I knit, therefore I . . . blog?

So yeah, it’s been a while, hasn’t it?  There have been some ups and downs.  Last fall, we lost both my uncle and Pete’s grandmother (who had just turned 100 in June).  And last month, Pete was laid off, meaning we are both currently unemployed and job hunting.  On the up side, the holidays were nice, we are both healthy and happy, and some good opportunities have come our way.

As for knitting . . . . well, there hasn’t been all that much of that.  I was dealing with some wrist pain last fall that prevented me from knitting for more than five or ten minutes at a time.  That seems to have cleared up, although I’m pretty sure I have frozen shoulder now.  As painful as it is, I’m glad to find it doesn’t hinder my knitting as much as the wrist pain did.  So guess what that means?  It means . . . .




I finally finished a pair of socks!!!!  Yay!!!  I was originally knitting these for my ballroom dance teacher, but unfortunately we decided to take a break from our lessons before I finished them.  And now she’s left the studio, so if we go back she won’t be there anyway.  (And considering we have no jobs right now, going back is off the table for a while.)  So my “Socks for Juliet”  are now my “Socks (not) for Juliet”.

Here’s a look at the leg cable, and all of the sock info.

St. Brigid's Carnamoyle Stockings
Cast On: 16 November 2010
Completed: 6 February 2012
Yarn: Socks that Rock Heavyweight - Jasper
Needles: US4 (3.5mm) DPNs

So.  These socks.  They are pretty enough.  I love the cable pattern on the leg, but the seed stitch on the foot makes the whole thing a little too busy.  If I were to ever knit these again, I’d keep the ribbing on the foot but ditch the seed stitch for some stockinette.  That said, this pattern was such a mess that even with the corrections I found I needed to re-write and re-chart the whole thing anyway.  Maybe I was just too dense to understand the instructions?  Could be.  And the pattern was free so I can’t complain too much.  But it wasn’t my favorite.

Okay, no more ranting . . . . on to more knitting!!

Yes, we CAN eat those . . .

Part of the reason I’ve slacked on my knitting quite a bit this year is because I spend a lot of time in the Diabetes On-Line Community (or D-OC).  Just like with knitting, it’s incredible to interact with a group of people who “get it”and know exactly where you are coming from.  (And we talk about “needles” in the D-OC too, although unfortunately we don’t use them for knitting.)

When one of my dear D-OC friends mentioned that her blood glucose meter was missing, I offered to send her one I had but never use.  You see, it was included when I received my insulin pump, but I prefer to use my old meter instead.

How does this story tie in with knitting?  Well, sending her the meter spurred me to finish up a little surprise I had been working on for this friend . . . um, since July.  (Yes, yes, I know, I really need to get my knitting mojo back.)

Cupcake from One Skein by Leigh Radford

Cast on: July 2010

Completed: December 2010

Yarn: Misc. from stash

Yes, it’s a cupcake.  For a diabetic.  Because cupcakes are quite a hit in the D-OC, with long debates over where to get the best ones (maybe Crumbs or Magnolia?).  And before you call us a bunch of “bad diabetics'” it’s important for you to understand that it is a misconception that people with Type 1 diabetes can’t have anything with sugar.  (We also didn’t get diabetes from eating sugar, but that a whole other rant.)  In fact, most of us find our blood sugar remains more stable after a cupcake than it does after an order of French Fries.  Sugar raises our blood sugar, yes, but so does fruit and bread and any carbohydrate.  Gone are the days of restrictive diets and taboos.  Now it’s all about understanding what foods do to our blood sugar and dosing our insulin accordingly.

So yes, we CAN eat those cupcakes . . . . except the ones that are made from yarn.

One secret revealed . . .

It's hard to blog when you haven't been knitting much. It's even harder to blog when you finally pick up your knitting again but are working on surprise gifts!!  Luckily, my secret knitting that got finished up in Cape May had been gifted and can now be revealed!

Looks very familiar, doesn't it?  Except it's not a February Lady Sweater . . . it's a

Baby Sweater on Two Needles from Knitter's Almanac

Cast On: 17 June 2010

Completed: 27 June 2010

Yarn: Cotton-Ease in Violet

Needles: US6 (4mm) circs

This sweater is a bit overdue.  The sweet little baby was born almost three months ago to my friend Kerri, who I've referred to before as the Yarn Harlot of diabetes blogs.  (She really is though, and you guys are the only ones who understand what that means.  I fear that diabetes bloggers think I'm making some kind of derogatory statement instead of paying a high compliment.  Poor non-knitters.)

I found the perfect buttons at the yarn shop in Cape May. Aren't they sweet?

