Knit by Night

2006-08-21T20:07:00.000-03:00

If anyone's curious, I'm sort of, er, abandonning this knitblog in order to move to a better place. Ms. Knitter Knits is now the new place where you can find any of my ramblings about projects, yarn, and other random fibre-related stuff.

My first sheep!

2006-04-07T14:14:00.000-03:00

Well, not a full-sized sheep. Not even a baby sheep. Not even in the shape of a sheep, really. But it comes from a sheep, and has yet to be spun into yarn, so by damn, I'm calling it a sheep! It's the closest thing to a real life sheep that I've ever really touched! (Unless you count an escaped goat that I once helped wrestle back into its pen.)

Yes, I was bad and blew some of my hard-eanred paycheque at Cricket Cove, and couldn't resist buying some fleece to (eventually) spin. See, I don't know how to spin yet. I don't have the materials to learn how to spin, either. But this stuff was so delightfully soft that I couldn't resist spending $6 on a length of creamy-white blue face leicester. I'll put it aside and make it into something very nice once I actually learn how to spin.

I did, however, have to restrain myself from getting a set of ebony dpns, and some chunky baby alpaca in a gorgeous red! I probably could have afforded it, but I'd have been living tight for the next few weeks in order to do so. I don't light having to tighten my belt that much. As much as I can be thrifty when it comes to some household expenses, reusing what I can and trying to spend as little money as I can get away with, I do enjoy my luxuries. I mean, if I can save some money by growing herbs instead of buying them, then I can use that money to go to the movies.

Or, as the seductive fleece next to me is saying, I can buy a good drop spindle. And more fleece.

My sweater-unravelling is going nicely, too. I almost have all of the 'clover' yarn unravelled, and I started on a salmon-pink cashmere last night. The yarn is barely plied, but this only means that it's easier for me to take the plies apart and have a load of lace-weight cashmere instead of dk or worsted.

God only knows what I'm going to knit out of it. Maybe I'll combine it with the spring-green cashmere and make something that's an affront to the eyes, just because. Hell, when I only have to pay a couple of bucks for a sweater's worth of cashmere, I'm not going to complain too loudly. It may be second hand, but it's still soft as anything, and that's what really matters, right?

Alas, my knitting is going to be on hold for the next few days, while I finish up my geisha embroidery project. I've put it off for too long, and now it's due to be sent out early next week. Oh well. I'm mostly done it. Just a few more patches to embroider, then some food colouring in various places, a backing of the same kind of material I'm sewing on, and a nice border in some other material from my scrap bag. If I work on it between calls at work, and a little at home, I should have it done to be sent out by Tuesday.

And then I can get back to knitting more often. There are often times I find my hands itching for the movement of needles and yarn.

Simple work knitting

2006-03-27T22:22:00.000-04:00

One of the balls of yarn that I bought in a grab bag at Value Village the other day was an almost complete ball of what looks to be Bernat boucle yarn. The same kind that I used to make Luke and Jenny their Christmas scarves. What better to make of it, I asked, than a scarf like that for myself. After all, knit on size 10 1/2 needles, the scarf ends up nicely thick and long, and doing garter stitch at work is far from taxing. Keeps my hands busy in between calls, at least.

Now yes, I know that the weather's too warm now to be making scarves. But meh, what else can I make at work with limited amounts of yarn when I get about 30 seconds to a minute in between my calls. (Besides socks. But for that, I'd needs dpns and some sock yarn. :p)

The scarf keeps reminding me of two different things. Sometimes, the colour and texture reminds me of an oatcake, and sometimes it reminds me of a dirty sheep. I think, with that in mind, that I'll call this scarf "Sheepcake."

Value Village is my god!

2006-03-24T13:28:00.000-04:00

Payday today! Of course, this meant I had to go out and treat myself, which meant a trip to Value Village to get some 'new' sweaters to unravel for extra yarn. Found a nice acrylic/alpaca sweater, in what looks like chunky yarn.

I also decided to browse the grab bags of yarn at the back of the store, the odd balls that people bring in that get thrown into bags to be sold at low low prices. I got three bags. Most of acrylic stuff, but in some nice colours, at least. However, I did manage to score some wool blend dk weight yarn, a very big skein of Alafoss Lopi Icelandic Fleece (in a colourway that seems to be nonexistant, but hey, who am I to complain?) and some violent pink mohair. Probably a blend, but hey, when I only paid $3 for the bag that the mohair was in, I'm certainly not going to raise much of a fuss about it!

Most of the yarn is unlabelled, but hey, I can also use bits and pieces to make an odd-lots scarf or shawl or something. No sense in things going to waste, right?

My only regret is that I don't have any knitting needles with me. I have to go through the entire night at work with a huge bag of yarn beside me, and I won't be able to do a thing with it! It's torturous, I tell you!

On a different note, I have a plan for this year, where knitting is concerned. I'll start to buy a few more acrylic and chenille sweaters from Value Village, and once they've been ripped apart and turned back into yarn, I'll knit them up again into scarves. Come November, I'll sell the scarves at the local flea market, with half the proceeds going to the Empty Stocking Fund. What doesn't sell will also be given to the ESF.

What is the Empty Stocking Fund? I'm sure you've all got something like that in your area, even if it doesn't go by the same name. It's a charity set up at Christmas for unprivileged families, the ones that may not be able to afford presents or a good turkey dinner they way a lot of us are used to. There was a time when my family had to use that program to augment what little we had, and I remember getting in that package a pair of mittens, and a knitted toy. And while I've donated money to the program in the past, it was only $20 or so. This year, I'll donate money and items. Keep some kids warm in the bitter coastal winter weather with my scarves, as well as sending money so that they can eat well on Christmas day.

I'm not a Christian myself, and thus don't celebrate Christmas as a religious holiday (it's a family/friends/commercial holiday to me, really), but that doesn't mean I have an excuse to not be charitable during the season. After all Yule falls during that time!

Stashbusting!

2006-03-21T18:50:00.000-04:00

My yarn roughly fits inside two garbage bags. Now, call me crazy, but I don't consider that to be much yarn. Some people, however . . . Regardless, my storage space is limited, so I need to start using up some of that yarn.

I have ideas, thankfully. For starters, the laceweight cotton in variegated blues is going to be made into a shawl, just as soon as I find a pattern that I like.

The remaining balls of light green cotton are probably going to make Rachel a DNA scarf.

I have no idea yet what to do with the balls of Peruvian wool that Agnes sent me. Possibly do as she suggested, and make a vest, though I want to lose weight first. No sense in knitting to my current dimensions when they'll change once the pounds start being shed.

The ball of thick grey chenille will probably become a simple scarf.

I want to turn the fuschiaroon (they call it huckleberry. I like fuschiaroon better :p) yarn into hats, just as soon as I, uh, learn to knit hats. (Okay, yeah, so there are a lot of very simple things that I just don't know how to do yet!)

The unravelled crappy wool will go to dyeing experiments, and probably be knit into long strips to replace cotton batting inside the quilts I plan to make. (No better use for cheap scratchy wool, I figure. Wool's good for warmth, and knitting it into strips will keep me busy for hours!)

I need to find a better pattern and better needles to turn the shimmery white yarn into a snow queen shawl.

There. That takes care of about half my stash. Of course, that's not really taking into account the sweaters that I bought to unravel for more yarn. Give me time, and soon I'll be wondering what to do with the laceweight camel yarn, or the miles upon miles of insane-halo white angora. Or the spring-green cashmere (which is probably actually going to be plied with something else and then knit into the softest scarf imaginable).

And, of course, I still do have my crappy acrylic that I'm knitting into small squares during my spare moments at work (except for today, because I was dumb and forgot my knitting at home) that will eventually be pieced into a blanket.

I do need some specific yarn for two projects I have in mind, though. I have two sweaters that I plan to make for Christmas gifts, and I need to do some hunting around for the perfect yarn for them. I need white, pale blue, and green. In large amounts. Ah well. I'm sure I'll come across the right colours eventually. (Let's just hope it's within enough time to actually knit the dang things!)

Branching Out is done!

2006-03-13T21:07:00.000-04:00

Finished. Over and out. And just in time for my mother's birthday. I was hoping to make it a little longer, but I was running out of time, and I didn't feel like starting an entirely new ball of yarn for just another 2 or 3 repeats of the pattern. It's long enough to wrap around her neck, and that's what's important.

And I still have 3 balls of that yummy green cotton left. Maybe I'll use it to make the DNA scarf for Rachel.

We're moving on Wednesday! Yee! I'm all happy about that! I can't wait to get all our things unpacked and make that apartment well and truly ours!

I've been tempted to knit some curtains for my room, too. I have a tiny little window there, so something about a foot and a half wide by two feet high would probably cover the whole thing. I've been browsing around, trying to find good lace patterns that I can make. I fancy lacy curtains. My window's high up enough that I don't have to worry about weirdos peeking in.

Stash enhancement!

2006-03-12T10:07:00.000-04:00

Since Lewiscraft is going out of business and never will see the light of day again, I decided to be a bit more lenient on my vows to never give them any of my money. I went and took advantage of their Store Closing sale. I bought 5 more balls of Berella, which I hope will give me enough yarn to finish off the blanket I'm slowly knitting. I also picked up two balls of black Gemini yarn. It's a shame I won't be able to get any more of that yarn ever again, since it was a Lewiscraft brand of yarn. Sure, there'll be other yarns like it, but it won't be that yarn.

At least I have two balls for the road. And at 30% off, too, so it made it a little easier to stomach the price. The Gemini's usually rather expensive.

I was tempted to pick up some mohair, too, since it was all on at 30% off, but then I remembered that Cricket Cove has much better mohair. More expensive, I'll bet, but a better blend. Besides, I'm not that fond of mohair to start with. It's soft, but I can't imagine ever really wearing it against my skin. I think it's drive me nuts!

I need to hurry up and get packing. Moving day is on Wednesday, and we don't have nearly as many boxes as we need. Still, I can throw a lot of things into garbage bags in the meantime.

The past week or so has been tough.

2006-03-10T16:30:00.000-04:00

I haven't posted here in quite a while, mostly because I've been rushed off my feet and stressed to the nines, to warp a phrase. We've found an apartment, and are moving in on the 15th, provided my parents can get back into town in order to drive the moving van. This is a good thing.

The bad thing, though, is that the dog was put down on Wednesday. He bit someone, and Rachel's parents decided that to be safe, since there are small children that come over sometimes, they just couldn't take any risks, and had to have him put down. He wasn't rabid, or sick, or anything like that. Just old, and a little on the grumpy side, and a stranger tried to pet him at the wrong moment.

It's strange to not have Max in the house. I keep looking at the things of his that are still there and wishing he was there too, but worse is when I see an empty spot where something of his used to be, but isn't anymore, it it feels like the wound in my heart just tears open again.

I'm going to write something about all this on my personal journal at some point, so if anyone's interested . . .

On a milder note, I'm knitting again. Not much, really. Branching Out is halfway done, and I need to get my butt in gear, since my mother's birthday is soon. Lewiscraft is having a Store Closing sale, too (70% off everything!) so I'm going to go in there and take advantage of some cheap yarn, so I can keep working on my blanket squares.

In non-knitting crafts, I'm working on turning a stained glass pattern into a piece of needlework. Satin stitch in cotton embroidery floss, and some random piece of scrap fabric I picked up from the odd-lots bin at Fabricville a while back. I'm doing this project at work, for a geisha swap on Craftster, and it's making the shifts fly right by. Keeps me busy in between calls.

I need to do more craft swaps with people. It's always fun to get mail, and to show other people stuff that I've done. ^_^ I may start that whole crazy Random Act of Kindness thing I see so many people getting in on. If I hang on to this job, I'll certainly have the money for postage and shipping and whatnot. Yeah. I think I will do that!

2006-03-02T11:55:00.000-04:00

I am forever losing the pattern for Branching Out, so now I have to go and make yet another copy. I think this will be the fourth copy of the pattern that I've made, now. Ugh. Must get better organized.

I finally went and bought a new set of knittinjg needles in the size that I need, since I still can't find the one that I lost. Bamboo ones were cheaper than the steel ones I prefer, so I got a set of those. I do like the steel ones, but I've heard a lot of people praise bamboo needles. That, combined with a lower price, made me want to try them.

Still no luck finding the pattern for the horse plushie. Oh well. It'll turn up somewhere. We're moving in a month (we have an apartment set up and everything!) so I'm sure I'll be able to find the pattern then.

So now, it's off to my room to knit. Need to hurry up and get Branching Out finished, since it's for my mother's birthday, and that's only about two and a half weeks off. No worries if I do semi-regular work on it, really, but I would like to hurry up and get it done.

EBay rocks my world!

2006-02-23T17:06:00.000-04:00

Well, I no longer worry about having to pay a lot for roving to practice spinning with. Turns out I can get loads of it for low prices on eBay. Works for me!

Theoretically, I could always use the yarn I'm getting from my sweaters and take it all apart until I get a large fluffy mass, and the turn it all into yarn again, but I don't quite think I have the patience to work backwards just so that I can practice moving forwards again. Seems a bit counter-productive.

Now that I know I can . . .

2006-02-23T13:18:00.000-04:00

Great. I get the feeling that I'll be spending my night at work browsing eBay, looking at all the handspun yarns that I want and can't afford. I sure know how to torture myself!

Spinning is something I've wanted to learn how to do for a while, but haven't had the materials to learn with. Sure, I do have a bunch of dog hair saved up for when I learn, but that stuff's so special that I don't want to use it to learn with. I'd rather save that for when I know that I know what I'm doing. And otherwise, I have no access to roving.

At least, nothing that's in my price range. I can get a tiny amount of roving from Cricket Cove for about $20 or so, which, while it's nicely dyed, I don't want to spend a ton of money on when I know it's something I'll be messing up on a lot.

I think I just need to go to a farm and steal a sheep. That might be the cheapest way to do all this.

I know that with my recycled sweaters scheme, I'll get lots of practice plying yarns, since a lot of them are so thin that they need to be combined with something else. At least that'll be something.

Not-so-common yarn!

2006-02-18T16:45:00.000-04:00

I went shopping at Value Village today and managed to find something incredible. Well, I go there to buy sweaters, you see, to unravel for the yarn, since I'm a cheap/poor little bugger, and can't get my hands on many natural fibres.

Anyway, what did I see poking out from a rack of men's sweaters but something soft and tan. I checked the label, of course, and to my pleasant surprise, it was 100% camel.

I have camel hair sitting in my room! A whole sweater's worth of lace-weight camel yarn, and I suspect it's undyed, too. Ooh, I can't wait to unravel it and knit it up into something good!

I also found a gorgeous angora/lambswool sweater with the biggest halo I'd ever seen! I swear, I could comb that thing and get enough rabbit fur to make a matching scarf! I have no idea how that's going to come apart, given the hugeness of the fluffy halo, but it's worth a shot. If it doesn't work out, I'm only out $8, after all.

I also found a bag of yarn for $2 . . . Rich colours, mostly blue and black, and I'm pretty sure it was wool, but there was no tag, and I couldn't tell. And then there were the three cones of something called jute, which I had to go and look up just exactly what it was. I somehow doubt it'd be very good for knitting. I'm glad I passed it over.

