The arrival of winter

While I find it hard to believe that it is already February 8th and not sometime in early January still, it is wonderful to note that it is finally starting to look like winter here in Nelson Lagoon.  Our weather has hovered between mid-30’s and the low 50’s with only the barest sprinklings of snow up until last week when the bottom dropped out and were launched into the teens…still with very little snow.

Today, Mother Nature seems to be making up for her calm demeanor over the past 4 months and is unleashing herself with furious abandon with not only cold but snow and wind too.  We’re looking at gusts up to 70 knots (80.6 mph) (1 knot=1.15 mph) with an interesting blend of tiny, icy snow, big, fluffy flakes and dry snowflakes too.  Yesterday was beautifully sunny and warm-ish (40’s) with very little wind but it was the calm before the big storm.  I went on a long walk on the beach with Sisu, who has been missing beach walks as I have been walking on the road for the most part, and on our way out had to pull off some layers because the reflection of the sun on the snow added with the shelter of the ice floes on the beach made the wind chill almost nil and gave me some much needed colour to my cheeks!  The major downside of today is that you never know when the wind is going to whip back up.  2 minuets ago I could barely see the street because of the swirling snow and had a roaring in my ears.  It was the sudden quiet that made me look up and outside again to see things clearly and almost be able to see individual flakes.  Crazy weather!  For our normal lunchtime walk Sisu will just have to be content with walking with me until the wind picks up again because at that point, I’m turning around and will luckily have it at my back to urge me home again!  Maybe we’ll get in the 2 miles, maybe no, but I’m hoping for both our sakes it will stay this calm until 1

I need to take some new pictures of WIPs for posterity but here is an update to tide you over until later tonight…

I’ve finally cast on for the Estes Vest, which I have drooled over and loved since I first saw in in the Fall 08 of IK.  I ended up frogging a sweater I had been working on for the yarn, KP’s Swish Bulky in a beautiful navy blue.  It will get much more wear as a vest than it ever would as a sweater.

I was able to get more yarn and continue with my self-designed sweater and lucky, lucky me, the dyelots match exactly.  I am still alternating rounds of old and new when it comes to the sleeves (I’ve past that point on the body already) but, even with a few years in between, I got really lucky that there wasnt any major change in dye recipe.

As always, there are socks in the works.  My Creamsicle socks are really orange waffle socks and coming up nicely though I am only 4 pattern repeats in.  My first of the Duet socks is almost done…I have no idea why it has taken me so long but I hope that the second goes faster.

Spinning news and pictures to come later

Makes you think

There are a few things going on in my world that has really made me think.

#1 is Haitian relief efforts.  I am happy to be one of the thousands, if not millions of people who donated money to MSF/DWB (Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders) and I one of the many Knitters Without Borders.

#2 is that when this relief effort moves to page 2 and out of our line of sight, will we still be thinking about others who are living in a nightmare?  I don’t mean specifically with building toppling around them or having no idea if their family is alive or sleeping on the streets because their home isnt building stable.

But what about those who are homeless?

Those children who are afraid to go home because of an unstable family?

Those people who haven’t enough to eat?

Those people who can’t dress warmly enough for the weather?

Those people who don’t have access to the medicines they need to stay healthy?

Those children who need a life saving cleft palate surgery?

Young people who have no place to go after school?

Unvisited Elders either in group homes or who live alone?

People living in a war-ravished county who need food, shelter, clothes and crave the normalcy they have almost forgotten?

The list can go on and on.  By no means do I want to detract from the Haitian relief efforts but I have to wonder, what are we giving to the needy who are on page 2?  Those people in our own communities that are in need of comfort and generosity that we can reach out and touch RIGHT NOW.  Please, if you haven’t already, give to MSF/DWB with your donation being “Undirected” so that the skilled managers there can put your money to work where it is needed the most.  Maybe its Haiti but it also could be Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, or DRC.  And then think about what you can do, right now, for your community.

Take food over to the local food bank?

Donate clothes?

Could you become a foster parent?

Give unwanted (but whole) games to a local youth program?

Become a Big Brother/Big Sister?

Work a shift at the homeless cafe?

Read to elderly?

Volunteer at the hospital?

Cook dinner for a neighbour?

Go watch a Freshman or JV sports game to encourage youth?

An Elder you can shovel for?

Just think about what can you do to make the lives of those around you better.  What would make them smile?  What would make their day just a little bit easier?  My friend BrightonWoman told me that while she was pregnant with Eagle and having a rough few first months while her husband was travelling with school work (he was the 6-12 teacher), while everyone in town said things like, “Wow, it must be hard for you with 2 little ones and to be pregnant!”, no one thought to bring over dinner or to invite them over.  No one stopped by to visit.  No one reached out a hand to help them and they had been well known in that village of 35 people.  Granted, her need wasn’t a blatantly obvious one but what about those people with less obvious needs around you?  What about sharing your friendship?  Its simple, wholesome, and really is cost free because whatever you ‘lose’ of your time, you have gained a friend and companion.  Befriend a youth and you will help building them to becoming a successful adult.  Befriend an elder and you can give them someone to talk to and share their stories with.  Befriend a peer and who knows what skills you will learn!

