three dog knits

War Games

2008-05-09T06:31:00.003-05:00

Where am I this weekend? I am in an undisclosed location reviewing the battle plans for the world's ultimate assassin game, Sock Wars. I've brought along my war cabinet (the dogs), my weapons (dpn's and a ball of Tofutsies), a stack of DVD's and a hopefully endless supply of Carr's Ginger Lemon Creme cookies. And tea. My war cabinet and I enjoy herbal tea.

Okay, I am not in an "undisclosed location". I am sitting in my living room. But, still! I will not emerge until victory is mine! Mwah! Mwah!

ETA: My Carr's Ginger Lemon Creme cookies are gone. So much for rationing.

Inexplicable Knitter Behaviour in St. Petersburg

2008-04-01T12:23:00.003-05:00

I decided to join in the Inexplicable Knitter Behaviour scavenger hunt even though I'm far from Toronto. Thankfully the Yarn Harlot opened the Freestyle section to anyone who cares to participate (I do loves me a scavenger hunt). I added these photos to the Flickr group.

Here is my Pomatomus in progress at the World's Largest Shuffleboard Club. "In progress" is a generous term - the sock has looked exactly like this for 6 months. I love the yarn (Fleece Artist Sea Wool). I love the way the pattern looks. But knitting the pattern, em... not so much.

New Orleans - Part Three (final!)

2008-03-28T10:18:00.007-05:00

Only I could take a month to blog about a 6 day trip. If it was just a vacation I wouldn't have bothered, but I really want to show you everything. This is the last post - I'm anxious to resume my knitting posts because I'm knitting mitered squares in the round and I'm feeling like a genius. Let me show you where we stayed and worked and then I'll be done. So, without further ado, welcome to Camp Hope!

This is where we stayed. It is currently the largest volunteer camp in the US. The week we were there it housed 500 people. They were expecting almost 1000 the week after as college kids come to volunteer over spring break. It is in a school in St. Bernard Parish; the population of St. Bernard isn't back up to pre-storm levels so there aren't enough kids to warrant re-opening the school yet. In the meantime, it is Habitat for Humanity's camp.

It's not the Ritz but it is well run and safe. They have strict rules of conduct there (no drinking, boys sleep in one hall, girls in another) If I had college-age kids I wouldn't hesitate to let them stay there. It even has several TV rooms and a large computer room. It is staffed by AmeriCorp volunteers who work really hard. I don't think my time in NOLA would be quite complete if I hadn't experienced Camp Hope.

My bed: (Here is the required knitting content - you can see the Friday Night Knitting Club poking out from under my Stitches & Scones bag.)

There are 30 beds to a room. Our room only had 6 people in it, but most of the rooms were full.

There are two shower choices: freezing cold inside the school or warm in an outdoor mobile shower unit. After taking the coldest showers ever the first night, my group happily waited in line each day to take warm showers here:

The surprise of the trip was that the food was pretty darn good. During the week the AmeriCorp volunteers cook breakfast and dinner for between 300-1000 people a day (you make yourself a sandwich for your sack lunch). Over the weekend volunteers from St. Bernard help make the meals, and they're usually local recipes. The night I got there I had really good red beans and rice.

Our group of six worked at the same house for the entire week. Here's where my photos get a little less dramatic. If anyone was hoping that I spent the week in a hard hat with a sledgehammer knocking things down, you will be sadly disappointed. Historic preservation enthusiasts generally pooh-pooh knocking stuff down with sledgehammers. This double shotgun house is a couple neighborhoods away from the French Quarter. The homeowner would have qualified for a Rebuilding Together rehab before Katrina. After the storm the home improvement needs became even greater. His roof was damaged and leaked water into parts of the house. His house also had 2 feet of water during the flooding. By the time we got there, the walls had been repaired and the new kitchen cabinets were in place. We were there to paint the interior, put up crown molding and install carpet. Unfortunately we didn't get to the carpet due to some issues with the floor.

There are no before and after photos of the painting because we painted white over white. Except the window sills. It would have been nice if I had taken after photos of those.

My "crowning" achievement of the week (hee hee!): I learned how to cut and install crown molding. See that crown molding next to the ceiling. I cut that!

Before the house is officially finished, Rebuilding Together will re-glaze the windows.

On our last day we started fixing the holes in the floor. There were three major holes in the floor. For those of you with basements and concrete slabs under your houses (most of you probably), don't freak out that you can see the dirt ground through the holes. My home is built the same way (fortunately no holes). This is typical of older homes in the south. It's fun in the winter when you feel a cold breeze coming up through your hardwood floors.

Grady, our house captain, cutting out around the hole. I learned how to secure the joists and patch up the hole. I also spent a good portion of the last day pulling nails out of the floor.

The house was close to the Rebuilding Together warehouse. I don't think all the RT volunteers get to visit the warehouse if they don't work near it. We had a great opportunity to see how the entire organization was run and to meet the other house captains. It was also nice to be close to a working bathroom and the staff break room.

Eating lunch on the RT balcony:

Rebuilding Together has a new salvage store at the warehouse. A few month ago they finally convinced FEMA that donating important architectural elements to RT would be much better than adding them to the landfills. These are all from FEMA-funded demolitions. The salvage store is doing a brisk business with lots of people needing to replace these items on their homes.

One more photo. This is from a very badly damaged home in the Lower Ninth. It nicely sums up my trip. The National Trust has an article about it in their newsletter which describes what it was like better than I can. When I start writing about it, it sounds cliche and mushy. I'll just say that if you have ever considered doing a trip like this, do it! There is plenty of work for unskilled volunteers like myself. You may be surprised to learn what you're capable of doing (like being in charge of the chop saw!!). I really do feel like our group helped with the rebuilding effort. When I got home I spent a few days counting my many blessings and hugging my dogs. I am definitely going back.

New Orleans - Part Two

2008-03-21T08:26:00.008-05:00

Each day after work we drove back to Camp Hope a different way, so we could be sure to see as much of the neighborhoods as possible. Some buildings have been restored perfectly, some haven't been touched since Katrina. I hesitated at first to put photos of people's homes up here. But the lack of national news coverage (with the exception of NPR) could lead people to think that the rebuilding is done. A lot has been done since 2005, but I think people need to be reminded about how much work is left to do.

Turns out I really didn't have a good understanding of how widespread the flooding was after Katrina. I was picturing a flooded neighborhood here, then dry land, then flooding. Of course I knew it was bad, I just wasn't picturing it correctly. I understand what happened a whole lot better now. As an example, Camp Hope is in the eastern part of St. Bernard Parish, about 20 miles east of the house we worked on (which is about 15 blocks east of the French Quarter). Almost every single building from Camp Hope to the house still has the Katrina graffiti (from when the various organizations searched the buildings after the flooding). Some of the buildings are in use, some not.

This is a house in the Lakeview, a rather upscale neighborhood north of Mid-City. The brown line is the water mark.

This school in the St. Roch neighborhood hasn't reopened yet. The registration dates are from 2005.

This is the part of the Lower Ninth Ward that is right next to the levee. I'm not sure how many of these homes were pushed away by the flood and how many were cleared by FEMA later.

Front porches:

There are a lot of gutted houses with no windows and doors just waiting to be restored. The graffiti here means that on Sept 12th (2005), someone from Texas Fish and Wildlife inspected the house and found no people and no bodies. "NE" means they weren't able to get into the house (No Entry).

You can see the hole where someone axed their way through the roof, I assume to escape the flood.

So many people are still living in trailers next to their homes.

Many people are just now starting to rebuild. There are a lot of debris piles as people clean out their homes. N.O. is back up to 300,000 people (out of 450,000 before the storm).

A sign from the city that this house will be cleared. The sign is from 6 months ago. We saw a couple homes where people have spraypainted "Do not bulldoze I will rebuild". Hope it works.

The house nearby has been restored to perfection.

There are some other bright spots. Literally. This is the Musician's Village. The colors are so bright and the houses are so cheerful that you can see the "glow" a couple blocks away. I love it.

The Preservation Resource Center is the organization that Rebuilding Together New Orleans is part of. Both PRC and RT have separate restoration projects. PRC seems to be purely preservation oriented. Rebuilding Together specializes in doing home improvements for low-income elderly and disabled homeowners. PRC has restored many houses in the Holy Cross neighborhood and have more projects on the way.

Soon to be restored:

Next door, a great restoration job by the PRC:

Also in Holy Cross are the two famous Steamboat houses. They are in great shape. I assume there were repairs done after the storm because they sit next to the levee.

Brad Pitt's Green Project house in Holy Cross. No, Brad Pitt was not there when we stopped by. :-)

New Orleans - Part One

2008-03-13T12:42:00.005-05:00

I've been trying to figure out the best way to show you my New Orleans photos. It'll take two or three posts. Reading this post, you'll probably be thinking... umm... did you do any work at all while you were in New Orleans?! Yes! Five out of six of the days were work days. I'll show those in the next post. I'm waiting for someone to send photos of me using power tools. Turns out I'm rather awesome at cutting stuff up with a chop saw.

I got a lot of fun stuff in on the one free day I had, plus the two nights we went out.

I got to New Orleans a day before I had to be at Camp Hope (more on Camp Hope later). I wasn't sure what free time I would have during the week so I gave myself a day to explore. Good thinking: by the time we ended our work days I was too tired to do much else. Unfortunately I didn't have time to explore anywhere else but the Quarter. Oh well - next time!

The French Quarter is still kickin' it:

Early morning ritual: hosing down Bourbon St. I usually avoid Bourbon St. because, well, I'm not a big drinker. I'm no longer in college nor do I wish I was young again. I'm also not prone to shouting "woo hoo! party!" at random strangers for no apparent reason. (No worries if you're one of those who like to shout at random strangers. I respect that - I'm just not that animated.) On this trip however I was comforted by the smell of old beer emanating from the street. I took it as a sign that things are going to be okay in New Orleans.

Andrew Jackson is still watching over Jackson Square:

Within a block from each other on Chartes St.:

Yarn!

