Working It Wednesday Sep 13, 2017

I haven't accomplished much in the last 2 weeks on the sweater-But I did manage to start the shaping for the neckline.  Look at that beautiful bind off. 

I did finish the first Witchy Woman sock and have gotten 9 stripes into the second one.

 And as part of my Holiday Make A Long hosted on Ravelry and Instagram, I have gotten half a dishcloth done.

Not much, but really not too bad for prepping to go out of town and being gone for 5 days.

What are you working on?

First Annual Make Along-Handmade for the Holidays

Hello and welcome to the first annual Make Along!

The rules are pretty simple. There are 2 threads in my Ravelry Group. The chat thread is to show off WIPs and for encouragement. The FO thread is for completed projects. The goal of this make along is to tackle those handmade gifts that we always SAY we are gonna make, but maybe never get around to.

Crafts that are qualify as part of the MAL
-Crochet
-Knit
-Weave
-Spin
-Sewing

WIPs count for the crochet/knit/weave as long as the project is not more than 50% complete. For the spin/sewing category, they must be fresh projects.

All Finished Projects that contain at least 50g of Brazen Stitchery Yarn count as 2 entries.

Each month I will have 3 drawings. 1 from the Chat Thread, 1 from the FO thread, and one from instagram. Hashtag any photos of wip’s or fo’s with #brazenmakealong on instagram. You must be a member of the Ravelry group to be eligible to win a thread prize, and you must follow Brazen Stitchery on Instagram to win an instagram prize.

Dates for the MAL are Sep 1 - Dec12.
Please feel free to double and triple dip.

Join us for encouragement and fun!

Workin' It Wednesday August 30, 2017

This week I got more knitting done than I thought I would.  I didn't achieve my goal of finishing the front of my Boxy but I did get 16 rows done.  The marker with the blue bead is where I was last Wednesday.  Maybe this week is the week that I will be able to finish the front and move to the back!  However, I am prepping right now for Georgia Fiber Fest so I may not be able to knit on it too much.  Time to make a to do list and start marking things off.

I was able to get the foot done on my to go project I placed the waste yarn for an afterthought heel last night.  The yarn is Witchy Woman and is dyed by me.  I love this yarn and do not have anything for myself from it.  I decided to remedy that with this years batch.  You will be able to buy it through the website once I have completed the renovations when I return from Georgia Fiber Fest.

They are having a dinner with Franklin Habit speaking on Friday night.  I got tickets for the dinner yesterday-I heard him speak a few years ago at DFW Fiber Fest and I really enjoyed it.  I follow him on instagram and he also has the cutest Pitt But named Rosamund-she looks like a doll.  So I am excited to fangirl on Friday.

What are you working on this week?  Show me your pictures on Instagram, Ravelry, or Facebook.  Tag your picture with #workinitbrazen

Weekending Monday Aug 28 2017

This past weekend was another busy one!  It was the last weekend of the DFW Yarn Crawl.  So I spent my Saturday much the same as the previous one.  I worked, rehearsed, and went to Jennings Street Yarns to hang out and sell yarn.  The only difference was that I went home and was in bed and asleep by 8p.  I had a few nights the previous week of getting less than 6 hours of sleep and that was a real problem.

Sunday, I worked, went up to JS Yarns for the last day of the crawl and then I went to West 7th Wool in Ft Worth to grab a skein from the trunk show that Yarn Carnival was having.  I wanted to pick a skein of hers up for the sleeves on my boxy sweater that I am knitting.  I should be on the sleeves in a week or 2 and I wanted to be prepared for that.

Hurricane Harvey is on my mind and in my thoughts.  We are getting just a bit more rain than normal where I live, but there are people losing their homes, businesses, and lives in south Texas.  Please keep our south Texans in your thoughts as they endure such a massive storm and consider donating to the relief effort.

Workin' It Wednesday August 23, 2017

This week I have been knitting up some quick shop samples and I started a new pair of socks for me with Witchy Woman.

Witchy woman was one of my very first self striping color ways and it has been a popular one!  Every year I dye up a batch or 3 and every year, folks grab it up.  It is a difficult color though.  Self striping needs to be put into a skein that you can dye several yarns at a time in the same color and then put back into a regular skein.  Witchy Woman is the color most likely to fight me during this process.  But she's a labor of love because she's gorgeous.

I am also s l o w l y chugging along on my Boxy Sweater.  Like I have done 2 rows this week!  I just hate purling and I have gotten to the point that it's divided and I have to knit back and forth.  My goal this week is to complete the front of the sweater.  However, this is not a project that you can really haul around with you and with my schedule, I should be able to sit and knit sometime in 2018.  I have hopes though!

