eat-sleep-knit

Workin

2008-01-06T11:19:00.000-05:00

Look at what I got for Christmas!:

I have entered the world of spinning. And it is good.

Flicca is going well too. I'm on the last stretch of the back piece. Soon my chunky yarn monstrosity will be complete (insert sinister laugh).

Here are my notes from my Ravelry entry:

1/5- Finished the first section of the back piece and decreased down to the k2,p1 rib. Work measures about 15 inches. Didn't quite hit the gauge so the work is coming out a bit smaller, but that's not taking into account the stretch of the rib and its pre-blocked state. Confident it will fit with some room to spare.

1/6- I'm about 2-3 inches away from the armhole shaping on the back piece. It's growing large and rather quickly. It's also quite heavy already. I've used almost three skeins so far just on the back piece. Will 10 skeins be enough for the whole thing? Iunno. I still have to finish the back piece, work the front pieces, the sleeves, AND the collar.

Yesterday I went to the new LYS Sheep Thrills in North Syracuse. It was their Grand Opening so I went to check it out. It's a cute little shop with the usual "luxury" yarns but also some more affordable options. It was there that I committed an act of hypocrisy: I bought a skein of Noro Silk Garden. Yes, me, the queen of economy. I have said in the past that although Noro yarn is very pretty, I found it a bit too pricey considering the complaint about its lack of softness. Then the winter Knitty came out with Three Tams and I am now eating my words. I could have went with the Kureyon instead of the Silk Garden since it was cheaper, but one feel of the Kureyon and I said "eeww, I'm not paying $8 for a skein of scratchiness. I don't care how pretty the colorway is". Silk Garden feels MUCH better but at a cost of $11 and some change. Mr.V laughed as I continued to pet it on our way to Walmart.

PS-I miss the sun. I can't get any good indoor pictures. Of anything. At least without photoshopping the crap out of them, which is really tiresome after a while. Is anyone else having this problem?

Election Year

2008-01-02T07:42:00.000-05:00

It's now 2008: Election Year. This is a very important year for Americans. We once again get to pick our new President. Want to vote but don't know how? I've been using Rock the Vote's website to register for the past couple years now. It's very easy. Click on the banner below. Fill out the information it asks, print out the nice and neat pdf it gives you, and then mail it in! You can also find all kinds of information about voting there as well.

Do. it. now. If you're reading this and you're an American, it is your responsibility to vote. Don't give me excuses like: "I'm busy" or "Why bother?" or "I'm just chosing the lesser of two evils"... Why not pick your candidates now during the primaries?

If you live in NY state and want to vote in the Primaries (which are in February) you must register by January 11, 2oo8. If you need to re-register due change in address or change in name but want to change you're party it is unfortunately too late. But don't let that stop you, re-register and vote in the primaries anyway. Who would you like to see on the opposing ballot?

I'll be keeping the "Rock the Vote" banner on my site until November. Get registered! Get informed!

Winter Holidays 2007

2007-12-19T15:28:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year everyone! Hope your holidays were enjoyable. Do you do the New Year's resolution thing? I admit I do the New Years Resolution thing and I have about as much success with them as everyone else.

Last year's resolution was to start and consistently play the piano again. I got some new music books and fished out my old ones, so with the exception of a piano teacher, I had all the resources. I kept it up for about a month. I blame this failure solely on the class I was taking and the constant distraction of knitting. Piano playing has now been relegated to the list of "things to do when I win the lottery and quit my job" OR, more realistically "things to do when I retire".

What's my resolution this year? Well, I have one, but I'm a little shy about it. It'll be a difficult one, but I'm telling myself all I have to do is make real effort at it, not necessarily be successful at it.

So anyway. The Poseidon socks and Floral Lace Anklets have been officially gifted. My MIL and SIL seemed to like them a lot. My MIL put her's over her tights and wore them the rest of the day. I guess that's a good sign.

The Poseidon Socks pattern can be found here for free. The Floral Lace Anklets are from the Lace Style book from Interweave Press.

My Vinnland Socks are finished finally. After I opened up all my yarn for Christmas the socks didn't seem very interesting anymore. So as my last knitting act of 2007 I knit the last few pattern repeats of the Vinnland socks like my life depended on it. Now it's time for Flicca.

And I have a running list of pictures I want to take and post, but I'm not making any promises. I haven't been very passionate about blogging. But I will at least keep Ravelry updated (my Ravelry name = Tookish). Perhaps being more committed to blogging should have been my New Year's Resolution.

Poseidon Socks Finished, Vinnland Socks Begun

2007-12-06T17:20:00.000-05:00

The Poseidon Socks from Exercise Before Knitting are complete! Yes, both of them.

I broke down and used my lightbox to take the pictures. It's becoming obvious that winter is here and, therefore, adequate sunlight is gone. For good. Or at least until about April of next year. (ah, Upstate NY winters). Wouldn't I just love to take interesting action shots of my FOs! But being a the model and photographer of my finished items means that my options are rather limited. But I digress....

Pattern: Poseidon socks
Source: Exercise Before Knitting
Cost: FREE
Yarn: Knitpicks Essential "Gulfstream"
Quantity: <2 skeins
Needles: Addi Turbo US 1 (2.5 mm) 32 in circs (magic loop baby)
Recipient: MIL

Great name, great color, great pattern. The lace pattern is quite simple but gives deceivingly fancy-shmancy results. I like how reversing the right and left slanting decreases gives a nice wavy look. My MIL likes coral blue colors (it matches her tan, she says, which is probably true, I just wish her tan was acquired from less-carcinogenic methods). Let's see, they're knit from the toe up with a short row heel, which is cool cuz I don't normally do toe-ups so it was nice getting acquainted again. I would like to know how one does leg increases so I can make knee-highs from toe-up socks. That way, I won't have those pesky partial skeins leftover. If anyone knows of a tutorial on this topic, please point me in the right direction. It would be much appreciated :)

And thus completes my x-mas knitting.

Now back to me ME ME!

The Vinnland Socks are now in progress:

Cardigans vs. Pullovers

2007-11-29T13:15:00.000-05:00

Here are the projects that I’m breaking my yarn diet for:

Provincial Waistcoat by Mari Lynn Patrick (Interweave Knits, Winter 2006)

Nantucket Jacket by Norah Gaughan (Interweave Knits, Winter 2006)

Flicca by Anna Bell (My Fashionable Life)

Tilted Duster by Norah Gaughan (Interweave Knits, Fall 2007)

Phyllo Yoked Pullover by Norah Gaughan (Knitting Nature)

I noticed something: only one pullover in the bunch. Hmm… why this obvious preference for cardigans? Can’t say for sure. My guess would be that I like to layer. By acquiring layering items for my wardrobe means I have more options. More options = more bang for my buck.

Or maybe I just like sewing buttons.

Oh man, I am having so much fun picking out yarns and colors these projects!! I’ve only ordered yarn for two projects so far. I think I’m dragging out the other purchases on purpose. Must make the fun. Last. Longer…

Mom's Christmas Socks

2007-11-26T17:26:00.000-05:00

I like socks. They're fun to knit. They don't normally take very long to complete. They're functional.

And, if you don't mind my bragging, I'm pretty good a knitting socks. I have much better luck with socks than with sweaters.

I also think they're a good starting point for making your own design. Once you know the basic sock template, you can add whatever stitch(es) you like. Besides fitting your stitch pattern in your ankle circumference, there's not much to it.

I had two requests from my mom when it came to her Christmas socks: 1. She wants them nice and thick 2. No crazy colors.

That's do-able.

So I wip'd (he he) these up. All by myself.

They're made out of one skein of LB Wool Ease worsted, which is a good, cheap sock yarn despite the high acrylic content. I knit them on US 4 circs (magic loop) so the fabric is really thick, and a little stiff, but nothing a trip in the washer and dryer won't fix (another LB Wool Ease advantage). I grabbed the bias rib from one of my stitch books and the lace border from the Floral Lace Anklets (Lace Style, Interweave Press) I just finished. Overall, I took inspiration from the Spiral Boot Socks from Interweave Knits Summer 2007 by Veronik Avery.

Sorry, but this is the only picture and I know it's not a very good one. (It's kind of like looking at the sock's butt). I haven't been in a blogging mood these past couple weeks. But since I have an extra skein of this yarn, maybe I'll make a pair for myself... eventually.

Good News! I'm breaking my yarn diet this Christmas. I've already ordered some yarn and me thinks I'll be ordering more... YAAARNN!

I'm on Ravelry!

2007-11-25T10:04:00.000-05:00

I received my Ravelry invite a few days ago. My name is Tookish there, so say hello if you're on there too. I'm just getting acquainted right now, but overall I think the site is brilliant!

I managed to cast on and finish a pair of socks for my mom since my last post. I'll try and post what pics I have of it. They're already wrapped and in the possession of the recipient.

Right now I'm knitting the Poseidon Socks from Exercise Before Knitting. They're going good. I'll post when the first sock is done.

Hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving!

Floral Lace Anklets from Lace Style

2007-11-09T19:44:00.000-05:00

I finally managed some half-way decent photos of the Floral Lace Anklets. I decided to post on Craftster first since these are a gift. I'll make sure to post the pics here after she receives them. Maybe I'll sneak a few pics of her modeling them, heh heh!

Until, then please click here to see my post on Craftster.

Thanks!

Stalling

2007-11-07T12:56:00.000-05:00

I finished the Floral Lace Anklets a couple days ago (katiedid- the yarn color is actually Burgundy), but I haven’t been able to take pictures, because the weather (thus, light) has been kind of crappy for the past few days.

What about that light box thingie you were going make, you say? That’s done, BUT I’d like to use some sock blockers if I’m going to photograph them using the light box. Sock blockers are just a nicer way to show off socks than just laying the sock flat as it is. Ooo! You know what I should get? One of those mannequin foots!! (note to self: ebay mannequin foot)

I’ve started on the next pair of x-mas socks. These will be for my mom made out of worsted weight Wool-Ease. They’ll be nice and thick. I finally casted on last night after a couple evenings of planning. I’m knitting them on size 4 circs because I hate my Denise Interchangeable size 5’s (don't you). The fabric is definitely stiff, but they should soften up once they’re washed (cue: washer/dryer of death).

Besides that, I’ve been discovering some new blogs, which I’ve added to my sidebar: Domesticrafts, Slipped Stitch, and Exercise Before Knitting. And here are some links to sock patterns I found recently. Socktoberfest for me has been extended to Christmas. Surprisingly, I’m not getting tired of making them, but when I’m finally to the point where I can actually make a sock for myself, I probably will be. That’s the way these things work.

Sock pattern links (all free):
Poseidon Socks (Exercise Before Knitting)

Drunken Bees Socks (Domesticraft)

Zephyre socks (Domesticraft)

Vinnland socks (The Anticraft)

Ridges and Ribs Socks (Criminy Jickets)

Enjoy! There's just so much great stuff out there in the blogosphere. We gotta help each other out, right? :-)

Alpacas Galore: 2007 Empire Alpaca Extravaganza

2007-10-29T21:37:00.000-04:00

While many knitters were enjoying the weekend at the infamous Sheep and Wool Festival in Rhinebeck, NY, my DH and I stopped by the 2007 Empire Alpaca Extravaganza hosted by the Empire Alpaca Association. Not quite Rhinebeck, but it was free and only about 15 minutes from home. Now I like alpaca's. I wish I had one... or two, but since I can't even have a cat in my apartmen I doubt I could get away with a medium-sized domesticated camelid.

The event took place at one of the buildings at the NY State Fairgrounds. How many Alpacas can a NYS Fairgounds building hold? Lots! (EAA says 750+)

Here are some pics for your enjoyment, all taken by the husbeast.

There was one display that was selling some ready made alpaca gear, some yarn, and some roving at pretty decent prices. But as a whole this event seemed to be geared toward alpaca owners and people looking to buy alpacas. However, looking at all the alpacas and trying to pet them (many didn't seem like they wanted to be bothered) while trying figure out if I could squeeze one of the yearlings in the back of my Forester was well worth it. Maybe I'll drop a comment to the organizers about having a little more to offer for fiber enthusiasts. ;)

Tech Yarn

2007-10-27T09:28:00.000-04:00

Check out this article on some new-fangled yarn that can glow-in-the-dark! I think we'll definately see some interesting patterns when/if this stuff hits the market.

Go to article

Sneak a Peek at an FO While I Ramble On Incessantly

2007-10-24T14:29:00.000-04:00

WK DO NOT READ!!! X-MAS SPOILER!

I finished part 1 of the Floral Lace Anklets on Saturday, as predicted, but I never got around to taking a picture before it got dark out. I'm a true believer that natural light is ideal for taking photographs. But it's been pretty overcast these passed two days and combined with the fact that our apartment doesn't get very good light, I postponed pictures again. BUT, today seems to be pretty nice outside. So alas, a picture! I'd like to put off a full-blown show-and-tell until I'm finished with the pair. But here's a sneak peek for now:

As these are intended to be a x-mas gift I don't want to post a pic directly on the blog. So here's a link to view the picture. WK DO NOT CLICK!!!

I friggin love this color. I was so excited to CO because I knew that these would be one of my first successful FO in a while. Trying to design my own sweaters has proven to be frustrating. I'm thinking I need a little more practice with actually completing sweaters from patterns before I can start having success designing my own.

Anyways, the yarn is Knitpicks Essentials. This Essentials yarn seems softer than other balls of Essentials I bought over a year ago. Has anyone noticed this? I'm not sure when or if there was a change in their manufacturing, but hey, I'm not complaining.

Going back to the sunlight issues I have: I'm thinking of following this tutorial from Lolly and make myself a photo-box. I'll pretty much only have to purchase some poster board. Most other materials already have in my possession. I'm hoping that having a photo-box will allow me take pictures no matter the time or day or level of sunshine. It's BRILLIANT!

Autumn still seems a little reluctant, but it's definately here. The colors here in NY are just beautiful. I really must get my tush out there take some pictures. I hope we don't get anymore heavy rain this week. Mum (and Co.) are coming up for a visit and Mother loves her Fall colors!

One more thing (can I ever stop rambling?), there was no Rhinebeck for me this year (well, not ever actually) but I did do something fiber related last weekend. It involved a hell of a lot of Alpacas. Post and pics coming soon.

PS - (sorry, this will never end, you're trapped here forever) I went to Mission Rose Quiltery and Knittery yesterday on the way home from work in order to brighten up an otherwise dreary day. What a CUTE place! And the yarns! OH, the yarns!! Noro, Rowan, and Debbie Bliss. OH MY! I cannot describe to you the kind of willpower required to NOT buy yarn at a place like that. So I bought needles instead. I have now become an Addi-Ho, if owning one pair of US1's counts. Now I can put my cheap US 1 dpns out their misery. DIE DPNs, DIE! All hail Magic Loop!

Ta.

Crafty Happiness!

2007-10-19T19:41:00.000-04:00

Thursday morning, when I was walking out the door for work, I saw a package sitting in the hallway. I knew exactly what it was: MY TEA TIME SWAP PACKAGE!!

WEEE! I scooped it up and took it to work with me. And as soon as I got to my desk I ripped that baby open. Needless to say the contents made my morning. Check it out:

Stitchmarkers!!

Handpainted dishes. I loved the Asian theme for this package.

A tea canister with the "kenji" character. She informed me that Kenji means Tea. And a crap load of tea to go in my tea canister.

And last but not least, chamomile soaps, tea tree and rosemary lotion, scone recipes with some extra Asian themed recipe cards, and a muslin tea bag.

Well, I'm really, REALLY happy with my package. The teas are delicious and I can't wait to try the recipes. I hope she likes the package I sent her. I have to say, I think her package is better than mine.

There's a lot of interesting things being made for this swap. One person actually dyed yarn with tea. I'm not sure how this is done or what the resulting colors are like, but I'm sure Almighty Google can help me (or you) find a tutorial or two. But if you're reading this and have Tea-dyed before feel free to point us in the right direction. ;)

Knitting news: I'm knitting like a bat out of hell on the Lace Floral Anklets from Lace Style. Maybe it's the cooler weather or maybe it's the prospect of finishing something that's actually wearable that has me motivated. FO's have been a little dry around here lately so I'm thinking it's more of the latter. Well, I'll save the details for the next post. There's a good chance I'll be finishing the first sock today. And if I do, I'll post first thing tomorrow.

Have a good Saturday, especially all you Rhinebeckers!

Yarn Shops in the Syracuse Area

2007-10-16T12:19:00.000-04:00

For some reason, I was under the impression that there were no (are at least, very few) yarn shops in the Syracuse area. When I think back to when I was a knitting-noob I remember trying to find yarn shops and somehow, not really succeeding. And then I found sites like Knitpicks and Elann and realized I can buy yarn on the internet for pretty cheap when I was ready to expand my horizons to other things besides acrylic. So, my interest in LYSs quickly faded. But now I’m curious about this LYS thing even though I know it might be the pricier option. But have I not proven my commitment to knitting and honed my skills to justify spending more money on yarn? And these LYSs surely have sales, right? And what about helpful, friendly staff? Surely that counts for something. And wouldn’t it be grand to know exactly what color your yarn is when you buy it instead of rolling the dice when you order online?

And shouldn’t I be supporting local businesses in this, the age of WalMart?

For those of you who are local and are interested in yarn shops, here is a list I found using Almighty Google. Some of these places have websites, some don’t. Where possible I fished out their hours of operation. I’m pleased to see there is a place, The Knitting Connection, on the other side of town from me. Perhaps I'll check that out in the near future.

The Knitting Connection
3056 Burnet Avenue
Syracuse, NY 13206-2571
http://www.theknittingconnection.net/
Hours of Operation:
M - T - W - Th - Sat 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Fri - Noon to 6 p.m.

Mission Rose Quiltery (And Knittery) Thanks to Carla for adding one more location...
456 S. Main Street
North Syracuse, NY
M,W,F,Sat - 9:30-4:30
T,Th - 9:30-6:30
Sun - 12-4

Village Yarn Shop
3401 Erie Blvd E
Dewitt, NY 13214
(315) 449-2051 ...And for letting us know that Village Yarn Shops are no longer in business

Village Yarn Shop
511 E Genesee St
Fayetteville, NY 13066
(315) 637-0416

A Yarn For All Seasons
8240 Cazenovia Rd # 100
Manlius, NY 13104
(315) 692-4580
http://ayarnforallseasons.net/

Patchwork Plus Yarn
2532 Cherry Valley Tpke
Marcellus, NY 13108
(315) 673-2208
(315) 673-3716
http://patchworkplusquiltshop.com/
Open Sundays noon to 4pm, Monday - Saturday 10am to 5pm, Thursdays 'til 7pm

Elegant Needles
7 Jordan St
Skaneateles, NY 13152
(315) 685-9276
(800) 275-9276 - Toll Free

Yarn Bin
51 Fennell St
Skaneateles, NY 13152
(315) 685-5070

So tell me. Has anyone been to these places? Are any of these shops no longer in business? I would really hate to drive out to say, Skaneateles to find the store unoccupied and yarn-less. Tell me your thoughts.

Another New Look

2007-10-12T21:57:00.000-04:00

It's Friday night and I've been updating my blog while streaming Regina Spektor Live at the 9:30 Club.

Bars? Clubs? No thank you. I'd rather blog about knitting.

I decided to upgrade my template to the customizable blogger formats. I wish I did this earlier. This is way easier than trying to learn HTML and editing the template through the code. Really, I'm not a programmer nor do I want to be. I picked one of the "Minima" templates and then customized away. EVERYTHING was easier. You can rearrange elements by just clicking and dragging. I was able to add my banner, no problem. Changing fonts and colors? No problem. If you use blogger and want to customize, I highly suggest going this route. Now before you start thinking that Blogger is paying me, onto some knitting content:

Well there's not much, really. I'm waiting for my Knitpicks order consisting of two skeins of coral blue Essentials sock yarn and two balls of burgundy Essentials. These are not for me, but for xmas gift knits. My inlaws have decided that they want to do a handmade xmas, which is ok by me. As I said before, handknit socks make great gifts. You can't go wrong.

The coral blue yarn will be Cookie A's Pomatomus socks. I'm not sure about the burgundy yarn, I'm thinking perhaps the Floral Lace Anklets from Lace Style.

I just got the book from the library and I really like it so far. Scarf Style and Wrap Style were really good too. I've got some craft swap projects to post, but I want to wait until my partner gets the package before I post. I had my first felting experience recently and of course I've got pictures.

