Well-Raveled Words

One of my favorite things about learning a new hobby, whether it's music or a craft, is all the lingo.  As soon as I hear or read a new phrase, my brain latches onto it like a...well, I'll think of a clever simile later.  It's also a great way for me--and others--to have a sense of belonging in the community, even if you have few personal ties.  And for someone like me, a generally introverted person that just wants to fit in somewhere, that's huge.  

But for a beginner, or even anyone new to that community, it can be daunting hearing or reading them for the first time in a sentence without a definition.  That's why I've compiled a handful of classic and current terms, abbreviations, and phrases thrown about in the fiber arts community.

In my first episode of the HoundStrings podcast, I asked for a few favorite terms, abbreviations, and the like...here are some common ones and a few favorites:  

KAL/CAL:  Knit-a-long/Crochet-a-long.  A CAL/KAL is when a group of knitters/crocheters work on a pattern together; usually pieces of the pattern are scheduled for different times, and occasionally can be a "Mystery-" or MKAL/MCAL--in these, you're given a pattern title and the list of materials needed, but you don't know what it is you're making (or sometimes you do, but you have no idea what it'll look like).  The pattern is segmented into clues that will be sent out at scheduled times.  

Frogging:  to (usually quickly) unravel a project, whether to a certain point ("I needed to frog back a couple rows to fix that stitch") or completely scrap it, also known as sending a failed project to the "frog pond."  It's called "frogging" because in knitting frogs say "rip-it, rip-it, rip-it."

TOAD:  Trashed Object Abandoned in Disgust; these are usually sent to the frog pond after a while (gotta love those amphibious puns!)

Tink:  Undoing knitting carefully one stitch at a time, rather than ripping out as in frogging.  In fact, "tink" backwards is "knit," which is essentially what you're doing.  

Gutting a Ball:  digging out the insides of a center-pull ball (most commercial, big-box yarns) to either find the end or untangle a large knot that's keeping the yarn from pulling out freely as you work.

Pooling:  The way colors in a yarn converge, usually in variegated yarns (as opposed to self-striping)

Clown Barf:  this one never fails to make me laugh uncontrollably...when the colors in a variegated yarn pool together in an all-around unpleasant manner.  Usually happens in yarns that have a lot of colors in them (some standards vary by individual, but for my books I consider any more than three colors to be clown barf potential)

WIP/HO/FO/UFO:  All different project stages, Work In Progress, Half-Object, Finished Object, and Un-Finished Object, respectively.  WIP and FO are somewhat self-explanatory, but often HO and UFO do need a little further definition (especially when one considers that each has an alternate connotation).  Half-Objects are usually projects such as mittens or socks, where you have one finished in a pair, but the mate still has yet to be completed; Un-Finished Objects were at one point Works-In-Progress, but have been abandoned at some point.  Note that HO's can become UFO's, due to the next in our list...

Second-Sock/Mitten Syndrome (SSS, or SMS):  When the first sock (or mitt) in a pair is finished, but then you realize you still have an entire other one to make and you just aren't ready to do it all over again.  Again, see the segment on HO's UFO's above.  

Stash:  one's collection of yarn and supplies (but most often it just refers to yarn); stash comes in all shapes and sizes, but beware of...

StABLE:  Stash Acquired Beyond Life Expectancy

You guys have no idea how hilarious I think this one is. Not only is the situation dang accurate, the character even looks like me before my current hairdo.

De-Stash:  the act of selling or giving away yarn, usually when StABLE has been achieved, or when you're on the brink but want to avoid that point altogether.


If you have any others, tell me in the comments section!  Just be sure to include the definition (and maybe if it's a particular favorite, tell us why).

Also, stay tuned--I have a new podcast episode on the way!

Until then, see ya...and stay crafty!

Podcast Time!

At long last, I have a podcast!  It took me three tries to get it right, but it finally happened!

This first episode, kind of to my chagrin, is about an hour long after editing and revising, but it was so worth it; I'll see if I can keep future episodes shorter, but I wouldn't mind a HoundStrings Hour (let me know your thoughts by leaving a comment)

Shownotes:

Finished objects 2:50

Blog mention:  12:33

WIP's 13:00

Future Knitting:  26:48

Music 47:38

Pattern Links (Note that you'll need a Ravelry account to view the patterns):  Luella Top, Wave of Flowers (Blütenwelle), Atlanticus

If there's anything you would like to see me do or topics you would like to see me cover in future episodes and/or blog posts, leave a comment!  By the way, I have a post in the works for common expressions, terms, and abbreviations in the knitting/crocheting world--be sure to comment some of your favorites...



