I've been busy...

Some more bags and totes I've sewn this past week. Danielle from Knitique was right. Immediate gratification. I can finish a bag in 3-4 hours, forgetting to eat (sometimes).


Patchwork bag from the QUILTS AND MORE magazine. My first attempt at a quilted bag. It says a seam allowance of 1/4 inch. I got careless and wanted to finish fast, did not follow that instruction, and sewed on... Needless to say, the strips were uneven. I'm learning, I'm learning. But still, I love the colors and will use the bag myself.


Here's another. I got the idea from
Autum's website. Mine is still not perfect but I'm getting there.

Knitting: I finished my Tiger sock and Emma's Lace scarf (pics to follow).

I will have a table at our church's Show and Tell Boutique this coming Saturday, July 22nd, from 10 am to 1 pm. It's at the First Baptist Church in Elk Grove on E. Stockton Blvd. Come and visit us if you live in the area. There are several home-based arts and crafts businesses participating. No selling or buying involved. Just a show and tell venue.

This is a huge crocheted fabric basket using cut up strips, 4 inches wide, from 2 flat, full-sized bed sheets. There are 2 handles on opposite sides for easy carrying around the house. And there's a lot of carrying involved since little Emily acquired it for her own. Her stuffed animals carry-basket.

4 tote bags I've sewn using scraps...







and a pillow.




Sadly, I haven't knitted a thing.

Can't Sew?

I keep telling myself that I can't sew. One of the crafts I can't master. My mom is a very talented seamstress. My just a tape measure, pencil and piece of paper, and of course, a sewing machine, she used to sew me and my sister beautiful dresses when we were growing up. My interests focused on fiber, hooks and sticks to make my own creations.

Being a totebag lover, I decided to make my own. With the numerous unfinished projects I have lying around the house, I need a lot of tote bags. So, with a free pattern on the internet, I decided to sew one. No fabrics handy, I used bedsheets (ha, ha!). I have a ton of them. I used to go to thrift stores, buy lots, cut them into 2-4 inch strips and crochet them into bags, baskets and rugs.

And this is the result. Purple striped tote bag, and lined too!



I made several, including a crocheted fabric basket. Pictures coming soon.

Playing with colors

Here are some of the colors I've been playing with. I tried to copy a Kiwi (on the left) but the color is not working for me. Tried to apply some seeds but they didn't take. It must have something to do with the non superwash yarn I used.

The one on the right is supposed to be a self striping fair isle. I see the stripes but not the fair isle. It must be the smaller sized sock with a cast on of only 52. I do believe the color will work if I had cast on 60 or 64.



Some watermelon mishaps. Well, not really. The one on the left has NO seeds. The one on the right, the seeds did not really take as I wanted it to. Both skeins are 100% wool, non superwash, sportweight, 288 yards each, and self striping watermelons.
I'm selling each for $12.50 plus $1.75 shipping. Please send me an email at vdsuan at juno dot com if you're interested.

I have finished handpainting more skeins of the watermelon yarn. Andrea, if you are reading this, please send me an email at vdsuan at juno dot com. My Juno email crashed and I've lost all messages and addresses. I've saved a skein for you.

As anticipated, the wool/nylon blend ran out and new stock won't be arriving until mid to late July. The manufacturer has substituted a new sock yarn. It's 100% superwash Merino, 3 ply, tightly spun for socks, a bit thicker and meatier than the fingering wool/nylon blend. It's almost sportweight, uses US size 2 needles to knit 7 sts per inch. I've packed the yarn into 5 oz skeins at 400 plus yards, enough for a pair of socks.

I also have some watermelon mishaps, priced at a discount. More info will follow.

I have 4 skeins of watermelon yarn available, two are already taken (by MJ). Just visit my WEBSITE to get the ordering information and send me an email at vdsuan at juno dot com.

I finished the KIWI colorway experiment and it's just not working for me. I'm knitting a sock out of the yarn and will post a picture soon.

Cantaloupe is also finished and wound into a ball for knitting, soon. We'll see how that one turns out.

To answer questions on whether the watermelon yarn will be made available, the answer is yes. I plan on handpainting more within the next few days and I will announce availability on this blog. However, the yarn is on back order with the manufacturer, coming from the UK, and will be re-stocked in July. Why does that always happen??

