Color me stoked, girl*

One day away from the official start of MJ, Andrea, and Mary-Heather's Colorwork KAL! Woo-hoo! To kick off the KAL, the girls have posed a couple of questions to get us into the colorwork spirit, so here they are, along with my answers:

What are your projects for this knitalong?

I will be attempting a Bea Ellis "Traditional" hat, similar to the one you see to the left. Though I would really adore a beautiful Fair Isle sweater, and hope to knit one someday, I have to keep it real for now. Not only do I have numerous projects at the WIP stage, but the holidays are approaching, and for perhaps the biggest reason of them all (please see below), I thought it only appropriate that I start off small. Hence, hat. Anyway, how cute is this??

Is this your first colorwork project? If it isn't, what was your first, and has it survived the test of time?

Indeed, this will be my very first attempt at colorwork! I'm sooo excited! I've been wanting to try colorwork for a while, but of course other projects pop up, or spinning enters the picture, you know, other distractions, so the colorwork project kept being put off. Which is why I was so excited to hear that MJ, MH, and Andrea were planning this KAL. Hooray! I look forward to seeing everyone else's projects, which I know I will garner a great deal of inspiration from. This the perfect opportunity to get me started. Thanks for organizing this fun fest, ladies! I can't wait!!

* If you know what movie this quote is from, I will be very impressed. Very.

Hairy Harry

So last night I was in the shower after returning from spin class (I only mention this because I am trying to keep my motivation through the holidays and into the next year - there may or may not be a complicated paper clip chain system in place keeping track of my progress which pays out in yarn for good behavior) and the power shuts off. Pitch dark. Nothingness. I thought the power for our entire unit was out at first, but then I happened to see a glow from under the door. Turns out only the power from one half of our unit was affected. We tried to reset the breaker, but nothing. The bad part is that the is the room where the internet and computers are plugged in. (Needless to say B wasn't happy considering he had two computers working in root mode when the power shut off.) So, I am thinking this may be the last chance I have to post for a little while.

Anyway, I'm making steady progress on my Deep V vest and even brought it to work today, so that I will have plenty of time given my schedule for the next few evenings. It is looking like I will be all ready for class on Saturday morning. The only thing is that it seems long. I'm hoping its just me, but, there isn't really a good way for me to tell know until it is all done and cut.

I also got this fun picture in my inbox yesterday. You know I like to see my handknit gifts in action. Well, this takes the cake! He said the Harry Potter scarf made him faster ;-)



Speaking of my Harry Potter knitted items, things have reached an all time low at Chez Dis. If we are not careful, Jenny may walk out for good.

"Seriously. Seriously? Seriously." *

*said Izzie style.

What I lack in knitting, I make up for in butter and sugar

I haven't been knitting or spinning much lately. I didn't mean for that to sound like a confession, but you may take it as such, I suppose. Or maybe it is an apology of sorts, since I am bringing you a photoless post, which you know I haaate to do. Whatever the case, this yarn/fiber deprivation is resulting in some fairly typical withdrawal symptoms. I've just had so many other things going on lately, but I need to get back to it! I've got several WIPs on the needles clamoring to be FOs, not to mention a mound of chocolate croissant yarn that needs a project, The KAL coming up, and spinning skills that need to be practiced! Maybe tonight.

In the meantime, a pecan pie update: It was really yummy! And, to add to my delight, B's parents are both big time pecan pie fans, so my dessert contribution was a winner! Dee asked for the recipe, and since I can now attest to it's deliciousness, I am more than happy to share. Here goes:

Crust:

You could use pre-made, store-bought crust, of course, or follow this recipe for a really simple pie crust:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2-3 tablespoons ice water

In a large bowl, place the flour, sugar, and salt and, using a pasty blender (or 2 knives) cut in the butter until pieces are pea size. Sprinkle the ice water by tablespoons over the flour mixture, tossing with a fork until all the dough is moistened. Form dough into a ball. On a lightly floured surface (or I use plastic wrap or wax paper), roll out the dough to fit into a 9-inch pie dish. Fold the edges under all around the rim and crimp.

Filling:

2 1/2 cups pecans
4 eggs, slightly beaten
1 cup sugar
1 cup white corn syrup
1/3 cup melted butter
3/4 teaspoon vanilla

Line pie shell with one cup of the pecans. In a bowl, combine the remaining pecans and the rest of the ingredients until smooth. Pour into the pie shell over the pecans already there. Bake at 375 degrees for 40-50 minutes. Cool.