My point is simple: Look Around.  Helping those in need doesnt need to be front page news and shouldnt be limited to emergency relief efforts “Over There”.  There are people in need in your backyard.  Please don’t forget to help them too.  It makes the world better for all of us in the end and takes, on the whole, very little for you to make a major impact.

Slow to start

Some days it just takes me a little while longer to get posting.  Take this post…I knew I wanted to make it on Sunday, uploaded the pictures on Monday and only now, Tuesday afternoon, am I sitting down to focus to write it.  Not that its anything big or well thought out, just my usual random ramblings.  Showing off my finished socks…

Cherry Tree Hill DK 100% Superwash Merino in the “Pickle Juice” colourway knit 2 by 2 rib, toe up (Judys Magic Cast On) Magic Loop on 2’s.  I had split the ball into 2 skeins and actually, it was nearly a perfect split and the socks are nice and long, just how I like them.  I did short row heels and while I think I could have made the foot 4-5 rows shorter and still been OK, I think that these will wear nicely and be a good template for future socks. 

These were finished about the same time we were experiencing this kind of weather…

So they were perfect and kept my toes toasty warm.  Don’t be fooled by her ears being folded back, she doesnt like having her picture taken and was in “play” a second later.  See?

Also on my needles are two pairs of socks (Duet Middy in Mod Chic and OnLine in Creamsicle(self titled))

and one of the many baby socks (finished and woven in last night), this one is Mountain Colors Bearfoot in Chinook.  Someone said, ‘like the Chinook Pass’ but I see it like the salmon, what I call a “King”.  I’ve seen all these colours in the fish so it makes it perfect for socks from the wild, Alaskan auntie to give fish-inspired socks   The stitch pattern is Jaywalkers.

The mystery sweater is still on hold as I wait for Knit Picks to get more Spruce WOTA in stock.  I have 2 balls left but I need those 2 to help blend in the other balls which will come from a different dye lot.  Now, I know better than to use 2 different dye lots but as I wasnt going to knit another pair of Felted Clogs from this yarn, there is very little I can do that will fit me with only 770 yards of wool.  I wont give non-superwash wool as gifts to anyone other than fellow knitters because of the felting potential and I want to use the yarns I have in my stash, thus, the blending of the two dye lots.  I think it will be just fine but knock on wood for me just in case.

Off the wheel is Myrtle (of which I MUST buy more in the future).  4 ounces I 3 plied, 4 ounces I Navajo plied.  I’m not sure which I like more.  The 3 ply is all tweedy and the colours blend so well, I really love it but the N-ply is gradual changes and even-ness.  I love them both.  Here is the 3 ply for your viewing enjoyment   The N-ply was still drying when I took the photos so y’all will just have to wait to see that one.

On the wheel now is Spunky Club April ‘09 “Soul Windows”,

a Corriedale/Nylon blend which is going to become sock yarn so I split 4oz in half and am spinning each 2 oz into a long single to be N-plied to become, eventually, a pair of socks.  I love the grabby nature of this yarn and think that it will be very pretty when done.  I’m not such a fan of it in the fiber but as its being spun…yummy.  Pictures of the yarn in progress to come soon.  Eventually I’ll be caught up and able to spin with the group!  My personal goal, not stated anywhere else, is that during the Olympic week (because I don’t have TV, I wont be watching), I will spin like a mad woman and get through a few months.  I know that there arn’t many (any?) wheeled sports in the winter Olympics and really, knitting seems more right for the Winter Games, but this year and this time around, spinning is it for me.

I’m thinking about starting the “Wham, Bam, Thank you Lamb“(Rav link only) neck garter/cowl with my handspun Vera and with 370 yards, I know I would have enough to do about 3.  I’ll see how it works just knit with one strand and then may modify as needs be.  I need something like this for my neck covering while I am outside (yup, outside) running (yup, running!) around the airport.  The wind here can be vicious and while I dont always run on the super windly days, I AM always out on my walks with Sisu and I’ll take every bit of caulking I can get.  Something superwash, wool, warm and simple…I think this project is it!  Well, that an the size 8 needles, which is a great change from my 1’s, so my hands are happy too!

A nerd AND a Moron

I’ve been spinning for 2 years now, have used a niddy noddy for every skein spun during those 2 years and ONLY NOW did I realise that I have been counting my yardage wrong.