I've got tickets to the Tori Amos concert at the Landmark tomorrow night. She's my all time favorite. I've been a fan for years, but she's never toured close enough for me to see her. I'm glad she decided to swing upstate.

What to Do with All that Leftover Yarn

2007-10-08T21:30:00.000-04:00

2007 -the year of the stashbuster- has not been the success I was hoping it would be. I have matured as a knitter, and therefore, my taste in yarns has matured. I'm not saying I'm a yarn snob or anything, but I've finally realized that cheap acrylics are NOT suitable for every project. But my stash you see, it's not cooperating.

Just what in the hell am I going to do with these large skeins of boucle, LB Homespun, and other acrylic remnants?? Will I ever again experience the fun of acquiring new yarn??

Finally, my DH (probably tired of my wining, bitching, and fretting) offered a solution: make a big-ass patchwork blanket.

"Whip out your stitch books and make up a square of some fancy stitch or try a new technique. Have fun with it." He said.

Too which I reply, impishly: "But, but... my yarn is all different weights. How do I make the squares all the same size?"

To which he replies, as cool as ever: "Just make the squares however big or small you want and work it out when you're ready to assemble it."

Ah, epiphany. The clouds separated and beams of light shone into our apartment. (Ok, not really)

My husband is not a knitter. But he is the Master of Perspective and Intuition. How cool is that? What would I do without him? Probably continue to acquire cheap acrylic boucle which get stuffed into plastic containers which I hide under my bed chanting "I'll find something for this yarn. I just know I will."

No more. That's the old me. And now since I've solved my stash problem (or rather my husband solved it for me). I can acquire new yarn!!!

It's already on it's way.

Sock yarn for two Christmas gift-knits. Now I must go stalk my postman...

I got an ALPACA!!

2007-10-06T17:45:00.000-04:00

Sort of....

It's the next best thing in my opinion. Perhaps even cuter than the real thing.

Summer is still here

2007-09-22T09:15:00.001-04:00

Oh how time flies. It's supposed by 85 ºF today and that means that summer is still here. Why? Iunno. I wish it would go. Mr. V tells me not to rush it because Fall will be but a blink and we'll be hibernating in our apartment while the snow piles up outside (ah, lake effect).

Perhaps the lingering presence of THIS summerish knit is the cosmic reason why I'm sweating my arse off 10 days before October. I apologize for the crappy pictures. It is a WIP after all. I'm hoping it will look better when it's finished. I also apologize for bitching about the weather.

What have I been doing if I haven't been acquiring clothes the old fashion way? I've been buying cute cold-weather items like this at my new favorite thrift store chain (Thrifty Shopper):

It's 100% wool and in need of a good cleaning and pressing. I'm thinking I might have to break down and actually get this dry cleaned. Handwashing has always worked for me, but I really want the black and white houndstooth to pop. Don't let my photoshop skills fool you, the white is more like light grey.

This was but one of my finds during Mr. V and I's Thrifty Store bender. We might even drive up to Oswego (about 45-50 mins) to go to their's. (yeah, we might have a problem). It's amazing how such a small thing like organizing the clothes by size and not color (cough-salvation army-cough) makes all the difference. I also think their selection of clothing is better, but that really depends on the location. I've also been hitting up the clearance racks in the regular stores since they're making room for their fall and winter stuff. Needless to say, my wardrobe has increased dramatically, but my wallet has only decreased a little. I like that.

I like thrift stores.

Mmmm... thrifty shopper.

When I'm not thrifty shopping, I've been playing Animal Crossing Wild World on the DS. Who would have thought that paying off mortgages, buying your neighbors medicine, fishing, and watering flowers (because they WILL wither and die) would be so damn interesting? I can design my own clothes, too. Does that count as crafting?

Pile o' Dishclothes and other miscellanea

2007-08-14T21:05:00.000-04:00

Yes, I have a camera. You wouldn’t think it since I haven’t been posting pics. So here:

This is the pile o’dishclothes I’ve been talking about. Who would have thought knitting glorified gauge swatches would be so fulfilling? Well, it is.

I made these from the “pile o’ cheap cotton” that’s been lying in my stash for a while. I’ve never actually used handknit dishcloths before, so we shall see how they hold up. I was also partly inspired to knit cloths because my MIL was complaining about the thin, cheap dishcloths at the store and the lightbulb in my head proceeded to flicker…

My favorite ones are the garterlac dishcloth (above – yeah new skillz!) and the linen stitch cloth .

What you see here is what I’m currently knitting. It’s what I’m tentatively calling the “rib lace henley”. See my awesome sketching abilities? This is the back and I’m closely approaching the armholes, which should be a fun adventure. I’m being optimistic here.

1.5 weeks till Montreal!

Links and Excuses

2007-08-03T07:57:00.000-04:00

I’m always busier during the summer. My free time is normally spent being social (which isn’t a regular thing for me) or traveling. The husbeast and I normally plan for one “big vacation” and a couple smaller day trips, events, or 3-day weekends. Since there is no evil snow in site, this time of year also brings the family up for visits (we live in central NY, most of our family is in PA). We’ve had a lovely time with my SIL and 3 year old niece last week (they’re actually from NC). My mother is planning a visit in late August. My Dad will probably squeeze some time in before then end of summer, I’m sure. My MIL is coming along on our Montreal adventure (this is the “big” vacation). (btw- anyone have any Montreal tips?)

What’s the point of all this rambling? Well, I just haven’t been knitting a lot. Summertime is just one long distraction. And it’s not that I don’t have visions of purls dancing in my head. The only clear progress I’ve made recently is I finally weaved in the ends for my pile o’ dishcloths. And I took back my vow to not frog the Cropped Cardigan with Leaf Ties. I gave up, it’s just not flattering. Once again, I have proven my lack of perspective when it comes to clothes and my body type. Will I ever learn? History says no.

I will have some pictures soon, but not in this post so you can stop wondering already.

But I do have some links for things I’ve been perusing (knitting and non-knitting related):

- Previews, previews, and more previews. Fall is around the corner and the knit mag previews are up. Freebie lovers will enjoy Vogue Knitting’s array of free patterns. I’m glad to see they’ve finally jumped on the free web pattern bandwagon. (really VK, there’s no need to be stingy). I like some of the offerings, but VK is just too trendy for my tastes. IK and Knitscene’s are up, too.

- Is anyone else in awe of Norah Gaughan? She makes the loveliest patterns, and once again she has taken the cover of IK. She shall now be referred to as the Gaughanater. Oh why did I let my subscription run out?

- Damn you Wii for stealing (some of) my precious knitting time!

- I’m already planning the Cropped Cardigan's re-incarnation. And I’ll finally be able to use my Sweater Design in Plain English Book that’s been hanging out since last Christmas.

- Environmentally conscious? Worry about toxic shock syndrome? Hate lugging around feminine hygiene products? Here’s something just for you ;) The Diva Cup. Don’t ask, see for yourself.

Katja from Knitty

2007-07-21T08:46:00.001-04:00

So I wanted to be better about posting, but you know, once summer comes around and even I (the homebody that I am) have other things on my mind. But that doesn't mean I'm not knitting. No, siree!

In preparation for the arrival of my SIL and her 3 year old daughter from North Carolina this week, I made a kiddie-sized FO.

It's Katja from Knitty. Ah, if only I could wear such a cute summer halter! But I'm one of those types that has to wear a bra with EVERYTHING. Strapless ones just don't cut it since they seem to highlight gravity's effect on the jumblies. But when you're three you don't have such worries. I made it with some cotton yarn I had in my stash (yeah, stashbuster!). I don't know what brand it is because I bought about a pound of it at an AC Moore in Canada for about 5 bucks. It was stuffed in a plastic bag marked "factory mill ends, 100% cotton", not the best for garments imo. At least not grown-up size ones. I still have several skeins left, which I've been eating up by making dishclothes. Lots. of. dishclothes. But that's another post.

Hmm... back to Katja, well it's a fun quick knit that only took me about two evenings to complete. I kind of did my own thing with the body since my row gauge didn't match up quite well. Actually, the st gauge didn't match up either. I knit this with worsted weight yarn on size 6 needles (in the round) and still couldn't get the gauge. So I worked out the numbers and decided if I made the 12 month size instead of the 24 month size, it should work out. And it did, sort of. It still seems a bit big for a 2T (she wears a 2T even though she's three, she's teeny). So I added some elastic to the back. It'll probably shrink a little once it's washed, assuming she uses a "washer/dryer of death" like we do.

Next up: the pile o' dishclothes, reverting back to Frog status, and why knitting from my stash is starting to get old.

Stay tuned.

My First Alpaca Encounter Lead to My First Spinning Encounter

2007-07-02T14:21:00.000-04:00

A couple weeks ago, my mother surprised me with a trip to see alpacas! We were visiting her and her boyfriend and she suggested we drop by her friend’s budding fiber farm to check out her alpacas. My face lit up! Did she say alpacas? She didn’t have to twist my arm.

We arrived at Debbie and Tom’s (unannounced, mind you) and they were more than happy show us there three alpacas. They were recently sheered in preparation for the warm summer weather so they weren’t super fluffy, but they were still cute. If I remember correctly they’re all males and one is brown, one is off-white, and one is black and she’s keeping them mainly for the fiber business. Much to my surprise many people don’t keep alpacas for that reason, they’re in it for the breeding which can be quite profitable.

Then after giving me the low down on the alpacas she let me fondle some of the alpaca fiber she spun. Alpaca is soo soft. Why, oh why, do I knit with acrylic!

THEN, she whipped out her drop spindle and demonstrated how you spin with that.

THEN, she whipped out her spinning wheel and gave me a crash course on spinning and plying. Needless to say this lady is AWESOME! Once she gets things up and running with the business I will share her contact info for anyone who is interested in some alpaca roving. Soon, I shall invest in a drop spindle of my very own and maybe someday in the future some alpacas of my very own. But that will be in distant future since my apartment doesn’t even allow cats.

Again, I can’t tell you how incredibly nice and welcoming Debbie and Tom were. She was a great teacher. You can tell she’s had lots of practice from her spinning demos.

Thanks to my Mom for remembering to bring a camera (not to mention taking me to her friends house). mwah.

Ah, Simplicity!

2007-06-24T14:47:00.000-04:00

Late last Saturday night I was a little restless. I was stumped (or mad, what have you) with the Cropped Cardigan, but I was still feeling the urge to craft something. But I had so many ideas running around in my head that all I could do was lay face down in a pillow in a sort of mental state which some would call pouting, but I call meditation. Finally, I decided to get up and rummage through my stash.

I never seem to use a full skein of sock yarn for my socks and thus, I have leftovers that really can't yield another adult sock. So what do I do? Why, make a head band, silly! A head band in a super easy lace netting in a fun summer colors.

Nevermind that I almost never wear headbands.

It was pretty easy and in total, only took me a couple hours. It's made from leftover Knitpicks Dancing sock yarn of which I made Jaywalkers. I used size 1 needles following this pattern for RS and WS rows: k1, *YO, p2tog* repeat to last stitch, k1. That's it.

It's cute! Maybe a little too wide. I could've used some brain cells and decreased on a diagonal for the back part. But oh well.

ACTION SHOTS!!

(Tyra, you know I'm FIERCE!)

So what do you do with leftover sock yarn?

I lament.

2007-06-19T07:13:00.000-04:00

Why can’t I knit a sweater and be absolutely in love with it? I see it all the time on Craftster. Someone knits some gorgeous pattern and the fit, color, everything is perfect. Why can’t I knit like that? Where do I go wrong?

Well, for one I’m not good at picking patterns that fit my body type. My mind seems to think I’m 5’10”, 110 lbs, with perfectly proportional bust/waist/hip measurements. And I also live a magical world filled with fairies and leprechauns. Sadly, this is not true. I acknowledge this, but I somehow can’t get this acknowledgement to cross over to my knitting.

Secondly, I’m still a newbie when it comes to fit. My garment making experience has it’s origins in sewing where you almost always need extra ease. Knitting is the opposite and I’ve been learning this the hard way.

The “Cropped Cardigan with Leaf Ties” I’ve been knitting is almost finished. In my excitement I tried it on and examined myself in the mirror a couple inches shy of finishing the second sleeve. Much to my dismay, I wasn’t immediately thrilled. Why? It’s too friggin’ big! It’s 44” around the bust, a full 6” larger than my bust measurement. I’m not sure how this happened and I’m willing to admit it is my fault (ahem, gauge swatching). It being a cardigan, I didn’t want negative ease, but this is ridiculous.

But I refuse to FROG. I’m done frogging, people. Either I start planning and gauging better, or I make do with what I have. So this time, I must make do.

I pinned the body and sleeves in about 1.5” and then I tried it on. Much better. It’s decided. I will take this sack-o-sweater and alter it via sewing machine. I’m not sure how this will work, but I’m willing to risk it in the face of option B (frogging). Anyone have any experience sewing hand-knit items?

If I still don’t like it, I’ll give it to my MIL.

Cropped Cardigan by Stephanie Japel, Progress Post

2007-06-14T18:36:00.001-04:00

Been a little MIA lately. But I have NOT been unproductive:

Better?

Here's a little sneak peek at the Cropped Cardigan with Leaf Ties by Stephanie Japel (current knitty surprise). It should be finished by the end of this weekend. Can't say I'm completely in love with it. After trying it on, I think I could have gotten away with a size smaller. Which makes me think that I should always make sweaters with negative ease, no matter what the numbers say. I figured since it was a cardigan I'd want a little extra room. Thankfully, it's 100% cotton and may shrink a bit once my building's "washer/dryer of death" gets a hold of it.

Better gauge swatching would probably help too. But I like to skimp on that and get to the good stuff. Blasphemy, I know.

I have some special news!

I fed alpacas!

I spun!

I spun alpaca fiber!

And I have pictures!!!

But you have to wait, because the pics were taken on my Mom's camera and I have yet to receive them. I'll start bugging her soon. She just moved, but this is important. This is ALPACAS, damnit!

Stuff

2007-05-22T14:55:00.001-04:00

A hiatus and stashbusting FO. Double-score!

I wore it for the first time today. I’m a little iffy about the “flattering” nature of this design. It’s the Ballet Tee from Loop-d-Loop. It's probably not the best design for my figure. I know other people have had issues with this. I’ll wear it, but you won’t see me waiting by the dryer for this. Especially since the dryer makes it grow strange fuzzies. Well, I’m not sure if it’s the dryer or the economy cotton I chose to knit it with. Who knows?

Thanks so much for the kind words on the “green feet” socks. I’m sure I’ll be re-naming it something spiffier when I post the pattern. I’d love to see the sock in different colors. Hell, it might look better. (hint, hint)

I can’t tell you how delighted I was to see comments on my recent posts. Thanks so much for sticking with me. Considering my blogging skills are amateur (at best) and that there a pasquillion other blogs out there, I’m so surprised I’ve managed to keep your interest. I’m glad you stuck around because I’m feeling refreshed after my hiatus and I’m aiming to step up “my game”.

Anyhoosen…

Not much in knitting content to report. I’m working on the Cropped Cardigan with Leaf Ties by Stefanie Japel which was posted as this Knitty’s surprise. I’m just about ready to split the sleeves and work solely on the body. I’m excited, It’s a cute top-down cardigan which is guaranteed to eat up 10 skeins of Bernat Handicrafter Cotton I have in my stash.

Yes, 2007 is the “Year of the Stashbuster” for me. I know someone out there in blogland is hosting a Stashbusting event. I’m not biting off of someone else’s idea, honest. I resigned myself to knitting only from my stash before I came across the event. My main motivation is to clear out my collection of cheapy acrylic and cotton yarn so I can by somewhat nicer yarn. You know, yarn that originates from some exotic animals nether regions. Plus, it would be cool to be a knitter who's not dependent on fossil fuels.

Fledgling

2007-05-19T08:51:00.000-04:00

The ultimate goal for my knitting skills is to one day create lovely designs the likes of Anna, Eunny, Ysolda... etc.

But since I've only been knitting for just under 2 years (and they, I believe, since they were 2) I have a lot of work to do. But I have taken some steps in the right direction. Before last Christmas I completed my own sweater from my very own pattern. Simplistic in design, and modern in fit. It turned out well and wore it several times throughout the winter. I would have worn it more if the neckline wasn't so wide that it revealed my bra straps, assuming I didn't have a tank top underneath. Despite that, I considered it a success.

Then, during spring I kept myself sane/busy with designing my own sock. I've made a simple sock on my own before thanks to tutorials such as this. I did the same thing on this sock, but made it fancier. I grabbed the lace pattern from The New Knitting Stitch Library by Lesley Stanfield. I liked that it was a more geometric than foo-foo so I paired it with some bright green yarn to give it a "sci-fi" theme.

This version you see here is take two. The first take was to small since the lace pattern doesn't have a lot of stretch. Of course I waited until after the sock was complete, ends weaved in and all, to actually try it on and discover this. So for my redo I added stitches to my CO and split the lace panel in two with some 2x2 ribbing in between. Much better fit this time. It's actually a little roomy.

So I'm thinking this will be my first pattern that I will post on this site. It will be free, of course, since I can't take full credit for it's construction. I'm going to complete the second sock to test my notes, then post the pattern. Hope you like it. I think they're pretty neat myself.

Specs:
Pattern: My own
Construction: basic top-down
Yarn: Knitpicks Palette "Mint", less than 1 skein for one sock available at www.knitpicks.com

Testing, testing...

2007-05-11T21:59:00.000-04:00

Is anyone there? Um, I'm back.

waves cobwebs from face
inhales dust bunnies
coughs

It's been a while. A long while.

crickets, chirping

So the class I was taking this Spring is over. I'm not sure why I thought that was a good idea, but now I can get back to important things like incessantly wrapping fiber around pointy sticks, taking pictures of it, and posting it on the internet. Ah, priorities.

You'll be happy to know that I HAVE been knitting. I have a small gallery of FO's I've been developing since Christmas. Nothing big.

Just bear with me. I have to get reacquainted with this whole blogging thing again. So if you're reading this, thanks for being a loyal blog reader (and writer, which I'm sure you are) . I have plans for this humble blog o'mine. One-step at a time, though.

On Hiatus

2006-12-14T08:15:00.000-05:00

Wow, so I haven't posted in 2 months. Sorry about that. I also haven't been commenting on other blogs either, but I have been lurking so I'm not gone completely.

I'm officially putting Eat-Sleep-Knit on an indefinite hiatus. I can't say I'm ready to give up blogging completely, but I think I would like to just focus on knitting right now. Rest assured I will NOT be giving that up. Since October I finished the Baudelaire socks from Knitty, a sweater using my own pattern (a great success!), and right now I'm working on Starsky from Knitty.

I'm taking a class next semester in addition to my full-time work schedule, so I'll be a bit busier. But we'll see what happens. So please check in every once in a while, otherwise I'll see you on your blogs and on Craftster (as Knit_Dork24).

Happy Holidays to everyone! See you next year :D

A Socktoberfest Story: Some Moggle Response’s to a Twenty-Something KIP’ing

2006-10-16T14:40:00.000-04:00

Preface: I don’t normally KIP, and that’s only because when I’m out in public I’m normally occupied. The only exception to this is when I’m waiting for my car at the shop. A few days ago I had my brakes replaced and state inspection which required an extended waiting period (I have to wait, because we only have one car). So after a walk to Dunkin Donuts for breakfast I came back, sat down in the rather cramped waiting room, and whipped out the Baudelaire sock I’ve been working on…

I noticed a couple lingering looks as I sat there with the lace chart and yarn ball on my lap and needles in hand (magic-loop! Yeah, baby). I brush them off. It was at this point I began to wonder when exactly someone would inquire/comment about what I was making. It was no surprise to me that the first one was an elderly man who waiting for his car to be prepped for his seasonal migration somewhere south of the Mason-Dixon Line:
“Watch ya making?” he asked. I sensed he was desperately trying to break the silence as I’m not one for small talk, “a hat?”
Now, I’m well into shaping the gusset on this toe-up sock that is meant for my rather petit step-mother. But I try to hide my “WTF?” look and muster a polite response.
“No, it’s a sock.” I lift WIP slightly to reveal the sock-like shape.
“Oh, definitely need those around here.” He replied.
Indeed. The frost on my car windows was quite thick and the act of scraping them off ended up making me a tad late for my 7:30 appointment. At least I don’t live in Buffalo.