I haven't been doing much knitting lately, alas. My mind just hasn't been on it, and I'm finding my time taken up by too many other things. The most I've been knitting are those never-ending blanket squares. I'd be knitting my mother's present, but I somehow managed to lose one of the needles. Grrr. I think I know where it might be, but so far, searching for it has yielded nothing. I'd better find it soon, or else I might not be able to get her gift finished on time.

Oh, and then there's Shelley's baby, who's due in May. I promised to make a blanket for him to be wrapped in . . . Jeepers, I'd better get back in the knitting groove soon, or else!

Plushies!

2006-02-01T10:52:00.000-04:00

Since I recently went out and got another sweater to unravel for yarn, I've been thinking of all kinds of fun things to do with it. I've finally settled on making plushies. The yarn's perfect for it. It's a thick soft forest green chenille that's in good condition, about worsted weight. Maybe a teensy bit thicker, but not by much. Either way, I was thinking of making some plushies out of it, since I also have a crapload of stuffing that I'm probably not going to use elsewhere.

Of course, I probably won't keep all these plushies for myself. I just want to make them. Making them is the fun part. (As soon as I find that damned horse pattern, I'll get right to work, too!) But what can I do with all the rest? I'll only want to keep one, really.

I was thinking of maybe donating them. Going up to the hospital and handing a bunch of them over to the children's ward and saying, "Here. Give a sick kid a plushie. It's 100% acrylic, so it won't mess up any allergies. It's safe and easy to wash, just to be on the safe side. Give a frightened kid something to love and hug, will ya?"

Of course, this simple plan makes me want to just go and buy a whole load of sweaters like that, and make entire garbage bags full of them to give out.

So, what's stopping me?

Absolutely nothing. *goes to find a pattern*

eyes bug out of head

2006-01-27T16:11:00.000-04:00

Saint John. Is getting. A proper yarn store.

A small store, really, tucked away in City Market, but a real, honest-to-goodness yarn shop, setting up in this dingy little city. They'll be setting up a knitting cafe, too, which I plan to coordinate my work shifts around. They specialize in natural fibres, and had tons of things I'd only previously heard about, but never seen. Debbie Bliss knitting books. kits for thrummed mittens and socks. Mango Moon recycled sari silk. 100% cashmere yarn. Hand-dyed roving to spin (oh, if only I knew how!).

The woman who runs the place also says they sometimes have qiviut. We joked about how you could send kids to college on the money it'd take to make a qiviut sweater.

After walking away from that place (empty-handed, I may add, because due to unforeseen circumstances, I'm in a bigger money-predicament than ever), I felt as though spring had come early. Here was a place where I can go with my knitting to talk about knitting to other knitters. People who also had a weakness for things that weren't neccesarily acrylic or novelty in nature. (Not that there's anything specifically wrong with those things. I'd just like to branch out a little from Bernat and Patons, that's all.)

I think I'm going to like that store. The woman said the rent there is expensive, but heck, those yarns were expensive! If they start selling, they ought to cover the rent on a tiny corner of the Market.

I hope. Finally, this city is getting some cool things. First the tea shop. Then the Japanese restaurant. Then the little place out at the mall that sells Oriental toys and novelty stuff. Now this. It's like the city I've lived in for so many years is finally making a step towards being called home.

Wool Fondlers?

2006-01-26T14:27:00.000-04:00

Wool Fondlers! O_O

Damn shame that the days it takes place are all the days I'm working. Of course, I do get paid tomorrow, and I am going uptown early, so I might be able to grab something nice, if there's any happy fibre left for poor old me. (Doubtful that I can aford it, though, since I only get paid $600 tomorrow, and at least $550 of that needs to go to people to pay of various debts.)

This had better start being a monthly occurance, lemme tell ya! Saint John needs a bigger knitting community. It seems quite a few people do it here at work, but they seem to get a little shy and embarassed when people call attention to it. Shyness should not be a part of the knitting world, I tells ya! I knit in public and I'm proud of it!

Maybe this'll start a wooly revolution. I can but hope.

Credit where credit is due.

2006-01-21T20:18:00.000-04:00

I mentioned to my mother a little while ago that I wanted to start knitting socks. Not exactly a big monumental thing, here, but when I knit a pair of socks, it will be my first pair of socks. It's a milestone. A turning point. It's one of those things that's fun and useful and throws me into the ranks of thousands of other knitter's who've also knit socks.

My mother mentioned this to my aunt. My aunt apparently replied that she's not sure I'm ready for socks, because I've been knitting for only a year, and knitting socks means using four needles.

Um, a little credit, please. I can knit some lace patterns with little dificulty. The only reason I haven't attemtped a sweater yet is because I can't aford that much yarn at the moment. Knitting a sock on four needles is not going to destroy me.

The hardest part of a sock is the heel. The heel is only one fraction of the whole sock. I think I can handle it.

The part that bugs me the most is that she doesn't think I'm ready because I've only been knitting for a year. As if time is the ultimate measure of talent. When last she spoke to me, she recommended I knit a whole bunch of squares to turn them into a blanket. Which I am doing. Y'know, when I have little better to do. In between other projects. When I'm bored. Small garter-stitch squares are only a tiny part of my knitting life, here. But she seems to think that's all I can do. Row after row of knit-stitch.

It doesn't help that there's a literal ocean between us. I can tell her what I've done, but she may not believe me.

Maybe once she hears tell of the gift my mother's going to get for her birthday (a Branching Out scarf), she'll change her tune.

Now, yes, there are plenty of projects I haven't tackled yet. I have yet to knit a hat. This is because I don't have the right needles for it yet (and most of my money is going to pay of debt and the like). Same thing with mittens and gloves. No sweaters (yarn issues). No pants (not exactly a common request, but I said I'd knit Rachel some long-johns at some point, and dammit, I will!). But these aren't for lack of talent, I assure you. I can knit. I can purl. I can increase and decrease. I realised how to do short rows before I knew what their name was. I can follow patterns easily enough. I've seen and heard enough cautionary tales of common mistakes to know what to look out for. I'm honestly, right now, only hampered by a lack of materials.

Haven't been knitting long enough to know how to do socks. Pffft. I have all the prerequisite skills. I just need the set of dpns, and the right weight yarn, and a pattern. And then I'll be raring to go!

Work post!

2006-01-19T17:02:00.000-04:00

I feel like I've been neglecting this blog lately. I don't post in it as much as I used to. I'm a bad bad blogger.

Yeah.

Anyhoo, I've been making tiny bits of progress of my woolen shawl. Not the Snow Queen shawl, because I realised that I bought the wrong sized needles for it. Boo. So I've just been knitting row after row of scratchy cheap worsted weight wool instead. On my crappy curly circulars (which someone gave me some advice on how to straighten a bit!). This thing's for warmth rather than show, and will help a lot on cold nights.

Of course, by the time I get it done, it'll probably be after the cold nights have gone away, and I'll just have to put it aside for next winter. But at least I'll be prepared.

I'm thinking of felting it, too. I've never felted anything before (though I do know how to do it), and I figure my first try may as well be on something that's not too special to me. And since things shrink a fair bit during felting, I'm going to have to knit it bigger than I want. Not that I'm worried about the yarn running out. I have hundreds and hundreds of yards of that wool, sitting in a plastic bag at home. Once the shawl is done, I'll still have a load of it left over for dying experiments.

I'm bringing more of my yarn to work now, too. I've been knitting bits of the Branching Out scarf sometimes. Today, however, I brought that nice silk/angora sweater to unravel. Pulling out a sweater and wrapping the yarn around my knitting needles to hold it in a cocoon-shaped 'ball' until I can get it home and make it into a skein.

It's nice yarn, too. Two strands held together, one thin and smooth, and the other one a teensy bit thicker and kinda lumpy. Lace weight, by the looks of it, and I'm having absolutely no trouble unravelling it. It hasn't split yet. Huzzah!

Well, back to work!

Huzzah!

2006-01-16T20:09:00.000-04:00

I bought a sweater a while back, with the intent of unravelling it for yarn. The sweater was a beautiful thing, in shades of turquoise and black, and made from a silk/angora blend. It cost me about $3. Now, because the sweater's a thin one, I was told it might be difficult to unravel, since thin yarns can split and tear easily.

This thing unravels like a dream. I've had no trouble with it. The yarn's a tough bugger, and stands up to a bit of abuse. The yarn turns out to be two strands twined together, and each strand seems to be lace weight.

So, once the sweater's done being unravelled, I'll have some beautiful lace weight silk/angora yarn, in turquoise and black. This makes me very very happy.

Of course, at the moment, I have no ball winder, or anything of the sort. I wound up other stuff by wrapping it around chair legs, but the chair in the bedroom is currently being used to hold up other stuff right now, and so can't be used. As a cheap substitute, I just started wrapping and twirling the yarn around a spare knitting needle. It works well enough, though my hands get sore after a while, twirling the needle and making sure the yarn stays pretty much even on both halves of the rapidly growing ball.

I have no idea what I'm going to make from it, though. There's not enough of one colour to make anything really big. I'm thinking I may make a few nicely-patterned scarves, though. I've no need for them myself, but I'm sure there are people out there who wouldn't mind a nice silk/angora scarf to wrap around their necks.

Or maybe I'll just try and sell the yarn on eBay. Who knows?

2006-01-11T11:43:00.000-04:00

Is it wrong of me to be planning for next Christmas/Yule's presents already? I mean, it's only frigging January! Less than half way through it, even!

However, I do have some ambitious projects that I want to try. Ambitious for me, anyway. Given that I've never made a sweater before, having two on the list is pretty high up there. (New knitters . . . Aren't they just so cute?)

I have a plan for Rachel's sweater, at least. She's a big fan of green, and I'm a fan of wanting to try out cables for the first time. This results in (wait for it . . . wait for it . . . ) a green sweater with cables! Yeah. Not the most original suggestion, I'll grant you, but it's still a big project for me, really. And while I don't yet have a pattern for it, I do have plenty of time to look. I'm likely to base it off a cirruent sweater that she has, which is, and I quote, her 'favourite sweater'.

For Dawn, I had flicked through a bunch of old knitting patterns from way back when (read: 70s and 80s) and come across a really nice white one, with a couple of pale blue snowflakes on it. I thought it would look really nice on her, and made up my mind right then that I'd make it for her at some point.

I already have plans to make Robert some thick heavy socks. The ones that I couldn't make for him last year, but now have enough time to learn to make this year.

I'd also like to knit Rachel the DNA scarf at some point, too, since she's such a biology geek that I know she'll love it.

I'd love to knit Evan some funky-coloured socks. Maybe those Jaywalker socks that everyone's going on about.

So that's quite a few ambitious projects for the year. And really, on the whole, they're not that big a deal. Just things I haven't tried yet. But if I stick to scarves and lace patterns for the rest of my life, I'll never get anywhere. (Well, I will, but I won't get very far.) I need to branch out a little more. Learn more things. Make more things. Pick up my knitting needles and just go with it!

I've got a few other ideas on the burner, too, though not as gift ideas. These things are more for myself than for anyone else. For example, I've still got to get back to knitting Branching Out. I love that pattern, and it seems popular and simple. I started it once, but things went wonky, and I had to stop. (It was also at that point that I learned that when working with lace, losing a stitch somewhere along the row does not mean that it's fine and dandy to just make up for it at the end with another YO. *headdesk*)

I'd love to find a better set of circulars (I'm thinking of that set of Boye needles that I saw at Michael's a while back) and make a shawl. Not one for form, but more for function. I was thinking of using that off-white wool that I'm unravelling from a sweater. It's scratchy wool, and I wouldn't use it for anything but those oversocks for Robert, but to use it all up, I'd be making about 15 pairs of socks for him! All white ones. With no variation. Not that he'd mind, I think, but making a shawl out of the wool might be nice too. So I thought that a simple garter-stitch wool shawl might be nice. Good for keeping out the cold, using up extra scratchy wool, and for putting myself in that relaxed state of mind that only seems to come with row after row of garter stitch.

As it is, having none of the materials to make any of these projects, for now I'm stuck with those damned blanket squares. *chuckles*

Well, I could use the pale green cotton that Agnes sent me, to make the Branching Out scarf. Good portable project for work, too, if the calls remain as dead as they have lately. And I think there'd be enough cotton to make the scarf a decent length, too. The right needles for it are free, too, so that's a bonus.

You know, I think I'll go for it. I've wanted to knit it for a while, and no better time like the present. It's no exactly a warming sarf, either, so working on it as I'm coming out of winter (though granted, there are still two months of cold weather to go, at least) is a good idea. It'll be a nice accessory come springtime.

. . . Only since I got into knitting did I start giving a crap about accessories, and the right time of year to wear things.

Circulars = booo~!

2006-01-09T11:30:00.000-04:00

Okay, now maybe I just happened to get a really crappy pair of circulars (or is it just one circular?), but the damn thing sucks! The needles are beautifully metal, which is nice, and the join seems good, but the damn part that makes it circular is bound and frigging determined to not straighten out. As a result, I have to fight against it when I'm knitting. Which means it traps yarn around itself when it tries to coil back into its original packaged shape. Which means I got incredibly frustrated with it last night, threw it down, and stomped back upstairs to get my other needles, on which plain old boring blanklet squares were still being knit.

If there's anything that calms me down, it's knitting rows 20 stitches long, or just plain old garter stitch. It's mind-numbing and soothing. Like Novocaine. Works wonders when I'm pissy, because I know that I'll never be too inept to just make simple knit sticthes over and over again.

Now I have to decide if I want to try and straighten out the circulars somehow (god only knows how, really), keep wrestling them into submission and thus getting nowhere on my Snow Queen shawl but yet producing pile after pile of blanket squares, or return them and try to find a better brand.

Option 3 is seeming pretty good right about now.

I'm scary when I have money.

2006-01-08T17:07:00.000-04:00

I decided to go out today and pick up a pair of circular needles. My first circulars. *smiffle* Now I can start my Snow Queen shawl. Which isn't going to be very elaborate, really. No real pretty lacey pattern or anything. Just a simple practice shawl made from something that looks pretty and feels soft. What better to practice with?

While I was in my local bookstore, planning to pick up a copy of KnitLit (which I've been eying for weeks now), I happened to see Yarn Harlot: The Secret Life of a Knitter, by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee. How could I resist picking this up?

Well, the answer is that I couldn't. I walked out of that store $20 poorer, but much happier, since I love her writing style, and read her blog as frequently as she writes in it.

Walked through the mall towards the busstop, I had to restrain myself (almost painfully, I might add) from walking into Zellers and buying more yarn. "I have enough yarn," I told myself.

"There's no such thing," I answered back.

And I must admit, I find myself right. The problem is that, in the limited space of the bedroom I share with Rachel, I'm running out of places to store my yarn. And, I thought silently, I still do have a couple of sweaters to unravel, which will increase my stash by a good amount. I don't need to go and spend more money on yarn.

