Blue Ice

The last two days we've been doing some work and some exploring around Anchorage. The weather has been a bit spotty, but we still managed to drive down the peninsula to the Portage Valley. It was crazy windy and drizzling, but seeing all the blue ice made it worth it!




We went hardcore last night for dinner and ate at Simon and Seafort's. We couldn't come to Alaska and not have some king crab legs! We have been eating lots of seafood, but this was really nop notch. I'm still full this morning :)

Everything From Fruit to Tires

If you are wondering about the title of this post, go listen to Glen Phillips Fred Meyers song! He is one of our favorite musicians and we were lucky enough to see him play here in Anchorage on Saturday night... If you have heard of Toad the Wet Sprocket, well, he was the singer for them and has since gone solo.

Some pictures from our trip up to Denali (aka Mt. McKinley):




And, views from our room:



The weather has actually been fairly rock'in so far up here in Anchorage. I was expecting the worst since it had originally said rain/snow every day on the weather channel. They still haven't changed the forecast, so I've just come to the conclusion that they leave it on that every day just in case :) We have had partly cloudy skies in the 30s - I can't complain! My favorite part about traveling this time of year is that you have no crowds. I would expect that the scenic area we stopped at would be full of RV's, but we were the only ones there. So. Frickin. Amazing.

P.S. Don't worry mom, I'm not broke from buying Qiviuk. I snatched up some of this instead!

Yarn Away

Before we left Juneau, I saw yarn,



some crazy, crazy, soft yarn,



And, landing in Anchorage....

Alaska Time

Scott wanted to call this first Alaska post, "I Don't Know, Juneau?!". He's such a dork, a cute dork! Our first day in Alaska at the Mendenhall Glacier...

Snapshot of Rhinebeck

Wow! What a weekend :) I think my mind was racing in total overload all weekend after seeing so much and meeting so many of you! I came home with some yarn from Morehouse, two cashmere scarves and two bags of maple cotton candy.. that's it! I really wish I took more than a few pictures, but my camera was always just out of reach.

I truely had a great time talking to all the bloggers and Sunshine Yarns customers that I had a chance to meet. Thank you for introducing yourselves and your friends.. it really made my weekend!



I have some new knitting to show, but will not be posting it most likely until I return from my upcoming trip to Alaska! We leave tomorrow and get home the end of next week :) I'll be posting some, hopefully, gorgeous pictures, so stay tuned!

Rhinebeck!

So, I have to blurt it out, I'm going to Rhinebeck! Unfortunately, I didn't get in as a vendor this year since I applied too late, but I will be there, shopping, laughing, knitting, and hopefully meeting lots of other fabulous people.

Are you going?! Well, if you are, COME SAY HI!!! I will be wearing a light blue Sunshine Yarns shirt, and will have lots of goodies to hand out, new sock club information, an email list sign up and a raffle! Yay, I am so excited :)

In other knitting news, I knit up this totally rock'in hat over the weekend for my cousin's first birthday. They live in New York and are HUGE Giants fans.. pretty sweet, huh?! I tried to embroider the NY on the hat, but kept on ripping since I couldn't get it right. I still think its super cute...



Pattern: Football from Itty Bitty Hats; by Susan B. Anderson
Yarn: Cascade 220 SW and assorted leftovers
Measurements: 6-12 month size
Started: October 13, 2007
Finished: October 15, 2007
Other Details: I just did a regular ol' pompom for the top of this one.

Inspired By Fall

I have had a very, very rough week, but the cool crispness in the air has at least kept me knitting. I love fall, just in case you missed that. Cool mornings, colors all around, fresh rain, and the chance to knit warm accessories to carry you through the long, (way too long) winters.




I hardly wear hats since I have curly hair (for those with curly hair, you understand). But, when I do this winter, I'll have one other option since I now have Foliage. A quick, beautiful top-down hat pattern in one of my favorites, Malabrigo.

Pattern: Foliage from Knitty; by Emilee Mooney
Yarn: Malabrigo Chunky in Olive #56
Needles: US 9 and 10 DPNs
Measurements: Women's
Started: October 8, 2007
Finished: October 9, 2007
Other Details: I knit this down a needles size since I have a small head. The lace pattern doesn't stretch out as much on me, but it still looks great :)

And to complete my week, I started playing with some sock yarn and patterns. I loved the Rusted colorway I put up in the store this week, its kind of like the Where's Waldo of knitting, eh?!

Swallowtail

A small lace project for those crisp fall days....




If you haven't knit a shawl and you want to give it a go, this is a wonderful pattern to experiment with. The lace knitting is easy to moderate, and the size of the shawl keeps the knitting time to a minimum. I wanted to knit up something out of my new Sunsilk yarn, and was reminded of this gorgeous project on Ravelry.. go "Ravelry! The best part is, it only took one skein!





Pattern: Swallowtail Shawl by Evelyn Clark; Interweave Knits Fall 2006
Yarn: Sunshine Yarns Sunsilk in Mushroom
Needles: Addi 24" US4 (3.5mm)
Measurements: 45" across top edge, 23" down center
Started: September 27, 2007
Finished: October 3, 2007
Other Details: The different lace patterns keep this project moving! The lace bobbles are really beautiful, though not the easiest thing to make when you have to purl 5 together. I would invest in a set of Addi Lace needles for this project just for the sharp tips.

Can't Get Over The Lace

My latest knitting project is now blocking. It came out totally awesome, and I just love how quick it was! You'll have to wait until at least tomorrow for pictures :) You want a sneak peak?! Ok, here you go....