30 Days of GBS: Days 11, 12 & 13

And the challenge continues :) Have been good about putting my picks on fb both on my wall & in the note I created, but have gotten a couple days behind over here. Oh well. Be sure to check the girls' picks over at greatbigseaoffans as well.

Day11: song that calms you- fairly easy pick: "Let It Go" I think it speaks for itself.

Day 12 - Favorite music video: This was hard to narrow down!! I have always loved the video for "Lukey" but then I found the video for "Captain Kidd" with all the family members playing & singing along with the b'ys... Sorry "Lukey", ya've been replaced.

Day 13 - Favorite live song from Great Big Dvd: But I love the entire dvd!!! There's nothing like the b'ys live in concert *grumble grumble grumble* Ok, since I agreed to the challenge I must pick. "Excursion Around the Bay", one of the few songs that Darrell originally did the lead vocal for. And live, in concert with audience participation it's just more fun :)

And that catches me up to today with 43 mins left in the day lol :)

30 Days of GBS: Day 10

Day 10 is: song that makes you dance. And while much of what the b'ys play is either jig or reel based and I can totally dance to it, there is one song that comes instantly to mind. "Little Beggarman" is the unlisted track on "Play". Why this song above the others? Because a few years back, me & 3 of my dance classmates, and awesome friends, used this song to dance our "Steppin' Out" reel for our school's "Rock Recital". Everytime I hear it now, I think of me, Sionan, Heather & Nat on stage together: good times :)

30 Days of GBS: Day 9

A song that makes you cry. Is there another song as sad as "Safe Upon the Shore"? I don't think so.

30 Days of GBS: Day 8

Day8 is favorite song from "Fortune's Favour". This was actually an easy choice: I wore out a song on the first cd I bought lol. That song is "Straight to Hell". Love it. "Oh Yeah" is the theme song to Republic of Doyle (awesome show!!!) & "Dance Dance" is the first song on this album I learnt all the words to. But its "StH" that has captured my days when I want to flip everyone off & do what I want instead of what I should.
TTFN

30 Days of GBS: Days 5, 6 & 7

A little behind on updating ;) Big shocker, I know lol. Here's the next few days answers:

Day5: favorite song from "Hard & the Easy"- This is such an awesome album :) Not a bad song in the lot. How to choose my favorite... At the concert in November of 2008, Alan was talking about the lake here in Regina & the dog he'd found (he wrote a FTR about the whole adventure) and amidst some teasing from Sean the lead in for a certain song was slipped in. I was one of the first people out of their seat. The song? "Charlie Horse". Love it!!

Day6: favorite song from "Safe Upon the Shore"- The 'new' album ;) So many different sounds on this one :) Love it!! But my heart belongs to the album's finale piece: "Don't Wanna Go Home"It's jazzy. It's bluesy. Fabulous. Also love "Road to Ruin".

Day7: favorite song from "Turn"- turning back the clock a bit ;) Another album that's hard to choose from; aren't they all? lol Ok, my 'favorite' song from this album has got to be "Can't Stop Falling". It just seems to describe everything just so. Perfect.

That's all for this update. Remember: if you love Great Big Sea, check out the blog http://greatbigseaoffans.blogspot.com
TTFN

30 Days of Great Big Sea: a fun challenge

My good friends over at http://greatbigseaoffans.blogspot.com came up with something fun for the month of July to honor our favorite band. I've decided to keep track here as well as on Facebook. We started on July 1, so here's where we're at:

Day1: first song you ever heard- "Great Big Sea"! lol The first song on the first album. A very dear friend had it on cassette in the fall of '93! lol

Day2: your favorite song- Tough one!!!! I'll say "Goin' Up" :) It always makes me sing along and smile :)

Day3: least favorite song- Another tough one!! Hmmm.... I confess: I usually skip "Trois Navires de Ble" because I don't have a clue what's going on in it! I guess that makes it my least favorite. Which is a shame because it's such a pretty tune

Day4: favorite song from "Something Beautiful*" - Such a great album, makes it hard to pick!! But the songs I listen to the most are "Let It Go" & "Sally Anne". I can't narrow it further than that!

