Saturday, December 8, 2007

Knitting Flood

It's getting closer to Christmas and I am bound and determined to get some knitting in. Thursday of this week our school had Benchmark testing and I was able to get a lot of sock knitting in. I got most of the one sock completed. The only problem was that I didn't have a tape measure with me so I didn't put my whole self into trying to get it finished in that one day.

Clapotis is finished and I'm thinking I will send her to my grandmother for Christmas. Hopefully, she is not reading this otherwise the surprise will be spoiled! My grandfather already received his hat over Thanksgiving. He thought it was great!

I was working on the Log Cabin Baby Blanket today when I heard this running water sound from the apartment upstairs. Now, everyone knows how apartments are and how you usually hear everything that goes on. But unlike most places-we never hear anything from upstairs! I put down the baby blanket and went on my search of where I heard the water running noise.

At first I was concerned that it was in my apartment and somehow my apartment had begun to leak. Nope. Instead what I found was in my hallway. The floor was soaked and the ceiling showed where it was wet on the seams and there was water running down the walls!!!

I already don't feel well today-middle school sickness. So, having to deal with this flood of sorts was not something I wanted to deal with. Apparently the people upstairs had a problem with their washing machine and it flooded! How many gallons of water is that??? It must be quite a bit because I could still hear water dripping down through the walls. Their water is shut off for the weekend. My carpet has been torn up. My knitting is sitting on the couch waiting for me to come back to it. What a way to start the weekend. I guess it could have been worse.

Sunday, November 25, 2007

Clapotis Completed-at last

Ahhh...I feel like I can finally go on to my Christmas knitting. My Clapotis is finally finished! I wouldn't cook dinner for my DH before I finished the last section. I used Patons Merino Wool in a deep purple color. I don't think I'll block it. I like it the way it is. My plan was to give it to my grandmother for Christmas but now I don't know. I always have this problem with knitted gifts. I put so much into it and I don't want to let go.
Only 29 days until Christmas and I don't know if I'll have enough time for the presents I plan to knit:
  • 5 hats
  • 4 pairs of socks (this is probably NOT happening)
  • 2 pairs of mittens
  • 1 baby blanket that is STILL a WIP!
Now comes the stress associated with how many days and how much needs to be done! Oh my!!

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Big Thanks from Knitting Club

Well, my middle school knitting club did it! We finally got all the money for our grant through DonorsChoose.org. For all of you who donated THANK YOU!!! We should be receiving our yarn and needles soon. The kids are so excited. We've already begun and it seems like they are catching on a lot better this time than they did last year. You all rock! Thank you again!!!

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Knitting Dilemma-It's Always Something!

New dilemma! I know that's hard to believe in the world of knitting. Sometimes when I knit, I don't really think about how I'm going to do something before I set out and start on the project. This is where I am with my newest project the Anthropologie Inspired Capelet from Peony Knits. The only size 11 needles I had were 16" cables. Umm...after I began increasing for the raglan increases, I'm quickly running out of room on my needles. I want to hit my head against the wall for not thinking that this might happen. Duh! 16 inches???

I did get some more knitting done from the Mason-Dixon knitting book. I actually took pictures too. I am completely obsessed with this book. I've renewed it from the library to hold onto it a little longer. Eventually, I'll have to have my own copy since I can't keep it forever. I digress! I've finished the burp rag, the bib, and 4 dishcloths. I'm working on the log cabin blanket too. I don't want to post all my UFO's on Ravelry for fear of actually admitting that I have a problem.

Monday, October 22, 2007

Cold + Rain + Wind + Bored Teacher = Yarn Store Spree

Today, I wasn't in my classroom. Instead, I was in a workshop. I was pretty pumped up about this workshop since it was for AVID. If you know me, then you know how much I LOVE AVID! I love teaching it, the kids, and the whole philosophy. I went to my workshop today and before lunch I was pumped, excited, and couldn't wait to try some new things in my classroom. Lunch came and went and we got back to work. Only this time, the session was the most boring and disengaging session I think EVER!

The final 3 hours of the day dragged on and on. All I could think about was some yummy yarn. How nice it would be to go to the Woolie Ewe and buy some yarn and hold some yarn. It would be so nice to walk in and hear the peacefulness and look at all the yarn just waiting for someone to buy it and knit it up. These are the thoughts going through my head while in my workshop. Yes, it was hard to concentrate.

After the workshop FINALLY ended I made my way to the yarn store and bought 7 hanks of Cascade 220 in this beautiful jewel toned teal. In case you're wondering it's color number: 7920. The problem I now have is what am I going to knit with this? I'm going to go and get on Ravelry and try to find some patterns that I may be interested in. The main thing is that I don't want to waste it. I want it to be good. Since it is cold here (well...at least for Texas...57 degrees with rain), I was kind of in the mood for sweater knitting. I'll be sure to let you know what I come up with but if anyone has any ideas, please let me know!!

