Knots In A Row

Excuse the dust...

2011-08-05T09:21:00.003-05:00

I need to clean up around here, don't I?

I doubt anyone even follows my blog, other than my DD, Yarn Demoiselle
so I wanted to say HI to her. ;)

I need to corral some of my knitting photos and get them posted. I'd taken a few months off of knitting but am back pounding out the socks!

Lots of nothing..without pictures

2010-01-28T15:36:00.002-06:00

Well not nothing, just no pictures of knitting! I've started knitting a plain jane SS sock at home for the girls. I'm on Abby's second pair. She had the nerve to come downstairs and ask if I'd knit her more socks. I looked right at her and said, 'I'm knitting you one right now, remember?' Apparently I do NOT knit fast enough.

This past Tuesday the hubby had ACL surgery on his left leg. (He had the right one replaced in 01) I took Tuesday off and hung out with him at the surgery center. ACL is out patient surgery, so we were there at 6:15 am and home by 11:30. It'd ridiculous how you are treated at those places. The staff is nice enough but you are on a ticking clock. Hubby is notoriously intolerant of narcotics, so he never comes out of anesthesia very well. Apparently he was to be out of that place by 11 and they pretty much dumped him in my car at 11:10, irritated with us that we weren't moving faster. Ugh. Don't get me started on Medical Care/Insurance. Just DON'T.

School is going well. Had my first test today in my New Testament class. Pretty sure I did ok on it. But the exciting news is my Biology Senior Research Project. Whoot! I'm so excited and hate to jinx it. So suffice it to say it looks like some bats are in my future. :)

School's On!

2010-01-19T22:11:00.002-06:00

I've decided that I am going to win the lottery so I can be a professional student. It's gotta work, right?

This semester I'm taking (Che 104) Intro to Forensics and Intro to the New Testament (Rel 103) plus a 300 level Bio class on how to prepare research and paper. I'm taking the Chem class for fun because nothing I needed to graduate worked out for my schedule and I had to have so many credits to get my Financial Aid. The Religion class and the Bio class are both needed for graduation. It's going to be very strange to not take a Bio course with lab, but you do what you gotta do!

Classes started today and I think I'm going to enjoy both the 100 courses. Tomorrow I see what the heck the Bio course is going to be like. I'm scared to find out..I see mucho work ahead of me with that one! It's only 2 credits, but that doesn't mean they still can't have you write a paper a week!

I have a few hours between my classes so I have a little knitting time per day. I am working on my pair of Slippery Socks, one is done and I'm 1/2 down the leg. I put them on the shelf over winter break because I really needed mindless knitting. I finished a pair of socks for Abby, one sock for Val with the rest of the yarn waiting to be skeined plus a hat for Val, a tam I designed on the fly. Quite fun! I blocked it too big so I need to soak it and reblock.

It's late today and I need to get into the habit of going to bed earlier. Hopefully tomorrow I can manage some pictures of various things!

Lazy.....

2010-01-15T11:48:00.002-06:00

Well my Christmas/Winter break is official over after today. I return to school Tuesday but the girls are home on Monday, so that doesn't count! I'm taking Intro to Forensics, which I am ridiculously excited about, Intro to the New Testament, which promises to be interesting, and a class on how to write Bio papers. Not so fun, but necessary to graduate, which I'm hoping to do in Spring 2011, with a BS in Bio. Still don't know what I want to be when I grow up..but who really does, right?

On the knitting front, I stalled out on the socks for Val when I realized that I wouldn't have enough yarn to knit the second one. What's a girl to do, but order more right? And well, who wants to pay shipping on just ONE little ole hank of yarn, when you could get more for the same s/h price. It appears two hanks of Shi bui fell into my cart. I love that yarn! I bought a variegated and a cream, with the idea of doing a stranded sock pattern.

I have yarn pulled aside to make Val a beret. It's just some random left over 220 from various projects. Should be quick and easy, just need to get off my duff and dig out the needles.

The dinette and kitchen work goes on. Hubby filled the holes in the wall that were bugging the crud out of me, just need to be sanded and painted. I worked on the floors and waxed them. Found out that my stupid windows are a stupid irregular size, so I can't find any inexpensive bamboo rolling shades that will fit. I'd have to custom order, which defeats the purpose really. The trim is still not painted and I'm really trying to boost myself in that direction, but failing miserably!

Not an incredibly exciting post since there aren't any pictures. I need to have Abby model her finished pair of socks and maybe have Val model the one completed one!

Decisions

2010-01-08T13:25:00.004-06:00

On one of the blogs I follow (boogaj.com) she had decided to tackle her house this year, one room per month. There are a few other bloggers who are joining her. (Room a Month) I would love to actively participate, but know that I really can't commit to the project while I'm in school. I do plan on following along with her and other participants while doing my own thing in Chez le K's.

Time and money are the issues, (we'll just ignore the fact that I don't HAVE 12 rooms) instead I'll clean one room intensely per month, and tackle projects that are incomplete in that room. Unfortunately in my house that means paint trim. I swear there is a special room in hell for me with endless trim to be painted and painted and painted....

This month is the kitchen/dinette area. Here are pictures of areas. I painted it this past August and love the colors. Before the entire area was a cold baby blue. *shudder* Just horrible during cold dreary Wisconsin winters! The dinette color is best shown in the last photo of it (orange), that also has the best representation of the red accent wall. The kitchen is a color called Bagel and it's not as yellowy as the first picture, so even though the second is dark, it's the closest to the actual color.

List of To Dos:

Finish painting trim of all windows. Just the panes really...the worst part
Figure out how to paint the light fixture
Price bamboo shades
Purchase 3 more seat cushions
Hang shelves and various wall decorations
Have hubby fix holes in dinette walls and repaint
Clean oven (uck)
Talk to hubby about possibly replacing kitchen faucet since current one leaks

Whew. I'll have to look at the budget to see what can realistically be purchased. Poor poor little budget has been bludgeoned these last 2 months, between Christmas and Val's January birthday!

On the knitting front, I finished the socks for Ab's and need to snap some pictures of them. Now I am getting ready to cast on a pair for Val.

2010 Thoughts

2010-01-03T13:12:00.003-06:00

Ok, the stash is out of control. I'm trying to wrap my mind around some realistic parameters to rein it back into .. a state that causes me to blush less.

No more sock yarn unless you knit up 3 skeins. 3 skeins used can purchase 1 new skein.
Purge by selling on Ravelry
Purge by donating to Goodwill

Here's to hoping I can keep to that! I'm one of those weirdos who feels guilty when it gets too large. It just seems to loom over my head.

Looking back..

2009-12-31T13:07:00.002-06:00

Wow, I was strolling through my old posts, looking for a colorway of yarn I had used, and realized just how much cool stuff is in my blog. Granted no one else really thinks it's 'cool', but it is such an amazing journal for my knitting.

So what better day to put up a new post than the last day of the year! :)

Currently I have a pair of Slippery Socks from Knitty on the needles in BMFA lightweight Grimm's Fairy Tale. One is finished and I'm going to cast on the second whenIt's a fun pattern, and I've finally learned to cable without a needle. It's relatively easy to do on the socks since they are really only 1x1 cables. Not sure how it would work on say.. 3x3 in a sweater, but it's a skill I'm glad to have. I'm trying to finish them up before heading back to school on Jan 19th. My next pair will be easier. I might even do another pair of monkeys. They are so easy and so wonderful!

Another thing that 'reminded' me of my blog was this:

Ah, clean hand knit socks! I wanted to share this with someone so I thought of you, dear blog! Not that I remotely imagine anyone reads you anymore, but there you are for posterity's sake!

And so it goes...

2009-05-13T20:38:00.005-05:00

Classes are done. Managed to get an AB (WTF grade IS that? It's 90%) in my Excel class and a B in my Pathophysiology Class. Yay.

Summer school starts June 2nd. Boo. ;) I'm taking BioEthics so I'm sure there will be reading and, gag, papers. But for now knitting!

With various new babes in the family, hats are a must.

Nice blurry picture of one such hat. I had fun making the Pom Pom though!

Another of the same pattern in a different yarn, sans pom pom.

I added a crochet edging in an attempt to make it larger. Stopped knitting it a bit short. Funny about the color variation in each picture. The bottom shot is more true.

I managed to get a pair of socks done as well. This is from the Rockin Socks Club last year. The Yarn Harlot designed the pattern.

Love the colorway.

I knit V a sweater and am knitting the same pattern for my older girl in a variety of blues.

This is a clever knit, the Pinwheel Sweater. Easy to do, but interesting enough to keep you awake!

I have two projects that are actively being knit. I think I have a total of 5 on the needles. Anyway, both girls are getting one of these Twirly Skirts. This is A's colorway, figured I should do the skirt before her sweater considering it's May!

It will be finished off with a row that is a denim-like blue. Should be very cute. The younger's will be done in a different color story, and will be FASTER since her's is a size 6 not a size 10!

And what's life without a sock or two..on the needles? I had this Hickory colorway marinating in my stash for a bit. It's from ArtsyGal. As soon as I saw the colors I knew what it had to be. Nutkin. Easy to memorize and fun to knit pattern. Score!

These will be perfect for Fall..even though it should be AGES away!!!

Hope you are enjoying the warming trend and you are getting tons done. :)

A good read..

2009-03-30T13:54:00.006-05:00

I'll get to the knitting in the next post, I still need to take photos and the weather/light is NOT cooperating. But this post will be about books. I don't read, rather I listen so I can knit or clean house while enjoying a book. I'm a HUGE Audible and good ole' public library fan. If I find a book I want to 'read', I check my library first and if they don't have it, I purchase it on Audible. If you haven't downloaded a free book from Audible yet, please do so! Tons of podcasts have a link, plus I think you can log onto Audible and get one that way.

Here's a few of the recent books I've "read":

Twilight Series by Stephenie Meyer: Yes I succumbed to the pretty mind candy. It was fun to listen to. I listened to them back to back, so I wasn't forced to wait from one to the next. I'm not sure I recommend listening to/reading them this way. I was burnt out on teenaged angst by the end of the 3rd book, so it ended up being a bit of a haul to get through the last. Beware though, you end up a bit addicted to them and might show signs of Edward withdrawals! This happened to me and at least 2 of my other friends. Just a warning. ;)

Duma Key by Stephen King: I grew up with King. I read Night Shift when I was in 6th grade, from then on I was hooked. I continued to eat his books as they came out, but finally stopped around TommyKnockers. I hated that book and am still convinced that Tabitha really wrote it. :P BUT anyway, on a whim I decided to get a King book from Audible and came across Duma Key. I am so glad I did! It's an amazing book. It makes me want to start reading his books from here backwards until I find out where his writing was bad. ;)

Duma Key is not a jump out and scare you type of book. It's more tension and suspense being built gradually with some good writing thrown in to boot. I highly recommend this book.

The Lincolns: Portrait of a Marriage: This is an amazing book. I really enjoyed listening to it. The information on their relationship is in depth and very captivating.Learning about Lincoln as a man shed so much light on Lincoln the Politician. I do think there is a lot of history in it and that I may have been more bogged down reading it rather than listening to it.

Drood by Dan Simmons I adore books that are a play on something else. Doesn't make sense? Well this book is about Charles Dickens and Wilkie Collins during the last few years of Dicken's life when he was writing The Mysterious Edwin Drood. Is Drood real or not? Awesome, such a great twist and original idea.

Devil in the White City by Erik Larson Wow. This is an amazing story, that isn't a 'story' but rather a non-fiction rollercoaster ride. I am an avid serial killer freak. :) I love watching things on the Discovery Channel and the like. Plus I am enamored with the World's Fairs, the grandeur and just immensity of them! What I wouldn't do to have seen one. The story about exactly what it took to make one happen was like candy to me and then mix in one of the all-time freak serial killers too!! And it's all TRUE! I'm feeling faint. ;)

As you can see my reading is a bit eclectic. I'll put up a few more of the things I've read in another post. I'd love to see what's on your shelf!

Hello hello

2009-03-12T19:10:00.004-05:00

It's Spring Break for me so I have time to piddle around the internet again. :)

I've been knitting a bit, working on the Hemlock Ring Blanket. It's pretty, but can be a total pain in the arse if you aren't paying attention. Darn that lace!

I can't wait for it to be finished. Granted it will be late spring/early summer so it won't be getting a ton of use! But I will enjoy looking at it.

Various news to share:

I've returned to school. It's only for 2 classes this semester, but there is a grand plan in the works. I am going for my Clinical Lab Science B.S. in Cytology
I have 2 newly minted babies in the family! Keira, my niece and Sean a cousin. Boy and girl, so pink and blue on the horizon.
I'm a Twitter girl now. KnittyLynn. Feel free to follow and share if you Tweet too!

On to more knits!
Here are Keira's booties. I still need to put buttons on them and seam the one on the right. It also looks a tad smaller because I didn't stuff it as much. This is a great pattern. One of the few I've been willing to pay for! It's Merry Janes by Bekah Knits.

Seriously cute stuff. I knit it with Sport Shine from Knitpicks. I'm happy with the yarn, as I'd never knit it with it before.

Then my Bird in the Hand mittens. Well this picture is of one almost finished, as of now they are complete and off the needles. I just liked this picture. I was futzing around with a home made light box. I like it, just need a bigger box and stronger light.

There are a few more knits, but I'll keep them to give me something to blog about later!

Hope everyone is doing well and has survived their winter...or surviving, since here in Wisconsin it refuses to DIE! :)

Though I haven't been posting I have been keeping up with you! :)

Sometimes you just have to..

2009-01-26T21:29:00.001-06:00

And so I did..I took the test and will now torture you with the results.. Oh and I do still knit, I just apparently suck at blogging!

How does this work again....

2008-09-26T19:53:00.003-05:00

Ok, dust off the keyboard and see if Blogger remembers me...

Aha! This this IS on. :)

I'm back from the confusion that is my life. Kids are back in school and we adopted two dogs. They are adorable Bischon Frises that were a part of a Puppy Haven a puppy mill the Wisconsin Humane Society bought. (read more on that here). They are named Zoey (2 years old) and Snowflake (3 years old). We've had them for 2 weeks and they are adjusting. It's slow going, but they are better every day.(Zoey and Snowflake)

I've missed having dogs for so long. I've never had any as an adult because I never felt the time was right. Well now both my kids are old enough and we actually have a backyard, so we took the plunge. I'm in love, they are both so sweet! Shy but sweet. You just have to have a soft voice and not move too fast. They don't know how to play really..and I'm trying to work on that.

Ok knitting! There has been mass amounts of knitting, even if there weren't blog posts to prove it. :)

This is my Sophie Bag. I made it in 3 colors of Cascade 220. It's the perfect size for a sock projects. :)

Socks for Val

Things are NEVER too pink! At least for a four year old. :)

I have other things to share as well, but the Hubby needs to work on our server, so consider this a teaser. ;)

I may not have been posting but I have been reading!

Wordle!!

2008-07-25T10:33:00.002-05:00

Ok this is such a cool toy! Go check it out and be sure to drop me a link so I can look at yours. :)

Having Fun

2008-07-21T18:21:00.003-05:00

I'm really enjoying the Drawstring Raglan, both the pattern and the yarn are really lovely.
Just had to share some shots. I'm trying to do as Jared Flood aka Brooklyn Tweed recommends in the interview on Sticks and String Podcast. Shoot in natural light but do it inside via a window. This gives the light directionality and makes the shot more interesting. I agree but the problem is the way my windows are built, they are double hung but each pane is made of 2 smaller panes, for a total of 4 panes...hence the lovely shadows! Oh well work in progress, right? :)

Getting to Know you Contest Questionnaire

2008-07-19T20:40:00.004-05:00

From http://knittyotter.typepad.com/ for a great prize! And becuase it's fun. :)

1.) How long have you been knitting?

I learned to knit in Jan 04, the month my daughter Valerie was born. I got a bee in my bonnet and said I want to knit, bought the Stitch and Bitch book and cast on. Then my needles were pretty much retired until she was 1! Learning to knit with an infant around, forget it. ;) It's been non-stop since 2005!

2.) How long have you been knitting socks?

I took my first sock class December 05 and finished them in January. I took a 2 on 1 class and didn't like it but finished. The next pair I used DPNs and there has been NO looking back since!!

3.) What do you do with a problem like Maria?

Teach her to knit so she'll stay out of trouble.

4.) What is your all time favorite sock yarn?

That's actually not too tough for me. Blue Moon Fiberarts Socks That Rock. I learned to knit from a wonderful lady, Karen, and she was making the Fair Isle Bobble Sock and I was absolutely gobsmacked. It was so gorgeous, so intricate. I had to have it!! I went to my first Stitches West in 2006 and ran, seriously no walking to The Fold's booth and bought the kit. I'd NEVER spent that much money for a pair of socks. I think it was 60 bucks all said and done. But I had the most amazing time knitting them. I love them with the bottom of my little heart. :D

5.) Toe Up or Cuff Down?

I'm a cuff down, gusset kinda girl through and through. Nothing like a little Partridge Eye pattern on a heel flap!

