Stagnant.

It really is appalling how lazy I have been. I've gotten past the uber-nauseus stage of this round of pregnancy to the sleepy stage. I seem to be moving slower and slower. It is really an effort to do more than a row or two on anything. I will get my butt in gear and do something soon! I hope. lol I have found a bunch of really cute baby patterns online. This will be the first baby that I will have the time and ability to knit for! Oh, yes, can we say overdressed baby? I am dying to see what sex the baby is! I don't like having to worry about what yarn is "unisex" or not. :P I'm really getting into baby socks. Well, socks in general. I have a pair otn for me, fro the upcoming baby, and for the hubby. Yes, yes, I have left out the boys. For those of you who have seen the chaos of my house, they don't need socks. Well, not yet at least! :)
Hopefully there will be pics soon. The camera still is dead. Somehow batteries can be on the shopping list but not make it to the house! I may break down and try to steal some from something else in the house.

Camera Angst

All the AA batteries in the house are gone. I have searched, but to no avail. Hence, no pictures of the loverly Sockapalooza socks from M. i really do like them and will take lots of pics when I scrounge up some batteries.

Thankfully, K, took pictures of the socks I sent her. Here is her pic:

Catching up

Jessica nominated me several days (?) ago and I haven't had a chance to post about it! This is great. Thanks Jess!

Now for my nominations:

J. Denae

Lia

Pantoufle

Lara

Pictures soon! I hope to finish my Sockapalooza socks over the weekend.... :)

Birthday Stuff

Yeah! I finally got around to taking more pictures!

Here are the flowers the hubby surprised me with yesterday!

Here are a few pics of the new knitting bag that I bought with my birthday money. The rest is going to Twist with me this weekend!

The picture isn't the best, but here is a sort-of detail photo of the inside. There are several pockets and it expands quite a bit! This is going to be great for traveling!

And last but not least, I have finished one of my Sockapalooza socks! Sorry, no model available to try this on. My partner has much smaller feet than I do. One week left to finish the other and than I can mail them out!

Yarny Birthday

LOL!!!
My birthday isn't actually until next week, but all the yarny goodness I have been getting in the mail lately has me feeling celebratory!
This is my Fabulous bag from the Spring Felted Bag Exchange. KM made it for me and even posted the pattern on her blog. I love it! I have had it for a while now, but have been awful about posting lately.


Included with the bag was this cute little champagne colored makeup pouch. With yummy lip gloss! (And Satin Lips, too. How cool was it that I got hooked up with a Mary Kay gal?)

Here is a close up on the satin stitching on the edges of the bag. Nifty, nifty! KM, if you see this, the gals in my knitting group love the bag!!!
And now for more recent yarny yummies...Bubblesknits picked me (with the help of the random number generator) in her contest! I am so thrilled! I recieved some amazing stuff. A whole bag of Softwist in a pearly color, a knitting themed novel, sock yarn (!), panda cotton (more sock yarn!), stitch markers, and postie notes!
I am giddy! This will be the yarniest birthday to date!
It is really something, though. Before finding the online and hometown groups of knitters, I never realized how sweet people could be. Knitters really are great people. The generosity in the gifts I have recieved and the enthusiasm for the gifts I have sent is amazing. I am really glad and proud to be a part of this community of amzing and talented women.
More pics soon! I promise!
(I'm almost done with the first Sockapalooza sock!)

Lazy.

Ugh.
I have done nothing lately. I don't know why. Usually I have several projects that I can't keep my fingers out of. Not right now. Well, I do have projects OTN, but I have no desire to do anything at all with them. I haven't even wanted to play with my new yarn. Yes, for me even.
I am stressing over my sockapalooza socks. I can't seem to find the right yarn for the project. Hence, I haven't started them. And yes, I should be mailing these out by August 2nd-ish. I may even give in and go to Heritage Hut and spend way too much on yarn just to get it out of the way. Although, I have been tempted to wait until Twist is open and just send out the socks late, but that wouldn't be fair to my partner! If only they opened sooner! lol Well, since they are opening after my birthday, I should have some money to spend when they do open! Can we say Panda Cotton?!?
In other news, Sarah (the designer of the Stafford bag) posted a comment! I am just silly over this! I haven't ever had a designer comment on a FO before. I am gratified and tickled that she liked it! :)
Well, pics and maybe a sock soon. :P

Done!

