Monday Morning March Mirth

Herself: "I told you drinking all that green beer at the parade
would turn that forked tongue of yours an emerald color!"

Himself: "AAAAh, woman, it's a bad hen that won't scratch herself!"


What is Irish diplomacy?
It’s the ability to tell a man to go to hell,
So that he will look forward to making the trip.

Aux femmes qui tricotent...

un homme qui agit seulement!!!

Our mascot Mr. Crowe has landed in the middle of a tempest in a teapot! There is discussion on About.Knits that he is just a lovely poser. Check it out and grab some wallpaper!

I still think he will win the Best Actor award!

Spring has sprung in Chicago with a snow blast and freezing temps. I thought for sure I could hang up the down jacket and GET OUT of parka hell! Looks like a day for the heavy snuggies as well...

My silver cloud is that I am still knitting a wool sweater and it is warm to hold on the lap! I had this project with me the other night at the primary election HQ of one of our Republican Governor canidates. It was at the big Downtown Marriot on Michigan Ave: balloon columns galore, buffet, open bar for the supporters.

I work for the media and we were roped off like the little hamsters we are and were all set up on a platform for live coverage. Election nights are usually a lot of hurry up and wait. The results trickle in and you get to be horrifically bored for HOURS then jump up and roll on the concession/victory activity.

So, there's various time killers that people use to try and wack the stullification. I saw crossword puzzles (old school), newpapers (runs out of content way too early in the night), stacks of magazines (1*), laptops (2**'s), laptops with wireless internet surfing (3***'s), laptops used by the print media with hardline fiber optic lines for quick filing used for surfing (4****'s), and the very best time aspirin around: KNITTING (5*****'s).

Of course, the real truth is that I was the only one knitting and made about a third of a complicated ruffled then ribbed sleeve throughout the evening. We were with a losing candidate and the boredom factor rose to such high altitudes that at one point I had 5 people gathered around me just WATCHING me knit. Four men and 1 women.

I let the lady knit a row - she had learned many years ago from a neighbor. Just like riding a bike! Now she's going to come to S'nB and start something. One of the guys wants me to make him an Aran sweater. (Cables are intoxicating, no?)

I told him that I only knit for myself and family because it is just too labor intensive. He, like typical competitive paparazzi, then tried to talk me into it. It was really hilarious. I finally said OK, that I would do it for $2,000.00. After blanching, he said "WHAT, I thought it would be like $200.00." I said, "Oh, no, for 5th place rated channels, the price is doubled." He left me still knitting while the laughter died down.

We are the Knitting Blog Nation!!!

Citizen ChicKnits celebrates her
Ringness with a happy dance!

Three Cheers for Ivette!!! Thanks for the most intelligent idea of the month - you are a crafting goddess...

I just put the code for the Knitter's Blog Webring on this Blog page. I am a new Citizen!

I put mine into a little table at the bottom of this page. Feel free to take the table and just change the ID# in the link code to your ID# to use the arrows.

The Little Bad Muse always finds a way, and this morning while I was starting to clean my apartment, I struck gold...

This of course meant abandoning the housework so I could start the process but that is not a problem in the ChicKnits Universe.

While putting together a batch of clothes that had wore out their welcome, I found my favorite sweater. Or Ex-Favorite Sweater since I'd washed it and it shrank at least 3 sizes. It is from J. Crew a couple of years ago and is a simple light baby blue V-neck. I love this color! It is also in a small gauge that I wouldn't make in a million years so I snapped it up. Then killed it by accidently felting it.

AHA! My friend Mr. Felting! He lives down the lane and is always ready to help out.

So here's the plan: I'm going to make a couple of party purses and hats out of the pretty little sweater.

I am going to trim the purses with leftover yarns and some TechnoHair I bought for $7.00. Not bad for 4 projects...

Color is actually much more beautiful!

Step One: Felt the sweater some more by washing it with blue jeans in hot water.

HEY! All of a sudden I'm back doing housework. WHAT THE...


Later . . .

Mr. Felting has almost gone too far!!! Give him an inch and he'll take a mile so I wish I would've kept my eyes peeled a litte sharper...

This is now a size that would fit a 4y.o.
Well I'll make a purse with a matching hat or something!
Never say never...

Wet snow much of the day
with chilling 15-20 m.p.h. NE winds.
Accumulations of 1 to 3 inches with higher totals south.
More wet snow overnight with another
inch or two accumulation possible.

AGAIN the Forecast calls for Crafty...

I'm starting to think the Little Bad Muse has some kind of cash deal with the Weatherman! I am virtually stuck in the darn cabin with the housework looming and the Felt Bag calling...

I took the little purse to the next level because until that's done, the really fun trimming part can't begin!

Here's my progress in PURSE PICTURES...

