Dyeing – Page 22 – Elliebelly Knit & Dye Works

Knitty’s Harry Potter SP

Posted on July 1, 2007 by Joyce Makes Art

My first knitting secret pal swap ever was the Harry Potter swap at Knitty. The box my pal sent me came yesterday, and it’s just stunning. And I do mean stunning!

The sock yarn is absolutely to die for! The colors are even more beautiful than in the picture. But the little owl is just the bees knees! It’s just perfect because I have had a big thing about owls lately and just bought these sweet little handsewn owls for myself. And strangely, I’ve been wanting a Moleskine journal for ages, but haven’t indulged myself. I still can’t figure out who my partner is (even though she has given me a lot of clues), so whoever you are, THANK YOU so very much! I’m going to enjoy everything in my lovely surprise box.

If only everything in life was that nice. This morning, while watching the littles play in the frontyard, my Mom, who is visiting, and I sat on the front steps. I was doing more work on the Giotto tank that is part of my ten week plan. The get health/loose weight part is going great, and I thought my knitting was ahead of schedule.

I’ve got to knit 11" in moss stitch and then do the edging and straps and put the tank together. I figured I could knit an inch plus a little bit each week and be done at the end of my ten week plan, and hopefully, be back to a size that would fit into the tank, since fast living and steroids had made me a bit pudgy since I started it. It looks good, right? I’m just finishing week three and that’s well ahead of three inches, probably more like five. It looked good until I found this.

How did I get a big freaking hole in the middle of my tank? It’s inches back. And, I’m a little bit nervous about laddering back and fixing it, since this is in Moss Stitch. I’ll have to wait until I’m feeling particularly confident to attempt it. If anyone has advice or suggestions for doing this and having it turn out just right, I’m all ears!

I can’t remember if I’ve told y’all, but I getting ready to open a new online yarn shop. It will open this Thursday, July 5th, at noon. the url is http://hyenacart.com/elliebelly. Hyena Cart is a cool place where moms, especially cloth diapering moms, hang out. The Elliebelly shop will have lots of fun yarn, including kits with yarn and patterns for childrens’ sweaters and vests, as well as Blue Faced Leicester and Organic Merino for diaper covers. And I’ll add in some sock yarn too. Please come and visit the store when it opens this Thursday. There will be a few *special* promotions for the store’s grand opening. Here’s a little taste of one of the new yarn colorways.

Morning Hodgepodge

Posted on June 25, 2007 by Joyce Makes Art

My Aunt emailed me last night, and asked when I go to work. I assure you, I do (a girl has to have money to buy yarn and art bits), but sometimes it’s a struggle. The weekends are never long enough to do everything I want to do. Here’s a little wrap up of some of the creative mess that took place in my house this weekend. Mom, if you’re reading, it also explains why the house is going to be a ~~frigging disaster~~ little bit unorganized when you get here on Friday.

First off, spinning. It’s never far from my heart.

This

is now two ounces of this funky thick and thin.

This was also a big yarn dyeing weekend in my house, as we had fall sweaters to dye for and I’m in the middle of working on a new little venture (you can see a sneak peak here although it isn’t operational yet). The pink/purple/green yarn towards the front is the new superwash merino I’m working with and I confess to being totally in love with the way it sucks up the color (and the idea that I won’t have to worry about the little kids’ sweaters felting this year).

I’m especially happy with this sock
yarn, called Fate

and with this as-yet-unnamed (Miss Ellie can only work just so hard in any one weekend) bulky merino

While all the yarn was batching, I spent some time looking at patterns online, and stumbled across this incredibly wonderful blog, Saartje Knits. In addition to being one of those blogs you could get lost inside of reading everything, Saartje has some great free patterns, including her bootees and a cool Noro hat pattern, both of which I printed out and want to start in on soon.

The ten week plan is marching on. For those of you who asked, it’s a sort of embarrassing diet, but if you must know, I do the Suzanne Somers low carb variant. I’ve been told it’s close to South Beach. I like it because I can eat all the fruit I feel like I need to eat, and whole grain pasta and breads in moderate amounts. Essentially, it steers me towards the foods I’m inclined to like the most. Since I’m not a white bread kind of person, a couple of fresh veggies, a good salad, and meat as sort of a side dish suits me just fine. For instance, tonight’s dinner is braised lamb shanks, spinach & roasted garlic, and caprese salad. I’ll add on couscous for the kids. Bed time snack will be a big dish of blueberries, fresh from the farmer’s market. After I had Miss Ellie, and was hunting around for a way to take off baby weight, a friend on my Parents Place Pregnancy board suggested this diet and a bunch of us went on it together. It worked great that time, and again after my fourth baby was born. I’m hoping it’s also the cure for the onslaught of middle-aged sluggishness and excess tummy that is afflicting me. The key for me seems to be getting off of sugar.

