Category Archives: Knitting

Contests, Knitting, Randonymity, Reading, Reviewettes

Woe of the Toe

24 Comments

Let Eryka know whether or not you attend craft shows and you could win a $25 KnitPicks gift card on December 31.

Thanks (?!??) to Van for alerting me to these fugly holiday sweaters… Swallow all coffee and cereal and brace yourselves before you click, ok?

Office a little quiet before the holiday? Make an origami reindeer from a box to keep yourself entertained.

You can blame all shopping malls on Minnesota. Sorry ’bout that.

Ever wondered what happens to those socks that vanish in the washing machine? Wonder no longer.

Here’s a clever trick to keep that poor right index finger from getting maimed by sharp needle tips.

Smart Bitches, Trashy Books is having eight days of giveaways. The first giveaway (not romances!) will probably be over by the time you read this, but there are still seven more on the way.

Apparently “business is booming” at Minnesota’s public libraries due to the recession.

Reading Update
Ghost Moon (The Moon Series, Book 7) by Rebecca York. Enough with the excursions to the parallel universe, please. Thank you.
How To Knit a Wild Bikini by Christie Ridgway. This is the first book in a chick lit knitting series set in Malibu. I’m looking forward to reading the next book!
Backup: A Story of the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher. Although published as a small hardcover, this is really a short story told by Thomas, not Harry.
“A Jaguar’s Kiss” by Lora Leigh, from Shifter. Yes, there were three other stories in this collection of paranormal romance, but I couldn’t get into them. Leigh’s story was ok, but definitely not one of her best.
Playing Easy To Get by Sherrilyn Kenyon, Jaid Black, and Kresley Cole. Steamy. Very steamy. I liked the Kresley Cole vampire’n’Valkyrie story the best. The Sherrilyn Kenyon story wasn’t a Dark-Hunter story – it was from her B.A.D. series.
50 Ways To Hex Your Lover by Linda Wisdom. Vampires and witches and evil bunny slippers, oh my! This was a fun’n’fluffy paranormal romance – the next book is already in my to-read pile. (But please note – it’s really cheating to name a book based on a throwaway line in said book…)
I Want You To Want Me by Kathy Love. Apparently this is the most recent book in a series. Or it might just be the second book in a series. Not exactly easy to figure out. Anyway, this is a story about a sculptor and a lhampir (somehow derived from dhampir?!), set in New Orleans.

Still completely loving MaryLou’s sock pattern and am surviving my first top-down sock experience… mostly.

“But Mom, that’s my favorite bit because it matches me! I don’t understand why you’re cursing at it. And really, I’m not sure I’m old enough to hear language like that.” -Mayhem

And for a little color/preview of coming attractions… (I told May to watch out so MamaTulip doesn’t steal her toy!)  😉

*my toy my toy my toy my toy MY toy MINE MINE MINE* -Mayhem

Contests, Knitting

A radical knitting development!

35 Comments

No, Marina, not that radical. 😉

But first, some announcements.

Check out Eryka’s new Etsy portal for knits called Knitsy.

Trek was hit with a surprise Box Tops for Education request and is begging looking for all the help she can get to fulfill it!

Please let Ms. Concateknit know if you’ve donated to any cause recently. Non-profits such as pet rescue organizations and food banks are seeing a lot of use these days and need all the help they can get. On December 31st, Ms. Concateknit will randomly select a lucky donor to win a New Year’s gift from she and her adorable rescue dogs.

KitKatKnit’s giving away some really ugly Lorna’s Laces (um, can you tell I love the yarn and don’t really want you to enter?!) and other goodies. Leave her a comment by 4:04 PST, December 21, about your favorite holiday candy tradition – and watch this spot for a whole bunch of holiday candy goodness later this week.

Ok, back to the knitting stuff. A few weeks ago, MaryLou asked for test knitters for her gorgeous new Tendrils Rib Socks. I looked at the pictures and saw twisty little stitches. I love twisty little stitches! So I volunteered. MaryLou quickly sent the pattern and I realized… the socks were top-down. Now, I’ve easily knit 70 pairs of socks over the past eight years… and every pair was toe-up. But since being a test knitter means knitting the pattern as written, I forged ahead (with Jeanne snickering in the background).

