Finished socks and a big horsey ride!

Liam went for his first ride on the big horse, Lex with Emma. Daddy was standing by to make sure everything was ok. Andy used to be a professional jockey before a back injury sidelined that career. Looks like Liam might be following right in his foot steps. He sure loves the horses!



A finished pair? Unusual I know - these are Artyarns Color 134 in Cookie A's Monkey pattern. I read somewhere that this pattern could become the next Jaywalker in terms of popularity! It's true - really fun to knit! And...well, the yarn - good, very, very good!

Here's a finished sock in Briar Rose Fourth of July. Very quick kniit with amazing colors. And of course, no matching mate - I can only do so much!

I've got a new goal - I have two unfinished socks in my knitting bag both of which I'm going to finish and then I will not pick up any new yarn until I FINISH A FEW PAIRS!

Aurora/Newmarket Yarn Crawl and Knit in Public Day is on! Saturday, June 9, 2007 Yahoo! Email me for a flyer if you are interested in participating! It's going to be fun, fun, fun - I love nothing better than spending time with other knitters - lots and lots of other knitters! pickupsticks(AT)zing-net.ca

REPRESENT in pictures....

Finally it's time to go - here we are with the Pick Up Sticks mobile! I'm on the left, Sarah's on the right and my sister's in front.

Here's our knitting heading west on Finch Ave. We were stopped in traffic - although I have always wished I could drive and knit!

Here's Meghan - the pattern design genius behind the Pick Up Sticks Sock Club patterns. See that little bump - she's having her first baby in October. We couldn't be happier for her and Nick! And we cannot get over how darn cute she looks!

Here's Lisa and Sarah making their way down to the subway - Sarah looks a bit excited, don't you think? She was worried we'd be late!

Here's Lisa and Meg on the subway - kind of scary for country bumpkins like us! We hadn't been on the subway in ages -

Here we are at Indigo - looks like they didn't believe Stephanie when she told them how many people were coming - there was only about 100 chairs (if that!) and lots of knitters! They didn't even move displays in the area around where everything took place. It would have freed up alot of standing room. The employees were very helpful, if a little dumb founded by all of us with sticks in our hands.

Lots and lots and lots of knitters...............whhoooopeee!

More crowds gathering on the upper level.

The moment we've been waiting for - here she is....Stephanie Pearl McPhee - our much loved Yarn Harlot!

Stephanie was entertaining, witty and hysterically funny! Well worth the trip and the wait!

At the book signing - Meghan's knitting tattoo captured Stephanie's attention!

You can just see it on her left arm in this shot - I've never wanted a tattoo until I saw hers - now I'd love to have a knitting tattoo.

Here's the chicks from Pick Up Sticks with Stephanie - I'm holding the 'sock'! This is the yarn that I sent when I first started Pick Up Sticks. It's Virginia van Santen's sock yarn in Spring Greens. How proud she would be of her yarn travelling with the Yarn Harlot! I was able to get my own book signed and also have one for Pick Up Sticks. There will be a draw held on Friday June 1 for a signed copy of Stephanie Pearl McPhee Casts Off. All orders placed this week (May 26 until May 31)will be entered and have a chance to win!

Stay tuned for details on the York Region Yarn Crawl and Knit in Public Day. It's Saturday June 9th so mark your calendars if you are a local knitter! I'm putting together a day of touring our local shops with some stops to show off our knitting {and eat, of course!}! Let's have a big turn out!

Big Day!

Today's the day of the Canadian Launch of Stephanie Pearl-McPhee's new book, Casts Off! I'm armed with my two copies, my yarn gift for her and my GoKnit pouch with a new plain sock started out of Sea Pearl.

How to recognize me? Hmmm! Probably wearing my pink Pick Up Sticks jacket - but it's hot here today so let's hope it cools down tonight. My GoKnit pouch is hot pink - I will probably be with three others in their Pick Up Sticks jackets. If you see me, come and say hello!

I'm very excited!

Socks for My Sister

Yarn: Shelridge Farms Ultra in Green Apple

Pattern: Merino Lace Socks from Favorite Socks

Here's the finished sock - during the knitting of this one I decided to give them to my sister for her birthday which is in August. Certainly I will have enough time to complete the second one. I love this yarn and loved this pattern!

This monster ball measuring 6 inches across and 4.5 inches high is Fourth of July by Briar Rose Fibers.

It's 550 yds and truly, I've wound lots of balls of yarn but have never seen one this big. There's probably enough here for socks and mittens to match - don't you think that would make a great Christmas gift? There's for sure enough for matching mom and daughter socks - unbelievable value! And the colors...............well, unbelievable describes them too!

Any of my readers going to Indigo on Friday night for the Yarn Harlot? We should meet up or something......

Misty the Mini gets a bath!

Misty was delivered on Saturday so has had a few days to settle in. Today was bath day - doesn't she look pretty? Quite a difference from when we went to see her the first time! Emma just loves her and spends hours walking her all over the place like she's a dog. Misty has made friends with our other pony Marigold - who is a bit like the cheerleader from high school that no other girls really liked except for the captain of the football team. So far so good for these two!

