Darn Pretty Needles

So I'm a complete convert to DyakCraft's Darn Pretty needles (as well as the Heavy Metals in the smaller sizes). I've placed several orders and have also gotten some through destashes. My goal is to have at least one in every color currently offered. Here's my list so far:

5" interchangeables in Vermont Apple - these were the ones I first received, though a destash. They are quite lovely although at first I thought that I would destash them myself when my other sets arrived. But the more I used them, the more I fell in love, so they're staying with me.


5" interchangeables in Vermont Rosewood - part of my original order. Gods, these are a gorgeous deep dark wood color.

Rosewood

3.5" interchangeables in Emerald - I knew that I wanted a color and some of the pictures of Emerald were a deep but bright green that was just stunning. I was so happy to get mine and fine that same saturated shade. Love.

One pair of 3.5" tips in Positively Pink - I wasn't sure that I wanted a whole set in pink so I thought I'd try one. Yeah, I'd totally do a whole set in pink. Yum!

Positively Pink and Emerald

Set of DPNs in sock sizes in Winter Sky, striped - I wasn't sure whether to order stripes or swirls for the DPNs. I think part of the "danger" with stripes is that depending on how they are cut, they might not show all the possible colors in that colorway. Such is the case with my Winter Sky needles. I'm completely missing the pinkish color of Winter Sky. Not to say that the needles are not pretty, but they don't say "Winter Sky" to me, so I may at some point consider ordering a different set or trying to trade for another set in swirls.

Set of DPNs in larger sizes in Turquoise - beautiful. I do wonder if I had swapped my color choices (turquoise for small sizes and Winter Sky for larger) if I would have seem more color variation for the Winter Sky with the larger circumference.

I wanted the two sets to match, but they almost look exactly the same. You can see some bits of charcoal in the Winter Sky but no pink and from far away like this, they look just like the Turquoise ones.

Just Turquoise

The Winter Sky

One pair of 3.5" tips in Madras - Just got these today. This was not really one of the colors that I felt immediately drawn to, but now that I've seen one in person, I'm so glad that I got it. As you turn the needle, you see different colors shift into prominence or fade into the background.

One pair of 3.5" tips in Malachite - Also received today. In my head, Malachite was one of the solid tones but just looking at the website I see they are listed under the multi tones. And I can now see why. They have very clear (those nicely blended) swirls of blue and green.

One pair of 5" tips in Bubblegum - I almost didn't get these since I have some Bubblegum coming in another order, but I decided to go ahead. Very happy that I did since the order I have is for straights which I probably won't use very often. And Bubblegum is a color that deserves to be used more often, which it will be since it's in a size 8 which is one of my most used sizes.

The three pairs that I got today. From top to bottom: Madras, Bubblegum, Malachite

 

My interchangeable tips collection so far (minus the ones currently in use)

On order are a set of mini straights in Bubblegum and a interchangeable set in the Heaven on Earth mix, which will include Heaven on Earth, Charcoal, Indigo, and Chestnut. Seeing pictures of that mix set has just made me so excited about it, but I just placed the order so it will be at least six months before I see them. I'll just have to wait, but I'm so very much looking forward to it.

P.S. I haven't blogged about it yet, but expect to be hearing a lot about Indie Books Gone Wild in the future as I have joined the editorial team! We devote our editing services specifically to indie authors. It's an amazing group of ladies that I am so proud to be part of! Here's the post where I am introduced!

P.P.S. I got a Ravelry message from a blogger who does a featured indie knitting designer post each week. She wants to feature me in an upcoming post! So exciting! That was definitely a "feeling like a designer" moment. So in another month or so, I'll post here when my profile gets posted over there.

Good things are happening in both of my business worlds!

Finished Scarf and Finished Book

I finished two things yesterday and today, a scarf that has been on my loom for months and a pretty good book.

