Finished!

Well the wedding shawl is finished except for weaving in the ends and blocking. Blocking will happen first and that will be after I get a new blocking surface. I've been using cork boards (not the framed kind, just cork squares really) but they are so old and crumbly from so much use that I need something new because they fall apart when I stick pins in them which isn't much use. Also we don't have a spare bed so I can't even go with that option. I'm thinking foam puzzle blocks? I was going to check a store tonight and see what I find. If nothing else I'll order some online and blocking just waits a bit.

I did think of something to show you. These are skeins from my Christmas projects that aren't finished yet. I figured it didn't hurt to show the yarn. These are Dream in Color Classy in Black Pearl and Gray Tabby. They may or may not be combined in a single or multiple project(s). Hows that for ambiguity? I think these are newly released colors from the original starry release? They are gorgeous whatever they are.

what to talk about

This is one of those days where I'm just not sure what to write about. The shawl, though I am halfway done with the second long border side still looks a lot like it has for the last several days. Just a heap of yarn that I *hope* is in the right order. Obviously I haven't worked on that sock I showed or the one that I am designing, or the remaining Christmas presents I'm not blogging about (yet, they aren't finished and they obviously aren't given out), or anything else because the border knitting took up all my knitting time today AND nothing to show for that!

I have been working on quilting a few of patchwork stripe scarves for the shop from the scraps I get when I make the bags. They are really cute but not sewn enough to show off (plus its dark out). I'm fairly certain that I'll probably keep one but since I have a ton of knitted scarves too I think there will be a couple for the shop. Just not sure when. These are time consuming. I was upstairs cutting on Sunday morning. I went up at 930 and before I knew it the clock said 2 and I'd only gotten the top of one sewn and two more cut out. Speaking of things for the shop, I'm hoping to post the rest of the bags that are already finished tomorrow. Seriously I think I made those in October and they still haven't made it up there? Yeah I need to get on that. I don't want to think its just lazy but I'm pretty sure it is since I have to photoshop the stuff to get it the right size. I'm not so fond of editing.

So in the mean time...Dogs...

working on

Here's what I'm working on today. My wedding shawl. I am done with a long side of the border and half done with a short side. I'm going to try and get that other short side done tonight. I really really want to finish before I need to head back to work on Friday. I think I can do it. We'll see how the rest of the week goes.

Here's what I am not working on right now. My traveling sock since knitting a shawl is not a good idea in a car. Just plain sock in Koigu.

Here is what Gus is working on. If you can't tell he's chowing on a jalapeno. The boy dog is really really crazy. He doesn't even break the skin of it, but he sure likes to chomp it. (Abby is working on a nap.)

The thing that is tired

This is a good way to spend the day...

She was being stubborn not wanting to sleep. She's not tired at all as you can tell...

Willow Update

Yesterday, two repeats from the finish of the center panel, I noticed this.

Thats my crochet cast-on which has undone itself. I strung some of the yellow yarn through it and fortunately managed to pick up all the dropped stitches. So scary.

Today I've been working on the knitted on border. I am 18 of 57 repeats into the first side of the border. Its moving along really quickly. I haven't been working on it much at all today. I think the whole stole is really turning out quite lovely. And it will be a SUPER long shawl. I think the join is sort of funny but I'm going with it because it looks alright when stretched. This is the first time I've tried one so the whole thing is sort of an experiment anyway.

Spinning my wheels...

At the moment it is just one. This one...

I was discussing my trading bags for spinning roving with Chris and he decided that I should get a wheel. He helped me pick one out that very night. A Lendrum DT Complete. Its not going to be available for a while from where we purchased it. So he decided that I needed one that didn't fold. Its an Ashford Traditional with a single drive, single treadle. It arrived almost two weeks ago and we just didn't have a chance to put it together until yesterday. (Remember those posts last week about being at work still...) I was waiting for pictures to show all of you. Proof if you will, since I said I wasn't going to be a spinner.

I played for an hour and half after putting it together yesterday and some more today. I finally figured out that I need to treadle with my left foot instead of my right. I can't keep the wheel going with my right foot enough to actually put twist in the yarn. I redid this tiny bit of yarn about three dozen times because there wasn't twist so was just roving building up as I spun it.. This is the result when I finally switched to my left foot and finally got the thing going. I've spun a bit of a plain brown that came with the wheel, but its too dark for a picture.

