I need to be packing...

So of course I'm going to write a blog post instead!

Hello, blog! How are you? I've thought about you more frequently in the last few days. Lots to talk about! [I promise not to continue this anthropomorphication of the blog any further. It's getting creepy already.]

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If you've been following my Twitter feed, you know I've been in a Sock Summit preparation frenzy for the last month. I understand many of the other instructors have been similarly focused/freaked out and it's a bit of a comfort. See, these are two brand-new classes I'm teaching at Sock Summit: simultaneously exciting and terrifying. I can't even begin to go into everything that's been running through my head, so I just won't.

I do know that I'm looking forward to Thursday night when I will have finished teaching each class once, and can breathe a little easier. I want to kick ass with these classes [without actually kicking anyone in the ass, because I don't think the students would like that].

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It didn't occur to me that I might need to get a massage before the trip because my neck and upper back would seize up, so I didn't book one. And I guess my favorite miracle worker is away for the weekend, so oh well. We pulled out the Thumper and hub went to town and it has helped!

I'll book her for when I return. Because man, will I have earned it!

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You probably know I think the internet is a wonderful place, and this next story just proves it once again.

I'm enamored [understatement] with the ukulele. I adore playing it -- not that I'm fabulous, just that it makes me SO HAPPY. Here's a little something my BUFFs [best uke friends forever] and I worked up a few weekends ago...Take the Skinheads Bowling. Original version by the incomparable Camper Van Beethoven. Our take is the world premiere of our new girl group: No Skanks On Sunday.

One thing girl uke players have to deal with is that our natural appendages get in the way of holding the uke flat against our chest like guys get to do. This makes it harder for us to play -- or some of us, anyway. So I posted a query on my favorite ukulele forum asking if anyone had ever tried to alter the architecture of the ukulele to accommodate our protrusions, and the discussion didn't go south...it got really positive, constructive and interesting, really quick! Here's the thread in case you're interested.

The summary: the back and forth discussion prompted one forum member to ask about making a concave-backed uke, which I thought was a brilliant idea. After the jokes about custom cup-sized ukes were finished [can't blame them], up stepped a skilled and kind luthier who wanted to give it a shot. In fact, he offered to build a prototype for me and just send it to me. As a gift.

I was floored. His name is Brad Donaldson and you can google him, but you won't find much right now. I offered to build him a website for his work as a thank you, and he's accepted...so that makes me really happy. [No, I won't start work on it until fall Knitty has gone live, promise.] Brad lives about an hour and a half outside of Portland [you know, where SOCK SUMMIT is being held this week?]. So tomorrow, when I get off the plane, I'll be heading to pick up my rental car and driving out to get my brand-new first-ever concave-back ukulele.

Once Brad got into working on this project, he was on fire. Every day, I got a progress e-mail with pictures. He started upgrading the wood he was using, because he could tell it was working out well and he wanted it to be even prettier than he'd planned at first. So instead of solid mahogany [which is fabulous enough], it's now mahogany and quilted maple with rosewood trim and abalone fret markers and his logo. Here, some pictures of the uke without the finish on:







and the money shot:



Look at the curve in that back! He's already strung it up and says it sounds great, and since then, has applied a gorgeous gloss finish which has been curing for the last few weeks. Tomorrow, I get to pick it up and play it. I am so excited, it's hard to think straight.

I'll post pics when I'm back home in a week, so you can enjoy it with me, but if you follow the Twitter feed, you'll see a snapshot or two as soon as I have it. For Sock Summit attendees who are curious, yes, it'll be with me all the time during the week so you can peek at it.

I'm also quite certain that Brad will build one of these for other people as well. I believe he's already started on a few. So I'll share his contact details when it's okay with him.

Like I said, the internet is an amazing place where great things happen.

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Underwear is washing, suitcases pulled out of hiding and my new treat to myself for this trip is ready to be loaded: it's an ePac rolling backpack. Key feature for me: easy access pocket for my laptop so when I get to airline security, I don't have to unpack my bag to get at it. [The bag I've had for the last 3 years only works when the laptop is on the bottom of everything else. Ack!]

I already feel my travel mood improving as a result. I'm just tired of fighting with luggage in front of every xray machine.

There's room in it for a little spindle and fiber, some knitting and even a pocket at the very back for my class handouts, so it's the perfect travel bag. And cheap at $79.

So there you have it. My pre-trip update. There will be no WWW news this week, for obvious reasons. Mel is going to collect more good stuff for the next week and it'll go up when I'm back.

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I'm looking forward to meeting all sorts of people this week, and hope everyone has a great time at the Summit. And for those not going, I'm quite certain that the benefits of this event will trickle down to the entire sock-knitting community in the form of new patterns, books and ideas that we can all share.

Have a great week, everyone!

What Neil wrote.

I do declare, someone get me a Mint Julep lest I faint dead away.

full circle

Remember when I got this? The man who wrote the book the movie is based on saw it tonight, was quite amused by it, and then signed the button-sealed envelope for me.*

I will be shadowbox-framing this baby as soon as budget allows.

*I am not the first, nor will I be the last, to say that Neil Gaiman is a charming man, highly nice, a gentleman, and absolutely freaking hot. Oh, sigh.

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Where's summer Knitty? Soon, my pets. Very, very soon. In the meantime, the rest of the pics from tonight can be found here. I've done the best I can to title them helpfully, including a few choice quotes from the man himself that I remember quite vividly. Much better than a wordy blog post, no?

If it's quiet 'round the blog, must be coming up on Summer Knitty time!

Hi, y'all! How's it going?

Lots of Knitty production going on here, which is why it gets blog-silent for a while. I'm furiously busy, but writing about what I'm doing during production season is not the most scintillating reading. Never think I've forgotten you. I have had enough free brain-space to keep up the Twitter posts...because 140 characters is easy peasy!

Meanwhile, the iPod is on shuffle and this season, the Tragically Hip and a little Amanda Palmer are keeping me company as I code and Photoshop and try to keep up with the e-mail.

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So, is that all that's happening around here? Well, actually, the biggest news is that I just found out I'm going to teach at WEBS! All the details are on my tour page. Northampton + vicinity Knittyheads...come out and represent!

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What else? Well, I have set a goal for myself. I want to teach in Hawaii. There are quite a few knitting shops and dangit, I can't get the leis out of my head. And yes, the fact that it's the land of the ukulele, my newest and most sincere love, might be another reason I'm really hoping to go. Posting my travel/teaching dreams to this blog has worked before, so I'm going to try it again:

Anyone out there have LYS connections in Hawaii?
introductions most sincerely welcomed! you can reach me at
[my first name] AT amysinger DOT ca

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Not in Hawaii, but you'd like me to come teach at your LYS? I would love to do that! Write me and let's see what we can get happening!

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In knitting news, I am ready to bind off Ishbel , but the remaining yarn may not be enough. Yes, I know that the size I am knitting calls for more than 400 yards and this skein is about 400 yards. I guess I just believe in the power of positive thinking.

I had to frog back half a repeat and invent my own way to get the points in place on the outside edge, and will have no idea if it's worked until I actually sit down to bind off. However I have a lot of work to do [see 2nd paragraph above :)] and am saving this as a reward for work completed.

So I'm getting back to it.

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Don't forget the Hawaii thing.

