SocktoberFest

Geez, it's been a while since I've posted. =(

Lots going on here, not the least of which is heavy sock knitting. Now that the weather has changed I finally feel in the mood to knit socks. And boy have I. We're a week into Socktober & I've already finished 2 pairs of socks with my 3rd pair approaching the halfway point. Here's what I've finished so far.

On Line wool socks in plain old stockinette on 60 sts. I really like the colors in this.

Trekking XXL, color #84; 60 sts in 3x2 rib.

My next pair is going to be in Socks that Rock, color Flower Power. It's the most recent color from their sock club. I should have this finished before the end of the week & I can't wait to see how they turn out.

I had an eventful weekend. On Saturday I met up with a couple of friends from work & we went to Calloon (sp?) in Chinatown, for dim sum. My first time having dim sum, but definitely not the last time. It was GREAT! After that, though, I was in MSG overdose & had to lay down for a 1/2 hour. After that, my dad took me to a deli where I could find Head Cheese. If you don't know what that is, go to Wikipedia & read about it...it's gross. BUT, we had been talking about it at work a couple of weeks before & someone there said that she'd buy me lunch if I had a picture of myself trying it. Soooo...off to the deli we went & sure enough, they had head cheese. The lady there was super nice & cut me a razor thin slice so that I could try it. My dad took the picture...after 3 tries & 3 pieces of head cheese. BUT, I've got my free lunch. =) I have to say, I know what's in it & I was shocked that it didn't make me sick. I'm not saying I liked it, but it wasn't nearly as bad as I expected it to be. I'm even going to get a small bit next weekend & take it in to work for the brave people to try for themselves. BUT, i'm going to be nice & give them crackers to eat it on.

That's it's it for now. It's getting cold in here, so I think it's time to cuddle with the cats & knit. But, I'll leave with these....

What the?!

From the fugly files of Knit 1 I give you their Fingerlettes pattern.

Really? The world needs this? Who in gods name is going to make fingertip covers????

It's all about the baby

Yes, the babies are coming right & left which means everything is on hold so that baby knits can be completed. My cousin had her first baby on August 8th. A beautiful baby girl named Isabella Rose. Ain't she a beauty?! And, this means I finally have a baby girl to knit for. All of my friends, up to this point, have had boys. Don't get me wrong. I love those bruisers, but there's nothing like making/buying pretty clothes for a girl.

So, here's what I've got going for her. Trellis in Cascade 220 Superwash. This picture sucks. The color is a dark lavender color. I'm almost done with the back, so it's going pretty quick. *I'm also going to make a green version of this for my nephew.*

This is the Ribons Baby Blanket pattern from Fiber Trends. It's great, it's done completely in the round & gives an option for a plain center or a flower in the center. I did this one with the flower in the center since it's for a little girl. The yarn is stash...Red Heart Kids in Dream Girl. I love it!

See, here's the little flower in the middle.

That's it so far, but trust me, there's more to come. For now, I leave you with a picture of the most recent sock yarn from the STR sock club. It's called Flower Power, and although I won't be making the anklet pattern that came with it, I do have a pattern picked out for it.

What's that you say?

It's finally some real knitting content? Yeah, I know. I suck at keeping my blog up to date.

Anywho...here's some real knitting that I've actually been working on.

First up, we have the completed Sockapalooza 4 socks. I have to say, I had a LOT of trouble finding the right pattern, but I'm so glad I did these. They were fun to knit & I love how they turned out. The pattern is Eleanor from Socktopia and I used Opal solids in pink. The only change I made was to change the heel to a slipped stitch instead of plain knit. The plain knit didn't seem sturdy enough.

Next we have Fawkes, also from Socktopia. This was started in honor of the release of the last Harry Potter book. Unfortunatley it's been put on hold until I can get a couple of other projects finished. I'm using the most recent STR Club yarn. It's called Firebird & I LOVE IT!!

