Of Yarn and Photography

I took a furlough day the other day (ours are voluntary, this year at least, and only one day makes the damage to the paycheck manageable) and Sibling-the-Elder and I went to a yarn festival.

I was less than thrilled by the festival. I'd signed up for email notifications, arranged a hotel, all sorts of things. Upon arriving at the location of the festival I was told, in stringent tones, there was a $10 entry fee and they only accepted cash at the gate. (Please note--the entry fee was never mentioned in the emails, I went back and looked.) Okay, fine, point me to an ATM. There was one inside but they weren't going to let me go in because people were cheats and liars and didn't come back to pay the entry fee. Yes, that's really what I was told. Nothing like being accused of being a cheat upon arrival. Finally, it was determined that another worker could walk me to/from the ATM. Considering that all I was getting for my really high entry fee was a walk through the vendors, I was disgruntled.

Once we achieved the vendors, who were sprawled out across a huge building in a seeming haphazard manner, I looked, but didn't buy. Can you believe I was actually not in a mood to buy yarn? I was nearly shaken out of it when we reached a vendor selling Blue Moon Fiber Arts Yarns. BMFA is on the west coast and I've never been in a shop that carried it. (The Master Sergeant and I have discussed a west coast trip for fishing and BMFA reasons.) Tina, the BMFA color-mistress, came up with a cool process of infusing black and white with hints of color and I wanted some of those yarns. Only, the vendor was complaining that they'd had inadequate time to set up and refused to let me in the booth to those yarns. Four hours to set up the day before, and it was nearly noon when I got to the booth. Disgruntled was deteriorating into peevish.

Ultimately I bought one skein of yarn, some beautiful green wool from New Zealand. And truly, most of the vendors were lovely, but I felt really turned off overall.

When we adjourned to the outside, there was good Polish food!! Despite my braces having been freshly tightened, Sibling-the-Elder and I packed away blini, potato pancakes, sausage and applesauce and loads of sour cream.

And then we adjourned to out front of the community college--to take pictures.

Sibling-the-Elder is quite a photographer and it had been nearly ten years since she'd last done a full shoot of me. Usually being in different states, if not continents, tends to do that. Here are a few of the pictures, we took over 400 and edited heavily. The yarn is the one skein I acquired that day.

Kids Knitting, the update....

I know you were all frantically wondering how my kids knitting group was going. After today, I think you deserve an update.

Thoughts so far: it's going to be a good crop. All of my kids from last session have returned and I'm trying to encourage them to think outside the garter stitch square. Three of the four "brand new knitters" from week 1 have really taken off. The other one hasn't come back but might yet. It doesn't seem to be a problem that I'm only teaching "intro" on the first week of the month and I haven't had to say "No, I'm not teaching basic knit stitch" today. I've had to sort out some funky knitting and do some refreshing but nobody starting at ground zero.

Unexpectedly: It's going to be a BIG crop. I had 15 kids today. 14 girls and one diligent boy (who is a heck of a knitter, I must say). And they're active knitters. I'm highly encouraged by this. Knitting is good for math skills, creativity and, to paraphrase the Yarn Harlot, I'm passing to a new generation the ability to take sticks, string and your cleverness and create something useful.

Today: We had a slightly disastrous first round of pom poms. Suffice to say I just didn't have enough stuff prepped. But they got the instructions and they got to see how to do it...and I promised we'd do it again next week. So next week don't be surprised if there are a ridiculous number of pompoms emerging from the children's department.

I told them about the Knit in Public Day, details of which are about to spread far and wide and will be reported here once Madame Director and I hammer out a few more things. In the interim...much to do and less time to do it in.

A Different Kind of Life

I made the mistake of explaining my current involvement in online social networking sites recently. The response from the adult in question, who has no problem shoving gaming down the collective throat, was that I obviously had no life. Forgive me if I snarkily disagree. It's a more wired/screen focused type of life but it's where I have developed a number of new close friendships and professional relationships and it has led to a number of IRL contacts.

