there seems to be a theme

I guess Monday is becoming my blogging day?
Certainly seems like it.

Well, this weekend was quite eventful... atleast fiberly (is that a word? sounds wrong, but i can't think, i'm at work!)
My new baby arrived. Ashford Traditional. From dear Hattie....
She is beautiful. I still can't quite decide what to name her. I really like Aine (radience, queen of the Fairies) and Morgana (the great circle).
I did a bit of work on her. It was going really well until the single broke. i just couldn't get it going again. I think i'm going to put that particular fiber away for the moment and use something a bit longer (i've got a bit of my practice fiber from my drop spindle left!).

Lets see.
I also finished the lap blanket for my grandmother. It is beautiful!!! I absolutely adore it! I really want to keep it for myself. I am going to make one more for other grandma (quick easy xmas pressie) and then cast on one more for myself, but i'll make it twice the size.

The yarn for my camel sweater is due in to seattle next week. Hopefully it'll arrive at my house soon! And my ravelry shirts too! i can't wait for those!!!! EEK!

I fixed my camera, and have taken a number of pictures of Morgana (yea, i thinks that's going to be her name) and of several of my FOs. I will hopefully post them on Flickr this week (if i get the time) and on Ravelry. Perhaps I'll get some on here too.

see, now you have something not so monotonous as my rambling to look forward to!

happy monday!

I went to a new knitting group over in South City. It was great!
Everyone was extremely friendly and there are alot of beautiful faces to put with all those Ravelry sreen names!
The owner of the new LYS was there and I got to hear about the goings on. I am unbelievably excited about it. She's soooooo sweet and friendly. It will be a pleasure to go in there!
And she was talking about some of the yarns. She's attempting to get yarns from alot of local and small producers. I can't wait! and she's going to have alot of spinning supplies, which is just an added bonus.
the shop opens in 2 weeks (and she doesn't even have the keys yet!) on a saturday morning. the south city ravelrs are planning a campout before the party! (think waiting in line for HP release, but at 7am not midnight.) this should be a blast!

now don't get me wrong. madalene's is still going to be my #1 yarn shop, but it will be GREAT to have this one too!


in other news, I GOT MY SPINNING WHEEL!
it should be shipped to me today and I'm hoping (pray to the fedex gods for me, please!) that it will be here by the weekend.
I actually cleaned my bedroom and organized my stash to get ready for her.
all i need now is to decide on a name......
i'll post ideas after i've officially met her.

until next time....
happy knitting

Insanity? Of Course!

So life has felt a little rough lately. Nothing too out of the ordinary, but rough all the same.
I have been doing all the things I typically find myself doing in those moments of insanity. Shopping like a crazy lady (never a good thing around pay day!), knitting like a mad woman (yes, even in traffic today... it was moving too slow to need to shift out of first gear so why not?), and starting new projects.
Lets see, what have I started?
First I started on a new pair of socks. and i didn't like the way the yarn handled the pattern. so i frogged it.
so i started a different pattern with a different yarn. love it, but i wanted something bigger. with a very very simple pattern.
FOUND IT! YAY!!!!
A lap blanket for Grandma Lou. Pretty blue camel and purple goddess!
I LOVE IT!
and it is going sooooo fast.
and it isn't ribbing!!!!
that's my favorite part. the whole ribbing thing has gotten to me.


and I think I may be buying a spinning wheel.
I was originally going to wait until I got a full time job, but I think a third part time job will qualify.
yes, i now have 3 jobs in addition to my volunteering.
i'm stupid. i will have 2 evenings a week free (that includes knit night! thank the gods!). the rest of the week i'll just go crazy and starve (i have 30 minutes between the first and second job, and the second and third, and i need every second for traffic!). I am going to stock up on energy bars and live on those for a while..... we'll see how that goes.

lets see, other news?

not really. another new LYS is coming soon (two weeks to be exact!) near jobs 2 and 3. I've very excited. I've heard good things about the owner. i can't wait to have another place to go and knit my time away.

right, that's if I ever get time!

Monday, Monday

So I finally got 2/3 of my stash posted on Ravelry. It took forever. I didn't realize how much is really there.... and how much of it is aran and bulky weight.... I'm going to definitely have to search for new patterns out there that aren't calling for dk, sport or sock weight!

Amanda and I went to the movies Sunday to see Elizabeth. Pretty good. I got a good 5 or 6 rows of the corset-t done. YAY! And while I was in the neighborhood, I stopped in one of the LYS. I've been in that particular one 5 or 6 times before, but this was the first time someone said someothing other than, "yes, I can ring you out." I actually recieved some customer service! I was dumbfounded. I bought a new colorway of Trekking. One with solid stripes so I can try the Rainbow Socks.

And I cast on the Falling In Love socks with my Colinette Jitterbug. I don't like the cast on for these socks so I went ahead and did the eastern cast-on and got it up to half the stitches I'll need. It was 2am so I saved the rest of the toe for tonight.

Well, It's a crazy day so I should probably try to do some work.
yeah, right.

BEHOLD! Knitting Crack

Some dear friends tend to refer to surveys as crack. They are absolutely addictive, and I make every attempt to leave them alone. This one however, is a knitting survey. I can usually muster a bit of self control in these situations, but mixing addictions.... its just pure evil!. I just couldn't help myself.

