Heather Evolved Stole- Questions Answered.

Some people, mainly my Mom, had questions about the Heather Evolved Stole (Ravelry link) that I designed for Schaefer.

I emailed Laura, who does wonders in the customer service dept. for Schaefer, and asked where people could go to buy the pattern.

Since it is new, there is no where that has it online- yet. She said to check with Coveted Yarns (love that name) online. Also, if you wanted to, you could email them and ask for the pattern to be uploaded to their site a bit quicker.

In the mean time, here's a couple of shots of the pattern:

And Gail, to answer your question- I get to pick the colorway from Schaefer's list. Trust me when I say that I have, um...issues with color- I can't match, I'm too picky about the different mixes of colors, I just like boring monochromatic colorways...whatever, so it's sometimes really difficult for me to choose. It takes a few emails back and forth for me to get the yarn/color combo right. (Poor Laura.) Anyways, they have great colorways, but I'm more of a neutral, one color kinda girl. Almond is right up my alley. :) Now if we could just get a blue, green and black in their spectrum, I'd be all set!

Flurry of Activity.

Some call it Startitis.


There's babies on the way and I feel the need to make every single one something.

Here's a pink baby sweater for my across the street neighbor. I'm hoping to make matching booties and hat for her.

Imagine this photo is horizontal, ok?

Bone colored blanket and sweater. Yes, the sweater looks too small. No, I don't care. It's going off to someone who I don't know (Hubs' co-worker's wife) and will never meet. The blanket will go with the set.

I haven't decided if I'm going to fix the sweater or leave it as is. It is pretty close to a new born size. Maybe he-she can wear it home from the hospital?

Next:
Homespun hat. First time that I've ever worked with my homespun. EEk! I've run out of yarn, but I have more waiting to be plied. I also ran out of bobbins, so I ordered more from Amy of Spunky Eclectic. She got them to me super fast! (Rumor has it that the Fricke family is looking to retire. It's a rumor, but since I sent them an email 2 weeks ago and never heard back, I venture to say that something is up. Thankfully, Amy helped me out. But I'm worried that I may need parts in the future for my wheel and won't be able to get them. Grr.)

Now I have no excuse not to unpack and dust off that wheel.

One sleeve is done on Liesl, but it's too tight. I've been procrastinating on finishing the damn thing. Don't ask me why. (See Gail, I can procrastinate too!)

This is payment yarn from Schaefer.

Oh wait- I didn't tell you! Schaefer accepted one of my patterns. It's shown on their website. It's called the Heather Evolved Stole. YAY! I can now call myself a knitwear designer. (Ok, not really, but humor me.)

And in celebration of...well, nothing, I bought new clothes. B. Moss was having a one day sale and I got all of these for $81 bucks. Yep. I haven't calculated how much I saved, but trust me when I say that it was a LOT.

If I Had a Million Dollars

Well, I don't really need a million for this, but it seems frivolous nevertheless.


My gym membership runs out in less than a week. Gulp.


There is really no other gym in my area, for the time being (there's 2 being built as I speak in the next town over), that I want to join- for various reasons.


I need to move on a daily basis. I need to work out. I know this. It's getting cold and I have a history of being inactive during the winter months. This leads to sadness and depression which leads to weight gain. But it's getting harder to justify keeping up a membership when I'm not happy there and nothing is going to change with them.


So, I think I'm in the market for a spin bike. It's the one thing in the gym that makes me happy, more than anything else ever. When I'm on the bike I feel free and strong, energized and light. I'm exhausted and wired all at once at the end of each class.

Spin bike.

So I did some online research. The bike I want is on ebay right now for $480- less than half what a one year membership to my gym costs (with babysitting). What kills me is the shipping- $150. So I looked where it's coming from- yeah, right here in good old CT, in a town about an hour from me. Wowza. That's a lot of shipping.

Should I email them and ask for a change in the shipping? Or if I could pick it up at their shop?


Sigh.


If I had a million dollars I wouldn't care about $150 bucks, but right now it seems like I could buy so much yarn with that cash, right? Haha! (Plus, with all that money I could get a really cute spin coach to come to my house and help me train. Right?)

ETA- I emailed, and since it's dropped shipped from the manufacturer, there's nothing they can do about shipping. Bummer.


More later.

Boogie Like No One's Watching

I'm downloading new workout tunes onto the IPOD.

So tell me, what song(s) get you moving and grooving?

:)

Rhinebeck Re-Entry

There's always a couple days of worthlessness whenever I return from Rhinebeck. This year is no exception, made worse by the virus that I still can't kick. I'm exhausted, I hurt everywhere and I just want to sleep. To say that I did too much isn't an exaggeration.



I didn't do too much damage on the wallet. Here's what I got:



Laceweight 55%/45% Silk & Yak (edited- I thought it was merino and yak. It's silk) from Skaska Designs. Yum!
Alice totally inspires me everytime I see her, never mind when she knits. I keep saying no more laceweight, then we go to these things and she lights up and I buy stuff. I was glad that I got this when I did though, it was the second to last skein.


6 Skeins of wool fromWild Apple Hill Farm- enough to make that cool Drops sweater that everyone made last year.

Cormo spinning fiber from Foxhill Farms.

And some corriedale/angelina fiber from Carolina Homespun.


I got the obligitory Christmas ornaments, which I get from every trip I take throughout the year. No photos, though.



That's it.


I did alot of eating, including an amazing juicy apple. Oh, and two whoopie pies, an apple crisp, an apple cider donut, a pumpkin donut, and filet mignon.


So much for that diet, eh?



One of the best parts of the trip was seeing one of Rebecca's patterns out in the wild, at a random vendor's pattern pole. Look at how happy she looks!

