WWKIP Scavenger hunt

I made some progress on the Galveston.  I have one side and two corners done!  I don’t know how much longer it will take, but the border is easily memorized and is good TV knitting.

And I got another section done on the baby blanket

So this weekend we went out to spread the good news about knitting.  I am a member of Sock Knitters Anonymous Group on Ravelry and this year we had a scavenger hunt to celebrate WWKIP day.  I gathered up my yarn warriors and, with clip board, knitting and a camera in hand, we headed out to confound as many muggles as possible.

Our first stop was the University campus.  One of the big point items on the list was for a picture with a landmark.  We decided that the University would have the highest concentration of landmarks.  Classes have been out for about a month now, but there are still orientation tours going on, so we hoped we could get some people to take photos with us (also worth good points).

We wanted a shot with some Saguaro cacti, so we started at the cactus garden.  As we got there we noticed a tour group not far away headed our direction.  I ran over, explained what we were doing and why we needed them to stand in front of the cacti holding the beginnings of a sock.  They were all great sports!

We then moved on to the Asian family trying to keep cool in the shade of a palm tree.  We asked them to come stand next to a fountain so we could get some points for having a shot of the sock under water

Next we grabbed a family that was walking past Old Main.  My brother is the tall guy in the baseball hat.  It is the original building from when the university was founded in 1891.  Phoenix got the insane asylum and Tucson got the University.  Suck it Phoenix 😛

So after a couple hours of being out in the 100+degree weather, we decided to hit some places with a little more air conditioning.  We went to a bike shop for some points for having the sock photographed with a bike.  And not just any bike!  That bike sells for $7000!  The lady working the shop was nice enough to let me show her how to knit while she was on the bike.

We had lunch at Taco Bell.

Where I got to sit and knit a little more

And then it was off to find a celebrity to take a photo with us.  We were able to track down Indiana Jones, one of the more popular celebrities in our house.  We celebrate Indiana Jones day every New Years day by watching all the movies back to back, so a photo with him was a given.

And as TheBon said, that guy in the grey shirt was REALLY happy to be in the photo, LOL!

We were all hot and tired, so we went to the mall for a play break and a chance to get shots of the sock with the masses.  I am the orange blob by the big pillar.

We parked by the pet shop, so we had to go in.  I think it is a law or something.  Anyway, we used to have bunnies and I miss them terribly sometimes, so when I saw this little bunny face I had to have a knitting shot with him.

Then it was time to reward my scavenger warriors for being dragged all over town in the heat so that Mom could get shots of yarn.  I bought them all fancy ice cream.  Not just every day, run of the mill, ice cream, but fancy pants ice cream!  You know the ice cream that you would see when your mom took you to the mall, and you would ask if you could have some as you were being dragged past it to try on shoes or clothes or something equally as boring, and she said no it would spoil your dinner, or you didn’t have time, or you already had ice cream at home.  Yeah…THAT ice cream.

I got one last chance to just sit and knit.  Very satisfying after tromping around all day

This is how far I got that day.  It started as just a little bit of ribbing, and ended up this big.  Check out all of its majesty!

 

 

 

Stuck on Singles

I haven’t been able to spin or knit very much in the past day or so because my wrists hurt.  Not the joint, but the muscle right above it.  Like I was in a car accident or something!  The right one hurts more than the left and is a little swollen.  I have no idea how I hurt myself.  Before I got hurt I had been spinning a bunch of singles recently, and I have been having a ball.  Talk about wonderful instant gratification.

Mud Season from Spunky Eclectic

Beach House (dyed by me)

And Sea Glass (also dyed by me)

I have been knitting some too.  I have almost 1 side of the Galveston border done, but it would be easier to finish if somebody didn’t keep comming in at night and putting extra stitches on the needles.  I swear that no matter how I work, I never get any closer to that corner!

I have also started on some of the baby items.  I have the pink section of the Grumpecue done and I have started on the orange.  It is a fast knit and I realy enjoy the simple eligance of it.

 

Project Roundup!

