How I Roll...

Last weekend I was browsing through the latest Ready Made magazine and there it was, a bike that caught my eye. A bike you ask? Yes. A bike, this bike: a 21-Speed Baby Blue Pearl Electra Townie. Although it's been 7 or 8 years since I've been on one, once I saw it I knew I had to have it. We went to REI to see what they had, we got there 5 minutes before closing, were kind of rushed, and didn't see what I wanted. The next morning we headed to Ibikes and I tried a couple of models. I found the perfect fit and bought it! I love this bike and the way it rides!
As far as bikes go it is a little pricey, but exactly what I need for my back and leg issues. It's also great to have a bike now that Bean has taken off her training wheels, so now we can ride together as a family! The other great part: Electra has a full line of accessories for your bike. Look! I've already started my wish list:

1. Fuzzy leopard seat
2. Fuzzy leopard handle grips
3. Quick-release wicker basket
4. Either dice or skull valve caps
and last but not least-
5. Coffee cupholder ( yes! they really make one!)
My birthday is coming up here in a couple of weeks, I better get busy hinting to family and friends. Happy Spring!!

Erin Go Braugh!

This past Saturday we celebrated St. Patrick's Day to the fullest. The Guinness was flowing, the kids were a jiggin', and the corn beef and cabbage was spectacular as always, thanks to my wonderful chef/husband. A leprechaun even stopped by to fill up the kids hats with goodies. Although we are not sure which one it was Leppy, Lucky, or Lucy, it should keep the kids busy wondering until next year. I even cast-on the Aran Bag in a wonderful green made out of Irish wool in the spirit of the day. Cheers!

Green Day

Photo 1:
Black Water Abbey Yarn in Pippin for Aran Bag.
Photo 2:
Beginnings of Cable Footies in Artyarns Handpainted #139

Stitches Faves...

So Stitches was about a week ago, and I had a great time! I had
fun hangin' out with the girls ( photos from the train only since they wouldn't let us take photos inside the convention). Here's the lowdown on my faves:

Chunky Malabrigo purchased from Imagiknit
Speed Knitting book and CRAFT magazine- given to us in the Amtrak Stitch n' Ride goodie bag
Children's Viking Hat patterns from Bella Knitting
Lexie Barnes pink, black, & white Skull & Flowers Knitting Bag
My fave demo was a lady doing tunisian crochet on a size 35 crochet hook,
I wish I could remember the booth she was sitting in front of, but...
and the best shirt I saw someone wearing said:
DID YOU KNIT THAT ON PURPOSE?
good times!

Fabulously Funky Fashion!

From Benjamin Cho's Fall 2007 Collection.

Yee Haw! She's Back

My Clara Barton Cabled Scarf is back!
My daughter found it in her suitcase in her closet.
When asked where she was taking it, she replied "I thought it wanted to go to Disneyland!"
I couldn't get upset at her, because I thought it was great that she had planned an adventure for it. Her response could have been, "Oh I put in it the trash bin because it wanted to take a trip to the landfill." Whew! We found it in time to wear for at least a couple more weeks! As Jessie would say: "Yee Haw!!!"

SWATCH THIS!

Pattern: Cabo Hoodie by Wendy of Knit and Tonic
Yarn: malabrigo 1309.1
Color: Fucsia 93

I'm not much for diving head first into a single project, but when I saw this pattern, found the yarn, and gathered the needles all within 24-hour period, I knew I really wanted to make it! As I reviewed the pattern the words "TO SAVE TIME, TAKE TIME TO CHECK GAUGE" jumped out at me. I'm not one for swatching either but I thought, just in case...
I knit a swatch, my gauge was spot on so it began. I measured the swatch, I measured the girl, and I couldn't believe how fast the pattern went. As I got further along on the hoodie, I looked at the girl, I looked at what I had in my hand, something seemed off. So I put the hoodie on waste yarn and tried it on her. OH THE HORROR! THIS CAN'T HAPPEN, I KNIT A SWATCH AND EVERYTHING!!
Don't get me wrong it fit, but she would get about two months use out of it and then what?
My husband said, "just think of it as the largest swatch ever." So I'm moving up to the next size and will hopefully have better luck. F*$@#N SWATCHES! Who needs em!

Process of progress

Here are some of the things I've worked on so far this year. Pink clutch from Yarnplay book I got from hubby for Christmas. I still need to put in a liner and sew on the buttons, but you get the idea.
The beginnings of Jaywalker socks in Yarntini's Gimlet, go ahead chuckle a little and then start placing your bets, you must know I have a little case of Second Sock Syndrome. But the pattern interest me enough that I may actually finish the second one! I'm not making any promises.
Next is SNB's Kittyville Hat, I 'm almost done but I can't get my i-cord tight enough. Any suggestions? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?.
I'm also working on some cabled gloves, some mittens for S, and I'm going to be purchashing some Malabrigo for a kids hoodie pattern I just purchased by Wendy from Knit and Tonic. I haven't even purchased the yarn and S wants to know when it will be done!

