You know you're a yarnaholic...

...when while getting ready for a vacation, you pack your knitting before your clothes.

We're going on vacation for a few days. I don't know exactly where, but my dad decided (last week) that we needed a family trip. Oh joy. Seven hours with my family in a minivan. At least I have a CD player and headphones. And knitting - plenty of knitting. (Is there such a thing?)

Projects I'm bringing with me:
1. Basic stockinette socks in Lion Brand Magic Stripes on size 2 needles - one's finished. I think I set a new personal record yesterday - cast on to partway through gusset in half a day. With any luck, I'll have a new pair of socks by the time we get to the western border of the state.
2. Conwy socks from Nancy Bush's Knitting on the Road in Sockotta - one finished, major SSS on the other.
3. Opal Silk to make Jaywalkers
4. Omega Sinfonia in Royal Blue to make Green Gable (thank goodness for interchangeable needles!). I got this yarn from Hobby Lobby on Saturday. It's a really pretty royal blue sportweight cotton.
5. WoolEase Sportweight to make the Essential Stripe pullover (minus the stripes).

Peer pressure and parsley worms

Ah, peer pressure, the scourge of parents of teens worldwide. What else could explain this?

Yup, that's a Mystery Stole. No, I have not finished the CDR yet. Want to hear my rationale?
1. My knitting bag (the nice one my sister brought me from Italy) won't hold my CDR without squooshing it and possibly felting it.
2. I've worked too hard on this thing to ruin it now.
3. The Mystery Stole is portable, especially when it's using recycled wool from an old thrift store sweater.

In other news, one of these:

has progressed to this:

and will soon (hopefully) become one of these:


Oh, and look what was nibbling our flowers!

Harry Potter and the Hagrid-Sized Knitting Bag

At 5:45 PM on Friday, I had this:


At 1:00 AM on Saturday, I had this!


I finished Deathly Hallows in 4 hours. I need to re-read it to let it sink in more. The reason I plowed through it so fast is that I just wanted to read it before I got spoiled, like I did on almost all the other books. Some parts were great, some parts weren't, some parts I totally saw coming, and some parts I totally didn't. I won't say much more so as not to spoil anything, but if you're considering reading Harry Potter to your young 'uns, stick with the first three books. Deathly Hallows is most certainly not a children's book. It's got a terribly high body count.

After I finished Deathly Hallows, I went to SWAK in Guthrie, where they were having their store-wide 25% off sale. I picked up 9 skeins of Silky Wool in a really pretty dark cobalt blue for $4.81 a skein! This is such lovely soft yarn. The color is blue without being the denim-y blue that I'm so sick of. I can't decide what it wants to be, though. It would look great in cables.


Last Christmas, my grandmother ordered me a knitting bag from Land's End. She didn't give it to me at Christmas because she thought it was too big. But it works great for toting around the knitting guild library!(I wear a size 8 shoe, by the way, and yes, it does come up to my knee.)


I finished the bottom of the CDR! And wonder of wonders, IT FITS! And there was much rejoicing. Go gauge swatches! (The stuff hanging out of my armpit is waste yarn, by the way. Seriously.) I've knitting about three inches on one sleeve.

Less than five hours now!

I'm in the second group of 150 to get my very own copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows!!! So excited!

Oh, it's been almost a month since I last posted. Bad me. I'm feeling a little embarrassed.

Since there's so little time left before I read DH, here's my last shot at playing Professor Trelawney with some predictions:
1. Snape killed Dumbledore on Dumbledore's orders.
2. Snape had a thing for Lily Evans-Potter.
3. Pettigrew will fulfill his life-debt to Harry.
4. RAB is Regulus Black.
5. The final battle will take place during a full moon, and werewolves will be involved somehow.
6. Who dies: Lord Moldyshorts, Snape, Pettigrew, and Bellatrix; Hagrid, Percy Weasley, and somebody else major (I wouldn't be surprised if it's Neville or Luna; please not Lupin or Tonks!).

