Catchin' up

Warning: this post is long.


BOISE

A few weeks ago I went to Boise, ID to visit Jeff. He's been working there since February. I had never been there and wanted to see what it's like. One day I had the rental car while Jeff was at work. What does a knitter do in a new city with nothing but time on her hands? Yarn crawl, of course. The first stop was Puffy Mondaes, which is actually in Nampa about 20 minutes from Boise.


This is a great shop. It looks like it used to be a house. There are several rooms, including a kitchen where they have dye workshops. The staff is very friendly. Natalie was working that day and we talked about yarn and Ravelry. They have a good variety of yarns, including some I have never heard of before. I couldn't resist the Banana Silk.


It's made from the stalk and leaves of the banana plant. It's very rustic looking. The ply is uneven creating a thick/thin yarn. It comes in beautiful saturated colors, which is what attracted me to it. I had a hard time choosing, but in the end, I went with my favorite. I'm thinking it wants to become a scarf someday.

Next stop was Ewephoria, also in Nampa. A very nice yarn and quilt fabric shop. Since I'm a sucker for all things fiber, I bought this fabric.

Someday I'll use these to line felted bags. Or maybe sew them into bags if I ever learn how to sew (on my list of things to do). I especially like the one on the left.

My last stop was Fuzz in Boise. This was a nice space and the women working there were very nice. I didn't buy anything because they didn't carry anything different than what I can get from my LYSs here at home.

The knitters in the Boise area are in good hands. And if you ever find yourself there, you won't be short of LYSs to visit.


LIFE WITH KITTENS

One day after work I called Jeff to let him know I was on my way home.
Jeff: "Milo got into your knitting bag and scattered your knitting all over the living room."
Me: "Did he unravel it?"
Jeff: "Not all of it."
Me: "Oh sh&t."


Luckily, he only unraveled the ball of yarn attached to the sweater I'm working on and not the sweater itself. Jeff said Milo looked very guilty when he found him lying next to the mess. It's a good thing he's so darn cute!

WIP REPORT

I'm in the home stretch on several projects.

The Noro sweater just needs seaming and then a crocheted border.

I'm almost finished with the last piece of the Cable & Rib Sweater. Then I'll have to sew it together, knit the collar and sew in a zipper.

Tulip Cardigan #2 just needs the border and the sleeves. I have to finish it this week, since my sister's shower is a week from today. Time to hunker down.

Happy 4th to those of you in the U.S. I hope everyone is having a nice weekend and your knitting is close by.

Yarn trip!

My knitting group had been talking about taking a trip to Solvang for a looong time. Sunday we finally made the trip. Solvang is a small Danish inspired town in Santa Barbara County (Central California). There are bakeries, windmills, Danish restaurants, fudge shops, art galleries and tons of shops. Of course, there's a yarn & fiber store to visit too. Village Spinning & Weaving (in the photo above) was our ultimate destination. My first impression of the store was that they didn't have much of a yarn selection. Almost two hours later, I'd say we found plenty to keep us interested.

I wasn't planning on buying anything. Seriously. I was only going to buy something if it was "special", meaning I hadn't seen it before or it's hard to find. The store has a very good book selection and, being that books are almost as hard to resist for me as yarn is, I wound up buying Barbara Walker's A Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns to add to my collection, and a book called Crocheting School which looks like a great reference book for all kinds of crochet stitches and edgings. I have two projects in my future that require me to learn how to crochet, so I think this book will be valuable.

Then I saw this little sheep ornament. He wanted to come home with me.

Still no yarn for me. I was actually feeling quite proud of myself at this point. We had been in the shop for quite awhile and I was not really tempted by any of the yarn I saw. I was going home yarn-free.

Until I saw this:

A whole display of Louet Euroflax. I don't know how I missed it when I walked in, but I did. Look at all of the colors! I've seen this at one of my LYSs and also at Stitches, but have never seen such a color selection in one place. I've been wanting to buy this yarn ever since I saw Madge using it for her Gothic Leaf Stole. I knew the minute I saw the display that this yarn was going home with me. After much debate and fondling, I settled for the same Aubergine color that produced yarn envy of Madge's stash. I bought four skeins. Enough to make a lace shawl. Now I just have to decide on a pattern. I encouraged Madge to buy some too! She bought a mossy green color called Island Moss. I see a Euroflax KAL in our future.

It's hard to see the color in this pic. I'll try to get a picture of it in natural light in the future. Take my word for it, it's pretty!

Here's a pic of those of us who went.

From L-R: Linda, Mary, Me, Jillian, Pam & Madge

It was a great day! It felt good to spend a whole day with my peeps talking about yarn, knitting and all things related.

