goals

i decided not to have any new year's resolutions this year.  instead i have chosen 3 crafty goals to achieve.  this really excites me rather than creating a daunting  feeling of formidable failure which always looms over me when i make resolutions.
my goals:

1.  learn to knit socks in the toe up format.  i've avoided this method for years and it's time to learn a new way of doing socks-if i hate it- i can at least say i tried it and never do it again.  besides- i really want to make knee socks and this seems to be the preferrred method when it come to calf shaping etc.

2. learn to embroider!!!  i got this great book at ben franklin called "doodle-stitching"  by aimee ray

looks like a great book- i can't wait to start!  i stumbled across a blog i want to share with you-"one sheepish girl."  very inspiring- she embroiders too-click here to see her embroidery creativity!! 

3. learn to crochet for reals!! i fell in love with this hexagon blanket.  i saw it on ravelry and fogwalker(her ravelry name) used "malabrigo"  for god-sake!!!  no red heart for this girl-  it must be the softest thing ever!!!! here's her project page if you are interested. here is a picture:

now you can see why i want to learn crochet.  i really really must have one of these blankets.  

i also want to learn to quilt but i think i'll save that for next year.  i think i'll be plenty busy as it is.  damn- i have chores awaiting-i'd rather be creating........why do these things always have to get i  the way of my creativity-why oh why!

birth of a geysir!

despite many commissions and UFOs(unfinished objects-knitter lingo)  i joined one of my favorite knitting designers, stephen west, choreoKAL in november.  it was fabulous-  for 10$  you received a month long issue of patterns-a new one each week, along with stretching videos to help with the body getting tight while knitting.  quite entertaining too!  there were bonus patterns as well!  best 10$  i ever spent.  the first pattern was the geysir stretch shawl.  one look and i knew i had to cast on immediately!!!!  i was determined to use yarn from my stash.  i had some awesome yarn i got at my LYS this summer at the annual parking lot sale.  just call me little miss thrifty!  the yarn was-get this----1$  a skein.  yes, you read that correctly.  only one freakin dollar per skein-and it called for  four skeins of worsted weight yarn.  my four dollar shawl.  skeins were originally 17$ per skein.  that would have been a 68$  shawl.  yes, major pat on the back!!!  the yarn is "knit one crochet too"  meadow silk.  a wonderful wool silk blend with nice drape.

 

 it took about 4 starts to get the color combo and gauge that i liked best.  worsted weight yarn on size 9 needles this is a quick satisfying project.  i finished it the first week in january. the 2nd to be exact!  amazing for me- as it takes me forever to finish projects cause i keep starting new ones!  my pattern notes are here if you want more info.

this shawl grows quickly!

i can't resist a photo shoot of this beautiful shawl- i love it so much.  bear with me!

blocking on the kitchen table

collected my breakfast and couldn't resist to add it to the photo shoot!

 

stephen encouraged people to look around in their environment for color inspiration and take a photo of it and then share a photo of your yarn(color) choice.  very cool to see what people came up with.  i started looking around at color combos much more than usual.  but being that i was stash busting, i didn't get to choose my colors this way.  but as i was knitting i kept thinking of a robin's nest with eggs.  after i completed the shawl i went on google images and found my photo inspiration-ha!

i have some of the robin egg yarn color left and i think i'll make a little hat to match.  too cute!

and the winner is................

while the boys were away i did a bit of New Years cleaning-i know hard to believe.  i moved a stack of boxes(full of fiber no doubt)  and low and behold i found underneath something my mother would have been horrified to find.  not me-i was fascinated.  so, the other day on my facebook page i ran a little contest -who ever could guess what i found would win a prize.  wow!  that woke folks up!  people love to win things-i didn't even list the prize.  i did get a winner pretty quickly-the answer wasn't exact but close enough.  i didn't want to spoil the fun right away and tell people i had a winner-so soon.  i was getting some real good answers!  in fact they were so good i decided to add a second prize for the answer that just cracked me up-out loud. here's the list for you to enjoy.  i just cut and pasted the list- too lazy to retype-hence the caps!

