3 Years and Counting.

It's pretty hard to believe, looking back, that I have only been knitting for a little over 3 years. That sounds like a lot, but when you think about how fast those 3 years have gone, it's really not. In the past 3 years I have:

• Gotten together and broken up with my first (and so far only) boyfriend.
• Made the transition from high school to college dorms to living on my own.
• Made some amazing friends.
• Improved my artistic skills amazingly.
• Started this blog :)

That's a lot of things to do in just over 3 years. Now lets consider all the things I've done - fiber wise - in those 3 years.

• Picked up knitting (something I hadn't done since High School)when my ex wanted a scarf.
• Learned how to make socks on DPNS because sock yarn looked too pretty to not want to learn to use.
• Learned how to make mittens and gloves (basically socks with fingers!).
• Learned to knit in the round on circulars.
• Magic loop and using circular needles in place of straights (and I love it!)
• Cables!
• Full fledged garments (My tanktop!)
• Toys.
• How to spin with a spindle, something I really enjoy.
• How to dye yarn and bare roving, another thing I truly enjoy.

That's a lot considering I am a full time college student. Maybe it's a sign I should work on my art and school work more?

So that brings me to the real issue at hand: What do I want to do this year? Well my amazing friend Ivy (Pumpkin Spins) has given me some great ideas and pushed me to try things I never thought I would. This year we are both making lists and plan to encourage each other along the way. With that in mind, my knitting/fiber related resolutions are:

• Try (and hopefully succeed) in at least color work type project, weather it be fair isle, intarsia, etc.
• Finish my first full sweater successfully.
• Conquer something lace with minimal, barely noticeable mistakes. Like socks or a scarf or something smaller.
• Felting. I don't like how it looks, but I want to try it just one, to say I did.
• Thrumming. The new craze going around, where you knit roving into your work so the inside has pieces of roving to keep whatever is inside warm. (ie: thrummed items)
• Toe-Up 2 at a time socks. I just learned toe up this past week and love it! I also know how to 2 at a time, but am not the biggest fan because of having to keep things from tangling, but I'd still love to try the two together.
• Blocking and finishing. Every sweater makers best friend.
• Try different cast on and bind off techniques, because those always come in handy.
• Write more sock patterns!
• CONQUER MY STASH! I have collected so much this year that I'd love to knit it down a bit before investing in much more. (Unless it's for a special occasion project).
• Spin something besides wool. I have some bamboo in my stash that's calling my name.
• *Make a more even yarn when spinning. I am still having a lot of spots with thick and thin I'd like to get rid of
• Dye bare yarn. So far I've only dyed roving, but I'd love to try dying sock yarn or something white like that.
• Attempt different types of plys. I am not sure if you can do much more with a spindle, but even more 3 and 4 ply yarns would be nice.

You will not believe how long it took to come up with this list and I still feel like I am leaving something out. I know that I cannot succeed in everything, as this list is very long. But it's a nice guidebook on where to start when I need ideas.

To all my readers out there I wish you a save and happy New Years and may all your resolutions, wishes, promises, etc. come true.

~Lisa

Playing With My New Toy!

Merry Christmas to everyone who is probably reading this! I hope you all had a great holiday and a chance to just relax and spend time with family and friends.

I also hope everyone got everything they wished for, material or not. As for me, well I got a new toy...

And after the relatives left I went right to work playing with it. ;)

Sadly, all my mom has around the house is mountains and mountains of acrylic. She likes to make afghans, A LOT, and has all this extra stuff sitting in her closet. I couldn't just let it sit there, calling me, so naturally I wound it for her! She now has several nice little cakes of acrylic ickyness.

Ok Acrylic is not completely icky, I just don't prefer it now that I have experienced the yarn shop. But she does crochet some pretty amazing things with it, see for yourself:

Mom's Afghans are pretty sweet, but I don't know what she's going to do with all that extra yarn that I wound for her!

After winding all that acrylic, I'm out of things to wind, as I left most of my stash at Manhattan over break. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.

~Lisa

PS: To those interested, my brother and sister both LOVED their knitted gifts!

Holiday Knitting: Quick and Simple.

