Catching Up

It's been a while since I've posted. Things have been busy around here. I had 2 straight weekends of call time in addition to the other stuff in my life that hogs up my free time. I've been knitting like mad though. Joining the HPKCHC on Ravelry has given me inspiration of motivation to keep my needles in motion.

I've now finished several hexipuffs, and am waiting for more left over sock yarn to knit them up with. I came up with the idea last night while falling asleep of using some of my yarn samplers so I can try out the yarns. It'll also give me a wide variety of colors for the puffs. I can keep a small strip of the yarn to label for future color reference.

I have also been working on some yummy fingerless gloves using Rainy Days & Wooly Dogs' Laudanum Lache in Romantic and Valerie Johnson's Elphaba pattern. It was one of the skeins I managed to snag at Sock Summit. They were to be for the Halloween knit along in the Gothsocks forum as well as for HPKCHC. However, I didn't finish them by the deadline for HPKCHC, so I have until the end of the month for the Gothsocks turn in. The yarn is simply lovely, the cashmere in it makes it super soft while the wool and nylon keeps the halo to a minimum. It may bloom in the wash though, we shall see.

I recently broke down and purchased a Kindle. I've had it for 3 weeks now and I am madly in love. I think I actually read faster using it. It's so easy to use and with the e-ink I forget I'm not reading a paperback. I've bought several books for it already as well as put my patterns onto it. It's easy to read the patterns and I can zoom in on my charts. I don't know why it took me so long to make the decision to get one, but I am happy I finally did. It celebration of this I knitted a Doctor Who themed cozy for my Kindle, since both it and the TARDIS are bigger on the inside it seemed appropriate.

The last and most recent of my projects since my last post is an argyle cell phone cozy. I used some lovely yarn I got from the caffeine addicts swap a while ago. It is a Norwegian wool yarn called Dalegarn Falk. So now my phone is looking snazzy in charcoal and red argyles.

So with the purchase of the Kindle, I have added some new books to my reading list. The main one being Brent Weeks' The Black Prism. I just found this great YouTube trailer for the book. Who'd have thunk, a trailer for a book? Ah well, you may remember my rants about his Night Angel trilogy. This new series is even better. He's developed a totally unique system for magic involving turning light into solid. It's a pretty cool concept. Each drafter (his term for "mages") can use one or more spectrum of light. Each spectrum has it's own properties for drafting. For instance green is flexible, ultra violet is invisible and sub red is hot. I also love that the main character is chubby 16 year old boy. Something more realistic than the usual athletic sword trained men in more fantasy sci-fi. I'm about halfway through the book now, so I'll be sure to let you know if my enthusiasm holds up or if I am disappointed.

I think that is enough for now. I just hope that gap between posts isn't as long next time.

Yarn by the Pound!

I thought, while I am waiting for my friend Sabrina (yes there are going to be 2 of us) I might do a quick update. I am waiting for her as  we are going to the Knit Picks warehouse sale. We figured it was worth the 2-3 hour drive for lovely yarn at $12/lb! I wonder what they will have, I'm hoping for some aloft and maybe some WoTA in colors for my upcoming projects.

So, I  finished a pretty twisted bracelet. The pattern is from Knitty First Fall, 2011 and is by Cat Wong. I used a sample skein of Spincycle natural novelty yarn I got at Madrona last year. The yarn is a varigated grey to black thick thin yarn with slubs of deep purple mohair. The linen stitch worked well to even out the thick thin bits and the little pops of mohair I think look kinda cool. The picture makes it look a bit more messy than it really is.

I also started working on an Aster Nyx shawl for Alyx. It is my payment to her for making my steampunk costume for me. So far it's buzzing right along. It is also my OWL project for the HPKCHC on Ravelry. The Gaia lace yarn from Sanguine Gryphon that I am using for the shawl is just amazing! It's so soft and yummy. It's a bit bit like kid silk haze, without the haze. I might have to pick up some for myself.

unstuffed puff

Other than that, I have caught the hexipuff addiction. Hexipuffs are part of Tiny Owl Knits' beekeepers quilt. They are super easy to make, use leftover sock yarn and are really addictive. The reason being is it takes 30-60min to make 1 hexipuff, but then you've finished something! I really am jealous that I didn't think of this. It's blown up on Ravelry like no tomorrow and at $5.50 for the pattern, she's gotta be making money hand over fist. Much like the Monkey Socks, I think it's just brilliant in it's simplicity.

