First peek at Portland, Oregon.

From our hotel room we could see a lot of the down town including the glass spires of the convention center in the left of this picture. The entire time we were in Portland we walked or took the free train. I really wish we had something like that here at home.

I was feeling pretty shy about taking photos in the market so I grabbed this one quick before too many people noticed.

Our first meal in Portland, in between my two classes on Friday, hubby and I stopped at the highly recommended Burgerville. Amazing veggie burger! Wasn’t too sure about the onion rings but hubby seemed to enjoy them. My Duckies sock also followed us around.

Friday night hubby and I stopped in at Stanfords for dinner. The atomsphere was lots of fun and the staff very nice. Here’s a picture of me after eating.

Saturday turned out completely different than expected and I for one was very happy about the mix up. The plan was Powells books and the evening riding jet boats. It was a lovely day so we decided to walk to the book store. That was about a 1.5 mile walk that neither of us was physically prepared for but we enjoyed it anyway. We walked across a large bridge.

There may or may not have been sharing of pictures with a friend still stuck in her cube….comments of jealousy may or may not have been shared….the weather was perfect for walking (but maybe a little warm for this office dweller!)

After our lovely jaunt down town we stopped into Powells books cafe where I met a lovely knitter (insert name when I find her card!) AnneLena Mattison

After a lovely chat and amazing pastry hubby and I headed off to enjoy the crazy maze that is Powells books.

A quick peek into the knitting isle.

After browsing the store I did come back for a few books and I found a super cute babushka ice mold.

For lunch we stopped at one of our favorite place Noodles & Company. I was impressed with a lot of the (local?) art displayed. Obviously Portland is a very creative place.

With our tummies stuffed we headed back to our hotel via the electric train in a rush to board the jet boats with proper clothing. We never would have made it in time (annoying traffic!) so graciously (cough) the jet boats let us reschedule to Monday. Instead hubby took a nap and I headed back to the convention center for the flash mob where I met Steven Ambrose and did some more market browsing.

Sock Summit Teams in the front of a giant flash mob dance.

For dinner we walked over to Pastini for pretty pomegranate lemonade and tasty vegetarian Italian dishes. If you’ll check out my sock it has moved to some much nicer KnitPicks needles I picked up in the market.

I picked these cute earrings up in the market. The week before Sock Summit I spotted these on Ravelry but didn’t have time to knit them up before the trip. I’m so glad someone decided to sell them. They fit in perfect and I had a lot of people comment on them including our waitress at Pastinis. After dinner we headed back to the convention center to drop off my donations for the For Eloise donations to SnowCap charity.

Two knit monsters went along with a bundle of wash clothes and four scarves.

The Yarn Harlot

A beautiful baby sweater and so many other generous knits for donation. When I left there were four tables covered in hand knit donations.

On top are two Kashmire yarns I picked up from Fiber Optics. I went back for a Spectra scarf pattern and superwash yarn to go with it. Now I’m a little nervous because the pattern calls for 420 yards and I ONLY have 420 yards!

Sunday morning and afternoon was full of classes. In the morning I took the Crystal Heels – Afterthoughts with a shape that fits! class by Lynn Hershberger. On our drive home I finished the first sock that turned out a little short so it might be going to grandma for Christmas (shhh! don’t tell her though) Lynn was a wonderful teacher with a definite love of color! She had multi-colored felted ball earrings that were so fun and she brought this amazing knit self-portrait.

Here is the cuff, funky afterthought heel and the beginning of the foot.

There was a few minutes between another stop at Burgerville for lunch and my next class so I stopped in the market to see the spinning contest and the beginning of the final fastest sock knitter contest.

A sock knitter contestant with a beautiful shawl.

The second class Getting Comfortable Knitting Socks by Angela Davis was three hours of answering questions people had. I always have issues matching my first and second socks and Angela had some ideas for the class. One idea, I’d only just heard of in my Friday class, was keeping a knitting journal or scrapbook with all of your project information and ball bands. It’s such an easy suggestion but I had not thought to carry a journal with me. Hopefully this will help with Actually coming out with matching socks. She even gave us a little welcome gift that included a starter journal. So far using my Rav project pages have gotten me only so far. It would be nice if they had an app for the Droid phone. The scrapbook/journal will be keeping me company from now on. One other thing I took with me was the idea of replacing SSK with a S1 K1 Psso for a less bulky look. Ok, I’m remembering other suggestions like preventing “donkey ears”, too. Anyway….

