Insubordiknit

Barter?

Hey everyone! I’m getting a new wheel but first I need to get rid of my spare one! I’ve got it for sale but it just dawned on me that there might be someone out there that wants to barter with me! I need a new website for my blog, shop, podcast etc. And I don't mean that I just need a new whatever set up, I need something smashing, something wowser-y, something rocking! K.ad has not been in 'the industry' for years so he's not up to the task, as least not up to where I need him to be for what I want. What i’ve got is –

ashford traditional spinning wheel – 2 years old but only used for about 9 months, double drive/scotch tension, single treadle, finished

7 regular bobbins, finished.

bulky/plying head set-up with at least 4 bobbins

lazy kate

If you're localish -- lessons! both in traditional spinning (if you need ‘em) and art yarn spinning. You can come here to my fabulous new studio where I'll school you in the crazy ways of art yarns, or I can come to you. It can be once, or as many times you want/need/like.

If you're not localish and there's no way we can swing lessons, I can supplement it with some farm fresh fiber/roving! 5lbs or something?

a complete set up! Everything is in tip top condition except the largest whorl on the plying head has a chip out of it but it’s never affected the spinning.

What I want is a really, really good website, not just a blogger or Wp or MT or whatever, I need something great as my business is getting, well, you know, all businessy and with my BIG SECRET it's about to get even more, you know...

Let me know if you’re interested! Send me a note, tell me of your vast experience, your rockin’ portfolio, show me sites you've built, etc. I don't mean to be all particular, but I am, it's gotta rock!

This doesn’t have to happen right away, just sometime in the next few months.

How many stripes?

And it's on. Well, it's always kinda on, but it's on in a big way right now and I can't tell you why. Yep, it's secret time. I have a big secret. A Big One! I've been holding onto it for months now and it's getting so close I can taste it. Only a few more weeks. I'm nervous and excited (and stressed like crazy to get everything ready). If you're wondering why the podcasting, blogging, communicating etc. has been lagging, this is is. BIG!

Does anyone out there make little tables, stools, or stands? Like something fun and funky that's about knee high and could be used as a fiber table while I sit and spin? If you do, let me know, i've need of one and we might be able to benefit each other.

I've been a bad blogger so I'm going to update in list form today --

1. Little Bit got his blue belt in kung fu!
2. Sweet Pea has 4 teeth!
3. Spinster yarns opened up and it's so rockin' cool!
4. Erin of cyber fiber is my new BFF and we've got plans baby, plans!
5. My spinning studio is wonderful.
6. I finally sent my Pop's gift! I'll post pictures after I know he's gotten it.
7. For those of you waiting on Yarn Curtains, they are all being shipped tomorrow. Sorry for the wait but those suckers take time to get perfect. You won't be sorry!

Oh, my first yarn in the new room was lovely, wanna see?

Jason slyly suggested after my last post that I hold a raffle for the first yarn spun in my new diggs. However, I think I'll just have a little give-a-way contest for it. The first person to correctly comment with the number of strips (green and white) that are painted in my new spinning studio, gets the yarn, which I call Airplane through valentine clouds.

Hint: check the pictures, yo!

edited to say: had to close this entry because for some reason, the viagra spammers were really fixated on getting this yarn! Geez, with all the sex they're having, do they even have time to knit?

ps. the answer is 34, 34 stripes, I'll look through and find the winner, or, if it's you, send an e-mail!

Spinning diggs

Behold my new spinning studio! Three years ago I spent a weekend painting this upstairs attic room so that LB, at age 3, could have a bedroom that would make him smile and bounce. This week, I spent 3 days transferring all my fibery stuff into that very same room and moving his bedroom and our bedroom into my old spinning room. The plan is to move both bedrooms downstairs and have the spinning studio and the music/art room upstairs. However, since the previous art room, the one downstairs, is not ready for LB to move in (we tried to convince him the hole through to the bathroom was a feature but he didn't go for it), so until then we're all sleeping in one room, a room with wall to wall beds and a perimeter of toys -- what a joy. Meanwhile, I'm stylin' in my new spinning diggs! How cool is my studio?! I adore it. Go ahead, take the tour. See my futon there for sitting and knitting while I watch the new season of LOST on my computer. Notice the hanging bit on the wall that holds my stitch markers? Notice the red yarn alcove, the carding center, the spinning cubbies, the wool bins, it's all there, in living color.

Tomorrow I'll show you the first yarn I spin in my new room...

Have technique, will travel

This weekend the family and I took a trip and I taught a class. It was awesome. The fiber guild (that doesn't suck) WTF (what the fiber) paid me to trot my booty down and teach them a thing or two...or 20. And I did, and it rocked. They were such great students, all fantastic spinners used to spinning thin, even, lovely yarns, and me up front screaming thicker, thicker, thicker! Heh. But really, all my control issues were sated and instead of complaining like my family and friends, they smiled and glowed. Here's a few pictures of the class and the fiber that I supplied:

Can you see their super cool fiber baskets?

And there was a guy in the class, which is the coolest thing ever! K.ad, who was there during the lunch break, over heard these things while the studious (and anal) spinners practiced:

This is the best day I've had in a long time.
That is cool as shit!
Jacey is the prettiest, smartest lady I've ever met

Okay, I made up the last one, but the first two -- totally fo' reals! and when I got home, one of the spinners had sent me a lovely e-mail which, amongst other things, said:

I would have paid more even before I had the pleasure of attending a class taught by you. Now that I've had that joy, I totally think we should have paid more!

