Dyeing, dyeing, dyeing and some knitting. . .

The shop is down due to the fact that i am having it completely redone and customized. I have hired a professional group to redo and gut the website. it will be fresh, original, easy to get around and just plain beautiful. I hope everyone likes it when it is done. I expect it to be done by the middle of July. =)

I would also like to introduce you to my new shoe. . . yes, it's a hard soled shoe for my broken toe. It was horrible standing and dyeing yarn for hours with a broken toe. I am very glad to say that with this new shoe, the pain is down to a minimum. Yes, it does cause my legs to be different lengths when not wearing another shoe, but whatever, it helps! I have been dyeing quite a bit of yarn and spinning fiber. I will be introducing four new yarn bases at Sock Summit. I really hope everyone likes them.

ONTO KNITTING CONTENT!
These are a random pair of house socks I knit for 52ppIII.
Details:
Pair #3 for 52ppIII:
started: June 2nd, 2009
finished: June 12th, 2009
Yarn Jojoland Rhythm 2 skeins
Pattern: my own (24 stitches toe up)
needle: US 3

Below are a pair of socks I knit out of yarn that my very dear friend Karen (Lykkefanten) sent me as a graduation gift. She also sent me some Drops alpaca yarn and a Danish shetland/wool blend. Yes, she is the sock club designer. I will be taking her patterns with me to both Sock Summit and Stitches Midwest.
Details:
Pair #4 for 52ppIII
started: 8 June 2009
finished: 19 June 2009
yarn: Hjertegarn Strømpegarn Jacquard Print
colourway: 4499
pattern: Sock Recipe: A Good, Plain Sock done toe up with short row heal
needle: US 1 1/2 2.5mm

Thee are part of my never ending destash. I just want the yarn to be gone!
WIP plain vanilla socks with 64 stitches toe up
yarn: Spunky Eclectic Panda
colourway: Raisin Wannabe
needle: 1 1/2 2.5mm

More destashing, but I LOVE Kirsten's yarn bases. i really want to track down her supplier. . .
WIP plain ribbed socks with 64 stitches toe up
yarn: handgefaerbt.com Nature Pure Merino Medium
colourway: army of orcs
needle: 1 1/2 2.5mm


Boy is coming to my brother's wedding!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! =) <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

A broken toe and knitting. . .

Sooo, yesterday morning after I fed the three dogs, I stubbed my toe extremely hard in the frame of a door. Afterwards, I literally passed out from the pain and slept half the day. When I woke up, my dad was home from helping pack my sister in Iowa. (That's a 2 1/2 drive mind you). So, I've been having great fun wobbling all over and trying to keep Mac from stepping on my left foot too often. Ugh.

Anyways, despite the set back I have been knitting. I finished these simple garter rib socks for myself, but I lost one of the socks. AAAAHHHH!!!! That didn't make me happy either. The yarn is yarn workshop's footscray that I randomly dyed. The yarn is kind of rough and not my favourite base. These are my first finished pair of socks for 52 pair plunge III.

These are a finished pair of Tadpoles in my Skye Sock Yarn in the colourway "Emerald Serpent." They're a little tight due to the fact that I continued the pattern on the back of the leg. This is pair #2 for 52ppIII.

Below are two pictures of my current and temporary workshop for the summer. I took over my dad's workroom under the garage. This may look like a lot of yarn, but it is nothing compared to what I'll be taking to Sock Summit in August or Stitches Midwest in September.

OOOO below is my new toy, next to my old toy. YES! That is my beautiful 6 skein winder!!! It'll pay for itself in the end.


BTW, 5 weeks until my brother's wedding! Scary, he's growing up! They're also buying a house. Very scary. . .

Graduated and working. . .

I graduated, no pictures, sorry but my hair looked horrid. It was a nice, beautiful, sunny day. Since then, I've been working on building up MacKintosh Yarns. I have been knitting up displays for conventions. Mainly socks right now. I have 3 done and only need one more and all 4 mannequins will have socks. I also sent a huge order to The Backwards Loop. it arrived today. I also took an order to Crazy Girl Yarn Shop here in Iowa.