I'm posting from Boise, ID. I'm visiting Jeff for a few days. I'll let you know if I find anything interesting here. Have a good week.

Doctor's orders

Just when I thought I was better, I took a turn for the worse. So I high-tailed it back to the doctor yesterday to discuss some serious drugs that will wipe out this infection for good. Armed with new prescriptions, I left the office with instructions to take the next three days off from work and do nothing except rest and take said medicine. I think I can handle that. Three days to rest = three days of knitting. :)

Today I knit another pair of Fetchings. These are for my friend Teressa. I'm teaching her how to knit and I think these will match the purple garter stitch scarf she is working on.

Project: Fetching by Cheryl Niamath

Yarn: Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran, color 330014 (purple)

Needles: KnitPicks Options DPNs US size 5

Start: May 29, 2008

End: May 29, 2008

Knocked down but not out

So April pretty much kicked me in the arse. I had the flu which then turned into bronchitus. I was sick for a total of six weeks. That sucked. I was so miserable that I didn't even want to knit or read my favorite knitting blogs. It was bad people. I only took a couple of days off from work during the worst of it. I kept pushing through, thinking it's going to get better in a few days. It was a loooong few days. I've recovered and am back to my 'normal' self. Sigh. It's been a long time since I've been that sick. I will not be taking my good health for granted anytime soon.

There was some knitting in early April. My good friend Michelle was having a baby boy and I wanted to knit something for the shower.

This is a male version of the Tulip sweater made popular by the Yarn Harlot (scroll down to her June 5th entry) last year. I bought my kits from Threadbear Fiber Arts. The kits aren't on their website anymore, but they might put one together for you if you call. I know there are other yarn stores that sell the kits also.

Project: Dream in Color Tulip Baby Cardigan
Yarn: Dream in Color Classy
Needles: KnitPicks Options US Sizes 7 & 9
Start: End of March 2008
Finish: April 6, 2008

Thoughts: I love this yarn and will definitely be using it for more projects in the future. It's soft and the colors are incredible. Each one is rich and beautiful. Truly a joy to knit with. One thing I was surprised by was the gauge. This is considered a worsted weight yarn with the suggestion of using US size 7 or 8 needles to get gauge. I am a loose knitter and usually have to go down a needle size or two in order to get the required gauge for a project. With this yarn I had to go up to a size 9. That's the first time that ever happened. Hmm. I'm still scratching my head over this. I was not knitting tighter than I normally do, so I think the yarn is a little finer than a worsted. Has anyone else experienced this with Classy?

More recently I made a pair of Fetching for a friend's birthday.

Project: Fetching by Cheryl Niamath
Yarn: Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran, color 330012 (a lilac)
Needles; KnitPicks Options DPNs US size 5
Start: May 18, 2008
End: May 18, 2008

Thoughts: This is the fourth pair I've made and I think it makes a nice gift. The pattern is simple, yet interesting. And they can be knit up in a day. Quick & easy. Pretty too.

Other than that, I'm still working on my Noro shrug and I'll be bringing the grey Cable & Rib sweater out of hibernation to finish the last front piece, so her up and add a zipper.

Now I've saved the best for last. April wasn't all bad. I had some major furry therapy.


We got two new kittens! I'd like to introduce you to Cooper & Milo. Cooper is on the left, Milo on the right. This picture was taken by the breeder just before we got them. They're from different litters and even though they're only 11 days apart, Cooper is almost twice the size of Milo.

This is the day we brought them home.

Their first date with the groomer.






And ready for their closeups.




Jeff and I are having a lot of fun with them. It has been 16 years since I've had a kitten. I forgot how energetic and playful they are. It's good to have some furballs in the house again. It doesn't feel right without them. And I've discovered that they like yarn as much as I do! hee hee

Yarn Club Sign-ups Open

Sundara's Yarn Club is open for sign-ups! I've been very happy with the yarns and colors I received during the last session. I chose autumn for my color palette the first round. This time I'm choosing spring.

Life has been very busy here with sickness (I'm better now), out-of-town guests, baby showers, bar mitzvahs, kitten sitting, etc... I'll post soon with some knitting content.

Knit on!

The Reveal

I went to Stitches West last month and had a great time. This was my sixth year in a row and it gets better every year. I went with my mom, my MIL, Grace, and her friend Shirley. It was a fiber filled girls weekend!