"But oh," I countered as I found myself standing in the yarn section anway, against my better judgement, "this yarn will make a great scarf for Rachel! Look at those beautiful greens. She'll love it!"

. . . I think I only wrestled myself away from the store by promising to ask Rachel if she'd like a new scarf before just arbitrarily knitting her something she may never wear.

Damn the siren call of yarn! *shakes a fist*

Yarn Whoring.

2006-01-07T14:48:00.000-04:00

Yeah, I was a yarn slut today. I fought my way through a crowd of old people, who were surrounding the bin full of yarn, in order to grab another 7 balls. Another ball of the white shimmery stuff I mentioned yesterday. 3 balls of black sportweight, and 3 balls of chunky yarn that is of a colour somewhere between magenta and maroon. Quite nice. Damned if I know what I'm going to turn it into, but really, for $1 a ball, for a decent brand (Lion Brand), I wasn't going to pass it up.

I'm going to have to exercise a lot of self control to not go back down there on my lunch break to snatch up all the leftovers, too. :p

I think I'm going to turn the shimmery white yarn into a simple shawl. It'll look nice, I imagine. I also imagine that it'd be a great piece of a Snow Queen costume. :p Y'know, if I ever decide to dress up as a Snow Queen. Either way, it'll be nice and fun to knit up. Just as soon as I get a set of circulars, I'll start on it. I'm already getting tired of knitting blanket square after blanket square.

It's annoying to have yarn sitting next to me here at work, and me not being able to do anything with it. *frown* Once again, I demonstrated no foresight. I should have brought needles. At least I could have started knitting another simple scarf or something. I don't really need another scarf, but they sure are fun to knit. Keeps my hands busy, and when my hands are busy with simple knitting, my brain settles down for a comfy cozy nap. Even brains need naps sometimes.

Hmmm . . . maybe the magentaroon yarn would turn into a nice hat. It have a hat at home, but it doesn't cover my ears, which get cold really easily, and in turn give me a headache. I normally have to tie my scarf around my head to prevent that. If I knit myself a hat with earflaps, or even just a deeper hat than I already have, that'd solve that problem.

Hmmm, project ideas!

(I also alerted my toaster-cozy-wanting coworker to the yarn sale at Giant Tiger. He says he'll probably go down there on his lunch break to check it out. I need to start looking up a good pattern for this cozy, just in case. :p)

There's no hope for me.

2006-01-06T18:49:00.000-04:00

On my lunch break, I went to the Giant Tiger (a discount department store) to get something to eat. My stomach's been finicky these past few days, barely keeping anything down, but I figured it's better to eat something than nothing.

However, I walked into the store and saw a yarn sale. Lion Brand Wool Ease and Kool Wool on sale for 99 cents a ball.

I bought 3 balls of Wool Ease White Frost, a soft and kinda shimmery wool/acrylic/nylon blend. Heck, it was only $3 plus tax. How could I refuse? I may even go back tomorrow before work, to snatch up some more balls!

. . . It's a sad sad day when I choose yarn over food. Or, on the flip side, it's a good day. Food, after all, may have made me sick again. Yarn certainly won't do that. A bag of chips can't keep me amused for hours while I turn it into something I can wear.

The problem is that now (in addition to not having any food) I have yarn sitting in front of me, while the phones at work are still busy and I have no knitting needles. *bites lip in vexation* If I had foreseen the sale, I could have planned ahead and brought a set with me, and just sat knitting a simple shiny scarf or something. But now I have to wait until I get home . . .

I have to find a new place to store my yarn anyway. I'm currently keeping it in numerous grocery bags, what with me not having any6 better place to store it. I'm thinking of putting that all in one big garbage bag, just to save some space. Or at the very least, to keep it all in one space. :p

Quick post before work.

2005-12-27T12:39:00.000-04:00

I now have a potential new project. One of my coworker has made a request for a toaster cozy. Damned if I know why he'd need to keep a toaster warm, but heck, if he pays for the yarn, then I'll knit it for him.

I got a sweater donation from another coworker, too. One sweater that's 50% lambswool 50% acrylic, one that's 100% cotton (gorgeous purple colour!), and a third that feels like cotton but has no tag, so I can't be sure. They all are double-knit weight yarn, and are in pretty good condition. I can certainly salvage those!

There are also a few old shirts and whatnot in the donation, which I can turn into various other crafts. Huzzah!

I want to unravel one of the sweaters here tonight, to keep myself busy. (We're not allowed to browse the Internet, even between calls.) However, I have no scissors, and the thought of taking out seams with nothing but a couple of thumbtacks is something I'm not quite sure I'm up to.

Post-Christmas huzzah!

2005-12-26T15:04:00.000-04:00

Christmas went well. Very well, in fact. I won't bore the world with a list of the gifts I was given (suffice to say the that most kick-ass ones were a gorgeous geisha figure, and a 30GB iPod), but I will bore the world with talk of how my gifts were received.

The two scarves I knit for Luke and Jen went over really well. They showed up for Christmas dinner wearing them, which is always a good sign. Their son Jander apparently loved his snake scarf, and Jen complimented the basketweave pattern on Sean's baby blanket. Dawn seemed to like her wrap, too, which made me quite happy. Rather than give socks to Robert (since I didn't have any made), I gave him a box of chocolates and a book, Life in a Medieval Village, which he seemed excited about. Rachel got various little things stuffed in her Christmas stocking, and The Illustrated Guide to Forensics, which he promptly spazzed over and started hugging. I can only assume she likes it. :p

I'm experiencing a sense of loss now, though. I have no projects to work on. Sure, I can knit on blanket squares until my hair turns blue, but that gets awfully boring after a while. Blankets squares are my "I have nothing else better to do and I don't feel like making my brain work" knitting projects. Garter stitch squares can only keep me amused for so long. So I really have nothing else to do.

I have no dpns, so I can't start a pair of socks. No circulars, either, so I can't start anything really cool and big. I don't have any more of the yarn that I was using to make the bathroom shawl. I'm tired of knitting really long strips that eventually wrap around people's necks to help keep them warm.

I suppose I could start on the ever-popular Branching Out scarf. It may be a scarf, but at least it's a fun lace pattern, and I have the perfect green cotton yarn for it. I do need more practice with lace patterns. I find them relatively easy, but practice never hurt anyone, right?

I'm still trying to decide what to turn that deliciously soft yarn from Tsaiko into. Two balls of each colour, three colours. I did want to make some wrist-warmers, but in retrospect, they keep the phone area of the call centre warmer than I like it, even in winter, so there's no much need for that, really. There goes that project idea.

I'm sure I'll find something. But if anyone wants to recommend any really fun patterns I can do with no dpns or circulars, and limited amounts of various yarns, I'm all ears! :)

A Merry Messy Kweznuz to you all!

2005-12-24T15:02:00.000-04:00

I am, at least, finished all my Christmas crafting. I finished the Falliage scarf a few hours ago, which turned out quite nicely. It's about as long as I am tall, and I still didn't use the entire ball of yarn. God only knows what I'll end up using the leftovers for, if anything.

The baby blanket is also finished. Not quite as big as I was hoping, but time constraints made me have to settle for what I could get. It's longer than my arm, though, and that's a plus. I finished it off with a k2tog bind-off, which looks really nice on it. I have to use that bind-off more often. Much less fiddly, and therefore quicker to accomplish, than the bind-off I normally use.

Now all that's left to do is wrap everything, and my Christmas work will be over. Then I can sit back, relax, and enjoy the reason of the day in happiness, awaiting tomorrow morning when I get to see the faces of those I've given presents to. That's the best part about this time of year. For me, anyway. Giving presents. It doesn't matter to me if people give me anything. I enjoy giving them things, and watching them enjoy what I gave. Especially if it's something I've made by myself, as most of the gifts are this year.

Best of the season to the lot of you, and I hope your holidays are as wonderful as mine! (Even though my religious holiday has come and gone this year, it sure doesn't stop me from celebrating with everyone else! *grins*)

One down, one to go.

2005-12-21T15:28:00.000-04:00

I finished the midnight scarf last night, and got a start on the Falliage scarf, which is made from a nice boucle yarn in beige, red-brown, and green. Nice earthy colours, hence the name (a combination of 'fall' and 'foliage'). I have until Saturday to finish it, which shouldn't be a problem, provided I work on it constantly.

Of course, I still have the baby blanket to finish, but basically, I'm going to just finish up what I can once the scarves are done. It's not the biggest blanket it could be, but it's still a decent size right now, so, given that I have limited time, anything I add on from now I'm just considering to be a bonus.

So, the holiday craft-a-thon is almost complete. Soon I'll be back to more sedate, deadlineless knitting, possibly finally starting that shawl I've wanted to make for a while. Or maybe use some of the gorgeous yarn that Tsaiko sent me the other day. Wonderfully soft, fine, and plenty of it. I'm sure I can find something fun to make out of it. I'm contemplating using one ball to make some wrist-warmers. Not that isn't especially cold in the call centre I now work in, but I'll do anything to help prevent my hands and wrists from going wonky again. I'll be doing a lot of typing, and I don't want any flare-ups of pain, like the ones back when I did data entry. Plus the yarn's so soft, I can only imagine the joy of feeling it next to my skin all day. :)

The truth will free my soul.

2005-12-14T21:35:00.000-04:00

Another few inches got added to the Midnight scarf over my breaks at work today. I also got in quite an interesting discussion there with a crocheter, talking about afghans and whatnot. It was quite fun, and the first time someone paid attention to my knitting. I was surprised, actually, that it's taken three days. I knit every day over my breaks, and only today did someone say, "Hey, you're knitting."

Not that I expect praise for knitting or anything. I just figured that most people there would find it odd that someone my age knits, and knits publically. *shrugs*

On a different note, slightly, I can't wait until Christmas is over. From a knitting standpoint, anyway. I'd like to be able to get back to knitting simple blanket squares without feeling guilty that I have presents to be working on. I want to be able to sit for hours frogging bargain sweaters without having to avoid looking at the pile of Things To Be Knitted. I want to start the second baby blanket I have planned, and rush less with it because the baby in question won't even be born for months yet!

Don't get me wrong. I adore knitting for people. Every time I see something that I want to make, I'll be wondering who I can give it to once it's made. But deadlines are a pain in the patootie. I'd rather I didn't have them. I'd much rather be able to randomly walk up to someone some day and say, "Here, I made you this," than hand someone something on Christmas that I had to rush to finish because I didn't budget my time properly.

Besides, randomly gifting people is so rewarding. Especially seeing the looks on their faces. *grins*

But mostly, I just want to knit squares for the blanket. I dug out the one that my mother knitted for me, and it's warm enough, but having one of my own will be twice as satisfying. Being able to look at it and feel it and have it keep me warm, and to know that every stitch was made by me.

And now, if you'll all excuse me, I'm exhausted from a long day of work, and my bed has such a sweet siren song . . .

Work post!

2005-12-13T12:09:00.000-04:00

I'm sitting here at work, in front of the computer, thinking to myself, "Hmmm, what can I do that doesn't involve studying hotel codes or going through numerous screens of a reservation sale program?"

And then the answer comes to me. Actually, it sorta makes these little peeping sounds from my bookbag, that sound suspiciously like, "Knit me. Knit meeeee."

Yes, I brought along my knitting. Unlike yesterday, when I forgot my knitting, or any reading material, or real paper, and so had to spend my breaks with nothing to do but sip on a bottle of lemon-flavoured water. At least today I came prepared!

Jenny's Midnight scarf is what I have with me, since it's small and simple enough to stuff in my bookbag and bring to work. Knitting away during my breaks and while waiting for the bus really makes the thing come along quickly. I fully predict that it'll be done by the end of the week. That leaves next week to do Luke's scarf at work, and still work on the baby blanket when I'm at home.

If I can pull myself away from frogging Value Village sweaters, that is.

Bargain yarn-hunting at its finest.

2005-12-10T18:12:00.000-04:00

I went out today and got the very last of my Christmas and Yule shopping done. Not that there was much to pick up. Something to hold Dawn's "was-supposed-to-be-a-poncho-but-is-now-a-slightly-wonky-wrap" together, and a few blocks of Sculpey. And that was it.

So, in celebration of this, I decided to pick up some yarn for myself, too. Not at Michaels, though. No, I decided to get more bang for my buck, so to speak, and get a bit of practice in with my unravelling scheme. Er, my scheme to unravel stuff. Not my scheme that's coming apart. So since I was already in Value Village (which was where I got the pin to hold the 'wrap' together', I took a look at some of the sweaters there.

I walked away with an extra-large 100% wool cardigan, with good seams to cut, and lots of cabling and texture work, in a slightly off-white colour. I'm guessing the yarn's about worsted weight, and it's still in fantastic condition. This cost me $5.99, not including taxes. Yes, the entire thing cost me less than a single skein of wool yarn at Michaels.

You're not going to hear any complaints out of me, that's for damn sure!

Near the bus stop there's another second-hand clothing store, and since I had some change in my pocket from buying the cardigan, I decided I may as well take a look in there, too. I walked away from there with the softest thing I'd ever touched. It's a size small, but I wasn't about to pass it up. A woman's sweater (if you can call it that, 'cause I doubt it's ever seen sweat!) in black, dark turquoise, and a lighter turqoise, probably fingering weight yarn (possibly even lace weight), with the following blend:58% silk, 30% nylon, 10% angora, 2% lambswool.

What did this gorgeous thing cost me, all told? $3.19. Canadian money.

Yeah. There was no way I could have passed that up. I'd never touched angora before this, so far as I knew, and I just about died when I felt how soft it was!

I also noticed that as I was going through the racks and racks of sweaters, I was beginning to be able to tell by touch what was a natural fibre and what wasn't. This, I imagine, will be a big help later on, when I do more bargain yarn-hunting.

So for less than $10, I got myself an insane amount of yarn. This makes me pleased. Very pleased indeed.

And now, if you'll excuse me, I think I have some dishes to wash, or possibly some cookies to bake. I'm craving peanut butter cookies tonight, and far be it for me to deny my cravings. (I went to the gym today, so a little big of 'bad' food won't kill me. :p)

I do need to keep up with this thing more.

2005-12-09T21:44:00.000-04:00

I've been away from this blog so much over the past few weeks that I've still got a mountain of catching up to do. In regards to reading other blogs, that is. At least 2 weeks have passed since I last really read anything. I did a bit today, but . . . Well, there's still so much more.

I've taken a break from the baby blanket to work on Jenny's scarf. Every time I look at it, I go, "Hmmm, I wonder if I made it too wide. It looks too wide, really." 24 stitches cast on doesn't seem like much, but really, 20 would have suited it better. But I've come along so far (and to be truthful, 'so far' isn't really that far at all) that I don't want to rip it all back and start over. If I run out of yarn before it's a good enough length, I'll just buy another ball, gosh darn it!

But at the same time, I don't fancy sitting through the whole project saying to myself, "It still looks a bit too wide . . ."

But is it just me thinking it's too wide? It could be just perfect, and because I happen to like thinner scarves that end up longer, I could just be imposing my own personal bias on it. There could really be no problem at all.

Damnable brain.