So as of 5pm tomorrow I will officially be done with the fall semester. Man it has been torture! But on a happy note I have also managed to finish a couple of holiday knitting projects. Unlike last year, no IOU yarn balls will be under the tree! Finished projects will instead take their place. However, my parents have basically said don't get them anything, which is fine by me because I'm a broke college kid anyways AND I never finished my mom's IOU socks from last year (in my defense I got one done, decided I hated the yarn and just never did the other).

So this year I decided to do a bit of something unexpected. Unexpected as in neither my brother or sister will be expecting what I made them. My sister is getting a winter headband made of 100% baby alpaca. If she doesn't like it, than I may just keep it, because I absolutely love how it turned out and how warm it is.



The headband in question is Bamboozled and I recommend it to anyone who wants a winter headband that is different from those basic ones with the flowers.

As for my brother, he is getting a bulky scarf. Being a freshman in college, I know that he could probably use something for those walks back in forth. I know he's a guy, but I have seen guys wear scarves. I actually gave a wool one to a friend of mine who swore he would never use it and the very first cold day we had got a text message with a very big thank you. So whoever says scarves are not for guys is completely wrong. Of course part of my reasoning is that I had 2 of the 3 skeins I used for this scarf already in my stash; I got them last year, intending to make hats for presents and never did, so they became the red and blue stripes of this scarf instead. It also gave me a chance to experiment with long circulars and lengthwise scarves, something I've wanted to do for awhile now.



I probably should wait to talk about these until after their given, but it's not like they read this blog and I'm bored and haven't updated for awhile. I hope all is well with the world and everyone has a great holiday!

~Lisa

Two Birds With One Spindle

So with dead week and finals vastly approaching, I would like to take a moment to share something with everyone that I recently began doing, and have fallen in love with.

An assignment in my drawing class about a month ago (wow, it's been that long?) was to do some primarily abstract and non-objective drawings with a pre-determined strategy. Examples given in class included drawing with your other hand, drawing under a table, drawing with reaction to something around you, or creating a 'machine'. These were all great ideas, and this was one abstract assignment I actually couldn't wait to start.

However, I could not for the life of me think of anything for the longest time, and then I Googled "Drawing Machines" and clicked images. Upon looking through a few, I found one that looked a lot like a spinning wheel (but I knew it wasn't) and it all made since.

This assignment was done mostly for a visiting artist, Marius Lehene, to come in and critique. Let me tell you, when he looked at mine and said he absolutely loved it and the way it looked like traces left behind by something, it almost blew my mind. Really? Even my teacher liked them (and she's very critical) and when she saw how I was doing them, she was amazed at the process.

So I know you are all probably wondering what process and drawings I am talking about, well ladies and gentlemen, I present to you:

Drawing with a Spindle.

For this project, I attached various types of charcoal to the bottom of my drop spindle and put a piece of paper down on the floor. As the yarn spun, the image was created.

(Single stick of compressed charcoal on the end)

The moment I conceived this idea, I knew it would be tricky. In fact, I almost didn't do it. There were so many cons to this idea. The spindle will get too heavy. The charcoal won't touch the paper right. The yarn that I spin won't be worth anything, it'll be too over/underspun. It will take the fun and relaxation out of spinning. My teacher will think I'm crazy. But after thinking some more and coming up with literally nothing better than "pencil on a string", I decided to give it a try. Man am I glad I did.

(How it's done!)

The results have been spectacular. Not only have I produced these beautiful drawings, I have also made some of the best yarn I have yet to make. It's spun almost perfectly. Maybe having that extra weight on the bottom helped to make it so? Or it taught me how to balance my spindle better? Or the fact that it wasn't fine quality fiber to begin with made me able to not worry about the results? Either way, both the yarn and the drawings are pure works of art.

(Created with a single 6B charcoal pencil on the end)

The assignment has since come and gone, and I am sad that I (for now) cannot pursue these drawings any further for a grade. However, I still do it most of the time. Whenever I pick up my spindle I also pick up a charcoal pencil and pad of paper. Upon spinning the leader, the pencil gets attached and a beautiful work of art gets created.

(Created with 2 pencils, one on one side of the end, one on the other, to create more dots)

Maybe I'm crazy, maybe I'm obsessed, or maybe I just like that I can do something I love AND get art/homework done at the same time. No matter what it is, you've got to admit, it sure would be cool to see a gallery show with the yarn hanging next to the drawings it made.

