luxe

just wanted to let everyone know that i FINALLY updated luxe, i added all sorts of cool stuff AND have more coming to-morrow. i couldn’t take photos today because there was no sun whatsoever, but i have a ton of batts carded up that are crazy and a handful more handspun that rock! you hear me? so go over and snap up what is there before it is gone. gone. gone! forever! also, my order of sock yarn has been waylaid, i hope to get it monday or tuesday, so there WILL be more sock yarn in the shop soon. if there is a colorway you really love, let me know, but there are some gorgeous ones coming your way. i promise.

otherwise, lots of spinning today, lots of skeinwinding and tagging and computer stuff. i also cracked out my new circle scissors to make some tags and broke all 3 blades in 5 minutes. i was so pissed. so i need to go to the art supply again after i go to the post office and get more/get another tutorial in case i am just a dumbass. who knows?

yesterday i got to chitchat to 1/2 of the materialwhirled.com ladies, angela, the sweetest woman in the world. she is not old enough to be my mama…but, ok, how about an older sissy? please? be my sissy angela! she has this adorable rosy glow to her and i threatened to eat her cheeks. she seemed like she was used to that reaction. and her youngest son has the same glow and eyes and cheeks. so cute. kids aren’t into their cheeks getting eaten, i hear. also, ms. shannon, knitgrrl.com herself called me from the post office, told me to talk fast, as her phone was about to die, which was funny because mine was making the bizarre “i am dying” sound it likes to make, as well, and got my address and had to go. 20 seconds, max. ha! i think in her busy world, that is a long conversation.

in other news, holly, one of my best secret pal recipients is a granny! and she looks like a supermodel. crazy crazy stuff! and the baby is so cute. and i don’t even like babies. so everyone, go gawk at the baby and leave her tons of comments, cause grannies love that stuff, i hear.

did anyone watch the gilmore girls and see yo lo tengo and sonic youth, with their daughter who is the spitting image of thurston, skinny legs and all? although, he is the better looking of the two, i dunno if he makes such a good girl. i actually first read on holly’s blog about her loving the gilmore girls and i thought the show was more like 7th heaven kind of show, ironically enough, and man do i love it. lurve it, really. it is amazing to me how lorilei keeps everything inside. she never talks to anyone about anything. it drives me crazy. i think to myself…talk to suki…she is such a good friend, and instead…suffers in silence. just like her mom would. and i see my own mum so much in her mum. and me in her, i guess. a bit of cutting off the nose to spite the face. although my mom would do the same thing, the women in the family were prideful and stubborn. myself included.

oh, also, angela told me about this farm that she thought might be nearby me and i realized it is in indiana county, i think less than an hour away, so i am excited to go check it out sooner than later. very cool. there is one in punxatawny, as well, but it doesn’t seem very exciting to me. actually, there is another shop out that way, as well, that looks to have lots of stuff. i forgot about it until just now.

so if the weather is nice to-morrow, i will take photos and list the rest of the stuff. pray for me. it has been really dismal all day today.

we will leave for vacation next weekend, so there will be a week with no orders being shipped, so make sure if you need something that you order it soon. ok? ok.

here is a collage for collage thursday, it is one of 3 in the group…i am trying to figure out where to hang them…

smoooch!
n.

today….spin, span, spun. so relaxing. and! i spun thin. ish. and did some 2-ply yarns that look edible. downright edible. i spun up all the roving blends that i bought at sheep and wool, which look great, but i feel like i cheated and it isn’t mine. fun, though. really fun. and i used louet for the first time in a while for plying and remembered how much i love her. i am glad i didn’t sell her. she is a good wheel. i need to wind skeins and wash em and let them dry outside in the glorious sun. um!

i washed our sheepskin that sits on the crazy wicker amoeba chaise lounge that the cats love and lay on a lot in the summer and LICK LICK LICK, so needless to say it was matted and gross. i should have taken a photo. so carrie told me you can wash them (what?) duh! and i put it in the machine on delicate and then shook it out and fluffed it with my fingers and it looks gorgeous. although it shrunk i think. i put it outside to dry and the skin shrunk.

our neighbors put up a high fence, which is really cool. they have little kids and i think it is best that we have privacy and so do they. it is strange to see the fence though. i want to paint our side of it. i mean, it isn’t OUR side, obviously. still.

