Knitting & Reading

It's been a busy two weeks since I last posted. I've been knitting furiously (but enjoyably), reading voraciously and running the kids around constantly. Quiet, relaxing summer? I think not. :)

Andie had been saying for a while that she wanted a "serious" haircut - - something along the lines of "much shorter." Her father and I were pretty dubious, thinking she might regret it after the fact, but we were wrong. This past Saturday, Andie and I were cruising Roanoke, getting some things done, while Skander was busy with his card tournament. While at the mall, we went into a local salon and Andie got a great haircut & styling. (Then we had to buy a flat iron so that she could do it herself at home).



So much hair was cut, in fact, that we were able to donate the ponytail to Locks of Love, an organization that makes wigs for children in need. (Yes, her hair is naturally that curly).



Finally, some knitting content. My Bev Galeskas "Pure & Simple" baby blanket is 90% done. It's huge, but it'll keep Gabrielle warm when she arrives in September. Once I finish this, I'll be back on my Dragon Scales shawl.



And finally, I found these napkins at a friend's house and laughed hysterically. I've been running across Dorothy Parker quotes a lot lately, so I finally visited the library and checked out "The Portable Dorothy Parker" and have been enjoying that enormously.

Have a great week everyone!

Pictures & Presents

Look at what arrived in the mail! Julie sent me a beautiful alpaca mug (which Andie tried, unsuccessfully, to commandeer). It's adorable and thank you so much Julie!

Yesterday, I hit the Knitters Knook 40% off sale. I was in the parking lot, waiting & knitting, when Becky pulled up to open the shop. We sat, talked, laughed and carried on for two wonderful hours; it was a ball and I had such a great time. Thank you Becky!

I also squeezed in a couple of purchases (imagine that!) and here's what I bought:

Cascade Yarns EcoWool (Here's my avalanche hat yarn Julie).

And five skeins of Encore Colors. This is going to be a baby blanket for Gabrielle (my friends, Jen & Mark's, little girl due in September).

Here's my last Sedalia souvenir. This is a Nana Sadie Rose knitting tote, the "Mavis", to be specific. When I went to the Sedalia Fiber Festival, I said that if I bought only one thing for myself, it would be one of Nana Sadie Rose's bags. I picked it up Sunday at Becky's and I love it!

Here's the inside of the bag. See the big blue pocket on the left? That's the pattern pocket! There are pockets galore and so much space. I think I just found a new fetish. LOL :)

Punk Knitting & WWKIP

I read this article on Angie's blog and had to pirate it and bring it here.

Funny? Absurd? Offensive? You decide.

Start Article:

Punk knitting: Has youth culture gone mad?

Steven Wells reports on how alternative culture has ditched rebellion for cross-stitch patterns and bobble hats

Saturday June 14, 2008
guardian.co.uk


So this is how punk ends - not with a bang but with a jumper. Today, all over the world, thousands of punks, goths, emos and other ferociously tattooed, face-pierced miscreant bastard folk-devil scum will take to the streets to protest their disgust with war, oppression and bourgeois conformity by crocheting hideous green twat-hats with stupid ear flaps.
I'm talking about World Wide Knit in Public Day. Which, by its very name, suggests that knitting is a sordid and disgusting practice best done behind locked doors and drawn curtains. Which it is.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

On at least four continents muscular youths possessed of the sort of surly disposition and fashionable facial disfigurements that persuade old folks to cross the street, muttering under their mint-humbugged breath about the return of national service, will be sat in parks and on street corners, cheerfully nattering to one another and churning out skull-festooned jumpers that proclaim the need for anarchy. The sickening truth is that knitting is hip - and Western youth culture is knitting its own death shroud.
This decade's mods and rockers don't cluster at Brighton and Hastings for fisticuffs. Instead they mail each other patterns for socks. Which in some ways is obviously an improvement, granted. But, blow me, nobody's going to be making a movie about it in 20 years time. They even have their own knitting Woodstock, called (oh God oh God oh God) Woolfest.

In every bookshop in Christendom there are sections dedicated to the nauseating premise that arts and crafts are edgy and alternative. They are ram-packed with punk-chick adorned books with edgy titles like Stitch'n'Bitch and Anticraft (subtitled "Knitting, beading and stitching for the slightly sinister.")

