There's Another Hole in My Head

This weekend was a largely anticipated weekend for me. Yes, I know it was Father’s Day, and I called my father and my grandfather to wish them both a happy day. I sent my Dad a framed photo of our entire family, which doesn’t come together too often: me and Dear, my brother and his fiancée, my dad and his wife, and both of my Grandparents. He loved it, and it now sits on his office desk. It was also the last weekend of World Wide Knit in Public for 2010. I was planning to attend the meet-up in Houston, but then our trip to Dallas came up.

If I couldn't attend WWKiP, I had to celebrate somehow. What better way than to pick up my birthday gift from Dear? That's right, my perfect boyfriend was going to give me the best early birthday gift ever on the face of the planet. No joke, top two birthday gifts ever (that bike when I was 8 is a close contender). We drove to Dallas Friday night, and Saturday morning took a pilgrimage to White Rock Weaving Center. We were there for about an hour, and when we left we came out with this:

Isn’t she beautiful? Her name is Lola. She’s a Louet Julia wheel, and I could not be more thrilled with her. The ladies at White Rock Weaving are impossibly friendly and helpful. Anna patiently answered all of my questions and let me spend some time with the wheel before we left (she had put my name on it earlier in the week so that no one else would buy it.) I also got a lovely tour of the shop and an explination of the different weaving looms and techniques that the class was working on. I'm not too interested in weaving at the moment, but I can tell it's only a matter of time until the yarn lures me into yet another variation.

I spent some of Saturday and a little time on Sunday doing this:

and then some. I’m expecting to have another bobbin filled tonight, and then let the plying commence. I have lots of other rovings in my stash to play with, and more coming this week (maybe today???). I plan on plying the singles I spun with my drop spindle as well.

I am absolutely thrilled with this wheel. It has the smoothest treadle and is easy to use. I am working diligently at keeping my singles consistent (it’s helping that the wool I’m using is breathtakingly simple for a beginner) and trying not to overtwist. I can’t wait to see more and more come out of this … I have some plans to dye my own rovings and them spin them up and see what I get! I’ve got merino and alpaca to practice with, as well as different kinds of sheepswool until I get the hang of things. I am all too aware that I needed another hobby like I needed a hole in my head … but at least I resisted the Cricket looms (for now).

And now, a gratuitous kitty-and-boyfriend shot. This photo is small evidence as to how spoiled my cat is, and how that is totally not our faults.

Toooot! Tooooootie toot toot toot!!!

Okay … I’m not going to toot my own horn in this blog post. Who am I kidding, I’m TOTALLY going to toot my own horn. I’m going to play a freaking fan fare in this blog post. Call me Lizzie Sousa.

I have been having great success with finished objects this week. After months of hardly finishing a pair of socks, I’ve cranked out several looming projects in only a few days. Some are part of the super top secret project I’m working on, some are of the more simple gifting nature. Anyway, enough of the drumroll … on with the show!

It's too big to even take a proper photo. You should see the one of me holding it. I am dwarfed by my creation.

At long last, after 14+ months of having this thing in my project basket, I’ve finally finished the monstrous Kick Ass Cable Afghan {rav link}. This afghan came out to a whopping 7’ long and spans a queen-sized bed. It began as a birthday present for my brother (even though I started it last year after his birthday) and then mutated into a wedding gift when he got engaged a few months later. Fast forward a fistful of months and two additional cabled panels, and this is the end result. It’s huge (long enough for my 6’3” brother to pull it up to his chin and have it tucked under his feet) and heavy and totally appropriate given that their wedding is in July and they are moving to New Orleans. What better gift for the newlyweds moving permanently to the Gulf Coast than a queen-sized wool-blend BLACK afghan?

Also finished? Baby Chewy-I-Mean-Michael’s Baby Surprise Jacket {rav link} by Elizabeth Zimmermann. This was my first time knitting this pattern, and the yarn is chosen for it’s colors and content. The blue-browns combination are the color scheme of Chewy-I-Mean-Michael’s room, and the content is cotton and acrylic, making it machine washable and wearable in the Houston climate. I had a fairly easy time following the pattern (if you can call it that – how about “suggestions”). After a design alteration towards the end, it’s a small-toddler robe of sorts. Luckily, Paula (Chewy-I-Mean-Michael’s mother) is able to make any alterations to the arm seams that are necessary so that Chewy-I-Mean-Michael can wear it for a long time.

Wait, what’s that? You want MORE? Well, I just don’t … I’m not sure if … ha! Just kidding! I TOTALLY HAVE MORE! I’m calling this one the Clio Cloche {rav link} … you may recognize this as my first felting project, and I decided to needle felt a little Clio onto the side of it. I’m really pleased with the way this one came out, and I can’t wait until it’s cold enough for me to show it off.

My lovely model, Gwyneth.

I LOVELOVELOVE it. Exactly how I pictured it. It looks like she's looking out the window. In my head.

This is Clio. She is an epic napper.

And just to leave a bit of suspense with you, dear reader … an upcoming hat.

