MDSW part dos

There were a few funny things I forgot to post about for MDSW. It is funny how the mind continues to seep things out over time.

My travelling buddy, Mary, threatened to come home with some sheep. In case you are wondering, she already owns 4, and runs a tiny "hobby" farm on her property. I told her, there is no room in a rented Hyundai for sheep! But it was funny anyway, calling home to her 18-year old son and telling him that she had purchased 3 more sheep. (Imagine me baaaahing in the background for effect. I am such an enabler.) We were trying to freak him out into believing he would have to build another fence. :)

In case you think I am cruel, do not weep for Mary. For she has already purchased 4 more sheep (3 Finn ewes, and one Jacob ram) SINCE MDSW in the NC and GA area. So her little sheepy community is growing despite me. :) And not to mention all the bees she has to keep her company. Yes, she is a beekeeper. And a dogkeeper and a pigkeeper.

Then when we went to one of our knitting groups on Wednesday night, I found out that another of our friends had already "appropriated" Mary's skein of STR Fire on the Mountain. And by "appropriated" I mean that she took the sock yarn and hid it down her blouse. (I know what you are thinking, and don't tell me that some of you all have never been struck by the urge to stuff someone else's sock yarn p0rn down your shirt ala Miss Violet. I don't believe you.) But this woman is so sweet, is like a mom to all of us, and does so much for charity that you can't bear to take the Fire on the Mountain back. It turns out she wanted another skein to do a project, so she bought mine from me....if I was working, I would have given it to her for free, but I really need to pay these yarn bills. So it looks like I am keeping the Cracked Canyon after all. I wanted to keep it anyway so there is my excuse. Bought 5 skeins and kept 1. Not bad. I could be a recovering sock yarn hoarder. Maybe I need to create a 12 step program....

And my other friend loved the two sock yarns I picked out for her. I am so happy.

This is going to be a crazy weekend. This afternoon and evening I have a Thimbleberries quilting retreat. And tomorrow is a trip to Bovidae Farm with one of my knitting groups. I have not been able to visit Bovidae Farm since I moved here 3 years ago because you need to arrange visits ahead of time, and I really want to go even though I have been on the road way too much lately. You see, they have a wrap around porch on their house, and they pen the sheep up next to the house so we can pet them. And they process and dye their own yarn. I did not know about this trip until last Sunday. So I have no money to spend at the Farm. But our friend who took our STR Fire on the Mountain wants some yarn from there, so at least I get to buy by proxy.

And I think I am going to take out the impatiens I planted on Tuesday. The weather here is way too hot for them already and I think some are already croaking. I don't want to spend more money, but I need to fork over some to get some flowers that are more hardy. I also need to plant my wild hydrangea. Oi.

MDSW

Disclaimer: Dang! This post is long. So go grab a cup of tea or coffee, take a deep breath, and dive in.

That means Maryland Sheep and Wool to the non-fiber obsessed.

My travelling buddy Mary and I headed out of our burg at 9 am on Friday morning. We (I should say I since I rented the car and did all the driving but I don't mind that) drove 9 hours to get to Frederick MD. There is something special about two people who can talk so much that they never need to turn on a radio for 9 hours. Scary, isn't it? We stayed at a hotel with other knitters from SC, as well as from NY and NJ. I really have to love those Courtyard Marriots. The one in Frederick and the one in Greenville BOTH let us completely take over the lobby and knit away for hours on end. Being the obnoxious, crazy knitters that we are, you would think they would eventually take the free coffee away from us. But no, they have not learned their lesson. We should come with a sign "DO NOT FEED THE KNITTERS CAFFEINE. WE WILL NEVER LEAVE."

Muggles stop and gaze in horror at a group of ladies and men of all ages sit around and knit and, dareIsayit, laugh? Can people who knit really have fun? I mean, there must be SOMETHING wrong with us. Because thank Gawd to some peoples' learned perverted sense of feminism, the domestic arts JUST AREN'T DONE ANYMORE, right? We have been saved from them, haven't we? I do have to say, that fortunately on this trip we left the wine alone. However, (as mentioned in my last post) we would have been WAY outperformed in this regard by a wedding party. (And another aside: Young ladies, if you think you are way sexy and bold when you are stumbling drunk, and that everyone loves you...please think twice before accosting strangers on an elevator. Especially those with needles. We are friendly sorts, but don't be rude. Oh, and lay off the tanning booths/sprays. It does not look natural... :) )

Anyway, fellow knitters, do share the love and stay at Courtyard Marriots since they love us. So please give them your business.