Semi good news: I have a few pounds of this same yarn left. Another good news: they have a new yarn 100% superwash Merino, tightly spun specifically for socks, very similar to Koigu but a tad thicker, that they have in stock and on it's way to me as we speak. bwahahahahaha.

The yarn I'm currently using is superwash wool/nylon blend (75/25), fingering weight, 495 yards approx, per 4 oz skein. I also have other yarns in stock that I can handpaint. The possibilities are limitless!!

Now, I need suggestions on other favorite colorways from you all. So far, I have cantaloupe (green, with dark peach/pink), kiwi (brown, 2 shades of green with flecks of black for seeds)and Victoria( burgundy, purple, gold), my favorite. To add to the watermelon colorway. Send me a comment.

Here's another picture of the watermelon socks. I can't put it down. The sock has a short row garter stitch heel, a la Lucy Neatby. I'm using US size 1 dpns and getting 9 stitches per inch. I can't put it down!!

I joined another group in Yahoo called Socks For Soldiers where we knit BBS (that's Big Black Socks) to be sent to our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan and any where abroad. So, far, I've dyed 2 skeins of deep black yarn, which I will knit only in the daytime, with plenty of lighting. I can't believe I don't have any BLACK sock yarns in my stash!

There was quite a discussion on Watermelon yarns for socks and other items, handpainted by Freshisle Fibers. Quite intriguing. I ordered the book Yarns to Dye For by Kathleen Taylor. Very interesting and with detailed instructions on handpainting self striping, Fair Isle, and graduated color yarns. The patterns are very basic (you don't buy the book for its patterns), to support the yarns.

So, I experimented and here's what I got:




And here's the knitted sock out of this yarn.



I won't go into details as to how I handpainted the yarn. I respect her copyright but it is very involved and time consuming. I like it.

My dad is an avid garage sale shopper (you do know where I'm heading...). Born and raised in the Philippines, came to the US when he was 50, he couldn't believe how wasteful these Americans are--lol! Some of the stuff he finds are mostly new and never used, literally being sold for a dollar or less. He's found some really good buys.

He called me one early Saturday morning and told me that he bought this spinning wheel (read on...). He knows absolutely nothing about wheels except for the fact that I have two. He made sure that the parts are all there and that it works (I really don't know how he can tell, he, he).

He brought it to the house after buying it for $35. Oh my gosh! This is a Country Craftsman, no longer being made, spins beautifully, and hardly used. The owner, apparently bought it for display. I can't tell if it's been used. Even the treadle looks pristine. It came with its own stool. One website had it advertised for $579 altogether. She has 1 left.

I love you, Dad.

What are these?

A jumble of coolties!

I have been an inactive member of the Ships Support group headed by Ellen Harpin. When the call came for coolties for our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, I reported for duty. With temperatures ranging from 110 to 130 degrees, I've got to help.

These ties are filled with polymer crystals that swell up into cool gels when soaked in cold water. Keeps you cool when worn around the neck. I don't sew, can barely sew a straight line, but I'm loving this sewing machine thing. My husband showed me how to operate this thing, how to thread the needle, how to make it go (fast, I say, fast!)etc., etc. I'm loving it. I might even take classes! woo hoo!

I've since sewn 90 coolties and immediately mailed them to Ellen.

Enough of my adventures. To learn more about the ships support project, click on the Ships Project website.

The inexpensive polymer crystals are available at theWatersorb website.

The free patterns for the coolties or neckbands are found here.

Right now, I'm still sewing up more ties from donated cotton fabrics. If you can help, check out the website. Ellen is always in need of postage. If you have men colored 100% cotton fabrics you can donate, please do so. And visit the website. Please.

Way back in College, I had a dear friend, whom I haven't seen since 1982. We went to the University of the Philippines, and for 4 years, we stuck together, through good times and bad, homesickness and silliness, 24/7. Welll, not really 24/7, more like 16/5. She was almost my sister and for sure, best friend.

I have been looking for her, on and off, for these past years. She's always been in the back of my mind. Whatever did happen to my friend, Norie??

Last April 15 (it was the last filing day), I dreamt about her. Whatever did happen to Norie? This May, she found me, through the wonders of the internet, emails, and a former classmate. She's still in the Philippines, married with children, head of the IT department of a prestigious Advertising firm and very successful. I knew she'd make it! She's always been a Math and computer whiz and very, very smart.

