Phun Photo Phriday

I just have to share this photo of Monica J's Victorian Swag Socks that she did for Summer of Socks 2008. They're lovely; the colorway she chose is just *perfect* (in my eyes), and I'm going to have to hit The Loopy Ewe and get a copy of the Monica Knits pattern. I mean, seriously. These are just beautiful socks!


And, since we're vaguely tangential to English royalty, what with "Victorian" and all,


here's a photo I found from... drat. I can't refind it (it was on someone's blog, and they'd pulled it from The Scotlander, but I'm not certain from WHEN). Oh well, here's another, pulled off GoogleImages:

I suppose the heir to the British throne *should* have some very nice kilt hose, yes?

Books I want, but don't have to buy. But probably will...

Books found at the library that I might end up buying anyway if I can find them:


The Tap-Dancing Lizard - 337 Fanciful Charts for the Adventurous Knitter
and


Knitting Fair Isle Mittens & Gloves: 40 Great-Looking Designs
The latter has wonderful basic mitten, fingerless glove, and glove patterns, which alone would be the price of admission, but also explains Shetland knitting (okay, I can't take that class, but I want to!) and knitting-both-ways-with-two-colors. The former had MULTIPLE charts of Gryphons. 'Nuff said. I have to say - our local library system has a killer good selection of knitting books, and will be totally responsible for the sheep-and-bunny-and-gryphon sweater that will eventually happen.

Okay, what's next?

From yesterday afternoon:

I'm going to hide downstairs (in the Firm's library) for about half an hour after I clock out today. I'm thisclose to being able to put in my next lifeline for the Forget-Me-Not Shawl (i.e., two rows away from finishing the second full pattern repeat). It would make attempting to knit on the train home *so* much easier if I knew the lifeline was in. But - I did not bring stitch markers to mark the new areas-that-repeat-horizontally. And it's a pretty long horizontal repeat, which I've been able to keep going properly only by using stitch markers. But I don't have stitch markers... or do I?

Exhibit A

I give you Exhibit A, the buttons that I've collected in my desk over the past ten years. Mostly from abandoned desks, or as found objects long-lost under furniture. (Yes, I'm a magpie. You should've guessed.) 1 small paperclip + 1 button = stitcholder.

Which brings me to this great idea I have for what I can finally sell on Etsy, provided I can find the colossal cache of tiny-tiny buttons I've got in my house, and all my tiny-tiny jump rings and my tiny-tiny soldering iron.

Dangerous Things may now commence.
Continuing with Today:

The Resolutions 2008 group on Ravelry is doing a September Sweater KAL. I announce this because I think it's a Very Good Thing. You see, I've just got ONE sweater on The List right now: The lovely Titania. I have two sleeves that look like this:


I also have two ruffly cardi-front bottoms that look about like this (although I think this may be a picture of a nascent sleeve...):


As everyone knows, the tricky part of any sweater is the sleeves, and I have craftily solved that one by starting with them. Now, mind you, I think these sleeves may be a mite small, since I was roughly 20lbs lighter when I knitted them. (Odd incentive to lose weight again, but more likely to work than most, I think - and if not, I've already figured out a trick that will *make* them fit.)

The good news is that I've actually got incentive to finish my last sweater. YAAAAAAY!

59 UFOs and Counting

So, I'm at 59 UFOs, which is definitely "under 60". Granted, this is where I was at the very beginning of 2008. I totally blame The Amanda Hat for making me fall off the wagon in January. I have an Amanda Hat, with matching scarf, headband and neckwarmer. A full set of coordinated Amanda things, and they're most of the first things I finished this year. But I *started* them this year, and that opened the door to starting more stuff. So far this year, I have started 29 things, and finished 20 of them. So, there are nine things I should finish this year if I can, plus 50 things left over from previous years of not-finishing-things. In order of starting, the things that need finishing this year (so I can have a "clean slate" from 2008 to 2009) are:
Secret of the Stole II
Titania
Snowball's Chance in Hell Ninja Armwarmers
LabCat Lace Scarf
Forget-Me-Not Shawl
the Sekrit Projikt
and three cross-stitch projects
The cross-stitch projects are varying degrees of difficulty, and all three are relatively portable. Or would be, except the floss for one is attached to my yarn swift. Which I'll need soon, so I guess I'd better work on that one at home.

ANYway, right now, I'm carrying around the Forget-Me-Not shawl (no more pictures of that until there's actually noticable progress of some sort) and my smallest quilting UFO, a hand-pieced (and eventually hand-quilted) Christmas Chessboard. Here's the layout; while all the two-block segments are pieced together, and about 1/3 of the four-block segments, there's still a lot of hand-stitching to go. And because I'm trying to get all the corners to match up (go figure!), it goes pretty slowly.


I also have a baby shower in two weeks, so I'll be stitching up a baby bib and a diaper holder in the interim. The hope is that the diaper holder will be completed in under 24h (or thereabouts) so it will never actually hit The List. It probably will, but there's hope. The Bib shouldn't, since it's just small words. The diaper holder is just words, too, but they're much, much bigger. If you're wondering what the heck a Diaper Holder is, here's an example:


by AngelRose1108
Just because, another photo of my A Pair of Hearts Socks.


You can actually see the hearts in this one, because of the really slanty lighting.

Ravelympics is over, and I survived!

