Walker likes Hugo

Did I mention I finished my nephew’s monster?  Not even a ton of prodding from him either! They were over this weekend and late Friday night we got his bed all made up and I sat down to watch a movie with him for a minute. As is habit, I picked up the knitting that was closest, and Walker saw me. Immediately he protested! ‘You can only knit Hugo!” I explained that I had to start the arms and I’d need different needles and the pattern and blah, blah, blah….and he scampered around finding it all so I’d get his thing done. It was pretty cute. I like him.  So Chantel put on the eyes and mouth for me, Walker stuffed him, and I sewed him up and added the arms.  Very fun. Anyone interested in the project, it came from Rebecca Danger’s Big Book of Monsters.  You can find it here;  http://www.amazon.com/Big-Book-Knitted-Monsters-The/dp/1604680091/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1337291497&sr=8-1 .

I am rushing on the Fir Cone Baby Blanket for the raffle. I think it will be cute. It is pretty easy to knit, to tell the truth. The pattern is something you need to pay attention to, but it is easily memorized,or rather intuitive as well.

Baby Surprise Jacket is done and packed up to mail off to my sis and the coming baby. The buttons really make it cute I think. Thanks Leo!!

Yes, the blanket and jacket are out of the same yarn. I only used a smidgen of the second skein for the jacket so decided to use it for the leafy blanket too.

Okay, I’m off to prep for fun!!

Last year on Good Reads I made a goal of reading 36 books, and didn’t make it. I was a bit shocked when I started getting behind. Frankly, I used to read a book every few days or so.  Then this summer, my niece Kiki and Daughter Chantel started a book club. And I was finding it hard to get going on the first book, ‘The Scarlet Letter’. When is there time to read? There are people waiting on their hand knit items! I have deadlines!

I CAN knit and read. I have done it many times.  It’s all in the nook, or the android phone, which sit up nicely against something, and leave my hands free. But at home, I tend to knit in chairs and not at a table, so it lends itself more to t.v. or radio or chatting.

Saturday, I put away my knitting, despite the deadline on my blanket for my friend’s raffle, and other things I’m working on. I pulled out my nook, and I laid down on my bed, and I read 5 or so chapters. It felt good.  And now I keep reading, because I’m into the story again. Now I need to resume my previous work on finishing the 1001 books to read before you die list.  One hobby does not preclude all others, right?

I am going to have to make time for reading, set a new goal, remember how important it is and get to it! Note to self: Knitting books do not count.

So this weekend, guess what I did? Right! You got it! I finished the body of Hugo, the monster I’m knitting for Walker.  I finished the re-knit of Amy’s shrug. I did the rest of the front and hood of the sweater for Char’s baby and started on the sleeves.  I mean, productive, productive, productive. Very fun.  But I still feel like I didn’t get enough done. What is that!?  I don’t get it!

So Hugo is blocking, and  the back of the sweater is blocking. Tonight I will block the front and hood.  I will try to finish a sleeve.

Other than that, on Cinqo De Mayo, we had virgin Watermelon Margaritas and Chicken Taco Salad. My friend at work admitted that was pretty white of me, but says Cinqo De Mayo is not really a big Mexican Holiday anyway. It’s just big in America. So whatever.

Last night we visited Amy and family. We played Apples to Apples, watched Seventeen Again, and had yummy barbeque chicken sandwiches and pasta salad for dinner. Was fun to see all the kids.

I knit the hat, which is striped and has sort of an elf thing where it is really tall and the end curls around.  But I”m 6 or so inches up and there is absolutely no way around the fact that my stripes are not jogless. No, they are jogging like crazy, even though I am doing the slip stitch thing I normally do to fix that.  So I frog it down to the ribbing and go visit techknitter.com. She does the slip stitch and also moves one stitch to the left each time so that it is less noticeable. Great. She also slips purlwise as opposed to my knitwise.

I try this and guess what? They look pretty good. Yes. See, I’m still a pretty good knitter. No problem. I go on and get even further than the first time before I notice that I am changing yarns without leaving some ease inside and there is a spiraling pucker right where my jogless stripes are. Uh…pucker is no better than traveling stripes now, is it? NO!

So I rip again. And decide I’m not that great of a knitter. And put it aside for now. Just for now. I’ll pick it up again really soon. Probably. And remind myself to be ever so humble until the day I’m awarded a medal for knitting.