The biggest problem that I've had so far is that the cotton string that spins the wheels keeps untying. Its quite frustrating because it is a complete stopdown. I might see if there is something else to make that better.

Bronzed

(Or Happy Christmas brings an actual knitting post!)

Pattern: AspenGlo by Susan of Sunflower Designs (my ravelry project)
Materials: .8 skein YarnPig Treadsoft in Mossy, 1 skein Blue Moon Fiber Arts Rail
Made for: Mother-in-law
Needle: US#11 Addi Turbos 30"
Start Date: 21 December 2008
Completion Date: 22 December 2008
Size: 6" x 78"

Notes: Back in August when we went to Portland my mother-in-law saw this yarn at Coastal Yarns and hoped that I could make something nice for her out of it. I thought I could so she purchased it and handed it to me. Imagine the pressure...

I had a lot of thoughts about what to do with this yarn. It has two limiting factors. I couldn't find another skien of rail in ANY color anywhere. And I was having difficulty finding another Blue Moon yarn in the bronze colorway. Right. So limited amount of yarn. Not easily matched. What to do for a pattern?

I flirted around with designs including (not limited to) a large shawl that would have been knit on very large needles (I didn't really think that she'd wear that, even though the shawl was turning out quite lovely and drapey), a garter stitch scarf (just not fancy enough, even though it showed off the Rail yarn quite well), a slightly tighter stole (just wasn't right at all), and finally I thought of this AspenGlo pattern and said yes that's it even before I started knitting.

Very cool looking stitch pattern. Super easy too! Shows off both my hand dye and the Rail really well I think.

When I frogged the second TTL Mystery Sock I had the thought to use the yarn for an AspenGlo, basically bulking up something that maybe had some halo to it. Apparently I was on the right track with the pattern, but not with the buddy yarn. I think these two are perfect together. They also look fabulous on my MIL. I still want to knit the other version. Maybe with some different colors, but I'm really satisfied with how this modified version turned out. Thankfully she really loved it too.

This is the most realistic to life color.

I am working on (not finished because they got started really really really late) two other Christmas presents which I won't be sharing on the blog until they are gifted as the recipient of one or the other is a reader for sure. Also you've seen another of the Christmas presents already. I knit it quite a while ago.

when tired bulldogs don't cooperate

The pictures don't quite turn out...

but the videos are pretty good...

So a Happy Christmas and Christmas Eve to all my readers! I hope you are all enjoying whatever holiday you are celebrating.

Ha Ha

I think I jinxed myself yesterday when I said I might get back to normal posting today. The day started off allright. Then I went to pick up my prescription at the grocery store and discovered the prescription had expired. I'm not scheduled to see the doctor until the 6th. So I picked up what I could remember from the grocery list that I had forgotten (if they had it, which half of it they didn't. Who runs out of Coke?) Then I came home ate a quick lunch, called the DR to get a prescription called in, and went to grocery store number 2. I did my shopping returned to my car to find my battery had died. I got one of the auto center people to try and jump it. No luck. He thought it might be the starter. I called Mini to come tow it to the Mini dealership. They got the battery running so they could get it to the service department. Luckily it was only the battery, the auto guy was charging it in the wrong place and since it was replaced only 18 months ago and had a 2 year warranty, so no charge, but I did spend my afternoon first stuck in the grocery store parking lot for an hour and a half waiting for the tow truck (missing my SIL's dress alteration appt, stupid battery) and then sitting in the Mini waiting room. (Where the battery in my phone died because of all of today's phone calls due to said car issues.) Rather then come right home I went to grocery store number 3 because I was still missing stuff from my list. That's where I discovered that my unlock and lock on my key no longer worked. I had to use it manual. I got most of what I needed and drove home to discover that the battery in my garage door opener has lost power too.

Why do all the batteries run out at once?? Could I have driven through something that just killed them all?

Officially on Holiday!

Tomorrow I might even be able to make a real blog post! Hooray!!

A distraction

A distraction from the wedding shawl, but for a good cause...

More details to come after the holidays.

Thankful

I didn't have to work today, so thats one thing. I did have to shift Monday's vacation day to the 31st, but at least I *should* still get all my days off.

