Shame On Me

I'm a terrible blogger. As well as a terrible knitter. I haven't done a blessed thing in forever. However, my lovely little baby cousin Freya finally recieved her sleep dress, and my aunt Ti (Kristina) loves it. The moment I get a picture of the little one in it, I'll share.

Lately, I've been watching over the plants at a friend's house. His mother trusts my green thumb. It's really a joy getting to work with plants, I miss having them around my house. And I've gotten to reep the benifits of fresh tomatoes and basil, and nobody could argue with that. They've just recently moved, and it's really quite a trip to see all of their things in a brand new place. I have to admit, I miss their old house quite a lot, but I guess I get nostalgic for old times too easily. Their new place is pretty beautiful, and guess what! They blog about their adventures! So you should check them out here: 658squarefeet.blogspot.com

Also, I got a job at Burgerville, so that I can try and make some extra money. Just a weekend job, nothing serious. It's... an experience. And a paycheck.

But my poor clapotis remains unfinished...




Although it is much farther along than it was when I took this picture. Which is yet another thing I am terrible at remembering to do: take pictures for this blog.

The Comfort Clapotis

I’ve never done a Clapotis, but I’ve always been attracted to the pattern. My former boyfriend’s mother is having a hard time lately, because her father was recently diagnosed with terminal brain cancer, and I really want to make her something. I’m not very good at verbal comforting, but I think a soft wool scarf would comfort her…

The Yellow Bag

I have FINALLY completed the yellow bag. It turned out wonderful! After all that hard work, I'm so glad it turned out just as I wanted! It was worth it.

As well as finishing the bag, since I last updated, I've also knit myself a hat, and started on a new scarf with the beautiful Cascade 220 I picked up the last time I was in Seattle.

"Felicity"

"Liesel"

I'm also on the look out for a good man's scarf pattern. Something without cables! He's not a cables kind of guy, and I don't want to make a scarf that's too boring... But I have another skein of Cascade 220 in medium gray, and I want to transform it into a scarf he'll love...

Monkey Pattern socks; one lone purple slipper; a teddy bear wearing the baby jumper I made; cashmere socks for John, knit two at once on DPNs; the progress on my yellow bag.

I have to go and write my junior research paper now. It's about chocolate...

I went to Art Media today and picked up new notebooks and pens with the gift card B.T (John's mother) gave me for Christmas this last year. I had lots of fun drawing landscapes with my new pens, in the Moleskine book she gave me as well!

My Moleskines:

Set of three graph paper notebooks, set of three ruled notebooks, and the Japanese accordion notebook.

My Pens:

6 landscape shades, in the brush pen, 6 grey shades in the brush pen, and I also have all the black pens with tip sizes from "super-extra-fine" to "brush" and the chisel heads in black, tan, and raspberry. (The "calligraphy pens.")

But all that landscape drawing started making me think about my favorite landscapes, which are more photographs than drawings, and most of my favorites are by Ansel Adams. He's one of my favorite photographers, and so I looked up some of his work.




In other news, I accidentally made a fool of myself to a woman I'm trying to get a job from. *palm to forehead*
I sent her an email asking her why she hadn't replied to my resume that I emailed, for a job as an intern cake decorator. She sent an email back saying that she hadn't received any resume (I think it turns out my attempt to send it as an attachment didn't work...) and that she wanted me to call her. DOH! So I called and left my number with the woman who was working there at the time... I hope this works out and she doesn't think I'm a total spaz.
I'm so embarrassed.

Not much knitting done lately, but I'm counting on my knitting group on Tuesday to set me back on my way with it...

Knitting group was lovely today. Melissa with her ridiculously sweet test-knit socks, Melinda's green socks, which are coming out quite nicely, and... oh, I guess most of us were doing socks this time, because Kristen and I were working on pairs as well. I don't even remember what the Lauras were doing... Whoops. I guess the socks are just that much more important!

I still haven't finished that damn yellow bag... But I'm getting there, one stitch at a time.
In the meantime, I've started new socks for John. Nice blue wool socks... Which he won't need again until fall! The weather has been perking up here on my little slice of the globe, and I'm loving it. EXCEPT the fact that I feel like anything I knit at this point will be useless until fall.
I've been looking for a good spring/summer sweater, but I just can't seem to find anything.

Ah well, at least the bag will get plenty of use this summer!

It's been a long time!

Sorry it's been such a long time since I posted, I've been very busy! I joined a wonderful little knitting group, and since I last posted I've finished several projects... I'm such a terrible blogger!


A finished baby jumper for my newborn cousin, Freya! It's not sent yet, but she was just born, so I have a little while...


A photo of my then half finished socks, which are now finished and wonderful! Monkey by Cookie A, in "Pebble" ShuBui Sock Yarn from Knit/Purl here in Portland. I wear them a bunch and they're holding up very well!

I've also been working hard on my yellow bag, which is semi-near completion. I still have a few more pieces to knit, and a lot more seaming and finishing to do! I'll be sure to post some pictures of it's in-between sewn stage...

