tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9539468972259993782024-03-05T13:58:11.219-08:00The Magic Yarn BallNici goes on and on about knitting with a few, less fiber filled entries stuffed in.JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.comBlogger118125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-66774850687440486262017-07-24T22:34:00.001-07:002017-07-24T22:34:38.484-07:00I can't KALI love the idea of a good KAL. Of getting together at Knit Night and working on the same project with others; of helping pick out colors; of seeing the progress from each person. And ultimately being jealous of the one person that has unlimited hours to knit, while I'm stuck at work.
I love the idea of KAL's. In practice however, I suck at them.
I participated in a shawl KAL when I first JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-5887616354209823222017-07-07T10:26:00.000-07:002017-07-07T10:26:19.459-07:00Of projects and knitting mojo
November would mark the 3 year hiatus of this blog. Three years! How does that happen? I wish I could update this blog with something exciting, but it's still the same old stuff here. Work, home, garden, knit, repeat.
Work is work, my garden is doing horribly this year, and my knitting is at a bit of a stand still, because I just don't have any knitting Mojo.
But speaking of knitting Mojo,JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-35821178321311704162014-11-02T21:58:00.002-08:002014-11-04T10:38:14.865-08:00It's so itchyI have an itch. A terrible, horrible itch. And no matter, not matter how much I scratch it, it won't go away.
I have an itch to knit baby things.
I don't know where this itch came from. It hit me about a month ago, and it won't go away! I want to knit tiny baby socks, and little baby cardigans, and small little baby toys that will be grabbed by tiny baby hands. And the worst JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-30841356878084191072014-11-02T21:41:00.001-08:002014-11-04T10:38:36.103-08:00Oh hey, this is still here!Imagine my surprise when I flipped through my bookmarks today and saw this thing! Like finding a journal from high school tucked under your bed; just not nearly as painful to read through.
When I last left you I was a knitting college student. Now I'm a knitting paralegal. I finished college and am employed at the law firm where I did my internship. It's a great firm to work for, and I JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-13033035772403315042014-01-30T14:57:00.002-08:002014-01-30T14:57:40.009-08:00Hello, my name is Nici and I'm a liarRemember how I said I would update this more frequently? And you guys would actually hear from me more then quarterly? And remember how posting tutorials might be my thing, so I have to write to you guys? Remember all that?
Yeah....sorry.
I partly blame the fact that there is nothing exciting going on in my life. At least nothing that I feel I should write about excessively. For the most partJellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-63420387870780802632013-11-12T19:51:00.002-08:002013-11-12T19:51:37.090-08:00Tutorial and...update? Seriously, I swear. I just haven't had much desire to do a whole lot of blogging lately, to be honest with you lovely people. And honestly, not a whole lot has gone on around here that would require a update.
I've mostly been concentrating on school work these past couple of months (read, I've been thinking about concentrating on school work but instead sit on you tube for hours before JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-29037789616740696442013-07-21T13:29:00.002-07:002013-07-21T13:30:17.236-07:00Finally cott-onAlright, so as plays-on-words go, this one might not be the best. But I tried, okay?
It's time for the Tour de Fleece again, and this time I'm sorta participating. In a nutshell, the Tour de Fleece is a challenge given to spinners all over the place to spin some yarn every day that the Tour de France happens. They spin bicycle wheels, we spin spinning wheels.
You can join a "team" or start your JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-50764139730884528342013-04-25T20:52:00.000-07:002013-05-27T18:31:35.660-07:00What the Early Learning Center has taught me...During spring quarter I'm working at the Early Learning Center on the TCC campus as part of work study. It's basically a day care center while parents go to classes. Here is what I've learned so far:
1) Children apparently run on ranch dressing.
2) 2-3 year old's have an amazing imagination
3) 2-3 year old's suck at following directions when there is more then one child within a one mile radiusJellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-34029167384303797322013-03-04T15:22:00.000-08:002013-03-10T20:37:56.836-07:00And now I'm sore
View of the mountain
from the car
I went hiking with a friend this past Sunday. He's always wanted to go, I had nothing else planned, so we packed some snacks, drove to the location and then hiked 1.9 miles to the top of this mountain. It was amazing.