Okay, so, I picked up my medal for Sock Put this morning:

A Pair of Hearts Socks
And here are my other two medals again, just because I'm so a-SQUEEE about them:

The Cat Sweater

StoplightSweater

My husband, bless his heart, cheered me on to keep knitting on my Ravelympics-tagged projects. So, I picked up the Forget-Me-Not shawl, and got about half a pattern repeat done over the remainder of the games. As it's tiny mohair lace, if I'm *really* up to speed with no distractions, I can get get one pattern row and its companion purl row done in about half an hour to forty-five minuts (including frogging, dropping stitch markers, losing my place in the pattern, etc.). There were lots of distractions, so I only got about five hours of knitting done - but it's something. And I'm now using this as my carry-around project. So what if I only get six rows done in a day? It's six more rows than I had, and *eventually* I'll finish it! Here's what it looks like as of just-before-work this morning:


I also want to share the wonderful space I found myself in this weekend. My friend T has the largest personal yarn stash I know of that isn't connected somehow to a store. She was giving away lots of cross-stitch stuff yesterday at the S&B (I got a couple of yards of green and red 14-ct Aida, some light green 22ct and 18ct quarter-yards, enough waste canvas to last every project I've got in my head right now, and a diaper holder and baby bib to stitch up for the baby shower in two weeks. (It's for a stitcher, so she'll appreciate it!) I got to sit in a corner next to this all afternoon and stitch:


I also got to peek in to the Room of Holding:


It's full of yarn. She also has a huge storage unit, and there is yarn tucked about the house *everywhere*. Really, it's dreamy to imagine that much yarn in one place! I'm glad she let us visit...!

Finished Objects - and another "medal"!!

Okay, very quick update. I did, in fact, finish my A Pair of Hearts Socks this afternoon! Thanks for all the encouragement, everyone! Here they are:

Ooooo, pretty!

Can you see the hearts up the side better here?
They're harder to photograph than I thought they would be.
The hearts really stand out in "real life"!!
And here's proof that I finished two of them:

So, I finished the last thing I expected to finish for the Ravelympics; I finished one entire pair of socks for Summer of Socks (yep, same socks, double duty!), and the UFO count is now 59!! I'm under 60 again! Woooooohoooooo!

Sock Frenzy - Noon Update

Have completed heel flap and turned heel. Only 3 pattern repeats + toe to finish. Must "wing it" on how I did toe, as cannot find original notes re: same. I think it was "6 rows normal with every other row decrease, then decreases every row until 16st left". That's what I'll be doing, anyway.

Hoping at least one more lawyer goes home soon. Partner that knits understands, and will let under-desk knitting occur in between necessary typing.

Last Day = Sock Frenzy!

Well, I may actually save up to get one of these: Limited Edition Yarn Mugs from Jennie the Potter. With orange yarn, of course. Definitely on my list.Oh, and a wee bit of bookkeeping. I had to post from home last night, and most of my templates are at work, so I forgot/couldn't post the following:


Stoplight Sweater, Take III
knitting, was 60% done

With three projects, and only one day, left for Ravelympics, I decided the Sock Put was my best bet at getting a third medal during the 2008 Ravelympics, so the remaining sock is going with me EVERYwhere, and I've taken to trying to knit stealthily under my desk at work (when I'm there; today was chock-full of doctor's appointments for the final release on my shoulder, so lots of extra knitting time!). (Knitting at my desk doesn't go well. One of my bosses knits, and can tell what I'm doing just by my body posture. On the upside, she gives me about five minutes after she notices before she calls me on it. And it's not really that she minds; it's just she'd kinda like to send stuff out to the clients today, so I sorta need to type it. That, plus she's still a bit miffed about the $160 of cashmere that followed her home last week after I told her about the amazing sale at Stitch DC.) So, here's a shot of my (hopefully winning) entry after Thursday night and Friday morning were spent knitting a whole bunch:


I know, it's a bit of a sock. But there's hope it will be a bit MORE of a sock, and soon - LIKE NOW.

Ravelympics. We're in the home stretch. I am SO freakin' burned out from knitting right now - it's only the hope that I will get to start my lovely blaze-orange-with-flame-beads SotS-III at the end that is keeping me going! I can just tell that I'm going to be able to cut down some of the numbers of quilting and cross-stitch UFOs from my list, because I'm just plain going to need a knitting break. Seriously, it's been sleep (a bit), work (if I must), eat (when I remember) and KNIT for the past twelve days.

Because I'm a good little bunny, and because the reward of blaze-orange laceweight yarn is looming in the near future, here's my last official Ravelympics report:

1. A Pair of Hearts Socks. Will. Be. Done. Today.
2. Titania. If I can just get to the cream sections on the front, this will FLY. Not fast enough, I fear, but stockinette is *waaaaay* faster than the lovely (but challenging) trellis lace. To put it in perspective, I expect this to be a truly lovely Easter sweater (which means I should really have it done by Saturday, April 11, 2009).
3. Forget-Me-Not Shawl. Okay, I thought worsted-weight shawls (I've done two) took a while. I thought DK shawls took a while (SotS-1 and SotS-2 are done in DK weight). Laceweight... laceweight will be the end of me. I keep knitting and knitting and knitting, and I'm thrilled to get to the end of a row. Let alone two or three. Without having to frog (which, by the way, sucks to do with merino). Without dropping stitches, or a stitch marker. I will finish, though, because I want it done! Off the list! And I now have no fear about making a lace merino sweater, so I *will* be starting Serrano one of these years. Just not for a few months after I've finished my Forget-Me-Not!

I am really hoping I knit super-fast at lunch, and finish my sock. Wish me luck!!

