4 Ply Katie Knits

All Kinds of Happy!

I had this post sort of planned out in my head.  It was going to be all about what a failure I am.  I've completely failed on two of the four Knitting News Year's Resolutions (socks, so not going to happen every month, and posting, well you can see for yourself how that's going!).  Thing is that doesn't really matter.  I'm so very happy that I can hardly bear it!

Last Thursday, at the Juba, Sudan Department of Motor Vehicles and Traffic Violations, my darling Sparky proposed to me and I accepted!  To tell a rather amusing story (if you've head it already, skip ahead.  There's knitting content in this post, I promise), we were there to get Sudanese drivers licenses.  The application is in Arabic, so the official there has to fill them out for us.  As one of my co-workers was getting his application filled out, the official asks for a 4th name.  This presented a bit of a problem as I only have three names.  At this point, Sparky caught my eye and said that if I needed a 4th name that I was welcome to his.  There was this long looking at each other moment where I tried to figure out the seriousness of the offer and all that.  A moment later he says that it would be an honor and a privilege and I blush and agree.  Of course the Sudanese official totally ruins the moment by asking for my grandfather's name!

I just can't tell you how happy I am!!!!!

As this is a knitting blog, I should really post some knitting. 

As I mentioned before, may of my friends and co-workers are having babies.  I have been knitting baby sweaters intermittently for about two months now and this is the latest offering:

Project: Lace Edged Bolero
Pattern: from the Cathay book By Debbie Bliss
Yarn: Cathay by Debbie Bliss in colors Lilac 17 with a bit of pale green for the edges   
Yardage: 3  Balls (330 Yards)
Started: November 11, 2007
Finished: January 28, 2008
Yarn Source: The Wonderful Phyl-phyl via a care package to Romania from the Wonderful Courtney
Needles: 3.75 mm (US 5)
Gauge: 5.5 sts per inch in Stst

This is actually the second time I've made this sweater.  The first version is still a sample at Knit Happens.  I knit the smallest size which is a 12-18 month size.  When I knit baby gifts, I generally try to knit slightly larger sizes as babies seem to grow really quickly.  Sweaters are still cute when they're a little bit big and I'm all about extending their life span. 

The sweater itself is knit all in one piece starting at the lower back.  You then increase for the sleeves and then split it into two pieces for the fronts.  The edging is knit separately and then sewn on (which, let me tell you, is my least favorite part).  I'm really glad I knit the edging in green.  I think it add a nice little something.  Then again, I'm biased.  I really love green. 

WIPs tomorrow (or maybe Thursday).  I promise!!!!

Resolutions

I have been very slow about actually posting my Knitting resolutions for 2008.  I've been thinking about them a lot, but it's more than time to actually commit them to paper (or, well, blog) and start sticking by them. 

1. I will knit at least one pair of socks per month.
   This was resolution last year as well and it worked surprisingly well!  I had only one month where I was late and I have many beautiful wool socks now.  To make things more interesting this year, however, I'm adding a caveat to this goal.  The monthly socks must be knit out of yarn that I owned as of January 1, 2008.  I can still buy sock yarn, I just can't knit it as my monthly socks.  I'm also setting the goal that at least half of the socks have to be knit as gifts for others (plan that Christmas knitting!)
2. I will take pictures of projects in progress and promptly post finished objects.
   I have had this big problem with forgetting to post finished projects sometimes until months after the actual completion date.  It's become something of a issue when I suddenly have a bunch of finished things that I've been too lazy, busy, or forgetful to post until long  after they've been cast off.  I think this might also help with my blogging frequency (which started out great, but has declined again).
3. Design sweaters and write up the patterns.
   I actually managed to execute one of the many sweaters I've designed mentally in 2007 (City Tweed).  I have MANY more ideas and really need to get them out of my head and on to the needles.  I also really have to write up the pattern for City Tweed and whatever other ones actually happen.  I've been putting this off because writing a pattern feel super intimidating, especially when you need to write for other sizes, but I need to just buckle down and do it!
4. Clean the needles
   I have this fantasy about starting 2009 with empty needles.  I have a long list of WIPs on the blog and god only knows what UFOs are lurking in the stash.  By January 1, 2009, I resolve to have either finished or frogged all of it.  Wish me luck!

