VA Knitter

It's been a while, but I've been busy

2011-01-26T18:01:00.002-05:00

So I'd like to blame my lack of posts on how busy I've been, but that's not really true, though I have been busy.

Let's start with a recap of last year.

In my last post I noted that I'd been looking at the stash hard. Inspired by the fact that in August I had more yarn go out than in for the first time since I started tracking the stash, I was determined to destash. Well my plan seems to be working. In November, I reduced the stash by a little over 4,000 yards. In December, by 39,636! Then it seems that a lot of people when stash shopping in early January, and even though I was without internet essentially the first week while I was in Cedar Key, Florida January is looking very good. So far I'm down another 27,658. On the other hand, I was rather bad Tuesday and placed an order with Webs, but I don't think enough to totally offset that.

My plan to allow myself only one WIP is also working in the right direction. At the end of the year I was down to 9 WIPs, from a high of 24.

I haven't really made resolutions for this year. I plan to continue the above, since it seems to be working.

I'd really like to have all the old WIPs done before the end of the year. Unfortunately, I'm violating the one per category rule lately because I'm working on projects for others.

When I'm done with those projects I'd really like to knit for myself more than I have been. We'll see how that goes.

Oops, missed October, and almost November

2010-11-30T13:05:00.003-05:00

So late for September's check-in, never did October, and here it is the end of November. Well I must admit, knitting hasn't been high of the list of things I've been doing, though I have been in my yarn a lot.

I've been hit by a major urge to purge. Last Saturday I drove to Beckley, WV and delivered by Reeves wheel to its new mommy. That's its picture at the top of this post. I've never spun on it, since I vowed to finish it before I did. Its previous owner had spun very little on it. So the wheel is 10+ years old and hasn't done much but be home decor. I worried that I might regret the decision, but I'm really happy. Connie has a number of wheels, including a number of Reeves. I feel like the wheel is going back home almost, at least to live with some cousins. Plus, I know that it will be loved and used for what it was meant for.

Then I've been going the the stash with a brutal eye. Lots has been going on the "for sale" pile. Last time I did the math it was almost 20% in terms of yardage, and a fair bit more was added since then. Plus I have a "maybe" pile to go back through, that was about 10% of the stash last time I did the math. Why? Well I hit SABLE (stash acquisition beyond life expectancy) years ago, but continued to add. But I've really been thinking about why I knit and what I like to knit the last year or so and came to a few conclusions.

1) I'm awe-struck by fancy large lace shawls. I kinda enjoy the process of creating them (though I do tend to get side-tracked easily on any large project). I have no use for them once done. So..... large quantities of lace yarn were easy to let go of.

2) I don't really knit sweaters. I don't live in a climate where I wear them much. Plus there's the big project issue again. I've knit 2-3 sweaters in the 20 years I've been a knitter. Decided I probably wasn't going to get through the 20 or so I had in the stash!

3) Hard as it is to believe, I've decided it is possible to have too much sock yarn.

So pretty much anything I don't have a project in mind for is on the destash list. There's a link on the side-bar to the listing in Ravelry. If you aren't on Ravelry (and why not???), feel free to drop a note and I'll send you the excel spreadsheet. (Yes, I am that anal. Or as the t-shirt my sister saw says "I have CDO. It's like OCD, but in the correct order.)

Overdue September Check-in!

2010-10-25T11:18:00.007-05:00

So the count from September to October stayed the same, but at least I have some pictures.

To the left is a friend's granddaughter modeling the first baby sweater made with a kit from Knit Picks. When I saw it I thought it was cute and the colors would probably be perfect for her, and I think I was right. I modified it by turning the cardigan into a henley. I can't wait to meet this kid in person because every pic I've seen she's like this, and I think she may be the happiest baby ever.

Another friend also recently became a grandparent, this time a boy, so I started a second sweater. I changed the bubble stitch to stripes in the yoke, and used Knit Pick Shine because I wanted brighter colors. Went with a patriotic colorway because daddy is in the Army. Just as I was finishing I thought, "hmmm, maybe I should have gone for olive, tan, etc." Anyway, I just finished it this weekend so slipped it in even though it technically doesn't fit in a September recap!

All in all I'm happy with my latest attempts to get the WIPs under control. Only one category still has more than one project, and the total is under 10 which is amazing for me.

So here's the official list as of the end of September:

Baby - 1
Patriotic Little Bubbles sweater

Hat - 1
Bonkers Hat

Household - 1
Log Cabin afghan

Mittens - 2
Yummy Mittens
Twined Wristers

Novelty - 1
Mini Flag

Scarf - 0

Shawl or Wrap - 1
Hanami

Socks or other footwear - 1
Travelers Socks

Sweaters - 1
Flora

Montpelier

2010-10-10T17:23:00.002-05:00

Well despite saying for weeks that I wasn't going because "it's not like I need any yarn," Saturday dawned as the first sunny day in a week and I was itchy to get outside and Montpelier beckoned.

My non-yarn purchase was this ceramic spindle and bowl from Steam Valley Fiber. Perfect fall day just seemed to call for an acorn spindle!

The festival seemed very crowded to me, but I'm not so good with crowds. Not sure if lots of people had the same urge I did, or if Saturday is just busier than Sunday when I've gone in the past.

And yes, there were yarn purchases. First some Tin Silk from Tintagel Farms, then some Color Changing Cotton from Wolle's Yarn Creations, and last some Hand Dyed Brushed Mohair from Steam Valley Fiber. The cotton was the only purchase I had planned on. I'd looked at this yarn last year but was being very good and not buying any then. I'm going to knit a small scarf for a friend who's in a Red Hat group to try it. The others, I don't know, but I just loved the colors!

Idaho is good!

2010-09-07T08:46:00.008-05:00

Well I've always loved north Idaho. My aunt and her family moved there 41 years ago. They lived on a farm and one of my favorite summers was spent there, doing chores in the morning then roaming all over the mountain the rest of the day, usually on horseback. My cousins even took me to visit the cougar den. This is the house they lived in then:

The last day my cousin Brett and I took my sister there to show her. We discovered the property has been divided into lots to sell for development (boo hoo). But they did keep the original house as one lot with some of the out-buildings and all the fruit trees and bushes intact. The house has been recently renovated and is gorgeous. The yard is a little overgrown. Don't I wish I could retire now (the job situation there isn't good) and buy the place. My sister was laughing about the looks of lust Brett and I were giving the place. Yes, our eyes were colored by nostalgia, but it is still nice. Below is my aunt and sister in front of The View. A long-time favorite restaurant, and not just because it does have a beautiful view of Cocolalla Lake across the highway (and train tracks between the highway and the lake for the train nuts in the family). It had closed for a while and then was bought and re-opened. A little cleaned up from before, but the food is still good. Aren't those flower baskets amazing!

Here are my sister and I at the top of Schweitzer Mountain Ski Resort. You can see the northern end of Lake Pend Orielle in the background and part of Sandpoint at the lake edge to the right of me.

Last, I'll share this deer crossing sign. I kept thinking that Idaho was making some type of statement about the "proper" family unit, despite the fact that this is not the way things work in nature!

In addition to having fun catching up with family there, it was very relaxing and productive. Between the rip-outs and the finishing I'm down to 9 WIPs, and only one category still has more than one. Plus, for the first time since I tracked it my stash yardage decreased! Maybe because the one yarn store near my aunt had closed, but I'll take it. So here's the current WIP list:

Baby - 0

Hat - 1
Bonkers Hat

Household - 1
Log Cabin afghan

Mittens - 2
Yummy Mittens
Twined Wristers

Novelty - 1
Mini Flag

Scarf - 1
Angel Pearls

Shawl or Wrap - 1
Hanami

Socks or other footwear - 1
Travelers Socks

Sweaters - 1
Flora

Backslliding through July

2010-08-02T17:24:00.003-05:00

Well my WIP count went up from 12 to 15 last month! Still no pictures. I really have to do that at some point, as Ravelry is looking pitiful.

One of the "new" projects is actually a scarf I started back in January, knit an inch or so and then forgot. The other two really are new, a baby sweater (which I confessed about in my last post) and another Noro Striped scarf for commuting.

So here's the list as of the end of July:

Baby - 1
Little Bubbles sweater

Hat - 1
Bonkers Hat

Household - 1
Log Cabin afghan

Mittens - 2
Yummy Mittens
Twined Wristers

Novelty - 1
Mini Flag

Scarf - 4
Angel Pearls
Unisex Scarf
Merlie Scarf
Noro Striped Scarf

Shawl or Wrap - 2
Leaf Lace Shawl
Hanami

Socks or other footwear - 1
Travelers Socks

Sweaters - 2
Flora
Philosopher's Wool cardigan - will be ripped as soon as I find it!

I'll also confess that I finished the Noro Striped Scarf today, but that's only one reason I have faith the number will be lower by the end of the month.

I'm going to Idaho with my sister this month to visit an aunt. The only plan is to hang out, catch up and knit. I suspect we may do some siteseeing since she has never been, so I may be over estimating the amount of knitting I'll do!

But in anticipation, a few weeks ago I dug out a lot of the WIPs, made sure all the necessary yarn, pattern, needles, etc. was with each one and packed each in an individual project bag (yes, I've bought too many of those on Etsy!). Seriously, I believe 7 of those WIPs are ready to go with me.

No internet access in Idaho (well there probably is some somewhere, but not where I will be), but if we do any siteseeing I'll post some pics.

Made some progress in June!

2010-07-07T12:18:00.003-05:00

Well my WIP count went from 18 to 12 last month! Unfortunately, taking pictures of things haven't happen. Will try at some point.

The six that came off the list were evenly divided between ripped and finished.

Ripped projects include the latest 2-color Noro scarf (I just wasn't liking the two colors this time, so 1 scarf will become 2 when I find better matches for each), the Gaia shawl (just not loving the pattern even though I loved the shop sample, maybe the color matters), and Slippers for Her (after accidently pulling it off the needles when sorting a messy bag, but I hadn't gotten far).

Finished projects include Bronte scarf, Lacy Baktus scarf, and Desert Sun shawl. Two of those were projects that I could only do when I could concentrate. I have no excuses for why Lacy Baktus took so long!

So here's the list as of the end of June:

Baby - 0

Hat - 1
Bonkers Hat

Household - 1
Log Cabin afghan

Mittens - 2
Yummy Mittens
Twined Wristers

Novelty - 1
Mini Flag

Scarf - 2
Angel Pearls
Unisex Scarf

Shawl or Wrap - 2
Leaf Lace Shawl
Hanami

Socks or other footwear - 1
Travelers Socks

Sweaters - 2
Flora
Philosopher's Wool cardigan - will be ripped as soon as I find it!

I'll confess that I have started a baby sweater at the beginning of July. Maybe I'll finish by the end of the month, or maybe find the Philosopher's Wool cardi to rip it out. Or maybe even finish at least one more of the more complicated WIPs still on the list. Currently I'm focusing on the Unisex scarf.

Moving along well with the new plan

2010-06-01T16:33:00.002-05:00

Did pretty well in May on the new plan to try and get down to no more than 1 WIP in each of those categories. The total WIP count has dropped to 18. I ripped out three - Mystery Stole 3, Aspen Glo Wrap and Finola. I decided the first and third just weren't me. The middle I'll probably start again narrower - I thought it was too narrow for a stole, but didn't think I had enough yarn to make it wider. But it was nice. I did carve out the time to graft together the Sunday Scarf. My first time grafting ribbing, so that was interesting.

I also started another Noro Striped Scarf for my trip to Geneva. I thought I would finish the Lacey Baktus before the trip ended if I took it. Of course, I had barely any time to knit, so wouldn't have finished the Lacey Baktus and only knit about 10 rows on the striped scarf. I'll admit I thought about ripping it out to make the count look better, but I'll need another easy project at some point.

Most of the month was spent focused on the Desert Sun shawl. I wish I'd made note of when exactly I picked it up again. This was from a mystery KAL in the summer of '06. I was following apace until the third clue, which I struggled with and eventually abandoned the project. When I picked it up again I worked through clue 4 pretty easy. I started the edging last Wednesday. There are 576 stitches around, and you eat up one of those for every 2 rows of the edging. Still, I'd hoped I might finish with the long weekend but no such luck. Currently, I'm 11/12's done, but I need to resist the urge to stay up and finish it as I have to get up at 3am for work for the first time in days. So anyway, here's the current list:

Baby - 0

Hat - 1
Bonkers Hat

Household - 1
Log Cabin afghan

Mittens - 2
Yummy Mittens
Twined Wristers

Novelty - 1
Mini Flag

Scarf - 5
Bronte
Angel Pearls
Unisex Scarf
Lacy Backtus
Noro Striped Scarf

Shawl or Wrap - 4
Leaf Lace Shawl
Desert Sun Shawl
Hanami
Gaia Shawl - still trying to decide whether or not to rip

Socks or other footwear - 2
Travelers Socks
Slippers for Her

Sweaters - 2
Flora
Philosopher's Wool cardigan - will be ripped as soon as I find it!

