My brother got married, scary. . .

This past weekend my parents and I went down to Austin, Texas for my older brother's wedding. It was held on Saturday at 2pm. All I have to say is that the wedding was beautiful and Texas is WAY too hot for my tasted. Heh, seriously I nearly died in the 111 degree weather. Below are two images from the wedding. I'll post one of the couple when the professional ones are up.


And a picture of boy/FH and I at the wedding. No, boy/FH is not Jewish. I was sooo happy that he could be there with me. it was also nice to see him, because we hadn't seen each other since my graduation in May. The wedding was held by a Rabbi, but mixed both Alicia's Christian background and my brother's Jewish background.


Sorry, no knitting this time, but maybe later. I am currently losing my mind with two shows within a month of each other. Shoot me. . . <3

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. . .

Four Days until Graduation

I have four more days until my undergraduate college career is over. Five years of my life and countless hours and dollars later, I am finally graduating.
To keep my mind off of the fact that i will actually need to make a living after Saturday, I have been knitting and concentrating on holiday gifts, etc.
My diagonal socks are coming along. i did need to frog back the second sock down to the beginning of the 6th repeat on the foot because i kept screwing it up. I redid the heel 3 times, but the only solution was to rip it back even more. I have finally caught up with the first sock and am hopefully going to finish them this week.

I also started my dad's holiday gift after much contemplation. I finally decided to use up the rest of my Paton's Kroy Sock yarn and make the socks striped. My grandpa's socks will be made out of Paton's Kroy also, but plain black maybe with a pattern, we'll see.

Boy and I were in Rockford this weekend. I studied most of the time, while boy slept, he's been sick. I did get to see my mom's face when she received the flowers I ordered her for Mother's Day. She REALLY liked them. I also helped my dad pick out a gift of his own for her.

Spring is definitely here. This is a photo of the pond in my parent's backyard. They just had it redone. There was a rip in the liner and the pond kept losing water. Not a good thing when they have fish in there.

Back to knitting since I'm done studying for the day.
Please remember! Everything in the shop will be on sale starting the 15th in honor of my graduation! It will continue until the 21st!!

Socks and holiday knits. . .

Yes, I said holiday knits. It's almost May and the holidays will be here sooner than you think. As I've said in the past, my family celebrates the holidays over Thanksgiving. This means I need to start knitting right now, considering my family has become accustomed to hand knits as gifts. below are some of the yarns I've pulled so far. I have already received a request for socks from my sister, but she wants them out of a colourway of STR that I don't currently have. Gotta love requests.

y destash quest has continued. i am working on a bulky hooded jumper out of my Icelandic that has been sitting in my stash.

I am also knitting a pair of Spring Forwards out of some handspun I purchased a while ago. I think they're turning out well so far.

This snood is also a holiday gift. This is for my grandma who lives in Jerusalem. I need to finish it by August because thats around the time they go a visit her annually. The yarn is Paton's Silk Bamboo in Plum.

And lastly, I am also working on a pair of Wendy Johnson's Diagonal Lace Socks in Wollmeise 100% SW Merino in the colourway Brombeere. This yarn has been sitting in my stash for over a year and a half. it was time to drag some of it out and use it. This is an extremely easy sock to knit and I can take it to class with me and not have problems.


Alicia's socks are done and drying. Hopefully tomorrow I can ship them down to Texas to her.
I am also almost done with my first wholesale order. It will be shipped out hopefully within a week. =)
Boy finishes up on the 8th, while i finish up on the 13th. I then graduate the 16th, oh joy. I hope he can spend the summer with me, but it all depends on whether my sister will move out of the condo early. It doesn't seem like she will, UGH!!! Frustrating situation.

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. =)

Ahh spring. . .kind of. . .

Claudia's colors for this month's package for the Wollmeise Sock Club is definitely bright and colorful. But unfortunately, it didn't match the weather outside. It was snowing, yep snowing. I had just gone up to see boy and go see a movie. When we exited the theater, it had begun to snow. =P

Over spring break I went down and visited my brother and his fiance, Alicia, for 5 days. Unfortunately I was sick the entire time and couldn't get pictures. After that, my parents picked me up from O'Hare and we went to the condo. On Saturday my dad and I went downtown to Navy Pier, which was a lot of fun.
Here is a picture of the ballroom at Navy Pier. Lake Michigan was gorgeous!

Picture of part of the skyline. It was such a beautiful, clear day.

