luxe

i had a hair appt today. whilst sitting under the dryer getting bleached (the white part of my hair is not natural, which really shocked my 3 year old niece. now you know my secret) and read elle magazine. i never read fashion magazines. i will extend that to say, i don’t read art in america or art news or art forum anymore either because it bums me out. fashion….oh lord. it sucks. the whole 80’s thing, i thought it would fizzle out, but it keeps coming, and the stuff just gets worse and worse. skinny jeans. stretchy skinny jeans. with zippers on the ankles. who do those look good on? who? high pants. really really high pants, like under your boobs high. i saw a marc jacobs ad with poor little dakota fanning dressed in 80’s inspired clothes that are even worse than they were then. and PLEATED pants. a gold baggy 80’s styled leather jacket! stacy…clinton…somebody! she is a child! it is wrooooooong! the worst part is the prices. and the vapid looking models wearing the crap, looking silly, and if they look bad, how the hell will we look? seriously. and then, next season, done. the fashion police come…only the next season. this season, cool! hip! also, the mod style stuff, huge baggy bad maternity styled short dresses. i could get that at a thrift shop and it would probably be nicer. grrrrrrr. they had a little art section toting what the fashion designers buy in the artworld, and that karl lagerfeld has 70….years under his belt? toupees? no, 70 IPODS. c’mon. seriously. what the hell do you have 70 ipods for?

i know, i am no fashion plate. i wear my work overalls most days (i have 3 different pairs…long medium long and short) but…it just blows my mind the monster that materialism is in this country. there should be police that if you buy certain things, they lock you up. a true fashion police. seriously, either if it exceeds a certain amount of money, or that AND it is just silly, they take away your credit cards and give the money to someone with more sense, that will spend it on schools, or housing or something. it could just be the bleach fumes, i think, but i stay away from celebrity stuff, shows, magazines and the only ones i get are crafty artsy things or some of the home ones. it sucks to encourage people to aspire to be…rich and famous. or just really rich. not happy. not inspired. not proud of who you are. not to have a career. to do something for other people? anything? nope. just to emulate celebrities who are usually really unhappy and unable to live a normal life. plus, they get half of their expensive crap for free. and they can afford it.

i remember on the kids in the hall, there was a skit about a fashion designer that hated “ugly women” so all of his designs were to torture the ugly woman who would wear it. a hat that was a spike through the head, a shoe that was a box of glass with a strap. familiar? geeeeeeez. you tell someone it is fashion and they will buy it. ugly betty does a lot of mocking about this stuff as well. i know i talk about it all the time, but it is such a smart and funny show. the person they are mocking usually has a name almost identical.

i swear, i am ready to start wearing a uniform. oh wait. i already do. i guess the fashion world never had to worry too much about losing my contribution.

i gave myself a headache. and probably poor jake, too. sigh.
off to chill out a moment.
xo
n.

okay, so some awesome linkies…a wonderful new drug that will solve every problems you can imagine havidol and then, for the lomo fans, and moleskine fans, a really cool new journal that you must check out…here and i found it all via barbe’s link to some really cute embroidered things that say rude stuff on this wonderful site notcot.com. so fantastic. how did i never hear of it before?

yesterday i FINALLY got my package for the french spin me a treasure swap. let me say that it was so worth the wait. so. worth. the. wait. my partner was none other than…laine zin zin!!! no way! no. way! i got a gorgeous mohair yarn. pink. me loves pink. i imagine it as a wrap or something. and a whole bunch of really cool plying threads. oh my. thanks so so much! i loooove it! i am sorry i complained. i just thought i had been forgotten. had i known it was you…i would have patiently waited. anyway. yay!

and then, for my spin to knit swap, my final package came and it is no other than carry, the of the knitwit podcast she sent me chocolate sheep including a black one that were yummy! plus, two little books of her patterns (how cool!) plus this bright red variegated yarn. i will probably make it into a neck, i think. anyway, thanks so much carry, and i will definitely check out your podcast!