(Most of the yarn I spun for the drawings above, note that I did not create any drawings when plying; I'm not that adventurous yet)

~Lisa

PS: I have way more drawings than what is pictured here, but they are either with my teacher, at studio, or I was too lazy to take pictures tonight. Expect more pictures when I can. Did I also mention I hand dyed all the roving used with Wilton's food dyes?

Give Thanks 2011

It's that time of the year again. Mom slaves away in the kitchen to make a big meal, dad sits in front of the T.V. with a football game and the siblings fight in the next room. Well ok, maybe that's not how it is at my house, but it's very close and I know a lot of people spend their holiday this way. How do you spend yours?

Every year Thanksgiving seems to lose it's meaning a little more, it is slowly becoming a shopping day and less about what's really important. (I mean come on, Black Friday starting at MIDNIGHT?!?!). To those still celebrating the correct way, I am thankful for you. I am also thankful for:

*My family. They are my rock. We may fight, but we are still a family and I know that my family will always be there for me whenever I need them.

*My high school friends. We have this connection that I will forever cherish, and I don't think anything can ever break it. They will always be there to listen and give advice, no matter how far we are. Thank you Janae, Ashley, Sarah, Bea, Karlee, and all my amazing high school buddies.

*My college friends. I may act like I don't appreciate them sometimes, or I may take them for granted, but they're still my friends and they still care about me as I do about them. This past year has been great, despite the issues that have arisen, and I thank Kaela, Rachel, Alley, Lynnsay, David, Kenni, Griselda, and all my art buddies for the amazing memories I've made in college.

*My kitties. I miss Muffin and Sasha so much when I'm not home, and I there is nothing better than a purring cat on your bed in the morning.

*My awesome Penpal, Ivy. She's always so unbiased and helpful and willing to listen. Plus it's fun to bounce knitting and spinning ideas off of her. Even though we've never met, I consider her one of my best friends.

*My relatives, especially David and Linda, who are always willing to help me with things in Manhattan.

*Wildflower Yarn Shop (and knitting in general), for giving me a good excuse (Knit night!) to just escape school work and do something creative I love. If I hadn't discovered knitting, I don't know where I'd be today.

*Art. Without art I would be nothing, nor would I really know what I wanted to do the rest of my life.

*Disney Movies, just because they are awesome and they allow me to escape reality and step back to my childhood, even if just for a couple hours.

I know there is so much more I am thankful for, but these are the important ones. I seriously would not be who I am without the things listed above. I hope everyone is having a great Thanksgiving and that everyone can put aside their differences and petty needs to remember what being thankful truly is.

~Lisa

Well, That's a First!

I like puns :)

In case you are wondering, this post is all about the "firsts" I am acheiving this month in the world of knitting and spinning.

First on the list is a project I am making with some wool I got at K1 knitting boutique in Edinburgh, Scotland. It's going to be a set of fingerless gloves. Why a first? Well 1, I've never made fingerless gloves, and 2, I am improvising the pattern. I am taking the construction from a basic gloves pattern, using the math of another fingerless pattern to know when to cut off the fingers, and creating my own cable design to go on the outside of the hand. The cable shown in that pattern is not the design I am creating, but it is the chart I am basically working from. When they're done they should have an X across the front of them.

Second on the list is my first handspun with my new spindle. I am not sure of the weight (The owner of Wicked Stitch didn't tell me...) but it's heavier, which means thicker plys. It's also being spun with my FIRST (Sensing a pattern here?) Wilton Food Dye dyed roving, and I really love how it turned out! It's various shades of blues, greens and yellow and it looks so pretty! And the thicker plys make it softer too.

And that leads us to the next first, my FIRST sweater! Ok, it's actually a cardigan, but what's the difference? I am using this very pretty shade of Berocco Vintage (My old standby for worsted socks) and so far it really is effortless, hense the name "Effortless Cardigan". I am only 6 rows in, and it seems like it may take awhile, but I am up for the challenge.

No I did not take this picture, it's a very nice picture taken by one of my test knitters for my first published (and for sale) pattern! I'm so excited about these because they are super basic and cheap and all proceeds go to Relay For Life. Here we go again with that, but I am really passionate about that cause.

The next 5-6 weeks are going to be torture. My teachers are pushing me so hard, and I'm grateful for it, but also burned out. I don't really feel like doing anything, but I have no choice. School should come first, but I'm having a hard time lately remembering that. Wish me luck as the next weeks speed by.

