Yarn Train 2011

Saturday was the Annual Yarn Train from Seattle.  This makes either the 4th or 5th year that the Portland knitters have joined the Seattle ladies and it was a LOT bigger than previous years.

I rode into the city with Cindy to her shop, Urban Fiber Arts, and planned to spend the day spinning in her shop.  This was the quiet before the storm:

Since the train didn't come in until 11:00 a.m., it gave Cindy time to get the last few things done in the shop, and I took in my Loose Change shawl to display ToolMan's pins.  

Many of the Seattle shoppers, and some Portland knitters, too, found lots of treasures in Cindy's shop. She specializes in yarns and fibers from local producers. Her motto is: Portland first; if not Portland, then Oregon and the Pacific Northwest.

Before long, the first batch of locusts shoppers filled the shop; there must have been 50 in the first group.  I didn't get pictures because it was simply too crowded to move!  From then on, it was a steady stream for most of the day, with a few lulls like this one:

In addition to ToolMan's pins, Cindy carries beautiful yarn bowls (the ones on the shelf in the front), great bags from Queen Bee, custom needle books from Graces Cases, abacus bracelets from Monica's Beads, stitch markers from trtlgrl crafts, and knitters jewelry from several local makers.

That's Bethany, one of the gals who was helping Cindy for the Yarn Crawl, unsuccessfully trying not to have her picture taken.

I started out the morning by buying a bump of Polwarth roving from Dicentra in the Sandalwood colorway; the colors were just too pretty to resist.

After that last stash sorting fiasco, I know I don't need any more yarn, and certainly not sock yarn, but somehow, these Crazy Zauberballs jumped into my spinning basket before I could dodge out of the way.

No, I do not have a sock yarn problem.  Really.

Sometimes you just wanna go

where everybody know your name.  There's a new LYS (Local Yarn Store) in town!  ToolMan and I ventured downtown last Thursday for the first ever knit night.

Welcome to Urban Fiber Arts!  That's Cindy Abernethy, the proprietor, behind the counter.  It's been a long-time dream of hers to have her own shop, and she finally got it.  That's Sharon Spence on the left; otherwise known as StitchJones, indie dyer rockstar!

Cindy set up a cozy sitting area right in the front of the shop for knit night.  It was First Thursday in the Pearl, where her shop is, so there was a lot of foot traffic on the sidewalks.  Lots of people looked through the windows to see what was going on and quite a few came in, lured by the pretty yarns and beautiful items on display.

Urban Fiber Arts specializes in fibers from the Pacific Northwest, so there are lots of locally dyed fibers and yarns, many of which can't be found in other Portland shops.

 

The shop is very light and bright; Cindy even put daylight bulbs in the fixtures so the colors really "pop"; plus the light makes it very easy to match or coordinate colors.

The fixtures are very sleek chrome and white fabric; and they're movable so she can reconfigure the shop to accommodate classes and large gatherings.  Good thing, too, since this is the location for Portland Spinnerati meetings!

Cindy's still getting in shipments, so not all the bins are full yet, but she's got some gems in there already.  Just look at the colors on the Zauerballs!  I told her she should put a bowl full of the autumn colored one in the window, with chenille stems and felt leaves; they reminded me of fall gourds and pumpkins.

She's got lots of display space in the counter, too; but she's filling it pretty quickly with locally made stitch markers, beautiful beaded row counter bracelets, and soon she'll have some of ToolMan's handmade shawl pins, too!

Which brings me to my last item for this week: a shameless plug for the Art Fire Studio: ToolMan has some new pins in there. There are more to come, as soon as I can get good pictures and time to load them. Meanwhile, here's a lovely one in Pink Ivory that he made for Gail; she bought some beautiful woods for him in exchange for a pin in each one. I added a button over there on the sidebar, in case you want to visit later.

Next week, I should have some pretty beach pictures for you; ToolMan and I will be at Gleneden from Thursday to Sunday.  I have a law conference to attend, but he'll have the cameras.  And I'll try to get some actual knitting to show you!

Knit Sibs Rock!

Now that they've been delivered, I can show you the pictures of the hats I knitted for my brother Joe.  He has Chronic Lymphoma Leukemia and will be having chemo every month until October or November.

First, a pirate hat for when he's feeling like a scurvy dog that's just been keel-hauled.

Next, a hat for when he's about as lively as a dead flounder.  This isn't actually a flounder, though; it's definitely a hybrid.  Guess what it's parents were?

A big-mouth bass and a rainbow trout, of course!

This one's for when the doctors want more tests, and he wants to chicken out.

This one's for the days when he starts out feeling pretty good,

and easily reverses if things so far enough south that all he's thinking is, "Well, f*** this!"