what else? well, i dyed a bunch of fiber, mainly loose fiber, and then two batches for a couple of custom orders. i used merino that wasn’t superwash, plus other loose fiber and the colors are so much more muted than with the superwash, even with the citric acid. i seriously was stunned, even though i know. i am used to having to dilute everything way down, but it dyed much lighter than the dye appeared. still gorgeous but much lighter. anyway. i got mohair from rhlindsay, it is just uncarded, but is rather soft and washed. it has a good bit of vm (vegetable matter for the non-fiber peeps out there) in it, lots of brambles and burrs and such. i also dyed up the rest of the loose polypay that i had from homestead farm, it wasn’t so great, but i can put it in batts and it will be fine for texture. i also used the rest of my washed targhee, some loose merino in brown and nataural from lindsay that is a short staple, but the chocolate brown looked fantastic with the pink, again, for batts. i have it all over the kitchen. i reuse my zipper bags as many times as possible before they expire, but i manage to poke holes in them via the dishwasher rack. i was thinking about it, and unless the zipper stops working, i could really just tape up the hole with duct tape. hm. any ideas for a more environmentally sound thing to use instead of those bags? i use them an average of 4 times before they don’t work, the zipper breaks, etc. i thought of maybe just using the plastic grocery bags we get. we use em for scooping the cat litter, and i think at giant eagle, you can return them in a box, but i wonder if that would be any better than what i am doing? is there any kind of waterproof gallon or bigger sized bag that i could close well that would be biodegradeable? it is all this watching the living with ed about ed begley jr (really a funny show) and just the general state of things, like the 70 degree days we had in january, that makes me attempt not to be really bad. i could use shopping bags, but they don’t degrade either. i would be better off taking them back to the store. we never throw them away without using them, or anything.

oh! the bird in the attic! jake and i went up there, birdie actually slept last night, i was worried that he was dead, but at the rescue place, they told me that they sleep at night, and like they said, he was up as soon as the sun come up, tapping tapping tapping. anyway, when jake got home, we went up with a towl and the cat carrier, he had eaten and made a huge birdseed mess and really, in the winter, i imagine he was excited to have so much food and water! there was bird food in the water and seed all over the place and jake put the towel over him, scooped him up carefully, we put him in the carrier, he kept sticking his head out of the cage and sticking his beak out. he got his head semi-stuck at one point…we took him outside to see if he could fly. i was worried he wouldn’t be able to. he peeked out of the carrier, went right out into the grass, looking for bugs or something for a few minutes and then flew into the eve of the house behind ours, the gutters fells down, so there is a big hole going into the roof, so loads of animules live in there. anyway, he was fine, and we were happy. jakie is a hero! i looked online to see what the bird was, but couldn’t find anything. he was about the size of my hand, and black and gray spotted with sort of blue on his head. a longish black beak and small black eyes. and surprisingly laid back for a birdie. good guy.

not much more to say, i have a headache and i am a bit tired. i actually got a few bobbins of yarn done, so an update is forthcoming. woot. woot.

smoooch. smoooch. smooch.
n.

no really, there is a bird in the attic, poor guy. i heard tapping all day, it sounded like hammering, jake went up there to see what was going on, and there was a bird, banging on the window over and over and over. i put some wild bird feed we had on a dish and some water up there and we haven’t heard anything, so i hope that doesn’t mean the poor guy is dead. i think he might be though. he literally banged on the window for 10 hours or something. poor guy. he seemed really lethargic and didn’t fly, just jumped at the window. when it is light, we will go up and try to catch him in a blanket as barbe suggested and put him outside if he seems okay.

the fluffalicious podcast seems to be going okay. i am hoping we can do one a week. in case you weren’t sick of me already. i am doing my best to learn as much about podcast stuff as i can, and it is minimal. i am trying to get the logo done, asap. anyway, if you haven’t listened yet, go listen, okay?

so, more of the weird people things…not sure what they are about, can’t get them out of my head.

i have more to say, i am just a bit out of it. i am watching the black donnelly’s which looks pretty good so far. and there are several people from oz, which i adored. not many shows with so much male full frontal nudity these days. sheesh.
***edit-i watched the black donnelly’s and man is it fantastic. even though i am really tired, i had to post it. so good. it reminds me of the art mafia i am the godmother of. mainly we kill em with our bad attitudes, and by we, i mean…me.
xo
n.

kahlo is so happy, it makes her smile!

first, let me tell you about the fluffalicious blog that barbe and i are doing and the podcast that goes along with it! what? a podcast? well, yes! barbe is doing the technical side of things right now, i am hoping to learn more so i can help out and we can make it even more exciting, if that is possible. so go and check it out, leave comments, ideas, let us know whatcha think! wanna hear my squeaky voice? now ya can! how cool is that?

