A Year in the Life...

Time for the obligatory year-end round up. This is a picture heavy post, so those of you on dial up just step away from the computer and go pour yourself a cup of coffee or grab your alcoholic beverage of choice, kick back, and enjoy. This was a huge year for me knitting-wise. I learned a lot. I had only started really getting into it the last 3 months of 2005, so I still had a lot I wanted to do. January, I kicked things right off with a pair of Voodoo Wristwarmers (the muppet gloves) and a gift scarf (Holey Moley scarf from Creative Knitting), an Ahiblinn for D, Fuzzy Feet and SOCKS! (Don't ever say I'm afraid to try something new.) February was when I bought my condo and moved, so I only finished a couple dishcloths and my modified Booga Bag (the inspiration for the "It Felt Random" bag). March came and I finished up the first IFR bag (and wrote my first pattern!) and some more dishcloths. Oh, and another pair of fuzzy feet in the same color as mine (hence the recycled photo) for my nephew. April came and I bought a lot of yarn. Seriously, just scroll through the whole month. It's embarrassing. Anyway, more dishcloths, the Jaywalkers that I started back in February (birthday socks for my sis), Soapy the Soap Turtle! and my very first thing with sleeves! The "Mysterious Case of the Missing Tee" from the "The Yarn Girls Guide to Beyond the Basics". Oh, and the Pinwheel Baby Blanket (why did I upload that on blogger?) In May, I finished more socks, another dishcloth (my favorite) and my second thing with sleeves! The Green Gable! Surgery on the Green Gable is planned to remove the lacey bottom and extend the stockinette portion. It cuts my torso off visually and the breeze is annoying. In June, I finished my Clapotis, some patriotic socks, a Kitty Pi and an MP3 cozy. Guess which one is my favorite of this bunch? Heh. July finally brought the end to the Best Foot Forward Socks I had started in April, and then a flurry of little stuff. In August, other than turning the dreaded 3-0, I traveled to Seattle and Oregon for my sister's wedding, finishing a shawl I made for her prior to that, and some socks, and many, many dishcloths. September brought the biggies. I finished not one, but TWO things with arms! And my toe-up Hederas and a pair of fingerless gloves for a friend! I'm quite proud of September. In October, the Christmas Knitting started getting finished. The Anastasia Socks (that fit the recipient perfectly!), a ballband dishcloth for mom and my Fetchings! Oh, and whoops, forgot about these. Those ended up not fitting my mom but I gave them to my neighbour with the smaller feet. Let's hope they fit her. I haven't heard yet. In November, things started cranking back up a bit. Just a little bit though. That second hat was for a bartender friend. I have it back in my possession now as it needs more length added to it. Ah well. December, now December was huge. And of course these: Wow. So there go the past 3 hours of my life. Pardon me if I wasn't too wordy. Heh. Now, onto 2007! Happy New Year Y'all! (Oh, and remember, I left it unsaid, but the stash thing - sock yarn doesn't count!)