The Knitty LYS shwag shop is open!

It all started back here. LYS owner Stacy wrote with a brilliant suggestion that now is a tangible thingy. At the brand-new Knitty LYS Shwag Shop you'll find 4 and 6-packs of Post-its, pre-customized to make referring folks to Knitty patterns as easy as possible! You'll also find brand-new window clings and this year's edition of the 1" Knitty button.

Sure, this stuff is meant for LYSOs. But the window clings and buttons? Any red-blooded Knitty knitter just might want some of those for themselves. Anyone is welcome to place an order.

Let's hear it for shwag!

The great joy of the after-Knitty rush

Rush as in endorphin rush [not as in "Rush! You must go somewhere!" because I've just done that mentally for 3 solid weeks]. There is this weird feeling when I put a new issue up for the world to see. First, there are little things that always need fixing. Always. Then people send in the loveliest notes and that is such a fine, fine way to spend an afternoon. Often, a nap follows [more like a passing out with relief, but usually in nap form].

The next day...what the heck do I do with myself? If you read this blog, you'll notice that I start to make lists of all the things I want to do that I couldn't do until the issue was live. So why break with tradition? Here's the list!

- In the middle of the production crunch, Claudia blogged about a sale on Grafton Fibers Darn Pretty Needles [DPNs...get it?]. They'd been out of my price range -- justifiably, since they're not only gorgeous, but totally handmade in Vermont -- but at the sale price? I ordered two sets. Checking their site today, I see there's a new colorway on sale. OOOh, so tempting.

- So what will I do with my brand-new DPNs? Well, there's this big sock thingy I'm lucky enough to be teaching at. And I have got a lot of socks to knit before August, so I'm going to get started! Knitting on pretty handmade needles makes everything even better.

- I'm eyeing the ugly living-room curtains with the same critical eye I took to our naked dining-room window after the last issue was finished. Time to get out the Bernina again! Just waiting for the right fabric to show up at Ikea.

- I have two gorgeous bags of hand dyed silk roving bought at Rhinebeck last fall. I am going to spin and ply all of it on my Ladybug in a reasonable amount of time. It's only 4 oz [though in silk, 4 oz goes a long way]. Will! Do! It!

- The ukulele group I belong to has a rather primitive forum architecture and I have been given supreme administrative powers to slap it into shape. The software is fine, it's just that the nice guys who set it up are musicians first. :-) Am scared I'll make it all go boom, so am taking my time.

- I need to design new Knitty shwag.

- I need to prepare for Maryland, because this year I AM GOING! I know it's crazy busy crowded with spinners and knitters and not as familiar to me as every inch of Rhinebeck is, but that's half the fun. Plus I'm going as part of Jennie the Potter's posse, which means I get in a day early to help her set up. And maybe map out the grounds a little to know what's where.

- I have a few big ideas for Maryland. Watch this space. I'm not telling yet.

- And I'm knitting, really. The top-down raglan in Lorna's Laces new Pearl yarn is going along swimmingly. Amy Swenson, new resident of Toronto [yay!!] and I are working on the design together. It's very simple, designed to take advantage of the drape of the non-woolly fibers in the yarn. Pictures forthcoming, promise.

And now I need to get to it!

By the way, I know my blogging has been pretty spotty for a while, and though part of it is due to the requirements of magazine production, most of it is due to Twitter. It's so easy to whip off a few sentences and maybe attach a single picture that it makes blogging seem ever so much harder. :-)

For those with RSS-feed readers, if you care to read the Twitterings of a geek knitting magazine editor, you'll find the feed here: http://twitter.com/statuses/user_timeline/18513281.rss

I will not be abandoning the blog, no sir! But I am loving the Twitter.

Sock Summit 2009. Yo.

Okay, so everyone else in the interweberverse has blogged this already, so you might already know, but just in case...

I'm on the teacher list for Sock Summit 2009! Also [!!!] This is flattering and exciting enough, being asked to teach by such illustrious organizers and knitting icons [aka Blue Moon Tina and Stephanie/Harlot and the goddess Cat]. But Steph warned me when she called to discuss details that the teacher list would blow my brains out, and it has.

There are designers who I've gotten to publish in Knitty but never had a chance to meet in person. There are designers I've published AND met. There are lots of people I've admired for a very long time and wanted to meet. And of course, there are good friends from all over who will be gathered in one place at one time, both teachers and students.

This promises to be an unforgettable experience. I am so honored to be included and so excited about what will take place in Portland that weekend.

Plus it means I get to drink Stumptown again.

Happy Valentine's Day!

I always knew Amanda of Lorna's Laces had a big heart, and now we've got photographic proof.

[Amanda knit her huge heart out of Lorna's Shepherd Bulky in the color Red Rover, following the Knitty pattern for everything except gauge. Love it!]

Hope you have a love-filled day! Hug someone!

Snippits, collected for your amusement!

Because those that care will likely wonder, and because I can't possibly write my feelings and opinions about the movie any better than blogger Joshua Starr, here is the review of Coraline that I would have written if I was clever enough.

Yes. What he said.

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For those who are sick of the Coraline talk [not possible!], you can expect the usual yarn, knitting, travel, teaching and ukulele blather to take over starting right about now.

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Oh! Speaking of travel and teaching, you might notice a new widget on the right sidebar of the blog: my 2009 travel/teaching schedule. Woot! I'm finalizing a few more and will add them to the widget when they're confirmed.

For the widget-averse, or to see everything at once, go here.

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And because you kind folk always ask when I post a big whack of tour dates, if you'd like me to come to your neighborhood, here's what to do: Contact your favorite yarn shop and tell them! If enough of you do that at any one shop, it just might happen! Just let the yarn shop know they can reach me at knittymagazine AT gmail -- and thanks for enabling!

Coraline movie premiere planning....Speak Up!

ETA: I'm very sorry. I bought tickets at the Beach Cinema based on information from movietickets.com and it turns out the theatre is NOT showing it in 3D despite the information on the website. I'll be getting a refund and I'm very sorry if any of you get stuck not seeing the version you wanted.

Cinema Clock has what seems to be correct information about which theatres are showing the 3D version.

Good luck, all! I hope we actually get to see the thing tonight!

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p.s. Don't ever buy tickets from movietickets.com. They don't stand behind their listings (they blame the theatres) and won't give a refund. I now have to go back to the Beach Cinema to get a refund. NEVER buying from movietickets.com again. Advise you to do the same. Grr.

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Okay! Info is finally up!

The Alliance Atlantis Beach Cinemas are showing Coraline in 3D. The showtimes are 6:50pm and 9:20pm.

So! I know some of those interested get off work at 6pm, which makes the early show a little tight. Is there anyone who can't make the late show? We could meet at the Purl, stock up on knitting-in-the-dark supplies and then all head out en masse for the later show. Tell me what you think! Quickly! Once we decide, everyone needs to buy their own ticket(s) here:

MovieTickets.com Alliance Atlantis Beach Cinemas. Movies, showtimes and tickets.

Then at least we'll have seats!

Summary: WOOOT!

Busy week! [and a long blog post as a result!]

What have I been doing?

* Played here. Julia joined in this week. She's good, and holds her own in front of a mic, especially for someone who hadn't touched her uke in a few months! Also test drove a Fluke, which has a really lovely, deep, strong tone.