it blows me away that not so long ago i started this blog to overcome my technophobia. from that blog came my inspiration to close the tattoo shop i opened more than 10 years prior, and had grown miserable at. i closed that down to pursue fiber full-time, knitting for boutiques and then spinning. and now, through those avenues, i met barbe and became good friends with her and here we are. a podcast!

so, i thought some pics would be nice, here are some from my studio:

i have some new art pieces to unleash on you, and i will be listing some of the paintings and collaged pieces on etsy, as well as some new yarns and fiber. so go and look.

thanks for all of the wonderful words of support!
love you guys!
n.

welp, i have been shamelessly lazy lately. okay, well not lazy in doing art stuff, but lazy in doing fiber stuff and luxe stuff and blog stuff. bad bad me. i put off checking email until the end of the day, lazy, lazy me. what have i been working on? well, lots of sketchy things leading up to a few mixed media things with wax medium which i really like working with. i found an article about diego rivera working with wax medium in his murals and the exact recipe! what? yeah! right here!

this first one is over top of a journal page from a while ago with notes to myself. being the cheapest woman alive, i used it anyway. it is pen and ink and guache. mmmm. guache. if you haven’t ever used it, it is basically like watercolor with some acrylic put in so it is more solid, unless you water it down. really fun. and a little bit goes a looooong way.

this one is ooooold paper from a few different places, with guache and watercolor stain, on canvas with wax medium and acrylic, guache and irridescent jacquard pigment powders. it is much prettier in person. jake really likes it, but i might sell it. i did another one slightly different on watercolor board, also, today. not quite done yet. once the first one cures, i will polish the wax. wooo hooo!

i finished one of my fingerless gloves in the pretty handspun and altered the pattern a bit and it works a bit better. i will post it shortly.

i am pooped, off i go to veg a bit.

xo
n.

so i got the root canal today and it wasn’t bad. i was told that my teeth are shaped unusually and i have unusually long roots, and curvy, too! the odd thing is that i have teeth that are big for my mouth, i had some pulled as a kid because of that, and the endodontist said that my teeth aren’t totally “erupted”. anyway, i knitted a monstrosity whilst being canaled(sounds like a sex act, no?) and it wasn’t bad. the filling i got last week wasn’t bad either. i wish i had a good dentist earlier in life, mayhaps i wouldn’t have a phobia. although, as long as i go to this one, i think i will be fine. and he thinks it is funny that i knit. i don’t get anything done and it looks like poop, but it keeps me more relaxed. i bring knitting virtually everywhere, especially if it is somewhere that i would be nervous. i wish i had knitted when i was younger, although no one would have bought me yarn. i would have had to unravel my mom’s cashmere sweaters. heee. my granny on my dad’s side was a travelling millinary saleswoman and had a driver, so she knitted all the time and made everyone sweaters that they could “grow into” even if they were full grown. my dad said that she never used patterns and did all kinds of elaborate patterns and cables. i wish i had gotten to know her better. we moved to america and she died pretty young, also. i find that i don’t enjoy following patterns either. i have a short attention span, i never like any large garments that i make, or even scarves i end up giving away for the most part and only use patterns to learn how to do things, and then i just do it from there. it takes me a little while to understand things, but once i do, i am set.

i gave my hairdresser a neckywarmer made out of the natural superwash merino roving unspun, so it is super soft and warm but lightweight. she is a skinny one and is always cold, so she told me she has been wearing it all the time, at work, etc, and likes that it doesn’t end up dragging on the floor, puffing out her jacket, shut in the car door and asked if i would make her some in different colors. she also said that all of her clients were asking where she got it. i must say, i enjoy having an excuse to knit up my yarns and tops without having to keep them, because then i feel guilty that i kept something that i probably will forget i have and could sell. i will probably make her a couple more and take them to my next appointment for her. a black one maybe with some sparkle in it, and then maybe a pinky one or something. she is really pale, so i am not sure what color would be complimentary. i love knowing that i am helping to keep someone warm. i wonder sometimes if it goes back to my jewish roots, because i really like feeding people, too. i feel like i getting to be near them keeping them warm. i am not sure sometimes if the people we make things for understand how heartfelt it really is. does anyone else think that? either people are over the moon and incredibly kind, or just sort of blase about it. i make loads of things for my mom because she is always cold, but i don’t know how often she uses them. when i was there she wore one of them, though. my mom likes the unusual, sparkly, shiny things so i get to make the most over the top thing possible, especially in jeweltones or in black with any sort of metallic and she tends to be excited. i made her some handwarmers for her achy hands, but i doubt she wears them. i promised my dad a pair of custom socks and then accidentally dyed the yarn black. i may be better off just ordering yarn from knitpicks that is slightly variegated. i don’t know if he would wear socks out of my sock yarn unless it was really plain.

