Hurray for front loaders?!

Who would have thought that my front loading Whirlpool Duet machine would play an integral part in my knitting? Over at Knitter's Review about Felting and Front Loading Machines. Basically, felting in a front loader takes f-o-r-e-v-e-r. It's because there is no agitator to rough up the yarn. But, there is an upside to a front loader. Ok, at least my brand of front loader. I have a wool cycle. Yes, you heard me right--a wool cycle. The nice thing about it is the low spin. You can wash your woolens, take them out, and they are not sopping wet. This is very nice for blocking pretty cabled scarves:

And a close up:


"But Amanda, how did you take care of the fuzzy felted ends?" you ask. I used a little bit of this on the strands and they cooperated long enough to sew them in.

So, you all miss the Princess Yoda? Ok, here are a couple pictures of her helping me block the scarf:


She was really quite helpful. She moved the scarf around to fit her needs...It was great.

Now, we all know that Yoda is probably one of the most spoiled puppies around, so how much more spoiled can she get? I was reading the new Vogue Knitting magazine (bought with money gifted to me by my mom, so no breaking the agreement) and noticed a small little blurb about the Craft Yarn Council's latest idea. This idea benefits puppies everywhere--Check it out!

Speaking of Vogue Knitting...
I have read that a lot of people are very disappointed in the new VK and that it is going downhill...blah, blah, blah. Come on, people. Are you looking at the garments themselves or the way the outfits are put together? I'm not saying I like everything, but there are four patterns that I would love to knit--all depends on when I get to the others on my list! I think the price is right for 4 patterns. I'll scan some pics later to show you all which I like.

BTW--I hit a bunny this morning on my way to work. I feel awful and I think that is going to set the tone for today, so think good things for me (and for the little bunny).