Beware of the Blog 2

New Year, New Blog

2011-01-09T14:33:00.002-05:00

I will continue to write here sometimes, so feel free to check in from time to time.

Lots happening in my life at the moment, and while I'm still knitting quite a bit, there are other things I need to write about.

So, if you're interested, you're welcome at Into the Heaven Knows What Have You. I suspect I shan't be so light-hearted there. I mean, I know I've had my dark moments here on this blog, but overall I have tried to keep it light.

The new blog is for more serious thoughts, and I have a lot of these lately, and a great deal on my plate. The story of all that will unfold in the new space.

I really need to update this blog with some knitting pictures one of these days...

Grant Hart - Flexible Flyer, Live in Zurich 2010

2010-12-27T11:56:00.000-05:00

Grant Hart Green Eyes, Live in Zurich 2010

2010-12-26T08:21:00.001-05:00

Beautiful performance! What a nice thing to find at Christmastime. :-)

2010-12-03 GRANT HART @ Manufaktur, Schorndorf

2010-12-04T15:38:00.001-05:00

Grant's Fantastic Sweater!

2010-12-03T17:38:00.002-05:00

OK, so I want to know...WHERE in the world did Grant Hart get this fantastic sweater? Think maybe I can figure out the pattern? I WANT one of these!

These are very cool pics. See the entire set here! There are some really lovely concert shots.

Grant Hart live at Channel Zero + interview for Radio Student

2010-11-29T21:57:00.002-05:00

Worth watching if you have 11-1/2 minutes to kill. Check out the SWEATER Grant is wearing in the performance segments! I have to figure out the pattern. It's gorgeous. The purple scarf suits him so nicely, too.

Wondering where in the world he got that sweater!

Creation on Impulse

2010-11-20T18:09:00.004-05:00

On Sunday, 7 November, sort of late in the afternoon, I had a brainstorm. I can knit for Grant, and I do, and I will, but why not knit for his mom, too, so she has something nice to remember me by until we can visit together again?

I didn't think she would want a watch-cap. Something to keep her warm, since she is very slender and gets cold easily. I spent a little time thinking about possible color/fiber combinations, and with help from my daughter, Daphne, I chose these four. The white and dark green are, I believe, acrylic, but the red and blue-gray are a wool and/or mohair blend of some sort. (With mill-ends, sometimes one has to guess.)

I wound one strand of each color together on my ball-winder, and came up with two enormous cakes I thought would be enough for a shawl, and cast on 63 stitches. I used the basic 3 knit, 3 purl prayer shawl stitch and knitted until it was long enough to wrap around myself, then did a knitted-on loop fringe from Barbara Walker Volume 2.

The flash made the colors look a lot brighter and sharper than they actually are, but I must say, I'm just thrilled with the way the whole thing came out, especially the fringe! It really adds a touch of elegance.

This last picture is a slightly more true representation of the colors. I'll send the shawl, and some little gifts for Grant, too, in plenty of time for Christmas.

Grant's Red and Black Botanic hat turned out a little closer to an actual yarmulke than he wanted, plus it was a little tight, circumference-wise. "So, if I send it back, you can add more, right?" he asked, via telephone, sounding slightly anxious.

I took this as a positive sign. He liked it enough to want to have it revamped, so he could wear it.

It's so easy to fib to a non-knitter. "Yeah, yeah," I assured him. "Piece of cake!"

Yesterday evening, I cast on for the replacement, using larger needles, and now I'm close to done. More of a piece of cake than re-doing the first one I sent. I'll just keep the smaller one for myself and send the larger one to him. I bet he'll never guess it's a whole different hat.

The thing that makes me sad is he's gone off on tour without the knit-love. Or...well...he's gone without the knit, anyway. Maybe he'll take his Windschief, and all the love, luck, and blessing that went into it last winter.

As I said to Himself, with a rueful sigh, "That's what I get for being too silly to ask if I could measure your head when I had the chance."

I'll be sure to take care of this detail next time, and see if I can get him to surrender his feet to the measuring tape as well.

The Fraternal Twin Hat

2010-11-03T21:37:00.006-04:00

This one is for me!

Style is the same as the red and black one.

Electric blue really pops against the black.

Also, I finally scored a nice Husker Du t-shirt, which arrived in the mail today.

Blaze orange and electric blue.

Gotta love it, even though it doesn't quite match the hat.

New Hat for Grant

2010-10-25T21:17:00.003-04:00

OK, so it's not the Serbian yarn. Not yet. But it's knit-love that will keep my friend warm on his next Euro tour, if he likes it. This is Stephen West's Botanic Hat, sized down to be a beanie, rather than a full watch-cap. Since Grant requested something "kind of like an oversized yarmulke," I think this should do nicely. It goes in the mail this week.

For What It's Worth -- an update

2010-10-18T17:21:00.002-04:00

Well, I've been going to town with my little digital recorder and audio editing software, and now I actually have enough material to consider this project an album of sorts. There are 26 songs posted, totaling over an hour of music. To think I believed I would never get that much done! I still have not finished recording favorites. Not by a long shot. I also want to continue writing my own material, but that will take time. Writing songs cannot be forced, especially when someone is new to that process

Link below, and if you feel inclined to give a listen, let me know what you think.

For What It's Worth

If Anyone had Told Me...

2010-10-17T08:58:00.003-04:00

...back in January, that by the end of September I would be sitting in a booth across from this man, chatting over dinner, I would have laughed. Yeah, right. Me, having dinner with Grant Hart. Ha. Ha. Very. Funny.

But here he is, waiting for dinner to arrive, and guess who was, indeed, sitting across from him? It was totally serendipitous. Hubby and I arrived early at the club where Grant was to play, knowing there was good, inexpensive middle-eastern food to be had, and were looking forward to a good meal before the show.

I was also looking forward to having a chance to say hello to Grant at some point, and give him a loaf of gingerbread I'd baked for him. I knew there was a good chance the opportunity would never arise,and I might just be taking the gingerbread back home with me at the end of the night.

So, imagine the shock of walking into the restaurant and seeing him down at the end of the room, standing next to a booth and chatting with someone. I left hubby in the dust, calling over my shoulder that he should grab a table, and I'd be with him in a minute.

A little background, if you will.

I've knitted for Grant and, against my better judgment, I've been writing him letters and sending them every six weeks or so. These letters always contain a lot of personal musings about his work, and I've been afraid of going over the line. And yet, what I feel about Grant's work must be said, and not just at random out in cyberspace. I hope, by saying the things I do, to uplift him in some way. After all, he's been uplifting me for a long time now, though he was not aware of that until I started writing to him.

So, I was more than a little nervous about approaching him. Yet, I did sidle up next to him and, not wanting to interrupt the conversation, but let him know I was there, laid my hand on his back.

I shouldn't have worried one jot about any of those letters. I was warmly given the familiar greeting -- a cheerful, "Hey!" and an engulfing hug. Once released, I dug out the gingerbread and tried to hand it off to him. He took it, seemed pleased, and then I was sucked into the whirlwind that is Grant Hart, and hubby and I found ourselves sitting in a booth with Grant's old friend, Paul, waiting for Grant to return as promised. (The dinner picture is courtesy of Paul, who has given me permission to post it here.)

When Grant returned, he plunked himself down across from me, eyes twinkling, smiling broadly, and announced, "Well! I just re-read your last letter!"

I guess I shouldn't have any more fears about those letters I can't seem to stop sending. It appears that he really does enjoy them, and, in fact, when I visited him last weekend, one I sent before I left on my trip had just landed in his mailbox, or so he informed me. Since he was smiling when he told me that, I guess he was pleased and looking forward to reading once my actual self had departed his stomping grounds.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. We hung out with him at the restaurant until he was in danger of missing his own performance, then went in to enjoy the show. He was, as always, fantastic, and even played a new song I'd never heard before, "Awake, Arise." From the sounds of the lyrics, I think it's probably the opening prologue of his upcoming work, a concept/rock opera piece based on Milton's "Paradise Lost." And maybe I'm getting ahead of myself again by saying I think this one will be his magnum opus, but...I do think it's going to be his magnum opus, and probably a damn tough act to follow.

Meanwhile, people may wonder at the very idea. An ex-punker latching on to Milton? But Grant is full of surprises. Abandon all pre-conceived notions, and just go along with him. He's bound to carry us all to some very interesting places. He's a beautiful soul with a beautiful mind. Buckle in, hang on to your hat, and enjoy the ride!

Which reminds me, just over a week later, while there was no way to buckle in, I was certainly enjoying the ride. You see, over coffee before the show in Cambridge, Grant confirmed that he would be in town at the same time I was there for my little vacation, and we would "have to do some hangin'. Maybe with my mom." I made sure I had his telephone number correctly entered in my cell phone, and spent a few days working up the nerve to actually call the man. Lucky for me, he has an answering machine, so I left a message, and sure enough, he called me back and we made a plan. We took his mom out to the Franconia Sculpture Park in Taylor's Falls, and Grant borrowed this tractor thingy, so his mom could comfortably go around the whole park and see everything close-up. Though Grant thought all three of us could fit on the seat, I knew better, and rode in the wayback with whole lot of dirt and garden detritus, and had the time of my life. Felt like I was ten again, in a good way. When the ride was over, I told Grant I had to have a picture, because seeing him drive a tractor was too priceless.
We went home the long way and had a nice drive, with lots of conversation, and a stop for apples at an orchard on the way. Back at the house, we visited awhile before I had to go back to my sister's and both Grant and his mom indicated that they wanted me to come back and visit again, before leaving town. So, I went back on Sunday night, and accompanied them to a friend's house for a visit. On the way, Grant wanted to show me St. Paul's tiny private airport, which he says was used in the film, "Slaughterhouse Five." He insisted on taking a picture of me there, and here it is.

Grant and his mom are wonderful people, very warm and friendly, and I have a standing invite to come by again whenever I happen to be in town. They both feel like family now. I love them dearly, and a week later, I'm missing them like crazy.

If anyone had told me, back in January...

Grant Hart Visits Cambridge Again!

2010-10-03T18:45:00.002-04:00

It might have taken me twenty years to finally get to see him, but I'm making up for lost time. This is the third show I've been to in less than a year. Life is good!

Grant Hart in Cambridge.

For What It's Worth

2010-09-10T18:06:00.004-04:00

For years, I've wanted to record songs and give copies to friends who might not get to hear me otherwise. People have asked, but I've been too shy to go public with my folk singing for a long, long time. Reason being, I stuck my neck out for a local band (now defunct), got guillotined for my trouble, and finally packed up my tent and went home. It's only in the last year that I've felt like seriously picking up the guitar again. (Yes, the band experience was that traumatic. I suppose it's rather obvious that I'm still a bit angry about all that eight years later.)

Now, I've slowly begun writing my own songs again, as well as paying tribute to musicians I respect and admire. So far, there are eight songs, and I fear it's a little heavy on the Hart at the moment. But frankly, seeing what Grant does all by himself is what inspired me to try again. Also, decent digital recording equipment for home use has gotten quite affordable, and so have some basic audio editing programs. I'm slowly making it 'round the learning curve, and am pleased with the results so far.

Those who know me well know that I'm an awful perfectionist, so if I say the recordings please me, then that means something. They're not perfect, but they don't suck.

If you feel so inclined, please enjoy For What It's Worth. There are links to each individual song, and also for a continuous track of all the songs in order, just like a Real Album!

Total run-time: 23 minutes and 17 seconds.

mad angel drums! 8-1-2010

2010-08-01T13:34:00.001-04:00

A little dark, yes, but if you squint into the darkness hard enough, you can see me drumming. This was so much fun, and made for an exciting morning indeed!

Hot Wax!

2010-07-31T21:21:00.003-04:00

After one failed attempt a week-and-a-half ago, today I had a small success! This is the first batik I have done in 30 years.

I thought, originally, that I might like to do batiks of constellations, and my first was going to be Orion. But woe to the artist who sets out to do such work as this with only half the proper tools, and a couple of kids breathing down her neck while she tries to get down to business! Poor Orion was such an epic fail, I decided against wasting good dye on the less-than-stellar results and put the piece away.

In the interim, I ordered a hot plate and a Bunsen burner. In order to get the best results, the wax has to be really hot. Once it's removed from the pot, it begins to cool down, and there's nothing like the intense open flame of a Bunsen burner to keep the wax at the best possible consistency. And all these things must be in close proximity the the piece being worked on.
I found a French tjanting on eBay, just like the ones I used in high school when working on my Perseus and Medusa piece, and with the proper heating sources at hand, it works like a dream, just like I remember from 30 years ago.
I didn't want to waste a fresh piece of fabric on an experiment, and figured that if today's piece came out as blobby and gross as Orion did I wouldn't have lost much. I just needed to practice and get a feel for the technique again. So, I took Orion and ironed the wax out of the fabric as best I could and started drawing freehand on the less-than-perfect piece of cloth with my tjanting. I'm pleased with the result.
I've just boiled the wax out, did a final wash/rinse, and pressed the piece. (Pics of this piece, sans wax, will be posted when it's dry. For something that began with a "ruined" piece of fabric, this came out really well!)

And despite the fact that this was supposed to be a totally random, abstract piece, I seem to have depicted a face! I have no idea how this happened, but -- can you see it?

Another inspiration subconsciously given by Grant, I think, though it didn't occur to me until well after the fact. "Hot Wax" planted a seed and got me considering batik again, in a roundabout sort of way.

A great deal of "hot wax" gets used in the creation of batiks. It is applied to the fabric, hot and liquid, and permeates the fibers, cools and solidifies, and "resists" the dye when it goes into the vat. All the white areas were painted with hot wax, and stayed white while the dye settled on the unwaxed places. But wax being wax, it cracks when you stuff the piece into the dye bucket, and a little bit gets through, and creates fine lines of color in the white areas. Just enough to enhance the look of the finished piece, and give it that characteristic "crackled" look.

I'm looking forward to doing more of these, and think, quite by accident, that I have hit upon a style that suits me better than trying to depict constellations! Happy, happy, joy, joy!!!!!!

Art

2010-07-03T20:16:00.004-04:00

I made this thirty years ago, in my high school crafts class. It's a batik, and it took months of my life to do. The picture I copied, Perseus with Medusa's head, is an obscure Aubrey Beardsley drawing I found in a volume of his works I had taken out from the local library. It was a rough sketch he never completed, if I recall correctly, so reproducing it in clear black and white was a challenge, to say the least. I spent several days just inking in the outline I had traced, using a projection from an opaque projector. I taped a large piece of white paper on a wall and traced the whole thing, every single detail, with a pencil. Then, over the course of a very long week, I traced the outline again, with a pen and India Ink, and then I filled in the shapes. Only then was I ready to lay the muslin fabric down and begin waxing. The first waxing took weeks. Everything that was not supposed to be red had to be waxed very carefully, by hand, with a quirky little tool called a tjanting. It had a brass bowl which I filled with liquid wax, and a narrow tube through which the wax flowed. There was one with a somewhat wider tube for less fussy areas, and one with a narrow tube for the detailed areas. And of course, the wax in the bowl would begin to solidify as I worked, so I had a bunsen burner handy at all times, to reheat what wax was already in the tool as I went along. Big pots of wax were always hot and ready on electric burner units, so I could just refill the tool as often as I needed to. It took an awful lot of wax.
Once I completed the first waxing, I put the whole thing in a cold dyebath. We didn't have a real lot of colors to choose from, and I don't remember exactly why I chose this vivid red, but I still really like it a lot. Once the piece was done, I didn't like it being just red and white, so the teacher and I discussed it, and since there was still time to do it, I opted for a second waxing, and a second dyeing. The waxing went faster this time around, because I was covering larger areas and not much in the way of fussy detail. The faded-denim blue I chose for the background was really the only suitable color option I had. I wasn't sure how well I would like it at the time, but it worked, much to my relief.
I always thought it was nice and creepy, the way Medusa's eye is totally blank.