The real reason I am thankful today is Jenny Girl. Chris and I were out shopping for some things that are Christmasy and also a fake log thingy for the fireplace since it keeps wanting to do that warm/cold thing. I figure the cold days are worth a nice fire in the fireplace. Ooops...off topic. Today when we got home I found a round package crammed in my mail box. It was from Jenny! Inside was this cute snowman tin.

And inside the tin were handmade pizzelles and ricotta cookies. Yum! (Yes they are yummy too, we tried some.) Delish. And her pizzelles are just gorgeous. They are labor/time intensive and she was so sweet to send me some. Thank you so so much Jenny!! Just what I needed after this crazy week!

You can see the Christmas tree in the background of the tin photo. That and this one are about the best I've done photo wise. Part of the issue is that the bows we use at the top are very dark in photos so the whole thing looks like it has been cut off.

Penny prefers the real trees (with birds and squirrels) that are outside the windows however. She could care less that trees even exist in the house.

The thing that is running out of yarn...

So here it is 509PM on a Friday. Mind you this is the day of the week that I work almost not at all. It is still morning when I leave and I am usually home well before lunch. Today? Well I am sitting at work knitting on the shawl. I'm on the 22nd repeat on the inside panel. I've done 4.5 repeats today. I am out of yarn. The other balls are all at home. I have more time to sit at my desk...

Sigh...


ETA: 840 and finally I am home!

The thing that is fog

We've had a LOT of fog lately. It mostly hasn't cleared out during the day, but today it looks like it will. I just wanted to tell you a little story from this morning and make one observation about fog.

My little story:

This morning in a few spots on my 25 mile journey you could barely see 20 yards in front of you. I dreaded that someone who didn't know these back roads was trying to drive them not knowing the turns and twists some of them take, so being unprepared. When I drive to work I cross over 13 bridges. When I drive home I cross over 13 bridges. They are not the same bridges necessarily, due to one way roads and detours, it just works out evenly. There is a very long bridge almost halfway that I cross in both directions. On one side of the road there are 3 or 4 houses, usually dark when I pass them, and on the other is some land they are clearing for a highway to go through, but for now mostly trees before you get to the cleared land. There are no street lights in this area (or at least they don't work), so it is very dark when you get to this bridge early early in the morning. This does not bother me as you can see the bridge well enough anyway from your headlamps. Today, when I got there, the area where the bridge should be was a swirling murky black. It truly appeared the bridge was gone. Fog can do that. I know. But can it actually collapse a bridge? The car behind me and the car beside me stopped, not even creaping forward. I kept going. I had faith that the road really was still there, where it should be. Why wouldn't it be? When I got to the far side the other cars behind began to follow (or I should clarify and say that I saw the headlights bob, because I just saw moving dots in my mirrors, not actual cars). My question is this: why didn't anyone else have faith that the road was still there until I tested it?

ETA: Based on the 4 comments I've had so far, I'm now curious so let me ask: Would you have crossed the bridge?

Also an observation about fog. I am very glad this morning that most the roads to work are backroads and poorly lit with street lights. I've noticed that the area penetrated by light from the street lights makes the fog appear denser and therefore it is harder to see when passing through those areas.

Thats all for now. Just wanted to share.

still at work version IV

The fog from the last few days has been very dense. This is what it looked like standing on the balcony outside my office this morning. There should be some other office buildings that you can see from this angle. Without looking over the edge of the balcony. Also it was dense enough that it was actually raining in the parking garage.

Some icicles from Monday's icy/rainy day. It was actually cold! 26 degrees Fahrenheit. And also more fog. We've been fog covered all week.

still at work version III

Gus and Abby want you to know that they are sad about Mom staying late at work yet again, but they are hopeful that all this extra work means she'll actually get to take her vacation next week. ("PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE!!! Thank you I deserve my last 5 days of vacation!!")

Still at work version II

I'm late at work again. I'll be happier tomorrow when I don't have to stay late. Luckily tonight the traffic is bad due to the weather so I feel alright that I am still here and not stuck in that. Tonight is speed blogging too because I have LOTS of work to get done. So mostly pictures.

I figured I would give you an update on the second wedding shawl. Its moving along swiftly (or at least as swiftly as double sided lace can). I am 11 repeats in even though these photos only show 5. I didn't stretch because I don't want to give too much away.

Still at work

Since I am still at work and who knows how long I will be here tonight I figured I would do a really quick post about Gus' sweater.

