TAKING BACK [THE KNIT]

And this is one of those times. This entry has taken a couple of days. The combination of my super-slow dial-up and having to stop and save my entry every few minutes is slow going. Especially where pictures are involved. A plus: I figured out how to upload my pictures without bs resizing them. sah-weet!

FINISHED! 'Sassy Socks'

yarn: Moda Dea "Sassy Stripes", hence the name. Totally unrelated to the Sassy Stitchess, Kaitlyn. Although I thought of her every time I looked at the word sassy on the label.

Pattern: "Pippi Kneestockings" from Stitch N Bitch.

neddles: US3. bigger than the pattern recommended, but I am a big girl. leg/foot-wise at least.

I love these socks! They turned out so well, especially for a first pair. They are a little bit big, and they don't stay up as well as I like, but I'm still in love with them. The yarn was okay, very acrylic-y, but still soft. The stripes turned out wonderfully, minus and error on my part. But we will get to that part in a second. I love that first picture. It came out so well, just using the self-timer and putting the camera on the ground. Although, the ice chest in the background isn't the best back drop.

In the course of taking pictures of the socks, I realized I intended to wear them for dance and I should take pictures dancing in them. This was the result. Now, while that may look impressive, if you know anything about Highland dancing you could probably nit-pick 4537943 things with it. But I'm stopping before I get started.

For some reason when I joined a new ball right after turning the heel on the first sock, I didn't get it at the right part in the stripe progression. The one on the left is the one with the fuck-up; the one on the right is perfection, so if you look (not-so) closely, you can see there are two sections of the salt-and-pepper bits with a thin black stripe. I couldn't figure out why the colors weren't matching up when I was starting the toe decreases on the second sock, and then realized what I did. I just really shit the bed on that one. I figure it's not like I'm wearing these with any shoes that the foot would show anyway, so it is no big deal. But I felt like a dumbass. I clearly was not thinking.

 

The top of the knitty surprise tea cosy made me think "nipple!" as soon as I looked at it. I've been thinking about knitting one of my tea-drinking friends a tea cosy but I'm not sure about that one. Maybe I could purposely make it look like a boob. That could be mildly funny. :/

 

One of my friends requested a sweater [STOKED!] with 3 x's on the chest, as he is straight edge. I'm thinking I'm going to base it off the "Jesse's Flames" sweater in SnBN (with no flames, of course) since those books seem to be the only think I've been knitting from lately. I buy magazines all the time, I have a few books, there are beaucoup magazines and free patterns online, yet I seem to end up knitting out of these books a lot. I guess that's good. I just feel like some new jack knitter who just picked these books up and started knitting. It is kind of weird to think that I was actually knitting before those books came out. Makes me feel good. Like I did it before the trend, and that somehow validates me. I'm weird like that. ANYWAY, I am excited about this. I am not a sweater or scarf wearer, so I would like to knit them for other people more often.

 

Speaking of knitting for other people, I picked up my mom's afghan again, for the first time since I broke my hand. It's the aran afghan from knitty gritty/diy network (too lazy to find a link). I think I was originally going to finish it in time for her birthday (August 12th!) LAST YEAR, but it ended up being pushed off 'til Christmas, then I broke my hand. Then I thought maybe Mother's Day. Nope. It's like the never-ending project. I've got 4 squares left, and I will be done with this motherfucker! I'm aiming for the end of the month, although setting a goal to be done seems to be my downfall. I've got most of the boring pieces done, so it should be entertaining going from here. BUT here is my real qualm with this pattern: why design an afghan that will be 16 pieces, with only patterns for SEVEN squares?! I mean, at least with 8 you can just repeat everything twice, but now I either get to do everything twice and two squares three times, or to design one my own. That really wouldn't be too hard, but it would be a pain in the ass. I don't want to crunch numbers to find gauge and increases/decreases for something like this. So I'm not sure what I want to do. I am getting bored enough to want to design, though.

In the process of getting started again with this afghan, I started and finished my boobholder adaptation without even a mention of it here. [Maybe I have mentioned it, but not in detail, I don't believe.] I will take pictures once I get the rest of the ends woven in, and I tink the bind-off of one sleeve, as it is too tight. It de-stashed the rest of my red Cotton Ease. I really love that yarn. I still have a little less than a ball of blue left. Ideas?