Damn, I love digital cameras. I swore for the last couple of years that I wouldn't get one until they were as good as film but I'm having a ball with this one and Photoshop.

The Oscars: I'm with Dangerous Chunky on this one - I lent my copy of Training Day to friends last night so they could watch it before the awards.

We'll be on the cells tugging war: Denzel Russell
DENzelRUSsellDENZELRUSSELL denzelrusselldenzellrusseldenzelrussell!!!

Hey, book it Dano: $20 on LOTR to win, please...

Monday Morning March Mirth



Courtesy Spinnerin

Comments (6)

Get in touch with your unique craft DNA!
Make ribbon, wood and paint do your bidding!
Find out how to command the technique of your choice!

Make something wonderful out of something
not-so-wonderful with the lovely


Crafty Chica!

In her own words, Kathy Cano-Murillo says:

She takes naughty pleasure in slapping fresh paint on raw wood.

She loves the smell of magic markers, especially
the fruit flavored ones.

She happily shares her secrets tips with other Crafty Chicas.

I'll say! This site has enough cool projects to get you through the worst of any type of Cabin Fever.

I love shadowbox art - Crafty Chica shows you how to make a Love-in-a-Box Wall Shrine. She even has a book coming out in September on how to master this wonderful art style from found objects.

Or how about a PAINTING your Cell Phone to mirror your personality?

If you need help staying on track during your busy day, gently remind yourself with some Flower Power MEMO HOLDERS.

This site makes me want to take my mini-glue gun and make a necklace out of IT! Thanks Kathy! Keep it coming...


Comments (2)

Now accepting comments to the left of your screen...


Comments (8)

Crafty Collaborations

Last night at Stitch'nBitch, we decided to have a Granny Square party. We're trying to decide what colors of yarn we'll ask everybody to bring. Should primaries/brights rule the day because of our seasonal change to spring/summer? Or should we go for a more subtle range because we are inner city chic divas? Hmmmm...

I think I want to make about 8 little squares and make another purse. I would line it with felted material made from old wool sweaters. (OMG, do we see another binge coming on. It's going to be too warm to make hats so I'm going to have a different type of small project to wallow in...)

My Fellow Chicagoans: If you see someone wildly going through all the racks in the fab thrift stores around Wicker Park, Bucktown, and East Village, know it's a kindred spirit on a mission... Which of course means: LEAVE THE GOOD STUFF FOR ME OK???!!!

Right.

My good friend Mary Jane Galloway called me last night and wants me to share a craft booth with her at a couple of summer street fairs here this summer. She is so organized - competition is really steep for many of these fairs and she's voted early and often just like a good Chicagoan should. (I love the fact that many people only think of Chicago in terms of maybe 3 things: gangsters, Michael Jordan/Bulls, and political fraud!)

She's gotten space at the Wells St. Art Fair and the Halstead St Fair. These are both fun ones with hipsters who sometimes wait all year to see what they can get from the craftsters present.

My question to MJ was: what the heck do you think I could sell? Of course she said: PURSES. I almost started crying because obviously she just doesn't understand how I couldn't part with any of them.

YET.

Maybe by summer, after I've obsessively made a few hundred, I'll be able to part with one.

groovy Granny Square stuff:


Cool Drawstring Purse!!!

Slippers

Scarf

Bib

Sunbursts

A whole load of Grannies


^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^


Comments (4)

Scooby Doo! Use up ALL those Scrappy Dooos

Kelly K, a charter S'nB knitter of many things tiny, brought one of these adorable Hello Kitty clones to the table the other day:

Courtesy GeneratorDesign

Your sock monkey needs this little kitty so she won't be lonely...

From those famous practitioners of Scrap Yarn Knitting, the astounding Frugal Knitting House, here are some fabulous projects...

Fab & Simple Knitted Bag!

Cool Knitted Scrunchies!

Knitted Sampler Bag

French Shopping Bag!

My Fave: Square Slippers

60's Triangle Scarf


Comments (8)

One of the best things that's happened to me while walking the Road of Craft is the people you meet along the way.

Online over the last few months the Knitting Bloggers Nation exploded on the scene. It is thrilling to find all the global talent out there and the extra added energy only jet propels my efforts.

Imagine my delight last night when I got together for the first time with online blog legend Squibnocket to Knit 'nChat over at the Weaving Workshop. They have a Thursday open knitting night here in Lincoln Park in Chicago.

Miss Sqib is here for the holidays and we had a BLAST dishing and tip sharing and getting to know each other. Thanks for and wishing you Happy Holidays, Squib! So pleased to meet ya!!!

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++




Courtesy Wendy Yarn Co

Confessions from a Craftoholic: OMG I might be able to find help over at the Church of Craft but hope this revelation will not offend.