We haven't stopped emailing each other since then. The wonders of email.

OKC: I'm back to knitting socks and lace. I've put down, temporarily, the Fair Isle Philosopher wool sweater and some Aran Sweaters I'm working on. Too hot.

I'm on a roll... again. With the warm weather here in Sac, and breezy conditions, I've been handpainting yarns and rovings. The open patio is in use again. I have an old microwave and mini stove, plus all my dyes and mordants, all set up outside. With the coming hot weather, the wool should dry really fast.

Check out the other yarn colorways
HERE. These are being sold at Frog Pond Knits on consignment. In order for me to make a little money, consignment is the only way. Can't mass produce and wholesale these yarns. I mean, handpainting is hard work even though I enjoy playing and working with colors. There are days when I feel like just throwing blobs of color on the yarn. Goodness knows what will turn out, he, he. It has to be an organized thing, making sure the colors go together. Get inspired by nature, the setting sun, a shrub covered with flowers, the stormy sky or your 5 year old daughter's coloring book--lol!

Here's another pic of the Corriedale rovings.

The CGOA/TKGA convention in Oakland, CA was a blast! Going there was even more fun. We took Amtrak. It sounds ordinary but, you see, we have this regular Stitch and Ride thing sponsored by Amtrak. Lindsay (ahh, wonderful lady), who works for Amtrak, helps organize a very enjoyable riding experience whenever we have a convention like Stitches West or the one this last weekend.

We get to ride in the first car with fellow addicts and get a chance to win prizes donated by LYSs in the area. I actually won a prize, a Stitch Diva scarf pattern and yummy yarns. We had a celebrity, Nancie Wiseman, who signed books and also donated a prize. Time passed by really fast and before we knew it, it was time to disembark.

From Amtrak, we transfered to BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) and got off in Oakland.

The Convention itself was smaller than Stitches West and not as overwhelming. I liked it. I hung out and had lunch with 2 Auburn knitters, Julie and Sue, whom I met in the train. I regret that I didn't get their last names and more info so we can get in touch but I know they'll be taking my beginning crochet class in May at Frog Pond Knits. Looking forward to that.

As far as purchases, I bought 2 spindles, a Little Si from Cascade spindles and a beautiful handcarved one from Carolina Homespun. I bought some spinning fibers and yummy yarn from Angora Cottage. I'll post pictures tomorrow.

My handpainted rovings are now available. These are Merino/Silk blend, each one weighs 4 oz. Check out my introductory pricing. Anyone interested in purchasing them, click on this link.
My rovings page

It has been sunny the past few days here in Sacramento. Last week, I was able to dye a whole lot of Corriedale rovings. Here's a sampling.

The whole bunch went to Babetta's Yarn store in Carmichael. If you're in the area, drop by and take a look at all that glorious color. When I went for a visit, Babetta has added more shelves. That means more yarns for me, he, he.

The TKGA/CGOA Knit and Crochet convention is this coming weekend, starting this Thursday to Sunday. It's being held in Oakland, CA. Of course I'm going. Wouldn't miss it, like I tell my husband. It's a once a year thing. But then, there's Stitches West also. So I lied. It's a twice a year thing (not counting the numerous fiber fairs and craft fairs like Lambtown, etc, etc).

This Saturday, I'm taking Amtrak along with the other knitter and crocheter ladies and gents. It's a 2 hour commute to Oakland but we get to sit and chat and knit (or crochet) without having to drive or worry about parking. And sometimes, you get freebies from some of the local yarn stores. No worries, no hassle. Way too much fun, if you ask me.

Another upcoming event is the Open House at West Valley Alpacas on May 7th.

Cool.

Every knitters' dream....

...is to own a yarn store. Admit it. We spend all this money buying yarns and patterns. My dream is to live in one. Anyway, I've heard this comment thousands of times," Ah, I wish I owned a yarn store. I'd have all these lovely yarns at my fingertips. All mine! Whenever, whatever I want to knit, just grab any yarn from the shelves."

But you have to sell them to make money to buy more yarns. And you have to man the store, deal with the customers, be open 7 days a week. You can't knit anymore. You can't go to conventions, Stitches, meetings. You can't take vacations. Unless you have trusted and knowledgeable employees, you can't leave the store. Forget about Sundays, Saturdays, holidays. You stay open.

