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I’m back in town after a lot of crazy travel (a graduation and a wedding) and moving madness (my apartment and my work studio).  Now I’m hard at work dyeing yarn and getting ready for two cool events.  Check ‘em out!

Stitch Cooperative Party and Book Signing
Who: Some of the coolest folks in knitwear pattern design, including Shannon Okey, Annie Modesitt and Miriam Felton.
What: A party with cupcakes and wine!  Plus the ladies (including me and Libby) will have copies of their books to sign.
When: Thursday, June 10 (TOMORROW!!!) 7:30 pm to 9:00 pm
Where: ReFINDesign Workshop, 1122 N. High St, Columbus, OH

Knitters Connection
Who: You!  And bring your friends!
What: A great market for knitters plus an amazing array of classes taught by amazing knitters
When: June 16-19 (hours vary, details here)
Where: Columbus Convention Center

It was such a hard decision!  I almost left it up to the random number generator to pick the colors, but I was afraid I’d end up with a completely inappropriate fake neighborhood or hockey player (thanks pat and matt).  Anyway, here are the new colors and winners of each skein of yarn.

Nikki wins a skein of Studio Sock in VictorianVillage! This neighborhood is one of the first that I encountered on my first trip to Columbus.  I love the big, old homes and the lovely green space.
 

Bridgette wins a skein of Studio Sock in Olde Towne East.  Despite my deep hatred of the letter ‘e’ at the end of words to make them seem old-timey, this neighborhood is one of my favorites in Columbus.  The historic homes and rapidly transitioning demographics make it the neighborhood that reminds me the most of DC.
 

Arthella wins a skein of Studio Sock in Rock Creek Park! While not technically a neighborhood, Rock Creek Park is an unmistakably important DC landmark.  As Kathleen pointed out, it is the largest urban park in the country (more than twice the size of Central Park in NYC).  Not bad for a city that’s only 68 square miles.
 

Winners should expect an email from me today and then yarn in the mail!  I’m enjoying some East Coast time this weekend, mostly with my family.  However, I will be at the Stitch N Pitch Nats game tonight with Fibre Space.  Hope I see you there!

Check out these new colors!  I’ve experimented with all three in different variations as part of the L’Enfant Color Series.  Now, they’re all becoming part of the permanent Neighborhood Fiber Co. color family!

My only problem is naming them.  I always struggle with picking new names for each color.  Which neighborhood best reflects the color?  What do I know about the neighborhood?  So, this time, it’s up to you! Here are closeup shots of each color.

Pinks:

Greens:

Blues:

Next Wednesday, May 19, I will select the new color names from your suggestions.  I will also randomly select three winners to each receive a skein of yarn in one of the new colors.  And here are the rules/instructions for the contest:

• - Go to the comment section and leave your suggestion for neighborhood names for any or all of the colors.
• - Be sure to include your email address so I can contact you if you win.
• - Be sure to mention which color goes with which neighborhood.
• - ONLY Columbus, OH and Washington, DC area neighborhoods are eligible.
• - Don’t worry if someone else has already suggested your neighborhood.  You can still comment with the same suggestion and be entered to win the yarn.

Now, I know that it’s hard to adequately capture colors on computer monitors.  For this reason, folks local to DC or Columbus can go see the yarn in person at Fibre Space in Alexandria, VA or at Wonderknit in Columbus, OH.

So, the thing is, I more or less do love Columbus.  I’ve met some good people, eaten some good food, and done a lot of good drinking.  All that said, I miss home, and home is DC/MD.  I miss my family, friends, and a decent public transportation system.

So, I’m SO very excited to be vending at Homespun Yarn Party!  This show is completely homegrown and features lots of good vendors from the DC area.  Hope to see you there!

Well, at this point, I think most everyone is thinking more about the Olympics than they are about Haiti.  But over here at Neighborhood Fiber Co., we’re just wrapping up two weeks of mini-fundraising.  I’m happy to report that Neighborhood Fiber Co. was able to donate $45 to Oxfam America’s Haiti relief effort.  Not a ton of money, but every little bit helps!

And, an FO that I’ve had finished for a very long time.  The Boneyard Shawl (rav link) modeled by my friend Katie was knit for the wonderful Meaghan of ohmeaghan fame.  Meaghan is one of those people that I met in the months before I left the DC area (along with Becky) who made me sad that I was leaving.  Luckily, these here interwebs make it easier to stay in touch with people, though I do miss out on the opportunity to just hang out and craft. This scarf/shawl thing was supposed to be a Christmas present, but we knitters know how that can go sometimes.  I finally finished knitting it and sent it out to Meaghan and I hope it’s a nice reminder of me in the cold weather!

