RIP diamond twist scarf, too

damn. i'm just frogging everything lately. i wasn't thrilled with the diamond twist scarf, either. so i doubled the yarn and am working a plain ol' seed stitch scarf, to which i will attach some pretty knitted or crocheted flowers. got that idea from the "knit scarves!" book. easy enough for my little pea brain to handle.

R.I.P. Amy's scarf

it's time to let this one go. i'm not enjoying knitting it, so i am going to look for another pattern that works better for me. i usually try to keep the recipient in mind when making something. i try to remember that what i'm making is for them to enjoy, even if it's boring as all get-out for me to knit. but this ... this pattern frustrates me more than anything so i'm giving it up. maybe it's the yarn, which i don't really like. maybe it's the pattern. maybe it's me. either way, think since the yarn is pretty thin i will try using 2 strands and do the "diamond twist" scarf in creative knitting magazine.

stay tuned for updates.

the baby blanket is started

 

 

with the help of several knitting friends, i -finally- got my friend's baby blanket started. i used emily ocker's circular cast on to get started. that helped make it easier to work the small circumference at the beginning. of course, this gets easier to work as the fabric gets bigger, and now, it's almost mindless.

choo choo!

 

i just finished painting this train for my little nephew, jalen, also known as "booger" -- well i guess i'm the only one who calls him that :-) he's 2, and he's truly a handful, but he's the cutest nephew ever, i swear. i love when i go visit and he comes up to me and says, "hi, auntie!" anyway, his room is decorated with planes, cars and trains, so i just HAD to get the letters to make his name. notice the engine and caboose, willya?

my comfortghan

 

y'all yesterday i had just an "icky" day. i woke up feeling like i'm coming down with a cold. it was freezing outside and the news this morning promised snow and more cold for the rest of the week and weekend (oooh and i get the dubious honor of working tomorrow). after work i had to scrape my car, and navigate slow highway traffic. i decided to stop at the grocery and pick up a few things (grapes on sale for $0.99/pound, bread, lunchmeat, the usual boring stuff). it was pretty much dark by the time i got
home, and i still had to get out of the car and drag the garbage bin back into the garage. i walked in with my arms full of groceries, and i was cold and snowy.

i went downstairs to kiss jay and he said, "you got a package."

"huh? i'm not expecting anything."

he shrugs. "i dunno. UPS brought it and the box is all torn up."

well, curiosity got the best of me so i grabbed my trusty box cutter and opened the box. when i saw what was in it i ran back downstairs to show jay.

"IT'S A COMFORTGHAN FROM MY DISHCLOTH SISTAS...YAY!!"

it is so beautiful! i have to find the digital camera so i can take a picture of it to share with you. i immediately put it on the bed (on my side since i have a tendency to be cold), and let me tell ya, it was -just- the thing to keep this sista warm :-)

yeah, i said it.

[ mood meter -- cranky ]

i haven't felt like knitting. yep, you heard right. no knitting. it's probably been, oh, 2 weeks since i've actually had the needles in my hand for more than a few minutes. life has gotten in the way. laundry needs washing, dinner needs cooking, the book needs writing. and, i admit, i probably spend too much time on the computer, chatting with my co-author and some of my fiber-friends. and, i've been spending the last few nights working on balancing my root and heart chakras.

the absolute LAST thing i need to do is start another project. but....i'm going to do it anyway. one of my good friends from high school is pregnant with her first baby (a girl!), who's due to arrive in early march. i've been thinking about what to make her, and decided on this. i have the prettiest pastel variegated yarn...it's so cute and "girly." i was gonna start it last night but the dpns i have are all metal and too slippery to hold the yarn. but....the bright idea side of me kicked in and started to make dpns out of some bamboo skewers. i sharpened the blunt ends with a pencil sharpener last night. this evening i will sand them down with fine sandpaper and i should be good to go. i am thinking about maybe knitting up a cute teddy bear for her too. we'll see how it goes. the "bare that belly" sweater is on hold for now....stay tuned!

i'm knitting lace!

whaddya think so far? this is a scarf for my boyfriend's mother, based on the lace pattern i found here. she had this yarn in her basement and gave it to me when we were there over christmas. dunno why she had it; as far as i know she doesn't knit or crochet or do anything that requires yarn, but hey, it was a gift so i won't ask any questions!

i should know better than to try knitting something that requires attention when i'm not giving it! i was watching season 3 of '24' on dvd (in anticipation of the season 4 premiere on sunday @ 9pm -- yay!). had to tink a few rows (more than once!) cuz i kept ending up with the wrong number of stitches between my stitch markers. thank goodness i had the foresight to use them in the first place LOL then i decided to use a life line, which i just go hip to recently. i think it will look really great once it's blocked.

oh, here are some excellent tips to help with lace knitting. go 'head. you know you wanna try it!

in other news, i'm seriously thinking about signing up for the TKGA Master Knitting Program (scroll down to Master Knitting Programs and hover your mouse over each link to get more info). i love knitting and i want to be as good at it as i can be. i'm considering taking the "Hand knitting basics, basics, basics" program first, though. it's a preliminary course to the master knitting programs. i don't know when i'll have the time (or money, frankly) to do this but i would like to start before the end of the year. if you have experience with these programs please holla back. i'd love to get all the input i can before i take the plunge!

sounds just about right

Quiet Girl


What kind of little girl were YOU?
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believe it or not, my imaginary friend's name was priscilla. i still think i'm shy and quiet but my friends don't believe it for one second. that's my story and i'm stickin' with it!

new year knitting "opportunities"

[ mood meter -- gggrrrrrrrr... ]

very early this morning (between 4am and 6am) i was reading some knitting blogs. this knitter mentioned how one of her middle school teachers didn't call tests "tests" -- rather, he called them "opportunities." she is using "opportunities" instead of "resolutions." i like the idea, so i'm copying it! (thanks, christina!)

anyway, i decided to list a few craft-related "opportunities" for 2005:

learn to spin (i have been properly "enabled" by a couple of my friends!)

learn fair isle and complete a fair isle project

make a sweater (i picked the pattern, bought the yarn but am scared to death of actally DOING it!)

design a pattern (and knit it up)

take sewing lessons

start on the christmas 2005 knitting!!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR, FRIENDS!

[ mood meter -- blissfully miserable :-) ]

mz and her honey had a wonderful anniversary/new year's eve celebration dinner at the melting pot. we always go there on new year's eve...it's a tradition now. i am so full...i won't even TELL you how much food we ate. it's embarrassing. but i'll tell ya...i am one very full, very happy homegirl!

here's wishing you all the very best in 2005. i pray that you expericence more joy, peace and prosperity than ever before, and more love than your heart can hold. may your yarn stashes be abundant, may your gauge always be perfect and may your dye lots always match.

amen :-)