Let's see..

what have I been up to?



I have been working on a deadline secret project, so no pictures there. I got assigned another secret project, so no pictures there - this one is from a new company, so I am now working for two knitting companies. I got an email offer (mass mailing list, thing, not to me, personally), and I had to MAKE myself press delete. Too many deadline work projects does not make a knitter-for-enjoyment girl happy.



Other projects are pretty much a pair of socks that I am making for a now-former co-worker. I wanted them to be done before I left, but I thought yesterday (Friday, the 30th) would be my last day, and I have two deadline projects to do. I gave her one sock on what ended up being my last day, and the promptly took it back, so I could compare it with the second sock.








We have a wedding reception to go to tonight, so I will bring these and hopefully make some progress.



I also have a scarf to make for ISE4. I bought the stuff, but haven't cast on.






The yarn is ShiBui Merino Alpaca in Mulberry. The pattern is a Basket Lattice Cap from O~wool.



A couple of weeks ago, I got my hair straightened.



Before





After (I wish I had software to delete my face from this picture, so you could just see my hair.)

My friend did it. She is going to school, so as soon as she can, she is going to trim the ends, get some of that bulk out of there, and give me back my acrylic nails. I am SOOOO excited!! (contrary to what I look like in that picture).



This will be a crazy month, but lots of potential knitting time. First, Easter. Then the next weekend, my DH and I get to go out of town all by ourselves for free! I don't usually care for the idea of a B&B, but free is a very good price, and my DH and I REALLY need the time! So, we are driving two hours to go to this B&B. I just called them yesterday and got some good news/bad news. I think it is good news, my DH, when I tell him, will think it is bad news - no TV, which means more knitting time for me, but TV is a BIG DEAL for him, so we will probably bring a 13" and a DVD player. We have a few we haven't watched, yet.

The weekend after that, is a Shop Hop. So we will be driving around town. The thing takes place from 9-5, so although we will be getting on and off the bus, and going in and out of five stores, that is still lots of knitting time.

Then, at the end of the month, we have a(nother) wedding to go to in Waldport, Oregon - about a three hour drive. The boys are going to be the ring bearers. This means we have to be there by 1 on Friday. The wedding is around 2:30. They have to go to the rehearsal, and be early to the church and... Which means lots of down time for me - known to KNITTING TIME for us non-muggles.

The very next day (Sunday), Malik is going to Outdoor School for a week. He will be back on Friday. Saturday the 28th when we will be at the wedding, is Malik's 12th birthday, so we will do his party on May 5.

I believe that is enough for now!

Progress

I took some pictures today of my recent progress. The white item in the pics is a business sized envelope for scale.

Here is the first glove, done but no ends wove in.

I have a bit of Second Glove Syndrome...


The (really wrinkled) back of Ribby Cardi.

The left front.

The right front.

Most of sleeve #1

The back of Malik's Sweater.

Close-up of the detail.

So far on the front.

Just for grins, here is Malik,

DeAndre', and

Ayanna after she decided her noodles belonged in her hair.

Ayanna's ears

I have done LOTS of knitting, but the only thing I have pictures are of Ayanna's ears after she got them pierced (again) this weekend. I don't even get to get credit for getting the pictures, as my sister took them on her camera phone. Again means they closed up after the last time. She was okay with it. We set her up to have a french fry AS SOON AS SHE WAS DONE, so she wouldn't cry for too long. Also, there was a guy there who had a dog with him, so we set it up so she could see the dog as soon as she was done, too.

Knitting news would include: finishing the first front of Ribby Cardi and about half of the second front. Finishing about half of the front for Malik's sweater, and Finishing the wrist portion of Marcus' glove #2.

I have some good news. I knit some things for Knit Picks for them to put on the website and/or for publication in the catalog. They are now available on the website.

The first thing I knit for them, I didn't take a picture of, but I knit this hat.

The second thing I knit for them, I didn't actually knit, but I assembled it. Pig. Here is the picture of the pig on my desk waiting to be put in a box:

Goals:

Avast (DAMN ZIPPER)

Second front of Ribby Cardi

Front of Malik's sweater

Hand of Marcus' glove

Get started on a new paid project

Blogiversary

I keep forgetting. December 9, 2004 - this blog is already two years old - my how time flies!!!

Ayanna's birthday was great! She got presents and cake. She was soo tired, but you certainly couldn't tell - she was having so much fun! I will try to pick some decent pics, most of them are awful!

Malik was in a concert at school on December 14. It was a Beginning Band concert - 6th grade. He liked it. It was good.

That is Malik standing

Christmas was good. I got a bonus at work on Friday, so Saturday we went Christmas shopping. We also saw Santa.

I gave dad his sweater without zipper. I got some advice against the zipper I bought, so I bought a new one on Tuesday. I plan on installing it this weekend.

Post, please post...

I keep trying to add pictures to this post, but for some reason Blogger won't let me. So, I have three more pictures with actual knitting content, but you don't get to see them in this post.

So, here is what I have...

Knitting Content:

I am working steadily on Avast. I really LOVE this yarn!!! It is Bartlett Yarns. It smells like wool, and you can feel the lanolin in it. I have a problem, though. I think my dad won't wear it much. It is wool, and you have to be careful with wool, and I made it, and he doesn't want it to wear out. I think I might have to get on him about that.



I have progress pictures to show you of a Christmas Stocking and a top-down sweater. Also, I have a picture of the cable in Avast. These are the ones I am having trouble with.

Knitting Content over.