Gratuitous textural closeups:

Yarn is 1 skein of Studio Worsted in Edgewood colorway knit on size 8 needles.

I’m happy to welcome a new online retailer to the short list of companies carrying Neighborhood Fiber Co. yarns, Handknitting[dot]com! Right now, they’re stocking a selection of the Penthouse Silk Lace.  So, if you’re looking for silk lace online and my Etsy shop has none (as it does now!), head over to their Neighborhood Fiber Co. page.

Here are some of the lovely photos that Laurel at Handknitting took of the silk lace.  Enjoy!

I’m slow to jump on this particular bandwagon, but I figure, better late than never. Lots of good people out their in the knitting/crochet community are donating a portion of sales to non-profit organizations doing work in Haiti to respond to this disaster.  I’d like to do my part.

So, until February 15, 2010 at 11:59 pm, 25% of all sales through my Etsy shop will be donated to Oxfam America’s relief effort in Haiti. Oxfam America has 200 people on the ground in Haiti right now working to meet the basic needs of Haitian people (like clean water delivery). To learn more about their work in Haiti, visit their website at http://oxfamamerica.org.

The shop is currently stocked with sock yarn, but I’ll add more stuff as it becomes available.

I have actually been knitting since I’ve been here in Columbus.  Part of my plan to face my first mid-western winter is to cover myself in knitwear.  The rest of the plan involves a very very very warm down coat and snow boots.  On to knitting content!

Long ago I started Ulmus (rav link). Great pattern!  And repetitive but not in a bad way.  Currently it looks like a big orange and purple blog, but soon it’ll be a big squishy shawl of wonder. I’m using the Neighborhood Fiber Co. Studio Sock in Truxton Circle and an experimental colorway.

I actually managed to finish the Maine Morning Mitts (rav link) from the Knitter’s Book of Yarn by Clara Parkes.  Warm, cozy, and just perfect for these cool fall days.  Fall is one weather thing about Columbus that will not elicit any complaints from me. There is a crispness in the air that we never got in DC and there are lots of pretty leaves!

Pattern: Maine Morning Mitts (rav link)
Author: Clara Parkes
Source: Knitter’s Book of Yarn or Knitter’s Review website
Yarn: Farmhouse Yarns, Andy’s Merino in Deep Pink
Needles: US 7
Mods: I cast on 6 more stitches and then did 3 inches in ribbing before decreasing over the next 2 inches.  Also added little white dog hairs.  As I do to everything I knit.

Also, this scarf.  Knit from the yummy, wonderful, squishy merino that I bought from Folktale Fibers’ booth at Crafty Bastards.  I love the way the yarn transitions through 32 different colors and how soft and buttery the merino is.  I was almost done knitting it before I got off the plane back in Columbus.  I pretty much started knitting it as soon as I got back to my Mom’s house.  The yarn totally knew what it wanted to be.

Pattern: My So-Called Scarf (rav link)
Designer: Allison Isaacs
Source: Sheep in the City website
Yarn: Folktale Fibers Yarnbow
Needles: US 13
Mods: I made it a keyhole scarf because I only had 130 yards.  Also, again, with dog hair.

Since moving to Columbus, I have experienced a frightening phenomenon with which I was previously unfamiliar.  This bizarre occurrence is known as Buckeye Football Season.  Truly, being a DC gal, I thought I was at least somewhat prepared.  After all, Redskins fans always seemed pretty hardcore to me.   I was wrong.  So. Very. Wrong.  OSU fans are a different breed.  I don’t know if it’s the cold, the lack of proximity to the ocean, or just the sheer numbers, but on weekends in the fall, everything in Columbus is about Buckeye football.

I’m still not a football fan, but I did finally cave in and give the people what they wanted.

Buckeye colorway, Studio Sock.  It will be available, exclusively at Wonderknit beginning next Monday, October 26.  GO BUCKS!  Or something.

Also, look at me posting two days in a row!

You may have heard that I’ve resurfaced.  In reality, I’ve been here in Columbus the whole time, working away on yarn for Neighborhood Fiber Co. and classes for Wonderknit.  It’s been a long process, but I finally did get my studio set up and was back in DC for the Crafty Bastards Arts and Crafts Fair.  The show was amazing, and I got to see a lot of friends and family.

