Friday, December 31, 2010

Happy New Year and Year in Review


Here's two more FO's, the Holden Shawlette with beads on top and the Cabled Keyhole Scarf on the bottom.  I also finished a dog sweater for a co-workers dog and the two Pokemon hats for my nephew but haven't put pictures of them up yet.

My tally for 2010 is 37 items:

Vest - 2 for me
Baby Sweaters - 4 for gifts
Baby Hats - 3 for gifts
Adult Hats - 2 - the Pokemon hats for my nephew - he loved them
Scarfs - 5 - one for Red Scarf project, two gifts and 2 are waiting for new homes.
Socks - 4 - all for me, still a learning curve here.
Dog Sweaters - 2 - both were for a co-workers 2 dogs, one last January and one just done in December.
Leg Warmers - 3 - the gifts for a co-workers little girl and my hairdresser's two little girls.
Shawls - 12, 10 of which were for the 10 in 2010 group on Ravelry.

My sister and I went to WEBS yesterday and I bought fingering weight yarn for two Knitspot sweaters along with matching buttons.  My sister bought yarn for 2 ponchos.  We also both bought a pattern each.  We both had lists and we both bought what was on our lists.  That's a first for me, not buying whatever catches my eye but it was fun. 

I have three projects on the needles now, 2 are those infinity type scarfs and then a sweater that I only did 2 rows on.  I may have to rip the sweater tonight as every New Year's I look through my projects and rip what I am not going to finish.  I do want to make it though so I will have to think about it.

Happy New Years to all.  


Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Ten on Tuesday

The Ten on Tuesday Topic for 12/28 is 10 Intentions for the New Year.

At first I thought Carole would pick a topic to have to do with the recent Blizzard but my other guess was somtething with the new year.

1)  Lose weight
2)  Eat more vegetables
3)  Eat more fruit - Hopefully number 2 and 3 will help with number 1.
4)  Start exersizing - I bought a stepper sometime last year, need to set it up and start using it.
5)  Bring my spinning wheel upstairs and start spinning again.
6)  Knit a sweater for me.
7)  Knit more socks - I started out good with the Olympics and knit 4 pair last year and then stopped.  The
     Loopy Ewe has a new challenge going on and I am going to knit a pair of socks with cables.
8)  Be more social - either with friends (I tend to not like going out) or join a Stitch and Bitch or knitting
      night.
9)  Knit more from stash or go through it and donate what I will never use.
10)  Think more about my career and what I want it to be and work on achieving what I want.

Friday, December 24, 2010

Shh, Santa's coming

This was taken last December or January.  Some tinsel was left on the table and Kayla went right to sleep on it.  The kitties have been somewhat good so they are getting a few toys tomorrow, plus some kittie treats.

My nephew's hat was finished Thursday night.  I was working on the end at work on Wednesday when I looked at the picture I was trying to match.  My chart didn't resemble it at all.  The strange thing was that I had it perfect and then when I was looking at it on Thanksgiving weekend, I changed the whole chart.  Urrh, it was all wrong.  I spent Wednesday night working the chart back up and then worked on the rest.  The Cabled Key Hole scarf will eventually get done, probably by next week unless I whip though the rest tonight.

Presents are wrapped.  I did do a tiny bit of shopping yesterday on my way home from work, just a quick stop at CVS for some candy for my nephew and Dunkin Donuts for a Gift card for my niece.

My sister and I are planning a trip to WEBS on Sunday.  I have never been to their after holiday sale.  I usually only go Memorial day weekend after the MA Sheep & Wool festival.

I hope everyone has a safe, happy Holiday tomorrow.  Merry Christmas!

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Ten on Tuesday

The Ten on Tuesday topic for 12/21 is 10 Last Minute Gift Ideas.

1)  Store Gift Cards
2)  Restaurant Gift Cards
3)  Hand knit a hat - almost done with my nephew's hat number 2 - yarn above
4)  Knit a scarf - I hope to knit Knitspot's Keyhole Cable scarf
5)  Candy
6)  Pastries
7)  a Fruit Basket
8)  a plant
9)  Flowers
10)  Money

I'm all done except for the knitting but depending on what day the holiday falls, I used to go to the mall or a Kohl's and watch the people srambling to get their gifts bought.  I don't have any plans to do that this
year, see number 3 and 4 above.  Have to get at least the hat done, the scarf is an extra and I have yarn planned for 3 more of them.

Sunday, December 19, 2010

Collo Wrap

Here is my Collo Wrap.  I'm not sure I am going to keep it as is.  I may felt it into a cat bed.  I plan to make a new one on smaller needles, still in Bulky weight but I will add more stitches and not block it in the end.  The Lambs Pride Bulky really stretched when wet and I really didn't like it.  I may also have to slip the first stitch or something to make the ends look better.  I will research a little before I make the next one.  Maybe it will be my knitting camp project for next year as it is easy to do as long as there isn't a heat wave during knit camp.

My Holden Shawlette is done and now blocking.  I am plugging away on the Ruby Pokemon hat number 2 for my nephew.  Today's goal is to finish up the stranded color work band and then join it into the round for the plain white section which will become my work project.

