Eye Candy Friday . . .

The long over-due one with the Christmas Loot!!!!


Clockwise from top left:  Bare Stroll Fingering to dye, acid dye starter set,  Sock Yarn One-Skein Wonders, a lovely skein of Colorado Merino Wool my brother brought from Colorado - home spun (not by him) and naturally dyed, two yarn ball ornaments, Wool of the Andes Bulky in Wallaby to knit Sigil , and Folk Socks.  In the middle: Interweave Knits Winter 2010 and a crock-pot for acid dying.

Although as far as K.C. was concerned . . . .


she is the only present that needed to be under my tree!!

Story of a Sweater

One day, Knitty caused a break in my sanity.  Somehow, I convinced myself I could knit this sweater in two weeks and wear it to Rhinebeck.

Next thing you know, I was hit with a bad cold.  And that, my friends, was very very good.  Because after two days on the couch I had this.



The sweater body was pretty.  So so pretty.  But a little voice inside my head was trying to speak.  Ah, but we all know it’s never good to listen to the voices in your head, right?  I kept on knitting.  I knit the first sleeve.  I started the second sleeve.  It was very tiring work.


Well, it was tiring to K.C., who found it very difficult to watch yards and yards of pretty yarn running from the yarn cake and not be allowed to chew on it!!

And suddenly, I wasn’t knitting.  The second sleeve was only half done as Rhinebeck came and went.   I told myself it was fine, I’d finish the sweater up and wear it to Stiches East.  But still there was no knitting.  I just had no desire to work on the pretty sweater.  So I finally listened to the voices in my head . . . . and this is what they were telling me:

“Girl, it’s not working.  Your swatch lied.  There is no way on Earth that sweater is going to fit you.  Frog it already.  It didn’t take that long to knit - so frog the darn thing and re-knit it in the next size up.  Get out of denial and listen up!!!”

 And now that pretty sweater is nothing but a few newly wound cakes of yarn.  *sigh*

The End.

Plotting World Domination - Feline Style

Happy Friday!  While Karen is away at some silly conference, I'm taking advantage of the quiet time to take over the world.  (And also, to nap . . . )  I was going to get my BFF Siah in on the domination ploy, but I think that girl may have taken one too many dips into the cat-nip, if you know what I mean.  I've decided it's much better to team up with a couple of other tuxedo cats, so head on over the Tales of Rachel to see what Perl, Casey and I are cooking up!

>^..^<    ~ K.C.

Knit & Crochet Blog Week: Friday - Location, Location, Location - knitcroblo5

Where do you like to indulge in your craft? Is your favorite arm chair your little knitting cubby area, or do you prefer to ‘knit in public’? Do you like to crochet in the great outdoors, perhaps, or knit in the bath, or at the pub?

I've knit in many places.  I knit at my parent's house all the time.  I knit at the hair salon and the doctor's office while waiting for my appointments.  I've knit on cruise ships as they sailed for the Caribbean.

But what is my favorite place in which to knit?  (Well, besides the cruise ship, because I could seriously use a Caribbean vacation right now!!)  My favorite place to knit is on my couch.

This is actually an old picture from a post I did in 2006,

I always sit on the left side of the couch (or the right side, depending on if you're facing it or sitting on it).  It's the perfect place. It's soft and comfy.  I have a coffee table in front of me for supplies and snacks.  I have my knitting bag on the floor next to me for when I need tools to fix emergency knitting situations.  (Although for some reason, it's not shown it the picture above.)  And I have my little cat snuggled behind me on the back cushion.  (Or sometimes, perched next to me trying to chew my yarn.)

"What? I'm not even paying attention to you OR your yarn."

I don't quite believe her . . .

Y@rn P0rn Friday . . . Rocking Prize Edition

Hey, what do we have here??

This deserves some closer inspection!!

A while ago I won a contest over at Melissa's blog.  Well, to be completely honest, I didn't even realize it was a contest!!  See, she signed up for a charity run for St. Jude's and I contributed.  Out of the goodness of her heart, she drew a name from all of her contributors to win a prize.  And the name that came out was mine!  Look what I won!

Socks That Rock!!!

That's right! A gorgeous skein of Socks That Rock Lightweight.  The colorway is called Rainforest Jasper and I couldn't love it more.

Beautiful shades of turquoise on one end.

Lovely earth tones on the other end.

Thank you, Melissa, for the lovey prize. I can't wait to cast on a pair of socks with it!!! Although it looks like I may have a bit of trouble getting it away from a certain someone who is also quite taken with it.

Mine, mine, mine, all mine!!!!

Will you be my Meowentine?

I'm cute and cuddly.

I'll keep you warm at night.  (By sleeping right on top of you - your arm may fall asleep under me, but that's a small price to pay for warmth.)

I'll make sure you get up on time in the morning.  (By laying down on top of your windpipe - trust me, that will wake you up good!)

I'll help you get plenty of exercise.  (Because I'll quickly shove all of my toys way far under the furniture.  You can burn tons of calories moving the couch and get plenty of stretching reaching under the entertainment center!)

