Mad Cable Skills

All done with the body and shoulders of my Amhra’n Gra’. The progress pic isn’t great, but if I didn’t hurry up and take one the whole sweater would be done! I am going to finish the neck tonight and start working on the sleeves. Hopefully I’ll have it completed in a few weeks and I will be able to go outside again (or start a new project). At least I have enough BSG to last me to the end of the sweater…

Woolly Lambmoth Sighting?

How cute is this little guy? Found in a store called belleandboo on Etsy, these prints seemed just perfect for a WL post.

Craft Hardcore

While looking through the Craft (magazine) Flickr pool I came across these darling craft related tattoos. Although most people would file this under “not for me”, you gotta love the spirit!

Craft My Ride

The cut off for submissions has passed, but some of you might still be interested to see the results of Scion’s Craft My Ride contest. In October Scion opened a competition for crafters to come up with Scion car accessories and offered a new Scion xD as the grand prize. Submissions are in and finalists have been chosen. When the winners are posted in December you can see them at www.craftmyride.com. To get an idea of what kind of accessories were submitted, here’s a notable one from yarnivore.blogspot.com -Dashboard Buddies .

More info on the contest can be found here.

Thanks Adam and Katie for the heads up!

Indie Sacramento and Woolly Lambmoths this weekend

There are a couple of items coming up this weekend. The first is the Indie Sacramento Craft Fair on Saturday. Not sure if I can make it, but I encourage anyone that can to go buy handmade Christmas gifts. The website notes “FREE swag bags to the first 150 patrons”, so get there early for the best kind of stuff…free. (Saturday December 1, 2PM to 9PM, YWCA of Sacramento 1122 17th Street)

The second is our regular Woolly Lambmoths knit together at Temple on Sunday. I will be able to make it and I hope to see lots of you there. Please leave a comment or send me an email if you need any info on what to bring or where to go. You can also see the original meeting post for times and directions. (Sunday December 2, 2:30 PM, Temple Fine Coffee and Tea, 1014 10th Street)

Indie Sacramento Craft Fair
WL Knit Together
WL Calendar

-UPDATE-

Nikki and I went by Indie Sacramento on Saturday to check it out. Very nicely put together with tons of cute purses and jewelry. We didn’t buy and crafts, but did go home with some cute “I Support Indie” and “I <heart> Sac” pins.

Also, don’t forget that the 1 st Annual Vox Seasonal Shindig is coming up next weekend!

Reminder!

Knit together at 7 PM tonight. Check out the original meeting post for details. Can’t make it tonight? Check out the Woolly Lambmoths Calendar for the next event.

BUY HANDMADE!

I browsed out to Etsy to compile a post on the wonders of the site and what was on the front page but the Hobbledehoy Handspun Yarn Club!

Description from the site:
Hello fiber addicts! Can’t get enough of that squooshy Merino yarn? Or maybe, you just prefer the unexpected twists and turns of handspun. Wherever the roots of your yarn-lovin’ lie, my “Hobbledehoy Handspun Yarn Club” will satiate your cravings by sending one juicy skein per month in your (or your gift recipient’s) direction. This is a real bargain way to score handspun!

This is just one example of how awesome Etsy.com is. Art, yarn, crafts, jewelry, clothing, and just about anything you can think to make with your hands is on this site. With thousands of ‘vendors’ you can waste weeks browsing through each category and goggling at the great stuff. Even better, you can follow the seller’s lead and use the site to get rid of the stuff you’ve made! Accounts are free and there is only a small free for each posted item ($0.20).

Feeling extra crafty? Before you buy and sell on Etsy go to BuyHandMade.Org and pledge to buy handmade for the holiday season. Check out the benefits of buying handmade here.

(Side Note: Although it’s a great idea, I wasn’t hard core enough to pledge buy handmade this season. I am probably continuing with the tradition of the Buy Nothing Christmas. Maybe in January I will get smart and start knitting for next year.)

Knitting Book(s) Two

Fighting the temptation to start about a million other projects, I have been hard at work on my Amhra’n Gra’. Since I haven’t stopped to take pictures (or eat or drink) here’s another post about books.

Have it:

Loop-d-Loop full of gorgeous pictures and inspirations. I have only actually finished one project out of this (the ballet t-shirt pattern rocks!), but I LOVE looking through it when I am thinking about a new project (which is pretty much always). When searching Amazon for Loop-d-Loop, I noticed that Teva Durham also released a Loop-d-Loop crochet book. At about $20 each on Amazon, either one is a nice addition to the inspiration pile.

Want it:

Knitting on the Edge has been on the radar for a long time, but I just can’t seem to get around to snatching it up. In the mean time, Nicky Epstein’s beautiful knit borders show up on all the craft blogs tempting me. Seemingly useful on an infinite number of projects, Knitting on the Edge is definitely on my wish list. At about $20 on Amazon, I am wondering what I have been waiting for.

Project Whore

I am such a Project Whore. The only thing that makes me feel better is knowing people who are slightly worse (Thank you, A&G).

On Friday I finished my Rusted Root (which spent all weekend in the washing machine to shrink), sewed up Spencer’s baby kimono (which had been sitting on my desk for MONTHS), and even attempted to sew the Charger’s logo on Stephanie’s gloves. I was all “clean slate and new project”!

Last night I started Amhra’n Gra’. Four or five hours of counting later, I have two setup rows. As if spending the next couple months going batty over a few little cable charts isn’t enough, I have dug up an old obsession with getting a little embroidery done. Yeah right.

Needlework sites to check out…

Sublime Stitching
Bad Bird
Subversive Cross Stitch (Rated PG-13 for language)

Knitting Book(s) One

This post is for Sue, who requested a list of recommended knitting books. I have so much to say about so many books that I have decided to separate this list into several posts.

For buying, I HIGHLY recommend Amazon.com. Knitting books can be expensive. Amazon helps out.

Have It:

Stitch ‘N Bitch is always my suggestion for a first book. It’s cheap, funny, and comes with a lot of patterns. Debbie Stoller is now up to three SnB knitting books with Stitch ‘N Bitch, Stitch ‘N Bitch Nation, and Son of a Stitch ‘N Bitch (men’s patterns). There is also a crochet book called The Happy Hooker. All of the books are about$10-12 on Amazon. Trust me, this is CHEAP for a knitting book with this many patterns.

Mason-Dixon Knitting has been keeping me busy with small projects since I bought it a year ago. Baby bibs, baby kimonos, ball band wash cloths. If it can be make of cotton and reused a thousand times, it’s here. Okay, so the book isn’t that big, but it does have enough simple, fun patterns to keep a new knitter busy for a while. Mason-Dixon Knitting lists for $29.95 and is $19.77 on Amazon and occasionally available at Costco.
To see what people are knitting from this book, check out the Mason-Dixon Knit Along.

Want It:

Last-Minute Knitted Gifts is full of pretty, quick projects to give away or stash for yourself. I mention this book because of the number of beautiful completed items I see from this book on Craftster and because I am in love with the very simple Hour Glass Sweater. Listing for $24.95 and but only $16.47 on Amazon, Last-Minute Knitted Gifts would be a great gift for yourself.

Knitting School: A Complete Course could keep me off the internet for a while (at least the knitting part). I had a chance to browse through this book at Jo-Ann’s one day and have had it in the back of my mind ever since. Knitting instruction abounds online and in books, but never have I seen so many nicely illustrated techniques and tips as in this one book. Easy on the eyes and not too bad on the wallet, Knitting School lists for $24.95 but is $18.96 on Amazon.

-Autumn