Sweaters for Dragons

I have decided to host a sock club next year.  Here are the details:

Overview:  Members of the Cables & Lace Sock Club 2009 will receive one (1) skein of sock yarn every two months starting in January 2009.  Each of the skeins will be hand-dyed in a colorway initially available only to Sock Club members.  The colorways will be made available to the public two (2) months after their Sock Club release, at a considerable price increase.  We will also try to get a few patterns initially available only to Sock Club members.  And who knows?  Members may find some other goodies in their bi-monthly packages as well!

Cost:  The cost to join the Sock Club is $99.00.  This makes each skein of hand-dyed, 75% Superwash/25% Nylon sock yarn (462 yards) $16.50, including shipping!

Signups:  Signups will be open beginning Sept. 1, 2008 and will be limited to the first 25 members.  Signups will close after we have received 25 paid members, or on Nov. 1, 2008, whichever comes first.

More Information: Watch this page for further information, or join the Cables & Lace mailing list for periodic updates.  If you have specific questions, please email sockclubATcablesandlaceDOTcom.

1. I got a new cell phone…

It wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment purchase.  I also switched plans.  All the recent phone/Internet changes will save me over $100/month

2.  I finished the first Rattlesnakes on the Serengeti socks…

It looks a bit funky because the cables pull in the leg.

3.  My red day lilies have finally bloomed, as have the hyacinth bean out front…

4.  I received yarn from Knit Picks for a baby blanket…

Knit Picks Crayon

…and books from Crafter’s Choice…

…plus a free gift….

5.  I finished the BSJ, except for the buttons. I’m waiting to find out the sex of the baby before I pick out those…

BSJ, pre-origami

BSJ, post-origami

6.  I rewarded my way overachievement with this the other day…

Egri Bikaver

7.  I’ve started to learn to spin.  No pics of this until I get a little lot better.

8. I have applied to go back to school for a BS in Business Management.

That is all.

I have finished revamping Cables & lace.com.  You are now able to order any color in any of my 3 yarn bases.  I’ve also added 2 new color series.  The yarn bases are:

• Dragon Feet: 70% Merino/30% Silk, 440 yds/100grams, Fingering Weight at $18.00/skein
• Lizard Toes: 75% Superwash/25% Nylon, 462 yds/100 grams, Fingering Weight at $18.00/skein
• Spider’s Breath: 100% Merino, 880 yds/100 grams, Lace Weight at $22.00/skien

The color series are:

• Seven Deadly Sins
• Apocalypse
• Old Man of the Sea
• Celebrity (mostly inspired by the cast of Lime ‘n Violet )

Ordering should be much easier as well now that I have a real shopping cart solution in place.

Check it out!

So, I’ve had this fleece sitting in my garage for over a year.  Not the pre-blanket kind, the kind right off the sheep’s back.  I finally asked the actual owner if I could do something with it and, as I suspected, he gifted it to me (knowing that he will probably get a knitted something out of it).

So, after setting up my new craft table*, I dumped the fleece out of the bag and checked first for uninvited guests, of which there were none. I then picked out some VM and heavily matted sections, although there wasn’t much of either.

Here is the unwashed fleece…

Next, I gave it a bath in very hot water and 2 oz. of Kookaburra Wool Wash…

Here are the remnants of the fist bath…

GROSS! 

I drained the tub, rinsed it out, and gave the fleece a second bath with 1 oz of the wool wash…

Drained the tub, rinsed it, and did a hot water and vinegar rinse.  This probably wasn’t necessary since it is done to reduce the alkali in the detergent, but I went ahead and did so anyway.  Finally, a rinse in plain hot water so it didn’t smell like a sheep salad…

After I let it drain for a few minutes, I tossed it in a zipped pillow case and spun it out in the washer.  Finally, laid it out to dry on my sweater rack….

I’m told it should be completely dry in 2-3 days, at which point I will prepare it for spinning.

In the meantime, I need to get some hand carders (found a pair of 72 PSI carders for $49.00)…oh, and I should probably actually learn to spin.  Good thing I have the drop spindle and some practice roving.

Since the last time I posted about the flora in my yard, many things have burst forth.  As I warned you, lots of pictures in this post.  Here is what has sprung up…

 
Common Day Lily

Two of the groups of day lilies

Purple Hollyhock

Painted Fern

Dragonfly (OK, this is fauna, not flora, but pretty nonetheless)

Morning Glory out by the pond

I can’t remember what this one is

Rose of Sharon

Sea Holly

Yellow Rose of Texas (cactus blossom)

I think the only things left that have not flowered are the red day lilies, the hyacinth bean, and the hibiscus.  The latter is absolutely gorgeous!  Deep ping, dinner-plate sized blooms.  I can’t wait for those to show up!

