Welcome to the family Milo!

Hello folks! Did you miss me?

I got back from vacation about a week ago, but have been too busy to post, partly because I was sick the last few days, but mostly for the best possible reason.

WE GOT A KITTY!!!

Meet Milo! He is a two and a half month old shorthaired tabby and he is my baby. A couple was giving away kittens at the local farmer's market and he was the last one left.  He was very skittish when we first brought him home, but now he loves to play and snuggle and get into all sorts of mischief. We're still in the training phase right now, and are trying to teach him not to scratch furniture and attack our feet under the blankets at night, but he is a ton of fun and very sweet. Right now he is being super adorable and taking a nap across my legs.

Vacation was amazingly fun. We stayed up in Boyne City, MI, and visited Petoskey and Charlevoix while we were up there. Our condo was on Boyne Mountain, and it was very beautiful up there. There was a lot of relaxing and taking hikes in the mountains, visiting the beach, eating TONS of delicious food, shopping, playing with my nephew. It was one of the best vacations I've had in a long time, and I even managed to fit some fibery fun in by forcing my family to come with me to the Stonehedge Fiber Mill, which was only a few miles away from where we were staying. The actual fiber mill location was a little underwhelming, but the yarn was beautiful and the owners of the mill were very friendly. I will get onto the knitting now, but will post lots of vacation pictures at the end of the post.

I did not get a ton of knitting done on vacation because I was too busy having a blast, but I've gotten a few things done the last week. 

Finished Objects

1) I finished my second Boyfriend Sock.

I was not in love with this yarn by the end of the project (too much brown) but I would definitely buy it in a different color in the future. I combined two patterns for this project: Erica Leuder's Hermoine's Everyday Socks and Wendy D. Johnson's Sport Weight Toe-Up Socks with a Gusset, using Leuder's stitch pattern and Johnson's sock pattern. I knit these for my dear boyfriend with 60 stitches on size US 1.5 (2.5 mm) needles with Paton's Kroy Socks FX in Camo Colors.

2) I also finished my Sunshine Socks!

I love these socks so much. I used Wendy D. Johnson's Toe-Up Slip-Stitch Heel pattern, except that I did an eye of partridge heel because apparently it is physically impossible for me to actually follow all of the directions of a pattern. I think the slip-stitch heel would have looked better, but I wanted to try something new. I also tried hard to make the stripes match on these, which meant that I had to cut and tie the yarn on the second sock about four times. I knit these on size US 1 (2.25 mm) needles over 56 stitches with Knit Picks Felici Sport in Southwest. 

3) I also crocheted a hat in about two days.

I bought this yarn on a whim during a trip to Michael's because it is sooo soft and shiny and eye catching.  When I bought the yarn I saw a little free pattern sheet at the store which I thought was PERFECT! This is the Wave Stitch Beret pattern crocheted with Paton's Metallic in Blue Steel on a size H (5.0 mm) and a 4.5 mm hook. It is difficult to photograph because of the shininess* it is actually much darker than the first photo shows. The pattern was fun and very quick. I got a little distracted at one part while doing the increases, so I accidentally made it a whole repeat bigger around than the pattern called for, meaning that it is much floppier than it is supposed to be. I am actually pretty happy with the floppiness though, and I'm glad that I "messed up". 

Works in Progress

1) I am still working on the Dane Shawl.

I decided to make this shawl mine instead of Molly's since it will probably be too scratchy for her delicate skin. I am moving onto the third repeat of the body pattern, which means that I am (supposedly) 2/3 of the way done, but since the rows keep getting longer I'm more like 1/2 of the way done. I am knitting this with my handspun Corriedale on size US 7 (4.5 mm) needles and am using Jane Tanner's Dane Shawl pattern.

2) I started another, softer, shawl for Molly

Molly picked out this skein of very soft, snuggly yarn at Joann's , so hopefully she will like it better. This Liz Corke's Storm Warning shawl and I am knitting it with Joann Sensations Cuddle in Lilac on size US 6 (4 mm) needles. I have modified (of course) the pattern to make it more triangular, and am knitting it without beads. I love this pattern, and it is very easy and fun to knit.

