Friday, July 25, 2008
I blame it all on Ravelry...
I've been kind of absent lately and I blame it all on Ravelry. It's just too easy to upload projects and yarn directly to Ravelry instead of posting here....but I'm going to try to get better. I have a lot to blog about, just need the patience to do it.
I've been up to a few things since I last blogged....the yummiest was a knitting retreat in Greer, Arizona with my knitting grrrls. We stayed in a beautiful cabin up in the mountains. The weather was absolutely gorgeous with rain and thunder and the highs in the 60's during the day. I know to some this sounds absolutely dreadful, but it's no picnic living in Phoenix in the summertime, so rain and cool weather are what we want. It also makes for delish knitting weather. We spent our time cooking yummy meals, knitting, spinning, talking, sharing, watching movies and bonding. I love my knitting group so much and it was great to spend a weekend away with them. Next time, we did decide to stay a little closer to home and to extend our stay. The 4 hour drive and only 1 full day wasn't quite enough...but it was fun, just the same. You can see my whole Flickr set of photos from the trip here.
For my mindless knitting in Greer, I chose to cast on for another pair of socks for myself in Yarn Chef Minestrone sock yarn. HEAVEN. This is the softest, most buttery, delicious sock yarn EVER and the striping...the glorious striping. Take a gander at my first finished sock.
I'm calling these bad boys my Rice Dream Puddle socks. The colorway name is Ice Cream Puddle, but, you know, I'm dairy-free IRL so I had to mix it up a bit. I'm anxious to cast on for the second one, but first, I promised The Mister a pair of socks too...so I cast on for The Gentleman's Fancy Sock in Railway Stitch from Knitting Vintage Socks. I'm using the yarn he picked for the pattern which is Dream in Color Smooshy in Cocoa Kiss. I think he chose well.
Be back soon...I promise...with more sock results as well as a yummy cookie recipe and a Ravelympics project. Have a super weekend.
Labels: da blahs, DIC Smooshy, Life...le sigh, Ravelry, sock love
Monday, July 7, 2008
Close but no cigar...
Last year, my knitting goal was to understand the anatomy of a sock and to be really comfortable knitting them. To find out what yarns I liked to knit them with, what needles I preferred and to figure out what heel and toe fit my foot the best. I succeeded and became obsessed with knitting socks. The love affair is still constant and beautiful, but I decided that I wanted to knit them with more consistency and that I was ready to take on some more advanced sock patterns.I joined the Sock A Month KAL 5 which started this past January. The goal was to knit and post a pair a month...I did great....until the last pair. I finished a day late. At first, I was upset about it...feeling like I didn't meet the goal I set out to make, but then shortly realized that...well, that's not what knitting's all about. For me, it's my stress reliever, my social outlet and my little piece of heaven. I got over it and looked back at all the beautiful socks I knit over the past 6 months and was again, ever grateful that I'm a knitter. The people I've met, the things I've done, the skill I've gained, the peace it brings...it's not about the ultimate goal, but the ultimate feeling of joy that it brings into my life.
January
February
March
April
May
June
My June socks, finished July 2, are Hedgerows by Jane Cochran. I used Sundara Sock in Candied Chrome and size 1 Knit Picks Nickel Plated DPNs. This sock yarn was a DREAM to knit with!
So there it is....6 month's worth of socks. Socks I'm happy with. Socks I learned a lot about knitting from. I knit my first pair of lace socks during the past 6 months. I also used several new sock yarns that I'd never knit with before like Yarntini, Vesper, sKNITches, Dream in Color Smooshy and Sundara. I think that's a lot to be satisfied with.
I decided not to join the next 6 months of the KAL because I'm going to start on another knitting goal...one that's kind of well....FREAKED ME OUT....I'm going to knit my first sweater.
My sweet friend, Gherkin and I are going to knit Pamela Wynne's February Lady Sweater out of Cascade 220 on our knitting retreat to Greer this coming weekend. I did my swatch the other night and got gauge spot on!
I'm excited. A little nervous. And eagerly anticipating what this next goal will bring to my knitting....I have a sneaky suspicion it will be, stress relief, socialization with dear friends and my little piece of heaven.
Labels: Life...le sigh, SAM KAL, sock love
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Cause, you know...I got no photos...
I'll do a meme....I was tagged (twice) by Miss Annie Knits and also by Miss Lamby Knits.
So here goes:
What was I doing 10 years ago?
