I knew things would be hectic when we got back from the fountain of pleasure, but I had no idea how hectic. Maybe that explains why I only slept two hours last night and expect an equal amount tonight. But why complain before I show you the pretties?
This is a shopping bag. Boring, right? It would be, but this was placed in our closet "for our convenience" in case we went shopping and had lots of little bags that would be easier to carry in a big one. Besides, I love the hotel's logo. I want to live there.
These are by White Willow in "Harvest Queen" and Crash into Ewe in "Happy New Year".
These are by Woolly Boully in "Nymphwood" and Artfibers in "Carezza - Peach" (this one is 30% silk, 30% baby alpaca, and 40% extrafine merino).
This delightful creature is by PopsieDaisy and is named "Hoot". He has a zipper and grommet in the back; you put a cake of yarn in him and feed the end through the grommet. Hoot will prevent the cake from collapsing or tangling and has a wooden bottom (padded and fabric covered) so he will sit on your lap or stand anywhere without toppling over. He's made of all reclaimed goods and has been washed and slightly felted. You can find this seller on Etsy; she also carries pouches and a variety of "cake creatures" like Hoot. I'll hopefully be carrying this artist's work in my shop.
This gorgeous skein is by UrbanGypZ and is her Bam! Boo! Sock Yarn line. The colorway is "Twisted MaMaLove". The fiber content is 60% superwash merino, 30% bamboo, and 10% nylon. I normally don't care for bamboo, but I loved the colorway. The yarn is soft as a cloud, thereby making me a liar (at least to myself).
For the last of the yarny goodness photos, we have Forbidden Fleece in "Blue Berries" and "Brown Ravel", and meliabella Toasty Sock in "Northern Lights".
Last but not least, I got an e-mail telling me that lucky number three had been chosen and I was the winner of this Vera Bradley bag. I thought it was a joke at first, since I had no idea I was even in the running for a prize. It turns out that everyone who purchased yarn from meliabella during the period from Thanksgiving to the end of the month was automatically entered in the drawing. Yay! It's perfect for traveling, since all I take to work on are socks.
So last night, I finally remembered that I had to finish the kids' ponchos (yes, the ones I showed you three years ago). All I had to do was crochet around the neckline and add fringe. I did the crocheting, washed them, and pinned them out on the blocking board to straighten out the curling at the bottom. I had a sick feeling that they wouldn't dry because they're heavy and were being pinned double-thickness. I even had a fan blowing on them. Well, my worst fears were realized. I went and checked them just before I sat down to type. They're not dry. In fact, they're downright wet on the underside. So I unpinned them, put them on the couch wet side up, and covered them with a towel. I'll keep checking on them because I want to deliver them tomorrow, and you all know how long putting fringe on takes. That is...
If we're not washed away by the rain which is about to hit us.
I had a doctor appointment in Sacramento tomorrow which I cancelled, because the weather is supposed to dump two inches of rain on us. We'd be driving in it the entire trip, coming and going. I don't care to do that, since Californians forget how to drive in the rain every year. We just got the truck fixed; I don't want to drive in a rented tin can again. I was hoping to go to mom's house tomorrow and drop off the ponchos to keep my babies warm and pick up Hubster's kitty, but if it's as miserable out as it's supposed to be, then it might be Wednesday. It may be Wednesday anyway if those crappy ponchos don't dry in time. ARGH.
Then last night, I'm working on a pair of swap socks. Everything had been going fine, the pattern was correct (well, the chart was wrong, but I don't use charts), and I was ready to pick up the stitches for the gusset. Of course, the pattern didn't tell me how many, but it did say to pick up from each purl bump. What purl bumps? I said screw it and picked up stitches so they were even. Then I read the pattern again. I had picked up 20 stitches; the pattern said to decrease every row until you had 18 stitches left. Nope. Something was wrong, but my brain was fried. So I looked at some other patterns. Then it hit me:
You don't decrease every round. You have a straight knit row between decrease rounds.
Duh.
So I ripped that part out and picked up 22 stitches this time. Then I reread the pattern, slowly and with feeling. Right below the part where it tells you to pick up stitches and knit half the heel stitches onto the needle you use to pick up the stitches on the opposite side, there it was: the magic directions that told me to knit between decrease rows. Shit. It's a poorly written pattern. Mind you, I'm not a pattern designer. I am designing a couple of patterns for two vendors on Etsy, but that's it. However, I've been reading patterns since I was able to read. Literally. This is the second pattern by the same author that's either had a mistake or is poorly written to the point of confusion. The one I'm working with now didn't say to put the second half of the heel stitches on the next needle; it's an intuitive thing that you should know, but if you're a beginning knitter or one with little experience in reading patterns, it doesn't make sense. The company is Wildhorse Farm Designs; the designer is Lisa Parker. Be careful when you use them; if both of the ones I've used are wrong or difficult to read, there's a pretty good chance that the others out there are hinky, too. I'm not saying that Ms. Parker is the culprit; patterns go through editors who frequently don't knit and mess them up. I don't know anything about this company, so I don't want to point the finger of blame at anybody. I'm just saying to be careful and use your head when knitting them. I, however, now believe that I'm cursed when it comes to knitting swap socks.
I've also filled out all the paperwork for the shop and am proofing them. Then they get jetted off to the county (all but one, which I have to mail in or take to the courthouse). It wouldn't help to walk them through because it now takes the county two weeks to process forms. According to the state book, the name I want to use is available. So the shop is officially "Yarny Goodness". I have my vendors in place, everything here is ready to go, and I just need to get my license and resale number. Then I can get pictures taken, have Hubster finish the website, get my business cards printed (well, I don't need my license to do that; I just haven't had time), and open my virtual doors for business. I'm sure there are a million other things I need to do, but those are the ones that come to mind right now. Whew.
I think that's enough blabbing for one evening. Ahhh... I hear the sound of rain beginning to fall, and the wind is picking up.
Time to go sit and knit with the volume on the TV off so I can listen to the rain.
Unless "The Devil's Rejects" comes on.
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