Strange things are a’brewin’ here in Charm City. I have good news, better than good news, and only one little bad news…

We always go for the bad news first, right?

Well… unfortunatley the bad news is that I can not TELL YOU the other stuff. Killing me it is. KILLING ME!

But… all will be revealed when it can be. (I am SUCH a TEASE!)

Now…. a shout out to folks for input….

I am preparing the warehouse for an update and want to know if there is anything that you are wanting to see fiber or yarn wise. Colorways brought back or dyed again and the like. Like to make the people happy!!! I can tell you (JEN!) that the MEAN GIRL colorway will be appearing in sock yarn and fiber form, platinum is a must, and you will see some new laceweight that I am toying with ( silk and tencel).

The other strange brew is that my D. will finally be brewing beer again! WOOT! He stopped right before the cowboy was born and I have missed the endless supply of homebrew we once had. He and his lifelong buddy brewed ALL off the beer served at our wedding. And it was good… damn good. Yea D and Uncle T!!!!

Let me know what you would like to see. I am interested to hear your 2 cents!!! Nite all.

 

OK Folks,

Phyllis, my trusty laptop, has gone back to the doctor. It may be 2 WEEKS until she can be released from laptop purgatory.  I feel like I am living in the stone age. GONE. She is gone! If you do not hear from me you know why. Damn!

The good news is that I have been toiling away on a new series of yarns. In my head I have the working title as “frankenskeins”. You see… I had a VERY large oredr to fill and I screwed up 6 skeins of yarn. 6 WHOLE SKEINS! That is pretty crappy and I felt I needed to recover some of the loss. I happened on my new favorite (and top secret) dye technique and voila! Ember was born.

Now ember has like.. 20 or so friends to play with. All one of a kind. No two excactly alike. They will be up  for sale as soon as I can figure out how to do anything without Phyllis. *sigh*…

Thanks for being patient. It may take a little bit for me to get back to you… The November sock club is in transit…Twisted knitters in the dyepot.. Winter club has 1 spot left.. Sweet Sheep has more stock in transit… Chrissy Gardiner has C*EYE*BER Fiber Sock kits on her site soon… and I am headed to nurse my computer induced migraine with a glass of white wine…Cheers!

Thanksgiving was fantastic this year. The food great, the family festive, the time flew!

I cooked a lot this year. The first time I have ever done a 18 lb turkey, dressing, Grandma Irene’s yams o’ plenty (including the marshmallows on top!) and potatoes. Auntie B did the green veggies, Guitarplayin’ niece did pies, Nana rocked the deviled eggs and Auntie D made an artichoke dip. There was wine…mmmmmm.. wine. The cowboy made his signature “Rice Christmas” treats. Uncle P actually ate one and the little man was thrilled. Me? I stuck to pecan pie.

We woke up the next day and piled in the car for a mini-road trip. We went to the Mannings, in East Berlin PA. (If you ever request a Baltimore-DC yarn tour from me I may include this stop. It is a fantastic place you could spend hours and hours in!)

This is one room (of like 5) and the entire mid-section is packed with koigu. They have wheels, tools, dyes, fiber, looms, and cone yarn galore. I got some very limited edition deals that I am going to pass on to you. For now, they stay secret!

We headed to Gettysburg after we left the Mannings. Off to historic downtown and an auto-tour of the battlefield. I did not realize the scope of lives lost in that battle. Something like 50.000. Insane…. what is the pacifist phrase? “War is not Healthy for Children and Other Living Things”

I thought of all of our servicemen and women all over the world. I forgot to give thanks for them in my 10 things. I wish them all safety and peace.

The vistas there are breathtaking. It was such a clear and beautiful day.

After the battlefield we were driving through downtown on our way home when we saw a fiber shop. Misty Mountain Fiber Workshop. D did a quick stop (unasked!!) and I ran in. (HI Gail!) Gail, the owner and I chatted C*EYE*BER Fiber and other fibers for a bit and I bought 8oz of carded roving.

This was an extremely unexpected indulgence. Our little family is always running around, many times in different directions. It was so great to spend a day sans internet/phones/errands/chores/bills/etc… back to work today.. for a little bit.

This is the holiday season that I am going to stop the crazy. No crazy mad dashes for presents. This is the year of the thoughtful gift.

Here are 10 things that I am thankful for:

1. My D. My ever-patient, loving, and kind husband. Thanks for putting up with stray skeins of yarn everywhere and smell of vinegar. Your support of me and your love for me rocks my world.
2. My cowboy. I am thankful to have a healthy, happy, and kind child (that occasionally exerts his force over smaller kids in school and his little girlfriend that he adores.) He has adjusted to school very well and has become such a little man.
3. For having the time to cook the Turkey day meal this year. The cowboy made the candied yams (no joke) and made his special dessert for his family. The cowboy rocks a rice crispie treat!
4. For my friends.New and old.  You all have loved me in the good and not so good times. You are all extremely kind and talented humans. I am humbled to be in your posse.
5. For the many folks that read this blog and that buy the C*EYE*BER Fiber yarns. Your support and your comments have been greatly appreciated. I have gotten to know so many folks through the power of the internet. You all are awesome.
6. I am thankful that me and mine are warm and well fed.
7. I am thankful that my family is amazing. In that unusual, blended-family harmony kind of way.
8. That I am going to see RENT in 2 weeks. Oh boy! I am taking my sister, bird. I am so looking forward to spending a day alone with her!
9. To be a working fiber artist. I have waited a very long time to be a working artist. It feels very, very good.
10. That I get to go on 2 cruises this year. Whoo hoo!!!! And I get to meet you, and spend time with you, and you……
    