I didn't take many pictures. Unfortunately, I was distracted. My mom came down with the flu the day after we arrived. It was bad. Poor mom. She didn't leave our room for the entire weekend! She missed out on everything. I felt so bad for her. There's nothing worse than being sick away from home. So I made sure she had medicine and food when she felt like she could keep it down. I checked on her often. When it was apparent that she wasn't going to feel well enough to go to the market before the weekend was over, she handed me money and asked, "Will you buy me some yarn?" (Mwaa-haa-haa-haa-haa)

Now some of you might remember that my mom missed Stitches last year because she was sick. Next year, she's getting a flu shot! I have to say that the Stitches staff were great about this situation. They gave her credit for her classes and events that she had paid for at the last minute, no problem. Great customer service!

I took two classes this year. Fair Isle Knitting with Fiona Ellis and the Joy of Steeks with Maureen Mason-Jamieson. I took the class with Fiona because I enjoyed the class I took last year with her. She has a great energy about her. I didn't learn anything new in this class though. I had taken a fair isle class last year. I thought this would reinforce what I had learned. The problem was that Fiona knits english style and holds both yarns in her right hand. I knit continental and learned to hold one color in each hand. So I practiced what I had learned last year. Practice is always a good thing. The steeks class was fun and I learned a lot. It was actually fun cutting my knitting...on a swatch, that is. I'm not so sure about a project I had spent a few months of my life knitting and then taking scissors to it. Maureen was a great teacher and very inspiring.

Here's a picture of the Bellman with 4 womens luggage and stuff the day we left.



Now onto the loot!

Koigu, anyone? I've been charmed by the Babette Blanket deisgned by Kathy Merrick. So I decided to start collecting Koigu for the project. Foxy Knits always has a great selection of Koigu solids at Stitches West, so that was on the top of my list. I'm making a girlie blanket for my future little girl (someday). I bought several shades of pink and pastels. I'm going to add two different shades of red (trust me on this), a neutral such as taupe and possibly a shade of purple. Here are some of my favorites from Ravelry: Baizou's Babette, Angie's Babette, Chatoune's Babette... There's more to look at. Twenty pages in fact. So if you have the time, it's fun to look at the different color combinations. Do you want to see a Koigu closeup?!


I thought so. :)

I also bought some alpaca from Honey Lane Farms.

The colorway is called Jelly. I resisted buying this last year, but couldn't resist two years in a row. I'm thinking about making a cardigan with a shawl collar.

Also on my list of things to buy was this design software program.


Cochenille's Garment Designer and Stitch Painter. This has been on my list for the past couple of years and I finally took the plunge. I didn't buy this because I want to start designing. I don't. But sometimes I'll have a specific idea of what I want to make with something in my stash and can't find a pattern that matches my idea. And this will be ideal for very simple sweaters. You just plug in your gauge, pick your silhouette along with details for the neck and sleeves and it gives you a pattern. It will be fun to play with.


Last, but not least, are my impulse buys.

Lace yarn! I'm lured by the lace ever since seeing the garments in person last year from Victorian Lace Today. They are stunning! All of these yarns are from the Yarn Place booth. From left to right we have Gentle in Dark Ruby. This yarn is 5% cashmere and 95% Australian Merino. Next is Heaven, which is 45% Tencel/55% Merino Wool. It's a very bright chartreuse like color. And it's cobweb laceweight! I don't know why, but I was drawn to it the whole weekend, so I bought it on the last day. And last is Touch which is 5% cashmere/10% tencel/85% merino wool. The color is called Wedgewood Blue. Someday, this will be a shawl for Grace. I let her pick out the color and told her the surprise will be when she gets it. Could be this year or next, for a birthday, mother's day or Christmas. All of these yarns are super soft! Maybe I'll focus on knitting lace this summer.

Stitches West did not disappoint this year and my mom has fully recovered. That's all for now. Next time I'll share some WIPs with you.

Oh Noro, how I love thee....

Just a quick post to prove that I'm still here. I cast on Shrugs & Kisses a couple of weeks ago. The yarn is Noro Kureyon color 185. This was a birthday gift from my MIL bought at Stitches West last year. I thought I should at least cast on before leaving for Stitches this year. I love the colors and how they gradually change from one to another. If it weren't for that, I'd be bored to tears of stockinette. I'm eager to finish the body of it so I can move onto the crocheted collar and bottom border. This is what it will look like (I hope):

It's going to have some competition for my attention soon. My knitting group is knitting the Lenore sock pattern and I have yet to cast on. I think I'm the last to cast on actually, so that will be happening very soon. And a dear friend of mine is having a baby in May. I just got notice that there will be a shower in April. I have a month to knit up a gift. Good thing I bought all of those kits for the Dream in Color Tulip sweater!