Now, maybe I'm delusional, but I think this is manageable.  I think I can actually get this done.  I hope...

Wrapping up 2007

Before I post anything else, let me assure anyone who has been following the news out of Kenya that Sparky and I are fine.  We're both going a bit stir-crazy.  We haven't really been out of the apartment since Saturday (except for a couple quick and necessary food runs to the shops up the street).  It's just a real shame that the election ended like this.  I was out in Western Kenya to observe election day and it was really inspiring.  People waited patiently in line for hours for their opportunity to vote. 

If you're brave, check out Sparky's pictures of the mob in front of our apartment on Saturday. 

I have a bunch of final finished projects with which to close out 2007.  I have New Year's knitting resolutions, but I think that I'll post them tomorrow. 

Christmas Scarves

Project: Christmas Scarves
Pattern: Using size 15 needles, cast on 30 stitches. Knit every row until almost out of yarn.  Cast off.  (yes, it is exactly that easy)
Yarn: Lorna's Laces Grace in (from left to right) Glenwood, Aslan, Sandridge, and Georgetown. 
Yardage: 2  Skeins per scarf (240 Yards)
Started: From left to right, October 24, 2007; October 26, 2007; April 26, 2007 (oops), October 26, 2007
Finished: From left to right, October 25, 2007; October 26, 2007; October 22, 2007; October 28, 2007
Yarn Source: Knit Happens
Needles: 10 mm (US 15)
Gauge: Who cares?

These scarves are copies of a basic pattern that Courtney developed for Knit Happens,ages ago.  I cast on the first on in April, thinking that I could get ahead on my Christmas knitting.  Then I promptly got distracted and buried it in a knitting bag.  Once I picked them up again, each scarf absolutely flew off the needles.  Grace is a heavier boucle mohair and working on the size 15 needles was annoying.  I finally got it together and knit them.  Then I forgot to post them.   They're intended as belated Christmas presents for some of my cousins.  I just hope that they will be useful when I finally get to gift them in March!

Cable Scarf

Project: Practice Makes Perfect Scarf
Pattern: Inspired Cable Knits by Fiona Ellis
Yarn: Classic Elite Wings
Yardage: 4  Skeins (436 Yards)
Started: October 28, 2007
Finished: December 6, 2007
Yarn Source: Stash (I can't remember before that!)
Needles: 4.5 mm (US 7)
Gauge: 4.75 stitches to the inch
Modifications: I ended up doing a modification of the scarf, as I misplaced my copy of the pattern about halfway through my Germany trip and so I sort of made it up as I went along!  I also had to shorten it a bit, because the was a misprint in the book and the pattern really called for 5 skeins and I only had 4.

This scarf is another Christmas scarf, intended for a friend in the US.  As I explained above, I rather heavily modified the pattern as I was both short of yarn and had mislaid my pattern part way !  Still it was a nice, relatively fast gift, once I picked it up after a long hiatus.  Not much else to say about it, except that I thought that the hat in the same pattern was a bit juvenile, but the scarf is lovely.  Just check the errata before beginning any of the patterns in this book!

Cindy Baby Sweater

Project: Cindy Baby Sweater
Pattern: From Rowan babies by Kim Hargreaves
Yarn: Cork (now discontinued) by Rowan
Yardage: 3.5 Balls (420 Yards)
Started: November 18, 2007
Finished: December 16, 2007
Yarn Source: Stash (can't remember where from!)
Needles: 7 mm (US 10.75)
Gauge: 3.5 stitches to the inch

This sweater is one of many baby sweaters that will need to come off my needles in the next few months!  I have many friends and co-workers expecting babies in the next few months and I need to get cracking!  I knit this one in the 1-2 year size.  The smaller sizes looked much too small and with the bulky yarn, it seemed too small to be comfortable or to get a wiggling baby into!  The edging is all crocheted and that was really annoying.   The edging ate up about the same amount of yarn as the entire rest of the sweater!  Still, it looks really cute!