I'm into my "adult" years (according to advertising categories). I've reached that point where friends aren't as easily come by after relocation. I'm not currently in any coursework where I might go to coffee with classmates and while I have some awesome coworkers, even we need some time away from each other. I wouldn't really consider myself an introvert but going to bars by myself has never particularly been my thing (and generally not that of most people I know) so I've moved more into meeting people in online communities. With such a wealth of people to be met through friends of friends and through hobbies, is it any wonder that many of us are doing the same?

Social networking has also allowed for regeneration of old friendships or to continue/supplement current or newer ones. Because of bizarre schedules and never knowing just what time zone the Brunette is in, I'm hesitant to call him when I usually think about him--which is usually between ten p.m. and midnight. It might be okay, or I might be interrupting the one night of sleep he really needs before an early morning in Florida. But when I see him in online chat we can catch up, in real time, without having to worry about interrupting each other. One of the editors I used to work for is in Alabama, which is a bit far for board game night, but we can Scramble our little hearts out on Facebook. And "old-fashioned" email is keeping me connected to a high school classmate currently deployed in Iraq.

I have friends all over the world who share my knitting and yarn fascination. It is to them I turn when I hit a snag in a project, need inspiration, or just feel like jumping into a debate that to pursuers of other hobbies, sounds amazingly trivial. Alongside the conversations comes notes about each others lives and it is incredibly difficult to separate yourself or to not care. We cheer each other on whether it be a knitting or other triumph and share sorrows and grief. When you are connected one way, it is easier to find other connections in life.

Such of course is not to devalue the new friends I do meet locally nor the friends I see only in person. Having face to face interaction is one of the best way I like to spend time with my friends. On a recent trip, I checked email once in four days, perfectly content to let the online world take care of itself while I immersed myself in the people I was with. While I probably missed a few things, as I would if I missed a night out with friends, I could browse through and catch up on details when I got back. So while it may not be a life some would espouse, it is a full and pretty rewarding one. And it means there's usually someone up for a chat when the insomnia kicks in yet again.

About the Canada story....

There's a story going around about how a knitting group has been ousted from a library.

Several people have passed this on to me as I happen to not only have a little yarn issue but I have a pretty healthy knitters group here at work. (And in the interest of full disclosure, we're going on a four month break after today-- we're going to do scrapbooking for a few months. Knitting will resume in January.)

I have a feeling we're not getting the full story. It's unclear if the knitting was library sponsored or was an outside group using the space. The Yarn Harlot mentions in today's post that this is a small branch open only part-time without a lot of programming space or staff. That is a very different space to try and coordinate as opposed to my children's department, where we have several spaces we could use for programming and I'm fortunate enough to have the time to take ninety minutes out of my schedule to supervise a small group of attendees while other staff is available to help patrons find books/check things in and out/etc. I have a solid group of knitters but not a huge one and that can be both positive and negative in the eyes of those higher up or in the community.

It is always difficult to know what to cut, what to change and what to promote. Libraries have missions and mission statements, with a focus on literacy and information literacy. Most libraries have increasingly restricted budgets and sky-rocketing materials costs, with patrons who think they should never have to wait more than five minutes after a release date for the latest best-seller or block buster movie. It's a delicate balance of buying copies to meet a need and spending all your money in one place. And trying to make space available to public groups while still having space/time for library programs is an even bigger headache.

I hope the library is successful in being able to create more literary focused programs and events that will appeal to their community. I hope the knitters step up and create a book group. I hope people understand this isn't about hating a specific craft or punishing anyone but trying to meet their mission and the literacy and information needs of their community. And for that book club may I recommend:














Shall I Knit You a Hat?
by Kate Klise

and













Chicks with Sticks (Knit Two Together)
by Elizabeth Lenhard


and













At Knit's End: Meditations for Women Who Knit Too Much
by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee

to start?

