Zeneedle...needleart as life

Everyone is Irish on St. Paddy's Day

Where's the green beer? No I didn't bake them...this domestic godess purchased them at my favorite bakery.

Enjoy your weekend!

March - Three of a Dozen

March is one of my favorite months and not because it's the anniversary of my 'Solar Return'.  It's the month the earth starts to awaken from its long winters nap, the when flowers pop up unexpectedly overnight, the potential of new growth can be seen everywhere, and the birds sing as if their lives depended on it.  Th light at the end of the days lasts long into the evening hours and the air is warm enough to bare the toes and arms. 

The sky yesterday was as clear as can be and the sun on my face was heaven.  March, it's the beginning of gardens, of vacations, and the summer fun to come.

Mwwwaaahhhh!!!

You all sure know how to throw a party!  You are all so wonderful and, like Vicki said in her recent post, I am amazed at all that blogging has brought to my life. I had a blast yesterday with all the good wishes and martini recipes that filled my email.  Thank you Carole and Teyani for that extra surprise!

The winners (drawn randomly) from the 'share your secret contest' are:
Susan, Rebekah and AnnieB63!!

Thank you everyone for sharing your secrets, giving a bit of yourself by commenting each day, and hanging out with me the last three years. And, thank you for the birthday wishes, too!  When I first came to Blogland I was nervous about showing pictures of myself.  I was old, you were/are (mostly) younger, smart, savvy and, well, intimidating.  I'm not easily intimidated and wondered at my 'shyness', but you made me feel comfortable enough to just be me and I've had a lot of fun being here with you.

As a special thank you for the great party you threw yesterday, I bring you "How to wrap your wife's Big Ass present", by Smith.

Find a colorful garbage plastic bag big enough to hold the gift. Place the gift inside the bag and tie the opening shut with a pretty ribbon. Leave at least 10" of bag above ribbon and cut every 5" or so to create the illusion of flower petals.

Take a black marker and scribble in the center of the tied section to create the illusion of a flower center.

Write Happy Birthday (or other greeting) on the side of gift.  Stand back and smile with happiness as your wife declares you very clever and covers your face with kisses.

Isn't Smith a cool, creative and clever guy?  The gift was a fancy, smacy radio for my 'now beyond junque and into major disastrous mess' room and it has the best looking remote control I have ever seen!

Thank you again for all the birthday wishes.  I feel like George Bailey at the end of It’s a Wonderful Life when his brother Harry propose a toast: "To my big brother, George—the richest man in town."  I truly feel like the richest person on earth because of all my friends, both real and virtual. 

To make life even richer I had my own Menage A Trois with Janice and Marge and the only thing better would have been a foursome with Vicki.  Plus, several friends will be coming to visit over the next few months.  Kim will be here on the 23rd so we can celebrate together on a day that falls right in-between our birthdays (hers is April 1st).  My dear friend Blogless Judyakathegoddess is coming to visit on April 3 (she's coming to SnB, too!).  Birdsong is coming a few days later with her hubby Glenn in tow and I'm trying to talk Stephanie into a visit, too.  Carole, the happiest spinner I know, is coming in September! That maybe a long way off, but it will be so good to see her smiling face again. And in June, there is Estes Park, another chance to hook up with more friends/bloggers!  Life is good...very, very good.

I recieved many wonderful gifts, including the delurking of many commenters. However, this one is 'pretty special'.  Susan had Amy dye this colorway just for me. It's so gorgeous and Amy did one better by calling it 'Utah Sunrise'.  It looks just like the sunrise I saw on Monday morning (through very sleep eyes).  I'm going to let it marinate a bit until it tells me just what it wants to be and then I'll spin it with intent.

The weather this week has been beyond beautiful and tomorrow I'm taking the work day off (there will be a 007 post just for you) to enjoy some pampering. A pedicure, fiber shoping (for others not myself-who needs not one more thing) and a nice long walk with Moxie (who's birthday was also yeterday!) will be the leisurely pace of the day.  Have a wonderful, weekend...I know I'll be smiling for the rest of the month!  The kid in me says I should find a mud puddle to play in and I just might! 
 

