ok, no pictures.

which is sad, i know, but this isn't about pictures.

1) the damn sleeves of the Espresso sweater have proved to be one big errata, which might be me, but i doubt it. the website for the book already shows there was a mistake in the measurement of the schematic. needless to say, i hit the maximum width somewhere around my elbow. i'm now contemplating unravelling the entire sleeve back and employing Calculus (gasp!) to calculate rise over run and to see where my increases should be. so the sleeves are moving to the side and i'll do the collar.

2) the puncture wound is healing nicely. there was a little bit of a blip when the doctor decided he needed to make sure that there wasn't an abscess (about 2 inches of the needle went into my, um, buttock). and that hurt a bit.

but nothing like the tetanus shot i had to get. no, my knitting needles aren't rusty (that's not the only time you need a tetauns shot). i got the damn shot of friday, today is the first day that i can lift my arm above my shoulder and the site of the injection is still hot and red. and i haven't slept on my left side in 2 nights and i'm getting sort of cranky.

i'll let you all know when i've managed to figure out the damn sleeves.

you know its going to be a bad day

when the first thing you do after waking up is sitting on a knitting needle and puncturing yourself.

can i go back to bed?

temptation

now, i know what i said. i really need to concentrate on the Espresso sweater so that it will be ready for Rhinebeck (5 weeks, baby!!). i know i was going to stay loyal and not stray to another project.

i broke.


Interlocking Leaves from the fall issue of Knitty. its been a while since i really loved anything from Knitty, but i fell in love with these at first glance.

and of course, i pulled out the malabrigo sock yarn i got from Glenna (who just scored some more crack yarn.

don't worry, i'm still working on Espresso. The back and the left front are done, the right front is in progress. it will be done in time for rhinebeck.

as will my socks. and that's all that will be on my needles until both are done.

*fingers crossed*

oh what a beautiful morning!

its really lovely in NYC right now. fall is absolutely on its way. warm during the day, cool at night and soon it will be comfy to be in my hand knits all the time.

in that vein, i have 2 new FOs! woot! and both are absolutely in preparation for Rhinebeck which is less than 5 weeks away (and I really need to get cracking on those plans, huh?)

anyway, first up we have a pair of Yummy Mummy Wristwarmers. I had gotten so sick of stockinette that they were a needed respite and i was so happy to have something intricate to play with. the nice part is that in doing this pattern, i finally figured out how to know which way to cross cables without looking at the chart, and that's a nice little shortcut to know.






i also finished the Embossed Leaves socks and I loved doing this pattern. This was the first time I used Koigu for socks and i love the feel of it. I can totally see why people freak out about this stuff! Its the Koigu i bought in SF and i'm happy i have one skein left although i have no clue what i'm going to do with it. But that can be decided later.






and then there is the lovely Espresso Cardigan from "A Fine Fleece". I'm making it out of the Malabrigo Worsted that i picked up in SF. I'm really, really happy with how well the stitch definition is showing up. So far the back and half of one of the fronts is done. And since I'm done with the wristwarmers and the socks, i'm going to concentrate on the sweater b/c i'm absolutely wearing that to rhinebeck. and since its a cardigan, if its as hot this year as it was last year, i can take it off to cool down when i need to (please don't let it be in the 70s this year! that's just wrong for October!).

Here are some of the in progress shots.

The back, with the small cable detail at the base.



And one of the fronts.



and the cable detail:




And in yarny goodness news, 2 weeks ago (i know, i really should post more), Martha came down to NYC for an actual vacation (gasp!) and consented to be my yarn mule. Glenna had picked up one of the few skeins of Malabrigo Sock Yarn in existence and sold one to me and sent it down with Martha. And as a thank you for letting her stay (silly girl, there is never a need for a thank you, if my apartment were bigger, i'd have people over all the time so that i can entertain them), Martha brought me a skein of STR in the Lettuce Knit colorway. So basically one of my favorite yarns in a color way that is a nod to one of my favorite yarn stores. gotta love it!

aren't they pretty! the top is the STR, the bottom is the Malabrigo. loves them ever so much!




now, to decide what to do with them. after i'm done with the Espresso sweater.

lazy days of summer

well, i'm officially bored with my summer vacation. luckily, august has not been so hot that i want to die, so i've been able to continue knitting.

and so i have a few FOs to show!!!

BSG socks! well, sock. Made with the "Eye of Jupiter" yarn from Sereknity



but the best part is the heel! Eye of Jupiter, indeed!



I used the RPM pattern from Knitty.com to do the swirls on the foot and leg and then just inserted an afterthought heel and basically knit a toe with a decrease pattern that resembles a star. love it!! but i had a case of Second Sock Syndrome, so right now its only one sock. I probably should do the other before Rhinebeck ;)

Speaking about Rhinebeck, i finished a perfect fall sweater. I did the Hourglass Sweater from Last Minute Knitted Gifts in Malabrigo Worsted in Cabernet and its as rich and comforting as a glass of red wine.



