The Last Package

The third package of Wollmeise has arrived. Mitchell, the mailman, was kind enough to bring it up to the studio...to be sure it got into our hands. Everyone was excited!

Here are the five skeins for your viewing pleasure....(notice that I did not say the last five)

The craft room is almost finished.  Pictures have been hung and books and notebooks are in place. Three Christmasses ago I purchased two Hawaiian prints-now they finally have a home!

The artist, Kathy Long, produced two drawings that featured young girls with quilts. They are a wonderful memory of that trip and look perfect on the walls of my new room.

Yesterday I started another Porom - a Brooklyntweed design.  This morning it was finished.  If anyone is looking for a fast, satisfying knit...this should be high on your list.

I am back to my normal teaching schedule at Skein and most of  the regular students have returned from their holiday activities.  If you are in the area, stop by and say hello.

Cancun Christmas 2008

The Adams Family took a Christmas break from our normal routines by traveling to the Yucatan Peninsula. Our ultimate destination was just south of Cancun on the Mayan Riviera. We stayed at the Grand Mayan and took side trips to Puerto Morelos and Playa del Carmen, entered the Nohoch Nah Chich cave system and snorkeled in cenotes, snorkeled off the Fat Cat catamaran in the Caribbean, unimogged through the jungle to a Mayan settlement for lunch, and kayaked to a reef through challenging currents. We also spent some serious "sloth time" at the hotel pool, sipping coco naturales(not coco locos).


.

Now to the yarn portion of this blog...

I received two skeins of quiviet, a scarf pattern, Signature needles and two skeins from Ancient Threads Farm.

Then, when we arrived home, our neighbor came over with mail and packages from Germany. Yes, most of the Wollmeise has arrived. It is truly breathtaking! Claudia emailed and said the next package should be arriving in a few days.

 I hope you enjoy the pictures...

.

Squirrels and Wollmeise

The squirrel mittens are coming along. I have finished the body of the first one. This project has been a huge learning experience which will continue with the second one. Tension is an issue when knitting two colors coming from two directions, using different styles. I did it once before, over a year ago on a simple hat. This is a different animal altogether.

As you can see, the glove is positioned on a laptop. That is because last night (more correctly, early this morning, PST), the Wollmeise shop was updated. Thanks to Ravelry, I had all my squirrels in a row and was in position when the  virtual door opened. I scored big time thanks to all of the hints from my fellow Wollmeise addicts. I was on two computers. On one I monitered the shop website and on the second I chatted with people from all corners of the world who were waiting with me. What interesting times we live in!

Forging Ahead

Last night I spent too much time trying to figure out what I should do at a certain spot on the instep of my Rattlesnake Creek Socks. At one point you begin with the 3rd stitch of the pattern...and that totally threw me when I got to the place where you are supposed to do a 3/3 cable on the edge. Finally, after agonizing for WAY too long, I went to bed. First thing this morning, it was clear to me what I needed to do and all is well again. Duh, just do a 2/2 cable instead. Please don't tell me it was obvious....I already know.  

Here is a peek at the socks a little further along than last time.  Yes, I am still on the first one!

Earl Grey Pattern Finished

Greg took a few minutes out of working on the craft room to pose in his just Kitchenered ebay-won Wollmeise socks. I was so anxious to be done this afternoon that I dropped a stitch and had to rip back about an hour's worth of work. That wasn't much fun but the yarn is such a pleasure to work with I shed only a few tears. Knitdad will be proud that I took my needles out and ripped back with abandon just past the missed stitch...and then reinserted my needles and reknit like the wind.

Wollmeise!!!

Yesterday's mail brought my latest yarn purchases-Wollmeise from the Loopy Ewe. After watching the website all day last Monday,they put the yarn up at 9PM Central Time. In less than five minutes, 300 skeins were gone! It must have been fun to watch from their end. I was thrilled to get my two skeins after skein after skein disappeared from my virtual cart before I could "check out".  After debriefing, I have rethought my shopping strategy and am ready to do battle for their next shipment. Bring on the Wollmeise.  The GA skein was to avoid shipping charges and it is a good, manly color. Greg likes the name, too.

Keyboard Buddy

I have been gifted Ganley the Hedgehog by a dear Fox's breakfast buddy, Devra. He was poised at my place setting when we walked in this morning, waiting patiently for us to arrive. Now he occupies a spot near the keyboard... 

Greg's Earl Grey Sock is coming along nicely. Can't wait to see my new Wollmeise purchases. They were paid for this morning and should be winging toward Altadena soon, accompanied by a skein of Great Adirondack in Cappuccino to round out my order to avoid shipping charges. Great excuse, no?

Wollmeise

The word on the street was that Wollmeise would be posted on The Loopy Ewe website sometime early this week. So, being obsessive and a compulsive sock knitter, I kept a laptop within reach while I was knitting Greg's Wollmeise Earl Grey Sock. Every few minutes I refreshed the screen. Then....Lo and behold, at 7PM (Pacific Time)....there it was! Sadly, I browsed too long and many of my purchases disappeared out of my cart before I checked out (less than 5 minutes later). Neither of the two items I managed to bag were my first choice.  However, I did score some Wollmeise.  Woot!  The colorways that I will have the pleasure of paying for are Indisch Rot and Zenzi. Before the bloodbath started, I managed to finish one sock up to the heel turn.  All in all, it was a fantastic sock-filled day.

Spring Forward #1

The first Spring Forward Sock is off the needles and kitchenered. It is done in BMFA's fingering weight Lemongrass. If you care to look, I have several views posted on my Ravelry projects page. The pattern was error free and quite easy.  No problems watching TV with this one!  Try it and you will not be disappointed.

Something exciting came in the mail just now....and it was not my Death Socks! Something much better than that. My latest ebay victory...Wollmeise. I am embarrassed to mention how much I paid for it. You know that MUST HAVE feeling? Here it is....the colorway is Brombeere.

Our tomato crop was increased by three plants yesterday. That brings us to a grand total of thirteen plants.  The additions are different varieties of "large" tomatoes.  We had neglected to select and plant that category - but made up for our oversight.  Stand back...Killer Tomatoes due to attack soon.

Our plants seem quite happy and most of the blossoms seem to be setting without needing encouragement.  We don't have enough to share yet...but that situation won't last much longer. That is, of course, if the squirrels don't run out of birdseed and develop a taste for tomatoes!