Stoplight Sweater: FINISHED!!

Okay, so there is good news (late today though it may be posted): I finished the stoplight sweater!!! WOOOHOOOOOO!

See, here is the lovely critter, modeled by moi:


And a shot of the back, too. Note that this sweater, unlike The Cat Sweater, is much longer, and covers my rump.


Now, look at these colors. The entire point of this sweater, since its inception five or six tries ago, was to have a warm sweater (check) that fit (check) and that, after hitting me as I cross legally with the light in the crosswalk, the moron that hit me would have one heck of a time explaining how he didn't see me. (My hot pink poncho performs a similar function in the spring.)


Anyway, it's done, it's late, and once I log this thing for my Ravelympics credit, I'm going to sleep.

PS, that's now a UFO count of 60!! 'Night All!

One sleeve...

Well, I at least got one Ravelympics medal! Yaaaay!!

The Cat Sweater

I am a Ravthlete!

I also, while rifling my bookshelves looking for small change (don't ask), found the pieces of what will someday be a quilted Christmas chesboard (all reds, greens and golds). It's all hand-cut and hand-pieced (so far). It's 64 blocks, naturally, and I've almost finished putting all of them into sets of four blocks. Those will then be (carefully) sewn into sixteen-block board quarters, and then the whole thing goes together. Because it's small (chessboard sized, go figure), I can do fun motif quilting, rather like I did in the half of the Shoo-Fly Patriotic Quiltlet that I've finished quilting. Hand-piecing tiny blocks = ultimate portable. The entire project fits in the outer pocket of my Ravelry bag!

There is some progress, though, on the Stoplight Sweater:

See? There's one sleeve there. And, on the right, you can see the trailing yarn for sleeve #2, which will hopefully be done by the time I get home tonight so I can put in the zipper and be done with it. (Adding a hood is tempting, but will have to be done after-the-fact of the actual sweater being finished, due to Time Constraints.)

Also got the ribbing and one pattern repeat done on the second A Pair of Hearts sock, show here with George:

I think those will officially be "it" for the Ravelympics. Titania and the Forget-me-Not shawl just aren't going to medal this time around.

Hit a frog in the road...

First, you need a Friendly Ram Wallet. I mean, it's a cute fluffy ram, wooly as all get out, on a wallet. For your yarn money, of course!

Second, I was *going* to have this wonderful announcement about how I'd finished something else, and squeal about it and such. This SO did not happen. What did happen was the following:

1. Got the Stoplight Sweater all steeked last week, and cast on the first sleeve.
2. Knit about 1/4 of the first sleeve. It resembled a pillow. Clearly, the needles were too big.
3. Frogged out colorwork sleeve, tangling three balls of yarn beyon any hope of de-tanglement before reknitting.
4. Tried size 13 needles. Too big. Tried size 11 needles. Still too big, but closer. Tried size 10.5 needles. They worked. Sadly, in the Boye interchangeable set, they are the SAME COLOR GREEN as the sweater. Oh well.
5. Reknit sleeve with proper sized needles. Got about 1/2 sleeve done. Stitches good, not really blousy. Tried on sweater with half-sleeve.
6. Sleeve resembled bat wing. Wide enough for two or three arms, easy.
7. Sighed heavily.
8. Frogged out colorwork sleeve AGAIN, once again tangling three balls of yarn beyond any hope of de-tanglement before reknitting.
9. Actually measured arm, sleeve aperture, and gauge obtained in actual sweater. Figured that the previously chosen 64 stitches for a sleeve, while 20 less than normal, was still a bit much. Went down to 48 stitches, and re-cast on.
10. Knit three rounds. Sleeve appears OK.
11. Noticed it was almost midnight, with no finished sweater to display for the next day. Nor, for that matter, anything on the sweater appreciably different from the last photo of sweater.
12. Gave up in disgust, wishing I'd decided to work on the second A Pair of Hearts sock instead.

Third, I have the ribbing done on the second A Pair of Hearts sock. Now wondering if *that* will get done, either!
*Sigh.*

The Cat Sweater: FINISHED!

So, the whole point of the Ravelympics is to get my UFO numbers down, down, down. I started the weekend with 62 UFOs, and ended the weekend with 61UFOs. To wit:


Me in my finished The Cat Sweater!

One side says "HERE"...	... the other says "KITTY KITTY"
Entire Sweater	Close-up of the super-adorable buttons I found

Yep, it's cute, it's lovely, and it's finished. I'm sending a picture to Crazy Aunt Purl, since it was her Cat Sweater Contest last fall that made me create this monster bit of machine-washable warmth. And it is warm; every stitch is effectively two strands of yarn deep, which is just wonderful. Plus the collar stands up nicely, always a plus. The temptation would be to make a nice little The Cat Hat to go with it... I spent most of the sweater worried I wasn't going to have enough yarn to finish it, but look:


Plenty of yarn left!


The Cat Sweater/Kitty Love
knitting, was 60%done
Lest you think I am not quite wonderful enough (because I'm sure as hell impressed with myself, that's a MAJOR UFO off the list!), allow me to let you view some more:


Yes, that's a finished A Pair of Hearts sock!
Boy, the sock went fast once I was past the trauma of the gusset. Which wasn't really all that traumatic: thanks to Donna at Random Knits for a nice, pain-free, panic-free pattern!

So, this leaves me with a sock, two sweaters, and a shawl to finish up in the few days left of these here Ravelympics.