Z is for Zokni

Which, according to Pepperknit, means "socks" in Hungarian. So, behold my latest pair of socks. Pattern: Embossed Leaves Socks from Winter 2005 Interweave Knits. Yarn: Trekking XXL Color #109 Needles: US 2 Addi Turbo Modification: Did a long tail cast-on rather than the tubular cast on. (I'd already started the 1x1 twisted rib for the Monkey socks from Winter 2006 Knitty when it was suggested that we needed a sample knit up from the '05 issue because the shop has extra issues on hand, otherwise I would have tried this cast-on.) Said "screw that!" to the cutting of the yarn after the heel turn. Oh, what's that behind the socks you ask? Let's zoom out a bit. Custom-made by Dad Sock Blockers! My mom saw my plastic ones from Fibertrends and decided she wanted a pair for herself. I tried offering her those, but she suggested that Dad could make some for her. So we got the wood at Home Depot (don't ask me the dimensions of the board. All I know is that it was Oak) and carted it home to the downstairs workshop. My Dad really got into it. First, we traced the plastic blocker's shape onto the the wood. We left the cut outs in the first pair for quick drying. Those went to my mom. Then we made a set with my oldest sister's feet in mind. She of the size 11 foot. The next day we got more ambitious and made a pair for men's feet (a bit wider and a bit longer) and a pair with a longer leg for future knee highs. These are the ones that came home with me. And the flip side. I did a total of like 5 coats of polyurethane on them. Only because the first 3 were a satin finish and that just wasn't working out. On the one man blocker you see it's a darker shade. That's because we first tried a poly spray with a darker stain in it. That didn't work so well. For the final 2 coats I went with a brush on high gloss poly. I love my new blockers. Dad is so awesome for making these. He really enjoyed it too. He traced an extra pair to have a template on hand should I call and say I want some more. Heh. He even got me the pieces to put together a pvc niddy noddy. Bezzie, you'd be proud of him. The pieces cost only $4.37. I haven't taken pics of it yet though. Ok, continuing with showing off the sock, check out the details. The heel with the garter stitch edging. Brilliant way to carry down the purl ridge separating the leaf columns. The star toe that completes the last leaf (Again, brilliant. And I really like the way the round toe fits me too): A close up of the way the striping of the Trekking worked with the leaf pattern: So yes folks, you can use a self-striping yarn to make a patterned sock! I took a chance using this yarn for the pattern, but it worked out fabulously!

The Last Yarn Pr0n Friday of 2006

Yes, my friends. We have come to the last friday of 2006, thus the last YPF of the year. Too bad I did my "Best of" last week. Ah well. I do have something new for you this week. This is Joann's Sensations Bellazo Collection Petalo in the color Orange. I got 15 balls of this stuff for $1.50 each. Who can resist at that price? I've already started a sweater out of it. Yes, I may end up looking like a muppet raped me, but this stuff is so soft, and the color so pretty, I have to give it a chance. Something simple, bottom up, yoke neck. Pray for this sweater. May it be a success. In the future, you may see new pics of yarn you've seen before. Why is that? Well, I've decided to try this "knitting from your stash" thing. Here are my yarn resolutions for all to see: My plan is to only by yarn in the following scenarios: 1) With the credit I build up working at the shop. 2) When I'm on vacation (souvenir yarn ya know) 3) If I get to go to any fiber festivals. 4) If I swap for it, or get a Gift Certificate to somewhere other then the shop I work in. I'd like to knit up what I have to the point where it all looks nice and pretty in the closet and shelves I have dedicated to it. Also, to finally knit up some Lorna's Laces, Koigu and STR. Once can only covet and pet them for so long. I'm already working on the last one. =) Hope y'all have a Happy New Year! I, unfortunately, will not be able to ring it in in grand style. I have to work on Monday. Phooey.

To Answer Your Questions...

The shoes are "Brown's Landing" and I can only come up with e-bay links when I google that. My mother thinks she got them at a Bass Outlet or some such shoe place. Sheesh. Show y'all some socks modeled in shoes and you go nuts for the shoe! Fine. That's fine. Just you wait until you see the NEXT finished socks modeled! They're a thing of beauty! Ok, I was able to show y'all the majority of my knitted gifts prior to the big day, but there was one item I had to withhold from view until now. Behold. The hat they call "Jayne". I bought the kit to make this cunning hat from my friend Tvini from her shop Wear With Style. Shop? Is that right term wheni it's online only? Anyway, the kit was fan-friggin' tastic. It came with stitchmarkers, directions for the cable cast-on and Firefly-fan-friendly directions. And a pre-made pom-pom! Does it get any better? Well, yes. She also has a kit for those of us with rather sensitive skin that requires a cotton yarn. I'm told my BiL is quite pleased with it. Coincidence that he and my sister bought me the Firefly DVD set for Christmas? Heh. Yes, Tvini, that means you can have yours back and pass it on to the long list of people you're waiting to assimilate. Also, I'm relieved to report that all my other gifts were also very well received. And with the exception of the purple cascade fixation socks (take #1) they all fit the recipient perfectly! So yay!