I think that's it for now. I'll try and post my spoils from the warehouse sale.

Updates

I keep saying I want to update this more regularly. Apparently I stink at doing so. I could make a long list of excuses, but I won't. I will say it's partially due to the fact that I discovered that my blogger droid ap was pushing ads onto my phone. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind seeing ads at the bottom of free aps, but pop ups, no way! So I un-installed it.

So, As I mentioned before, I finished my hitchhiker scarf! I even managed to get 42 teeth, even though the last one was 2 rows short. Joe even managed to take a good picture of me wearing it, which is nice. I have very few pictures of myself I like sharing.

Since I finished the hitchhiker, I've been knitting away. I managed to bind off the left front of my whisker cardi. I you all remember me talking about that a bit back. That just leaves the right front and the sleeves. Then all the finishing tid bits that I hate.

I've also resumed my fancy socklets, which were the culprits responsible for the breaking of my needle several months ago. I had managed to cast on and do 3 increase rows on the toe before the needle snapped. As you can see they are coming along well. These are from the Knit Picks fancy feet anklets kits. It is the Saturday pattern done in twinkle heather. The yarn is really fantastic It's soft and sproingy and not splitty in the least. The  stitch pattern is really showing up nicely. This is my first time following a pattern blindly, without doing all the math myself. I was really trepidatious about them fitting properly. It gives 2 different stitch counts for the cast on based on foot size, but the rest of the sock is all 1 stitch count. The heel you start once you are ready, it doesn't give a set length or anything. Which is good and I would have ignored it any way. What's amazing, is that I'm trying on the sock as I go and so far it is fitting well!!

Other than that, I've started horseback riding again. His name is Tiny and he's a lovely 18 hand Belgian lad. It's been fun to get back in the saddle. Riding was always the one form of exercise that I enjoyed. I will say it's a lot harder now that I am older and fatter. However, muscle memory is a blessing. Tiny's a lot of work, but at least I enjoy it.

You'll probably be seeing more regular project updates from me, and hopefully more reviews (I have lots of them to write up). I am doing the Harry Potter Knitting & Crochet House Cup on Ravelry this fall. One of the requirements for it is that you do a project a month. So I'll have lots of knitting to write about! Also, I might be going to Japan in October, so look out for more on that.

Reviews

So, just a side note, I updated some of my Sock Summit posts to include pictures and correct some typos caused by using swype to write them on my phone.

So, when I am looking to buy almost anything online, I like to look at reviews. I also like to look at lots of pictures. Since I've been knitting, I've noticed there aren't a lot of reviews out there for knitting tools. Sure, Vogue Knitting and others have some, but that's once every couple of months. Particularly, I've noticed project bags are quite limited on photos and reviews. I love project bags and am in fact addicted to them. However, they have to have the right kind of pockets and other things. So I am cautious when buying new ones. With that in mind and to help out my fellow knitters, I've decided to start doing reviews on my project bags and possibly other knitting tools on my blog. I am going to try and do a new one every Wednesday. If you guys like my reviews, let me know. If you know of another site doing project bag reviews, let me know. If you have any questions I don't address in my review leave a comment and I'd be happy to provide other information.

With just 1 caveat I'll begin this review. Please keep in mind that my reviews are in no way endorsed or influenced by the companies whose products I am reviewing. These are just my thoughts on products I have purchased. All photos are take by me (currently on my cell phone, I am hoping to buy a good camera soon). If this is your product and you wish to talk to me about my review, feel free to email me or leave a comment.

