Knitting in pink

Let's rewind a bit to December 29, 2006.

These were my goals for 2007:

1. I will knit at least one pair of socks a month - I did knit at least a pair a month. I even knit 17 pairs plus 3 single socks

2. I will learn to Fair-Isle. To start I will make the Fake Isle hat from MagKnits - I knit both the Fake Isle hat and the Center Square hat

3. I will knit myself some lace, starting with Bejeweled and working myself up to something more difficult - I did knit Bejeweled and have just started a slightly more difficult lace pattern with the Comfort Shawl

4. I will knit myself a sweater, perhaps starting with Klaralund, perhaps starting with the Hourglass sweater - I did not knit Klaralund but did knit the Hourglass Sweater. I also knit the now unwearable Fitted Tank. I have started another sweater, the Tree Jacket from ZephyrStyle



5. I also want to knit gloves, mittens and wrist-warmers - I did not knit any

6. I will find patterns for the less than 100yds balls of yarn in the stash - I did not

Tomorrow, my goals for 2008

ETA: List of 2007 Finished objects so I can clean out my side-bar and start anew.

* 80's Punk Socks
* Austermann Step socks
* Bejeweled Scarf
* Calorimetry #1
* Center Square
* Child's First Socks
* Dream Swatch scarf
* Dublin Bay socks
* Elegance Socks
* Fake Isle Hat
* Fitted Tank
* Garterlac Dishcloth
* Hourglass Sweater
* Lemonade Stand socks
* Madder Ribbed Socks
* MDK Felted Box #2
* Monkey socks
* River Valley Socks
* Serpentine socks
* Siren socks
* Snicket socks
* Sockapalooza socks
* Spiraling socks
* Strange Little Mama socks
* Wing socks
* Yarntini Home socks

I've been back since Saturday but it's been pretty busy with work and catching up that this is the first time I get to sit down and update my blog. Every day I've been like: I need to post about this, I need to post about that... Sorry about this long hiatus, hopefully it won't happen again! : )

More pictures of my vacation are available here

Vacation went super well. Sanibel was a pleasure, our condo was awesome and the beach beautiful. I think I fell in love with Florida. It was hot but not unbearably so. Central air is really an amazing invention. We were really careful with the sun and I just got a tiny bitty sunburn on my lower legs.

During vacation I knit, a lot. Assembled a 1000 piece puzzle, went to the beach or the pool, did a bit of shopping and met up with some friends. On Thursday we drove up to Tampa and I got to spend some fun time with Alyson (who drove all the way from Orlando) and other gals from the Tampa area. Go see Alyson's post about our meetup right here. It was a great fun meeting all you guys and I hope to see you again soon! BTW, Alyson, I'll be in Orlando October 10-17... Hope you'll be there!


The horrible golden glow of a Tampa Barnes and Nobles


I managed to stay on top of Bloglines by reading about 50 posts a day. So I only had over 300 to read when I got back! Lol! I apologize in advance to all the people who commented before I left, I will get back to you! Also, I have to admit that I did a lot more skimming than actual reading this week, so I'll be back to commenting on your blogs soon!



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On Monday I had the pleasure of receiving a package from my Special Swap Pal, Stress Reaction. Go check out her beautiful spinning!
This month's theme was Spring, and this is what she got me:



A Burt Bees kit, some Bath and Body Works lotion and body spray in my favorite smell, a pretty notebook with a suede cover, a candle, some seeds, some sweets and some more sweets yarn. I am so lucky, she got me some Duet sock yarn in Chantilly Lace and some Yarn Pirate in Neapolitan, very yummy tout ça!
Thank you Leah! Sorry it took me so long to post all this loveliness!

I want to thank everyone who commented on my last post. I appreciated everyone's insight on the different matters at hand. Now I owe you an update.

Update 1

After wearing the Fitted Tank a whole day it grew widthwise. Now it's a little loose around the lower part. I would definitely suggest to anyone doing it in the future to knit the ribbing in a smaller size needle. It's too late for me but not too late for you! The yarn is super soft and the tank was comfortable to wear.