Age is a State of Mind

The great thing about getting older is that you don't lose all the other ages you've been.
-Madeleine L'Engle

Just me...57 years old young.

Spring!

I smell the warm earth.
I dream the promise of seeds.
Oh, garden muse sing!
Lark

Check out the big bunch of crocus on my side bar. They're in the neighbors front flower bed and every year the bunch gets bigger.  All this week the weather should be near perfection and I'm feeling a big smug and happy about that. It isn't every year that the 14th is a sunny day.

Kim asked yesterday if the mountain view was one I could see everyday from my home.  It is and I thought you should see the full view.  Imagine the mountains to be big and imposing rather how small they look in the photos. The view on the left completely fills my windshield as I drive to work. I am amazed when some one tells me they don't really look at the mountains.  How can you not!?

Spring may be here now, but as we know it's a total fake out on the part of Mother Nature. There will be snow, cold and unsettle weather before summer arrives, but that's the nature of nature...fickle.  I understand, as I'm feeling fickle, too.

Miriam had a copy of The Natural Knitter that I drooled and pored over on Sunday. It was full of great patterns and information, but the main thing it did was to help me decide to toss aside all my woolly knits (except shawls and socks) and start a new sweater for spring.  There is an all over cabled sweater (on the right) that Smith just might get one of these days. But, first up will be a Euroflax lace sweater called Memories of the Ukraine (couldn't find a picture to link to). It would be beautiful in the Aubergine Euroflax, which has been tried for a couple of failed projects and it sits waiting in my stash for something wonderful.

While I wait for the book to arrive I'm going to start the Lacy Waves Top from Lace Style in a bright and springy Silky Wool, color 35 Petrol (?). It's so hard not to start right now, but I will satisfy myself with the swatching.  This will give me time to finish Hidcote and clean up a few other messes around here so as not to appear completely fickle.

You really must see how nicely the socks for my Bloomin’ Feet pal are coming along.  The yarn is Cherry Tree Hill and the pattern is Ellen's Sock from Folk Socks by Nancy Bush. This is the back with the lace cable pattern on the cuff. Love the yarn, love the pattern and I'm enjoying every stitch.

Last time around I posted montages of the monthly color for Project Spectrum.  This time around, PS 2.0, I have neglected saying much of anything about it. That doesn't mean I haven’t been thinking about the colors for February/March of blue, white and gray.  In fact, as chance would have it, the sky seems to be made for PS this last couple of months.

Expectations

You come here on Monday expecting pictures of the mountains. So, here you go:

The view from my place and...

another from Solitude Ski Resort.
You may also expect to see pictures of the grrls I hang with on the weekends...

Mim, Blogless Val and I had a nice time sitting in the sun and chatting with Smith on Sunday.

You may come here expecting to see what I've spun over the weekend with the Saturday Spinners or the Woolpack Spinners.  So, here you go:

A nearly full bobbin of Forecast from The Spunky Club spun with....

the Woolpackers, Shirley, Tan and Cindy.

And this week you've come here expecting to see a finished Hidcote, but...what's that adage?

Oh yeah.  You're just SOL!

Let There Be Progress

A sure sign of impending spring is the increase of noise in the trees around my house as light filters into the morning sky. Each day I am greeted by the coos of mourning doves from the pine tree out side my kitchen window.  Their serenade is the soundtrack to my morning routine.  I will miss the early light as it fades with DST this weekend.

Despite the set back, Hidcote progress has been made once again.  Mim was good enough to understand my brain fart problem and set me on the right track.  It looks like I was right all along, but second guessing made for backwards knitting and well.... I'm still hopeful there will be a photo shoot this weekend (and breakfast in the canyon with Mim and Val).

Once Hidcote has seen the finish line, there will be a some good lovin' for Jóhö and I hope to not abandon her/him/it again.  Poor thing has been languishing long enough and I know that you, dear reader, are sick of the lack of growth.  Me, too. But, as I think about it, my thoughts turn to Knit Like a Latvian, so maybe I'll knit a mitten first.

