The Yarnarian Blathers Randomly.

Today is a dyeing day. I'm thinking lots of pales, but we'll see when I actually get to those dyes. You do know that they're in charge, not me. I have a number of custom order that I need to get out, plus more of the sotm, etc, etc.

Random blathering: I've been thinking of what we like to watch on the tube. House of course, PBS nature shows, and The Biggest Loser. I have a thing on the BL. I'm fascinated to see how these enormous people work their butts off and become slim. The amount of work and dedication is amazing. So my question is: do they keep it off when the show ends? Do they put all that weight back on?

VIP: Very Important Plug: Fiber Baristas: Flora & Fauna Fiber Club - Last 4 Days to Register! http://tinyurl.com/cwjqww

Random plugs: Here are some of my favorite Etsy sites. I love the idea of supporting a small business. So, in no order whatsoever, here are some of my favorites:

Naya's Designs. She makes the most adorable American Girl outfits. They're well made, very cute, and much cheaper than the official AG clothing. Etsy is a great source for doll clothing, and you're supporting an indie business.

CCValenzo. I love her jewelry. I keep marking it as faves, but I only own 2 earrings. I just can't decide what to buy!

Sea Sprite Soaps. I buy her soaps in 5 bar samplers, and one is nicer than the next. Yeah, this is a bit of a luxury, but the soap lasts forever, the fragrances are lovely, and the lather is luxurious.

Hodakapottery. I haven't bought anything here, mostly because I can't decide what to buy, but the pieces are so pretty.

Nonblather: Have you checked out this site? Knit-a-Square helps out those poor, poor children in South Africa. Little kids with no parents. Little kids who are hungry and cold. How can you resist? It doesn't take much energy to knit an 8" square out of leftover wool worsted yarn.

Here's my basic mindless pattern.

Cast on 1 stitch.
Row 1: Increase by knitting in front and in back of that first stitch: 2 stitches.
Row 2: K1, increase, k1: 3 stitches.
Row 3 and all subsequent rows until you've reached 51 stitches: K all stitches until the second-to-last stitch. Increase in that stitch, K1.

When you've reached 51 stitches, you start decreasing:

Knit until you've reached the last 3 stitches, ssk, k1.

Keep doing this until you've reached one stitch. Finish off, leaving a nice long tail for sewing up.

That's it. Couldn't be easier, no? All the info about where to mail, etc, is on the Knit-a-Square web site.

Gotta get to work. Maybe pics tomorrow. If not, then probably on Sunday.

The Yarnarian Adds Info.

International knitters, OK, those not from the US, I do ship to Canada and across the Pond and wherever. Shipping is by weight, and out of my control. I do it as cheaply as possible. Canadian knitters win out here! It's pretty inexpensive for me to mail to Canada.

I ship First Class International.

Just for your information.

Back to work.

Henya - Of course. If people are willing to pay for shipping, I mail out.

The Yarnarian Thanks Her Loyal Public With a Royal Wave!

As the Pastel Queen of Ravelry dyers, I graciously wave my hand in a most regal fashion and thank you all for reading my nonsense. Whoops, I mean my pearls of wisdom.

The Yarnarian has a problem: There is blub on her body where no blub has been seen before. It's time for her to get back to exercise and get rid of that blub. So in that spirit, she went off to the gym today and did over an hour workout. And now she feels pleasantly tired and most virtuous. Plus, one of her dear customers is a triathlete, and the Yarnarian is jealous. And, tonight is the Biggest Loser, and if they can do it, so can I! So there. You all have official permission to pester me about going and put pressure on me.

Dyeing news: I dyed up a bunch of sotm yarns yesterday, and while I was on a roll, I did a few skeins for sale. Here they are, and as usual, if you want, email me and I'll invoice you.

One skein of Bambi in Jessica:



Rose yarn: Peach Almondine and Aubade




In Shelley yarn: Springtime and Pow!




White Blossom and Robin's Egg




Knitting news: The mystery sweater that I was working on forever turned out to be a disaster. So it's now history. Fortunately I have a good bit of yardage left maybe for a winter shawl instead, or maybe a scarf or something. bye-bye ugly sweater!

I'm now working on that gansey that I started way back in December. I'm on the sleeves, and I have got to hustle on it because as soon as it's finished, I want to knit a lacy something for the winter on fingering wt wool.

Jessica, Aubade, and White Blossom are sold.

Henya - I do feel much better after I exercise, so why do I fight it so?
fritzL234 AT yahoo DOT com

The Yarnarian is Curious.

