Grab your knitting needles and come relax with me.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Today: The Debut of Chocolate Covered Bacon!
Be sure at tune into Blockhead Radio today 6pm eastern/5pm central for the debut of James' new foodie radio show, Chocolate Covered Bacon. Today he features the creator of our name sake, Leslie from Luca Chocolate. Tune it or be square!!
I am knitting with Debbie Bliss's Pure Silk. Ah, it is so nice. Hang around me long enough and you learn that I have a raging selfish need/craving for silk. I will push you out of the way in order to get to the silk bin in a yarn shop (most LYS I have been to keep their yarn organised by fiber, so yes there is a bin or a cubby or a table just for siiiiilllllk). Yum!
Anyhoo I have been saving this silk and this pattern for a year and I finally started it this weekend at WHIBSIB. It's goin' fast, however I have Super Secret deadlines so she'll prolly be ignored till June. Insert sad face here.
Speaking of Super Secret. I lost a whole days worth of work when I realised I had accidently attached a size 4 needle and a size 6 needle to my KP interchangeable cable. (I thought the fabric was looking looser than it ought to). Sigh, so I had to frog and curse and fix the problem. Bleh. (You may have heard me curse on Twitter)
I have about 2 or 3 things (maybe 4) in the Super Secret queue (okay FIVE! The bunnies are jumping!!). So lot's of hinting and tip-toeing and holding of the breath. I can give a hint--they will be scarfish and or stoleish (so shoot me, I LOVE scarves! I love things I can wrap around my self and twirl around myself)
WHIBSIB (What Happens In Buda Stays In Buda), my yearly Knitting Retreat with my beloved gals pals from Lone Star State Knitters was this past weekend. MUCH hilarity ensued and a nice recharge was had.
Pictures!
Flip through that...
My mates and I only went to one yarn shop, Hill Country Weavers. But it's my favourite in that area and I never get to go to it. THIS is yarn heaven. Yarn coming out of bins and shelves at you--it's just the best. And of course I FORGOT to take pictures of the yarn shop. Sigh. But I got stopped by nearly everyone to comment on my Clapotis (rav link). It was cool. I fell in love with some lace weight and of course I took it home.
It's Prism, lacewool...in ember. It screams Autumn! I love what it looks like in the yarn cake as well.
Yes that IS David Tennant...grin.
I also fell in love with this lace weight bamboo from Habu Textiles.
It's GOLD. This is gonna be a FUN lace project to design. It's gonna have to take it's place in the ever growing queue, but it'll be brilliant to work with. My head is dancing with the possibilities.
We also ate lunch at my favourite pub IN THE WORLD. Whose Guinness, I imagine, is comparable to any pub in Dublin--it is THAT good. Smoooooth as silk. They also have fantastic burgers and fries. I already miss it. I also took a few snap shots of my first apartment (it's next door to the pub). Dreary dreary place.
Folks demanded to see the Flit N Float live, and I got many oohs and aahs. I also got to see one of the gals knitting up hers (such a thrill) AND she had me sign her pattern. Grin, I felt like such a rock star. I had a few gals try to nick my Aegis as well... Well, why not it's gorgeous (if I saw so myself). Smirk.
I finished a washcloth--to add to my collection (I need to take pics of all the one's I finished...4 now?) and I started knitting the Isobel (rav link). I haven't taken pics yet, but the link goes to the one that inspired me to use the same yarn, Debbie Bliss-Pure Silk. I need to take a piccie of it--I finally have enough done that pictures make sense.
I am also working on a brand new Super Secret Project. Right now I am swatching--bleh! I swatch ONLY if I ABSOLUTELY have to. But so far so good.
So have you heard of the new craze in food? Chocolate Covered Bacon! That's right, and it's not what you might think! Blockhead Radio will be launching a new radio show on April 30th, call Chocolate Covered Bacon - The best in independent food finds from across the internet. The hose is our very own James from Birdy's Knits.
James has been working with food pretty much since he graduated from high school, and has amassed a great fondness for all things food! With is obsession with cheese, and spending hours of watching Food Network, he has thought about sharing his passion for a while. He feels very blessed that Blockhead Radio has given him the opportunity to share his passion with the world.
Chocolate Covered Bacon, will focus on finding some amazing food from independant producers and food artists from through out the internet. If you have a favorite food artisan that you would love to share with the world, please comment and let us know, we will work on lining them up on the show.
If you would please join James (ClosetCreature in the chat room) on Thursdays at 6 PM EST. You can join us in chat for any questions you may have for our guest, as well as just having a great time. In honor of our namesake we will be featuring Luca Chocolates who makes chocolate covered bacon truffles, on our April 30th show. James would like to thank Mamaslittlemonkeys of Mom's Cafe on Blockhead Radio for the encouragement with this great video:
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Lost: Knitting Mojo
If you find it can you talk to it kindly and tell it to please go home?
