PippiKneeSocks.com

I’ve been sucked off the face of teh interwebs again.
It happens.
I’ve been bogged down with my list of things to do, just when I think I’m getting a grip on things… Some new and exciting things come into my realm. It forces me to juggle even faster.. The only danger with that, is the prospect of dropped balls increases.
Being the highly uncoordinated person I am, dropping balls is second nature. Organizational skilz would help.
This is what I’m up against: myself.

these are my notes.
This my friends, is a sad state of affairs.
Chicken scratch on construction paper.
Yup. It pretty much sums up the happenings around here.
I’m not moving forward until i get that little pile of papers written in such a manner that another human can read them. The fact that *I* am unable to decipher them, doesn’t help matters.
~
Moms has been here all week. And no matter how much a person is family; having people ‘visit’ throws me off my game.
I feel as if I should be entertaining, or at least engaging; instead of doing my work.
I have a bunch of sock yarn that I should be dyeing, at this very moment. But Bell’s open house is tonight, and going in with dyed hands would just make me feel, well, self conscious. (And, I don’t need any help in that department)

Chaos is really starting to erupt here.
But, I wanted to quickly mention the new (ok! not so new now) issue of knitty & knittyspin. The whole (4th BIRTHDAY) issue is busting at the seams with goodness. I feel like a doofus for not mentioning it earlier. (Plus, there is an article in knittyspin that I did with Amy Boogie.) Check it out; feedback is welcome (there is a link over on my sidebar as well).
~
Speaking of Amy Boogie; go over and wish her a ‘happy birthin day!’ The youngest Boogie Babe is one years old!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU BOTH! We love you!
♥

ARRR!

Ahoy, me hearties!
It’s Talk Like a Pirate Day!
I’ll be trying me bestest.
I’ll be wearing my pink pirate socks

not as cool as Boggie’s wicked skully socks. But, hey, it is the thought that counts, right? ARGH!

~& Just so this post isn’t void of fiber, here is something I finished a few days ago, but couldn’t grab a decent photo of…

272 yards
It reminds me of the yarn Josi used for a hat/scarf set in her upcoming book, In the Loop (F&W), 2007.
It is similar only in construction. One ply of a hand painted colorway, and one ply of a tinkle blend (hand dyed, hand cleaned, Montadale x Leicester)
I think it is destined to become some hats.

Al-ritey mates! I need to get the young (newly 5! ~yesterday!) wench ready for skool.
Happy TLaP day! Go have some rum for me!
ARRR!
♥

Taken in pretty much the same spot of my last Saturday Sky.
At about 1pm today, just before all the fog lifted.

Note the color change.

Today we had beautiful weather; I spent as much time as possible outside.
I went foraging for the last of the black berries. Sadly, it seems, our acres of berries are mostly all gone by & I only have 2 pints left of what had I put up earlier in the season.
I even did my spinning outside today.

I didn’t notice, until i was resizing the picture, that my fibers matched my Sheep Thrills mug. How auspicious is that?

This picture, I’m throwing in for Mike E… har.

He says Bernie is a pussy. I say, I like Bernie & he is way better than any of the other douche eaters out there. I do concur, that he has strayed from his previous socialist platforms, especially with this senate bid; (Hell, he is running as a demo! AYE!) But, I’d rather have Bernie in office than almost anyone else. Hell, I wish the entire House and Senate were filled with Bernies. Maybe we can clone him? That said, Mike, Martha has yet to run down my road naked singing “happy birthday” So there.
♥

To spite the universe and circumstances working against me today, I managed to update the shop. All kinds of new stuffs.

Now, I’ll take a little digression and ramble about said circumstances
Today Izabella didn’t have skool; this means her complaining about it every 5 minutes & both of the young causing chaos, for good measure..
I had pictures to take, sock yarn to wind, things to add to the data base. (which, of course i managed at least one screw up.)
And I was up against this. (Don’t let the sweet eyelashes fool you.)

Every time I break out the camera, one or the other jumps right in front of it.
It has been more chaotic here today, than it has been in a long time. Norma’s Double Motherwort tincture arrived this afternoon, and Not A Second Too Soon. I’m tellin ya, this stuff is worth more than gold. I took some, and immediately felt better. (hummm, that might have something to do with the vodka it is distilled with… ha.) But, now i have a cup of coffee sitting in front of me; even tho my brain is fried from the juggling today; my body is tired and my house is a mess (and, mother comes Monday, for Bell’s birthday. AYE!)
But, there is no rest for the wicked, as I’m about to fire up the dyepots for something I have promised for Scout

If I owe you email, please know I’m not ignoring. I seem to be behind, and I have this syndrome; If i don’t respond Right Away; they slip my mind… :0 (Sad, but true… My brain isn’t so good some days.)

♥

Lawd, it appears I even have less time for the computer now that I only have one kiddlet here with me during the day.
How can this be? Sad but true.
Today marks Bell’s last day of her first full week of pre-skool. She is really loving it. (I, on the other hand am having a Very Hard time adjusting to living by this imposed schedule…)
She insisted on having her picture taken in her new bad ass t-shirt from auntie Jessica

My baby; all growed up & hamming it up! (the picture is small but her shirt reads “Hello Kitty Forever”)

I have gotten a little spinning done too. (Very little, but very inspired)
My favorite yarn this week

Autumn Changes

• hand dyed mohair locks
• hand dyed tinkle
• hand dyed wool
• recycled silk sari
• 5 ply
• 14 yards
• 4 WPI
• 1.8 oz

Even Matt had nice things to say about it. (”That’s hotttt” lol.)

The mohair locks are very inspiring.