So, the much shorter progress check:

1. The Stoplight Sweater. Not so bad. Realized the size 15 needles were NOT working for the sleeves, and had to rip out. Ended up going all the way down to 10.5s to get gauge - yay for my Boye interchangeable needles! Still have two sleeves and the zipper to install, but should go quickly now that it looks "right".
2. A Pair of Hearts Socks. See above. One down, one to go!
3. Titania. I pulled her out, figured out where the heck I was in the pattern, and got going. Since I'm doing both fronts at once, it's not too bad.
4. Forget-Me-Not Shawl. I swear, there's progress. Really. But the odds of this getting finished this week? Not so good.

Pretty good progress, right? I mean, that's a medal in WIP Wrestling, and I've got a good shot at one in the Sock Put - and, in case you missed it, the UFO Count is now at 61!!!

Weekend funny

Today, a "reprint" of a bit of Raverly-related wonderfulness by Megan from BC, blogging (and writing the wonderful you're about to read) over at KnitPixxie:

Ravelympics Support Team Roles and Responsibilities

Dear Ravelympics Support Team Member,

You have "volunteered" to be on the support team of a Ravelympian. We understand that your participation may be under duress but we thank you anyway. Below please find an outline of what you are expected to do during the games.

1. Provide moral support. At times your Ravelympian may become frustrated and/or stressed. Signs are cursing, throwing the pattern to the floor in a huff or angrily ripping out rows of knitting. When this happens, tell your Ravelympian that he or she is a good knitter and is totally capable of this project.
2. Provide first aid. If your Ravelympian's shoulders, neck, back, hands get sore, provide immediate massage. Bonus points if you do this at regular intervals without the Ravelympian asking.
3. Administer legal drugs. Although Olympic rules on the intake of drugs are of course very strict, some substances are allowed. Keep your Ravelympian well supplied with chocolate and caffeinated beverages.
4. Be patient. Your Ravelympian will probably be neglecting other activities in favour of knitting. Time is of the essence in the Olympics. Refrain from commenting on the untidiness of the house or the unkemptness of the Ravelympian's hair. It is only for a few weeks.
5. Do not mock the Ravelympian. Olympic athletes are sometimes known to go to great lengths to achieve victory. Should your Ravelympian begin exhibiting behaviour you might call “crazy” such as knitting while crossing busy intersections, smile while guiding him or her out of traffic.
6. Set boundaries. While it is understandable that your Ravelympian wants the glory of Olympic success, he or she may become blinded by this goal and unable to think rationally. Watch out for signs that the Ravathlete has ceased to sleep or eat and act accordingly.
7. Stand-by for emergencies. During the Ravelympics, your Ravelympian may suffer equipment failure. Should this horrific event occur, volunteer to run to the yarn store to procure replacement needles, yarn etc. Put the yarn store number on speed dial.
8. Provide easy access to sustenance. Your Ravelympian will not want to lose precious knitting time to cooking, or, possibly to eating. Provide access to quick, easy meals. Finger foods are a good choice. Have a selection of take-out menus on hand. Extra points if you are cooking for the Ravelympian
9. Praise the knitter. Frequently tell the Ravelympian that he or she is doing great and the project is beautiful. A boost of confidence goes a long way.
10. Be the official photographer. He or she doesn't realize it now but your Ravelympian will want documentation of this madness at a later date. No really, trust me.
11. Love the Ravelympian no matter how crazy he/she may get.

What you get in return:

Being an official Ravelympics Support Team member can be rewarding. In return for your efforts you will receive:

1. The love and appreciation of the Ravathlete.
2. The knowledge that you have helped the Ravathlete achieve greatness.
3. The return to sanity (or something resembling it at least) once it is over.
4. A card to play during any future negotiations (use wisely).

Friday...

Friday, August 15, 2008. You know what that means: Secret of the Stole III has started!! Woohoooo!! Registration is now closed to join the Knit-a-Long, but once it's over, you'll be able to buy the pattern from DK. I'm sure this one will be as beautiful as the last two!
Now, I've decided not to cast on just yet, but I'm TOTALLY going to once Ravelympics is over! I should have enough projects done that I can start SotS-iii and still be under 60 UFOs!! My stuff is all ready to go, though, as soon as I'm "cleared" for knitting:


On the Ravelympics front, since I'm talking about finishing things, I've been "competing" for a week now. Here's how it's going:

1. The Cat Sweater. Oh my freakin' gosh, the end is actually in sight. I may actually have photos of me wearing a finished The Cat Sweater on Monday, assuming I can figure out where I hid my Kitty Buttons! Keep your fingers crossed, both on the knitting and the finding-the-buttons front!
2. The Stoplight Sweater. Um. You'd think this would be going much faster given the large needles and super bulky yarn. I think I'm hitting sweater burnout.
3. Titania. Here's a photo, just so you know I'm not imagining this third sweater:
4. A Pair of Hearts Socks. Managed my First Heel Flap without much incident. Hopeful that I'll actually finish this project during the Games.
   Scary heel flap... gusset happening!
5. Forget-Me-Not Shawl I'm knitting, but it's not growing. Can anyone see a difference at this point in lace? I mean, I'm clearly past my lifeline by a bit, but shouldn't it be growing faster?

