Christmas Presents Delivered

My niece Harper at Christmas (or a weekend before when our family got together to celebrate). Seems like the blanket & octopus was a hit. I don't know if they were actual "hits" but the kid did like to chew on the octopus, so I'll take that as a good present. I'll put up pattern info later. It's in one of those amigurumi crochet books. Cute as heck and easy peasy. Not too many parts to sew, which is also good.

My two favorite girls!

For the 3rd disaster of Christmas, the knitting gods gave to me....

FOOD PO-OO-Oi-SO-ON-ING!!!!!! Seriously? Food poisoning. From the company party. Not the official company party that I wore the rockin' sweater at in MN and sat on Santa's lap. No, the unofficial getting-together with the locals company party. sweet. Wow. SO, spent most of Monday night in the bathroom on the floor. Jeff came in periodically and wiped my face with a washcloth, then finally put me back to bed about 5am. Tried to work the next day, but only made it till 10:30 then back to bed for about 18 hours straight. Today I'm finally feeling more normal and am back to applesauce. and gatorade. Seriously, I was so sick I couldn't even KNIT. yeah, that sick.

SO, I figured it out. I've thrown off the delicate balance of the knitting gods with the Knitter's Christmas Craziness. I was organized, competent and FINISHED ALL MY KNITTED PRESENTS in time to have SLEEP and TIME WITH MY FAMILY where my hands weren't too cramped from being wrapped around knitting needles to push the little monopoly characters..."push mommy's car to Illinois Avenue, honey" Yeah, like I ever got to be the car....you get the drift. It just wasn't right. I understand it all now. I'm meant to be finishing a sweater moments before we head out the door, throw it in a box and say "OPEN IT DAMNIT OPEN IT NOW!", then throw the sweater at the recipient and hit the road. That's true knitterly Christmas spirit for my family.

Well, disaster #1 has been managed, thanks to YOU AMAZING FIBER PEOPLE!!! Let's have a WOO HOO for us all now. WOO HOO! I'm typing on my very own new laptop. :) My business account is almost totally flat broke and there's not even a penny left in any vehicle in our family, but it's here. It's mine and I love it. :) Nothing even resembling water will come near this baby. Not ice, not gas, not liquid.

Disaster #2 is on its way to being fixed as well. The truck has been hauled off to the dealership where it's getting a brand new engine! :) WOO HOO! Turns out a recent trip to Firestone about 2 months ago to have the coolant system checked and they ended up convincing us the whole damn system needed replacing may have been a contributing factor. It's run like hell ever since I got it back, chugging horribly in the mornings until it got warmed up. The guy that looked over the engine for us said there wasn't a drop of coolant in the system and no leaks he could see. Hmmmmmm. We towed it back to Firestone where they assured us it was an oil problem and not their fault. cripes. SO, we're out big bucks, but we're lucky enough that we have enough in our emergency fund to cover it.

To placate the knitting gods, I've cast on THREE Christmas projects. A hat, finishing my husband's hat (felting and sewing a lining in--which I'm dreading, and an artyarn scarf). See? Crazy, unorganized knitter again! Let's stop at The 3 Disasters of Christmas this year, shall we?

OH, and anyone wanting to buy an apple macbook, GO TO MICROCENTER first. They're the same price as the apple store, but you get a $200 prepaid visa card by mail as a rebate. Guess when I found that out? AFTER I'd already bought mine. damn.

SO, don't forget about the Knit Wit sale in Olathe, KS on Dec 26th, 25% off everything in her shop plus $3/skein on all her sale tubs. My Etsy Shop sale is still going on through 12/31/09 as well.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!! May your holidays be joyous, full of friends, family and fiber and may the knitting gods not bite you in the arse!

Next year I'm returning to the crazy and knitting colorwork stockings for all 6 of us. I'm also making these next year for the tree. (click the pic to get to the link)

You guys ROCK!

Thanks so much for all your help towards my laptop fund! :) I've found new homes for much of my oversized stash. The $$ sure helped the fund! Also, the idea that all that pretty yarn has a much better chance of being knit/crocheted up into something instead of spending eternity in a ziplock bag stuffed in a trunk, drawer, closet, attic, basement, etc. is a nice thought. THERE IS STILL MORE YARN/FIBER BEING ADDED....

My folks are actually going on a trip for a MONTH (they're cruising through the Panama Canal at one point, how cool is that?) so I get the loan of their car! WOO HOO! Now we've got some breathing room to decide what to do about that disaster. I think we'll put a new engine in, but we're looking at used engines as well as a whole different truck. We'll see where that goes.