It's done! I am so absolutely thrilled with how this purse came out! I had so much fun making it. I am usually not a fan of seed stitch, but once this was felted, it came together really great. I did almost get myself into a bit of trouble. Being as I hand-dyed the yarn. I ran a bit short. By the time I had sewn together the bag, I had only a few inches of yarn left. I was so happy that I had enough to finish the bag that I didn't think of what I was going to use to sew on the handles! Of course, I got to scramble on that a little, but I found satin ribbon that matched the purple polka-dotted lining!
Here is a shot of the dotty lining! Oops....is that chocolatey goodness peeking out?














A better picture of the (dark) chocolate and the last fun thing I found for my partner! I hope she likes it all!















Here is half of hubby's birthday socks. I still have to knit the second one.















And a belated thank you to Cathy! I really like the stitch markers and the knitterly note cards! The pictures don't show them well, but the markers are a pretty pink and clear.














Soon (I hope!), there will be picks of the yarn and such for my Sockapalooza socks! I NEED to start those!

I heart german stockings.

Oh my goodness, I stumbled across this pattern on CookieA's website. I am so going to make these when I have the money to buy this pattern and suitable yarn! I don't think I will use the Louet yarn that is recommended. Something superwash, I just don't know which yet! The Loopy Ewe sells the pattern. I will probably buy the yarn through them also. Anyways...droool!

Lots of Pictures!

Here are pics of what I have been doing for the last week. I finished knitting my Stafford bag for the Spring Felted Bag Swap. Here it is pre-felting. The front is green with purple and the back is purple with green.








Here it is post felting. I really like how it came out! It retained quite a bit of the original texture. It is knitted in a double seed stitch and looks all woven and bumpy. The felting softened the lines and gave it a rounder look, but thankfully I didn't lose too much size!

These are the stitch markers that I got in the mail a few days ago. The large turqoise markers are from Jen. They are so pretty! Each on is a different shape and they have a great layered texture that doesn't come out in the pic. The little blue markers are from Knit Girl. The beads are cute little swirls. They look like little candies! And last, but not least are from Robyn. Very pretty! I love the stacked beads! They remind me of the shell jewelry I used to always see in the cute shops back in Washington. Five sets down and one to go! I can't wait to see what it is!


Here is the prize pack that I got from Anne with the Felted bag swap. I actually won one of the contests. How cool is that? I have had this for a little while and only now got to posting it. It is so great! She included SWS in plum, a sheepy pad and yummy lemon-y soap. Because of the soap, the yarn smells and yummy lemon-y also! :)
I am just so spoiled!!!
lol
more soon!

More Thank Yous!

My internet has been wonky to non existent for about a week now. Thankfully it is fixed and I can post yummy pics of the latest stuff that I got in the mail!
Here are the stitch markers that I have gotten so far-















Pretty tiger striped from Laura and nifty green from Marion. I like Marion's design - they are strung over a loop of plastic (?) cord and fastened at the end.

















And now for a huge (and belated) THANKS! My felted bag swap partner is so sweet! She sent me all kinds of yummy stuff. Coffee and coffee accessories! And Chocolate. (yes, with a capital C.) She also sent very pretty lion suede yarn that I will be using with this pattern.

Belated Thank You!

Here is my Dishcloth Swap package! I recieved this last week and it took me forever to sit down and take pictures!

My pal, J, picked fab colors for my cloth and yarn! (I took the pic on one of my new dish towels for reference!) The chocolate is long gone, do are the candies, my hubby has stolen the espresso cup, there are notes in the sheep book and the markers are happily dangling from my cardi in progress. Yes, I know I haven't mentioned THE SOCK YARN. I am doing my best not to play with the sock yarn until I am done with my selted bag and the other pair of socks that I have on the needles. I need to finish the first pair. I am supposed to have them done for hubby's b-day on the 21st. This may not happen. I mean, how am I supposed to resist yarn that is named Peppermint Mocha? (yum.) I have found the pattern that I think I will use. It is the Errant Ankles Lace Socks from the Socknitters webpage. I really like the lacy-ness of the pattern and I hope it will stand up to the colorway of the yarn. I don't want plain socks, but I don't want really busy socks either! Hopefully next month I will be able to tackle this project! Thanks again J!

More photos!

