Color Play

One of the assignments for Design was color theory. I had been watching the Tudors and made this little watercolor ATC and decided to do a large version for the class.

The original ATC


The sample of colors



My choice (it came out ok)



Kingdom of Erie
I liked this one a lot. The sky came out rather nice.




This one was popular with friends, who seem to be Gator fans.
Kingdom of Gator

What I have been up to...

Some of the art for my Design Class

Sigh...vacation is over

For the past two weeks, I have had a rare vacation usually if I take two weeks together I go somewhere. It has been nice basically catching up on things, doing some organizing and mainly knitting. I got my stash updated and loaded with pictures on Ravelry-a feat in itself.

But now back to the real world and school...I no wanna.

Well Damn...

Here I am knitting away the last few days of my vacation. Three scarves in 2 days not bad-2 presents 1 self. Doing good…then it comes. The email

50% off entire store. Seems one of the newer LYS is going out of business and well the entire store was 50% off. Now they carry the one yarn I love and most of that line-ROWAN. You can’t beat 50% off Rowan. So here is the damage…

Bagged:

Hello Yarn!

(Click for Bigger Images)

Now here is the really scary part I was only in there a bit over a half hour.

Adventures in Dyeing

In 2006, I took a class in yarn dyeing. The woman had been a fabric dyer for years and well as dyeing fiber for weaving. It was a wonderful class because I was the only student and what we did was play after all the instructional stuff.

I had brought in three skeins of Katia Ingenua to try to over dye. No one thought it would turn out the way it did. It was not rocket science either, we just skeined the yarn on a swift, tied it up, shoved it into a large zip lock and I dumped different colors of dye into them. It came really cool though.

Well, I was taking stash pictures for my Ravelry account (ID: Kamala) when I found them. So below is the original color and the new over dyed one.

Will you look at that.

I am still alive...I have been rather busy but we all say that.

Since I last posted, I have made what is turning into the yearly trip to the Isles-this time Ireland. More on that later (man you take over 1000 pics getting them ready takes along time). But in the mean time-knitting!

I got some of that ultra coshie goodness Malabrigo Merino. I only bought two skeins but I should be enough to do Shifting Sands.

While I was in Ireland, I started Clapotis again. And well, it is going to be really long. I had started the decrease rows and realized that I was no where near the end of the third ball. So I pulled back. I have four balls of this yarn and there will be no returning an unused ball to stash.

Couple days before Christmas, I got on this must make presents for next year. No one got any knitting gifts...actually I usually don't give handmade gifts for Christmas. But by golly that is changing this coming year. I found this yarn in my stash but not recorded (hmm how did that happen), I think it will make a nice scarf for one of the guys in the group or for a friend who is really into camo. It is the Mistake Rib pattern...very nice but man a yarn eater.

Also in my stash was was Microspun by Lion Brand. I had enough to do the body of Knitty's Mariposa, so with Joann coupons and mother in hand I picked up to purple ones for the trim.

Hello from the lost blogger...

Not only a post but a post with photos!

Imagine my surprise walking into Staples and discovering they are going to be carrying RollaBind Products. It is the same product as Circa byLevengers only no shipping. It hasn't come in on time but I can get some refill paper at least.

I picked up some other things including a Franklin planner that was on clearance. I really got it for the binder for myDIY Planner

]

One of the cutes things I picked up was this little notebook of graph paper.

On the knitting front:

WHAT THE HECK?!?!? NOOOOO!!!!

My Knit Picks needle separated from the cord. Lucky me, only 10 stitches went off and I had some watch glue to fix it at home. Good as new but still...

I was going through some old notebooks and found this. I have no clue what I was trying to design or when-some piece of jewelry.

The OMG Moment

This week I just started listening to the Stash and Burn Podcast, like Jenny and Nicole I decided to sit down and update my yarn stash spread sheet...well for the yarns I could find-since I have a bad habit of leaving them in bags and putting in strange places. Not that I am trying to hide them or anything I just tend to misplace things easily.

TOTAL YARDS: 111,388.5 yards.

OMG how did this happen...I have no will control when it comes to yarn. What is scary is that I can tell you what project I bought every skein for.

Anyone have a Bond knitting machine that they would like to go to a good home. I think I am going to need it.

Rita and Golden Heart

Congrats to all the finalists for both the Rita and Golden Heart!

Especially ROCKI!!!!!
She is a double RITA finalist for Best Novella!!!!