Now it's time for the stuff not seen in the podcast, namely...

Stash Enhancement:  Yarn Crawl 2018!  

This is the part that I was most excited to share, but alas--the show would have run way, way too long.  And even reading, it may be a while.  Sorry (actually, not.  If you just want to skip to the pictures, be my guest.  If you want to read too, be my guest).

Last month, I participated in the San Diego Yarn Crawl, which runs Thursday through Sunday in mid-September, and is really the one almost-guaranteed weekend each year where I allow myself to go a little nutty with my yarn/fiber purchases (there’s also the Vista Fiber Arts Fiesta during the first Saturday and Sunday in October, but my work schedule didn’t allow me to go this year).  I always have a great time, but this year in particular was a blast—I was able to cross 7 yarn stores off of my list, four of which I've never had the pleasure of visiting until that point.

First stop, as you saw in the podcast (if you watched it), was South Park Dry Goods Co.  Located in a neighborhood south of Balboa Park (go figure), it’s a darling little shop located next door to an ice cream shop (oh, how I wish it was open before I left...I left at 11:30 and they didn't open until noon).  The wonderful thing about South Park Dry Goods Co is that it's not just a yarn shop--they have other crafty things (including beautiful fabrics!), ready-to-wear ladies' clothing, and darling little home and gift items!

This year, along with yarn, I was also on the hunt for other useful knitting/crafting supplies.  Along with yarn from The Grinning Cat, I found a lovely set of stitch markers and handmade pod by Vanessa of VRMG designs (she was on Etsy, but I don't think she's active), as well as an individual stitch marker--a little ram with flowers on his fleece!   

 The second stop was actually two in one:  Needlecraft Cottage in Pacific Beach, and parked right next to it was the Yarnover Truck.  I did not end up purchasing anything from Needlecraft Cottage, as there just wasn't anything in particular that struck me at the time (though there probably will be on future visits), but I unexpectedly scored two gorgeous skeins at the Yarnover Truck...

Left, an exclusive colorway by Destination Yarns ("La Jolla Sunset"), which I had every intention of buying, as well as a fun little raffle prize:  a skein of OctoBaa by Indigo Dragonfly.

The tag for the OctoBaa...

 I LOVE the name of that colorway, and the bottom photo better represents the colors as they truly are (though not by much); as a pretty big Downton Abbey fan, I chuckled (and then guffawed) at the name and all the scandals woven into the drama.

 Next was The Black Sheep in Sorrento Valley...

 Let me just say here and now that the colors in the photo are just a little washed out, but not by much.  First, starting with the right this time, is an absolutely gorgeous braid of Malabrigo spinning wool.  There is just a little more purple and green than the photo is showing, but they're still wonderful misty, mysterious hues.

I also found some wonderful skin products by LoLo To Go--Orange Vanilla lip balm, which smells like the classic frozen treat, and a Winter's Bliss lotion bar.  Oh, my goodness, does that thing smell amazing!  It's tricky to describe the scent, but it smells like Christmas.  It has a little bit of mint, vanilla, pine, and berry--all of which are so harmoniously balanced and wonderful that I find myself wearing a little bit of it just as a light perfume.  Lotion bars in general are also handy (no pun intended this time) in that crafters' hands become dry quickly--mine are frequently exacerbated from frequent hand-washing at work--and it's convenient to just rub it over the spots that need it instead of squeezing or pumping it from a bottle and rubbing it in.  Not to mention that the tin is reusable, which is something I'm a big proponent of as you'll see down the road.

Finished off the day with my "home base" of Yarning For You

From left to right, we have Elevate Yarns "Hydrangea" in the Radiant Sock base, Oink Pigments "Huff Le Puff" in the Disco base, the YFY button on the bottom, and some awesome gauge earrings (photo below), also designed by Oink Pigments.

I flippin' love these earrings!  they look cool to begin with, they actually measure your needles!  And I can continue a running joke with some friends of mine that I have "gauge" earrings...Oink had other colors in the PVC plastic, as well as wooden models, but since I could not make a decision on which color, I decided to go with the colorless and make up my mind later.  She also had itty bitty "skeins" in their existing colorways (also cute), but I'm kind of a sucker for the geometric look of the ones I ended up purchasing.

