iki knits

adventures of Mini-Iki

2012-01-18T15:30:00.003-06:00

Hi All. I'm Mini-Ikisti, or Mini-Iki for short.
I have been living at the wonderful shop in Stillwater, MN Darn.Knit.Anyway for a few months.

Yesterday Iki came to pick me up and get some yarn for her sweater resolution.

Here I am with a little pick me up.
Being a window model for the holidays makes a girl thirsty.

I showed Iki around the shop for a while and helped her pick out the colors for her March sweater, True North.
I'm not sure she will be able to wait till then. I also need to talk her into making a small version for me.

Here we are getting ready to go. I decided to guard the yarn on our way home.

We did a short walk around Stillwater. It was way too cold for both of us. We did stop in a little shop that sells paper and treats. They had these neat paper deers on their wall.

Then it was home. Now the yarn is just sitting there taunting us.
I told her she has to wait until mid-Feb at least before she even swatches.

Don't you just think these colors will be fun together. :)

2 quilt blocks and a pattern

2012-01-09T23:51:00.002-06:00

Warning:
2 horrible images quickly snapped from my phone.

So here we have the January squares for the "block of the month" quilt.
They were pretty easy to whip out. And I think I have decided on mostly cool tones and modern(ish) prints for the quilt. I have enough of both in my stash of fabric so i'm not worried about running out.

Block One: Asterisk

Block 2: Wonky Pound Sign

Those are the instructors names for them not mine.

I also purchased the True North pattern today and tomorrow will get the yarn for it. I don't have much bulky in the yarn stash.
Shocking, I know.

And with that I will leave you with an image of the other most resent thing I've finished..
The TARDIS iphone case in cross stitch.

2012

2012-01-03T22:11:00.003-06:00

In 2012, people say that the world is going to end.
I, for one, don't really buy that.
I have too much knitting and sewing to do and show off.

Darn.Knit.Anyway in Stillwater, MN is having another go at 12 sweaters in 12 months. Now, I am not so mental as to think that I can knit all 12 in 12. There is also the fact that i'm not loving some of the choices. So I have picked out the months that I do like, and I will be doing them in those months along with the other DKAers.

March is True North. A bulky weight, fair isle cardigan made with Cascade Eco Wool. There will be a steek in it. (That's when you cut your yarn)

Then in June we have the White Russian. A DK weight transitional weather sweater.

September is Zephr. A top down contiguous yoke cardigan. I already have this one in my library.

October is Levenwick. Designed by the folks at Brooklyn Tweed. It is an asymmetrical with a funky button band cardigan. Though I'm not sure about the asymmetricalness, what girl doesn't need tons of cardigans.

Then there is this. The Block of the Month work shop from craftsy.
I figure anything that helps me with my sewing skills can only be good and this gives me something else to make with my stash of fabric.

I will also be taking a class from the Weaver's Guild this month.
Its the Judith MacKenzie - Luxury Fibers Workshop. I'm hoping that after taking this, i'll feel comfortable using some of that great roving that I got from Shepherds' harvest and spinning Hopper's fur.

Speaking of the critters, here's our holiday card image. I'll keep you all posted on how these projects go.

many ties and a few hops

2011-08-09T00:14:00.002-05:00

Here are some of the ties that I've put up on the shop.

This one is the Red Starbust Mod tie.
The peep of red for the lining is fun.

This one is the Light Skinny Floral tie.
I got so many compliments on the darker version that I had to make a skinny light version.

The mannequin is wearing the Bounding Dear tie.
I made this one for folks with shorter torsos.

So far no sales, but a few hearts and lots of views.
I'm going to keep making and trying.
I've got some cuffs that are going to go up next.
Then a few more ties and on to making fall things.

Because before you know it, it is going to get chilly out there.

Hoppers is doing well. He had visitors this last weekend and he seemed to take to one of HT's nephews. He was very gentle with the rabbit.

I think Hoppers missed him when he left.

Though now he has a new house.
Hoppers has been letting himself out in the mornings.
As nice as it is to not have to get up to let him out, we don't keep the kitty food up when he's in bed.

That and his old house was getting to small for him.
He's getting much bigger than I thought he would.
The new cage does have a small wire bottom on it. We tried the just flat with bedding but with his long fur it just wasn't working.

So I'm just going to keep and eye on his toes and he has lots of places to lay down that aren't on wire in there.
Though as i'm writing about it you can tell that I feel a little guilty about having a wire bottom cage. Everyone says "not a happy thing" and I get that.
But sometimes we have to compromise and he has long fur on the bottoms of his feet and like I said, plenty of places to lay.

So we will see if that works. If not, I can always take out the wire and let him hang in the deep deep pan that is under it.

I can haz Etsy shop?

2011-07-26T22:46:00.003-05:00

I can.
It's called WhiskerKnits and so far I have 7 items up for sale.

I have the cuffs that i've been thinking about making and didn't do until after they posted about doing it on Knitty.
Why? Because sometimes i'm slow to get in gear.

Here is the green one modeled by my good buddy and boss Tiffany.
She talked me in to making and selling the next times that are up on the shop.

Ties.

I was getting so many compliments on the ties that I made for myself that she talked me into selling them. She even helped me sell one last weekend at the Cafetto craft fair.

The next item isn't up yet, but will be soon.
Hand carded Alpaca with a nice natural caramel color.

If I make enough at the shop then i'll be able to get a drum carder and make roving too.

So stop on by the shop.
Maybe put a few items in your treasures or "heart" them
I'll let you have all the bunny kisses that you want if you do.

(ps we call them poo kisses) ^.^

Websites and noes boops

2011-07-14T22:48:00.003-05:00

Things are going well here at casa de fuzzy butts.
Other than vacuuming I've been trying to keep everyone happy and cool.

So mostly I have been playing with Pascal/Hoppers
Trying to keep the kitties feeling like they are loved
Trying to keep the Hoppers away from the kitty food (he loves it)

He also likes sticking his face in my foot when we are sitting on the floor together.
Watching the bunny and the cats to keep everyone safe has been taking up a lot of time. But they are worth it. As we all hang out I've been knitting up a few little things and trying to get a few things finished up for my etsy store.

That's right folks, I'm going to sell some of the things I've made.
Like these ties.

As well as some of Hoppers' fur for spinning
and some lovely hand dyed alpaca along with some natural colored alpaca

HT is thinking about a log and font and all of that but I couldn't wait
So I made this...

That and a friend is taking my ties to sell at the Cafetto Craft Fair
I'm thinking $35?

infestation

2011-06-05T22:20:00.003-05:00

Many of my friends and now my family are having babies.
This is little Issac. He is my nephew.
So far he is a sweet little boy.

My friend Nicole just had her little girl. I'm trying to get over to her
to give her this Clockwork. She was one of the 4 from the Facebook meme that will get something hand made from me this year.

Siren hopes that I will not get the idea to bring any more babies home.
Be them fur babies or human babies, she would really rather they just stay out.

I wish that ants would stop trying to make this there home.
They are not alone either.
It would seem moths are trying to make a home here too.

So that means its time to put the wool in the freezer downstairs.
And getting some more sealed tubs to put them in.
So far Grimlock has killed 3 moths. All way to close to the yarn.

I guess this is just the place to be.

in case you were wondering

2011-05-20T14:14:00.003-05:00

This is what I've been up too.A sweet 3mo English/German angora came home to live with us after Shepherd's harvest (a fiber festival)

He is still getting used to the house and we are still getting used to him.
So far the kitties are ok with him, but they are not fond of when he charges right at them ;)

I will post a few more things about new happenings some time next week.
When my brain has unfluffed a bit.

Spring and the Yellow Socks

2011-04-02T09:03:00.010-05:00

Above we have the last image of my store.
All cleaned out at 7pm. All but the main lights shut off and cleared out.
It has been a long month and now I need to take some time,
clean my house and knit something fabulous for me.

I'm thinking Yellow Socks. Even Miss Down-Out here looks happy in here yellow socks.

Zombies attacking, find some yellow socks
Post-Apocalyptic Gray world, yellow socks will cheer you up
Hanging out in your late '90s squatters den, Grab those yellow socks and show the world what your made of.

So that is my plan. Knit up some nice yellow socks and take on the world.
The only problem is, I'm not sure which pattern I would like to do.

So my friends that is where you come in.
I'm going to post up some Ravelry links and I would love it if you all could leave a comment on what you think would look great in a solid, bright yellow sock yarn.

1) We have the Knitty.com Riff Socks. They seem to show off the texture on solid yarn very well. knitty link added too.

2) The Netherfield socks from the Twist Collective. They just say, "Sun shinny day" don't they? TC link added too.

3) Eye of the Helix socks is a free Ravelry download. I love a good cable and the play on the DNA double helix is fun.

4) Ms WendyKnits designed a pretty little lace sock, Crocus, for her Toe-Up Socks for Everyone book. Though I might just be drawn to them because the picture shows them in yellow.

5) We have an Interweave Knits yellow sock for spring the Twisted Tulip Sock. I might have to find a paler yarn for this, but it might work bright too. IK link added

6) Last but not least, a Knit Scene original, Bas-Relief socks. Though I might just like them because I think the idea of wearing hand knit socks with heals is fun.

So, what do you think?
I know that everyone needs some bright socks in their lives.
And soon I will have mine, with your help that is.

the snow is back

2011-03-23T21:58:00.002-05:00

The snow decided to show back up. Its ok though, because I'm still knitting with wool here. Above we have KnitPicks Chroma
It is nice and soft. I'm knitting up another SimpleThings from it.
So far so good.

The snow has left HT and I with a bit of a mystery.
There is a spot in the back yard, where no sewer or gas lines run, that refuses to have snow on it.

That is a over head shot for you.
I have my resident paranormal expert looking in to see if it is anything spooky.
HT noticed it last night and showed me this morning.
The second picture was shot after snow blowing and shooting snow right at it. I just melted away.

So winter and her mysteries aren't leaving us any time soon.

Things keep moving on.

2011-03-08T18:05:00.002-06:00

Soon the snow will be gone and things will start growing again.
Until that happens I will have to content myself with looking back at images of last years garden.
Above are some of the sun flowers that I actually got to grow.

I have been itching to get to growing and play in the dirt. The snow that is hanging around and being replenished soon is thwarting that desire.

But time will keep marching on and eventually there will be things growing again.

I have been spending a lot of time thinking about options. Not only options for the garden, but for myself. Sitting down at the Coffee Shop Northeast is a pretty good place to think things through. I just get distracted at the house.