Below I knit my Mey Seacell in the colourway Victoria. The pattern is Tadpoles, but knit upside down because it was knit toe up. I like it better this way.

Then I knit this sock out of my Woodland Bamboo blend in the colourway Jasmine. The pattern is Wendy Johnson's Diagonal Lace Sock.

I am also knitting myself a pair of Tadpoles for myself in Skye Sock Yarn in the colourway Emerald Serpent.

Knitting and shop update. . .

I did a shop update last week. I added several skeins of Chubby Sock Yarn, Skye Sock Yarn, and various fibers, including a new 100% Superwash Wool.

I've been knitting! I swear I have! I finished boy's socks last Thursday at 2am. He likes them even though they're green. They fit perfectly, which is awesome and the weather turned cold so maybe he'll ear them in the dorm. This is a horrible picture because he wouldn't cooperate and not cover his face! Blah!

My day yesterday started with all of these WIPs, including my dad's second pair of socks that I started last November. I actually thought that I had lost the first sock i finished. it showed up in my dad's car on the front seat. In order to finish the socks I had my mom measure the leg for me. I FINALLY finished them and am sooo happy they're off my needles.

Here's a pic of the second and lonely finished sock.

I also started a pair of socks for my future SIL, Alicia. This is also part of my destash. This is Knitterly Things 400 sw merino/nylon base. I'm not a huge fan of the base yarn. it is very splitty and dry when knitting with. The colourway is Dragon's Blood.

Yay, an order!

Sooo, I received an order yesterday for my yarns and some of my fibers from The Backwards Loop. I will be sending her 100 skeins of yarn and 12 braids of fiber. This is extremely exciting!

I am also on the waiting list for a vendor spot at:

Hopefully I will get a spot, because it would be such a great honor!

On another note, it's spring here, kind of. It's been "warm?" Eh, maybe. it definitely has been breezy and yesterday I didn't wear a hoodie when going out. So sad, I want my snow back!! Seriously, I prefer autumn or winter. BTW Happy Passover!!

Btw, I have been knitting. I finished my Mountain Color footsies last week. The colourway is Bitterroot Rainbow and was knit toe up on size US 1 1/2 circular needles

I then out of nowhere grabbed two skeins of my Iona Sport Weight yarn and cast on for a second pair of Corazon mittens. I love this yarn!!! These two colourways, Taurus (green) and Bluebird (bluish purple) go so well together! I'm extremely happy with how they're turning out. Also, I knit the first mitten in a day. Now I just ned to finish the second one. =)

Happy Birthday Mac!

Yesterday my precious little aussie turned THREE. THREE!!! I have had him for 2 years and 10 months. It seems like forever. =)

On Mac's birthday I also did a photo-shoot for my book. I am writing a knitting book called "Knitting Through College." Mac was cooperative (kind of) for the photo shoot and allowed my friend Anne to take photos with him. the one below is the best of the entire shoot. =) Mac is a natural model.

I also knit up my "Logical Beanie" for the photo-shoot. This is Wollmeise worsted in Rittersporn. This used up some of my stash, which made me happy. Luckily we were mainly shooting hats because it was cold outside. It kept Anne warm.

I have basically finished both heels on my basic toe up Mountain Color socks. Now I just need to finish them so I can continue my "use up stash" mission.

I also started another pair of my "Roundabout Socks" for the book. The yarn being used is Alpaca with a Twist's Socrates. This is a wonderful yarn! Very soft and beautiful. I bought it while up in Cedar Falls visiting boy.



I went and saw boy on Saturday and just had fun hanging out in downtown Cedar Falls. It's nice getting away and spending some quality time together. While we were in Crazy Girl Yarn Shop, boy walked around and FELT yarn. LoL I have trained him well. =)

Gotta Love the cold and snow

As you probably know, I love the cold and adore snow. I wish we had gotten the large amounts of snow that went just slightly north of us. My parents and Boy got that and I was slightly disappointed it missed IC. So, plans have been changing quite a bit lately. My Valentine's Day was kind of boring. I watched movies all day. Boy was in upstate NY attending a memorial for his cousin who was killed on the 6th. And we're not going down to visit my brother for spring break, we're probably just gonna go to my parents condo in Chicago. It should be fun though.