Knitting-wise, I've been plugging away on the cable-down raglan and a Ravenclaw house scarf. I'm on the bottom edging for the CDR! Somehow, I kept getting distracted at work and knit some purls and purled some knits. With any luck, I'll finish the bottom and at least part of a sleeve at the DH release party at Borders tonight.

I got my first Addi Turbo circular needle! At the Knit-In at the Gourmet Yarn Company, I won 2nd prize for the kiwi lime gelato I brought, so I got a gift certificate. Thank you Margaret! I got a size 1 47" lace Turbo that I can use for Magic Loop or the lace shawl that I WILL make someday. I've signed up to make the Mystery Shawl, but I'm not letting myself cast on until I finish the CDR.

I've decided that I LOVE knitting from charts! I tried knitting from an old Vogue stitch dictionary from the guild library, but it's one of those tall, narrow books that will not stay open. This means that the instructions for just one row can wind up taking several lines in the book, and it's really hard to read.

Well, I'm off to Borders! See you on the other side of DH!

Wanna see my new toy?

Do ya? Do ya?

Well, click here!

CDR progress: Finished the first repeat of the side cables. My enthusiasm and crazy knitting speed are waning. When you're cabling all the way around the sweater, it tends to slow things down quite a bit.

And look what we saw outside today!

Lotus Knits! is having a contest where you post your first FO. Here's one of my first items - the obligatory acrylic squarish thing.

Yeah...I hope I've improved.

If anyone enters this contest, be sure to tell her you saw it here! :0)

CDR progress and YARN SWAP GOODIES!

I've started the waist cables on the CDR. It certainly is coming along quickly! So far, I've used two of five balls of Patons Classic Wool. This stuff is pretty nice, but in the second ball, I came across several knots in one of the three plies.

And here's what a lovely swap partner sent me!
That's a hank of Cherry Tree Hill in Turquoise, a hank of Schaefer Anne in Minty, and a skein of Opal Silk Wool in a yellow, brown, purple, pink, and light blue. So far, I'm thinking Bayerische for the CTH, Monkey or Pomatomus for the Schaefer Anne, and Jaywalker for the Opal. I've also got that Nancy Bush book, as well as Sensational Knitted Socks...I'm overwhelming myself. Must stop now.

Sleeves are separated!

I've separated out the sleeves for the CDR. Honestly, I was worried that I wouldn't be able to fit any more stitches on the needle. It got really crowded toward the end of the sleeve shaping.

This is a very addicting sweater. Now that the only cable segment is the diamond cable on the front, it goes SO fast!

I can't believe I cast on for this sweater on Saturday morning! I hope my energy keeps up so this gets finished soon. Even though I swatched repeatedly, I still have a fear that this won't fit...which would be a shame, since it's such a beautiful pattern.

CDR is 20% done (I hope!)

I've finished one ball of Patons Classic Wool on my Cable-Down Raglan. Four more balls to go! I'm halfway through the second diamond center cable. So far, I'm enjoying the pattern. The sleeve increases are off, but I think I fixed them. They still look a bit odd, but it's not enough to justify frogging a whole 223 yards of wool. I've also joined a KAL for this sweater!

Look how crowded the stitches are on my 24" circular.



Oh, and here's a bag that a friend of mine picked up for me at a scientific conference. It's fashionable on the front and geeky on the back (ads for a biological supply company). My former Clapotis fit in it perfectly...rest in peace. It's headed for the frog pond tonight, probably.

A finished object and two WIP's

Well, I had a ball of white dishcloth cotton, so I made this:



I like it, but it's not a "must repeat." I may get another ball, knit to the same point, and graft them together so the wavy edge works out. The pattern is from the first Barbara Walker stitch dictionary.

And say farewell to the Clapotis:
I measured it, and it's only 15 inches across. It's headed for the frog pond. I wanted a wrap, not a big scarf. How disappointing...

But I did start this!


I'm definitely liking the pattern so far, although the sleeve increases are wonky. (Side note:
ALWAYS check errata before starting a pattern.) I'm using Patons Classic Wool in Leaf Green, with size 4 needles. (I couldn't believe how small I had to go to get gauge!) This is the wool I bought back in February, when my sister asked why I was buying yarn when I had a whole wall full.