I have the Lendrum Two-In-One Niddy Noddy which has both a 1 and 2 yard shaft. I use the 2 yard shaft for everything and NEVER thought that to properly calculate my yardage I would count the time around and then multiply by 2 to get my final yardage. Um, yeah. This is what I get for thinking *head desk*

I never ‘wanted’ to ask such a basic question and really and honestly, it was unfathomable to me that I wouldnt just wind the newly plyed yarn on the niddy noddy, count the times I wrapped it and then that number would give me my yardage.  Which is OK…except for remembering that I was creating 2 yard loops.  Ouch.

I feel so dopey but at least the upside is that I have a lot more handspun than I though!! Here I was wondering how people were getting so much more yardage than I could ever get from my 4oz of fibres. Sheesh!  I finished the second 4oz of the Myrtle colourway from the Spunky Eclectic March and wound off this beautiful, tweedy, worsted-weight yarn.  When I looked at it, I knew that there was no spinnin’ way that the skein I was holding was only 81 yards.  I dont think that I can possibly spin that bulky on purpose and considering the frog hair I had spun with the other 4 ounces, it was hard to get it this thick.

Pictures to come soon but for right now, I’m off to relabel my skeins, N-ply the other 4oz of Myrtle and look at drafting the April Club of “Soul Windows” which will certainly be spun to be socks as it is Corredale/Nylon mix.

The extent of my nerdiness

If you know me in real life or have read any of my other posts here at all, you will know that I am, quite unashamedly, a HUGE nerd. I am usually so single-mindedly enthusiastic about all things fiber related that many other things are excluded. For example, this Christmas was all about the Woolee Winder for me. Until yesterday…

I got my Christmas box from my Mum, sister, BIL and nephew and great googly moogly, it was the best box ever. It was a “stocking box “and as stockings are always and have always been the best part of Christmas morning for me, this was so amazing and totally made my year. For starters, Mum had wrapped each present individually and put a personal note on each one. This was a nod to the daily letters she would write to me and stick in my summer camp luggage; one for each day I was gone. I went to that camp for 10 years and I still have some of those notes and cherish each one. These little gifts all had notes that referenced memories, teased about contents and in general told of her great love for me. I read and unwrapped my “stocking box” gifts with my Mum on the phone 5,000 miles away and loved every second of “Oohs”, “Aahhs” and “Wow!” that we shared. It was magical to have her ‘there’ with me while I opened this amazing gift.

The Top 3 gifts? Very easy to pick. #3 of the coolest things was from my BIL, JB (Using both initial so as not to be confused with my sister J. I’m so glad they named their son C!). He found and added this very amazing and quite fitting candy bar all on his own. JB and I aren’t very close and don’t know each other well because of the miles that have nearly always been between us. Between Northern Ireland, Lower Michigan, Washington and now Alaska, we really haven’t had lots of time together but really, this gift shows that he does know at least what I consider to be the biggest part of me:

#2 was from my sister. We aren’t very similar and really, apart from some very obscure references to operettas and a few photos, you would be hard-pressed to tell we were sisters. She is, however, a wonderful recipient of my hand-knits so I will keep her and continue our relations ☺ Every once in a while, she surprises me with what she remembers about me and it always brings a ‘Squee!’ to my voice, causes my mother to laugh at us and lets us talk and bond over something quite silly. This year J remembered something that I loved and made sure that it was sent to me:

I just love the Christmas Nerds but have never seen them in a store since I was in the UP. A few years ago I asked J to look at ShopKo for them for me my first Christmas in Alaska and she totally came through for me. This year she came through again and I didn’t even have to ask! Thanks J, they are perfect!

The number 1 gift is beyond words. It was the first thing that I opened and something that I had been asking for and wanting since I had my first Christmas away from home in 2000. Opening this gift brought me to tears and I quite literally started crying on the phone and had a very hard time stopping. It was like I was home with my family right there and then. I told my mother that, no matter what else was in the box, I could not open another thing and this would be just perfect. I am almost 30 years old and my best gift ever is something that I cant remember having a Christmas without…Merry Christmas by Sesame Street.

