Bye Bye Bloggy

Well I thought I might be able to find a few minutes each week to post, but it turns out that Grad school, kids and life take up all my time. So until I can find the time to post regularly, the blog is getting cut. I'm leaving up all my old posts and if anyone would like a PDF copy, drop me a line and I will email it out! The Etsy shop will continue to be updated although very slowly. I keep hearing rumors that it gets easier after the first year and hopefully I will be able to be a part time fiber addict again!

You're trying to sell that on Etsy...Really

Alright, in an attempt to get myself back into blogging amongst the chaos that is a PhD program, I'm starting a new weekly section titled "You're trying to sell that on Etsy...Really" featuring the most ridiculous handmade items I come across on my browsing through Etsy.

To start off this week, I have one that I found a while back on a treasury. Some chick decided to make art yarn out of her wedding dress. Okay, seems a little dumb to me, but what do I know. What really shocked was the price tag, a very specific $543.21.

If you would like to keep warm this winter you can surely do so under a big glob of yarn badly knit together...

What else gets you ready for fall? Ugly ass shorts!! If they don't look good on the anorexic model, probably won't look good on anyone else either.

I actually kind of like the hat. But if you are going to sell something, find a better model than yourself. This lady looks like she is going to melt if you throw some water on her. If you are going to model your own wares, make an attempt to gussy up a little and smile!

That's it for this week, time is limiting. Of course I promise I won't be snarky all the time, check back for the best of Etsy too!

It's been a busy summer

Well it has been! I have been doing just a little knitting on a pair of socks using the handspun merino Twisted Roving in Warlock. I am doing two at a time from the toe up so that I can use all the yarn and I have come to two conclusions, 1) I have a lot of yardage and 2) I am very proud that I have not knit my socks together yet!

Speaking of Twisted, I got an invite for custom order yesterday! I already have close to $200 in my cart, but I'm going to have to cut that back somehow. Dang you Meg for making such lovely colorways!! I did a little dyeing myself today. One sock yarn and one Landscapes colorway, I will post pics when they are dry and skeined tomorrow. I still have yet to get to the yummy base yarn that I got a while back, with the thesis and kids and husband and all, it's been hard to find the time. Not to mention, J is a slave driver!! We have been working our butts off around the ranch, unfortunately, my butt is still just as big. GRR.

I added a new item to the shop! The rose boxes that I send the stitch markers in were really popular, so I am offering them as a stand alone item. These are a little bigger (4" in diameter/2" in height) and even more pretty. They come in sets, 4/$5, 10/$10 and 30+/$.80 each. So, when you are thinking about gift boxes for Christmas presents, these are great for that and will even fit some small knitted items! Okay enough self promotion :).

We are also getting ready to move in 10 days!! Got the new (old) house and the in laws are coming out to help us make it our own with a little paint and some new drapes. MIL offered to buy these, and told me not be scared to use a little color. HAHAHA, I think she may choke on those words when she sees what I have in store. I went to Home Depot with my mom and cleaned the paint dept. out of paint chips LOL. We are going up on Thursday to paint the deck (FHA wants this done) and I need to fill out my hiring papers, so I will take some pics and post them Friday.

Well off to go sit on the deck in the Beautiful evening air!

New House and Shop promo announcement

Guess what? We are buying a house!!!! It's not new and fancy but its nice and maybe just big enough to fit all our stuff :). It's all happening so fast but I'm hoping that it will all work out okay. I have a couple more hand dyes to put up and a lot of yarn that needs to be dyed in the next few weeks, but not a whole lot of time. Two kids are a lot of work, especially when the baby won't let you put her down for more than a few minutes at a time. I can't type with her in my lap anymore, she loves the keyboard. Okay rambling just a little bit...

I changed the banner a little bit and came up with new yarn tags that feature my new logo...

I am going to start running monthly or bimonthly promotions that include discounts on items, free stuff with orders and so forth! This month I am offering 50% off any set of stitch markers with a $30 purchase of yarn! I am also offering free shipping on orders over $50 and that will be all the time.

Well other than the house and being super busy trying to get everything I need done this summer, not a whole lot is going on haha!!

Etsy is being updated daily, thought I would give every one a quick pick and some other info...

The line up for this week...

And the cat just had to check out the yarn :)

I have a bunch of undyed yarn of various fiber types, so I thought I would list what I have available if anyone would like something special...