Stash Enhancement

I got a few things while on vacation

Stonehedge Fiber Mill Crazy

Stonehedge Fiber Mill Fine, mill ends, Plum, 515 yards

Stonehedge Fiber Mill Fine, mill ends, Raspberry, 432 yards 

Jojoland Melody Superwash, color MS12

 

I'm going to Stitches Midwest next weekend, so I will have much more to share with you then. Until then, have a great week, and enjoy some of my pictures from vacation. 

-Nicole

 

 

Slaying the knitting and ...err...vanquishing projects?

I'm finally getting some projects completed!

After weeks of slogging away at projects that seem to have no end, I am finally getting some work done. I've been working a lot lately, but in between I've been knitting, crocheting, and sewing up a storm. 

I have been watching the Buffy the Vampire Slayer series over again, and if you can't tell, I'm obsessed. I love this show so much that it's a little ridiculous. I'm just finishing up season 2, and remembering why I love Xander and Willow so much.

Only three more weeks until we go on vacation, and about two months until school starts. I am loving the summer! Now if only it would stop raining. 

Finished Objects

1) GLORY GLORY HALLELUJAH I finally finished the nursing shawl for Celeste. 

It's HUGE! Final dimensions are 80 inches wide 20 inches deep. This was the Color Affection shawl, which I knit with Knit Picks Comfy Fingering in Peony, Whisker, and Sea Foam and size US 6 (4 mm) needles. I ended up using 926.5 yards of yarn. Like I said, HUGE! 

Half-Finished Objects

1) I finally finished the back half of my lace cami

This is the Versailles Shell knit with Queensland Sugar Rush in color 02 on size US 3 (3.25 mm) needles. 

2) I got one sock done for Brandon

These are modified Hermione's Everyday Socks knit with Patons Kroy Socks FX in "camo colors" knit with size US 1.5 (2.5 mm) needles. I am using Erica Lueder's stitch pattern but Wendy D. Johnson's sock pattern. 

Works in Progress

1) This is a non-knitterly project, but I'm almost done sewing a quilt for the new baby.

The top fabric is from Meijer's and the bottom fabric and binding are from Jo-Ann's. So far I have the basting stitches done and I "stitched in the ditch" around the borders of every square. It is going to be so soft and squishy. I am going to do the actual quilting with the free motion foot on my machine. 

2) I've made some progress on Molly's shawl

This is the Dane Shawl knit with some of my hand-spun on size US 7 (4.5 mm) needles. 

3) I started a new afghan

This is sort of a modified version of the Around the World Quilt, crocheted with a size H (5.0 mm) hook and a ton of my stashed acrylic yarn. 

4) I'm almost done spinning that Polwarth! 

Just about one more ounce to go!! I am so excited to be done.

So that's all that's new with me, folks. No new yarn to speak of at the moment, although I did buy some snuggly Rambouillet fiber that I'm excited to do something fun with. 

Now back to watching Buffy kill vampires and rid the world of evil 

Have a fun and safe Fourth of July if you're in the US!

-Nicole

Monogamous Knitting

I can't believe it's halfway through February already!

I hope that you all have had a fun and warm month. The weather has been very bipolar and crazy here in the midwest this winter, and last week we had a couple of days that it was in the forties and fifties, and then today we had gusty winds and snow all day. Make up your mind, Indiana!

I also hope that you had a good Valentines day if you celebrate that. My boyfriend and I don't do anything crazy for Valentines, but we did go out to dinner to my favorite sushi restaurants and bought each other yummy chocolate goodies. 

I have been very monogamous in my knitting these last couple weeks, and I have pretty much been knitting on one thing exclusively until I finish it. Because of this, it does not look like I have gotten a whole lot done, but I have actually finished two large projects, and made a lot of progress on a couple other ones. 

