Livin' La Needle Loca

 ...and the Murphy bed is being installed in the studio today! The Murphy bed is the last big piece of furniture to install in the studio. With this installation, I can remove the final boxes from the POD and we can send it on it's way! I'm so ready for the POD to be gone.  The Husband did a stellar job of getting rid of the big box of melt-and-pour soap supplies. He posted them on Nextdoor and a woman came by yesterday and took them all. Hooray!  The last things I need for the studio are the folding room divider that will double as my quilt wall, a coffee/tea station with a mini-fridge, and blinds for the slider. The room divider is in my Amazon wish list, as are a couple of options for the coffee station. On my to-do list is a call to the samr company that did the blinds for my kitchen. Getting closer and closer to done! TdF 2026, Day 4, 7/7 I finished spinning the singles for Gypsy Rose Lee [ Ravelry ]. I'm going to hold off the plying becau...

 ...spinning away! TdF 2026, Day 2 7/5 Started spinning the singles for Gypsy Rose Lee [ Ravelry ], a merino-silk from the Yarn Wench.   TdF 2026, Day 3 7/6 Continued spinning the singles for Gypsy [ Ravelry ]. Pulled some beads that I think would look like a good addition during chain-plying.

...and we're off! I started the Tour with an art yarn, like I have in many years. It was particularly important since I haven't spun in a while.  I decided to pull all Yarn Wench fiber with colors that sound like people names. This is Desiree [ Ravelry ] and the close up: Specs: Started and finished 7/4/2026 Falkland (4.0 oz.) from The Yarn Wench 37.5 yds., Super Bulky, 5.0 oz total Plied with Berroco Quest in Magenta

 ...and it's a quick one. In our garden, the gladiolas continue to pop up. This pink and yellow one is particularly lovely: In the studio, I'm still wending my way through boxes of packed tools and stash. I finally got a delivery date for our bookcase/Murphy bed combo (next week) so I know that we can soon get rid of the POD in our driveway! It's been there since the end of September. I'm tired of parking my car on the street!

...Happy July! I'm spending part of my day photographing the fiber that I want to spin for Tour de Fleece and getting it loaded into Ravelry. TdF starts July 4th and runs through July 26th. My goal is to spin down my Yarn Wench stash, but I might throw in a Greenwood Fiberworks braid if I get tired of spinning Falkland or art yarns. One thing I haven't talked about yet is the old project that surfaced during my unpacking the studio. In 2001, a co-worker and I started a cross-stitch baby afghan. We used the Alphabet Mania Charts from Heart in Hand. We each did two or three letters at a time. The charts originally called for Weeks Dyeworks threads, but that's not the best choice for a baby afghan because the threads tend to run when washed. We switched to standard and variegated DMC colors, which are more colorfast. In addition, we weren't happy with some of the letters. We changed J from jingle bells to jack-o-lantern and K from key to to ki...

 ...very late, but at least I got it in before I had to do June's! Finished: 5/11 Emotional Support Chickens [ Ravelry ]  Books: Return to Rosewood Beach, Fiona Baker Sea Glass Serenade, Fiona Baker A Place for Daydreams, Fiona Baker A Bright Winter Season, Fiona Baker 26 Beauties, James Patterson Archangel’s Eternity, Nalini Singh Otherwise Engaged, Susan Mallery The Beach Shack Circle, Cindy Nichols Saltwater Dreams, Mia Kent Sins in the City, Elle Gray Songs of Summer, Katie Winters Practical Hexes, Kim Richardson Magical Mojo, Kim Richardson You can Tell Me, Melinda Leigh Bound by Fate, Annabel Chase Bargain with Fate, Annabel Chase Started: 5/8 Emotional Support Chickens [ Ravelry ]  WIPs: California Red Poppy Handspun (spinning) [ Ravelry ] Illusion Cube Blanket (knitting) [ Ravelry ]   Morgana (cross stitch) My Recipes (cooking) Starwoman (cross stitch)  Website (ot...