Cascade Fixation Ankle Socks

My own recipe. Made to fit my mother who wears an 8 1/2 narrow. Her circumference is 7 1/2"; and foot length is 10";. Yarn: Cascade Fixation (1 ball) Needles: US 3 Gauge: 7 1/2 stitches to the inch unstretched But I'm on the tight side of knitting so use whatever needles or stitchcount you prefer. CO 48 stitches (I have a circumference of 8 3/4" so I'd probably use 56 or 58 stitches - use your judgement or, hey, math and stuff.) 14 rounds of K1P1 rib 14 rounds of stockinette Do the heel flap on 24 stitches (or half the total stitches cast on). Row 1: sl1, purl 23 (or just purl all the way to the end if you used more stitches) Row 2: *sl1 K1* across repeat these 2 rows a total of 12 times (or half the total number of stitches you're working on) Turn the heel: Purl 14 (or 2 stitches past the marker) P2tog P1 turn Knit 5 (or 2 stitches past the marker) K2Tog K1 turn Row 1: Purl to one stitch before the gap, P2tog turn Row 2: Knit to one stitch before the gap, K2tog turn Repeat rows 1 & 2 until all stitches on heel flap are worked. This should leave you with 8 stitches. Pick up stitches along the selvage edge of the flap. At least 12 stitches, but hey, when you get to the corner near the instep, do what you gotta do to close up that hole. For these I ended up picking up about 15 stitches along the flap and corner. Place a marker Knit across your instep stitches Place another marker Second verse same as the first. Pick up at least 12 stitches along the other side of the flap. Again, do what you gotta do to close up the hole. knit 4 from heel cup and place a marker if you haven't already. That's your beginning of round. I work with two circs so at this point I generally have split my stitches of my sock and the beginning of round would be at the gap between the two circs. Knit one round, being sure to Knit the picked up stitches along the selvage through the back loops to pull them nice and tight and not leave any holes. Row 1: Knit to 3 stitches before the marker, K2tog K1 slip marker and knit across your instep stitches. Slip the next marker and K1 SSK knit the remaining stitches. Row 2: Knit to one stitche before the marker, slip the stitch purlwise, knit across the instep to the next marker, sl 1 stitch, knit remaining stitches. Repeat these two rows until you have a total of 48 stitches again (or your original stitch count). Knit on down the foot. When the foot measures about 5 1/4"; long from the flap (where you picked up the gusset stitches) it's time to start the toe. Wanna know how I came up with this length? I took my Addi Turbo and used it's length to measure it. Hold the butt of the needle up to the flap edge along the gusset and when the foot is just past the point of the needle, it's long enough. Thanks goes to Vknits for that idea. Time for the toe! Row 1: Knit to 3 stitches before the marker, SSK K1 slip marker K1 K2Tog Knit to 3 stitches before the second marker, SSK K1 slip marker K1 K2Tog and knit to the end. Row 2: Knit Repeat these two rows until you have a total of 12 stitches left, or more or less depending on how pointy you like your toe. Kitchner the stitches or flip the socks inside out and do a 3 needle bind off. Weave in ends and repeat it all for the second sock. Incidentally, these socks were made with the same recipe, but omitting the 14 rounds of plain stockinette after the ribbing.

Y is for Yarn!

It's like a "Best of Yarn Pr0n Friday 2006" and it's also my Y for the ABC-along! Shiney! Knitting at home continues apace. So far I've finished 2 socks (don't freak, they're just the Cascade Fixation Ankle socks. Good thing since the first pair don't fit and I only brought one as it is), a dishcloth, and the cuff of my first embossed leaves socks. Today's goal is to start and finish the second Cascade Fixation sock, and turn the heel of the embossed leaves sock. Woo Hoo! Oh, here's the finished Cascade Fixation socks that fit. Finished on the flight here. That pictorial will come later. That's Abba. My family seems to like orange cats. There's 3 more kitties to take pics of and show off to you. Abba's a squeaker. When she was a kitten (10 years ago!) she got caught up in a badminton net and nearly choked to death. Between that and crying for hours until my Mom found her and brought her inside, she's lost her meow. But it's so cute to hear her try.

X is for Xmas!

Pulp Xmas that is. Don't say I didn't give you nuthin'. Update on the weather situation - um, apparently no snow this weekend. But precipitation, yes. Damn.

