Happiness is...

relative.

The children were delighted. Newman was tolerant. Pictures by Finn.
And, yes, those are my sunglasses. Now you know why I can't have nice things.




They've been laughing at these pictures for days. Even Addy thought it was pretty hilarious.

Wool and Wheel 101

For the second year in a row, my spinning wheel, some wool, and I visited Finn's preschool class. My presence was secondary - the wheel and the wool were the real stars.


The visit was a couple weeks ago - I, of course, forgot my camera. Fortunately, one of Finn's amazing teachers photo-documented my visit and printed out copies of the pictures for me. (Forgive the fact that the pictures are mostly of me - the teacher took numerous photos of the kids with wool, but I didn't ask the parents if I could post their child on my blog)

Hey kids, did you know that this yarn and this sweater used to be wool on a sheep?


Riveted.


My favorite comment of the day? "Finn's mom is amazing!"

Yesterday was Finny's last day of preschool. A bittersweet day - my middle baby is growing up, and for the first time in years, I won't have a child in preschool. I am going to miss that age.

It's Fiber Arts Friday! For more amazing fiber happenings, go visit the Wonder Why Gal's blog and link up!

HandmadeMN Spring Market Re-cap

I am continually impressed with the number of amazing artists in our community, along with the support of the public for our artistic endeavors. I really can't believe that I can count myself in their numbers. I was really feeling the love at last weekend's HandmadeMN Spring Market in Minneapolis. A super talented group of artists (whose work can be found through the HandmadeMN Etsy team), and some of the most enthusiastic and friendly shoppers I've come across.

Looking a little "deer in the headlights" here - still trying to figure out how to fit everything on the table!

I would never have made it through the day without my helpers - Allyson, for being there for the morning rush (and, taking some pictures - since I managed to forget my camera), Mr. Darcy, for braving the parking to bring me a healthy(er) lunch, and April, for providing the energy I needed to make it through until 5 o'clock. I couldn't have made it through the day without all of you - and you better believe I'll be calling on you for the next show.

Here's some more pics from my booth - courtesy of Allyson, who made everything look pretty darn good, despite the florescent lighting:










It's Fiber Arts Friday! Don't forget to share your adventures and see what other fiberistas have been up to!

Spinning Break

It has been a busy few weeks - Yarn Shop Hop, Holla Knits, and the Handmade MN Spring Market. I've done a LOT of dyeing, a lot of re-skeining, labeling, photography, and other things that go into making this little business go. And, now it is time to take a little break.

I had been seeing a lot of art yarn showing up on Fiber Arts Friday, and this is something my wheel (Ashford Country) is really made for, but I hadn't taken the time to really explore it. (While picking up baby toys, I noticed that my spinning wheel was literally gathering dust.)

Fortunately, I have really great friends/enablers - April found a copy of Lexi Boeger's Intertwined at Half Price Books and bought it for me. I've been pouring over the book the past few days, and started playing with the wheel yesterday.


My first coil yarn - made up of some uber-bright factory dyed merino, sari silk, and spun around an undyed sock yarn core. Don't know why I didn't try this sooner - I can't wait to get back to the wheel today!

Umbre Lovre Yarn Lovre winner!

The winner of a full set of Umbre Lovre yarn is....
Latte: "I love this pattern and the colors of the hand dyed yarn are gorgeous. I am so glad FaceBook had a posting from Webs today that led me to Holla Knits. I subscribed and am so excited!"

Congratulations! I'm sending you an e-mail right now to get all your details so I can send you a lovely yarn bundle. 


Get cracking on your Umbre Lovre and share the pictures on the Holla Knits Ravelry group - I'm dying to see everyone's color combos!

Ode to Knit Night

It has been a busy week around here. A lot of things have not gone to plan. And that can be discouraging. I was feeling drained creatively and beginning to question choices I had been confident about. I needed a good knit night.

 
A seriously good cup of coffee didn't hurt, either.

It felt good to laugh, knit, chat with some wonderful ladies - who were also kind enough to provide some advice. And, I got an excellent start on my Umbre Lovre.*


I woke up this morning with a fresh perspective, ready to take on the next week. I've said it before and will say it again - knitters are a wonderful community.

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

*Speaking of Umbre Lovre - the yarn giveaway is still on! See this post for all the details.

Baby Blanket for Miles

I finally finished Miles's pinwheel blanket. Exactly five months after I cast on, the blanket was blocking. Which is pathetic timing, but right in line with my usual baby blanket production (Oliver and Ian, your mom knows exactly what I mean).

I used a combination of Spud & Chloe Sweater in Chipmunk (I love their color names) and Sunshine Yarns Merino Worsted in Neville (which Finn refers to as the "rainbow yarn"). Since I was upwards of 400 stitches a round towards the end, I was thankful for the variegated yarn - watching it's color pattern come to life made 400 stitches of stockinette seem a little more exciting. I love the balance the colors gave each other - Neville livened up the Chipmunk colorway, while the Chipmunk kept Neville slightly subdued.


I don't block all my knitting projects - in fact, they usually go right off the needles and onto someone's body. But, this blanket is a bit like a lace shawl, where blocking really brings out the yarnovers and the edging. For those who are a little intimidated by washing and blocking your woolens, it's really quite simple to do - there are a couple great tutorials over at Susan B. Anderson and Purl Bee. I always weave in the ends after the blocking - otherwise I find I end up fighting with them during the blocking process.


Super cute baby with blanket pictures coming soon!