And we have a winner!

Congratulations Jen! You have won my blogiversary give away! I have some sock yarn for you!

I promise, the yarn is much less blurry in real life!

I finished the Tychus hat and have already given it to the happy recipient.


He seems to like it. I wasn't totally happy with it. My finishing (as always) wasn't the best. You can't tell from the picture, but there is an unfortunate nipple-like protrusion at the crown! But I wore it myself all day on Saturday, and it's really soft and warm. So it serves its purpose!

And I gave it to him with perfect timing because Maryland finally got a little winter weather yesterday.



I was stuck at work all day yesterday, so I kept running out the back door throughout the day to do a happy snow dance. I LOVE SNOW! Unfortunately, we barely got a dusting which was then covered with a layer of freezing rain, but I'm still happy that it finally snowed. The warm winter weather we had been having was depressing me.

I had a pretty good weekend in general. We reopened "Buddy" on Friday night. Our first run of it was so popular that we brought it back for a very short repeat run. I think it is safe to say that we all love this show. It's a really stupid script but it is still a great show. So fun to both watch and work on. It's truly remarkable how pleasant everyone at the theatre is. We had all gotten really bad attitudes after suffering through our dreadful Christmas show. And now we're all in good moods and having a blast doing this show again.

This week, I will be up at the Baltimore space in tech for "The Full Monty" which opens on Friday. I haven't seen a run of it yet, so I don't know if it's any good or not. I love the show and the score, so hopefully it will be a good production. I'm not really happy about being in tech for two weeks in a row, but that's my job. Besides...

I'm going to DisneyWorld in 10 days!!!!
My new favorite pastime is to send my niece Disney related text messages every day. She is a tomboy to the end - hates all thing even remotely girly. So I keep sending her text messages that say things like "maybe you can get the Little Mermaid's autograph!" or "maybe we can go to the Disney Princesses pancake breakfast so you can meet ALL the princesses!" Her response? "I could only be so lucky."

I'm trying to figure out what knitting I want to bring with me. I figure I'll need some socks to work on while standing in line for rides. I think I may make the second Pembrokshire Pathways sock.

I'm still waiting for yarn to come in the mail. I got one of my orders on Friday.

Ten balls of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino. I got a really good price on it, but I'm not really sure what I'm going to do with it. It sure is pretty though. I love the dark orange color.

Well, I'm going to go back to being a slug. I don't have to be anywhere near the theatre today and I am enjoying it!

Happy Blogiversary!

Yep, today is the day. One year ago today I started this crazy blogging thing! It's amazing to think of all that has happened in the past year in my knitting life. I have met sooo many cool people, gone to my first fiber festival, knit countless socks and other items, learned many new skills, and have made many new friends. I have loved every single minute of it. So, in honor of this occasion, I'm going to participate in that time honored knit blogger tradition and have a little give away. Leave me a comment between now and Sunday, January 21st and you will be put into a drawing for some fibery goodness. I don't know exactly what the prize will be yet, but it will be yarn! I'm really interested to see how many of you lurkers come out of the woodwork for this! Comment away!! Winner will be announced on Monday, the 22.

I got a present from my Dad in the mail yesterday.


He was so cute about it. He told me he found these at the craft store and thought of me immediately. He thought they would be perfect for knitting in the lightbooth at work! I didn't have the heart to tell him that I've knit with them before. He was just so proud of himself for finding them for me.


They are fun to play with!

I finally finished my Trekking Jaywalkers the other day.



They came out a little too big, but they sure are pretty! They did soften up a bit with washing, but they aren't nearly as soft as the other pair of Trekking socks I made. Hopefully more washing and wearing will do the trick.

I am impatiently waiting for two yarn orders to arrive in the mail. I want to start a sweater!! I keep checking the mail, but so far, no luck. It's frustrating!!! I've finally decided to try a sweater, and I don't have the yarn yet. Grrrrr.

In the meantime, I have cast-on for not one but two small projects.


A pair of toe-up socks using the GORGEOUS handspun that Amie gave me for my birthday. It is sooo pretty and even more pretty knowing that she spun it! I'm just doing simple toe-up socks, no real pattern. I don't want any stitch design to interfere with the pretty colors of the yarn.