In unrelated news, some simple-minded gherkin decided to knock down our brick mailbox this morning...

A picture of contentment

Does it get any better than this? That's Tucker, connoisseur of comfort.

And here's a picture of my half-finished Clapotis. I'm not worried about how much yarn I have anymore. Now I wonder if it's wide enough. Hmm...well, it's always froggable!

Note to self...

...always, always, ALWAYS bring knitting everywhere. Life is really boring at the moment. I want my Clapotis! Oh well, I'll just browse some knitting blogs instead.

Mystery flowers...

I don't know what these are. They came in a wildflower mix that we planted two years ago, and this is the first time they've bloomed.

An afternoon of relative peace!

Well, little sis is now a college graduate. My, how time flies...

After graduation, I got in some knitting on Clapotis. It's coming along nicely, although I'm a little worried about the amount of yarn I have left. Two sleevesworth of a good-sized sweater should make a nice Clapotis, shouldn't it?

Yesterday was the most gorgeous day ever. There was hardly any wind - that's a huge deal in Oklahoma - and it was just warm enough to be toasty without overheating. The sun was shining, the grass and trees were as green as can be, and everyone was happy.

Oh, and here are some more flower pics!

I'm slowly learning how to format!

One less thing to stress over

The bridal tea was a success! I'm not sure who was more surprised - the bride that the "girls' lunch" was a bridal shower, or me that the bride was surprised. I was sure I'd let the cat out of the bag several times. We drank tea, we ate scones with lemon curd *yum!*, and we tried on funny hats. (Mine was pretty stinkin' cute, I must say. Pics when she emails me a copy.)

Haven't knitted in a couple of days. We've been too busy getting ready for my sister's graduation. We've been cleaning and cooking like madwomen around here. But tonight was the family dinner thing, tomorrow's graduation, Sunday's Mother's Day, and then it's back to semi-normal.

I got my mom this for Mother's Day! She and I have a thing for Jane Austen. I want to be Elizabeth Bennett when I grow up (minus the family drama). And for graduating sis, this and this. Some of these might be involved as well...

It feels like Friday...

...but it is in fact Thursday. Bummer.

Actually, tomorrow should be fun. We're having a surprise bridal shower for a friend at work here, and there'll be tea and scones and all manner of things feminine. I do enjoy being a girl when teacups and flowers are involved.

Clapotis pics

I'm plugging away at Clapotis. Here's what I've got so far:

It's about...one pillow-width long so far. I'm a little nervous about not having enough yarn to make it a decent length, so I only did 5 repeats of the increase row instead of 7. It's still a good width, though. I think I've used up about 1/3 of that ball of yarn, which was one sleeve's worth. If I get a 6-foot long wrap, I'll be happy. If I get more than that, I'll be happier, but beggars can't be choosers.
I've just dropped the first stitch. Boy, that was exciting...sort of. It only went down a few rows.

This yarn is a little "clingy," since it's recycled from a sweater. It will definitely need a bath in conditioner and a stout blocking. This is one sweater that lived up to the stereotypical itchiness of wool. Right now, the dropped stitches are kind of sticking out. I hope it sorts itself out once more stitches are dropped.

And here's a gratuitous picture of the Easter Egg dyed yarn all worked up.
I still am amazed by how well this turned out. It goes from a bright leaf green to mint to sky blue to deep robin's-egg.





And here's what was waiting for me on Monday when I got home from work:

This was what I got on Amazon.com with my gift certificate! I have so many things I want to work on from these books. This way, I won't have to worry about library late fees. I'm planning an Hourglass Sweater from the blue Fleur de Lis.


Here's the yarn that samm sent me:

That's the sock yarn - I've been wanting some solid-ish sock yarn for some patterned socks - and the variegated heavier-weight yarn, which reminds me of the autumn leaves in Arkansas when I was at college. (I have never seen such beautiful trees as the October that I went on a weekend retreat to Fayetteville, Arkansas. The colors were glowing.)


I really need to find a place to photograph my stuff besides my bed...now the whole world will know how often I change my sheets.

Well, it's 11:00 PM, so in the words (?) of a 2nd grader that I tried to teach a bit of German tonight, "Auf Wiedreshqpritiethdqetrjeqwkansen!"

