Signup deadline is Sunday, October 9th, at midnight.

It’s getting to be that time of year again, when a knitter’s thoughts turn to folly and festivals. And you know what that means, right?

Rhinebeck Bingo!!

That’s right, folks, it’s the best excuse yet to hug perfect strangers at the NY Sheep and Wool Festival. We’ve been playing for a few years now and I think it might be becoming something of a tradition. It’s a great way to put a face to the bloggers and Ravelers you’ve been following and befriending in virtual space, now it’s time to hook up in meat space!

Chi Chi even pitched in. Cat hair doesn’t put itself on all of my stuff.

And Dot helped me manage my To Do list. It’s weird how many treats I had to buy to get ready for this show.

Caro and I are leaving tomorrow so we can set up our booth and get ready for a crazy few days of meetin’ and greetin’ and sellin’. Hopefuly loads and loads of sellin’.

Here are somephotos of some of the stuff I’ll be bringing. Whatever I don’t sell will be added to my Etsy shop in August. A quick note about my shop, I will be closing it tonight and it won’t be back up until mid-August sometime. I’m adjusting some prices and the cost of the bags will be going up when I re-open, so if you want something in there, you might want to grab it now. It’s been a while since I’ve tweaked the pricing, but I think it’s time.

Here is a sampling of some of the new stuff. I think you’ll like it as much as I do!! (these photos were taken before I added the drawstrings)

It’s gearing up to be a wildly fun and productive summer! Spring has already lit a fire under my butt. I’m like Wile E. Coyote strapping himself to a bright red rocket and getting ready to blast off into the great unknown. Must. Go. Fast! I guess that makes the fiber community the Roadrunner? Not really sure how that all works out. Does Acme even make yarn?

First, I am so excited! Wonder Mike over at Fiber Beat interviewed Caro and I at TNNA Winter in Long Beach and it’s live, so go listen! Mike did an amazing job editing the interview and adding just the perfect songs and musical interludes. I want him to follow me around all the time from now on so he can make me sound articulate and not-at-all-like-a-dumbass. Thank you, Mike, you are a Master Podcaster!

Last week, I went to TNNA in Ohio with Caro (Splityarn), Amy (StashKnitRepeat) and Pam (FlintKnits) and it was such a great trip. I also got to spend some quality time with Jenn (Nipperknits), Elinor (ExcerciseBeforeKnitting), Miriam (MimKnits) and a whole host of other people. It really was the most amazing array of people you could imagine. I’ve been knitting and blogging since 2004. You guys, it’s 2011! That’s . . . ermmm . . . a number of years. A whole bunch of them. And it’s been amazing to watch my fellow fiber enthusists change and grow over those years.

(I’m going to do a big name/link drop at the end of this post and hopefully I won’t forget too many people. I always forget people, but if we met and laughed and possibly hugged, chime in to remind me because I’m really bad at remembering things.)

You couldn’t ask for a group of more brilliant and talented people to spend time with. I’m always amazed at the brain power we have managed to capture in this community. Luckily, we have decided to use that power for good, otherwise we’d be flying around in an intricately cabled cashmere Death Star. Take that, Rebel Alliance! Did you feel that disturbance? Yeah, that was us tangling up Alderaan with our sonacrylic ray beam. What are you gonna to do about it, huh? Bring it.

Festivals like Rhinebeck or NHSW are great for meeting and reconnecting with friends, spending the mortgage on yarn and generally relaxing among pals. Unlike those events, TNNA is an industry convention. That means people are there to buy and sell for retail shops, to network, to make contacts, to get business done. I can’t even tell you how invigorating it is to be able to consider knitting my “business”. I’m trying to figure out a way to make it pay the bills and software is still my primary business, but I’m really do lucky to be part of this industry. When I was a kid, my dad used to go to conventions for his work, but I’m pretty sure there wasn’t nearly as much hugging and squeeing at the industrial brush convention. I could be wrong, I’m just assuming.

I knew it was going to be an amazing time when it began with a Designers Dinner hosted by the lovely Marly of Yarn Thing. It was one of those times when you look around at the other guests and think “How the hell did I manage to get invited to this?” The room was packed with people I’ve admired for ages and I considered myself a fangirl. And now I was there as a peer. Weird. And awesome!

