All done and it's almost Christmas!

All I can say is - "I'm Done!" Finished my MIL2B's blanket at 6:30 this evening. Done-diddly-done! To celebrate, made 1 and 1/2 "warmer world wristers" (from the 2006 Knitting Pattern-A-Day calendar) for me me me.

So I send speedy completion thoughts and prayers your way (to all the "yous" who are still festive-knitting), and Happy Holidays too. Pictures of all the gift-knitting will be posted once the presents are opened and the present-ees are wrapped in the new fuzzies.

For vacation knitting, I'm planning a headband to go with the wristers, and finish Peter's hat, and start my first sweater - probably the sweatshirt-style one in Shetland Chunky for me, because it's supposed to be very VERY cold in January and February. Wish me luck.

And tell Santa if you see him that I was a very good girl this year. I didn't ask for much, but what I asked for I REALLY want.

Happy Ho Ho, bloglanders. See you in the New Year.

The Christmas Countdown is on! 16 days!

I haven't posted for awhile due to combined busyness and illness - this virus just keeps mutating into new forms and won't go away, dagnabit! However, I've been remiss in knit-blogging and since I know at least 3 people read this (hello, people!), here's a quick update:

Tonight I settled in to watch the Canadian curling Olympic trials and work some more on Mom's present - a prayer shawl in LB Homespun. Well, I did a row and then when I went to pull out some more yarn from the bag, the rest of the ball came out and there was *just* enough to bind off! It's done! Woohoo! Pictures will be posted after gifting - I like how my things look better when people are actually wearing them. :)

So, being a good and conscientious gift-knitter, I wove in the ends of the present for my KnitTalk swap-buddy (Hi! Alice, if you're reading this, I'm putting your package in the mail on Monday). Double Woohoo!

And I even had time to do three more rows on my Holiday Party shawl (for me me me!), which I have to be wearing a week from Saturday, so must get finished this weekend.

So, gift-knitting remaining is:

1) DD's slippers: first one cast on, but the whole pair can be done in a day.

2) DMIL2B's blankie: a little over 1/6 done. Big needles, doubled yarn. Need I say more?

3) DH2B's toque: about 1/4 done. Total pain in the neck as it's 2x2 ribbing and so takes twice as long as a regular hat on circs. Actually more than twice as long - more like 3 times. Anyway, it's my lunchtime knitting at work, so I'm getting there bit by bit. He's agreed to not getting the socks until after Christmas (okay, I bribed him with new store-bought ones from Mark's Work Wearhouse - he's so easy!)

4) Thong for my buddy Steve: not started, but shouldn't take more than a couple of hours, I think?

5) Dad's Santa Hat: started, 1/2 finished, frogged (it was MILES too big), and put away. Planning to knit it up on Christmas Eve Day since it's a Saturday and I'll be at DH2B's place with not much else to do. I'm figuring about 5 hours for it based on previous hats, so that's not too bad.

So, with 16 knitting days until Christmas, I think I will get it all done. Woohoo!

Kathy (now going to bed because work is trying to kill me this week and I won't let it).

Boomtown Rats Day

aka, "I don't like mondays". Today was a stinker and a half, still feeling oogy-sick-weak from this virus-thingy I have, assignments to finish for school, work piled up and people screaming (literally!) at me for stuff - sorry, I was home practically dead in bed for three days, give me a minute to catch up, willya?

Etc. Blargh. Thank gods November is nearly over, because I'm getting tired of it. End rant.

Start knitting stuff. :) Yesterday I cast on for my Christmas party shawl, which is in Watercolours by Estelle, K1 increase 1, K across, etc. to be a triangle. I did 20 rows yesterday, planning to do 20 more tonight as my "reward" for doing my school assignments. I'm calling the shawl the "Bronze Butterfly" because it's a lovely bronze colour yarn and I bought a butterfly pin to wear with it. So creative, me! (ha ha ha...)

Finished GM's slippers and 1 for the girls, so I have 3 slippers to go by Sunday when Mom goes back East again. No problem. Things are looking up. And, the new Creative Knitting arrived today, so I'm going to browse that before I do assignments. But I must go to bed early, because this virus-thing is really kicking the stuffing out of me. Just want to sleep all the time and everything hurts. Ball of fun - not.

I promise to post less crankiness soon. And more pictures. slippers, when they're done.

1 more FO - Karen's blankie is Done!

So here is my DS #1 (aka Karen)'s Christmas present - done done done! I call it a blankie but really I guess it's a shawl - 6'2" long x 2' wide. It's actually a foot taller (longer) than she is - ha ha!

The pictures don't do it justice, but it's very pretty jewel tones - six balls of Bernat Harmony "gemstones" variegated, knit 60 sts wide on 9mm needles. Very VERY quick - less than a week on this blankie. Big needles are GOOD.

Yet another project has been added to the pre-Christmas knitting, so time for a tally check:

1) DS #1 blankie - done.
2) DS #2 blankie - done.
3) Harry Potter Scarves (4 scarves, for four friends) - done and gifted.
4) Slippers for DD and her 2 "sisters" - one pair down, 2 to go.
5) Scarf for DD's "mom" - done.
6) Shawl for DM - 2/3 done, but may make longer if time permits.
7) Blankie for DMIL2B - yarn in hand, gonna be double-stranded on BIG needles.
8) Scarf for DNeice - done.
9) Toque for DBIL - done.
10) Socks and Hat for DH2B - yarn in hand.
11) Slippers for DGM - 1 done, 1 to go.

Hm. that's only 11 gifts. Must have 12, for the 12 days'o'knitted Christmas. Ah... yes, I'd nearly forgot:

12) Knitted thong of the scratchiest wool I can find in the stash, for my dear DEAR friend Steve.

Not bad, all things considered. I also have to fit my Christmas Party shawl in there somewhere, but I think I'll make everything in time without knitting at 2 a.m. on Christmas Eve. I have one month. I can do this!

Off I go to knit the 2nd slipper for DGM - she specifically requested them, which is quite touching, considering she taught me to knit when I was a kid and so traumatized me in the process I hadn't touched needles in over 25 years. Irony!

Insert clever title here...

Sorry, no brain today. Tough day. Meh.