You see...
They are closing my store. We were making money and things were going well business wise, but the building is beyond repair. I guess that is what happens when you have a part-owner that doesn't think regular upkeep on the building is a must.
So this closing of my store, the thing I have given most of my time and mind, is making me think about other options for work and life.
Do I want to stay in retail?sales? a creative field?
Do I want to try and strike out on my own and do the things I love?
What is it that I love?
Am I passionate about anything?

These are the questions that are floating around in my head right now.

The only thing I do know is that I have skills that are useful and that I will be able to find something else or stay with the company and see if they re-open somewhere in downtown.

Until things are decided or decided themselves I can keep working on the things I know I can get done.

Things like finally hanging the canvas prints of my 3 favorite photographs in the guest room.

They look pretty good don't you think.

It's a new year

2011-01-05T19:01:00.002-06:00

In this the New Year, most of our minds turn to resolutions and organizing.
I don't make resolutions. They never really seem to work out for me.
But I do try out organizing and normally get pretty far or in the habit for the rest of the year.

So I though I would share some links to other blogs for some organization tips and helps.

Etsy.com has a great post on how to get yourself organized and also some great items to use. I'm thinking about the Month chalk board for my kitchen.

Apartment Therapy is also a great place to get tips and tricks.
Sometime too many of their post show up in my GoogleReader, but I can forgive them because they are a source of inspiration for me.

So, I'm going to welcome in the new year with a little more organization.

That sounds a bit like a resolution.

almost 2011

2010-12-25T20:09:00.003-06:00

It is almost 2011. I could take this time to reflect on the year.
But I think I'll do that later.

Today is my first day off in 9 days. Soon all that over
working will be done. We will be into a new year.
And I will hopefully be putting some stuff up to sell on Etsy.
I'll let you know if it works out.

I didn't get many gifts made this year.
In fact tomorrow is going to be cookie and treat making day.

But soon things will slow down and I'll have all the time in the world.

So, for now I'm happy to have my job, my friends and my family all in good (to decent) shape this year.

See you all in 2011.

Its that time again

2010-11-30T22:20:00.003-06:00

Its that time when food and family are all we really talk about around here.
And really that's ok.

This last ThanksGiving was one of our best.
Lots of food was made the nights before so as to not be stressed.

Food like these pumpkin cookies from RealSimple.
They were a big hit. And the fact that they can be made way ahead of time is a great thing.

The turkey, however, does have to be made the day of.
I didn't have to get up super early though. Just a regular 7am rise and shine toss the bird in the oven.

It turned out pretty well. The meat really just fell of the bones.

After eating a few friends left and a few friends arrived.
Then it was a zombie marathon night.
We were getting caught up on AMC's the Walking Dead.
Its more of a how humans survive than a gore fest show.
But there still are some pretty unpleasant scenes.

Though its hard to pay to much attention to even zombies when you are knitting colorwork.

Here's to having a great or calm or both, holiday season.

we've got snow

2010-11-14T14:11:00.003-06:00

This year I'm breaking down and buying a Snow Blower. Though picking out just the right one seems tricky. There are a lot of things to think about, not the least of which being price.

We tried to go to the store today and get one, but they were all picked over and they didn't have a tone on display.
We've figured out that we want at least a 20in and that maybe a 2 stage blower is the way to go. I found some helpful info at Howstuffworks.com

Now i'm going to g bake some brownies to warm up with. :)

if it where...

2010-11-10T22:27:00.004-06:00

If it were just little old me and my kitty, I think I might want to live in a place like this.
Sometimes after taking care of this house (which i love) it just feels like too much. There isn't much for yarn storage in there, but I bet I could find a space for it.

Have you ever thought of going super small for your living space?

trying something new

2010-11-01T21:58:00.002-05:00

That would be quilting.
Last night I got the main body of the quilt together. It is mostly pieces from a kit of sorts and my own stashed bee hive fabric. I wasn't a fan of one of the squares that came with the "kit"

It has been fun working on this new crafting muscle.
I think there might be a few more in my future.
Though maybe a little less regimented looking.

But this should be a winner with what ever baby it ends up going to.
The wee baby Grimlock already likes it.

Ladies Weekend...

2010-10-18T10:23:00.004-05:00

Now with TATTOOS.
This last weekend was the annual HT-Family Ladies Weekend.
I always have a lot of fun with the gals. I get to photograph, wander around, eat good food and buy silly things.
Like the above tattoo. When I make a joke I really commit to it.

I also found a lovely fiber store The Yarn Barn. They have looms, spinning wheels, yarn and fiber a plenty. I think I spent a good hour in there just looking around. That and they were also right next to the Tattoo shop.

The town also had a great fabric store. It gave me lots of great ideas for projects. I could have spent a lot of time in there too.

It was a great weekend and I'll post some more of the fun picks later.
It is definitely nice to have such great gals in my life.

Aunti M...

2010-10-07T22:30:00.007-05:00

I will soon be called "Auntie M". My sister is going to be having a little one.
(not the little one in the picture, this is HT's Second Cousin)

At first I was a little wiered out by this. Also I was having a major downward turn. But now, I'm looking forward to lavishing knits on the little one.

Things like this Baby Sophisticate cardie. It is cute and gender neutral.

The Saartje Booties will have to be made again. Though I will have to try knitting them in DK weight yarn. They might just last a little longer that way.

After seeing MammaGrouch's Swing Thing, I might just have to make one for the little 'un.
(ravelry link, remember you to can find way to many patterns and ideas with what to make your stash into, join today.)

And when the kid gets a little older or odder, a Kiddie Cadet had.
That way s/he can dress like cool Auntie M.

links for your pleasure

2010-09-29T19:34:00.002-05:00

It would seem that Sept or Oct are quiet months here on the blog.
This time it's because the depression and anxiety is making itself comfy in my head.

So, in an attempt to dislodge it, I though I would make a post of things I like.

Miss MadeByGirl's string pendant light is something I'm totally going to do for my stairway to the bedroom light fixture

I want to start making quilts one of these days. So, I might have to try this one from TwoLittleBanshees.

When I finally get my angora bunny I will have to make it a home like this one from Design*Sponge

I think this old school bottle opener would be perfect for HT now that he is brewing beer.

And finally something snuggly to leave you with. A post from Modish all about pretty french kitties.

Wednesday picturday

2010-09-22T22:07:00.004-05:00

Siren taking a snooze in the sun.
Every morning lately we have been waking up with kitties in the bed.
They make it just a little hard to get up and go to work.

The sunflowers are holding up even after the rains.
They also lend themselves to lightroom play.

Did I show you this?
It is most of my stash (no not all of it) laid out on the queen-sized guest bed. I think that might be the best way to store it.

The mowhawk is still there. It is just being tamed on some mornings by a head band. I also look rather tiered there.

This is what some of my art work looks like. It was shot a while ago on my little Rollie. I've actually started to feel the need to get my camera out and create again. Sometimes you just need a break from things to help you see where you want to go, or what you want to do with them.

The goings on.... in pictures

2010-09-13T19:58:00.003-05:00

State Fair, with giant knitted fish hat.
you know you want one.

New hair in the shape of a curly mowhawk.
Not sure how long it will stick around

More tomatoes than you can shake a stick at.
Believe me i can shake a pretty mean stick.

Crafts other than knitting.
Sewing and making of sewing stuff storage to be exact.

52 bottles of home brewed Cream Ale.
To be ready in 2 weeks.

Vacation & Fashion

2010-08-18T15:09:00.004-05:00

I find that I am becoming more and more interested in fashion.
The nice thing about that is that it allows me to visit many fun shops with vintage and vintage inspired clothing.

This is Donna's Dress Shop.
They had a nice vintage selection and some lovely small designer dresses.
I got 2 things here that you will see a bit later.

Lisa, my KC pal, also took me to Bon Bon atelier.
It felt like home.
There were artist made items, fabric, books and the shop-keep was knitting a sock.

In case you were wondering what the pink/purple thing on the ceiling is... its a roving ball of yarn with giant knitting needles. I love the wallpaper that is on the coved ceiling too.
I got the Craft.inc work book from here and one other thing I can't tell you about.
It is a house warming gift for one of my friends.

This is the vintage inspired dress that I got from Donna's. It's all one piece and I really love the pencil skirt.

Now this top is a true vintage find. It fits really well every where but the arms. So I'm going to have to take them out a little bit. There is also one other problem. I want to wear this with a cute brown or black skirt. But I don't have one that I like with it.

But I think this pattern from CraftyPlanet should solve that.
I'll have to let you all know how my adventures in sewing go.

So that's my vacation. I wish it was longer and shorter all at the same time.
It was great getting to see everyone and be away from the house, but boy where there things that I would have like to work on here.

The grass is always greener right :)

Vacation = shopping?

2010-08-11T22:25:00.005-05:00

When I go on vacation there are a few things that happen.
There is shopping, but not just any shopping.
Only things that you can't find in your home town are aloud to be purchased.

So when it comes to fiber... you have to go looking for LYSs.

This shop is Urban Arts and Crafts.
It was very cute and well put together. They had a bit of everything. It took me a while to find the yarn under all of it. Though they did have twice as much yarn as the other craft items.

I also found a cat there.
Her name was Annie. She had a little note on her basket that warned children to leaver her be. But I got to pat her on the head.

This shop, Florilegium,was the exact opposite of the modern every craft store.
I loved the wall of yarn jars. I might just have to display some of my yarn that way.

They also had tons of ribbons, beads and edging. I kinda wanted to steal the stained glass windows they had in hanging and leaning against their windows.

I haven't knit with any of the souvenir yarn yet.

I did get a lot of knitting done even with a 5year old wanting a lot of attention.

There was knitting by the pool...

I even got to knit in the car on the ride home.

I'm working now on my second sock. Its the Skew from Knitty.
I was skeptical at first. The sock starts to vear away from the toe very quickly. But it all worked out in the end. Sometimes trusting the pattern is the right thing to do.
Though I didn't switch down to smaller needles like it wanted me to for the ribbing. I was worried that the already snug sock wouldn't get over my heel if the top ribbing got to small.

It was a good thing I just stuck with my 1s. The left sock fits perfectly.

(to be continued....)

July is for Tour de Fleece.

2010-07-29T23:52:00.004-05:00

Pretty much all of my free time this July has been spent spinning.
The tour really helped me get my chain plying down.
I also got through all the sample fiber from my PhatFiber boxes.

I really love how these 2 are both green, but decidedly different.

They were very nice to spin with too.

This is some of the main stuff I spun.
The lovely Peach Tree by Natchwoolie.
It's pretty even and doesn't try to twist back on itself a whole bunch.