Also? We all got freakishly good swag bags brimming with amazing things that Andi at Knit Brit has actually listed out and is giving away in a contest. And Namaste bags! I know!!! There were all kinds and colors, deals and trades were being made and everyone left with a glow that can only be had by cradling a new Namaste bag. I got the lime green Bitty Bag, which is just the right size for me. I lurve it.

Here are some of the highlights in no particular order because the whole thing is one big blur. (those of you who remember Romper Room, this is the part where I check you out through the Magic Mirror)

First off, I got to meet Bonne Marie Burns! She and Marnie MacLean are the two people single-handedly responsible for getting me interested in knitting in the first place. Their designs and blogs captured me immediately. I was truly star struck and Bonne Marie was just as sweet and funny and savvy as I had hoped she would be.

We magnanimously shared our flight from and to (well, I took a later flight home in exchange for a voucher) Boston with Clara Parkes (Knitters Review), who totally cracks me up all the time. Hob-nobbed with Carol Sulkosci (GoKnitInYourHat) – I love me some Carol. She’s wicked in the best way possible. We got caught up on Shannon Okey’s (Knitgrrl) continuing plans for world domination. We think she’s really on to something good with her new publishing venture. After years of following her online, I finally got to meet Jessica from Rose-Kim Knits! She’s been making Thursdays better for a helluva long time.

Amy Detjen is always a delight to run into, her smile is infectious and I can’t wait to have cocktails with her in September at The Creative Connection! (It will happen, Amy. Oh yes. It will.) And continuing with the contagiously delightful, Amy Singer (Knitty) was there and though I’ve met her briefly before, we actually got to hang out at the Columbus Airport for a long while and it was really great. We also enjoyed the company of Chris Bylsma, who I am now in love with. That woman is sass on a silver platter.

The winner of the “Blew My Mind” award goes to Alisdair (Fallingblox Designs), a fellow Common Cod Fiber Guild member, who is coming out with a book called Extreme Double-Knitting in the next few months and it’s stunning. Stun. Ning. He’s doing the book with Cooperative Press and they had pieces from the book there. I cannot wait to get my paws on this book. I’ve been wanting to try double-knitting for a while and this is just the thing to get me doing it. Very exciting! (Alisdair was also hanging out with us at the airport, it was quite a knitting group we amassed there.)

I met a whack of amazing people for the first time, including Andi (KnitBrit) – who I ran into every 5 seconds and was happy about it every single time, Mercedes (Kitchen Sink Dyeworks) who dyes amazing yarn in bold, bright colors, and Daniel Yuhas, a soon-to-be published designer with a website called Molting Yeti – I love this guy!

I was also super excited to meet Heather from Army of Knitters. Her designs make my heart go pitter-pat in a big way. She then introduced us to Ragga (Knitting Iceland), who does knitting tours of Iceland! This makes me love Heather even more because Ragga is also darling and does knitting tours of Iceland! We are totally going to go on a knitting tour of Iceland. I can’t wait!

We literally chased down Linda Permann (LindaMade) to check out her gorgeous crocheted sweater, which turned out to be called Peanut Butter! It is now on my To Do List. (hope we didn’t scare Linda with our lion/gazelle technique.)

We fondled lots of good yarn in brilliant colors. Alisha (Alisha Goes Around) is a firecracker to the tenth power and I can’t wait to use the super-soft superwash BFL in Charcoal she gave me to create my first actual clothing design that doesn’t use beer cans. Then I fell head over heels for Merri Fromm from Blue Sky Alpacas. She totally gets our retro asthetic, was so sweet and charming and she gave us a bunch of amazing yarn to play with! I’m working on a bag design using some of their seriously chunky wool/alpaca. I swatched it and it’s 3 stitches to the inch using 10.5 needles. Boo-ya!

Speaking of needles, the lovely and generous ladies at HiyaHiya gave me a bunch of needles and crochet hooks, including the thinnest knitting needles I’ve ever seen. At 1.2mm, they’re so delicate and the cable join is so smooth, I can’t wait to try out something special with that cobweb cashmere I’ve been squirreling away.

Whew, I think that’s a pretty good rundown. It’s impossible to list everyone. Just know that the future of the fiber industry looks very bright. So much passion and talent and know-how. From the folks at Ravelry to yarn shop owners to indie yarn dyers and designers, our fiber world is a force to be reckoned with and with so much momentum, I think the next few years are going to be really interesting. I forsee a lot of changes and innovation coming that will benefit us all. It’s a good time to love yarn!

