Of Mittens and Kittens

I'm terrible about knitting things for other people but never making anything for myself.  Somehow, I never feel justified buying yarn for something that isn't going to be a gift or for sale.  So, when I got a gift certificate for Christmas, I figured it was the perfect opportunity to get yarn for a little something for myself.

The crazy amount of snow we've been getting lately has just been too much for my usual gloves, so I figured mittens would be a good idea. Handily enough, I'd just made a pair of mittens as a shop sample before the holidays, and I freaking loved the yarn - it's the chunky version of Berroco Vintage.  One skein was more than enough for a pair (and I even made them a little on the large side).  The pattern...well, the less said the better. It ended up being a 'Pirate's Code' kind of situation.

I managed to get them done just in time for (what will hopefully be) the last round of snow.

And here we have them after shoveling (and in better light - this is closer to the color in person):

I'm very pleased with how they held up - I was out in the snow for somewhere between and hour and a half and an hour and a quarter, mittens covered in snow, using one of those snowshovels with the 'grippy' handle that's like a ginger grater (and my hands stayed so warm!).  There's really not much fuzzing or pilling, and what there is looks like a good run through the washer and dryer will clear up.

And in the world of cats, poor Miss Minerva's been frustrated lately. We have an obvious mouse in the basement chewing insulation off of pipes, but it seems to be keeping up out of her reach.  We've given her free run of the basement for the last few days, and she's spent most of her time there, coming up only to lie around the house sighing heavily (seriously - you've never heard a cat sigh so much in your life) and occasionally take out her frustrations on her toys.  I feel bad for her, since despite usually being a bit of a dim bulb, she's really an excellent mouser (very good about just catching them without eating them) and she's being denied her chance to shine.  At this rate, we're just going to have to wait until payday and spring for a mousetrap.

Quite a bit of knitting, indeed.

So, I'm finally getting some of my older projects finished (mostly because I've got great ideas for new stuff and I'm too cheap to just buy more needles). Right now, I've got a kitty pi that's all done but the felting running through the washing machine. I'm a little nervous, honestly - I haven't felted anything in this machine before, and the damned cat bed took me so long, I'd really hate for anything to go wrong at this late stage. I suppose it didn't take that long in terms of continuous knitting, it got set aside for about a year, year and a half, but still... I did the math, and there's over 600 yards of yarn in this thing, not counting the eyelash yarn worked in at the top edge. Pre-felted pic for the sake of posterity (34 inches in diameter):



Also, since the **SECRET SWATCH** turned out so nicely, I got the needles today to start working a few more kinks out of the design. I'd love to have a prototype done soon, maybe get the pattern out by Christmas, but I really need to finish the other two in-progress patterns before I start in on it. After all, it's much easier to teach a class on a project you have a pattern for, hm?

Got the yarn to start in on some of the Christmas knitting today, too. Very excited about it, but (of course) I have to finish up another project to free up the needles I need. Although...it was just something for myself, so I could always just throw it on a stitch holder for a while...

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Now playing: Moxy Früvous - King of Spain
via FoxyTunes

Swatching up a storm...

I was going to be all good and not start any new projects until I got a few things finished, but then I realized that if I want to actually get a baby blanket to my cousin in Australia before she's due, I probably want to have it done and mailed by Thanksgiving. I decided to go with the Op Art Blanket from Knitty in a nice washable cotton - good to wrap up in, but not too hot for Western Australia. So, did a few swatches until I got the gauge I needed since the yarn I'm using isn't the same weight as the pattern calls for (though more color-fast, from what I hear):


And then we got in some shiny new yarn, and I had a flash of inspiration. I'm really excited about this swatch:
What's it a swatch for, you ask? That...is a secret!
(also, I may have been watching too much Slayers lately....)

And, just to round things off, I present Friday and Saturday's cup art (the sandwich shop was closed yesterday and today for the holiday :( )"



















Relatively happy with Gir, but with the giant Octopus I drew the smouldering city first, then decided what was attacking, so he's not quite as integrated into the picture as I'd like.
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Now playing: Depeche Mode - Blue Dress
via FoxyTunes

Hooray for Multitasking!

