Oh Heavens

My friend Mindy gives me a hard time because I use the phrase "oh heavens" quite a bit. For example, she told me her new roof is going to cost a ton of money, and I said "oh heavens." See how it's used? Anyway, I think it is appropriate for my post today as well.


I stopped in to visit Sheri at The Loopy Ewe yesterday after work. (Remember how I used to work there? That's the only downside to my new job - not being surrounded by yarn!) Anyway, Sheri has got to be the nicest person I know. She was kind enough to stay late so I could do a little birthday shopping for my friend Kim. (By the time I post this Kim will already have her gift, so I'm safe.) I wanted to get Kim some roving, as she is really taking off with the spinning thing. However, I know absolutely nothing about spinning, so I went to an expert. Sheri helped me pick out what I think is some beautiful Enchanted Knoll roving. (Checking out all the roving almost makes me want to learn to spin. Like I need another hobby.)


Here's where the "oh heavens" comes in. I might have also bought a couple of skeins of yarn for myself. Ok, might isn't really the right word. I just plain did. I haven't bought sock yarn in quite while, and being in the middle of all of the gorgeousness at TLE was too much of a temptation for me. The good thing is, I now have a good income and can allow myself some fun money (read: yarn allowance) again. So, I splurged. Oh heavens.


This first one is Pagewood Farm Alyeska, in the Mississippi Mud Colorway. This stuff is 80% Merino, 10% Cashmere, 10% Nylon. It is absolutely dreamy. For some reason I have been on a golden kick; I don't know if I'm thinking about Fall, or honey, or bees, or what, but this color is exactly what I was looking for.

And the second one is Creatively Dyed Yarns Luxury in the Cabin in the Woods Colorway. And guess what? It is also 80% Merino, 10% Cashmere, 10% Nylon. See a theme here?

(I wish I could figure out why this photo keeps flipping sideways. It did that in Flickr too; it's driving me crazy.)

As much as I am dying to start knitting both of these yarns, I am presently winning the struggle against the cast on monster. This is because I have a boat load of projects on the needles. Even so, the urge to cast on something new is about to drive me nuts. Casting on is my drug of choice, I suppose. I love the rush I get from starting something new, and for the first few days I can't get enough of that project. Once the newness (high) wears off, I have such an urge to start something else that it's almost ridiculous. Does anyone else know how I feel? I keep trying to justify it all by telling myself that it's ok to have a ton of WIPs and UFOs, but I can't seem to get rid of the guilt. And so I continue to fight my addiction...

Orangina

Yes, I had to jump on the Orangina bandwagon. I just love Stefanie Japel's patterns! And, now that I have Ravelry, I succumb to peer pressure so quickly. It's like everyday I find something on there that someone else is knitting/has knitted, and I just have to knit it too! Plus, I really wanted to be working on something fairly mindless. In cotton. I'm guessing this is because it has been so stinking hot here. Although of course I have the fear that I won't finish it in time to wear it this summer (because apparently I don't finish projects anymore. I simply collect yarn and patterns.) Either way, Orangina is fulfilling my present knitting needs and desires. Besides, look how gorgeous this lace pattern is. And it's so easy!

On other news, Sarah, a.k.a. The Plucky Knitter, made her debut on The Loopy Ewe last night! WooHoo! I literally had been stalking the site all day yesterday (I just had a feeling a Sneak Up was coming.) Well into the evening, I noticed new icons were going up on Sheri's site, and of course, one of them was for The Plucky Knitter, which you can also get here on Etsy. I emailed Sarah immediately - how exciting to have her yarns on TLE! Anyway, the Sneak Up did happen last night, and I snatched myself a few things, including some TPK lace weight in a beautiful blue called Afternoon Tea. Gorgeous.

I believe Kara and I will be making an excursion to TLE on Friday, just to soak in a little yarny goodness and visit with Sheri. Kara has never experienced TLE in person. I am so excited to go with her!

