Rain, rain...every day!

The weather has been lovely here.  And by lovely, I mean rainy and dark and dreary and beautiful.  I absolutely love this weather.  I always have.  It was this type of weather that first started me writing poetry -- along with serious depression -- and I've always had a thing for Lightening storms.  I think they're magical and powerful.  

This weather makes me want to curl up in a blanket -- hand made, of course -- and knit or read...or write.  Just depends on the mood I'm in.  It's also great tea weather.  Which is my beverage of choice.  I just found Teavana, and it's pretty much heaven in a cup.  Or a pot. Which is how I make it.  I drink a lot of tea.

I stopped by today, on this dreariest of dreary days to let you, my readers and followers, know that I am going to be having a give-away in the next couple days.  And it's going to be a wonderful one.  I'll be posting it as soon as Jamie, over at Scissors & Steam finishes her's up.  After you've received her give-away (lucky lucky) head on over here and check out mine.  I'm quite excited about it, and you'll all love it too.  

I'll give you a hint.  *whispers* it's going to contain fiber!!!

Make sure you pass that on.  And I'll see you all soon.  

Happy beautiful rainy Tuesday,

~j.b.

First Swatch is a Disaster!

Well, I managed to "finish" the first swatch for the Master Hand Knitting Course I'm taking.  I knit 2" of K2P2 (knit 2 purl 2, for those who aren't "up" on the lingo) ribbing, increasing by five stitches "unobtrusively" on the last row of ribbing, then knitting what I thought was four inches of garter stitch.  But no.  Not.  Four.  Inches.  I should have knit four and a half inches in Garter Stitch.  Ack!  So, I get to knit this stupid cute little swatch all over again.

~the wrong size swatch~

I guess it could be worse.  But, not all was lost.  Just the length.  And I don't actually mind re-knitting the whole thing.  It truly is good practice.  And I've already learned something I didn't know at the outset.  I learned how to unobtrusively increase at the end of ribbing.  

(for those of you interested: it's a k1fb in the last knit stitch of how ever many repeats it takes to get the correct number of stitches)

So, I'm fairly thrilled, actually.  And I'm only a few weeks days behind on my "Complete this Course in a Year" Plan.  I have also learned that there is a group of knitters that meet every Wednesday at the local Yarn Shop (YarnDogs) who are all doing this Course.  So, health holding up, I plan on going this Wednesday.  I'm pretty excited.  It will be nice to meet others who are fighting with loving these swatches.

That's about it for tonight.  Hopefully I will have some more to write tomorrow or the next day about my class.  For now, I will leave you with ~

~ Some Beautiful New Yarn ~

So ogle, covet and plan away.  This picture doesn't really do the color justice, sorry.  The color name is Garnet, and it's a fairly accurate description.  I believe this will be turning into mittens to keep my freezing fingers warm this winter when I take walks with the Husbie.  

Have a wonderful night, I'll talk to you all soon.

Happy Crafting,

~j.b.

Sewing Room Confession

Oh my goodness, two blog posts in one week.  Don't get too excited, it's not likely to happen very often, if ever again.  So, just enjoy it while it's here.  No expectations though, you hear?

I've decided to redo my sewing studio.  Not necessarily permanently.  Just for the foreseeable future.  I haven't been sewing much, if at all, over the past few months, and every time I walk past my sewing room, I get really sad, because I miss being in there so damned much.  So, instead of shutting the door -- literally -- and forgetting about it, I have a plan to turn in into a cozy little knitting-nook.  I am truly excited about this prospect because not only will in allow me to use my favorite room in the house, it is going to give me a perfect place to work on my knitting class and my knitting in general.  So, for now, I am looking for a chair:

The Perfect Chair

This is my ideal.  It's a Restoration Hardware chair that I am currently coveting.  I've even seen almost it in person.  We have a store literally down the street from where we live.  It's very dangerous, to a point.  The point is where we can't afford anything in the store.  And stealing is hard because I'd look somewhat suspicious walking shuffling out with a couch stuffed under my jacket.  At any rate, this is the goal.  I am going to be looking at thrift stores for something that will do perfectly.  I *may* have it re-covered.  We'll see.  It depends on how much we spend on the initial chair.  If it's cheap, then I'll spring for some nice new fabric.  But, I don't necessarily want to recover it myself.  Don't know if I'm up to that much physical labor at this point.  We'll see.

