Thursday, November 12, 2015

SAFF Sweater and an Unexpected Dog


 So, in the car on the way to SAFF, I finished my sweater just as we got to Asheville. I immediately put it on and wore it about the delightfully Southern/hippie/artist town. I felt very much at home. We stopped at the awesome Tupelo Honey Cafe when we got there and afterward I got to toodle around town in my new, though unblocked digs. Here it is in it's washed and blocked glory.

I love the saddle shoulders and though it's a bit shortish, I think I will keep it that way. This is the Seamless Saddle Shoulder Pullover by the legendary EZ. I used Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Superwash in the Garnet Heather color, about 754yds.


The first batch of Delphi & Delos is done and I love how it turned out. The picture doesn't really do it justice. There's a richness to how the two colorways blend together that I can't quite capture. 

In other news, we have a new family member. This is Rufus, a sweet, chill, little pug. His former owner, Randy, was the person who introduced me to John. Randy passed away this week and this little snerfledog needed to go to a family who would love him and be his forever home.
It's a big adjustment for me, but the kids fell instantly in love and he seems to be settling in pretty well.

We also had a Nutcracker Tea this week. Bu dressed up for the occasion.
And so did Iris. (The lady to the right of Iris with the fascinator on is Bu's dance teacher.)

A good time was had by all. There were nutcracker-appropriate snacks and an abbreviated version of the ballet for the little dancers to watch. Iris did such a great job and Bu was totally into it once the dancing started.

Thursday, November 05, 2015

And now, for a little dancing

My hair is askew, but I don't care. (that's a lie. I care a little). So, the besties and I went to SAFF this weekend and it was awesome. So. Much. Yarn. & Fiber. I came home with quite a bit, most of which will add to my spinning queue. I tended to focus mainly on fiber over yarn, but I brought home a little bit of yarn, too.

Mom kept Bu for the weekend and all reports are that they both had a fantastic time. The big one went to a friend's so that they could have too much candy and stay up too late. Poor Dear Husband was working, but other than that, most of us ended up doing the thing that made us the most happy and the weekend was a rousing success all around.

That's the majority of what I picked up, including the red/orange that was so dubbed "Flaming Bison" by me and approved by the gentleman at the booth. I loved the Brickless I finished back in June, I think, or else late May, one of those, and it had been done in a lovely blue bison yarn. The red/orange is of the same type, but a much more "call the police and the fireman" color.
Not pictured are two bumps of Huacaya alpaca, one in white and one in cream that are going to look awesome plied together in a subtle-paca sort of way.
My current active project is 8oz of Elizabeth (mixed light and dark BFL) by Rain's Obsessive Stitchery, four ounces in Delphi and four in Delos to be plied together. I am so compelled by the colors that they went to the front of the queue as soon as I got them.
They share some colors and were dyed as "siblings" meant to be together, but would be gorgeous on their own, too. Delphi and Delos are sacred to Artemis and Apollo and I wanted to make some yarn that represented their relationship.

Part of me gets the feeling that the reason Artemis never married is because she was the midwife to her brother and she was so awed by the beauty of him (which, if you've ever been in a delivery room - that feeling. You know that feeling) that no man, mortal or immortal, would ever be someone she could love that much.

So, yeah, yarn.



And these lovelies, another braid from Rain in her Edward base in the Cardiff colorway, are going to be knit up into Crackerjack for the 2016 Chicago Cubs season. I have some silk (white), some merino/yak/silk (grey), and some cashmere (red) that shall accompany it.
Next year looks good.

I'd be showing you a sweater, but I have to block it. My mother* told me to.

*And by "my mother," I mean the lady in the art store who saw it mere minutes after it was finished.

Now for a little dancing: