Lotus Seed Pod & New Contest & Squares

This a seed pod of a lotus. The seeds are edible, and they taste clean, hardy, immaculate. These lotus blooms are from my parents' pond in Texas. They have a few ponds throughout their property. The lotus pond is my favorite. This photo was taken with my old camera. Guess who placed an order for new camera? Yep yep yep. I'm so excited. It will be here Thursday.

Here's a NEW CONTEST for you folks:

As you might know, I'm currently testing out various yarn bases to develop Woolly Boully BIG BOULLY, a dk weight sock yarn.

My questions for you are: a.) Which of my colorways would you like to see in a dk weight?; and b.) Which two of my colorways do you like the best?

Sheri has a nice gallery of my sold-out skeins here, or you can browse the sold items at my etsy shop.

The winner, which will be chosen by a random number generator, will win a skein of my yarn in the colorway and yarn base of their choice. If you want to enter, just leave me a comment to this post with your answers to my questions by midnight on Tuesday, July 3.

Squares and an Extension

I've heard from some of you that there are squares on their way to me. I'm extending the postmark deadline to June 30th, so get those squares in the mail. I'll be doing the prize drawings shortly after that.

Here are some squares that were waiting for me upon my return to Brooklyn.

Senora Fuerte of Mommy, Look What I Made, sent in four lovely squares. Thank you, Senora. The browns and blues are so lovely together.


Kabira sent in these three beautiful squares. They are in honor of her mother, a cancer survivor, and in memory of her father and dear friend Sura. Thank you so much, Kabira, for sharing these with us.


Jessica sent in the a box of ten (!) squares. Wow. Thank you so much, Jessica, for your overwhelming generosity. Your squares are delightful.


Kathy of 3 Grrrls Knit sent in these squares with a touching note.

Kathy's note said: "My squares are for everyone who has been touched by cancer. My mother died of cancer, my husband had melanoma. (We were lucky and caught it early.) There are also the people like you and me who don't have cancer but love someone who does/die. So, my two squares are for all the people who are affected." I was so touched by Kathy's note that I wanted to share it with everyone. Thank you, Kathy.

Oh, and what do you know? Mims, who sent in squares throughout the contest, writes a knitting blog for the Orgeonian. Wow.

Woolly Boully Shop Update

This isn't the important post. The important post is below this one, so please read that one if you haven't already.

I did, however, want to let you all know that I'll be doing a shop update right after I post this.

I'll have a couple of skeins in my original yarn base (Woolly Boully Meanie Sock) in the following colorways:

Woolly Boully Neapolitan
Moonflowers
Lotus Blooms
Brooklyn Candy

I'll also have a couple of skeins in a new 100% superwash merino yarn base (Woolly Boully Softie Sock) in the following colorway:

Fishing With My Father

Also, there will be some changes to my yarn line. The different yarn bases that I will be using will have different names.

Woolly Boully Meanie Sock: my original super soft and fluffy yarn base: 75% superwash merino and 25% nylon. This is by far my favorite sock yarn. I'm calling this yarn base "Meanie" because of the nylon content; however, don't let the name or nylon content fool you--this stuff is super soft and just glides off the needles. You don't notice the nylon at all--it feels and works up like a pure merino.

Woolly Boully Softie Sock: a new 100% superwash merino base. I wanted to bring my colorways to those sock knitters who enjoy a shiny and twisted yarn. This yarn is so pretty to look at and is also super soft. I really enjoyed knitting with it. This one also glides off the needles and is springy.

And, coming soon will be Woolly Boully BIG BOULLY: a dk weight 100% superwash merino sock yarn for those of you who want some instant sock gratification.

Okay, that's enough of a plug for today.

Please please read the previous post if you haven't already; my father read it and said that it made his day. Oh, I knew this knitting blog was good for something.

A Late Father's Day Post

I grew up fishing. There was a pond within walking distance of my childhood home; we caught sunfish there; my sister and I used bamboo poles. Instead of going to amusement parks, my family and I went camping, sometimes for weeks at a time. We fished at Texas lakes and quite often at the Texas coast, in a city called Corpus Christi, where an old airplane runway at the Navy base there served as a fishing pier.

In the photo above, I think I must be just about one, and my father is fishing at Brauning Lake. The tree you see is a type of willow; it doesn't weep.