We've gone from screaming for anarchy, rocking against racism, storming the US Embassy and picketing recruiting offices, tuning in and dropping out and rutting like pigs on Viagra to taking up the favourite hobby of senile old grannies everywhere and declaring it radical. Which was hilarious for about five seconds about five years ago.

The knitting craze is the death of both alternative culture and feminism. But it's even worse that that. Scratch a knitter - discover a Knit Nazi. Like the Nazis, alternative knitters have no sense of humour.

The last time I claimed in print that the concept of radical knitting is as absurd as radical dusting or radical toilet cleaning, I received hysterical and barely literate death threats from the ferocious, fanatical, froth-gobbed and swivel-eyed knit Nazi massive. This time I suspect I might not survive.

Nonetheless, the truth must be stated. Germaine Greer didn't articulate her disgust with women's oppression by knitting a lavender and yellow toilet-roll holder. Dr Martin Luther King Jr didn't say: "I have a dream ... set of place mats that I crocheted using a pattern I got from a magazine." Jimi Hendrix didn't take to the stage at Woodstock wearing a nice orange and puce cardigan (with a reindeer on it) that he made using a job-lot of wool he got at a jumble sale. And Sid Vicious didn't crotchet his own stupid mock-Tibetan hippy-dippy ear-flapped bobble hats. And neither should you. If you need a hobby, take up spitting.

End Article.

And then, for a lark, I googled and found these books.

Warning - - BIG BRAGGING ALERT

Check out this e-mail exchange and see why I'm grinning from ear-to-ear:

Message No. 1:

-----Original Message-----
From: Ashley Stultz
To: Alexander Soltani
Sent: Tue, 10 Jun 2008 12:23 pm
Subject: One more Email

Parents, Guardians, and Students:

Hope your summer is going GREAT so far. I really enjoyed working with you and your child this year. I wish you all the best of luck next year at the high school. On Friday after all of the students left I was informed that Math SOL scores were in. If you would like to know your child's score, please send me an email.

Thanks again for everything!

Ashley Stultz

©º°¨¨°º©©º°¨¨°º©©º°¨¨°º©©º°¨¨°º©©º°¨¨°º©©º°¨¨°º©
Ashley Stultz
Bedford County Public Schools


Message No. 2:

-----Original Message-----
From: clansoltan@aol.com
Sent: 6/10/2008 1:53:00 PM
To: astultz
Cc:
Subject: Re: One more Email

Hi Mrs. Stultz,

I would very much like to know Alex's score when you have the opportunity to e-mail it. Likewise, thank you too for all of your informative e-mails throughout the year; I greatly appreciated them.

Best regards,

Dana Soltani


Message No. 3:

-----Original Message-----
From: Ashley Stultz
To: clansoltan@aol.com
Sent: Tue, 10 Jun 2008 10:42 pm
Subject: RE: Re: One more Email

Alex scored a 600!! Please congratulate him for me!!

Thanks


Message No. 4: (Yes, I am an ignorant fool.)

-----Original Message-----
From: clansoltan@aol.com
Sent: 6/11/2008 10:01:00 AM
To: astultz
Cc:
Subject: Re: One more Email

Thank you! I will definitely pass your congratulations on to Alex. Now, if you don't mind me asking - - where does a "600" rank? "Pass Advanced" or "Pass Proficient"?

Any scores he made are due to your skills as a teacher, so congratulations to you too!!

Dana

Message No. 5:

A 600 is a perfect score. You cannot score any higher!

Thanks!

End Note: Well, he didn't get it from me. I managed to fail Algebra not once, but twice.

And again...more festival photos :)

I thought I'd share the last few festival photos I've collected from various festival participants. Have a great weekend everyone!


Carpoolknitter & Son
w/Overlook Manor Farm's Collie


Rosie again




Jadielady on the left and Careynev in the center!


Sedalia's View

Peace Fleece

At long last, I've found it!

Almost a year ago, my dear friend and fellow blogger, Marianne, gifted me a skein of Peace Fleece ("Kamakatchka" colorway) for my birthday. This past Christmas, my sock sister, Dianne, gave me another two skeins in the same color. I've been sitting on these three skeins, alternately hoarding and petting them, waiting for the perfect pattern to come along. I didn't want to knit just anything with them and was waiting for a pattern that "moved me." I found that pattern on Ravelry last week.