In a related note, and also found more lovely HOT PINK laceweight merino at Stitch DC - Georgetown on Wednesday. Well, actually, I found it Tuesday... I just didn't have the cash to *buy* it until Wednesday! And it matches the stuff I already had (not quite enough of) for Forget-Me-Not, so I can make the whole shawl full-sized now (yikes!). Soooooo pretty! And, for no apparent reason, all the Katia Mississippi 3 was on sale 60% off. Now, I love this yarn - it's a pleasure to work with, and makes comfy socks. For $40, I was able to get enough to make a cute sweater AND a cute shrug! I think the new GREEN yarn will be turning into Laura Chau's Serrano (from Knitty's Fall 2006 issue), and the shrug will probably be something from Lace Style, from the yellow yarn. Figuring gauge and size, I knew I'd want to get 2400m or so (that's giving extra, don't worry!). It's sooooooo soft, and sooooo pretty! I know, I know, I'm supposed to be on a yarn diet, but it was on sale and it was pretty!

hot pink

cool green and yellow

As we head into the weekend (in which, sadly, I'll be expected to do a whole bunch of things that *aren't* knitting), the prospect is good that I'll have a finishing announcement on Monday. Keep those fingers crossed for me!

What happened to "10 days left..."?

Okay, how did it get to be Thursday already? I completely missed "10 days left" on my Ravelympics timer, somehow, and I *still* haven't seen (live) any of the women's Archery. Which sucks, because the semis and medal finals were today. Rats. But still: it's Thursday? I mean, really, I need more time to knit! I'm starting to burn out on The Cat Sweater a bit, but I really, REALLY want it done. Likewise, my eyes are starting to bleed a bit from the brilliant colors of the Titan Super-Bulky Yarn that has folded itself into the Stoplight Sweater... but I shall perservere. I will, however, be carrying around something just a wee bit lighter today and tomorrow, since my back is hurting me (probably from lugging The Cat Sweater and its attendant Pounds-O-Yarn around). So, spotlight on A Pair of Heart Socks for today, since tomorrow - Secret of the Stole III starts!! No, I haven't swatched for it... successfully. But I will. And it's entirely possible that I'll wait (*gasp!*) until after Ravelympics to start at all... but I want to start something!!! I know, I know, I have PADD. Anyway, I was talking about socks:

1. The Cat Sweater.I'm quite distressed that my two-color ribbing *really* didn't work. Mind you, it's the first time I'd ever tried such a thing, and I was winging it (why I did this when I actually have directions for doing so in my copy of Tudor Roses... which, WTF? It's selling for as much as $275 a copy??? Yikes! I'd better guard mine!!). Anyway, winged it, and it's loose and curly and I don't like the way it looks. So I decided to seam up the whole bottom ribbing after I finished the sleeves. Had to do it before I started the button band, of course. And have to do the button band before doing the neck/collar, if I want it to cross over. So, here's the before and after of the seaming, and proof that I actually have two finished sleeves.

   Before	After
   Two Sleeves!	Cast on button band, side one

2. A Pair of Hearts Socks. This is the carry-around today, so hopefully there will be actual progress pictures tomorrow.
3. The Stoplight Sweater. All the steeking is done, and we're down to sleeves, sleeves, and more sleeves. Or carefully sewing in the zipper so the pattern actually matches across the chest.

   Steeks done, Sleeve Cast On

4. Titania. Let's be honest. I'm not touching this sweater until one of the other two is actually completely done. I don't know what I was thinking, putting THREE sweaters into WIP Wrestling!
5. Forget-Me-Not Shawl. Wow, once you get to a certain point of a center-out shawl, it starts to go REALLY slow. Man. But at least I'm working on it a bit. No point in a photo; it still looks about the same as yesterday, despite two solid hours of knitting!

I'll probably be staying up far too late again tonight watching the Olympics - I was up until almost one on Tuesday and Wednesday. I can catch up on my sleep during the boring sports on the weekend, right? Oh, wait, there aren't really any boring sports, since I can knit during all of them (Except for swimming. Gotta watch the US guys swim, since if you blink, you'll miss them... or they'll be so far ahead of everyone else that they're not even in the same frame!).

Just over 11 days left...

Okay, much the Squee: Kathy of Knitting Out Loud will be at Stitches East! I am SO buying my own copy of "No Idle Hands" and "Knitting Lessons: Tales from the Knitter's Path"! I mean - listening to books about knitting whilst knitting? Bliss!!

In more personal knitting news (because that's why I'm doing this), while trying to stave off Rampant Startitis for just one more day, I examined at my Master List of UFOs. Looks like while I've started 29 new things this year, there are only *ten* that I haven't finished. That's a pretty good ratio for me! For right now, the UFO count is at 62; I did have to start my A Pair of Hearts Socks. Ravelympics, you know. I just *had* to start them. Thankfully, I think I'll be done with them on schedule.

Anyway, here's what happened Tuesday-into-Wednesday on the Ravelympics front:

1. Titania. Located. Re-printed pattern. Discovered I'm evidently knitting both fronts at the same time (remember, I'm modding her into a cardigan). Okay, I can do this! Just probably not this week.
2. The Stoplight Sweater. Haven't touched it since Monday. Still needs one sleeve steek sewn back, and one sleeve steek done entirely.
3. A Pair of Hearts Socks. Whups. Forgot about these. Must figure out where I left them Monday morning when I pulled them out of my Ravelry tote to stuff The Cat Sweater inside...
4. Forget Me Not Shawl. Cast on. Like three times. Why am I having such "fun" casting on lace lately? At least I found all my cool little markers. Turns out I needed 'em: I got through the ENTIRE FIRST REPEAT (!!!) up to my first lifeline! Woohooooo! Hot Pink Fuzzyness is HERE!
5. The Cat Sweater. Oh, I'm gonna finish this sucker this week. Just see if I don't!! Here's Tuesday morning (and a bonus shot of Knitting with George):

... and here's where I am on Wednesday morning!