Cindy (my sister) and I made our reservations last night for a hotel in Chicago for next week. That's right, we're going to Stitches Midwest! I can hardly believe it. It just happens to be right at the end of my medical leave from work - perfect! And, I finally get to meet Sarah in person as well. So much excitement going on around here. Although I'm wondering how Cindy (a non-knitter at this point) is going to react to all the craziness of the knitting world...

Thanks to everyone for all the well wishes and great comments on my last post. Everyone is so kind and thoughtful. It's so wonderful to have such great friends. I honestly don't know how I was living without you all for so long!

I Love Saturdays

I participated again in The Stitch Marker Exchange. (I really think stitch marker collecting can become as much of an obsession as yarn collecting.) I have received some great packages this week with some gorgeous stitch markers inside! First, a great set from Kimberly (notice how she even sent them on a decorated safety pin!) I love these color combos.
And second, a set from Cass, who says this is her first time making stitch markers. Looks like a pro to me! How pretty are these beads? And, Cass also sent this cute set of note cards. I love them! I actually collect note cards and journals, and these are a perfect addition to my collection - how thoughtful!I definitely have some great partners! Thanks again!

Here is The Plucky Knitter Lace Weight Yarn wound:
(I have to admit, I love winding skeins of yarn. How did I ever live without my swift and yarn winder?)

I realized the other night that I'm planning to swatch for the Forest Canopy Shoulder Shawl on Size 6 needles. Of course, I went straight to my set of Knit Picks Options. However, I soon remembered that my Size 6s are being used right now for Rusted Root. Not a problem, I thought. Maybe I could just swatch on Size 5s and see how that goes. Or, I could spend a little time today at my local LYSs and online, searching for the new Addi Turbo Lace Needles. I chose the latter, but to no avail. No one had a Size 6 in site. This is ok. It's actually a good thing. I mean, I was getting ready to spend money on a needle I pretty much already have. Granted, I really wanted to try the new Addis, but I don't need to. Besides, it sounds like the Knit Picks needles are sharper than the Addi Lace Needles anyway.

This is just more motivation to finish another WIP! (Soon!)

Busy, Busy, Busy!

I received my yarn from The Plucky Knitter's Etsy Shop. How beautiful is that?! Here, take a closer look: The colorway is Wuthering Heights. It is a skein of 900 yards of Hand Painted Merino Lace Weight. Sarah says the yarn is "Hand Artisan Yarn" from Uruguay; single ply. It totally reminds of Malabrigo (which some of you may remember is my favorite yarn.) I have been wanting to try the new Malabrigo Lace Weight, but I'm thinking now I've found something better in The Plucky Knitter! Recommended needle size is 0-3 US, although Sarah also states it also worked great on a US Size 9. As her description says, it is definitely luxuriously soft and gorgeous. Hand wash cool, lay flat to dry instructions, very normal for merino lace weight yarn. I'm planning to wind it this evening. I'm really excited to see it in a nice yarn cake, although part of me wants to keep it in the skein and simply fondle it. However, I promised Sarah I would be a test knitter, so I must knit this yarn! I've picked the Forest Canopy Shoulder Shawl, a pattern that has been in my queue for quite some time. I think this colorway will be fantastic for such a pattern. I will keep everyone updated on how it winds, knits up, and so on.

On other knitting news, I had to rip quite a bit of Cindy's Rusted Root Friday night. I thought I would try it on; I had gotten down a good 5 inches or so since that last picture. As it turned out, the size was practically perfect for me, which meant it would probably be too small for Cindy (she has a much better figure than I do!) But, I wasn't too discouraged. I simply ripped until my lifeline, and started the next section over, in the next size up. It's coming along well, although I'm thinking after this slight set back, it will not be done in time for her birthday celebration this Sunday. That's ok, I already have a few other presents for her (can't tell you what they are; Cindy sometimes reads my blog!)

