La Cumparsita and 50th Anniversary Well Wishes

Oh, Jeez! (said with a Minnesotan twang). It's been a while. In truth, I have written a couple of blog posts but am having issues with blogger - it won't post my update to the internet. So, fingers crossed, here we go.

I recently was obsessed with La Cumparsita, a shawl pattern by Marnie MacLean. The minute she released the pattern, I knew I had to knit it. The perfect opportunity arose when we learned that Adrienne's parents were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary.Gibby & Vicki, May 1959

This past weekend, Adrienne and I traveled to Indio, California (near Palm Springs) to celebrate with Adrienne's family - and she has a big one! Adrienne's Mom is 1 of 16, her Dad is is 1 of 8. Adrienne, herself, is 1 of 5 (the youngest, if you know her, I think this is obvious. She is very carefree and sweet natured. The baby!:)) Adrienne and her siblings rented out a banquet hall to throw a party. There were over 70 people, a full sit down dinner, and dancing.

Here is Adrienne with her mom, sporting her new shawl. I think the color looks great on her.

It was a very sweet night - in many respects very emotional. Adrienne's Mom and Dad were both born in the Coachella Valley (where Indio is located). Thus, there were many people in attendance who were schoolmates. The DJ at the anniversary party, named Joe, was actually the lead singer in the band that played at Adrienne's Mom and Dad's wedding in 1959. On Saturday night, he surprised everyone by singing "It's a Wonderful Life" by Louis Armstrong - just like he had in 1959. His voice was still beautiful.

Then, there were all those that weren't there - who have passed away. Out of Adrienne's Mom's 15 siblings, I think there are 5 of them still alive. Adrienne's parents didn't always have it easy, there were many ups and downs in those 50 years. Both of Adrienne's parents worked hard to feed their children, lived simply, camping as a vacation, and many times had many disagreements over points of view - that said they stuck it out. It was completely awesome to see them, after all of these years, together. Sometimes, over the course of the night, looking over at them, I could see the distance traveled in their eyes. It was great to spend that time with Adrienne and her family, creating a space to honor and remember all that they have done throughout the years, and to honor their commitment to one another.

Here, I will leave with you a few more shots of La Cumparsita.

Blocking

Off the blocking wires, released into the world.

I highly recommend knitting this pattern. It is very well written. The yarn I used is A Verb for Keeping Warm Wishing in Burnt Ember. I knit this on a size 4 needle.

I hope everyone is well!

Keep the Fleece: Sheep to Scarf Fundraiser 2009

Whoohoo! Back for the 2nd time this week.

I finally feel like I am becoming human again - between the insanity of opening the store and the onslaught of Stitches, things felt a bit too chaotic for my liking. When I am in the middle of the insanity, I know that one day things will calm down again, that I will even miss the chaos a bit, but I still have a hard time staying balanced in those moments of extreme stress. So, now, I am happy. Happy that Stitches is over, happy that I am back to blogging, I really missed it. Happy that soon, I will be uploading new colors and products to the website. We have a lot of stuff in the store that has not made it to the website. And, happy to simply hang out with my dog and knit. Now, if I had my druthers, in a month or so, when the weather warms a bit, I would love to rent a house on the coast, knit, spin, cook, and hike. Ah - sounds so dreamy. Could I pull it off? Maybe. We'll see.

So I am going to make an announcement - you are gonna love this - we are mere sentences away from an entire diatribe of how I am going to rest a bit more - ease into things - but I LOVE creating - so what to do! What I am about to announce is the essence of life - it's what makes me excited to get out of bed in the morning, so here it is...

Keep the Fleece: Sheep to Scarf 2009

As some of you may be aware, The United Nations has declared 2009 as the The International Year of Natural Fibres. Now, for most of us, I would say that every year is the year of natural fibers - but think this is a great opportunity to get together, represent, and raise some money supporting the production and use of natural fibers.

So, while I was at Stitches West, I had the opportunity to meet Linda Cortwright, editor and founder of Wild Fibers magazine. In honor of this year, she has created an organization called Keep the Fleece.

The goal is to raise $250,000 for Heifer International. Heifer International will then use this money to buy fiber producing animals for people in need - so that they will have a form of income.

At Keep the Fleece, they are challenging us to get together and to create a scarf 9” wide. For every row knit, they are asking for $1 per row donation. That means that a scarf 9x60” long would equate roughly to a $600 donation. Once the scarf is complete, we send it to Keep the Fleece and it will become part of a traveling exhibition - the first stop will be Rhinebeck. There is also talk of it going to the White House and beyond to provide a visual representation of those that support natural fibers - and those of us which participate in crafts which use such.

I love a good challenge. And this being Verb’s year of service, I thought it would be fun to participate. I am still working out the details but know this much -

I propose we do a sheep to scarf event on Saturday, April 25th from 10am to 6pm. This event will take place at the Verb store in Berkeley. Now, the folks over at Keep the Fleece only ask us to knit a scarf - but all of us at Verb - employees and customers alike - seem to come from an over achieving background - so I thought that it would be fun to incorporate spinning. My idea is that we would have a team of spinners and a team of knitters - that we could spend the day spinning and knitting - finish the scarf(ves) and hang them in the Verb store for a month or so before sending them off to Keep the Fleece.

So, here’s the next challenge, I am wondering if we could do more than 1 scarf. I would love to do 2 maybe even 3 scarves.

Scarf 1: handspun, handknit wool & exotics
Scarf 2: handspun, handknit fiber from local farms
Scarf 3: handspun, handknit cellulose - crazy, I know, but how cool would it be!!

Potentially this could mean that we would need 60-80+ people to show up, donate, and work.

Here is my request, if you would like to participate, and I hope you do - I am asking each participant to reserve there space in this event by registering on the Verb website. The cost to participate starts at $30. There is a sliding scale, if you would like to donate more, please go ahead and do so. This amount covers your registration, your fiber, and your donation as well as yummy snacks and drinks on the day of the event. Participating will also give you a chance to meet new friends who share your love for fiber. Also, if this amount of money seems to large for you, how about getting pledges from your friends and family?

Also, if you would like to participate in the design of the scarves, please let me know. I think that before the event, it would be fun for a group of us to come together and get the designs down on paper before the event takes place. Perhaps the designers could act as team captains.

I've also received some questions about folks who can't make it the day of the event but would like to donate money to the event. That's great and we'll happily accept your pledges. Dependent upon the amount of money we receive from these donors, we may be able to sponsor folks who would like to participate in the event but can't afford to and/or use the money to cover those that are donating $30 v. $40.

For the record, I believe in full disclosure. Regarding the cost of materials (fiber), for this event I am contributing spinning fiber at cost, therefore, a small portion of the donation will be going to the fiber materials. That said, already a few generous folks have offered to contribute money to cover materials, therefore, we can pay forward some donations 100% instead of 95%. Regarding disbursement of fiber, my plan is to estimate the amount of fiber necessary to spin and knit a 9x60 scarf, I will then divide that amount of fiber amongst the team. If we have left over fiber at the end of the day, it's yours.

We intend to document the lead up to this event, as well as the day of the event, including everyone who contributes to the event - those present as well as those who donate.

Here are some fibery photos to entice you.



I am really excited about this (I think Marcel is too, but he is such a diva, he has to play it cool)- I think this could be a ton of fun. I hope you are excited too!

Get Stitchy With it! Stitches West 2009

There is a part of my brain that is exhausted - and all it can say is "Thank God it's over" and then there's the other part of my brain. The part that gets me into all sorts of trouble - and that part can't wait to do it again. Who will win?

Beyond all of the arguments, Stitches West was once again an amazing experience. Don't get me wrong, love all of the yarn. But love the people I meet more. In my world, Suze Orman says "People first, then yarn, then things."

Here are a few photos of the days leading up to the event.

A moment of labeling mania.This is our new 100% BFL yarn, DK weight. It's funny how my brain understands making yarn. We get very excited when the yarn comes out of the dyepot and figure that it is now finished. Wrong! So very wrong! Only halfway to being done. There is washing, drying, re-skeining, labeling, pricing, and then inventory. I am learning, the hard way, that yarn coming out of the dyepot 3 days before a show needs more than 3 days to accomplish the above list of tasks.

Designing the booth layout with my architect friend Tiffany. So, then the yarn and the fiber are labeled but it doesn't end here in show land. Now, it's time to design display units, choose materials, build them, and decide how they will live in a 10x10 space. Seriously, Adrienne and I almost got divorced over these units. Truly. Verb almost went up for sale. First $10 takes all. In the end, the units were built, stained, and held yarn, all in a few day's work. Tiffany's way of seeing space is amazing. She worked it. The weather co-operated and we had sunny skies long enough to set things up and take them down.