i am having problems getting my usual sock yarn, but it should come this week (i hope) it was backordered so i got something different in the meantime because i have orders to fill and an empty store. on the lines of sock yarn, i was looking for the socks that rock stuff for heather and i couldn’t find it…i found out from holly’s blog that someone bought all of it up and was selling it because they are a total piece of shite. who does that? people come from all over looking for specific hard to find things and then someone does that? i hope they were caught and kicked out. i don’t care about socks that rock, and after looking at their site think that i could make socks that rock even harder…really hard…so there! but still. it is shitey.

ms$w was overwhelming, as usual. i didn’t realize that there was a blogger meetup, and didn’t see that many people other than my materialwhirled peeps, which is plenty…believe me! it is so so so crowded and crazy and i get a bit freaked with huge crowds, heat, etc. the first night we got there, everyone went out for dinner and i was so exhausted that i just stayed at the hotel room. i always worry that people think i am antisocial, but i knew i wouldn’t be up to going to the show the next day. all this week i am super tired at really odd times. like 8 o’clock. although, i notice these days that i get super tired around 5 p, but perk back up after 9 usually. really convenient when i am still energetic in the wee hours, but exhausted at suppertime. i have been so tired lately that i haven’t been eating.

i was too tired to take photos today. i will take em and list new stuff to-morrow. i will do my very best. i want to do some plen aire drawing to-morrow. my neighbors have these gorgeous poppies, but put up the fence, so i may just stick to my backyard….and photos. i swear.

lastly, some really cute links i came across….
pipecleaner dance so cute! are you kidding? turn on the sound for it. not at work, though. where did i find this? um. not sure.

and this craaaaazy gorgeous one from juju’s blog.

i am on my 5th mini red sweater. almost done, anyway. the smaller needles really make my hands ache.

oh, also, top chef had its finale tonite and man! tiffany is one of the most evil women ever. additionally, she reminds me of a bitchface that…well, the girl that motherf*cked me for looking out the window at her and so it makes me hate her despite the fact that they are two different people. everyone started picking on her and it was crazy to see her flip out. additionally, a bunch of people on there were at each other’s throats and it was very entertaining. you could see the hosts get freaked out and uncomfortable that a physical fight might break out. craziness. i avoid real drama in my life by watching reality tv. should i be ashamed? there are the peeps out there that claim not to watch tv, and maybe i am rotting my brain, but i think i am stretching my brain by doing several things at the same time. it is very rare that i watch tv without doing something else at the same time. my brain is getting muscles. my brain…is a meathead. ha. so suck it! me and my tivo love each other. he records programs he thinks i would like, or i want to see all the time. and even though sometimes he records really strange things, i appreciate the thought tivo. you are there for me. tivo, you rock.

off to knit and sleep, hopefully.
xo,
n.

man! long time no bloggy. i had a house guest for the past week, went to ms$w this weekend and am so fried, i cannot even express…i plan to update the luxe store to-morrow, so hang in there. i know, i am a bad store owner. bad, bad, store owner.

i didn’t get a whole lot at the show. i got a new skeinwinder, in hopes of easier sock yarn winding, some bulky bobbins, a bit of fiber, which i spun up and remembered that i hate using other people’s blends because…i am a snob or something. it doesn’t look like me.

it was really nice to get to see the spinny gals, although i didn’t get to see a lot of the people that i had hoped to see, heidi, marie, and so many more. i wonder if i saw people whose blogs i read and didn’t register. so if you thought you saw me…shame on you for not saying hi! shame! shame! otherwise, not much more, just really tired. i missed my studio. and i missed jake. i feel like i didn’t see him for a week.

amy came over for an hour or so and we went to the farmer’s market where i bought junk, ironically, and some rhubarb, which i plan to cook for the first time evah! evah! we then went to the art supply where i got a circle cutter thingy that is soooo cool! i have wanted to make some round tags, but now have all manner of circular things that i want to make. ooooh! and my buddy mike that does the framing there made me a class cutting mat to use it on. he rawks! i will update photos to-morrow. i swear it. man, i feel so guilty.

i think that is all. i have a ton of links for gorgeous things that i found to add, as well, so get ready for that.

you wanna see some livestock, you say?baby!! what else? suri alpacas? there are more on my flickr, but they are sucky and blurry. sorry. all apologies.

snore!
n.

i got all of my orders and samples packed and shipped, although, as you know, there was no update last weekend, and this week it will not be until tuesday, most likely, but i have lots of stuff, so be patient! lots! laceweight, worsted, lots! and a pretty yarn picture…

i took elizabeth at her request to joann’s and she was so excited! i had to tell her to take it easy and see what there was at sheep and wool. i looked at the vendor list and there is so much stuff there, it is unreal. craziness! i found a ink pad that has a more poisonous makeup, so it dries on any surface, so hopefully that will work better for my cards, they all shmeared. dammit! so it should be fixed now. we will see.

