Life in the Phat Lane

So (waaayyy) back in December I caught wind of this yarn and fiber sampler box that this wonderful woman, Jessie, was going to be putting together. She'd be getting sample skeins and batts, stitch markers and balms, needles and bags, and all the wonderful things that go along with this great lifestyle. Each month indie crafters would send her their samples in the theme (I LOVE themes!) for that month.

January's theme was "Wintery Mix", and on Thursday, Jan. 16 at 8:22pm (during knitting group, what better time?!) the limited amount of boxes went on sale at Phat Fibers etsy site. Your humble blogger (that would be me), was able to procure a box (there were two available, a fiber and yarn box, and a yarn only box. I went for the latter.) and now I present to you, my spoils:

A box FULL of wonderful samples of yarn! It's a sight to behold. Let's let them out of the box so you can get a closer look at some of them.

From L to R: BunkyBoBo's Superwash Merino Sock in Hera (10g); Melissa's Kre8tions, no info on color or fiber content but it looks handspun and ranges from yellow to red, about worsted weight (4.5g); The Fuzzy Bunny 100% Wool, light sport weight (10g/25yd); Whorled Peace, 3 mini skeins of handpainted sock yarn (total weight 2.8g); Chocolate Princess 100% Wool in Early Winter, dk weight (9g); Wildethyme handspun Wool/Mohair/Tussah Silk, bulky thick 'n thin, and a beautiful purple beaded stitch marker (8.5g); Hedgehog Fibres 65% Merino/20% Bamboo/15% Silk sock yarn in Water Edge, super, super awesome soft (4.3g)

From L to R (and top to bottom): Moonlight and Laughter 100% wool in Leaves of Grass, bulky weight (2.4g), 75% Merino/25% Nylon sock yarn in The Golden Road (1.7g), BFL roving in Deep Lake (3.6g), and an adorable orange glass stitch marker; Crazy4Dyeing Jolly Sock, 100% Superwash Merino in Glacier (13.4g); Yarn Candy by Melissa dark and light blue smooth, metal/enamal stitch markers (and a 20% off discount code which is why they're upside down); Tracy Rios handspun Mohair/Wool/Cotton yarn (11.5g); Turtle Cove Farm Turtle Feet (75% Superwash Merino/25% Nylon) sock yarn in Ice Flower (10g/46yd); SummerStar Creations stitch markers, two red glass beads and one awesome business card! ;); Handspun and Dyed Too handspun Falkland wool (10.5g); Faerie Dust & Angel Fluff 100% Baby Merino Wool, lace weight. This is the SOFTEST bit of yarn I have ever touched. I WILL be buying more of this! Ahem...(2.7g); In Stitches stitch marker and offer for a free gift with purchase, nice and lightweight.

From L to R (and top to bottom): Artemisia Ink 100% Merino Wool (handspun by Ashley Flagg) in Ocean Seaweed, bulky weight (34g/23yd); Island Sweet Fibre Arts handspun Merino/Corn fibre/Ramie/Novelty in Glitter Storm, bulky thick 'n thin (7g); Designs by Tami sent a cute "matchbook" style notepad in a pretty, retro flower pattern; The Lote Tree (this is the wonderful Jessie, mentioned above, that put together this whole thing) Peppermint Lippschitt (great name!) lip balm. I'm wearing it right now and my lips are smooth and tingly! Dragon Lady Designs sent three adorable stitch markers, the strawberry is my favorite! Infinity handspun Superwash Merino/Alpaca, bulky weight (16g); Knit Get a Grip handbalm in Home scent, as far as I can tell it's a balm to make your hands a little tacky so you can grip the yarn and needles better. That's what I get from the instructions anyway, at any rate it smell delicious! DyedByDanido (the tag for this was missing, but I found out who it was from the forums on ravelry. eta: the colorway is Katchemak and it's 100% wool. Thanks for the comment DaniDo!) sock yarn and a link to an exclusive pattern for the yarn (2.2g)! All of these lovelies are laying on the Ruddawg KIP bag that I got. It's big enough to hold a small project such as socks (or the scarf for Ray that I'm working on, more about that later). It's very well made, and while not in a fabric that I would have chosen, it will get plenty of use.

There were also coupon codes for Moonwood Farm, P2tog, and Andey Originals. Hooray for discounts!

All this wonderfulness (either I use this word a lot, or it is actually a word because the spell check isn't underlining it...hmm....) only cost $33.00! That was including shipping (which was mighty fast). I won't be buying the February box (ONLY because I went over my yarn budget this month and need to stop for a while) so if anyone wants to check it out, go to the Phat Fiber blog and email Jessie and she'll send you a notice as to when it goes on sale. However, in March you can bet your sweet, furry yarn biscuits that I'm going to be clambering for one of those boxes. So please don't get in my way, I would like us to remain friends. ;)

Anyway, onto other project news. The $1.50 cardigan that I've been working on for a few months now is nearing completion. These are the two fronts blocking:

I've already blocked the sleeves, and the back is waiting for its' turn on the "blocking board" (which is actually one of those put-together play mats from the toy section at Wal-Mart. Only $20 and it works great!). After that, it's time to sew and then add some ribbing around the neck and fronts, add a few buttons and voila! Cardigan! This process is taking a bit longer than it needs to because I'm also working on this scarf for Ray (any time I put it down, he oh-so-discreetly puts it on my place on the couch. he's very subtle.)

It's the Exchequered scarf from Knitty. Double knit, worked on sz. 3 needles in Reynolds Revue (Gray: 1336 and Chartreuse: 1474). It's a little slow going because of the double knit, but it's going to be so soft and warm that it'll be worth the time for him to be toasty (and look cool).

And now, because it's been a while since you've been accosted with his cuteness......

IT'S SAM!!!!

Hang Over On New Year's Day? How Cliche.

And yet here we are, in our pajamas at 3pm with the lights off, the TV off and the funk of the bar still around us.  Poor Ray is much worse off than I (when he does drink, which isn't very often, he tends to go to far), and is keeping the couch warm with a bucket at the ready.  Despite of the dour feelings we have right now, we both had a really good time being with friends last night and are particularly grateful to a few that helped us at the end of the evening (Matt, Janet, Heidi, and Ben; you all get medals).  Our cameras battery has been dying rather quickly lately, so I don't have any pictures of our debauchery.  However, I do remember a camera and seeing some really awful photos of myself, so the proof is out there somewhere. 

I was prodded by someone (*coughJanetcough*) to post pictures of my Christmas present from Ray.  Since our camera is a bitch, and I'm too f'ing lazy to try taking good photos of it anyway, I'll post this link to a video of my present.  I got both the ball winder and the swift, but unfortunately not the art yarns.

I'm off to down some more water, maybe make some soup, and lay in bed and watch Buffy and Angel. 

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL MY FRIENDS AND FAMILY, YOU MAKE EVERYDAY WORTH CELEBRATING! (although, perhaps not as much as last night.)