I've spent a lot of time on Ravelry this past week, finally. I was invited a while ago, but could never seem to find the time to get my notebook updated. I think it finally is. I added all of my yarn into the "Stash" section today - boy, do I have an embarrassing amount of yarn! The great thing about this is that I now see my stash in project form, and it's kind of like keeping a "Things To Do List" now. I can knit from my stash, and then update my listings in Ravelry. It will also help to hold me accountable (I hope!) Plus, I really enjoy searching through everyone else's notebooks as well. There are so many talented knitters out there!

I'm also working on getting myself set up for Skype. After listening to the SSK Podcast with Shannon and Stephanie, I got pretty excited about it. I really wanted to participate in their first Virtual Stitch 'N Bitch, but I didn't have a microphone or headset at the time. Thanks to Amazon, now I do. I just need to take the time to figure out how it all works. The Internet never ceases to amaze me!

Sorry for the Delay

Thanks so much for the kind comments of people wondering where I was - it's nice to know I was missed! I usually try to blog on the weekend, but last weekend was used up with babysitting my niece for 3 days, and then having to work. And this weekend? Well, it was on my list of things to do... Somehow I always end up getting distracted. I hope today's post will make up for time lost!

First of all, some great news. My friend Sarah, The Plucky Knitter, has opened her very own Etsy shop! She is so talented; her yarns are beautiful. She has also asked me to be a test knitter and possibly do a review. I'm so flattered! I honestly didn't think I was a good enough knitter to be a test knitter. The best perk? I get to fondle some of her gorgeous yarn! (I really think this is a ploy on Sarah's behalf to get me to lust after her yarn, knowing that if I have the chance to touch a skein, I will definitely want more. She is very smart, and she knows me well!)

Speaking of yarn, Nora asked me today if I had any additions to my sock yarn stash. Embarrassingly enough, of course, I do! First up is yarny goodness from Jen at Wool Girl. Let me start by saying Jen is such a sweetheart to work with! She has fabulous yarns to choose from. And she'll even offer to set some aside for you if you have a special request. She did that for me with my request for Pigeon Roof Studios in the Punk colorway. That's the two skeins on the far right. Next to those is Union Center Knits WhatNot Sport in Wool Girl, and on the far left is Lavender Sheep in Bad Girl. I think I'm going through a slight pink phase. What do you think?

My next picture of absolutely yummy yarn porn is Lime 'n Violet Sasquatch sock yarn in Xanax. Love the colors, love the name. I was so excited that I had the chance to get online and catch that update. I happened to be off that day watching Maria, and she was taking a nap. Usually I'm at work when all the updates take place, and it's really hard to sneak online and shop for yarn at work! (Although I have done it - don't tell my boss!) Anyway, here's the beautiful skein.

And a close up.

On the knitting front, I'm finally back in the swing of things. I know I've talked about this before, but it's just amazing to me how much time I spend online looking at knitting, rather than actually doing it. I was on the Internet quite a bit this weekend. But, I'm making the commitment now to knit and finish these projects that have laying around for a while. First, I finished a Malabrigo scarf. I know, knitting yet another wool scarf in the springtime. Yes, it got up to 82 degrees this week. But this is about finishing, people, and knitting from the stash! I had to find something that would knit up quickly, and get me back in "finishing" mode. Now I'm excited!

Pattern: none, just simple garter stitch

Yarn: Malabrigo Worsted in Marron Oscuro, 1 skein to knit, and some leftovers from the hat that I used for the fringe

Needles: Knit Picks Options Size 7

Started: 5/20/07

Finished: 5/30/07

I also spent some time working on Rusted Root for my sister Cindy, although I feel like it hardly looks like I made any progress!

Stephanie talks about this phenomenon in her latest book; how you can spend all this time knitting and knitting, and then when you measure your garment, it still measures the same as when you started. But I'm determined! Actually, I'm hoping to finish it and give to her as a birthday gift. Her birthday is June 18 - am I being realistic? I feel like I am sometimes an awfully slow knitter. However, back to my earlier comment: I am limiting my time online. I think that will help tremendously. Must...Complete...More...Projects!