Taking a little break from the Scarf to do a few swatches for some other projects:



The tri-color one is just an actual gauge swatch so I can get some sizing into the mix, but the brown striped swatch is giving me fits. I'm not sure if the colors are quite right, and I know that the 3x1 rib pattern isn't what I need. I thought the two variegated browns would get the right feel to the piece, but I'm wondering now if solid colors will end up looking better in the end.

I...I may have officially played too much Psychonauts...

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Now playing: Rock Plaza Central - Anthem for the Already Defeated
via FoxyTunes

Look on my scarf, ye Mighty, and despair... (part 1)

Well, I was browsing the yarn stash, trying to think of some way to clear some of it out, and I came across the leftover yarn from my Dr. Who scarf. And I looked at it, and I thought to myself 'huh - I probably have enough here for another one'. And so I am...

Not sure if I'll keep this one, or if it'll end up being another present. I suppose it really just depends on when it gets finished.

4 inches down, 19 feet, 8 inches to go.....

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Now playing: Jonathan Coulton (Portal) - Still Alive
via FoxyTunes

General whatsits.

Went to check out a new game store today, and decided to splurge and get a couple of new minis to represent the cleric and warlord in our current D&D campaign. Got a good start on them tonight, here's a pic of all the in-progress minis:

Somehow, I managed to stumble upon the female mini showing the least amount of skin out of any sculpt Reaper makes. Seriously - the two bulky fighters behind her are more naked. Hell, the male cleric has more skin showing. Regardless, this makes our party look a bit more representative of the actual characters:
The Munchkin figure just seems awesomely appropriate for the halfling thief, so I've no plans to replace him. Ideally, though, I will eventually find a better figure for my dragonborn fighter, and will be able to stop using an Abe Sapien capsule figure...

I've also got a good start on my Endpaper Mitts. Finally. The first attempt had a few problems. The biggest one was that the grey marl yarn I'd chosen as the main color and the self-striping green that I originally wanted to show off with the mitts had absolutely no contrast. The fairisle pattern just faded together into a grey-green. Then, when I took it off the needles, it turned out that the large in the pattern was going to be a bit uncomfortably tight anyway, so I've started over with a hair thicker black yarn as my main color, going to just use the larger needles called for, and we'll see how the green self-striping looks now. Fingers crossed.

Good on you, Ann Norling!

Well, the handwarmer pattern is almost ready to go forth into the wide world and bring pack some spare change. I had a friend do a test-knit, and she pointed out a few things I'd kind of skimmed over (like the dimensions of the different sizes...oh, details), so I just need to fix those and get my little hand up to be added to the list to sell patterns through Ravelry.

The Top-Down Raglan class at work got me in the mood to start back in on the cardigan I put on hold to finish the Christmas knitting. I really prefer the Woolworks free fill-in-the-blank pattern I'm using to the Ann Norling pattern the class is doing, though. I made the kids' version as a store display, and there were a few bits where I really had to re-read the pattern a couple of times to make sure I was doing what I was supposed to. Not a bad pattern, just oddly phrased in places. Most of her patterns are like that - there's just something a little odd. Like the one we have where the picture has the camera datestamp on it. My boss is convinced that Ann Norling is just printing these patterns out at home and assembling everything on her dining room table. You know what? If she is, more power to her. I just wish my dining room table was clear enough to pull off something like that.

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Now playing: Peter, Paul and Mary - 500 Miles
via FoxyTunes

I Miss Coffee...

Well, that drawing I wanted went up on eBay today - I got the first bid in, and was instantly outbid all the way up to my limit. I honestly didn't think for a moment that I'd be able to get it, but at the very least I was hoping to keep the lead for a full minute. And this is why I don't buy much off of eBay. Believe me, it's not for lack of trying some days.