i finally found where the flickr toys page was and just did one:

they also have the hockneyizer that will take random parts of a photo and make it into a poloroid, pretty cool. there are all sorts of other features also taht are cool. i didn’t know how everyone was doing those mosaics, and i was very pleased to find that! also, i don’t know if anyone remembers the flickr bookmarklet that they got rid of…you could pick any issue from any site and put it onto your flickr and it would have the link attached, as well. they have that feature on the toys page, so if you see something special on a site that you want to show on your blog, you can use that. i have seen a bunch of people do it on their blogs and sites, but i didn’t know how, i thought it was photoshop. and it will label each photo underneath, as you see above. check it out here.

i have been doing art things everyday, at least for an hour or so, and have come up with some ideas for bigger mixed media things. also, barbe and i have something coming up really soon that i think you guys will enjoy. i will give you the specifics this week. i promise! very exciting!

on sunday, we got groceries and then i had to get yarn skeined up before it got dark so i could take photos and list it, and i actually had more than i thought i did. anyway, i asked jake to help me, and while he does know how to wind a ball, finger crochet the roving (thanks for the tip lynn!)and knows the terms (beehives, supercoils, plying, roving, superwash, fiber and more!) he hadn’t wound skeins yet, but he helped me and did a super job. isn’t he the cutest thing you have ever seen? it actually blows me away sometimes. i can’t believe he is mine. all mine! hahahahahahahaha….no really. he took off of work early to go with me for my root canal, and sat back there with me rubbing my ankle while they worked. he brings me breakfast in the mornings whenever he is here. he rubs my back all the time. scratches it. anything. he is so considerate. i have never known someone so considerate before. i never really felt safe in my life, i was insecure, paranoid, depressed, i felt that a lot of people had betrayed me or let me down. in truth, i expected people to be more than they were, and time and time again i felt screwed over. jake…he is always there. i have never had that before, and it has helped me feel safe enough to grow as a person. to open up to possibilities. i don’t think that i would be as successful in my creative endeavors if it weren’t for him. i hope that i don’t sicken everyone with my jakie talk, but i think it is so important to appreciate the things in life that are good. he never makes me feel guilty that i am a slob even though he is neat, or that i have no energy and don’t carry my weight, or anything. i was afraid to go to the dentist when i had a cavity and it turned into a root canal. he didn’t get mad. he didn’t say a word. and he didn’t think it, either. i am a told you so kind of person. it amazes me. in fairness, jake’s parents are just the same way. they are endlessly kind and forgiving and generous, even for some people that have proven that they don’t deserve any of it. if you are family, they will do anything for you, no matter what. and really, even if you aren’t family, if they can help, they will. i can learn a lot from them about forgiveness, and accepting people for what they are. even if that isn’t so great.

not much else. my tooth isn’t very sore even. it was initially, i took aleve and it seemed to help. i started taking my oregano oil capsules because i worry about getting an infection in the tooth. i guess it is not likely, but when i got my wisdom teeth removed (a miserable miserable endeavor) i got dry sockets in two of the four and it was horrible. i looked (Even more) like a cabage patch kid and my lips split at the corners because my mouth was so swollen. it was baaaad. and now i know that i have roots a mile long, plus they were impacted.

i feel like i am being boring, and i am sleepy, so off i go to knit a bit, read a bit, and i already did a watercolor sketchy thing. and a hole drilled in my toof. so i have had a full day whilst doing nothing.

thanks for all of the kind words about my toof.
xoxoxoxoxoxo
n.

still sniffing. i got spinning done today, in addition to pulling apart silk flowers to spin in, and then stringing them, getting them all hopelessly tangled, tearing them apart, restringing bits of shell and vintage sequins instead, and plying them in. now that way easy! no problem. grrr. i have found that spinning in flowers that are shaped irregularly is a bad idea. across the board. bad. also, i have found that if you are doing something fancy, trilobal polyester sewing thread is amazingly strong and comes in loads of colors. especially if you are a newby having a hard time using thread, this would be a good one to start with. it is really hard to break. how do i know this? i attempted to break it with my hands and hurt myself. granted, i am a wuss, but still. it hurt.

