Monday, April 30, 2012

how I spent my weekend...

...AKA as the Great Fabric Refolding Project. Here is a quick glance:

Fabric Folding Project


I used about 150 of the 200 comic boards I ordered from Amazon. Obviously, what you see above does not represent 150 fabrics...let's just say the rest are hidden from view.

 I'll need more boards as I still haven't touched the Christmas fabric.  I ordered 200 more...yeah, I'll be folding fabric for a while.

Amazingly enough I managed to get a few chores done. I also made the Husband's day when I went through about 20 years worth of files that had stagnated in a couple of rolling file folder organizers. Most of it got recycled...no point in keeping old notes from  my System 3-V UNIX days! I did find some old pictures that I though I'd lost, so it was a WIN all the way around.

The Husband made great progress on pulling up the old floor in my future studio. We need to move some bookcases so he can continue. That means going through about 200 cookbooks.

Goodie!! More purging and organizing! Love.It.  (Really!)
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Friday, April 27, 2012

Eye Candy Friday, blog and run...

...because the day escaped me.

Petunia:

Red petunia

Pink snapdragons:

Pink snapdragons

Pink celosia:

Pink celosia

Up this weekend:  The continuing reorganization of my stashes. I have  a lot of fabric to fold an then some yarn to sort through. It's slow-going, but worth it in the long run!
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Wednesday, April 25, 2012

WIP-it Wednesday...

...and there are no new WIPs to show. Here's what I've been working on:
  1. Carousel Socks [Ravelry]. I am getting closer to having the left cuff be the same length as the right.
  2. Avila Beach handspun [Ravelry]. I finished plying it, but I'm not completely happy with it. I still struggle with two-ply yarn...I either over-ply it or under-ply it. This time it's under-plied, which is not terrible if I use it as weft. I need to decide whether I'm going to add a little more twist to it before I declare it "done."  I do love the way the colors blended together.
  3. Fabric stash: I'll start working my way through the larger cuts of fabric now that I received my shipment of comic book boards. I read about making mini-bolts using comic book boards in this post in the That Girl...That Quilt blog.

    Amazon had the boards...I ordered 2 packs and they arrived yesterday. Can't wait to try them!
Crafts will be put on hold today, though. It's The Husband's birthday and we are going out to dinner at a restaurant of his choice.  I'm looking forward to that!
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Monday, April 23, 2012

OK, so maybe I have a little fabric stashed...

...

Fabric stash

Boy, do I need to get cracking on a few quilts! LOL!

I spent a good chunk of the weekend folding fabrics and organizing them by color and by theme. The smaller cuts are all folder to the same size and should stack nicely on shelves.

If' you'd asked me last week, I would have told you that a have mostly smaller fabric piece...you know, fat quarters and half-yard cuts. That would have been a lie. See that chair with the box of fabric in front of it? Those are all 2+ yard cuts of fabric. Whoa.

Oh, and this isn't all of the stash.  I've barely scratched the surface of the baby fabrics and haven't touched the Christmas fabric yet. Of course, I have been collecting fabric for well over 20 years.

I could open a fabric store...
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Friday, April 20, 2012

Eye Candy Friday...

...and it looks like it will be a beautiful weekend. Yay for spring weather!

The husband has been busy planting flowers and I managed to capture a few of them this morning.

More daffodils are blooming:

Daffodil with a pale center

The columbines are back:

Columbine

And so are the irises:

Iris, close up

This nicotiana is a nice addition:


Nicotiana


Up this weekend: More organizing! I need to start purging cookbooks and some of the things we have stored in my soon-to-be studio We have a bunch of cr@p stuff we haven't looked at in a long time...old technical books and software, papers, etc. (I know I don't need to keep old versions of FrameMaker, I've just never gotten rid of them!)

I also need to go through the things that landed in my sewing room because there was no other place to put them. I have a couple of new organizer cubes that I'm going to start filling with some of the loose things. I know...it's just the tip of the iceberg!

On the spinning front, I started plying Avila Beach last night and will finish it some time this weekend. I'm feeling the need to weave and have some yarn already wound and ready to warp. We'll see if I get that far...my little Virgo heart loves organizing and I might not be able to stop myself!
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Thursday, April 19, 2012

apparently, I needed a longer break...