* Successfully sold my flute to the lovely Amanda who was the first to put up her hand in the comments. We met at Lettuce Knit so she could take a peek and test drive and, despite some acting up on the flute's part, Amanda was confident that she wanted the flute so she took her home. I got a report a few days later that a misaligned spring was the cause of the acting up, and all is well now. I hope Amanda will be happy with her new flute!

* This meant I had funding to continue my obsessive browsing of sites like this. And narrowing down my choices.

* Drove to the local uke mecca [this means they have better stuff than the standard plastic cheapos, AND they have knowledgeable staff].

* Surrounded by skilled guitarists of all sorts who were test driving and intimidating me with their noodling that sounded good enough to record already, I tried the Fluke again and realized it was too big for my ridiculously small hands.

* Finally tried the Flea and realized that its more compact size [still providing big sound] was my solution. Meet Hurley:



He'll serve me well for many years to come. The Fluke I test drove last week was a 10-year-old one that the [really good] player still uses and loves and makes great music on.

I came home and found that, for some reason, I can play Hurley better than my little grape guy. Maybe it's my imagination, but the chords came easier. I sure did like practising on him.

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So that's where I've been all week. There was also time spent in my dentist's chair which resulted with a brand new $$$$crown$$$$ that has some of the metal showing through the enamel at the top after dentistman had to grind it down and down to fit in my mouth. Not impressed. Seems to me that the guy who made the crown screwed up. And yes, I'm going to get it fixed, as uncomfortable as that will be.

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Spring Knitty patterns were also finalized this week, and today is yes/no day when I send out the notices to everyone.

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There was also, happily, finalization on the question of the month: will I be able to go to Maryland Sheep & Wool this year, finally? The answer is yes!

I'm now figuring out how to arrange teaching gigs either at the festival or at a nearby shop. Advice welcome if you've done this before!

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Happy weekend, everyone! I'm going to recharge with a little tea and get down to the e-mails.

A Saturday catch-all post, including Coraline! Flutes! And other news

For those awaiting the upcoming Coraline movie, a few things:

1. My favorite Coraline news source: Evil Buttons. Read back to the beginning to learn about the Coraline keys [I purchased mine on eBay...wasn't lucky enough to run across it in the wild on my own] and all the other interesting ways Laika is publicizing this upcoming movie.

2. Those following my Twitter feed already have seen this: From Mr Gaiman himself, his favorite Coraline trailer so far...and it's deliciously creepy. Finally.

3. Last Coraline post [for today :)] -- I call all those within driving distance of Toronto to join me on opening night, February 6, to watch the movie! It's too early to find theatres with showtimes, so as soon as I have details, I'll post here. I'll pick a theatre that takes online ticket orders, so we can buy ours in advance and actually all get in to the same showing! [It'll be the 7ish pm show and I'll confess now that I'm rather partial to the Alliance Atlantis theatre on Queen East at Kingston Road.]

4. Were you thinking of joining Franklin and I on the Alaska Sea Socks cruise this year? I'm sorry to have to be the one to tell you, but it has been cancelled. Franklin and I were informed of this news by the cruise operator last week.

4a. I love cruising and teaching on a cruise is absolutely awesome, so I am quite sure that I'll be doing another cruise one day in the future and really hope you'll join me. Will report here when there are details, promise.

5. I joined a Ukulele Jam last week and had a blast. It's very embryonic, and my noob skills are not useless there, which is really encouraging! It's led by two guys who have played in bands and know what the heck they're doing, and it's filled with people of all levels of experience. The ukulele spotting alone is enough reason to go! This has me thinking of my next uke...and the one after that. Being a gear ho™ is not restricted to my knitting, you know. If you've got a uke and can play, you're welcome to join! Visit the site linked above for all the information you'll need.

5a. As a result of finally picking up an instrument I've wanted to play for years and loving it, I've decided it's finally time to sell my flute, which has been carefully stored, unused, for about 20 years. I received it as a birthday present from my parents when I was in high school and loved it for a long time, but it's just not the instrument for me any more.

SO! If anyone is interested in an Armstrong Model 90 sterling head/body flute, closed hole, with original case, leave a note in the comments. It's in gorgeous shape [except for two tiny dents on the back of the head -- I was a teenager. Cut me some slack]. Pictures here. There are a lot of them and the defects I'm aware of [just 3] are marked with notes on the pics.
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Okay! That's it for today. This post was kind of like a little brain burp, all the unrelated stuff in here.

I'm off to do Saturday errands!

I finally figured out how to blog from the iPhone...

as you can tell by all the posts today. Click on the photos to see them at a reasonable size.

Jennie and Dawn and I had a fabulous day today, even without yarn shops. [We'd planned to visit one of the two in Rochester, and when BOTH were unexpectedly closed, we were flabbergasted. Dudes, we had money to spend!] So instead, we bought Keens and all was well.

Mom and I are on our way back to IL tomorrow. I'll be back in Toronto this weekend. I have learned to embrace the earmuffs and their life-giving warmth and should it be cold at home, I will be just fine.

I miss my house, my husband and my bunnies. And my bed. Really miss my bed.

no ways.

Yup. Neil Gaiman got a box of his own -- as he should!, though it's not one of the airquotes official Coraline boxes, he reports. It is supercool, though. If you're one of my new converts* or an old-time Gaiman fan, you've got to go read the post and see what he got!

My favorite line in the post above?
"I think my favourite of the boxes is http://www.knitty.com/blog/2008/12/my-coraline-box.html but it's a close thing."

Dudes. That's my blog Mr G has linked to, and my box he's talking about! [Megathanks to Elithea for pointing this out to me.] I am just stunned that he's been by here...and I didn't even have time to tidy up!

In any case, welcome to anyone stopping by from Mr G's blog. Not sure all the content here may be to your taste, but who knows? Maybe you'll feel right at home. Can I teach you to knit?

*I've heard from at least three people in the last week that I've turned into Coraline-obsessed Gaiman fans with all these recent blog posts. There are uncountable numbers of us already and there's infinite room for more. Join us.

um, holy crap.

Well, Wednesday was a fun day, eh? We went live after spending months getting the brand new, super-powerful server ready for you all and BOOM, she sploded.

[If you had any idea of the difference between what we had been running on for 6 years and the exponential improvement in hardware, capacity and pipeline with the new server, you'd be as frustrated as we were when it still wasn't enough to handle you all!]

Hub spent yesterday/yesterevening further tweaking the server settings, trying to make sure everyone could get in and by 11pm eastern time last night, we'd solved most of it. The server seems to be running smoothly now, and I find the download super-fast compared to an average day on the old server.

Thanks to 99% of you who understood we were doing our best to get it right! We'll be doing more prep behind the scenes before we go live with the surprise in 2009 and hopefully this won't happen again. But hey -- there are worse things than being so popular no one can get at your site, right?

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Guess what I'm going to do today? I'm going to a small PJ sewing party with my friend Jen. I'm going to pull out my Featherweight and dig into my stash of quilting fabric and make as many pairs of ridiculous PJ bottoms as I can.

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I've also got something to show you:

What's the yarn? Dudes. It's silk. From Briar Rose.