Slipped Stitch Studios sock bag

Since I am still in post Sock Summit recovery, I'll start with the sock project bag and pattern wallet I got there from Slipped Stitch Studios. I have been lusting after her products for some time, but given the cost and lack of interior bag pictures I wasn't sure about them. So I was excited to see she was at Sock Summit and I could look at and handle her bags in person before making a commitment. Laura had made some sock project bags to debut at the Summit (they aren't available on her Etsy page yet) and was offering a show exclusive price. Sadly I don't have my receipt, but I recall it being $16. These were available in her super cute assortment of fabrics. Mine is blue with hedgehogs and hearts on it. She also had her miPattern saver wallets $5 off with purchase of a magnet set. So I couldn't resist.

interior of Slipped Stitch bag

Let me start with the bag. It fit my 425 yard ball of sock yarn quite comfortably. It has 2 interior pockets which are roomy enough that I stick my needles in them when not in use and I could fit more. They are perfect for cable needles, altoid tins, spare needles ect... They are about 5in deep and 4in across and my caked ball of yarn sits mostly below the edge of the pocket with the bag open. The drawstring is handy when I'm feeding yarn through the top. It allows my cake to stay safe from the cat hair, while letting me easily knit from it still.

miPattern Saver Wallet

miPattern Saver Wallet and
magnet

The miPattern Saver Wallet is also great. Especially with the addition of the pattern magnets. The wallet fits several pages of regular 8.5x11" paper with no problem. I had a 5 page pattern in there last week and felt I could fit more easily. The magnet was strong enough to hold all the pages in place as well. The magnet is actually 2 magnets covered with fabric on one side  so that it is hinged with fabric on one end. This allows it to be used on non magnetic surfaces, but it also means the magnets must be lined up. This leads to my only complaint about the pattern wallet and magnets. When moving the magnet along a lace chart, I found that I had to stick my whole hand into the wallet to move the magnet up to the next line. This made it a bit cumbersome and annoying. So I ended up only moving it every couple rows or just moving when I was done knitting for a bit to mark where I left off. That said the magnets are quite strong and despite lots of jostling in the knitting bag, the magnet never moved between uses. The pocket in the back of the pattern wallet is perfect for storing your magnets or a folded up pattern or other supplies.

In addition the fabric used on all of these items is quite nice. The stitching is well hidden and very sturdy. After a week of heavy use I did not observe any wear or other issues. So from a structure and quality view point, these are also top notch.

I highly recommend these and can only imagine that Laura must put the same attention to detail into her other Slipped Stitch Studios products. They are a little pricey, but given the durability, lovely assortment of fabrics to choose from and attention to details, I think they are worth the cost.

This weekend I'll be posting about the books I just finished reading and my completed project.

A week late and a skein short

So, this will wrap up my sock summit report. I meant to do this last sunday when I got home, but I was simply exhausted. I was in bed by 8:30 and had to be up for work monday morning.

Saturday morning, I had a volunteer session in the bookstore again. It was fun, I got to meet some more authors. I also picked up 2 of Cat Bordhi's sock books. The reason for the books (other than I've been wanting them) was this mysterious whirlpool heel on the f2f pattern description. I wanted to be prepared.

Saturday afternoon was the planning for self striping success class. It was really good and taught us to forget measuring our socks and let the stripes do the talking.

Saturday evening was Stephanie's (The Yarn Harlot) lecture. It was nothing short of hysterically funny, informative and thought provoking.

After all that, Clarine and I decided to get some dinner. We decided seafood sounded good and after consulting google maps, we decided on South Park Seafood Grill and Wine Bar. It was quite lovely. I redeemed oysters and chardonnay for Clarine, so my work was done. After our lovely dinner, we walked over to Rougue where I had a ginger beer that was fantastic and I got to meet an author friend of Clarine's. I made a much later night of it than I wanted to, considering the f2f competition the next morning.

So, Sunday morning I was pretty nervous. I was actually too worked up to drink my coffee which is saying a lot. I met up with my team ahead of time, we were all wearing our matching t-shirts. Thankfully we got the pattern early on, do we were.able to review it and divide it up. It seems my panic was for naught. The cast-on's were all of our choosing as were the bind-off's. For the specific bits, clear instructions were given with a key. The only thing I looked up was a refresher on provisional cast-on's.

