More Yarn?!? Yay!

I ordered some Shimmer from Knitpicks to make a Clapotis, and it finally arrived today. Mmmm, it's so yummy and luscious!

I also got a package from my One Skein Secret Pal! Beautiful Lorna's Laces Shepard Worsted in my favorite colors! Thank you, Secret Pal! Now, what should I make with it?

I went with my mom to the LYS because she wanted to get some stuff to make a Lucy bag. So I took me thinking they would be happy to wind it for me. After all, I've spent over $200 in there in just the last few weeks, and my mom spent over $50 today. But no! She wound the LL and 1 skein of the Shimmer, then refused to do any more! I was flabbergasted. I mean, I understand the objection, but it just really irritated me.

Just annoying.

But I had a nice weekend. We went down to the lakehouse on Sunday and celebrated my sister's birthday. She really liked her pink Lucy bag.

We took the boat out for a ride, but it was so choppy from all the huge boats and the strong winds that it was really more trouble than it was worth.

I took along the Koigu jaywalker I'm working on. I think she enjoyed the trip.

A Bag and Some Yarn

I couldn't think of a creative title, so I just kept it simple....

I won a contest over at Jae's a couple of weeks ago, and here's what she sent me: A beautiful skein of sock yarn that's 75% wool, 25% mohair, a sheep printed tape measure, and the cutest notecard. Thanks for everything!

We're celebrating my sister's birthday on Sunday down at the cabin on Grand Lake and I decided on Thursday afternoon to make her a felted Lucy bag. I finished the knitting Friday afternoon, and here's what it looked like then:

Mmm, I think it looked like Peppermint Bark at that stage.

Friday evening, I felted it. I can tell for sure it probably should be felted further, and it's fairly obvious in the following photo, but I was concerned about it shrinking to an unusable size. I also wanted to make sure it would be dry enough for gifting in time for the celebration. So I guess I can always felt it further for her, if she says anything about it.

Oh crap, she reads my blog! Everyone be sure to comment that it looks great the way it is!

This was a really fun, fast project. I'm used to knitting on size 1 needles, so this bag on size 15 Addis and size 9 dpns flew! The yarn too was beautiful and great to work with. I used a strand of Cascade 200 and a strand of Atacama 100% alpaca held together. And I love the results, so a success all the way around!

Whining

I just soooo wish I had a ball winder (hee, hee--yes, I'm 12). I'm thinking about all the lovely yarn that is making its way to me, all tied up in skeins, and how on earth I am going to transform it into something useable.

I've been looking at ball winders and think I would like a Royal Wool Winder. Such a cute name, and seems ideal for home use.

Anyone have any other recommendations?

I am also thinking of buying one of these:

My husband and I have been sharing a car for three years, and since I work from home, he always takes the car. Buying a scooter is way cheaper than buying a second car, and one gallon of gas in this baby can get you 90 miles! This is a Verucci 150 Retro Sport model. Anyone know anything about these, or other good scooters?

I'm very needy today!

To Dye For

I got a few skeins of Knitpicks Dye-Your-Own a couple of weeks ago. My husband is out of town this week, so I thought this was the perfect time to go ahead and dye it without him here to complain about the mess!

So I got my Kool-Aid, which, as it turns out, I bought way too much of, and I got to dyeing. Having never done this before, I was a little apprehensive, but after the first skein, I realized there really wasn't anything I could do to screw it up, so it was a lot more fun after that.

My first skein, which I call "Bubbles" (because naming your colorways is at least half the fun of dyeing), was made with Pink Lemonade, Lemon Lime, Blue Raspberry, and Lemonade.

The second one I did, "Poppy", was done with Strawberry, Black Cherry, and Pink Lemonade. On this one, I dyed the whole thing with a very diluted Pink Lemonade, then added the other colors.

The third, "SailAway", was made with varying concentrations of Lemon Lime and Blue Raspberry.

With all three, I soaked them in the sink, then laid them out on a layer of plastic and paper towels, then added color with a medicine dropper.

Here they are unwound and drying outside in the sun.....

Now they are wound into sloppy skeins......

And, finally, wound into little yarn cakes. They look so yummy! And they smell good too.

Bubbles, SailAway, Poppy

I hate to play favorites, but I'm thinking SailAway is my favorite. Followed by Poppy. Bubbles is just a little too cloying for me, and I don't like it as much as I thought I would. Maybe it would be a good felting yarn, if I can find a project using 440 yards of fingering weight wool.

Or if there's someone out there who loves it and would like to make a pair of socks with it, email me and I'll send it to you.

It was definitely a fun process, and I'd love to do it again, although maybe next time with a superwash wool. I didn't notice any felting going on, but I was very, very careful about that. Still, it's never fun to have handwash only socks, just on general principle.

And thanks to Stephanie at Fringe! for winding the yarn cakes, and spending hours untangling Bubbles. And thanks to Eric too for helping out with the detangling.

Mother's Day

Paul's mom started knitting a few months ago, and she's a bit tentative about trying socks, so for Mother's Day this year, I'm forcing her into it.