~Lisa

Things to Finish Before New Years (Yea Right)

So, I've been crazy busy with studio stuff lately, spending literally every night until at least 11 (last night it was 12:30) there, trying to get stuff done. It's the only time I have to do it so I don't have much choice in the matter. None the less, I am still finding time to knit, both at Knit Nights at Wildflowers, and at home (wish more basic, non-Wildflower purchased yarns). I have come to the conclusion that there are a few things I'd love to get done before the first of the year, just so I can start fresh with new stuff in January. Here is my list:

Twilight Curls Scarf: This thing is actually knitting up really fast. It's my knit-night exclusive project, simply because it's with Wildflower purchased yarn, and I therefore want to use it at her shop. It should be done by the end of knit night tonight, and if not I'll probably finish it later this weekend so I can start...

Effortless Cardigan. Yes, I want to make a cardigan. I don't have the yarn for it yet, but I plan to purchase it this weekend. I don't know if I really have the time with school, but hopefully I can find time here and there to work on it and finish it for the new year!

Rick Socks As you've already seen on this blog, I have these socks going. I haven't picked them up in a while, so they aren't very far along, and they take awhile to get very far on. This will probably be the one project I DON'T finish before January. There's something about socks: I love making them, but can never finish a pair without stopping to do other things in between.

Lost in Transit Lustra Scarf As of the middle of December, it will have been a good year since I picked up this scarf to work on. That's a sign it needs to get finished. I want it done, but it's not high priority right now. It would have been done last year, but I had to stop to make IOU Christmas gifts.

I also have a couple of gifts on my needles right now,but I'm not going to talk about them until they are and given.

Happy November everyone! I hope life doesn't get more stressful as the weather turns colder.

~Lisa

And Now a Word From Our Sponsors....

This blog is brought to you by Relay For Life of Kansas State.

Ok not really, but sort of. In case you haven't seen the cute little badge on the right, I am involved (once again) with Relay For Life. It's my guilty passion, my worthy cause, my excuse to give something back to my community, my...ok you get the point. I am involved both in the committee and also on a team, and the main goal is to raise money for cancer and then 'celebrate' in April. It's kind of a big deal.

So last year I was trying to think of ways to raise money for it. I had this idea to set up at Farmer's Market, and sell dish cloths (Because cotton for them is super cheap). I was going to do it last summer, but that didn't happen, so the goal is this coming summer. Below are just a few of the ones I've made for it so far. I'll probably sell other things at the table also, but dish cloths are the main focus right now.

My other idea is to sell stitch markers. I've been making them like crazy, a new obsession of mine actually, and it's a good excuse to use all these beads I've had forever. The extra stuff is pretty cheap, so it's an easy fundraiser. The issue right now is that I have no real venue to sell them-- farmer's market next year won't yield a lot because not everyone is a knitter. I have Etsy set up, but I have no bites so far. I'm considering asking my LYS if I can sell them there for partial profits, but I don't know if she will go for that. Here are a couple of examples of what I've been making.

Are you an avid knitter? Do you know someone who is? Then you should click HERE and check out my cute markers, a pure delight for any knitter, guaranteed to be snag free! Ok that was probably a little much, but anyways, pass the word on to everyone you know who's a knitter :)

Or if you don't knit, but want to donate to the amazing cause, click the badge below (or to the right of the page also).

And we will now return you to you're regularly scheduled blog post.

'Til later!

~Lisa

There's Something About Lace...

That always messes me up!

Exhibit A: My current sock project.

The socks I am currently working on are Rick by Cookie A.

I love the pattern, don't you?

I'm doing them 2 at a time, and like that doesn't make them hard enough, they are also different on each foot! Yikes! They were coming along great (see individual sock pics below) but somewhere I must have lost a yarn over or something, because it suddenly got moved over one stitch. I noticed that I always have this issue with lace patterns. I follow them EXACTLY and yet seem to lose something somewhere. It's usually a yarn over, but I don't get how I lose it, when I diligently count and re-count and pay very close attention.

Right Sock

Left Sock

Here's where the mistake happens. As you can see, the other side of the left sock is off just a bit, and I can't figure out why when I was counting!

Also, even once I get back on track by making a stitch or picking up one, I seem to get lost again on the next round. As soon as I fix my problem, it happens again. It did this on my tank top this summer too. Hmmmm.

