31 December 2006

Knitting in 2007

I don't make New Year's Resolutions because they never seem to stick. I like the idea of reviewing my personal growth at the end of the year but if I need to make changes I am more likely to stick to it after January. (I know, I'm weird. I feel like there is too much pressure to make a change after the 1st. It seems more relaxing to mull over what I have found out about myself throughout Jan. and then decide if I want to make a concerted effort to change something.) However, I would like to set some knitting goals for 2007 and figured those could be my "resolutions".

1. Finish at least one of hubby's sweaters (probably the Leo since its the closest to being done)
2. Make a scarf for my best friend J in Boston (preferably by Feb. but since he has signed a contract to stay in Boston for another year, I've got some time)
3. Finish the Andi cardi that I promised to my friend (um yeah, we live in Florida and if its not done by the end of Jan. I'm toast since she won't be able to use it)
4. Make a stole for my mom (remember that Domovi shawl that just never reappeared on the blog, yeah I need to get back to that)
5. Make at least one EZ pattern (I'm thinking either the baby sweater in Knitter's Almanac or the saddle sweater in Knitting Without Tears)
6. Use the yarn I bought at Stitches East so I can justify buying more at the next Stitches
7. Knit at least two things for charity

I did finish the Wide Triangle from VLT but I don't like the way it blocked out. I'll show you pics next time and you'll understand. Also, I somehow started the Alpine Lace shawl...I'm hoping to have it ready to gift to my close friend who is getting married in Feb. Pics of that next time too.

May the new year bring you health, happiness, and yummy yarn!

25 December 2006

Felicidades!!

Merry Christmas, Happy Boxing Day, Happy Solstice Day, Kwanzaa, Chanukah!!

May you have a wonderful holiday season filled with lots of yarn!

20 December 2006

More Victorian Lace info

Can you tell that I am obsessed with this book? OK, on the sidebar you will see an additional file, a document that lists the yarn substitutions that I have read on the VLT KAL site and anywhere I may have come across someone writing about their VLT project.

If you want me to add anything, just let me know. I will try to keep it updated.

OK, I have only bought presents for hubby and my inlaws (with whom I am spending the Christmas holiday). Yikes, I am so not ready for Christmas. Hope you guys are doing better than me.

16 December 2006

Tagged

You know what is great about the blogosphere, other than finding answers to almost any question I can come up with, is how friendly everyone is. I just got tagged by Sande for a meme. I had not actually read Sande's blog before but since we are both part of the VLT KAL its like we're part of the same club, practically friends. Having tagged me, I have now read her blog and feel like I know her a bit and she's pretty cool. Nice how that works, huh? Of course, if this happened in "real life" I would probably be much more aloof and not willing to embrace a new "friendship" so readily. (Blame it on my New York instincts that I tend to be suspicious of people the first time I meet them.)

Now I'm not usually a huge fan of memes but this one is interesting.


"THE RULES: Each player of this game starts with the ‘6 weird things about you.’ People who get tagged need to write a blog entry of their own 6 weird things as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose 6 people to be tagged and list their names. Don’t forget to leave a comment that says ‘you are tagged’ in their comments and tell them to read your blog."

So, 6 "weird" things about me:

1. I have a tongue ring (basic metal barbell) but usually blush and get embarrassed if someone asks me about it.
2. My feet have to be at the absolute perfect temperature (give or take a few degrees) otherwise I cannot fall asleep. This usually means that my toes are sticking out from under the covers.
3. I like for things to be organized, am even known for my organization regarding work, but am very disorganized when it comes to my home life.
4. I was scared of dogs for many years, and only really got over it when I got a dog of my own. Now I have two dogs and am surrounded by 20+ dogs on a regular basis.
5. I doctor up my coffee (lots of milk and sugar) but like my tea straight.
6. Despite growing up in New York City, I don't really have an accent of any kind. If people ever do notice anything, they usually think it might be somewhat Southern! (All those years of living in the South have apparently left their mark.)

I prefer not to tag people--reminds me too much of chain mail--but you are welcome to join in the fun if you like. If you decide to do it, let me know and I'll add a link from my blog to your post.

The holidays are upon us and I have yet to buy any presents. Luckily, I didn't commit to making any presents so I don't have that additional stress. Today, I'm going out to buy hubby's present. I'm sure he knows what it will be but I'll be able to wrap it and put it under the tree before he gets home. Oh yeah, we got our first tree this year--I'm excited about it. We only got the tree (artificial), garlands and lights. I always wanted to have a memorable collection of ornaments so I'm asking my nieces and nephews to start making us some every year. The plan is to collect ornaments so that eventually each ornament will have its own story instead of having a bunch of matching store-bought ornaments. However, I don't think hubby can hold out that long to have a tree full of ornaments so I'll wait and see if he gives in to the temptation to just buy a bunch over the next few days.

09 December 2006

Joys of technology

After consulting the good folks on the Knitty boards, I have been able to upload my spreadsheet (in the sidebar) without having to pay for server space. woo hoo! Why did I bother? Well, I have joined the Victorian Lace Today knitalong and was already thinking about what I would want to do next. You may remember that I have that lovely Blue Moon Rio yarn that is begging to become a shawl. I was going through the book and putting little tabs in all the patterns that would possibly work (yardage being the key factor) and decided to just put all the info into a spreadsheet instead. Since I was already at it, I figured why not do it for all the patterns? Now, I can easily see what patterns would be possible fits for some of the yarn in my stash.

For those of you with the book, you are welcome to download the spreadsheet and see what yarns you have that may work. (Of course, you could also use it to help build a shopping list.)

I've been keeping very busy with the part-time work at doggie daycare and searching for some additional work to supplement the income. I have a lead but its not definite...keep your fingers crossed for me.

05 December 2006

Initial surgery a success
...but follow-up required more drastic measures

This will be a quick, picture-free post today. First, I went ahead and dropped down the two stitches back to the place where I had missed a YO. Since I have this project on Denise needles, I was able to just take the needles off the ends and put in those stoppers so that the stitches not in use would not slip off. Then I used smaller dpns, either a size 3 or 4 I don't remember, to knit back up. It was a little difficult to make three stitches where there had only been two before, but with the help of a very small crochet hook, I was able to do it. Unfortunately, as I looked at my work, victorious in my first knitting surgery, I also realized that there was no corresponding picot edge. doh! I must have been on auto-pilot and not realized what side I was on when I knit that row initially. So, despite my best efforts, I had to rip back the 10+ rows including the row with the Russian join. The join did not look good after the ripping but I added a little more twist and knit it very gently so I hope it will be OK in the long run. Since the part where the two strands were joined actually looked OK, I think the overall strength is probably fine. (It was just the ends of the join where it twisted back on itself that had loosened.)

Now, I'm back to where I was before so my progress picture looks like last time only without the mistake in it.