December Socks

Project: December Socks
Pattern: Wendy's Toe-up Pattern
Yarn: Sport Color Sock yarn from Wolle Rodel
Yardage: 2  Balls (328 Yards)
Started: December 18, 2007
Finished: December 30, 2007
Yarn Source: Wolle Rodel store in Heidelberg, Germany
Needles: 3 mm (US 2.5)
Gauge: 7 stitches to the inch

These socks are the final pair of socks in my 2007 year of socks.  They are intended as a gift (but not for Sparky, he refuses to let me knit for him, but he did offer to model them!) and are an easy conclusion to the year of socks.  They were easy and straightforward.  They were exactly what was needed in an incredibly busy and distracted month.  I plan on doing the "12 months, 12 pairs of socks" challenge again next year. 

Sparky kindly volunteered to model my socks!

In total:

In 2007, I knit:

14 pairs of Socks
9 Adult Sweaters
3 Baby Sweaters
2 pairs of Baby Booties
8 Scarves
1 Pair of mitts

Which total 150 balls of yarn or over 20,000 yards!

Can't wait to see what happens next year!

Parade of Socks

Greetings from the third stop on my multi-week jaunt.  After returning from Europe, I went to Mombasa (sorry no pictures!) for a conference and then last Saturday came up to Juba.  I've also been promising pictures of finished things for a while and so here are a couple more!

Project: Grammy Socks
Pattern: From More Sensational Knitting Socks by Charlene Schurch
Yarn: Gems by Louet in the color Goldilocks
Yardage: 2  Skeins (370 Yards)
Started: October 14, 2007
Finished: November 11, 2007
Yarn Source: Woolcott & Co. in Cambridge, MA
Needles: 2.25 mm (US 1)
Gauge: 8 stitches to the inch

This pair of socks is destined to be for my grandmother for Christmas (assuming of course I ever figure out how to ship things from Kenya!).  They are part of my knitting toe up socks without a short row heel series and were actually a pretty quick knit.  I wasn't all that crazy about the yarn.  While I'm generally a big fan of the Louet lines (especially their linen), I found that the gems yarn was really splitty and I needed to pay close attention to it while I knit.  I'm all in favor of paying attention to your knitting, but not because the yarn is splitty.  Where I really ran into trouble, however, was when I tried to block them.  My grandmother has very small feet.  I mean like a size 5.5 or 6.  My sock-blockers would have hopelessly stretched out the socks.  I ended up using ginger ale bottles (they're rather small), but couldn't get the nice tight blocking that I felt the lace required. Sigh.  I had better luck with the next pair!

Project: November Socks
Pattern: All mine!
Yarn: Cotton Multiringel by Lana Grossa
Yardage: 1 Ball (415 Yards)
Started: November 22, 2007
Finished: November 30, 2007
Yarn Source: Knit Happens (absolutely ages ago!)
Needles: 2.5 mm (US 1.5)
Gauge: Mixed.  I explain more when I get the pattern up.

This pair  of socks (destined for my cousin Sophie) was inspired by the overwhelming need to find something to do with self-striping sock yarn that wouldn't put me to sleep.  I can't be more pleased about how they turned out!  The lace stretches a lot, so while they were knit over 56 stitches, they stretch to fir an average woman's feet.  I even got the stripes to match in the two socks!  They were fast; they were fun; and I think she's going to love them!

I'm planning on writing up a pattern for this one as soon as I have a few minutes and posting it here for free.  I plan to have a few days off after the Kenyan elections, so the pattern might be a belated Christmas present to everyone!

And just in case you think I'm done with socks for the moment, I have two more going! 