Part of the "no brain" was due to staying up late at the new Harry Potter movie, with my dearest of friends, who you see here. Unfortunately, the lighting totally hides the Ravenclaw (far left, on N8an), but the darkish stripe down his coat is it. Next to him is Dan in Slytherin, which you can just see around his neck. On the right of Dan is our lovely Yumi in Gryffindor, which frames her cleavage nicely (yes, she will kill me for that comment!). And finally we have Bundy, in Hufflepuff, which his dear wife (that would be Yumi) has christened "BumbleBundy" for its black-and-yellowness. They all loved them and that made me very VERY happy.

In other news, the lovely Louise at the LYS (ooh, alliteration!) pointed me to a much simpler approach for my Christmas party shawl, so I'm going to do that on the weekend - garter stitch only, but it shows off the beauty of the yarn without getting into fussy stitch patterns. Tonight though I think I'll work on Karen's blankie because it's easy and moving along quickly, and I want to finish another present this week. Also I have a head full of codeine right now (I said it was a bad day...) so can't do anything patterned.

Mechant Mardi and Blankie. Gotta love Tuesday nights. :)

FO's and UFO's

So, here they are - 4 Harry Potter Scarves - done! (Ok, in these pictures the ends weren't woven in, but they're done now). From left to right in the lengthwise picture: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Slytherin. Each scarf is 6 1/2 feet in length, plenty long enough to go around and around and around the necks of my dear friends. Tomorrow night (Monday), we all go see the movie. yay!

Those are the FO's. For UFO's this weekend (or WIPs, I guess), I have Mom's shawl, Karen's blankie/shawl, and now a new blankie for DMIL2B, because she's decided she doesn't like knitting that much after all, so the "kit" I'd assembled for her is gone back to stash and I've started a quick blankie on 10mm needles that should be ready in time for Christmas. No pressure.

I also still need to do two pairs of slippers for the girls, a pair of socks for Peter, and my Christmas Party shawl for me. *sigh* And I have assignments due for my correspondence course, which is a big ball of regurgitating - no fun at all. Plus I've got the blues today - just general "blah" feeling, typical of Sunday afternoons, I guess, but that doesn't help in getting things done.

Enough computer today. Knitting time. Got to get Mom's done before she gets back on Wednesday. Yeah, no pressure...

Baby, it's (gonna be) cold outside!

Yes, the weather-people are forecasting for ten centimetres of snow tomorrow. YIKES! So, I must finish my new toque (which is nameless, so I'll just call it the heavyweight toque because it's a heavier weight).

Yesterday I finished two more pair of the easy slippers - black ones for Peter and purple ones for Courtney (one of the three girls in Halifax). The purple is so cute, I can't wait to see how the pink ones and blue ones come out. I'll post pictures when they're all finished.

Also noodled around with a one-skein scarf for the girls' mom, in variegated Harmony (jewel tones), which I'll also be using for DS#1's Christmas blankie. The blankie will be on 8mm circs, probably 100 stitches wide - the scarf I tried at 40 sts on 8mm, but it was too wide, so I ripped it back and am doing 25 sts on 9mm - narrowed it up a bit and should get a good length out of the one ball.

So many projects I want to get started on, more shawls and socks (ok, the first pair of socks, since the pumpkin socks got frogged), and hats for friends, and eventually I really would like to make my sweater, gosh darnit!

First, I must finish my toque. It's going to snow tomorrow. WHEEE! I love snow, but hate cold. There's irony for you. Which makes me think of the argument between Alice and Humpty Dumpty, which I know has, "There's xxxx for you!" as the beginning, but I can't remember how it goes. I must have it printed on a nice poster for easy reference, really I should.

Wow. That was non-sequitor. And probably spelled wrong. I'm losing my English major credentials! Eek!

Go knit, silly wench. (me, not you nice folks reading this).

De-stinking and new projects

The brand of stinky boxes were Sterilite, but I did some research on off-gassing and apparently most plastics will do this to some extent. I've been advised by folks on KnitTalk to use real name-brand Rubbermaid instead, apparently these are "textile-archive" worthy... and there's a chance of staining from the oil in cedarwood (hadn't thought of that - DOH!). So, for Christmas I want Rubbermaid.

In happy news, the de-stinking is coming along fine. A few more days and it should all be fine, thank heavens. To celebrate (and because it's friggin' COLD today!), I'm casting on for a toque for me, in Patons Decor, burgundy and charcoal held together for a "tweedy" effect - I hope. We'll see how it works. And I've shifted the "purple poodle" from a Moebius to a big scarf (only difference is I won't sew it into the loop, really), to go with the new hat.

I know what you're thinking... But, you just finished that lovely Bohemian Dessert Scarf for yourself, didn't you? Yes, I did. But it really does look much nicer with Mom's coat than with mine, and she was coveting it something fierce, so - it's hers. Good karma and all that, she was thrilled to get it. I may get a ball-winder for Christmas now. ;)

Ok, time to start my hat before I go to writing group - hat-knitting goes very well with writing group!

Oops, almost forgot - pair 1 of 3 of the new slippers for "the girls" back east is nearly done; these are so quick to knit, two hockey games = 1 pair. Love 'em!

The stash pictures

This is the Stash, laid out on the pool table. There are over 200 balls, skeins, and parts-of. Okay, I REALLY don't need to buy yarn for awhile. No, really.

Stinky yarn - EEK!

So last night, my computer crashed - because I tried to do a backup. The GeekGods are laughing at me, I'm sure. Fine, says I to myself, I'll just go knit something instead. Off I go to grab some Christmas variegated out of the stash for an ornament idea I have.

The stash stinks. In fact, the area of the basement where the stash is stashed stinks. It smells of propane, so I panic, thinking we've got a gas leak which (a) could kill us all in our sleep, or (b-more importantly) has totally ruined my yarn! Checked the gas lines, checked the intake/output vents, etc. No smell anywhere except the yarn. Dang!

So I drag it out to the family room and dump it out on the pool table (appropriately covered first, of course) to air out. Laid out each ball nice and neat - some smell worse than others. Can't figure it out. Decide to grab a ball of something else (can't remember what now) out of the under-the-pool-table stash boxes, open them up - this yarn stinks too! WHAT?! What the hell is going on here? So, it gets dumped, sorted, tidied, and I have a pool table FULL of yarn. No, really, the whole table is covered. Pictures to follow.