I had lunch with a friend on Friday and gave her my Traveling Woman shawl.   She loves it.  Saturday, my sister and I went to two yarn shops and then the bead store.  I bought a few skeins for Knitspot's Cabled Keyhole Scarf and yarn for a pair or socks.  Plus, a set of stitch markers for me and a set for my sister for Xmas.  Otherwise, all my shopping was finished up on Friday.  I wrapped some work gifts today but haven't touch the family gifts yet.  Need to get the hat done first.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Ten on Tuesday

The Ten on Tuesday Topic for 12/14 is Ten Things On Your To-Do List.


1) Knit my nephew's Pokemon hat and hope my design works out.

2) Buy a gift card for my father.

3) Buy a gift card for my niece.

4) Find something else for my nephew.

5) Wrap gifts for co-workers and get their Xmas cards ready.

6) Wrap all the gifts for my family.

7) Get hair cut and deliver my hairdresser's gift (this was done after work today before I posted this tonight).

8) Have lunch with an ex co-worker (if not this week, the week after Xmas)

9) Get to Petco to see if I can find some more kitty presents.

10) Get through these last 7 work days till Holiday break. They are busy (my main co-worker is on vacation
       till January so I have her staff to support also) yet sometimes seem to drag.

Sunday, December 12, 2010

The last pair of legwarmers

Here's the last pair of legwarmers.  I am so glad to be done with these.  They weren't a hard knit just glad to be done.  The yarn is Plymouth Encore and the pattern was by Dancerella.  The Collo Wrap is also done and blocking.  I think I blocked it a little too big but that's ok.

Work knitting is still the Holden Shawlette.  Just have under 10 rows to do.  I have one more beaded row to go but that isn't going to be till Wednesday night and then I should have it done by the weekend.  I did the second to the last beaded row a little while ago as those are much easier to do at home than at work.  I hope to start hat number 2 for my nephew Tuesday night as I still want him to try on the first one just to see if the band isn't too big.  He didn't come over last Tuesday so now I will be rushing to finish it in time.

I still haven't touched Acer but I did cast on a 5th Avenue Infinity Scarf out of some Malabrigo Merino I had it the stash.  I went to the LYS yesterday to pick up some Naturespun that they had ordered for me and found 2 more skeins of the Malabrigo to make a hat and mittens.  I am going to have a different hat/scarf/mitten set for every day of the week the way I am accumulating yarn and putting it away in batches to make sets.

I plan to make a kitty bed with all the leftovers from my nephew's two hats.  That will be a mindless knit.  My sister finished the Fleece Artist moebius kit (without the fringe) in about 2 days.  I have to weave in the ends, block it if necessary and then add the fleece fringe.  It fits me so that is good.  My sister is now thinking about sweaters again so that should keep her busy.   I have her looking at yarn on-line to see all the different yarns out there.  I'm trying to talk her into a WEBS visit after Christmas.

Tuesday, December 07, 2010

Ten on Tuesday

The Ten on Tuesday Topic for 12/6 is 10 Favorite Holiday Shows.


1) The Grinch Movie

2) The Grinch cartoon

3) The Charlie Brown Christmas

4) I want a dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown

5) Nightmare before Christmas

6) The Santa Clause

7) The Santa Clause 2

8) The Santa Clause 3

9) Snow

10) A Christmas Story - not sure it's my favorite but it is on for a few hours while we open gifts with my sister and her kids. I actually bought my nephew a tshirt with a scene from the movie on it this year.

I'm sure their are others I might like more than some above but I just can't think of the names now. I have caught the Grinch cartoon version already this year.

Sunday, December 05, 2010

Traveling Woman Shawl

This is my Traveling Woman shawl out of Noro Silk Garden Sock.  Was an easy knit and fun to watch to see what color is next.

I am part way through the last legwarmer and hope to finish that up one night this week.  I am on the last ball of yarn for the Collo Wrap so that should be done in a few weeks depending on how much I work on it.  I am up to the lace on the Holden Shawl and plan to use beads in the lace section.  Not sure what I will be bringing to work tomorrow to knit.  I haven't touched Acer at all. 

My sister and I went out to a craft fair at a school yesterday and then went to two shops looking at Vera Bradley stuff.  My sister was away for work last week and called me on Friday from the airport Vera Bradley store as they were having a sale on some discontinued colors.  We spend a half hour on the phone going over them and I am getting 2 small items for Xmas, plus my mother is getting one, too.  Three of the colors I liked plus a color my mother has is now discontinued.  At the second store we went to, I bought myself 3 wallets in the discontinued colors to put away for me for the future.  We also went to a yarn shop that had it's re-opening after being flooded sometime last year, I think.  My sister got some yarn and already knit it up into a moebius in less than 24 hours.

I wound some yarn up today, some Malabrigo worsted to become an Infinity Shawl.  I guess my sister knitting all those moebius scarves has rubbed off on me though the one I am planning has no twist.  I gave her yarn from my stash for two more today, one was a Fleece Artist kit that I had to have after seeing it on the Yarn Harlot's blog.  I had started it and hated it and ripped it out so now she has cast it on already.  The other was some angora blend I had.  Felt good to actually move some of the stash out of the house.  The other yarn I wound was for the Pokemon hat number 2 for my nephew.  Hat number 1 is done and I don't like it but will have my nephew try it on Tuesday to see if I need to use less stitches for number 2.