First SP10 Contest for Robin's Group

When I joined SP10 I didn't know we'd have fun contests! I'm in Robin's group and our assignment is to answer this

Please post (on your blog) about your favorite yarn and your least favorite yarn (if you have one!) What have you made with it? Tell us about your experiences!

Hmm...this is a hard one. My favorite yarn is usually the one I'm knitting with at the time. Really. We all put so much time and effort into our knitting crafting that I hope we all love the yarn we are using. So, that said, I'd say my favorite yarn is Debbie Bliss Cashmerino. I'm using it for Cardigan for Arwen (almost finished) and simply love working with this yarn. It's soft, great stitch definition, and slight sheen.

Least favorite? 2 years ago I made 7 scarves for Christmas presents - out of eyelash yarn. At the time it was fun but.. I think I don't need to knit with that yarn anymore :-)

knitted, felted tote

Here's a tote I made for my Mom - I used the wonderful Baby's Got a Brand New Big Bag pattern but I made it a bit smaller. The yarn is Knit Picks "Wool of the Andes".

This is a great pattern. Fun and a quick knit.

book questions

I found this questionaire off the SP10 website in this member's blog http://hooknneedle.livejournal.com/ Since I haven't written about books before - and I'm a big reader - thought this would be a good post.

In the list of books below, bold the ones you’ve read, italicize the ones you want to read, cross out the ones you won’t touch with a ten-foot pole, put a cross (+) in front of the ones on your book shelf, and asterisk (*) the ones you’ve never heard of.
1. The Da Vinci Code (Dan Brown)
2. Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
3. To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
4. Gone With The Wind (Margaret Mitchell)
5. The Fellowship of the Ring (Tolkien)
6. The Two Towers (Tolkein)
7. The Return of the King (Tolkein)
8. Anne of Green Gables (L. M. Montgomery)
*9. Outlander (Diana Gabaldon)
10. A Fine Balance (Rohinton Mistry)
11. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Rowling)
12. Angels and Demons (Dan Brown)
13. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Rowling)
14. A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)
15. Memoirs of a Geisha
16. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (Rowling)
+17. Fall on Your Knees (Ann-Marie MacDonald)
*18. The Stand (Stephen King)
19. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban(Rowling)
20. Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte)
21. The Hobbit (Tolkein)
22. The Catcher in the Rye (J. D. Salinger)
23. Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)
24. The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)
+25. Life of Pi (Yann Martel)
26. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams)
27. Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte)
28. The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe (C. S. Lewis)
29. East of Eden (John Steinbeck)
30. Tuesdays with Morrie (Mitch Albom)
31. Dune (Frank Herbert)
32. The Notebook (Nicholas Sparks)
33. Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand)
34. 1984 (Orwell)
35. The Mists of Avalon (Marion Zimmer Bradley)
*36. The Pillars of the Earth (Ken Follett)
*37. The Power of One (Bryce Courtenay)
*38. I Know This Much is True (Wally Lamb)
39. The Red Tent (Anita Diamant)
*40. The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho)
41. The Clan of the Cave Bear (Jean M. Auel)
42. The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)
*43. Confessions of a Shopaholic (Sophie Kinsella)
44. The Five People You Meet In Heaven (Mitch Albom)
+45. Bible
+46. Anna Karenina (Tolstoy)
47. The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)
48. The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck)
49. The Promise (Chaim Potok)
50. She’s Come Undone (Wally Lamb)
51. The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
52. A Tale of Two Cities (Dickens)
*53. Ender’s Game (Orson Scott Card)
54. Great Expectations (Dickens)
55. The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald)
56. The Stone Angel (Margaret Laurence)
57. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Rowling)
58. The Thorn Birds (Colleen McCullough)
59. The Handmaid’s Tale (Margaret Atwood)
60. The Time Traveler’s Wife (Audrey Niffenegger)
61. Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)
62. The Fountainhead (Ayn Rand)
63. War and Peace (Tolstoy)
64. Interview with the Vampire (Anne Rice)
*65. Fifth Business (Robertson Davies)
66. One Hundred Years Of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
67. The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants (Ann Brashares)
68. Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)
69. Les Miserables (Hugo)
70. The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupery)
71. Bridget Jones’ Diary (Fielding)
*72. Love in the Time of Cholera (Marquez)
73. Shogun (James Clavell)
74. The English Patient (Michael Ondaatje)
75. The Secret Garden (Frances Hodgson Burnett)
*76. The Summer Tree (Guy Gavriel Kay)
77. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith)
78. The World According To Garp (John Irving)
*79. The Diviners (Margaret Laurence)
80. Charlotte’s Web (E.B. White)
*81. Not Wanted On the Voyage (Timothy Findley)
82. Of Mice And Men (Steinbeck)
83. Rebecca (Daphe DuMaurier)
*84. Wizard’s First Rule (Terry Goodkind)
85. Emma (Jane Austen)
86. Cold Mountain (Frazier)
87. Watership Down (Richard Adams)
87. Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)
88. The Stone Diaries (Carol Shields)
*89. Blindness (Jose Saramago)
*90. Kane and Abel (Jeffrey Archer)
*91. In The Skin Of A Lion (Ondaatje)
92. Lord of the Flies (William Golding)
93. The Good Earth (Pearl S. Buck)
94. The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)
95. The Bourne Identity (Robert Ludlum)
96. The Outsiders (S. E. Hinton)
97. White Oleander (Janet Fitch)
98. A Woman of Substance (Barbara Taylor Bradford)
99. The Celestine Prophecy (James Redfield)
100. Ulysses (James Joyce)