(Stephanie even has audio books--they might be able to get together and listen to her read!)

In Which I Again Diet in the Yarn Sense

It was time for another yarn diet, she sadly realized, staring around her living room. For, gentle reader, the yarn had not only taken over a wall of the den where it was supposed to live but it was launching an unorganized invasion of the living room.

There was yarn in sorted boxes, which had been cataloged and organized and posted with full admission of stash to Ravelry. That yarn hadn't even been touched since said posting because, well, it was sorted and who wants to mess up something already neatly tucked away. But in a heap was the yarn that followed her home from when her sister came to visit in the first week of April. The yarn that was supposed to have been knitted up promptly into baby gifts and sent out again. And in the purchase bags and tissue paper was the yarn from her last two trips to Chicago where she summarily hauled a patient friend in as she squeaked over the new colors and then returned only a couple of weeks later for just one more skein--or 10. On the coffee table lounged the gorgeous skeins from the online independent dealer who has such wonderful colorways. The cone of lace weight sat beside the laptop being ignored now that half of it had gone to live with AudioGirl. The newly started lace scarf and the drop stitch shawl that had to be finished for a rapidly approaching birthday flopped inelegantly beside the futon. Three pairs of mitts that just needed thumbs were scattered throughout the current projects basket, the new yarn, and everywhere else.

There were just so many colors and types of yarn and so much potential.

And she realized yet again she was compensating. As other girls bought clothes and magazines to fit in, she was buying yarn, looking to be just a little bit further into a "cool crowd." Some would scoff at the notion of the use of knitting and cool in the same sentence but it was her sanity--that simple repetitive habit that created so many beautiful objects. Did she really need the latest sock yarn update? No...and she'd managed to stop buying a week or so before. But something more formal need to be negotiated with her stash.

Summer Reading was starting soon, could she make it to the end of that without yarn purchases? That would get her through the hottest part of the year without more wool warming up the apartment. It would keep her from binging on silk on days when she just couldn't sing another round of Itsy Bitsy Spider. It might prevent the wholesale buying of pounds of dishcloth cotton (maybe). This sounded reasonable.

And how much would be her goal to knit up? For those babies were going to be born and grow whether the yarn get knitted or not--and she bought it with those babies in mind. But the goal for these summer months would be three pounds of yarn. That would at least get the equivalent of her last purchase out the door so her stash would stay at an "even" level. Sort of. Any more than that would just be deserving of a very large banana split--assuming she could find somewhere in small town USA that made most excellent banana splits. It would not get a yarn reward because, well...wasn't the point to use up some of this yarn?

She would, however, start a spreadsheet of things that look yarntabulous to buy. At the end of the summer that could be revisited to see a) if still available in the color wanted b) do I really have a project in mind or just binge wool buying c) had I had a bit much of the sock yarn Koolaid. Considering she doesn't at present knit or wear hand knit socks.....

In the week preceding up to summer reading kick off stash must be photographed and organized--the rest of it so that she could fully admit how much she owned. And projects needed to be ziplocked and prepared.

Oh...and the rest of life needed to be seen to also.

A Little Light Weeding

There comes a time when even the home library needs some weeding. Sad though it may be, it's good to look back through and realize that yes, I probably don't need all of the books that are on my shelves. There are some I'll never read again, some I'll never read to begin with, and some that I can't remember what kind of caffeine induced buying binge I must have been on to consider them an appropriate purchase in the first place.

Now, weeding doesn't come often. Getting rid of books is a bit of an anathema to me. The major exception here being Regency romances. Those 150 page happily-ever-after stories are just lovely--once. After that I'm more than pleased to stuff them into little bags from various boutiques or padded envelopes and send them off to other readers. Recently I absolutely made a friend's day. At her graduate recital in lieu of flowers I brought her a bag of romances. She was so excited--after months of hard work prepping for her recital and graduating with her masters, here was the perfect fluffy antidote.