Iwound up some Angel Face on Friday - quite the job at 2500 yards! The colors are even more beautiful once it's wound....and you get two giant balls! Plenty for two or three lace projects!

Two of our sock club patterns are on the website in the patterns section - Adare Manor and Easy Does It. Next month I will have all of the past sock patterns in stock. Meghan Jackson designs the patterns for the club - they are brilliant - well written, concise, organized, relevant details. She's such a pro! My very favorite is Adare Manor - I think my new passion is beautiful lace socks in solid or semi solid yarn.

No Fourth of July yet - today is a holiday so we don't get any mail. I'm soooo crossing my fingers for tomorrow. It's been almost two weeks since they were sent - two arrived and two are still missing.

Friday night, I'm off to Indigo Books to meet the Yarn Harlot - I'm so excited. I'm going to get two books autographed. One for me and one as a Pick Up Sticks prize. Not sure what the contest will be yet but something......hmmm.....any ideas?

And the winner is....

Vanessa from Alberta with a guess of 94 skeins! Yahoo! Free Sea Pearl is on the way to you!

Hey - I just noticed that Blogger now autosaves my posts. That's a relief - I can't tell you the number of times I've lost posts - happy, happy!

Misty the Mini Horse is arriving tomorrow! Emma is so excited she can hardly stand it. I don't think she'll be getting much sleep tonight!

I'm expecting the last of the Briar Rose today - there's still Fourth of July to come. Chris mailed all four boxes on the same day but somehow they've been seperated. Hopefully not being held captive by customs.

You'll notice some new categories in my shop for Dream In Color - it's been ordered and should ship by the end of the month. Lots and lots of Smooshy sock yarn on the way!

Have a wonderful weekend - it looks like it might be a summer weekend here rather than the late fall weather we've been having the last few days. We still have our furnace on.....how about you?

Two Boxes?

Two of the four boxes of Briar Rose are arriving today - what should I do? Put them up on the store or wait for all of them. Majority rules!

New knitting and a contest!

Guess what? No Briar Rose again today! However, here are some details of what's arriving:

Angel Face:Lace weightContent: 100% AlpacaYardage/Wt.: 2500 yds./ 8 oz.Gauge: 26 sts to 4" US size 3 needlesWash: Hand wash/ dry flat


Sea Pearl: Lace weightContent: 50% Merino wool/50% TencelYardage/Wt.: 500 yds./457 mtsGauge: 24 sts. to 4" w/ US 4 needles Wash: Hand wash/dry flat (works really well for socks!)


Fourth of July: A little twist in the fiber makes for really cute socks and sweaters!Content: 100% woolYardage/Wt.: 550 yds 8 oz.Gauge: 24 sts to 4" on size US 4 needles

So now the contest - something to just occupy us waiting for this amazing yarn to arrive. How many total skeins of Briar Rose have I ordered? I want to know your guess for the total number of skeins of all three yarns. Leave your answer in the comments section! The contest is over on May 16 at 12 noon Eastern Standard Time. The closest guess will win - if there is more than one correct then there will be a draw for the winner. So what do you win? Well, a FREE skein of Briar Rose Sea Pearl of course!
Thanks to Janet from Houston (I don't think she has a blog) for drawing my attention to the Merino Lace Socks (by Anne Woodbury) from Favorite Socks. Here they are started in Shelridge Farm Green Apple - great stitch definition and super soft yarn!

Ok time to make your guess! :)

Misty the Mini

Here's our new addition, Misty the Mini Horse. Emma is getting her first nuzzle. As I predicted, she was just adorable and of course, we are buying her. She's a sweet, quiet, kind girl and will be a welcome addition to our farm.

Emma lead her around for a bit - my thinking is that probably Misty will spend more time outside the paddock than in.





Even Liam thought she was pretty cool!









And knitting? Well, not much else to do on a 2.5 hour drive to see a mini but finish a sock. Artyarns color 134 - Monkey pattern from Knitty. It got a bit wonky in the heel because after I finished the heel, Emma decided she's like them for herself. So instead of tearing back - I just shortened the foot. Truth be told - I picked this yarn to knit with because I didn't really like it - when I took it out of the box, I thought what were you thinking - this won't sell. HOWEVER, now I really like it. It's a great summer sock - and the Artyarns merino - I cannot say enough - amazing stuff! You'd swear there was elastic in it, it's so springy! Have you tried it?

Shelridge Farms arrived on Friday and is on the website - great colors. I've snagged 2 Green Apple for myself! No Briar Rose yet - maybe today!

Liam

This is my little grandson, Liam - guess what he had for dinner last night? He was at Gwanny's (that's me - don't even ask how I got that version of grandma)for dinner. He loves spaghetti.


It's so funny because I have a picture of his mom at almost the same age with exactly the same thing all over her face.




New yarn coming to the shop - lovely stuff but not for about 3 weeks! I love the subtle color variations.



This is Artyarns Ultramerino 4 in Color 134. A few years back I bought Ultramerino 8 for my LYS and loved it - this is even nicer, I think! It's so springy! so cushy! It's making great Monkey socks. It's really unlike alot of the merino yarn I've tried - in a very, very good way!