I'm still really pleased, thirty years later, with the attention I paid to every detail. It was not an easy thing to do. Needless to say, I did get an A for the piece, and it was on display in a glass case outside the school cafeteria for a few weeks. A friend offered me fifty bucks for it -- a staggering amount to an 18-year-old back in 1980 -- but I declined the offer. I had put too much time into it. Too much of myself. Fifty dollars, as princely a sum as that was at the time, seemed too little for all the work I had done. And I really wanted to keep the piece. So, I did.

All these years, it has been folded up and stored in a drawer, because no one but me liked it. Too grisly and morbid for everyone's taste.

Now, I have a room of my own, were I like to hang out and work. Sometimes, it's knitting and spinning. Sometimes, it's writing. Sometimes, it's playing my guitar and singing. Sometimes, it's drumming. But it's my room, and the color of the walls comes very close to the red I chose for the batik all those years ago. It works in this space, the way it never worked in any other space. It feels very good indeed to see it again, and know I'll be seeing it for a long time to come.

And who knows? I enjoyed the process so much when I did this piece. Maybe someday I will do another...

More Music!

2010-06-21T21:27:00.003-04:00

I'm having way too much fun messing around with recording!

She Floated Away

Crazy Man Michael

Blessed Solstice to all!

Mad Angel Sings!

2010-06-06T16:59:00.002-04:00

Okey-dokey, folks, here's the new and improved music page. Bear in mind that these were all recorded at home on my mp3 player and run through some music editing software to enhance the sound. I am by no means an expert with this editing software, just learning as I go and hoping I remember what I do for successful editing from one file to the next. They sound a little rough, but are by no means intolerable. These are only the first attempts. I expect I'll be spending a lot more time working up better versions in the coming months.

I never thought I'd actually end up writing tunes of my own at all. Again, I have Grant and his "Flexible Flyer" to thank for this, so that's the first song on the page. My own rendition, which is hardly anywhere near as good as any of his, but...

I must pay tribute.

For the lyrics, if you wish to read them, please click on this link.

Hope you enjoy, and if you like what you hear, maybe say something in the comments?

Thanks!

Ladies and Gents, Do You Remember...?

2010-06-06T12:57:00.011-04:00

Here he is. I found him at long last, after many, many searches. Thank God for detailed eBay listings with lots of photographs! Meet, and reacquaint yourself with, "The Dud."

Funny, the things some of these searches will lead a person to. Nothing bad in this case, just surprising. You see, it turns out I am not the only girl who thought "The Dud" was hot.

I did not play "Mystery Date" that often. I never owned the game. "Barbie, Queen of the Prom" and "Miss Lively Livin'" were more than enough of that sort of thing, thank you very much! But I did end up playing "Mystery Date" a few times with some of my school chums. I can't remember if I ever confessed to my attraction to "The Dud." Heck, I don't remember if I ever got to a point where I acquired all the necessary pieces/cards to open the damn door. But someone else must have gotten a "date" with this fella, 'cause I do remember thinking he was not. Bad. A-tall. Certainly looked as if he'd be a lot more fun to hang around with than "The Dreamboat."

There is a song coming out of this, just as I got one from my memories of other toys and games awhile back. I have tunes now for both songs: "I

Want to Date the Dud" and "Chant of the Ever-Circling Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots." Trouble is, I am having a hard time getting a decent recording together. When I do, you all who turn up here to read will be the first to know.

It's all your "fault," Grant. You and your "Flexible Flyer." I am now having way too much fun reminiscing about old toys and games. (Bless you, dearie...)

Next up for consideration is something having to do with my favorite childhood toy: a Fisher Price Garbage Dump/Garage playset, which, Lord help us all, I found pictures of online last week. My favorite of the three Garbagemen? The grumpy-looking one who, for some unknown reason, I named "Stew." Spelled that way. I was always adamant about that, even at age 4 or 5. He wasn't "Stu." He was "Stew." And here he is, in all his curmudgeonly grandeur!

Why "Stew?" I guess I wasn't overly fond of beef stew back in the day, and maybe his face made me think of the way I felt about beef stew? Who knows. It's just a guess. I was 4 or 5 at the time, and I am 48 now. Memory can be a wee bit wonky at times.

I do remember that my mother did not want to buy this for me, but I would have no other, and she had promised I would get a toy at the end of the shopping day if I behaved. This was the one I was fixated upon, and nothing -- nothing! -- would change my obstinate little mind!

What kind of toy was this for a girl to have? Well, in ma's opinion, a horrible one, but a desire to be done with shopping saved the day for me. This was a wonderful toy for a girl to have! I made up more stories about these fellas.

Ah, those were the days. I don't have this toy in my possession anymore, but I am very glad I found these pictures. Stored on the hard drive, they don't take up any room at all, and they bring back some very fond memories!

...and the Conversation Continues...

2010-06-01T22:08:00.003-04:00

We don't usually travel on Memorial Day weekend. We stay home and putter around the house and yard, trying to accomplish...something...but mostly end up doing...nothing. Not so this year! Not only did we travel, but we went into New York City.

Yes, it was a bit mad, but traffic wasn't as bad as we feared it might be, and the Chinese "Free Delivery" menu we found in our hotel room looked mighty good, so we took a chance. Indeed, the delivery was as swift as promised, and the food good and rather inexpensive for New York. So, we had a chance to rest and refuel before heading off to the subway station.

First hitch. There had been an "incident" at the station we wanted to transfer at, with police on site, so the train would go no further than two more stops along the route. Now, what do we do? Well, dumb luck was with us, and we managed to board a different train with a different route, which would take us into Times Square, where we could transfer to yet another train to get to Canal Street. We didn't know it would be a country mile of fast walking to get to the new train, but get there we did, finally, and before long, we were emerging on Canal Street with our handy New York Transit route directions in hand.

Next hitch. We walked the wrong way, based on the route being wrong on the directions. Hubby refused to believe the directions could be wrong and forged ahead, and was still going to continue in that direction, until I balked, nearly at the entrance to Chinatown. "I don't care what those directions say. We are nowhere near Tribeca. I'm going back."

Minor tiff ensued, but eventually hubby did see the light and figured what did we have to lose? And sure enough, backtracking eventually brought us to Tribeca. It took another wrong turn to determine which direction we should be walking in on Hudson Street, but we were back on track quickly, though on the wrong side of the street from the venue. We were missing the opening band, and I felt sorry for that, because I don't like to be discourteous to the opening act. They do have it tough, headlining for more famous people, so I like to be polite to them.

It was when we were walking along the block to get to the crosswalk that I noticed a small, lone figure walking back and forth on the block in front of the venue. "Look, Daphne. There he is."

Or, I was reasonably certain, there he was. I don't see well at a distance, but thought I could detect longish, straight hair tucked behind the fella's ears, and the faint glow of a cigarette, and the casual chic of well-worn denim.

The light finally changed and we crossed the street. By then, the fella was quite a distance down the block, well past the main entrance, so I kept going, much to the consternation of my family. Once I was within ten feet of the fella, I called out to him. If he was indeed who I thought he was, he would acknowledge me. If he wasn't, he would probably keep going without saying a word.

"Grant!" I said.

Bingo. He turned around and exclaimed, "Hey!" a big smile lighting his face as he hurried towards me. Within a couple of feet, he lowered his head and kept approaching, and I thought, what...? Why on earth would he want to head-butt me in the chest? I mean, yes, I was wearing my Nova Mob t-shirt, and...maybe that was it. He spotted it and wanted to know the story behind it. So, I was all set to tell it, until I realized he was pointing at his head with his free hand.

My hat.

Whereupon I crowed with delight, and we hugged for a bit, before I remembered the family was standing behind me, much puzzled. Hubby had a good idea what was going on, but Daphne wasn't sure. So, I made introductions, and we stayed and chatted with him while finished his cigarette.

I showed him the Belgrade hat, and while he thought it was attractive, it wasn't his sort of style, so I'll need to make him something else out of the remainder of that yarn. (I'm thinking about an EZ Prime Rib Hat, for winter, since Grant really does seem to prefer watch-caps.) He did hold it and take a good look, and squish it in his hands just like a knitter/spinner surely would, and said it looked a lot like the hats he had seen folks wearing in Serbia. So, I do have to wonder where Jared Flood got his inspiration for the design. (It's the Quincy, for those who have come late to the party.)

He asked Daphne if she liked to knit, too, and she said no, because she doesn't. But she did like to spin at one time, and I told him so.

Very seriously, but with that twinkle in his eye, he asked her, "Are you still dizzy?"

"From what?" Daphne asked.

"Spinning!" he replied, and we all had a good laugh.

Presently, he took his leave, as it was nearly time for the show, and we still had to go in and pick up our tickets.

The opening band was just finishing up -- louder than I expected, and I had forgotten my earplugs, so I wasn't too sorry about missing their performance.

Grant hit the stage about 15 minutes later, with no introduction, so at first I thought he was just doing a sound-check. But no, once he started playing "Barbara," he wasn't stopping, so I left Keith and Daphne in the back of the room where they felt comfortable, and headed up to the front.

I was pretty sore from all the frenzied walking I had already done, and it's not the easiest thing to dance with a cane in one hand and a bottle of water tucked under one arm, but I managed to make at least a modest attempt.

Just like in Cambridge back in January, he played favorite after favorite, along with a fabulous, very emotional cover of "St. James Infirmary."

Somewhere around the middle of the show, when I had lost count of how many songs he had already played, he struck up a familiar chord progression and closed his eyes, though he did turn his head in my direction, and smiled as much as it's possible for a person to smile while singing.

"Flexible Flyer." I damn near cried. I didn't even have to ask for it. He remembered what it meant to me, and he played it for me.

Later, I asked for "She Floated Away," and he struck up immediately.

And wore my hat throughout the entire performance, and afterwards as well. It really does suit him nicely, and it makes me very happy to see that in person.

We talked a bit again after the show, but mostly just to say good night, and to take a couple of pictures. After the pictures, we hugged again, and I said, quietly, "I'm so glad I didn't have to wait another twenty years!" And I wished him safe travels, and he wished us the same, and we said good-night.

It won't be another twenty years before I see him again, either. We are friends now.

I'm test-knitting a Prime Rib Watch Cap in some of my own handspun, in a comparable weight to the Belgrade yarn, to see if I like the stitch, and decide if it would suit Grant as well as "Windschief" does. I'm thinking it will be fine for the Belgrade yarn, but...my handspun is just the right blend of greens to go with Grant's dark hair and eyes.

Bottom line? Grant might be getting two winter hats...

New York City!

2010-05-29T19:19:00.001-04:00

Daphne, Grant Hart, and Me, last night. Just a picture for the moment. Story to tell later!

Happy Pentecost!

2010-05-23T19:44:00.004-04:00

I should have brought a camera and had hubby photograph me in action, drumming, but I didn't think of it. Too nervous about making my public debut, I guess. But pics may surface at some point, as one of our parishioners was going about with a camera while a bunch of us drummed on the sidewalk after the service, outside the church.
I had to sing in choir this morning as well, so had some interesting presto-change-o moments during the service, as I simply refused to drum in my choir robes. I wore them when I sang, but when I was drumming, I wanted to look like a drummer. And this outfit makes me feel like a drummer.

I was allowed to keep the headscarf on even when I was vested, which I appreciated, even though my daughter did nothing but laugh at me and call me "Rambo."

Daughter and hubby are NOT fond of the drumming, nor does it interest them, but my daughter's boyfriend likes to play, and I think we are going to be great drumming buddies.

It has been quite the weekend for drumming, beginning with a circle in Providence on Friday night -- 4 hours long! Yikes! And then a good 45 minutes this morning, and another hour for a lesson this afternoon. I think I won't play now for a couple of days. My hands are pretty well bruised and in desperate need of a rest.

One of these days, I should really get to a point where I do not feel compelled to drum with the vigor of a hyperactive, 25-year-old man!

At least I have not managed to add any new bloodstains to my drum head...

Done!

2010-05-18T21:35:00.006-04:00

First, the Nova Mob t-shirt. It was a bit of a mess when it arrived, and looked like it had been baptized in coffee in random places, plus its previous owner had rather obviously sweated copiously in it over the years. No amount of washing and Shout could fix either problem, so, completely undaunted by this, I bought some ecru dye. Not bad for a 20 year old t-shirt, eh? I'm pretty sure the graphic is Grant's own design. My hubby is scared of it!

Now, for the Belgrade Quincy Hat. I finished it today, and it has had its bath and is drying on the rack in the living room. Pics were taken before washing. The hat grew a little as the yarn relaxed, so I may have to chuck it in the dryer at some point.

The green you see peeking out from beneath the hat is the edge of the box Grant mailed the yarn in. Yes, I'm keeping the box. It makes me smile every time I think of him covering every inch of the thing in green tape, for the sake of recycling.
I used less than half of the skein for this hat, so there's plenty of yarn left to make another hat. I'm tempted to give Grant a share in this. It would serve him well in the winter, that's for sure.

All of My Senses, and More Yarn Pics

2010-05-15T16:00:00.003-04:00

I did not know this video even existed , but just found it on You Tube. This is the very first solo piece I ever heard from Grant Hart. The song is beautiful on its own, but with the video images, it's even more so, and so mysterious. I've always thought about all the verbal images that fly past, and let my imagination run with them. Now, this precious glimpse into Grant's vision, twenty years ago. The song moves me as much now -- maybe more -- than it did back then.

Oh, and I have started my hat. The skein weighed 7.35 oz and contained approximately 325 yards. It is making a wonderful, cushy, thick fabric, and will be so warm. I might even have enough to make two hats, in which case I will very likely gift one back to the giver.

A thank you letter is on its way via snail-mail as I type. I promised myself I would not play with the yarn until the letter had been written and sent. Done!

I am still awed, amazed, and dazed...

Look at how HUGE a ball the skein turned into!

Here's the beginning of my hat, the first 20 or so garter ridges of the band.

And a close-up so you can see the lovely texture of the yarn.

Grant purports to know nothing about knitting, but I think he knows more than he realizes, thanks to his artist's eyes and aesthetic sense. His choice was brilliant, wasn't it? Much as I want to make the pleasure of the knitting last, I'm really looking forward to wearing the finished hat as soon as possible!

A Woolly Surprise!

2010-05-13T21:19:00.005-04:00

This lovely skein of yarn arrived in my mailbox today, a total surprise, completely out of the blue.

The return address said Minnesota, but the letter enclosed said the yarn had been purchased from a street vendor in Belgrade, Serbia.
It looks to be handspun, is a heavy weight 2-ply, and smells delightfully sheepy. It will be, I'm relatively certain, one of Jared Flood's "Quincy" hats, since the yarn is intended to be made into something for me. It's browner than the pics show: so rustic and beautiful.
No, I do not personally know anyone who lives in Belgrade, Serbia, but I do have a friend who traveled there recently, who wore the hat I made for him while playing a concert in that city.

God bless you, Grant Hart. You really and truly made my day. Thanks for thinking of me. I love, love, LOVE this yarn!!!!!!

I Will Sing, Sing a New Song????

2010-05-03T19:35:00.009-04:00

No tune for this one yet, but the words began to churn around in my head while I was practicing guitar this afternoon.

Chant of the Ever-Circling

Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots

Were anathema to mum,

But girlie toys, they held no joys

And just seemed kind of dumb.

I'd rather sink a Battleship.

To hell with Queen of the Prom!

And pop that pop-o-matic:

Play Trouble all day long

Let me at those Robots,

And let me be the blue one.

I'll knock the block off the red one:

Pretend that it's a human.

Don't want to wear this girlie sh*t

Or play with girlie toys,

I want to work in the yard with Dad,

Shirtless, like a boy.