I'm all about saving the environment by recycling and re-purposing.   (That's right, pine pellet cat litter also makes a great toy.  I'll toss as many pellets as I can out of my litter box and batt them all around the house!)

I'll make sure you are properly nourished.  (I ALWAYS know when it is meal-time . . . and I make sure you know it too!)

But  most of all, I'll let you know you are loved with my purrs and nuzzles and make your heart sing at the sight of my sweet little face.  And I'll never, ever get into your yarn.

What more could you ask for in a Meowentine??

Bloopers!!!!

So it's day 19 of NaBloPoMo and I'm starting to run dry.  Luckily my friend Kerri had a great idea that I'm totally stealing.  Yup, I'm posting a blooper reel because I have no other blog content.

I've done a couple of Diabetes Vlogs.  Unfortunately, before I took my "Making Movies" course, I never saved any of my raw footage.  I always shot in one take because I didn't know how to edit clips together.  If I made a mistake, I stopped the camera, deleted the video and started again.  So the only footage I have to work with is from my hobby vlog.  Luckily, I suck in front of the camera, so there were a few clips just waiting to be put on a blooper reel!!  Also luckily, this vlog was about knitting, so I can get away with posting it here.  And K.C. is featured at the end of the video - and I know she's been the star of this vlog lately.

Hope you enjoy it!!

At long last . . . .

one of my oldest projects is off the needles.

You might have noticed I didn't say it was finished.  That's because it's been sitting around for a few weeks waiting for a soaking and blocking.  To say I procrastinate a lot would be putting it mildly.  Especially since this was cast on in February of 2008!!  Please do call me out on my laziness and guilt me into getting this blocked so I can do a proper FO post!!!

Of course, I guess I have to steal it back from the "kitten" first!!

** She's not really a kitten - she's about three years old and has already had a litter of her own kittens before she was rescued.  But she's a petite little thing, so I call her "kitten".

Sunday Snapshots . . .

We didn't make it outside for a walk this weekend - rain, clouds and chores washed away any chance of snapping some pretty nature shots to share.  So instead, I'll share some of my favorite pictures of my little kitty cat.  Not that I take a lot of pictures of her or anything.  *grin*

I took this one when I dropped her off at the boarding place before Pete and I went on our cruise.  She looks so cute - but also so small and scared.  Yes, I cried when I left her there.  I cried a lot.

K.C. gets stuck modeling with yarn and knitting quite a bit.  She doesn't love it.  I love this picture because it looks like she's kissing the little yarny cat.  She's probably just trying to knock it off of herself using her head.

This is the day she decided to climb into the entertainment center and hang out for a while. I thought it was pretty funny. After all, she is very entertaining - so I guess the entertainment center is just the place for her.

I love this picture because it looks so ridiculous.  Some how, I caught her in mid-lick.  I love the look on her face.  Her eyes are so big, her tongue is sticking out.  It just cracks me up.

And in this one, she is sleeping peacefully in my lap.  Doesn't she look so sweet?  I melt every time I look at this one.

That's it for Sunday's Snapshots.  Hope you enjoyed it!!

More than attitude . . .

Last Friday, my favorite model had a bit of an attitude when it came to modeling my Head Thingie in progress.  This week, it's been taken to a whole new level.  She flat out refused to pose for a progress picture wearing my Neck Thingie.

In fact, when the set is finished, it's looking like I'm going to have to model for the FO pictures myself!!

It's a good thing she's so cute, because she definitely isn't earning her keep.  If it's not a toy to bat around, a bowl of food or a soft place for a nap, she just isn't interested.  At least she still has time in her busy schedule for cuddles and kisses!!

Model with attitude . . .

So I'm working on a set of Malabrigo Thingies - hand, head and neck.  And I asked my most favorite model to help me get some pictures for the blog.  But you know how it is with gorgeous models.  They have quite an attitude.

She made it quite clear I was infringing on her beauty sleep.

Ah well, at least she didn't try to eat the yarn!!

Update on K.C.

Knitseashore left a comment on my last post asking for a K.C. update.  So I thought maybe I'd do a (warning: long) post about what's been happening over the past week.  It's been quite a (long) journey.

I posted last week that she had gone in for surgery on Wednesday.  It was exploratory surgery to find a piece of ovarian tissue left behind when she was spayed.  The surgery went well and the tissue was found and removed.  The vet brought her back home to me in the afternoon.  The anesthesia had not yet worn off, but the best place for her to recover was in her own home.

It was really hard seeing her so drugged up.  She couldn't walk more than a couple of steps without falling over.  It broke my heart.  We had to keep her sequestered in the bathroom.  That night, she somehow gathered a burst of strength and charged past me when I opened the door.  We tried to catch her, but she made it to the stairs and we had to watch helplessly as she tumbled down.  Luckily, she wasn't hurt, but she really gave us a scare.

By Thursday morning she seemed much better.  She started eating again and could walk.  We needed to keep her quiet until Saturday, so she was stuck in the bathroom.  I would visit every hour or so, and she would curl up in my lap and purr while I petted her.