We woke up at 7 in the morning both mornings, left the hotel by 7:45 am. I mean that rocks, doesn't it? Two women who can shower AND eat breakfast in 45 minutes? I am so proud of us...all those 2 minute showers in the Army have paid finally paid off! No, I did not take 2 minute showers, now that I am a civilian I can handle like 5 minute showers...ooooooh, the luxury! Because we were then able to drive the 30 minutes to the fairgrounds and have no problems parking. We even had parking right up front on Sunday. Amazing.

On Saturday, I headed straight for The Fold's booth. Well, honestly not straight, since I stopped to look at some yarn at the entrance. But then Mary reminded me of my mission and obligation to a friend back home in Greenville. Must buy Socks That Rock. Must buy Socks That Rock. So then I headed straight to their booth. I was something like 20th or 30th in line before they opened. Thank goodness I had my choice of all of their colors since I was so early. Ladies, I was the one making a megaphone with my hands asking for two skeins of Fire on the Mountain to be handed back in line to me. Truly, I love you all, but I was getting worried that it would sell out on me before I could even reach it...even though I was only 3 people away. I know it is hard to make a decision on what colorway you want when one is truly overwhelmed by the choices...but it was totally SLOW GOING. I am thankful though that we were able to avoid the STR grabbing frenzy that happened at Stitches East. No mosh pits. Some of us were saying that they should only allow a few people in the booth at a time and to give them a few minutes to choose and then bing! you are done. I honestly think that would be the best approach. Because there are some people out there who kept wandering back and forth to the point that they never left the booth and others couldn't come in. (I know I am exaggerating here.) There is a point where you should figure it out and it is only fair to others that you have a time limit or some other system...maybe those later in line would have a prayer then of getting a skein...just in case you forgot to get one under the time pressure. :) Anyway, I think the people who took the longest were the ones who were toward the front of the line. I guess if you think you earned the right to be there first, you can be leisurely. But, understand y'all, leisure and STR DO NOT GO HAND IN HAND!

Anyhoo, I have often been told I am too much of an optimist, and care too much about sharing for the greater good of the community. Which explains my comments above.

The STR for the friend, Seastone and Fire on the Mountain.

STR for sale to friends: Little Bunny Foo Foo (sold!) and Cracked Canyon. I tend to go a little bonkers on STR, so I pick a few colors and sell at cost to my friends.

After The Fold, I was left to the rest of the festival on a more leisurely schedule. I wandered through everywhere at least twice I think. And then again on Sunday. I had a few shopping missions that I was on:

MISSION #1: Try not to go crazy buying sock yarn for self.

Yeah, right. Well, see below. Not too bad.

From L to R: Mountain Colors Bearfoot in Wild Raspberry. STR Fire on the Mountain. Cloverhill Yarn in Cloverhill. I did buy a Tess' Yarns baby Lace Leaf Cardigan pattern that uses sock yarn. It is one of my plans to use up all this darn sock yarn.

MISSION #2: Yarn for sock yarn swap pal.

First I choose the Cloverhill shown above, but then thought better of it. I mean, really, you are thinking that sock yarn is more my taste, right? Right. You are so right and thank you for pointing that out to me. So now this sock yarn is MINE.

So now here is the real sock yarn for the swap. She says she hates pastels but likes lavender. Unfortunately, lavender is not a popular sock yarn color this season. Don't ask me how they decide what is IN season. I am sure the dyers look at fashion magazines as well as follow their own muses, but lavender is NOT IN. This was the only real other choice other than KPPPM. And anyone can find KPPPM, but who can get their hands on Sheldridge Farms? Not many on the East Coast. Plus it is super soft and quite heavenly. The swap theme is May Flowers, so I hope it is flowery and bright enough.

MISSION #3: Find yarn for a Rogue pullover.