This delightful Scooby picture is my computer wallpaper !!!!!!!!!!

YES, while surfing eBay looking for knitting patterns, I found this Wendy pattern from the 70's for not only Scooby but SCRAPPY! He's most pudgy and beautiful so I made wallpaper out of this brochure because I couldn't afford the ~~ $57.00 the dang thing eventually sold for. How I longed to get into a bidding war with whatever B was blocking my ownership of the rare and valuable jewel.

Oh fellow crafters, I need remedial underwiring at the Church of Craft for this one because I lust not over emeralds but burn over OLD PATTERNS. I must do penace and move on with my life....

Not however, until I lift my Crafting Spirits with a trip to the Poodle Wing of the:

World Famous Crochet Museum

Your host Shari Elf from Kansas City is a artist and singer with a fine appreciation for what I can only call BUBBIE ART...

These are the things that Bubbies everywhere (even as we speak) are crafting as they watch the Price is Right!

DIVE Dive dive: incoming blabby coffee ramble:

Here in the skewed Media Universe that I toil in, there is a phenom know as fan appreciation. It can take the guise of letters, calls, uninvited visits, and gifts.

One simple spring day not too long ago, a huge box arrived at the TV station I work at addressed to the Newsroom. Inside this box were individual gifts for all of the reporters and anchors working at that time at the station. Over 10 crocheted lovelies were enclosed, each tagged with love explaining their recipient and inspiration.

They were all 2-liter bottle covers with various animal heads representing the talent personnel of the newsroom. The only exception was one with a female type head honoring Elizabeth Vargas who at the time was a reporter in Chicago. I think she's on NBCs morning show or something now. This lovely head was embellished with lovely dark yarn hair and had an embroidered face with brilliant lips and eyes...

Ms. Vargas was not amused. She, and all the other recipients were, in fact, HORRIFIED! You would've thought they had received personal porn fanmail of some terrifying nature the way they ran screaming from that box. At first, being journalists, they were curious and slightly flattered that there was a particular object in the box that was a portrait of themselves.

However, imagine Walter Jacobson's surprise when he saw he was represented as a green and white Dachsund with a very long nose! (If you're not from Chicago, he was a #1 Anchorman at the time with a 6-figure salary and the fitting ego size a celebrity must possess!)

Of course, another female reporter got to be a pink French Poodle bootle cover and I was very jealous...

When I found out that no one was interested in keeping the tributes but they were to be donated to a local children's shelter, I begged for the poodle and dachsund and was rather harshly rebuffed! Imagine!!!!

My theory was that some sweet Bubbie on SSecurity or a pension had saved her money and bought all this yarn. She, out of love and misplaced devotion, made these delightful presents for the whole crew.

I THANK her for her lovely sentiments and generosity wherever she may be....

My Favorite Bubbie Toy


This lovely Mule? Lamb? Horse? Dog? possesses all of the true Hallmarks of the Genre: ambiguity, pom-poms & a happy smile...

Comments (1)

The Beat Goes On!

The little felted purse is moving right along. I thought I could pick up stitches along the top to knit the trim right on. BUT, Mr. Felting did such a good job of shrinky dink that the fabric is way too dense to even pierce evenly.

So I measured ( from my old Boyfriend Norm Abrahams of This Old House: "Measure twice, cut once." I actually met Mr. Abrams at a huge House Show and my friend had to go up and get the autographed 8x10 for me because his celebrity struck me dumb!) the top of the purse twice and cast on what I thought would be enough stitches to go around the top.

Using a similar darker blue tone mercerized cotton, I worked 3 rows in Garter stitch. Then I worked two rows in Stockinette St using one strand scrap Light Blue cotton and the Chartruese TechnoHair.

This was too dense so I dropped the lt. blu and used just the TechnoHair. I'm using #4 needles so it should be dense on the inside and really fluffy on the outside. (Just like some people I know!!!)

There will be about 3" of Fluff so when you put your hand in the purse
you pet yourself coming and going...

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

At Weaving Workshop the other night, while visiting with Ms. Squibnocket, I started a little shell out of Jaeger Albany:

The pattern is from a Jaeger Book featuring a very MODERN designer named Amanda Griffiths. This yarn is a skinny cotton ribbon and she uses loops and slip-stitch knitting to create many wonderful fresh garments.

Check out the Albany Portfolio HERE at Colourway.

I've purchased many yarns from this great online resource.

If you're lucky enough to be going to Wales, here's Colourway's address:

Market St. (junction with St Johns St.)
Whitland, Carmarthenshire
Wales, SA34 0AH
Tel & Fax: 01994 241333 (24 hours);
Opening Hours Monday to Saturday, 9:30 till 5:30.

Comments (1)

Comments (2)