On a different note, I can't decide if it's a good thing or a bad thing when you see someone wearing a scarf, and not only can you tell that the scarf was handmade, you can also tell what yarn it was made from. Opinions on this? Am I going insane, or just taking another step into the knitting world?

By the pricking of my thumbs, something knitted this way comes.

2005-12-09T15:25:00.000-04:00

I managed, thanks to some Christmas money from my grandmother, to pick up the yarn for Luke and Jenny's scarves. enny's is a lovely midnight blue bloucle yarn from Bernat, while Luke's is boucle yarn in earth tones, browns and greens, which Rachel says he'll probably like. I'm in the middle of knitting Jenny's right now. I figure that if I knit during my breaks and lunch at work, I can finish the scarves before Christmas, and still have plenty of time to work on the baby blanket while I'm at home. That way, everyone's happy.

And warm. Let's not forget warm.

I can't believe how close it is to Christmas. Today makes it even more obvious, since it started snowing earler. It's still snowing, and there's enough to put a nice white layer over everything. Traffic's a little wonky because of the slipperiness, but fortunately for me, I have nowhere to go tonight, so I need not worry about that.

Tonight, I expect, will be spent curled up in bed, knitting, possibly with a homemade version of a Christmas drink I tried today. It's essentially a mug of mint tea, just made with hot chocolate instead of water, so it's a nice chocolatey-mint drink. You could get the same effect, I suppose, by letting a candy cane melt in your hot chocolate. The candy cane would probably have a more festive feel to it, too, but meh, since I have no candy canes, a tea bag will have to suffice.

Opening the door to destiny.

2005-12-08T09:55:00.000-04:00

Good thing - I finally have a job! A well-paying one, too!

Bad thing - This seriously cuts back my knitting time. >_<

Which means that I really have to crack down and use more of my spare time every day now to finish that blanket. It shouldn't take too long, fortunately, but I don't want to have left it until the very last minute. It's still coming along there, slowly slowly. At least I have most of today during which to work on it, once I get back from doing the things I need to do. 7 PM onwards ought to be spent in knitting glory.

I think I'm still in shock over having a job. The amount of money I'll have coming in is staggering for me. Not as much as one job I had, but still significantly more than most. And while my first thoughts are, "Yay, I can start paying off my debts and get ready to move out of this place and back into a place of my own," my secondary thoughts are, "Yay, just think of the yarn I can buy!" Another true sign of knitting addiction, I think.

Well, when a person will be pulling in about $1000 a month, what else are they supposed to think of? :p

Curiouser and curiouser.

2005-12-03T23:49:00.000-04:00

Weird. I have just been informed by Amelia that comments may not be showing up on my blog, and I'm not getting notification of anyone trying to comment. So if anyone tries to comment to this entry and it doesn't show up, send me an email to let me know, please, and maybe I can try to wrap my brain around (read: email Blogger about) what's going on.

In knitting news . . . Nothing. Nada. Zip, and zilch, too. I've been so frigging lazy lately it's not funny. I've barely made any progress on the baby blanket, instead devoting my time to playing video games. Note to self: video games can wait, and be played any day. Christmas presents, however, have to be finish within a certain time frame. Otherwise, they aren't Christmas presents anymore!

Tomorrow, I am devoting a good 4 hours to working on that blanket. Damn the world and all its problems; they can wait until after some knitting has been done! Baby Sean needs his blanket!

Normal post . . . plus sewing!

2005-11-22T12:00:00.000-04:00

I feel like I'm getting oddly popular. *grins* People are leaving more comments on my blog. *waves to all who have commented over the last few days*

The day in the house proved most successful. I think I've made it to the halfway point on the basketweave blanket, which makes me very very happy. Half down, half to go, and no doubt that'll come along in leaps and bounds over the next couple of weeks.

I also got back to sewing on the plushie that I was supposed to give Rachel for her birthday, but was lazy, and so have to give it to her for Yule. Over an hour and a half of half-watching TV and half-sewing, I got the arms sewn up and stuffed, and part of the body sewn. Just got to finish up the body and stuff that, then work on the head (sewing the eyes, the mouth, and figuring out a decent way to attach the hair). After that comes the fun of making clothing for the plushie, which I'm actually looking forward to. I suppose that plushie can be my test-figure for various knitting patterns, too. Make mini-versions of what I'd like to make properly, and give the mini version to the plushie. It can get a full wardrobe that way! *laughs*

Have to go out today (whether my foot's feeling better or not, really), so I'll knit until then, and probably do more sewing tonight. For some reason, I've been loathe to bring the baby blanket downstairs to knit on when we watch TV. It's not like it's cumbersome . . . Maybe I'm just afraid of the dog pulling out yet more stitches. :p Silly dog. So my sewing makes a nice evening project.

Stuck-in-the-House Day!

2005-11-21T11:15:00.000-04:00

After a foot injury last night (involving a refrigerator door and a large flap of skin hanging off the back of my heel), I have learned that it is now too painful for me to put on sneakers. Which sucks, because I actually have things I needed to do today. I needed to go get a money order. I needed to walk the dog. I needed to go to the gym for my final personal trainer appointment.

As it is, now I need to call my PT and tell her I can't make it. I'll try and stick my sneakers on again after some painkillers, and if that works, I'll be able to walk the dog and go get the money order, but I don't think I'm too up for weight lifting and treadmills when I'm in pain and limping.

So if I can put my sneakers on, I can still spend most of the day knitting. If I can't . . . I can spend even more of the day knitting.

The baby blanket is coming along, little by little. It's now more than half as long as it is wide, which is good, given that it's about 25 inches wide. Still got a fair way to go, though. I'd say I'm maybe 1/3 - 1/4 done. Should be done in time for Christmas.

Luke's asked for a pretty easy present. A new scarf. Nothing fancy, really (I somehow doubt that a lacy pattern would suit him :p), but I'm thinking some of the Shetland Chunky that I used for the snake scarf and the bathroom shawl, though in different colours. Maybe something nicely variegated. I can pick up 2 balls when I get some more weight-loss money, and knit him up a quick scarf in a day or two, at most. That takes care of that present.

Suppose I ought to go take those pain killers and call Tiffany and let her know I'm not coming today. This is the second appointment I've had to cancel, and I feel bad about it, but really, I don't think I can do it today.

2005-11-18T10:47:00.000-04:00

So I've been thinking a lot about recycling yarn lately. You know, turning cheap thrift-store sweaters into moutains and mountains of yarn that can be made into something else. Fantastic way for me to get more yarn, since buying it otherwise gets expensive very quickly. I mean, I can pay $4 and get a wool sweater to unravel, or I can pay $20-30 to get enough wool to make a sweater, and then make other stuff out of it. I don't think there's any kind of math that will tell me that recycling the yarn is more expensive.

I know I already have identical two black ribbed sweaters that are just waiting to be taken apart.They're too small for me now, and so have been collecting dust. They'll yield a large amount of roughly sport-weight yarn, which is quite good, as far as I'm concerned. (Just think of all the socks I can make, eventually!)

And (since my mind seems to be money-driven of late), I can sell excess yarn on EBay. I mean, if I can get enough spare money to go out and buy a few sweaters from thrift stores, unravel them, and then find that no, I don't really want that yarn after all, there's no harm in making a little bit of profit back, is there? People do it all the time, after all.

So I was thinking of this last night, and lo and behold, a name pops into my noggin.

Reinyarnations.

So now that the name is stuck in my head. A quick Google search reveals that it's not used by anyone yet. So I claims it, I does. Yar.

I want to go and start a-frogging now, but I've still got too much knitting to do before I can safely feel I have the time to take knitting apart. Once again, something to be done in the new year. (I'll have probably saved enough money to get some sweaters that aren't my black sweaters, either.)

I found something I just have to rant on.

2005-11-17T13:50:00.000-04:00

People. (Wow, that narrowed it down, didn't it?) People who are completely against using animal fibres in knitting, because of the harm that comes to the animals. People who do this, and then call other people misinformed for having differing opinions.

Aside from the general stupidity of the human race in general, let me go into specifics on why this bothers me.

Yes, I'm sure we've all heard about SaveTheSheep.com. The horrible images they show. The bad stories they tell, about how cruel it is to hold the sheep down and shear them of their precious precious wool. Why, if God (or insert appropriate deity here) intended sheep to not have fleece, (S)He would have made them that way! (Please read appropriate sarcasm in that.)

Yes, I'm sure the sheep aren't too fond of being held down and sheared. Little kids put up a huge fuss when you have to bathe them. That doesn't mean we should let them run around and be dirty. And have you ever tried to bathe a dog, or a cat? It's like going through clawed hell in some cases, but it's better in the long run if it's done.

Know why sheep, typically, are sheared in the springtime? Because the winter's over, the weather's turning warmer, and if they keep all that heavy fleece on them, they're going to overheat. Possibly die from it. So is this a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" situation? Save the Sheep even states that the 'unnatural overload' of wool on Merinos can cause them to pass out and die in the hotter months of the year, because of heat stroke. (But shearing them is bad, mmkay?)

Yeah, when animals are treated like factory commodities, there's a problem. I disagree with that kind of treatment. Myself, I'll buy free-range eggs at the grocery store, even if they're a little more expensive than the ones bought from companies where the chickens are kept in small cages all day. But I won't go out and say, "Don't eat eggs, because most companies are immoral! Save a chicken today!" What people are missing is the fact that there's *gaspshock* another option.

Save the Sheep claims that Anyone who buys wool helps foot the bill for a cruel and bloody industry that no amount of fluff can hide. Except for the cases where people, I dunno, buy from small local fibre farms where the sheep are treated better. Which, with the growing interest of knitting and other such crafts, more people are doing.

Save the Sheep tries very hard to convince people that wool is a Bad Bad Thing, starting such facts as "It causes allergies and/or extreme itching for many people" and "It's very water-absorbent, and doesn't dry quickly." It doesn't state, however, that wool can retain 30-50% of its heating capability when wet, which no other fibre, I believe, does. Have two wool blankets that are completely soaked through, and you're out in the middle of the woods? You may be wet, but at least with wool, you won't die of hypothermia. Acrylic sure as heck won't do that for you.

The sad fact of the matter is that people, if you'll excuse the awful pun, are sheep. They latch onto a cause and blindly follow it, conveniently overlooking any alternatives, never thinking that there might be more to the story than what they're hearing. They talk about how cruel it is for a sheep to be sheared, how they're treated, how anyone who buys wool is supporting cruel practices (loaded issues . . . how I'm sick of them), and accusing everyone who doesn't think that way of being misinformed. Some people (and it's usually the zealots) treat their cause as a crusade, bashing down everyone that comes in contact with them that has a differing opinion.

Animal cruelty is out there. It sucks. Hardcore suckage. I agree. I try to do what I can to cut back on it. But I also know that rather than ban something, I can seek alternative. I can still eat eggs, because I support free-range chickens, and the farmers that make it happen. I don't have to avoid wool like the plague, because there are plenty of places that treat their sheep with kindness and respect, that are willing to sell that wool to me. The majority does not make up the whole. And lumping everyone who likes animals fibres (not flesh, as some people seem to think) with those who pollute the waters with sheep-dip and who treat the animals inhumanely is a VERY unfair generalization.

it's time to open your eyes, people. Your opinion isn't neccessarily the right one. It isn't even the only opinion that matters. It is an opinion. When you only look at one side of the coin, you completely miss the fact that there's another side. Sometimes you even forget that it's a coin you're looking at. If you don't want to do something, that's fine. Your choice. Everyone can make them. But don't force the world into doing what you want, just because you want it. Don't treat everyone who disgrees with you like an idiot. And don't, for the love of all that is pure, go around saying that you're right, and only you, because you found some facts on a minority of cases, and someone's friend's friend told you that that's how it's done everywhere.

It may turn out that you're just as misinformed as the people you're bashing. And that, my dear friends, is called hypocrisy.

Figures.

2005-11-16T20:05:00.000-04:00

Now, why couldn't I have found this pattern before I finished (or better yet, started) The Unnamed? I made the Unnamed for a woman named Dawn, whose favourite colour is purple. This would have been absolutely perfect for her!

Oh well. There's always next year, after all, when I can get my hands on some yarn that's actually more purple and not periwinkle blue.

Change in plans, yet again, for Jenny's gift. Since Duckie was kind enough to include the instructions for doing cell stitch, I think a nice wrap, in the black King Cole Soft as Silk would look lovely, and wouldn't take too long to complete. I'll probably start it next week, and take it to my neurologist appointment to sit and work on while I wait.

Must get off my butt and knit more of the basketweave blanket. November's half over already! Time really is running out! I'm starting to get disturbingly frantic about it!

I'm going to have to cut my losses this year, when it comes to Christmas gifts, I think. I won't have time to make socks for Robert. I'll be lucky if I have the time to finish the blanket and the wrap, and make the long scarf for Luke that he's expressed interest in. I'll feel bad, not being able to give Robert anything . . . Guess I'll just have to give him lots of socks when next Christmas rolls around.

In non-knitting news, I'm looking forward to Yule Baking Day, as proposed by Laura, in which we get together on a day close to Yule, and bake nummy treats to eat. We're going to try our hand at making a log cake, too, which ought to be fun. Since we have no way to burn an actual Yule log, having a log cake with candles on top is as close a substitute as we can get. Edible, too! (I'd like to take a moment to toot my own horn here and say that while this idea probably isn't entirely original, I was the one to propose it to my friends last year. Mwaha.)

I'm starting to think that a cooking journal might be in order for me . . .

Presents!

2005-11-15T13:30:00.000-04:00

I went downstairs to check the mail today, and what did I see waiting for me? A package from Duckie, that's what! I now have a gorgeous cell stitch scarf, in shades of blue and green. Scheepjes Alpine, apparently, 75% wool and 25% acrylic. It's really soft, and the pattern is very pretty. Wrapped around my neck, I can tell it's going to keep me warm, too.

The best thing is that it'll coordinate with the winter coat that my parents are buying for me, which is apparently turqoise, navy blue, and white. Huzzah for complementary colour schemes!

I hereby name this my good luck scarf, for I'm going to wear it to my job interview this afternoon.

Likely, once I get my camera out of storage (sometime in the year two-thousand-and-never), I'll take pictures so that I can show it off to the world. *grins*

And now I must go and get my laundry out of the drier, and prepare for the aforementioned interview.

Life's lessons, as taught by knitting.

2005-11-13T15:23:00.000-04:00

Every day, every moment of my life, are like stitches in lace. There are holes in me; these are not flaws, but rather part of the pattern that makes up who I am. Only when the last stitch is made will I be able to see what my life has made me, look at the hand that knitted me into a whole piece. On that day, and not before, since the pattern is not complete until then.

I must remember that no matter how long it seems my life has gone on, it will go on longer. I am less than half finished, and can only guess at what I will become, what I will look like when all the stitches are bound off. Knit 1, purl 2, yarn over.

I must remember that no matter how long it takes to make me, I am unique. No one else will have a pattern just like mine.

I cannot be unravelled. I can only adapt my pattern to circumstance, incorporate the errors that are not really errors, and see how that changes my final design.