For now, I just wanted to say thanks. Thanks for the cyber hugs, the actual hugs, the $$ donations/adoption of yarn & fiber and the good thoughts. Being a titch high strung and prone to major freakouts, this could have just made me insane. You guys rock!

Hope all your holiday knitting gets DONE! I'm almost there myself. :) If you need a cool fast present/decoration that does NOT require knitting, here's a neat idea. Click the pic for links to the how-to.

TreasureGoddess's TWO days of Christmas

For some reason, when life gets tough, my brain begins creating new lyrics to popular songs. I know, it's quite a useful skill. Let's just say that I decided NOT to go through with the TG's Version of 12 Days of Christmas as I'm thinking I couldn't actually survive 10 more big things going BOOM! Also, the words that rhyme with SUCK do not work well with a family friendly blog environment.


Instead of faking my own death twice *cough cough internet hand dyer cough* or holding illegal raffles and badmouthing others on ravelry, *cough cough famous podcaster cough* I figure I'll just keep on destashing and adding more to my etsy shop with a big arse sale. :) Please keep checking as I am finding stash that I did not even KNOW was in my stash. I pulled these fun and funky batts out of a tub of ziplocked bags I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW WAS THERE below and behind the current fiber stash tubs and tubs of ziplocked bags. Seriously, I could keep a dozen spinners and hundreds of knitters busy and STILL have more than I could possibly spin or knit in my lifetime!

One positive note of serious stash diving is finding treasures I swear I've never even SEEN before! It's like my very own yarn/fiber shop everywhere I go. These babies I bought on a trip through Wichita from a local artist. They're fun, and only TEN DOLLARS EACH including shipping. Click the pics to go to the destash rav page or leave a comment if you don't have a ravelry login.



Thanks again for looking & shopping. Please don't feel obligated and I promise to return to regularly scheduled Crazy Yarn Girl Adventure Blogging soon. (Although seriously, ruining a laptop and a MOTOR VEHICLE in the same week? How CYG can that get?) Overcoming all obstacles through fiber. Or something like that.

Finished the crocheted baby blanket. Finished & delivered all wrist warmers this morning. If you forget about the BIG ASS CALAMITY that surrounds me, I'm having a pretty productive holiday season! Half a leg warmer to go and Chrismtas presents are all completed. Hope the knitting/crocheting elves are coming out at night to help your projects as well!

The Year of the Wrist Warmers DONE BABY!!!

How cool is THAT?!? Very. In fact. In this world in which I have no control over most of my life, I completed something. I rockstar completed something. Ends woven, pretty tags printed on the computer, stamped with cute stockings, tied with a simple bow. I'm very, very proud of them. Inside is a short message basically saying that these wrist/hand warmers were hand knit just for you by Joey's mom. How they're wonderful for keeping you warm while allowing you to type, grade papers, read books, etc. I included care instructions, these were all knit with leftover superwash merino wool, so they're pretty much easy maintenance. We're delivering them tomorrow morning, letting Joey's teacher choose first, then making the rounds of the nurse, secretaries (who always hug my kid when he's not feeling well) etc. Yay for me. PLUS I spent NO MONEY! Can you believe it? I was THIS CLOSE to going to the LYS for more yarn, but forced myself to get creative.

I've got about 1042 ends to weave in of slick acrylic yarn into the back of my niece's baby blanket. We're having our family's Christmas this weekend, so I'll be sewing ends all night tonight and most likely on the 3 hr car trip down there.

SO, speaking of a life out of control, GUESS WHAT? My truck is dead. Deader than my laptop. Boom. Almost a big BOOM more of a loud clank, actually ending with so much white gaseous clouds billowing from it.....now towed to a shop. Guessing it's needing a whole new engine. Apparently, everything I touch (except wrist warmers) is going to heck. Mr. TreasureGoddess was not amused when I said I'd better not touch anything important on him. Actually, Mr. TreasureGoddess isn't amused that I refer to him as "Mr. TreasureGoddess." I took a sad little picture of my cute truck being towed away, but I'll have to load that pic tomorrow. Poor little truck. Poor little laptop.

Let's finish with something happy, shall we? Those wrist warmer presents ROCK!


OH, and my sweet son spent his own money and picked out my birthday present (a while ago, but I'm a slacker blogger) and here it is. After the rest of the Christmas presents are done, I'm thinking this will have to become a scarf. How sweet is that? Funny story--Mr. TreasureGoddess pointed out that I had TOO MUCH YARN, but Joey told him, "The only thing that makes Mom happier than diet coke and beer is YARN. I don't think she could ever have too much yarn." Smart kid.