About 30 minutes later…

The owner/manager of the establishment looks intently and asks “What are you making?”
“A sock,” As you can tell from my minimal response, I’m not much of a people person.
“Do you have kids, or something?”
Huh? My brain scrambles to make the connection between knitting and kids, which is somehow obvious to him but not to me. Does he think I’m knitting a children’s sock?
Again, politely: “No, I just like making socks. It’s a Christmas present for my stepmother.”
The owner/manager, who really is a nice guy btw, then adds that his wife crochets and he thought that’s what I was doing until he saw the two needles. In hind-site, I guess the “kid” question was a more politically correct way of asking me if I was pregnant. Thus, proving that the cliché of the “knitting-mother-to-be” is still alive and well. But this is just an assumption. I can’t help but to wonder, though.

Sometime time later, still knitting away in the cupboard/waiting room…

One of the mechanics squeezes into the cupboard for something, notices me knitting away, and gives me a wide smile.
Ummm, okay. Trying not to get too creeped out I continue on with my gusset increasing. I guess I was expecting something like “hey, check out the grannie!” So it’s not so bad, I guess.

500 years later…

The same mechanic returns to the cupboard but this time he has to wait in line for the boss-man.
“Man, you’ll have a whole (something or another, I couldn’t understand him since he had a slight case of mush-mouth) before we’re done here.”
I smile, interpreting it as a compliment to my mad-knitting skills, but before I could get a response out the owner/manager replies, jokingly:
“Maybe not, if you actually finish sometime this year,”
Hmm, come to think of it, I was there for a little over 2 hours. But I really didn’t care since I was knitting.

A Kni-story of Socks

2006-10-11T08:49:00.000-04:00

I've been a little absent lately. With settling into the new place, shopping for decorations to adorn our bare walls, a family visit, and enjoying the beautiful fall weather I haven't had much time (or energy) to blog. I am just now getting some semblance of an everyday routine back, even though we've been in our place for several weeks. I have been knitting. Honest. I finished the baby Zoe project and I got a good start on my Socktoberfest project (the Baudelaire socks from Knitty). But first, in keeping with the Socktober-festivities, a gallery of my sock knitting history:

Traveler Socks from d-made in LB Wool-Ease

Rapunzel Socks, also from d-made, also in wool-ease

Hedera Socks from Knitty (first pair in actual sock yarn, Knitpicks of course)

The infamous Jaywalkers!

And most recently, a simple pair (my own pattern) in Knitpicks Simple Stripes for my MIL:

Three of the five socks above were gifts. If you're ever unsure what to knit someone: knit them socks! Here are my reasons: 1. they'll actually get used by the recipient (as long as they're not hippies) 2. they'll think that it's the most complicated thing you could possibly knit for them (you know their not but they can keep on thinking that for all you care) 2. knit socks fit the best (period) 3. Socks are convenient for you (they're portable and can be as quick or slow as you want them to be depending on time constraints).

So go knit some socks, dangnamit!

2006-09-30T07:58:00.000-04:00

So this is my Zoe X-mas Project. For those of you just tuning in Zoe is my baby neice. I find the degeneration of my original idea to what I actually have quite comical. I went from the super cute Trellis sweater to a square with some intarsia (or fair isle, colorwork, whatever). In the end I decided to make the square into a bib by adding some i-cord straps to the ends. It's not bad, but not completely X-mas worthy on it's own. I plan on making something else from the book Knitted Toys by Fiona McTague. I got it from the library along with Beautiful Knitting Patterns by Gisela Kloepper. It's another one of those books that just has stitch patterns and charts. I love it! It's inspiring to page through and drool over the lace and aran patterns. There's more stitch patterns in there but those are my favorite. Oh, if you get the Knitted Toys book you abosutely must NOT knit the clown. If you knit the clown it will come alive at night while you're sleeping and eat you. That's what my brother would tell you, which is why I should knit it for him. ;)

Next up is a knitted toy for Zoe. Hopefully, I can get a good start on that before Socktoberfest. I don't plan on starting right on the Oct.1, but I might gauge swatch or something to celebrate.

My mother is visiting this weekend so we'll be out and about today. We're checking out the Regional Farmer's Market, CNY Great Pumpkinfest, and of course, no Syracuse visit is complete without a stop by the Dinosaur BBQ. I hope she likes mounds of meat!

One Cheek on the Saddle

2006-09-27T07:47:00.000-04:00

First knitting news: *sounds of trumpets*

I joined! Have you? Click here to learn more. Thanks to Bryony and Erin for alerting me to the existence of such a fun event! It's perfect timing too since I was planning on gift-knitting Baudelaire socks for my stepmom soon. This will be my Socktoberfest project. I'm looking forward to it. I love knitting socks. I love knitting socks for other people. I'm pretty much convinced that socks are the best knitted gift EVER! My mom raves about them and now my MIL does too. She loved her b-day socks! And she said the fit was perfect so that's a relief. In conclusion: socks are awesome so join Socktoberfest and knit some socks!

NEXT!

Moving is pretty much over. THANK GOD! We did the U-Haul portion of the trip last night and my arms are quite sore. I had to stop and take breaks when we were moving our loveseat. My hands kept slipping on the leather (alright, pleather) and my arms were going limp in protest. Of course, out of the corner of my eye I see a pair of people in the distance looking in our direction. >.<>

Remember those chairs I said I would redo? I finished those and will be pictures posted ASAP. Also, I dumped Trellis. I was just going to take me too long. The cabling slows things down a bit. So I started experimenting with colorwork (how does it go: huzzah?) so I'm making something else for baby Zoe. What it is just yet, I'm not sure. But I'll post pics soon. I also have to make some curtains for our new, rather large windows. Eek, sewing!

Ta!

Taking the Backseat

2006-09-19T11:23:00.000-04:00

Moving is so tiring! We just finished packing and moved our first load over yesterday. We were able to spread out the move over the rest of September so it shouldn’t be so crazy. Unfortunately, I won’t have much time for knitting and I won’t even be able to post from home until our internet is setup at our new place sometime next week. I can post at work though so don’t count me out completely. ;) But no pics for YOU!

I’m starting the Trellis baby sweater today (hopefully). I have to do a gauge swatch, a necessary evil. I don’t despise gauge-swatching, but I definitely half-ass it in order to get onto the fun stuff. Some people suggest knitting a 6x6 square with a garter stitch border and then washing or blocking it. Holy crap, that’s just too much for me. I’m sure I would have better luck fitting garments if I did it the “right way”. But I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t purposely try to make things harder on myself. I’m planning on knitting Trellis with some Bernat Handicrafter Cotton in something called “Pale Seafoam”. I would call it a unisex color. If I’m feeling adventurous I might even knit up a matching hat.

Is it me or is 100% cotton hard to knit with? I’ve heard comments like cotton is “unforgiving” and it has no elasticity. If that’s true, then I should be in for quite a treat knitting an uber-cabley sweater. Not the smartest yarn choice in the world, I’m sure. Luckily it’s mini-sized. I need to get my hands on some cotton blends like TLC Cotton Plus. I like the idea of cotton as opposed to 100% wools. Cotton is softer and normally machine washable, and unlike acrylics, allows your skin to breathe instead of forming pools of sweat which isn’t fun for anyone. I am likely to not wear something at all when faced with the possibility of hand-washing something (pathetic, I know). So cotton blends seem like the way to go when it comes to sweaters and other garments.

But I’m on an unofficial yarn diet. If I buy more yarn Mr.V’s head will explode and I don’t want that to happen because I like Mr.V’s head the way it is. So for the sake of Mr.V’s head, I will be stash-busting well into the New Year. So no new yarn for me.

The magic 8ball says there will be some more sewing in my near future. It’s saying something about window treatments…?

Ms Sniffles

2006-09-12T13:15:00.000-04:00

Argh, so I've been sick this past weekend and I actually took a rare sick day from work yesterday. I'm not sick very often so when I am I'm always reminded of how much it sucks (damn you, microscopic germs >.<). I've also been reminded that sleep quality is directly related to your ability to breathe through your nose (stupid mucus). On the cute side, Mr.V has dubbed me "Sniffles" and has taken to adding his own fake sniffles to match my own, all in good fun of course. Humor helps. Anway, enough of this pitty-party. I've actually been a bit productive this weekend, considering. First, I finished my MIL's sock. This time it's the right size.

I've started the second one and I'm hoping to be done with it this Friday so I can mail it out. That'll be quite ahead of schedule, but starting next Monday we'll be moving our stuff over to our new place I don't think I'll have a lot of time for knitting or blogging. Especially, deadline knitting. But I knit a good bit of the second sock yesterday so I think I'll have no problem finishing by Friday.

I've also started a non-knitting project. I have a pair of old wooden chairs that my Dad gave me. I've had them for about 2 years now with the intention of re-finishing them and putting them to use. I was afraid these would be destined to live in the basement with the troll, but now I actually have a use for them in our new place. We actually have a private balcony where we're going, and it faces something that we don't mind looking at: trees!

So I plan on making these chairs our balcony chairs. I have the one chair sanded down and ready to stain already. We're hoping to eventually find a little table that we could touch-up and put out on the balcony as well. As far as knitting goes. After the socks are complete I'm going to continue with the gift knits, except these will be christmas gifts. I'm not knitting everyone something for Christmas, because in all honesty I'll go freaking insane. No. thank. you. Instead, I've decided to pick a person who hasn't received a knitted object from me yet and another person (or mini-person) who is just too small to care what she's wearing, thus, choosing what to knit is really easy.

- Knitty's Trellis for my niece Zoe
- Knitty's Baudelaire for my stepmom

I'm starting Trellis next so I can give myself a break from sock knitting. Not that I don't like knitting socks, I'm just the kind of person who likes variety. Other than that I probably won't be blogging much until after we're moved. :)

PS- Have you seen the new Knitty, yet? If you haven't do it NOW! I really like Viveka and the assortment of cute socks!

Knitted Happiness

2006-09-03T13:32:00.000-04:00

I contemplated last night while I finishing the Simple Stripes sock how much I love knitting. Specifically, my adoration for such simple and clean touches like twisted rib and the kitchener stitch toe. There is something so neat and tidy about them. Maybe I'm attracted to these neat and tidy things because by nature I am NOT neat and tidy. I am the poster girl for disorder. But I am so proud of myself when I do things like this:

Well, the colors don't make it look real tidy, but you get the idea. I love finishing toes with kitchener's stitch. At first I thought it was sort of tricky, but then I discovered that there is a certain rhythm to it: knit, drop, purl/purl, drop, knit, and so on. The seamless connection is clean and professional.

Ah, twisted rib! Oh, how I love thee! I think most knitters would agree that twisted rib is WAY nicer than plain old 1x1 rib. The knit stitches are nice and snug and don't loose their structure when stretched. Genius! So last night after completing the sock I just sat there admiring the little details. Taking a few minutes to appreciate the act of knitting rather than just the finished object.

And then I tried it on and realized that the size was suited for a pre-teen rather than an adult. So next stop: Frogsville >.<

Hoodie Scarf from D-Made

2006-08-29T15:15:00.000-04:00

Phew! I’ve been busy lately searching for a new apartment and such so blogging time was replaced with apartment searching, calling, appointment-making, etc (fun, fun). But, thankfully, the search is over and I won’t be busy again until about mid-Sept when we start moving. I’m really excited especially because we’ll be moving to a nicer area that’s closer to my job (and my job’s new location, come March of next year). We’re within walking distance to one of the nicest parks EVER! And the craft stores are in a good location as well. So once again, all is well over my way. So without further ado, my most recent FO:

Hoodie Scarf from d-made.com! This is my mother’s birthday gift, which isn’t until early Oct but I was really excited about the pattern I figured I get it done early. Plus, knitting on a deadline while moving is probably not a good idea. Where the heck did these time management skills come from!?

Pattern: Hoodie Scarf from D-Made.com
Yarn: Bernat Berella So Soft 100% acrylic in dark blue, less than 2 skeins
Needles: Size 8 Denise Interchangies
Mods: garter stitch edging on the scarf pieces
Woulda-Shoulda: Thankfully my mother doesn’t mind cheap acrylic yarns since that’s what she crochets with. So, no regrets there. Plus, a winter accessory should really washable. Stuff like that can get yucky pretty fast, and I know my mom would rather not be bothered with hand-washing. Secondly, for some reason my mind could just not accept this scarf’s construction so the garter stitch modification was my way of eliminating the wicked rolling on the edges. But I didn’t realize that the edge would be picked up and worked in 2x2 rib to help tame the edges. Read the pattern. Trust the pattern. The pattern is good. The pattern… is…. your friend…

And seriously, the pattern is good. I looked around quite a bit for a cool hooded scarf a few months ago and was disappointed. Then d-made came along and made everything all better. There's enough to this pattern to keep you entertained and easy enough to finish in a short period of time. Not exactly knit-stant gratification, but satisfying nontheless. Since this is my third FO from d-made I think that warrants an official link in the “Awesome Knitting Resources” section. So check out d-made’s quality, free patterns. NOW!

And since I’m on a roll with this gift-knitting I decided to start on my MIL’s birthday present which is in late-Sept. She’s getting socks made from some Knitpicks Simple Stripes. I'm following Knitty's Socks 101 tutorial for this, so it's nothing fancy. I’m about half-way through the first sock so it looks like I’ll be finished with this ahead of schedule as well. Nice!

What's a Knittah to Do?

2006-08-20T10:00:00.000-04:00

I was going to frog my self-designed tank, but I'm really not in the friggin' mood. I'm so tired of ripping and re-knitting the same thing over and over. I needed a new, smaller project. My mom's birthday is coming up in early October and I finally found a hooded scarf pattern that would be perfect for her. It's the Hoodie Scarf from D-Made. My mom requested one of these because she hates hats (since she styles her hair, unlike myself), but the winter chill is just too much to go without any insulation sometimes. She requested this last winter, but I couldn't find a pattern and I wasn't particularly inspired (or confident) to create my own. I CO for this the other night and I'm moving along nicely although the scarf part is kind of boring. But once I get to the hood part things should liven up a bit. I'm starting pretty early, but that's ok. I hate having to knit things at the last minute and feel rushed. Plus, my mom is visiting in late Sept so I want to give it to her then. PLUS, come mid-Sept Mr.V and I will be moving so I won't have time to fool around with last minute gifts. Plus, - just kidding. I'm done rambling.

I'm making it with some navy blue Bernat SoSoft acrylic that I have in my stash. So far, it's turning out alright, except that it's bunching up a good bit because of the cable and the ribbing. I'm hoping a run through the washer and dryer will help relax the acrylic because, of course, blocking is out of the question. Other than that...

Oh yeah, question: I need some project ideas that would be good for a 4 1/2 year old boy. I could go the stuffie route, but I've kind of done that already. I thought maybe a cool scarf or hat. He likes trains. I mean really likes trains. I don't know if I want to knit him a sweater because that's just not any fun for him. Anyone have any ideas?

Boston Pics Up!

2006-08-17T08:21:00.000-04:00

Click HERE to see some pics of our Boston trip!

Boston Knit-a-Thon a Bust

2006-08-16T12:49:00.000-04:00

Ok, I'm back. First off, Boston was awesome! I had a great time, but now I'm bummed to be back to the same old, same old. Here is some stash enhancement I procured while killing time in AC Moore in Danvers, MA. This was my first ever AC Moore experience, and it definately won't be my last.

"Mill Ends" 1lb bags of 100% cotton yarn. $5 ea. I got two bags and now I'm up to my ears in the cotton yarn. There are no labels but if I were to guess the multi-colored one is Bernat Handicrafter and the wine colored is Sugar n'Cream. Not that it really matters. Hooray for cheap yarn! If all AC Moore's are like the one in MA I think they definately top Joann's. They have a wider selection of yarns I actually want to knit with. And I thought their prices were slightly better than Joann's as well.

Now, lemme tell you how my Boston Knit-a-Thon turned out:

It didn't. I have absolutely nothing to show for my several hours of knitting the Licorice Whip pattern, and here is why: I got about four rows in during the drive to and then I realized I had to make even more pattern adjustments. Then, I had to knit back a couple of times, plus I didn't realize how much a pain 100% cotton yarn could be. Progress was slow. So by the time we arrived in Salem, MA I had about 1.5 inches of sweater. It was at this point I realized that I was NOT finishing this sweater during the trip. But I continued knitting in the hotel before bed and on the drive (though not as diligently). I even worked on it after we got home. At about 10pm last night, I flipped the page of my pattern and realized that there was a whole other inc row in the increase set. I counted my stitches and I realized I was not increasing enough along the raglan lines, (stupid computer print out >.<) So, I had to frog. The whole. F-ing. Thing.

So I now I have nothing to show for effforts which is extremely upsetting (not to mention a tad-bit embarassing).

So now, I think I'm going to return to the Trial and Error tank and make my adjustments to that. Man, it seems like forever since I've finished anything. I'm even thinking of ditching the Licorice Whip completely and knitting something else with the yarn. It's a lovely pattern, but I'm a little po'd with myself and I need to take it out on something. Sorry, sweater.

I'll post some Boston pics on my Flickr account soon!

The Boston Knit-a-Thon

2006-08-11T13:35:00.000-04:00

The Challenge: Knit an entire project from start to finish, sitting shotgun while traveling to and from vacation destination.

Destination: Beantown

The Project: Blue Alvarez’s “Licorice Whip”

Yarn: a crap-load of Bernat Handicrafter Cotton in “Pale Seafoam”

The Needles: Denise Interchangeable Size 7 circs

ET-FO (Estimated Time to FO): 5+ hours up. 5+ hours back. Total = 10+ hrs

The Preparation: Checked gauge and subsequently adjusted pattern to fit preferred yarn gauge. Will be knitting sleeves to ¾ length instead of full length

Return Date: Wednesday, August 16

See you then!

WIPs and Reads

2006-08-09T13:29:00.000-04:00

Ok, here is some knitting content as promised.

This what I've been working on lately. It's the umbrella cozy I keep talking about. It's not quite finished yet, but I figured I'd share it since I think it's fun to make this site slower by adding yet another pointless picture(bwah-ha-ha). All I have to do is finish the strap and I'm done. Yippee!

What exactly is an Umbrella Cozy, you ask? Well, it wraps your umbrella in knitted goodness and since it has a strap you can sling that bad boy on your back and you're good to go. This idea came about from scanning the umbrella rack at Wal-mart in search of a more travel-friendly umbrella. But you see, they're all freaking small and uber-flimsy. I like my big, heavy umbrella. But it's heavy and has no strap, not even an ergonomical handle. My umbrella was crying out for a knitted accessory! So I grabbed some inspiration from the Yoga Mat Bag in SnbN and started knitting. I'm kind of liking how this is turning out so I think I'll post a pattern when all is said and done.

In other news I checked out two knitting books from the library yesterday. These will be great reads while I'm laying on the beach in Rockport, MA next Monday:

Fair Isle Knitting by Sarah Don: This is copyrighted 1979 and is comically outdated as far as the patterns go. But what attracted me to this book was the 20 pages or so of fair isle motif samples. Well, that's pretty cool. So all I have to do now is actually learn how to knit fair isle.

The Sweater Workshop by Jacqueline Fee: I've heard this pretty good for helping you design your own sweaters. We'll se what it has to offer.

Umbrella Cozy pattern coming soon. Also, the Boston Knit-a-thon!

Like the new digs?

2006-08-05T08:31:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the all-new Eat-Sleep-Knit!

The tour begins after this brief introduction:

I didn't feel the generic Blogger template was really a unique reflection of me, as corny as that may sound. I want to make impression, dang-namit! And as some of you may know I would like to start posting some patterns so I felt that this place needed a cleaner, more professional look. In order to do that I had to immerse myself in the basics of HTML and CSS and I read up on some good ways to personalized your site and increase traffic. Easier said then done. There is definite potential for this stuff to turn your brains into gloppy-goop. But don't let that intimidate you.

Which brings us to the first stop on the tour: The banner. Mr.V in his infinite talent (and sweetness) created my very own banner using Photoshop. He also helped me place the banner neatly in the center of the page. 3 Cheers for Mr.V! (he's also helped me figure out other formatting issues that just seemed to elude me. Isn't he greatest?)

