Moi aussi....

Well, I did the fun knitting quiz, and for my results, see below. I thought it would be kind of pointless to cut and paste the exact same thing in again. So it appears we are sort-of knitting kindred spirits. =)

Yes, I know this is a lame post.... I'll try to have pictures of something next time. =)

Something fun...

I'm not sure if this is true or not, but it was fun...

You appear to be a Knitting Adventurer.
You are through those knitting growing pains and
feeling more adventurous. You can follow a
standard pattern if it's not too complicated
and know where to go to get help. Maybe you've
started to experiment with different fibers and
you might be eyeing a book with a cool
technique you've never tried. Perhaps you
prefer to stick to other people's patterns but
you are trying to challenge yourself more.
Regardless of your preference, you are
continually trying to grow as a knitter, and as
well you should since your non-knitting friends
are probably dropping some serious hints, these
days.
http://marniemaclean.com


What Kind of Knitter Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

After looking at all the results, I kinda thought that maybe I should be a Knitting Apprentice....

Crush me, baby!

Guess what I got in the mail today (yes, USPS delivers on Saturdays, too)? More yarn! This was a mom-approved purchase off eBay, she helped me pick out the colour. The seller was having a free shipping day, the yarn was $2 cheaper per skein versus the prices here, and I was planning on making the sweater anyway, so why the heck not? This is Rowan Felted Tweed in the colour Crush, and I have 6 balls to make Salina from Rowan Vintage Style. I think I will start her after Christmas.



I also have to show you some very fun needles, these are the new Daisy needles from Crystal Palace. Fun plastic needles in larger sizes, each size is a different colour. I don't really have much use for straight needles, but how could I possibly resist these fun PINK ones?? These are 7 mm needles, US 10 3/4, a size I've never seen before, maybe I'll use them to make a scarf or something one day. They are just too awesome. And inexpensive. =)



Oh, and Happy Birthday, Andrea! =)

Oooh, pretty colours!

Happy American Turkey Day! Look what I finished:





Silk Garden hat & scarf in colour 87. I love love love the colours in this yarn. I want more! The scarf is a multidirectional scarf, and the hat is done in garter stitch (with a bit of ribbing at the bottom) to match the scarf pattern. It was a major pain in the arse to do all that purling using dpns, but worth it in the end, I think.

What is it they say about women and sales?

So it's not like I'm looking for new projects or yarn or anything, but if you could make a sweater for just over $20 (USD), wouldn't you? Or alternatively, if you could buy enough yarn for a hypothetical sweater for just over $20, wouldn't you?

I say this because on elann.com there is some peruvian wool on sale for $2.25 USD a skein. And there also just happens to be a pattern for a Ribby Cardi that calls for this yarn. And to make a sweater in my size, it takes 10 skeins. Do the math. On top of that, there are about a billion colours available, each one prettier than the last. And there will probably be a Ribby Cardi knit-along somewhere on the web soon, for moral support and inspiration. Even if one didn't want to knit the cardi (though it's pretty cute), one could just buy a bunch of yarn and wait for the right project(s) to come along. Worsted weight wool, good for so many things! Cascade 220 is also peruvian wool, so I imagine they should be similar to each other in texture.

On the other hand, I have too many projects lined up already in my head, and innumerable future yarn purchases to go along with those projects.

Que pensez-vous? Should I succumb to the good yarn deal? Should I even acknowledge the fact that there is also yummy Filatura di Crosa Zara and Zara Plus for sale? Should I tell you that since Elann is a Canadian company they will also display prices in Canadian dollars, and the current price for the peruvian wool is a measly $2.70 CAD per skein?

As if I didn't have enough projects...

During a little mini-break from some data analysis, I discovered another project that I want to do. I'm not sure if I'm going to go through with it yet though. It's the Tasha bag from knitty. But I kinda want to add a flap over the top of it...plus I think I want it a little bigger than the 9"x10" that the pattern gives you. And on top of that, I have no idea if I'm going to have to line the bag.

Opinions?

Evil, evil, eBay

Okay...this is going to be a pretty lame post, but what the heck! After reading that you got your Silk Garden on eBay, I decided to check it out too. So much beautiful yarn out there!!! I particularly got hung up on yarnela's store. I just LOVE Noro yarn, and she (I'm assuming it's a she, but I guess one really can't tell these days) has so much of it for sale!!! Argh...eBay is SO evil....

Jamie caught me browsing eBay for yarn and just looked at me and said "But you already have so much good yarn!" *sigh* I know...but I always want more...But I was good, and didn't put in any bids or anything...I'll wait until I manage to deplete my stash a bit more. Finish my Christmas knitting, finish those mittens, my set of rose coloured winter gear, and my Kyoto sweater...and then I'll think about buying new yarn...