On Friday, she stopped eating again.  The vet said it was probably due to constipation, so we started her on something to help with that.  Her system kicked in on Saturday, but she still wouldn't eat.  When that happened with Charlie, we found baby food did the trick.  Unfortunately, K.C. wasn't interested in the baby food at all.  The vet called on Sunday and told us to try tempting her with tuna.  (We had been resisting that because Charlie had a terrible fish allergy, but the vet said it was worth risking an allergic reaction if it would get her eating.)  She gobbled up two dishes full and in a few short hours was looking much better and has no signs of seafood allergies.

Things went smoothly on Monday, but by Tuesday we were back to it again.  Her incision and stitches started looking funny and she slept all day  (That is, the stitches that were left.  She had already pulled out three of them, and was doing her best to bite at the rest.)  By Wednesday, the area was looking swollen.  I called the vet (again) and she came right over to take a look.

She didn't think they looked infected, but noticed that the portion where K.C. had pulled out the stitches was healing much better than the portion that still had stitches.  So she took the remaining stitches out.  Once they were gone, she could see tell-tale signs of an infection starting.  She left some antibiotics with us.

Now, finally, I think we are over the worst!  K.C. has been doing really well since Wednesday.  Her appetite is back to normal.  She's playing with her toys again.  She was running up and down the stairs this morning!  She still gets tired quickly and has been taking some extra naps, but she's come a long way.  And I think the worst is behind us now!!

How is today Thursday???

Seriously, I've got to get back to blogging on a regular schedule. But the past week has been a total blur.

There was some celebrating done over the holiday weekend.  With lots of martinis.  And cake.

Lots of cake!!  One on Monday and one on Tuesday.

And of course, there were fibery gifts and knitting books too.  I'll tell you more about those when the clouds go away and I can take a better picture than this pathetic one.

Unfortunately, it hasn't been all parties over here.  We also had K.C.'s surgery to get through yesterday.  She had a tough time and we had some bad scares last night.  But this morning, she's doing so much better.  She can walk again, and she even purred and snuggled down into my lap. She's a trooper.

If you look close, you can make out some of her 3 inches of stitches on her poor shaved belly.  For now, she seems to be resting comfortably in her sick room (aka the bathroom) where she is safely away from anything she might be tempted to climb on. 

And for me, I'm pretty tired too.  Should I knit?  Or should I nap?

Black and White

Yesterday Kathy did a post about her favorite things that are black and white.  What is my most favorite black and white in the world? Well, that's a no-brainer.

It's K.C., of course!!!  (And Kathy is her kitty godmother.)

Some of you may know about the problem we've been having with K.C.  Since the time we got her home, she seemed to be having some health issues.  After multiple tests, my theory of the problem was confirmed.  Although it is extremely rare, when she was spayed (at the Humane Society before we met her), a piece of tissue was left behind.  As a result, she is still going into heat every couple of weeks.  A cat in heat is no fun, I can tell you that!  She's like Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde-Kitty.

She needs exploratory surgery to find and remove the tissue.  It's on the schedule for a week from today.  I am more worried than I can describe.  My poor little kitty.  So, what's a good project that's easy and mindless enough to fill my time while her surgery is performed?

Finish or Frog Friday - the plan

This week I have neither a finished object nor a frogged project. What I have instead is a plan. My plan is that during February, I will have a finished object each Friday. I think I can do it!

After finishing Pea's sock's last week, I pulled out a long standing WIP that hadn't been touched in months. My Hypoteneuse Stole. I've been working on it exclusively, and this morning I finished the third ball of yarn out of five.

I doubt I'll have it finished for next Friday, but I've got something small I can finish up instead. And hopefully, the Friday after that, Hypoteneuse will finally be done!

What's better than yarn in the mail?

FREE yarn in the mail, of course!! Last month I entered a little contest over that the KnitPicks blog. It was really quite easy. All I had to do was leave a comment telling them which of three patterns from the Winter Knitty I'd be most interested in knitting. I left my comment and forgot about it - until I received an e-mail informing me that I won!!

Last week, a free sweaters worth of Swish Superwash arrived in my mailbox. As per Heide's request for more pictures of K.C., she helped show off some of the new yarn.  (We didn't open the sealed bag of 10 that I also received.)

This is destined to become Amused by Jordana Paige.

"What are these things?"

"Ooooh, this stuff is soft."

"Please, paparazzi, no more photos today."

"Modeling is very hard work."

So yes, my stash is now even larger. But this addition comes along guilt free! Thanks, Knit Picks!!

Love at first sight . . .

Today Pea and I took a drive to the CT Humane Society.  We were just going to look at the cats, and I was trying really hard not to get my hopes up.

But someone caught my eye.  As I reached into her cage, she stretched up to meet my hand and started purring like crazy.  Her name is K.C., which were my initials from my maiden name.  Before I knew what was happening, I was signing the papers and we were bringing her home.

It was meant to be.  Here is what she did mere minutes after we got home.

She hadn't even known me for an hour yet.  I couldn't believe she already crawled into my lap.  She's cute and sweet and I really feel like she was meant to be with us.  She's 2 years old and less than 8 pounds, and apparently had a rough start.  But she couln't be sweeter or cuter or more loving.

I hope she's happy about her new forever home.   She's already made our house so much brighter.