Adrienne and I met Michael at the studio Thursday morning, loaded our van and his car, and embarked on our adventure to Stitches. Honestly, I was so exhausted that I was finding it difficult to be nervous. It's about a 30 minute drive down to Santa Clara from Berkeley. As we were getting on 237 from 880, we heard a sound, a thumpy bumpy sound, the car slowing, Adrienne pulled it over to the side of the road. Our tire was flat. I burst out laughing! What else to do? Michael came to the rescue. He has AAA. Thank god! They came within 3 minutes, changed our tire, and we were on our way.

This is what we created when we arrived to Stitches.

Open for business! Through the doors of Stitches, all sorts of insanely awesome, creative, sweet people grace the halls of Stitches. Some highlights - but not limited to - include:

CAT Bordhi! So fun, and super sweet. Loves Thai Iced Tea. Photo courtesy of Michael Wade.

I also had the chance to chat a bit with Rosemary of Designs by Romi. She is my friend on Twitter so it was great to see her in real life. Love her, love her work, almost finished with Waves of Grain. Met the peeps at Blue Moon, they are PUMPED about Sock Summit. Very cute.

Towards the end of Saturday, I got this sudden urge to purchase yarn. Crazy, right? My criteria: yarn that I had absolutely nothing to do with creating, worsted to bulky, instant gratification, it could even be a bit trashy if necessary. I cruised the market, poking my head into many a booth looking for my new love. And there it was: Toots Le Blanc bulky Jacob/Alpaca in this beautiful creamy color with just a hint of warm pink. I had been to the Asciano booth earlier looking at spindles and headed back that way - although, not to purchase a spindle - with the intent to buy a gorgeous pair of hand turned, rosewood needles. Both purchases so simple yet so luscious. It was exactly the treat I was looking for. Satisfied, I returned to the Hilton, sat on an overstuffed couch in the lobby, knit, and drank a vodka with soda.

Later that night, we made our way to a cocktail party atBobbin's Nest in Santa Clara. It was my first time to the store. It's adorable. I highly recommend a visit and everyone there was so nice. Bobbin's Nest was the first store I've been to in the South Bay. I feel a shop hop coming...

Well, if you were at Stitches, I hope that you had a great time. Everyone else, I hope you are well. Spring is coming and I am so excited. Walks with my dog very high on the list of wonderful things to do.

Happenings: Fiber Club, Y-Knit, & Stitches

Goodness! whoooosh - another second gone.

real quick - a list of announcements -

announcement #1
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I am very excited to announce that I am opening up 10 more spots for the Spring installment of our fiber club shipment. This is 10 spots total for both Woolly and Ultra (not 10 spots each).

Sign-ups for this installment will begin Friday, February 20th at 9am PST - and will run until February 29th – unless they fill up before then. (Tip* last time we offered sign-ups, they sold out within 20 minutes. I am not sure that they will fill up quite as fast this time, but would like to advise, if you are thinking of signing up, jump on it.) On February 20th, I will add a paypal button to our website which will allow you to sign up for either club.

If you are planning to cancel your subscription to our fiber club (I hope you won’t), please do so between now and the 20th of the February. That way, I will know if I can add more new members.

Wow! Its been 6 months since we started the fiber club. I want to extend great gratitude to everyone who has been in our club. I am truly gracious for your support, creativity, and inspiration.

To anyone new to our club, here’s the low-down:

We have 2 fiber clubs: Woolly Wonders and Ultra.

Woolly Wonders consists of 3-4oz of various wools per month. The cost is $24 per month.

Ultra offers 2-3 oz of exotics and luxury fibers per month. The cost is $30 per month.

Both clubs require a 3 month commitment.
Fall – September - November
Winter – December - February
Spring – March - May
Summer – June - August

We offer 2 types of payment: pay up front for your 3 month increment and receive 5% off. Or, pay per month. If you sign-up for a continuous year of subscriptions – you will receive 1 month free.

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Announcement #2

Also, I was given the fantastic opportunity to sit with the Y-Knit guys, HizKNITS and WonderMike to record the most recent episode of Y-Knit. We have a great contest going. Click here to listen and play.

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Announcement #3

Next week is Stitches West. We will be in booth #837. Please top by and say hello. Also, we have tons of brand new fiber and yarn as well as a great new tote. This tote, which has a spinning wheel and the verb logo on it, will be given complimentary to those who spend $80. AND, there will be a 10% off coupon for your next purchase inside of the bag :)

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ok, knitties! that's it for now. I am sorry for all of the business speak. Soon, stories, vignettes of insanity, and FO's coming your way.

Will work for fiber. The spinning kind.

To say that we have working our buns off may be an understatement. That said, in my life, when I am working, 9 times out of 10, means that I am having fun.

When I last left you, we were at the part where we were opening our new store. I have news about that but first I thought that I would entertain you with a few behind the scenes photos of the week leading up to our big day.

This is a story about renting in the Bay Area. As those of you know who live in the Bay Area, landlord-tenant relations is a constant dance. Rent is ridiculously high and does not really equate to any kind of amenities. For instance, my dream, as a 31 year old, is to one day have a dishwasher in an apartment that costs less than $2000 a month.

Adrienne and my last home was extremely beautiful, built in Craftsmen bookshelves, wood floors, remodeled kitchen, not safe though. Once, we found a man in our house. It was noon. I unlocked the front door, entered, and there he was. As he saw us, he ran back out the window where he had entered leaving shards of glass everywhere, etc. At the beautiful house, we have a landlord who was constantly in our sh*t. Wanted to know where we hanging our photos, how we were hanging them - were the walls being harmed. Who cares about the man. The walls might get ruined. Then, there was the time when the woman, high on crack(?), sporting a sweatsuit, sat on her ten speed bike outside of our house for 5 hours. Moving about a foot an hour. Falling asleep on her bike (talent!). Even masturbating on the bar of her bike (special!). Until finally waking from her drugged dream to bike away onto her next fix. And this is just two examples of our 3 years living there.

This is in sharp contrast to our current living situation. When I am in a rational mood, I figure that Adrienne and I actually pay a semi-reasonable amount of rent. We live in a superb neighborhood - within walking distance to some of the Bay Area's best restaurants, a fantastic library, and my favorite chocolate cafe. This neighborhood is safe. And here is the big kicker, our flat is HUGE in Bay Area apartment living. We actually have two bedrooms. One that is 300 sqft! This is our workroom. Here's the stickler, our flat is Ugly (capital U). The ceilings are low, the walls spackled, and the carpet (carpet!)...let's not even go there. When they built this portion of our 100 year house, they must of had a budget of $100.

We have a somewhat comical relationship with our landlord. In comparison to our last landlord, this landlord is extremely hands-off. We rejoice in this - but this also means that most likely if something breaks, Adrienne is going to fix it. I prefer if Adrienne does fix it - she does a thorough job at fixing things. So, a few weeks back when I garnered enough courage to ask my landlord for new carpeting, I was flat out shocked that he immediately answered yes. And, he wanted to install it the week before my store opening. Yes, this is insane. But I was so afraid to say no - and that it may never be done. Adrienne was definitely not on board. And when she gets in this space, it is kind of like hell on earth. She is stubborn! And, I think she secretly wanted to seek revenge on me. And I don' think I am being paranoid.

This is where the "comic" relief comes in. We received an email from my landlord saying that we needed to move all of our breakables, empty bookshelves, etc. Ok, I can handle that, even though that met we would not be able to walk into our kitchen or bathroom. However, when the carpet installers arrived, they looked around in horror...at all of our furniture - and the fact that it wasn't broken down and stored. Major miscommunication between my landlord and carpet installing guys. Adrienne had to call into work to let them know that she wasn't coming. The two of us took apart our bed and moved every piece of furniture our house from room to room following the installers as they worked. It sucked. We are still reassembling the house. We are still sleeping on the floor. Hmmmm... re-assemble the bed frame or spin. Spin! Wins every time.

Our bed in the family room.

Our kitchen

While waiting for the guys to finish the family room, I found a few quiet moments to knit. I am working on a Habu cardigan. How do you like my outfit? It's a jumpsuit! And it is the only things I could find to wear because all of our clothes were in the bathtub!

Well, Top Chef is on - and its a new episode so I will bid adieu. I have been dyeing a lot of new yarn (alpaca silk) and fiber (yak) and am in the middle of uploading it to the webstore. I will post photos of it here and photos of the new store tomorrow.

xoxo!

TGIF!

Hello Everyone!

It is so beautiful out today. Warm and sunny.

Just thought that I would drop everyone a quick note. The week has really gotten away from me. It's Friday! I cant believe it. We have been busy this week. Dyeing new colors for Fall. Reds, oranges, blues, and greens.

Also, we have been getting ready for the par-tay tomorrow (Saturday). Marcel will be making a guest appearance. We are going to make a special announcement around 12:30. And, 15% off throughout the day. We are accepting cash and check. Like the olden days. I hope if you are in town here, you will stop by. At least for a drink!