'Cause being a girl means staying inside,

And learning the myriad uses of Tide,

And training for that future day

When the girl becomes a bride.

What if that's the sort of dream

That causes her tomboy heart to scream?

"Sorry, girl, but there's no other.

You've got to be just like your mother."

But I still want to get at those Robots,

And I want to be the blue one,

And knock the block off the red one,

And pretend that it's a human.

Put Barbie on a Battleship

And send her right on down!

Give me pop-o-matic Trouble,

A roll of caps, and a stone.

I don't plan on joining the coven

Of the Easy-Bake Oven.

I'm deplorably green with a sewing machne.

Where the hell's my Barrel of Monkeys?

What d'you mean, I'll not get an Erector Set,

A Hot Wheels Track, or Matchbox Cars?

I want a toolbox and a hacksaw;

Betsy-Wetsy simply won't do.

I may be a girl with a perverse little curl

Right in the middle of my forehead,

But when I'm bad, I'm very bad,

And when I'm mad, I'm horrid.

So let me at those Robots;

I've a burning desire to deck 'em.

Know what they say about humorless folk?

They can't take a joke, so f*ck 'em!

Get me out of these stupid frills

And leave me the f*ck alone

With my Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots,

And my pal who can cuss up a storm.

Suzy Homemaker can kiss my *ss!

I'd rather be taking out the trash,

And raking the leaves, and mowing the grass,

And being a boy like Dad.

Now let me at those Robots,

And let me be the blue one,

And knock the block off the red one;

To do less, it just isn't human!

CP Warner

3 May 2010

Where in the World is The Hart Hat?

2010-05-01T08:11:00.001-04:00

Belgrade, April 29, 2010.

The lighting is a little odd so you can't see the colors in the yarn, but I can tell by the way it fits him, and then there is a close-up of the diagonal swath of ribbing. That's my hat!

I'm absolutely thrilled to see him wearing it to perform, and to perform one of my all-time favorite songs of his, no less!

Sock Washing Day

2010-04-18T20:18:00.003-04:00

I've been meaning to do this for awhile -- take a pic of a rack full of my freshly-washed socks. I learned yesterday that this big rack holds 34 pairs, exactly. This means I have about 16 clean pairs left until these are dry.

Yes, I'm addicted to sock knitting. It's portable and easy, and my feet love the end product!

Currently working on a pair of blue socks for hubby. Our 25th wedding anniversary is this week, so I guess I'd better come through with something nice. I'm using the railway (or is it railroad) stitch from Nancy Bush's Vintage Socks book, and knitting with a gorgeous hand dyed Blue-Faced Leicester yarn from String Theory. I hope I have enough yarn to finish! Hubby's feet are 12 inches long...

One sock done so far, and a good 4 inches on the cuff of the second. I won't make it in time for the actual date of our anniversary, but maybe by the weekend...

Spinning through Adversity

2010-03-28T20:00:00.003-04:00

I had a bad bronchitis/flu this week, which pretty well incapacitated me for an entire week. I'm still not quite "right" yet, but at least I'm a bit more "alive" than I was a week ago, and ready to go back to work tomorrow. In between all the sleeping I had to do to recover from this thing, I got some spinning done. Quite a lot of spinning, actually.This one is "Breaking Waves," a Coopworth/Alpaca/Silk blend from Feeling Sheepish, a fellow vendor on Etsy. This is 0.9 ounces of 2-ply gorgeousness, spindle-spun and plied for a total of 118 yards! I still have a 1.3 ounce batt left to spin, and if the yardage is comparable -- can't see why it wouldn't be -- I ought to be able to get a nice, lacy, something special out of it.
This is a nice Coopworth, dark brown/almost black with colored wool nupps and a wee hint of glitz, from Wild Hare Studios. This is more of a worsted weight, 2-ply, spun and plied on my Schacht. I have approximately 8 ounces of this, but haven't measured the yardage. Should be enough for a nice, long scarf, though. It's soft and lovely, and I enjoyed spinning it.
This one is two different rovings, spun as separate singles and plied together to make a heavy DK/light worsted weight yarn. The colored roving, "Thistle," is a blend of Coopworth and Alpaca, and came from Fibers 4 Ewe. The variegated gray strand was spun from a gorgeous Cotswold roving. I have about 474 yards of this stuff. It is nice and bouncy and lively, and I'm thinking it may appear as stripes in a sweater sometime soon. I just need to find the right background color. I do have megatons of the gray Cotswold, which I could use in its original color, or overdye with a dark green. Hmmm...have to think about that...

This one is my big brag skein. It is one of Enchanted Knoll Farm's "Vardo" batts. It weighs 1.9 ounces, and every bit was spindle spun and plied. This is a true laceweight, methinks, as in its present 2-ply form, it yielded 318 yards! I don't think I have ever managed to spin quite that fine before, and am quite excited about it. Now, what shall it be? Time will tell. I have another skein of this in my stash, and though I don't think its quite as fine-gauge as this one, it might be. I have to check.

So, I don't feel quite as awful about losing a week as I might have, looking at this luscious pile of yarn!

I have half a skein left from Grant's hat, so am making a matching cowl for myself. That way, I can always remember what the finished project looked like, without duplicating it exactly. If you happen to be on Ravelry, look for madangel and take a peek in my projects to see a pic of "The Hart Hat" perched upon Mr. Hart's noggin. I was thrilled beyond belief when I saw it last week. First time I have ever seen my work upon the artist it was designated for. It's easier to get a photo of a hat from a non-knitter than it is to get one of his feet; hence I have no pics of any of the socks I've made for Larry Kirwan actually on Larry Kirwan. Maybe I need to make Larry a hat, too? But I think he rarely wears a hat, and I do owe him a pair of socks again one of these days.

Still waiting to hear if a) Grant wants socks, and b) what size his feet are if he does.

Random Act of Knitting

2010-03-13T22:00:00.004-05:00

Hoping the intended recipient would not think I was out of my mind, or stalking him, or God only knows what other sort of weirdness I might be capable of, I mailed this hat on February 25th.

The yarn is a gorgeous, hand-dyed superwash merino from String Theory in Blue Hill, Maine. The colorway is called "Cedar," and it was an absolute pleasure to knit with.
The pattern is one I found on Ravelry: Windschief by Stephen West. I love the swath of diagonal ribbing, because it makes me think of the way a fella's hair might blow back in the wind as he drives along with the car top down.
The evergreen colors called to mind a beautiful song by Grant Hart, "Evergreen Memorial Drive." The link will actually take you to a video of two songs, the first being "2541," which is also a nice song, but "Evergreen" is the one that kept running through my head while I worked on this.

I probably went on far too long in the letter I enclosed with the hat, and I had more than one "my God, what was I thinking" moment in the last couple of weeks. And then, on Friday, a letter!

"I knew before the box was opened that it contained a hat. It was on my head in 2 seconds, flat. I was in need of a spring hat...the textured section is very foxy indeed..."

His full response was somewhat longer than that, and I will treasure it always, along with his music.

And I have the joy of knowing I was able to give a small comfort to yet another musician who has given me so much over the course of many years.

Socks for Larry Kirwan.

A hat for Grant Hart.

Larry is due for another pair of socks. It has been about a year since the last pair. Oops! I'd better get cracking on that sometime soon.

And see if I can get Grant to tell me how big his feet are...

The Drumming Outfit

2010-02-26T23:09:00.002-05:00

I finally found my ideal drumming outfit. Milford circle, here I come!

In honor of...

2010-02-22T20:38:00.006-05:00

...growing another year older tomorrow, I learned a song of Grant's that has grown very near and dear to my heart in the last few weeks. I find it uplifting. It gave me, among other things, an idea for a story, mere days after my plunge into the slough of despond not so long ago. I tried to stay true to the feel of solo Grant, rather than the Hüsker Dü original. I like the slower, more reflective tempo he uses now, though the original version is wonderful in its own right. Just faster and more electric than I am capable of reproducing.

Recorded on my Zen X-Fi and enhanced with Audio Editor Pro. I am by no means a "pro" when it comes to using this software, but I did manage to smooth off some of the sharper edges, and make it sound a bit less like it was recorded in my bedroom.

Hope you enjoy...

Flexible Flyer

So...

2010-02-08T19:23:00.004-05:00

Funny how life can be at times. I plunge into what seems the worst possible nadir of depression, write the most dismal poem I have probably ever written, and begin to feel better.

My "I paid way too much for it" copy of Grant Hart's out-of-print acoustic CD, Ecce Homo, also helped by arriving in the post on Friday.

Saturday, I went and had a long, excellent visit with my friend Sue, and I brought my drum to show her, and we also spindled, knitted, and talked and talked and talked, as we have not had a chance to in a long time. I cherish this woman. We struggle with some of the same issues, and I know after sharing some of my troubles with her and learning I'm not alone, I feel so much better, like I can go on, the moment after my dreams have died.

And have they really died?

On my bad days, yes. I can't see past the bad day gloom and doom. It's hard to find anything that really helps in any obvious way.

On my good days, I feel differently about everything. Today, for instance, after Friday's wallow, Saturday with Sue, and Sunday dealing with a waterbed that had sprung a leak, I came home from work and sat down and wrote, in a blitz, an eight-page short story. Inspired by a song of Grant's, it began to come to me this morning while I was sitting amongst my tools and wires. I hoped it would be with me still when I got home, and lo and behold, after an hour or two, it was. I am very happy with the end result, though I know in a few days' time there will probably be a bunch of things I need/want to fix.

But for now, the story pleases me, the repairs to the waterbed have held, my bedroom is neater than it has been in months, and I feel pretty darn good.

Grant, even though you'll probably never see my blog, I still want to thank you for "Flexible Flyer." Food for thought, and catalyst for a story. My arse has been saved by music, and my response to it, yet again.

Grant Hart, Brighton Bar December 18, 2009

2010-02-07T12:36:00.001-05:00

Any Grant fans know the name of this exquisite little number?

Grant Hart, Middle East, Cambridge MA, 11 Jan 2010 (1/4)

2010-02-07T12:23:00.001-05:00

Never Talking To You and Flexible Flyer.

Bad Day at Black Rock

2010-02-05T15:52:00.004-05:00

That's what my father used to say when I was little, and we'd had a bad day fishing. As I get older, though, I tend to think of that phrase, wryly, when my mood matches the sentiment.

As of today, I have 18 days let to be 47. Once again, I feel wiggy and weird about the approach of my birthday. Another year, and what have I accomplished?

If acceptance of the fact that life just has not worked out at all the way I thought it might back in my semi-optimistic youth is an accomplishment, then so be it.

But I'm not there yet. I'm still in kicking and screaming mode. Railing at fate one last time before my star -- if I ever really had one -- has faded, and I sink into anonymity.

I only know I have to say this somewhere. I don't know where else to take it but here. So, for what it's worth...

Coffee Break Musings

Be still; stand by respectfully; bow your head and doff your hat

And hearken to the wind that carries my sigh.

Listen a moment and hear,

O hear my feeble cry,

Borne on that wind as my dreams die.

Time and years have swept on by.

Why was I so unaware of their passing?

How did I come to be so old,

With my songs unsung and my tales untold?

Or is it simply

That I have sung and I have told,

But no one ever really heard?

And why do I think they’ll listen now?

Does anyone really know or care to pause and listen

As the wind blows by, bearing my sigh?

Do they matter to any, these tears that I cry

While the cruel wind tears away my last sigh?

O, won’t you acknowledge this moment at all?

Be still; stand respectfully a few small seconds,

And hear the wind fleeing away with my sighs?

Will you bow your head and doff your hat,

And hold it close against your breast

While you stand still and silent and grave,

And mourn with me as the wind swirls by?

Hear, o hear that sighing sound.

Stay close by my side and hold my hand,

And assure me there’s reason to carry on

The moment after my dreams have died.

~CP Warner~

5 February 2010

It Only Took Twenty Years...

2010-01-13T20:37:00.007-05:00

His album, "Intolerance," sounds as fresh to me today as it did in 1990, when my sister first gave me a copy. From the opening track, "All of My Senses" to the poignant last words of "She Can See the Angels Coming," I was riveted. Listened to it over and over and over, along with Nova Mob's "Last Days of Pompeii," and couldn't get enough.

My sister lived in the Twin Cities in those days, and she got to see Grant Hart play as a soloist, and as the lead singer/drummer in Nova Mob on numerous occasions. Stranded in New England, I couldn't even get to the one show I heard of, in Providence at the now defunct Living Room. If only I could have gotten a babysitter that night, but no such luck. I was so envious of my sister having such ready access to those shows. Not only that, but sometimes she even got to talk to him. Hot damn!

So, "Tell him!" I said. "Tell him that I, a classically trained musician, am mightily impressed with his work!"

I don't think she ever had enough conversation time to share that with him, but...

I guess I forgot to mention that Grant played ALL the instruments and sang ALL the vocals on "Intolerance." Keys, guitars, drums, voice, sound effects...the sheer versatility and skill blew me away.

I bought his other CDs as soon as I heard of them. Sadly, I don't own every single one he did since the break-up of Husker Du, but I do have most of them. And it had been a very long time indeed since the release of "Good News for Modern Man," about nine years, actually, when a random e-mail landed in my inbox, announcing concerts in the Greater Boston area. I usually give such things a cursory glance and hit delete, but something prompted me to read this one, and there, way down at the bottom...Grant Hart at the Middle East? Oh, sweet Jesus! When? And the tickets are how much? NINE DOLLARS????? You never saw a person head for the ticketmaster site faster than I did that morning. And then it slowly dawned on me: if he's touring, there must be a NEW ALBUM.

Indeed, there was. Hot Wax is fabulous. I can't seem to get enough of the opening track, "You're the Reflection of the Moon on the Water."

But I digress.

We have fast-forwarded from 1990 to 2010, twenty years since I first heard "Intolerance" and "Last Days of Pompeii." Grant Hart is coming to the Middle East in Cambridge, and I have tickets in hand, and a head full of all the music of his that I own. I am ready for him on Monday night. More than ready, after twenty very long years!

He is not touring with a band. It's just Himself with an electric guitar, and maybe a few distortion/overdrive pedals. (I'm guessing here, as I'm not much of a gearhead). When he arrives, I recognize him instantly, but other folks don't seem to. He just walks in quietly with his guitar case, eyes twinkling as he passes. I'm not sure exactly what to expect, but am certain it will be interesting.

Within minutes, I've changed that opinion. Interesting, my arse! I cannot take my eyes off him. He draws me closer and closer to the stage, into a sea of people, and that's no mean feat: I generally avoid being hemmed in by crowds like the plague. But in this case, I don't see them. There is only this man, and this astounding music, and the poetry.

He plays and sings hard for a full hour and a half, performing at least 20 songs. So many favorites are going by, one after the other. And towards the end of the performance, I add up the time, and realize: Twenty years. My God, I have been waiting for this night for twenty years! And then, as the evening draws to a close, I feel driven to share that thought with him. I MUST let him know...

As these things go, if you miss your moment, it's gone. If it's meant to happen, it will happen.

He passes by me and in a second he will be in the thick of the crowd, and I won't have the nerve to follow. And so I speak.

"Grant!"

He hears me, and whirls 'round on the instant, shining a beatific smile on me. Furthermore, though we have never met before, he is looking at me as if he knows me, and has known me for a very long time. There's that twinkle in his eyes, brows raised inquiringly. He is not tall, and I am more or less nose to nose with him.

I lean towards him and say it: "I've been waiting to hear you play live for twenty years!"

The smile gets broader and he laughs, and replies, "Well, it's about f*cking time!"

Then I'm laughing, too, and what do I say in return? "Yes, Grant. Yes it is."

I tell him we have a friend in common back in the Twin Cities, whereupon he inquires if I smoke. There's a pack of cigarettes in his hand, and he's in the process of shaking one loose. I'm not a smoker and tell him so, at which point he takes my hand and starts moving towards the exit door. "Come with me anyway!" he says, and my head is reeling. A quick hello is turning into an opportunity for a more in-depth conversation. He is acting as if I'm an old and dear friend, and I am utterly at ease with him.