The sheep were adorable, and watching them get sheared was fun. Once the fleece was distributed, things were in motion. I got a quick and dirty lesson in flicking fleece and helped get our spinners stocked. Once they had spun enough yarn to get me started, I went to work on the toes. I did 2 at a time magic loop. Interestingly the increases called for in the pattern were the same ones I had learned in my Friday class. So thank goodness I asked for extra help with those.

Toes being fiddly and time consuming, I finished them around noon. Just in time for lunch. After quickly eating a hot dog and drinking nearly a liter of water I was ready to go again. I moved on to doing the leg of the sock, which had a lovely lace pattern.

2 of the pieces I knitted for f2f

A few notes here. This fleece came straight off the sheep, with not time to wash it. While the sheep wore coats, there was still some vegetable matter. Also, all of the natural lanolin was still on the wool. So while my hands were soft, there was this pervasive smell. As I knit with it, the wool warmed up and it just made it smell worse.

It was a lot of fun. There were reporters and importers running around and taking pictures and asking questions. In the end, my team won. We raised almost $400 for doctors without borders. My thumbs hurt for 3 days.

Since sock summit, I have finished my hitchiker and started a new secret project. It is for a steampunk swap on ravelry. I'll post pics of tge hitchiker shortly dvds the other project once my swapee received it.

yarn bombing at Sock Summit

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Sock Summit Day 0

After a little frantic lady minute packing, I got myself out the door and headed south. The drive was really pleasent and traffic was negligible. The farther south I got, the sunnier it got and it ended up being nice and warm. I had some podcasts to keep me company, Knit Picks, Never Not Knitting, Ready Set Knit and Stash and Burn, so I was able to get caught up on those.

After checking in, I met up with my friend Clarine who is sharing a room with me. The hotel is absolutely gorgeous. It is the nicest hotel I have stayed in, including the 5 diamond I've stayed in. I am currently blogging from their roof top lounge.

Once we got settled, we headed to the convention center and git checked in. We did lunch at Burgerville, which was awesome! I then reported for my volunteer shift on the loading dock. It was fun seeing all of the pretty yarn come in. I got to plot out my course of attack for when the hall opens.

Now, I'm finishing up my homework, for my 9am heels for toe up socks class.

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Craftspolsion

Finished wrist cuffs

Lace Wrist cuffs blocking

So, leading up to SDCC and Sock Summit I have been doing a lot of crafting. For my steampunk costume, I had to cut all the fabric which Alyx kindly sewed. I had to cover my nuclear grade welding goggle in leather and brass studs and paint them. I finished knitting my lace cuffs and neck collar and had to decorate my felted hat. I even made myself a necklace. So, my house is an utter mess and there are bits and pieces of costume remnants everywhere!

The good news is, I think blogger droid is going to work great for posting from SDCC. I also got a new battery for my pedometer, so I can tell you guys how far I walked each day. It'll be fun! I hope you will enjoy my report.

goggles

Me Wearing the necklace I made

Belated weekend posting aka blogger droid ate my post

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So, I spent 30min or so this morning writing up a post to make up for missing this weekend. It was lovely, and then my blogger droid ap ate it. So, I wil attempt to re-write it and give blogger droid a second chance. I wanted to test out this ap as I am hoping to use it at SDCC and Sock Summit to do travel blogging. Since the droid X didn't have spell check, and I use swype in my phone, please forgive any mis-spellings and/or typos. 

The steampunk costume is progressing nicely. Alyx pieced together the muslin test and after some initial confusion (the 2 center back pieces hid on us and didn't originally get seamed in) it fit great! The fabric swatches for the skirt arrived, so I am trying to pick a color. Once I do, I can order the fabric. Alyx, bless her, is in the process of re-sizing the shiry pattern. Her bf has also kindly agreed to help me make a belt to go with it all. I also have some great ideas for accessories.