Stitches or Bust

Thank you for your condolences in regards to Nikko. It's been a very emotional week. Our home is not the same without him. I still find myself coming home from work and wanting to look for him like I've always done. It's going to take some time to get used to, but I know it will get better and Jeff and I are focusing on the great memories we have.

I finally have a picture of my nephews sweater!

I put the second picture in to show the cute reverse seams on the shoulder. It's a little big for him, so hopefully it will fit him next year as well. And he likes it!

Pattern: Simple Sweater w/Shoulder Seam Detail from Great Knits for Kids by Debbie Bliss

Yarn: Cascade 220 Superwash in Aqua Blue (this isn't the color name - I have to find the label but it's late and I'm tired)

Needles: Knit Picks Options size 6 (I think...I really should write this stuff down before I finish...)

Started: September 2007

Finished: January 2008

This was a super easy pattern to knit. And quick too! I finished the knitting by the end of October but didn't finish sewing it up until January. I love the shoulder seams and the rolled edges. I think Anthony looks my handsome in it. When I gave it to him he wanted to put it on right away. That's all the encouragement I need to make him more handknits!

I'm off to catch some z's. I'm leaving for Stitches West tomorrow. A little yarn therapy should make me feel better.

Sweet Valentine

Yesterday we lost our Nikko. He was 16.

I was very lucky to spend 16 wonderful years with him. He was extraordinary and will be greatly missed.

My heart is broken.

Yarn Parade! (aka Sundarafest)

Warning: This post has lots of photos.

As promised, I'm sharing my yarn acquisitions purchased during my recent blog hiatus.

But first, I have another FO to share!

Here, Mary and I show off our matching Shedir hats. That's Mary on the left, me on the right. Thanks Madge for taking the photos! : )

Here's a closeup from the back. I love how it turned out.

Project: Shedir hat
Yarn: Rowan Calmer in Plum
Needles: Brysoun 16" circulars size US 3
Start: January 15th
End: January 27th

And now....on with the show....

First up - Jeff and I went to Portland last October for the marathon. While we were there, I had to visit at least one yarn shop. I went to Knit Purl which is a very quaint shop in downtown Portland. They have a good variety of yarns to choose from, a beautiful wall of Koigu, a basement where classes are held and the staff was friendly without being overbearing. I didn't purchase a lot, but I did want to bring home some souvenir yarn. On the left is Artyarns Ultramerino 4 in color 139. The colors remind me of a lagoon. And since the colorway has no name, only a number, I think I'll name it Blue Lagoon. On the right is Shi Bui sock yarn in Rust. This was the first time I had seen Shi Bui in person. It has great sqwoosh-factor. Super soft. I'm thinking I'll make a pair of socks for Jeff with this.


Last year I was a member of Sundara's Petals Collection which has now transformed into the Seasons Yarn Club. The Petals Collection consisted of sock yarn. The Seasons Yarn Club is a variety of yarns and colors based on whichever season you choose. I chose autumn. Above is the second to last package from the Petals Collection. It's 100% Superwash Merino in Poppy. I personally have never seen a poppy this color. It's absolutely gorgeous. It's a deep, dark purple. Almost eggplant, but not quite. I might make the Lenore sock pattern out of this.

And last came Magnolia. It reminds me of cotton candy.


Our next float comes from the Seasons Yarn Club. It's 1,000 yards of silk lace. The color is Copper Over Bamboo. I plan on making a shawl or wrap. I'm just not sure which one. There are so many pretty patterns to choose from!

Next came Mossy, another skein of sock yarn.

And last, but not least, Bronzed Sienna, which has various shades of copper and a little brown mixed in. More socks!

I've been very pleased with the colors and quality of Sundara Yarn. I think I will probably sign up for the club again after this session ends. I'm going to pick a different season so that I'll have a new palette of colors. But it wasn't all Sundara.

Last summer I saw a post on the Yarn Harlot, which for some reason I can't link to the particular post, only the month of June. If interested, scroll down to June 5th. Then I saw this on The Panopticon. After months went by, I had a weak moment and followed this link to ThreadBear. Seriously. I couldn't decide which color combinations I like best. And this is what happened:




I was a little out of control! But this Dream in Color yarn is truly dreamy, let me tell ya. And now they have sock yarn....


Finally, I've been thinking about making Rogue for awhile now. As I was browsing on Ravelry one day, I saw a verison I loved made of Rowan Yorkshire Tweed. That was all the inspiration I needed. : )

Are you still with me? Thanks for hanging out. Until next time...

Ta Da!!!