I've finished the body and knit a little sleeve. I have the closures to go. I went to the craft store Saturday looking for some toggles to use for the buttons but they don't have toggles that are machine washable. Somehow I don't think the dog's sweater is something I want to have to handwash. I'm going to look around online. Surely I'll be able to find something. I need to knit still the little loops to go over the toggles. And I need to deal with these...

And a couple others on the sleeve and the other side of the sweater. Its getting there though.

Christmas Party Loot

The knitting group Christmas party was awesome. It was really nice to see everyone again. Its been literally months since I've last been to knitting. Tuesday nights are just really difficult to get out and do anything. The only sad part was the white elephant exchange. I walked away with blue yarn. Actually I opened 3 packages and ALL of them had blue yarn in them. And I shouldn't say anything because I brought a skein of, nearly black, blue yarn I overdyed last week which I called Midnight sky. So I was part of the problem...

Ah well. This one is posted to my trade or sell page on Ravelry until I decide I need to overdye some stuff again or until someone buys it. There are a few that are candidates for overdying besides this that I hadn't decided what to do with yet.

Christmas is coming...

So I am finally working on getting the Christmas decorations out. I decided while driving great distances for absolutely nothing that I really wanted to put the tree up even though it is late. Also I wanted it downstairs this year. Last year we put it upstairs and frankly I didn't get to see it enough. That was part of the delay this year. Its not quite finished. There are six ornaments that need to go on the tree still. I'm waiting for Chris to help put them up though because they have special meaning for us.

Every year we have gotten one of these Swarovski crystal star ornaments. It was really hard to decide which to show off. :) These are teeny replicas of the star that graces the top of the tree in Rockefeller Center each year. We've purchased six so far for each of the Christmas' that we have shared. This year we'll get the seventh. I'm looking forward to seeing it. I love how these sparkle with the white lights on the tree.

Here are some other ornaments that have made it on the tree already.

I am basically a sucker for mercury glass and carnival glass. We have a bunch of these mercury glass ornaments we purchased a few years ago that I love unwrapping and having on the tree each year.

I picked this guy up many years ago. I love his old fashioned good looks. I also decided that his photo needed to be antiqued because he was so old-fashioned Santa. Also note the glittery/sparkly ball in the background...

(bad blurry photo...) My last ornaments to show today are these wire stars from Mom and Dad last Christmas. I love them. For some reason wire wrapped around a frame makes me happy. They have sparkly glitter too which is excellent and shimmery in tree lights. Once I have all the tree together, it still needs some ornaments and the bows on top I'll try and get some lighted images to show.

Meanwhile I've started a shawl I'm going to call Willow for the blog and Ravelry. I don't think it tells you much about it. This is the second attempt at a wedding shawl. I'm further then this and really loving how it is turning out so far.

Doughnut Muffins

Chris is definitely a doughnut lover. Its a perfectly acceptable breakfast provided I want to drive to the doughnut shop and get some for him. hmmm... Not so much usually. The other day I saw on someone's blog (sorry I can't remember who linked me to it) Doughnut Muffins with a link to a recipe (and by the way this is a great blog too). Score! Its the perfect solution. So last Sunday I decided to bake up a batch and see how they were.

They definitely taste like a cake doughnut. You do need to cover the top and the bottom of the muffin with the powdered sugar though for it to be really really good, not just the tops. We discovered that with the first muffin we each tried.

The only mod we made to the ingredients this time was to add cinnamon to the powdered sugar. We also turned the oven temp from 350 to 315 so the muffins wouldn't be overdone on the outside when the inside was finally done. I think this is a mod for convection oven and not a conventional oven though. I'm sure we cooked them for less then suggested time as well. Also a convection oven mod.

We want to make some more mods next time. Chris suggested making them smaller then normal muffins. Thus you could spray on a bit of butter and toss them around in a bag to make the coating. I think that's a smart idea. Also letting the dough stand for a few minutes after mixing and before filling the muffin tin seems like a good idea because the second batch had muffins a bit fluffier. At some point I want to try them with frozen blueberries. I think that would be yummy. Also I want to try to make a sour cream version.

I'm making up a batch of minis to take with me to my knitting group Christmas party tonight. There should be lots of awesome yumminess there because everyone is bringing something. Also we are having a white elephant/dirty santa yarn exchange. That should be tons of fun! I'm really looking forward to it.