I have a couple projects to start soon - a pair of socks I promised a friend and a baby gift, but not until I finish Desert Sun!

Wow, I've been gone a while!

2010-05-08T14:48:00.003-05:00

I'm not even going to try and explain. Very little knitting has happened though.

One thing I never got to the beginning of the year was my newest plan for trying to reduce the number of WIPs. For the most part I've been following it pretty close, except for a bad case of shawl startitis in February.

So here was the idea. I was only going to allow myself to have 1 WIP per project type. To the extent I currently had more than one, I was going to try and work those down. And only start something new when I had nothing in that category.

So, how do things look now?

Baby - 0

Hat - 1
Bonkers Hat

Household - 1
Log Cabin afghan

Mittens - 2
Yummy Mittens
Twined Wristers

Novelty - 1
Mini Flag

Scarf - 5
Bronte
Angel Pearls
Sunday Scarf - only need to graft the two halves!
Unisex Scarf
Lacy Backtus

Shawl or Wrap - 6
Leaf Lace Shawl
Desert Sun Shawl
Mystery Stole 3 - will be ripped soon
Hanami
Aspen Glo Wrap - may rip
Gaia Shawl - may rip

Socks or other footwear - 2
Travelers Socks
Slippers for Her

Sweaters - 3
Flora
Finola - will be ripped soon
Philosopher's Wool cardigan - will be ripped soon

So, currenly 21 WIPs, which, unfortunately, is 2 more than the beginning of the year. I'm also trying to focus on one project at home, currently Desert Sun (though I really should find time to graft that scarf!), and one traveling project, currently Lacey Baktus. The real problem with this plan is that there aren't a lot of things that are good traveling projects. So I may be starting something for that. Plus I promised to knit socks for a friend, and those will probably be started before the others in that category are finished.

2009 recap

2010-01-03T10:43:00.005-05:00

I was reviewing my 2009 finished knitting projects yesterday, and I thought I'd share some observations.

Total finished - 23. One more than 2008. As much as I feel the knitting has really slacked off this year, it does appear I did more even beyond the one extra. 2008 was all small projects, and one (the christmas ornaments) wasn't even knitting.

2009 featured 3 large projects. Okay, so one, Toad's Aran, only involved the sewing up and adding a neck. But given how I abhor finishing (which is one reason for the mini projects), I feel rather proud of that one. The other two were large shawls that I knit start to finish this year.

It was also the year for repeat knitting - 2 pairs of Bella's mittens, 2 Striped scarves and 7 Darkside cowls. I've never been one to repeat a pattern before, so this is quite odd.

The last FO of 2008 and 2009 were both the same pattern - Striped scarves (so there have actually been 3 of those in quick succession).

So here's the actual list:

Arctic Diamonds Stole
Miniature Sweater Ornament
Pastel Bunny
7 Darkside Cowls (link is to the first)
Grace Kelly Scarf
Best Friend Scarf
Crystal Garden Scarf (first keeping up with a KAL!)
2 Bella's mittens (link to second)
Bactus scarf
Just Enough Ruffles scarf
Toad's Aran
Celtic Hearts Shawl
2 Noro Striped Scarves (link to second)
Concerto scarf
Naughty Reindeer hat

Christmas decorations

2009-12-14T12:43:00.002-05:00

Well it has been forever since I posted anything here, but until I find time, enjoy these shop decorations I saw in Bern, Switzerland.

Second Finishing Day - Score!

2009-09-08T04:08:00.002-05:00

Well I had a rather last-minute finishing day on Sunday. The 3-day weekend snuck up on me. I really had to work a lot over the weekend, but decided to set aside Sunday as a finishing day for anyone that might be in town. Suzy, Margarethe, Cindy and Melodye made it for a while.

But the big news was that I really got some work done and the long-overdue Robert the Bruce is now finished.

This sweater was started a long time ago as a test knit for Glenys Franks, affectionately known on knitting lists as Toad. Unfortunately she passed away before the pattern was published.

I made a really stupid mistake - joined the shoulders when one side of the front was about 8 rows short. It took me an amazingly long time to figure out the problem, and then I had to rip out the shoulders. Given Toad's passing, I lost my motivation to finish at that point.

It is a gorgeous design though, and deserved to be finished. The best part - it is one of the best-fitting sweaters I have ever made. Funny considering I just did the test knitting and figured I'd find someone it fit when it was done.

Anyway, whereever you are, thank you Toad for a wonderful sweater.

First Finishing Day

2009-08-02T08:47:00.006-05:00

Well this will be a picture heavy post. Picture number 1 is Margarethe, wearing a large hank of (I believe I'm remembering this correctly) Mountain Colors wool. Like me, she's been traveling a lot the last year or so. Unlike me, she finds time to do a little exploring and yarn and stamp shopping in new locals. She said she had no idea what to do with this, but loved the color. We said, just wear it as a necklace, which then morphed into this position. We all decided that you could load it with needles, etc. and call it a knitter's bandoleer.

A common site throughout the day was Miss Baloo investigating everyone's bags. There were better shots I missed of her head down deep in a bag. I believe she's been mightily spoiled by Margarethe bringing a turkey sandwich to share (Miss Baloo gets as much of the meat as she wants, Margarethe is allowed the rest) the last few times she was here. In total disbelief that she would have forgotten this time, Miss Baloo seemed determined to find the hidden turkey sandwich.

Here we have Gayle (in green) working on a scrapbook of the trip she and Carl took over Father's Day weekend to a golf resort. She was aiming for her first scrapbook completed in the calendar year the trip was taken. She didn't finish, but got a lot done I think. Cindy (in blue to the right) worked on some cards for a card swap. Again, I don't think totally finished. And Margarethe spent most of the day winding her travel yarn purchases into balls using my big ball winder. That would have been more productive if I could just remember where my swift is!

Melodye also spent most of her visit winding yarn into balls. Though I think here she was still trying to put together her new winder from Knit Picks. Melodye came with Lydia and Lydia's granddaughter Riley Brooke (not sure I spelled that right), but somehow I missed getting a picture of them. I could swear I took at least one, but they weren't in the camera.

Last, Suzy, who I think was the only person who actually knit that day, though again I don't think finished anything. Though part of that was she ended up being the last person to leave and I distracted her at the end by introducing her to one of my favorite tv shows, Rescue Me.

And what did I do? Well I sewed the sleeves onto Robert the Bruce. Since that day I've sewed one underarm seam. So the other underarm seam, the side seams, knit on a collar and sew in ends and that could be done. I'd really love that to happen before sweater weather this year!!!!

So did anyone finish anything? Only if you count some of those skeins that were wound into balls. On the other hand, I anyway really enjoyed the day and hope my friends did also. I was surprised how many hadn't been in the house since I put in the new floors over a year ago!

So, how are those resolutions coming

2009-06-26T14:04:00.002-05:00

In a word, not so good.

Let's look back at my March 2nd I Actually Sorta Made Resolutions post. It seems that putting it down in writing threw the brakes on the whole process. I've only repeated items that I've made progress on, and added Ravelry links.

So heading directly to the group 1 resolutions:

March - Cait's Bella's Mittens

April - Oops!

May - Oops!

June - a child’s toy Hello, why am I cranking out more cowls for Christmas this month!

And on to the group 2 resolutions:

3 mittens - Well 1 down, see above.

1 shawl - And now we come to the source of the problem!

I spent most of April and May obsessed with a Secret Shawl KAL. I've joined these in the past and faltered time and again (I think every time). But this one enthralled me and I'm thrilled with my finished shawl. Thanks Vicki!

Finishing Days

2009-06-24T17:37:00.002-05:00

Well first, wow, it has been even longer than I thought since I've posted. But I have a few ideas, so maybe I'll start churning a few out.

First idea - encouraging finishing. I've been slowly whittling down my list of WIPs, but not fast enough. Then I read the Finish-It-Friday on Creative Organizing.

And I started thinking (often dangerous).

My friend Gayle has hosted the occasional finishing day, and I've often used it to focus on finishing something. So then I thought, "well Friday doesn't work for me (pesky day job), but maybe I could set aside a day myself every month, or maybe every other month, and just do it myself.

And then I thought, well why not let my friends stop by if they want.

So here's the deal. The first "finish-it" day is July 25th. If you know me, feel free to stop by, with a couple "rules."

1) Please don't show up before 10am (just in case I manage to sleep later than I normally do.

2) Please plan on leaving by 8pm (since I tend to crash early - see those early wake-ups above).

3) I'm not going to go out of my way to make a food spread (since I think that might cut in to the frequency of me doing this), but feel free to bring a lunch, or we could think about getting some take-out around that time. Or something.

4) Maybe give me a head's up if you know you're definitely coming , but don't let a last-minute decision stop you from coming!

5) You're not required to knit or spin, just finish some project. For those of you with potentially messy projects (like stamping), please bring something to protect my table. I got rid of stuff like that when I gave up stamping.

Sound like a plan?

Be Careful What You Complain About

2009-04-15T17:24:00.004-05:00

I travel a fair amount for work and often get a "you're so lucky" reaction. I tend to grumble. I rarely have time before or after a trip to extend my stay and do a little sightseeing. I'm often working even longer hours than if I was at home. And then there is the discomfort that plane travel has become.

To the left is the view from my hotel window on a recent trip to Long Beach, California. I had run back to the room during the lunch break at the conference to participate on a call with my office. I was walking around the room and noticed for the first time what a nice view I had (I had arrived via the more working areas of the harbor and hadn't been in the room in daylight before this). Anyway, I couldn't resist taking a picture to prove my grumbling point - good weather, good location, who has time to enjoy it!

So I think God decided to call my bluff. My next trip was to Detroit, Michigan. Don't get me wrong, I know there are nice areas and interesting things to see if I had time, but not a beach! Plus, as a topper, to the right is the view out the plane window as we landed.

I Actually Sorta Made Resolutions This Year

2009-03-02T13:50:00.007-05:00

I joined two Ravelry groups and made related plans in each of them. My problem is I never have time to keep up with groups there, but I really would like to do these. So I figured I'd also list things here to help me keep track.

The first group was the Christmas 2009 Monthly Make-Ahead. I like the idea of this since many of the monthly themes were things I'd be making for Christmas anyway, and the others, well, who can't use an extra thing for a present at some point! So this is the list. I've put Ravelry links when I've finished things and ideas in italics. For this one I'm only counting things finished in the appropriate month.

January - Ornament (or two) for tree or house Sweater Ornament

February - Scarf or Shawl Number 1 Orange Cowl and Grace Kelly Scarf

March - Gloves (with or without fingers), mittens, or socks (yes, this is a make a pair month!) - YoYo Mittens for ? (maybe me!)

April - Hat Number 1 or a tea cozy - Reindeer Love for John

May - open - crafter’s choice - gnomes, anyone?

June - a child’s toy

July - iPod, cell phone, or coffee cup cozies

August - Dishcloths/ washcloths/dishtowels and/or felted soap

September - Charity Gift project

October - Scarf or Shawl Number 2

November - Hat Number 2 - Weeweechu Christmas Tree for Fr. Tim

December – UFO’s from the above, felted soap, or felted slippers - Oomingmacks for ?

other hats - Fish Hat for Kathleen

The second group was the Ravelry Queue Challenge of 2009. At some point last year I deleted everything in my queue that I didn't already have yarn for (well I fav'd them instead). Despite that my queue had 177 items in it! But this had the added benefit of knitting from stash. So these were my goals, based on categories I had organized the queue in:

2 baby

1 hat

2 jewelry (bead soup bracelet)

3 mittens

1 scarf Orange Cowl, Grace Kelly Scarf and Best Friend Scarf

1 shawl

AND, for the last I added the idea of not increasing the current number of WIPs.

For that I am going down - I started with 20 and now I have 18!

Hmmm, that's a big pile of yarn!

2009-03-01T17:09:00.002-05:00

Well I received my tax refund and did just what the government wants - I went on a buying binge!

Actually, in some ways it's not as bad as it looks. I've started keeping a wish list (rather than just buying things when the urge strikes) and most of that actually came off that wish list. So it was a conscious decision to treat myself.

And, quite honestly a lot of it is for planned Christmas knitting.