Knowing my brother, I suspect this side might see quite a bit of wear.

Mom and Joe also got a package from my new Knit Sib Ailxxi (Ravelry link) this week.  She was so sweet to knit a couple of hats and send them on.  Here's Anna in a beret she made for Mom,

and her darling husband modeling the hats she made.  Isn't he just the cutest crown model you've ever seen?

Another new Ravelry Knit Sib, Oakdryad, had done a couple of hats, too, although I don't know if she's sent them off yet.  She did a Trilobite for Joe,

and a Molly for Mom.  Hmm, can't get that picture to load, so you'll have to go check her Project Page for it. 

And I've gotten quite a few hats from my local Knit Sibs as well.  Pictures of those and credits when I'm ready to send them in a week or two.   Knit Sib, whether "in real life" or the "virtual" ones on the internet really rock! 

Let's see; that leaves spinning, garter stitch, and blankies left from the list of stuff to post.  Oh, and Roxie's still waiting for the unicorns and sparkles . . . .

Saturday in the Park

Nate the Wonder Geek determined our old computer could not be resuscitated.  Instead, he brought us a whole new brain.  Now, I can try to wade through all the posts I had ready and waiting, complete with pictures. 

First up:  Babies and Birthdays, Cake and Presents: 

Last Saturday; no wait, it was Saturday before last; ToolMan and I were at a very special Saturday In The Park.  I was somebody's first birthday!  Can you guess who?  Here, I'll give you a hint:

It was Trtlbby!  Her momma, Rachel, is a PDX Knit Blogger and a Portland Spinnerati, and when Trtlbby was born, ToolMan and I instantly became Hazel Nuts.  Ha, I crack me up sometimes. 

Here's the birthday girl herself, getting ready to play in the sprinkler fountains.

Already learning to pose and smile for the camera!  She had a great time in the fountains with the other kids.

"Hmm, where's this water coming from?"

"Are you still back there, Dad?"

"Maybe I can ditch Dad and go play with the big kids."

And she had some little friends come share the special day.  William is stylin' with his new hat.

Connor really dug the chips and bean dip.  Aren't you glad you don't have to change those diapers?

Her little guests are both boys; Dad may need better locks on the doors in a few years.  ;)

Pretty soon, it was time for cake!

"I think this is my new favorite food!"

"I wish they'd let me have a fork!"

"I can't believe I ate the whole thing!"

And then, the madness that is opening the presents.  Fortunately, or maybe not, the big kids were glad to help rip open wrapping paper.

"I hope I can get this tiara from Auntie Tiggywinkle and Uncle ToolMan resized to fit."

"Oh, thank goodness I got lots of clothes; I really can't wear the same outfit to multiple events, you know."

"Yeah, you think it's really cool, but frankly my dear, I no longer give a hoot."

After a couple hours, everybody was ready to head for home.  I don't know who was more tired:  the little ones were tired from playing and missing their afternoon naps, or the adults from watching the little ones play and miss their afternoon naps.  It's been a great many years since ToolMan and I had been to a first birthday party, and we were pretty worn out, too!  

Happy Birthday, Trtlbby!  ToolMan and I hope you have LOTS and LOTS of them, and that we get to share them with you! 

Surprise!

After more than three years of this blog, I thought it was time for a new look.  So, whaddya think?  I'm not sure it'll stay this way, there are some things I might change.  And not sure I'm all that in love with the orange background; it just seemed to "fit" me better than the others. 

Anywho, I have been knitting, mostly caps and hats for my brother, but I can't show them to you until after he sees them.  But I have been spinning; look:

That's the rest of that mystery fiber from the stash.  This has convinced me that I really do have to put a label on anything going into the stash that doesn't already have one.  I'm always quite sure that I'll remember what fiber it is and who the seller was and where I bought it and how much I paid for it.  But the truth is, I can't; when I pulled this out of the stash, I had absolutely no memory of it.  None.  As Bette Davis once said, "Old age ain't no place for sissies."

I think I'll Navajo ply this; I really liked how the sample batch turned out a couple weeks ago.  My shoulder is doing much better, but I found some YouTube videos that help take the strain off that side. 

Yesterday was World Wide Knit In Public Day.  Tami did her usual great job of coordinating (that's her on the right).  She got us space at the Hillsboro Farmers Market, complete with awnings, tables, and chairs.  And as usual, she rounded up volunteers to sew project bags, donate yarn samples and stitch markers, and raffle prizes from The Knitting Bee.  There were lots of knitters everywhere!

There were wannabe knitters learning from accomplished knitters.

Knitters gathered in sun and in shade.

Knitters standing in line for goodie-filled project bags.

