Drop Stitch Scarf

Drop stitch scarf from a kit I got in a grab bag a few weeks back. I posted a pic of the wound yarn.

Currently working on a teddy bear pattern from Simply Baby by Debbie Bliss and the condom critter pattern from Naughty Needles. Finished the body and lining and feet/drawstring, now I just need to stuff it and sew it up and add eyeballs. Batting was silly expensive at the store, so I might just use some polyfill I had in the closet.

I am in a cranky ass mood today for whatever reason, so ugh.

At work on Thursday, a student who appreciated my help gave me two free Braves tickets to be used at any game I choose. Pretty sweet.

Oh yeah - and I bought a business card holder for my new business cards from an Etsy shop. There's some really snazzy stuff on here, but, of course, I like mine the bestest.

Online shopping spree

So I got my first full-time paycheck for the new job last week, and I have been online shopping like a freak....some in person shopping too.

Also been drooling over the handspuns at Ozark Handspun, but I don't really know what to make out of the stuff. I did buy some handspun the other day at Knitting Emporium, and I am making the "Condom Critter" from Naughty Needles with it. I've been having some issues reading the patterns in that book. I feel like I'm either being really dense or the patterns are kind of vague. Anyway, it's a pretty blue shade with purples and greens that my camera is sure to butcher. It is the Gaugin shade of Colinette Point Five yarn. Don't know if that gigantic link will work or not. http://www.colinette.com/ That'n will though.

In the ATL that's pronounced pernt5, y'all.

As in, PowerPernt Presentation.

Yeah, anyway - here's the butchered picture of my new yarn:



And that picture reminds me that I need to dust.

I also completely finished and shipped off the baby shrug. Here's the finished project:



That's a pen above it. Yes, I know - it's not just the camera's fault - I take sucky pictures, too.

So, I could bitch about how lame work was today and how the management meeting I attended was kind of depressing, but I don't want to relive it, and I'm tired. I have the day off tomorrow, but I have to get up at 6am to take my niece to school and then fret and worry all day about my nephew who is having surgery and then pick up my niece at 2:30 and take my older nephew to his 8th grade open house at 4pm. Busy day.

I hope to get some knitting in, though, to calm myself down...and maybe an episode of Days of Our Lives too. I haven't watched it in over a month, because I've been busy. I caught like 5 minutes of it yesterday when I went by Bill's to feed his cats and all I saw was Kate & Stefano making out.

W T F?!?!?!

Anyways...I leave you with Spooky looking surly on top of a drop stitch scarf that I finished last week. I should take a picture of it. I like the way it turned out, but it's itchy as an STD.

toodles.

Baby shrug

So, I'm almost almost almost finished with the baby shrug. I have to just pick up a few stitches along the back and sleeves and then sew up the two seams and pull in the ends and presto bango, it will be done.

Been really busy with work lately. And the next couple of weeks are probably going to be mostly unproductive knitwise, cause I have so much other shit to do.

Today's my mom's birthday.

Tomorrow is supposed to be the birthday of the baby whose shrug I am making.

Here's a picture of the almost finished shrug. (As an aside - new job paycheck starts coming in this week, so maybe I can afford a decent camera, eh?)



I did a few rows of the Peaks n Valleys socks, but the DPNS are irritating the shit out of me, and I am nursing some major wrist pain lately, so I think I might try to make them my first pair of socks on circulars. The only thing that kinda blows about that is I have a circular needle kit, so I'll have to order some extras to be able to have two needles of the same size. Oh well. No biggie. Especially if I end up really doing well with the technique. A slew of birthdays just passed, and I didn't knit jack shit for anyone. I should be ashamed. Oh well - maybe I can gear up for the September birthdays on a niece and nephew that are coming up...I have ideas for both of them. I am thinking of either some ankle socks or a Zelda wristband for Jesse. Bill put together a color chart for Zelda, and I think I would just duplicate stitch it onto there.

Also, Bill made me a washcloth/stuff sack that he created the pattern and everything for. Here it is in "stuff sack" mode:

Finished stuff n' goings on

So, every time I post pictures in here, I am reminded of exactly how much my camera sucks. So, I think I am seriously going to buy myself a digital SLR after I pay off my student loan and stuff. Since I do not yet have a snazzy camera, please pardon the shittiness/blurriness of these photos. Things are this blurry even when I have *just* put in new batteries.

Went to the Stitch n' Pitch yesterday (Braves v. Pirates) at Turner Field in Atlanta. We didn't really talk to anyone, and I didn't recognize one single person, but there were some AWESOME, inspirational projects being worked on by the zillions of knitters there. My mom was one of the only crocheters. We got a bag full of stuff including some gigantic wooden needles. And I decided that I need to start on some socks STAT. But I have also decided that I hate the bamboo DPNS that I have, so I ordered some metal ones and am waiting (impatiently) for their arrival. In the photos, you will see the yarn and pattern I plan on working with. The yarn came in a grab bag at the big Knitch sale a couple weekends ago. I got 5 skeins of this stretchy fingering weight yarn along with a drop stitch scarf kit with some funky pink/green yarn (also in the pics). All of that for ten bucks! I am planning on making the "Peaks n' Valleys" pattern from Knit Socks! I was wanting to wait on my second pair of socks until I figured out the circular needle method, but I just wanna knit socks now, and I'm not feeling sufficiently smart enough to master a new skill right at this particular moment. Plus, I'm kinda waiting on this new book to come out that specifically talks about the circular needles and making 2 socks at once. I know there are tons of books out there on this subject already, but my brain likes to make up excuses. Anyway - it's not like I'm a badass at the DPNS, so it can't hurt to hone the skillz.






