The Way Things Are

I've always been pretty good (I thought) at making sure I have my stash updated in Ravelry.  This faith has meant that if I'm shopping and I run across something I know I've considered buying before, I can run a quick check and find out if I just considered it or if I actually pulled the proverbial trigger.   This has paid off handsomely in the Rock and String booth at more than one fiber festival.

I've recently been giving the stash a bit of a toss and a tidy, doing some spring cleaning and finally enacting my plan to actually use the "stored in" field for Ravelry stash to match skeins to bins.  The theory is that this will make it easier for me to put my hands on a given bit of yarn if I’ve a mind to. 

This was the scene going in:

I've run across one or two things that weren't listed in Ravelry as I went, but not so many as I'd feared.  A yarnbox monthly subscription from 2016 here, a random bit of sock yarn there, but really, I was feeling pretty proud of myself.

Until.

I picked up a gorgeous gobstopper ball of self-striping yarn with the fantastic colorway name of Gimli, Son of Gloin.  Confident and pleased, I searched my Rav stash to locate the entry so I could update which bin it's in. 

Wasn't there.  Hunh.  Well, I must have missed entering it.  No harm, I know the shop, and since they're on Etsy it's easy as pie to find the order details so I can fill in the date purchased, etc.

Off to Etsy I go and happily type “Gimli” into the “search your purchases” field.

I bet you can guess where this is going.

 

 

Apparently, not only did I not put dear Gimli into my stash the first time I bought the yarn in 2019 (nor his tall boyfriend Legolas neither), I also failed to add it to my stash the SECOND time I bought it in 2020.   A year ago.

You will note I did not realize that there were two of them in this house until I saw it in my order history.

Somebody really needs to do something about the way things are over here.

No, it is too much. Let me sum up.

April has just flown by.  Do you hear that WHOOSHING noise?  That was April.  Happily, I caught a lot of it on film (er, metaphorical film.  I use my cell phone.  But you know what I mean.)

So settle in and buckle up.  Here's a picture heavy, lightning tour of the month of April here at chez woolly.

Stitches South

Right after we last spoke, we loaded up the car with a swatch of knitters and headed up the road to Stitches South.  Since they moved Stitches to Nashville, it's only a 45 minute drive from my house. Atlanta would have been doable (though I never actually did it...) but Nashville is just right there, you know?

Anyway, we were Stitches bound, stopping mid-way between the Opryland Hotel and my place for breakfast and to collect our Jess.

A Swatch of Knitters

Assembled, fed, and caffeinated, we continued our journey.   While there we spent some money (some of us spent a lot of money...) and met up with some dear friends from out of town.

Some of these knitters live in the internet.

I bought some yarns...

Don't give me that look, my goals specifically mentioned Fiber Events as an exception.

...and the best wine glass.

That says "three sheeps to the wind"

Business Trip to Melbourne, FL

The next week saw us starting the process of cleaning for Seder, and the week after that was for a business trip.   I spent the better part of the week in Melbourne, Florida.  I was there to facilitate two leadership workshops on inclusion and empowerment.   

Among other reasons....

I may or may not have also walked on the beach, eaten excellent food, had some wine, and, oh yes, I did some knitting.

Something about knitting a Hitchhiker as travel knitting appeals to my sense of the absurd.

Passover 2016

And after that?  It was time for Seder.

 

Seder Prep Selfies

One of the best things about Seder is the day we spend preparing the meal.  This year the kids were more involved than ever and that just makes my heart sing.  Even little Phoebe got in on the act, with a butter knife and some apples.

That's Morgan, Iris, Phoebe, and Jess making the Charoset

Dinner was lovely, and the remodeled living room served to make things more comfortable rather than less (I'd had some concerns, but all was right in the end).  We fit 30 at table comfortably and with room to breathe.  Barely.  

There's another table out of frame to the right.

Since Seder I've been quietly working on finishing up some old projects, and getting some new things cast on.   I'll tell you more about that next week, as surely this has gone on long enough.

But that's April, more or less in a nutshell.

Oh!  And one more thing...

The iris started to bloom.

Setting Intentions, 2016 Edition

Every New Year I think about what I want from and for the coming year.  Health, productivity, a clean house, specific projects I'd like to accomplish, that sort of thing.  I've got a lot of ambition for 2016, and I'm ready to start making it happen.  

On New Year's Day as I sat with three of the best people I know, I closed the books on one or two things.

Where Dwell the Brave at Heart

I knit Wee Weasley sweaters for the family for Christmas this year.  And predictably enough I finished all of them but the one intended for me (I figured I could always make mine later, right?  It's not like I was surprising myself.)   Koren and Rhiannon both very wisely pointed out that if I didn't cast the thing on and finish it though, and if I didn't do it right now while I still have the pattern memorized, well... I never would.  