6.) What's your favorite color (this week or for all time)? Do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand?

Color. I love it all. I seem to go through Seasonal phases. I am leaning more towards subdued colorways now. Hmm color though! Gotta have it.

7.) Do you have a pet(s)?

Loki my Panamanian Kitty. I adopted him when I was living in Panama City Panama. This cat has gone from Panama to Miami to Denver to Milwaukee with me. He's my first baby.

8.) Babies: Oven Roasted or Barbecued?

Um..ya I pass.

9.) Besides socks what is your favorite type of thing to knit?
I'm really digging the whole dishrag thing. Very fun, loud colors and portable knitting..sounds alot like socks, yes?

10.) What's your favorite scent?

I like fall smells..spices, pumpkin etc.

11.) What music are you really loving right now? Like a song or a band?

Music. I think I'm lovin Endless Summer by the Beach Boys. It IS the summer album. I downloaded it from iTunes and it's become the official 4th generation for our family; 8 track, cassette, CD, MP3. :)

12.) How many pairs of socks have you hand knit?

Urp..I'm supposed to know this? Hmm...10 or so.

13.) What's your favorite treat? Salty or Sweet?

Both. Everytime I get on a sweet kick I have to top it off with something salty and vice versa!

14.) What was the most interesting thing you smelled yesterday. Not good or bad necessarily, just the thing that stuck out most so that you actually took notice of it.

Green Bamboo tart from Yankee Candle. It was amazing.

15.) Needles - DPN's: Wooden, metal or plastic?

Hmm I like both. I like metal when it's a fast easy pattern. For wood, I love Crystal Palace Bamboos. They are firmer than Clovers and I don't end up warping them.

16.) What is your favorite sock pattern that you've knit? What do you recommend?

Hmm.. Monkey or Embossed Leaves... I think I'd recomment Monkey for newer knitters and Embossed leaves for those who've done a few patterned sock.

17.) The last Question: If you were stuck on a deserted island who would you want with you, what knitting would you want with you and would you ever want to leave?

Cat, my friend and fellow knitter. We could talk about knitting, like we do all the time.. I'd want a huge pile of sock yarn, patterns and needles. If I had comfortable accomodations and my laptop with connectivity, I'd be golden. I could sit around and watch on demand Netflix movies and order new yarn online!

Moving On

2008-07-17T10:40:00.002-05:00

Yay, I have an FO. :)

Specs:
Pattern:
Monkey - Cookie A.
Yarn: Shibui Sock in Orchid. GREAT yarn.
Needles: size 2
Started: June 25, 2008
Finished: July 10, 2008

This is a bit more true to color. It's very vibrant and fun. The lime ended up swirling all up the sock.

I have all my yarn from Ravelry now, so I cast on for the Drawstring Raglan. Should I tell you how much freaking trouble I had getting this thing started? You cast on 307 for the size I'm doing, that alone is a bear. Then on the fourth row you do the stitch pattern, simple yo and k2togs kinda thing. No problem, right? Ya, right. I screwed it up FOUR times. And you can't tink back that much, you have to frog and pretty much it's better to just rip it all out and start over. Oi. I guess I just couldn't pay enough attention to what the heck I was doing...it was little things like missing a yo and do an extra stitch. A total pain for me!

It's going now and looking lovely. I knew if I could just get the pattern set I'd be golden because I could read my knitting to ensure that I was on track. But seriously, casting on over 1200 stitches in 2 days. Um that sucked!

The colors are lovely. I have 4 Silky Tweed and one Silky Wool. It really shouldn't make too much of a difference. The dark brown is the Silky Wool and I use it the least in the pattern.

I'm on the third color now and it's going along quickly. I hope this will fit well, because it's going to be cute!

Last but no least, my Options Tank has stalled for a bit. I had put in a request for the Knitting on the Edge book to pick a pattern. It finally came in today, so now I can hopefully finish that up.

Hope all is going well with you and your knitting!

Meme

2008-07-10T21:26:00.004-05:00

I've been meaning to do this Flickr meme. I think it's so fun to see everyone else's.
the rules:
a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
b. Using only the first page, pick an image.
c. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into fd's mosaic maker.
http://bighugelabs.com/flickr/mosaic.php

the questions:
1. What is your first name? Lynn
2. What is your favorite food? Sushi
3. What high school did you go to? Western High School
4. What is your favorite color? Green
5. Who is your celebrity crush? Hugh Jackman
6. Favorite drink? Diet Coke
7. Dream vacation? England...again
8. Favorite dessert? Sugar cookies
9. What you wanted to be when you grow up? Mammology Professor
10. What do you love most in life? My Children
11. One Word to describe you? Opinionated
12. Your flickr name? Knitty_Lynn

This was so much fun. :)

1. Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge, 2. Sushi-Sashimi Combo, 3. Vertigo Dreamscape, 4. ♫ YO Yo yo, there's no place like a green penthouse... so i told the genie i wanted to be well hung. ^o^ ♫ nah... wildlife from singapore♫, 5. OUT17292538, 6. Macro Mondays - my drink, 7. Arched people, 8. Princess Sugar Cookies, 9. Wall Of Skulls, 10. Children, 11. Opinionated, 12. Knitty Lynn

Startiitis!!

2008-07-08T16:02:00.004-05:00

I want to cast on a gajillion projects! It's driving me crazy, I'm normally such a monogamist with the knitting!

Right now I have three things on the needles, which for me is unheard of.
First the Options Tank made from Rowan Linen Print. I scored this yarn when I went to the Cedarburg Strawberry Festival. Seriously, you know you are a knitter when you sniff out a yarn deal at the .Strawberry. Fest! It was a quilt/knit store that was phasing out the Knit side so they had a basket of 75% off yarn. The Linen Print was originally 9.50 a ball and I scored it for 1.30 !

I'm making it as a normal tank, not a racer back or halter. I have Knitting on the Edge requested at my library, so as soon as I get my hands on that I'll finish this up. It should be cute and it will have only cost 13 dollars. Yay!

I really like the way it's knitting up. Soft with great drape.
They also had some Dalegarn Falk yarn that I'd looked at so I ended up going back and buying this pile of lovelies...

for less than 20 dollars! It was 19.74 or somesuch. I couldn't walk away. There is a very cute zippered cardigan in the pattern book plus the cover hat is adorable.

Here is my Shibui sock in the Orchid colorway knit up in Monkey. I have finished the first sock and am on the heel flap of the second.

The third item is the Berliner sock. I plan on finishing up the second one after the Monkeys are done. Plus there are a few fun dishrag patterns I want to try out..and a Baby Surprise Jacket and and! Oi! :)

I almost have all the yarn to start the Drawstring Raglan. I'm hoping I can cast on this coming week or so. Yay.

Hope all is well on the knitting front with you!

No, I haven't been carried off by the Skeeters

2008-06-28T13:33:00.006-05:00

Obviously the weather/environment has some seriously issues with the midwest! The skeeters are ridiculous this year after the super wet Spring we had! I live for this time of year, it is so beautiful because of the aforementioned wet Spring. Flowers are out of control, the lilacs were so lush and thick and my hostas are going to take over my entire bed! But now because of the mosquitoes I honestly can't go outside. I am allergic to mosquitoes and my bites blow up like a balloon. A single bite can get the size of the circumference of a soda can. And they itch like a son of a bitch! I usually end up with scabs and ...well ANYWAY, I'm inside and not to happy about it. :)

I've been doing two projects, the Berlin Muster pattern for the SKP2008 group and some crochet amigurumi.

The Berlin Muster is beautiful. A really challenging lace pattern where the number in the repeats shifts constantly so it requires watching and pretty much can't be memorized.

I'm using Louet Gems for the first time and love it. The Price? A total bonus! It's very reasonable. It's springy and tightly spun. I've finally figured out that's exactly what I like in a sock yarn.

The pair is supposed to be done by July 1st..and well that just ain't happening. I enjoyed it for awhile, but then realized it was becoming a job hanging over my head. Knitting is for fun and enjoyment, darn it, so I've put it aside to rest. I will return to finish the second, but just don't have a desire to work on it anymore.

Seriously, how CUTE are they??

The Amigurumi are very fun and addictive. I bought the Amigurmi World: Seriously Cute Crochet by Ana Paula Rimoli If you are interested in trying out Amigurumi or are an old hand at it, take a look at this book. The designs are simple and quick, good stuff!

Unfortunately I made it into work, silly me. My youngest daughter had a birthday party to go to and I figured I could just whip out a handful of things for a present. Um, nope. Didn't work, we ended up at the store the day of the party.

Again, I don't do well with 'HAVE TO' associated with my knitting. There are enough things in life I 'HAVE TO' do that I don't enjoy, why lump knitting into that pile!

I've now cast on a pair of Monkeys (my third pair) with some lovely Shi Bui in fuscia and lime green called Orchid. I've been fighting with this yarn for the last year. I bought it last summer at Stitches Midwest and have put it through the beginning of at least 4 different socks. The color repeats are very short and nothing really looked good, so I fell back on a favorite. It's spiraling but it's still nice. I'm on the foot of the first sock.

The Shibui sock yarn is great. It's tightly spun and has great resilience. I, as mentioned, have frogged it more times than I can count and it's stood up to it all. It's, again!, tightly wound and very springy. They have some absolutely amazing colorways! If you see some of it, definitely try it out.

Now I have something else spinning in my head. I want a light sweater. I have a pile of Elspeth Silky Tweed that was going to be one of the patterns out one of Elspeth Lavold's books. I'm starting to doubt just how much I would wear it and I've fallen in love with the Drawstring Raglan out of the summer 08 Interweave Knits.

I found two that were knit using the Silky Tweed on Ravelry and they look lovely. It is a discontinued yarn, so I'm trying to scrounge up a few more colors since I only have one. Gotta love the Trade/Sell stash pages!

Ravelry? Seriously it's a knitter's god send!

Sorry for no picts of the Monkeys but I had an itch to blog so figured I'd hop to it!

Thank you so much for all the well wishes and comments on my surgery. I'm pretty much recovered and feel amazing. I stand straighter and my back doesn't hurt like it used to. If you or anyone you know is debating whether or not to have a reduction, seriously go for it. Feel free to email me if you have any questions about it!!

Pictures!

2008-06-06T12:16:00.005-05:00

See? I've been knitting, obsessive knitting actually. I have so many dishrags it's getting a tad embarrassing.

I was tired of sitting around doing the typical increase on the edge pattern. Surfing the web and Ravelry was so fun! There is such a variety of patterns out there. I chose two that really intrigued me.

This is the Vortex Pattern. It's my first whack at this pattern and I'm sure my next will be much better. It takes a once through to get the concept of the design. It is so cool. It is knit in two different colorways. Ravelry link , Regular Link
It's really fun!

Vortex Washrag

Another fun pattern I found was Garterlac Dishcloth. I'd never done Enterlac before and this is perfect beginner pattern and because it's all garter stitch, that's one less thing to have to worry about. You can really wrap your mind around the concept. Ravelry link, Regular Link
and a wonderful picture tutorial out on Flickr.

Gartlerlac Dishrag

It appears I am FINALLY over my knitterly block with the brown bag exchange yarn. It is Jawoll Color in rainbow. I hate this yarn. It's become affectionately know as 'that piece of shit yarn' around my house. For those of you that enjoy this yarn, all the power to you, but when /I/ use it, it squeaks and makes my skin crawl!!

I first chose to do a pair of mitts.

It was tedious, unpleasant and became a 'job' so of course it stayed on the bottom of the work bag. As the days went by, it grew heavier and heavier on my mind. I finally frogged the mitt, it was a tad bit longer than shown. I looked around and thought I'd make various Christmas ornaments with it; mini raglan sweaters, mini socks, stars/hearts from EZ. But when I cast on, I just couldn't get the mojo going, it still felt like work. NOT FUN. Back it went to the bottom of the work basket.

I called one of my best friends, Woman Who Says Knita and asked her how would she feel if she'd put yarn into an exchange and then got back her yarns plus ...say five dishrags? I was beaten by this blasted yarn! She said nicely she'd be upset. Not the answer I wanted, but the one I knew was RIGHT. C suggested I use it as a carry along yarn. Hmm! There was a whole new direction I hadn't thought of! Hats or mittens ideas were bandy about and I settled on doing a generic Yarn Harlot hat while carrying the Jawoll along with some Simply Satin in black. It was ok, but I was running out of options and time so I plugged along.

One night when I set it down I realized it look a bit like a purse. Hmm. And wham bang shazam my knitting mojo came back. Yay! I had inspiration and was off like a shot.

I know how to crochet even though I prefer knitting. It is a skill that comes in handy at times. I chose to crochet up some small roses and will sew them on around the bag. I have 5 different solid colors, so I'm thinking it will be pretty cute.

It's amazing how true it is that if you love what you do, it's not work to you. I can't wait to finish this just to see how it's going to turn out. I've had so much fun working on it since it became a 'purse'. I'm just glad C. helped me figured out what this yarn was destined to be!!!

I'll be sure to post an FO layout when it's done!

Hope all is good for you. :)

Oh on the surgery front, things are healing well but I'm still sore as the dickens. Things are settling and all the bruising is coming out, but I'll survive. :)

Save Knitty Gritty

2008-06-04T01:05:00.001-05:00

Did you know that HGTV is no longer going to produce more shows of Knitty Gritty? Isn't that horrible! One of the few shows that I feel represents the online knitting bloggers, it would be such a shame for it to be gone.

Please sign the online petition to HGTV to try and keep it in production.

http://www.petitiononline.com/1234lulu/petition-sign.html?

I was the 3740th signer, here's to hoping we can grow that number.

Hellooooo....hellooo...

2008-06-03T02:19:00.002-05:00

*tap tap*
Is this thing on?
I'm going to pretend it is. Boy life has been interesting. I'm not a huge poster of all things personal, for a couple of reasons. No one really cares what my little girl ate for dinner..now if she shoves a carrot up her nose, I'll be sure to get a blog worthy photo and share THAT. And this is mainly my knitting life and it's odd to shoot too much information out there on the net. Once it's out there, it's out there.. And on that note, here's my TMI for the year ;)

I had a breast reduction last Wednesday. It was uncomfortable but I'm so glad I went through with it. Buxom women run in my family and my mother regrets never having it done. I nursed my 2 daughters and if gravity doesn't wreck things, nursing sure will. I'm currently overweight, but being so fluffy on top makes working out a challenge..hell fitting into a sports bra is an extreme challenge. I usually wear two layers. I've was a D my senior year in HS when I was a mere 130 lbs (I'm 5'7") I've battled with this issue for many years.

I've been stressed about it, really who doesn't stress somewhat about surgery? Tomorrow I go get the bandages off and will finally get to see the results, though I do know my surgeon removed a little over 4 lbs total.

As a result of the stress involved, I've kept churning out dish rags. I found some really interesting patterns out on the net. I thought I had pictures but they are still on the camera and it IS 2:30 am, so I'll post them soon.

But I want to keep you entertained a bit, so here are 2 pictures I took recently.

This is our hamster Fluffy. She is adorable and very good with my girls.

These are the grape hyacinths I had in my garden this spring. They have such vibrant color..oh and everyone needs a garden gnome.. :)

Nope, didn't fall into a hole..

2008-05-22T20:46:00.002-05:00

I fell into 'life' as it were. My mom came to visit us for a week and my eldest turned 8 *gasp*. We had a couple of parties, her choice was a letterboxing one with her girlfriends. It was really fun. We made passports, stamps, trail mix, decorated visors and waterbottles. Then my amazing DH took 6 little girls to find a local letterbox. They had a blast. I forsee many other trips this summer!

Knitting has been happening. I've finished a few more washrags and have been working on the next SKP2008 pair of socks. They are really fun. One of the more 'difficult' lace patterns I've done. It is NOT one you can memorize plus every row has a different stitch count. Keeps you on the your toes!

I have been having knitting 'mojo' problems...well maybe not mojo but rather obligation knitting issues. Ugh. My least favorite thing in the entire world. I talked about my brown bag object for my guild..but to heck if I can find the post. It's where we exchange odd balls of yarn and knit something for the person out of their yarn. Well mine was freaking Jawoll sock yarn. As if I can knit a pair of socks for someone without knowing who they are..so I opted to make mitts. It's very slow going. A veritable slog. I haven't even managed to finish one. It's a nightmare. I can't stand to hold the yarn..it SQUEAKS. So I think i'm going to frog the one I started and knit up a whole bunch of mini sweaters and mini socks. At least it won't be mind numbing 1x1 rib.

Now I just need to get some picts up! Spring has finally arrived in Wisconsin. It was a whopping 58 today! Yay! I'd say 95% of the leaves are finally out and there's hope of warmth around the corner.

Hope is going well with everyone. I've been quiet but still lurking the blogs. ;)

Bloomin yarn..

2008-05-04T15:29:00.004-05:00

Yes, it's a good day! :D Artsy Gal was having a sale. :)

And I even have an FO!

