photos – Page 5 – Enchilada Sunrise

SP11 Package #1! :-D

So! My first SP11 package came! …. A week and a half ago. I’m a bad blogger and totally failed to post about it til now, but I did email my pal and gush a lot. *g* Also… I now, totally accidentally, know who she is! It’s because (a) she’s on my blogroll and Ravelry friends-list, (b) she really doesn’t live very far away from me, so even though all she put for a return address was a postcode, I recognised which town it was…. and (c) my suspicions were aroused because her real name was written on the little card that came with the scrummy hand-painted yarn she’d got me. So I asked her, and yes, it turns out she’s Janey. It’s kind of hilarious, because I was having such fun with the mystery aspect – not that knowing who she is has spoiled anything. But it’s fairly ironic that all those factors came together like that and gave it away. *g* Especially since I’m a relative newbie to the knit-blogging community and don’t know all that many people!

But anyway, on to the best bit: the PRESENTS! *mercenary* ;-)

I like the anticipation almost as much as the opening them up, so I took the box into my bedroom and sat on the bed to open it. When I opened it up, the gifts inside were beautifully wrapped in purple tissue paper and ribbon. So I carefully prodded them for a little while, and then took them out of the box and laid them on the bed…

Oooooo, exciting! Then there was some more prodding, and eventually, I started opening them. *g* Of course, the Xandermog had to come and investigate.

But there wasn’t anything edible for him, so he soon lost interest ;-) So, what did I get?

From the back: Thorntons fudge (omg yum: that didn’t last long!!). A wibbly-wobbly pen… because it has purple hair and therefore made Janey think of me! Thorntons strawberries and cream toffee (once again, yum!). Two balls of Debbie Bliss SoHo, because she’d noticed I haven’t yet tried any felting projects – and I do want to, so yay! A skein of gorgeous black and purple hand-painted sock yarn from Gemini Knits. A dinky little sheep notepad (cute!). A set of 2.5mm Brittany birch DPNS!!! An absolutely charming book of sheep pictures and verse. And last but certainly not least (except in size *g*), three of the cutest little sheep stitch markers in the WORLD. As you can see, they’re tiny – they’re for small needles too, so perfect for sock knitting. Yay! So here’s bigger pic of them. Look at their little faces!

Isn’t that awesome? I don’t know what I love the most… the yarn, the sweets, the stationary / sheepy things are all brilliant, and the sock yarn just couldn’t be better colours for me! But I think perhaps the adorable stitch markers, and the DPNs which were on my mental luxury wishlist (and which I admit, I’ve spent an awful lot of time just stroking!) have to come out on top. Just! Janey, you’re the best pal ever – THANK YOU!! :-D

To Frog or Not To Frog?

… That is the question. The other question is, hey where did the last week disappear to? Bzuh?? I know I was quite busy, but I didn’t realise it had been that many days since I posted last. Whoops! My Secret Pal package did arrive on Monday as expected, and yay, it’s awesome! But I’ll babble about that more in a separate post, because I haven’t uploaded the photos yet.

What I am going to babble about now is my frogging dilemma. See, I’m about 10-15% into my Forest Canopy Shawl, and it’s very pretty and all. But I’m not quite sure that Eva is the best yarn to use for it. It’s gorgeous and shiny, but it hasn’t got as much elasticity as an all-wool yarn, which means that the sl1 k2tog psso decreases look a little baggy. I’ve hibernated it anyway until I’m done with my Christmas knits, so I was thinking that maybe I should rip it. Because it also occurred to me that Eva would make the most beautiful Clapotis…

I know, I know: everyone and their dog / cat has already made a Clapotis, and I’m the last person in the world to jump on this particular bandwagon. You know, I wasn’t even particularly enamoured of the pattern until I started thinking how well Eva would suit it. And suddenly, it clicked for me. Well, I’m late to everything else, why not this too? It really would show off the yarn soooo well. As for the Forest Canopy? Well, I have a skein of PY Emily in some lovely shades of green that strikes me as rather… forest-y. Is that too predictable? I think it’ll look good, though, and I like green. So there ;-) Plus, I’m pretty sure that it’ll knit up better Emily. My other choice would be YY Merino, or possibly Sock, but I don’t have a colour in either of those that I want to use for the shawl, unless I used the YY August club yarn. But I have that earmarked for a particular sock pattern, so I don’t think I will.