The Bloomin’ Feet sock has been growing s.l.o.w.l.y and then I broke a needle while knitting during lunch the other day. (Proof of the hazards of carrying knitting around in your bag without needle protection).  I forgot to replace the needle, so growth came to a standstill. As Mim would say, *headdesk*. 

I've been searching for the right SnB project as the sock is hard to see and lace isn't 'crowd knitting'. Speaking of hard to see...I thought bigger yarn and needles would be better in the dark coffee shop, but that proved untrue. Oh, the hazards of aging eyes. At least the first sleeve of the Ribby Pulli has been started and I love, love, love it and Scout's dye job.

So the bottom line is...nothing I'm knitting is right for SnB and since we meet twice a week this is a big problem. It's a perfect chance to knit for a solid two hours so something MUST be done...a project must be found!  Stash Dive!!!  All of a sudden I'm seeing finished socks in Vesper yarn. There is a lone skein I have in my stash, which was a gift from Carole when she came out here last year for Estes. (I'm already planning- who's going?)  This should be just the right thing for SnB as I'll be able to see it! The colors remind me of a sunrise and a little extra morning light is just what I'm going to need.

Have a sensational weekend!

That Process Thing with a Dash of Good Stuff

I haven't had a lot of time with Hidcote this week until last night when I thought I'd make quick work of chart #8 and slip smoothly through chart #9, but that was not to be...I'm still on chart #8 unable to count, it seems. That doesn't mean knit this project has lost favor. There may be eleventyonebillion stitches per row, but I love every single one of them even when I need to tink back 4 rows  It's all part of that process thing.  I will go on and Hidcote will be ready for her big finish this weekend.

The simple act of wrapping yarn around the needle is reward enough.  The only reason to have a variety of projects is for different needs...it's very hard to knit lace at Stitch 'n Bitch, for example.  I will grieve when Hidcote is done, as I love the process of lace. However,  being able to wear this elegant shawl will be its own reward.  There will be photo shoot over the weekend even if I need to give up some sleep to make it happen. Dammit.

The other night at Stitch 'n Bitch Anne arrived with goodies. Since I won the door prize at  last months spinning guild meeting, it is my turn to supply the gift for this month, so I bought some of Anne's lovely fiber.  Some spinner will be the lucky recipient of this cinnamon Rambouillet & Hank the angora bunny fluff.  It's all I can do to give it up and I'm practicing the art of Zen and non-attachment (and some deep breathing)!  I'm afraid Anne's shop may be the death of any fiber budget I had in mind. 

However...Anne is a very kind friend and she gave me a bit of my own bunny fluff, an alpaca/angora/angelina bunch of lovely, lovely fluff. (Be still my heart!)  Oh my, you can BET I'll be spinning this with intent. Birdsong, who knew about Anne's appearance at SnB, took the opportunity to have her deliver more fibery goodness. This is Anne's hand dyed BFL in the color 'Giverny', which is perfectly named. There is just the right amount to spin and knit into a neck scarf.  It will be spun and knit with that intent so as to create a special hug from Birdsong. It may sound sappy, but I do think friends spirits are in the gifts they give.

While I'm chatting up my friends on-line shops I'll show the cute stitchmarkers that Jenn, KnitWit Mama, sent to me. Her business is really taking off and I can see why, as the makers are very well made and as cute as can be.  Moxie approves!

I had a very quick and enjoyable visit with Tracy on Monday. (She has a picture of us on her blog).  I was her enabler guide to some nice fiber and we both got some good tips from the lady in the shop (not the owner).  Tracy is going to have fun spining the colors and fibers she took home and I may have also talked her into joining Amy's Spunky Club. 

Spin It With Intent

...which is what Laurie said to me when I was bemoaning the fact  that I would not have another chance to buy more Indigo Moon fiber.  Her phrase stuck in my head and I've said it over and over to myself.  It not only has a wonderful sound to it, but it also gives one much to ponder, as in...live with intent, knit with intent, love with intent.  But my thoughts, at the moment, are in the context of spinning just Laurie intended.  So, the plan is to spin it with intent, as it is a very cherished bunch of fiber.   As soon as my skills are up to par and the perfect projects comes my way, it will be spun.

