(aya here)
Lookit! An entry, a FO and a camera ho! That would be Stan checking them out.
These are truly the essence of fug. They embrace the fug. They are fugalicious.
And there’s no doubt who these are being given to. Anyone wanna take a guess?
(ames)
So it’s been a bit of a few weeks here in amesville. In the past month, I have:
It’s been kind of insane! So, to expand. For various and sundry reasons that include, but are not limited to, my lack of employment, my grandfather’s increasing age, and my family missing me a lot, I have returned home. Home, for the record, is Charleston, SC. I haven’t lived here in roughly 18 years, and it’s like living in a completely foreign city. Well, kind of – I still know where things are, but so much has changed! My father came up to get me, which was very nice of him. The poor man pretty much drove for four days – two up, two down.
The drive was peaceful, although marred in the middle by the surprise death of my little grey cat, Sergei. It was a surprise in that I wasn’t expecting it that night, but I also wasn’t expecting him to be one of those cats who lives to be fifteen. He had a heart murmur, and was slowing down a lot in the past few months. So that was sad, and I worried a bit about how Buddy would handle it, until I remembered that he was moving into a house with two miniature poodles. Cue chaos, hahaha. They’re settling down now, but oh my – Buddy hasn’t had this much excitement EVER.
The socks! The knitty girls and I went to YarnCon last October, and I scored this sweet skein of Sophie’s Toes:
Candy Corn colorway, and it is most beautiful. I know you’re thinking that the brightness is because I abused the flash on my camera, but you are wrong, because this is some seriously BRIGHT yarn. And it makes cute socks!
Very cute, yes? Yes! Sadly, that’s the only completed knitting I have to share. I’m still avoiding the seams on the sweater just out of contrariness, and there’s a hand towel of Mom’s that I’m finishing (linen! very stiff, I’m mostly working on this because I want to see it become lovely and soft), and staring at a crazy lacy beaded wrap with absolute knitterly lust. I want to make it.
Instead, Mom and I cooked. Beef Burgandy (I am most tired of typing out the French name, you’ll have to live) a la Julia Child. Witness:
It was good! It was a little heavy for my particular eating today, but I didn’t care and ate it anyway. Yum.
(aya here)
Yesterday was a gorgeous day, here in MA. I spent the day doing a bit of spring cleaning, with all the windows open, to air the place out. I ended up rearranging the living room furniture, and I finally hung up some pictures that I never seemed to get around to. I’m pretty pleased with the new layout, though the bunnies are letting me know of their displeasure – they keep going and nudging me and the things that have been moved, as if to say “Hey, this is your fault! THIS doesn’t belong HERE.”
I’ve been knitting on a pair of socks, Meida, from Favorite Socks:
I’m about halfway through the second sock. I’m just about done with the gusset decreases.
Though I really like the pattern, which is easy to memorize, I needed something else to knit on. So I cast-on for a hat – ames, the same slouchy hat that you knit, though I didn’t realize it until I finished it!
I knit it up while re-watching a few episodes of season one Battlestar Galactica last night. I decided to re-watch the series, now that I know how they wrapped it up, to see what I missed the first time around (the answer, of course, is that I missed A LOT).
I’m thrilled with this hat, and I just love Malabrigo. It’s so soft and such a tactile pleasure to knit with. This hat is definitely a keeper, though forgive me if I say that I hope that I don’t get any use out of it until next winter.
Two days of sun and temps in the 50s, and Spring Fever has definitely set in!
(aya here)
It’s a lazy Saturday morning here. I’ve got my second cup of coffee next to me, and thought I’d post some pictures from my latest finished socks. I finished these within the last week, and it’s so nice to have two pairs of finished socks so quickly.
These socks have been hanging around since November. I finally bit the bullet and cranked out the second sock. They’re just some simple socks, which normally aren’t hard to crank out, but the yarn was a bit scratchy, so I wasn’t a big fan. I *am* a big fan of the color though. They’re pretty:
The yarn is Lime & Violet’s Sasquatch Sock, in the Buster Keaton colorway.
This second pair of socks, I think I’m in love with them. Ames got me to cast-on for them, and I’m glad she did! They’re big comfy slouchy socks, and I know that I’m going to wear them to bits.
The pattern is Mock Wave Cable socks from Favorite Socks. The yarn is Claudia’s Handpainted in Yo! Sailor Boy! A pretty dark bluish-purple.
I’ve also got one Glynis sock done, from Sock Innovations.
I had this plan that I was going to cast-on for the second sock, and therefore have three finished pairs of socks during the Olympics, but then I got sidetracked when I saw a pretty pair of socks on Ravelry. I thought to myself, “Hey, I have that pattern! And, heeeey, I’ve got yarn in a similar color!”
