And There's More

I had another unexpected client come in and ask for a restoration and tinting job. The image is his late mother, and it's over 60 years old. As you can see, it's yellowed badly, but there wasn't much overall damage.


I got information from him about her coloring. He said her hair was black, and her eyes brown, but he had no idea what color her dress would have been. I suggested a red, so both flatter her coloring, and because the only lip color you could really get back then was, you guessed it, red.

Here's the resulting image, sent off to the lab for EIGHT 11x14s!





















As promised, a picture of the stocking that will be a Christmas present for the DH's niece, whose name I drew for the gift exchange. This was a Knitpicks kit, and I'm very pleased with how it turned out, save one teeny tiny little detail I screwed up. I put the afterthought heel on the wrong flippin' side of the stocking! I missed a critical few words in the pattern. But she'll never know the difference and it's still cute, so oh, well. Yet again I remind myself of the Persian rug makers, who deliberately make an error in every rug they make, because "only Allah is perfect." So, I wouldn't want to mess with THAT.


Lastly for today, when my hands get tired of knitting with tiny needles working on DD's gauntlets, I'm working on a bit of spinning. With gift knitting I've hardly spun at all lately. Although the last thing I needed was more fiber, thankfully, need didn't enter into it. :-D I fell in love.

The roving is from the Copperpot Etsy store. She shares my love for purple, and I couldn't resist this beautifully prepared mix of merino, tussah, bamboo and a bit of silvery shimmery Firestar. It wants to spin pretty thin, so maybe a shawl will come from the 7+ ounces I got. Drafting is almost effortless with this stuff. The picture leans a hint more magenta than it really is, and it's a bit darker than this too, but I had to use flash or you wouldn't see how finely it's spinning up. It's yummy! I'll do my usual two-ply with it and see what I get. Good thing is, I know it'll be purple.

You Better Not Pout

But you will, if you're one of the crafty folk who read this blog. You won't be able to help it, but Mrs. Claus will help Santa understand.

Some background. As you can see at the bottom of the page, I own/moderate several Yahoo groups. Most are knitting or spinning, one is a list for Scottie owners or wanabees. We take other terriers too, as long as they know their place. ANYWAY...a Scottish (Orkney Isle) lady who was doing an instructional KAL (KnitALong) on the EZasPi list happened to mention that she was about to pick up a Scottie from a rescue group. I pounced on that and invited her to join AngelScot. Her name is Liz Lovick, and she is a master knitter who owns and operates Northern Lace.

Every year, our Scottie list does two programs. One is a secret pal-type program that we call Terrier Twins. Simple minimum requirements of four cards (ecards are fine) and a birthday gift, it's meant to be a friendship/support kinda dealy job. The other is a Secret Santa. This year, I've had Liz as my Terrier Twin (it's not reciprocal, she has someone else for hers) and she drew me for the Secret Santa.

Now, I'm no dummy. I'd have happily rigged this as my dear, chicken-fearing friend Tracey accused me of doing. But I didn't. It was pure serendipity-doodah. Liz sent my gift early, since we never know what international post will do. This time it did well. The Tyvek envelope got to me unharmed. Speaking of which, that is some of the most indestructible crap I've ever seen. Yes, you can cut it open, but tear it? Schwartzenegger in his heyday couldn't do it, I'm tellin' ya.

Being a polite lady, I asked on AngelScot when I might open the package. Before Liz could answer, Tracey egged me on to open it...guess eggs don't bother her, just chickens. But soon Liz came back to tell me to go ahead and open it, and her Scottie named Scottie (remember he's a rescue, she didn't do that to the puir boyo) said it would explode in ten minutes if I didn't open the package.

Well we couldn't be havin' that, now could we? Not after she went to all that trouble. So I opened the Tyvek and pulled out a longish white box and a tote bag. One note - when you send things out of this country, you must attach a customs form. The effect of this is basically government Scroogality, because you have to reveal the contents. So I knew from seeing it on the form that the package had a spindle in it, and some 'bits of wool'. I was excited; I love spindles, and if they are both beautiful and functional, they are absolutely for me. Not you. ME.

