Back from hiatus

I'm back! Had the in-laws here for almost a week and then got the flu, but now I'm back. Just in time to share these...

This is the current sock I'm working on...Fawkes...pattern is River Rapids from Sock Bug, on 2 circular needles. Yarn is Bombay from Two Waters Fiberworks.


And this is my new yarn storage! Wire cube thingies from Target!

I'm a Bad Blogger

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. I feel like I should be posting, but I really don't have much to say! I've felt like I'm sort of floundering since the Knitting Olympics. Not in a bad way...more of a "I really need to get back to all those projects" sort of way.

Breathing a sigh of relief

As much as I enjoyed the Knitting Olympics, I have a confession to make. I'm so glad I'm finished!! I truly did enjoy knitting my Clapotis, but I did really push myself to finish early...what that translates to is lost and lots of neverending knitting.

Anyway, I picked up some very soft yarn and am leisurely trying a sock with a short-row heel. The first attempt was fine on one side (the knit side of the gusset), but had significant holes on the purl side. So I frogged it and tried again, this time, with success.

That's all the news from here.

Bringing Home Gold

Here it is. My finished Clapotis. Completed in 9 days.




Materials used:
Blue Moon Fiber Arts "Socks That Rock" yarn (fingering weight) in Moss Agate
Size 4 needles

It was a whole lotta knitting, but I absolutely love the finished product and I'm thrilled with my yarn choice!

KO, Day 9 and SPS

More good progress on Clapotis and now I'm just going to make you wait for the final picture. mwuahahahahah

It's also Self-Portrait Sunday! I actually took this one when we were outside in the snow yesterday.


And here's one I just thought was kinda cool - a tree stump in our neighbor's woodpile.

KO Day 8 and what we did today

Day 8 of the Knitting Olympics and still no picture of my Clapotis. I'm making progress...believe me! In fact, I will, without a doubt, finish before closing ceremonies. Maybe I can get you a picture tomorrow...

Here is what we did today.

KO, day 7...So Sue Me

Ok, ok, I missed a few days AND I'm updating today without a picture. SO SUE ME!! Here's why I missed a few days...Monday and Tuesday were both busy days, so I made very little progress and felt there was no point in putting up a picture. Yesterday, however, I made a *lot* of progress. Unfortunately for you, Dear Reader, it is a very gloomy and overcast day here, which means that any digital picture taken inside this house will look really bad. Here's hoping tomorrow will be sunny just for that reason!

I have now dropped the 12th ladder in Clapotis - that's the one that goes all the way down to the point at the bottom. Now it's just a matter of getting to the 55" mark so I can start decreasing. I did realize last night that I could be finished with this by the end of the weekend if I really buckle down, so that's the plan.

KO, Day 3

Another day, some more knitting. First, a close-up.


Then, a progress pic.


Lastly, here is Maggie in her favorite spot (on our bed).

KO, Day 2

Day 2 of the Knitting Olympics finds me almost finished with the 2nd pattern repeat of Section 3. I'd hoped these colors would be more accurate in this picture, but alas, they are not. But you get the idea...

KO, Day 1

So far, so good. I finished the Section 2 increases, but because I'm using fingering weight yarn and smaller needles, I'll have to add a few more pattern repeats (3, actually, which equals 36 more rows) in order to make the Clapotis the proper size.

Today's the Day!!

It's finally here!! Today is the day the Olympic flame will be lit, which signifies the start of both the Olympics in Torino and the Knitting Olympics around the world. I'm itching to get started because I'm just dying to have my finished Clapotis to wear! I'm so pleased with my choice of yarn - I think it will be really nice to work with.

I do have a cramp in my right shoulder, those muscles right at the base of my neck and at the start of my shoulder. Perhaps I should do some stretching. It's a pity I don't have access to a massage therapist. I mean really...I need to be at the top of my knitting game.

So I raise my needles along with the nearly 4000 other Knitting Olympians and say Godspeed to all of us. May our needles be swift, may our hands not cramp and may our yarn pull out of the center-pull balls with ease.

