1. Why did you start spinning?
Honestly, I never knew how yarn was made until I saw it online. It really blew my mind and I knew that I just had to learn how to do it! I shared my new found information with EVERYONE. Then I received my first spindle in the mail and my love for spinning grew from there!

2. How long have you had your own business?
I have had my business for about a year and a half.

3. What tips do you have for new spinners?
Number 1: Do not get frustrated! If you get frustrated, walk away and go knit. Number 2: Take your time and practice! Nothing is perfect the first time.

4. What is something that is unique about you?
I think the thing that is unique about me is that I’m not scared to do anything. I approach everything with a can-do attitude, and sometimes the finished object is terrible, but I keep at it.

5. What is your favorite thing to knit?
I like knitting socks, but I don’t finish very many of them… I’m slow. Really slow.

6. What fiber is your favorite to spin?
I love bamboo. Especially when mixed with merino. It’s heavenly.

7. How long have you known how to knit and spin?
I’ve known how to knit for 6 years and I’ve know how to spin for 1 year. In ways, I’m still a beginner!

I should also mention that she knows how to crochet, as well. Isn’t she talented?

8. What is your favorite toy that you have knit?
I love Smith, the hedgehog pattern from Ysolda Teague. As is typical when I knit something for someone else, I finished it on the way to their house and didn’t have a chance to take a photo. Yes, I am a major procrastinator.

9. Do other people in your family knit and spin? My mom and grandma both know how to knit, but neither of them spin. Although, my mother did try it once. She was pretty good at it! I don’t know why she stopped. Also, my brother knows how to crochet. But he only makes 1 thing. Little amigurumi turtles.

10. What is your favorite movie?
Hands-down, it has to be The Ultimate Gift. It’s a very touching, inspirational movie.

Here is some of her hand dyed! Isn’t it lovely?

Isn’t this just the greatest logo?

1. How long have you been dyeing yarn and how did you get started?

I started dyeing in December of 2008. I was madly in love with the skeins I was seeing on the swaps when I first joined Karma Yarn Swap on Ravelry, and inspired by the dyers. Kool Aid? Wiltons? I had to try. In July of 2009, I began using Jacquard Acid Dyes, and use them exclusively, except for two colorways I cannot seem to get without them.

2. What is your favorite fiber to dye?

Superwash merino is my favorite fiber to dye, but that is probably because it is the most accessible. Since I dye it so much, I can pretty much predict how it is going to behave. I also like merino silk blends; they mellow out the colors beautifully.

3. What tips do you have for a new dyer?

Use twice as much Kool Aide as you think you will need. Be fearless. Don’t be afraid you will hurt the yarn, it’s just yarn. Move on to Acid Dyes if you love dyeing, they are no more difficult and open up a whole new world.

4. What are your favorite colors? Which is your favorite colorway?

Purple has been my favorite color since I was a child. Dyeing has made me look at color in a whole new way. I still love purple, but my list of favorites is now endless. My personal favorite colorway of mine is Pack With the Devil, a deep blue and purple combination. It was the first colorway I actively developed, but I rarely do it anymore, as it is one of the ones I cannot recreate with acid dyes. From other dyers, my favorite is Wollmeise Vincent. I am lucky enough to own a skein, and it is magnificent.

5. How long have you been knitting & How did you get started?

My mom taught me to knit when I was 5. She also taught me to sew and do needlepoint, cross stitch and crewelwork. I took to sewing, not knitting, and did not start knitting seriously until 2004 when a co-worker was making fun fur scarves. I enjoyed blending yarns to make unique scarves, and it escalated from there. I still have a soft spot for that awful stuff!

6. What is your favorite thing to knit?

I don’t have a favorite. I look at my yarns, I look at patterns, and something clicks. Once that happens, that item is my favorite, at the moment. It is very hard to motivate myself to work on things that I am not in love with; sometimes I will not knit for days, because the things on the needles are not inspiring me.

This is her fave knit to date – Dyelectable Yarns Handspun Sock Duo!

7. Do you travel? If so, where’s your favorite place that you’ve been to?

By the time I was 10 I had seen all 48 contiguous states as well as Mexico, Canada and the Bahamas. My father took us cross country several times and showed us all the National Parks and landmarks. I don’t travel much anymore, but my favorite place to visit is San Francisco, CA, my sister is just south of the city, so I can enjoy very homey accommodations while visiting the fantastic city. I would love to travel to Europe some day and visit some of the fabulous art museums.