The Quarter Stitch is a very friendly yarn store. It might be small in size but the yarn selection is choice. They have a wall of Koigu. I may have bought some as a souvenir. While I was there there was a young guy shopping for his girlfriend. He was partying in NO with his buddies but still managed to bring home yarn for her. Halfway through his shopping one of his friends waiting outside quietly passed him a to-go cup full of beer.

Every time I've returned from a trip to New Orleans, I am always asked the same question: where'd you eat? Even though five of the seven days I ate at Camp Hope I managed to get my fill of the required New Orleans food:

Coffee and chickory cafe au lait and beignets from Cafe du Monde? Heck, yeah.

Gumbo: I had the best chicken and anduille gumbo I've ever had from The Gumbo Shop in the French Quarter. If you want to make some good chicken and andouille gumbo, check out this recipe. All his recipes look amazing.

Crawfish: on our last day the staff from the National Trust New Orleans office gave us a tour of the city. Before we started the tour they surprised us with boiled crawfish. They weren't going to let us leave NO without teaching us the proper way to eat them. I loved the tails but must admit I'm squeamish about the heads. Hopefully no one noticed what a wuss I am about shellfish.

Po-boy: After filling us with crawfish and touring the city, they took us to Parkway Bakery and Tavern. I had my first ever oyster po-boy. My god. The ingredients are so simple; fried oysters, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, mayo and french bread. I never ordered one before because I always thought, what's the big deal they got all that where I live, too. But something about that soft crust french bread makes the grease and oyster juice mix with the mayo and tomatoes and creates a soupy mess of the most amazing sandwich. Hold on... just thinking about that po-boy has got me daydreaming again... I need a moment.

Margaret was one of the people in my group. Here she is making friends with a crawfish:

More later!

I'm back (and have been put On Notice)

2008-03-07T00:17:00.004-05:00

I got back from New Orleans this week, but have been too busy catching up with work to sort out my photos. I'll do that this weekend. Warning: I took tons of photos!

My friend Chris informed me today that until I share my New Orleans photos I am officially "On Notice". You know it's serious when you're listed above Grizzly Bears.

Guess I better organize my photos.

(www.shipbrook.com/onnotice for funzies)

Thank You

2008-02-08T11:18:00.001-05:00

Unbelievable. After only three days there is not much left in my destash pile. Thank you to everyone who bought something. I know some of you even broke your yarn diet to do it. I've raised most of what I needed to just by selling a small portion of my stash.

If you are interested in knitterly ways to help New Orleans, in particular the Lower Ninth Ward, check out what Christy (Confessions of a Misplaced Southern Belle) is doing. She has created The House that Yarn Built. Her goal is for people to donate to Make It Right in the name of The House that Yarn Built. Make It Right is Brad Pitt's foundation; the goal is to build 150 homes in the Lower Ninth Ward. These homes will be raised to withstand flooding and will be environmentally friendly. If 7800 knitters donated $20 (the cost of a skein of sock yarn) it would build one house. Check out the details (and great prizes!) The House that Yarn Built.

I had a big rant here about righting the wrongs done to New Orleans. But we all know what happened. And we all know it'll take years to make things right again. And we all know that even if the media has moved on to the next big story, New Orleans is still rebuilding (and restoring *says I, the preservation nerd*). So I deleted my rant :-)

Thank you again to everyone who bought yarn.

Next week: I have rediscovered my love of knitting and will have some FO's to show you!

Destashing for a good cause

2008-02-05T09:40:00.000-05:00

Happy Super Duper Tuesday. Even better... happy Mardi Gras!

It's been over two years since Hurricane Katrina and there is still a lot of restoration work to be done. I've been talking about going for two years now. I finally signed up. I am spending a week in New Orleans volunteering for the National Trust for Historic Preservation through Rebuilding Together New Orleans (RTNO). I'm going to help to restore an older house in a low income neighborhood. If you're interested in doing this, too, you can request more info here.

I am so excited about this! In order to be able to do this, however, I need to destash for cash to help pay my way there. If by any chance I have to cancel my plans due to unforeseen reasons, all the money will be donated to Rebuilding Together New Orleans.

Here are the details: I've put what's for sale on my here. There is some great yarn for sale: Koigu, Socks That Rock, Fleece Artist, Sunshine Yarns, Jo Sharp, Lorna's Laces and more.

If you see something you like, claim it by commenting, then email me your contact info at threedogknits at gmail dot com. I will send you a PayPal invoice. Prices include shipping in the U.S.

All my yarn is stored in ziplock bags in a smoke-free home filled with cute dogs. I've never had a problem with dog fur on my stored yarn, but still, there are dogs around so I thought I should mention that. My dogs have many talents but their fur cannot penetrate ziplock bags. FO's are another story, as they like to cuddle with my knitting projects. But I digress... buy my yarn! Ask your friends to buy my yarn!

You can also find the same info on my Ravelry trade/sell page.

A bad week for knitting, my 2008 Resolutions, a FO, and the Best Cupcakes (I've) Ever Made

2008-01-28T11:01:00.000-05:00

In that order. Sorry for the long post.

It was a bad week of knitting for me. I have absolutely nothing to show for a week in which I managed to knit for at least an hour every evening. Unless you count two swatches but no one wants to see swatches. Even the swatches were frustrating. Here is what I attempted to do this past week:

Pick up stitches to knit the collar of my first sweater (so close to being done!). I'm supposed to pick up 82 stitches on the right side. If I pick up every stitch I can I get 100+ stitches. If I skip every other one I get 50ish stitches. Where is the 82?! I worked on this for two evenings then put it down to start...

A Friday Harbor sock. I started it twice before I got smart and googled "Friday Harbor" to find the pattern correction. If you ever decide to knit these, read Margene's excellent explanation on how to knit the first chart. Decided I need a sock break and knit some...

Test swatches for Fyne Vest and the Tangled Yoke Cardigan. The swatch for Fyne measures fine but the purl side of my color work looks bad. As for the Tangled Yoke: how can I get exactly the same measurements with a US 4 as I did with a US 5? Not quite psyched up enough to start Fyne, and frustrated with my Tangled Yoke swatches, I decided to chill out and knit...

Some Endpaper Mitts. I spent an hour last night learning the Italian Tubular Cast On, getting it all wrong, giving up and learning the regular (English?) Tubular Cast On, which resulted in the most beautiful cast-on I've ever knit. Unfortunately it was way too tight; after knitting the ribbed section I tried it on and couldn't get it over my hand. So late last night I frogged it. I ended up drinking wine and watching Harry Potter and the OOP in a surly, surly mood.

That was my week of knitting. But did I really accomplish nothing? Sometimes when I have a frustrating time working on something I have a tendency to give up and start something simple. My first instinct was to scrap it all and start a stockinette sock, just so I'd have something to show for my week. But for the past couple weeks I have been thinking about what I want to accomplish this year; what my knitting goals are. If you haven't read Christy's awesome post about her goals and need a knitting pep talk, read it (and check in on the progress of her Autumn Rose sweater!). I'd like to raise the bar on my knitting like she is. So my 2008 Knitting Resolutions are:

Less socks. I'm sure I'll always have a pair of socks on the needles but it is time to break out and try new projects. I have a list of socks I want to make this year, including many Nancy Bush socks, but it is a much smaller list than last year. Less socks also means buying less (or no) sock yarn this year. I have plenty.

More color-work. It is time to try some of the projects I've been dreaming of. I am starting with the Fyne vest.

Knit more sweaters and other larger projects. Stop thinking of my knitting as a race to finish as many FO's as possible and concentrate on learning new skills and enjoying the process. This year in the queue is Fyne, Tangled Yoke, Central Park Hoodie, Rusted Root and Green Gable (okay I'm a little behind - I know you all have already knit these).

I do have my first FO of 2008. Another pair of Hederas. This time in the Yarnahoy (colorway is "Shores of Andaman") I won from Alyson last year. They're for my mom. While she was visiting me over the holidays I decided she had to head back up north with a new pair of socks. I let her choose the yarn out of my stash; her hands went right to the Yarn Ahoy. I love the way it knit up (no pooling): this yarn is soft as buttah.

I did accomplish one thing last week. I baked what I am calling The Best Cupcakes (I've) Ever Made. I found chockylit's cupcake blog while searching for cupcake recipes and tried her Chili Chocolate cupcakes with Chili Chocolate Ganache to bring to my neighborhood porch party. Soooo awesome. If you do not love chocolate and chili as much as I do (I love chocolate and chili so very very much) you could always leave out the chili I suppose. I think next I'll try her Lavender Cream Filled Cupcake with Citrus Cream Cheese Frosting.

My cupcake photos came out blurry. Instead I leave you with a photo of the girls. Have a sweet week!

And the winner is...

2008-01-16T14:42:00.000-05:00

...Pikku-Kettu! She is the winner of two skeins of Socks That Rock. Thank you to everyone who commented on my Blogiversary post!

There is not a lot of knitting getting done at the moment. I have a huge work project that is taking most of my time this week. I have so much stuff to show you: some FO's from the past few months, some WIP's and some upcoming projects. As of last week I have amassed quite a collection of Rowan Felted Tweed and my fingers are twitching to get started on some sweaters. But all that will have to wait until next week! Work first, then knit :-(

The official "I Am Sorry I Am Such A Lame Blogger, Please Still Be My Friend, I Miss You... Contest"

2008-01-09T14:07:00.000-05:00

Yes, it does seem as if I dropped off the face of the earth.

There is no dramatic or scandalous reason I haven't blogged since August. Everybody is healthy and content here at ThreeDogKnits. Jackson got to go on vacation with me in November. Betty is fat and happy. Sasha didn't eat a single glass ornament this holiday season (a Christmas miracle!). Time just got away from me.

One of my resolutions (which I'm making up as I go along, as I am too disorganized to put them in a list) is to blog more. I have really enjoyed making blog friends this past year and don't want to let those connections fizzle because I am too busy (or lazy) to post! I have kept up with your blogs, even if I haven't commented as much as usual.

