Banana Migraine

Without a doubt, the best part of my 'job' here at Phat Fiber, is getting to know all of the box contributors as friends. Because of Phat Fiber, I have gotten to know a little about Melissa from Banana Migraine and I'm so glad to have her a part of the group!
Melissa is a hardworking Midwestern Mom of 2 and you can read more about her life on her blog: http://www.bananamigraine.com
Melissa is such a sweet person, she includes little "warm fuzzies" with every order! I have a warm fuzzy here- trust me- it's a good thing to have some days!
Please check out Banana Migraine and treat yourself to something pretty and shiny, feel all warm and fuzzy inside knowing exactly where your hard earned spending money is going.
Thank you so much for your contributions, Melissa! We look forward to what you're cooking up for us in future boxes!

PFI: Sheepshape Spinning and *Giveaway*

Did any of you receive some special glow in the dark handspun yarn in your April box?!
Yes, I said Glow in the Dark!!! Elizabeth, from Sheepshape Spinning has come up with a genius way of spinning glow in the dark material into a lovely handspun that would be great for making kids hats or funky leggings.
Sheepshape Spinning is based out of London, UK but happily ships internationally, so don't be afraid to convo her about ordering some of her wonderful goods! For April, Elizabeth sent in a wonderful variety of items, from handspun to roving to finished objects- who got the adorable little pocket sheep?! Elizabeth also included a feedback form with her samples- let her know what you think of her stuff!
I love the variety of fiber she uses in her yarns and am especially excited about the little knit animal kits she offers- what a clever and unique gift that would make to a new Mom!
Elizabeth sent in a gorgeous skein of handspun alpaca and blue faced leicester 2-ply worsted-bulky weight for a giveaway! This yarn is so sqooshy and yummy, I really cant get over it! The colors range from lilacs to periwinkles and sky blues. So lovely!
Please visit Sheepshape Spinning and find something you like in her shop. Write about it in the comments section below here and you will be entered to win in the drawing to be held on Friday. Please help get the word out about this wonderful shop by using twitter, facebook, ravelry or your own blog- let me know you did that and I will count you extra in for the giveaway!
Thank you so much Elizabeth, for your contributions to Phat Fiber and for being so awesome! We look forward to more Sheepshape samples in the future!

Mad Angel Creations and *Giveaway*

Fiber artist Paula Warner, of Mad Angel Creations sent in both hand dyed yarn and silk top in for the March box. Everything in her shop is so deep and rich and gorgeous! At her price points, it would be easy to clear out her shop! I can't decide which I like better, the camel or cashmere blends or deeply dyed tops she has available!
Paula has recently devoted her full attention to growing her fiber business! Expect a quality product and excellent customer service while shopping with her.
As a special treat for you all, we're giving away one of Mad Angel Creations skein of DK weight wool dyed in her "peacock" colorway, complete with scarab beetle stitch marker! It is really beautiful! Please visit Mad Angel Creations and find something you like, post about it below here and we'll draw for a name on Friday. Remember I always count your extra social networking efforts as entries for you, so help get the word out about Paula's shop!
Thank you so much, Paula for your beautiful samples in March, we look forward to your next contributions!

Vines *Giveaway*

Friends, there are some shops that I routinely stalk. Vines is one of them.
Erin has been contributing to the box since it's inception and every month I am beyond thrilled with her samples! In April, she was one of 2 innovative Phatties that chose reusable plastic containers for her samples.
I could seriously gush all day about Erin's shop. I just spied her "Plump" colorway and I am so ready to make that one mine! Her spinning is truly amazing as well- completely even and balanced, yet funky!
Erin has sent in a generous and beautiful 3.75 oz bump of roving for a giveaway in her "Painted Desert"colorway. One, I have almost bought on more than one occasion!!
I will be drawing for this giveaway on Friday. Please visit Vines and find something you like. Write about it in the comments section below here to be entered. Remember, the point is to help Erin out this week and get folks looking at her shop- so any other social networking like twitter, facebook, ravelry, your blog posts, etc will be counted as extra entries for you.
Thank you so much, Erin! We adore you and your shop! Your creations are awe inspiring!