The one on the left is knit out of sport-weight wool out of Wendy's toe-up pattern.  I started it because I needed mindless knitting and it has certainly fit the bill.  It's flying by.  The one on the right is going to be a simple Coriolis sock from New Pathways for Sock Knitters.  I'm not sure how I feel about the Coriolis sock yet.  It seems a little strange on the needles.  I think I need to finish it and block it so I can tell how I feel about it. 

Anyway, I'm going to try to post again tomorrow (more finished things!), but I have to sign off for now.  Miss you all!

Getting Back into the Swing of Things

I love vacation.  I really really love vacation, particularly when it takes you to a totally different environment.  Sparky and I returned last night from a week in Europe (mostly Germany with a side trip to France and a night in Switzerland).  I got to go into yarn shops for the first time since July!  Sparky has pictures, apparently.  I was a bit distracted.  I promise vacation photos very soon. 

It's been a while since I've updated and the "Work in Progress" list is suffering as a result.  There are currently 12 items on the list of which 4 have already been completed.  I also have 3 additional items that never made the list that I've knit in the past month.  I made a strict rule for myself that I am not allowed to delete anything from the "Work in Progress" list until it has either been frogged or received its formal posting on the blog.  As I am a lazy blogger at best, this frequently leads to problems. 

Anyway for the next couple of days I'm going to be getting caught up.  Please don't laugh too hard.  Some of these finished items have been lingering for a long while!

October Socks

Project: October Socks
Pattern:
Yarn: Studio Sock by Neighborhood Fiber Company in Foggy Bottom
Yardage: 1 Skein (435 Yards)
Started: October 7, 2007
Finished: October 24, 2007
Yarn Source: Knit Happens
Needles: 2.5 mm (US 1.5)
Gauge: 8 stitches to the inch

I loved this yarn!  It was sproingy and smooth and all that is good.  I liked the slightly irregular pattern.  Did I mention that I loved this yarn?  I picked this skein up on a whim and really wish I had bought more. 

I also rather enjoyed Wendy's new (well, newish now) toe-up pattern.  In general, I really don't like short-row heels.  I find that they slip around too much and don't accommodate my feet very well.  It's pretty annoying really.  Until recently (say, late September), I didn't realize that it was possible to knit socks toe-up without using a short row heel.  I was surprised and delighted by Wendy's  pattern and have since started looking for other patterns (a nice co-worker recently brought me a copy of New Pathways for Sock Knitters by Cat Bordhi from the States).  I plan many more toe-up not short-row heeled socks in the future (which is for the best, because I brought back much too much sock yarn from Germany). 

Baby Booties 2

Project: Baby Booties
Pattern: from Last Minute Knitted Gifts
Yarn: Lorna's Laces Angel in Purple Club
Yardage: Less than 1 skein
Started: November 9, 2007
Finished: November 11, 2007
Yarn Source: Knit Happens
Needles: 3.75 mm (US 5)
Gauge: 5-6 stitches to the inch

And yet more knitting for upcoming babies!  I hope you don't get too bored of baby things as many people I know seem to be expecting.  I have three baby sweaters on the needles and another waiting in the wings. 

These booties went faster than the last pair, but still weren't a one-hour knit.  Still like the pattern and the finished project is adorable. 

RI Peace

Thank you all for your "get well" messages!  I'm in Nairobi and feeling much better.  The Cipro makes me feel tired all the time, but that's a very small price to pay to get well!

Today, I'm mourning the absence of a sweater I barely got to know before it vanished.  The kit to make Peace was a gift from my father for my birthday and I immediately started her in May.  I worked almost exclusively on her until the end of June, when I moved from Romania.  I sewed on the buttons the day before the movers came to pack up the entire apartment.  That was the last day I saw her. 

At the time, I assumed that I had been an idiot and put her in my air shipment rather than my suitcase.  on moving day, I kept moving things into and out of various piles and I assumed she had simply been put in the wrong pile.  I am a terrible person to have around on moving day.  As Sparky can attest, I really should be sent away for the entire process.  There's something deeply disturbing about having all these people go through your things. 

