Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Ice Rain = Power Outage



We had some freaky weather here since yesterday here in Kentucky. Last night we were informed that we were going to have a snow day because of the expected weather and it hadn't even started yet at that point. Over night we had some snow, which turned into rain, which froze and turned the streets into ice. I didn't even go outside with the dogs, because just taking them out the front door made me feel like they are sled dogs and I'll be pulled all over the place. What a nice day to stay indoors and knit all day. :) Just before dark we went outside to get at least the driveway free of ice. I know I'll be paying for it tomorrow when I'll be hurting all over because of it. But there is enough pain killer in my house to numb the pain, because not even that will keep me from knitting.




Right when were done and wanted to start cooking dinner the power went out and we were left in the dark - literally. The worst part about it was not that is was slowly starting to cool down in the house, but it was too dark for me to knit on this.




This is my new project I started today. It's the beginning of the Nordic Mittens from the Winter 2004 of Interweave Knits. My son's teacher was so amazed about his mittens I knit for him last winter that I decided to make her her very own pair. What can I say, he talked me into it and he really likes his teacher. I'm using some Regia sock yarn I had in my stash and Knit Picks Essential in black. I think the color contrast will be great and thanks to the self striping yarn I won't have to weave in any of those pesky tails.




I also felted the blue mittens today. I think they turned out great for a first intentional felting project. They aren't completely dry yet, so I don't have any model pictures for you yet. I just wish the cables would still be more visible. I can still see a hint of it, but not as much as I was hoping for. Hey, at least they are going to be comfy and warm and that's all that counts.

posted by Angelika @ 9:53 PM 11 comments

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Finally snow

Now I hear about all the tons of snow that have unloaded all over the country, but except for cold temperatures, a couple of times even with minus in front of it, we here in Fort Knox haven't seen much snow this season. Trust me, my kids are waiting for it. They haven't played in it in two years and can't wait to pull out that sled. So last weekend we finally got some and as you can see, everybody enjoyed it.




Here are two of my boys (I include my husband in that count) cleaning off my car and the drive way. (Yeah, right).



Looks like one of our dogs got her share of snow too.





Here they are both playing in the back yard. Can you find the other dog in the picture?



I know, this looks freaky, but we doctored the picture a little bit. You can actually see Laila on the original, but it was just too much fun seeing her almost disappear into the back ground like this. Looks like Fancy is chasing a ghost. :)



There has also been some knitting. We took a road trip to Nashville on Monday and as you know I can get a lot of knitting done when I'm in the car and I'm not driving. Well, occasionally I can be seen with my knitting in my lap while I'm on the road, but that's when I wait on my boys to get out of school. Anyway, here is a sneak peek of the project I'm currently working on.


I also started on a hat for my dad, but somehow the gauge must have been way off, because I measure a 22" around my head and I cast on for the 20" size and I still end up ripping it out, because I could have done with almost 20 stitches less. What a bummer, but I rather make it fit right.

posted by Angelika @ 12:54 PM 9 comments

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

I finished something

So I finished a couple of things over the weekend. I guess that's a good start for the new knitting year. Let's hope I can keep it up. The best thing about it, those are all for ME! Well, somewhat for me anyway.

First up is a quick crochet beret I made up for a friend of mine after the hat her mom made a while back. I modified it a bit, just to get the type and number of stitches and the size to where I wanted it. Make up a quick pompom and here we go. A fast hat made of Red Heart Acrylic yarn from my leftover stash. It's not my fist choice in yarn, but it did the job for this prototype.




Next up is cardigan for my dad. The pattern is Veronik Avery's "His Llama Cardigan" from the book Knitting Classic Style. I even almost matched the color, but not the yarn. My sister, who is doing my dad's laundry, insisted on a washable yarn, so I substituted with Wool-Ease Worsted in Blue Heather. I started this one on Christmas Day and finished it 17 days later. Not bad, I'd say. All I have left to do on this one is find some good buttons and working around the button holes. I finished seaming the jacket on a road trip. Lucky for me, because I ended up having soda spilled on my own jacket, so at least I had something to wear. :)