Update 2

For some reason I decided to knit a gauge for the Razor Cami. The Bernat Chloe worked well and I cast on immediately. I now have almost 2 inches of ribbing done.

The yarn is really coarse, not soft at all. I forgot to keep my swatch so I might just knit another one and soak it to see if it will soften up at all.

I will probably knit the Ballet Cami with the Frog Tree I've got. Indigo Mouse, the designer of Arbor, suggested that the yarn might not be the best for it, so I'll just have to find another yarn more appropriate for Arbor.

Update 3

This morning when I went to the post office, I had the surprise of my life. One of the lost packages had arrived! I couldn't believe it! This one was coming from overseas and just might have been traveling by boat... or canoe since it took so long! : )



The yarn is STR Scaponia in Lightweight. I've been drooling over this color for a while.

As for the other package. Yes I did contact the seller several times with more or less success. She had agreed to refund me the money. The thing is, her refund just failed yesterday and I haven't heard from her in the last few days... Since I received the other package I might just have to forget about that one. There's not really something I can do if she wont reply to me. The deadline for a paypal dispute is already passed.

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Random Act of Kindness

A week or so ago, DH bought us some tickets to see the Gypsy Kings in Boston sometimes this summer. The tickets arrived on Tuesday but when I opened the envelope in the Post Office parking lot there were no tickets in the envelope, just the receipt. I was intrigued but thought that maybe that was how they did it. DH thought something was wrong but then we forgot about it. Today I see this envelope from this guy I didn't know. I open the envelope and see tickets and a note. This guy had found the tickets in the parking lot and decided that it would be the right and kind thing to do to return our tickets to us. I couldn't believe it! What a nice guy! So if on August 14 you're in Boston and going to see the Gypsy Kings, maybe we should meet up!

Wow, it's been a week since I've last posted! Sorry 'bout that. A lot of things have happened in the last few days, a trip to Cummington for the Mass Sheep and Wool, a wedding and a 30th birthday party. And of course, some knitting and spinning.

I drove up to Cummington on my own with my wheel. I was supposed to meet some friends there and get a part of my wheel replaced. Soon after my arrival there my wheel was fixed and I shopped around. I bought an additional 2 bobbins for my wheel, some pretty spinning batts and some yarn I'd been looking for.

The batts were bought, I believe from Spin-N-Knit Crafts. The first one is a 100% merino for when I dare try spinning merino. The colors are totally off in the picture. The red as shown is actually a deep dark fuschia.

I also bought a 2 oz batt of a merino, silk and camel blend. I thought it be fun to try different things when I get more confident.



I also found something I'd been looking for for a while. Something to knit Gothic Leaf Stole with. I found this huge hank of 1120 yds in these beautiful shades of pink at the Silver Moon Fiber Arts booth.



Memorial Day was a beautiful day. I had the chance to spend my 30th birthday with friends and family. We went to see Pirates of the Caribbean 3, had some great food and dessert and had a great time. I received a couple knitting related gifts.

I received the 365 Knitting Stitches a Year perpetual calendar I'd been wanting for the longest time and a gift certificate to Barnes and Nobles that allowed me to go and buy myself the book Lace Style. My husband got me a beautiful bag that I'll use as my knitting bag from now on. I'll have to take pictures so I can show you!

This afternoon I'm going to see the Yarn Harlot in Northampton. I'm really thrilled to get to hear her again. Hopefully I'll remember to bring her latest book and I'll get to have it signed! If you're going to be there and you recognize me, please come visit! I'm planning to get a lot of knitting done while waiting and hopefully I'll be able to finish my second 80's Punk sock.

Pictures of that and my latest new project tomorrow!

New Acquisitions:

A little knitty Po made by TADworks especially for me:

She's holding 3 balls of yarn and a pair of knitting needles.