So, here's some pictures of the purse I'm carrying now and the sushi wallet in which I carry my iPod and cell phone.









Looking forward to the knit group next Sunday. Maybe it will inspire me to get some more work done on the baby shrug I'm making (pictured below). It looks like a drab ass color, but it's a pale lavender - not quite as lame as it looks in these washed out, blurry photos. It's my way of testing the waters for an adult-sized sweater.

Carrying around the goods

So, I am actually keeping something that I knitted. And I think I'm going to get hooked now. Since I started knitting, I have been in this mood for making stuff for other people, and I always find cool patterns for myself, but I don't make them. So, anyway - I made a purse (it's actually a purse I made in like February and posted pictures of in here, but I never sewed on the handles and stuff) that I had intended as a stash back for a future Christmas or Birthday gift, but I REALLY like the way it turned out and so....I'm carrying it with me today. Also, my other purse was starting to fall apart some. I also decided to keep the felted wallet I just made.

I don't have pictures, but I'm hoping to post some this week. I think I'm going to buy myself a snazzy camera for Christmas.

I have cool stuff to show off today. And it's my first day on my new job which means I am - as of today - a librarian. Of course, I've been working in libraries for like 5+ years, but always in a parapro type of position. So, I thought it was a suitable day to bring in my snazzy jazzy new purse and wallet.

Still working on my dad's tie, but definitely making progress. I have put the mermaid outfit and bad linen hand towel on temporary hold cause I'm not feeling it. I want to make some socks. I think my next project will be a baby sweater though. OK enough of this boring no pictures post.

Finishing and starting and ideas

So, I finished up 3 washcloths now - 2 ballband ones and 1 Mason-Dixon one. I will take some pictures at some point and post them. They are all done with Sugar N' Cream cotton. I also bought some chenille to make a couple more of the Mason-Dixon washcloths. I think those will look neat - one is a variegated blue/green and the other is variegated pink/green. Speaking of pink/green, I am finally to the point of putting on the handles and button of the purse I made in December or January(I know - I suck).

I finished a wallet and felted it - just need to put in the zipper and sew on the decorative pieces. It's gonna be badass. I made it from this kit in the red version. I think I made it in like 2 days. It's the first kit I've ever bought. It just looks so neat, and I got it on sale 50% off.

I also started a tie for my dad. I originally saw it on the Knitpicks site as a Father's Day suggestion, but I'm not one for time limits on my knitting, so it will end up being a whenever I get finished you'll get it type of project. I decided to go ahead and use the silk/wool blend they suggested on Knitpicks, and I chose to use burgundy, black, and a smoky blue for the colors. It is being knit on size 1 needles which are the smallest ones I have used as of yet.

Bill finished the socks he was making for me. They are worsted weight camouflage yarn made with a pattern from a magazine that I can't remember the name of right now. They are snazzy wazz and are gonna keep my toes nice and toasty this winter. So, since I haven't taken pictures of the projects I'm working on, here some pictures of my new socks and of Spooky and Frannie being cute.

Spooky with the yarn and pattern for my Dad's tie:


Spooky snoozing on Bill's dishcloth yarn:


Spooks in the shadow of Bill knitting on his dishcloth:


Bill's socks knitted for me modeled on my feet =)


Frannie lounging on top of Bill's knitting bag:


Bill showing off his first pair of finished socks! (Sorry I cut off part of his head - that's one photo flub that's not the camera's fault):

Projects!

I am on the rag....the warshrag!

Yes, that was terrible, but I stand by it.

I have been making warshrags, ladies and gentlemen (or crickets and dust to be more exact about who reads this thing). I finished two and got Bill into making (A REALLY SNAZZY) one which I hope will be for me :)

OK - so, I think my cheapness on yarn has finally bitten me in the ass. I am trying to make the moss grid hand towel from Mason-Dixon Knitting, and the linen I am using was (relatively) CHEEP CHEEP at the LYS. After looking at linen at another LYS and almost dying from sticker shock, I bought the cheap stuff. So, now I think I'm paying for the money I saved with the lameass way my hand towel is looking. Everything looks so loosey goosey, but I still really like the color.

I spent the past 30 minutes drooling over the Louet Euroflax linen that the pattern actually calls for and what I imagine to be much snazzier than the stuff I ended up buying. But, hey - I'm not going to pass judgement totally until I (hopefully) finish this thing and wash it. Until then I will (probably not) not bitching about it.

In other projects, I finished 2 of the ever-so-popular ball band washclothes using Sugar and Cream. I bought a bunch more, and I'm also making the Mason Dixon Washcloth out of some variegated. I love the way the sugar and cream looks, but I love even more all the varieties of colors available from peaches n' creme. But I can not find any stores here that sell it, so oh well.

Still working on the tail section of Amelia's mermaid outfit. And um...I think that's about it. I bought some yarn from Knit Picks to make my dad a tie. Obviously, this tie will not be done for Father's Day. I sent him a card, and I'm going for Christmas for the finish date...

I have been drooling maniacally over a tank toppy thing on Knit Picks. I put the yarn in my cart like 12 times, but I can't bring myself to buy it because a) I have loads of unfinished projects that I need to finished and b) I don't want to pay $16 for the pattern. Soooo...after exhaustive searching in all the local library systems, I finally just put in an InterLibrary Loan request for the book through work. Awesome use of work perks, I think. So, if it looks like something I can actually do, I might order the yarn or go get some from a yarn store here. I'm looking forward to actually being able to afford some of the shit at Knitch in the future.

Totally unrelated - going to the Stitch N' Pitch in July.

Yee haw.

That's a much too long post without pictures, eh?