I may only be trimming on someone else's piece, but without me, that piece would be incomplete.

No matter what, I will be beautiful, for no one will ever say that lace is ugly.

2005-11-13T11:02:00.000-04:00

I got a bit further with both the basketweave blanket and the bathroom shawl yesterday. With the bathroom shawl, I finished the two triangles, and put them together, and noticed that I've gotten a fair bit better at seaming, which is a good thing. Proof that practice does indeed make perfect.

I also discovered yesterday that I have a decently-sized stash of beads, squirrelled away in various places. I came to the brilliant conclusion (and the word 'brilliant' should be read with minor sarcasm) that I could turn these beads into something useful. Say, sets of stitch-markers that I've been needing. Beats the heck out of going out and spending money when I don't have to, gives me something new to do with my hands, and gives those beads a use. And it's nice to have something so personalized and useful that I know I made.

Also works perfectly for these Random Acts of Kindness packages that I hear everyone talk about. *grins* Though I don't have the addresses of many knitbloggers, I can at least send something to those whose addresses I do have. Mayhaps as Christmas gifts, even!

In other news, I am sick. Blech. I'm pretty sure I caught this from Rachel. Thankfully, though, I'm really only a bit more stuffed up than normal, with a rather sore throat. Plenty of tea with honey, and Halls, will sort that out. This level of sickness I can easily work through. It practically doesn't affect me. It's when things hit my lungs, or I get the flu and can't get out of bed for a week, that really bugs me. Still tired as all hell, though. Since starting the gym, I've been sleeping more at night, and I've already been sleeping more than a normal person ought to anyway.

Oh well. That's what my appointment with the neurologist is for, after all.

Right. Stitch-markers. On it.

(*looks askance at her mug of chai, wondering why it tastes so odd today* Oh damn, I forgot to add milk, that's why!)

Huzzah!

2005-11-11T11:18:00.000-04:00

Duckie's scarf arrived at its destination yesterday. You can pictures of it here, if you're interested. I'm glad she likes it. All she requested was something that'll help keep her warm through the winter, so I figured that would indeed do the trick. 'Tis a cozy scarf.

More progress was made yesterday on the baby blanket, though not as much as I'd have liked, given that I spent last night at the gym party (which rocked, by the way. Full of tasty snacks and fun exercising), followed by coming home and becoming entranced by Rachel playing Castlevania: Lament of Innocence. Today, though, since it's a holiday and I have no obligations other than walking the dog, will be spent knitting more of it. Bit by bit, it'll come along.

The people I've shown it to so far think it looks decent. The stitches are loose, given that I'm working with a slightly larger needle than I normally would, but that just means it'll be a good springtime blanket, as well as being big enough to wrap Sean all up with in the winter months, too. Double bonus! (Or something.)

After this come the socks (hopefully) and the wrap that I've decided would be even better for Jenny than the poncho or the scarf, then the baldy hat, and I'm all done my knitted Christmas gifts! Huzzah!

Of course, then I have to finish sewing up the Griffin plushie, make the Shigure figure and the yukata, and throw together a book of puzzles, but actually, those things won't take me too long. The puzzle book will be the longest, but if I actually work on that little by little while Rachel's at work, it'll get done quickly enough.

Still, time's a-wastin'!

Sick, yet again.

2005-11-10T10:58:00.000-04:00

Finally caught up on all the knitting blogs I haven't managed to read this week. It only took me what, an hour and a half? What else was I going to do with that time, after all?

The gym party's tonight, and wouldn't you know it, I'm feeling distinctly like I'm getting a cold. Ugh. Figures. I'm all stuffed up and sneezy, and I probably shouldn't go to a place where I'm going to infect a bunch of health-conscious people, but . . . Gym party! Free food! Reasonably attractive women dressed in togas! More chances to exercise, and bring Rachel along to boot!

I guess I'll just have to see how I'm feeling later this evening. I'm sure today will be spent with many a cup of tea, downing eccinacea pills in order to boost my health just a little bit. I can't afford to let this infection hit my lungs, though. Already asked my parents for enough medication money over this and previous months. (I already suspect that the antibiotics may not have killed off the previous infection completely, since I woke up twice last night to take my inhaler. Not good. Really not good.)

In knitting news, the baby blanket is coming along nicely. Not very big at present, but it's moving quickly enough that it shouldn't take me too long to finish. I hope. I mean, I do have from now until Christmas, but I don't want it to take that long! Maybe a few weeks of good solid knitting. Maybe. At most.

I need to get back to working on the bathroom shawl, too. I'm suspecting that I may need another skein of yarn for that one, though, which may impede my progress somewhat. (I say oh so casually, as if running out of yarn for a project only increases the chances of not being able to work on it.)

Right. Time to go make myself some tea, curl up with Buffy, and work some more on the blanket.

(On a more random note, has anyone else noticed that WhoLinksToMe's format has gone all funny and illegible over the past few days? It now shows none of the links, things overlaps each other, and the page has tons and tons of whitespace. Is it just my browser that's the problem [though I am using IE at the moment], or something more sinister?)

Change in plans.

2005-11-08T09:42:00.000-04:00

Given the shortness of time between now and Gift-Giving Day, combined with the shortness of my attention span, I decided to make Sean's blanket a nice simple basketweave pattern, instead of the lacy one I had in mind. Oh, Fanned Feathers will be done eventually, but not right now. I just don't have the patience, I think, to deal with something that requires so much of my attention. Since starting to go to the gym, I've been sleeping more, and finding it harder to concentrate on the little things. Something as simple as k4p4 suits me just fine right about now.

On the plus side, this also means the thing'll actually get done for Christmas! Huzzah!

I'm beginning to give the intended wool socks up as a lost cause, since I can never find the right size needles, and, being unemployed, I don't have the money to buy them anyway. Maybe next year. *sigh* I was so hoping to be able to make them for Robert this year.

Well, I suppose if I get a job soon, I might still be able to, after all. The dpns are only going to be about $5, then intended wool about $10-12. $20'll buy the whole lot, and I'm sure I can spare that out of a paycheque, really. Y'know, after I bring my bills down a little.

Why do the mundanities of the world always seem to get in the way of fantasy knitting? *laughs*

I think I'm going to skip the gym today in favour of rest. I didn't get much sleep last night, and I know that if I don't nap at some point today, I'll be asleep by 8 this evening . . . and that'd mean I miss House. Can't have that! Besides, I still am going back tomorrow for another half hour at least. I say at least, because if I manage to bring a CD player with me (if I can find Rachel's), it'll make the time go by quicker, and I'll be able to be entertained there longer. A distraction from the weakness in my legs, really.

So, given that it's not even 10 AM yet, I think this calls for some relaxing knitting of the basketweave. Yes, yes it does.

2005-11-04T13:43:00.000-04:00

Now that's pretty dang nifty. Michaels just called me back about teaching knitting classes. They have someone already, but they said that person doesn't exactly consider themselves to be a very advanced knitter, so the Event Coordinator said that if I might be interested in organizing an advanced knitting class, come in and talk to her, show some stuff that I've done, etc. Classes aren't hugely popular right now, but that's partially because Michaels is new, and most people don't know that they offer classes.

I don't know if I'd call myself a particularly advanced knitter, but I do know more than your basic basics, so that's a start. I figure that once I figure out how to knit socks properly, and maybe get a good start on that shawl I've been planning, I might be able to handle teaching a class. And really, that'll be in the new year anyway, at which point, popularity in classes may have picked up.

The really spiffy part is that the classes are $20 per person, and I get 90% of those fees. I don't have to buy supplies for everyone; that's the job of the participants themselves. I can just imagine it. For an hour's class, if only 1 person signs up, I get $18. If 5 people sign up, I'd get $90. Talk about a good way to earn some extra cash!

Less good is the restriction that everything on the supply list has to be something that people can buy at Michael's. I can understand that from a business sense, but I know plenty of people whose blogs I read that offer some damn good patterns, for low prices, and it would have been fun to boost their sales a little that way. *chuckles* Alas, I'll just have to provide cheap free patterns myself, if I choose to do this.

I definitely want to. Extra cash, plus spreading the joy of knitting, equals happy me!

Problems come in all shapes and sizes.

2005-11-03T11:32:00.000-04:00

I finished the last panel of The Unnamed last night, and started sewing the two of them together. After sewing up one side, however, I realised that there'd be a small problem.

If I sewed up the second side, thus creating the circular poncho, the hole in the middle would be too small to fit anything but a child's head through. And since I didn't knit this for a child . . .

Ugh. Damn the pattern for basing its directions and numbers on bust size rather than head size. I don't know what they were thinking, really, but in my crazy old world, it's better to have a poncho that you can actually put on but that may not cover all of your front, than a poncho that'll cover everything but has to hang around your forehead to do so.

So right now, it's only got one side sewn up. I'm thinking the best way to do this is to attach a button somewhere on a remaining side, one that'll fit through any of the holes made by the lace pattern, in order to get the damned thing to stay on the intended recipient. That way, it can be a little more adjustable, too.

The problem then will be finding buttons that are the right colour, size, and don't come in a huge bag of 300 other buttons that I'll never want or need.

However, this nixes the plan for Black Twin, since I'm not putting up with this again. I could, in theory, put more stitches in the cast-on, and do one or two less pattern repeats, since that would easily solve the problem, but I'm in no mood to experiment like that when these things are going to end up being Christmas gifts. Maybe for next year, when I have more time, and can go around and measure peoples' heads in advance, just to be on the safe side.

I'll just have to look around online and see if there's a decent poncho or stole or shawl pattern or something that I can do with the black Soft as Silk. Something that won't take forever. I'm sure finding something won't be that hard. Plenty of patterns in the Internet-sea.

Good Samhain!

2005-10-31T15:43:00.000-04:00

Yeah yeah yeah, my paganism shines bright and strong. :p Didn't get any muffins made today., though, because I'm both tired and lazy, and didn't feel like having half the day spent in the kitchen when I could be resting instead.

I do, however, have my costume finished, such as it is. It didn't require anything to actually be made, either. I carved some dead sticks into wooden stakes, found my trenchcoat, and put on some black clothes. A vampire hunter is me! *chuckles*

Yeah . . . this was done all at the last minute. Can ya tell?

On a knitting note, The Unnamed is almost done, and so is the bathroom shawl. The unfortunate thing is now Rachel and I have gone through all 5 seasons of X-Files that she has, so I have no idea what we'll watch at night now while we craft. I'm sure we'll find something, of course, and it's not like we can only knit or sew or embroider while watching TV anyway. It'll just be strange not to tune in to the wacky adventures of Mulder and Scully for a while.

Michaels was completely out of dpns when I went the other day, too. Not just the size that I needed, but all sizes! Well, that's a bit of a lie. They had a few sets of size 8 and size 10 bamboo dpns, but they weren't the sizes I needed, and even if they were, I didn't have the $12 to pay for them! Not at that price! I'll check back in a few days, see if they got any others in. If not, I may just have to go to Zellers or WalMart or some other such place.

And on that note, I will leave you all to your ghosts, ghouls, and dearly departed! May you all have a joyous night!

A new day.

2005-10-29T10:27:00.000-03:00

Last night, on the way to the NaNo party, I brought along my yarn and knitting needles and made a start on the bathroom shawl. (I wasn't the only knitting writer there, but I was the only knitting writer with knitting.) I call it the bathroom shawl because in the winter, it especially sucks to have my stomach play up. I mean, it sucks a lot in the summer, too, but in the winter, I'll be sitting on the can, waiting for the crippling gut pain to end (feel free to skip past all this if it's a TMI moment), and will have forgotten to turn the heat on to make the room just a smidge warmer than an icebox. Even if I do remember to turn the heat on, it won't warm up immediately. And when my stomach hurts that badly, I find that warmth greatly helps keep the pain at a bearable level.

So, the bathroom shawl. Just that little bit of added heat and weight that I'll need to keep from freezing while I'm in there this winter.

Of course, it doesn't just have to be worn in the bathroom. That's just where I'm most likely to wear it, and the reason it was made.

Yeah, it seems I can't go a week without finding some new project to do. :p

I also have my first request. Well, my first non-swap request, anyway. At the kick-off party, I met Elsa, who heard that I knit, and wondered if I could make little covers for the feet of her kitchen chairs, so that they don't scrape against the hardwood floors when the chairs move. The way she asked it made it sound as though she doubted that such a thing was possible. I can think of ways it can be done. I mean, little squares, with a drawstring at the top so they can be tied to the chair. Or glued on to the bottom of the chair leg, even, if they happen to keep falling off. No problem at all.

I don't think she thought I was serious when I said I'd get them to her at the next meet-up. :p She did offer to pay me for them, though. I refused. I mean, for the effort involved, and the fact that I can bang those things together from spare yarn that won't be used for anything else, payment isn't worth it. The look on her face when I hand her something she wasn't sure could be made, however, will be priceless!

And now, back to the tedious process of alphabetizing all of the knitblogs I've got linked to here. It helps that a lot of them begin with the letter K. *chuckles* (Of course, Yarn Harlot has the dubious honour of being dead last on the list. :p)

Woot!

2005-10-28T13:01:00.000-03:00

The mail arrived today (as, y'know, it tends to), and guess what was waiting on the doorstep for me.

A gift from Agnes!

A large parcel, containing 9 full balls and 2 partial balls of peruvian wool yarn in a mocha colour, 4 balls of cotton yarn in a beautiful light green colour (which I may attempt to make some socks out of, just for fun), and a bit of red laceweight yarn (whose fibre content I have no idea about :p) that was pressed and squished by the other yarns in such a way as to make it into a little heart! (Very cool twist of fate, that!)

Oh, and let's not forget the pretty pretty card that came along with it.

From the bottom of my heart, Agnes, thank you so much!

I'd be taking picture of it, but the lack of camera stops me. Instead, I shall go and curl up in bed and snuzzle the yarn to death, just to feel its happy softness. XD

Of knitting and cooking. Possibly baking my yarn.

2005-10-27T21:25:00.000-03:00

The final panel of The Unnamed is coming along, albeit slowly, because I've been exceptionally short-attention spanned this past week. Still, I'm fitting in rows where I can, and little by little, it's coming along.

I can tell ya, though, using that spare piece of yarn as a lifeline has worked wonders. I now am no longer afraid of getting halfway and finding out that I screwed up in ways I can't even begin to fathom, and thus have to rip it all the way back.

I have no idea what to do with the leftover skein of sage green Shetland Chunky. I keep thinking slippers, but can't be bothered to find a print out a pattern for them. (Again, that short attention span comes into play.) Then I think about a new scarf, but I already have one. Then I think about a new scarf for somebody else, but I can't find a pattern that won't drive me crazy or drive me to new depths of boredom.

In short, this week has been a bad knitting week. Boo. I dislike bad knitting weeks.

On the plus side, my lung infection is clearing up, I have a year's membership at a gym (courtesy of my parents), and got a card in the mail from my gran. These things are good things. I need more things like this. :p

Tonight will be a toss-up between making another two batches of cookies with Rachel (mint-chocolate pinwheels again), and watching X-Files. Likely, we'll find a way to fit both in, since the cookies need to be made (the dough has been chilling since last night), and Rach still needs to get a move on with her cloak. It's almost Hallowe'en, and it isn't done yet. I have no doubts that she'll finish it on time. I just wonder what condition her sanity will be in afterwards.