so, on survivor tonite, which jake tivo’d for me, it was one of the episodes where their family member gets to stay with them and the one woman’s obviously not outdoorsy hubbie comes to the camp and is just shocked and disgusted. it cracked me up. they offered him water, you know, boiled but dirty. he thought it was wash water.

my mom is in town but we leave before i will see her, and i was surprised that i felt sad about it. not guilty, but actually sad. my dad doesn’t get in until to-morrow later, so we won’t see him either.

i am so exhausted. i am going to try to take it easy until we leave to-morrow. i have had bad cramps and my appetite has been crummy. additionally, someone outside has been laughing really loud and talking really loudly in a stupid voice. and it is almost midnight. arseholes.

i found this store via designsponge and this skirt…i want it so badly. anyone interested in a trade to make me something like this…oooh! let me know!
ok. i am going to relax and catch up on emails, etc.

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
n.

i picked elizabeth up from the airport this morning, late, of course, but it worked out well. we chitchatted all the way into pittsburgh, where we went to knit and bead and i picked up the remainder of my yarn that they had sold, and it was a nice chunk of change. wooot woooot! we got coffee, the thai restaurant wasn’t open yet and we headed back home. we had a lot of fun together and get along super super well.

elizabeth brought us fish from alaska (on the plane!) which we had for dinner. fresh fish REALLY doesn’t smell. insane. so much so that the cats didn’t even come when i opened the package. i checked email and relaxed a bit, i have wretched cramps and you all know that i get pooped out quick. jake and elizabeth chatted for a while and she hung out by the huge stack of cds and listened to different things. we had fresh bread. we chatted for a while until her eyes went sleepy and i came in to do my bloggy thing.

and! she brought me awesome pressies, which i will post to-morrow.

i have to pack orders to-morrow and get my sample kit out to that store in georgia. also, i got a ton of yarn back from knit and bead, so i will take photos (hopefully) to-morrow, as well. plus, i have an assistant! woooot!

on the subject of the purse from loop-d-loop, i think i am going to knit it in cheap-o cotton so that a)it is summery b)it is washable c)it won’t stretch out so much. if anyone has made it, please let me know what you used and what you think about it, problems, etc. i plan to line it, so i am sure that will help, but still. i wanted to start it today, but no yarn. we will probably pop into jojo’s or michael’s to-morrow.

at knit and bead i picked up a bunch of vintage sequins, and they smell like vinegar. any ideas why? no really, i don’t know why. they are super pretty, though.

the weather is amazing, so bright that you have to wear sunglasses and i love it. jake put the swing on the back porch back up, which is one of my favorite places to hang out in the summer and knit or read. nice!

my hands feel a lot better, i wonder if all of the flare ups with my lupus have hormonal links. there is so little known about lupus that you never really know what is what. a friend of mine from australia has very similar symptoms to mine, even the insanely low blood pressure, dark circles under her eyes (mine look bruised lately and concealer makes it even worse), the aches, kidney issues, everything. i hate saying words like “patriarchal” but the disease affects mainly women and minorities, and women minorities more often than that. and even though it has been around forever, little is known about it, what causes it, how to treat it, nothing. and people die from it.

one other note about being sick…i make a point to let people know how i feel, emotionally and physically in my blog. it is very hard to stay focused and positive with a chronic illness. not only does it wear you down physically, but it wears on your brain when you feel shitty and don’t have the energy to do ANYTHING at all to keep your mind busy. at that point you start thinking that you are lazy. you should push harder. you see people that do so much in a day and you know that you couldn’t, and feel lazy. you know you aren’t, you feel like you are. and then you think, what if i felt like this all the time and couldn’t do anything, take care of your family, responsibilities, nothing. and then you just get scared, because you don’t know if you would want to go on breathing if you couldn’t be productive. where is this depressing story going, you ask? i guess i just want to make sure that if you have a person like this in your life, no matter how well they hide their negative feelings, they have them. make sure they know what you think of them. that you know that they do their best. the reassurance that i get from my friends, blog, my amazing husband make such a big difference in my life. if i was alone, i don’t know what i would do. i appreciate you all so much. not only are you incredibly supportive, but you inspire me every single day. that goes for regina, bonnie, shannon, angela, linda, my sweet aussie friend jadey and so so so many more. i am thinking of doing an inspiration day every week. if i can remember to. so, as the golden girls song goes…thank you for being a friend!