The Original cover and inside fold

(Trust me, you want to click on the inside fold and take a closer look.  Its worth the wait time for the picture to load)

Originally released in 1979, my Mum had it re-recorded on a CD for me and now I have a copy of my very own, scratchy record sound and everything and really, thats what makes it the perfect gift.  Even before I could reach the record player, this has been my Christmas music of choice and I HAD to have it playing while we decorated the Christmas tree, no matter how old I got.  The record itself has a few scratches and clicks and the cover is just about loved to bits.  I have When I started asking for this back in 2000, my Mum didnt believe that I was seriously asking for Sesame Street anything at that age and I’ve asked for this Every.Single.Year, and finally, my wishes and hopes were answered and I couldnt be happier.  There are so many memories of listening to these songs and stories that even now, my 4th time through the CD today, my cup runneth over.  The year I sang with The Count, “All I want for Christmas is my Two Front Teeth”, trying every year, quite unsuccessfully, to sing the Spanish songs with Luis and Maria and laughing at myself when I remember that it wasnt until my Freshman year in High School that I realized that Bert and Ernie’s Christmas Story was really “The Gift of the Magi” in a clever disguise, despite the fact that I had read it, EVERY YEAR in A Story A Day Till Christmas, published in 1989.  Yes, there was a re-release of some of the music on a “Sesame Street Christmas” CD but it wasnt the same.  They left out some of the best bits and added in Elmo and because of the last part alone, I’ll pass.  Replacing Grover with Elmo is just wrong in my 80’s steeped Sesame Street memories.

You may think I’m touched but nothing, no nothing, will replace this gift on the pinnacle of my “Gifts Received”.  I don’t care how old I get, there is always a special place in my heart and my Christmas Essentials playlist for Sesame Streets Merry Christmas.

Mom, I know it seems so silly to be so emotional about a piece of vinyl turned to plastic, but I really don’t have the words to express how amazingly meaningful this gift is to me.  Thank you, a million, zillion times over, Thank you.

Wee Ones

By the demand of Brightonwoman, here you can see my Wee Ones.  The first is the flash photo and the other without.  This was a difficult shot to arrange because of the nature of the beasts.  If they aren’t wrangled into working with my knitting, the Sisu ones can be found trying to herd the moose closer, chase the bear away and just plain barking at the beaver.

I fully admit to thinking that Sisu needs a few sheep to herd or that maybe I need some sushi to snack on, or elephants?  I know for sure that a fox will need to be added to my collection as a nod to the foxes that haunt the dump.  Maybe a raven (for Sitka), pelican (for Pelican), anchor (for Anchorage), a fish (for fishing), a bald eagle (cause Sisu makes sure to chase them off, whenever she sees them) and a puffin (for all the sea birds out here) too?

Its an addiction but really, I’ll take all the “Little Companions for Life” that I can get and considering how much knitting I do, they are totally put to good use!

As Promised

Before showing off my recent purchase from Little Knits, I thought I would show off my own handiwork.

This is Vera. 

She is 185 yards (5oz) of Navajo plyed yarn (also known as Chain Plyed because you make big crochet chains with the yarn when plying it on itself) and ranges in weight between a heavy worsted/bulky and a fingering.  You can only see a few of the joins but I highlighted one above with Susan B Anthony so you could see it.  For the most part, the yarn is steady and even but there was one or two places where the yarn broke causing me to create a join which resulted in a bulky area meeting with a thin.  While it is far from perfect, it is the BEST N-ply yarn I have ever created and I will spin more in the future.  This shot shows a range of her finished plys but really, the first picture shows her true colours.

“March” is on the wheel next and I am working on spinning a bulky (on purpose) with this one.  I had to use the flash because of the grey and dreary day we had here so the colour is no where near true to form but really its a deep, jewel-toned yarn done on dark BFL.  Those patches of grey-ish brown?  Thats the undyed fleece that looks almost black to the naked eye.

I finished Pickle Sock #1 and I have to admit that I really love it.  Toe up using Judys Magic Cast on and Jenys Suprisingly Stretchy Bind Off, I have to say I am looking forward to wearing this sock.  If you havent tried either of these techniques in the past, I would highly recommend them.  I know that I use Judys cast on instead of any other style of provisional cast on and it works perfectly.  JSSBO is going to be a staple in my cuff and collar life because it really IS surprisingly stretchy!  I cast on the second sock this morning and it is looking at me as I type because I left it mid round before all the toe increases were done.

While poking thru my stash for the yarn for my untitled sweater, I found yarn in a bag that I had completely forgotten.  The yarn was hiding in the bag because it was part of a purchase that I made with a friend for a scarf for her.  It was originally intended to become a cowel for my Mum for Christmas but after looking at it longer, the colour changes were not suitable for the cowel I had in mind. It was those small streaks of periwinkle that initially caught my notice and after looking at it for a long while (I tend to carry yarn around a store with me to help me make up my mind about making a purchase), I realised that it had to be one of the most beautiful yarns I had ever seen.  It helped that it was also one of the softest too!  50% Alpaca, 30% Merino, 10% Silk and 10% Nylon and while it is labeled as “Sock Yarn”, I dont think that I could make socks from it.  To hide such a yarn in shoes, even mary janes, would be a travesty.  Well, that and I’m pretty sure that they would have to be handwash socks and knowing myself and my laundry habits, I am pretty positive that they would be felted after the first wearing and wash.  A tragedy indeed.  So I have 437 yards of this beautiful yarn and am looking for ideas for its future.  Maybe a scarf or small shawl (to be worn as a scarf)?

