More socks! I've had a lot of phone time lately, and these are the perfect mindless talking-on-the-phone project.
The yarn is Fearless Fibers merino sock yarn, in the "Mint" colourway. I LOVE this green colour, these socks are almost too pretty to wear! Of course, I sort of feel that way about all of my handknit socks, but these ones especially.
I knit these socks using 56 stitches on US0 needles instead of my usual 60 stitches since this yarn seemed a bit thicker than the yarn I normally use, but these socks turned out a bit snug. Still totally comfortable and wearable, but it seems that I'm not really all that great at estimating gauge without a swatch. =)
So, while I was in Vancouver, my cousin took us to this store called Daiso where everything was $2 or 2 for $2 depending on what it was. Lo and behold, here are some knitting goodies that I found.
Those are probably the first pair of straight needles that I've ever bought, but they were blue and big. I don't really have anything to do bulky knits with, so that should be fun. In addition to the stitch holders, that thing on the left that I got is a bodkin. I heard from someone that they can be used to pick up stitches that are dropped without you knowing it, and you've continued knitting for a ways.
And on a random note, here's where I am with the Bobbi Bear.
Actually, I'm a little further along, but just haven't taken a pictures of it. I didn't work on it while I went away cuz I was afraid I wasn't going to be allowed to fly with it and didn't want to risk having it confiscated or anything.
Hey, guess what? I knit another pair of socks! Yet ANOTHER pair of generic, toe-up socks. I am such a one trick pony when it comes to these things. But honestly, I just couldn't be bothered to get all fancy with them. I see all these lovely textured and lacy socks out there in knitblogland, and they are beautiful to look at, but I just don't really see myself wearing them. Or knitting them. My socks are my (very) mindless knits. Even heel flaps and gussets are too much thinking for me most of the time. Height of mental laziness, huh?
Generic toe-up socks with short-row toes and heels, using Claudia Handpainted sock yarn in the Blue Terra Cotta colourway. Pretty yarn!
OK, I wasn't exactly looking for knitting bags, but I came across this while making the rounds of fun online yarn stores (I do this far too often for my own good, it's a good thing that I have little money to spend and even less storage space or else I would be in serious trouble. For now I mostly just look). I have never heard of this bag before, this "Ultimate Knitting Bag", but it seems like it is being discontinued and here is Colorsong Yarn offering them up for a big big discount. Still a bit pricey, but much less pricey than it was! http://www.colorsongyarn.com/favorite_tools/ultimate_knitting_bag.htmBig leather knitting bag discounted to $99 from $275. Look at all that needle storage space! And it fits huge projects. And a laptop too? Is this like magic carpet bag or something? Seems a bit intense for me, but I thought I'd just pass along the info in case it interested you. =)
I was lucky enough to leave work early today, and since I had some time to kill before my dance class, I head to Lettuce Knit, just for fun.
And wouldn't you know, they had 2 Lady B's in stock for me to look at! While it's absolutely adorable on the outside, looking at the inside confirmed my hunch that it's just one huge bucket with a lot of side pockets - not quite what I was looking for. It also gave me a nice idea of what sorts of dimensions I'd like. The Jordana Paige bag is just as deep as the Lady B (6", I believe), and I know that there are days when I need more than that. This is just making the Namaste bag all the more attractive since it's expandable to 8.5". I'll have to call around to see if any stores around Toronto have a sample somewhere.
And since I was there, I couldn't pass up the chance to buy some fun yarn. Since there are more babies on the way, and I'm getting tired of knitting sweaters, I thought I'd change gears a little. I bought the pattern for the Baby Bobbi Bear, along with some light brown Blue Sky cotton. Then there were these kits for an adorable crochet baby blanket out of Debbie Bliss Cashmerio. I touched that stuff and fell in love. The kit had 7 balls of it with a pattern, and it was going for $60. I thought that was great considering each ball used to go for something like $10 or $12. So, I bought it and figured that even if I didn't want to crochet the blanket, I could knit a similar one. The crochet pattern doesn't look too bad though; I think I'll give it a shot.
Photos of my swag to come. I'm just lazy with the camera today.
After thinking about how I wanted a new bag that I could use both for everyday life and to cart knitting around it, I thought I'd do a little internet research on what different people had to say about all the different bags. For the most part, reviews for both bags were quite positive, though some people mentioned that the Jordana Paige bags tend not to have very sturdy handles. Everyone who's used the Lady B seems to love it, calls it their all time fave, but the price tag really, really scares me.
And so, through more of my poking around, I found the Namaste Messenger bag. While the ~$70 price tag is pretty hefty, it's still half what the Lady B goes for. Plus it seems to be set up in a way closer to what I want as opposed to Lady B's large middle with a bunch of small pockets (or so I understand from what people write). The Namaste bag is actually partitioned into a regular section with a zipper for you to keep all your normal stuff, and then two non-zipper sections to store knitting. It's expandable, which is great of a pack-rat like me, and has pockets in the front, under the flap ( which incidentally also seems to have a pocket on it) for little things that every girl is bound to have in her purse.
The bag got a good review on Knitty, which is encouraging.
But do I really NEED another bag? Dilemma, dilemma...
People who know me know that I'm a total SUCKER when it comes to bags. I just love them, with all their different styles, shapes, and colours. And let's not forget the oh so many possibilities when it comes to pockets, and other organizational goodies.
Here are a couple bags that I think are super cute, and would love to try to see how good they really are at carrying WIPs.
The first is the messenger bag from Jordana Paige. I think it's super awesome because it's specifically designed for knitting - slots for needles, circlets to prevent yarn from tangling, and lots of slots and pockets.
The second is the adorable Lady B from Lexie Barnes. I like the shape of it because it's not your standard tote.
Both are a lot more that I've ever paid for a bag, and considering I have an army of bags in my closet already, it's hard to justify the purchase of yet another one. Plus there are pros and cons to each of them, and I can't be sure what I'll think of it unless I try them out first. The nice thing about the Lady B is that apparently Lettuce Knit sells Lexie Barnes stuff, so I might try popping down there to check it out one day. I think I need to sort through my own bag collection first though; I might be able to use something that I've already got.
Ahh...I'll come out and admit it though...I'm a bag addict!
