Remindah!

I'm going to do the speaking thing at the Ann Arbor District Library this weekend! I'll be giving my No Sheep for You talk, complete with laptop and clicky thing and a microphone, even. I'll bring swatches from the book and we'll talk non-wool fibers and Knitty stuff until the cows come home, or they throw us out. Whichever comes first. There will also be a sneak preview of the new Big Girls book -- More Big Girl Knits...including your chance to rub shoulders with my beloved co-author, Jillian Moreno. Like all library stuff, attendance is free! Woot!

You may have heard about this legendary library from another knitting Torontonian. Well, now it's my turn. Except I won't need to fly in, thankfully...I'll be taking the train. :-)

No Sheep/Knitty® Knit-in

Date: Sunday, March 9

Time: 2-3:30pm [knit-in following the program; library closes at 6pm] -- don't forget you'll be setting your clock forward before you go to bed on Saturday night! I don't want to miss you!

Location: Multipurpose Room at the Downtown Library, 343 South Fifth Avenue, (at the corner of Williams and Fourth).

Notes: Parking is free on Sunday at the lot next door. The Library will open at noon. Seats at the program are first come first serve. In the event of a capacity crowd, overflow will be simulcasted from the 4th floor Boardroom.

Program information:
Learn the ins and outs of fibers that aren't wool and never had four legs. We'll learn about cotton, linen, hemp, bamboo, lyocell, rayon, soy, the new synthetics and more, plus the most delicious non-wool of all: silk. Learn about the GeeKY thing [hint: it involves knitting]. It's the tool that will help you to how to substitute non-wool fibers when the pattern calls for wool and get a great result. Here's a secret -- it's WAY more than matching the gauge.

Bring your non-wool questions and your knitting! I will be glad to sign copies of No Sheep for You [someone will have them for sale at the event if you don't have one and would like one], and if we've got time left, we'll have a knit-in!

---

Okay, so that's the story. Will you come? I would love to fill up the room with Knitty-loving knitters -- non-woollies, woollies, girls and guys of every size and every other kind of knitter. I'm up for a massive knit-in if you guys are...so please come and bring your knitting peeps!

Will I see you there?

please don't faint.

This is my current WIP. I'm taking a wee break from Imogen -- almost complete! -- for love. It doesn't look like the kind of yarn I usually use, does it?

See, hub has no winter hat that he'll wear. I was recently in Americo, and couldn't keep my hands off their new dehaired baby llama yarn -- part of their new Eco line [this stuff is natural, as it comes off the llama].


Yes, an animal yarn. [Reminder: I'm allergic to wool, and sensitive to the barbs on all animal fibers.] This one, however, felt quite nice in my hands. Because it was dehaired? Probably. So I went home with one beautiful naturally brown skein, which has been sitting, staring at me for a little while.

And then we were forecasted a snowstorm, and hub's head was cold, and he gave me a PEEEEENK iPod, for heaven's sake! So I just cast on. A little hat for valentine's day for my beloved. The top photo shows me just starting the decreases for the crown using this pattern.

So how is the knitting? Well, keeping in mind that I am accustomed to full-on softness and smoothness running through my fingers as I knit, it's very different. However, it's only a tiny bit uncomfortable from time to time on my princess-and-the-pea fingers. It's just three days of knitting and, at the end, hub will have a wonderful, warm hat, and I will have stretched my fiber boundaries a little. Will I keep knitting with dehaired baby llama? Probably not. But it was nice to know I could.

If it feels this soft to me, I can't imagine what it would feel like to a woolly knitter. Heaven, perhaps?

p.s. In looking for the Americo link, I noticed they now have a yarn catalogue on their website. Please forgive me.

2007 recap in pictures and short phrases...

...because why not, really?

I'm a little stunned at all that's gone on this year, now that I'm looking back. It certainly explains the current state of my house.


No Sheep for You was published [and I got my preview copy + chocolate early in the year.]


I got to hang, briefly, with the Purlesence girls while at the big knitting trade show, TNNA.


I bought my first Habu kit, which is still in this exact state [though Henry has grown] because my brain can't process the pattern.


Cupcakes came to the beach. I have visited Life is Sweet many times since then.


I finished a sweater and started a new one.



Jillian and I had the final photoshoot for More Big Girl Knits...at the cupcake shop, of course!


The year of speaking engagements/travel began at the DKC!


I got to do Breakfast Television again with the sexiest models ever!


I finally got to visit The Fold and my head exploded.


I re-visited the KW Knitters' Guild and managed not to faint in front of Sally Melville and Debbie New this time. Progress!


Loopy Yarn love in Chicago!


Jillian and I made a pilgrimage to the homeland of her heart...Hill Country Weavers in Austin, TX. I fell in love with the place, despite the shvitz factor.


I knit with steel.


I crocheted. And liked it. Haven't done it since, though.


I discovered Zulugrass and met the kickass Scout on her home turf [Albuquerque] where she dyed me some matching yarn.


I bent sterling silver.


Hub put the dead cedar hedge out of its misery.


Massimo the Vespa joined our family, a gift from Grandma.

The next three sort of blur together in a delicious happy memory:

Bainbridge Island, Washington

Portland, Oregon

The Purlescence girls of Sunnyvale, CA, show me San Francisco and, most importantly...


No picture here. My gallbladder and I broke up, permanently.


While I was healing, Hub had a fence put in our backyard to replace the hedge.


I healed quickly enough to visit Loop in Philadelphia!