Laurie's words are now my mantra for all spinning (and maybe fiber purchasing, too).  Over the last few months I have spun with the intent of learning, experimenting and enjoyment.  The idea was to learn how Emmylou and I could work and play together, learn about the qualities of different wools, and learn to spin in general.  That intent has brought me far and I will continue with the intent to grow and improve.

I've been going to bed with Alden this week and find the book fascinating (now that I know what I'm doing, to some degree).  So much of what I'm reading makes sense, unlike the first time I opened the pages months ago. Others have surely compared Alden to EZ in style and wit, and like Elizabeth, he knows his stuff.

I finished spinning and plying the Bubblegum roving that may be a prize for the contest (see March 1st post).  I'm just not crazy about it (due to my skills, you know...the lack thereof) and think more practice is needed to get the hang of spinning superwash. For that reason it might not be good enough to give away.  The color does look good enough to eat, however.  I also ordered more bobbins and can know have a couple (more) spinning projects in process.

I just had to dive into Amy’s Forecast roving from the Spunky Club , as I could see the colors knit into Argosy.  (After seeing Laura’s handspun Argosy it's been on my list!)  I'll be plying in chain singles to keep the colors together and will enjoy knitting it and watching the diagonal bands form.

The small scarf  has been such a hit, and I've enjoyed wearing it so much, that I must make more.  To that end, I bought a beautiful fiber blend from Abby, with the intent of spinning and knitting something similar.  Because of the relatively small amount of yarn needed for a such a project, I may spin it on a spindle, as I so enjoy my spindles and intend to stay proficient.  To THAT end, I'm now spinning a beautiful blue roving on my beautiful Golding that Marcia dyed some time ago.  My next intent is to never sleep again...but that plan isn't working very well.

Theresa's boyfriend has turned into an intended.  Congratulations, grrl!!

Pieces of Work

Joan mentioned in the comments yesterday that she didn’t know that Piecework had knitting projects again.  It's true that in the beginning they had whole issues dedicated to knitting and many wonderful knit items, too.  For a time Piecework wasn't very interesting and many subscribers gave up on it.  Since I had every issue back to the very first, it was hard to stop, but just as I decided to not renew my subscription they improved greatly and I stuck it out.  It has been a great magazine which celebrates all needlearts and I’ve enjoyed it over the years. 

Nancy Bush has been a contributing editor for years (she's taken a leave of absence to write a book on Estonian Lace- WOOHOO!) and other knitters have been featured, too.  As with many of you, I have a passing interest in other crafts, and find the articles on embroidery, quilting and other handwork to be fascinating.  In the last year there have been some very nice small knit projects and while opening magazines for this post, I found a great mitten to knit for my Knit Like a Latvian project.  The newest issue has a lovely knit Victorian Silk purse that I may just need to make…for the fun of it.

I'm trying very hard to stay focused on the few things on my needles…and to keep just a few things on my needles!  Ellen's sock for Bloomin' Feet has been growing slowly, but I love, love the pattern and yarn and will enjoy having it along as a portable project over the next couple of months. (It's due May 1st.)

Both, the sock and Hidcote, are my main focus this week (can I, will I, is it possible, to finish Hidcote?) and this focus should prove to be productive. There are so many ideas, projects and even designs, bouncing around in my head.  Getting back to 'myself' has awakened my creativtiy and it feels good to be thinking again. Ol' James Brown's got nothin' on me (have they buried the poor man yet?)...I FEEL good...do-wa do-wa do-wa do....I knew that I would, now...do-wa do-wa do-wa.  Ahem, excuse me, but I do-o feeeel good.  Oh, and I'm on chart #8...two more charts to go. Do-wa do-wa do WA!

Run over and tell Marcia to have a Happy Birthday!  She's the best spinning enabler, teacher, pusher, friend anyone could have.  May it be a very, very Happy  Day, Marica.