Not So You Would Notice

Not that anyone would actually notice since I have been so bad about updating, but I will be off-line until after the first of the year. We are off to PA to vist Arlis' family for the holidays. It has been several years since we have been out -- so it will be good to see everyone!

Happy Holidays!

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Leather & Lace

So quite some time ago a promised a picture of Leather & Lace (the leather shawl) I knit to prove, not only to my students but to myself as well, that you can make cool (somewhat practical) stuff with alternative fibers. Knitting with Alternative Fibers, has been a popular class and students either LOVE IT or HATE IT. Very little middle ground!

So the specs are as follows:

I used 1 mm leather cord. I can't find the details of my purchase, so the amounts may not be correct, but I think there are between 1000 - 1200 yds of material used. The fringe took three of us (thanks Sammi and Paul), 3 hours to cut string and add to the shawl.

Amazingly enough, it actually keeps my shoulders warm and it wearable at a real function. Its debut was the Student Banquet at Stitches East. I was able to walk around, sit, eat and knit -- all without any problem. This is truly amazing since often these activities don't go off that well when I am in a sweatshirt and jeans!!!

So with out further ado -- the leather shawl:

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A Wonderful Surprise

So it has been forever since I have posted, but I just had to post to thank my secret pal for one more gift!!! It was such a surprise! Secret Pal #2 has been over for a couple of months and she had already been SO GENEROUS, that I wasn't expecting anything else. And then this showed up in my mailbox:



She commented that the yarn is similar to Noro, but much softer and I would have to sincerely agree. She seems to tend to pinks, reds and oranges and after visiting her blog and seeing a picture of her -- it is obvious why!!! Both my secret pal and the gal I was the secret pal for have this great "alternative" look, I feel SO frumpy!!

I can't wait until I get past the craziness of the end of the year so I can really enjoy all the treasures that Jenn has sent the past few months. Although I must confess that the chocolate from the previous package is gone (although I held out for several weeks). I am afraid the chocolate included in this package may not last near as long!!

Thanks Jenn, you were a GREAT secret pal!

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I Can't Believe

I can't believe. That is my husband's favorite saying whenever I remind him about something coming up in the ver near future that he has forgotten about even though I told him about weeks before -- sometime several times!! Well, I can't believe that we are already in November, staring down the throat of the holiday season with 2005 nearly upon us. I also can't believe that it has already be over a week since I last posted!

Time flies when you are busy. The past week I have been focusing on writing up new classes for the Knitability Reps for the Spring and finalizing details for the Knitting Teacher's Retreat. All of the new information should be up on the website by the end of the weekend. I am REALLY excited about this year's retreat! Last year we had a blast and I was very pleased with our first effort, but I think we have made substantial improvements for this year and hope to sell out!!! Check out our retreat page for more information (after the weekend)!!

I love designing classes, but man is it a lot of work. Most folks just don't understand the amount of prep work that goes into preparing a class for the first time. Single session classes take 20 - 40 hours to prepare, multi session classes usually run at least 40 hours and often much more. We obviously do it for love, because it can't be for the money!!!

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Learning New Stuff

So if you are like me, you love to learn new stuff. Sometimes it comes easy, sometimes not, but regardless, the excitement of expanding knowledge is always worth the effort. But the question arises, what kind of learner are you?!?!

I am a "doer-seer" learner. I learn by doing and by seeing others do whatever it is that I am supposed to learn. I can learn by books, but it is not my favored method. People who teach themselves how to knit just by reading a book AMAZE me.

So today I have been learning a new program (to me) and unfortunately are learning mostly by trial and error combined with some reading when I get really desperate!! So far, I think I am making progress, but I would probably be a lot further along if I just knuckled down and paid for a class!!! So how much money is my time worth?!? Always a hard question to answer. But knowing me, I will give it a try again tomorrow!!

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