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.

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!

Post-Con

(yes, she is sleeping like that)

So, my state of being since con ended was summed up by my dog on the way home. It was a whirlwind adventure in managing chaos as per normal. I did have some fun though. I got to take one of the guests (who is a knitter) to Churchmouse Yarns and Tea on Bainbridge. It was the perfect little trip as she got to experience riding a ferry, eat at a Seattle area diner and indulge in much yarny goodness.

I also finally got to see Alex aka DJ Origami's set from start to finish this year! It was awesome as he was mixing his own video and audio at the same time.

Returning to the real world as usual feels weird. I went to work on Thursday and Friday this week and it took some re-orientation. I've been really tired, but it might have to do with the fact that I am still sick. I keep thinking I have this thing beat and it keep creeping back up. It's down to mostly this really awful cough though.

On the bright side, I have resumed knitting! I got a few rows of my fleurette cardigan done at work and while watching Glee. Oh... yeah... I forgot to mention, Joe and I have given into the darkside. Yep, we started watching Glee. So far, it's ok. It's not my new favorite or anything. I think we are just addicted to watching TV series. As things go Glee is really pretty slow, it moves in Dragon Ball time. We are about halfway through Season 1 on Netflix.