So I scrapped the idea of working on my facial region and went to IKEA. Any place you can buy a sofa and some meatballs is A-OK with me! I went a little bananas because it’s the first time I’ve actually “decorated” and it was a blast. I did pretty well staying within my budget, too. Yay, me!

I don’t have any “before” pictures, but the living room was Cottage White, a couple of random curtains on random windows, and the biggest, ugliest couch you’ve ever seen. We actually bought it 6 or so years ago, when I was pregnant that last time. While at the furniture store, I imagined an entirely different life lived on that couch. But it didn’t happen and frankly, it was really cathartic to get rid of it. My brother helped me saw it into pieces because it was too big to carry out whole. It’s still waiting to be thrown off my back porch, so there’s still fun to be had with it. I love pitching stuff out of the third-story window, it’s as much fun as you’d think it would be. Heavy stuff makes a very satisfying ~thud~ on the dirt yard below.

But here it is now, all chic and clean with French Silver walls and bright white trim. And expertly modeled by Dot, my very own little Vannah White.

The image in the giant frame is one of those big-eyed girl “paintings” from the 60s or 70s. It’s called “Ingrid” or “Inga” or somesuch, but to me, she looks like Bjork in a pink headband and fuzzy sweater. I cut out an oval mat from black foam core and then glued pink rik-rajk around the edge for extra fanciness. It’s ridiculous and girly. The polka dotted Fatboy beanbag chair is going to be replaced with this Marimekko one with red poppies soon. It’s comfy and my niece and nephew love it. So does my brother, so he’s getting the polka-dotted one. He’s always been a bean bag guy.

You can see the new chandelier in this photo. I thought it was very Audrey Hepburn. Or a very stylish hat. Maybe a stylish hat for Audrey Hepburn.

I also created a new reading nook. My apartment is set up in a really weird way. There’s a big central room with doors all around leading to the front hall, my bedroom, sewing room, living room, office and the hallway to the kitchen. It’s the largest room in the place, but also the most useless because every wall has at least one door. There’s not much wall space, no windows and it’s just kind of awkward. But my friend Victor helped me visualize a way to make at least part of the space useful. I love it to pieces and often just relax in silence on my faux knitted couch (it’s printed with a knit pattern!)

It features my other lovely model, Chloe – the Cindy Crawford of the house.

That shelf is full of knitting and craft books and magazines. The fabric on the wall is a vintage piece called “Forest Friends”, you can see details of it here. It’s totally cute. And the embroidered bird is one I made a few years ago. It’s a 1970s pattern that my mom actually made for our house when I was a kid. His name is Mortimer and amazingly, I found the exact same kit on eBay, so I had to get it.

I also repainted my office a bright aqua color and hung some vinyl bird decals and groovy records from the 50s and 60s on the wall. I tried to photograph it, but I couldn’t quite catch the light right, so I’ll have to try again later.

I’m on kind of a bird kick with this redecoration, so my mom got in on the action. Check out this amazing quilt she made for me! She didn’t know how to applique, but taught herself to do it so she could make this for me. I’m crazy about the way she made their eyes and legs different. Her attention to detail is a Thing of Wonder. My momma loves me, and I love her. I’m so glad I got her crafty genes.

Now the trick is to keep it away from Dot. After I use it, I always put it back in the zippered bag it came in. Victor came up with a good plan for it. He’s going to help me hang a clothesline on the wall to hang it on when not in use. And he suggested pairing it with these bird clothespins for cuteness sake. The guy is good, I tell ya’.

So that’s my newly improved pad. It’s nice to have it decorated in a way that always makes me smile. I’m trying to be good about not going overboard, so I’m going to make more things for the walls to save money and personalize it even further. I think the sewing room and kitchen will be next. They mostly need organization, but we’ll see what IKEA has to say about that.

I was doing paperwork last week and saw this exact scene on my desk and knew it was the perfect way to start this blog post. I’ve been putting off writing about it for a while because I’m not even sure what and how much I want to say about it.

Discount Valentine’s candy* and divorce papers. Or as I like to call it,  creamy divorce nougat enrobed in rich chocolate. Neither of these things make me happy, per se, but each were what I really needed. I would have preferred cardamom marshmallows and a lifetime of fulfillment. But you play the cards you’re dealt, yes? Then, once you’ve played them, you switch to a game where you can actually pick your own damned cards!

