remembering

Art2mis sent these to me a while ago. I had forgotten that we had even taken photos that night! Reading the news about Nancy and then all the recent news about Brad has made me terribly sad. I can't imagine what it's like to be in the midst of all of this in Cary. I hope that there is a quick resolution for family, those precious, innocent girls, for friends (and for Brad, too).

my new ravelry bag!

In addition to the cool Bob finger puppet (see Kris' blog on this), Kris also won a very cool Ravelry tote bag Saturday night at the Ravelry party in Red Hook. She already had a Ravelry bag and because I had mentioned earlier in the weekend that I didn't have one, she gave it to me! I love it. I am going to carry it everywhere! Thanks Kris!

rhinebeck loot

I haven't had a chance to take individual photos of my new stash, *but* we did get a group shot of the yarn loot Saturday night in NY. My new stuff is piled up, but you get the idea!

Rhinebeck

Rhinebeck was AMAZING. Thanks to Michele, Chris Q., Kris & Chris for such a great weekend!

Weekend in a nutshell:
Thursday:
I flew into Boston Thursday night. We ate dinner at a great pizza place (not sure where it was :). Thanks to Michele for being such a great host!

Friday:
After stopping in Northampton to tour Webs (there's more to come on this since I purchased quite a bit of yarn there), we trekked toward Rhinebeck, the knitting mecca. Around 7:30pm, we arrived at the hotel in Poughkeepsie and settled in for a long winter nap before our Saturday shopping extravaganza.

Saturday:
We arrived at the gates early and immediately ran (yes, practically ran) to the Briar Rose booth, where I entered a dimension I had not previously encountered. Elbows were flying and niceties were forgotten as we all jumped in and grabbed everything we could before it disappeared (There was nothing but buttons and patterns left on Sunday!). Briar Rose yarns must emit some sort of "happy" scent, as I felt like this was the last yarn on earth and I must buy it all up immediately. I finally escaped the tiny booth, $250 dollars lighter, but EXTREMELY happy with my new yarn and buttons (photos of stash are forthcoming). After Briar Rose, we headed over to Brooks Farm, another favorite, where we continued to enhance our group stash. We stopped around 11:30 to eat some incredible chicken pot pie, and spent the latter part of the day tasting New York state wines. Chris Q.'s comment about the Peach Fizz champagne-like concoction summed up the tasting experience: 'this has an odd finish.' We laughed and moved on to the cheese tasting, which was quite yummy. As the New York weather grew cooler (27 degrees Saturday night), we headed out to the car and off to the Ravelry Party at the Elks Lodge in Red Hook (Can you believe that there are now 200,000 knitters and crocheters on Ravelry!!). The party was great - Bags of free goodies were handed out ad Ravelry cupcakes were made available; Free Boddington's rounded out the night. Thanks to Ravelry for hosting such a FANTASTIC event!!

Sunday:
We woke up fairly early and headed to brunch before Rhinebeck. Michele's friend Chris from grad school joined up with us at brunch. Since we now had 3 ladies named Chris in our group, Michele and I became honorary Chris members: Michele Chris and Susan Chris respectively. Sunday was much less intense (probably because Briar Rose was sold out :), but no less fun. We got to meet some amazing alpaca and watch the sheep herding trials. We sadly left Rhinebeck around 3pm :( and Michele (bless her heart!) drove us back to Boston, where I caught my flight back to R'mond around 8:45pm. I had a pretty uneventful flight back except for the fact that my suitcase was so full of yarn it wouldn't fit into the overhead bin :) I suppose there could be worse problems in life!

twist collective

The premier issue of Twist Collective is amazing. I love the fact that the patterns are selling as individuals, although for this particular issue, I want the entire thing! Enjoy :)

rhinebeck

9 days and counting!!!

3rd post of the day /*rant*/

Update: Saturday, October 4:

After watching these videos that the Knittin' Coop suggested, I think the problem is not so much my technique, but using dull pointed bamboo needles! Purling through the back loop requires some pointy addi's I think...Off to the Yarn Lounge to get another pair of addi's!


There are just some things that are not meant to be. 'Purl through the back loop' sucks. I really want to make the Philly Cowl, but I have spent 2 hours trying to get my brain (and hands) around purling through back loop for the left twist. This stitch makes me angry, so will now sit back and work on my leaf lace shawl. Sorry splityarn - the cowl looks like an AWESOME pattern. Maybe I'll pick it up in a few days, but for now, I'm channeling Elizabeth Zimmerman and her dislike of the purl stitch.

da vinci kal

It took me 2 days, but I finally solved all the clues for the daVinci knit along. The clues are in Ravelry if you're interested in joining! It was fun, but really hard. I have the pattern though and will begin this weekend...just have to find yarn!

palin & pakistan

Quote of the day from Stephen Colbert: "Palin thinks people from Pakistan are called alpacas.It's true that they both make lovely sweaters..."

Mr. Muggles Part II

One more post for the night because I just found a good Muggles article. Yes, I'm obsessed with Heroes (however, not as obsessed as some!). Matthew Inman uncovers why he thinks that furry little creature we call Mr. Muggles is the most powerful hero. I think the true power of Muggles will come out this season...The new motto will be, 'save Mr. Muggles, save the world."

new knitting books

I've added some new knitting books to my home library.

Knitting Lace Triangles by Evelyn Clark is just spectacular. Clark makes lace seem so simple and allows you to completely design your own shawl. The book is spiral bound, which I also love. I highly recommend this book if you like to knit lace.



The Knitter's Book of Yarn: The Ultimate Guide to Choosing, Using, and Enjoying Yarn by Clara Parkes has a wonderful overview of the various types of yarns available to knitters these days. Parkes,of the Knitter's Review, has compiled patterns for each of the different yarns she describes. There are a wide variety of patterns in the book, from sweaters to lace bread basket doilies, socks and shawls. Overall, an excellent purchase.


Last weekend the hubby ran some errands while we were vacationing in Nags Head, NC. He decided to stop by Knitting Addiction to buy me gifts (how sweet!) He wanted to get me Knitting Around by Elizabeth Zimmerman; however, the owner doesn't carry Zimmerman and asked him what I like to knit. He said lace, and she hooked him up with some new Alpaca lace yarn (photos to come) and Lavish Lace with Hand-Painted Yarns, an interesting book by Carol Noble and Cheryl Potter. Like Clark, Noble has a great way of explaining how lace is constructed. This is a wonderful book, and I can't wait to make one of the lace scarves for a Christmas prezzie!