As for the scarf, it is my second weaving project that I have completed. Weaving doesn't actually take that much time (it's setting it all up that takes the most time--the actual weaving goes quickly) and it took only an hour or two to finish the scarf. The scarf that I started several months ago (I can't remember exactly when). Why has it been sitting unfinished for so long? Because, to be honest, although weaving does have its perks, it's just not my "thing" especially compared to knitting and spinning. I've had my loom for well over a year and have made just two scarves. I've considered selling my loom, but I got such a great deal on it that I fear that one day I might want to get more into weaving and I'll never be able to replace the loom for what I paid for it. So I'll hold onto it for now. (But if any of my local fiber people want to borrow it for a little while, I'm happy to loan it out.)

Anyway, the yarn I used was given to me by a friend who had tried several knitting projects with it and nothing really worked with the colors. I do think that the yarn was made for a weaving project, as it does look quite nice. It's not super soft though (superwash wool and nylon), even after a good washing, so I'm not sure how truly useful it will be to wear around the neck. Anyway, without further ado, here's the finished woven scarf:

So the other thing that I finished this morning was a book I've been reading, Derivatives of Displacement #1: A Pair of Docks by Jennifer Ellis.

I discovered this book through Indie Books Gone Wild; one of the editors there did a proofreading on the book.

It took me a little while to get into the book (part of that could be that I'm a distracted reader these days with the toddler around) and to start to like the main character, Abbey. At first she seems like just a brain walking around in the body, rigidly wanting to sticks to rules, scientific or otherwise. But as the book progresses, she starts to bend a little and by the end of the book, although she hasn't thrown out her belief in science, she comes to realize that the world contains things that can't always be explained through scientific terms. Once she does start opening up, her character becomes much easier to relate to and care about. (Caring about the characters is one of the things I find most important in books I enjoy.)

Because this is the first book in a series and also because the kids themselves are trying to figure out what is going on with these stones and where they are traveling, it does take the reader a while to get any sort of answers to what is going on. But the second half (and especially the last third) of the book really picks up and it was at that point that I found myself wanting to pick up the book more often and leave the toddler to his own devices so I could finish it (sometimes that worked better than other times).

And although some answers are provided in the book, it ends with more questions (especially after what Abbey learns right at the end) which lead directly into the setup for the next book. Although I don't feel the need for the next book RIGHT NOW as I do with some books, I am disappointed to have to wait for the next one instead of being able to go straight to it. So I'll be keeping my eye on this series and picking up the next book when it does come out (according to the author's Amazon page, it will be coming out in October).

A Better Day

Today didn't start out so great, with not sleeping well and being awake at 4 am. But I decided that I would just try to push forward anyway.

I had to go to the post office to mail off some yarn I had destashed (going to Australia!), so I decided to get Luke's hair cut while we were out. He really impressed me today. While I was busy getting his water and a snack to take with us, he brought me his shoes to put on him. Since I was busy, I told him to put them on himself, not really expecting that to happen. Imagine my surprise when he not only tried but also succeeded in putting on his shoes--correctly! Then during his hair cut he sat in the chair all by himself for the first time. It was so nice not to have him on my lap and thus feel like I'm in the way and also feel like I am covered in his hair after the cut even though I have on a cape too.

My little boy is growing up!

Since he was such a good sport, I took him next door to get a doughnut. He was a little loud (shouting "hey" to the other customers who came in--at least he is trying to be friendly), but he sat in his chair and ate his doughnut. Off to the post office, where he was a little up to his usual acts (trying to run off instead of staying near me). But there was actually quite a line at the post office, so I don't really blame him for not wanting to stand in line all that time.

After that was the biggest snag of the day. I had planned to go to a store that I hadn't been to before (well, that location at least--it's a chain). I had a basic idea of where it was but couldn't remember exactly. I drove around and around trying to find it, finally trying to locate it with my phone. Nothing popped up at first. I tried the store locator on the store's website but it didn't seem to want to work with my phone. So finally I looked at a different map app and found it, only to see that it said "permanently closed." Ah! So that's why I didn't find it!

By this time it was almost 11 and as we generally get lunch around then, I decided to stop for lunch. Instead of getting Rosa's to go, since Luke had been good overall, I tried out going inside to eat. He happily munched on his chips and queso and mostly stayed in his seat. Once again, he shouted "hey" at the people next to us (and tried offering them his chips!). After I was finished eating but while he was still munching, he started to stand up in the booth, so we left at that point.