 I cast on Marnie MacLean's executive funk on Sunday. I am already halfway through the lace pattern chart. I am making it with Knit Pick's comfy sport in ivory. The pattern actually calls for a fingering weight yarn, but they were out in my color choice. So, I cast on the number of stitches for the smaller size on 40in size 2's and then switched to 3's for the ribbing. I used size 6's instead of 5's fire the larger size. Initially I used a 36in cable, but I had to switch to a 47in and I might switch to 60in now. The grow a lot as you knit them. They are firing my 7.25in wrist perfectly at least! You can check out my ivory wristlets on Ravelry.

 So, my yarn choice was based on ether fact that I am knitting 4 accessories for my costume, 3 of which I want to kindof match. Knit Picks has several yarn lines that have a variety of rights with the same colors. Cindy was the only one with an off white in the neighborhood of the rights I needed. The cuffs called for a fingering, the collar for a dk and the spats for a worsted. So for the cuffs and collar I am using the sport. The spats will be done in current and trimmed in the ivory. I just have to knit like the wind. So, the whisker cardi is on pause for now. I will try and post pics as things progress.

books, television and crafts

So, I finished Jen Lancaster's Wish You Were Here. It was really well written and quite good. I've always enjoyed Jen's writing style, but it's interesting to now see her imagination at work. Some of it was a bit "pink book," but I think the characters were still enjoyable. It's a nice break from my often more serious and dark reading.

I managed to finally get Patrick Rothfuss' next book from  the library. The Wise Man's Fear is the second book in the Kingkiller Chronicle's series. The first book, The Name of the Wind , was nothing short of brilliant. I have never read a first book from a new author and just fallen into their words. Often the writing is awkward as they haven't established their voice or style yet. Patrick however, didn't have any of these awkward moments or storytelling issues. It makes his books really enjoyable. Not to mention, his story itself is fantastic. I can't recommend it enough.

I have also started watching The Game of Thrones on HBO. It's really a pretty cool series. Joe and I have also been watching Mad Men. We just finished the first season and so far we really like it. I am sad that they are splitting up the Doctor Who season. The last episode was awesome though!


In the crafting section of my life. The back of my cardigan is bound off, and I am now working on the left front. I just ordered the yarn for my accessories for my steampunk costume. Speaking of which, pattern cutting and altering continues. I have settled on the fabric for the jacket, from Vogue Fabrics. We are still working on the rest of the fabric choices. We should be starting to mock up the jacket either today or next week. Most of the muslin is cut, it's just a matter of stitching it together.

(left) cut out skirt pattern.

fabric swatches (right)

Fabric for my jacket.

So much for sunshine

The weather yesterday was fantastic! Sunny and warm and wonderful. I took my dog for a nice long walk which made us both happy. I had plans for taking photos of some of my yarn for Ravelry, and I was able to get a few. However, before the lighting was quite right I got called into work. I comforted myself with the fact that it was supposed to be sunny and nice today too. So, I got out all my un-photographed yarn and set it aside so it would be ready. Mother nature had other plans though. While it was warm today, it was overcast the whole day. So now, I have a large pile of yarn that it is still picture-less. Gotta love the PNW!

I finished the arm hole decreases on my whisker cardi! I am now just working the pattern repeats to get to the shoulder and neck shaping. It seems like no matter how many repeats I do that the arm holes still measure 7in and I need 9in. Oh well, let the slogging continue. I am debating about casting on for Martina Behm's Hitchhiker scarf just so I can whip through and get the fun of completing something. It could be a nice use of my one skein of Wollmeise.

The steampunk costume project also continues. I have mostly settled on my fabric choices and swatches should be here shortly. I also got the rest of my patterns from Laughing Moon. I will have to adjust the sizing for the shirt pattern a bit. I think it'll come out nicely though. Here are the links for the patterns I am using for my costume: skirt, shirt, jacket, and if I have time I'll knit these cuffs, spats and collar. I've settled on doing the cuffs and collar in ivory. I just need to order the yarn and then decide on colors for the spats.