I finally found the camera and good batteries at the same time! (applause) Here are some of the FO's and stuff that I have been and am working on.
Here is a sock bookmark I made out of leftover Bernat Sox yarn. I started using this up for other stuff since I did not have enough for a whole pair of socks. (Only bought one skein!!!)
Here is my bag for the Felted Bag Swap!
I am so crazy excited about it. I wish the colors had come out better in the photo. The purple streaks are variegated violet and lavender and the green is shades of lime, lemongrass, and teal. This bag is a lot of fun to make so far. I got to dye my own yarn! My swap partner is a big fan of green and purple and I just could NOT find pretty wool in that combo. So...I dug out the gel food colors, lemon juice and crossed my fingers! I have only dyed wool one other time. For the bag I am using the Stafford pattern from Magknits. It calls for a worsted weight yarn and my dyed stuff is leaning more toward DK, but hopefully it won't shrink too much when it felts! (Will only partially felt...I looove the texture!)
Here are my washcloths for the Spring washcloth exchange. They turned out soooo soft! I used Bernat cotton. I forget which one...threw away the labels! I got a little carried away, but there was so much yarn! I need to finish pulling this package together and get it sent out! i have until the 21st, but I already got my package from my partner!







Another cloth I made from scraps for myself!
The homemade goodies I put in the package for my Felted Bag Swap partner. An itty-bitty Bernat Sox sock-keychain, and a Peridot cupcake! (August birthday!)

Contest 2 - Final Question

Kristan W. and I are both participating in the Knit with Phillis KAL.
Laurie D. and I both have to deal with cottonwood trees in our yards and are coffee drinkers!
Anne M. and I both like Linkin Park and coffee!

Knitted Purse Swap

Yay! My partner from the Knitted Purse Swap finally got her package! I'm so glad she likes it! She posted some lovely pics and praise on the swap blog, but here are a few more pics that I took before sending it out.
The bag and lining.















The crochet red squirrel fridgie.

Beaded wood needles.

I am so glad all of this made it out to L safe and sound!

As for other knitting, I will be starting on my felted bag swap bag soon...I need to round up the yarn for it. I am thinking of doing the Hip-Hop bag from Crochetme.com. I also have to finish the package of goodies to be sent out to this partner also!

Soon I will get to order the yarn for my Sockapalooza socks! I am going to do the Snowflake Lace socks from Magknits in Mistletoe (sage green) Wildefoote sock yarn. This will be my first real gift socks! I have made ankle socks for the hubby, but that doesn't count!

Back to knitting!
(More pics soon!)

Contest 2- Question 3

My absolute favorite place to knit or crochet in my house is the big red chair. This is an overstuffed 1 1/2 chair with the big cushy pillows for the back and side cushions. I love this since I can dump all but one of two of the cushions off and be able to curl up with my knitting! And, of couse, the chair is lipstick red. With chrome feet. Cool, huh?

Update to Dishcloth Contest

I have gotten hooked on a new show. (Well, at least it is new to me!) Man vs. Wild on Discovery. I just saw the episode where the host simulates being lost on a desert island.
So....
My one food would be coconuts, beyond being a source of water, it is high in potassium - it is supposed to be an electrolyte.
Also, I'm kicking the hubby off the island and will take the host from the previously mentioned show. No offence, hubby, but this is an expert survivalist and a hottie with a british accent! :P
lol...
A few knitting projests done...
I finished a dishcloth for a swap and have finished a small bag that whould be the right size for a cake of sock yarn.
Pics someday! Still can't find where hubby left the phone....

Survey from Lara's Blog

This is a knitting survey……

Mark with bold the things you have knit, with italics the ones you plan to do sometime, and leave the rest.