The Giotto tank is happy to have progressed it’s necessary one inch for the week. I knit it while reflecting on the importance of taking time for oneself. No pictures, but I’m a little bit nervous that I am noticing a proficiency with the moss stitch/ribbon yarn issue on this front side that is not evident on the back. At least this first little bit is compact and even in a way that the back of the tank isn’t. I’m hoping I won’t feel compelled to rip out the back and reknit it after I finish the front, because I really am hoping to wear this tank when my ten week plan is up!

T-Ball & Yarn Dyeing

Posted on June 21, 2007 by Joyce Makes Art

T-Ball, the newly discovered pleasure of my four year old, has been cutting into my yarn dyeing time, so I’m going to remedy that this morning by showing you pictures of a few of the new yarn colorways I’ve been dreaming of and dyeing. Two in particular are making me happy.

First is an Alpaca Merino blend, that, quite frankly, would be yummy if you randomly covered it in mud and rinsed it off. It is soft and sedutive and has a pretty halo without being hairy. I like it especially in this colorway called "Fluffy" that is destined to be a vest come fall for my favorite little T-Ball player.

This second yarn is something I’ve been doing try-outs for, for quite a while. I wanted a nice worsted weight superwash merino that could be used for slightly heavier socks that could be (gently) machine washed. After several false starts, I finally found the right yarn. It’s soft and nicely spun, and it’s American-milled. I like how it takes up the color, and although I intended to start with socks, this first batch I’ve dyed up it going to be a sweater for a friend’s new baby. Having been reassured by the wise women at the Wooly Wonder Forums that I can knit a diaper cover out of superwash wool (I’m told it will need to be lanolized a bit more frequently but will have the benefit of being machine washable and not felting), I think I’ll add in a nice summer diaper cover for the baby as well.

The good news is that there is a T-Ball game tonight! Ollie can engage his new passion. The Judge can get out his glove and remember his glory days in law school as Mr. October. Personally, I’m going to be content to sit in my prissy pink field chair and do a little knitting while I cheer the team on.

Today

Posted on June 16, 2007 by Joyce Makes Art

Today was one of those gorgeous, perfect days. It started with a trip to the farmers’ market, which meant homemade chocolate covered caramel for the kids and a visit with a women who was spinning beautiful yarn from her hand-dyed roving for me. I am so sorry I didn’t have my camera with me!

On the way home we stopped at a couple of yard sales. I usually limit my purchases to old books or photos, and other ephemera that I use in my collage work. But I was stunned to find this very cool looking bag today.

Something about it immediately caught my eye. Is it the quirky little flight attendant meets Stephen Colbert drawings?

It is funny and kitschy all at that same time, and I guess that’s what got me. It had almost a Zakka feeling to it. It had a couple of little smudgey places on the outside, but they looked easy enough to clean off, so I took it home.

It was very easy to wipe the two or three little smudges off, and I was stunned to discover that the interior and the front pocket were both pristine. Clearly, my little bag had never been used. But what was it? This was my only clue.

A little bit of research revealed that "Transversion" bags were made/sold by a company called NYC Loop. They were sought after, expensive, & almost impossible to get one’s hands on. There was even a similar print one, in a style I didn’t like nearly as much as mine, on Ebay. Not bad for a $5 investment. Now I’m torn between keeping it and selling it on Ebay. But I really want to keep it.

Next up on the day was a visit with my dear art friend Kathy McElroy. Kathy was my first roomate at an art retreat, a fellow member of the Altered Art Divas, and one of the sweetest people I know. She brought her son and his fiancee and another son’s children to lunch. The Judge made burgers and they were gooood! Kathy’s grandchildren were the perfect age to play with my littles. By the end of the day, I wasn’t sure it was going to be possible to get the kids to separate! We spent the afternoon at the zoo.

We saw the flamingos

and this sweet little fellow who wandered past our table in the water play area, looking for food.

Kathy’s kids and grandkids are all wonderful. We were tired but really sorry to leave them. The final success in our day of small, happy events was this.

This is She-Mootah. She-Mootah is Ellie’s companion for Ollie’s Mootah. She-Mootah is made from some fabric that I dyed, painted, and stamped on. There is just a bit of hand-embroidery (mostly because I don’t remember much, although I was apparently pretty good at it as a child) and eyes made from my favorite buttons. Ellie seems very happy. She has dressed She-Mootah up in a piece of old lace and is taking her everywhere.