Today is a big first.  This is my first post from my brand new laptop!  It was a Mother’s day/13th anneversary present from my husband and it makes me so very happy!

So, down to business!  I have not been idle in my long absense, here is just a small part of what I have on the needles right now

Starting with the oldest project, the Galveston Shawl

I am actually farther along than this photo.  I finished the last chart and I am almost done with the first side of the knitted-on border.  It has been great listening to the radio/TV/movie knitting, but there are other projects that are a siren song to my finishing this in a timely manner.  I am trying to be good.

There has been no progress on my Bugs in Your Garden shawl, but as soon as Galveston is done it will be the next large project to be finished.

I have been spinning quite a bit.  This box has my next rug in it.

I have quite a few scraps that varry from worsted to sock weight, so I put them all up in these random balls and I am using the knifty knitter there to make a long, 5 stitch, I-cord that I am going to be crocheting into a circle.  It will be random and scrappy in the center and then have random scrappy greens as a border.  The whole thing was inspired by those large oval braided rag rugs, but I couldn’t find an oval pattern I was satisfied with, so it will be a circle.

I spun up some South African fine into a heavy laceweight

 

I also spun some for socks

Three different colors of superwash that I am knitting in a spiral pattern as discribed by Grumperina.  I have three colors, instead of 4, and some tension issues around the needles, but otherwise it is knitting up SUPER fast!  Thoroughly enjoyable.

I am also working on two other socks, some for my husband in the Earl Grey pattern

And some yarn that I dyed up for my mom, but I don’t have a pattern picked out yet

I also spun up some Time of the Month fiber from Spunky Eclecticfor her TOTM Contest.

Rage, Tears and Chocolate

The contest was to come up with the most outrageous thing we could with this fiber, so I knit a Merkin!

On Friday’s my sister comes over for dinner and Dr Who/Torchwood, so we started this hexagon quilt so we could have a project to work on together

We almost have all of the close to 3000 hexes cut out!

When my Grandmother was here a couple weeks ago I found out that one of my cousins is expecting his first son this summer, so you know what that means!!  BABY KNITTING!!

I ran to my dye pot and dyed up some yarn for a Grumpecue blanket

I think I might use the leftovers to make a Baby Surprise Jacket too.  And I also got a Funky Sock Monkey kit from Blue Moon Fiber Arts.

It is in the Fire on the Mountain/Sherbert colorways.  This is my first order from Blue Moon, and it will not be the last!  The colors are vibrant and the yarn is wonderful.  I want one of every color.

So, that is what I have been up to for a while, and I have so many other projects waiting in the wings.

And by request, a photo of me!

hard to get a good photo and smile at the same time without that up the nose shot.

 

 

For Chris

Last week Chris asked how I got started making Amigurumi and for some advice about how to design your own and I thought some others might be interested too.  I have a background in costume design, so when I decided to start creating my own patterns, I went at it in a very systematic way.

I had been crocheting for years, but I had only ever made two dimensional objects, afghans, doilies and the like.  I had seen the Amigurumi on Craftster and, like many others, I fell deeply in love.  The first one I made was the classic Amineko.  I made two of them, one for each of my kids.  It was a great way to get started thinking in three dimensions.  When I finished with the first one I was able to look at it and see what I liked and what I didn’t and I made some changes to the second one to make it a little better proportioned to my eye.

Now I had some knowledge of some basic shapes.  Circles for heads, pears for bodies, triangles for ears, long cylinders for legs and arms.  What else could I make with these shapes?  What if I moved the decreases and increases around to different places?  What if I elongated the head or shortened the arms.  What if I flattened a shape that was usually round?  I found that once I new the basic shapes and the pattern formulas to make them, that I could just plug them into each other to make new creatures.

I looked at lots of pictures of other Amigurumi.  There are lots of different patterns available for free online.  If there was a pattern that had a shape I had not made yet, I went ahead and made the pattern to learn the new shape.  I sketched.  Part of my design process was to sit with a piece of paper and draw thumbnail sketches of Amigurumi I had seen and liked, ideas that popped into my head randomly,  things I saw pictures of that I thought might make interesting creatures.  I also had a notebook where I wrote down names of people or things that I thought of that I might like to try creating.