Much Love and Peace to us all,

E

I saw this on the Knitty Blog and cracked up. Amy Singer must be on the same highway as me… although the sign I saw spoke directly to me:

Jen knit these socks from the Pink Suede (aka Mean Girl) original skein! How beautiful are they?

I am finally getting around to adding a gallery to this site. C’mon ladies and gents! Flash your C*EYE*BER Fiber!!

Email me links to pictures you have already posted (I promise that I will save to my server… no swiping the bandwidth here!) or email me pics.

The most creative photo of the C*EYE*BER Fiber in action will win a custom dyed skein of your choice!!! Entries should be submitted no later than Monday the 27th.

Ready? Set? Get the word out! Start flashing your C*EYE*BER Wares!!

This is the best coffee in the entire world. If you live in or around Charm City… go get some. I know the owner. He is a great guy that is so good at his trade (and being a super kind human! )

Mmmm…… Zeke’s Market Roast……. Mmmmmmm….

Looky at all of this goodness! I packed my little market basket and headed out to drop off the girls at their new home.

Knit Happens is located in Old Town Alexandria , Va. Holly and Rebecca greeted me warmly and served as great hostesses- with-the-mostesses. You can find all 60 of these ladies at the shop NOW! I am sure if you call the shop and ask very nicely they will ship to you.

Jen…. see what made the cut??

Mean Girl aka “pink suede” ! I did not forget about you darlin’!

This is also there:

you will be seeing more of this, baybee!

This is a new dye process that I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!

Sign up for the mailing list here or shoot me an email here to get advance notice of single skein and fiber sales. I have an update planned for next week.

Umm…. anyone wanna cruise up the East Coast with me and some of my fibery friends? Yeah, that’s right. We have the Fall Fiber Frenzy 2007 slated for September 2007! Leaving from Charm City (Baltimore to you Laura!) to Canada and back! Can you say SPINNING and Knitting? Can you say fabulous hostesses that are soon to be disclosed? This is good friends….. very, very good!

Have a happy Thursday friends!

oh! BTW:

This is dead on correct for me!

Not really. But I saw a play about it.

My dear friend Coleen asked me to be her date to a play called “Altar Boyz” .

I realized how much of a knit blogging dork I am when the first thing I ask her after I got in the car was “Do you have your knitting? What about your camera?” Ummm.. we both had them.

Here is our evening at the theatre for your enjoyment.

We pulled up to the historic Hippodrome theater early and headed here for dinner:

Maggie Moore’s: Two nice Irish girls in an Irish Pub. Drinking these:

Yummy!

a Half and Half… yum.

A Harp for Herself.

We headed to the play a little toastier on a chilly night and made friends with the ushers. Dave, Bob, Dorothy, and Mary are fine volunteer folk! I even knit a little in the lobby before the show:

Take notice of the chick in the background…. I have a story about her for later.

The show was fantastically hilarious. It is the story of 4 altar boys and one Jewish guy who form a Christian boy band. If you have any history with catholicism or Judiasim… you will be rolling in your seat the entire time. Really, really funny. They are a Christian N’Sync.

So… the show ends and we go to the stage door because Coleen has a friend in the show. I pull out my knitting while waiting for the cast to come out.

Sister girl:

Is in this tiny lobby with us. And her friend…. Crazy sister girl #2.

At the time I thought she may be crew… or family…. but NO!

She is what is called an “Alter-holic”. She has seen the show like 30 times in NYC and is following the tour up and down the East Coast. She was also HIGHLY annoying….

Bombarding the cast… giving them presents and taking pictures…. these 5 guys just WORKED THEIR ASSES OFF on stage and sister girl is requiring them to pose for her pink digital breast -cancer supporting camera and to act like they love it because GOD forbid they don’t comply and get the reputation for being difficult or what not. They are actors for God sake.
Crazy. Crazy……… ummmm….. then I got to thinking. I had my camera. I had my knitting. I have been known to get a little flustered around knit designers and folks who are well known in this community. And I have seen the craziness at the blogger meet-ups and the folks that throw themselves at really well known knitters….. I DOCUMENTED my date with Coleen for all to see….. am I different from crazy sister girl ? Ummm….. yes and no.

Although knitting and the fiber arts community (virtual and live and up close) has become a HUGE part of my life, it does not make up the whole. There is a lot more to each and every one of us than what we lead on in our blogging. I am just hoping that when you all meet me in real life that I am not too boring for you (if you hand me a beer I can liven it up a bit!)

I am hoping that sister girl has some really good stuff in her life besides the show. Because the play is only 90 minutes long and I am sure that it is a really long time between shows.