So, I have the potential to finish at least *one* thing this week (it's looking like The Cat Sweater or the Stoplight Sweater). Maybe two (socks?). I started washing all the bedding just after five yesterday morning so I wouldn't have to come home and do it, and that mostly worked. I'm not quite coherent enough to knit just after I wake up, but laundry? No problem!

Now if I can just figure out how to pay bills and get exercise (without hurting myself physically or financially) while I'm asleep, I'll be all set.

Ravelympics, 11days, 21 or so hours left...

Note the cool Countdown Timer I snagged courtesy of AnnyPurls over on Ravelry. It's to the top-right of this here blog page. See? Wheee!

And yes, Cindy, I did actually sleep over the weekend. Most of Saturday during the day, in fact. (Because all the cool sports were on at, say, three a.m.) But I slept, I promise!!

Yesterday, I got to the slightly slow part of knitting: The not-knitting. Right now, it's all about the steeks. To get two of my older sweater UFOs done (wrestled? They are part of Ravelympics WIP Wrestling, after all), I need to steek one more front and three more sleeves. Thanks to my very patient husband taking me on an emergency Sunday-evening Walmart run (it's so odd that it's now "Walmart" instead of "Wal-Mart" - things change!), I have brown thread (The Cat Sweater steeks), green thread (Stoplight Sweater steeks) and red thread (Stoplight Sweater zipper), plus blue (red and blue needed to finish a small wall quilt that I'd like done SOON). I got a large spools of black and white thread, as well, since I don't seem to have any thread in my house of "normal" colors. Embroidery floss, sure, SCADS of that, but that's not so good for seaming things and quilting! ANY-way, back to the steeks. First, look what I finally found buried in a bag I *SWEAR* I checked at least three times previously:

Forget-Me-Not Shawl to Be

Next, The Cat Sweater:

Front steek, both sides finished, ready for button band
Sleeve steek all seamed, ready to cut, outside and in

Sleeve steek, cut

Sleeve steek sewn back

Sleeve cast on!

Now, the Stoplight Sweater:

Front steek, both sides finished, ready for zipper installation

One sleeve steek seamed and cut
Size 15 needles found, but may actually need 13s, which are AWOL
Now, if you're thinking that this is a LOT of progress that coudl've happened any time in the past, oh, four years (yes, I started the Stoplight Sweater in its present incarnation in 2004 - there were three incarnations before it that just didn't work), you'd be right. It's happening now because of the Ravelympics, and that's pretty much the only reason. Well, that and because it actually got CHILLY this weekend (!!), so having a cute sweater or two would be nice!

Ravelympics, starting Day 4

First, look what showed up in the mail! Yaaaay!
I also got the "daily dose of fiber" magnets, which are stuck to our closet door. (For no reason I can think of, all the interior doors in our house are metal. All the exterior doors, however, are wood, and most are split/cracked/decaying from age and need replacement. I don't understand, but it gives me a lot of place to stick magnets.

Did I mention that last Friday morning, pre-work, was a flurry of unwanted activity at my house? I was going to tuck my laceweight merino and size 3 needles into my Ravelry tote just in case I got bored with my sock during the day - and I couldn't find it! I was certain both it and The Cat Sweater were right in my wheeled bins-o-stash, but they weren't! I had the Stoplight Sweater (couch), Titania (wheeled bins) and Pair of Hearts socks (Ravelry Bag), but no Cat Sweater or Forget-me-Not yarn. Naturally, I had to toss the craft room when I got home, which isn't easy, due to the fact that IT'S FULL. Completely. No room to walk, almost.

Many hours (and much lost knitting time) later, I had managed to rescue The Cat Sweater. Then I sat down to the Opening Ceremonies...

... and was so enthralled I didn't knit a STITCH. Oh well!

On to Saturday morning. Here I am at approximately 6:45 a.m., ready to go. The socks are in my Ravelry bag; the giant orange knitting tote contains The Cat Sweater.


Progress on the Five Ravelympics Projects for the first weekend of the Games:

1. Titania. Located. Must re-print pattern. No actual knitting.
2. The Stoplight Sweater. Located. Bought thread for seaming before steeking. Found 29" bright-red zipper, located yarn. Can't find size 15 circular needles for sleeve knitting, but they've got to be around somewhere. No actual knitting.
3. A Pair of Hearts Socks. Almost done with one ankle to the heel flap. Nervous: never done an actual "heel flap" or "gussets" before. (This is my Practice Heel Flap, since I'll need to be able to do one for Installment #2 of the Fairy Tale Sock Club.) Anyway:
   
4. Forget Me Not Shawl. Found the *ball band* for the yarn, but not the yarn or its associated needles. My house ate my yarn. If I haven't found it by next weekend, will have to scratch this event.
5. The Cat Sweater. Found, and first sleeve completed, yay!!
   
   I look scary here. No idea why.
   Also, seamed, cut, and sewed back front steek.
   
   It's fun telling my mom about steeking. She freaks out just thinking about it, but since my attitude is "well, I can sew well enough by hand that the yarn isn't coming apart nohow, so, no worries even if I screw up," I don't have a problem. Once again proving I'm a process, not a product, knitter.

So, how are all y'all doing?

It's ON!