I remember, the other day, while walking through Michael's, I found out that they cater to the school of thought that lists cookies and an art/craft form. This makes me happy. Lewiscraft didn't do that. It made me get into an even bigger cooking mood, however, and made me decide upon two things. 1) I will gather together the ingredients to make pumpkin muffins, even if I end up making them after Hallowe'en has passed. 2) I'm going to make a corned beef pie for supper some night, just like my mother used to make. Seems simple enough. Dough. Can of corned beef, mixed with mashed potatoes. Bake until it doesn't suck. How hard can that be?

Now that I've said that, the Fates are going to show me, aren't they?

All of my memories keep you here.

2005-10-24T21:27:00.000-03:00

I was pleasantly surprised at how quick Jander's snake scarf was knitted. One afternoon, and it was complete. O_O I sat and goggled at it for a little while, wondering how I managed to finish so quickly. Does this house have knitting gnomes?

Granted, the scarf is pretty short by my own personal standards (it only has to go around the neck of a 5-year-old), but it still seems like it should have taken longer to make. And it was so simple that I now have the pattern memorized, just from making it once.

When I'm rich, I'll buy a whole load of Shetland Chunky in Sage Green, and knit a bunch of them for next year's Empty Stocking Fund. I mean, if I can knit a single one in an afternoon, then I week of making them will net me about 10. That'll be 10 kids who'll have a cool snake-shaped scarf ready to keep them warm during the bitter Atlantic Canadian winter. And that's only assuming I do 10 of them. I can make 1 with less than a single skein of yarn. 10 skeins probably equal about 13 scarves.

Plus it has googly eyes and a felt tongue. I mean, how cool is that?

Today has been spent, surprisingly, not knitting. Most of it was spent curled up in bed with a good book, which was quite relaxing, though my needles stared at me mournfully, wondering why I'd suddenly abandonned them. Fear not, little needles. I'll pick you up again tomorrow. Lord knows I'll need some stress relief after visiting the Rat-Keeper Who Shall Not Be Named. Doing something productive and still fun will keep me sane once I get home from that visit.

Of course, assuming Rach and I stick another DVD in the player tonight, I'll be picking up the needles sooner than that. I find it really hard to watch TV or movies now without having something for my hands to do at the same time.

Is this the sign of a potentially long-term knitter? I sure as heck hope so!

2005-10-23T13:42:00.000-03:00

Duckie's scarf is complete! Not that it took me long to do. It was a simple enough pattern. It can go twice around my neck and still have enough to tie in the front, so I hope that'll be long enough for her.

Now, on to Jander's snake scarf. I'm putting aside the ponchos for the time being, since thr snake scarf will be a quick knit, and I want it done before anything else distracts me. (Besides, I desperately want to use those new knitting needles!) After that, it'll be back to the ponchos, and those ought to come along pretty quickly too.

Then the socks, and the hat . . . Oh, and let's not forget the baby blanket. That ought to keep me busy for a while.

I don't know what I'll do once I'm done all my gift-knitting. Well, I know I have Rachel's book to make, and I need some Fimo to make Laura's Shigure, but they won't take long to do. The book'll take longer than shaping clay stuff, I'll bet, especially if I can embroider the cover that I want.

I now have a few project ideas sitting on the back burner, waiting until after the holiday season. Rachel gifts me with scraps from her sewing projects, and so I recently acquired a nice length of soft black material. Not very long, but long enough that, once the sides are evened up, it'll make a nice evening scarf type thing. I was thinking of embroidering a flower motif on it, in bright jewel colours, which I think would look striking on such a black background. (I ought to get more of the material and make some evening gloves to go with it. :p)

Then there's the Leda's Dream stole I want to attempt, though that'll have to wait until a new job brings me enough money to order the yarns.

I have that cotton sitting in my room that'll be turned into a nice shawl, as soon as I decide on a pattern.

Maybe I'll try the Branching Out pattern again, too, once I have the time. It'd be nice to get some pretty softly variegated green yarn for that, to play on the leaf motif. (Hey, that rhymes!)

But there's plenty of time to decide on new projects once my current ones are done. For now, I'll ride my current lung infection (damned weak lungs!) out with knitting a huge green snake for my best friend's nephew, and then return to the evil ponchos of doom. :p

Boo.

2005-10-22T09:47:00.000-03:00

My computer's power-supply is shot, so expect much less posting here (or anywhere, for that matter) until it's fixed. Which could conceivably not be until I get an entirely new computer. I can at least post using the other computer in the house, but sitting here for too long hurts my neck and back, so I doubt I'll be as eager to run to it whenever I have something to say.

Duckie's scarf is coming along quite nicely.I'll work on it more today, possibly while hiding from the over-energetic 4-year-old that's spending the night. Kids wig me out, and I can only handle them in very small doses.

Rachel was kind enough to purchase the yarn and the knitting needles I'd need to make said 4-year-old's snake scarf, too. Paton's Shetland Chunky, in sgae green, and aluminum knitting needles by Boye, which are purplse, and promote much love in me. I hate those plastic knitting needles. It bugs me to no end when they bend so easily. So nice happy metal ones (I toyed with the idea of wooden ones, but passed them up for now, namely in favour of price) are perfect for me.

When I mentioned that the pattern for the scarf ideally included googly eyes and a red felt tongue, she grabbed that stuff for me, too. Woot! I'll be paying her back eventually. Like, when I get a new job. But the fact that she was kind enough to get these things for me now speaks volumes.

Now, from my Christmas crafty list, I'm only missing a set of dpns, dark brown yarn, white yarn, and some Fimo clay in flesh colour and dark brown. That's it. Which, all things considered, isn't too bad, really. It won't take me long to make all the things that need to be made. The hardest thing will be the socks, since I've never made them before and I've heard they can be kinda tricky at first, but hey, that's what practice is for, right? I can probably convince Rach to spring for the set of dpns that I'll need, too (since if I have them, it means I can make socks for her, too. :p)

Siiiiiiiiick. ;_;

2005-10-21T11:49:00.000-03:00

Of course, the only reason I'm sick is because I spent most of yesterday with Laura. I don't know why, but her apartment always sets off my asthma and allergies, so by the end, I'm having trouble breathing, my eyes are so swollen that it's hard to open them, and my nose is runny. And of course, because my body's dumb, it always takes me at least a day to fully recover. Stupid body.

The upside, though (aside from spending time with friends, that is), is that I made a good start on Duckie's scarf. No idea what to name it yet, though, but it looks pretty nifty, and I'll probably only need the 1 balls of Decor instead of 2. Which is good, since I only have the one ball. :p The scarf has an odd diagonal slant to it that I can't fix, and really, I think it looks almost better slanted than having the lines run perfectly straight. Gives it a bit of a personality.

Griffin has suggested that she may possibly buy me the yarn I'll need for Jander's snake scarf, too, which will be nice. I'll see if I can convince her to buy me some cheapy yarn for my dad's Baldy hat, too. I've never knit a hat before, but heck, it seems simple, and there's a first time for everything. The fun part will be getting it to say "BALDY". XD

Messed up night.

2005-10-20T11:32:00.000-03:00

I must admit, sometimes I'm impressed by the ways that I can mess up a pattern. I managed to get halfway through the first panel of Black Twin before realising that somehow I screwed it , and the pattern was now seriously wonky. I tried tinking it back, but that proved far too difficult for me at that point (unknitting isn't a strong point with me, I guess), and so . . . *sigh* Yup, back to the beginning I go.

I think it's fate that I'll get halfway through a panel of these ponchos, and then mess up. Next time, I'm going to use a frigging lifeline every 5 repeats, to prevent this.

Either way, I cast on again, and knit 3 repeats before looking at the back to discover this huge frigging loop that wasn't supposed to be there, and I have no idea how it got there. It looked like a dropped stitch that was desperately trying to get away from the project, but since I still had the right number of stitches on the needle, I have no idea how this happened at all.

Given that it was 3 in the morning by this point, I frogged it again, and called it quits for the night. Dealing with it in daylight after a night of sleep will likely make it easier. Or something,

Yeah, I'm thinking that a lifeline may be the best idea at this rate, for preventing those halfway screwups that seem to keep happening. First the dog walking over The Unnamed, then my attention slipping and messing up the pattern on Black Twin. It's a sign from the knitting deities of the world, I think, teaching me how important those little extra pieces of yarn can be when slipped through stitches for a purpose.

Good lesson to learn, better sooner than later. (Shame I didn't learn it sooner than sooner, though.)

Well, it's not as thought this will take long to get to the position it was in when I messed up, thankfully. Give it a night, and I'll be rolling again. Once this simple pattern gets stuck in my head, it just won't leave. I am, in fact, tempted to see how it looks with that Paton's Decor that I have set aside for Duckie's scarf, and see if I can't do the same kind of pattern for that. Might look pretty nifty.

Only one way to find out, I guess!

2005-10-18T18:43:00.000-03:00

Today, I went to check out the new Michaels for the first time. I was less than impressed. Aside from not being approached by any employee that I saw (be they busy or otherwise), their selections of things are only marginally more diverse than what Lewiscraft had. And that's saying something, given that the store is, like, 10 times larger than Lewiscraft. They had more stuff in some areas, less in others, and some stuff seemed pretty poor quality.

I finally set my eyes on ribbon yarn, however. It seems like nothing special, but I can imagine a few things it could be used for. I also found some stuff that was amazingly soft, part mohair, part acrylic, part nylon, and I wanted some, but it was a bit out of my price range, really. (Not that that says much at the moment. :p)

They had a neat little kit that came with all sizes of small (lengthwise) knitting needles, where you added the wire on yourself to form whatever size circular you need. Pretty handy, I must admit, though I'm not sure yet is $99.99 is a good price for that or not. They also had a knitting machine for something over $200, which was interesting, but not at all tempting. Getting projects out quickly is nowhere near as fun and sitting down and doing them by hand.

I checked out the local thrift stores on a whim, to see if they had any good yarn around. They did, but it was already in clothing form. :p This made me realise that I need to get better at cutting seams and unravelling finished projects. Thrift stores have a wealth of old cardigans and sweaters in less-than-appealing styles, just waiting to be ripped back to nothing and made into something shiny and new. I lusted after no less than three different items today because of what I could make out of the materials. *chuckles*

Well, in the meantime, I have done another quarter of another half of Black Twin, and I ought to get back to it. No doubt more of it will be done tonight while watching yet more X-Files episodes (what we'll do when we run out of DVDs to watch, I just do not know), but there's no harm in working more on it now, either. So I'll do that while drinking Aruba Jam Sprite (arguably the best Sprite flavour ever invented) and eating Smarties.

(Final note to self - Get your act together and make one of those cheap drop spindles from old CDs, and try to spin the dog's fur into something useful. You have about an ounce of it sitting in a bag doing nothing, so you may as well do, y'know, something!)

[Edit] - I believe I've just found the perfect pattern that I want to use for Duckie's scarf, in the Scarf Swap. It may take one more ball of the yarn I have set aside for it, but I think I can get that pretty cheaply, so that's no big deal. And it ought to look nice once it's done.

2005-10-17T20:39:00.000-03:00

After weeks of monotony, I finally finished the first panel of The Unnamed! Huzzah! The identical final panel won't take nearly so long, though. The reason this one took forever was because first the fog walked over it and pulled out a load of stitches, and then I didn't touch it for weeks.

I figure I'm going to start on The Unnamed's twin, though, in black. This will prevent me from finishing the first Unnamed and getting sick of the pattern, and just saying, "Meh, I'll find something else to give Jenny for Christmas." If I have two unfinished projects, I'll be compelled to finish them, and that way they'll actually get finished.

There's such a sense of accomplishment associated with finishing this half of The Unnamed. First lacy pattern ever done (not that it was hard), and just the way it looks! The cast on was a fair bit tighter than the bind off, which gives it an interesting diagonal appearance that I like. I'm sure the pattern said "bind off loosely", so my guess is that it's supposed to be that way. Still, even if it isn't, I like it.

Now, on to the first half of The Unnamed's black twin. Which needs a name. I'm thinking I'll just call it Black Twin for now.

The good and the bad.

2005-10-15T21:22:00.000-03:00

First, the bad. Lewiscraft fired me yesterday. They gave me no reason, and were within their rights to give me no reason, seeing as how I was still within my 3-month probationary period. However, this annoys me, because they therefore gave me no chance to understand what I was doing wrong, and possibly explain myself. So I find myself out of a job again.

I'm making myself see this as a possible blessing in disguise. I mean, what if a better job, like the ones I've been applying for over the past few weeks (Lewiscraft was great, but they offered lousy hours) calls me on Monday and says, "You're hired. Can you start immediately?" I can say yes, instead of having to faff around with giving 2 weeks notice. I might, if I'm lucky, get that job at Sendant, doing the night shift, which will mean more pay for less work, and ample time to knit while the calls aren't coming in.

I think it's funny how, if I get that job, I'll be doing more knitting than when I worked at the store where being able to knit was a requirement.

On a better note, I made good progress of The Unnamed today. Another day or two of absolute boredom like this one, and it should be finished. Then I can move on to its black twin, which will be given to Rachel's brother's wife for Christmas. (Hopefully Jenny and Rachel's mother won't notice that their gifts are identical except for the colour. :p)

Finished At Knit's End, and thought it was a great read. Quick, but I doubt it was meant to be time-consuming. I find it great to note just how many 'symptoms' of an obsessive knitter that I fit. The only thing preventing me from having the Insane Yarn Stash of Doom, however, is money, though that will most certainly change once I get a beter job that pays me more. Hell, shopping spree! XD I especially want some laceweight yarn. Any colour will do, so long as the fibres are natural.

I hope that Michael's sells laceweight yarn. From what I hear, I doubt it, but I won't give up hope until I browse their yarn section. Which I'll probably do on Monday, just for kicks. (I'll also drop a resume off to them, on the offchance that they're hiring.)

Now, I think I've successfully de-virused my computer, so I'm going back to knitting on The Unnamed again, and watch yet more X-Files episodes with Rachel.

I'm bad.

2005-10-13T19:36:00.000-03:00

I spent money I shouldn't have. I bought another ball of Red Heart Soft Baby to finish the baby blanket with, as well as splurging on a copy of At Knit's End, by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee. I'm only 40 pages in, but this book is wonderful. Short blurbs and thoughts and reflections on knitting that are both insightful and amusing. I can tell that this is going to be a good read.

I wonder if her second book is just as good. Shame Coles doesn't have it, though, so it'll be a while before I find out.

So now I have reading fun, and a way to actually finish an ambitious project. And tonight, I think that instead of knitting blanket squares while watching X-Files, I'll work on more of The Unnamed. Huzzah!

And now I do believe it's time to curl up with this book and a nice hot cup of decaf chai. Mmmm, chai . . .

Katakatakoom!