Stop Two: The elusive 3rd column. I just really like the look of 3 column formats. I needed to have one, but alas, three column-ers are not offered by Blogger. But that's where Pam Blackstone at Random Bytes comes in! 3 Cheers to Pam Blackstone! NOTE: to view all three columns you must have your window fully maximized.

Stop Three: Ah, color! Sweet pigmented, visible energy! It's brightened up a bit and I think this works quite well. If you think the background color is a little over-powering though, please let me know. I care about your retinas, really I do.

And the rest is self-explanatory. I hid most of my profile info because it pushed other important sidebar content too far down the page, plus this site isn't about ME it's about my knitting. So I wanted to make that the overall focus. But you can still access my personal info (at your own risk, of course) by clicking on my profile link.

Here is a list of the on-line resources that helped make this possible. Check them out!
-Random Bytes (for the 3 Column version of Douglas Bowman's Minima)

-HTML Dog's CSS and HTML Beginner's Guide

-Photoshopsupport's tutorial on Blog Design and Templates

Knitting content will resume shortly. Ta!

Squiddy!

2006-08-02T10:15:00.000-04:00

Everyone, meet Squiddy:

He’s very pleased to meet you.

Actually, Squiddy was supposed to be an octopus but Mr.V informed me that a pointy head is squid thing. Oh, well. He’s still cute.

Pattern: Mr. Octopi posted on Craftster.org (no link for you, it’s seems Craftster is kind of slow at the moment so search for “octopus” in the knitting boards and you’ll find it)
Yarn: Some scrap LB Wool-Ease and part of the Clapotis I never wear.
Needles: Denise Size 6
Mods: The pattern suggests making two increases per increase round. I did that and I would suggest doing that too, otherwise you might end up with a REALLY narrow head. But I guess it all depends on what yarn and needles you use.
Woulda-Shoulda: I kind of fudged the base (which you seam on separately), but you can’t really see that unless you actually look, so it’s alright. What exactly does a grown 20-something do with a knitted stuffy? She’s sits it on a bookshelf at work, of course. He can be my pick-me-up when work gets dull and slow- a reminder of the fun activity that awaits me after hours.

And yes, I did sacrifice a Clapotis to make a leg and the base for Squiddy. I’ve probably committed some knitting mortal sin considering how popular the Clapotis is. But before you cast the stones hear me out: I don’t wear it. Not because it’s a bad design. It was because I chose the wrong yarn. It was my first big knitting project and I didn’t know any better. I plan on making another one (possibly mini-sized) with some variegated yarn like the pattern suggests (possibly even dyeing my own since Knitpicks has expanded their Dye-Your-Own yarns to different weights, plus superwash).

Thanks for all the feedback on the Trial and Error Tank (aka, the TET)! I’m a little less critical of it after reading your gracious comments. I do think I’ll frog the ribbing part and re-knit it with some more shaping and less ease. But I will be keeping the ribbing thanks to your input (and I’ve finally gotten over my “it makes me look fat” mind-set, sorry for that). I also think I’ll be adding some crab stitch crochet edging to the straps and top edges to battle the “rollies”- thanks to Cheryl for that suggestion (you rock!). So it seems the saga of the TET continues.

I’m back to inventing the wheel with my new project. An umbrella cozy? Just wait and see.

Trial and Error Tank

2006-07-30T15:53:00.000-04:00

Ok, so that self-designed tank top is finally finished. It's not bad. But I think there a few things I might change.

1. The straps roll (due to the St st) and my first attempt at blocking didn't help. Bugger! >.< So I'm afraid I might have to add some kind of edging either knitted or crocheted to tame the rollies. But first, I'll attempt a wet block and see if that helps.

2. It could probably use a little less ease in the body and better shaping. This was a trial and error design, so I was trying it on throughout various parts in order to get the fit right. I think some better pre-planning would have helped. But, alas, I am impatient.

3. I can't decide if it's the ribbing or the ease that gives this top its "fattening factor". I definately don't want to be designing garments that make people look fat, including me. The shot above doesn't look too bad (if you look closely you can see what humdity does to my hair, yippee!). But the straight on poses were definately adding on some poundage.

So what I think I will do is go back to the drawing board and plan some adjustments. I think this will get frogged for a take 3. But I'll be taking a break and doing some other things first.

So tell me, honestly, what do you think? I'd love some constructive feedback.

YARN! and ML Blanket Update

2006-07-28T17:27:00.000-04:00

It's Baby Zoe! And she's sitting on the Mountain Laurel Blanket I knit for her. That's why she's smiling ;) I received this pic in the mail along with a Thank You card from my brother and SIL. I couldn't resist posting it. She's too damn cute!

Anyways. This is just a quick update. I've finished my tank top and will post pictures this weekend, so check back. It turned out pretty good for my first self-designed-knitted-garment-thingy.

And the knitting fairy left me a knitalicious combo on my doorstep yesterday:

Fiber Fix!

My yarn order from ebay came! 10 skeins of Handicrafter Cotton for $5 and 3 skeins of Bernat So Soft for $3. I already have a project in mind for cotton, which is why I bought it in the first place. But when I saw the other yarn for so cheap, I ordered that too. I mean why not? It's cheaper than Wal-mart (I realize this isn't the most fantastic yarn in the world, but :P). AND the Fall IK was in my mailbox waiting for me too. I've been oogling and reading since last evening. I like the Equinox sweater on the cover and Gatsby Girl. Don't miss Eunny Jang's article on lace shaping. I have that saved for tonight (a perfect way to spend a Friday evening).

Tonight: CO for Mr. Octopi
TGIF!

SmockTop Sundress Finished!

2006-07-24T17:42:00.000-04:00

My first successful attempt at sewing without a pattern. I'm quite proud of myself. I LOVE this fabric. It's light and silky and just perfect for summer.

And me modeling, not the best picture, but whatever:

If I were to do it again I would make the "bodice" piece a bit wider. The top section lies right at my natural waist, which is something I'm not really comfortable with. I like stuff to sit below my waist. That's just me.

Overall, I'm happy with the results. But I definately got the sewing bug off of me. I probably won't be sewing anything again for a long, long time.

I'll make up a tutorial if anyone's interested. :)

Shhh...

2006-07-20T14:46:00.000-04:00

Don't tell Mr. V, I just bought MORE yarn. Well, not that I really need to keep it a secret. I'm not afraid to tell him or anything (not that it'll be secret for much longer), but even he's been noticing the large amounts of yarn laying idle in my craft area. My stash has quickly outgrown it's plastic container and is now overflowing into shopping bags (note to self: purchase more plastic containers). Now, my stash isn't exactly large by most knitter's standards. I'm normally pretty good about buying yarn when I actually have a project planned. Normally.

But I've found that stashing just CANNOT be avoided under the following circumstances:

1. Loving family members give you random balls of yarn as gifts. They don't realize that buying one ball of yarn in one color limits the project possibilities greatly, but they're heart is in the right place and you appreciate the thought. Plus, you have something to fondle while trying to figure out what exactly to knit with it.

2. Evil on-line yarn stores (*cough-knitpicks-cough*) offer free shipping after spending X amount of money. Even though you realize that spending more to get free shipping doesn't really save you money (unless you're buying really expensive yarn *cough-noro*) you still frantically search the site for yarn that you will "probably, certainly, most definately" use in the future.

3. Yarn sellers discount yarn to such a ridiculously low price that you feel you MUST buy it because it will never again be in your grasp. Again, it forces you to buy yarn for some glorious mystery project ("I'll find something to knit it with, really!"). I almost fell victim to this earlier today (damn you Herrschner's !!)

Wait! Actually I did eventually fall victim to this. But in the end, it only cost me $3. I found an awesome Ebay store where I got a 10pack of Bernat Cotton for $5 (which I'm planning to knit Licorice Whip with) and a 3 Pack of Bernat So-Soft for $3 (this is stash enhancing purschase, I'll use it really!). I actually made sure to read the auction a couple times to make sure I was reading it right. They say they sell discontinued items and overstock and that they're an actual yarnstore located in Nebraska. And for once, the shipping costs didn't make me want to commit manslaughter. Here's the link to the store: check them out. NOW!

Sundress and Tank top are coming along. Sundress will finished first though. Perhaps tonight. I was hoping for earlier, but well, me and sewing don't get a long very well. I had a little mishap that required some back-tracking. >.< God, I love knitting!

Designing Woes

2006-07-16T15:14:00.000-04:00

I've been designing two garments at the moment. One, is a knitted tank top. The other is a sewn sundress. I've hit pitfalls on both so far. It's kind of discouraging, but I must persevere (my inner-masochist won't let me quit). First, let's look at the tank top:

This take one. I worked it on Size 5's in the rnd. I chose ribbing for the bottom part thinking that it would help alleviate the need to decrease for waistshaping and help make it more form fitting. I tried it on at the point you see you here. It doesn't look bad. But it doesn't look good. The bottom edge fits alright, but the ribbing wasn't doing a good job with waistshaping. So I frogged back into the ribbing and started knitting on Size 3's thinking that the change in needle size would shape the waist, again, w/o having to dec sts. Wrong. I'm decreasing stitches now on Size 5's. We'll see how that works. I'm getting bored with this. I think it's time to move onto to something I have a little more confidence in finishing before the season is over.

Enter, the sundress.

This is take two on the pattern pieces. The first try I didn't give myself any ease, and I realized rather quickly that a skintight garment wasn't what I was going for. Luckily, I only cut out one piece. I had enough fabric to make up for the mistake, but just enough. I can't afford anymore. But I'm confident now. I have the pieces cut out and I drafted some directions so I don't f-up the sewing step. One of the major reasons why I love knitting more than sewing is that knitting is very forgiving when it comes to errors. Made a mistake? No problem, just unravel and try again. No harm done. But with sewing, you have limited fabric, you cut or sew wrong, you're pretty much screwed. Maybe I'm just not creative enough. Who knows.

ETA for the Sundress- sometime midweek. (i hope).

Must. Resist. Temptation...

2006-07-13T13:43:00.000-04:00

Some links of interest:

Has anyone been to Herrschner’s website? They have awesome yarn sales every week. Some of these yarns are ridiculously priced. For example: Debbie Bliss Cotton Angora for $2.97 (reg. $7.50). The shipping rates are typical ($4-up). If they had a free shipping deal after a certain amount (like Knitpicks) I would be in heaven. But you can sign up for email notices of their yarn sales, which change every week. I have noticed that some of the items sell out, so a heads up via email may be a good way to go if you like bargains.

Ferragamo, or rather “Fake-a-gamo”, bag. It’s a neat pattern inspired by a Saks “carry-all”. I think they were asking $1650 for it in the catalogue, but thanks to some Craftster-gals there is a knock-off pattern available and it’s free, free, free! *adds to knitlist*

Megan’s Counterpane/Coverlet Square. Been thinking about making a fancy blanket just for us (Mr.V suggested such after seeing the Mt.Laurel Blanket). This is a possibility. I like the idea of knitting smaller pieces and then sewing them together later. This would be a nice “off-and-on” project. You know, something to turn to when everything else is super boring.

I really need to stop tempting myself with all these projects. I already have enough on my plate at the moment with designing and knitting my own tank top and also designing and sewing my own sundress. BTW- I have finally decided on a sundress design so now I can start making the pattern. That’s what’s up for this weekend. I’m not sure what else I’ll be doing. It’s gonna be freaking hot this weekend: a good excuse to stay inside (with the a/c) and knit. I'll be sure to post some progress pics this weekend, too. Stay cool.

Utica Boilermaker 15K 2006- A knitgirl goes the distance

2006-07-10T16:13:00.000-04:00

Gete Wami of Ethiopa wins the Women's Title with a time of 49:31
(thus, reaching god-like status-click on the pic for more highlights)

The 15K was a great success! I had a great run and a great time considering that was my first long distance race (I've only done 5k's since now). I completed it in just under 1h45m. That average's out to a nice comfortable pace. But what was nice was that I enjoyed myself. Yes, I actually enjoyed running a 15k (9.3 miles) on a warm summer's morning. Although I was tired towards the end, I wasn't miserable. That had a lot to do with the spectators cheering you on the whole way, the music, and my running partner. I was weary about this race. The training runs were hard and hot. But then I remembered why I run in the first place: because I like it and kept that in mind up until race day and when I crossed the finish line.

If you run, I would definately consider this race for next year.

Poor Choice of Knits

2006-07-08T13:40:00.000-04:00

Well, Eliza looked good on the mannequin in the pattern picture. On me? Not so much. But looking at its partially completed form you can probably see why it's just now been frogged.

It's too short
It's not form fitting and, thus, makes me look fat.
The shape of the neckline is also not flattering.

I got about half-way through the straps, decided to try it on, and then decided to frog. Remember when I said I'vebeen wanting to create my own patterns (and maybe one day actually sell them?) Well, I started. I've CO'd for my first self-designed top. A tank top. Simple, and I think a good place to start.

Tomorrow is the big day for me. Tomorrow I will run the longest distance I have EVER run... EVER! I'm actually kind of excited and pretty confident. I've been watching my diet this last week and a half (with the help of Mr. V). I've also had some pretty good training runs. I was able to get up to about 8 miles during training, which should be good enough. The race starts at 8AM so the sun won't be as bright. Bring it on, baby.

Wish me luck!

Mid-Week Ramblings

2006-07-06T12:30:00.000-04:00

In case you can't tell, work is kind of slow right now. That's one of the reasons why I've been posting a lot lately. I'm working on the straps for Eliza and I'd say I could probably be finished with it this weekend. I'm on the fence about how I like this tank. But I am a little more optimistic now the straps are forming.

I finished sewing the skirt from the red fabric in the previous post. It's a very simple design, but that's ok because the fabric stands out on its own just fine. And I think I've found a dress pattern for the other green flowered fabric. I'm glad I'm putting my sewing machine to use. It was getting kind of dusty sitting in the corner amongst all my knitting stuff. Poor thing. It'll be getting some more attention soon enough.

Has anyone seen the new Summer Knitty? This is probably the best one yet in terms of the sheer number of things I'll actually knit (or rather, see myself knitting). I'm not upset over the lack of "summery" items. It's already kind of late in the season to be knitting a large "summer" projects. Small projects are good for the soul anyway. I would say most knitters knit less in the summer anyway (at least I do), thus, big projects just won't do. Here are some of my favorites:

There's more, but I'm too lazy to list and link all of them. Hopefully, you're not too lazy to click. :)

I also read this article about designing and publishing knitwear. This is something that I'd like to do. Though, I find the idea of designing a sweater quite daunting, probably because I haven't really knit any. So I guess I'll have to start out small. I have a couple of ideas swimming around in my naugen. I have a sketch book where I right down pattern adjustments and notes. So what's stopping me?

Eliza Progress and such

2006-07-04T08:20:00.000-04:00

So here is Eliza in it's partially complete glory. Nothing fancy, and the yarn kind of masks the seed-stitch ribbing a bit. But better lighting will solve that problem.

As you can see it's a simple tank. A little to simple, if I do say so myself. It's not the most interesting thing to knit. But that might have something to do with the size5 and 4 needles I'm using. I'm knitting this out of recycled yarn (wool/silk/cotton blend), btw.

Guess what? I'm actually going to sew something. I purchased some silky fabric at Joann's the other day. They're having an awesome sale on their summer fabrics and the clearance fabrics are an extra 60% off. So stock up, bitch!

The green flower fabric is incredibly silky. This will be a summer dress. I'm thinking of maybe following on on-line tutorial or even designing my own. I think I can do without an actual pattern. Craftster has silenced my inner voice that says I need a pattern for everything. The red embroidered fabric is also silky, but has a slight tafetta-like texture. This is already cut and pinned and ready to be sewn into a simple summer skirt. There was only a little more than a yard left on the roll so I'm limited as to what I can do with it. But it was only $1.69/yd so I'm happy :)

I don't have anything planned for the holiday. I'm not a big July 4th person. Plus, it being a tuesday really dampens a lot of potential holiday excitement (yes, I had to work yesterday). But not that really do anything anyway. But if you aren't a homehugging nerd like myself and have plans, be sure to have fun and be safe :)

1000 Islands Camping

2006-07-04T07:59:00.000-04:00

Some pics from the 1,000 Islands weekend:

The beach at Wellesley Island State Park (no goose poop in sight, but plenty of algae. chilly water- ah, refreshing!)

I came, I saw, I conquered (also at Wellesley Island)

The sun retreats over the Isles

be one with your surroundings...

Boldt Castle

A great weekend getaway! I highly recommend.

Don't you have a vacation to plan?

More Stalling

2006-07-03T13:09:00.000-04:00

Some more links of interest:

Knitted Wire Bracelet Tutorial- found on craftster. Super sweet! Although I’m not a big jewelry wearer, I’m a big jewelry admirer and maybe soon, a jewelry crafter.
Lace Leaf T-Shirt- free tutorial also found on craftster, but linked to the creator's website. Very tempting. Very cute.
July MagKnits- although I haven't been into any of their patterns lately. But it is nice to have new free patterns every month. The Ballet T is the most knit-worthy in my opinion, and the side-knit socks are also interesting.
Summer Knitty 06- which should be out any day now...

Tomorrow I have off from work so I’ll post pics of Eliza and my camping trip. Promise.

An amusing fashion tidbit: I normally read nytimes.com for their Fashion and Style section. I can’t take real news anymore so I read the superficial glarp that no one else admits to reading. I found this article entitled “Earth to Milan: Show a Little Restraint” by Guy Trebay (if you click, you might have to sign up first). And if you click you must absolutely view the slideshow. It’s a review of the Milan menswear collections. Don’t waste your time reading the whole article. Read this excerpt and then view the slideshow:

Say no to zippers so brief that they are an affront to the masculine anatomy (Costume National). Say no to boring minimalist blazers worn over tights that leave little doubt as to whether the wearer has been circumcised (Calvin Klein). Say no to seersucker swallowtail coats for the beach (Etro); to pastel golf wear seemingly designed for caddies with a sideline in a soft-core porn (Missoni). Say no to the unfortunate trouser length that, as the stylist L'Wren Scott remarked, now blights the streets of London.

That is exactly how I felt after looking at the pictures: Just Say No. In some cases, I squinted in order to tell whether the model was actually a man. Good grief. I’m not saying I like my men macho or anything, but I don’t want a poster boy for androgyny either. Hello! A man doesn’t have to be feminine in order to be well-dressed.

live to knit

2006-06-30T15:31:00.000-04:00

Not much going on in my knitting world. I’m working on the front part of the Eliza tank, but I don’t have anything else going on besides that. This week I’ve been surfing knitting sites for new patterns, yarn, and what not. Here are some of the things I found that were interesting and would like to share:

Blue Alvarez’s “Licorice Whip”- a lacy summer sweater. Her designs are cute, though I haven’t made any yet. This might be first, because it’s by far my favorite. She suggests 100% cotton, but I’m sure a wool replacement would make for a toasty fall knit.
“Nautie” by Knitty- I’m feeling the need to stashbust and I think this stuffed sea creature is too cute. I gave my away my last stuffie, Andes, to my 4-year old nephew. I figured he would be a more appropriate owner. But this is a good summer stuffie I might just give away.
“Tips on Walking and Knitting at the Same Time”- posted by a Craftster gal. I actually saw a woman knitting while driving a few weeks ago when we were stuck in traffic in Philadelphia (FU, Penndot). The pace was a very slow crawl so it wasn’t exactly dangerous. Needless to say I was in awe. I don’t think I’ll ever be so hardcore as to knit while walking or driving. Walking and knitting seems like a safer combination so if you want to give it a whirl give it a clicky-clicky.

Camping in the 1,000 Islands was very nice. We had a lovely time at Wellesley Island State Park and will want to go back again. The place is freaking huge. It’s a hike to just walk around the campgrounds. We never touched the hiking trails. Nor did we go canoeing. But that’s ok; something to look forward to for next time. I got bit up pretty bad on my one leg. I don’t think I’ve ever had bug bites that made me look like I have the “the plague”. Not pleasant, but they’re healing. Note to self: next time buy the damn bug spray.

While waiting for our boat tour at Alexandria Bay, Mr. V and I walked around some gift shops. One store actually had a section of YARN! A little corner tucked away in the back devoted just to yarn. Of course I had to fondle, though, sadly I made no purchases. I have more yarn than I know what to do with. I was tempted though because they had Cascade 220 Superwash on sale for $5. >.< But it was a nice surprise.

I’ll post some Mr.V’s digital pics this weekend. I still use film, so I’ll be waiting a while for my images. I’ll post some Eliza pics soon too.