By 4pm the market was already packing up so I headed to the hotel to collect hubby for dinner at the Blossoming Lotus a vegan restaurant that was recommended by a co-worker. Best. Food. All. Week. mmmmm. I was really unsure if we’d end up with a bland or really weird dinner even after ordering our food. I was surprised and amazed.

Hubby got the Ginger Citrus Stir Fry

I got something from their specials Orkra Gumbo something or other that was amazing!

A great meal was the prefect end to a wonderful Sock Summit. Sadly I was full long before the food was gone with no way to take the leftovers with me. That was also fitting for a weekend that left me with memories. And yarn

Hubby prepping the cake with strawberries on an amazing! 8 layered chocolate mouse cake with whip cream frosting…mmm.

Waiting for the pizza to arrive, still not sure we’re allowed to eat that at our ages.

Not a great picture but I didn’t get very many during the party. Mostly we ate pizza, cake, veggies, homemade coconut and blueberry marshmallows, played Dominion, joked about my crafting obsessions and generally had a good time. My brother was the only family to make it but I did have family well wishes from afar. Mom even felt well enough to talk for a few minutes before she got tired.

Birthday music did happen.

I almost forgot to get a picture of me so here I am at 30 in a crummy pic but it was better than nothing. I look a bit tired. What do you think of my new hair style? I thought 30 deserved a new look. After a week I’m still loving it. A hair straightener does the trick on this thing pretty quick….not that it shows in this pic after a long day of partying.

The necklace is new too, thanks hubby!

Friends treated me to a manicure and pedicure.

I just have to share the funny gift from hubby.

Yes, that’s a peg board….and yes I put it on my wishlist…..and no I didn’t think he’d buy it for my birthday. I laughed and laughed over this one! Hopefully it doesn’t take another year to get it installed to organize our tools.

All of that celebrating got me in the mood for some crafting fun. I managed some very comfy felted slippers and the hot weather dried them out quickly so I’m already able to wear them.

These were so much fun that it got me researching Youtube for other felting ideas and came up with this really quick and fun project. I’m not sure what it will end up as but since I had the warped loom with alpaca sitting since last year I thought merino pencil roving would make for a quick weave. Already I’m loving how soft this is. I’ll need to felt it at least a little so it stays together but hopefully it will keep it’s softness.

I can’t claim this is warped right but it looks ok to me.

Time for bed now before I waffle face my keyboard. Onward and upward…..bring it!

Deodorant has been a BIG hit this summer which has been a challenge. A main ingredient is coconut oil that melts at 76 degrees. Packaging became a REALLY big challenge when it started leaking before I could ship it so back at base I re-made and re-packaged in “fancy” ziplock bags. Some assembly required.

This beautiful necklace with the word FLY was a custom request from a friend. It’s destined to be gifted to a book author who just published a book on flying. I will ask if I can share her name here.

This pearl “firecracker” necklace and matching bracelet were also a custom pieces for a co-worker who planned on gifting them to a mother-of-the-groom this last weekend. No word yet on how the wedding went since my co-worker is still on vacation. I’ll be sure to share the outcome on this one too.

This beautiful gray necklace was also for my co-worker. This one is pearl knotted, and I must admit, a lot of work. The plan was to have the pieces finished before my big company picnic at the local water park but the necklace had other ideas. Third time was the charm and after a long day of hauling (over 650lbs) of food to the water park, spending the day in the sun, and supervising the food prep I was in no shape to pearl knot but there was nothing for it but to sit down after a long day and knot these beautiful pearls. In the future I might send my co-worker to pick out all of my pearls. She had amazing taste. Both necklaces had wonderful luster, shape and color. I’ve never worked with “firecracker” pearls before so it was a lot of fun to see what they could do. Several new pearl strands will be arriving in my IndenturedMason store soon as a result of this necklace.

Other things I’ve been up to

Cream colored scarf I actually finished before but have been putting off taking pictures

My multi-colored seed stitch scarf that just keeps going and going. This is on ball 2 and I’m pretty sure I need at least one more.

Chai Tea goats milk swirl soap with Moroccan red clay. Smells yummy and is wonderful to wash with, creamy with a little bit of slick texture.

