My feet are in Cape Cod . . . .

. . . but unfortunately, the rest of me is here.

At least the socks I started on vacation are done.

Elongated Corded Rib from Sensational Knitted Socks
Cast on: 25 August 2007
Completed: 23 September 2007
Yarn: Knit Picks Sock Landscape - Cape Cod
Needles: Knit Picks US2 (3mm) DPNs

I really enjoyed knitting this pair. Okay, I probably enjoyed knitting the first sock more than the second, because I was on vacation when I knit most of it! In any case, the pattern is wonderful, as are the other patterns I've knit from Sensational Knitted Socks. That book is certainly a great investment if you are a sock knitter.

As I mentioned before, the yarn is discontinued. The first ball was wonderful and made me disappointed to know it was no longer available. The second ball was a bit of a different story. There was one spot where all but one ply was broken, so I had to cut the yarn and restart it again. (Grrr, two more ends to weave.) There were also two small spots where the yarn didn't get dyed. These pictures are a bit blurry, but you should be able to see two different colored stitches near the middle of each picture.

All in all, it's not a huge deal and won't really show unless I point it out to people, but it's still a little disappointing.

Sick Day Knitting

I've been fending off some kind of cold / virus for the past couple of days. Basically, I haven't done much except lay on the couch and knit. The upside is that I'll have some good knitting progress to share this week. First is a project I started late Friday.

Zoom from Knitting Playground
Cast On: 21 September 2007
Completed: 24 September 2007
Yarn: Bernat Handcrafter Cotton - Apple Green
Needles: Susan Bates US7 (4.5mm) metal straights

In my current Monk-like state, I do a thing I like to call "Daily Maintenance Cleaning" (in addition to my normal weekly scrubbing of the house). First, I straighten up each room (but who am I kidding, usually nothing is out of place anyway). Then I Windex all surfaces in the kitchen and bathroom. Then I vacuum all the floors. Then I damp mop the floors in the kitchen and bathroom. For the kitchen, I have a great micro-fiber mop that I can just wet down and mop, and then toss in the laundry every few days. But for the bathroom, I was using Swiffer Wet pads. I hated the thought of throwing away a pad each day, so I knit up this cotton Swiffer cover. Perfect solution!!

I tried it out this morning, and my only problem was that the cotton bloomed so much when I wet it down that it kept falling off the mop. As soon as it dries, I'll rip out the seams and sew it up smaller. Can't wait to take it for a second test run tomorrow!! But for now, it's back to the couch.

PS: I promise, the rest of the knitting I'll show you this week will be much less boring! My socks are done and my shawl is coming along really well. Slowly, but really well!

Yarn P*rn of the Week - Tea Cups

I had a little unexpected surprise waiting in my mailbox yesterday.

I had completely forgotten I had won a prize in the Test Knitters Pool for Gardiner Yarn Works. I chose the Walk in the Woods sock kit that included a gorgeous skein of Zen Yarn Garden sock yarn in the Tea Cups colorway. (Shoot, I meant to drape it over Grandma's china for a photo-shoot and forgot. *I'm too lazy to take the pictures over again.*)

Click to make 'em bigger!!

Chrissy had generously let me pick the sock kit I wanted, and it was a very hard choice because there were so many pretty ones. When I opened the package, I knew I made the right choice. The yarn made me gasp at first sight. The pictures are a little washed out, but you can still see that the colors look exactly like delicate china our grandmothers might have used on special occasions. So pretty.

I also wanted to mention that Chrissy has decided to discontinue sock kits and pattern sales on her web-site. But fear not! You can buy her patterns at various LYS around the county, and from several on-line retailers. Check out the list here!

I'm it!!

That's right, the Dishrag Tag box arrived on my doorstep late Monday!! Look what was inside . . .

Along with two pretty balls for Sugar 'n Cream, the box was filled with the best treats! The yummy dishcloth reminds me of Fruit Stripe Gum. I had no idea Newman made Peppermints, but I can tell already they are going to be yummy. (And they are organic!) The stitch markers are really cool - not only are they pretty but the top ring is actually a clasp, so you can use them as normal stitch markers or as removable ones. Genius. And that little note pad? The pages are GRAPH PAPER!! Is that not a knitter's dream?

Thank you so much, Debbi!! And now, I'm off to the post office to send it on it's way to the next knitter.

Having a Monk Moment . . .

Quite a while ago, I scored a great little beading kit for an excellent price on clearance at Barnes & Noble. It included a ton of beads, with each color packaged in it's own little plastic bag. They sat there for quite a while, because I was afraid of the mess that would ensue when I opened the bags. But on a trip to Wal-Mart Friday night, I found a great little bead organizer to keep everything from spilling all over the place. I came home and dumped each packet of beads into a little container. It was good, but something was still very wrong. Can you guess what the problem was?

THE SEED BEADS AND BUGLE BEADS WERE ALL MIXED IN TOGETHER. Now, if you know me at all, then you know that will never do. We can't have different sizes of beads all mixed in together. Oh yes I did . . . .

Yup, Friday night, while watching Monk, I began the lengthy task of sorting the seed beads from the bugle beads. Pea and I laughed a bit at how fitting it was that I would sort my beads while watching Monk. I got through about three colors before bed. In the morning, the minute I got up, I got right back to sorting beads. As I told Pea, that's why they call it OBSESSIVE Compulsive . . . I just HAD to get it done before I did anything else.

Aaaahhhh, that's better. Oh Mr. Monk, you are the only one who really understands me!