Wednesday...just Wednesday

Getting ready for the Knitting Olympics...exchanged my size 3 needles for size 4 and got my first skein wound into balls, so I'm good to go. Opening ceremonies here we come!! It really is amazing to think of how many people have committed to this, though. Really, 3100+?? That's crazy!


This is a new baby blanket I started for a friend who is expecting her first baby in a few weeks. The yarn is Caron Simply Soft on size 10 needles. The pattern is from a Leisure Arts book of 4 baby afghans.


And finally, artwork by Natalie. I keep forgetting to do thank you cards for Natalie and Ethan's birthday presents, so when I was at Michael's this morning, I picked up a pack of blank cards and figured Natalie could do her own. I'll write a short note in each of them, too. Those are Cinderella/princesses, in case you couldn't figure it out.

It's official...he's a boy

So today, the kids and I took a trip to the grocery store because we were out of everything. Seriously. My ears and head are still pretty stuffy and my energy level is low, so I knew it wasn't going to be a lot of fun...but we do what we have to do, right? Natalie had a hard time listening and doing what I asked her to do, but we eventually got everything we needed and headed to the check-out. Both she and Ethan had been asking for a mint, so I gave them one while we waited to start putting our groceries up on the check-out thing...what do you call that anyway? conveyor belt? Anyway, of course there was only one lane open other than the self check-out, which normally I don't mind, but with that many groceries it was too much to think about. AND the girl in the only open lane is one I've had several times before and bless her heart, she makes molasses look speedy.

I'm trying to get all the groceries sorted out and all of a sudden I realize Ethan is fussing and saying, "Mama...nose...hurt...MAMA! nose...hurt..." Yep. You guessed it. My newly-turned-2-yr-old son put his Tic-Tac up his nose. And yes, it was one of the white minty ones. And yes, in his 2-yr-old attempt to cope, he promptly inserted a finger and managed to push it up to where I couldn't see it. So at that point, I really wasn't totally sure he really *had* put a Tic-Tac in his nose, since 2- and 4-year olds aren't always reliable sources of information. However, Ethan kept on with the "nose...hurt" chant and I silently willed the check-out girl to go faster. I tried to call Greg in hopes that he could call the pediatrician's office to find out what I should do, but he didn't answer. We finally paid for our groceries and got outside and I managed to remember the phone number for the pediatrician's office. Thankfully, I was able to speak to a nurse right away. She laughed, of course, and told me I could bring him in and they would retrieve the Tic-Tac. In the meantime, Ethan was sneezing every so often, so the nurse said if he happened to blow it out, just let them know.

When I went back around to check on Ethan before we headed home, he had sneezed again and his nose was running. When I wiped it, it smelled suspiciously minty.

Thankfully, he did manage to sneeze the Tic-Tac out, saving us from going to see the pediatrician (and thereby, saving us money).

I'm sure one day I'll laugh about this.

SockapalOOOza

As you can see over on the right, I have joined the new round of SockapalOOOza! I do have yarn in my stash that I'll probably use, but I haven't decided on a pattern yet. Too many choices. I will post pictures when I make my final decision, though. Can't wait to start seeing everyone's updates!

Self-Portrait Sunday

I have a nasty cold.

Jaywalking With Both Feet

It's been a long road, but we're finally here. Not long as in "lots of trouble"...it's just that all that holiday gift knitting had to take priority for so long. But finally, my Cedric Jaywalkers are FINISHED!!! Once again, if you're not an HP fan, you won't understand why I call them "Cedric," but that's ok!




And one last time, this is the Jaywalker pattern with Cascade Fixation Spray Dyed yarn in Mushroom, worked on size 3 dpns.

My feet are very happy.

My First Design

I don't know what got into me. I had this super-soft, baby blue yarn in my stash. I also have a friend who is expecting a baby boy soon. I thought to myself, "He needs a hat." But I couldn't find a pattern that I really wanted to do.