With all the festival planning in recent months, there was very little time for knitting, so this weekend was a double treat. I cast on the Peace fleece and knitted to my heart's content. It felt so good to have needles in hand again, as well as to work with this wonderful fiber that came from even more wonderful friends.

Meet my "Dragon Scales Shawl"....

Festival Goodies :)

I both purchased and received wonderful festival goodies from Sedalia. Below is Cascade's EcoWool from the Knitters Knook booth. I plan on using it to make a Barbara Prime stuffed bunny.

Andie and I both purchased a Studio 43 Pottery pendant by local artist, Sonya Forte.

Dianne and Linda surprised me with this wonderful gift! It's Socks That Rock in the "Hard Rock" colorway. The photo doesn't do the colors justice; it's gorgeous!

Three skeins of Takhi Scoured Irish Donegal tweed also came home. I cast on a very simple triangular shawl (the Lion Brand pattern).

My big purchase, which is being made now, is a Nana Sadie Rose knitting bag. I ordered a "Mavis" to be exact. I had been wanting one of Sallee's bags for over a year and I'm really looking foward to receiving it. When it's finished, I'll take a picture and upload it. Her bags are INCREDIBLE.

And last, but certainly not least, these beauties arrived at work Tuesday morning. They knocked my socks off; I've never received flowers at work and it was such an aweseome treat! THANK YOU DIANNE!

More festival shots to follow soon. Have a great weekend everyone!

Festival Photos

I'm pirating and posting the photographs of other people right now. I didn't have the time to take any myself. As soon as I have a chance, I'll photograph my festival purchases/presents and add them to the blog.

Here are some of the highlights:

Rosie, the lamb. She was as friendly as a pound puppy and suckled fingers. She's a Border Leicester/Cormo cross and the photographer, Careynev, described her as the "quintessential sheep." Andie and I had the pleasure of bottle feeding a couple of lambs Saturday morning. :D

WovenGems, one of our vendors. Diane's alpaca was amazing!
And Dianne, the M.C. She, too, was amazing and did such a great job! She entertained, called raffle winners, pointed out vendor locations and was just PHENOMENAL.

Mosaic Yarn Shop was another vendor and they had some beautiful yarns!Linda & Michelle - - they ran the table and the festival all day. They, too, were positively amazing! To top it off, Linda and her husband, Jim, and their grandson helped pack up multiple vendors.

Studio 43 Pottery - Andie and I bought ourselves a lovely pendant.

It was an amazing day! More to follow soon....

Eight Days to Go and...

... still not stressed. Everything's coming up roses and I'm so excited! :)

Temporarily Closed for Festival Planning

As the Sedalia Fiber Festival gets closer, I'm going to be very busy and probably not blogging at all. I do plan to keep up with your blog(s) and I'll be back after the 24th of May! See you then.

P.S. Here's what I will NOT turn into over the next three weeks.

Celtic Festival Survivors

Andie and I and a few of her friends spent part of Saturday at the Sedalia Celtic Festival. It was our first Celtic event. There were several jewelry vendors and they had some amazing pieces for sale. Another interesting feature was the clothing; we couldn't help but gawk at the period costumes and "Xena Warrior Princess" apparel. One vendor said, explaining the Xena-wear, "What's England without a few Vikings?" At the end of our visit, we were pummeled by both rain and hail and came home soaked to the skin, but we did have a good time.

When we returned to the house, it was hot showers, warm clothing and a "survivor photo."



P.S. The kids say that they are not Emo. They just like "different." On the knitting front, I'm on my last skein of my sister's Feather & Fan. As soon as it's done, I'll post a photo.

Have a great week everyone!

Young American Teens

As a public service, I am publishing the following instruction manual for my forty-something peers. I hope you enjoy today's lessons.

Lesson No. 1: Emo (pronounced /ˈiːmoʊ/) is a style of rock music which describes several independent variations of music with common stylistic roots. As such, use of the term has been the subject of much debate. In the mid-1980s, the term emo described a subgenre of hardcore punk which originated in the Washington, D.C. music scene. Starting in the mid-1990s, the term emo began to refer to the indie scene that followed the influences of Fugazi, which itself was an offshoot of the first wave of emo. (Many thanks for Wikipedia for the definition).

Lesson No. 2: Yes, all of your son & daughter's friends look like this (and so does your child).

Lesson No. 3: Yes, they have changed their appearances since becoming teens.

