Love Socks, baby Love Socks

Well well well, I learned the hard way that I should do a swatch on BOTH colors. I got to the heel on the first try and hmmmm it was more like a bowl for elves. So frog frog frog all the way up to the first row of the pattern. I was making this a little too tight. Who wants to work at putting a sock on? So here is round two. But the first row is still too tight and the top is too loose. So I will probably rip it all out. I started work on the second sock. Not too upsetting since this is my first FairIsle project. I wasn't expecting perfection right off the bat. But Doug showed me Elizabeth Zimmerman's trick and tah dah, much better with the tension! I ended up going down 2 sizes for the Claudia's Hand Painted yarn. So the contrast is on size 0, the other on size 2. I am using the Knit Picks steel double pointed. I am still getting used to them. The are a little slippery but not bad and the length is in between so that is different too. But I do like how sturdy they feel. I don't feel like I am going to snap them in half. I have ordered some more sizes. Let me know if you like them or not. I am curious!
I was happy to wear my garter bar sweater today. Yea Fall! I felt pretty cute in it. It is pretty gratifying to wear a hand made item.

I am feeling the LOVE!

How gorgeous is this yarn?! wool, bamboo, what's not to love! And if was a gift from my friend Doug. How sweet is that?! I just love early Christmas gifts! And as I got to thinking about it, it is the first yarn anyone has ever bought for me. So this along with Claudia's Handpainted in thistle are making my noughts and crosses a.k.a. hugs and kisses socks! My first attempt at FairIsle AND Claudia and Melissa BOTH got me a little yarn holder for my finger. I feel so loved and I must say I like it! I had been having a really crappy couple of weeks and this made me feel SO much better.
XOXOXO (don't worry, I'll fix the mistake! of course I had to take the picture in that side! :-) This will be such a special pair of socks for me! Yarn from Doug, holders from Melissa and Claudia, a lesson too from Claudia and hugs and kisses. Could I be more of a sap?















This little pumpkin was another fun surprise for me this week. I found it filled with Weight Watcher friendly bubble gum. Thanks Melissa!

One of my professors is great with child so I made this for the new baby. I didn't want it to seem like I was trying for brownie points, so I left it on her door with no name. Besides, a little mystery can be good. And interestingly enough, it was the day of her shower given by the faculty. Double mystery! I just love that timing!

I went to a house warming tonight and this was the gift I took. Famous Steve helped me and boy was it Gee-orgeous! They were stunned and had a fit over it.

Henry!!!

How cute is he?? This is Henry. This little sweetie is donning the hat I made from the yarn the Blue Sky Alpaca donated to my Nurses Who Knit group. The pattern is also from them. Doug taught me the little cork screws on the top. Can you stand it????

Sunday Sunday Sunday

Melissa has gotten the spinning bug! Notice the help she is getting...well at leash the moral support!

Yarn number 1!
The good old espresso machine was brought out of hiding. If you have Caribou stock sell it now! I will be making my own for a while. Not to worry, that is not a murder weapon on the left, just the knife I used to cut dough to make Money Bread!
Then sitting out here on the new swing to drink it and study and knit. Ah life IS good! ( p.s. Melissa put this together herself! She is rockin!)

Part deux

Well then it just gets ugly! Steve was REALLY lickin...I mean lappin, I mean liking his latte!
This is the real Brett :-) So photogenic!
I wonder if they realize they are in public with this bunch?
Here is the real Doug. Yeah, this is MUCH better than coming to the darkside and wearing bi-focals. Happens to the best of us you know!

Ahhhh Friday Nights!

Two of my partners in crime...Famous Steve and the Crack Head Santa Claus. Now here is a sight for sore eyes...Olivia, Lou, Brett and Claudia (sporting her Bavarian blouse gearing up for Oktoberfest!
This just looks like trouble!
Rounding out the mayhem!
Onto Sip. Yummmy! More on that later folks. and oh yeah it will be worth another visit here. Gotta get to Knitch!

Here is my current project. It is Vanilla Spice from the Spring Knitty web site. I am using the chocolate Rialto from Debbie Bliss. The little twist this yarn does on the left side of the stitch is annoying, but it feels really good and the color is YUMMY! The way the Rialto is is put together makes it stringy if you have to take it out....no, I NEVER have to do that! I got the yarn at the Knitch Lucky Duck sale. The picture of the pattern is not so clear, it has an interesting pattern to it. every 4th row of ST you throw in a purl stitch every few stitches. So it is still pretty simple but has some texture. Once you figure out how to read the pattern that is :-).

The Garter Bar Cardigan

It's Finished! I liked this pattern. It knits up fast and I like the design. The problem with the sleeves was a pain. I ended up adding 8 stitches and all is well. The mother of pearl button looks the way I envisioned so that's a bonus! It is a little snug and shorter than I thought, but I feel pretty sure this will be well worn when it gets cool. Oh yea, by the way, as of this week I have lost 26.4 pounds!!! Yipeee!

Since Knitch is undergoing renovation this weekend, Lou, Doug, Melissa and I met at Roxx's...home of the Yarn Doctor. It was actually nice enough to sit outside on the patio. Wunderbar! The sweater I have been doing had a mistake in the pattern. The sleeves are way too tight...even if I wore my arm girdles! So on the advice of Doug and Claudia, I made some inserts for the sleeves. Blocked them, stitched them, hated them. So frog frog frog and start over. Hmmm...I wondered why I felt like I was knitting for the quadropuss! (Four sleeves) But at least it won't irritate me to death AND it was not my knitting that was the problem, but the pattern. That would be the 3rd, yes 3rd, problem pattern in a freaking row! SO relaxing!!! But I enjoy the company most of all.