So I cast-on for the Meida sock instead of starting the second Glynis. I’m an easily distracted knitter.
No picture of the in progress sock, but here’s the yarn that I’m using. It’s Knitpicks’ Palette in Grass.
I’ve had this yarn in my stash FOREVER. I think it might even be discontinued in this color now. I’m about halfway done with the first sock – it’s a quick knit because it’s a short sock. Not quite anklet, but shorter than I’m used to knitting. Maybe just 4 inches before the heel flap. I normally knit 7 inches before the heel flap. Picture to follow as soon as the first sock is done.
Now, it’s offf to figure out what to do for the day. More coffee first, and then I’ll decide.
Happy weekend, all! :D
(aya here)
So, ames came to visit last weekend, and it was wonderful! I missed her as soon as she left. :(
We knit lots and we watched lots of tv. Our typical m.o., heh.
She even talked me into knitting the same pattern (Mock Cable Waves from Favorite Socks) that she was working on, and of course, I listened. I almost always listen, because she has good knitty mojo, and has very rarely led me astray. HA HA, don’t get a big head. (or you can, and then that really cute green/pink hat won’t fit and you can give it to me. *covet*)
I finished the first sock tonight, and it’s absolutely slouchy and cushy and I love it.
Dark blue is a bitch to photograph, especially at night.
It’s a yarn-eater though. I normally have quite a bit of Claudia’s HP left over when I knit socks, but I ended up having to chip into the second skein during the first sock, about one repeat from the toe. I went and ordered a third skein last week, so I’ll have enough to finish the pair. The color is “Yo, Sailor Boy!” by the way. Exclamation included. :D
It’s fun because there’s no ribbing for the cuff – you just dive into pattern. Now, I love a nice ribbed cuff – a 2×2 or a 1×1, doesn’t matter, but every now and then, it’s nice to change it up. The pattern isn’t difficult, sort of a shift every couple of rows, and a few rows that repeat – but I just could not get it set in my mind, so I knit the whole sock with the book next to me. That’s okay though- it’s not like I don’t normally have a pattern glued to my side (especially when attempting a cookie a pattern).
It’s been a while since my last post, at least a couple of months. I went on a mitten tear – two pairs of fingerless mitts, and a full set of mittens for my mom:
They’re made with some really soft yarn – Misti Alpaca Pima Cotton & Silk. Since they’re actually indoor mittens, the yarn works. I wouldn’t recommend it for snowy adventures outdoors though. My mother is always cold, and on the days where she just can’t warm up, you’ll find her curled up on the couch under a couple of blankets, wearing a shirt, a sweater AND a fleece, and with mittens on. We keep telling her that all her meds have over-regulated her, but she doesn’t listen. So – MITTENS.
I also have a pair of zens that I’m ignoring.
I like the yarn, but they’re very boring. I’m almost halfway through the second sock. Maybe I’ll finish them up once the MWC socks are done. Or not. I’ve been wanting to tackle a pattern out of Sock Innovations, so they may have to wait.
After knitting almost exclusively from the stash last year, thanks to 8 months of unemployment, I’ve taken to rebuilding the stash. When ames was here, I added two yarns to it (see previous entry from ames for pics). I kind of sort of maybe added to it again, when I ordered that third skein of Yo! Sailor Boy!. Hrm. Okay, I added quite a bit. But, I have to squirrel yarn away in the case of new unemployment, after all.
More Claudia’s, this time in periwinkle:
Madelinetosh tosh sock in norway spruce:
Cherry Tree Hill supersock semi-solid in fuschia (it’s not really fuschia though, more of a bright cherry color, like kool-aid):
And lastly, some ShiBuiKnits in bare. These are destined to become those Austrian socks from Favorite Socks:
Aya has been visiting me this weekend, and today she sat me down and made me update Ravelry with all my yarn stash. Such an undertaking! She took over fifty pictures of all different types of yarn, and I pretty much never need to buy sock yarn again. Which I already knew.
She also gave me the prettiest pair of socks!
Aren’t they LOVELY? She dyed the yarn with Kool-Aid, and got this gorgeous semi-solid pink shade that is perfect. Pattern: Waving LAce Socks from the 25 Favorite Socks Book (Interweave Press).
And in more sock news, I finally finished the Bayerische!
Aren’t they nice? I’m very proud, and very sick of twisted stitch cable patterns. Next sock – plain old stockinette. Or at least something simple.
(ames)
It’s been a fairly crazy time lately. I feel like I’m rushing around like a fool, going here going there, squeezing things in and inevitably losing time and losing little bits of quiet. Two fairly major life events happened in the same week, neither of which I think I’ve processed yet.
First, my best friend moved to the West Coast. She packed her entire life in her car, threw out or donated what wouldn’t fit, and took off to move in with her brother and his family in Oregon. I am incredibly proud of her, totally supportive of this move, and I miss her tons.