Now, because this stash is stashed nowhere NEAR the other stash, there couldn't be any connection - but the smell is the same. Like propane. DING! Light goes on. The stash boxes are cheap clear plastic. Plastic is made of oil, as is propane. THE STORAGE BOXES ARE MAKING MY YARN STINK! The cheap plastic is offgassing (probably because we now have heat on in the house, it's November) and contaminating the yarn. Some worse than others, probably depending on fibre content. But stinky stinky stink. So, those boxes will NOT be holding my yarn anymore. DH2B is going to build me cedar boxes, milk-crate size, to restash the stash. The size is ideal because then I can sort by project and carry the box from chair to chair, or sort by colour, whatever, and the cubes will be portable and lightweight. Most importantly, they will be cedar. My yarn will smell good.

This was last night. I was very close to what I can only assume is knitter's hell, in this scenario. Tonight, thank the Knitting Gods and Goddesses, the yarn does not stink - as much. Still a bit manky, but another day or two and it should be fine. I have some cedar blocks resting gently atop the sea of yarn to speed the de-stink-i-fying process.

Moral of the story: do not store your yarn in cheap clear storage boxes. It will stink.

Completions and Inspirations

Complete - Beth's Blankie! This picture looks really dark, but the blankie is actually burgundy & cream, about 2'x4' (approx.) - five balls of Bernat Harmony on a 6.5mm circ. DH2B, who is clever, suggested that rather than doing a second stripe pattern, I reserve the last three balls and do pillows for next year. This is why I love this man! So, FO! Ha ha!

Related news: today is mine and Peter's anniversary. 5 years ago tonight we had our first date - he picked me up at 7:30 in the evening and brought me home at 9:30 the following morning. No, we didn't have sex. But we've been inseparable ever since. It's a good thing.

To celebrate, I'm giving him a new Thermos - it's what he wants and it will keep him warm (well, the coffee will keep him warm, anyway). And we're having dinner / hang-out time with our dear dear friends (they for whom I am knitting the Harry Potter scarves), so it will be a lovely relaxed evening. JOY!

Now, inspirations... three nights in a row now, I've dreamt of a checkerboard blankie. As in, actual red and black squares with a border, that one could play actual checkers (or chess, I suppose) on. I'm thinking of a basketweave pattern but not quite sure how the carrying of colours will work, so I need to mull on it a bit. But the funky coincidence is that in my eBay acquisitions I have two HUGE balls of chunky acrylic - one black, one red. So really, it must be tried. The yarn is here and begging for it.

Currently OTN - well, getting closer to Christmas, trying to focus on prezzies. But I like to treat me, too. So:

1) Mom's prayer shawl (in LB Homespun). About 1/2 done now and it's very very pretty, and Jen at SnB last night showed me how to fix a couple of holes without too much stress, so it is very forgiving too!

2) Another pair of slippers for Peter - these in the aforementioned chunky black acrylic - which I tease him by calling them "blackfoot" slippers (he's Mohawk). First one's nearly done.

3) A new Moebius for Me, Me, Me! This in "Cora" by Lang, in purple which, when knit (and stroked), bears a bizarre resemblance to poodle fur texture. Thus, I christen it the Purple Poodle.

4) The last Harry Potter scarf - Slytherin house - which is about 2/3 done. Two weeks until the movie opens, so this is "travel" knitting now, just working it at lunchtimes or when waiting for papers at work.

5) About to cast on for the third and final pair of purse slippers for the girls in Halifax - these should be quick to do (like, within a week).

6) About to cast on for a scarf (also in Bernat Harmony - I like this yarn but getting tired of it!) for the girls' mom. One skein, skinny and quick, I'm thinking.

Once these are done the only Christmas knitting left will be Peter's socks. But before I do his socks, I have to do my socks, as they are the "learning" socks. So, by the end of this month, I should be in sock mode. Except I want to start on that checkerboard, and my sweater is calling to me, and... oh blast, I have no resolve whatsoever. :)

Blankie blankie blankety-blank blankie...

So, last night I hit the halfway point on Beth's Blankie. And it's less than two months 'til Christmas. YIKES!!! So today I spent five hours on it - it's now nearly 5/8 complete instead of half. Somehow that fractional increase makes me feel much better. At that pace I will finish it in four weeks... YIKES! I have to do another one for Karen! HALP, what have I gotten into???

Ok, calm down. Happy things.

I got another big box o'yarn from eBay:

Over half of it is black, which is odd - all these part balls of black yarn in different weights, including a jumbo ball - I've ID'd it as Bernat chunky pound whatsis - anyway, it's going to become slippers and hats. Actually, it's becoming slippers right now because DH2B was whinging for another pair. He's so SPOILED, but I love him. ;)

And a couple days ago I finished a pair for myself, in the colours of my beloved Red Wings (or Canada, or Christmas, take your pick...) . Here's a picture of my feet, with the dog in the background:

... or not, because Blogger is being Bad. Grr. I'll post my feet later.

She sheds on everything so most stuff I knit has dog-hair for extra warmth. Mildly frustrating, but such is life with pets.

Now time for more hockey (JOY!) and more work on Beth's Blankie. I'd much rather be casting on for another Moebius scarf as I got five balls of Lang's Cora in a gorgeous grapey purple, but it's in the "after you finish the presents" box. I'm being good...

Dessert is served!

The Bohemian Dessert Scarf is finito! Finished it up tonight whilst reading KnitTalk back-posts, and it's purty! 64" long x 12" wide should keep me plenty warm this winter. The colour doesn't show so well in the picture, but it's purty, anyway.

Now Mom wants hers started right away (of course) - not happening! Got too many other projects to get done without starting in another biggie (mine took three skeins, hers will probably take four... and that Bohemian is FAT yarn!)

Ah well, another job well done (yes, I need to weave in the tails, I know). And Kim and Debbie both LOVED their hats (JOY!), and Sharon wants one the same as Debbie's, so that will start in a few days - need a break from the round-n-round for a bit.

Tonight (during precious Red Wings hockey time, of course) I will finish Ravenclaw and cast on for Slytherin - back on schedule, dagnabit! Well, there's only about 40 rows of Ravenclaw to go, and it's quick once I get a rhythm going. I will finish these scarves, present them to my dear friends, and never ever ever knit them again. No, really. I've discovered that although Lion Brand Wool-Ease (worsted weight) comes in pretty colours, it's not that nice to knit with. Plus these scarves are, to be blunt, boring. CO 27 stitches, knit 50 rows stockinette, change colours, knit 50 rows stockinette, change back, etc. etc. etc.... blech. But I love my friends. :)

Two-toque weekend!