~I had just moved to Phoenix from the Philadelphia area. I was working at a bank as a personal banker and had just met The Mister. :) My sister was also spending the summer here with us!
What are 5 things on my to-do list today?
~Laundry (this is on my list EVERYday..ACK!)
~Go to Ulta to get a new base coat and polish because I promised the Bug that we would paint toe nails (anyone know how hard it is to find formaldehyde-free base coat! OY!)
~Shop for a new purse (The Mister spilled pasta sauce ALL OVER mine the other day when we were out to eat!)
~Do a general pick up/straighten up around the house
~Fix a mistake in my Odessa Hat decreases that I messed up when I was too tired and knitting it at 11:30 last night!
Snacks I Enjoy:
Pretzels, Cascadian Farm Peanut Butter Chip Granola Bars, Chocolate (the darker the better), hummus and veggies
Things I would do if I were a millionaire:
~Pay off everything we owe
~Pay off everything my immediate family owes
~Buy a Mini Cooper with a British flag painted on the roof
~Buy my husband his dream car
~Open a yarn shop with a coffee bar with a hot barista
~Save for The Nut's education
~Donate a huge chunk to Rescue so they could build a new facility
~Move back East so I could be near my sisters
Places I have lived.
Connecticut
South Carolina
Pennsylvania
Arizona
Consider yourself tagged.
Labels: Life...le sigh, memememememememe
Thursday, May 29, 2008
LOST my mojo....I thought...
Notice the giant gap of time that I haven't blogged....well, it's for quite a lot of reasons! One being that we are in the midst of house hunting which is going...well, not very well...we just put an offer on a 4th...yes, 4th house the other day and are REALLY hoping this one doesn't become a huge bidding battle like the last 3 have. Oy.The other reason I haven't posted is because I really thought I lost my knitting mojo. FOR REALS! Last month I cast on for 6 different socks/patterns and several cowls and nothing I knit was working. I put everything down for a bit and just took a breather. I'm happy to report that I finished a pair of socks and I'm over the moon for them. Take a gander....
Appropriate that I can call them my LOST socks, right? ;)
Specs:
Pattern: Penllyn by Wildhorse Farm Designs
Yarn: Yarntini Variegated Sock in the 4-8-15-16-23-42 aka Lost colorway
Needles: Size 1 Knit Picks Nickel DPNs
Mods to Pattern: I made the leg longer than the pattern called for (about 8 repeats and 7.5 inches) which almost caused me to run out of yarn! Eep! Luckily Miss Stacey was kind enough to send her leftovers.
In other Wannabe-land news, my baby...can I still call her that?....turned 4. Sniff, sniff. Since we are in limbo with moving, it was really hard to plan a party so we decided a mom and dad day would work well. The Mister took the day off of work and we spent it as a family, each doing one thing alone with her. In the morning, I took her to get her very first pedicure...where she picked orange nail polish (black was the first choice, but they didn't have any...) and flowers.
In the afternoon, the 'Nut went with her dad to the ice rink where he plays ice hockey for her first ice skating lesson. The Mister said she was a little leary at first but was able to skate around a bit. I think she liked it best when he was holding her and he skated.
We had such a fun day...
Up next in knitland...Slip Up Shropshire socks and more Christmas knitting. Happy almost weekend.
Labels: Buggernut, knitting, Life...le sigh, SAM KAL, Yarntini
Monday, January 7, 2008
An End is Just A New Beginning
Happy Belated New Year. I've been too busy knitting to post, but I finally made myself upload some pics and want to share my last FO's of 2007 with you.I made a few pairs of arm/wristwarmers as gifts this year. I adore how they turned out.
Specs:Pattern: Arm/Wrist Warmers from Last Minute Knitted Gifts
Yarn: Blue Pair - RYC Cashsoft DK - almost a full skein
Raspberry Paor - Noro Cash Iroha - 1/2 skein
Needles: Clover Size 6 8" circulars, Clover size 6 Bamboo DPNs
Mods: Made the blue pair one repeat longer which is why it took almost a full skein
I'm made 5 pairs of these now and I REALLY need to make a pair for me. They are super fast and easy!
And the recipients loved them!
(The Hubster's sister got the blue pair)
(and my wonderful MIL got the raspberry pair!)I also knitted up something for me, but then decided that I was indeed allergic to alpaca (at least in the adult state) and gifted this to my sister, Sara (the one that got the Plucky Cashmere Cowl) instead.
