They aren't all the same color....

Or all the same pattern.  They are all shawls of varying shapes and sizes. All finished in the last six months.  And none of them are blocked, making them beautiful swathes of color that I can't wear.

These three are the ones in progress downstairs.

There are at least four more in progress upstairs.

Someday, I may get one of them properly finished.

Why yes....

I do like green.

And cartoons.   Does it show? ;-)

It's been a good day

New yarn came to stay with me:

The one on the bottom left is called Bat S**t Crazy, from Miss Babs (who has gorgeous yarn!). 
There's a bit of Malabrigo lace, in Hummingbird (single skein) and Emerald Blue.  There's a large lace shawl's worth of  Ultra Alpaca Fine in a stone gray.  The rest is for a colorwork blanket.  There is also knee length, long sleeved lace cardigan's worth of merino silk lace in emerald green on it's way.

I also got a bottle, with the sole reasoning being, "It's my birthday."

At some point, I may actually open it. ;-)

My kids made me cookies and pie.  My dad and step mother sent a stunning dress.  My grandmother sent some lovely jewelry (that matches the dress).  Tomorrow is the local Highland Games.

I am a happy person. :-D

Green growing things

In the run up to Yarn Tribble Breeding and Library Expansion Day* I thought I would post some of the lovelies growing in my yard, mainly as a counterpoint to the acquisition of things that only give a passing wave to practicality. :-)

There are cucumbers sprouting:

Beautiful smelling rose and gardenia blooms are starting to appear:

And the spearmint and chocolate mint plants are trying to fill the half a whiskey barrel they are in:

There are also cherry tomatoes, salad greens, and California poppies sprouting, another half barrel with French lavender, basil, oregano and thyme, four full size tomato plants(two different kinds), a couple of jalapeno plants, sage, and an aloe vera plant scattered about in pots of varying sizes.  Plus there are the nasturtiums and red geranium (that has purple coneflower sprouts in it) by the front door.  I was tempted to plant more, but realized I would run out of space before running out of things I wanted to plant.  I suppose this will do....for now.

*Previously known as my birthday. ;-)

We finally made it to Faire!

And it was still a bit cold as well as being incredibly windy the entire day.  Which is why we didn't really dress this year.  I was going to at least wear my lovely emerald and gold corset (I even finished a matching skirt), but proceeded to forget some of the lacings, so I just wore horns on my head (from a Faire many, many moons ago).

Boy wore one of his father's old shirts and a cloak that I made ages ago.  Girl decided to clip on some sparkly horns and call it good. (Boy is standing on a bit of tree root. He's really only about a head taller than Girl.)

 There were belly dancers.

 Feral fae folk in the trees.  He was being carted around on a lovely woman's shoulders later.

And acrobats!
I also did some shopping....there was a booth of a local farm with hand dyed fiber!  They had a goat! 

It's called "Fire Bender" and I had to have it!  Maybe I should practice my drafting, so I will be able to spin it properly. ;-)
I got my summer sandals at the Faire too, I just don't have pictures of them yet.  We also bought yummy scented candles, which were lit almost immediately following our return home, strawberry and spiced orange, oh my!  We ate fudge, turkey legs, steak on a stick and, in one instance, a chicken crepe. There was the obligatory, for me at least, chocolate dipped frozen banana.  I had a delicious glass of mead.  It was outstanding enough that I am now looking for places to buy it locally!
All in all, a very enjoyable way to support local endeavors!  Hopefully the weather will be better next year.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

This is on my front door:

I bought it at a Celtic fair years ago.  I adore it. :-D
This is for dinner:

There is also beer in the fridge, my pants are emerald green and I am wearing a Guinness tee shirt. It's a holiday I can celebrate with great flamboyance and minimal effort. ;-)

Little Happinesses

A few things that are helping me look forward to Spring while waiting for the weather to stabilize so I can play in the dirt properly to replace all the plants that repeated below freezing nights destroyed utterly.
Mead:

It's something we like to get in spring and early summer.  These have the added bonus of being beautifully colored as well.
A new gardening book:

I think the title alone explains why this one had to come home with me.
An addition to the decor:

Because I needed this pillow. 

Another hurdle jumped

So, a couple of weeks ago, my much abused dryer decided it had had enough.  I attempted to be good humored about it, even if it was in the middle of laundry day.  I hung things up to dry around the house; we aren't supposed to use clotheslines and clothes dry better when it doesn't keep randomly dropping below freezing.  Honestly, it was easier to deal with than when a washer goes, so I pressed on. 
Earlier this week, timing met luck, the stars aligned and my lovely new dryer was delivered this morning!

Husband hooked it all up this morning.  Tomorrow, we will listen to it make happy beepy noises as it tackles it's first laundry day!

Releasing the Inner Frizzle

I've given in.   I have succumbed to the style influence of...Ms. Frizzle.  Realizing how much happier I am with eccentric over elegant, these are the fabrics that came home with me for skirts made from the Zinnia pattern.

While being personally reticent to put myself forward, I have no qualms about wearing star ships and brightly colored mixed cocktails on my behind.  No, I don't understand it either.
Being of a practical mindset as well, I remembered to get fabric to make aprons to cover my flashy handmade attire.

Husband laughed when he saw how sedate, by comparison, the apron fabrics were to the skirt fabrics.  In great earnestness, I explained how I didn't want to clash.  He laughed more, shook his head and helped me get the bolts of fabric to the cutting table. :-)
As I wait for my skirt pattern to arrive, I will be making a black and gold Ren Faire skirt to match the corset I bought last year and cranking out yet another pattern from Doomsday Knits, Fatigued went on the needles yesterday. :-D

Happy International Half-Price Chocolate Day!

My husband read about the suggestion for an "International Half-Price Chocolate Day" this morning.  It was described as "a holiday we can all get behind".   I totally agree! So does Hubby.  This agreement led to a store run.

We now have enough chocolate to hold us till close to the Easter holiday, as they are not small boxes.

I also bought the first yarn of the year today.  We ran down to Yarnivore to wish Tammy well on her move and since we were there....I may have bought enough yarn to finish three tops and a pair of socks. :-)

My excuse for this lapse is that I need new warm weather clothing and shirts without sleeves knit up quickly.  As for the sock yarn...well it's MadTosh, whose colorways ensnare me every time and Wendy over at Knitter's Brewing has her Mystery Sock Knit Along going....really, I just wanted that sock yarn. ;-)

Glad that January is over

January brought a goodly amount of stress and worry.  I dealt with it as expected, I knit.  Wading through my piles of unfinished projects, (I still have not bought any yarn this year) I found a fairly simple lace and bead shawl three-quarters finished.  Now it is all finished.

It remains unblocked for now.  I promise it will be truly lovely once that happens though.
Technologica from Doomsday Knits, potentially with a pair of matching Apocketmitts, is also on the needles in a gorgeous red-plum merino/silk.  Here is the top paired with the bright teal cotton a-line skirt that is making slow progress as my current purse project.

I may have to break down and buy more yarn for the skirt, but as I'm not overly tall, I'm hoping I can manage with what I have already.
I leave you with yet more proof that I really do buy wine just for the label. ;-)