Oh how I love this pattern.  I decided knit the sleeves in the round, just like the adult version . . . so yay, no seaming!! And the baby version goes much quicker than the adult one!  It seems SO small though.  I fear the little baby has outgrown it before I even got it in the mail.  Are babies really this tiny?

And now, I'm back to secret knitting.  Looks like I'm going to have to figure out some creative ways to blog over the next few weeks.

FO Friday - Inside Out Edition

Here's a little sneak peak of my latest project, hot off the needles.  Oh, and turned inside out!!

Now, it's ready for a little soak and a little blocking.  I'm also waiting for a little surprise to arrive in the mail, but once it does I'll have a full FO Post for you with all of the project details!!

Thingies in the snow . . .

You know your blogging habits need work when your first post in February contains knitted items you finished in October, November and December.  I can't even use the old excuse of needing to take some good FO shots, because we had a photo-shoot in early January when snow was still on the ground.  But in any case, I'm finally getting around to posting my Malabrigo Thingie set.  They are warm.  They are cuddly.  They were all fun and quick knit projects, and it took just over a skein and a half for the whole set.

The first item of the set is something you will rarely see on this blog.  A hat.  More specifically, a hat for me.  You see, I look TERRIBLE in every had I've tried on.  They also don't stay on my head.  I guess I have slippery hair or something because hats just slide right off.  Although I  loved knitting this hat and I think it's very pretty, you can see that I am clearly displaying my disdain for wearing hats in this picture.  (Although now that I look at it, that little hat did seem to make my hair look much longer and more flowy that it really is.)

Malabrigo Head Thingie

Cast on: 25 October 2009

Completed: 26 October 2009

Yarn: Malabrigo Worsted - Dejavu

Needles: US5 (3.75mm)

Next up were the mitts.  What can I say.  I love mitts.  Love the warmth while still being able to do things like lock doors and turn steering wheels. (PS: Note the weird thing the hat is doing to my bangs, and how it looks ready to shoot off the top of my head.  I rest my case on the hats-don't-work-for-me issue.)

Malabrigo Hand Thingies

Cast on: 26 October 2009

Completed: 7 November 2009

Yarn: Malabrigo Worsted - Dejavu

Needles: US7 (4.5mm) DPNs

Last came the cowl.  I think I may never knit a scarf again.  Why bother, when cowls are superior in every way.  They stay wrapped around your neck like they are supposed to.  And one quarter of the way into the knitting, they don't become so boring that you entertain the idea of jamming your knitting needles into your eyes!

Malabrigo Neck Thingie

Cast on: 9 November 2009

Completed: 22 December 2009

Yarn: Malabrigo Worsted - Dejavu

Needles: US9 (5.5mm) Circ

So there are the Thingies, better late then never.  I finished a pair of socks yesterday - let's see if I can get them posted before mid-April!!

It's done, it's really really done!!!

At long last, Hypoteneuse is cast off.  And blocked.  And FO shots have been taken.  (Click on any of them to get a better look!)

Hypoteneuse

Cast on: 14 February 2008

Completed: 25 October 2009

Yarn: Blue Sky Alpaca Alpaca Silk - Spring

Needles: US7 and US8

This took me forever, mostly because I get bored with scarves / stoles.  This was well worth the effort though.  It's so versatile.  I can wear it as a scarf.

Yikes, not sure what's with the big hair.  It was a windy day!!

I can wrap it around my head on a really cold day.

And if I drape it over my arms, I can even fly!!!

Okay, yes, I may have gone a bit overboard with the pictures.

Can you blame me? After all, this was on the needles for almost two years!!  And we found such a pretty spot for the photo shoot.  You'll humor me with one more picture, right??

Wouldn't want to overwhelm you with YarnPr*n . . .

so I think I won't post about Stitches East just yet.  After all, I'm sure you are still trying to recover from yesterday's WayTooLong post about Rhinebeck, complete with OhMyGoshWayTooManyPictures!!

Instead let's take a look at something I've actually FINISHED!!!  Remember that post about the Itty Bitty baby blanket?  Well, it's all done.  And so is its sister.

They were supposed to be sent off before November 1st but I was sick all last week so that didn't happen.  They'll be there soon, Kathy, I swear!

Wavy Ripple

Cast On: Sometime in October 2009

Completed: Sometime in October 2009

Yarn: Red Heart Baby Econo - Soft White

Needles: US8 / 5mm

Lacy Ripple

Cast On: Sometime in October 2009

Completed: 25 October 2009

Yarn: Caron Simply Soft - Soft Pink

Needles: US8 / 5mm

Both patterns are from a Leisure Arts booklet I bought way way way back when I was just learning to knit.  I did the math to size them down, casting on just 39 stitches for Wavy Ripple instead of 160.  Lacy Ripple was worked over 47 stitches instead of 157.  I think they came out really cute and I hope that they bring strength to the tiny babies who use them.