Adding YET MORE YARN and FIBER to the ravelry destash and etsy shop daily, keep an eye out, please!

My SUPER YARN SALE!

I'm on a mission to raise the final $$ I need for the new laptop. EVERYTHING MUST GO GO GO (yelled in a used car salesman commercial voice) Actually, my usual prices are lower than most etsy-ians so this sale makes the goods pretty much insane. INSANE! INSANE! INSANE! Ok, no more loud type. I promise. :)

TreasureGoddess Destash
Click above for Great Deals on Yarn & Fiber!
TreasureGoddess Etsy Shop
Click above for 10% off everything in the shop! No waiting for paypal refunds, the prices have already been discounted!



My big arse loss is your big arse gain! My laptop is dead. It's true. Corrosion and other horrid words were said. There was much cursing and a bit of stomping around the parking lot. They were supposedly able to pull the hard drive stuff onto an external drive for me, but of course I can't access it on a normal computer, has to be in mac format or some such nonsense. Hoping I can get to it once I get the new laptop.


Mention that you're a blog reader and I'll knock another $2 off the sale price of everything on both ravelry or the etsy shop (except the magnets since they're only $4 to start with. I'd sell those for $3 per pack if you're interested).

More will be added daily to both the ravelry destash and the etsy shop. I've gotta clear house and get some $$ flowing in to cover this monster end of the year purchase.

Damn, I should've brought cookies

Mentally promising all kinds of things to the gods of the macbook.... I'll bring a dozen cookies to the repair guys if they can revive my baby. Still waiting for the call. Should've brought the cookies as an incentive to fix it. damn.

Only thing I don't want to do is offer to make more wrist warmers. Still knitting them. Christmas countdown continues. There shouldn't be a cold wrist in the midwest when I'm done with Christmas 2009--the year of the wrist warmers! Somehow I'm up to 7 1/2 pair done. At least the madness will have to stop THIS FRIDAY as that's when we're bringing the holiday gifts to teachers and my family's doing their holiday celebration THIS WEEKEND as well, so mom's are on the needles RIGHT NOW. I'll have 32 ends to weave. Can finish the leg warmers for my aunt by Christmas, so that gives me a bit more time.

Remember when I thought I'd make my husband a week's worth of socks for Christmas this year? Did you laugh your ass off when I said that? You totally should have. He's got one pair done. It was a laugh even before he decided he now likes his socks to come all the way to his KNEES! cripes. He does have 1 1/2 pair done of a long ass pair of girly knee socks Hunting Socks, so I may or may not pull them out to work on when the rest of the holiday gifts are completed. It's pretty hard to motivate myself to work k3p1 ribbing forever in dull grey sockyarn.

Please work, little laptop, please please work. Pretty Please with chocolate chips and candy canes on top...

OH, and I was chosen for a lovely treasury on etsy. Please click the link and leave a comment. The more clicks, the more exposure on etsy, which would help me sell more to pay for the new laptop that I'm not wanting to have to buy.... (sorry for the outright begging. It's really a lovely Brown & Turquoise group of fabulous artsy treasures!)
Turquoise and Brown Treasury

Happy Holiday Knitting to you all! May your fingers be non-cramped and fast, may there be no frogging, and may there be a time warp continuum so you can get some SLEEP!

Please cross your fingers!

SO, dropped the dead macbook off at a repair shop that specializes in ipods, macbooks and all things apple. I should get a call within 24 hours with their verdict if it's truly dead and if not, how much it will cost to revive the poor thing. Compared to the apple store's program of ship it off, pay $750 and MAYBE they can fix it and MAYBE they can't, I'm thinking it's a good plan. So far I'm out nothing but tears. and stress. much, much stress. I figure if the laptop gods let me fix this for a reasonable sum of $$, I'll find some cats and give them treats. I would pay many cheezburgers to get my baby back to me. I happen to know a few knitters whose cats would not mind being pandered to (bribed).


Christmas sweater in action.....no, not a Christmas PRESENT for someone else. Oh no. This is selfish knitting at its worst. A list of knitted objects needed and what does this knitter do? Finishes a sweater FOR HERSELF. Because she WANTS to. Back to regularly scheduled stall knitting/stoplight knitting/late at night-who-needs-sleep Christmas knitting...1/2 more pair of wrist warmers, 1/2 pair of legwarmers, 2 hats and 1/3 of a baby blaket to go. No worries.