I”m tired. I know, I know, it’s a typical refrain. But I really haven’t been tired much for awhile. The last 3 nights or so though, I’ve been waking up around one and not been able to go back to sleep for a couple of few hours. Don’t’ like it at all. Last night I woke up around when Jude came home and he left his bedroom door open and the faint light bothered me, so I shut it.  Then he left the bathroom light on and I had to turn that off. And then he told me that he wanted a light on down the hall so he didn’t fall or something. Yes, they were purposeful lights on episodes. So then he proceeds to tell me how the lights weren’t really an issue, I’d be awake anyway, and not to blame him. I admit I didn’t take it well. I responded grumpily, not meanly, but grumpily, and even him trying to snuggle on the couch didn’t cheer me up. Ugh. I am not apologizing either! He is cute though. It’s a good thing.

Last night K and I watched the 2nd Deathly Hallows movie. I love them.  I was thinking of how Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone began the series and was a child’s book really, and then how they progressed so naturally to this: something dark and wonderful and tense and emotional. I cried,  and it was all good. K said he was crying inside a little, but he laughed at me anyway.

It feels like Friday today. And I should not be that way, since tonight is KNIT NIGHT! Yes, it is. Hallelujah. And Channi comes home tomorrow, and we are going to Jude’s play this weekend. I should be really enjoying this.  Okay, I’ll try now.

Walker and Neil make friends with each other and the goats!

My cuz Mel was a fab host. And she is actually thinking of giving up milk goats for fiber ones. She said her friend with sheep had told her the market for fiber was dead. What? Prices are terrible, so I don’t see how it can’t be money making. My gosh!! Anyway, she fed us wonderful stuff including White Chocolate Blueberry Scones, and we had a lovely visit outside in the spring air.

Sunday night I re-blocked my sweater for the class. I hated it, it didn’t fit, and

It is purply, isn't it?

my friend Leo chided me about blocking it to the size I wanted. And it worked. It is long enough now, the armholes are comfy, and all that is left that I don’t like is the collar, which is easily fixed. It was the last part on, so I plan to just pull it off and rework it with more short rows until I love it. I also did not plan the buttonhole right, but Leo has a fix for that too. I will sew the buttons that will be seen on the front of the sweater, and with the same stitches on the back, tiny little buttons that will just  go through my regular stitches. So there. Buttons where I want, and a new sweater to wear.

Does Eco Wool felt? Yes, it looks as if it will. I have a remainder of yarn and Jude has asked for a felted bowl. Have been wanting to do this anyway. Cat Bordhi has a great mobius basket, but it is in a book, and I don’t need any new books right now. So I think I will find one on ravelry and work it up for him.

Cabled Socks

Kimball’s cabled socks are coming along.  This seems unbelievable, but despite the fact that the cables went wrong in a few places, I have not ripped them out.  Very impressive for me. Everyone who has looked can’t see the problems, but I can, and that usually means frogging. Not this time!! Also, I am reworking Amy’s shrug. It kept stretching as she wore it, so I am making it again, but smaller. There is a baby sweater/hoodie going too. I finished the back this weekend and started the front last night. Why do I feel as if I’m getting nowhere when all that is going on? Ridiculousness!

Last week’s knit night was sort of a bore until Leo and Melanie showed up. It turned into a gossipy thing, which I did not like and have never seen there before. Ugh. I hope that stops. If my short history there is any indication though, those two people will stop coming for awhile. At least I can hope!

Plus, it’s raining, and you all know how I love a rainy day, right?

So then I turn on Pandora at my office, and the very first song that comes on is Kings of Leon, No Money, which is like my very favorite song.  Yesssssssss, as Napoleon would say.

Plus, I thought I would have to choose between coffee and iced tea today when I really want both. Guess what? I found 20 extra cents and can now have both.  I mean, I know, little things, but please! The day seems charmed. What’s next? Free cashmere yarn?  Jensen Ackles wandering into my office?  I actually get a bunch of work done today?  Who knows?

Amy's Shrug

So my sister asked for something, and I could not find a pattern she actually liked exactly.  They were all a bit too long, or loose, or not the right look or whatever. And I get that. I really do. But what the heck, it’s basically a simple cowl that goes around your shoulders, so how hard can that be?  Hard. I am not even kidding. You’d think I’d never knit before.