So, I'm also looking for side table to place next to the Perfect Chair.  And this caught my eye this morning:

YardStick Side Table

Something like this would be perfect, as well.  I have a small sewing cabinet that my Mother-in-law gave us quite a few years ago.  It is being used as a side table in the living room, though.  Maybe if I can find a new table for there, I can take it down stairs where she would feel more at home.  :)

Now, I also have some furniture I am going to have to store for an indeterminate amount of time.  Namely, my sewing table.  It's an Expidite desk from Ikea.  I love it, don't get me wrong.  I just don't have room for it and the Perfect Chair.  So, it will be removed and stored for now.  As will my cutting table.  I think the cutting table will fit in the corner where my spinning wheel currently lives.  And my spinning wheel is going to make a comeback as well.  As I plan on doing some spinning here soon.  My mom gave me a bunch of amazing fiber last week that I can't wait to dive into.  Literally.  I want to lay in it.  It's that soft.  I have silk, and Alpaca, and Llama waiting for me.  Plus some merino blends and cotton that is still in its husk.  Cotton spinning is something I've been wanting to learn to do for a while, now.  It has such interesting tools.

Alright, I'll keep you posted on the Studio Redo as I make progress.  I truly can't wait to make the room useful again.  And thank you for your patience with the lack of blog posts these past few weeks.  You all knew I'd be back, right?  Right!?!?  Ahem...

Happy Crafting,

~j.b.

A quick hello...and a book review.

So, it's been a while.  And it's been a while since I've needed to write that pesky little sentence.  It's been a fairly crappy couple of days weeks here.  And while I have been trying to live them gracefully, I am worn the heck out doing so.  I've been getting migraines basically everyday for the past...well, nearly 8 years, if you must know, and the last six months have been really taxing.

Because of this health-forced hiatus from all things crafty, I have resorted to reading and watching TV.  I hate TV.  Let me be a little more clear.  I hate commercials.  I yell at them, bad mouth them, and pretty much make watching any sort of program with me very uncomfortable for any and all innocent bystanders.  I don't mean to.  But because of this, we don't have cable.  I watch TV with Netflix and Hulu.  I know, Hulu does have commercials.  I can deal much better with one to two commercials per break than six or seven.  The anger scale stays within tolerable levels.  As does the yelling.  And my marriage is saved.  Which is good.  I like being married.  Specifically to Jon.  But he only likes me when I'm not yelling at commercials.

So, watching TV, I have discovered Downton Abbey.  It's a great period piece set in turn-of-the-century England.  The costumes are amazing, and the acting isn't bad, either.  I'm also not allowed to watch period piece with other people, but that a different story, all together...

I've also been reading Stephanie Pearl-McPhee's book Knitting Rules.  It's hysterical.  She does an amazing job of making me feel creative even while I'm wasting away hours watching Netfilx.  I highly recommend her blog as well.  The Yarn Harlot.  Her writing is amazing, and her sense of humor seems to be what gets her through her roughest times.  Which is very familiar to me.  If it weren't for my sense of humor, the past eight years would have ended me.  Or, I'd have ended me.  Either way, not so good for the crafting.

Speaking of crafting, I recently found The Master Hand Knitting Level I correspondence course over at TKGA.com.  I found this a couple of weeks ago, and just signed up for it two days ago.  I'm so excited I could run around the house like an amped up on sugar two year old singing at the top of my lungs.  Fortunately -- for my marriage, and sanity -- this is not possible given the current fibro-flare.  Maybe this is a blessing in disguise?  I'm going with that.  Yeah.  That's it.  A blessing.

So, I received the course requirements via email yesterday, printed them all out -- after searching for twenty minutes for the ream of paper I knew we had -- and ever-so-gently put them in a binder I had lying around from my college-days.  Now, the task is to create daily/weekly goals so as to actually finish this program in the year I'm given.  Sixteen swatches.  In one year.  Plus loads of other fun stuff.  I believe I can manage.  Yup.  Can't wait!!  Now, back to the running and singing.  Even if it is all in my head.

