Yarn and Fibre

I had a lot of fun at Fibres West on Friday, though I left feeling a little let down.  I think most of it was due to feeling like I was in a bit over my head.  There was just so much to look at, both yarn and fibre, as well as spinning and weaving equipment, and some just plain pretty stuff.  I didn't know where to begin, what to look at next, or even what I was looking for (my well thought out list just flew out of my head).  I'm just a little shy, and the crowds of people and vendors were a little overwhelming.  I found some great stuff, but had hoped to come home with more spinning fibre to expirament with.  I did get some really pretty rovings that I can't wait to spin up - I must finish the one I'm in the middle of first though.

This is a bfl/silk roving I bought from Knitopia, a local shop that I have heard lots of great things about - their selection of roving was incredible.  I could have spent my whole budget in one place.

This is a merino/silk roving that I bought from Penelope Fibre Arts, another local shop.  I didn't know anything about them, but I was super impressed with their selection, and I will definitely be making some trips to Surrey for more fibre sometime soon.  They were also the producer of the Fibres West event.

I think this was the steal of the day!  I found this Jordana Paige knitting bag at Unwind's booth for half price!  This is the exact one I had pinned on my knitting board on Pinterest, I love it.  It's the perfect size for carrying as a large purse when I want to take my knitting with me, and the features are so knitter friendly.

The first picture is the yarn bowl I found at Wildfire Pottery.  They had so many gorgeous bowls that I had a really hard time choosing.  I've wanted one for a long time, and was so pleased to find this booth at Fibres West. I also bought a couple of skeins of Tosh Sock as they were on sale and I couldn't resist the Norway Spruce and Corsage colorways.   I really did have a good time, and I'm definitely going to plan to go next year as well as to Knit City in October.

Life intervened...

                              Micaiah in his Gramps sweater (TinCan Knits) and Felted Flat Cap  


 Now that life has settled back into a somewhat normal rythm, if chasing an 18 month little boy could be normal, I hope to have a bit more time to be able to keep you all updated.  I've had some time recently to be able to actually do some sewing *gasp*.  I feel a little like a guiltly child stealing cookies when I can sneak into my sewing room for a couple of hours while Micaiah naps.  I quietly shut the door and close out the world and it's just me and wonderful piles of fabric, patterns, threads, ribbons, trims and a new serger!  Well, new to me anyway.  I was able to find a used Pfaff Coverlock machine that is an absolute dream to use, though a bit more complicated than I had expected - oh well, more excuse to practice right?
     I have a pile of projects that I am working on having completed by the end of the year so please stay tuned.  Three of them are quilts, two are Civil War, and the other is a scrapy flannel kit from my Mum.  One of the Civil War quilts is the Civil War Sampler by Barbara Brackman (yes, it was the QAL from a couple of years ago - a new baby sort of complicated things), and the other is a pattern from Bonnie Blue Quilts.  Then there are the four quilt tops that need to be sandwiched and quilted.  Then there is a list a mile long that I'd like to complete for the occasional CW Reinactment that I get to attend.  Plus just general sewing and crafts, not to mention all the knitting I have planned and the spinning I would like to do.
    Now, the best of all is that tomorrow I get to go to Fibres West, a local fibre show and sale.  I have been wanting to go for several years, but have never had the time or money.  This year I decided that I'm going!  A quilting/knitting friend of mine offered to drive and I couldn't turn that down, so Jonathan gets to keep Micaiah and I am going to try to refrain from breaking the bank on luscious yarn and spinning fibre.  I will admit I have had a bit of trouble sleeping this week in anticipation.  Hope to see you around!

Saturday Morning

                                                   Tiger Swallowtail on Butterfly Bush

Now this is the way that Saturday morning should be!  I awoke on time, but baby is still sleeping.  (He had a very long day yesterday because he decided that napping was entirely optional.)  So, while he sleeps I got the water going in the front garden, grabbed a caffeinated drink to give me a bit of a boost, and sat down to catch up on my blog reading.  Hurray!  I've been trying to do this for a few days, but something else was always popping up and I got interrupted quite a few times.  Now that that's caught up I'm wondering just how much I can attempt to get done while the house is quiet?  Today is forecasted to be a scorcher - 30* plus here in BC so I need to get as much done this morning while the house is still cool - dinner tonight may just be a make do affair unless I can come up with something for the crock pot.  Wait, leftovers are in the fridge *smile*.  Let's see, laundry waits to be washed, diapers need to be folded, I need to change the sheets on our bed, and I need to water my hanging baskets and pots.  I guess I should get started.  (Knitting can be done downstairs in the basement later today while it's roasting upstairs.)  I do need to get you some pictures of the projects I've finished recently, but my ability with a camera and my vision for the pics I'd like to take of them are quite different.  We'll see what I can do.