I had to stop knitting my shawl because I finished the first skein and hit a snag. . . all of the other skeins I bought were an off white cream colour and not the white of the first skein. I just happened to use the only white skein for the beginning of the project. Soo, I need to go an buy some more of the white before I can continue.
I have been knitting though. I have finished a couple of projects below. I finally finished my dad's hat last night while watching the Oscars. Yay! It's soft, thick and beautiful. I hope it fits!

I also did some destashing and knit a slouch out of some Misti Alpaca Sport Weight yarn that I have had for years! It's a forest green colour and neither pictures show it very well. I have 2 more skeins left I believe and need to figure out what to do with them.

Mac was very reluctant to model it for me, but I managed to get a cute picture!

I also started another slouch based on one that Scarlett Johansson was wearing in a picture I saw. The first one is being knit out of Cascade Eco Wool, same as my first Ailidh hat. I'm hoping to make adjustments with Malabrigo for the second one before I write the pattern down.

Well, I need to finish going through my Marketing notes, because I have an exam in less than 2 hours. Ugh!
There was also an update in the shop on Saturday. Enjoy!

Still alive and kicking. . .

Don't worry, I'm still here. =) Homework and studying have taken over my life. One more semester until my undergraduate career is over. That is a very sad thought for me. What will i do without college and naps and sleeping and and and and and college!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Anyways, onto what I've been up to. Winter break officially begins tomorrow for me. it started today for boy. Sigh, schmuck. I have the hardest and most stressful final this semester tomorrow at 4:30pm. yay for me. I went up to Cedar Falls and picked boy up today. Mother nature decided that I needed a challenge while retrieving him. It snowed the entire time, yep snow. At first it was dusty snow and then it became wet and thick. It took me 3 something hours to get him. Usually it takes about 2 something. Ugh.

I also knit and finished a pair of house socks. The yarn came from carrie of Funky Carolina. it's part of the handspun club she offered some time ago. I LOVED IT!!! She spun me shetland into a sport weight sock yarn. I couldn't put these down. They are sooo soft!!!

Here is my new ring, which I picked out and have been wearing since it's arrival. It's not official (as in parents don't know?), but I'm planning a 2010 wedding. yeah, okay, let's move on to more fiber stuff. (band is sterling silver, stone is a .47 lilac spinel, ring was handmade on etsy by jewelscurnow) I have a thing for handmade items. =P I'm getting boy a handmade titanium ring. =)

I LEARNED HOW TO RBAID MY FIBERS!!! I know this sounds sad, but it took me for frickin ever to figure out!!!! Now, I'm content. =P

Tis the season. . .

Okay, I am holding a contest and the prize is this beautiful skein of MacKintosh Yarns Mey Seacell in the colourway Victoria. The contest is to help me come up with a new name for my World of Warcraft mage Lyxi. Please leave your choices (up to 5) in a comment. You have until December 1st. Please tell your friends, I need as many options as possible. Thanks!


BTW all Celtic Sock Yarns are on sale for $18 from now through Black Friday.

On another note, I'm sick, I've been sick and I'm not getting better. For the past several (since March really) I've been having problems that could be IBS or could be IBD. My stomach is more sensitive and so is my bowel. My lactose intolerance has gotten worse and it's just not fun being me. Next Wednesday I will be seeing a gastroenterologist, aka a bowel specialist to see what's wrong. I hope it's not IBD, I have an uncle with it and it's a rather frightening thought.

As I was saying in the header, tis the season. . . .for cowls. . .LoL
Below is a plain stockinette cowl that I am working on for myself. The yarn is MacKintosh Yarns Iona Sport Weight in the colourway Mulled Wine. I love this yarn!!! Sooo soft!

