Viola

I'm such a fan of her work. I comment on her blog every now-and-then(ish), but I read every time she writes. Her daughters are pretty models that seem so appreciative of their moms' hard work at knitting things. Their nonchalant poses sell her product very well!

I'm so in love with the three perfectly coordinated tints of this periwinkle colorway. I tried so hard, but I wasn't able to join in on the club to knit this with the others. Now it's available for us all to knit and enjoy! Uh, it's just so pretty!

If you haven't read any of Through The Loops' writing, or if you haven't tried any of her projects, you're in for a happy surprise. You're bound to enjoy it all!

New wool

My new 5' x 8' Chevron Rug is absolutely fabulous. It's charcoal gray, which is an extension of one of my favorite colors out there. But it's got little hints of ecru showing through in the low loop of the high-loop/low-loop pattern.  Which makes it even better.

Looooooooove iiiiiiiiiiit!*

westelm.com delivered quickly (3 days after order was placed) regardless of the fact that they were in the midst of taking inventory in their warehouses, and I was even told about that before I ever even placed my online order. Way to be on the ball about important details for online shoppers, west elm! Your detailed warning about the possible delay of order confirmation via email as well as actual product delivery was really appreciated. I'm one happy customer and I'll be back to order some of these and definitely a set of these as a jewelry catch on my bathroom counter, or some wall decor in the dining room! My Ben Moore Revere Pewter walls could use some more lemon yellow art! (That picture with the two white slip covered armchairs is pretty much spot-on as far as what the color actually looks like, fyi.) Oooo yeah.

Please:
- ignore the crooked lamp shades.
- forgive the old ugly braided country style rug that's folded and piled up next to the red covered sofa table. It's next to the front door and on its way to a new and loving home on Friday.
- and this is a pretty-please: appreciate the fact that I straightened and even dusted off the coffee table and all its contents for this here photograph.
- admit that you've also got swatches draped over your lamp shades. I'm not that crazy, am I?
- ignore that the two sofa tables aren't the same height, so the two lamps aren't the same height. Which I HATE and must fix soon now.
- choose to look past my cheesy decision to prop the recently-finished Pup Beatnik up against one of the sofa pillows. I regret it, but couldn't pass up the posed pup (again, *).
- admire the framed photo of the interior of Notre Dame in Paris I snapped on June 7, 2008 in an impromptu picture-taking contest between me and the Hubs. Obviously, I won!
- encourage me to discard those magazines once I've fingered through them eight times. Because eight is enough.
- look past the computer tower jammed between the legs of the nesting sofa tables. It's literally jammed in there.
- be jealous of my suede wedges.
- pray that I don't kick the Hubs out to sleep here tonight again because he refuses to sleep in silence. The guy must get a kick outta snoring, because it's apparently worth him sleeping under the hot pink Snuggie on the sofa!

This new wool has brought class, warmth, geometry, and sophistication to our living room. Which I'm totally proud of, because I picked it out and purchased it without the Hubs really knowing what was going on other than me telling him that we're totally getting rid of this ole crumb collector ASAP. Sometimes, when you've had enough of something you don't appreciate, you've just. Had. Enough. New wool... I love it.

*Vespa's precious little pup pose was 100% asking kindly to go outside for a bathroom break because she knew I was off the sofa and didn't have a knitting project in my hands so I would most likely be willing to open the door and let her out without forcing her to "gimme kissy!" (Yes, that's one of her tricks.) And I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to snap this shot! Come on and admit that you wish you had a dog this cute. And if you do have a dog this cute, please show her off. And also, please admit that she also requests one (or three) extra water bowls around the house in addition to her regular by-the-food-in-the-kitchen water bowl, including one next to the coffee table in the living room and one on the nightstand for midnight sips.

Send in the model!

Because I'm obsessed with everything about the show Project Runway (did you know that about me?), I asked Vespa to present a little model fitting for me a couple nights ago.

She huffed and puffed and dug a cave into the down comforter I had piled on the sofa next to me. Little Miss Thang likes to bury herself and sleep in little spots that could likely result in us sitting on her if we're not careful about it.

 

Anyway, the fitting went really well! I can tell I'll want to do a little extra finishing work around the arms, and I'll definitely want to tack down the turtleneck fold so that it stays where it should. I'm even considering the addition of a little belt around the middle, just for vanity's sake (because if you knit cables, you know what it means to accidentally skip a row in your chart, and I did, thus the one-row-looks-like-crap effect around her midsection). But other than that the fit was perfect! Whew. This is a lot of work for a little dog sweater, so I'm glad it's working out so well.