Specs:
Pattern:
Jaywalkers - Grumperina
Yarn: Socks That Rock Silkie
Needles: size 1
Started: November 2007
Finished: May 1, 2008

These were one of those pairs of socks that just never ever wanted to be done. They were my Mom's 'Christmas Socks', 'Birthday Socks (March), and are now her Mother's Day Socks! Oh well at least she'll finally get them .:)

I also finished 2 more wash rags, but eh..just didn't forgot to take a picture. :)

Spring

2008-05-03T18:04:00.001-05:00

Who doesn't love Saturday?

2008-05-03T10:08:00.003-05:00

I loved this idea so I 'borrowed' it from Nora! I love reading her blog, because unlike some of us *cough cough* she posts nearly every day!

On Saturdays I can...

sleep in a bit
knit knit knit
try to get a load or two of laundry done so I feel I 'did' something
go to my daughter's soccer games
make chalk art with both my girls
go to the garden center and dream
knit some more
clean out the email box
update my podcasts on my ipod
look forward to Sunday to do it all again!

What will you do with your Saturday?

Stumble...

2008-04-27T13:59:00.002-05:00

Every now and again we stumble in various ways. I've battled with depression my whole life and well, I stumbled recently. Thanks to friends and family things are on the upswing. Since I've been busy with other things my knitting needed to be a comfort. Take a look at this!

Yep that would be a serious dent in the Christmas knitting. Gotta love the good ole' wash rag, complete mindless knitting. :)

My friends sent me these. Aren't they great? Both the friends AND the flowers, that is. :)

Hope everyone is doing well! we are supposed to get a nasty spring storm here tomorrow, so that should be interesting!

Woohoo!

2008-04-14T20:39:00.005-05:00

Yay babeee, I got my classes! Woohoo. :)

Vintage Socks with Nancy Bush
From the Neck Up with Barry Klein
Celtic Cables with Melissa Leapman
Darn It! with Merike Saarnitt

and tickets to the Student Banquet!

It seems like forever until August! :D Are you going? Even if you aren't going for a class then you should go for the Yarn Market. Yum.

Moment in the Sun

2008-04-13T11:08:00.003-05:00

I know my neighbors think I'm insane. It's cloudy today but we had about 5 minutes of sun. I grabbed my camera and yarn and dashed outside. I quickly snapped pictures and can share my new purchases. :)

First is my ArtsyGal Yarn of the Month shipment for March. The base is tightly spun and sproingy. I love it, plus it's so pretty and different. I'm really trying to move out of my comfort zone on the sock yarns.
Second is Stone Barn Fibers in the Angela colorway. It's intense and so fun! This is from Loopy Ewe. If you've never shopped there, you really should. Sheri the owner is so sweet and it's nice to give business to a place with amazing customer service.
Third is Milk and Honey from Lisa Souza in sport weight. It's so yummy, very lush. I'm going to make a pair of socks from it as well.

I tried to take a completed pict of my Bartholomew socks but the sun is behind the clouds again. I really had like a 5 min window! So I hope you all appreciate these picts. ;) J/K

Dude....

2008-04-12T13:06:00.000-05:00

This is scary true..

You Are An ISFJ

The Nurturer

You have a strong need to belong, and you very loyal.

A good listener, you excel at helping others in practical ways.

In your spare time, you enjoy engaging your senses through art, cooking, and music.

You find it easy to be devoted to one person, who you do special things for.

In love, you express your emotions through actions.

Taking care of someone is how you love them. And you do it well!

At work, you do well in a structured environment. You complete tasks well and on time.

You would make a good interior designer, chef, or child psychologist.

How you see yourself: Competent, dependable, and detail oriented

When other people don't get you, they see you as: Boring, dominant, and stuck in a rut

What's Your Personality Type?

Hello Sunshine...

2008-04-11T12:55:00.004-05:00

Um ya,
Sunshine, there's none of that here. We just have lots and lots of rain. I keep telling myself, and anyone within earshot, April showers bring May flowers! Honest!

We've had the cruddiest winter in eons and it looks like our Spring is just going to be wet wet wet. All I have to say is we'd better have THE BEST SUMMER EVER to make up for this crap. Seriously.

I'd show you some luscious new yarn I have but all the pictures were so washed out and ugly, I just couldn't misrepresent beauty like that. So hopefully the sun will make an appearance soon.

I have been knitting away on the Bartholomew Socks from Cat Bordhi's book. It's going well. It's a huge sock, as in long. It fits me perfectly and is really lovely.

The colors stink in this picture. They are much prettier. Gotta love Briar Rose Fibers!

I have to start knitting on a pair of mitts for a Brown Bag swap at the Greater Milwaukee Knitting Guild. Once a year we bring in a brown bag with a ball or two from our stash, it's secretly swapped with someone else, they take it home and knit it into something and it's returned to the original owner. It's kinda fun, but this year I got 2 skeins of Lang Jawoll Color. It's ugly, it feels bad on my hands and I'm not knitting a pair of socks for someone when I don't know their size. :P So I settled on a pair of fingerless mitts and I might do a mini sock and a mini raglan sweater ornament. I just want to finish it up soon since the next Sock Pentathlon pattern comes out on May 1st.

So what's on your needles?

So smart!

2008-04-08T21:32:00.001-05:00

Dude I'm edumacated...a tad.

Finally!

2008-04-05T13:37:00.003-05:00

Ah, color! Rich lovely color. It's beautiful out today. A rocking 61 degrees! Oh ya baby, shorts and tank top weather. ;) I am so happy winter is over and done with.

I dove into the stash and came up with my Briar Rose Fibers, Grandma's Blessings. It is so beautiful. Granted the colors are fall, but they are so rich.

I'm digging back into Cat Borhdi's New Pathways for Sock Knitters. The pattern is Bartholomew's tantalizing socks.

The ball band rag is taking a break. I love the colors.

Just wanted to share!

Closet work..

2008-04-02T14:48:00.003-05:00

I worked on my craft closet and it has gone from this-

to this! It's all nice and organized with labels and everything. :)

Much better. Now I just have to go through all those shoes! They are my girls' shoes and I need to figure out what fits, what doesn't and what to save.

So is it silly that these make me happy?

I think these are ridiculously cute. I needed to replace all the above kitchen tools and when I saw these at Target I had to have them. I'll smile every time I use one!

On the knitting front I'm still working on a simple dishrag. My oldest daughter caught the 'gunk' so we've been down and out this week. Fun fun. :P

Knit on

2008-03-31T21:29:00.005-05:00

Hey,
Just had to share this. Isn't it hysterical?

http://icanhascheezburger.com/

And of course these!

Specs:
Pattern:
Embossed Leaves - Mona Schmidt in Favorite Socks from Interweave
Yarn: Socks That Rock Mediumweight in Jade
Needles: size 2
Started: March 10, 2008
Finished: March 26, 2008

Woohoo! That's two pairs of socks in March. Yay for me. :) Cuz well they are both FOR me. ;)

I have another FO to share.

Specs:
Pattern:
Fiber Trends Felted Clogs
Yarn: Cascade 220 in a Raspberry and a Raspberry Twist. I've no color the color ID
Needles: size 13
Started: March 27, 2008
Finished: March 31, 2008

Well it's an almost FO. I still need to felt them, but I've been doing laundry all day so the washer was actually in use!

Here's a picture to show pre-felt size. Hopefully tomorrow I'll get them felted. :) Sorry about the crappy rainy day light. I have a size 9 women's foot. These are the Women's medium sized. And don't fall over, but these are Christmas knits babeeee! Yep, they are for the MIL. Check off one gift! :D

And yep those are my Embossed leaves. They are THE most comfortable socks I've ever knit. I adore them. Now I'm on to knitting a ballband washrag from Mason Dixon just to fill some time. I don't want to start another pair of socks yet..since I'll be doing at least one next month (May) for the Pentathlon.

Whew, it's been an incredibly great knitting month...oh! And I have another FO. I finished the woven scarf I started. It's gorgeous, so soft. I'm letting my 4 year old wear it, but I can steal it back next winter and wear it more as a collar. Hmm must get pictures of it! So a total of 4? FOs. yay! :)

Hope you've been as productive. I think it has do to with me avoiding looking out the windows at the crap weather!

Sharing the sillies...

2008-03-28T14:39:00.005-05:00

Just a few odd things I had to share.

http://www.lileks.com/institute/sears1973/index.html

You MUST go look at this. It's the Sears 1973 catalog. It's hysterical.

Are you watching Idol? If you are and haven't read this, PLEASE do. I thought I was going to hyperventilate., specifically the recap of 3/24 on Archuletta. Priceless.

http://www.televisionwithoutpity.com/Shows/American-Idol

Then there is the good ole' LOL Cats. Classic silliness.

http://icanhascheezburger.com/

For those shopoholics
http://fredflare.com/customer/home_nextbigthing08.php?siteID=null
Where there are fantastic things like

animal vacuums

bacon and egg bandaids. No really.

cake roll wash rags

And finally a new podcast, oh my.

Y-Knit

Get it, listen, laugh..in that order :) Oh, and have a great weekend while I'm telling you what to do. ;)

Seriously?

2008-03-25T17:01:00.001-05:00

I'm moving...thhhbbbttt!

Thursday Night
	Blustery. Periods of snow and chance of rain in the evening...then snow likely after midnight. Snow accumulation around 2 to 4 inches. Total snow accumulation 4 to 8 inches. Lows around 30. Northeast winds 15 to 25 mph. Chance of precipitation 80 percent.

Lovin It!

2008-03-23T13:36:00.004-05:00

Happy Easter. :)

Here's #1 of my Embossed Leaves. This is my favorite sock ever. I think I've knit something like 10 pair but this pattern in this colorway?

Gorgeous! :D

Now I'm off to cast #2 on!

Spring!

2008-03-22T12:39:00.004-05:00

Hahahahahahahaha...
Sorry. This is spring Wisconsin style. 12 inches later.... Ugh. That was yesterday.

This is today. We went sledding, it really was gorgeous.

The kids had a great time and I got to knit a bit while waiting for them in the van. I HATE snow. Seriously. There's now way in hell I'm getting out in it. Thank goodness the DH is from here, so he goes out with them.

I finished my cross stitch. I'm going to give it to my Mom for her birthday. It's really pretty. It's roughly 3x3.

On the knitting front I finished my Jacobean socks from the Sock Knitters Pentathalon.

Specs:
Pattern:
Jacobean Socks- Julie Persinger
Yarn: Socks That Rock Mediumweight in Lover's Leap
Needles: size 2
Started: March 3, 2008
Finished: March 18, 2008

One of my goals in life is to find the 'Perfect' knitting bag. And you know what? I think I've come pretty damn close! This is an Eddie Bauer bag I bought at one of their outlets. I can't find it anywhere online to link to it.

I am SO in love. It's the perfect size, zips closed, has exterior and interior pockets and it made from material knitting needles won't pierce. Oh and it's liliac! Whoot. :)

Love love love it and the fact it was only 25 bucks just adds to the joy. :)

Last but not least, by any stretch, are my Embossed Leaves in medium weight STR in the Jade colorway. It's all good!

I've turned the heel and am now onto the foot. I can't wait to wear these! But for now I'm off to dye eggs. Have a wonderful Easter!

More goodies..

2008-03-17T18:23:00.003-05:00

I have more things to share! Sorry it took awhile, we went to the Wisconsin Dells for the weekend. I am SO loving this quasi-Spring weather. Look!

THAT my friends is something green, no not the extension cord for the Christmas deer that are still in the yard (they are frozen there), but the other green thing! It's something growing, I'm guessing hyacinth. They come up really early...well for Wisconsin. And also note the snow is receding! Wohoo!

We've also had an addition to the household..well actually 3. This is the first one.

A Wii! My DH got it for his birthday. It is very fun. The other 2 additions are our 'hammies'. We bought 2 Chinese dwarf hamsters for our daughters. Fluffy and Cookie. Cookie bites, but loves to run in the exercise ball, and Fluffy is very gentle. I'm not sure who likes them more, me or the girls! I'll try to get some picts of them to share. They tend to hide and the light has been so horrible recently.

Now on to some crafting!

I bought myself a cross stitch stand. Serious marketing there. I am NOT that old!!

Here it is by my chair. I really love having it, I'm able to stitch faster and longer. No more wrist aches!

This is my current project. It's much further along. I plan on giving it to my Mom for Mother's Day.

I finished my JOY stitching. Now I just need to get the little frames for it. They are roughly 18 bucks a pop, so I'll be getting them over the next few months!

Finally an amazing photo of the Lunar Eclipse on March 3rd that my husband took with our dinky little digital camera. Isn't it amazing! I'm so proud of him. :)

Ok! I think I've finally exhausted all my back logged photos. So off I go to work and make more. :)

Yay! I'm baaaaack..

2008-03-10T16:39:00.003-05:00

Did you miss me? :)

I've continued to keep up on what you are doing, but wasn't able to post pictures until now. So be prepared!

Here's my Misti from my birthday. Absolutely yummy.

My friends also gave me two hanks of Angora. I'm thinking fetching or something like that.

I used my birthday money to buy the Options set from Knitpicks. They are so LIGHT! I hadn't heard that about them. I haven't used them yet, but can't wait.

I am making the Misti into a woven scarf. I think it really shows off the colors.

It's so squishy and soft!

I also bought myself some Claudia Handpaint from the Loopy Ewe. It's called Peppermint Mocha. I LOVE it.

I finished one of my mom's jaywalkers made from Silkie STR. I finished a hat for my older daughter, only to find it fits my younger daughter. Ooops. At least it fits someone! I'll try to get some pictures of it.

I joined the Sock Pentathlon that started on Ravelry. We'll be knitting 5 pairs of socks during 08. The first is a gansey pattern. Very fun and cute.

I'm using STR Lover's Leap in medium weight. I goofed on the 2nd and 3rd diamond from the toe. I missed 2 rows of the pattern so they are smooshed together. Ooops.

You can see some of my birthday stitch markers too. It's so nice to have pretty ones!

Well that's a start. I still have some Cross Stitching to share, so I'll do that soon!

Creativity, Connection and Cynicism

2008-02-28T22:43:00.005-06:00

These things have been swirling around in my head.
creating.
I've done it my entire life. I've always enjoyed crafting and making things. I honestly can't imagine life without this. What do other people DO with their time? It's a release for me to create something that I think is beautiful or useful. I want to leave a mark on this world in someway and goodness knows I'm not going to find a cure for cancer or lead the whole world to peace..but I might be able to leave my family a few items they will love and treasure for years to come.

connection and cynicism

I bill myself as a cynic and am the majority of the time. I hate lovey dovey kinda stuff and sweet just makes me smirk..but every now and again the cynic in me has to shut up. One of the things that does this, is the connection I feel every time I pick up a needle of any sort and create. I feel the connection from my hands running back through my grandmothers' hands and their mothers' hands etc. I feel it. I imagine women sitting with their embroidery hoops in medieval times stitching samplers.
It's there.
The connection.
It's real and I'm thankful for it.

I've been busy stitching and knitting some as well, but my laptop is still sick. :P It went to Compaq, came back and is shipping BACK to them as we speak. What a PITA. I have an older desk top that I can still check mail and read blogs, but I can't work with photos or update my iPod. Seriously. NO iPod updates. Do you have any idea how crappy that is? Erg. I'm hoping it will be back and functional in the next week. I am glad I have a fall back, but DAMN I want my laptop!!!

Thanks for all the sweet thoughts and kind words on my hands! Not having the laptop has been good for my wrists as well as taking a wee break from knitting. I finished up the hat I was working on and have cast on a pair of socks tonight, so we'll see how they feel after a few days. :) Luckily the cross stitching doesn't seem to be effecting them at all. I bought a stand for my hoop and my wrists are pain free. Yay!

I've also been wondering about how other people blog. Do you tell all about your process or just your successes or spectacular failures? When I've finished a great project and am looking around for a new one, it takes me so much longer to find what I want. It drives me crazy! I have a skein of Euroflax that I still can't figure out what to do with. I tried to make the everlasting bagstopper with it. I didn't get far, there are to many K2Togs for my wrists to handle right now. So it went back to marinate in the stash. I then remembered my basic little let's learn crochet book had a crochet version which would be much easier and much faster. I cast on and it seemed to be going well, but then I realized that I should have used a stitch marker and the previous rows were off. So again Frog. Again banished back to the stash. Most of the time I think I should blog about it, but it's come and gone and I forget. :)

Forgive me for rambling!!

When things go bad...

2008-02-19T15:51:00.002-06:00

Bad things really do come in groups, don't they?

I have tendinitis in my hands. At least I'm pretty sure it's not carpal, the symptoms lean more towards the tendinitis.. Anyway! Both of my wrists have flared up. I've been doing a bunch of knitting at a small gauge, plus I've been working on my Cross-stitch. So poof.. I'm down for the count. Fingers prickling, hands swollen every time I wake up. Blah.