My father said his new socks fit perfectly, that the heel was where the heel should be.


These socks (men's size 14) were made with my own Woolly Boully sock yarn in the Fishing With My Father colorway, which I dreamt up just for my father, over 72 stitches. I decreased to 68 after the gusset.

* * *

I received some squares while I was away, but I'll reserve those and contest news for another post. I wanted to keep this one for my father.

Fishing With My Father Socks

Fishing With My Father Socks
Originally uploaded by Lone_Knitter

Here's a photo of my socks-in-progress. I'm posting this from flickr, which seems to be more slow-internet-friendly than blogger. I'm hoping it will work. I tried to post a photo from flickr into blogger by using an URL, but I think I was hot-linking. If anyone has tips, I'd greatly appreciate it.

Woolly Boully at the Yarn Grove

Last week, Sheri put my yarn up at the Loopy Ewe, and it's all gone. All gone. I'll have to start dyeing more yarn the moment I get back to Brooklyn. There will be no rest for me! A-dyeing and a-cranking and a-winding I will go.

There are, however, some colorways available at The Yarn Grove. The gals there also posted a really nice bio of how I happened upon my yarn-dyeing life. Stop by if you have a moment, and if you really want one of those colorways, you should purchase now--one colorway is already gone.

Texas is Texas. It's hot and the nights are full of thunder and lightning summer storms. The chiggers and mosquitoes are out a-biting. The fireants are a-building. The dogs are a-stratching from the fleas.

I'm almost done with my Father's Day socks, and I wish I could post a picture for you; however, as ever, this internet connection is so slow. Maybe if I just wait a long, long time the photo will eventually load, but I don't know. Sometimes I don't know if the connection is doing anything at all.

Woolly Boully is now up at the Loopy Ewe!

Sheri has my Woolly Boully yarn up at the Loopy Ewe. (There was a sneak-up last night.) Stop by if you have a minute. As of this blog post, five colorways have already sold out!


Now that the yarn is up on Sheri's site, I can show you my yarn in color.

An embarrassing realization: my camera is on its way out apparently. It's not taking good photos anymore. I didn't know that digital cameras had these abrupt endings until a friend of mine told me. She then pulled out her 7 megapixel camera and showed me the lovely photos she had taken. I went to price new cameras and was so embarrassed to know that 7 megapixels is the norm! I thought 3 was. I thought 7s were so expensive, but now they are priced like the old 3s. And, they now have rechargeable batteries! I guess I don't keep up with consumer goods very well.

Contest Update:

April's winner was Leslie of the Silver Fork Saga. Leslie will receive two skeins of Lorna's Laces Shepard Sport in the watercolor colorway as well as The Sock Journal: Knit the Year in Socks. Congrats, Leslie!

We've also received lots and lots of squares from the following (blogless) ladies: Marylou B. sent in 20 squares; L.M. B. sent 40 (!) squares; Rosemarie V. made 20 squares; Geri T. made an afghan and a baby blanket; Jackie F. made a baby blanket; and Aunt G's sister Pat made a baby blanket. Mom J has also made quite a few items for the drive as well.

We got more squares from Jody, two from Gingersnaps with Tea, and two from Aileen. Gingersnaps with Tea made her squares for Aunt Betty (a beautiful basket weave square in pima cotton) and Uncle Doug (a wool blend that's big and burly like her Uncle Doug). Thanks so much, ladies!


The contest is almost over. If you want to join in the blanket drive, please have your items postmarked by June 15. At the end of June, I'll be drawing May's and June's winners and also the winners of all the other items we have to give away. There are books, needles, and, yes, yarn, including a ball of Trekking 126. Some of you donated prizes, and we are very grateful to you.

Spinning

I finished spinning and plying my Spunky Eclectic roving. It was a crazy spinning experience. Some of my singles were so overspun and some underspun.


I have to say that it looks better after being plied. I've been carrying this skein around the house as if it were a little baby. I know it's ugly, but it's mine.

I finished my Caterpillar socks. They are made in my favorite good ole stockinette pattern. I must have had a difficult month: the tension on the second sock is unbelievable tight.


I've never had this happen to me and my socks before. One sock is tight and the other loose. Good thing I made them for myself.