Malik is in Cross-Country. They had their first (of three) meet last week. He forgot to bring shorts, so he was running 2000 meters up and down hills with no warm-up in cords. He walked A LOT, and he didn't get first place.


That is him in the white shirt and pants.


A couple of weeks ago, Miss Thing got her first tooth. Her second one broke through yesteday, but I don't have a picture of it, yet.



This is her daddy sharing his twinkie with her:



More later!

PS: I forgot to mention. I got a comment last week from ??? (Sorry, if I have to stop and look at my email, I might not press Publish). She said to me that she is surprised I have time to knit at all. I make time to knit. I knit and walk, I knit in church, I knit at games, I knit while DH drives, I knit anytime traffic stops (including red lights). I am fully addicted, and even if it is just one stitch, I knit. I tried to email you directly, but I didn't have your address. Thanks for reading.

Malik Fall 06

So, at the new job, the technology is a bit behind my old job. We don't have a color scanner here. Therefore, here is Malik's school picture B&W. He doesn't like it. We may be signing up for retakes.

Life sure is crazy

Busy, still.

Let's see. I have a sleeve and a half to finish on the top-down sweater, but it is asisde for the time being, because Avast is getting there, although it is 218 stitches across, but I am in my second ball of Bartlett Yarns, so, getting there slowly, but surely. Also, I decided I need to pick up my Christmas stockings if they are to be done on time. I am half way done with #2 of 5. They go pretty fast, but when I did the first one, I discovered something about my Fair Isle. I am a TIGHT Fair Isle knitter! So, with #2, I only hold one yarn at a time, and knit both with my right hand. Much better now. However, I have two projects OTN that I do not want to pull out but aren't going to be the right size. DAMN!!

I joined Socktoberfest (like everyone else in the blogiverse). I have my Hederas that are sitting one leg half done. They just mock me. I don't think I like lace patterns much. It is too much work for my life right now, maybe. I need "easier" knits (cables on Avast, Fair Isle on Stockings don't count as hard - I can "see" it better) at this point in my life. So, my Soctoberfest projects are Christmas stockings, Hedera, and my DH a pair. In that order.

My Socktoberfest questions are:

• When did you start making socks? Did you teach yourself or were you taught by a friend or relative? or in a class?

I joined an online group with instructions very SIMPLY laid out. There were “lessons” - Parts 1 through (I think) 6. The socks were knit with worsted weight on size 6 needles. It was good.

• What was your first pair? How have they "held up" over time?

My first pair were made with some stash yarn that I only had one ball of – green worsted weight Encore. Note to self: do not choose acrylic next time!

• What would you have done differently?

Not used acrylic. Walking on acrylic knit socks is like having a bunch of pins on the bottom of your feet. No matter, I learned, and it worked.

• What yarns have you particularly enjoyed?

No real preference

• Do you like to crochet your socks? or knit them on DPNs, 2 circulars, or using the Magic Loop method?

Can’t crochet to save my life. I have exclusively knit on DPN’s, but have the books to learn 2 circulars and Magic Loop – just haven’t used either of them.

• Which kind of heel do you prefer? (flap? or short-row?)

I don’t even know what I use. What does Ann Budd’s book use?

• How many pairs have you made?

Um…one for step-dad, one for son #1, one for son #2, three for me (if you include first ever pair), now working on 5 Christmas stockings – done with one, half way through another. How many pairs is that. Oh, also started another pair, that is stalled.

I also joined My first toe-ups, so I guess that I will do DH socks toe-up. That is probably not the best choice, just because he has such big feet, but I'm not going to start another pair.

As I have said before, HOMEWORK SUCKS!!! Malik (and I) were up until 10:30 or 11 last night doing homework that should have taken him 30 minutes! Plus, he is in middle school this year, and he is in CONSTANT trouble!!! AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!!!!

Well, I guess I will press "publish" so I can have a post this month.

Sorry for the delay

School started, soccer started, football started, my DH started a new, slightly later schedule, etc, etc. Life has been hectic, hence no time to post.

Big non-knitting item of note: I wanted to get Ayanna something that would help her walk. Malik had one when he was little:


I couldn't really call around to see if anyone had one, because how do you ask for a "Walker" on the phone without someone thinking of the kind of thing a child sits in and walks? Monday when I dropped her off at daycare, they had one. I made sure she saw it so she could play with it. So, last week one day after work we went to Toys R Us and got her this. She loves it!!





Since I have been gone, I have been knitting.

For my birthday, I got a $50 gift certificate to a LYS. I got the gift cert on Saturday, September 9. The LYS is really close to my church, so I looked through all my patterns and most of my magazines on Saturday night and Sunday morning hoping to find a sweater for my dad. I found nothing. Looked at the LYS for a pattern for him - nothing. Then I got to work Monday morning, Knitty showed up in my in box with a perfect pattern - Avast! I was soo excited!! I went to the LYS at my lunch and spent the whole g.c. plus an additonal $6 to get the required amount of Bartlett Yarns. I really like working with this yarn. It smells like wool. It has some lanolin still in it. Anyway, I cast on for the cable on...um...maybe the 12th. I finished the cable on the bottom and up a couple of inches. I had to stop there, because I hand made the ball of yarn out of a hank. I hate doing that, so Sunday I will take the remaining hanks to the LYS for winding. Then I will be on my way.

I am done with the body of Malik's top down sweater from the pound of yarn I got for $7.50. I started it on September 10! - However, it doesn't fit Malik very well (which I thought maybe), so it is now for DeAndre'. Now just the sleeves.

I have tried to post this a few times, and always get interrupted.

Here you go, finally!