work, travel and knitting fun

As you can see by my last post....I've been busy! I'm working more days and longer hours at my new job as well as working a half day a week at the old job (for the past two weeks anyway) and the same at my LYS (as I've said before...that counts as play not work).

It's been nice to stay kinda low key this weekend, get some chores done around the house and watch a movie or two...study some, knit some and enjoy the crazy cool weather we're having!
It should be about 102 for this time of year, knock on wood...it's 82 and breezy out there! Yahoo!!

Last weekend my sister, niece and I took a quick roadtrip to Portland with a stop in Ashland along the way. We visited a couple of yarn stores...of course....and did some clothes shopping...ya gotta love the no sales tax thing in Oregon! I should apologize now to the local merchants here...but....we were there....there were sales....no tax....what was I supposed to do? I did what I had to....new clothes for work....down a size too yay!!!!
So, that was a lot of driving....in a short time... it's good to lay low this weekend!

Happy Sunday everybody.

busy....

and tired....and needing to knit but not finding the time.

good things come to those who waaaaaiiiiiiit....

Isn't that how the saying goes? Well.....my new job is not only new to me....but it's also a new position for the place I'll be working. As in .... they've never hired or employeed a "me" before. So....it's a learning situation for us both.....so....some paperwork didn't get done when it should have and my start date....well it can't really be my start date now and has been sorta pushed back by almost two months. But....(and ya gotta love this) since they told me that would be my start date, they're going to honor that and put me to work then and let me have a longer orientation of sorts....and so I'll not be unemployed for a few months! I already love that place!

On the knitting side of life, I've made great progress on the test knit...but it's not done yet.

Lambtown USA! Was good! Lots of cool rovings and fleeces and yarns everywhere! We pretty much just stuck to the market place, and bought stuff. We didn't take any classes or see any animals....but I'm thinking that would be fun to do next year.

We got too hungry and headed for Chevy's instead! And then....to Vacaville to the outlets to shop for Niece type clothes! ok, and maybe some Auntie type shoes. It was a fun day.

Here are the pics I promised last time:

This is some very beautiful 100% merino roving from Canada. It was a gift from my good friend

Joanne of Heartstrings (thank you Joanne :)

and this.... is some roving I couldn't resist at Lambtown.

same with this, I bought little sample amts so that I can play with it to see how the different fibers and fiber blends spin up (really I bought it for science!) silk, silk/romney blend, tussah/English Leicester/Suri alpaca blend and I and Alpaca by itself and romney by itself all in the name of science I tell ya.

And this little goodie....also from Canada.....beautiful Fleece Artist sock yarn....I couldn't resist.

This is the secret knitting....I made it blurry on purpose because....it's secret.

This is the market bag from Magknits. Pattern and yarn compliments of my sp10....thanks sp I am happy with how it turned out! (except the part where there were seams to sew up....it was a fun knit.)

and this....is also a secret....but you can see it's feather and fan...in Noro Sumile (ok, not the greatest pic so just trust me, it looks good and will look better with blocking!)

baaaaad blogger

I know...I know....I haven't blogged in awhile....but, in my defense.....ok, I have no defense. But I'm taking a break from the Secret Pal thing...so I'm not breakin the rules! :)

So, I took the job and start on 8/6. It will mean alot of studying....which is fine, but will definately cut into my knitting time (I'm thinking audio books). But still, I look forward to the challenge...it'll be good...right?

hmmm what else, I still haven't finished dear son's Panda Wool socks...I just need to graft the toe...on the first sock. And...I'm still working on the surpise which is a gift for a friend....but I have til Oct. on that one and am making good progress.

and... I started something new....I'm making great progress on it...but I'm test knitting a pattern for friends who are writing a book so it's pretty much secret knitting too.

oooh ooooh this is exciting....dear sister and dear neices x2 and I are going to Dixon this weekend to Lambtown USA so, we're all excited about that. And in a couple of weeks, we're doing a road trip to Portland, OR. Looking forward to that one too!

Pictures next time!!! honest! Happy last week of July everyone. (can you believe it?)

It's Official

Today I was officially offered a new job. I haven't officially accepted yet...but I will. :) hmmmm change is good right? Scarey.....but good? yes...that's right.
I think I'll go knit....or spin....or try to do something to calm my jitters.
Happy weekend everyone.

I should have knocked on wood....

My last blog post was titled "In a Spin".....I think when I typed that out I must have ruffled the feathers of the gods or something....because over the past week...my life has been in a spin. Yikes people....I'm just cruising along and then blamo.....spinning, and I don't mean yarn. Now, if you read back through my past posts...you know I don't get too personal on this thing, and so I won't today either :) But....there have been changes at work....which caused me to look, and apply, and interview.... and the interviewers have eluded to the fact that an offer will be forthcoming.

Hey....have I ever mentioned how I'm kind of a creature of habit and big change scares the hell out of me? Cause....it does. And this would be big change....in a lot of ways.

One of the positive changes ..... two Thursdays a month, I'd be less than 3 minutes from the Paradise spinning guild meetings...so Brooke and Heatherly, no more showing up an hour late for me.... I might even beat you there! (maybe....although I think the shift might end at 6 :(

So stressed was I over this impending change....I couldn't knit or spin! But...that passed after a few days and I decided I just really needed to cast on something new...something different and something quick...so I started on the Market Bag. It's a cool pattern, knits pretty fast, and it's different. I think...next time I'd knit it in the round and do a 3 needle bind off because I'm not so much into sewing pieces together after I've knit them. (that's why the Noro sweater isn't done....maybe in the fall).

hmmmm change is good right?
Happy Tuesday everyone.

in a spin

That's me....I've been spinning! And before I start....let me just say congratulations to my sp10 pal Cetta who just bought her first drop spindle and roving!!!! Welcome to the club Cetta!!! (Or should I say welcome to the guild.)

What have I been spinning....well, there's this:

This roving I bought at Stitches West from the Alpaca Direct booth. It's merino and spins up nice and soft. I think the colorway was forest or something like that.

And this:



I can't talk much about yet... but it's from my LYS, Kraemer yarns, "60% New Zealand Wool/40% Domestic Wool". And the colorway is Spice....it's yummy! a little wooly compared to the merino ....but ...that's because it's not merino right?



And last week, I went to the Paradise Spinning Guild meeting where I received this:

I'm told by Heatherly that it's silk noil? Anyhow...whatever it is it's pretty cool and though I haven't begun to spin it yet...it looked really neat when Heather was spinning it at the guild! So I'll be playing with it soon.



And this...remember this?
This was shorn from a Dorsett cross...I received it wet and dirty and stinky....I washed some up (see previous posts from spring for those images if you dare) and it turned into this:
which doesn't look cleaner but it is...trust me.

And that turned into this (with the help of Heather's hand carders! thanks Heather!)These are called rolags and they are basically roving but they end up in this shape when you card by hand!

And this is what you get when you spin those rolags! weee...
so far so good!