Oh. Speaking of working out well, there is one flaw in the sweater, if you'd even call it that. I got the sweater onto Vespa because I attacked while she was sleeping. Poor thing woke up to Mama squeezing her lanky little poodle legs through the armholes. But try getting a cranky little prissy pup out of the thing! These directions don't call for any buttons, snaps, ties, or other means of putting a snug sweater onto a resistant furry little creature who can twist and wiggle her little body in a number of ways to both frustrate you and make you laugh at the same time. It sort of reminds me of Bridget trying to dress up her precious little dog Wednesday (she loved the Adams Family) into a bunny costume on the terrible tv show The Girls Next Door. Vepsa didn't take things as far as Wenny did, but she came pretty close... up until she decided to give me a girly little high-pitched whimper-slash-growl and nip at my fingertips.

She definitely likes the sweater, though.

Vespa's (almost) Beatnik

This is Vespa's chin. Vespa's getting excited. She's about to attack me with kisses because I just told her that it's looking like I'm finally about to power through to the end of her new Beatnik sweater. And that means she's gonna be warm and I'll get back to my own Beatnik before long at all.

Beatnik for Vespa

It's still chilly as can be outside, and however cute it may be with its hot pink lining and rhinestone belt, poor little Vespa just hates the velcro closures on her $9 WalMart fur-lined doggy jacket -- they're itchy on her undercarriage. She is, after all, known by her sissy Shiloh (aka Posh Spice) as Sporty Spice. Which means: no rhinestones required for this chick.

That's it, I couldn't take it. I have officially started what I threatened in my previous little blip: I've cast on the Fabulous Dog Cozy and in lieu of the pattern maker's chosen cable design, I'm adding in the center cable pattern (Chart B) from Beatnik. Which makes my heart flutter just a little bit. My sweet little Vespa dressed just a little like me? Plus a turtleneck top? How cute is that? That's exactly what I said: very.

Easy reading

Finally getting around to opening this tonight. It's a very good sign when I'm in love with the front cover and the back cover.

Vespa isn't quite as thrilled to delve in. She's more interested in staying cozy and warm inside the skirt of my hot pink Snuggie. Can you blame her? I surely can't! Even though we didn't get the ice and snow (and more ice and more snow) that they got in Macon and above that, it's still frickin' freezing here and this little pup doesn't like the cold. Maybe I should set Beatnik aside and knit up a quick Fabulous Dog Cozy for her so I might have my lap back?

Starting the New Year off right

Happy New Year! I feel refreshed and ready for a challenge.

So, I cast on Beatnik from Knitty's Deep Fall issue and I am totally wild about it already. The moss stitch is such a simple contrast to all those pretty cable twists. I can't wait to get this one finished, blocked, and on my body! What a treat I'm making for myself.

The yarn is Cascade 220 in color Aspen Heather. It's a beautiful combination of a very light beige mixed with a very light gray -- so, it's right up my alley!

I'm so pleased with the color and the fabric that this yarn is making. I'll post more pictures and comments as the project grows. For now, here she is:

A big storm is on its way here to Georgia. We're probably only getting a lot of rain down here, because we're south enough and the temperature is a few degrees too mild. But up in middle Georgia and north Georgia, they just might have some big slip-n-slide action going on with inches of ice on the roads and snow on the ground. It's times like these you need a warm wool sweater to cuddle up into and enjoy the winter whiteness outside!

Keep warm everyone. See you again soon.

The Great Fiber Heist

In the Ravelry Forum Funnies...

http://www.ravelry.com/discuss/fairbanks-fiberistas/1236767/1-25#1

These girls found some black gold, Texas tea!

Cute as a motnet!

Well, guys, it's official. I was a real person in Round 2 of my Ravelry exchange group and have received a package in my mailbox as of this afternoon!

I grew up listening to my little sister talk about some of her favorite things in the world. Sometimes the hold your clothes together, sometimes they light up, sometimes they click, sometimes they buzz. One of my little sister's favorite words growing up wasn't even a real word at all: motnet! And what is a motnet, you might ask? Why, it's a button, of course! (By the way, that's pronounced in a typical Georgia southern accent, maht-nit with a soft o and a soft i.)

My scarf came out of its packaging and pretty much exploded into my hands. It's totally cute... cute as a button! It's all different shades of purple, from plum to lavender to a really rich and pretty grape-ish color. Now I'm gonna say this like Oprah: "LOOOOOOOOOOVE IIIIIIIIIIIIIT!!!!!"