...because it's Thursday and I haven't posted yet this week. BY the time I think of posting, it's the end of the day. [sigh]

So in no particular order, here is an update. Warning: Cookie A and Pro-Verbial club spoilers ahead...
  1. Taxes were filed on time, thank goodness!
  2. No needlepoint has occurred. I just didn't feel like working on the piece. Maybe it's because I am uninspired by the color combination in Anasazi.
  3. I'm working on the Carousel Socks [Ravelry] again. Here's what they look like so far:

    Carousel socks as of 4/7/12

    I am working on the left cuff to get it to the same point as the right cuff. Then I will start knitting them two at a time. It's just too slow to do them one at a time.
     
  4. I finished the spinning the singles for Avila Beach [Ravelry]. I't will become a two-ply yarn when I get a chance to ply it.
     
  5. I received my Pro-Verbial Club installment for April. I love the pattern [Ravelry] and adore the fiber:

    Pro-Verbial April 2012 Installment

    The biggest challenge will be to spin 520 yards of a two-ply, high twist yarn from 4 ounces of fiber. Yikes!
     
  6. I received my Cookie A Sock Club April installment. The patterns are cool and I love the yarn color:

    River Styx Sokkusu Original yarn

    The yarn might become something woven instead of socks, but I'm not sure yet.
     
  7. My studio is slowly becoming a reality. We sold 2 pieces of furniture that will not stay in the room. We're trying to sell a u-shaped desk now. There are at least 3 bookcases, 100+ cookbooks, plus lots of cross stitch stuff that still need to go.

    The Husband and I went to Lowe's  and Home Depot to check out flooring options, siding doors, and paint. I think we found some 18x18 vinyl tiles that will work for the floor. I picked up a few paint samples for the walls....I'm thinking a pale sage green.
     
  8. I packed up the rest of The Daughter's things that she left in her room. Her room is now the Husband's office. It already has a nice sized desk in there and he'll need a bookcase. He can probably use one of the bookcases from the other room unless it will take up too much space.
At any rate, that's where I am.
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Friday, April 13, 2012

so I took a little blogging break...

...for no particular reason. Easter weekend was busy between Spin-In and Easter brunch.  I just didn't have the energy on Monday or Tuesday to post. Before I knew it, it was Friday and I still hadn't posted anything. While I have been working on our taxes, it has not totally consumed my time. I guess I just needed a break!

Most of today's eye candy comes from a tulip bouquet that the Daughter gave me for Easter. The flowers are now coming to the end of their lives. They have been a colorful reminder of spring during these rainy days.

Here's part of the bouquet:

Easter tulips

A purple tulip taken a couple of days ago:

Purple tulip 1

And the same tulip this morning:

Purple tulip 2

An orange tulip:

Orange tulip

and a pink tulip:

Pink tulip

The lavender has begun to bloom in the front yard, too:

Lavender

This week has not seen any progress on the Carousel socks or my needlepoint. Of course, there was spinning on Saturday. I've done a little reading, but not any more than I normally do. Mostly, I've been cruising Pinterest and flagging ideas for my studio, which is rapidly becoming a reality.

Up this weekend: I need to finish the taxes and eFile them. Then I'll tackle the Daughter's old room. She left behind some of her paperwork and other things that will not fit into her small 1-bedroom apartment. Some items can go into storage, but I need to find a home for the paperwork in the house.

The good news is that most of her stuff is concentrated around her desk. She took most of her clothes and shoes with her. Plus, there are a number of things in her room that will get moved into my studio. I just need to make sure that they are clearly marked!

I need to purge some of my cross stitch stash. I have a 5-drawer filing cabinet full of cross stitch charts and I really only want of keep one drawer of them. We won't even talk about the other cross stitch kits and supplies I have...I hardly cross stitch any more. The supplies are just taking up space at this point. I'd love to sell them or donate them to some charity. I've already donated all of my cross stitch magazines, small kits, and about 100 charts to the local EGA chapter. I don't think they can absorb very much more! I'll take any suggestions!
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Friday, April 06, 2012

Eye Candy Friday...

...still having trouble believing it's April. Guess I better get working on the tax return!

For today's eye candy we have Marionberry blossoms:

Marionberry blossoms

This is in our front yard along the common wall we share with our neighbor.