But Briar Rose doesn't do silk? They do now! Thanks to gentle persuasion from my friend, Jennie and yours truly, Chris at Briar Rose has finally added silk to her previously all-wool lineup! She gave me a gift of some of this gorgeousness at Rhinebeck and I wouldn't stop browbeating her until she agreed to put it in the shop, because I knew you'd want it too.

What's the pattern? It's a little something I've worked up for y'all. The whole thing will be available shortly, but I thought you might want a peek at the stitch pattern now. It explains why I'm calling the pattern Broccowli.

You may groan, and I wouldn't blame you.

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Me? I'm going to dig through a bag of fabric. Wheeeeee!

you gots questions? i gots answers.

Thanks to everyone who shared my joy over the Coraline box! I'm still pinching myself...and while we're waiting for the rest of the boxes to turn up, I figured I'd answer the questions from the comments.

Liz: How do you get a job like that? I dunno, but the production company is Laika and here's their careers page. How cool a job would that be?

To everyone who mentioned the secret code [sweaterxxs], it's not really a secret...it's meant to be shared! In case you missed the WWW update last week, here are the rest of the codes for the website:

stopmotion : the Biggest Smallest movie ever made.
buttoneyes : Meet the cast...
moustachio : Bo Henry, art director of Coraline, shows off his remarkable moustache tricks.
armpithair : Every hair in the film was placed there by hand...
puppetlove : Director Henry Selick explains what it must be like for the puppets in the film.

To those who recommended mounting options, thank you! I do want it to be accessible somehow but can't just screw it to the wall. It also needs to be protected against dust if I'm going to leave it open. One other concern is that it was meant to be displayed flat, and hanging it up vertically may put the tools and their little leather straps under too much stress and they may come loose [!]. So I'm thinking about that, too. Maybe a coffee table with built-in display under glass? Hrm.

To everyone who didn't know about the book, I'm thrilled to be the one to share it with you. Jeloca mentioned the audiobook version, read by Mr Gaiman himself, and that's how I read the book -- or rather had it read to me. I bought it at Audible.com [click that link for a free audiobook download if you're not yet a member]. Perfection.

Jeloca: I didn't need a reason to buy a DS or a Wii. You bad, bad enabler, you. :-)

Sharon: Lucky Portland! And yay you for getting to go home again!

Seanna Lee: You beat me. I've never gotten to hear him speak live yet. He's been to Toronto many times, but I didn't learn about the man until long after his last appearance. If he comes back, I'll be there, though.

Dawn: You described it perfectly.

Andrew: I don't think I knew about him when we had our walk. But I do still have "Little, Big" on my wishlist to read some day. :-)

Anonymous: You said it. A brilliant marketing scheme that makes people feel good AND want to see the movie. I hope they give the person who came up with the idea a big raise. Also, a thought...there are 50 of these sent out to active bloggers, but less than 20 have shown up. I wonder if they're sending them out staggered to prolong the excitement?

Obi-Shawn: The customs slip [because I'm in Canada, so they had to get it through customs with proper paperwork] said this was an exact replica of the sewing kit used in the movie. It looks identical to me, and if it's not the one they used, perhaps it was their backup prop in case of disaster. It matters not to me -- it's just as fabulous whether it got used or not.

Kim: You absolutely said it. The internet has been called the spreader of a lot of things, but I think the warm fuzzies that this gift represents is something the media doesn't talk about much. We should do something about that.

Okay, it's late. Night, all.

My Coraline Box

All over the web, boxes have been surfacing, each containing artifacts from the upcoming stop-motion 3D animated feature, Coraline, based on the book by Neil Gaiman. If you've been reading my blog for a while, you'll know that I adore the man and his work. And his voice. And all that. I'll stop now. Sorry.

Anyway, when I started seeing Coraline boxes appearing on blogs of all sorts, I dreamed of getting one, but didn't imagine I really would. And then this arrived in the Knitty mailbox. Dudes, I cried with the happy when I realized what it was.

There are 50 boxes in total. This is box #8.

click to read the letter

Now that you've seen the images, I have to tell you something: most of the tools are not metal, despite what your eyes tell you. I have seen them from millimetres away, and if I didn't touch them, I'd never believe they weren't metal, machined to look so menacing and evil. I don't know what they are made from -- some sort of modelling material -- but they're very light and perfectly sculpted and painted to create the illusion that they clearly have achieved. This is not CGI...this is all work done by hand. Remember that when you watch the movie next February.

I am so honored to have received such a gift and want to thank the team in Portland, Director Henry Selick and Mr Gaiman for the whole fabulous Coraline experience.

Because this Coraline box is so uniquely configured, I am hoping to find a way to mount it safely to the wall [in the Knitty office, of course]. Because having it sit, closed, on a shelf would just be criminal.

You'll find the full set of images in my Flickr stream, captioned, for those as obsessed as I am.

omg omg omg omg omg omg omg

I went to the Knitty mailbox today and found this waiting for me.



Here's a clue about what might be inside:



(for those who know what this is, you will understand the blurriness of these pictures is justifiably attributable to sheer weepy joy. a full post on the contents will follow. i haven't even opened the envelope inside yet. i'm just savoring this, piece by piece.)

You thought I was kidding?

We really do have a lot of shops that specialize in down products, many of them started by European immigrants to Canada in middle of the 20th century. Some are big chains, but I love finding an independent shop where they really understand their craft.

How do you find such luxuries in Canada? Why, simply visit the website of The Down Association of Canada. That's where I found Daniadown -- the company I bought the twin duvets from earlier this year. I'm not sure where I'll be taking the two-pillow project, but that's what the whole winter is for.

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Meanwhile, it's quiet around the blog and you guys know why. We're on the new server now and, knock wood, all seems to be as promised. Hub is going happynuts with programming things he was unable to on the old server. My happy geek boy.

Speaking of my geek boy, question: I've blindly cast on [after swatching and getting gauge] for a pair of kilt hose. I have 4 balls of Bulky Fixation and I'm wondering if that will be enough for his size-10 feet. Does anyone have any feedback for me?

[He doesn't read the blog. He's very much NOT a blog boy.]

---
I'm picking up a special present at the airport today. I'm selfishly excited to have my good friend moving here. I know the next few months will be a challenge for her and Sandra, but I'm hoping I can help a little.

---

Okay, head back down!

no, seriously. Devo!

Thank you to everyone for the good wishes! Special thanks to Rache in the comments who found the FTP app that is TOTALLY going to solve 1/2 of the remainder of my connectivity problems. Brilliant! Now if someone can just find an app that will let me run Keynote presentations from the iPhone -- because look at this projector! -- I'll be all set!

---

Meanwhile, in Knitty parts [why does that sound dirty?], I'm wondering why I am hearing zero Devo web buzz after the surprise came out. Dudes. I know Nicky named her scarf Skullface, and I haven't even asked her about the Devo resemblance, but I feel this cannot be ignored.

We knitters now have a chart for Devo heads. Why are we not running to our stashes, casting on for Devo socks, Devo cowls, Devo tunics of extreme proportions? It's not even fair isle...it's MOSAIC! Even I can do mosaic knitting!

Nobody? It's just me?

I leave you to mock me in the comments. I can take it. Sort of.

improved portability and a BIRTHDAY

Remember this? the portable solution

I have been trying to figure out some sort of mobile connectivity solution for 2 years now. The Palm T|X is good, but often S.L.O.W. And there's no e-mail without wifi.