Then again, the Mr. Foster and Aguona Laptop kits from Knit Picks aren't in there and those really were just acting on impulse. Though in the first case it sounds like its a good thing since the kit is apparently sold out, hence the Ravelry link.

What do you knit when brain-dead?

2009-02-16T16:58:00.004-05:00

Well the big work project made one of its milestones last Friday, which meant I could work a little less this weekend. So I decided to post, but about what? I mean I've been leaving the house about 4:30 am and returning most commonly about 8:30 pm on the last train. Though there was the night it broke down and I was even later. And believe me, I doubt you'd be interested in the work project.

This little bunny was a gift for a friend's birthday earlier this month. In large part because the knitting is "knit a garter stitch square" which was almost beyond my abilities of late! In fact, the sewing up almost stumped me, but it helped to take a deep breath and actually read the directions rather than glancing briefly at the pictures and deciding I knew what to do!

The other square is a close-up of a Darkside Cowl I did after the wee bunny. Not too difficult - a tube and once the stitch pattern was set up it was easy enough to follow without the pattern. BUT, this was my first Malabrigo, which really is as yummy as I've heard people say. With a lot of relatives in New England that appreciate warm things I see more of these in my future.

I'm also taken with how stretchy this stitch pattern is. Given my fat feet I think I'm going to have to give socks in this pattern a try, once I can use brain space for something other than work.

Talk Me Off the Ledge

2009-01-26T12:56:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I saw Nicky Epstein's Limited Edition Scarf and loved it. I mean, what's not to like - sheep, chartreuse.... And then I made the mistake of going to the website, and unfortunately its not sold out. And I've been trying to declutter, but I want one!!!!

Unfortunately, I'm no Yarn Harlot, so its unlikely that this blog entry will cause my readers (I believe there are two of you!) to run out and buy them all up before I can. So please, talk me off the ledge!

Long Time, No Posting!

2009-01-02T11:16:00.002-05:00

Well I had kinda made a promise to myself to break this blog drought on New Year's Day, which obviously went really well. The fact is, work has gotten crazy busy, and will continue this way at least through January. So I wouldn't expect posting to step up anytime soon.

But I thought I'd post a few pictures. The first is my last FO of 2008. Yes, I succumb to the craze for the Noro Striped Scarf (link to my Ravelry project page). If you've read any blogs in the last year you've probably heard of this! Usually they're done in Noro Silk Garden, but mine is done with Noro Cash Island. I have to admit, I'm not a huge fan of Noro. I get that the colors are pretty, but never really liked the texture and there are a lot of pretty yarns out there! Then Webs had this yarn 1/2 price (I think the colors are discontinued) and I thought, "hey, it has cashmere in it, how rough can it be?" So I gave it a try, and let me say, I really see the allure of this pattern. Its a lot of fun.

The other picture is my New Year's Eve dinner, Harissa Spaghettini. Though in my case it would more accurately be Harissa Pappardalle. I've been wanting to try this recipe for a while, and let me tell you, I should have done it sooner. I used some sprouted wheat pappardelle from Trader Joe's and it was everything I was in the mood for - earthy, spicy and comforting. And beautiful, which is why I took my first picture of dinner ever!

So as I said, work is going to continue crazy for a while, so I'm not sure how frequently I'll be getting back here. I'm hoping it will ease up a little after the end of January anyway.

October-itis

2008-11-02T08:59:00.006-05:00

So like I said, in October I had a bad case of startitis. I started the following eight projects (all Ravelry links):

1. Backyard Leaves Scarf
2. Monteagle Bag
3. Earflap Devil Hat
4. Big Bulky Socks
5. Sunday Scarf
6. AspenGlo Wrap
7. Puff Daddy Scarflet
8. Gathered Scarf

Luckily, I apparently had an almost equally severe case of finishitis. I finished four of the above (2, 3, 4, and 7), finished two projects started earlier, and ripped one.

First, I finally got around to felting and adding a tassel to the Fez for Penuche. The picture is there to the left, but I included the Ravelry link for more info. Especially since I know those of you with cats are thinking "oh, that cat looks so happy I should make one for my own cat."

Second, I finished the September Sockdown socks I posted about previously.

Last, I ripped out a pair of socks. The stitch pattern made the sock torque, and despite lots of "don't worry, its not a problem when wearing them posts on Ravelry I decided I just wasn't enjoying the actual knitting and was uneasy. So that's the yarn I'm using on #8 above.

So last, just to humiliate my cat a little more, here's a picture of her being forced to model the Puff Daddy. Which, by the way if a very quick fun knit and I already have the yarn for two more lined up.

Finally, I finished something!

2008-10-05T16:24:00.002-05:00

Well if Blogger doesn't update the date, you'll be able to tell that I actually started this post 13 days ago.

I won't change the title, even though back then all I did was title this and add that picture you see. Which was my first FO in a while and I thought "phew, finally I can post about actual knitting, rather than just acquiring yarn!" Those was for the Sock Knitter's Anonymous group on Ravelry's September challenge - Orange. I think they are, don't you?

I'll get back with a better recap later, but there have been a few new starts this month, but also more finishing! And of course a little more acquiring. Including breaking my "no more clubs" vow for the Shakespeare in Lace Club. I mean really, could I have been expected to resist that????

And then today a friend and I went on a hunt for the yarn for Puff Daddy (look at the October 27th post, since I think that will take you to all of October). We didn't find anything suitable over our lunch hour, but then came back to an ad email for a shop with the specified yarn 15% off. It seemed like a sign!

Where I've Been in the US of A

2008-09-16T09:08:00.002-05:00

Mary's US View

Make yours @ BigHugeLabs.com

Again, I'm only including places where I actually did something more than drove through (even if I spent a night), which explains the Oregon and Indiana holes (and the later I drove through a lot when I lived in Wisconsin!). Looking at this, I seem to treat the US a bit like a grocery store - only going around the edges.

Where I've Been in the Big Old World

2008-09-16T09:04:00.002-05:00

Mary's World View

Make yours @ BigHugeLabs.com

I suspect that this is more than a lot of people, but all I see when I look at it is all the places I've never been! I only include places I've actually spend time. Not for example, Germany, where I transfer planes on almost every trip to Europe but never visited. And I actually feel a little bad about that! When I went Argentina and Brazil a couple years ago it occurred to me that I'd been to 4 of 7 continents, so I'd really like to go to all of them at this point!

Trying to Get a Grip on Things

2008-09-08T08:22:00.003-05:00

Okay, so I was right, I didn't do any better in August in either stash reduction or WIP reduction.

The WIP count stayed exactly the same - nothing finished, but nothing started either.

The stash count, well that went up by 4365 yards. Guess it never really recovered from finding over 5000 yards in the unopened mail that week!

This month won't do well for stash either I suspect. First, even though I was finally seeing the end for so many of my clubs I joined two more! The first was The Color Coop. I linked to it since you can still join. I'm familiar with a couple of the dyers, and intrigued by the idea of seeing how the different dyers will interpret the same inspiration. You rotate through the six dyers, plus you have the chance to buy from the ones you don't get in any shipment. Anyone think I won't be tempted to do that at least once? The second is the Wollmeise sock club. I couldn't resisted entering the lottery for that one, and of course the fates said I should join!

Second, a lot of clubs are shipping this month - Year of Lace, I Wool Dye for You, Seven Deadly S[p]ins, A Change of Seasons Lace, Webs Skein of the Month, No Two Snowflakes Laceweight, and the first Wollmeise.

Third, I was tempted by the The Knitter's Review into purchasing a couple skeins of yarn from Sunday Knits.

On the other hand, I do have hope for the WIP count even though I started something new. I've reached the point with the old WIPs that nothing is portable. Since I was trying hard not to start anything new, it meant I was wasting my largest chunk of knitting time - my commute. Plus I think it was leading me to resenting the other knitting and not working on it at home.

So I decided to try and follow along with Socknitters Anonymous Sockdown on Ravelry. I'll allow myself to start a new project for this, which will give me something to do on the train, and hopefully break the other malaise. As you can see, I've gone with the "orange" challenge for this month!

Oh, and this reminds me. I theoretically finished the Arctic Diamonds Stole during the Olympics. (Another Ravelry link, but you should really join if you haven't already!) I knit enough that I could have been done. But I decided that I had enough yarn to lengthen it, and really wanted it longer than the 48" the pattern specified.

So how does starting something new translate into hope that I'll reduce the WIP list? I'm hosting a finishing day for my friends on the 27th. Felting the Cat Fez, sewing up the Aran sweater, and finishing the stole are all on my list. These days tend to be good for motivating some finishing so I'm hopeful.

August is not looking better at this point!

2008-08-11T11:42:00.002-05:00

Well work in general has been a bit of a bear of late. And the stress does seem to be making me do stupid things like slamming my hand in the car door last Sunday. By now that's pretty much better. I really got lucky I think having the main spot be between two knuckles. Given how swollen it was most of the week, I had to think what it would have been like if I hit a knuckle directly!

But the stress causing self-injury continues. Monday I'm opening a plastic bottle of tea and there is a sharp place at the mold seam on the bottle. My mind registers dimly registers the pain, but I keep opening the bottle and in the process slice up the side of my thumb.

And the work stress kicks up a notch last week, which means I never get home before 8pm any night, and I get up at 4am because of my long commute. Except for the day I get up at 3am because I have to be in earlier than normal. And what does my cat Baloo do while I'm in the shower that morning -

DIARRHEA RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF MY BED!

I think she was taking all my mumbling about my crappy life too literally!

This past weekend I did find time to go through the pile of mail. A lot of yarn was in there! I've added 5412 yards to the stash so far this month! Luckily, the only club that I'm still expect is Webs Skein of the Month, and even if they send laceweight how much worse can it get. But I think its a good thing I did get back to knitting last weekend, but I'm really going to have to kick it up a notch to even come close to breaking even!

Overall, July was a very bad month

2008-08-04T09:43:00.003-05:00

Life in general. I seem to be having a string of bad luck. One of the more dramatic was when I got back to where my car was parked at the commuter train lot, got in, closed my door, and had the rear liftgate shattered. Pretty much scared the P out of me. And then I had a mini nervous breakdown.

And unfortunately, it seems to be carrying over into August, as I managed to slam my own hand in a car door yesterday.

Overall, I did pretty bad on the July resolutions. I did manage to get rid of more yarn than I had coming in - 5904.6 yards vs. 4054.63 yards. Mostly this was because right at the end of the month I learned a coworkers daughter knits and I put together a bag of stuff that I've had listed as "will trade or sell" on Ravelry to give her. At the time I was motivated by being just a few items short of my decluttering goal of getting rid of 1000 items last month. But it also helped here. Still negative for the year though.

And as for projects, well I already confessed to starting a new one. The knitting is done on that, but I just can't seem to get around to felting it. Then the only knitting I've been in the mood for is the Arctic Lace stole, not the projects I had planned to work on!

Oh well, and I just can't think clearly enough to make goals for this month, other than wanting the stash to continue downward.

I Cheated and Started a New Project

2008-07-13T16:41:00.003-05:00

But my nephew asked me to! How could I resist.

Can you guess what it is?

Well I remembered to photograph 1 thing!

2008-07-05T13:24:00.005-05:00

Well I remembered to photograph one of the items I finished last month. I call these Peacock Zombies. The pattern is Zombie Socks from Sock Madness 2 (Ravelry link). I didn't quite finish them before the end of the first round so I was out. I also knew that I was going to run out of yarn before finishing the second. So I ripped them totally out and re-knit them toe-up.

Now I'm not big on doing such things - tossing them aside in disgust is more my style. But I thought this yarn and pattern worked perfectly. Here's a close-up. I think it looks like the design on a peacock's tail.

I did a picot bind-off on these because I thought they could use something a little fancier. I just love them. I really hope they fit the person I intend to give them to. They're also perfect colors for her taste. But if they don't I probably will give them to someone else. I don't think I can take re-knitting them a third time!

July Resolutions

2008-07-01T06:49:00.001-05:00

I did really, really bad with last months resolutions. Not only did I not have more outgoing than incoming yarn, the incoming was more than double the outgoing! Not as bad as last month (which was more like 10x), but still, I really need to get a grip there! The funny thing is that I've been reading Not Buying It and really enjoying it. I feel like it is making me rethink my purchase choices, though the yarn numbers would seem to bring that into question.

On the projects, not as bad, but still bad. I finished two of the three projects I listed - Amandine's shawl and Margarethe's socks. No pictures. The first because it isn't blocked yet and the second, well just because I seem to be lagging in the picture taking arena lately. But I also started a new pair of socks also (and also, no picture), so the tally is still at 18 there.