I went to SOAR and so did Denny! I can now spin yarn that I'm proud to show off!


Hub and I went to Oslo, Norway, and finally met Theresa!


Hub and I went to London, England!

And then it got nice and quiet. It's been, as you can see, an incredible year. Actually, rather more mind-blowing in retrospect. I have Flickr albums full of memories, many more blogs to follow of new friends met all over the world, and now, one last thing.

One of my favorite things about Norway was...the bedding. Really. Everyone gets their own duvet, even in a shared bed. And in the morning, you get up and fold it in half [the long way] and it looks so very Scandinavian and insanely tidy with zero effort. I loved it. No trying to fluff a huge king-sized duvet. No fighting for covers. Then Theresa made new duvet covers and that was it. I was lost:


I ordered us a pair of basic twin duvets [no, not the Icelandic Eiderdown at $2900/ea -- try the Anniversary]. We didn't get each other presents for whatever holiday it is we're celebrating this time of year, so dang it, we could have them. I have enough Amy Butler fabric and vintage linen put aside to make two perfect covers. And sewing two twin covers well seems much more achievable than sewing one huge king-sized cover, though I could probably have done it...badly.

Guess what I'll be doing this week?

Happy new year, everyone!

i've been told

When I was doing the Yarn Roundtable night at Alterknit last month, it became clear that there was a rather significant gap in my teaching locales. I've never taught a class in Toronto! Several people told me they wanted to go to my Tuscany class, so I chatted with Terri and we made it so. :-)

Deets:
Date: Sunday, Sept 23
Time: 11am - 1:30 pm
Location: Alterknit, 1024 St. Clair Avenue West, Toronto, Ontario
Contact: Terri @ 416-654-0500

This is my favorite class to teach!. If you've been hesitant to knit a lace anything, the Tuscany is a great way to get over your fear and learn to love [and read] lace. You need to be able to confidently knit and purl, and a little familiarity with yarn overs and decreases is helpful.

Terri's just opened up spots for this class today, so if you're interested, call soon!

Throw a fish at me!

Well, my west-coast trip is coming up fast [I leave next Monday] and Portland and Sunnyvale are all sold out!

In Seattle, though -- there are several spots left. For the Tuscany class [you know, that luscious silky thing I designed to be easy to knit but not look it?] and the No Sheep class, where I tell you all my best secrets about the fibers I love so that you can love them too.

Maybe Seattleites are shy. Or quite last-minutey. Well, here's your chance. Come out and meet me! [I'm very nice, I won't make your skin itch and I won't bite. I may hug, though.]

Here are the deets:

The Tuscany class runs July 24 and 25 at 10am.
The No Sheep workshop runs July 24 at 6pm.

The folks at Churchmouse Yarns & Teas are charming and nice and I can't wait to see their shop. Will I see you there?

Churchmouse Yarns & Teas
118 Madrone Lane, Bainbridge Island, WA
206.780.2686

No Sheep west coast roadshow

A little update:

Portland is sold out already! [sorry.]

There are just a few spots left in Seattle. Classes and times are here or download the PDF schedule right from Churchmouse for full deets.

The lovely ladies of the San Francisco area [Sunnyvale, to be exact] are on vacation, so I don't know the scoop there.

If you want in on the remaining spots, best to contact the shops pronto. :-)

West coast! Really!

Finally! I've hoped to get out west for many years to meet all the great knitters whose blogs I read and those I've yet to meet. It's now going to happen!

I'll be in Seattle/Bainbridge Island July 24-25, Portland OR on July 26, and in the San Francisco area over the July 27th weekend. I'll be teaching, signing and knitting with y'all. Woo hoo!

Full details are on the tour page. Spots have been known to fill up fast. :-)

Silversmithy update: we have (almost done) ring!

I missed last week's class -- we attended a cool Luminato event. [Hub is a foley artist, and one of his friends was doing live foley to accompany the movie on stage. It was a brilliant show.] Anyway.

Back last night, and as usual, had a blast and love Sarah and her classes. Also big props to Jen who brought popsicles for all of us [it read 38c on my car's thermometer, for god's sake] -- salvation in ice + sugar. Yum.

Here's the progress from last night:

bezel wall attached to the base, sawed out [not badly for me], sanded for a billion years and then soldered. oops.


see that little dip in the bezel wall? it's at the front on the left. that's where i melted it. never mind. sarah says we can feex, so we are moving on.

we tried to set the stone, but after i'd sanded the bezel down to get rid of the melty evidence, the bezel wall was too shallow to hold the stone in place. so sarah feex for me by grinding out some of the bottom of the bezel.


she did this because, if i slipped [very likely], i'd have had to start all over again. na ga da*.


and her work allowed me to set the stone! it's in! it's in solidly! it's on my finger! i love it!

as you can see, there's still some finishing work to do. the edge of the bezel has to be sanded and smoothed and then i have to buff the ring. but i'm wearing it now anyway [oh, such a surprise! :-)] and will show you the finals when it's really really done.

meanwhile, i'm now in trip-prep mode for Albuquerque and Minneapolis [two more different cities? not possible] and must dash. however, i will say this...

Seattle (Bainbridge Island) -- July 24 & 25 (Churchmouse Yarns & Teas)
Portland -- July 27 (Knit/Purl)

Classes with these shops are almost finalized, and I'm hoping to add a date at Nathania, Sandi and Chloe's shop (Purlescence) in Sunnyvale, CA, that weekend. I'll be doing either the Tuscany shawl class or the No Sheep class [or both at some shops].