I have another frogging dilemma as well, although this one is less of a real dilemma. A couple of years ago, I started knitting a zip jacket that was actually a man’s pattern by Debbie Bliss featured in Simply Knitting mag. Well, I say I started knitting it. I went out and bought the yarn (a substitute, but pretty well identical: Sirdar Denim Sport Aran instead of Debbie Bliss Denim Aran), and cast on. Aaaaaand that’s as far as I ever got! I spose I was distracted by other things (this was right before Dad’s accident) and somehow I never picked it up again. And then, in the most recent issue of Knitty, I saw Mr Greenjeans. Ooooooo, I thought. I like that! My first idea was that I could maybe use some Jaeger Matchmaker Merino Aran that I have lurking in my stash for it – it’s a lovely dark green colour, and I’ve been wanting to find something to use it for for ages. But when I double-checked, I don’t have enough of it. D’oh!! (One of these days, I might pick up some complementary yarn and make a Tubey with it. That would be nice.) So I kind of figured I’d have to give up on the idea of that cardigan for a while, until it suddenly struck me that I have that Denim Sport Aran sitting around not being knitted. Was I really ever going to knit the zip jacket? Probably not. So I think I’m going to use that yarn for the Mr Greenjeans instead. The only thing that’s vaguely bothering me is that I’m not 100% sure the yarn is actually very me. Will I wear a blue denim-effect cardi? Oh, I spose I will. I could think of it as work clothing! At-the-computer attire. After all, it won’t show the cat hair as badly as all my black clothes do. *g*

I spose that’s decision made, then. Zip jacket thing: Frog, and re-purpose the yarn as a Mr Greenjeans. Forest Canopy: Probably frog, re-purpose the yarn as a Clapotis, then re-start with the green PY Emily. Hoorah! (This isn’t helping my startitis any, you know….)

Gratuitous Catspam! (And SP11 things)

The cuteness of Xander... follow the link to the photo album to see the full sized version

Xandermog! So! Cute!!

In SP11 news, I’ve been having lots of fun. Both my upstream and downstream pals are lovely (*waves to Miss.Teri*) and I’m told that my first package should be with me tomorrow. *bounce* I really hope my downstream pal likes her package. I really did enjoy putting it together, though I felt like I should have put something handmade in… but then I had a last minute brainwave and put a little something together. :-) There are a couple of other things that sort of count, too, and I do have plans for the next two parcels. I don’t really do any handicrafts other than knitting, so that kind of limits me there. But my plan is to play to my strengths – I may not be able to sew well, or anything, but there are creative things I can do. Like, um, stuff. And things. Oh well, I’m sure I’ll think of something! But like I said, I’m happy with the first parcel so with a bit of luck my pal will be too. :-)

Now, I shall go back to knitting, and plotting parcel no.2. Mwahahahah….

The elephant sneezed and fell on his knees, but what became of the monkey monkey monkey monkey…

I’m listening to / watching the Last Night of the Proms at the mo. Ah, Last Night, I luff you! One of these days I’ll actually go in person. I’ve actually been a completely rubbish Prommer this year and not been to a single one. I was just too broke to get up to London. Next year! I’m determined. I’ve enjoyed listening on the radio and catching the odd one on telly, but it’s not the same as being in the Hall yourself. I’ve loved the Albert Hall since I first sung there when I was 10. There’s just no atmosphere like it for me. It’s my all time favourite concert hall in the world, no contest. Even the Sydney Opera House, fabulous as it is, just doesn’t have the same emotional attachments I guess. So yes. Go the Proms!

*break while I sing along to Jerusalem*

But what I was originally going to post about was my Monkey socks. I finished them! I like them lots. They’re all comfy too. I’m gradually getting faster at the knitting of socks – I spose it’s more that I’m picking the sock up to knit it more often rather than physically knitting them faster.

Did I mention that the foot was way faster than the leg? I think I did. I ended up with quite a lot of yarn left over – maybe even a third of a ball. Anyway, here they are:

Wearing my Monkeys (larger version in the photo album)

Continue reading “The elephant sneezed and fell on his knees, but what became of the monkey monkey monkey monkey…”

Die Wolle!

Also! Ich kann nicht gut Deutsch spreche, aber wolle ich für einer blog Eintrag es versuchen. Ich habe aus BockstarkKnits einen Preis gewinnt! (And really, me writing this in German is silly, since the fab Kris who runs the site is actually an American expat.) Letze Samstag, es kam mit der Post: eine handgemacht strickendes Projekt Tasche, und ein schön Strang das grün Sockenwolle. Klasse!
So, yeah, if you didn’t get that, or are still in hysterics over my crappy grammar (please feel free to correct me, because I know I’m rubbish but I’m trying to re-learn!), what I’m trying to say is that I won this fabulous sushi-pattern handmade project bag and a skein of German indie-dyed yarn (from Tausendschön) in Kris’ last competition on her site. They arrived in the post last Saturday (yes, I know, I’m slow at posting about it!), and I love them :-) So hey, here’s a photo:

I love the contrasting lining of the bag… and it’s kinda cool to have a fishy one, because woe, I can’t eat sushi (or any kind of seafood) because I seem to be allergic to it. But at least now I can look at it! Also, check out that lovely green yarn. I don’t know if Kris knew this before she sent it, but I loooove green, and this is a particularly yummy shade.
So in conclusion – yay! Thank you Kris! Vielen Danke!