Feel free to bring your wheel with you. Or your spindle. There will be people there spinning. Word! All the details for the party can be found here.

Other than that, the first shipment of the fiber club has gone out. It was so great seeing all of the beautiful colors sitting in these huge mounds around the studio. It was great to to hear everyone's excitement. It feels great to pass along love. I already have a few ideas about whats coming for October's shipment.

I really miss my spinning and knitting. I have been deeply entrenched in this new scarf I am making. From a fleece my mom and I bought together at Black Sheep Gathering 2 years back. The yarn is turning out lovely. The scarf is a reversible cable pattern. This is probably one of my favorite things I have ever knit. I think next week is going to be a bit more laid back, I can return to spinning and knitting the scarf. And, post pictures of the progress.

I hope all is well!

Poo Power

It has been so wonderfully sunny and warm. Our dye garden is in full swing (thanks to Marcel's nutritious poo power). We're harvesting on a daily basis cosmos, correopsis, dahlias, and bronze fennel. Poor Marcel has been so hot -- the big ball of fluff that he is.
He is molting right now. He does that every three months. At night, I pull bits of fluff off of him. There are spots on him that give more fluff than others, almost like a spigot. I keep pulling and pulling sometimes to the point that I think he will have a bald spot, but, no, he just has a ton of fur. My friend Rebekah turned me onto an Angora grooming class on September 20th at a bunny store named Rabbit Ears in Kensington. I hope to learn better organizational skills when taking his fur off of him. Right now, I am just kind of stuffing it into a tupperware container every which way because I am still learning how to keep him still long enough for me to groom him. My fiber self just keeps saying -- it's ok -- it is like a big rolag -- think woolen.

Cleo and Marcel are making headway. Except for brief moments when Cleo tries to hump Marcel at which point we all yell "off Cleo, off!" My neighbors must be like WTF?!Anyhow, I give good thanks that Cleo is no longer trying to
A.) Bite Marcel
B.) Chase Marcel
C.) Is now listening to voice commands when around Marcel.

On the spinning front, my buddy A gave me the most luscious gift. Hand combed top. When I say these three words, they seem so limited, short, small, easy, a mere second to type. When really these three words encompass, maybe, if we were to sit down and write from beginning to end what it takes to make hand combed top a 50,000 word essay. If you read A's blog, she has been giving quite a beautiful description of her process: buying a fleece, washing it, combing it, spinning it, and soon, we may see what she knits from it. if you have an interest in learning how to do this kind of thing, reading her blog would be an amazing place to start. And, if you do decide to join A in her pursuits, I welcome all gifts of hand combed top! Don't you even think twice about sending it my way! As I just finished spinning the top A gave to me. I can already feel the affect of withdrawal coming on.

Now, onto a bit of Verb news.

First! Date Change! I have decided for the sake of sanity to push back the Verb Anniversary Party. The new date is Saturday, September 20th. This will give a bit of extra time to make some special fibery, yarn-y goodness for the party. More details will follow in the next week or so.


Next bit of news, I updated the store this week with 11 new colors of BFL spinning fiber. Sometimes I think I've grown tired of BFL, it's what I learned on for god sakes, but then I spin it, and remember why I love it so. It drafts so easily. It takes dye so beautifully. And it is so wonderfully woolly. It's a classic.

Last but not least, The Fiber Club is filling up with so many amazing members. If you are thinking of joining, come on over, membership is open only a few more days - until September 1st at 11:59pm pst.

I hope everyone is doing well!

Point Reyes Camel

Today, I updated the store. I added camel/merino spinning fiber in 3 colorways: indigo, headlands, and spring chicken.

A few post backs, I started to write about a new lace ribbon scarf that I was making. Honestly, it is extremely rare that I make a pattern twice. However, when making the first scarf it dawned on me that it would make a great project for an intermediate spinning class. A couple months later, I found myself at Article Pract teaching this class. One of the goals of the class was to create a yarn that you may not have thought otherwise. Some students chose colors that they would have previously thought would not have harmonized. Others, chose fibers that they were shy of. Needless to say, the results were fantastic.

Here is where I am so far: 50 baby camel - 50 merino indigo
50 silk - 50 merino - citron
100 tussah silk - 10% chance of rain II

My inspiration when dyeing the fiber, and when choosing the color combination were influenced by this day at Point Reyes. When the wind whips around me, that fast, with so much power, I feel like it is cleaning out all of the stress and noise stuck in my bones. The wind tosses it to the sea. Then, that weight lifted out of my insides, presents room -- to create new things, to relax, to observe what is around me. Sometimes I get testy with Adrienne, she tends to take a lot of photos. However, there are times like this day at the beach, when I am so grateful for her photos. She really captured the fog, the deep, saturated, matte browns of the beach, and the crisp green and blue of the ocean. Seeing Jabbar's crisp white kurta against the beach really takes my breath away. I see it as so beautiful.

p.s. To all of you (so far) signed up for the fiber club -- I am so happy that you are exited! Thank you for all of the positive feedback. If you haven't signed up yet, come and join us, I think this is going to be a lot of fun.

I'm Back! AVFKW Fiber Club

I'm back from my hiatus. I really did clean and organize my desk. While it was nice to take some time off the front line, to gather some thoughts, I am so happy to be back. And, I have a lot of exciting news to share with you.

The A Verb for Keeping Warm Fiber Club is open for membership.

Let me tell ya. I hemmed and hawed over this one. So many choices, which one to offer first. We have a whole lifetime ahead of us to spin, right? So, figure this a jumping off point. Today, you have a choice of 2 options. Memberships will be available for purchase until September 1st, 11:59pst.


Option 1: Woolly Wonders
It's all about the sheep with this package. Explore the amazing variety of sheep's wool and the variety of ways that it is processed and dyed. 4oz per month. Examples of fiber that may be included, but not limited to, are finn, merino, bluefaced leicester, Shetland, targhee, cvm, California red, polwarth, corriedale, etc.
$24 includes tax and shipping
$68.40 includes 5% discount, shipping, tax, 3 months of fiber

Option 2: Ultra
Only the best in luxury fibers will arrive to your doorstep, fresh from the dyepot, ready to be turned into beautiful, intense yarn. 2-3oz per month. Fibers may include, but are not limited to: silk, silk blends, cashmere, angora, alpaca, llama, cashgora, pygora, etc.
$30 includes tax and shipping
$85.50 includes 5% discount, shipping, tax, 3 months of fiber


My main goal behind offering this club is to expand your creativity and mine. We are going to do things a little bit differently than other clubs out there. Instead of offering one type of fiber per shipment. You may receive one or more types of fiber per shipment. I really want to encourage you to create your own blends of fiber and your own unique color combinations. I would really love to see members of this club expand their knowledge of spinning and the vast amount of different yarns that can be made from a single package of fiber. One of the single most rewarding aspects of my job as a dyer is to watch how each one of you chooses to spin your yarn, and how each one of you chooses to work with that spun yarn. It really is quite amazing - the boundless creativity.

I have chosen our A VFKW Ravelry group as a space to share fiber club yarns, projects, and comments about your process. I have also created a Flickr group to share photos. I really hope that you will join us!

Ok, now for my next announcement.

Mark You Calenders! It's AVFKW's 1st birthday party.
When: Saturday, Sept 6th 10-5
Where: AVFKW Studio, Berkeley

I will let you know more details in the next few days. Come over and help us celebrate.

Be back soon. I have some FO's to share. I did manage to get in some knitting and spinning over the past few weeks.

ZZZZZZ...Beep Beep Beep

That's the alarm. Pushing me to wake up. Not from sleep but from procrastination. Here is the honest truth, remember I have a thing for confessions being a recovering Catholic and all, I procrastinate when it comes to sitting at my desk and _____ fill in the blank. Bookkeeping, filing, organizing, etc.

Things have not always been this way. To give you a little background, at my last 9-5, I was a bookkeeper. My bank account and the company's balanced to the penny each and every month for 4 years. To make matters even more sick and twisted, I liked it. Plus, I come from a family of bankers. People who are conservative with money, especially its organization.

This is not to say that I don't like to keep organized records now. It is just that with the insane schedule that I have been keeping, things (anything paper related that isn't a label for a skein of yarn) has been pushed to the back of the line. As you can imagine, the longer this goes on, the worse it gets, the more I am repelled by the sight of it all. Oh, and let me tell you, with the state of affairs as they are right now, how much I dread April 2009.

Well, the part of me which likes an organized way of life has finally eaten my ear enough that I have put all things on hold until I can get this stack of papers sorted and squared. Really there is no need to dread the future, it's just going to take a little bit of elbow grease. My desk will be spankin' clean and ready to go. One may ask, if one is that type of person, "then, why are you blogging right now?"