Purple lock eater

• hand dyed locks
• hand painted merino wool
• 2ply
• 10 yards
• 6 WPI
• 1.7 oz

Highly addictive, those locks, yes…I have some pink ones on the bobbin now.

In other highly addictive realms, I’ve been dipping into the recycled silk sari, since I was able to replenish the stash this past weekend.

Autumnal Mayhem

• hand dyed wool
• hand dyed tinkle
• recycled silk sari
• 2 ply
• 46 yards
• 7 WPI
• 3.5 oz

I am planning a wee update of Pippi tomorrow. If i can get my sock yarn hanked up, and some special batts made; that is.

I’d love to sit here and blog about how I love the colors this time of year; or how MG Tank and Mike e called the other night, as soon as i got home from my first ever PTA meeting. Saying that they had a stolen Caddy and were on their way up. (Talk about paradigm shift.. There was no way my feeble brain would have withstood going from a PTA meeting to hangin out with those two. NOPE. ~
Hopefully this weekend’s rain check still stands.)
Yes, I would love nothing better to go on and on about it all. But my son has other plans for me… That, much to my dismay, have nothing to do with me sitting at the computer.

♥

Yesterday, I scooted up to VTS&W. It was glorious, NO KIDS with me. I was almost suffering from a bit of shock, since, that is unheard of.
I had the pleasure of spending most of the day with Linda (& Peter, sometimes too). Walking around ogling the colors, admiring all of the beautiful hand work. And chatting. Great chatting! I got to meet a few bloggers in the flesh that I hadn’t before, Jessie, whom is far more beautiful than any of the pictures you have seen her post & her pal, Jessalu… Funny little thing, Jessie walked up to me and said, “I’d notice that feed bag anywhere” (my hemp courier bag)… which I found amusing; it wasn’t the flaming hair, Jessie? lol. (I think that is the advantage of having bright hair, you stand out in a crowd; easy to find or avoid.) I digress; I can’t wait to see what spindle you got!
By the end of the day, my bag was getting heavier and heavier. I’m not normally a shopper; but, I couldn’t help myself yesterday. Seeing all of the brightly colored locks, lovingly perched in baskets and bowls; the sea of color flooded me with desire, I was nearly left with no choice.
I picked up some mohair locks from High View Farm (Waterford, VT)

I’ve already washed a few handfuls and dyed them; I am anxiously anticipating them drying… I nearly was going to spin them damp. (I’ve got me some ideas.)
Some really lovely Alpaca from Snow Shoe Farm (Peacham, VT)

Very clean, and of course, so soft it should be criminal..
No plans on the horison for that delectable bag of fluff; but that is okay. It will make it’s place next to my angora from Woolybuns and bless the rest of my fiber stash with soft goodness.
Speaking of Chris, I had the pleasure of bumping into her a few times. She was teaching a felting workshop, and they stuffed her in an area half the size of my kitchen!! She and her participants were taking it in stride. Laughter and good vibes emanated from that corner.
One of my favorite acquisitions yesterday was this bumper sticker from Over East Farm

It will be making it’s way onto the back of the auto sometime soon, after it rains, as bumperstickers don’t like to cling to dirty cars.
& last but NOT least….ta-dum.

!!
Recycled silk sari from The Wool Peddler
Stephanie & her family are really lovley! (and she has a great muff pattern in the summer issue of knitty) I think from now on, I’ll be getting all of my sari from them, yes.
I already dove into the packages & made some batts

I couldn’t make my way up today to see Adrian (hope you made it!! and not to bingo!:)); as there was/is just too much to do here. I came home yesterday to find both the kids naked and covered from head to toe in marker, they also commingled all of the clean laundry with the dirty stinky clothes… This means, I have much laundry to do, as Bells needs clean clothes to go to skool (!!) tomorrow. AYE. Skool, I get butterflies every time I think about it.
Well, I should get off the computer, and do the things I need to do.
Hope everyone had a great weekend as well!!
♥

for those of you so inclined, the handspun yarn shop has been updated!

i’ve added 3 handspun bulky thick and thin singles
2 wonderful 2plys

and 2 arty/novel types

you can view everything in the shop using this link or you can see everything that is new.

~enjoy!

in other news, no skool today; if i have to hear any more whining about it, my head will explode. she had sooooooo much fun yesterday. horrah!

Aye! My baby is at skool!
I dropped her off a little bit ago, and so far, no phone calls telling me of disaster.
This was her right before we left.

My son, on the other hand; has been screaming at the top of his lungs …
“Buy-ah! Buy-ah!I want my Buy-ah! Where’s Buy-ah?!”
He was screaming and crying his little newly turned 3 (yesterday!!) head off for so long, he finally just passed out, and he is crying in his sleep. The poor dear. Maybe he will learn that this can be ‘our fun time’.. But for now, he is heartbroken. His partner in crime and grime is gone.
I’m hoping that I’ll be able to use some of this time, 4 days a week, to get some work done. But, I’m not too sure that is going to happen.
Speaking of work, I hope to get Pippi updated tomorrow.
As VTS&W is this weekend, and my wallet is barren.
Some of the things I have worked up for tomorrow, some awesome two ply.

The top one, the black, orange, gray and purpley number, All Hallow’s Eve was inspired by Stella and her broken camera.
The bottom one, Ripples being one ply of hand painted merino, in purple, lavender and brown & the other of a variegated brown, kettle dyed, domestic wool.
I’m pleased with them.
Hopefully, I’ll get my sock yarn hanked up too… Tho, I am not too hopeful.
And hopefully, things will start to settle down in these parts soon, and I can get back to updating on a regular basis again. This summer has just whooped my tookas.
♥