* A word of warning, for those of you who are not yet familiar with my baking style: I go all out. This is not a "healthy" pie recipe. I like to cook healthy dishes, but when it comes to baking...not so much. I just can't bring myself to substitute yummy staples like butter and sugar. I mean, you've got to have some indulgences in life, right? However, I do use organic whenever possible, if that makes anyone feel better. ;) All that said, this is a really easy pie to make- you basically throw everything together in a bowl and then into a pie shell, and bake. And it's sooo good! I love pecan pie heated, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, but that's just me. :)

Knitting content to come, I promise!

On The Verge

ETA: I just realized that a big chunk of my original post was somehow omitted before it was published. So, if you tried to read this earlier and it made no sense to you, that would be why. I've since added in the other bits. Please re-read, if you would be so kind. :)

So with the coming and going of Thanksgiving, I guess it's safe to say that we're now officially into the holiday season. While some of us are down right giddy about this, others may be feeling a little tentative. I've been trying extra hard to plan well this year, so that I'm not rushing around as usual. Things are falling into place, but it's sure to get crazy soon enough. For now, I am having a positive attitude! (Think positive...think positive...)

I look so different when you can't see my big, pointy ears

I'll be taking a short trip during the second week of December, which will add to the chaos, but worth it. LA plans to fly back to Hawaii with the peanuts, and since Rex won't be joining them until the latter part of the month, I decided to fly back with her to help out during the flight. Since 1 LA + 2 peanuts = yikes. (1 LA + I Nonnahs + 2 peanuts = still yikes, but at least we've got a 1 to 1 ratio at that point.) I wanted to go for a visit anyway, so this ends up working out. This way, I can go back for a short time, while making myself useful, and then B and I will be able to spend Christmas with his fam in San Diego. This is only fair, since he spent last Christmas in Hawaii with me and my fam. (Note: this will be my very first non-Hawaii Christmas in 36 11/12 years...I'm a little concerned at how my psyche will handle this, but am trying not to think about it.)

My trip will be brief, but fun- I'm really looking forward to it! Of course, this deprives me of some prime holiday-related prep time, so I'm trying my best to plan accordingly. I bring this upon myself, after all, I know. I don't have to buy and wrap presents, but I do. I don't have to send out cards, but I do. I don't have to bake, but I do. So, it's all good. (Think positive...think positive...)

Now, totally unrelated: This is what I'll call the tip for a tip segment. I have a handy tip to pass along, and if you could assist me with something, too, I would really appreciate it! My tip: If you don't like junk mail, and you do like trees, head over to GreenDimes. For just a dime a day, they will stop your paper junk mail and plant a tree for you each month! In their first month, 3,220 lbs of junk mail was prevented, 11,272 gallons of water was saved, and more than 4,000 trees were planted! How cool is that?? B and I signed up right away.

Okay, now your tip (if you have one to share): If you are a man, have a man, or know a man who smells really good due to a scent not his own, could you let me know what the appealing bottled fragrance called? He smells just fine, I don't mean to infer anything different, but he is looking for a cologne. (Trust me, I realize that the best thing would be for him to go to Sephora or somewhere and test smells, but considering how often I can drag him to the mall in the first place, I just figured it might be easier if I picked out something that he (and I) might like, and if not, then we could tackle the exchange process.) Problem is-I know nothing of men's fragrances, so I wanted to ask for suggestions. Any and all would be greatly appreciated! Thanks! And Happy Tuesday!

Sewing day

First of all, I just want to say welcome back to those of you subscribed to one of our particular feeds (which is actually most of you) . Bloglines decided it didn't want to pick it up since the Saturday before Thanksgiving. The fun part was that you never would have known about the error message unless you happened to click on our blog name as the error didn't show up on your main blog roll. I don't know about you, but I rarely go around clicking on the blog names in my blog roll when there are no updates noted...unless I'm really, really bored. It also turned out that we weren't the only ones affected. After some investigation, it turned out that if you viewed someone's blog roll from their public profile (if they happened to have one), the error messages showed next to the names of the affected blogs. So besides ours, it looked there were quite a few other having the same problem. But, as Bloglines puts it, our feed has been "reset" so we are back up and running.

So, sewing. Fun! On Saturday, Knitzalot and I (as well as Dr. Nyl, my friend visiting from Australia), headed over to Cora's house for a little sewing 101. Now, one of the funnest things about Cora's house, besides the fact that she really is a supreme hostess (we are talking homemade cookies, people), is her kitties. They have great personalities and are super friendly and love to get involved in what you are doing, including looking through any and all bags you may have brought with you. They thought the sewing paraphernalia made for a great napping spot, too!