So, to kick the new year off right, I am having a contest. The reason for the contest is twofold: 1) because it is my blogiversary! and 2) to make up for being so lame. It is the most simple and elementary of blog contests; anyone who leaves me a comment between now and.... let's say next Wednesday, January 16th by noon EST, will have their names thrown into an imaginary hat, at which time I will randomly select one name. Possible comment topics include: your 2008 resolutions, what you think my 2008 resolutions should be, general greetings to me and my dogs, and lastly, whether I should buy a sewing machine, a Wii, or a vacuum cleaner that actually picks up dog hair with the money I am going to save from not buying a gajillion skeins of sock yarn this year (okay, there's another resolution).

The prize: one lucky winner will be the recipient of not one, but two skeins of Socks That Rock lightweight: Gingerbread Dude and Sugarplums (no longer available on Blue Moon's website).

Random items:

Yesterday I bought Sufjan Steven's "Songs for Christmas", which I am listening to right now. I love it. I put it on and immediately got the urge to bake more Christmas cookies. Yes, I am still listening to Christmas music on January 9th. Therefore is it any surprise I don't have any New Year resolutions to share? By my calculations I don't have to have those done until next week.

I am also totally digging The National "Boxer". Buy it. Listen to it. Listen to it again and enjoy it even more than the first time.

Someone found my blog by googling "shuffleboard for dog". To this person I say, Wait! Come back!! I have two questions. Is this for real? And why don't I know about shuffleboard for dogs?

Season's Greetings from Three Dog Knits!

2007-12-25T09:01:00.000-05:00

I know it's been way too long since I've posted anything. Posting will resume after New Years with a contest to start off the new year right.

In the meantime, Jackson, Betty, Sasha and I want to wish you and your family a very, Merry Christmas!

Peace,
Christine

Hey, brother!

2007-08-30T15:46:00.000-05:00

Marigolds (a la Pam, but shuffleboard style)

When I first saw the photos of Pam's (Ms. FlintKnits) original Marigolds I knew I had to have them. I knew they had to be yellow just like Pam's. This may admitting to my complete lack of original thought when it comes to imagining her Marigolds in any color but yellow, but I don't care. I needed them in yellow! Needed them I tell you!! Now I have them and I love them!

Modifications? Heck, no. The pattern knits up quickly. It's easy to memorize but keeps your interest (I love the ruffles!). The yarn is Black Bunny Fiber, wool/silk fingerling yarn. The colorway is Trophy. I really enjoyed using this yarn; it's super soft and non-splitty. This is the second time I've used Black Bunny Fiber and both times I've had no problems with pooling or flashing.

My only issue with these socks is that for two weeks I've had that Rufus Wainwright song (Rebel Prince) in my head. Not the whole song, just the part where he sings "marigold, marigold, marigold" over and over and over. Grrrr!!

While I knit these I indulged in what will surely become an annual summer ritual: watching all three seasons of Arrested Development back to back. Honestly I watched a few episodes from Season 2 a few times because "Good Grief" and "Afternoon Delight" are my favorites; I think AD really hit its sweet spot in the middle of Season 2. God I miss that show. My brother gave me the dvd's for Christmas last year. Last week was the first time I broke open Season 3. And guess what?! There were two episodes I missed when they originally aired. That means I got to watch two new-to-me episodes! For someone who loves the show so much she has almost memorized every line that was a pretty amazing discovery.

I'm so lucky to have a brother who gives me AD dvd's and appreciates hand knit scarfs and socks (and ladies, he's a-vail-a-ble!). So, in honor of the best younger brother a sister could have, here's a compilation of that other younger brother, Buster Bluth, found on YouTube. Enjoy!

Stitch N' Pitch and a special shuffleboard night for knitters

2007-08-16T09:09:00.000-05:00

I'm the one in the tie.

Stitch N' Pitch at Tropicana Field is this Saturday! I'm really looking forward to meeting tons of Florida knitters. To kick off Stitch N' Pitch weekend, a group of us are heading to St. Pete Shuffle this Friday for what I hope will be the first of many shuffle/knitting meetups. Some fellow Ravelers will be there; one all the way from the east coast. Sean is bringing people from our LYS, Needles N' Knobs. Tampa knitters, can I persuade you to represent? Orlando?

Think of the potential photo op for your blog: Florida knitters playing shuffleboard at the world's largest shuffleboard club. It doesn't get more Florida than that. Friday nights at the club are a blast. Cool music, diverse crowd, lots of fun. We're open from 7-11pm. Free to play and there are plenty of people (like me!) who can teach you the rules of the game. If there are enough people interested I'll give my official tour (I've got the flight attendant two-finger point down pat). If you have any questions, or need directions, just leave me a comment and I'll reply. Or check out St. Pete Shuffle. You'll easily spot me at the club because (hopefully) I'll be wearing one of those awesome Ravely buttons that Jess sent especially for us Florida knitters!

On Saturday there might be an impromptu, totally laid back yarn crawl. If you're from out of town and want a list of LYSs I'll be glad to provide. Rumor has it that Needles N' Knobs has 15 bins of 30% off yarn this week.

On Saturday evening there will be a parade of shuffle/knitters on Central Ave. making their way to Tropicana Field. Okay, I kid. I'm sure one day we'll have our own float. But for now you're on your own getting to the baseball game. Tropicana Field is that big white dome in downtown St. Pete. Can't miss it.

If you haven't bought tickets for Stitch N' Pitch you can still get them from Needles N' Knobs. Remember: Gate 6 is the gate to get into Tropicana Field with your needles!

See you there! I'm in Section 353, row B, seats 6-4. Come say hello!

My Sockapalooza socks crossed the pond

2007-08-09T09:21:00.000-05:00

If you happened to be passing my house on Monday afternoon (noonish), you may have seen me rip open a package and squeal with delight. Then you may have seen me breathlessly running down my street, a sock clutched in each hand, shouting, "People, there are beads on the socks! Beads. On. The. Socks!" Okay, maybe I didn't do that last part, but I wanted to.

The socks are from Liz. She also sent me a postcard of her area in the U.K. and a gorgeous felted rose brooch. Oooh, I've got just the jacket for the brooch.

The socks are beautiful; the pattern, the color, the fit, the beads... everything. The main pattern is Kew (from Knitty); the turned down cuff is Liz's brilliant addition. As are the beads. Can you see the beads around the cuff in my photos? On her blog (which has a fabulous photo of the socks) she mentions she added the beads to look like raindrops on leaves; like a summer rain in England. How brilliant is that?

The yarn is Fyberspates from Wales. I like that this new-to-me yarn was made closer to her than me. Aren't the colors gorgeous? I took at look at their website; they have some great colorways.

I thought these socks deserved more than my standard "socks on ottoman on front porch" photo. I enlisted the help of my stepmother. It was her first time photographing socks (she kept instructing my feet to "work the camera, girls").

First I took them to the park:

Then I took them to see downtown St. Petersburg. They especially enjoyed the waterfront and the view of the marina:

I hope they feel right at home here. I am one lucky gal. Thank you, Liz!

Weekend

2007-08-06T16:11:00.000-05:00

Sockapalooza 4 socks are finished! These are Poseiden socks knit with J. Knits in Newburyport. I hope she likes these. I'm slightly self-conscious about my – ummm – less than perfect short row heels. When I ordered the yarn I didn't expect the color to be so bright. She said she likes pink and purple and she's gettin' it! I haven't seen too many bloggers talk about J. Knits. I lurve. The colors are gorgeous. The two pairs of socks I've made with it are so soft and comfortable. I'm definitely ordering more.

While the socks dry from their bath (I assume she doesn't want dog hair on her new socks so I gave them a thorough washing) I compiled a little package to send with them. I made a little sock band to wrap around the socks which I'm quite proud of if I do say so myself.

I knew I'd be even later than I already am with Sockapalooza if I let myself start reading THE BOOK. Yesterday I finally let myself take THE BOOK out of the Amazon box. Yep, I didn't even trust myself to open the box. So two weeks later I'm ready to join the party (it's cool to be late to parties):

You know I'm kidding about sitting on my front porch in August wearing wool socks, right? This is just for show. I finished these socks a few weeks ago. It's hot enough outside to make grown men weep. I sat inside with the A/C and with as little light as possible. It is stinkin' hot here. This is what my Sunday looked like:

Sasha on my right, admiring the beginnings of some Horcrux socks.

Betty on my left, cooling her belly (there is a fan above her).

Jackson doesn't "cuddle" in the summer. He spent the day under an A/C vent in another part of the house.

Sockapalooza, samosas and shuffleboard

2007-08-02T13:13:00.000-05:00

I'm almost finished with my Sockapalooza 4 socks. I'm making Poseiden socks with J. Knits in Newburyport. Have I mentioned how much I love J. Knits yet? I've knit two pairs with it and each one feels as comfortable as my favorite pair of jeans.

I'm much farther along than the photo below shows. All that's left is one more pattern repeat and the ribbing. I'm still having problems with my short row heels. I can make them mostly without holes now but for one rather large hole where heel meets ankle. I've tried every trick I've read about but still haven't been able to master it to my satisfaction. Oh, short row heels... you are my white whale!

This is a crappy photo. It has been raining for three days straight here. So, yay! for my lawn but boo! for outdoor photos.

Fortunately the weather was perfect at the St. Pete Shuffle last Friday. The Shuffleboard Club teamed up with SPIFFS (St. Petersburg International Folk Festival) and VICAS (Volunteers of Indian Culture & Art Society) and hosted India Night. About 250 people came out to shop for crafts, eat Indian food, watch traditional dance and yoga, and play shuffleboard while watching Bollywood movies. It was a perfect activity for a hot summer night in Florida.

A group of Florida crafters set up a craft show inside the clubhouse. Many of the crafters are members of the Florida Etsy Street Team.

There was a screen set up to watch Bollywood movies.