I swear this will be my last piece of procrastination before getting right down to work!

So for one last trip to procrastinationville...

First stop: The Hanami is finished! I made a few modifications. In order to stick to one skein of yarn, I only worked 5 repeats of the basketweave pattern, and I only worked to chart E of the bubbly circle pattern. Also, I wanted to add more bling, so I added beads to the bubbly portion of the pattern. I found that they looked best on every other row of the right leaning decreases (K2TOG).

I hate seeing knitted items, or textiles of any sort, laying lifeless in a photobox. It makes me sad. So, Cleo, in hopes of cheering me up, agreed to model.

I tried to get Marcel to model for you. He was not into it to say the least. He is a little bit more primadonna than Cleo. Maybe it wasn't his color.

Here are the tools I used for the Hanami:
Addi Lace Turbos, sz 4
LOVE! I am now knitting everything on these needles. I love this sharp, precise little buggers.
Crochet Hook, US 14 (.9mm)
I found this tiny little hook at Lacis. They have even smaller ones.
Glass Beads -- peachy in color
Zero Stitch Markers, green and white freshwater pearls
DOUBLE LOVE! I must buy more. I tried to use one set for two projects, the Hanami and Wicked, I was desperate and it wasn't pretty. I kept losing count for the half of the project that didn't have any stitch markers. I tried to rectify the situation by adding plastic stitch markers. ISH! Must buy more as a reward for organizing my desk! Ha! Another incentive!

Second stop: Handspun!

I am teaching a class at Article Pract right now. This past week in class, we focused on spinning lace weight, fingering weight, and sport weight yarns. Each person in the class has created their own unique blend of fiber and color. Next week, we will start knitting Veronik Avery's Lace Ribbon Scarf. I can't wait to see everyone's handspun yarn come to life as a scarf. It is one thing to see a skein of handspun, an object of beauty and art in itself, but quite another to see it knit, the ways that the colors and texture will come together. I learn so much about my spinning when I knit with my handspun.

This is my homework so far.

The fiber(from top to bottom): AVFKW indigo dyed silk, AVFKW 50 Silk/50 Merino in Citron, and AVFKW 50% Camel/50% Merino dipped in indigo.

The tools (left to right):Bosworth mini spindle in purpleheart(.75oz), Ken Ledbetter spindle with lapis inlay. This spindle was used to ply.

The results:

Final stop: Over the past week, I did add 2 new colors of alpaca/silk yarn, chartreuse's sister and coral. My store updates are going to be put on hold over the next couple weeks, unless I get my "work" done. Part of my work does include the Fiber Club. I am ironing out the last final details. Very exciting.

Talk to you soon! I hope you are all well!

The Good Girl Complex

Aw, you guys, I loved all of your comments you left on the last post. I really did. A world of passion and creativity.

So, the news this week over at my house...I have had a paunch since the day I was born, literally. This has been a lifelong love hate relationship. Girls with flat tummies, 6 packs I tell you, saying, oh, how, they would love to have just have a little bit of baby fat. No matter how many dreadful sit-ups I have ever done have ever gotten rid of this little bit around my tummy. Well, I found out this week,at 30 years and 9 months, gravity has finally taken hold, I swear the paunch has drooped. I started rummaging through my drawers looking for those jeans that have the longer inseam or a camisole that is a little bit tighter to hold it all in. The jiggle. Then, came the hankering for the cherry coffee cake my mom made when I was growing up. I don't know about other parts of the country, but in the Midwest, we take coffee cake pretty darn serious. Plus, I have a very serious sweet tooth. One that really doesn't take "No" very well. Dammit! I told myself this is the clearly the wrong time to want such a thing. Well, I went ahead and made it anyway. That cake came out of the oven, Adrienne was at work, and I went downhill fast (well, it depends how you look at it really, I could say I went uphill, I was pretty happy eating it). I digress. Here is the dent I made in the cake.

I have been binge knitting. The kind of knitting where I don't leave the house. Not even to replenish my favorite cereal. I remember last year at this time I was in a knitting frenzy. Summer has always been a very expansive, creative time for me. I love all of those hours of sunlight. Do you find that there are times of the year when you create more?This is Wicked by Zephyr Girls. I am really enjoying knitting it. The pattern is written extremely well. I love the way they phrase their instructions.

Here is the Kusha Kusha Scarf, a Habu Kit. One strand of yarn is silk stainless steel. Too cool. I have always wanted to try this yarn. It adds a sculptural quality to the piece. The other strand of yarn is merino. Once complete, I will felt it. I have another Habu kit waiting in the wings. A sweater!

And, the finale for today: the Hanami. This is the first lace piece I ever wanted to knit. And, now I am! I love the pattern and I love the yarn. And the color of the yarn. I wish I could sit home for hours and knit this. Its the type of piece that as a good Catholic girl I would have to go to confession over -- to confess all of the bills I have blown off, all of the errands left incomplete, the dishes left unwashed, the dog left unwalked, the girlfriend left unkissed -- all while the yarn transforms from a ball to a stitch to a row to a pattern. The yarn I am using is a new product that I am offering. I call it Wool Silk Light Fingering Yarn. 65% Wool / 35% Tussah Silk.

Also, as promised, I uploaded the stock of our new Organic! Cotton spinning fiber. You can find it here. I really want to spend some time offering tutorials on the products that I carry. Hopefully, in the next couple months that will start.

WWKIP: SFMOMA here we come!

Saturday was WWKIP day. Basically, I love anything that has to do with fiber and socializing. Which is kind of funny, under most circumstances, I would consider myself an introvert. I guess fiber really pulls me out of my shell.

On Saturday, I didn't have any solid plans for WWKIP. The real issue is -- is that there are too many things I want to do and not enough time. I knew that really I should work, and continue dyeing for the Black Sheep Gathering but how can I resist a little knitting in public? I knew of three potential places that knitters were gathering. Knit-One-One in Emeryville, Memorial Park in Albany, and Union Square in San Francisco. All great places filled with great people, but we decided to do something altogether different. At 8am yesterday morning, the time of day when I get most of my ideas, I recalled Adrienne telling me that the SFMOMA is now going to allow photography in the permanent collection's galleries. So, I thought -- hey let's go and knit with the paintings!. We called Sara and we were off...

Adrienne with a Rothko.


Sara with a Joan Mitchell.


This is an amazing piece. These are silk flowers sewn together to make a curtain. Not like we haven't been sewing things like this since let's see eternity. But now a man has done it - so it's Art. Ooooh hiss!


I am with the Femme Au Chapeau by Matisse. Here she is looking at me.


And here she is looking at my shawl that I am knitting. I don't think she approves. She told me to frog it! How rude!


We couldn't leave spinning out. Moore. Calder.


Then, we went back to the studio to sort our new Cormo fleece (Cormo + Merino). As explained a few posts back, I wrote that I fell down and bought another fleece!! At least this time I took Sara down with me, and the nice Cormo sheep grower agreed to split the fleece. So, when all was said and done, I ended up with only a quarter of a fleece. This is kind of like telling a cocaine addict that one line won't really get you addicted. It's just recreational. So, here we are, high as a kite, sorting the fleece to be washed.


Then, Adrienne and I carried the knitting and spinning party to our favorite cafe, Bittersweet. It's a chocolate cafe! One of the breakthroughs to having my new studio, is now, I only frequent Bittersweet once a week instead of 5-7 times a week. This would be absolutely fantastic news except that now I have a new cafe I frequent, Cafe Clem. It is literally on the other side of my wall at the studio. It is a french cafe. You can imagine the pastries and cakes.



For everyone who is just tuning in, right below this post, there are details about a contest I am holding right now, let us know how you spent WWKIP day, and you will be entered to win a bundle of baby camel / silk spinning fiber.

For all of you who have already played, I have loved reading all of your comments about what you have planned for WWKIP day. I absolutely love to learn of all the different places people live. It has totally yanked me out of my bad mood!

Grand Opening of AVFKW Studio! Party!

Get ready!


Get set!


Go!

We are having a party this Saturday and Sunday, June 7th and 8th, to celebrate the opening of my new studio. I have been dyeing tons of new, beautiful fiber and yarn.

Fiber:
baby camel
yak
cashmere
silk
merino
bluefaced leicester
finn
shetland
polwarth locks
and more...

Yarn, the official release of our new:

organic merino worsted weight yarn
wool/linen sport weight yarn
merino/silk fingering weight yarn

Stop by for a drink, new yarn, or simply to chat, spin and knit a bit. We always love to see old friends and meet new ones.

When:
June 7 & 8
10-3pm

Where:
Activspace
2703 7th St #145*
Berkeley, CA 94618

* my studio is on the ground level, facing the Activspace parking lot. We will have a signboard in front of my studio leading the way!

