Monthly Archive for April, 2007

a sureal weekend…

Published on April 30, 2007 in Uncategorized. 3 Comments

this weekend didn’t go anywhere close to how it was planned. we had big plans. we were going to Get Things Done. we had time. we had motivation. we had no idea…

so, saturday, we got a call from SIL and ended up with the nephew spending the night unexpectedly. home improvement projects and 2 yr olds don’t mix. that’s ok, we love having him over. after church, we we’re going to head over to his house to pick up SIL&BIL and head over to the zoo… it’s a quick 15 min drive from our church to their place. we were suprised to hit a bit of traffic farther back on the freeway than we usually expect… but there is always traffic heading through The Maze. but we were a little confused, because the SF lanes (heading onto the bridge) were moving so much faster than the lanes heading over to 880 and 580. after creeping along for 45 minutes, we pass reach the split and 880 ramp is clossed off by lots of police cars, etc… and we pass next to (200 feet away) this:

you see that lane with the cars going left… that’s where we passed (580 ramp). it looks just like the cypress structure did after the 89 quake. i’m still amazed that the truck driver that crashed and caused this got out and hailed a cab to the hospital.
as you can imagine, we didn’t end up going to the zoo. between the delay and the traffic to get there, there would be no time.

we stayed at BIL’s house and fixed their toilet, lol. i managed to get the toe of my wild tide sock reknit with the new needles…

…and promptly decided that i don’t like the way the colors show on the lace. the colors are too beautiful … the lace breaks them up and loses something. so i’m going to knit it into jaywalkers instead.

it’s not the yarn!

Published on April 29, 2007 in Fiber Arts and Uncategorized. 0 Comments

yea! after a couple days, i repeated the yarn snuggle. no repeat symptoms! yea!! this means i have no idea what caused the allergy attack… and with any luck, i will never have another one and therefore never find out.

today was a quick trip to Article Pract to pick up some Addi Turbo Lace needles. i needed a size 1 to magic loop this:

BMFA’s April kit for the Rockin’ Sock Club… Walking on the Wild Tide – 81% merino and 19% tussah silk!the kit pattern (knee high to a grasshopper) is a cute pair of toe up lace socks that will be fun with sandals. the kit says size 2 needles… but the first try i did was too loose. so, i’m down to 1′s. i didn’t have a long one to do magic loop, so shopping was in order. i managed to get out of there with only on skein of sock yarn jumping into my bag… ok, and that needle felting starter kit…

afterwards, we went over to the wood store…. ok, we don’t go to just any home improvement store… or any lumberyard… we go to the specialty woodworking store. they kind of place where the wood is price not by the foot… but by the pound, lol. exotic woods, specialty turning kits for making pens and kaleidoscopes and all kinds of nifties, every kind of clamp and jig you can imagine, and a book section that is larger than the whole craft section at barnes and noble. Paul wandered and shopped while i started my socks. i look up, and there is my FIL! like father, like son…tonight and tomorrow are nephew time. more playing will have to wait till monday.

alergic to yarn?!?!? say it isn’t so!!!!

Published on April 26, 2007 in Fiber Arts, Knitting and Secret Pal 10. 2 Comments

well, last night was exciting. about half way through the altered books newbie chat, i flet my cheeks were getting puffy. i ran to the mirror, and yes, they were swelling up… not underneath where the glands are, but along the jawline. paul had had some puffiness around his eyes the night before and had chalked it up to exposure to something at work and rubbing his eyes. i figured that it was probably related.

after the chat finished up, i noticed that i was feeling progressively more and more light headed and nauseous. it didn’t help that i flipped on the tv to try to relax a bit and there was a news story about 31 kids from a highschool 10 miles away hospitalized earlier in the day with all the general symptoms i was feeling except the cheeks. they hadn’t been able to determine yet what got the kids sick. ok, so, i start thinking “maybe i’m working myself up and it’s mostly psychological?” so a wander over and look up swelling cheeks trying to reassure myself that it’s nothing to worry about…. and what comes up? MUMPS! lol. a quick look shows mumps symptoms at: swelling cheeks, fever, light headedness, nausea, and quick onset…. reassuring myself isn’t going so well!

ok, so i get the brilliant idea to call the 24 hour advice nurse on our health plan and ask if i should worry… everything is still getting steadily worse, but i’m also prepared to believe it’s just me being paranoid. i’ve got very little personal experience with allergy attacks, so i don’t know how to judge if that’s it of if it’s serious.the advice nurse walks me through a database of questions she’s got. i even downplayed the light headedness and nausea. then she tells me to call my DR. and get thee to the ER. eck!! ok, panic is setting in full scale!

so i called my DR’s message service. they say they’ll page her. and i start preparing to go to the ER. (you know that bag of knitting, book, water bottle, etc that must go with…) DR calls back. listens to me describe things. asks the (apparently) all important question “any swelling of the lips or tongue?” no. ok, take some benadryl and write up a list of what you’ve been exposed to. don’t worry unless you start having swelling of the lips or tongue.

the benadryl helped. i went to bed early because unconciousness was preferable… but it had already started to go down before i went to bed. and i was fine when i woke up.the only problem? what was the exposure??