In my history of blogging, I dont think that I have ever taken pictures that equal these.  I am so excited to finally be able to show off yarns with, at least on my monitor, is true to colour.  Of course, YMMV, but I hope their beauty comes through for you too!  Before I go much further, I have to make comment on Self-striping yarns.  I usually am one who goes for the colour that speaks to me or has a name that I can related to.  I bought the yarn for my Pacific Northwest Shawl because Sheri named it “The World at Sea” and I had just spent 4 weeks fishing with my former partner.  It was intended to be socks, a matching pair for us that was not to be.  It became the shawl after I realised that I would need 000’s to get the gauge I like for socks and there was no way I would move into crazy-ville for socks.  OnLine doesnt give names to its yarns and relies on numbers alone.  There is little inspiration that comes from numbers like 106, 1059 or 1132 but they have something that few handpainters can boast : Photos of the yarn knit up.

Unless you are very skilled, and I’m not sure how I can develop this talent, one can’t see what the yarn is going to knit into while still in the skein.  There may be bright colours that catch your eye but you dont know how the colour will pool or flash when knit up.  Sometimes, even when knitting from the same skein you have no idea what will happen and the results will be totally different. My own best example of this are my Sheer Gall! socks knit in Schaefer Lola: Same ball of yarn knit from the inside and out both at the same time while I was recovering from having my gall bladder removed in March ‘07.  What changed?  I used 2 different brands of size 3 needles.  Susan Bates for the narrow stripes, Crystal Palace bamboo for the wide stripes.  They were obviously NOT the same and by the time I was thinking clearly and free of pain meds I was already past the heels and beyond caring.  It was with these socks that I learned that 3’s, even with DK yarn, is way too loose of gauge.  These socks only lasted a year before needing to be darned and then only another year before the final “darn!” over the the garbage bin.

Back to topic though…Photos can be a knitters best friend.  You will need to scroll down to see the knit socks in the specific colourways but they are all there!

Number 1060 will knit into THESE

1031 looks like THIS

1021 is sporty and cute, though no where near the purple shown!

1026 is very close to the picture (6th from the top, 3rd from bottom)

1073 is a “Wellness” colour and has Aloe in the yarn!

1093 has stripes AND lines

1047 is alive with colour

Regia 1068 was named Aurora Borealis by Little Knits but is only shown in skein.  However, a German site named it ‘Afrika’ and show it here.  It looks like this one *may* have a bit of pooling but as we dont know how large the sample (it could be a swatch or a whole sock), nothing can be said for sure.

The real reason I went to the Little Knits site?  These needles.  I wanted to try 9″ circs for my socks and, since Sheri was out, I figured she wouldnt be too upset for my shopping elsewhere for them!  This isnt to say anything against my Knit Picks fixed circulars which I love and almost always reach for but these are stainless steel and that means my fingers wont turn green from nickel and the needles themselves won’t tarnish.  One less thing to clean is always a good thing in my book!

Grand total for my 9 skeins of yarn and 3 needles?  $75.61  $53.11 in yarn only which means that I paid, on average, $5.90 per skein of sock yarn.  My usual yarn runs between $16 and $23!  What a deal!!  If it takes me an average of 18 hours to knit a pair of socks, thats 33 cents per hour of entertainment!!  If a statement was ever worthy of multiple exclamation points, that would be it

Served with a side of guilt

This post stems from a post that I read on Ravelry the other day.  Instead of posting in the forum, I decided to expound on the idea of guilt and knitting.

In the thread, the original poster brought up the idea that she felt guilty by going to a stitch and b!tch/sit ‘n knit/knit night/knit n natter/knitting group/whateveryoucallit and *gasp* knit with yarn, needles and a pattern that she didn’t buy there and therefore felt guilty about it.

My first thought was FPS*.  I’ve been to knitting groups in yarn stores in the past and in no way have I ever felt guilty about not using their yarn, needles, patterns or anything else from that particular store.  This is not to say that I hadn’t bought yarn/needles/patterns/et al from the stores in the past, I just wasn’t using any of it at that exact moment.  This goes right along with the fact that I didn’t donate to the “Friends of the Library” every time I went to the knitting group at the library, make an offering to the church I didnt attend weekly for holding a SNB, buy weekly from school children fund-raising when a knit night met in the school library or give any money to the National or City Parks for all the hours that I have knit around campsites or in parks, not to mention not buying from my friends Etsy store when I would sit and knit with her!  I bring this up because one of the replies to the original post said that she only uses yarn that she bought at that store is she goes to knitting group there.  Another person said that she “ALWAYS” buys something when she goes into the LYS for knitting group.  If knitting somewhere means that I have to financially support them every time I knit in their presence to the tune of project yarn, I could and can only afford to knit alone.

