Don't wanna... Can't make me!

I'm in a knitting funk. Sigh!
I am spinning tho, so there is hope.

Recognition

Fathers day.. been and gone. While Wyatt was here (our middle son) he showed us that he'd been interviewed and published in a Magazine!! Yes, Another one.. and in English!! Lol..last time, I think it was Chinese. Check it out: Wyatts Interview
Wyatt has been designing cars and other things since he was a teenager. I like to think that my small graphic design business got his creativity working. He has always been a good artist.
So, this is part of his side business!! If you can believe that. I'm hoping that he will get so much design work that he has to quit his day job. Then he can spend more time with his 4 kids and work from home... his ultimate goal, I think.

Catch up time

Yesterday my husband brought me home 2 fleeces from his friend, Rich, at work. Thanks Rich!! One black, one white. Now I need to find a box to send them off to Dawns Custom carding.

I have been knitting on the blue sweater and the wrap from the story below. But, having a Knitting block! Think I'll spin for awhile. I have a ton to spin up.

Thursday Group at Village Yarn and Tea has an Official name now: Church Of The Holy Stitch. We came upon that one because of Anna Marie, who is a sometimes member and an Episcopalian Priest(I think thats the right church). Tho you'd never know it from talking to her. She is great fun. A total sweetheart with a questionable sense of humor.

Got Tagged By Kim

The Lovely Kim tagged me. Was wondering why I'd never been tagged...mmmm...
So, 7 Random things about me.

#1 My husband Bill and my 3 Boys (Jerico,Wyatt(Jyll) & Marshall) and thier kids (Eryka, Trysten, Jayda,Bryce)and my extra kids
(Andrew, Grant, Shane & Marie) are the most important people in the world. Even the ones I only hear from occassionally.

#2 I got my first computer in 1982. I begged Bill not to buy it. I was afraid it would eat my brain. I think it did! I designed graphics for the TI99-4a for 4 years. Rarely walked far away from it. All the kids work in one computer field or another.

#3 As an add on to #2- I'm a video game Freak. For the last 4 years I've played Final Fantasy XI everyday. Heaven help anyone who asks me about it because I could talk about it for HOURS. A total geek!

#4 I hate Spiders!! I lived in Hawaii for a few years..in my hippy days.. One of my memorable stories is how while living in Waikiki I saw my first Cane spider and Screamed like I was being Stabbed. I had the Honolulu cops rushing into my apt. with guns drawn in less then a minute. How embarrassing. Cane spiders can be 5-6 inches across. Gives me heebie Geebies just writing about it!

#5 I love Cats...I could be the crazy cat lady!

#6 Inside I'm a sassy Victorian Princess.. all flowers and Lace. Sometimes some of that sneaks out in little ways. A lace blouse.. flowery hair something.

#7 I own at least 100 pairs of earrings. I have a rule. If I leave the house without earrings I have to buy some. Most of the 100 I made myself and would be overjoyed to make you a pair. I cannot resist BEADS.. that should be #8 but it only asked for 7.

So whom do I tag? Don't wanna duplicate Kims.. so.. Sharon, Pam, Jyll, Emma, Rebecca , Nilda,
and Rebecca. Boy that was hard to do!

The rules of the meme game are: If you are tagged, list 7 random things about yourself on your blog, then tag 7 others, listing their names on your blog. Leave a note in their blog comments so they know they've been tagged and to read your blog. I've never been tagged for something like this before, so I hope all my taggees have fun with it.

Village Yarn and Tea - Touring Wrap

The big Shop hop was last weekend. VY&T had a free pattern for a sweet lacy wrap that looked easy and I already HAD some Lornas Laces (Helen's Lace) in pastel sherbert colors. I'm really loving this pattern. I started it Thursday and even managed to knit on it at the Dr. office. My hands shaking the whole time. I hate going to the Dr. But, I got outa there none the worse for wear and only one minor mistake in the knitting that I fixed while sitting in the room waiting.
I have a sweater I want to make for myself but have been waiting 3 weeks for the supplier to deliver the yarn to VY&T. Sigh.. Hope I still wanna make it when it finally gets here!! I have this all done in my head in a light aqua color.
I like how its fitted slightly and I always like doing cables. Ya.. I still love this sweater..lol
Delivered 18 new beads to VY&T. Some of them were totally different made to look likes leaves wrapped around. I ordered some maple leaf cookie cutters and will try using those next. OH, I roll my eyes when they ask for new beads but I really do enjoy making them. Just seems funny that after 20 years of trying to get my work in galleries that its the Beads that make it into a nice shop. Who could have guessed!!

Alpine Boots

I saw a pair of these worked in Tourquoise. I'm making a pair in Hot Pink with a Multi colored hairy yarn for the top.. blues/pink. I'm thinking Jayda might love them..lol
Also, have a sweater planned for her. She kinda got Gipped last time I handed out knit projects. She looked upset.
The sizes go to 9in.. I'm thinking.. Mmmmm.. wonder if I could make them fit me!
Think I'm making this sweater also for Jayda. I have several Lornas lace worsted skeins. Not as pretty as this tho.
This is a Knitting pure and simple pattern. A simple neck down raglan. She reminds me of Jayda for some reason.