The best way to make yourself feel better is to do something good for someone else - I am convinced this is true. Case in point: this weekend. Woke up yesterday with the flu from hell (they call it "flu" because fluids come out of every possible orifice). Spent the morning feeling miserable and the afternoon and evening knitting on Tim Horton's Toque #3. Finished the Toque. Today felt a bit better, got the AVON orders packed up (amid much cussing, sometimes the AVON aggravates me, but that's another issue) and started on Toque #4. Just finished the Toque. Two toque weekend - and a three-toque week! Woohoo! And, the flu-icky feeling is pretty much gone. So it works.

So, here are pictures of the Tim Horton's Toques (so-called because you "roll up the rim" - ha ha I'm so clever). From left to right: the original toque (mine), in Patons Shetland Chunky High Plains Variegated. Middle is Debbie's toque, in Patons Shetland Chunky Blue Jeans Variegated, and finally Kim's toque, in Patons Shetland Chunky Harvest Variegated (one skein of yarn per hat).

The "pattern" for these is very simple - on a 6mm x 60 cm Addi Turbo (or other circular needle), cast on 92 stitches. Join, and knit around and around and around until you have about 8" of hat (straighten out the brim to measure), or are nearly out of yarn. Then K2Tog around three times (3 rounds), cut an 8" tail, thread through, pull out the needles, and sew up the crown. Simple simple. They'd probably be better if finished on DPNs because there's little gaps at the top, but I just sew those together so it's weatherproof at the top. Whatever floats your boat.

And, for extra fun this weekend, I won two eBay auctions, so should be getting about 15 lbs of yarn in the post in the next week or so. EEP!!! gonna need another storage box - or two. Will post pictures of this massive stash enhancement when it arrives.

Did not manage to finish the Ravenclaw scarf this weekend but expect to knock it off tomorrow at the doctor's office (yay allergy shot day!). Then on to Slytherin and done!

Life is a special occasion.

Today was cold, and I had to take my car to the shop, and the news was all doom and gloom and I much rather'd crawled back under the covers. So. I wore the Moebius Scarf (aka the Fuzzy Blue Thing) to work. It's light, it's warm and fuzzy and I got tons of compliments on it. I feel all girly wearing it - wish I had the money and time to make a rainbow of them so I could wear every day (though that would reduce the "specialness" of it, I know...). Just a wee thing that made the whole day so much better!

So, moral of the story is that every day is a special occasion if you make it one. And now I have a reason to knit something else for the Christmas party! No idea what yet, but something will come to me, I'm sure. Meanwhile, I'm sittin' and knittin' and reading newsgroups in my fuzzy blue thing. JOY!

FOG again and more surprises by mail!

Here it is in all it's ribbed glory - the finished Luc's Toque! It's a simple black watch cap from an About.com pattern, knit up in Patons Decor black (though the picture looks brown on my screen...) Luc loved it. Yay! And, in finishing it last night, I had my first experience with DPN's. I won't go into detail, but they're tricky little buggers! Almost had a meltdown when I dropped three stitches (in the midst of a Habs power play) and had to pick them up with a darning needle. I've decided I don't much like knitting with plain black, but will probably do black socks once I get socks figured out. I need them for work.

If you're wondering, the Toque is "posing" on the yarn for DM's scarf-to-be. She was coveting my Bohemian Dessert Scarf (in progress, a few more evenings at the keyboard I think), and I told her to go buy the yarn and I'd make her one the same - but insisted on different colours. She picked a nice blue/black/white variegated... have I mentioned this already? I may be repeating myself. Meh.

It's been miserable cold wet and gray for days now, so imagine my JOY! when I arrived home to find my package from Freshisle Fibers had arrived. 3 skeins of Suffolk sheep wool hand-dyed with plants native to Manitoulin Island - just gorgeous colours, and a nice spicy smell from the plants (or maybe the sheep, who knows what they feed them!). It's gorgeous but I've no idea what I'll make of it. Something will present itself, I'm sure. Before that, I had to make a stop at Yarn Forward to pick up two skeins of my beloved Shetland Chunky - one in a blue-toned variegated, one in a jewel-toned. These will become Tim Horton's Toques for two friends who have been coveting mine, but in colours that suit them better than mine does. That's a quick hat, so will probably do one on the weekend and the other next week. It's definitely hat weather now - so windy and the forecast is for -1 overnight. BRR!

Tonight I'd love to be at the downtown Stitch'n'Bitch I am at home with my sick parents. Dad actually took a sick day from work (practically unheard of) and Mom's oogy too, so I'm staying close at hand to fetch drinks and snacks so they don't have to run the stairs. I'm a Good Person. :) So I'm working away at the BDS and will shortly switch over to the Ravenclaw scarf, which got bumped by Luc's Toque. I want to play with the new yarn but will be good and not start swatching just yet. Might wind a skein into a ball though, just to get the feel of it...

Luc's Toque and other stories...

So, DH2B has planted the bug that "Luc's Toque" is a great title for a book. So I'm going to write a children's book called "Luc's Toque" about a little girl that wants to make a hat for her friend, but runs into some - er - issues. I'll say no more! No more!

DM wants a scarf of Bohemian - managed to talk her out of having the same colour as mine (MINE!), so she bought two different colours - a light pink mix and a blackish-blue & white mix. Decided on the B&W mix so the pink mix goes into the stash. I win! The Bohemian scarf is my 'at the keyboard' knitting so coming along slowly, but started on the third skein of mine tonight.

Browsed a few new Yahoo knitgroups tonight, just for some extra enjoyment, and found the website for a possible new yarn source - when the first order arrives I'll post a review. :)

Also stumbled on this:
You're a young knitter, just starting out. Welcome
to the fold! Find yourself some nice soft yarn
and grab a latte- it takes a while to finish a
project but it's well worth it.


Are you a knitter?
brought to you by Quizilla

I like the picture, and the description is pretty apt. Works for me!

Now, it's time for Mechant Mardi, so I must go root for the Habs (and knit the Black Watch Cap / Luc's Toque). Et le BUT!!!!

Double-FOG Saturday!

The Moebius Scarf is finished! (JOY!) Finished this morning, folded, seamed, and done done done! It's so fuzzy and warm - I can't wait to wear it.

