Okay, I'm feeling a bit scattered today and I have a lot to say, so it's list time!
1. Thank you for your thoughts on privacy vs. craziness on the internet. Since I've been scattered all week, I haven't responded to most of you yet, and I'm sorry for that. I do mean to get around to it soon, but in the meantime, I wanted to give a public thank you. I really appreciated all of the perspectives I got.
2. Notice anything different around here? I've been working on a makeover around these here parts. Photoshop and html are not my strong suits, but I kept banging my head against it, and I'm pretty happy with the results. Except that the new look is best on a 1280 x 1024 resolution and most of the people who visit here use 1024 x 768. I'm not happy with how it looks at 1024 x 768, so I may keep tinkering with it. But really, I reached the end of my patience with html and my lack of finesse with it for the week, so for now... here's the new look. I would really appreciate constructive feedback on anything you think would improve the site (beside the fact that I need to either center the masthead or put something up in that left corner. I'm working on one of those two things.)
3. I had a (wonderfully) crazy week! Monday I got to go to TNNA for work and meet wonderful people and preview wonderful products and hear about all the exciting new books and authors our acquisition editors are working on/with. Nothing I can talk about just yet, but great stuff that I'm excited about. The only bad thing about TNNA is that it is wholesale only and sales are prohibited on the floor. It was TORTURE. I was surrounded by so many beautiful yarns and fibers and I couldn't do anything about it. I almost cried in the qiviut booth. (If my bosses are reading this - I am JUST KIDDING. I did not almost cry at the qiviut booth. I acted totally and completely adult and professional the whole time. I did not drool on any yarn or sniff any yarn. I did not try to slip some cashmere into my bag. No matter what security told you.) Sending a junkie like me to a wholesale only show was cruel and unusual. But...
4. I got to go to Knitter's Connection for work on Friday. Where I met even MORE wonderful people and previewed MORE wonderful products and SPENT MONEY! I got some good stuff, too. In order of purchase I bought...
a) Merino/bamboo fiber from Yarn Love
I haven't tried bamboo spinning fiber yet (no, I do not live in a cave) and I've been looking around at some online, but I'm glad I held off because it meant I got to purchase this little lovely. The colors are gorgeous and the fiber is so soft. I'm really looking forward to this one! The dyer, Katie, is a really delightful person. And when she makes it big in the fiber world, I'll get to say that I bought something from her at her first show.
b) Rich bombyx silk from Chameleon Colorworks
Why am I craving mixed berry pie all of a sudden? Janel is a really neat lady and I loved the chance to have a good chat with her. She's the "cover girl" for this edition of SpinOff and she wrote a wonderful article on using painted rovings. I'm sure I'll be throwing more money her way in the near future, as long as she throws roving back (I promise, Janel, I'll only throw paper, no coins).
3. Silk, silk and more silk from Cider Moon
(Sorry, I would have taken these gorgeous silks out of their bags for a better showing, but by this time in the photo shoot, the kitten had taken a keen interest in what I might be doing.) Wow, how gorgeous are these? Jacki, Gail and Travis were kind and funny and selling gorgeous yarns and fibers. It was hard to restrain myself. I almost asked if I could go home with them. But, my spinning wheel was at my home, and I had to introduce these silks to her. Here's another close-up of my favorite:
Seriously, how much gorgeous can fit in one bag? *sigh*
Not pictured are a skein of merino/silk yarn with matching beads for some pretty little beaded cuffs/wristlets and one of the new(ish) lace Addis. Yes, I AM the last lace knitter in the Western world to obtain one of these. Report to follow on how I like it. My one big gripe right now is that they do not come in sizes smaller than 1. What the heck? And someone seriously needs to make some 00 circs somewhere, somehow. If they can make 0 and 000, they can make 00! Am I right? I think I may be.
Anyway, as you can see, it's been a long, tiring week, but in the best way possible. I'm off to play with my new toys and relax. Have a wonderful (rest of the) weekend!
# posted by Jenni @ 6/09/2007 08:21:00 PM