I'll have my laptop with me while I'm gone, so as soon as dates/times are finalized, I'll let you know. This is my first west-coast tour, and I'm ecstatic to come and hang with you guys on the left coast!


*you get this, yes? dana carvey doing gb senior in the late '80s.

more excited plotzingness

Go. Go see what's on my schedule. See specifically October.

I believe I will explode now.

---

eta:

more silversmithyness

We made the first part of our bezels for our cabochons last night. [My stone is chalcedony. A relative of quartz, aka cheap. But I like the milky blue.]


It's amazing to me how rough things start out and how, honestly, crappy they look until they're done. Right now, this looks like poop. But I have faith in Sarah. She will teach us how to un-poop our bezels.

I also started a little cuff bracelet, but it's so ugly right now, I'm not gonna show you nothin.

---

How comes only three darling peoples are supporting Team Knitty in the Run for the Cure this time? What did I do wrong?

We did so well last year and this year, it's kinda echoey and eerily quiet in my donation space. If each person who reads Knitty would give just one dollar, we'd have thousands and thousands of dollars to help fight breast cancer!

Here -- just a little taste of what your dollars will help support:

"The Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation has allocated millions of dollars in grants supporting the advancement of breast cancer research, education, diagnosis and treatment across the country since 1986.

In 1998, the Foundation became a funding partner of the Canadian Breast Cancer Research Alliance (CBCRA). The CBCRA's objective is to coordinate the pooled resources of the nation's largest fundraising organizations (such as the Foundation) along with medical research and advocacy groups supporting Canadian breast cancer research, treatment and educational programs.

Recently, the Foundation announced its commitment of $14 million over five years to leading edge breast cancer research in its Phase Three funding of the Canadian Breast Cancer Research Alliance (CBCRA). This is a tremendous example of the Foundation's leadership role with CBCRA. The Foundation's contribution will be allocated to CBCRA strategic initiatives, including research on lifestyle and environmental links to breast cancer."

To read more about what the CBCF does with the money we raise, please visit this page. Thank you.

---

Hey! Remember last time I went to TNNA [the big knitting/needlework trade show] in January and told you there'd be no signing of No Sheep for You? Well, I'm very happy to report that this time, there WILL be a signing! If you're lucky enough to be in the knitting trade and will be in Columbus this weekend to attend the show, come see me at the Unicorn Books booth at 1pm on Sunday.

Yay!

---

woild traveller?

You know that jewelery class I'm taking? The one where I can't tell you what I'm making?

Well, I had a makeup session on the weekend [I'll have to miss the last class because I'll be out of town] and the surprise thingy came along very well! I promise to blog it once it's been delivered, with love, to its intended recipient.

I just wanted to say that, like with knitting, sometimes you need to walk away from the project for a few days and then skills you didn't have somehow magically appear and you're better at the same thing you sucked at just a few days ago.

Is good.

---

Speaking of being out of town, you know I'm going to be teaching classes in a new part of the US, yes? I'll be in Albuquerque, NM, on June 15 & 16, and in Minneapolis, MN, on June 19 & 20th. I think there might be a few spots left -- you'll need to check with the shops to see if they can fit you in. Deets here.

---

Okay, this last one is a stunner. It's starting to look very much like I may be in Norway [hence the flag at the top of this post] for the last part of October. Teaching classes and giving the No Sheep lecture. Stuff like that. It's all pretty shocking to me and very exciting!

Since I just might be in the vicinity around October 25th, I wondered if anyone has a shop and would like me to teach. Sweden, Denmark, the UK, France? I don't know when I'll be across the ocean again and it seems like a such a great opportunity to meet with knitters and spread the No Sheepy love and talk Knitty until the oxen come home! If you've got a shop or work with a guild and you'd like to see if we can make this happen, please write me at amy A.T. amysinger D0T ca and I'll send you more details.

What the heck, eh? It feels strange asking, but life is short and nothing happens unless you make it happen. :-)

wasn't that a party?

I planned for most everything, except rain [which thankfully stayed away until we were all in bed] and cameras [i left mine at home]. Thanks to Julia, we've got pictures of the evening!

I never know what to do for events like this, so I just got a lot of STUFF. Hit of the night, besides the guac [which was devoured] were the Milk Duds. Canadians didn't grow up with them like we did in the US, so when I found them at Loblaws [!], I had to put them out for the evening. Old skool chocolate and chewy caramel beats Werther's any day. Hub also insisted on bringing the good pizza from Regina, which I hope was worth the wait.

Anyway, as Julia reports, I had so much stuff to give out [from culling my review cabinet] that there was no way I could just call "Scrambles!", even though Stephanie was pushing for it. I figured we'd do numbers and people could pick in order. That worked for about half an hour, until Sarah kept looking panicky and staring at her watch. She was minutes away from missing the last bus to Mississauga, and we couldn't have that. So I just called her number. :-) And when she hugged me, the box went flying, tickets everywhere.

See? The power of the Harlot cannot be denied. She got her scrambles, and it was pretty damned funny. But as Julia said, people were well behaved and the boxes left Lettuce Knit nice and empty. Just the way I like 'em.

The book came out several months ago, so the party was oddly timed, but since it was our first night on the patio since last fall, I think it was worth the wait. We never could have fit in the shop, and honestly, there's something magical about the market on cool spring nights when we're out with our yarn and sticks and a suitable beverage.

