Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Summer


     Summer rages on. I always just want to hold it fast, but it eludes me every year.  With only a month left until school starts, I'm not even sure I've entirely settled into summer. June welcomed Tour de Fleece, which I always look forward to. This year was intense as I spindled most of my yarns in order to keep up with the demands of my big, active family. I spun yarn every day and celebrated with two wins!  The first was a very generous gift certificate to my new fave, Gourmet Stash! I have been very spoiled by the decadence of this company, that's for sure!
The second prize was a gift certificate to Reckless Knitting on Etsy.  I'm so excited! Both shop owners are lovely and talented. Win win! Literally, ha!
     So, during the three weeks of the tour, I spun 6,434 yards and 1.3 feet! I accomplished that with just 12.2 ounces of wool, so that's some skinny yarn happening! I was happy to wrap up the intense spinning  on July 21.
     In knitting, I've been working on the Albers Shawl.  I'm using Dragonfly Fibers Squishy lace in Dragonberry, a special request shade of blue, and two shades of gray/charcoal.
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This is a lot of lace, friends!  I was hoping to have it completed for Michigan Fiber Fest in mid August, but that's not looking too realistic. I'll love it when it's done.
     In other news, we have a puppy! This is Kira, a Rhodesian Ridgeback.
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How sweet is she? We just love her!
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Now that she has turned 4 months, she has become a handful. We had to hire an ex-marine to train us in handling her. She is quite the stubborn pooch!
     I'm off to knit a few more rows. Happy knitting, friends!
   

   

Saturday, July 20, 2013

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Saturday, July 13, 2013

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Saturday, July 6, 2013

Thursday, July 4, 2013

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Sunday, June 30, 2013

Saturday, June 29, 2013

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

That Was Fun!

IMG_0850 Look who came to town! On a recent beautiful spring day, Stephen West and Ragga Eiriksdotter visited the D.C. area. I had just met Ragga at Vogue Knitting Live and Stephen West had me at Clockwork! Lol. So, I just couldn't miss the opportunity to learn from such amazing designers. It was super fun sharing the day with Kate of Gourmet Stash. We learned new techniques as well as improving on old ones. We also translated inspiration into design. So fun. Lots of one on one, too, which makes for a good class. IMG_0853 These two are a lot of fun! IMG_0854 IMG_0855 Not sure why Blogger cut Stephen off in the posting of this picture...just click on it or head on over to Flickr for all the cuteness! Translating all I learned into real life has been a little trickier. 'Cuz you know, my real life is oh so full. I've been fiddling with my design that I took away from that class in between knitting thousands of yards of lace on my Albers Shawl and poking along on my Central Park Hoodie. Even knitting has taken a back seat to what is front and center right now... this little guy and his baseball obsession. IMG_0876 Here he is on Opening Day. IMG_0875 Look at that ball go right into the square on the net!!! Here they are lining up for the parade- IMG_0884 This one makes me smile (hey, batter batter!). Look at him all baseball ready! IMG_0826 I will never, ever tire of seeing life through the eyes of a 5 year old. Everything is so new and magical. Life is beautiful! Ok, friends, see you on the other side of the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival. Can you believe it's next week?

Sunday, March 31, 2013

March

IMG_0026 What a wonderful month this has been, this month of March! I spent the first Sunday of the month at the Dragonfly Fibers studio acquiring yarn and learning new techniques. I picked up the last of the Blue Face Worsted in Dragonberry and cast on for a Central Park Hoodie. I'm questioning the sizing I selected. I've been studying up and trying to translate these mad skilz into customizing the fit of this sweater. I'm usually a bit more of a rule follower, so this is some uncharted territory for me! Wish me luck! I adore the color and feel of this yarn. I have also cast on The Albers Shawl for my grab and go mindless knitting. This WILL take forever, this more than 3,000 yards of lace weight. Garter stitch, no less. The good news is that somewhere along the way I have become a process person. This is huge for me, as I have always been so very goal oriented. I guess I've just surrendered to the inevitable -this mama o'seven doesn't have too many real claims on her time. IMG_0010 Also at the studio that day, I practiced making punis with the talented Kate of Gourmet Stash. IMG_0023 Those I bought from Gourmet Stash. These I made: IMG_0021IMG_0019 I was even lucky enough to win a set from the Gourmet Stash Blog giveaway.IMG_0798 I won the green punis and nail polish. That is some ahhmazing polish. Gonna have to look into that for some more. Very decadent. You know you want those bright little fibery tribbles. Fun, right? I couldn't resist buying them and you can get some right here! This month I've also designed and knit a handspun laceweight shawl, worked on some hexipuffs, did some swatching, and spindled to my heart's content. IMG_0039 IMG_0017 IMG_0031 IMG_0038 Ok, friends... I'll leave you with some images of other things that have brought me joy this month. IMG_0028 Have you ever tried an Earl Grey latte? Do eeet. Seriously. Oh, and this little corner of my home...IMG_0048 The mirror is a Christmas gift that one of my little guys made a few years ago. The curly willow I just couldn't resist. It's from the Terminal Market in Philly. Ahh, Spring!