I am going to try and regularly post on here every weekend. I hope you enjoy it!

Arm Hole Decreases

I have found what I am expecting to be the bane of my garment knitting life. Since the only two garments I have knit have been cabled and lace, perhaps it was a poor introduction to the concept. Arm hole decreases suck! It has been two steps forward, one step back (if not two) for the last week or so with my whisker cardi. I have to decrease one stitch at either end, but maintain the pattern. This sounds simple enough, expect the pattern has increase rows, decrease rows and lots of yarn overs. So being sure I am even decreasing a stitch at both ends can be a challenge. There have been a few times where rather than following the decrease instructions I've instead eliminated a yarn-over. This is mostly due to the fact that a few rows start with decreases in the same place as where I would be decreasing anyway. I figure for the sake of the pattern and my sanity that removing the following yarn-over creates the same effect and won't be noticed. The problem really gets to be that every row I have to figure out what part of the 6 stitch repeat (increase rows are 8 stitches) I am looking at and then using the chart to figure out what I should be doing to those stitches. This process can sometimes take up to 15 minutes and involve tinking a few times. It's even more frustrating due to the fact that I am so close to finishing the back of this sweater. Which means I could easily finish it before my July deadline. I have gotten to the point where as long as the pattern looks mostly correct, I am happy. My perfectionist ways have been overridden by my deep frustration.

This is why I am happy I now have a new project to take up some of my creative processes. I have finally started (with a lot of help from a friend) making the Steam Punk costume I have wanted to do for the last 2 years. I want to have this done before SDCC and it might even be possible. The costume will eventually be a series of interchangeable elements that will allow for the change of one or two pieces to create and entirely new outfit. For now, I am focusing on getting a jacket, skirt and shirt done. I am also going to try to knit a few accessories. I haven't sewed a whole lot since I was a kid, so this is a bit ambitious. Thank you again to my friend who is far more experienced than me and has been gracious enough to help me out. I will be sure to post pictures as I go along and also of the finished project.

Frakkin' Smegy Socks

So, to conclude the SSS saga. I washed them in hot water and tossed them into the dryer and that shrunk them up some. I think they will still be house socks though. The felici is incredibly warm and snuggly. Maybe the next go round with it will be better.

So, my new project are my Frakkin' Smeggy Socks. So named as it is Gothsocks gothling Frakkin' Toaster, on her Ricin' base. Ricin' is a merino, bamboo, nylon mix. I expect it'll last forever. It's got a gorgeous bit of shine to it, some nice stitch definition and a still a bit of stretch. The coolest part about the shine is that it makes the grey look silver. I'm really in love with this yarn and her use of colors. I don't generally like variegated yarns, but the way this is knitting up, I just might be a convert. So the second part of the name is a reference to Red Dwarf, which is a BBC comedy sci-fi series from the late 80's and 90's. It is really very hilarious and if you haven't seen it, I highly recommend you do you. It's available on Netflix instant streaming. The reason for this reference, is the pattern I am using is Cristi H. Brockway's, Red Dwarf Socks. So, there you have a long winded explanation of my project name.

So far I am really enjoying the pattern. I have gotten to the heel turn at this point. I am substituting the fleegle heel instead of what she has in her pattern. I had a good experience with the fleegle, so I am going to continue to use it for now to get more sock knitting experience under my belt. Now, don't get the wrong idea. I am not going to be knitting nothing but socks. There were just a few KAL's I wanted to participate in the last couple of month. I plan to one day soon finish my hoodie, start a cardigan and a skirt. I want to have some nice things to show off at Sock Summit in July.

The conclusion of the sockasode or the sock saga continues?