Day Two was an adventure, to be sure.  My mom and I actually had a common day off for once, and she was kind enough to not only go road trippin' with me up to Julian, she was kind enough to drive (I bought lunch to call it even).

This was my first trip up to Julian, and hopefully it won't be my last.  It's such a great part of San Diego County, and has so many great little stops to check out...like Kat's Yarn and Craft Cottage!

Since I was further inclined to make a few non-yarn purchases, I decided to browse the books when I stumbled upon this lucky find...

 I had been looking for this book for a while, and I finally found it!  I already have a couple books on spinning, but I've always liked Jillian Moreno's style of writing and explaining the processes (she's Knitty magazine's spinning expert).  I saw this book on the Cool Stuff page and was considering buying it from their Amazon page, but I don't always dig online shopping, and I always prefer supporting the locally owned brick-and-mortar stores when I can.

Ramona Country Yarn Store was the final stop of the year, dropping by on our way home from Julian.  While I was browsing for yarn, my very patient mom was keeping conversation with some ladies of a mutual friendship--one of her friends from work is also a knitter and is a frequent visitor to the store--and allowing herself deeper exposure into the fiber world.  

The featured independent dyer was Sundial Designs, from Yuma, AZ.  I love the fact that she doesn't have dye lots--each skein is unique even within the same color!  I'm thinking of making a pretty little cardigan or vest out of this skein of laceweight single-ply (above).

Like I mentioned before, Stash Enhancement won't be a part of the podcast very often, but I'll have something to show on occasion.

Music Notes

I haven't gotten much practice in since the episode was filmed, but I am happy with what I've accomplished so far.  As I mentioned in the podcast, and in a previous post, I really need to work on my chord transitions on the guitar and the ukulele--going to and from the C Maj. chord on the guitar is my weak spot for the moment, as well as just anything to do with the F chord in general.  And I just need to work on the harp, period.  Except for that one song, it seems like every time I step away from the harp I lose everything I learned.  It's frustrating, but over time hopefully that will lessen.

I mentioned the Marx Brothers as an inspiration to keep learning and something to aspire to in terms of music...here's why.

Blue Moon

Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 by Franz Liszt

Take Me Out To The Ball Game

And that's just a small sampling of the musical talent, not even getting into the comedic side of things.  Not only is the music lovely, he uses techniques that I haven't really seen in use before, such as the strumming.  

That's all for this post (then again, you were probably wondering if this was going to turn into a short novel...I was wondering that myself).  Again, keep in touch, let me know what you want to see in future episodes of the podcast, or in upcoming posts.  

Until then, keep doing what you love with whom you love!  (I'll think of a better catchphrase...eventually...maybe...)

Blast from the Past: Goin' on Safari

Hi, there!

I just realized how long it's been since my last post, and while I have lots of fun things coming, I guess it would be nice to have something up now.

So today, I thought it would be fun to revisit a post from my old blog, The Knitting Safari; this one is about taking on techniques that tend to intimidate the newbies but become beloved friends over time.

Future Plans

One of the things I love about both music and yarn-crafting is the fact that I get to practice making things.

Beautiful things.  

One results in a physical finished object such as a pair of socks, the other is something that, while fleeting (unless I record), I can draw back on and make again and again, each time a little different.  On this blogging journey, I would like to share some of my current goals for both music and wooly, fibery goodness...and the blog!

Music Goals

My primary trio of instruments

1.  Master transitions on the guitar.  

I'm giving my best shot on learning chords, I've nearly gotten the "dreaded F" to sound clear after years of trying and failing miserably and wanting to give up altogether.  That's one of the downsides of being self-taught...but also one of the plus-sides.  You may not always have someone physically there to guide you, but once you develop that muscle it's such a great feeling of accomplishment.  

Anyway, it's nice to have the chords to a favorite song, but learning a song is like baking--you could have all the ingredients, but you need to know how to put them all together.  Working on rhythm and transitioning from one chord to another is like measuring the ingredients and having the oven set to the right time and temperature.  Granted, it's not my best analogy, but it works.  