That’s what I’m focusing on now, figuring out how to assemble a good hand. Ok, I need to quit with this card metaphor before someone tells me to “shuffle up and deal!”

Jon and I separated in May of last year. It was actually just before Caro and I finished the book. A couple of weeks after we decided to separate, I had to hand in my dedication to the publisher. This really threw me for a loop since everything was so fresh, but I realized that just because we weren’t going forward, there was no reason to discount the past. I did appreciate his support during the making of the book and I thanked him for it. And that’s how I’ve tried to proceed since then.

I’m not going to go into details of our relationship any more than to say that after 15 years, our relationship was over and separating was inevitable. I don’t regret our decision and I don’t have any ill will towards him. I just want us both to lead happy, full lives. It’s like a midlife reboot. A Ctrl+Alt+Del in meatspace. A do-over, if you will. Wish us luck!

In the meantime, a new man has entered my life. He looks really young, but he’s actually quite a bit older than me. His name is Bobby and I loff him.

Bobby came to me from YarnyOldKim, who I adore and desperately want to be. Maybe if I eat Bobby, I will absorb her powers.

The cats are getting used to having him around, although he’s not as good at cuddling as Chi Chi would like.

And I suspect Bobby misses his old home. I found him surfing around on my computer the other night. He said he was just looking for photos of naked Sears mannequins, but he was looking at Kim’s Flickr stream.

But he’s settling in well. Thank you, Kim! He looks really great in my sewing room, even though he nearly gives me a heart attack every time I walk in there. That disembodied little darling keeps the ol’ blood pumpin’!

Boop!

Phew, well, that feels good to get off my chest. I wasn’t sure how to approach the divorce on the blog and I think it was kind of acting like a block. Let my prolific blogginggggg – BEGIN!

*It used to have a pretty bow, but I had to cut it off because Dot was nomming on it.

KIOS looks so grown up, doesn’t she? (If I could think of a single reason to wear that dress anywhere, I totally would.)

So as part of our adventure in whoring promoting our book, we will be talking with Mary Beth Temple on her fibercast, Getting Loopy! We’ll be there on Monday, 1/17 at 9pm eastern. The cool thing about it is that you can call in to talk to us and ask questions! Since the show is centered on crochet, I fully expect someone to ask what the deal is with the word “knitting” in the title of the book, even though there are 9 or 10 crochet patterns in there. I’m trying to come up with something better than the fact that “Knitting and Crocheting It Old School” just didn’t have the ring we were looking for.

Visit the Getting Loopy group on Ravelry to find out more about how to listen live, call in and join in the live chat, where you can also ask questions. The show is hosted on BlogTalkRadio, where you can even set up a reminder so you don’t forget about us. Don’t worry, you can set the DVR to tape Real Housewives. Nobody wants to miss NeNe getting all up in Kim’s grill on the tour bus, am I right? We’re human, after all.

So then after that, we’re heading to New York City (is it just me who says “New York City?!” with a cowboy accent like in the Pace Picante commercial? Do I watch too much TV? You can tell me.) Anyway, we’re heading to New York City (New York City?!) to attend Vogue Knitting Live. I’m taking a 2-part sock class with Cat Bordhi on Friday and I’m really excited! (nobody tell that I haven’t done my homework yet.)

But we arrive on Thursday and Thursday night (1/20), we’re doing a reschedule appearance at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio! Seating starts at 5:30 and the presentation starts at 6. We were really lucky to get an appearance to begin with, but then we got trapped in LA when the snow storm hit last week, so we weren’t able to make our appearance last week. So we got even luckier that we were able to reschedule it. Those folks at Lion Brand are the bomb-diggity! So pop by and see us and buy bagloads of yarns. Woo!

We’ll be setting up more engagements soon, so stay tuned. Like the Monkees, you never know where we’ll be found. So you better get ready, we may be coming to your tooooown!

And apropos of nothing, here’s an awesome cat picture. It’s Mike and Chi Chi lounging on the bed. Mike has since gotten his semi-annual lion cut and had his anal glands expressed, so, you know, your week could have been worse.

(this is how I would like you to imagine Caro and I as we embark upon the book tour.)

There are so many goings-on going on, I can hardly stand it! But in a good way. I love being busy. I work best in crazypants mode, so my motor is really humming as autumn has begun rolling out the leafy carpet.