Fast forward to Scout and I driving to Rhinebeck. Hub txts me that we need to do a bank transfer and I'm nowhere near the internet and won't be all weekend. What do I do?

Scout hands me her iPhone. I am intimidated. It's so shiny.

I type in the URL for my Canadian bank and within 5 minutes [because of the spotty cel coverage where we were driving, otherwise it would have been faster], I've transferred $ from one account to another and am lost.

It's my birthday today, and guess what I'm getting? [It's ordered through Rogers, just not here yet.]

It's still not the all-in-one solution I was hoping for [I'll need to use the Palm for fixing HTML files and uploading them], but it's 80% of the solution, and that's good enough for me.

Besides, it's really cool and I'm an embarrasing sucker for the coolness.

the new kids, adopted at Rhinebeck

the new kids
Originally uploaded by amysinger

There are more pictures on Flickr [click the image at right to see them all] including closeups and descriptions of each new foundling. The secret mission spindle was the one in the middle, the Hatchtown. The spindlemaker only does a small assortment every year and they sell out before you know they're gone. We were there when the show officially opened and most spindles were gone by 10 am that day.

I was quite selective this year, but still managed to drop a bundle of $.

One thing not pictured? A gorgeous jacket [quite lagenlook, Brenda!] from Maiwa Handprints [did you visit the Ancient Textiles booth in the back corner of the barn? If not, you missed some serious gorgeousness. Photos of the jacket on me next time I feel photogenic.



Norm Hall niddy noddy in cherry.


All my spindles so far [except the Avi Wasserman who was hiding].


The only fiber I bought. Sliver Moon Farm. I love them.

Rhinebeck 2008 encapsulates the glory of fall.

I've been to Rhinebeck three times now, and this year was the first that really felt like fall. Brilliant fall colors and a significant chill in the air. In fact, I was so programmed by previous visits where knitwear = shvitz that I underpacked and missed two great silk sweater days. Yes, it was that cold.

For those who'd rather look than read, the full photostream is here. For the rest of you, a brief walking tour.


I met many new-to-me Knitty and Knittyspin readers this trip. This group of glowingly happy women were just the first 3 out of a whole group of them. Happy friends getting to hang together. That's what Rhinebeck means to me. [That sounded like the title of a grade 5 essay, didn't it? Sorry.]


My friend Jennie the Potter -- that's her on the right -- made her first professional appearance at Rhinebeck this year and her booth was continually full of jaw-dropped fiber freaks.


Watch for more on Jennie's newest offerings in the winter issue of Knitty.


I finally got to meet Lynne Vogel, who was as fun as this picture suggests.


Of course, I got to hang with Jillian [far right] and Carla [far left], as well as the bonus hanging with Kay and Ann [and Ann's friend Kelly] as we lined up and lunched on chicken pot pies.


Not all girls, though! Stephen, Franklin [sometimes] and Sean were Scout's unofficial posse as she made her way through her first Rhinebeck, which means I got to see a lot of them.

My pictures are pretty lame when it comes to capturing most of my friends, though. Like where are pictures of me and Scout? Me and anyone, for that matter? For some reason, I was living the fun, not thinking about blogging it. I guess that's not so bad, but it doesn't make for a very electrifying blog post. :-)

Speaking of Scout, she picked me up at the Newark airport and we got to drive to Rhinebeck and back together. It was so good to have a little time with her, since she lives so danged far away, and we laughed a lot. We also found the best pickle [sour new dill] on Route 17 in New Jersey. I will be dreaming of that pickle for a long time.

I didn't make it to any big meetups or the Rav party. I was feeling a little insular and wanted to be with a smaller group of friends this time. I still got to meet tons of people as I walked all through the grounds, and that was great!

Every single button and sticker was passed out to Knitty fans and a lot of you guys were much less shy than you've been in the past. Rock on! You know, you never have to apologize for coming up to say hi or that you like Knitty. That's the nicest thing I can ever hear. And I heard it a lot this weekend. So thank you to each and every person who took the time to poke me on the shoulder and grin at me. I send you all hugs.

---

There are two more Rhinebeck posts coming. Stay tuned!

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Anyone notice anything different about the blog?

off to Rhinebeck!

To those not going, I totally understand what it feels like. I had to read about Rhinebeck twice as a bystander before I decided I couldn't stand not to go the next time it came around. If you can't come this year, maybe next year!

For those going, I just wanted you to know that I'll be packing the Knitty swag bag which is, this time, full of Knitty buttons and Euro stickers. We've also got brand new Knittyspin buttons to celebrate the official Knittyspin launch. So if you see Jillian or I walking around the fair, don't be shy. Ask for a button!

Travel spinning: my Houndesign laceweight spindle + some sort of tussah from my stash.
Travel knitting: restarted toe-up sock -- 2nd of a pair! -- just inches from the bind off and my top-down raglan in my Amy Friendly yarn.

Hope everyone travels safely! See you on the flip side!

if you don't know this guy, you need to

Keri and I got to see Jason Mraz last night in concert in Toronto at Massey Hall. It was, without question, the best concert experience I've ever had. I don't crush on Jason. It's just that his voice hits the exact frequency in my body that makes all things good and possible and right. You must have a singer who does that for you. Jason Mraz is mine.

The video above is from some brilliant person who was also there last night. The quality is EXTRAORDINARY. If I did this right, I've embedded the high-quality version.

I could gush all day about this guy, but I've got to get ready for Rhinebeck, and besides, his music speaks for itself.

nu-uh she di-n't!

Okay, I didn't realize. The non-wool yarn that Beth at Lorna's Laces is using for my colorway? She's been calling it "Amy Friendly Yarn" in messages to me.

But dudes. That's its official name in stores and everything. I'm sure it's the height of ego to be amused by this, but I can't help it.

Proof? Here's the stuff for sale and everything:
- at The Loopy Ewe

- at Jimmy Beans Wool

There is giggling on this side of the keyboard.

knitting! in progress! um, wow!

this would be Gretel-in-progress, being knit in Handmaiden Swiss Mountain Silk Cotton in [probably] Dandelion. have i made errors following the chart? yup. do i care? not enough to frog. soldiering on. i actually started this hat about 15 times with different yarns and needles, so now that i'm this far, i'm going on until absolute folly is apparent, or i end up with a hat.

[i find the best way for me to get accurate gauge swatches for hats is to start the hats, knit an inch or so and then pull from the needles and try on. nothing else works for me.]



this is the gorgeousness of Amy-Friendly Yarn [named by Beth] from Lorna's Laces [silk/bamboo] in Amy's Vintage Office. top-down raglan has begun. LOVING the fabric. yum.

pattern i'm using is based on Stef Japel's top-down raglan formula. i'm trying to understand garment shaping a little better, so i decided it was time to use the formula, not follow a pattern. will this actually result in a wearable sweater? we'll see, won't we? :-)

quick cold-brew coffee primer for Jacquie

because i miss her. :-)

there are lots of posts all over the web about this. here's a short one, condensed with what i've learned so far and my [simple] methods.

ingredients:
- a French Press coffee pot, which i just happened to have around* the house. you can do the same with a big jar and a fine sieve. i just like having a use for something that was in the basement.

