppose to be a two star hotel. Thankfully the rooms were nice and we didn't have bed bugs which was a bonus. Diner consisted of Subway and a glass of wine from plastic cups. We made sure to keep it classy. I think we all crashed by 10:30 or 11:00 PM on Friday. We wanted to get to bed so we could get an early start.

I guess I was the only crazy one that got up at 5:15 - 5:30. We were on the road by 8:00 AM so we could get to the festival nice and early. Our hotel was about 17 miles from the Fairgrounds so we didn't expect it to take too long. I had to take a picture of the sign with all the cute sheep.


The sign is a bit blurry but I think that is because Tina was driving 80 MPH trying to beat the crowds. Just kidding Tina!!! The sign says rain or shine and thankfully we didn't have any rain. We had strong winds in the early morning or at least while we were standing in line. I was dressed for the cool weather which was in the low to mid 50's. No one called me out for my Old Navy gloves or sweater. I even saw someone else wearing the same sweater in green so only she and I knew that we didn't knit our sweaters. Right?


The first thing that stood out to me about this festival was the number of people that attended and the diversity in the crowd. There were families, people of all ages and men in kilts. There were also no fashion rules about the number of hand knits you were allowed to wear at one time. There were lots of beautiful sweaters, hats and mittens worn by all ages.

Sanguine Gryphon was the first booth that we hit. Alison ran ahead of everyone taking out woman and children if they were in the way. Just kidding. It was hard to walk around and fondle the yarn because there were so many people trying to check out all their beautiful bases and colorways. We met Gryphon and Sarah in their lovely dresses. They are very nice and in my next Rhinebeck post I will show you the yarn that Gryphon named after my friend Andrea.


The Fold booth was also really packed because everyone was trying to score some Socks that Rock. The Spirit Trail and Brooks Farm booths were also really packed. We managed to walk through all the buildings including the ones with the animals. It was a bit overwhelming because there was so much to choose from but I did a good job not to spending all my money the first day.



By the end of the day we were all really tired. I could barely feel my legs so we decided to get some Artichokes French because all the Fried Artichokes were sold out and so were the Chicken Pot Pies. The artichokes were delicious!!! I'm glad that we all decided to eat them so all of us smelled like garlic. Hopefully we didn't have offensive garlic breath when we attended the Ravelry party that night.


In the background you can see a little bit of Alison's Mara Shawl that she finished on Friday. It turned out great and I am in love with the color she used. It was a good thing that she had the shawl because she was so excited to go that she forgot to bring a coat or sweater so she froze most of the day.

After the artichokes we decided to call it a day and head to the Ravelry party at the Elk's Lodge. We had to park at a school and wait for a bus to pick us up. We did our best to entertain ourselves but laughing is not suggested when you are cold and have to pee. I think we had to wait for 5 buses to come and go before we had our turn. When we finally got there I was just excited to see who we would see and meet.

Ysolda was there and she is absolutely adorable. Cirilia was also there, I think she was helping to guard all the items that were going to be raffled. She is even prettier in person, if that is possible.
Gudrun Johnson was there wearing her Moch Cardigan which I have in my queue and I totally need to cast on. Also one of our local celebrities Shannon Okey was there. She is a friend of a friend so I walked up t say hi to her. She was really nice and when she heard who our mutual friend was she gave me a big hug and a signed copy of her new book (The Knitgrrl Guide to Professional Knitwear Design). The party was good unfortunately none of us won any of the raffle prizes but we did get to see Jess, Casey, Mary-Heather and Sarah. I am so thankful that they created Ravelry. I have meet friends all over the world because of Ravelry.

We were home by 11:30 and in bed shortly after. Rhinebeck Day 2 and my purchases to follow.

More socks of course......Unchain My Heart

I promised that I would update my blog more. Which even to my amazement I have been doing. I also promised that I would show you some of the designs that I've been working on. This is one of my favorite designs to date and with 397 skeins of sock yarn I have to find a way to use it all up. ;o)

I designed this for the Saffron Dyeworks Enya yarn, which is beautiful and you have to try it if you haven't. The pattern will be available on Sunday Oct 3rd and will be free with the purchase of a skein of the Enya sock yarn from the Saffron Dyeworks website. The pattern will be available on my blog and on Ravelry in January 2011.

