Archive for August, 2007

Body, Backside & Fur


2007
08.27

Did someone want to see my “backside”? :lol: Well, here you go, with a look at the body as a bonus:

You don’t see floats on the backside because I wove in the unused strand every other stitch. (Edit: well, they are little floats?) Can you still call this “stranding”? What else can you call it? I really do prefer doing it this way.

The body will be mostly covered by the cuff when the hat is completed. Why bother doing a design on it I wonder? But it was good to practice. Now I contemplate on how to block the hat. It definitely needs blocking because the plain knitting parts of the hat are curling. Just lay it flat? Do stuff it!

This is the Merino/Angelina that I blended at The Fabulous Fiber Fest. You have to click on the photos to see the sparkles better. The second one shows the color of the light. Well. Sort of. Now that I remember what I bought the fiber for, I am glad that I didn’t put in too much Angelina. I’ll be using it to knit a cabled hat once it is spun. The Merino is Ashland Bay top in Denim. Angelina is Crystal Amethyst.

Oh, I want a drum carder. Maybe a Strauch Petite with the brush attachment? I am dealing with a client from hell. I can see it going on for weeks. Carding would help to relieve stress, no? :-)

The Fabulous Fiber Fest Day 2 & 3


2007
08.20

Wow! I am tired. I spent most of my time on the second day blending Angelina and Merino fiber. I bought the Merino a long time ago. I thought it was for a scarf for Kate. But now I realize that the fiber is for a hat project. Darn! I did think that there was too little of it for a scarf. Grrrrr! I’ll have to find the fiber intended for the scarf and card it at the guild meeting.

I took Tablet Weaving 102 with Michael Cook on the third day. We learned more advanced techniques. Double Face & Brocade. I got the basics down. But I still need to be able to see how stitches are formed. At this time I have to remember how many times I turn forward or backward. I can get stuck trying to remember which way to go next. Here’s the result from the second class:

Photos of the 2nd Day

See more photos here.

Photos of the 3rd Day

See more photos here.

I stayed behind after closing of the show to help take down Mariko’s displays and booth. Hard work. I probably lost a few pounds. But that is a good thing. :-)

The Fabulous Fiber Fest Day 1


2007
08.17

What a day. So much to do at the show. We had a little area for “Spin & Knit”. Mariko even brought her drum carder for us to play with. But I ended up spending a lot of time trying to solve problems for a client. We had a DNS record update yesterday. Things usually get a bit weird for up to 24 to 36 hours when that is done. He was told, but he still freaked out! ARRGGHHHH!

At least I got to take the Tablet Weaving class 101 today. That forced me to get off the phone for 3 hours. The client’s “problem” resolved by itself by the time the class ended. The day ended good, but I am way tired. Here are some pictures of the day:

More photos can be seen here. I couldn’t take pictures of every booth. I’ll take some more tomorrow. Here’s what we learned today in Tablet Weaving 101:

I am still doing this by remembering the steps. I hope to eventually “see” what’s going on. Oh, and that’s an Inkle Loom that I am using for the project. Guess I’ll learn how to do that too. :-)

Watch Cap Cuff Completed


2007
08.16

The cuff is finished! And I like it. I can see that my knitting relaxed a bit.

Now I just have to TURN and knit. Woohoo!

Watch Cap Update


2007
08.16

Twined Herringbone Edge. Beautiful to look at. Tedious to do!

A Plug for The Fabulous Fiber Fest


2007
08.15

Did you know, taking vitamin B1 (Thiamine) can possibly help you repel mosquitoes? This is what I found on Wikipedia:

Some studies suggest that taking thiamine (vitamin B1) 25 mg to 50 mg three times per day is effective in reducing mosquito bites. A large intake of Thiamine produces a skin odor that is not detectable by humans, but is disagreeable to female mosquitoes. Thiamine takes more than 2 weeks before the odor fully saturates the skin. With the advances in topical preparations there is an increasing number of Thiamine based repellent products. Whilst there is considerable anecdotal evidence of Thiamine products being effective in the field (Australia, US and Canada), there has yet to be any clinical trials run to demonstrate the efficacy of these products.

Now, don’t go rushing to the store to stock up on vitamin B1. Talk to your doctor first if you want to try it! I just thought this was interesting.

What?!? Oh! I am suppose to give a plug on The Fabulous Fiber Fest. It is happening this Friday through Sunday, 8/17 ~ 8/19, at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. Do stop by if you are in the area. I will be there everyday from opening to closing, doing fiber related activities somewhere in the show. I am also taking two tablet weaving classes with Michael Cook. That is going to be fun!

Dream Stone


2007
08.14

Jade, a stone of protection, beloved by the Chinese people. It repels evil, deflects harm. According to Melody, it is also a dream stone. It improves ones remembering of dreams, and assists in “dream solving”.

My mother left behind a beautiful jade ring. It is completely carved out of jade. Different shades of green with a reddish brown oval shape spot. And, it fits me.

I seldom pay attention to dreams. I don’t usually remember them. Often it is like that I don’t dream. After Mom’s passing, many asked me to pay attention to my dreams for her visit. Even my Buddhist teacher asked if I dreamed of her. I had one dream earlier on, but it wasn’t one that answered many questions. So few days ago, looking at the lovely ring that I had been wearing for a few days, I decided to wear it to sleep and see what would happen. I dreamed of my Mom 2 days in a row.

I don’t want to talk in details of my dreams or what they mean. I can tell you this, the best part was seeing her with a big smile, waving at me. I don’t think she was waving good-bye. But she has yet to enter my dream again after that. Even as I continued to have vivid dreams. Probably busy. :-)

I took the ring off last night for a break.