oh! also, i am doing a trade with jennie who does amazing gorgeous work. go, check it out, and buy stuff! anyone else interested in doing a trade, let me know, i am digging the trades lately. so fun! and i have gotten such amazing stuff, too.

smoochies,
n.

we cleaned up the house for our houseguest. i was thinking about her coming and she called that second. it was so freaking odd. anyway, she is leaving in a couple of hours to make the long, long journey here. jake wanted to know where alaska was in relation to russia(who sold alaska to the u.s. for 2 cents an acre!!) anyway, really fricking close to siberia. seriously. who knew that? and alaska is twice as big as texas. insane. and a grizzly bear and polar bear are 1500 lbs and 11 feet tall. perspective? a really big buck is about 200 lbs or less. whoa! i told jake that she is bringing salmon (which can weigh up to 100 lbs in alaska!) and he got super excited because he lurves him salmon. his favorite. in fact, he wishes i was a salmon, and i rub raw salmon on my neck for perfume. it lasts way longer than that expensive stuff i was using and drives him wild! not really. fish only appeals to animules, i reckon. or wierdos. so all of you about to meet me at sheep and wool…you may want to put some vicks under your nose. just giving you a heads up. do you think that is why cats give me kisses? hmmmm….

anyway, i got my monthly hair appointment today, which was really really needed. the black dye on the dark part of my hair didn’t take on the gray parts(i mean theoretically if i HAD gray hairs) so my roots were ridiculously. i took the awesome purse that ashley made for me and my hairdresser who is quite an accomplished hairdresser went nuts over it, picking it up, checking out the meticulous piping and lining and sequins and appliques…go ashley, go ashley! it holds a ton of stuff and is comfy. it reminds me of the teva durham purse that i really want to make from loop-d-loop…no photo, sorry. but it is round with a round armhole and it ROCKS and is probably within my knitting skill set/attention span. (i have a crappy mtv show on in the background and they played pj harvey…what?)

farmer’s market started this week and after my hair appt, despite the killer headache(i think the lights in there do it to me. or the chemicals atop my head?) i popped into UFO one of my favorite antique shops to kill 15 minutes before it started and got some small pieces of china and then went to the farmer’s market, with only 3 vendors. i got jake the baklava that he loves, some hummus, although i make a good one, i got a raspberry lemon muffin because i hadn’t eaten all day and a green pepper plant, well, 6 of em. and i don’t know if my little garden has the space.

so, the organic farmer guy told me that a red pepper is a ripe green pepper! what? did you guys know that? you just let it ripen more on the vine and it will turn red. whoa! i want to do cukes, also. he said that they grow best from seed rather than plant. who would think i would love to dig in the dirt? i may plant the green peppers at the side of the house. i will have to do it before i leave for sheep and wool, though.

after picking up elizabeth, we may go to ikea, she has never seen one, and then i plan to pick up my yarn from knit and bead because they are closing, and i figure that she would like to see a bit of pittsburgh. so thai food maybe? she was excited. their sticky rice is too good. i could live on sticky rice. i am thinking about getting a rice cooker like john and diana. i love rice. just plain old rice. i need to call diana and make plans to visit after the baby is born, maybe in the fall to give them some time to adjust to being parents. parents! i still owe them a wedding present, let alone a present for the new baby. i am thinking it must rock.

my parents are in town this weekend, well for friday night and leaving saturday, i think, and i won’t be around to see them. i will be afloat in fiber and my fiber buddies. danger!

for those sweet peeps that send me nice emails worrying about me, my hands are sore, but not nearly as bad. i get really freaked out and emotional everytime they get so so sore and think of how horrible my life would be if i couldn’t use my hands and i kind of freak out. sitting in bed with your hands in braces in your lap is not my idea of a good time. you know?

here is some uncarded targhee yarn…
ok, off to look in loop-d-loop at that purse pattern. i just may need to pick up some yarn for it to-morrow!

smooochies!
n.

at the risk of being a crybaby…waaaa waaaa waaaa. my hands, fingers, arms all the way up to my shoulders…killing me. it hurts to type, or hold my arms in a typing position. i can’t knit, spin, hold a book, or even surf the net without a muscle spasm. i am such a whiner, that i got back on the computer, despite pain, to complain. that is hardcore. my granny would do the same. it is my heritage. anyway, as you all know, i am starting to do the freak-out that i do when my hands hurt like this because i imagine if it happened for good. and i would wither and die. i wouldn’t learn to type with my toes. or my mouth. i would croak.

ok. it all hurts. even into my armpits and chest.

waa.