See what Emma made me!!

I asked Emma if she could try dyeing some really pale pastels with alot of white between. Isn't this gorgeous!? Thanks Emma!
Check out her Etsy shop Dragon Fibers.
I'll be spinning this for awhile. I bought 8 oz. I'm thinking lacy shawl. So far the colors blend smoothly and are very subtle.

Stupid car

For all my Saturday Knitting buddies. Husband is changing the power steering pump on my SUV today. Its been making horrible noises for months now. Leaking fluid and all that. So.. won't be there. I will miss you!

I'm in LOVE

I fell in love with this pattern from Magknits as soon as I saw it. Fighting with the bead needles I have at the moment but I'm going to Michaels tomorrow to find something that will work better. Urge to scream!!
I'll post pictures as soon as I have one finished. I think getting the beads on the thread is going to be the hard part..lol.
UPDATE: Got the needles, more beads and more thread. I tried really hard not to over shop seed beads. Looking at a variety pack I bought makes me want to get the bead loom out again.
UPDATE 2: I spent Saturday playing with the pattern and wondered why it looked loose. Having trouble keeping the beads from traveling into the next stitch. Then late that night I read blogs of people who have made this bracelet. One specifically was complaining about the size of the needles and thats when I realized. It wasn't 0 (2.0)I was supposed to be using but 0000 (1.25). Where the heck do I find those? I've never seen anything smaller then 0. Wait maybe I have.. at Village yarn and tea!! But, then I thought... Maybe.. I can use the pins I use to make my Spinning wheel threading hooks! We shall see if that works better. I really must want this bracelet BAD!!

Boys and Their Toys

Mr. Bill (my husband) and our youngest son, Marshall with their cougars (1999 and 1967). Ain't they a pair...........

What? Am I awake? I did WHAT??!!

Ginger has talked me into joining her and Emma at the Knitting Expo down by the Airport. I haven't been to a REAL fiber fair. I was hesitant but finally said ,"ok. What time? WHAT??" I didn't sleep most of the night. Didn't realize I'd be so excited!!
Its 7am (7 freaking AM) on a quiet Saturday morning. I'm awake..Really. If I tell you we hit the place like a pack of Ferrets.. does that conjure up a picture? OMG.. I was so restrained!! 3 bags of Roving in different pastelish colorings and some silk hankies in a colorway called Peacock.
This is a picture of the back of Emma's car..left Emma's pile.. Ginger's pile and mine.
Oh .. we didn't just hit the knitting Expo. Oh no, More madness occured! Emma found..on Craigs list.. an advertisement for a Cascade warehouse Sale. Can we say.. WHEEE HAAA! Whole bags of yarn for the price of 2 skeins. WHOLE BAGS!!! They are all laying on the bed in my spare bedroom. I have such an urge to unbag everything and lay in the middle of all of it. Happy happy.
We took our spoils by Village Yarn and Tea to show off and Terri was there. She has self published a beautiful book on Selbu mittens. I knitted a couple pairs and expected to get 1 or maybe 2 free books because of my work. But, NO, she hands me 5. Ya'll know what your getting for Christmas .. right? Hee hee
This is a pic of Eryka (my grand-daughter) wearing a modern adaptation of one of Terri's patterns.

You know your getting Old When:

You go to the grocery store. Your right foot feels odd but then it does sometimes. Get the food..check out and as you walk to the car you look down and realize.. You have 2 totally different shoes on!! Not even the same color! AND, no one else noticed either!

I should make Bill his own Blog

Bill wanted to show everyone both the spindles he made. The one with the dark (black walnut) handle is "MINE"! He's been having so much fun making them. Not being a spinner himself he's been relying on what I say and what he reads. I also have about 8 spindles for him to compare against. These are the same weight or less of my favorite spindle which is kinda large. Its hard to get perspective. The Lathe is NOT a huge machine.. its called a Midi Lathe because its a fraction of the normal size. He used wood from tree limbs from our yard.. Maple and Cherry. The Black Walnut was from a small piece of wood his friend Lynn Weekly gave him YEARS ago. Lynn was/is a very special guy. We lost track of him after his back surgery. He went on the road in his motorhome. I hope he's enjoying life like he always did. I sure appreciate the beautiful piece of wood he gave us. If for some reason he sees this "CALL" damn it!

