diamanta

i'm up late working a bit so i thought i would do a quick post. our IT department moved our web server tonight so i had to make sure our systems were back up and running after the move. they aren't. hopefully things will work themselves out overnight (most likely caused by a refresh issue) but if not i'll have a long morning ahead of me.

not that it matters to you, but it's late and i tend to ramble a bit when i get sleepy. ok, so what i really wanted to show is some pictures of the shawl i knit for my friend who is getting married this summer.




this is diamanta by french girl. i used yarn from one of my favs the plucky knitter. it is the silk/merino laceweight in meryweather i believe (the tag is around here somewhere but too lazy to look at the moment).

as i mentioned a few posts back i am having a hard time capturing it's beauty in pictures but i think you get the idea. if you are on ravelry you may have already seen these.


this was a fairly quick knit. i actually have a second in malabrigo lace on the needles for myself. i'm taking my time on it though so don't expect any pics soon. i am in love with this pattern. i wanted a lace pattern for my friend that felt a little more modern and i think this fits.

logging off now, happy friday!

long post.

i wore my flip flops 3 days in a row. it's a miracle! (ok wearing them today was pushing it a little - it wasn't warm but at least it wasn't wet). i was also able to get a nice walk in the last 3 days without having to schedule around rain. but the forecast is gloomy for the rest of the week. i'm not sure i can put up with this much longer. it is may for pete's sake! (weather rant over, i know you have had to put up with a lot of them recently).

in knitting related news, i have been practicing my yarn buying for the upcoming lys tour. ellen and i are going to head out both friday and saturday to several of the shops. if we can find a cool place i think we'll spend friday night over on bainbridge so we can go to cafe nola and mora in addition to churchmouse of course.

first up is some lovely sock yarn that i just couldn't seem to live without


this is actually my 2nd skein of pagewood farm sock yarn. i have a pinkish colorway called rainbow too, this i believe is the crayons colorway. hopefully this will find it's way onto my needles by the lys tour.


and how could i resist signing up for plucky classics when i am a huge jane austen fan? this yarn makes me swoon because it is named after one of my fav leading ja men, captain wentworth.


ellen suggested a cabled sock and i think that sounds about right. however, i am considering a cowl and beret as well.

today i caved and also ordered a skein of regular plucky yarn in the summer of love colorway. i'll post pics when it arrives.


if you think i have only been buying yarn, this pic proves otherwise. the thing is this was such a boring knit in progress that i didn't want to bother with photos until it was done. this is the lucy bag pattern. i bought it on the way to cannon beach last fall and am glad to check it off my to-do list. i love it but will try to felt it one more time to shorten the strap a couple more inches. it sits just a little odd. i also am not loving how the cascade seems to be pilling after just a couple uses.

i had a 2 other projects knit up as well but they just didn't fit right so they will be frogged. one was a lovely springy green and white organic cotton beret. i had high hopes for it but it was huge even after a soak in some hot water and a hot dryer. my intention was to wear it with my cute new tote.


ok, make that plural. i have been on a bag binge lately. today's purchase is the lovely grey namaste bag from vyt (ellen did you buy the green today?). 2 kate spades and a dooney and bourke complete the assortment. however, the dooney will most likely be going back. this was to be my spring bag but with the weather i haven't had a chance to carry it and it isn't worth keeping if i am only going to get a couple months wear out of it this year. besides i bought a fantastic chandelier that i can only justify if i return the dooney. ahh how i rationalize my overspending!


ok, if you have made it this far congrats, this is one long post. above is my first attempts at acrylic painting. and probably my last. this was after 2 glasses of red wine. not horrible, but painting really isn't my thing. i haven't fully committed to hanging this in the condo yet. but it shows i am attempting creative pursuits outside of knitting so that is something no?

ok, wrapping things up now! my blogiversary is coming up soon. 4 years. wow. just like years past i'll be doing a contest around the end of the month. a project bag is likely to be part of this years prize so stay tuned.