8. What is your favorite food?

In general, my favorite is authentic Mexican food. But, if I could only have one food the rest of my life, it would be Matey’s Pizza, a frozen pizza made locally with very limited distribution. I had it for lunch today.

9. Do you collect anything? If so, why do you collect that specific item?

Do you need to ask? The answer would be YARN. Also, I collect those squished pennies you make when you go different places…inexpensive memories that do not take up too much space.

Random Facts…

I graduated from the University of Arizona with a B. S. in Business Administration.
I have spent my entire career in Information Technology (formerly known as Data Processing). I used to design Fault Tolerant UNIX systems, now I do Data Base Support for a large corporation.
If I had a do-over, I would have studied fashion design.

Here she is contemplating her next dye job! Put your hands together for Mad Science Yarns!!!!

My First Interview!!

I have decided to add interviews with artists to my repertoire here on my blog. There are many amazing, talented people to talk to, and many we’d love to know more about. Without further ado…

Meet Terri, aka Azlynn on Ravelry. She’s a very talented Indie Dyer for Dyelectable yarns. You can visit her Etsy shop here! She also has a Ravelry group here and a Facebook group here! Be sure to check them all out!!

This picture is one of her recent updates! Aren’t they droolworthy?

So here are the questions that I asked Terri about her dyeing!

1. What made you decide to start dyeing yarn?
I started dyeing yarn because I don’t have access to any LYS, and I wanted pretty yarn. I decided to try making my own and loved it immediately.

2. What part of the process is your favorite?
My favorite part of the process is a toss-up. I love the planning and idea process, but I love the miracle of the transformation when I get to see the finished skeins. I love seeing my vision come to life on the yarn.

3. Which Colorway is your favorite?
My favorite changes often as I dye more colors and get tired of past colorways. My current favorite colorway is Color of Magic because it reflects freshness and spring and the promise of starting over with the new season.

4. Do your kids help you with the dyeing process?
My kids do not currently help me dye, but they both help me with other parts of the process – skeining, printing labels, some packaging, naming colorways, etc.

5. What is something totally unique about you that we would like to know?
Something unique about myself…..I would have never thought this question would be so hard to answer. Totally random fact about me: I type 125 words per minute.

For reference, I totally had to go figure out how fast I type… 74 wpm. WOW she’s fast!

6. What are your favorite colors? Do you find it hard to find inspiration to dye colors that you don’t like as much?
My favorite colors are greens, purples, reds, and earth tones. I sometimes find myself dyeing inside the box of my own favorite colors, but once I realize it and change gears, I am able to find inspiration from outside of my box fairly easily and come up with some colors that I know are beautiful even if I personally would not use them.

7. What tips do you have for new dyers?
I like to encourage new dyers, and my first advice is always “Don’t give up.” The first skeins may not turn out like your vision, but each one is still a unique work of art. Stick with it and READ READ READ to learn as much as you can about the craft.

8. What is your favorite knitted project that is made out of your hand dyed yarn?
My favorite project to see knitted out of my yarn is shawls, but I love seeing all projects knitted/crocheted out of my yarns. It completes my vision when I first planned the colorway and technique for each skein.

9. What is your favorite TV show?
My favorite TV series is Grey’s Anatomy, with a close second being Private Practice and all reality shows. I’m a reality show fanatic!

10. Where is your favorite place in the world?
My favorite place in the whole world is right here at my home, sitting on the front porch knitting while listing to the kids playing. There is no place I would rather be.

Isn’t this one beautiful? It’s Tuscan Affair, Dyelectable’s signature yarn!! And if you haven’t already, sign up for Terri’s update newsletter, so you’ll be one of the first to know when she’ll have more of these beautiful yarns in stock!! You can sign up here!

Anyway, the sock pattern is rather boring. Ribbing is boring. I am so ready to be done with these socks!! I am also currently in the process of making a pair of Wanida socks, and they are sooo much more interesting. I don’t think I’ll move on to Rick next. I am seriously considering moving on to Cookie A.’s Twisted Flower Sock with Wollmeise.

This skein to be exact:

If you have done socks from Sock Innovation – what’s your favorite?

So, what’s this you might ask? It’s a shawl in progress. It’s an Ishbel to be exact. I am hoping to knit 10 shawls in 2010 and this is number 2. Well on my way I might add.