Marie's Spindle

Some of you have met my friend Marie. She is the neighbors daughter who came to the door at the age of 2 and asked if Marshall could play. I should mention that we had 4 in of snow and the only thing she was wearing were shoes. They were always best friends and she grew up here as much as she did at her moms. They climbed the trees in our yard. Marie and I spent alot of time together when she got older. I even homeschooled her for a year. She and I learned to spin together. She lives in California now.. she joined the Marines. She emailed me the other day and ask if I could get her a spindle and some roving. She missed spinning.
Well, I didn't wanna get her just any spindle. I thought if Bill (known as Mr. Bill to all the kids) could make her a spindle it would be MUCH more special. She loved to tease him and he her. I think he misses the Sassy girl who would steal his socks right off his feet and call him Dad (much to her mom and my confusion..lol) He thought about the spindle for a week and started it yesterday. His very first attempt. Its made out of wood from our big old maple tree and the Royal Anne cherry tree (that is now gone). Both trees that she and Marsh climbed. As I recall she liked to sit in the Maple tree. So, I'm hoping it will be one of her favorite things. I think "Mr. Bill" wanted it to be extra special.. turned out pretty, didn't it? It weighs about 2.25 oz. A comfortable size for someone who spins worsted weight/chunky yarn. Hope she loves it!!

Surprises in the Mail

Now, many have heard about my fleece failures of last year. I received 2 free fleeces and sent them out to Dawn's Custom carding be cleaned/carded etc only to have one be .. ewww *shudder*..buggy and the other was to long for the carder and then got lost in the mail!! I've done alot of business with Dawn and know others who have done ALOT more. So, I understood that these things happen. It wasn't her fault!!

WELL, today I received, out of NOWHERE, a box with the most beautiful grey/tan roving from Dawn. A, gee I'm sorry the Post Office f..... up gift. This is so SWEET of her. She deserves to be acknowledged for her thoughfulness.

Presents from Afar

Rebecca is so good to me! She wasn't even my Exchange partner. Both of our people pooped out on us. So we decided to exchange with each other.

SEE what she sent me today!

Purple Pimp yarn and the softest natural..I may do fairisle mitts this time. And, the chocolates, bless her heart, are sugarless! She also sent the cutest stickers..I love stickers almost as much as beads. Oh, and a St. Pattys day card that really fit me! My husband got a kick out of it. Sorry it got buried in the picture.

Speaking of beads... I made 25 more beads for Village Yarn and Tea. They are making wonderful use of them. Hopefully these will last them awhile. They are going threw them amazingly fast! I'm flattered that people like them that much. In all the years I've done ceramics and Pottery, beads were not something I spent to much time on. Funny thats whats selling now.
For some reason I can't fathom I bought $100 of cutesy beads ..lil glass butterflys, latte cups, tea cups, lady bugs and penguins and teapot findings. We'll see what I come up with. I'm thinking either stitch markers or bracelets. Either would be cute.. or..ahem.. BOTH.

Obligatory Post

I know.. I know.. I haven't said anything in ages. I'm knitting on one of Victoria's necklaces with one of My beads. I guess I should make ONE being I made 44 beads for VY&T. Thats been alot of fun. I didn't get any pictures because either my camera isn't working or husband can't take decent pictures of the beads.. to much glare off the glazes. This time I used some bright gold on them. Very fancy.
I also Spun up 2 lbs of Bubblegum pink roving. It made 9 skeins..not sure on the yardage. Was never any good at figuring that stuff. Next to spin is the shiny hot pink that Terri brought me back from Blacksheep last summer. Its gorgeous!!
Seems all I do lately is go knitting and stay home. I'm getting so boring.
Now its raining again.. so I'm stuck cleaning.. knitting.. spinning.. and playing Final Fantasy XI..sigh

Marshall's new place

The last place had some health issues. Rusty tap water. We fixed that with a filter and bottled water. Not that big of an issue. But,when he first moved in we noticed a dark spot on the ceiling..like it had leaked once upon a time. The day we looked at it, it had RAINED non stop for weeks and the spot wasn't even damp. So, we figured it had been properly fixed. But, during the windstorms we had in December 2006 it started leaking ,again! Two months later after a ton of complaints they still had not fixed it. Woah, they gave him a bucket..how nice. (sic) I'm so glad he got outa there.

So, He's moved, again! Hopefully, this will be the last time for awhile. The complex seems more a community then any of the places any of us have lived. The staff all live in the complex. We even noticed that people don't seem to move out much just move apts. Better floor plans more rooms or better views. They have 2 pools and nicely kept grounds.

The Picture of (Punk butt) Angel is for Cynthia and Charles, who gave Marshall the cat last year when she was a kitten, so they can see how she has gown.

She didn't quite know what to think of a fireplace.
The picture of her close to the fire is a camera angle thing. She's really not so close as to singe her whiskers. Picture was taken before it got really hot. He did say, she decided that laying out in front was a much better idea.

Wow, My Maiden name is :

HowManyOfMe.com

There is: 1 person with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

Buttons and Hooks

See what my husband made on his Lathe!! I needed a large button for a felted bag I made. The biggest one is the one I'll use for that and the smaller one will go on a sweater..I think.

I've been making Spinning wheel threading hooks so he thought he'd try his hand at making handles for them. Aren't they Pretty?