Mini Addiction:
min·i ad·dic·tion [min-ee uh-dik-shuhn]
noun

the state of being enslaved to the accumulation of 5 gram mini skeins of sock weight yarn to such an extent that its cessation causes severe trauma.

Ok, maybe it’s not THAT extreme, but it’s an illness that has hit the knitting world like the plague – a warm, woolly, cuddly soft plague. And I have succumbed to the madness. I participate and *gasp* HOST mini swaps to feed my habit.

What is a mini, you ask? It is a 5 gram skein of yarn, usually sockweight,

 used to make such projects as the beekeeper’s quilt , the Sock Yarn Blanket, or for something a little smaller, Dianna.

I store the ones for the swaps I host here, in this cool set up my handsome husband set up for me:

This is now completely full, this pic is from about a month ago. ::hanging head in shame::

What this addiction will make you do:

I recently bribed my dear friend into minifying 20 skeins of yarn – yes, 20.  That’s a total of 400 minis:

From this:

To this:

Isn’t that AMAZING? She did an awesome job, and all within 2 days! THANK YOU, KRISTEN!

I am now hosting mini swaps from indie dyers (the current one is full), but if you are interested in getting in on the next, be sure to shoot me an email or a pm!

Otherwise, if you can’t wait long enough for a swap, then you HAVE to check out Radical Notions for her selection of high quality minis. 

These are from some of the high end dyers out there like Madelinetosh, Sanguine Gryphon and Sunshine Yarns.  What a way to get a sampling to try out a variety of different dyers without breaking the bank!  I’m hoping to set up to sell of some my minis eventually (I can’t possibly knit all of these), I’ll keep you in the loop!   I have to do what I can to spread this affliction, after all.

Since we last spoke, oh blog o’ mine, so much has happened.  But a few of the most exciting things are the opening of Alicia’s Delicias (the pastry portion of Purple Goddess Design), the Cookies & Cake Club ( a joint veture between Alicia’s Delicias and Magic & Moonshine), and my Facebook Fan Page!

Alicia’s Delicias:

Here’s a blurb written up by my dear friend Kristen that just says it all when it comes to Alicia’s Delicias:

“Everyone knows that premium ingredients make a huge difference, both in baked goods, and in hand-knits. Few things bring more happiness and contentment than really great baked goods made in small batches, but let’s face it, we don’t all have the time or the right tools.

In my former life as a pastry chef, I learned from the best and had plenty of opportunities to bake professionally. Once I moved on to a different career, I developed a great love of knitting, but nothing replaced baking for me, and now I’m combining the two! No, no! Not high fiber cupcakes (although check out my adorable cupcake hat pattern for sale in the shop).

Wonderful homebaked goods, professional quality, in small batches fresh for you – and high quality tools for knitting like beautiful wooden sock blockers and hand-crafted stitch markers.

So come on by, fall in love with the pictures, realize that they taste even better and order some! And while you’re waiting for your fresh goodies to arrive, kick back and relax with your favorite knitting project. Nothing tastes better than an awesome baked treat where you didn’t have to clean up the kitchen afterwards!”

Cookies  Cake Club:

More about the Cookies and Cake club, for those of you who are asking, WHAT??  This is an amazing monthly club where you get to choose from 2-4 choices of skeins hand dyed by Laura of Magic & Moonshine, and once a month you will get a box filled with a dozen delectible cookies and a skein of divine yarn.  What could be better?? 

There are 1, 3, & 5 month options, depending on your addiction level.  I also have a cookie only option for those of you who are not fiber freaks like me.

Purple Goddess Design Facebook Fanpage:

As for the Facebook Fanpage, this is my way of letting you know what’s going on out there in the indie seller’s world.  I’ll not only be poting links to my new listings (like the sock blockers, they are back up for sale!  Get them while you can!!), but I will also be posting regularly about other indie sellers that I either know personally or have purchased from myself.  Most of these will be fiber/knitting related, but not all – I do have other interests, amazingly enough.

Oh, and my stitch markers will be going out in the April Phat Fiber Box!!  YAY!  So, if you are craving a big box of fiber related awesomeness, be sure to get your box!  There is going to be all sorts of fun in that box, including Laura’s minis and my other dear friend Laura, from A Million Stars!  A MUST HAVE BOX!

Things to look forward to in the Purple Fog ~

• Cookies & Cake Petite Four boxs, a new smaller box of treats for those who prefer to keep their cravings a little more under control.  Still working out the specifics on this, but I’ll be sure to keep you all up to date.
• I have been knitting, too, I swear!  I’ll post up some pics soon of all the madness I’ve been knitting up.
• Mini MADNESS – this is one of my newfound addictions….careful, I may suck you in, too!

Well, it appears that we have some incredibly creative and colorful people out there! Thank you ALL so much for your AWESOME suggestions; my mind is swirling with ideas.

And as promised, I have run the RNG and the winner is SANDRA LAROSE!! I’ll shoot you an email to make sure you know you won, and so you can let me know what colors/sizes you would like. CONGRATULATIONS!!