Our son looked liked this several years ago:

Now he's striving to look like this photo.


Lesson No. 4: Remember that you are not alone and more importantly...

Lesson No. 5: Remember your own past. ;^)

Mad Science Saturday

This weekend, I decided to experiment with some of the alpaca fleece that was given to me by JoAnn of Fishwood Farm Alpacas. Having never worked with pure alpaca before, I wanted to see how difficult it was to clean, how quickly it felted and so forth.

I grabbed handfuls of fleece (white, rust and black) and washed them twice with a bit of Dawn detergent (as illustrated by Lara on her blog).

I then "carded" the fleece with purse-sized hairbrushes. :) Yes, I'm lame, but I wanted to see how it worked out before I invested in a pair of actual carding combs. [I'm shopping for them now/LOL.] I then rolled sections of the fleece into balls and packed them into one leg of a pair of pantyhose and tied it off as shown below.

Hairy balls anyone? ;)

I then felted the balls and removed the pantyhose. Note: Don't felt with pantyhose. The fiber ended up "bleeding through" pantyhose and I had to shave off parts the pantyhose with a disposable razor.

And voila! Fat, thick pincushions

They're actually prettier in person. You can see the color whorls in the felting and they're surprisingly heavy; the alpaca is very dense.

And every family has its "odd duck." I call this one the punk rock pincushion.

I also finished Aicha's Karaoke scarf.
Now that I've played and sampled, it's my hope to 1) get carding combs, 2) wet felt a lot of the fleece into 'dreadlocks' and then create felted drink coasters or maybe a braided rug. We shall see.... Have a great week everyone!

Crochet Lesson No. 1

aka "the not-so-young Jedi knitter goes

temporarily over to the Dark Side of fiber"

My apologies to the crocheters out there...I couldn't resist the joke. My first foray into any type of fiber was my seventh grade Home Economics class (circa 1979). Mrs. Bailey taught us how to make crochet bookworms like the one pictured below.

Last night, I had my first formal crochet lesson. I met up with Jan at Yarn Theory and I learned to chain, single crochet (sc), double crochet (dc) and several other stitches. I've heard from numerous people, including Jan, that crocheting is faster than knitting. Based on my struggles last night (how many times can Dana drop the hook? LOTS), I'll believe it when I can do it, but I don't doubt what they're saying. :)

I hope to make my way up to a granny square and beyond that, those amazing arigumi animals that can be found on Ravelry. While browsing there one morning, I found this little girl and I'm dying to make her. The pattern is called "Lavender Bunny."

Bookworm to Bunny...that should take me another twenty years....

Happy knitting/spinning and now, crocheting y'all.

Shame

Yesterday, the word, "shame" popped up in two separate and unrelated e-mails. Both e-mails were from friends and knitters. One wrote, "Until I actually start spinning... (as she holds her head down in shame)" and the other said, "hanging my head in shame..." [she hadn't completed a project]. I admire and like these women enormously. They inspire me on a regular basis, so I was so surprised by what they wrote.



In thinking about their e-mails, I realized that the three of us - - and probably more of us - - are in a similar boat. Specifically, we're trying to overachieve and when we can't do it all in a nominal amount of time, we feel badly about it. When did knitting become a "destination point" instead of a "journey"?


In all honesty, the last six to eight projects I've completed are a blur because I was so focused on "get it done" that I really don't remember (and more importantly, didn't enjoy) the actual process of knitting. Well, I've decided that there will be no more of that. My goals now are as follows:

1. I will enjoy knitting first and foremost;
   
2. I will not press myself to complete the project;
   
3. I will not apologize when my life supercedes my knitting time a.k.a. "if it takes me twelve months to finish, that's perfectly fine;" and
   
4. I will commit to no more than I can reasonably accomplish.

As for the "shameful knitters," well, they have nothing to be ashamed of. Both have busy lives and take care of numerous people in one respect or another. They've both had an incredibly eventful year (and not all of it fun or pleasant). So ladies... you know who you are...repeat after me... "I am NOT ashamed!" ;)

P.S. Here's the last example of my overkill. I knitted the Lopi tote in a day and felted it the next morning.

I've also been plugging away at the Karaoke scarf for my niece in France and now, I'm going to slow it down and enjoy the feel of the New Tweed.

Finally, and on a much lighter note, the kittens send their regards.