This month I really want to try and reverse that yardage flow. Which I think means I need to get serious about moving out some yarn I have scheduled for disposal. Or finishing some big projects.

Which leads me to this month's project goals - finish the new pair of socks, those mittens, and Toad's Aran.

The last has been languishing way too long, and if I make it a priority this month maybe it can see some use this coming fall and winter!

My Hometown

2008-06-05T07:29:00.005-05:00

Well I saw a link to this tool in someone else's blog, and for fun searched in Flickr for my hometown. You forget how pretty a place is until you see it through other's eyes!

Created with fd's Flickr Toys.

1. Westfield - Stanley Park, 2. River otter, Westfield River, 3. westfield atheneum, 4. Westfield Municipal Building, 5. Old Barn, 6. buried, 7. Covered Bridge, 8. Dinosaur Tracks, 9. Columbia by Westfield - 1941, 10. Picturesque, 11. Grandmother's Garden, 12. Why it's called "Whip City", 13. Way Up There, 14. falls, 15. proud, 16. Blue Angels

June resolutions

2008-06-02T13:45:00.004-05:00

Well, first, how did I do with May's - horrid. Despite the fact that they were very modest. I didn't finish a single thing except this wee small sock to the right. I made this with the leftovers from Gayle's birthday socks that were finished in April. Plus, it was started in May also (okay, so it took an hour or so to do!), so didn't even reduce the WIP count by 1! So not only did I not reduct the WIP count back to 16, I actually started another project so overall the number went up by one! So now the WIP count is 19.

I didn't have a stash reduction goal for May, as it was my birthday month and I had essentially decided that I would let myself get a few things I had been lusting after. I didn't make it to Maryland or any other festival, but I still did some real damage. The net increase in my stash is 9913.43 yards! Wowzer, I guess I let myself get a few things. The worst part was the yearly stash reduction figure is now a negative 2115.6 yards. I'd really not intended to let the overall numbers go in the wrong direction.

So anyway, more yarn going out than going in is a BIG goal for this month. Getting the overall tally into the negative might be ambitious, as a few of those lace clubs are shipping again this month. But I will find away to get the month going in the right direction at least. I think what this really means is now that the travel is off the schedule for a while I must reacquaint myself with Ebay. I have sold some stuff off Ravelry, but I think the things that have been on my "trade/sell" list there for a while will be moving over to Ebay.

And to focus the WIP reduction, I plan to finish Amandine's shawl, Margarethe's socks, and the Yummy mittens. That would get me to that 16 WIP goal from last month!

Maybe I will decorate with yarn!

2008-05-13T12:15:00.002-05:00

I think I've alluded to the fact that I'm doing a lot of work around my house. I recently used new floors as an excuse to send an email letter to a lot of friends, many of whom I hadn't written to in a while. Kinda like a Christmas letter.

Anyway, one friend wrote back and said something along the lines of "I know you're faking this. I didn't see a single ball of yarn so that can't be your house." I jokingly wrote back that when I moved things back into the house (new floors is as much packing as moving!) maybe I would decorate with yarn since I didn't have a plan for a living room yet.

Well apparently I wasn't the first with this idea.

May resolutions just a bit late.

2008-05-06T13:49:00.003-05:00

Okay, its going to look like I've delayed this because I have bad news to report on the April resolutions but that's really not the case! I drove up to Massachusetts on the first to attend my niece and goddaughter's First Communion on the third. I arrived home Sunday night, but stayed home yesterday as I wasn't feeling well. I had thought about doing this a day early on the 30th, but just didn't get to it.

Anyway, these were the (failed) April resolutions:

- Have more yarn going out of the stash than coming in.

BIG OOPS here. The incoming yarn was close to double the outgoing! The actual numbers - 7487 in and a mere 3797.78 going out. What happened? Well in addition to all the clubs mentioned when making the resolution, I succumbed to the allure of a few things. Four cones of Soie Bambou from those evil Elann previews which I had been resisting the urge to open up until then. A visit to Stitch DC saw me walking out with 3 skeins of the special for the shop colors of Tilli Thomas Beaded Lace, a skein each of Silk Cloud and Nature's Palette lace just because the colors were pretty. And the kit for the Magic Carpet Ride scarf, though at least there I didn't get the kit for the shawl it is derived from! It really doesn't help that when I fall off the wagon I do it for lace yarn!

- Reduce the WIP/UFO list back to 17.

I did slightly better here. I'm back to 18, having finished the scarf which you see to your left and one of the pairs of socks. No picture of the socks right now as they're a gift for someone.

So what will the May resolutions be? I'm giving myself an easy month here:

Reduce the WIP/UFO list to 16.

Yep, that's all. I already suspect that I can't have the net stash numbers go down this month, and really don't expect a lot of knitting will really get done. I have a lot of traveling to do this month and the work on the house continues. Plus I really can't find where I put a lot of stuff getting ready for the floors to be installed!

April Resolutions

2008-04-01T07:14:00.000-05:00

Well first lets look at how I did with March's resolutions:

- I'm going to combine February and March yardage totals for a goal to have more out in those two months than I got in in those two months. February will help on this front, but there's still a lot coming in!

It turns out I didn't need to worry about this - 7598.28 yards left the stash while only 5179 yards came in. I'm still waiting for two of the March sock clubs (Tour of DC and Brooklyn Handspun), but even with those I think I would have made it! And I guess I can confess that I succumbed to the allure of the April limited edition Lorna's Laces at Jimmy Beans Wool. I had managed to avoid that temptation since the first of the year. Oh well.

- Finish two WIPs from the current list.

Um, things go south starting here - only finished one, some fingerless mitts.

- Knit a pair of socks.

Well I started two different pairs, but since I didn't even finish one sock from either one I don't think I can make this equal a pair!

So what will be my resolutions for this month.

- Have more yarn going out of the stash than coming in.
- Reduce the WIP/UFO list back to 17.

Doesn't sound like much, but I'm getting almost all of the flooring replaced (hopefully the third week of April) and I need to empty the affected rooms before then. Plus, if window replacement day is any indication. The fact that I won't be working doesn't mean I will get a lot of knitting done!

The UFO list is currently at 20, getting it back to 17 would get me to where I would have been if I didn't start 3 new projects this month. Three you ask, oh yeah, in addition to those 2 pairs of socks I started a scarf just because!

The stash challenge might be a little harder. The incoming is a little less than last month:

- 5 sock yarns (dkKnits, Tour of DC (from March), Harmony, and Brooklyn Handspun (March & April). Only dkKnits and Harmony continue after April.
- Webs skein of the month, which could be anything.

The two lace clubs continue but those shipments are quarterly, and Seven Deadly S[p]ins continues, but that is every other month. Those three clubs won't coincide again until September, at which point I'll be down to only one sock club. So I don't anticipate as big of an incoming month as March was in the future. Then again, me not buying yarn since last year. It would seem that I have to crack at some point. The Jimmy Beans splurge might have released some pressure, but.....

But I've really been saved the last few months by the number of people shopping my stash on Ravelry. That seems to have slowed down, so I either need to get some new stuff in there or get more active about stash reduction.

INFP

2008-03-25T05:24:00.000-05:00

So, those who know me, do you agree?

You Are An INFP

The Idealist

You are creative with a great imagination, living in your own inner world.

Open minded and accepting, you strive for harmony in your important relationships.

It takes a long time for people to get to know you. You are hesitant to let people get close.

But once you care for someone, you do everything you can to help them grow and develop.

In love, you tend to have high (and often unrealistic) standards.

You are very sensitive. You tend to have intense feelings.

At work, you need to do something that expresses your personal values.

You would make an excellent writer, psychologist, or artist.

How you see yourself: Unselfish, empathetic, and spiritual

When other people don't get you, they see you as: Unrealistic, naive, and weak

What's Your Personality Type?

Noro Mittens

2008-03-10T12:39:00.003-05:00

Well I finally finished these mittens.

I took a mitered knitting class a while back and had picked up some Noro Silk Garden for the class - I think it was on sale and I knew the colors would look nice in miters. Generally, I'm not a Noro fan. I know, that's probably sacrilege to most, but its the truth.

Anyway, we got a hat pattern in the class - a pillbox style with miters for the sides. I knew I'd have enough yarn for more than the hat and I'm anal enough to think winter accessories should come in sets, so I made a mitten to go with it.

And then like most projects, it got put aside.

When I was going through WIPs/UFOs this last year I decided to rip the hat - just really didn't like the style. But I liked the concept of the mitten. It may be hard to see but its K1,P1 ribbing throughout so very forgiving for a variety of hands.

Unfortunately my notes were vague at best - 22 rows for cuff, 25 rows to thumb. That's it! Looking at the mitten I was thinking "CUFF????" But I looked close and I had increased a couple of stitches right where the hand flares out from the arm.

Anyway, I made a second mitten as close as I could, keeping better notes. Then I also remembered that I had made the first with lots of leftover bits so it didn't have any of the purple or even the brighter green. So I made a third mitten, and finally have a pair that I'm happy with.

So these will go in the give-away box.

And so I remember what I did if I decide to do it again, here are my notes:

Cast on 44 stitches.

Work 22 rows in K1, P1 ribbing.

Increase 1 stitch in first two stitches of next row (46 stitches).

Work 25 rows.

Work 9 stitches in waste yarn, slide worked stitches back to left needles and continue working 20 more rows.

1st decrease row: *Work in pattern 6 stitches, K2tog, repeat from * 3 more times, work in pattern to end (42 stitches).

Work 1 row even.

2nd decrease row: *Work in pattern 5 stitches, K2tog, repeat from * to end of round (36 stitches).

Work 1 row even.

Continue pattern of these 2 rows until 12 stitches remain, ending with a work even row.

Thread tail through live stitches and draw tight to close top of mitten.

Pick out stitches worked in contrast yarn, putting live stitches on needle. When working first round, pick up stitches between two rows of live stitches to eliminate holes. Work 15 more rounds in pattern, reducing to 18 stitches within first two rounds.

K2 tog around.

Knit one round.

Slip one, K2tog, psso round.

Thread tail through 3 remaining stitches and draw tight to close thumb.

Weave in ends.

Swappie

2008-03-02T16:44:00.003-05:00

This is Swappie!

Swappie came to me in a trade from some yarn. Swappie was crocheted by MamaK on Ravelry. Isn't she the cutest? Isn't that the most adorable expression on her face?

I also traded a person in Vermont for some maple syrup, though I'm sad to say I can't remember her Ravelry name. Being from New England originally, I just think the syrup from there is better!

Oh, and the actual numbers from February - 5466.13 yards and 1 kit added to the stash, 13346.9 yards destashed or used.

March resolutions

2008-03-01T15:10:00.003-05:00

Well first lets talk a little about February. I manage to do 2 of the 3 resolutions. I did make the Knit-a-Mile challenge finishing one of the WIP's, but didn't finish another. Then again, I didn't knit the last two weeks I think. But I really made the last challenge this month, despite that long list of expected clubs. Unfortunately I forgot the file at my office, but last I looked I had 13,000+ yards of yarn out and 5,000+ in. Essentially, I had lots of takers on yarn I had listed on Ravelry!

So what yarn am I expecting in March? Unfortunately a lot:
- Yarn Pirate Booty Club (last month)
- dkKnits Technicolor Dream Toes (continues through October)
- February and March Tour of DC Sock Club (March is last month)
- Harmony Sock Club (continues through June)
- Webs Skein of the Month (continues through December)
- Brooklyn Handspun Holiday Sock Club (continues through April)
- Seven Deadly S(p)ins (first of seven installments)
- Year of Lace (first of a year-long quarterly club)
- A Change of Seasons Lace (first of a year-long quarterly club)

In other words, March is likely to be the worst month this year. Those two lace clubs are going to be a lot of yardage, and a lot of the sock clubs haven't ended.

Speaking of clubs, one that is just amazing me is Webs Skein of the Month. If you use that link to go to their home page, there is a round blue area in the middle of the page that will take you to information. You can join mid-year at a pro-rated price. When I joined it was $119 for 12 months, or basically $10 per month including shipping. In January we received Sheep Shop Yarns Sheep Three, while in February we got Fiesta Yarns Swoon. Plus a pattern each month you can complete with the skein, and a little extra goody in February. If you look these yarns up on their web site you'll see that based on yarn value alone we've already gotten back about 1/2 what I paid to join. So they're being very generous. So if you're looking for a way to try some really nice yarns......

Okay, so back to March resolutions:

- I'm going to combine February and March yardage totals for a goal to have more out in those two months than I got in in those two months. February will help on this front, but there's still a lot coming in!
- Finish two WIPs from the current list.
- Knit a pair of socks.