And as a THANK YOU to everyone who participated, I would love to offer you a FREE SHIPPING coupon at my etsy shop! Hit me up for one of your color combos, and I’ll see what I can do to make your stitch marker wishes come true! Just type in BOOYAH711 and shipping will be waived. International shipping, too! You can’t beat that.

Happy knitting to all!!

I am looking for color combination ideas that might appeal to people out there, so I’m looking for your input. And to add some extra excitement, I’d like to offer 2 Sets of 12 Custom Made Stitch Markers to the winner of an RNG drawing! Although my clown barf stitch markers are quite the hit, I would love to hear what other color combinations people are craving. I have access to most colors out there, so go crazy; I’m up for FUN!

So here are the rules –
1) Add your comment to this Blog Post by 9pm PST on July 15th, 2011. One comment per color combination. Tell me what color combinations you crave and what size you prefer – if you prefer a size larger than what I already carry, let me know.

2) Make a purchase from my etsy shop anytime from now until 9pm PST on July 15th, 2011. Each purchase counts as a separate entry!

3) Tell people about this giveaway on your blog/Facebook page/Ravelry group/Tweet – Just be sure to link my blog to the page and leave a comment here with a link to the comment or earburn me at PurpleGoddess (for Rav entries) or @PrplGdsDesign(twitter) for proof so I can be sure you get all the entries you work so hard to get!

A lucky winner will be chosen by the RNG (Random Number Generator) after July 15th!

I’m hoping for as many suggestions as possible so help me get the word out!

I know, I know, I went missing for a bit, but guess what, Abby is Here! She was born 2/26/11, healthy, happy and adorable:

And, although the girls keep me insanely busy, I still have time to craft. Here is some of the stuff I worked on while I was away from the blogland:

A felted Mummy eg for a dear friend:

Cuffs and a matching hat out of Madeline Tosh for my niece:

Mom sporting a gorgeous cowl that I test knit for a friend – and which mom has now commandeered as her own.

Ok, I’ll stop now, I’ll save some of the other stuff for another post. Yes, I have done more in the past 6 months than I have in the past 3 years!!

On top of all that, Rich and I have been working on our etsy shop. He’s been working madly away on Sock Blockers:

but has decided to take a hiatus for the summer so he can enjoy the summer weather and get the yard done (from a whole new irrigation system to new lawn and plants – this guy is AWESOME!).

I’ve been working on my stitch markers:

I love making these, and coming up with new color creations and movie connections is even more fun!

“Oh, that Jim Williams went and shot somebody. Canapé?” – Joe Odom – Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil

Bah, what else, I’m knitting away on a Bitterroot just for me out of Wollmeise, I feel so spoiled to be knitting for myself for a change. Go figure.

Oh, and I also painted Abby’s bedroom wall, freehand:

If you’re still reading, KUDOS to you and hopefully I haven’t exhausted you with all this mad crafting!! I’m happy to be back to the blog – man, this really made me think about how much I’ve been creating – HOLY COW!

Have any of you ever played around with these? I find that, although I love adding things to my favorites, keeping a treasury of specific searches I’ve done is a better way for me to track what I really love out there. If they get featured on the etsy front page – yay for the etsy sellers! If not, that wasn’t my original intent, so no loss.

What treasuries do you have set up? I’d love to see them!

Here are mine for you to drool over:

Valentine’s Day Dose of Fiber

Spring Baby Love

Knit Love in a Purple Fog

A Knitter’s Paradise

A while back I tried talking my husband into making some sock blockers for me. He hemmed and hawed a bit – not being a knitter himself and not appreciating what a luxury sock blockers are, until I showed him some I’d seen online.  Being the crafty person he is, he KNEW he could make them for me and wondered if he should make more and if he could sell them on etsy. I figured it was worth a shot! I’m so proud of the work he does (he’s a plumber by trade, but in the past year has learned some amazing carpentry skills), so I am proud to announce that he now has sock blockers for sale on etsy at my shop!

Here’s a link to the shop:

and a sneak peek at the blockers and other items for sale at the shop:

I apparently went a little bonkers in the past month since my last post and went into knitting OVERDRIVE. I think it has something to do with the impending birth of Daughter #2 – to be named Abby, Due on March 5th. I have this fear, that even on maternity leave, I will have no time to knit.

So what did I do? I went CRAZY! After knitting Maggie’s stocking I knit up all of these creations:

This Lush-ious Swirl Cowl:

This Easy Mobius Cowl, as a commission piece:

This Sheep Toy for my dear friend:

These Fishtail Wristwarmers, that I originally knit in bare yarn, then dyed black after they were knit up:

These Can Can’s as a commission piece:

These gorgeous Veyla gloves, as a commission piece (knit out of handspun yarn – divine yarn!):

This noble cowl for a dear friend:

I also finished up another cowl as a test knit – the Drean Cowl, but it’s still blocking, so I’m waiting for it to dry before I take any pics.
Did that exhaust you enough? I’m pooped just looking at all those projects, but it makes me so happy at the same time!