But other books are...well...mine. They line the walls, they spill over my bedside table, they pile up under, on, around, and through the coffee table. Weeding is a challenge. I'm still convinced I'll make it through the "Probably Not Very Good History" and the "Esoteric Materials No One Else Will Ever Read." And really--those should not have equal shelf space and devotion as my well worn copies of all of Austen's books, my signed copy of Number the Stars and all the Yarn Harlot Books.

So, at M's direction and encouragement, I signed up for PaperbackSwap. After signing up you post books you're willing to mail to other people. You get emails when they choose one of your books and you wrap it up/stuff it in a mailer, add postage and out the door--mostly at media mail prices. Paypal is used for postage/delivery confirmation as chosen by you. For each book you mail you get a credit and can request books from other people. Those books come to you "free" --as you've already spent money on the books you were sending. You can then choose to keep or repost the books you get and the cycle continues.

So far I've mailed and received about 8 books. All in all it's not a bad system and it's meant I've been able to round out my Lilian Jackson Braun collection a little but there's one problem--at least for the sporadically aggressive weeder like me. I've had a box of books sitting in my living room for a couple of months now that I want to get rid of. I've weeded them mentally but because no one has requested them, they are still physically at my place--taking up space. So I'm thinking I may purge that group of books if I can figure out another half dozen or so that can move into the "temporary weeding" position. Because those books have had their day and apparently no one else wants them.

But if you do go through a lot of paperbacks, it is a nifty little site and I do recommend popping over to have a look at it. At least until I get a Half-Priced Books in my neighborhood, this and the Friends of the Library Book Sales may have to do.

Random Quote Sunday: Yup, Strange Hedgehog

"The coat hangers gave them ideas."

---on why my yarn stash seems to be multiplying exponentially.

Mastering Woolly Event Planning...

Several months of planning finally led up to this past Wednesday. Twas then my library held it's 2nd Annual Knitting in Public day with yours truly at the helm.

The concept in and of itself is fairly simple: invite local knitters to come and knit in public at your library. Provide snacks, door prizes, a speaker, and some extra materials. Ensure a little local publicity.

The reality? Details were being hashed out right up until the event was over and I already have a list of things I'll do differently next time. Also, does anyone know where I can borrow 25 cafe style tables?

The day was (IMHO) a success. We officially opened the doors at noon and, over the next eight hours, welcomed over a hundred knitters at the main location. I don't have the final numbers from the branch locations yet, honestly I was too tired on Thursday to think about it. Participants included two school groups as well as the kids from the knitting group I lead. I had two incredibly patient women voluntarily bring knitting machines and show a number of "my" kids how to use them, several people just learning, and a number of masters at the craft.

Sibling-the-Elder had been called upon to be an extra set of hands. Along with assisting with set up and clean up, answering questions when the moving target of me was somewhere other than immediately visible, and being our master photographer, she also managed to knit a hat for a friend of mine who has an impending arrival of joy. (I have four friends who are soon to have babies....) Did I mention she's awesome?

While stressful as I was coordinating, mingling, knitting fast enough my fingers hurt, and trying to stay on top of everything, the day was enjoyable. People came and stayed and knitted. The library provided snacks and some beverages. We had needles and yarn on hand for people who didn't have their own supplies with them. The majority of the knitters had their own projects with them but certainly some availed themselves liberally of what was available. Throughout the course of the day door prizes were given. People like winning stuff, even if it's "just a candle."

Local yarn stores gave me their publicity material, some of the door prizes, yarn, needles, and some pretty awesome coupons. I'd reached out to them for publicity also and many many stores were gracious enough to put the poster I sent them up in their shops to alert their knitters. Local restaurants gave the knitters coupons "just for us" for the day and more door prizes.

And in the evening we had Joyce Williams speak. An incredibly dynamic, gifted, and amazing woman, she had a group of sixty plus enthralled with her explanations and descriptions of Latvian heritage knitting and a technique called Armenian knitting. Currently she's making fabulous tops and she let me be the model one of them. It was hand beaded with iridescent beads and made of cashmere. It felt FABULOUS. And it took another person to help me take it off (long earrings plus double pointed needles holding my hair up).