Afghan (still on needles)
I-cord
Garter stitch
Knitting with metal wire
Shawl (still on needles)
Stockinette stitch
Socks: top-down
Socks: toe-up
Knitting with camel yarn
Mittens: Cuff-up
Mittens: Tip-down
Hat
Knitting with silk
Moebius band knitting
Participating in a KAL
Sweater
Drop stitch patterns
Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
Slip stitch patterns
Knitting with banana fiber yarn
Domino knitting (=modular knitting)
Twisted stitch patterns
Knitting with bamboo yarn
Two end knitting
Charity knitting
Knitting with soy yarn
Cardigan (still on needles)
Toy/doll clothing
Knitting with circular needles
Baby items
Knitting with your own hand-spun yarn
Slippers
Graffiti knitting
Continental knitting
Designing knitted garments
Cable stitch patterns (incl. Aran)
Lace patterns
Publishing a knitting book (why not?)
Participate in an exchange
Scarf
Teaching a child to knit
American/English knitting (as opposed to continental)
Knitting to make money
Buttonholes
Knitting with alpaca
Fair Isle knitting
Norwegian knitting
Dying with plant colors
Knitting items for a wedding
Household items (dishcloths, washcloths, tea cosies…)
Knitting socks (or other small tubular items) on one or two circulars
Knitting with someone else’s hand-spun yarn
Knitting with dpns
Holiday related knitting
Teaching a male how to knit
Bobbles
Knitting for a living
Knitting with cotton
Knitting smocking
Dying yarn
Steeks
Knitting art
Knitting two socks on two circulars simultaneously
Fulling/felting
Knitting with wool
Textured knitting
Kitchener stitch
Knitted flowers
Purses/bags
Knitting with beads
Swatching (yes, I know I should....)
Long Tail CO
Entrelac
Knitting and purling backwards
Machine knitting
Knitting with self patterning/self striping/variegated yarn
Stuffed toys
Baby items
Knitting with cashmere
Darning
Jewelry
Knitting with synthetic yarn
Writing a pattern
Gloves
Intarsia
Knitting with linen
Knitting for preemies
Tubular CO
Free-form knitting
Short rows
Cuffs/fingerless mitts/arm-warmers
Pillows
Knitting a pattern from an on-line knitting magazine
Rug
Knitting on a loom
Thrummed knitting
Knitting a gift
Knitting for pets
Shrug/bolero/poncho
Knitting with dog/cat hair
Hair accessories
Knitting in public ALL the time!

What have you learned to do that has marked a definite change in your knitting life?
I have learned the hard way that sometimes swatching is not a bad thing! I still don't do it though. :)

HOW ABOUT YOU?!!

Crafty Stuff.

I have been so busy posting stuff for all the swaps that I have joined, that I haven't posted anything about what I am doing right now.
1. One-ball half moon shawl from lion brand. This is in a pretty mohairish purple variegated mystery yarn. This was a ball that I got from a yarn swap at my KIP group. I am almost done with the patter and will probably have to knock off a couple of rows for lack of yardage.
2. Office-to-Casual Cardi from Creative Knitting Magazine. This pattern uses red heart soft yarn! Yea!!! I am using up some of my stash of this in a great plummy color. They named it grape, but it is much prettier.
3. I sewed my first piece of clothing! Last year I bought a bunch of material but could do nothing with it since the sewing machine was dead. I finally pulled it out and wrestled with a new pattern. And voila! I now have a faux-wrap front top in a cute cotton print. The seams are a little wavy, but who cares! It fits and I love it.
I promise to take lots of pics when the knit and crochet are done and the top is out of the wash!

Dishcloth swap contest

If you were going to be whisked from your home and taken to a desert island to live out a year of your life....


What one CD of music would you take? I wouldn't take a cd of music, I would take my ipod shuffle! I am really bad when it comes to music...I will buy a cd for one song only! But, if you all really want to limit me to one cd, I would take my Seven nations cd. They are a great group! Modernized tradaitional celtic music...
What one book? Hmmmm....I usually have a romance novel stuck in a nook or cranny of the living room or bedroom at any given time for good fluff reading, but I burn through those so quickly that I don't think I would want that for my only reading amterial. i would probably like to have either the Lord of the Rings or the Mists of Avalon or something along those lines.
What one hobby-related item? Either knitting or crochet and lots and lots and lots of yarn. This could be exchanged with spinning equipment, but there would have to be an instruction manual!
What one person? I would take my hubby. Conversation and,well, ahem, you know!
What one food? (no, you couldn't survive on a single food, I'm just SAYING) Pomegranates or oranges. I really am on a citrus-y kick right now. Happens every year when everything starts coming into season!

Contest 2 - Question 2

What always signifies the beginning of spring to me is that I can put away my winter clothes. Once the winter hits late January, I am pining away for my summer clothes and the weather to be able to wear them! Winter weather is just not condusive to floppy straw hats!