• 10% cashmere/20% silk/ 70% merino fine laceweight (super soft)--815 yards/50 g; $24 for regular hand paints, $40 for landscape colorways
  
• 20% cashmere/20% silk/60% merino fine laceweight (super shiny and soft)--760 yards/50 g; $24 for regular hand paints, $40 for landscape colorways
  
• 70% merino/ 30% alpaca heavy DK (light worsted)130 yards/50 g; $20
  Cashmere/Lycra very light fingering weight, great for socks--50 g/440 yards--$35
  
• 15% cashmere/85% wool heavy lace weight--380 yards/50 g-- $20 for regular hand paints, $40 for landscape colorways
  
• 100% Super fine merino light worsted weight (incredibly soft)--100 yards/50 g; $20 SO worth it!!
  
• 30% Cashmere, 70% merino heavy lace weight--400 yds/50g $20 for regular hand paints, $38 for landscape colorways
  
• 3% cashmere/97% wool lace weight--500 yds/50 g; $18 for regular hand paints, $35 for landscape colorways.

Be sure to check out the shop for daily updates!

Just a quick post, I have been very busy with kids and thesis! I did take a half day and dye up some yarns though!
The new landscape colorway is up on Etsy now, and the sock yarns (there are two more) will be up in the next week! I just got a bunch of base yarns in all kinds of cool fibers that will be dyed up soon and I have a lot of new colorways for landscape to try out also. I am also considering trying my dye method on heavier weight yarns and for socks which will be fun. I have a little bit of cashmere/Lycra that will make a great sock yarn, some unbelievably soft merino dk a bunch of cashmere/wool and some super luscious silk/cashmere/merino lace weight in limited quantities that I can't wait to dye also as well as some merino/alpaca/nylon sock yarn that is soaking and waiting to be dyed! Okay, more later, I will try to come back to the bloggy before too long...

All settled

Well, kind of. I have Internet and my printer set up in addition to the spinning wheel and some of my knitting. I have to live out of boxes for the next couple months and that just stinks. The good news is that I should have a few minutes to dye some yarn and I will have the help of my mom. I have obtained a few special undyed lovely yarn to dye. Well... enough with the selling. Time for pictures!!

I finished my Adamas shawl...

Remember back, this was my first attempt at making a graduated color lace handdye... very striped, but when you see it from a distance the striping disappears. Also, fluorescent lights are not the best lights to take pics under. I am super exited about my Knit Picks blocking board and wires though. It took about of the quarter of the time to block and I got excellent results.

I have been playing around with my new camera, and it is fun! I have one complaint, it overexposes pictures. Particularly if you are inside, any light areas are this giant glaring white icky thing that I'm not really happy with. There is also a little shutter lag, but nothing I'm really worried about. Not happy with the over exposure though.

But...check out my mother's day roses, and yes they were this orange!

20X zoom of a redheaded woodpecker out my in-laws window...

H enjoying ice cream with sprinkles at the amusement park....

And a few free range cashmere goats in the driveway, note the two bucks clashing horns. Don't they look so fuzzy, soft and cuddly??

Well I think one of the dogs pooed, ewww. Better go check that out... UGGHH will it never end??

Just a quick word...

I have been completely absent for a while, life is getting the best of my time! I just wanted to do a quick update. We have moved so it has been a little hectic lately but I have managed to get a few stitches in and I even tried out my new blocking puzzle piece thingies and blocking wires which was super quick and fun. I took some pics and will post them when I get around to uploading pictures.

Let see, moved about three weeks ago, went to see in-laws for a week and got back a couple days ago. I have been working, my tushie off around the ranch and it's been a blast. Of course I pulled a muscle in my neck/shoulder though and I am so wishing I could take some good pain meds right now cause it kills at the moment, so there will be no hard work for the next few days.

It is great to be back home!

Quick note to Sunby... I never did post the tutorial on how to attach the handles... it was one of those life got in the way things. I will try to remember how I did that and get it an explanation up for you asap :)

First, just wanted to let everyone know that I have been accepted to the PhD program of my choice!!!

I have been working on a custom colorway for Chris, and it has been a doozy. Usually I play mad scientist and let the colors come out how they will. I always love the results and they are always a little different each time. It's a little harder to get exact colors. My first attempt was way off, but still pretty. I have been layering dyes on the second to get what I'm looking for and I have one more round of over dyeing and I should have it.

First round, the green was a little too bright and the yellow a little too yellow for what I was going for...

Second round, green and Burgundy seem perfect, yellow is not golden enough and orange is too light. I will be adding another layer of color so it gets just right!

I just wanted to share my latest creation, from a great pattern, I think I will try this in my size now!

Just another rambling day.

Well I've heard a few people getting reinstated, but I'm still waiting to hear back. A week without Ravelry. I have a couple projects done that I am very upset that I can't post.