W is for Wreath

W was going to be for "Winter" since I'm now in upstate NY. Alas, there is no snow on the ground. Yet. It's coming this weekend apparently. And we aren't talking inches folks. We're talking FEET. Gah! Bring it on though. That's why I'm here. Gotta get my fill of snow for the year! Hee! Also, it helps me get into the Christmas spirit. The flight today, er - flightS, rather - were fine. Until the last two legs of it. Oy vey. The TURBULENCE! Of course, the fact that the plane could carry only 15 people at a time, shoulda been a tip off that smooth flights are more rare than the norm. Once I was on the ground for a bit it all went fine. I do have a pictorial of the length of the flight in terms of knitting (and yes, Pam - I did complete it!) I'll post that next week sometime after Christmas. I'll be showing my mom around ye olde bloggy thing (maybe) and since the thing I finished was for her, best not to reveal. Stay tuned for tomorrow's "X" it's a good one!

V is for Vacation

Wish I could take him with me. I leave at the butt crack of dawn tomorrow for home. It's that time of year. Tomorrow is also (as some of you have noticed) the one year anniversary of the day I quit smoking. I'm quite proud of myself. V is also for Vert. If you're french. If you aren't, just say "Green". I have a few FO's to show you. First up, is "Le Slouch" from Knit and Tonic. I started this last Thursday night and finished it Friday night. I've been wearing it everywhere ever since. Me likey. Jochibi - do you recognize the yarn I used? You should. It's the Malabrigo you gifted me in my 3rd SP package you sent. I finally found the perfect project for it! And I have enough left over that I could totally make another one, but I'll find a different project for it. In making this, I actually found an error in the pattern. I questioned Wendy about it and she confirmed it and immediately fixed the pdf. So if you downloaded this pattern before Saturday the 16th, it's wrong. Second up is the Black Bunny Fibers Feather and Fan Socks. Or my "Keuka Socks" as I like to think of them. Same colors as my alma mater. Toe: Magic Cast-on from Knitty.com Reverse Heel Flap from the Diamante Socks in the Fall 2006 Knitty Cuff - just your regular feather and fan. These socks were a trial. Y'all were here for their evolution, I'll not relive it. I hope to have only positive thoughts associated with these socks in the future. But I finished them the morning of the 10th. Not a good day for me. So that's why I'm calling them my Keuka socks. I loved my Alma Mater and the time I spent there. The green and gold. Our symbol was an acorn, and our mascot a warrior. I always thought of that warrior as a squirrel dressed in knights armor. Seemed appropriate. Heh. I'll try to post tomorrow when I get to the great white north. I do have W and X to do before Friday.

T is for Turtle

Hoo boy. Have I got some catching up to do with the ABC-along. And T? I coulda whipped that out ages ago. Because duh. Turtle. Tuh-ertle. TURTLE. TURTLEGIRL. Sheesh. I know it's been done but if I didn't do turtle for the letter T what kind of turtle devotee would I be? So I gathered the turtles for a group photoshoot. Is this all of my turtles? Oh hell no. Is it enough turtles? Well, honestly, probably. Will I ever stop bringing new turtles into my collection? Probably not. Do I need to get some curio shelves or something to put them up on the wall all together so it looks more like the collection it is rather than having turtles everwhere you look? Yup.

U is for Umbrella

Or Uvula, or Underwear, or "Ummm". But hey, I figured I could get more arty with an umbrella right?

Blogstalking Sunday

No, I'm not going to do the list meme. Call me lazy but I like to have a blank template to start from, not cut and paste and hope I got rid of all the last person's answers. But if you really want to know, I like hot chocolate AND egg nog. But the nog has to be cut 50/50 with some skim milk because, ew. And you know what? I've never had alcoholic egg nog. For shame! So, I have a teensy little tree this year. I bought it at Target for a whopping $5. And that included the cost of the LED lights I bought to put on it. It's just over a foot tall or so. So, lets not look at my tree. Let us instead see some artsy fartsy shots I got of the decoration of my friend Ann's tree. It's got some bigger balls than mine. Heh. Oh. And my blogiversary contest thing with the 76 public subscriber goal? Um, yeah. I don't think that's gonna happen. It's either really hard to switch from private to public or people just don't wanna do it. I have to come up with something else. And Rain, I haven't forgotten. I'm still plotting the perfect package.