Home & Garden Show

2008-02-25T09:39:00.005-05:00

So I went to the Home & Garden show in Richmond last Saturday. And had an overwhelming desire to buy a pile of zippers!

At least that's what it looks like, right?

Actually, you zip and zip and zip and it turns into a tote bag!

Just like this. Kinda cool. The real idea is that it takes up less space unzipped so its good for traveling. But I really just bought it because I was amused. Though I do like the colors I picked.

Otherwise I mostly bought food - flavored oils, balsamic vinegar, applewood smoke sea salt and an herb blend.

This is my new idea for the backyard dream landscaping. This year replacing all the windows has to take priority as the big project, but next year maybe I can get the backyard landscaped. My backyard is fairly flat for about 10 yards from the back of the house, then slopes down pretty steeply to a wooded area. The constant in my plan is a patio on the flat part, maybe with planter boxes all around, then a winding path with terraced gardens down the rest of the yard. Because mowing back there is a nightmare! It also is the south side of the house, so a pergola over the patio would be nice. So the idea of a wall of water like this coming off the pergola before the garden area seems really cool to me!

Trades are fun!

2008-02-18T10:12:00.004-05:00

Okay, so in my last post I mentioned surprising me with something from where you live as a trade for some of my yarn. And the first one from my end anyway was so much more than I ever could expect. The only thing I feel bad about is that apparently the Royal Mail is so much better than the US Postal Service that its not even funny. I've had my package since early last week and Jan is still waiting for her yarn to arrive in Scotland.

So I'm think Scotland, hmm, maybe shortbread or scotch (which my father and BIL would have enjoyed but not me), or .... Okay, I did wonder whether haggis was something you could mail, but had decided I'd at least I'd give it a try if it came!

Instead I get some cards - one with a small scene with sheep and the heading "missing ewe," two with print of textiles by Susan Woodcock from Blue Beyond Cards, and the last card a print of a painting by Martin Devine.

AND... The original painting you see here by Martin Devine called Scottish Landscape No. 71. I LOVE IT!

The best part is that I'm currently trying to put together a room in the house that will be my craft room. This is definitely going on the wall there.

Oh I only hope Jan's yarn arrives soon and she likes it as much as she expected!

Thank you Jan!

Stash

2008-02-03T07:23:00.000-05:00

A while back I used my excel spreadsheet to list my stash in Ravelry. Since then I've been gradually adding pictures. Once a picture is added, I've been moving the listing to the "trade or sell" section if I don't have an idea of what I'd use the yarn for or if I've decided I'm no longer interested in the project it was purchased for. I've added a link to that page on this blog.

I'm serious about making me an offer. In fact feel free to browse the entire stash. I've been rather open to requests for other yarn unless (a) I specific idea for a project and think that yarn is perfect or (b) its a yarn I purchased to try and its the only example in the stash.

I'm not actually interested in trades for yarn, since stash reduction is my primary goal. But i'd be interested in other trades. Be inventive. Maybe something unique to the area where you live. I'll also add a list of things I'm interested in, for example some older Simply Knitting magazines I'm looking for.

Or make me an offer for purchase. I tend to be rather generous with how cheaply I'll let things go, though that may be a function of how much I like the yarn.

Oh, and my Ravelry name is vaknitter . Feel free to add me to your friends and I'll do the same.

Happy? Groundhog's Day

2008-02-02T08:56:00.000-05:00

I have a niece who thinks Groundhog's Day is a major holiday. I thought she believed it was THE major holiday, but she clarified this week that Christmas is a bigger deal.

She also loves dressing up their dog Blaize, aka Bubba (he was a post-Katrina rescue, so a southerner now living in New England). This is him helping her celebrate last year. Doesn't he look like he's having fun?

I put the ? in because the prediction is six more weeks of winter. So maybe not such a happy day for everyone! Actually, maybe that explains the look on Bubba's face, not the hat.

January resolutions met!!!!!

2008-02-01T08:40:00.000-05:00

Woohoo!!!!!

This is the first time I pulled off all resolutions since I started monthly resolutions, and I don't think its because I've learned to lowball myself!

These were the January resolutions, with results in bold:
- Take the "knit a mile" challenge in the Stash Knit Down 2008 group on Ravelry, and, since it straddles two months, knit the January proportion to reach that goal.

Counting only finished objects, I've knit 831 of the 1760 needed to meet this challenge. A little less than 1/2, but I've done a little more on some other things and feel it is still achievable from here.
- Finish the last two Christmas presents.

Done, as mentioned in my last post.

- Knock at least one more WIP/UFO off the current list.

Done, the Loopy and Luscious scarf in the last post takes care of this.

- Knit enough yardage to exceed the incoming stash from existing clubs and any other purchases I don't manage to resist (yikes I'm going to be near Webs!). Though there are enough existing clubs incoming that I'm hoping that thought will help resist the later.

By the skin of my teeth! Incoming yardage = 4150; outgoing = 4370.

The only reason I pulled this off is because my first yarn from the Neighborhood Yarn Company's Tour of DC sock club didn't arrive by yesterday, even though others have been getting them for the past week. Then again, the only reason I was this tight was because of my sister deciding that yarn was a good gift after all (see Murphy's Law ). But I didn't buy any new yarn myself, despite that Webs visit!

The beginning of the year totals I posted were off. I think the formulas in the spreadsheet that did the tallies were wrong. The new numbers are:
- 462990.15 yards of yarn in the stash
- 41 kits not otherwise counted in the stash (I did destash one of these)
- 19 WIPs

In addition to the three FOs mentioned above, I also started and finished two others.

So what will February's resolutions be:
- Meet the Knit a Mile challenge
- Finish two more of the WIPs
- Knit or destash enough yardage to exceed the incoming yardage from existing clubs and any other purchases I don't manage to resist.

So what clubs might I see this month:
- the last 2007 Flock Sock Club kit (not renewed for 2008)
- Yarn4Socks February Club (not renewed after this)
- Yarn Pirate Booty Club (not renewed after March)
- dkKnits Technicolor Dream Toes (continues through October)
- January and February Tour of DC Sock Club (continues through March)
- Harmony Sock Club (continues through June)
- Webs Skein of the Month (continues through December)
- Brooklyn Handspun Holiday Sock Club (continues through April)
- Tofutsies February, and also a 4-skein Collector's set I ordered last year

I've got a lot of knitting and/or destashing to do!

I'm hoping I can resist renewing these, especially since I'm in three other clubs that start in March! But if Zen Yarn Garden restarts the Sumptuous Sock Club I will not be able to resist that!

Shhhh, its a secret

2008-01-27T15:30:00.000-05:00

Well I can't really tell you what that is yet, but it is fun. That picture was this morning of what i knit yesterday. Its about twice that now. I'll tell you more some day!

Actually, I can tell you I'm using some very old stash yarn for it. Alice Starmore Scottish Campion in Teal and Eggshell. I think this yarn is an example of "must not use because it is no longer made" thinking. But what's the point of the stash if you don't use it. And its not like there isn't other similar yarn!

Doing pretty well on the resolutions. The Christmas presents were finished in time for the trip to Massachusetts. They went over well not just with the recipients but also others. I may start a box of accessories and just take/send it up next year and let them all sort it out amongst themselves. After all New Englanders can use hats, scarves, mittens, etc. much more than I can in Virginia!

I've also finished one old UFO/WIP - Loopy & Luscious. Unlike many of the old ones, I know when this was started - January 2006. I knit until I had knit through about 3 of the rows with the thick yarn and then nothing. Once I picked it up again it was finished in about a week. I really need to focus more as things really do get done then!

And last, I started and finished a moebius in less than a week. This is the free pattern from when Cat Bordhi was on Knitty Gritty. I told my sister I'd give her the Handmaiden Cashmere from my stash if she'd push herself to try. I started one myself to demo the cast-on for her, and finishing it only took a few days. If you're on Ravelry, check out my sister's profile pic (she's princesssusie). She's not good at entering projects, etc., but changed her profile pic to show her moebius modeled by Bubba her collie.

Murphy's Law

2008-01-18T04:36:00.000-05:00

For years when people asked I said that yarn would be a good gift for me, or yarn shop gift certificates, etc. And they always said something like, "you have lots of yarn, that's not a good gift."

Flash forward and we reach a point where I've come to the conclusion that I really do have too much yarn. I see my sister yesterday for the first time in a while and what does she have for my Christmas present - two skeins of yarn! Lace weight with lots of yardage to throw off the January resolution!

Now in her defense, this is gorgeous stuff. The picture is one of the skeins, but it doesn't do it justice. They are both Posh Yarn Eva 2ply lace - a silk and cashmere blend. The one pictured is called Lustre, which is a very appropriate name and hence the reason its hard to photograph. And get this, the other is called Violets, and I'd already bought a skein of that for myself. Great mind right!

I think I created a monster giving her some Posh last year. She doesn't want to knit with anything else! I gave her some Handmaiden cashmere yesterday and we'll see if that takes. On the other hand, I ended up with her Filatura di Crosa Superior yesterday because she decided she couldn't stand that yarn.

I just re-calculated the yardage tally for this month, and I'm still negative (meaning I've used/destashed more than I've gained) but not by a lot. So heaven help me - we're going to Webs today!

So a week in I still feel good

2008-01-06T13:09:00.000-05:00

Well about the knitting resolutions anyway. I'm fighting a terrible cold, so that I don't even feel like knitting much.

I've decided that I'm not going to post numbers weekly, only monthly. But thanks to Ravelry I am ahead of the game at this point. As I've been updating the stash with pictures, I moved a few things into "for sale or trade" that I no longer was interested in the project for or couldn't think of one. Well I got a message about one of those this week and sold a couple skeins of Silky Wool that way. And someone wrote about another skein and I decided I could let that one go also. So yardage-wise I'm ahead even though some of the January club yarns also arrived this week. There's quite a few more coming, so I either need to destash more or get in the mood to knit to stay on the right side of the ledger!

So this means that if you're on Ravelry feel free to shop my stash. Even if I don't list it as "sale or trade" I'm fairly open to the idea of getting rid of stuff, unless I have a specific project in mind I'm still eager to do that is.

I'm leaving Wednesday for Massachusetts. I was planning to go up later in the month anyway for a delayed family holiday party, but my father needs to go to Idaho so I'm going earlier to stay with my mom. Hopefully I'll get a fair bit of knitting done sitting and visiting with her.

But Becky may be coming up to join me during the trip, in which case a trip to Webs would definately be on the agenda. Lord save me from myself!

Looking forward into 2008

2007-12-31T15:48:00.001-05:00

Okay, I've been out of the country a lot lately, but there's really no excuse for how lax I've been here! When I went to review my December goals I realized I never made any. Then even worse, when I looked back to the November goals I realized I never finished any of those! But I really like the idea of monthly goals, so my only goal for the new year is to not make any but instead to make (and hopefully keep!) monthly goals.

While I haven't been knitting I have been putting my stash up on Ravelry. Currently I have 784 different yarns (meaning unique brands, colors, and dye lots) stashed, and I figure its about 80% of my stash. I decided to use my spreadsheet to enter yarns even if I didn't have a picture. If I couldn't locate the yarn in the Ravelry database, I'm waiting until I pull it out to photograph and/or use. I'm also adding items to the queue when I know what I intended the yarn for. And if I have no idea, or know for sure I'm no longer interested in the plan, I'm listing it as available for sale or trade. By the way, if you aren't yet on Ravelry, get over there and put your name on the list. Believe me, as long as the list seems you'll get in much quicker than I did. And it is a wonderous resource!

Now for the beginning of the year totals:
- 463727.15 yards of yarn in the stash
- 42 kits not otherwise counted in the stash
- 23 WIPs

The only one of those I'm in any way proud of is the last, as its the only one smaller than last year!

Now January goals are tricky. I know I'm going to be away a large part of the month again, but I'm hoping unlike other trips I will be able to do a fair amount of knitting on this one. So here's my January goals:

- Take the "knit a mile" challenge in the Stash Knit Down 2008 group on Ravelry, and, since it straddles two months, knit the January proportion to reach that goal.
- Finish the last two Christmas presents. Yes, that's right, since my travel took longer than expected its not all done!
- Knock at least one more WIP/UFO off the current list.
- Knit enough yardage to exceed the incoming stash from existing clubs and any other purchases I don't manage to resist (yikes I'm going to be near Webs!). Though there are enough existing clubs incoming that I'm hoping that thought will help resist the later.

I've stashed 500 yarns in Ravelry!