- medium-coarse ground coffee [mine so far is a blend of 1/3 ethopian beans, 2/3 sumatran. supposedly blends make better cold-brew, or so i've read]. if you can grind them just before brewing, that's best

- water

- time

here's what i do:
- grind some beans -- a small handful makes about 2/3c
- measure exactly 2/3c and put it in the bottom of the French Press
- measure exactly 1.5c of water from the Brita pitcher and pour it on top
- i have one of those Nigella scrambly whisks and i mix up the whole mess until all the coffee grounds are wet
- put the plunger lid on top, UNplunged, and leave on the kitchen counter for 12 hours, no more. [more = bitterness]
- push the plunger down and pour the coffee concentrate into another container [i use a glass jar] and put in the fridge

to make my favorite milky, sweet latte, so far the blend is:

1 part coffee concentrate
1 part 2% milk
.5 part sugar-free vanilla syrup

that makes it quite milky and sweet. that's today's mix, anyway -- i will likely fine tune it.

if you like regular coffee, the coffee concentrate should be diluted 1:1 with water. but i don't like regular coffee, so i have no opinion.

---

i make this stuff because i think and work better with one single coffee in me in the morning, and my kitchen is closer than any coffee shop and much cheaper. also, this stuff is really delicious and, as advertised, feels less acidy on the tum [which is something i have to deal with].

*the final irony is that this bodum french press? it came as a gift from Starbucks. i'm not kidding. when the less-big coffee giant first came to Toronto in the late '90s, i was annoyed that there was no website of any sort for Starbucks [that's how long ago it was] where i could find the nearest location. so i started my own. [!]

amusingly, Starbucks head office found out about it and wrote to thank me [again, !!] and ask for my address. they sent me a box of coffee stuff, most of which we still have, and this coffee press was in that box. so my home-brew is courtesy of Starbucks, saving me at least $4 every time i make one myself. :-)

the best bunny story i've read all week

did you know Tina from Blue Moon has recently brought home a new bunny? he's absolutely beautiful. go read her post and i dare you not to melt.

---

i've been messing about with cold-brewed coffee, trying to get the proportions of coffee to milk right. i'm getting closer. the beans are from the Merchants of Green Coffee, in lieu of my most-favorite Stumptown. it's all about proximity, and i can get it freshly roasted, which i'm told is the big dealy key thing. blend so far is 1/3 ethopian beans, 2/3 sumatran.

i like a latte kind of drink, so i am not adding water to the coffee concentrate. i'm closer today than ever, but it's still not right. when i get it right, i'll share the proportions.

oh, and my lattes include sugar-free vanilla syrup. you wanna tell me i'm a coffee wuss? go ahead. try. i like it sweet, and so there.

---

my gretel is on hold. i am trying to knit from stash, not for financial reasons, but because it's just damned greedy to have a good bit of yarn and not look there first for supplies for a project.

sadly, all my stash options are not working out. the closest is a lovely skein of Silk Cotton from [sigh] Handmaiden, in the most beautiful colors of faded yellow to grey [i think it might be Dandelion, but my skein is much more muted than any i see on the web]. except it's probably 25 yards short of being enough to finish the hat. will i be brave enough to cast on, knowing i might not have enough to finish? we'll see!

meanwhile, i am knitting greedily on my new sweater -- Amy's Vintage Office in the Amy Friendly Yarn [bamboo/silk] and i cannot believe how fabulous this yarn is. it's not as slippery as pure silk and it's not as wussy as pure bamboo. it's kind of heaven.

pictures later. right now, work!

things!

Urchin, complete. what is that yarn? why, it's my first handspun! silk hankies, bought at Rhinebeck the first year i went, from Chasing Rainbows [colorway, Pansies].

looks relatively cute from the front. from the back and sides, not so much. maybe with a scarf around my neck? the expanse of neckness without hair hanging down over it is a bit startling to me.

- therefore, i've cast on a Gretel. i do believe, however, that darling Ms Ysolda is on crack about the stockinette gauge after multiple tests. we'll see if it actually fits with the finer-gauge yarn i'm using and her same stitch count. the band is absolutely big enough so far, hence the "on crack" thing.

- yesterday was hub's and my 18th [!!!] anniversary. before we fell asleep, we both said we'd marry the other again in a second. damn straight. i don't know how i was lucky enough to find this challenging man who's helped me fix my baggage, but i was and i'm very thankful of it.

- my head is aspin [ha! pun!] with thoughts of Rhinebeck. last year, we did SOAR and had a blast, and i am constantly thinking of Denny who's there right now and what she might be doing. and drinking. and suspending from balconies. but even more, i am so looking forward to seeing all my people at Rhinebeck.

- i might also be formulating a short must-have shopping list because there's no way i'm doing Rhinebeck without a plan. the #1 thing is a specific spindle, and i'm not telling which because if i get there and they're all gone, there will be such wailing you have never heard. after that, it's all gravy. or artichokes.

- my Rhinebeck hoodie is ordered and shipped to Jillian, my unofficial-official US-based postmistress. Cafepress impressed me -- they shipped almost immediately. so if you wanted one, there's probably still time to grab it! just sayin. there's always a coupon on the left sidebar of the shop, just in case you wanna go for it.

- oh, in case you didn't know, Jillian and I are signing at Carolina Homespun on Sunday at 1pm at Rhinebeck. we don't have time to do the author tent this time, so come see us at Morgaine's booth [she's the coolest, you know].

- there's more, but i have to get to work.

my Neil Gaiman needs have been met

Thanks to all the kind folks who offered to get me an autograph from one of my favorite authors. Turns out that my friend Dawn's got me covered, so you guys are off the hook. She lives in Mr G's home town even!

Thank you, Dawn! Now get in the back of Jennie's truck and come to Rhinebeck with her!!

in knitting news...

There are no words to describe how much I love Ann and Kay right now.

You girls are righteous. [Where did you get the wigs? If you tell me they were your mamas', I think I'll faint.]

how I know fall is here

My goLite is back on my desk.

I bought mine at the end of winter earlier this year, so it was priced lower than it's available for now, but I'd say it's a bargain no matter what.

I was having a hell of a time getting out of bed last winter. By using the goLite [there are instructions with it that tell you how to do this] at specific times for specific lengths, it helped reset my inner [sleepy] clock. Here: you can take a test at the manufacturer's site that helps explain if you need the thing and how you'd use it if you do.

This morning, I woke up to rain and grey and could have slept another 2 hours [and I'd already slept in]. So I pulled out the goLite for the season. It's nice to know that even as it gets darker outside, I have a way out of the dark this year.

Every day of the week I feel like a geek

Are you easily offended by rude and/or inappropriate song lyrics? Does it bother you when songs don't rhyme? Or when musicians don't exactly get the notes right every time, on purpose?

If so, whatever you do, please don't click on this link and select "Everyone Knows" from the player at the top right of the screen. Really. I mean it.

another Vintage Office sighting in the wild!

A big wave and e-hug to Zonda for a lovely post, with great pics, of her new woolly skeins of Amy's Vintage Office. Thank you, Zonda!

Blue Moon nooz!