Friday, and let the Ravelympics begin! Woohooo!!!


I started my A Pair of Hearts Socks from Random Knits promptly at 8am (that's 8pm in Beijing), and will work on those as my "travel around" project. I'm using the Tofutsies I picked up when I found the lovely Orange Merino that will be Secret of the Stole III. I'll restart my Forget-Me-Not Shawl tonight when I get home -assuming I can find it. It an The Cat Sweater are hiding somewhere. But I'll find it, and keep going while watching the Opening Ceremonies. Yaaaaaaaay!! Wooohoooo!! Progress pics shall be posted as I go, and the theory is that in two weeks, both these projects will be finished - along with the two sweaters entered in WIP Wrestling - and my UFO count will be under 60 forever!! Woohooooo!!!

thisclose, but not there yet...

I just have to point out the Fla-Vor-Ice Cozy from Lynnio Knits. I just have to. Plus (oh, the joys of "Random Surf" on the Knit Bloggers Ring!), some really cool Yarn Desktop Wallpaper from Vogue Knitting via Yarn Dreams! Now back to the UFO thing.

Well, I was clearly on a roll this past weekend. Last Thursday night (that would be a week ago), I hit the craft room, and dug out (a) a lot of totebags, (b) a frightening number of lost Ghiardelli caramel chocolate squares therefrom, (c) many, many balls of yarn that I'd forgotten I had and (wheeee!) (d) a bag with a bunch of patterns, a ball of lacy lamb and size 0 needles, and this:


It's a bag I did ages ago. Michael's used to sell front-pocket totes. The sun is a canvas kit from Janlynn (Bucilla? One of them...). I got some cord for the edging, made a velcro closure strip for the pocket, gave the top a zipper, and used the extra pink and rose floss to make the little band out to each side, which just gave it that extra "I could've bought this, but I didn't, I made it, aren't I clever?" oomph. (I've actually had someone tell me I *couldn't* have stitched the bag, since the lines were "too straight and even" on the sides. Um, it's on a canvas bag. Canvas is woven. On a grid. It's actually pretty danged easy.)

I also unburied a stunning little piece (and stitched on it like a fiend ever since, with a couple of knitting and/or crochet breaks), so it would be done.

It is so not done.

I tried, I really tried, but I discovered last night that all of the purple-y stuff was supposed to be purple-y *with* blending fillament, so I had to overstitch a bunch of stuff that I'd already stitched, which wasted the whole evening. Well, not wasted, since all is now how it should be, but I didn't get *more* done. I'm probably much closer to 80% done than 75% done... and probably closer to the 90% range. Sigh. We'll see how much I get done tonight, given that I won't get home until late because of PT. So, as of today:

English Knot Gardencross-stitch, was 75% done

I'm so close to 60 UFOs (pre-Ravelympics) that I can almost taste it, but I'm just not there yet. UFO count still holds at 61. DRAT!!!

On a Roll!

Wednesday - and you may have sensed a trend this week. It continues. Well, you'd be right! There's more on the UFO front! But first, these public service announcements:

If you run Firefox on your computer, and your computer will handle the latest version, DOWNLOAD IT NOW. Seriously. I did yesterday, and my entire computer has been happier as a result, plus uploading all the photos I put out here takes but an instant. Seriously. Download the new version of Firefox now.

Also, here's a really cool Countdown to the Opening Ceremonies clock, set for Beijing time (so you'll know how long wherever you are how long you've got). Very helpful in motivating me to get the heck going so I have as many UFOs off the list as possible by Friday!!

Speaking of the the UFO count: I took a good look at Tailored Scallops from Lace Style. I have two fronts done, but the back doesn't match color-stripe wise, and it's driving me nuts. And besides - I was making it to wear at my sister's wedding. The wedding that happened on June 21st. Over a month ago. Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiip! Now I've got four lovely balls of Feza Fanatic in chocolate and turquoise, and they'll eventually be a *modified* Tailored Scallops (knitting the whole thing as one piece). But not now.

Tailored Scallops knitting - was 30% done UNRAVELED 8-3-08

Lest you think it's all about unraveling things, let me assure you, it is not. Things Are Getting Finished.

Item one: I hz MORE totbg! Yep, I finished my second Inga's Crocheted Bag, and it came out great. I haven't lined it yet, but I'm not certain I'm going to do so - I like the airly feel of the unlined. I just have to remember it is NOT a "carries knitting" bag - I'd be dropping needles all over the place. Anyway, see the pretty:

Monday Morning	Inga's Bag with George
Tuesday Morning	Wednesday Morning, Heading Off to Work!

Inga's Haeckelbeutel IIcrochet - was 60% done

This all leaves me with ZERO current crochet projects, to go with my ZERO current sewing projects. And, in case you were keeping track (because I sure as heck am!), that's now a UFO Count of 61.

There's a Ravelry Tote with my name on it!

Ah, Tuesday. I have to report that I had a total Geek Squeee moment yesterday when I hit Ravelry: a bunch of my Ravelympics teammates (Team Resolutions 2008) are using the Ravatar I designed for us. Squeeeeeal! They like it! They really like it! Sqeeeeeeal!

*Ahem.*

There was also the moment of Great Triumph when, on a whim, I checked the Ravelry Mini-Mart just to see if just maybe in the two hours since I'd checked it, the Ravelry Totes had been put up. THEY HAD!!!! Bwah-hahahahahaha! I gots me a totebag. Woohoo! I can now put away my credit card; that was the last thing I was keeping it out for. Yay!