So, the no wrap short rows didn't go anywhere. I still ended up with holes. So after talking to some awesome people on Ravelry in the sock knitters and knit freedom forums, I was introduce to the fleegle heel. This is nothing short of brilliant! I managed to knit is and I am still not sure how it came out so well. It is a no wrap, no guesset heel flap and gusset sort of heel. Liat Gat of Knit Freedom has some fantastic YouTube videos on how to do the fleegle heel. Her video ebook "Learn to Knit Toe Up Socks" also uses the fleegle heel. My only regret is I didn't watch her video on when to start working the heel and I instead used fleegle's formula. So, my sock ended up a bit long. Having already frogged it 6 times, I wasn't about to do it again. Especially, since it didn't have any holes!! From there I started a lace pattern I picked out of Vougue Knitting: Stichionary 5 called pigtails. It patterned up quite nicely if I do say so myself! So, the next error I made was my selection of the aristocrat cuff from Socks Ala Carte 2: Toes Up. This turned out to be a rather pretty, but not very stretchy cuff.  As the socks ended at the base of my large calves, this was a bad combination. To finish it all up I used my favorite sock bind off, Jenny's Suprisingly Stretchy bind off. So, they are a bit long in the foot and a bit snug in the calf. They also grew a bit with washing and blocking.

 I wore them for the first time on Tuesday. They were incredibly comfortable and I got lots of compliments on them! Tonight I am (at the suggestion of some lovely folks on Ravelry) trying to shrink them with the aid of the washer and dryer. We'll see how it goes. You can find my socks on Ravelry as SSS (Sabrina's Sorceery Socks). Also, here are some pictures for you.

Madrona Fiber Arts

Today I went to my first fiber festival! It was a good time. I mostly went to get some Rainy Days Wooly Dogs gothsocks.  If you haven't seen it, it is beautiful self striping and variegated hand dyed yarn. I had fund shopping for myself and a few other people. When the show floor opened everyone walked briskly toward her booth and by the time I got around the corner I couldn't even fit in her booth. Sadly, that means I missed out on TARDIS which is the one color I really and truly wanted. I probably spent way more money than I ever should have. *sigh* Such is my problem. I did manage to net several lovely colors though. At least I get my tax return at the end of the month! I also got myself some Blue Moon Fiber Arts socks that rock medium weight in a rare gem colorway. It was actually funny when I went to check out Tina, the owner/dyer eyed my skein and threatened to keep it because she liked it so much. I also had a really great time hanging out with some lovely knitters and spinners. I learned a little bit about spinning, fiber and had a great time checking out everyone's projects.

This is the GothSocks booth after everyone emptied it out. It looks so sad and lonely. There were some pretty gothlings and sparklies whe I left though. You can also see the lovely Stephanie (the gothsocks creator) in front.



In other news, Joe and I just celebrated our 6th anniversary! He made a lovely dinner and we had a great night hanging out.

Sock knitting is also going well. I will write more on that when I finish it though.

This is a collage of all the things I knitted for the Holidays this year. Arm warmers for my cousin, a hat for my husband and one for my father in law, socks for my friend, a mobius cowl for my aunt, an infinity scarf for my mom, a lace scarf for another aunt and a stranded colorwork hat for my best friend. There a few things not quite done, like a mini top hat for my cousin and a scarf I just finished for my other aunt.

Keep on keeping on

I think I have knitted for at least 7 hours today, maybe more. I am trying to hurry and finish all of my Christmas knitting projects so I can get them in the mail. I just added in the second skein of yarn for my mom's present and I am going to try and hurry and finish it over the weekend. The bad part is I haven't been able to work on my project for my knitting class. Oh well, I can just take notes based on other people's projects. I still have bind off one present, fringe another and repair a third. Then I have one more to cast on and knit in a hurry. I have resigned myself to the fact that part of my cousins present will be mailed a bit later. Oh yeah, let me explain my extra special hurry. My family is doing Christmas on the 19th this year. Yeah, so I loose a week of time I didn't know I was going to. Bleh!

So, as usual I am watching TV as I knit. Since this pattern is especially boring, I needed something interesting to keep me going. I selected Battle in Seattle from Netflix. I think my mind has been officially blown. On Monday when I get to work I have to ask my co-workers what it was like being a medical employee during that. Were they all locked into the hospital? Was the OR overrun? I know the ER must have been. I would love to hear their stories about their experiences during that event.

