xmas in october and 2 giveaways!

time for a picture-heavy post!

i've been a huge fan of PhatFiber for a few years now, but for some reason it never occured to me to blog about the awesome weekly giveaways here :: scratches head ::

this week there is some awesome fiber up for grabs like this gorgeous loose cashmere/tussah silk fiber package from none other than my fav indy dyer Girl Meets Spindle:

{ click here for your chance to win! }

or if you're more into the cool colors there's a BFL/Silk hankie package being given away by Fun House Fibers:

{ cliquez ici pour votre chance a gagner! }

pardon my french folks, i just hate typing the exact same thing under 2 different pics. if you don't speak french that says the same thing thats under the first pic xD

and now on to my very own XMAS IN OCTOBER!!!!

and why is it xmas in october you ask? well because i got 2 TOTALLY AMAZING packages in the mail today.

this first package came from Zebisis Designs on Etsy. this was my first time ordering from Zebisis but i've seen her richly saturated fibers all over ravelry. much like Girl Meets Spindle, Zebisis specializes in mostly Luxury fibers but also handmade spindles and also takes the time to package her fiber in a wonderfully aesthetically pleasing way. this stuff was pricey, i'll be honest, but when i felt how soft it was it was worth every last penny. not only did i get the fiber i paid for but she also sent me a full 2.3 oz "sample" of some gorgeous hand dyed silk brick, and some matching mohair locks!

{ 4oz 50/50 Merino Silk roving in "Moody Rainbow" }

{ 2.3oz "sample" of Mulberry silk brick }

unfortunately i have a mohair allergy so i didn't wanna take the locks out to photograph them lest they make my fingers burn :( but i assure you they are equally as lovely

and in box #2 i got my swap package for the Legends of the Underworld swap on ravelry! my swap partner Hygieia really spoiled me rotten, just look at the size of this box!

{ sunglasses are there for reference only, they were not part of the package xD }

when i opened up the box it was just filled to the brim with individually wrapped goodies ^-^

{ all the lovely packages}

i feel so incredibly spoiled, there was just too much goodness to list all of it here. pretty much everything was skully themed, from the bandaids to the stitch markers to the craft supplies, even skully tissues and duct tape!

{ the loot }

but aside from all the skully goodness there were also a couple awesome little gifts she had her brother bring me from Japan because she knew that i love things from foreign countries. i honestly can't even list everything i got here cuz it would just be too much but as you can see from the pic i am one happy camper ^.^

i hope everyone's had a great week, i'm going to have a few spinning fiber reviews coming up soon including the ramie and banana fibers from my last post so be on the lookout for my next blog post!

~carla

exotic and luxury fibers, and a little sewing too :)

i got another great package from Girl Meets Spindle a few weeks ago, as you can see below

{ i really do love the way she packages her fiber }

i've had my eye on some of the luxury and exotic fibers in Rachel's shop for quite some time now and so i decided to buy myself a little birthday treat in the form of 2 luxurious oz of 50/50 royal baby alpaca/cashmere, and also a few half ounce samples of Ramie and Banana fibers.

{ 1/2oz steel blue Banana fiber }

i really love the halo on this banana fiber, and it's much softer than i expected. i'm still not exactly sure which part of the banana plant this fiber comes from, but my friend Justin was over the day i got my package and he's now demanding a banana fiber beanie from me xD

{ 1/2oz Ramie fiber in "Winter Morn" }

now, i'm sure some of you are wondering "what the heck is 'Ramei' fiber?" well i honestly didn't even know exactly what it was when i bought it, so i just googled it right now and got this interesting little tid bit:

"Ramie, also known as “China Grass”, is a flowering plant native to eastern Asia. For centuries, ramie fiber has been used for making fabrics and clothing. In fact, ramie has been used for clothes since at least 5000 - 3000 BC in Egypt.

Ramie fibers are one of the strongest natural fibers. Ramie can be up to 8 times stronger than cotton, and is even stronger when wet."

this too is much softer fiber than i had anticipated, and has a similar whispy

halo to the banana fiber.

{ 2oz 50% Royal Baby Alpaca, 50% Cashmere in colorway "Molten Metals" }

but of course the crown jewel of my birthday fiber shmorgasborg is this sinfully luxurious alpaca/cashmere blend fiber. i haven't even had the heart to spin it yet i've just been taking it out to stare at it longingly and stroke it's unbelievable softness hehe

i'm not even sure of how i'm going to spin it yet or what i'm going to make with it, but i think for now i'll just keep it as a fibery pet ^-^

{ my very first hand sewn needle/notions organizer }

and last but not least i'm excited to report that i've actually been bitten by the sewing bug lately. to make a long story short i recently got into Steampunk fashion, which is basically like late 19th century late victorian kinda stuff. i really wanted to get a pair of bloomers, but i just wasn't willing to pay what people were asking on Etsy, not when i knew i could sew them myself with the help of my trusty sewing machine ^^

{ crochet hooks and stitch holders }

needless to say the pics you see in front of you are NOT bloomers xD

i had a bit of a fiasco with trying to get the correct measurements and my first bloomers attempt were far too small :( but i've since bought some new fabric and will be making another attempt soon. in the mean time though i sewed this awesome little needle/notions organizer from some scraps left over from one of my Underworld Swap projects.

{ DPNs }

i created my own pattern for this using my limited sewing knowledge and thought it came out great, although next time i think i'll use a thiner fabric, this stuff was almost felt like and it make doing some of the top stitching a bit tough. if there are any seamstresses out there who would like me to share the pattern with them i'd be more than happy to do so just leave me a comment here with your email and i'll get back to you :)

{ all tied up }

if all goes well this week i should have some pics of bloomers to share, as well as the usual spinning/knitting related goodness.

have a great weekend everyone ^^/

peace&love

~carla