Well, the air shipment arrived in late August, but Peace wasn't in it.  I pinned all my hopes that she had gotten mixed into the sea shipment that was supposed to arrive in September.  Finally in late October, when my sea shipment finally arrived (yeah, my yarn was MIA for nearly 4 months, try that for panic), Peace was not there. 

I think it's finally time to give up hope that Peace will magically appear.  Understand, I loved that sweater.  It was exactly what I needed and wanted in a cotton cardigan.  It was cute and looked fantastic and I don't even have a picture of it! 

When I'm back in the US, I'm going to buy more Rowan Hand knit DK and make myself another version.  I just hope the original is loved and enjoyed wherever she is!

A really good excuse

Often times, when I vanish of the blog for a while, I have really lame excuses.  "I was busy."  "I had a conference."  "I was on vacation."  Sometimes I have better excuses, but not that often.  Now, I have the best excuse ever.  I have typhoid. 

Now, before you panic, please remember that I am fine.  I am under doctor's care and am getting on a flight to Nairobi in a few hours (weather permitting).  I am taking strong antibiotics and I caught it really early.  I've felt like crap for a week and will for a while longer, but I am fine. 

Thing about Typhoid is it robs you of your desire to do anything, but lie in bed and feel miserable.  I have finished one small project, however, and have heaps of finished projects to document once I get to Nairobi. 

Project: Baby Booties
Pattern: from Last Minute Knitted Gifts
Yarn: Lorna's Laces Angel in Child's Play
Yardage: Less than 1 skein
Started: October 30, 2007
Finished: November 5, 2007
Yarn Source: Knit Happens
Needles: 3.75 mm (US 5)
Gauge: 5-6 stitches to the inch

These are intendedfor one of the many babies that are scheduled to enter the world sometime in December/January/February.  They aren't quite a 1 hour knit, but they are quick once you figure out the pattern.  I have about 15 yards of Angel leftover and am thinking of making a matching hat and trimming it with the angora.  What do you think?  Is 15 yards enough?

I also have a few in progress pictures for you.  Most of my knitting at the moment is Christmas knitting, so I won't be able to post pictures of everything!

These socks are intended for my grandmother as part of the Christmas Sock extravaganza.  They desperately need to be blocked.  I really not sure how to do this as my sock blockers are much too big.  Any ideas?  Has anyone made their own sock blockers before?

This is the beginning of Marigold by Kim Hargreaves.  The kit was a present from my father for my birthday last May.  I got started on it and then promptly got sidetracked by Christmas knitting.  I really hope I can pick this up agin soon.  It all depends on my progress. 

Okay, got to run and get on my flight!  More updates from Nairobi.

Reflections on Winning, again

I write this with a certain amount of disbelief (I'm also writing this for the second time following a computer crash).  The Red Sox won the World Series, again.

I think it's the "again" part that's really getting to me.  I've been a Red Sox fan since I can first remember.  My family is full of devoted Red Sox fans.  I remember throughout out my life watching the game and holding my breath thinking maybe this will be the year.  I'm pretty young.  When you start thinking about all the older people who did the same thing for 60, 70, or even 80 years, it kind of boggles the mind. 

I think that's why all the commentary about the Red Sox from non-Red Sox fans, many of whom don't like us much, doesn't really sink in with the faithful.  We don't care that Boston was favored heading in to the post season.  We don't care that most of the country supported the opposition.  We don't care because generations of cultural indoctrination can't be undone by the World Series win in 2004.  Most of us can't help but see that as a fluke and still, deep down in our heart-of-hearts, we expect to be disappointed in October.  It's really nice not to be.

Americans like to support the underdogs.  The Red Sox had fans for years that supported them entirely because they were unlikely to win; because even with their best efforts and amazing teams, they weren't able to finish the job.  These fans will go away.  They'll find new underdogs (hint, guys, the Cubs could really use your support) and they'll be the first ones to denigrate the post-curse Red Sox.  And you know what?  That's just fine.  The real Boston fans will remain fans and enjoy winning for a change.  We'll follow the games and players. We'll criticize and commend the management.  We'll show up every summer at Fenway or wish we were there. 

