Sunday, April 21, 2013

for the win!

Why is it when I have the least amount of time to knit... I have the best luck winning free yarn?

Back in Feb/March, podcaster Lauren of the LemKnitCrochet podcast had a fundraiser in an effort to increase awareness and raise money for The Histiocytosis Association in honor of her friend Josh who passed away from Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis.

Bird Leg Bags was offering project bags in two different fabrics based on Josh's drawings with a portion of the cost being donated to Lauren's fundraiser. The purchaser also got an entry into Lauren's prize thread. One of the fabrics was this awesome turtle design:

 

How could I possibly pass that up? So, I caved and bought my very first real knitting project bag. I was playing catch-up recently on podcasts and, surprise! I won a skein of fingering weight yarn!! It's so pretty too! =) (Not the greatest pic, but it's raining here...)

I'm thinking of possibly using it with the skein of yarn I won from The Knit Girllls podcast back in January:
 

I was thinking of using them to knit up Piper's Journey shawl that my friend gave me the pattern for back in January, but it's written for sport weight and I'm not sure I want it this bright. It's a shawl so I could just make a slightly smaller version or maybe adjust it a bit, but I'm not sure I'd have enough yarn... and I do have alpaca in my stash that would be pretty perfect and oh so cozy. I'll have to think about that one. I've also been thinking about a Leftie using the green above for the leaves and something more muted for the rest. I've looked at a lot of the finished projects and those are my favorites. If anyone has any suggestions of other patterns for the variegated pink/purple/reddish skein, I'm open to new ideas! It's got a bit of cashmere in it so no socks or toys. =)

I'm finally getting the baby gifts sent out to my manager who is now officially on maternity leave and due very, very soon.


I found this football Easter basket on clearance and thought it would make a great alternative to a gift bag... and cheaper than a gift bag too! =)

Yesterday, I took some much-needed time away from the computer and went to the Women's Show in Spokane with a couple friends. They were doing some cooking demos during the show and my friend volunteered me for the "tofu" demo. LOL That's me in the middle (yes, my friend snagged my phone from my bag and took a couple pics, lol):



The guy on the left (yes, in the Utilikilt) is "Tofu Phil" of Small Planet Organic Tofu. He also had on knee socks that said "Tofu" down each side. He's committed! =) All I did was chop a bell pepper and then cube a block of tofu, but it was fun and the salad we made was pretty yummy!

And since I was downtown, I checked out a little cafe (Boots Bakery & Lounge) with tons of vegan options, many were even gluten-free as well. =) I bought a couple of items to try later since one of my friends was adamant we not have dinner there. =( The two items I bought weren't amazing and my own recipes are better... and cheaper to make myself. Nice to have the option though and I do intend to give them another try for lunch sometime so I can try the real food there (vs the baked goods I tried). I really need to get moved out to the coast where the options aren't so limited... or such a pain to get to since parking downtown is a bit ridiculous.

4 comments:

  1. I love tofu. I bought a tofu press yrs ago but ended up selling it off when I was going thru my massive decluttering phase. Any & all untaskers made the purge list. I find a kitchen towel & a heavy pot atop the tofu works better anyways.
    I still have my "powered by tofu" ring-neck tee I got eons ago. I had just happened to wear that tee one day when we went out to eat at a bbq joint (yes I'm an omnivore nowadays but I still love tofu) & got into a odd discussion with some random drunk dude at the restaurant bar who was trying to get me to confess to being a new-age hippie type. Luckily he was dumber that a sack of hammers & it didn't take much to put him in his proverbial place.
    Anyways, neato that you won some more knitting goodies - you sure put your knitting skills to good use.

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    1. Yeah, I never saw a need for a tofu press either. There are a few unitaskers I make room for - my ice cream maker for one. That gets regular use since I make my own vegan ice cream. But mostly, other things work just as well or even better. =)

      I don't understand why people feel the need to question someone else's food choices. I get hassled fairly frequently over my choice to not eat animal products. =(

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  2. Hey, congratulations on your wins! Lovely stuff. I'm doing a massive all-out purge now that I'm moving. It's shifting a lot more than just physical stuff, I can tell you! I'm feeling lots of emotions surfacing around this, which is, quite frankly, not a bad thing at all. Out with old, in with the new, right?

    I'm sure you'll find something to make with that lovely - and lovely coloured! - wool. Pictures when you do! :)

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    1. It gets easier and easier the more you get rid of... at least it did for me. =) And it is mentally freeing as well not having all those things around that aren't being used making you feel guilty or increasing your cleaning time. I don't regret anything I got rid of.

      I did start another shawl with the alpaca in my stash so these skeins will be waiting a bit.

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