Specs:
Pattern: Luxe Neckwarmer from Knit2Together
Yarn: Misti Alpaca Chunky
Needles: Size 10.5 16" Clover Bamboo DPNs
Shout out: To Sarah for the idea to make this pattern after 2 failed attempts with this yarn
In other knitting news, failed attempts were rampant around here during the holidays...most disappointing was a pair of Purl Free Monkeys I was working on that were just a little to tight...but oh so pretty.
This was ripped out and is becoming a pair of Charades. The yarn is Yarn Pirate Rum Runner from the first Booty Club installment. I must admit, one sock is done and it was a really good decision to rip the Monkey and start fresh. My next pair will be some Monkeys though. :)
In other news, I have made a HUGE lifestyle change that began before the New Year actually. I have needed to go dairy-free for some time now for health reasons, so I finally bit the bullet, cleaned out the fridge and cupboards (you have no idea how much stuff has milk product in it!) and started beginning my new adventure eating differently. I have cut out dairy, eggs, caffeine and meat and am basically considered vegan now. In the last 2 weeks, I have seen tremendous improvements in my body. I've lost over 5 lbs, my skin is clearer, my severe, nasty, bleeding eczema is GONE and I have more energy than I've ever had. I feel great! I'm actually having a really awesome time meal planning, shopping and cooking too because I have a challenge. So far everything I've made has exceeded my expectations. Vegan living is swell!
I hope this extremely long post finds everyone well and happy and enjoying your fresh start...be back with sock pics soon!
Specs:Pattern: Luxe Neckwarmer from Knit2Together
Yarn: Misti Alpaca Chunky
Needles: Size 10.5 16" Clover Bamboo DPNs
Shout out: To Sarah for the idea to make this pattern after 2 failed attempts with this yarn
In other knitting news, failed attempts were rampant around here during the holidays...most disappointing was a pair of Purl Free Monkeys I was working on that were just a little to tight...but oh so pretty.
This was ripped out and is becoming a pair of Charades. The yarn is Yarn Pirate Rum Runner from the first Booty Club installment. I must admit, one sock is done and it was a really good decision to rip the Monkey and start fresh. My next pair will be some Monkeys though. :)
In other news, I have made a HUGE lifestyle change that began before the New Year actually. I have needed to go dairy-free for some time now for health reasons, so I finally bit the bullet, cleaned out the fridge and cupboards (you have no idea how much stuff has milk product in it!) and started beginning my new adventure eating differently. I have cut out dairy, eggs, caffeine and meat and am basically considered vegan now. In the last 2 weeks, I have seen tremendous improvements in my body. I've lost over 5 lbs, my skin is clearer, my severe, nasty, bleeding eczema is GONE and I have more energy than I've ever had. I feel great! I'm actually having a really awesome time meal planning, shopping and cooking too because I have a challenge. So far everything I've made has exceeded my expectations. Vegan living is swell!
I hope this extremely long post finds everyone well and happy and enjoying your fresh start...be back with sock pics soon!
Labels: Christmas knitting, knitting, Life...le sigh, Plucky love, Sarie, vegan cookin'
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Maybe they will knit together someday?
The knit grrrls with youngsters got together today at the park for some playtime, Halloween foam house decorating and feasting on Michelle's yummy pumpkin cookies. :)
Left to Right: Spiffy's K, my Buggernut, Spiffy's A, Gherkin's B, Michelle's N, Michelle's niece M, and Michelle's J
The 'Nut with her decorated Haunted House. :)Not a lot of knitting was done...or crocheting for that matter...but that will take place later tonight when the mamas get together for dinner and knitting. Who knows, maybe our kiddos will end up knitting together someday. For now, I'm grateful that the Nut has some awesome littles to hang out with...and I'm grateful for their mama's friendship. See what knitting does? It brings people together. :)
(all pics are clickable to make larger and are courtesy of Michelle and Gherkin)
Labels: Buggernut, girlfriends rock, knitting, Life...le sigh
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
31 and 8 years
It's been a busy week over here. Much knitting has gone on...but it's all Christmas knitting. DRAT! So no pictures for a while around here...unless I can sneak in some fun knitting for me.This past week I celebrated my 31st birthday. It was one of the best birthdays in years. The hubster took the day off, allowed me to sleep in and took care of the 'Nut, made me a homemade breakfast, took the 'Nut out for 3 hours in the afternoon so I could knit and watch a movie in peace, gave me the BEST SHOES EVER, and took me out for a yummy dinner. Couldn't ask for more.