This is a knitting survey……

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

Afghan
I-cord
Garter stitch
Knitting with metal wire
Shawl (the first two attempts are in bags in the corner, does that count?)
Stockinette stitch
Socks: top-down
Socks: toe-up
Knitting with camel yarn (I have 3 skeins and 6 more on order!)
Mittens: Cuff-up
Mittens: Tip-down
Hat
Knitting with silk
Moebius band knitting
Participating in a KAL
Sweater (I knit 2/3 of one and pulled it out, but I'm trying again!)
Drop stitch patterns
Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
Slip stitch patterns
Knitting with banana fiber yarn (its in my stash!)
Domino knitting (modular knitting)
Twisted stitch patterns
Knitting with bamboo yarn (stashed)
Two end knitting
Charity knitting
Knitting with soy yarn (stashed)
Cardigan (in planning stages)
Toy/doll clothing
Knitting with circular needles
Baby items
Knitting with your own hand-spun yarn
Slippers
Graffiti knitting
Continental knitting
Designing knitted garments (in the works)
Cable stitch patterns (incl. Aran)
Lace patterns
Publishing a knitting book
Participate in an exchange
Scarf
Teaching a child to knit (start with Guinnie next week!)
American/English knitting (as opposed to continental)
Knitting to make money
Buttonholes
Knitting with alpaca (roving to spin is in the stash!)
Fair Isle Knitting
Norwegian knitting
Dying with plant colors
Knitting items for a wedding
Household items (dishcloths, washcloths, tea cosies…)
Knitting socks (or other small tubular items) on one or two circulars
Knitting with someone else’s hand-spun yarn
Knitting with dpns
Holiday related knitting
Teaching a male how to knit
Bobbles
Knitting for a living
Knitting with cotton
Knitting smocking
Dying yarn
Steeks
Knitting art
Knitting two socks on two circulars simultaneously
Fulling/felting
Knitting with wool
Textured knitting
Kitchener stitch
Knitted flowers
Purses/bags
Knitting with beads
Swatching
Long Tail CO
Entrelac
Knitting and purling backwards (I’m lousy at it, but I can do it in a pinch!)
Machine knitting
Knitting with self patterning/self striping/variegated yarn
Stuffed toys
Baby items
Knitting with cashmere
Darning
Jewelry
Knitting with synthetic yarn
Writing a pattern
Gloves
Intarsia
Knitting with linen
Knitting for preemies
Tubular CO
Free-form knitting
Short rows
Cuffs/fingerless mitts/arm-warmers
Pillows
Knitting a pattern from an on-line knitting magazine
Rug
Knitting on a loom
Thrummed knitting
Knitting a gift
Knitting for pets
Shrug/bolero/poncho
Knitting with dog/cat hair
Hair accessories
Knitting in public (Continuously!)

What have you learned to do that has marked a definite change in your knitting life?

Well, I’ve gotten to the point where I can knit without looking as long as I don’t have to remember a pattern more than 1x1 or 2x2 ribbing. It's great fro knitting in the movies and in the middle of teaching class. And it makes knit night a hell of a lot easier!

I’ve also learned to use knitting as a meditation to let go of stress. It's become a life saver! Literally

Work? What's that?

I got in to work late today. I was worried. I feared a huge pile of work to do. My boss hasn't been in with anything for me to do in quite a while. Well, surprise, still no work. And I can't just go back home because that is a total waste of gasoline. Instead, I cleaned out my office and the office next door that is basically used as storage.

Now what?

I played on ravelry (i'm sooooooo not supposed to be playing on the internet!) and now i'm posting here. I think I may head over to one of the coffee shops nearby and sit and knit for a bit. I have one more pair of socks to finish in the next 3 weeks. It is really only a one or two evening project.



OOOOOh, what else to do when you are bored at work?

right.

spend NEXT month's paycheck

on yarn

PRETTY YARN

Handspun Bactrian Camel Yarn

that helps families in Mongolia... and the Snow Leopard.

Go HERE for more information.
The lovely Marissa, who I met at the AZAD Conference, has let me know about all the lovely colors they are getting in next month and has promised to save many skeins of undyed yarn for me for this winter's sweater project.

I like Marissa

and I LOVE this yarn.

While I'm waiting, she is going to send me a pretty cranberry skein to tide me over! YAY!

ah well, I SHOULD at least pretend to work for a bit longer.

Happy Knitting!

TADA!!!!

It has been a GREAT weekend.
The parents are out of town so its just been little old me and one yarn stealing (well, attempted theft, not yet successful) dog.
I spent all day Saturday knitting and scratching the ears of said puppy. it was absolutely fabulous (which was one of the many shows in my all Brit-tv/knit-athon!).
I finished the 9 month old jaywalker socks.
they are BEAUTIFUL!
Picture when I find lost camera (it is in my purse that went missing last week)
I hate my feet, but these socks are soooo cute.
And they turned out to have the exact opposite stripe pattern. the toe color is the same as the cuff of the other, and it proceeds from there. kinda nifty.
and i have almost enough left for baby booties.... or another very tiny project.
any one out there have any ideas for some cool brown, red and pale blue yarn??????


and Vicki sent out the swap partners! YAY!
I'm so excited. I have several plans in the works. Lets see if they work out...........