Knitty Kitty

no sheep for me

i think i have decided not to go to the MD Sheep & Wool festival. it would just mean too much money for a) yarn and b) hotel (unless i sleep in my car, or drive back the same day... yikes!) it's just a little too far.

but - just thinking about it has my wanderlust activated and i need to go somewhere. especially because the weather is so beautiful.

so it's a beltaine (may-day - a pagan holiday) celebration in either long island or new paltz.
i will probably spend money there too, but not as much as MS&W, and both are about 1.5 hours away so no need for overnight stays.
they both sound like a lot of fun, now i just need to decide which one to go to!! i'm leaning towards LI.

(hmm.. thinking of photos of WIP i need to post.. i remember pics i took at the NYC pagan pride festival of a gorgeous young man who looked like he walked out of a "midsummer nights dream". i'll have to share him with you!)

for tonight i am going to the company softball game, where i will probably knit because i am not a sporting person. i am prepared to be mocked. but i don't care. because knitting is sexy dammit.

Charlotte's coming!

yay! i won "wildberry" (just posted below!)

of course as soon as i sent the email i second guessed myself and thought i should have gone with another... but - i was the first to ask for wildberry, and i am very happy with it!!! it will go with enough things i already own, but is different enough from my "typical" color rut i was in. i love the greens!!

ok it's about 95 degrees inside our office again so i am outta here. off to SNB! later.

i swear i check threadbear's blog over a dozen times today - so how the hell has it been 2 hours since this was posted???

i emailed, but considering the other morning, they were all gone within half an hour, i doubt i'll get it. it's SO much stress and pressure to wait wait wait - then have to decide between all the yummy colorways immediately for fear of someone beating you to it! this is WORSE than ebay with 30 seconds to go.......

be afraid....

be very very afraid.

this is going to give knitters a bad name.

(thanks christina for warning us!)

festivals

hmmmm.... i could actually drive to MD this weekend couldn't I?

or should i save my money for the yarn crawl?

also, found out there is a festival at my alma mater, Bucknell, in july.

hmmmm...

anyone up for a ride from NJ to MD this weekend?? we can split the driving/knitting time....

Stalking

ok i really hadn't paid any attention to the charlottes web shawl. but i saw the brew-ha-ha at KR and i was curious. found rob's blog and the colorways matt has pulled for charlottes web - which are snatched up faster than they can post them.

now i am obsessed with it. i hear it's a good first lace project. and it doesn't look like frilly fru fru lace. (not that there's anything wrong with that, but i don't see myself actually wearing it.)

so now i am stalking rob's site because when he posts the colorways, first to email is the first to get it. (and i expect these may be slightly faster than the custom ones, since they are already pulled. but i can wait.) and the price seems reasonable ($52 incl. S&H).

i just can't decide on a colorway - do i want more neutral

my typical purples and blues (tori colors, as monica calls them!)

or something completely different???

argh. what's a girl to do.

i guess stalk rob and jump at the first one that really calls to me!

Morning!

sorry about the poor quality thumbnail of Pearl yesterday - but if you click the photo you'll see the good copy.

on sunday night i made what i am calling my "prime time" scarf. i wanted a long skinny scarf (remember how i almost redid the tori shawl?) and my large projects weren't giving me the immediate gratification that i need. so i started it just before 8 pm. stopped knitting around 11, and put fringe on. i'll post pictures (i swear i will.... eventually) but it is about 12 feet long! (size 17 needles, 12 stitches.) i love the colors, and while it is a scarf, it's actually more springy than a winter scarf. (i thought it could be a summer one, but it's actually a little too warm for that.)

i wore it monday because it was a cold rainy day and the color - all shades of green - was bright and springy. the only comment i got on it was "is it st patrick's day?"

today it looked sunny and warm out, but it was a little colder than that. the scarf was in the car so i wore it again today.

i have to share a great quote about the yarn crawl - pamela small (who lives in NYC and has been very helpful in planning the trip!) said in an email -
"This is great fun--it's like being an alcoholic and touring Napa Valley."

that just made me smile when i first got the email and for some reason i thought of it today.

cheers.

Anyone who can help out a homeless kitty?

An associate of a co-worker is looking for a home for her cat Pearl. She is currently in Manhattan with the owner's sister. Does anyone in the NY/NJ area have a spot in their home?

hullo - sorry i haven't been as talkative this week. work has been busy.

SNB last night - lots of fun and lots of drama!! from a drunk next door trying to beat up a manager at the cafe we were at, to a new waitress who always returned a minimum of 3 times to ask what you ordered (even AFTER she wrote it down - it was her first day, but still!!!) sigh. i swear she didn't give me decaf because i was up all night.

i knit more on my boogie sweater. i need to get some more photos up either tonight or over the weekend to show you my progress. i am 10" into the back. i also need to post photos of the poncho - i'm about 2 inches into that.

i'm am setting up the route for the yarn crawl and i am very excited! so far - 13 people are definately coming, and about 8 maybes! we'll be swarming in the tiny shops! but it will be fun!

tonight i have to work on some jewelry since tomorrow i am doing a demonstration at AC Moore. this is not my class - it's a demo day. i sit there for four hours making jewelry. well at least i get paid for it! the ones i need to work on tonight are samples for display on the floor. this SHOULD be a simple task, but no. There are nine groups of projects (each having 2-5 pieces) distributed by corporate, and i have to make them exactly like that.

still sounds simple doesn't it?

it's not. i started looking for the various beads to make the pieces. the list of materials is where it all goes to hell. either it says "blue beads" (which really helps in an aisle full of beads!) or it lists something that either isn't in stock yet (another 2 weeks) or has never been and will never be (as far as i know) in stock.

yikes. the advice i was given? make substitutions. so now i need to figure out from a small blurry color photo which beads i need to find substitutes for.

i spent almost two and half hours shopping, and i only had 4 of the nine project groups supplies picked out. (one group, and part of another, cannot be made because there are KEY pieces missing and no substitution would work.)

i was supposed to have them done by now, so i need to make the ones i hve supplies for tonight, and take them in tomorrow. the best part is that i am supposed to explain to someone at ANOTHER store location how to make them because they couldn't understand the instructions either. yeah right. i tried calling but she's never there.

i tell you - after the 2.5 hours of hell, i was ready to walk away from AC Moore for life. but i'll stick it out thru tomorrow and my class in May. and i will not do any floor samples in the future no matter what they pay me.

but - if you want to stop in and say hi, i'll be in the parsippany AC Moore on Route 46 from 11-3 showing off.

and i'll probably be hitting the bar around 3:15 to recover.

hump day

yesterday was crazy at work... just way too busy. but i'm back now!

and at least it has cooled off in our building, and our email is working (knock on wood!)

i'm going to start planning the route and schedule for the NYC Yarn Crawl! i'm excited about it.

i also wish it were thursday (SNB day).

and i wish i didn't get a notice for jury duty yesterday. although i have to admit - my first thought was "Shit." followed by "ooo - a whole day of knitting when i should be at work!!!"

i just hope that i don't get involved in a trial. because you can't knit during that.