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Late Night Knitting with The River Wife

Have you ever knit so much that you have a sore neck? That's where I am right now. My neck is so sore from knitting and listening to an audiobook. The main reason that I knit for about 9 hours straight stems from wanting to finish the book The River Wife by Jonis Agee on audiobook. I think my couch has a permanent butt imprint from where I've been sitting and knitting.

I had planned to knit on Friday night with my knitting compadre, Rose. However, we went out to eat and had drinks and well you can't very well knit after drinks. You CAN but not well. So, I came home and went to bed. Saturday morning I woke up at 6 AM!! I have no idea why. But once I'm up-I'm up. I couldn't go back to sleep so what to do? KNIT!

I began The River Wife last weekend but didn't finish. Mainly because I didn't sit on my couch the whole weekend knitting. This weekend was different though. After getting into the Mason-Dixon knitting, I've become so addicted to it that I've made 3 washcloths, working on the baby kimono, and also starting the Log Cabin Blanket. Maybe I'll actually run out of yarn and have to buy more(much to the dismay of my husband).

Saartje's baby bootees found a home on Friday. One of the pregnant girls at work was the new owner. Of course, the ones for the twins are now 75% done-the twins are now 4 weeks old. The next baby shower should be in about 2-3 weeks so that will be plenty of time to finish the baby kimono. Oh...and another girl I work with is pregnant. Just like I said in the last post...there must be something in the water at our school.

If you aren't on Ravelry yet...you really need to be on there! I think I mention this every single time I post. It is my newest obsession and I love looking at all the projects. The best thing about Ravelry is probably that it's all on one website. That's the greatest thing!

Ok. Well, since I do have to work tomorrow I should probably log off soon and go to bed. So, until next time when I get the urge to blog-but you can always find me on Ravelry(mandijb)

Sunday, October 7, 2007

Mason-Dixon Knitting and Me

At work it always seems as though someone is pregnant or getting married. Maybe that happens to everyone who works at a school. Last school year, we had approximately 4 babies and 7 weddings. I don't think I'm exaggerating too much. With all these births and marriages I felt (no pun intended) the need to knit some gifts. You know how knitting is though. Weddings and births may pass and you may still be knitting away on those gifts. I am determined that this will not be the case this year! But it seems to have already happened. One of the births was 3 weeks ago to twins and I have knit only 1 pair of baby bootees. My only saving grace is that they are premies and the bootees probably won't fit for a little bit. So, I might be safe.

The next two births are in 4 weeks and 8 weeks. The first shower is this Friday so I have to have something for the shower. To my local library I go to get the book Mason-Dixon Knitting. Thank God for this book! The knits are so quick and EASY that I can get some gifts together for Friday and for the shower that follows. Right now, I'm working on the One-Piece Baby Kimono. The best part of the kimono is that it's all in garter stitch!!!! I know some people like to purl but purling slows me down. When you're knitting gifts for people there is no time to slow down and purl! I am also trying the Ballband Dishcloths. Michael's was having a sale on their Sugar 'n Cream yarn ($1/ ball) so I bought a good sized stash. I plan on making some burp cloths, bibs, dishcloths, and bootees. Hopefully, I'll get it all finished. We shall see.




Thank you Kay Gardiner and Ann Shayne for Mason-Dixon Knitting!!! I can't wait for the new book!!

I was asked last week to knit someone at work a scarf. A co-worker asked me how much it would cost to make her a scarf. I'm sure you've had this same experience. Little did she know that I really hate making scarves. I actually would rather not knit someone anything unless I decide to knit it for them. I know that sounds selfish but if I'm not into it I won't knit it. I did answer her with, "You buy the yarn. I'll charge you $.10 per yard of yarn I use." She thought I meant how long the scarf would be (about 4-5 feet). I corrected her. She hasn't asked me again so I hope that this was the end of it.

Back to Ravelry, knitting, and audiobooks.




Monday, October 1, 2007

It's Fair Day

Today is Fair Day. I don't mean it's a celebration of Fair Isle knitting even though that would be cool. Fair Day is a day I actually have off in celebration of the Texas State Fair. You all read that right. Schools in my district actually get 2 days off to celebrate the opening of the Texas State Fair. I am not going to complain though because this means that I have some time to spend knitting! I wouldn't mind going to the fair today and eat all the fried goodness but 90 degrees doesn't say fair weather to me.




Today I'm working on the 2nd sock to a pair of socks I'm making. I'm not sure if I will keep them on pass them on as gifts. I'm making them using the elongated corded rib in Charlene Schurch's book Sensational Knitted Socks and Knit Picks Essential Solid in Grass. I absolutely love the feel of this yarn. It's soft and squishy and the color is beautiful. They are definitely greener in person.


I also finished a pair of Saartje's bootees. The pattern is super easy and they are probably the sweetest little bootees EVER! Easy and cute. What else could you ask for?

I guess now, it's back to the knitting and listening to audiobooks. This is my new obsession. Now that I know I can download books to my PC from the library, I'll sit here all day and knit and listen to books. I do tend to neglect other things though. Oh well...it's Fair Day!