Thanks to everyone for coming out and helping me purge. I feel lighter.

---

One of the foody hits of the evening was not my doing -- Barbara, designer of Arietta, isn't only a kickass sweater designer, but she can bake a mean cupcake. I begged the recipe and am going to share it here.

Sez Barbara:

I love this recipe. It takes only a few minutes to throw together, and it is yummy if you serve it while it is still warm (with vanilla ice cream!) It is very moist, so it keeps for several days, or you can freeze any leftovers and zap each piece for about 30 seconds in the microwave. It has the advantage of having no eggs or milk, so not only can it be fed to vegans, you won't have to run out to the store if you keep basic ingredients in your pantry.

You can omit the topping and make icing if you choose.
[sez Amy: don't you dare. the topping is so unique and delicious, you'd be nuts not to use it!]

B.'s Chocolate Cake
(no cow, no chicken)

- combine (sift):
1 cup sugar
1 1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup cocoa
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. salt

- add and stir until smooth:
1 cup cold water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tbsp. vinegar

- batter will be thin.
- pour into ungreased 8" square or 9" round pan, or make 18 small cupcakes (bake them only 20 minutes).

Topping
- stir together:
1/2 cup brown sugar
4 tsp. cocoa

- sprinkle over surface of raw batter in pan, along with:
3 to 4 tbsp. chocolate chips

Bake at 350° for 30 - 35 minutes.

Thank you, Barbara!

News Flash: No Sheep Launch Party Reminder

Tonight!

Deets:
Date: this Wednesday, May 9, 2007
Time: 6:30pm onwards
Location: Lettuce Knit
70 Nassau Street, Toronto
416.203.9970
What: Fun, food, an embarrasingly large pile of door-prize freebies -- books, yarn and more!
Bevs: Bring some bevvies if you can. We'll have some too!

Books happily signed and doodled. Megan will have copies of No Sheep for sale.
Bring your camp chairs (! it should be a good night for it!) and your knitting and plan to stay until they throw us out.

See you tonight!

More Amy on the road!

Well, let's see. We talked about this a while ago and people -- it's happening!

Thanks to your enthusiastic support, I've booked dates in Albuquerque, NM, and Minneapolis, MN, in June! All details are on the events page. I'm teaching classes and speaking at a guild even!

Who's coming out?

More podcasty fun!

Before I went to Austin, I had a really nice chat with Kathy and Steve...owners of Webs! Wanna listen? here you go.

[Today's activity: cleaning, tidying and purging the Knitty wall of yarn in preparation for the No Sheep for You launch party! You should see the giveaway box. BoxES, more like.]

Hill Country Weavers (Austin, TX): another mammoth post

This past weekend, Jillian and I were in the Weird [with a capital W] capital of the USA, Austin, TX. Our assignment: teach stuff to the fine patrons of Hill Country Weavers.

This was no hardship.

Backstory:
- Jillian lived in Austin with her family for 3 years. She loved it there.
- I've never been to Texas.

So I was predisposed to love it [having heard stories about the Austinites and the city itself for as long as J and I have been friends]. Let's get this clear: she didn't lie. Austin is one of the coolest cities I've ever been to in every way except climate. [I am not good with hot. Especially in April. Erk.]

So let's get on with the pictures, shall we?


*

It's all things fibery -- weaving, spinning...and the thing we love best: knitting.


Look how happy Ms. J is to be home.


Old-timey knitbloggers...remember Yentala? She exists! [she's hiding behind J's Austin-swelled hair] And she is a huge bundle of love and Texas-style mensch love. Deb, you are the best.


Jillian will have to forgive me for this one. It's just too perfect. What is she pointing to that has her pontificating? Why, it's the shelf where the original yarn for Rockstar was pulled by HCW's owner Suzanne. Suzanne gave the yarn to Jillian, saying [legend has it], "Here. Go design something." And she did. And thanks to that fateful day, I've got me a BFF and you all have an amazing designer whose work you can knit and enjoy. Thank you, Suzanne.


Okay, now we're on the road. Even the ratty weather-worn music posters are different here. Totally frameable. Austin is the live-music capital of the USA, you know. Damn straight.


I felt very at home here. These are bumper stickers you can buy at Book People, THE Austin bookstore.


I'd been asked what I wanted to do in Austin, and told my generous hostess that I wanted the real Austin Experience. I sure got it! Here we are sitting at Shady Grove, trying to figure out what's for dinner. That's the legendary Suzanne on the right.


My choice: catfish.


Suzanne's choice: Frito pie [that's the Fritos bag blinding the flash -- it's a bag of fritos with hot stuff on top. too cool.]


The true Austin experience includes live music. Tonight: Bruce Robison. Love.


Back at the shop now. This is Suzanne's dog, Stella.


The classroom, set up by the HCW staff, for my first No Sheep class.





Look at all those gorgeous non-wools! Still feel sorry for knitters like me?




Knitters busily swatching non-wools to see how they behave. Notice the deep and intense focus. These knitters are serious!

Okay, back out on the street now...I had to walk South Congress to see all the cool shops.


:-)






Boots to die for at Allen's.

My new love:





That last picture was taken in their washroom. I've never been to a shop that fills the washroom with merch, knowing no one will take anything. I love this place.


The coolest hotel I've ever seen.





Insanely understated, gorgeous landscaping.



Austin seems to have a fetish for penis-signs. This was just one of them. Oh, and that's the Capitol building in the back there.