Okay, I'm getting to my point. My post about the one store NOT participating in the Sacramento Yarn Crawl. I found out why. Family owned and operated store, and I mean, family operated. No hired help and still manage to provide excellent service. Well, it just so happened that the Yarn crawl falls on 2 of the days they close the store to have their annual FAMILY picnic. A well-deserved break.

And I for one, will stop harping as to why they can't participate. Geez Louise, one store of out 13. "What's the big deal?", as my teenager would say. I'll go visit the store when they're open.

And speaking of vacations, I hope you enjoy your cruise, Danielle (Knitique)! Don't worry, your store will still be here when you get back.

Party!!!!

As part of the charitable projects we're doing at the Sac Knitting guild, we knit 7- inch squares that we put together into lapghans for the Veterans' hospital. I've knitted/designed 2 of the squares and I'm making them available in pdf format to anyone who might be interested. One is an Hourglass Square (no picture avail right now) and the other, the Bell Rib Square (pictured on the left). Use them for your charity work or as gifts. The patterns are copyrighted and may not be re-sold. These are free. Click on the links on the left sidebar.

Colors! I have been busy handpainting my rovings again. An entire batch was snagged by Frog Pond Knits. Let me tell you, I can't keep up!--lol! It seems that there's a sudden increased interest in handspinning, both with a drop spindle and wheel.

In the coming month of May, we will do a yarn crawl which covers the Sacramento area and the vicinity, up to 30 or so miles away. There will be about 12 yarn stores participating including the 5 or so we have in Sacramento. I do believe even the Stockton and Lodi stores, Davis, all the way to Auburn and Rocklin, Grass Valley and Placerville, are all included.

It saddens me though, that one of our local stores will not be participating. I do love the store and the people that work there but the decision to not join the "Crawl" is a turn off to some of the knitters I've talked to lately. I surely hope that this doesn't cause the store to lose business. Our knitting community here is getting bigger and news spreads fast. We need to help keep these LYS's open, ALL of them.

Here's a new roving from Ashland Bay, called Hollyberry. It's a multi-colored Merino, very soft and easy to spin. In the past, their multi-colored rovings were so well-blended that the colors become muddy after spinning. I like the newer version.





Here's another knitted hat using Yolo Wool Mill's wool yarn. I've adapted the design from the Knitted hats book, the one that's shaped like a hat. This book came out several years ago with the Knitted Mittens book. Note to Vera: I don't have a specific pattern for these hats. I have several books that I usually use but I make many changes to suit the style I want. The website Knitting-and.com (Sarah Bradberry's) has several free hat patterns, as well as Fair Isle charts. Sorry for my delayed response.

Here's the red crocheted shawl that I did for Frog Pond Knits. The pattern is by Karabella. The yarn is by Katia, a fingering weight cotton yarn. I understood the pattern easily. But then, I'm a veteran crocheter. I could have written it another way to make it easier for a beginner to comprehend. I fudged and made changes (like always) and liked the way it turned out. It's now on display at Frog Pond.

Last night's crochet class was fun. I wish I could visit their store more often but the distance from home combined with really, really, REALLY bad traffic scares me. They're planning a YARN CRAWL, where people visit several participating yarn stores in the area , where each store has something fun and special to offer the customers. I am really looking forward to it.

One of the 20 or so hats I knitted in Dec,2005 for Yolo Wool Mill. All I had to work with are 3 colors of wool yarn, white, light gray and dark brown. All natural colors. You would think that I would be sick and tired of knitting hats by the time they were done. On the contrary,they were fun knits. Each hat was a different design. I really had to be creative to use up only 3 colors. I did cables, slip stitches, fair isle, textures, lace, etc, etc. And I took lots of pictures.

That's why I love knitting little articles of clothing. One or two days and you're done with the project. Move on to the next. But then, I also enjoy knitting sweaters now. I used to be intimidated by knitting larger garments. For fear of not finishing them (and I have a lot of unfinished projects).

One of my many FOs, my 9 yo son's Aran Sweater from the Aran and Celtics book. The yarn used is Knitpicks' Natural colored Wool of the Andes. They yarn turned out soft and great for next to skin wear. What an enjoyable pattern to knit. I think I only used 3 (or maybe 4?) skeins, 220 yards each, $3.49 per skein. What a bargain.

