Tag: acatherinenoon

  • The Noonhour

    Welcome to The Noonhour, a Podcast featuring essays, children\’s stories, and other items I find interesting.  It\’s an experiment that I\’m enjoying, so sit back, relax, and listen to
    The Noonhour
  • Saturday Showcase – Jody Wallace!

    Saturday Showcase – Jody Wallace!

    I\’m so pleased to be able to bring you of my fellow Beyond the Veil authors, Jody Wallace.  A fellow cat-lover, Jody is creative, modest, and talented.  Please help me make her feel welcome at Knoontime Knitting.

    KK: Tell me a little more about amigurumi. What is it? What do you like to make?

    JW: Amigurumi is, according to Wiki, \”the Japanese art of knitting or crocheting small stuffed animals and anthropomorphic creatures.\” (From Wikipedia.)  There\’s more to it than that, but that\’s the basic definition. I like to make scary little critters, people (I once made the characters of one of my romance novels) and other funky animals. I also like to make gifts for friends (zombie wedding cake topper!), family and industry professionals who visit our local RWA chapter. Note: I have my chapter\’s approval to do this. I don\’t just push the amigurumi on the editors and agents in a creepy fashion :).

    KK: When did you learn to do it? Did you crochet for a while before you learned the art?

    JW: My grandmother taught me some basic crocheting when I was a kid. I made a scarf. And half of a poncho. But the fact is, I\’m lazy and a mini-project takes so much less time than a scarf or an afghan or a sweater. The first amigurumi I ever made was a tiny, evil gnome, also a character in one of my romance novels. I like to crochet hats, too, but today I\’m talking amigurumi.

    KK: Have you ever given a craft to a character? How did you go about it? What research did it require?

    JW: Nothing extensive enough that required research, no. Since the plots of my books often involve the hero, heroine and other characters being jerked out of their ordinary lives to save the world and whatnot, the characters never have much time for knitting or woodworking.

    KK: What effect does your writing have on your crafting and vice-versa? Does one fall off when the other is stronger, or do they synergize?

    JW: I write more than I crochet, but sometimes I crochet writing-related items. In addition to the instances I mentioned above, I also make amigurumi for reader giveaways. Right now I\’m working on a wee zombie horde that will function as basket toppers for a promo group organized by author TJ Michaels. The baskets will be given away at the Authors After Dark conference.

    KK: What do you dream of making when you have the time or skills?

    JW: Videos and comic strips featuring the amigurumi I created for my novel One Thousand Kisses. Alas, my time management skills, not to mention my graphics editing and videography skills, have not yet allowed me to complete this lofty goal.

    KK: Where do you get ideas for your crafts?

    JW: The garbage, usually. I also love the book Creepy Cute Crochet by Christen Haden.

    Gallery

    Amigurumeme

    Beachgnome

    Crochetchaun

    Devohat
    (Note from Noony – I TOTALLY want one of these hats.  Adorable!!)

    PVSN21

    Zombies
    (Awesome!)

    Biography

    Jody Wallace grew up in the South in a very rural area. She went to school a long time and ended up with a Master\’s Degree in Creative Writing. Her resume includes college English instructor, technical documents editor, market analyst, web designer, and general all around pain in the butt. She is a terrible packrat and likes to amass vintage clothing, books, Asian-inspired kitchenware, gnomes, and other items that threaten to force her family out of the house. She also likes cats. A lot.

  • Do YOU Have a Metal Chicken?

    TGIF!  Wait, I\’m on vacation.  If it\’s Friday, then that means I only have two more days left!  Oh nos!

    Here.  While I\’m cramming as much vacation into my last few days on the road, here\’s something for you to enjoy.  It has metal chickens.  Really.  If you haven\’t met her, The Blogess is well worth knowing.

    \”This morning I had a fight with Victor about towels. I can’t tell you the details because it wasn’t interesting enough to document at the time, but it was basically me telling Victor I needed to buy new bath towels, and Victor insisting that I NOT buy towels because I “just bought new towels“. Then I pointed out that the last towels I’d bought were hot pink beach towels, and he was all “EXACTLY” and then I hit my head against the wall for an hour. 

    \”Then Laura came to pick me up so we could go to the discount outlet together, and as Victor gave me a kiss goodbye he lovingly whispered, “You are not allowed to bring any more goddam towels in this house or I will strangle you“. And that was exactly what I was still echoing through my head an hour later, when Laura and I stopped our shopping carts and stared up in confused, silent awe at a display of enormous metal chickens, made from rusted oil drums.\” More>>

  • This Is For Those of You in Oz

  • Writing with a Collaborator

    I\’m at the Samhain Publishing blog today, talking about writing with a collaborator. I hope you\’ll stop by! 🙂

  • Requiem for a World-Changer

    I\’ve started to write this post several times since I received the news of Stephen R. Covey\’s death.  I don\’t handle death well for my intimates, how can I handle it for someone whom I\’ve never met but who changed my life?  I suppose I shall just go with my thoughts and feelings, top of mind.

    Mr. Covey, you changed my life.  I know it sounds trite, but the Seven Habits helped me to see that I have the power to determine my own future in accordance with my will and that of the Universe, rather than my culture or family of origin.  Your ideas of the Emotional Bank Account, Seek First to Understand, and Be Proactive are things which I use everyday as mantras as I wind my way through the thickets of interpersonal relationships.  I have your book The Eighth Habit and have not finished it, because I\’m taking it slow and digesting it.

