Grab your knitting needles and come relax with me.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Adventures in Knitting...meeting Famouz Knitters.
Warning: picture heavy...
Thursday my husband and I left San Antonio for our trip to Austin to meet Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, the Yarn Harlot. The plan was to hit several yarn shops on the way up, peddling out Birdy's Knits goodies. (The biggest benefit I've gotten due to Jamey's increased interest in Birdy's Knits and the creation of Birdy's Baubles is that now he takes me to yarn shops without me asking {read: begging, pleading} and willing with out grumping buys me yarn). Before I left the house I made sure to dig into my personal stash of Shiner Black: I've been keeping up with the Yarn Harlot's blog and knew she's had an extraordinarily hard week. She needed the beer...she needed Beer O'Clock to be NOW!
We left a bit late so our trip to The Yellow Sweater in Buda had to be skipped and post-poned. I have been dying to go and support this particular yarn shop because she started and is running her business without any debt what so ever...it's a purely cash funded business. I LOVE this. We are currently trying to get out of debt and have eschewed getting into more debt for the past 3 years (we had a small hiccup when we had that car accident and had to take out a loan to buy our van. 2006 was a BAD year that ate our savings and our emergency fund).
We hit The Knitting Nest, in south Austin. In which I found some LOVELY and red lace Malabrigo.
I am now the proud owner of 6 hanks of Malabrigo lace...some browns, blues, lavenders, greens, and now RED!! One of these days I will make some very pretty somethings. I love this lace so much...I just want to make a nest out of it!
Then on to Hill Country Weavers...Yarn Heaven!! I always forget to take pictures of this lovely space. I think it's the yarn fumes and the yarn overload. It swipes my mind. There's yarn coming at your from above, below, straight at you...everywhere you look you see yarn. I rescued these two luscious hanks.
More RED!! I am seeing a gorgeous wee shall. Maybe with cherries.
I almost walked out of the store without this sock yarn...thank dia I saw it because the LOVE!!
I love it so much that I made a collage. Just to show y'all every beauteous wonderful angle this hank possesses. I am not sure what sort of socks I'll make. I am leaning toward plain stockinette socks, but depending on how it winds up I may make up a simple pattern.
It's Araucania Yarn Itata Multy. It's 70% superwash wool, 15% silk and 15% bamboo. I didn't realise the content until I got home, I was so mesmerised by the colour way.
Okay...yes, I did meet the Yarn Harlot, but come on ya gotta enjoy the YARN LOVE!! I need another moment with the pretty fiber. So pretty.
Yes, after a teeny detour we made it to Book People to hear Stephanie speak at about 5 pm. Two hours before her talk, but I wanted a good seat. And who did I see, but the lovely Diane! I sat right next to her front and center. I have missed her...but she is nearly done with school and we all know how tough that final sprint is (so I forgive her. Grin). By getting there early, I was trapped by Book People's rigid no large bag rule (others skated by), so for the evening this was my knitting "bag."
It was amazingly heavy: I carry too much stuff. BUT, I need all that knitting, what if I get bored? What if it's the wrong sort of knitting: I need more or less attention. A knitter must always be prepared.
Unexpectedly, my Austin friend, Becky (a fresh law school grad!) snagged me to go upstairs to a private reception for Stephanie. Woot!! Private time with Stephanie and the Doctor!!
Stephanie was always surrounded by gads of Knitters...
But Becky and I got in there. Pretty much by throwing beer into the mix. We were waiting out turn and one of her friends from Austin was apologising that she forgot the Shiner for Stephanie. Seeing her much put out, I piped up, "Oh don't worry! I got some Shiner in here," pointing to the TinyTardis hanging off my arm, "for you!" She was so relieved and incredulous, she grabbed by arm, "Really!?!?" Yes really just for you!
She was also thrilled with TinyTen.
She even remembered meeting TinyTen's cousin (or is it brother) KnitTen. (TinyTen is crocheted). She agreed to pose. And she even took a picture of me and Ten for HER blog. Woot!
(So! I figure THIS out that night. I met and touched the Yarn Harlot. SHE was on The Graham Norton Show. And David Tennant was on the Graham Norton Show! It's sorta a connection, like only 3 degrees of separation! Yes, I am nuts and grasping at straws but it gives me a tickle.)
Becky also taught Stephanie the Hook 'Em Horns hand gesture.
Suna was also there. I am so proud of her: at first she said she was too shy to go up to Stephanie. And before I could grab her arm and drag her over there; she dived in head first and had a great chat with Stephanie(they have lot's in common).
I also got to see CJ and Judy from my Lone Star State Knitters yahoo group. I love catching up with far flung friends.
Okay down to the reading.
Lookie at all the knitters...the coolest thing, they are all knitting in sync. I have never been around this many knitters ALL knitting. It was fabulous.
I did forget all the knitters that sat to the left of us. Sorry!
Okay the main event. Spike introduced Stephanie. Spike blogs for Hill Country Weavers at Knit Buzz.
Stephanie waiting in the wings to make her grand (read second) entrance!
Pay no attention to the yarn hoarder behind the curtain!!
Stephanie's talk was AMAZING! She talked a lot about how misunderstood knitters are and how we span across all the boxes society seeks to place us into. We are a rainbow of deliciousness. We are not one religion, political ideology, gender, race, age group, economic position...we represent everyone--with one thing tying us together: our love and passion for knitting.
