Here we are, staring Christmas in the face, and I am, yet again, in the middle of the busy craft season. I started building up my inventory in August, but I think it looks woefully small…again. I should have started in June, but I don’t feel like spending the better part of the year, and my life, making stuff for sale. I like wearing the stuff I make *pout*.
My new baby and a sweater I knit
Conversely, no one is putting a gun to my head and forcing me to do this. I feel that selling my goods is a way to not feel like a freeloader in my house. Along with my writing gig at Outlaw Soaps that I mentioned a few posts back, I realize that, yes, I am contributing, but it doesn’t feel like enough.
In the spirit of that thought, I decided to up my game with my graphics. Rather than keep them in the limited world of Cafe Press, Zazzle, etc., I have re-imagined my Nittin’ Ninja brand. I now have shops on Etsy, Inktale, and Bonanza platforms. Still working on loading graphics – did not realize how much time it would take! However, if you’re interested, click on those links! If this isn’t your cup of tea, do me a solid and share the goodness, please! This is a very limited niche market, and I’m just trying to spread the word at this point. Thank you guys!
On to other stuff!
After many years of reading about yarn crawls and wondering what they were like, our area LYS finally got it together. Of the 11 participating shops, I made it to only three before I ran out of money!
Map of Sierra Nevada 1st Annual Yarn CrawlThose three pins look sooo lonely!
As you can see, I will have to pace myself. I had actually planned to hit up at least 6, but there were other events going, such as the Colfax Railroad Days event that happens every year.
While there, I purchased some fiber art from really cool people.
Beautiful mandala work from Bohemian Designs by Silvermoon Regalia (artist not pictured. She had to go take care of her children while her mother and husband manned the shop!)Local folks having a laugh
Those both pics are from October, and a lot of the merch has been sold and replaced with new stuff – yay!
Taking a break from shoveling a track for the tires on our slanted driveway!The view from the other side…
And this was Thanksgiving. Three hours of scraping and fighting to get the Subaru up the driveway – but I freakin’ did it! And I still managed to gain weight!?
Hey, my knittahs and crafters! Don’t you love this time of year? Yea, it’s still hot, it’s still summer, but August is to the knitting and crafting world like Friday is to the weekend. The anticipation of cool weather means you’ll be able to follow your passion full-goose bozo style!
Of course we had to eat before exerting so much energy, searching for yarn!
Yesterday, my friend Donna and I went to Joann’s Crafts and Fabric and had a little fun there. I need to remember that not everyone is on the same energy or interest level as myself when it comes to yarn or knitting. There was a class going on, and I just ran right up and said Hey what’s everyone doing? and I screwed up someone’s stitch count. She didn’t look too pleased; in fact, she looked kind of pissed. I backed off immediately, then laughed when Donna said, We’re gonna get kicked out! To further that concept, we happened upon some wooden letters that spelled out the word PENTS. So, you know what I had to do – I switched out the letter T with the letter I. We giggled like teenagers, snapped a pic, then quickly walked away. Yeah, it’s fun to be our age!
tee-heeYea, the veritable mountain of yarn I purchased
Part of my seasonal frenzy includes me rewriting an easy pattern for a rolled brim hat. While annotating my “improvements”, I’ve discovered that I really like to use the continental style of knitting. After 33 years spent using the throwing method, suddenly, I’m switching hands! Does that mean I’m going to be using the continental style for everything? Or does it mean I’m just working so heavily on the fair Isle technique that it’s starting to feel more comfortable? Either way I’m embracing it and just going with the flow.
Last year, I had written a lot of patterns that I was going to publish; This year, I will endeavor to get all of them out. It happens! In the meantime, I still must edit my Kitchener stitch video. Damn! Does it seem like I have of a lot of pending projects going on? I’m always so amazed by crafters who have young children and manage to put out patterns, blog posts, and video tutorials on a regular basis. In particular, I’m thinking of the ladies behind Whistle and Ivy and Repeat Crafter Me; they have little children and they their output is pretty spectacular. Oh, I know there are many more working moms out there, but those two came to immediately. They must have very supportive husbands!
On that note, I’ll end this entry. See you in the funny pages.