Sunday, September 23, 2007

Knitting Support for Middle School Knitting Club

As most of you know, I'm a teacher. I have a knitting club at the middle school I teach at. I wrote a grant for our club to receive needles and yarn. I would like to start it up again this year. Last year, our club had over 20 members (a couple of them boys!). To all you knitters out there, please take a look at the grant at the website DonorsChoose.org and if it appeals to you please help us out by donating. We would be greatly appreciative! If you would like to donate any other knitting supplies (yarn, needles, notions, etc.) please email me. We would LOVE to have those. Thanks everyone!

Saturday, September 8, 2007

Knitting update-finally!

School is back in session and summer is officially over for me. I hardly got ANY knitting done despite my best efforts. Oh well. There's always the weekends!



If you're on Ravelry, do you ever feel like spending time on there and ignoring your blog? That's the way I've been since I was invited to join Ravelry. I have ignored my blog for too long so I suppose it's time to get back on here.



My husband just had his wisdom teeth cut out yesterday. Oh what a day we had! He's much better today but wow do men whine a lot!



Today I decided to give the Center Square hat from knitty.com another try. After my first fiasco with this hat, I've had it put aside and ignored it for almost a year. Thanks to Ravelry and looking at so many using that pattern, I've decided to give it another go. The first time I made it it was too short. I made quite a few changes to the pattern. This time I decided to try and follow the pattern. I still think it's going to be too small. I'm a little less than half done. It sure does look small.



I've also started a Clapotis. I'm not using any fancy yarn. I guess I'm kind of testing it out to see how it all works. If all goes well, I'll be ordering some yarn from KnitPicks. It's their Gloss and is in the colorway, Woodland Sage.

Well, back to my Ravelry obsession! Where my stitches at?

Thursday, August 2, 2007

I'm on Ravelry! Just a short snippet

My invitation for Ravelry finally came today!! I'm so excited!!!!! This site is way cool. There are so many features that I'm starting to get a little ADD looking at it all. If you haven't signed up for your invitation to Ravelry do it soon! There are a ton of people signed up and on the waiting list. You can find me on there as: mandijb

LOVE THIS SITE!!!

Sunday, July 22, 2007

I Love KnitPicks.com!!

Well, Harry Potter finally arrived and as a special surprise my yarn and needles that I ordered from knitpicks.com also arrived. I have never used knitpicks yarn or other products before but I have heard great things about them from various people. I am a die-hard Addi Turbo needle gal but after using my KnitPicks circulars, I may be swayed. They are light, smooth, and cheaper than Addi Turbos! Go check them out at KnitPicks. I think you may agree.

Saturday, July 21, 2007

Entrelac at last (and UPS stalking)


Entrelac
Originally uploaded by hedgie97.
Well, I'm waiting for my Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows to arrive today from Amazon.com via UPS. I've been tracking the crap out of it for about two days now. I know that they won't deliver it until today but when I see that my book was "in transit to final destination" yesterday I got my hopes up that it would be here yesterday. Unfortunately, that didn't happen.

While I stalked the UPS man online I decided to finally try entrelac. I referenced a site online, The Yarnpath which has a very easy to follow entrelac tutorial. I had no idea what I was doing going into it but I feel like I've got it down now.

I think I will be making a wide entrelac scarf. I'm using Patons SWS in "natural plum." I'm knitting on size US 8 bamboo needles. This entrelac thing is so addictive! I can't stop. Once 10PM came and I realized the UPS man can be "in transit" all night and that Harry Potter will not be arriving before Saturday I decided to stop the entrelac. I will need about 2-3 more skeins to finish the scarf.

Friday, July 20, 2007

Socks!


07202007584
Originally uploaded by hedgie97.

Finally!! I feel a sense of accomplishment with my knitting. I've been trying to unravel the mystery of the sock for about a year now. My first "sock" was more of a tube. It didn't fit very well. I think I knitted it on size 5 DPNs. I used a Lion Brand sock yarn. I didn't really understand gauge either. They kind of fit but were loose and slipped off all the time.

As I became more involved in knitting, I began reading more (more than the Internet). I learned how to knit on 2 circular needles thanks to Cat Bordhi's book- Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles. I LOVE this method since it makes sense!! I was finally able to understand sock construction using two circular needles.


After I read Cat's book (and LOVED it- have I said that yet?) I bought the book Sensational Knitted Socks


I was a bit hesitant about the book since I knit my "tube" sock from a sock instructional book and everything else didn't make sense. I bought it though. It was wonderful!! I understood what I was doing. I bought some new sock yarn from the LYS (The Woolie Ewe). I believe it's by Opal and a cotton yarn. I loved the striping.

Anyway, lots of rambling and these are the results. I can't recommend Sensational Knitted Socks enough. Even if you aren't a fan of the 2 circ method there are charts to use for 4 DPns and 5 DPNs. Try it!