For you locals: Fireworks are at the Inner Harbor this year and start at 9:30 pm. I’m not going, but I figure I’d pass it along.

Summer Fun

2006-06-23T19:30:00.000-04:00

Well, my summer fun activities will continue this weekend. Mr.V and I are doing a weekend camping getaway to the 1,000 Islands. You know, the wonderful cluster of islands resting where the St.Lawrence River dumps into Lake Ontario. I heard it's beautiful, and the camping is supposed to be good. Not that I would know because I have been camping exactly once in my life, and it wasn't the best experience in the world. But it wasn't because this "city grrl" isn't down with mutha nature, it was because we were at a campground that had nothing except, well, ground. It was boring. But this time I've booked a shady spot close to the St. Lawrence River at Wellesley Island State Park. It supposed to be nice, and they have stuff to do not only at the park, but at nearby Alexandria Bay, NY. Here is the itinerary:

Hiking
Swimming (as long as there is no goose poop on the beach *crosses fingers*)
Canoeing (can rent them on site)
Cooking dinner over a fire outdoors (this idea of this fascinates me, even if it is just hot dogs)
S'mores!
Tent sleeping (which isn't bad with an air mattress, again, sleeping without proper roof=fascinating)
Waking up at the crack of dawn, in which case we will do one of the first 3 activities again.
Q: Would toasting pop-tarts over a fire be a complete disaster?
Travel to Alexandria Bay, NY (about 10 min from park)
Go on 2-Nation , 2-Hour boat tour of the 1,000 Islands
Stop by Boldt Castle on Heart Island and ponder yet again why I am not independently wealthy. Also take lots of pictures.
Go Mini-Golfing
See other sites in Alex-Bay

I think that list looks pretty fun. Mr. V and I are excited because if we really like it than this might be "our" place to go every summer. Just like my family has "the shore" (aka: Ocean City, MD). If all goes well, next time we might stay on the Canadian-side for a little walk on the wild side. *nudge-nudge, wink-wink*

As you can see, there is no knitting on that list. But that's ok. I'm almost finished with the back part of "Eliza". Maybe I'll finish that tonight for good measure. I'll be sure to post pics of my trip and progress pics of Eliza next week.

Other activities I have planned for this summer in no particular order:

Harborfest
Boston!
Utica Boilermaker 15K (yeah, 15k. I'm training now with a friend from work and I have to say the heat is making me a little discouraged, but I'm trying to stay positive. Call me crazy, but I'd much rather run in 30 deg cold than 75 deg heat. But at least I can say: "yeah, I ran 9.3 miles on a hot summer's day just to see if I could." or is that really something I should brag about....?)
JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge (this is a 3.5 miler happening August 1 at Onondaga Lake Park and after that15 k, this should be a piece of cake. Check and see if your company is participating. It's a great event for runners and walkers alike.)

Phew! Have a good weekend everyone!

Anthropologie-Inspired Capelet

2006-06-17T08:28:00.000-04:00

Here it is! The efforts of LAST weekend. I really mean it too. I finished most of it between Friday and Sunday of last week. *insert big-toothy grin* I weaved in the last of the ends on Tuesday (not like there was a lot of them).

And here is a really bad, self-made model shot (I should really start modeling my FO's on stuffed animals. or I could always have Mr. V take a shot, but at the time he was napping and I didn't want to disturb him).

Someone should develop a tutorial on how to properly take a picture of yourself while wearing your latest knitted creation. Hmm....

Project: Anthropologie-Inspired Capelet by Julsey723 on Craftster.org
Yarn: Bernat Softee Chunky (100% Acrylic) in some green color indicated by a number (how creative!), 1.5 skeins (total cost of yarn ~$4 for 2 skeins)
Needles: Denise Interchangeables Size 11, long circular
Mods: Lengthened the body, perhaps, a bit too much cuz now it looks like a cardigan rather than a capelet. Since I'm taller I was afraid a short capelet would look funny. But adjusting the length was extremely easy: just keep knitting after you separate the sleeves.
Woulda-Shoula: You can see that the front edges roll a bit. Blocking will take care of this (I'm sure) if you go out and buy the Rowan Polar that is recommended. But if you're cheap like me, then you'll just have to widen the garter st edging to 4-5 sts instead of just 2. I imagine that should take care of the problem. It doesn't bother me so much. If I were to make another one I would do that, because it would most certainly be made of acrylic (please don't hurt me). Would I make this again? Sure, maybe as a gift, but I'm not into repeat-knitting to be honest.

I haven't worn this out yet because it needs to be washed and dried. That's what I normally do to my petroleum-byproduct clothing items, they just feel nicer after a good wash and a dose of fabric softener. I've been into green lately. Green is quickly taking over my wardrobe. At least I'm over my black phase. Color is good. Color is my friend...

Summertime Rambling and Ashley Paige's Sexy Little Knits!

2006-06-16T16:06:00.000-04:00

Thanks for all the compliments on the Mountain Laurel Blanket! And thanks so much coming back to read this blog!

This will be my third summer in Syracuse. I’m surprised to see the difference in behavior between the people of PA and the people in CNY. I get the impression the folks in CNY really take advantage of the summertime. I’m sure it has a lot to do with the fact that wintertime around here makes it almost impossible to be overly-adventurous (unless you do a winter activity like skiing, snowshoeing, and ice fishing). So, CNY’ers seem to get out and enjoy themselves. There’s lots of going-ons downtime, people are finally discovering the Inner-Harbor, people are hitting the parks, lakes, and beaches… My point is for most people life is busier in the summer. I think that’s why I’ve been neglecting this blog for while. Not that I’m overly busy, but blogging time has been replaced by trip planning, trip-taking, or other sorts of summery things. And when my downtime comes around I find that I’d actually like to knit, watch movies/anime, or read. I can’t blog about knitting if I’m not actually knitting anything. I’m sure once Autumn is upon us once again, I’ll be more attentive to blogging again. But I’ll try to post up at least once a week for now on.

Now, onto the knitting-related:

I finished the Anthropologie-Inspired Capelet Tuesday night. I started it the Friday before that. So I pretty much had it done over the weekend. That’s my kind of knit! Pictures this weekend

In the mean time I’ve finally decided on what to knit with that recycled yarn from long ago (that’s just been sitting waiting to be used). I decided on this pattern from Berocco. I’m not a huge fan of Berocco designs, but some of their more recent stuff is pretty nice (don’t tell the You Knit What! girls). Either their patterns are right on, or waaaayyyy off. But this, I like. There are some other ones I’ve been scoping as well.

Did I tell you how much I love my local library (Hazard branch on W. Genesee for you locals)? I love them because not only do they have an awesome DVD collection that includes a good selection of anime (doubly awesome because anime is quite pricy, I saw the complete series of Last Exile thanks to them, and not to mention the first 5 seasons of The Sopranos… but I digress) they also are really good about ordering the newest knitting books. Lately, there are always at least one or two knitting books gracing their New Items shelves. Sweet. I got this one yesterday:

Sexy Little Knits by Ashley Paige

It’s quite intriguing. She’s not kidding when she says the knits are little and sexy. Sexy cuz they’re little. It almost puts a Victoria’s Secret catalogue to shame. But what I like is that designs aren’t vulgar-sexy (which really isn’t sexy, imo) more like Vogue-sexy. There are lots of bikinis (which I find most interesting), some summer-wear which aren’t my cup of tea, and some “loungewear”. She has a pattern for hipster panties, which I’m going to look into to. I like these new books that gear towards the young and “hip”. I hope to see more.

I showed Mr. V some of the bikinis when I was paging through, and then later on I saw him paging through it on his own which I thought was cute. I don’t ever recall him paging through one of my knitting books or mags on his own before. Not that I mind, but I couldn’t help but chuckle to myself (but don't get the wrong idea about him, Mr.V = best hubby Ever). Honestly, he only liked one or two of the designs, and he thought most of the bikinis were too skimpy and unpractical since knitted bikinis aren’t really meant for swimming. Oh well, I still recommend it.

I'm back, and I'm NOT empty-handed

2006-06-09T17:24:00.000-04:00

I guess I've been on something of a blogging hiatus. Since the last post (feels like forever ago) I was knitting the f**k out of the Mountain Laurel Blanket in hopes of completing it by June 2- the day I go (went) to visit my brother, SIL, nephew, and my new neice (to name a few). Unfortunately, FO-bliss was not in my stars. But I gave it all I could. I even knitted during the 3.5 hr drive down to my hometown in the Lehigh Valley of PA (no, I wasn't driving and knitting-Mr. V was nice enough to chaffeur). I was still left with one more side border to knit and attach.

So I showed it to them in all its half-finished glory, graciously accepted compliments, held the baby (adorable, btw-now I want a baby but that's another post), and proceeded to enjoy my visit. In the end, I think admitting defeat was the best thing for me. During the time I was at my MIL's house in York, PA I managed to get within a few inches of the finish line quite easily. It was nice knitting without panicking or with my inner track coach whistling at me to keep up a good pace.

Thursday night (while comfortably back home), I did my victory dance... well, my victory pat-on-the-back. And I found myself staring at the blanket laid out on the bed. Just staring. I can only imagine the look of my face, the shape of my smile while hovering over my new creation. Yes, my SIL is not the only proud, new mommy in the family.

I can't believe I made something so big and so fancy.

My MIL and her friend asked me how many hours I spent on this. I can't really say. I worked on it so sporadically in the beginning and then I worked like a machine in the end. I didn't really take notice. Not that it really matters to me. A qualitative description is alright by me: a really, long time.

One of the things I love about this blanket is that there is a lot going on. Here are some detail shots for posperity:

So without further ado:

Project: Mountain Laurel Counterpane Baby Blanket by Kim Salazar
Yarn: Caron Simply Soft, 100% acrylic, color "Orchid", 5 skeins (cost of yarn ~$10)
Needles: Denise Interchangeables Size 7 for the whole blanket
Mods: Not too many modifications except I used size 7's instead of size 5's because my yarn is acrylic and I wouldn't be able to block it if the gauge was too tight. Meaning, I was afraid the blanket wouldn't lay flat on size 5's. Plus, larger needles mean less time. The blanket measures 42.5"x39.5", larger than what would be needed for a newborn, but this way they can get more use out of it.
Woulda-Shoulda: As far as the pattern goes you can't ask for better. The pattern is easy to read, and surprisingly not as complicated as one might think. There is lots of lace but after completing 18 full hexagons, 4 half-hexagons, 6 seed-stitch triangles, and several feet of cable and lace border you get familar with the patterns REAL quick. I believe there is one error, and it's on the border pattern, second-to-last row, you k2tog instead of k3tog. Can't miss it, and it'll become pretty obvious to you why it should k2tog instead of k3tog. The only thing I would have done different for this project was start it earlier. Let me repeat.

START THE BLANKET EARLY!!!

I'd say start soon after you know she's expecting. That way, you can knit your heart out when you're feeling adventurous and put it away for a while when you're bored out of your mind. As everyone knows, knitting the same thing day after day makes Cath a dull girl... I mean... you get the idea. But for those who persevere there is great satisfaction when all said and done (sorry if I sound like Yoda). Also, I took the suggestion of someone on Craftster and sewed the pieces together as I went along. It helps, but if you really hate sewing and weaving in ends then this pattern is not for you, sorry. I believe Karin is knitting this (or will be soon) for an expectant. So check her out if you want more Moutain Laurel action. Good luck with that and the apartment search, Karin!

Now that's over,

I've CO already for my next project: the Anthropologie-Inspired Capelet. Small project, bulky yarn. Awlriiight!

Mountain Laurel Blanket... continues

2006-05-21T08:37:00.000-04:00

So here is where I am as of now:

Damn near finished. (with the exception of the border). The last unattached row was where I was planning on stopping. But then I realized a small yet tedious problem with the opposite corners.

Corner one (finished side):

Corner Two (most recent, unassembled side):

At first I shrugged my shoulders "Meh". However, after more thought I realized that sewing the border over a sharp edge will probably turn out crappy. *sigh* One more row of 4 Full Hexagons! I can do it. I think I can, I think I can...

How happy was I when I finished what I thought was my last! Full! Hexagon!

But what's worth doing is worth doing right. The only thing I had planned for today was heading outside for a short run and watching a few episodes of Last Exile. But it's raining like a MOFO and my time might be better spent elsewhere. I can bust out a full hexie in 2 hours flat (I timed myself earlier this week). I have 8 hours worth of hexagons ahead. Who wants to bet I can get 3 done today?? Anyone?

lol, the blanket's looking pretty good so far, though.

Hedera Socks! for Mom's Day

2006-05-14T16:29:00.000-04:00

Happy Mother's Day to all. I'm happy to say that I was able to finish the Hedera Socks and mailed them Wednesday afternoon. Unfortunately, Mater has yet to receive them. There's something about her P.O. that tees me off. It's the fact that I pay more for Priority Shipping but it doesn't seem like they treat it like it's a priority. But she can send something to me parcel post and I get it in like 3 days. Anyways... pretend these are my mom's feet:

Pattern: Hedera Socks featured in the Spring '06 Knitty
Needles: Size 1 dpns
Yarn: Knitpicks "Palette" in "Sky" 100% Peruvian Wool, about 1.3 skeins
Woulda-Shoulda: Well, if I wasn't working towards a deadline I would have actually stopped and corrected some of my lace mistakes. The lace is somewhat forgiving, it also helps that this particular garment is worn on the feet. So unless my mom hang's around people with insane foot fetishes the mistakes will probably go unnoticed. So I'm not worried. Other than that, the lace is VERY easy and the socks can really soar especially if you're knitting like a bat out of hell! My only criticism of the design would be the really tall heel. I'm not sure if that's because my row gauge was off or if it's designed like that. It looks a little funky, but not too funky that I would trouble myself with modifications. I highly recommend. But I would definately look into a cotton or cotton blend yarn if you want to wear these in the summer. They're quite toasty in wool, even with all those holes.

Now, all my attention is focused on the Mountain Laurel Blanket, which I am confident I can finish before June 2. I can bust out a full hexagon in an evening so I can be pretty productive even during the week. On that note... gotta go complete my daily quota :-)

BABEH!

2006-05-09T14:34:00.000-04:00

Just when I feeling burnt out on deadline knits, a knitting-fairy comes along to sprinkle some motivational-fairy dust on my head (or rather, my step-mom emails me pictures of this weekend’s happenings)!

Say hello to my new niece!

She was born Friday night. There were no complications and she’s perfectly healthy. She’s actually a good size baby, too! I’ll be seeing her the first weekend in June, and I’ll be waiting anxiously to give those cheeks a proper squishing. And also play with her feet. So now I have some extra motivation to get crackin’ on the Mountatin Laurel Blanket which I will be picking up again right after I finish my Mom’s Hedera Socks (which maybe tonight *crossing fingers*).

I doctored the pic a little bit to crop out my SIL. Not that I mind her being in the picture, but she’s in hospital swag and she probably wouldn’t like me posting pics of her on the internet in her post-birthing condition. Anyway, everyone is ecstatic, my brother especially. From what he tells me Zoe’s already “daddy’s little girl”.

2006-05-03T13:19:00.000-04:00

Just call me the “Stressed Knitter”!

Holy Crap! I must limit myself to ONE deadline knit at a time. I have TWO deadline knits: one due my mid-next week (to be shipped for Mother’s Day) and the Mountain Laurel Blanket for my niece (expected any day now) which is due the first weekend in June for my visit back home.

Forgive me for whining, but I really want to knit a cute summer top! WAHHHH!!! I do this to myself all the time. Even with things non-knitting related. I tend to over-extend myself with lofty goals, which means I normally loose perspective on the bigger picture. *sigh* I’ll never learn. Not that I regret knitting for other people…

I guess I’m just a selfish knitter at heart.

The Hedera Socks are trucking along although I find that I need to be conscious of my pace when knitting these socks. I find that the lace tends to slow me down, and it doesn’t help that I end my day knitting (which means I then morph into the mistake-prone “Pre-Comatose Knitter”). I’m hoping I can finish sock #1 tonight so that SHOULD give enough time to knit sock#2 and have them sent out in time for Mother’s Day. They’re turning out lovely so far. I’ll be sure to have pics for you this weekend.

Jaywalkers have been completed and worn and washed! I love those socks…

I wish I had pictures for you, because pics always liven up a blogpost. No pictures for you. BUT! I do have a pointless, distracting, and mildly fun quiz :

You Are 42% Evil

You are evil, but you haven't yet mastered the dark side.
Fear not though - you are on your way to world domination.

How Evil Are You?

Knit Theory- knits and knerds collide!

2006-04-27T14:21:00.000-04:00

My mom sent me an article from Discover Magazine a few months ago that I thought was really interesting and nerdy, but it involved knitting. It concerned this mathematician who tried modeling a hyperbolic plane by knitting it. Well, crocheting. I'm no expert in geometry, but basically instead of the flat geometric planes we know of, hyperbolic planes curve out from a center point and continue to curve on. So basically, hyperbolic theory states that instead of the space being a series of intersecting or parallel flat planes, space has a curvature nature. What exactly this means in the bigger picture, I have no idea. Like I said, I’m not a mathematician. Apparently, mathematicians struggled for many years trying to produce a physical model of a hyperbolic plane. Enter: a knitter/crocheter/mathematician from Cornell University. Basically, she crocheted a 3-dimensional ruffle, and said "here you go" this is what a hyperbolic plane "looks like".

What I enjoyed about this story is the overlap of two skills that seemingly didn't have anything to do with each other. I admire Dr. Taimina’s creativity (also: score one for team girl!) . The Discover article isn't online, but Interweave Crochet published an article on it, which you can read here. The article includes a crochet pattern so you too can produce a hyperbolic plane model. You know you want to.

Knitters can find a pattern here.

So when someone asks you what the heck that ruffled mass of yarn is, you can say in typical know-it-all egg-head fashion: "a hyperbolic plane, duh!"

Oh, crap! Mother's Day!

2006-04-24T09:07:00.000-04:00

Knitting plans are forever changing here at ESK (I love abbreviations-so “official”). I was hoping to transition from the Jaywalkers, which are steadily moving towards completion, to either the Anthro-Capelet or the Tie-Cropped Cardigan from Knitpicks. But then I realized something: Mother’s Day is fast approaching (fyi-May 14, about 3 weeks from now). What do I do? Do I cheat and buy her something she doesn’t need, or worse, something I’ve already bought her? (I hate being a repetitive gifter) Or do I give her something handmade, especially for her?

DUH!

But what do I knit for her in less than 3 weeks time? Hmmm…. After pondering this through most of the weekend I realized the logical thing to do would be to ask. Turns out she would like some more socks. She really likes the Rapunzel Socks from d-made.com (see side bar) that I made her a few months ago. Easy enough and completely do-able in 3 weeks time.

maybe Mom would like those shoes too...?

I decided to make the Hedera socks from the current Knitty. They’re lacey, and paired with sky blue yarn, should be the perfect spring sock. I hope she likes them. Cross your fingers for me cuz this one’s gonna run down to the wire (can we say Priority Shipping on May 12?). So it looks like the Jaywalkers are going to have to fill my Spring-Summer knitting needs for a few more weeks. Just when I thought I could be a selfish knitter again. >.>

So many holidays, so little time. I don’t even want to think about Father’s Day. EEK!

Is anyone else knitting for Mother’s Day? Cough it up! Who’s knitting what?

Remember...?

2006-04-20T12:18:00.000-04:00

Ok, so y'all remember that CD Swap I did on craftster? I don't think I ever posted my playlist or my partner's. But here they are if you're interested.

The CD my partner made:
1. "take me" 3kstatic featuring louise fraser
2. "love is the drug" roxy music
3. "another one bites the dust" queen
4. "hope of deliverance"- paul mcartney
5. "airwaves"-thomas dolby
6. "gravity never failed"- omd
7. "the way you like it"-hook the captain
8. "no new tale to tell"-love & rockets
9. "silver screen shower scene"- felix da housecat
10. "end of the reel"- 3kstatic
11. "in your eyes"- peter gabriel
12. "secret oktober"- duran duran
13 "a way"- the bolshoi
14. "chains of love"- erasure
15. "no reply at all"- genesis
16. "six underground"- sneaker pimps
17. "extraordinary machine"- fiona apple

A great mix. I've been listening to it quite a bit lately. The overall feel is like electronica-techno/new wave/80's which is cool because I love all three of those genres. I especially like the 3kstatic songs and will be checking out more of their stuff. And who doesn't love that song by the Sneaker Pimps?