We have been working hard and would love to share this with you. Please come!

Wednesday Store Update: SW Merino Yarn

New, fun yarn in the store! I have been spoiling the spinners for the past few weeks with lots of new fiber. Well, I certainly don't want to leave the knitters out, so this week, I have added 2 new colorways of superwash merino sock yarn.

Annapurna & The Seahorse

Over the next few weeks, I am going to be dyeing even more yarn. I am so exited. Honestly, for you and for me, I can't wait to knit more.

I will be back soon!

Hot Silk

I moved to California from Minnesota in 1996. Even though, I have lived in California for the majority of the time from 1996 until present - albeit a 2 year stint in India, and a half year in total spent in DC - I still introduce myself as a Minnesotan.

That being said, this past week has changed everything. In the Bay Area, when the weather report announces that it will be 100 degrees, I refuse to believe that it. No matter how hot it has been, my studio has always been something of an icebox. (We will get to studio related knitting projects in a moment.) This week, the weather report was accurate. This week, we had three days of more or less 100 degree weather. I was miserable. Gone is my hardy Minnesotan "weather is fun, it provides drama" attitude. I am here to announce that anything less than 60 is freezing and anything above 75 is sweltering. I hereby announce - I am Californian (northern).

The best thing this week has been spinning on my new Bosworth cedar midi spindle. We are in love. This is the best $50 I have spent in a very long time.

I have been spinning for the lace ribbon scarf by Veronik Avery.

Materials:
A Verb for Keeping Warm merino in Supernova
A Verb for Keeping Warm Tussah Silk in Headlands

Yarn:
2-ply, spun over the fold, fingering weight

I really like the bottom, right hand corner of this photo because it demonstrates the way the silk changes from a peachy-pink to a grey-blue.

The Maker Faire, It's the Maker Faire! A Contest!

Yesterday was Day 1 of the Maker's Faire. Today, day 2, come and visit! It is very, very fun. Very inspirational to see so many people come together to create and make unimaginable (to me) robots, contraptions, rockets, music, fire, bikes, and yarn (of course). Today, I hope to walk around alittle bit more and take photos. Yesterday, I was so overwhelmed with the sights and sounds, I could not really focus. With the one exception, I saw a werewolf! I had this funny urge to hug it?! Maybe a twisted memory of my childhood and Disney World. If I see him / her today, I will try to take a photo for you.


Here is our booth in the mid day rush. Let's play a teensy tiny game called "who can you spot?" Let me know if you recognize anyone in this photo. You will have until Wednesday at midnight (PST) to submit your answer to this blog post. I will draw a person, and you will receive a 2oz bundle of the lovely baby camel/silk tussah fiber.

Well, I better get ready to go. If you are coming to the Maker's Faire. We are in the Bizarre Bazaar building. Hope to see you soon!

Maker's Faire & CNCH

What? I don't know. What? This is what it sounds like in my brain. This is a snippet of a conversation I have with myself when I try to multi-task. Multi-tasking does not work. I want to believe it does. I once read an article in the NY Times that talked about how multi-tasking lowers your IQ. That all of these gadgets we try to use to save time, like the iphone, actually distracts us, dis-allowing (if this is a word) to never really fully focus on anything. Kind of like instilling ADD. Life has been a little crazy.

Maybe it is the weather, the shifts from cool to very warm, the wind whipping through today, lifting all sorts of debris. Yet, the roses are in bloom. They are so unbelievably beautiful their red, pinks, and yellows. Spring makes my senses swoon.

Part of the problem is that I have so much to tell you. And, I keep waiting for the best time to tell you instead of just letting you know. So, here it is!

First, I have to tell you about Y Knit. This is a new-ish podcast. They have 6 episodes. I love this podcast. I highly recommend listening. Witty and intelligent. Leather and Lace. Art and Craft. Listen and Laugh.


Then, there’s the studio. Adrienne and I have been working our buns off on this one! Yes, I am a perfectionist. I want everything done yesterday. I want the place to shine as if I have a million dollar budget. I want this space to look like I have lived in it for 10 years and it to look like a mixture of Wes Anderson's design sense (think Royal Tannenbaum's or the Darjeeling Limited - completely off the subject: not a great movie, but boy did I love the set design!) and some kind of obscure London textile gallery. OK, well this vision clearly takes time. It's something that I have to grow into, a vision that must be developed along time. At then end of the day, I only have myself to fight with, and really -- not so much fun.

So! I have decided that we must have a party! April is a little hectic. I will get to that momentarily. I am hoping to have the party in May or June. I hope, if you are in the area (read California) you will stop by. Details to follow in the next couple weeks. Stay tuned.

The 3 following events all take place on the weekend of May 3 & 4:

Maker's Faire: Bazaar Bizarre
San Mateo County Fairgrounds
I have never been, and am excited to be part of it. I hear that it is the Bay Area's wacky version of a science fair. I can't wait to see all of the zany inventions. Bring your drop spindle and join us!

CNCH Sacramento
Brooke and Maia will be representing A Verb for Keeping Warm and Tactile. This event hosts thousands of amazing weavers, weaving workshops, and a great array of fiber and yarn vendors.

Maryland Sheep & Wool
A Verb for Keeping Warm is making its East Coast premier! Our fiber and yarn will be available at the Cloverhill Yarn Shop booth. This booth is going to be amazing. Jolene has chosen to spotlight 18 independent dyers and designers. Hopefully, next year I will be able to make it out to Maryland. I hear the event is a ton of fun!


In other news, Color Fiber Festival, held last Saturday at PSR, was a great success. People brought their wheels, spindles, and needles and spent the day together doing what we all love and live to do -- create beautiful objects out of wool, silk, alpaca -- fiber! It was wonderful spending the day with the talented women of Tactile, Pigeonroof Studios, and Girl on the Rocks. Thank you to everyone who participated.

I hope to see you this weekend at Maker's Faire!

Color Fiber Festival: Spring 2008

I would like to invite you to Color Fiber Festival!



Expect a laid back day of spinning, knitting, crocheting, etc. Bring your wheels, spindles, and needles. We will be there offering naturally dyed fibers and yarn along with Tactile Fiber Arts, Pigeonroof Studios, and Girl on the Rocks. We will also be offering drop spinning classes and fiber tastings. I would love it if you can make it.

Let's get Physical, Physical!

Wow! It feels like a long time since my last post. Honestly, I am still getting my bearings straight post-Stitches. I had been working so diligently towards that goal, that now, I feel a little discombobulated. I imagine it is something like running a marathon. Training for months, engaging not only the physicality of it but the mental and emotional aspects as well. I have never run a marathon but for the first time in my life, I feel drawn to do so. Another form of process in which you can watch your mind, body, and emotion evolve.


But then it’s over, the goal completed, and for the first couple week, my muscle memory walks me the area where my raw materials live and there are none. I dyed them all. And. I am kinda crabby because I am overtired but am running on adrenaline. But then again, exhilarated because Stitches was more than I could have ever expected. Seeing old friends, meeting new ones.

I am completely taken aback how much talent is in this field, moreover, the fact that the talent continues to grow and broaden. I had the opportunity to meet Nicole and Jenny from the podcast Stash and Burn. If you have not listened to them, check them out. I have listened to them for years and love their warm, kind and personable style. Nicole just announced that she has started a new podcast where she talks about TV watching – I am sure it will be hilarious.




Then, there was the Passport (deserves a capital letter). When I mentioned the Passport idea to Casey and Jess of Ravelry, I imagined that we might have some kind of sheet of paper for vendors to stamp. Of course, as we all know from the stunning execution of Ravelry, with everything Casey and Jess do, they bring it to the next level; aesthetically, functionally, fairly, and otherwise. Once again, they took an idea, and rebuilt that idea into something far more than imagined. It was also great to meet everyone who came by with their Passports. If I stamped your passport, REMEMBER YOUR COUPON FOR FREE SHIPPING, EXP 4/30.


Thank you to everyone who supported my business at Stitches and purchased fiber and yarn. Now, I have more confidence in my business. I have a little more wiggle room financially. This week I made a decision that I have been fretting about for months. I rented a studio. I am so excited. I have a printer, with a press (this could come in very handy), on one side of me, and a man who makes custom dentist chairs on the other. Over the next week, I will be moving in, doing some minor remodeling. Hey, do any of you have a free electric stove hanging around your house?


So, what have I been doing instead of dyeing? I have been knitting!! I am so thrilled. I am so mad at Christina and Leslie! They have created this outstanding pattern, Carmen, (actually a series of patterns) that I can’t put down. Literally. Except maybe to feed the dog. I highly recommend their patterns. They are simple, straightforward, sophisticated, and use a surprisingly little amount of yarn.