Seeing Red

1.Ruffle bag for a swap pal. 2. My fave "One Night Stand " self striping hat, named so because it takes only one night to complete. 3. A preview of my Alexander Henry tote that I'm waiting to get in the mail from Novelty Creations , on a tip from Knitdevil. 4. My missing Clara Barton cabled scarf that I've had for about 2 months and is now missing! I love this scarf and I can't find it anywhere. If you see it aimlessly roaming the cold, hard streets please tell her I miss her and want her to come home. My neck is really cold! Brrrrr.

Punk Rock Girl Strikes Again!

My Punk Rock Secret Pal struck again and this time she revealed her identity.
It is GothKnits!The package absolutely ROCKED! Not only was there stuff for me, but she also included goodies for the family. She individually wrapped everything so we got to have Christmas twice this year! The package was magnificent!!

This is what we found once we opened the packages: pink and black skully washcloths(given to husband & child), skull & bat jingle bells, bat sponge, 2 velvet coloring posters(one is done and hanging in her closet), B&W photo magazine(beautiful), classic cocktails book(yummy!), felted bag(sweet!), felted purple & black striped needle holder with handmade DPN's inside (very F@*#ing awesome!), handmade stitch markers in black, red and silver( i love them!), a miniature collie, and some dark chocolate with caramel(eaten!). I am so lucky to have such a great pal. This was such a treat and such a fun swap!Thanks again GothKnits. Love Ya!

Clean Slate

In the spirit of the New Year, I've given myself this.

Coffee and Yarn

Thanks to my Coffee and Yarn swap buddy The Knitstress for this very lovely package. There was some black licorice enclosed but S and I have just about finished it off. The coffee is from Raven's Brew Coffee and it is a special holiday blend called Santa Caws. I'm thinking of making something for S out of the pink, since she snatched it out of the box and screamed "mine!" before I could even check it out. The hank of black, pink, red, and grey is for me as these are my most fave colors together in one. What should I make with it?

Rockin' the Yarn Tour

I think I'm covered until 2007. This past Saturday 4 very highly caffeinated yarn fiends when searching for... YARN of course! At 9:00 a.m. we met at our local neighborhood caffeine dealer, grabbed a hot pastry and headed to 5 local yarn shops. Here are the results, I have all the yarn needed to finish my holiday projects as well as some stuff for my secret pal exchanges. The blues are for gloves and a hat, the Malabrigo for moi, the cotton candy pink turned into a scarf that night, and some wonderful Yarntini in Gimlet which I will work with after the holiday gifts are complete. I guess Yarntini is a hot commodity, because I had 2 girls chasing me all around the store until I purchased it. The owner of the shop pulled 2 hanks out of her special stash and said they were the last 2 she had. The pressure of these stalkers following me around made me give one back, and as soon as I set it on the counter to give back to the owner it was swooped up by one of the "yarn stalkers" and she promptly pulled out her credit card, paid for it and left. I hope she enjoys it, she worked for it! But no one told her it had way less yardage than mine and wasn't really enough to make a pair of adult socks. Oh well, maybe she has really teeny feet!

Tick-Tock, Tick-Tock...

It's not enough that I put pressure on myself to make holiday presents, I now have a child who reminds me daily how many days there are left until Christmas. She made a "countdown thingie" at school and now every morning before breakfast she tells me how many days I have left. I have been knitting more than usual, but I'm not sure if it is enough. Tomorrow some of the girls from my knitting group and I are going on a yarn shop tour and afterwards coming back to the house to knit and fondle our finds. Fingers crossed after tomorrow I'll be a little closer to completing the holiday items.
Photos are: the beginning of my dad's cabled scarf. I like that it has 2 cables on one side and 3 on the opposite side, but it is taking much longer than I hoped, my completed Tote Exchange tote made from Noro and Cascade, and some super groovy chocolate cherry sock yarn that I will treat myself to when I complete my holiday stuff. Hey, it's always good to give yourself some incentive. tick-tock...

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY...

After waking to every news station covering the "purchasing frenzy" that is the day after Thanksgiving, I've decided to stay home and work on my own presents.
My 5 year old was watching with me asking "Mommy, why are all those people pushing each other to go shopping when they could be sleeping?". Ahhh, good question my child. But instead of going into a rant about why some people choose to wake up at the butt crack of dawn so they can fight there way to that "special item" that the store has only 50 of and then go sell it on E-Bay for 3 times as much to someone who can't really afford it. But wants to make sure their child isn't the kid who returns from winter break without the "super-hip-does everything-must have-electronic wonder" that will be out of style in 3 months when the next "Big Thing" is launched. I just told her some people think braving the crowds the day after is "fun". She just shook her head and said "weird".
Anyhow, after reading Worsted Witch's latest blog entry, today we have decided to stay away from the malls and stores and put together lists of what we'd like to MAKE for friends and family. This year we will try and regulate "the Hype" of Christmas as much as possible without shattering the dreams of our 5 year old. I mean I wouldn't want to make her sad by telling her that if everyone continues to (over)consume at the current rate, not only are we losing the fish, polar bears, and migratory birds. But we may be losing "ourselves".