Dear and I are spending this weekend in Dallas with his Dad and little sister to celebrate Father’s Day. I’ll have more exciting news after the weekend (hint: it involves a trip to this place). In the meantime, enjoy the World Cup and Happy Daddy's Day to every Daddy (especially my own)!

I came ... I felted ... I dyed.

Welcome back, folks! It’s been a while since my last blog post because … well … I felt un-blog-a-riffic. I wasn’t happy with any of my ideas for content because I didn’t HAVE any content. I hadn’t finished any projects, hadn’t taken any photos, didn’t really have anything new to report. So I didn’t.

But now … NOW … I have something. I have been working on something super duper top secret for the past week or so, and I will be dropping hints throughout until details are finalized and I know I won’t get fired from my day job or hunted like the scurvy dog I am for posting it on the internet for every Tom, Dick and Harry to read. But until then … I present:

FINISHED OBJECTS
and other random wooly goodness

This past weekend, I did my first felting project. I forgot to take a photo of it before I started felting (I have issues remembering to photograph various stages of projects … it’s part of my charm), but here it is in the first stage of felting.
Ooooh the Thrills! The Chills!

And here it is on my lovely hat model, Gwyneth.

Say hello, Gwyneth.

Still planning on needle-felting a little something-something onto this, but that will have to wait until I get a couple more finished objects completely finished (almost doesn’t count in this case, as they are gifts).

Also spent some time dyeing my latest hand-spun effort.

Mmmm, my favorite. Purple Kool-Aid Yarn Soup.

The color is a little washed out, but it’s actually a lovely and bright purple.

I love the smell of hot, wet Kool-Aid-y Wool in the morning.

To be plied together with my other hand-spun effort, dyed a maroon color. But that’s another blog post.

Everything else I have that I would like to share – will be shared in later postings. Gotta save my material, you know?

In un-related to knitting news, Dear and I went to a Polo match this weekend – my first! I felt so British! Cheerio, pip pip old chap! We had a great time, even though it was hotter than Hell (I’m going to start saying hotter than Houston. It’s more accurate).

Awww, so cute!

And the horsies looked like they were having some fun.

Pass the Pimm's Cup, please.

Hope everyone who cares is celebrating World Wide Knit in Public Week (June 12 – 19)! I got together at Memorial City Mall on Sunday to scare the Muggles … what did you do?

Rewind to Vacation

Where did the last week go? It simultaneously seems like 10 minutes and 10 years since we returned from Vail, and I’ve been a bad little blogger and not posted a word about it. I guess the time in between was filled with dinners, season finales, a wedding, baseball, and some valiant efforts to refresh some stagnant areas.

How’s this for awesome? Who knew Einstein hung out in Vail?


Vail was absolutely gorgeous, and the weather was pretty perfect. We spent two days in Denver, then two-ish days in Vail, then one more night in Denver before returning to the Humid Reality that is our daily lives. While in Denver, I got to spend 20 blurry minutes at the Fancy Tiger (so blurry was I with tired and hurry that I didn’t take photos … I really am a bad little blogger), which I immediately fell in love with. They seem more sewing-centric than knitting-centric, but their fabrics are adorable and I would totally shop there for fabrics if I ever needed them. They had a great selection of yarns, and Dear even picked out a couple of hemp-based yarns for a future beanie. They had some fibers upstairs, and what I was really excited for: needle felting kits. I know these are relatively easy to come by, but they make their own starter kits, one of which is an anatomical heart. I don’t know why I found this awesome and endearing, but I did, and I quickly bought one Heart Kit to make two hearts, and one Owl Kit to make two owls.

My first attempt at needle felting was met with only one accidental stab in my thumb (minimal bleeding, none on the owl) and a warm-and-fuzzy at the satisfaction one gets when repeatedly stabbing a sharp object into fur makes something stupid cute.

Hobbit and Herbert

Most of the time we spent in Vail was spent a) walking through Vail Village, b) swimming in the heated pool, c) drinking, and d) playing Cribbage. Much in Vail was closed because we hit it at that two-week period between Ski Season and Summer Season, but I liked seeing the Village when it’s totally empty. Very picturesque and quaint at parts, modeled after small German villages … which, of course, I love.

That Sunday was Dear’s birthday, and we went out to meet a couple friends of his that night. The Bartender served the most clever Birthday Car Bomb I have seen, and probably inadvertently started a new Birthday Tradition for us.

From left: Sock-in-progress, shot of Jameson/Bailey's, half-pint of Guinness. Knitting at the bar bonded me with the Bartender (a crocheter).

In this picture: my sock-in-progress (a tribute to the Yarn Harlot), the car bomb shot, and a candle cleverly placed in a beer mat. It was lit by the time Dear came back from the bathroom.

As for the beanie that I finished for Dear’s birthday … a simple enough pattern (2x2 rib done on straight needles, then seamed up one side), and the yarn was a dream to work with (Spud and Chloe sweater in olive green) after the Great Colorado De-Tangling.

This took four seconds to create and over an hour to un-do.

The hat came out fine, except his next one will definitely be done in the round. I didn’t want to mess with circulars on this trip (I don’t know why), but the seam came out less-than-pleasing (to me). Still looks cute on him.