Lastly we have my loot from last night's Stitch 'N Pitch. This is the first time I've been and I had a lot of fun, although I couldn't tell you what happened during the game. All I know is that the Mariners seem to have a lot of players named Jose. Anyway, from left to right we have some lovely sock yarn by Pagewood Farm in Crayon, next is the fabulous Duet Sock Yarn in Powder Puff; I can't wait to see how it knits up. Last but definitly not least I scored what I really wanted...STR from Churchmouse Yarn & Tea. To be honest, this was the one thing that I went there for specifically last night. I had no idea if Churchmouse would be there, but I was hoping. First we have Calico which I think is one of their newer colors. Then that blue loveliness is Moonstone...to die for. And finally...the color that me & Sockergirl have been searching for for months...Lemongrass. It's even nicer in real life. Although...I'm a blue girl to my bones so I have to say I love Moonstone a little more but Lemongrass is really yummy and I can't wait to use all of them.

Now, next on the list are my State Fair socks which need to be finished and ready to turn in on August 11th. I'm still holding out hope that I can finish them, but we'll see. Here's a picture of where they are right now.

I Could Just Kiss You

I would like to give a big kiss to whoever it was that came up with the portable air conditioning unit. It is currently #1 in my heart.

Living in the Puget Sound area we don't get a lot of really hot weather. So, because of that, not many people have air conditioning. For the most part it's not an issue, BUT, occassionally it does get HOT here & when that happens everyone gets miserable...and cranky. Currently we're in the middle of a heat wave. Yesterday it was 90 something and today will be near 100 if not 100. Keep in mind...no AC. BUT, I'm prepared this year. After spending a miserable summer last year in a 3rd floor aparment with a Western exposure, i wised up this year & got said portable air conditioner. Now, it doesn't cool the entire apartment, but with the bathroom closed & the hallway blocked by a sheet, it does cool off my bedroom & my roommate's bedroom. Good enough, i say! LONG LIVE AIR CONDITIONING!! Stay cool Seattle, next week should be back to normal.

I don't get it

I just don't understand all the craziness about the iPhone. I guess it all comes down to Apple having the greatest marketing team ever. Everything I've read about this makes me want one about as much as an iPod...I have a Zen Photo, by the way. Guess I'm just not one of the cool kids that'll be wasting 1/2 a paycheck on this & the phone service.

Get this Monkey off my shoulder

So, while visiting my brother & sister-in-law a few weeks ago my sis-in-law & I hit a couple of yarn stores. While we were at one I told her that I'd be happy to make her a pair of socks, if she wanted me to. I had just delivered my brothers finished socks to him...anyway, she was interested & we were looking at the Panda Cotton, so we both got some. She chose some in College Prep which has purple, gold & bugundy in it. So, when i finally got home, I started trying to find a good pattern to use for them. I finally decided to give Cookie's Monkey socks a try. They aren't the best choice with this yarn, but I think she'll like them. Now I just have to get the other one started. =)

Baby Blanket....DONE!

This isn't the greatest picture in the world, but it'll have to do. I started this while on vacation a few weeks ago (more about that sometime soon) and just finished it last night. This is the Moderne Baby Blanket from Mason Dixon Knitting. I used Bernat Satin as i just can't do anything that's NOT washable & dryable for a baby. Anyway, this is for my cousin who's expecting her first baby in August. They aren't finding out if they're having a boy or girl, so everything they're getting from me is going to revolve around this color scheme.

All in all, I have to say I really like how this turned out. The colors are some of my favorites & that Bernat Satin is just so soft. I don't know the exact size, but it should be crib size or close to it. Now, I just have to finish the bibs & burp clothes that I'm making to go with this. I'm still trying to decide if I want to knit up a quick hat &/or sweater to go along with it, but the juries still out on that. Anyway, that's going to do it for now.

There's a BIG Smile on my face

And it's all because of some great news I got after work yesterday...

No, that's not my test, but it does belong to someone close to me.

YUP! It's official, I'm going to be an AUNTIE!!!!

I'm very excited about this news, maybe more so than my brother & sister-in-law. I've wanted to be an auntie for so long, and while my friends' kids are great, it's just not the same thing. Honestly, I don't think any of the rest of the family thought they were even interested in having kids, so this was a very pleasant surprise. I think it's going to take Mom a lot of getting used to. She REALLY never thought she was going to be a Grandma... she'll get over it! =) Anyway, I'm thrilled to bits & I've already started thinking about all of the knitting I can do. Between my cousing that's expecting in August & my new neice or nephew, the needles are going to be smoking with all of the baby knitting that's about to commence.