Here is the CD I made:

David Bowie "Golden Years"
Barenaked Ladies, "Conventioneers"
Annie Lennox "Little Bird"
Eva Cassidy "Blue Skies"
The Killers "Smile Like You Mean It"
Garbage "Cup of Coffee"
Yoko Kanno ""First Vision" (instrumental from Escaflowne: The Movie)
Bjork "Possibly Maybe"
Diana Krall "The Look of Love" (cool)
Tori Amos "Crucify"
Nine Inch Nails, "Everyday is Exactly the Same"
Annie Lennox, "Cold"
Enya "Books of Days"
Madonna "Isaac"
Sarah McLachlan "Elsewhere"
Bjork "PLay Dead"
TaTU "Stars"
Eva Cassidy "What a Wonderful World"

Sort of a folky/electronica/jazzy type deal. My partner says she likes it. YEAH!

In case you can't tell, I got nothing in the knitting area. I haven't done much in the last few days. I CO on for Jaywalker Sock #2 last night, and row 2 of the Mountain Laurel Blanket is sewn together (two more to go and a border). I'm anxious to start the Anthropologie Inspired Capelet, which I don't even have yarn for. It'll be such a quick knit, but I'm forcing myself to wait until I finish the Jaywalkers. Come on size 1 dpns, don't fail me now! But actually I have a sewing project going on right now. Sewing, you say? Esk-ibby? It's more like a reconstruction project. I'll have pics this weekend.

I watched a movie called "Coffee and Cigarettes" last night. Skip this one, unless you like movies that are too artsy for their own good.

Jaywalker #1 is finished!

2006-04-15T09:46:00.000-04:00

The fruits of my Friday night labor (yes, I knit on Friday nights). I was up until 1:30 AM. That's waayyy past my normal bedtime. ;)

The yarn is pretty cool. It's a wool/cotton/spandex blend from Knitpicks called "Dancing". It has an interesting texture: not squishy-soft like merino. It's more like stretchy-soft. I'm glad there's spandex otherwise it would be a lot harder to get on my foot. If at all. It seems that I couldn't escape the tight-ankle byproduct Erin warned me about. But once the sock is successfully manipulated over my gumunjeous heel, it's comfortably snug and secure. So all is well. Now, all it needs is a partner. But first, I need to sew together the second row of the Mountain Laurel Blanket.

Today will be sunny, breezy, and warm (high in mid-60's) around here. I'm not the kind of person who's mood is attached to the weather (like my mom) nor am I the type who prances in the sun, or whatever. I can be happy when it's cold and rainy, during a blizzard, and even during a heatwave (well, not so much, as long as I have A/C). But today I'm really forward to being out in the spring weather. So the mister and I are heading to the Regional Market (the big local farmer's market) for some awesome local produce and products. If you're in CNY area, even if it's a drive for you, make a trip to the Regional Market on sat. for the farmer's market (sunday's the flea market). I'm not an expert on farmer's markets but I think it's an awesome place to be. There's a great vibe, a sense of community that isn't normally apparent. I walk around the vendors watching people looking, buying, talking and I wonder if that's what bazaars and markets in other countries are like. And the produce is ridiculously cheap, and better yet it's local. Anyways... check it out if you haven't. And then we'll probably take a little stroll on the Onondaga Creek Walk before heading to the grocery store for the rest of our shopping. Hmmm... maybe we'll top off the day with a good movie. We have "The Chronicles of Narnia" still in its wrapper...

Well, everyone have a wonderful weekend! Tomorrow, blueberry pancakes!

I'm still here ;)

2006-04-14T15:35:00.000-04:00

I can't believe it's been an entire week since I've posted! I have a good excuse. The power supply on our home computer went kaput late last week and we had to wait until Mr.V got a new one and was able to install it. It wasn't all fixed until Wednesday. Since then I've just been lazy. But here I am...

So let's see... the Princess Bride swap is finished. I had fun, but I'm glad it's over, because I really need to focus on some other things: like the baby blanket and some summery knits. And Jaywalker, of course. Perhaps by tomorrow I'll have a finished sock#1 to show off. Tomorrow will be picture day, kiddies, so check back!

Has everyone purused the Spring Knitty already? I can't say I care for the sweaters much, but I like the socks and the man sweater (though, I'm not sure if I'll ever knit a man sweater, cuz Mr.V doesn't like sweaters due to the fact that he's hot when he wears t-shirts during the winter, thus, he no likey sweaters). I absolutely LOVE the Convertible. Ingenious. Read the articles, too, they're very satisfying.

So here is my tenative Spring/Summer knitlist in desired order:
1. Anthropologie -inspired Capelet (you know, the one floating around Craftster)
2. Tie-Cropped Cardigan (see previous post)
3. Spring Fling from Knitty
4. Convertible from Knitty

Chuck in a sock pattern, and a Mother's Day gift, and some other projects to distract myself with. I'm set through the season, baby.

Food related info: I'm planning some simple blueberry pancakes for this Sunday's breakfast. nothing fancy, but I'll bore you with pics anyways.

More non-knitting related info: I saw the cutest, most original movie last night. It's called "3-Iron" it's a Korean film I got from the library and Mr. V and I really enjoyed it. It's sooo not like all the dribble that's being released over here these days. If you like foreign films or just films that are actually original I would highly suggest it. Here's a hint: boy meets girl, boy and girl fall in love, boy and girl never utter one word to one another. It works, trust me.

lata

Up on deck-a springy knit

2006-04-07T15:43:00.000-04:00

So I've discovered that my recycled yarn and SnB Nation's Lucky is NOT a match made in heaven. So what to do with it? I was thinking of something along the lines of the infamous Boobholder but in a style that doesn't call so much attention to.... you know.

And then I found this:

It's a free pattern from Knitpicks.com. I like it. A little fancy, yet something I can easily dress down. Plus this pattern's gauge is a much better fit for my yarn (which is about a sportweight). Yeah for Spring knits!

Maybe if we all start to knit Springy-Summery items like this maybe, just maybe we can invoke the powers of Mother Nature and actually get some F-ING SPRING WEATHER!!!

Jaywalker is trucking along, and I will be finishing up my Princess Bride Craft Swap this weekend. Have a good one!

Jaywalker, Oh how I love thee!

2006-04-05T17:18:00.000-04:00

I've learned something very important these last few days: Jaywalker will take over your life. Nothing else matters in terms of knitting, especially deadline knits (cough*baby blanket*cough). As soon as I get home, before I go to bed, those random minutes (even just one) of nothingness in my evening are now filled with Jaywalker:

Now I know what all the hype was about!

Bee-The yarn is Knitpicks "Dancing"

one way to kill a diet

2006-04-02T13:19:00.000-04:00

I really don't consider myself a health nut or anything. I try to exercise (which normally consists of running) for about 40 mins 3-5 times a week (but I still don't consider myself to have an active lifestyle). I "strive for 5" on a daily basis. I don't eat red meat, and only eat chicken about 2-3 times a week. My problem, like most Americans and citizens of developed countries is that I eat TOO MUCH FOOD. Explosive-size portions! Even though the food that I eat really isn't bad, I just eat too much of it. Because it feels good to be full, right? Now Mr.V and I have been reflecting on our eating habits for the past few weeks and came to a conclusion: we eat too much. We have seconds for dinner, we snack, we gorge in our darker hours, and don't eat enough of the "good stuff". So, the last two weeks we've eliminated our snacking (not even buying anything, out of sight-out of mind), I'm not allowed to bake anything outside of Sunday breakfast, and we're eating smaller portions (yeah for leftovers!). For me personally, this isn't so much about loosing weight (though a couple pounds would be nice), it's more about being healthier (loosing some of the OMFG-I-ate-the-whole-bag guilt). After 2 weeks of reducing calorie in-take by just eating less of the same stuff (no celery and seaweed here) and eating fruits and veggies instead of chex mix or brownies I'm definately noticing a difference in the way I feel and a little on the scale. My running has improved because I'm not so weighed down by food (and I don't cramp as much either). I also think about the food eat. I savor my meals instead of inhaling them. And I think about what I really want to eat instead of the usual "graze first, think later" approach. Really, this is a good thing.

There is a point to this rambling. Honestly, I'm not looking for a congratulations or anything. It's really just a set up for what I'm about to show you. I can't say this journey has been a fairy tale so far. After about 2 weeks and me being the carb-loving-anti-Atkins person I am, I was craving something carby and bad. Because of the rules I couldn't buy anything or bake it just cuz, so I had to sneak it into my special sunday breakfast time. No regular pancakes would do. I chose Cinnamon Buns from Joy of Baking. They required a bit of effort. I had to prepare most of it last night, to let the dough rise and everything, let them stand for 30 mins in the morning before baking. Effort, indeed. But it was worth it.

Luckily, thankfully, I halved the recipe and made 4 jumbo size buns instead of 8 because these are definate diet killerz. I ate 2 of them, happily. They were delicious! The dough was sweet and warm and there was ample amounts of cinnamon-sugary goo. I am quite full, even now, and probably won't eat lunch (my stomach must be shrinking). Mr. V liked them, too. I substituted milk for the "light cream" it called for and it turned out fine. Also, it says to bake for 30 mins at 375, but mine came out a tad too overdone. Make sure to keep an eye on them.
I didn't because I was distracted by the infamous Jaywalker! What a Sunday! Here's another, for the road ;)

see the goo? goo is your friend. goo is good. the goo. is.... good.

My Precious!

2006-04-01T11:10:00.000-05:00

Sock Yarn! For your yarn craving pleasure!

An orgy of fiber (via Knitpicks.com)! (really, I just wanted to capture their brilliant packing capabilities. man was that yarn squished together. It kind of reminds me of those three bad guys from the superman movie. you know, how they got trapped in that glass, and they were like "let me out, let me out" as they were floating through space... anyways.)

And my lovelies set free. Free at last.

You better believe they experienced a lot of fondling by my naughty hands (sorry about the blanket in the background, it's kind of distracting). Last night I sat down and gauged for the infamous Jaywalker sock by Grumperina (i'm sure you don't need a link) using the green multi-colored yarn on the bottom left. I had to get used to dpns again, but it didn't take long. Soon I will CO. But first I must work on my Princess Bride stuff and sew another row of the Mountain Laurel Blanket. I'm tucking the Ballet Wrap Cardi away for now. I'll whip it out when knitting demands have slowed a bit. I'm in no hurry. Spring is here and there's no reason to rush since it'll be too warm. Oh well. I also got a "Dye Your Own" skein and I'll be picking up some rad Kool-Aid colors at the grocery store today.

Tomorrow is food porn. I'm thinking some cinnamon rolls. And not from the tube. See you tomorrow.

Yarn porn (picless-rated PG)

2006-03-27T17:34:00.000-05:00

Well, I seem to be having some technical difficulties with uploading my pictures to my computer. Hopefully, I can get this thing squared away soon so I can show you pics of my yarn porn. Remember? The Knitpicks sock yarn bender I went on the other week? It was fantastic. It's being stashed for the times when I absolutely feel the need to knit socks, which will probably be soon. It talks to me, you know. The yarn... in the other room. late at night. AHEM! Anyways...

With the MJ slippers done (but not mailed >.>) and the baby blanket truckin along I realized that it has been a while since I've completed anything just for me, myself, and I. So I raided my stash, paged through SnB Nation and made a lovely "Basic Cable" out of some rather yucky gray Caron Wintuk. I'm chucking it in the wash first so it can soften up. I figure I can get some use out of it in the mornings, which are still rather chilly around here. *waving from the fourth snowiest, non-mountainous city in the US*

I'll have some R-Rated illustrations of my fiber frenzies soon ;)

As for the food porn. I decided to make a tried and true recipe yesterday for breakfast. I got it from a fitness magazine I used to subscribe to. ENERGY, I think it was called. They used to have some pretty interesting, but tasty recipes in each issue. I snatched this and make it every once in a while. It's supposed to be an "energizing" pancake recipe. It's light, but not tasteless. It's actually quite nice to not feel so damn guilty after eating some butter and syrup laden traditional pancakes. Really, I'm serious. Here's the recipe since the magazine as hence forth gone out of print. Let me know if you try it :) I won't include the nutritional facts because who really cares?

Apple Pancakes (from Energy Magazine)

1 cup flour
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 tsps baking powder
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1 small apple diced and peeled (I like to use green apples like Crispin, Golden Delicious, or Granny Smith)
1 1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup egg substitute or 1 egg
2 tbsps canola oil
1 tbsp honey (I substitute regular sugar when I don't have any honey)

Mix the flours, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and apples in med-larg bowl. In separate smaller bowl, mix milk, egg/subs, oil, and honey. Pour milk mixture over flour mixture and mix well. Ladle onto griddle. This makes about 10 pancakes. It also suggest serving with applesauce instead of the usual butter and syrup. I've done both, but pancakes aren't the same without syrup (I use reduced-calorie syrup though... gimme a medal)

ENJOY!

WAIT! I'm not done! Mr. V invented this just last night. This sandwich has no hope of ever being labeled "healthy". So, go make one. NOW!

Garlic/Cheesy Bread Sandwich

2 slices of garlic cheese toast as found in the grocer's freezer (Texas Toast is the name brand I think)
Sprinkle of grated cheddar cheese
slice of turkey breast lunchmeat
a couple slices of pepperoni
small amount of mayo (I use the light kind)
dash of cumin
dash of paprika
lettuce to top

Heat oven to recommended toasting temperature (around 400 deg F). Place two slices on baking pan. Sprinkle one slice with cheddar cheese. Top other slice with turkey slice and pepperoni. Pop in oven for about 7-10 minutes (keep an eye on it) or until you achieve desired toastiness. Apply thin layer of mayo to cheesy slice and sprinkle with cumin and paprika. Top with lettuce and combine to make the sandwich. That's it!

Hungry yet?

Stay tuned...

2006-03-25T08:50:00.000-05:00

This is a quickie post! Check back in a day or two for some:

Yarn Porn (bow chica wowow)
Instant Gratification Knit
Some breakfast porn

And some other stuff, too. I need to charge up my camera batteries and figure out how to upload the pics since Mr.V did some major computer upgrading this week.

ciao!

Which Princess Bride Character are You?
this quiz was made by mysti

Bit by Knitting Bug

2006-03-19T09:59:00.000-05:00

Yes, my remarkable progress in not one but two projects yesterday proves of the existence of such an organism. The Knitting Bug (insecta knitta) bit me bad, but in a good way. You see, I finally finished the Ridiculously Easy Mary Jane Slippers that I was knitting for my SIL (the one who is expecting Zoe in the next 1.5 months). I think they were a little too ridiculously easy because they didn't really keep my interest. But they turned out fabU, if I do say so myself. I hope she likes them since these are a complete surprise for her. And I hope they fit. They're too small for me, which probably means they will fit her (hence, the reason why they are not modeled in the picture)

Project: Ridiculously Easy Mary Jane Slippers, Craftster.org
Yarn: Bernat Soft Boucle (some sort of deep red color, label is gone), not even half a skein
Needles: Size 10.5 Denise Interchangeable, Size 7 for straps
Mods: The pattern actually calls for Size 7 needles on chunky yarn for the whole thing, but it hard enough trying to work chunky boucle with the called for needle size. Also, you're supposed to crochet the strap, but that was easily remedied.
Woulda-Shoulda: I can't say anything bad about this pattern. It's so easy you can really personalize or go crazy with the substitutions. Good project for some instant gratification. That's all I have to say about that.

I have the first row of the M. Laurel Blanket finished and assembled. With the MJ's and this I was knitting for several hours yesterday. I'm so proud of myself. :)

I'm really stoked for this blanket. I can't say I'm stoked for the seaming involved, but that's why I'm assembling as I go. The knitting is way fun though. And with this kind of progress I might be finished ahead of schedule. *crossing fingers*

In all honesty I think I invoked the wrath of the Knitter Bug because I was naughty and signed up for my second craft swap on Craftster. I was going to wait until the blanket was finished, but when I saw this swap I couldn't resist. My shoulder angel said, "yo' bitch, just finish up all the other UFO's you have and you'll be golden". It's a Princess Bride Swap. I'm sure most of you know and love that movie. I found the swap yesterday morning, thought it over for a few seconds, then signed up (at the last minute mind you). Then I went downstairs and proceeded to watch the movie while finishing up the MJ slippers. I love. that. movie. Ever since I was little I loved that movie (It's hard to believe that it's almost 20 years old). So I have a few ideas floating around in my head, but I need to get in contact with partner to see what kind of stuff she would like. Suggestion Box is open!

"Death cannot stop true love... It just delays it for a while." -Westley (aka The Dread Pirate Roberts)

Don't Kiss Me, Who Cares if I'm Irish!

2006-03-17T10:25:00.000-05:00

So work has been a little busy this week. I have a deadline looming over my head and what I’m working on requires a good bit of my attention. Thus, less time to do important things like surfing knitting sites and posting on my blog.

BTW- Happy St. Patty’s Day to everyone! Irish or not. Make sure you wear something green, eat some corn beef and cabbage, soda bread or, for you partiers, drink some green beer. Do a jig and what not. Me, I’m a more quiet celebrator. I don’t know how to make corn beef and cabbage (and I’m not really crazy about it). I’m not a drinker and I hate bars, so there goes the green beer thing. I did make Irish Soda Scones last night. J They turned out pretty well (and very hearty since I mixed in some whole-wheat flour). I’m wearing green as we speak. I own a copy of “The Quiet Man” starring John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara but I don’t think I’m going to watch it tonight. Yeah, I’m paying homage to my Irish roots in a very quiet and stereotypical way. So, I’m good.

As far as knitting goes I’m working on the baby blanket, ignoring the MJ slippers, and punishing the BWC sweater. I started working on the left front piece of the BWC and got about half-way through and realized I wasn’t doing the side-shaping like I was supposed to. I guess when the pattern says to “read the entire section before knitting” I should do it. So it’s been banished to the other room for about a week because I’m not in the mood to frog and re-knit (bad BWC, bad).

I’m wondering if I should just put the BWC away for now. By the time it’s finished I really won’t be able to wear it since it’ll (hopefully) be warmer outside. I’d much rather make something to ring in spring, like a Lucky from SnB Nation. I have that recycled yarn all ready to go. But first I must finish the MJ slippers and ship them off to their recipient ASAP. This weekend: no baby blanket until MJ slippers are finished.

Yesterday I experienced my very first yarn bender! In anticipation of my tax refund I decided to treat myself to a large heaping of real sock yarn. Yes, real wool-nylon fingering weight sock yarn. I ordered from Knitpicks.com and made sure to order enough for free shipping. I ordered a little bit of everything, some Pallette yarn, some simple stripes, some essential… It’s all good. Can’t wait to open that box and see all that yarn.

Me thinks I’m turning into a yarn whore.

Knitting Progress and some Apple Goodness

2006-03-12T13:30:00.000-05:00

I love weekends. What a fascinating idea weekends are. Two whole days free from work after 5 days on. It's a good combo. I also enjoy those 3-dayers thanks to "holidays" like Memorial Day, President's Day, etc. Supreme. And yesterday here in CNY it was sunny and warm (and by warm I mean in the 50's, yes, that's warm for this time of year). That's a rare combo in these parts: saturday, sunny, and warm all in one day. The first hints that hibernation is coming to an end. People want to go outside and enjoy it before it gets cold again, right? I'm sure most did.

But I didn't. I stayed in doors, the entire day, to knit (and watch Harry Potter). Don't get me wrong I felt the "duty" to go out and enjoy the weather, but I when I asked myself what I truly wanted to do the answer was knit. So that's what I did. Here are the fruits of reclusive behavior:

Two full hexagon pieces for Zoe's baby blanket. This is probably the fanciest damn thing I've ever made. I'll need to make many of these, plus a couple halfies, filler triangles, and the border. But it's a good start. This pattern definately keeps you on your toes, and the results make you want to knit more. But I can savor this. I must savor this. I still have two other projects in queue, one of them being a cozy sweater that may not be finished in time for the last days of winter. So when I knit today, the BWC will be getting my attention.

