FOs:
Miho PPSS
Miho from PenguinSoup
2.5mm

WIPs:
Step Mom Socks
Yarn from Hiwassee Creek
2.5mm

Jay Walkers
Jay Walker pattern from Ravelry
Punk'n from PenguinSoup
2.5mm

Hopsalots
Pattern from Tiny Owl Knits
Cascade 220
Pattern specified needle size

Arenaria Tank
Arenaria pattern
Knit Picks yarn
pattern specified needles

Narcissa Socks
Pattern from Harry Potter Knits
2.5mm

Cool Stuff:
Bought a Car
Going to apply to vend at Knitpocalypse

Shop:

Why yes, I am still alive. I know it was hard to tell from the random, horribly advertised updates and the sporadic podcasts. So yes, this is another update post because I figured it was about time to fill you in on my goings on and sadly there hasn't been a lot of knitting. I've lost the itch and am having a hard time relaxing with knitting because I should/could be working.

First off, I've switched locations at EB and the one I'm at now may have more hours but it's in flux. We're waiting for an employee to become assistant manager and when that happens we can have a standard schedule. If the assistant manager comes from a different store or out of company then it goes back into flux. Hopefully in the next few weeks the schedule can become a bit more standard and we can have regular VKN's again.

I've started seeing someone and that's taken up a bit of time, like new relationships do. But work and yarn are taking over because I have plans for the future and need to save up.

I had an awesome yarn event at True North Yarn Co. in Barrie, Ontario. I was on the news and met a lot of great people and sold some squishy yarn. They'd like me to come back in October for I Love Yarn Day and I can't wait as this event was great exposure and they are an amazing bunch of people to work with. They've officially become the first store to carry my yarns and they will have a mix of colourways and a few exclusive self striping colourways but will carry mostly tonal and some variegated.

I'm just kind of generally stressed and overworked and really cannot wait to have a regular schedule so I can plan weekends and have a rest for myself. I really miss a schedule and could also really use a maid for a weekend... and a pedicure and a massage, maybe a nice bottle of wine and a movie night. Or maybe, just maybe, to be bitten by the knitting bug again. Winter is coming and I should have my summer tank top finished before then, and maybe a sweater too.

Look for some delayed ipsy bag reviews, news on VKNs, and regular updates coming soon!


P.S. I also have blue hair :)

Wips:
Arenaria Tank
Miho PPSS

FOs:
One Miho PPSS

Cool Stuff:
Teal Hair

Shop:
Awesome yarn event at True North Yarn Co
Club sign ups open until Friday, June 26
Shop update June 26

WIPs

• Arenaria Tank

What's Next?

• Don't Cage me in Socks by Heather Kinne
• Fronkenshteek by Lisa Grassman
• Ginny Cardi by Mori Chiba
• Evenstar DRESS

Shop

• No Update 3/20/15
• Shop Changes:
• Price adjustments and flat rate shipping coming in the next week
• Game of Thrones and Outlander theme for April

At what point does something become "not worth it"? How many hours,trials, errors and frustration must be wasted on a thing to make it worth abandoning? I'm not talking about knitting now or even my business, but my photography. I'm not going to stop taking pictures or anything either.

I've been fighting with my light box for about a year and a half now, maybe almost two. For one it's rather large and cumbersome. It does fold down into a kind of briefcase thing but that means the backdrop gets folded as well and it's kind of cheap and creases horribly. I don't particularly enjoy getting out the large ironing board and iron to fix that so I kind of leave it sitting in the corner taking up space and gathering fiber and dust.

And the lights, they're horrible! They keep falling over, casting horrible shadows, the bulbs fall out of the sockets and they burn holes in the light box! My dad and I tried to come up with a solution with different lights, new set ups, ect, but they all seemed more cumbersome than the original light box. We fought with directing the light, different bulbs, and a variety of placements but to no avail.

After so much time and effort, I've deemed the old box insufficient and it's not costing me money because it's so messed up I have been unable to properly photograph my new yarns and Jordana Paige bags I'm looking to sell. I went ahead and bit the bullet and purchased a fancy new light box with three proper lights that come with diffusers so I can also use them for lighting my podcast! Hopefully, for the first time in three years I won't have to complain about bad lighting on my podcast.

It should be here within the next week or so, along with a large shipment of yarn! This week's update might be delayed because of this though, but I'll do my absolute best. If there isn't much new arriving, I'll be sure to have a sale or a surprise for you.

