October Books and Events

New Books this month?  I got The Rhinebeck Sweater from Ysolda Teague et.all.  I am so excited.  There will be a lot of sweater knitting.  Aunt Freddie is fantastic, and I really love Pippin.  Oh, hearts! a preview of all the sweaters are available.  Go over and have a look.  You will see how diverse and fun all the sweaters are.  I saw on twitter that the books are coming from the printer soon, and I hope they get shipped soon.  I have class with Ysolda in 2 weeks, wouldn't it be great to get a signature?

Have you seen this book?  Which sweater do you like best?

Events:
Last few weeks have found me in WI for some non-yarny events.  The Lincoln County Lager Fest with my parents.  I love beer, but you can't be yarny when you've been sampling beer all afternoon!  I saw Radio Lab Live in Milwaukee.  It was a dinosaur filled time.  I loved it, so nerdy, in a different way.

I had a class cancel on me after Radio Lab Live, so I headed to see Michelle Hunter!  She is so sweet.  I love her, she makes me miss Columbus too.  Oh I think a trip to Ohio is in the future.  But she did teach me this beautiful mitten.  Corkscrew mitten, two color cables!  Much easier than I thought.

Next week is SOAR, the marketplace opens on Thursday.  I have retreat classes on Friday and Saturday.  Then after SOAR (if I ever go home) I head to Nightmare on Chicago - a zombie festival in Elgin!  Fun right?  Oh yeah.  Music and zombies!  I hope people are dressed up like Walking Dead characters.

Have a crafty weekend everyone!

October Spinning and Classes

First Classes!  DYO Stocking is this weekend - I am adding some more things to the handout.  Call the shop to sign up.

I signed up for a couple classes (ok they are at events - so I guess we'll do some event prep here).  The last SOAR - Spin-off Autumn Retreat done by Interweave - is in St Charles, not far from home.  I signed up for the retreat portion, Friday and Saturday.  I'm taking an amazing set of classes, spinning new to me fibers, learning about my wheel and I got into Judith MacKenzie's Gentle Art of Plying.  OMG!  So excited!  It's going to be amazing.  I also signed up (because I got a flash sale notice) to get a class at Vogue Knitting Live! in Chicago.  I didn't particualry enjoy my time there last year, but I went to market and to see The Yarn Harlot speak.  I had a good time, but I didn't like the market experience at all.  This time I'm going to take an all day class with Ysolda Teague.  I'm in her Raglan sweater class.  I want to see what I can do to get this shape to fit me.  I love the concept but the increase rate doesn't work quite right for me.

On the spinning front I'm working with the BMFA Prism that I recieved as part of the Rockin' Whorl club.  I sampled a little with some Halloween Fiber this is what I got:

A little too orange.  So I ordered some raven colorway to ply with the rainbow.  Should be fun.

I did work up the Halloween yarn though :)  Hasn't been washed yet, but I've got roughly 1400 yards of a lace weight single (150 grams).  It's so soft and fluffy.  When the bathroom is done being sealed I'll be able to wash and fluff it out.  I'm sure I'll lose some yardage, but I hope to gain some girth (oh my).

I'm partcipating in the 30 day sweater challenge, and I'm using handspun!  yay!  I'm using my Miss Babs BFL that I plied during Tour De Fleece.   It's going to be a Coin Cable Cardigan.  I'm loving my yarn and I'm loving the pattern.

Use your handspun, even if you don't think it's "good enough" - just use it.

Lastly, I will be working on a thrummed mitten or footies class.  Look for some FO's and WIP's on that front!

September was busy, October shapes up the same.

Classes at Fuzzy Wuzzy have been filling.  The DYO Christmas stocking class is so much fun.  There's another one on October 12!  You can see more info HERE!

What have you been working on?

I finished one thing ... like a sweater for the penguin on my desk.  DON'T JUDGE ME FOR MY LOVE OF MY PENGUINS!

It's a simple raglan in penguin proportions.  Next sweater will have fewer belly increases.
Seriously, I have knit 100% more sweaters for my penguin than I have for my sig other...

I can't believe that's all I've finished... not true, I finished hats, but I don't enter them into my project pages.  One hat is for halos of hope, the other for a friend I will see this weekend.  Silly pictures from lager fest will be coming!

Next works in progress.  I have a sweater I'll be starting tomorrow, with math.  I have some lime green handspun, and with the 30 day sweater challenge ... I'm going to get it done!

And I have started working on my 4 blankets on the needles.  I've done about 25 hexipuffs for the beekeepers quilt.  All in fall colors (the penguin sweater was done while making puffs out of that yarn).

 

A bag of puffs.  Not too bad!  

Chrstmas sock project under way, Greg has big feet and prefers dark socks.  I'm working with Brown Sheep's wildfoote sock yarn.  I like the marled effect, at least that's interesting.  Only 7" left to go on the cuff and I'm done!