We are halfway to the door, and I am telling him I'll be happy to walk out with him, but just as we are halfway to his destination, he is waylaid by someone who wants CDs.

He offers an apologetic shrug and a smile, and says, "I'm sorry, but I guess I have to deal with commerce now."

"That's all right," I say, feeling lucky to have spent as much time with him as I have. "I've got to go now anyway, but--Grant, thank you so much! It was beautiful."

And I'm caught in a bear-hug that lasts awhile, and we say goodbye.

I hope that someday, some way, we might have a chance to resume that conversation, but even if we don't, at least he knows what the music has meant to me all this time. What it will continue to mean.

"What's left is all that remains to be seen." ~Grant Hart~

Long Time No Update

2009-10-23T18:58:00.003-04:00

Wish I was Here, though perhaps not right now, when it's gotten awfully cold in Massachusetts, and so must be even worse in Northern Maine. These pics were taken in August, in Baxter State Park, during a week of Record High Temps in Maine. honestly, I have all the luck. Go someplace cool in the heat of high summer and walk right into totally non-typical weather in Vacationland. Well, at least there was one day when it was cool enough (sort of) to hike.
Can I remember the name of this spot now? Heck, no, but it sure was pretty, even though Daphne and I had both been stung by the same hornet by the time this pic was snapped. Dang thing bounced off my hand and on to her shoulder. Lesson learned by Daphne: don't tailgate Mom on a hike in the woods.
Then Daphne took a pic of me and Keith.
Now on to some recent spinning. One bobbin of Gray Cotswold, and one of a luscious BFL roving from Infinite Spirals. It was called Sand & Sea, and I couldn't resist, even though it was the last 2.5 ounces. I decided to ply it with the Cotswold to maximize my yardage.

And here's the plied skein, which is rather highly energized and still needs a wash.6.15 ounces, 490 yards. Looks like it might be a great sock yarn, as the twist is really tight. I'll see what it's like after it has had its bath.

All through with the final edit of Doubtful Sound and am now contemplating how to tackle writing a synopsis. I really should have one written before I start sending out query letters. Also contemplating how to compose a heart-stoppingly thrilling query letter that will make some Big Publisher shout, "This woman is a genius! We must publish her NOW!"

Well, I can dream, can't I? LOL.

Doubtful Sound Update

2009-08-26T19:49:00.004-04:00

If you have been following my Story, Doubtful Sound, please see my latest update. There are two pages. You may link to the second page by clicking "NEXT" at the bottom of the first page.

I have made a much-needed artistic decision.

If you have been reading, please wish me luck, send good vibes, say a prayer, or whatever.

One way or another, someday in the not-too-distant future, this will be a real book you can hold in your hands, and enjoy.

New Spinning Batts!

2009-07-13T16:25:00.004-04:00

These are fresh off the carder today, my friends. If any of them calls your name loudly, please feel free to visit Mad Angel Creations and indulge yourself!

Iris. Wool, Silk Noil, & Angelina.

Water Lily. Wool, Silk Noil, & Angelina.

Fire. Wool, Bamboo, & Angelina.

Recent Spinning

2009-07-04T21:42:00.004-04:00

From Portland Fiber Gallery and Weaving Studio. This was a gorgeous, soft, superwash merino and seacell blend roving, hand-dyed in a coorway called "Ocean Breeze." 8.55 ounces of roving yielded 748 yards of 2-ply yarn. It's kind of a heavy fingering weight, about 2 wraps per inch. I had never tried seacell before. Fabulous stuff!
This one came from my friend Sue at RI Handspun. Alpaca, mohair, silk and a bit of angelina for sparkle. It spun up like a dream. 4.85 ounces yielded 286 yards of 2-ply, again in a sort of thick fingering weight. I love the woodsy colors in this!
Last but not least is the yarn I made up from about half of the samples from my June Phat Fiber box, mixed with some black roving I had on hand. I think it will end up being a hat. I think I want to try doing the heavier version of Boho Knitter Chic's wonderful slouch beret, Sweet Georgia. (I featured my lighter weight version in my last blog post.)I did end up washing and blocking my Sweet Georgia snood after all, and it fits and drapes even better than it did before its bath.

And I have to let any snood fans know about Distinctive Hair Coverings! This lady does beautiful work. My favorite thing purchased from her so far is something she calls a "scarf gripper." It is a simple, elasticized velvet band which, when applied with the nap facing in the proper direction, holds your hair back without slipping, AND keeps your snood/hat/scarf in place ALL DAY LONG! No barrettes or clips needed. I put the band on, then my head covering du jour, and I don't have to even think about it again until I am ready to remove my head covering for sleeping.

The passion for head coverings is partially spiritual, but mostly due to the fact that I have Big Hair and don't like to braid it or bun it or ponytail it. I like it to hang somewhat loose, so it doesn't give me headaches. I know, I could cut it, but I really don't want short hair at this point in my life. Not sure why. I have had very short hair in the past and liked it, but...I just don't want it that way now. I also do not want my longer, fuller, wilder hair in my eyes, up my nose, in my mouth while I'm eating dinner...you get the idea.

Oh, and it's also a nuisance flying around when I'm drumming. I can't drum and itch my nose at the same time. I'm just not that co-ordinated.

So, I'm experimenting with head coverings. And I like the way they look, and the way they make me feel.

Sweet Georgia is my favorite pattern of all so far. Watch this space for the next editions thereof!

In a Snood Mood

2009-07-02T14:08:00.002-04:00

My Sweet Georgia snood!I cast this on last night and finished it about half an hour ago.It was a simple, pleasant project, and I found I couldn't put it down once I had begun.Yarn is my own hand-plied wool/camel blend in a really nice heathered purple color.I Navajo-plied this on my Roberta, from some commercial singles I got as a mill-end from UniStar a few years ago. I've used this yarn for socks before (in a different color) and loved it. Turns out it's equally nice for lace!

Still trying to decide if I should block this or not...

My First Tie-Dye Ever!

2009-06-29T11:58:00.003-04:00

So, in my quest for good performance clothing for drumming (provided I ever get good enough), I've checked out a lot of websites with some truly spectacular garments I simply cannot afford to buy right now. Lucky for me, I remembered Dharma Trading Co. while on my quest. I cannot say enough good things about this little company, so I'll touch on my favorite basics: excellent customer service, huge variety of products, great prices, and mega-fast shipping. If you're looking for dyes and cool items to dye, look no further than these folks. Awesome. Simply unbeatable!

Anyhoo, I like Caftans. They are big, floaty, and really comfortable, and Dharma has beautiful plain white rayon ones just waiting for dye. They also have iDye, a Jacquard product for those of us who want to experiment with easy-peasy fiber-reactive dyeing. I didn't know if I really wanted to invest in a lot of extra dye-setting chemical yet, so iDye was perfect. See?
They do caution that iDye is not the most colorfast dye they sell, but it's way better than anything one can buy in the local Wal-Mart, certainly. And I expect the color to last well enough with an occasional cold water wash. These caftans will not see heavy every day wear.I will wear these to church in the summer, mostly, and if I drum "out" someday, I will wear them in performance.I ordered the plus size, so I would have extra room to move. These pics were all taken after all the pre-washing, post-dye rinsing, washing, and machine drying were done. There was a lot of shrinkage, BUT Dharma has these things sized so huge you could fit a couple of elephants in them prior to processing. Shrinkage was a good thing in this case.Yup, see how big it is? I do love the way it came out, though. The orange one has just finished simmering, so it's bath and rinse time for it now. And very soon I will have two whole brand-new dresses for summer and drumming wear for a mere $50. That includes the dye and sundries needed for the job. Can't beat that!

On Being Re-invented...AGAIN!!!!

2009-06-26T22:05:00.005-04:00

What does an ex-chorister do for fun when the singing is over?

No, that's not a joke. There is no punch line. Say hello to my new djembe!
This beautiful drum came from Mali, via Sidy, who teaches my drum class.

I wanted to provide the goatskin head of my drum with extra protection while toting it around in its case, so I knitted up a djembe hat from some handspun I had lying around. The color mix is quite Rastafarian. I thought so when I bought the roving from Sue a couple of years ago, and I still think so. It looks great knitted up, and I might even have enough left over to make a slouch beret for myself.
Having sung higher voice parts all my life, I decided I wanted the deepest-toned drum I could possibly get: the exact opposite of what my voice does. Deep, low, and loud. This drum is perfect in that respect.It's also a lot of drum for me to grow into. It will last me a long, long time.
Here's a close-up of the hat. I do love the way it came out.

Now, why African drumming, when I have never (up until 2 weeks ago, that is) touched a djembe before?

Well, there is a nice little drum circle in residence at my church. They don't play in church often, but they did on Pentecost, and it totally blew me away. I had been intrigued by the idea of playing myself in the recent past, but there was no time. I was too embroiled in choir. There were plenty of other excuses as well, all lined up in neat little rows. But the drums were always in the back of my mind.

Now, at last, the time is right. "Stop thinking about it. Just do it," came the message, loud and clear.

Interestingly enough, that was one of the directions Sidy gave, too, to everyone in attendance at my first meeting with the class.

So, I am trying to let go of thought as I practice alone. To feel the rhythms without over-analyzing them. There are three I am working on for this week's class, and they are not as easy as they might seem to a listening bystander. Sometimes I can drum accurately, without even looking at my hands. And sometimes I get terribly out of synch. But it will come in time. A new rhythm bit will be added for me to learn this week. Piece by piece, stroke by stroke, a whole song will emerge in time. I don't even aspire to solo. It's enough for me, now, to strive to be a competent part of the whole, and feel where I fit within the structure, and listen while Sidy takes a solo.

I love it. :-)

New Goodies!

2009-06-25T19:20:00.001-04:00

Please stop by the shop for a closer look!

New Stuff!

2009-06-20T20:51:00.003-04:00

For sale now at Mad Angel Creations!
Hand-dyed Sock Yarn, "Tourmaline," 100 % wool, non-superwash, 500 yds (475 m).
Hand-dyed Sock Yarn, "Periwinkle," 100% Superwash BFL, 400 yds (365 m).
Hand-plied fingering weight, a blend of equal parts Silk, Flax, and Polyester, 600 yds (548 m).
Hand-dyed Sock Yarn, "Dayflower," 100% non-superwash wool, 500 yds (475 m)
Hand-dyed Sock Yarn, "Autumn Splendor," Superwash Merino & Nylon blend, 440 yds (402 m).

June Phat Fiber!

2009-06-19T15:59:00.002-04:00

My box came in today! What to mess around with first? I am completely unable to make a decision, so at the moment am simply spinning what I already had on my wheel. Some really pretty stuff in this box!

Remembering Rory

2009-06-16T13:45:00.002-04:00

I miss you, Rory...

OMG....

2009-06-16T10:43:00.002-04:00

The Dolls are coming! The Dolls are coming! To think I will get to see Jo-Jo perform again after all these years! Wheeee.......
Off to see if Rhapsody is smart enough to offer their latest CD!

New in the Shop!

2009-06-06T13:55:00.002-04:00

Please visit Mad Angel Creations for further details and/or Retail Therapy!

Me and my big....

2009-06-04T23:04:00.004-04:00

Hair! And finally, a solution to keep it off my neck and out of my nose and/or mouth!
Here's the yarn, from String Theory in Blue Hill, Maine. It's a nice, hand-dyed sock weight yarn, merino and bamboo blend, in a colorway they call Labrador. It shines so beautifully! And I have enough left over to make something else semi-substantial, like, maybe a pair of socks?The pattern is the Lacy Starfish Snood, which I found free on Ravelry, thanks to the nice ladies in the Veiled Knitters group. It was a really pleasant, quick knit. So, if you find yourself in need of near-instant gratification...I love the way this contains my hair so elegantly! I may not be so quick to chop my hair short this time, now that I have an effective way to tame it.

In this Litigious Society...

2009-06-01T17:07:00.002-04:00

I'm wondering if our local Wool Festivals are going to become Things of the Past for small vendors. Each and every one is now requiring liability insurance for participants, and my insurance agent just informed me that I must buy a commercial policy from a commercial agent in order to have this coverage. I can't just bump my personal umbrella or homeowners' up to the next level for a few days a year.

I am such a tiny vendor, with a tiny inventory and an equally tiny profit margin. I just don't see how I can possibly afford a whole separate insurance policy for a business I run publicly from a 10' x 10' booth two days a year.

I'm afraid the Death Knell has rung for Mad Angel Creations, as far as festival participation goes. I intend to maintain an online presence as long as I can, but am saddened to know selling face to face is probably not going to be possible anymore.

So much for small, independent business enterprises. [sigh]

Rosie the Riveter Kerchief

2009-06-01T11:48:00.005-04:00

I made this kerchief from one of my own batts. wish I had thought to photograph the batt ahead of time, but oh, well...

The blend was hand-dyed wool, undyed milk fiber, and a bit of dark red angelina. I had a total of 1.3 oz, which I spun on the fine side and Navajo-plied. I ended up with a total of 106 yards, and at the end of the project, I think I had maybe 3 yards left. Talk about knitting on the edge!
"Rosie the Riveter" is a free pattern on Ravelry. While I love the shaping of it and will experiment with that more in the future, the pattern itself either has way more mistakes than a pattern should, or I had a bad case of the stupids when I sat down to make it. I ended up reworking the whole thing, and while it came out nicely enough, there are things about it that did not please me. I think some math was done wrong, either by me, or the designer, or both.Anyhoo, the problems are not so glaring that I felt a second trip to the frog pond was necessary. I wanted this thing on my head, not in my UFO pile!Yesterday was Pentecost, so we were supposed to wear red to church. So, I dutifully wore the new kerchief and paired it up with this vintage caftan I found in an antique store on my last trip to Maine.Can you believe, only $30 for a real Balinese batik caftan entirely made of SILK????? And I have lost a few more pounds, so it fits even more comfortably than it did back in April when I bought it! Wheeeeeeee......
And the orange-red motif really did look rather obligingly like tongues of fire...

And now I think I need to add a djembe to this ensemble. Seriously. I am really thinking I want to try joining the church's drum circle. They were so good yesterday, and just seemed to be having so much...FUN! I wants me some of that fun...

Sins Committed in New Hampshire!

2009-05-16T15:11:00.003-04:00

No, I do not feel the least bit guilty!

Another fabulous Ledbetter! This one has what he calls a "shell skeleton" on top.

Fiber came from "Farm in the Woods" in NH, and would you look at that? Oopsy-daisy. I've gone and chosen fiber that matched the spindle again!

Here's a nice superwash merino/bamboo blend from Mocha's Fiber Connection. 1100 yds in the Sugar Maple colorway! I don't know what this wants to be yet,but please don't suggest socks! This deserves something more magnificent, like a shawl of some sort. Hmmm...I think I hear the Estonian Lace book screaming my name again!

The Hummers are back!

2009-05-01T06:54:00.000-04:00

Just saw my first little fella of the season at my feeder! 6:54 AM EDST. I'm so glad I took Judy's advice and put my feeder out on Monday!

eXtreme Spindling!

2009-05-01T05:59:00.002-04:00

On vacation in Stonington, April 19th. We had GORGEOUS weather!

Note: Sooooooooo annoyed! Hubby edited the video for me so it would show properly, but You Tube is now showing it sideways, and I can't figure out how to fix it! If I do figure it out someday, you all will be the first to know.

Steve

2009-04-30T21:04:00.003-04:00

I tawt I taw a puddy tat...ent he cunnin'?

More new yarns in my store!