Anyone else ever have issues with lace like this? I know I can't be alone. This reason right here is why I will NEVER actually try knitting as lace shawl. PERIOD.

~Lisa

I've Got a New Hobby...

This is seriously the worst time to get obsessed with something, but sadly, I have become crazy obsessed with making stitch markers for knitting. First it was just for me, an excuse to use some leftover beads from Scotland and then I found all the French ones Linda got me years ago, and well now I'm hooked. I've already bought tons of crimping beads, pliers, wire etc. I can't get enough! I need to find something to do with them all though! I wonder if Etsy would even be worth my time?

The problem is is that I know I don't have the time to be doing stuff like this, and I know I'd rather be knitting, but I just can't help it! I do these so much lately! School is getting way harder, and I'm getting myself in way deeper. Ugh. How do I pull myself out?

Here are a few sets I've made, in order from early (as in not as good) to more recent (as in...amazing and more time consuming to make). I have a ton more sets, I just haven't photographed them all.

Potential uses: Myself, gifts for knitters I know, sell at Etsy/farmers market, RAK's on Ravelry....hmmm so many options.

Who'd have thought making stitch markers would be so obsessive. Not as meditative as knitting though, which is why I should just pick up my sticks. and knit...

Oh and to those of you who don't know, my birthday is only a little over a week away :) Just thought I'd mention that, because I'm really excited to be 21 finally!

~Lisa

I Bet You Think I Forgot....

that this is my art/knitting blog after all! (For those of you seeing this on Facebook, I have my art blog automatically send the posts to Facebook notes).

So what have I been making in the world of knitting? A LOT! I have several projects I have finished up since school started, and I'd like to take the time to share them with you now.

(Please note that my camera is not the greatest, and therefore these photos do no real justice to the amazingness of the final products. Oh and clicking the project title will take you to the Ravelry project page.)

Pretty Purple Cables. Worsted weight socks in size 6.5 that I made for my friend Griselda's birthday. She has small feet! But I loved how fast these knit up and how pretty they turned out. The pattern is my own, and in the working stages of getting published.

Sophie. Cotton bunny for my friend Kenni's future baby girl. She loved this! And so do I! Sophie turned out perfect and I can't believe how far I've come, being able to make stuffed animals now!

Blue Summer Sloutch Hat. Not my favorite. The pattern got messed up somewhere. But oh well. I haven't really warn it yet either. This was one of those random projects I made over the course of like 3 days.

Remember that "ugly" roving I showed you? Well this is the yarn! I actually do like how it turned out, although it could have more yellow. What should I make?

I had leftover of the red and yellow roving, because I caved and plyed the threads before I used it all. I just couldn't stare at the yellow and red anymore. This is what was left, overdyed with grape and orange kool-aid. I'm literally spinning this right now and it looks really pretty!

In other news, school is slowly catching up to me, as is sleep. I guess that's my own fault though.

~Lisa

Things I'm Looking Forward to in October.

Well, October is here already. Who can believe that? The first 6/7 weeks of school have flown by, making my life that much harder as they went. I just wanted to make a quick post about all the things I can't wait for in October!

1) My Birthday! Of course! I turn 21 on the 21st! Yay! I get to finally go out (if I want) and drink (if I want...). It's going to be nice to have that option. Plus, I always love birthdays anyways.

2) Halloween. Because I'll be old enough to go out! And because I already got my costume yesterday (I told myself I wouldn't buy anything, but I caved).

3)Starting my giant self portrait. This thing is 7ft tall by 5ft wide. It scares me just looking at the canvas frame. I will no doubt spend many late night painting it-- but it will be worth every minute

4)The weather! I love the fall weather, when it's just cool enough to wear a jacket. And walking to class will be nice.

5) A good excuse to knit a sweater! You heard me, this girl wants to start a sweater! Ok well maybe not a sweater, but I'd love to make a jacket!

6) Relay for Life. Relay for Life is finally getting in, we will be having our first of many meetings this week, which means I will soon be going into full fundraising mode! Oh and I'm chair for Luminaria committee too!

7) Cat sitting :) I get to cat sit for my aunt's friend again! I love being able to hang out with cats, especially since I can't have my own here.