How could I not be happy here? My own ice cream store!
My choice: Smores ice cream with whoppers [Maltesers for the Canucks and Brits reading this] bashed up by hand and mixed in.
Cost: $5 [including tip]
Calories: don't even ask.
Worth it? Hell, yeah.



Cupcake gifts [back at the shop again] from partygoers! Yum.

And before we left, Suzanne asked me to do something. I was glad to oblige [but you can tell my spray painting skills are quite, um, unpractised. I did my best.]



We were and we'll be back. [Though if it's just me, it'll be in winter. So I can wear my boots next time.]


*Yes, I messed with the sign in Photoshop. Bow to my mad skillz. Bonus points for those that get the shiny joke.

Catching up (part 2) -- loopy yarns and the K-W Knitters' Guild

Jillian and I are getting ready for Austin -- we leave tomorrow at an ungodly hour -- but I wanted to leave you all caught up. Because I have pictures burning a hole in my Flickr and that can hurt.


So...when last we left our unintrepid [sporadically intrepid?] author, she had to physically lift her chin off the pavement outside The Fold. The next day, a signing at Chicago's Loopy Yarns!

This store is right in the Loop proper, and conveniently located seconds off one of the highways [94, I think]. Chicago is a confusing city to drive, but this was a piece of cake!

Look, they were expecting me! I love the sheep:




This shop was a great choice for a No Sheep event...these guys totally love all fibers, sheepy and non, and go out of their way to mark their yarn bins with labels so people know what's inside before they reach in! Look:






wait...what's that?

Damn straight I bought the skein. How could I not?

Meet the facilitator of the evening's event, Kristen (on the left) and the shop's owner, Vicki (right, wearing one of my favorite sweaters ever -- that gorgeous pink cabled thing from Knitter's Magazine a few years back...and does it ever look more beautiful in blue Manos? Yes, it does.)


Kristen is adorable, but my two photos of her are less than. I'm sorry, Kristen. I failed you.


At least you look happy in the Sweet Indulgence!


They were ready for the onslaught! And here it comes!




Oy! Such a beautiful Mermaid. I wept aloud. Hi, Linda! I found you!


Look at this gorgeous Kyoto from miss luscious luka!

Kris brought me a really cool t-shirt -- see her blog for pics. I'm proud to have joined your Knit-On movement!






And then some sweet surprises:

Meet Nancy's travel knitting. Dear lord.


Meet Nancy! Nancy does a lot of things, including reading physics texts for fun [what is UP with that?], and here is evidence of my favorite thing she does:


Yes, that is my new Sheepy. Sheepy is a wee handmade glass bead, with devilish eyes and a dopey face. Sheepy is going with me everywhere lately, including on the tee-vee [did you spot that, Nancy? also notice my mad wire-bending skillz].


This is our model for the evening, Cyd:


Cyd and Nancy [I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried] are best buds and co-enablers.



Sorry again for the crap pictures -- but these guys are cute enough to overcome my lack of photography skills.

What does Cyd do for fun? She pours metal.


No, really.


Recognize the bag? It's from the Knitty shop. But did you know whose hand that is in that loteria card?


Yes, it's Hub's hand [my Hub!] and here he is, signing his first autograph ever. With the same hand, even!

Here are my favorite photographers of the evening:



These adorable girls are knitters, too. Way cool.


Cozy!


Look -- what a clever use for a photo bag. Put swatches in instead!


This is Zoe, killer photog, wearing a sweater designed by another Zoe. Small woild.


A gorgeous scarf on a gorgeous knitter. Of course, the scarf was knit in merino, so I could only look longingly.


Kristen baked cupcakes. That's how I knew I was in the right place.

Loopy Yarns is a fabulous store and I can't wait to go back. It's full of great, enthusiastic knitters and a killer selection of yarns and accessories. Thanks for having me!

---

Last Tuesday night, I got to speak at the K-W Knitters' Guild for the 2nd time. My first appearance there in 2004 was my first appearance in front of any group, and they were welcoming and kind, so I was excited to go back.



A full house once again.

We talked with the aid of technology [my laptop and my neato Keynote presentation] until all of a sudden, technology failed me:

What's that red light mean? Low Battery. In other words, big-mouthed me had to speak loud enough to be heard by all those people. I couldn't do it, so we adjourned for a short break where I signed books and talked to the lovely KW knitters. The exec found us a battery and soon we were back in business! I took few pictures because I was working and had no Hub to act as photographer this time -- but it was a good, busy night, and we got to talk all sorts of sheeplessness. And this time, the presence of Debbie New and Sally Melville in the audience [this is their guild, after all!] didn't derail me. I just tried to keep my head and do well in front of two of my knitting idols.

One thing you must see: a gift from Lynne, she of the faultless KW directions:

My very own No Sheep for You customized tape measure. The outside is knit from cotton and sewn to the sheepy tape measure. Lynne, you are cool beyond words.

---

Man, that was a mouthful. I've now got to get ready for the No Sheep class[es?] I'm giving in Austin. Jillian is doing likewise for the Knit to Fit class. I have freshly pedi'd toes and a pile of new t-shirts for the 80+F weather we've been told to expect. I hear the classes are all full, but they may be adding a 2nd No Sheep class to accommodate those who were interested, so it looks like a busy weekend!

Have fun at LK tonight for me, guys. I'll be busy packing!