We were able to cut out all of our fabric during which time we both realized that lining is a bit tricky.

We also managed to get the majority of our sewing done as well. I brought my sewing machine and we set them up assembly line style in her living room. Both of our skirts need their zippers and their final hemming as well as a bit of embellishment.

Here is a look at what I brought home:

And this is my favorite part:

It looks like a "real" skirt inside! From the preliminary fittings, I think they both are going to turn out great and fit wonderfully. I am really excited and look forward to cutting out the fabric for the next one...which will probably take half as long to sew and cut. Cora was amazing and passed on so much expertise to get us started, we are truly fortunate. I can't wait to share with you the finished skirt! Now, however, it is time to focus on the Deep V vest as next Saturday is our last class and we will be cutting so the knitting HAS TO BE done in time. Please wish me luck that my hands will survive the next week of two handed knitting!

Happy Thanksgiving!

For all of those that celebrate it - may you and yours have a very Happy Thanksgiving today!

Thank you for being apart of our lives. For sharing your amusing stories, your triumphs and allowing us to come together during times of tragedy. You make our lives richer and for that THANK YOU!

Finally, as a word of warning for those trying new recipes for today's meal: That estimated "prep" time must refer to how quickly Emril can "prep" the recipe, not me.

Baking a pie and giving thanks

Please think of us as B, Dakota, and I head south on the 405 and 5 with thousands of other Turkey Day commuters (including Nasus and K, who will be driving in the opposite direction). We will be spending the day with B's parents in San Diego, which will be nice...once we get there. For my part, I'll be contributing this freshly-baked pecan pie to the festivities.

peeeecaaaaaan piiiiiiee

Though I bake regularly, I haven't had the opportunity to bust out a pie in a long time, so it's been a while since I've rolled out some pie crust dough. I was a little nervous, but when the time came, I was pleasantly surprised- it was a cinch! Granted, the edges of the crust ended up browning a little more than I would have preferred (I forgot about covering the crust until it was too late). Oh well. Can't be perfect. (What did I just say?) I just hope it tastes as good as it smells! If it's a success (I'll let you know after tomorrow), I'll post the recipe. :)

But, pie isn't the only reason I'm here. I'm also here to give thanks. Although I sometimes wish certain aspects of my life were different, the changes I'd make are minor. I have a lot to be thankful for, and I know it. I think this calls for a 5ives List!

Five Thanksgiving Shout Outs:

1. My family- near and far. I am blessed to have such a loving family (crazy as some of them can be sometimes).
2. The "boys" I live with. Both are extremely sweet, funny, and cuddly...unless you're a fly.
3. My friends- the ones I've known all my life, the ones I've met just recently, and even the one who is making me get fitted for a bridesmaid dress around the holidays.
4. My friends in blogland. You are forever supportive and encouraging, and yes, even enabling (you know who you are)! I appreciate your posts, your comments, your advice, and your inspiration.
5. And last but not least: My Loopy girls. There are no words.

And with that, I need to go and clean up the mess I made in the kitchen. I may be a lot of things, but a neat and tidy cook is not one of them! I hope you have a happy, healthy (and safely-traveled) holiday with your loved ones. Happy Thanksgiving!

Procrastination

I'm still plugging along on my holiday knitting. I am just about done with the first batch and the biggest project can be seen below. There is no secret that I am working on a baby sweater for my new little niece, but since my sister-in-law hasn't seen it yet and it is a holiday present (although I am going to insist she opens this one up as soon as she gets it, since it should *crosses fingers* fit right now), I am keeping its exact identity secret...for now.

And I have to say, interesting construction of baby sweaters always amazes me. I have been working with a giant pink blob of mis-shaped bits for so long I was starting to think it was really an highly inappropriately-timed April Fool's joke. But, as soon as the first little sleeve made it's appearance, this blob's future life as a wee sweater was revealed...and man is it going to be cute!

Finally, I have been meaning to share with you for a few weeks now a new and very exciting endeavor that I am about to embark upon...

That's right! I will be sewing! I dabbled a bit with sewing during our stay at my in-law's house. My MIL showed me a lot to get me started, but we never had that much time and as soon as we moved out, it was even harder...besides she and I discovered how much fun stained glass was! Anyhoo, the lovely, talented and knowledgeable Cora has generously offered to share her sewing expertise with Knitzalot and I. (Thanks again, Cora!) She made some great suggestions for beginner patterns and fabric and took us on our fabric and notions-finding expeditions. Both K and I ended up picking out the same skirt pattern, which turned out to be unavailable when we went to buy it. However, this one is virtually the same thing.