I also just cast on for a Tychus hat.



A friend of mine has been bugging me to knit him a hat. He specifically requested merino or cashmere. Well, cashmere is a little out of my budget, but I did buy some Jo Sharp Silkroad which is a wool/cashmere/silk blend. And despite the fact that he is male, I'm going to trust that he will not throw this in the washing machine. He did offer to pay me to do this, but this will be a gift. I got this yarn the last time I was at the beach, but it has been so ridiculously warm here in MD, a knit hat seemed a little unnecessary. But the temperatures have fallen, so I figured I better start knitting!

There are rumors of snow in the forecast for the weekend. I am keeping my fingers crossed. I doubt it will be anything significant, but I really would like to see a little snow this winter!

A present for me!

I got the most awesome gift from my friend Jolene today.


Tilli Tomas Mogul in Ruby Wine

Isn't it GORGEOUS?! I was lusting over this yarn at Stitches, but decided I had already spent too much money so I didn't get it. Jolene got this in trade for some test knitting she did and gifted it to me. Isn't she the best??!!

Now....
The question is..

What should I knit with it??

I thought maybe this...



That is Tweed Beret by Kristen TenDyke from the winter 2006 IK.
Obviously, it won't be so very tweedy if I knit it with the Tilli Tomas. But I'm a little concerned that a beaded beret might look a little too "1970's Disco Tramp." What do you think?

Any other suggestions out there? I'll just sit here and fondle it until someone gives me some ideas!

All Done





Seriously quick knit! And I kinda like them!
I washed the left one last night in a little Soak. I haven't washed the second one yet. It's amazing how different the washed and the unwashed mitts feel on my hands. Soak definitely softened up the first mitt considerably. The second one is off to the sink right now!

Hmm.... I guess this means I should go back to knitting my jaywalkers now!

Bored With Knitting Your Jaywalkers?



Then you should definitely spend your Saturday afternoon making yourself a Fetching mitt out of the yarn you just won!

Knitty's Fetching
yarn: Manos Del Uruguay in color 43, Juniper
needles: size 6 DPNs
Left mitt started and finished on Saturday, January 13.
.
This yarn is so pretty, but I think it may be a little too bulky for this particular pattern. I'm going to go ahead and make the second one tomorrow though. It's such a quick and simple knit, and I figure I'd rather have an FO than more yarn in my stash!

Not quite sure how I feel about this picot bind off. I've heard several people say that it seems to make the mitt too loose in the palm of the hand, and I would have to agree. But I think these will be a nice thing to wear when I'm stuck at the theatre programming the light board for hours on end.

I'M GOING TO DISNEYWORLD!!!!

Oh yeah baby! That's right - I'm going to the Happiest Place on Earth! My sister called me tonight and invited me to go with her and my neice for four days in February. I am so excited!!! I LOVE Disneyworld. I haven't been in a few years and I have been dying to go back. I have been doing the happy dance all evening - much to the annoyance of my co-workers!

Work is going to be the tricky part of this. I am supposed to design, tech and open a kid show that same week. Fortunately, it is a show we've done repeatedly and is a very simple show to run lighting-wise. So I hope to design it and have everything ready to turn over to someone else before I leave. Who that someone else is remains to be seen....


Old old old picture of me and Tigger, back in the days when I was completely obsessed with all things Tigger. You will note in this picture that I am clad head to toe in Disney attire... Mickey hat, Tigger tee shirt, Winnie the Pooh socks and fanny pack (fanny packs were HOT back then, I swear!) and a Tigger watch. (Ugh I was such a geek!) Oh, and I'll have you know that Tigger did not feel me up or hit me! (Oy, what is this world coming to?)

In knitting news....
I am currently working on a pair of Jaywalkers in Trekking 100

Overall, I like the colorway, but I have to say that I am not really a fan of that sea green color.
I bought this yarn in NYC, and I really think I like it better on the skein than on the sock! Also, the yarn is horribly scratchy right now. My other pair of Trekking socks are incredibly soft and I love them, so I will assume that these will soften up with washing too. For some reason, I am completely bored with knitting these. I keep working on them because I really don't have anything else on the needles right now.