The first bit of excitement is that I was accepted to be a member of Boston Handmade!! I’ve long been an admirer of the amazing artists involved and it’s a great honor to be accepted. I’ve been wanting to immerse myself more into creative pursuits and this is exactly what I needed. It’s time to being my A-game because there is some serious talent in this group.

Rhinebeck is less than two weeks away. WHAT!?! How did this happen? Honestly, I’m stunned. I haven’t been for the last two years, so I’m really excited to get back to my favorite stomping grounds. And I fired up the Rhinebeck Bingo machine, too! The sign-up deadline is October 9th at noon, so spread the word and climb aboard the Bingo train.

Knitting It Old School has been getting some great feedback, Caro and I are so delighted, it’s almost embarrasing how much we giggle about it. Girlish glee abounds. My favorite comment so far about it is from Pam Wynne, the designer of Rally. In her words, “at least 50% this book is 100% bananas.” Ha! That made me laugh and laugh. Clearly she gets it.

We kicked off our promotional extravaganza with the WEBS podcast, Ready, Set, Knit. Check it out, we sound like we actually know what we’re talking about. I did say “um” a fair amount, but I’m working on it. Kathy and Steve have such a great rapport on the show, it cracks me up. She is an amazing interviewer, I was impressed with how smoothly it went and how comfortable she made us feel. Thanks, Kathy!

We’ll also be doing a book signing and trunk show at WEBS on October 9th, so come by and let us scribble in your books. I have to say, I still feel weird writing in books, I spent most of my childhood being told that it was just about the worst thing you could do, and now people just hand me books to deface.

We’re still cobbling together our tour schedule, but it’s filling up fast. Here are some highlights:

Oct 16&17 – We’ll be signing books in the authors tent at Rhinebeck

Oct 30&31 (and hey, maybe the 29th) – signing books at Stitches East at the Elegant Ewe‘s booth. Kelly Bridges, who created the gorgeous Apres Ski Skirts works there, too!

Nov 6th – book signing and trunk show at Purl Diva in Brunswick, Maine.

Nov 12th – Big presentation with photos and everything at the Common Cod Fiber Guild.  We’re going to talk about the whole book-making process and I promise it’s going to be really fun. We’ll be laughing a lot as we tell you some crazy stories and show you behind the scenes shots. We’ll also be showing some of the pieces that inspired the designs in the book.

I’ll update the blog as we add things. We’ll be heading to different parts of the continent later in the year, so stay tuned for details!

Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines! Here’s a quick sneak preview from Knitting It Old School. This is Speedway, it’s based on those super-cool hot rod jackets from the 60s. There’s a matching ladies version in red with black and white stripes. SO cute! The yarn is Louet Gems Sport Weight, so it’s a project, but the finished product will be a sturdy sweater that your speed demon will love.

Speedway was designed by Caryn Lantz of Fuzzy Noodle Knits. This and the sweater on the cover, Saucy Convertible, were the first two things I commissioned for the book. That was four years ago. Yikes! I can’t even tell you how amazing it is to finally have these projects ready for the spotlight.

There are more sneak peeks available at Caro’s Flickr page!

Photo by Denise Siegel

This is a test of the Emergency Clown System. The broadcasters of your area in voluntary cooperation with the Federal, State and local authorities have developed this system to keep you informed in the event of an clown emergency.

If this had been an actual clown emergency,  the shrieking you just heard would have been followed by the blood curdling screams of innocents set upon by marauding clowns. It would have then been followed by hollow, soulless laughter as those painted demons twisted the intestines of their victims into balloon animals.

Official information, news or instructions would ultimately prove useless, but you would be advised to make your way the nearest clownout shelter. This blog  serves the northeast corner of the interwebs. This concludes this test of the Emergency Clown System.

Take this acrylic homage to Cleopatra in chainmail. (Cleo was big into the medieval reenactment scene before anyone even knew what it meant.)

This beach cover-up drapes the model from head to toe and yet, there’s not a whole lot of covering up going on.  My assumption is that she’s wearing a bikini under there, but the bizarre variegation of the yarn appears to be rendering the scraps of clothing she does have invisible. How is this possible? I cannot speak to the magic of crochet, ‘tis a mystic wonder. But I do wish they’d shown us a photo of the reverse grill marks she got after a day of cheerless frolicking in the sun.