I got her a Beginner's Sock-Knitting Kit containing: basic sock pattern in a protective cover, Knitting Vintage Socks for further inspiration, chunkier sock yarn for quick knitting, size 3 dpns, darning needles, tape measure, row counter, and a small crochet hook for this inevitable dropped stitches. And also a skein of KnitPicks dye-your-own sock yarn, which I forgot to include in the package, but will give to her seperately. I hope she'll like everything.

Here it is all wrapped up and ready for gifting.

As for my own mom, my sister and I are giving her a gift certificate to a day spa. She's lately started getting weekly pedicures, and enjoys them, so we thought this way she could go and try some more treatments; maybe a facial, manicure, whatever. I know I would enjoy it.

Happy Mother's Day, everyone!

Cutest Socks Ever!

Ok, so I'm not quite done with them, but I was ready to make a new entry, and plan on finishing them tonight/tomorrow. Probably tomorrow. I have to go to some training in OKC on sexual harrassment, so I plan to knit through it.

I made these socks for my husband's 93-year old grandmother who is in the hospital right now. They're shortie socks with 2x2 ribbing. I didn't follow any pattern, exactly, just used the basic 64-stitch sock. They're made from Debbie Bliss baby cashmerino, and they are soooo soft. The ribbing just makes them even softer and squishier.

The yarn was wonderful to work with. It's smooth and glossy and slide through your fingers. The socks have this incredible sheen and stitch definition. They're really lovely socks.

The other day my business partner Eric and I made some basic marinara sauce. I so hate cooking, but Eric had made it over the weekend and was raving about it, so we made some. Actually, he made it and I supervised. And drank wine.

So it starts out in this big pot, then goes into the blender. And now I have plenty in my freezer to be used later. It tastes a lot better than jar sauce.

After several days of rainy weather, which I personally love, the sun came out today and the sky was blue and full of wispy clouds.


My dog Elly sure was enjoying it. This is her pensive look.

TV for Knitters

Ok, so I admit it, I watch a lot of TV My husband likes to watch TV so if I ever want to be in the same room with him, I have to watch what he’s watching.

But that’s just making excuses. I come from a long line of TV watchers, I think. I’m not the kind of person who likes to sit idly by and watch TV though. I have to be doing something else at the same time. That something else might be cross-stitching, jigsaw puzzles, crossword puzzles.

Lately, though, it’s all knitting, all the time.

So I wanted to put together a Knitter’s Guide to Television. So what follows is my own personal guide to the best (5 needles) and worst (one needle) shows to watch while knitting. My criteria is based solely on how much visual commitment a given show requires to follow the plot. I have not really mastered the art of being able to knit without looking, so your own personal results may vary.

Please feel free to add your own reviews in the Comment sections.

1. Veronica Mars Four Needles Usually pretty easy to follow, and in my opinion, the best show on television. Intricate plots, yes, but each episode advances the overall plot only slightly, so if you pay attention to the Previouslys, you should be fine.

2. Survivor Three Needles Yes, an oldie but goodie. Pretty easy to watch while knitting, although I always take a break to watch the challenges, which is always my favorite part. Also have to pay attention to the vote reveals at the end, for those rare episodes when you can’t figure out who voted for whom.

3. The Office Three Needles Such an entertaining show, and fairly easy for a knitter to watch. Each episode contains several long, lingering looks that you miss if you’re not paying attention though, so having a DVR or TiVo is handy here.

4. America’s Next Top Model One Needle Pure candy here, and the lowest-rated show I watch. The most important aspects of the show are the challenges and the phot shoots. You just gotta watch the actual photo shoot, then pay attention to the end result, or else you won’t be able to say "What the hell is Tyra thinking?" Although this show has a low watchability rating for knitters, it is good for the ego. You can’t sit through an episode without thinking, "Well, she may be prettier than me, but at least I’m smarter!"

5. Lost Four Needles Lots of beach scenes, talking, flashbacks. Dedicated viewers have come to understand that the only thing you really need to see is the last two minutes of each episode.

6. American Idol Five Needles Very easy to watch while knitting, because, really, all you’re doing is listening. It is amazing though how much better some of them sound while watching, and vice versa.

7. The Amazing Race Four Needles Just requires some glancing-up to see a challenge. Such a great show, though, and knitters should forgive the occasional use of subtitles.

8. Grey’s Anatomy Three Needles It’s all about Meredith anyway, and her whiny voice-overs clue you in to the overall theme of each episode. Got to look up every once in a while to see cute George, and catch the long lingering looks between Meredith and Dr. McDreamy, although with the new level of hostility emerging between the two of them, those looks may be gone forever. Bonus: Meredith is knitting a sweater, but not very well, or realistically.

9. The Sopranos/Big Love Three Needles I think of these shows as a matched pair, just because they are on in succession. Lots of dialogue in both, which helps us out. Requires a periodic look up to see if someone’s getting whacked or someone’s getting exposed.

10. Real Time with Bill Maher Five Needles The best show for knitters. Liberal ones, anyway. Love this show for it’s comedic insights AND the fact that knitters can watch this mostly talk-filled show without dropping a stitch.

So please leave your own comments and thoughts on these and other TV shows. I’d love to hear them!