Now I'm addicted to socks and have ordered about 8 more skeins of various sock yarn and have spent way more than I needed to spend.

Family, if you are reading this just know you may be getting a pair of socks for Christmas!

Thursday, July 12, 2007

We're baaaack!

Rose and I came back from our road trip early. We got back last night around 8PM. I will be updating later this week (hopefully) about everything we did and saw. We cut our trip short since we were both tired and missing our husbands and animals.

Here's how we were welcomed to Pennsylvania. More to come later!


Saturday, June 30, 2007

Road Trip

Tomorrow morning at 5AM, Rose and I will be leaving Texas and going on a cross country adventure. We will be gone for two weeks. I almost think that we're insane for trying this. Tomorrow we will be headed towards Tennessee. The only official stop we are making is Memphis to see Graceland. Then it will be on to Nashville where we will crash for the night. The next day we'll be on our way to Central Pennsylvania where we'll spend 4 days with my relatives. I haven't been back there in about 10 years so it should be quite interesting.

The next leg of our 2 week excursion will be through Ohio and Michigan where Rose's family lives. Then through Chicago-where we'll spend a couple days. After that, we'll be headed back to Texas via Branson, Missouri. We aren't sure why we're going but we're going to stop there anyway.

I don't know how much blogging I'll be doing during the next two weeks but keep checking in. I know I'll be posting some pics of our trip to my flickr page by special request from my dad.

You never know...some knitting might actually get done too!

Bon voyage!

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Bubble stitch bag


Bubble stitch bag
Originally uploaded by hedgie97.

Yesterday, I worked on completing some bags. The clutch I was working on from One Skein is knitted but I need to felt it. I've never felted before and I'm a little hesitant about doing it.

This bag is from a pattern by Jessica Fraser. She posted this on the Craftster forum and I fell in love with it. It's knit with 2 balls of Noro Kureyon. I don't remember which colorway it is(Maybe 159??). Once I figured out how to do the bubble stitch, it was super easy! Imagine, dropping stitches on purpose- kind of a scary thing but very liberating once I worked it.

I still need to line the bag. I don't have any fabric right now. I will update later when I have lined it. I'm still not sure what kind of fabric I should use.

I ordered 6 more balls of Noro so that I can make 3 more of these bags. I'm obsessed!! So sad really...

Saturday, June 16, 2007

Update on knitting and life





Ester is finished! Hooray!!! Here she is blocking. As soon as I can get someone to take my picture wearing it I will post. I also need to buy a shawl pin or something to keep it shut in the front. If it were cool enough I would be able to wear it but as the weather is quite warm here in Texas in June, I probably won't be wearing it for awhile. The Cascade 220 yarn is soft and warm. It's also not too heavy so I think the drape of it is very nice. This is the first wearable item I've made so I'm pretty happy about it. I had been working on a sweater from a Knit.1 magazine from last year and gave up on it when it was giving me a headache. Some of the directions seemed unclear to me. Basically, my patience ran out with it.









Yesterday, my friend Kandi came over to pick up a table (so I can get a new one!) and she brought her son, Chance. Chance and I have a special bond since he was born on my birthday. I haven't seen him in a few weeks and wow has he grown! He's almost 5 months old and very advanced for his age. So, here are some pics we took of Chance yesterday. We (Kandi, Rose, and I) think he's the cutest baby ever! We had dinner at a sushi place. Chance was very interested in what was going on outside on the patio.
















Next knitting project:
Well, the next one was going to be entrelac, right? Right! Well, I'm not getting it. I need detailed pictures. I'm very visual. If anyone knows a good resource please let me know.

So, I'm moving on and trying to a clutch or purse from the book One Skein. I love this book! I made Chance the Baby hat. However, he can't fit into the baby hat anymore. So, in all my infinite free time I will be working on this. Now, which yarn in my stash will I use...


OH!!! I almost forgot! I now have a blocking board. Yes I do! This makes me all the more eager to work on projects that need to be blocked. Is that a weird statement? Joann.com was having a sale on their Sew E-Z Boards (and btw still are!). I bought the 33"x51" board. It came yesterday. If I had only had this while I was blocking Ester, I think it would have been a lot easier on me. Anyway, I think it was a great deal. I also took advantage of the "20% off one item" special that they had on that particular day. Right now they are having a coupon for Free Shipping on $35 or more.

Monday, June 11, 2007

Ester(with Socks' help)


Ester(with Socks' help)
Originally uploaded by hedgie97.

Ester progress!!!

I'm almost finished with Ester. Yesterday I finished all the cables. Thank God!! I am a fan of cables- LOVE them. However, after this project I must say that cables every 7 stitches and every other row was a bit much. I have 8 rows remaining and then I will be blocking this shrug. I don't think I'll be wearing it until November or December since I live in Texas. Maybe I can turn the air way down and wear it around the house. Hmmm...

