New Year's Resolutions

So, it's officially time to put down my new year's resolutions...

#1.  Get Healthy.  Not only recovering from the death cold I've been suffering from the past few weeks, but to deal with some other health issues that I have. 

#2  Knit from my stash and handspun. 

#3  Exercise. 

#4  Paint my house inside.  I've had issues trying to choose colors.  I was supposed to do that this long weekend, but unfortunately, due to the death cold, I didn't make it out of the house or to do anything. 

#5  Take a vacation!  I missed my girls' weekend this year and didn't really take a vacation to relax.

I think that's a good amount of acheivable goals.  Come on 2013.

The year end wrap up...

So, more knitting this year than last year and less spinning than last year.  So, total knitting completed was 25 items including
Cowl - 1
Hat - 13
Socks - 2
Shawl - 4
Scarf - 2
Baby Sweater - 1
Adult Sweater - 1
Fingerless Mitts - 1

On the spinning front, I spun up 4lbs, 2 oz.

Highlights of this year, finishing 2 UFOs that were more than 5 years old and spinning some awesome yarn for my friend Colleen that I added a gold thread into.  Woo Hoo!

Goals for next year, continue to spin and knit from the stash and get back into the spinning and to get well for heavens sake.

Have a happy new year!

The Naked Velvet Scarf??

So, for the Ravellenic games, I'm finishing WIPS.  One of my oldest works in progress is the Vintage Velvet Scarf from Scarf style.  I started it 5.5 years ago when I was living in Kansas city.  So, I'm using the yarn it calls for the Meunch Touch Me yarn...that is more than 5 years old because I bought it from a woman who had it in her stash...so needless to say, the yarn is a bit fragile.  The yarn is viscose and wool.  It's broken in places and in places, it seems as if the furriness of it's coming off.  So, I'm asking you, the 2 people who read my blog, when I felt the project, per the instructions in the book, is it going to
a.  Fall Apart
b.  Lose all it's fur becoming the Naked velvet scarf
c.  come through with flying colors and look awesome.

You can plainly see from the title, which I think is going to happen...and if it does indeed come out that way, I will laugh my ass off...

Since I've decided to start blogging again...an event I've neglected for several years, let's start with a project I've neglected for several years...in fact I started this project 6 years ago in July of 2006 and finally finished it tonight to make it a project 6 years in the making.  You must be imagining it's a wonderful, large, complicated shawl, but alas, it is the Flower Peddler shawl that was soooo popular back in 2006.

You may all laugh now...I did when I figured out that the project only took a total of 10 hours over several days to complete after picking up again...

Up next in my WIP Wrestling Ravellenic games quest...the Vintage Velvet scarf started in January of 2007.  

It's so sad, I haven't blogged in soooo long that blogger has totally changed and it took me a few minutes to figure out how to start a new post.  Wow!  So, for my mid-year post, the Tour de Fleece round up...

So, we have 1lb of fiber spun into 1183 yds + silk + 2 more ounces that didn't get plied
8oz Ocean fiber from Creatively dyed into 812 yds
4oz BFL from Misty Mountain Farms into 160 yds
4oz Bullen Wullens Merino into 180 yds
1 pack of silk hankies
1 silk cap

So, I spun up 16 oz, gave away another12 oz as prizes at my TDF party...and purchased 24oz of fiber and won 4 oz at the TDF party...so, basically, came out even...Not sure if that's a brag or an "Oh My God" moment there...

2011, the year in review.

So, I have been a terrible blogger this year. I've been caught up in work drama, house drama and travel...and just other things. I have been knitting and spinning a lot, including completing the Tour de Fleece in the summer. So, all in all, I think I may have knit fewer items than before, but I did accomplish a goal to knit wiht my own handspun and many of the items I did knit were out of my handspun. So, here it is:

Baby Sweater - 1

Baby Hat - 2

Baby Blanket - 1

Child Mittens - 2

Child Hats - 2

Socks - 2

Scarves - 2

Gloves - 1

Fingerless Mitts - 2

Shawls - 2

Sock Monkey - 1

Favorite knit of the year - Knotty Gloves. I love, love, love them. Followed close by the Roar hats and mittens that I knit for my nephews out of my own handspun.

On the spinning front, I ended up spinning up almost 5 lbs. of fiber. Woo Hoo! Spinning included:

Breaking Black Merino - 4oz

Winterhaven Cormo - 4oz

Winterhaven Cormo/Tencel - 4oz

Dragonfly Fibers Merino - 40z

Electric Blue - 4 oz **Spindle Spun

Natural BFL - 5.9oz

Green Mystery Wool - 3 oz

Natural Alpaca - 8oz

Strawberries Merino - 4 oz

Blue Superwash - 80z

Red Superwash - 8oz

Wild Fibers Special - 2 oz

Wow! Huge improvement from 2010...minus the broken ankle too.

Stitches - The Haul

Here it is...the Stitches Haul. What you're looking at is:

1.1 oz Bombyx Silk in Black Orchid from Jazz Turtle Creations

4 oz Faux Cashmere in Crape Myrtle from Jazz Turtle Creations

2 bags of Cascade Dolce from Webs

2 oz Real Cashmere in Sangria from Jazz Turtle Creations - Sensing that I love her yet??

2 bobbins for my wheel

4.6 oz Bullseye Batt from Loop in Black Cherry.

3 oz Alpaca Roving from Pajolo Alpacas - Favorite Vendor year after year. Linda rocks@

5 skeins of Plymouth Baby Bunny in Orange For a baby sweater

4 skeins Valley Yarns Northfield For a Harry Potter Scarf

2 Skeins Heron - Green yarn in the back - It's Part New Zealand Possom. Oh My!

2 Skeins Berocco Vintage in Yellow For a Harry Potter Scarf

Spinning out of Control Print from the Sheep Icognito series

3 pattern - Leslie Ellis' Baby Doll Cardigan, Roar Stegasaurus Mittens, Roar Stegasaurus Hat

Hiya Hiya Interchangeable needles in sizes 5, 6,& 7 in the 5" size - which I love!

32" and 40" Hiya Hiya interchangeable cords - because I never have these sizes when I need one

a Wraps per inch tool

Last Knitter Standing game - Who knew there was a knitting game?????

Not pictured - 1 skein of Zealana Willow and 1 skein of Claudia Hand Painted Silk lace yarn. Both of which I got for free! and 1 hat pattern, which they're going to send me.

Whew! what a haul and I got that plus 8 days worth of clothing, business and casual into my suitcase. FTW!

My Friend Colleen also made me the cutest sheep hanging ornament in her newest hobby stained glass. I love him. He made it home without breaking. Woo Hoo!!!

As I mentioned above, I had 8 days worth of clothes with me because I was on a business trip before going to stitches with no break back home to drop stuff off. I managed to miss the earthquake outside of DC while I was in Orlando on business. Then, while in Chicago, I managed to miss the hurricane/tropical storm hit in the area. I guess Mother Nature decided that I lived through my natural disaster for the year early in the Tokyo earthquake.

While in Orlando I did go to Harry Potter world which was cool. Zonko's was the best. Got wants for me and my neice.

Glad to finally be back home. Now, I'm petting my cashmere and admiring my new stash enhancement. Soon, I'll have to put it away and reclaim my family room.