Our courts were full! We ran out of shuffleboard discs (which is saying something because it is the largest shuffleboard club in the world. For reals!).

My attempt at Georgia O'Keefe-esque photo of the roof of the club sans tripod.

Not 10 minutes later... my first spoiler

2007-07-20T11:25:00.000-05:00

Not 10 minutes after I posted my plea for no Harry Potter spoilers, my friend Todd goes and tries to ruin the whole book for me.

I think everyone will appreciate this spoiler:

In an ironic twist,

Koigu is the name of a new character in the Potter Series who is larger than Grawp. The first 600 pages are about him learning to walk and talk, and the dramatic conclusion is mostly Godzilla mixed with a dash of Hamlet. Koigu the sad, misunderstood creature is thirsty and mistakenly drinks Butterbeer instead of water. He staggers around for a bit and then comes crashing down. What may have been comical becomes tragic as Koigu smashes Harry, Hermione, Ron, Draco, Snape, Dobby, a reborn Dumbledore and Sirius, and everyone else while totally razing Hogwarts in the process.

Thanks, Todd.

A small request - Harry Potter

2007-07-20T08:06:00.000-05:00

I really have no right to ask the following favor of my blog friends. I know I've been a horrible blogger the past two months. I've been keeping up with all of your blogs, even if I haven't been commenting as much as usual. There's no reason for it, really. I think I can blame some of it on the Florida heat in summer, and how it turns my brain to mush. It could also be that the longer I go without posting anything, the more finished projects I have and the more I realize how much I have to catch up. Since the time of my last post I've finished three pairs of socks and a lace scarf. So when I finally write a real knitting post next week, I am going to look like a knitting machine!

Out of all those socks I've made since June, not one of them is for my Sockapalooza pal. In my defense, my sock pal likes short row heels and, since I've never done short row heels before, I have been practicing not knitting short row heels with giant holes at the ankles (I still have giant holes, any suggestions?). After months of indecision of which pattern and yarn to use, I think I've finally got it. So, this weekend I begin my Sockapalooza marathon. I'm not coming up for air until they're done.

So here is my dilemma: because I didn't plan ahead very well, I didn't realize I'd be starting my Sockapalooza marathon on July 21st, the date I've been waiting for for TWO YEARS. I'm not letting myself read The Deathly Hallows until after I get the socks done. I feel like a little kid who can't come out to play because she hasn't finished her homework. Not that knitting socks is homework, but you get the picture. When the socks are done I'm going to make myself some delicious rock buns, brew some lemon ginger and savor every last word.

So here is my favor I need to ask all of you. Please, oh please! please! please! don't blog about the ending of the book or post any spoilers. Can you give me a week? I'll probably go into semi-seclusion next week anyway; no news on television, no newspaper, limited blog reading. Maybe no blog reading. Just Sockapalooza knitting. But still, I could accidently see or hear something if I'm not careful.

In other news:

1. I have the best Virtual Vacation and Sockapalooza pals! I've been having great fun getting email updates and even a real postcard! Thank you!

2. If you're in the Tampa Bay area, come on by the St. Petersburg Shuffleboard Club tonight for St. Pete Shuffle. We're having a Hogwarts tournament from 8-10pm. We're also having a raffle to win Barnes & Noble and Muvico gift certificates. You could win a gift certificate to buy The Deathly Hallows, then head out to the bookstore to get your copy.

3. Does anyone know if Koigu is superwash? It doesn't say so on the label, but I've heard it is. I washed a test swatch last night and everything looks okay. But what about multiple washings? Does it hold up? If anyone has any experience machine washing Koigu, I'd appreciate some advise.

I'll have knitting updates next week. Have a great weekend everybody. But please... I beg you, shhhhh!!

Knitter's Virtual Vacation Swap Questionnaire

2007-06-19T11:57:00.000-05:00

Looks like I'll be in Florida all summer. No summer vacation for me this year. Luckily I signed up for the Knitter's Virtual Vacation Swap. Hopefully this will sate my wanderlust for the time being. Here are the answers to the questionnaire.

1. If you could visit any state in the US, which would it be and why?
I'd pick Vermont. I live in the south, therefore I constantly crave cooler weather. Vermont is the only state east of the Mississippi River that I've not been to. I hear its beautiful. Plus, I'd get to go to all those yarn shops I keep hearing about!

2. If you could visit any country in the world, other than your own, which would it be and why?
I have to pick just one? Impossible. I've always wanted to go to Iceland. The landscape looks amazing. I also really want to visit Finland, Denmark (Copenhagen) or really any country in Europe. I keep picking cold destinations - I gotta get out of Florida. Oh, I want to see Montreal, Vancouver and Toronto, too. I can't pick just one! Any place where its not so darn hot!

3. Have you ever driven across several states/providence/countries?
I drive from Florida to Indiana twice a year. I've driven from Indiana to Texas, Louisiana and DC. I've also driven up the east coast from Florida to New York. I love road trips.

4. Have you ever visited someplace you consider exotic? Where was it?
No, not really. I think of exotic as hot and sticky. By the middle of June in Florida I just want to head north. Which I guess would be exotic to someone living further south.

5. What was your favorite "travel" vacation? Why?
My favorite vacation was when I went to Ireland for a month. I suppose it was my favorite vacation because, well, it was Ireland! I had just graduated from college and it was the first time I've ever traveled anywhere for a month by myself.

6. Have you ever played tourist in your own home city/state (if international, country)? Explain.
I live in St. Petersburg, Florida, so I get a lot of visitors in the winter. I love it when people come to visit because it gives me the chance to do touristy things that I never do on my own. I'm not really a beach person but I like it when my out of town friends drag me to the beach every once in awhile. Plus it's fun to occasionally go to the "touristy" restaurants and the beach shops, the places the locals don't usually go. Anyone who visits me always ends up learning to play shuffleboard since my favorite place in St. Pete is the St. Petersburg Shuffleboard Club (shuffleboard is hot now in St. Pete). Even when I don't have guests I get out to the state parks, downtown shops and museums.

7. Are you a museum visitor, beach comer or an amusement seeker?
I guess you could call me a museum visitor. But a better way to describe me would be... nerd. I'm a history nerd. I love cities. When I visit a new city my favorite thing to do is to head over to the oldest section and explore the history and architecture. When I go some place like New York or Boston I go to the museums if there's an exhibit I want to see. But most of the time I enjoy walking, being outside and exploring.

8. What's your favorite type of yarn?
I'm into socks these days. So sock yarn is my yarn of choice right now. I like all colors except purple. The more natural the fiber the more I like it.

9. What's your least favorite type of yarn?
I don't like acrylic. Or novelty yarns. I'm also not partial to wildly variegated yarns. But really, I love most yarn I see.

10. What items do you like to knit/crochet?
I'm a fairly new knitter (less than two years), so there are a lot of items I haven't knit yet. But I'm planning to try them all. Right now I'm working on socks. I've also just started a few lace projects.

11. What do you pack, knit/crochet wise when you go on vacation?
I pack small items, usually socks. I usually come home with a lot more yarn than I started with :-)

12. What other crafts do you do/would like to do other than Knit/Crochet?
Just knitting. I want to learn quilting, but sewing machines scare me.

13. Are you allergic to anything? (Yarn wise or treat wise)
I'm not allergic to anything.

14. What is your favorite color? Least Favorite?
I'm really into aqua right now. I love green, too. I really like any color but purple.

15. Sweet or Savory (Treat not personality)?
I'm sweet and savory, baby! Ok, just kidding. It varies depending on my mood. I love both. One thing to consider is that sadly chocolate does not travel well to Florida :-( If my vacation pal wants to send some (I love chocolate) he/she might want to wrap it up to separate it from the other items so it doesn't squish over everything. But once I get it I'll just stick it in the fridge for awhile and it'll be fine.

16. Anything else we are forgetting to ask that you think your partner desperately needs to know?
Thanks for being my swap pal. I can't wait to see what items you choose to represent your hometown. Have fun!

(Great-Great) Grandmother Daugherty's Quilt

2007-05-30T20:38:00.000-05:00

Anyone who knows me knows I'm a big history nerd. A lot of people feel disconnected to past events and think that 100+ years is a way long time ago, too long ago to feel a connection to anything. To these people I always tell this little tidbit of family history: even though I'm only 37 years old (ack, I should have written this last week when I was only 36 years old), my grandmother's grandmother watched Lincoln's funeral procession in 1865. Sure, if I had referred to her as my great-great grandmother that would make her seem farther removed from me. But my point is this: my grandmother, a woman I knew and loved, had a grandmother, a woman she knew and loved, who was old enough 142 years ago to remember that train passing through Ohio. That she had a connection to my grandmother makes it seem as if she lived not very long ago.

So it may surprise you that it wasn't until last week that I really took a good look at this quilt, made by that same woman. In my defense it has been packed in a cedar chest for at least 50 years, maybe more, until recently.

So, last week I asked my mother to tell me the story of the woman who made it, Grandmother Daugherty (how she was always referred to by my grandmother). My mother thinks this was a wedding present for my great-grandmother in the late 1800's, because that was when these quilts were all the rage. This quilt was sewn by hand and has a beautiful amber colored backing. I learned she was a seamstress; the individual fabrics were scraps from various sewing jobs. There are scraps of silk, velvet, cotton, embroidered fabric... every variation of fabric you can think of is in this quilt. My mother and I spent some time that night making up stories about the fabrics: which ones ended up as short jackets with leg of mutton sleeves, which were dresses, which were slips, etc.

We also talked about the difference between creating for fun and creating for necessity. Here was a woman who had to sew to put food on the table, yet in her spare time managed to create this lively and joyful quilt. Grandmother Daugherty had twelve children, the youngest of whom was my great-grandmother (called Baboo by my mother). Her husband died soon after Baboo was born, which meant Grandmother Daugherty was forced to provide for her family by working as a seamstress. She was determined that Baboo would never have to work as a seamstress; to ensure this she refused to teach her how to sew. Consequently Baboo couldn't teach my grandmother (Grammy) to sew, which meant that my mother, who actually wanted to sew, had to learn in Home Ec class in high school. See how the actions of long ago can still affect someone? So far I'm in the Baboo/Grammy camp; I can barely reattach a button.