K

Guilty Pleasures

This week was a so so week for me. Not much writing going on (had a Brit Lit paper to write about Comparing 2 poems one from the Romantic era and the other Victorian). I did do some knitting though. I am working on this Laines Du Nord scarf and a pair of socks from VK. I also cast on for Pomatomus and for a felted purse.

My guilty pleasures for the week have included listen to Tokio Hotel, a German band, and Blood Ties on Lifetime.

Blood Ties are based on a series of books by Tanya Huff. The books were good but the show is 100x better. There is something about seeing these characters on the screen that captures me in a way the books were not able too. I hope Tanya will write in this world again. (Maybe I should try reading them again.)

Tokio Hotel is a boy band from Germany. I surprisingly remember enough German to understand what they are singing about and the songs are very good. Now they have recorded some of them in English but they loose something in the translation. Rette Mich and Spring Nicht are my favs by them.

Ahh Guilty Pleasures we all need them.

Yes, I am still alive

I have to admit I have not been doing much knitting of late. I do have reason:
A NOVEL
Well actually 2 novels are being worked on this year. My first is a futuristic paranormal (kind of) story. CSI meets something I have not quite figured out yet. But it has a vampire like society and touches of Jack the Ripper. I had started the story a while ago and have totally ripped (no pun intended) apart on the advice of a friend and have made some serious changes. So this is where we are now

13,556 / 100,000 (13.6%)

The second book is being plotted and I have a few scenes typed out. Plotting a story is becoming an interesting experience.

It is a Paranormal Romance set in Salem. Dresden Files meets CSI meets Anita Blake and Merry Gentry.

We have two murderers running around in a paranormal world.

1,800 / 100,000 (1.8%)

But yes some knitting is being done and some beading.

Day 1

We left for England on the 22nd. A direct flight from Tampa to Gatwick via British Airway. Flight was great-good food (color me surprised and service) plus they give you socks, a sleep mask and toothbrush and paste.

What was funny is that their movie recommends using a good moisturizer while in flight for your skin but doesn't tell you how to get it on the plane to use.

Security was tight. Tampa has the air poofers installed but only random people have to go through it, while we were there it was only men. I made it through without any problems and I was not the RANDOM passenger chosen. At the gate, I made sure my carry on would fit in the BA allowed carryon size. Question is never can I get it in the little box they have but can I get it out after cramming it in there- not a problem.

There was a sad moment, not for me but for the couple sitting next to me, they didn't speak any english but they had been over for several months visiting their daughter and granddaughter and were now returning to Albania. They had no clue what was going on and where they had to go both here in Tampa and at Gatwick. I took them under my wing and made sure they would make their connection at Gatwick and making it through the security check to get on the plane. Yes, even though we went through airport security their was another check before going on the plane. Something TIA is not really set up for but managed to pull it off without delaying the flight.

The only pictures are of some decorated manatees that I thought were cute. (Click to make larger)

Home...

Well, England was great but being home is just as nice.

I will post pictures in the next few days. I'm still trying to unpack.

SP8 HELLO KITTY!!!!

SP8 THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!

A box from Target.com came one August afternoon

Created quite a to do that day, everyone wondering what I had
ordered.

Me wondering- What did I order.

Then I opened it and YAH!!!! Hello Kitty.

Hello Kitty Bathroom coming soon...we are going to remodel the
bathroom early next year. So these are in the linen closet until then.

Life in Florida with JL

First Up the Jean Luc Update

Here are some pictures of JL as of a couple weeks ago. Right now

I am seaming everything. I thought I was taking him on my trip but he will be
too warm to wear.

Life in Florida

When I wake up most of the time it is raining. Too tired to take
a picture.

When I go home...you guessed it more rain...fancy that.

So much for the Sunshine State.


Driving home not too cloudy

Few moments later the clouds move in

Then
the world goes dark...

Then rain...rain and yet more rain but I guess not enough for this guy.

(It was pouring out when I took it. And it rained every day that week.)

Is it Friday Yet???

It is a count down to Friday. Friday when my flight leaves for London. I can't wait. I was there last year for two days while on a trip to Ireland. I wanted to go back and decided to this year.

I am going to do the things I wanted to last year but didn't have a chance to- the Ripper tour, the V & A, and the Tower of London. Plus I am going to Bath and the Peak District.

Another reason for my visit is to get the juices going for a series of books I want to write. A set of Regency romances and ideas of writing a Regency paranormal has been floating also.

There are no pictures because I got a new digital camera and have misplaced the disk needed for the computer....grrrr.