Filler Day

Sometimes it feels like I have a lot of filler days, I just remind myself that its dark when I leave for work and dark when I get home so on my picture happy blog those filler days are necessary since I can't take pictures of knitting everyday. Also half of you are probably here for the dogs anyway so here is Gus with a teeny bit of Abby because apparently I got more photos of Gus then Abby this weekend. I distinctly remember her turning her face away from me several times.

More from our Saturday yard exploration of course.

And the aftermath of a good yard exploration day. (Oh her hair is growing back very nicely! Its so soft where they shaved!)

Hope you are all having a good week!

Jagged

Pattern: Jagged by Me (my ravelry project)
Materials: 1 skein Mondial Ciao in colorway 651, overdyed by me in a rusty/black color
Made for: Me, possibly a dog if Abby or Gus is cold
Needle: US#8 Addi Turbos 24"
Start Date: 6 December 2008
Completion Date: 7 December 2008
Size: So it fits, but this version is meant to be snug

Notes: Oh there is so much to say. I'll start with the yarn. I really loved the feel of this yarn. Very soft. But it was a very light fingerling and I didn't like knitting with it on teeny tiny needles. 00's. Yuck. This has a very long striping repeat. So knowing that and knowing I would only want to knit with this doubled (or tripled) I thought it was best to overdye the yarn to something that might lend to doubling.

Crappy photos, but they show the colors fairly well. I think I did good for a doubling yarn. I'm actually really pleased with this result.

The pattern then? I've been having cold nose, despite my scarf, when out doing Abby's therapy walks. The other cowl I knit a while back is really wide so it won't settle over my nose and stay there. So I wanted a new one that was a little snugger. I was however extremely impatient with looking stuff up on Ravelry. I just really wanted to get started Saturday so I made it up as I went along. I held three strands together because otherwise I would have wanted to use the needle on Gus' sweater and I didn't feel like going upstairs to the craft room to get another needle that size. I wanted to get started already.

Holding three strands of light fingerling yarn, on size 8 needles, I cast on 85 stitches and knit in seed stitch for 4 rows. I decreased one stitch at the start of row 5 and knit one row (Multiple of 6 if you want to increase or decrease the width of the cowl). Row 6 begins the pattern. Mark the beginning of the row. *YO, SSK, K4* around to end of row. Knit one row. Repeat these two rows 3 more times (a total of 4 eyelets going up). On the next row, continue past your marker (the YO has shifted over) knitting, once you reach the YO from two rows down, *YO, K2TOG (that is knit the YO from two rows down and the next stitch together), K4* around to the end of the row. Knit one row. Repeat these two rows 2 more times. Which is three new YOs. Next row, continue to knit around until you have knit the YO from two rows down. *YO, SSK, K4* around to end of row. Knit one row. Repeat this 2 more times. Which is three new YOs. Continue in this manner until the cowl is either long enough (Long enough was 4 pattern repeats with my newly fat yarn) or you only have enough yarn for the top edging. Knit 4 rows in seed stitch. Bind off as a purl row.

I'm going to try and chart this because I think it would be easier to understand. Also I'm going to knit a second with only two strands held together because I think I will like that as much especially since this is very thick. Two sizes for this pattern. I think one of the things I am going to do over my winter holiday is try to get this pattern written up in a more understandable, charted manner. The crochet scarf that I was still working on the tutorial for (sorry about that) and my generic and patterned sock patterns written up so that I can put them up as patterns on Ravelry at some point and so they are more formal.

I tried to see if there was a pattern like this on Ravelry already and I found this one, but that isn't quite the same and the result is really different. If you happen to have seen one like mine before let me know. I'll just fix it up here and make a chart and not step on anyone's toes if thats the case.

Gus didn't want to take this off today. He seriously thought it was for him. I started this because he was sleeping and I can't measure his sweater on him if he's napping so I needed something else in the mindless knitting category. I'll have to work on the sweater in the evenings now until I connect the arm hole and start working across all the stitches again. I'm almost to that point but not quite. (This shot is also closest in color to the real thing.)

Back Yard

I mentioned the backyard was turning brown yesterday. Its really probably worse then you imagine. Remember this photo from mid-April?

That same area now looks like this.

Somehow when taken with the whole (i.e. all the area behind the house not just this small spot) it hasn't lost its charm for me though the whole area needs some cleanup. We'll go in there and remove some dead stuff and probably stack it a bit to make an natural fence where we aren't supposed to have one. The woods here were either planted a couple years before I was born or are natural occurring and therefore much older then me. So a lot of them are beginning to show their age. Oaks only grow for so long.