Home where he played happily (more or less) until nap time, which he took (and is still currently taking) without too much protest. I used the time to get a short editing project done, to do a little spinning for the Tour de Fleece, and to finish typing up the draft of the pattern for my latest cowl. (Oh! This morning I sewed on the buttons that I had picked up for it yesterday and took some pictures of it.) I was able to get everything set up for the test knit and already have two test knitters. (I'm still looking for more--if you're interested, go to Ravelry for more information.)

Current spinning project

The Wife of Bath's Cowl

The back side of the cowl

Plus, an announcement about my editing business made its first phase today (sorry for being vague but I don't want to give it away quite yet) and the part involving me will occur on Monday--so stayed tuned for more details then! This is something I'm super excited about so I'm thrilled to see it moving forward.

So, whew! It's not quite 4:00 and it's been a pretty darn good day so far. I definitely needed that after how I felt about yesterday!

Tough Day

Yesterday was a tough day. It started out okay--or as okay as an early morning dentist appointment can be. I got my son to my mom's house with plenty of time to spare (a lot of times I run it pretty close to almost being late) and made it to my appointment early. I had been worried about my appointment possibly running late because we also had Little Gym that morning, but I got out (with no problems with my teeth) in plenty of time and was even able to chat with my mom a little while Luke got to play with his cousin who was also there.

On to Little Gym, where things started out okay. The rock climbing wall was set up this time (I say "wall" but since this is for toddlers, it is not very tall) and Luke was all over it. Quite literally. I had to hold him back so that the other kids could take their turns on it. He was so into it that he didn't want to do any of the class activities. But then he saw that the water fountain, which is usually covered, was uncovered. And he wanted to play with it. After sticking his face in the water and getting water all over the floor, I pulled him away. He lost it. Full on tantrum. I took him to the side to help him calm down. He did only to go back to the fountain. More screaming. I took him out of the room to calm down. Then tried it one more time. No go. So we left early (the class ended just as we had finished putting on our shoes and gathering our stuff so it wasn't too early).

I had planned to go to Joann's to get buttons for my new cowl and really wanted to still do that. Fortunately I had some bunnies in my purse and eating those calmed Luke down enough for me to be able to get the buttons I needed. Then I decided to go ahead with the next errand since Luke had seemed to calm down: Toys 'R Us. (Thomas engines are on sale for 40% off plus they have some great clearance deals right now.) Picked up some toys to stash as treats for potty training and also picked up a toy for Luke's birthday.

It seemed like things were looking up. But then Luke fell asleep in the car on the way home and I was worried. He hadn't eaten lunch yet. Did I wake him up and feed him lunch and risk that he wouldn't go down for a nap (sometimes those car naps spoil his real nap) or did I skip lunch and put him into bed and hope he didn't wake up too early because he was hungry? I opted for the second option since he seemed super sleepy when I got him out of the car. Wrong choice. Five minutes after putting him into bed, he was awake. He did stay in his bed, talking to himself, so I started to work (I had an editing job that would take several hours to complete). That didn't last much longer before he was out of bed and nothing I could do would get him to go back to sleep. I was feeling a bit frazzled myself, so I gave up trying to get him to sleep on his own and laid down with him. He still didn't want to sleep, but after quite a while, he finally drifted off. Success!? Nope. Anytime I tried to move he would wake up. So I was trapped in his room. I drifted off myself which was another mistake because when I woke up I felt even worse than I did before (those power naps never seem to work out for me).

At least shortly after that, my husband came home so I could sit down and do a little work. And Luke did go to bed without too much trouble. I finished my editing work with just under an hour before bedtime so I did do some spinning.

But then I slept horribly last night and was wide awake around 4 am. Luke woke up a little after 5. I'm hoping today is better but we'll see.