My cousin, age 6, is already a big Red Sox fan.  She can't remember a time that the Red Sox were perennial also-rans.  In the coming years there will be more fans like her and fewer like me.  And that's okay.  The Red Sox will be good for a while, then maybe not so good, and through it all Boston will keep watching baseball.  It's just nice that, in time, we won't immediately assume that we won't win. 

As for me, my darling Sparky and I got up at 3:00 am every day for the ALCS to watch it on ESPN International in Nairobi.  We wandered around like zombies living off of coffee.  We woke up again at 3:00 am for the World Series games.  I listened to the final game of the World Series over the internet from my room in Southern Sudan, chatting with Sparky as he watched from Nairobi.  (He's particularly impressive as Sparky is a life-long Orioles fan.  He was supporting Boston because he loves me).  I'm tired and exhilarated. 

I promise tomorrow I'll get back to posting about knitting.  I've been turning out Christmas presents like a fiend.  In the mean time, I'm going to savor this win just a bit longer. 

In which I get caught up, again

I have had a bunch of projects done for a while and to tell you the truth, I really want them officially posted in the finished projects column.  It gives me a warm feeling of satisfaction to move items from the "on my needles" category to the "Finished Objects" category. 

So without further ado, may I present:

Baby Car Coat and Flying Helmet

(the gracious model is actually my childhood bunny, Ausi.  I got him for Easter when I was 4 and he's traveled with me almost ever since)

Project: Baby Car Coat and Flying Helmet (Size 6-9 months)
Pattern: both patterns from the Sublime Baby Collection
Yarn: Rowan Cashsoft DK in color number 508
Yardage: 5 balls for both (about 710 yards)
Started: July 10, 2007
Finished: July 23, 2007 (okay, so I'm lying slightly here.  The knitting was done by the 23rd, but I only sew the buttons on las week)
Yarn Source: Knit Happens
Needles: 4.0 and 3.25 mm (US 6 and 3)
Gauge: 5.5 stitches to the inch in stst
Modifications: Yarn Substitutions, but does that even really count as a modification? 

This set is a gift to a good friend's sister for her new son.  Since the new mother in question is pretty traditional, I went with a pretty traditional design and color.  I probably should have gone with the yarn that the pattern actually called for, the Baby Merino DK from the Sublime Yarn line.  I used that yarn for a baby sweater back in April and really like it, but I thought the lighter blue would be too washed out, especially considering the parent's coloring. 

In general, this was a really easy straightforward knit, without a whole lot of surprises.  There was one thing that I didn't realize was going to be a problem until late in the pattern.    The button bands on the front of the sweater are knit on size 3 needles; the little button bands on the sleeves are knit on size 6 needles.  The different size button hole make it really hard to find buttons that will go through both. 

Enough about that one!  On to the next!

Blossom

Project: Blossom
Pattern: From the Kim Hargreaves Summer Breeze Collection
Yarn: Rowan 4 Ply Cotton in Steel Blue
Yardage: 6 balls (1302 yards)
Started: May 14, 2007
Finished: September 28, 2007
Yarn Source: Came as a kit from the Kim Hargreaves Website
Needles: 3.0 and 2.5 mm (US 2.5 and 1.5)
Gauge: 7 stitches to the inch in stst

I love Kim Hargreaves as a designer.  She is on a very short list of designers that I feel seldom, if ever, make a real misstep.  I was a devoted follower while she was with Rowan and have gazed longingly at the many kits on her website ever since it launched.  I have knit a few of her kits before (Harmony and the missing Peace) and have been delighted by how wearable her designs are.  As a devotee of 4 ply knitting (even if it hasn't been much in evidence lately), Kim Hargreaves is a special treat as she is one of the few designers that regularly designs in that weight yarn. 

Blossom was one the the kits that I bought for myself as a birthday present last May.  I started it pretty promptly, but forgot about it a bit in the craziness that was my summer.  I picked it up again a while back and knit through to completion.  The actual knitting time was reasonably short, I just didn't persevere as I should have. 

