Wow, December already, huh?

Where did the month go?  Where did I go?  Well, I might not have met my goal to blog everyday, but I did blog more often which was really my goal!

I hope everyone had a terrific Turkey Day.  I was visiting family and had a fine time.  In my last post I showed you the gifts I finished at the last minute.  Well, here they are with their new owners…

My nephew’s new obsession is the lasso. Well, you can imagine the fun he had when his aunt and uncle handed him 2 gloves connected by a very long cord!

And T seemed to really love her blanket!

I got a good bit of knitting done while traveling. No pics right now but very soon!

I did hear from my SIL that she did get the package with my niece and nephew’s birthday gifts. Then I remembered that I never posted L2′s Wonderful Wallaby.

She said they were wearing them this weekend and really liked them.

And, when I got that picture off of my husband’s camera I was also able to get these:

These were the socks that I knitted for the 4th year I was in the Hogwarts Sock Swap. The pattern is Heather Colorwork Socks #347 by Rebecca Hatcher. I used Trekking Pro Natura. I really enjoyed making them for Angela.

How did I get so lucky?

A little over a week ago I was getting ready for a trip to Vegas (business for J) and I received a package in the mail. My first thought? I must be sleep-buying because I don’t have any memory of what this could be. Inside I found a beautifully handknit pair of socks, a thing called a Furochic (a reusable cloth gift wrap inspired by Furoshiki, a traditional Japanese wrapping cloth) and a sock washing bag for a washing machine. Next thought? What sock swap did I forget that I was signed up for? And then I opened the note inside. It was from my Sockapalooza 4 sockpal… Sockergirl! Can you believe that completely out of the blue and out of the kindness of her heart she sent me a pair of socks! What a PAL!

I apologize for the worn look of the socks…I put them on the day we left and haven’t had a chance to wash them yet.

In other news, I have been knitting…just not photographing or blogging.  Ugh!  Here are some of the things I have finished:

Cardigan for Baby Boy

pattern: Tulips by Lindsay Pekny with modifications
yarn: Jeanne by Plymouth
mods: ribbing all the way around (to make it more “masculine” and 4 buttons instead of 5).
I hope to get pics from the mom (hint, hint) soon.

Matching Booties

pattern: Christine’s Stay-On Baby Booties by Christine Bourquin
yarn: Jeanne by Plymouth
no mods

And I finished Bellatrix

Pattern: Bellatrix by Monkeytoes (free download on Ravelry)
yarn: Lang Jawoll Cotton

Monica for my niece

pattern: Monica by Christine Schwender
yarn: Cascade Sierra
no mods

Wonderful Wallaby for niece’s 2nd birthday

pattern: Wonderful Wallaby by Carol A. Anderson
yarn: Cascade Sierra
mods: used seed stitch around hood and pocket

Pictures of WIPs to come.

Do-over

Just a quick note to say that I am starting over on my Hogwarts Sock Swap socks.  I just found that the yarn that I originally chose was just not fitting the bill.  Luckily I found some yarn that I fill will work well and I plan to cast on in the next couple of days.

Where has the summer gone?

Why didn’t someone punch me to tell me it has been nearly 2 months since I had posted!  Man!  Well, I can blame some of it on not wanting to bail on the idea of part 2 of my Sweden adventure.  I kept thinking that if I posted other things I would just conveniently forget to do the rest of the story.  I still haven’t done what I wanted to with the pictures.  Ugh!

There is almost too much to post about with what has happened between then and now.  However, when I think about it, it almost seems like a very boring summer.  Well, in my head I was busy, at least.

One thing that has happened is that I joined Hogwarts Sock Swap 4.  I have totally delinquent, however, on what we have to do to be in it, including posting on our blogs weekly.  And I am so sorry about that…I am usually a willing participant in these sorts of things.  Since I have not heard that I am been kicked out of Hogwarts, I will assume that my partner,Fleur Dolohov, and I are still in the game.  I plan to get the pattern and yarn today at the shop.

Speaking of shops…well, more on that later.

Not that there aren’t other things to report…

I did want to report that I FINALLY finished and got the HSS3socks in the mail and to their recipient!  And she likes it!  She really likes it!  She is Sally-Anne Skrewt or Twice Knit!  You can link there for the picture of the whole package (cause I forgot to take a picture).   But I did get a picture of the socks:

Pattern: Hiiumaa Mismatched Socks
Yarn: Louet Gems Merino Sport Weight in Ginger and French Blue
Needle: 2.25mm
no mods.

Gotta show you what has been distracting me for the past week:

Starting at the 3 o’clock position: Socks (white feet, ya know!), then at 7 o’clock we have Sophie and then at 10-11 o’clock we have Sassy.  These are some “feral” cats I rescued from a mom in my neighborhood. They were born just before Easter.  They have another brother but he escaped after I caught him.  Anyway, the other 3 are doing great and will be adoptable in about 2 weeks.  Anyone?  More pictures will follow.