So what are YOU working on this week?  I'd love for you to show me your projects either on Instagram, Ravelry, or Facebook.  

Weekending Monday August 21, 2017

This weekend I spent the mornings working for Mega Airline and the afternoons at Jennings Street Yarns for my trunk show during DFW Yarn Crawl. Saturday I also had rehearsal for Treasure Island at Plaza Theatre Co. in beautiful Cleburne, TX.  We had fight choreography and it was so. fun.  I get to (in the guise of Mary Read) sword fight and beat the heck out of one of my friends.  You know what they say, friends that sword fight together, have a blast together.  Well, maybe they don't say that, but it's totally true!  I am really looking forward to the show.

Here are some pictures of Jennings Street and my set up.  I am just to the right as you walk in.

On this past Saturday and next Saturday as well Carissa Browning, designer of the popular Wonder Woman Shawl available in knit and crochet, will be in shop.  Carissa is lovely and her pattern is so cute and very beginner friendly.  I decided to play in the dye pots and come up with my own gold and red.  The red is Hippolyta, the gold is a retired and now fresh and updated color way from a few years ago called Golden Lasso of Truth.

Jennings has a display in traditional gold and red in twead that I think looks great.  Carissa will be in the shop to chat with and also to sign her new shawl pattern collection based on dinosaurs and their friends. Those dinosaur shawls are pretty darn awesome-she has examples of each with her.

And, It's beginning to look a lot like Halloween!  The trunk show has this new color called Hocus Pocus in stock until it runs out.  Other skeins will go with me to Georgia Fiber Fest and then when I get home, it will be listed on the website for purchase.  If you would like to pre reserve a skien please let me know by emailing me at Brazenstitchery@gmail.com.

Penny and I are working on some fabulous new variegated and striping colors for the fall and winter. She just sent me a picture of something she's working on and it's totally gorgeous.

I hope my local readers can make it out on the crawl.  We have some fabulous shops in the DFW area.

Yarn Crawl 2017

Today marks the start of the DFW Yarn Crawl!

Here are a few pictures of the setup.  I have taken over the library at Jennings Street Yarns.

I have already said hi to some old friends, and met new people.  I bonded with one woman over my newfound love of Rupaul's Drag Race.  I will be at the shop daily from 2p to close during the crawl.

Yarn Crawl! Monday Aug 14 2017

One of my favorite times of the year is coming up.  DFW Yarn Crawl!  This year, just as the two previous years, Jennings Street Yarns will be hosting my trunk show.  My items will be there the whole time, but I will only be in person from 2p to close each day.

The crawl officially kicks off on August 18 and lasts through August 27.  Go to DFW Yarn Crawl to learn more about the event and see all the fun things that Cindy has planned.

I am really looking forward to seeing old friends and making new ones.

Shop Update Friday March 3, 3017-Butterflies and Caterpillars

This weeks shop update includes skeins inspired Butterflies and Caterpillars.

  

Butterfly Garden is the purple and reminds of the vibrant colors in a flower garden.

Flutterby is the black, yellow, and blue speckled yarn.  This was inspired by caterpillars.

Butterfly in the Sky is a 4 color self striping inspired also by butterflies.

Swing by the Brazen Stitchery to check out the new yarn!

Working it Wednesday March 1, 2017

Playing a little catch up today as I haven't had a chance to get on the big computer in a few days, but I don't wanna miss a WIP Wednesday!

So, It's actually not all that exciting.  With all the prep that I am doing for April Madness, i.e. DFW Fiber Fest and Yellow Rose Fiber Producers Fiesta, most of my time is spent with the dye pots, sewing machine, or some other behind the scenes activity that requires my attention in order to get ready for the big Month.

But, I DID make some progress, mostly while watching Lemony Snicket on Netflix with my family this past weekend.  The marker is where I was last week.

My goal this week is to keep working on this, during work and any time I can knit a row or two.

One thing Knitting has taught me-a row here and there is still progress!

What are you working on this week?

Shop Update Friday Feb 24, 2017

3 fresh self striping color ways are new to the shop this week.

Starting with the Anniversary Color.  I can't believe it's been 5 years since I opened up shop.  I have learned so much about myself as a person and about running a business.  This color way is 2 compound colors that I have mixed with 2 or more dyes.  So I really feel like its a great choice for an anniversary color-kind of a culmination of skills.

And the other 2 color ways are spring/Easter inspired.  The one on the left is Little Bunny FuFu and is a 4 color repeat.  The one on the right is Peter Cotton Tail and is a 3 color repeat.  Both evoke spring and Easter dresses that I had growing up.  I made myself some socks from the Little Bunny FuFu and they are so cute.  So glad I get to wear them now that I have taken their beauty shots for the listing.