Here’s the first:

That’s a traveling woman. It’s beautiful!! I love knitting lace because it seems so magical when it is blocked and turns into something transformed!

I’m also going to attempt to knit all of the socks in Sock Innovation by Cookie A. in one year. I’ll let you know next April whether or not I make it or not .

So, who would you like to see featured on my blog?

I have immensely grown in my knitting abilities and have learned how to do many skills in the last six months. I have enjoyed knitting a lot, however, I can never seem to find the patterns I’m looking for. I look for a type of item, can’t find a pattern I like, and VOILA! I decide to create my own. I have at least one in the works right now and hopeful more to come in the future. The one I’m working on now is for a Christmas present, so I won’t post it here, but the point is, it’s looking fantastic. I am hoping to have it test knit in the coming month or so and then I’m putting it up in my Etsy shop for sale! My Etsy shop for those who have not been is at  EWELOVEWOOL.

Anyhow, I have learned how to cable, do colorwork, make stitch markers and jewelry and many other techniques, but in this case, those are the things I can remember. I decided to only make handmade gifts for a few of the people in my family for Christmas. I am trying to avoid the knitterly meltdown that is supposed to happen on Christmas Eve when most knitters are trying to finish one present and have to do an entire knitted item in one night.

In the news of Caleb, he’s getting big and growing up. He’s already almost 3 feet tall and weighs 30 whopping lbs! He walks and talks and well… makes a lot of messes. He’s learning how to eat with a fork and spoon now, albeit not well, but I’m proud of him for figuring out how to use his hand eye coordination. He has also learned how to dance to music and it’s quite cute. He also had his first haircut in October. His hair was so long that he had a mullet. His hair is still curly on top, but we are just keeping it much shorter now.

Matt lost his job back in September, so that was quite a shock and a big bummer. Hopefully he’ll find a new job soon, but right now it seems that will have to wait until after the holidays barring a miracle. I figure that most people are not hiring before the break. Matt’s basically looking for any kind of job that involves his skillset including data, programming, web design etc. For now we are just trying to be smart about everything and trying to get through it.

In other news, we have had the “swine” flu running around in our house and we were very sick! Caleb got sick first which isn’t surprising, then me (also not so surprising) and then Matt… which was a bit surprising. He rarely ever gets sick when Caleb and I do. We are all doing well, but we have just been carrying tissues, medicine, water and soup around.

Trying to forge family traditions and because we aren’t exchanging presents between Matt and I we are talking about doing a turkey dinner, baking and going to see a movie on Christmas. If you didn’t know, the new Chipmunks movie is coming out on Christmas Eve. Matt and I happen to have a gift card for the theatre and are using it to our advantage. I have never made a big deal out of Christmas dinners because that’s not what we did at my family’s Christmas, we always did Christmas breakfast. Then our big family Christmas with all of the extended family is on the 26th. My grandparents will be joining us from Arizona, which should be exciting!

Well, last but not least, I’m test knitting for a wonderful designer known on Ravelry as Fickleknitter. She has done some very awesome designs and now I’m test knitting one of her newest a scarf with dropped stitches. I have pictures of my progress on my Ravelry page. I am knitting a wrap version of the scarf in 100% lace weight Alpaca in Brown. The color is stunning and the weight of the wrap is as well. I am super excited to get further in this because of how well it’s turning out. I can’t wait to have it around my shoulders. If you would like to see Fickleknitter’s projects, patterns or blog you can find her here.

That was from over a month ago, so obviously he looks even older now. Anyways, he had a great first birthday.

I have recently taken up knitting and I’m so in love with it. I am currently in a Jane Austen Book Club with a Knit along and right now I am making some fingerless Mitts that are absolutely gorgeous and so fun. I will also be making a shawl for that too. We are currently reading Northanger Abbey and I’m so in love with it. But then, I love Jane Austen books anyways. I have plans for 4-5 pairs of socks right now and am currently working on one. I also have plans for a gorgeous hat for the winter, and also have two blankets and a purse started. It’s such an incredible feeling to be able to knit while I’m sitting here doing something mindless like watching tv. It’s so soothing and it takes away a lot of my anxiety which is something not many other activities can do.