My knitted purse has arrived!

For the knitted purse swap II Chrissie (from Singapore) was my secret pal. She made me a wonderful purse that I've just received. Take a look here for a picture. Jana

My Dye Studio

My dye studio
Originally uploaded by whiteoakstudio.

Here is one area of my dye studio - I have a wonderful view of our enormous white oak out of my window, thus the name White Oak Studio. Hopefully the next photo you see will show it more organized and fully stocked with supplies! I put in several orders today and have one more large one to do with a new supplier.

The drying area is to the left of the photo, and I can also take the yarn out the door (to the left) when the weather is dry and warm.

Click here to view some of the colorways I am designing.

March Color Swap - Green

For the March colorswap I'm sending to Chris whose blog is www.mama-murphy.blogspot.com and I'm receiving from Sonya - www.intheskeinofthings.blogspot.com

I love green so this will be a fun swap! And we're really having wonderful spring weather here in NC already, so I'm in the mood for springtime colors.

yarn dyeing success!

yarn0307 004
Originally uploaded by whiteoakstudio.

Spent the week working on dyeing every night. I'm surprised I had that much time available... I doubt that will happen often! For the most part, I expect to spend the weekends on it.

gifts for me

On Saturday morning, I discovered a box on my porch, just for me! Cheryl is my February Color Swap 2007 pal and she really spoiled me! This month's theme is Brown and Tan and here's what she sent me:

- 2 skeins Lorna's Laces shepherd sock yarn in a blue/tan colorway, so soft!
- 2 balls Regia sock yarn, grey tweed, gorgeous
- 3 balls Daletta sock yarn, tan
- Hershey's kisses lipgloss and keychain - :-)
- Milk chocolate bar (gone already)
- a cute brown monkey stuffed animal
- Milk chocolate Lindor truffles YUM!
- interesting, DELUXE needle holder from KnitCare
- Circle of Friends sock pattern
- clover needles and holder
- Eucalan woolwash
- brown measuring spoons

Isn't my treasure wonderful? Thank you Cheryl!

Yosemite

This photo is from Oct 2005 when our family was fortunate enough to visit Yosemite for a few days. We love to hike and ride bike on our travels. It's a great way to get up close and personal with nature. I took this photo of my son and husband.

Secret Pal 10 Questionaire

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like? I love cotton/wool blends and have started to use smaller and smaller guage yarn. I haven't tried wool/tencel yet but would like to. It's hot here in NC and heavy wool it too warm. I've been craving sock yarn lately. I have stopped liking fuzzy/novelty yarns.
2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? They are disorganized - in my knitting basket.
3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced? I'd say I'm intermediate, but there is not much that I won't try if I get interested.
4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? Yes, amazon under "white oak studio"
5. What's your favorite scent? oh, I love so many. Right now I love sandalwood, citrus, eucalyptus. I love soaps, lotions, candles...
6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy? yes, I love hot tamales and junior mints. Tootsie rolls, milky way, and on and on... you really can't go wrong here
7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin? No I don't spin - I dye fabric and create art quilts (fabric collages). I make jewelry and polymer clay beads and buttons.
8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD) I can play mp3s but still like getting regular cds. I love country music and jazz right now. Celtic is great and other new age is good for yoga background.
9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand? I love color - strong, bold and lots of it. Red is my fave. Love lime and avocado greens. Love unusual, interesting color combinations. Don't like pastels.
10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? I live with my husband of 26 years and my 12 year old son. And our beloved black lab. I work fulltime as a computer scientist/software developer.
11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos? Not so much since it's warm here in NC. I do love vests and summer knits, even sleeveless. And socks.
12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? Sweaters, socks
13. What are you knitting right now? Socks
14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts? Sure
15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? Bamboo, circ
16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift? Just ordered a swift.
17. How old is your oldest UFO? 20 years. I started a sweater in 1986 when I was living in Germany. Can't bear to part with the yarn or the pattern which is in German.
18. What is your favorite holiday? Halloween, because of the autumn weather and it's 2 days before my birthday.
19. Is there anything that you collect? Yarn. In general, have too much stuff in my house already so try to buy things that can be used up.
20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have? No knit mag subscrip yet, but buy all the Interweave so I should subscribe. Would love multi-color koigu sock yarn. Colinette looks great too. Love all debbie bliss yarns. Would love a sock book, don't have one yet.
21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn? knitting two socks at the same time on one circular needle!!
22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements? Uh, not sure how to measure since I'm fairly new to sock knitting. I wear ladies' size 9 or 9.5 Will have to figure out how to measure. I have a high instep.
23. When is your birthday? Nov 2, 1959 - I'm still 47!!!