Almost forgot: thank you so much for all the birthday greetings. It was a wonderfully quiet birthday. We celebrated with dinner Sunday night at my parents. Yesterday, my husband brought home the most scrumptious, moistest chocolate cake ever. With strawberries on top! The kids gave me their homemade version of birthday cards, the one you treasure the most. I still have the ones they gave me the previous years. Little Emily knows how to incorporate yarn and pretzels in hers. Matthew's is the pop-up version, with hearts and "I love you's". My secret pal from the knitting guild even delivered her present. She must have ran really fast to her car after ringing the doorbell because I DIDN'T CATCH HER!!!

thank you.

A new pattern called Any Which Way, Sachets!The best part in knitting these sachets is that I used up a lot of my leftover sockyarns. I prefer using solid colored yarns versus the self-patterning ones. I used cotton yarns, silk yarns, Lorna's Laces, Artyarns, Gems Merino Pearl, etc., etc.

The patterns is available in downloadable format at
The Knitting Zone.

more to come

well, hello! I just want those few people who read my blog know that I am still here and getting busier by the day. Today is my birthday! I'm 45. Aside from a few (actually, I lied. A lot of) gray hairs and a few aching joints, I still feel the same as the day I turned 21, he, he.

I have lots of designs in the making and planning stage. I'm teaching several crochet classes at Knitique and Frog Pond knits. That's keeping me more busy but I love it. I've taught some kids crochet classes which totally amazes me. I love these kids. So eager to learn yet not afraid to show their frustrations when the hook won't go through the stitch--lol! I hope to pass on this craft to as many people as possible.

And my kids are learning to spin on a drop spindle. There is still hope that at least one of my kids will pick up my love of fiber.

will take more pics. Believe me, I have lots of finished projects.

It's been a while, yes, it's been a while.

Christmas and New Year's day rushed by really fast. The trip to Vegas didn't help at all. I will not take a trip anywhere during the Christmas holidays. Never! Well, maybe, if it's to Hawaii (he, he).

I'm the type of person who likes to savor and enjoy the moment. I like to enjoy listening to Christmas songs, shopping at my own pace, enjoying the lights, etc, etc. Never got to do that because we were in Vegas (of all places), the city of lights and noise and traffic, and smoke and gambling, of people wandering in a daze after losing their money on the slots. Hated it.

I've got pictures! (not Vegas).



These are my beet dyed yarns. Last year, we joined Full Belly Farms' Community Supported Agriculture program. Each week, we get to enjoy organic fruits and veggies. In one of my boxes, we got fresh beets. So, who knows how to process beets? You boil them for 45 minutes or until tender.

Being a frugal and opportunistic person that I am, I couldn't throw out the beet water. It's a beautiful shade of fuschia/red/pink. So, I threw in several skeins of handspun yarn and one superwash wool/nylon yarn (the one on the left).

See what happened? These yarns were all dyed in the same pot and absorbed the beet red dye differently. Amazing. What will I think of next?

Two New patterns

Rainfall Lace Scarf

I had fun knitting and designing this one. The lavender on the left is one skein of Louet Gems Merino Pearl (can substitute Artyarns Ultra Merino 4 or Lorna's Laces Sock yarn). The Peach on the right is Louisa Harding's Kashmir yarn, a cashmere/wool/polyester blend yarn that I got at Knitique. I lost the ball band but I remember the name. Very soft and drapey with a little sheen.


Jane's House socks

Sturdy enough to wear like slippers at home. When I visited Yolo Wool Mill in Woodland, CA, I was asked to design something using Jane Deamer's wool yarn. She calls them her "commercial" yarns because the wool comes from local growers, some Merino, Cormo, Romney and CVM sheeps. These socks are very quick to knit because the yarn is heavy worsted to Aran weight. I used size 5 dpns.

I have more pictures to share. My digital camera is almost full of pictures that I haven't downloaded to my computer (either I'm busy or very very lazy, he, he). Of course I'm very busy: knitting up samples for yarn stores and finishing up some other design in the making.

My oldest daughter turns 16 on Dec 13th and we will celebrate her birthday on the 10th, our wedding anniversary. She complains that I haven't given her a party since she turned 7 years old. Okay, so I guess we're giving her one.