Package

Nothing pulls you out of a blogging slump like getting a package in the mail.  Whew!  Thanks, Susan! 

I won’t go into the details but I’ll just say that I wasn’t having a very good day when I pulled into the driveway and saw the package.  My first thought was, “what did I buy this time!?!”  As I opened the package, it became obvious what it was.

My Hogwarts Sock Swap 3 package!!  My pal, Lavendar Kadavra (aka Susan), sent me socks from a pattern she wrote herself (seen top left), the best stitch markers (better picture below), lots of HP candy, a kitty notebook and stickers, some HP trading cards and Knitpick needles!!  SCORE!!

The socks really are great.  I believe that she handdyed the yarn as well as wrote the pattern, so WOW!  The yarn really is so very soft and it has this shine to it like it has tencel or silk in it.

And this is just the best bit…little tongues on my “snake socks.” 

And I had to show you an upclose of the stitch markers.  Aren’t they perfect?!?

Thank you, again, Susan for such a wonderful package!!

And where, do you ask, am I with sending my package out?!?  Oh, well, I won’t give too much away but I will say that I have contacted my pal to let her know that they won’t make it by the deadline. 

I mean, would you wake her up????

 

Now for the rest…

First, WOW!!!  The weather was gorgeous today and there would be no better way to spend it than to be on the golf course.  And, guess what!!!  I got my first PAR!!!  But I won’t go into what my total score was….

OK, first package…the October Socks That Rock Kit.  Love it!  Unfortunately I did not think to take a picture when I uploaded the others and I am being lazy right now.  The kit is pictured all over the knitting blogopshere so if you haven’t see it…what planet have you been on?  It really is just gorgeous and the pattern (by the Yarn Harlot, herself) is going to be so great to knit up.  They truely outdid themselves.   And I, for one, am glad I signed up for 2008.  In so many ways, I have been happy with every kit received.  Some colors or patterns may not have grabbed me from the very beginning but I had promised that I would do them as written and with the yarn sent.  I have made 3 of the 5 socks so far and I have loved each.  I promise I will do the others (Summer of Love and Lenore) after the Christmas knitting madness is over and I am sure I will love them as well.

Ok, package #2:

Hogwarts Sock Swap 2 Ravenclaw socks from Holly Heathertoes
Wonderful, totally amazingly fitted socks…did you send a house elf  to measure my feet while I slept or something???
Beautiful Koigu yarn
Twisted Flower Sock Pattern from Cookie A (can’t wait to try that and I know exactly what yarn I’ll use!)
Dumbledore bookmark
Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans in a cute little collector bag

THANK YOU SO MUCH, HOLLY!!!
(Yours is on the way…soon, but you know that, right?)

Finally, I have been meaning to share this with those of you concerned about the proper footwear to have to show off your hand knit socks.  Little did I know I owned said footwear until I attended Stitches East.  I got stopped more for my shoes than for my gorgeous (if I do say so myself) socks.  I thought I would share…

They are made by MUDD (can’t remember the model name) and I bought them at DSW. I wear them so much that I think I’m going to get another pair for when these wear out.  Won’t these look amazing with Lenore?!?

Well, this was exhausting…posting twice and 6 hours of golf in one day!!!

Never say never

This is what I love about knitting.  You might think that you will NEVER have the need for a certain technique or that you will NEVER want to make a certain item and then something triggers a second look and you are suddenly obsessed with this thing that you thought you would NEVER do! 

When I first started knitting I never thought I would want to make socks.  Well, nuff said, right?  It was so much fun to go back to all my old knitting books and magazines to see all the sock patterns I already owned.  Course, that didn’t stop me from buying more.

NOW I think I am in love with colorwork…something I thought that I would, yes, NEVER want to do.  A couple of years ago I did draw someone’s name in a handmade item Christmas exchange and I made a fair-isle golf club cover.  I can’t really say I enjoyed it but I was happy with the finished project (more like, happy it was finished).

So what has changed my tune?  I signed up for a Ukrainian Christmas Stocking class at my LYS.

It took a little while but I finally got the rhythm of it and fell in love with seeing all the motifs develop. This week we put the toe and afterthought heel in.

A few months ago I signed up for Seamless Argyle Socks class at Stitches East in Baltimore. So that was this past weekend.

I certainly didn’t think about this actually being colorwork at the time I signed up…it was just one of the only sock classes offered, but I learned A LOT! I will certainly be finishing this one and knitting another to make a pair but not right now cause I am a little obsessed with this:

The pattern is from the Kauni Cardigan pattern that it seems everyone is doing in the internet knitting community. I wanted to try it but 1) wasn’t sure I could do it and 2) wasn’t sure I would have the patience for a cardigan. Oh, and 3) was too impatient to order and wait for the yarn. My LYS owner suggested Noro Silk Garden Lite. I LOVE it! This is my “swatch” which is ~16″ around which I think I will make into a project bag.

