Dye-o-rama!

Definitely *not* to be confused with diorama - though those can be fun in their own way...

I've joined the Dye-o-Rama to give myself the kick that I seem to need to launch SpritelyGoods happily into the world of handpainted yarns and rovings...of course, I know the basics from experimenting with Kool Aid Dying - but this time I'm planning on getting myself into some Acid dyes...if I get some spare time before the official matchups are done, I'll do a test run on some roving - I've got piles and piles of undyed roving that need some color :)

Be careful feeding the Beast...

Or it might decide you're tasty and take your finger...

I have a new addition to add to my herd...and it positively dwarfs my little Ashford...Please say "hello" to my new Patrick Green Supercard - 60 lbs (or so) of purring bliss (thank goodness the cats stay away when it's running!) Creating handblended Batts for SpritelyGoods was turning into a full-time-part-time job, if you know what I mean, so a little Capitol investment was required. Having had to pass up an awesome deal on a cottage industry carder (it was as big as my car), my mind was hooked on having a motorized carder at my fingertips, I did some poking around and settled on this one. Sadly, this does mean that the little Ashford is looking for a new home. I prefer it go to someone local, as the shipping is going to be tricky - I don't want to risk smooshing the drums.

*the Ashford has found a new home and has acquired a nickname ;) stay tuned for details :D

I *do* still knit...

I do, indeed, still knit...I just get preoccupied with the spinning sometimes ;)

To my husbands delight (or perhaps dismay due to the timing) I finally finished this second pirate hat...more photos and details are available for your reading pleasure here.

This one actually fits an adult, unlike the first - unfortunately it flares out a little bit much on the bottom...I'm now trying to figure out how to fix that, and the only thing coming to mind is to sew some elastic in to make sure that it keeps ears warm when worn. Either that or I can knit *another* hat that is plain stockinette on the top and have a scull themed brim that folds up on the *outside*. Oy. All I wanted to do was knit something nice for my husband!

Now available...

...through PureKnits! Spritelygoods is growing - and is now available thorough another online retailer - go check them out - they have some pretty yummy stuff :D

Stay tuned - knitting content planned for tomorrow!

Mmmmm Cookies...

Sometimes I simply luck out in stumbling across books - I don't own this one, but I saw that someone had purchased it via one of my "In association with Amazon" Links - and of course, with a title like BigFatCookies, how could any self respecting cookie-holic resist a peek??

Unfortunately for me, my latest Amazon order is already full-up and this one will have to go onto the wishlist.

In other cookie news, if you've run out of frozen cookie dough to pop into the oven or you're trying to not eat cookies that have a bazillion calories inside, I recommend Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Chunk with Almond Cookies - they are small in size, but big on flavor, yet kind to the waistline - munch three for 140 calories :D

Yarn P*rn

I've taken to putting all my handspun yarns into a gallery - that way, should they go to new homes, I can still look at them all fondly :)

The slideshow version can be viewed here. If you want to ogle at the two newest additions, you can pop over to the finished objects blog which seems to have been taken over, of late, by spinning posts (fear not! I actually picked up my knitting again recently).

In fiber news, new blends are bouncing in my head - I've got some luxury fibers in to play with - including mohair, silk and alpaca!

Blak is Blech

I'm fairly adventurous when it comes to food and trying new things...sometimes that's a good thing, sometimes its not so good.

Meet Blak - Coke's new "Fusion" Beverage - I was curious to try it, with only 45 calories to the bottle, it doesn't do as much damage as a regular soda.

Sadly, I'm not so fond of Blak. I thought it was kinda blech. Coke & coffee - with the two flavors battling it out and no one really winning - definitely a strange flavor combination.

I think I'll be sticking to my Black Cherry Vanilla Coke - now *that* is a flavor combination I can go for!

She likes to help

Here she is, helping me check out my yarn arrangement. For a photo sans cat, have a peek here. Marble has taken to sitting with me when I work on my computer, and she's always been good about following me around the house and keeping the balls of yarn in order when I knit - every now and again she insists on helping me ply - usually when I'm working with sparkly plying threads. Right now it seems she's trying to help me add to my fiber stash - she's blowing her coat. It seems her fur is nearly as fine and fly-away as angora - at least it sure seems that way based on the way it seems to float around the house and land on my nose!

Happy Tax Day

A little something to cheer you up this tax day....well, they cheer me up, anyhow :D

I've got new colors in the shop! As you can see the food inspiration continues - with the introduction of Pink Guava and Wild Blueberry....