Second- I moved apartments. I didn’t go far, just about a mile or so up the street, in the same neighborhood. I thought about branching out from the northside, maybe going west, maybe going a little further south, but I love Andersonville.
Andersonville at night
It’s got just enough quirk to not be boring, but isn’t so quirky that I feel out of place.
Best cheap sushi in the city. Plus, if you dine in, you get free green tea, miso, and cucumber salad before you even order!
Third, and this isn’t one of the Big Huge Things, but it could save my sanity, is that I signed up as a volunteer with Chicago Volunteer Legal Services , hoping to work with mostly probate and adoption cases. I got my first prospective case last week, and am just waiting on the client to call me to schedule a time to meet. I am just a tiny bit terrified (because what do I know about any of this?) and a lot excited (because I have a freaking law degree, dammit), and I hope this works out and I enjoy it. For all my whining, I lead a pretty self-indulgent life in my off-hours, and it’s past time I gave back.
In trivial news, look at who signed the Coffee Mug of Awesome!
AMANDA TAPPING, PEOPLE. I loooooooove her.
Anyway, I’m not done unpacking and moving in yet. My new place is exponentially smaller than the old place, by choice, but I have a lot of stuff to squeeze in. I’ve decided that Friday night of a three-day weekend is not the time to start things like this, and I left for here:
George’s Ice Cream & Sweets, the new dessert place that replaced the old dessert place
And I am doing this:
Autumn is almost here, if you go by the calendar, and totally here if you go by the actual weather. It’s going to be a good season, I can feel it.
(ames)
So, it’s been a while. My camera died, which is SAD, and also kind of a relief. I bought it six years ago for a trip to Australia. Digital cameras were very new then, and I wasn’t sure how they worked or how you got the pictures off the computer and onto paper. So, I took both a digital and a 35mm camera! Lots of camera switching, let me tell you. Anyway, that’s not the point. The point is that I had a camera, and then I didn’t have one anymore, and they’d become a lot more advanced and awesome than my original one was. It took a while to replace it, is what I’m saying.
Also, I have not been much with the knitting. It is a sad but true fact that my knitting mojo gets depleted in the summer, even a cool and comfortable summer like Chicago has had this year. Instead of knitting, I have been running around and Doing Things. aya’s been making her first sweater, and I’ve – not. Here is what I’ve done this summer instead!
* Charleston for a WEEK! It was the most time I’ve been back home since I left in the middle of my college years, and it was great. Incredibly unseasonably hot (aya, I promise it’s nice in February, should we go back), but I loved seeing my family again and being able to spend more than just an hour here and an hour there.
* Had a birthday!
* Saw Star Trek FIVE TIMES. It was worth it every time.
* Fell in love with Sanctuary on the SyFy channel.
* Hung out with my Mom and visited a cute-as-heck yarn shop in Oak Creek, WI.
* Saw part of the Osh Kosh, WI Airshow that my Dad volunteers at every year. He and I wandered all around the fairgrounds looking at the 28947524508756 planes. SO MANY. Fortunately, Daddy knows all about them and was happy to share and teach.
* attended the first of what was to become many going-away parties for friends who are leaving Chicago. Sadness.
* Decided to change apartments. Cue chaos.
* Saw Panic at the Disco and Fall Out Boy, and thoroughly enjoyed them both – although FOB a little more.
* Realized how lucky I am to have so many good friends both here and far from here. <3
But I did knit. Witness:
Eesti Trail Hiking Socks from Favorite Socks, Interweave Press
Mission Falls 1824 Superwash Wool in Stone and Spruce
EDIT: Because I am a ninny, and was updating Ravelry at the same time as the blog, I neglected to say here that the sock are for my Dad, who saw the Bayerische socks on the blog and requested hiking socks. The original pattern has a standard heel flap, a spiral toe, and a snowflake design around the calf. I ditched all of that. Afterthought heel (which I hate actually doing, although I love the look), wedge toe, no snowflake.
The second Bayerische sock is in the commuter bag for CTA knitting, and is going well. I have also finally cast on for the Summer’s End cardi, which – well, I wish the designer had a better link than just to Ravelry. Not everyone is ON ravelry! Sigh. Anyway, it’s cute – lacey bottom with stockinette top, and the sleeves are stockinette with a lace panel going down the outside. I’d show you what the lace looks like, except this is all I have done so far:
Sergei is most unimpressed. :D
See? I have not dropped off the face of the earth! Also, it’s been nice here on weekdays, and I’ve been wandering Chicago on my lunch breaks. If you want a picture of a Chi-town landmark, let me know! If I can get to it and back in an hour, I will happily provide. Possibly with sock (although that’s really the Yarn Harlot’s thing, and I hate feeling like a copycat.)