2007-12-02T13:18:00.000-05:00

Yikes, once I decided I didn't have to put a picture in for everything who knew it could add up that fast. And I'm still no where near done!

Work life is crazy right now. I can't really think of anything until after a certain project is done!

I never posted this picture

2007-11-19T13:27:00.000-05:00

I said I'd post a picture of the finished moebius when I took one and I never did. Thanks to Becky's modeling skills, I finally have one.

I also caught up with my tracking on yardage, WIPs, etc. Since most of the recent WIPs were so close to completion I never entered their yarn in the database. So I don't get a yardage reduction for them. But the WIP count is down to 22 from 30 at the beginning of July, so that's something to be proud of!

Good news and bad

2007-11-18T12:56:00.000-05:00

The good news is I have some long overdue finished objects to report. My friend Gayle invited me over for a finishing day yesterday. She should do this more often as it really works for me!

To the right we have a lace scarf and a little beaded purse. The scarf was knit long time ago. The fringe is supposed to have a bead on each one. I had beaded one end but then never finished the other! Then I couldn't find the matching beads. So Gayle suggested removing the beads already on there. Viola - finished. The little purse was a sampler from a bead knitting class I took a long time ago at Knitter's Day Out. I'll use it as a tree decoration now that its finished.

And to the left, the sampler from the Danish Skråtrøje class I took with Beth Brown-Reinsel at the local guild years ago. I'd put one of the sleeves in sideways and put it aside fed up. So yesterday I took out the bad sleeve, sewed it back in along with the second sleeve, crocheted the neck edge and viola once again.

The bad news, looking at my list of resolutions for this month I'm rather apprehensive about finishing any of them. The wristers are started, but in black silk they're very hard to work on and definately not train material. Plus I didn't factor in the week I was in the UK and didn't even bother to bring any knitting because I knew I wouldn't have much free time.

Oh well, I still have some time and a long weekend coming up. Though I have to 'fess up that I'm planning a wee yarn crawl on Friday with a couple of friends.

October wrap-up/November resolutions

2007-10-31T18:05:00.000-05:00

Okay, first off, I've figured out who I must credit with the idea of monthly resolutions - Polly of All Tangled Up. So thank you Polly. All in all, I don't think October was too shabby. Enough so that I'm going to continue.

So this is how I did with the October resolutions -

- I didn't finish the knitting on Robert the Bruce. In fact I haven't even found it again!
- I did finish knitting the socks with Regia Bamboo.
- I did knit at least 20 rows on Hanami. In fact, exactly that many!
- I did start something new despite the vow not to.

So, lessons learned. I get most of my knitting done on the train while commuting, and right now most of the WIPs/UFOs cannot be done under those conditions. Either too complicated and/or too big. So I need to make allowances for that in the plan not to start anything new.

On the other hand, the project I started when the socks were finished was also finished by the end of the month. As with most lace, its nothing much to look at right now. Hopefully I can wash and block it this weekend and will post a pic when that is done.

So here's the November resolutions -

- Finish the knitting on Robert the Bruce (at least run it to ground!)
- Knit Whitewater Wristwarmers.
- Finish the current repeat on Hanami and knit at least one more.
- Do not start anything new except to replace the current train project. Preferably with Christmas knitting. The Whitewater Wristwarmers are in that category and are what I'm about to start on tomorrow's commute. There's at least one other pair of mittens I'm considering as a Christmas gift for someone, so that would be good here also.

Beyond that, not buy anything in the UK next week that I can't get here! The dollar is so weak compared to the pound right now! The last time I was there (about a decade!), the dollar and the pound were almost equal. I really need to keep in mind that the real cost of anything I look at is more than double what that tag says now!

The Universe is Trying to Tell Me Something!

2007-10-22T11:53:00.001-05:00

So I bought The Knitting Tarot. That block to the right is a "magnesium cut" used in printing it. Not being a printer, I really didn't know what to expect. I think I could even use it as a stamp if I wanted to. But this is where it gets weird. I'm flipping through the book that accompanies the cards and I find my image. And you're never going to guess what it is: Seven of Skeins - Too Much Stash. Is that eerie or what!

And to the left we have the wimple I started, breaking the first of those October resolutions. The yarn is cashmere lace weight from Posh Yarn. You have to lurk on the site for when the yarn goes up on Sunday (6pm on the east coast), but its worth it. This was actually sale yarn because it had a "flaw." I believe she called it a green spot in the description, maybe the size of a quarter on the skein. It broke up when balled and it just causes the occasional stitch that now seems more gold. I actually really like it as a highlight! The pattern is the Wavy Feathers Wimple from Caryll Designs. I'm really enjoying it and suspect it might end up becoming a go-to pattern for gifts.

BTW, on those monthly resolutions. Not my idea. And I really wish I could remember who I got the idea from to give them credit. Maybe in November I'll find another post from them and can do that.

And yes, there was new yarn this week. But I'm getting bored with posting about that. Never mind that tarot thing freaking me out!

Well one resolution done!

2007-10-14T16:15:00.001-05:00

Finished the Regia Bamboo socks.

The yarn was a cream color with red, pink and purple flecks. The red dye really ran, so the background is more pink now. Just as well I decided to do some lace when I got to the cuff of the first one, thinking the yarn was girly and needed a girlier cuff than just ribbing!

I also got to some knitting on Hanami last night. I really enjoy that kind of knitting. I just need more time when I can sit and focus.

There's a little problem with the other two resolutions. First, I can't seem to find Robert the Bruce. Second, now that the socks are done I really need some traveling knitting! I don't know whether I can get another WIP there or not.

More yarn arrived this week - a few more colors of Kidsilk Haze (I'm also gathering yarn for the Earth Stripe Wrap in the recent Rowan magazine), my freebie kit for renewing my Rowan membership, some sock yarn from Spritely Goods. Oh, and my Wollmeise! I got some lace yarn, three skeins of worsted weight to do her moebius pattern, and one more skein of sock yarn.

As I'm typing this I kinda decided what to do about traveling. I gifted my sister with a skein of Posh Yarn cashmere lace weight. I think we finally settled on a pattern that will work for her. I'm going to start it myself with one of my single skeins, so when she starts I'll be better able to help her.

Have I said that I run a call-in Knitting Emergency Help Line? At least for her. Its kinda funny.

I think I'll give monthly resolutions a try

2007-10-09T11:28:00.000-05:00

I've been thinking about this, and maybe monthly resolutions would work better for me. The big ones I seem to do okay at for a few months, then go crazy when I break them.

So for this month this is what I've decided:

- finish the knitting on Robert the Bruce
- finish knitting the socks with Regia Bamboo
- knit at least 20 rows on Hanami
- not start anything new.

Robert the Bruce is a gorgeous aran that I was test-knitting for a woman who unfortunately died before her patterns could be published. That caused me to put it aside when all that was left was basically finishing. Then when I picked it up again I started sewing it together without finishing the knitting on one side of the neck on either the front or the back. I'm ashamed to admit how long it took me to figure out why it just wasn't going together right. So totally fed up with myself I put it aside again. I'm thinking I'm make the knitting a goal for this month and the sewing up/collar knitting a goal for November and finally someone can wear this baby!

The socks are both at the cuff stage (they're toe-up), so that should be doable and get another project off the list.

Hanami was supposed to be my mother's Christmas present, so I joined a KAL for it. And promptly had life get in the way so I fell behind. Way behind. Some members are finishing and I still haven't finished clue 1! I'm re-evaluating whether this can really be her Christmas present, maybe it will be for her birthday in February. But I'd at least like to get back to the knitting!

Now you probably noticed that not buying yarn isn't on the list. Well that would be because I've already done that this month! In fact, a slew of mail orders arrived Saturday (almost 10,000 yards worth of yarn plus 5 kits!). It did help me decide not to go to the Fiber Festival in Montpelier on Sunday or Stitches next weekend though!!!!!

Finished!

2007-09-30T11:38:00.000-05:00

Check it out! I finished something from the great New England buying spree of a couple weeks ago!

Yarn keeps mysteriously showing up at my house. Another 3001 yards this past week. One of the things was the Knit Picks Palette to start Spilly Jane's Sea Mineral Mittens (see the link on the right side of her blog). This was one of the first patterns I found after joining Ravelry and I've been waiting for her to post the pattern. I'm dying to start them, but I also have some Christmas knitting looming over my head so I'm torn.

So here's a question - what knitting web sites would you be better off not visiting (lest you find yarn mysteriously showing up at your house also)? For me two big killers are Earthfaire and Naturesong Yarn or any of its sister sites. 'Nuf said.

Ready for the number?

2007-09-23T15:26:00.000-05:00

10796.95 yards!

Plus seven kits - the six little ornament kits and another Flock Sock club kit.

Here's the damage!

2007-09-18T18:03:00.000-05:00

That's it all together. Knowing what I spent it doesn't look like much, but there is a lot of cashmere, alpaca and silk there.

On the left side, top to bottom, we have 2 skeins of Filatura di Crosa Superior in lime and burgundy, one skein of Kidsilk Haze in Drab and one skein of Rowan Calmer in a light tan. In the middle section, left to right, we have one skein of Blue Sky Alpaca Organic Cotton, one skein of Valley Yarns Hand Dyed 2/14 Alpaca Silk in Atlantis, one skein of Classic Elite Alpaca Sox in Garden, and two skeins of Art Yarns Silk Rhapsody in color #139. On the right top to bottom we have six skeins of Frog Tree Alpaca Sport in two shades of grey, red, orange, chartreuse and light blue, and one skein of Tofutsies in color 785. Oh, and not in the picture are the the sheep ornament kits that can be seen at the Buttermilk Cottage site. I have all six now.

Now the good news is I actually have a plan for all of this. The Filatura di Crosa Superior is for a lace scarf. The lime skein is for me and the burgundy for my friend. We saw the sampler lace scarf in the pattern book, but we aren't going to buy that book for a scarf pattern when we have lots of stitch pattern books! It is good to know that you can get a nice scarf out of one ball given the price of it!

The Rowan Calmer is to make a chemo hat for an aunt (though she's actually about my age so I always think cousin), the Organic Cotton for a baby kimono (even though there's no baby in mind now, I just love that pattern), the Alpaca/silk for a Rhea Stole (a Valley Yarn pattern), the Silk Rhapsody for a Dramatic Squares shawl (an Art Yarns Pattern), the Alpaca Sox and Tofutsies for, well, socks! The Frog Tree alpaca is a substitute for the Blue Sky Alpaca to make the Composed Mitts in the most recent Interweave Knits magazine.

The skein of Kidsilk Haze in Drab finished this collection:

Can you guess what it is for?

I do have some additional yarn that arrived in the mail since the last time I did a tally. I probably won't get all of this entered into the inventory until the weekend, so I'll give a two-week total next Sunday.

Quickie until I get back to Virginia

2007-09-17T06:17:00.000-05:00

Well I said I was taking my Aunt to Webs while I was up here, but that's happening today.

But Saturday I had to take my niece to her job, and decided to take a quick run up "to check on the store hours for Monday." So while I was there I decided to look for the stuff on my shopping list, so I could focus on helping my Aunt today. Are you buying any of this????

So this is what I bought at Webs on Saturday - 1 skein of the Alpaca Silk Handyed, 2 balls of Filatura di Crosa Superior (1 for me and 1 for Gayle), AND (not on the list but I noticed while I walked by) 1 skein of Classic Elite Alpaca Sox and 1 skein of Natural Cotton (blanking on the name but its the one for the One Skein baby bolero). Plus 2 shawl/stole patterns.

Then yesterday we went down to Tiverton Four Corners and my sister remembered that the sheep ornament kits she had ordered for me were at the yarn shop. So we went there to pick those up, and I found the one color of Kidsilk Haze I'm looking for Modern Quilt Squares. Oh, and 1 ball of Calmer for a hat for an aunt who's undergoing chemo treatments right now.

Plus I vaguely remember that some stuff had come mail order since last weekend.

I'll post better details and photos of the pile when I get back.

Anyone think I won't buy anything else at Webs today?

I can't resist showing you some pictures

2007-09-10T18:55:00.000-05:00

The first two are Wollmeise yarn that I purchased direct from Bavaria. Claudia was great to work with.

And these yarns are even prettier than I imagined! I may have to do something with them other than socks just to show them off!

The last is from Zen Yarn Garden's Art Walk Sock Club. This was my first month with the club, and unfortunately it will be my last. She's also started a semi-solid club, and lately I'm more drawn to those types of yarns. So as much as I like this yarn, I've made the decision to stick only with the other club. But if you aren't in too many sock clubs, I'd recommend checking this out. Its a month to month commitment only.