I opened the box, and a spindle like none I own came out. Beautifully square! For those of you who aren't spinsters (don't GO there), most spindles are round. There was a note from Liz saying the spindle was from the UK's premier spindle-maker, Michael Williams. You can see some of his beautiful wood turning work here. Not just the spindle was inside, but some utterly gorgeous wool (Jamieson & Smith Shetland top)and silk hankies for spinning, dyed in colors I love. My jaw dropped. I've been spinning the wool on it the past two evenings, getting a very fine singles that you can see here.

But generous Liz wasn't done. I turned to the tote. Scotties cavort on the outside - it's from the rescue group she supports, and I love it. But inside! -oh my!! There was a pattern for a Fair Isle hat designed by Liz, and bunches of partial balls of Jamieson & Smith 2 ply Jumper Weight to make the hat. Any knitter worth their purls knows that this is primo stuff. The Ganga of Wool. I was thrilled to bits. As Liz said, she felt I wouldn't mind having partial balls to do the project. Uh, kinda not.

After doing my happy dance...no, don't bother checking YouTube...I settled down to look at the pattern and saw this:

She had modified the pattern JUST FOR ME! I was flabbergasted. All these little motifs to replace those in the original pattern, and all Scottie-related. Different head and body studies, and even wee bones...all in my favorite colors again. I couldn't be more touched. Unless George Clooney were within touching distance, in which case all bets are off. Even then, I'd be doing the touching. Pretty sure he'd be running.

Seriously, it is one of the most thoughtful gifts I have received in my life. Right up there with my prayer shawl from Kristina. Think about it. Not only my favorite colors, hobbies, and doggies, but the sheer work of doing those designs. Did I mention? Just. For. ME! As soon as I finish the Fiesta mittens I'm doing, this hops on my needles.

I don't even think you have to be a knitter or spinner to appreciate that kind of effort. It's a better woman than I am that made it, too. Not that that takes much, mind you, but Liz is a pip!

Camo's Hoodie

C'est fini. I finished sewing it up today, and decided to go ahead and throw in the optional kangeroo pocket. He's cute, he loves me, and he makes the sun rise, so I think he's worth it.

As I mentioned before, the multi-colored yarn is my own handspun. It's some of the first stuff I did, and while it's thick/thin in areas, and overspun in others, I'm really delighted with how it knit up. The solid blue is actually more of a royal. To tie everything together, I did the two stripes of handspun on all the areas I needed to do in solid. Since I'm vertically challenged, I had to stand on a ladder to get the whole sweater in, and even then I missed the end of one sleeve. Oh well.

Camo's birthday is next month, and I think I'll find a little matching shirt for him to wear under this to keep him nice and warm this winter. I think it'll fit him next year, too. Just gotta remember to sew one of my "Made With Love" labels inside it, but not at the collar. I'll use the side seam, where it won't scratch him.

Next I finish my socks, then start the Fiesta Mittens. I SO need more knitting time!

Barrel of Crafters

The first annual Rustic Tarts & Old Farts Hoot 'n Holler took place this Sunday, and if I do say so myself as hostess, it was a blast. Our friend Kristina (BeadNTat in the blog list) came up Wednesday from East TN, and stayed till today. She brought me a stunning shawl in my favorite purple that she had knit and beaded for me. To say I was overwhelmed is an understatement. Friday we celebrated DH's dinner at our favorite Chinese restaurant, then Saturday, the crafting fun began.

Saturday was World Wide Knit In Public day. Several people were coming in early for RT&OF, and we met up at Cracker Barrel for dinner. Both before and after the meal, we sat in the rockers out front and knit away, much to the interest of passers-by. We chatted until we were about out of light, and went our separate ways until the next afternoon.

Sunday morning brought the advent of one of my favorite people, Elaine, and her wonderful DH, Ken. Elaine had generously brought me some of her angora/wool blend rovings...absolutely scrumptious! Since I was taking my Louet Victoria to the Hoot 'n Holler, I packed the roving up to go with us. We piled stuff into the cars and headed to the studio to set up.