I’ve also ordered a few more jewelry supplies that are really exciting. They should inspire new pieces in my shop (or my jewelry box). Can you tell I’m liking the birds lately?

A semi new type of project I’m trying out that is pretty easy at this stage, a knitting loom. Basic projects are hats and scarves like my cream scarf a few pictures up and this soon to be hat or  tube scarf depending of if I like the hat idea. Hats are not my friend so I’m not sure about this as a hat.  What do you think?

It’s carried over into my crafts (briefly contemplated painting the kitchen but didn’t think it would go with my decore, oh well….maybe the craft room needs a different shade of blue….). Earlier this month I made a necklace out of vintage glass that I absolutely love. I have another piece that will be going in my store soon.

Today the obsession finally reached into my soaping (technically this is again). It isn’t exactly the right color but close enough that I’m tempted to keep it all for myself! The first is a salt soap. This was a challenge to make and little weird. The salt kept sinking to the bottom of the melted soap until the temp dropped low enough to start solidifying the soap. At that point I had to work fast to get the thick slush into the molds. The last two bars cooled down too much and I had to hand press the warm soap into the mold. They look a little too ruff to sell but the others turned out beautiful with smooth sides and the salt showing through. I’m loving the mini bunt cake mold.

The second soap will be featured in my store for the Etsy Friends Team back to school sale that starts later this month. Each member will tag their items with B2SFriends. Each item will be on a back to school sale specific to each shop. It will be available in custom colors and fragrances all wrapped in some awesome geeky paper.

(The pic’s aren’t making me happy. I’ll try photographing them again this weekend.)

Now! I’m off to enjoy a birthday weekend. Yesterday Cheesecake factory, today hubby made dinner (and a brownie cake wreck) and gave me an awesome crochet hook and Turkish drop spindle, tomorrow more celebrating with family and friends.

Update: The winner was Sharon C.

Memorial Day,  Wedding Anniversary, and Birthday Memories

Post a comment here by June 10, 2010 about a special memory you are willing to share of a favorite Memorial Weekend, an important soldier in your life, your wedding or anniversary, or a birthday. I’ll use a random generator to pick 2 winners.

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new ball winder with

The yarn is Squoosh Fiberarts merino silk lace in cranberry approx 130 yards. Also planned to post some baby blue wool stuff not can’t find the pic.

and a bonus pic’s of the jewelry collection I made for my friend Candice for Christmas.

My aunt actually sparked my interest last Thanksgiving when she gave my mother one of her Fun Fur combo scarves that she makes for people at her hospital. Per my usual “I could make it better” attitude, that had already sucked me into jewelry making, I dove into a fun filled year of yarn hording. Here is how it went.

In January I picked up some yarn and knitting needles and went to work on my first scarf.

About half way through I got excited about scarves, blankets and socks when I started searching the internet for knitting blogs so it was back to the store for more needles and yarn.

Jarrods Hemlock blanket, pictures 2 and 3 above, was just so pretty that I had to find the pattern and those lovely blogs led me to Ravelry.com. Depending on how you look at it this is a fiber freaks heaven or hell. There is a whole community dedicated to crazy knitters and crocheters.  By the end of February my yarn stash had grown from a few balls of yarn to bags boxes and bags that were taking over the dinning room and desperately needed a more organized storage system. So I bought a three drawer rolling storage bin thinking that would hold me but my yarn packed the three drawers and I still had a box of supplies. Then came the crazed spring months when I discovered the wonders of Etsy.com and joined a knitting group from work.

By the time I went to my first knitters meeting I had 2 scarves, socks, and 3 blankets started. Our group leader was surprised at how many projects I had going but to be fair I had a lot of happy energy fueling my efforts and no kids at home….except the husband. I think he enjoyed the free time to play more video games on his new ipod. All spring I horded fancy hand made yarns and then discovered another facet of this fiber world, felting AND spinning. Now I was collecting roving too! and lusting after fiber fairs with spinning classes. Shortly after this another fiber craft surfaced in the form of weaving. Unfortunately, I have to work for a living and don’t have near enough time in my day to do all the fiber and jewelry crafting I would like. Instead I sit at work and day dream about projects that I MUST do TODAY! and that leads to more yarn purchases that are relatively easy with that Oh So Helpful internet. Ravelry was not helpful with a zillion fun swaps that I had to mail all over the country. In May my obsession was de-railed with 8 wonderful days in Hawaii where I just couldn’t bring myself to knit even though I was crazy and signed up for Sock Wars III even though I had never completed even one sock. Back at home I completed my last swap for the year with a hand knit dish cloth that proved to me that small projects were probably a better idea at this early stage. All three of my above blankets ended up on hold and my sock