These little guys are some of the last samples that were spun.
I'm in love the the gale's art one. It has a slippery texture.
The rose and browns of it are just too fun a combination of colors.

This mass that looks a bit like my childhood hair, is also from Natchwoolie.
It is camel and silk. Originally it was going to be lace weight, but the chain plying was going so well, that now it's more dk weight.

One of these days I'm going to have to get a wpi (wraps per inch) counter and start making notes. Until then I guess i'll just keep winging it.

This lovely bit of yarn is a nice 2ply. It is from Spindipity's shop and it was made for the June box for the PhatFiber group. It's called Puck.

As a former Puck (renamed Bip for our High Schools version) I had to have it. It will probably knit up into a nice cowl. Something to keep mischief close to mind ;)

I'm going to have to make a point to write more often.
After my little vacation that is.

quick garden update

2010-07-07T23:03:00.002-05:00

Because I know you are all on the edge of your seats waiting to hear how the garden is going, I'm going to grant your wish.

It's going rather well.
There are a few things I have learned for next year.
One of which being, do not plant so many tomatoes next to each other.

As you can see here, they have gone a bit wild.
They are even fighting with the Raspberry bushes.
They should both just really learn to stay of the paths and out of each others way.

The yellow beans that I saved from last year are coming along well.
I'm kind of surprised because I really didn't do anything special to keep them. I just put them in a jar out of the light.

Some of the Peppers are doing well. the little heirloom ones aren't though.
I'm going to transplant them to the spot where the Radishes where.
The yellow ones seen here aren't being shaded out by the zucchini, yet.

This is a Tomatillo. We got it from the East Side Co-Op plant sale. HT wanted to try them as that Bobby Flay guy is always using them.
They kind of look the the paper lantern plant.

And soon my friends, we will have more peas then we know what to do with. I'm going to have to learn how to can peas I think.
I love the way the vines look. So delicate yet so strong.

So that's all for the garden. If anyone wants any mustard greens, swiss char, or lettuces we've got tons to share.

... 2-3-4 ...

2010-07-06T22:35:00.006-05:00

The Tour is going well.
I have spun each day. Some days for quiet a bit. Other days for just a little while.

Here is a short recap (as Blogger doesn't like my photos) of days 2-4.

Here we have day 2. Nearish to the end of the day. I got a bit of spinning done while watching the Hangover with HT and Unger. Pretty funny movie really.

Day 3 pretty much looks the same, it's a little more full though.

Here is day 4. I took the wheel to work so that I could take it with me to knit night. Then my Ass. Manager wanted to grab a drink after work so I took it with to the bar. No since in walking all the way to the car and then back to the bar.

Turns out that an Iki spinning while drinking a Nordeast isn't something that regularly happens at the bar next to work. We got quiet the crowd. They wanted to see how it worked to I did a short bit.
Made that AM take a picture just for you all ;)

After the drunks had stopped talking to us it was time to go to knit night. The folks at the Blue Moon are used to us knitters with our loud talk and weird contraptions. So the wheel and I didn't make much of a scene there.

Though as you can see. I did get a lot done. Tomorrow after all the meetings and car things are done I might just finish up the Natchwoolie Peach Tree. Though I do have the front and back of some sleeves to knit.

That's right, "front and back" of sleeves. I really wonder what these UK designers are thinking some times. But I'll go with it.

A long week and a Tour

2010-07-03T22:57:00.005-05:00

It has been a rather long week.
I've been at the shop each day. And then i've been working on this when I get home.

What is it you ask?
It is the old kitchen cupboards (taken down and saved by the former owners) that I, with the help of my friend Unger, am turning into an Armour. It might also serve as on of the "leg"s for a new craft/computer desk.

I have also been stopping by the new coffee shop here in my little nordeast neighborhood. They really made the place bright and clean (the old one was getting dingy). The coffee is good, the food is good, you should go there so that they can be sure to stick around.

I have also been spending the first few days of my weeks stopping into local liquor stores to see if they have any Nordeast available. Sadly the only place I can seem to find it is at the restaurants. But hey, we had a great meal tonight.

As for the tour part of our title, well i'm trying to participate in the Tour de Fleece this year. I didn't have a lot of time today to spin, but I did make a nice chain-ply bit of yarn. It is even semi-consistent. In the above pictures you can see the 3 stages the fiber went through.

I think I might even be bringing the wheel to knit night this week.

Missing....

2010-06-23T21:42:00.003-05:00

The companion to this earring is missing.
I'm pretty sure it jumped out of my ear sometime yesterday. Though sadly that means it is in downtown Minneapolis, somewhere.
If you see it, drop it off at my store. My good friend Nicole made them and they are one of my favorites.

Though if the match doesn't end up being found, I may just have to make a necklace out of the lone earring. Though it will look sad hanging there on its own.

On a better note, Beth for Darn.Knit.{Anyway} was coming along great.
See.

There is the back all knit up.
That said, there is something not right about it. I messed up one of the rows and now the pattern repeat is too long in one spot.

You can see it better in this close up.
Now if it was just for me, I might let is slide. It is not for me though. That my friends means that no imperfections can be let to slide.

So I'm re-working the back as week speak. Nice think about chunky yarn, it will go quickly the second time.

One thing did go pretty well today.
I made jam out of some of my raspberries and some of the chocolate mint. I even took the time to push it through a sifter to get the seeds out.

I topped a little vanilla ice cream with the cooled jam as a treat. It was very nice. So I think more jam my just be in my future, when it's cooler out.

Breakfast

2010-06-20T21:18:00.005-05:00

Breakfast is one of my favorite meals.
It can be light and airy, creamy and filling or just so nice you want to take a nap after.

Today we had some of the first raspberries of the year.
Just a few so as not to upset the intestines.
I'm thinking there will be a lot of jam and seed straining this year.

I'm very smitten with my garden as of late.
As you can see, some of the plants are really growing.
The fluffy stuff in the center is chamomile.
I think I'll be able to make some essential oils and maybe some tea out of it.

So look out for your gifts this year. The plan is to have them all come from the garden. If only in part. :)

Just some pretty things

2010-06-13T23:42:00.003-05:00

It would seem that my "case of the Mondays" is starting a bit early. I would dearly love to have just one more day of. But someone has got to pay for my meds. :P

So as to battle off this case a bit early, let's look at some pretty things. Mostly things that I've found on Etsy.com
ps: all images link back to their shops. Take a look.

This dress is really lovely. I would be just the thing for a night on the town. Maybe a little dinner and dancing?

I really like the idea of vinyl wall decals. I've been thinking about having something like this in my guest room. Paint the ugly closet doors white, get this in gray and silver... might just look pretty cool.

Now, good photography is a great way to sell things. If you are creating an image of a camera (even a necklace camera) it better look good. Something about this just say "Let's travel the world and shoot all the film we can get our hands on"

Might be a fun thing to do one of these days.

So there you have it, 3 pretty things that will hopefully make your Monday a little less blah.

Now to win the lottery so as to get all these pretty things.

Rad...

2010-06-02T15:23:00.003-05:00

...ish?
I did a little thinning today of the radishes. I think I should have done more when they just started out.
The round one is so round and cute though.

I personally have never been a radish fan, but HT loves them. So, he will be the sole eater of radishes in our house.
I am hoping that my colitis calms the heck down soon so that I can eat some of my veggies. So far the garden is going like gang busters.

here's to hoping. :)

happy long weekend

2010-05-31T20:04:00.003-05:00

I hope everyone is having a good weekend (long or short).
A lot of my friends decided to stop by for some Grillin'.
We had fun, played games and just enjoyed each others company.

(raises glass) here's to friends, family and our service men/women. May we all have a great day.

Collecting?

2010-05-28T22:31:00.003-05:00

When does collection turn into something nefarious?
I really do wonder. I have a habit of starting collections and then wondering of to the new shinny thing that catch my eye.

Right here (pictured above) we have my collection of Honey. That's right Honey. I stumbled onto this honey one Thursday Downtown Farmers' Market. It is Ames Farms Honey. They put their hives in places where curtain types of vegetation grow. The single source ones are my favorite. With flavors like melon, raspberry and buckwheat I just had to try them. The fact that the reason they taste like melon ect is due to the pollen the bees collect is beyond, well fabulous.

So now, when it is Thursday and I have a little extra cash I have to get a new flavor to try. Thus began my collection.

Now I have a button collection, the little 1" kind.
There is a growing collection of yarn and fiber, but we all knew that.
And as a point of interest, there is a fabric collection starting.
Not to mention the books, mags and random vinyl toys that are collectibles.

I'm just hoping that you all don't find me on one of those hording shows one of these days.

Though all my little collections would be enjoyable to photograph.

long time no blog

2010-05-19T23:01:00.002-05:00

So the question becomes, what have I been up to.
Saving the world from evil space invaders... and mostly knitting.

I just completed the above pictured little neck tie scarf thing. It's made out of 100% Iki hand spun. I think it turned out pretty nice. I'll have to wait till fall now to try it out, but such is the way of things.

I got my first PhatFiber sample box (just came today). It was all thanks to a 4th quarter bonus. Oddly enough the 4qt of last year was better than this new one is.
I'm really excited to spin and play with all the fiber.
They are all inspired by blooms and bark. I really am loving the cherry blossoms inspired roving that I got.

There was also Shepard's' Harvest 2 weekends ago. It is always held over Mothers' Day in Lake Elmo MN. It a treat to go. I scored some pretty unusual roving to spin. This picture is of yak and silk.
That's right yak. Its super lovely feeling on my fingers.
I also found a woman selling BFL for 18 a lb. Not half bad really.

My mom, auntie and sister came up for that weekend. They had a really good time and helped me out with the garden afterwords.
If you go, get some kettle corn. Its worth the upset tummy.

But mostly my time has been spent on the garden.
Getting protection up for the plants was a must. The neighbor cats that live outside seem to think that my raised beds are a great spot to pop.
It wouldn't matter so much but they dig up the seeds.
The seeds that haven't been disturbed by kitty feet have started spouting. We even tried breaking off some garlic clove pieces and seeing if they would grow. They are, though I'm not sure if they will add more cloves to themselves or what.

I've even got corn growing along the property line this year.
I'm not sure how much of the lovely garden food my colitis will allow me to eat, but I'm sure going to sample things.

So there is the life of Iki for the past few weeks. I'll try to keep up dating more often. Oh, and as for Aprils craft book review, I was going to review the "Square Foot Garden Book" but well this is all that needs to be said about it... Good ideas, nice lay out, fallowing it will defiantly work, so didn't like the infomercial feel of it.

