Fat Cat's Corner

September 7, 2011

Well Looky Here…

It’s a Blog Post. Huh.  Sorry it’s been a while. I’ve been posting a few things here and there on Facebook and Ravelry but nothing here because well, most of you are my FB Friends or Ravelry mates. And I guess I didn’t figure I had enough to make a whole post. Whatever that means.

Anyway we had a nice quiet Labor Day weekend here. With all the weekend wack jobs out on the lake and Tropical Storm Lee (which was supposed to dump 6 to 10 inches of rain on us, we got one) we didn’t make any big plans besides relaxing. We did a little cleaning and a little laundry and watched a whole lot of vintage Law & Order. 

The kitten & the dog shared a pillow.

Tina n Sparkie Labor Day 2011

 

Monday Night Knit Night was canceled due to the holiday and the LYS, Piddlin’ Patch was closed.  I decided to do some spinning. 

I’ve had this 8oz of green/orange Zombie Slaying,  Briar Rose Bluefaced Leicester Fiber (http://www.briarrosefibers.net/) for a little while now.

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It spun up very smooth.  I’m not sure if I’m going to ply them together or find a complimentry color and ply it with that.

Briar Rose BFL

I have to do something with it and the other 4 bobbins of fiber I have sitting around.  I’m down to one bobbin:)  I’m going to SAFF http://www.saffsite.org/ next month and I know I’ll be buying more spinning fiber!  I’ll need empty bobbins! LOL!

May 5, 2011

My Friends are Awesome!!

Come over to the Dark Side.  They have cookies!

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Thank you Zombie Prom Date Knitters.  Y’all are the BEST! 

January 21, 2011

Done and Done!

I had so much fun making these!  They were quick, easy, bright & cheery!  Perfect winter project.

MT's Blanket

MT's Blanket

BT's Blanket

BT's Blanket

 

I used stashed Caron Simply Soft Brites for wear, tear & washability.  I made them for the Middle and Baby Twerps of an amazing friend, CG.  You may remember this blanket I made last year for her daughter Eldest Twerp. 

ETs Blanket

ET's Blanket

ET loves it

ET likes it!

 Apparently her brothers like it so much they sneak into her room and ‘borrow’ it! 

Borrowed

So when Knit with Snot aka Holly  and the Zombie Prom Date Knitters started the Ripply Afghan Crochet A Long on Ravelry I was all in!  I had some yarn left over from ET’s blanket and I knew the boys liked the colors.  The Ripple Afghan whipped up really fast in double crochet.  (The free pattern uses single crochet and is available here.)  But I still had one boy left without a blanket and that would never do!  I wanted the blankets to be different so I started the Hexagon  (also free) Blanket.  The original pattern calls for changing colors every round of the Hexagon.   3346522854_76dc783870_z  

It’s a very pretty pattern but not very boy like.  I had started the blanket in it’s original form but wasn’t happy with it and didn’t know what to do about it.  Then ELPH suggested the solid colored Hexagons.  BRILLIANT!!

Now to get them delivered.  Not a problem.  I’ll load up the ELPH and the Sparkie dog and the blankets and hit the road, knowing that there will be Cupcake at the end of the trail!

November 3, 2010

ZPDK invades SC; Conclusion

Just some random photos from the weekend.

Ready to motor

Ready to Slay Zombies on Lake Keowee

  

Say 'YARN!'

Say 'YARN!'

 

Captain ELPH

Captain ELPH

 

She likes it! (Cat Daddy)

She likes it!

Assembling Fanty 2

Assembling "Fanty"

 

October 27, 2010

ZPDK invade SC: Part 2

Filed under: SAFF, ZPDK, zombie prom date knitters — Tags: , , — Linda @ 5:08 am

IMG_1776This is the Gift Basket the girls brought me.   A Spinsanity Spindle and Fiber by Em (check out their Etsy sitehttp://www.etsy.com/shop/Spinsanity)  Wool, cotton, sock yarn and an awesome hat pattern.  Guess I’ll have to learn to knit socks and use DPN’s :)

After a restful Friday we all piled into the ZPDK Bus and my neighbor Bev’s van and headed to Fletcher, NC.  Apparently there was a tractor show near-by as we were greeted by this…IMG_1722 It was pretty funny.  Guess ya had to be there.