I put myself on a craft hiatus from last Thursday until yesterday. I let myself cross stitch a bit, but no knitting as of yet. Which sucks because Saturday was my birthday (yay I'm old) and I have an awesome group of girlfriends. I have a gorgeous hank of Mist Alpaca HANDPAINTED Chunky. It's just calling to me. It's in the Delphinium colorway. Here would be a picture of said goodness but remember? Bad things happen in groups..

My wireless curled over and died in my laptop. :P So we had to pack it up and ship it to HP since it was under warranty still (the silver lining I suppose). I'm happy to have my own IT department (DH) and they got me up and running on one of our older desktops. They even ran ethernet into the spare room so I don't have to freeze my toosh off in the basement. But it doesn't have any of my graphics crap on it, so no pictures.

So no knitting/crafting, limiting my typing/surfing online to help the wrist and the fact I don't have my laptop..not much to blog about!

I will have photos up of my birthday goodness soon. OH! And I ordered a set of KnitPicks Options. I can't WAIT to get them. :) That's when I'm going to let myself knit again. My Malabrigo laceweight is sooooo calling to me. I've caked it up and it sits by my chair, calling to me. :)

Hope everyone in the 'heartland' is staying warm. I am beyond sick of winter. I'm no longer mad at the season, just resigned and sad. Ugh 13 degree high today, and 12 for tomorrow and 15 on Thursday. This is ridiculous! Most of the local cities are out of salt. Yes I said OUT of salt. The roads are a rink. :P

Happy/Sad

2008-02-11T15:29:00.000-06:00

These make me happy. Jimmies just make me smile.

These make my husband happy. Peanut squares are cupcakes turned upside down, smeared on all sides but the bottom with frosting and then smashed up peanuts are dribbled all over.

This does not make me happy. I'm learning to live with it, but I still don't have to like it.

Seriously look at that mailbox! And we are supposed to get another 3 inches tonight. UGH. Stupid groundhog...

I want to change my advent calendar..or rather how the girls hang ornaments on it. Now we use straight pins, not the safest or easiest thing. Today I tried to use gold pony style beads..

They looked cute but it wasn't easy to hang things from them. I only sewed on 3, so it didn't take much for me to take them off. I'm now thinking of buttons..maybe small shank style buttons or even regular buttons. Not sure if I'll go gold, or maybe rainbow colors so they look like tree lights. I'll have to poke around the button aisle.

I've restarted A's spiral hat. Hopefully it will fit this time! I've also finished my 'O' cross stitch and have moved onto 'Y'! Yay me. :) Looks like it will actually be done by next Christmas. ;)

Hope you are all staying warm and being creative!

Tons of Stuff!

2008-02-02T11:14:00.001-06:00

This is a packed entry..packed mainly full of photos! I've been busy so I'm a bit behind.

I've been recognized by two of my fellow bloggers!

Peggy who Chases Bunny all over
I Love Peg, I feel like she and I could plunk down in a starbucks somewhere and knit along happily. Her blog keeps me entertained and teaches me new things as well.

and Nora who thinks she's Knot Much of Knitter
but I'm not convinced! She makes me laugh quite a bit and almost always makes me think.

Thank you ladies!

Of course there are strings attached - I now get to nominate 10 bloggers who make my day, so they can pass on the fun. Of course some people will be nominated more than once, so try to be a good sport if you’re a popular one! Here’s my list:

1.The Woman Who Says " Knit "

2. The Knitting Moose -

3. More Than One Way to Knit A Hat

4. Minestrone Soup

5. Knits with a silent K

6. Kerry Knits

7. Just A Knit Wit

8. Flatlander

9.dogged.

10. Crimson Purl

Now onto the promised pictures of various crafting!

I finished J and am working on O.

I've actually grown to enjoy the linen. It softens as you work with it and isn't as harsh as Aida cloth.

I reorganized my stash and felt a need to work some of it. I'd always wanted to make a felted bowl and I had 2 balls of Noro Kureyon just sitting there!

Here it is pre-felted.

And after a toss in the wash. Noro takes quite a bit of washing to get it to felt all the way. I like it when you completely lose stitch definition.

For all of it's vegetable matter, Noro is still a wonder to knit with.

Specs:
Pattern:
Large Shallow Bowl - Deborah Does Navel-Gazing
Yarn: 2 skeins Noro Kureyon - held double
Needles: size 13
Started: January 20 2008
Finished: January 23 2008

While stash diving, I found the yarn I'd purchased to make a stuffed owl. It was for a Harry Potter KAL for book 7..and well I was so busy reading I didn't knit! It's made with Bernat Boa, a very odd yarn. It's similar to Fun Fur, but actually easier to knit with. The pattern is from the Family Circle book of Easy Toys.

I still need to make his wings, tail, feet and attach his eyes. It's a cute pattern. I'll let you see what it's like finished when I'm done.

A liked V's Spiral Hat so much she wanted one for her. A's 7 and has 'outgrown' pink then purple and now she's an orange girl. ORANGE! I swear this Trekking colorway reminds me of all the 70's kitchen colors thrownup on yarn. But she likes it...so I'll make it for her! Unfortunately the above had to be completely frogged because it was too big. The yarn is resting in a time out and I'll start again in a few days.

My friends C and J drug (kicking and screaming no less) me to one of our LYS. And this jumped into my arms.

Malabrigo Lace Weight. Oh My. It's so light! It's so squishy! I am not normally a lace person. It's futzy and I can't imagine wearing a shawl so I've stayed away from it in the past. But this? This is Malabrigo, so I'll make an exception! These colors screamed spring to me.

I found two very pretty lace scarf patterns online. One is the Easy Flame Scarf by Wendy of Knit and Tonic. The other is a free Ravelry download. Leaf Lace Scarf by Janet D. Russell.

Finally I had an Oh shit moment.
These are the first pair of STR I knit, Sauvie Island
I swear this physically hurt me. *sniff* It must have been picked on something. Luckily the hole is just in the toe color and I have the left overs. I need to pick out the toe and reknit it, so it could have been worse!
I know socks are knit to be worn and all will eventually wear out, but it really sucks!

Currently we are holed up in our house waiting out the Winter Storm from Hell (tm). We are projected to get 14 inches when all is said and done...whenever THAT is. (June?)

Cross Crafting...

2008-01-23T16:10:00.000-06:00

I was telling Nora (Knot Much of Knitter) that one of the reasons I was so determined to get my last pair of socks done was I had an itch to stitch.

But not knit stitch, rather Cross Stitch.

When I dug out all of my craft things from the basement I found my floss and supplies. I've missed this craft, it's just difficult to do with smaller children around, but mine are finally big enough!

I dropped by a local Stitching Store (The Stitch Inn in Elm Grove, WI). It's very cute. I'd never been in a store dedicated entirely to stitching.

You HAVE to love the Village of Elm Grove. They have a Knitting Store (The Yarn House), a quilting store (Patched Works) and the stitching store (The Stitch Inn) within 'spitting distance' of one another. Seriously they are within a city block of one another. Those women of Elm Grove know how to do things! Just ask The Woman Who Says Knit. The other important thing in that block is Le Cakery. Yep, it's a dangerous neighborhood to live near!

Anyway! Back to the crafting...

This is the first time I've stitched on linen and I'm not sure I like it all that much. *shrug* I would like to try to stitch with silk though. This is just good ole' DMC.

The pattern is cute. It's the complete alphabet and there are other words I'd like to make. Right now I'm doing JOY which is what caught my attention in the store. I like to stitch but I've learned the hard way that my attention span is short! There's no way I'd finish one of those large framed pieces. I keep my stitching to ornaments for Christmas and other smaller items.

Do you cross craft?

Obligatory Knitting

2008-01-21T16:23:00.000-06:00

I hate Obligatory Knitting. Hate it. Hate it because I hate it, yet want the item to gift to whomever. :P
Oh well! I have the pair of socks done for Ramona aka NoNo (don't you love that nickname? she's had it forever..she's in her 60's)

Specs:
Pattern:
Basic Sock
Yarn: Bernat Sox in Lime, Turquoise and a Multi of some kind
Needles: size 3
Started: January 17 2008
Finished: January 21 2008
Notes: I cast on 44 stitches, used a short row heel, ribbed 2x2 down the entire foot, with SS on the sole and decreased to a kitchenered the toe.

Literature!

2008-01-19T21:25:00.000-06:00

I have 2 young daughters, I like to knit and I love to read. These things kind of cross each other out and you have to make choices and find run arounds. I have two that I really love!

My iPod!
Oh ya baby. As stupid as it sounds the iPod I got last Christmas really changed my life. Isn't that silly? I listen to a variety of podcasts: Craftlit, Escapepod, Pseudopod, A Prairie Home Companion:News from Lake Wobegon, The Classic Tales Podcast
I listen to a ton of knitting related podcasts, most listed in the sidebar, but we're talking lit. :)
I purchased a subscription to Audible.com and have listened to some great books! Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert is the current thing in my 'ears'. Past reads were Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman, The Chopin Manuscript which was a book written for Audible by various mystery authors, Heartsick by Chelsea Cain, The Colour of Magic by Terry , The Wheel of Darkness by Lincoln Child and Douglas Preston. Another way to listen to books is check them out from your library on CDs.
There are many different MP3 players that are good deals on the market. They don't have to have a huge memory, so if you don't have one and like to read, GET one! :D

PBS/DVR/Tivo
I feel like I'm freaking old, but PBS runs some amazing productions and I'd never really been able to catch them. Every local PBS station runs things at different times and it was a pain in the ass to try and track it all down. Now? With the advent of Tivo/DVR I've been able to watch so many lovely things! Currently Masterpiece Theater is running a marathon of Complete Works of Jane Austen. It's amazing. I watched Persuasions the other night. I LOVED it.

I also watch Agatha Christie's Miss Marple Mysteries, Nature and American Experience. I've become an old lady apparently! I sit in my chair, knit and watch PBS....and I love it!

Yep I'm old!

The socks for my mom's friend are moving along but I don't have my camera right now! The rest of my family is at the Wisconsin Dells for the weekend and took it, so pictures will have to come later. (I voluntarily stayed home. I don't 'DO' the cold, so the Flake Out Festival is not really my thang!)

Music Meme

2008-01-18T10:29:00.000-06:00

I found this over at Knot Much of A Knitter
and couldn't NOT do it! I'll stick with her attitude of no one is 'tagged' but if you feel like joining in drop me a link!

1. First album/record you ever bought?

Hmm Elvira by Oak Ridge Boys. It was a 45 and I thought it was so fun to dance to. I must have been 6 or 7, so give me a break. ;) Another was Greatest American Hero.

2. Most embarrassing album you ever bought?

LOL. John Schneider's Christmas Album. Yes THAT John Schneider from Dukes of Hazzard! I was SO in love with him..again we are talking 78-80 somewhere in there.

3. High School Soundtrack?

Hrm. This is hard to stick down to one. My personals were Depeche Mode A Black Celebration and U2's Joshua Tree. For school itself itself it was Phantom of the Opera. That was the band's theme for their field performance! I wasn't in the band, but I dated someone who was! Oh and Dirty Dancing. I listened to that tons!d

4. College Soundtrack?

Hmm Enigma..Enya...Art of Noise..I enjoyed listening to music..as for fun stuff..hmm..Counting Crows..

5. Most Appalling Musical Moment?

Hmm. I loved the Monkees when they came 'back' in the late 80's. MTV played all their shows and I recorded them all. I listened to Barbara Streisand when I was in HS..not cool.
But Appalling? I suppose it'd be Stevie B. A boyfriend I dated while in HS loved him and I couldn't stand it but was forced to listen to him and knew all the lyrics!

Please join in and share!!

Moving on...

2008-01-17T17:55:00.000-06:00

My mom has knee replacement surgery this coming weekend. She lives in Texas, I live in Wisconsin, so I'm not going to be there for her. To assuage some of my guilt I knit her a pair of socks to wear in the hospital and at home. I used left overs and they don't match, BUT they are soft and squishy, so I hope she'll like them!

Mom's House Socks

Specs:
Pattern:
Basic Sock w/short row heel
Yarn: Elsebeth Lavold Classic AL , 50/50 Alpaca/Wool
Needles: size 4
Started: January 2008
Finished: January 2008
Notes: These socks are made with leftovers. It took roughly 40 grams per sock. I cast on 44 stitches, used a short row heel, ribbed 2x2 down the entire foot, with SS on the sole and decreased to a kitchenered the toe.

It was a close call! I'm glad I managed to finish them.

We haven't seen tons of this in Milwaukee recently, but I had a snowflake land on my black wool coat. They really are amazing to look at!

I found a blanket my grandmother knit and duplicate stitch for me. It's very sweet and serves as a reminder to me of my crafty heritage. The things we create today will long outlive us and hopefully bring many smiles in the future. :) I just imagine her sitting in her rocker, knitting and then carefully stitching each square, all that time spent to create something for me.

Yea, I appreciate it so much more now.

Next on my needles are a quick pair of socks for the family friend who'll be helping out my mom during her recovery. :)

I'm a camel!

2008-01-14T08:58:00.000-06:00

Camel – Consistent and inflexible
“Camel has very little elasticity, and it doesn’t felt easily. The fiber also doesn’t bleach easily, so you’ll normally find it used in yarns whose color either masks or enhances the natural tan shade of the camel fiber.” –The Knitter’s Book of Yarn

Camels are frank and straightforward in their manner. You know what you want and, while you are extremely polite and tactful, you have no difficulty being firm and definite. You are not very flexible or adaptable; you like things to be a certain way.

Not sure if this is good or not, but the quiz was cute!
What are you?

What Fiber are You?

An FO and hell....

2008-01-12T13:51:00.000-06:00

I've been working on my mom's jaywalkers in STR's Silkie, but really haven't been enjoying it. I just wanted something else to knit. That's when I realized that my youngest daughter doesn't have a knit hat or mittens. I can fix that!

I tried to do something from my stash, but ended up shopping anyway. I used the Mode Dea Sassy Stripes.

Specs:
Pattern:
Swirly Hat from Not Just Socks For Kids by Sandi Rosner
Yarn: Sassy Stripes, Moda Dea
Needles: size 3
Started: January 2008
Finished: January 2008

She really likes it

The back is so cute!

The hat is done on 3's so it isn't super fast, but being a child's hat it's ok. The final product is really cute. :)

So that's the FO, where's the hell? Um right here..

Yay. That would be my 'craft closet'. As mentioned before the majority of our things were in storage for the past 2 years, so now I'm digging through it. I still have 2 or 3 boxes in the basement to sort out and then I can take a stab at organizing it all.

There's miniature painting things, baskets, tons of fabric, a blue and red blanket I started crocheting TWENTY years ago *cough*, some fiberfill and other various crud. Ugh.

One of these days it will be organized! I swear. :) At least it's getting out of the basement so I can actually see what I have.

Get your shit together 2008!

2008 Resolution

2008-01-06T20:27:00.000-06:00

I'm not a huge resolution maker. I've always figured if you want to change something, you change it. I'm simple like that. But this year I'm going for it. And I'm putting it up on the blog to make it all official like.

Get Your Shit Together

Again, it's simple, like me. This will be my little mental note to myself when..say I pull the coupons out of the newspaper. Get Your Shit Together and cut them out and file them!! Same with doing laundry...filing bills..etc. It fits all over the place.

The last 2 years have been trying due to our various living situations. We lived with my In-laws (God bless em) when we sold our home and didn't have anywhere to live, put all our stuff in storage and then, 6 months later, moved into a home that was literally HALF the size of our previous one.

Needless to say my Shit has been all over and disorganized since. But now that we finished the attic conversion and I have my office/yarn room/spare room, it's easier for me to dig through aforementioned crap and deal with it.

So YAY for resolutions! Yay for a great 08!

Do you Blog in your head?

2008-01-03T17:09:00.000-06:00

I am so bad about that. I totally blog in my head..you know 'Hmm. This is cool. I should take pictures and blog about it. I'll say 'blah blah blah' and put this picture there etc.' I even get so far as to take the photos, but do I post? Nope, I did it already in my head. You mean you can't read it? Damn.

Here's a recap of the last month.

I survived. That's really about all I can say with confidence. We finished our attic renovation ,that started 18 months ago, moved our 2 girls upstairs with all their massive amounts of crap, had my mom here for 10 days, got a sinus infection (me) and managed to survive the holidays. Gifts were given, happily unwrapped and I can't WAIT for both my girls to go back to school! One went today and the other goes next week. Whew.

My most exciting gift this year was MY ROOM. Yep, I inherited the room the girls had been using. It's my yarn/craft room/spare room. I love it. LOVE IT.

My friend, C, said it looks like a mini Yarn Store. Squeeee. Gotta love that. :)

I really haven't been knitting. I had a ton of trim to paint before we could have the carpet installed upstairs and that kills my hands. Last thing I want to do is knit. :P But I finally started the last few days and dug into Cat Bhordi's new book. Here are my little baby learning socks.

I struggled with these a bit because I tried to over think it. In other words I tried to figure out what the hell Cat was doing and fought it. DON'T fight Cat. She actually knows what the hell she's doing. :)

Sorry about the poor winter light. I wasn't the only one trying to find it...