Oddish Creations

I tell you all with complete conviction, I eagerly look forward to each month's sample submission from Oddish Creations! Kata has made me a total hand carved stamp addict! She carved the lovely Phat Fiber stamp you all see on your boxes (and even above here on the blog!) for me and I have not stopped shopping for stamps! There is such a huge difference between commercial rubber stamps and hand carved ones ( for me, anyway). I've been exposed to rows upon rows of wood mounted commercial stamps and have never seen anything that made me want to collect them or use them more than one or two times. Now, I have all of these ideas I want Kata to put into stamp form for me: goats, bunnies, owls.
Her yarn is stunning as well! I just peeked into her shop and that kumquat laceweight is telling me it wants to come live with me. My problem right now is finishing some projects so I can squeeze more yarn in my bin and still be able to close it!
Speaking of projects- how nifty are her pattern keeper magnets? And who else thinks her tiny sock yarn stitch markers are some of the prettiest/cutest ones you've ever seen?!
Visit a little shop of happiness today- you'll probably find something you really need!
Thank you so so much Kata for contributing to the box. We all love you and and your shop!

Dragonmaille

Looking for some yummy handspun yarn? Dragonmaille contributed handspun samples to March's Phat fiber box. They were balanced, even and looked like they would be a pleasure to knit!
Be the first to shop at Dragonmaille! Not only does she have some gorgeous handspun ( I'm drooling over the red laceweight!) she's listed some beautiful silver maille jewelry!
Speaking of jewelry, look at the handspun earrings!! How fun would those be to wear at your next fibery event!
Thank you Dragonmaille, for contributing to the box, we hope you'll continue to participate in the future!

Where are you, Knick?

Knick is still MIA in the April Boxes- for those of you who haven't gotten theirs yet, please keep watch out for him!
Last month, he took a short trip to Washington state, where his host Mom ( Hi Turtle!) kept really good care of him and created a new scrapbook for him to travel with! How sweet!!

Totally random info, I know- but a few weekends ago I attended a small sheep and wool festival and that photo is of me realizing this is the woman who taught me to knit several years ago. I decided on a whim to drive to a fiber fling a few hours away in Missouri and this woman literally held my hands and taught me to knit ( I was a rabid crocheter before this point). As I told her while I was there, she has no idea what monster she created *grin*
Her reply was "I'm glad someone gets it".

You know who else "gets it"?
The wonderful 98 year old Italian grandmother who was trapped in her home for days after that deadly earthquake a few weeks ago. She knitted to pass the time:
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aNG4uvhteLoI&refer=home

Knit On.

This week's winners!

Thank you all for posting!!! You make it this a really fun read :)

WC Mercantile Mohair roving- Kansasienne

Aurora Fiber Arts gift skein- Cheryl-Lynn (knitsylu)

Yarn Candy By Melissa Shawl Pin- Deluxx


Of course, I will have more giveaways! Please stay tuned :)

Yarn Candy By Melissa *Giveaway*

Ok. I admit, I flubbed this one up. I'm making up for it though! See, Melissa from Yarn Candy By Melissa- sent these in for the February box and also included a beautiful (stunning reall) shawl pin for a giveaway. I kept passing over it I think because it was in an organza bag and I kept thinking it was a sachet.
It's all perfect timing though, because Melissa is having a big sale in her shop! In case you don't happen to win this lovely piece here, you can pop by and pick up one for yourself- Mother's Day is fast approaching- wouldn't this make a lovely gift?
One of the (many) things I like about Melissa's shop are her tiny enamel stitch markers. I showed you all in January, they are so light weight you can use them on the most delicate lace projects and hardly notice they are there- except that they are super bright and cute!
Please visit YarnCandyByMelissa today and find something you like, write about it below here and I will draw the winner tomorrow along with our other giveaways. Remember I will count your extra twittering, facebook, blogposts etc as extra entries for you!
Thank You Melissa for contributing these lovelies! We hope you'll consider contributing to the box again.

Aurora Fiber Arts and *giveaway*

Ever have an idea for a colorway you'd like in yarn or fiber, but just don't have the time or inclination to dye it yourself? Ever want a custom colorway created for you as a surprise? I love surprises, and I asked Taryl of Aurora Fiber Arts to create some roving for me a couple of months ago. I was pleasantly surprised by what she called "Peach Berry Smoothie" that was an explosion of pinks, blues, yellows and peaches. I was excited to get it, as if you'll peek into my stash you'll notice lots of greens and browns and purples. It's so nice to break away from your traditional buying habits and have someone else do the choosing for you! I also want to say something about her shipping- it's super fast! I seriously ordered something on a Friday (from Alaska!) and it arrived her in IL the next Monday. Maybe it was just a magical planetary alignment, and it will never happen again, but was I ever impressed!
Taryl has been an contributor to the box since February- debuting her fireweed worsted yarn (this yarn comes in giant 560 yard skeins!) and roving. I love when people send in worsted weight yarn to the box. I love using it, as it seems projects go so much faster after you've been using fingering weight yarn so much. This month she sent in some truly delicious roving- so be on the lookout for it!