I dug out two skeins of Original STR in Beryl and cast on. And cast on. And cast on again. Moving right along, I’ve finished the leg and done the heel flap. (I’ll try not to mention the trauma of knitting a heel flap that just… flaps there. Unattached to anything. *shudders* Well, I guess I’ll try not to mention the trauma too many times at least…) My mind boggles at what has to happen next for this to become a sock!

Fortunately, the twisty stitches are making me very happy and I’ll definitely knit this pattern again… toe-up. 😉

“Hmm. I wonder how I can get at those socks again? Mom’s been excessively careful with them since I added four extra ends last week. Curses.” -Mayhem

Knitting

Mittens on kitten

27 Comments

Don’t forget to leave your caption(s) for my caption contest by 7 pm CST today (Wednesday, December 10)! Contest is now closed.

On Sunday, I also finished knitting a plain pair of lightweight mittens that I’m using as liners for some other mittens that aren’t quite warm enough when the temperature dips below +10F. I knit the mittens from Mountain Colors Bearfoot in Mountain Twilight, 56 stitches on 2.5mm needles, using the basic mitten pattern from The Knitter’s Handy Book of Patterns.

“…zzzzzzz…. wha…?!” -Mayhem

“Wait a minute. This doesn’t seem right.” -Mayhem

“I don’t approve of this at all.” -Mayhem

“Help! Help! Someone call the ASPCA! I’m being mistreated! Help!” -Mayhem

Knitting

Wee woolly notebooks

32 Comments

Aw, thank you all so much for your birthday wishes! I took the day off from work and did mostly nothing. It was wonderful.

I can’t say that I did absolutely nothing, as I finished two notebook covers for gifts. Last week, I mentioned that I thought the Jitterbug I received from Jane would be perfect, but after swatching, I changed my mind. Instead, I picked up some Malabrigo (color Intenso), which worked perfectly. I’m contemplating felting these a little, particularly the larger one, to help them fit more snugly.

“No stripes. Boring!” -Mayhem, stretchily

A few weeks ago, I purchased a small collapsible light tent. I like the initial photos, but I definitely need to pull a brighter light source out of the closet. And maybe attempt to steam the tent smooth?! Anyway, the following picture was taken in the light tent, with a plain old 60-watt incandescent light outside the tent but sans flash (versus the flash picture above). What do you think?

Knitting

A massive sigh of relief

21 Comments

Yesterday I realized that one of my family members has a birthday before Christmas, which is when the massive super secret project needs to be finished. (Actually, two of my family members have birthdays before Christmas, but you don’t have to worry that I’m talking about you, Matt. I know you read the blog sometimes.)

Months ago, I had decided that I would make the knitted notebook cover (and even cover a notebook with it) from 101 Designer One-Skein Wonders for said family member’s birthday. However, I was pretty sure I didn’t have an appropriate color. So how lucky was it that I won this perfectly colored skein of Colinette Jitterbug from Jane’s latest contest? (My caption for the linked photo was “Plz no hitz! Did not meanz to telz ending of ur buk.” Winners were chosen by random number.) Thanks, Jane! (We shall not discuss the fact that the Jitterbug will knit to a completely different gauge than yarn called for in the pattern. Right?) (My goodness, I must be feeling particularly parenthetical today, eh?)

“Oh, that is pretty. I wonder if it tastes as good as it looks?” -Mayhem

“Although I really came over here to get you to throw my somewhat green mouse for me, Mom. Pretty please?” -Mayhem

Knitting, Those Cats

In which our secret knitting project is revealed

40 Comments

Jeanne and I have been working on a lapghan to keep my neighbor Carol warm as she goes through her chemo treatments. I wove in the last end Tuesday night (yup, this was the source of the 70 ends I was whining about – I’m glad Jeanne took pity on me and wove in some!). Yesterday (after taking a few pictures…) I washed the lapghan and presented it to Carol. I think she liked it. 🙂

Vital stats: Lion Brand Cotton-Ease in charcoal, medium blue (horrifically misnamed violet), stone, and azalea (would you guess this is actually a dark pinky red?). The strips are approximately 4″ wide.

