2010 reading list

i haven't read nearly as much as i'd like to this year, especially this summer. my summers have always been spent book in hand, but this summer i've had some sort of project in hand! i also haven't done the best job of recording the books i've completed...but here's my best attempt! 
Read in 2010
The Omnivore's Dilemma, Michael Pollan: i am most certainly my (food engineer) father's daughter. this book captivated me and had me telling everyone around me all about what i had learned for weeks. then i watched documentaries on food and wished we could afford grass fed beef. read it. you'll learn something. In the Woods, Tara French: given to me by my sister. read while in california. quick read, interesting mystery, however i wasn't satisfied with the way the story wrapped up. Love is a Four Legged Word, Kandy Shepherd: my mother in law was at costco, saw this book and thought of me. i think she only looked at the cover & saw a girl cooking with a dog at her feet. if she had turned the book over she would have realized it was a somewhat trashy romance novel but it was entertainment for my flight home. the same day she bought a book for my sister in law because it involved a mom with three girls (which is my s-i-l). she didn't notice that the mom died, leaving behind the three girls and chronicling their terrible lives. she meant well, she really did!Breaking Free, Beth Moore:winter Bible study. challenging and difficult, but necessary and good.Stepping Up: A Journey Through the Psalms of Ascent, Beth Moore:spring Bible study. very good. going to try to walk through it again this month. A Rainbow of Stitches, Agnes Delage-Calvet: can i count this book as reading? beautiful pictures. much inspiration. inspired this little experiment 

In ProgressMy Life in France, Julia Child: LOVE. i want to move to france. and cook. and eat butter. lots of butter.Game Change, John Heilemann & Mark Halperin: audio book on my phone. i listen to it when i walk to work. very interesting behind the scenes look at the '08 election.The Irregulars, Jennet Conant: another audio book on my phone. did you know roald dahl was in america as a spy for the british during wwii? me neither.Wired for Intimacy, William Struthers: 

fascinating. important. written by one of my favorite college profs. 

The Places in Between, Rory Stewart: borrowed from lynn. started this sometime last year. story of a very interesting, i just keep getting distracted. Sacred Marriage, Gary Thomas:what if marriage wasn't meant to make you happy but to make you holy? reading it again. it's good. and hard. 
Before the Year is OverHarry Potter, Books 1-6, J.K. Rowling i will read the first 6 before deathly hallows comes out, then i will read the first half of deathly hallows immediately after seeing the movie. if i read the book first i'll inevitably hate the movie.Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, J.K. RowlingHandmade Nation, Nikki McClure et alThe Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Stieg LarssonFast Food Nation, Eric SchlosserCraft, Inc, Meg Mateo 
i'll try to update as i keep reading! how about you? what have you been reading this summer? anything i should add to my list? let me know!

there's a new yarn in town

i was on one of my weekly (or biweekly) trips to joann fabrics when i saw a new endcap of yarn that made my heart skip! the author of the wonderful book that taught me to crochet has created a new line of yarn. all natural. clever names. gorgeous colors. peruvian sheep's wool. alpaca. bamboo. oh the wonder of it all! i bought one of each type and brought them home to find out what these yarns are made of. 

the colors alone are enough to make you swoon! 

first the facts: 

$4.99/skein. 

the alpaca is a 3 oz/132 yard skein. 

wool & bamboo are both 3.5 oz skeins. 

wool is 155 yards, bamboo is 177 yards. 

all three are medium weight yarns. 

the alpaca calls for an I-9 crochet hook while the bamboo & wool suggest a size K-10 1/2.

so i pulled out my hook (size G) - which is smaller than they suggest but it's my favorite- and crocheted a little swatch of each type of yarn using my new favorite: seed stitch. i use a variation that repeats single crochet and a chain in the first row. in the next row you sc into the chain and so on. i love the stitch because it's fairly closed and yet still soft and stretchy unlike a full swatch of single crochet.

so....the swatches all turned out about the same size. and they're purty. take a look (sorry about the sun coming through the blinds...a professional photographer i am not!)

 

so here's the verdict: 

third place- alpaca love (shown here in "fern").

this yarn is actually only 20% alpaca- with the other 80% being wool. that makes it lighter than a yarn with more alpaca but also scratchier. it feels a bit like a polyester yarn with more fiber to it. i liked it but it's not as cozy as i was hoping for alpaca.

second place- full o' sheep (shown here in "meadow")

this is 100% peruvian wool and my favorite color out of ALL the stitch nation yarns. for a 100% wool yarn i'm impressed by its softness, but it's still a bit scratchy. i also love the look of this yarn in its skein and wouldn't mind just looking at it all pretty in its wrapper- but once i started using it the yarn got fairly fuzzy. this would be an issue if anything needed to be pulled out and redone (which i do often)

first place- bamboo ewe (shown here in "mermaid")

this fabulous yarn is 55% viscose from bamboo and 45% wool making it the perfect blend of warmth and cuddly softness. it still has a bit of scratch to it, but i would definitely wear it up against my skin. no fuzzing issues either. this was the smallest of the swatches- which could be my inability to keep the tension the same. i have since purchased "sprout" and i'm hoping to get "mercury" as soon as i have another 50% off coupon ($2.50 for all natural yarn is wonderful!). then i shall make something wonderful. not sure what yet.

so there you have it. one new yarn brand. three new yarns. all wonderful. one winner. great idea debbie stoller!