Pattern Name: Unchain My Heart (Ravelry link)
Yarn: Saffron Dyeworks Enya
Colorway: Swoop
Pattern Source: Saffron Dyeworks
Available: Sunday Oct 3rd

The cables of the sock start at the cuff and continue down the heel. The picture below is from one of my test knitters Annie (QTKnits on Ravelry), it really shows off the heel pattern.

I can't wait to wear these with my clogs this fall and winter. The pattern looks like it would be much more difficult than it actually is, which is always a bonus. Enjoy!!!

The magic number is........

I counted three times just to make sure I had the number right. I even thought about asking my husband to count for me but I wasn't sure that was such a good idea ;o) SABLE comes to mind or warm feet for the rest of my life, however you look at it.

397 - Yes that is right almost 400 skeins/hanks/balls of sock yarn.

1st prize - Jessica, who guessed 397. I think we should call her the Rain Man of sock yarn.
2nd prize - Andrea, who guessed 395. Yes this is the Andrea who laughed about my 50 skeins of sock yarn.
3rd prize - Knit'in Crazee, who guessed 390.

Thanks everyone for playing. I had fun reading your guesses. I think I should go and cast on a couple more pairs of socks to use up some of this stash ;o) Check back soon I will be posting the details of my new pattern.

The first step......

The first step to getting help is admitting that you have a problem........ ;o)

One of my friends Andrea mentioned that she was reading my old blog posts. She said that she laughed when she saw that I posted about having 50 skein of sock yarn. Yes, I now have more than 50 skeins. So I went back and looked through my old posts and discovered that on September 7, 2007 I posted my first blog entry. I thought why not have a contest for my blogiversary.

Yes, I am going to show you pictures of my sock yarn stash, all of it I promise, (no laughing Andrea or you either Michelle ;0). The contest will run from tonight September 7 til Monday September 13th at 8PM. The individuals that leave a comment guessing the total number of skeins, balls and/or hanks of yarn that I have in my stash without going over will win. I will have a first, second and third place winner. One guess per person. If there is a tie I will draw names to determine the tie breaker. What will the prizes be? You guessed it sock yarn.

Prizes:
First place - 1 Sundara 100% superwash merino yarn in the orchid colorway
Second place - 1 Tuscan Grove 100% Superwash Merino in the Venice base, colorway Whisper
Third place - 1 Red Rocks Fiber Works Aspen Sock , colorway It's a Go



Everything on the floor and in the four bins is sock yarn.



Here is a close up of the bins. Some have have two layers of yarn and some have three layers.



Good luck everyone!!!

Goth Kiddie

First, I have to say that I can't believe it has been almost 7 months since I blogged last. I have been very busy designing some new patterns and finishing up some new and old projects. I have lots to show you but I think I'll post my projects one at a time. That way I can be sure to post more ;o)

Recently I have acquired some Gothsock yarn and have even been able to score a much coveted spot in the Gothsock sock club. Yeah......Anyways I finished my first project with the OhMyGoth yarn that I received via a Raverly trade.

Pattern: Country Kiddie (Ravelry link)
Yarn: OhMyGoth
Color: Teenage Drama Queen
Size: I knit the largest size but the final product measures like the
6 month size. You can see more pictures here on Ravelry.
Needles: US Size 3 (3.25mm)
Verdict: I love how they turned out.
Modifications: None

I have to say that I enjoyed every moment knitting this because the OhMyGoth is super soft and squishy. It must be the cashmere and nylon in the fiber. I have some left over to make some cute little socks or booties. Not sure who this is for but they will be one lucky baby. Sorry for the drive by post but like I said I have lots more to share. Hope everyone had a great long weekend.

February Contest....

So, I figured after the Ravelympics have come to an end that we could start a Knit Along with the Sinuosity sock pattern.

If you purchase the pattern, between today Feb 15 and EOD of Feb 28, you will be entered to win a skein of Destination Yarn. You get to choose between two colorways Sea or Shining Sea. I will send it out just in time for our KAL which will start on March 15. The KAL will be through the Knitting Nonstop Group on Ravelry.

Shining Sea:

Sea:

The great pictures are courtesy of Jeanne of Destination Yarn.

