Just when I thought . . .

So, last night was Monday night. That means I spin to "Big Bang Theory" and "How I Met Your Mother" . . . but after that, I usually switch over to the end of "Dancing with the Stars" before heading over to ESPN or some sports stuff to leave on as background noise until I sleep . . . so . . I switch over last night and apparently had just missed some drama with one of the guys!?! Some injury, or something? Well . . . as it turned out, the best was yet to come . . . or, well . . . .

When they did the dance to the "Star Wars" music (was that last season?) I sort of thought I'd seen it all . . . but, oh no. Last night, that "Star Wars" dance was trumped by . . . .

Jason Taylor doing a Paso Doble to . . . ARE YOU READY????? . . .
the MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL THEME!?!?

Honestly, I thought it was hilarious. The dance itself was good, I guess, but I found myself totally distracted by other thoughts, like, "it's so weird to hear this much of this song" and "it's nice and all that they are in Miami Dolphin colors, but how much longer will he be a Dolphin?" and "Oh, I hope Tony and Mike talk about this on PTI tomorrow". And, "wow, they [ABC & ESPN] are taking cross-promotion to a whole new level."

Anyways, this is sort of a dis-jointed post, so let's get back on track with some NEW YARNS! :)

Here are the two bamboo single plys from yesterday - Stormy Seas. They are now listed on etsy and will be on my site very soon.
And, the yarns I was spinning while watching all that entertaining TV, more Divine Melon yarns!

These may or not be for a special request, so they may or may not be available later today. But, I'll be sure to post better pics tomorrow if they are listed and available!

My Dad met Johnny Depp . . .

So, my Dad called me yesterday, we hadn't talked in awhile . . . but the main exciting news up where he lives (northern Wisconsin, near Minocqua) is that they are filming (or were, I believe they wrapped up this weekend) the new Johnny Depp movie up there - the Dillinger movie. (They are supposedly now coming down to Milwaukee and have also filmed in other locations in the state.) So, he had some stories about that and said that he shook Johnny Depp's hand!

Now, I'm not young and silly anymore, but this made we wonder, why the heck wasn't I up there trying to stalk Johnny Depp!?!? Ha ha! :) Seriously, though . . . having a major movie production going on up there has got to be pretty exciting, but given the local population means that they weren't dealing with quite the swarms of people they are used to - hundreds instead of thousands . . .

anyways, didn't ask if he got any pictures, that is a better question for my sister . . . she's the one with the camera.

in other news, the weekend wasn't quite as productive as I'd hoped, but I did get a few new bamboo yarns spun up!

Summer Neon Taffy Single Ply

Peachy Keen Taffy Two-Ply
And, finally, "Stormy Sea" - these aren't listed yet but should be this afternoon.


And, finally, I leave you with a kitty pic - Bug tends to sleep under my chair when I spin, but it amazes me how close she will actually rest to my treadling feet?!?!? She was snoozing away . . .
and, then, once she realized I had the camera on her, decided to groom herself . . .
Silly Bug!

That's all for today!

Something about Buffy . . .

well, actually this is about Spike and Angel.

So, on my way to work this morning, I was listening to a CD that had two of the Buffy musical songs on it, one of them being Spike's song . . . which of course got me thinking about Spike in general . . . and about how many fans find one of the most annoying "inconsistencies" to be when Spike says, "You were my sire, man, you were my Yoda" to Angel in the episode "School Hard".

Now, we later find out that it was in fact Drusilla who turned Spike. BUT, Angel DID turn Drusilla, right? And in many vampire-lores, it is the "master vampire" who is the powerful one, right? The one who started the "chain"? Well, and here is where the logic isn't perfect, but . . . I don't think Spike meant Angel *actually* was the one to bite him, but rather . . . Angel was the "master" (yes, I know he wasn't the "first" and even within the 4 of them, DARLA actually would be the "original", but go with me on this . . .) and it is obvious that Spike looked to Angel to learn and mold himself on how to be a vampire, in a way. So . . . this small little line no longer bothers me (not that it ever really did, to be honest - now I just have a convoluted way of explaining it away . . .) Am I making any sense?