Here are some more scenic photos of the drive and of Vail, simply because they make me happy.

Finished Object! Finished Object!

I love finishing projects. Especially when they are projects for myself. Not only do I get a sense of accomplishment and excitement from seeing something I’ve created stitch by stitch, piece by piece, yard by yard – but I love the excitement of choosing what to start next.

Yesterday after my first-of-ten yoga class, I took my sweaty body and red face to High Fashion Fabrics and picked up these
so that I could do this

I’d like to present my complete Damson shawl {rav link}, pattern by Ysolda. Knit with 80’s Black Out superwash merino from Light Brown Hare’s Etsy Store. This took (I’m guessing) a little over 500 yards of fingering weight. Since the pattern calls for about 440, I’m glad I took the advice of Ravelry knitters and KnittingReader and overbought. This pattern uses more than 440 yards of yarn and I would have been FURIOUS if I had reached the 547-stitch bind-off only to discover that I didn’t have enough to actually bind off.

My first shawl, and I’m very pleased. I’m enjoying wearing it today and I think it will be a lovely accessory to take on the plane with me to Vail in a little over a week.

Now the other kind of excitement: the excitement of the next WIP, also to be my travel-knitting. I have this

to make a ribbed beanie for Dear. (Spud & Chloe Sweater in some kind of olive-green color.) Could be a quick plane knit and would be nice for him to have in Vail if it’s chilly at night. I know he won't need it in Houston for the next 7 months at least, but it’s also a quick vacation project that will leave me satisfied and I can’t wait to try out the Spud and Chloe. There is also this

to make the Takeout for Two {rav link} socks from my Joy of Sox book (all the stuff towards the left). This is Debbie Bliss Amalfi, a nice cotton/rayon/linen blend that I’m hoping will be good lounging around the house socks even in the dead heat of summer in Houston -- three colors: light blue, a darker blue and brown. Aaaaaaaand I've got this

Knit One Crochet Two Ty-Dy. I want to make a pair of socks out of this, but I’m thinking they’d look great with a funky insole from Cat Bordhi and I want more mindless knitting than that for vacation.

In a totally unrelated subject, I’ve got yoga class #2 tonight. I’m doing Hot Yoga for ten consecutive days. Yesterday was true Hot Yoga – they heat the room to between 102 and 105 degrees with about 80% humidity. Today is Flow Yoga – slightly cooler with the temperature between 95 and 98 degrees and 40% humidity. While that still sounds fucking hot, it should be a little easier and hopefully I’ll avoid the dehydration headache that I had all last night. Then it’s off to buy new athletic shoes for running and hiking. Lord help me, my boyfriend is turning me into one of those outdoor athletic types, totally against my will. I wonder if I can learn to knit and hike at the same time?

Take the Edge Off

This weekend was a busy whirlwind of family visiting (Dad from Illinois), moving (my brother), working (me representing at the Annual Boy Scout Fair), baseball, fireworks and eating (ball park food, Italian, jumbo pretzel, kolaches, Mexican brunch). In the midst of all that, I still found time to buy yarn.

Five more skeins of Lion Brand Thick & Quick in black for Big Brother’s Never Ending Humongous Yeti Cabled Afghan. Purchased with the aid of visiting Dad – he brought Big Brother a baseball glove and me a Michael’s gift card. Given the sad state of my current bank balance, I re-gifted (something I don’t usually do with gift cards) and purchased as many more skeins as I could, and a little something for myself.

Since when do I cross-stitch? I’ve never really had the desire to, but for some reason on the way to the store, the urge hit me and I decided to run with it. I went for the cutie-pie pillow case (Eeyore is hands-down my favorite terminally depressed children’s literature character) and figured it was as easy starter-kit as could be managed. Everything is included (even the needle!) except the embroidery hoop, of which I have my Nana’s. Not sure when this will commence, but it’s kind of nice to have something else on the horizon, if not on the needles.

All of this was a direct reaction to this:

BassPro Outdoor World. A somewhat terrifying experience for my non-camping bug-attracting personality.

Let me explain something. I don’t camp. I’ve been camping twice: once for Girl Scouts where I slept on a stable floor and my mom’s allergies were so bad she sounded like the teachers in Peanuts cartoons. The second time for a week with my 8th grade class, called Outdoor Education – kind of like a field trip, but with tents and campfires and more psychologically damaging. Now I live with an avid camper who has reminded me on an almost daily basis that he wants to go camping. SOON. With a tent. And sleeping bags. Outside. Away from home. I’ve done everything I can to put this off, but he keeps buying supplies (gas for the camping stove, pots and pans, silverware) all meant for camping. I’m afraid I’m running out of weekend excuses, all commencing at the worst time of year in Houston –soon the temperature will not drop below 75 degrees even after the sun sets. Humidity is thickening and the bugs are getting bigger. Please keep me in your thoughts, fellow blog-readers … I fear the end of my non-camping persona is coming to an end, and I’m not entirely sure how I feel about it.

Coming up next: Adventures in Blocking, or I Hope I Never Have to Bind Off 547 Consecutive Stitches Again (the Completed Damsen).