8) C.A.R- Concentration Admissions Review. I'm so sick of talking about whether or not I'll get into digital arts to double, so once this finally happens I'll be so happy, even if I don't get in.

I feel like I should think of 10 different things, but I just can't. Oh well, October promises to be a good month none the less, so cheers to that!

~Lisa

The Return of My Childhood

Not gonna lie, when it comes to 3D movies, I will always pick the 'normal' movie over it. Not just because of the money issues either, but because it's just a gimmick and never lives up to it's hype.

HOWEVER I would like to say that I am starting to lean in the other direction, and there is a very good reason why. Three words:

THE LION KING

Ok I could go on all night about this, I really could. So here we go. I took my sister to see it tonight, something I had been debating about for the past 2 weeks, because being a college student, an $11 movie ticket just isn't in my budget. But I caved.

And it was worth it.

You see, unlike the cgi movies of today, where everything explodes, jumps, flies and shoots at you, this was a traditional 'hand drawn' animated movie. They couldn't make things jump at you because the original didn't have that. The original was an amazing animated picture. And so was this. The use of 3D brought a whole new perspective to my movie viewing experience. Everything had depth, you could see every layer as if someone simply lied one on top of the other. The few moments when things DID jump at you it was amazing, much better than anything CGI can ever do.

I was very much looking forward to the stampede scene, and sadly it didn't live up to what I wanted it to be, but then again, like I said, the movie wasn't made to be in 3D so that's to be expected. The scenes following made up for it, with the dust from the stampede being carefully layered on top of everything, making the scene that more emotional.

However, there was one thing that completely took the cake for me tonight. The theater was half full, which surprised me to begin with. What made this even better was the fact that half of these people were parents and their 4-5 year olds, the age I was the first time I ever saw it. The other half was people from high school to my age watching it with their friends and boyfriends-- the same generation that grew up loving this movie is now able to see it again, in theaters and in 3D.

Overall, I think that Disney should keep re-releasing all their classics in 3D, and if they do I will be there. Not because 3D is awesome, because it is far from perfect, but because it allows new generations of kids to experience the movies of their parents' childhoods, and not just on DVD/Blu-ray, but in an actual theater, getting a once in a lifetime experience they can tell their kids about when they grow up.

After tonight, I just wanna work for Disney even more.

~Lisa

(oh and the movie poster was actually pretty awesome too, for a re-release that is)

A Question About Dreams

So I have a question for everyone out there-- Do you ever have dreams? Do you ever remember any of them? Do any ever occur more than once?

This is my thought of the day, something I was pondering in the shower this morning.

I have a few things I'd like to address further that I find insightful, yet still needing answers.

First, I hope I am not alone in the idea that dreams can reoccur. I have had several that do so, one of which is very prominent in my childhood (and even the focus of an art assignment a couple years ago). In it, a younger version of me is with a group of my friends at a field, but suddenly this flock of bees shows up and chases me away, straight to a cliff, where I fall and wake up. Has anyone ever felt that sensation of "Falling into bed?"

Second, and this occurred to me this morning when I woke up from my dream, I have reoccurring locations. My dream that I was having this morning was taking place in Wichita, but yet it wasn't Wichita the way it really is, it was Wichita the way my dream lays it out to be. And the weird part is that every time I have a dream about being in Wichita (quite often, oddly enough) it looks the same way as it did today in my dream! This is one of those dream sensations I find rather interesting, yet puzzling at the same time.

Finally, has anyone ever had that experience of hearing your alarm go off in your dream, waking up barely to hit snooze and then closing your eyes and finishing your dream? I have and it's happened a lot lately since school started. Some of the dreams I have are pretty interesting, so I'm not going to complain, but I still think it's another experience I wish I could explain.

So, now that I have these ideas in the open, what do people think? Do you agree with my ideas? Has this ever happened to you? All thoughts and musing are more than welcomed, I'd love to hear opinions on this issue!

~Lisa

I'm a 10 Year Old in a Twenty Year Old's Body...

or at least, that's what my alter ego is.

Let me explain. My latest (and first) assignment in my Drawing III class was to prove how well we could render things from life. But the catch was that the things had to be objects that represent our 'alter ego'.