Another rainy day

I love rainy days. The sound of rain is one of my favorites, along with thunder. It makes me want to curl up with a blanket and a cup of tea for a morning of reading (or knitting!). Somehow, though, I always wind up having to work on the deluge days. I may have to take a "rain day" one of these days.

I don't love driving in rainy days, especially when my 25-minute commute turns into a 1-hour commute on a day when I'm supposed to be ready to scan a Western blot at 9:00. At least the demo was pushed back to tomorrow. *I forgot to scan the blot! Oh, great.*

I got a swap package from samm at Knittinghelp.com today! I sent her several balls of Magic Stripes, and she sent me the Winter 2005 issue of Interweave Knits, some grey sock yarn that'll be great for cabled or lace socks, a cute tape measure and magnets, and a ball of pretty variegated yarn that'll make a great cabled scarf or wristlets. Thanks samm!

Tomorrow night is the AWANA awards night rehearsal. That'll be..."fun." The kindergarteners have been really hyper lately, probably because they know it's the end of the year. Two more weeks!

Oh, and Beverly sent me this site - amazing knitting and photography! Thanks for telling me about it!

Done with Immunology!

I have officially finished my first graduate class! It was a piece of cake, too, except for the clinical stuff, and that was quite tolerable. The final was this morning, and from what I've heard from the professors, I did well.

Last night was the best thunderstorm we've had in quite a while. (Yes, I love thunderstorms. Crazy, I know.) At one point, there was a really loud thunderclap, and my sleep-deprived, immunology-crammed, caffeine-overloaded brain thought, "That lightning bolt hit an IgM pentamer!" (It made sense at 2:00 in the morning, okay?)

Today was good. I had the test in the morning, a nice busy afternoon, and a package waiting for me when I got home! I bought Knitting Nature, Last-Minute Knitted Gifts, and Knitting Beyond the Edge from the Amazon sale. So my reward to myself for getting the final done is going to be a leisurely perusal of these books!

Still waiting for the postman

Well, I guess I won't get my books before Monday. That's just as well, I guess, because I have my Immunology final tomorrow morning, and knitting books would be a huge distraction from the studying that I should be doing right now. I'm not too worried about my grade. I've already got an A in the class. I'm more intent on showing the professors that I'm a good student so I can get more potential academic references someday!

My friends T&J moved today. I miss them already, even though they'll be back in 2 weeks. At least they're only moving 2 hours away! But P&H are moving several states away next month, and they're taking baby J with them...*sniff*

The Knit-In was fun last night, even if there were only 10 of us instead of the usual 30 or so. We watched the Kentucky Derby on a little TV someone dug up. I started on a Clapotis with my Easter egg dyed yarn and got a good ways on it. I also got the Summer issue of IK and some of this to make a "Fiery Bolero" (from here) to wear over a strapless dress for a wedding this summer. (Although, I got white yarn, so does that make it a Snowy Bolero?) I've started swatching it, and I like the yarn a lot. It's super-soft and feels like Lion Brand Microspun, but it isn't nearly as splitty.

Tapping foot impatiently...

So, last week there was a big sale on Amazon.com. Specifically, it was a sale on certain knitting books that I've been drooling over - Knitting Nature and Knitting on the Edge, for example. A few weeks ago, I filled out some surveys for scientific supply companies, and I got a $15 and a $25 gift card to...Amazon.com! So I ordered those two and Last-Minute Knitted Gifts. I picked the free shipping option (because I am, above nearly all things, a cheapskate), which has an estimated delivery time of 10-14 days. Package tracking is the BEST thing ever. According to the website, my package was in Kansas City at 1:00 AM on May 4, Waco at 9:00 PM (couldn't they have dropped it off on the way?), and Oklahoma City at 9:00 AM! Then they said it was "out for delivery." But at 12:46, it was still in Oklahoma City. I was hoping to get it before I leave for the Knit-In at 3:45, but I guess that can't be helped. I'm going to make the Hourglass Sweater from LMKG with the Fleur de Lis yarn I got in a swap.