I just went to Knit/Purl again yesterday, and picked up some US#0 needles and some more ShuBui Sock Yarn, this time in "Mulberry. So I'm off to find a new sock pattern! Ciao!

Pilar's Rabbit

My friend Pilar's birthday was a little while ago and as a gift, I knit her a small stuffed rabbit. And I wrote down the pattern but don't feel like finding it right now. So I suppose you'll have to be satisfied with only photos!









In other news, I finished that hideous scarf I was knitting and gave it to it's intended recipient. So now I never have to work on it again. But I do have to look at it, because he loves it and wears it everyday.
I bought tons of yarn today. (Some, I'm ashamed to say, had label's plastered with Vanna White's face. But it's soft like butter and oh so cheap...)
I'm planning a new bag, with a nice compartment for my knitting. And I'm currently knitting cashmere socks for my love bunny so that his feet stay nice and warm. My last pair of gift socks failed miserably, and so I'm hoping that these will make up for it.
Stay tuned for new yarn pictures, wip pictures of the socks, and a failed felting attempt on a fanny pack. (!)
It's all very exciting.

The Man In The Bear Suit

This is a stuffy I did for my boyfriend, based on his own drawings. This little guy shows up all over everything, especially his homework. I originally thought it was a man in a bunny hat (!) so that's why it's pink...

I was happy with the results, even though I sewed it a little off center in the end, which made the face warped. Oh well, that's how he draws it anyway...

The happy recipient!

He says he loves it.

I'll post up those pictures of his valentines day gift asap! I gave it to him and forgot to take pictures, but I have some now, so when I have another minute I'll upload and post.

My first sweater! After about a week of constant work my first sweater was born, and it's wonderful. I used Cassie Rovitti's pattern "Tubey" but then in a fit of stupidity decided to modify the pattern, (mostly because my needles weren't in pattern,) and didn't do the ribbed body, but rather a simple stockinette stitch. It is a little too small in the body, as a result. And I didn't pick up stitches very well and I completely failed at a proper bind off the first time, requiring stitch ripping and work cutting and starting it over. In the end though, it's not too bad for a first timer. It was a wonderful pattern to work with, and if I had followed like I should have, it would have been an even better sweater...




Just showing off my stripes!

Old Projects

My first two hat attempts were complete disasters. One hat is much to small to fit comfortably, (The multicolored one,) and the other hat looks a lot like you're wearing a mushroom cap perched on your head. However, one thing I am proud of is my mobius scarf. I wear it more than almost any of my other projects, and I love the way it turned out. I can't seem to find the pattern at the time, so if you recognize it, give me a holler, or I'll try and post it up when I find it later on. I made one for myself and one for my boyfriend's mother. Her's is a nice minty green color, which shows off the stitches a bit more. It's a pretty fast knit on a circular needle, and they're a joy to wear!

It's pretty hard to see, so maybe I'll take another picture sometime...

Valentines Day

A sneak peak of something I'm knitting for the love in my life:


Mysterious! Whatever could it be?


I'll post more about it later on, after my old man gets it. I've ruined too many surprises by getting excited and posting pictures before the gift is given! In other news:

I'm knitting this scarf and I think it's really ugly. I wouldn't even finish it except my best friend says he wants it... To each his own I suppose.

Dashing Experience

Brand new arm warmers! Knitted using Cheryl Niamath's pattern, Dashing . I was in love with the pattern, and interested in using some yarn a friend gave me. It was my first cable knitting experience, and it was a good one. I wear these babies everywhere since the weather has been cold, and they keep my wrists and hands nice and warm!

They've definitely captured my heart. It was a great first cabling experience! I didn't like how much they pilled up right off the bat, but I suppose it was bound to happen eventually...

I almost never take them off...

New Hat Pattern!

The Top-Down Baggy Beret

This hat was adapted from "Knit and Tonic"s Le Slouch
I adapted the already wonderful pattern because I was interested in knitting a hat from the top down. Knitting the hat from the top down insures that you can try it on as you go, and increase the rib as long as you need. I used Judy Becker's instructions on the Figure 8 Cast On to start myself off, and then I mixed a little bit of my own ideas in with the original pattern... And a hat was born!

You Will Need:
5 US #10 dpn (4 will do, but it's harder.)
1 US #10 24" circular needle
Crochet Needle

2 skeins of worsted weight yarn, any color. I used regular old Red Heart "White" and "Black", so you can substitute any worsted weight yarn you wish, in any two colors.

Pattern:
In CC (Shown in white):
Cast on 10 st using fig. 8 method
Row 1: Increase every stitch by knitting the front and back of each stitch (KF&B)
Row 2: Knit normally
Row 3: Increase every other st. using KF&B
Row 4: Knit normally
Repeat rows 1-4 once.
Row 9: Increase every 9th st. (K8, KF&B... to end)
Row 10: Knit normally (100 st. total)


K 10 rows in MC (Shown in black)
K 10 rows CC
K 10 rows MC

Row 41: In CC; K2, K2tog to end (66 st. total)
K 4 rows CC in a K1 P1 rib
K 5 rows in rib

BO using crocheted cast off, making sure to create an extra link between each BO st.