2005-10-13T13:33:00.000-03:00

So, I was an impatient bad person yesterday, and gave my mother her Christmas present extremely early. She loved it, though. She thinks the scarf is incredibly soft (she's right), and her only concern was whether or not it sheds (it doesn't). So overall, she's incredibly pleased.

I told her I'd have to make something new for her proper Christmas present now.

My hair has now been cut to a much more manageable length. I found myself wondering how well human hair can be spun. I didn't ask them to save it so I could try, though. I can just imagine how weird that would have made me look. *laughs*

I've started on my third ball of Berella for the patchwork blanket. After laying out some squares on the bed the other day, I discovered I'm going to need much more than the 6 balls total I have for it. Not too big a problem, since 100g balls are only $2.50 at work, and that's before my 30% discount kicks in. I'll pick up a few more balls with the weight-loss money I'll be getting next month.

Also still going to need to pick up another ball of Red Heart Soft Baby, in Bunny Print, for the baby blanket. One ball really isn't going to cut it.

Need to make more progress on The Unnamed. I'd lost track of how many repeats I'd done, and where I was in the next one, so I was almost tempted to rip it out and make a third restart. However, a quick look at it told me that I'd just reached the end of the third repeat, so I can just pick it up from there with no difficulty at all. Time for more episodes of Buffy, I guess, while I knit on that.

I'm quite happy, though that Wendy's Lucy pen arrived so promptly. Always makes me happy to give people gifts and know that they enjoy them. Huzzah!

I also can't want for the Scarf Swap on Craftster starts. I'm greatly looking forward to making and then receiving a scarf from someone. See, more love of giving stuff to people. *grins*

Happy Canadian Turkey Day!

2005-10-10T11:41:00.000-03:00

Go out and hug your Canadian turkeys. :p Let them feel love.

A few more blanket squares knit, a few more rows on Fanned Feathers, and that's it. Yeah, for the past few days, even! I am such a lazy ass! I don't know why, but I've felt totally disinterested in picking up any of my knitting. Well, that's a bit of a lie. I have felt interested. It's just that whenever I look at any of my PiPs, my arms start to ache with the very thought of lifting the needles.

I have, however, on a whim, discovered something about knitting the veils with a strange of DMC embroidery floss. I can't do it. At least, not with the needles that I have. I'd need something much finer, and with a much better point, or there's no way in hell I can get it done.

However, if I get said needles, it'll also be a way forme to use up random handed-down spools of sewing thread that my mother gave me. I can guarantee you that I'll never be sewinganything that will require lime green thread, for example.

I'm participating in a Scarf Swap on Craftster, which I can feel rekindling my urge to knit already. Hopefully my assigned partner won't want something too complex, since I have a shortage of money, and not the greatest variety in my stash. Though I figure if I have to sacrifice a ball of Berella from my blanket plans now, to actually provide a decent scarf, I can always buy another later. They're $2.50, after all, and if I get a new job soon, that money'll be nothing!

I did come across some rather nicely coloured acrylic yarn at work last night that's on for less than $3, but, well, it all depends on what my partner will want. If they want something that needs blocking, for example, that idea's out.

I guess I'll just have to wait and see.

I vow today to at least get some more of The Unnamed done. Poor thing's been sitting on my desk for a week now, looking all floppy and untouched. And since I don't have to work again until this Friday (sad pathetic work hours, I know), I'll have plenty of time this week to get something done.

So, I have the strangest idea.

2005-10-06T18:15:00.000-03:00

Veils. Knit on very small needles, with one strand of DMC embroidery floss. Or any kind of floss, really. And by strand, I don't mean the entire 6-ply skein. I mean 1 strand of that 6-ply skein, to make it really thin and gauzy.

I don't know why, but I get the feeling that veils like this could be really fun to knit. Fiddly, but fun. I get the feeling that'll be something I try once all my Yule projects are out of the way, too. (Unless anyone I know would like a veil for Yule, that is.)

I knit 4 more blanket squares last night, and started on a fifth before getting too tired to continue. This makes 12 done so far. Not many, given that they're all rather small, but every little bit counts. Since the baby blanket requires a pattern that I haven't quite memorized yet, and The Unnamed managed to run away somewhere (I'll find it soon, I hope), mindless square knitting is productive, and keeps my hands busy while Rachel and I watch X-Files episodes.

Being sick is the pits right now. You'd think it'd give me good knitting time, but I can barely keep my mind focussed for an hour, let alone the time it takes to actually knit something. At least something that required me to actually pay attention to it (which is why X-Files episodes and blanket squares are a good idea at the moment). I try to play video games, to read, to knit, to sleep, but I can't seem to do anything for a long stretch. I'd love to be sleeping right now, but as much as my body needs it, it won't let me have any.

Dumb body.

The true question is . . .

2005-10-05T10:02:00.000-03:00

. . . how much of a knitting geek does one have to be before they start dreaming about cleaning out their room and finding tons of skeins of yarn buried away in a box?

Becuase that is primarily what last night's dream was. I was looking for an old collection of My Little Pony figures (which I never had when I was young, but love now), and when I found them, they were thrown in a huge Rubbermaid tote bin, mixed amongst balls and balls of yarn. Some cheap stuff, some good stuff, but all stuff I could use. This made me impossibly happy. I found both my Ponies and yarn I thought I didn't have.

What better way to spend a dream?

I've been lazy and haven't been doing too much serious knitting lately. Too sick, methinks.(I'm pretty sure I've got that bad cold that's hitting everyone in the city again.) I have, however, been taking little snippets of time while watching Rachel play video games to try knitting with DMC embroidery floss. Thin needles are used, obviously (I think I'm using size 2s), and they're just going to result in minor bookmarks or something (since I don't have enough of any one colour to be really impressive and knit a whole scarf from it, or something), but I realy like the feel of it when it's knit up. It feels a little bit like a type of ribbon, and has a lot of stretch to it. I'm currently using something cheap I got from a sale, in variegated greens, and I've managed to get it to stay even enough to have two rows of each colour, which is coming on pretty nicely.

I think, if I can find the money, to keep experimenting with this. Knitted floss bookmarks may become my next 'quickie' project. (An avid reader can never have too many bookmarks, after all.)

Today, though, I'll likely finish up this legnth of floss, and then get back to working on Fanned Feathers (I was hoping to find a name that wasn't just the name of the pattern, but Agnes is right. That does seem to be the easiest thing to refer to it by). Time is ticking by, and I don't want to be caught with unfinished projects at the end, just because I was undedicated. Baby Sean will need his blanket in the coming cold months. And Dawn and Jenny will need their ponchos. (And my dad will need his Baldy hat, but I haven't started on that one yet.)

2005-10-02T12:27:00.000-03:00

I cast on the stitches for Sean's baby blanket last night (I really need a better name for it than that*), and I suddenly began to understand why people like circular needles better than straight ones sometimes. I can fit 143 stitches on 35-inch straights, but it's all bunched up at the bottom, and if the needles got much longer, they'd be all unwieldly. Yeah, next time I try this, I'll try and pick up some circulars that have a better length that those straights. See what everyone's raving about.

Still, it ought to look quite pretty, with the soft variegated baby colours. I'll probably work on some of it today, while Rachel's at work. At the very least, I'll likely be able to get done the 1.25 inches of garter stitches at the border, and then I'll be able to move onto the actual pattern stitches. Which, of course, if what I'm looking forward to the most!

* On the offchance that someone actually reads this blog, I'm giving you a chance to name Sean's blanket. Since I don't have a camera, unfortunately, I'll just have to link to the yarn and the pattern I'm using, and hope that someone with a better mind than my own can put the two together to imagine how it may look. This is the pattern I'm using, with this yarn.

Sadly, I don't have any prizes or anything for this contest. Except maybe some eternal affection. Everyone loves that, right?

And now, I'm going to go make myself a Caesar salad, grab my knitting needles, and get back to work.

I'm bad at thinking of post titles.

2005-09-30T14:06:00.000-03:00

I have the overwhelming urge to knit a sweater. The problem is that I don't have nearly enough yarn to knit a sweater. Nowhere close.

Well, I have quite a few balls of Bernat's Berella yarn that I originally had plans to make into a load of simple squares for a blanket, but those are all in different colours, some variegated. If I put them all together, it'd look hideous. Purples and greys and reds and funny-looking blues . . . Not nice colour combos when you have to throw them all together.

Besides, I was looking for something a little thinner than worsted weight.

Also, I've never made a sweater before. I think it'd be good practice for me, a good exercise. Aside from the lack of yarn, though, I have too many projects to make before Christmas that starting on something as big as a sweater probably wouldn't be the best idea. Maybe next year. (I keep saying that to every non-essential project idea that crosses my mind . . .)

Turns out I'll have to stop by work today to pick up a new pair of knitting needles for Sean's Blanket. The pattern calls for 5mm needles. I have 4mm, and 6mm. Figures. I can either cut my losses and make it too loose or too tight, but I really don't want to. I have a spare $6 in my bank account. That'll buy me the needles I need. I'm just afriad of going and being roped into working tonight, though. Co-worker Laura may still be sick, so her shift may fall to me. I suppose whether I go in to buy needles and they ask me, or whether I stay home and they call me on the phone to ask me, the end result would be me going in, since I already said I would f need be, but . . . I'd feel more pressured somehow if they asked me face-to-face.

My mind works in strange ways.

Either way, I'll need to go out tonight to get money for next month's bus pass, and the past two weeks of rent money, so I may as well just drop by to pick up the needles. At least then, if I don't have to work tonight, I can come home and start on the blanket. And if I do have to work, I'll know I have the needles to use when I get home. Either way, I win, right?

I did it!

2005-09-30T12:07:00.000-03:00

Black Magic has been finished. Huzzah! One present down, . . . more to go. I don't know how many presents I have to make, but meh, either way it'll be fun.

So now I have Sean's baby blanket to do. I figure since it's annoying to have to hook the printer up to Rachel's laptop in order to print out the pattern, I'll just write it out by hand. Might take longer, but it'll be less annoyance for me, and that'll make me less resentful of having to knit it.

I don't get resentful very often. Just in my really bad days.

I sent the Lucy pen off to Wendy yesterday, so she should get it in the next few weeks. Woot! Makes me feel happy. I love to give people things, preferably little surprise things that are just neat to have. Practical gifts are all well and good, but who wants them when you can have apen shaped like your cat instead? :p

Well, I suppose I should go put pen to paper and start copying that pattern. The sooner I start on it (yes yes, we all know what line's coming next, don't we?) the sooner it gets done, and the sooner I can move on to the next project!

No title is good enough.

2005-09-29T10:58:00.000-03:00

You know, there are a lot of amazing cheap yarns on EBay. If I managed to get the new job I'm hoping for, you can just bet that I'll be ordered yarn through there as often as I can. 10 50g skeins of alpaca/wool yarn for $17? Sold, to me!

Or, at least, it would be sold to me if I had the money for it.

However, once I start going to the gym and losing weight, my parents have promised me $10 for every pound I lose, so I may be able to get some things with that money. As I've said in various other places, meeting my target weight will net me $650 from them, which is a lot of money to throw into craft stupplies. Which is exactly what I will be doing with that money, by the way.

No knitting occured last night, because I spent half the night making many batches of cookies. Chocolate oatmeal. Yum. Today, however, I'm going to make up for it by finished Black Magic, come hell, high water, or yet more cookies! It's got about 4 more inches left on it, so I have no excuse for not doing it.

And since I've now found the perfect pattern for Sean's blanket, I'll be more than happy to start on it. Until I get the pattern repeats memorized, my night knitting will be The Unnamed again, since that's simple enough to remember. K1, *k1, yo, k2tog, rep from *, k1. Next row, K1, P to last, K1. Lather, rinse, and repeat. Nothing that requires any major concentration, and the more I do it, the more will get done.

And now, if you'll all excuse me, I'll go check to see if the mail has arrived, and then write a letter to Scottish Beth, my knitting penpal. Just because I can.

That one thing is me.

2005-09-27T17:50:00.000-03:00

Knitting group didn't last as long as I'd hoped for (only 1.5 hours), but Laura had to go home and get something to eat, so it was understandable why it didn't last longer. Still, I got a few pattern repeats of The Unnamed in, which rekindled my interest some. It's going to be much easier to finish now that I've picked it up again.

Tonight is likely to involve more X-Files episodes (after House, MD, of course), so I'll probably manage to finish off Black Magic then. Huzzah! Finished projects are good, because that means I can start on new ones. *grins*

Until Rachel comes home from work, though, and we can begin our TV-spree, I think I'll do a bit of cleaning, and make myself something to eat. I'm thinking that tuna sandwiches sound good right about now. Seems like a good "autumn day" kind of food.

Guilty Pleasures.

2005-09-27T09:43:00.000-03:00

I knit so much of Black Magic during the X-Files fest last night that it's agone from 1/4 done to 3/4 done. I'd say I have only another 6 inches, maybe less, to knit on it before I can wrap it up all pretty and wait to give it out as a Christmas gift.

Of course, this means that I'm sorely tempted to take it along to the knitting group today, instead of taking The Unnamed. But I have to be strong. The Unnamed needs to be completed too, and needs infinitely more work than Black Magic does. Besides, the sooner I get back into it, the sooner I stop feeling a bit resentful for having had to pull it all out when the dog screwed it up.

I'm really looking forward to starting on Sean's baby blanket. The only reason I'm waiting until Black Magic is done is because the two require the same needles. Though, if I knit that lacey pattern that I want to, I'd probably be able to start it now, come to think of it. Still, though, if I fall back on my old habits of having too many projects going at once, none of them will ever get finished, and since these are all Christmas gifts, they kinda need to get finished.

Boy, I wish I had my digital camera so that I could take pictures of these finished projects. It's driving me batty to not be showing them off. :p Mostly because I see pictures on all the other journals that I read, and you know me. I just want to be one of the cool crowd.

(Well, not really. Most 'cool' crowds really suck. But still, it seems to be this staple of knitting blogs, that one shows off pictures of what they're doing, and I won't be able to do that until we move again and unpack all of our stuff.)

On a different note, while I was out yesterday, I saw a novelty pen on sale at Colpitts Stationery, and looked just like Wendy's cat Lucy! I wanted to buy it and send it to her as a gift, but I'm not sure how well she'd take to giving out her address to a toal stranger . . . Even if this stranger has commented on her blog a few times.

Besides, I don't even know if I'll have the money to buy it on payday. I might, but there are no guarantees. If I can, then maybe I'll ask her if she has a PO box or something, just so I don't look like a complete stalker. *chuckles*

Snips and snails.

2005-09-26T13:20:00.000-03:00

Another few inches got added to Black Magic last night, making now somewhere btween 1/4 and 1/3 done. Give me a few more peaceful nights of TV-watching, and it should all be done. If I actually take time out of my normal day schedule, it should be done even quicker than that. (I don't know why I haven't been big on the knitting this week. I hope I haven't knit myself out.)