My dad's clan is also having a grand reunion this month to be held in Las Vegas! Not really my favorite place to go since I don't gamble and I have little kids. But we'll do our best to enjoy ourselves. Plus, we get to see some cousins, Uncles and Aunts whom I haven't seen since the 70's and 80's.Talk about "long-lost".

The Knitting Zone will now be carrying my patterns in downloadable format. I am very excited about this.More exposure.

Well, there you go. Since I haven't blogged for a while, I am taking advantage of this lapse and pouring out everything that's happening this month.

...18 days 'til Christmas...

Lapghans Part 2

Well, yes, I messed up yesterday. The pictures did not load! Blame it on the slow dial up connection, blogger and picturetrail mess up. So, here they are: 2 lapghans I put together for our local knitting guild. These are donated to a local veterans' home.


I picture veterans as mostly men. I do hope they enjoy the colors, he, he.

Here's another:

Men and pink go together, don't you think so?

This last one is for Warm up America. Now, this time, I picked more manly boring colors:


I enjoyed putting these squares together, mixing and matching the colors, designs, etc, etc. The ladies from the guild were great knitting the squares.

However, I grumbled the whole time I was putting the Warm Up America afghan together. One, because the blocks were not an even 7"x9". And two, the lady who organized the whole thing was no help. She spent the whole time yakking about her life history than sewing. And she had the nerve to tell us to take the blocks home and finish them at home. arghhh...

This was the only finished afghan. I was so mad that I finished it single handed (ha, ha. I showed her!!) Enough venting.

On a side note: The kids and I were watching "Invasion" last night, which I think is a truly fascinating TV show, right after "Lost", another favorite. Anyhoo, we started talking about dolphins and whales. What do you get when you cross the 2 together? Daughter says: " a Dowhale".
I say: "a Wholphin". I like that one better.

Orlando

Totally unrelated to knitting (although I knitted while I watched his movie)... We rented "Kingdom of Heaven". I didn't expect to like it since it is 2 hours long and because I have a short attention span. But I loved it. My husband couldn't figure out who the main actor was. Orlando Bloom! I fell in love with him (who didn't) as Legolas, totally hot elf, in Lord of the Rings. Hubby says he's unrecognizable as Lord Belian in this movie. The movie was very riveting, rather gory, and had unexpected turns that kept you guessing.

This weekend is the Open House at Yolo Wool Mill in Woodland, CA. 10 am - 4 pm, with a barbeque at 1 pm. I will pick up some of the wool I had spun at the mill. I can't keep up with my growing stash and can't hand spin them up by myself. Looking forward to it.

I was able to put together a whole afghan for Warm Up America, measuring 46" by 63" . I do believe I have a career in doing this. Add to that the 2 more lapghans I put together for the guild. Whew!

We have a project at the Knitting guild to knit squares which will be put together to make lapghans. These will then be donated to a Veteran's home or a nursing home in the Sacramento area. I volunteered, as well as 2 other members, to put them together. I had a grand old time doing it. Here are the results:



and another:



I crocheted the squares together. Some were oversized and some were undersized. There was one lady who knitted several fair isle (see the blue lapghan) squares, changing colors each row. Would you believe she cut each color every row instead of carrying them up? I must have had thousands of ends to weave in. My mom helped. I could have thrown the squares out but I persevered. Well, hey, this lady must have been a new knitter and to her, those squares meant something.

The project is ongoing. On the weekend of the 22nd, October, our Crochet Guild will be putting squares together for the Warm Up America organization. This will be held at Michael's on Truxel road in the Natomas area. Knitters are welcome to help.

Regarding my previous post, Lynette asked: "Are the knitters (Sac Guild) nicer to each other these days?"

I hesitate to answer (but I will): Welllll, yes and no. Two months back, there was an outburst from one of the members. I can't blame her and I can't blame the other members for cringing in their seats (me included) when it happened. I'll tell you all about it when I see you. Don't be afraid to come! You're missing out on all the beautiful projects.

Last month, there was an hour discussion on making motions, seconding the motion, making another motion on top of the other one you just made. I stopped listening at this point. It gave me a huge headache and made me dizzy and confused, he, he.

The officers and some members are so deep into making everything formal and politically correct that I think they've forgotten the primary purpose of the Guild. To knit,to enjoy, to learn and be with other knitters and have fun doing it.

see ya...