Me being the non-creative person I am, I went with something I've done before-- kid's stuff. Yea I basically said that I was a 10 year old. I made the theme work by saying that I only show that side when I'm around my friends, so the images are all of the items 'exploding', opening up, or scattered around, to imply that my alter ego wants to let that out. Finally I also decided to go with the concept that I want my childhood back, by making the objects much larger than they are in real life, saying that these things are made for someone older than a child.

I'll let you decide for yourself.

So overall, these are the best drawings I've ever produced. However, I am the only non-drawing major in that class, which makes me think maybe I should have taken figure drawing 2 instead, because I can't draw the figure and would like more experience. Also because the next assignment in this class is gonna suck, big time, period.

Welcome to the life of a busy college student!

Spinning, Knitting, and Artwork! oh My!

I couldn't think of a title...

Besides that though, school is in full swing here. I am FINALLY getting back into it (it only took a week and a half!) and I think it's going to be a very successful year, art wise. I feel like my work right now, not even finished, is better than anything I've done before. Although I may have just jinxed it!

Anyways, I wanted to post some pictures of my current spinning project. The purple isn't done, just taking a break because I wanted to experiment with different fibers. This fiber below is merino and nylon from Knitpicks, curtisy my awesome pen pal! I wanted it to be blue, but it's red, only because I can't read and thought the blue fruit punch packet would yield blue color, my bad!

This roving is very interesting to work with. I leaves fuzzies behind everywhere and pulls apart really easily if I'm not careful. I can't seem to make even strands like I could with my purple, so I think I prefer the purple over this.

Moving on, I finally finished a pair of socks I started last December. For some reason the 2nd one is smaller, even though I used the same needles and pattern. You can't really see the pattern well on this yarn, which is sad, because it's pretty. But I love the yarn anyways, the color is amazing. I will never knit with size 1 needles again, and I'll probably keep to 2-at-a-time socks now that I know how. I can't wait to see how these wash up!

For more info and a link to the pattern, click here :)

So like I said, school is started here. I don't see myself having much time to knit or spin in the future because of it, however I do still plan on attending yarn shop knit nights, so atleast I'll get one day a week to do it! I still can't believe I'm a JUNIOR!

Peace out!
~Lisa

Too much of a good thing?

Everyone's heard of too much of a good thing. Too much ice cream, too much time with someone, too much whatever. Well I'm starting to wonder if I'm getting too much of a good thing with my Disney obsession, and not just Disney, but TANGLED in particular.

Exhibit A: All of my Tangled illustration drawings. I will admit, this movie made me realize how much I wanted to do illustration. I discovered the 'art' of colored pencil on pastel and construction paper way back in December, and did all the brown paper drawings then, and I recently did the blue one. I love the way the colored pencils look, but maybe I'm doing too many of these drawings? I really want to do a water color painting too, but school starts in 2 days so that's probably not an option.

Exhibit B: Tangled Ever After. They are making a new Tangled "short film" for Disney Channel next year, Tangled Ever After, about the wedding. I completely freaked when I found this poster, even though I already knew about the film before hand. I'm not a fan of the name (too Shrek-ish) and the poster is cheesy looking too, but I'm excited to see if they do it justice or make me hate my favorite movie.

Exhibit C: Disney Princesses are not just for kids! Rapunzel 'officially' becomes a Disney Princess this October, complete with her own line of products and her face on all the princess stuff! I'm already seeing it around a few places. Is it bad I got excited when I found out? I really hope they make some good products for her, I'd love a set of bed sheets! The only downfall is that they had to make her 2D to go with the others, and she doesn't look very good in 2D (despite my love of handrawn Disney!). See for yourself:

Exhibit D: Halloween. I got an email from the Disney Store about free shipping on Halloween costumes, so naturally I looked this up. They have a Rapunzel adult costume! But it's $79, so that is NOT happening, as much as I'd like it too. My fingers are crossed that the costume store here will have something, because how fun would it be to do that for Halloween? It's about time they made a blonde princess I actually liked!

And finally, Exhibit E: I don't know how many times I've seen the movie, I stopped counting around 10. I actually bought the 4 disc 3D/Bluray/DVD/Digital Copy when it came out, even though I don't have bluray or 3d, just because I could get it for $20. Talk about a deal!

Ok, so you be the judge. Is there such a thing as too much of a good thing? I'm starting to think so, but I'm not giving up. Tangled is, and will be for awhile, my favorite Disney Movie!

~Lisa

PS: School starts Monday! Poo....