Zombie Attack!

ZAS Processing
Originally uploaded by Project Pictures

I don't let myself get drawn in too often, but from time to time a group of friends online will propose a gift swap, and add into the mix an amusing idea for a theme and a reasonable price limit and all of a sudden I'm in for a bit of fun.

The Phat Fiber group on Ravelry decided to have a $35-limit swap with the theme "Surviving a Zombie Apocalypse". I have to say I'm not a huge zombie fan. Well, I am, in theory. I like reading the whimsical books. I've seen a movie or two, and although they're not my first pick I have somewhat enjoyed them. But I'm not much of a blood-and-guts gory slasher invasion movie person.

I still had to do this swap. There were too many fun possibilities with it. For instance, the picture above is not what I received, but the gift I sent to my swapee. It has fiber, yarn, crochet patterns, a brain-on-a-stick supported spindle, and above all, a flow-chart detailing what to open when in order to survive the Zombie Apocalypse. I had $35 of fun just putting this thing together (and then splattering it liberally with "blood" before sending it off).

What I got in turn was just as fun!

First, I got cool stuff. I got a bag (hand-lettered with "ACME Zombie Attack Survival Kit") filled with goodies. It was filled with various personal care items, camouflage face paint, zombie notepads, fingerless mitts with a compass, an ACME Combo Laser Zombie Disorientation and Beer Can Opener Device (awesome!!), lovely handmade buttons that look like eyeballs, and a Twinkie cookbook, so I could have haute cuisine in the aftermath of the invasion (since Twinkies will survive anything).

Second, I received lovely fiber. There is wonderful yarn that I can't wait to find a great pattern to knit, and then two batts which I had a huge amount of fun spinning. The radioactively-green batt has all sorts of interesting fibers in it (banana, alpaca, silk, bamboo and superwash merino), and the other is just as lovely with yummy fibers and a bit of sparkle. (According to the creator, Lampyridae, it "would be the 'Love Sparks at Night' - Midsummer Nights Dream blend It has SW merino, firestar, bamboo, some angelina, the deep purple is soy silk, and the brown is alpaca.") The Midsummer batt really caught my attention and weighing in at a little over two ounces, I felt it needed a little extra love to make a full project.

I was convinced by a local store-owner (Laura, owner of Textiles a Mano) to blend up a batt of my own to go with the Zombie Swap batt. She helped me put together a combination of fibers I never would have picked on my own (yellow, green, orange, brown, blue and lavender with a little sparkle) that blended up into a batt that spun up a luscious purple-brown. The two together look fabulous, with just enough shine and just enough loft. While I was too excited to get a picture of both batts together before spinning, you can see the results of Laura's batt on its own in the smaller skein, as there was a little extra single of that one left over, and I plied it back on itself.

I was especially happy to have taken a long-draw class so recently at OFFF to help me out with this yarn. I'm already planning on knitting it into a small shawl/scarf. I think it will be quite elegant when done.

And it all happened thanks to a little Zombie Apocalypse fun.