The joy of crafting seems to have skipped Baboo, unless there is some undiscovered piece of knitting or embroidery still to be found (unlikely since Grammy saved everything). I don't blame her if she associated sewing et al with her mother's struggle to provide for her family. I wonder if she passed that lesson learned on to Grammy. Grammy never had much interest in it until later in her life, but once she started she really enjoyed it. She knit this afghan. I remember her teaching me to needlepoint when I was little. She liked to needlepoint Christmas ornaments.

My mother has been studying the quilt. She created these pillows based on it. (She wants you to know that she's going to resew them so the lines face inward and make a square). At various times she has learned weaving, knitting and making wreaths. She always comes back to sewing.

I almost went the way of Baboo, the non-crafter, but for a 50% off sale at Jo-Ann's and a very patient mother who taught me to knit on a whim a year and a half ago. She untangled and tinked my mistakes for two days, then on the third declared that if I was going to learn to knit correctly I had to start fixing my own mistakes. She's been watching my knitting progress in amazement ever since. She's half impressed and half amused that I've fallen in love with knitting and that I've managed to stick with it for so long.

I'd like to think that everything the women in my family create is connected somehow to my great-great grandmother's quilt, created, in my mind, not so very long ago.

Tagged

2007-05-17T13:43:00.000-05:00

I was tagged a few days ago by Laura to do the 7 random facts. I've been editing this for days and I'm honestly a little stressed out about it. I don't want to post secrets on the internets for the whole world to see. What if some weirdo finds me by googling "likes to have tea parties with dogs"?! On the other hand, how trite is too trite? Here is my happy medium.

Here are the rules:
Each person tagged gives 7 random facts about themselves. Those tagged need to write in their blogs the 7 facts, as well as the rules of the game. You need to tag seven others and list their names on your blog. You have to leave those you plan on tagging a note in their comments so they know that they have been tagged and to read your blog.

7 Random Facts about me

1. I've played the piano since I was eight. I should be better at it than I am.

2. I have ADD. Not, OMG I lost the car keys I am so, like, ADD tee hee. I mean I was tested and diagnosed when I was 21. After 15 years of treatment, I still have to work really, really hard to keep my life organized and focused. I have a cleaning person come once a month just to force me to organize all my crap. I don't usually tell people I have ADD; I mention it because of my knitting. I think one of the many reasons I love to knit is that it's something I have control over. I can hyper-focus on my knitting projects and *gasp* actually finish them.

3. I think Heinz ketchup is one of humankind's greatest accomplishments.

4. I have a BFA in photography. Not that you'd know it from looking at the photos on my blog. My senior year I took landscape photos of gravel pits. The local aggregate company let me on their property at night so I could stand on the edge of an enormous pit (there are underground named streets at this pit) and take photos in the dark.

5. I have a paralyzing fear of heights.

6. I am sloooowwly restoring my home: a 1919 bungalow. It's my first home. I've always wanted to restore an older home, so when I went house hunting one of the requirements was that it be in good enough shape to live in but still need lots and lots of love. I thought it would take 6 months (what did I know?!). That was 4 years ago and it's still not half-way done. (For those of you living outside of Florida, a home built in 1919 is considered really old here.)

7. I get my news from The Daily Show.

The rules of the game say I have to tag 7 people. Oh dear. Leslie, Sean, Phoebe, Christy, Alyson, Opal and Megan.

PS: Sean wrote an awesome post about the joys of shuffleboard. He's a natural shuffler, that guy. One by one I will have all Florida knitters hooked on shuffleboard! *wrings hands in evil Mr. Burns fashion* Mwah!

My two favorite worlds collide even more this month! The May issue of Jane magazine (with Kirstin Dunst on the cover) has articles on both knitting and shuffleboard. On page 79 there's an article on my beloved St. Petersburg Shuffleboard Club. On page 80 there's an article about knitting. This prompted a friend of mine to ask, perplexed, "You're becoming cool?".

Got my mojo working.

2007-05-14T12:31:00.000-05:00

After a month of knitting, frogging, knitting, frogging... you get the idea... I finally have my knitting mojo back. I finished the pair I'm about to show you late last week. Since then I've been in a frenzy of knitting, matching my yarn stash to patterns I like, and dreaming of future projects. I'm back, baby!!

The smoke has cleared, for now. I think St. Petersburg might get a little more smoke from the fires, but hopefully nothing like last Friday (pictures in my previous post). That day we had the worst air quality on record for St. Pete. It was like being trapped in an unventilated smoky bar - all day. It was nasty. Sunday, finally, we could see blue skies.

In the last post I promised you a finished object, some WIPs and the most awesome stitch markers - ever! Here we go...

Let's start with the most awesome stitch markers. The photo and thanks are long overdue; Sean made these and gave them to me weeks ago. But because of my knitting malaise I haven't been keeping up with the blog. So without further ado:

The photo is a little blurry (no macro lens) but its the best I've been able to do with my camera. Aren't these the most perfect stitch markers for me? Little dog stitch markers (and a tiny sock keychain)! Thank you, thank you, Sean! I love them so much. Right now he's selling them at Needles & Knobs in St. Pete, but I hope he makes them available online, too. Maybe if you visit his blog and ask him, he'll sell you some.

Finally... drum roll, please, my first knitting photo in a month. I made these for Mom for Mother's Day. Ahhh, she gave me life and I give her socks:

Embossed Leaves by Mona Schmidt from IK's Favorite Socks. I used Louet Gems in Aqua. I am becoming a huge fan of Louet Gems, the colors are gorgeous. As for the sock pattern: if I made them again there are things I'd do differently. I tend to knit from patterns just as they're written. I must have been a lemming in a past life. So when the pattern said to do two rows before joining in the round I thought, well, must be part of the design. Now I have a notch at the top of each sock (and not in the back where you think they'd be. They're on the side.). When it said to cut the yarn after turning the heel, I thought, well, there must be a reason, and off the cliff I went. Twice, because I wanted the socks to match perfectly. Live and learn. I think she'll like them: she likes this color and I think the leaves are sunny and spring-like.

This weekend I started two new pairs.

I started my first pair of Jaywalkers - a right of passage for knitters. The yarn is Cherry Tree Hill in Life's a Beach. I bought this yarn when I was in a particularly sunny mood (I get all crazy for bright colors maybe once a year). The colors may be a bit too strong for me, but I hope it'll make for an interesting sock. These may end up being gifted or at least saved for my next bright color day.

The next day I started this sock:

This funny looking thing is the Child's First Sock from Nancy Bush's Knitting Vintage Socks. This is my first Nancy Bush sock, even though I have three of her books. I wouldn't have thought about knitting this particular sock because the photo in the book isn't very appealing. Then I saw the socks made by Christy and Terhi (both of these ladies are always working on amazing stuff) and I knew I had to make them. As you can see, this sock is progressing faster than the Jaywalkers. I love this pattern; every so often the pattern changes so I never get bored. I love this yarn (J Knits Supersock, color Indiana), I love the way it's knitting up; from what little I can try on so far the sock already feels as comfortable as my favorite pair of jeans, even with the 25% nylon content. Love. It.

Not fog. Smoke.

2007-05-11T10:29:00.000-05:00

I have actual knitting photos to show you - as soon as I can take them. Right now my little corner of the world is a little smoky and not conducive to photo taking. The smoke from the wildfires (over 100 miles away, mind you) came in very suddenly about an hour ago. I had all the windows open, plus the back door was open for the dogs. It is now hazy inside my house, too. I hope my finished but damp from blocking socks, mom's Mother's Day present, don't smell like a campfire.

Here's a view near me. I was going to walk to a more picturesque area of my neighborhood, but after 30 seconds of being outside my eyes were screaming, "It burns! It burns!!!"

Sasha, cooped up inside until the smoke clears, is bored after being in the house for 10 minutes. This is what I call her "summer pose": cooling her belly and in general not looking lady-like at all. I can tell from her expression that she is planning and plotting some sort of sabotage to be revealed later in the day.

Coming tomorrow (if the smoke clears): knitting! I have finished socks to show you! Plus, new WIPs and the most awesome-ist stitch markers - ever!

Hi there!

2007-05-03T12:45:00.000-05:00

Betty here! You may not have heard about me. Apparently "middle child syndrome" applies to dog families, too. My older brother, Jackson, is considered the perfect angel around here so he gets mentioned a lot. My little sister, Sasha, is so obnoxious that it's difficult not to pay attention to her. I'm the quiet one in the middle. Good thing I'm quiet, the rare times I do bark mom tells me my bark could shatter glass. Anyway, I'm a pretty good girl, unless there are children or air-conditioning repair men around. Or cats. Or vacuum cleaners. Or those little plastic lambs people put in their yards at Christmas. I hate those - they could come to life and attack at any moment. Oh, and I can be mean and growly to Sasha but I promise you she brings it on herself. She is not a good girl like me. Sasha spends her days filling her tummy with mulch, twigs, lizards, bugs, and...

What? Mom says wrap it up nobody wants to hear how I feel about Sasha and her eating habits. She says this is a knit blog for crying out loud.

I'm really here to tell you that mom has been too ~~lazy~~ busy to post. And that really there's been nothing to post about (except: shout out to my sock pal!). She's lost her knitting mojo. She's spent the last two weeks...what's the term...tinking, and... something about frogs. Playing with frogs? Playing Frogger? Frogging? Ripping? Something like that. Anyway, she's not posting anything until her mojo comes back and she "adjusts her attitude".

I hope she gets her mojo back soon. She spends her free time cradling yarn when she should be petting me. Okay, anyway, that's it! Have a great weekend everybody!

XOXO,
Betty

PS: I learned how to blog from Max!