2.  Learning the left-hand on the harp.  

This has always been a tough one--I am almost as monodexterous as they come...almost; I can type decently with both hands and play the piano (by the way, that is an instrument you will NOT see on this blog--my piano at home is shamefully out of tune), anything where my hands are mirror-image of each other is fine.  But my left hand trying to do a right-handed job?  That's a tough one.  When playing the harp, your palms are facing each other, so your thumbs are facing the same direction. (unless you're like this guy...)   There's likely a lot of neurological reasoning as to why this is, but that's a whole other can of worms (albeit, one that I would like to crack open at another time) and suffice it to say, my brain still needs to re-wire and strengthen those neurons.  

3. Learn fingerpicking on the ukulele.  

Oh, the one technique everybody loves to hear, but is deceptive in how easy it looks.  In my journey to master this, I plan on practicing scales, learning where different notes are on each string and fret, etc.  Sounds pretty obvious, but it does help, even in reading tabs.  

The good news is, I have gotten a start on some of them at some point, I just fell out of practice and need a solid refresher course.  

Crafting goals

1.  Complete a sweater.  

I already have one started, the Luella Top on Ravelry.  It is a pattern for purchase, so I won't be talking about it in-depth, other than sharing current progress.  Right now, I'm working on the yoke (pictures to come).  The only reservation I have about this one is the fact that I currently live in an area where cold weather is never a guarantee, even during winter.  Oh, well.  It'll still be fun...

2.  Learn brioche knitting

Isn't that just gorgeous?!

Brioche refers not only to a French style of bread (eggy, moist, somewhat sweet...okay, I need to stop..), it also refers to a style of knitting wherein the resulting fabric is double-layered and occasionally dual-colored.  Which leads into...

3.  Learn colorwork.  

Whether it's intarsia knitting (the secondary color does not span the whole row) or Fair Isle (you know, rows of beautiful colors in a floral or snowflake pattern), I would love to incorporate multiple colors and even charted pictures into my projects.  I will need to do research on techniques and styles, so stay tuned.  

Blog goals

1.  Start a podcast.  

I'm so excited for this one!  This will be a fantastic way of not only keeping in touch with the fiber community (big shoutout to my friend Jessica of the Army Wife Knitting Life podcast), but a way to document my progress in learning to play my trio of instruments.  It's also a different way of getting ideas out there...here I get to be a little more creative and planned out, but having a vlog or podcast will allow a little more spontaneity.

2.  Cartoon

Along with music and crafting, I love doodling and cartooning, and so far my adventures have been ripe with juicy, funny material.  Or at least I think it's funny...but I digress.  If it works, you'll get to see some adventures with the hound dog, some of my 93-year-old grandmother's tall tales (some true, others may be a bit of a stretch), the quirky daily happenings of a barista in a coffee shop, and more!  

One of my (normally human) characters going into "mama bear mode" as a visual pun.

There is most definitely a backstory, but it'll be revealed at another time.  

3.  Work on introductions to the world of fiber crafting

The fiber community is really a great one to be a part of; if anyone finds him/herself (lots of awesome dudes knit and crochet too, you know...) even the slightest bit curious about such hobbies, there are so many people that would be just itching to welcome in new peeps and share their wisdom.  Of course, there are times where things will seem a little bit intimidating, even in the friendliest of fiber groups (sometimes fiber people can get a little cliquey, but let's not even bother with them--it's a rare thing, but it happens); lingo is thrown around, even basic stitches seem like a foreign language.  All you need is a friendly tour guide to introduce you to this fabulous wonderland, and I'll be happy to fill that role.  You'll see some re-posts from my old blog The Knitting Safari (still accessible until further notice), as well as new material.

A photo demonstration of the purl stitch; find the original post here

Of course, what I love about setting these goals for myself is that I get to hold myself accountable by posting my progress here and share what I've learned with other like minded people.

Until next time, cheers!

Welcome!

Hi, there!

Welcome to the HoundStrings blog!  After two prior attempts at blogging, I think this is the one...

This blog is inspired by my adventures in learning to play the guitar and the harp, all kinds of yarn-and-fiber-crafting goodness, and my dog--a silly beagle who's in his senior years but acts like a pup.  Not to mention other life musings that whirl around in my noggin...

There’s a lot to share, including current projects, yarn acquisition, original cartoons and doodles, and hopefully a video podcast if things go right!

I can't wait to see where this blog takes me and you, my dear readers, and in the meantime, cheers and see you next time!