Regardless, I've been on an Etsy restocking spree lately. Mostly jewelry, which I love making, but I really don't feel like that's what I want to focus on - it seems like such a large percentage of Etsy is jewelry. Ideally, I want a variety of types of items in my store until such time as someone actually buys something from me. I just don't seem to be able to get a good grasp on what exactly Etsy shoppers are looking for, I guess. I'm thinking of putting a few strategic ads out on Project Wonderful, but I want to get my shop a little fuller first. I've got a few knit items I'm finishing up, another painting I'm working on, and a cute linoleum block that I'm planning to use to print notecards, but it seems like there should be more I could get together.

And that's where the lack of coffee comes in. I love coffee so much, and somehow other forms of caffeine just don't seem to give me the mental energy, just physical. Of course, I don't know that I'd feel quite so strongly on the matter if I wasn't allergic, but still, every time I hit a creative block, I find myself thinking 'well, one cup wouldn't hurt...I've got antihistamines...'.

Oh well, I'll just drown my sorrows with yarn - I'm nowhere near having used up enough to fulfill my New Year's resolution yet.

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Now playing: Electric Light Orchestra - Turn To Stone
via FoxyTunes

Yarn Review: Himalaya Recycled Sari Silk

I'm liking this yarn, but not loving it. I think the finished piece is going to turn out fairly impressive, but the actual process of working with it has been a bit wearing. For some reason, the concept of knitting with television static comes to mind. A certain amount of slubs, knots, etc. were to be expected as the nature of the beast, being recycled and handspun, but the bits of straw I keep picking out of the yarn have been slightly offputting. Also, I was really not prepared for the amount of shed/fuzz that's being produced.

Overall, I think I'd work with it again for something special, but it's not something I'd use for just anything. Final judgment will be reserved for seeing how the finished hat washes - I have to admit to a few qualms concerning the colorfastness, but it's not like it's coming off on my hands or needles like some yarns I've used.

Yarn withdrawal

Again with the cat.

She's a very pretty cat, perfectly sweet and loving, and the dumbest m***********g animal on God's green Earth. She is also, at the moment, covered in nasty little bugs.

I hate the little bugs.

Because of them, I cannot get my clothing moved over to my new house. More importantly, I don't want to move my craft supplies over, as I'm pretty sure she will want to lie on them and cover them in cat hair and little bugs.

In her defense, the little bugs are not her fault. We have scrubbed and treated the cat to within an inch of her life, and when the little bugs kept returning despite her lack of outdoors time, we realized the source of the problem.

You see, a month or two ago, my parents' neighbors generously gave us an awesome red leather reclining couch and matching chair. Free of charge, all we had to do was get them hauled off (I believe the exact reasoning was something along the lines of 'I went out and bought myself a new car and now the wife wants new furniture in exchange for not killing me in my sleep')

These are the same people whose cats and dog have been suffering from a three-month flea problem, and whose oldest son counted over 40 individual bug bites on his legs last week from an extended 360 session in the basement with said cats.

They gave us a giant red leather-covered flea nest.

Blankets with smallpox would have been easier to clean up after. I really wanted to have a nice relaxing week after the wedding getting my stuff moved in and arranging the house, but such was not to be.

I fear our only option is to shave the cat and fumigate the couch.

(well, the only option that The Boy will sign off on, at least.)

Hoo-ah!

Woo-hoo! New job...no, better job. It combines yarn, kitties, and computers. The only way this job could be better is if it involved free beer. Oh, wait...I'll get an employee discount at all the other shops in the same plaza...which includes the really fancy wine store next door.

Regardless, I now work in a craft boutique - no longer must I feel guilty about buying expensive, interesting yarns, because A) I get a discount and B) I have to try out the fancy yarns so I can help customers decide if it's the right yarn for them. And, I can knit at work.

I love my new job.

Also, I'm just getting the big project done for my swap, it seems I didn't lose quite as much time as I was afraid of, I should only be a week behind schedule, and my partner had some stuff come up too, so we just sort of moved our personal send date XD. I still wish I'd been able to find the 'edible ball bearings', but it seems they're something of an elusive confection.