Happy New Year!

It's been way too long since my last post. I didn't even have a chance to wish anyone a Merry Christmas. Well, I hope your holidays have been happy and healthy. This last month has been incredibly busy! I started a new job a few weeks ago. I'm doing the same thing but for a different company.

I think it will be a good change but I still have a lot to learn. I miss my little blog family. Even though I may not respond much I still love to read what everyone shares.

I had some time off between jobs and used the time to catch up on my crafting. I made a lot of Christmas ornaments and started some new knitting projects. All that crafting made me realize that being a  crafter really is my true calling. Especially knitting and crocheting. I was in California and was able to visit one of my favorite yarn shops in Half Moon Bay. It's called Fengari and it's a dream shop for fiber lovers. I'll save my experience there for another post.

I don't make new years resolutions. I don't really believe in them. I mean, if you want a change why wait until the new year? So this is not really a resolution but, I guess, it's more of a realization. I realize that I'm a crafter. I love to make things. Beautiful things. I miss the crafting community. Maybe, just maybe, I can even find the time to open my Etsy shop again.

We'll see where this crafting journey takes me. In the mean time I'm going to pour myself another glass of champagne, make a toast to all of my blog family and friends and, wish you a healthy and happy new year!

Cheers,
Joane

Spring....bringing new things

Spring, time to start anew.....

Well, I have put my etsy shop on vacation. I'll leave it like that for awhile until I decide if I want to close it for good or not. Never say never!!! I've enjoyed the shop but, it is a lot of work and I just don't have the motivation right now. I've also given up my spot on the Moonlight Journey Design Team.  I love Becky and Lynn and I will continue to use and  promote their products but, I didn't think it was fair to be part of a team and not pull my weight.

So, this brings me to what do I do with my spare time? Well, I'm finishing up knitting a sweater that I should have finished months ago cause I wanted to wear it during fall and winter! It's the first sweater I'm knitting that I'm really paying attention to fit and made a swatch and adjusted the size according to the yarn and needles and all that. So far, so good with that. I'll have pics of it soon.

So, on to my next craft. I bought this by mail today:

I'm getting back into embroidery. I haven't done it for years! I actually learned how to embroider before I learned to knit. I think my mother still has my first project. It was a bunch of flowers in a little vase. I think I did it when I was around 10....

I thought this would be a good starting project. It looks like it has simple stitches and shouldn't take me too long to do. I'm thinking of going back to an all white bedroom and this would look quite nice on an all white bed with some white sheets with a crochet edging....ah spring!

My Return to Knitting......

I have finally organized my yarn stash and have vowed not to buy new yarn until I've used a good amount of what I already have (this vow is, of course, pointless if I find some fantastic yarn that's on sale!). So I've got my knitting mojo back and have started on a couple of projects. Here's a peek at what's in the works.

This is going to be a cowl that's knitted in the round. My camera phone doesn't to the colors justice for either photo but, this a yummy milk chocolate brown with little cafe au lait flecks. I can't even remember what kind of yarn this is, I bought it so long ago. I'm not sure yet if this will be a Chirstmas gift or something for myself.

I don't know why half the picture got cut off. Anyhoo, this is going to be a short sleeved sweater knit in stockinette stitch with a seed stitch border at the bottom, neckline and sleeves. This is a gorgeous merino wool in a pretty forest green. This is the first sweater in which I've really paid attention to using a guage swatch. I usually knit things that don't require an exact guage but, this is such nice yarn and the sweater is so simple that I wanted it to fit really well. I knit a swatch, gave it wash and counted my stitches. I decided to go up a needle size since I'm a tight knitter. 

 I bought this yarn at the Stitches West yarn show a few years ago. That's one thing I miss about living in California - The Stitches West yarn show. It is held in Santa Clara, only about 30 minutes from my mom's house. You could walk around all day and not see all of the yarn! I was a great inspiration to go. Well, it's a good excuse to go visit!

I think moving forward I'll keep two WIP's on hand to work on maybe on knitting and one crochet. I have a lot of skeins of a lot of different  that I think most of what I'll be making in the coming months are scarves and other accessories for gift giving during the holidays. I already have a couple of scarves done. It's nice to have an emergency gift on hand! I'll take some photos of those for the next post.

Happy Knitting!

The Joy of......

Knitting!

I know I recently asked if there were any knitters out there in blog land. I had finished up all the projects I was working on and found myself with empty needles. I received many suggestions from friends on Ravelry and have decided to make my first pair of socks and crochet this shawl below.

If your interested the pattern can be found here. It was designed by Lyn Robinson.
Knitting is.....relaxing, meditative. Especially if I'm knitting or crocheting something that has a straight garter stitch or single crochet pattern, something repetitive like that where you don't have to think too much is very soothing. Something about the fibers moving through my fingers and creating something out of a long piece of yarn is soul satisfying. I especially love using my bamboo or rosewood needles and any luxury fiber.

Knitting has made a pretty big come back in the last few years. Even teenagers are picking it up. A couple of PBS craft shows have  popped up dedicated to fiber arts and there are hundreds if not thousands of artists that are spinning, dying and painting fibers of all kinds. Not only is yarn coming from the traditional source of sheep but, there is yarn from different kinds of sheep. Oh, yes sheep, goats, bunnies, yaks, alpaca's are all shedding their furs for us. Did you know that you can even have yarn made out of your pet's fur? Yep. You can brush your dog, save the hair, send it off to be cleaned, carded and spun into fiber. And, dog yarn or chiengora and it is sometimes called, is supposedly 80% warmer than sheep's wool! Here's a photo of yarn made from a Newfoundland.

I've been to several fiber events where these vendors have shown samples of yarn spun from dog hair. I saw some beautiful white yarn that was spun from a Samoyed and, it was sooo soft.

I realize fiber arts are not for everyone but, I think everyone should try it at least once. Almost everyone I talk to about knitting or crocheting has tried it when they were little. Their grandma or aunt showed them. I remember having one of those knitting mushrooms when I was little. You wound the yarn around the spokes and went over or under with a little hook and you ended making a long tube. I also, had a teeny weeny sewing machine. I had a little toy oven too. Geez, was I a homemaker in the making? But, I digress.

My mom showed me how to knit when I was a kid. I fiddled with it on a off over the years and only really got serious with it in the last 5 years. She learned when she was in kindergarten. She said all the girls had to learn when they were little. I guess the thing with that is that it is something that has stuck with me over the years.

So get yourself some needles or a hook and some yarn and go for it!

Any knitters out there in blogland....

Any knitters out there? If so,  I have a small announcement that some knitters might appreciate.

I have nothing to knit! I have completed all of my WIP's and I have one UFO that I don't want to complete anyway as I don't like how it's turning out. I've been knitting for over 20 years now and, have always had something in the works.
What to knit now? I've taken up crocheting as well so a project there is an option. I have lots of yarn in my stash. A handbag maybe? Socks are something that I've never tried yet. I recently bought this pretty handdyed yarn from Penny Rose Yarns on Etsy

Any ideas?