I am finally getting around to doing the finishing work on my sweater. I hope to be wearing it next week.
The Traveling Sweater
My latest project.
I am still here
http://ravel.me/DawnSellers/lrs
Just when I think I'm on a good roll and that I'll be able to blog regularly things happen, I get overwhelmed, and the next thing I know a couple of months have passed.
I have been knitting a bit, the art walk has taken more of my time than I hoped for, work has been very stressful, we have been turning our second store into more of what what we hope will be a great place instead of a messy junk store, and we just wrapped up another estate. I have been working 7 days a week for longer than I can recall. I ended up getting a cold and was down a couple of days. Just this evening I am starting to feel human again.
Then there's the chihuahuas. They are a handful but lots of fun. I really enjoy watching them all play and the puppies are growing so fast.
A new knitting project
I went to one of my favorite LYS last week to see the extra space they had taken over and filled with yummy yarns. While there I found this great skein of Noro in beautiful spring colors. It is primarily silk and cotton, very soft. I'm making another Felicily hat since I love my other one so much.
So much for the picture a day
Wow, my phone camera is obviously pretty lousy! Sorry for those awful pictures in the previous posts. Not so sure my picture a day idea is going to work. Who wants to look at a bunch of blurry, ugly photos where you can’t even tell what it is that is being photographed?
I am feeling like things are getting back to normal after the holidays and all the festivities. I’ve been working on some knitting patterns and will be self publishing a series of patterns called BeanWear. Dog sweaters, inspired of course by the Bean family, Pinto Bean, Cocoa Bean, Java Bean and Azuki Bean.
I’ve also designed a hat pattern using a fingering weight yarn and adding in a recycled belt or watch band. I found this amazing wire mesh belt during one of my lunch time thrift store outings. I think it is great for this hat. I am working on a worsted weight version of this hat because the fingering weight takes a bit longer to knit and I think most who knit hats like a quicker project.
oooh, those are some crow's feet!
Plugging away on the Hillsboro Art Walk plans, still looking for more artists!
The Paint Can fundraiser that I am working on to renovate the Pythian Ballroom is coming along nicely. I need to get started on my paint can though. In my mind it is turning out fabulous!
I have been a very neglectful blogger
Life has been crazier than usual around here. Trying to cram all of the holiday happenings into an already packed schedule can be quite a challenge.
I was going to write a post about being thankful but then hearing that four police officers were gunned down while having coffee and starting their shift really made me angry more than thankful. The incident happened near Tacoma, WA - just a bit north of here but really this could happen anywhere. There are so many crazy and violent people in this world I just don't get it. We have had 5 murder/suicides in the local area over the last month one of which was at a location owned by the company I work for. I try to keep this blog positive but with all of this craziness going on, it is difficult. We then had a drugged out guy start shooting in traffic just up the street from our businesses, killed an innocent person then drove off, shooting at the police during the chase. He ended up being killed by police officers, they found a mescaline lab in his apartment.
So, I guess that is my reason for being absent from here, just nothing but mayhem to report.
There hasn't been any art making going on at all. I have taken the lead on revamping our downtown Art Walk and that has consumed much of my free time. I am enjoying it and am thrilled to be able to contribute to my community in this way. Things are going well so far and I am working on sponsorships and writing a couple of grants. March will be the start of the new Art Walk season. I am also helping one of the local galleries with their fundraising campaign.
I did take a knitting design class at the beginning of the month at my favorite LYS (local yarn store) Twisted. It totally inspired me and cleared up some of the mystery of designing knit patterns. While the class focused on socks it really translates into any knit project. I have already completed a pattern and swatch that I'll be sumitting for publishing consideration on a pattern website and I am now working on a hat pattern that is turning out really well (if I do say so myself!) I have always wanted to design my own patterns and I'm glad I finally have taken that step.
This morning on the news I heard mention of flurries this Saturday and maybe some snow by Wednesday. YAY! I hope it happens, I could really use a snow day to re-focus and re-energize with some hot cocoa and puppy snuggling. I'll leave you with this picture of our adorable little baby beans, they are growing so fast and I am enjoying every minute with them.
I would like to say I've been knitting
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Originally uploaded by DawnSellers
Instead of knitting though I've been trying to finish up some trades that are Edger Allen Poe inspired. I can't show them yet because the trades are also little gifts. Each wrapped individually and then each day we will open on gift for 13 days. My gift is day number eight. So, I need to finish the little packages up and get them mailed this weekend.
In between working and working on those gifts we've been trying to purge at home. It is so easy to keep gathering things that we love and then become so overloaded with them that we can't enjoy them. So purging is our minds. Cleaning out those little corners and closets and and stacks of stuff that has gathered.
I hope to have some progress on these socks to show soon.
Finished Socks
Much more to share about my Sock Summit experience but for now here's a pair of finished socks. I just love this yarn!
Dragonflies - Entomology
I am hosting a knit a long over on Ravelry for the Entomology Shawl. As a prize for the first to finish I've created some stitch markers for the winner Danielle. I hope you think these look like dragonflies!
I still have a long way to go on my shawl. But it is coming along beautifully.
Summer of Socks
Socks are great knitting projects in the summer because even though the yarn is wool, the project is small, easily portable, and if the pattern isn't too difficult, pretty mindless knitting.
I've joined Summer of Socks on Ravelry for the second time. Last year I only managed to knit one and a half pair of socks during the event. I am hoping this year I can actually complete two pair. I've started off with a really simple pattern, just a basic sock. This yarn is so great that it really didn't need much of a pattern. The color variation is enough to keep me interested. I'm loving how it is self-swirling and then in some places, striping. The color is called Many Berries and doesn't it just look like a big bowl of summer berries? Well, the color I mean, not the yarn. The colors are more vibrant than the camera picked up. The yarn is a skein that I picked up at last year's Black Sheep Gathering. It is from a local yarn dyer It's a Colorful Life, who also sells on Etsy. I see that she even has a skein in this colorway available now.