Welcome to the Monkey House

2007-04-14T11:39:00.000-05:00

Pattern: Monkey by Cookie A. / Knitty Winter 2006
Yarn: Cherry Tree Hill Supersock in Indian Summer
Modifications: None, except used 2.25 instead of 2.5 needles

These were fun and quick to knit. I never have the urge to knit the same thing twice, but I am already thinking of knitting another pair! I searched for awhile to find the yarn I wanted to use. I wanted a subtle varigation that would show off the pattern. I looked online then realized I had what I wanted in my stash all along.

After blocking, I took my Monkeys out to play shuffleboard.

These are some of the oldest courts at the club. I think they were installed around 1928. They're terrazzo (the other 50 courts are concrete). In their present condition the terrazzo courts are unplayable (terrazzo courts are very difficult to maintain). But they sure are purty.

Here's an eye-candy photo of my little monkeys (one of their more serious-looking poses for the camera). Jackson is in the back, Sasha in the middle, Betty in the front. One of Sasha's nicknames is Monkey (aka Sasha Monkey). She was six months old when I adopted her. She had been a stray for who knows how long so bringing her home was a little like bringing home a baby raccoon (she refused to eat from a bowl for a couple weeks!). She earned her Monkey nickname shortly after I adopted her. She decided she wanted to sit on my friend's lap so she climbed up by scaling his legs. She put her right paws on one leg, left paws on the other, and shimmied right up like a little spider monkey.

Everything was beautiful, and nothing hurt.

2007-04-12T08:33:00.001-05:00

I never met him, but I always felt a connection to my favorite author, Kurt Vonnegut. When I was growing up I was so grateful for his novels. He spoke at my high school my sophomore year. I remember he spoke about his fear of nuclear war and blasted Indianapolis for no longer being the progressive, creative city it once was (he was talking about a looong time ago). For a 15 year old kid that was really cool stuff. After I saw him speak I quickly read every novel he wrote. Cat's Cradle was the first. Slaughterhouse-Five is still my favorite. His work did more to help me through my teen angst phase than any chick lit novel ever could. Just knowing that someone like him could come from my conservative hometown was comforting.

His entire family had a very indirect influence on my life (but an influence nonetheless). My two favorite buildings in Indianapolis were designed by his grandfather. Every time I go home I visit them. The strong connection I have to them is the reason why I became such a historic preservation nerd. (To know me in person is to know that I'm always upset about an old building being demolished - I can go on and on about the sense of place and people's connections to buildings and spaces. Warning: never get me drunk because that is my number one tipsy topic)

I went to college here.

When I was a kid, I took theater classes here.

It is the Atheneaum, orginally named Das Deutsche Haus. Every Saturday after class my friends and I would explore every inch of this building. There are three stages in the building. I can get from the Rathskeller stage to the rafters above the main stage (four floors) via the hidden stairs.

Do you have a special connection to a building, place, or even a person you've never met?

I'll always be grateful to Kurt Vonnegut. He gave so many gifts to the world. He will be missed.

Extra! Extra! Guy in knitting t-shirt spotted in local newspaper

2007-04-10T09:26:00.000-05:00

Read all about it! I don't know how long this will be on the home page of The St. Petersburg Times today, but I thought this was too good not to share. I of course didn't read the article (he's a con man or something) but instead just locked in on the photo. Here's the link. It's next to Hot Topic. If the photo is gone by the time you see this, here it is:

I love it when men aren't afraid to show they love to knit. But why does he have to be a con artist?

Knitting with others

2007-04-09T17:12:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday I once again went over to Tampa to meet up with some fellow Rockin' Sock Club members. This time it was Phoebe, Alyson and myself. Have you ever had one of those great afternoons where you meet up to knit and talk talk talk and all the sudden it's four hours later and oh my gosh one of you has a rather long drive home? That's the kind of afternoon it was. Phoebe worked on a beautiful sock using Black Bunny Fiber. Both times I've knitted with her I've come back home with a long list of indy dyers to try. Alyson worked on her Bellocq stockings (Stitch Diva). They are gorgeous, gorgeous! Be sure to visit her blog and check them out. If you get the urge to make them yourself, she's even started a KAL.

Alyson mentioned this on her blog, too, but one of my favorite moments was when we were approached by an elderly woman with what I think was a heavy German accent. She said she used to love to watch her mother (or grandmother, crap I forget) knit when she was little. She thanked us (thanked us!) for bringing back such good memories. I wanted her to pull up a chair so I could ask her tons of nosy questions about her (grand)mother, where she was from, if her (grand)mother taught her to knit... Instead I just smiled and thanked her. For some reason I was curious why she didn't mention if she knitted. Why? Why did no one teach her?! I try to keep a lid on my nosy side; I love people's stories, even if I can't remember the specifics.

I've been working on some Monkeys, but I'm not going to show you yet. I'll be done in a day or two so I'll take photos then. In the meantime, let me try to distract you from the lack of knitting photos with some viney goodness in my yard.

Last year I decided to go native in my yard. I moved all my non-native plants to the backyard so at least my front yard is 100% native (Except the grass, which takes up 80% of my yard. I suppose it's more accurate to say that my yard is 20% native). The plan is to replace any dying non-native plants in the backyard with native ones so eventually my backyard will be native, too. There are a few non-native plants I may not have the heart to get rid of. My jasmine, in bloom now and smelling beautiful, is two years old and finally draping itself over the fence: When I open the back door I'm greeted with a whiff of jasmine!

In the front yard, I opted for some Cross Vine (Bignonia capreolata). Planted last year, it's starting to get some good blooms. One of the misconceptions is that Florida native plants aren't as attractive as the popular plants. I think the Cross Vine is beautiful:

Today was a very odd day in Florida. Cold and rainy. I loved the cold. My yard loved the rain. Others at the house weren't as thrilled.

Above and beyond

2007-03-27T13:44:00.000-05:00

I'm new to the whole blogging thing, but I gotta tell you I'm starting to really like being a part of the knitting/blogging world. Last week I was chosen as one of the winners of Alyson's The YoYo Knits blogaversary contest. Pretty cool, I thought. I've never won a skein of yarn before.

Now, I knew I had won a skein of something, and I secretly expected that I'd get a little chocolate, too (it seems there is an unwritten rule amongst knit bloggers: chocolate must accompany yarn packages). But I never expected this:

Oh wait, let me show you:

Herbacin hand lotion, a yummy grapefruit and ginger candle, a really pretty list pad and a package of really cool notecards and repurposed envelopes from Fake Forest. The envelopes are made from vintage magazine ads.

And then, two skeins of Silky Wool. I've never used Silky Wool but have been wanting to try it.

And (begin angelic music now):

A skein of sock yarn from Yarn Ahoy, colorway "Shores of Andaman". You're right, Alyson, I love spring colors! How did you know? This is the softest sock yarn I have ever seen. I can't wait to knit with it!

Thank you Alyson! I had no idea what you were sending, but this is above and beyond what I was expecting. Gosh I love being part of the knit love.

PS: Yes, there was chocolate. Choxie, in fact. But most of it wasn't around long enough to photograph.

A weekend of knitting

2007-03-26T15:05:00.000-05:00

I haven't had such a knitterly weekend in a long time. Unfortunately, for all the knitting I did I didn't actually finish anything. All my knitting projects are still WIPs.

Saturday afternoon I met some fellow members of the Rockin' Sock Club. I got to spend a delightful few hours with Phoebe from Knit Happened and Leslie from a blossom knits. Being able to spend an afternoon talking about knitting, yarn, blogs and designers with women who are as excited about knitting as I am was a dream. Phoebe and I worked on our Inside/Out socks (the first project from the Rockin' Sock Club) and Leslie worked on a gorgeous entrelac shawl. I'm looking forward to doing it again soon. Thanks, ladies!

After I got home from the sock club meet-up, I spent the rest of the evening working on my Inside/Out sock. I don't know if this happens to you, but every time I learn a new knitting technique I get obsessed with it. This is my first toe up sock and the first time I've done a short row heel. I could not, could not go to sleep until I saw how that heel was going to work. Does this happen to you? Plus, Judgement at Nuremberg was on the local PBS station. Oh yeah, spent Saturday night on the couch with the dogs knitting and watching a Nazi war crime trial movie. That's how I roll. At first I was like, okay I'll give this movie fifteen minutes then I'll switch over to... I don't know... America's Next Top Model reruns on VH1. Three hours later I hadn't moved from the couch. The movie is that good is all I'm saying. I made it through the heel and finally called it quits, bleary eyed, around 1 AM.

I worked on Veste Everest a little, too. I promise this is a different photo than from the last post. The difference between the photos is subtle. You have to really look hard to determine that yes, in fact I have progressed about two inches.

In non-knitting news... St. Pete Shuffle had a good night on Friday. The organizers of Project: HOME had an exhibit at the club of the artist's plans and sketches for the upcoming show at Williams Park. If you're in St. Petersburg next weekend, come by Williams Park to see the finished artwork, all dealing with the concept of "home".

Perks

2007-03-21T10:48:00.000-05:00

362 days out of the year my neighborhood is (usually) peaceful and quiet. You know the type: lots of old homes, 100 year old live oaks creating a canopy over brick streets, neighbors who wave to each other, large 1920's Catholic cathedral smack dab in the middle of the neighborhood. I love it (which is surprising because I thought I'd always be a downtown urban chick). Then, for three days every March, the church has a fundraiser and the neighborhood gets all crazy and festival-y.

I love that I live five blocks away from this:

It was much more crowded than these photos make the festival out to be. For starters, every teenager in St. Petersburg that needed a place to make out was at the festival. By the time I got there most people had migrated from the rides to the food and beer. I didn't get a chance to photograph the food area (too busy eating, I suppose). In a 50 ft. row, there was a combination of foods that probably shouldn't all go into one's belly at once: chinese food, greek food, pancit noodles, fried green tomatoes, burritos, cookies baked by the nuns, and peach cobbler.