More pictures next time I post. I have been out of school since Monday {fuuuuuck yeah!} so I have had a lot of time to craft in general, and thus have shit to take pictures of. :)

    

Needless to say [but I am saying it anyway?] that is a swatch and then the ensuing sock. If I wasn't so lazy they would have been posted with the usual swatch-to-garment timeline one has. But I have been crazy busy. I was at Michael's last Friday, after guilt-tripping my mom into taking me, and picked up some Moda Dea Sassy Stripes yarn in the "stormy" colorway. I like how it looks almost like Fair Isle. I'm not sure if it's supposed to look like that or that is how it just managed to line itself up. I'm thinking a little of both. Anyway, I am using the Pippi Kneestockings pattern from SnB. (I think that is the name of it. Something like that at least. And I have been knitting from those books a lot lately. I feel like a knitting n00b or something!) This sock is coming along great, I am about to start the toe in the next round or two. My gauge was a little bit bigger than the pattern called for, which I figured would be good because I have big calves* and fairly wide feet. And boy was I right. I have burned right through this sock, and have taken it everywhere with me; I love the portability.

 

I just realize I still have not taken pictures of my finished Mariah. Someday, I guess.

 

I had a dance competition this weekend that went horribly. I placed in one dance out of eight. I only placed because I was one of only six girls that got through the dance, and thus placed by default. A total bummer. Especially considering I was really excited about the dances I was doing on Sunday. (Jig, Hornpipe, Blue Bonnets, and Village Maid in case by some weird chance a Highland dancer ends up reading this. And they were all cut steps.) So, needless to say I was in a shitty mood the rest of the day. It is really a terrible feeling to feel like you did well in something but have the results reflect otherwise. I was definitely really down on myself and dancing for a bit. Anyway, I danced all day Saturday in the heat, and then went to a great show and partied for a while, not getting home until 3am. I had to get up at 11, and I am the kind of girl who likes her sleep, so I knew I was going to be tired but said what the hell, I only live once and I am going to have some fun. The next morning my mom wakes me up at 10:30 and tells me to get ready, etc. I call my boyfriend and tell him to get up because he is coming to my competition to watch me dance. So we all get up. Get ready. Go. I compete. Mess up. Cry.  Don't place. MURDER my feet and am in worst pain ever. Go to Wendy's {yum!}. Go home. Notice sunburn. End up going to hangout with boy at 11:00 at night, and almost tell him I am too tired. Halfway through the car ride to his house, he pulls out the roses you see to the left since we have been together a month! I was too preoccupied with my competition and all that to really even think about it. What a sweetheart. I was so surprised/excited/happy! My day went from super fun, to beyond shitty, to just plain wonderful.  To the right is my roses again, and you can kind of see my sock in the background. Yeah. I am drying them because I adore dried flowers. [/gush]

Gratuitous cute doggy picture:

 

Take that everyone with "oh isn't my kitty so cute, look at him play with my yarn. oh he's so fluffy and darling! what a furry little shitbag" pictures!

 

*When I say I have big calves let me put that in perspective for you. I was thinking about this the other day. I have had to measure my calves a number of times to get argyle knee socks made to match my kilt for my Highland costume. They are about 15" around. (which is the maximum circumfrence you can have to get seam-free tartan hose from the sock maker I use. Regardless, I like fully-fashioned more.) I was thinking about that last week, and somehow Gone With The Wind popped into my mind, and I realized that Scarlett O'Hara's waist is 18" around, pre-baby! Now, I know she was crammed into a corset, probably with a fractured rib or two, but shit! I feel like an Amazon. I routinely have a hard time getting tight pants off/over my calves. And they're really not even that big, especially for a dancer

long story short, somehow I made it from lurking craftster to lurking cafepress looking at knitting related stuff. who knows. anyway, i found funny stuff, and kind of don't want to forget it but since I made a list I figured I might as well share it. This was I at least know where it is, as well.

http://www.cafepress.com/buy/knitting/-/pv_design_details... I love all the craftster logos and such. they are all so cute.