Naw, we’re not going to talk about Steely Dan and that bitchin’ song. It’s a lazy Sunday and I’ve been editing my Amazon music playlists. Every time I remembered a song I wanted to add, a flood of memories followed. I’m sure I could spend my time better, but eh – some days are meant to while away. I have decided this is one of them.
Then it occurred to me what I could do that was…well, if not productive, then amusing for me! I’ve embedded a video detailing the most difficult part of making socks – the Kitchener Stitch. It’s not a tutorial. It’s just me snagging on about it.
Just me being frustrated!
In the meantime, I continue on my trial month with Outlaw Soaps as their social media content writer. I hope this turns into a regular gig, but like I said earlier, if not, then I’ll just go back to being a customer – their most important job!
With summer in full swing we’re going out with the new Jeep, and discovering areas relatively close to us – COOL! Yea, after Hawai’i, we had to have one! And yea, now we are broke, so the forays are few and far between! We also added a new rescue doggy to our family, Nala and we’re getting to know her. She’s the one smiling! This was a Saturday visit to Donner Summit – see the snow? Yea, that was earlier this month. Neat, huh?
And speaking of cool, a friend of mine and I were able to go out and do some painting. The weather has been sooo mild, it’s gorgeous! Here we are at Emigrant Gap, which is about 15 miles up the road a piece from where I live. As this happened on a weekend, we ended talking to so many people. They’d come up and talk to us, and I thought we should start charging for art lessons! In fact, I let an extremely curious little guy paint on my canvas – hey, it’s acrylic paints. No harm, no foul, and I think he enjoyed it.
Wow. This entry has been all over the place, hasn’t it?! That about sums it up, though. Hope you enjoyed your weekend!
I had every intention of knitting in public on June 8, 2019, even if it was just in the damned park by myself. I didn’t realize until it was too ate that I had scheduled the Colfax Stitch ‘n Bitch for a roadtrip to Truckee on that exact day. When I did find out what I’d done, I put public knitting on the itinerary.
That didn’t pan out; however, I did my part for the yarn industry by purchasing my first organic linen yarn and pattern by Quince & Company. The shop? Atelier in Truckee, California, a great place with art supplies and books in the front and yarn in the back.
And we’re off!
Caroline was a good sport and obliged me by posing just inside the door of the shop.
Oooooh!
Aahhh!
Yup – we’re adding to our yarn collection today.
Organic linen and the pattern from Quince & Co. The yarn line is Kestrel.
Ashley was super fun and helpful.
I know, this wasn’t a great shot because two of the subjects are in the sun, but I wanted to get the beautiful snowy mountains, the railroad station and the flag in. So there you have it. From the left, Caroline, Donna and Sue.
Caroline laughing after Sue told her that I was sneaking pics – dang it! So much for candid snaps.
Donna was the quiet one today. Unusual.
Sue carefully perusing her options.
The reason Caroline suggested we eat here: shrimp and lobster cheese and mac.
All in all, I don’t feel too bad for not knitting publicly. I do it twice a week at the local Starbucks so I feel like I do my yarnly duty all the time. Besides, this was fun also. We’re now trying to figure out another venue for our next road trip, perhaps next month?
What did you do for World Wide Knit in Public Day?
Here we are, a whole week and a half since I’ve been back stateside and what have I done? I’ve been inspired to paint, but haven’t picked up a paintbrush or prepared a canvas or even glanced at the acrylics I have stashed in my special toolbox I chose just for my art. I’ve plodded away on my beautiful sweater that I started last year with all the enthusiasm of…well, plodding. I’ve finished the body and now I’m working the sleeves. Sounds exciting, right? Who am I kidding! I’m ashamed to say that most of this time has been spent in a blue funk, moping. It doesn’t help that I’ve uploaded all my Hawaiian and Bahamian pics on my Chromecast screensaver to remind me where I’m not and what I’m not doing.