In knitting news, I think I'm suffering from startitis. I have a huge pile of sock yarn and patterns. For the past few days I've just stared at it all and thought, what to start next? Jaywalkers? Monkeys? STR club pattern? So many choices it makes my head spin! In the end I cast on for a project I bought the yarn for six months ago, the Veste Everest from IK Fall 2005. I'm using Harrisville Highland Style in #34 Aster.

This will be my first knitted sweater-type item. Read: this will be the first project I've knitted that actually needs to fit. Before starting I swatched, measured, washed, blocked and dried like a good knitter. So far so good: after one row I had the pattern memorized and have been able to knit on auto-pilot. Last night I finished several of the cable repeats while mostly concentrating on watching The Thin Man. Oh, that Asta!

Green socks for a green day

2007-03-17T15:37:00.000-05:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day (Lá Fhéile Pádraig)! I finished my green Hederas just in time.

I'm frantically pulling together my St. Patrick's Day dinner: beef and Guinness stew, colcannon, smoked salmon and greens with soda bread, and lemon tart with berries. Have a great day!

Thinking of spring

2007-03-15T12:50:00.000-05:00

Ahhh, spring in Florida. From February through April I can breathe! Kind of. Because this is the time of year in which open windows are better than air conditioning, this morning I dusted away a handful of pollen dust in my living room. Yes, yellow dust inside the house. I brush off the pollen from my car door handle every time I drive somewhere. No matter. My eyes may be itchy but the rest of me loves this time of year in St. Petersburg. My neighborhood's jasmine is starting to bloom so when I walk the dogs the air is fragrant. My plumeria (frangipani) is starting to grow leaves. The bouganvilla is flourishing.

For spring:

Cherry Tree Hill: Life's A Beach. For Jaywalkers.

Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock: Daffodil. For ?? (suggestions welcome)

In progress: Hederas. In Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock: Carol Green.

Yummy soap from Megan's Goodworks of Athens, Springtime Lure (Lavendar and Lime).

Jackson loves spring but finds "springing foward" a bit difficult. He is not a morning dog.

He looks like this after 10AM.

Trick mittens (warning: STR club spoiler below)

2007-03-13T13:11:00.000-05:00

Even though it has been a long time since my last post, I have been knitting. Really. I've also been busy working and haven't had much time for blogging. As a freelancer it seems it's either feast of famine workwise. The last two weeks have been feast. So yay! for being able to keep my dogs living the lifestyle in which they've become accustomed. Unfortunately the fun stuff gets cast aside for a bit until I catch my breath.

While I was buried in work, the knitting world carried on without me - big time (New Knitty! New Interweave editor!). I love the new Knitty. I see Clessidra in my future.

After three months of no posting, Eunny Jang posts this. It makes me feel better that she's been knitting since she was four. Oh, Eunny Jang, how do you do it? Just as I was wiping the drool off my keyboard, here she goes again with this announcement about becoming the new editor of Interweave Knits. I'm so many years behind Eunny. But when I look at her designs I'm not discouraged. I'm inspired by her and can see what I have to look forward to with my knitting.

To top it off, last Monday I got my first installment of the Socks That Rock club (photo below). Beautiful! A lot of people have mentioned this and I agree: it's not a colorway I would normally buy for myself. But now that I have it I love it. I think the club is going to help me explore colors and patterns I wouldn't have experimented with on my own.

I knit these a couple weeks ago: my first pair of mittens. Flip-top, baby! From Handknit Holidays. Yarn is Manos del Uruguay in Coffee and Wildflowers.

Oooh.

Aaah.

I learned a few things during this little project.

I enjoy knitting mittens. I didn't think I'd like it (who knows why), but I did. However...

...I get crabby when there's more than one place in my knitting held together with waste yarn. I had waste yarn on the thumb and on the flippy part. Maybe because the two places were so close together, I don't know, but I don't like it when waste yarn gets in the way of the working yarn.

Sometimes it becomes necessary for one to make Manos one's bee-yotch. I switched to a new skein of Wildflowers at the flap of my second mitten. New skein = totally different pattern/pooling than the first skein. To make the last part look like the other 75% of the mittens, at 4 places I randomly cut about 6 inches of yarn then spit-spliced it back together. That broke up the pooling enough to match the rest of the mittens.

Okay... drumroll please... here is the first skein of the 2007 Rockin' Sock club. After practically stalking my mail carrier for two weeks, then doing a little happy dance in front of her when she delivered the box, I am pretty certain she thinks I'm a nutter-butter. But I don't care, I was just so happy to finally get this:

The grey has a lot of blue in it and the brown has green in it. The skein changes colors depending on the light. I don't mean to imply it's a magic skein, I mean that it's made up of colors that have a habit of looking different in different situations. I can't wait to try the first club pattern with this!

Hey wait! It's still February!

2007-02-28T13:49:00.000-05:00

I had plans, big plans I tell ya, for Fair Isle February. I really want to make the Tropical Garden Vest from Knit 2 Together.

I've been flip-flopping between making the vest or reducing my stash all month. In the end stash reduction won. After all, there are plenty of small stranded projects I can do with what I already have. Plus I have to admit I am not 100% happy yet with my mad stranded skillz. I've done a couple of small projects and so far I haven't mastered the art of even stranded knitting. Everything comes out kind of lumpy. But my Fair Isle February project, a Bea Ellis traditional hat in Dale of Norway Heilo is my most even yet. The snowflakes aren't lumpy at all!

The hat has been gift-wrapped and sent up north to a friend. I'll start the Tropical Garden Vest (sort of a tropical inspired Fair Isle pattern more appropriate for Florida than a snowflake hat) soon. I've put it at the end of the queue, after a few more pairs of socks and a cable vest I already have the yarn for. Does the list get longer and longer for all knitters?!

I caved.

2007-02-27T11:14:00.000-05:00

I had to buy it. I had so much fun making my first baby sweater. Then I saw this at my LYS and I couldn't help myself. The photo doesn't do the color justice. It's not dark blue, its more jewel-toned. Like that blue night sky in winter, when it gets dark too early but that electric blue hangs around for an hour and the world seems rather magical. All I needed was one skein to make the sweater. That's not so bad, right?

I even like the strange arrow shaped pooling.

The Great 2007 Stash Bustin' Snoozefest

2007-02-13T16:07:00.000-05:00

New rule: I can't buy any new yarn until I de-stashed a bit (arrgh, I'm knitting as fast as I can!). I'm not being as strict as the Knit From Your Stash 2007 folks in terms of rules about when my de-stashing will be over. I just have absolutely no storage space in my small house (two tiny closets, people!). There is yarn crammed into every available space. My office, once used only for my work, has now been taken over by plastic boxes full of yarn. Bedroom dresser: yarn stuffed in between t-shirts and sweaters. Open the storage/sofa end tables, where once housed DVD's and CD's? Yarn.

The one indulgence I am allowing myself is the Socks That Rock! Socks Club; the first shipment of which should arrive ANY DAY NOW. I've been hovering around my mailbox like Ralphie waiting for his secret decoder ring. (If the first sock yarn shipment has anything to do with Ovaltine I will lose it!)

In the meantime, I continue to de-stash. Most of 2006 for me was a blur of out-of-control yarn purchases (I'm not the only one, right?!). Unfortunately I wasn't very smart about my purchases. Not realizing that I would actually be confident enough to one day knit a whole sweater, I bought yarn 2 to 3 skeins at a time. The result is that I now have tons of yarn but can't knit any big projects with it (well, maybe if I took the time and got creative about it, but that seems like a lot of work). My idea? Baby sweaters. The people in my life have gone all baby crazy and said babies are at the age where I can knit them sweaters with 2 to 3 skeins. I figure it's destashing and acquiring some sweater know-how all in one.

Here's my first sweater. It's a test sweater, really, but came out better than I expected. It's made from yarn I bought within my first month of knitting, before I realized there was yarn besides Jo-Ann Fabrics. It's a Jo-Ann's yarn, Bellezza Collection Dolcetto (what is up with that full of it name?!). It has the same yarn content and feels exactly like Rowan Soft Baby. It's not plied (is that the correct term?) so the yarn would probably look better as a blanket, but the sweater is cute anyway. The pattern is Knitting Pure and Simple's Baby Pullover. It took less than 2 skeins (for 6 month size):

Up next, ribbed socks made from this worsted weight little lovely:

Prism Yarn, Andee in colorway Garden. I would've used this for a baby sweater, but all the babies I know are boys. Plus, I really want some nice warm socks made with this.

The Pirate Life

2007-01-29T11:28:00.000-05:00

Ahoy! I finally finished the "We Call Them Pirates" hat - just in time for my friend Todd's visit. I made him the hat to commemorate his first visit to Gasparilla. I say first visit but really one Gasparilla will pretty much do for most people over 25. I was however impressed with Todd's bead catching skills. The St. Petersburg Times said 400,000 people came to watch the invasion and I believe it. Bayshore was packed.

Back to the hat: it was the second We Call Them Pirates hat I made the past two weeks. The first hat I knitted with the recommended needle size. I used the same yarn, Dale of Norway Hauk (same colors even). I checked my gauge like a good little knitter. But when I was done with it I could barely fit it over my head. My knitting got tighter when I used two colors. My swatch was with just one color. That means I either need to do stranded gauge tests for stranded projects or learn how to do stranded knitting correctly. I went up one size, US 4, for the second hat and it worked much better. No longer felt as if pirates were squeezing my brain.

It was too warm to wear the hat for Gasparilla, but Todd graciously agreed to model the next day, when it was a bit cooler:

We even took the hat out for some pirate-y shuffleboard action before Todd had to fly back to DC. Pirates love shuffleboard:

Log Cabin Fever

2007-01-17T14:38:00.000-05:00

Woo hoo!! I am finished making Log Cabin socks (at least until next Christmas)! I made four of these as gifts this Christmas. Although I am so, so happy to be able to move on to other patterns, I will probably make more next Christmas, as these are phenomenal house socks. Of the three I made earlier, two were made with Berroco Ultra Alpaca, and one was made with Classic Elite Wings. I used the yarn the pattern called for, Cascade Pastaza, for this final pair, a gift for my brother. He knows he's getting them; Christmas morning he unwrapped half a sock still on the dpns. Pastaza is a pain to knit with. Split yarn everywhere. But boy they are beautiful, warm, soft socks. I wish I had used it for all four socks. I will use it for more house socks in the future.

