update extravaganza!

This blog is long over due for a proper update.

Dewey Book Challenge: For my first book, Becca loaned me her copy of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. I am about a quarter into it, and I am really enjoying it! I think it is a really good thing that I have all year to read these 6 books, though. It may take me all year to do it!

Mini Challenge #2, KAL: I have decided to join Becca in knitting hats for preemie babies, the hats will be donated to the hospital that Becca works at. I have also decided that for this particular challenge I am knitting 6 hats total - I need a goal, and 6 works well because I am reading 6 books for the challenge, and I had the pleasure of calling Dewey my friend for 6 years. I certainly hope to continue knitting preemie hats or doing some kind of knitting for charity for years to come, but for this challenge I am knitting 6 preemie hats. I am using Knitpicks Shine in sport weight (60% Cotton, 40% Modal) which I happen to have in 6 different colors! Here is the first one:

It is very soft and smooth. I am using 6 inch needles in Size 3. My mama Claus gave me the needles for Christmas. (Thanks, I love them!)

Knitting: I finally finished something! I actually finished knitting this hat a while ago, but I still had to weave in ends and stuff. Now the spiral hat for my niece is officially done!


Yay! I still want to make her some matching mitts too. Still in the works: mystery project, Obama hat, bamboozled [hibernating at this point, I think], and a pair of fetchings. And of course the preemie hats that I mentioned before.

Spinning: This is my lastest FO, in spinning. I think it turned out really well. Approx. 48 yards. I have some brown that gave me spinners block, so I took it off, and started on some purple. I met a couple of really cool guys at the knitting group I go to on Friday nights. They had a wheel, and one of them showed me some tricks on his drop spindle! They are doing a spinning/knitting workshop that I plan to go to. I can't wait to meet some more spinners!

That's it! I am hereby considering this blog updated!

igi reads (but not enough to be a book blogger.)

I went a little internet crazy a while back. You see, I had this knitting blog and I wanted to do Project 365, so I started a new blog for that - not wanting 365 to clutter up my knitting. I also wanted to do the Dewey Book Challenge, so I started a new blog for that too. I was in an organizational mood - every blog entry had it's own special place. Thing is - I don't really read enough to be a "book blogger", and when I do read, it's mostly books on knitting, raising children and homeschooling. I use most of them like reference books, not so much cover-to-cover reading going on. It seems really silly for me to have a book blog. And so, I have decided to move my book stuff into here, and delete my book blog. Maybe I need a little clutter. I'm keeping my Project 365 blog though, I don't need that much clutter.

Yarn updates coming soon!

getting my spin on!

I finished the fiber in my spinning kit.



And I have moved on to roving purchased at my LYS.



Still loving it!

Remember those post-Christmas photos I was promising you? It's not going to happen. I didn't finish one single project that I had planned for Christmas! I am so disappointed. Maybe I won't be so eager next year. Or maybe I will just start earlier!
I am still working on the stuff that I wanted to give to my family. *Something* for my mom, which I won't post, because she is on ravelry, and very well may read this. (Hi mom!) An Obama hat for my brother, by request. I want to pick out something cute for my sister. I am still working on bamboozled. And finally, a cute little hat (and possibly matching mitts!) for my niece.


If you haven't heard, I am participating in a Book Challenge, in memory of my friend Dewey. One of the mini-challenges is a KAL! I haven't decided what to do yet, but I'm really excited about this challenge, and it's going to be awesome.

Dewey's KAL

Mini Challenge #2, Dewey's KAL, means more to me that you could possible know. I started knitting a couple months before Dewey died. I was so excited to share with her, and my other knitting friends, my new found love of knitting, but I didn't share right away. I think I was waiting to have something to show off. Something really good, and not just crappy beginner stuff. I wanted to have bragging rights. I guess. Street cred. idk. I had finally felt like I was ready to share, I started a knitting blog and everything! A few hours later, she died. The day I made my love of knitting public, was the day that Dewey left us. I never got to tell her. I never got to share my excitement with her. And all because I wanted to be an self centered little show off. How stupid of me! She would have loved to see my crappy beginner stuff. She would have been so excited that I was just knitting, She wouldn't have cared what my finished product looked like. She would have been proud of me. But no, I had to hide it from her, and then it was too late.
Dewey, I am so sorry that I never got to share this with you. I really wanted to. I specifically wanted to share this with YOU, more than any of the other knitters I know. I am so so sorry. I won't make the mistake of being so egotistical again.
I don't know what I am going to do yet, but I am definitely doing this.

In other challenge related news, Becca loaned me her copy of The Book Thief, which I have already started. I am really enjoying it, but finding it a bit eerie, considering who the narrator is. If I could, I would ask Dewey what color the sky was when she left us.

The Dewey Book Challenge

My friend Dewey was all the time trying to get me to join in on her read-a-thons and book challenges. I had excuse after excuse, which really just came down to one excuse - I have 3 little kids, I hardly have the time! (Which is ridiculous because Liz also has 3 little kids, and she managed to participate more than a few times.) "Maybe next time!", I would always say. But now my friend Dewey is gone, and there isn't going to be a next time.
I thought I had missed out, but then some of Dew's fellow book bloggers put together the Dewey Book Challenge. What a fantastic memorial to the Dewey we all knew and loved! You have an entire year to read 5-6 books, and that sounds like the kind of challenge I can handle. I couldn't possibly pass this up. I spent some time going through Dew's archives picking out the perfect books, and I meant to have my first one ready to go for January 1st. Unfortunately time got away from me and I have yet to acquire my first book, so I may be a couple days late getting started.
There are 2 challenge options to chose from:

1. Pick one book from each of the 6 years that Dewey has archives of. You can access her archives by clicking on the archive link in the sidebar of her website. It’s a dropdown menu. For instance, you would read one book that she reviewed in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008 for a total of six books.

2. The other option is to read 5 books that Dewey reviewed. These can be from any year and I’m guessing that each of us has at least 5 books on our TBR list because of Dewey!

(c&p from http://deweysbooks.wordpress.com/)

I am choosing option 2, with a bonus book. (the one she was reading when she died.)
Here are the books I have chosen (in no particular order):

Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
We Are On Our Own by Miriam Katin
What I Was by Meg Rosoff
Matrimony by Joshua Henkin
BONUS
The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery


Challenge Links (for more info)
Dewey's Books - Official challenge website
Dewey's Book Challenge Reviews
Dewey's website

This one is for you, Dewster. I miss you.

spin, igi, spin!

I spent weeks reading several books about spinning that I got from the library, watching numerous youtube videos about spinning, and reading plenty of spinning webpages.




I finally got a drop spindle and some fiber from Maine Woods Yarn & Fiber. I am in love. Here is the result of my first little practice ball:

It is about 9 yards, and it is amazing and terrible and I love it. And here is my first hank:

Approximately 24 yards of handspun yarny goodness. It smells like sheep.

Save Handmade Toys!

Just doing my part to save handmade toys, and to support the crafty folk that make them! Especially since I hope to become one of those crafty folk. Please give 5 minutes of your time to write to your representatives and save handmade toys. You can sign the petition, and you can even use this handy dandy form letter to write to your representatives. It's that easy! Also, please see this fantastic site for more info, and to get the adorable Save Handmade! button that you see in my sidebar.
Like Liz says, "I can't imagine having to make dolls and toys illegally for my children. It's ridiculous."
I agree.