Going to Texas

I'll be in Texas until mid-June. I'm going to make my father a special Father's Day present with a new colorway that I made just for my father. It's called Fishing With My Father. (In the photograph below, it's the skein in the foreground. The colorway in the background is Strawberry Moon of June, which already sold out at the Loopy Ewe.)


I wanted to make a sock yarn that wasn't overtly girlie, but I also wanted to make it special. When I was a little girl, my family and I always, always went fishing. I practically grew up on lakes and at the Texas coast. My father has size 14 feet.

p.s. While I'm in Texas, I won't be updating my blog much, and there will be very little in way of photos. The internet connection there is slow, slow. I promise to get a new camera soon, however!

My landlady hears my ballwinder

My landlady hears my ballwinder. She says she can hear her ceiling vibrating. I don't understand it. I've oiled the thing; I turn ever-so-slowly. How can something so small make so much noise?

My fridge also died last week. Manly and I had to wait until someone came by to declare it dead before my landlady would order another. Being a tenant makes me feel so beaten down, as if my life isn't mine. I'm trying to look at the brighter side of everything these days, but it feels so difficult to sometimes.

Speaking of brighter sides, the photo above will reveal itself in color once Sheri at the Loopy Ewe gets the order. I got this idea from Susie of Perchance to Knit, who also dyes for the Loopy Ewe.

As a sock knitter and hoarder of sock yarn, I had to stare at this mountain for a while before boxing it. I also had to refrain from wanting to cuddle with each skein.

What is said about drinking and knitting can also be said about spinning. I spun the majority of this after a few glasses of wine:


Non-wine spinning:


(The roving is "Autumn Girls" from Spunky Eclectic, which was given to me by Coley.)

Mind you, I haven't been taught how to spin, so I'm sure that my spinning looks like a very drunk person spun it. I bought a book, read it, and looked at videos on-line. This is also how I taught myself to knit. A spinning friend of mine is coming over this week, and hopefully she can tell me what I'm doing wrong.

I want to thank you all for the warm comments that you left for me these past two weeks. It's really comforting to know that people are with you and thinking good thoughts for you. Thank you.

A Blue Square

Some of you have asked if I'm alright. I haven't posted in a while for several reasons. This is the time of the semester when it's impossible to stay sane or calm. I've also been having a great time fulfilling my first big dyeing order, which will be finished and shipped out by the middle of next week.

I'm okay, but I haven't quite been myself lately either. I'm withdrawn and distracted these days and a bit sad. I realize that I've reached out to you all in the knitting community to knit squares for cancer patients, but at the same time, I haven't been fair to all of you who have been so generous and giving. I've been keeping a secret because there's a part of me that believes that everything will be okay as long as I be secretive about it.

I've started knitting a square for my father, who was diagnosed with cancer last summer. He's starting chemotherapy tomorrow. This square is for you, daddy. I love you. I am here for you, and I'm always, always thinking of you. It's blue, because I know that's your favorite color.

* * *

I got more squares from Jody and Joanna and Mims. Mims made her squares in honor of her cousin Katherine who is a survivor.


Thank you so much, girls. Your squares are so beautiful, and you all are really making this blanket drive happen.

* * *

I started the Chevron Scarf from Last Minute Knitted Gifts that everyone is making. I know now why everyone is making this scarf. It's fun and foolproof. I think that any unusual color combination looks great in this pattern.


This scarf will be for my mother. A very late Mother's Day gift.

* * *

Oh, I lugged something home from the post office today. Originally, I was supposed to get this to celebrate finishing my first big dyeing order, but I kind of had a hard time with that line of reasoning.


What you're seeing is the wheel of a Louet S17 spinning wheel that that ordered from Adrian of Hello Yarn. I decided to go with a Louet S17 because I think I really did want a wooden wheel, and I really like the look of Louet wheels. You can't beat Adrian's prices, either. The wheel came with half a pound of luscious roving. I can't wait to get this thing polished and put together.

p.s. I'm planning on doing April's prize drawing soon. I just need to collect the names of some lovely ladies who sent some squares to Mom J. Hopefully I get those soon.

Slow & Steady

It's finally spring here in Brooklyn. I had some orange tulips I wanted to photograph for you, but alas, they curled up and died. It seems as if it just gets harder and harder to find hardy flowers at these Brooklyn "bodegas."