Did you wonder how my Blue Moon sweater was going? I can't imagine you did, but for the sake of ongoing knitting content -- and because it's SO GORGEOUS -- here's where I'm at. This picture is quite color accurate -- the colorway is Gypsum, and the yarn is Luscious Silk, a recent addition to the line at Blue Moon! [I get very excited when my favorite yarn companies start adding Amy-friendly yarns to their lines, as you can tell.]


Sadly for me, I didn't start knitting from two different skeins until, well, you can see where I did, and that's just life. It'll make the right front look like an, um, art piece. Yeah, that's just what I meant to do! [snork.] The pattern is Kristi Porter's Sonnet, transfigured into lace to make the yarn I have go further, and because silk is warmer than wool, so solid silk would be steamy to wear! Toes included in the shot for scale.

I'm halfway [or more] through the back and progress is quite speedy. I keep getting motivated to get to the solid-knit row pair in the super-simple lace repeat, which keeps moving me forward.

---

Speaking of all things Blue Moon, have you heard about this? It's going to be so insanely cool. Sounds like a cannot-miss event of a lifetime! I wanna go.

are you going to one of Neil Gaiman's upcoming signings? and more about all sorts of yarn!

He's not coming anywhere near Canada, but he IS going all over the US and onwards. Does anyone who reads this blog plan on going and getting an autographed copy of the new Graveyard Book? If so, would it be possible for you to buy a copy of his book for me and have it signed, too? Of course I'll pay the cost of the book, postage and I'll send you some beauty yarn as a thank you.

For those who love Neil, but didn't know about the tour, here is a post with all the dates/times/locations:

Neil Gaiman's Journal: The Graveyard Book Tour

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We are just a few days away from the next Yarn Roundtable and we have a few spaces left. If you're going to be in Toronto this Thursday night, we'd love to have you join us! Visit the Yarn Roundtable blog and leave a comment to the September post to RSVP.

I have heard rumors about a home-baked chocolate cake making an appearance. It would be criminal to miss it.

i has a color.

And it has a name: Amy's Vintage Office. Have you seen the new Color Commentary series from Lorna's Laces? Well, it was just one color until we got mine done -- Franklin's Panopticon, which is an insanely cool combination of yumminess, was the first. Now that there are two of us, it's definitely a series! [I hear there are many more colors to come from famous knitting folk all over the place!]

So Beth, who runs Lorna's, asked me to describe my dream colorway to her, and as she writes, it took us a while to get there. I thought I wanted one thing, which was bright and crazy. But then it turned out that what I really wanted was for Beth to encapsulate one of my big loves -- vintage office furniture -- into yarn colors. The mainstay, of course, is my huge charcoal steel desk. The rest are aspirational items -- things that aren't yet in my office, but I would love to have them here. The tones of vintage powdercoated steel make my heart beat faster at a flea market, and now that I see them in yarn form, I am just as enamored.

Why is there no knitted swatch here like there is on Franklin's post? Well, that's because Lorna's Laces is pretty much a 100% woolly house of yarn. All the protoypes I got to see were on wool, and I even borrowed a group of Purple Purl knitters including a visiting author-friend to help test knit swatches so I could choose the final color. Adrienne took home two different colorways, one of which turned out to be the final Amy's Vintage Office.

Beth will be dyeing up some of my colorway on Amy-friendly yarn and I promise to share a big swatch with you the moment it arrives. Will she be selling this Amy-friendly yarn? She might, if enough of you ask for it. Go visit Beth's blog and tell her what you think of the colorway!

[Lorna's Laces retailers will be able to order the colorway for you. Just sayin.]

What has happened since last I wrote...

• I became a cover girl [as designer only. Julia is the super-hot model in my knitwear on the ONLY hot day so far this month. And she looked so good in the cowl, I had to give it to her.]
  
  
• Wait, cover? What cover? Don't you know about Knittyspin? This issue, it got its own cover. Dang well about time, too.
  
  
• Yup, fall Knitty came out, and this time, we've got yer printer-friendly pages for ya! This is why I have been a hermit the last month or so.
  
  
• My uke fingers are all soft again. Poo. Haven't been able to touch the thing in a week. Back at it to get my fretting fingers back in shape!
  
  
• I have been knitting behind the scenes for relaxation! Progress is being made on the Luscious Silk lace Sonnet. Photos forthcoming, but don't you dare make me get the camera out again today, okay?

I'm sure there's more, but I can barely see the screen now, so I say byebye. Big love. Sleepies now.

A cupcake for Brenda!

Some time early this afternoon [eastern time in North America], Brenda Dayne's Cast On podcast celebrated a milestone. Some clever person became the 1,000,000th person to download her podcast! A million people! [Brenda, I can't imagine what your bandwidth charges are. Ack!]

Go over and give her a smooch of congratulations. We knew her when, eh? Our little Brenda. I'm so proud!

we interrupt this self-inflicted blog silence...

...to let you know that one of my favorite books EVER is available for free download here. Neverwhere is fantastic [in the dictionary sense of the word], captivating, evil [in the deepest sense of the word] and unstoppable reading.

Good thing, too, because the free book -- to read online or download -- will only be available for a month. Not sure how they've done it, but if you download the PDF version, it will only work for a month from today. Cool.

Go! Get it!

I'm going back to work.

i'm going mental, i must say.

but it's a good kind of mental. the knitty-production kind which means never leaving my office [my house] for more than a short break and dreaming in pixels and stitches per inch.

it's all for good reason but i figured you wondered where i'd gone and didn't want you sending out the troops just yet. okay, maybe send one troop, skilled in multiple massage disciplines [thai, swedish, maybe a little shiatsu on the side] and beverage making. and housecleaning. and laundry. and litterbox changing.

i extra-special hope you'll love this issue. you'll see why when we go live. and that's all i'm saying.

looking as cool as a Fisher & Paykel

My office has recently had a makeover. Wanna see?



What, it doesn't look so different from the last time, except significantly messier? Well, you're not paying attention, then.



Every good office should have a ukulele. [and a Pee-Wee bobblehead and a set of 3 Serenity action figures including Captain Tightpants in said pants and Jayne with a bigass gun].

But wait -- here's the best thing. Did I buy this $14.95 custom-designed hanger to get my uke out of oops-i-just-sat-on-my-uke range?



No. I went to Rona and bought this, except smaller and in grey:


For 80 cents. What the hell costs 80 cents anymore? Not even a pack of gum. I feel quite clever.

---

Also! The Knitty Calendar Contest ends tomorrow night at midnight! Have you sent in your entry yet? You know you want to.

Let me be your boogaloo!

The 1980s wasn't all about Duran Duran. I just think you should know.

I was searching for chords for Jane Siberry songs and ran across this. This is one of my favorite Siberry songs. Jane is so young in this video, and so adorable. I guess I was young and adorable too when I watched it the first time.



[If this gets your musical juices going, find more at Jane's site --Sheeba.]

It's very freaky, Bowie.

It really happened. Baseballic proof above. Below, video proof. The first clip is hysterical -- they drove me out on the field in a van! If you listen, you can hear the announcer saying something about "Amy Singer, editor of Knitty..." and then a whole bunch of stuff I can't make out.

Surreal? You can't even imagine. If there weren't pictures, I'd swear it didn't happen.

[For the full photo thread, click the baseball pic above. I captioned them, even.]