I'm torn between two patterns for Sean's baby blanket. One is a nice lacey design that I enjoy, though Rachel says laciness is a bad idea, since babies can get caught on it easily. I've no idea what she's talking about, since it's not like the holes are big enough to poke his head through or anything, and the way I see this, it's be more of a blanket for holding him in, rather than tucking him in at night. The other pattern, which I'm sure Rachel will approve of more, is a simple checkerboard pattern, knit and purl squares. Plain, but it might look nice in the pale colours of the variegated yarn I have.

As much as Rachel may object, though, I'm likely to do the pacey blanket. It's not, after all, her decision, and not her gift to give. She may be Sean's aunt, but that doesn't mean she knows what's best for him any better than I do, especially in the way of decorative baby blankets.

Either way, I'm likely going to need a second ball of the yarn I bought, to make it big enough. Not too much of a problem. It was only $5 or so. I'm sure I can find that money in my next paycheque.

The knitting group is tomorrow, and I'm looking forward to it. No money for tea, though, which is unfortunate, but I'm sure I can get by without tea for a few hours. I think I'll be taking along The Unnamed. I've been a bit leery of it since I had to rip the whole thing out, and haven't really wanted to pick it up again. Maybe working on it in the presence of others will rekindle my interest. (It had damn well better!)

I now have a craving for dill pickle flavoured popcorn, so there's nothing for it but to go out and spend my last $2 on getting those things. It'll make me breath stink, but it'll make me tummy happy, so it balances out perfectly.

Procrastination? Not your friend.

2005-09-24T11:20:00.000-03:00

I don't know why, but I haven't been able to get into the knitting mood these past few days. I managed to get a few inches done on Black Magic, but that's nothing complicated (it's a garter-stitch scarf, for crying out loud!), and certainly nothing to brag about. The less said about my progress on The Unnamed, the better!

Maybe it's because I've run out of things to do while knitting. I normally watch reruns of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but I can only see the episodes so many times before putting them back on loses its appeal. I can't use the TV downstairs during the day very much, since Rachel's parents lay claim over it. We usually get it for an hour a night on weekends (to watch X-Files), and between 10 PM and 1 AM on weeknights. Other than that, I'm lucky if I get get it to provide minor entertainment for me while I knit during the day.

I need something new to watch. Rachel has ordered 5 seasons of X-Files, so I'm sure a good deal of those will keep me in happy knitting-ness when they get here, but until then . . . I want to knit! I really do! I just am hard-pressed to find anything else to do while I knit, and knitting without anything else to distract my mind and ears is hard for me. (I've developped a short attention span, which is annoying as hell for me when I have so many long-term projects to complete!)

On a different note, I saw Lorraine's finished stole last night at work, and it looks very nice! Made in Bernat Boa yarn, in silvery greys, I want one for myself. Well, I say I want one. I want to make once, and possibly have it in my possession. I doubt I'd ever find a reason to actually wear it. The only use for it would be for costumes, or perhaps for selling. Still, I think she said it took about 3 balls, so give me $20 and a bunch of spare time, and I could make one. What I do with it afterwards is anybody's guess.

Laura and I have made a date to go knit in the back of the Feel Good store on Tuesday. They have back rooms filled with couches for customers to use, and a wide variety of teas to drink, and always welcome people in to use said back rooms and drink said tea. To me, it seems like the perfect place to go and knit for an afternoon. Someone came by work last night who said they'd just learned to knit, and was really enjoying it, and so I invited her to come along and join us. I'd love to start a proper knitting group in this city. I enjoy the feel of being a part of something like that.

I suppose it's time to go stick Buffy in the DVD player again, and see what progress I can make on The Unnamed. I think taht's my daytime knitting project, and Black Magic is my nighttime one. It seems fitting, given their colours.

Ooh, looky here!

2005-09-22T16:25:00.000-03:00

Amazingly, there is a craft show that's near enough for me to get to! The Canadian Needlearts and Sewing Show, located in Moncton. It took place this year in July, so needless to say, I've missed it this time. Next year, however . . . I'd like to go back to Moncton for a vacation, and this would give me a perfect excuse, as well as a good way to meet other crafters, buy supplies, and take a class or two.

Next summer can't come around quick enough!

I need to stop procrastinating and get back to knitting on The Unnamed. It's sitting alone in my bag right now, crying out piteously for someone to help it. Unfortunately, I have to head out for an hour or so, so its cries must remain unheeded . . . Which makes me feel bad. I name a piece of work, and suddenly it develops a personality. When will I learn?

I will knit tonight. I promise myself that.

Well-laid plans.

2005-09-22T00:47:00.000-03:00

I got a whole two rows of knitting done today. Such a procrastinator, I. At least I did have other things to do at the time, though, that took my mind from rows and stitches.

I've decided, though, that once all the hustle and bustle of making Yule presents has ended, I'm going to make myself a bathroom shawl. I have a sensitive stomach, you see, and some foods send me into the bathroom for half an hour or more. It gets pretty cold in there, and I think a nice comfy shawl would really take the edge off, make the gut pain a bit more bearable.

Of course, as I said, that'll come in the new year.

I really ought to make a list of all the projects that I need to do this year, and the ones I want to do next year. Since I have a tendency to start a project and not finish it (though this trend has decreased significantly since I started knitting), making a list and crossing things off as I go will certainly help with motivation.

I was chatting with Laura today, and tossing around the idea of starting a knitting circle in Saint John. The Feel Good Store would be an excellent place to do it, since they have back rooms with comfy counches that they encourage their customers to use for relaxation time. They also have some very good teas, which I've been looking for an excuse to try out. I'm sure if this thing is started, it'll just be Laura and I for the longest time, but really, that's fine by me. The more the merrier, but if it's just the two of us, that can be fun also.

It would definitely help if I knew more people in Saint John that knit for leisure and pleasure. Sometimes I wonder if my friends are the only ones that bother to. Shame, really. Knitting can be a relaxing and satisfying hobby.

Maybe we'll gather together a group of outcast knitters, and call ourselves Out of the Loop. (Yes, I came up with that title. Occasionally I end up saying witty things. Not often, but it's not unheard of, either.)

I think I'll run downstairs and see how Rachel's doing with her cloak pattern. I really can't wait to see that when it's all done!

Dry your tears with love.

2005-09-20T14:06:00.000-03:00

Well, after much thought, I finally have the complete list of things I'm going to be making for people this Christmas/Yule. It may kill me to get it all done, but I'll do my best.

Without further ado, the list:

For Rachel - A handbound journal with Griffin's family crest embroidered on the cover. The finally-finished Griffin plushie, too.
For Laura - A Souma Shigure figure made from clay, dressed in a yukata.
For Dawn - A periwinkle blue poncho (the Unnamed).
For Robert - Wool socks.
For Jander - A snake scarf.
For Sean - Baby booties. A baby blanket, too, if I have the time.
For Jenny - A black poncho, in the same style as Dawn's.
For Luke - I have no bloody clue yet.
For Mam - A Black Magic scarf just like mine.
For Dad - A knitted hat with "Baldy" written across it. (I hope I'm not getting too ambitious with this one.)

Likely, if I get hooked on making socks, everyone will get them as stocking stuffers, too, since socks are much more useful than scarves. Well, they are when people already have tons of scarves.

I started my mother's Black Magic scarf today, made from Lewiscraft's Gemini yarn, in black, 100% polyamide. I made one for myself before, and I love how soft it is when it's knitted up, and just knew she'd love one too. I figure I'll knit on that today, and restart The Unnamed tomorrow, when Laura and I are hanging out and doing The Crafty Thing.

I do wish I had the money to buy subscriptions to all these knitting magazines that I hear people talking about, or to buy some of the fancy patterns. All I can really get is the stuff I find online, and while there are some good things out there, I feel rather lacking in the idea department. Besides, I want to be a knitting snob for just a little while. *chuckles* Talk about so-and-so's pattern from such-and-such magazine . . . It might be fun.

I can at least get some good patterns cheaply from work, and I know there's a huge section of patterns at the library, which I plan to get my hands on as soon as I gather enough dimes to photocopy them. (The patterns are stored in the reference section, which means that they can't leave the library, which means that unless I want to sit and copy them all out by hand, I'd need to photocopy them.)

Black Magic is calling me . . . I think it wants to progress.

I ought to learn to just stop speaking.

2005-09-20T00:49:00.000-03:00

Every time I say something along the lines of "all things permitting", something comes along to screw it up.

This time, it was the dog. Deciding to walk across the area I was knitting, getting his feet all tangled in the yarn, and pulling out stitches in such a way that I had no idea how to fix them. And since I'm lousy at ripping out just a row or two and picking it all up again . . . Yeah, back to the beginning.

I'm no longer going to knit downstairs. It's not worth it. It just isn't. This isn't the first time the dog's decided my knitting would be a great thing to walk across, either. I don't blame him for it. I know he's not going, "Ooh, look at what I can ruin!" He's just being a dog. Unfortunately, that means that my knitting gets screwed up, and I'm rather tired of that.

I'm have a short temper these days. I'm tired and sore a lot, and my doctor decided to take me off my antidepressants, which means that the smallest thing can make me have to fight back tears. And my knitting being ruined isn't exactly a small thing in my book.

Back to the beginning, I guess. I'll be able to get caught up again quickly enough, which makes this marginally easier to deal with.

Time well spent.

2005-09-19T23:59:00.000-03:00

Yesterday wasn't quite as productive as I wanted it to be. In fact, it wasn't very productive at all. Tonight, however, was much better. I'm half done the first panel of The Unnamed, and will, all things permitting, be able to start on the second panel some time tomorrow.

I hope. Again, all things permitting. Which they don't often do.

I picked up a decent pattern for socks today, too. I plan to get one of those insanely large balls of yarn from Red Heart, the ones that cost $6 for enough yarn to fill a grocery bag, and get a start on making socks for people. Good stocking stuffers, I think. Also, I need some new socks of my own, so this will serve numerous purposes.

I found some wonderful yarn today that would be perfect for my first big shawl project. Right thickness, nice colours. Unfortunately, the damn stuff was acrylic, and so couldn't be blocked, which would leave the shawl with an annoying unfinished quality that I'm not really looking for in my work. Until I find better yarn in natural fibres and lighter weights, cheap crochet cotton will just have to do. At least it's cheap, after all, and I did manage to find some in nice colours. Hopefully the shawl won't turn out too badly.

But that project won't come til after the holidays. I have too much to do, too much to make, between now and then.

The start to a productive day.

2005-09-18T11:55:00.000-03:00

I tend to really only knit a lot when my roommate's out of the house, and since she's working until 5 PM today, that gives me quite a few hours to work on The Unnamed Christmas Poncho. I tend to knit lately while watching old episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, just to keep my ears and mind as occupied as my hands. It's a good way of passing the time, too, so that knitting doesn't become too mind-numbing.

I checked out Handpaintedyarn.com today, and was drooling over their selection. Specifically, the laceweight yarn. I can't get any of that here. When I was to use something thin, I have to use crochet cotton. Granted, the stuff I have now comes in some very nice colours, but it's not the same as using other fibres.

Well, I say that I can't get it. I know I can't get it at any of the usual places I look. But there's a new yarn stall that opened up in City Market, and I think they sell handspun yarns, so there's always a chance they'll have what I'm looking for. Even if they don't, it will at least give me some variety in my stash. Since I don't think they sell branch name stuff, they already have a load of things I haven't seen before.

At least, I hope they don't sell much brand name stuff. I really really hope. It'd be nice to be able to support a local place-of-craft that takes the handmade approach to things.

I'll be going to City Market on Monday, so I'll see what they have. Hopefully something nice, yet afforadable.

Well, I suppose I should go pop in another disc of Buffy, make myself a nice cup of tea, and get back to working on TheUnnamed. My only regret with this poncho is that I won't be able to block it, since it's made of synthetic fibres. Boo. Yet another reason I want that stall to be a handspun place. It'd be incredibly likely that they're using natural fibres, and therefore I can learn more about blocking. Cotton's all well and good, but . . . meh, I'm tired of being so limited.

Yes. Knitting now.

First post evar!

2005-09-18T00:23:00.000-03:00

Good, a decent knitting blog that I can use, where I can post pictures and not have people on LiveJournal complain that I'm clogging up their Friends list. I'd also been looking into a better place than LiveJournal to host this thing anyway.

So, as this is a first posting, I feel I ought to introduce myself. My name is Winter, and I'm a knitting addict. I'm not very experienced, or very quick, but practice will make perfect, and at least I'm not afraid to try new things. I'm 21, living in Canada, working at Lewiscraft. As for furry companions, I have two cats and a rat, who are all big love-loving sweethearts.

I will be posting progress pictures and completed project pictures, but that first requires me to find my digital camera, which has gone AWOL. Once I rescue it from its hiding place, things will be better.

On a more knit-related note . . .

I started making the Christmas poncho today. Nothing too fancy or difficult, but it ought to end up pretty. I'm using King Cole Soft as Silk yarn, made with 100% premium (emphasis added as it says on the wrapper) acrylic, in periwinkle blue. How that's better than regular acrylic, I'm not sure. Still, it's good enough for the poncho, and I'm pretty sure the intended recipient will enjoy it.

It's still taking me a while to get used to 9 mm needles, though. They feel so big and clunky. I wish they were steel, but alas, they're rubber, which means it's easier on the yarn, more annoying on me. But work didn't have anything other than that, so I was stuck. Still, I can survive them, and that's the important thing.

With that in mind, I ought to get back to it. It's not going to knit itself, after all.

Knit by Night

My first sheep!

Simple work knitting

Value Village is my god!

Stashbusting!

Branching Out is done!

Stash enhancement!

The past week or so has been tough.

EBay rocks my world!

Now that I know I can . . .

Not-so-common yarn!

Plushies!

*eyes bug out of head*

Wool Fondlers?

Credit where credit is due.

Work post!

Huzzah!

Circulars = booo~!

I'm scary when I have money.

Yarn Whoring.

There's no hope for me.

Quick post before work.

Post-Christmas huzzah!

A Merry Messy Kweznuz to you all!

One down, one to go.

The truth will free my soul.

Work post!

Bargain yarn-hunting at its finest.

I do need to keep up with this thing more.

By the pricking of my thumbs, something knitted this way comes.

Opening the door to destiny.

Curiouser and curiouser.

Normal post . . . plus sewing!

Stuck-in-the-House Day!

I found something I just have to rant on.

Figures.

Presents!

Life's lessons, as taught by knitting.

Huzzah!

Sick, yet again.

Change in plans.

Problems come in all shapes and sizes.

Good Samhain!

A new day.

Woot!

Of knitting and cooking. Possibly baking my yarn.

All of my memories keep you here.

Boo.

Siiiiiiiiick. ;_;

Messed up night.

The good and the bad.

I'm bad.

Katakatakoom!

Happy Canadian Turkey Day!

So, I have the strangest idea.

The true question is . . .

I'm bad at thinking of post titles.

I did it!

No title is good enough.

That one thing is me.

Guilty Pleasures.

Snips and snails.

Procrastination? Not your friend.

Ooh, looky here!

Well-laid plans.

Dry your tears with love.

I ought to learn to just stop speaking.

Time well spent.

The start to a productive day.

First post evar!

eyes bug out of head