to-morrow…root canal. i am getting a bit anxious about it. so wish me luck, people. i am proud to say that i actually sold some stuff on my etsy update yesterday. i know from all of my fellow sellers as well as the forum on etsy that things are incredibly slow right now, so i am really thankful that i sold some stuff. all of the henny penny batts sold (i think that 4 oz of crazy batty goodness for 21 bucks is good, no?) and i listed a new one just now, and all but one of the fuzzy targhee batts sold, i have a couple more to list, probably to-morrow. they are a pleasure to spin. all of the batts come with additional angelina on the side because i like to spin it over top of the single so it is sooooooper sparkly. too much is never enough. or as new order said, its never enough until your heart stops beating. right? right. i have tons of novelty yarns and threads and pompoms and flowers, so i am thinking about putting a few crazy kits together for those of you that don’t save every piece of crap, lint or anything else that crosses your way. i do keep all of that, including but not limited to: dryer lint, cat hair, fabric scraps, yarn scraps, ribbon scraps, thread scraps, felt scraps (lots of these things are fabulous strung onto thread) and then all of the good stuff from the licker on my drumcarder, i save that for myself. and i have loooooots of it.

i have been drawing and sketching and doing little paintings and collages everyday. they are ugly, but ah well. i want to do some bigger things, but i find that i don’t have the time. i have been so tired lately, i am very aware of the limited amount of energy i have to expend, so when i feel up i try to do as much as i possibly can. today, after i did some work, i got the chills and conked out for an hour or so. i don’t know why it happens. i swear i am a cat.

last night, i was looking at the etsy forums and found this link for sellers that are willing to do trades. how cool is that? they tell you how to sign up if you are interested and then people will contact you if they want something you have. i think it would be a good idea to have a feature on each sellers info page saying that you are open to swaps, if you wanted to so people could see right away. anyway, check it out if you sell there.

flickr is having a massage (why can’t i?) right now, so no photos. sorry. i feel crappy not doing photos. i am super behind on my blogreading to the point that i don’t want to read any at all, so maybe i will spend 30 minutes doing that before i go to draw. maybe that will be more manageable. jason told me before that when he gets behind he just refreshes it so they are all read and starts anew, but most of mine are people i know and like (to some degree-know, not like to some degree, if i think you suck, i don’t read your blog, so there!) so i worry that i will miss some horrible thing in their lives. you know?

okay. gonna do some catching up. wish me luck on the root canal. i am taking knitting, you can be sure. in fact, maybe i should skein some really nice handspun to treat myself. oh wait! i bought some gorgeous kid mohair singles from sheep and wool last year that have just been sitting. while i would not likely wear mohair of any kind, i would knit it and they colors are amazing. hm. armwarmers mayhaps?

smoochies
n.
xoxoxoxo
n.

hey everyone! just wanted to let you know that i am updating www.luxe.etsy.com with 10 new spinning batts and a bunch of new yarns, too. there are some really lovely handpainted fibres up as well. so pop by!
warm fuzzies,
natasha

and check out the flickr account to see even more stuff!

xo
n.

i have had so many headaches lately and have been really tired. strangely, my sould really wants to make stuff, regardless, so i have been doing my best to push through it and get things done. i did 6 batts today (so i will be adding…12!!!! on sunday…woot woot!) and plied some yarn, spun some yarn and worked on some mixed media things that i am excited about. all of the things i have done are in my sketchbook, so i need to figure out the layout to do it on a slightly larger scale on a painting, although some of them would look great as embroidered pieces. the issue with embroidered pieces is what to do with them next…any ideas? i really like embroidering drawings i have done, and it is a good thing i can do whilst in a moment of low energy.

kahlo tends to be extra clingy when i am trying to do something that a chubby cat on top of me is not the best situation…you name it…so she is on me now, and her feet and tail keep deleting things or moving the cursor. wanna see what it might look like? please ignore my gross skin. no makeup, 6 am, pms, etc, etc…

it is always nice to be loved, though. and if peeps tries to lay next to me, she gets super pissed off. kahlo is the gentle one, but rules the house. she is not a good one to piss off, and as she has gotten older, her fuse has grown much shorter, especially with her sister peeps. they cannot stand each other. ah, cat drama!