This week I delivered 3 lbs of fiber at Article Pract. Stop by and check it out. More is on its way (if I can put down my knitting). Also, Piedmont Yarn Studio on Piedmont Ave. is carrying my fiber. Both stores have a very sweet, helpful staff, if you are local or are in the area, stop by and check them out.

More photos of knitting to come soon…

I knit.

On Saturday, I took the day off, hoping to take Cleo for a walk in the woods. We had grand ideas of heading north to Sonoma County. But it ended up raining, and for the Bay Area, cold. Instead, we decided to stay in the neighborhood and went to Redwood. The walk was great. It was quiet, the trees were glistening with drops and dew, their trunks covered with mossy fur. Adrienne has really been getting into mushrooming. As much as I resist a new hobby, its actually kind of fun finding little mushrooms hiding under oak leaves. Taking the time to notice the slight nuances and growth patterns means more to me than identifying them. I have been meaning to post about mushroom dyeing. Soon.

Adrienne has a friend who is pregnant, we were invited to her baby shower on Sunday. There is no way that I could allow this prime opportunity to make baby booties slip away. And, what better sense to make of Saturday's rainy afternoon.

Saartje's Booties
100% Blue-faced Leicester Handpsun
Naturally Dyed: Cosmos, Birch, Indigo, Madder, Logwood Grey

Happy New Year!

Hello and Happy New Year!


I gotta tell you it has been quite the year for me. Last year, on this day, I walked into my 9-5, and announced that I was done. Through.
Period. Usually during major life transformations, I am excited, anticipating the new next thing. But this time, I was terrified. And had been terrified for many months up to that day. Now here I am. A year later, still alive, eating, paying my rent. Less savings but much happier. Walking on my path in this life. Practicing my life's purpose. If you asked me what my life's purpose is, I am not sure I could answer you directly. But in my heart and in my body, I can feel it. It's amazing.

Adrienne and I had not planned on going anywhere for the holidays. We both desperately needed time to sit, relax, create. We don't do very well at that though. So, about a week before Christmas, we decided to travel to Indio, California to visit Adrienne's parents and family. Honestly, this part of the world is not my most comfortable. But we had a really good time. Her mom made tamales, lengua, and nopal salad. We soaked up the warm weather. Last Summer, Michelle Wipplinger over at Earthues did a series of dyeing workshops in Desert Hot Springs (not far from Indio). I am hoping she will do it again. That way we can see Adrienne's parents and learn more dyeing skills.

Later in the week, we went in the opposite direction of Indio to Nevada City in the Sierra foothills. Here, I finally get to some real relaxing and knitting.


And then there is the nature in the Sierras...


A teensy tiny piece of fallen fruit. An apricot for a mouse.






The view of the Sierra Valley floor

I hate how I can never capture the largess and beauty of the mountains. This is the best I can do at the moment. I hope you enjoy this little bit of nature. Next post I will fill you in my knitting progress. I will give you a hint: I am knitting an Anne Hanson scarf "That Little Scarf". That woman is too amazing! To be continued...

Thank You!

Thank you to everyone who came to the Winter Fiber Show. Thank you to everyone who helped us by telling a friend, listing this event on their blog, supporting us, etc. It was a great success. I loved meeting new people and visiting with friends. I have some great photos to share. My favorite is this one:

A DH holding his wife's fiber while she shops. He was totally great -- completely supportive of his wife's "habit". An enabler even, encouraging her to spoil herself! A prime example for DH and DW everywhere!


And, of course, photos of our offerings...fiber and yarn of course!




In other news, we had a little bit of rain here, which for us, that means "weather". It has been nice. I have been knitting. Arm warmers for my late night bike ridin' friend Meridyl.






And, while I have been doing that knitting, (time for a confession) I have been watching a very special TV show (especially trashy) called Tila Tequila: A Shot at Love. I love it (period) I hope Dani wins. Well, while we are at it, how about another confession, tonight is Project Runway. Another little addiction I have. If all of this confessing is bringing back memories for you of Catholic school, then confess away. OK, back to knitting, I came across this scarf on Knitspot the other day. Too darn cute. I almost cast-on immediately but called upon my self control. I have committed to a couple commissioned project and must/will finish them. Now, I have a reward for when I am through. What a good girl!

Winter Fiber & Yarn Show!

This weekend I am co-hosting the Winter Fiber & Yarn Show. I would love it if you stopped by to say hello, drink some cider, chat, treated yourself or a loved one with the gift of fiber and yarn.

If you are local, or know anyone who is local, if you would pass along this invitation to them -- that would be great!!

We are going to be at Glimakra Weaving Studio. This studio, in itself, is well worth the trip. Maj-Britt Mobrand, the owner, is a master weaver and can teach you possibly anything you wanted to learn about weaving and its heritage. Glimakra are a style of loom from Sweden. If you have ever been interested in learning how to weave, this would be a great time to visit the studio and meet Maj-Britt and the looms in person.

Then, of course there is Tactile Fiber Arts. They will also be there selling their beautiful natural dyed fiber and yarn, too. In other words, you will have lots of yarn and fiber to choose from!

Location:
Glimakra Weaving Studio
2728 MLK
Berkeley 94703

Email me with any questions!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving.

happy 30th techday

Try this experiment with your loved one. Describe and discuss, quite thoroughly how you perceive a website. Now make the website. And, look at the website, and wonder, did we really discuss this? I remember saying that I wanted the photos to be here, and the search bar to be there. . . and then do it again and again, and then start raising your tone of voice, and here and there start incorporating other tiffs in the house, like the time you left the dog puke on the floor instead of cleaning it up, and how that must be another example indicative of why the website looks how it does, etc. Yes, this was my household. But, now, as Adrienne and I, completely pleased with ourselves, snuggled into bed, we felt that we had left that all behind. We had finally made the switch to our new web store where all the programming would be in the hands of Yahoo. A place that I (not Adrienne and I) could simply upload new products. As I fell asleep, I smiled thinking about all of the dyeing and spinning I could now get to. The technical aspects were finally complete.

WRONG! When publishing my new store, yahoo changed the name of my blog, disabling all of the links to my blog. Nooooo, no more technical problems. No no no. And then there were the phone calls to Yahoo customer care. Let’s just say Texan accent, bad reception, code website speak, relationship politics, no dinner, late night. I think the best part of the conversation was when I was told by Yahoo “You can’t have your cake and eat it too”. I restrained myself from snapping back “it’s my thirtieth birthday this week, and I don’t want to hear those words!” But I didn’t. And, I had to compromise a la a splash page. Not my first choice – but I am soooo happy to have my blog back.

So, back to business, how is everyone doing? Fall is here. I like it – very cozy feeling. Like I mentioned before, I did turn 30 on Friday. This is something I have been really looking forward to. I spent time on Friday reflecting on some of the changes that have occurred in my life over the past year. Probably the biggest change in my life was quitting my “day job”. Last year at this time, it’s pretty safe to say that I was miserable. I didn’t want to leave my job but I needed to for my physical health and wellbeing. I was pretty crispy around the edges. When I did give my notice, on January 2, I wasn’t only giving notice that I was leaving my job, I was giving notice that I was going to live my life in a completely new and different way. This sounds very corny – but I am going to say it anyway – I decided to muster up as much courage as I could and listen to my heart. This will always be a struggle for me. I like to think about “the bottom line”. I desire stability. Risk makes my chest tighten. And my heart could give a shit about those things. Little by little, I am relaxing into those feelings, and in turn they feel less threatening. Point being, I am so grateful to be back in the fiber world and doing something that I absolutely love.

On the fiber front, I picked up the Alvros Sweater – love that thing! Love it. Love the pattern, love the yarn. I even love that it’s going to be a while before I finish it. I think this my first process piece.

The Tangled Yoke on the other hand. Not so much. The pattern is fine. But I am not happy with my choice of yarn. I chose to use Silky Tweed. I will be honest (here comes the bottom line). Well, I went with the Silky Tweed to save a few dollars. I have knit the body of the sweater and it just does not have the hand that I’d like it to have. I want it to be denser, woollier, cozier. So that being said – the Tangled Yoke is at a standstill for the moment.

I am spinning (and carding). Ramboulliet from the BSG. 2 ply. I think that I am going to make my little bro, Johnny, a sweater.

Well, that’s all for now. Sorry for the lack of photos -- next time I will treat you. I hope everyone is enjoying their Autumn!

Hide your fiber!

Because I am on a rampage and may put it through my drum carder. Listen to me, calling it mine. I was at my friend, Maia's today. She is on her way to Rhinebeck and has graciously loaned me her Patrick Greene drum carder.

The Beast:


My practice batt: merino, silk, carbonized bamboo, silk noils.


Have you ever seen a drop spindle look so happy?


Navajo-plied.



Knitty bo bits.

Maia better watch out I may hold this little beast for ransom until my lil' lady coughs one up! My birthday (30th) is coming up... In the meantime, thanks Maia.