She also went on to how pretty and smart I was. Heh, not really.

All in all it was an awesome time and the money, well it almost pays out extraordinary Gas and Electric bill this month, which is good, 'cause otherwise they're gonna shut it off.

Mouth in a box on a snowy day

What did my day look like? It looked like this --

That was after many hours of sledding down the back hill into the wooded fence and snowball sneakin'. While they warmed up inside LB showed his friends his famous finger in a box trick:

and if the finger in a box is funny, wouldn't a mouth in a box be just as funny?

Why yes, son, it is. Hilarious.

And while the kids played outside, I gocco'ed my little heart out! Yep, I know it is on everyone's resolution list, to be better about keeping in touch and birthdays and such, but I've got a plan! We made a bunch (way too many, like 100 of each) 2008 birthday cards and thank you postcards and that's what everyone will get this year. Next year they'll get a new design. Ha! Automatic boy, the Boggs' are so good at keeping in touch, birthdays and such ! People will be saying that far and wide. They'll also be keeping portfolios of the cool cards! Look at these babies! Year of the RAT! As always, click for the version you can actually see.

Also, I went to lunch with Mama E of fibercyber famosity! And she's as nice as her yarns! Really. I know it's geeky but I hope we become BFFs. Heh.
I think I'll send her a thank you card. Or perhaps I should make some please be my BFF gocco'ed cards.

Yarn play

Shew. What a week. I got all this lovely mohair and I've been playing with techniques! Take a look at what I like to call bubble wrap!

As you can see, they're all kinda Valentine-y, but nice. Next week I'll get a little darker. Though V-day is Sweet pea's first birthday so how dark can I get, really.

I've been sick this week, stomach thing, so I've yet to finish editing the podcast, but soon, soon. Oh, to have my bills paid so that I could podcast my days away. Hey, we also got a bit quicker with the curtains so the price dropped a bit, not too much, but a bit.

Tomorrow is my Pop's birthday so I've gotta go finish knitting his present so I can put it in the mail. Later.

Yarn Curtains, yo

The unveiling! I know I've been teasing you with some big new thing, and here it is -- beaded* yarn curtains! Handbuilt, handspun, handpainted! all by me and my family! I'm so excited about them I can hardly stand it. It's the first project K.adventure (my partner) and I have worked on, and actually finished together! And they are awesome. Really, K.ad did such an amazing job on the tops! And lemme tell you, they are just as cool in person. Originally I pictured them hanging in the doorway of yarnstudios far and wide, framing the room where knitters keep their stash, on the fronts of shelving units full of yarn, dangling from the entrance to dye studios, artists spaces, etc. and then I pictured them hanging in every doorway, far and wide. It didn't dawn on me until they were done that they could be used in windows as well as doorways, but now I want them in every window in our house! And every doorway.

My favorite is the Knitters Ruin one, but I love all three styles (more pictures of each are in the the shop, also if anyone has, you know, an extra whole lotta dollas hanging about, you could have one of your very own. I know they're a lot but they each take so long to make! The specs are there as well, and don't worry, I made them extra rugged so there's no popping or breaking and they've been road tested by a 6 year old and have stood the test of uh...him.

*not actual beads, just yarn that looks beaded.

it's coming...

Oh my goodness! I'm cropping and uploading this week's updates, including the new item I've been going on and on, most cryptically, about. I should have it all up by 9pm eastern, give or take a few minutes. I'm so excited to see what y'all think!

Ready for the Eyeball Ball

Oh. My. Goodness. I knew jody was doing this, I mean, she told me when she ordered the yarn, but for some reason I never really thought I'd see it in all it's knitted Vitreous Humor macabrarosity! It's fantastic and I WANT ONE! Wow. Here's a slightly different view. Click here for Jody's Rav page on the dress, if you can't access it, I can tell you it's about a size 8, it was knit on US#13s, it took about 15 hanks of VH yarn (or at least that's about how many she had, don't know if she has any left over), and it's awesome! It has darts in the bodice (like they did on "hot tomato" pattern from knitting daily) and 8 panel flair pleats. She even wore it to her office! Also take a look at her other projects, she's an amazing knitter!

Speaking of super cool things knitted out of Insubordiknit yarns, have you added your goods to the insubordiknit knits group? Please do. Just click the link and do it! Only 8 people have done it so far and there's hundreds of you out there!

One more thing. The podcast has been done for a while now, I'm just waiting on one or 2 more who's that purl knitter IDs. Don't you want to be the fiber worker to push it over the mark? It's easy and will only take you a minute or two. Here's the info again --

I want you leave me a quick message answering a very few questions about yourself. There's two or three ways you can do it -- on is with the internal (or external for the fancy-pants among us) and the other is with any old telephone device, landline or cell-variety.

To leave it with your computer go here, to Odeo and follow the simple instructions, 2 clicks and your there! Or record it using your own software (garageband, audacity) and send it to me as an .wav or .aif file, uncompressed.

To leave it via phone, call 206-339-9155 and, you know, speak at the beep.

Here's what I'm asking:

Name
city, state or country
age(or decade if you're not comfortable with the age)
job/
knitting/crocheting for ____ years
last/current project worked:

you're welcome to spice it up if your so inclined, you know be yourself! You heard the ones on the last podcast, they rocked! You can too!