The design itself and the pattern were clear and beautifully written.  The only sort of annoying thing about it was the garter stitch peplum.  Lots and lots of rows of garter stitch over relatively few stitches! 

She looks beautiful on (I'll get you a picture of it on me soon) and fits like dream. 

Penelope

Project: Penelope
Pattern: From RC Woman
Yarn: Rowan Soft Lux in Sable
Yardage: 5 balls (685 yards)
Started: August 17, 2007
Finished: September 23, 2007
Yarn Source: Knit Happens
Needles: 4.5 and 4.0 mm (US 7 and 6)
Gauge: 5.75 stitches to the inch in K2 P2 Rib

Penelope was a project begun out of desperation for something warm when I first got to Kenya.  I expected the weather here to be warm, but didn't realize at the time that 1. Nairobi is at 5000 feet and so is colder than many other places at the same latitude and 2. July/August is winter here.  So I started Penelope with dreams of actually being warm for a change.  She was also a nice balm of simple ribbing.  Even the edging on the neck and armholes (K1, Sl1) wasn't too much of a bother.  I think I just got into a rhythm and it sewed on smoothly.  She just sort of finished herself!

And finally:

September Socks

Project: September Socks
Pattern: Badcaul from the "My Fashionable Life" blog
Yarn: Koigu KPPPM
Yardage: 2 balls (350 yards)
Started: September 10, 2007
Finished: October 5, 2007 (oops!)
Yarn Source: Purl in NYC
Needles: 2.75 mm (US 2)
Gauge: 7.5 stitches to the inch in stst

It was bound to happen sometime during my year of socks.  I missed the September 30 deadline.  In some ways I'm shocked that I didn't miss a deadline sooner, but this month work overwhelmed and I just couldn't keep up.  Part of what made this month particularly hard was two work conferences in two weeks and no days off during that mess.  I missed the deadline.  I set myself the punishment of an additional pair of socks.  Sparky (whose mind is much more devious than mine) also set me a task.  He has assigned me a (as in ONE) penalty sock.  If I finish all my other socks by their deadlines, I can knit that penalty sock into a pair. 

The pattern is one that I've had my eye on for a while.  It is simple, yet interesting.  I actually started another pair of socks in this pattern a while back, but didn't like how it interacted with the yarn.  This yarn is part of my effort to explore new colors in knitting.  I would normally never choose yellow, but Sparky was with me and he challenged me to try something new.  I can't wait to block these on my sock blockers (also in the sea shipment)!  I think it worked beautifully and I expect that these socks will rapidly become favorites!

Well, that's it for now.  I'll be posting "works in progress" in a day or two.  I have a bunch of those too and am busily knitting away!

 

In which I have unrealistic expectations

Sometimes I think it’s sort of amazing that Christmas Knitting Season creeps up on me every year.  I sort of think this year I have a pretty good excuse for completely forgetting that it is well into October and Christmas is only 2 months away.  It’s really hard to remember that Christmas is coming when the weather keeps getting warmer. 

Sad thing is I know I have totally unrealistic goals for Christmas knitting.  I’m going to be an idiot and try to accomplish them anyway (never let it be said that I learn from my mistakes). 

So here goes insane Christmas Knitting List 2007:

6 Pairs of Socks (3 already completed)

8 Scarves (big needles, but fiddly yarn)

1 Pair of Gloves

2 Lace shawls

And if I have time (bwhahahahaha!),

3 hats

For those of you who are keeping track, that’s anywhere from 4000 to 5000 yarns of yarn. 

And the kicker?  Wait for it….

All of that yarn is in my sea shipment that has been on the verge of arrival for 2 months now!

I promise finished pictures tomorrow.  I’ve actually finished Blossom, Penelope, the Baby Car Coat and Flying Helmet, the September Socks and MIA Peace (how’s that for irony?).  I thought I put Peace in my air shipment, but no luck.  I’m praying that she’s in my sea shipment, because otherwise she’s lost forever!