That little gray cat . . .

I met my friend Kerri through her diabetes blog.  Actually the whole Diabetes On-line Community knows Kerri through her diabetes blog because, as I've said before, she's the Yarn Harlot of diabetes bloggers.  And everyone who knows Kerri's blog also knows Kerri's cat Siah.  This little kitty has quite a personality and keeps Kerri's blog readers entertained with her many capers.  Heck, she's even stepped in to write a guest post!

When Kerri recently helped me out of a jam, I wanted to do a little something to thank her.  What does a knitter use to say thank you?  Why, a knitted gift, of course.  What kind of knitted gift?  Well, I knew it had to be a knitted likeness of Siah.

Knitted Kitty

Cast On: 1 August 2009

Completed: 2 August 2009

Yarn: Knit Picks Essential & Steinbach Wolle Aktiv Uni held together

Needles: US 3 (3.25 mm)

Is it silly to knit a little cat for a grown women? Why yes, yes it is. But I never said I wasn't silly.  What's even sillier?  Forcing your cat to pose with the little knitted cat!

 

Girlfriends!

Kisses for Siah!

Starting to get annoyed.

"For goodness sake, make her stop putting her knitting on me!!"

Poor K.C. I think she's still trying to recover her dignity.

Finish or Frog Friday - Slacker!!!

Okay, yes, I have been a terrible slacker when it comes to the Finish or Frog KAL.  I was going strong in January, but then it all kind of fell apart when Pea got mugged.  But fear not, Finish or Frog Friday is back!!  And this week, it's . . .

That's right! A Finished Object!

Amused is done!!!  I love it and K.C. has given it her seal of approval.  I wanted to finish it by the end of March, but an evil 12-hour low blood sugar on the 31st caused me to fall short of my goal.  The final rounds of ribbing and the cast-off were done on the morning of April Fools.  As it turns out, I've been a bit lazy about delayed in the blocking, but I can tell you it fits perfectly.  The final FO post with all the details will be written once the blocking in done.

I wanted to wear it tomorrow to Stars on Ice, and I'm debating if I should just go ahead and wear it unblocked.  I think the collar will lay a little better after a good blocking, but I can probably get away with it in it's unblocked state.  Decisions, decisions!

Back home again . . .

Sadly, our little kitty house guests had to go home yesterday afternoon. They were the best guests we've ever had and we were so sad to see them go. (Okay, yes, I did cry a little after they left.) To help them remember the fun we had over the past two weeks, I sent them each off with a little gift.

Whale Cat Toy

Cast On: 1 January 2009

Completed: 1 January 2009

Yarn: Bernat Super Value and Cascade 220

Needles: Clover US5 (3.75mm)

I stuffed them with fiber-fill and quite a bit of cat-nip.

I'd say they were a big hit. The crazy kitties chased them all around the house, until we finally had to pack them away so they could take them home.

After they were gone, I spent about two hours getting the house cleaned up and  un-kitty-proofed  put back in order.  From the amount of hair I vaccumed up, it's a wonder they didn't go home bald!  (Thank you, Mr. Rox the Long-Hair).  It may be much neater and cleaner here now, but I can't stand how quiet it is without those two fuzzy bundles of love. Looks like it might finally be time to find another little kitty who wants to come stay here forever!

Finish or Frog Friday

Jennifer over at Major Knitter has started a new KAL for 2009 called Finish It or Frog It.

On Fridays you take a good look at what's on your needles (and in the bottom of the WIP basket) and make the choice to finish it or frog it Then you post about it on your blog or in the Ravelry group. You don't have to do it every Friday, but I think it's a great idea to get into the habit of evaluating my projects every week so they don't spin out of control.

So, to start the year off right, I decided today would be a Finish It Friday.

I buckled down and finished the Felted Clogs I was making Pea for Christmas.

And then, I even felted them and put them through the dryer!

Fiber Trends Felted Clogs

Cast On: 21 November 2008

Completed: 2 January 2009

Yarn: Cascade 220 Heathers

Needles: Knit Picks Options US13 (9mm)

Perfect fit. We even threw away the last pair of slippers I had knit him, since the soles had holes so big his foot fit right through. And next Friday, hopefully I have another knit finished to show you! This KAL is just the inspiration I needed. If you need a bit of inspiration too, let Major Knitter know you'd like to join us!

Good-bye 2008

Here we sit, on the cusp of a brand new year. Many people like to look back over the past 366 days (it was a leap year, remember?) and do a little recap. But as I type, my stuffy head and scratchy throat seem very fitting. For me, 2008 was a pretty crappy year. Not to say it was all bad, but a lot of it was and ending it with an icky head cold seems fitting. So instead of doing an end-of-year recap, I've decided to end the year by blogging my completed Christmas knitting. Look for two more Christmas projects in early 2009 - since poor Pea's gifts are still on the needles.