Snow has fallen a few times here in Wisconsin. I hate the cold, but am thankful I have a reason to wear handknits, and damn snow can be beautiful.

I'm looking forward to a great 2008 and seeing what you are all up to!

End of Year Meme

2007-12-11T17:36:00.000-06:00

I saw this over on boogaj's Blog and thought it'd be cool to see! You list the first line of the first entry for each month. :) So here goes!

January Well the holidays are over, the tree is down and the presents all unwrapped.

February Yep, This is a quick/easy item but is so adorable.

March *Move along if you want your Rockin Sock Club Shipment to be a surprise* :)

April I took a day to bask in the glory of my Inside Out Socks.

May The Chevron grows...while the Walking on the Wild Tide went from a formative Grasshopper...to a time out in the 'Naughty Bag', back in a ball.

June Yep, alive and blogging again.

July Well we are getting ready for the haul to Texas.

August Yes, another FO I can't show you yet.

September Yep I'm slacker and slapping!

October Main Entry: hu·bris
Pronunciation: 'hyü-br&s
Function: noun
Etymology: Greek hybris
: exaggerated pride or self-confidence

November I think most people have heard the saying 'Like calls to like'.

December Before I was a knitter, I was a crafter.

This is an easy fun meme that gives you a glance back too see what was going on all year. :) If you decide to do it, leave me a comment so I can look too!

Do you St. Nick?

2007-12-06T18:55:00.000-06:00

I grew up on the West Coast..or at least near it, (Las Vegas, Nv.) and I'd never heard of St. Nick's until I married my DH who was raised in Wisconsin. Then again I have no German ancestry.

The Germans are alive and well here in Milwaukee. They have one of the best, and the oldest, immersion elementary schools (began in 1977) in German. Many educators from around our country have come to see how MGIS works and modeled their schools after it. How do I know? My oldest went to MGIS (Milwaukee German Immersion School) for 2 years. And it's seriously immersion. Teachers speak nothing but German from Kindergarten (also a German word by the way..I'm started to feel like the dad in My Greek Wedding...) on, in the class room. The kids just pick it right up and run with it. It's amazing. We moved and my oldest moved schools.

ANYWAY

St. Nick's. On the evening of December 5th, St. Nick comes and puts candy and small toys in the children's stockings.
It's very popular here in Milwaukee.
My husband and I met in Denver and moved in together. Our first Christmas together he put things in my stocking and I didn't even realize it. Too funny! About a week later, I asked him if he put stuff in my stocking early..and he explained St. Nick's to me.

Last night he and I were awoken by our youngest (3) screaming, "St. Nick came! St. Nick came!" at THREE FIFTEEN AM. Urgh. We let our daughters look in their stockings and made them go back to bed. This year they had Slinkys, Silly Putty, lip gloss, Pop Rocks, and a cream filled Santa.

So? Any of you celebrate St. Nick's? Or have you at least heard of it??

Christmas Cross Crafting..

2007-12-03T14:30:00.000-06:00

Before I was a knitter, I was a crafter. I've been a crafter my whole life and I think a huge part of it was kick started by Christmas. My mom has always decorated the house like mad for Christmas, before it was the norm and Christmas was shoved down our throats as it is today.

In early December, my mom would put a card table up in my room and I'd get out all my crafty stuff; glue, scissors, markers, construction paper and GLITTER. Oh ya, I think Christmas was totally glitter to me. I'd make handmade ornaments, cards, gifts etc. This started in 2nd or 3rd grade and I've had a love affair with glitter ever since. Oh and crafts too.

The tree is up and I was looking at some of the ornaments I've made over the years. It's fun to have the memories of creating them! The most recent CraftyPod made me think of these things.

My Family Advent Calendar

In Sister Diane's' blog she mentions her Advent Calendar, which reminded me of the one I have. I created it as a replica of the one I grew up with. It's made with felt and gold Ric Rac. The Ric Rac is the important part! It has to be shiny.
My mother would pin up 2 candy canes for all 25 days (for my brother and me) and we'd get to take one down every night in December and put up an ornament. It's such a highlight of my childhood that I wanted to recreate one for my girls. My mom got hers about 35 years ago at a craftfair. We were living in Spain at the time (my dad was a AF Pilot) and the fair was held by the military wives. All the ornaments were from around Europe and unique. My mom gave me a handful of the surviving ones for my calendar. I also made a calendar for my brother and his family with some of the old ones as well as some new. I'm so glad I made them, my kids love it.

I don't put candy canes up because my kids won't eat them, instead they get a dollar store gift each night. (Lip gloss, stickers, pencil...etc..) I've wrapped them each and put them in a sack. They close their eyes and pull one out. It's cool to give them holiday items they can actually use during the season! I hate giving them cute hair bows and things on Christmas, because then the season's kinda over!

I've started watching Needles Arts Studio on PBS. I like it since it has a variety of crafts. I've got a total itch to cross-stitch again. It's really fun, just not an easy craft for when you have little little ones but now my 'baby' is almost 4 so I think I'm going to have to dig out my floss again!

We are in the process of finishing our attic for our daughters to move into. The carpet will be installed on the 13th and we'll get them up their by the 18th. I swear it's a palace. Their room is over 800 sq ft....anyway when they move, /I/ get their old room! Well sort of..it's a guest room/craft room and I can't wait! I see a bit more sewing in my future as well as digging out various old projects of all kinds.

Attic conversion in progress

Thanks to everyone for the well wishes. I am feeling better and am no longer hacking up unpleasant things (ewwww). I haven't gotten into the swing of the holidays yet. I think that has to do with finishing the attic..it's just taken so much out of all of us! My husband and father-in-law have done all the work. They been working on it since we moved in last June, as in 2006. fun fun. Anyway, I'm thinking about taking a year off from the Christmas Cards...do you think I'll be struck down or something?

The knitting does continue. I've added two dishcloths to the pile. They are nice and easy..well except the cotton! I can do them for awhile, but then have to take a break from the yarn.

I've turned the heel on the first of mom's jaywalkers. I'm making them a tad short to ensure I don't run out of yarn this time.

Hope everyone's cranking along on their holiday knitting, if they are doing some!

Licking My Wounds...

2007-11-27T21:31:00.000-06:00

I love to knit.
Really.
It just doesn't always love me..
Abby's sweater...damn...it was moving along well, so I thought!!
That's a picture of it when I connected sleeves to body, I knit about 5 inches into the yoke, had her try it on....and freaking ouch. The damn sleeves are too tight..it's all been yanked back, yarns reballed and two sleeves and the body jammed into a basket until after Christmas. I just can't face it and knitting is supposed to be fun. :)

So I worked on my Mom's jaywalkers on cold meds. Stupid is as stupid does. Yep had to tink back over 6 rows. It's in a baggie on top of the sweater in the basket. :)

I'm licking my wounds with some 'easy' knitting which I can't seem to get my mind around. It's ridiculous, I keep having to look at the pattern. Heh.

Hopefully this crappy sinus stuff will go away and I'll be back on the (knitting) ball again

Missed TurkeyDay..

2007-11-25T19:22:00.000-06:00

It's very odd to be sick on Thanksgiving. I managed to get the kids and husband up and dressed and EVEN did that same. We went to his Aunt's house and I thought I was going to die. So after 2 hours of chitchat I did that fade to black thing. I haven't decided if it's allergies or a cold. It started on a day we got a nasty front and it's still up in my sinuses (TMI I'm sure).

I got up today, after being up with my projectile vomiting 3 year old. (TMI again, and she doesn't have allergies...) So it's been a rough holiday weekend here in mi casa. I feel all akilter, kinda like you can't have two if you don't have one first...ie you can't have Christmas if you don't have Thanksgiving first!

Family doesn't seem to agree with me on that, so with dripping nose and achy head we put the Fall decorations away and put the tree up (no ornaments as of yet) along with a spattering of other things. The hubby and eldest put up our yard decorations. I just looked at him and said 'I don't care, just get it done'. Hehe. He could tell I felt like crap. I don't think I'm going to decorate to my normal all..maybe it will just build to a slow peak over the month!

I did some Black Friday shopping despite being sick. I really wanted a new iron since I ruined the last one when I made A's witch costume. It had glitter in the fabric and stuck to the iron bottom, plus I've always wanted a Rowenta. I sucked up and tottered off to JoAnn's and boo his they didn't have one. I'm not too bummed because if they had had one I would have had to join the queue from hell!

I came home, looked on JoAnn's website, ordered for the doorbuster price and no S/H! Whoot. There I feel good.

How were your Turkeydays? Well I hope. I'm really looking forward to this Christmas because our 900 ft addition (attic conversion) will FINALLY be done and my Mom is coming to spend 10 days with us. I'm sort of excited, but won't be until it's alllllll done. I think all the trim is in now and we are just at the paint, carpet, and finish electrical (put the sockets in, the wires are there).
I'm going to have a stroke or a whole bottle of champagne the day that thing is done.!!

Hope all is well with you guys. I did major unknitting this holiday. Abby's yoke sweater was about 1 from being done on the neck and I had her try it on. It just doesn't fit. The sleeves/armpit area are too tight. The only way to make those bigger, it so rip back to the three tubes. Whee. Whee...not. I also screwed up on my mom's Jaywalkers and had to rip out about an 1 of those. I shouldn't try to knit when I'm sick!!

Why am I not surprised??

2007-11-22T05:03:00.000-06:00

Grrr.
Hubris, which has been mentioned far more than I'd like in this blog, rears it's head again.
Things were good.
Now they are bad and I'm ignoring it. Literally. It's in a wad 0n the floor next to my chair.

The Yoke sweater was going well. The arms and body were connected, colorwork was planned and begun and knit knit knit. I'm about 2 inches shy of finishing, but I could feel it in my gut the darn things wasn't going to fit right. I put all the stitches onto a cotton strand and had my daughter try it on. The arms in the shoulder area are tight. The area before the colorwork and right after you join body and arms. UGH.

What does that mean? All the colorwork needs to go bye bye and I need to unjoin the body/arms to expand the top of both.

It's doable and I want a sweater my daughter will wear, so I'll get around to it, but DAMN it irks the hell out of me!! :D

So mom's jaywalker for Christmas is chugging along quickly..which is good...right???

Smokin Needles

2007-11-14T09:22:00.000-06:00

Ok, so I'm not really smoking needles, but rather my needles are smokin because they are being used so much. I felt that was worthy of clarifying!

I'm finally knitting my first Elizabeth Zimmerman sweater. I've been a long time fan of hers, but just haven't made anything. I've started a Seamless Yoke from the Knitting without Tears book. It uses the EZ percentage system which is painless. The sweater is going to be for my oldest who is 7 so it's is knitting up ridiculously fast. The yarn is the workhorse Cascade 220 on 7's.

I had a couple of skeins of Cascade in my stash and Abby liked them. She helped pick out which would be the main color and added a few to the accent colors. I love knitting this color. It's Quatro in an apple green. I never would have chosen this for the main color, I would have gone with the more sedate periwinkle we have. But this is awesome! And now she's invested in the sweater and excited about it's progress.

I'm not planning on doing the whole 'knit like a maniac' thing for Christmas. If I have time and inclination I might do a few washcloths or dishrags, but I'm not going to stress over it. The only item on the Official Christmas List is another pair of socks for my Mom. I bought the yarn specifically for her at Stitches East. It's Socks That Rock Silkie in Midsummer Night. It's lovely reminding me of denim. I cast on for a pair of Jaywalkers. The pattern goes really well with the Silkie.

I can really tell it's the cooler months of the year. This past summer I feel like I didn't get much done, but now it's the knitting time of the year. :)

Brrrr November

2007-11-11T11:08:00.000-06:00

Grey gray whatever..that's what it is outside! It may put a damper on outdoor activities and cause a bunch of chapped lips because the heat is running inside, but damn it seems to put the fire under my knitting!!

Here is the FO of Fetchings. These were what the rest of the Blogsphere has been raving about, fun, easy and rewarding to knit.

Specs:
Pattern:
Fetching from Knitty.com
Yarn: Sublime Ultra Fine Merino DK
Needles: size 7s
Started: November 2007
Finished: November 11, 2007

I was terrified I wasn't going to have enough yarn. This is ALL I had left. Seriously!!

I didn't properly write up the Waffle socks, so here goes!

Specs:
Pattern:
Waffle Pattern from Sensational Knitted Socks by Charlene Schurch
Yarn: Trekking XXL
Needles: size 1s
Started: April 1, 2007!!!
Finished: November 7, 2007

I need to take a close up of the arches. My DH's has very high arches so I did a band of slip stitches on the sole of the arch. It helps keep them nice and snug on his foot and give him a feeling of support. He likes them, so all is good! Just need to add a the reinforcing elastic to keep the cuff from sagging.

Onward and upward! I've been wanting to tackle an EZ seamless yoke for awhile now. I also wanted to knit a sweater for my oldest daughter, so I went stash diving and came up with some fun colors in Cascade 220. After my success with my Perfect Sweater I know this will knit up just right. Luckily the daughter loved the colors and helped me lay them out. I went and bought 2 more skeins of the main color, the lime quatro.

I cast on last night and already have 2 inches on the body. Gotta love knitting a kid sweater!!

Hmm I think that's all for now! Gotta go knit on that so I can get to the colorwork. :)

More Volunteers

2007-11-09T15:38:00.000-06:00

Yay! My color cards for the Knit Picks Wool of the Andes came. I ordered both the solids and the heathers. It's like insta-crack. All those colors, all the possiblities for projects..and so cheap, wait, I mean economical!

I finally *drumroll* finished the DH's socks! Yay yay!

He wore them to work the other day and they sagged a bit, so I need to go buy some reinforcement elastic. That will hopefully take care of that.

I've finished one of my Fetchings, in the amazing Sublime yarn. I want a bed made out of this, so I can roll around in it. It is so sproingy! And perfect for cables since there really isn't any halo. (By the way I do have normal fingers, not stubby weird ones! My nails are just a mess so I bent my fingers under.)

I need to finish off the other one and cast on for A's seamless yoke sweater as well as my Mom's second pair of socks. I think I'll be doing Jaywalkers again. It is such a great pattern. (Note on the photo. I DO have full fingers, not stubby weird ones ..I just bent my fingers under because my nails are a mess!)

As for the Volunteers that hopped a ride with my Knit Pick colorcards, here they are!
It's two skeins of their Essential in Fawn. I was surprised at the feel of this yarn, I really like it. Not sure what I'm going to do with it yet, but it'll be a textured or cabled pair of socks since it's a solid yarn.

I'm so happy to have the stupid freaking socks done. Whew. I'm a bit between a project knitter and a process knitter. I love to knit. I can't stand to be sitting in my chair without something for my hands to do, but damn it's so nice to finish a project!!

Yarn calls to yarn...

2007-11-03T11:52:00.001-05:00

I think most people have heard the saying 'Like calls to like'. Well I'm convinced that yarn has that same type of ability.
I was being so good, trying to destash and whittle down on the UFOs. I honestly didn't want more yarn. Nope, yarn is lovely to visit, but it starts to feel like a burden, just sitting there wanting to be held, caressed and knit. I'm not a fast knitter and I'm not one to have a million things on the needles at once. So my yarn is pretty much in a long line to be used. Now granted two of the following aquisitions are from the Rockin Sock Club so I don't think they count. One, they are sock yarn, and well everyone knows it jut doesn't count against stash. And two, they were paid for last December as a gift for me. But regardless, they are calling to new friends, which just seem to creep into the stash without me being aware.

This was my sole purchase from the Wisconsin Wool and Fiber Festival this past August. I've wanted to try out briar rose for some time. Their colors are breathtaking. This is their superwash sportweight in the grandma's blessing colorway. It's perfect for this time of year. I hope to make it into one of Cat Bordi's new sock pathways.

Next is the Flower Power colorway from the August Rockin Sock Club.

This one makes me sad. I hate it. As in despise beyond all belief. If I look at every color individually I don't mind it. But together..the blue grates on me. So this will be earmarked for selling next year...or maybe for a chevron scarf for a gift.

This was a volunteeer kind of...

I want to make the Equinox Pullover from the Fall 2006 Interweave in one of the Knit Picks yarns so I ordered a Color Card. I can't pay more for shipping than the stupid item costs! Luckily this Alpaca cloud said he'd come home with me. It's earmarked for a lacy scarf one of these days.

Ah the October Shipment of Rockin Sock Club. *drool*

How can this not speak to the inner Goth in us all?? It's so dreary and rich and complex. Yum. You'll pry this one from my cold dead hands ;) I can't wait to see the rest of the Raven Series that is going up on the Blue Moon Fiber Arts site on Monday. Not that I need MORE yarn, nope..I'm just going to look. (famous last words)

I desperately want a pair of Fetchings or some sort of fingerless mitt. I read on Crimson Purl's blog about how much her Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran was piling so I didn't want to use it. What's a girl to do? Go to her LYS of course. I only purchased ONE ball, and with a particular item in mind...so it's really not stash enhancement, no it's a future project. See the distinction? Isn't being able to rationalize such a gift?