No Sheep for Muggles...now on YouTube

Yup, I did tee vee this morning, and I wasn't alone. Wanna see the hottest models in Toronto? Rachel H, Jacquie and Julia looked gorgeous in the sweaters, smiled bright enough to light distant galaxies and bantered with the host, Dina. [She is really nice and very good at what she does. And she does it all in 4" platform heels.]

Anyway, enough preamble. Here it is:



More soon on the fabulous KW guild and a recap of last week's events. But first, a nap. I'm running on 4 hours sleep. Thanks to hub for pressing the go button and making a nice .mov file for me.

Time for more tee vee & another guild!

And this time, I'm bringing a posse.

This coming Wednesday [April 11], sometime between 7-9am, I'll be talking No Sheep on Breakfast Television -- the Toronto edition. To add significant coolness, Rachel H, Jacquie and Miss Muffy have agreed to model the garments from the book. Can you imagine the hysteria?

My goal will be to get it on a VCR and then transfer it to digital, so I can upload it to YouTube. If anyone in the Toronto area can record direct to digital and can help me save a step, please let me know!

---

What am I doing the night before? Resting with a face mask on, reading something trashy and eating bonbons? Nope. I'll be driving to KW and back, so that I can talk to the great people of the KW Knitters Guild. They were the first guild I spoke to back in the Knit Wit days, and I was very flattered to be asked back. If you're in the area, please come out! [Yup, I"m doing the whole thing: trunk show, full electro-maniacal presentation and books will be available for purchase thanks to Cloth and Clay. If you've already got your copy, bring it along. I'll be very glad to sign it.]

April 10, 2007 @ 7:30 pm
KW Knitters' Guild
Waterloo Memorial Recreation Complex,
Hauser Haus room,
101 Father David Bauer Drive, Waterloo, ON

Teasah

Still on BGK2 panic deadline [heaven help us both!] but I have a camera full of pictures and some great stories to tell you about my time in Illinois.

Hints:
- I went to The Fold and it was more than I even imagined.
- The Loopy Yarns signing was a massive blast and I have several new BFFs. And a sheep.
- I might have brought home some yarn. And fiber. And a spindle. And something else.
- While I was away, it's possible a TV appearance may have been scheduled. Will advise as soon as it's confirmed. Will YouTube it after it's over, if I can.

Also, it seems the secret to really good matzoh balls is actually two secrets:
1. when adding broth to the ball mixture, choose beef. We used Swanson's box-o-beef-broth, and MAN, for some unintuitive reason, it was amazing.
2. don't cook the matzoh balls any longer than necessary. Otherwise they get wimpy, and there's nothing worse than wimpy balls.

Back soon! Promise!

No Sheep in the Midwest!

Okay. Since my last post, I've been working like an author on deadline [oy, I tell you!], neglecting my sister and her husband daily, but making it up at dinner, and changing time zones. I'm now in Chicago to celebrate Passover with the family. And I brought the No Sheep for You trunk show with me!

Wanna come see us? We'll be at Loopy Yarns this coming Wednesday froom 5:30 to 7:30. Most excellently, Loopy Yarns sent me this news:

To celebrate Amy’s arrival at Loopy Yarns, for two hours we’re having a sale of 20% off ALL animal free yarns and ALL silk. That’s EVERY cotton, bamboo, linen, soy, corn, and milk yarn, as well as all our 100% silk and wool-free silk blends.

As always, the sharpie will be at the ready, books and yarn will abound and we can talk non-wool yarns until they kick us out.

Hope to see you there!

Wednesday, April 4
5:30-7:30 pm
Loopy Yarns
719 South State Street
Chicago
312-583-YARN

i dood it.

And it was good, dude. [Sorry. I'm a little punchy.]

First, we begin with an early snap of Michelle and Jacquie. Notice both are wearing gorgeousness of handknitting:


Also notice the emptiness of the room. Me trying not to panic. Much plugging in of electronics ensued, and then the sweater arrived:


Really, all eyes were on the sweater, because I have never seen anything quite like it. It stopped being yarn and became a painting in wool. I couldn't take my eyes off it. Oh, Steph looked nice, too. :-)

And then it was time to talk. Look at what I saw from the podium:


Mighty nice.

There was talking, there was clicking of mouses and big pictures on the screen, there was talk of wool and mostly non-wool yarns and lots of good questions from the audience. A great night. The trunk show was a hit, too!

Then we headed off to Lettuce Knit for a post-DKC party. A little bubbly [thanks, Megan!] and an impromptu 2nd appearance of the trunk show for those who missed the guild. Feedback continues to be good. Rock.

And that's all! I've got tons of BGK2 work to do, and my sister and her hub are visiting from Chicago, so I'd better get to it! Thanks to everyone for coming out last night, and especially for Jacquie for asking me to speak and just generally being a great friend.

Calling Toronto Knitters! (and those close enough to get here by tomorrow night :-)

My presentation on No Sheep for You at the DKC is tomorrow night already! Will I see you in the audience? Or will there be empty chairs and a big echoey room to present to? (Nervous? Not hardly. Ahem.)

Downtown Knit Collective
Metro-Central YMCA, 2nd floor auditorium
20 Grosvenor Street, Toronto ON
Wednesday, March 28 - doors open at 6:45 pm

Highlights:
- Needle Arts Book Shop is offering copies of No Sheep for You for sale
- I'm not shy with the sharpie if asked
- the entire book will be there in Trunk Show form and yes, you may touch
- post-DKC party at Lettuce Knit, if time permits and they're still hanging out at the shop (I've asked and it looks like we will be in luck, but I'll call before we leave, just to be sure)

I talk a lot

And so I hug Brenda Dayne of Cast On for her skillful editing. We had a great chat over Skype earlier this year, and the result is up on her site right now.