Sometimes, reading other people's blogs depresses me that there are days I don't even want to read them anymore. Others inspire me. You see something they have created and you get motivated to create as well.

I do realize that problems come and go, and some people vent through their blogs. I also know that it is my choice to read or not to read. I will choose NOT. I have removed some blogs from my list of daily reads, mostly from other knitters who write problems after problems, day after day after day. Enough!

I spent a wonderful 4 day weekend with a dear friend from high school whom I have not seen for 28 years! It was a long overdue reunion. About 4 years ago, we found each other and have been keeping in touch by email. It was around that time that she lost her 18 year old daughter to a car accident. I know Janet is still grieving but you know what? She chooses not to wallow in grief and depression. There you go, CHOICE. She faces each day with wonderment and brings joy to others around her. She knows that she will see her daughter, Jaymie, again, when it is her time to go and she looks forward to that. I am happy to say that we share the same belief.

I also taught her to knit! She went home to Palm Springs with needles and yarns and has since finished a scarf. WE have created a blog for Jaymie and I have started to design a scarf which we will call "Forever Jaymie". Profit from the sale of this scarf will be donated to the Umbrella ministries (for grieving parents who have lost a child). I can't wait to finish it.

I have not posted for a while and have no new pictures to show. But I'm still knitting and crocheting and spinning too. It's kinda hard to get back to blogging again.

I am so disappointed in how Artyarns has bundled my patterns. They are my work of art and each one took a lot of hours to work up. For them to be sold as 3-in-1 patterns is very disappointing. But, we live and learn. It won't happen again. If they want to sell any of my patterns in the future, I will do my own pattern fulfillment. I will move on and design some more. Instead of making this experience a setback, I will use it to motivate me and get the designing juices to flow. One thing I can say is that they truly have beautiful yarns.

I am currently knitting an Elsebeth Lavold sweater out of her latest book called the Take Five Collection (Book 6). It's the Margery sweater with exquisite cables, not overpowering, but just plain classy. I promise to take some pictures. I admire Lavold and Kathy Zimmerman for their classy designs.

I might have abandoned the Master Knitting Level 1 program offered by TKGA. I don't know if I want to pursue it. They've increased their pricing for all 3 levels which makes it financially difficult for me. We'll see.

In the meantime, I have been studying Janet Szabo's books and practicing on knitting Aran designs. I have also ordered the Stitch and Motif maker software from Knitpicks (theirs is the cheapest price) and might eventually go into designing sweaters. Again, we'll see how it goes.

Until next time...

Modular Knitting

I bought the "Modular Knits" book recently from a local Barnes and Noble bookstore and here's one of the scarves I've knitted:



It's called the Sequined Sash. I didn't use any sequins in mine but I added some beads to the tassel by crocheting them in with the chains.

The pattern was easy to follow and I used only one skein of Gems Merino Pearl that I handpainted. There's only 175 yards in this skein.

There are several projects in this book that I want to do. The "Holes Scarf" took several tries and frogging before it finally clicked. I was able to do it in the end.

More pics of some Mitered designs I've done in the past (in review):

Mitered cardigan for my daughter Emily. My own design but not written down. I am re-knitting this one so I can write down the pattern. The sleeves are crocheted. Yarn used was the discontinued Mexican Wave yarn.


Mitered vest that I bought as a kit from some online store. The pattern was poorly written and had to be tweaked. This one used 2 skeins of Opal sock yarn (yes! only 2). Inspite of swatching, the vest came out too big for my frame.

Just Pictures

Crocheted Shawl using laceweight alpaca yarn bought from West Valley alpacas. I used about 500 yards and added beads to the edge. The pattern is from Fiber Trends "Crocheted Cobweb Capelets and Shawls" which I tweaked. I got bored crocheting plain single crochet throughout. So I added several rows of lace and changed some of the stitches to double crochet.





Knitted Moebius scarf from Cat Bordhi's First Treasury of Magical Knitting. Interesting construction! I ran out of the cream yarn so, I added a Moorit colored wool/cashmere blend yarn. I guess it worked out okay.





Danielle's Crocheted purse pattern. I used 2 skeins of Plymouth Fantasy Naturale in a blue/lime green variegated colorway and a small yardage of blue cotton yarn for the trim. This yarn (Fantasy Naturale) has a sheen to it, strong, and cabled. I would say, just perfect for anything crocheted.