Now for May... I think I might talk about some of my magazines. There are always people wondering if it is worth it to subscribe to one or another. I'll try to write something coherent about what I subscribe to and why.
Till then. :)

Digging up the yard

2010-04-21T21:34:00.006-05:00

Spring has un-officaly sprung here in MN.
Its still April and everyone is itching to get outside and play in the dirt.
Luckly my dafodils are coming up and keeping my "got to put things in the ground NOW" sensation at bay.

I was able to gather enough for a nice vase to have sitting on the dinner table. Not that we really use the dinner table, but its nice to have flowers inside all the same.

It also aloud for some LensBaby practice shots.
The top 2 photographs were taken using the Muse lens.
It isn't my favorite lens but it was fun to play with

HT and I took some time off this week to go to a friend's wedding reception and to get some work done around the house.
Mostly around the backyard.

We have been planing on making some more planter boxes, amending the soil and attempting the Square Foot garden technique. So far we have the boxes made.

With the help of our good buddy Unger (the one with the tattoos and shorts).
We also have the boxes placed. Now we just have to lay down some edging, lay down some fabric in the paths, get some rubber mulch to have in the paths, get the boxes full of soil/compost/peat moss and then plant some stuff.

I'd say we did a pretty good job. And we only lost a few of the raspberry bushes in the process.

I was thinking about reviewing The Square Foot garden for you all this month. I may still. Though that means that I have to sit down and read it.

But for now, we are all just going to stretch out with pain killers and hot packs. Here's to hoping that the plan works out in the end.

Spin Control: review

2010-03-29T20:33:00.004-05:00

Spinning is becoming one of my favorite things.
Luckily it is also one of a lot of peoples favorite things.

Now if you don't have friends in the area that can teach you, or if you learn better by reading, or if you just need a good book to remind you off all the things your friends thought you, well this is the book for you.

Amy King's book Spin Control helps to break down spinning into understandable pieces. From getting to know you fiber, learning just what that thing on your wheel is called, to how to create the finished object that you are looking for. Be that finished object yarn, a sweater or art.

I've mostly found myself mostly working with the drafting techniques.
They have helped to make my yarn a bit more even.

Even when using two different fibers I was able to get pretty much what I wanted.

The chapter on plying has a lot of useful information. Mostly I find myself working with a 2plys. They hold up well and are the easiest to start with. I still haven't gotten the hang of the Navajo Ply, but I'm sure it just takes practice.

Now I will admit that I haven't sat down and read the part on measuring... well all the way through that is. It isn't a chapter to miss. It has good explanations of wraps per inch, how to use samples and where to go from small starts are all good things to know.

All in all it is a very good book. I've learned a lot from it and like to go back and reference it from time to time. I'm by no means a super fancy spinner, but with practice and a good book at my side i just might get to be one.

So that's 3 reviews so far for all of you at home keeping count. Good to my word for 3 months. Not bad. Hope you enjoyed them so far.

Tomorrow there will be....

2010-03-28T18:09:00.003-05:00

There will be a blog review of the book Spin Control.

I've been doing a lot more spinning than knitting right now.
I think it has a little to do with the weather and also a little to do with... well it's just a fun thing to do.

I spun up this blue corridale top last year, but its been plyed to make some lovely yarn.

I just spun up this. I can't wait to see what it looks like when I knit it up. I tryed to spin it so the colors will match up, and they might.

So tomorrow there will be a nice review for all you spinning junkies ;)

revelation?

2010-03-09T21:15:00.003-06:00

I am a selfish knitter.
And its ok.

My new hat (which needs to be blocked still) is evidence of this.
The Blue Sky Alpaca was just too nice to leave sitting around. So it became a fun new hat.

Now this is not to say that I never knit for other people. Its just not often anymore. I used to gift many things to people. They would say "Oh, thanks this is neat" and that would be that. More often than not the knitted item would never be seen again. I will admit that some of those early knits were quite odd. But they were given with the best of intentions.

These days when I knit for others I knit things that are small, sweet and don't take too long.

Case in point, these baby booties. They were just received by HT's expecting cousin. She quiet likes them and there is Internet gushing going on about them. I'll admit it, I like a little gushing now and then.

So it would seem that I'm going to try and keep some of my knitting to Parents to Be types.

Though this burp cloth is slogging a long.

It doesn't help that at the last knit night I snapped one of the needles when I was sitting down (no I didn't sit on it, just put my hand on it funny)
It is nice and plain with just enough something to keep you going, but I might have to make any more of these with self striping yarn.

And bibs, everyone needs bibs right?
They are simple but can be super pretty if worked right.

This is my first one. It turned out nice and the Soon to Be Parents seemed to like it. Maybe I should just knit a few every time I want to knit but am stuck for an idea. Then I wouldn't always be knitting for myself.

But like I said, there really is nothing wrong with that ;)

Jury Duty and The Ravelympics!

2010-02-25T10:23:00.004-06:00

The Olympic winter games are almost over and that means that so are the Ravelympics. I helped represent the Ank-Morpork Knitters Guild as a assistant coach for team Bad Ass Artificers.

I was able to get 3 projects done for the games.

First were the French Press Felted Slippers. They were easy to knit and stitch together. The yarn and the cute finishing buttons came from the way to close Crafty Planet. ( way to close for the budget that is)

The mittens are the classic Thrummed mit. There is left over roving knit into the mittens along with the yarn. It makes for a vary warm mitten. Though you might want to knit a half size bigger than you think you need. Also, 1 inch of semi tightly twisted roving should be perfect for the thrumm. The inside needs to be light and fluffy but the outside should be tight so that it doesn't fuzz up.

Before the Olympics started I knit up this baby cardigan for the fabulous shop Darn.Knit.Anyway (in Stillwater). It is from Rowans new mag Classic Miniature Knits. The denim yarn is great to knit with. It just slides through your fingers and doesn't resist like regular cotton does. Though Rowan really needs to get over all the seaming. It is a raglan style that was knit from the bottom up. It could have been knit top down in one piece and the sleeve could have been knit in the round. But as it was a knit to show off the pattern, I didn't deviate. It looks super cute all done and I think the handmade buttons are going to look great on it.

My payment was some fab Blue Sky Alpaca. I decided to make an Incognito with it. I do love a good mustache. It's very warm and the alpaca is nice against the skin. Though I think instead of making the hems I would knit it as a big tube and then just tack down the edges if I make it again. I have lots of green and orange left over so i think I might make a brimmed hat to go with it.

As for this Jury Duty that I mentioned at the top, it is stressing me out. I was planing for this a month ago as that's when they sent the summons. Everyone at work was like "Oh they will call you early and it will be over and done with in a week." The summons says 2 weeks. The first week is almost over and they haven't called me yet. I'm really stressing out that this is going to head into next week. *deep breath* Well what ever happens I have a good team and they will help me work it out.

The kitties have liked having me home but, they don't like me vacuuming all the time. The house is pretty darn clean right now. Though if anyone thinks that this week has been a vacation... they can just keep that thought to themselves.

Here's to hoping that I either get called in tomorrow or released from duty and back to work.

Review 2: Stitch & Bitch (books on knitting)

2010-02-17T13:08:00.003-06:00

So when I first picked back up knitting, I wasn't doing so well.
HT got me Debbie Stoller's first book for Christmas and well the rest is history.

This is the first sweater that I ever knit. It is the Manny Sweater from the book. It's a little too short but it keeps you warm

All Cascade 220. It is a bit ichy around the neck though. While it is ichy the colors are some of my favorite.

I have yet to knit anything out of Stitch and Bitch Nation.
It has a lot of cute and fun patterns in it.

I love all the patterns in Son of Stitch and Bitch.
Lots of very manly yet fun knits.

This is a version of the Love vest. I really liked the cables in it and the color edging. Sadly, I had gauge issues again. I tried to get HT to do a curtsy so you all could see the with of it. If he was wearing foot ball pads it would be a winner.

The Stitch and Bitch books are great. They helped me to find my love of knitting. They taught me different techniques and gave me the confidence to try sweaters, even if they didn't work out.

The illustrations in the books are easy to fallow and instructional. Over all lay out of the books are great too. They all have photos that make you want to knit it all, even if its not your style.

I'm even going to get a new copy of the first book to give one of my friends.
So that she has something to reference when I'm not around to help.

If you know anyone who wants to stretch their skills but isn't into classes (or doesn't have the time) these are great books to gift to them.

A hat in One Day.

2010-02-01T20:49:00.003-06:00

Yesterday I decided to sit down and knit as HT played Mass Effect 2.
And I wanted something quick easy and fun.
So, I knit the Shroom from this winters Knitty.

I had some of the Spud & Chole it called for so I figured I'ld make it.
The colors made me think of a mushroom and also Toad from Mario Brothers. So I went with it.

What do you think?
It makes me giggle. Though I think that the knit 3 together that it calls for should be a slip knit 2 together pass. I might make another one solid color and see how that looks.

I finished the baby kimono wrap for HT's cousin's little one. I think it will look really sweet on her. I also made some tiny booties to match and some bigger booties for lasting longer.

Grimlock thinks that the wrap makes a nice place to stand and demand attention.

And just for fun, a sign of things to come.
Every now and then it's good to get little potted plants for your house.
The ones that bloom are great things to have around.

Review 1: New Pathways for Sock Knitters

2010-01-23T23:17:00.013-06:00

Sock knitting is something that seems to come along in every knitters create.
Most of us believe that Sockyarn is not stash.
There for, we should want to use up all that non-stash from time to time.

In Cat Bordhi's book New Pathways for Sock Knitters we have a ton of ways to create with our sock yarn. What she tries to do in the book is create a way of thinking about the structure of the knit sock.

Now the ideas of this book are pretty good. The increases that she uses Linc/Rinc are a nice way to make stitches with out holes. The diagrams that show how to use two circs is pretty nice too. Though I don't think that's the method for me.

The designs are good, the charts for working socks for your own feet are understandable (which is more than some).

I did the Woven Ridge Socks socks. They turned out well. The get a bit droopy on my caff but otherwise they fit quite well.

The one thing that I'm critical of is the lay out of the book. Some of the instructions get a bit muddled. There are cut outs and instructions and sometimes it feels like a chose your own adventure book.

I did my homework.
I started at the very beginning of the book and knit the first baby bootee fallowing the pattern word for word. Well, mostly.

Starting from the beginning of the book is the best way to figure out the way that Miss Cat thinks about the socks. If you try jumping around in the patterns, well the chose your own adventure aspect of the book gets more pronounced.

All in all a good book to have in your arsenal.

Patterns doing good.