I am feeling pretty blase about my current projects. Blah. I can't find my second needle for my ribbon scarf, and the other projects just feel boooooring. The knitting bunnies are still being difficult--pouty I think.
Right now I am knitting a dishcloth (my goal is 5 or 7--I am on the 4th), but I decided to shakes things up a little and knit it continental. I need the practise.
WHIBSIB (my yearly knitting retreat is this weekend) and I am hoping it's the recharge I need.
Happy Earth Day--if you feel so inclined to celebrate, might I suggest knitting up on of my Swiffer Cloths? I also just learned that you can knit two swiffer cloths and a grandmother's favourite dishcloth out of two skeins (2 oz) Sugar 'n Cream cotton.
Lot's to post about today! It's funny how things work out...I have days where I have no knitting to blog about and then I have days that are so full of knitty bloggy goodness, that conceivably I could stretch it out into three blog posts. Much like the weather here in S. Texas: it either rains A LOT or not at ALL. (We just had a long, long period of Not At All and we've had a few days of beautiful GLORIOUS rain).
FIRST: I finished the Twirly Skirt yesterday!!! Woot!!!
It took me five days to hem the skirt...and I finished the skirt itself in under a month. NOT five months like my husband suggested; not even the month or two I estimated! Lorelei is a great motivator--she would not let me knit other projects. "Why aren't you knitting my skirt Mommy?!"
As you can see it twirls brilliantly. Lorelei had lot's of fun modeling her new skirt. And within an hour I had to take it off of her and wash the strawberry stains off of it--thank dia it's cotton! I am just glad I removed it before she got into the chocolate ice cream!!!
Notes: The pattern is sadly only available on Ravelry. Because I used a thicker, heavier yarn I knitted the size 2 with size 6 length (Lori wanted a longer skirt). Yarn: 5 balls of I Love This Cotton. Needles: I magic looped this with 60 inch circs in size 6
Friday, Jamey told me he had a surprise for me. Woot-I like surprises, but I hate guessing out loud (weird? me? Never!), so I sat silently in the car quiet pondering. We were headed east--centrally toward YARNIVORE!! Woot! My surprise was a trip the yarn shop (sometimes it's like pulling teeth to persuade Jamey to take my yarn shopping). So I get to the shop (run in more like it) and survey the shop--let the hunt BEGIN. Tammy changed the layout since I was in the shop last--so I hunt for my favourite yarns, the laceweight, the sock yarn and the silk...OH and I spy a giant HEAP of Dream in Colour Smooshy!! Freshly arrived! I was very good and did not roll around in it like I wanted to.
BUT.
THAT.WAS.NOT.THE.SURPRISE.
The surprise was this:
He stood in front of Tammy and her counter--gave her a wink and she pulled out the books!!!! Those two sneakers!!!
I had asked Tammy a week or two ago if she could order the first 2 Barbara Walker Treasuries for me--it was my reward to myself for being published in Knitty. Unbeknown to me: Jamey had emailed her TWO HOURS prior to ask her the very same thing with a caveat, Do Not Tell Birdy. So Tammy, dying, has to tell me that she already did her book order and can't order them for another few weeks. (I was totally cool with that...I am patient). So of course I was completely and utterly surprised and of course thrilled beyond words. I have the coolest LYS owner/friend and hubby!!
Now, none of that Smooshy came home with me because none of the colours really spoke to me and screamed to go home with me. But I did rescue two skeins of the softest, silkiest yarn.
It's Sugar Rush by Queensland Collection: 100% sugar cane! It is amazingly soft, with great stitch definition. This yarn has a scarf in it's future (using ma brand new books, I have three motifs picked out).
So that was Friday and Saturday! I did have a pot luck Saturday night, but I will save that for tomorrow. (Read: I still need to free the pics from my camera and edit and...don't wanna do that right now)
Sorry for the lack of knitting content. Toward the end of the twirly skirt, it's just miles and miles of stockinette (boring blog fodder). BUT, I am nearly done!!
I began casting off on Monday night. And finished sometime Tuesday evening, after I finished the pictures. It's a long slog. But it looks so great!
Here is what I am doing for the hem.
It's a k1, ssk, yo repeat, and once I finish the hem it'll be cute picot.
I am nearly half way around the seaming of the hem right now as I am typing this post up. While I am tempted to take a picture of the half finished hemming...it's also ridiculous. I am almost finished...if I spend more time hemming and less time snapping pictures: it'll be done just that much faster. Grin.
I do really hate the seaming: it's TAKING FOREVER!! I am excited for it to be done and one Lori, so I can start on some Knitting Bunny projects (which may be secret) and maybe work on those lace stockings I have been neglecting. I think this PURE stockinette skirt has sufficiently rested my knitty brain.
Tonight is the luanch of the Second Artfire Ambush! Tonight we would like for you to take you time to visit this lovely shop. Today we would like to you take the time to visit She Designs Jewelry on ArtFire. She has some very lovely pieces of jewlery that you are bound to love. She has been a member of Artfire since December. So please check her out, if you like it buy it, if you can't buy it, please pass it on, and let others know of her lovely work!