She has a wonderful pattern for a felted bedpan....AWESOME!

I am going to start a Nurses who Knit group at my university. We will do premi stuff, scarves etc for battered women's shelters etc etc. I have had a TON of interest in this. I will start them off with the basics...you know me, Ms. Garter Stitch herself! :-) But I would love it if some of my knitting buddies would help out OR come to the NWK groups! I have slated it for beginners and seasoned knitters alike and will open it up for anyone who is interested. Let me know what you think! Always up for some good ideas. Also if you have a group in need, let me know and I will put it in the list of possibilities.

I am not really M.I.A.

I had a weekend with my family to celebrate a birthday and then school started on Monday. I will see y'all at KNITCH on Thurs but not Friday...boo hoo for me...and then on Sunday if I survive the Saturday CPR class!

Knit Art

I found this cool vase on sale at IKEA-$3- and put the left over yarn from projects in the vase. That way the good memeories from each project can bring it's magic to the room. So all the memories and happy faces of people for whom I have knitted things are with me. Then I put all the freaking wooden needles I could find in the vase. Cause you know once you have gone Addi there's no turning back...mwah ha ha ha!! And tah-dah the KNITTING ART FROM OUTER SPACE!

A lot has happened in 2 years

On Aug 15 2005 I found out that I had cancer. I celebrate my survivor day on Nov 23rd which was the last day of treatment. It was found on my very 1st mammogram. I had no family history and am considered a young survivor. Please urge all the women in your life who are 35 and older to go and get 'em squished! I am alive because we found it early. My surgeon told me if I had waited until I was 45ish this would have probably killed me.

I have been thinking of all that has gone on since then. I was newly married when I found out, not knitting a thing, and living in the burbs. Now I am single again, knitting up a storm and have found a great bunch of folks that really mean a bunch to me. My new adventure of nursing school starts on Monday and after 6 years of sharing an office with the same person, I have a new space and a new office mate. And I have a new living arrangement and lots of pets!
Those are some really big life changes. But I feel good, I am pretty healthy and knitting is such a good meditation for me. I can carry it around, enjoy coffee shops and K2TOG is really true for me.

Enjoy your life today!

My next project is the garter bar cardigan. It is a Cindy Taylor pattern and I am using the Araucania Nature Wool in lime. I am using 2 strands and the gauge works out great! I will be on the hunt for a funky big green button for the front. I got this yarn for a steal at www.littleknits.com. Thanks to Claudia again for helping me get this together!

Sweater Wizard YIKES

I tried my first go at the sweater wizard. While others I have asked love it I did not fair so well. I have rechecked my input and I did do a swatch and I was right on gauge. Well the first go 'round, I got about half way up the body and tried it on. It looked like a hot air balloon cozy! So rip, rip, rip. Down two needle sizes. The the next time.....hello mobius! So then I gave up on in the round and made it in 2 pieces. Finally done, I blocked, washed, dried and shock...too big still. Fit in the bust no where else. So thanks to Doug (LUMI), the master,he did a big tapered mattress on the seams and took it up about 10, believe it, rows and it looks MUCH better. I did an i-cord for the flowers. Yes, the infamous gyno i-cord, and got the hex beads from Michael's for the middles. The flowers and leaves are from a Nicki Epstein book. Of course I have one on the back...thanks Melissa!

I used Cotton Ease for all the parts on the vest. Feels GREAT after the wash and dry, but the yarn was a mess to work with. Lots of twisting and yarn barf everywhere, even after putting in on the swift. But it feels so good now I would probable try again.

How I lost my first tape measure

Well, I don't know about you but I am a better person because I knit. I knit because of the great folks I have grown to love along the way. I can't imagine a better bunch of crazies like the ones I was lucky enough to join here in Atlanta. We are all better froggers since our Friday nights, that's for sure. Most of the time we laugh and laugh, a great mental cleanser! For the first blog, I want to share how I lost my tape measure...Claudia, this one's for you!I was at the gyno's office, I of course had a knitting project with me because I knew I would have to wait and I am not the most patient person in the world. Finally after about a 45 minute wait, I was taken back to the western room...you know the one with the stirrups! So I did as I was told, undressed from the waist down and put the lovely paper sheet around me. Well, this wasn't my first rodeo I knew it would be a while, so I continued knitting the i-cords for the decorations on my summer tank (which by the way is driving me crazy, but more on that later). Finally the doc comes in and I finish my little row (you know it is only 3 stitches), put the yarn, needles etc in the little bag and toss it in the chair. I reposition myself for the exam and hear a weird clank as something falls on the floor. Hmmmm, was that an instrument? So after I am done and dressing, I notice a small round blue and green tape measure on the sink. Naturally, I debated on stealing, I mean taking, it. But then I wondered, hmmmm....what IS the doc measuring with this? Also, I noticed a small white tape measure too. Big deal I have a little white one...or so I thought. I just left them in the room, I couldn't get past what MIGHT have been measured with that thing. When I get home, I get my i-cord out again and need to measure it. Can't find MY tape measure. Well KARMA! I had not moved it off my lap when I scooched down and it hit the floor in the doc's office. Mine was the white one on the sink. HA! I wonder what the doc thought of that thing falling to the floor!