There were also a few treats in the package as a little bonus gift for me. I know, lucky me! There were two boxes of fruity-flavored teas, and the icing on the cake was another motnet. This time, quite literally. It's a ring decorated with three stacked motnets, and they all match my cute-as-a-motnet ruffle scarf! I know, it's totally perfect, right?

Thanks thanks thanks to Ladybug888 for pulling through like a truly kind, totally cool Canadian knitter would do.

Happy 3rd Anniversary to my Hubster and me!

From the lyrics of our first-dance song, "I love you more today than yesterday, but not as much as tomorrow."

A little bit of progre... ooops!

When I started my 2nd repeat of the pattern for the top tab of the Quinn Bag, I accidentally skipped Row 1. Apparently, Row 1 is the row in the pattern that does the work of crossing the center cables over each other, so that step got skipped. Ooops! The Hubster suggested doing that as a part of the pattern so now I'm skipping Row 1 every other repeat.

Looks like this little mistake is working out beautifully! And, I'm really enjoying the process of knitting cables. Not only is it stimulating and a bit complicated for me, but it's also fun to be making something that's both flat and 3-dimensional. Oh, and it doesn't hurt at all that I'm also crossing off another "I wanna learn this" off my New Year's resolutions list!

I've been absent from this blog for a long time. Let's just get that past us and marvel at what I'm teaching myself right now! This is by far accomplishing one of my New Year's resolutions in knitting: learning to knit cables!!!

A few months ago I visited a yarn shop for my first-ever time! I went with my BFF Chelsea in Macon, Georgia and purchased three balls of this Spud & Chloe yarn in the color you see below called flannel as well as one that's a sort of heathered paprika color called sequoia. It's so chunky that it would be nearly impossible to knit a flattering sweater with it. Plus, I'd need tons more of the yarn than I have right now. And at $13.40 a ball, that's not very likely to happen with my budget right now.

But why not make a killer bag? I could use a handmade purse. And a big one. There's enough of this stuff to go very far and make a beautiful bag! So, I set out to find a pattern and found the perfect one for free. I know, big plus there. The pattern for the Quinn Bag shows cables all over, which is very pretty, but I found sknitty's version of the same bag posted online and loved it even more than the original.

 Original:                                                                  Modified:

It's only one round of cables at the top opening to frame off the rest of the bag which is simple and pretty. It seemed like the perfect beginner's project that wouldn't fatigue me too much on this attempt at a new-to-me knitting technique.

Excuse the lazy Sunday afternoon nightgown and un-manicured hand with a weird amount of wrinkles on my thumb. Here's what I'd done so far Sunday since I'd started the project:

Smart cardigans

Here's just a few of my recent finds. Enjoy!

Rorschach Sweater. It's amazing what a chic neckscarf, smart pixie haircut, and lush backdrop of ferns can do for a simple cardigan. This is such a classic, originally published in 1981!

Mossy Featherweight Cardigan. This looks very light, easy, and comfortable for lounging or out-and-abouting. I already had the Featherweight Cardigan stashed in my favorites, but DutchesofYarnover's addition of this trim is so lovely. She gives away her edging secret in her notes, if you're interested.She chose a nice color for her project, too, I think. It would also be pretty in a rosy pink or ivory. Oooo, or black. Anyway, whatever color I knit this in, I've gotta go ahead and knit it up already. It's been waiting around

for a while.

Luminens hoodie. While I could live without the high schooler's thumb-holes at the sleeve cuffs, the rest of this hoodie is so interesting to me! The cabled trim wraps from the hood, down either side of the zipper on the front panel, opens up to make pockets along the bottom, and swooshes around the waist to the back. It looks almost elven, like Liv Tyler would have worn it to lounge around her palace in the movie Lord of the Rings.

Myrtle cardigan. Just look at that pretty eyelet scoop neckline! And all those pearly green buttons. And all those climbing vines! Am I accidentally all about some green here tonight, or what?

103-1 Jacket. Fragilistica did a great job with color on this one. And the buttons are a very nice and understated finishing touch. Love the cuffs on this one. The second pose below makes me wonder what the jacket would look like with buttons all the way down, tied around the waist with a same-yarn belt.

Of course, Ysolda always steals my heart! I have another of her sweet, whimsical masterpieces on my shelf of things to knit. I love that this looks like old-timey smocking. Something's telling me this would be pretty in green. Like, a bright grassy green. Or in a soft, buttery yellow. Mmmm, yellow. (I think hippoknits has a little one at home... if I'm seeing the tv in the background correctly, that's Thomas the Tank Engine!)

Annnnnnnd, I'm sleepy. What do you wanna knit, but haven't started yet? Innything purdy?

I think I spoke too soon.

Yes, it's totally frogged. And no, I don't wanna talk about it.