For Sunday beakfast I decided to make on Apple Popover instead of scones. I didn't know what the hell an apple popover was until I found myself at www.joyofbaking.com. They have a lot of inspiring recipes, including "old school" recipes like this popover-thingamajig. It's simple enough to make, it just takes time. But the results are rather pleasing. Basically, you saute some apple slices in butter, cinn, and sugar. Whip up the batter, pour it over the apples in the skillet, and stick the skillet in the oven for about 20 mins. The edges of the batter rise and brown and also binds the gooey apples together. A sprinkle of powder sugar, and voile!

Pretty tasty, not too heavy like my usual waffles and pancakes. This is a good thing since I've been trying to eat lighter these days. Plus, with the ample amounts of fruit make me feel like I'm being healthy (who I am I kidding, they're smothered in butter and sugar!). I'd recommend this. More so than the crepes. Check out that site. I'll be sure to put a link on my sidebar.

Happy Weekending!

First Craft Swap is Finished!

2006-03-10T16:53:00.000-05:00

Yeah, so my first craft swap adventure is over. I sent out the CD and craft today, the deadline date. Oh, well. :) I'm going to hold off revealing the craft and the track list for the CD until the lovely recipient (Thriftgoddess, aka Lucy Van Pelt) receives it (hopefully she can take a picture of it because I forgot too). But I will share what was waiting for me on Wednesday after work:

A new mix CD with a funky insert, a pin-up girl card (ooh lala), and lovely handmade pin. I'm not sure what the pin is made out of, but it's quite pretty. Impressive. :) Funny, I listened to CD while I was finishing up HER craft. Let me tell you it doesn't disappoint. It's a good mix to craft to. Lots of new sounds like 3kstatic, Thomas Dolby, the Bolshoi and a couple familiar ones like Queen and Fiona Apple. Sweet!

All Hail the Thriftgoddess!

My Crepe Adventure

2006-03-05T09:59:00.000-05:00

Ok well my attempt at an exotic (aka, french) beakfast was a bust. Not a complete bust, but a bust nonetheless. I shall explain. Let me start with the one positive thing about this meal.

The crepes themselves turned out quite good. I'm guessing the batter was the right consistency because they didn't break during cooking. And they smell quite lovely while they're cooking. It doesn't smell like pancakes. It's hard to explain. Like a cross between fried chicken and donuts. That's the best I can do. It's a mild sweetness paired with a subtle smell of melted butter. And OMIGOD is there butter. I cook almost exclusively with butter. If you're gonna go for it, best to go all the way. The crepes did turn out a bit greasy for my conscience, but the belly was all for it.

Now for the bust part. The thing with crepes is that they don't have a strong taste (at least this version didn't). The taste of the filling just takes over. Not to mention the juices get soaked into the crepe leaving a mushy texture that just isn't my cup of tea. My filling options were a goopy strawberry filling I concocted from simmering frozen strawberries and some strawberry blend juice and some cottage cheese. Mr. V tried a crepe with strawberry goop and cheese. He ate it, then went back to bed. Not his cup of tea either. That's ok, I marched on optimistically. I tried a strawberry goop with a little less cheese and syrup. Not too impressed:

Then I tried a Cheesy Chocolate combo:

Looks better than it tasted.

I doubt I'll be trying crepes again anytime soon (unless I find myself at an authentic creperie or I find a recipe boasting itself as the best crepe filling ever comes into my possession). They're a fun cross-cultural breakfast, but just not satisfying enough for the tastebuds. Perhaps there was too much hype going into this. If you're familar with crepes and have some input to share, please do. I'd love to hear it.

As for the crepe batter recipe I used the basic crepe recipe at about.com. Next week, I'm trying scones, which I have higher hopes for because they're baked (more of my forte) and they hail from the British Isles, with whom I have a closer cultural relationship with than France.

Here are the buttons I bought this week. Aren't they purdy? The black lace ones are going on the SIL's MJ slippers. The rest are gettin' stashed. Au Revoir!

Meh, WIPs

2006-03-05T08:10:00.000-05:00

There's not much going on here knitting wise. I haven't done much with the BWC, because I have a couple of deadline-knits on my agenda: the easy MJ slippers for SIL and "small craft" for the CD Swap I'm doing on Craftster. There was two whole days this week where I didn't touch any needles (god, wha'st wrong with me? *checks head for fever*). Yesterday's knitting time was devoted to the swap craft (I'm keeping it secret for now, in case she's lurking). I've gone over the time limit for what's supposed to be a "small" craft, but that's the way it goes with knitting. Not much I can knit in less than 2 hours. I should have used some bulky yarn instead of worsted weight for the item I'm making. Woulda shoulda.... It's kind of cute (it's my own creation). I hope my partner likes it. Luckily, the focus of the swap is the mix CD (phew!). I'll post the playlist when it's all said and done. :)

Hmm...I have the yarn all ready for the Mountain Laurel Blanket I plan on knitting for my soon-to-be neice, Zoe. I bought some Caron Simply Soft in "orchid" which is like a pale lavendar pink. Yeah, I know. I was trying to avoid the whole baby girl-pink thing, but this color isn't the horrible pastel-like color, it's quite pretty and I think it will show off the lace work (gulp!) of this pattern. Personally, I'm not into pink so much, but its for baby. I doubt my bro and SIL would like to wrap their new bundle of joy in black. Ha, baby-goth! There's no turning back now. I'm hoping I can finish the MJ slippers early this week, so I can get trucking on the blanket. She's due in late April, but I figure our visit won't be until early May. So I have about 2 months.

Something tells me that by the time BWC is done the weather will be too warm for a thick homespun wrap. Luckily, my office stays frigid pretty much year round (lack of heat in winter and hardcore A/C in the summer). I'll get some use out of it, heat stroke or not.

I got BUTTONS! Yes, purdy buttons. The Joann's in the mall (the big one) is closing and they're having some great sales on stuff. The yarn is pretty much gone except for the novelty crap which they moved up front, put a 50% off tag on with jacked up prices. If you're into that novelty stuff then check it out. The pricing could be better in my opinion. But my mission this week wasn't yarn. It was buttons for MJ slippers. They were 60% off, but if you got 5 cards they were 70% off each. SOLD! So I proceeded to pick out all the ornate buttons (selection was still pretty good). 5 cards, 2 buttons per card-$2.99 total on gift card. God, I love bargains!

On Sundays I normally make a special breakfast here at home. Just because its fun, really. And I like to eat. Since I've been reading a lot of food sites and blogs recently I've been feeling the need to experiment with some more of the exotic breakfast fare. This week: fruit Crepes. I have the batter sitting as we speak. I'll post a pic if they turn out all right. Next week: homemade scones!

In fact, I'll post a pic of the buttons I got, too. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Memoirs of a Knittah

2006-03-01T16:12:00.000-05:00

Ok, I’ve been knitting since about July/August of this year. I found myself on FigandPlum.com looking at her yoga mat bag pattern (to sew) and saw all the cool things she was knitting. Since sewing was pretty much falling flat for me, I thought I’d give knitting a try. So I went to my friendly neighborhood Joann’s (now in the process of closing, thank god) and got a skein of gray Caron Wintuk and pair of Susan Bates Size 10 straights. I went to knittinghelp.com and Vogue knitting to learn how to get started. For a couple days I fussed with making a knit stitch. Finally, I realized that I have to actually slip the knitted loop off the left needle for this knitting thing to actually work. EUREKA! And the rest is history.

Knitting is pretty much the only thing I do in my off time now. And by that I mean the time when I’m not working, doing stuff with Mr.V, sleeping, eating, running errands, napping… hmm, actually if you count reading knitting blogs, knitting boards on craftster, and other knitting related sites then I knit at work too. Just don’t tell my boss ;) I’m pretty much obsessed/addicted to knitting. Weird, because I’m so anti-addiction. Am I hypocrite?

Do I really care?

No… I could think of worse things to do with my free time.

And what’s up with the online knitting sites posting all these cute new patterns all of the sudden?

Click Here

And Here

I was paging through SnB Nation (I just got it from the Library) last night making mental notes on all the things I want to knit from there. And that doesn’t count the stuff from my two IK issues that are now in my possession. What’s a knittah to do? Move to Alaska so my sweater knitting will never interrupted by that pesky sun and evil earth's orbit?

Rapunzel Socks

2006-02-26T09:34:00.000-05:00

Yeah, Baby! The other pair of magic-looped, toe-up, worsted weight socks from d-made are finished! What a fun sock knit! Good stashbuster, or a good project for cheap-asses like me who only buy cheap worsted weight yarn (Go ME). You decide. But definately consider this sock (or its cousin, Traveler) when you find yourself in possession of about 200 yds of worsted weight yarn. These socks are also special because they are one of the rare gift-knits I perfom. As we speak these babies are on there way to my hometown in PA where they wait patiently to warm the feet of my dear Mom. :)

There's a shot of the front lace panel. Sorry the gray yarn doesn't do the lace justice, but hopefully you get the idea. The cuff is slightly long to allow for ample shin and ankle insulation (ka-ching!). Here's another shot of the socks footless and with a side view:

The cuff ribbing is a "faux cable ribbing" (can't really see it). I don't know why it's called "faux" because you actually cable the ribbing. Ionno. So with the lace and the cabling these are really ornate socks. If you're wondering why the socks look a little... well snug it's because my mother has smaller feet than I do and I want her socks to fit. I have recognized that not everyone has sasquawtch feet like me. *embracing inner sasquawtch...*

Oh, the socks as a gift for mom have a little special meaning. Throughout my teen years I was in the habit of not doing my laundry and thus running out clean socks. So I would sneak in my mom's drawer and steal a pair of hers (what are mothers for?). Even throughout college I would do this when I would come home to visit. My mom still teases me about me stealing her socks so these will at least help make up for my past misdeeds. :) Here are the specs:

Project: Rapunzel Socks from d-made (seen on Craftster.org)
Yarn: LB Wool-Ease Worsted, gray, 1 skein (purchased for a buck-fiddy)
Needles: Denise Interchangeables Size 5 long circular
Mods: Almost none. This is a good pattern. She even includes little checkboxes in the pattern so you can keep your place (what a doll!). One thing though, because I was magic looping a rather small circumference the stitches at the half way point and endpoint would stretch out a bit. I remedied this by knitting through the back those stitches. Problem solved. You might not have this problem though.
Woulda-Shoulda: It's not like I have regrets about my knitting projects, it's just that since I'm somewhat new to this knitting stuff my knitting projects are more like learning experiences. I like to keep record of these lessons. For this project I wish I would have used a better color yarn. The gray doesn' t show off the lace work as much as I like. Plus, gray is just boring. Buy something bright or funky. Something that will show off the overall purdiness of this sock. That's it!

In other news, the BWC is trucking along, and I'm just about finished with the first MJ slipper. Here's a pic of the BWC in progress. It kind of looks like a mess of black and white homespun (which it is, try to imagine 2x2 rib on the bottom half and St st on the top, just try). I couldn't get a good close up (lack of good light and a camera that can't function without the flash >.>)

Needless to say, I'm feeling very productive. Ciao!

Knitter Knirvana, Part 2 (I hate you Blogger)

2006-02-24T08:58:00.000-05:00

Ok, this is the part of yesterday's post that just doesn't seem to want to publish.

So here’s the baby blanket I want to make for Zoe. It’s definitely fancier than I was originally planning, but it’s so damn purdy I can’t pass it up. And honestly none of the other baby blankets appealed to me (ie, Big Bad Baby Blanket from SnB). And yes, I know that it’s not a blanket for ME but I wanted to knit something that wasn’t plain and boring. This is more like an heirloom, though I want them to get some use out of it so I’m going to knit with Caron Simply Soft so they can chuck it in the washer and dryer. Wish me luck. Estimated CO time-2 weeks from now. Maybe sooner. That’ll give me time to finish up the SIL’s mj’s and the stuff for the CD swap and make a big dent in the Ballet Wrap Cardigan (which I now dub the “BWC”).

Pics of the Rapunzel sock and possibly of other WIP’s will be up this weekend so check back. Until then…

Knitter Knirvana

2006-02-23T15:44:00.000-05:00

I received IK Winter issue, I CO on for the Ballet Wrap Cardigan, I’m working on the mary jane slippers for SIL, the Rapunzel Socks are ready to be mailed to their recipient, and I decided on a baby blanket pattern for baby Zoe.

Yes, all is right in my world right now.

Now if the weather would just cooperate so I could have a somewhat pleasant run without cold wind blowing in my face and snowflakes poking me in the eyeball then I would be in a state of bliss.

But this is ok, too. *chanting: come on spring, come on spring*

So here’s the baby blanket I want to make for

Recycling Yarn from Thrift Store Sweater, Part II

2006-02-20T09:27:00.000-05:00

Where I last left you with this I was drying my yarn in my bathroom. I had unraveled the sweater first, neatly bound it, and washed it in the tub. Well, there are two very WRONG things with what I did.

1. If yarn is wrapped (even loosely) in piles and then hung to dry it takes forEVAH to do so. I mean, that yarn was hanging up there for a solid 5 days before it was all dry. Keeping the yarn in tact and drying flat would have been a better choice *smacks self on forehead*.

2. Winding yarn in large loose piles encourages tangling. And I mean knock-your-head-against -the-wall-throw-your-ball-winder-out-the-window (through the glass)-vow-to-never-knit-again kind of tangles. I spent HOURS last night winding my yarn because of those stupid tangles. Believe me I started a system about half-way through: let out a couple yards carefully by hand, wind, repeat. But then I would get overzealous towards the end and just wind directly from the pile. Bad idea. This is where my excitement to unravel the yarn kicked me in the ass later.

The morale of this story is:

PLEASE, FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS SANE AND LOGICAL, WASH THE DAMN SWEATER FIRST! It'll dry faster and you can just unravel and immediately wind, thus avoiding any tangles.

But with all that drama in the past I now have several balls of slightly-used silk blend yarn that is clean and wound and ready for the needles.

Mmm... scrumptious! Most of the balls are rather tiny, but that's ok. I also swatched some on Size 6 needles and I would honestly say that this yarn is best on Size 5's or lower, which probably makes this closer to a fingering weight yarn (right?). Which is ok, because I'm thinking of making a Lucky from SNBN (see previous post) with it. Now I can feel like a yarn snob with this natural fiber stuff in my stash. Te he. I never thought the day would come *brushes back tear*. Not bad for a $5 investment at the local thrift.

~Fin
____________________________________________________________________

In other news, I'm almost done with the Rapunzel socks and they will soon be getting their proper acknowledgment here at ESK. Knitting socks is awesome. I was telling Mr. V that they're probably my favorite thing to knit now because they're just so damn practical (not to mention fun).

I signed up for my first craft swap on Craftster. The "What You Listen To Whilst Crafting" CD swap. I thought this was perfect because you get a collection of new music (DING!) and a small craft to go with it (DING!) AND it's not so involved that it has to take up all of your time (DING!). I would try some of the more involved swaps that require a couple crafted items but I already have some deadline knitting on my plate as it is. I don't need anymore, because like most knitters I feel that knitting with deadline looming over me takes a lot of the fun out of it. Here's the Swap Page. Check it out and join in if you're interested. And check out Karin's Recipe Swap, too! She makes lots of nummy things over her way.

Here's the tenative KnitList as of NOW:

1. Ridiculously Easy Mary Jane Slippers from Craftster (for SIL)
2. Baby blanket of some sort (still not decided)
3. Miss Dashwood baby bonnet from Knitty
4. Ballet Wrap Cardigan from IK Winter 05 (whenever the actual mag makes its appearance)
5. Maybe, Lucky from SNBN with newly recycled yarn

can I get some sock yarn up in here?

2006-02-16T15:04:00.000-05:00

I’ve been trucking away on the Rapunzel Socks (see sidebar). They’re turning out great (esp since I finally learned how to do YO’s right. Hmm… that would help make lace look right, umm… yeah). I finished sock 1 and I just started the foot of the second (they’re toe-up sock, btw). I wish I would have a different color besides boring gray. I’m really feeling some funky, bright socks, but the Wool-Ease colors schemes are more neutral colors. I really wish Joann’s, or any craft store for that matter, would carry actual sock yarn. They carry all that fun fur novelty-type crap. I mean, who really buys that stuff anyway? And what can you make with that yarn besides funky scarves and clutch bags? Sure, it’s cute and bright, but are you really going to knit a sweater out of that? *BLEH*. Hell, no. If stores carried sock yarn I could save a little money on shipping, not mention I can get instant gratification. If anyone knows of stores within driving distance that sell affordable sock yarn, please let me know. Rant is over.

The Rapunzel socks are going good. I’m thinking of making some Ridiculously Easy Mary Jane Slippers for my SIL out of some the Bernat Boucle she and my brother got me for x-mas. In ruby red! Those would be cute. Not to mention ridiculously easy. Though, I can’t help to think it’s a little strange to gift-knit for someone with yarn they bought you. Maybe she won’t notice.

So I finally got something from Interweave Knits this week: the Spring Issue

*record skipping noise in the background*

WTF! I called them to inquire as to why the Spring Issue beat the Winter Issue to my doorstep. A friendly lady informed me that they ran out of the issue and had to put them on back order. It should be here with the next 1.5 weeks or so. They were kind enough to extend my subscription to make up for the trouble so my winter issue will be free. Which is nice, but I’d still like to knit the Ballet Wrap Cardigan before Memorial Day people!. (Bitch, bitch, bitch-I’m sure you’re tired of it by now). But I’ve been having fun paging through the Spring issue oogling the projects. I’m not sure what I want to knit from it yet because it’s still too cold to be thinking about Camis and such. Soon, though.

This weekend I’ll post Part 2 of my Recycling Sweater series. I’m thinking I might make a Lucky from SNBN with from the silk blend yarn I rescued. I can show off my mad YO-skillz! I’ll have to get my hands on a copy of Stitch n’Bitch nation though to look at the pattern closely. Karin, weren’t you planning a Lucky recently?

On another note: check out this blog is you like food and funny bitches!

Recycling Yarn from Thrift Store Sweater, Part 1

2006-02-12T09:58:00.000-05:00

Here we go. My detailed and illustrated adventures in recycling yarn from thrift store sweaters. FYI-I highly recommend this tutorial at Neauveau. It not only tells you how to deconstruct a sweater, but what to look for when shopping for cheapo yarn at your local thrift. Apparently, not all sweaters are the same, and not all are ideal for unraveling. Also, if you want to do this I would pick up sweaters now even if you don't plan on unraveling right away. The Sal-val (salvation army for you "talk proper" folks) I went to had TONS of sweaters. Tis the season so take advantage. Now onto the show:

First off, I deconstructed what I'm calling "sweater 1" which is the LL Bean ladies M silk/cotton/wool blend sweater in a kind of denim twist color. Following the tutorial, I unraveled. Now, Karin asked me about washing and I'm going to say this: I think it's best to wash before you unravel. However, I couldn't wait for it dry flat in my cold-ass basement, so I went nuts. I'll probably pay for it later. As I unraveled I wrapped the yarn around my hand and elbow like I was wrapping rope or something. And when the yarn broke (I think this has something to do with the silk) I tied each end of the loop with a twistee tie. After about a week of unraveling off and on (I would say this takes several hours. I hope you're patient) I had this:

It seems like a decent amount of yarn although I really have no way of estimating yardage. If you can see the thing in the upper right corner that is the turtleneck part I left whole to give you an idea what the sweater looked like before it felt my wrath.

Next, into the bathtub it went with some warm water and a few squirts of Garnier shampoo. I tried to be gentle so that the yarn wouldn't tangle. I think I did a pretty good job. It's currently hanging over the tub drying (and taking its good old time about it). >.>

I rung it out by hand, rolled it in a towel (twice). I figure it will take a day or two. Then I can wind it up with my trusty ballwinder (oh how I love thee). If I were to estimate the weight of this yarn I would say its probably a sport/DK weight. I'll have to swatch some of it when it's all said and done. But I can tell by looking at it that it's not worsted weight. Oh here's a close up of the fiber in its kinked-up, perfumed, dirty glory. Oohh... baby, baby!

So what to make with this yarn? Since this is a skin friendly fiber I think it would be a sin to NOT make a garment out of it. But what? *opening suggestion box*

Still no Winter IK issue. I plan on using that Customer Service # they gave me in reply email. In the meantime, I casted on for sock 1 of Rapunzel Sock (the snobby cousin of Traveler Sock). I'm using woolease (of course) in gray. I bought the skein for a buck-fiddy at the Joann's in the mall that I don't like going to. Thankfully they're going out of business and all there yarn was 30% off plus I got to use my coupon. I might have splurged more but there wasn't any other yarn or colors that appealed to me. Although, they have tons of fuzzy and ribbon-like novelty yarn if you're into that sort of thing. Cheers!