Okay, so true confession time. I did finally get that yarn to the friend that know's someone who works at the jail, so 475 yards out of the stash. But the sock yarn buying frenzy continues, so I was also up 6170 yards! About 1/3 of that is a cone of Henry's Attic fingering for some dye experiments, but still! And next weekend I'm heading to Massachusetts and promised to take my aunt to Webs.

P.S. Click on the pictures and they'll supersize so you can really get a sense of how gorgeous they are!

So I've been missing for a while

2007-09-03T15:55:00.000-05:00

Why, well that's hard to say. Work has been crazy busy the last few weeks, so I haven't had much energy to do anything else during the week. I've come to the realization that my job only has two speeds - busy, and crazy busy. I have to stop thinking its going to calm down and figure out how to deal with that.

Then, I received my invite to Ravelry two weekends ago. If you're there, my user name is vaknitter (imagine that!). If you aren't, go there and get your name on the list! It took about six weeks before I got my invitation. They just go down the list, so an invite is just a matter of getting in line and waiting your turn. And it is worth it. There is no way I'm going to catalog my entire stash there! Its just too big, and last year I created an inventory. But if your's isn't as big as mine, its a great place to do it and then you can download an excel file. I'm going to add new yarn as I get it, and also yarn I'm actually working with.

But its hard to describe just how much you can do there. There are groups, and all sorts of info, and just take my word for it, its amazing. I had a lot of fun one point picking a yarn in my stash and searching to see what other people are doing with it to get ideas. Or say there's a pattern you're interested in, you can find others who have done it or are doing it, what they're using, their experience, etc.

Anyway, I must admit I wasted a lot of time there last weekend.

This weekend I got back to some house chores, and now I'm catching up here.

So the yarn buying orgy continues. Last weekend I should have confessed adding 5070 yards to the stash and using only 212.36. This week, I've added 3020 and used only 109.36. Mostly sock yarn. Makes you wonder why I got rid of so much last year! No pictures - you'll just have to go to Ravelry for that (cruel, I know).

As for the WIP count. I finished an ancient one - a scarf using NZ Artisan Laceweight. Not that exciting, but it was quite nice to get a longtime WIP off the list. I also ripped a shawl that I had only 2 rows done on and frankly couldn't remember what I was doing with it. Better, to just restart from scratch. I started and finished two Calorimetries. The first, two go with the fingerless gloves in the last post.

And I had so much fun with that one that I made another from some Noro. I have one mitten made with this yarn but not good notes on how I did it! I figure this gives me an idea which needles I used anyway:

And today I started Hanami:

Well I started something new - but I also finished it!

2007-08-20T07:15:00.000-05:00

Presenting extremely quick fingerless gloves:

I've been hearing about the knitting guild in Hanover County for a while. When I was meeting with some Richmond friends at a Panera in July we ran into some ladies who were with the group. So I was able to find out time and place so I could check out the group.

Their program for last Saturday was fingerless gloves. The president, Fran, emailed me the homework last Monday. So I ran out at lunch and bought some yarn (which was way easier than digging it from stash!) and new needles (again, not like I have any of those at home!). We had to knit to where the thumbhole would be going in before the meeting. I got both done to that point, so I was able to finish them up yesterday.

I actually ripped back the first one after it was finished so I could extend the cuff another inch, since I knew I'd have enough yarn.

Not being used to working with chunky yarns, I was worried that one skein wouldn't be enough, so I bought two. Now I'm trying to decide whether to return the second skein, or make a matching scarf or hat with it and the little yarn I have left from the first.

I also received an order from Carodan Farm that I had placed a little while back. One skein of the limited edition Tofutsies for August, and four skeins of Lorna's Laces sock (2 in Black Purl and 2 in Seaside), just so I'd get free shipping.

So the net stash increase for this week is 1427.95, and the WIP change is 0.

Oh, and I received my Ravelry invite last Thursday, so I've been wasting too much time there! My name is vaknitter if you're there.

Another stash increase, of course!

2007-08-12T17:50:00.000-05:00

Really, could I have been expected to resist!

After my Colorsong Yarn arrived last week I wandered to their site to see what was new. Bad plan! On the left we have Handmaiden Tussah Silk in Amber. It called to me for 5 days before I gave in and purchased three skeins. The site is like the Borg. And since its flat rate shipping, well I picked up that Fleece Artist Blue Faced Leicester Aran on the right to make a bag for my Denise Needle set and accessories (free pattern on Cat Bordhi's site).

And in the middle. Well I went to my favorite beaded knitting site, Earthfaire , to pick up a pattern. The yarn in middle is Mama Llama Silken Cashmere - 55% silk and 45% cashmere. The stuff is like trying to photograph jewelry - the flash just bounces off of it!

So the stash is up 2922.2 yards.

On the other hand, I haven't given in to the urges to start another project!

A little late checking in!

2007-08-06T14:48:00.000-05:00

I do have a finished object to report this week, but no pictures. I finished my Kiri using Colinette Parisienne and beads, but I haven't blocked it. The house is still in too much of an uproar to find room to block this baby. So pictures will have to wait.

I also ripped out another project. This is yarn I've never found anything that it looks good in. I thought I'd try a scarf based on the Clapotis pattern, and that was working to break up the bad activity of the colors. But I really don't like the colors I decided. So rip, and I give up and will donate this yarn to the prison. Here's a pic if you want to see:

Actually, on my computer that pic doesn't make it look too bad as its washed out. The green is the problem color - its somewhere between lime and olive and not attractive.

And oh, yes, some new yarn arrived!

From left to right we have:

-3 skeins of Nature's Palette Organic Worsted Weight Columbia Wool in Spring Grass
-1 skein of Seacoast Handpainted Yarns Superwash Sock in Sunny Day
-2 skeins of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in Rainforest (limited edition for August)
-2 skeins of Ruby Sapphire Treadsoft, 1 in Brian and 1 in Antoinette

The odd thing here is the Spring Grass yarn is a little washed out, while the Treadsoft are dark. They are dark skeins, but not quite as dark as they look there - one is blues and greens and the other purples and olives.

So the net result for this week is up 1934.93 yards (I'm not counting the yarn I'll donate until I actually do), and down 2 WIPs.

I think the stash increase rate as at least slowed a little!

Wow, its amazing how little I got done knitting-wise this week!

2007-07-29T13:45:00.000-05:00

So I was home all week while a bunch of work was being done around the house - painting about 1/2 the interior, new heating/ac system, new hot water heater (tankless!), and then repair work for the holes they had to cut for the new vents/pipes for these. I had been hoping that I would do a little more sorting/de-cluttering of the house myself. But I honestly thought I'd have time for lots of knitting.

Well I didn't! First, it was just so hectic here I quickly realized there was no work happening on the Mystery Stole. Luckily there was no new clue this past Friday, but since it is Sunday afternoon and I go back to work next week, and I haven't knit one stitch on clue 4, I think its very doubtful I'll get that clue done before the clue 5 comes out next Friday. Oh well, I'm still way ahead of when I normally lose pace with these things.

And I didn't even really get any easy knitting done. I had thought I'd finish Kiri this week. And I'm on 7 of 12 rows in the edging. But I'm going to start adding beads now, which means its no longer a carry-along project. Which also means it will be competing with Mystery Stole for at-home knitting time. Oh well.

But I did get rid of some yarn this week. My friend Melodye stopped by one evening and took the last of the sock yarn I've been meaning to put on ebay. So that's a reduction of 3472.2 yards of yarn. Which as you'll see just barely exceeds the incoming yarn from last week, and not that from this week.

First, I never gave you a total on last week's incoming. I know the yardage for the kit, so that can go on the yarn inventory rather than the kit inventory. So the total was 3124.73 yards.

And this week:

Starting on the top row left, 2 skeins of "Buckwheat Honey" from Wooly Wonka for the Bee Fields shawl and 4 skeins for "The Iceman Cometh" sock. Last in the top row is a skein of sock yarn from Two Waters Fiberworks in the color Fleur. Bottom row, again left to right, we have Urban Gypz Hand Painted Sock yarn in "Yam, I Am;" Madelinetosh Highland Sock in "Ocean;" Dream in Color Smooshy Sock in "Wisterious" and "Beach Fog;" Knotty Sheep Painted Ladies Lace in "Dragon Ladies & Dragon Knights" (2 skeins); and Trekking pro natura in color 1508 (a denim tweed). The 2 kits have to go on that list, the yardage on the remainder - 4441!

Its really too bad I mostly buy lace and sock yarns - bulky would have much less yardage!

And I started a Clapotis to use up some yarn I've never been happy with in any other pattern. It will be easy enough to be a carry-along project. I think I have enough yardage for a scarf-size. And I'll put it in the gifts pile when I'm done.

Quick confession

2007-07-23T15:43:00.000-05:00

Stash still increasing.

No decrease on WIPs.

But I am home this week while I have a bunch of work done at the house. I'm hoping I'll have at least one WIP to report next week.

So, mail orders that arrived this week are the Lily of the Valley smoke ring kit from Wooly Wonka Fibers and 3 skeins of Trekking XXL.

And I went shopping in Richmond on Saturday. I was worse than I hoped, but better than I normally am under the circumstances. The damage - one skein of Cherry Tree Hill Suri Lace (a new yarn I had to try) and two skeins of Sea Silk in Ivory.

I think startitis might really be a disease!

2007-07-17T10:36:00.001-05:00

I stopped in at Stitch DC yesterday on the way back from lunch and they had a few of Susanne's ebony circulars. Having heard a lot of these, and finding one in a popular lace needle size for me (US4), I picked them up. Now I have the crazy urge to cast on a new shawl, despite having recently tallied just how many of those WIPs are shawls! So far I'm fighting it off, but I am thinking about it a lot.

On the good news front, no yarn walked out the door with me!

Still working in the wrong direction

2007-07-15T12:42:00.000-05:00

First the sock yarn from Carodan Farm came - Tofutsies June Limited Edition w/ pattern and Claudia's Handpaint in Blue Skies.

Then the Posh Yarn came - from left to right, Allegra laceweight (20% silk, 20% cashmere, & 60% cotton), Emily sock yarn (80% wool, 10% cashmere, & 10% angora), and Eva laceweight (55% silk & 45% cashmere). Only the last was bought with a specific project in mind, the rest were a whim. And until I received the pattern I didn't realize I may have moved on to a new color trend!

But I did finish my first toe-up sock using a short row toe and heel:

So the finally tally?

Increase of 3519.95 yards and decrease of 462 yards this week. Net change since July 1st - increase of 3975.33 yards. Current yardage in stash - 379484.47 yards.

Decrease of 1 WIP, to a current total of 28.

Clue 3 finished also!

2007-07-15T09:51:00.000-05:00

Yep, finished clue 3 early this morning. This clue seemed a lot easier to me, I think because there were less beads.

I'm beginning to this this is the summer of the shawl - I finished the one skein shawl a week or so ago, and I have 4 shawls on the needles right now - Kiri, Leaf Lace, Nina and Mystery Shawl 4 (which I more typically didn't finish with the group!). I'm actively working on Kiri right now.

Plus I just purchase a kit for the bee shawl that is all the buzz right now (plus a few other kits from Willy Wonka).

Mystery Stole 3, Clue 2

2007-07-13T16:57:00.001-05:00

Well I finished clue two Thursday morning, meaning that for the first time ever I have managed to keep pace with a KAL for more than one step! I'm so puffed up with pride its embarassing.

I've mentally started calling this "plain vanilla" because some of the dark ones are so gorgeous. But Melanie's pattern is so stunning that it really isn't plain!

One week in, almost 1000 yards up!

2007-07-08T14:57:00.000-05:00

Yep, that resolution didn't really take so well. It didn't help that I found a picture on the internet of someone's stash that made mine look like small potatoes!

First, the Earthfaire order came - a merging colors kit in "Cape Cod." No details on the yarn, so this just adds one to the kit list:

Then I went to the Knitter's Cottage yesterday. They were having a "Christmas in July" sale and I couldn't resist a few things. Two skeins of Colinette Parisienne that were 50% off, 3 skeins of Crystal Palace Cotton Chenille that were 30% off, plus the new Interweave Felt special magazine and a Rowan Classic book.

I had missed a "staff" dinner last week, and the owner gave me the very generous goodie "bag" she had given everyone. Yep, that's some more sock yarn in the mix - Misty Mountain Farm Jubilee:

But I did finish a shawl made with one skein of Artyarns Silk Rhapsody:

I also ripped out the Genevieve shrug and started a Kiri shawl with the yarn on the Fourth. Its moving right along, and in fact looks like a project that will work as a train project. So hopefully it will be finished pretty promptly.