It was a great weekend away. I got to see some friends, eat like there's no tomorrow and buy fiber- what could be better?

Dear Loving Child of Mine, Part 2

Sigh.

This morning I was outside with The Boy, enjoying the warm weather, raking some leaves and sweeping the paved part of the driveway. The Boy was running around the yard, within eyesight- so I thought nothing of putting my head down and working. Occasionally I'd pick my head up to see where he was. If he went around the corner to his park I'd yell his name. He'd respond back, "Here Mama!" and I would start to sweep again.

We were out there for over an hour. I had a good sweat worked up. I haven't been on the bike for about a week and a half, so the exercise felt good. It's just cool enough outside that it didn't feel overly yucky or tiring.

At one point The Boy was by the woods. I barked at him to come away from there. I know he can't go too far into the trees, there's a ton of ferns and a rock wall in the way. But I don't like him near that area unless I'm with him.

He came running up to me with a look on his face like he'd eaten something awful.

"Yucky," he said as he spit. "Berries are gross!"

Yeah, the berries that he's never touched before? Today he ate one.

I ran inside, grabbed my keys, my purse, a diaper and cellphone. I called Hubs and asked him what to do, knowing he'd say emergency room. I remembered to cut a piece of the bush- berries, leaves and stem for identification purposes.

Luckily, our town has a 24 hour walk-in emergency center. I pulled up to the place and was greeted by a very nice lady who asked some questions. A doctor came out and looked at The Boy, took the branch and said that she'd be back.

About 20 minutes later she came out, branch in hand. She called poison control and they said that he would be fine. The berries weren't poisonous, and even if they were, he didn't eat enough to do any harm.

Sigh.

I'm relieved.

I'm also ready for a stiff drink.


(Hey, two more sleeps until Rhinebeck!)

Dear Loving Child of Mine.

If you lock me out of my own bedroom one more time, I'm going to be very, very upset.

(Ugh. Anyone know how to pick a lock? I tried everything. I might have to call a locksmith. Wait till Hubs hears about this.)

ETA: Got it unlocked. *Sigh* My kid is smarter than me. And I'm an awful lock-picker.

lol

I Can't Feel My Face

I've been coughing for over a week. Last night I'd had enough and decided to go to the walk in clinic here in town. (That was an experience all its own. In the old place, a clinic like that would have wall to wall people and a 2 hour wait. Here, there were 2 others and about a 10 minute wait.) I have post nasal drip and that's what's causing the cough.

I was told to take a benedryl before bed last night. Am I the only one who's body reacts to benedryl like it's meth? I was totally stoned about 25 minutes after taking it and asleep in 30. I remember The Boy waking a couple of times in the night, but being completely unable to get out of bed. Hubs had to get up. He never gets up. He must have known that I was out of it.

Thanks for the comments on the wedding. It was stressful. The Boy didn't want to listen to anyone, wanted to do his own thing and get into trouble. He also figured that his new tux shoes made big noises in the church and as he started down the isle, he was literally tap dancing. It was loud. My cousin (the groom's brother) picked him up quickly. At the end, he saw Daddy and ran to him. Hubs hung out in the nursery, missing the ceremony.

Here's us at the wedding.

I don't normally glow (I think). The camera wasn't mine.

The leaves are changing all around me. Brilliantly!

The Boy's park.

The driveway. Sigh. I love this.

Looking back at the house.

And lastly, knitting.

The beginning of Ysolda Teague's Liesl:

And a hat.

This hat is just one example of why I love Ravelry. Never in a million years would I have found this pattern without that site. I love it and I'm happy that I made it.

Wedding Bells for Andy

My cousin Andy is getting married today. It's a beautiful, sunny fall day here. I love this weather.

The Boy is escorting a flower girl down the aisle. He was AWFUL at the rehearsal yesterday.

Everyone had a good spirit about it. They laughed and smiled as he jumped, skipped, and generally ran around, getting into everything that he shouldn't have touched.

We ran ragged, chasing him, calling his name and then finally giving up taking him to the nursery at the church.

Honestly though, I'm just happy that I didn't burst into flames walking into the place.

More later.

For Rebecca

We were talking about new moms and how absolutely bat shit crazy they get.

This is me and The Boy, shortly after coming home from the hospital:

Sheer exhaustion.

This is me and the boy a couple of weeks later:

Sheer exhaustion.

(I was mistaken, R. I thought this was taken right after we came home, but he looks too big. It's Christmastime, so it must have been taken a couple weeks later.)

I Flickr'ed it, for your enjoyment.

Side Bang

You learn something new every day.

I went to the mall yesterday. The Boy was at my mother in laws and I had some shopping to do for Hubs' birthday. I walked by a salon there and I felt an instant draw to the place. Not a single person was sitting in the chairs, the hairdressers looked bored out of their minds. Not a good sign, in my opinion. I popped in and asked if I could get a cut done.

I sat in the chair- a bit nervous- this is the first person besides my hairdresser to touch my hair in 6 years. A nice girl name Ashley introduced herself and asked what I wanted to have done.

I have very fine, thin hair. There's not alot to be done. Just cut it.

She asked if I wanted layers, I said yes. She asked if I wanted to add color- um, no. She asked if I wanted side bangs. I gave her a look like, WTF is a side bang??

Apparently, it is bangs left a little long that are swept to the side of the face, sometimes tucked behind the ear.

Oh.

Yeah, give me some of that.

She did. My hair looks soft and full(er) and I love it. I was really nervous giving my head over to some new beauty school grad, but she did fine.

I've been sick the past few days, which means an excuse to sit and knit.

So I've been working hard on a new Deep Breath sweater.

There's been lots of in the car knitting with this one. I hope my stitches even out with blocking. I might make the bottom a bit longer, but otherwise I love it.