The yarn I used for this project is Cascade 220 in The Heathers. I substituted this for the Rowan Scottish Tweed Aran. When I went to the yarn store I didn't like the scratchiness (is that a word?) of the yarn. Oh, and the price of $16.95 per ball also was a turn off since it required 4 balls. There are some yarns I would gladly pay money for and there are some that I won't. Scratchy yarns-no matter who makes them- will never make me shell out $17/ball.

I used almost 3 hanks of the Cascade 220 at $6.95/hank. I don't know if the yarn substitution will be right on until after I block and seam it up since there's no way of trying it on right now. We will have to wait and see what it looks like.











Next project: Entrelac
I believe I will use some of my stash Noro to work on an entrelac scarf. I've never done entrelac but have seen some beautiful knitting work done with it.

Wednesday, June 6, 2007

Ester


06052007204
Originally uploaded by hedgie97.
I started Ester yesterday. The pattern comes from knitty.com and appears to be a fairly easy pattern- so far. From the pic, you can see how much I've done in one day.

After throwing my needles away, I went to my LYS and bought some new needles and some new yarn. I bought new needles (Addi Turbos) in sizes 7-10. The woman who was checking me out asked if I were teaching a class. I told her that I had thrown my needles away during our move. She kept repeating over and over "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry." I don't know what I would say if someone told me that!

Sunday, June 3, 2007

Purging is good, right?

My husband and I moved into a new apartment last week. We are still settling in and completing the unpacking process. Today I thought I would sit down and do a little knitting while I wait for my parents to come over for a visit. I went to get out something to knit (I'm tired of the baby blanket!!!) and realize that I have hardly any knitting needles. I think I have 2 size 7s (circular) and 2 size 9s (circular), both 16". What am I supposed to do with this??? Where did all my needles go???

It was then that I thought back to the crazy weekend before we moved that we packed and purged many of our things. Including my knitting needles and a TON of yarn. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Well, this will be less we'll have to move. I don't really need this. Of course, it was less to move. It was also less to unpack. However, now that I want to do something (knit) with some other needle sizes and circular lengths, I'm unable to since I threw them away. I can't believe I threw them away. As I look at those words I am dumbfounded at my stupidity and the reality that I'm going to have to go and buy new. The only good thing that I see with this is that I can go buy some really nice needles. I guess tomorrow I'll be making a stop at the LYS.

Friday, June 1, 2007

School's out for summer!

Today was the last day of work for a glorious 3 month hiatus! I think I was more excited about going this morning than I have been since we started. I love what I do and what I do with the kids but I need a break every now and then. Hopefully, now that I have a ton of free time I'll be able to spend it knitting and updating my blog. I plan on blogging at least once a week in the summer. Maybe I'll even get to knit daily. These are my biggest plans for the summer. I don't think I have to do anything special to enjoy my time off.

Thank you to everyone who has commented about Nelly. I saw her last Monday. We spent some quality time together. She was so excited to see me and I gave her all the love I could. My mom told me that when her pain medicine runs out she will be putting her to sleep. I completely agree. She's not herself anymore. Her left shoulder is all bone because of the muscle atrophy. She's lost a ton of weight and she can't seem to get comfortable when she's down or up. Bone cancer is a horrible disease and she would be suffering even more without the medicine.

Sunday, May 27, 2007

Nelly again

Well, as it turns out Nelly DOES have bone cancer. She is not doing well at all. I believe that we are going to have to put her to sleep soon. I wish this weren't the case but I don't see it any other way. Apparently, bone cancer in dogs spreads very quickly. My main concern is that she is comfortable for the time she has left. I'm going to spend some time with her tomorrow. This will probably be the last time I see her. She's been with us for 12 years. I'm extremely sad about this.

Saturday, May 5, 2007

6 AM on a Saturday


05052007164
Originally uploaded by hedgie97.
It's 6:10 AM on a Saturday morning. I don't have to work today so why am I up? One word-cats! At approximately 5:41 this morning our two darlings, Sassy and Socks, took it upon themselves to climb anything they could in our bedroom and to make as much racket as was possible. The noise woke me then the racing around the room and across the bed had me up. Hopefully, I will be able to nap later today. Maybe I should wake them up and run around while they sleep. Hmmmm...interesting prospect.

Well, I have made progress with the baby blanket. Although it is not finished. It is about 16" right now and needs to be at least 30". I'm planning to have it finished around the middle of next week if my plans go well. We're taking our 6th graders to Austin, TX so on the 3 plus hour bus drive down and back I think I will be able to get some knitting done.

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Hump Day Blues

This is the first week back to work after a much needed break last week. I don't think the week could be any longer! I haven't wanted to be there one day in the last 3. The first day back I had a headache from about 9AM on. I needed a break from work so I decided to post on blogger. Usually I don't have time during the week. Technically, I still don't have time I just am doing it anyway. No knitting news today.

Nelly update: My mom emailed me on Monday to let me know that Nelly does NOT have bone cancer. She's a very healthy 12 year old dog. YEAH!!