So, instead, I'll give you a sneak peak of what I've been up to. I got more dyeing supplies last week and can now do bigger batches. From left to right are Kelp Seahorse, Lotus Blooms, Wisteria, and Brooklyn Candy. I have more colorways to do before shipping this order off to the Loopy Ewe.

I finally found a simple way to twist my yarn into hanks. It took weeks of practice. I know it sounds silly and perhaps every knitter should just know how to twist a skein of yarn into a hank, but it took a lot of tries for me to be able to do it without blinking. And I'm very particular about my hanks; if a strand of yarn looks off, I can't stand it and will do it again. Now I can get my hanks to look pleasing to me on the first try.

Apparently the Loopy Ewe had so much traffic yesterday that the website kind of freaked out. Leave it to sock knitters and their yarn addiction to bring a site down.

After this order, I'll start a smaller order for The Yarn Grove. I want to maintain some business on etsy as I do like dealing with sock knitters and enjoy having the personal interaction with them, so hopefully I'll be able to do a shop update after these two wholesale orders.

Ever want something so badly?

I told myself to wait two weeks. If I still must have it in two weeks, then it's mine.


I'm working on these socks right now. The yarn is Opal Rainforest II in the Caterpillar colorway. I just love caterpillars and pupas and cocoons and butterflies and moths. I really do. So I couldn't resist this yarn.

I've also started a Woolly Boully Google group to send out notifications of yarn news and shop updates. You can sign up here.

Oh, and my prospectus will officially be turned in next week. That, my dear friends, was no small feat. I treated myself by buying a paper shredder. Strange, I know, but I really really wanted one.

p.s. Is it just me? Or are photographs uploaded to Blogger blurry? My photographs look great over at Flickr, but they look awful on my blog. Humpf.

Red Robin Socks Done; Lots of Yarn; More Squares and Blankets

I finished my Red Robin socks about a week and a half ago. A friend of mine emailed to say, "Hey, you haven't updated your knitting blog in a while. It's not like you. Is something wrong?"


It seems like it must be the time of the semester. Everything seems to need to get done all at once. It doesn't help that the weather has been so eerie and for so long now--nothing but dark clouds and the confusion of trees and birds. My living room ceiling had a putrid leak, I had deadlines, and I had a family affair that scared me. (It's okay--I'm just not ready to talk about it yet.) It's no wonder that I feel the way I do, slightly scattered and anxious.


Here are the specs for my Red Robin socks:

Yarn: Woolly Boully Red Robin: Bird, Nest, & Eggs
Needles: size 1 Crystal Palace dpns
Pattern: plain ole stockinette over 60 stitches, 2x2 2" cuff, heel flap, and decreased toe

I love, love, love these socks. I don't want to toot my own horn, but working with this yarn was dreamy, delightful. I could not put these socks down. All I wanted to do was knit and knit and knit these. I'm sorry that they knitted up so quickly.


Say, see this pile of Wisteria yarn? Woolly Boully got its first wholesale order. I just about flipped out. It was the same feeling I got when I had my first poem accepted for a journal, the same feeling I got when I heard my first book was getting published, the same feeling I got whenever something absolutely wonderful and unexpected happened. I have a lot more yarn to dye before I can ship this order on over to the Loopy Ewe. Oh, yes, the Loopy Ewe! And there is another wholesale order that I'll start on after that, but I'll give more details about this in another post.

I'm keeping whatever yarns are listed in my etsy shop at $21. Any new yarns will increase in price to $23, and I probably won't be able to do a shop update for about two months. So if you see something you like, now would be a great time to buy!


Jody, who was March's prize winner, made these three (!) baby blankets.

She also made these seven, bright, happy squares.

And my friend Joanna, who has just learned how to knit, made these squares.


Joanna kept apologizing for her knitting, yet she is knitting beautifully for just beginning. Her first project was a ribbed scarf. Great day! It took me forever to learn how to knit correctly and then another forever to learn how to purl and then another forever to do both with some ease. You're knitting looks wonderful, Joanna!

Since it looks as if I'm going to be busy dyeing up a storm, writing the ole dissertation, and finishing that 250+ page book I started two summers ago, I think I should make June 15 the deadline for getting in squares, afghans, and blankets for the drive. If you still want to participate, go here for details. Thanks so much to everyone for their support!