I Really Need to Blog More Often

Colourmart Silk/Ramie KPPM


Color Changing Cotton Yarn Sale and ebay buy

Small splash out pictured above.
I'd seen the KPPM yarn months ago at Looped Yarn Works (yellow yarn with cat). The leave pay out combined with a pay rise enabled me to get some of the yarn I'd been yearning for. The colour changing cotton another, Oh if only.... purchase from Looped Yarn Works. The Colourmart Silk/Ramie heavy DK. Finally bought the Lemon Curd City Tweed from Knit Picks and from Otterwise on ebay Forest Heather and Ash Knit Picks overspun. There it is my fall/winter wardrobe awaiting the needles.

Films:
I've seen some amazing films lately, mostly stumbled upon on Netflix.
My Name is Khan
A moral fairy tale and not to give away too much of the plot: An autistic Muslim man wants to meet the US president after 9/11 to tell him that he is not a terrorist. It stars the incredible Shahrukh Khan reunited with his DDLJ co-star Kajol. These two are like the Hepburn and Tracy or Bogart and Becall of Indian cinema in my opinion. Not only does their marvellous acting keep you riveted in a film that could have easily turned soppy but there is an electricity between them that makes you believe.
First a Girl
This is the film that served as the inspiration for Victor Victoria. Incredibly, for denizens of General Hospital, it stars Anna Lee--the lovely and always kind Lila Quartermaine. For those of us who only saw Ms. Lee walking with a cane or in a wheel chair, she was an incredible hoofer in her younger days.
Dhobi Ghat
This is the story of an Americanized Indian woman, an artist, and the dhobi (or laundryman) who connects them. It's beautifully filmed (Mumbai is the fourth or maybe the first star of the film) and acted.
Travellers and Magicians
This is Bhutanese film about a Westernized civil servant who is travelling to Thimphu intent on going to America to make money. On the road, he is told a story by a monk about a young man who takes a magical trip into the forest and has an affair with a Shaman's wife. The acting is superb, the storytelling riveting, and the landscape of Bhutan is beautifully portrayed.

Knitting:
The skirt KAL/CAL begins on August 1st. Need to swatch my yarn.
Right now, I'm doing the Sweater Workshop KAL knitting the sweater sampler. As I posted in the forum for the KAL, until I got to the twisted ribbing, I admit to boredom. But seeing how the different ribbings change the fabric has been interesting.
Craftsy
Stumbled on this site when Interweave advertised a sale on the classes. Started with Stephanie Japel's Knit Lab, which while too basic for me, you always learn something you didn't know. I have now started the Crochet Lab class in the hopes of learning to read written crochet patterns. I want to go on to the Intermediate Crochet and the Knit to Fit classes at mid-month,
What is really interesting is signing up for the Craftsy daily emails. Full of projects, contests, links.
Recommendation: I know there are a lot of products for this on the market, but I'm loving Lavishea Lotion Bar. It keeps your hands moisturized without a greasy residue and since I've been knitting with wool the past month, using Lavishea has kept the wool from snagging my nails and cuticles. Good stuff. It's available at Looped Yarn Works.