Saturday, March 17, 2007

Baby blanket? Huh? What baby blanket?

I was so pleased with the hearts on the pink baby blanket for my friend's upcoming shower. But I didn't want just one row of hearts. Also, I have a huge problem with if I'm making a gift for someone I have to make it perfectly. All this leads to one big frogged project that I was 2/3 of the way through.


I found some X's and O's to make on the blanket above the hearts. Oh how cute! X's and O's and hearts. Awwwww. Or that's how it would have come out. Somehow between listening to Billy Joel's "Leningrad" and "We Didn't Start the Fire" I miscounted my stitches and couldn't get back on track. Okay, don't panic! You can still take out the row. Sure it's a lot of work, but you can do it. I began the tedious task of working my way backwards across the row removing the stitches I had just made. Then I realized, I don't think I did the pattern correctly at all for the last 3 rows. Oh crap! Now I have to rip it out. Continue to stay calm. You can still put all the stitches back on the needles. Just don't have a complete meltdown. I took the stitches off and ripped out the appropriate length.(Sigh) I feel good now. I look down at my knitting. How am I going to put all 167 stitches back on these needles? PANIC HAS NOW SET IN!!!!! And I can honestly say that Billy Joel is of no help in putting stitches back on circular needles. Stitches were dropping left and right. I didn't know what was right or wrong, up or down. Frogging was the only decent thing to do to the poor blanket.

So now what am I left with? I'm left with where I started. One skein of pink yarn. I think I will be trying another pattern but this time without seed stitch (which I don't like) and instead with cables. Cables make me happy. I need some happiness.


Sad news today: My parents told me that my Nelly dog, who lives with them, may have bone cancer. She just turned 12 and is a yellow labrador retriever. I've had her since I was 16. They don't know if this is what she has but on Monday they are taking her back to the vet to see. She's on pain medicine right now and doing well. I don't want her to be in pain but at the same time I want her around.

Friday, March 16, 2007

The Day After


I sit here at my computer way too early in the morning but can't sleep any longer. I went to Starbucks for a Venti coffee. Sipping the hot nectar it's time to discuss the Scissor Sisters. I guess there's only one word to describe last night's concert: WOW!!!!! The Scissor Sisters were awesome!! I can't think of another word that would describe their performance. From the moment they came out, the energy in the room was amazing and unlike some performers, they sounded like they did on their CDs. I wish I brought my camera! Paddy Boom came out and talked with some people waiting in the line. Why do I have to follow directions sometimes?


My feet hurt by the end of the night. Standing in heels for 6 hours will do that to your feet. I could barely walk and was very glad when we got back to Rose's car and I could take off my sandals and put on my flip flops! Was it worth the pain? Hell yeah! Would I go and see them again? Hell yeah! I am in love with the Scissor Sisters. Do I still feel like dancin'? Ummm...do I even need to answer that one? YES!!!!!


Knitting update: After much consideration, I began adding some hearts to the baby blanket. It keeps my interest and hopefully will look good.

Thursday, March 15, 2007

Scissor Sisters

Tonight at 7 PM I will be enjoying the Scissor Sisters concert in Dallas. I have been looking forward to this since last week when we bought the tix! I hope they are good. In case you haven't heard of the Scissor Sisters, check out their webpage: http://www.thescissorsisters.com



What have I been doing for the past few days? Nothing. It's my break. I have the right to do that. I will have to work on the baby blanket some more. It's just going so slowly. That's part of the problem for me. A blanket is such a tedious project. I will suck it up, listen to the Scissor Sisters on my iPod, and just get to work! The baby shower is the 30th!!! No pressure though. Here's a pic of the progress so far. Obviously, the cats enjoy my knitting. I couldn't get them off of it!

Saturday, March 10, 2007

Spring Break!!

At last...a long extended break from work. Since I'm a teacher, these breaks are things that I need to recuperate for the next 10 weeks. I hope during this week I can get some knitting done.

I've been working on the baby blanket for my friend's baby girl. It's bubble gum pink. I'm less than awed by it at this point. It's pretty plain. I am doing a seed stitch border and stockinette middle. I wanted to add little footprints to it. I don't know if I will. I have a good chunk done so far.

Now for the really exciting news--The Scissor Sisters will be in town on Thursday and I will be going to the concert!!

This will have to be all for now. My in-laws should be here in an hour and I still need to get cleaned up.

Saturday, March 3, 2007

No knitting

I wish I could say that I've been so busy in the past month with knitting projects that I haven't had a chance to blog. However, that's not quite the case. Instead, I've been busy with work. Oh the life of a teacher. Or maybe the non-existent life of a teacher. I'm so tired when I come home from working I don't feel like picking up my needles and knitting. On the weekends, all I want to do is stay in bed and veg out with television.

I finished the one sock on 2 circular needles and was quickly working my way through the other sock. That's when I went back to work. I took it to work to work on it during some down time and what do you know? I lost my place and had no idea what I was doing. I've put that off to the side and now currently do not have any projects to knit.