The pattern was from the summer issue of Creative Knitting, and the yarn was 5 skeins of Aerie by Moda Dea, colour "Denim". It's a darker blue than how it looks in the picture, but the picture does show the fuzziness and the drape of it - very neat!

I decided against weaving in the ribbon after all - it doesn't show up enough to be worth the effort, honestly. So the ribbon is in the stash for another project - maybe a long scarf for next year's Christmas party!

In other FOG news, Hufflepuff (Harry Potter scarf #2) is done done done, and I'll be casting on tonight to start Ravenclaw (HP #3).

Also today (been busy, it's just after lunch!) I re-organized the stash into two under-bed storage boxes - that don't fit under the bed. D'OH! So, they fit under the pool table instead. The important thing is, everything fits - except for the yarn I got off eBay that arrived yesterday. Let me tell you about the eBay yarn...

For about $20 (that's CDN funds), I got a huge box containing probably about 5 lbs of yarn. All colours, all weights, some little twists, some full skeins, lots and lots of black (can we say black socks? I think we can...). Dumped it all out on the floor and had a fun half-hour sorting through it - some to DM-I-L2B, some for me. Found that a lot of it was in goregeous earthy-fall-type colours, so it's been collected into a sub-stash for what will be a "scrapghan" of complementary colours in lots of different textures - probably smallish squares to get the full effect. Of course, having read in The Yarn Harlot about the dangers of doing large afghans from small squares, I was briefly thinking of just tying it all together and going for it, but I want to do some different types of stitch blocks, kind of a learn-as-I-go sampler thingy. It may take years, who knows? But I've got lots of pretty colours to start with.

Wow - long-winded is me today! Just one more thing to add, I visited a new-to-me LYS yesterday and grabbed a totally gorgeous skein of Fibre Artist wool from home (that's Halifax, NS). The colours are indescribably beautiful - it looks like the ocean - honestly, I got so homesick looking at this yarn! It came with a nice simple triangle shawl pattern, which I'm holding in reserve for the dark dreary days of winter - think the first part of March when everything's gray and mucky. It'll be stunning then.

Today is kind of gray and mucky too - been raining most of the week with no end in sight for at least 2-3 days, so I'm hibernating with my stash. Scarf, blankie, and shawl are the plan for the rest of today. And some hot chocolate. And a brownie. Yes, the last brownie is calling me!

If it's on sale, it doesn't count

I'm being undone by rationalization, I know it. I bought more yarn today (imagine, at this point, a deeply ashamed face, like a puppy that just ate your steak dinner and feels bad, but happily full). Here's the story...

I had to get a new Addi Turbo to make Luc's Black Watch Cap (well, I had to get a new circular. I did get a Turbo because I'm spoiled by them and won't use anything else for round projects), so went off to Yarn Forward. Something in the air this afternoon, because it was busier than usual in there. So. Thinking on my way in, it's almost scarf weather, and I don't want to make a matchy-matchy scarf to go with my Tim Horton's toque, so maybe I'll make a complimentary hat (not matchy-matchy, but colour-friendly in different texture) to go with my in-progress Bohemian Dessert scarf.

Digression: the Bohemian Dessert scarf is made of Patons Bohemian in "Wandering Wine", which looks to me like Godiva milk chocolate truffles with raspberry filling oozing out. Desserty. Yum.

So, I found two colours of Patons Decor that are just enough different (a dark maroon instead of the pinky shade, and a gold instead of the chocolate brown) but still look nice alongside the scarf yarn (remember, my head will fill the intervening space). So. The Decor was on sale, 40% off (JOY!), and it's more of a Part II of the project (scarf-and-hat) than a new project as such, so it doesn't really count as buying new yarn for a new project. HA!

And, for further rationalization power, I paid cash for the whole works instead of using plastic. If it's cash, it's available money, not overspending. Right? Right... I'm so clever, I could kiss me. Instead, I worked on the Bohemian Dessert scarf this evening at writer's group (they're getting used to me knitting now) instead of the Hufflepuff scarf which I had intended to work on. But Hufflepuff is coming along nicely and should be finished tomorrow evening - maybe Friday. So I'm close to my planned knitting schedule.

Now I have to work the new hat into the schedule. Hrm.

eBay is eVil! (well, not really, but...)

Two. Hours. Two hours I spent surfing yarn for sale on eBay - and that was just the Canadian offerings! So many tempting deals, so little money.

I did put in bids on four lots (which I will not describe, because I want 'em, dagnabit!), and if I win them ALL (probably not), it'll cost me about $70-80, including shipping. Not bad at-all. Of course, I don't actually NEED any more yarn just now, but - well, yeah, I do. Really. Winter is coming.

I blame the Yarn Harlot (TM) - everytime I read one of her books, I feel justified in buying more yarn, because I still have less (by about a houseful!) than she does. So thank you, Stephanie, for making me feel better about spoiling myself. You rock as a writer and a knitter and as a person of goodness generally.

Oh gods, look at the time. I have to cook a turkey in the morning. Go to bed!

Truck knitting

Or, why one should ALWAYS have a portable project on hand.

This morning, DH2B and I went for an early (ungodly early) Sunday morning breakfast and then to meet up with his client so DH2B could get paid for last week's work. Client was late, and we were in the (very cold) parking lot of a chintzy flea market. In the time we were there, I got almost a full 50 rows done of the Hufflepuff scarf! WoohoO! Hufflepuff is flying!

Also got some more done on DM's shawl and a bit on DS#2's blankie, but today I think I'll indulge myself a bit, flex my learning muscles, and figure out how to do a yarn-over so I can do more pretty dishcloth patterns. I picked up a ball of a new yarn called "cottontots" (don't remember who makes it), in a gorgeous lavendar colour, so am going to knit myself a couple of facecloths of it. Much much nicer than my ratty old green terrycloth ones. So today is greedy knitting day. That is, in and amongst Thanksgiving-dinner preparations (we eat tomorrow, but I'm precooking some stuff today). But first, a brownie. Yes, definitely a brownie first. Yum.

Guilty knitting

I've been trying to work diligently away on the Hufflepuff scarf, but the blue silky stuff of my Moebius wrap keeps calling to me! So tonight I did an hour of Hufflepuff and an hour of Moebius. I just can't resist that blue yarn - and can't wait for the Christmas party so I can wear it! I'm thinking of making the shiny ribbon part removable so that it can be "casualed-down" for everyday wear after the event. Extra work, I know, but it seems a shame to have something so pretty and not wear it often.