Once that I had in my mind that I wanted one of these cute little Pos for myself I contacted Tomoko from TADworks. She was super fast and super helpful. She even made 3 different Pos for me to choose from. And in less than a week I had my own.

My own pair of sock blockers:



I've been wanting a pair of sock blockers for quite a while now. But I didn't want to spend the amount that I've seen most of them go for. Then I found Knitting Haven's. I placed an order for them Thursday or Friday and received them yesterday. I'm really pleased with them. Between them and the model foot I have I should be able to take better pictures of finished socks.

More sock yarn:

Like I need more sock yarn! : )


Fleece Artist Merino Wool in color Vintage

yarn4socks has received a huge order from Fleece Artist full of new colors. Of course I couldn't resist and I had to have at least one!



That's what I had to pick from, so it was quite difficult! : ) All of these will be available later today for purchase.

Knitting:

A finished Punk sock:



A square for my new afghan:



After mentioning it in my goals the other day I had the extreme need to cast on immediately. You should have seen me on the couch. A huge bag full of balls of yarn on one side. My square on my lap. And 6 different balls of yarn still attached to the knitted square on the other side. (I didn't want to cut the yarn until I was really sure I liked it)

I don't know if you can tell, but the lower half of the square was knit as per pattern. With rapid changes of color. The second half was not. I didn't like the fact that the colors changed so rapidly and decided to stick to less color changes. I like it better and will probably do all the other squares like that. Each square is supposed to measure 5" across but I get barely 4.5" with mine. So I'll just have a slightly smaller blanket when I'm done. Or I'll have to make more squares. 1 square out of 96 done.

BTW, what you see at the bottom of the picture are the gazillion ends that I will have to weave in. Another reason while the lesser amount of color changes sounds good to me! : )

Ali from Skeins Her Way is currently having a cool contest over on her blog. So after you read my list of summer knitting goals go and here and participate too! Just make sure you let her know I sent you here. Cause I really want her Fitted Tank pattern : ) Thank you Clothesknit for telling us about this contest!

Summer Knitting Goals:

1. Knit every pattern of the Sockamania KAL and finish each pair
2. Finish my 80's punk socks
3. Knit the other sock to the yarn4socks June sock club
4. Spin and and ply about 4 oz every other week
5. Cast on for my Bluebell Boatneck from Fitted Knits. I'll be using the Cascade 220 I got on the Destash blog a while back.

6. Find 1000yds of fingering weight yarn to start working on the Gothic Leaf Stole
7. Cast on for worsted weight afghan and get at least 10 squares done. I'll be using the yarn I accumulated to make the Ripple afghan. After seeing this pattern from "Handknit Holidays" I changed my mind.

ETA: How could I forget!
8. My Sockapalooza socks too of course! : )

Last night I went to my local B&N to browse their knitting books. I was very lucky in that I found some very cool knitting books to look at and some other nice books too.

My first pick was The Cute Book. This book was full of adorable little stuffies to make out of felt. One of them was a pair of sheep, so cute! I really liked the way things were explained and would surely enjoy making some of those. Another craft to look into for me! : )

I also looked at Simple Sewing with a French Twist: An Illustrated Guide to Sewing Clothes and Home Accessories with Style. A beautiful book full of pretty things. Yet another craft I would like to practice.

Another beautiful book was The Best of Vogue Knitting Magazine: 25 Years of Articles, Techniques, and Expert Advice. This would make a beautiful coffee table book as well as a very interesting and full of information knitting anthology.

Last but not least I looked at Fitted Knits: 25 Designs for the Fashionable Knitter. I must have this book. Now. I loved like 90% of the patterns. If I hadn't known that I could get this book cheaper elsewhere I would have walked out with it. I could see myself wearing quite a few of the patterns, some with some mods, like lengthening the sleeves and such. But definitely a must have book for me, especially now that I'm starting to make real garments for myself.

So it was quite a successful trip to the local bookstore...

Also going on are some stash enhancement and some knitting.