We still have some greenery holdouts though. These are the oldest leaves on the Hackberry trees. They are the first buds from spring. Some of them are as a large as my hand. We also have some holdouts that are waiting to fall and leaving little bursts of green and yellow and sometimes red. These little bursts of color make me happy. Fall finally hit Texas and is passing on its way. It was lovely.

Soon they will all fall and we will cleanup back there and look forward to the spring when all is in bloom again.

PS. I frogged the sock. The pretty ribbing effect looks great until you take off the sock and then it doesn't bounce back and it looked just awful. BUT all is well because it means I get to rethink everything because I was afraid there would be a heel issue too. I think I solved that.

Thanks ever so much

Another set of Roses arrived today! This time from Robyn. They are gorgeous. She knit them in different weights and colors so they vary nicely in size. I think they are a really wonderful addition.

She also sweetly sent along a pretty skein of yarn. Up until Friday night this would have been almost a match for another skein of yarn (the reddish tan was more pink in the other) but that one got overdyed because I had a desire to dye yarn so I grabbed a few. It is Sweet Surrender Spark Sock Yarn in the colorway All the Leaves are Brown. (Seriously that's what's happening in my yard right now.) I'm pretty sure it is already divided in two skeins (very convenient...) and I'm guessing it is not superwash since it doesn't say it on the tag or on Ravelry. Alas no website yet but she's working on it.

And she sent along a Blythe notebook (blank book) with a cool cover with shifty eyes. Let me just say that is SO SO SO hard to photograph but I really wanted you to see it!

She also sent me a nice new US2 circular for magic looping, a Robyn's nest magnet and a groovy card. Everything is really wonderful. Thank you so much Robyn!!!

I think I have the Blythe that is on that notebook cover or at least the clothes that she came in look the same as the cover clothes. I've got a couple of wigs for mine so the hair is different. And I've made clothes so her clothes are different. This is what mine looks like now. The improvements were warrented because man did she look dated. She has four different eye colors that you change by pulling a string on the back of her head. The colors are blue, green (see above), pink (see below) and a seriously creepy orange (yes, creepier then the pink).

Texas Motor Speedway

My MIL's birthday is the day after Thanksgiving. She went out to dinner with her boyfriend (seems weird to say that word when you aren't a child let alone talking about parents or grandparents). He gave her a ticket to drive 10 laps in a racecar around the Texas Motor Speedway. Apparently the fastest track in the country? Today was the day. There was a lot of excitement out there. For her privacy I'm just showing images that don't show her.

She drove the number 20, Home Depot car. I have no idea which driver this would be associated with. This was actually my first time to the race track at all. In order that they don't strip the engine (I'm sure there is some sort of technical term for that sort of thing) they have everyone start in 2nd gear. Then to get them up to speed to be in 2nd they have the guy on the 4 wheeler actually push the car out to the track. He veers off really quickly though so as not to get hit by the next car.

This image is right after they pulled the cars out of the garages. I thought it was pretty funny that I got a shot of her car even before she was told which car she would have.

This sort of thing is best seen on video don't you think? She's off...

Speeding by where we were standing...

Racing by again. In this video you can see the "Limo" in which for 20 bucks a piece 12 lucky people can race semi-quickly around the track.

And the ride is over.

Crazy fast. Crazy loud. Crazy windy today. Everybody climbing in and out of windows. Apparently the whole experience is better if you are a rider rather then a driver, unless you've driven before. The "instructors" tend to freak out really easy and its not difficult to forget everything you were told in your short intro class once you are out there.

And why not let your dog hang out? This guy looked like he was enjoying himself.

One more because I really like this photo.

The day got away from me...

We had a lot of fun exploring the backyard though.

Exploring the fence line that keeps them in, but still lets the armadillos, the rabbits, and the squirrels come and "contaminate" the yard. There is a real need to sniff every inch and make sure they aren't still there.

Chewing sticks is an integral part of a yard exploration. Just try not to get caught because those weird humans don't like it. Plus they like to say no and take it from you.

Sometimes you also have to insist that the human be quiet so she doesn't disturb the wildlife.

Designing

I've been doing a lot of designing lately. For one reason or another. My two current work in progress knits are both being designed by me.