Anyhoo, Hufflepuff is coming along - on stripe 2 of the yellow, should finish that and get into stripe 2 of black tomorrow lunchtime. Seems to be going quicker than Gryffindor did, maybe because I realize how LONG it is so I'm dedicating more time to it.

Did a bit more on DM's shawl last night watching hockey and it's coming along nicely too - will work at that this weekend. In between dinner guests, laundry, housecleaning, baking, prep cooking, and Thanksgiving dinner cooking, of course!

So much to do... but if I'm sittin', I'm knittin'!

Wizards and frogs

This is cross-pollinated from the Ottawa SnB group, I'm lazy tonight. :)

I finished the Gryffindor scarf, so one down, three to go in the Harry Potter scarf set, but the deadline got pushed up by a month - eek! - to make the movie release on November 18. Guess what I'm starting on tonight?

Grabbed 8 balls of my favourite favourite colour - High Plains Variegated - of Shetland Chunky at Michael's yesterday; can't go wrong at $4.77/ball for that! This will become a sweater for me (ME!) after Christmas. Yum.

Last night I had to frog my Moeibus scarf (it was about 1/4 done) because the fuzzy silky blue stuff was "eating" the shiny ribbony stuff and the shiny ribbony stuff is discontinued. I'm going to weave the shiny stuff through in sections after the scarf is complete, so it will show better. Of course, the frogging process was a disaster because my "assistant" (DH2B) wasn't there to wind the yarn as I ripped. So I had a puddle of two yarns all tangled up on the floor, took about 3 hours to sort it all out. Argh. Restarted it with just the fuzzy/silky stuff and it's going to be very pretty I think.

OK, off to cast on for the Hufflepuff scarf ...

Back slowly away from the keyboard

I've spent the past hour reading other knitting blogs. Yikes. While it's always good to know that insanity (or sanity, take your pick) is shared by millions, it's disconcerting how one can get sucked in to reading others' knit-experiences so easily. (If you're reading this, maybe you can relate.)

But -this was supposed to be "productive" computer time, and while I try not to schedule things too strictly on weekends, I am now behind in the things I wanted to get done today. So.

Quick knit-update: DS#2's blankie is officially 1/3 done. I finished the first cream stripe and am ready to start the second section of the burgundy later this evening. And - JOY! - the Gryffindor scarf is 60 rows away from being done-done-diddly-done! Happy Happy Joy Joy! I intend to finish it tomorrow night whilst watching Corner Gas, where Emma tries to give up knitting. Should be a good one.

Now, time to tidy up the office, pack the AVON orders (ding-dong-AVON!), and think about starting some supper. Mm. Food. Then more blankie. Blankie blankie blankie. Blankie.

Plan the work, work the plan!

It's fall, which to me is the start of the new year - I guess it's a holdover from my school days. Time to tidy up, organize (see the earlier "an organized stash is a happy stash"), and get things sorted out for Christmas. So, I sat down with my Day-Timer and planned out the next two months (and a bit) of knitting projects. Amazingly enough, if I stay on track, I can complete them all in time and still have time left over to do a couple of small extras (like my red&white bootie-elf slippers).

More amazingly, there is room in the schedule for non-knitting activities, like working on my long-neglected novel, correspondence course work, even food and laundry. BUT - there's a trick to it. Here's the trick:

HOCKEY IS BACK!!! 1 Hockey game = 3 hours of TV time.

So, 3 hours of hockey = 3 hours of knitting. Most of the Christmas projects are straight knitting or stockinette, so no fussing with patterns during the game. I get to indulge 2 passions at once! And with 2 teams to follow (my beloved Detroit Red Wings and DH2B's Montreal Canadiens), there will be hockey probably 5 nights out of 7 each week. 15 hours per week of guilt-free knit time. JOY!

For extra joy, today's Michaels flyer arrived and they have my absolute favourite yarn - Patons Shetland Chunky - on sale for a substantial discount. So I have decided to get enough of the High Plains Variegated (used in my Tim Horton's Toque, which I still haven't posted a picture of) to make a super-warm turtleneck for me. Should work out to less than $50, so that's reasonable for a heavy-weight turtleneck, right? Right? Of course it is. :)

Doin' dishcloths

My knit-mentor tells me she knits dishcloths by the dozen for gifts and for her own use, and now that DM-I-L2B is getting back into knitting, she's doing dishcloths too. So, no reason for me to knit them, right? Wrong. A dear friend mentioned that her nana used to knit dishcloths for her, but now her nana has passed on. *choke* So, off I go yesterday to get the big ball of cotton yarn and a booklet of dishcloth patterns. Today, I have one finished; they really are remarkably quick to do!

The pattern (what the book calls "simple weave" looks kind of funky in the variegated yarn, but the cloth is the standard 9"x9", pretty, and soft. I hope it makes my friend smile.

WIP it, WIP it good...

Had a Devo moment there... :)

So, Works-In-Progress are progressing - I'm into the first cream stripe of DS#2's blankie and it looks gorgeous with the burgundy; I just can't tell her that those are St. Mary's colours when she's a St. Thomas grad! Harry Potter scarf #1 (Gryffindor) is coming along too, but it seems endless... hard to believe I need to do three more of these before the movie comes out on November 18th. But - it will be totally worth it to see my four friends all nerded up... er, I mean decked out (yeah, that's it) in their house scarves.

Started on Tim Horton's Toque #2 for my dear friend at work; about two hours on it tonight and it's about 1/3 done. Love those Addi Turbo Circs!

DM and DD are heading out of town this weekend so I can do some work on DM's shawl without her snooping. Tempted to start on DD's cardigan (got the yarn yesterday) but am trying, TRYING to restrain myself.

Picked up some Mission Falls wool today - gorgeous stuff, wish I could buy a sweater's worth before it all disappears! But, got three skeins - enough for a pair of pumpkin-orange socks for me (ME!) - that's going to be my sock class project. And some Softee Chunky in red and green to make Christmas slippers - going to try to give them an elf-y look if I can.

Projects projects! And no knitting tomorrow, because we're going to the hockey game. JOY!

FOGgy day!