Finished Objects

1) I went a little crazy knitting on my Color Affection shawl. I knit like a maniac and finished the whole thing the day after my last post. I seriously knit this whole thing in 12 days, which I think must be some sort of record. Due to my slightly tighter gauge and running out of yarn (I had one foot left of my yellow yarn when I finished binding off) the finished dimensions were 74" wide by 19" deep, which is 20 inches shorter than the pattern size, but still plenty big. 

Blocking was extremely important to this shawl. Before I washed and pinned this out it was really small and wrinkly. So here is a before and after.

I used Veera Välimäki's Color Affection Shawl pattern with Knit Picks Palette in an entire ball of Turmeric, almost one ball of Clemantis Heather, and one and a quarter ball of Whirlpool, and knitted with US size 6 needles.

2) I finished Brandon's stripey socks!

These are knitted with two balls of Knit Picks Felici Sport in Stream Bed on size US 2 needles. I used Wendy D. Johnson's Sport Weight sock pattern , but I added a broken rib pattern on the top of the foot and up the leg. The second sock is slightly bigger (by about 1/2 an inch) than the first, but they fit Brandon's feet perfectly and he loves them.

Works in Progress

1) I have started working on my Striped Shawl again. 

The color of the purple has a lot more red in it than is showing up

I am using Sylvia Bo Bolivia's Sunlight Shawl for Sad People pattern  with elann.com's Peruvian Baby Silk in Parchment and Aubergine on size US 4 needles. I am striping the two colors every 12 rows. This looks much better in person, and it is so deliciously soft that I have just been snuggling it against my neck when I'm not knitting on it.

2) I also started a baby blanket for someone very important in my life. I'm not going to say who it is for, because this person has not announced it publicly yet. 

I am crocheting this with a size H (5 mm) hook and am using up some of my stashed acrylic yarns (most of in Caron Gold brand, which was discontinued forever ago) striped with Lion Brand Pound of Love in Pastel Yellow. I'm not sure how much I like it yet, but I think that once I start adding more of the colors I will like it more (the colors are not as dark as the picture is showing, by the way). 

That's all for me for now. Have a wonderful rest of your week, and I hope that you find something creative and fun to do to keep your mind off the cold.

-Nicole

Invasion of the stripes!

I'm back! 

I'm sorry that I haven't posted in such a long time. I have been working like crazy lately, and when I am home I have just wanted to relax and read or knit.

I have been reading a lot lately, which has cut into my knitting time a little, but that's ok with me. I finished reading Contact by Carl Sagan earlier this week, and then I read all 500+ pages of Kim Stanley Robinson's 2312 in two days, because I am crazy. I really loved Contact, and 2312 was all right, but not one of my favorites.

I started reading How to Be a Woman by Cailin Moran yesterday, and I am about a quarter of the way through it and loving it. That woman is HILARIOUS!

Work has been crazy stressful ever since we had a server quit, but it's been getting better now that we are training a couple more. These last few weeks have assured me that I NEVER want to make serving tables a lifetime occupation.

As far as my video blog goes, I am still undecided on whether I want to continue. I liked making the video, but the uploading, editing, and hosting issues were a nightmare. I will let you know what I decide to do.

But anyway, let's get onto the knitting! I have been up to a lot since my video

Finished Objects:

Only one finished project right now, but it is wonderful

This is my Squidoo, made for my lovely nephew. I used Stacey Trock of Fresh Stitches' Otto the Monster pattern and Hobby Lobby I Love This Yarn in Peacock. I crocheted this with a size 4.5 mm crochet hook. It was very easy and fun, and I think that the method that Stacey uses, of crocheting in the back loop only, and assembling the monster BEFORE stuffing it, makes the process quicker and easier. I love this pattern, and I will definitely be making some more of Stacey's animals some time soon (perhaps her adorable new Flavia the Unicorn pattern?)

Works in Progress:

I have a TON of things on the needles right now, and for some damn reason they are all striped projects. I HATE knitting stripes. I have a mental condition, obviously.