Decided to start a new quick knit with some Royal Bamboo that I had gotten from my momma. I'm made a cute little bolero/shrug and the colors are amazing. I was a little upset that there was a knot in each ball I used and one even had two knots! I wrote Plymouth Yarn and received an email that said I need to contact the LYS where it was purchased. Not an option, it was purchased at a booth in a local fair in North Dakota while she was visiting last fall. Not that I'm really looking for anything other than them to take note of the problem. I still LOVE that yarn!!

I'm starting to hear back from the ladies that purchased from the shop and I'm thrilled with all the positive feedback. The little rose boxes are a huge hit and I'm thinking about putting the pattern up on Etsy. They are definitely a new standard with small items like my stitch markers and key chains.

Well I'm off to worry about things unrelated to knitting and Ravelry, such as, oh real life. Not my favorite subject though.

Orders sent out

I wanted to share something postive, I sent out all the orders that I recieved this weekend.
The pretty little gift boxes for stitch markers...

One of the prettiest sunsets I have created...

I hope you all love it!

Electric Sunset up on Etsy!!

Hmm, bad grammer first...So I just noticed some improper use of "your" and "you're." My appologies, I'm very embarassed...

In other news, the first skein of the new Landscapes Lace in "Electric Sunset" is already gone on Etsy, I was amazed. I relisted, so it's available. The very first skein (shown in my last post) is being knitted into the Adamas shawl, and I noticed that it was striping more than having a gradual change, so before dyeing the next one, I changed the method a just little and it worked fantastically!! Here is the pic...


I also put up a smaller (400 yard) skein...

That one is a little brighter than the pic shows, but yummy none the less!

Other than the store update, I have been looking for the next item to knit that I will obsessively work on until it's finished. I'm not loving anything that I'm working on at the moment, and that is a super long list. H's window shawl went from creeping along, to a quick speed up to a dead halt. I do not have quite enough to finish the way I want, and I'm debating how to fix that. The Adamas shawl is just slow, and even though I am anxoius for the next color to come in (I've reached the deep blue), it seems too much like work. I have two sweaters I'm working on, several orphan socks and some cashmere that needs to become something for my neighbor, plus lots of "I should knit something for them because they are so sweet" projects. I have 2 of 8 oz of Crazy Monkey spun, and the Twisted is on the Lendrum right now, with several fibers waiting in line. I have the rest of the Landscapes lace colorways to dye, which if they take off, I may spend most of my spare time doing that, hmm I think I need more hours in the day. Yep lots of stuff!

Copyrights

The issue has come up a few times on selling items made from other's patterns. I think this is up to the designer. That being said if anyone wants to use my patterns to make things for sale, you may, just do the following for me: credit me as the designer and link to my blog ;). If you are going to use my design I might as well get some free advertising, right?

Okay off soapbox...

Preview of New yarn!!

I've been experimenting with a new method of dyeing lace yarn so that the color change is gradual from one end to the other. I have always liked certain color combos, but they never look quite right dyed as a variegated or even stripe and I really love some of the secondary colors that come in when doing colorways, but never really make a presence in the finished product. I had also noticed a few people coming up with this idea also, but the only indie dyed lace yarns I have seen like this came from recycled yarn, but the more a yarn is handled, it gets damaged, so I came up with a new method of dyeing. The new stuff is "Landscapes Lace" and hopefully I will be able to get a few more dyed up and in the shop soon.
I came up with this one called "Electric Sunset" and it is the first of 4 colorways to start, I will be doing several more. I'm truly painting each skein from a artists prospective, so each will be an original.

A little info about the skeins- they are 100% Merino, 100g, 880 yards each, $35.00 per skein. One skein is plenty to a stole or most shawls. Right now I am working this skein for Adamas Shawl and it's lovely so far. Each color change has subtle variation and as soon as it gets a little farther along, I will post some pics.

So how do you make a quick come to a grinding halt? Add nupps. Evil, evil nupps. Purl 5 together? WTF?? Remember that bright rainbow window scarf for H? Yep. I also increased the budding lace total repeats and although I planned for the Lily of the Valley edge, I did not take into account the scallop edge and now cannot follow the pattern as written. I don't think it will be too hard to redesign the border though. Other than that my poor twisted roving is being neglected on the wheel and I have about 20 other "I really should make this for so-and-so" projects and zero inspiration to actually work on any of them. Either I need to survive on less sleep or I need more hours in the day, cause as it is I will never get everything done I want to do.

Finished with the twisted!

Congrats to the ladies who chose these two

and


I also finished the twisted shawl...


All I have for tonight is pictures :)

Your Redneck is Showing...

Excuse me, I thought I would let you know your redneck is showing.