Color swap goodie bag is in the mail

Whew - I packed my Color Swap goodie bag for my swap partner and it's in the mail. It was fun, except that finding brown and tan items was too challenging to me. Next month is green and that will be even more fun.

now a sock knitter

I never understood the obsession with sock knitting until recently. I used to read knitting blogs and when I'd see all these photos of people's feet I'd think - why do these people want to show off their FEET? Feet are NOT attractive.

Well now I understand the sock knitting craze. It makes perfect sense. The wonderful yarn is what drew me in.

Much more interesting than a scarf and much less expensive than a sweater. Perfect.

Crazy quilt on tour

Early in January 2006 I was suddenly struck with a desire to create a crazy quilt. I had already done scrapbooking and stamping so taking those ideas and applying them to cloth seemed natural to me. I discovered an art quilt group that was located nearby and their deadline for an upcoming exhibit was exactly the motivation I needed to finish the creation. This is a closeup of a portion of the quilt. This quilt is named "Mary's Garden" after my grandmother, and it is on tour with this show PAQA-South ARTQUILTSimages.

I love to shop

Well I'm hot on the trail of some wonderful surprises for my Color Swap pal and my Knitted Purse Swap pal. I am a serious shopper - really. After I had spent an hour at T.J. Maxx once, digging through the piles of clothes looking for the magic red clearance tags, I sighed loudly and said to the well-dressed woman next to me "Why do I do this? It's hard work!". With a straight face, she wisely answered "It's a sport.". So true.

I have to admit I'm finding it harder than I expected to decide on my swap gifts. I want to give something that's "just right". But I am enjoying the process and am glad that we have deadlines to make our decisions.

One of my husband's businesses is a packaging/shipping store so he'll be in charge of shipping my gifts when they are ready. I love delegating.

And today I made a big yarn purchase for me. I've decided to learn how to knit socks. I've been seeing hand-dyed sock yarn around that is just pulling me in. I've ordered Monarch sock yarn from Angora Valley after seeing some bloggers post about their purchases. Of course I had to order 3 skeins so now I'm committed!

On the top left is one of my art quilts made with my hand-dyed cotton. This one is titled "Color Study 2" and it's about 18inches wide and 5 feet high. It was in a show at a local art center for the month of October 2006.

Happy shopping!

The Ascension

This is one of my art quilts; it measures about 50x80 inches. During January and Feb of 2006 I started collecting batiks in the red/orange/yellow color range. Since I was making the quilt during the time between Easter and Christ's Ascension, I was inspired by my devotions to symbolize the ascension with the colors fading at the top. The red lines depict the blood shed and the black lines symbolize how the ascension conquers death for all who believe. The quilting does not show in the picture but this was my first attempt to do machine quilting with my old Kenmore. The thread is a luscious variegated red/orange.

Art quilting is simply an original (no pattern) quilt of any size, usually to be used as a wall hanging.

knitted purse swap 2

knitted purse swap 2 questions
1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? I like merino wool or cotton blends the best - wool/cotton, silk/cotton, etc. I do love to knit with wool but NC is warm so I don't wear heavy wool sweaters. Lately I prefer good stitch definition so have been knitting with solid colors. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like? acrylic, nylon, or extremely "fuzzy"
2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? I have a plastic case for knitting needles, but it's full.
3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced? I learned before I was 10, from my mom I think. But I've been actively knitting on and off for only about 5 years. I'd say I'm intermediate and teach myself by looking at good reference books.
4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? yes, amazon under the name "White Oak Studio"
5. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products, etc.) Oh I love lots of scents - right now I really like citrus, orange, etc. I also love eucalyptus, sandalwood, and jasmine.
6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy? Chocolate covered caramels, Junior Mints, Hot Tamales and Cinnamon Jelly Bellies... mmmm Dots, Milky Way
7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin? No I don't spin (I don't need another hobby, my closets are full!!) I dye my own cloth and make art quilts (improvised quilts for wall hangings). I make jewelry and beads and buttons. I also do oil painting, sometimes outside.
8. What's your favorite color(s)? deep jewel tones. RED is my fav., alone or red and white or red and black. I also love lime green (alone or with black or purple) I love stripes or polka-dots. Earthy colors are great too. Any colors you just can't stand? Hmm, can't think of any. Maybe real neon colors and pastels.
9. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? I've been married for 26 years to a wonderful man and we have one amazing son who is 12. Our black lab is also an important member of the family - she is an indoor dog.
10. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? Right now - sweaters.
11. What are you knitting right now? Totes, Cardigan for Arwen and Nantucket Jacket from Interweave. And chemo cap for a friend. I've been eyeing sock "how-to"s lately so that probably means that will be my new obsession!
12. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? I love bamboo and I'll use circular but only when required.
13. Is there anything that you collect? no, not really. yarn. easy, easy recipes. beautiful table napkins (to use).

