Catching up

I planned to post this before I left for TNNA, so all of this is old news. Old news, but good news definitely worthy of a post.

At the beginning of January, I got to meet one of my blog friends in the flesh. Stephanie at Knit and Scrap met me for coffee at my neighborhood coffee shop. She was such a delight. I love how so often with knitters you have an instant connection and rapport. Thank you Stephanie for coming to see me, and I look forward to seeing you again when Yarntopia opens.

I brazenly signed up for a crochet class at TNNA not knowing how to crochet. My sweet friend Sheryl graciously offered to teach me in crash course fashion. I learned at least enough so that I didn't look like a complete idiot. Crochet is going to supposedly be "the next big thing" in the fiber world. I'm looking forward with eager anticipation to Debbie Stoller's new crochet book. My current opinion of crochet is this: it is fun to do, it certainly has appropriate applications, but I like the look and the process of knitting better.

My sweet gadget guru brother gave me his old MP3 player. I've had a ball downloading and listening to all of the knitting podcasts. And because I am so inundated with knitting at the moment, I've taken a break from the podcasts by checking out books on CD from the library and downloading them into my player. Reading is one of my favorite past-times, so now I can semi-read and knit at the same time. I'm a happy gal.

I have a little favor to ask of y'all. I would really be jazzed if y'all would sign in on my Frapper site (see sidebar on the left).

Finally, and most importantly, my daughter has her first FO! Her interest in the scarf ebbed and waned (like most of us with our UFO's), but she perservered. The colorful things on her scarf are buttons we used to fix some of her "design features". I am so proud of my little knitting savant!

Question answering:
Bethal - I got the 17" circs at Yarns to Ewe in the Heights
Rayne - The ribbon is I believe 16MM.

TNNA

We've made it back from an exciting 5 days in San Diego. I'm still trying to recuperate from the exhaustion. My body is tired, but my enthusiasm is soaring. There is so much to tell, and because I am not nearly the writer Sheryl is, I'm just going to list the highlights.

• First and foremost, hanging out with all of the people attending the show has just reinforced my belief that fiber arts people are the nicest and coolest people EVER!
• Sheryl is not only a wonderful business partner, but a great friend and travel companion.
• Being prepared for something as huge as TNNA is essential. Because of our prior planning, we weren't overwhelmed. We actually enjoyed ourselves.
• I'm not going to list all of the cool new products that we saw on the show because Knitters Review did it for me. I'll whet your appetite by saying that we bought the majority of the things that they mentioned for the shop.
• I acted like a geeky knitting designer fan at the show. I was beyond tickled to meet Amy Singer of Knitty fame, Lilly Chin, Nicky Epstein, and Melissa Leapman. Amy was the sweetest. She even gave me a shout out on her blog. Does that mean I'm almost famous?? Lilly Chin is a hoot. She is very high energy and has fun with her attire. She definitely stands out in a crowd (in a good way). Nicky Epstein has a new book coming out called Fabulous Felted Bags. Believe me, they are FABULOUS.
• Taking pictures at the show is strictly forbidden or I would have gobs of them for you. I did manage to take a few. On the left is me with Amy Singer and on the right is the Yarntopia gals with Nicky Epstein.

Also

Julia, the designer of the Honeymoon Cami, has asked me to pass along to all of the KALers out there that she would love for you to email her a picture of your FO. She is wanting to update her website with pictures of people who have knit her designs. You can send your photo (under 100kb please) to Julia's email address on her blog.

Feelin' HAT, HAT, HAT

A lot has been going on in the Lovie household. I'll fill y'all in later, but for now I present Hatfest 2005/06.

The specs:

Pattern: I based this off of the Children's Cotton Hat pattern in Last Minute Knitted Gifts.
Yarn: Rowan Kid Classic
Comments: The yarn I chose did not fit the pattern, so I just used it as a guideline. The Kid Classic is a very nice everyday type of yarn. Good quality, warm, not too itchy, and the price isn't bad.


Pattern: French Girl's Violette
Yarn & Notions: Rowan Big Wool and velvet ribbon from MJ Trim
Comments: I have knit this hat now six times. That's right, SIX times. I've made it for the girls, and for several friends and relatives as a gift. This pattern is cute, quick, and well written. Too bad I will probably never wear it in Texas. Oh well, I just have to pray for that 20 yr cold front to blow through.

I also want y'all to see what the lovely and talented Sheryl made me for Christmas. Her own design, of course. Can you believe she had time to make this with all of the things going on in her life? I love it, and I'm sure I will be able to wear it. It is a super soft mohair yarn. Much lighter than the Big Wool.

In other news (in bullet form, so this post doesn't ramble):
- The bank approved our loan!
- It was my ten-year anniversary last Friday
- We moved the girls into their own bedrooms
- Yarntopia's "coming soon" website is live. I'd love to know what y'all think of the logo and colors. The blue is brighter than the robin egg that we will be using for the store, but it looked better on the computer.
- Sheryl and I are heading to the TNNA trade show next Thursday. If any of you live in the San Diego area, I'd love to meet you. Please email me!