Miss Priss

Shown as a work in progress, Miss Priss is now finished. The pattern is from Kpixie's Midnight Knitter. I've worn this scarf a few times and have received many compliments on the texture and the color. The pattern is simple but looks as if you've spent lots of time on it. The yarn is Schaefer Yarns Miss Priss and the color is Clara Barton.
Now kids here's todays history lesson about Clara Barton: Known as the Angel of the Battlefield for her to devotion to the soldiers during the American Civil War, Clara Barton then compiled the records which identified thousands of the dead and missing on the battlefield and at Andersonville prison. In 1881 she organized the American Red Cross and remained at its head until 1904. She wrote several books on the Red Cross and was instrumental in emphasizing its work in catastrophies other than war. Class dismissed...

Knit Mitt Kit Swap Answers

ARE YOU ALLERGIC TO ANY FIBERS?

No.

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE COLORS?

Red, black, pink, purple.

ARE YOU A NEW MITT KNITTER? HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN KNITTING MITTENS?
Semi-new. On/off for a year.

DO YOU PREFER SOLID OR MULTI-COLORED YARN?

No preference.

WHAT FIBERS DO YOU PREFER IN MITTEN YARN?
Something soft and not too thin.
WHERE DO YOU USUALLY KNIT MITTENS?
I don't have a special place, just wherever I get a chance to knit.
HOW DO YOU USUALLY CARRY YOUR SMALL PROJECTS?
In a small pink silk bag.
WHAT ARE YOU FAVORITE MITTEN PATTERNS?
Haven't done enough to have a fave.
WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE MITTEN KNITTING TECHNIQUES?
See answer to previous question.
WHAT NEW TECHNIQUES WOULD YOU LIKE TO TRY?
Intarsia-Fair Isle, some type of color work.
WHAT ARE YOU FAVORITE NEEDLES FOR KNITTING MITTENS?
So far double-points.
WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR FAVORITE YARNS?
Malabrigo, DB Cashmerino, Schaefer, anything soft.
WHAT YARN DO YOU TOTALLY COVET?
Anything with cashmere in it, I love the softness it produces.
ANY PATTERN YOU WOULD LOVE TO MAKE IF MONEY AND TIME WERE NO OBJECT?
There are a few Rowan Patterns I would love to make, with their yarn.
FAVORITE KIND OF NEEDLES?
Depends on the pattern and yarn. I usually use bamboo or addi's.
IF YOU WERE A SPECIFIC KIND OF YARN, WHICH BRAND AND KIND OF YARN WOULD YOU BE?
A worsted/bulky handspun, multicolored with red, pink, and black, super soft yarn like malabrigo, and I'd call myself "Cherry Bomb". Is that specific enough?
DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE CANDY OR MAIL-ABLE SNACK?
Licorice (preferably black and in a rope, although I like red too).
WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE ANIMAL?
It's a toss up between ring-tail lemurs and monkeys.
WOULD YOU PREFER SUPER WARM MITTENS OR FINGERLESS MITTS?
I wear both.
IF YOU WERE A COLOR WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE?
Red/Black.
WHAT IS YOUR MOST INSPIRING IMAGE, FLOWER, OR OBJECT IN NATURE?
The Sky.
DO YOU HAVE A WISHLIST?
Yes. On Amazon
ANYTHING ELSE YOU'D LIKE TO SHARE WITH THE GROUP TODAY?
Let's Swap.

pUnK RoCk PrESeNTs

I would like to send out a huge thanks to my PRGE Pal! I recieved this package a couple of weeks ago but didn't post the photo because it was missing a magnet she sent, (which is on my fridge). I was going to reshoot the contents, but now its dark when I wake up and when I get home from work (damn daylight savings!). Included in the package were a skull and crossbone washcloth, (which my daughter keeps trying to hijack), a glass jar full of dark chocolate kisses, a green leaf bar of soap, numerous packages of "knit girl" notecards, a really cool magnet( which i will photograph later), and a very cool handmade notecard. I don't know who you are, but you rock and I thank you for all the great stuff.

Coming Soon!

I apologize for the lack of posting, a little pre-occupied. I recently recieved two wonderful packages in the mail, and have started some new projects. I'll try to photograph and post them by the end of this weekend.

Funky Scarf is on its way!

Well I finished my scarf and put it in the post yesterday. The pattern is Edgar from Knitty and I really enjoyed making it. I used Lorna's Laces Shepherds Worsted in Black Pearl and really liked working with this yarn. I hope she likes it! Props to my girl Naomi for modeling for me at our Wednesday Chicks with Sticks group!