1) The project I am the closest to finishing right now is my Palette Affection shawl. 

I love this shawl!! I am using Veera Välimäki's Color Affection shawl pattern with Knit Picks Palette yarn in Whirlpool (2 balls), Turmeric (1 ball) and Clemantis Heather (1 ball). This is not the softest yarn, but I really like the way it feels and knits, and the colors are GORGEOUS! I am using size 6, 4.0 mm, needles. I am almost done with the third section of color repeats, and I will definitely be happy to be done with juggling 3 balls of yarn at once. Again, I am really not a fan of knitting stripes, and here I am knitting a 90 inch by 22 inch stripes shawl. I'M CRAZY!

2) I am halfway (ish) done with the foot of my first boyfriend sock

I am using Knit Picks Felici Sport in Stream Bed on size 2, 2.75 mm, needles. I am using Wendy D. Johnson's Sport Weight sock pattern as my basic formula, but I added a broken rib pattern (K1, P1 across half of one row, k across one row)on  the front of the sock, which will continue up the leg. I love this yarn, but I hate these colors. I have been knitting in short bursts of "UGH I HATE BROWN" until I get to the blue or grey sections, and then I drop the sock in disgust when I get back to the brown. These will get finished eventually. My boyfriend has Fred Flinstone feet, so these are going to be huge. 


These next two projects have not gotten a lot of love, but I have basically just started them so that I don't have to cast them on when I want to start working on them. I hate casting on. 

3) I am loving my Striped Shawl for Sad People, even though it is a tiny little thing right now

I am using Sylvia Bo Bilvia's (which I am suuuuure is her real name) Sunlight Shawl for Sad People pattern. This is a pretty basic shawl pattern, so I am mainly using it for the pretty edging and garter rows. I am using size 4, 3.5 mm, needles  and elann.com Peruvian Baby Silk in Aubergine and Parchment. This yarn is WONDERFUL! It is extremely soft and silky, so I am very excited to wear this once it's done. I plan on just using up all four balls, so hopefully it will be decently sized

4) Finally, I am making a hat that will (hopefully) fit Brandon. I am calling it Boyfriend Hat 2.0

Since the hat I made him for Christmas ended up so big (although I did wash it and dry it on hot and it shrunk up quite a bit!) I am trying to make him a hat that he will actually wear.

I am using Jared Flood's Turn a Square pattern with I Love This Yarn in dark olive and light gray. UGH SO MUCH STRIPING!

5) I have also been working on spinning up that BFL wool that I dyed with Koolaid.

Since this was the first roving I have ever dyed, it got a little bit felted, but if I spend a little bit of time drafting it it is fine. 

Stash Enhancement 

Please don't judge me. 

Valley Yarns Charlemont in Dusk

Ice Yarns Silk in Blue (?)

Yarn Place Basic Fingering in Eggplant (5 skeins)

Sensations Little Treat in Green Yellow

Sensations Truly Pattern in Black and Purple

Deborah Norville Serenity Garden in Gem

Sassy Sheep Decadence yarn in Vineyard

Sassy Sheep Merino Sock yarn in Pumpkin Spice

I would say that I am ashamed, but I am not. The two yarns from The Sassy Sheep I got in her Mystery Grab Bag sale on Etsy, and I am thrilled with how gorgeous and soft they are. The colors are much more beautiful in real life. The Ice yarn and the Yarn Place yarn I got from destashes on Ebay, and the Charlemont yarn I got from Webs on sale. The yarns from Joann's I have no excuse for. I went in to buy safety eyes for stuffed animals and I left with 16 dollars worth of yarn. It was all on sale! How am I supposed to resist!?

I am planning on making a baby sweater with the Little Treat yarn, and I have some lovely shawls and socks in the works with some of the others. 

That's all from me for this week. I have some delicious turkey meatloaf in the oven that my wonderful boyfriend made and I want to eat it RIGHT NOW!

-Nicole