At eight p.m. things came to a close with the dedicated building maintenance crew ready and willing to help me turn the space we'd used (not "officially" part of the library) back into it's actual purpose. People drifted out after getting books signed and asking final questions and asking me when next year's would be.

It'll be once I've had some sleep ladies. And after I've gotten this year's thank you notes in the mail. (Note to self--thank you notes on Monday.)

Random Quote Sunday: Hoppy Easter!

I hope you're having a lovely Easter with your families. I'm enjoying a weekend without other people in it--which is it's own blessing.

But blessings aside, I couldn't keep myself from being strange:

"You didn't know knitting could be gross did you."
(We were talking about using bone needles and yarn spun from pet hair.)

"I'm being put in high company, I may have to stop blogging about my hair."
(In a conversation with My-Friend-the-Lawyer)


And guess what--it's Easter! Guess who went on a yarn binge!

Linkfest....

I'm not a big fan of posts consisting of nothing but links-- hence why I only have one feed in my reader that is someone's del.icio.us links du jour. But I've run across a couple of things and I wanted to pass them on.

Local Harvest -- Brought to my attention by knitting podcasters Lime and Violet, this is a site that allows you to purchase locally grown, raised, created products. By local I mean within the 48 contiguous states of the United States. (Sorry Jennie--no version for you yet) They brought it up because it's a neat way to get yarn and wool. Since I've just gone on a bit of a yarn binge to make projects for my massage therapist and to donate some to an upcoming yarn event at my POW, I won't be shopping anytime soon. There are numerous categories and you can choose your area to find locally grown fresh foods! Check out the shop tab at the top. You never know when you'll really want Kumquat Marmalade.

Jamieson and Smith Yarns -- Not a new yarn store by any means but new when it comes to me drooling over it. They have a ton of gorgeous Shetland yarn in a wide variety of colors and I'm shocked at how reasonable the pricing is--even for shipping. Again, I just bought lots of yarn, no more for me for a while. But go do some drooling for yourself. Anybody know who carries it in Wisconsin?

RetailMeNot -- I'd heard of BugMeNot, but don't really use it all that much. This gives the option to gather coupons from around the web and find relevant ones at that last minute of needing something from a chain store without digging through last month's pile of recycling because they won't take me off their mailing list. Even better--they have it as a Firefox Plug-In, so I don't even really have to think about the site--I just pop open a new tab, plug it in the corner and tada--coupon or knowledge that I've not missed one. Fabulous!

And finally--perhaps a move in the high def DVD wars? Check out the WSJ article. I don't have an opinion--I'm aware of what the technology does but I only have "regular" DVDs and a "regular" DVD player and I'm not looking forward to having to upgrade my computer DVD drive and buy another DVD player. I'm kind of hoping the BluRay/HD will end so I can at least know what I have to buy in the future. Bad enough I have to eventually get another CD player for mp3 CDs.

Quiz on a Tuesday? Yarn....

Yes, I missed another Sunday. So apparently y'all are just getting occasional quizzes when I get them posted. It's been a tough couple of weeks.

And according to my incredibly patient mother, my stash "isn't as big" as she thought it would be. Sounds like justification to go out and buy more yarn---doesn't it?

What kind of yarn are you?

You are Shetland Wool. You are a traditional sort who can sometimes be a little on the harsh side. Though you look delicate you are tough as nails and prone to intricacies. Despite your acerbic ways you are widely respected and even revered.
Take this quiz!








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Knitting Club at the Library: Week One

So amongst the chaos of raving after-school children that were unmannerly trying to cause utter disaster in my library today, I pulled 8 girls into our auditorium for week one of Knitting Club. It was not intended to be only girls--but only girls signed up. It was supposed to be ten--but two girls were not able to arrive because their father was in an accident and mom wasn't home from work yet. Rumor had it a half dozen adults were planning to join us (bring your own materials). None did. (Anybody want to come next week?)