2009-04-30T19:46:00.003-04:00

I'm having too much fun again, folks. Here's the evidence. If any of it grabs you, please visit Mad Angel Creations.I had hoped to post a video from my recent vacation in Maine, when I actually plied some yarn off the upper deck at the Inn on the Harbor, on my (formerly Mali's) Golding spindle. However, until I can figure out how to re-orient the video so you don't have to lie on your side to watch it, you'll just have to chuckle at the thought of it. But the upper deck is a good 10 to 12 feet from the lower deck, so I had that sucker going for awhile, and I kept it going, and got a nice 2-ply fingering weight for my efforts. What fun!

I also completely neglected to take any pictures when I paid a visit to Maiysha's home studio, Zebisis Designs. Talk about feeling like a kid in a candy store! Unbelievable stuff everywhere I turned, but the one thing I really wish I had thought to dig the camera out for was the "Welcome Mad Angel" written in the dust on the rear window of Maiysha's van, to let me know I had found the right place. I'm still chuckling at that. It was an awfully sweet thing to see upon arrival, when we really weren't sure if we had got to the right place or not.

I got some gorgeous fiber to spin, which will probably be the first treat I allow myself when I'm done with NH Sheep & Wool, and acquired a couple of new spindles -- green opal for me and a malachite/grass agate for a friend who probably thinks I forgot about it a long time ago. So, it will be a nice surprise indeed when I finally send it out!

Anyone coming to the NH Sheep & Wool festival this year? I am in my usual location, where people are guaranteed NOT to find me, in the Kimball Dairy Barn. This may be my last year participating in the Festival, as my request for a better location has not been honored. I'm still hoping to do better this year, as I have been putting lots of effort into my products, but I'm not letting myself get too excited. I figure, if I don't expect too much, maybe good things will happen, and I will be pleasantly surprised, and will consider returning next year.

If it goes the way it has the last two years, though, it just isn't worth the trouble. It's far easier to be an online presence, and put money I spend on iffy booth rentals back into acquiring good stock people will love.

I'm not really as down about it all as I sound, and if I don't vend next year, there's a lot to be said for spending a day at the festival and simply...enjoying myself. Though I do love meeting the folks who stop by my booth, even if they are all spent-out by the time they find me, and would miss that interaction. It's always nice to see what other fiber fiends are up to!

Gotta Celebrate!

2009-04-16T15:55:00.004-04:00

OK, this is another of my infamous before/after shots.

"Before," from November of 2008, about a week before I started Weight Watchers, comes to us courtesy of Joansie's Blog.

Shawl pattern is from the dear, delightful, wonderful, totally, completely, utterly awesome Alison Hyde. It's in her terrific book, "Wrapped in Comfort." There are more of her shawl patterns in my future, too. It's just hard to pick one, as they are ALL fabulous.

"After" shots, taken just this afternoon -- in fact only a few minutes ago -- are courtesy of my kid (Daphne). She was the only family member kind enough to respond to my call for a photographer!

There, now! Doesn't that look a whole lot better on the "new" me? Notice also in rear view shot -- that's MY arse in a pair of Levi's again!

Estonian Lace Stole

2009-04-09T23:08:00.001-04:00

Here's the latest project -- a lace stole from Nancy Bush's Estonian lace book. The pattern is easy and a pleasure to knit. I almost have it memorized already.
The yarn is a hand-painted merino/yak blend from Northern Lights Fiber Co in Alaska. This is Kelsey's "Tree of Life" colorway, and it seems that lately I'm addicted to any fibery reference to Trees of Life. This was a must-have, and is wonderful to work with.
I gave the bit I have done a light blocking this morning, just to get an idea of how it might look when done, though of course when I do the final blocking, I will stretch it open more. But one does get a rough idea from this, anyway. I love it.

Phat Fiber has been bad for my budget, but what a way to go! There are some really nice vendors participating, and I can't resist the temptation. Northern Lights Fiber Co is one of those temptations!

And now, for your viewing pleasure, Steve and his Cosmic Catnip mouse!

New hand-dyed yarns in my store now!

2009-04-02T16:13:00.005-04:00

Now for sale at Mad Angel Creations!

This is 100% wool sock-weight yarn, really soft and cushy, in my brand-new "Tourmaline" colorway. There's only one lot of 2 skeins being sold together as a unit. 500 yards and 4 full ounces, which would be enough for a fairly generous-sized pair of socks knitted in a plain stitch.

Or maybe a fancy cable sock for an average-sized ladies' foot?Someone please save me from myself and buy this before I decide I can't possibly sell it!
Next up is a 520 yard, 2 ounce skein, also in the Tourmaline colorway, of laceweight wool & cashmere. (85% and 15%, respectively).

This would make a really nice lace accessory item.
There's enough for a generous scarf or shawl, and it's sooooooooo soft!

I love this colorway, and will try to recreate it in future,
but no other skein will ever come out exactly like this one.
Again, someone please save me from myself and buy this
before I decide I really can't bear to part with it!

Datsany's Sweater - Finished!

2009-03-31T14:02:00.003-04:00

The sweater is drying on my bed now. I'm really pleased with the way it came out. Also, I really loved working with the Pagewood Farm yarn. It has a wonderful hand, and the colors are fabulous!

Moonwood Farm Roving Report!

2009-03-28T19:35:00.003-04:00

So, I succumbed to the temptations of yet another Phat Phiber participant's store. This is 3 ounces of "Disturbia" batts from Roo at Moonwood Farm. I think I got it in the mail on Thursday -- verrrrrrrry fast shipping! -- and began spinning it yesterday afternoon.
I spun about 2-1/2 oz of singles at my friend's spin-in today, then plied it all together to make this beautiful 2-ply laceweight yarn.
I just skeined this and found out I have 331 yards. People, this is 3 ounces' worth of fiber! Pretty durn good yield, if you ask me! I will probably make myself something nice and lacy. Maybe a Morning Surf scarf? And maybe I'll get frisky and add some clear, sparkly beads?
The fiber blend is 75% alpaca, 25% soy silk, plus some "Night" firestar and Silver Angelina for sparkle. I am so pleased with it!

Thank you, Roo! I'll be back....

Datsany's Sweater

2009-03-27T16:43:00.004-04:00

My sister and I have been working to design a sweater for her grand-daughter/my grand-niece since the beginning of January. Originally, I was to do the design work, using stitch motifs my sister liked, but as I got into it, I realized we'd never get anywhere if I didn't just knit it myself, to make sure I hadn't made any mistakes in the pattern. I figured, since my sister is not as fast a knitter, that I would hit the mistakes long before she did, and be able to fix them. So, of course there were a few, but now I am very close to done.

The yarn is "Golden," and you can learn more about it and the other fabulous colorways by visiting Pagewood Farm.
My pattern calls for my own hand-dyed DK weight yarn, and that's what my sister is using. However, when I began working on this project over New Year's in St. Paul, I did not have ready access to my stash. So, what's a yarnaholic with a mission to do? I thought you'd agree. Yes, indeed, the solution was to BUY MORE YARN!!!! The color was perfect, and I couldn't resist, although it was a laceweight, which necessiated the purchase of two humungous skeins, so I could knit with a double strand and also be guaranteed to have enough yarn to finish what I started. All I have left to do now is one sleeve, and a crocheted picot edging on all the Feather & Fan parts.There will be a LOT of this yarn leftover, and I'm reasonably certain it is going to become something gorgeous and lacy for moi. Oooh!

The Cat Came Back

2009-03-27T11:35:00.004-04:00

This is Steve. He's possibly a Himalayan mix, with what the vet called "flame points," and he was a stray. My daughter found him wandering the streets around Quinsigamond Community College in Worcester, MA. He followed her from the parking lot to the library, where she left him, expecting he'd be gone a couple of hours later when she went back out to the parking lot.

Not only was he not gone, but he miaowed at her continually, and followed her up a very long flight of stairs to the parking lot, and all the way to her car. So, she felt sorry for him, felt he had chosen her, and brought him home, and tried to hide him in her room.

Well, that didn't work out, because he is quite vocal in that Siamese-ish sort of way, and around Thanksgiving, Keith, Daphne, and I were introduced to Lord Steven Catsby.

Did I mention that I have a horrible allergy to cats? As in, full-blown asthma attacks?

Or at least, that's the way it has been all my life, up 'til now. Perhaps breathing filtered air through my CPAP machine is what's helping, or maybe this is an allergy I have finally outgrown, or asthma meds are just so darn much better than they used to be, or....?

I did not react at all to my sister's three cats when I spent a long weekend at her house in January. This is a first. Of course, I medicated the way I always do, but in the past the meds have only just taken the edge off.

So, I have been rather fearlessly spending time with Steve, patting him and holding him, and always being sure to wash my hands well with soap afterwards. So far, so good.

Until Last Tuesday night, when Steve snuck out the door, unbeknownst to my husband. We were up half the night, calling for him out in the woods behind our house, and fearing the worst, as we do have coyotes around here.

We left food out for him twice a day, and the food disappeared, and we knew Steve was the recipient, because we kept seeing him at the dish at odd times of the day and night. However, he would not allow himself to be caught, and if any of us went near, he turned into a hissing Halloween cat. We would have worried about possible disease, if not for the fact that Steve got all his shots on Balls-Away Day back in December. This was definitely a case of him being Ornery, probably due to the fact that it's Spring.

Monday night, we almost had him. He had been coming into the porch twice a day to eat, as we had left the door open for him, in hopes of trapping him whilst he porked down the cat food. Too bad he heard the dogs barking, and Daphne's feet in the leaves as she tried to sneak up to the door and shut it. He was off like a streak, hissing with a vengeance, and Daphne had to back off.

Tuesday, we were out for the evening, and though I left food for Steve, I did not refill his dish until 6:30 AM on Wednesday. As I opened the door, a little white streak dashed away around the corner. So I put food out, and figured he'd be on the run yet another day, and toyed with the idea of buying a Havahart trap.

Then Daphne spotted something white on the stone wall behind the house, while she was waiting for the bus. I didn't hear her say it, as I was at my computer, trying to whip my Etsy shop into shape. So, when Keith yelled, "We got him!" it didn't quite register in my mind for a few seconds, who was "we" and whom had "we" got.

Then, as I went into the living room, there was Phoebe coming in through the porch door with Steve in her arms! Well!

He had gotten in a scrap with another cat, judging from all the scabs on his neck and body, and he had some ticks, which he did NOT enjoy having picked off, but he was back, safe in the house, purring his head off. He is acting now, as if he never left, and we are so happy to have him back!

I gave him two full cans of salmon Fancy Feast to celebrate, and also bought him a new feathers-on-a-stick toy, and a big jar of Pounce salmon treats. His first night back in the house, he slept on the bed between me and Keith. I have never heard a cat purr so loud!

Right now he is sitting on top of my printer, looking up wistfully at my mother-in-law's canary. (I'm only babysitting the bird, and hopefully he'll go back home soon, when my MIL is well enough to take care of him again.)

I feel like I cannot get enough of this kitty! I didn't realize how attached I'd gotten to him, until he was gone and I feared he would come to harm.

Picture above was snapped yesterday, while he napped on my kitchen counter, in between the microwave, the Kitchen Aid mixer, and a bunch of bananas.

Did I mention that I'm thrilled beyond belief that he came back?

Oh, yeah, I guess I did...

I Got Phat!

2009-03-19T15:51:00.004-04:00

I participated in the March Phat Fiber sampler box and sent in enough Mad Angel Creations goodies to receive my own box of goodies from Jessie. There's some really great stuff in this little box, and I know I'll be visiting the shops of my fellow Phatties in future, when finances permit. I got a good mix of spinning fibers and yarn samples, and will have a lot of fun playing with them. The spinning samples will be spun on one of my spindles, I think, so I can get maximum yardage out of them.

The March theme was, of course, Celtic, so how could I resist?

New stuff in my store as of today -- some cool, kettle-dyed sock yarns, and better pics of some of my current inventory. I finally figured out I should do my photographs using a tripod, a neutral -- NOT bright white -- background, and an Ott light, strategically placed. It's not perfect, but it's way better than what I was getting before. My spinning batts, in particular, have really benefited from this treatment. Check it out, if you feel like it, and if you do, thanks as always for looking.

What is Paula Wearing?

2009-03-15T17:54:00.005-04:00

I am not trying to copycat my friend, James, but couldn't resist saying What Is Paula Wearing, because this is the closest thing you'll ever see to designer fashion on this body.
I bought this suit in Galway in 2005. It's a silk/polyester blend, heavy on the silk. I probably paid more for this outfit than any other garment I own, except my wedding dress. I did not want to come home from Ireland with yet another Aran sweater, when I am perfectly capable not only of knitting, but designing, my own, and doing it with no-name quality yarns on the cheap.Anyway, I haven't worn this too often in the last five years, though it is made of a very "forgiving" fabric. (I.e., it stretches to accomodate my arse, even when said arse is larger than it is now.) But before I lost weight, this outfit made me look "matronly." At 47, I might be of the proper age to be considered "matronly," and I have had two kids, but...

"Matronly." Sheesh! I refuse to go there yet. I'm still painting the gray away, too. I like being a redhead a bit too much. Some of my roots were coming in WHITE. Eventually, I'll let it happen, I guess, but not yet. Not yet...

Anyway, I'm thrilled to death that it feels so good to wear this outfit again. My daughter Phoebe has one in spring green, which she has never worn and probably never will, and I am about to commandeer that one as well. It will make a fine Easter outfit.

How apropos. I do feel as if I'm rising from the dead, after all. By this time next year, I hope, literally, to be half the woman I used to be!

Before and After

2009-03-09T13:10:00.004-04:00

The pictures speak for themselves, I think!Sometimes it's hard for me to see progress until I put the images side by side. Granted, I still have a long way to go -- 60 pounds' worth -- but this gives me reassurance that I'll get there in time. The scale tells a good tale, too, as does the change in clothing sizes.

Those Levis I bought about a month ago? One pair, which sits a bit below the waistline, feels like it's going to fall down. The other pair, which thankfully has some spandex in it and falls at the natural waistline, will adjust and fit for a while yet. When they first arrived in the mail, neither pair fit. They were way too tight, and I considered returning them and buying a larger size. Instead, I took a leap of faith and hung them up in the closet for couple of weeks. They weren't comfortable when I first started wearing them, but now?

I can sit, stand, move, and breathe while wearing them, without thinking about it or feeling the least bit uncomfortable. That's progress!

I tried my first yoga workout today, using a video I ordered from Gaiam, which is supposed to focus on weight loss. There are a number of different levels to choose from, but I couldn't figure out how to do that and inadvertently chose the hardest one of all. Duh! Of course, I found out after the fact, but was pleased to find I was able to do the workout, anyway, though I wasn't able to stretch as far as the instructor did. Oh, well, live and learn. Tomorrow I'll figure out how to go back to the paddy-ass version and start slow.

For something that looks so simple when you watch others do it, this workout was surprisingly challenging. I also felt pretty good when I was done, physically and mentally, though I had a touch of nausea at the end. Wonder why? But that feeling passed in time and I was able to eat lunch as usual. It might have had something to do with waiting too long after breakfast to take my vitamins. (If there isn't enough food in my stomach, vitamins will make me feel ill. I found this out years ago, while pregnant. Ended up puking behind a dumpster in a hotel parking lot. Blecch. And it was the vitamins that set me off. I was fine until I took them. Go figure!)

I need to accomplish some spinning today, but it's so gloomy and nasty out, I feel gray and lazy. Perhaps it's time for another episode of Bleak House. I can watch while I spin, or else continue listening to Charles Aznavour and settle down on the chaise with Inishmaan. I finished the front over the weekend, and have started the back. Photos another time, when we have sun again and I can take some out on the deck. Otherwise, why bother? If I did it now, you wouldn't see any of the cable work.

I am so ready for winter to be over, and to have a nice, long spring. None of this instant sumer nonsense, thank you very much!