Color Swap 2007 Questionaire

1. Are you a yarn snob (do you prefer high-end/natural fibers)? Do you avoid Red Heart and Lion Brand? Or is it all the same to you? I usually prefer natural fibers. I do use Lion brand for scarves and totes. Knitters put so many hours into their creations that I think we should knit with the best and most beautiful materials we can afford.
2. Do you spin? Crochet? No and no
3. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? I'm always deep into something. I rotate among knitting, oil and acrylic painting (landscapes, floral, still life), dying fabric, and art quilting. I am trying to focus more and so I'm in the process of selling and giving away my stamping, scrapbooking, beads, and polymer clay supplies.
4. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? There are so many great yarns available! I love Debbie Bliss and Rowan. Right now my favorite yarn is Debbie Bliss Cashmerino. I also love cotton and cotton blends and want to try Rowan Wool Cotton soon. I've been eyeing Noro. (added 3/1/07 - Hand-painted sock yarn is now one of my obsessions).
5. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like? I usually don't like acrylic or metallics. I've also gotten away from using eyelash yarn and bulky yarn.
6. What is/are your current knitting obsession/s? Knitalongs and swaps!
7. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? Sweaters (and socks (added 3/1/07))
8. What are you knitting right now? A tote.
9. Are you a sock knitter? Not yet but I hope to try this soon (update: started knitting socks feb07).
10. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Are there any colors you hate? I prefer jewel-tone colors, deep rich colors. I love red. Black and white is so classic. I'm also liking lime green, grey-green, avocado green, teal right now. I usually do not like pastel colors much - or neon colors.
11. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? Yes, Amazon under "White Oak Studio"
12. Do you have any allergies? (smoke, pets, fibers, perfume, etc.) No.
13. Do you have any religious prohibitions or restrictions? I'm a follower of Jesus Christ. No dietary restrictions.
14. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.) I love citrus, eucalyptus, and jasmine. Right now my favorite is Eucalyptus Spearmint from Bath&Body Works. I love their entire line of aromatherapy products.
15. Do you burn candles? Yes, often.
16. Do you have a sweet or salt tooth? Probably more salt than sweet, although I love both.
17. Do you drink coffee, tea or cocoa? I love strong, black coffee. And hot cocoa too. I love Starbucks lattes!
18. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? I've been married 25 years and we have a 12 year old son. I like to joke and say I'm in my second marriage since we were married 13 years before having a child - so the "first" marriage is very different than the "second" :-) !! We also have a very loving black labrador retriever who has the run of the house.
19. What are some of your favorite things? Mountains, hiking, biking, singing at church, watching tv (I admit it), reading in bed, books, music, traveling (I've been to most of the national parks)
20. Is there anything that you collect? I've grown weary of having so much "stuff" so I'm not collecting anymore; I'm actually purging. Now I like to get and give beautiful things that are useable, wearable, eatable or consumable in some way.
21. What is your favorite holiday? Halloween, only because I love the autumn weather.
22. What is your birthday? (You don't have to tell the year) November 2, 1959 - I'm 47 years old! YIKES.

Stash

I bought this Knit Picks "Wool of the Andes" a couple of months ago and intended to knit a fair isle sweater with it. I love the color combination. But now I'm concerned the sweater will be too hot to wear in our Southern climate, so I'm using the yarn for a striped knitted tote. If it turns out well, it will be a gift for someone. I might have enough yarn for two totes.

This "Garter Cardi" is from the "Big Fish, Little Fish" book. I'm knitting the adult version in Lamb's Pride worsted. I love how the simple garter stitch borders set off the stst. This is the first time I've knitted buttonholes. I'm working on the sleeves now - almost finished with the first sleeve.

This is the left front of Cardigan for Arwen. I had to rip it out twice before I got the hang of the cables. Isn't the sheen from the Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran yarn amazing?