Today is our 8th wedding anniversary. We aren't doing anything much today except I'm cooking a really nice dinner...organic balsamic chicken, mashed garlic red potatoes, fresh organic green beans paired with a really nice white Australian wine and chocolate mousse torte for dessert. We had talked about watching our wedding video...we'll see. Next week my MIL is taking the 'Nut for her first sleepover at Grandma's house so we can go out to a nice dinner and movie and have a night alone. I'm SO looking forward to that.
(yes, clear braces...LOL!)It's amazing to me the changes in our lives in 8 years. We've had good times and bad but have proved that we can make it thru anything as long as we love each and want to make it work. I love you Bri...and look forward to celebrating many more. Mwah.
Labels: ahhhhhh, Life...le sigh, lurve
Monday, August 6, 2007
Wannabe Racin' & Choice Baldness
I haven't been knitting much over here. Welcome to summer at Chez Wannabe. I'm lucky if I can get in a few sock rows lately and it's makin' me SAD. I miss just sitting and knitting. Soon I hope.Emily over at Yarn Miracle started Dish Rag Tag back a few months ago. Heard of it? I instantly joined and was chosen by Em as a Team Captain. The race goes like this...a box arrives to your house. Inside there are 2 balls of dishcloth cotton (one that you keep and one that you use to knit up a dishcloth for the next person in your team), a knitted dish cloth (or rag, whatevs) and a surprise from the person that tagged you. Since I'm a Team Caption, I got the box for my team first. I call my team Wannabe Racin'. You can follow our progress on my sidebar! Ye-ah.
I got the box on Friday and was able to whip up my dishcloth and get the box shipped out to the next person in my team this morning. Turbo knitting. Lurve it.
This gorgeous mitered dishcloth was in my box along with a few really cute cookie cutters and a recipe for Shortbread. All this came from Emily. Here is a pic of the yummy dishcloth I got:
I whipped this beauty up for Gina, the next person on my team. The pattern is called Vine Lace Cloth and it's by S. M. Kahn over at smariek.
So I put this in the box along with 2 new skeins of dishcloth cotton, a surprise for my tagged person and instructions for the race. And had to add a little hello to the outside of the box like I encouraged my teammates to do:
I hope we win! We have a pretty good strategy so I think we will do great!
In other news, the 'Nut decided to have a date with a pair of scissors and diaper cream yesterday morning while I was still blissfully asleep. And then decided to clean up her mess with baby wipes. Ehem.
Here is the aftermath:
Yes, those are indeed bald spots. The joys of having a 3 year old. She informed me later in the day that she did it just like the lady did it...meaning the lady that cut her hair last time. Oy.
I was able to cover up most of the damage with a headband that Tink made her. Wanna make me a few more of these, Cheri?
Labels: Buggernut, knitting, Life...le sigh
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Contest Time
We've been busy over here at Chez Wannabe enjoying the summer and all that it entails. Well....okay, maybe not enjoying the 110 degree heat, but nonetheless doing what we can to beat it and stay cool. This has involved countless hours in the pool, playing games inside (hello, 110!) and quite a bit of baking. I was inspired by A Friend To Knit With and her "Cookie of the Week" project she did with her kids...so the Buggernut and I have been doing some baking every week. Not necessarily cookies every week, but something baked. I plan on doing this all summer long. :)So, I think a contest is long overdue, don't you? I'm going to have 2 prizes. One for a knitter and one for a non-knitter. First, let me indulge you with some cuteness.
The 'Nut and I baked for a Rescue bake sale. We made Snickerdoodles and used boxes a la Martha to package them beautifully. And of course, had to make a few dozen more to share with neighbors and fill our tummies. :)
This past week we made Sara's Strawberry Muffin recipe. These were OUT OF THIS WORLD amazing. Again, cupcake liners a la Martha. Notice the color choice. Ehem.
So here's the scoop. My little helper went thru a big change this week. If you've read the blog for a while you know that I post lots of pics of her. If you can correctly guess the change, you will be entered into a drawing for one of 2 yummy prizes. There is a big hint in one of the pictures of her.
Prize #1 will be for knitters: A custom "Wannabe" skein of sock yarn from the very talented The Plucky Knitter.
Prize #2 for the non-knitters: A pair of pretty earrings from Puffluna...my current Etsy addiction.
You have until Tuesday, July 3 to leave me a comment to be entered into the drawing. Happy Guessing!
Labels: Buggernut, diary of fat lovin', i heart etsy, Life...le sigh