Do you know what love means? Pomatomus of course!

Well, let's see where we are at with life. I shift from right to left in my chair, pull the chair a little closer to the desk, as it gently rolls back to the position it was just in, oh the pull of gravity, that's right I am on Earth. Proudly, I will announce I have been knitting. These days, although they may be full to the brim with fiber and yarn, I feel like it is as scrumptious as a dirty little secret when I get the time to sit down and knit.

I actually see the light at the end of the tunnel -- It's 2 FO's!


1. Pomatomus Socks -- I absolutely love this pattern. My brain feels like a sponge soaked with serotonin, or maybe it's more like my brain is a beach ball floating along a serotonin sea as I knit the lace pattern and watch the colors change along the strand of yarn. I literally knit in one position so long that my jaw became sore. Ah, the physical detriment of my addiction.

2. The damn Toe-Up Socks -- Again, 3/4 done with these suckers! Bored with the pattern, bored with the yarn, but oh so close!

Then there are the WIP, these have not faired as well, but will get much more love shortly:

1. Tangled Yoke Sweater -- on hold for the moment. But still as beautiful as ever.
2. Chevron Scarf -- I tell ya, this little f***er. I guess somewhere along the line, I added a stitch, because this scarf has gotten wider. I must frog and re-configure.
3. The Alvaros Sweater -- I am dying to get back to this sweater. I love this pattern, love the yarn. I miss you Alvaros!


Switching topics, on Saturday, Adrienne and I drove northeast to the Hoes Down Festival at Full Belly Farms. This is a 2 day event. And, just too much fun: farm tours, workshops on olive oils, wine, fruit trees, good soil, mushroom gardening:

3 stages with live music, bar-b-ques smoking with local food, beer, oysters, an herb yurt, a strawbale house, and tooooonnnnns of stuff for kids! Oh, and you can stay over and camp on the farm.

Here is an amazing woman, named Kathy Wallace, demonstrating her basket weaving skills:



WIP

Weaving Supplies

Probably my three highlights of the trip were:

1. Touring the strawbale house. Adrienne and I would love to build one of these in our lifetime. Complete with little strawbale cabins for our friends and family to stay in.

2. Listening to one of the owner's of Full Belly talk about how important their 200 sheep are to the livelihood and success of the farm. And, he didn't even know how fond I am of sheep and their wooly delights!

3. Learning about how the farm started, their fits and starts, and feeling completely and totally inspired to dream and create my fiber farm.


Farm tour: Who is that crazy lady holding a Pomatomus sock?

Knit me a home where the buffalos roam.

Well, I wish it wasn't but it is. This is our last night in Ashland. And we are listening to KD Lang singing covers -- playing name that tune -- trying to guess the original singer.

We've had lots of ups and downs on this trip. Which in some ways was expected. The back story: My mom, her husband, Adrienne, and myself decided that we would try to look for a farm together. Currently, my mom and her husband, Jim, live in Minnesota, where I was raised. I love Minnesota. It's beautiful, green, warm summers, and is affordable in comparison to California. Yet, I can not imagine living there now. Even as a child I felt the winter stifling and depressing. Sometimes, I tell myself that if I moved back, the close proximity to my family, and the ability to afford a home would make the cold worth it -- in my gut I know this is not exactly true.

I have this little dream of living in the country, dyeing fiber with plants out of my own garden, eating out of my garden, warming up next to a wood stove, spinning yarn, making art, sleeping under the stars, living like a recluse for a few years. Honestly, I enjoy checking out every once in a while. Allowing the world to go on without me. Giving my brain and body room to explore and expand. Yet, I freak out a little bit when thinking about leaving the city. What if I lose my grip? What if by the time I get back here, someone will have already cultivated my dream? How on earth am I going to make money living in the woods?? I live a paradox of loving the city and wanting to be in the middle of everything and checking out and living a little bit like a hermit.

Add to the equation that I really love spending time with my mom and want to live near her and her husband. So, here we are seeing if we can work out something. One by one, my mom and I eliminate potential states of residence. One of the first on the list for my mom and Jim is California. This is sad. I truly love California. Yes, as a lady born and raised in the Midwest, California can be a little kooky, a little too quirky at times. Overpriced and high maintenance. But then again, often times, I might use those descriptions to characterize myself. California's landscape is dynamic, the climate mild, the people energetic, creative, and forward thinking. All that being said, I've tried pushing but they will not budge.

Oregon (ashland)is one area that we agreed may work. Now, I have to admit, Ashland is about as California as you can get without actually being in California (sorry to any folks from Oregon who might get offended by this remark). There are a bunch of hippies, it's fairly liberal, geographically looks like CA, have good food, etc. Plus, they have the Shakespeare festival. I think that my mom and Jim like this area but I don't know that they love it. I think that they love Colorado. Looking at houses and farms, I think that we have found that we are looking for different styles of living. Adrienne and I want alternative energy, funky houses, uneven floors, crazy gardens. We did find some pretty amazing farms here that are doing just that. I guess in the end, Adrienne and I are going to push our dreams and continue our search. I want the easy answer, the straightforward path -- ha!

Anyway, I highly recommend visiting here. We went to The Tempest last night. It was amazing.

Today, we went to Crater Lake.






Cast-on: Tangled Yoke Cardigan in Silky Wool.

Cleo's Garter Pup Jacket

This is Cleo.

She has a new fall jacket.

We are in Ashland, Oregon looking for a farm. More to come soon...

Fiber Crazy at Camp Vejar

We've had a very exciting week over here at Camp Vejar. We built a mini-sweatshop. About two weeks ago, our friends Maia and Brooke offered us the opportunity to sell our fiber and yarn in their booth, Sincere Sheep, at California Wool and Fiber. This festival takes place in Boonville which is about 2 1/2 hours north of here. As to be expected, I was delighted and accepted their offer without much thought. Well, I have this part of my personality which goes into overdrive. Some may call it ambitious. I guess therapists may call it compulsive. Anyway, before I know it, I am in the midst of mordanting about 20 lbs of wool. The kitchen is completely trashed with dyes and pots and wet wool. The bathtub too. Adrienne is really an angel. It was kind of like camping but in our house.

The highlight of the week, after 8 days of straight dyeing, came when Adrienne took the bread out of the fridge to make toast, and said "Gee honey, there's even cochineal on the bag of bread". I, in the midst of dyeing, glance briefly over my shoulder, and say "um yeah". Thinking that it is like a drip or something and that she is overreacting. She puts the bread back in the fridge. A few minutes later I go open the fridge to look for some OJ. And, find "the accident".

I had made a titration of cochineal (beetlejuice), poured it into a Ball jar, and placed at the back of the fridge. For some strange reason, the fridge froze the cochineal, turned it into a cochineal icecube, which cracked the glass, and cochineal was _all_ over the fridge. Including in the veggie drawers, under the veggie drawers, etc. There really was cochineal all over the bread.

Point being, we accomplished alot. Here, is a glimpse of the work table.


I have to say I am really proud of our work. Michelle - thank you for helping me out!

70 Alpaca/ 30 Silk. Yarn perfect for shawl lovers. I did not want to part with this yarn.


Superwash Merino Sock Yarn in colorways Kyoto, the Revolution, and Trixie.


Bluefaced Leicester Sock Yarn -- sorry about the poor quality photo.


Wish these kids luck in the world, may they be beautiful socks, scarves, shawls, etc.

Out in the garden, we have more exciting things happening. Dye plants are growing like weeds! I love them. They are so beautiful.


Dyer's Coreopsis

Cosmos

Shungiku Edible Chrysanthemum

Adrienne is taking 2 horticulture classes. One of them is about building a greenhouse. And, she is going to grow another dye garden at school. Hopefully, in the next couple weeks, we will have some yarn and fiber dyed from our garden to share with you.

Pomatomus: You are a beautiful fish.

I have good news. I am knitting the Potomatomus Sock by Cookie A and can not stop. I love this pattern. It is interesting and I love to see the colors of the yarn devlop within the pattern. This is my first Cookie A pattern and I think she is a mastermind. I am using superwash merino sock yarn that I dyed with madder and cochineal. The name of the yarn is Indian Summer.

I can not pull myself away to take a photo but I will in a day or so and post it for you. I love big bright photos on blogs and am disappointed that I do not have to share with you at this moment. [Scratch that -- it is too depressing. I must insert photos]



I am going to try and take tomorrow off. This means that I will only skein and mordant a couple pounds of fiber and leave it at that. I look forward to seeing what Adrienne and I will come up with. We love to start projects -- and we need a new project like we need a hole in the head.

On Sunday, we are going to Maia's for a spin-in. This will be my first one over at her house and I am very excited. Little spinning wheel, where are you? How have you been?

This skein of yarn was our last foray together.