Another Finished Object - the Endless Wedding Present is finally Ended! JOY! Thanks to my knit-mentor, who showed me the crochet join, I finished the thing today in about two hours. Here's a picture:

Spent some more time on DS#2's blankie, almost ready for the first contrast colour stripe, and scored some Mamma Mia fluffy yarn in lovely pastels at the big yarn sale yesterday. Overall, a reasonably productive knitting weekend.

A no-knitting day ahead

Today we are going to be out and about all day, so I've decided to recap the project list:

My Christmas Knit-Gift List:

1. Prayer Shawl for DM: 1 skein of Homespun down, 2 to go.
2. Blankie for DS#2: 1 1/2 skeins of Harmony down, 7 1/2 to go.
3. Blankie for DS#1: yarn purchased, not started.
4. Purse slippers for three little girls: 2 pairs knitted (not sewn up), 1 pair to go.
5. Harry Potter scarves (4, one for each "house): 1 2/3 done, 3 to go, but deadline moved up to November to make the new movie release date.
6. Afghan for DM-I-L-2B: started, goofed, stalled. BUT - turns out she used to knit and is planning to get back into it. Thinking I may just give her the yarn, needles, pattern as a kit for Christmas and save myself some time. Would that be wrong?

Plus my new Moeibus scarf for me (ooh, it's gonna be pretty!), and two hats for co-workers.
Fortunately DH2B and DD are on the "after-Christmas" knit-gift-list; a sweater for each. DH2B wants socks, hopefully they will go on the Christmas list, but not until after I take the sock class at the end of October.

Tomorrow I do the assembly on the Endless Wedding Present, to get that out the door before the wedding next Saturday. Today I hit a warehouse sale at a new-to-me LYS - JOY! I will remember to stick to my budget... really!

It doesn't have to be perfect...

But it should at least be presentable! This is the lesson (among others) that I took away from tonight's Stitch'n'Bitch meeting. I was cranking away happily on the Gryffindor scarf and somehow totally messed up three purl rows in a row (so, six total rows of stockinette). No idea what happened, but it looked nasty on the edges and there were three extra stitches each time - just a big oops!

So rippity rip, out it comes. Forgot to count the rows ripped. DOH! Two options now - either measure or count. Will decide tomorrow. Probably count, because even though it doesn't have to be perfect, I want it as close as I can get. Good friends are worth the effort.

Speaking of good friends, it was a real treat to meet all the gang tonight - I didn't catch everyone's names, (and don't want to do a Romper Room "magic mirror" here anyway), but suffice to say it was a genuine pleasure to meet all the ladies. Looking forward to the next one.

Oh - bonus news - picked up a pattern book today with a great design for Dad's cardigan (hey, I'm motivated; I can't start the sweater yet but I can at least pick a pattern!), and he likes the look of it. The only questions now will be colour and sizing, but don't need to deal with that for awhile.

And, as it turns out, blankie-assembly with crochet is dead simple but will take a bit of time. I see Sunday being spent over the kitchen table on this, but then the Endless Wedding Present will be Ended! Huzzah!

Ok, go to bed. Goodnight, fellow knit-wits.

Something for Dad

Dads are impossible to gift - this is a proven fact that we all know. He has all his golf gear, all his hockey stuff, all the books he'll ever read, and coffee and socks forever. Pain in the neck.

But - JOY! - he came right out today and said: "You know what you could knit for me? A cardigan." And so I shall - for Father's Day.

Tomorrow I get my "how to assemble a blankie with crochet" lesson, and attend a big Stitch'n'Bitch meeting. Busy day for needles.

OTN:

1. DS#2's blankie, well underway onto the 2nd skein of burgundy. Looking good and feels very warm.
2. Gryffindor scarf (this is taking longer than I thought!) for the "portable" project.
3. DM's prayer shawl, waiting for the weekend.

If I'm sittin', I'm knittin'!

FOG - the Habs gear

FOG for Finished Object Gallery - here are three photos of Dh2B in his newly-knitted Montreal Canadiens bootie slippers and scarf.




The slippers worked up very quickly - finished the pair in about 8 hours' knitting. I used Bernat Softee Chunky and they are very cozy and warm; can't wait to do a pair for myself! The scarf had been done previously (2nd project ever!) but I hadn't got the picture before.

OTN:

1. DM's prayer shawl - under way and looking pretty, in Homespun with a simple K3 P3 repeat over 90 sts.
2. Harry Potter scarf #1 (Gryffindor) - about 1/3 done - these are going to be long scarves!
3. DS#2's Christmas blankie - no idea how wide, just CO as much as I could fit on the Addi Turbo 6.5mm and have started knitting away. I think it will be more of a wrap/shawl than a big blankie, but it's warm and fuzzy and that's what counts.

Dh2B's got cold feet!

So... I'm knitting him slippers. :) I got the pattern on an email from about.com, and they're working up very quickly in Bernat Softee Chunky (in Habs colours, of course!) Here's a link to the pattern: http://knitting.about.com/library/weekly/aa120604.htm

And since it's raining today, it's a perfect project - always good to do a warm fuzzy on a cold damp day.

Off to the Knitting Chair with me!

Turbo-charged!

I Love Addi Turbo Circular Needles!

I just picked up my 2nd set and started in on DS #2's Christmas present this evening - these needles are so smooth, I just absolutely adore them! I want every size. They are, as I told DH2B, the Milwaukee Power Tools of the knitting world. Love love love 'em!

Tomorrow night is my second Stitch'N'Bitch meeting and I'm really looking forward to seeing the gals again - and meeting new ones. It's funny, I usually prefer socializing with men, but it's a whole different ball of yarn when everyone's got the needles flying! Will be bringing the Gryffindor scarf to work on since it's portable and straight stockinette - don't want to fuss about a pattern while chatting. Itching to get going on DM's shawl, but it will have to wait - for now.

So many projects, so little time! I may need to take an extra-long weekend at Thanksgiving just to have a guilt-free day of knitting. Hm... that sounds like a plan!

Plan the work, work the plan!

Good things by Mail...

I love coming home to find packages in the mail - it makes the day feel like Christmas for a little while, even if I know already what the package will contain. Such was the case today when I found a big plastic envelope/bag at the front door containing my yarn order for my two DS's Christmas blankets. Joy!

Unfortunately, the order was short one bag (bulk shipment from DiscountYarnSale.com), but when I checked the original order confirmation, it only showed one bag of that particular yarn, not the two I thought I had ordered. Dang. So - DS #1 will get a "chair-gan" of six skeins rather than a full 8-skein blankie. She won't know the difference and it'll be less work for me - ha ha!