I found this Sublime and OMG it's amazing. It's so soft and sproingy. I can't wait to see how it knits up. The reviews on Ravelry for this yarn are very positive, so I'm sure it won't be a trainwreck! Here's a link to a site that sells it.

So here's the whole lovely pile of yarn I wasn't going to buy, didn't need and love all the same!

Tucked under all that fiber is my current project. I'm plugging along on the DH's socks. I'm working on the heel flap on the second sock. I'm can't wait to be done with these. They've sat in the workbasket far too long.

I think the mitts will be next in line. I've also ordered a different colorcard from Knit Picks..and yes it's coming with some volunteers as well. *sigh* I'll snap a picture of that when it comes. :)

Yes, More FOs with various UFOs

2007-10-29T13:48:00.001-05:00

Insomnia is still running rampant here since I'm attempting to not live with sleep medications. Ugh.
But my knitting continues to thrive. :)

We have some Trick or Treating here on the weekend before Halloween. Why? I've no idea and think it is bizarre. The kids love it because they usually go out twice a year. Anyway!
Here's a picture of my sewing FO. I sewed A's witch costume and she actually helped me. It was a lot of fun, though I think it's ruined my iron! The fabric has glitter in it and it seems to have stuck to it! V's a ballerina with things we pretty much just threw together around the house. :)

My next FO is a knitted one. The Foliage cap from Knitty.com in Malabrigo. Yum. What else is there to say about it? Quick and luscious.

Specs:
Pattern:
Foliage from Knitty.com
Yarn: Worsted Malabrigo in Verdeazul, less than 1 hank
Needles: size 7s and 5s
Started: October 2007
Finished: October 2007

And just to share, the funny arty ones were me Kinnearing myself and the last one is taken by my 3 year old. Yes she IS a better photographer than I am...

I dug through my pile of UFOs and decided to finish up the husband's socks. It was the first time I really ran into Second Sock Syndrome. Horrid thing, that is. This an old photo of the first before I finished it. I've just finished the ribbing on the second.

I only have 3(!) UFOs lying around now. Thank goodness for Finishitis! Just wish it'd hit more often. Here's a rundown of what's left.

Jaywalkers in Wild Tide Silkie from Blue Moon. I ran out of the yarn on the foot and need to order more. I just haven't felt flush enough in the funds department to make this happen. So it sits there on the needles alongside it's completed mate looking very forlorn.

Here's a shot of the second before I ran out of yarn.

Norwegian Gloves in various Dale of Norway Helio. I really like this pattern, but started it in the summer and the wool was just too hot to deal with. I picked it back up a few weeks ago, finished the first hand and was starting the fingers when I realized the FREAKING thing doesn't fit. The hand/palm portion is too short. I honestly don't know what the hell I'm going to do. I figure I can either add some random patterning on the hand to extend it, or repeat the main pattern and make mittens. I hate mittens though, so that's the crux of that.

Finally, the sweater that will never be.
I started making this for someone and realized it wasn't going to really be appreciated and put it away. I have a sleeve and the back done. The sweater won't fit anyone else I know so there really isn't a reason to finish it. I had a thought of making the back into a pillow. Just knit a plain back sew them together and put around a pillow form. I'll have to use the sewing machine and cut it down, which is never fun, but then at least it would be out of the closet and in use. And I'll use the bag of leftover yarn for something else, maybe a sweater vest for me...

So it's been busy here! Hope all is well with you. :)

Two FOs!

2007-10-27T17:57:00.000-05:00

Yay for insomnia, kinda sorta...

I have two completed FOs!

Baby E's Sweater
Specs:
Pattern:
Raglan caridgan with Fully Fashioned Shaping from Debbie Bliss's Baby Knits for Beginners
Yarn: 2 hanks Blue Sky Alpaca's Organic Cotton in Pebble and 1 in Nut
Needles: size 7s
Started: September 2007
Finished: October 2007

And finally FINALLY my sweater!

Specs:
Pattern:
Perfect Sweater from Mason-Dixon Blog
Yarn: Cascade 220 Heathers and to hell if I can remember how many skeins it took...
Needles: size 7s
Started: November 2006!
Finished: October 2007

Whew. This sucker almost took a year! I used the picot edge with the v neck option. I also used darts for the bust. It fits great and will be a wonderful addition to winter wear!

I used some of my McGyver knitting skills when seaming the sleeves..

Those, my knitting friends, are little girl hair clips. They work so well for 'pinning'.

I got my Telemark color card in the mail today, so I'm dreaming up what colors to use for the Equinox Sweater. Also this week the Rockin Sock Club shipment came! Wohooo. I love it and will use the pattern included, but no spoilers here yet.

Insomnia is your friend?

2007-10-24T19:09:00.000-05:00

Hmm,
Insomnia can be..it's amazing how much I got done late last night while the rest of the family slept. I cleared the Tivo of 3 hours of stuff (Numb3rs, Law & Order:SVU, Without a Trace), finished listening to a Librivox recording of Middle Temple Murder by J.S. Fletcher, finished the Monkeys for my Mom AND blocked the sleeves of my Perfect Sweater.

How terrifying is that?

Oh and I slept 2 hours.

I can't believe I'm still standing, and hope to be fast asleep in an hour or so. (haha)

Mom's Monkeys came out ok. They were SO close to matching, but my tension on the 2nd heel flap was a tad looser, so I ended up with more dark orange on the toe than the first. Stuff happens. :)

Hopefully I'll have 2 more FOs in a day or so. I need to deliver the baby knit and I should be done with the Perfect Sweater. Yay!

tap tap Is this thing still on?

2007-10-23T17:22:00.000-05:00

Yes, I have been remiss at blogging. Life seems to come at me in chunks at a time, plus I need to get some rechargeable batteries for my camera. Which would be why no pictures!

Fall has, well, fallen here. It is beautiful and I think we are at the peak of our color. It's so lovely. I've been creating here and there. I made a witch costume for my eldest, finished the mystery baby knitting and am SO close to finishing mom's second Monkey sock. I haven't given the baby gift yet, so there will be photos to come! I have to get the sleeves for the Perfect Sweater blocked. Bad me, they just sit there in my work basket! Honestly I don't think it's cold enough for it quite yet.

Last night I ordered a color card for Telemark from KnitPicks. I'm am finally going to tackle the Equinox Yoke Pullover from Fall 2006 Interweave Knits. I've loved that pattern since the day I first saw it! Thank goodness for all that is Ravelery because there is no way I could ever have afforded to knit it with the yarn called for. It's so awesome to see how others have done it! If you aren't on Ravelry yet, get in line. It's worth the wait and it gets better every day since it's user input driven.

I'll let you know how it goes and hopefully have some photos too!

Shoes!

2007-10-03T11:51:00.000-05:00

I've been hunting for shoes for the last 6 months or so. Finally finally it paid off. A local store here, Boston Store, had a big sale and I purchased these 2 pairs for a 100 bucks. :) The brown ones are pr!vo Tips and the black are Aerosoles Cinchworms. I don't plan on wearing the cinchworms with handmade sock, but had to model them anyway! :)

Hubris gets us all...

2007-10-01T19:41:00.000-05:00

Main Entry: hu·bris
Pronunciation: 'hyü-br&s
Function: noun
Etymology: Greek hybris
: exaggerated pride or self-confidence

I know, I'll clean out my stash.
Look at that, there's got to be a sweater's worth of Wool-Ease there.
I know, I'll make my first EZ Yoke Sweater, cuz like..I can do that, I'm a Knitter.

That's the ticket, do the sleeve first until I can buy the right size needle for the body.

Get needle. Cast on 230 stitches. Join in round. Silently mock instructions of 'Don't twist'. After all I've knit so much in the round and have NEVER done that. 2 inches into the body realize it's freaking twisted. Try to frog, yarn gets knotted and toss whole thing in the damn trash (not the needles of course) after also realizing there's no WAY there is enough of this yarn for this sweater and the point was to stash BUST not enhance. Ugh.

Stash dive again and pray that everything turns out ok this time. Come up with Malabrigo and find the Foliage pattern from Knitty. Blog about it all and use annoying writing style!

Yes, I'm happy. I love my owner.

It seems to be working out ok. Let me tell you moving from Wool-Ease to Malabrigo...I have NO issues about abandoning the sweater. Malabrigo, damn it's really all that. This has been marinating in my stash since late last winter. I had intended on making Grumperina's Shifting Sands. It's a gorgeous pattern, but just didn't get me, so the yarn was put away until now.

I also had an FO over the last few days.
My 'Ugly Socks'.

Specs:
Pattern: Sock Recipe, Yarn Harlot
Yarn: Leftover Socks That Rock from Blue Moon Sauvie Island Socks
Needles: size 2 DPNs, Clovers
Started: September 14, 2007
Finished: September 28, 2007

I'm hoping the weather will cool down soon. I'm ready for 60's and 50's in the day and it's still hovering in the mid to high 70's. It's nice, but not sweater weather and I want to finish my Perfect Sweater but it's not happening until I can wear it!

Thanks for all the Spider comments. I didn't kill it, but damn if it wasn't gone the next day. I'm keeping my eyes peeled for that sucker!

Dude..

2007-09-21T09:54:00.001-05:00

After walking my daughter to school, I came home to this.

*Edited to add - I think it is an araneus.diadematus, an orb garden spider. I'm completely grossed out and can't search the web anymore to get an exact match. As is, I'm going to have some serious nightmares. BUT last time we looked she (females are larger, so I'm calling her she) had at LEAST 10 skeeters in her web.

*edited AGAIN to add this. I still can't believe I got close enough for this one.

He's freaking HUGE. My youngest said, 'Have daddy squish it when he gets home!' I shuddered to myself and then said, 'Honey he's outside and that's where he lives. If he were inside, TOTALLY different story.'
Would I like him to move on?
You bet.
But do you remember this picture?

The damn skeeters are still around and these pictures come from the exact same place...so the spider stays for now.
I just hope he stays in view...I think I'll be more nervous when I can't see him.

Still around!

2007-09-19T20:22:00.000-05:00

We had a teaser of fall, but are back in the 80's here in Wisconsin. It gets into the low 60's at night. I always notice the change of light this time of year, the angle and the color are so different than high summer.

Between getting kidlets to school, soccer and fun things like that, I have managed to knit a bit. My biggest accomplishment is... *drumroll*
I have finished knitting the Perfect Sweater!
Whooot!

As seen, the front and back have been blocked. I have also put them together and knit the collar. It fits like a dream. I was so afraid it would be crap after spending all the painful time knitting miles and miles and miles of SS. :P But no! It really is the perfect sweater so far.
I need to block the sleeves out, seam them and then place them into the body. I was doing fine, until our cool snap ended. 80 degrees and wool just don't go together. But I WILL get to wear it this fall. I'm so proud of myself I could pop. It's the most labor intensive project of any kind I've completed. :) I'll be sure to share official FO pictures.

Baby knitting has continued, but alas, can't be pictured here since the mommy's recipient stalks (views) my blog! ;)

I had to give the rainbow monkeys a rest. The colorway is just not me and I honestly don't enjoy knitting it. I'll finish the pair for my mom before Christmas, but I have to have socks to travel with. So the UGLY socks were born.

Granted, Socks That Rock can't really be ugly, but..it makes me smile to call them that. It's leftover sock yarn from my fair isle socks I made last year. I have more of the Covelite than the Rock My World, so I'm just doing random stripes. I weighed each ball before I cast on, so I knew how much of each I had per sock. It's rather entertaining to knit. Plain SS so you don't have to pay much attention, but the random stripes make it interesting. Needless to say they will be a fraternal pair!

While we were having our mini cold snap, we had a frost warning, I was able to break out the handknit socks. I honestly forgot how comfy and WARM they are. Love on your feet! Anyway here are my Sherbet Monkeys in situ!

I'm looking forward to this fall so I can break out more of the handknits. :)

Slacker..

2007-09-04T23:43:00.000-05:00

Yep I'm slacker and slapping! Wisconsin had a serious boute of rain over the past few weeks. The weather was wet, but at least cooler than normal, but we are seriously paying for it now.

Those dots? Right outside my front door?? SKEETERS' Almost forty of the fuckers. My poor kids and I are chewed to bits. My oldest has 5 bites on her face! It's just insane. There are over 4 hundred down the side of our house where there was standing water. But how do you NOT have standing water when there's rain for weeks? Ugh.

I'm so ready for our first freeze! Kill them all! ARRG!

Other than chasing the suckers that got in the house, and painting said house all weekend, I haven't been up to a ton of knitting. My hands are sore from painting trim. It messes with my hands everytime. I live off of Ibuprofin for a few days. Our attic addition is actually moving along. I hope to have the girls ensconced there by first snow.

My neighbors just came home today with their newborn baby girl. I don't know any of the particulars since I haven't visited yet. My oldest is dying to go and see the baby, but I was trying to explain that your first baby is such an adjustment. :) I've already knit up a hat for her and am working on a knit ball as well. I should be able to keep Abby back for a few days at least!

I hope you are all knitting like mad. I seem to be constantly casting on for various things only to rip and try something else. Nothing has caught my fancy, so I work on baby knitting and my mom's monkeys. :)

It's a comin...

2007-08-27T18:07:00.000-05:00

Fall.
It's coming.
There's just something in the air. It's a bit cooler and the light is starting to change. It also seems like the knitting is beginning in earnest on the Blogs again. Who wants to have a ton of wool in their lap when it's 80, but when it's 60? It's a good thing!

I also saw this today.

If you can't see, those are YELLOW leaves. It's the house across the street from us. Their tree is always the first one to turn and drop it's leaves.

And then I've started seeing more and more of this

Squirrel activity. :)

As for my activity, I'm working on the Super Secret Baby Knitting (TM). Other than that, I move along on the clown version of the Monkey socks. This suckers are loud. LOUD.

Have to say I'm glad I'd earmarked this for my Mom, because...well I don't like them. :)

Last, but certainly not least, Abby is teaching friends to knit! How adorable is that? She's been knitting since she was 5 and we have 2 girls next door 6 and 9 who thought it'd be fun to learn. I had nothing at all to do with it, which makes it even cooler. :) She came and asked me for extra needles and yarn. Here's what I saw later. The blue is Abby's ...the other girls took theirs home, so we'll see if it goes anywhere.

Isn't that cute? I gave them each some Sugar and Cream because they liked the colors. I doubt it will go any further, but it just reaffirms to me that Abby is becoming a Knitter! She's trying to infect, I mean teach, others!

Another Monkey and My Tools

2007-08-21T14:54:00.000-05:00

I've started another pair of Monkeys. This pair is for my Mom and is made from Trekking XXL on 1's. I was at loose ends for a sock project and nothing was working out for my mediumweight STR, so I cast on these from memory. It's such a soothing, easy pattern. I love it.

Since I don't have a ton of knitting to show off, I figured I'd show you my knitting tools. This is the bag I keep them in. It was actually special ordered at GenCon, for you ultimate geeks, to hold my gaming dice. Well gaming has gone by the wayside, but it's perfect for my tools. I know there are also jewelry bags made in this same design.

I love it because it opens almost flat. It makes it very easy to find what I'm looking for and since it's quite big I can stash a ton in it. The material is soft and the whole thing can be shoved in a bag easily and won't snag any knitting.

Here all my tools of the trade; small notebook, 2 colors of post-its, measuring tape, Knit-Chek, mechanical pencil, orange pen, black pen, pink highlighter, major sharp Fiskar scissors, point protectors, various size types of stitch markers, row counter, 3 crochet hooks, 2 cable needles and a pattern marker.

What tools do you carry with your knitting? Do you have a favorite little trick, like hairbands for stitch markers? Are you a sucker for beaded stitch markers? I'd love to see and hear about your goodies!

Me and Stitches!

2007-08-14T22:53:00.000-05:00

Thank you Cristina!
I love her blog. I'm not a huge crocheter (just know enough to know I don't know squat) and I love to see what she's whipped up. :)

Now it's my turn to tag five lovely bloggers!

The Woman Who Says Knit. It's all HER fault I started down this blogging road, though you could technically blame me for starting her on knitting..hmmm.. Anyway you should hop over there and check out her haul from Stitches!

Miss B of Knitters Uncensored Podcast, though I 'knew her when'. ;) This woman can SERIOUSLY knit the crap out of socks, let me tell you. Wollmeise or not!

Peggy of Chasing Bunny. I love to see her knits and her kidlets!

Julie of Samurai Knitter
I'm not sure if I look forward more to the release of the new Vogue Knittings for the patterns or her hilarious review.

Theresa of The Keyboard Biologist Knits
Even with a new baby she's inspiring!

Check out these blogs if you haven't already. It's always fun to meet new friends. :)

Stitches 07!

Fun. Absolute fun and just joy of being with friends while doing things you love.
I bought more than enough stuff!

One skein of silkie STR in a Midsummers Night, a blue colorway that I'm going to knit up for Mom's Christmas gift.

Enough Silky Wool to knit one of the Elsbeth Lavold sweaters from the Book 1 Vikings, Ljold for me.