2010-01-19T22:33:00.004-06:00

Ysolda Teague is a great knit designer.
This month she is donating 50% of her profits from pattern sales to DWB.
Click on the picture to fallow to her Whimsical Little Knits 2 page on Ravelry.

I have also been eyeing Sarah Barbour's Kimono Top for a while.
She is donating 100% of her profits to StC.

What better time to pick up some patterns that you have been looking at.
You will be doing good as well.

Now,
This weekend I'm going to sit down and write up a review of the book below.

I have knit a few of the patterns and I have read all the instructions.
I think it will be a good way to start off this new year direction of the blog.
I'm even going to start a new baby sock or 2 to prep for this.
That's right, I do my homework... sometimes.

New Year, new direction

2010-01-08T21:55:00.003-06:00

There is a lot of snow on the ground. To much in fact. All the snow never makes me feel like it's a new year. Spring, that's when the year starts again for me.

But for the sake of blogging more, I will make a "New Year Resolution". I am going to start reviewing my knitting/crafting books. I need a reason to justify the compultion i have to buy craft books. If they are well designed, they just call out to me. I'm going to make it a monthly thing. Maybe the last Monday of the month.

Now it I really get cracking, I'm going to review tools and yarn and patterns as well. Though I'm just going to start with books. No over doing it right off the bat.

On another note, the marshmallows have defeeted me. I don't know if it's the fact that my mixer can't go as fast as it should. Or if i'm not leaving it to sit as long as I should. I've decided that if I need some, I'm just going to buy my hand made marshmallows from some folks that know what they are doing. I found this great maker to try.

Well that's all for now. Keep an eye out for the book review.

Sugar over load

2009-12-20T00:54:00.002-06:00

So I finally made my own marshmallows. I've been wanting to do it since I saw Martha do it. Now, mine didn't come out perfect but they are pretty good. I used the recipe that Craft posted. I messed up a little bit though. I didn't pay attention when it said "put 1/2 cup water" because at the top it say that you will need "1 cup of water". Always pay attention when you are making something new. The turned out, but I think they are a little too moist. Also, having a clean kitchen with all the right tools would be good.

You will notice that you can not see my kitchen in the photograph. Yes... well let's just say that we are not being good about our chores around here right now. The only chore we seem to get right is giving the kitties all the attention in the world.

Well, hopefully the sugar buzz will end here soon and I'll get some sleep.

Holidays?

2009-12-16T19:33:00.002-06:00

We would like to know where Santie Paws is at? Is he going to leave treats and catnip? Perhaps a new kitty bed? We have been "good" this year, well some of the time.

The kitties seem to think that if they sit by the tree, something will happen. Each evening as I surf the web Miss Siren sits under it and watches me. I keep having dreams about tall perches for cats. Humm I wonder why?

I hope everyone has a good holiday season. I won't be writing much (shocker!) because well i'm working a lot and there really isn't much to say about that.

Food!!!

2009-11-25T19:52:00.003-06:00

Insert 19 century orphans singing "Food, Glorious Food" here.

I do love a good breakfast. And now that Pop NE is doing brunch on Sundays, well I'm a happy camper.
What we have here is the egg sandwich on rye with potatoes. It was pretty tasty. Though i would have liked the eggs scrambled rather than sunny side up.

This is the Banana's Fosters french toast (i think) with pecans on top. It was very sweet and tasty. Almost too much to eat. So it was lunch too.

Now going out for food is great. Honestly if I could have someone else cook for me all the time, well I would. But it is nice to try your hand at a new thing some times too.

This something new is Spicy Butternut Squash Soup. It turned out pretty well. I think I might try to grow some butternut squash next year in the garden. There was only one thing not quiet right with the soup. I put too much cycane pepper in it. I think maybe with a little more cream or even sour cream it will be good for lunch next week.
I have also started the Thanksgiving desert cooking. The oven will be taken over by a bird tomorrow. So that makes now really the only other time to do any of the things that need to be put in the oven. These are Pumpkin cookies. It was a good simple recipe. Pretty much shorting, brown sugar and pumpkin. These were made out of the pumpkins that i grew. It really something special to cook with something that you have grown.

There is a down side to all this cooking though. This down side is the reason that i would gladly never cook.

What is it? It is the dishes that making food creates. Just after you get the kitchen clean, you turn around and there are all these dirty dishes to deal with. :(
Well on this Thanksgiving I'm thankful for many things, friends, family, good employees, and a dish washer to do all these dishes in.

kitties and computers

2009-11-19T21:03:00.003-06:00

Lately, somebody has been stealing my computer. I'm not going to say who (Siren)
She keeps crawling on my lap and onto my computer every night lately. I wonder if it's because the computer is warm? It is really cute though.

I've been working more on my log cabin blanket. I'm down to one skein each of the colors. I'm pretty sure that there will be enough of the center color to edge the whole thing. It might even be done for Thanksgiving. Something nice to cuttle in on my day off.

clothing makes the sale?

2009-11-13T21:37:00.004-06:00

People often say, " The clothes make the man" (or woman). And I'm pretty sure that clothes help make the sale. When you work in an area of town where most of your customers are wearing suits, button up shirts and kackies, or even uniforms I think this applies even more. Now, how do I convince others of this?

Lead by example. That I can do. But to lead don't folks need to fallow?

Now, if only I could knit faster. Then I could lead in fabulous hand knits. I'm thinking about making hand knit version of my Target dress. It's chunky to bulky yarn, with a cowl neck and A line. I'm pretty sure I could knit it all in the round with maybe a fake seem to give it a little more shape. Not sure.

When I start i'll post some pictures and see what you all think.

Fall???

2009-11-09T22:16:00.004-06:00

The weather seems to think that it's not going to be uber chilly right now.
I am only marginally ok with that. Ups and downs in the weather make my UC
go more than a bit wonky.

That said, Saturday was really nice.
Crafty Planet had their party for the new book One Yard Wonders. As written by
our own Crafty Planet crew. It is written, designed (super important to me) and laid out well.

Here is the cover

Now I'm not sure what in the book i'm going to use this fabric for. Maybe a skirt?

Now this. This will be a hand bag and maybe 2 project bags.

And this, this needs to be something hug able.

Now, I was not bad and didn't spend money I didn't have. I saved a few spiff
checks just for this. Because really, when you go to a store that is having a
party, it's just bad form not to buy something.

Oh, and just in care you were worried. Here's some yarn. I think this could make
a pretty lacy something. Not sure what, but I got 2 balls so I'm sure I can think of something.

Halloween '09

2009-11-01T11:47:00.004-06:00

I can't remember if i showed off the owl socks her yet.
So, here they are.
It was pretty much just a basic ribbed sock with the owl cable.

They fit pretty well. The second sock is a little tight in the heal. It still made it
on to my foot though. So that's a win.

And here we have my Halloween costume. It was steampunk shop-keep.
I already had the skirt, but as i have gotten a bit hippy, i need to add some
fabric to it.

So it turned out nice. I made the top too. I think i need to work on my sewing
skills. It turned out well, but i would have liked it to be a bit more, professional looking.

We had a good night. Went out for dinner with friends. The Wilde Roast Cafe
is pretty tasty. I think the breakfast is a bit better than the dinner.

And now, now there is too much candy in the house. I got some just in case
our friends didn't want to go out to dinner. Well we forgot to set it out.
Now it is in the kitchen, tonting me. But looking at my chin in those photos,
I'm really going to have to stay away from it. Or get that neck-work-out
infomercial thing. :P

Now, get out there and enjoy the sun all you Minneapolins. It might not be
back for a long time.

Day trip'in

2009-10-14T12:38:00.004-05:00

If you have wandered over to Stumbling over Chaos, you might have seen that there was snow happening the other day.

Here we have proof. The flowers survived and there are some pumpkins hiding behind there. So, the snow was pretty. But it was not welcome. The fact that i'm on vacation and didn't have to worry about the snow at the store, now that was welcomed.

So I decided yesterday to take a little day trip to Stillwater, MN. It was great to see some water, yellow leaves and the only snow was melting snow.

Main St Stillwater is pretty cute. I think the next time family comes up we are
going to have to take them here. The Ms. Pacman window art is from a food
place. It looked tasty, I didn't stop to eat.

I did stop to look at yarn though :)
This is Darn.Knit(Anyway) a nice new shop. They have yarn, fabric and art.
They have been looking for local (mn or maybe wi since it's right across the
river) artists. It was nice talking to Carly about the shop and about a camera
for the shop ;) Even on vacation I talk cameras.

There was some yarn bought (i'll show you in another post) and they were
super cool and gave me a reusable shopping bag with their logo on it.
It's a very cute bag and it will get a lot of work.

So, if you are feeling like a day trip. Stillwater is just about 30hr to 45min away.

I know I'll be going back.

fall update

2009-10-04T18:12:00.002-05:00

So here is a little "What's going on around the Iki house"
Well, we have been cleaning. We have been rearranging the bed room (HT did that) and we have been getting the yard ready for after "The Fall".

The pumpkins turned out well. Not as many as I thought there would be. Though there are a few that will be good for baking. 3 for baking 4 for carving, not bad for a first try. There are still a lot of tomatos on the vines. I don't think they are going to turn red any time soon. I'm going to have to try out fryin' them up I think.

We think these are Spaghetti squash. There are about 6 of them in total. Not sure what to do with them really. We also had 2 acorn squash. They were made last Wednesday for dinner. Turned out pretty tasty. The peppers that were living next to all this squash just started making peppers. Sadly they too will not get much bigger before the frost comes.

I've decided to take the blanket I was making out of squares and scrap it. I saw MomRKnits working on a 10 stitch shawl and thought "By, the Log Cabin would be an easy thing to work on". So, the squares will be made into pillows or something. It's coming along well. It's Knitpicks Wool of the Andies on size 8us needles. I'm going to save aside the center yarn for the edging. It's the discontinued Mainline. I really love the cotton wool mixture. It will make a nice soft edge.

The guest room (aka Grimlock's room) has gotten a work out this Sept. Our friends Mr & Mrs Toons came up for a lovely wedding (still have to get our gift in the mail as we forgot to bring it.) And HT's Mom and Dad came up the next weekend. It's nice to host people in the house. I just wish I could take more time off to spend with them all.
Well I'm off to drink some more tea (got a bit of a chest cold). Remember, the best way to warm the house on a cold day, is to bake something, cook something, or put some kitty treats on your lap and have more hidden in your pockets.