The Best Swap Buddy

Posted on June 10, 2007 by Joyce Makes Art

I was one of the last people to sign up for the Harry Potter Swap (SP) at knitty.com. And I am SO glad that I made the deadline! It has been more fun starting to put things together for my swap buddy, with who I have a lot in common.

Yesterday, an owl arrived for… me. It contained this absolutely incredible miniature Weasley Sweater.

"I think a house elf made it," opined my four year old.

It is adorable and I am amazed by the talent of the lovely Crookshanks, my swap pal. Isn’t she incredibly clever? She has been dropping hints to her identity by leaving me chapters in the books to reread, but so far, I haven’t figure out who she is.

Since we’re on a red and gold theme here, I’m going to share these beautiful little tomatoes that came home with me from the Farmers’ Market yesterday.

Our Saturday morning trips to the Farmers’ Market never fail to provide a burst of color and inspiration for the rest of the weekend. We buy bath fizzies and pottery in addition to organic produce. A new booth offers homemade caramels. Our ritual is to stop there before we leave, with baskets full of peaches and herbs, flowers and vegetables, and indulge in a mouthful of divine caramel, covered in dark chocolate. If only every day could be Saturday!

Our Weekend: Harry Potter, Mudballs, & The Garden

Posted on June 3, 2007 by Joyce Makes Art

It has been pretty much your average weekend around here. Food. Pool. Family. I thought I would share a couple of quick snippets with you.

First off: Tomatoes in the garden. Actually, it is just tomato, singular. As a native Californian, I just can’t bring myself to water during a drought. I figure anything that can’t make it on its own is just going to have to return to the earth. But look at this one lone little tomato, surviving through drought and some kind of nasty looking wilt. Isn’t it beautiful?

Next up: Mudballs. Ellie and I sat outside with my mother in law yesterday and worked on mudballs. Really. To be more exact, we were experimenting with the ancient Japanese art form dorodango. We were both fascinated by pictures we saw of balls that we first thought were glass, or maybe ceramic or even metal. But they turned out to be mud. Our first attempts were by no means anything like the photos we saw, but we have yet to burnish and finish our layers. One of our unfinished little balls is pictured below, but you have really got to go and see the real thing. Simply incredible. You can find instructions and photos here => http://www.dorodango.com/create.html if you want to try it.

Finally, Harry Potter. I actually know people who aren’t obsessed with the countdown to the exact moment when the book will be available. People who don’t plan on seeing the movie the very first day it opens. Let me tell y’all, my whole household is obsessed with both events. I decided to dye some Hogwart’s House Colors-themed yarn this weekend, and came up with a cool little Slytherin moss and gray. Although I can’t imagine any possible weather that would permit this to be worn in Alabama in July, I still intend to knit up a neat little Slytherin scarf. (The Judge is undoubtedly a Slytherin.)

Nearer and dearer to my own heart is this Hufflepuff sock yarn. It makes me think of bumblebees, or maybe even of Uma Thurman on her yellow motorcycle in Kill Bill I. But the colors are undoubtedly Hufflepuff and I am hoping to find a few quiet moments to knit myself some socks to wear while watching the movie and lounging around the house reading the book the following week.

Mootah

Posted on May 31, 2007 by Joyce Makes Art

My kids love Miyazaki movies. Actually, the Judge and I do too. He makes wonderful anime films that captivate the four year old and the sixteen year equally. That’s a pretty amazing concept for anyone who has teenagers.

One of Ollie’s favorites is The Cat Returns. Without ruining it for you, because you really need to see it, I’ll just tell you that one of the characters is an ENORMOUS cat named Mootah. Somehow, overtime, we have come to call our own huge sweet cat Squirt by the nickname Mootah, a very fitting name for him. And somewhere along the way, I decided Ollie needed a stuffed toy Mootah of his own. Please, please keep in mind that I am not a seamstress and that this is a knitting and collage art blog. Nonetheless, I’m going to show you a picture of my little Mootah, who I have had to pry out of Ollie’s sleeping hands for purposes of photography.

Isn’t he cute playing in my spice cabinet? What a guy.

One last thing before bedtime. Earlier this week, I promised a picture of the baby socks I’m knitting out of my Poppy sock yarn. These are small baby socks, so they are a quick knit and I’m enjoying the way the yarn stripes.

I wish socks for big people would knit up as quickly!