Here is a cowl I knit for my mom. It's the birthday cowl again, but in a yarn she chose while we visited Loopy Yarns in downtown Chicago several weeks ago. The yarn is Sublime Aran Merino Silk Cashmere blend. it's sooooooooooooooooooooooooo soft!!! Light, but also warm. Love it!


I also need some ideas on what to get boy for Christmas. . . yes, we're back together. . . .okay, I'm a sucker and I love him. It's kind of hard not to love him, he has the most adorable blue eyes. . . .damn him. . .

BTW bundle up!! It's getting cold!

Ahhh, November

Sooo, it's been a bit brisk, rainy and even snowy here in the Midwest. Over this past weekend, my parents, sister and I were supposed to attend the Ohio State vs Northwestern game @ Northwester. The weather was cold, windy, snowy and rainy. Sooo, instead we just went and saw the condo my parents are buying in Lincoln Park and hung around downtown. I LOVE Chicago! Below are two pictures of the living room and the kitchen of the condo. It's basically a large apartment in Lincoln Park. The areas behind the building are gorgeous.


While we were in Lincoln Park, I found my dream house. Yep, huge and gorgeous! This house is worth around $3 million. Yeah, better start saving those pennies. Heh.

I have been doing some knitting lately. On Monday I started a lacy slouch in my Skye Sock Yarn in the colourway Lich. I finished it at 1:30 am this morning, washed it and blocked it on a plate. I worked 5 1/2 inches of the lace pattern and luckily when it blocked, it expanded. I love how it turned out! It didn't take much, I still have 72% of the skein left!



Boy and I are trying to work out winter break, etc. We'll see what happens. I just can't wait until Thanksgiving Break! I whole week off!!! Yes, I have to put up with family, but a whole week off!!!

It snowed!!!

This has been a crazy weekend. I went home to study for my redo of my finance midterm exam. The weather is changing quickly. It has been very windy and brisk the past few days and tonight it snowed here in Iowa City. SNOWED!!
I got some knitting done. I finished my Old Shale Scarf yesterday. This made me happy, considering that I actually need to wear it now. The yarn used is MamaBlue Troika Sock in Little Wing. The only disappointing thing about the yarn is that there are small red specks throughout and it looks odd.
Here is it dry, it blocked out to 71 inches long and 8.5 inches wide. (the pic below, it is folded over itself)

Here it is blocking on the guest bed downstairs. Lots of pins!

I also started a pair of socks for myself. The pattern is just my twist sock pattern that I used for my high ocTang Hazel Knits socks. The yarn being used is my MacKintosh Yarns Celtic Sock Yarn in Faiye.

Below is also a new colourway I will be offering (one of many). It is called Moroccan Market.

In other news, thank you for the nice messages when I was feeling down.  Boy and I are trying to work things out and restructure our relationship. The main time we fight is when we're apart, so yeah. LoL. Have a great week!

More yarn pictures coming soon. =) 

Week of studying

Sooo, I went home last Wednesday to study for my three midterms this week. I was actually supposed to go to Blizzcon in Anaheim, California, but because of my exams, i stayed and studied most of the weekend. I got a couple of breaks, but most of it was spent grinding entrepreneur finance into my brain. Yes, very fun. I have a midterm tonight, tomorrow and Thursday. I can't wait for the weekend to get here.
I did get some knitting done while I was home. I finished my dad's socks, finally. Here he is wearing them below. He likes them and will hopefully wear them. I did the garter rib from sensational Socks and knit them in Trekking XXL, forget the colour though, sorry.

I also finished my Corazon Mittens. These are a project for my production class, so thankfully those are done also. The yarn used is Nashua Julia. it's a great yarn and very soft. I'm quite proud of these.

My Sundara sock club shipment arrived today. While I like the name, I'm not fond of the colour. I'm not a huge purple fan, if you hadn't noticed. I'm willing to part with this one heh. I'll sell it for the normal price of Sundara sock yarn $23 plus shipping.

Last week Mac and I also had a photoshoot while he was laying on his bed outside. This was one of the cuter ones.

I am also in the process of destashing some yarns. These will included some Wollmeise, Hazel Knits, Plucky Knitter, etc. The images will be posted in my next post if you're interested.