the Akamai Knitter

Last night was sushi and knit night and I had so much fun. I brought along two socks projects to work on.  I mainly brought out the Dallas Cowboy sock for advice.

I’m on the gussets of the sock and the striping effect has changed dramatically. I don’t think it’s ugly, but I don’t think I like it.  So I wanted to hear what the peanut gallery thought. Mostly they didn’t think it was ugly but they  said that if it’s going to bother me I should rip back.

What do you think?

I’m probably going to rip it back and do an afterthought heel, but I do want to hear what y’all have to say.

Unfortunately it was too dark to work on the Undulating Rib Socks. So I left early.

I didn’t leave completely unscathed though. Barb aka Acornbud hoisted a huge lot of yarn upon me insisting I take it home and at least try it.

At this point, my knitting mojo felt like dried up old prune. That is until, at one in the morning, I came up with the brilliant idea of knitting up the new yarn into another Clapotis!

Now did I do the practical thing and go to sleep and work on it in the morning? Oh no. I rushed downstairs and printed out the pattern. I searched high and low for some size 8US needles. (I finally found them amidst some beads.)  I busted out my iPod and got some Breaking Benjamin cranking. Then I proceeded to knit.

I think I was more excited about being able to use my new Hello Kitty stitch markers that have been languishing in a container then about the project itself.

Then again I had forgotten what an addicting knit the Clapotis is, because I couldn’t stop knitting. I kept going until  I couldn’t keep my eyes open.

It was another late night and this time I have no one to blame but myself. All I can say is thank god it’s FRIDAY!!

Even Sammy is looking forward to it. (Or is he just looking for it?)

Also! I have donated some prizes for Claudia’s MS Ride 2009! Her prize basket is filled to the brim with good stuff. Check it out! It’s for a seriously good cause.

Have a great weekend, peoples! Thanks for reading. :)

Remember how I was going to knit a pair of socks a month along with a few friends? Yeah. That hasn’t been working out so well.

I started a pair in February, but they’ve been tossed into the frog pond. Recently I did finish a pair of socks, but I can’t count those as part of the club since the yarn didn’t come out of one of the twelve paper bags.

Maybe what I need is a new beginning.

I’m very happy with the yarn that emerged from the random and ominous paper bag. Trekking is one of my all-time favorite sock  yarns. I was a little afraid that somehow all my sock yarn had changed into something hideous while they were in the bags.

O.o

I still had a hard time casting on. I didn’t feel the sock love because I didn’t want to tear myself away from the shawls. Only I do like a portable project to take with me when I’m out and about, and socks are so convenient. So cast on I did and away I went.

I’m not so sure how much love I have for this pattern with this yarn, but there’s no way I’m frogging this baby. I do think it looks a lot better on then scrunched up the way it is.

I really doubt I’ll have this pair finished by June, but that’s okay. Megan and I gave each other a two month rule with this sock club. I think I can manage a pair of socks in two months.

That is if I can tear myself away from the shawls and the wire and the spinning fiber and the seed beads.

Yeah.

Although he cried all the way there,  all the while we were in the waiting room, and all the way home, Scheyer survived the visit to the vet.  Despite some gingivitis and a warning to look out for premature arthritis, he’s a healthy little guy. That reassurance makes the bruising of my eardrums worth it.

It’s the American Idol finale tonight! For all you fans out there, who do you want to win? Adam or Kris? I’m an Adam fan. Go Lambert!

Happy Wednesday!

It’s a little late, but I finally finished the pair of socks meant for my mom’s Mother’s Day present. Luckily, she knew I was knitting them and she didn’t really care that she wasn’t getting them in time. It’s not like she really needs them with temperatures in the upper 80’s during the day and in the 70’s at night.

Pattern: My own toe-up 2×2 rib pattern with short-row heel from Sensational Knitted Socks.

Yarn: My own handspun from CJ Kopec’s Montana Moon 100% Merino fiber.