http://www.cafepress.com/buy/knitting/-/pv_design_details... i also like this.

http://www.cafepress.com/buy/knitting/-/pv_design_details... this made me laugh SO hard.

http://www.cafepress.com/buy/knitting/-/pv_design_details... i am definitely getting this on my knuckles in the future. [funny story, a few of my friends and i love giving each other fake knuckle tatts. in the past mine have said "FIRE PUSS". oh the joys of being redheaded!]

http://www.cafepress.com/buy/knitting/-/pv_design_details... that reminded me of christine ...

http://www.cafepress.com/buy/knitting/-/pv_design_details... and this reminded me of pam!
[amusing anecdote #2: i took a scrapbooking class in which we made tags. the example had a big "E" on it and said "enjoy life" all cutely written around it. mine had a "W" and said "worship satan" in the same cute letters. 'twas great.]

and last but not least, this http://www.cafepress.com/buy/knitting/-/pv_design_details... might be the funniest thing i have seen all day.

In knitting news, I sewed the zipper on Mariah. Pictures to come some day when I actually do my hair, make up, and get dressed! I spent too much time today fixing my sewing machine. Also, it has been decided I hate Mariah {for sure} because of funny neckline issues. That will be discussed with the pictures.

so of course that means it's time for pictures!

pre-felt:    

post-felt:      Those are both of the "Letter Have It" bags together. The dramatic difference in size is due to me changing felting time, hottness of water, etc. I hate them both, as it turns out. I'm not sure if it is because I hated putting them together and they were a pain in the ass, or because the handles felted retardedly, or what. But they belong to my sister now. good riddance.

 

This is all my swag from JoAnn the other day. From left to right there is:

DMC Linea stencils. With hisbiscuses, celtic knots, and flowers that remind me of cherry blossom tattoos one of my friends have.

DMC Pearl Cotton. The red one is number 666. That amused me to no end.

Fabric Pencil and Marker, to trace the stencils, etc.

Underneath all that there is a black bandana I plan to embroider. Probably with those cherry blossom-looking flowers on one side, and the knotwork on the other so I can wear it folded whichever way according to mood/what I am wearing.

Next to that, a black cosmetic bag which had the shit embroidered out of it later that day. Pictures of that later in the entry.

At the top, a zipper for Mariah!

Underneath/next to that, an iron-on of some broad with oranges. Thought it was cute. No idea what I will do with it.

Below that, some waste canvas so I can cross stitch on fabrics other than Aida cloth. I have needed this stuff for a looooong time! (If you're unfamiliar with this, basically you cut a square of it, place it where you want to cross stitch, and go about things as usual. Then when you are done you pull the stands out. It's kind of like a template.)

Needles! Several sizes.

Embroidery hoop! I seem to have lost my other 5" hoop and 3" is way to small for just about everything.

The Spring/Summer '06 issue of Vogue Knitting. A couple cute things, but nothing I am dying to knit. Vogue isn't my fave, but I couldn't find an IK. Only Interwaeve Crochet! Bummer.

And finally, a skein of the ugliest traffic cone orange yarn. For a scarf I am making for a friend who likes tacky stuff.

Needless to say, it was quite the productive trip!

 

This is the hibiscus on the cosmetic bag. It turned out really well, and is a promising start!

This is the beginning to my Aqua Teen Hungerforce cross stitch pillow, as copied from craftster. I am hating it right now, it is confusing the hell out of me. I just need to pay better attention!

So I've been neglecting this blog. I've been super busy. It was Spring Break for me last week, so I worked all day, partied all night, and knit when I could. I also tried my hand at embroidery! I do have pictures of everything, but I seem to have lost my camera connecting cord, so it's hard to put pictures up without that. (I honestly don't know where it could have gone! It sits, dutifully waiting, on the floor next to my computer. I am guessing someone moved it, thinking the floor was a bad place for it and then didn't tell me.)