She also shared some AWESOME studies with us...specifically how smart and accepting knitting makes us. My favourite: A study from Cambridge, England (a report of the study and the actual study, for the brainiacs). It explains those that do repetitive, visual and spatial tasks while enduring a trauma are less traumatised. Meaning, knitting helps you cope in the aftermath of a traumatic event. Awesome.
Our favourite (and most ridiculous) part of the study was this:
The question is, how can this knowledge be used? It's not necessarily practical to carry around worry beads or "emergency knitting" for times of stress.
????
I always have knitting on me...heck I have 2 to 3 knitting projects with me at all times. Mainly because I NEED something to do with my hands at all times. For me no knitting would be trauma. Practical? My knitting keeps me from going ape shit from boredom. I also like the new scientific term for knitting: visuospatial task.
All in all Stephanie is a brilliant speaker, humourist and writer...I encourage y'all to see her if you get the chance. And at the very least read her books--they are full of win.
Because I got a change to meet her earlier, I took to the very end of the long line to have my books signed. I got a chance to gab and catch up with my mate David (the other SA knitter that drove up for the event). She signed both my books (I bought her two latest books--Book People ran very short on copies of her book), one for me and one for Anne.
And then she signed the TinyTen's Travel-log...with a special message for her geeky fans:
I had a lovely time, the Yarn Harlot is delightful and funny and is a treasure. I am glad we have her as a fellow knitter.
I have made a few edits (a few pics and paragraphs) since I first posted: because while knitting supposedly gives you a better memory and recall--I, apparently, am too brain damaged to get that benefit.
Well this has been a busy week or so...sorry for the lack of blogging. Between practically losing the mojo and getting ready for my brother's visit (read frantically cleaning the house), life has been both busy and poor blog fodder.
This week or so, I am the proud host to a teeny crocheted version of The Doctor (yes THAT Doctor).
A group I belong to on Ravelry called Who Knits is doing a Traveling Doctor Passalong. So I have been showing the tiny Doctor (heretofore referred to as TinyTen) San Antonio's sights and sounds. You can see all our doings at the Alamo, in my backyard (otherwise known as the Land of the Lost), and at the Ood Bank from last week. This weekend, TinyTen met my brother and his wife AND attended a Texas style Luau BBQ. This week he will meet the Yarn Harlot and help me fold laundry. Here's the Traveling Doctor Photoset.
As for my knitting mojo: eh...I am feeling better about the Super Secret Project. Last week I was about to tear IT and my hair out because of feelings of inferiority and simpleness. So it goes. But I am feeling better about the knitting and I am looking forward to playing with my handmaiden sea silk.
It's a weird thing, creativity. I've always been a bit aggravated with my brand of creativity. I am creative/talented with a lot of things. But none of them exceptional or rather none of them is a stand out. I am slightly musical, more than slightly visual, then there's the making of actual objects and the creating of words and stories...my best. I want to and I am drawn to it all...but I only have so much Muse at one time. The more I write, the less I design. The more I design/draw the less I write. The more I play music, the less I write or design. (Although listening to music does tend to re-fill the creative well and gets the creative juices flowing.) I feel pulled in many many directions.
I desperately need to do a re-design of Dubh Croi, the other blog (not to mention the website my mother wants me to create for her). But, I feel all used up. I have been devoting a lot of energy into designing and writing. I have been neglecting the writer part of me for ages (and I was writer before nearly anything else...I drew and makes paper things before I could write). And I want to stop neglecting the Writer.
I guess I am just a little aggravated with my self right now. And I feel the need to rant about it.
On to other things: I promised pictures. This is the cone of Habu Bamboo, HCW sent me (since they had charged my card for it)...one less thing to wind!!
Jamey ordered this from Amy Designs (it was made esp. for me-feeel the love!) for me as a Mother's Day gift. I absolutely adore it. One, it's a bag (and I love bags...perfect yarn/project bag-just needs a handle); B) it's red, black and gold (my favourite colours); and Lastly, it's ASIAN. LOVE it!
And see how wonderfully my yarn complements it? It will certainly be a pleasure to work with this yarn...it'll be a luxurious wrap someday!
(I also took loads of pictures of my local wildflowers. You can find them in Dubh Croi.)
Oh and because all Knitting Blogs whose writes own cats, must have a mascot or two. Here is one of the kitty mascots. Gina, my funny Ginger Tabby.
I am spending a lot of time at the drawing board, coaxing the Knitting Bunnies I see in my head to come out on paper and later in fiber. It's hard to blog about that process when it's for publication. Knitty's Fall dead line is June 1, and like a masochistic junkie, I am preparing two submissions. I am also fighting looming self doubt. So it goes.
I do have happiness to share. During my knitting retreat, I shopped at Hill Country Weavers...I picked up that gorgeous hank of Prism lacewool and 2 hanks of HabuTextiles Bamboo lace weight. When I got home, Jamey looked over the receipts and noticed I had been charged for 3 hanks instead of the two. Oops! I emailed the owner and she was awesome: gave me the option of a refund or sending me the yarn I bought. Well obviously I got the yarn, money already spent right? And now I can make a massive intricate knitted reproduction of Jason's Golden Fleece (I am on an Ancient Greek kick aren't I?)
And happier news, I just got word that a yahoo group of Texas knitters is doing a KAL of Flit 'N Float! Awww, I feel loved. (Well the scarf feels the love, but it's enough love for me to share, natch!)
Sorry to say I have no pictures. Super Secret Projects just don't photograph well...grin.
Written under the influence of The Killers.