The two fabrics above are destined for two different skirts. The red (which is actually a bit deeper red with watercolor-like darker saturations) is going to have a black accent trim at the waist and a black embroidered "something" on the bottom. The purple will also have a black trim at the waist, but will otherwise just be on its own since the print is just so much fun!

Finally, I made it to my first acupuncture appointment on Saturday morning and loved it! I am going back today and Wednesday to continue with my treatments and then I will taper down to once a week and then more evenly spaced appointments. One cool thing is that while my insurance does not cover acupuncture, my Flex pre-tax reimbursement program does! So, if this turns out to be something that is helpful for me, I can set aside more money for it next year.

Ok, that's it for me...I can procrastinate no more - I am off to concur the knitting mess that is my living room!

(This post is also an attempt to check if our primary feed is still 'unavailable' as Bloglines puts it. The atom feed seems to be working but the old blogger default feed that most people are subscribed to has been giving me an error message all weekend...and my previous post never did show up - grrrrr.)

Magic Yarn

In the realm of the Deep V Argyle vest class, I have just set the steeks for my arm holes. I am slowly but surely working my way up the vest as it is now getting smaller and smaller every 4 rows. Here is a nice pretty shot of my v-neck steek with its charming gaping mouth at the bottom*.

We are supposed to have all the knitting done in time for our last class in 2 weeks. In that class we will connect the shoulders, cut the steeks and start picking up for the neck and arm bands. The problem is, when I bought my yarn, I bought enough for the size 34 I was going to be making. However, because of my gauge, I am actually making a size 38. And a bit more knitting makes for a bit more yarn. Where it stands today, I only have a 1/2 ball left of the 4 balls of Scarlett I originally purchased. And clearly 1/2 a ball is not enough to finish the body of the vest, pick up stitches and knit 2 inch neck and arm bands. This means I needed to get my hands on another ball. But guess what? I bought this yarn from an online shop based in Australia.

The idea of placing another international order for a $5 ball of yarn seemed mildly silly. Talk about the shipping not compensating for the cost savings of the yarn! So, I had resolved myself to purchasing one additional ball locally, figuring that I could use it for the bands only and hoping it would hide differences between the dye lots.

Then something miraculous happened...

In a truly "a-ha" moment (any one else really miss A-Ha from the Take on Me era?), I thought, just for ducks, I'm going to check the dye lot of the yarn in town. So on a recent excursion to Lori's in Alpine, I did just that. And you know what? IT FREAKING MATCHES!! This is why, I am now calling this yarn my Magic Yarn. What is the chance that a yarn produced in New Zealand and ordered from Australia, would match the dye lot of the same yarn sold in a San Diego suburb? Truly amazing, I say.

*Please don't worry about the puckering of my fair isle. I am still new at this, but I can assure you there is plenty of give in my fabric and it should block out nicely.

Binge and Purge

This is that time of year that always gets me thinking about how much we really have. We are by no means "well-off" by American standards, but we have food on the table, a roof over our heads, cars to drive us around, we can pay the bills and there is enough left over to play a little and save a little (although, I suppose we should be saving more). But, we also have excess. We have lived in our 2 bedroom condo for almost 6 years. We were fortunate to rent a place with tons of storage space and when we first moved in, we had enough drawers to have one dedicated to our pot holders.

Now, however, we are entrenched. Stuffed to the gills. The closets are full. The cabinets are full. The drawers are full. Yet do we really use any more stuff than when we moved in? Absolutely not. I also feel that the clutter in my house does nothing to help me appreciate what I have and I end up with the feeling that I am swimming in junk. Given that we are in all senses of the word 'rich' beyond what so many can ever hope to have, I want to re-boot.

So I've renamed the next week: the Grand Purge of 2006. With my schedule I was able to take off work from today until after Thanksgiving but only have to 'pay' for 3 days off and since I will also have some time off around Christmas, I decided this would be a working break. Each day off from work will be a work day at the house. Each day a different 'region' will be purged of all excess and donated to those in need. Today was the Kitchen Purge and I already have a large box full of kitchen items ready to take to Goodwill...and about 6 shelves and 4 drawers that are no longer dangerously over-stuffed.

The Grand Purge of 2006 also has another purpose. It is a reward for re-setting some of our bad habits. For about a year now we have been making a concentrated effort to reduce waste in our consumption. We buy only what we intend to eat and we eat our leftovers. Now, we aren't perfect and sometimes things slip though (I did forget about the bean sprouts in the fridge last week - yuck!), but I am really pleased with the progress we have made. So, now it is time to erase the evidence of our old ways. It is time to clean out the pantry and the freezer of the things that have accumulated and been wasted. It hurts to think of how much waste this represents, but I also knew this food was ruined. And the worst part is that the 4 year old half bag of tater tots often prevented us from seeing something in the freezer that was good. So, today as part of the Kitchen Purge, the freezer got a face lift. And you know what? I have edamame to use for a stir fry!