Bag Sale On Now

project bags in the amy butler fabric are for sale now (monday the 5th) on the shop blog.

sale friday

the "amy's choice" project bags will be for sale on the shop blog this friday (2nd) at 10 a.m. pacific. this is a small batch. 3 possibly 4 (if the fabric arrives tomorrow) different designs, all non amy butler fabric but super cute and somehow related to stuff i love. with the bag you will also receive 2 coordinating stitch markers. the set (small bag/2 markers) will be $27.95 plus $2.50 shipping (international except Canada add $1.00 more for shipping).

i took a lot of time picking the fabrics out, one was pretty difficult to get our hands on but well worth it. i have a bag of my own out of this one already, can you guess what is on it? :)

there will be a few sets of markers available separate from the bags too. they will be $7.50 for a set of 2.

then on monday the 5th there will be a batch of amy butler fabric project bags, 10 a.m. pacific as well. if you are buying for mother's day let us know, if you pay straight away we should be able to get them to you in time.

weather woes

although last weekend was a total bust weather wise i have higher hopes for this weekend. no snow is in the forecast so that alone should make me happy, but there is also warm temps and sunshine on it's way!

things are moving along around here. i feel like i have been knitting bunches but just don't have a lot to share with you! soon i think.


i have been buying yarn though. and i can share that. i came across this beautiful stuff after seeing it on sarah's blog. this is actually vegan yarn from feltstudio uk (etsy). it was knit into a cowl and then frogged. oops. oh well. it is destined for something else i just don't know what. i love the colors and hope to pick up some more of her yarn down the road.

for now, i just want to let you know that the "amy's choice" bags and stitch markers will be available for sale next friday on the shop blog. the bags are almost done and i can't begin to tell you how cute they are! i think you will LOVE them too! these are non-amy butler this go around but are kind of based on the idea of my favorite things. there will be 4 choices all in the small bag style.

happy friday!

spending money

new yarn

i couldn't resist this yarn. i am loving aqua and red together at the moment. throw in brown and i love it more. tempted to cast on in the next day or so, but we'll see.

i have been doing a lot of online shopping lately. i see a few extra bucks in my checking account and i have instant rationalization for knitting purchases. nevermind the visa bill that is coming with 2 super cute new spring handbags charged on it. oh well.

i haven't been baking much lately, but inspiration hit when my mom bought me this book.

granted, the recipe is here for free (and since i have every publication of hers i am sure it is in one of the magazines on my shelf too).


but the book is so well designed i couldn't resist. good design makes me happy. anyways, these were pretty too look at, expensive to make and a bit of a time suck to prepare. and you know what? they were pretty tasteless! ugh. too bad. the honey bee ice cream from haagen dazs that i paired them with was excellent though!

(jan and chris, i don't know why but these totally remind me of jammie dodgers!)

and i meant to blog this awhile back, but newly acquired art for above the fireplace


purchased here. because it is a diy stretched fabric piece, you get a lot of bang for your buck. this thing is HUGE. 5 ft x 5 ft or something crazy like that. i love it though. marimekko fabrics are awesome.

my mystery piece is blocked and i took some pictures today (holy moly there is sun in seattle today!). they need some major photoshopping so i'll post later. have a great weekend. besides having to take my parents to the airport before 5 a.m. tomorrow, i have some fun plans and the weather is supposed to be sunny and warm. what more could i ask for?

saturday sweets

if you are a regular viewer of this show then you might recognize the above. living in seattle how could i resist heading to trophy cupcakes to pick up a limited edition cupcake that martha stewart herself featured? recipe available here (warning links to video).

getting one wasn't so easy, the lines were long and they were out when i got there. my blogless friend jan who lives dangerously close to trophy managed to score some a short while later and picked one up for me, thanks jan! yum!

i know i owe you a photo of the mystery item soaking in the sink (if you are on ravelry it isn't such a mystery). i need a little more time to get good pictures.

in the meantime, i have whipped up a project that has been on my list for at least 2 years.

::normal::
after searching high and low for the perfect market bag pattern i found the saturday market bag from magknits. i did several mods, i knit this in the round based on instructions found here and handle changes from here. i found these great mods via ravelry.

::stretched::
this bag stretches to no end. i used it when i bought a big bag of kitty food and lots of cans of wet food with no problem. of course it also holds all of my str just fine too :) i hope to use this at the saturday markets this summer. maybe even knit a few more to have on hand when i grocery shop. it was a SUPER fast knit and goodness knows i have plenty of dishcloth cotton.