Shi Biu sock yarn to make socks for my girls in the Orchid colorway. I really Love this stuff. If you are a STR fan, take a look, seriously.

The AMAZING new Cat Bordhi book, New Pathways for Sock Knitters. Worth every penny. I swear Cat's the current EZ. Her mind? It just works differently. :)

An entrelac bowl/bag pattern with leather maple leaves to put on it.

I took two great classes. Russian Continental Knitting, which unfortunately still hurts my wrist. It was taught by a wonderful Russian lady who made me laugh..alot. The Russian dry sense of humor really gets me.

I also took The Joy of Finishing. A great class with tons of little hints in it. Next year I hope to take something by Sally Melvile or Nancy Bush. We'll see!

I'll be getting some photos up in the next few days!

Disgust and Stitches..

2007-08-09T21:07:00.000-05:00

No these things don't go together. I'm heading off to Stitches Midwest tomorrow for the weekend. When I return I will have yarny yummy goodness to share!

On to the DISGUST.

Did you hear that Johnson & Johnson is suing, yes SUING the Red Cross over use of the red cross. I am so disgusted and sickened by this.

I have emailed them and hope you do too.

Here are the relative links.
Article on Suit

where to contact J&J to let them know of your absolute disgust.

http://www.jnj.com/contact_us/index.htm

*uckers.

Pictures and a Huge Thank You.

2007-08-04T14:55:00.000-05:00

Ok,

We've all heard about the 'Knitting Blogging Community', and yes those are air quotes. It's one of those things you think, Ya..it's nice. Knitters give to the Doctors without Borders for the Yarn Harlot. They give to the Heifer Project at Christmas for Wendy. They help out their own in need, like Annie Modesit.

But really, what would anyone do for me? And why would they want to? (Goodness that sounds selfish and it's NOT what I sit around and think about..plot about or something.) But you get the point.

So I go on vacation and am an idiot and loose my camera, my blogging camera. Am I broken hearted about the photos lost of the girls at the St. Louis Zoo? Sadden, but no, not heart broken. What comes to mind?

HOW AM I GOING TO BLOG MY KNITTING?!

It's all about priorities, you know.

Home I come and post to the blog, without pictures. And what happens?

KnitWit offers me a camera. Can you imagine? Here she is roughly 17 days away from moving and leaving for college, and what does she do? Offers to send me her old camera for a few balls of yarn. She's busy, ya'll. She's stressed. And she thought of me.

Damn, we knitters really are amazing folks. Seriously.

So in honor of KnitWit, here are mass amounts of photos of FOs. (The camera by the way, is amazing. I honestly think it's better than the one I had..)

In order of completion, we have the Solstice Slip socks from the Rockin Sock Club.

They fit really well. This was my first time using the Lightweight, and I might not every buy anything else now..

The pattern was fun and the garter stitch toes and heels were interesting to watch take shape. This is a toe up sock, by the way.

Then on the Texas trip, I was determined to make this

into some amazing socks. And guess what? I did! :)

This is Cookie A.'s Monkey pattern. It is the second time I've done it and I know not the last. Very fun pattern, but not too hard you can't memorize it and start to 'read' it as you go.

I did a slip stitch heel flap and adore the way it rainbowed. Very very very bright yummy amazing socks.

Just look at those colors. I'm seriously in love with this colorway, Sherbet from Socks That Rock.

Finally I had my little tirade through my house trying to locate DPNs. This is the result.

I do things by the seat of my pants, which is how I came up with it. I've seen enough of these online and in stores, so figured 'Eh. I can do that'. The fabric was left over from my youngest's nursery. I might have to make a straight one and a something for the circs.

I still need to figure out how I'm going to close it. I'm leaning towards a ribbon about 1 1/2 inches wide, tack it to the back and then use it to tie it closed.

Whew. Ok. There they are. The FOs. Only thing I didn't post is my progress on the Perfect Sweater. It's just SS arms, so not too exciting. Kinda looks like all the others I've posted.

Have a great weekend and enjoy your knitting! I know I will.

Blogiversary

2007-08-02T23:12:00.000-05:00

Dude. One whole year as of Aug 3rd..tomorrow. Yay me. I 've acutally stuck with it, enjoyed it, met folks I like and been amazing at the enormity of knitters on line, yet how personal it is.

Thanks for sticking around to read and keeping me company. :)

Where it all began...

http://knotsinarow.blogspot.com/2006/08/all-cs-fault.html

An FO!

2007-08-02T22:46:00.000-05:00

Yes, another FO I can't show you yet. :) I do 'crafty sewing', as in I have a sewing machine, have had a sewing machine..since I was 18 or something. No one I knew sewed, so I just winged it. Needless to say this has created some odd items. I taught myself to follow patterns and sewed the bedding for my 2 babies, a handful of Halloween costumes and more curtains than you could shake a stick at. But that's all. I enjoy sewing, but am not good at it or rather patient enough for it. Meticulous has never been a word applied to me.

ANYWAY,
I have some gorgeous fabric left over from my 2nd kids bedding..think Laura Ashely with huge cabbage roses on a butter cream background. I have 2 coordinating fabrics to go with it and well, the other day I couldn't find my damn #2 DPNs. (Ends up they were in my very cold WIP, Norwegian gloves.)

After digging through and ultimately cleaning out, my closet, so all was not lost, I decided to sew myself a DPN holder. It's adorable and works pretty well. I need to figure out exactly how I'm going to keep it closed..ribbon ..maybe an elastic with a button.. Inspiration has yet to hit me on that part. It's about 2 feet long, the pockets/needle channels are 6 inches deep and when it's folder over the DPNs, keeping them secure, it's around 10 inches wide.

So Yay me. :)

I've started a yummy cable sock from Sensational Socks with my Socks That Rock Lover's Leap. I started on 2s (yes that's why I was hunting them down.) but it was too loose. I ripped out around 3 inches, back to nothing. It really doesn't distress me anymore if I have to do that. I think that kinda shows how far you are in a craft/hobby/obsession. If you are willing to admit you've F'd it up and go back to do it right, then you're getting somewhere.

The sock has been restarted on 1s, but I'm taking a bit of a break. Why you ask? There has been Perfect Sweater knitting going on over here! Booooyah! Both sleeves are to the point of decreasing for the caps. I've been working on it for 4 nights or so and my wrists ache to prove it. There's something about knitting on 7s with Cascade 220 that just wears my wrists right out. Socks really don't weight much, do they? Plus I have both the sleeves on one long circ so there is a bit of bulk/weight involved. Thank goodness I'm taking a Finishing Class at Stitches.

Stitches!!! Yay!! Tapas Yay!! Girlfriend Trips!! YAyayaya!
I'm going to be so content but exhausted when we get back home!

I'm trying to mentally prepare for Stitches. You have to go in with a game plan to these types of things!! (sorry for the excess !!!! but damn I'm excited.) I went last year but didn't have any of my close friends with me, nor did I take classes. I took a chartered bus with my local knitting guild, so at least I was with other knitters. The drive back was fun to show off all your goodies.

The Dream List 07 so far is:

Socks That Rock, Collinette Jitterbug, Cider Moon, Cherry Tree Hill, Koigu and just about any other sock yarn I see. I figure by keeping to Sock yarn I can get the largest variety of goodies to take home.

And I don't have to drive! Whoot! More knitting time. :D

Hope all is going well with everyone.

Mojo?

2007-07-28T19:06:00.000-05:00

I finished the Sherbet Monkeys and can't wait to show them off. As the DH says, 'They are obnoxious.' Just what every girl needs for Jan in Wisconsin!

So what next?

Well the Eunny Enterlac Socks. Got out the Lorna's Laces, swatched IN THE ROUND folks for 3 inches. It came out fine, around 8 st per in and 11 rounds.

Cast on with the Middle Eastern Cast On. A new one for me, and very odd but managed to do it and it looked good. Kept going with the pattern and realized there was no WAY in hell these socks would fit me. They might fit my 7 year old..but to hell if I was going to spend this much time on socks for her! Ugh.

Frog.

Figure, Ok..move on. Dig around for a pattern, surf Ravelry to see what others have done with Lorna's Laces. Just did Monkey, don't want to do anything lacey...and finally settle on a pattern from the Interweave book 25 Favorite Socks, Go with the Flow.

Cast on, knit and hate it. Just not feeling it and think it's too tight as well. It's a cast on of 60 and I normally cast on 64 at least on 1's and Lorna's is finer than STR Lightweight.

Frog. Mutter.

Take a breath and dig through both stash and patterns. Settle on doing a hat out of Socks and Caps Two of the Vogue on the Go Series. Picked a skein of Blue Sky Cotton. Swatch. Gauge good.

Cast On.

Knit and curse when I realize the damn thing would be huge on ME and it's for my 3 year old.

Frog.

Throw needles. Ok I didn't, but I REALLY wanted to.

I can't justify buying any yarn right now. I'm going to Stitches in 2 weeks for goodness sake! That's where I need to spend my money. I will buy 2 skeins of the Koigu to do the Eunny socks which is what she used. Hopefully that will solve that problem.

Ya I could knit a hat for charity or something, but I believe my knitting Mojo has left the building. Good thing I don't have a camera, since I have NOTHING to take photos of (well the FO Monkeys) except a pile of various yarn and needles but no knitting.

Pathetic.

Blog on!

2007-07-26T10:53:00.000-05:00

So no camera, but damn it I'll blog anyway! And share the last picts that I have from my camera. *sniff* I really liked it ..I can't believe I lost it. :PP Anyway, enjoy the pictures from the trip scattered through the post!

The start of the Texas Trek at 5 am

And thanks to KnitWit it looks like my picture problem might be resolved soon! Yay Knit bloggers, we are such a rockin community. :)

The infamous over the freeway McD's on the Will Rogers TurnPike in Oklahoma.

As mentioned I've finished the Solstice Slip and am on the foot of my second Sherbet Monkey. I'm not positive what I'm going to knit next. I wanted to make the enterlac socks by Eunny that are in the Spring 07 Knitty.

But I'm in doubt. She made them with Koigu KPM and I have some Lorna's Laces Shepard Sock earmarked for it. The gauges are different. The KPM gets 17 sts and 22 rnds in 2 in St St in the round on 1s (2.25). The Lorna's Laces gets 33 sts and 46 rnds in 4in St St in the rnd on 0s.

Translate to same measurement and you have
KPM is 8.5 st per inch, and 11 rnds on 1s
Lorna's is 8.25 per inch and 11.5 rnds on 0s

So I'll need to do some test swatches when I'm done with my last Monkey. Will let you know how it turns out. I'm not planning on doing knee highs, but they are made from the toe up, so it's easy to stop when you want.

The Arch!

I'm also working on my 'Homework' for my Stitches Midwest Classes. Simple 8 inch swatches and such for my Joy of Finishing class. My Russian Continental class doesn't have homework. Yay! That weekend is going to be so fun. I'm going with 5 other girlfriends. Wohoo! No kids, no SOs but mass amounts of yarn. It's heaven!

Play time, finally!

On other fronts I finished Deathly Hallows this past weekend. NO SPOILERS. I am not sure how I feel about it. I think in some ways I found it anticlimactic... I know I need to read it again to make sure I 'got' it all. It's so strange to read something like that. It's like you are on pins and needles the whole time, just wanting to get through it so you know what happens. Very odd.

Love the Sonic in Elk City, OK

Our Trip to Texas was really good. The girls and I made it down to Lubbock in two days. Two VERY exhausting days. I drove 550 miles on the 1st day and over 700 miles on the second. That was rough.

Back in the car....

The girls had fun with Grandma and going swimming and out to tea and things of that sort. I just enjoyed my mom's company, though it's always hard to be the 'only' parent when you are used to two. My mom raised my brother and me by herself from when I was 4. I can NOT imagine doing it. My hat goes off to single parents big time.

We are finally in Texas! And don't we look thrilled?

We stayed with her for a little over a week and headed home. We stopped on the second day (I was smart and took three days to get home) in St. Louis. I'd heard so much about their Zoo, I wasn't going to let that opportunity pass us by. We stayed an extra day and really enjoyed it. The place is beautiful and huge. Not a single day-er especially when it's 90+ degrees and humid as hell outside. Next time we go, I'm going in Fall or Spring. If you are in the area I highly recommend a stop. It's actually a free entry zoo. How cool is that?

An amazing rest stop near the Texas-Oklahoma border

I would have some good pictures of the zoo..but I'm 90% sure that's where my camera is. I believe I left it in the stroller we rented. I hope it's having a good time.....

And yes, everything really IS bigger in Texas.

Back..but sad..

2007-07-19T19:36:00.000-05:00

What's one of the worst things for a knit blogger?

To have a freakin FO and no CAMERA.

Yes, my camera is either at the St. Louis Zoo without me, enjoying the Herpaterium ...or kickin it at the St. Louis Best Western.

Damn.

Luckily I did download pictures when I got to my mom's house, so I have a handful of pictures from the actual trip.

And of course this trip cost far more than planned..so I am not sure what I'm going to do for awhile. But trust me the Solstice Slip Stitch Socks are lovely and I'm almost done with my 1st Monkey in sherbet. OMG it was all I had hoped it would be. The colors are amazing..and unfortunately you are all just going to have to take my word on it...for now.

It will be so nice to sleep in my own bed without my 3 year old. Whew. 2 weeks of being kicked and hit all night long make for a sleepy mommy!

Can't wait to catch up on all the blogs and email. I was able to surf a few times while away but not able to send out email. :)

A trip, another sock and a tumor...

2007-07-04T17:02:00.000-05:00

Well we are getting ready for the haul to Texas. All the laundry is pretty much done, the lists made and now panic is starting to set in. WTF was I thinking? Driving 1200 miles by myself with my 2 girls (age 7 and 3)????

Deep breath.

That's a long way. I haven't really decided on 2 days or 3. It's going to be one of those things that we figure out on the way.

The Solstice Slip continues. I've finished the 1st and turned the heel on the 2nd. I can FEEL the Monkeys in Sherbet coming. Wohoo. I swear that's the only reason I'm so driven with these socks. I like the pattern, but I'm dying to get into that Sherbet skein.

Finally on to the tumor. Yep, I've got one in my wrist. And there's really nothing to be done about it. How cool is that? The doctor said it is a hemangioma on my radial nerve. So it's a bump on the sheath of my nerve. 95% of them are benign. They would have to do carpal tunnel surgery to remove it but since it is on the nerve itself, there would be a loss of feeling. As of right now, I have no loss of feeling, so no surgery. I get to live with it. If it gets worse, then we'll look at the surgery.

Very odd that.

So think of me tomorrow around 5 am as I pack my minivan and careen down the Interstates of America!!!

Sock on and Trip Prep

2007-06-30T13:03:00.001-05:00

And so the heel turns!

The Solstice Slip continues and it's such a fun knit. I'm really enjoying it. Afterall, what's NOT to enjoy about Socks That Rock? This is my first time using their lightweight and I'm pleased with it. I really love the mediumweight but it can be a problem with bulk in a shoe.

I finally purchased a kitchen scale so I won't be having another Jaywalker fiasco. That pair is still waiting for it's next skein!

My kids and I are taking a road trip down to Texas to see my mother. It should be fun, but I, of course, need to do my wool packing! There is a cute yarn shop near my mom's house in Lubbock, so I know I can get some extra..but I have so much now that I want to knit up!
Last night I got out the swift and ball winder and went to town.

From top left; Euroflax in Sandstone - most likely for a towel from Mason Dixon Knitting, Lovers Leap Mediumweight STR - not sure what sock yet, Lorna's Laces in Sunshine and Lucky Stripe - going to be Eunny's Entrelac Socks, Sherbet Lightweight STR - Monkeys, and Jade Mediumweight STR - Embossed Leaves.

The sherbet is next on the list. I can't wait to cast on for another pair of Monkeys! Just look at these colors!!! I'm so in love. This picture if pretty close to true colors. It's bright, baby, but so yummy.

Sometimes it can feel oppressive when you have a long list of things to knit, but this pile just makes me smile and feel excited!
Knit on Baby!

Vacation and Knitting

2007-06-25T19:20:00.000-05:00

Edited to add: It's a great resort up in Eagle River, Wisconsin, called..lots of imagination here.. Eagle Waters Resort. :)
http://www.eaglewaters.com/
They have completely redone the resort since the pictures on the site were taken.
It's lovely. :)

Apparently all I needed was a vacation and new Rockin Sock Club shipment!

We had a wedding to go to 'Up North' as the Wisconsinites say. It was about a 4 1/2 hour drive each way with tons of knitting time over the weekend. Yay!

So while I looked at this.

I worked on turning this

into this

This is my second effort at the toe. I began knitting the large size (i have 9 womens) and they were waaaay to big. So all my knitting from Friday was frogged and begun again. I don't really mind, since I'd rather have a pair of socks that fits than a pair I can't wear. I'm not into gifting STR. ;)

By the time we got home on Monday I'd begun the gusset increase.