I have decided to follow that with Leonardo DiCaprio's 11th Hour. It is a documentary on the environmental crisis. Gee aren't I cheery tonight? This is put together in a really interesting fashion. However, as it is getting late and I am really tired, I might have to finish it later.

Anime, knitting and more

So, I started watching some new (to me) anime series a bit ago, Soul Eater and Darker Than Black. Now that both are available on instant streaming through Netflix, it's been easier to watch them. I've been mostly watching Soul Eater and I have been really enjoying it. While some of the characters are a little flat, I do enjoy how unique the story is. I wonder how people come up with these ideas. I mean a school for weapons and weapon trainers that serve Death. I plan to finish Darker than Black once I am done with Soul Eater.

I started my toe up socks 2 at a time using magic loop class yesterday at Renaissance Yarns. So far, so good. I have finished doing my toe increases and now need to knit until I get to the heel turn. This is a nice reinforcement of the first class as we are using the same methods for toes and heels. So far, I am liking this a lot more than 1 at a time. It seems faster and if nothing else is more gratifying. When I bind off, I will have a pair of socks, not one more sock to cast on and knit.

Planning for Sakura-Con 2011 is going well. We just announced two new guests, Chris Bevins and Tiffany Grant. I am excited to about both of them. I think we will really have a good line up for this year.

expanding the old knowledge base

So, my LYS, Renaissance Yarns, is finally offering a couple of classes I have been wanting to take. The first one starts on the 13th and is toe up socks two at once using magic loop. I took the toe up magic loop class a while back, but I think I now understand why people go with 2 at once as I have yet to finish my second sock. It is in time out after making me very angry and has been sitting there for a while. The second class starts in December and is a stranded color work class. I have been fascinated by Fair Isle since I started knitting. So I am really excited about adding this trick to my knitting collection. In the class I'll learn to make a 2 color tam using traditional Shetland wool. I can't wait!

In other news I hope to finish the brioche scarf this weekend so I can start on the vineyard scarf and try and get that done. I just have to decide how much knitting is really feasible to get done in time for Christmas. I guess we shall see how the next couple of weeks go.

Brioche progress and more thoughts on Fable 3

So, I am up to over 4ft on my brioche scarf. I am really liking how well the colors are going together. However, I am getting bored with the stitch pattern. I think I am mostly a product knitter, but there is something to be said for the process. I think that's why I like knitting lace so much. Not only is the product beautiful, but the process is all consuming and interesting. I am looking forward to working on my vineyard scarf some more as the charted lace pattern in that is fun and interesting.

I have also been playing lots of Fable 3. The side quests aren't bad, but I still don't feel it has the depth of Fable 2. I really miss the pub games. Those were brilliant and a ton of fun! I would play them for hours. Also, the limited number of weapons sucks. I have been trying to find a new sword and it seems impossible without going into someone else's game. I find that annoying. Anyway, we'll see how it all wraps up.

Fable 3 and knitting

So, I got Fable 3 on Tuesday. This means I haven't been knitting that much in the last few days, especially since work has been a little busy. So far, I am really enjoying the game, though I have a sneaking suspicion that I am almost through the main storyline. This thought does not please me. Don't get wrong, I know with Fable you can keep playing after finishing the storyline, but I want more developed story. Things I like about the new game are the relationship quests with the villagers, the improved graphics, ability to upgrade weapons in interesting ways and the chicken races. Things I don't like are the ability to upgrade jobs without earning it, how glitchy the sparkling trail is, the narrowness of the world, the new emotions for interactions and the gnomes.

I have been able to knit of my brioche scarf a bit. I think I am about a quarter of the way through. I think it is looking pretty good other than the mistakes that I can see clear as day. I just hope whoever I give it to can't see them. I plan to work on it frantically this weekend. I have lots of Bones and Doctor Who on the DVR. I finished season 5 of Bones tonight, so onward to season 6. I love this show! I am for the record very happy Angela and Hodgins are back together!