An orange rose:

Orange rose

This is in our neighbor's front yard. The roses are lovely shades of orange. I don't really like orange, but these roses are beautiful.

Up this weekend: Spin-In on Saturday! I need to figure out something easy to make because I have lots of other things to do that day. I'm looking forward to spinning,

On Sunday, we are doing Easter brunch for the Daughter and The Husband's parents. That means a little house cleaning has to happen on Saturday, as well as preparing some food ahead of time. We're having Eggs Benedict, cheese quiche, and fresh fruit. I've made Eggs Benedict a million times,  but never for company. Here's hoping the poached eggs turn out company-worthy!
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Wednesday, April 04, 2012

March 2012 Recap...

Finished:

  • 3/4 Nefertem Shawl (knitting) [Ravelry]
  • 3/17 Color and Weave Mini-tote Bag, Stitches West class (weaving) [Ravelry]
  • 3/24/12 Muir Woods Moss handspun (spinning) [Ravelry]
    Merino-Bamboo top by Royale Hare;
    245.6 yds 2-ply, WPI 13
  • 3/25 Occidental Orchids handspun  [Ravelry]
    Merino-Bamboo top by Royale Hare;
    156.3 yds chain-ply, WPI 11
  • Books:
    1. Archangel's Consort, Nalini Singh 
    2. A Perfect Blood, Kim Harrison
    3. Archangel's Blade, Nalini Singh
    4. Fair Game, Patricia Briggs
    5. Falling for Rachel, Nora Roberts
    6. Nice Girls Don't Bite Their Neighbors. Molly Harper
    7. Minding Frankie, Maeve Binchey
    8. Confessions of a Prairie Bitch...,  Alison Arngrim
    9. Angels Flight, Nalini Singh
Started:
  • 3/17 Muir Woods Moss handspun (spinning)  [Ravelry
  • 3/8 Carousel Socks  (knitting) [Ravelry]

Worked on:
  • Anasazi by Susan Portra (needlepoint)

Works In Progress, did not work on:
  • Cazadero Mist handspun (spinning) [Ravelry]
  • Seaweed Cardigan (knitting)  [Ravelry]
  • Happy Pumpkin Scissor Fob by Shepherd's Bush (cross stitch)
  • Isonzo Merino-Bamboo top (spinning) [Ravelry
  • Jungle Songs quilt
  • Natural Dyes batts from Yarn Wench (spinning) [Ravelry]
  • Peacock Pomatomus socks (knitting) [Ravelry]
  • Royale top, 2 oz (Merino-Yak-Silk) top from A Verb for Keeping Warm [Ravelry]
  • Sea Foam Wrap (knitting) [Ravelry

UFOs:
  1. Chasing Rainbows Heather--one Merino-Bombyx (2 oz) and one Merino wool (2 oz) (spinning)
  2. Peacock Majesty by Just Nan (cross stitch)
  3. Violet Needle Roll (cross stitch)

Tuesday, April 03, 2012

playing catch-up...

...wow, that one week of blasting out a client release played havoc on blogging! Let's catch up.

I finished some spinning, but didn't have a chance to photograph it until now.  Here is the Muir Woods Moss handspun:

Muir Woods Moss handspun

and the close-up:

Muir Woods Moss handspun, close up

Specs:
Started 3/17/12;
Finished 3/24/12;
Merino-Bamboo top by Royale Hare;
245.6 yds 2-ply, WPI 13

I finished Occidental Orchids:

Occidental Orchids handspun

and the close-up:

Occidental Orchids handspun, close up

Specs:
Started 2/18/12;
Finished 3/25/12;
Merino-Bamboo top by Royale Hare;
156.3 yds chain-ply, WPI 11

The company party on Saturday was fun and my mini pineapple upside-down cakes turned out yummy:

Mini Pineapple Upside-down Cakes


The March installment of the Rockin' Sock Club arrived (click the spoiler picture to see it) :

Rockin' Sock Club 2012

The yarn color and patterns are OK...they are not really me. However I think the yarn might make an interesting weaving project if I pair it with a matching color.

I can't think of what else I missed, other than the recap. I'll get that posted soon.  I'm glad it's craft night...I can work on a project at last!
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Another Finished Object...

 ...yay! I finished the first yarn on my new Lendrum DT. I tried a 2-ply and it turned out OK. Using the plying head was not as smooth...