(ames)
OK, so here’s the deal. My camera died right after my trip to the Chicago Botanic Gardens. It won’t turn on, and it isn’t the battery, it’s just a seven-year-old digital camera and it’s gone to be with Elvis. I’ll get another one eventually, but in the meantime, I have no pictures.
Well, until last night, that is. Mom reminded me that her digital movie camera (that can’t be what they’re called) takes stills! And so I did that. The pictures are kind of grainy, which you should attribute to the lighting inside my apartment and not the camera itself, but look. I have things to show you.
Bayerische Sock The first one! Lorna’s Laces, I think the colorway is Sunshine (I will check when I get home), US1 needle and ta-da. I’ll probably cast on for the second one next week when I head home to Charleston for vacation. I have many hours of travelling that day, from the el to the plane to the other plane, which is lots of time to knit complicated twisted stitches and whatnot.
I’m gonna say that this sock is a lot easier than it seems. It took me a while to get the hang of it, and there’s an increase row right after the cuff ribbing that is BIZARRE, but if you want the pattern to flow out of the ribbing nicely, you’ll do it the way Eunny said to. Also, this is the second year in a row that I’ve knit on a yellow twisted stitch sock at Bitcherie Weekend in Ann Arbor. Either it’s a tradition or a coincidence. We will see what happens next year.
Here’s a closeup of the pattern:
Onward. This is a sock that is no more:
It’s lovely, and it’s going to be done, but I need to go down a needle size. But look at that – a toe-up sock. Honestly, why people do these and claim that they’re so much easier is beyond me. A figure-8 caston is just about the most fiddly annoying thing I have EVER had to do in my life, but I will not let it defeat me. Yarn: The Unique Sheep Sushi, in Garden Tomato, and it is gorgeous. Shimmery and beautiful. (dude. I need a new camera.)
There has been playing with the drop spindles!
There has been sock knitting and birthday yarn!
Lorna’s Laces Tuscany, in a simple 2×2 rib, offset by one stitch every six rows
Dream in Color Classy, in Happy Forest. One of four skeins given to me by Aya for my birthday next week, YAY. I’m thinking they’re going to be a pretty lacy cardigan. Summer’s End and I apologize for the Ravelry link, but the designer linked to it on Ravelry from her webpage. It’s awfully shortsighted of her not to have at least a page on her own website for it, since she has a website, but whatever. I don’t run the world. More’s the pity.
And that has been your knitting update from ames! \o/
(ames)
Welcome to a picspam. :D I found my camera, and now you get to see the fairly sketchy fruits of my labors. I was contemplating getting a new camera, but decided I just needed to learn how to use mine. Allons-y!
My little ad hoc knitting group and I are all working on this sock, the Arched Shaped Socks by Meg Swanson. Unfortunately, I only have a Ravelry link, woe. I didn’t want to link to someone else’s flickr account, because that leads to confusion. Anyway, it’s two color knitting, all the way up to the knee, with a “sensuously shaped arch”, which is what really caught our eyes. I’m using Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sport in Chocolate and Old Rose. The pattern calls for two skeins of each, but we’re all hoping we can get it done with just one.
A swatch! This is a swatch for the Big Bad Baby Blanket (linking to a Google Images search). I just don’t know. The yarn (selected by the mothers-to-be) is gorgeous, but it is a skinny DK weight, and the pattern calls for two strands of worsted held together. I mostly did this swatch so I could wash it and see how it holds up; it’s Patons Silk Bamboo, which I think may be a little high maintenance for a baby blanket, but we will see. I’m doing another swatch with two strands to check weight and figure out gauge, and will give this one to the parents to run through their washing machine. It bled a little in the quick rinse I gave it, but not much; just the faintest tinge of purple in the water. I used a US6 for the swatch, and if I double it, I hope to go up to an 8 or a 9, while still maintaining a nice blanket-suitable fabric.
Sadly, I can’t use this kid for stash busting, as the parents have wool allergies or sensitivities, and I don’t knit with hardly anything but. I don’t have a huge non-wool stash at all. Woe for me.
Ha, this cracks me up. How boring! It’s the back of a sweater that will have a lot more going on in the front, I promise. I’m cannibalizing a couple of other projects I wasn’t too pleased with. Hopefully I’ll have enough yarn, but I’m not too worried if I don’t. Someone out there will have a skein in the same dyelot they’re just waiting to get rid of, I am sure. Pattern to be revealed when I know I won’t screw it up too much.
And finally, may I present Winter in Chicago:
This was after the first snowfall. We got another half foot or so on top of that. Then the warmth deserted us for a few days, and the thermometer forgot how to go above 0F. It is somewhat depressing to wake up and learn that the high for that day will be -4F. The bed never felt so warm and inviting, let me tell you. But it’s better now!