so wanna see a couple of my pen and ink sketchbook thingies? if you insist…

these are not nearly as fun as the ones i did today, but you get the idea. they are like beansprouts, but with bio forms. the ones today have strange faces on them. i am not sure what it is all about, but they are fun. i also did some watercolors layered over collage and an ink drawing which was really fun to do, i must say. jake was pointing to the different faces and saying which he liked best. cute boy.
here is another, it is rough and crappy, but they are kind of funny…

my eyes are itchy and dry and my nose itches and i keep sniffling. gah! i imagine it is the heat being on. i just like to complain a bit, i guess.

i dunno if any of you have seen these funny anti-drug commercials about sloming but the commercial is really clever and rumor has it that some really really really stupid teenager did try it after seeing the commercials. although, i guess it is no more stupid than huffing gasoline or glue or whatever. i know lots of people that freely admit to doing that stuff when they were younger which always blows my mind. i did dumb stuff, but i was pretty worried about killing brain cells. and getting a bad headache to boot. no thanks.

i participated in a valentine’s postcard swap on flickr and happened to see the work of liza corbett who also participated (i am sure i won’t get one of her AMAZING valentines. amazing. hand drawn. gorgeous.) which you can buy printed on all sorts of things. i am hoping to get something from her soon one way or another. but go and check it out. you know i am a snob, and her stuff is just lovely. swooooon.

i am sure you guys all remember the lovely pinky:…well, the lovely lady that bought her posted a pic of the adorable shruggy thing that she knitted from her (and the original pinky got lost in the mail and to this date has not been located. booo! anyway, here is lovely chris with her valentine’s day outfit! clicky! too cute! thanks so much!

i have spun a few singles on the electric that i ply on the louet. this one is so lovely that i am not sure if i should leave her as a single or ply her into something fancy…i have two bobbins of it. so lovely…

what do you guys think?

and, i promised to post a pic of the fingerless gloves i did from that really gorgeous yarn i got from my secret pal. i really may need to buy more. and you know i don’t buy yarn so much anymore. it is just so pretty. maybe i could do a different colorway with elbow length gloves? i wish it were a bit softer, but it is much softer than noro. although, i haven’t used the all silk noro one.

lastly, i still have heard hide nor hair from my spin me a treasure pal. i know they extended the cut off a month longer, but whoever my pal is has never emailed me or anything. so. i know a lot of people got screwed on this swap and it sucks because the people running it are really lovely people. i imagine that if they even have it in them to try to do another one, not many people will participate. i am still planning to do an invitation only swap, and one that you swap with the person that you are buying for and getting from. it just makes more sense to me.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxo
n.

wow is it cold here. not that i have left the house or anything. i did make a bunch of these cute circle bookmarks…


i kept one for myself, and let jake pick one and then i will put them into the next orders i get for luxe. i like to always put in extras, and i really love these! they are on mattboard, so they are nice and sturdy with handspun yarn as the tassle. nice!

also, i have gotten lots of questions about the pattern for the fingerless gloves i did, so here it is…the pattern is flexible, so adjust the needle size and yarn size to your liking, mainly, once you cast on and join, try em on and see how it fits, and otherwise, it is up to you how long you want em, etc, etc. okay, so here is what i did (i have rather dainty little hands, so this may be small on a normal person)
i did a pair of of gloves that went below my wrist with less than 100 yards! so this is a great pattern for handspun or fancy yarns because you don’t need much. it would be good with worsted weight too, adjust the pattern as needed.
1.with sportweight yarn, i cast on 28 stitches onto a size 8 circular needle(a loooong one). i do magic loop, but you can do whatever method you prefer for knitting in the round.

2.when you join, make sure not to twist stitches. i do a k2p2 rib (you could do k1p1, too) for about an inch so that the edges don’t roll. if that doesn’t bug you, you can do the whole thing in stockinette. easy peasy. whatever you like. you could also rib the whole thing if you fancy. totally up to you. okay, so knit as long as you want it to be until you get to where you want the thumbhole to start. i don’t mess with gussets. i think they are uncomfortable. here is where my fanciness comes in…

3. cast off 5-7 stitches, i made mine 7, which gives you a pretty big hole for good thumb movement. knit across the rest of the stitches and then, turn around when you get to the cast of stitches and purl back over the stitches that you knitted, turn, knit them, turn, purl them until you get to the beginning of your cast off stitches.(so a total of 4 rows, the stitches will be twisted, i actually like how this looks, plus it makes the fabric on the palm of your hand a bit more dense).