Loving the Single Life

I'm partial to plied yarns, I admit it - at least in my own handspun. Though sadly, it takes so much more time to make a plied yarn than it does to make a single - especially if I'm plying handspun with more handspun! I'm trying to teach myself to love singles as well as slubs...I'm slowly getting there...

see? These are all spun from Mill End fibers - from the Brown Sheep Mill no less...The mill ends (because they *are* mill ends) vary in quality - with some drafting easily straight from the bag and others requiring considerable amounts of fiber preparation. Color range is also very limited, though the Sheep Shed Studio (the place that carries the Mill Ends) has recently started carrying first quality rovings from Brown Sheep in limited quantities, so if color is a must and you want to spin your own Burly Spun, now you can :)

In case you're wondering, these yarns aren't named after the desert - they were actually inspired by food. While the desert is a very colorful place, some of my yarns are inspired more by dessert ;) have a look over here to see what inspired this batch, and also to see them in their unskeined glory.

Not Traumatizing at All

It's been ages since I've had to speak in front of a group - work stuff doesn't count...I have to say thanks to any of you who made the trek to Tempe Yarn & Fiber to watch me talk and demonstrate the fine art of feeding a drum carder! It was fun, and I'm glad there was some fiber that needed "straightening" available - I had brought some fiber with me to send through the carder, but it was boring colored compared to the stuff in the "play" basket! And of course there were bits of stuff I haven't had a chance to play with yet on my own - like silk and recycled silk! I think the most rewarding part was after the demo seeing samples being spun up from the batts created during the talk. It always amazes me how different the yarns look depending on who spins em!

Oh, and just so you don't think I'm leaving you with yet another photoless entry, go have a look at the finished objects blog. There's a pair of buns over there :)

Mmmm. Crispy Goodness.

Yum. Normally, I'm all for full fat food, but only in moderation - mostly because I can rarely find a suitable low fat substitute. I do tweak my fair share of recipes, but often I'm hunting for snacks that fill my snacking needs between meals...and quite frankly, there are times when fruits and veggies just don't cut it.

I stumbled across these at the grocery store the other day, and unlike most baked chips, these are actual slices of potato! They're fantastic - and they come in three flavors! Hooray!

Curious about Carding?

Well, if you're local, you're lucky - because you can come and ask me questions to your heart's content. Me and my drum carder will be at Tempe Yarn and Fiber this Wednesday evening. Come say hello and meet me in person :P

Crunch & Snap!

Two noises that you do *not* want to hear when you are attempting to spin on your spinning wheel....

Seriously. First the Right Treadle did it, and then the Left one followed suit in less than 10 minutes! Just what am I talking about? The leather cords connecting my footmen to the treadles had broken - let me tell you - the first time (heck, both times!) it happened, I was seriously afraid I had somehow broken my wheel. Not a good thing, especially when in the midst of a spinning project. Luckily for me, I was able to salvage the remainder of the leather straps to re-attach the footmen accordingly. If it happens again, I'll be replacing them with hemp cord - I have LOTS of that. Anyhow, the new yarn is drying, so stay tuned for pics in the future :)

Published!

And I have this little guy to thank for it :) His name is Jacques and he can be found here!

For those that make a Jacques of their own, I have created a Flickr group to share photos :)

I did complete that spinning...

If you don't read my finished objects blog, I did indeed finish that five ply that the cats were so entranced with :) A photo is over here (scroll to the bottom of the entry)...and you can make it your own over here!

In other news, I'll be doing a carding demo at Tempe Yarn and Fiber in about a week - hopefully whatever bug I'm currently battling will leave me alone by then. I've got a box of mill end rovings in that need to be carded - I've gotten dreadfully spoiled since I have been spinning primarily from batts these days - no predrafting required :)

Since I can't concentrate on knitting anything other than stockinette stitch and I'm not energetic enough to tackle that box o wool, so I've picked back up the kitty pi bed and finished the knitting portion (hooray, stockinette!).

The cats seem to like it just fine the way it is:

Unfortunately they like it enough to kick each other out of it...See Troy in the background?

And here he is looking innocent - but note the flicking tail! He's just forced his sister out so he can have his turn in the kitty bed!

Luckily I have more of this wool, and I'll be making catbed #2 so they can each have their own - once they are both knitted up, I'll be pitching them in the wash for felting.

Meanwhile, the poor husband is asking after his hat....