Soups, Stews, and Chocolate Croissants...oh, and some fiber, too!

Despite the fact that it's predicted to be in the '80's today, it is still Fall (I think), and I've been cooking accordingly. A couple months ago, I implemented a Sunday tradition of cooking up a big ol' pot of soup or stew of some kind. I love soups and stews. I love making a big pot on Sunday afternoon and then having leftovers for lunches and dinners during the week. On the other hand, B is not a big soup guy (come to think of it, are there any guys that are?), but that's fine- more for me! So far, I've made vegetable barley soup, pasta fagioli, tofu chili, and lentil stew, among others. I'd like to try as many new recipes as possible, so if you have a good one, let me know! :)

Okay, enough of that. On to the fiber! I've been meaning to share my small, but delightful haul from the Fiber Fest a couple weeks ago. So without further delay, I give you this yumminess:

Don't you just want to squish it?

2 ounces of Alpaca from Cheltenham Cottage:

8 ounces of Merino from Custom Handweaving:

1 pound (!) of 3-ply Peruvian Tweed Alpaca from Village Spinning & Weaving:

As yummy as a chocolate croissant!

I can't wait to try the fibers, and this yarn! No photo, no amount of perfect lighting, would do this yarn justice- you'd have to see and feel it in person. The colors are gorgeous, and it feels amazing! Soooo soft! MJ and Mary-Heather can attest to this. I don't recall (really, I don't) exactly how many times we went back to this vendor to fondle these yarns (they had vats of it), but as many times as I needed to, to be convinced to buy some! I'm calling this my chocolate croissant yarn, named after the unbelievably gooey and delish chocolate croissant MJ and I picked up that afternoon from a cute French bakery by the beach. Sadly, I don't know the name of the place, but I think my nose could point me back in the right direction. Now...what to make??

Denial - Acceptance

Do you ever feel like if you just don't talk about something maybe it isn't really true? I thought that maybe if I didn't tell any knitters about this, I would find out that it had only been a dream. In fact, the day I discovered the, um, problem, I didn't say anything to anyone because maybe I had still been asleep that morning. But, no. No matter how much I don't share, my socks still have MASSIVE FREAKING HOLES IN THEM!

I have no idea what happened, but after giving these socks a nice Eucalan bath, this is what I found the next morning:

Yup a big hole at the top of the ankle and another big hole in the foot and a third (trust me, 3 photos would have been too traumatic for me) at the toe.

This mysterious wool-eating virus seems to only have affected one sock. The other seems to be entirely whole. Again, I have NO IDEA WHAT HAPPENED. I know it isn't the yarn, because after all, it Rocks, and I know its not the wool wash, because it is supposed to be some of the best stuff out there. The machine didn't do it because these were washed in the sink. So that leaves me with the only two plausible alternatives: 1) moth or 2) Jenny.

See, the thing is (and I am not proud of this), the socks where on the floor next to the laundry baskets for...a bit of time. This left them fully exposed to whatever may happen across them and find them interesting. Now, normally we don't see all that many wool eaters in these parts, but there has been a random moth or two around lately since the windows have been open quite a bit. I hadn't paid them too much attention because in my mind, my wool is safe behind a nice thick layer of plastic. I didn't think about the socks.

But then we also have the plush crazed tendencies of that little pooper we share our home with. Jenny is a very good dog. She leaves things alone and doesn't bother anything. So you let your guard down and accidentally leave the pantry door open (some cracker consumption may have taken place) or accidentally forget to move the pen from the end table next to the couch (my mom-in-law can attest to the damage one doggie can do to a leather sofa with just one pen). It's like she is saving up all her "bad dog" for just the right moment...and then she strikes.

Anyway, sometimes she also messes with the clothes. It's not usually a problem because we generally keep things off the floor. But, I let my guard down. And considering that these were dirty socks, Jenny is a doggie, and doggies are gross, we can't rule her out of the equation. I guess I will never know what happened to these poor traumatized socks. But given the fact that they have been worn ONE time, these socks will be mended, somehow. I haven't given up on them yet.