Soon it will be time to evaluate what plantings from last spring survived our "black thumbs" and the hard winter, and to decide what other cheap, no-maintenance flowers we can plant this year. I'm thinking, nasturtiums again, and marigolds, and zinnias, all of which did well last year despite our gardening ineptitude!This was our last nasturtium, as photographed by Daphne sometime around the 13th or 14th of November. A few days later, the frost finally got to it, and it gave up clinging to the downspout. We were amazed that it hung on as long as it did, considering how its less sheltered brethren had withered away bit by bit in previous weeks as the frosts came.

I love nasturtiums. Can't wait to have a riot of them growing wildly by the back door again!

I Found an Old Friend Again!

2009-03-08T18:30:00.002-04:00

As often happens with so many of us, I had a good friend in my last year of high school, with whom I shared a locker and spent hours working beside in Crafts class, and once I graduated, I think we saw each other once, a year or two later. Time went by, and I found him again, thanks to Classmates.com, and we corresponded briefly. As usual, life intervened, and I never did have a chance to keep up any kind of regular correspondence, though I thought of him often.

Life takes funny twists and turns sometimes, and I happened to run into his sister yesterday. One of those friend of a friend of a friend scenarios, and we got to chatting, and she told me about her brother's blog.

Well! Needless to say, I googled for it promptly when I got home, and was delighted to find my old friend, who had always had a great sense of aesthetics and style, has an even greater sense of it now, as well as a grand sense of humor, and he certainly seems nowhere near as shy and quiet as he was so many years ago. I am delighted, and looking forward to staying in touch better this time around. My kids are older, and I have a little more time on my hands than I did a few years ago.

Please enjoy his blog, What Is James Wearing? He really looks fabulous -- and happy -- and I'm happy for him!

A Day Early...

2009-03-01T13:39:00.003-05:00

Loved, missed, and never to be forgotten.
Happy birthday, Rory.

Everyone please enjoy a few of his finest moments, and raise a toast to The Wee Man.

It's the Same Thing

Don't Know Where I'm Going

Do You Read Me?

On Lenten Discipline and Food

2009-02-26T18:59:00.003-05:00

I sent this to one of the clergy at my church, for what it's worth. Sparked by his musings about giving up dessert for Lent.

You may not know, given as I have not been around church much lately, that I have been wrestling The Food Beast since just before Thanksgiving. I joined Weight Watchers online (I don't do too well in "group" situations) and am doing well, but have a long way to go. The weight would come off faster if I could supplement the diet with exercise, but I injured a muscle in my hip trying to go from 0 to 60 on a new exercise program. It has been an interesting winter, trying to get around in all the ice and snow, and trying not to fall down in the process. I got an ice grip for my cane that could double as a weapon if someone tried to mug me, and all has been well. I do feel like I'm on the mend, but have to be careful about what exercise I take up. Looks like it will be yoga for a bit, as my dear friend Larry, who is nearly 61 and still leaping all over the stage with his Stratocaster, says that's his secret. I, too, would like to move like a 16-year-old when I am Larry's age, so I'm going to try it. Hopefully I will like it, and if I am never as lithe as Larry, that's OK. Just so I can move easily and be healthy. Anyhoo...

I have not given up chocolate. Dark chocolate is one of the things I can eat, that does not have too many "points," and dark chocolate is supposed to be good for you. So, a little bit here and there. what's harder for me is giving up bread and cheese. Bread is such a quick fix when you are tired and feeling run down and don't want to cook on any given day. So is pizza. I have eaten pizza exactly twice since I started this program. Oddly enough, I don't feel a craving for it. (Thank you, Great Spirit!) Weight Watchers has terrific recipes on line, and I have learned a great deal about portion control. I didn't realize how often I was reaching for the "wrong" foods, and that the portions I was eating were not likely to create a state of svelteness.

In November, I found, much to my dismay, that I was 100 lbs overweight and heading into gastric bypass territory. My doctor had said he didn't want to hear from me until I had lost weight and started an exercise program. His exact words, in an e-mail, no less! "You're not going to want to hear this from me, but you need to lose weight and start an exercise program, and then we'll talk about why you don't feel well." A snail mail letter from him a few days later confirmed that, and suggested I book a physical sometime in February. Well, I'm going in early March, and I cannot wait to show that smug little so-and-so that, even though the exercise had to fall by the wayside temporarily, I have stuck to a very good diet, got educated about food, and lost (as of today, anyway) 34 lbs.

In musing on how I ever let myself get as big as I did, I have to keep coming back to self esteem. Almost everywhere I went, it seemed nothing I did was good enough. I did not feel like a temple fit for the Spirit. I felt like a black hole. I felt like it didn't matter if I maintained the temple or not. Despite taking a good anti-depressant which is indeed helpful to some degree, I was getting into that mindset where I did not care much if I lived or died. What gave me a good swift kick in the arse? Dunno, but one afternoon I sat in front of the computer, read about the dismal future of gastric bypass patients, and the failure rate, and if I cried out to God in that moment, I wasn't aware of it, really. It was more like, suddenly I realized I didn't want that radical a life change. I wanted to be able to eat AND live healthily. I have books to write, yarn to knit, fiber to dye, and family to nurture. Too much to do and finish to go belly-up just yet. (And what a belly up that would have been! Yuck!)

Somewhere inside this body lives some sort of God-given gift, and I need to keep this body well, so I live long enough to find it and act on it. Food-wise, every day for the rest of my life, it will be a sort of Lent. I'm OK with that. Happy, even.

But scared, too. This is every day for the rest of my life. One cannot give up food as an alcoholic, theoretically, can walk away from booze and never touch it again. I have gotten thinner in the past, and gained it all back and then some. It has been an endless rollercoaster ride, in a bad way.

Every day for the rest of my life, shoring up this crumbling temple, so the Spirit will not be homeless.

Every day, considering options like: "Well, if I have a quarter of a piece of Keith's carrot cake, that's five points, and it will mean I can't eat much for supper today. I should have an apple or some raw carrots, but..."

Some days I will inevitably fall for the cake. The trick is, to not fall for the cake too often. My treats, when I do feel inclined to cheat, are a few squares of dark chocolate, or a shot of whiskey. Not both. I will never touch beer again. Too many points in a pint!

But if this endless Lent teaches me discipline, and I can stick with it, it will be better for everyone.

New Batt!

2009-02-19T14:15:00.003-05:00

I'm liking this new way of drumcarding my fibers a real lot. Meet "FIRE!" It's a nice, soft wool blend of oranges, yellows, and a bit of bronze angelina for sparkle. 2-1/2 ounces for sale in one bundle. Click here if interested. Thanks for looking!

I Lied...

2009-02-18T19:35:00.003-05:00

I did not go back to knitting Inishmaan after all. Instead, I processed some more batts. Meet "Midnight Sparkle." Three 2-ounce bundles up for grabs in my Etsy Store right now.

It's soft. It's pretty. It's sparkly. It's calling to you: "Spin me....spin me...spin me..."

I hope to have more in the store by the weekend.

Harlot Batt Yarn

2009-02-18T18:19:00.004-05:00

OK, folks, here it is. Sad to say, I got less than an ounce worth, 'cause I got impatient and try to ply the yarn back on itself from a center-pull ball. Sometimes this works for me, and sometimes I get carried away and end up with a biiiiiiiiig snarl. So I figure I lost about 10 yards of singles and about 1/4 ounce. [sigh] I wonder if I will ever learn?

So, this is about 3/4 of an ounce of 2-ply, approximately 78 yards, spun from a "Harlot Batt" of my own making. I dyed, I carded, I spun, I like! It's soft! It's bouncy! It's...oh, poo! There are only 78 yards. I might have to spin up some more, and THIS time I will put one ounce on each bobbin, and...[sigh]...maybe not get a big fat snarl in the middle of plying again.

If I had enough, don't y'all think it would make nice socks? Or fingerless gloves?

OK, back to knitting more of Inishmaan.

Ye Olde Inis Meáin Sweater

2009-02-16T13:04:00.004-05:00

I made this sweater 15 years ago, back when I didn't know much, but was so captivated by the design, I just had to try it. I was so broke back then, there was no way I could afford the Rowan Magpie the pattern called for, and I took my chances with a Bartlett style heavy 2-ply worsted I found at Fabric Place, for somewhere between 4 and 5 bucks per skein. I had used it before, on a couple of less complex sweaters, and thought it would serve me well on this one, too. It did. I still love this sweater.
It took me a good six months to make, as I mentioned in an earlier entry, and the really sad part is that I burned a hole in the front of it two days after it was done. We had a gas stove back then, and I wondered why the rice I as cooking smelled so funky, and then I stepped back and saw what I thought was a streak of dirt on the sweater. So, I brushed it with my fingers and was utterly horror-struck when the stitches, blackened to ash, disintegrated at my touch. Somehow, I managed a duplicate stitch graft, the likes of which I had not accomplished before, nor have I accomplished since, and now even I can't tell where the hole was. Some ultra-compassionate knitting angel must have been smiling down on me that day.

I haven't worked much on the brown version over the last few days, but am in no particular hurry. I want to take my time and enjoy the knitting, as it is working up much faster than its predecessor did.

Both the sweater and my Noro mistake rib hat came in handy in Newport and Jamestown yesterday when Keith and I went walking. It was windy out, so colder than it would have been without the wind. It was nice to be able to walk a little distance again, and to do it outside.

Weight loss report is good today. I dropped another 1.2 lbs, so that makes a total of about 31 lbs so far. Someday soon I will post my "before" picture, from Halloween 2008. Seeing those pictures of myself was the beginning of feeling like something had to change, and change soon, or I'd be on the fast track to gastric bypass surgery. I'd much rather see if I can stay healthy by a change in lifestyle that would still allow me to "cheat" on special occasions, without overindulging. I realize now, it was very true that I was hardly eating a thing because the weight gain was scaring me so badly. What didn't realize was I was perpetually reaching for the wrong thing. The quick thing. Pizza when I felt too lethargic to cook. Toast and cheese when I was too broke to buy pizza. Even if I ordered pizza with lots of veggies on it, that couldn't begin to compensate for the overload of carbs.

Portion control has been a real eye-opener, too. Restaurants do not help with this at all. I do not "need" a lumberjack-sized portion of anything, regardless of how good it might taste. I'm cooking at home more, exploring vegan and vegetarian foods in addition to the usual meat, seafood, and poultry. It's all good. And -- no pun intended -- I haven't found a "turkey" amongst the Weight Watchers recipe files yet. Dieting has come a long way, in that it no longer feels like a punishment. The food is good. Many things one might think of as forbidden are allowed, as long you know your limits.

This is for life, though. I hope my resolve remains firm!

Oops...my batt....

2009-02-16T09:19:00.003-05:00

OK, I confess. I've heard too much over the last few days about Harlot Batts. It's actually Judith McKenizie McCuin's technique, but I'm afraid I'll be stuck thinking about it as Harlot Batts, because that's where I read about it first. Unfortunate that, once again, I cannot get my camera to represent this color as it really is, but what can I say? I'm struggling to figure out what degrees of "flash" to use, or not.

My point is, I felt so compelled to try this business of throwing fiber into the drumcarder sideways that I abandoned the chapter I was writing and grabbed some fiber. I lik the way the batts look, but have yet to try spinning them. However, I can't imagine that it would be difficult, or come out weird. Roving from Zeilinger's, after all, does not come back as "top," and it spins like a dream. Why should this not spin like a dream as well?

I'll get back to y'all about it when I know.

What I like about this technique is it seems to turn out a really nice batt in just two passes. What I still don't like about drumcarding is that my Louet carder, which I thought was supposed to accept 4 ounces of fiber, does not produce batts that satisfy me if I card more than 1 ounce at a time. Go figure! However, I can't complain too much, because the processing goes pretty quickly whn I am only doing up an ounce at a time.

Anyone else jumped on the Harlot's bandwagon for this adventure? I'm curious abut other people's opinions. Do you like spinning from batts done this way? Why, or why not?

I'm not sure now, if I want to write a little more or go running for the spinning wheel...

Hey, my peeps...

2009-02-14T11:13:00.003-05:00

Just a heads-up to say I am trying to show bigger and better pics of new Etsy Store additions on my other blog, the strictly business-related Mad Angel Creations.

Sad to say, it looks like another layoff is looming before me. Business is slow, and when the axe falls, it will most likely fall on me. There are other part-timers in the place, but I work the fewest hours of any of them, and I am almost thoroughly "caught up" as regards filling up the stock room with cable sets, soooo...either my hours will be cut, or I will be put on the "on call as needed" roster. This is the second time in the space of a year, so I'd really like to devote my time off this time to getting Mad Angel Creations up and running for real, on a larger scale. If I can do that successfully, then perhaps I can quite my day job, so to speak. I love it, but I hate the quixotic nature of manufacturing in these dismal economic times. I at least have a "fall back" with Mad Angel Creations. Most of my co-workers do not, and other jobs are so scarce now. I would hate to see people who really and truly need their jobs lose them, while I stayed on. Better I should go than any of them, much as I like the work and would be sad to give it up.

Practice makes perfect, and I suspect I will have lots of time to do so, and have been at the drum carder already today. Also, a batch of Brown Sheep Naturespun fingering weight sits soaking, waiting to go into a kettle of black dye. Seems like they do not do black, according to their color card on their website, so I'm trying to see if I can overdye. If I get good results, there is a need for this. Ideal for Grace Ennis patterns, for those of you who like to do her wonderful, vintage socks.

Back to the carder, and do watch and for updates!

Electric Hula Hoop Socks and Better Sweater Pic

2009-02-11T17:03:00.006-05:00

So, here they are. The Electric Hula Hoop socks which you saw awhile back, still in dyed sock blank form. I can't quite believe the way they came out identical, but I suppose that stands to reason, given that the blanks are knitted double, so I was dyeing two strands simultaneously. I am very pleased with the way these came out, and will paint more blanks in the not-too-distant future.

Side 1
Side 2

Then we have a better shot and a still bigger piece of the Inishmaan sweater. This shows the stitches well, and is a fairly good representation of the color.

The first time I made this sweater -- fifteen years ago! -- it was THE hardest project I had ever tackled. It took me six months to make it, and that was with pretty constant daily knitting. I started this one about a week ago, and am 3 repeats into the front central cable. What I learned between then and now was how to manage chart reading, to memorize smaller patterns, and to read my knitting better. I can't believe how fast this is going! It really did seem an insurmountable challenge Way Back When. I didn't know half what I know now.

Also, the first sweater was knitted in the largest size. The new one will be in the smallest size. It will still be huge, because this is an oversized, boxy garment. But I am daring to do the smallest one because it shows I have some slight confidence that this weight will not only stay off, but I will continue to lose for awhile yet, and once I have reached goal, by God, I will STAY there!!! (Or die trying...)

Off now to try on my new, smaller size Levi's. True, they are the womens' version at the moment, but one of these days soon, I hope to ge my arse into a pair of 501s again. There is something about the look of guys' Levi's that ladies' Levi's just don't have. But I'll happily settle for the ladies' version for now. It has been at least ten years since I have fit into Levi's of any variety, so I am psyched!

Some New Handspun and Sweater Beginnings

2009-02-08T20:45:00.007-05:00

I haven't been good about showing any of my handspun yarns in a long time, so here goes. The two rovings came from Copperpot Woolies on Etsy. Some of my spinning friends fall prey to the temptations of this woman's work more often than I do. For me, Copperpot's stuff is a special splurge sort of treat, kind of like fine chocolate is for some other folks I know and love. (Hi, Alison...)

First up is a gorgeous concotion called "Night Moves." I forgot what fibers it was made up of, but it practically spun itself, and the touch of glitz is delightful.