In other news, Matt lost his job and his last day is at the end of Sept. it’s a blessing really that he doesn’t stop working until the end of the month because this gives him time to look for a new job, but it’s so disheartening for this to happen for the second time in two years. We are just trying to take things one step at a time and also trying to just rely on God’s plan and pray through everything. Hopefully we’ll be lucky and be able to get back on our feet soon.

Hopefully I’ll have time to post new recipes that we have been doing, because I have many non dairy recipes to share. I have fully converted to a non dairy and a lower fat diet and my health has improved dramatically. I have been taking Valerian root and that seems to be helping my sleeping problems. I’m taking it one day at a time and hopefully within the next few weeks I’ll be getting up at around 7-8 a.m. Anyways, it’s a slow process and I just have to wait it out.

Well, anyways, that’s it for now. Pray for us.

Caleb is cruising down our furniture and has gotten really good at it. He let go the other day and for about a second stood up on his own. We are really proud of him and can’t believe he’s ten months old already.  He had his first swim in the pool, and we got him his first pool, which has been amazingly fun. We are in the process of getting ready for our summer vacation and only have a few things left to buy before we go in a month. We will be gone for over a week, and it should be incredibly fun. We are all mostly feeling better from the round of flu and colds we had, except Caleb has an earache, but that’s slowly on the mend with antibiotics. Anyways, I hope to report soon that Caleb is fully standing on his own and then WALKING. I know it could be awhile, but he’s making progress towards it.

In other news, I have lost a grand total of 37 lbs, and have officially stayed under 200 for a couple of weeks, so I’m very excited about that. I still have 60 lbs to lose, but I’m over a third of the way there. Also, I have plans to run a 5k this summer, a half marathon in early fall, and another 5k in October. I’m very psyched, and am going to start training very shortly. I found out that on our Netflix, we have access to a ton of the exercise videos I wanted to try, so next up is Jillian Michaels’ Cardio Kickboxing. I also hope to get her new book pretty soon. I feel great, and I can’t believe how much of a difference in my physical abilities that 37 lbs can make. I have also made so many lifestyle changes in the way that I eat. I truly believe that the key to all of it is, making sure that whatever you adapt to in your diet is something you can live with forever. For example, I cut aspartame out of my diet, but I knew that I wouldn’t be able to stop drinking soda forever, so I moderate my intake, and I feel much better since I did the initial cut. I also will never be able to cut sweets/chocolate out of my diet, so I allow myself dark chocolate and cookies/icecream that is either organic or doesn’t have preservatives, or is baked fresh. I have cut MOST processed foods out of my diet, and I DON’T miss them. I cannot believe how much better my body feels now that I have eliminated all of that stuff from my diet. Now when I eat processed food or fast food, I feel sluggish, tired, sick, and most times I regret eating it.

A few tips:

Once you have lost all of the weight you are going to lose a lot of people make the mistake of not weighing in for months, not ever counting calories, and not paying attention to their body’s needs.

If you are going to keep the weight off for good, you will have to stay active (exercise is a regular part of life), weigh in periodically (probably weekly), re-evaluate your calorie intake for your fitness level and body size periodically, make sure that you eat all of the nutrients your body requires, keep food within regular portion sizes, periodically count calories to make sure that you are still eating within a good range or count them everyday forever, and conquer emotional eating, sleep consistently (this is a hard one for me), and drink a TON of water. Beyond that, I’d say a few good tips are to eat organic if you can afford to, eliminate fast food and processed food, and allow yourself the foods you love IN MODERATION.

I hope this is the last time I’ll ever have to “diet” but since it’s a lifestyle change I can live with, I don’t worry about it too much. I LOVE the way that we eat, exercise, and live in our house.

Well, have a good sunny memorial day weekend and I hope everyone is doing well!

This smoothie is in fact dairy free, gluten free, peanut free, MSG free, caseine free, and egg free. I know that these types of foods or treats are hard to come by if you have allergies or are a Celiac patient.

Banana-Cocoa Soy Smoothie

2 Medium sized bananas

1/8 cup of Silk Vanilla Soy Milk (as needed)

1 cup of Organic SO Delicious Creamy Vanilla Soy Icecream

4 TBSP of Unsweetened Hershey’s Cocoa Powder

1 TBSP of Honey

Blend together all ingredients in a blender until smooth (except soy milk). If needed, add soy milk to make smoothie a better consistency. Pour in two glasses, add straws, and ENJOY.

Hopefully this post brought a bit of sunshine to your child with allergy’s day.