Better pictures promised after Christmas is over.
Details: Ingenue from Wendy Barnard in her book Custom Knits, cascade 220 (what else?), size Small. LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE this sweater! Also love Santa. How cool is it that my company's party had the REAL SANTA stop by? What a kind soul. I am so blessed that I told him I already had everything I could possibly want or need, so please give me the continued health and happiness of my family and friends. (then later thought DOH! Should've asked for a new freaking laptop...Can I change that to health & happiness and for my laptop to work?) *sigh* I am truly blessed. I know it. I just still really REALLY want my baby to work again.

SUPER SALE coming soon!

My BIG ASS loss is your BIG ASS gain! Christine recently learned that lukewarm tea and apple macbook laptops do not play well together. Not even HOT tea, lukewarm old tea. Knocked over. Onto the laptop. *sigh* Sorry about talking in the 3rd person. It's just to painful to say I DID IT!

After the weekend I will be posting a massive ravelry destash and etsy shop sale for your holiday stash enhancement. Come on, you KNOW you're not getting good yarn from anyone for Christmas. It's not gonna happen. Everyone that knows you thinks to themselves, "Boy, they have SO MUCH yarn. Can't get her/him any more of that!" (Unless you count gifts from other knitters who always know the perfect gift for any occasion is fiber!)

>

Happy Holiday Knitting everyone.....I'm not quite to that freaking out bit yet. Usually by the 10th I'm starting to get just a bit worried that my gift list is longer than humanly possible. I have 4 short flights ahead of me in the next 3 days, so I figure I'll finish at least 4 projects. Right? Yes, each flight is about an hour and a half and each project takes at least 6-8 hours of knitting. Why do you ask?

Let's not even talk about how I behave after the 15th yet. The 20th? Doesn't exist it's so FAR AWAY. Stop thinking about it. Don't count the days. There's STILL TIME!

Anyway, check back here soon to see my super sale details. I've gotta earn a few more $$ to buy a new laptop *sniff*. Going to kick the TreasureGoddess Etsy Shop in high gear plus some serious destashing from my monster stash as well. (And we all know I'm a yarn snob so I gots some good stuff buried in ziplock bags throughout my entire house!)

Yarn magnets, what could be better?

What do you think? Cool stocking stuffers? I figure if you can't knit or spin at work you can at least have a magnet there to remind you of WHY you're working. :)

Available at the TreasureGoddess Etsy shop

On a crochet note, I found the stupid yarn. It was not in the chest with the worsted weight. It was not in the "misc yarn" dresser. It was not shoved into the sockyarn drawers, it was not in the space bags under the bed. It was not in the top of Joey's or David's closets. It was not in my craft closet. It was not in MY closet. Not in the dining room/TreasureGoddess work shop. Do you know WHERE I found it? With the acrylic yarn in the tubs in the office closet. Where it should have been, since it was actually acrylic yarn. Wow. Who'd a thunk it? I remember putting it "in the stash" which usually means a quick shove into whatever stash container is near. I totally don't remember unloading and hauling about tubs to get to the proper acrylic yarn tub and then hauling and loading the stack of heavy tubs back away. wow. Life would be SO much easier if I had a damn craft room. Ah well.

Almost done with the super granny square. Hope to finish it by this weekend, sew in the thousands of ends and be done with it. :) Also finished another pair of wrist warmers. 2 to go now.

Happy knitting all!

And the granny obsession goes on.....now with poetry!

Christmas Present in the works for my niece. She's 1 yr old and adora-freaking-ble. Her mom & dad said she doesn't need any more toys or clothes (although her dad said she really wants a wii, HA!). So, she's getting a super girly super granny square blanket from her auntie. And a pink knitted hippo if time allows. Only problem is......I've lost the yarn. I have a lot of this yarn left, at least 12 little skeins. TWELVE. And it's lost. Not just lost, LOST IN THE STASH.

Yes, I've lost my yarn IN MY YARN. crap. See, if I'd just stuck it somewhere non-stash related, a family member is sure to stumble upon it...."MO-OM! Why's there yarn in the pantry again?" or "MO-OM! There's yarn in the bathroom where the extra toilet paper is supposed to be...can I use this?" (note to self....don't shove yarn in the bathroom. It's just not a good idea.)

No, like a good little organized crafter, I CLEANED MY HOUSE over Thanksgiving weekend and put every blessed thing away. In its proper place. And now I can't freaking find anything. Back to knitting more wrist warmers while the search continues....

Little Miss TreasureGoddess
Lost her yarn skeins, Oh Piss!
And doesn't know where to find them.

Put the blanket away
And search the whole day
Throwing stash all about in great mayhem.

I know, I know. But seriously, YOU TRY to rhyme something with TreasureGoddess!