Bright-Eyed & Bushy-Tailed

Yes, our first episode will be airing super early.

When: May 8, 2007
Time: 7:00 a.m. Pacific/Eastern Time
Show Name/No.: Shapeshifting Sweater, #241

On a side note, we've all been terrible about posting and updating this group blog, so here's a summary:

Aubrey: She's been busy planning her wedding. Zona and I have been busy helping her. We'll be sewing 58 seven-foot long box style bench seats.

Zona: She's been busy picking up her ego after daily scoldings and corrections from her 4-year old that mommy is always wrong. Zona has also been busy spinning, crafting and helping me with a swap that I started. She's been trying to post and update her etsy shop, Twirl Girl Fibers.

Rachel: She's been tapping in her dancing shoes and navigating the odd world of a modern single girl.

Me: In addition to being busy crafting and experimenting with new designs and projects, making projects commissioned by friends, I've been busy doing lots of research and thinking of ideas in the middle of night for the future business venture that Aubrey and I will be diving into as soon as her wedding is over. Oh yes, I am also going to be sewing Aubrey's silk wedding veil. Futhermore, like Zona, I have also been trying to post and update my etsy shop, Sugar Apple Creations.

New Swap

After participating in a couple of swaps, I decided to go ahead and give organizing one a try. I haven't really seen any swaps out there relating to hand-dyed and hand-painted things, so why not start one? (Actually, I believe there was a dye swap a while back, but it no longer seems to be active.)
Swap Name: Dye-No-Mite!
Theme: Secret swap for Hand-dyed and hand-painted things.
Participants: Crafty people -- Knitters, Crocheters, Spinners and other fiber enthusiasts
Click the button to get to the swap page.

by design

Well, I've been keeping myself busy designing away on various patterns that I hope to submit for various publications. Unfortunately, if I want to be considered, all the publications have a clause that no part of your pattern can be previously published, even on your own blog. So...I'll just have to be patient. In the meantime, I've also been busy setting up and posting on my etsy shop, Sugar Apple Creations. My latest product are these "Flirty" reversible headbands.While making these headbands, I heard some rustling in my craft room. I assumed it was a cat, but I couldn't find where the cat was hiding. Then when I tried to get more fabric, I found this:


The glowing eyes are a little scary aren't they? Anyway, Whitey Coyote decided to lounge in my fabric box on top of all the silk!





I finally also posted a few of the lacy lace-up gauntlet kits. I still have many other colors that I haven't gotten around to posting. The class that I will be teaching based on the kit is scheduled for Feb 11 and 18, 2007 (2 part class). Then, on Jan. 14, I am scheduled to do a demonstration of the gauntlets and my handpainted yarns at the Piecemakers store.

Aaaaand...........

Now my Google-Fu has discovered that the same article is now on ABC7Chicago's web site here.
Sweet!

Thank you, Windy City!

As you may know if you've visited Twirl Girl Fibers lately I offer a yarn of the month club. I listed them a few weeks ago in hopes of generating holiday shopping traffic. I sold 2 yesterday wich made me happy and thought nothing of the fact that both were from the Chicago area. I got a reply today from one of the customers and at the end of her email it said "I'm so glad Chicago Time Out Magazine directed me to you." Huh?? What's Chicago Time Out Magazine? So I Google it and find the publication online then search "Etsy" in their own search engine. Here's what I found! It's an article about 'of the month clubs' to give as holiday gifts and has a pic of yarn at the top of the article (not my yarn but still) and my yarn is the only yarn mentioned in the article. Yay! I'm famous and didn't even know it!

Aubrey and Anne on Knitty Gritty

KNITTY GRITTY, Season 8, episode #12, "I Do Knits"
Yesterday, Aubrey and I spent the day at the studio of Screen Door Entertainment for the taping of the wedding-themed Knitty Gritty episode. The guest of the day was Suss Cousins of Suss Design, who demonstrated how to knit a lace wedding veil with a crocheted border. Both Vickie Howell and Suss were really nice and very energetic. The producer of the show was Sonia, who also happened to be the associate producer of our "Shapeshifting Sweater" episode of Uncommon Threads. The associate producer was Joy, who was super nice too and really took care of us.

Part of the fun in doing these shows is that it not only removes you from the monotony of everyday life, it also allows you to meet lots of really creative and fun people. We met and got to know Brenda, the 3rd knister on the episode. Brenda is a newlywed and she got to show off a shawl she knitted for her wedding last December. She also currently organizes the Los Angeles chapter of The Church of Craft. While we were sitting and waiting (which happened quite a bit), we met another cool crafter, Cecily. Cecily is also an Uncommon Threads alumni -- she and her friends demonstrated various crochet projects for 3 episodes of the first season of Uncommon Threads.

Click on photos to enlarge.

left: Aubrey knitting and lookin' sexy . right: Vickie knitting a scarf on set.


left: Me and Brenda in between taping. right: The 3 knitsters!


above: Some behind-the-scenes shots.


left: Aubrey's self-portrait right: Me and Aubrey posing with Vickie and Suss.

A totally drool worthy and inspiring flick pool worth checking out if you are a dyer, spinner or knitter.
http://www.flickr.com/groups/handspunhanddyedhandknit/