Coming soon- Part 2 of Recycling Yarn, Part 2

I'm a Llama!

2006-02-10T12:23:00.000-05:00

I'm named him after my favorite anime Samurai Champloo (see side bar). I've always liked llamas. They're so cute!

In knitting news, I finished the "Traveler Socks" and I've a little more of the sweater to unravel. Then I need to wash it, dry it, and wind it. Can't WAIT :) Still no IK issue yet. Haven't checked the mail today though. I'll give them Saturday, too, but if Monday comes around and no magazine I'll be a very upset subscriber. More info and pics on tomorrow's post (that is if the home comp cooperates. *sigh* long story)

Patience is a Virtue!

2006-02-08T15:35:00.000-05:00

Tis Wednesday again! Not much going on except knitting the second traveler sock (though it’s my third take on the pair), unraveling one of my thrift store sweaters, and waiting for my damn Winter IK issue. I finally broke down and emailed them last Friday. I got a reply Monday afternoon saying that my issue should be here this week. No issue yet. I have a feeling it’s going to be one of those Friday afternoon deliveries (bastards). Gus (the replier) also informed that I should be receiving the Spring issue no later than the 18th. Umm, that’s good. If you can’t remember why I’m so impatient, remember I’m planning on making the Ballet Wrap Cardigan that’s on the cover of the issue. I have the yarn all ready to go (for almost a month now). All I need is the magazine. Any day now…

So here’s a tentative knitlist for the next few months in a relative order of priority:

-Ballet Wrap Cardigan! duh
-Big Bad Baby Blanket from SnB1 (due date for little neice is late April, I should make sure to give myself enough time start and frog if needed)
-Some kind of baby hat: maybe Knitty’s Baby Tart or Miss Dashwood.
-Some socks here and there. MORE SOCKS!
-Whatever I decide to make with the oodles of recycled yarn I recently purchased.
-Some kind of original-artistic-less-practical project for this art exhibit at work called “On My Own Time”. I have a few ideas, but I’m not sure if I’m ready to share. There’s lots of time for this. The submissions aren’t due until April or something like that.

Ok, that list is pretty vague, but you get the idea. Recycled yarn pics this weekend, promise!

What the F$%^ is going on?

2006-02-05T09:15:00.000-05:00

Ok, so now according to my blogger dashboard, yesterday's post doesn't even exist even though there is a post on the page. Who knows, sometimes I wonder if I should look for other blog hosts. Blogger just seems to have weird things wrong with it all the time. And by weird I mean annoyingly weird. Anyways, here's pics that were supposed to be in yesterday's post.
This is sock #1 which is now unraveled and being re-worked in order to achieve a better fit (still nice looking even with all the mistakes):

This is sock #2 in progress, which is currently finished. Fits like a charm. All the changes I made from first one seemed to work. To rec-cap I made sure to purl right (see post below), pick up wrap stitches and k or p2tog right, and also made the foot longer by working one more cable repeat. So cute and so warm.

OOHH! I went to the thrift store yesterday and purchased three sweaters to unravel and recycle the yarn. Here are the specs. I'll be sure record my unraveling adventures.

Sweater 1- Blue denim colored, women's size M, 55 % silk, 30% cotton, 15% lambs's wool, tagged said LL Bean, cost: $4.99

Sweater 2- Charcoal gray colored, men's size L, 100% Shetland wool, tagged "Britches", cost:$3.99

Sweater 3- Moss green colored, men's size L, 100% Shetland wool, tagged "Spin", cost: $3.99

Grand Total: $12.97 for three full sweaters-worth of yarn. Freakin sweet!

Update: Now, not only is my post from yesterday 2-4-06 not showing in my dashboard it's not even showing up on the page. The post has disappeared. It's one of the forgotten. This is really freaking annoying. That post contained information that I referenced in this post. So I apologize if the post is a little confusing. I'd like to complain blogger, but I can't seem to find a help desk email address. Can anyone help?

Yackety-Yack

2006-02-01T15:46:00.000-05:00

Whoa! Time seriously flies. It’s mid-week already and time for another update. There’s only one project on the needles over here at ESK, so I guess I’ll have to find something else yak about.

Well, the Traveler sock (see progress bar) is going along alright. This is my first experience with short-rows and the one aspect of this pattern that is a little hard was that the toe and heel shaping requires you to knit the sts and it’s wraps together. Now this was just a completely hard concept for me. My brain just said “no, no… no…..umm, no”. So I winged it which left tell-tale holes along the heel line. So… I’ll be doing a little more fixing and finishing on sock #1. Luckily, the pattern writer set me straight saying that I should be picking up the wraps and then transferring them to my left needle, THEN k2togging. Hmm, when I think about it, putting the wrap on the left needle does sound like it would be easier. Don’t even ask what I was doing before. *slightly, blushing* Maybe I’ll sneak a progress pic in later when I get home.

I’m still waiting for my freaking IK winter issue, dang-namit! I’m starting to wonder if they’re going to wait until spring to send me my first issue. Either way I’d like to know. I can always take a 40% off Joann coupon and go buy the winter issue. Those 5 skeins o’Homespun are waiting to be worked into the ballet wrap cardigan, and they’re getting kind of impatient (yes, my yarn talks to me… don’t ask). Anyone with a IK subscription know how they work with their first issues?

In non-knitting related news, I’ve finally decided on how I can improve my rather pathetic running skills (I’m not being a defeatist, I’m a pathetically slow wimpy runner): run with people who are faster than you. There’s a friendly bunch of 30/40-something runners who have been dropping major hints for me to join them on their leisurely (10 min per mile) 4 mile runs. Now lately I’ve only been able to pound out about 2 miles at a pace about a clip above power-walking on a treadmill (most of my problem is mental, I know I can do a lot better). They run outside, rain or shine (they break for snow luckily). Up until today I’ve been politely declining until one of the runners informed me that sometimes one of them breaks off and takes a shorter loop. Hmm… tempting. So I accepted. I’m gonna bite the bullet next Monday even it causes me cardiac arrest. I just hope I don’t collapse on the shoulder of Buckely Rd where my limp body might get run over by a passing mini-van.

Urban Neccessity Mitts: check

2006-01-29T08:44:00.000-05:00

They're gloves:

No, they're mittens:

They're GLITTENS....er... glots..ummm... you're MOM!

Well, whatever they are they're warm, they're functional, and they're all mine. I figure these will come in handy when (either this year or next) the temperature drops below 20º which is when my fingertips get painfully numb (yes, oxymoron) while trying to clean off the car in the morning. Even on days when it's not so cold they'll be better when compared to the rather thin fleece gloves I where now. Anyways, the specs:

Project: Urban Neccessities by Colleen Michele Meagher from MagKnits Sept 2005
Yarn: LB WoolEase Worsted in "Forest Green Heather" 80% Acrylic, 20% Wool, 1 skein
Needles: Size 6 Denise Interchangeable long circular using Magic Loop Method
Mods: No design on mitten cap, used kitchener stitch to close mitten cap
Woulda-Shoulda: I understand why there was a design chart for the mitten cap. My mitts are kind of plain, so if I could have mustered some patience and determination I would have done something different with the mitten cap like a cable panel or something. Honestly, I just didn't feel like it. I wanted these to be a quick finish, so I didn't bother. I had a hard time with the directions for starting the mitten cap. It might be how the pattern is written. I might be me. If you plan on making this be careful when picking up stitches for the mitten cap. Try and predict how the cap with lay when deciding where to start picking up. Oh, I was able to complete the medium sized mitts with a little less than 1 skein. The pattern calls for 2. Other than that, it's a fast easy knit and a FO no one can say they can easily buy at Wal-mart.

So, next up is the Traveler Sock. I'm using the same yarn for this, and after I click to post I'm going to start winding my yarn. Cheers!

NOTE: This post was edited on 1-30-06. It was brought to my attention that part of the orginal form of this post portrayed a certain person in a negative light. Out of respect for that person and regret for my actions I have modified this post and deleted the comments pertaining to that section. I very much appreciate the feedback given from Karin, Erleca, and Latoya as well as others who take the time to read and comment on this site. Thank you!

Next up, more SOCKS!

2006-01-25T13:49:00.000-05:00

Happy Wednesday everyone! Not too much going on in the knitting world. I’ve started the second Urban Neces Mitt and I’m about to work the fingers. This is a deceptively easy pattern, really. Gloves seem like they’re hard, but this pattern is easy in my opinion. However, I would stay away from this pattern if you ABHOR weaving in ends. Because of the way the fingers are worked (from the hand up) you start and break new segments of yarn for each finger which in turn = weaving hell. For me, once I get started weaving I’m good to go. The mitts should be picture ready by the weekend so be sure to check back soon. Hmm.. maybe I can get some goofy action shots since it seems winter is upon us again (luckily, without much of a vengence).

It’s so weird knitting something without Hourglass sweater looming over me. I was feeling a little anxious not knowing what I will do after the mitts are done. But thankfully a Craftster post eased my mind. I’m going to knit one of these socks (probably the Traveler sock). It looks like I might be able to finish the mitts with only one skein of wool-ease, leaving an extra skein for some more socks. What’s great about these patterns is that it uses worsted weight yarn (ideal for stash-busting) AND follows the magic loop method. Freakin’ sweet. I could kiss the girl who made these patterns. And she even included checkboxes in pattern so I can keep my place! This will be my first attempt at a “toe up” sock and a provisional cast on. Luckily, I know a little crochet thanks to mumsie ;)

Other than that, there’s not much ado besides the usual: work (blah), watching lots of Naruto (most annoyingly addictive anime EVER), some movies (Transporter 2, 40 YO Virgin, Corpse Bride), and taking naps when I normally knit, thus, the reason why my mitts are not done yet. Ciao!

Urban does not equal Fashion

2006-01-22T10:12:00.000-05:00

I'm just about finished with the first Urban Neccessities mit. I'm liking this pattern a lot and I'm really excited at the prospect of having warm glove/mitts for those extra cold winter mornings that require cleaning snow off the car. Knitting the hand, thumb, and fingers were surprisingly easy-peasy. Picking up sts for the mitten cap was a little complicated. The issue is knowing where to start picking up so you're mitten cap faces the right way. After working a few rows for the design chart for the mitten cap I realized it wasn't looking that anything remotely close to snowflake or whatever it's supposed to be so I re-knit it plain jane style.

I'm about to close off the top of the mitten cap, but I'm going to use Kitchener Stitch instead of the pull-through method the pattern calls for. You can see my mitts are not too fancy and they look kind of weird when they're on your hand, but this is an Urban Necessity NOT a Fashion Necessity people.

Hallejuah! Hourglass is Finished!

2006-01-22T09:41:00.000-05:00

Yes, I bet you had almost given up hope of ever seeing this day. But I pulled through, just for you. It's been a long journey, but I'm glad I made it. *chorus in the background sings: "Hallejuah, Hallejuah, Halle-e-e-ju-ah"*

Drumroll please. Here it is, in its FULLY FINISHED GLORY:

It looks so nice sitting on the bed. I'm pretty much in awe that I made something that is even remotely wearable. During my sewing period, I never had good luck with wearable finished products, but then I never spent as much time on sewing something than I do knitting something. And no, I'm not teasing you. I promised model shots and here they are, damnit:

Is it possible to ever get a good mirror shot? It's actually sunny here this morning, and one would think that gobs of sunlight would totally negate the reason for using a flash for a mirror shot knowing that the flash will do nothing but dominate the picture. Anyways... Here's a finished project summary I see on a lot of blogs. It's a great way to summarize, I think.

Project: Hourglass Sweater from Last Minute Knitted Gifts
Yarn: Lion Brand Jiffy (100% Acrylic) in "Country Green" about 7 skeins
Needles: Size 10.5 Denise Interchangeable circulars
Mods: I used a thicker yarn than what was orginally called for, thus, making this sweater a bit bulkier. BUT I would venture to say it was a lot quicker to knit. I had to do some ratios to convert the CO stitches and row counts.
Woulda-Shoulda: You might remember I started making this sweater one size smaller and got about half-way through the body and realized it would be to small (underestimated boob size). So I frogged and knit the next size up. This brings me to my first gripe about this pattern: the sizes are really wonky. There is a pretty big difference between the sizes, which is a problem for someone who fit exactly in the middle of two sizes. I couldn't make the small one because it would be too tight, but the larger size turned out a bit bigger than I would have liked. Exhibit B:

As you can see there's plenty of room around the waist. If I were to make this again (which I think I'd like to, but in Caron Simpy Soft) I would add some stitches to the CO of the body of the smaller size to allow more room for my jumblies, but keep it more fitted around the waist. (people, just cuz a girl got boobs doesn't mean she got belly). Gripe Two: the main gripe about this sweater for many people was the wide neckline. I would have fixed this by doing a couple more decrease rows, but I didn't have enough yarn. So I have to where a tank top underneath when I where this, which isn't a big deal because I normally do that anyway for big sweaters. Gripe Three: Knitting in the round is nice but doesn't help when you have to HEM your edges by hand. Hemming lives stitches wasn't as bad as I thought but it still tested my patience.

Overall, I see myself wearing this. It's a simple but flattering design. It's an easy and mindless knit if you're into that sort of thing. *pats self on back* Hmmm.. now what?

5 Weird Habits! Another MEME

2006-01-20T14:23:00.000-05:00

5 Weird Habits of Mine:

This should be pretty interesting. I got this MEME from Erleca, and I’m finding I had the same problem that she did. It’s hard to think of five weird habits. So, these are more like weird/bad habits/quirks. But here goes:

1. I have a habit of sleeping on my back with my knees up. I find this weird because I never fall asleep in that position. I assume it in the middle of night when I’m fast asleep. *shrugs*

2. I like bread. In all its forms. Bread is a snack for me, and possibly even a meal. Toasted with butter, toasted with jelly, plain with butter, plain with pb, toasted with cream cheese and topped with jelly, or just plain. Biscuits, crescent rolls, Italian, French, artisan just hand it over. I fill up on rolls during Thanksgiving dinner, not turkey. I don’t know why, but bread is fulfilling to me. Roll over Dr. Atkins!

3. I’m in the habit of spoiling surprises for myself. It’s related to my slightly obsessive personality, I think. For example, when I’m reading a good book I’ll jump to the last few pages to see how it ends instead of savoring the story as it unfolds. I spoil TV shows and animes for myself by reading fan sites. I say it’s spoiling, but really I don’t mind it. When all is said and done I’m still excited to read or watch what happens. Also, I snoop for presents, and even ask about them directly.

4. When it snows (which normally happens a lot around here, but we’ve been getting a break lately) I clean my car off in this manner: 1. Turn car on 2. Turn on front defroster, rear defroster, heated windshield wipers, and heated seat (high or low depending on how freakin cold it is). 3. Grab ice-scraper and get out of car. 5. Scrape snow and ice off driver-side and passenger side windows first, then clean rear-windshield, and lastly, front windshield. The last step is essential because I believe it maximizes snow removal efficiency. Side windows aren’t normally hard to clean off and since they don’t have a defroster they get clean first. By the time that’s done, cleaning the rear and front windshields should be easy since the defroster should be kicked in. When I get back into the car the wipers should be nice and clean thanks to the heated mechanism and the seat should be nice and warm, thus, optimizing driving comfort.

5. I take a long time try on clothes at the store. I believe this has to do with how I critique my appearance while in front of the mirror. Trust me, it’s not that I’m obsessed with my appearance or I’m really vain (or maybe it is, not that I really care), it’s just that I look over a lot of things. I think of all of the usual things when trying something on, but I also have to analyze other things. I mean I always think I look different in front of dressing room mirrors. Then I think “well is that really how I look, or is it the mirror, the lighting….” Basically, I over-analyze such a simple question as “does this look good on me?” and get completely off track. Meanwhile, Mr. V is wandering around the store listening to music that is probably driving him crazy…

Ok, if you’re reading this and haven’t done this MEME yet consider yourself tagged!

Bring on the Mitts

2006-01-19T13:26:00.000-05:00

I’ve started the Urban Nec. Mitts (with LB wool-ease, of course) and it’s going rather well. Though I understand when people say that knitting gloves are a bit of pain. But it’s not as bad as I thought. As of last night I picked up and cast on the stitches for the mitten cap for the first glove. This should be interesting considering there’s a design chart (gives the mitts a bit of decoration). Also, I don’t normally work with charts. They don’t intimidate me, but I do tend to lose my place a lot when I read them. Progress pics of the mitts will be coming soon.

Ok, so I’ve agreed to this umpteenth resolution for Hourglass Sweater. Since I post my pics on the weekend I am resolved to finish the damn thing in time for picture posting. Really, it’s not like I have a lot more to do. Why do I insist on dragging it out? Maybe I have “finishing trauma” from a previous knitting life. It would be nice to have the sweater ready and wearable, especially since I had to “put down” one of my favorite store-bought sweaters this morning when it was shedding blue velour fuzz all over my bathroom. It was also forming unflattering wholes in inappropriate places. Strange, but crappy velour seems to wear out very quickly. Oh, well. Hourglass will fill the void.

Oh! Let me share this link with you. I found this FREE knitting patterns site from a post of Craftster. Oodles of knitted items freshly translated from their Norwegian counterparts. And from what I understand they’re still translating. Enjoy!

In response to a previous post, I am was quite proud of my yarn stash. But it is definitely put to shame when compared to

Socks! First FO of '06

2006-01-15T08:58:00.000-05:00

WTF! Two days ago it was in the 50's (maybe higher), today it's snowing and 10ºF (according to my weater toolbar). I'm sorry, but in January it should be consistently cold and snowy. January isn't one of those transition months like October or March. But I did enjoy it while it was here. I had to put my sunglasses on during the drive home from work twice last week. Oooh, baby!

Anyway, as promised I have some pics for you. I was able to finish my socks (from Knitty's Socks 101) last night and have since then been prancing around the house in warm, thick tootsie covers. Yes, I have socks fever! Must knit more socks! Maybe I can stash bust some yarn and make some funky striped socks. Hmm... But anyways for your viewing please: my first FO of 2006

Yarn: LB Wool-Ease in "blue mist" (the color I made my clapotis out of), 1 skein
Needles: Denise Interchangeable's US 6 (long-ass circular using magic loop method)
Woulda-Shoulda: I could have made the cuff longer since I had a bit of yarn leftover, but there's enough cuff to make my ankle nice and toasty so it's alright. Also, I shouldn't have frogged the original cuff and re-started with a larger circumference. The socks are a bit "baggy" and could use more fit. Trust the tutorial, measure your ankle and subtract the alotted amount like it says. One toe is pointier than the other, but oh well. Also, the finished sock without foot looks really freakin long, and, thus, funny-looking. Nothing like a pair of hand-knitted socks to make you confront your inner-sasquawtch. Overall, it's a very easy to follow tutorial and a highly recommended beginner sock project. I also recommend the beginner sock pattern to aquaint yourself with the motions of sock knitting. *patting self on back*

Now, the moment you've all been waiting for. *insert dramatic pause here* Ladies and gentleman, in its semi-finished glory... the HOURGLASS SWEATER!

(click to enlarge)

I haven't touched the damn thing in a week, but as you can see, it's almost finished. The sleeves and bottom or all hemmed. All I need to do is hem the neckline, weave, and fix some stitches. Almost there. Just. a. little....more.to.go.

I'll be sure to model it when all said and done. I really like it so far, I see it getting a lot of wear. Sweaters are pretty much a staple in my winter wardrobe, so... yeah. I spent some time last night playing with some of my stash yarn. Anyone ever do that? I was trying to get inspiration for what do with my boucle yarn I got for christmas so I just started knitting a few rows on different needles to see what it looked like. I love the yarn, but I just can't figure out what to do with it! With the one skein I think I might make my own stuffed elephant (I love elephants!) since I had such a great time with the Kate/Andes cat from Knitty. The other two skeins... I don't know.

So what's next? Well, since I don't have yarn for Mom's hooded scarf, I'll just move on to Urban Necessities from Magknits. I have some green Wool-Ease for these puppies and one skein is already wound up and ready to go.

I will TRY to finish Hourglass before I start something new, but I'm not making any promises.

GRATUITOUS STASH SHOT!