The road trip lead us through Russelville, KY and we stopped by to say "Hi" to Ashley and her mom at Enchanted Yarn & Fiber. I received such a nice and warm welcome as I walked into the store and I was so surprised that Marmee recognized me. How cool is that. Well, I have to say that I had to call the store for directions, but I'm sure I'm not the first one to do that, because our GPS lead us completely out of the way onto a gravel road in front of a trailer home. So make sure when you go see them, that you follow the directions on the website and don't always trust the electronic voice that tells you where to turn. If I wasn't living about 1 1/2 hour drive away I'd be hanging out there all the time. They not only make you feel so welcome there, but they also make sure the husbands are comfortable and taken care off and can sink onto the couch in front of the fire place with a cup of coffee and a bowl of snacks, so we, the knitters, can shop and browse in peace without getting the evil eye and the silent question "Are you done yet?" (Not that any of them would ever admit to doing that)



Finally I finished what was supposed to be a travel project on our move from Georgia to Kentucky. Never would I have dreamed that this little scarf will drag out to take 6 months to finish. I'm talking about the Traveling Roses Scarf. After 15 repeats of a pattern that. up to this day, I still can't memorize without the leaflet, I finally had enough. Don't get me wrong, the pattern is very nice, but it's not one that I'll make another scarf of. The scarf was as long as I am tall, unblocked, and I figured that was a good size for me. It's made from recycled cashmere and after all that time it's going to make it worth knitting, just for the feeling of this soft yarn.
I don't want to stress you attention span too much so I'm leaving you with a snap shot of my latest project:

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posted by Angelika @ 10:29 AM 6 comments

Tuesday, January 06, 2009

Remember me?

Ok, so I have been out of the blogging loop for a while. Don't really know what happened, I guess I just didn't have any interesting things to blog about, but I was surely following all of my friends blogs, even if I didn't comment all the time. Just needed a time out maybe?

Anyway, my fish tank is recovering, just in case you are wondering. I had a couple of ups and downs with it, but it's getting there. That's another thing about moving, but I won't go there now.

Also, I got my teeth and crown taken care of. Now that the dentist has her claws in me again, there is no escape and I think me and her will get to know each other very well. The good side about it is that she is very nice and a knitter. How cool is that. She wants to learn how to knit socks.
But this is a knitting blog, so here is some knitting content. Beginning of December I had a rather larger project from Knitpicks. I knitted 6 pairs of socks in about 4 to 5 weeks worth of time. I guess it's no big deal if I lift that secret about it, because the really secret part of it is, that I got to knit them in the new colors of Felici sockyarn. And that's what I can't show you, so there won't be any pictures of them. Sorry.
But what I can show you is the stranded vest I was working on a while back. It always takes a while from knitting it until it shows on the Internet or in the catalog. I did this one back in October and some of you might remember it, because of that horrible scissor shot I put on the blog. Well, here it is in all it's beauty and I think it's even featured in the catalog.


Since we moved I haven't gotten a new catalog yet. I guess I have to fix that so I have a portfolio of my work. It's the Ladies Jacquard Sweater Vest and in the Palette yarn it's really inexpensive to knit too. The pattern keeps you interested and trust me, you need it. But other than that, it was a nice knit.
To make up for all that thin yarn I've been knitting with lately, I finally cast on for my Dad's cardigan. According to my sister he is in real need of a new one, so here I am. I'm using Lion Brands Wool Ease in Blue Heather and this worsted weight knits up pretty fast. I started with this on Christmas Day and I'm about to finish the pieces today. I still have to wash and blog them and then pieces them together. We'll see how well Wool Ease blogs, since it's 80 acrylic and 20 wool, but my sister insisted on something washable. So that's what she is going to get.


I also finished a Christmas stocking that didn't make it to it's recipient anymore in time. I'll send it out anyway along with the pattern. I didn't find a nice bright red wool yarn, so I used some acrylic and now I'm sad to say that I don't know if it's going to blog out, if at all. I guess it can at least be used for next year. :) Nice try, right?


Next up I'll finally finish my traveling roses scarf. I know, this has been dragging on forever. It was supposed to be a travel project I started in July/August on my way up here to Kentucky and it's finally drawing to an end. I am ending it after the 15th repeat, which will make it about as long as I am tall and I'm 5'9". No telling how much longer it's going to be after blogging. It took a while and I'll probably not going to use that pattern again, since after all those repeats I still haven't memorised it, but the feel of cashmere will make up for it for sure. (A FO pic will follow soon)

Now let's see if the UPS driver stops by today, because I have a new KP project on the way. Just in time for the cardigan being done. Also, I have plans for the new year to put my knitting machine to work, make friends with it first, and then start up my etsy shop again. I tried it two years ago with not much luck. Maybe it wasn't the right time for it, so I'll try it again, but first I have to work up some stuff to put in there. Wish me luck. I can use it.

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posted by Angelika @ 1:10 PM 9 comments