One of the two colours for DS #2's blankie is not quite what I wanted, either - it was supposed to be a deep forest green and it's leaning towards a more sage green, but it will still look nice with the burgundy in contrast stripes - I hope. If not, I'll come up with something else. Resourcefulness, thy name is desperation!

No knitting today as I was out golfing (Joy!), but will be starting in tomorrow night on DM's shawl to get that rolling - I want to see how the three-and-three patterning looks in the Homespun. I bet it'll be pretty.

Sunshine from rain

So last night, I was working away on the Endless Wedding Present afghan and decided as a break from the actual knitting I would attempt the assembly (it's a strip afghan with a crochet joining-dealy). First order of business - learn to crochet! HA! Not happening. So, turned to a simple sewing-style seam, and honestly, it looked like it had been done by a five-year old. Not fun. Into the bag with the whole thing, and into the closet with the bag.

To cheer myself up, started on my Karma Chameleon sweater, which will be a long-term project because I want it to be perfect and I have a whole whack of Christmas gifts to do first. A few rows in, I felt much better.

Today, grousing about the EWP to my knit-mentor at work, I said I was going to scrap it for the gift and finish it to donate to Project Linus at a later date. Her response: "But why? You just need to crochet the seams. It's easy." Me: "I can't crochet. I tried for an hour." Her: "Yes you can. You will. Bring the stuff Monday and we'll fix it." Let me just add here that this is a lady who brooks no argument. She will help me Make It Right (TM Mike Holmes) and all will be well.

Inspired by that, I looked around for simpler patterns for DM and DMIL2B's Christmas afghans. Have decided to go with a simple stockinette stitch for DMIL2B, cream ends and teal middle, instead of teal strips with cream crochet joins / edging. It will be a tighter gauge and hold up better to her cats (I hope). For DM, I've switched from the annoying-as-heck "Old Shale Pattern" afghan to the simpler (and to my mind, more elegant / practical) prayer shawl. Both are free patterns on the Lion Brand website - I get good stuff from there, which makes up for their yarns being so gawdawful expensive (but very very pretty!) The upside with DM's shawl is that it will probably leave me a couple of skeins leftover for a nice vest pattern I have in the same yarn (LB Homespun). So, something else to look forward to.

Have a FO success story too - my Roll up the Rim Tim Horton's Toque is finished and cute as a button - really, it's kind of button-shaped (will post pics when I find digital camera, hiding somewhere). Showed it to a dear friend at work and she wants one just like it - and insists on paying for it! Another co-worker (male) wants a black watch-cap style toque for his shiny bald head, so that's two toque orders (which translates to two more balls of yarn for me - I'm charging $10 each and the yarn is $5ish).

And, in other bright news, got the yarn for DH2B's birthday sweater on sale about 20% off - sweet! Grabbed a couple extra balls just in case - I'm totally in love with the yarn (Patons Shetland Chunky) so will find uses for it, I'm sure.

Tonight started on a pair of bootie slippers for me, me, me! Well, they're a test pair to try out the pattern, so any mistakes will be on my feet. If they work up easily I'll make a pair for DH2B and keep the pattern handy for quick gifts. Fun!

Still working on Harry Potter scarf #1 (Gryffindor) but it's coming along fairly quick at lunchtimes - should be done by the weekend. So much to do!

Christmas Gift List Update:

1. DD's slippers - done
2. DD's half-sisters's slippers - 1 pair down, 1 to go
3. DD's stepmom's scarf - to be started (got the yarn, gotta sort out the pattern)
4. DM's shawl - to be started
5. DMIL2B's afghan - to be restarted
6. DS's afghans (2) - waiting for the yarn to come in
7. Friends' HP scarves (4) - 1 WIP, 3 waiting
8. DH2B's socks - got the yarn, have to take the sock class at end of October, then should be a quick project (I hope!)

Other Projects:

1. Karma Chameleon Sweater - for me - OTN
2. Bootie Slippers - for me - OTN
3. Roll up the Rim Tim Horton's Toque - for Carole - got the yarn
4. Black Watch Cap - for Luc - got the yarn

Plan the work and work the plan!

An organized stash is a happy stash

For most people, the new year starts in January - for me, it's always September; back to school time and the season change calls for a big cleanup / organization binge. So this was my afternoon today, and I'm pleased with the result - especially with my self-discipline to sort my stash by project (labelled, even!) without actually knitting - well, I did take one quick break but only did two rows, so I'll forgive myself. :) But the organization did make me feel better.

Was thinking too about something DH-to-be said yesterday, about taking on too many projects at once, so I'm cutting back to two WIP - one for home, one for travel. Otherwise I won't get anything finished and nothing frustrates me more than a bunch of unfinished stuff - I feel overwhelmed by it and that's a big ball of no fun.

Another thing was something I read in The Knitting Sutra (wonderful book, BTW) about too much knitting leading to carpal-tunnel syndrome and/or arthritis in the hands. Since I spend lots of time on the computer and lots of time knitting, this is a concern. So I've decided not to knit for more than two hours in one sitting - instead of the four or five hours / evening I've been doing since I took up the craft a few weeks ago - gods, it's only been a few weeks! I feel like I've been doing this forever. It's a good feeling, but like anything, requires moderation - I have been neglecting other interests of late (reading and writing in particular). So - cutting back a bit to keep the enjoyment level up; I think (or is that tink? ha ha ha...) knitting will be my daily reward for getting the rest of life dealt with. It's non-fattening and doesn't give me a hangover.

Once more into the breach...

Wow, it's been a long time since I had any sort of ongoing web-presence! But, like I swore I'd never get a cellphone, I swore I'd never want a blog, and now - BINGO! I have both. Interesting...

This blog will be mainly knitting-related; knitting is a new passion for me and I have all these thoughts about projects and yarns and people and stuff... so this is as good a place as any to get it all out.

OTN:

1. Tim Horton's Toque (for me)
2. Harry Potter Gryffindor scarf (Christmas gift)
3. the Endless Wedding Present afghan (need I say more?)

Today I had to frog my mother's Christmas afghan for the 3rd time - ArGH! - so it's getting put away for awhile while I finish other things. While only God is perfect, flaws are not allowed in mother-gifts. But it's late now and I'm too tired to type. I'll just consider this post my cast-on to begin this new project.