Halloween is coming

2009-09-24T18:58:00.003-05:00

I'm thinking of steampunking it out for Halloween this year.
Here are some good places to find things if you are thinking of doing the same.
There is Scoundrelle's Keep. She is local, cool and that's where the picture is
from. Such awesome stuff.
We found Steampunk Emporium at work. It seems to have a lot of nice things
for men. One of my emps really likes the men's bathing suits. :)
If you are thinking about designing your costume but need guidance,
there is this page.
I've personally purchased from Art of Adornment. They were super helpful when
I couldn't get pay-pal to behave. I love the top hat I got from them.

I'm going to start sewing tonight. I'll post some in-progress pics eventually.

Hello Blog, it's been a few days hasn't it.

2009-09-21T19:21:00.003-05:00

So here's what i've been up to. Went to a wedding in Hastings MN.
It was pretty out there and my friends were really pretty and
the photographer was a friend too.

He's really getting good at it.

Had friends in town from KC. They will be coming back for Thanks Giving.
Why? Because our house is the coolest.

It was a busy but fun weekend. I'm super tired today though.
Had crazy dreams all night. Dreams where i'm not in control in anyway.
Dreams where people are treating me badly. Dreams where Ht does not
love me.

So, no more of those because you really can't sleep well when you are
having bad dreams. I would love to have some flying ones though.

Why is it that....

2009-09-13T12:23:00.006-05:00

All the cute ventage shoes that I find are way to small for me. :(
I would love to wear these.

vintage Pumpkin Oxford Pumps

Aren't they super cute.

Looks like this is going to be a pretty things post.

The Kelifern Black Wedding Dress

I know it says wedding dress, but that's just too pretty.

This is from Scoundrelle's Keep. Maybe I should save up and make something
like this for the halloween this year...

Well that's all we've got for today here at chez iki.
Oh, the kitties handled the vet apt well, and they are healthy.

Trip to the.....

2009-09-10T19:17:00.002-05:00

The place that we wont mention until we get back as we don't want to spook anyone.

For the trip, i had to get another carrier. I figured, get a little one for the Siren so that she doesn't pick on her brother when I try to put them in the same one.

Well it would seem that Grimlock likes the small one.

And Siren is quite taken with the big one all to her self.

They do seem to have ideas of their own about all of them.

Umbrellas and organization

2009-09-07T16:21:00.002-05:00

So this Friday in Downtown Minneapolis, there were umbrellas popping up all over Hennepin Ave.

This on was supposed to be vertical, but i'm lazy today. So outside my store's front door, an umbrella attached to the garbage can. I was waiting for the city to fine me for there being one there (i'm not responsible for the umbrellas by the way.)

Saturday they showed up on the old Shinders building. Maybe the City did grumble at someone.

Here's a wide shot so you can see it better.
Now, a lot of people thought that this was because Mary Poppins is in town. Sadly no. While investigating the one by my store i saw the Travelers insurance logo on them. So it would seem that the insurance people are trying for some viral marketing.

Since I work downtown, I got Labor Day off. :)
I was inspired by Ms Wendy of Wendy Knits, so i got to organizing and cleaning.
Below is my nice organize entry closet.

Most of the shoe cubes are filled with knitting.

Grimlock decided to help with the organizing.

going to do it.

2009-08-12T14:56:00.004-05:00

What is it that I'm going to do? I'm going to take these socks to the
State Fair. Now how can I do that when I ran out of yarn just before the last
two rows. Well I did a gauge swatch before I started. I know that's pretty weird for me. :)

So all I had to do was frog the swatch and finish the toe.
Here you can see the finished socks

The fluffy bit at the top is the left over bit of yarn. There wasn't that much left.
They are blocking right now and next week they will be taken to the fair.

The other thing that I'm going to do, is send off a letter to my Congress people.
I'm trying to give them an idea of all that i've gone through with the insurance companies.

Here's to hoping it helps.

deap breath and pretty things

2009-08-09T21:42:00.006-05:00

Sometimes it seems that life like to throw me randome curve balls.
Balls like never truly having a day off with out having to deal with some part of work. Like seeing my depression modeled in how my house look.

So in honer of those curve balls here are some pretty things.
Because pretty things make me smile and help me dauge those curve balls.

I so want this hat

Maybe I should have this posted up some where...

Think i could pull this off?

Oh the spinning that I could do with this.

So that's enough pretty for today.
Here's to winning the lotto so that all the pretty things can be mine. :)

garden update

2009-08-04T09:42:00.003-05:00

So, the garden is going pretty well. I think when fall comes we will have a lot of good eats coming out of the garden.

Here we have the eggplant. There are about 6 eggplants on the one plant. It's pretty cool as i've never grown any before.
I love the way you can see the different colors of purple.

There aren't too many watermelons in the garden. I think the pumpkins are taking up most of what the watermelons want in the ground. I'll just have to pick a different spot for them next year.

Oh, and i think the squirrels are trying to sharpen their teeth on this one.
Note the ruff edge at the bottom.

So, if the watermelon is about the size of a hand ball, these pumpkins are about the size... of 2 mainecoon cats. I turn them every now and then to make sure that they aren't roting on any of the sides. Though i did find a slug on one of them after i turned it. It stuck to my hand. :P

My tomatoes are finally starting to turn red. Though i think the pumpkin leaves are taking a lot of their sun. :(

Also I think that I'm to make a tress along the north side of the yard. Just a short one. I would really like to have more sweet peas and morning glories next year. I think I'm also going to make a space for cut flower garden.

Next time, a knitting update.

memories...

2009-07-31T19:04:00.003-05:00

So, when I was a kid my family collected the Random House Golden Books.
Some of my favorite books were the ones illustrated by Sheilah Beckett.
She really helped form my idea of beauty, what illustration should look like,
and what I wished i could draw like.

here we have a 2 page spread from Cinderella

Here we have Sleeping Beauty and her Prince... i think when i crop it
i might have oriented it back wards... humm

And 2 of my favorites, Snow White and Rose Red. I loved the way they
thought through their problems and helped to solve the Prince of the
stories problem too.

Now I'm going to share a little secret with you all. You know when people
say "I've thought about my wedding dress since i was a little girl". Well,
I never really have. "Oh that's pretty." is generally my thoughts but there is
no grand plan in my head waiting to be executed.

That said, when we would play pretend, this is what I pretended to look
like.

Sans the glass slippers though. They can't be good for dancing in.

I think I'm going to have to find more illustrations by Sheilah Beckett.

off week...

2009-07-22T20:48:00.003-05:00

This week has been rather off.
It's hard to focus, hard to help folks, hard to just make since of things.
I know it's the depression, but knowing that doesn't help. breathing does...
a little.

Today on the way into work, i saw an injured bird on the ground.
It was just laying on it's back. Birds are not supposed to lay on their backs.
So I picked it up and set i down in the mulch to see if it could right itself.
It couldn't.
So i went inside, got a box and put the little guy in it. I know it's just a
common bird, but seeing it flap around like that, panicked, not able to be
safe... I couldn't just leave it.

When lunch coverage got to work I took it to the Wildlife Rehab Center.
It's not to far away from the house. I felt better, don't know if they can fix
the bird, but I did what i could to help.

The Norwegian tourists that were in the shop said that helping a
sparrow was good luck. I could use some. Here's to hoping the little guy
is ok.

dreary days

2009-07-14T22:21:00.002-05:00

It was a kinda odd day off. Had a Dr. appointment to pretty much say,
"So, how yah doing" "Ah pretty good" "Good, get some blood taken and
I'll see you in 3 months". I've got to be paying for a boat or something,
to bad I'll never get one myself. And that's all before 9am.

After that, it was rousting HT out of bed, taking him to work, getting more
kitty food (Grimlock was insistent that this was a priority). By 10am it was
time to relax and just knit. (knitting in WIP on side bar)

I thought I should clean up my work corner. Grimlock thought he would help.
There are a few needles that are getting replaced slowly with KnitPicks'
harmony wood needles. So far they are my favorite.

Also no needles were harmed in the organizing of the corner.

After that it was time for tea. What's better than tea on a day where it's
cloudy and windy and wants to rain but wont? Nothing but tea with a little
honey. The mug agrees with me.

I tried to make raspberry tarts... it didn't work out super well.
They are tasty, but very runny. I might want to just look up a recipe one
of these days and go there. I'm pretty sure there will be enough berries to
experiment on for the rest of the summer. It might be fun even.

Garden update

2009-07-12T16:15:00.002-05:00

Because I can't stop thinking about my plants, I thought I would give you
all a little update.

These are my Peppers. The baking pumpkins are trying to take them over,
but I keep helping them out by cutting or tucking the leaves back.

This is the plant that I don't remember what it is. I really like the leaf and
the flower they make, but just don't have any idea what to do with them.
any ideas?

These are the Yellow-Wax green beans. They are very tasty and have
a lighter flavor than regular green beans. It's really fun to pick a handful,
toss them in a pot of water, then have beans with dinner.

This is one of my carving pumpkins. You can still cook with them, but the
meat of the pumpkin isn't as thick as the baking kind. There are lots of
little guys coming out of this plant, but so far, this guy is the biggest.

I will also be eating (hopefully) eggplant Parmesan, made from my own
eggplant in the fall. I the plant has a few flowers and looks like some are
starting to bud.

It is really very exciting to eat things that I've grown. I've wanted a
garden for a long time. But living in an apartment means that you have
to find some place other than home to garden and well... I'm just too
lazy for that.

I started my ideas for a garden way before the economy tanked. And
honestly, veggies and roughage are not my normal diet. So this my friends
is not a "Recession Garden". It's just my garden that makes me feel good
about doing something with my hands, growing things that do more
than just look pretty (though I have plans for a 'cut-flower' bed next year)
and actually make me want to cook. Because lets face it folks, i'm no
Julia Child, i'm just an Iki that likes to eat food fast and with little fuss.

Though i will don my apron from time to time and cook for others.
But only from time to time.

scene 1: day off

2009-07-07T11:18:00.003-05:00

Take 1: Get up, got HT to work, get things for pork tender loin marinade,
go home, start making jam.
Get call "No ones here to open the store!!!" Toss on clothes, fly out the door,
fly back in to make sure burner is off, fly to store. Open store. Let Ass. man.
feel like ass head home.

Take 2: Turn on The Current, start making jam, look at mess in house...
say "frak it, it's my day off, i'm not cleaning."

spinning like a fool

2009-07-05T16:17:00.003-05:00

This is some corriedale that I'm working on. It's a bit clumpy, but it's spinning
up nicely. I wonder how much it will make.

This is a smoother Corriedale that I spun up. It's about 1062 yards of
light fingering weight yarn. I think I might try making Aurburn-Camp shirt
out of it. We'll see how it swatches up.

