Globalized Yarn

Behold, a hat and scarf made from yarn that's traveled the world! This lovely wool/acrylic blend originated in Italy, was purchased as a gift for me in New Zealand by my colleague and cat sitter extraordinaire Carolyn, brought to New York, where I've fashioned this hat and scarf to send as a pick-me-up to my friend Susan in Colorado. I could make a complex political argument about global consumerism here, but instead I'll direct your attention to Pietra Rivoli's book, The Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy: An Economist Examines the Markets, Power, and Politics of World Trade.


Me, modeling hat and scarf in my husband's lair, uh, I mean, office. And in case you're wondering, yes, that is an official lightsaber replica on the shelf above my head, along with a luchador, a Darth Maul figure, and a Homer doll.

Still Not Over the Holidays? Design Your Own Sweater!

I just found a funny website where you can "knit" your very own over-the-top holiday sweater! Check it out here.

Crafting: The Early Years

Imagine my glee on Christmas morning 2007 when I opened a present from my parents and found these two shirts. "Surprise!" my mom said, "These are t-shirts you crafted at camp when you were young. I thought you could feature them on your blog!" It's amazing what a trip up to the attic can unearth.


We made these t-shirts at Camp Sky High (Sing along: "Sky High, Sky High, is the best, the B-E-S-T best, oh yes, oh la dee da") sometime in the early 1980s (although I'm sure you could date these based solely on the style [who doesn't love a shredded T?] and prevalence of pony beads!)

Welcoming the New Rees Baby

My wonderful friends Liz and Matt and their cute little son Nathan will welcome a second child into their family at the end of May. I used 5 skeins of Lion Suede yarn to crochet this blanket; three were the color "Moonshadow" and two were "Taupe". I got all five skeins of yarn from my mom for Christmas. I hope it keeps Baby Rees nice and warm.

My Crafty Family

My brother-by-another-brother Matt (see here for an explanation) gave me some awfully crafty Christmas presents. I'm so impressed with his ability to get me gifts that I genuinely like and want. I'm especially enamored with the book shown above, Knitting for Peace. Now I've just got to figure out which of the projects to knit first, and when. I guess I can use my new knitting calendar (see below) to work out a schedule.

Sisterly Love

My sister Sarah knitted me this amazing felted bag as a Christmas present. I'd known she was making it (we knit together so it would've been hard for her to hide it from me) but I thought it was a present for my mom. Sarah used a lot of her excess yarn to make this bag, including some bits and pieces she got at a yarn swap at Karma Knitting. That makes me love it all the more. And the fact that it perfectly fits my stuffed Totoro is another endearing feature, of course.

Welcome, 2008

Here's to a new year filled with crafting delights... and prosperity, laughter and health.