Another Hobby....

Not that I need another hobby but I think I've caught the sewing bug. Saturday I had some friends over for a winter craft night. We made box bags to hold small knitting projects. These bags are sold all over etsy and I've bought a couple myself before I realized how easy they were to make.

This is the first one I made with Michelle's help. I love the material, who doesn't love chickens ;o)


The second bag I made all by myself on Sunday. These are sooooo fun to make.


The best thing about these bags is they can be made using fat quarters. If your interested in making one there are some great tutorials here, here and here. I cut my fabric 14 inches by 18 inches and I used a 14 inch zipper. I cut the ends off of the zipper after I sewed over the ends. I had not sewn in years so if I was able to make one anyone can make them. Have fun if you decide to make one.

Ravelympics 2010

So I've decided to join the Ravelympics and compete in two categories. First is the WIP (the work in progress) category. I have lots of socks that I need to finish up and get off my needles so I can knit up the tons of sock yarn that I have (I'll show you that at a later time ;o). First up I need to finish the mates to my Sinuosity sock and my Cookie A Monkeys. I love that pattern. Both yarns are Hazel Knits Artisan Sock, one of my favorites.


Next, these socks were actually suppose to be done for Halloween but there is always next year. my Little Pumpkin socks (Ravelry link). Such a fun pattern and of course Malabrigo sock yarn is to die for.

I almost forgot about these. They are beautiful but I had to put the cables down for a little bit. I was so proud of myself when I finished the first sock. I have about 20% of the second sock done. These are the Cozy Cable Socks (Ravelry link). I extended the pattern down the heel because I wear clogs and I thought it would be fun to show the cables off.

I don't only knit socks although that's what it seems like lately. I also joined the Designer Original Dance.

This competition gives me 17 days to design and knit an original item. I can swatch before the Olympics but can't cast on until Feb 12th. I'm excited to see how I work under pressure. 17 days seems like a short time but when I was in college I always waited til a day or two before a paper was due to start. Am I crazy or is this the kick in the pants I need to finish my next design? Guess we'll find out.

Etsy Favs #2

I have hunted for a wrap top that was flattering and wasn't too low cut. Most of the ones that I tried on were either way too expensive or when worn throughout the day ended up gapping open and exposing things I didn't want to expose. I was hunting around on Etsy and found this top at Lirola Designs. She has so many beautiful dresses and tops that are made out of jersey material. I figured I would give it a try and order a top. I ordered a custom top, which doesn't cost any more, and gave my measurements.

Excuse the hunched shoulders in this picture. Trying to work the tripod and set the timer didn't give me a lot of time to get in position. Anyways, it took about 3 weeks for me to get the finished top. It was packaged beautifully and best of all I received a 10% off coupon to use with my next purchase. I will definitely be back for more.

I should mention that this is actually a faux wrap top. The ties can be worn several different ways. You can see the other ways here.

All in all I love this top. I am planning to order one in the Mysterious blue colorway. The only thing I would change is slightly longer sleeves and maybe a little wider on the bust so it lays more like the original top. The top is beautifully constructed and was made to the measurements I provided.

Etsy Favs #1

Usually this time of year I reflect on the knitting that I accomplished last year. Since I've actually knit a lot more than I've blogged I've decided instead to share one of the new Etsy shops that I found last year.

I was searching for a unique gift to give my knitting friends in our Christmas gift exchange. I was looking for something that was affordable and would work as stocking stuffers. I found Savor and thought that the beautiful handmade soaps would be the perfect gift.

I wanted to make sure that the scent that I chose would appeal to anyone, so I contacted Lisa who helped me pick the perfect scent. She also reserved my order and made sure that I received it in time for our gift exchange. Great customer service!!! I decided on the Gateau Au Citron scent in the Creme Fraiche whipped soap. The scent smells like fresh lemons. Perfect for me because I have perfume allergies and can't do any floral scents. I also purchased My Boyfriends Tshirt which is the jar that is open above. Smells just like cotton.

The Creme Fraiche is very sudsy so you don't need to use a lot. As you can see the jars are literally filled to the top. I will definitely be back to Savor to pick up some of the sugar scrubs and bar soaps.

More of my Etsy favs to follow. Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.