This also got me thinking about Angel vs. Spike . . . I've always liked Spike better. I thought Buffy/Angel was kinda creepy (and not that some of the same factors should apply with Spike, but by then she was "older" and more "mature" - she was just so young with Angel, ya know? and he was so old . . .) but Buffy/Spike just made sense. I also think Spike was just . . . better. Angel was a total jackass *before* he became a vampire, is it any wonder he was such a bad-ass vamp? He had to be cursed into his soul. Spike, on the other hand, or William the Bloody, well, he was different, wasn't he? And those traits? Those traits came through in Spike whether he wanted them to or not . . . and Spike, well, he WANTED his soul, and even BEFORE he got it showed much more "humanity" than Angel . . . remember the Judge? He knew it.

Anyways, enough about Buffy. And Spike. . . .

I didn't spin anything last night! I can't believe it! But, the forces were against me as I was 1. trying to catch random updates from Loop, 2. watching Thursday night TV (don't even get me started on LOST!) and 3. prepping bamboo fiber. SO, it wasn't a total waste of a night as I do now have 3 colors of bamboo ready to spin tonight and tomorrow!

I did list the three yarns I "sneak-peeked" yesterday! Here they are again with separate pictures and also links to the etsy listing . . . they are also on my website.

Aqua Lime Explosion 3

Aqua Lime Explostion 4

Rocky Roads - Aqua Lime - Hand Spun Yarn with coils

Well, that's all! Lots of work to do today as well as two updates to stalk! ha ha! :)

New Bamboo Yarns & blog feature!

So, I didn't get a chance to share yesterday, but before I get to the new yarn pictures, I found out on Tuesday (Earth Day!) that I was featured on JenVecc's blog! You can check it out here! Yay!

On to the new bamboo . . .

Another two-ply, this time in colorway "Stormy Night" - 258 yards total!


And, one of my favorite-est colorways, Chocolate Berry Shine - two skeins of single ply:

And, I did get one skein of "Violets R Blue" listed, too!
And, just a sneak peak at what will be listed later today:

More "Aqua Lime Explosion"!


And, a "Rocky Roads" coily yarn spun from a wonderfully soft alpaca/merino/mohair blend! This fiber is from NorthStarAlpacas! Very soft!


That's all I have time for today! Hopefully will have more time tomorrow!

Busy spinning weekend!

So, this weekend was pretty great in that I spun ALOT. Saturday alone I spun *6* skeins of yarn! Yay! I love days when I can get that much done. I didn't do quite as much on Sunday, but still got some more bamboo spun up . . . . before I get to pictures of this weekend's spinning, I just want to mention that over on DancingMooney's blog, "Random Musings About Art, and Life" it is the time for here What's in the Bag? Giveaway! If you would like to win a great bag of goodies from Etsy sellers, check it out! :)

Now, on to the pictures . . .

First, the bamboo. This first yarn is another spin of bamboo two-ply, the color I've been calling "Summer Carnival". This batch was spun just a bit thinner, so it turned out to be more DK than Worsted weight. I've got 306 yards! This may or may not be a special request, but either way I do hope to have it listed soon. It was spun by me from hand dyed bamboo fiber from the FiberLady.

More bamboo - this was actually spun up on Sunday . . . again, fiber from FiberLady, hand dyed bamboo . . . I'm calling these "Violets R Blue", though it was spun from her "Ocean Dusk" colorway. Again, one or both might be spoken for already, but if not, they will be listed soon, too.

The top skein is 220 yards and the bottom is 170 - both sport weight.

Then, there were the single plys! I spun up one on Friday. This deserves a little special attention because it is my first LOOP batt! Naomi of Ryono Creations was kind enough to share one her LOOP batts (I believe it was Sunset Spectacle). I received it on Thursday but couldn't spin it until Friday . . . . and all I can say is . . . WOW! It was so wonderful to spin, I think it was the alpaca in it that made it such a smooth spin, and the recycled silk added texture and color, plus the merino wool . . . just, well, it was so great I could resist no longer and joined her "Spontaneous Spinning Club" - one "Spontaneous Spinning Batt" a month for the next 6 months! I can't wait for my first one! Anyways, here is a picture of the single ply yarn - I'm calling it "Sunset Wish" and it is now listed on etsy and my website. It is 130 yards, mostly DK weight with some thicker sections and very soft!
Then, on Saturday, I did spin up two more single ply yarns from hand dyed Falkland wool, dyed by the Yarn Wench. The first is "Strawberry Mocha Creme" (from the roving of the same name) and it is 165 yards of DK weight yarn. I just love these colors and actually spun up some bamboo in similar colors last night!