Go to Brazen Stitchery to grab up any of these color ways.

Working It Wednesday Feb 22, 2017

This week, I'm still crawling along on my Find Your Fade shawl.  The marker shows the row that was completed last week.

I am pretty bored with this project, but I think that it's because it is a mega sized project-one of the things I like about socks and hats is that they are almost instant gratification projects.  So I may have to start a smaller project, and keep this one slowly going-maybe dedicate an hour a day to knitting on this and the rest of the time have something nice and quick.

What are you working on this week?

Weekending 2/20/2017

This weekend we attended a funeral for a friend of my 14 year old.

When he called from school last week, I thought he was just calling me about a ridiculous reason, as calls from school tend to be.  And then he said, 'You know Fayth?' (My mind jumps to he wants me to pick a valentine up for her or he's asked her to the school valentine dance as this was Feb. 14) I say 'yeah' and he says 'Her grandmother took her to a hotel, shot her in her sleep, and then killed herself.'

The class sizes at his school are very small so I heard stories regularly about Fayth, and I waved in the passerby sort of way to her grandmother.  Fayth was always ready with a smile and often said hi to my both of my kids as we walked by each other.  And I know that my children will always carry her in their hearts.

Please.  Please.  If you believe that self harm or the harm of a loved one is the answer, please seek help.  PLEASE SEEK HELP.

Suicide Prevention Website
1.800.273.8255

Working It Wednesday Feb15, 2017

This week I am still working on the Find Your Fade pattern.  The yarn that I am using right now is dyed by Gynx Yarns.  This is her singles construction yarn thats a SW Merino/Nylon.  I am really enjoying the color and the yarn.  This pattern calls for 7 skeins, so I was supposed to have added yarn 2, but I've decided to work with this one a little longer.  

  What are you working on this week?

Weekending Feb 11/12 2017-TXOLAN

This past weekend I packed up the family and we went to the TXOLAN Alpaca show which is held here in Ft Worth.  Ray and I really appreciated watching the judging but the kids were a bit bored by it.  It was really cool because the judges talked about why they placed each alpaca and what they were looking for.  

 We sat on the 'female side'.  They judge the males and females separately and judge in color and age categories.  There were some really good looking animals.

 This is my 'is he actually taking a picture' face.  O took our picture.

 Then I handed my camera off and the kids went and walked around for a bit while Ray and I watched the judging for a bit.  Here's one of the pics that O snapped.

Li was funny, he was calling the alpaca 'Giraffe Sheep'.  He's so ridiculous.

I also got to chat with some friends that I don't see very often-the local spinners and weaver come out to show off what can be done with alpaca fiber.  

Shop Update Friday Feb 10 2017

This week, My shop update is Experimental in nature!

I've listed some Heel and Toe skeins is colors that I've been testing to go into a larger color way.  These Skeins are 80 yd and are perfect to add a contrasting heel and toe to a pair of socks if you need to stretch the yardage in a skein of sock yarn.

The other is a 3 color gradient.  I used my Addi King Size Express to knit a tube and then used these three dyes to play with the techniques for prepping, dyeing, and caking up a gradient.  This as well as the Heel and Toe skeins is on my Harmony Base-That's 460 yd of a 4 ply 75/25 SW Merino/Nylon.

Shop Update Friday Feb 3, 2017-Victorian Valentine-

This months theme is Victorian Valentine!

Each Month I've decided to have a theme.  My theme is based on the monthly inspirations of a yarn and fiber sampler box called Phat Fiber.  I am committed to sending samples of my dye work to Phat Fiber for Feb, Mar, and Apr of this year.  So, each month, there will be 3 fresh and original color ways only available until they are sold out.  Each month will have a self striping, and 2 other yarns that are dyed to coordinate in the same project.

I really like the idea of being sort of pushed outside of my comfort zone inspiration and color wise.  You guys should totally check out Phat Fiber - it's such a great way to check out indie dyers and stitch marker crafticians.

Here they are all lined in a row.  

My Dear Mr Rochester: on Sparkle

 My Dear Mr Rochester Regular

 Annabel Lee

 Queen of Hearts

 And here are Annabel Lee and Queen of Hearts shown together so that you can picture what they would do in a project together.

I hope you enjoy this unveiling as much as I've enjoyed dyeing this yarn.

Working It Wednesday 2/1/17

Welcome to the first of February!  

Todays Working It features this years dye lot of My Zombie Valentine.  I have less than a stripe left before I do the heel.

I've been doing the Fish Lips Kiss heel on my socks to try to perfect it.  I am a really relaxed knitter, so I've been having trouble with it being a bit loose, but I'm working on knitting a bit tighter so that I do not get that.

What are you working on this week?