I have a special 50 yard fireweed worsted gift skein of Taryl's "Helen's Garden" Series in "Aubergine" which is a gorgeous combination of dark plums, royal purples, lilacs and lime green. *Drool*!! I'd like to giveaway to one of you. Just visit Aurora Fiber Arts and find something you like and post about it here. OR if you have an idea you'd love to see in fiber/yarn form write about that too! I'll always count your extra social networking on the web here as entries for you. I'll be drawing for this on Friday- so you don''t have long to act!

WC Mercantile and *Giveaway*

I apologize about not posting yesterday! I was so foggy headed I ended up going to be at 8:30 and still hit snooze on my alarm clock until 8 this morning!
I'm making it up to you all, by hosting a giveaway from WC Mercantile!
Stephanie, the full time shop owner, sent me some of her yearling farm fresh mohair roving to try. I must say, this stuff is so lofty! It has a healthy sheen to it, which can only mean it came from happy and healthy goats!
Stephanie recently hosted a Spin-In at her store this past weekend! Did any of you go? It sounds like it was really fun!
Here is an excerpt from a lovely and friendly letter Stephanie wrote to me regarding WC Mercantile:
"It is a natural fiber spinning and knitting shop that is owned by a mother-daughter team. We carry spinning wheels, wool and other fibers for spinning and all sorts of natural yarns including some of our own handspun and hand dyed yarns. I work the store full time and take care of my baby girl, Ellie. My mom owns and lives on Flying Wright Farms where we raise Angora goats. The herd was 30 head but we just had a population explosion to42; it has to do with the birds and the bees!
It is our goal to share fiber happiness all over the world. We take Mohair from our kid and yearling goats (only) and with the help of some wonderful micro mills it turns into a soft and lofty roving. We dye it and spin it, and love it!! This is what my sample is this month, kettle dyed yearling mohair."
For those of you who get a taste of their farm fresh roving in their boxes this month, you'll understand when I say you can just tell it is awesome stuff. I started spinning my gift from Stephanie last night and the resulting yarn is already quite spongy, soft and lofty!
We're giving away 2 oz of this luxury fiber for you to spin! Visit WCMercantile and find something you like in the shop. Write about it below and we'll draw for a name on Friday! Remember that I count your extra social networking online as extra marks for you- just let me know you did it.
Thank you so much Stephanie, for your contribution to Phat Fiber. Please keep contributing to the sampler!

Matilda's Italian Cookies

A special few of you got some delicious creme de menthe biscotti from Matilda's in their April phat boxes! Teri and Jessica, the co-owners of this delightful bakery, sent me a sampler tin of their amazing cookies!
When the tin arrived, my 3 year old looked lovingly at me and asked for one. My first inclination was to give him a cookie, then, as a gingerly picked up a dense powder sugar coated one, flashes of him ripping through his easter basket chocolate lipped stuffing more candy eggs into his little mouth, flew into my mind. The kids had their weekend of indulgence, now I was going to have mine.
"No."
Son: "Whyyyyy?"
"Because you've had too much candy this week and you'll get a tummy ache".

He started to turn away and then caught a glimpse of the one with the yellow spinkles on top.
"I want THAT one!" His eyes grew wide, and I knew this was going to either be worth fighting over or it wouldn't be. Quickly, I grabbed the tin and made my way into the kitchen as I poked one of the dense yet tender sweet cookies into my mouth. "Oh no, little boy..." I thought. "You're too young to appreciate the symphony of textures and tastes going on in my mouth right now."
Little boy on my heels, I closed the golden tin and placed it on a high shelf in the cupboard, spun around and said "Nap time!" in a chirping voice.

For those of you who follow me on twitter and facebook, you'll remember that I broke up with Will Power that day. It was a messy breakup, ending up with half the cookies gone before dinner and the rest polished off that evening between the husband and I.
I'm resolved to get back on the wagon soon, but the "italian cookie tin incident" as it is being refferred to around the house, was the sweetest sin I've performed in a long time.

Thank you so much Teri and Jessica, we hope you'll continue to contribute to the boxes, we enoy your goods too much!

Dizzy Winners!!

It's been a long day packing at PFHQ. I am super stoked about this box! Before I spill the beans about how awesome it is, I'll just go ahead an post the winners of this week's giveaways! Everyone stay tuned because I will be doing a lot more giveaways!

Katherine Vaughan Designs knitted bracelet pattern: Debbie (gussek)

NorthStarAlpacas 4oz of anything in Maple's shop: QuiltingPansy (cindy)

ExtremeSpinning pink batt- BratKnits (kelly)

DawningDreams beaded orifice hook- kitten with a whiplash

Designs by Tami bunny knitting needles- OneSheep

PolyArtGirl hand combed spinning fibers- Bananna Migraine

AlteredVisions make me smile batt- sciteacher

SilverSunAlpacas learn to spin kit- les_the_mess

A hearty thank you to www.random.org for generating numbers for me. Without you, i'd still be cutting up little pieces of paper and drawing them out of a bowl.