Dang, That's a Lot of Ravenclaws

I also finished the toe on my Halloween sock (yeah, I know.  But I'd already finished my Christmas pair, and Halloween comes every year.)

I finished projects that were lingering, and projects that were intended for no purpose but my happiness.   

In 2016, may I finish what I start, even when it isn't new and exciting anymore, and may I remember to pursue my own joy.

So, a few projects cast off and completed, I moved on to beginning new things.

I cast on the second Halloween sock, because while I could wear one Halloween sock and one Christmas sock and call it good... I'm not going to.

I still love that orange stripe.

I also cast on an entirely brand new project.  An ambitious project, one that calls for around twelve hundred yards of fingering weight yarn in some of my very favorite colors.   I'll be knitting the Lilli Pilli shawl by Ambah O'Brien as my Potions OWL in the Harry Potter Knitting and Crochet House Cup.

I'm only just begun, and I'm looking forward to working on it over the next few months.  Since I'm doing it as part of an online game with other knitters, I have an externally imposed deadline that will help me keep this from languishing.

In 2016, may I continue to work towards completing what's already begun, while still looking forward to the next wonderful opportunity.  May I know myself well enough to find solutions, games, and motivations that will help me succeed in everything I attempt.

So Say We All.

Crafting Goals for 2016

I don't do resolutions.  While there is certainly societal pressure to be resolute in January, there is surely just as much pressure to categorically fail in February.  I'd just as soon skip all that.  So while I don't have any resolutions to share with you, I do have some goals.

In 2016, I would like to complete greater than 10,000 yards of knitting and crochet.  For context, in 2014 I hit 10,751.  2015's total hit a nice 10,415 (if you have a Ravelry account, you can see my 2015 finished projects here).  So essentially my goal is to carry on grooving.

In 2016, I intend to complete 16 pairs of socks.  (This idea was totally ripped off of inspired by Mediapuruana. I'm not actually playing along other than in spirit.)  Socks that were on the needles in 2015 count, so long as they are finished in 2016.  So my current standing is 1/16.  Woot!

In 2016, I will limit my yarn purchases to festivals, shows, and the two yarn clubs I'm currently enrolled in (Yarnbox.com's sock box, and the Erin Lane Indie Yarn Carnival, in case you were wondering.)   Jess, Koren, and I are making plans to go Yarny Tonkin' in Nashville at some point this year.  For my purposes that counts as a festival (I bet there will be sushi involved), but I only get to do this once.   I've done a great deal of yarn acquisition in the past year and a half.  And I ain't even sorry.  But I'd like to slow down and enjoy some of the really excellent yarns I currently own. Also, I'm about out of room.

In 2016, I will finish my three oldest, biggest, or oldest AND biggest works in progress:

My Circles to Squares Afghan, which is about 50% complete.

My Cosy Stripe Afghan, also at 50%.

And my Knitting in Red Shawl.  I estimate I'm around 65 - 70% on this one.

This one has a lot of Intention in it, and I've left it to linger for far too long.  I've already begun working on it again, and it feels good to put some new and fresh energy into it.

What are your Intentions and Goals for 2016?

Have Knitting, Will Travel

Last weekend was SAFF, or the Southeastern Animal Fiber Fair if you're fancy, and a good time was had by all.

This is a picture heavy post, y'all.  Sorry-not-sorry.  (Also what are you complaining about, you on a dial up or something?)

We left Murfreesboro at the crack of 8:00 a.m. and drove straight on to a little berg outside of Knoxville where we left wee Bu, happy as the proverbial clam, with her grandma.  Bu is a child of a different disposition from her older sister.  Older sister would not have suffered staying behind at Granny's gracefully.  Bu was pretty much, "Sure, yeah, see ya, bye.  Granny and I have stuff to do... are you still here?"

Then off we went for Asheville.   We stopped at the Tupelo Honey Cafe for a late lunch slash early dinner (side note: they have built a Tupelo Honey in Franklin across the street from my office.  Cue high-pitched, inarticulate sounds of joy).  

Bestie Jess and I at Tupelo Honey Cafe in Asheville

We walked around downtown Asheville for a bit (whereupon I suffered from a bout of camnesia.  Took no pictures the entire time).   But I did prove that I can navigate on foot from Tupelo Honey to Purl's Yarn Emporium from memory, so there's that.  We didn't buy anything, because SAFF and the markets were the next day.  It was fun to poke around and look though.