Next we have another Copperpot delight called "Bar Harbor Blitz." How could I resist that? I, who have spindle-spun at the summit of Cadillac Mountain!
Don't believe me, eh? Here is proof...me and my first Ledbetter...it sure was a beautiful day!
And not that I have a competitive streak or anything like that, but in this case, let me say Carrie Mac has inspired me to tackle Starmore's "Inishmaan" again. I hope I'll be forgiven for substituting and using a yarn I had in Ye Olde Stash, some cone of tweedy stuff I bought at Webs a few years ago. I think it's Brora Softspun, but I honestly don't remember, and the receipt for purchase was lost in the paper trail aeons ago. I always choose the worst colors to photograph, but there it is. I will try again by daylight when I have a larger bit of work to show. It's a much easier knit 15 years later, when I have a better clue of what I am doing when I sit down with a complex pattern.Because it's called "Inishmaan," it's a nice way to connect with my "Doubtful Sound" people when the Muse is not with me. It hasn't been of late, but that's all right. There's been too much confusion and bustle around here in recent weeks. To be visited by the Muse in the midst of that would have been TORTURE. I would not have had the time to pay attention!

Fat Angel's Diet Corner

2009-01-28T11:47:00.004-05:00

Anyone feel inclined to try a recipe? I just concocted this one this morning, since I'm home for a snow day and had time. It's Weight Watchers friendly, for those who are counting points. Not too bad on carbs, either, being as there's only 1/4 cup of bread crumbs. I suppose Atkins folks could leave those out entirely and just make sure to spray the pie plate really thoroughly, so the eggs and cheese won't stick.

If you do decide to attempt this, I'd love to know what you think of it. And above all, enjoy!

Greek Sausage and Veggie Fritata

Servings: 8
Weight Watchers Points values per serving: 5

Ingredients:

6 large eggs
½ cup 2% milk
2 tbsp store-bought Pesto sauce (I use Classico brand)
5 oz frozen chopped spinach (that’s approximately half a box)
½ to 1 cup roasted red peppers, drained
1 6-oz jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained
7 oz canned diced tomatoes, drained (that’s approximately half a can)
7 oz reduced fat Feta cheese
¼ cup plain bread crumbs
½ lb. Lean Italian turkey sausage, sweet or hot according to your preference
Cooking oil spray (use olive if you have it, but vegetable or canola is OK, too)

Preheat oven to 400˚.

Spray heavy skillet with cooking spray and heat, then add chopped raw sausage and sauté until cooked through and nicely browned. Set aside.

Beat eggs, milk, and pesto together and set aside.

Remove frozen spinach from box and thaw in microwave, on a plate layered with several thicknesses of paper towel. Cook on high for 5 minutes, divide in half, and set one half aside for some other use.

Cut red peppers into thin strips and set aside.

Break up artichoke hearts with your fingers and set aside.

Spray a deep-dish pie plate on bottom and sides and sprnkle in bread crumbs, tipping and turning the plate so the bread crumbs evenly coat the entire surface.

Layer sausage, spinach, tomatoes, peppers, artichokes, and cheese, then pour egg mixture evenly over the top.

Bake at 400˚ for 30 minutes. If the fritata doesn’t look brown enough on top, put it under the brolier briefly, keeping close watch so it doesn’t burn.

Cool for 5 minutes, then cut into 8 wedges and serve.

Leftovers may be heated in the microwave, about 2 minutes on high per slice.

Technically a breakfast entrée, but could be eaten at any meal, just as a quiche could be. It’s a way to have quiche without having quiche, and men will eat it without protest.

A note about Feta cheese:

Reduced fat sheep’s milk Feta is not easy to come by, but if you do happen to find it by chance, do buy it and use it in this recipe! Cow’s milk Feta is good enough and may certainly be used, but sheep’s milk Feta is out of this world, and soooooo much better if you can find it!

Keith's Christmas Socks

2009-01-26T20:56:00.003-05:00

I relented. Hubby's size 12 clodhoppers now have a new pair of handmade socks. These are the "Spey Valley" pattern from "Knitting on the Road." The yarn is handspun Cotswold, which I spun up when I was making friends with my Country Craftsman this past Fall. It's a 2-ply yarn, but if you look closely at the pic, you can see how...ahem...energized the yarn is. That's my polite way of saying I overzealously spun and plied the hell out of it, so it has a rather incredible amount of "sproing" and bias. I really feared they would feel like Brillo on hubby's feet, but he says no, and he loves the bouncy feel of the finished socks.
Here's a close-up of the cuff.
This was a really nice pattern, easily memorized, but not so easy as to be boring. The yarn, though gray, was not dull, being as many myriad and subtle shades of gray as it was. I have a ton of this roving, too, so there may be more socks in his future. And to entertain myself as I knit, perhaps I will dunk the finished skeins in a dye kettle before knitting the next time I undertake a project like this. I'm thinking the gray would do a lovely job of toning Jacquard's Sapphire Blue down to a more sedate shade of blue he'd be willing to wear...

I could also spin some of this for Larry and throw it in a vat of Kelly Green. But could I finish them in time for St. Paddy's Day and the wearin' o' the green? Hmmmm...I feel a new challenge coming on...

Daphne's Hat

2009-01-26T20:40:00.006-05:00

As if I don't have enough knitting to do without adding new projects, I went to the local knit shop on Saturday to pick up some short length size 6 double-points. Could I just buy what I went in for? Oh, my, no. Of course not. I came out with a couple of skeins of Berocco Peruvia and some contrasting Eros to make my daughter a felted hat.

A few weeks ago, she had borrowed an adorable felted hat with rhinestones adorning it, from a friend. It looked great on her and she loved it, but alas! It did have to go back to its rightful home. so I said, well, maybe someday. I know I have a copy of that Fiber Trends pattern somewhere...

So, Saturday morning I started cleaning the sideboard counter in the kitchen, which had gotten waaaaaaaay out of control, paper-trail-wise, and lo and behold...there was the Fiber Trends pattern. The rest, as they say, is history.
Yes, yes, it's a little big and Daphne looks like the medieval executioner, sans eyeholes in her hood, but an hour or so later....
There. That's better, isn't it? Except I was a little impatient to be done with the felting and it really could do with a wee bit more shrinking. Or, since Daphne is only 13, I'm guessing her head circumference will increase a bit in the next couple of years.

Anyway, this has to have been one of my fastest start-to-finish projects yet. I began knitting on Saturday afternoon around 1 PM, and the hat was shrunk and drying on the hat stand by 8 PM Sunday evening. It's still a little damp as I type, but Daphne doesn't seem to mind and has been wearing it for the last couple of hours.
P.S. -- I've got to get more of this yarn and make a hat like this for ME!!!!! Perhaps a different color, or perhaps the same, but I'll put some kind of distinguishing trim on it so we know whose is whose...

I'm worried...

2009-01-18T17:04:00.002-05:00

Alison is very, very ill right now, and has been struggling for a number of weeks. The news is good one day, and not good the next. The poor woman is up and down like a yo-yo.

If you don't know her yet, please visit her blog and read some of her archives. Then you'll know, too, what a special person she is. How kind. How loving. How generous. And if you then feel moved to spare some kind thoughts for Alison and her family, then I thank you. Every little bit helps.

But seriously, folks...

2009-01-18T16:54:00.002-05:00

I have reached my first goal. 25 lbs down, and 75 lbs to go. It still seems insurmountable, but I can fit comfortably into a smaller trouser size, and that feels pretty darn good!

Still no working out at the gym, as my hip is still somewhat "out." Some days are worse than others, sad to say, but I can use an exercise bike at home now, so at least I'm getting some activity that way, plus I make myself get up and move at work as much as possible.

If the snow ever goes away, I might be able to give up the cane completely. At the moment, with winter in full force, it saves me falling in the street and tripping on stairs, and I've gotten used to it. If it has to become a permanent fixture, though, I want a "cool" cane. Something carved and aristocratic, or maybe crazy and colorful. Metallic purple, anyone?

New! The Dawn Keye Diet!

2009-01-18T16:37:00.008-05:00

A friend of mine, a nurse, who has done a lot of research about dieting, had given me information about the various popular diets, including Atkins, Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, and the South Beach Diet.

She then mentioned a diet I had not heard about previously, which she insisted works for almost everyone:

The Dawn Keye Diet.

I think I may have to give this a try!

Here's how it works...

Electric Hula-Hoop

2008-12-19T14:25:00.007-05:00

So, how cool is this? Meet "Electric Hula-Hoop."

I have long been a fan of Paul Metsa from Minneapolis, and had the pleasure of finally meeting him in person after 20 some-odd years of listening to his excellent album "Paper Tigers." I totally wore out my copy of the record, that was how much I liked it. So, I happened to think of him again last Spring and found him on Rhapsody. I had a lot of catching up to do, too!
So, at the present time, I am preparing for another long weekend in the Twin Cities and thought I would send Paul an e-mail asking about gigs he might be doing when I am in town. Alas, he no longer works at the place where I last saw him, and may not be playing at all over New Year's weekend. I am bummed, but hope all you who like music will check out his fledgling digital folk music website, Maximum Folk. He hasn't got a lot available for sale at the moment, but what's there is QUALITY stuff, at the moment tending towards blues. And "Paper Tigers" is there as well, so you can easily purchase the album I've been raving about, and the other others on the site while you're at it. Terrific stuff!
In a flurry of e-mails this week, I happened to mention to Paul that I had built a lovely pair of socks from some yarn purchased at Bella Lana in Minneapolis. Bella Lana is owned and operated by a friend of Paul's and carries lovely yarns, and has a welcoming committee that can't be beat, namely, the sweetest, most adorable Italian Greyhound you will ever lay eyes on. Anyhow, the mention of knitted socks in my e-mail to Paul inspired a request. The best kind of request. The kind of request that sends me running for my handy-dandy box of dyes and a sock bank.These socks will be a gift for Paul's girlfriend, who is in the process of moving to the VERY COLD Twin Cities, and since I love having opportunities to give something back to musicians for all the music they give to ME...well, I am going that extra mile and making it something totally unique that can never be duplicated. The dyed blank looks cool as is, but the finished socks won't look a thing like it. This is, after all, similar to how "Grateful Undead" looked before I wound it into skeins and knitted it.I was having a hard time thinking of a name for the colorway, because although it approximates "Grateful Undead," it is NOT "Grateful Undead." That colorway, like this new one, can never be recreated exactly. So, considering the person who made the request, and his sense of humor, I came up with "Electric Hula-Hoop."
Paul has a very funny song called "Electric High Heels," and the narrator of the song gets put through some amusing antics by a wild girlfriend. It has one of my favorite, makes-me-laugh-every-time-I hear-it-lines at the end, and I quote:

"Aw, c'mon, baby, I've been on my best behavior! Not the cuffs, sweetie...oh, no, not the hula-hoop...not again!"

So..."Electric Hula-Hoop." A tip of my hat to a helluva nice fella who makes great music and makes me laugh. 'Cause I like to give back if I can and there's no better way to say how hearing "Virginia" live blew me away.

Hip, hip, owOOOOOOOOOOOOO...

2008-12-10T20:23:00.003-05:00

The workout thing I began has been temporarily derailed, though I am sticking with the Weight Watchers diet. Seems I fell prey to Fat Old Lady Working Out Too Hard Too Soon syndrome, and have managed to mess up a muscle in my left hip, or some such. I must now lay low throughout the remainder of December, and stay off my feet as much as possible, so whatever is wrong has time to heal.

The good news is, a trip to the local ER for x-rays revealed that there was no fracture, no osteoporosis, and no arthritis. I never took a fall or anything, but my joints have all been bothering me since that first no pain, no gain workout walk on Thanksgiving day, and I aggravated things further by working out intensely at Curves, despite the pain. (I do not blame Curves at all, only my own stupidity...)

Monday morning, after a brutal weekend of choir practices, on my feet the entire time with no respite, I could hardly walk up the stairs to get into my workplace. Since I am asthmatic and have therefore used steroids quite a bit in the last 25 years -- not constantly, but enough to make me anxious about weakened bones and joints -- I decided to take my co-worker's advice and get it checked out. Thank God it's nothing serious, but it does hurt like hell, and only lying down on a heating pad, not moving, seems to help. I have been sitting up way too much today, after returning to work and then visiting with a friend who came by to see me today, and at the moment my usually trusty codeine pills aren't even touching the pain.

Well, I will go to bed in an hour or so, and be sure to rest when I get home from work tomorrow.

So, any of my knitting pals from RI, if you were wondering what happened to me,that caused me to pull a no-show on Tuesday night, now you know. I should be able to drive out next Tuesday, once I can quit taking Codeine.

P.S. -- I have finally resigned from choir. It's been a long time coming. Why do I hear Ritchie Havens singing "Freedom" in my head? Hmmmmm....

Pomegranate Beaded Moebius

2008-12-05T16:58:00.010-05:00

Rayon; one thread rich, deep red twisted with olive-greenish gold; self fringed, with gold beads at the ends of each piece of fringe. (Lord, what a PAIN to do all that cutting, knotting, and beading, but soooooo worth it!)

Pattern from Cat Bordhi's first Magical Moebius book.

I will soon be putting skeins of this stuff up for sale in my Etsy store. I have a lot of it! Just love this colorway -- it really does make me think of Pomegranates. The piece is huge and the fashion possibilities are endless!

Looped twice and draped over head.Looped twice and draped Just So.Looped three times.

I need to take this out of its bath now and hang it up to dry so I can wear it to tomorrow night's Christmas Party...

Points - no knitting

2008-12-03T21:19:00.008-05:00

So, after seeing the pics of me circulating on various websites since my trip to meet Alison Hyde in Vermont a few weeks ago, I realized I had to do something about my weight. I honestly don't know how the entire state of Massachusetts glued itself to my arse, but it did. My doctor told me all my recent tests came up "normal" (though he neglected to send the numbers from my TSH test). Then he went on to say that I need not complain further about feeling unwell until I had shed some pounds and begun a workout program. I was VERY depressed for a good solid week, and in that state, last Tuesday in fact, I joined Weight Watchers online and proceeded to Count Points.

Yes, that's right. Two days before Thanksgiving, I joined Weight Watchers and started Counting Points.

O, my friends, can you IMAGINE how difficult it is to fit Thanksgiving Dinner into a 29 points a day allowance? It was pathetic, truly pathetic. You should have seen me, dutifully measuring out a 1/4 cup portion of stuffing. Ditto for the squash and green bean casseroles, and only one slice of turkey, no skin of course, and a wee bit of gravy. Then I made sure my piece of pumpkin pie was ONLY a half, with one scoop of fat free frozen yogurt. For snacks, I grazed on raw veggies and fat free dip. Oh, I was so good. Oh, I worked so hard. And I totally blew my points for the day anyway, but only to the tune of about 38. I spent some cheating points and swapped my activity points. Most other days, I do not even get up to 29 points, so I figure it will all balance out in the end.

I have also joined Curves again. I had good luck with that program in the past, and I do like that it takes up such a small amount of time per day. Also, I find that circuit training keeps me from getting bored. I don't have time for that, hopping from station to station every 30 seconds.

Now, if I want to take a walk, it can be for pleasure rather than -- oh, damn, I have to go walk now or won't get any activity points today.

Seriously -- confession time here -- I need to lose slightly under 100 lbs. I hope this diet/exercise thing works. According to the body mass index, I shouldn't weigh more than 144.5 lbs. The last time I saw that weight was 1980, and I had to starve myself to get there. So, if I can get down under 200, maybe I'll feel encouraged enough to go further.

I really don't want to have a gastric bypass. Ever. I just want to be "normal." Whatever that means.

I do feel a lot better already since I started all this. Sometimes making a decision and saying, enough already! makes one feel more in control. I feel thinner, too, even if it doesn't really show yet. Energy level is much improved. It can only get better, right?

The points system is wonderful. So many different foods to choose from, and great recipes on the website. You can even write you own recipes, program them in, and their tracking system will magically tell you how many points are in each serving. Surprisingly, I have not been hungry, or felt even remotely deprived.