Our front porch is very shady, but we set up a canopy over it all to make sure people would stay comfortable, and added a fan to the mix. We lucked out with a gorgeous day and low humidity. Folks, food and fiberous things began arriving. Elaine and I were spinning, others were knitting, and Betsy showed us some sprang and naalbinding; wish I'd had more time to watch! The incomparable MMario was there, showing us several of his designed shawls. The Artemis he designed at my nag -um, gentle suggestion - is simply glorious. I actually gasped when I unfurled it. Many Orkney Pi shawls were there, and Eugenia (who brought her darling friend Jane) had one of her own designs that was so comfy looking. Mary, who brought her DH Martin, had just finished MMario's QAL that is famous across the Web. The lovely work of Cathy and Noreen made the rounds and I appreciated just how far I have yet to go in knitting.

And then Pat arrived, fresh from TNNA and with sugar-free chocolate, and let us swarm all over her van like she was the Queen Bee and it was our new hive. :-) I walked away with some semi-clear clogs to show off hand-knit socks, four balls of Rowan Tapestry (any recommendations for a pattern?) and some Trekking and Noro sock yarns. Oh, the yummy-ness! I am pretty sure I heard the unmistakable sounds of yarngasms, and I tried not to look too closely. Knitter's etiquette, doncha know.

Speaking of yummy, we had quite a feast for the potluck too. I won't be ashamed to admit that I had seconds of Mary's Citrus Salsa, and Betsy's Banana Trifle. I even got to do a wee bit of singing with MMario, and I was in my element. Okay, I probably don't match the skills of those he's accustomed to singing with, but I had fun.

In fact, I think we all did. What was supposed to be a 1-6 event lasted to almost 9, and I was delighted to have it so. This will be an annual event, but so as not to collide with Father's Day (what day isn't???), it will be the first Sunday in June from now on.

Now here is where I should insert photos...took place at a photo studio, with professionals in attendence - and we didn't take a single shot. Not one. Zip. Too busy playing host, I guess. Yeah, dat's it.

I'm so embarrassed.

Saturday, Saturday!

If you didn't hear music in your head when you read the title, you are younger than I am and should go back to your sandbox.

Saturdays in the studio are feast or famine. Either we have people picking up orders, and back to back appointments meaning DH has to rush lunch (the Goddess does not rush her food even for money), or it's dead as a dodo. I actually don't mind a dead day here and there; we get caught up, and maybe I'll read, or listen to a book while I spin.

Yes, I spin here at the studio. Since I'm frequently here alone on Saturdays while the DH is out shooting, I thought it might be cumbersome moving a wheel around if I have spring up to go out to the reception area. An electric spinner seemed just the thing, and I had the opportunity to buy a Fricke E-spinner second hand, with DH enabling by making part of it a birthday gift. You betcha I'm keeping him. It has the foot pedal so if I need to stop quickly, I just lift my foot and go.

This spinner has the Woolee Winder which I covet for my Louet Victoria (little portable spinning wheel for those of you not amongst the Chosen), and makes spinning such a pleasure. The bobbins hold a ton. Today I finally got a chance to ply off what I've been spinning in tiny bits for about a year. I filled two bobbins with plied singles today, and we know what that means! Oh, wait, some of you don't. It means I have yarn. I do know, as my brother so 'helpfully' pointed out to me, I can buy yarn in a store. But it's fun to spin, I can make my own color scheme, the thickness I want - sometimes - and shutupScottyoudork.

So, this is the finished product waiting to be skeined off the bobbins and washed. It's a mohair/Romney wool mix, in shades of pink from fuchsia to cotton candy, blues from turquoise to baby and cream. It still has some grease in it (lanolin, that is), so it will bloom nicely when it's done, and now that it's plied, there are tons of shades all through it.

The DH admired it dutifully, then, a la Terry Bradshaw about sushi, said sotto voce, "But they're different colors!" ::::snort::::