I haven’t done an actual “what I’m knitting” update in awhile, so here goes.

I’ve made progress on the knitted T.  Not as much as I want, but it’s at least moving forward…

I’m to the first heel flap on Sock #3 in the SKP 2008.  The pattern is called Rattlesnake Ridge, but because of the colorway of the yarn I’m using, mine are called “Rattlesnakes on the Serengeti”…

Knit Picks Gloss, colorway Serengeti

I’ve also finally started my knee-length coat…

Noro Iro

That’s all I’m working on currently.  Once I get the first sock finished, I will probably cast on for my next project for Mom.  I want to have this pair of socks finished well before the Aug. 31 deadline, however.

Next post:  Summer Blooms.  WARNING:  This one will have LOTS of pictures.

P.S. - I’ve added a line of laceweight yarn to my hand-dyeds at Cables & Lace.

Here’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for!  I was actually somewhat restrained, but still ended up with 3 sweaters and a pair of socks worth of yarn.

In order of purchase, from Webs…

Valley Yarns “Northampton” in Dark Green Heather for an Adult Tomten Jacket

Valley Yarns “Northampton” in Eggplant for the accents on the Tomten

Cascade 220 in a Dark Purple for the Toggle Collar Pullover

From Circles Knitting Salon…

Interlacements “Tiny Toes” for fall socks for Mom

From Stitch House Dorchester…

Farmhouse Yarns “Bo Pee” in Slate for the Seamless Hybrid

Farmhouse Yarns “Bo Peep” in Cornflower for the Seamless Hybrid

Mom bought me the last two, and the yarn for her socks, so I got away with spending under $100 on yarn.  Yay for me!

On our way to the Salem Witch Museum, Mom and I stopped here…

The Witch House

That’s Mom holding the sock.  This was the original house of one of the magistrates during the witch trials.  Now, it’s three rooms crammed with 17th century furniture.  Not worth the $8.00 admission price, especially for a self-guided tour.  More photos from inside the house can be seen here.

After then driving around Salem for an hour (more New England driving horror) we finally ended up here…

The Salem Witch Musem

This was definitely worth the $8.00 admission.  Nicely presented history of the trials as well as the explanation of “witch” through the ages.  We did some shopping along Essex St. and got our photos taken at a vintage photo place…

The whole set can be seen here.

There were no yarn purchases in Salem, although I did pick up this…

This was our last day in Mass.  On Day 6 we headed back to Lancaster, PA, and Day 7 headed back to Indy.  While in Lancaster this time, I finished these…

Berlin Lace socks, SKP 2008 Sock #2

Overall, it was a very fun trip.  Next time, however, I’m flying and taking public transportation!

Next post:  Vacation Wrap Up and Stash Enhancement

Today we went to breakfast at Zoe’s with our tour guide for the day.  I shall reveal who that was once I get the pictures from Mom.  We did a quick tour of Boston and got to stop here…

Formerly Bullfinch’s, used for the outside filming of “Cheers”

Here is a picture of me and our tour guide outside of Cheers…

[Picture coming soon]

We went to Circles Knitting Salon and knit and chatted with Allison for a couple of hours.  Mom got some sock yarn (picture will be in the wrap-up post).  Then, we went here…

Stitch House, Dorchester, MA

Yes, I got some yarn here as well, but you’ll still have to wait.  From Stitch House we took the T to Long Wharf where we took a tall ship cruise on the tall ship Formidable.

Here is Captain Rusty and the crew…

There are a lot more pictures from this trip.  They can be seen on my Flikr photostream in the Boston Harbor set.

After the trip, we finally made it here…

Tasca, a fabulous tapas restaurant.

This all made for a very full day, so after dinner we went back to the hotel and rested up for the Day 5 adventure:  Salem!

Today we went to Northampton.  Why did we go to Northampton?  Well, unless you’ve had your head buried in a bag of yarn for the last few years, I’m sure you can figure it out.

First, we went to Northampton Wools (the original one)…

We also stopped by an antique store where Mom picked up a replacement hurricane lamp.  Then, we went here…

Webs America’s Bead Store

Lots and lots of pretty, shiny, sparkly things in here.  I’ve not yet attempted beading, but I’ve been in many a bead store.  The selection here is excellent.  Steve and Kathy have done a great job with this.

Finally, we reached our goal…

(a.k.a. the Mother Ship)

And here, we met her…

Carol Sulcoski and her son (whose name I didn’t catch)

Carol is the Author of Knit So Fine.  And yes, I got her to hold the Travel Sock ;)  I got my copy of the book signed, and even managed to convince her to pose with my ugly mug…

Carol Sulcoski and me

Yes, of course I acquired stash enhancement, but I’ll save up that for the vacation enhancement.  Next:  Day 4 - Yarn Day II and Boston Harbor!