Thursday, September 9, 2010

Nope

No pictures. No crocheting or knitting to report. It's sad but true. College is busy. Not even one week has passed and I'm already frighteningly behind in my studies.

And it's cold. Can I go home yet?

Friday, September 3, 2010

College

I'm alive, but busy. I was expecting to post on Wednesday, but nope, completely forgot. I haven't even really been knitting, and that's the embarrassing part. I started a pair of interchangeable mitts a while ago, but haven't touched them since... the plane. Yeah, embarrassing. I started working on crocheted coasters a while ago too, but haven't touched those for a couple days either. I'll post pictures next Wednesday, but for now, a simple update will have to do. I have class at 11 and I have to go over some texts before then.

P.S. It's the beginning of September, and it's not 40 degrees yet! :)

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Last post from this location

For a while, at least. Goodbye California; I shall miss you. But I'm off to bigger and better things, over in Wisconsin for college for my first year! Of course, I'm super excited, but I've been knitting up the proverbial storm while awaiting for Friday morning, when I get on a plane by myself for the first time. I've been quite independent all my life, being an only child with insanely busy parents, but I still haven't been 100% on my own. I mean, I went to band camp every year, but that was only a week, and we lived out of our suitcases. Anyway, some knitting content, shall we?

I finished these mittens what seems like ages ago, but was really only earlier this week. This is the pair unblocked...


and blocked!


Blocking is a miracle. I know it's not very obvious from the pictures, but all my stitches are even and the mittens aren't puckery now! They weren't very puckery to begin with, but still. Of course, I showed them to my mom, saying "Mom, look what I just made!" She said if she saw them in a store, she'd definitely buy them. I think I know what I'm making my mom for Christmas or her birthday (in November) this year, but maybe not the Pimento. I'm kind of tired of it, and you'll understand why later on in the post. Maybe pink, or purple with cream? The reason I chose Pimento was because what looked like clovers to everyone else looked like berries to me, so I figured red berries would be festive.

This was my second colorwork project ever (my first one was a hideous Fake Isle hat I made while band - and therefore all my friends - were in Hawaii on a band trip; I know, soooo unfair). It's not the pattern's fault, though I must admit that I'm not too fond of the pattern itself. Being my first colorwork project, it was insanely puckery and ugly and the Noro Kureon I used was really itchy. I ended up selling the other three or so balls I had remaining in my stash. Anyway, I'm really really proud of these mittens, and I can see myself wearing them as soon as the temperature drops below 60 (which I assume it does in Wisconsin as early as the beginning of September - and I'm the little Californian used to 40 deg being SUPER FREEZING).

I guess I should probably mention this: I made these mittens inside-out, but I didn't purl at all throughout the colorwork portion. I did the ribbing as normal, then pulled the ribbing to the inside. Normally when we knit using dpns, we knit on the outside. But this time, I just knit from the other side. It's hard to explain, but if you pull a sock cuff inside out while it's in progress, you can still knit all the way around - the purl side is just facing you. You work on the needles that are further away from you than normal.

Then, I started some Dublin Bay socks on Saturday, and finished them on Monday. I got the yarn from Stitches West this year, when I went with my awesome French teacher. It's Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in February's limited colorway, Peppermint Mocha. I am such a sucker for limited colorways and discontinued yarns.


And THEN, I wasn't done. I decided I needed to use up the rest of the Palette I had left over from the mittens. I didn't end up using all of it, but it was very close and caused much nerve-wracking.


It's blocking on that plate right now, and I'm super proud of it! I was actually super scared when I pulled it out of the water after washing. It looked purple and beige - I almost freaked out. But after it started drying just a bit, I got relieved as it started transitioning back to a deep red and cream.

I think I'm rambling a bit more than normal simply because the next time I post, it will be from my DORM in Wisconsin. Such a weird thought.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Look what I can do!

I finished my shirt! It's kinda lumpy but it does need to be reblocked after having seamed everything together.


Last night, as I stumbled in the door after an awesome day in Monterey, I found a package from Knit Picks! So of course I tore it open and wanted to cast on right away. But I resisted until this morning.


Knit Picks Palette in Pimento and Cream. These colors are truer than those in the photos below.

I took that picture this morning. This the progress as of this evening.


Future stitches to be picked up for the thumb.

In Monterey yesterday, I happened upon a cute little yarn shop called The Twisted Stitch, at 400 Foam St, Ste A. It just opened fairly recently, and the only reason I even noticed it was because I was wistfully staring out the window, wishing a yarn store could be close to either Fisherman's Wharf or the aquarium, and all of a sudden I saw yarn in a window, and screamed YARN STORE! So yup, I got some Cherry Tree Hill suri laceweight in Rosewood from the fabulous owner, and I can't wait to go back over winter break and visit it again to see how well the store is doing.

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Knitting up a Storm

Lots of knitting progress this week. On Sunday, my parents and I went to San Rafael for a day trip. And of course, whenever we go on day trips, they let me check out one or two yarn stores in the area. I found the Dharma Trading Company, and walked out with three skeins of white Debbie Bliss baby cashmerino and three skeins of brown Debbie Bliss baby cashmerino. Actually Mom bought them for me to make things for her, and I ended up making a neck scarf with one of the skeins.

Mom decided to model the little scarf for me, but was too shy to let me photograph her face. The peter pan-collared sweater is from Lands' End.

The morning I finished the neck scarf, an awesome package arrived!