Annnnnnnnnd, redo.

Knitted Lace of Estonia: the book and a project

So, spirit fingers! I made the blog all cute and Springy and bright and cheerful. But what good does that do if I don't actually contribute anything worth looking at and/or reading?

I'm here to say that even though I've been away for a really, really, really long time, I have actually been knitting.  Not as much as I was a couple of months ago.  Mostly because I work at a quilt shop three days a week and it's had a little bit of influence on my crafting and creating endeavors.  But I have been knitting nonetheless. 

Knitted Lace of Estonia is a beautiful book and I am very happy that I bought it on a whim from Borders back in February.  Stuffed with a rich history behind the making of original lace creations by women of Estonia, this book offers tons of patterns that are challenging, fun, and breathtakingly beautiful.  It's really fun for me to be knitting something that is totally challenging for me... it's keeping me on my toes every step of the way!  But, at the same time, I totally get it - the instructions are flawless, and that makes everything doable.  In keeping with my 2010 New Year's resolution, I am knitting from a chart for the very first time.  GO ME!!!

I'm knitting a scarf for the fearless leader of my aforementioned knitting swap group on Ravelry.com.  The yarn I selected for him reminds me of the colors in a peacock's tail feathers - teal, navy, black, and gold - and this pattern suits the yarn well.

As I dive more into the progress of this scarf, I'll be updating more here.  I'm liking the look of this one so far, and I'm sure I'll be ready to show off my work once this thing grows some more.  Until then, let's all try and forget that this project was supposed to be finished waaaaaay back when... yeah, I try not to think about that.  And, instead, I'm looking at the scarf I'm knitting and hoping it will be well worth the wait.

Until more progress is made, I'll try a little harder to keep in touch.

Much love to knitter-bloggers everywhere!

Last sneek peek

I'll be sending this pop of Springtime inspiration to its rightful owner tomorrow!

Seed stitching a secret

As mentioned in my previous entry, I ordered yarns for round 2 of the Scarf Exchange that I'm always raving about lately. Have I mentioned how much fun it is? Have I mentioned that I love it? Well, it is, and I do.

A couple of weeks ago, the leader of the group expressed sad concerns that he had accidentally left himself out of the automated random name draw for this round of the swap. How tragic is that? The guy organizing everything, the guy walking so many of us swap virgins through the proper steps, has accidentally left himself out of the benefits of the whole thing! So, I just couldn't stomach it. I asked to knit something for him, and I'm so excited about it! But because he already knows who's knitting for him and because I have already pictured the yarns I purchased on el blog-o, I'll keep the pattern selection a surprise. Gotta keep something a secret, right? I have a few other things in the works for him, but let's not go there until things are revealed in the end. ;)

As for my "real" Secret Scarfee, the yarn for the thing I am knitting her was ordered from the same supplier on the 20th and arrived yesterday. Needless to say, I started knitting last night just as soon as I had finished my supper. Because she doesn't know who I am, I'll go ahead and share the secrets. First of all, this yarn!!! My goodness, this yarn is sooooo pretty. It's a hand spun, hand painted 100% cotton that is incredibly soft. And the colors are so Springy. Pastel pink and orange and green and yellow and a creamy white. It's like a sorbet. How unintentional and perfectly whimsical!

For the project, I'm knitting my own variation of the Destroyed Cowl by Martha Merzig. Rather than straight stockinette stitch, I opted to stick to as much of a Spring theme as I could and traded in for seed stitch. Real cute, I know. I've been wanting to knit something in seed stitch, and this presented a great opportunity to do so! I'm also making this version a bit shorter than the sample pictured on the pattern page... about half the size, but twice the cuteness!

A Sense of Whimsy

Sorry to everyone out there. I know that my millions of blog fans have been complaining about my absence here. I've been busy. Or lazy. Or sometimes... brace yourselves... busy and lazy. At the same time. I know, I know--that just blew your mind. I'm like Garfield and The Tazmanian Devil all squished into one person sometimes here lately. And I still somehow managed to find the time to paint my toenails the other night.