Hey, does anyone actually read this blog or just click and look for yarns and patterns? Not that it matters to me; I just love this stream of consciousness flow here. I have never liked writing, ever. There's something about blogging that I really enjoy.

I'm making up for slow dyeing the last month or so. I'm not the fastest dyer in the world. Sometimes I can go pretty quickly, but most of the time, I have to go into lunatic scientist mode and add a bit of this or a tad of that. And that's why it's hard for me to repeat most colorways: who can remember which bit or tad I used.

I had a grotty dyeing session. I save my dyes in plastic water bottles. Yeah, yeah, I know, but I recycle them over and over. But every once in a while, those dyes get really disgusting. My favorite blue always defies dispersion, and I have to reconstitute it every single time I use it. OK, I can deal with that. But today,every dye I used was truly awful. I ended up adding boiling water to each one, which then worked, but next time, I'm going to mix up just what I want to use, and in small amounts. Everything came out very nice, but I did a lot of grumbling.

One of the members of my sock club requested robin's egg blue, which I think I produced. Well, I produced a gorgeous blue, and after I dyed her yarn, I proceeded to use the leftovers on 3 other skeins. That's what I love about this game: each session is unique and each dye job is one of a kind. Such fun.

Pictures tomorrow! Again, if you want, email me and I'll invoice you.

Yay, beanz, yay nestra! somebody actually reads my blather.

and seejenknit. this is neat! and bkat in Idaho. I've never been to Idaho.

And Jen and Henya, the chopped liver lady.

And nyxs. Where are you all from? Isn't it cool that we are from all over the place?

And rooie from Maryland. And Ria from down the road a bit (ok, it's a long road) and CathyR.

And Anncrafts from, ta da, MN! And Terry.
Hi, Melissa, and watch out for the Yarn Shark across the Pond. She scoops up yarn very very quickly. tee hee.


And, of course, Terry, Sockmadmary, Melissa, itsJUST me-wendy, Ambermoggie, and Lisa.


We could have a virtual sleepover! I'll supply the potato chips.

Sigh. My little heart is going pitter-patter.

The Yarnarian is Back!

Ah, peace and quiet. Love, love, love those grandkids, but it is nice to get back to just the 2 of us. We enjoyed The Kid very much. It's the first time he's slept away from home for more than one night. He got a bit scared the second night, but we did lots of hugs and cuddles, and he conquered his fear. I'm so proud of him. It's hard for an 8 year old to take risks, and he did it. So 3 cheers for The Kid. Kids his age are into collecting adorable Japanese erasers. That became the theme for the visit: where to find these babies. So I ordered some online for him, and he and the Hubbo found some on their Boys' Day Out, and then we hit paydirt: Kinokuniya! Yes, that amazing Japanese book store has tons of little tchachkes including those erasers. The Kid was in seventh heaven. Much fun, and now we are happily enjoying just being us.

Dyeing news: I did get a bit of dyeing done. The Kid wanted to dye, so after he was done, I did a few skeins, and here are the results. All will eventually appear in the Etsy shop, but if you need one, email me, and I'll hold for you. After all, why shouldn't you, dear reader, get first dibs. fritzL234 AT yahoo DOT com

Soft Fade and Old Rose (I was in an antique rose mode this week)




Dusk and Chanson:




And 2 yarns that are NOT in that faded look: Abbra and Fancy Schmancy:




And Sandor (which is Hungarian for The Kid's name. He wanted to name the yarns. OK.



Knitting news: I started and finished a little skinny lace scarf for me for next winter. I used Alexa, which is so soft around the neck, and I used an almost solid of a rosy/pink colorway. I love this yarn. It is beyond soft, and yet affordable. I think, however, that from now on, I'm going to make my scarves a bit wider, just so the swoop is more luxurious.



And, I'm back to working on my version of the Shelly Kang Blankie. Miss P and The Kid were both entranced with this thing, and I realized that if i want to ever give each little kid her/his own blankie, I have to seriously work on the thing.



I have a loooong way to go on this thing. What are the odds that I'll get 5 of them done before I demise?

Update: Chanson and Abbra and Dusk are spoken for.

Henya - I could duplicate this one if I tried. I did it while The Kid was watching, and he gave me input, so who knows what I actually did. Not I. He kept futzing around with the greens and blues, and this was the result. Talented child, no?

And your mother is right. It's great to have them, and then it's great to send them home.

The Yarnarian Sneaks in a Post!

Quick, while the kid is watching a penguin movie, I'm sneaking in a post. If you're wondering where I've been, I've been doing Grammie duty. The one and only A is visiting us for the week, and we've been very busy.