On the embroidery front, things went well. I took a trip to JoAnn on Saturday and found stencils on sale, as well as a cute little cosmetic bag made solely for the purpose of being embroidered. Mine now has a hibiscus on it, although it is a different one than the one on the label. I seem to like embroidery so far, although my stitches are uneven and stem stitch has me beat. I think I just need some practice. And it is a little free-form for my tastes, sometimes. (Which is why I am a knitter and not a crocheter. I just tend to think inside the box, but in weird ways.) And somehow, while at JoAnn, I managed to buy only ONE SKEIN of yarn! I originally had 5 skeins of this, a super soft wool-cotton blend. I had no freakin' clue what I was going to do with it, and it had no price, so I ditched it. Something tells me I might end up with it the next time I venture in there. I also really liked this yarn, but me and pastels are really not buddies. I wear either crazy bright colors or black, red, and white.  Anyway, the JoAnn I went to is a new one, and it is HUGE! A lot of selection for everything, and the needle section impressed the hell out of me. They blow Michael's out of the water. I love being able to get 100% wool yarns and other nice stuff at a good price, and at a place where I can saisfy all my other crafting needs.

[I think I am skipping class because I can't stop this entry or browsing joann.com! It is 10:30, and I have class at 10:40.]

Have I ever mentioned how much I HATE Fun Fur? I'm really still lost as to the appeal of the stuff ...

 

I just thought I would mention that I love knitty's Nautie. Too freakin' cute. It reminds me of the Futurama episode "Teenage Mutant Leela's Hurdles", in which Professor Zoidberg reverts through all his stages of development, and one or two is reminiscent of Nautie. [Yes, I am a big enough dork to know the names of Futurama episodes. It might be my favorite show ever.] Anyway, I am not really a big fan of anything else in this issue of knitty. Maybe the socks, but I am not knitting socks quite yet. Hopefully I will start soon, though.

 

I got a zipper for Mariah! I have yet to sew it on, though. I hate finishing so much. Almost as much as Fun Fur!

I put Letter Have It together. Felting this afternoon. Pictures tonight/tomorrow.

I need to get a zipper for Mariah and I will be all set.

 go to class this morning. I should have. I wasn't really tired, I just didn't feel like riding the bus for almost an hour to go to a 50 minute class. So it's noon, and I'm sitting here in my bathrobe, lurking and posting. I have absolutely no idea what I'm going to do with the rest of my day. Maybe take my dog for a walk and some work in the yard.

Exciting news: I bound off for Mariah last night! I was going to finish sewing things up and weaving ends in, but it seems I have lost/misplaced not one but two yarn needles! So I can't do much in the way of sewing without a needle. My room is a total mess, but not enough of one to really lose stuff. I need to sew Letter Have It together too, so I'm just about to get either a metal detector or a large magnet to help me find one. I've only got the hood seam, and about 6" of one side seam to sew up, plus the 54353 ends to weave in. I'm hoping to be able to wear it on Sunday. But at this point that's just a goal.

I have wanted to put up pictures all freakin' week, but couldn't since I haven't seen my camera since St. Patrick's Day. Yeah, I have friends who borrow extremely expensive, precious things and don't return them for long periods of time. Needless to say, this will be last time for a while that I lend anything to any one. Anyway, I borrowed my sister's camera today, and took a couple of pictures:  The first is Mariah. I am working on the hood, which seems to be the most confusing part. Every few rows she says [WS] patt as set (or something along those lines) and it's really never clearly said what the pattern as set is! So I am hoping I do everything correctly and I won't end up with some big mess in the end that I will have to frog back. The directions for the short row section were really unclear as well. I am kind of glad I can see how things are supposed to be in the end and work them out that way. If I didn't think in a mechanical way like that, I would probably have been really confused!

 

The second is the Fiery Bolero from an IK issue a year or two old. (In the smaller picture it looks like there is some wavy pattern or something on it, but it is really just plain stockinette.) I really like it, but don't have #3 circs to do the ribbing around the edges, so I think I'm going to frog it. It's been in this state for 6+ months, maybe a year and I just can't take it anymore. It's done with Cotton Ease, which I love. I think I am going to frog it and make a boobholder, maybe a modified boobholder top, like the ones I have seen on craftser and such. I like the idea of puffy sleeves on a shirt but not on a shrug, and I am debating whether I should make the shrug minus the puffs or the top with them. I need to finish Mariah and the Letter Have It Bag before I do much more pertaining to this. I am trying to keep WsIP to a minimum!