Needles: Size 2US/2.75mm

Started: April 8, 2009

Finished: May 13, 2009

Even though I wasn’t a huge fan of how the colors played out in the beginning, I enjoyed how soft the yarn was. Eventually I even came to like how crazy the colors came together as well.

I don’t do a lot of toe-up socks, so this was an adventure for me. I used the Turkish Cast-On for the toe. That didn’t give me any grief. I was more afraid of how the heel was going to work out.

Thank goodness for the book Sensational Knitted Socks. I swear that book is like a sock knitting bible. It’s got just about everything you need to know in there. And in the end I was quite pleased with how my short-row heel turned out.

The most important thing is that my mother loves the socks. So even if there are minute details that irritate me (like the yarn isn’t as consistent as I’d like or there are a couple of holey bits in the second heel) all that really matters is that it pleases the recipient.

Yesterday, Dee said she couldn’t help but notice how well Sammy coordinates with my curtain.  I do have to agree with her. Now I can never change my curtains, because I’d really hate to have my cats clash with my decor.

O.o

Now I need to go and watch the season finales of Bones and Grey’s Anatomy. From what I hear, they won’t disappoint.

Happy Friday, everyone!

Crazy is thinking I’ll be able to spin this batt with  a spindle:

into laceweight singles.

It helps that the spindle is so nifty. (I got it at Maryland Sheep & Wool last year.)

I love how the artist wood-burned her name into the shaft.

This is how much I spun last night.

Crazy is winning the CJ Kopec Spin-Along thingy.

Crazy is how the winning yarn knits up. I personally think it’s ugly, but the intended recipient loves it.

Crazy is wanting to acquire more spindles when I already own over ten of them.  No hassle me! I’ve been collecting for nearly 10 years! (Do ya like my pidgin?)

Crazy is the way cats can sleep comfortable with their feet past their chin.

There’s more crazy, but I can’t share it with you all on a public forum like this. You’ll just have to take my word for it. I will say that I hate people.

Happy Thursday, people! It’s a long weekend! :D

It’s a miracle! The Mingus socks (Ravelry) are finished!

Pattern: Mingus by Cookie A.

Yarn: Wollmeise in “Spice Market”

Needles: 1US/2.25mm

Started: April 23, 2008 (!!!)

Finished: February 23, 2008

Can you believe it took me **TEN** months to finish these socks? I think it’s because I wanted this project to go on forever. I just wanted the experience to last.

I loved loved loved this yarn.  It’s Wollmeise! Wollmeise! I was blessed when Kris brought the yarn over from Germany one year.  The Spice Market is just perfect. It matches a pair of my Danskos perfectly too.

As far as all the hype concerning this yarn goes? I think it’s well deserved. They yarn isn’t splitty and it gives awesome stitch definition. It’s nice to the touch while appearing hard wearing at the same time. And the colors? The colors are amazing. Words fail me.

Still. I’m not paying $75 a skein for it.

I am just sayin’.

The pattern was a little complicated, but I loved loved loved it. I firmly believe a little brain tease is good for the noggin.  I had a rough start, but once I got into the rhythm of the pattern it was smooth sailing.

I cannot wait for Cookie A.’s book to come out. I haven’t pre-ordered it yet, but I will next week. It’s all so exciting! A whole book full of her patterns! Yay!

I had a little helper during my photo shoot.

As for my knee? We shall not speak of it other then to say I have an appointment with my doctor this coming Thursday.

In the meantime, I’m rapidly coming to the finish line on another UFO* (Ravelry).  I have something coming in the mail and I promised myself that I’d get some of those pesky UFO’s out of the way before I started something completely new.

Since I haven’t really been able to update the shop with new yarn, I’m thinking of throwing up a new line of stitch markers on my shop.  We’ll see what I can manage.

One last thing, there is now a Ravelry group for Hungry For Handspun! Come! Join us! Spread the word!

That is all.

Have a great weekend, everyone. :)

*UFO=UnFinished Object in knitting speak, for you non-knitters. I know you is out there.  :)