One of my friends is having a baby so my mom suggested I knit her something. I don't think my mom realizes how much time it takes to knit something. I will have to go to yarn store since I don't have any yarn to use for something for a baby. Now I'm also at a loss of what to knit. Another friend of mine who had a baby I knit her a blanket and duck hat (it went with an outfit I bought).

So, today in order to break the trend of not doing anything on Saturdays and getting back into my knitting I will have to get my butt up and go to the yarn store. Maybe along with the new yarn I can buy some new Addis. That would make me happy!

Friday, February 2, 2007

Socks-No, not the cat


Last weekend I decided to take on knitting socks for real. My first pair of socks were tube socks. I knitted those last year. I took it as my opportunity to knit on double pointed needles for the first time and make something besides a scarf or a square.
I was extremely proud of my tube socks until I found out that socks are little more complicated than knitting a tube. I put off knitting socks for a year. The heel part scared me. Turning and picking up stitches were things that I wasn't too comfortable doing.


Throughout last year I tried some new techniques (new to me) and knitted a ton. Speed up to last weekend...The bag of sock yarn I ordered from Elann.com came in and I was desperate to knit with it. I knew another pair of tube socks wouldn't do. I went to Barnes and Noble and picked up Cat Bordhi's Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles. I enjoyed a beverage at the Starbucks. I paid 10% more than I would have if I went to a regular Starbucks since I don't have a membership card at B&N. I began reading my book and found I would have to go to the LYS to purchase two new pairs of Addis (darn!) I went to my LYS (where everyone was eating lunch and grumpy-but that's for another post!) and walked out confident that with my purchase I would only be hours away from knitting my first pair of real socks.


When I arrived home, I tore open the yarn, the Addis, and settled into the couch to begin knitting. It was a little hard to understand what exactly to do. I wish the book had a few more pictures. I'm a very visual person. I figured it out. Here are a couple of pics of my socks I have been knitting. I'm very proud. I don't think I'll ever use double pointed needles again!

DONE!!!
I finished one of the socks finally. I must cast on immediately if I have any chance of finishing the second one. Here it is...


Saturday, January 27, 2007

Yarn, yarn everywhere and nothing to knit!

Everywhere I look in my small apartment I see yarn. But somehow, I feel uninspired to create anything. So, what do I do? I buy more yarn. WHY???? I know it's wrong. I don't see how buying more yarn is going to help the lack of inspiration I feel for creating anything. All it seems to do is make my husband irritated and us broke! I've replaced my need for shopping for clothes with a desire to shop for yarn. It's a pretty sick habit I've developed. Now, I'm not content with just any yarn. I've stepped it up to the expensive stuff. Cashmere, silk, blends of that, baby alpaca...I need to stop!! I do limit myself to once a month for that though. I was telling someone the other day that when I go into a yarn store and see something I like I feel like if I don't buy it immediately it won't be there when I come back in the right amount and colors. With so many yarn stores online I don't know why I need to feel this way but I do. Is there a Yarn Anonymous or Knitters Anonymous? If so, I think I need to go to some meetings.

Wednesday, January 17, 2007

Snow Day!

It doesn't snow in Texas very often. When it does you can guarantee everyone freaks out because of the road conditions. This is nice for me since I'm a teacher. I can stay home. No school!!!!!

So, what will I be doing today on my snow day?

Playing in the powder? No...
Making snow angels? No...
Making a snow man? No...
I will be knitting.


I know. The last entry was my frustration with knitting patterns and yada yada yada. But I decided to work on the Hurry Up Spring Armwarmers from Stitch 'n Bitch Nation by Debbie Stoller. I'm not using the recommended yarn (Noro- although I do have some) and have decided to use the Tahki New Tweed that I bought for $2.50 instead. They seem to be coming along nicely (although so did my last hat project) and will probably be very fitted.

I also wanted to post a picture of the shawl I made for my mom for Christmas. Who cares if it is mid January. I really wanted to keep it for myself. I used Wool-ease in an oatmeal color. The pattern comes from Knitting to Go by Chris Percival. If you don't have this box of knitting patterns you should because they are wonderful! And yes, the patterns are well written!! Hooray!!!!

Monday, January 15, 2007

FRUSTRATION!!!!

AAAAGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

This is how I currently feel about knitting patterns!! Why are they all written so differently?? Sometimes there are mistakes and things missing, etc. The fair isle hat I was working on is once again shelved. Now I've made the hat too big. If it were stretchy enough I could probably make it into a mini skirt.

I am too frustrated to even put all my thoughts into words right now. GRRRRRR

Saturday, January 13, 2007

What a Week!

This has been the first week back to work since December 22. I think it was the longest week ever! I'm glad to be back but until today I haven't really done much knitting. That part I miss. I haven't even been on the Internet (except at work) since Sunday.


