No More Cold Feet!

For Charms, we had several options, including "craft something from Bulky Yarn" and "craft something in honor of Dobby". Socks from bulky yarn seemed called for - and, hey, I desperately needed a new pair of bedsocks!


They turned out great, thankfully. And very warm. With warm feet, I can fall right asleep. I'm ALL about the warm fuzzy bedsocks!!

Startitis... I haz it.

Also on Wednesday, when I started the little Michael Powell kit, I started knitting myself a new pair of bedsocks out of yarn I'm supposed to be using for my Arithmancy OWL. My only defense is that it's such a pretty green I wanted to keep it near me. Or something like that.


That fascination didn't survive into Thursday. So, naturally, I started something else - but, unlike the bedsocks, I finished it. And then did another one. It's two facecloth-sized dishcloths, from one ball of Sugar'n'Creme cotton. I used the outline shape from my Hello Kitty star & heart panels (which I made up in the first place).


As you can see, these aren't really designs for ombre yarns. Here's an outline of each design so you can see what you're supposed to be seeing:


Yeah, I know. But looking at them at an angle doesn't really help much...




But... hey! One more ball of yarn used up, and two little facecloths with happy, if nigh-invisible, pictures on them. Now I just have to figure out which class I can turn them in for. That seems to be the theme this month: have an idea for a class, then do something completely different without any classes in mind, then try to make it fit. I think I like the "plan, execute, turn in" method better, but it's just not working in March!

More Quidditch Points - Spatz!

Okay, I'm finally starting to finish things this month. Today, I show you my Spatz. They're actual spats, like you see in period films. Just spiffier!


Getting photos of my own legs while wearing boots this tall required some contortions, but I managed.


I especially like the Quarter buttons I found for them. It just seems so Scrooge McDuck to wear spats in the first place, and it pleases the Slytherin in me to realize how horrifed poor Scrooge would be at using money - even pretend money! - for simple decoration.


I'll be trying these this winter if I have to wear dress shoes anywhere - I hate cold ankles!!

September Wrap-Up

Next week, really, I'll have some TKGA Level I progress. In the flurry of month-end and trying to finish all eight classes for HPKCHC, it got left by the wayside this week. But really, I'm working on it. Sorta. Speaking of what I finished for the Cup....


MaggieLo Disguise (Viking Pride Hat, #108), for Defense Against the Dark Arts, turned in September 7; Dust Bunnies (#132), for Charms, turned in September 8; Flying Keys (#169), for History of Magic, turned in September 8; Colorwork Tam (#179), for Flying, turned in September 10; Sneaky Binary Hat (#206), for Arithmancy, turned in September 13; O.W.L Proposal - Herbology (#1004), turned in September 13; Challenge Quidditch Bedsocks (#933), turned in September 25; Quidditch Sweater (#1200), turned in September 27; Quidditch Hat (#1203), turned in September 27; Glass Cozies (#754), for Potions, turned in September 28; Star Stitch Hand Warmers (#593), for Herbology, turned in September 29; and, finally, Who? Hat (#749), for Transfiguration, turned in September 30.

I got some really cute things out of this, as will friends and relations (the glass cozies and half the keys have Other Homes, as will a couple of the hats).

That's all eight classes, Challenge quidditch, regular quidditch, and my OWL proposal turned in. Not too shabby!!

Fifty-Seven Points for Slytherin!

Nothing got done on the Masters program over the weekend - it was all about Quidditch! This weekend was the Slytherin House Pride Exhibition (Friday through today), and I got stuff finished. First, and most important for this weekend, was the 15-points project that could be done ONLY during HPE weekend: warm comfy bedsocks!


Next, something of which I'm pretty proud, my Slytherin Quidditch Sweater. This is the first thing I've done where I've followed a schematic EXACTLY, and pinned to block following the schematic EXACTLY... and, in a twist that shouldn't have been surprising to me but actually was, I got a lovely sweater that fits - EXACTLY.


Pinned EXACTLY!!!

I'm proud of myself for getting this done - and that it looks great!


Yes, the smile is not reaching my eyes here.
I'd been holding still for a bit longer than my knees would've liked.
Great photo of the sweater, though!!
Finally, my Slytherin Quidditch Hat is done, too. It also fits exactly; I've figured out how to block using a balled-up towel the size of my head. We'll be using THIS technique for the Masters Level I hat, for sure!!!


I turned in the HPE socks on Saturday, and I'll be turning in my Quidditch Sweater and Quidditch Hat later today. Plus - I've already started (and halfway finished) my Quidditch Necktie!! With the cheering, I've gotten 57 points for Slytherin JUST FROM QUIDDITCH!! Woohooo!

I really need a "Quidditch" tag now.

Today, the Slytherin Challenge Quidditch weekend begins! Today through Monday, everyone can earn points for the House two ways: (1) cheer every day (post something fun in the Quidditch thread) and (2) crafting ONLY today through Monday, make an item in House Colors!

Here's my yarn, I'll be casting on a pair of Warm Fuzzy Bed Socks for myself:

Of course, to do this, I'll need needles. Which are currently being used for my Tilting Tardis Shrug for Transfiguration:




See the little Tardises?

So, this weekend: Bedsocks, Shrug, Glass Cozies (Potions) and retrofit a jewelry holder into a needle holder (Herbology). And it'd be nice if I could start my OWL, too.... (Yeah. Just a little overcommited.)