Yes, I threw it respectably well enough. The ball made it all the way to the mascot's catcher's mitt, no troubles. But my favorite thing was the huge cheers I got from the knitters in the 200 section. The roar was clearly coming from my people and there were a LOT of them. 900+ tickets sold. You guys make me proud to be a Toronto girl.

Oh, I hear there was knitting afterwards. I tried to knit two rows, frogged both, and spent the rest of the game chatting with friends and, at the end, finally watching the field. We won, and it was a great win -- last hit of the last inning kind of thing. Love baseball when it's good.

brunettes, not fighter jets!

In honor of this, and with much trepidation and also the strapping on of some very large balls, I present my online ukulele debut.

Groupies may apply to peoplewithverylowstandards@knitty.com



This song is not in my key vocally [I'm sort of high-alto], but I could play all the chords, so I left it as it was. And the reason I decided to put the video up despite all common sense is that I'm quite proud of my uke playing after just over a week of practise. The singing-along is a necessary evil.

All other knitter/ukulele players, raise your hands! Bring your ukes to stitch nights! Amuse your fellow knitters, and have everyone sing along! I'll be bringing mine to Rhinebeck and encourage all of you who are coming to do the same!

Seriously, though. I just sang for you on teh interwebs. If you're in Toronto tomorrow night, you'd better come out and represent for the knitters when I throw out the first pitch. No coming in late. I will likely never be on the pitcher's mound in a huge stadium again in my lifetime. You don't want to miss that, do you?

say hello to my leeeetle friend.

:-)

I'm not a large water-dwelling mammal who's moved to the metropolis and learned how to breakdance.

A little music to get you in the weekend [long-weekend in Canada] mood, courtesy the WIUO.

come on sucker, lick my battery*

so while all the work on knitty continues, other things are introducing themselves into my world. fun things. things i haven't let myself think about because they're just too silly and will i really do them?

the mystery object at left found its way to me last week due to the most ridiculous example of serendipity i've ever experienced. i wanted this exact thing -- same color, even -- and elizabeth's daughter had been given this exact thing but it wasn't the right size model [in this case, size did matter :-)]. so now it lives with me.

you may be able to guess what it is, but i'm not telling until next week. i've been working with it and am not ready for my debut just yet. i won't be ready next week, either, but that's just part of this whole new attitude to life thing i'm feeling lately. if i wait for everything i do to be perfect before i share it, i'll never share ANYTHANG. and life is too short for that crap.

i'm not getting reckless. i'm just going to stop preventing myself from doing stuff i really want to do because i think i might look silly doing it.

---

*yes, the Conchord-titled blog posts continue. what are you gonna do about it? eh?

---

i've also been beading, but since almost all of it is for gifts, you won't see it here for a while.

and prototype knitting has begun on the Blue Moon Luscious Silk sweater, which has resulted in two swatches, both frogged. this design probably requires alternating 2 balls to make the best use of the gorgeous colors. variegateds are kicking my butt lately.

---

okay, back to work. and then the mystery thing. woo!

oh, and did you know? one of those magic erasers can make your computer keyboard look like new [just make sure every bit of the water is squeezed out first]. the trackpad, too. i wonder if they're nuclear or magical something. how do they do it?

music that's making Knitty go today

[his website makes me giggle. listen to all the stuff he's done for each of the pages. don't click too fast!]



keep your hands off my teevee boyfriend -- jemaine.
[hey, j, the mustache could go, but don't you dare touch the sideburns]

lather, rinse, repeat.
um, yes, please.

My sweet Vespa

Doods. Today was my first scooter rally -- The Twisted Wheel Scooter Rally in Toronto. Rallies are basically a reason to ride together, compare and compliment scoots and get ideas for what you might want to do to yours next.

There was also a raffle for a brand new vespa [I didn't win], and contests in all sorts of categories. Surprisingly, I *did* win one of the judged awards: Sweetest Modern Scoot. I guess everyone was won over by my pink leopard seat cover and matching pink sparkly tassels. There's also a pompom hanging from my rear rack in sparkly purple. Clearly, the sparkle appeals.

Take a peek at my photos for the day if you like Vespas too. There's a purple one in there that I will wager you have never seen the likes of anywheres. [And it won for Sweetest Vintage Scoot. You ain't kidding.]

i am like this.

I go to a craft show in the Beach on the weekend. I see beautiful peyote stitch beaded bracelets. Little shimmery lengths of tiny Japanese Delica beads in beautiful colors. They are $25 each [and up]. I remember the tubes of Japanese Delica beads I have in my [small, but reasonably useful] bead stash, bought just because the colors were so pretty and I'd figure out what to do with them later.

So, of course, I couldn't buy the bracelets. I had to make one of my own.

I started with google and found several pages of instruction. Sat down to do it and failed. Next morning, tried again. Failed. Searched Etsy for a finished one, because the amount of time I was wasting had to be worth $25. Didn't find anything I wanted. Searched for better instructions. Tried again in better light.


This time, I got it.

Yes, it's that tiny. Hub watched me adding rows to this little piece last night and called me Insane. With a capital I.



So I am, then. Oh well. At least I'll be Insane with a really cool bracelet.

my japanese sheepy likes the B-52s

Dangit, you guys left so many cool comments about the contest that I finally learned Blogger comments has a feature for multiple pages. To celebrate the celebrating about our celebration, I bring you a dancing sheepy!




I bought this little dancing sheepy from some place in Japan [online, of course]. I have no idea why anyone [but me] would want one of these, but it does make me giggle. The blue base? It's the same size as the top of a plastic soda bottle and it's threaded on the inside. Does that mean you're expected to take your dancing sheepy with you as you drink your Tab?

I love Japan. Maybe one day I'll get there.

a Friday gift

We get Project Runway in Canada a month [or more?] after you US guys get it. So I'm always a little behind, but still obsessed. Tivo also helped this season by missing a whole bunch of episodes that it's just now recording, and even though I know who won, I love the show enough to watch the missed stuff out of order. The main reason: this man. Tim Gunn. I adore him.

It occurred to me last night that someone somewhere must have a Tim Gunn ringtone, and so I went looking.

Nothing.

So I made my own. Except that all the true Tim sound bytes I found were fuzzy or indistinct because of all the production music. It's more than amusing, I think, that my final ringtone isn't Tim, but Santino-as-Tim. Feel free to pilfer and use at will.

Happy Friday!

what happens to my brain when Knitty needs to come out

My blog posts get short and pointy.

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I saw commercials for Stardust, and at first glance, mistook it for The Golden Compass. Figured out within a minute that it wasn't, but maybe I wanted to know what it was anyway. I subsequently found Stardust as an audiobook on Audible.com, listened to the sample and bought the audiobook, narrated by the author. I listened to it every night before I went to sleep while at SOAR.

As a result, I am now so deeply in love with not only the sound of Neil Gaiman's voice, but a] the words he chose to put on paper b] the way he tells his complex, beautiful, occasionally quite scary stories gently in my ear and c] the sound of his voice (yes, I repeat myself), that I used up my remaining Audible credits to buy everything he's narrated himself.

I'm more than halfway through Neverwhere and am quite sure that, should I ever meet the man in person, I would actually faint, dramatically, Victorian-style.

Don't tell my husband.