i haven’t had any shell fish. i haven’t had any nuts. no citrus. everything i ate in the last 24 hours was things i have often. no new soaps or detergents. so what could it be?? unfortunatly, the only thing i can come up with is the lovely yarn from my secret pal that i had snuggled my face into (admit it, you do it too!) just before the chat began. wahhhh! i can’t be alergic to yarn! i can’t! it’s 100% merino. i’ve worked with merino a fair bit… and i’ve spun (and snuggled) merino roving… so it can’t simply be merino, right? maybe it’s something it was processed with? dye/mordant/conditioner/soap? i almost wish it was as simple as fiber content… because that is identifiable! if it’s something that the wool was processed with, how will i ever know what is safe?

ok, i’m keeping my fingers crossed it isn’t the yarn. it’s only a guess at this point… i’ll put it aside for a few days (until this goes away fully… i’m still a little tingly on my skin, etc.) and then test it. if i get another reaction when exposed to it, i’ll know.

i had even been auditioning patterns for it too…

Spoilage insues…

Published on April 25, 2007 in Fiber Arts, Knitting, Secret Pal 10 and art challenges and collaborative projects. 0 Comments

my secret pal has spoiled me rotten… wanna see?

Contents:
a wonderfully smelling sweet little bar of soap
sheep notebook and notecards – BAAAA!
Litchi hard candies
Knitting heaven and earth book
moleskiene notebook
Knit Picks shadow laceweight Oregon Coast

(my DH, Paul, is already trying to snag away the litchi candy… I’m going to have to hide those!)

this is so soft and the colors are wonderfully subtle! the pictures came a fair bit darker than it is in real life. it’s a soft mushroom kind of color. I know this is going to become some really special lace… I just need to find the *perfect* pattern!

THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

Art for Autism Show and Auction

Published on April 21, 2007 in Paper Arts, Pysanky, Scherenschnitte, art challenges and collaborative projects and bookbinding. 4 Comments

My SIL has a friend that works in a program with preschool age children with autism. the program is having a fund raising art show and auction at a gallery in Oakland. my SIL passed on the request for art donations to me. having known a couple of people with autism, I am all for helping in any way I can!

here are the items I’m donating for the show:

one scherenschnitte cutting, one handbound coptic journal, and 5 pysanky eggs. ok, so the brown egg is etched… not dyed… but still the same wax resist process. (click on the photo to go to Flickr and look through the photo set.)

krapanky

Published on April 14, 2007 in Pysanky. 2 Comments

thanks to finding this website, i’ve learned that the drop/pull method of pysanky is more properly called krapanky in the Ukrainain – pisanki in Poland – and marguciai in Lithuania

i’d read the pisanki spelling before and hadn’t known the distinction. i had figured it was just a regional difference.

always more to learn!

now, i just need to replicate helen’s mom’s family pattern for them.

And more Socks!

Published on April 13, 2007 in Fiber Arts and Knitting. 4 Comments

my BMFA (Blue Moon Fiber Arts) Rockin Sock Club sock for the Feb. kit are done!

i actually finished these before i finished paul’s socks…. but still consider them my second pair of socks.

i followed the pattern. there was quite a bit that was new to me in it (obviously!). i used size 1 addi turbo needles for the toes and heels… size 0 metal dpns for the feet… and size 3 bamboo cirs for the cuffs.

because i wanted to make sure i would have enough yarn, i only did 5 cable crossings. i wish i had done 6. i think i would have had plenty of yarn…. but better safe than sorry.

Continue reading ‘And more Socks!’

Socks! socks!

Published on April 13, 2007 in Fiber Arts and Knitting. 0 Comments

Paul’s socks are done! this was my first pair of handknit socks.they are done in a plain vanilla sock pattern mostly derived from Knitting Rules… but altered based on reading many basic sock formulas.

Continue reading ‘Socks! socks!’

the eggs are rolling along…

Published on April 13, 2007 in Pysanky. 3 Comments

well, i made almost 3 dozen eggs this easter… and i still have a few more on my list to do. that’s ok, those are people we won’t be seeing right away, so they’ll never know there eggs weren’t done by easter day… i should have them all done tomorrow, with a little luck.

if you click on the photos below, it will take you to flicker – where you’ll find links to all the individual photos so you can see them close up.
most of the eggs i gave out this year were all variations on one design theme. i chose one design to work on so that i could practice my drop/pull technique and save time on design layout/planning… but still have each egg be unique and special. i love the way they all looked together. this is something i’ll probably do again in future years.

and then there were a few eggs i did in various patterns… both drop/pull and with the kistka. the yellow/orange/red egg is one of my favorites. i’ll definitely be doing more of these. it took too much time to pull off for everyone though. the pink one is the pattern i think will become our Christmas ornament to give out this year. i’m also starting to make some color chart eggs so i’ll be able to more accurately predict some of the color changes that come with dye layering.

here are all the eggs the guests of our anual pysanky party made this year. i’m always amazed at the different approaches everyone takes. sit 10 people down with tools and you get 10 very different looks… and they are all interesting and beautiful.