Tuesday Topics

or, what makes me happy! Here's a perfect example: three, count 'em three, skeins of Lotus Yarns in a gorgeous deep dark black cherry/black raspberry/chocolate colorway called Bloodflower. Enough to make a shawl.

Because, you know I buy sock yarn to make everything BUT socks!

This is sooooo soft and pretty, and I love love love the colorway. I totally heart Melanie's yarns!

Oh, and today I got my Yarn Pirate shipment, too. I will show it once I know that everyone has gotten it. Suffice to say, it's another Georgia original, and a totally cool colorway. I already know a couple of projects it will work well for!

Okay, this is one of those serendipitous finds. I made this little blanket many many moons ago.

As in, probably close to to 25 years ago. It's a cream-color wool blend, in a fairly large gauge, with lots of Aran patterning. I remember making two of these; one for a friend, and this one I think was meant to be a gift and just took too long. Anyway, D4 was on the hunt for another "artifact" and while she didn't find the christening dress, she did turn this up. This is going to go to Nate. It's been washed and is now drying, and I'll take it to him next time I'm over that way. I think there may be a few more surprises like this lurking in t he depths of the closets. Have I mentioned that this house is generously endowed with closets and cubbies? Well, it is.
There are other treasures as well. I decided to do a little bookshelf-clearing. I mean, who else would have 4, count 'em 4, bookcases in just the bedroom? With paperbacks double-decked on the shelves? So I started going through them, and just in a half hour or so came up with 8 grocery sacks full.
These came to quilt class with me tonight, and I sent all the quilters home with a sack of books. I decided that I was driving the "bookmobile" tonight! The majority of them went home with Anne, since her complex has a lending library and they can use infusions of "new-to-them" books.
The saddest thing is that you can't even tell, looking at my bookcases, that I've gone through and done this. Now, that is truly indicative of what a bookworm I am.

Or, as one of my knitting friends commented apropos of my stash buildup, moderation is not exactly one of my virtues.

Sigh.

Okay, for the flower lovers among you (and you know who you are, all one of you!) here are my mini-daffodils, having a grand burst of springy color in amongst the dry soil.
Yeah, today was one of those winter days I just loathe--over 80, hot, dry, windy, and so smoggy the mountains have disappeared again.
The snowdrops are adorable. I love the tiny green dots on the edges of the blossoms--so improbable!

And, if you keep scrolling, you'll find more yarny goodness.
This is not new yarn, I should make very clear. This is some previously-acquired Kid Silk Haze, in a series of colors that I thought would make wonderful Ice Queens. Of course, that meant matching up beads to the colors.

When a friend happened to mention t hat she had a craving for Carmine's pasta pesto (yum), I knew the chance had come. Carmine's happens to be right next door... RIGHT NEXT DOOR!-- to Bead Central, aka The San Gabriel Bead Co. Yes, they are in Arcadia; they were in San Gabriel before that, and didn't change the name when they moved. (They were in the adorably kitschy Clearman's Village complex, next door to A Quilter's Dream, but it was razed to make way for what is possible the world's most hideously ugly department store. And the parking there is a mess, too.) Anyway, I found these beads to complement the KSH: a nice silver-lined clear bead for the Kid Silk Night in pale grey; a pretty blue for the Heavenly KSH; and for the smoke, a lavender/amethyst kind of color. Both the yarn and the beads are less purple-y than they look in this picture.

Let's hope I like making Ice Queen. Yes, I know I have supplies for 3 of them. See previous comment about moderation in all things...and besides, I spent less than $10. for all 6 packets of beads. That was a lot of fun for a little expenditure, and they don't take up a lot of room in the stash. As soon as I finish the current spate of hats (Nottingham 2 down, halfway up the first half of The Very Warm Hat/Scott's Charlie Brown hat, still looking for yarn for Nottingham 3) I think I will treat myself to some beaded lace.

No quilty pics tonight; most of the projects were in that kind of indeterminate state where they would look like a lot of little pieces of cut-up fabric. That happens some nights!!