I was auditioning Green Mountain Spinnery Mountain Mohair since I had read online that it made a beautiful rogue. And they were going to be there at MDSW. But honestly, after I felt it and looked at it and the yardage vs price, it was just not rocking my world. So I shopped around. I probably should have picked up some Peace Fleece worsted at $6.20/sk sale price, but by the time I settled on that, they did not have enough yardage in colors that I liked. So I figured out that I will probably do it in some Lamb's Pride Worsted, which I totally adore as a yarn. Since I need a wool with a touch of mohair, it should work. And it comes in so many colors, one can be REALLY picky as to what they can choose. So I left MDSW empty handed, but with a better idea of what I will do.

MISSION #4: Find yarn for another Clapotis.

I have already finished one Clapotis this year. And I loved it so much that I decided to step it up a notch and buy more of a luxury yarn that the pattern originally called for. The answer: Tess' Yarns Cultivated Silk and Wool (50/50). I really wanted more of a white to grey to black colorway, but this is the closest she had. I will say it cost me a pretty penny, but I think it is slightly cheaper than the original Lorna's Laces the pattern calls for.


MISSION #5: Try not to go crazy buying something other than sock yarn.

Oops.

Honestly, I had a coupon for Morehouse Farm, one of my old favorites from my days in NY. Who can resist a coupon? This Melody's shawl is knit in the round with a steek. Too cool. It is Morehouse Merino variegated laceweight. I was torn between this colorway and another with navy blue, forest green and rust. It was too hard, but I could only afford one.

And this yarn was a steal at $6 per hank, normally sells for $16/hank. Gorgeous. By Terra Yarns, called Blue Spruce, 60% merino, 20% Baby Alpaca, 20% silk. It reminds me of home. It will make a lovely scarf or something for me.

MISSION 6: Buy artisan jewelry for Mom's Christmas present.

Durn camera. Sorry. That is two swan heads forming a heart with a celtic knot in the middle. By R.E. Piland.

BONUS MISSION: Buy a present for DH.

C'mon, we all know what this is. To distract him from the fact we bought way too much yarn. Appease him with chocolates, food, yarn for him, or whatever. This time it is in the form of a mug, cause he loves bunnies!

One side of the mug.

The other side of the mug.
Pottery by Greenbridge Pottery. Supernice people with the cutest pottery. Go visit their website for good presents. They let their daughters help draw the designs, like the one above.

Oh yeah, and I only remembered that I had a camera for a brief period. Below is a pic of the crowds on Saturday...the weather started to look stormy and there was a cold wind so it thinned out a bit. Hah!...it never rained. I guess all of that NW upbringing paid of there...knowing when the rain is just trying to psych you out. That and knowing to always pack a raincoat. :P And lots of lambies being sheared.I forgot to take pics of the 5 new lambs. I am sorry. I will remember next year. They wanted me to bring them home with me, but I just couldn't take them from their mommies. :)

We left the festival around noon on Sunday. I managed to make record time driving back. We were back home in Greenville around 9:30 pm. Even with a big dinner stop at an Outback. I think I drove 85 mph most of the way home. It was weird, no cops! Not even in NC, where they tend to set up camp on I-85.

I present to you a picture of one of my first daylillies of the season.

I am spent.

I'm not dead yet...

For those of you who are sensitive, it is just a Monty Python quote...relax and accept my apologies.

MDSW has taken it out of me. Maybe it was the drunken wedding party that kept me up to 4 am on Friday night at the hotel. Maybe it was walking through miles and miles of craft booths and sheep stalls. Maybe it was the yarn sensory overload. Maybe it was the 18 hours of driving there and back. Dunno. But I am beeeeaaaat. (Imagine that being said like a lamb's baaaah.)

I have to say though, my travelling partner rocks! We both talk (but she tells the best stories), like to eat real meals with silverware for dinner but don't mind the fastfood during the day, wake up early and take like 15 minutes to get ready so we can get good parking, and we both like to independently shop and just meet up later. Definitely low maintenance women. We had a great time, and lack of sleep did not keep us from getting into The Fold's line early on Saturday. I think I was like around the 20th to 30th person in that line. So I was able to buy some for a friend.

Anyhoo, I am going to postpone the long update for now. For the weather is briefly cool here in SC, and I need to get outside and pull up my pansies, plant a daylilly and only a few impatiens. I am going to try to make this garden not as high maintenance. Too many impatiens means too much watering time. I will try to do some tomatoes in pots later this week.

I also have to go volunteer at the organic produce buying club this afternoon, so I better get going!

