Cat-astrophe

 

Knitting Accessories

Everyone who knits has yarns they covet. Lace weight or bulky; wool, alpaca or mohair; multicolor or single shade; we all have our preferences.

Then, there are other items we need when we knit. For example, knitting needles. Some prefer wood, others like plastic, while still others stick with aluminum.

And that leads into the discussion of straights, double-pointed or circular?

But there are other knitting related items that we don’t really need, we just want. These could include fancy knitting totes, stitch markers that are really knitting jewelry, or stitch/row counters that double as necklaces.

For me, the “unnecessary but desired” item is a shawl pin. I love shawls, both knitting them and wearing them, so shawl pins come naturally. Oddly enough, I don’t use them every time I wear a shawl, but still I covet them.

Here’s a picture of some of my shawl pins:

Okay, not the best picture. But you may be able to see that I have metal, wood, and ceramic shawl pins, some in colors to match specific shawls, while others are neutral and could go with most anything. And no matter how many I have, when a new one catches my eye, I’ll buy it!

What do YOU covet in the knitting world?

And to give you a smile today on this cold, snowy Tuesday, I’ll close with a funny:

Supersocke Winners

Congratulations to kittenwithawhiplash and Suzie B! You've each won a ball of the Supersocke. I've already sent you an email notifying you, so if you'll email me your address I'll get the yarn in the mail today.

Oh, and if you like Regency romance and have an e-reader, I've got my last and longest up now. It's called Miss Rose and the Rakehell and I've linked to Amazon for your Kindle. But it's also available for your Nook or Sony or even your computer.

Happy knitting!

Fran Baker

Shameless Self-Promo and Sock Yarn

First, the shameless self-promo. I've got two new eBooks, one new print book (hardcover) and one large print book (trade paperback) - all available for the asking at your favorite bookstore or public library.


Up first is my new hardcover, The Talk of the Town: http://www.amazon.com/Talk-Town-Daughters-Great-Depression/dp/1432825399/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1315656063&sr=1-1;

Then there's Miss Francie's Folly, the first of my Regency eBook series: http://www.amazon.com/Miss-Francies-Folly-ebook/dp/B004WPW3CW/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1315656199&sr=1-1;

(Note: Miss Francie is also available in large print: http://www.amazon.com/Miss-Francies-Folly-Fran-Baker/dp/0984601538/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1315656199&sr=1-1);

Finally, there's Pursuing Miss Pippa, the second of my Regency series: http://www.amazon.com/Pursuing-Miss-Pippa-ebook/dp/B005972D5Y/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1315656169&sr=1-1.

Now, lest you think it's all writing and no knitting ... I've made a dozen Curly-Q-style scarfs from Universal's Rozetti Marina polyester yarn (easy-to-follow instructions available at: http://www.universalyarn.com/quality_color.php?quality=265).

Last but not least, the Sock Yarn mentioned in the title! My camera isn't working but it's Online Supersocke 100 in Sortierung 97 in color 1056 (check it out here: http://www.covetedyarn.com/stores/coveted-yarn/item-559-Supersocke-Sortierung-97-by-On-Line). To win the sock yarn, send an email with Supersocke in the subject line to Fran at Fran Baker dot com, and I'll draw the winner's name on Thanksgiving Day.

And if I find the other ball of yarn I bought for this contest, I'll draw two names.

Good luck! And happy reading (I hope!)

Fran Baker

String or Nothing

It’s only for string. Posted: 15 Oct 2011 11:00 AM PDT

A Skillet, a Spatula, and a Dream

Here's what I did on my summer vacation:

Currently 99 cents at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords. Stories with recipes. Recipes with stories. All for under a buck. How can you go wrong??

Yarnmageddon

I decided to try to organize my “yarn stash corner” so I can actually see what I have. This would be quite helpful in preventing me from going to my LYS, the Sheep & Wool Festival, and the Wool Arts Tour and buying the same thing I bought the previous year.

First, I had to measure the space in the corner. Since it’s under a sloping ceiling, that made it a little more difficult. But I used a tape measure and did the best I could.

I bought five pink stackable plastic milk crates, figuring I could do a column of two and another of three. I could put them open-side out so I could see the contents.

I should have taken a picture of the corner as it was, but I was so excited to get going, I forgot. Just imagine a towering pile of plastic and paper bags, containing goodies not seen since the dark ages.

I did, however, take a picture of all the “keeper” things I pulled out and put on the bed. Unfortunately, it came out blurry. But it’ll give you an idea of all the loose skeins of  yarn, books, needles, unfinished projects, unSTARTED projects, and knitting bags that were stuffed in that corner.

I also pulled our four bags of yarn scrap odds and ends, a huge pile of old magazines, and a decorative bird’s nest. Hmm.

By that point, I was thoroughly weak and exhausted, so I took a lunch break. Who knew it would be such a tough job? I think I burned off at least three hundred calories.

After the nutrition hit my system, I returned and started organizing, which involved storing yarn by weight, swearing, stacking started projects, threatening the milk crates when they made suspicious creaks, and a lot of eye-rolling.

And at last, everything was in place. It’s still crowded and not easy to see everything, but it’s a vast improvement. What do you think?

I’ve learned that I have enough lace yarn, virtually all in pink, purple or blue, to make shawls for the entire Radio City Rockettes. My favorites seem to be Cherry Tree Hill yarn, and Ball and Skein yarn, based on how many skeins of each I have.

I have enough sock yarn for three or four pairs of socks, which sounds about right. And a few skeins of various sport and worsted weight yarn.

And I also have about ten unstarted or unfinished projects. I’ll certainly never run out of things to do.

There! I feel so much better. I think I’ve earned a little snack! Tomorrow, I  may open my own yarn store…