And one more summer knit. This one was thrown together from 2 separate patterns from Knitting Lingerie Style. I might even wear it to dinner or drinks this week!! The yarn was the Hana silk yarn I purchased at Artfibers in SF. It has the most incredible drape and sheen to it, it almost glows. And I look really good in navy, so this color was an excellent choice for me.



And finally, from my Socks that Rock club membership, a cute pair of socks. While I tend to love pastels, I don't love them all jumbled into one skein like a tub of sherbert, but I loved the pattern used and have actually enjoyed the way the yarn looked once it was knit up. So another happy FO!



Now I'm working on a quick pair of wrist warmers with cables, the Espresso sweater from "A Fine Fleece" (easily one of my favorite knitting books although it intimidates me horribly), and thinking of doing Elizabeth Zimmerman's Baby Sweater on 2 Needles. Pictures of those will come soon.

But now I leave you on this August day with a picture of the other resident of the house, being his usual lazy self. Precious little thing, isn't he?

less than a month later!!!

woot! i managed to post less than a month after my last post!!!

well, the job search has commenced, mostly b/c i've mostly finished working on the apartment and am starting to get bored. and when i get bored, i get mopey. and then downright morose. ergo, job search.

but in the meantime, i've been doing some knitting. now, if you were expecting photographic evidence of said activity, you are doomed to disappointment.

mostly b/c i was too busy taking pictures of my stash!

actually, more like pictures of stash management. previously, all my yarn was shoved willy-nilly into plastic bins and while it was all nice and safe from evil moths and such, it was not the best way to have an idea of what i possessed. which led to a massive amount of yarn shopping when i felt i had NOTHING to knit with.

Before: Neat, but unorganized



During: Uncontrolled Chaos



After: Order restored



categories include- 1 skein, Remainders, Fair Isle, Bulky, Cotton, etc. And Sock Yarn. There is A LOT of sock yarn.


sadly, i had a massive allergy attack during the cleaning. i've been tested for dust mites, etc, but i'm starting to become a wee bit nervous that i may be allergic to fibers given off by the myriad variations of yarn i have in my collection.

so how do you explain to your NYC allergist when you have to call and ask "can we check and see if i'm allergic to sheep?" that could get me some funny looks, i'm thinking

oh, i just give up

yeah, its been 2 months since i updated this blog. i give up on making promises to update once a day/week/month/year. i'm letting go of the guilt (sort of).

well, the biggest news is that in the last 3 weeks, I quit my full time job. a bunch of small things just avalanched into issues that I no longer wanted to deal with and I realized that my ability to go anywhere in the company was limited. therefore, it was time to leave and re-evaluate.

so what have I been doing?

knitting :)

first off, knee socks!!!



and an in-progress shot



these were cool b/c i did an afterthought heel, which was necessary b/c i only had so much of the main yarn color and I didn't want to waste it on a heel flap. so you just knit a tube, pick up a bunch of stitches and basically knit another toe! worked so well that the BSG socks will follow a similar vein!

the yosemite sweater is finished! i made the sleeves longer. it looks totally shapeless in the pictures, but it looks really great on. sadly for the (small) viewing public I have out there, its freakin' 90 degrees in NYC and there is no amount of money that will induce me to try on that sweater for a picture. you'll just have to wait for fall, when I will probably wear it to death.



and a scarf, made out of 1/2 a skein of the yummy Malabrigo lace weight I purchased at Knitty City when Glenna was in town.


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i love this scarf and suspect it will be made a few more times for Christmas gifts. Its insanely easy and is so damn soft you just want to roll around in it nekkid. good stuff, that Malabrigo.

It was heartbreaking to hear about the fire at the Malabrigo headquarters. So of course, I went on a wee bit of a spree. I had picked up 5 skeins of the Malabrigo Worsted in "Paris Night" at ImagiKnits in SF, but when I heard about the fire (and subsequent delay in being able to get more Malabrigo) ordered 6 skeins in "Cabaret". i know the yarn is not plied, and will probably pill like crazy, but i don't care! yarn that soft needs to be made into garments for me to wear, to hell with the upkeep!!!!

current projects include the Hourglass Sweater from "Last Minute Knitted Gifts" (in the "Cabernet" Malabrigo) as well as the BSG socks. And I just (sort-of) finished a tank top, knit out of the 100% silk yarn ("Hana") that i fell in love with at Artfibers. Sadly, I don't see it on their site right now, which is worrysome. i loved the yarn, and the only complaint i had was that the color bleed a bit and so i noticed my right thumb (which pushes stitches around) was a bit blue. i need to finish the straps and weave in the ends and then I will post a picture. i sort of made up the pattern by combining 2 different patterns from "Knitting Lingerie Style" and i'm really quite happy with it! I'm hoping to get it done this week as I have a bachlorette party to go to on Saturday and i think it would look amazing. i just can't wear the white skirt with it, since I'm afraid it might bleed.

there are also some sewing projects taking place, and that's been fun. its been almost a year since i had a working sewing machine and its great to hear that lovely sound.

so fingers crossed that the "vacation" will allow me to work on projects and post more often. but you know, i'm not making any promises.