I started a short-sleeve pullover from a French pattern book I received for my birthday this year, using the bottle green St. Denis Nordique. So far, the back is done and I'm working on the front. Interesting: there's an English version of this pattern floating around. Ah well, I don't mind translating. I made a swatch of the leaf panel in neon pink acrylic and it seemed just fine, though some people seem to say there's an error in the pattern. Hopefully I was interpreting it correctly. A few things literally got lost in translation, though. I didn't understand the terminology for "k1 tbl," but that's the only problem I've had so far.

The ginger Cascade Elite Fresco is going to be a long-sleeved shirt/pullover from the same pattern book.

Saturday, August 7, 2010

I Have an Excuse!

I got my wisdom teeth removed on Monday. I was pretty much passed out all week from pain meds. Now I have big icky holes in my gums. But I'm awake now, and with a finished object!

My second Whisper cardi is done! I've been working on it off and on in between consciousness (again, thanks to the pain meds).

Next project: Debbie Stoller's All-Day Beret with some Paton's Angora Bamboo I picked up in Madison, WI while visiting campus last month.

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Finally, a Legit Update!

Yup! So here it is. Two works in progress; unfortunately, none of them are very fascinating.

Zoidberg from Futurama! Well, a future Dr. Zoidberg. Obviously I have to add tentacles and eyes and all that good stuff, but he should be finished by tomorrow. Hopefully. [x] [x] And hmm that's supposed to be red - a bright cherry red of Cascade 220 Quatro. Ah well.


And another Whisper Cardi, designed by Hannah Fettig and featured in Interweave Knits Spring 2009 catalog. Finished the first sleeve and working the back. Such an interesting design; you work a sleeve, bind off a few stitches and work flat for around 22", then cast on those stitches you bound off earlier and continue knitting the second sleeve. Then you bind all stitches off and pick up stitches along the straight stretch and knit downwards.


Whisper is out of a big cone of yarn the boyfriend got me for only FIVE DOLLARS from That Yarn Store. I love all the little nubbs in it - plus that sweet strawberry color makes me want to hug it. Oh and it's wool. Laceweight merino wool. The sticker inside the cone has "7320" on it; I wonder if that's how many yards it has.

Monday, July 26, 2010

New Resolves

It's summer, and having graduated from high school recently, I've decided to add posts every Wednesday, REGARDLESS of whether or not I have nothing to show for myself. If anything, it'll add some consistency to the blog and my life, and hopefully even get me motivated to knit some more. Next post: Wednesday, July 28th!

Friday, June 25, 2010

Yosemite and Lace Cardigans

The boyfriend and I went to Yosemite for a day trip.


And I made sure to take plenty of knitting pictures. About a week ago, I also finished my Whisper. Love the yarn too - Golden Glow. It's not super soft, especially for being 100% Merino, but it's soft enough for me.

I plan on blocking it this weekend. And yup, that's about it.

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

America's Best-Kept Secret

Lexington, Kentucky. I loved when we went in early April, and I still long to be there over a month later. When we got on the plane from O'Hare to Lexington's airport, we got into a little regional jet. Despite all the flying and traveling I have done with my family over my life, I have never had to walk outside to get on a plane before. Ever. So of course, I anticipated Kentucky would be capital of hickville. Little did I know. As we were preparing to land in Lexington, I looked out the window and saw the most picturesque view I had ever seen in my entire life. I have been to France, and I have traveled the French countryside. I have been to Aix-en-Provence. I have been to Rothenburg, Germany. I have traveled all around Austria. I have traveled much of California and Hawaii. It's not as if I have been sitting at home all these years. Lexington was the last place I figured would capture my heart. While descending into the town, I could see little white houses with white picket fences (electronic devices weren't allowed at the time or I definitely would have taken pictures). If anywhere, the American dream lives here.

But yes, all places have faults. Lexington's one fault (and this applies for much of Kentucky, I assume) is horses, horses, and OMGHORSES. Everywhere we went, we were bombarded by horse pictures, horse paintings, horse statuettes, the works. Other than the horses though, I'm pretty sure this place is perfect.

And that's not even a fourth of the pictures I took, most of them more beautiful and charming than the posted ones. What gets me is that no one is on the streets. I envisioned one of Kentucky's largest cities to be bustling at least, but it's quiet (but not eerily quiet). It's like no one knows this little gem exists.

(And surprisingly, very few Lexingtonians have accents.)

Saturday, April 3, 2010

Good Morning from Kentucky

The view is wonderful. Unfortunately, I do not have access to the Internet on an actual computer so I will upload pictures whenever I can. It's nice in kentucky, despite the local obsession with horses.

Saturday, February 27, 2010

Just another update

Stitches West '10! I'm sure that's been dominating knitting blogs over here on the west coast. I picked out two items:

I wanted a bag like this at Stitches West '09 but Mom didn't let me get one. This time, I made sure I got one (plus I was with a family friend instead)

Exclusive Lorna's Laces colorway! Only available from jimmybeanswool.com. Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock, colorway Peppermint Mocha.

Lately, the boyfriend has been proving how useful he is.


Love these colors! The red and off-white are Buckingham, with 80% Baby Alpaca, 20% Silk, ready to be knit into a Selbu Modern. The aubergine is Berroco's Lustra, which is 50% Peruvian Wool and 50% Tencel. I believe these were for our eight-month.


I highly recommend ProFlowers. This was sitting on my doorstep upside-down for 12 hours but they were so carefully packaged that it didn't even show. I came home to these after a hectic band trip. Needless to say, they made my day.

He made this just for me. He worked for about two hours and came back with this all done.