After all the sketching and designing, I found that simpler and smaller is better for Amigurumi.  You aren’t going to be making a photo realistic representation of something, but a cartoon caricature.  Picking 2 or 3 characteristics (or more for a more complicated creation)  I broke the sketch I had drawn down into the basic component shapes I knew and began creating.  I experimented with adding different stitches, like bobble stitches for fingers, to add more detail.  I kept detailed notes of every stitch I made.  When I wasn’t working on a specific project, I was experimenting with new shapes. 

I sure hope this is helpfull in answering your questions.  If you have more, please let me know!

 

Taking a Break

It turns out that my summer is going to be insane, so I am putting the shop on hold for a while.  There are a few bags available now, but there won’t be any new ones added to the shop.

I will still be crafting and blogging.  I will still be around the fiberverse.  I have been spinning up a whole whack of fiber the past couple weeks for my livingroom rug, so I will try to get some photos up soon!

 

Shop Update on Friday

So, I have been a busy little bee recently, but I still got a little crafting done.  I took these Romney singles

and holding two strands together as I crochet, I made this rug for in front of the back door

It was a fun and fast rug.  I started working on my next rug.  No photos yet, but it will be the largest project I have ever worked on!  It is a rug for the living room I have been planning for a while.  I love the look of those old fashioned oval rag rugs and I wanted one forever.  I had some trouble finding an oval crochet pattern, and the ones I tried left large holes in the fabric, so I am going with a circle instead.  So far it is about the size of a salad plate.  I am using a knifty knitter loom to make a 5 stitch cord and then I am crocheting it into the rug.  I will get photos soon once it gets a bit bigger.

I have been trying to find time to make more Craft Cubes and there will be more in the shop on Friday!  So far this one is my favorite

Here is the interior fabric

I LOVE this fabric and I had to go back and purchase as much as I could afford for my own stash!  I have two of this bag and I am tempted to keep one for myself.  There will be other bags too.  Here is a peek at the fabrics I am currently working on.  I am going to try and have as many of these bags assembled as possible for the Friday Update.

 

Breaking Radio Silence

So I have been fibering a little recently.  I was in Sock Madness this year and made it to the 4th round!  There was no way I would have been able to make it further.  Some of those ladies were staying up until 3 am to finish or knitting 14 hours straight without stopping or eating!  I wish I had that dedication, or uninterrupted alone time.

Here are the socks I knit for the first three rounds

Zombie socks done in my hand dyed yarn

Reversai Socks done in Dream in Color Smooshy

and Slippin socks done in my handspun laceweight

I have been dying too recently.  I sent out the club fiber for this month.  It is Wenslydale fiber and was inspired by Monet’s water lilly paintings.  You can peek here

I also did some yarn dying too

More Cubes soon too!

 

Fair Weather

I have been busy getting ready for the fair!  We turned in our entries last weekend and, after waiting with painful anticipation all week, we found out how we did last night!

Joe got a second place ribbon for his lego boat ( it is right behind his shoulder).  There were a couple of us trying to get a picture of him, and he was so excited he couldn’t hold still long enough to stay in focus.  This shot I got when he was distracted by one of the other photographers.

He also entered a painting with his school class and got a First Place ribbon.  He is showing us which one is his with the red balloon

Becca, my sister, entered some salsa and got Second Place!

And she made a dress for the Renaissance fair this year, so she entered that too and got Third Place.  It is the purple dress over her shoulder.

I got a Third Place for my Geisha embroidery.  There are notes on the card about how to frame her better.  I was in a rush the morning we had to turn in our items for judging and I know I could have framed her better.  I will re-frame her when she comes home because she is to be hung in our bedroom next to a Samurai that I am hoping to have done for next year’s fair.

I also entered Jack, who one first place!  I am thinking of entering The Scream next year.

And I entered a hank of the Purple/black laceweight and it one first prize too!