So. Of course, after my beautiful success in swapping partners (both Scarfer and Scarfee) from the Secret Scarf Exchange: Round 1, I undoubtedly jumped at the opportunity to do it all over again. But with a new Scarfer and a new Scarfee this time around. I am very sad to let my Scarfer go because she made the most beautiful and most perfectly colored eggplant purp cowl just for me. If you missed it, then I guess you haven't been missing my absence because it was kind-of a big deal. If you saw it, then I'm sure you're super jealous and hoping YOU signed up for Round 2: A Sense of Whimsy and were randomly selected to be her partner. But listen here: she is so sneaky and such a great secret-keeper that she still has not revealed her identity! I know, I'm impressed with her stamina too. Hopefully she'll give out soon and claim the purple masterpiece I wear around my neck with a camisole and yoga stretchy pants around the house at night. Hey, my dog doesn't judge, she loves unconditionally... and my husband chuckles and gives a quick-and-disapproving shake of the head and goes about his computer-clicky business. I was also lucky enough to have been assigned to a grateful Scarfee. As soon as she received my scarf gift at her home in Portugal she posted thanks on Ravelry and that really made the whole experience worth-while for me.

Now I'm looking forward to getting started on my next endeavor: Round 2. I mentioned in a thread of the group that I'll be posting little teasers and clues and hints about what I'm knitting and who I'm knitting for and what tricks I may have up my sleeve. I'm trying to keep the theme of "A Sense of Whimsy" in as much of the project as possible... and I find it to be a whimsical project, teasing other knitters about a project that may or may not be for them. So, be sure to check in on a fairly regular basis. I'm gonna be pretty busy on a couple of knitting projects, and sneaky... er, whimsical... about it to boot!

For now, the yarn has been ordered and is officially on the move. I found a lovely selection of handspun/handpainted yarns at Birds Nest Yarns on Etsy, and here's what's on its way to my house right now:

The light and fruity pastels are just lovely, no? Make you crave a cold sorbet snack, maybe? (I could definitely go for a lemon sorbet myself.) I can't wait to touch the soft handspun organic cotton tecture. And the rich, coolish-warm gray/teal/gold Merino looks yummy in its own handsome way, dontchathink?

Enough for tonight. I'll keep going on this topic once the yarns arrive on my little newlywed starter home doorstep.

Every day, since the 27th of February, I have been skipping out to our little rusty mailbox with giant hopes of opening the wobbly little hinged door and finding a package in there just for me. The New Year Secret Scarf Exchange (Round 1) ended on the 27th, and I could hardly contain my excitement while waiting for my surprise to arrive!

It pretty much broke The Hubster's heart every day, when I would come back into the house with hands full of sale papers, coupon papers, bills, newspapers, and magazines and sit down to the kitchen table and quietly open everything with the un-excitedness of an every-day mailbox visit. Leave the house hopeful and excited that a package may have arrived, and come back inside with nothing but bills! How could this not be depressing?!?

So, tonight The Hubs got home before I did. He left work a few minutes early with a headache, and I left the quilt shop a few minutes late because of a couple of lingering customers. I came inside, loved on little Vespa pup, and tended to Hubster's sore forehead. When, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a hot pink package in the seat of the Barcalounger and my heart jumped! I looked at The Hub and he just nodded at me with a smile on his face. Yup, IT WAS HERE!!!!!!!!

"Looks like you got Royal Mail," he said to me as I bounced and squealed for joy. I didn't even touch the package for a couple of minutes... like it was sacred or something, haha. I just looked at it and folded my fingers together, resting my face on the back of one of my hands like I was dreaming or something. Then I picked it up, squeezed it, jumped for joy and squealed with excitement for a few more minutes. It was like Christmas morning!

Then I looked at the mailing label. Sure enough, the parcel was actually stamped "Royal Mail" like the Queen sent it herself! Then I contemplated saving the package until later tonight to open.

Wait. What was that last thought? Craziness?!? I thought so. And so the package was ripped.

Here's what I found inside:

Ca-UUUUUTE little lamb letter from my "Secret Scarfer"

And this was the main event... BEAUTIFUL!!!

Here's a close-up of my Scarfer's beautiful handiwork. Please forgive the evening lamp light effects: it's a beautiful eggplant color, exactly perfect for me!

Here I am, happy-as-can-be, wearing my new cowl. Be jealous.

Husband's request #1: "Be sure to get a traditional MySpace photo shot!"

Husband's request #2: "You look like a ninja ready to strike at any moment. Show the camera a little bit'a judo chop action!" And so I did. Looks like you got the stink eye, too. (Please-please-please ignore the naked wall to the right, as it's the space above our sofa... we're newly-ish-weds who have just-ish moved into our first home and I don't have anything to hang there yet!)

So, there you have it. I got a cowl via Royal Mail and it's the most perfect shade of eggplant purp. And, what's that? What did you get in the mail? Coupons and junk mail and bills? Yeah, I judo chop in your general direction. Heh.

(But really, I value my blog readers, so I don't "literally" judo chop in your general direction. I'm just ensuring my superiority in this case, since I got a kick-ass cowl and you didn't. Love ya!)