I was contacted by someone on etsy who wanted to know if I could create a row counter for her – I worked out a design that worked for her, and created this! I just sent a counter off to her as a thank you for the awesome idea. I love how colorful and useful it is! It can be used as sort of an abacus, you use the ring on the lobster claw as a counter, as well…move up the rings as you go through tens – example: slip the red ring onto your needle as you start your first row, slip the orange ring onto your needle as you do row 2….then as you get to row 11, slip the red ring back onto your needle and clip the lobster clip onto the red ring, to remind you that you are on row 11….when you get to row 21, clip the lobster clip to the orange ring to remind you that you are in the 20s! And so forth. May sound confusing at first, but if you are like me, and rarely get time to sit down for long periods of time to knit, this is a LIFE saver – saves me so much time when I just get a few minutes to knit, I don’t need to try to remember what row I’m on. This could also be ued as a row counter for crochet, just clip the lobster clip on to the ring and your yarn and keep on hooking!

and, because we all love to look at pretty yarn, here are some pics to my latest colorways:

Oh, and have you seen my stripeys??

and my Doctor Who inspired multi width stripey Sock yarn??

Come join in the fun and get your order in!  If you have ANY special requests, I am ALWAYS open to try something new!

It’s been a crazy crazy few months, and after the holiday madness I sat down and worked out a way to be able to dye my own yarn.  Then an opportunity came up where I could add yarn to a local indie artists brick and mortar shop.  So, it’s official – PURPLE GODDESS DESIGN is now an indie yarn dyer!  I still sell my stitch markers, those are still available in my shop as before, along with a couple of my tasty treat options, but I have also updated the shop with a full listing of all my colorways available for custom order.  I dye on demand – so that means I don’t dye the yarn until you order it.  That way, if you have any special requests, you can get them n there and then – it’s all about you!

I have ideas for more bases in the future, but right now I will be starting out with 100% Superwash merino fingering weight yarn – or what I call my Twisted Fingers base.  I will be expanding to my Stuff a Sock in it base in May, and to a similar DK base and possibly some SW fiber for the spinners out there.

I am also always willing to dye any base YOU might have on hand.  I charge $5 a skein/4 oz fiber, plus shipping.  And I love to play with the dyes, so PLEASE do not hesitate to bug me if there is something you have a question about.  I’m game!

Come check it all out!

Stay tuned, I hope to have a shop set up here at purplegoddessdesign.com soon!

A couple exciting updates to share with you -

A little holiday love from my craft room and my kitchen.

We’ll start with the craft room first, because I feel like it.

Since the holidays have hit us, and Christmas crap has already invaded every retail establishment, I’ve got the bug.  I decided that this year I would retire my 10 year old wicker wreath with the crappy wire ribbon bow (total cost $3), and would bump it up to something a bit more classy – I’m a crafter, dammit, I can do better than that.  So off to pintrest and google I went. And VOILA, I made this gorgeous wreath with 1.5 yards of felt (most felt at stores are plastic now, people, not the stuff our parents used to use, this will not shrink or bleed!) and a couple squares of red and green felt, and a gorgeous wreath!  Followed the tutorial from this awesome blog for the wreath and this one for the flower.

 Now, My husband was ooing and ahh over this wreath as I worked on it and decided once I was done that it was too nice to put outside, hence this wreath – using the same method but with 3″ squares instead.  Goober. 
 

This reminds me – if you want to follow me on Pintrest, please do!  You can see what inspires me and maybe it will inspire you, too.

Ok, enough of the teasing – on to the kitchen, the best place in the house!

Every winter I put together cookie boxes to ship out to family, and always get rave reviews.  It’s been almost 10 years since I have worked professionally as a pastry chef, but the love of baking hasn’t left my heart or soul for a moment.  So, after recruiting my lovely husband to help me organize this endevour, we decided to sell Cookie Boxes so anyone who wants can get in on the deal!

Here is the full spiel from my etsy listing (1 and 2 dozen boxes available):

Are you craving home made cookies, full in flavor and filled with love? Is the holiday season running you ragged and can’t figure out what to send to those relatives you know they will enjoy? Have a friend or kid at college and want to send them some holiday hugs? Have a client or a customer you’d like to say thank you to?

Introducing the Winter Wishes Cookie Box:

(or as my friends call it “SHUT UP AND GIVE ME ALL YOUR COOKIES” Box)

This box of cookies is the perfect elegant and tasty way to show you care (or to give yourself some warm fuzzies, I won’t tell) and are thinking of them this season.

There is an option for one dozen or two dozen in a box, please be sure to select the correct listing.

The One Dozen Box will include:
2 Mocha White Chocolate Apricot Cookies
2 Orange Chocolate Madelines
2 Raspberry Shortbread Cookies
2 Salted Caramel Brownies
2 Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
2 Cranberry Pistachio Biscotti

The Two Dozen Box will include:
4 Mocha White Chocolate Apricot Cookies
4 Orange Chocolate Madelines
4 Raspberry Shortbread Cookies
4 Salted Caramel Brownies
4 Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
4 Cranberry Pistachio Biscotti

All packaged in a tissue paper filled white box and adorned with a seasonal ribbon and, if requested, a seasonal notecard with your own personal handwritten message.

How this works:

The last day I will be taking orders is December 2, 2012, and all packages will be mailed out by December 17th, 2012. All orders will be filled at the same time, so please, no special requests for earlier shipping. All packages will be shipped Priority USPS mail with tracking numbers.

I only use fresh ingredients in my baking – REAL butter, REAL eggs, and REAL love.

Note: You don’t need a paypal account to order through my etsy shop now, you can pay directly with your credit card, too.

So get your Holiday Big Girl Panties on, and let’s get this rolling in the right way, with fancy wreaths and tasty cookies – you can blame all the extra weight on me.  I can handle it.

Wanna see what I’ve been obsessing over lately?? Get ready for some fiber euphoria.  I’ve been a dyeing machine – just me, yarn, and a massive amount of colors – oh, and a little crock pot my sister-in-law gave us as a wedding present.  Who knew it would get so much use!

[Show as slideshow]

[View with PicLens]

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