Monday

I guess you could say I woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.  I was generally grumpy and out of sorts and was really having trouble shaking it.  However, I'm feeling much better now!  Micaiah had a bit of a nap  - only about 45 minutes, but it was enough for me to have a bit of time to read my cookbook and gather my thoughts.  The sun peeked out a bit more and it's feeling like it'll be a nice warm day, maybe we'll play outside a bit after lunch.

I have found myself challenged, by reading several real food blogs, to eliminate a lot of the processed foods we buy and start cooking more from scratch.  I cooked from scratch, sort of, but relied on several processed items to help put my meals together:  side dishes, some canned soups, and a few other odds and ends. I knew they probably weren't that great for us, but I was lacking the initiative and know how to do something different.  Those food blogs gave the little bit of a push that I needed, as well as some know how to make some changes.  (We're taking things slowly at first)  I found a recipe for Scottish Oatmeal in the Cooks Illustrated New Best Recipe cookbook that sounds really good - so much better than the way I was making it before Micaiah was born.   I also found a recipe for Quiche Lorraine that sounds really good.  Those of you that know me well may about faint at that statement as I do not like eggs.  However, I didn't realize that the base for a good Quiche should be a custard - I like custard.  This recipe also has lots of bacon in it and cheese.  I can hardly believe the dishes that people are putting out there that they call Quiche!  No wonder that I like my friend Jacquie's quiche, she's a really good cook.  Maybe there's hope for me yet.  (Though I did just have to read a recipe about how to make scrambled eggs .  Please refer to above disclaimer about eggs.)  So, now I have even more encouragement to try new dishes and cook a little more, I will also admit to hoping we can whittle down our grocery budget.  We'll see.  Today might just be a pretty good day after all.  Happy Monday to you all.

It's here and I can't wait to start...

Have you ever just known that a certain project had to be knit in a certain yarn, by you for you?  This is a skein of Tosh Sock in the color Winter Wheat and it's absolutely beautiful.  I have been wanting this color in sock yarn for a long time as I feel it would make the most perfect yellow socks ever.  Just so you know how long, Spring 2008 to be exact.  Interweave knits published a pattern called Twisted Tulip socks that I fell in love with, of course they were made up in a yarn very similar to this one, and I knew I had to make them just like the picture (except I didn't want to order that particular yarn).  So, I waited, and hunted, making multiple trips to yarn stores *smile* looking for the right yarn.  This spring I found a yellow, but it wasn't quite right for the Twisted Tulip socks.  I liked the yarn and color, I bought it, and I made the Lydia Bennett Secret Stockings from Jane Austen Knits Fall 2011.

They're lovely and I used Spud and Chloe Fine in Bumblebee.  I really like the yarn too, but they're not the Twisted Tulip Socks.  At knit night one Monday, I happened to see a skein of Tosh Light in  Winter Wheat and asked if it could be had in Tosh Sock.  Right then it was written into the order and I waited, patiently too.   Well, yesterday I got a call, just as I was leaving the house - how perfect was that- that my skein of Tosh Sock Winter Wheat was in!  Yippeee, away I went, and now the pattern and yarn sit in front of me.  They will have to be worked on at home as the chart is rather detailed, so I have the Alex Jacket on the needles with Spud and Chloe Sweater in Root Beer and Moonlight for Micaiah as my travel project.  A happy Momma and a happy knitter (not necessarily in that order right now.)

Mornings

Ugghhh!  Mornings are rough around here.  I am not a morning person at all, and I don't usually really get going until about 11:00 am.  I am up much before that, but the fog is usually quite tangible until then.  So explain then how I have a child that is an energetic morning person?  He wakes between 6:30 and 7:00 and is soooo happy it's painful.  I struggle to get his breakfast and feed him, and now with his crawling I need to be that much more awake - he's everywhere!  Most days I find myself grabbing a nap when he goes down for his morning nap - this usually catapults me into my day and we do pretty well through the afternoon.  This time of year is especially rough as I have seasonal allergies that can really flare up.  My favorite remedy for this is a cup of nettle tea with honey, pictured above.  It's amazing what it does for that itchy, scratchy feeling and heavy eyes.  It can taste a little green by itself, but the honey makes it better, and local honey is purported to be good for the allergies too.  Now if it would just help with the morning fog, and give me a kick start that would be good.

Progress

So this is M's finished quilt.  After a couple of years, from start to finish, I still love it!  It was a kit purchased from a local quilt shop, and started before M was on his way.  I quilted it with the "Baptist Fan" pattern in the center, which is a series of concentric arcs stacked next to and beside each other.  I chose a simple cable for the border, and I think it sets off the center quilting quite nicely.

This is a quilt that my mother just recently found in my grandmother's linen closet.  The label, which you can see in the lower left corner says "pieced by Rachel Cox and quilted by Blanche Cox" .  Rachel Cox was my great-great grandmother, and  Blanche Cox my great grandmother.  I can't wait to get to see this quilt in person!