I don't know if I mentioned this but I bought a second spinning wheel. Did I say that I don't oficially have a job? Yet, I can not stop myself from buying more fiber related gadgetry. The very low price of $120 for a Louet S51 somewhat sealed the deal. It is so beautifully simple -- single treadle, the bare components to make fiber spin into a yarn. I had 3 ideas when buying this wheel:

1. Adrienne could use it. She now knows how to drop spindle and this wheel will be very easy for her to spin on.
2. I am toying with the idea of renting my friend's 1960's trailer in Nevada City. Yes, I said a trailer. BUT -- it is very very cute. And, it is in the country. And, it is 5 minutes from the Yuba RIver. I pictured this little wheel sitting in the trailer, waiting for me, and spinning in the country. Ahhhhh.
3. I thought that if someone wanted to learn how to spin, this could be my loaner wheel. Does anyone out there want some spinning lessons? Fall is coming... think how great a handspun scarf would feel.

I might as well come fully out of the closet...I also bought a Schacht rigid heddle loom for $50! That feels really good to say. yet again, do I really need this right now? At the store, I looked at it, and a bubble formed over it, and in that bubble my imagination took me to my famiily room, the loom clamped to my coffee table, I am watching trashy television and weaving very simple handspun white cloth. So, I bought it. Sick bastard!

The loom has been sitting on my living room floor for the past week. I walk over it, carrying buckets of newly dyed and washed fiber to the backyard. I resist putting it away because I really want to warp it ("it only takes 40 minutes to warp, and you can warp straight to the loom" the saleswoman exclaims). But when on earth do I even have the time to calculate a warp? Finally, yesterday, I stubbed my toe on the corner of the loom, I think tomorrow it may have to find a new home in storage. Loom, please don't look at me that way.

As an endnote to my last post, I replied to Ms. SJ's sweet message very simply letting her know that I did receive her message. She replied that the email was meant for internal use only, and that she does not know how I got the message, and she apologizes for that. However, her opinion is her opinion. Cheers!

My original question was never answered.

Needless to say, I have decided to not apply to the SF Craft Mafia Winter show. At this juncture, I want to focus my attention and energy on positive people, attitudes, and venues. The world is full of positive opportunities if you allow yourself to see them. I think that theoretically the SF Craft Mafia is a good idea and I hope in the future they will support new, up and coming artists and craftspeople. God knows if we don't support one another, who will?!

On that note, I hope everyone is creating beautiful things.

The Emotional Ups and Downs of Spinning and Knitting

Wow! It has been wayyyyy to long. From the ache in my back, I think I have been working too much. You know when you haven't seen a friend in a long time, and you don't know where to start -- that's how I feel right now.

Let's start right with this moment, where the wind has been taken out of my sails - I am awake this morning bright and early very angry. What a wonderful start to the day! Part of the reason I haven't been blogging is that I have been working hard on updating my website because I wanted to apply to the SF Craft Mafia's Winter sale. This was going to be my first attempt to get my product out to the public. So, I thought that I would pitch my products, and my wonderfully talented friends products, Maia and Brooke. They will be out of town and can not represent themselves and they have a great product. So, I wrote to Craft Mafia for their advice regarding how to apply/ proceed.

This has been our interaction so far:

Hi --

I am applying to participate in Mafia Made Winter 2007. My business's name is A Verb for Keeping Warm. www.averbforkeepingwarm.com

I have a question -- I am in a co-operative with 2 other businesses, Tactile Fiber Arts and Sincere Sheep.

I am wondering if it would be OK for me to represent our co-operative and sell products from all three companies. Unfortunately, the owner of Tactile Fiber Arts and Sincere Sheep will be out of town the 21st. All three companies have similar goals overall -- to offer earth friendly fiber and yarn products. More information can be found at www.sinceresheep.com. Tactile Fiber Arts currently does not have a website.

Also, would I apply as a joint applicant? And pay $95?

Please advise.

Thanks,
Kxistine Vxjar


And, this was their response:

From: Bxrbe Sxint Jxhn
Date: September 3, 2007 8:48:57 PM PDT
To: Kxistine Vxjar
Subject: RE: Mafia Made 2007 Question
Reply-To:

Well, I'm gonna vote no for her regardless of her coop businesses. Shes a
yarn spinner and she says WAY too cheap


Are you kidding? This is your response? hmmmmmm -- ok. what do I say to that one? I am having a very hard time trying to write something back even vaguely professional. This hits right on the edge of my personality that some may describe as sensitive and emotional -- a nice way to say bitchy and aggressive! And, why is she speaking to me in third person?? Do yarn spinners cheapen the DIY craft movement?! Let me tell you, when you are working your ass off -- it does NOT feel good for someone to call you cheap.

So, I thought I would turn to my fellow fiber bloggers for support. Argh!

On a happier note:

Brenda Dayne's new sock pattern, Brother Amos, has been posted. I am going to download it and hopefully start on it soon.

I finished a hat for Adrienne out of Judith McCuin's shetland yarn. She looks very cute in it.

I have been dyeing like a mad woman and having alot of fun. I really feel like I am learning alot about natural dyeing.

I have just cast-on Pomatomus.

My mom is coming at the end of September from Minnesota. We are going to Ashland, OR to look for a farm. I love when my mom comes to visit.

Black Sheep Gathering: The countdown has begun

OOoooh -- next week at this time, we will have just arrive to Eugene, Oregon for the Black Sheep Gathering. My mom is flying in from Minnesota on Tuesday. I can tell she is excited to come because she calls daily to tell me what we will be doing next week at this time. "Next week at this time, my plane will be landing", "Next week at this time, we will be driving up to Eugene", etc. Its very sweet.

We will drive half way on Wednesday and complete the trip on Thursday. I plan to go to sleep early on Thursday night and be up bright and early on Friday in time for the juding of fleeces to begin! This is my first fiber festival. I decided not to register for any classes although there were some that were mighty tempting. If there are still openings, I might attend the class named Organic Certification of Animal Fibers: Standards, Practices, and Considerations. Being that I do see sheep and a farm in my future.

If not full, I would have been very tempted to take Orenburg Handspinning. This is a type of Russian spinning that uses supported hand spindles to make lace out of the finest fibers like cashmere for lace weight shawls. Its funny. I don't think that my personality lends itself to spinning lace weight, knitting laceweight, or wearing laceweight, yet, I find myself increasingly drawn towards it. Maybe just for the challenge. I also think that I may be drawn towards the people who do spin and knit in this manner because I am in awe.

I think its interesting to think of how one's spinning may reflect one's personality. You know I joined the Spun Stitches SAL/ KAL to spin yarn for a shawl. I feel very lumpy among my spinning/knitting colleagues. They are spinning the most amazing, teensy, tiny, yarns. And mine, well, its pretty but lumpy. However, I do like the lumpy look. I could actually get defensive and say something along the line of "well, if I wanted to spin yarn that thin, I can" but really I don't find it fun. Every now and then, when I do spin something consistently laceweight, I can see the draw. I feel each individual fiber aligning just right with the fiber before it. I can feel the staple length. And, for a moment, I am pleased with being right there with my fiber and not caring how long it might take to spin 1400 yards. 1400 yards, oh my god, you might as well say 14,000,000 yards! My personality comes rushing back. My brain travels forward in its little time machine. I see myelf knitting and finshing. Then, my spinning flies forward into kind of lumpy bumpy. Oh, this feels more right, I am going to get to the next stage faster. So, I think part of my facination with these laceweight spinners is that they have fun making this kind of yarn. And, I would like to think that they are exemplifying the enjoyment of each minute, and each strand of fiber along the spinning process.

In saying all of that, the sheep to shawl competition is one event I am dying to see. This is a sport that I may actually get excited about. Instead of fantasy football, I could play fantasy shawl spinning. Expect to see a whole photo montage when I get back.

God, give me another set of hands please! Interweave Knits Summer 2007

It was gloomy and cold this morning. Adrienne, Cleo, and I decided to take a car ride over to Marin to Dharma Trading Co.. They are a great dyeing resource. Plus, their is an awesome Peurto Rican restaurant in San Rafael named Sol Food. At Dharma Trading, I picked up the Interweave Knits Summer 2007. I have to say its a pretty good issue. My only regret is that I am inspired but can't possibly start another project right now. AN extra set of hands would be prefect right about now. Instead of knitting, I thought that I'd use my inspiration to at least write about them. I want to make the Notre Dame de Grace. Oh, it look sso cozy. Motorcycle Chica Gloves -- hot! Garter Stitch Pup for Miss Cleo. And, Boot Socks. So if anyone out there is knitting these things, let me know. I would love to live vicariously through you!

Needless to say, the sun came out. It was nice and hot so we took a long hike in Woodacre. Knitting -- sunny hikes -- knitting -- sunny hikes -- how can one decide?