All is quiet on the Southern front....

But anybody who knows anything about an army...be wary when an army is quiet...as they are preparing to launch an offensive! (Or establish a killer defense, but that analogy does not work here.)

Yes, I am talking about Maryland Sheep & Wool (MSW). My blog has been kind of quiet. I am preoccupied with mainly MSW packing, and I was gone last weekend so I am catching up with things.

MSW packing list:
-iPod and car adapter
-cell phone and charger
-closed toe shoes
-camping chair
-cooler
-sun hat
-sun block
-money
-camera?
-knitting shopping wishlist
-Others' knitting wishlists (something about buying for others makes me feel better)
-sock knitting
-raincoat (I am convinced that 95% of the time, if I bring a raincoat it will not rain. It is not even in the forecast.)
-vendor list (highlighted)
-map

You can tell I am such a gadet geek. The iPod makes many a long road trip fly by.

And now for SP10 Contest # 5:
Contest Number 5 is about to begin. All you have to do is blog about what you do while knitting. Is there aunique way you like to cuddle up with your yarn and needles? Do you watch TV? Do you listen to the radio? A podcast? Do you drink tea? Coffee? Wine? Do you have to wear slippers? Do you have to have peace & quiet? Do you have a fave spot?

Typically, I knit in my bed with coffee, first thing in the morning while watching the news. Or at night in bed while watching tivo'ed programs like 24, Grey's Anatomy, etc.. I sit under my brand new Ott lite which is totally helping with the old eye strain issue. I usually listen to podcasts while driving around in my car. Sometimes I sit in a chair, but often at night I like to spread out in bed to relax my back. I guess sock knitting and smaller projects is best for that. :)

Here is the April Socks That Rock Kit. Walk on the Wild Tide Colorway. Sorry, the Ott lite is not doing in justice, but my sunroom table is covered with stitch marker making stuff (for my swap partners).

I probably won't post for a few days. Since I will be gone to MSW!

Frustrating

I spent two hours yesterday trying to get the thread tension balanced on my sewing machine. I still don't feel it is right. So I don't have a completed quilt block to show you all. I did change the thread, change the needle, restring the thread, restring the bobbin, adjust top and bottom tensions, yada yada yada. I am going to try to get help on it tomorrow. It is funny, because when I ask for help on it, the instructor gets it right immediately. Nothing like feeling stoopid. :) I have had problems the last few times. I didn't always have such trouble.

But my club coordinator did agree that one of my fabrics was cut very askew, and gave me a new piece off of the bolt. It is only 1/4 yard wide, so it would really affect my cutting otherwise.

I don't have any significant knitting progress, although I have been working on my Cedar Creek socks. I have to keep hiding them from my fellow knitters, as they are in love with the Lucy colorway. If I go to Maryland Sheep and Wool, I may have to stalk the Blue Moon Fiber Artists booth for them. Or maybe we can just organize a large order for our SnB group, and make it easier as it can get rough in the mosh pit that the BMFA booth turns into at every show. :)

Anyone else going to Maryland Sheep and Wool? I really need to start saving up for that trip. Like in the worst way. I hear that it is a huge yarn budget blower. I was able to maintain control at Stitches East, but I hear MSW is WAAAAY bigger. Does anyone out there have any advice for the newbie?

More viewer mail from Kat:

kat said...
thanks for the answer...lucky me i already have a sewing machine (also a $100 model) because i've sewn some of my own clothes, i also have two containers of fabric to play with so we'll see. there is also a place here called Stitch Lounge that does basic quilting classes that I might try, the have machines & give you the fabric.

You are so lucky! That Stitch Lounge place sounds so cool! Just remember (but you probably already know) to stick to 100% cotton fabrics and thread from your stash for your quilting. I have tried doing some basic clothes sewing, but somehow I was much better at it when I was 13 than I am now...my work ends up being cursed even though I do things correctly...too long of a story to explain. But I can manage quilting.

I have decided that I need to start building a stash of bunny and bear fabrics. You may have noticed that I have alot of bears on my blog. Bear is one of my many nicknames. And my husband and his family are partial to bunnies. I would like to do a themed quilt with the two someday.

If I think of some more knitting stuff, I will post again later today. But I have to get on with studying Spanish for my spanish class, and baking peanut butter bars for the Thimbleberries Club.