It's quite fun :) And it's a challenge to think of all the different albums & the songs you like from each one. Thanks, ladies :) greatbigseaoffans is moderated by Karina, Krista & Sara and they're wonderful :) Check out the blog as they always seem to have something going on over there; I have them listed in my sidebar as well :)
That's it for today!
TTFN

A Nearly FO & other news

I'm very close to finishing the "Petal Shawlette" (aka Spring Shawl) :) I've completed what the pattern states to do and am well into a second rep of chart D to use up more of the yarn. It's looking really good :)
Knitty's First Fall 2011 issue is up :) I've queued a couple projects & started one: Dragon Wing Shawl by Patti Winters. There are 2 "sizes" and I have just enough Lion Brand "Vanna's Glamour" to make the small one. I have the sapphire color so I think that'll be a nice for a shimmery small shawl. Dragons & shimmer go together in my books! :)
I've been bad lately, I must confess. I've bought not only more yarn but a couple books as well. It's not my fault Sharon has started carrying some new & gorgeous yarns down at Golden Willow!! And Susie was at the KnitPicks place down in Portland & brought us back yarns. Lovely yarns :) So here's a list of the new stash acquistions:

* 2 balls (202yds each) of Lion Brand "Vanna's Glamour" in sapphire

* 6 balls (200yds each) of Bernat "Satin" in foliage
(those came from Michael's on the eastend of town)

* 1 hank (600m) of Zitron "Filigran lace no.1" in pfau (blue, green & purple laceweight merino!!!!! OMG!!! Heaven!!!)

* 5 balls (125m each) of Diamond Yarns "Luxury Collection Fine Merino Superwash DK" in 5050 (a beautiful bright blue :))
(those came from Golden Willow Natural Fibers on 13th Ave here in Regina)

* 1 ball (400?yds) of KnitPicks "Stroll Kettle Dyed" in spruce (shades of darker greens)

* 2 hanks (400?yds each) of KnitPicks "Shadow Tonal Dyed" in pacific (blue-green)
(what Susie brought and I chose)
So that's all the yarn I logged into my stash page on Rav today. A bit of a job.
And yes, I did mention books. I've got two new additions to the book shelf and I recommend them both. The new books are "Loop-d-Loop Lace" by Teva Durham and "Knits That Fit" from Potter Crafts.

"Loop-d-Loop Lace" is amazing. Teva Durham gives a fantastic overview of lace and where she drew her inspirations for the various pieces from. It's laid out in the same format as "Loop-d-Loop" was, in that there is a chapter theme (in this case Mesh, Eyelet, Samplers, Leaves & Doilies) and within that there are 6 patterns. Charts & photos for all :) I'm madly thinking of casting on "Shetland Shawl Dress" for myself. If you're on Ravelry, do search it out just to favorite it & shake your head at my lost sanity. The other pieces that leave me drooling are "Thistle Bodice" and "Hug-Me-Tight Cardigan". I've put the "H-M-T" in my queue; the other two I'm being good & only favoriting... for now ;)
"Knits That Fit" is a great book as well. It has designs by several designers (Sally Melville, Melissa Matthay, Annie Modesitt etc) as well as excerpts from some of Potter crafts other books on fit. (The 3Bs discussion is directly out of "Big Girl Knits" by Jillian Moreno & Amy Singer for example) Still, it's a great collection of tops to fit a wide range of women complete with tips on personalization. So, what's caught my eye in this one? Several as always! Melissa Matthay's "Sheila's Tank Top" is at the top of my list (and yes I find the name of this one funny!) although I'm envisioning a solid or tonal yarn for it. The "Seashell Cardi" by Berta Karapetyan is stunning & not a traditional construction, which really appeals to me. And Annie Modesitt's "Notorious Low-cut Top" I think is a must-have ;) This book isn't listed on Ravelry, but I think some if not all of the patterns are listed from being in previous Potter Craft titles. I need to do some investigating on that.
Speaking of patterns; where is the pattern for "Pyewacket"? Sorry but I've pulled a bone-head move: somehow I've misplaced the written directions for rows 57 to 74! I was in the middle of typing the darn thing in and have come to a standstill. I have everything up to there typed in & the handwritten sheet for rows 75 to 88 is sitting right here. I need to do a full-scale hunt for the missing page. I had really hoped to have it up by now. You'd almost think this project is cursed! Due to work, dance & other assorted happenings, I haven't been designing anything lately, although I'm positively itching to! I need to get organized and start working out a couple ideas floating in the ether that is my brain. ;) We'll see if anything solidifies into a pattern though.
TTFN