Besides the obvious – I shouldn’t be writing a post about beautiful Hawaii while I’m suffering from a migraine – this appears to be the only time I can sit down in front of the computer and write. Don’t get me wrong! I live on my damned computer, but I’m generally not writing prose, and in this case, categorizing pure fustian. In the spirit of cutting short the rant, we won’t elaborate on the reef snorkeling and wild dolphin sighting outing that was cancelled because of weather, nor will I digress about the aborted Mauna Kea visit because road conditions were unmanageable past 9000′ even with a four-wheel drive auto, and any discussion is right out regarding the earthquake we experienced sitting on a washed-up log while enjoying the black sands beach in Waipi’o Valley. LOL! While these snidely remarks make me appear ungrateful, I am not. Reading about how someone had a beautiful time in a paradise is generally a deadly dull undertaking. Hearing about the travails in a personal Shangri La panders to one’s schadenfreude, a lowly endeavor, indeed, but commonly espoused by most writers of fiction and non-fiction. I mean, how freakin’ boring would most movies be without it? Hm?
Fear not, dear readers. All is not lost. Another basic part of story structure is called the denouement, or resolution. We did do many cool things and see many splendiferous sights, the most amazing was the cabin in which we stayed. Let’s not forget the “Ring of Fire” helicopter ride.* I was able to put my tootsies in black sand, get up close and personal to the pahoehoe and trip on the aptly named a’a lava rocks! (note to self: don’t wear sandals on lava rock!), get drenched, multiple times, in a tropical downpour, witness a cool photoshoot on dramatic cliffs, experience the climate diversity in the interior valley between the two dormant behemoth volcanoes, snap pics of absolutely gorgeous flowers, be lulled to sleep by the croaking frogs and legions of insects indigenous to rain forests and much more. So, yea, we had a great time, and because of the wonderfulness of air miles, we have already booked another Hawaiian vacay for next year on the North Shore in Oahu. I don’t how we’ll be able to afford it even with that flight being taken care of, but, eh. We’ve got cancellation insurance.
But wait – let’s make this more interactive. I will post a poll of activities that will push my comfort zone. The one that gets voted the most, I will do, document and post next year! I’ll remind everyone periodically to vote, and close the poll around Thanksgiving so I can make arrangements. I will NOT do anything dangerous nor incredibly expensive, but if you see something that would make for a good laugh, you may include it as an option on the poll.
In the meantime, here’s way too many pics from around the Big Island. Enjoy!
*For the first time in 35 years, there are no active lava flows on the Big Island; nevertheless, this was FUN!I know, I know, after reading about my fear of flying, you’re probably thinking What is wrong with this woman? For me, it’s not the same as flying in a big, impersonal commercial airliner. If we had made the 2,668 mile trip in a Piper or Cessna puddle jumper, not only would it have been epic, but it would have been way more comfortable for me, if not a tad long. For me, helicopters fall in the same realm of comfortable.
With only a few days left before we depart, dear readers, I have a confession to make. The recent gift that fell onto my lap last month, (again, thank you, Danielle Cotton!), may cast me in the light of a most vacuous, shallow and unworthy person, but I assure you, that’s not the case. At least, I hope not… When I found out that I had won a trip to the Bahamas, my husband, Rick, and I, were already planning on going to Hawaii. The Big Island. I love the geology, black sand beaches, pineapples, coffee and the general lush foliage that comes to mind when I think of these enchanted chain of volcanic islands. I’ve written a few posts about Hawaii and tiki. So, yea. I’ve always wanted to go, and I’ve made no secret of it.
You may wonder why I felt it necessary to make a side trip to the Bahamas, and I would counter: The Trailer Park Boys. I wanted to go hang out, have some fun, and hopefully meet them. As much as I am looking forward to Hawaii, the unadulterated thrill of fandom was something else, if not a little embarrassing at my age – but I don’t care. It was too fun!
A niggling worry has beset me these last few weeks. I believe it is a valid concern, but maybe some good will come of it. What is it? you ask. I’m afraid that the rest of my life will seem very dull in comparison with these last few months. However long, or short, the rest of life will be remains to be seen; you get the point. Has this ever happened to anyone else? It has with me already, several times. The upside? I’m saving for next year’s excursion, be it with the Trailer Park Boys, or an expedition to Antarctica. You only live once, and as time flies by, the tired, old cliché of a mid-life crisis starts to make sense, although, I think “mid-life” may be optimistic on my part! And that last sentence was cram packed with tired old clichés (I may have to write a post on the importance of clichés and why they’re needed)!
Next time I write an entry, be prepared for a glut of pictures and a paucity of words. Aloha!