Purple Opal Magic Socks

Ahh, my first socks! Aren’t they fab? I don’t remember exactly why I decided to knit a pair of socks – whether it was just the next thing I wanted to try, or if I saw the yarn and fancied having a crack at it. I do know that my friend Char was with me, and she’s a sock knitter. So she definitely had some hand in the proceedings! *g*
Anyway, we were in the Battle Wool Shop (an L-ishYS) and with help from Char and the lovely ladies who work there, I picked out this yarn and a set of 2.5mm DPNs, and was given Sue Morgan’s Simple Sock Pattern pattern free with the purchase. I went for this because, well, there wasn’t a lot of sock yarn available – what there was was either completely plain, or the Opal or Regia self-striping. Or at least, I think so – there might have been some more expensive yarn there at the time, but I wasn’t looking for that – I wanted to go for something that would stand up to my novice sock-knitter efforts! Anyhow, I know they do have Lana Grossa and Trekking in the shop now as well as Opal and Regia, and I’m not 100% sure what else. If they have handpainted lines, it might live with the other expensive yarn on the other side of the shop, and I haven’t looked over there recently – too much temptation!
But I digress. So there I was with my new sock making supplies…. but I can’t remember now if I cast on straight away or not. The picture on your right was taken in November 04, at any rate.
I knitted that first sock in fits and starts. The leg took quite a long time, though I was enjoying watching the pattern manifest itself. Then I blitzed the heel and foot gusset overnight in late December (pic below). The foot, again, took quite a while, and once I’d completed that toe, I have a feeling that the whole project hibernated for some time before I cast on for its pair.
Again, the second one was done in bits and pieces, but then in winter 05/06 I picked it up again and worked steadily until I was done! Whee!
More pictures are under the link!

Continue reading “Purple Opal Magic Socks”

Forest Canopy

I can’t quite remember if I’ve mentioned this here yet, but I have cast on my Forest Canopy Shawl. This isn’t the best photo – it wasn’t good light and for some reason I couldn’t get the focus. Maybe I should have zoomed in or something? Anyway! What you can see here is about half of the set-up section of the lace pattern. I’ve now completed the set-up section and I’m about to start the first body repeat.
Project stats:
Pattern: Forest Canopy Shoulder Shawl by Susan Lawrence.
Yarn: Posh Yarn Eva 4-ply (55% silk, 45% cashmere) in Tuscany.
Needles: 4.5mm (bamboo straights for now, to change to a circular when it gets wider)
I’m actually kind of confused about this pattern. Not about the knitting of it as such – the pattern looks straightforward enough in terms of knitting the stitches. But it’s the construction of the shawl that’s stumping me. It’s not making sense in my head. You see, the pattern describes it as a “top-down” shawl. To me, the top of a shawl is the widest part, the edge that goes across the shoulders. Am I mistaken? Because the shawl starts out with… um… I’ve forgotten how many, but only a few stitches for the cast on, and then you increase from there. That would indicate to me that I’m knitting from the bottom point upwards.
I would have just assumed I’d got confused with what top-down meant. But. When you’ve knitted the desired number of pattern repeats, it then tells you to knit the border along the bottom edge and follow the directions to get the scalloped cast-off, etc etc. It doesn’t say anything about casting off the top edge and picking up along the bottom. Yet, if I’m starting with a pointy bit….. argh! Perhaps I’m missing something vital about the shape of the shawl because I haven’t yet started knitting the main pattern. I know I’m not knitting from a corner, either, because I’ve got the centre stitch right where it should be for knitting directly up or down.
Can anyone give me any clues? Anyone? Help?

Fetching so far

Fetching is progressing nicely, and it’s an absolute pleasure to knit. I have found the cables a bit more fiddly that others that I’ve done in the past, for some reason, but it is a nice straightforward little pattern, and is coming out beautifully. And as you can see, the Posh Yarn Sophia 6-ply (in Mute) looks utterly scrummy.
FYI, the project stats are:
Pattern: Fetching by Cheryl Niamath, from Knitty (Summer 06).
Yarn: Posh Yarn Sophia 6-ply (100% cashmere) in Mute.
Needles: Set of 5 4mm DPNs.
I’m now, by the way, further up than shown in this pic – I’ll take another one when I’m significantly more along with it.
But for right now… I think I’m going to stretch my legs around the flat a bit, and get something to eat. Which reminds me, I wanted to make a shout-out to my lovely encouraging monitor, Lisa – thank you for your support! And I wish I could go and get some fresh air, but it’s ‘orrible and rainy, and 3am, so I guess that’ll have to wait til the morning. Food first, some stretches, then a shower. That’ll do me for now.

Organisation

It’s quite funny really. I’ve known for ages that I’m going to be doing this today, but now it’s here, I’m horribly disorganised. I’d had every intention of clearing my desk, deciding exactly what I was going to use from my stash and getting it all out in a neat pile (or something), cooking food to eat well in advance, and so on. But no! I’m no more organised than I am on a normal day. Which is to say, not at all.
Oh well.
What shall I knit first?
Or should I call a taxi and go for those camera batteries?
Help?

Damnit!

I’m an idiot: I forgot to get new batteries for my camera, and it has indeed died just as I was about to upload my photos. I’m going to have to make a dash to the shops. I wonder if I can make it there and back in 30 minutes? It’s times like these I regret not having my car any more!
Perhaps I’ll have a quick poke into the MT settings and see if I can post by email from my mobile phone while I’m out, or something…