I think I’ll journey out some day to wondrous lands afar,
Or even chart a journey to a distant blazing star.
But rest assured that when my journey begs to take its cue,
Always know that when I go, this journey takes you too...
And in the winding route, this journey's bound to bide content,
But most of all take heed - let's make our journey life's event.



from JOURNEY TO BE, by Mark Slaughter

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Back to School, and Busier than Ever!

School started at the end of August, and I am truly enjoying my team of teachers and students in my 30th year of being an educator! It has been a very busy start to the new school year, but things are starting to settle down and fall into a new routine. The knitting, spinning, and sewing have been on hold for a while, but schoolwork has to come first. Now that it is becoming more manageable, I am able to start to dabble in some projects in all three areas.

I am designing a sock pattern to use with the new Blackthorn double pointed knitting needles. I found them online last spring and ordered a pair. They are quite unique, as they are made from the same polycarbonate materials as stealth bombers and NASCAR racer cars! They feel great in my hands and I love to knit with them. The pattern is called "Under the Radar" and it has a flight pattern in lace (or not in lace) moving up and down the front of the sock. I have been working on it for a long time, and I'm anxious to get it done. The pattern will be listed for sale when I am finished and the sock I am knitting is properly photographed.

Under the Radar
 This summer, I also designed and produced  "Love to Create" small project bags for knitters, crocheters, stitchers, and any other crafters wanting something portable for small projects. They aren't just for crafts, I've discovered. My niece, the ballet dancer, carries her sewing kit and toe shoe supplies in hers, and her younger sister carries her collection of small dolls in hers! They are selling in a yarn shop south of me, and another yarn shop about an hour away would like to carry them as well. Also, 20 of the bags are going to NEW YORK CITY to be sold at the Vogue Knitting Show at the end of January! I'm very excited about all of this, and the bags are really fun for me to make.  The little heart closure and the batik fabrics are their trademarks.


Summer Plums
One of my bags went to Ireland, too! A lady bought it for her trip and, of course, it was an all-green one (not pictured here) from my Pacific Northwest Collection. I bought fabric from two stores in Oregon during my visit in July, and I named all the bags I created with names of locations in Oregon. It was really enjoyable creating those bags, and I loved the challenge of naming them. It was truly fun having my sister there to help pick them out. She even has one named after her...Fleur Chantal. And the sweet part is that one of her best friends bought it from me!

Spinning hasn't happened much, but I do have one lovely, fuzzy skein of yarn that I spun a little of because I couldn't wait to see how it looked in yarn. I LOVE it and am anxious to spin the rest! It is roving from Homestead Wool and Gift Farm in Wisconsin, and the fiber is Romney wool, from a sheep named Annie, blended with cria, the first shearing from a baby alpaca. SOOOOO soft and silky and fuzzy!


Busy, busy, busy! I enjoy the busyness, though.