So after a morning spent trying to diffuse personality bombs and bring peace, harmony and lightly amusing commentary to the world at large--I now had eight balls of energy to try and bring to heel and knitting.

Okay. So, first we looked at some knitting examples that either I or my roommate had made. They liked some of the stuff, I think either a shawl that I made or my roommate's ruffle scarf probably would have tied for most popular. Then everyone was given needles and got to pick out a colorful yarn. Now we get to create those first few stitches--a knitting technique called casting on. I'm told that I do it in an unusual way but as far as I can remember, it's the way I was taught and it works. I've taught adults this method with success--usually in five-ten minutes.

The girls took 40 minutes to grasp the concept. Apparently making a loop around one's thumb with a piece of yarn is difficult. All but one finally managed to get it--with one girl taking it to it like a fish to water (her needle was stuffed with stitches.) Then we moved for the last twenty minutes to basic knit stitch. I have never seen such disasters.

I'm sure my grandmother did--when she was teaching me to knit when I was seven. But by the time I was 10 and older--which is the average age of the girls I have--I was the lone kid in a knitting class as my local library and while not fast, I was pretty good at ye olde basic knit stitch. And after they figured out what I was doing wrong whilst purling and put an adult on me for an hour to watch my hands...I had that one too.

I ended up working in the auditorium for an hour after the class. Until about 6:15 I still had my full complement of girls. Slowly they trickled out until I was left with the two youngest and most frustrated. With one in a chair on either side of me, we went over and over and over the steps: push the empty needle in through the bottom of the stitch, making an X with the needles (empty needle in back); now hold both needles in the X with your left hand (no, your other left hand); the yarn attached the skein is behind the needles and you can pull it out to the right--now wrap it counter clockwise around the back needle (pause to explain counter clockwise) and between the needles; let go of the yarn; Pick up the yarn and the back needle (empty needle, right hand needle--whatever) with your right hand; spread the needles apart a bit--see the yarn you wrapped is now between them? ; Okay, pull the right needle down and make a new loop with that yarn that's in between it (This stage takes FOREVER); Now slide the old loop/stitch off the left hand/full needle.

Both were incredibly frustrated--one complaining with loud regularity that it was too hard. I kept saying that no it wasn't and she could do it. Interestingly--while she complained, she also was the most vigilant about wanting to try again. Finally--when she had two needles that were nowhere CLOSE to the same size as each other--she could see how to make the loop. She managed four knit stitches by herself. The other young girl was less vocal but just as frustrated. When I was able to demonstrate to her though without the noise and rambunctious energy of the other girls, she picked up a little faster and said it was much nicer with just us.

Both told me it was "getting easier" and they'll be back next week. I have four weeks to try and get these girls to make it through a couple of rows of knitting. I told the girls that if/only if it's dead quiet in the library we'll add in some extra knitting time other than Thursdays.

Angels and ministers...

Suffering a serious yarn addiction

It's approaching the holiday season--Christmas will be here long before I'm ready. I ordered my holiday yarn today though--and that is at least a start. My roommate is halfway through her Christmas yarn work already, so perhaps I'll ask her to give me a hand with a little bit of mine.

I'm freelancing--so I owe a few more gifts to people--and I'm not the "gift basket from XYZ company" type. I can do a lot more meaningful gifts that people will actually use if I can just get myself in front of my needles. So that's the goal--after I get through this weeks' deluge of "can you get this done" emails.

Anyway... so $200 later I think I have most of the yarn I'll need for Christmas. Granted I've not bought anything for my immediate family as yet--but I still have to get through their birthday gifts first.

Did I mention that I have a TON of yarn in my room? A case of the stuff--so I ordered another 75-80 skeins tonight...

I'll never be with dull hands again...

back to the warm pumpkin colored hat I'm making !!