Spin Happy

First of all, thanks to all the comments and compliments on my first handspun skeinlettes! I would say you have no idea how excited I am, but then if you're a spinner, you've been there, and you know how exciting it is! So now, I'm learning all about the vicious cycle of spinning. The more you practice, the more you get the hang of it, the more you get the hang of it, the more you love it, the more you love it, the more you want to do it. Which leads to- the more you spin, the less you knit. At least for me, that's the case right now. I've been spending my time on this- Spunky Eclectic BFL from Amy's Almost Solid Series in Azalea - is this colorway pretty, or what?


Hence, sad little WIPs left off to the side. Poor shawl, stripey knee highs, and other on-again-off-again holiday knits...They have been quite neglected these days, thanks to my new hobby-slash-addiction of spinning. (Mary-Heather - how did this happen to us? We're such nice girls!) I gather most, if not all newbie spinners go through this to some degree. I mean, spinning is so much fun, especially as you start to feel like you know what you're (supposed to be) doing!

It was kind of like magic. I decided to try spinning finer, and lo and behold - I found it much easier to manage all the way around. And before you call me out, don't get me wrong, I'm not delusional- I realize my spinning is still uneven. I'm far from achieving evenly spun anything with consistency - there are fat, nubby areas and also some dangerously thin areas - but this is a step in the right direction, no?


I'm pretty pleased. :) So now, I have a couple of questions for the experienced spinners in the audience, if I may. Out of curiosity:

1. How do you decide how fine or think to spin?
2. Do you spin the same every time, or does the thin or thickness depend on the type of fiber you're spinning?

(Knitting content to come, don't worry. I haven't abandoned my WIPs all together!)

"Can I get you anything else?..."

I'm having a crisis of sorts with my wardrobe. I love my casual clothes. They are nothing special, but I am comfortable and I am happy with them. It is my 'dress up' or 'work clothes' that I am having issues with at the moment. And given the transition of the seasons, I am at a loss with what to wear to the office or special occasions. I have no boots, so its too cold for my skirts. I have only 2 decent pairs of pants and a third that someone really needs to take away from me. I have turtlenecks, which it is still a little warm for, and I have t-shirts (the solid color ones from Old Navy) which it is getting too cold for. My handknits are also to a point that I don't have too many that can be worn in an of themselves. They are mostly either accessories or warm over sweaters. Most of my planned projects would fit this bill, but that doesn't help me this season.

Yesterday I found myself with the task of dressing for a wedding. It was an afternoon wedding at someone's home, so I knew I didn't have to get super dressed up. Everything semi-dressy was either sleeveless (with no properly matching over-garments) or corporate looking and covered up. I finally settled on my simple black skirt and my new fitted white button up blouse (purchased specifically as an undergarment for my Deep V once it is all done). I slipped on my black sandals and added a necklace I got from my grandmother. I felt like I had done a pretty good job of throwing something together. However, as soon as we arrived at the wedding, I realized my mistake...I was dressed like the catering staff. Sweet.

As for my knitting, I am slowly but surely working my way through my holiday knit-a-thon. I have divided my projects into groups based on when they need to be shipped. Given our oversees family members and a certain lambchop's approaching birthday at the end of this month, these gifts are taking priority as I'd like to ship one package with birthday gift and the Christmas gifts together. I also have a couple projects that will just take longer, so I'm trying to work those throughout the holiday knitting season as well. One has been coming along nicely and has a freshly added black heel.

And the other, well, it will probably receive more focus once I get the shipping presents done.

My biggest problem right now is my hands. They are interfering with my ability to make the progress I'd like to be making. For the most part, the gifts are simple ones that I normally would be able to crank out without incident. But my hands!!! They start bothering me pretty quickly and I have to stop and take plenty of breaks or stop entirely for the day. Besides the holidays, there are just too many things I want to make and have plans for and I don't want to be held back by my hands. Yet at the same time, I know that if I don't get this issue under control, I am risking my ability to use them all together. So, tomorrow (Melissa you will appreciate this one) I am going to talk to an acupuncturist. A friend of ours was able to avoid surgery of a torn meniscus due to acupuncture therapy and has recommended this particular therapist. I'm a firm believer in complements and alternatives to western medicine and I think that acupuncture may be just what the 'doctor' ordered ;-)

Finally, yesterday was Jenny's 9th birthday. Her birthday has always been easy for us to remember because she was born on 11/11 and she became part of our family on 1/11. So, on the way home from the wedding, we stopped by the pet store and picked up a couple plush toys for her to 'play' with.

As previously described, she destroys plush toys, so she only gets them on special occasions. And I think her 63rd birthday should definitly count as one of those special occasions.