We also passed by a wig shop (because why not?) and I kept muttering, "Vhen vill you vear vigs?" every time I saw the place because I think I'm funny (YouTube link).

Other than a trip to Target and some truly mediocre live music paired with some truly fantastic goat cheese balls (not a euphemism) at the hotel bar, that was pretty much it for Friday's excitement.

Saturday is when shit got real.

Now, SAFF is not in the same building as it used to be, and they moved the weekend too.  I truly missed the "THIS IS NOT THE TRACTOR SHOW" sign this year, but whaddya gonna do?  The new venue meant that the vendors were nicely spaced and that there was plenty of room to move around, but since everything was all on a level, you totally lost the SHOCK AND AWE spectacle of seeing the vendor floor spread out down below in the arena when you first walk in.

Not that there wasn't plenty of shock and awe to be had.

Best Jess is not amused at my picture taking shenanigans

Morgan was very patient with me tho

HOLY CRAP THOSE OWLS

I picked up a gradient kit in these colors from the Unique Sheep.

Who doesn't love a llama in a hat?

How gorgeous is this wool rug?

Bestie Koren and I at the Vendor Market

So that night, drunk on yarn fumes, we headed back to the hotel to roll around in our yarn see what we'd bought.

Morgan fell in love with some alpaca.  We had to tell her to stop cuddling it before it all felted.

On Sunday we went back and saw some critters.  This llama and I are going to run away together and get married.  He doesn't know it yet, but I'm sure it will be fine.

What a handsome lad

There were also some fine looking alpaca.

And a whole whack of sheep and goats.  Pictured here are Spotty Dotty, Comma Butt, and Gradient Gus.  Jess is not allowed to name most things, but if I had sheep, I might let her name some of those.

This is the where the vendors were last year. Looking down on that was nothing but SHOCK AND AWE I tell you.

Then it was back in the car and off to find lunch.  We stopped at a great place in Asheville called The Barleycorn Pub, where Morgan reports she was served the best hamburger that she has ever eaten.  My corned beef hash was pretty frickin' spectacular too.

The fun thing about travelling with a GPS as your navigator is that sometimes you get taken by the most interesting routes.  I fed the address to the Barleycorn into Carmen (that's the GPS).  After we got off of the interstate and started driving through a residential area I asked Carmen, "Are we going to someone's house for lunch?"

"Turn Right onto Haywood Road," came the reassuring reply.  In the end we drove straight to the place, and I should never have doubted her.

The mountains were absolutely fabulous on the way back.  The weather had turned ever so slightly colder, and the colors of the leaves just snapped.  Gorgeous.  If you can ever go drive in the Smoky Mountains in the fall, do it.

Back in Knoxville, we got to meet wee Baby Ruth (who is absolutely beautiful), and chat with big brother Thomas.  Oh and their parents were there too.

Wee Bu was thrilled to see us, but was not best pleased to realize that it was time to go home.  She voiced her displeasure with this new circumstance but was finally appeased with the application of animal crackers and Iron Man on the radio.  I was likewise appeased with the application of Starbucks, and homeward we continued.

I decided it would be best to warn Carl about the yarn situation before I got home.

I was kidding.

Mostly.

I bought some yarns

So that's SAFF in a nutshell. I didn't take a class this year, but there was lovely food, lovely company, lovely yarn.  BOOM.

Oh!  And I finished Carl's socks!  They'll warrant their own post in a day or two.

Is it time to start the toe yet?

Overall I give the weekend an A++, Would Go Again.

Busy, Busy, Busy

So, I never did write those two FO posts I promised last time.  I need to do that.

But not today.  I'm very nearly almost not sick now.  This cold has seriously outworn its welcome, but it seems to have packed its bags and has at least one foot out the door.   And not a moment too soon.  I've managed to get back to running though!  I'm about a week "behind" (behind what, exactly? behind where I wanted to be, I guess), but I've done the first of the Week 3 runs, and I'm due to run again Thursday or Friday.  (It should be Thursday, but I have other plans Thursday night.)

Last Saturday, the ladies and I went to Stitches South at the Opryland Hotel.  It was really fun, and we got to meet some friends from our online knitting group.  That was completely delightful.  The market was laid out in such a way as to be completely overwhelming, but without being as big or comprehensive as SAFF.   But don't worry, I still managed to do a little bit of damage.

I picked up these three skeins of Cashmere/Silk to make Joji Locatelli's 3 Color Cashmere Cowl.  I love, love, love these colors together.   I had gotten some Knit Picks Capretta to do the cowl, and the colors were really muddy in person.  Not at all what I was wanting.  These are bright, clear, and delicious.

I also got three skeins of Dragonfly Fibers to make Ashburn by Melanie Berg.

