Finally!

I am breathing a sigh of relief. The Jaywalker is back on the needles, and I'm back in the knitting groove. Phew! Thanks for all of your moral support during my trying time. I still ended up with an extra stitch, but as I told Romi, I just knit two together and all is well! Notice she also experienced a knitting crisis yesterday. Here's my proof that everything is ok.


Now for the yarn porn. Remember my visit to see Sheri at The Loopy Ewe last Saturday? (I have to admit, she posted yesterday that she has gotten in even more yarn, and I was tempted to visit again!) Anyway, Sheri is wonderful; super sweet, very kind, and has the best yarn ever! I drooled as I walked down her basement steps and began to see all of the gorgeous yarn in her shop. She actually said she feels she's lucky because whenever she needs a yarn fix, she just goes to her basement. How cool is that? So, here's what I was able to obtain:


From the left: 1 skein Seacoast Handpainted in Kelp, 2 skeins Apple Laine in Strawberry Jam, 2 skeins Claudia Handpainted in Butter Pecan, and a 150g skein of Handmaiden Sea Silk. I will definitely be visiting her again!

OH NO!

So I'm knitting this morning before work, meticulously working on my sister's Jaywalker, and something awful happens. Keep in mind I'm working on the toe decreases, making me almost done with the first sock. I decide to count my stitches on each needle, making sure they match up with the pattern, and I have an extra stitch on one of the needles. Being a total perfectionist, I decided to rip a few rows to try to correct the problem. Big mistake. I've been trying to put the stitches back on the needles, and I keep losing stitches! So I rip some more, lose a few more stitches, rip some more, etc. See what's going on here? Now I'm at a point where I can't figure out how to get the stitches back on the needles in the appropriate pattern! I'm absolutely sick about this! I hate the fact that I have to go to work now, and have to just leave this poor sock (still off the needles) to slowly die in my sock knitting back. I need help!!!

Ho Hum

I am feeling so "ho hum" this week for some reason! I have some really great things to blog about, like my gorgeous Jaywalker on the needles with Scout's Swag, and my dreamy trip to see Sheri at The Loopy Ewe this past Saturday, and the beautiful stitch markers Elspeth sent me last week. But, I'm feeling lazy, and have not taken any pics lately. No good excuse, just haven't felt like it - how awful is that? Well, and I also had my niece with me for most of the weekend, so free time was not really available. But she and I had a blast - she is the absolute light of my life. Hard to believe she will be a year old in less than a month. How did we ever live without her?!

I will take pics in the next day or so, and provide a much better post, I promise!

So Predictable!

You Are: 20% Dog, 80% Cat

You are are almost exactly like a cat.You're intelligent, independent, and set on getting your way.And there's no way you're going to fetch a paper for anyone!

Are You More Cat or Dog?

Frustrated

Wouldn't you know, the night I want to blog, Blogger won't let me upload my pictures! But I want to post a thank you to 2 ladies that sent me some great stitch markers for the Stitch Marker Exchange. Sulah sent me a beautiful pink set, and Brenda sent me a kind of purple set, including matching earrings! How sweet are these two knitters?! I can't wait to use them. Makes me want to cast on another project!

I seem to be getting bored with each project I start. So of course, the remedy is to cast on a new one, right? I started my first pair of Jaywalkers Saturday night, using some gorgeous Scout's Swag in Hot Fudge Sundae that my sister had picked out a while back. So now that's 2 items on the needles for her: Rusted Root and Jaywalkers. I love knitting for others!

I *Heart* Etsy

I can, (and literally have), spent hours on Etsy. There really is no other place like it. I have so many favorite items, and so many favorite sellers. And everyday I come across more. It's like finding little handmade treasures every time you turn around. Here are my most recent purchased treasures:

A project pouch from piddleloop:

It has this fantastic lining, a small pocket, and elastic sewn on one side, perfect for holding onto your sock needles! Plus, a grommet on the side you can string your yarn through if you'd like.

As a bonus, the stitch marker was attached to the zipper on the bag. And, they also sent me these cute note cards, gift tags, and a great pin!

I also bought a few jewelry items from missficklemedia. She makes these fantastic pendants that I just had to have. Can't wait to add some beads of my own and make a fantastic necklace or two! She also sent me a sweet little gift tag. Guess I should be ordering more things as gifts!

Sock Yarn, Scarves, & Stitch Markers

Well, as of yesterday, I have 10,170 yards of sock yarn. In Lime & Violet Sock Marathon terms, that's 5.77 miles of sock yarn. Oh my. Here's a flash of my stash. Some of the skeins are stacked.

From the left: Lorna's Laces, Louet Gems, Cherry Tree Hill, Mama E's C*Eye*ber Fiber, Scout's Swag, Hill Country Yarns, Knit Picks Memories, Knit Picks Memories, Knit Picks Gloss, Metamorphosis, Socks That Rock, and Vesper. The Vesper is the yarn I won from The Plucky Knitter last week. I'm anxious to try out the Jaywalker pattern with it.

From the left: Plymouth Sockotta, Trekking XXL, Austermann Step, Mountain Colors Mountain Goat, Mountain Colors Mountain Goat, Lang Jawoll, Regia Bamboo, Tofutsies, Schaefer Anne.

Some sock yarn is actually in use; for example, 2 skeins of Socks That Rock for the Chevron Scarf.I am absolutely in love with this project. Socks That Rock yarn truly is amazingly beautiful, and absolutely wonderful to work with. I only wish I wouldn't get so distracted spending so much time looking at knitting on the Internet, and would spend more time actually knitting!

I made my stitch markers for the Stitch Marker Exchange. I also made a 2 additional sets as a surprise for a couple of my blogging buddies, and a set for my Secret Pal 10, which she will receive in her final box in a few months. I really enjoy making these; I think beading is the next best thing in my life, after knitting of course!

Lucky Girl

I can't believe it! I won another contest; that's 2 this week! My Secret Pal 10 hostess Robin had us each post about our favorite and not so favorite yarns. I received a $20 gift certificate for Elann. I think this is fantastic, and I'm so excited to check out their selection of yarns. Thanks again Robin!

Secret Pal 10 Contest

Ok, I'm supposed to discuss my favorite yarn. I had to think for a while, because of course I love so many yarns! But I think my favorite is Malabrigo Merino Worsted. The feel of this lusciously soft Merino wool yarn, along with its beautiful hand dyed colorways, has me buying it for so many different projects. So far, I've knitted a baby hat, an adult hat, and a coffee cozy in Malabrigo. I have more in my stash destined for a Clapotis and a Shifting Sands scarf. I could buy Malabrigo in every color, and my one of my LYSs, Knitorious, happens to have a fairly big display of it. They definitely enable my habit, don't they?

I think my least favorite yarn is anything mohair. Although I think I just haven't worked with the right kind of mohair yet. My first experience was an attempt at a scarf, but the long mohair drove me nuts, and I ended up selling the yarn on EBay. Who knows, maybe someday I'll give mohair another chance.