And, of course, the destash/swap table.  This picture is actually after the swarm of locusts attacked it; lol!  Debby was there, with some of the girls in her family.  She has some good pictures on her blog, so be sure to go look at them, especially the one of the newest little knitter/crocheter!  Debby brought her new Evenstar shawl; I didn't get any pictures because I was too busy admiring it.  It's even prettier in real life than the pictures on her blog, if that's possible!

I did get one of the raffle prizes from The Knitting Bee; Knitting Color by Brandon Mably.  I'm not sure I'll ever be brave enough to tackle a Brandon Mably or Kaffe Fassett pattern, but it is good inspiration to use more color in my projects. 

The project bag is adorable!  It's got various sushi and sashimi on top of a white background with teeny, tiny, black pin dots, and black satin ribbon for ties.  This is going to be my new lunch bag for work; I'll be able to identify it in the office fridge!  And inside was a sample skein from Chic Geek, stitch markers from Dorothea's Boutique and Rachel, and a business card from Urban Fiber Arts, which is Cindy's new venture.  It'll be Portland's newest yarn and fiber shop, as soon as she gets the deal on the retail space finalized.  I don't know who's more anxious for that - her, or all the knitters in Portland!

Little of this and a little of that

I haven't touched my spinning wheel since New Year's Day. I've been dealing with a shoulder problem, which my doctors tell me is an overused rotator cuff. I'm on my second round of physical therapy and pain meds; the first time only lasted a couple months before I was back where I started. This time, I got a cortisone shot to relieve the immediate pain, stronger meds, and a return to therapy with lighter weights but for a longer term.

Today, I did no knitting. That's right, none. My shoulder can only tolerate knitting for short periods of time each day. Today, I decided to forgo knitting to see how well, or not, I could tolerate spinning. Here's the result:



This is a sample from Abstract Fiber. The sample didn't have any info on the tag, I don't know what the fiber is but I suspect by the way it drafted and spun that it's BFL. By looking at the website, I think the colorway is "Deep Lake"; lovely blues, greens, and turquoises.

Of course, I had my able spinning assistant nearby for support. I only spun for about an hour but my shoulder was talking to me pretty loudly by the time I was done. I'm going to let the singles rest on the bobbin for a few days before I ply it. I'm going to try this technique from Sarah Anderson; maybe it won't be so hard on my poor right shoulder.

Westside Wednesday had to say goodbye to Noriko this week. She joined us a couple years ago as a knitter, then moved from a drop spindle to a wheel, and has now written a pattern (scroll down to post 4). Now, she's done with school and internship, and will soon be off to do her optometry residency turns in Bellevue, WA; Wenzou, China; and Okinawa, Japan. We're sad to loose her, but she'll be back to do her final residency her. And besides, the world is getting a great new doctor!

Noriko sent these little tiny hedgies to come live with me. She's been clearing out and getting all her things packed up, but I'm pretty sure she could have found room in a box for these:

Look how tiny they are! The tiny one on the right isn't marked but it seems to be made of the same material as one that ToolMan bought for me several years ago; horn or antler.

They're both much heavier than you think they'd be, given their small size. And both have incredible detail; especially the little one from Noriko, which even has eyelids!

The one from ToolMan, though, is actually a little box with a surprise inside. ToolMan said the inside was what he wished he could give me:

The moon and the stars. All together now: "Awwwwww!" (I know that head sitting there is a little weird; I just didn't realize how creepy it was until I posted it in here.)

But as little as this guy is, he's not the tiniest hedgie in my collection.

That distinction goes to the other hedgie from Noriko. Or should I say "family of hedgies". These are wood and the largest has a sticker on the outside "Made in Russia". I have to admit that I've never seen another set of hedgie matryoshka dolls.

How in the world did they turn these out of wood on a lathe? And I whoever painted the face on the smallest one must have incredible eyesight or a really good magnifying glass! The middle one is about the same height as the dime and the smallest one is about the size of a dried pea. Absolutely adorable!

Lastly, I got the baby sweaters delivered to my girlfriend, Maryanne, this week. I'm working on a little blankie for the stroller or carseat and hope to have it done before she goes to see her sons in mid-June.

A Moderne Baby Blanket from Mason Dixon Knitting. Except I didn't follow the pattern, because come on, what's the fun in that? This turned out to be quite a stash buster of baby pompadour. I used up all the leftovers from baby knitting over the last few years. This pink is the last strip, I think. It could be a little bigger, but frankly I'm just about sick of garter stitch; I mean, really, there are MILES of garter in this thing and it's only about 36 inches square. Besides, I'm going to do a white, 4-stitch I-cord edge on it which I'm estimating will take approximately FOREVER to finish. And as much fun as this was to knit, I really want to get it done; because I really, really need something more challenging on the needles next.