Saturday night we went out to the Mardi Gra parade. Nothing like some southern culture to bring a little redneck out in all of us. Even me, high class broad that I am, was seen with baby in one hand and beer in the other. It was fun, but we didn't get any of the cool beads so I was a little disapointed. I wanted the girls to leave LA with something fun to remember this state by (even though T won't remember a thing LOL). Instead H has loads of cheap beads. I am also coming to the realization that my point and shoot digital just doesn't take the kind of pics I want to take. Something more to wish for. In the mean time I will dream of camera that I can do as much with as my old 35mm SLR.


I am also really sad. I tried the mermaid scarf but I kept splitting the yarn to I opted for the Evelyn Clark's Heartland Shawl instead. I should have gone down a needle size cause I have 10 rows left and I have no more yarn. Grr. I don't want to rip out cause I spent a week on this thing. It was going really fast and I do so love the yarn. I can't wait for Meg's next update, I hear she is offering lots of evolutions and I might just have to get in on that even though I'm broke and don't really need any new yarn. Wait, I think that is called a yarn diet. But who sticks with diets anyway?


After starting (and frogging) three projects with my handspun crazy monkey I think I may have finally committed to something, another Evelyn Clark design, the Swallowtail shawl. I seem to be on a triangular lace shawl kick. I think what I like best is that I only have to cast on 2 stitches. I really hate casting on, even more than I hate purling which there is a lot of by the end of the shawl. Well this is going to be a little too bright for me to wear, but I think it would look lovely in H's rainbow bedroom as a window scarf!

Bright isn't it? I have been doing a little spinning with my Twisted roving, but haven't gotten very far.

And the winner is...

Since I only had two contestants, you guys are both winners! Go pick out your fave markers at my Etsy store.

I really like the mermaid scarf, I will be pulling out the hooks. I want to make sure that the stripe repeat looks good in crochet first. I like the cowls also, but I want to use the whole skein on one project and that would be one heck of a big cowl. All the projects will definitely be in my queue! If by chance I'm not super happy with the mermaid scarf I saw some beautiful triangle shawls I was considering.

On a non-knitting note- Go Steelers!

I have two entries right now! C'mon peeps where you at?? I would love to see some more ideas, so I'm going to extend the contest to next Sat, 1/31. Here are the pattern ideas I have so far...



1st--http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/baby-its-cowled-outside
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/mermaid-scarf
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/crofters-cowl

2nd--http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/stacked-eyelet-cowl

The cowls are in right now. Thanks ladies, they are all beautiful patterns, this is going to be hard!

Contest!!

Because I have so many readers who are just for a set of my stitch markers... but more importantly because I got my Twisted order today and I have no idea what to do with my Shiny and I don't want to do another pair of socks. Look how pretty! So here is the contest: Find me the perfect non-sock pattern for 400 yards of Shiny in Lagoon and if I pick your pattern, I will throw your fave set of stitch markers from the Etsy shop your way! Leave a link to the pattern in a comment and on Saturday (1/24) assuming I have more than three comments (haha). I will pick my favorite and let you guys know the winner.

Here's the fine print:
Please leave me a way to find you, i.e. ravelry name, email, etc. (Comments will be set so that the public can't see them). I be sure to put a post up with all the links on Saturday I get too so that if you happen upon a skein of Shiny in Lagoon and you are wondering what to make you will have some ideas.

Okay here's what else is up. The BFL from Crazy Monkey is slowly going but here is my progress...

The shop has been updated with a new handspun and some markers, I also plan on adding a couple of hand dyed sock yarns in the next couple of days, stop by and check it out!

I have to brag. I *finally* scored some Twisted and not only did my stalking pay off, but I also got to it before the update was even posted in the Ravelry group. I splurged and got some Shiny in the Lagoon colorway and some Lively roving in Warlock. I will be waiting by the door for it too show up and in the mean time I will have to find the perfect project for the Shiny.

I have been working on some secret projects and spinning up some BFL roving that I got for Christmas, lace weight for a shawl.

It's going to take a while to spin up, but should be gorgeous when done.

That is all I have for pretties for today. I'm working on a few patterns, one for socks and one for a cowl. Might even have those up in the next few weeks!

Back in the saddle, or whatever...

Yep after almost three long months of nothing, I promise I am back for good. Well at least every couple weeks until I am so busy trying to write my thesis that I give up again.

What have I been up to...Well I had a baby!!

Isn't she cute? I'm so crafty I make people.

I dyed this

And I spun this.

I added some of my mom's handspun on etsy, an when I get a moment, I have one more to put up...

I'm going to build a light box one of these days so I can get some true to life colors...this is a little more red than the pic shows, but soft squishy and yummy.

Well it is ridiculously early and I think that monkey #2 is finally ready to call it a night, good thing tomorrow is Saturday and I can sleep in a little!