"petrified lizard, a dead mouse under the sofa, dead dehydrated bird on top of a beam, an old old old Easter egg, dead snake? a roll of 100 dollar bills equal to a thousand under the kitchen sink? dog turd, cool yarn stash, dried Frog, mummified Cornish game hen, growing mushrooms,  MUMMIFIED EX BOYFRIEND- THAT HAD BEEN LIVING IN YOUR ATTIC!, AMELIA EIRHART!!!,  JIMMY HOFFA!, MOHAIR YARN WITH MOTHS IN IT!, MOUSE NEST MADE FROM MOHAIR YARN,  D.B. Cooper, a little stash of teeth that a pack-rat collected(because they were pretty),  D.B. Cooper's money? an uncashed tax refund from 2001,
grilled cheese sandwich!, yer kid's very old and dusty diaper, Cooter!!!!!, an expired yarn gift certificate,  a deer leg, that your dog brought in!, sheep pellets, mummified bat, ancient dog barf and lastly owl Pellets."  wow!  what a great list!!!  could become a great children's book someday. Aunt Betty's Cleaning Frenzy!!!

 okay-i know you all are at the edge of your seat. drum roll please!! the winner is sharon campbell!!!! 

sharon guessed "a dead mouse under the sofa"- but it is just the head of a dead mouse and it was under a box of fiber.  and i remember the night Kitzie (may she rest in peace)  brought it in the house, tortured it and chased it behind that stack of boxes. i didn't want to deal with it at 3:00am. then forgot about it.  wondered what that smell was later on.  sharon you win an original woolydaisy hand dyed skein of yarn- woowoo!!!  please email me your mailing addy!

the second prize winner goes to lee from the north coast.  the mummified ex-boyfriend that was living in the attic just had me crying-so very norman bates-just loved it.  although i loved all of the answers!!! the stash of teeth was a close one-was that lee or marzel? i did have a dog once that was always finding deer legs and wanted to bring them in the house!!!  he just couldn't understand why i wouldn't let him do that!  and yes, i do have a collection of petrified lizards and owl pellets.

and yes folks i'm a sucker for prizes too-so third prize winner is marzel for her excitement, enthusiasm  and passion for this contest. marzel-you get a skein of my hand dyed  yarn as well- and lee, yours is a surprise!

 i leave you with a couple of pics of my hand knit socks.

 more to come!!!


 

the voice of reason...........damn you!

here it is 2013!!!!  welcome!!!!  it's the first new year's i've spent alone in....wait.  it is the very first new year's i've spent alone in my whole life.  oh- don't pity me.  i love alone time.  it's not often i get special "wooly"  time all to my "daisy"  self.  the boys are away on mountain bike adventure to so. cal.  check out our new '98 subaru!

unfortunately, everytime i do get "wooly" time something happens that challenges me.  i think the last time it was an eleven day power outage. this time- a touch of the stomach flu or possible food poisoning from that manhatten veggie clam chowder i made.  is it often that canned clams are bad?  but i'm enduring and pushing on.  i WILL enjoy my self damn it!!

it wasn't long after the boys left that i went freakin uber ape shit and started pulling boxes and bins out of my closet studio- i began 3 new knitting projects and a spinning project as well. not to mention winding skeins for dyeing!  i was crazed! a lunatic-practically foaming at the mouth.  running around the house knitting 5 minutes on one project, 5 minutes on another project, 5 minutes of spinning, on the phone to neighbor and fellow fiber trash girl rhodi-"quick, do have a size 13, 36 inch circular knitting- oh please oh please!!!!"  yes, score!  there's another new project--yehaa!!! 

i was acting like a meth head with a table piled high with meth!!!  totall bliss.  but then, the loud voice of reason came crashing down on me like john henry's hammer.

 that's me-the spike! rained on my parade.  damn you loud voice of reason! whisper you did not!  i came to my senses. brought back to reality-out of my fiber induced frenzy. i have many commissioned projects i need to finish first and my geysir stretch shawl is almost finished. just 6 more rows and the bind off!  it's fabulous pattern by the fabulous stephen west.  quick knit except the edging seems to be taking for-EVAR!!!!!  which makes me want to start a new project...  i think it's time to hunker down and watch "flash dance"-(it's newly added to netflix you know) and just get it done!!!

well, i've dabbled enough on this machine......i need to get me cold arse outside and feed the chickens, walk the dragon, pick up the house a bit and then settle in for a day of fibery bliss......................... oh wait one more thing.  you've got to see my new project bag i gifted to my precious self at solstice.  katie from dancing sheep made it.  check out her etsy shop!  no more disgusting plastic bright yellow grocery outlet project bags for this fiber trash girl...yes, i know the plastic bags are more trashy-esque.  but come on, let's get real.

JUST SAY NO!