“Huh. I don’t remember the floor looking like this. I wonder when this happened?” -Mayhem

“Our new stripey floor is pretty comfy.” -Mayhem

“Do you like the new stripey floor, big kitty?” -Mayhem

“Mmmm… warm toes.” -Chaos

“I can’t believe how shallow you are, big kitty!” -Mayhem

“Mmmmm… warm tummy.” -Chaos

“Hmph.” -Mayhem

“Mmmm… stripes…” -Chaos

They were a bit disgruntled to be shooed off the lapghan so I could wash it!

Knitting

In which you don’t see our secret project at all

22 Comments

Last night, Jeanne came over and we worked on our secret project for a few hours. Jeanne has one little bit left to do, and then I take over weaving in the ends. There are 70 ends, and I’ve done six so far. *whimper*

“Jeanne brought over this wonderfully squishy felted bag that smells like strange girl kitties.” -Chaos

*sniff sniff sniff* -Chaos

“What’s so interesting there, big kitty?” -Mayhem

“Nothing, May – go find your own wonderfully squishy felted bag. This one’s mine.” -Chaos

“Hmph. Be that way then.” -Mayhem

“Neener neener neener, big kitty. A lap beats a squishy bag any day.” -Mayhem

“Hmph.” -Chaos

After Jeanne got home, she reported that her “strange girl kitty” Pudd (short for Puddin’head – don’t ask) spent a very long time sniffing that wonderfully squishy felted bag. Hmm. Kitty romance via sniff?

Knitting, Project Spectrum, Tales of the Neighborhood, Those Cats

Not quite a dozen…

26 Comments

I totally miscounted – I had ten bibs finished for the baby shower on Saturday and decided that was a very good number indeed. Whew! (Ok, yeah, so I sewed on the last button about an hour before the shower started – what’s your point?!)

As soon as I had the bibs on the floor for a photo, Chaos took matters into his own paws.

“Ha!” -Chaos

“Give it up, Mom. I’m not getting off these bibs.” -Chaos

“No way, no how. I’m wise to you and your little bib racket.” -Chaos

“Well, crap. Since when do you hold another bib in reserve?!” -Chaos

“I can’t believe I fell for that one. I’m so ashamed.” -Chaos

Knitting

Oh, *blip*

28 Comments

Bloglines apparently hates me today. And not all of my comments are being emailed to me in a timely fashion. *sigh*

Remember me mentioning the outbreak of babies that was on its way? My boss and his wife produced the first baby of said outbreak at the end of September, in a very dramatic delivery only three hours and ten minutes after labor started… and only 15 minutes after reaching the hospital. I had some nicely boy appropriate bibs on hand (while I don’t care that much about gender “appropriate” colors, parents can get weird about it), so all was well.

Until yesterday morning, that is. Chaos wandered across the table while I was eating breakfast (yeah, yeah, I finally admitted the futility of my “the kitchen table is not a kitty superhighway!” policy) and started to lick something on top of one of my piles of stuff. Automatically checking to see if said something needed to be rescued, I retrieved a baby shower invitation… for October 11th. The baby shower for which I had hoped to have a respectable number of bibs on hand (a dozen). The baby shower that I had apparently blocked out of my mind. Oh, *blip*.

So, here’s my pile of bibs and proto-bibs (aka balls of kitchen cotton). Hmm. The baby in question is a boy. I wonder how the parents will react to that pastel blue/green/lavender/white bib in the middle? Should I save that for some future girl baby?

*sound of whistling* “Let’s just see if Mom’s paying attention to these yummy looking dangly bits of yarn, shall we?” -Mayhem

*sound of Mayhem being snatched up, up, and away and scolded*

“Hmm, I feel an impending sense of doom…” -Chaos