Happy Crafting,
~j.b.

darling finished projects...

I have had this finished Needle Book languishing in a drawer for a couple years, and I finally got up the courage to put it up for sale on Etsy this morning.  There are a few more waiting to be finished, so depending on this first one, I'll get the others up for sale, too.

I had a ton of fun making this, and why I never finished the lot of them is completely beyond me.  Other than the fact that I get very ADD with crafting/sewing/making things.  I do not seem able to complete a group of items.

My ultimate goal is to have a replenishing supply of hand crafted items for sale in my Etsy shoppe.  It's a fun and relatively simple way to pay for my crafting/yarn/fabric/etc. addictions.  Yes, I have tons of grand ideas about become interweb-famous for my crafts and my writing.  Unfortunately, I let these ideas of grandeur affect my ability to actually do the crafting and the writing.  Well, in this New Year I really want to change that.  I want to be able to set a goal and follow through with it.  Let the dreams fly, and then come back down to Earth and do the work.

Happy Tuesday,
~j.b.

Order Up!

So, my order from Knitpicks.com finally came in.  You know, after weeks of waiting.  Okay, so I only waited a couple days.  They ship surprisingly fast, even for this time of year.  I just opened it tonight, and I am in love with the yarn.  And the needles, even though they are a tad bit more bendy -- I know, not actually a word -- than I'm used to.  But, I usually use metal, so...yeah.

Oh!  I found these beauties today.  I think I might just spend a tiny bit too much time online these days.  Ah well, sometimes recovering from a busy holiday of shopping and visiting requires some sitting as well as some more shopping.  Haha!

Don't you judge me.

Anyway, these are the creme de la creme of amazing-ness when it comes to knitting needles.  According to reviews, at least.  I'm not wealthy enough to afford these at this time.  I will though, mark my words.  I'm a dpn fiend, and these look like heaven.  They even have this wonderful option of creating your own wish-list so people can purchase what you'd like from them.  They are tricksy that way.  And I love them. 

I have also spent the day reading the TECHknitting blog.  This woman is a genius!  I totally want to pick her brain.  Or eat her brain...you know, as in zombies.  BRAAAAAAAINS...ahem.

What was I saying?

So, I guess that was my day.  Drooling over beautiful yarn-type stuff, and reading about yarny things.  Not too bad of a way to while away the hours, if I do say so myself.  I also made some ice cream batter.  Can't wait to try that out!  I'll post pictures, promise.

Happy Thursday, my lovelies,
~j.b.

Big foot...

I can't tell you how frustrated I am currently.  Not only have I not published a blog post in what feels like weeks, I don't even have anything non-bloggy to show for my absence. 

With X-mas hurdling very quickly in our direction, I have been swamped with present wrapping and migraine fighting (Yes, I'm aware these are not technically holiday related).  Plus, I've been helping out my mom who has been fighting the flu for the past week and a half.  We are unfortunately not going to be able to do X-mas dinner at my parents' house this year.  Fortunately, we have two huge lasagnas we can bring over to the in-laws for dinner and catch up with family there.  Not the same, but still fun.

I have been doing a bit of knitting the past week or so.  Started a pair of socks for Jon, and discovered that the yarn that was sold as a sock-weight is actually more of a light-fingering weight, and does not work well as sock fabric.  So, I ordered this:

from knitpicks a couple days ago.  I've never ordered from them, before.  I genuinely believe in supporting my LYS's, so ordering online for yarn was not the easiest decision for me.  I look at it this way, though.  I have only so much energy.  Period.  And once it's gone, it can take me quite a long time to regain it.  With all the X-mas shopping I've been doing, and the prep and the migraines!!!  Well, I just don't have time to run down to my LYS to buy a skien of yarn.  However much I may really really want to.  So, I ordered it.  Yes, they undercut the local shops.  Tremendously.  And no, I don't like that.  I also don't like having Fibromyalgia and chronic daily migraines.  So, let's not get too picky here, okay?