Other projects I'm working on? 1.) Of course, that stinkin' Toshiko Tote that I started when I first learned to knit. 2.)And the second sock of the Jaywalkers in Scout's Swag (also for my sister, by the way. Hmm, maybe I should plan to give her a pair of socks for her birthday instead of a sweater...) 3.) And finally, the second sock of the Heelless Sleeping Socks from Knitting Vintage Socks in Mountain Colors Bearfoot (I think I just got bored with this one.) I am also all ramped up about starting some Spring/Summer knits, but I plan to finish at least one more WIP before I cast on something new. I did order two kits from kpixie yesterday: Flair, by Knit and Tonic, and the Eyelet Cardigan, by Blue Sky Alpacas. Both will be in Blue Sky Alpacas Dyed Cotton. Plus, I used my gift card for Michaels on some Lion Brand Cotton Ease in Maize to make the Turtleneck Tube Vest from Fitted Knits. I want to knit just about every pattern in that book. Never mind the 6 million pairs of socks I need to knit up. See why I have to stay off the Internet? Although I've really been wanting to spend some time updating my Ravelry account...

Flashing My Stash for Secret Pal 10!

What a Great Week!

First, I must show you the gorgeous yarn I received from My Small Wonders Etsy shop.

This has been in my stash for quite some time, but I could never get a good photo of my own skein, so I finally asked Donna if I could borrow hers. The colorway is Seaside Jewels. It's exquisite, don't you think?

Now I need to tell you about the great time I had Wednesday night. I finally went to Knit Nite at Knitorious! I've been chatting back and forth with Mindy, and she shared that she attends Knit Nite herself. I thought, well, I'll kind-of know someone now, so I should go. It was fabulous! I was amazed at all the people; seriously, maybe 20-25 people were there throughout the evening. Some of the people I met were Mindy, who identified me as SassyKrafty the second I walked in (how cool is that?), and who was knitting a beautiful sock in her own handdyed colorway (you can see a pic on her blog); her roommate Kara, who was knitting both a gorgeous sock and an entrelac scarf; Jenn, who was knitting lace with Hand Maiden Sea Silk; and Rachel, who happens to be saved in my favorites on Etsy! I decided I had to get a skein of her Dyeabolical Yarn - I picked Dark Envy. She definitely has an eye for colors that pop!

I had originally heard about Rachel and her awesome sock yarn on who else but Lime 'n Violet, which she also is addicted to. How cool is it that Rachel has her yarns right her in St. Louis, at what happens to be my favorite LYS? I felt like I was meeting someone famous! I even jokingly asked her to autograph my yarn skein band (I know, I'm a total knitting geek. I can't help it!) Anyway, Rachel has suggested we try to get Lime 'n Violet to come to St. Louis for a book signing at Knitorious. I just posted a comment on their podcast blog, pretty much begging them to come. (Again, total knitting geek.) I honestly am having a little bit of Lime 'n Violet withdrawal, as there's no podcast this week. (Snif, snif.)

Anyway, Knit Nite was great. I met a ton more people, but of course can't remember every one's names yet. But I will go back next week for sure. I took my Chevron Scarf, which feels like the never ending project. It's going to be a freakishly long scarf. And, it seems a little silly to be knitting a wool scarf in May. But, I love it. And I received a ton of compliments on it too. I thanked dogged for her inspiration. Can't wait to finish it up, block it, and post the final product!

Thanks to everyone who has wished me a happy birthday - it really was a great day. And I was originally thinking I didn't really want to celebrate it anymore, you know, being over 30 and all. But, celebrate I did! The people I work with were so kind, and showered me with cakes, gifts, cards, and even a plant! My family took me to eat at The Elephant Bar, which I love. (You know I have that small thing for elephants!) I suppose the day made me realize how lucky I am to have so many wonderful people in my life.

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!

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!

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!

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.

