Thursday, February 26, 2009

Blog has Moved

C'Mon over to my new site: http://delusionalknitter.blogspot.com

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Its snowing ... again

More snow today. Just when it was almost melted! I cannot wait for Spring to come! I am tired of being cold and it being dark out.

My sweater lives. Last night I seamed up the shoulders and picked up stitches for the neck. I told myself before I started to make sure I wasn't doing the neck backwards and lo and behond ... I promptly picked up the stitches inside out and backwards, as usual. So I ripped it out, tried again ... them realized, duh, I was doing what I usually do, so I reversed it and viola, it was right, LOL! There are certain things that I just will never get right. Once I picked up the stitches correctly and started several rounds for the neck I stepped back to view my work and it looks awesome! I can't wait to finish this project.

I did not block the final pieces ... because the pattern says block according to manufacturers instruction ... well there are none on the ball band, or on their website and since the yarn is a wool/acrylic blend and I am not an expert at blocking, I am not doing it. The pieces are ribbed and flat, I had no problem seaming the shoulders so we'll see how the rest of the seaming works out.

FO Cat Dishcloth



I finished a dishcloth that was in a bag of yarn I found after we moved. Not sure why I didn't finish it before, guess I got bored with it. It only took me one evening knitting off and on to complete it. I blocked it to even it out. I am going to send it to my MIL ... because I think that's who I intended it for in the first place!

Sunday, February 15, 2009

No Sleep = Different Perspective

I worked my part-time job this weekend, third shift, and realized that lack of sleep and being stuck in a room for hours by yourself gives you a much different perspective in life. Luckily I am able to watch TV (otherwise I am sure I would fall asleep since I can't leave the room unattended unless security or maintenance come) and I was watching Law & Order - a show I never watched before. I was cracking up because there are two cops and in each episode its always the same way, while they are interviewing witnesses or perpetrators or victims, one cop has some form of an expression of incredulity, while the other has a blank, almost lobotomized appearance. I don’t think I would have found this half as funny or even noticed the hilarity of it had I been fully alert.

I got my shipment from The Unique Sheep a week or two ago and started winding the yarn the other day. I do not own a swift and ball winder, and why I thought this would go well, I don't know. I started winding on the couch with the hank draped over my lap and it was going ok. Then it started tangling up, so I put it on the back of a chair and kept winding. Towards the end there was a tangled mess, but most was already wound in the ball, so I put it aside because I was getting frustrated and nothing is worse then being irritated and trying to untangle yarn. I took it to work with me figuring I have nothing better to do for eight hours and I was able to untangle it rather quickly and patiently while I was there. So here's the ball of yarn, lovely colors, can't wait to start my socks.



I was thinking of quitting this part-time job since I got it to buy a house, which we've done and that took care of the downpayment and other associated expenses ... until I got the utility bill this month. Looks like we need to seriously investigate our usage of gas or I have to keep this job, LOL! I also realized that I really need to commit to refraining from buying yarn for a while. I think I can do this since I pulled my stash out of storage and can see it now ... I can go shopping in my stash when I get the urge, plus I've got serveral projects lined up that will take me months to complete anyway. It also helps that I signed up for the sock yarn club, so I can get something new in the mail every other month too.

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Finishing up old projects to make way for new

I am happy to say that I finally found a skein of the yarn I needed to complete my Quidditch Sweater. I started this sweater during a Harry Potter knits class, using the book Charmed Knits. The class went for a month I think, it was back in October of 2007. I started the sweater there ... and then it sat in a bag for several months. The sweater is done in 2x2 ribbing and it is oh so boring at the beginning! Its worsted weight yarn, so it does go pretty quickly, but at the beginning I was seeing no real progress, so it was put aside. I picked it back up at some point ... I really don't even remember when and was then starting to see real progress. So I knit, and knit and knit and then ... ran out of yarn for the contrasting color! So I went to the yarn shop I usually frequent and they were all out. I went to another yarn shop after we moved that's near where we live now and they didn't carry much. So I called another one that is close to where I work and alas, she told me on the phone she had one skein, I said that's all I need, please hold it aside. And so my sweater knitting started again the other day and its almost complete! I will be so happy once its all seamed up because I will probably get to wear it before winter is over. I am half way through the decreases for the sleeve cap, so it shouldn't be long now.

Also, in the bag that this sweater was in, I found the gloves I was making for a friend. So I can finish those up now. When we moved I lost track of a lot of works in progress.

Of course I have plenty of yarn and ideas for my stash to start all kinds of new projects, but I am going to try and finish up a few things before I start anything new (excluding socks of course).

After the sweater and gloves, I also have a cabled scarf, a hooded scarf and what I like to refer to as the Faux Dr. Who scarf. In addition is a Christmas stocking, baby blanket and drawstring bag on the needles. So, once I get all of those done, I can start working on some new projects ... and hopefully only start one or two at a time so that I don't end up with so many unfinished projects on the needles at the same time again!

We are enjoying our new house immensely! Now its time to try and figure out what colors and decorating style I want to go with. I picked up a few magazines today to get some ideas rolling around in my head. I of course know what colors I like ... doesn't mean they belong on walls, hahaha!!

Funny, I was feeling a little out of sorts and creeped out ... like something was missing. Once I took 1/4 of my stash out of tubs and bags and displayed it in a bookcase and got my UFOs out where I can see and get to them ... aaahhh ... relief washed over me, LOL!

Sunday, February 1, 2009

One month down ... 11 more to go ...

I can't believe that its February already! I would ask where January went ... but I know where it went!! We moved into our new house with a few days left in December and then a week or two after found a buyer for my mom's mobile home that we were renting for the last few years. So we spent January cleaning it up and moving the rest of our stuff out frantically because there was a buyer and we had to get everything out (well we really should have had it out within a month anyway, but time disappears before you know it).


Now that that issue is finally behind us we can move (no pun intended) on with our lives in our new house and finish unpacking everything!!


I am planning on participating in the Year in a Blanket group on Ravelry, but have yet to complete my January square because of the moving. I think I have decided that I will knit the blanket in Berroco Comfort Worsted Weight because its machine washable, affordable and comes in a wide range of colors (its soft and squishy too). Now I just have to decide on the colors. I found a great dishcloth pattern of a house that I wanted to do for January to symbolize our purchasing our first home.


My Vinnland socks are coming along nicely and I figured out how to work with the two skeins of yarn and not get them tangled on the cables of the needles while I am doing two socks at a time on two circulars.

This is a picture of a scarf I have had on the needles for far too long and it has since at least tripled in length. I decided that I wanted a hat ... most likely for next winter since its now February, LOL! But wanted something to go with my winter coat and this scarf. The pattern calls for a different yarn and I substituted Ultra Alpaca from Berocco. The pattern suggests a length of 70" for this scarf ... I am only 5'2" so that's really not necessary for me. I am on the 2nd of 3 balls of yarn, at this point I am going to pause knitting the scarf (its been on the needles for over a year anyway, LOL!) and I am going to make a hat out of the 3rd ball of yarn, then finish the scarf and incorporate whatever is left over from the hat into the end of the scarf. This way I use up all the yarn and my hat and scarf will match.



I ordered some yarn from Knit Picks and The Loopy Ewe recently, will post photos soon ... didn't I say I wasn't buying any yarn since we bought the house?!?! Did I mention that I have no self discipline too?!?! Hey, at least I have a good excuse ... I work part-time (in addition to full time) and have for a year now so that we could buy the house, so I think I deserve little rewards now and then!