I've been trying to be more active on social media but it's hard to not show favoritism to one medium. I would say it's like picking a favorite child, but it's really not because some are clearly better than others (unlike children.. clearly, because they're all equal, or so my mom tells me.) And it's a problem of finding a balance on what to share on facebook, twitter, instagram, ravelry, this blog, and my podcast. I'm pretty sure you would lose interest if I told you the same thing 5 ways in the same day or even the same week. I want to avoid being a broken record.

So how will I manage this? Well, if you know me at all then you clearly know that Instagram is my favoured media. I'll post a pick of a new yarn, my dog, food, stuff, yarn and things. Whatever tickles my fancy and feels like it's worth sharing. I'll also post announcements on instagram and I'll have that share to twitter, which links to my facebook so all three get the important news for sure. And Sometimes I'll post an article or other things to facebook.

The real challenge is the blog and the podcast. I think I'll try to keep the blog more lifestyle, so things going on with me, Miles, big shop developments, just things I want to write about but don't necessarily fit into the podcast. And the podcast I'll focus non my knitting, announcements, Ravelry group notes and contests, shop info, and shop yarn porn.

Inevitably, there will still be some overlap because I'll be excited about some yarn thing and have to post it here to talk about and really get into the subject or technique or opinions. I try to keep the podcast light and entertaining, but the blog is more my outlet.

Since I haven't podcasted yet and shown this off, I'm going to add it to this post. I've finally picked up my Arenaria tank top and I'm almost done the body of it! After the plain body bit, the tricky bit happens with the binding off, patterned neck, dividing stitches and all of those terrifying things I haven't done before! This is going to be my first real piece of knitted clothing I'll complete and I can feel the anxiety growing with each stitch closer I get to the horrible dividing of the stitches.



I know I have instructions, and I know I'm good at following them and I can handle myself, but it's still daunting! What it I mess up? What if it doesn't fit? I think this tank is so pivotal to me because if I can finish this, then I can knit a sweater. I currently have two sweaters cast on, and a third, the Ginny Cardigan (which will be my second finished clothing item) ready to go and a fourth (the terrifying Vivian) already planned out.

Ginny Cardigan

I'm hoping to finish Arenaria in the next week or so (in time for spring/summer too) and I'll order the Amy Herzog book to go with my class and do my best to have Ginny finished by October so I can have a warm sweater for the winter. I also have plans to knit an Evenstar from my Adelie lace, the baby alpaca/cashmere/silk lovely and then gradient dye the finish shawl, which will probably be more nerve wracking than the finishing of Arenaria.

I've been trying to write this post as for a while now as it's difficult to choose what to share. The internet is a big, wide open place and it can be difficult to balance what the world sees. It's too easy to focus on the good and only share the best moments because who really wants to show others their bad side? But I feel that it's important to  have a bit of balance and share some of the bad, but not all of the personal details.

Over the past five or so months, I've been hiding from the internet. There was so much bad in my life that it was just too much effort to fake happy or to even smother and tuck all of the bad under the rug. It just kept oozing out and into every aspect of my life. And you may have noticed that I have more of a presence now, and that I'm much closer to being my old self again, if not better. But it has taken a lot of courage, strength and fight to get me to where I am.

I'm choosing to share this with you because my hardship had effected my business and my clubs were shipping later and later, and I wasn't able to have regular updates. I had no inspiration or motivation left. I felt so guilty because I wasn't able to supply my club members with the dedication, timeliness and service that they deserved. When I filled them in on the situation, I was overwhelmed by thier response of love, kindness and support. Instead of messaging me and asking why their package was late, I was receiving messages of support asking if I was alright and offering encouragement. I really do have the best fans ever and that support has really helped me through this time in my life.

I recently/ am kind of currently going through a divorce. It was a drastic situation and I had to uproot my whole life and leave the city I had called home for the past six years within a week to move back to my dads. I had to pack, make travel arrangements, and try to survive with no money for that week as our joint bank account was closed. The transition to living with my parents again was difficult as I had been on my own for almost eight years. I had to clean out space for my room and my office, find a job and find myself again.

It has been a long five months and I can finally see the light. Soon the whole ordeal will be past me and I'll be able to move on and be better than ever. Thank you for your continued concern and your continued support.