This is the Marino Top that Ms PurplePurl gave me. It spun up quickly.
It's drying right now so we will see how much of it there is in a day or so.

The garden is going well. There are cucumbers starting to grow. The egg
plant has a flower on it so I might just get an egg plant later this year.
The basil is huge. The pumpkins are taking over. The watermelon is
trying to grow. And I really wish the tomatoes would ripen up. I want some.

I'm working on figuring out what to do with all the raspberries. I have jars
for canning. But the idea of heating up the house for that seem a bit much
right now. So, any good ideas for raspberry non-heavy duty boiling jam,
or tasty treats?

I can haz...

2009-06-29T19:07:00.003-05:00

Raspberries!!!!!

After dropping of the rental car, I couldn't stop myself. I had to check out
the raspberry bush. There were some really nice berries ready to be eaten.
HT got a little worried that I had cut my finger again. :P Nope, just hungry.

This is the prettier picture. Washed and ready to eat. I just had to run
to the store to get yogurt to eat them with.

We got back from our last wedding (that we can get to this year) yesterday.
The kitties were well taken care of by Ms. Elise. Siren even warmed up to
her after a little while. The it was good to see all of HT's family. A few of
his aunts and uncles want to come up and see the house before HT
possibly breaks it.

I'll post pictures of the trip later this week.

is it just me or...

2009-06-22T20:14:00.002-05:00

Does this look fun. It was. World Wide Knit in public day was good.
I did spinning, looked a knitting, got rid of some yarn and got a book.
When we were sitting around Powderhorn lake, there was an IceCream
truck driving around. It seemed... to fit, go with the the warm summer
afternoon, the park.

Tonight, as I was giving my plants a healthy drink, there was an IceCream
truck driving around the neighborhood. It's music, seemed off, and it
didn't seem to fit. Maybe after I've been here awhile it will, but tonight
it almost seemed sinister. Like it was the opening scene of some Steven
King story.

I've never been scared of clowns. I've never found them particularly
funny either. But if a clown had gotten out of that truck, I think I would
have been terrified.

the finger isd getting a little better.

2009-06-19T21:05:00.004-05:00

Nathan, one of my employees, made this picture today.
I guess this is how he comically sees me.

My finger is getting a little bit better. But I'm kinda worried that
10 days wont be enough to really fix it... but we will see.

I'm going to try and take my spinning wheel over to Como tomorrow,
then Powderhorn. We'll see. I might be tricky to carry. But, I do want
to hang out with the ladies and the spinners.

After that there will be cleaning, and yard work. Oh the cleaning.
Mostly it involves picking up around the house. We aren't really dirty,
just really messy. It takes a while for things to get to their home.

Speaking of the home. It seems that no one has bought our re-mortgage
yet. That's ok, it's just a bit surprising really. Though I suppose the way
things are still going it's not that surprising.

Off to ... spin... look through stash... snooze... not sure but one of
those things.

DR Skiggles CD (cat doctor)

2009-06-15T15:55:00.004-05:00

So Mom got back from something called a Wedding. She sat down at this
wheel thing right away.* I may have to get rid of it.
The wheel tried to take off one of my whiskers when all I was doing
was investigating the string.

Today Mom was out side for a bit. Then she came back in with this
white thing on her hand. I checked it out. There are 4 stitches.
This is going to make it hard to get head scratches,
but it does mean that the wheel will be left a lone for a while.
So I'm going to have to prescribe Mom lots of cat lap time.
that's all from Dr Siren Skiggels CD

* I would like to note that the kitties got lots of attention
when we got home and that I'm no longer friends with the hedge trimmers.

A note to the public at large

2009-06-10T08:42:00.002-05:00

Coffee shops are..
1) a place to get coffee and small snack
2) a place to have a sit
3) a SOCIAL gathering spot.

You see, they are not a library, they are not a quiet place to contemplate life
They are a place where people talk, laugh and listen to loud music (the
barista's can that is)

Now if you don't understand the idea of Social groups, go back to
kindergarten because that is where they teach people such things.

what's going on.

2009-06-07T18:45:00.003-05:00

I've been going for walks around the neighborhood lately.
There are a lot of guardians on the houses around here.

This is a real head on the side of a house. They have a lot of neat
things in their yard and no their house.

This one is for Miss Chris. There is one on each side of the door. I think
if I ever get house guardians I want something like this.

I'm working my purple hand-spun into the Drop-Stitch Scarf. I think it will work
well with the thick and thing bits and show off the plying.
I've finished all the knitting and gotten a few more things for my little Sister's
wedding. Make-up = check, time off = check, Hair and eyebrow fix = check,
gifts and gift-bag = check
There are really only a few more things to do, but they will all have to be done
when we get down there.

On another note, i've been watching a little Vampire silliness lately.
True Blood, meh. Just a bit to much girl drama for me.
Twilight, oh good lord. talk about sap. So much sap. And what is with making
vamps not vulnerable to the sun. One of my friends is making quiet the hilarious
observations on Facebook as she listens to the audio books.

Well off to the knitting. And re-watching Dexter.

it all started off with at Bee

2009-06-02T22:08:00.003-05:00

No really, it did. I went out to check the garden this morning (it's a
pre-work habit now). Turns out that the Tomatoes are making flowers,
the strawberry plant is making a (singular, one ect) strawberry, and
the peppers, cucumber, eggplant and watermelon haven't died.

There were quiet a few honey bees buzzing around. This is a good thing
as the flowers will get pollinated and then bare fruit. There was, however
a very friendly Bee that seemed to think I was quiet interesting. Ht's advice
"Run like the wind, it's after you!" fallowed by chalking.

Thus started of the day of, semi-harmless weirdos. Really, there was
a drunk handless dude at 10am. Baby Daddy drama outside the Chambers
Hotel, but they are glad they are on Hennipen some times.

In knitting news, knitted gifts are almost done for Sister's wedding. (don't
worry, she wont be surprised that she is getting knitted things, just by what
they are.) I'm going to learn how to ply some of the yarn that I've been
spinning. So knitting and fiber are not being... too odd at all.

fallen down the rabit hole

2009-05-29T21:41:00.004-05:00

Hehe, it's like a fluffy fibery cotton candy.
This is Fabjous Fibers, bfl in #7 Purple People Eater.
I'm about half way done with the 8 oz and I'm running out of bobbin.

I even have a little blister on my right hand pointer finger from spinning.
Think it's the way i'm holding my hands. Kinda funny really, didn't think i
could get hurt playing with yarn. :)

That memorial day sale at Borialus was just too much for me. Though
I'm really glad I picked this up.

As for a knitting up date....

My Spring Socks are done. They fit pretty well. I still haven't blocked them
yet. I think that the blocking will help to bring out the lace detail.

Well, that's all for now... the fiber fumes are calling.

learning new things

2009-05-25T19:39:00.003-05:00

So this is how things looked after my first lesson.
Not supper pretty but getting there.
I've been kinda hooked. So today I spun the rest of the gray
lambs wool you see here.

Not too bad if i do say so. I kinda want to get the green roving and
start that up too. But I think I'm going to give it a day and work on some
project that need to get done.

So this is what Memorial Day looks like at our house.
After grilling in the back yard, we have 3 guys sitting and working
on 3 macs. Just a tad silly for such a nice day outside. Misty and I
decide to head outside and sit a bit. Some times the Sun is just too
nice.

Hope everyone had a good day.

"All full up on Crazy, Thanks!"

2009-05-22T21:23:00.002-05:00

So today was reather stupid at work.

Makes me think of all the thisils that keep trying to invade my
semi-orderly veggie garden.

This weekend is going to be learning to spin, planting zone 4 boxwoods
and just relaxing.

So, for your viewing pleasure here are some links to pretty things
I found at the Johnson St, Johnson Stock.

GoldHoax had some pretty clothes that are just neat.
Calissa Designs had some cool bags that I wish I had got one then.
And Crafty Planet has some 1yard fabric bags in case you need to up
your cool fabric stash. I know i do ;)

flowers in the front

2009-05-20T23:14:00.004-05:00

So I splurged a little and got some planters and more plants. I'm finding
that the idea of having pretty flowers around my house is making me a
little lose with my $. Which I shouldn't allowed.

We are going to re-close on the house loan tomorrow. We are getting a
better rate. From around 6.5% to 4.7%. It will help with the monthly
bills, but there is a hefty chunk of $ to shell out to get it.

...

I have a Siren sitting on my lap helping. It was so hot out today that
HT put on the AC when he got home. So now the Kitties are all about
the hugs and snuggles because it's not wicked hot in here. I really wish that the weather change was more gradual, but that's Mid-West weather for you.

I just hope that it will be nice for LS wedding. It would suck if it was super hot, windy or just not nice out.

I also hope that my plants can handle the new hot weather.

Cross your fingers that I don't kill my pot plants like I did the hanging
ones. ;)

Art-a-Whirl

2009-05-18T22:31:00.002-05:00

So here we have my Video Game Girl project displayed for Art-a-Whirl.
I was lucky enough to be aloud to show at a friends studio. It made this a
really long weekend, but it was worth it. A few more people saw the
project and hopefully more people will volunteer for the project.

I've been working on my summer socks. They are coming along quickly.
I might even have enough of the yarn left to do a short pair too.

I have been working on some idea's for the AM-Knitter's Guild swap that
i'm in. So far i'm happy with most of the idea and just have to finish a
few things up.

Also, Johnson Stock was this weekend too. It's basically a art/food/meet
people festival in NE on Johnson St. It was pretty fun and i got a neat
hand made bracelet that was made out of an old belt.

Harvests of yarn

2009-05-10T16:15:00.003-05:00

This weekend Jaquelin and I went to Shepard's Harvest.
I wanted to get an Angora bunny, but HT talked me out of it.
Seems he think the kitties and the bunny might not get a long.

The is one of the little guys. He was cute and soft.

There was a lot of roving there. So I thought, if i want to get
a bunny to spin from eventually, maybe I should learn how to
spin first. So...

I got a Ladybug spinning wheel. I tried it out this morning.

I think I'm going to have to take some lessons. Getting the twist
and everything down is tricky. So if anyone knows a good
place to take lessons from, let me know.

It was really fun being around all that yarn and happy people. Maybe
next year it will be a little warmer.

little chilly?

2009-05-02T20:42:00.002-05:00

one down, many to go.

another addition of....

2009-05-01T21:30:00.002-05:00

Iki's pretty links. (as i'm working on things that can't be blogged about ;)

If you like comic you might like this web comic The Phoenix Requiem
Stumbled on this artist SibylleD on Etsy.com
If I can't get my morning glories to grow I might make these.