So, the net change on the count - 1 kit up, 917.38 yards up, 1 WIP down.

Oh, and I did order some other sock yarn this week and pulled off a few things from today's Posh Yarn posting! So another increase is on the horizon!

Now I should get back to clue 2 of the Mystery Stole 3!

Mid-year resolutions

2007-07-02T07:15:00.000-05:00

Well between my post about the yarn-shopping blackouts and now life got really crazy. I decided that since July 1 was mid-way through the year I'd treat it like a New Year's Day and recommit to this destashing thing. I did mean to post this yesterday, but time got away from me.

So, yardage in the stash yesterday - 375509.14.

Kits not counted in the yardage - 1 cardigan, 2 dolls, 2 hats, 1 mitten, 4 novelties, 4 purses, 1 shawl, 4 socks, and 1 vest.

On the needles:

Robert the Bruce (aran sweater)
Mitered Vest
Danish Skra-troje sample
Soft Cables mobium
Mini Lace & Beaded Flag
Yummy mittens
Travelers socks
Trellis Stitch scarf
Simple socks
Bonkers hat
Noro 73 mittens
Flora (fair isle vest)
Finola (sleeveless sweater)
Bronte (lace scarf)
Leaf Lace Shawl
Lace scarf
Beaded pouch
Loopy & Luscious scarf
Philosopher's Wool cardigan
Log Cabin afghan
Twined Wristers
Mystery Shawl-a-long 4
Nina Shawl
Genevieve (shrug)
Angel Pearls (scarf)
Wendy's Toe-Up socks
Arctic Diamonds Scarf
Wendy's Toe-Up socks
One Skein Shawl
Mystery Stole 3

I have two outstanding yarn orders - one from Naturesong Yarns and one from Earthfaire - and I'm still in the Flock Sock club. But hopefully this time I won't go negative on the destashing!

Mystery Stole 3

2007-07-01T15:27:00.000-05:00

Well I joined the Mystery Stole 3 KAL, along with thousands of other knitters from all around the world. I'm using vanilla Zephyr just like Melanie, but different beads. Below is my swatch (if you click on it you can actually see the detail). I put the beads I used around the swatch as I was amazed at how they looked so different in the bottle and so similar on the yarn. Starting from the bottom:

no beads
with Beadwrangler #111 crystal rainbow (lower left in bottle)
with Beadwrangler # 107 (lower right in bottle)
with Beadwrangler #212 (upper right in bottle)
with Beadwrangler #264 (upper right in bottle)

And here is my finished clue one:

Melanie's patterns are amazing! Now I'm twitching for the next clue. But its not like I don't have a bunch of other things I could be working on!

I may be having yarn shopping blackouts!

2007-04-30T14:54:00.000-05:00

Okay, my big confession left out something big!

A while back my friend Melissa posted that she was getting ready to place an order to stock her booth for Maryland Sheep & Wool and did anyone want anything in particular.

Well I did.

Fleece Artist Merino 2/6 and Sea Wool for socks. Handmaiden Seasilk, Flaxen and 4 ply Cashmere.

And I kinda forgot about it, until I realized I wouldn't be able to pick it up at Maryland and it arrived this week by mail.

All 2670+ yards of it.

I am so in the negative numbers, and that backordered wool still isn't here.

And then I got tricked into buying some Classic Elite Lush (124 yards). At least that's my story and I'm sticking to it!

And I took a dyeing class Saturday after which I have a (beautiful if I must say so myself) 400ish yard skein of DK weight wool.

Oy!

Confession time

2007-04-17T11:33:00.000-05:00

Okay, I suck. I fell off the wagon big time about a month ago. I've dealt with it by avoiding it. Time to 'fess up and get back on the program.

Until last weekend I haven't been knitting much. I've done a little crocheting. I've signed up for a crocheted shawls class the last weekend in April with Melissa Leapman. I am the exception that proves the rule that crochet is faster than knitting. I decided in early April that maybe I should crochet a little before the class came around. To date I've crocheted one coaster, which is lumpy bumpy, I think because of my gauge. And I've started a washcloth.

Last weekend was crazy weather so I gave in to the urge to watch some movies and knit. I went back to work on the Artic Diamonds scarf from a recent Interweave Knits. Got 60-70 rows done, so not too shabby.

Okay, I'm obviously really trying to avoid the confession!

So this is what has arrived to date from the binge:

Lisa Souza Sock! Merino – 560 yards (I've started a scarf with this)
Lisa Souza Big Wool – 434 yards (Intended for a bag)
Lisa Souza Fingering – 3500 yards (2 skeins for a stole)
Lisa Souza Lace – 2500 yards (for the Hanami stole)
Scarlet Fleece It’s Tubular – 960 yards (2 skeins) (for socks)
Yorkshire Tweed – one bag of Stainless – 1200 yards (for the collection)
3 colors of Lion Brand Cotton Ease @ 207 yards each
2 colors of Lion Brand Lion Cotton @ 236 yards each
2 colors of Lion Brand Organic Cotton @ 82 yards each
Euroflax Linen – 3 colors (champagne, lilac and pink panther) @ 270 yards ea
Louet Gems fingering – 3 skeins ea of 2 colors (aqua & lilac) – 1110 yds
Louet Gems sport – 2 skeins of Turkey Trot – 450 yds
Art Yarns Silk Rhapsody – 1 skein each of two colors – 260 yards each
Mystical Creations sock yarn - 560 yards

Grand total - 13861 yards! And I'm still waiting for an order of a sweater's worth of yarn that the color was a special order!

For those keeping track, that now takes my destashing yardage for the year down to a mere 964.05 yards, and you know that last that I'm waiting for will put me negative!

Time to either start knitting my fingers off or get some stuff on ebay!

Sock Madness

2007-03-18T18:55:00.000-05:00

A little while back I signed up for Sock Madness - an aptly named group if there ever was one. You can learn all about it at http://sockmadness.wordpress.com/ . The first pattern was distributed to the contestants last Saturday (3/10). When it was time for me to leave for my freeform class at The Knitter's Cottage I checked the flickr group to see if anyone was posting and discovered that a number of people were already on their second sock! So much for feeling good about being at the heel on my first sock. When my division closed on Monday I slowed down, but did finish them this week. Even when I was commuting by train and focusing on sock knitting on the train I took about two weeks to knit a pair of socks, so I'm still rather impressed by knitting these in one week:

In other sock news, I joined the Flock Sock club this year. I received my first kit a few weeks ago and can't resist including a photo of this. The blue is one of the prettiest I've ever seen:

Since my last post...

2007-02-19T10:26:00.000-05:00

(The pictures I talk about in this post are in the previous post to this one.)

I finished 2 cat mats I purchased at Morehouse Merino around Christmas time - took 660 yards out of the stash each. The picture is the second one. The first one was the same but blue where the orange is in this one. Not too exciting so I didn't bother taking a picture.

I also finished a pair of socks - the second picture. Another 464.78 yards out of the stash.

I've also bought some stuff. One skein Euroflax line - 270 yards up. One of my sock club kits arrived - another 503 yards up. Twenty balls of Cotolino. A great sale but a 2296.6 yard increase! Two new sock yarns I had to try - Apple Laine Apple Pie and Regia Bamboo Colors for a total of 1007.44 yards.

I put 8 auctions up on ebay. All have sold, but only 4 have been paid for to date, so I'll only count 5677.66 yards gone to date.

I've also been on a bit of a ripping spree with the WIPs. The third picture is a "Lost Points Stole." Ever since I started this I wish I had done something differently. The pattern has you cast on a large number of stitches (the long side of a rectangle) and knit for a certain lenght. Then you pick up around the other three edges and work in the round outward for the stole. I've always felt it would be funny to have one edge worked from live stitches on that center rectangle and the other three from not live stitches. Since the pickup would be easier if I only had to do the short sides, I was wishing I had cast-on with a provisional cast-on and could use live stitches on the other long side. The only thing that had held me back was how slippery the yarn is to handle. I swear the initial balling, and now the ripping and reballing of this yarn was more work than the actual knitting. But its done and that's one less WIP!

The fourth picture is a hat. I took a mitered squares class, and we were given a "pattern" where you knit a strip, join it in the round, pick up stitches and work the top of a hat. I got that far on this one but had never figured out what to do with the bottom edge, and didn't think the hat would be something I'd like even if I finished. I had another strip ready to go. Both got ripped. This one was the start of a Multidirectional Scarf, and I've knit all the ripped yarn plus some so far. I'll be much happier with the scarf. For the other yarn, I had already knit a mitten with some of the yarn. I kept pretty good notes - except WHAT SIZE NEEDLE I USED! I think I'm going to try and figure out the needle and knit the other mitten. Then maybe a simple beanie with the rest of that yarn.

The last picture is a gorgeous sweater I started knitting at least 10 years ago. I still love the sweater, love the yarn. But I'm fairly certain my knitting has changed so much you'd always see the ine where I picked it up again. So all that yarn is ripped out, dipped in hot water to relax it and is now drying in the tub. Probably will restart this some day.

There's one more WIP I had decided to rip, but I've actually "sold" it. Once its paid for I'll count the yardage in my minus column, but I've already taken it off the WIP list.

I have started two new projects - some toe-up socks with the new Bamboo yarn and that scarf. So since you probably can't keep track any more - the WIP count stands at 27!

Some pictures, with an explaination to come

2007-02-19T08:39:00.001-05:00

3 FO's and Facing Reality

2007-01-15T18:12:00.000-05:00

Well I not only finished the two things I promised this weekend, I finished a third.

First, dragon scarf from Morehouse Merino. I knew I'd get this done as it was blocking and just needed the eyes and smoke added when it dried.

Second, Harvest Cable socks from an old Opal yarn. This is one of the many single socks that were in my basket after I burned out on socks a few years back. Again, I knew I'd finish because I only had one toe left to graft.

Third, Ruffled fingerless gloves from "Not Just Socks" using Regia yarn. One was done, but the second was a bit of a surprise. I was a little sick this weekend, so got more knitting time in than I expected.

Total yardage out of the stash - a whopping 1204.09. NOT!

So I started to wonder how my "reducing WIPs" goal meshed with the "reducing the stash goal."

In the process I discovered a couple of discrepancies. First, the Regia yarn was listed incorrectly in the spreadsheet, reducing the stash by an additional 229.66 yards. Plus, I missed listing a cardigan kit in the tally - a Philosopher's Wool kit that was correctly counted in the WIP list.

Next, I tallyed how much the stash would be reduced if I finished all of the WIPs (which isn't even the goal). That would get me a 26503.04 yard reduction in the stash - so maybe half way to the stash reduction goal. Clearly I will have to do much more to reach the stash reduction goal than knit, so its time to think about going back in and destashing some more. So you may be seeing more of that soon.

Okay, new year, "new" blog

2007-01-11T13:38:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I'm going to start really tracking my knitting in an attempt to keep track of what is going on with my stash.

Currently I have 350,182.14 yards of yarn!!!!! The previous pictures are still pretty accurate. I'd like to get it under 300,000 by the end of the year.

I have 34 WIPs (works-in-progress). I'd like to get the WIPs under 10 by the end of the year.

Plus the following kits I couldn't account for yardage-wise - 1 cardigan, 1 christmas stocking, 4 hats, 1 mittens, 4 purses, 1 shawl, 3 socks, 1 vest and 4 "novelties" (i.e., beaded fish). Probably not realistic to say they'll be gone by the end of the year, but cut in half maybe?

Baby steps. But I'm soooooo close to getting two WIPs finished - definately by the end of the coming long weekend!

Here's a peak at the stash!

2006-09-02T18:25:00.000-05:00

Okay, Jenna showed me her stash Thursday night. I don't think she wins on size, but she definately wins on neatness!

The living room, mostly WIPs. Some baskets full in front of the coffee table at the end of the couch. Oh, and the blue box under said coffee table.

Behind the couch. That Vera Bradley bag on the green stool, and some baskets full behind it. Oh, and the low white box on the top shelf at the end of the bookcases.

And on the other end of the couch, from left to right - knitting bag, work bag and another knitting bag.

Moving up the office, basket, brown bag and tote bag on top of bookshelf.

Pile of Rubbermade totes, stack of paper boxes to the right of it, and of course the bags on top of the stacks.

Oh, and almost forgot the small pile near the door of stuff that's in the de-stashing queue.

Moving on to the guest room, bookcase and the clear plastic bag next to it. What the bag is resting on is not yarn stash.

And last but not least, the hamper of sock yarn!