You know, typing this out, yesterday doesn't seem quite so bad. Good things happened: positive dentist experience, small chat with my mom, finding the buttons I needed, getting a good deal on some toys, finishing an editing job, getting some spinning time in. The bad things were Luke throwing several tantrums in public and not taking a nap. And that's not untypical of toddler behavior. I think I just haven't been sleeping well or feeling great so those annoyances get extra annoying and seem to overshadow everything else. I've almost deleted this post since it seems like I'm complaining about a bad day that really wasn't all that bad after all. But I think I'll post it anyway because writing it out helped me realize that it wasn't that terrible and maybe I'll need this reminder again. Okay, so there's probably no maybe about it. But maybe I'll have a better attitude about it next time.

Since April

Quite a lot has been going on here since I last posted in April.

I now have five knitting patterns available (one free and four to purchase) in my Ravelry store and on my website. I have two patterns currently in test knitting and one pattern soon to enter test knitting. And I have a number of ideas for new patterns (it's been hard to decide what to work on next!). So there's been a lot of progress on the design front.

I'm also learning a lot more about designing, both the actual design process as well as the business of design, especially as an indie publisher. I've been watching a lot of Craftsy courses and reading books and blogs and some very helpful forums on Ravelry.

I'm also hoping to expand the availability of my patterns so that they can be purchased as hard copies. The first step there is to actually get them into hard copy form. I looked into a number of options for printing but was getting discouraged as many of the places I looked at had minimum runs of 250 copies, which would mean a huge investment up front and me with 250 copies of each pattern not yet knowing if I could even need that many copies. Fortunately, people have gone before me and I can benefit from their experience. A thread on Ravelry produced some great suggestions and I followed up with a print-on-demand publisher. Not only can I get smaller runs of each pattern, the per pattern price is actually less than I had calculated with my other options. I went ahead and ordered a small run of one pattern (Lady Bertilak) and I was very happy when I received it to see it printed exactly as I had wanted it to be. So now I just need to make sure the other patterns are formatted for this printer and order copies of them.

My first planned test run with the hard copies will be in September at Blackland Prairie Artisan & Fibre Faire (BPAFF). I'll be at the MAFIA booth (Mansfield Area Fiber Inspired Artisans) with some other lovely ladies in my local knitting group (they'll have dyed fiber and yarn, spinning wheels, projects bags, and some of their patterns). If you're anywhere near the area (DFW, Texas), I hope you'll come see us September 20-21. (We'll also be at the DFW Fiber Fest next year.)

My goal beyond that is to see if local knitting shops would start carrying my patterns. I need to do a little more research here to find out exactly how the shop owners should be approached and what to expect. Plus, I want to get my pattern library to be a bit larger before I work on this goal.

So there's been a lot going on with the design business. My other business, my copy editing, has also been going well. I've had steady work from my regular clients and I've picked up an odd job here and there with new clients. But my most exciting news is still to come. As soon as it has been officially announced, I'll write up a post to announce that news. But it should help me expand my editing business and also take it in the direction that I really want to go, with editing fiction.

Luke is growing up so fast. He'll be three years old next month (I need to start planning his party!) and although he's still being a super picky eater and still quite stubborn and throwing tantrums, he is communicating better and is using complete sentences more often. He's also enjoying building his own train tracks and working on puzzles and, of course, playing with anything that has wheels. He also loves being in the water although we haven't gone swimming as often as we probably should be. Sometimes I just sit and watch him play and it makes me so happy to see him working things out for himself and also just having fun. He's also made a new friend--the son of one of the ladies in my knitting group who is about 8 months younger than Luke--and actually asked the other day to go play with this little boy (it happened to be a day where we could go to a toddler activity where the other little boy was also going to be so it worked out).

I'm trying to carve out more time for reading these days since I've gone from reading 200-250 books per year to less than 10. That's just crazy for someone who is a professed book worm. But I've just been feeling this itch with my hands and if I don't have something in them (usually knitting related), then it feels wrong. So I do some reading while knitting simple projects, but I want to get to the point where I can just get lost in a book again. Perhaps that won't happen until Luke gets a little older anyway (it's not just the feeling that I need to be knitting that is a distraction), but I am doing better. I've started using my GoodReads account again.

There's a lot more that is going on or that has happened (such as our vacation last month to Maui!), but I think that's enough of an update for now.