Autumn Test

2008-11-28T20:17:00.003-05:00

Yup. works for me.

Your Autumn Test Results

You are a dynamic, vibrant person. You aren't afraid to pursue your passions.

When you are happiest, you are calm. You appreciate tradition and family. You enjoy feeling cozy.

You embrace change. You love change. You see change as a rebirth.

You find solitude to be the most comforting thing in the world. Being alone with your thoughts feels very peaceful.

Your ideal day is active and full. You like to keep busy with your favorite things, and you appreciate a routine.

You tend to live in the moment. You enjoy whatever is going on, and you don't obsess over the past or future.

The Autumn Test

Doubtful Sound continues

2008-11-08T14:47:00.001-05:00

I'm still at it. Just saying. If you feel like taking a peek, follow the link.

Thankyouverymuch.

http://www.mad-angel.com/cp/dsindex.html

Socks

2008-10-08T16:20:00.003-04:00

I've been catching up on my sock projects. These are all washed and blocked and will soon be sent to warm the toes of their intended recipients. First, we have a pair of truly wild socks I made from a "sock blank" I dyed myself. (Scroll down a few entires to see it in "blank" form and skein form.) I did end up unraveling the sock blank into two separate balls, being as I was just not ready to experiment with two socks on one circular needle. Not with these babies. Say hello to Bijoox's Grateful Undead socks. They are one of a kind. I may be able to approximate the dye job again, but it will never be duplicated exactly. I'm rather proud of the way these came out. Unrepentently fraternal, as many of my socks are.

More sedate, but wonderfully cushy are the socks below, made from an unknown wool blend yarn from my stash. This is something I inherited cones of from my former place of employment, and I wanted to see how it would work up. There may be some acrylic in it, but it makes a gorgeous fabric, doesn't it? I've overdyed some skeins, too, and think so far the blue came out best. It has a speckly, denimy look, and I will be selling it on Etsy at some point. The socks below are done with the yarn as is, directly from the cone. Really nice ragg effect, don't you think? complex colors, too, with some white, some gray, and some bluish gray. These are a long overdue present for Larry Kirwan. I'm embarrassed to say it has been almost a year since he asked me when I might make him another pair. I think he'll find they were worth the wait.
Why do I knit for Larry, and not for my husband?

Larry has small feet, the same size as mine, and he likes colorful socks. Also, when I gave him the first pair back in 2001 or thereabouts, he promised to wash them by hand. It's also a way to give back something nice for all the music, literature, and friendship Larry has given me over the years since we first met. (I knew the music long before I made the acquaintance of the man behind it.)

My hubby won't wear anything but black, brown, or navy blue, and he has a 12-inch foot. I made him a navy blue pair once, and it was an interminable knit. When they were done, he wore them once and...threw them in the washer and dryer! Luckily, the yarn must have been superwash, because the socks didn't shrink and he can still wear them.

Ummm...and he lived after I found the socks in the dryer. If they had shrunk, though, after all that knitting...ooh, I don't want to think about it!

Lest anyone think he is neglected in any way, I do feed him. Very well. Bearing that in mind, it doesn't bother him too much that I don't want to knit socks for him anymore.

One of my Favorite Songs Ever!

2008-09-24T14:05:00.000-04:00

Knitters, I'm sure you can relate. I just followed a link to this video, from Ravelry to Your Tube. I always thought the song was brilliant, but never knew there was a video for it, until now. Listen to the words carefully and enjoy!

The Sweater

$75.00

2008-09-20T15:50:00.000-04:00

You know the stories. You've spent years trotting in and out of antique and consignment shops in search of a working spinning wheel you can afford. You hope to be lucky, like your spinning friend who found a perfect, intact, working-condition Country Craftsman wheel in someone's trash by the roadside and took it home, and now has another gorgeous wheel in her collection. (True story, and I don't begrudge her one bit, but I still wish something like that would happen to me with, say, a Timbertops Chair Wheel, or a Martha?)

OK, so this isn't as good a story as the lady who adopted a Country Craftsman from someone's garbage, but it's ALMOST as good. Look what came home with me today!I had taken Daphne to a local antique shop on a whim, just for a lark, since gas is expensive and we need to have larks closer to home. In the very first booth I found this wheel. I looked it over and it seemed good. I looked at the price tag and it seemed even better. Only $75.00. True, the whorl had some chips in it, there was only one bobbin, and its distaff was missing, but...$75.00? No matter what kind of a wheel it was, I knew I could get it running in a matter of minutes. What to do? Well, for starters, make my twelve-year-old crawl underneath the thing and see if there was a name on the underside.

There was. I was astounded, picked the wheel up, and tilted it to read for myself.

"Country Craftsman."

Holy sh*t! I have wanted one of these for a very long time, and thought I would never find one I could afford, now that the builder has retired.

Near one of the legs is carved a number 2. Could it be that this is one of his earliest wheels? Does anyone know if the maker did indeed number them as they were built? It was an exciting enough find as is, but if it's an early wheel, that would be even more exciting!

And I still can't believe it was only $75.00!!!!!

While googling in search of spare parts, I found ads for used wheels like this, for sale. $450.00 and up!

I shan't complain about not finding this for free in someone's trash. $75.00 vs. $450.00 and up? Well, that's the kind of math I can do VERY quickly.

Jeeze, I have paid more for some of my spindles than I did for this wheel! (Golding...koff...koff...)

Now am on a quest for a replacement whorl (though the chipped one does work) and some extra bobbins. I may have found a source already, but if anyone else knows of others, please give me a holler via the comments.

And for a musical suggestion I really feel I must make, please visit Doveman and listen to his song "Castles," which is on his streaming player. This is my second favorite after a song called "Ghost" which he is not currently streaming. If you know who Nick Drake is and love him, as I do, then you will find that Doveman's voice is even more poignant. His lyrics aren't the easiest to decipher, due to the intentional softness of his vocal presentation, but you get most of them through earbud headphones. And this young man is someone whose voice you WANT to hear that intimately. Trust me. And once he's in your head, he stays there, and you don't want him to go away. I have been starting most of my workdays in the past few weeks with listening to his latest CD, "With My Left Hand I Raise The Dead." It really is a stunning piece of work. Please check it out when in a quiet, reflective mood, and you will love it. I've been thinking for awhile now, of building my own music compilation to use whilst having Reiki, or treating myself, and you can rest assured there will be some Doveman songs in the mix when I finally get around to putting it together. I can't tell you enough, how glad I am to have found this fella.

Mr. Subversive - NOT!

2008-09-15T19:37:00.000-04:00

Hubby took a break from rebuilding the deck on our house a couple of weekends ago, to read, and rest his fat capitalist arse on my chaise. Seems our daughter is reading Abbie Hoffman. Hubby couldn't resist picking it up from the dining room table, and he read me excerpts while he relaxed in a way that would not have thrilled Abbie at all, I would venture to guess. I mean, look at the setting! If there were a revolution now, no matter how idealistic and liberal we are, we make a decent living and have a few of the trappings thereof, and are therefore The Enemy. [sigh]
From what hubby read to me, though, it's pretty clear that some of the old tricks Abbie would have employed to Get Free Stuff back in the day would not work at all now, in the computer age. I mean, can you imagine someone trying to sneak on board an airplane nowadays? Just wouldn't happen. So, "Steal This Book" if you like, but don't expect to gain anything from it but a view into a bygone era.
To continue the hippy-trippy theme, remember my Grateful Undead sock blank from a couple of entries ago? Well, I did decide to unravel the thing and wind the yarn into two separate balls, which I then skeined and washed. Here they are. I have finished knitting the socks, but have not washed them yet, so no photos now. They are coming, though, and maybe as soon as this weekend, if I can get my act together.
Some recent spinning now. This is a strand of Terra Bella Spun's "Drifter" plied with a single of commercially-produced dark brown wool/camel. I couldn't bear the thought of getting only enough 2-ply from this one-of-a-kind roving for a hat, so I decided to stretch the yardage by incorporating the brown. I forget exactly how much I ended up with, but if I recall correctly, I think it was over 500 yards. I ought to be able to make something semi-substantial with that. Socks and matching fingerless gloves, maybe? I have enough hats and scarves to sink the Titanic. Oh, well, it will tell me what it wants to be when the time is right. But I must say, the handspun is stacking up, and so far none of it is talking.
So, in the meantime, my daughter has come up with a project for me, which I may regret taking on. She got a gander at the latest Patternworks catalog and left it open on my desk with a note: "Mom, I will pay you to make this for me." A long, tight tunic with stripes in many colors, and a scrunch-neck, all in stockinette stitch, and effin' POM-POMS at the end of the drawstring for that ridiculous neck. Given the way she treats her clothes, I was not seduced into buying the recommended Mission Falls yarn the pattern calls for. Oh, no. It's KnitPicks all the way for this baby. The colors won't be exactly the same but they'll be close.

Och, Jaysus, I wish the kid would learn to knit for herself. This is already starting to feel like an "I want this out of my life" project, but maybe, just maybe it will be more fun than I am anticipating. I can only hope.

As for my chaise, I suppose this was inevitable. Roisin the Queen, aka Cleofatra. She growls at me if try to remove her. I love her. She's such a bitch.
My big exciting news at the moment is on the Doubtful Sound front. I managed to bridge an enormous, troublesome gap this past weekend, and have now got 350 consecutive pages. I'm aiming to wrap it up around 500 pages, give or take a few, so I guess I'm in the home stretch at last. Now, here's hoping the wrap-up doesn't take longer to write than the whole rest of the book! If you've been reading, thank you. And if you have any thoughts on whether or not I should try for publication on this one, I'd appreciate your feedback. I know there would be a lot of work to do, to tighten it up enough to inspire a publisher to take a chance. But I feel like I need to try one more time before I either a) drop dead or b) turn into an old, driveling idiot who can no longer string a sentence together.

I gotta go cook supper now. I don't wanna cook supper now. Waaaaaaaaah!!!

What Color is your Freakin' Parachute?

2008-09-02T17:12:00.001-04:00

you are darkslategray
#2F4F4F

Your dominant hues are green and blue. You're smart and you know it, and want to use your power to help people and relate to others. Even though you tend to battle with yourself, you solve other people's conflicts well.

Your saturation level is lower than average - You don't stress out over things and don't understand people who do. Finishing projects may sometimes be a challenge, but you schedule time as you see fit and the important things all happen in the end, even if not everyone sees your grand master plan.

Your outlook on life is dark. You're generally a pessimist and everyone knows it; you're the one the come to when they don't want the sunshine blown around, they just want to straight truth. You can miss good things in life if you make up your mind too early though.

the spacefem.com html color quiz

Well-deserved Decadence

2008-08-16T14:24:00.001-04:00

After years of lusting after one with nearly all my heart and soul, I finally took the plunge. I bought a chaise. It arrived on Thursday, and I have no regrets. It is every bit as wonderful as any chaise I have enjoyed in hotels and the homes of friends. It is mine, mine, MINE, and no arse but mine will come near it, unless the owner of said arse is very, very nice to me. Obsequious, even. I plan to do a great deal of knitting and writing in this locale.I'm working on the Bookworm Vest from Folk Vests, for a friend of the First-born's. So far it's a nice project, though not too exciting stitch-wise. Luckily, the First-born's friend takes the smallest size. I'm using Webs' Valley Yarns Northampton, which I hear was recently recommended by the Yarn Harlot. I didn't know at the time that it was a new fave of hers. It's now one of mine, too. Nice stuff, nice colors, good yardage, and a most pleasing price.
Here's Roisin Dubh in the foreground, wishing she could get her arse on the chaise. Too bad she only gets to rest beside it, on the fringes of my recycled shopping bag faux Oriental rug.

The rug, by the way, is incredibly pretty, if bright, and it suits the room so well. Bit by bit, the space is all coming together. It only took 13 years of living in this house to get my own room, but now I have it, and I'm not looking back. Again, no regrets. And no rug shampoo, 'cause the plastic rug can be laid out on the lawn and hosed off if it gets dirty, or one of the dogs decides to take a revenge piddle. It was a bargain, too, at $89.00 for full room-size. Click here if you're intrigued.

Well, there's a chaise calling my name again, and a vest that needs to be finished. Yeeeeee-haaaaaaa.....

Playing with Sock Blanks

2008-08-03T18:26:00.000-04:00

So, I decided I couldn't resist the lure of the dye-it-yourself sock blanks Knitpicks was offering. I was curious. Were they knit in tubes, or flat? The idea is they are knitted with a double strand of sock yarn, and you start both socks at the same time on one circular. O.K., I'll bite. Haven't started knitting yet, but I just dyed one of the blanks. No idea what the socks will look like knit up, but I like the way the blank looks, anyway. Bijoox, if you happen to stop by here, I think this one will be for you. I call it "Grateful Undead," which seems appropriate, considering where you and I met 11 years ago. I'll need your foot measurement, from heel to tip of longest toe.
I truly do not know if I will do as suggested and try to do two socks on one circ. I might just have my daughter help me separate it into two separate balls. Well, I have time to decide while the durn thang dries, yeah?

The dyeing was a heckuva lotta fun. Me and my Jacquard dyes and my squeeze bottles and my handy-dandy El Cheapo Job Lot rice steamer and a whole lotta Glad Wrap. Woo-hoooo!!!!

Blue Jay Shawl, etc.

2008-07-05T18:45:00.001-04:00

The picture simply cannot do justice to the actual color, but here is my Blue Jay Shawl from Alison Hyde's "Wrapped in Comfort." I did not copy your dyeing adventures for this one, Alison. Instead, I found a perfect color of blue/gray merino/tencel roving that almost exactly matched the photo in the book, and I spindled like mad to make the 2-ply yarn, starting in early May. I knitted a bit, then spun if it looked like I needed more yarn, and thus I multi-tasked until I cast off the last stitch this afternoon. I did all of the spinning on several different Ledbetters, but mainly I used the one Ken made to order for me, which has a gorgeous blue sodalite donut set in a lacewood whorl. The stone matched the fiber! Not that I would go out of my way to match color of fiber to color of spindle, but it was a nice coincidence.
This was just my initial, hasty attempt at blocking. A better job will be done later this week, with t-pins and stuff. I didn't want to wait that long to get a Rough Idea of how the finished version will look. Below is a wee close-up.
The shawl weighs a total of 7 ounces, and I am so pleased that I had the tenacity to get through all the spinning without ever laying hands on a wheel. Not even for plying! Needless to say, spit-splicing abounds...

In my last entry, I posted a link to a friend's Etsy store. She has begun building the most incredible spindles. Below is one of them. It arrived in the mail today, and look at the 2-ply I spun on it! Frog hair!
Pardon my Bad Hair day, but as you see, I had a lot of fun giving this spindle a whirl (whorl?).
When I have re-charged my camera battery, I will take a picture of the other spindle I found in my package -- a complete surprise! -- and so very beautiful, too.
The spindle in these pictures is being used to spin some of Enchanted Knoll Farm's Blue Jay top. (Thanks, Josette!)

The other spindle is being used for a recent splurge from Copper Pot Woolies. There was this glorious batt she called "Night Moves," and I simply HAD to have it. Pics will come, as I said earlier, when I've got the camera battery recharged.

Enchanted Knoll Farm, zebisisdesigns, and Copper Pot Woolies can all be found on Etsy, as well as Terra Bella Spun and Luna Bud Knits. Do a vendor search and check them out!

Anyone else besides me find Etsy is as dangerous as a year-long, round-the-clock wool festival? If this keeps up, I may not have to go to Rhinebeck this year...

More spindle temptations!

2008-07-01T12:12:00.000-04:00

One of my online friends has just opened a new Etsy shop. She is making really beautiful spindles. I'm waiting for my first one to arrive. Check out what she has for sale by clicking here. Gorgeous!