I know I said in my last post that I would share yarn acquisitions with you, but the yarny goodness will have to wait. I have something even more exciting! Scroll down and be surprised...

Ladies and gents, may I present Pomatomus! Jeff and I were vacationing last week in Cabo San Lucas so I took them along for a photo shoot. This was taken from the balcony of our room. I was so excited to have finished these socks. I pranced around the house in them like Cinderella at the ball. Why am I so happy? Well...

#1 - It's an indication that I have my knitting mojo back.

#2 - They're my first pair of adult-sized socks.

#3 - I love them and they're pretty!

#4 - The pattern was fun to knit and kept me interested. I never got tired of knitting them. I was only eager to finish them because I couldn't wait to wear them.

#5 - It's a FO! I haven't turned out a FO since last summer (I think). Oh dear.

#6 - The Sock Bug finally bit. Socks are fun. And they feel so much better than store bought socks.

Pattern: Pomatomus Socks by Cookie A.
Yarn: Sundara's Blue Grape Hyacinth colorway
Needles: Knit Pick's Options DPNs US size 2 (2.75mm)
Start: August 2007
Finish: January 2008


I loved working with the Sundara yarn. It has a very nice feel to it while knitting and the finished fabric is soft and squishy. It's a good thing I like the yarn. Once you see my next post, you'll understand why.

I also finished my nephew's sweater. I just need to block it and then I'll have him model it for me.

My knitting group started a KAL for the Shedir hat on January 1st. The pattern can be found on Knitty. It was one of the fall surprises for that issue. I'm one of the last to finish but I'm making good progress and it's still January. I should finish in the next few days.

The stitch marker is from Zero Markers. I tried to get a close up of it, but my camera wouldn't cooperate. It's pink and purple with a fresh water pearl on the bottom. I've bought several sets of markers from this site. I consider it jewelry for my knitting. I'm using Rowan Calmer for the hat and I'm lovin' it. It's super soft. The hat is knitting up much faster since Mary showed me how to cable without a cable needle. Thanks Mary!

So January included a great vacation and lots of knitting. A good start for 2008!

And we're back.....

Happy New Year everyone!

Well, I've been a little bit absent, haven't I? Seeing that I haven't posted since September, it would take a novella to catch you up on the goings on around here, and quite frankly, it would be a boring read at that. So I'll spare you many of the details and suffice it to say that the holidays kicked me in the ass.

I work in retail, so for me, the holiday madness started in October with grand plans and preparation. And since I work in a cookware store, Thanksgiving is a huge holiday and we get busy earlier than most. By the time Christmas came around, part of me didn't care whether we celebrated or not. We did, of course. But the thought of picking up the phone and calling our family members and saying, "I'm sorry, but Christmas has been canceled over here. You'll have to make other plans. I'll be in hibernation for the day.", did cross my mind. I really felt like a grinch this year, which is so unlike me. I did manage to pull it together, however, and a good time was has by all . And in hindsight, I'm glad I didn't cancel on everyone. Next year I will try to do things differently so that the work demands don't effect my holiday spirit with friends and family. But I'll figure that out later. At this moment, I don't want to think about it.

Let's think about yarn, shall we? There was a little knitting going on here at the yarn addict's. Not a lot, but some.

Pomatomus

I started the second sock for the second time. The first time I had knit the ribbing and the 22 row pattern only to discover I had followed the wrong chart. Doh! That's the thing about knitting. Just when you think you know what you're doing (because you've already knit the pattern once before) it reminds you that you don't, that you need to stay focused. And so, I ripped and started again. I have one more pattern repeat and then I can turn the heel. I'm still enjoying the pattern and I'm eager to finish so that I can finally wear them. The finished sock is super comfy.

Simple Sweater

This is Anthony's birthday sweater. He's the big 2 now!

I started this Sept. 15th, the day the Yarn Harlot visited LA. I didn't blog about it and now it's such old news that I'll just say, if you ever have the opportunity to see her in person, do it. She's fabulously witty, funny and entertaining. Oh yeah, the sweater. I finished the knitting about a month later and began to sew it up. And then I got swept up into the holiday vortex and here it sits. I think I should rename it a Valentine Sweater rather than a birthday one. It's deja vu. I'll still shoot for his birthday to ensure it will be done by V-Day. ; )

The grey cable and rib sweater has been in timeout. I've finished the back, one side of the front and both sleeves. Just one more front to go.

So many near FOs and all I can think about is what project to cast on next.

I'm not going to make any resolutions. Only that I want to be better. A better blogger, better at finishing projects, better time management, etc.

Next post: yarn acquisitions!