I cast this stupid thing on 15 times at least before I even got something that resembled something right. I twisted stitches, which is soooooo amateur, right? What the heck? I actually knit the thing 3 times. The second one fit me, so I knew it wouldn’t work…she’s about half my size. And I was doing it in stockinette. It wasn’t working.

Finally, Kimball said I should do it so it looked like the collar on my sweater–seed stitch. He would want me to tell you that it was his idea because he’s reminded me of that several times. So I redid it in seed stitch and a bit after I started I had an issue–how to increase in a rib stitch. Teckknitter.com had the answer. She’s miraculous.

Then I think to myself…well, this is looking pretty good. Maybe this could be my very first pattern on Ravelry. Just free you know, so I have something in there. Good idea, right? I finish it, and I think it looks pretty good. And I think she likes it. Awesome. So she wears it home, and then I think to myself, “I didn’t really take any notes, so I’d better write that pattern down right now before I forget what I did.”  And I go to write it down.  Only I made so many versions of it, now I can’t remember exactly what I actually ended up doing! I am not even kidding. No idea how many stitches are in that thing. Sigh.

I guess she’ll have to bring it back so I can count it out. Aargh.

So Saturday before Easter, Channi and I sat down to watch Supernatural and knit. We decided on Rebecca Danger’s cute pattern Bunny Nuggets, which is free on Ravelry.  Chantel has her Monster book and loves knitting her stuff.  This is what we came up with;

I could not make the ears (after three tries I gave up), which are straight like the ones on the stripey bunny, so mine are i-cords instead and sort of loopy. Channi did the straight ones and later took pity on me and gave me a pair. In return, I knit one bunny body for her. Both are cute though.  It was so fun! She’s a good knitting companion. As I may have mentioned before.

The pattern says Bunny Nuggets don’t like to be alone and are better off in threes, so we each made three.  Mine were a bit bigger than Channi’s so I tried hard to make the third one smaller.

Bunny Attack!make the third one smaller.

Later in the day on Easter, they may have attacked Kiki. She did not seem to mind really….

I also sewed up and blocked the baby surprise sweater.  Monday we got a call and it’s a boy, so now I just need boyish buttons.  I think I will hold off on a pic until they are on. Probably this weekend.  I also need to tell about our adventure to Goatland, or Lewiston, Utah, where I may have talked my cousin into giving up her milk goats for fibery ones. How awesome would that be?

She arrives at my work at 2pm ish Friday. I will stash her prodigious bag of laundry in the trunk (she has not yet done even one load of laundry at school), and drive her over to the new City Creek Mall to hang out while I finish work. At 5, we will either take a quick tour of the mall or head straight home. Whatever.

Friday night= knitting to a rehash Supernatural (what is with all these breaks people?!).

Saturday= probably some fun thing.

Sunday= Easter and Kiki and Walker are coming to spend the night!

Monday= We all head up to Logan to take Channi home and visit Cousin Melaine and her kids, who are taking the day off school, and her baby goats! How fun is that? Very, I tell you.

Rated A for Awesome

I saw The Hunger Games this weekend. They really did a wonderful job as far as I’m concerned. It looked just like I’d pictured it. The sets were so well done. I admire the way they had to cut down the time characters spent onscreen, like Cinna and Haymitch, and yet the director and script made sure that the relationships, their importance, and their emotion was all there. Loved that. Casting was perfection. I hope they find a way to make Donald Sutherland as President Snow as creepy as he was in Book 2.    Cannot wait for the next one. Both my thumbs are up.

It’s a knitting needle holder! Yes, I’m so excited. I’ve seen some online and some in stores and sort of made my own little thing. If you untie and unroll, it looks like this:

I still need to organize and decide how to label the needles sizes, but I really like it.  Straight and DPNs go in the top level and circulars in the bottom part.  The only thing I forgot was that I wanted to do a tiny little section on the circular part for my short ‘finger’ dpns.  Once it was all done I remembered, but I didn’t want to sew, or it would show on the outside. So I made a little pouch instead.

I put the short little needles in it, fold over the top, and tuck it into one of the circular sections like this:

Cute, huh? Love it.

I also finished my class sweater and decided I don’t like it and wont’ ever wear it. Pretty sure I am going to frog it tomorrow and turn it into something I’ll like. I will take a picture before I do though, so it will be blogged and documented.

Started new socks for Kimball too. Yes, I need to finish some other stuff, but that is what I felt like doing, so I did!