Silver Sun Alpacas *Giveaway*

Okay! This is it! You have no excuse now. You've got to learn to spin! It's 2009, the year you CAN do it. Ricky, from Silver Sun Alpacas has sent in a beautiful learn to spin drop spindle kit! It includes a spindle, simplified instructions, and some gorgeous fiber to play with. Yes, I said gorgeous fiber. Whomever told you that you needed to start learning with scratchy ugly roving, must think that you're interested in trying to make a smooth, commercial looking yarn. Though it is certainly excellent to learn how to draft and spin a very thin single (one twisted length of fiber), the lumpy and bumpy and chunky stuff is quite fashionable! There are some spinners who specialize in art yarn that is nothing but lumpy and bumpy!
Ricky has kits that start under $25 and you and I both know you've spent that much on junk food (you didn't need!) in the last month.
Silver Sun Alpacas sent in some beautiful fiber this month called "Daffodils". I am in love with this! As soon as I can take some time for me, I want to spin up my little sample- I'm pretty sure I'll have to order more. Seasonal spinning- gotta love it!
To win this drop spindle kit- all you need to do is visit the gorgeous Silver Sun Alpacas Shop and find something you like. Write a little about it in the comments section below here and you'll be entered in the drawing tomorrow. Remember to get your extra twittering, plurking, facebook updates and ravelry posts out there too- I'll count them as extra entries!
Thank you so much Ricky, for creating such amazing fibers and for being so awesome! We hope you'll continue to contribute to Phat Fiber!

Altered Visions and *Giveaway*

Do you need to smile today? I do! The weather is drizzly and chilly and I want it to be warm and sunny and spring! Thank goodness I have Altered Visions to gaze at on days like these!
Linda has sent in for March and April, and let me tell you, the woman is not afraid of color or luxurious fiber! Just look at that milk fiber she has listed! I can hear my spinning wheel growling in the corner.
Linda is one of the sweetest people, evah! Thank goodness her hubs puts up with fiber flowing all over her dining room or we might not get to sample her artistry.
Well, enough gushing from me- I"ll let you visit her shop and decide for yourself! If you find something you like, post about it below. You'll be entered to win this big, beautiful, "Make me Smile" art batt from Altered Visions. The big drawing will be held on Thursday and your extra twittering, plurks, or other social media networks will get you entered twice! Just let me know you did it :)
Thank you so much Linda, for contributing your gorgeous fiber to the box. We love your enthusiasm for your craft and your exceptional eye for soft fiber and brilliant color combination! Please continue to participate!

Poly Art Girl and *Giveaway*

Wow! Are you ready for this?! Crys of Polyartgirl has sent in some lustrous and luxurious fiber for the April box. Bamboo and a new fiber on the market, milk!
In February, Crys sent in some beautiful red locks and she's outdone herself this month!
Every time I visit her shop, I feel a sense of calm wash over me. Her colors are spectacular and the quality of her fiber is top drawer!
Crys is also co- director for the SLV folk Festival! I wish I lived closer, as that looks like it would be an extra fun event to attend!
Up for grabs is the beautiful warm and earthy hand combed bamboo, ramboulliet, mohair and angelina rovings. They total 1 3/4 oz and are so yummy! Please visit Polyartgirl and find something you like. Post about it below here and you'll be entered in the drawing on Thursday. Want to be counted twice? Use twitter, plurk, facebook, your blog or other social network to get the word out about Crys' wonderfully beautiful shop! Just let me know you did!
Thank you so much Crys! I adore your work, and I hope you will continue to contribute to Phat Fiber!

April Videos

Special Thank you video to the vendors who sent me presents!

Designs By Tami giveaway!

I'm taking time out from OD'ing on peeps and chocolate peanut butter eggs to post this quick giveaway!
Tami has done it again! For April's box, Tami has sent in the cutest sheepie picture pendants! And for a special giveaway- look at the adorable bunneh knitting needles! I know this is a spinning themed week, but you will want to do something with all the yarn you've learned how to make!
Take some time out from the candy and celebrating and visit her shop today. When you find something you like, post about it below here and you will be part of the pool that will be randomly drawn from on Thursday. Let me know you've gone above the call of duty and have either used twitter, ravelry, facebook, plurk or your own blog to let other folks know about this giveaway. I will count your efforts extra times! It is also nice to leave a way for me to find you, in case you win.

Tami, we cannot wait to see what you'll come up with next!