First born plied and joy

My first ever mini skeinlette of handspun, plied yarn. Oh, the joy...the cuteness...the wonkiness...I love it! What I love most about this little thing is that- not only it is my first ever handspun and plied yarn, but that it's been touched by many caring hands. Julia taught (and helped) me to spin this one day/evening/night at her house, after MJ showed me how to pre-draft it, using Spunky Eclectic BFL donated by Mary-Heather, who also taught me how to ply it. I know I will love my future handspun just as much, but so far, this is my favorite skein of yarn- ever!

I spun up more of the same roving, which I will leave unplied, just so I can have one skeinlette of each to remember my first spinning experiences by. The plying happened this past Sunday at the Southern California Handweaver's Guild's Annual Weaving and Spinning Festival, where I met up with MJ and Mary-Heather for an afternoon filled with much fiber fondling and stash enrichment enabling. Good times!

Happy Campers: Mary-Heather, MJ and I basking in a post-fiber frenzy afterglow

A brief fiber fest recap: We oohed and aahed our way through two vendor-filled rooms, stopping along the way to play touchy feely with the loads of fiber and yarn that was splayed out before us. We took several long pauses at the Capistrano Fiber Arts studio booth and thought of Julia each time. Oh.my.gawd. Do they know about dyeing over there or what! I was *this close* to buying some gorgeous, vibrantly-colored BFL, but by the time we made our way back to the booth the last time, I had reached my limit for purchases. Looking back, I regret not buying just a little of that BFL anyway, but I will survive. We watched a fashion show showcasing works by Guild members for a little while, which led to a most pleasant surprise- we bumped into Jillian! Jillian and I have *known* each other through our blogs, but had never met in "real life" (hooray for meeting blogfriends in person)! We also saw a very cool exhibit celebrating the Guild's 60th anniversary, which included this amazing work of art:

Is that a giant, woven chess set I see before me? Why, yes it is!

We were also lucky enough to meet the artist who created this masterpiece in 1969. Mary-Heather will have more to report on this coming up, so I won't go into detail here, but suffice it to say it was incredible to see in person. We were in awe.

I must say, we came away with some great stuff! I'll devote a separate post to my purchases (some roving, some yarn, and a book). No, it's not that much- (thankfully I managed to show some restraint, in spite of MJ's evil ways), but it does deserve its own post nonetheless. ;) MJ and Mary-Heather also got some amazing roving, and Mary-Heather even bought her very first spindle! Once we had reached our spending limits, we decided to sit amongst a group of spinners and their wheels out in the courtyard. After Mary-Heather took her brand new spindle out for a test drive, she was kind enough to show me the ropes (hardy har) of Andean plying, which MJ was kind enough to photograph. (Thanks, girls!)

Me, inadvertently giving myself the finger while doing some pre-plying wraps around my hand and Mary-Heather admiring her new spindle. So purty!

Plying is not nearly as complicated as I thought it would be. Mary-Heather let me try her new spindle, which was fabulous! (Do I need another spindle already? Probably not, but man, it's a nice one!)

If I actually look like I know what I'm doing here, it's all an illusion!

FYI: Unfortunately, you can't really see her, but the woman sitting and spinning behind me? She was spinning without drafting (which is apparently known as long-draw technique). All three of us were in awe. (Not to mention, get a load of her basket of fiber!) As for me, I just plied away, and...voila! First ever plied yarn!

Thoughts on spinning after a couple of weeks: Fun! Thoughts on plying after one try: Fun! Here are my first two handspun babies. Aren't they cute? Can you even tell the difference between the two? ;)

Post script: Since these skeinlettes, I've been practicing on some (more) really pretty BFL I bought from Amy at Spunky Eclectic. I have been spinning at a finer (thinner) gauge and am actually finding it much easier to work with and attain more of a balance (i.e. the yarn isn't as wonky, with fewer bulbous areas). I think I will experiment with varying thicknesses and see what happens. (I don't quite have my spinning terminology down yet, in case you hadn't noticed.) This is way too much fun! Only problem is- I haven't knit in days!

Whaaha?

So this is what some people may think at first sight of the photos below: What's that? It looks like Celtic from Rowan 40. But, wasn't she JUST talking about making that...like a couple days ago? I didn't think she was on crack...well, not speed-knitting crack, that is. WTF?

And all I can say is - talk about perfect timing! Celtic just happens to be part of the Rowan trunk show and it just happens to be hanging out at Lori's in Alpine at the moment. Needless to say, I didn't need any other excuse to take a road trip out there to try 'er on for myself. I am a very tactile person and I always wish I could see, touch and feel the finished piece before I devote the time, money and effort to a project. This is the first time it was actually possible!