I get very embarrassed when I listen to recordings of my own voice, but Brenda is a great interviewer and she's really good at what she does. Thank you for asking me to be on your show, Brenda! I got to make the Addi Turbo noise happen! Eeeeee!

Will you Represent?

Damn, I wish I could be there to see it. Something tells me this could be the Woodstock of our people. No one could make it happen more than our beloved Harlot.

Someone, print out my picture and hold me up in the audience, will you? It's the next best thing to actually being there. :-)

My only consolation is that there will be NO SHORTAGE of blogging after the fact, so that we who missed it can see what we missed.

Make us proud, New Yorkers! Represent and blow the minds of everyone around. Go, Stephanie! Kick ass!

---

Next Wednesday, I'm having my own little room-full-of-knitters event. The Downtown Knit Collective is the first place I went when I decided to launch Knitty in 2002. I stood up and said, "Hi, I'm Amy Singer and I'm starting an online knitting magazine."

5 years later, I've been invited back to talk to the guild about No Sheep for You, in a big auditorium, with chairs that fold down and my laptop hooked up to a big screen and everything.

I really hope you'll come if you can:
Downtown Knit Collective
Metro-Central YMCA, 2nd floor auditorium
20 Grosvenor Street, Toronto ON
Wednesday, March 28 - doors open at 6:45 pm

Marsha from the Needlearts Book Shop will be there offering copies of No Sheep for sale, if you'd like one. I've got a new Sharpie, too. I've also got the entire book in trunk-show form and there's nothing that can convert an non-wool skeptic more quickly than touching these projects.

Afterwards, if we're very lucky, I'm hoping we can get back to Lettuce Knit before their (my beloved!) S&B is over, and finish the party there!

eventful is rather cool

And it's showing trends I never expected. Norway? How cool!

I need to ask you another favor -- if you've put in a demand or clicked on an existing one, please go to the comments section of that demand and suggest a venue. I'd love to hear what you guys suggest as the most suitable place for me to come, hang out, talk non-wools and Knitty. In some towns, there are too many shops for a non-local like me to even know where to begin! [And can I just say how EXCELLENT that is!] So your guidance and recommendations would be most sincerely appreciated.

As a result of using Eventful, I've already added an new date to my schedule -- Loopy Yarns in Chicago on April 4th from 5:30 to 7:30pm. If you can come, please do!

A long chain of events

...led to the blue box being added to my right sidebar. You can't miss it, really.

Chain is as follows:

1. some nice person named RJ writes me to let me know that ubergeek Wil Wheaton loves our BMP and Binary patterns.

2. I notice the blue box on his site and click

3. turns out it's a way for people to request Wil visit their home town.

4. I realize I need to do the same thing for the No Sheep tour

5. pompous blue box appears on my blog.

So there you have it. I'll take the feedback from your clicks [if you want me to visit your town, please click] and pass it directly to the folks at Interweave who make the decisions about where they're going to send me. If your friends want me to come, they should click too. I think this could get interesting.

I love technology.

signed,
happy to be a mid-level geek,
Amy

here we go again!

It's time for me to start taking the No Sheep show on the road! My first date with knitters is tonight at the York Region Knitting Guild. Future dates are listed here. As new dates come up, i'll add them to this page. I believe I may be visiting places I haven't been before on this one. How cool is that?

[I keep a link to the page over there on the right -- "Meet Amy on the road"]

It's exciting! It's nerve-wracking! and starting tonight, I bring the laptop and do my shpiel electronically, with cords and cables and a remote and funky technological doo-dads. There are pictures! There is a whole trunk show! I'm surely going to say something dumb at least once during the evening. How could you miss that?

I'll also be speaking to the DKC at the end of this month and the K-W knitters' guild at the beginning of next month. And yes...I'm teaching a class in Austin, TX, at Hill Country Weavers on Earth Day! Jillian's doing a class there the day before, too. A double bill! Eee! And after that, I can't wait for the Knittyhead party at Loop in Philadelphia. Cool, eh?

So if you can, pencil me into your schedule, would ya? An empty room is a sad thing, especially when I bring my doo-dads!

----

p.s. If you watch ANTM, This Wonderful Man needs to be your weekly recap read. I love you, Rich Juzwiak. You make me giggle out loud.

small infusion of sanity

Knitty production is hot and heavy now and has been for days. Knitting my complex-yet-beautiful sweater doesn't give me the mental break I need.

But this will:


Wanna see the yarn I'm going to use up close?


I found the pattern here: the purl bee - Purl Beret - Beret Pattern. It calls for Koigu, and I can't think of a better No Sheep sub than Sock Candy. Why this color? Simple. When I was at Rhinebeck last fall, there was one lone skein of this Pretty in Pink. It called to me. But what the hell do you do with one skein of sock yarn?

Clearly it knew I would want to knit it into a beret several months later. Sock Candy is clever that way. Let's hear it for the Sanity Beret!

Knitty, she keep on plugging

Soon!

In the meantime, progress photos for those who love such things. Cables & Os is moving right along. Look.


Look at all those tidy, shiny repeats! Ooh!

But it takes me 30 minutes a row. Really. Why is that?

Cause I'm knitting the fronts and back all at the same time as per the pattern. I don't mind this, because I can see the yardage growing, but MAN it feels slow sometimes.