Over all, we had a great night at the fair!  Ate lots of greasy food, rode on lots of fast rides, spent way too much money, came home exhausted!  We have exhibitors passes, so we can come and go as we please, and I think I need more funnel cake!

 

Picture Heavy

I have been kind of quiet recently because a couple weeks ago my husband was out of town on business, leaving me here by myself for about a week with the kids.  Then he took a week off to be with the kids for their spring break vacation.  It has been a heck of a couple weeks, but I have been busy during that time!  So, get ready for some photos!

I did some spinning for this month’s Spin Along.  I chose the color path this week and went with the St Patrick’s theme. 

 

This is superwash in my Erin colorway spun laceweight.  Turns out that it is almost an exact match for a bamboo merino blend that I got from Spunky Eclectic last summer that I am making a shawl with.  I think I will add this fiber to that project so I don’t have to worry about running out of yarn before the project is done.

I have also been knitting on my Galveston Shawl.  I am about a third of the way through chart E.  It still looks a lot like this, only bigger

 

This is the big chart before the borders start going on.  I am so in love with this pattern!  And the pattern has now been released to the public!  If you go to Zari’s blog, you can download the pattern PDF!

I have also just done a good sized shop update!  I added some new fibers, including new colorways such as Beach House, Dark Berries and All Your Base.

And NEW CRAFT CUBES!!!

These cubes are so fantastic for small or medium sized projects.  They are 6″ square and have two rigid sides and a rigid bottom panel.  This means that you can put a yarn ball or cake into the bag, set it someplace convenient and comfortable and not have to worry about the bag collapsing in on your project!  I am so completely in love with these little bags and I have already cut the fabric for lots more of them!

Along with dying for the shop, I also dyed up fiber for this months fiber club.  This month I chose a painting by Fragonard as my inspiration.  It is called The Swing

I love this painting.  It has such a feeling of fun and frivolity!  The woman is being pushed on the swing by her Bishop, kicking her shoe to her lover hiding in the bushes, as a cherub watches over the scene admonishing us to keep the secret.  This painting embodies Spring!  I chose these colors to create this month’s fiber (Link for peekers)

I hope to get back to the blog sooner next time!

 

Color Shift

So I showed you this picture last time

Of some Sable and Purple BFL I spun up, 5+ oz of each color.  Those are very accurate colors on the bobbins.  I finished plying them this week!  After spending a month spinning these colors it felt like I was never going to get to spin anything else ever again!

When I began plying the two singles together I was a little disappointed because the colors seemed to fade into each other.  There was not a strong purple single and a strong sable single anymore, they were just grey.  I expected the colors to blend together, but I wasn’t expecting them to get lighter.  That was my first surprise.

You know that sateen fabric that looks different colors in different lights?  Sometimes it’s blue or purple, other times it looks black.  Depending on how the light is hitting it.  Well, I apparently have spun up the yarn equivalent of that fabric!  Sometimes the yarn looks completely sable.  Not a trace of purple in it at all.  That is how it looked this morning when I took it off the shelf down stairs.  By the time I got half way up the stairs, in the direct sunlight, it looked like this

When I got all the way up stairs to my desk in a room that is full of diffused light, it looked like this

and now that I have the curtain closed, it looks exactly like the purple bobbin again!

I am so intrigued by this yarn.  I think I might run another experiment like this with some blue, or maybe green.  I think I might use it to knit the Secret of Chrysopolis shawl or something else that has high detail and needs a solid colored yarn.  I am wondering if it will hold its color shifting properties after it is knit up!

I have also been working on my Galveston Shawl.  After I recovered from the trauma of having to rip it all back, I have quickly caught up to where I almost was.  I am about half a chart away from where I think I got lost.  Here it is, sitting on the amazing color shifting yarn, which has shifted back to the darker colors again

Zari should have the pattern available soon.  I love this pattern and I know I will be making more than one of these.  The texture of the waves makes me insanely giggly!

 ETA:  Just counted up the yardage on the yarn, and it is 2800 yards and close to 12 oz total weight!