We found a parking place, picked up a map and headed in.

Saff Arena 2010WOW! Over One Hundred vendors!  All selling yarn and hooks, yarn and needles, yarn and books, yarn and patterns, yarn and buttons, yarn and fiber, yarn and fleeces, yarn and hand made soap, yarn and beads, yarn and well you get it.

The place was loaded with beautiful fiber ……….

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accessories ………….

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and Alpaca Bean Coffee??

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Have you ever seen Alpaca Beans?   Yea. Don’t think I want to be pouring hot water over them and then drinking THAT! Eww.

We wandered and drooled and groped fiber for hours.  We brought home quite a haul.

IMG_1746Lots of spinning fiber and yarn of every color and Shannon bought a small loom!

Me? Oh I got some spinning fiber and a couple patterns and a shawl pin….

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Oh yea. And a spinning wheel:)

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Isn’t it beautiful?!  ELPH and Shannon put it together.   It’s a Kromski Fantasia.  My first wheel.  I’m too excited!

Stay tuned for the rest of the story…..

October 25, 2010

ZPDK invade SC!

Where to start?!  Goodness!  The ZPDK (Zombie Prom Date Knitter) Bus arrived safely on Thursday night and shortly there after gifts and wine were opened.

I put together Goodie Bags for the ladies so’s they wouldn’t for get me:)  They got cool ‘Resort’ drink Koozies designed by the ELPH…

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and felted skull keychains knitted by me:)

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and South Carolina T-Shirts

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Terry even brought ELPH a gift

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They brought me a lovely basket of yarn, patterns, fiber and a drop spindle but I didn’t take a photo:(  but I think Beth did:) 

The drinking continued into the wee hours of the morning (3am) and some of us were feeling a bit under the weather (MeTerryKim) but most of us managed to rally when ELPH offered to take us for a boat ride up to a pretty little waterfall.

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After returning home we we drove into town for lunch and a little retail therapy.  Then it was back to the house for Knitting & Crocheting and Spinning fiber (some of us drank some more) while Kim prepared the most wonderful meal.

Stay tuned for Saturdays trip to Fletcher, NC and all the details from the Southeastern Animal Fiber Fest!

October 11, 2010

ZPDK set to invade SC in TEN Days!

Zombie Prom Date Knitters
Zombie Prom Date Knitters

Eight of these Awesome Ladies will be arriving at my house TEN DAYS!  And I can not wait!!  See they just needed an excuse to come visit so I gave them one.  A good one!  The Southeastern Animal Fiber Fest will be in Fletcher, NC  the weekend of October 22nd.  And seeing as they graciously invited me up to Michigan for the Wonder Why Alpaca Farm spring herd shearing, the very least I could do was return the favor:)  They’ll be loading up the van and driving down middle of next week.  I am TOO EXCITED!!!!   

I’m not an over planner as plans tend to either change or get royally screwed up so I generally just “wing it”!  I do have a few things we can do/see incase we get bored:  I figure if the weather is nice a boat ride will be the order of the day.  My Ever Loving Patient Husband has graciously offered to pilot our Party Barge to the Tiki Hut or any other destination of our choosing:).  In any other free time not  talking, spinning, knitting, crocheting or drinking we can drive into town and explore historic Ram Cat Alley or  Oconee Station, tour the World of Energy  or visit the Lunney House Museum.  

On Saturday we drive up to Fletcher and spend the day groping fiber and having yarny orgasms:p   ELPH has even agreed that I can purchase a spinning wheel!!!  As long as it’s pretty:)  I figure with eight Fiber Friends I’ll have with me, I’ll bring home the prettiest wheel there:)

So if you happen to see bunch of women running wild through the streets trailing knitting needles & yarn wielding sharpened shovels, never fear!  The Zombie Prom Date Knitters are here! 

August 19, 2010

Dog Days

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It’s been awhile since I’ve posted.  Too hot.  Too humid.   The Lake is like bathwater. So not refreshing.  Blech.  

I’ve been trying to knit and just not feeling.  All I really want to do is lay around an watch TV with the A/C on.  But the dog gets me up off my ever growng backside every so often, just about the time I decide to settle in with my knitting.  It’s slow going.