A poster to the thread mentioned feeling guilt about telling other knitters in her LYS knit group that she had bought the yarn she was using at another local store.  The owner heard her and cheerly chimed in that it was wonderful yarn but the supplier needed a minimum order of $3k, an impossibility for her store and then went off to help another person.  The poster asked the thread readers if she needed to apologise to the owner for her faux pas.  Variety is the spice of life and really, if there was a store that carried all the yarn/needles/patterns/et al that I ever wanted, I still think that I would *still* shop elsewhere if only for specials or sales and to support as many people as possible.  I fully admit to loving lots of different stores and if there was an owner that would get upset with me for shopping elsewhere and using things they don’t carry or for prices they can’t beat, I wouldn’t want to give them any more of my money.

Supporting LYS’s are important, please dont get me wrong.  Sadly, right now, the closest LYS to me is 900 air miles away.  I support as many yarn purveyors as possible, including the ones that I sat and knit in and those that I’ve never met.  I’ll still tell friends and visitors to my blog about the fantastic service/selection/deals/everything about the places I’ve shopped, both brick web-based.  I gave advertisement to a store when I tell people I was going to the sit n knit at X yarn shop just as often as I tell friends that I bought Y from so’n’so online.  However if the price to sit and knit in a store with friends is to buy and use only their products in their presence AND give them word of mouth and blogging advertisement, well, I’d rather spend my money elsewhere and knit alone, thankingyouverymuch.

Thankfully and sadly at the same time, being out here in rural Alaska makes the decision about where I will sit and knit is made for me.  I don’t have to balance what LYS I will visit as everyone is out of town yet local within the internet!  I was quite devastated to learn that there are no other knitters in town but with podcasts, I have lots of knitting groups and knitters to visit with.  As local friends won’t appreciate my telling them about the stores I buy yarn and fiber from, I will tell you, my lovely readers!  In no particular order, here are the stores that I buy from, love the service of and generally drool over. They are both yarn and spinning fiber with the majority of my fiber coming from Etsy shops with a side of TLE.

Knit Picks : They get more money from me than I would care to admit but really, I love them so, so much.  The affordable yarn in so many weights, fibers and colours, the amazingness that is their Independent Designer Program, the helpful podcast that the owner, Kelly, puts out, brilliant, creative patterns.  So much to love, all in one place, Knit Picks is perfection in a online yarn shop.

The Loopy Ewe : Sheri is my sock yarn dealer, first and forever.  I will admit to bouts of unfaithfulness but by and large, my sock yarn comes from Sheri.  Since August 2nd, 2006 (she opened 8/1/06), I have made 3-4 orders per year, usually about 3 months apart and I will own to spending over $1300 there.  Before you yell Mum, it hasn’t ALL been sock yarn (all 3 pairs of your socks yarn came from her though).  My biggest order was all roving and it was only my first order, my first ‘real’ skeins of sock yarn, that was over $100.  The only other order that went that high included a sweaters worth of yarn.  There is something very special about buying from Sheri.  Maybe it is a “First Love” -like connection, maybe its the beautiful photos, maybe it has everything to do with the most brilliant dyers that Sheri stocks and the Frequent Shopper Benefits that she also tracks but really, I love Sheri and I hope that everyone who knits socks will buy at least one skein from her.  She is like Lays though…I betcha can’t buy just one.  Shameless Plug: Follow the links, create a new account and give me the credit cause you all know that I need more sock yarn

*FPS = For Petes Sake; a phrase which has wormed its way into my vocabulary completely because of my reading of Sheris blog.  Her original post about FPS can be found HERE.

Most recently (OK, it was 12/26/09), I bought sock yarn from Little Knits.  I’d never purchased from the Littles before because of their $25 minimum order policy.  Not that I have problems spending more than $25 dollars, it’s just, well, look at their sock yarn prices!  Most of their sock yarn is between 17 and 77% off which means lots of yarn to make it to $25.  In reality, I had only wanted to buy a few needles in the past so never really explored their sock yarn.  I bought 2 skeins of yarn that are normally $9 for $2.45!  $18 for the pair became $4.90!  The Yarn Harlot made mention in one of her books about the entertainment value of yarn and sock knitting and I never really believed her reasoning until this order.  While she may be able to routinely find sock yarn on sale for the cheap, I was never that skilled until now.  Sock yarn that is hard-wearing and creates socks that stand up for the past 3 years of wearing at least once a week, being tossed into the wash with everything from undies to jeans and still looks perfect and still have no spots darned is to be revered and bought in bulk when on sale.  I did so and will show you pictures tomorrow Its not the most beautiful use of colour nor does it inspire me to handpaint yarn myself but this yarn is like a good pair of jeans.  It goes with everything, is a perfect fit no matter how many times you wash and wear them and make your butt look good.  Ok, maybe not the last one but you get the idea.  Coming from a woman who always wears jeans, trust me, this yarn, even at fingering weight, is my standard.  I cant wait to show you!!!