So I created my own. My very first knitting pattern. If you would have told me six months ago that I would be knitting AND that I would create my own pattern for something, I would have laughed. A lot.

Anyway, here are the pictures. I might make a few changes the next time - I'm still not sure. There is a bigger cable in the middle of the smaller ones and I'm still not sure how I feel about it.

The yarn is Jo-Ann Sensations "Dolcetto" yarn in blue. The hat was worked on size 8 double-pointed needles.











Here is the pattern:

Little Twist Baby Hat by Julie Persinger

Jo-Ann Sensations “Dolcetto” yarn in Blue (approx. 1/3 of a ball) – This is a heavy worsted/light bulky weight yarn.
Size 8 dpns
Tapestry needle

Gauge: 5 st per inch on size 8 needles

This hat has a circumference of approximately 13”, unstretched.

CO 80, join
Knit 5 rounds
Row 1: (K4, C2F, K4, C2F, K4) 4x
Rows 2 & 3: Knit
Row 4: (K4, C2F, K4, C2F, K4) 4x
Rows 5 & 6: Knit
Row 7: (K4, C2F, K4, C2F, K4) 4x
Rows 8-12: Knit
Row 13: (K4, C2F, K4, C2F, K4) 4x
Rows 14 & 15: Knit
Row 16: (K4, C2F, K4, C2F, K4) 4x
Row 17: Purl

Begin decreasing:
Dec Row 1: (P3, P2tog) to end of round
Dec Row 2: (K2, K2tog) to end of round
Dec Row 3: (K4, K2tog) to end of round
Dec Row 4: (K3, K2tog) to end of round
Dec Row 5: (K2, K2tog) to end of round
Dec Row 6: (K1, K2tog) to end of round
Dec Row 7: Knit
Dec Row 8: (K2tog) to end of round

Cut yarn, leaving a 6” tail. Thread this yarn onto a tapestry needle and thread through the remaining stitches. Pull the yarn tail to close up the hole. Bring the yarn through the top of the hat and weave in.

Wheeeee!!

It came!! It came!! My Socks That Rock in Moss Agate came!!!

Finished

Here are some finished items! First, the 4-Hour Blanket made with size 50 needles and 4 strands of Homespun (I used Montana Sky, Coral Gables, Sunshine State and Florida Keys).

Here is the other Project Linus blanket. You can't tell here, but it's an awkward size. Really should have made it longer, but I was running out of time and energy, so it is what it is. It's still a nice size for a baby or toddler. You can't see the whole thing in this picture.

Mom's silk scarf is also finished, though I couldn't get a good picture of it.

Here is a rather dark close-up of it while it was blocking - you can really see the feather & fan pattern.

The scarf is short, but I think it will be fine. I wasn't sure how the silk would block, but I looked online to see how to do it and it came out great! It's recommended to lay the silk item out on towels or a blocking board, pin it in the correct shape and then lightly mist it with water from a spray bottle. So that's what I did and it really did work well.

Self-Portrait Sunday

It's Self-Portrait Sunday and today I give you a rather unflattering picture of myself. But hey, it's the real me, I guess. I'm working on the so-called "4 1/2 Hour Baby Blanket" with the biggest needles known to mankind. Size 50!! You work 4 strands of Homespun together. Of course, I ran out of one color and am almost out of another color, so off to Michael's I went this morning...anyhoo, here's the picture:



Otherwise, the in-laws left yesterday, Natalie and Ethan still aren't 100%, but are feeling better, I got my Knitting Olympics yarn situation sorted out, got a ball winder and I'm still knitting.

What a Week

Man, it's been a week. Two weeks, actually. Last week Ethan had croup. Really not fun. This week, my in-laws are here and Natalie has been really sick. Really, really not fun. I haven't had this little sleep since college. Only difference was, back then I *chose* not to sleep. That willingness factor really changes your outlook, I've discovered. Thankfully, while Natalie and Ethan are not back to normal yet, they are definitely feeling better and on the road to recovery.