I have one other project on the needles, the Flower Scarf - which was sent to me by my husband’s aunt – with a note asking me to save it. The yarn is so soft, a lovely silk alpaca blend….twist my arm! It came along with my Christmas present – a Wii Fit! WOOHOO! Although i can’t use it in my current state of Preggoness, I will definitely be using it after Abby arrives! Extra bonus, yarn to knit with and exercise equipment! LOL! I’m hoping to have the scarf done for her within the next week.

The next four projects on the list:

Bella’s Mittens out of Malabrigo Merino Worsted (commission)

Honeybee Cardigan – for mom, after she saw how the Featherweight Cardigan was knitting up – and I thought I was going to poke my eyes out with the needles due to boredom over knitting so much stockinette, we decided on Honeybee instead, and i dyed up this yarn for her just for this sweater

- and she’s asked if I have any left over, that I knit her a pair of the Veyla mitts (I had the wrangle them away from her just to get them mailed to the person who asked me to knit them for her!).

The third project on the list is a pair of Wristwarmers with Falling Leaves for my sister. She wants them in Charcoal gray, and some kind soul donated the yarn for them to me , some lovely Merino Cashmenere Microfiber Rowan RYC Cashsoft DK- i just need to dye it, which I’m hoping to do once mom comes back for Abby’s birth.

and the forth: a cowl for mom – the Blackberry Cowl. which she bought some VERY fun glass buttons for and I will be knitting up with some lovely Berroco Silk Merino Blend.

The Draen Cowl is my first official Project for 12in2011, the group I am helping my dear friend, Kristen, moderate. The group has just grown by leaps and bounds, and I think it says a lot about the concept and the awesome managerial skills of my friend – ARRRG – and her Pirate Rules. Our first round of prize awards will be handed out in February – I think that will be the first test of the success of this group – otherwise, that’s just gravy – to see that there are already 102 finished projects within the group, and that’s just official 12in2011 projects, I’m so impressed!! Here’s a link to the projects I’m hooping to get done for the 12in2011 project.

SOOoooooo – have I inspired you to pull our you needles and GET KNITTING?

I managed to finish this stocking in 5 days! That’s some sort of record for me!

I will eventually make the rest of us stockings, but in the meantime, Rich and I have stockings I made years ago out of velvet, so We’re set for this winter.

I’m busy working on a sheepie, and waiting for some yarn to come in to start a cowl for a friend and a hat for someone else.

But tomorrow is all about Christmas! We’re headed out to the woods to cut down our own tree! Don’t worry, this is all legal, we bought a permit from the forest service so allow us to go to specific areas of the Sierra Nevada Mountains to cut down our own tree. I can’t wait!! We’re going to bundle up Maggie and take a short trek, I have to remember to take the camera!

Well, apparently my knitting mojo is BACK in full force. I am so inspired to knit every day, that I feel so much more relaxed than I have in quite a while. I need to remember this when I get back into a funk about my knitting.

I have found a project that has helped inspire me. A dear friend of mine started a group called 12in2011 to get us stash bust – 12 projects, one per month, starting 1/1/11. They can be anything, not even knitting related, just creative – craft related, to keep our mojo flowing. I have my full list of knitted projects I plan on doing here, but what’s not on the list is the sweater I’m working on for my mom, which I won’t finish until 2011, at the rate I’m going (long purl rows make me want to stab my eye out). Notice that the Orangie is at the top of the list? Yup, i plan on doing that one after all, I can’t wait to get started on it! But I have a couple other items to get started on first, including a cowl for a friend, who is sending me the yarn for it, I’m hoping that arrives some time next week. I have the sweater on the needles right now, and I’m finding I REALLY need something else to work on other than the sweater…who knew stockinette stitch was so BORING. So I cast on a Christmas Stocking for Maggie, and I am LOVING IT! It is moving along smoothly (now I’ve jinxed it), and I’m inspired to make them for the whole family (OK, just the DH and I…and the little monkey when she arrives next year). The pattern I’m using is the Cascade Christmas Stocking, another free pattern. I highly recommend it, it’s much easier that the original instructions may imply.

But, in avoidance of the sweater, I knit up 2 minions:

This second one is part of a surprise swap for someone and it is intended to be an ornament.

I also knit up a turtle:

And a Lush-ious Swirl Cowl, which I have yet to block, so pics to come in the next week or so (I hate blocking, it takes me forever to just get motivated to do it, but I PROMISE to get it done sooner than later, I love this yarn too much to let this one just sit.

Oh, and I’m also working on a sheepie for earlier noted dear friend, it’s coming along, but set aside for the stocking for the moment.

Here’s a pic of some other ones people have made, too cute!

Hmmm…can you tell the Mojo is back in full force??

I also just learned how to add my project progress bars off on the right hand side, so you can all keep track of where I’m at on my projects I’m currently working on! I LOVE RAV! I’ve also added a box for 12in 2011 so you can keep track of how many of my 12 I’ve completed! The games begin in a month!