Thanks for all the feedback (by comments and by email) on the prize draws versus free shipping! Free shipping at $70 CAD it is!

There will be an update!

Yahoo! Two big boxes arrived. Artyarns is finally here! I love this yarn - it really does feel like cotton but is 100% merino with no twist! Gotta love it!
Here's the box of Mini Maiden - lots of new colors means lots of new pictures. I'll be hard at work at that this afternoon!

There's still more to come Shelridge should be here tomorrow and Briar Rose is in the mail by priority so hopefully, maybe, possibly tomorrow!

I have a thought - my shipping bill each month is very big and I was thinking yesterday that I could give away lots of free stuff for that amount of money. For example, I was thinking that I could do a draw every month for a free ball winder and swift - just a quick calculation makes me think I could give at least 10 of these away each month. So here's my thinking - I charge a $5 flat rate for shipping regardless of the size of the order and hold draws each month for amazing free stuff. So in June - each person who places an order will be entered into the draw - an entry for every order you place - place 4 orders, you have 4 chances to win. So please, let me know what you think - it's just a thought but it might be fun!

URRRRR!

No mail today! Ugh! There is tons of yarn on the way to me. Tons I say! Over 90 skeins of Briar Rose, who I read today is a Rhinebeck vendor with the "most coveted yarns"! More Mini Maiden, 37 solids from Shelridge Farm, over 100 skeins of Artyarns Ultramerino 4. And today I ordered more Duets! Yes I did - Angela has a new Skinny Duets made from thinner yarn and it's on order - lots and lots of it is on order!




See this little pony - she's a mini horse and stands just 38 inches at the shoulder. We're going to see her on Sunday - she's very inexpensive and needs a good home - bet we come home with her. She's 11 and will make Emma go crazy with joy!

Oh and today is McHappy Day - at least in Canada - so I went to McDonald's for lunch and guess what? Firefighters and police officers served at both drive through windows. What is it about a man in a uniform? I think I might go back for dinner :)

Fingers crossed for an update tomorrow!

Barkley's in trouble...

This picture of sweetness is in trouble. He's under the dining room table - because he has stolen toys from Emma's room - again! You can just see them in the left hand corner - he was busy chomping away on them before I snapped the picture and does look a bit indignant at being interrupted. This is the second time this morning I've caught him feasting away. He doesn't actually eat them - just chews them until they are unrecognizable bits of colored plastic.

Looky, looky - two finished socks! They don't match each other (well, what else could you expect from me!)The far left if the first of my STR socks in Silky Sock - I really, really like this yarn. So much so that I went to Blue Moon Fibers and tried to buy all the colors that it came in but then I decided to be rational and not buy any because you know, it's not like I don't have any sock yarn???!!! The one on the right is Panda Sock from Seacoast - have you tried it? I love it - so squishy to wear. I'm currently working on a third sock with a new yarn that should be in the shop in about 4 weeks. Once I finish that one I'm going to go back to STR and Panda and finish the partners - my new deal with myself is....start and finish 3 singles, then go back and do the partners.

I have a couple of questions - based on a previous post - regarding, well....spinning! If, and that is IF I were going to bring in some fleece for spinning to Pick Up Sticks, where should I begin? Which are your favorites? What kind of wool is your favorite to spin with? Who are your favorite dyers? Remember....it's just an "if" at this point......

I'm in love.....

you would be too - if this happened to your DPNs!

My friend Angela, an amazing seamstress, knitter, crafter has started a new business and this is one of her first products. Isn't it brilliant? I had 13 sets of DPNs making a mess in my knitting bag and now I have this tidy, little, very funky roll. Look for them at Pick Up Sticks soon! Angela is also working on a circular holder that promises to be just as wonderful!

And to add to my all ready very busy life, I've decided I would like one of these. Do I consistently finish "pairs" of socks? NO! Do I even consistently finish "a sock" before starting another one? NO! Do I know one single thing about spinning? NO! So there you have it....I've officially lost my marbles! :)

Bebop Comes In and.....

STR Sock Club Spoiler in this entry! goes out....these are some of the boxes going today with Bebop, Fleece Artist and Apple Laine. There's still some Bebop left is some great colors so it's not too late. There still more boxes that should be in this pile and that's my plan for this morning! I promised some knitting and I have knitting!
This is the sock that I started at the Knitter's Frolic - just my basic 60 stitch sock. It's using Seacoast Panda Sock in The Good Earth. This is great yarn and the dyeing is really great - no pooling, very squishy feel and the colors are beautiful.

This is the STR Sock Club yarn. Oh my, oh my! It's fantastic! It's a brand new yarn called Silky Socks That Rock in Walking on the Wild Tide. It came with a very lacy pattern but I just had to knit it plain to enjoy all the colors!

I've conquered the mitered square blanket - I'm making it out of Koigu Kersti - so far, so good!

And now for some spoilers of my own - I was a very busy girl yesterday and got some fantastic new yarns coming to the shop! Seems I'm always spending money on yarn.....justified by the fact that it's not really for me but for all of you! So let's see - without any formal introductions here's some of what's just around the corner for Pick Up Sticks!

Oh and these too! :)