The best part, is that I got a chance to sample the fit. And as I suspected, the original measurements make for a pretty short sweater, which on me, well, you can see just how long my long waist is in the top picture.

Everything else fit really nice and I especially liked the lengths of the sleeves. And thanks to input from top notch consultants and yarn shopping companions (Knitzalot and Cora), I'm opting to use the accent yarn suggested in the pattern rather than my original choice of the purple Felted Tweed. We decided that the sweater with too much of a contrast would make it much more casual and probably very collegeate. I want a sweater that can be dressed up and down. So by using the navy (846) Kid Classic, it's more of a tonal complement to the Felted Tweed that I'll be using for the main body. However, since I'm feeling the pinch of the purse strings, I opted just to plan at this point and not to acquire. Holiday knitting must come first!

Snip, snip, snip

We had our 4th Deep V vest class yesterday at the Grove during which we all became 'Steekers'. Now, I'm going to say something that may seem shocking - but cutting a giant hole in your knitting is FUN! The reason it was more fun that painful is that our esteemed teacher had the forethought to eliminate the emotion from the steeking process by having us practice on a swatch. By getting a chance to go through the whole process once, where we could make all the mistakes we wanted, took the fear out of it. My biggest challenge will be to not let the Type A part of my personality come through while cutting those steeks for real and just take it slow. Taking it slow helps to enure that only the proper bits get cut.

I didn't take any action shots, but I think you can get the gist of what it was like from these pictures. We learned how to make the crochet edging and then snip, snip, snip - we sliced up that knitting like it was nothing!

One challege I had with my swatch is that it was super tight through the steek as you can see above (that should really be about twice as wide as it is). Through most of the cutting, I had to pry apart the crochet edges to get to the ladders I was to snip. My two-handed knitting has loosened up with the practice and my steeks are the width they are supposed to be, so I won't have this problem with the actual vest. Thank goodness!

Here is a look at what the underside of the steek looks like after its been cut. You can see (just along the edge under the grey crochet stitches) that the knitting stitches are severed.

And this is what the pretty inside edge looks like. You can see how the crochet stitches (above and below the knitting) sealed off the knitting and made a very neat, finished edge.

Now the beauty of this process is that when we then pick up the stitches from between the body of the sweater and the inside edge of the steek to make the neck and arm bands, the steek will automatically hold in and make a hem! I am still amazed at this process and would love to have met the person who did this for the first time because they are a freaking genius.

And since we haven't had a Jenny picture in a while - one gratuitous lounging doggie picture.

Jenny has been doing really well and pretty much back to her normal self. Her back doesn't seem to be bothering her and she can't seem to get enough play time with her squeaky ball. I think she is making up for the time she didn't feel much like playing. Now we just need to save up the money for a good teeth cleaning and she will be all set. With her age and teeth (she has bad teeth like her mama) it will likely be very expensive, but we know we need to get it done before it gets any worse.

Have a very happy Sunday everyone!

Random Friday

I got a special treat in my inbox the other day. My friend sent me a photo of her son and the Baby Blue Bobbi Bear I made for him when he was born. Apparently he likes it a lot and is using the ears to teethe on! I don't know about you, but I LOVE seeing or hearing that people are using the gifts I knit for them.

And in if we are keeping score, Handknit Toys should get another point because if Baby Blue's ears get teethed right off, new ones can take their place! Try doing that Store Bought Toys!

In other random news, I wanted to be sure that all of you sock knitters out there check out The Loopy Ewe. Sheri has an amazing selection of sock yarn to pick from, including several lines from the small hand-dyers out there. So, not only are you supporting an indie artist, you are support an indie business, too. Two bangs for one buck (or two ;-). The other thing you need to know about the Loopy Ewe is that not only does every member of her family help in the business, the customer service is bar none. She values doing business right and understands the importance of happy customers. There are lots of little purks, like practically instantaneous shipping (seriously, I got a shipping confirmation about an hour after I placed my order!) and she keeps track of your purchases. So after you hit a certain amount, you get a generous store credit as a thank you! Finally, she has started a club for people that have made more than five purchases, the Loopy Groupies. With your sixth purchase, you are automatically part of the club and get even more perks! So, there you have it, no reason not to order from The Loopy Ewe! You will be glad you did ;-)

Finally, I just wanted to share a photo we took at Nasus' birthday dinner last week. Nonnahs was able to drive down for the event, so we all got a chance to spend a bit of time together. We ate at the Miami Grille and it was super yummy.

Now, if we could only figure out how to do this more often!