By now I'm sure everyone knows the first is a sweater for Gussy. (Yup I know Abby doesn't have one yet, but she's tougher then Gus and I can only knit so fast even if I am a fast knitter) This is not a big complicated sweater its probably more what one would call as easy as possible. The biggest issue is that sweater patterns aren't built for bulldogs so I'm making it up as I go. I have an image in my head and I'm HOPING HOPING HOPING that it will work. So far so good but I can't exactly try it on him and see because it won't stay in place yet. You can see a small arm opening there at the right by the letter R.

Its also not quite this bright. (ETA: I just tried it on him, well held it to him and so far it fits great! A teeny bit big on Abby but she's not so broad chested which I guess is ok because she's a girl.)

My second work in progress is a sock. I've been working on the chart of the pattern (reworked a few times before and then again after I started the leg portion) and then the ribbing for the last week. I swear I took the ribbing out 6 or 7 times after finishing it before I was totally satisfied with the design. Its really pretty ribbing.

This sock is sort of sooper sekret knitting. I wanted to show it though because its obviously taking up a lot of my knitting time. So you get the sneaky preview which doesn't really show anything. It may be a couple of months before I can show much more then this type of image just because of what its for.

Whatever other knitting time I've had the last week has been devoted to charting pattern number three. Also a sock. Also secret knitting for the time being, but you'll get glimpses of that one too. I won't leave you totally in the dark with only dog pictures. Luckily Gus' sweater is not secret since I don't even think he realizes its for him despite my holding it against him.

Oh and that praying mantis thing on yesterday's meme? I think thats what this is? Well I went ahead and picked him up because he was aiming to make his way into the house. So check that off the list of things to do.

Finally a shot from the drive home on Tuesday I think? Maybe Wednesday? I thought it looked cool. I haven't the foggiest what I was photographing because I don't pass anything that looks like this shape.

Things I've Done

My pictures that I took at lunch time didn't come out very well so here is a second meme (I know two days in a row. I'm floored myself. I think I need to take more images on the weekends nad just filter them in during the week.)

Here is a picture so that we have one.

I think I would have been pretty pissed about this if I were her.

OK on to the meme.

Things I've Done (In Bold)

1. Started my own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than I can afford to charity (We give some yes, but not more then we can afford)
7. Been to Disneyland/world
8. Climbed a mountain (Does it count if you did it in a car?)
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sung a solo
11. Bungee jumped (NEVER)
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched lightning at sea
14. Taught myself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown my own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitchhiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice (No the weather was crappy when we were there!)
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of my ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught myself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had my portrait painted (Does drawn count?)
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business (etsy)
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma (Please do. If you need a reason think of me. Platelet donaters (probably not a real word) are my friends!)
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had my picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a lawsuit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Rode an elephant

Meme because its been a while

Because I had to take Abby back to the vet today I'm sharing with you the First Christmas MeMe of the Season! Actually its as likely to be the only one, but here we go.

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
Wrapping Paper
2. Real tree or Artificial?
Real, but we have an artificial because I don't like to cut down trees.
3. When do you put up the tree?
Probably some time in the next week.
4. When do you take the tree down?
Around Epiphany
5. Do you like eggnog?
Watered Down with milk.
6. Favorite gift received as a child.
That's hard to say because I might have really liked something I don't remember, but I remember a doll stroller and a bunch of dolls to go with it. Loved that. Also Cabbage Patch Kids when I was a little older.

7. Hardest people to buy for?
Chris, hands down.
8. Easiest person to buy for?
Isidore and Mom
9. Do you have a nativity scene?
We have figures for Mary, Joseph and Baby Jesus, but not a whole nativity. Sometimes I put them up and sometimes I can't find a good spot for them.
10. Mail or email Christmas cards?
Mail
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?
A shirt intended for my brother and accidentally mislabeled? Probably my fault too since I wrapped most the boxed gifts for a long time.
12. Favorite Christmas Movie?
Chris' is Christmas Vacation. I'm not really sure I have one, but I'm pretty sure I've seen Its a Wonderful Life each year around this time.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
All year. Just whenever I see something I think will be liked and they aren't likely to buy in the mean time.
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
No but I've returned things to stores for exchange because I wasn't fond of them. Also I've recycled wrapping paper many many times.
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas?
Chris' is Green M&M's (except I'm pretty sure he is just humoring me and this isn't true). Mine is probably Roasted Turkey. So this applies to Thanksgiving too.
16. Lights on the tree?
Yes, lots! They are all attached to the tree to save the trouble of untangling and dizziness of having to go around and around the tree.
17. Favorite Christmas song?
Silver Bells, I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas, and, the one that can be heard most often from my lips while driving home from work because I actually know all the words, Walking in a Winter Wonderland. I also have really fond memories of my mother singing Christmas carols as a kid while we were at a midnight service. Adeste Fidelis stands out in that memory but there were a lot of other songs.
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?
Stay at home.