The in-laws have been busy building Greg's office in the basement. It's going well, but will not be finished by the time they have to leave tomorrow. *sigh* Greg's dad is...shall we say...overly thorough. He does a good job. He insists on things being done the right way. Wonderful! Great! Unfortunately, the process takes F-O-R-E-V-E-R because he doesn't just measure twice, cut once...he measures 14 times, thinks about it, looks at all the options, measures some more and then finally cuts. Anyway, the drywall is almost all put up, so today he will be taping and mudding.

As you can see in my sidebar, I have joined Team Wales for the Knitting Olympics. You can click on the button over there for more info. I figure I can use the support.

Speaking of the Knitting Olympics, my yarn has still not arrived. I am annoyed about this. So far, I've been told two different things by the shop I ordered from and if it doesn't arrive today, I'll be calling them again. The yarn was not in stock when I ordered, so I knew there would be some delay - but we are now at 2 weeks since I placed the order. I just want my yarn!

I have been knitting this week, in spite of the sick, needy children. No pictures today, though. Perhaps tomorrow. I finished the Project Linus blanket and am currently working on the second one, which goes much, MUCH faster. I also worked on learning to knit in the round with 2 circular needles. I cast on a simple ribbed sock, then frogged it. Then I cast on a Jaywalker with a picot edge TWICE, then frogged both attempts. I then cast on the toe of Elfine TWICE and have frogged both of those attempts, too. Not a good sock week, apparently. In my defense, it was really more about trying new techniques than it was about starting new socks, so the lack of progress doesn't bother me too much.

Back to the knitting.

Self-Portrait Sunday

For today's self portrait, I give you "Me in my Gamer." Today is not a game day, but my sweatshirt is warm and today, I am not.



In other news, my in-law's are here for the week to help build Greg's office in the basement. I hope they are able to finish it.

Craft Report, 1/20/05

Sick, croupy toddler=very little crafty time. However, I was a little surprised to see that I really have made progress since last week.

My 2nd Jaywalker has a heel:


Mom's scarf is halfway done:


and the Project Linus blanket is halfway done:

The first (fill in the blank)

Do any of you hesitate before dipping into/squeezing/using the first of a new product? I opened a new jar of peanut butter today for Natalie's daily peanut butter sandwich and caught myself hesistating for a moment before I plunged the knife into the perfect smoothness just inside the jar. I hated to mess it up. And yet there is a part of me that would love to someday take a new tube of toothpaste and just squeeze to my heart's content, much like Ramona did in one of the Ramona the Pest books.

I wonder what this says about me?

Bible study starts back up tonight and I'm looking forwad to it. I'm eager to start this study (The Patriarchs by Beth Moore) and I'm also eager to have those few hours out of the house again. I love my kids with every fiber of my being, but gosh it's good to have a couple of hours to talk to other adults sometimes. My violin student starts back up again tonight, too. Gotta figure out how to balance things out so she won't get bored with our regular music, now that Christmas music is out of season.

Self-Portrait Sunday

To make Rose happy...me, sans make-up, up close and personal...



I'm pale from all the knitting.

New Yarn

I received my first order of custom-dyed sock yarn this week. The colorway is Bombay, from TwoWaters Fiberworks. 100% merino. I love it.

Craft Report, 1/12/05

Time for a crafty update!

Things are moving right along, though it feels slow. Mom's silk scarf is now about a foot long. If only she had a Barbie-sized neck...


My Project Linus blanket is making good progress, but it is most definitely *slow*. I love the pattern. Think it's very cool. I just wish it went faster. Yarn is Caron Simply Soft in Blue Mint. Size 7 needles.


And finally, Cedric2 is getting a heel flap! I had to wear Cedric1 last night while I worked on this...just because I could.

Just pick one!!

I'm so sick of the weather being totally different every day!! 30-something one day, 72 the next...how's a girl to know if it's a scarf day or not??