Never mind. Progress is progress. Once I split the body for the fronts and back, it'll feel like flying! Plus I constantly get to fondle the fabric, knowing this is one of those sweaters I'll have forever.

---

p.s. I confess. I had kind of mentally tuned Berroco out for a while, because their designs were nothing like my taste. A lot of novelty and I don't do novelty.

But have you seen their newsletters recently? Oh heavens, it's a new Berroco, and I love it. What's that? A cotton-blend yarn that's specifically created to mimic what wool does naturally? With added elastic? How very No Sheep! Yay!

more No Sheep yummies

Can you tell I'm having fun? Whee!

First, regarding Amazon and their strangeness, Interweave is looking into it. As soon as they have an answer, I'll share it here. We're sorry they're stressing you out!

Now. More fun!

Karin Maag-Tanchak, one of my new favorite designers, designed the Berthe scarf for No Sheep -- it's her answer [and a brilliant one, if you ask me] to the "what do I do with this one skein of something delicious if I don't want a rectangle?" The version in the book is very different than her original, which she [giggle] knitted in wool. Here's what it looked like:


Isn't that delectable? The one in the book is a little more freeform and textury, and the finished result all depends on the yarn you use and how tightly you knit it. You can get anything from ruffly to perfectly elegantly flat, like the prototype. The pattern lets you be creative. I can't wait to see what you guys do with this one. I think they're going to look like fingerprints...no two will be the same!

Another treat you'll get to see [soon, I hope!] is the sexy 100% hemp Manly Maze sweater, designed by Celeste Culpepper [yup, the Maze beanie is hers, too -- she cleverly designed the beanie as a swatch for the sweater, so she could try out different color combinations before she knit the final sweater.

A sexy man sweater? You bet. Look at this:


Yes, your eyes are not deceiving you. That's Franklin, modelling the real thing. I had no idea when I taped my episode of Knitty Gritty last fall that Mr Franklin would be on set, but he was! And he couldn't wait to try this sweater on when I pulled it out of the box. I snapped this grainy picture quickly, but you can see how well it suits him. Poifect.

Okay, enough of this. Back to making y'all some spring Knitty!

I finally get to show.

That thing about BGK2 and waiting a year till you can see it? We've already waited a year for No Sheep...remember this time last year when I would hint about my Tuscany shawl but couldn't blog it? [A year to the day, actually. Freaky.]

I can blog it now!



[thanks to Interweave for these pics from the book - photography (c) Interweave Press LLC]

That's my baby. I'm quite proud of it. I've never designed anything this nice, and may never be able to do it again.

This shawl was designed to be an easy first-lace-shawl knit for those intimidated by lace knitting. The WS is about 98% purl so you get a nice mental break every 2nd row. The front is designed to be as intuitive a pattern as possible, so you can toss the chart aside after a few repeats. Jen kindly volunteered to test knit a sample. Blog yours now, Jen! [She's been holding it back for almost a year, too!]

Want to see more pics of the projects in No Sheep? Check out the Amazon page for the book. There are some nice pics in the gallery -- some from me and a few from a nice reader in Indiana.

And feel free to write a review there. There's just one lonely opinion and I'd love to hear what everyone thinks! Oh, and there's a Knitalong, too. I was silly and made some buttons with the button artwork that Franklin did. I <3 Franklin.

Queensland Cotolino, a love poem

on the needles now, the Cables and Os cardigan from No Sheep For You.
Yarn: Queensland Cotolino [60% cotton, 40% linen], color 17

you do not yield easily,
yet you are not as inflexible as your pure sister, linen.
you acquiesce to the needle with a minimum of coaxing.
my twisted rib is happy.

[i will not quit my day job, promise].

---

p.s. No Sheep is in stock at Amazon. Let the plotzing commence!

this instead

Already on the needles, this sweater in exactly the same color as in the book.

I don't feel guilty in the slightest for not choosing another color. I picked the sweater to be in the book. And in this case, this one is just my taste. [Not everything in every book I work on or magazine issue I publish is my taste, or else no one would care for my work very much, I think. But this pink cably, lacy cardigan is just exactly what I hope to be wearing on cool spring nights. Clearly, I'm a delusional optimistic, but it's what I need to keep motivated.]

The yarn was sitting here after a quick delivery from Elann, so I swatched. Twice. Uncharacteristically for me, I had to go up one needle size to get gauge, but then I got it right on. I'm on row two of this big-ass project [it's back and fronts knit all at once, so it'll be slow going for a while] and I'm very fond of the yarn. It's well-behaved stuff, but not hard on the fingers. Looks really pretty in the twisted rib the designer called for.

Okay, back to BGK2 work, Knitty spring [it's coming, you know! Watch for it in March] and other stuff.

better together!

You know when you look at a book on Amazon.com...and they try to sell you another to go with it? How do they pick what goes with what?

For example, look what I found when I was checking the No Sheep page today [I do that obsessively now, because stock should arrive any day and I'm dying to see when it will actually ship]:



Look, Steph, we're supposedly better together. Perhaps that means that the nakedness of my cover model is well balanced by your own fully clothed self. Perhaps it's because my non-wool book is a fitting counterpoint to the wool-centric writings of Ms Harlot. Perhaps it's a crapshoot marketing technique Amazon thinks sells more books [hint: bing bing bing! we have a winner!]

[Clearly I am working very hard to find reasons to post instead of doing my work. Bad, bad me.]