Current Project

Today I decided I would give the Center Square hat from Knitty.com another try. The first time I attempted this was two days before Christmas. I had thought I would be able to whip something up really quick for my brother for Christmas. I changed too many things from the pattern and then didn't follow through with all the changes to various measurements (I've never really enjoyed math much). The hat when finished on the morning of Christmas Eve was too tight and short for my head. It might have fit a child's head. I was upset by this and haven't looked at the pattern again. I stuffed it, sewed it, and turned it into a large cat toy.


Well, today I decided to try my hand at it again. This time, I took my time and actually did a gauge swatch (wow!) and did the math calculations (wow!). I'm not finished with it but I have more confidence in this than the last one. Hopefully, this hat will fit. I finished a different hat for my brother anyway. This one's for me!

Saturday, January 6, 2007

Quick Update


Today I finished the arm warmers! YESSSSS!!!!! Here they are in their purple magnificence.

The original pattern I followed called for a purl, knit, purl edging but I thought a ribbing would be more comfortable and stretchy. So, I did a 2x2 ribbing for 3 inches and then followed the rest of the pattern as it was written. It seemed to go very quickly.

I don't remember where I got the original pattern for the arm warmers. However, this is a great link for a ton of different patterns for arm warmers, mittens, and gloves. Enjoy! http://www.knittingpatterncentral.com/directory/mittens_gloves.php

Friday, January 5, 2007

Starbucks, Sushi, Half-Price, and Knitting! What a great combo

Starbucks

Since today is Friday, my friend Rose and I did our typical Friday knitting at Starbucks. Where we met some interesting people. It seems as though when we knit, we always meet interesting people. For instance, the time at Starbucks when we were asked to be part of the cult Mary Kay (sorry if I offend anyone)and to try their wonderful skin lotion-even though I told her a few times (at least 5) that I was allergic and that it makes me break out. Anyway, I digress!




Rose showed me her knitted hat that she had completed. Pretty neat pattern since I don't create patterns I only follow other people's patterns. I'm too concerned about making mistakes and having to begin again. I guess Rose doesn't think that way and seems much more free with her knitting. I like that. Here's a couple of pics of her with her knitted hat.



I continued my arm warmers. I think I could have had them finished at Starbucks had we stayed a bit longer. But, we didn't so I don't have them finished. What I really like about KIP is how people get so excited about looking at your work and they talk about knitting. It's such a social thing. I love it.





Sushi
We next went to have sushi for dinner at the wonderful Sushi Loco which was having Happy Hour! WooHoo!!! This means 1/2 price sushi! Some more pics of happy hour.




















After Dinner Entertainment
On to Half-Price books!
Yes, at Half-Price where we played some more in the aisle with the craft books. I was disappointed to see their selection of knitting books. Most of the books had patterns in them that I wasn't interested in. Don't worry...you didn't miss out. Once again, there are pictures of the action at the bookstore.






Good times.

LYS YARN DEAL!!!!!!!
Before we went to Starbucks, we had to visit the LYS. I bought 6 skeins of Tahki Yarns New Tweed for $2.50 a skein!!!!!! I may go back tomorrow and buy the rest of them...

Thursday, January 4, 2007

Steelers Hat-DONE! Other projects too


Steelers Hat

I finished the Steelers hat last night. Although the pattern was simple enough, the directions I didn't care for. Common sense would have told me, "Do what you know when moving stitches to DPNs." Instead, I chose to follow the directions.


That said, I had more dropped stitches than I have ever had in one project. I am usually very careful when I'm knitting not to drop stitches. In fact, I can name the times on one hand when I have dropped stitches.


This pattern told me to switch to DPNs and move all 100 stitches to 3 DPNs. They were packed! I should have continued the decreases on my circular needle and then moved them. Hindsight is always 20/20.



Here is the finished hat minus Socks. Here is the link to the hat in case you want to have the adventure I had last night!

http://www.crumpart.net/patterns/chocribhatpattern.htm

Current project started last night: Curl Up & Read Throw from Knitting to Go
Also started Easy Mary-Jane Slippers. We'll see how easy they are.



Half finished Arm Warmer

Tonight I just finished this arm warmer. My hands get cold when I'm on the computer. I'm too cheap to go turn the heat on. This solves the problem. Keeps my arm nice and toasty. I will get the pic posted of both when I have finished. Until then you will have to make do with the one handed shot. I knit these with Patons wool (LOVE).


I'm also including some WIP shots.







After some ribbing.












Ribbing complete-on with the hand and thumb increases.







Finished! Pictured with Sassy




Wednesday, January 3, 2007

Blogless- no more!


One more week left before I have to start back to work. I'm trying to get as much knitting as possible finished this week. I know that when I start back to work I won't have the time that I do now (teaching and all). This is also my first blog. WOW! I feel like I've just joined some new cult.


Currently, I'm working on a hat for a friend of my husband's. He is a HUGE Pittsburgh Steelers fan and wanted a black and gold hat. The hat I'm knitting is looking like a bumble bee. Oh well! I won't be wearing it!
Could Socks look any happier?