Not Too Swift...

So, I have a swift, but no ball winder. This is not a problem, as I don't mind hand-winding balls. This time, however, I got a brilliant idea. The Lovely L had shown me how to make little center-pull balls a while back, so I decided to try making one.


I should've gotten up to get an actual tube-shaped object (as she told me to do), but lazily grabbed the bottle of Benadryl on my sidestand. I knew that if part of the ball went over the wrong end of the bottle, it could be a problem, and honestly, for the first Really Long While, I was careful about it. Then either I got tired or TV got fascinating, and I didn't notice that the yarn ball had closed up a bit... on the cap end of the bottle.

Thus, when I tried to remove the bottle from the center-pull ball, I discovered that somewhere in the very center, the yarn had closed around the smaller neck of the bottle, between the large bottle and the larger cap.


So, I am now knitting my Socktoberfest socks from an *outside*-pull ball of yarn, with a nice, rattly Benadryl weight in the center.


My husband, who has been helping with the de-stashing and de-stuffing of the house, has decided I need to get a ball winder! I don't want to tell him that... um... I have one, I just can't find it.

*Sigh*.

Fairy Tale Socks... and Matching Mitts!

I *did* get my Fairy Tale Sock Club #2 Third Sock Kit in the mail on Thursday night. (I now have a Peacock of my Own. That's all I'm sayin'.) Rather than dive right into it, though, I decided that I'd finish my Second Sock Kit first. Since I was home sick most of Friday, by Friday evening, I was up to here:


and by Saturday afternoon, they were done!

I'm warning you RIGHT NOW that this is lots of photos of these things, because I love them so...!


Top

Top

Side

to Side

... and Back!
Now, I love, love, LOVE this pattern. And, since I have freakishly small feet *and* knit loosely, I had a lot of yarn left over. So, my sleep pattern being completely mucked up, I stayed up until 2:30 Sunday morning knitting this:


Sunday, I got roughly halfway on the second one, but by the end of Monday (well, by the end of Leno), they were done.


backs

palms
The So, socks *and* mitts for the price of one little kit - pretty darned cool!!




Okay, now I'm just showing off.
This is far and away my favorite of the Fairy Tale Sock Club patterns thus far, but you could probably tell that...!

Finished Socks - FTSC-II #2, "The Fisherman and His Wife"

Yesterday morning, I finished my Fairy Tale Sock Club I #2 socks - "The Fisherman and His Wife". This involved finishing the socks, then knitting a small fish:

six rows in, and I wasn't sure I was gonna get a fish-looking thing out of this

Stuffing the fish with yarn left over from the Sort-of Star Tam

The resulting fish - looking like a fish!!
Then I needed to crochet a net to catch my little fishy in:

Fishnet Jumble

Blocking...

And a mere 8 hours later, a dry net!
I let the fish swim around for a while...


... and then it was time to net her up. I really like these (and note that I finally caved and got a pair of sock blockers, even if I did forget to adjust them before taking this photo))!!


When I left the house this morning, my FTSC-II-#3 package had not yet arrived, so, as I finished these, I'm allowed to start the new socks when they get here. I have now finished All Three of the FTSC-I socks, and I love them all! Yaaaay!

Actual Colors may Vary

Well, nothing happened over the weekend on my TKGA homework, as I forgot to bring my questions and label printouts home. Not much (maybe six rows?) happened on the Autumn Serenity Stroller Snuggie, since I was afeared The Eventual Recipient might see it at one of the various events I attended. Instead, heaping gobs happened on my Fairy Tale Sock Club #1 Second Socks, "The Fisherman and his Wife". I'm to the toe on the right sock, and about a pattern repeat and a half away from the toe on the left sock. (This has become my key to Finishing Two Socks and Thus Avoiding Second Sock Syndrome: do, say, the ribbing on sock A, then on sock B. Then do the leg on sock B, then the leg on sock A. Yes, I own a frightening number of size 1 and size 0 steel DPNs.)


I also discovered that setting the camera in my tiny-phone to "night shot" actually results in Actual Colors coming through under florescent lights. The pretty blue of the yarn looks Just Right on my monitor (can't vouch for yours, though). I also also discovered that the little zipper bags my bags-for-delicate-laundry come in work wonderfully as sock project bags. See?


Anyway, I hope to get to at least one toe tonight. Yay!

Bunnies, bunnies, it must be BUNNIES!

Okay, so I'm being good and I'm up to swatches 5 & 6 on my TKGA Basics, Basics, Basics Lesson #2, but I'm also working on my Fairy Tale Sock Club Socks. I'm doing Linen Stitch on the heels of the socks in question... and I ask you, doesn't two-color linen stitch make little stitches that look just like BUNNIES??


I'm totally silly-pleased about the Bunny Stitch.

I finally turned in my homework...

Saturday morning, I finally got my TKGA Basics, Basics, Basics Lesson #1 in the mail. FINALLY. I had the swatches knitted in three freakin' days - and it took six weeks to get up the courage to block them, and then another three to write up my homework and mail the blasted things. I must do better next time. Anyway, here are my lovely swatches:


In a completely unrelated story, I turned my first-ever absolutely perfect heel last Friday morning, on my second Theseus & the Minotaur sock. I am very pleased that I finally managed to fight off distractions and actually do a heel correctly the Very First Time Out of the Gate.


More knitting fun tomorrow!