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer?
Yes, I can sing their song too. Or is it Rudolph's song? Dasher and Dancer, Prancer and Vixen, Comet and Cupid, Donner and Blixen, oh and Rudolph, though only on foggy nights.
20. Angel on the tree top or a star?
Bows/Ribbons
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning?
No presents get opened here.
22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year?
Too many people when I need to get something like my tires rotated. (Also why isn't that place open on Sunday???)
23. Favorite ornament theme or color?
Red and White maybe? Silver.
24. Favorite for Christmas dinner?
Turkey on Christmas Eve

Okay so that was fun. I haven't done one of these things in at least a month or two. Now you know something about Christmas for me. This isn't one of those where you pass it on but you can steal it if you need blog fodder like I decided to. I've already started thinking about this years Christmas present to you guys since I can't just recycle last years. I'm pretty sure that would be cheating.

Mini Mittens Redux

I was going to post this with Thorpe yesterday but there were already so many pictures with that I decided to give it its very own post.

Pattern: Mini Mitten Ornaments (my ravelry project)
Materials: .15 skein Pigeonroof Studios Handspun originally dyed by Fat Cat Knits in the colorway Rutabaga.
Made for: Christmas Tree most likely
Needle: US#7 Addi Turbos 24"
Start Date: 30 November 2008
Completion Date: 30 November 2008
Size: 1.5" x 2"

Notes: I was worried the whole time I was knitting Thorpe that I wouldn't have enough yarn. Here I sat with left overs!

I had to do something with the rest of this gorgeous yarn. I started with a small hat and hated it, then I tried a small sock and didn't like that either. Then I remembered these mittens. I decided that was a definite solution! I loved knitting those mittens. So easy, fast, and fun. So here is pair two. The only mod I made was to take the very last few yards and make a crazy puff (not quite a ball) for the connection between the two mittens.

Thorpe

Pattern: Thorpe by Kirsten of Through the Loops (my ravelry project)
Materials: .85 skein Pigeonroof Studios Handspun originally dyed by Fat Cat Knits in the colorway Rutabaga. (Did you get all that?)
Made for: Me
Needle: US#7 Addi Turbos 24"
Start Date: 27 November 2008
Completion Date: 29 November 2008
Size: Fit to my head.

Notes: I used a worsted weight (sometimes fingerling weight) yarn. The pattern calls for bulky so I had to make a bunch of adjustments. We'll say I made the X-Large size since I took all the measurements for the large and upped them in proportion.

I love how the top of it looks. I used US8 needles at the very top since the US7s were very tight for the first couple of increases. I stopped increasing after round 18, giving me a total of 88 stitches on the needles. I felt like I could even have increased another 8 but after blocking it seems to fit just fine. I continued per the pattern actually stopping at about 7.5 inches because I was only going to do 5 garter ridges and my rows per inch in the garter is significantly smaller then bulky yarn row per inch so I needed extra hat length. Then I bound off 34 stitches. And continued in the pattern.

I set aside 15 total stitches for the second earflap. Bound off 24 stitches for the back of the hat and worked the first earflap on 15 stitches. I did one additional decrease at the bottom of each earflap to give them a bit more length and to remove the excess stitches I added in.

I did the border as specified but ended up with 9 stitches at the bottom of each flap so I cut 9 lengths of yarn for each braid off the earflap. I braided to what seemed a reasonable length and then counted the braids and braided the other to match. And thats it I think. As you can see in the next photo it is just a little big on Laci, but still cute.

This is what happens when you try to help too much and you are a bulldog. Don't worry no bulldogs were injured (nor was the hat) in the making of this photo. Looks a bit big for Gus too.

I can tell that Chris took some of the photos because they focus more on Laci's face then on the hat. I told him that and he basically said "duh" but in a more refined way.