We had a great time, and came home and fell over.  Morgan came with us, and got to do a little stash enhancement of her own, so that was really fun.

I managed to get one picture right as we got to the hotel, and that was pretty much it (other than a couple of dark shots I got during lunch at the "Irish Pub" in the hotel.)    Here's a shot of my haul, taken when we got back to the house:

I'm also attending a conference in Nashville this week (conferences are less fun in your own city where you get all of the traffic and none of the company-paid hotel rooms).  

This is how much sock one day of conferencing will net you.  I had two rows (just enough to call it on the needles) going in.   We'll see how far I get tomorrow.

And yes, this is two new projects, and no the pink socks, the monkeys, the cosy blanket, and Rowan's sweater aren't done.  I do what I want, remember?

A naye yor, a naye leben*

Sunday is International Clean Your Bedroom Day (if by "International" you mean "my house"...and I do), and yesterday the project du jour, once the laundry was taken out and the toilet swishied, was to clean out from under the bed.

No wait. You don't understand.

We have a custom built bed (if by "custom" you mean "your husband built that himself, didn't he?"...and I do)**, and there is right about 18" of clearance under our bed. My husband and I are both quite tall, and therefore so is our bed. This is made of logic. In any case, 18" deep by Queen Size wide and long = a hell of a lot of space to keep a hell of a lot of junk, and a hell of a lot of dust.

Man, was that an adventure.

So anyway, we threw out or made the decision to donate (as appropriate) a bunch of stuff we'd long since forgotten that we own, and we vacuumed out 3 metric effing-tons of dust (approx. by weight). My Harry Potter legos, I am pleased to report, are now put away upstairs, where I could conceivably play with them; AND I went through my "second string" (hahahah) yarn stash.

As mentioned earlier, I really started knitting ca. 2004-5. And, as many have done before me, I went through an acrylic stage (much like a larval stage, only with more petroleum by-products.) As my taste in yarn, let's say "matured," all the acrylic got shoved under the bed, in three banker's boxes and a big plastic tub, as the "good stuff" (read: natural fibers) took pride of place on my yarn shelf.

People, I was ruthless.

I mean, I found one unfortunate yarn that clearly wanted to be Lion Brand Homespun when it grew up... only it wasn't nearly so classy, if you are picking up what I am putting down. And sweet baby Buddha on a cashmere rug, it looked like a moldy peanut butter and jelly sandwich had been extruded (not spun) into yarn.

It was too terrible to even take a picture of. I care about my readers, and do not want to put them off their collective lunches.

Once the dust settled, and I do mean that quite literally, I am left with just the plastic tub, and that only about two-thirds full. The rest is going to a local thrift store, and may the gods bless whoever ends up with it. Everything I kept I could conceivably imagine myself knitting someday, and really that's all I ask of my stash.

Having gotten rid of so much yarn yesterday (and I don't mind telling you, even though it was all acrylic, and mostly awful, it was a bit wrenching), I received a sort of karmic reward in the mail today.

Aw, yeah.

Okay, I grant you that I actually am the one that ordered that box from Knitpicks, but even so the timing was pretty darned sweet.

What did I buy? I hear you asking. Well, I will tell you. I got a box of joy.

(Or more specifically, the new Chroma, in both weights, and some pretty charcoal grey Andean Treasure to make myself a scarf to match my new red coat. Not all of the Chroma is mine, alas. But I may have squeezed it a bit, you know, just to check and see if it is ripe.)

---

* A Yiddish phrase meaning "New year, new life."
** I actually adore the bed my husband made for me, both despite and because of it's... unique qualities.

Stash Acquisition Beyond Life Expectancy

Knitpicks, as the entire blogosphere is already well aware, is having a clearance sale. I am really ambivalent about this, because Hey! Sale! 440 yards of gorgeous merino lace weight for a buck ninety-nine. But then on the other hand, discontinued colors. DISCONTINUED, people. This means no more ever.

EVER.

This means that I have to buy it all right now, because what if I want some later? Well, I won't be able to get it, will I? No, I will not. Because, discontinued.

So, long story... well, slightly less long, three buddies and I all went in together and bought a Giant Box O' Fiber Goodness.


My personal haul?

1 Shine Sport Aquamarine
1 Shine Sport Coral
1 Shine Sport Crocus
4 Shadow Redwood Forest Heather
2 Shadow Grape Jelly Heather
2 Gossamer Caribbean
4 Gossamer Blue Jeans
2 Gossamer Sweet Peas
2 Gossamer Leprechaun
2 Gossamer Sunrise

When, in my whole life long, am I going to knit all this up?

WHEN?!?!?