Okay, yes, this is a picture of Mac's butt, but I guarantee there is a good reason for it. While I was home, we took Mac to petco for a bath and a trim. Usually we take our dogs to Petsmart, but they don't do that good of a job on Mac when it comes to trimming. So after we took him to Petco and they did an amazing job! No one has ever trimmed his butt this well. It is sooo wonderful!

I have also been working on some very simple projects right now.


New news is that I will be moving into my sister's old condo, which is much larger and nicer. I now get to find a job before I graduate in this area. I hope it won't be that hard. I am meeting up with an advisor who will help me spruce up my resume and help me with my job search. But, I am staying in Iowa, hopefully for a few years until the economy gets better. I mean, Iowa's unemployment is only 4.6%, which is low compared to the rest of the country.

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!

Ugh. . . stress. . .

It's almost been a week since I had my surgery to remove my wisdom teeth. I have been surviving on vicodin for most of the week. My jaw still hurts, mainly in the evenings. So, boy forgot his coat at my parents condo and had to borrow one of my dad's until he could get his coat back. BUT, it turns out that his own coat doesn't really fit anymore. No idea why he didn't get a new one for the holidays because he needs it in the Iowa weather. Oh well, my dad said that he could borrow his coat until winter is over, but he wants it back afterwards. I did retrieve his coat this weekend when my parents and I went into Chicago for 2 nights. It's funny, he left it hanging in the coat closet. . . . yeah. My mom is a selfless person, she let him borrow my dads coat, paid for his way back to school, and gave him $100 for a taxi and food. Yeah, nice woman. He had to spend some of the money paying his roommate back though because he left his wallet at school and had to have it sent to my parents house before he went to O'Hare Airport, which wasn't what the money was for, but whatever. Oh well. Gotta love stress eh?

Soo, classes begin Tuesday for me and I'm hoping my last semester in college is umm relaxing? Heh, with two marketing classes I want it to be relaxing, we shall see. I haven't really been knitting lately due to my procedures and just lack of energy. I'm starting to feel better, but still have a long way to go. My mouth will probably be sore for eh another few weeks and my body is completely out of wack. Kind of wish i had another 2 weeks off to lay around on vicodin. Luckily I have tomorrow off. Yay I get to straighten up my apartment! Ugh. . .

Okay, some GOOD news! My brother Mike got engaged to his gf Alicia! They've been together for over two years. he bought her a beautiful .66 carat Tiffany & Co. engagement ring! Nice $5K ring right there! It's a classic 6 prong, platinum setting. They are planning a wedding for this fall. I can't wait! I'm dragging boy with me, because he still hasn't met my brother. Sigh. . . . Anyways, here are some pics of the ring below:



Btw, I guess I should start referring to boy as FH (future husband). Hmm I'll think about it.
Almost forgot, some of my wedding details:

Time: Winter (I'm looking into Dec 17th 2011)
Where: Chicago (looking into Navy Pier Lakeview Terrace)
# Guests: 50 (25 each side)
Colour Scheme: blue, white, silver
Announcements: sent out Spring 2010
wedding bands: Boys: titanium with silver inlays and engraved Mine: umm we'll see

More details as it gets closer. . . . <3

Hello 2009!

Yeah, I know I haven't posted in a while and I am sorry. I haven't really had the urge to get on and post, considering I really haven't been knitting this past month. I spent my first week and a half here at home playing World of Warcraft and waiting for my grades. This past week and a half, well the first part of it was spent in my parents condo in Chicago with my parents, boy and the animals. We had a lot of fun. Boy and I went downtown and visited Tiffany's (bought my wedding band) and the Apple Store. It was COLD, but fun. This past week we've been back in Rockford enjoying rented movies and the snow. Today I had my colonoscopy, fun fun, the nurse had to stab my hand twice before she got a vein for the IV. It wasn't horrible, the prep kind of sucked, but it's over. Tomorrow boy goes back to school, classes begin Monday, I'm sad. =( My mom also guilt tripped me into agreeing to get my wisdom teeth out on Monday. . . the fun just keeps coming.
Well, some good news, the HAWKEYES WON our bowlgame!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GO HAWKS!!!

Yesterday, boy and I picked up my new and permanent engagement ring (2 pics below). I always wanted a sapphire ring and this is just gorgeous!!!!!!! Yes, my parents know, his still don't, but we have time to wait (3 years ugh!!).

And another pic of my dream ring!!