"Golden Peacock" is 155 yards of DK weight as well, spun from the colorway "Titian".

I also spun up some more "Eye Candy"! I had been planning on spinning up the last batch of fiber I had in this colorway, but got an extra incentive when I had a query about it . . . SO, I spun up two skeins, but only one is still available:


And, finally, later on Saturday night (I finished these around 10pm!), were two more skeins of "Turquoise Sands Surprise" Novel-Ply Yarn. I liked the first skein so much, and since I did still have some of the remaining fiber from my alchemy request, I decided it would become two more Novel-Ply skeins. Both are spun thick/thin (merino wool, of course) and then plied with super soft Angel Hair Yarn. Both are available now.


So, I think that is it! Tonight, it is more bamboo and some knitting . . . tomorrow I hope to venture into some art yarn spinning again . . . we'll see.

TGIF!

Yes, I am so glad it's Friday. I don't know if it was spinning up all that Plum Divine at the beginning of the week, but I have been *so* tired these past couple of days! Even though I've got a lot to do this weekend, I'm at least looking forward to being able to sleep a little.

I don't really have anything new to share today. I've been so bad the past two nights - falling asleep on the couch before actually accomplishing any spinning OR knitting. I am working on a special-request bamboo two-ply and hope to finish that up tonight. My plan for the weekend is to get some more bamboo spun up but also an art yarn or two - something NOT in the colors of Plum Divine. I also scored some great yarn for more light-weight scarves I like to knit in the spring/summer so should probably start one of them this weekend, too. My next show is "Artistic Accessories" so I really need to have some new knits for it! And, since I sold 3 pairs of wristwarmers at my show last weekend, I should probably knit up a couple more pairs, too!

So much I want to do . . . . so little time! ;)

Since I don't really have anything new to share, I thought I would show off a wonderful scarf knit by Shawn of IslandSweet with one of my bamboo two-ply yarns (actually similar to the yarn I am spinning now!) Here is a picture (you can click on it to go to the etsy listing) . . .

I just love the bright colors contrasted with the black!

I've also been lucky to see a wonderful creation knit with my single ply bamboo yarn as well! Cally designed this amazing pattern and then knit it, all with my yarn. It is two skeins of single ply bamboo.

It is really great to see the bamboo knit up as I will admit it isn't my favorite thing to spin - though I am liking it more and more, especially now that I can see how wonderful it can look knit up! Knowing it can become wonderful items like these has given me more incentive to spin up the fiber I have and maybe, even, knit with it.

Okay, I think that's all I have time for today - remember by ESST SALE is still going on!!

ESST SALE!

I have decided on my ESST sale! This offer runs from now until midnight CST on April 20, 2008.

FREE SHIPPING IN THE USA and HALF PRICE International Shipping!

PLUS, buy 2 or more yarns and get an additional 10% off!

kittygrrlz.etsy.com or kittygrrlz.com

Shipping charges have already been changed in my etsy shop, but to get the 10% discount please put "ESST" in the Notes to Seller Section and wait for updated invoice from paypal, or pay and I will refund the difference.

Also, this sale will also apply to my website BUT you MUST put "ESST" in the Comments section during check out and again either pay and I will refund the difference or wait for an updated invoice.

For newsletter subscribers, Free Shipping can be combined with other newsletter offers, but the 10% discount cannot be used for items already on April special (bamboo yarns and single ply yarns.) But, you can use the 10% off on other items!

This ESST Sale is something special that I normally would not do as usually the only specials I offer are via my newsletter list. If you would like to sign up for my newsletter, please EMAIL ME. You would receive ONE email per month with several specials and other update information.

Don't forget, if you are in need of supplies, just search "esst" on etsy!

Happy Shopping!

Plum Divine and a sale!

In addition to gearing up for the Ravelry ad (that is now running, btw! yay!), I'm also getting ready for a SALE that will be running from April 17-20. It is the ESST - Etsy Supplies Street Team sale! The ESST shop sales may include percentage off deals, free shipping, free goodies, or everyday great prices. If you are in need of supplies, starting TOMORROW, search for "esst" on etsy!

Of course, my problem is I'm not exactly sure what MY sale is going to be! So, please keep an eye here on my blog, or my shop announcement on etsy for details starting Thursday morning. I may have different offers each day, or something that I will run throughout. I'm just not sure yet!