I do like pretty heels though!

So, in a step towards maybe, possibly, perhaps knitting my first sweater, I made a yarn purchase. I bought a sweaters worth of Ram Wools Selkirk in red. At the time I bought it, it was on sale for $3.85 per 272 yd. skein. I have no idea how I stumbled on this yarn - I've never heard of it before! Somehow, Google brought it to my attention. I haven't really been able to find any reviews of it, so if anyone out there has ever used it before, please speak up and let me know what you think. I did email a blogger I found who was currently knitting with it and she said that it is a little scratchy and has a bit of sticks and such in it, but that overall she likes it. She said her swatch softened up with washing. I figure for that price, I can deal with a few twigs. I didn't want to spend lots of money for my first sweater just in case I screw it up or hate it or whatever.

I meant to mention this in my last post, but I forgot. I recently won a contest over at Fruity Sheep for people who had donated baby hats to Caps to the Capital. I won this GORGEOUS skein of Manos del Uruguay.

Thank Lia!

Speaking of Caps to the Capital... I was invited to a reception at the end of January for Caps to the Capital. Supposedly, they will have the caps on display, and Cokie Roberts is hosting the event. I'm really looking forward to going. I hope they let me take blog pictures!

Happy Y2K7!

Ok, I'm a little late wishing you all a Happy New Year! I've been wanting to blog for awhile, but just couldn't get myself together to do it. Combination of lazy and busy.

I hope you all had a grand time ringing in the new year. I am happy to say that I had an extremely quiet New Year's Eve hanging out at my sister's beach house. It was heaven. I brought The Poodle with me this time and had a blissful 4 day long vacation from the real world.


I was really surprised how many people were in Rehoboth for the holiday weekend. There were actually people on the beach! Lots of people!

The Poodle was not too thrilled with the whole trip. She didn't like the house at all. I think she was upset about not being in her own familiar surroundings. She especially hated the stairs and completely refused to go down them. (very steep and hard wood, so very slippery.) I had to carry her. And then on our last day there, she fell in the fish pond in front of the house. I was so bummed I didn't have my camera because she looked so pissed off! But despite her distaste for the house, she LOVED the beach. I had never taken her to the beach before. She never stopped wagging her tail. So cute!

Of course there was a fair amount of knitting while I was away. I diligently worked on Icarus. I finished working the final chart and went to get the instructions for finishing the shawl when I realized I forgot to bring the directions with me! ARGGGGH!!! I was so pissed! It was my goal, to finish the damn shawl while at the beach. Luckily, I had brought some other things to work on, but I was so irritated with myself for forgetting.

But....

I am delighted to announce....

ICARUS IS FINISHED!!!!

Tada!





Here are some pictures of it blocking. (Sorry for the horrendous color contrast between my red bed sheets and the purple shawl!)





Icarus Shawl
IK Summer 2006
Needles: US size 3 Addis Turbos circs
Yarn: 100% Cashmere laceweight from School Products
Started: October 2006 (not sure of exact day!)
Finished: January 6, 2007

This shawl is GORGEOUS! I am so happy about how beautifully this turned out. It is definitely my favorite thing I have ever knit. But sadly, I have to give it away! This is a belated Christmas gift for my sister and she is very anxious to get it. I sent her pictures of it and she saw it in progress so she can't wait to see it in person. I know that she will love it and truly appreciate it, but it is definitely hard to have to give it away!

I got so sick of working on this. I hated the endlessness of the first chart, but really - it's beautiful and worth the effort. I had a hard time blocking it because it was bigger than my bed. But I made it work and I love it.

I finished Icarus just in time to show it off to the knit girls. I had some friends over for a post holiday knitting party at my house this past weekend. I had a blast. I hope they did too!




So, I'm currently working on a pair of Jaywalkers - a little mindless knitting to pass the time until I decide on my next big project. I think I'm going to choose something from Victorian Lace Today, but I need to give my hands a break before starting anything too challenging.