The trail we were on is well known and there were a ton of people going up the mountain as well as coming down from it. The trail goes backJellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-48367930951011216122013-02-16T02:13:00.000-08:002013-02-16T02:13:23.261-08:00Madrona! (and blog pimping)
Madrona comes once every year to the Tacoma area, and Mom and I have made a point to go every year. It's only 20 minutes away via bus, so now that we know about it, it would be ridiculous not to go.
We usually just go for the market place, where all kinds of venders offer their yarns and rovings. I love it because most of the time there will be one or two people that own the animals so not JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-56470595283059268942013-02-05T15:44:00.002-08:002013-02-06T12:49:38.237-08:00Dyeing to spin
Nuked Masham
Nuked Merino
I decided to dye some roving today. So as soon as I got home I pulled my stash bin out from the closet and pulled my Masham and Merino wools out.
Fear of ruined counter tops or floor had banished me to the car port during the summer, but with family members still asleep I crafted myself a little work station in the laundry room. I put my jersey-rug down on JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-27681654417034696302013-02-05T12:36:00.002-08:002013-02-05T12:36:27.725-08:00Back to Basics
Drop spindle, white Corriedale
Sometimes, it's nice to get back to the basics.
Even though Buggy has a lovely chocolate brown Corriedale on its bobbin, I decided to work on a drop spindle project for a little bit.
I started this for the Ravelenic Games back in July, thinking I might actually finish it within those 2 weeks...on top of the 5 knitting projects I had picked out. Hahahaha, yeah JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-90715549837344306192013-02-01T16:43:00.001-08:002013-02-01T16:43:36.024-08:00MinecrackMy BIL purchased a game on the xBox 360 called Minecraft. It came out first for the computer, and I watched a few videos about it online. It looked incredibly boring. Your character pops into a world with nothing on him, and you have no tutorial that tells you what to do (a bit like a metaphor for life I suppose).
DH convinced me to play it with him, and after my initial "this is stupid" JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-45724754715439926342013-02-01T15:54:00.001-08:002013-02-01T15:54:57.358-08:00Oh come on!While I sat in the school library today, arguing with a school laptop, I glanced up and saw a girl sitting across the way, moving her hands in a very familiar rhythm. Even though her backpack was in the way (out of which hung a bright pink strand of yarn), and she was sitting at an angle to me, it was easy to see that she was making a hooking motion with her right hand. In her lap was a mass of JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-57919023025900085452013-01-15T14:53:00.003-08:002013-01-16T13:31:11.103-08:00Thoughts of a designerThe ground was covered in frost, crunching softly underfoot. Frozen puddles blended in with the walkways, making them hard to see and dangerous. The morning air bit at fingers and noses; breath came out in puffs. The coffee in my cup had been brewed a while ago. The splash of half and half the barista had added wasn't enough to mask the bitter taste of coffee left standing too long. But at eight JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-15270532240102325572013-01-09T21:36:00.000-08:002013-01-09T21:36:03.759-08:00Imma be a teacher! I went on a mini job hunt the other day, stopping by all the local businesses I frequent to see if they were needing any help. So far nothing. Then again I shouldn't have expected any different since the holidays just wrapped up, so a lot of places are letting their seasonal employees go. But when I stopped by my LYS (local yarn shop) I was told that she does need some instructors. So after a lotJellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-47183590465180582222013-01-04T19:02:00.000-08:002013-01-04T19:02:24.686-08:00No-Years ResolutionsEvery first of the year I make resolutions; work out more, eat healthier, drink less, make more friends (I hate people so that usually doesn't pan out), be an overall better person.
This year I didn't. I did not make a single resolution. I never keep them anyways, so why the hell bother? And so far, I'm doing better at my no-years resolutions then I do any other year.