Etsy : Ok, there are a lot of Etsy sellers that I love.

#1) Northern Lights Fiber Co > Holy Cats, I just LOVE K’s dye jobs on both the fibers and the yarns, her service is wonderful…everything is great!  I’ve bought from her a few times, both on Etsy and in person and she even comments on the blog   What more could you ask for in a fibery friend?

#2) Wooly Treasures > Normally I am not one for spinning from batts but there was something that really spoke to me about hers and I wasn’t disappointed at all.  Beautiful colours, amazingly blended batts, very cool fibers…an all around great spinning experience.

#3) Exclusively Linda Lee > While she doesn’t have the shop up now because of a house move, I highly recommend that you look at her sold items and think about ordering from her in the future.  I bought her “Mary’s Monet” colourway in SW Merino and Cashmere…can you blame me?  I want one of everything but especially something in her Royale colourway like this one.  Oh Baby!

#4) Wee Ones > Not yarn or fiber but completely related to my knitting, Wee Ones made the stitch markers that I just can knit without.  She made me a personal set of Sisu sitch markers which includes a Brown Bear, a Beaver, a Moose, Sisu playing and Sisu giving “paw”.  They were my “celebration and reminders of Anchorage” stitch markers that I bought and had sent to Nelson Lagoon.  Perfect in every way and always used when I need a stitch marker.  BrightonWoman has some too…

#5 Green Eyed Monsters > I havent received this fiber yet (because I sent it to my Mum) but she says its stunning!  Shipping was fast between MI and the UK and I just wait wait to get my hot little hands on it.  Not like I don’t have enough roving, but this is Wool and Nylon, the perfect stuff to spin into hard(er) wearing sock yarn.  Before I make my attempt though I will try to spin sock yarn out of another one of my rovings.  I’ve got a few.

A few other fibery sellers I have on my list are LimeGreenJelly for intensity of colour, TheThylacine for dyeing on oatmeal and grey fibres, Inspiration Fibers for her colour blending kits (check her sold items for more examples) and  FatCat Knits for her, as I see them, true to name colourways.

On a side note, I have to say I am quite taken with Meenas Magickal Apothecary and Poison Apple Potions.  Meenas scent descriptions beggar belief, alight the senses and stir the perfume-y girl within me and there is something about Gwyllion that is calling out to me.  Samples will be purchased from both in the future!

There is only one Etsy seller that I didnt mention on here and thats because it was, quite regrettably, a bad experience.  I made a special order, the product looked to be knit and then re-skeined without being washed (noticed by my former partner who doesn’t knit), the seller was upset at my neutral feedback despite the fact that I said I would buy from her again and then, to top everything off, the socks I made completely washed out their colour in the first washing, despite the cold water.  I never told the seller what happened because it was easier to wash my hands (and socks) of her.

When I lived in Anchorage, I could be found at the Far North Yarn Co or the Yarn Branch of the Quilt Tree.  Both stores were wonderful and offered great service.  Honestly, I was there only for the experience of fondling the skeins.  I bought most of my yarn online from on of my online dealers because of better prices but every now and then I would buy from them…enough so that I have spent enough to redeem frequent shopper benefits from both stores.  No, they don’t have a $250 cap like Sheri but nearly so.  Between the sock yarn (yes, I bought sock yarn from them too) and 2 sweaters worth and a few odd skeins of pretty here and there, I’d say I did them well.  I even brought in other customers as I converted people to the knitter side (its like the “Dark Side” but we have cookies and needles )

Tomorrows post will include shopping without guilt and pictures of my most recent acquisition.

The 11th day and 12th night

If you have been following my blog for the past 2 weeks you will have seen a steady flow of posts.  A far cry from the twice a month slump that I fell into for a while.  This every to every other day posting is my attempt to create a writing habit for myself to create both fodder for the blog and for my personal writing project.  I have absolutely no idea where the personal writing will go, besides a folder on my desktop, but its good to get the story ideas out of my head and onto the screen so they wont be lost forever in my fantasy life.

I’ll be stopping the numbered days post titles after this one so you can look forward to my traditional bad puns again as titles.  I liked the idea of kicking off my writing habit with the count down to epiphany.  Growing up, January 5th was the last night to enjoy the Christmas tree as it would come down on the 6th.  It was always a bittersweet time and right now, I wish I had the task to look forward to tomorrow.  On the other hand, it *is* nice not to have to think about all the needles that would need to be vacuumed up and boxes to be put away!