    I remember when I first read your biography about your doctoral thesis, how you set about to discover how men lived and thought about success and personal accountability.  I never knew that one could write such a relevant doctoral dissertation.  I thought it had to be something untouchable, abstruse, not something so useful to everyday people.  Further, your syntopical reading list intrigued me and I wandered around some of the books you mentioned reading, awed by your decision to study them and by what you gleaned from their wisdom.

    I\’ve taught your material, defended it from others of my generation who felt it ten years out of date and laughed at my usage of your jargon.  I\’ve worked for your company, even, over a decade ago and in another state.  I\’ve used the Franklin Planner since 1995 and watched as you and Mr. Smith battled it out for understanding as you merged the two philosophies of time and life management.

    Mr. Covey, I never met you, but as I read of your bicycle accident and death I want to cry.  I want to cry because it feels like I know you, like you are a mentor for me.  I want to cry because the world has lost one of its luminaries today, one of those rare souls who touched the lives of those around them and made them better for it.

    Requiescat in pace, Mr. Covey.  Go with God.

  • Greetings From Vacation – The Attack of the Deer

    We\’re still on our vacation and enjoying our time in the Pocono Mountains.

    Except… for the deer that attacked my husband…

    He looks so innocent, doesn\’t he?  But the monster approaches… 
    He sees the first monster, but the second catches his scent.

    Drawing closer, the monster cannot believe its luck!

    Oh dear!  The monster\’s mother intervenes.

    And nearly eats my husband!

    These vicious animals are thwarted by my husband\’s strength of character.

    They confer, no doubt planning some dastardly deed.
    What\’s this?  They decide to separate, the better to regroup…

    My husband magnanimously lets them go.

    They decide to retreat, hiding behind their personas as leaf-eaters. 
    They check behind themselves to see if they still have his attention.

  • Humpday Update – Bryce Canyon Shawl and Prayer Shawl

    I finished the Bryce Canyon Shawl today. The last step was to add a 6 row garter stitch border to match the edges of the shawl and the bottom of the triangle. Then I used a knit one, purl one bind-off to make sure it would be elastic enough. The edge took a while to finish but I’m pleased with the results. I’ll share the bind-off here since I’ve used it a couple other times and really like it.

    1. Cut the yarn 3 times the width of the edge and thread a yarn needle. Insert the yarn needle purlwise into the first stitch. Pull the yarn through. With the yarn needle behind the next stitch, insert it knitwise into the purl stitch and pull the yarn through.

    2. *Slip the first knit stitch knitwise and insert the yarn needle into the second stitch on the needle purlwise. Pull the yarn through.

    3. Slip the first stitch purlwise. Go behind the next stitch and insert the needle knitwise into the next stitch. Pull the yarn through. Repeat from the * in step 2 until all the stitches are bound off.

    The next step is to block the shawl. It is stretched out of the way because of the lace. It needs to be stretched to allow the lace to lay flat. I’ll post pictures of that, but here are the images of the finished shawl (below).

    In addition, I finished the prayer shawl for a friend of a friend who has colon cancer. It’s a triangle shawl like the Bryce Canyon Shawl, but with an allover lace pattern that’s K1, *YO, K2T. The edges are a 3-stitch garter stitch border with a YO, which is where the shape comes from. I used a picot bind-off which is quite pretty, along with 3 tassels.

    This is an overall view of the shawl that shows the 3 lace diamonds and the lace outline, which is a vertical lace trellis stitch from Barbara Walker.

    This is the bottom, center, medallion, also from Barbara Walker.

    This is the medallion on the left.  When worn, this appears over the left shoulder and down the arm.

    This is the right medallion and, like the left, appears on the arm.

    This shows the bound-off edge with the garter stitch edge and the sewing needle bind-off.
    This is the first comprehensive picture of the Prayer Shawl.  I used Lion Brand Homespun, in Harvest colorway.  The shawl is too large to show flat (it\’s on a Full bed), so I folded the edges.  I used tassels on each of the 3 corners.

    I stepped back to show the shawl again.  I love the way the yarn stripes.

    This is a detail of the picot bind-off, on the inside left; ont he inside right you can see the garter edge with yarn-over increase.  The bind-off takes a while, but as you can see the results are worth it.

    The preparation of the Prayer Shawl will simply be to wash and dry it.  It doesn\’t require blocking, since the yarn doesn\’t pull out of shape.

  • Tue Cent Twosday

    We are driving up to the Pocono Mountains today to visit with family.  In the meantime, I wanted to share some marketing tips from fellow author, Mandy Roth.  Here is her article, \”Author Marketing Tips and Tricks.\”

  • Organizing Tips for Crafters

    Greetings from Vacation Land!  We went to see Brave, which is well worth it, and I finished the Bryce Canyon Shawl!  I\’ll post pictures and a design update, but first just a quick note on organizing.

    I came across a picture today that totally excited me.  One can use a desk organizer for knitting and sewing supplies!  The manufacturers probably think it\’s for pens, pencils, and staplers, but we know better, don\’t we?  Here\’s an idea to get your juices flowing:

    What a great idea, no?  How do you organize your tools?

  • On Vacation This Week

    Happy Summer Vacation!

    I\’m in Phili this week, so stay tuned for more of Noony\’s Nuggets.  I might find something for you hiding around the corners whilst on vacation.  Lessee… nope, that\’s a hot dog bun.  For today, just a comic.  But tomorrow?  Hmm.

    Summertime.  It does a body good.

  • Greetings From the Road

    We are on the road to Philadelphia. Working on the Bryce Canyon Shawl on the road. Happy Sunday!