For example, today was the JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-45041488986898948062012-12-28T16:21:00.002-08:002012-12-28T16:22:43.026-08:00Damn...you're all still hereSo the world didn't end on the 21st. I wonder how many people crawled out of their underground bunkers on the 22nd only to realize that they are now in major debt. Poor bastards. My sister and I in the meantime spent the "end of the world" playing Skyrim; a ridiculously addictive fantasy video game where you have special powers that let you absorb the souls of dragons.What I especially like aboutJellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-85581895063723295132012-11-08T18:06:00.001-08:002012-11-08T18:11:09.281-08:00Le spinning updateHonestly though, it's more of Le-I'm-bored-and-need-something-to-do-while-the-alpaca-washes post. But that's a long title.
I got a surprise day off from work today, and spend the majority of it doing absolutely nothing. Didn't even bother calling my future college to check on something. Whoops. I can always do it tomorrow. Might make the husband take me up to the school to find some stuff out...JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-40640821285425702632012-10-13T21:41:00.004-07:002012-11-08T18:07:55.275-08:00What's with all the lace?I can't spin anything other then lace. Seriously.
It takes real effort to make a fingering weight single now. And you know what? It sucks.
BFL challenge
It started as a personal challenge with my spindles: How thin can I draft out before the weight of the spindle will be too much. Turn out, with the BFL (blue face leister) that I used, pretty darn thin. I made a 3 ply lace out of the first JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-33888353434544950042012-09-28T20:52:00.002-07:002013-02-10T21:41:11.718-08:00How far I've comeMy first attempt at spinning was a disaster.
It all started when one of the ladies from my old knitting group schlepped her folding spinning wheel to the group. Mind you, we met on Thursday evenings in the cafe portion of a Barnes&Noble book store at the time. And if we weren't strange enough already to other patrons, playing with our sticks and yarn, we certainly became strange then. But JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-32375735855138272072012-09-24T10:42:00.002-07:002012-11-08T18:10:35.540-08:00The Oregon FailYesterday my Mom, sister, sisters friend, and I made a little road trip down to Oregon for the Flock and Fiber Festival. We were going to pick up my Schacht Ladybug wheel. I was so excited that the night before I was contemplating going to bed at 8pm just so that Saturday would come sooner. Instead I made it all the way until 10pm. xD But I digress.
A trip that should have taken 2.5 hours each JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-91141498427348650742012-09-06T16:26:00.000-07:002013-02-10T21:43:28.284-08:00A bag of skittles is more organized! Yesterday was the first day of school for most kids here in the state of Washington, so I took Thing 1 to school; it was her first day of kindergarten.
We arrived at 8:30, and hurried inside. A staff member directed us to the cafeteria, but since Thing 1 had already eaten at home I didn't see the point in sitting there so I asked the staff member if we could just go to the classroom. The lady JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-82788866765859642582012-09-02T15:05:00.003-07:002012-11-08T18:13:48.759-08:00Friggen pissin' me off....(and art yarn)Fastest way to loose me as a customer forever? Don't follow through with stuff.
As you guys may know I'm making payments on a spinning wheel. When the youngest of the two girls I watch, Thing 2, threw away my piece of paper where we'd been keeping track of our payments (I couldn't fault the 2yr old for wanting to help me with cleaning out my purse...who could get mad at a 2yr old holding a hand JellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-953946897225999378.post-2943129148556616452012-08-13T07:55:00.000-07:002012-08-13T07:55:13.729-07:00Sheldon the Tampurtle (and the Ravellenic results)I was knitting away furiously on Sheldon 2, trying to get him finished before the Ravellenic Games deadline of 3:59pm. It was already 1am but I was determined to finish as much as I could of the little bastard. I would NOT be defeated by a piece of knitting. I finished his body and though it would be a genius move if I put the eyes on before stuffing him (I realize that pattern also suggests thatJellybeanInchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14406763002514315933noreply@blogger.com0