I've been knitting on my Child's First sock the second for a couple days now. This is a picture as of Saturday morning when there actually was some sunshine.

As of this morning I have reached the midpoint of the heel. My goal for today is to finish the heel and start working on the leg. This pattern is really easy for me now as I've memorized the pattern and know what comes next. So barring very bad luck I should be done in a few days. Did you notice the stitch markers I'm using? They are Zero Stitch Markers by Sock prØn's Aija.

A couple weeks ago I had the chance to score 3 skeins Cascade 220 on the Destash blog. I got even more lucky because the person selling it told me her friend had 3 more skeins in the same dyelot that she wanted to destash. So I quickly snagged the additional 3 and now have enough to make any sweater I want.



The color is 9422, a very pretty cherry red. It is a little more pink than in the picture. I might use it to knit Ariann, or Wicked. We'll see.

So this is what's been going on here at Chez Knitting in Pink.

I've got too many things I want to knit and I'm not sure how I can fit everything into one month!

I've got the Austermann Step socks for my husband that I want to finish for Project Spectrum. I'm up to the heel on the second sock. - I have until the end of March so I should be ok.

I've got my Dublin Bay socks started over the weekend on my way to Montreal for Socktopia - February

I'm a little further down the leg, I probably want to knit 2-3 more inches before starting the heel. If I work only on this I might make the pair by the end of the month.

The thing is, I also am part of Fair Isle February and would like to knit Center Square before the month is over. I know that I just finished the Fake Isle hat, but it was finished in January, so it doesn't count for me!

I also received today the yarn I ordered for Thermal. Although I doubt that would be the first sweater I started working on.

And, as written in my last post I just received the yarn for Lady E...

I also want to try making a Calorimetry, and a pair of Fetching! Lol! I wish there were more of me!

I guess I can only knit one thing at the time and the most important things to finish as per self imposed deadlines are my Dublin Bay socks and Center Square. The others can wait a little longer!

I have been wanting for a couple months to try my hand at knitting some Fair-Isle. But I knew that to knit Fair-Isle I would have to learn how to knit continental too. But I was dreading the moment I'd have to do that because I had this weird misconception and imagined something totally different than what it really is!
A few weeks back I was at the bookstore and picked up the book Dominknitrix (book that has great patterns by the way - love the Little Red Riding Hood!). As I was reading through it I noticed some great instructions for knitting continental, so I pulled out my knitting and tried it out. It was fairly simple but I couldn't figure out how to hold the yarn in my left hand. I also noticed that my purl stitches were twisted when I came back to them. So I quickly stopped my experiment.
Also, I have now a couple easy fair-isle patterns that I want to try, Fake Isle hat, Center Square and the Madison Hat so I really had to get my move on!
And I now had the perfect excuse to try it out! In 4 weeks is my family's Christmas party... You ask why so late? Well, my mom has been sick and she came out of the hospital a week or two before Christmas and she would have been way too tired to host a Christmas party. So we postponed the whole thing until February and are all going to celebrate at my brother's in Montreal. Back to my original story. So I had planned to make MDK felted boxes for my nieces, one is already knitted and I needed to knit the other one. To make a long story short, I cast on this morning for the second felted box and knit it continental style. I looked through my Stitch'n Bitch book and found the perfect explanations for how to knit and purl continental.

This is what I got so far, two-thirds of the main part of the box. I think that once I'm done with this box I will be confident enough to attack one the hats mentioned above!

These are the completed pair of socks that I knit in 2006. My first pair was the Sisu socks bottom right. Then the Jaywalkers on the top and the Cascade Fixation next to them. I believe I then finished the Trekking at the bottom and then knitted the Anastasias and plain stripey socks in the middle.

Then I started working on these ones:



In January I would like to finish the Jaywalker sock at the top and knit the mate to the Madder Ribbed sock on the middle row. I would also like to finish the Bejeweled Scarf and start working on the Fake Isle Hat with the yarns that you see at the bottom. In February I would like to knit the mates to at least one of the remaining socks.