To celebrate the 12th night, there will be a ‘feast’ for dinner.  I’m thinking about angel hair pasta with tomatoes, broccoli, shrimp and lots of garlic.  The tomatoes and broccoli will not be fresh or even frozen, rather dried and re-hydrated.  I tend to cook a lot with dehydrated foods that I bought from Harmony House Foods.  I started Nelson Lagoon life with a medium sized “Pantry Stuffer” and an extra large Veggie Soup mix.  Considering the cost of fresh food which, because of the nature of being in Alaska, is nearly always tasteless because it had to be picked so early to make the trip up here, these packages were well worth the cash in taste alone.  This doesnt even cover the convience of having all these veggies at my finger tips without needing much prep time and without the fear of them becoming spoilt.

Lets go back to the taste though because they really are almost as good as fresh, ripe anythings.  Its hard for me to say that because I love fresh veggies more than any food there is but really, even without the shrimp or crab or anything else to it, pasta tossed with a few tablespoons of rehydrated tomatoes, a bit of garlic and olive oil is like summer in your mouth.  The pure tomato taste is so…so…well, so *happy* and just so close to real fresh that I am able to forget the fact that I havent had a real tomato in over 5 years…almost.

While I cant comment on the taste of the leeks, jalapenos, zucchini, shallots or mushrooms, I can say that a few tablespoons of onions rehydrated saute up quite nicely and I dont even like onions!  The only veg that I don’t like re-hydrated would have to be the peas.  I really love fresh/frozen peas and I had high hopes for a dish of ’steamed’ peas but they just don’t rehydrate well.  If I soak them in freshly boiled water, there always is a crunchy center.  Boiling them doesnt help much either as they get mushy once all the way soft.  Mashed peas, traditionally called mushy peas, has never been top of my list.  But for everything that I like, the peas are an OK trade off.

The 9th and 10th days

This Christmas season has been…quite slow for me.  Its been a time for movies, books “on tape”, podcasts, spinning, knitting and long walks with Sisu.  In general, everything that I normally do but without work.  I clean up after my own messes so there is little to clean/tidy and as most people in town are spending time with their families, its pretty quiet for me.  Not much special being done but I have been busy.

The Lucy Bag is still in handle hell.  It is going to be the longest part of the bag, I know it.  Made worse by the fact that I don’t really *like* making felted projects anyway.  To put in all that work and then shrink it?  I’d rather not but this pattern has been looking at me for about 3 years and this yarn needed a good project.  I’ll eventually finish it and give it away

The Mod Chic socks are in process and I am thinking about tearing back to before the gusset and shortening them a bit.  This would be why I dislike toe-up socks.  While you can try them on along the way, getting the measurement right for the gusset and then the heel flap is tricky and having too much foot is a PITA that I’d rather not deal with.  I’m thinking about changing my top-down pattern to include a provisional cast on so that I can knit more to the top when I am done with both feet and toes.  Something will happen

I’m doing this toe-up with a short row heel which, while easy for me to make, I don’t think short row heels wear as well as heel flaps do.

This WIP is the first in a pair of Baby Jaywalkers.  I haven’t made a pair of adult sized ones but I think that I will in the future!  I like the pattern and its easy to memorize.  While I dont know if these will fit nephew C or Eagle B, I know that eventually there will be another person having a baby!  Maybe for my college friends Coming-In-April addition, Ambric (combination of parents names)?

I’m slowly working my way through Navajo plying this very full bobbin of Lornas Laces 100% Superwash Merino in the Vera colourway.  Slow and steady and seeing very little progress but I know that there *IS* progress as the bobbin I am plying onto has a few layers.  I LOVE the Woolee Winder for plying as it means I can fully focus on the motion of my hands and the slow treadling.

My Vail continues to stare and openly mock me.  Its not that it is difficult to work at all.  Stranded knitting is, while not simple, an easy technique for me to knit.  My difficulty with this sweater is that the chart is so long that its hard to balance and therefore follow.  I’m in two minds about this sweater because while I LOVE the finished object and I really like what I have done so far, I really don’t like flopping around with the pattern and it annoys me enough to want to frog.

The real big thing that I’ve been doing is designing.  I watched a movie, 8 really, but found the inspiration for what I think is going to be a very, very cool, er, warm, sweater that is both feminine, delicate, hard-wearing and strong all at the same time.  Stay tuned!

Christmas was a 4 day weekend, New Years was a 3 day weekend and with Russian Christmas coming on Thursday (13 days after 12/25 Christmas), we have that off too in a nod to the vast majority of Russian Orthodox Christians on the Aleutian Chain (and Alaska in general for obvious reasons).  In the non-village world I would be bouncing all over the place for another day off but here, with my already slowed pace of life and doing the things that really make me happy, its just going to be another day.