was frogged. I did start a new sock but that didn’t turn out well either

so for now I’ll wait for more skills before attempting another sock. In July two wonderful aspects of my life changed. The office that was used for studying and wasn’t being used now that both James and I were finished with classes so we decided to turn it into

a craft room. We removed all the carpet, painted the walls blue, yes blue, and added wood flooring. The room is still a work in progress but I am looking forward to spending time there. The second was the discovery of how much I enjoy crocheting.

To date I’ve started about 9 shell pattern crocheted scarves/wraps three of which I’ve finished and two were gifts to friends. I also discovered that I love to start things but have trouble finishing things.

In September James and I headed to an Alpaca Farm Fair

where we enjoyed seeing the animals and I got to watch someone spin in person.

and they had pretty yarn that I had to take home.

The next weekend I got up nice to attend my very first spinning class. It was horribly unorganized and at someones home but I learned a little. Around that time I also wraped my own table loom after much grumbling and a lot of help from James. It’s really fun to weave but I now understand why people hate to warp a loom. IT IS A PAIN!!! My first project turned into a mouse pad for my dad and I’m sure he will never use it. Oh well. The second warp I did by myself with a lot of cursing and an emergency run for more yarn. It took about 6 hours while watching movies and I still haven’t started weaving.

Instead I’m working on another shell pattern wrap and a hemp pattern dish cloth both of which are so easy and I recommend to new knitters and crocheters.

So there is my year of fiber but I also started two other projects. The first is my own online stores at http://masoncj.etsy.com and http://indenturedmason.etsy.com for kitchen goods and jewelry.

The other was sewing, specifically for Halloween costumes but also for quilting. The craft room is really expanding!

Thankfully this year has been deemed The Year of Junk Removal and Organization.

“Trouble” started last night when I wasn’t able to find my sewing machine power cord. To be fair I haven’t used my “new” machine since James bought it for me about 3 years ago but I’ve been very careful about keeping everything together. Well obviously it wasn’t enough effort because the cord and the english manual are missing (found the spanish manual but can’t read spanish).

Ok, just started might be stretching it. Budget is tight right now so it’s taking longer than expected to put the room together, which is fine, but now that autumn is here and we have wood floors in the office ANTS are invading my office for NO REASON!!! (not really true, there were some cookie crumbs in the trash can) and now they don’t stick to the single trail around the baseboards. They are crawling over everything, including my photo tent WHILE I’m taking pictures!!!!!! I hate ants with an obsessive need to keep them OUT OF MY HOUSE. A little back story (not that you need it, nasty ants). When I moved from Paradise, CA to the Sacramento area with my parents about 13 years ago ants were taking over everything! The area really is an ant hill so it wasn’t uncommon to have then crawling out of sockets, cracks between the wood and lenolium floors, cracks in the ceiling, everywhere. We had a bug man come out frequently with little change so one day when ants were taking over my clothes closet I freaked. Raide was used liberally (whole can) and everything had to be washed afterward. Ever since then I go a little crazy when I see ants (all over my bathroom counter last Tuesday at 6am, ug). Of course, when I got married and moved out, tmy parents got a new bug man that actually USED THE GOOD STUFF (aka termite spray 4ft up the outside of the house and 20 ft out on the ground).

Over all not a disaster but an annoying week of ants and stuff I can’t find.

On the up side I’ve got a lot of wire-wrap rings for IndenturedMason just waiting for me to work on the pictures. Who knew the hard part of selling online would be the photos and not keeping up with inventory? Also, several of my shell scarves are almost finished and will be ready for the Christmas season. MasonCJ is also close to having more inventory for the holidays. I’m working on hand embroidered Thanksgiving aprons and dish towels, knit dish towels, and pink sea salt.

One very cool announcement was in inclusion of my Pearl and Heart Drop Earrings in a Treasury listing. It will be available to view till tomorrow here: http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=86378

James had a suggestion: blogging about the making of each of my pieces. I’m giving this some thought and might try a few so keep your eye open for new posts here soon.