Here's the news about being a Grammie: I LOVE IT! It's the best thing since sliced bread. Little boys are so much fun, and he's a riot. He's funny, adorable, and as all 8 year old boys, a pain in the tush. And that's what makes him so wonderful. I adore this kid. I adore all 5 of them, but the 2 oldest are at an age where they are delightful. No diapers, no fussy eaters, great senses of humor; they rock.

So those of you with little kids or awful middle schoolers (yes, they are awful at that age) or high school kids, take heart. When those kids become parents and have their own pains in the necks, you become a Grammie, and that, my dears, is the most wonderful reward in the universe! And those of you who don't have kids, go find some and have fun with them. Volunteer at an elementary school and you'll have the time of your life.

Grands are better than being rich, successful, famous, beautiful, etc, etc. This is where it's at. YES!

Uh oh, the kid is finished with his movie. Gotta run. We're off to the Liberty Science Center today, all 3 of us. Yup, the Hubbo is taking the day off.

Henya - This is the reward for those babies! You get all the nachas and none of the work or aggravation. It's a win/win deal!

vcathy - They keep getting better and better. Enjoy your little munchkin! Have you seen the adorable baby clothes that are out now?

The Yarnarian Answers the Question.

So what is this thing?



It's this:





Many years ago, I knit a shawl with a border of 2 matching colors, and I loved it. I got lots of complements on it too.

So I was thinking about dyeing up lace yarn that matched. And that's what that pretty blob of yarn is. 2 2-oz skeins of Emily lace yarn dyed from the same batch of dye only in lighter and darker values. Each skein is over 600 yards, more than enough to make a scarf or smaller shawl, and with a matching 600 yard skein for color work or borders or ruffles or whatever you want. Is that cool or what?

I'm going to sell the skeins bundled together for the usual Emily lace price of $32, and for that price you can get 2 scarves, or a larger shawl with trim or whatever you want to do with it.

If you like this idea, but want a custom order, let me know. It's hard for me to figure out what colors people want here. So, I'm perfectly amenable for a custom order here.

Here are the first 2 bundles:

Apple Green, just perfect for spring and summer. Those are the pics above.

Tapestry Rose, an antique rose color that I'm wild about:






And that's my new mania.

We're off to pick up elder grandkid tomorrw. A. is coming to spend his spring break with us. We plan on having a lot of fun with him. He wants to dye yarn with me, and we'll take him to weird and wacky museums, activities, etc. He's almost 9, way too smart for his own good, and tons of fun. I'll try to blog here and there, but you'll understand if I drop off the blogosphere for a while.

Linda - What do you thing about colors to dye?

The Yarnarian Asks a Question.

So what do you think these are? Yeah, it's yarn, but what else makes it interesting?

Tune in tomorrow for the answer. (Or if not tomorrow, then early next week)

The Yarnarian Gets Cold! Whoo Hoo!

Yep, the old refrig. dyed on Passover, naturally. Like it couldn't wait until afterward? Hah. BUT, we have an old refrig. in the garage, so all was transferred there. Of course that means that we have to go down a few stairs to get to the family room which is off the garage. Split level houses are just plain odd. We call it "aerobic" food gathering.

So, anytime today between now and 1 PM, we get our spiffy new one. With French doors and a bottom slide-out freezer with interesting shelf organization. Why French doors? Because that's what's out there. And I wanted a bottom freezer after having a side-by-side for years. DD in MN has one, and I like it a lot.

I love big appliance shopping. I want everything brand new every time we need to do this. Not that we ever buy anything we don't need, but still it's fun to open drawers, and fiddle with knobs and such and to see what's exciting and new. For those of you in NJ, we go to Colonial Appliance in New Providence always, and they give us fully competitive prices and lots of knowledge and they stand by their products and they are not big box stores. And, no, I'm not being paid for this plug; I just like to deal with them.

Dyeing news: Here's what I did on Monday. None are listed yet, so if you want, email me (fritzL234 AT yahoo DOT com. Better be quick about it; I have a brand new customer who is a shark at finding yarn. Yippee for M. (and you know who you are!)

Coffee Light and Blossom:




Fancy Schmancy and Dancing Elf:




Princess Rose (she's turning 5 this week) and Plumage




Water World and Polly Parrot:




Did I ever tell you that I have the best customers in the world? I do. I wish I could meet them all and have a massive knitting sleep-over.

By the way, did you notice my spiffy new photographs, in the paper bowl? Whadda genius. And modest, too.