Okay...there...I've said it....now you have to hold me to it, okay?

Silk Garden: Knit the Rainbow!

In the spirit of blowing more money, behold the latest addition to the yarn stash! Silk Garden in the very lovely, very rainbow-y colour 87. Isn't it pretty? I'm such a sucker for rainbow-coloured things. I think that is probably the greatest appeal of yarn shopping for me, looking at all the pretty colours sitting together in the store. That probably also explains why I like to accumulate handpainted sock yarn. Le sigh.

I have already started knitting with this stuff, it is rather too bright for me to make a sweater out of, so a hat and scarf it is. Oh, I should mention this yarn was from eBay, so slightly less pricey than usual. =)



The Kathmandu Aran mittens are also finished, here is a crappy photo. The yarn knits up much stiffer and tweedier than I had anticipated, which was a little annoying, but I just gave them a little soak so we'll see if they get any softer. The mittens are also slightly big; I wonder if this yarn felts at all?

Where I blow all my hard earned money...

I know I'm supposed to be trying to save money to pay for all that grown-up stuff, like the mortgage, but I just can't seem to help myself when it comes to knitting. Since I haven't been posting any photos recently, I thought I'd do that.


This is some Koigu Kersti that I bought about 1.5 months ago. I'm planning to make the 'Sacred and Profane' Mittens from Knit Wit (you'll see when you get your book ^_^). They're best described as convertible mittens. The variagated part is going to be the bottom half, and the solid purple is going to be the top part. However, due to the massive amounts of Christmas knitting that I'm doing, they haven't really progressed farther than this...


Then, I went to Lettuce Knit with my good friend Elaine. She wanted to check out stuff to see if she wanted to get anything. I told her that I really didn't need anything, but wouldn't mind checking things out. She was supposed to remind me not to buy anything. And then it happened...we spotted the 50% off table. At first, I resisted...but after we started walking away from the store I changed my mind and caved. So, I bought these 6 balls of yarn for $27+tax, which is a good deal...but I broke my usual rule of project first, yarn second.

[P.S. Elaine ended up being a 'bad' influence! She helped convince me that I could surely find something to make from it, be it a tank top, or nice scarf. Plus it was the last set of those particular colours, so I felt even more compelled to buy it. o_O Man...I suck....]

Lastly, I bought a new book today. Can you tell that I'm starting to feel the Christmas pressure?



So, all these goodies should definitely keep me busy for the next while!

Do you Kathmandu?

I hereby declare myself mentally unprepared for winter this year. It is creepy to be working in the lab in the light of the setting sun, then to look over at the clock only to realize "hey, it's only 3:30!" And then today the temps dropped down to just above freezing, and I'm still wearing my fall jacket. Ooops. At least I wore a hat. So in order to prevent my fingers from falling off in the near future, I finally made a start on my Kathmandu Aran mittens. Remember those 2 skeins I bought about a month ago? Here is a closeup of the yarn knitted up, I love the little blue and brown flecks. You can see that the yarn is a little slubby, too. It's really nice to knit with (duh, merino, silk and cashmere??). This is colour 135.



Pics of finished mittens soon, hopefully!

Won't you be my boyfriend?

This afternoon I was in Newbury Yarns, showing off an FO and browsing for gift yarn (I am now ALL DONE buying holiday yarn, hooray), when this punk-y looking kid wanders in with his punk-y looking friend. I assumed that their girlfriends or something would follow them in, because isn't that what usually happens, women drag their male companions into a yarn store and make them wait and wait and wait while they pick out yarn? But no, one of the guys wanders purposefully over to a shelf, picks out a skein of Colinette, then asks Aldrich how much the yarn is, and does she have size 13 needles? Turns out this kid is part of a boys knitting group, and is making a scarf for his MOM for Christmas. Awww....how sweet is that?

Election knitting

Wow, it's been a while since anyone has posted! Probably because we are both too busy working on secret Christmas presents and such. =) Anyway, I started a little something for myself on election night, mostly to calm my nerves and give me something to do other than stare at the TV and will the numbers to go the other way. I'm only showing a closeup because I've already knit up one of these things as a gift, and I don't want to give anything away. But I think you can see how the Cherry Tree Hill glitter alpaca knits up, it's very pretty. Can you see the bits of gold glitter?



The only annoying thing about this yarn is that it turned my hands and needles blue. Most of the blue on the needles came off with a little wipedown. My other needles are still red. Sometimes I wish I could knit with metal needles so I wouldn't have this staining problem. Or, that I weren't so anal about these things.