What I AM sure about is I have finished all of the Plum Divine skeins! (well, for now, at least!) I have *6* new skeins up at kittygrrlz.com and my etsy store. Each set of two is slightly different. Here are pictures of each skein with links to the etsy listing. (Please note, if you were to purchase any of them today, or anything else in my shop, and then that item ended up being part of my sale tomorrow, I *will* honor the discount by refunding the difference if payment was already made.)

Plum - Wine - Divine 1 & 2
These have burgundy, green, and purple specialty and novelty yarns spun in and are plied with green thread. Great yardage!

Plum - Lime - Divine 1 & 2
These two skeins have only purple and green novelty and specialty yarns spun in and are both plied with green thread with coils & beehives for added texture!


Plum - Sunshine - Divine 1 & 2
These two skeins have yellow, burgundy, green and purple novelty and specialty yarns spun in and are plied with yellow thread instead of the green.

That's it for today - make sure to check back tomorrow for my ESST sale!

Lots going on this week!

So, tomorrow I will have a featured yarn ad on Ravelry! It will be promoting my "Plum . . . Divine" FunctionArt yarns! I have one ad that I will be using for sure, and another that I might be rotating in. For those who aren't on Ravelry, here are the ads, designed by Scott Bertz of WebWorkLife.

Plum . . . Divine FunctionArt ad:

FunctionArt Ad:

Of course, this means that I have been working hard to have more Plum Divine yarns done! I have 4 of 6 skeins spun up so far and am hoping to finish the last two tonight. Each set of 2 is slightly different. The first set has green, purple, and burgundy yarns spun in while the second set only has green and purple. The second set also has coils and beehives for added texture. I'm not sure what the final set will be - I think it will be closer to the first batch, though, since there is a lot of burgundy in that particular batch of fiber.

I've also got a few special requests in the works as well as working on something else that I'll post about tomorrow. In the meantime, here are some new yarns!

Some more coils! This set is "Smoky Heart" and now on etsy and will be on my website soon!

I also have a Navajo 3-ply skein to list later today. This was spun from hand dyed merino wool, dyed by the Yarn Wench - a color called "Kilkenny". I've already spun other batches of this color into the "Compendium" FunctionArt Yarn, and also a small Novel-Ply skein called "Surprise Party". It's interesting to see the same color spun up in different ways! This is the "Compendium" Navajo 3-ply, and again, this will be listed later today:

And, finally, here is a sneak peak at the Plum . . . Divine skeins! These will not be available until late tonight or early tomorrow morning:


These two are the "Plum - Wine - Divine" One is 130 yards and the other is 124 yards. Bulky weight.
This is one of two Plum - Lime - Divine skeins. They are 94 yards and 84 yards, bulky/super bulky weight and also have coils/beehives spun occasionally for extra texture.

That's it for now! Make sure to check back tomorrow for more Plum Divine pictures and also something else!

Kitty Singles! and more . . .

Once again I haven't had a chance to blog and now I've got a couple of things to get to today . . .

First, I'd like to mention that I'm being featured on this wonderful blog. And, not only that, but she is having a give-away drawing of a fun bag of goodies later in the month. If you win, one of the items you will receive is one of my mini-skeins of Navajo-plied yarn. Please check it out!

On the spinning front, after completing my first Alchemy request, I needed to spin up a few singles - partly because I sold a few at the beginning of the month, and partly because I needed something that was a little "quicker" of a spin than the art yarns. Here are the 3 newest:

Spring Peacock

Spring Sweets

Ocean Rainbow

Single ply yarns ARE one of my newsletter April specials, so if you are interested in receiving the discount, please EMAIL ME to be added to my newsletter list. I send out only one email a month and it usually includes at least 2 special offers that last throughout the month and are ONLY for newsletter subscribers.

I also spun up some more coils the other day! This is the second batch of fiber called "Headbanger" that was hand dyed by the Yarn Wench. The other 2 skeins have already sold, but these are now available:

58 yards (Bruised Heart 4)

34 yards (Bruised Heart 3)


And, finally, I am doing a show this weekend! I will have at least 5 shawls and lots of yarn! Here is the information:
A Fair to Remember
Washington County Fair Park
3000 Hwy PV
West Bend, Wisconsin
9am - 4pm

Please come by if you are in the area!