• New article up on The Spice is Right: Bread-Bakers' Anonymous, in which our intrepid Janni refuses to admit that she may have a problem of pannish proportions.


  • New fan page for the Janniverse Etsy shop set up over on Facebook! If you're on Facebook, and you like my stuff, why not become my fan and be the first to get updates whenever there are any to be gotten? :D I'm also hoping that eventually, satisfied customers will take fun photos of themselves with stuff I've made (or just fun photos of stuff I've made, if they'd rather) and post them to the fan page. Hey, I can dream, right? :)
Have you ever found yourself eagerly digging through yarn in a retail situation of some stripe, not looking for anything in particular, when you find IT?

If you have, you'll know what I mean. Last weekend, I went to String Theory Yarn Company's annual Sidewalk Sale event. It's a Glen Ellyn thing, but the particularly cool thing about STYC's annual participation is that they allow customers to bring their stash to be sold by them on consignment for store credit. Customers looking to unload some things from their stash that they no longer need get a great deal, and customers looking for some fantastic yarn at a great price also get a great deal. Add this into the fantastic selection of natural fibers that the store already sells and is having sales on at the time, and what's not to love?

Pawing through other peoples' discarded yarn, I found a ziptop baggie that screamed OWLS at me. Loudly. So I listened. Here's part one of what will probably be a series. I can't guarantee they'll all be handbags, but this one demanded this shape.





The full description as I posted it on Etsy is as follows:

"As David Lynch taught us so long ago, the owls are most certainly not what they seem. Especially when it turns out that they're actually handbags! :)

This handbag is simple, cute, and cuddly. Made of 98% wool, the main bag portion is black, as is the strap; both are lightly felted. The messenger flap (the part with the owl's face on it) is a variegated brown boucle, and the eyes, beak, and wings are shot through with glittery silver bits for added sparkle that unfortunately looks much cooler in person than it does in photos. The messenger flap and wings were not felted at all, unlike the main bag itself.

This Owl bag measures 9" high by 10" wide, and the strap measures 37" from end to end. As modeled, the strap was looped over the left shoulder and around the neck of the model and pushed off to one side, like you might wear a messenger bag---hopefully this photo will give you a rough idea of where the bag might hit you as you wear it yourself! :)

Why 98% wool? All yarn used in this project except for the glittery silver stuff is, in fact, wool---but that glittery silver stuff does count. It's a synthetic polyamide, and its usage is minimal---as you can see."

Owly is up for sale at the Janniverse Etsy shop. Unlike some of the other things I've been making, he'll be one-of-a-kind, so if you want him, I'd move fast. :)
Sorry for falling off the face of the planet, guys, but it's been quite busy in Janniland lately. There've been a few posts at CarEnvy that haven't made their way here, but if you click on "Motorsports," you'll see virtually everything. :D

  • New post on The Spice is Right: A Ritual of Tea. As many of you already know, I'm a die-hard tea fan (no Alan Rickman involved, though I might wish otherwise ;) ). But do you know how it started? If you care, well, you can read up on it now. XD


  • New video post on CarEnvy: Captain Jack Really Can't Die. Over the weekend, John Barrowman and Fifth Gear's Tiff Needell suffered minor injuries when Barrowman was driving and Needell was navigating a ProDrive-kitted Subaru Impreza in Wales for a future Fifth Gear segment. You can read the full story and also watch the video of the incident as aired on Fifth Gear last night. Bless the powers of the Intarwebs! :D


I'm not adding this to the list, because it hasn't been completed yet, but I'm also hard at work on some new goodies for the Janniverse Etsy shop. Some are of course restocking popular items, but some new ones are also coming along as well. If there's anything in particular that you'd really, really like to see me knit and offer for sale, please let me know. If it doesn't violate any copyright laws, I'll probably at least think about indulging you! :D
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