Knitting progress:
-finished My So-Called Scarf
-that scarf and the two throws will go in the mail to my aunt today
-added about two inches to Mom's silk scarf
-started the heel flap on Cedric2 (Jaywalker)
-put a few rows of stockinette on my sister's sock
-started new Project Linus blanket...had some trouble, had to frog, but now we're on track
-started second Project Linus blanket on the gigantic needles, but have put it aside for now - will use that as a last-minute finish

Jaywalker Update

All is well in Jaywalker land! In case any of you missed it, these socks are named "Cedric." If you're an HP fan, you'll understand. If not, don't worry about it - just nod and smile and say "ok!" Anyway, I'm pleased to report that Cedric1 is finished and Cedric2 is on its way!

As you can see, Cedric1 has some interesting pooling at the beginning, but I don't mind it. Just adds character.

Craft Report

Time for a crafty report. This is a new sock that I've started for my sister. Pattern is "Panorama Socks" from the Knitting Pattern-a-Day Calendar. Yarn is Plymouth Sockotta. Size 2 needles.



Here we have My So-Called Scarf in Manos del Uruguay (color: Stellar), on size 11's. This will go to my aunt Marcia in Alaska.


Next up is the start of my mom's scarf, Misty Gardens from ScarfStyle, which is actually just a feather & fan pattern. Yarn is Fiesta La Luz silk, size 7 needles.



Finally we have the Diagonal Blanket, which I thought would be the death of me. It's not hard, but very tedious. Homespun yarn (color: Montana Sky, photo makes it look a little lighter than it actually is), on size 13 needles. This blanket will be sent to my Aunt Marcia, who will take it (and others) to Mexico to give to some of the Maya who lost what little they had in hurricane season.

Crazy Yarn Lady

Yep. That's me. I must be insane. (I seem to be saying this a lot lately. Since yarn came into my life, really.)

Went to JoAnn's (technically, JoAnn's, Etc.) this morning to get some Homespun and a new size I crochet hook. That's it. I came out with the required Homespun, 4 skeins of Caron Simply Soft worsted and new circular needles. Somehow, while inside the store, I managed to convince myself to make two totally new blankets for Project Linus - rather than finish the one that's about halfway finished and then make a second one. Oh no. Couldn't do things the easy way.

The Homespun is for a very cute, slightly funky baby-sized blanket. Four strands worked together on size 50 needles. Yes, folks, you read that right...SIZE 50. They are like telephone poles. I kid you not. I'm hoping it will be cute when it's finished - right now I'm not convinced. I'm consoling myself with the very soft Simply Soft in a delicious "Blue Mint," which is actually turquoise.

A New Year

I can't believe it's 2006. Where does the time go? Really?? It's insane.

We got back home on New Year's Eve night. We spent the entire week out of town, which wasn't really what we'd planned, but it was fine. Well, I say "planned," but I use that term very loosely. Persingers aren't known for planning. They are known for a very laid-back, "whatever" sort of mentality, which can be a good thing...but sometimes it sure would be nice to know in advance what we'll be doing. Anyway, I digress.

We spent the first few days in Jefferson City, MO at Greg's parents' house. Christmas was nice and I know his parents were very happy that we came. My SIL and BIL are just odd and I have to remind myself of that, so I don't take things personally. It was nice to see everyone, but I was thrilled that Greg was agreeable to going to IL to spend some time with my family. As luck would have it, I was also able to go to an Illini basketball game while I was there, which totally made my holiday! (IL vs SE MO State...IL won, of course) It was so nice to see my family - I really hope the kids and I are able to go back in the spring.

The kids were thrilled with their Christmas presents and now I need to do some serious pruning of the old toys. My big gift was an iPod, which I'm very excited about. Podcasts here I come!