I am knitting. I did even go to Knit Night last week.
There were witnesses.

While hiding, I've been...

2009-04-21T20:02:00.003-05:00

I've been trying to grow things. These are flowers for Butter-flies.

This is a hanging pot thing, with ivy, tiny flowers (don't remember their name)
and some pretty pansies.

One thing people may not know about us knitters, is that most of us
are really quiet impatient. The knitting just keeps us occupied so that
we do not seem so antsy. It takes a lot for me to not try and force
(though I'm not a super sure how one really would, its not like plants
respond to threats) the plants to grow faster. I was really sad the other
day when only one of my tomato seeds was growing. Now there are
3 and that's pretty cool.

I haven't been to Knit-night at the Blue Moon Cafe for the whole month.
I really miss it, but the only one bathroom in the place makes me panic
a bit. I'm going to make it next week though, come hell or high water,
or something like that. I'm going to need to see the Ladies after a weekend
with the family. ;)

well it didn't really work out.

2009-04-16T20:18:00.003-05:00

So I turned it into a pillow. I could have made it just the right size, with
a little cutting and sewing. The fact that I didn't mark things right...
It was way to small for HT. And it was even to small for me. Now if I
would have dropped 40 pounds and changed my body shape, then it would have fit.

Ah well. It will make a nice pillow.

Back from the doc

2009-04-14T11:56:00.004-05:00

So, the new Doc, put me on new Meds...
Hopefuly they will be helpful. They are more expencive that's for sure.

(pull out soap box) So, what would happen to me if I didn't have insurance?
I would be skrewed thats what. Just today's scrips were $185, they could
have been $1000. So I know that R&D for med companies is costly...
but I bet even in this down and out economy they aren't hurting.
(pust soap box away)

My shawl is finished. I just need to try it out with the brides-maid dress to
see how it looks.

what have I been up to?

2009-04-12T08:56:00.005-05:00

Well, this is what I've been up to recently. I've been wishing that the basement
was finished so that I could have my desk back. This is my Ikisti corner. HT got
me a new computer so that I could work on my photography a little faster and
so that I could play WOW again.

The only problem is that he's taken over my desk with his computer. So, when
the basement is finished, he goes down stairs and I get my desk back.

I've also been working on my shawl for my Sister's wedding. It's turning out
pretty well. It took me a while to get the hang of the pattern, but the end result
will be nice.

I have to find pink or tan shoes for the wedding. I was thinking since the boys
are all going to be wearing orange Chucks, that maybe I should get some pink
Chucks to wear.

Well, time to knit a little more and then log in and level my shaman.
Have a great Easter/Spring day.

not funny.

2009-04-01T13:31:00.003-05:00

It seems that we have gotten our first "trick" this morning. Snow, April 1st, not digging it.
It would be nice if the weather would just make up it's mind and get warm out.
My UC is acting up because of all this, warm cold wishy washy ness.

My shawl is almost finished. I'm just at the end of the charts. The plan is to finish it today.
Well the knitting part anyway.

Then the rest of the day (my day off (happy dance)) is going to be picking up around here.
It's more than a bit messy.

Here's to hoping the rest of April will be snow free.

it's getting longer

2009-03-22T18:56:00.003-05:00

Its getting longer. I just started on my second skein. It should be finished
before the little sisters wedding. I'm hoping to photograph it on one of the
other brides maids.

It's finally getting nice outside. Thank goodness. It's really going to help
bring people around to happier feelings. If that happens... maybe things all
over might start looking up.

links to pretty, happy things

2009-03-12T20:50:00.002-05:00

So today, as it was not a nice day, i give you things that are pretty,
make me happy, inspire me, and are just all around good to look at.

This springs knitty.com, with it's lovely socks.

Webcomics, particularly this one make me happy.

looking at the work of a friend.

listening to a Brit talk way to fast about video games.

fun backgrounds, icons and more

clean?

2009-03-08T22:41:00.002-05:00

We have to do some cleaning. We've let the house get away from us.
This is what it can look like... not what it looks like.

Saw Watchmen today. I liked it. The only thing I will agree with the
critics about is the sex scene in the owl ship. Didn't really seem necessary.
Other than that, I thought it was a pretty good rendering of the comic.
I like the meat of Alan Moore's work, but i'm not a fan of all the filler that
he seemed to add in to some of the stories.

All said, in Watchmen his women were believable.

I'm feeling very rambly so I'm going to head to bed. But tomorrow there will be a lot of cleaning to do.

... and then back to work.

2009-03-04T14:53:00.003-06:00

I put together a nice little breakfast today. One last treat before going back to work.

And I finished my socks. They are Lorna's Laces: Black watch(minor edit there) in a random
pattern thought up by me as I went along. Toe up and 2 at a time (until
i got to putting the heel together... didn't quiet plan that one out right).

There is just enough of it left to make a mitered square for my
new/remade, History of knits Afghan. I'm going to have 2 nice smushy
knits to curl under one of these days.

Well, tomorrow it is back to work. I'm glad I have a job, but why does
the weather have to warm up just as i'm heading back there?

Paging Dr. Grimlock.

2009-03-03T11:52:00.002-06:00

HT got sick on Sunday. Not sure what it was. 24 hour flu maybe.
So, Dr. Grimlock and I took care of him. My old school play t-shirt quilt
is a favorite when we are feeling sick or just chilly.
HT is feeling fine right now, but still a little sick from all the chick/bad
movies we watched on Sunday.

part of the list

2009-03-01T11:47:00.002-06:00

So my work-space is almost finished. I just need a working chair.
I might have just the right thing out in the garage but we'll have to see.
They always say that you want a bit of a tall chair for sewing.

For knitting, I already have a good chair.
And my old cloths holder is now a fabric and loose patterns and tools.
I think i did a good job... Maybe this wont get turned into a walkin closet.

to do.

2009-02-28T10:39:00.003-06:00

Paint bonus room(done 1:30pm)
- move yarn storing expedit shelf in there
-- move sewing machine in there on top of yarn storing shelf
--- use sewing machine to make more cloth boxes to go into self (love this gals stuff)
---- make into my comfy crafting place (for now)

pick up the damn house (we've let things get a "bit" messy)

rework (again) my photography website
- make HT help

recruit NorthEast Mpls peoples to take photographs
-(ie steal MomaGrouche's idea)
-- Have Ht help to make a good word-press blog for it.

Make things for Art-A-Whirl
- The studios above Bella Lana will have pretty things in them
-- knitting or photography or both or a combination of both???

Stop making you all suffer through my lists. (unlikely to happen) ;)

have I...

2009-02-22T22:16:00.003-06:00

Something we've been talking about at work.
Shooting with a digital, with ground glass, with a LOT of light.
So here is a test. My test subject was quite willing to stay still for me.
Though i think that the SLR (or at least my lenses) is not built for this.
Might have to kidnap a little camera from work to go on with this.

HT's love sweater got washed today.... well really we felted it... a bit.
It went short, like i knew it would. Though I think I might be able to cut
and sew it now... Such good intentions.

The socks were finished. They turned out really nice.
I started on another pair of toe ups today. Though I'm not really
using a pattern. 2 at a time to make sure I do the same thing with them.

Sadly the weather, the state of my house, or depression is really getting
to me. Or possibly all of the above. I have to keep thinking that there
is a light at the end of the tunnel. It's just a little hard to see now.

Oh, and for toned down, I really like the Oscars this year.

rambling and a sock

2009-02-17T22:30:00.002-06:00

The sock was knit over the weekend. It is Opal: Hedwig (the owl, not the inch)
So far it is turning out pretty.

Now for random thoughts in no particular order.

I need to stop using my car as a traveling receptacle for all things (good and bad)

I need to say please and thank you more. A friend reminded me that we all
need to say it more. Really, try making it a part of your day.

"Minnesota Nice" is B.S. Just because it rhymes doesn't make it so.

I think I would like to start playing WOW again. If not just to have something
to share with HT again (on another level than just the rest of the day)
Though I'm not sure if I really want to deal with all the guild silliness.

I'm going to go on at least 2 day trips on my mini vacation. Don't know where or when yet, but it will happen.

I saw a few things today.

2009-02-10T21:51:00.002-06:00

One of those things was this. HT's sweater vest is a bit big on him...
Now maybe if he was a bit taller, broader shouldered and had a bit
more of a beer belly, then it would fit. This proves what the Harlot says
about the knitting fates. Sometimes they like to play tricks on you, even when you swatch properly and everything comes out right.

I also saw Coraline in 3D. It was pretty neat and not gimmicky. Though the glasses they give you to wear did hurt near the end as they were pushing on my real glasses.

I got the first issue of The Knitter today. It's pretty good so far. All the Ladies seemed to like it when I passed it around tonight. I really like the photography in it and the design of the mag. Though they have to get a better web presence. The best thing that describes it that you can find easily is Craftzine and the Mason Dixion ladies (Jan 9th post of '09).

I also stopped by a World Market. It turns out that they are closing all of it's Twin Cities stores. So I got a few pretty things because they were cheep and were things I kept saying "I should get that one of these days".

HT keeps saying that I'm trying to single handily kick start the economy. :P

swaps are fun!

2009-02-10T10:22:00.003-06:00

This is my super nice package that Ms. TigerEye sent me.
The tea is great. The little bamboo spoon works great.
The yarn is really pretty, but I'm not sure what to make
with it. The dark chocolate WAS really good.

I have the day off today so I'm going to go see Coraline.
The theater near me is showing it in 3D. So that will be
cool.

Well, I should get showered and ready for my fun day off.
Laters.

random day

2009-02-08T23:18:00.002-06:00

I have been making small things lately.
Like this stitch marker. I do think the jade is quiet pretty.

This is the 3rd square for the afghan. I didn't dig
the pattern in the book, but I liked the "button stitch"
so I'm just making it look a little more like the ottoman's pattern.

I have 2 squares done so far. Though my gage is a little different
on both of them. Ah well, it isn't so different that blocking can't take
it out.

Other than making little things, I have been making little
(in a good way) progress on my getting fit. On Wednesday I
went to the store after work, turns out that they finally had
Wii fits in stock. So, I got one. I must say, it is sad to see my
little Mii all pudgy like that. But I'm slowly working on it. I have
worked out on the fit or the bike every day but today ( got to
have one day of rest).

To day I spent most of the day doing laundry and watching
The Prisoner on AMC's web site. For a show from the 60s it's
quiet good. Turns out they are making a new one (a mini one)
this year. It should be pretty neat. You can read a bit about it
here.

Now if only I could get my dang right wrist to stop clicking and
hurting, then I could get some more knitting done.