And finally, socks. The pattern is my own Snake and Ladders. The yarn is Regia's Nation colorway. The Nation colorway depicts flags of several countries and forms wide stripes. I don't think it sold very well. My little Emily picked this colorway because it reminded her of peppermint sticks.



The sock and bag went on display at Knitique. They provided the yarns for the samples.

I have been lazy and have not blogged for a while.

I have been knitting like crazy, samples of my patterns for Artyarns.

Joel and I took the kids to Six Flags/Marine World and had a ton of fun. Even my hard to please teenager said she couldn't believe she had fun with her family, he, he.

The CA State Fair is on but we haven't gone there yet.

West Nile Virus is at epidemic proportions here and still, they haven't finished spraying because of the windy weather. One good thing is that it has been a lot cooler lately.

I went crazy and dyed some more spinning fiber. It's a lot of work but you're rewarded in the end when you hang up the colorful fibers to dry. My backyard is rainbow colored.

I need to finish knitting these samples.

I have to visit Knitique and finalize the crochet class I'm teaching this fall.

arghhh... I have oral surgery on Tuesday. Now, why in the world did I think of this one. I am really really trying to forget it.

hopefully, some pictures for next time.

Ahh...Peter Jennings (no knitting news today)

I will miss him. I missed him the past few months he hadn't been on the air. He's one classy dude. I watched him all the time. He was the only one I watched because I trusted what he reported. He exuded honesty and trust and humor. He was real and he put people he interviewed at ease.

Rest in Peace, Mr. Jennings. And may God comfort his family during this time. He will be sorely missed.

Colors

Some samples of my handyed fiber. Babetta
sells them in her store.



and some more:



Those silky things running through the fiber is viscose or Rayon, a plant fiber. The blend is Merino/Rayon. A few on the right are Corriedale Cross rovings.

It's about time...

...we had our own yarn store in Elk Grove.

Knitique is located in the Williamson shopping center on Elk Grove Blvd in Elk Grove, CA.



Just check out the yarns inside:



The store is wonderfully hip, with lime green and fuschia walls, and huge soft and pink couch and chairs just inside the store, beside the huge windows. It just invites you to come in, bring your knitting and sit and chat. They also have a little play area for kids, in the back. But my kids are drawn to the pink sofa.





I say hip but it not only draws the younger crowd but the mature knitter as well. The owner, Danielle, and the other people who work there (I've met Teresa and Nancy) will make you want to stay. Talk about friendliness and helpfulness. Thanks, Danielle, for letting me take pictures.

More next time... a visit to other LYS in the Sacramento area.

Check out the new Crochet pattern, Lattice Lace Scarf.





I used a G hook, 2 skeins of what else but Misti worsted weight alpaca yarn. The pattern calls for only 220 yards of soft worsted weight yarn.

Knitique in Elk Grove, CA was the first store to carry this pattern. West Valley Alpacas will also be selling it at the TKGA Convention in Oakland.

Knitique's owner, Danielle , has mentioned that a lot of her customers crochet but there's not a lot of crochet patterns out there. I might have found my niche. I will also be teaching a crochet class come this Fall. The store is way too close to my house that it's scaring my husband, he, he.

If you're interested in purchasing this pattern, just click over to my website. It's found here .


...more later...

More on Aran Obssession

As part of my Master Knitting Level 1 education, I have this urge to knit an Aran sweater. I've been reading up on it, the history of Aran knitting, etc, etc and have been fascinated with Aran sweaters and designs.

I have started, a month ago, the Cafe Cardigan, from the July/Aug 2005 issue of Cast On magazine. A mix of lace and cables. I finished it this month. Here's a picture of the finished back. I will soon post a picture of the completed cardigan, washed and blocked. The pattern is riddled with errors. Do check the TKGA website for all the corrections, if you do decide to knit it. It's a very easy pattern and I do plan on knitting it again. Yarn used: Shine from Knitpicks. 8 skeins.




Another one I started (and have not finished yet) is the Honey Bearan sweater, a freebie at the Knitting Beyond the Hebrides website. It's an Aran sweater for a Teddy bear or an 18" doll. A very enjoyable experience!




Last but not least, also started, is a cabled cardigan from an older issue of Knitters magazine.




Yes, I have, once again, started several projects at the same time, he, he.

I love it!