So...uh...yeah, knitting content to come soon. I have 1 pair of socks done & waiting for pictures & should have another pair done tonight...must find camera

Auntie D

Sock Madness update

Well, I finished my most recent pattern last night & i have to say that I really like them. The pattern, again, was a pain in the arse, but I'm glad I stuck with it & I'll probably make them again.

hmmm...the camera appears to be having issues. This picture looks really blurry. Oh well, that's as good as it gets right now.

The next pattern comes out on Friday...Round 6. It's looking to be some kind of stranded pattern which should be fun. Of course, true to form, I don't have any yarn picked out. I like to see the pattern before deciding on what I'm going to use. Maybe I'll check out one of the yarn stores tomorrow night to see if there's anything I just have to have for this round.

Sock Madness update

So, yes, I'm officially out of the madness, but I'm still playing along. I meant to post the pictures of my Round 4 socks last week, when I finished them, but I had camera issues. Anyways, here are my completed Mad Weave socks. I did them in Lorna's Laces in Flames. I have to say that I really like these, although I have to get a better picture of the pattern. You really can't see it in these.

I've also got a picture of my first completed sock for the Round 5 pattern...Mad to Dance. I love the way this looks, but the pattern leaves a lot to be desired. Now, I have to say, that I can take a stitch or pattern & insert it into a generic sock pattern no problem, but if I'm following a pre-written pattern for a sock, I expect it to be a well written and COMPLETELY written pattern. This round 5 pattern was anything but that. I won't go into everything here, but it just felt like the designer started out with this great pattern & just got tired of writting it so last 2/3's of the pattern were just notes on how she went about working it. I'm really glad I wasn't competing in this round because that pattern would have been the death of me. Luckily I took a lot of notes so I can make the second sock without the problems. C'est la vie, I guess. They really are lovely...

I decided to do them in Vesper Self-Striping yarn in Neopolitan. It's some of the softest yarn I've ever made socks with. They definitely make me want some neopolitan ice cream, too!

Well, off to start working on sock #2.

Just one more thing

Just one more thing in a list of things going wrong right now. I wanted to post my completed Mad Weave socks for the last round of Sock Madness, but I can't find the pictures when i connect the memory card from my camera...so, no pictures until I find the socks again. =(

It also means there won't be any pictures of what I got this weekend. Sockergirl & I took advantage of the free bus rides on Sunday for Earth Day & went downtown. From there we caught a ferry to Bainbridge Island. We had some coffee then wandered over to Churchmouse Yarn & Tea. Spent a while there & I came home with some STR in Fire on the Mountain & Mudslide. I will get pictures up soon, I hope. We then hit this really great ice cream shop & had the best milkshakes. I had coconut & raspberry while Sockergirl had chocolate mint. yummy!!

I have more to talk about, but I'm being really lazy because I don't want to link to anything I'd be talking about. So, more to come soon.

Undulating Ribs...Done

I just finished & i have to say that I really like these. Now to figure out what pattern to do next.

Sock Madness "Loser" socks

So, let's be honest here...I hated the pattern for the recent round of sock madness. I just don't do cuffed ankle socks, sorry. Anyway, due to that & the fact that i have a nerve pinched that makes my thumb & index finger tingle, i decided to sit out this round and let my competitor win. I was joined by another competitor in the boycotting of the pattern. So, we decided to do our own pattern for this round. We decided on the Undulating Ribs pattern from "Favorite Socks". I'm a couple hours away from having both socks done, but here's what the first one looks like...

I have to say that I'm really liking the pattern & how it looks. I was hoping to have them done in time to wear for Easter, today. They're pastel, so they seemed perfect. oh well!

A few of us also hit a few yarn stores on Saturday. One of them was having a sale and I did a bit of damage there. I'll go over that tomorrow & post some pic's of what i got.

Must...finish...sock...