I also found some lovelies for myself. 

The color name is Guava and it's a wool/silk blend that looks amazing.  The only issue is that I do not currently own a swift or ball winder.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that these will be under someone's tree for me. 

And last, but not least, I found this:

It's name is Sasquach.  And no, this was not the inspiration for the title of this post.  I'll get to that in a minute.  lol.

So, These lovelies and a couple pair of 2mm DPN's will be arriving around the 29th of December.  I personally can not wait until I get this box.  Yarn, arriving in the mail.  What a concept!  I could get used to this!  What's that noise?  It's my bank account crying.

Now for the whole purpose of this post.  I started my sock, last night, actually.  And I have managed to get quite a few rows done.  I was just over at my MIL's house a couple hours ago and she mentioned that it looked awfully small and she didn't think it would fit me.  I came home, slipped it onto a long cabled circular and found this:

I, apparently have gigantic feet.  Who knew?

Happy Frogging,
~j.b.

Time and Time Again

Once again, I begin.  This time, it is with a purpose in mind.  And hopefully much more discipline involved.  I have a plan.

I have just moved.  As in, last weekend.  And during the process of packing, moving, and recovering from said move, I have discovered, I truly have a problem.  More like an addiction, really.  To be perfectly honest, I have more fabric than I have ANY idea what to do with!  It's crazy how much fabric one (one!!!) person can accumulate in a period of two point five years.  And this is even AFTER I have used some of said fabric in projects, AND donated a great big bunch of it.

Now, faced with the prospect of RE-organizing this mass of fiber I have some decisions to make.  And make them I must.  First, I have to figure out WHAT I will be keeping, and what will be discarded -- either donated or given to like-minded friends/family.  After that icky, time-consuming task is finished, I must then figure out how I am going to STORE whatever fabric is left.  And on that note, I need to completely reorg my entire sewing room, too.  Because while it worked for quite a while, with this new place, I plan on teaching, and it was not set up well for personal sewing AND teaching sewing.  Which means, I need to scrap my current set up -- hardware-wise -- and attack the room with a fresh set of eyes -- and a Professional Organizer named Joan.

To start, I will be using this here blog-thing as a way of documenting my progress of re-org-ing my sewing studio/teaching space, AND to begin talking about my next major project, which sort of combines a bunch of things I've loved throughout my life.  I'll begin by saying this: I am truly a Fiber Nerd.  I LOVE fiber.  When I go shopping -- whether it be for fabric to make things, or clothing which is already constructed -- I touch EVERYTHING!  I can't help but run my hands over garments in a store, just to see what they're made from.  If I like them, I continue touching, usually with a smile on my face.  If they're icky synthetics,  more times than not, I scowl.  Or proclaim, embarrassingly loud that the shirt/pants/dress/etc sucks!  And then proceed to NOT touch said fabric any longer.

So, not only am I a fiber NERD, I am a self proclaimed fiber SNOB!  And I am also quite proud of this.  It has taken YEARS of experience and practice to become THIS disgusted by polyester chiffon.  If I can't stand to touch the fabric on the bolt for three seconds, there is NO way I am going to spend HOURS of my time and energy TOUCHING the fabric to create a garment, only to them WEAR said garment un-told number of hours a day/week/month/year.

So, in oder to spread my nerdy-ness and more importantly, snoby-ness around the globe -- or at least to my friends -- I plan on creating a data-base of sorts to define fabric content, care, and creations.  Think of it as a Wiki, after a fashion.  It will be searchable, cross-referenced, and will include plenty of photos of beautiful fabrics as well.  Eventually I would love to be able to have users request swatches from me, to have lovely little bits of fabric at THEIR finger-tips while ordering online, or shopping in good 'ol brick-and-mortar shops.

So, this is the plan.  One of them, at the very least.  It's now been three weeks since the move, and I still have a sewing room that looks as though a class 9 hurricane blew through on some errand of destruction.  So, although no visible progress has actually been made, I have quite a few plans in the, er, planning stage.  Possibly the next post will even involve pictures!  What a concept.  We'll see.  Later for now,

~j.b. fiber nerd, extaordinaire