Pattern: Log Cabin socks from Handknit Holidays
Yarn: Cascade Pastaza, color 027
Needles: Clover dpns US5
Modifications: Used US5 dpns instead of US6, because although the gauge was correct on US6 the socks were huge.

I've been experimenting with different backgrounds in my knitting photos. The first one is taken on my front porch with my cuban tiles as the background. You can see the problem in this photo; turns out dogs, particularly Jackson, love Log Cabin socks.

The detail in these photos isn't very good. I wanted to get a close up of the heel. I love the cabled heel. It looks great on the foot, but since my brother wears size 12's, my feet look like they have elfin magic when I wear these. He's promised to send me a photo of him wearing the socks.

Sasha's favorite spot

2007-01-17T14:25:00.000-05:00

My youngest dog, Sasha, has discovered how pleasant it is to sit on my front porch. The other two dogs use the front porch as a lookout station; always ready to bark and whine at whomever walks by.

But Sasha can sit on the ottoman for hours, just staring at the street. Long after I've dragged the other two dogs back inside the house, tired of their barking, she'll sit there quietly.

I'd like to think she's contemplating deep thoughts, but I suspect she's looking for squirrels. PS: black glob under her eye is a wad of dirt, acquired from her morning backyard dig. In my backyard she looks like a wild boar rooting for truffles. But on the front porch she's a sweet little girl.

Socks That Rock! vs. Bank That Sucks

2007-01-12T13:22:00.000-05:00

I have a little secret to share: people in Florida don't wear socks (outdoors; what people wear indoors is their own business). That is, people who live in Florida and wear socks are often looked upon by non-sock wearers as crackpots or goofballs, or at the very least "people who are oblivious to where they live and OMG don't they know what can grow on the feet of sock wearers in this freaking swamp?!" But as a knitter, there are few knitting joys as satisfying to me as turning a heel. And buying a hank of hand-painted sock yarn is so much more affordable than buying hand-painted yarn for a whole sweater. And gosh I never get to wear sweaters, either. And sock yarn is so, so pretty.

So logically, rationally, reasonably, I plunked down a bunch of cash to join the Socks That Rock! Rockin' Socks Club, to buy a bunch of yarn I've never used before in order to make socks I'll hardly get to wear. Yes, I plan to keep them all for myself! I will wear them with pride and ignore the worried stares of my non-sock wearing neighbors, at least through March, when it gets too hot outside. I joined because I love sock yarn. I have a theory that knowing I have sock yarn arriving every other month might curtail my sock yarn buying habit for awhile. I've heard great things about the company, Blue Moon Fiber Arts and their yarn. But I really joined because I wanted to be in a club called the Rockin' Socks Club. How cool is that?!

I got my "Bank Error Please Read" email a couple days ago. Needless to say I was stunned. May the suits at the bank who caused the Blue Moon STR! shut-down one day have someone in their lives who knits so they may know the joy of wearing handmade socks. I won't recap the long story; it has spread all through blogland by now, especially here and here. But now I really feel like part of the knitting community, because not only do I belong to a club called the Rockin' Socks Club, but a bank had the audacity to shut it down! Thanks, mystery bank!

Instant Gratification Socks

2007-01-10T14:48:00.000-05:00

I think I underestimated how much work it would be to knit all my Christmas gifts. By New Years Eve I still had one more Log Cabin sock to go; I hit a wall and just couldn't stand one more day of cables. So on New Years Day I gave myself a break and whipped up these bulky alpaca socks, which I have named "Instant Gratification Socks." I made them for a friend who I'm told spends most of her time at home in thick, comfy socks. I hope she likes these. They're soft, comfy and a prettier blue than this photo makes them out to be.

Pattern: Plymouth Yarns Ribbed Socks #36
Yarn: Plymouth Baby Alpaca Grande Color #679
Needles: Clover dpns US6
Modifications: Blissfully, none. Followed the intructions and had a few days of stress-free knitting.

My New Years Resolutions

2007-01-03T16:46:00.000-05:00

Every year, in addition to my regular New Years resolutions, I always resolve to do one thing I've never done before. For instance, a few years ago one of my more adventurous resolutions was to fly a plane. I took a one day private lesson. Last year I decided to learn to knit. While not as exhilerating as flying a plane, it had the unintended result of unleashing a monster of a hobby. This year my big goal is to travel somewhere I've never been. For various reasons I need to see some new scenery this year. So here it is.. my list.

I resolve, in 2007:

1. To be more organized. House, car, time, exercise, finances. Everything.

2. To read Ulysses. I've always wanted to. If I read it this year, maybe it will make up for all the books I didn't read last year, as I was too busy knitting.

3. To make multiple batches of Christmas cookies next year and distribute them to friend and neighbors. To no longer wait until Christmas Eve, make two batches of cookies, realize two batches is not enough to distribute to everyone and proceed to eat all the cookies.

4. To only buy yarn for a pre-determined specific project. Not just because I think the yarn is pretty. Or because the irrational fear creeps over me that if I don't buy this yarn now, I will never, ever, ever have the opportunity to buy this particular yarn again and my life will be ruined.

5. Resolution #4 does not apply if the yarn is sock yarn. One can buy sock yarn and keep it forever or until one finds the perfect pattern to go with said yarn. Plus, sock yarn is so tiny it's easy to store. You all know what I'm talking about. (By you all I mean the three people who have checked out my blog so far.)

6. To take good looking photographs of my FO's. Not like the crap photos I've taken so far.

7. To travel to a place I've never been before. I've been in a travel rut the past two years. The only (airquote)vacations(/airquote) I've taken were to my home town (Indianapolis). I put vacation in imaginary airquotes because I bring my laptop with me so I can get some work done. This year will be different. I'm thinking Vermont. Or Paris. Why not? Think big I say.

8. To knit my first sweater.

9. To go to my first sheep and wool show. And guess what?! There's one in Vermont!

Finished Objects 2006

2006-12-30T15:28:00.000-05:00

Don't read this. This is just a boring list of my finished objects of 2006. I'm merely posting this to give myself the feeling of "out with the old and in with the new." I learned to knit in January 2006, so everything here is everything I've ever knitted. Looking forward to starting fresh in 2007. I have photos of some items. Some items I have knitted and given away without taking a photo.

Is this it? To a non-knitter this may look like an amazing amount of items. I spent much of last year with knitting needles in my hands. So this doesn't seem like that much.

The List:

3 scarfs, knit with various nasty acrylic yarn from Jo-Ann's. My introduction to knitting. Given to Goodwill. I do not miss them.

Stars blanket from Hand Knits for the Home. Jo Sharp Summer SoHo

Cabled pillow from Hand Knits for the Home. Jo Sharp Aran Tweed (yes, the speed with which I moved from Jo-Ann's to Jo Sharp was rather frightening)

Touch Me scarf from Scarf Style.

Another Stars blanket from Hand Knits for the Home. Rowan Soft Baby.

Dishcloth from Mason Dixon

Flower washcloth from Weekend Knitting

Clapotis! For my mom.

My first pair of socks! Basic stockinette. Knit with Claudia Handpainted Chocolate Cherry

Ribbed scarf and hat from Holiday Knits for my brother for Christmas. Peace Fleece! Loves me that Peace Fleece.

Two hats for Dante. Green and white is a Kate Gilbert pattern. Psychodelic version is made-up basic ribbed hat with Malabrigo.

Two pairs of blue and white hearts hat and baby socks. The socks are from 50 Baby Booties To Knit. I took the pattern from the socks to make the hat. Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino

Another ribbed scarf and hat from Holiday Knits. Mission Falls.

Child's Rainbow Scarf from Last Minute Knitted Gifts. Adult sized.

3 pairs of Log Cabin socks. From Handknit Holidays. Christmas presents.

1 pair Thuja socks. Made with Andee, a Prism yarn in colorway Woodlands. Christmas present.

2 pairs of slippers from Knit2Together. Manos del Uruguay. Christmas presents.

That's it! Looking forward to many new projects in 2007. Happy New Year!

I Heart St. Pete

2006-12-12T16:02:00.000-05:00

The St. Petersburg Shuffleboard Club is my favorite place in St. Petersburg. Last Saturday I was one of the volunteers at the I Love St. Pete show at the club. It was an all day event featuring local artists, local music and a chalk art contest.

I think the layout of the shuffleboard courts was perfect for the chalk contest:

Offical FO blog posting starts January 1st

2006-11-29T12:54:00.000-05:00

The hordes of people (okay, three) who have visited my blog have asked me when I'm actually going to start posting to the site. I know the cuteness of the three dogs, while highly adorable, will only entertain for so long. I'm actually not starting blog postings until January. After January (probably around March) I plan to really suck at keeping this blog updated. It's just my nature. I really just created a blogger profile so I could comment on other people's blogs. But once I did I thought how nice it would be to join the online knitting community. Since I'm the only person I know who knits (as in, fanatically knits) knitting conversations can be a bit one-sided at my house (ie: talking to myself).

Why January? A few reasons:

1) I think it's going to take me that long to figure out how to get a freaking image in my "three dog knits" header.

2) I started knitting in January 2006, so I'll start blogging when I've officially knit for a year. This is a poetic symbolism only appreciated by me, I know. But also I'll be able to list all my 2006 projects, then start refreshed in 2007.

3) Most of what I've been knitting are Christmas gifts, and I can't post them until after the recipients have seen them. Normally this wouldn't be a problem, because how would my friends and family even find this blog if they didn't know I had one? Well...I was so proud of my oh-so-cute Three Dog Knits title, that I blabbed my URL to them.

See you in January!

No official post yet...

2006-11-19T12:09:00.000-05:00

For now... a cute photo of my dogs.