Hey Kids! Do You Know What Time It Is?!

It's Yarn Pr0n Friday!!! Didja really think I was going to leave you with the one measly shot of the Mountain Colors that Ali got me? Heck no! Here it is in all it's pr0nny glory. The colorway is called "Firestorm" and no where on the label does it say "Barefoot" or however it's spelled. It says "4/8's Wool". The skein is 100% Wool and 250 yards. It's so soft. I was thinking socks but since it's not the Barefoot, I feel like I have the freedom to do whatever the heck I want out of it. And you know what? Screw my neck and head sensitivities! I'm making a scarf! I need a scarf, and I've put up with the Alpaca when I've had to wear it. It may itch me, and so may the Malabrigo scarf at the shop when I wear it, but hey, it's not so bad. And I want something scrummy and warm! Not cotton! So suck it up I shall. Now. The question remains, what pattern? Yes folks, another parking lot shot from my car as I rolled into work. Sue me. It's dark when I get home from work, and was foggy as hell when I got up. But the morning light was still good enough to get a nice yarno out of it, eh? And I still don't have my camera cord, but as I was reading through some blogs on Wednesday some brilliant soul mentioned downloading them via their printer. I thought, "Hey! I have some of those porty things on my printer, lemme see what happens when I slide my memory card in one!" And lo and behold, it worked! Yay! Now I don't have to cart my cord back and forth. I can leave it on my home computer. Sa-weet.

Talk About a "Care" Package

See that right there? That's the many ways that Ali rocks. I let the mosaic put itself together so forgive me for the rather order they're in. Tuesday evening when I got home from work, my first day having left Ripple all by himself (and having to turn around and leave immediately) this is what I come home to on my doorstep. A box full of love sent via Priority Mail. Inside it was a giant hug from a wonderful woman. Now, the hug took the shape of Godiva Chocolate, a Sheep Tape Measure, Mountain Colors Bearfoot Sock Yarn, A Giant Olive Oil Bath Soap, notecards and decorations, a Stitch 'n Bitch Knitting Journal and the most hilarious magnet. (It says "Ever notice how 'what the hell' is always the right decision?" and - get this - a Turtle Maraca. No, not made out of a turtle shell that's just plain gross. A maraca with a drawing of a turtle on the top. How cool is that? As you see in the bottom righthand pic, I tested the lickability of the bar of soap - so far, no dice. Ripple currently favors the licorice soap that Westozcaat sent this past summer. And the remnants of the last of the cashmere facial soap by Rosi G. He's such a soap gourmand. Sheesh. This wasn't the only thing I came home to, but the other package will have to wait a short while for it's reveal. Suffice to say, Knitting Mamma is a helluva woman as well. And Somerset (Lady Lung Doc) - that was a hilarious postcard and it got to me on the perfect day. I do have some wonderful knitty friends out there. I have had a truly blessed year in that regard. Thank you all for being here for me. And for Ripple. Yes. That's Morris' Kitty Pi. Ripple never went near it before. Now he sleeps in it all the time.

All I Want For Christmas...

Is for Ripple to happy. But hey, I'll take "stuff" too. It's been a tough few days, and will be a tough week, month and year ahead. Thank you all for your wonderful comments. I was overwhelmed by the response to Sunday's post. I know y'all loved Morris as well and it won't be the same without him on this blog. But I know I can't dwell on it, and I know y'all don't come here to cry, but to laugh and see the cool shit I can create with two sticks and string. And when I get my camera cord back from my friend, I have another hat to show you. Maybe. This one may have to wait until after Christmas since it's recipient is now a reader. Whoops. Anyway. I saw this on my friend Tvini's blog. I thought it was cute, so I stole it. Hee! No coal please.

Xmas Stocking

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This thing is kinda fucked when you use blogger (or something). That first box is for your username, the second is for the "gift" you want to leave.