I had a great time and this knit is really fun. Hubby and I listened to Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix on the way to and from the resort while I knit the entire time. Yay being shotgun. :)

It was gorgeous 'Up North'. The lakes are so relaxing to watch. I wanted to sit in that swing but never got around to it. :( Maybe next time!

Thanks for all your support in the non-knitting summer heat. I've shelved the gloves for now. I think that stranded wool was just too much in the heat. These socks are the lightweight STR and not nearly as hot to handle.

Hope you all had a great weekend.

Heat...

2007-06-18T16:22:00.000-05:00

Ok..
Am I the only one who just can't knit in the heat? I have no urge to knit at all. I think part of it is because of the cyst/mass/thing .I'm also rereading all the Harry Potters to get boned up for the release of the last one in July.

I tried to cast on a simple SS sock in a great cotton yarn. Katia's mississippi 3. It's a pretty colorway and everything..but nope, I did my swatch, got my gauge, began to cast on and didn't even join it it the round. How pathetic!!

The gloves are languishing at the moment since the heat also seems to have sucked my attention span right out of me too. Fingers are next and I have a feeling I need to be alert for those.

Oh well! Summer is far far far too short in my neck of the woods (Wisconsin) so I guess I'm taking a bit of a knitting break.

Hot weather and gloves?

2007-06-13T21:10:00.000-05:00

back of hand

Actually they go together. Knitting gloves is a bit like knitting socks, portable and you see your progress quickly!

palm with thumb stitches on hold

I actually managed to get a rose to bloom! Yay!

The update on the 'cyst' is interesting. As mentioned it is IN my wrist, not protruding. Well this makes it odd. The doc said it most likely wasn't a cyst, but a 'mass'. Does this make other people shudder?
I'm having an MRI next week with dye.
Aren't you jealous?
Doc thinks it's a mass that's normally associated with tendonitis. What's the treatment for that? I honestly didn't ask. I had my 3 year old with me at the appointment, so was just trying to get in and out. Luckily next week at the MRI, I'll be childless. I have a follow up with the Doc the next week.
Here's to hoping it'll be solved easily!

Beware - Knitting Content!

2007-06-08T16:43:00.000-05:00

Yay! Well sorta yay. :)

I ran out of yarn, as predicted, on my second Jaywalker. We are taking a bit of a break since we've been so tight lately. I'll buy the yarn in the next month and finish it up. I should have enough yarn to make my mother some shorties. Waste not, want not!

As mentioned previously, I needed some mindless knitting while the wee one had her dental work. Which, by the way, went wonderfully. Thanks for all the good thoughts!!

I came out with a Packers inspired dishcloth.

This is the beginning of the Christmas knitting of 07. I just need to crank out a dozen or so more and that should be good. Everyone can always use a knit dishcloth. They are similar to handknit socks, you never realize how awesome they are until you have one!

I also did a little destashing on the Destash blog. And why does one usually destash? To restash of course!!

Lover's Leap from Socks That Rock in Mediumweight
I'm thinking some cabled goodness, perhaps Lombard Street Socks.

Sherbet in Lightweight
These are destined to be a pair of Monkeys. Yum!

And finally
Jade in Socks That Rock Mediumweight
that will be Embossed Leaves.

My stash is happy with me! I also picked up 5 different colorways of Sugar & Cream to continue the dishcloth work on the side.
Also on my needles are the Norwegian Gloves. I finally settled on the colors.

I've substituted Charcoal for the Natural, Natural for the red, and Green/Pink for Charcoal. Follow? :D
Whew! One last thing to mention. I've had a ganglion cyst in my left wrist for years. It doesn't look like this one, thank goodness. It's actually on the palm side of my hand, inside my wrist. You can't see it from the outside, but you can feel the hardness of it when it's flared up. Which it is now. And it hurts like hell. Hell, I tell you. There's not a ton of knitting going on here at the moment. I have an appointment with a hand surgeon on Monday, so we'll see how it goes. I've never had it drained, but whatever they do it's got to be better than this!

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Grrr...Computer Rant

2007-06-07T10:29:00.000-05:00

Nice new computer should mean no problems, right?

Scratch that idea if the lovely new computer has the piece of crap software that is VISTA on it.

I am so unhappy I could cry or scream or perhaps punch a random MS employee. I'm going to have the husband strip this entirely down and throw all my old software back on the new machine. Can you believe it takes 2 to 3 times as long to get something done? It hangs, just kinda chugs along doing god knows what, in the background.
We called HP, I have a Compaq, and they had us power it down and reboot.

REBOOT? WTF?

There's service for you.

Thank god my DH is an IT guy. So he'll make it work. Nothing like having a private IT dept in your home. :)

Anyway, the long and short of this complaint is I can't edit my photos. My machine can't 'handle' Macromedia Fireworks. PULEAZE. This machine is faster/newer/better than the old one that had no problems with it. It also has problems with Mozilla and Thunderbird. DH and I are convinced that has to be a Software design for VISTA, making you turn to more crappy MS software in hopes that it'll 'work better'. Hah. Fuckers.

I wish with all my heart I could have afforded a Mac. I want a Mac so much it makes my eyes bleed. Anything to get AWAY from MS. Evil evil. But I'm so not a geek enough to work with Linux, one of the DH's favorite toys.

Wow this is a rant worthy of the Samurai Knitter!

I think I'll go off in the corner and mutter some more.

Ravelry Love

2007-06-05T14:41:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to share the Ravelry Love.
I've talked about the site previously and how I had gotten my invite. I also shared that the owners/builders of the site were working hard to get people accounts. It's an amazing place, but go easy on them! :) Apparently there are some folks who are feeling they are being left out or ignored on purpose. I just wanted for you to take a look at a letter from Casey (FreckleGirl) herself.

Ravelry

Alive

2007-06-03T20:45:00.000-05:00

Yep, alive and blogging again.

I have a new laptop and hope I can manage to upload pictures without loading some different software.

I've had a bit of a stressful few weeks. My littlest had to have dental surgery (she's 3) to have 2 caps put in. It required for her to be put under. Mom does not deal well with that. But all is well and she has 2 shiny new teeth and no more pain. They think she just has thin enamel and they also sealed her teeth. Fun fun! They never tell you about this crap in Parent School..

Anyway I needed good mindless knitting for the waiting room. I managed to crank out a dishcloth. I think I'm going to start randomly working on these in hopes of actually getting Christmas Knitting done. My goodness I said that in JUNE folks. Be impressed!

My second Jaywalker in the RSC yarn is going well, but ...I'm scared. Really scared. I don't think I'm going to have enough yarn. I grew up in Las Vegas and hate to gamble. I get nervous everytime I pick up the needles...

Here it is hanging out in the sunshine.

That's the other thing happening at our household. We are outside all the time. For those of us who live in the northern part of the US, we make SURE we enjoy every second of warmth given to us.

I hope you are all doing well!

Bad Blogger?

2007-05-27T20:37:00.000-05:00

*sigh*
No, not really bad blogger..but bad computer! I'm having hardware issues. My power plug is messed up on my laptop and the replacement isn't working either. So I've no real power!

I'm lurking as much as I can and hope to be back soon!

Thanks for all the previous comments. I'm not ignoring you and will respond when I can!! Meanwhile I'm off to work on the 2nd Jaywalker. :)

Socks Socks Socks

2007-05-22T17:36:00.000-05:00

My first Jaywalker is done! Whoot! I don't have a completed picture of it, but this is the latest I do have.

I am in the process of finishing the DH's first sock. It will be grafted by tonight.

So my eye is wandering..where to next. It's not like I have to make mates for these socks, right? Seriously though I'm having some sock burn out, need to toss something else into the mix. Let's just ignore that I ordered 3 skeins of STR last week. :D I had to use the Destash Coupon they gave to Rockin Sock Club Members, right? Right. I knew you'd understand.

My local Guild, which I adore, is holding a mitten contest in July. We have a few members who have been State Fair Judges in the past and they'll pick the winners in different categories. One is gloves, thank goodness, because I really hate wearing mittens. Something about all my fingers mushed together...we all have issues. Anyhoo, the winners get..well fiber of course. Anyway, this is what I've been stewing over.

Here is what I have to play with.

Various shades of Dalegarn Heilo. I think I've narrowed it down to this pattern.

It's by Nancy Bush and is actually written for Heilo, so there'd be no futzing with gauge, etc. I'm not decided on which color will go where, but I'm excited I found this.

Off to finish the DH's sock and ponder what colors for these gloves!

Jaywalkers and Ravelry!

2007-05-16T22:09:00.000-05:00

Two great things.

I gave up on the whole Grasshopper thing with the Wild Tide. I tried the Embossed Leaves and had zero luck with that.

Ah but now..now I've found the pattern to match the yarn!

Then there is the lovely thing that is Ravelry.

OMG. I'm in love! I got my invite and it's really all that and a bag of chips. It's an online community for fiber freaks..I mean enthusiasts! It's small and grower, costs nothing and is run by advertisements. If you want to join, oh and I know you DO, go to the site and sign up for an invite. It took about 2 weeks for mine. The creators are really nice, so if it takes awhile, try to be patient!

It allows you to list your FOs, WIPs, your Queue, your stash all linked into various databases. There are discussion boards, ways to link your blog entries to the aforementioned. Seriously, it's an online knitter/crocheter/spinners dream.

If you join, look me up! I'm KnittyLynn.

Whew. Ok. I'm done. ;)

8 Random Things

2007-05-14T21:46:00.000-05:00

Eight random things

So Sandie (Stash-N-Stitch) tagged me!
But first: The rules!

1: Each player starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves.

2: People who are tagged, write a blog post about their own 8 random things, and post these
rules.

3: At the end of your post you need to tag 8 people and include their names.

4: Don't forget to leave them a comment and tell them they're tagged, and to read your blog.

Here you go! This is going to require a LOT of thinking.

#1. I bite my nails. I quit for over a year and started again this past winter. :P

#2. I'm watching Heros right now.

#3. 3musketeers is my favorite chocolate bar.

#4. I want an Infinity G25 so bad. For now I'll settle on my Odyssey minivan.

#5. My daughter plays on a soccer team called the Robins. I played on a soccer team named the Robins when I was 6. Too cool.

#6. Before I knit constantly, I used to read a bunch. Stephen King, Anne McCaffery to name 2.

#7. I love Harry Potter. But I almost don't want to read the final book. Because it's a FINAL book. Yuck. I don't want to give it up.

#8. I met my husband while playing rec volleyball. If you want to do it, you can. Whatever IT is, you just have to try.

I am tagging Cathy, Leah, Just A Knit Wit, Beth, Anne Nahm, Mini, Kerry and Peggy!
I hope you will all play along, but it is not mandatory. So if you really do not want to, do not feel obligated. It's just for fun and to help us get to know each other better.

Knitting Survey

2007-05-10T12:28:00.000-05:00

This is a knitting survey……

Mark with bold the things you have knit, with italics the ones you plan to do sometime, and leave the rest.

Afghan
I-cord
Garter stitch
Knitting with metal wire
Shawl
Stockinette stitch
Socks: top-down
Socks: toe-up
Knitting with camel yarn
Mittens: Cuff-up
Mittens: Tip-down
Hat
Knitting with silk
Moebius band knitting
Participating in a KAL
Sweater
Drop stitch patterns
Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
Slip stitch patterns
Knitting with banana fiber yarn
Domino knitting (=modular knitting)
Twisted stitch patterns
Knitting with bamboo yarn
Two end knitting
Charity knitting
Knitting with soy yarn
Cardigan
Toy/doll clothing
Knitting with circular needles
Baby items
Knitting with your own hand-spun yarn
Slippers
Graffiti knitting
Continental knitting
Designing knitted garments
Cable stitch patterns (incl. Aran)
Lace patterns
Publishing a knitting book - oh wouldn’t that be amazing!
Participate in an exchange
Scarf
Teaching a child to knit
American/English knitting (as opposed to continental)
Knitting to make money
Buttonholes
Knitting with alpaca
Fair Isle knitting
Norwegian knitting
Dying with plant colors
Knitting items for a wedding
Household items (dishcloths, washcloths, tea cosies…)
Knitting socks (or other small tubular items) on one or two circulars
Knitting with someone else’s hand-spun yarn
Knitting with dpns
Holiday related knitting
Teaching a male how to knit
Bobbles
Knitting for a living
Knitting with cotton
Knitting smocking
Dying yarn
Steeks
Knitting art
Knitting two socks on two circulars simultaneously
Fulling/felting
Knitting with wool
Textured knitting
Kitchener stitch
Knitted flowers
Purses/bags
Knitting with beads
Swatching
Long Tail CO
Entrelac
Knitting and purling backwards
Machine knitting
Knitting with self patterning/self striping/variegated yarn
Stuffed toys
Baby items
Knitting with cashmere
Darning
Jewelry
Knitting with synthetic yarn
Writing a pattern
Gloves
Intarsia
Knitting with linen
Knitting for preemies
Tubular CO
Free-form knitting
Short rows
Cuffs/fingerless mits/arm-warmers
Pillows
Knitting a pattern from an on-line knitting magazine
Rug
Knitting on a loom
Thrummed knitting
Knitting a gift
Knitting for pets
Shrug/bolero/poncho
Knitting with dog/cat hair
Hair accessories
Knitting in public - Darn tootin'

What have you learned to do that has marked a definite change in your knitting life?
It's given me a focus in a variety of ways. I actually finish items as opposed to other crafts I've participated in. This is more of a passion than just a hobby.

I came across this Knitting Survey over at Yellow House Treasures .

HOW ABOUT YOU?!!

Place this on your CRAFTY Blog and link to me.. I’d love to see how many different techniques you’ve done or hope to do and what knitting has meant to you!!

Chevron FO

2007-05-09T21:00:00.000-05:00

Sniff.

I finished my Chevron. I feel like Cara at January One, I'm addicted. For her it was miters and now monkeys. Me? The Chevron is so amazing.

Here it is...awaiting Fall. Since, thank goodness, spring is here in Wisconsin!
And then, of course, we need to have a model shot...

Think I'm going to do my first pair of Jaywalker next. I will miss the Chevron. Going to have to gift one to somebody for Christmas so I can tackle anotehr!

Full Disclosure

2007-05-04T14:24:00.000-05:00

I was reading Julia's blog and felt the need to 'fess up myself.

I'm not quite as clever as she is, so my list is just a list. ;) But these are ALL the items on my needles as of this moment.

This is from the oldest to most current project.

I started this sweater..heck so long ago I don't even know. Hmm must have been almost 2 years ago now. I was making it for someone and then became a bit uninspired to gift it to them. So it's stalled. It's beautiful. It's a pattern from The Best of Knitters Arans and Celtics called 'Wonderous Woven Cables'. I'm using Knit Pick's Wool of the Andes. Great yarn, interesting knit..but there it languishes. I have to admit I'm nervous to pick it back up because of gauge. It was so long ago my knitting style has change and I'm afraid it will look like dog poop.

The Mason-Dixon Perfect (hell) Sweater. It's just a SEA of stockingnet. There sits the completed front and back, and the 2 sleeves are almost half way done. I'll get this finished before the Fall, but I just can't pick it up right now. It's knit in Cascade 220 Heathers. I really like it and know I'll enjoy wearing it.

And then there was the Shifting Sands pattern from Grumperina, knit in Malabrigo. It's soft, gorgeous and well..just not what I want so..

Bye bye Shifting Sands. I think I'm going to try and make an Hourglass sweater with the yarn instead. I have 3 hanks, so I'll figure something out. For now it's back into the stash.

Here's the hubby's sock. It's a bucket load of stitches, done on 1's. The Trekking is lovely, and these will get done sooner or later. It sits next to my knitting chair and I do a few rounds on it every day or so. I did some slip stitches in the arch to make it more snug for his high arches. Will have to see how that works out.

Ah the current love on the needles. The Chevron scarf in STR. I love it. It's mindless enough for TV watching, yet interesting enough that you don't want to gouge your eyes out! I'd say I'm almost 1/2 way done.

This is the Rowan Summer Tweed I'm futzing with. I'd like to make some summer tanks for my girls with it, but have yet to really commit to the project.

And then there's the current Rockin' Sock Club yarn. I THINK I may have found the right pattern for it. I don't want to do the Grasshoppers since I'm just not into 'sandal socks'. More photos when it's progressed.

Whew and that's it. 7 projects, one frogged so really just 6. I'm actively knitting on three of them (hubby's socks, chevron and the RSC yarn), leaving 3 hanging in limbo land. Not too bad. Could be worse. Much worse.

Colors

2007-05-02T15:16:00.000-05:00

I hate to think of myself as impressionable or easily led. Yet in Spring, I love spring colors, Fall, fall colors..etc. My eye keeps gravitating towards these lovely yarns. I have TOO many skeins of sock yarn to warrant actually purchasing any, but I can dream right?

www.artyarns.com
YARN: ULTRAMERINO 8 127
100% Merino Wool

www.scoutsswag.com
Prepster colorway

Sherbert Colorway
Blue Moon Fiber

HM Cashmere Rose Garden
The Loopy Ewe

So are you seeing a pattern? Yum!