OK, refrigerator, where are you? I'm waiting....... IT'S here! Wow, nice and new and spiffy.

Update: the refrig actually works. Be still my beating heart.

The following yarns are already spoken for: Coffee Light, Dancing Elf, Blossom.

Carolyn - I can guarantee that within 2 days, our new fridge will be hopelessly confused. We are just not neat organized people. OK, we border on sloppiness. Forget it, we are sloppy.

The Yarnarian Gets Smart!

After dyeing a zillion skeins and twisting them into pretty skeins and into lovely circles of yarn, I've finally gotten it! There are people who are natural yarn twisters. I'm not one of them. Any time I get a skein to look nice is pure luck. And I love to show skeins twisted into a circle. The trouble is that they always fall apart when I move my hand away, and then I get this weird circle formation. Well, guess what? I figure it out. I can use a little bowl to hold that yarn in place. Yay, me!

Here's Lady Jane, which I just listed, in ruth formation: scraggly.



And now here's Blossom that I dyed up yesterday



Better, huh? Took me long enough.

Knitting news: Here's more on that doll sweater I showed you yesterday. I'm now knitting and frogging and knitting the back.



I have this idea in my head, and I'm working purely from that vague notion of what I want this little sweater to do. It's a lot of fun, but takes some time because when I'm not happy with it, it gets frogged again. Pretty soon I'll be known as the Frog Queen.

OK, forget the sweater idea I just posted. I'm doing something different for the back and it looks dumb with the front. I like the back better, so away with the front. Good thing I have lots of yarn. ;-)

Linda - That "scraggly" one wasn't very scraggly; I have some that defy me! Now that I've found my paper bowl, I'm a happy camper. Piffle to naughty yarns!

Ria - The bowl one does look good, doesn't it? Took me forever to figure that out. Silly moi.

It Must Be Spring! &The Yarnarian Gets Busy.

It is now officially spring! The lawn guys are out there doing their number on our crummy lawn. Yay, lawn guys! We have a very large piece of property, which we need like a hole in the head, but there it is, and it does give me a sense of being a landed aristocrat. OK, an ex-librarian with a big front and back yarn. Neither of us are gardeners; I am trying to convince the Hubbo that he wants to dig in the dirt. So far I haven't gotten anywhere. His idea of digging is to plant wooden tulips. Sigh. So, we really welcome the yarn guys. They are a harbinger of spring. What I'm looking for, however, is a local person who feels compelled to garden my yards. For free of course. As a mitzvah (loosely translated in this case as a "good deed". Yep, I know that that's not the correct translation, but it works here.)

After a total collapse on Saturday (rainy weather was a great help here), I got ambitious again. Knitting, dyeing, designing, etc, etc.

Knitting news: Look at what I'm playing with. Is this not cool? Giggle, giggle.



What? What is this nonsense? Ah, a mystery. A doll sweater in the works. So far I've frogged it 5 times, took pics 5 times, and now am happy with the progress. If it works out, I might just do an adult sweater using this technique. And now I have you anxiously awaiting the next step in this process. As the Hubbo would say: "Calm down. Hold your girdle" To be continued.

I've also finished the socks for the last sotm of the spring. It's mighty purty, and again, I'm thinking that these patterns should be on sweaters where the world can see them. However, it takes a helluva lot less time to do socks than sweaters! So that's why you get the socks. Pics later on. Suffice it to say, that it is very pretty.

Dyeing news: I'm on a roll these days. Who knows why, only that it's spring and a dyer's thoughts turn to flowers and pools and springy thoughts. Oh, and I have one seriously deep yarn in the bunch. New technique for moi, and I think I like it very much. Tell me what you think. Should I do more like this yarn? The official name is Oberon because I think that's what the King of the Fairies would wear.




Here's Titania, what the Queen of the Fairies would wear:



And don't forget Puck: Puck's Rainbow.



Other goodies: Lily of the Nile, Red Maple, First Bud, and Green Garden.






Back to work. Today's yarns are steaming away to set the dye.

Mary - Are you on Ravelry? I'm ruth there. I can hold the yarn and talk to you there, or you can email me: fritzL234 AT Yahoo DOT com. We can work out the yarn arrangement there or on Rav, if you're on Rav.

Grace - I just found that goofy mistake. Must be a Freudian slip or sloop or slop. Have fun paying the govt!

The Yarnarian's House Is So Quiet!

They left around 10ish this morning and the house is so empty and quiet now. I already miss them.

I did more dishwasher loads in the last week than I have done in the past month! Every time I turned around, another load needed to get done. And laundry? Did a lot of that too.