First up, a scarf for my mom.

Dangling Leaves Scarf

Cast On: 22 November 2008

Completed: 11 December 2008

Yarn: Malabrigo Worsted - Vetiver

Needles: US8 (5mm) Addi Circ

This gift was quite a special knit for me. While we were in Louisiana for my uncle's funeral, my family humored me with a trip to The Yarn Nook, which was less than a mile from our hotel. While there, my mom spotted this scarf, which was knit up as a shop sample, and commented several times on how pretty it was and how much she liked it. At the time I barely reacted (to make her think I wasn't listening), but as soon as I got home I set about finding the pattern. Thanks to the wonders of Ravelry, I found it was a Yarn Nook shop pattern and soon after I was knitting it up for mom. Although our trip was a sad one, I hope the scarf always brings her warm and comforting thoughts of her brother.

Next up was a gift for my god-son Zach. He's now 8 years old, so I thought he might be past the knitted stuffed animal phase. My best friend said he'd love a hat, so I whipped this up in his favorite color, BLUE.

Turn a Square

Cast on: 24 December 2008

Completed: 25 December 2008

Yarn: Lion Wool - Midnight Blue and Patons Classic Wool - Wedgewood

Needles: US6 (4mm) and US7 (4.5mm) DPNs

This was such a fun pattern! I can see myself knitting many more of these as gifts for next Christmas. I only cast on 80 stitches and increased to 88, hoping it would fit Zach's head. It was a perfect fit, and he seemed really happy with it.

Last up, a gift for Zach's brother. Camden is 2 1/2, which means I can still get away with knitting toys for him for a few years. This year, I chose Sheldon.

Sheldon

Cast On: 20 November 2008

Completed: 6 December 2008

Yarn: Classic Elite Four Seasons - Green Print

Brooks Farms Four-Play

Needles: US5 (3.75mm)

I freaking love this pattern!!! So cute!

The Classic Elite yarn I used for the body was won in the very first blog contest I ever entered! It's just perfect for Sheldon. In fact, he knit up so cutely, I have to admit I thought about just buying a gift for Camden and keeping Sheldon for myself. That's not really in keeping with the Christmas spirit though, is it? So Sheldon has been gifted. Luckily, I think I have enough yarn left over to eek out my own Sheldon, if I use a different yarn for part of the shell.

That wraps up my Christmas knitting (so far) and my last post of 2008. I hope you all have a wonderful and safe night, and that all your dreams come true in 2009!

In the round, around town, with one foot on the ground . . .

Can you knit in the round? Can you knit around town? Can you knit with only one foot on the ground? If so, my entertaining friend Kathy suggests cowls as the perfect quick Christmas knit.

Coincidentally, I've just finished up a cowl myself.  This one isn't a Christmas gift, but I may make a few more for Christmas gifting.

Birthday Cowl

Cast On: 12 November 2008

Completed: 20 November 2008

Yarn: Malabrigo Worsted - Intenso

Needles:  Addi Natura US8 (5mm)

So yes, I can knit in the round. I can (and did) knit this cowl around town.  I'm sure I could even knit with one foot on the ground.  But Kathy, here's what I want to know.  Can you knit while hanging upside-down???

Brrrrrr . . . .

The weather has gotten really cold here in the past couple of weeks.  And as an added bonus, our furnace seems to have decided it's not quite ready to come back to work for the winter.  So it's been very icy in the house, and I think that's the reason the cold that followed me home from Rhinebeck stayed all week and sapped my energy.

The plus side to a cold house is that it's the perfect excuse to layer on the hand-knits.  And speaking of hand-knits, I still haven't shared the final pictures of my February Lady Sweater.  Actually, the On Location Rhinebeck Shots are pretty horrendous, so let's just start with the stats.

February Lady Sweater

Cast On: 10 August 2008

Completed: 2 October 2008

Yarn: Knit Picks Andean Silk, Cinnamon, 9.3 skeins

Needles: Knit Picks US8 (5mm) circ

Buttons: Carved Rose from The Button Drawer

What?  You still want to see the pictures?  Well, okay - but don't laugh too hard at the funny faces I'm making.  The first shot I like to call "Funny Smile".

The second one was a pose that clearly didn't work for me, causing me to call this picture "Looking Fat".

And last, we have "Clearly Not Ready".

Not sure what I was looking at, but maybe I had spied some pretty yarn nearby!!  I do remember being nervous because I wasn't quite sure I was supposed to be standing so close to the landscaping.  Don't worry, I was careful not to trod on the plants.

Only one more day until Mr. Furnace Repairman comes to bring us heat again.  Until then, it's me and my knits!