 Also, while in the Stitches East class, I met an internet friend, The_ADD_Knitter.  It was so neat meeting someone for real that you have been corresponding with on Ravelry.  Gotta love Ravelry!

In other news, I have finished my Hogwarts Sock Swap II sock.  I would rather not post a picture just yet.  I am finishing up the bookmark and then I just have to put the package together and send it off.  So, Holly Heathertoes, never fear, I have not forgotten you!

?Como estan ustedes?

I want to thank everyone who has asked about my absence.  I wish I could say that it was for some fantastic reason.  Nope.  I just had blogger’s block.  I went away to visit family for that one week and got out of the groove of posting and just couldn’t get back into it. 

Of course, I returned to the most unbelieveably long list on Bloglines.  Yikes.  It just makes you want to accidentally hit the delete button and start over.  But I really wanted to read what everyone had been up to and I was hoping it would inspire me.  I did comment on some blogs using them, like I told Kristy, like swatching for a project.  It might have worked…thanks.

First, knitting has not been a high priority for me…unfortunately.  I have been doing a little.  Unlike before, though, I have been able to ride in a car, watch tv, and do many other activities without needles in my hands.  I’m shocked, too!  Don’t know why. 

Maybe its procrastination because I know I have deadlines coming up.  I need to finish the twins’ birthday presents and the Hogwarts Sock Swap socks….eek!  I can report that I am all but finished with L2′s vest (just the ribbing around one armhole) and I am on the front of K’s top that is, thank goodness, sleeveless.  I just need to go shopping for accessories.  I have finished sock #1 for the sock swap and am FINALLY happy with both my yarn and pattern selection.  ‘Bout time! I hope to have pictures of finished items to show soon. I’ve got to finish some socks for SAM4! Yikes!

In other crafts…

Its a double handled picnic basket.  My sister-in-law joined me for this class, which was fun!  I love my basket!!!  I hope to make a liner for it soon.  Its really big and will hold lots of yarn!!

!Hola!  I am also taking la clase de espanol at the local college with mi amiga Nicky.  Es diversion. (Babel Fish translated that for me so I have no idea if that is correct.  Not gotten that far).

And, finally, we have started the remodel of our mudroom/laundry room to soon be a mudroom/laundry room/utility room/half bath. Believe me, its a big room. I will show pictures when we have progress. Right now it is just an empty room with a few tiles pulled from the floor.

An Embarrassment of WIPs

I’m taking a break from all the cleaning to share my latest pictures of WIPs.  I will say that so far I have gotten quite a bit done (on the housework).  Kitchen clean, 4 loads of laundry done (2 folded and put away), vacuuming, sweeping, dusting done.  I’m going to be honest, I know that sounds like nearly everything and certainly the house looks better but it just needs so much more.  Cindy and Bethany have heard me say this before, I just need someone to come in and help me do all the really deep cleaning stuff.  And then I need an organizing specialist to come in and help with that mess!!!  Ugh!  This is why I don’t like to clean…it never ends up making me feel any better!!

Now onto a better subject:

I’ll begin with the oldest:

Work has not gone quite as planned on this but I am still determined to finish it. I have a new goal of having it done before Stitches East in October. We’ll see.

Then we have the Hufflepuff socks for Hogwarts Sock Swap II:

Trying to teach Lucky to knit them up but he is all hooves.

Socks That Rock June Kit (The Solstice Slip Socks):

The August kit is getting mailed off this week or early next week and I really want to be finished or nearly there by the time it arrives. I have cast on for the second sock and am going to catch it up to the first sock so that they are the same length having used as much of the yarn as I can.

After finishing my niece’s Wrap Dress I got gung-ho to work on her brother and sister’s October birthday gifts and casted this on:

Nearly done! Refer to this for the details but notice that I changed the colors.  J helped there and it is now refered to as the Mint Chocolate Chip Vest.

I joined Sockknitter’s Anonymous on Ravelry and they are doing a sock a month kal (you actually have 2 months to knit them, thank goodness) and every month you have the choice between a different technique or designer. This month was lace/Sockbug so I chose the lace and I chose Early Spring Socks. I’m doing them out of HipKnits 100% Cashmere.

Love the pattern and the yarn is heavenly!

The August pattern on Socktopia is a Mystery Sock. I originally picked Jitterbug yarn in Copperbeach to do this but soon discovered that the pattern gets completely lost in it. I switched yarns and this is where I am.

Sorry, not much to see. The yarn I’m using now is KP Essentials Tweed in Inca Gold.

And, as if this all wasn’t enough, I started a new project on Tuesday. Its the Minimalist Cardigan from IK Fall 2007. I’m using some stash (YES!!!! YOU HEARD THAT RIGHT!!!) Cascade Sierra in a Chocolate Brown color.

Only 1.5″ until I decrease for the armholes!

OK, I just heard the dryer stop so I have better go take care of that and do another 45 minutes of housework! On my next break I am knitting!!!