Seder was wonderful, the usual confusion, giggles, and silly songs, plus the story of Passover got told (which is the real reason for the seder). We went around the tables for the readers, and Miss P did herself proud. I never ever eat at my own big gatherings, and this year was no exception. I had half a bowl of soup with a couple of matzoh balls, and a bit of sweet potato pudding, half a stuffed cabbage, and that was it. And I don't taste as I cook, so big dinners are sort of like diets for me. Now of course, I'm seriously hungry!

Enough of family and holidays and such. Let's get onto the meat of the matter; what's really important: knitting and dyeing. tee hee. Not that there is much to see, but you get what you get.

First of all, here's the mystery cardigan project. OK, it's not such a mystery, but figuring it out is not as easy as it looks. Anyhow, here's the back.



I did a bunch of dyeing today, so no pics because they just got finished steaming and they are still pretty hot! It turns out that I did one almost the same as one that's already on Etsy. I didn't plan it that way; that's what the yarn wanted, so I may keep one of them for myself. I did a Rainbow using pastels and Shelley yarn instead of my usual Penny, and I think it will be charming to knit up. And the neatest dyeing I did was to overdye a skein with a bit of black. Lots of people seem to be doing this, so I thought I'd try it too, and it's deep and mysterious, and I think I'm going to like it. Pics sometime Sunday or Monday, I think.

Charity news: I am donating 3 skeins of yarn and 3 patterns to a NAMI auction in Minneapolis in May. MN DD has volunteered for them, and dearly loves them and asked me to do this. So she picked out 3 very different yarns and we decided on the patterns, and she's going to bundle it together for the auction. This is a most worthy mental health organization, and you can bid on my goodies.

I just completed 4 8" squares for Knit-a-Square. I'm doing this in between everything else, so my count is not very high, but still, I'm pleased, and will continue to knit.

http://www.knit-a-square.com/

http://www.ravelry.com/groups/knit-a-square

Debra - Post pics. I'm soooo nosy!

BBronstein - "Refreshing" librarian is another way of saying "retired" librarian. Only I'm not retired from life, I'm refreshing my life. Indeed, I have a new career: that of designer and dyer of yarns. Such fun. My DIL's mother retired and referred to it as "refreshing" herself, and I thought that was such a great way of looking at it. And now I get to love the library as a civilian.

The Yarnarian and the Hubbo are worn out!

Let me tell you how an energetic 6 year old can wear out her grandparents! I wish I had some of her energy. I've never seen a kid with that much go; it's exhausting. Mind you, she is not an ADD kid; just born with tons of zip! And so much fun.

Yesterday we took her to Brooklyn to the Aquarium, where we enjoyed the sea critters very much. She happily bopped from one exhibit to the next and we tried to keep up with her.

I think the highlight of the day was her kicking off her shoes and tights and running around on the beach. The sun was out and it was delightful there, but only a kid would stand with her feet in that cold water. She ran and skipped and climbed a jetty (tremble tremble on our part). It was fun to compare her to the teenagers climbing that same jetty; she is so much more agile.

NO pics, because I think that kids need their privacy protected. Suffice it to say that she was tons of fun.

I did list a couple of yarns, and will do so this week. Good thing I dyed a lot in advance because I just don't have time now to do so.

Today I think we'll make and freeze matzo balls; I did this last year, and it worked out so well. None of that last minute craziness, and the knaidlach (the ch is gutteral) tasted just fine.

Off to play with her some more. BTW, she plays killer Monopoly!

Tamar - She has killer instincts; beat me again!

The Yarnarian Posts a Quickie.

No time. Gotta finish the cleaning. Yuch!!!

I just want to share the latest dyeing adventure with you. Clearly I was in a very happy spot when I dyed these. ;-) The top 3 are Emily lace yarn; the rest are Rose sock yarn. All to be gradually listed in the shop over the next week. As usual, if you want one, let me know, and I'll save for you.




Talk to you soon. Cleaning, here I come.

Postscript: I cleaned and straightened and tossed and I hated every minute of it. So there. Piffle to maturity.

Yarn note: the middle one and the left one on the last row are already spoken for. If you want another of the middle yarn (Parrot), I can approximate it somewhat.

Ria - I can do this somewhat the same again. I pm'd you on Ravelry.

Henya - Which amethyst one? Ravel me and we can talk.

Mary - I can indeed dye rainbow yarns. Remind me next week, 'cause this week I have company and Passover is starting on Wed night, and my usual chaos will ensue!