So Much To Say

I have so much to tell! First, you must check out The Plucky Knitter, Sarah. She and I "met" on EBay. Remember the Chevron Scarf from LMKG I've been wanting to knit? Well, Sarah just happened to be selling both Farmhouse and Watermelon Tourmaline Socks That Rock - the exact 2 skeins dogged used, and the exact two skeins I wanted! (How beautiful!)

Apparently, Sarah herself had also thought about knitting the Chevron Scarf. I emailed her and asked if I could buy both in a "Buy It Now" situation. She agreed, and was fantastic to work with. We ended up reading each other's blogs and realizing we had quite a bit in common! I have become an avid reader of her blog; she knits some fantastic things and takes great pics. Sarah also hosted a contest this past week; whomever was her 100th comment would win a prize. Ironically, I turned out to be her 100th comment! How cool is that? Sarah says she's mailing me my prize - a skein of Vesper sock yarn. I'm so thrilled, I've never used Vesper before and have really been wanting to try it. Sarah and I are turning out to be great knitting blogger buddies, aren't we? She's mentioned she might be in St. Louis sometime soon - we will definitely have to meet up at one of the LYSs in town!

On to other great yarn news. I received my Mama Llama Sock Club package today. It has pretty sock yarn, a beautiful bag, a pattern, and a cute sheep stitch marker. Isn't it neat how it all coordinates together? I love getting goodies in the mail!

I finished the One Skein Baby Bolero, but am withholding a picture. I seamed one of the sleeves on a little wrong, and it's puckering a little. I plan to redo the seaming soon. Maybe I'll post a pic then.

I also finished the Wendy Knits Kitty Pi. What a fun knit! I was worried that Muffin and Sam might not be interested in checking it out, but check out Muffin!

Pattern: Kitty Pi by Wendy Knits

Yarn: 2 skeins Noro Big Kuyeron & 2 skeins Fun Fur (I only used a little bit of the Fun Fur, but used 2 skeins double stranded)

Needles: Size 11 Crystal Palace Bamboo DPNs & Size 11 24 inch Addi Turbo Circular

Started: 3/21/07

Finished: 3/30/07

A Little Bit of Everything

So, I'm a little addicted to knitting podcasts. Ok, so a lot addicted. I have definitely gone over the edge. I'm not sure how I lived prior to owning an IPod really. It's practically embarrassing. Here's a few I listen to: Lime & Violet, It's a Purl Man, Sticks & String, Knitting Psychos, Math for Knitters, BritKnit Cast, Lixie Knits It, Stash & Burn, CraftBorg, Pixie Purls, Pointy Sticks, Unwound, Trueyarns, Cast On, and Ready Set Knit. I also frequent a few general craft podcasts, like CraftyPod and CraftSanity.

I have been slowly downloading and listening to a lot of the past podcasts for all these people. I downloaded all of Lime & Violet's this weekend. I wish I never had to go to work, and I could just stay home all day and knit and listen to these two gals. They are hilarious!

I bought some gorgeous Hill Country Yarn in a very Lime & Violet colorway Saturday at the Kirkwood Knittery. I have to say, their shop is fantastic. I had so much fun talking with everyone and checking out their awesome selection of yarns. Oh, here's the obligatory yarn pic:

I am so lucky to have so many LYSs close by, you know? I bought some great things for my secret pal too. I have her packages all planned out already, because you know how perfectionistic and crazy I am with all that stuff!

As for actual knitting, I made 2 of these:

Pattern: Umbilical Cord Hat from Stitch 'N Bitch

Yarn: 1 skein Blue Sky Organic Cotton in Sand (made 2 with yarn left over)

Needles: Size 7 16" Denise Interchangeables & Size 7 DPNs

Started: 1st one: 3/9/07, 2nd one: 3/10/07

Finished: 1st one: 3/10/07, 2nd one: 3/11/07

This yarn is awesome to knit with, and the pattern is adorable! I plan to gift one with a baby bolero from One Skein, and the other with a baby kimono from Mason Dixon Knitting. The baby bolero is actually done, but needs to be blocked, so the pic is forthcoming.