So, there's more on the UFO front. (Yes, really. And yes, in the downward direction. I heard that.) More hunting through the stash, and more finding of things that I'll never finish, no matter how much I once loved them. First was Mirabilia's "Fairy Tales", which I started on a lovely 10ct dark-pewter sparklycloth. [Unlreated note: Salt & Pepper, the site with the pic of a completed "Fairy Tales" is one of my favorite online needlework stores. They kit FOR you, and it's worth it!] The pewter turned out to be too dark (almost an exact match for the shadow color called for in the pattern), and I hadn't used thick enough floss (it needed six strands, I was only using three). I've been meaning to rip it out for ages, but didn't get around to it until just now. So, now I have some spectacular cloth - to use for something else. (This is one pattern that just doesn't appeal any more, oh well.)

Before	Yes, those are two sizes of seed pearls I had to take out - and NOT LOSE.
After - the blank canvas	Lots and LOTS of orts!

Fairy Tales cross-stitch - was 25% done UNSTITCHED 8-3-08

My mother can't watch me pull things out; she almost cries. The fact that it doesn't bother me - in fact, it's almost exciting - is how I can tell I'm a process crafter. I'm all about Doing whatever it is, and if I wind up with something at the end, great; if not, I had fun working on whatever-it-was. So, I'm pretty excited about having this huge piece of 10ct dark sparkly to stitch something on someday!

Oh, and that's a UFO count of 63 now!

Getting ready for Ravelympics...

So, with the Ravelympics due to start at the end of the week (that's Friday, kids), and with me really, really not wanting to go over 70 UFOs (since I was such a good bunny to get under 60 at the start of the year), I really, really need to finish stuff this week. I started last week, and the making of the Giant Chart of Projects, at 66 UFOs. This includes thirty-four (34) cross-stitch projects (including hardanger and specialty-stitch samplers), three (3) cross-stitch sets, two (2) latch hook projects, two (2) crochet projects, twelve (12) knitted projects, eight (8) quilts or mini-quilts, five (5) canvaswork items and NO (0) sewing projects. Sixty-six.

As Karen so succinctly put it: "Oh my God."

That is a lot, and as both Secret of the Stole III (August 15th) *and* the Ravelympics (FRIDAY!!!) start soon, I need to finish something. Just one, tiny, itsy-bitsy thing. (Why just one? Because when I checked my list, I'd never actually taken the Forget-me-Not shawl, my Ravelympics project, *off* the list. *Phew!*) I knew about this "finish something" last Wednesday, when I struggled mightily to finish at least half of the Sekrit Projikt - and lo, I succeeded at that. Mostly.

I discovered that "finishing" might take a bit longer than I've got - but UNDOING - that goes pretty fast!! So, I went through the barely-started pile of stuff, and made some choices. First up, there's a latch-hook rug I've started - and not gotten terribly far on - where the colors are just Messed UP. Seriously. So, pull tug tug tug, it's all unhooked, to be started again someday when (a) I feel like it and (b) have time to cut up a bajillion pieces of Caron Supersoft yarn (which, by the way, works lovely for nice, soft rugs). HA!! A UFO goes off the list!

More knitting got done, of course, this time on my Ninja Arm-warmers, because it's just silly to be two rows of ribbing from having the first one knitted - and it's a heck of a lot easier to do all the duplicate stitch on them when they aren't attached to a bunch of sharp, pointy, size 0 needles. See?


One Ninja Armwarmer, with Skull (and someday snowflakes)
Next, I was crocheting a huge filet-crochet blanket with my my new family name and a giant heart on it after I got married. A white blanket. If you've ever seen my decor - or house - you'll grasp, quickly, that "white" as a color in decor... just isn't gonna cut it. I haven't taken it off the list before, because I couldn't find the bloody thing... but this past weekend, I found where it had been hiding, and unraveled it. I now have a TON of slightly sparkly white yarn. I'll eventually be making something like Jared's Hemlock Ring Blanket out of the yarn... for my mother's house.

So, here's two little critters, undone, and off the list.

Nova (Starburst)  latch hook - was 10% done - UNRAVELED 8-2-08 White B. Afghan  crochet - Was 40% done - UNRAVELED 8-2-08

I also got a lot done on the Sekrit Projikt, too - having gotten myself to get going again, I did the Really Quick Part where Lots of Progress is Apparent on the ride into work on Friday, and then settled in to the part that doesn't go quite as quickly. (At least it's going faster than it would have been, now that I found my fifth size 1 Addi turbo steel-frame needle. Faster still when I figure out where I hid my circs from myself!)

The UFO Count stands at 64.

Hooked on Murder (midday update)

At lunch, I finished Hooked on Murder by Betty Hechtman, the first of the Crochet Murder Mystery series. (#2, Dead Men Don't Crochet, is due out in December.) It was a fun read, went quickly, and, for once, I *didn't* figure it all out right before the end, even though, looking back, the clues were there. The red herrings are done *very* well.



I also discovered Killer Hobbies, a blog by all seven of the crafting murder mystery authors out there. In trying to think of a series of my own, I realized I have one... so, on top of all the other plans for the weekend, it may be time to start writing again. Whee?

A dose of Pretty

And now, for the weekly dose of pretty:

Butterflies!




Outside one of the local libraries, just sort of fluttering around. I'm not so used to seeing tiger swallotails around here, so it was cool!

Plan for the weekend: Take next step towards getting out of debt; figure out how to knit peas.