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Bartina, the new kitten in town is giving me grey hair.  Yes, that’s her ASLEEP on the OUTSIDE of the deck railing!  I 011have to close my eyes and take a deep breath when I find her like this.  She is all kitten.  Ever playful and always getting into something.  

 

Literally.  

 

She thinks she’s a wild cat and my plants are her jungle.

 

  

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 Good thing Peace Lily’s aren’t poisonous and I’m not particularly attached to this one.

 

 

Ever since the Tour de Fleece I’ve been strongly resisting the urge to dive into the Spinning pool.  I have too many other things on the list that needs doing and completing.  BUT that doesn’t stop me from looking.  So when I spotted an ad on Craigslist for an antique spinning wheel for sale right here in town. ..OVER 100 YEAR OLD SPINNING WHEEL GREAT SHAPE( $200 bucks and no photo, hmmmm)  but I thought  ‘ it can’t hurt to look. It’s probably not even complete’.    Even IF I decide to purchase a wheel I’m SO not  looking for an antique wheel.   So before I went to look at the Craigslist wheel I called on my Zombie Prom Date Knitter’s for advice.  And boy oh boy did they have advice!   “If it has a great big wheel and no treadle you don’t want it” was the consensus.   This is what I found…

Walking Wheel014

This my friends is in fact an antique Walking Wheel.  And it is complete.  IMHO it is a beautiful show piece that should be used and displayed at a living museum somewhere.  I’d love to have it sitting in my living room but it’s a lot of money to spend on an item that I will not use.  Plus a $200 dust collecter doesn’t pass the worthy items ELPH test.  So I think I will continue to spin on my drop spindles, resist the wheel bug a little longer and take a couple for a test spin when I go to S.A.F.F. in October.

July 30, 2010

Fiber Friday

Filed under: Actual Knitting, Spinning, ZPDK, zombie prom date knitters — Linda @ 7:28 am

The Tour de Fleece is over and I’m ready to get back to knitting.  I enjoy spinning but I’m easily bored so spinning everyday for almost a month was a challenge in its self. 

I took this…

Knit Witch 100% Super Wash Merino

Knit Witch 100% Super Wash Merino

 and made this…

Drop Spindle Spun Two Ply

Drop Spindle Spun Two Ply

and I’m using it to make this  scarf…

Le Petite Echarpe

Le Petite Echarpe

 

 I think it’s going to look great!

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This post brought to you by Fiber Friday.  For more Fiber Art posts check out Wisdom Begins in Wonder

July 19, 2010

Tour de Fleece continues…

Filed under: Spinning, Tour de Fleece, ZPDK, zombie prom date knitters — Tags: — Linda @ 6:43 am

I’ve been a baaad blogger but a very devoted spinner!  I’ve spun every day they’ve ridden.

I’ve spun up some mystery fiber IMG_1151


IMG_1047Photo on 2010-07-04 at 22.24 #3

Photo on 2010-07-05 at 11.40 And some Gale’s Art

the lovely Briar Rose   IMG_1186

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and the first of the 3 different amazing Alpaca from Wonder Why Alpaca Farm.

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The difference between wool & alpaca for this first time spinner was…slippery!


But I’m still spinning singles read: I have’t tried plying yet.   So that is my challenge with this current roving.

This is The Knit Witch’s Essoterica hand dyed roving “Delusion”.

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It’s 4oz of 100% Superwash Merino.  If you’re into yarn, pottery or spinning fiber you would check out her website http://knitwitch.com.  She’s got some pretty cool stuff.

So I’m going to ply this one, meaning take two singles and spin them together to make a slightly heavier yarn.  And to do that I need equal amounts of fiber to spin the singles and the easiest way to do that without a scale it fold in half and cut!  It was kinda scary because I have no idea what I’m doing but ya gotta learn somehow.

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I think this project will involve a little ZPDK advice…WINE!  See when you spin singles yarn you spin it all in the same direction but when you PLY two (or more singles) together you spin in the opposite direction that you did the singles.  Confusing?  Not really but it helps if you don’t think about it too much, hence the wine:)

Wish me luck!

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