Anyway, I’m back on track, dyeing yarn and selling to stores, as well as stocking my own Etsy shop.  I’ve even got some handspun listed, the product of partnership between me and Mia (http://knitplaywithfire.wordpress.com/). Look for more updates from me in the future as I’m really getting busy and have made some major changes.  It’s an exciting time for Neighborhood Fiber Co.!

Check out my yarns in Fibre Space in Alexandria, VA back in the DC area.  If you’re in Columbus, stop in to see me at Wonderknit.

Well, I made it.  Somehow, with all the packing, sorting, and throwing away, I managed to get the moving done.  Now, if you’re looking to find me, you’ll have to look in Columbus, OH!

I’m still getting settled into a routine, but I’m really happy to be here!  I’m working with Libby at Wonderknit and still setting up my studio on the premises.  For now, I’ve reopened Etsy shop and stocked it with lots of laceweight yarn.  I’m on a lace kick. As I get more stuff set up and properly sorted, I’ll add more yarns to the shop.

Also, I have been doing some knitting to keep me sane. I finished the Boneyard Shawl as a gift for a guy friend.  I used Studio Sport in Thomas Circle.  Very masculine.

I feel like all my posts lately have been about moving, but it’s all I’ve been thinking about or doing lately.  The big day is this Friday, July 10 and I’ll need a few weeks after that to get things back up and running on the Etsy site.

Spent the morning at Eastern Market and then headed down to Artomatic for the last day of the show.  I can’t express enough how much I’m going to miss this town and its crafty scene.

In the meantime, I leave you with a few of the photos I took for my Crafty Bastards application.  Keep your fingers crossed for me!

Well, not everything.  But a lot of things!  I’ve been finalizing moving plans and realizing that I have A LOT of stuff.  Crafty stuff, book stuff, random furniture stuff.  And most of it will not fit in the back of the Honda Fit.

So, this Sunday, June 28th, I’m hosting an Open House/Rummage Sale.  Come on down to Chez NFC to say goodbye to moi and paw through all the yarn, fiber, and general crafty ephemera that I’ve accumulated.  Details are below:

Who: Come one, come all!
What: Karida’s De-Stashing Rummage Sale and Open House
When: Sundya, June 28, 2009 from 12:00 to 8:00 pm
Where: Karida’s house, 3602 Bunker Hill Road, Mount Rainier, MD 20712

In addition to the NFC yarn you’ve seen on my Etsy site, I’ll have for sale a lot of my personal stash (yarns from Karabella, Art Yarns, Rowan and more!), books and some random supplies (paper, glue guns, a sewing machine, etc.).

Even if you don’t need to buy any stuff, come hang out with me and say goodbye.  This will probably be the last time I get to see most of you while I’m living here!  No need to RSVP, this is an open event.  Post any questions in the comments!

Back in October, I wrote up a pattern for Neighborhood Fiber Co’s Walking Tour of DC Sock Club.  The deal with Sock Club is that patterns and colors are exclusive for 6 months.  Well I completely forgot that 6 months has LONG since passed and I could have posted the pattern back in April!  Anyway, here it is!  The free pattern for the Election Season Sock (rav link).

And I just finished the Turtle Tracks Socks for the most recent Sock Club package.  Here’s a photo of the finished sock, and the pattern will be available in October.

Since I set a timeline for moving, I’ve been frantically running around trying to get things done.  Things like packing and cleaning and apartment hunting and general moving madness-type stuff.  At the same time, I’ve been hurrying to do the East Coast things that I’ve taken for granted.  On top of this list is SPEND TIME WITH FAMILY.  Most of my family lives in this area, and I’m pretty much used to seeing them on a weekly basis.  So, when my Mom let me know that she was planning a 5 day trip to her retirement house in the mountains of Western NC, I was instantly jealous.  And then she let me know that my Grandma was going too, and I knew I had to find a way to go too.  Basically, I moved my whole working schedule around and made it work.  It was just the vacation that I needed.  I rested, relaxed, and soaked up lots of family time!  Of course there was also lots of knitting.  I’m really close to finishing my Ishbel (Rav link).

The best part of the vacation was taking a short hike with my Mom and Grandma to see Whitewater Falls.  We also stopped at Fairfield Lake for some pics.  I’ve never seen such lush, green terrain.  We came back on Saturday, and I can’t wait for my next mountain retreat!

Also hit Handmade Mart on Sunday.  Recap and haul to follow tomorrow!