I Want Candy!

Received my first installment of Dizzy Blonde Studios Mean Girls Yarn Club.

Please be warned, there may be spoilers in the following article for those who have not yet seen 'Guardians of the Galaxy'. We don't know any of those people, do we?

OK, I'm going to be totally honest, I've never participated in a yarn club before. And, as they are generally kept secret, so as to be a entertaining surprise for the participants, there was not a lot to learn before hand.

When I first opened the package, I was struck by the brilliant color of the skein, a mix of carnation pinks and sky blues. My very first thought before looking at any of the accompanying materials was the blue and pink colors Pantone picked for spring (think the baby blue and pink of the 80's), but getting under a better light this is much brighter and more fun!

Then, I looked through the package for insights on the colors Dizzy Blonde has chosen for this skein and found the lovely NOM, the cute lotion bar and the card with pattern suggestions, which I immediately logged into Ravelry to check out, but I neglected to turn the card OVER to see that the character inspiration was 'Nebula', from Marvel Comics and a character featured in 'Guardians of the Galaxy', the 2014 movie. It wasn't until I'd messaged Laura and found out that it wasn't a CHARACTER named 'Candy Ass'. (I don't recommend Googling that, btw, but I did find that there is a band with that name that released an album about 20 years ago and one of the songs was titled 'Stitches' which IS TOTALLY appropriate for a yarn, but a whole different story, so let's just skip that for now....)

From Marvel's 1990 cover artwork, you can
see the blue and pink of her costume, which
Dizzy Blonde Studios emulates in this
Mean Girls Yarn Club installment. 

Nebula first appeared in Marvel comic books in 1985 as the granddaughter of Thanos, who had adopted Gamora, (first appearing in the comics ten years earlier) as his daughter. Lots of family dynamics there, plus Nebula is part cyborg, having been nearly killed by Thanos and stealing a gauntlet from him that would enable the wearer to hold the Infinity Gems, which restored her health. Her cyborg parts give her lasers from her wrists, the ability to change/disguise her appearance, lots of power... you know, all the great comic book attributes. She fought the Avengers, too, which maybe something to look forward to in the Marvel Universe to come.

For the movie, Karen Gillan played Nebula (we all remember her as Amy Pond in the 'Doctor Who' series), who studied Spartans for the role and really did shave off all those lovely red locks for the part. Kudos to her for the daily 4.5 hours in the makeup chair, also. She and Zoe Saldana also gave physical meaning to 'Sibling Rivalry' in the fight scene between Nebula and Gamora, as each chose opposing sides. The Infinity Stones, Nebula's being part cyborg and a bit of rearranging in the Thanos family tree were all kept from the comic books as part of her character description for the plot in the movie. Don't want to give anything away, (*SPOILERS*) but Nebula escapes, and is not referred to again, so she COULD very well turn up in a future movie plot.

To quote Nebulla from another appearance, in a 2011 cartoon and voiced by Jane Lynch: I haven't had a mouth for two months, so I'm gonna stay right here and keep eating pie until it comes outta my ears. I can just hear her saying that to the 'Candy Ass' sidekicks beside her. I hope using these images can be pardoned, but really wanted to give you a sense of the Villainess that is Nebula, her alien origins, her powerfulness and why she makes such a great candidate for Mean Girls Yarn Club, Episode 7.

You may be asking, what will I be using my skein to create? It has a little bit of shine to it (from the merino) and a twist that appears will make it drapey, so I haven't really decided. I tend to be slow about picking projects, letting the yarn speak to me for a while, but my first thought was gauntlets, or crocheted fingerless gloves. Must swatch to be sure....

~ Info about this Yarn ~
Mean Girls Yarn Club, Episode 7, The Final Frontier: Candy Ass, "Nebula", character-inspired, from 'Guardians of the Galaxy'. It's a 100% Merino Wool, Superwash Socks. Approx. 560 yds/512m. Guage: 6-8 spi on US #1-3. (Machine Washable, Lay Flat to dry)

Pattern Recommendations (links to Ravelry):

FOR THE KNITTERS:
Diablesse, by Christiane Gaudreau
Cherry Chip Dress, by Taiga Hilliard Designs
Gildas, by Louisa Harding
Sand and Sea Socks, by Stephanie Carrico
Snell's Shell, by Kristen Schaeffer
Bordeaux Wine Cozy, by Elizabeth Greenfield

FOR THE CROCHETERS:
Stars in Heaven Shawl, by Robin Abdullah
Starlet Yoga Socks, by Lisa Soutendijk
Lovestruck Leggies, by April Garwood




There's alway something special tossed in.  The nom is blue raspberry and comes from the cauldron....errr....that is KITCHEN of the Queen of Mean herself. Also included is a hand-made blue crystal stitch marker, a custom lotion bar whose sent is exclusive to the MGYC from Kamalei's Naturals, Infinity (like those darn Infinity Stones) the scent, inspired by Groot's sacrifice, is mystical and woodsy. More by Kamalei's Naturals can be found online at her etsy shop.


~Written very late at night, pardon the blurry edges, by Tammy Burke, a nobody you may recognize as a terrible giggler from the Fiber Hooligan podcast that ended last year, currently assisting the Yarn Thing podcast with Marly Bird, and sharing every funny and interesting thing she can about knitting, crochet or just yarn in general in her own Facebook Group, Pursuit of Happy Knits. Once upon a time she was interviewed for being herself by the Knotty Girls. She considers herself just a fan of Dizzy Blonde Studios and loves getting to show her appreciation with properly spelled adjectives and way too many commas. The above article was written with love and ability to do research, without much knowledge but with aim toward that which is fun.