I did get a lot of knitting done over the holiday week. Finished my first Jaywalker (Cedric1), started the second, worked on My So-Called Scarf, my mom's silk scarf and started a new sock for my sister. Last night I finished the Diagonal Baby Blanket, which I'll never make again. It's not hard, I just didn't enjoy knitting on the diagonal AT ALL. Pics to follow later, of course.

I think that just about sums it up. I do plan to blog more often this year.

A heel!

Well, the start of a heel, anyway. I decided on a 4 1/2" leg for my Jaywalkers and am now several rows into the heel! The purl rows are giving me a hand cramp, so I'm taking breaks. The yarn striping is doing interesting things, so I can't wait to see the finished sock. Pics to follow soon.

Midnight update: heel is turned and gusset is picked up!!

Technically...

OK, so technically, I'm finished with the Christmas knitting. I have all of the gifts that need to be given over Christmas finished. My sister's orange wrap and my aunt's scarf are still technically Christmas gifts, but they both know they will be mailed sometime after Christmas.

So now the push is on for the post-holiday knitting. (sigh) I need to finish the second blanket that will go to Mexico and then finish Marcia's scarf - then I can send the blankets and scarf together and be done with it. I think Karen's orange wrap will be an ongoing project. I also need to get yarn for a scarf for my mom, but that will have to wait until after Christmas.

In the meantime, I've made some progress on my Jaywalker sock! Cedric is now 3 1/2" tall and is coming along quite nicely for a first sock. I think I'm going to do this pair at 5" instead of the 6 3/4" or whatever it is in the pattern. The stripes are slowly starting to work into the giant mass of taupe pooling, so I'm very curious to see how the rest of the sock unfolds.

A little something

Here is what I've been working on yesterday and today. You'd think it would have only taken a few hours, but no. I had to try 4 or 5 different patterns before I made up my mind. So here it is, a dishcloth for my mother-in-law. It's the Bee Stitch pattern, worked with Peaches & Creme cotton (from WalMart).



Now on to the next dishcloth while I continue my gift knitting...

Jaywalking

In my quest to copy Rosemary, I have started the Jaywalker sock. OK, in reality it isn't so much that I yearn to copy Rose - it just happens to be a really cool sock pattern. I'm using Cascade Fixation SprayDyed. While I really like the colorway, it's hard on my hands. It's kinda rope-like. Not soft. It probably doesn't help that I'm knitting as tight as I possibly can to compensate for the elastic in the yarn AND using bigger needles than the pattern calls for. But all in all, I'm pleased with my sock progress so far. This is my first "real" sock. My only experience sock-wise has been a basic sock pattern using double stranded worsted on size 8 dpns. But...so far, so good. Oh, and I've also joined the Jaywalker Knitalong, which makes me feel a bit more like a real knitter.



In other news, this past week, I made another hat (gift) and finished FIL's scarf! I also decided to switch plans for SIL's scarf and finish one I've already started (that was going to be for someone else). So this week's push is that scarf and the orange wrap. I'll work on my sock when I need a break from gift knitting.

One step forward, two steps back

On the knitting front...

Will finish gift hat tonight. Thought I was going to finish my 2nd sock tonight, but made a very sad discovery. I didn't switch to bigger needles after doing the cuff, so the whole sock is 2 needle-sizes smaller than the first sock. RATS!!! Got into the gusset before I realized it. The really sad part is that I used one whole afternoon/early evening on the sock instead of gift knitting. Rats again. Good news is that the socks aren't a gift, so there's no deadline there.

Back to my knitting...

Getting Closer

Current handknit gift tally: 11 of 15 are now finished.

Sadly, I ripped out everything I'd done on the cabled scarf I was doing. It just wasn't perfect and while the mistakes weren't all that noticeable, they were to me. Plus, it was kind of time consuming (the pattern). So now I'm doing a much simpler and faster pattern. Nice enough, but kind of boring.

I joined this knit-along this week and I'm quite happy that I did.

I'd really like to finish my second sock so I can use my size 8 dpns for the hat I need to make...perhaps I'll work on that today (the socks, I mean).