Ok i'm sorry I missed last week, but here we are back again this week with our Taste of Texas Artfire weekly spotlight. Each week we feature nine different members of the Texas Artfire Guild. We are a group of artisans that work together to promote our arts in through out different methods. This week I was having a hard time coming up with a theme because all of our artisans had such a diverse selection of Artwork, so instead I just choose items that jumped at me from their shops. They are such talented artists, so please enjoy:
Texas Artfire Guilg Members Featured in this weeks Spotlight:
As always, I am thinking ahead to Fall Submission deadlines...and of course I am thinking scarves. (Because I am Scarf Girl-to me scarves complete an outfit. I have scarves on de brain.) But Fall is all about sweaters. I don't do sweaters. I live in South Texas: we do NOT live in sweater country. Maybe light cardigan country. And I am decidedly NOT a sweater girl.
And for me: as a designer...well I suck as a "design for everybody" designer. I mainly design with myself in mind. (Well sometimes, if I am making a gift, then I keep that person in mind). But for a sweater? Since one, I don't wear them and if I did: I am skinny...with no boobs--most sweaters look like crap on me. And B) did I mention I live in S. Texas? It's too hot to wear a sweater, except MAYBE one week out of the year when it gets to the 40s and why spend so much time and money knitting/designing a sweater when I can only wear it once?? And lastly: when I dream about yarn and knitting (yes, amongst other things, yarn figures heavily into my nightime escapes): I do not dream about sweaters.
I think I am also afraid of grading (ack the MATH and WOULD it work???) And see what I just did? I just admitted a fault: and YOU know what year it is? Yep, year of Get Over It!! So guess what I am gonna be working on in my brain (whilst I design the next scarf--you saw that handmaiden...): a sweater.
For someday.
p.s. I am on the 4th colour (burgundy) of the Twirly Skirt, woot the end is near! 4 months 3 weeks ahead of schedule!!
AmyDesigns of Artfire is donating 100% of her Sales on Apr 7th to the National Assoc for Down Syndrome
Amy designs has some amzing quilt work. I have been watching her on Artfire for about a month now, and coming from a family that has one amazing quilter for a Grandmother I should know. She makes some really amazing quilt tapestries that are desgined to be interchangable in her custom frame, so you can have diffferent designs up through out the year. There is the Birthday cake for those special days, some amazing bunnies for Spring and Easter, or look at the amazing work with the Pear, she was even able to show the shodow. She also makes handbags and purses from repuposed meterials some are even vintage materials.
To go along with this Amy will be donating 100% of all sales on Apr 7th to the National Assoc for Down Syndrome in honor of her sons 21st birthday. I you want to read more of her story you can in the ByHand.Me Forums http://www.byhand.me/component/option,com_fireboard/Itemid,60/catid,22/func,view/id,4349/ She wrote a lovely poem many years ago and shared it with us there. Please support her and buy something from her store on April 7th, the money will go to a good cause, and you will be getting a wonderful work of art!
This post was written under the influence of Mika: Life in Cartoon Motion AND a massive sinus headache.
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Jamey surprised me on Tuesday by taking me to the Yarn Barn. We were going to buy a Barbara Walker Treasury (my plan was to support both my local yarn shops and purchase one book from each of them--BW has 4 stitch treasuries but I really only WANT/NEED the first two). But Yarn Barn didn't have it, would not consider ordering it. Oh well, Yarnivore will; so they will get the money. But Jamey did buy me a new hank of Handmaiden Sea Silk (for a brand new Super Secret Project--so this is the only form you will see of said Super Secret Project). I love him.
I love him lots and lots.
I also picked up this hank of cotton for a non secret special project (details to come when my head isn't pounding). But it will be a bird and it'll be for a special person.
Jamey also picked out the colour. Grin, it is his favourite colour. So I shouldn't be surprised by his choices. Jamey also threw this into the pot. He knows how much I love bees (and it smells REALLY good).
You can get this wonderful smelling and all natural lotion here at the Honey House.
I love my husband; I think I'll keep him. ;-)
Oh and knitting progress, Jamey is very surprised at my progress on Lorelei's Twirly Skirt (he did think it would take me the entire summer to finish this).
I am sure my progress is going to screech to a near halt since I am now knitting over 100 stitches every round now and I still have ONE more 20% increase row. But it is a fun knit and I do need a mindless knit right now. The Birdy brain is slightly fried. I am also nearly done with my commission for my friend (it is a quick knit--so no biggie).
I am anxious to start knitting a bit on my Bettie Lace Stockings. Just because I can hear them crying.
I am trying something new (tell me if you like it or could care less or hate it): when ever I am listening to my music whilst writing a blog, I thought I would share what I am writing to. Now, I almost ALWAYS have music playing (drowns out the screaming of my children), this should be a regular feature.
Written under the influence of Nick Cave.