4. cast back on the 5-7 stitches that you cast off after you do the last purl row.

5. knit the next round, going back in the usual manner, incorporating the newly cast-on stitches. you have now finished the thumbhole!

6. i knit a few more rows until the glove comes to the beginning of my fingers, and then switch to a k2p2 rib until they are as long as i like and cast off loosely. and that is it! easy peasy, right?

of course you could make these longer if you like, i plan to do a pair up to my elbows. they are really cozy and warm and are nice to use inside even when your hands are cold. my mom’s hands get really sore and i made her a pair, and i made this pair for a swap which are from a handspun single i did. of course, if you use a thicker yarn, you will want to use a bigger needle so that the knitted fabric isn’t really really dense. if you bought a skein of my sportweight superwash handpainted, you could probably make 2-3 pairs! not to shabby, eh? or a necky and some of these. or a hat and these and a necky. huh?

if any part of the pattern is confusing or seems incorrect, please shoot me a comment, okay? and send pics if you make some! they are a really quick fun knit. want some pics of some? and i have another gorgeous pair from yarn my secret pal sent me that i adore. i am keeping those for myself!

handspun in the hawthorne colorway:

from this yarn…

and the ones i made for my mom…

peeps had a lump on her arm that popped up out of nowhere, so we took her to the vet to have it checked out. i got scolded because she has random knots in her fur because it is mega long and she won’t let me brush her anywhere except for her head, and i felt like a bad mom. anyway, he shaved her arm to look at the lump and in the process of squishing her arm, the lump flattened and disappeared. um. he was a bit baffled by its location and said it was probably fluid in between the muscle and if it came back to bring her in. it doesn’t bother her at all. it has come back, but is much flatter than it was. odd. she needs to have her teeth cleaned because she won’t let me touch her teeth (she will eat the cat toothpaste though) so they may take out her lump then if it is still there. our vet showed us how he had surgery on a gangloid in his finger and the surgeon used dirty equipment, his finger got infected and is all twisted and broken because they clamped it too hard and broke his finger! the doctor told him it wasn’t their fault that it got broken and infected, like the vet does surgery with bare hands or something. grrrr. when i worked as a tattooer and piercer, medical people would talk down to me about medical cleanliness and i would see them do all sorts of stuff that osha would not be too happy about. i was much better with cross contamination than they were, and i know with the vet, there are so many highly contagious animal diseases that they need to be hyper-vigilant as well. even my brother the doctor says that vets are always the smartest of the med school people. and this from a surgeon! whoa nelly! here is the beauty, herself…

after peeps was at the vet and got her boosters, she felt like crap and i didn’t know that was the usual, so she disappeared and kept to herself and wouldn’t eat (which is not like her on any count. she is an utter piglet, even though she is the smallest of all the kitties, a big mouth in every way!) the vet told me that the shots make them feel like they have the flu, so that was the deal. she is better today. still a bit quiet, but begging for food and hanging out. so that is good.

i have been drawing over the last few days. i am going to really try to draw everyday. i have been doing plants, but ones that look like some kind of biological form…i will post pics to-morrow. i decided a while ago that i wouldn’t use pencil anymore. line quality is an important thing to me, and i find that you work really differently when you are using a pen, paintbrush, whatever. i plan to do some paintings based on the ink and wash pieces in my sketchbook that i really like. i am excited about them.

i have been working with embroidering drawings i have done and the freeform embroidered, sequined, etc, things, especially on vintage linens. really fun. i think i might do some pillows or something to use the pieces i made. any ideas?

i am sure you all have heard about the 67 year old woman who just had a baby. pretty wild, eh? it seems a bit unfair to have a child that you won’t be around to raise. for sure, it is a double standard that some really really old men have new babies, but their partners are usually much younger. of course you never know what life will do, but if you are nearly 70, how many years can you really take care of a kid? best case scenario…30 years? and that is maybe not realistic even. the woman that had the kid looks amazing, though. craziness. i can’t imagine my granny or even my mum having a kid now…

i have a kahlo cat sprawled across me wanting (more)attention so i am going to relax, smooch her and read a bit. more photos to-morrow.

xoxoxoxoxo
n.