Tuesday, October 30, 2007

I'm in Love!



I cast on a scarf for me last night... it's getting a bit chilly here in Philly... and I love the yarn!! It's pretty close to the ideal Suzy Girl yarn. It's got all the qualities I really like in a yarn. Reynolds' Odyssey is the object of my affection.



  • It's soft! And who doesn't like soft. It's %100 merino.

  • It's pretty to look at. It's a variegated plied yarn, which I seem to gravitate towards. And it's predominantly green, with blues and goldeny browns, some of my favorite colors.

  • It was on sale! I got it at Rosie's booth at Stitches, it was marked down.

The pattern is Falling Water Lace scarf by Bonnie Sennot . She has a great blog!!
http://www.bluepeninsula.blogspot.com/



So even though I have other projects in progress, patiently waiting their turn, the scarf is my new favorite.

Saturday, October 27, 2007

A night with my peeps and the Yarn Harlot

Yes, Suzy, Knitting Novice (http://stringandstitches.blogspot.com/) , and I went to meet the Yarn Harlot. A phenomenal time was had by all. We got there early to get great seats of course, and met some really wonderfully people. It was great to just hang out, talk, and knit with other knitters. I felt like I had ADD because I was trying to listen and respond to multiple conversations, comment on every one's knitting, and then concentrate on my own. It just felt wonderful to be among my own kind, let alone hang out with Suzy outside of work. Also, I never get to see the Knitting Novice because we work different days. It's usually just email for us. It was great to see her too, and to actually speak in person.

Although she had a bad cold, the Yarn Harlot (http://www.yarnharlot.ca/blog/) gave a funny and interesting talk with great tips on dealing with non-knitters. I need these since I am pretty much surrounded by non-knitters who just don't get it. As a matter of fact, while at Borders, my best friend called my house. She and my husband had a good laugh on my behalf, "She is where? Book signing by a knitter?" "Yeah, as long as she's happy." Ha-ha-ha. Although my dear friend loves the blanket and scarf I have given her, since I started knitting. WHATEVER!

So, the Harlot signed my books, said she checked out this blog, and took a picture with me. I know this is her lively hood or whatever, but I have to give the woman her props. She was clearly not feeling well, and still came, and hung out all night at a Borders. She took pictures with everyone, and had something to say to each individual. She just makes everyone feel nice and has a good time while doing it. Her great attitude is infectious, because even the Borders people were thinking of taking knitting classes.


I also met some other Jane Austin fans at Borders. The Masterpiece Theater series on PBS starts in January 2008 (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/austen/index.html)
Sorry, but I think Colin Firth is a cutie, and him as Mr. Darcy is yummy. Come on now, knitting socks and Pride and Prejudice....you just can't go wrong there.



Take care and TTFN!

Monday, October 22, 2007

Hangin' with the Harlot


Friday, October 19, 2007
Borders
Marlton, NJ

Yup, we were there. Just about front and center. Second row center, actually. Jenny Girl, Knitting Novice http://www.stringandstitches.blogspot.com/ and I spent some quality time with Stephanie Pearl-McPhee this past Friday evening. And yup, I got to hold the traveling sock. I'm excited, can you tell??

And what can I say that hasn't been said before. The Harlot is amazing. Funny!! I expected that. But also extremely gracious.

Stephanie arrived wearing the Kauni cardigan and you could hear an excited buzz... "the sweater" running through the crowd. That sweater, as beautiful as it is on her blog, well, it's even more beautiful in person if possible.

There was a really nice crowd there. We met some great knitters and saw some wonderful WIPs. Lot's of socks of course. I had my Trekking sock with me. I worried all week, that the Trekking sock was not worthy. I wanted to have a sock of some really soft, pretty, unique handpainted yarn for Stephanie to admire. But I just never got around to casting on for another one and when Friday rolled around my choice was between the two socks in progress, the Trekking sock and a Regia stripy sock. So Trekking it was. But Stephanie was really nice. When I traded socks with her she commented "Trekking!!" as if she really was excited about a Trekking sock.

And now, though it pains me to admit this, I'm considering frogging it. Even though the Harlot held it in her hands. Is that sacriligeous?? I think it might be. I knit it up on size 2 bamboos. It's a little big and I think I would like it better knit at a tighter gauge. And the pattern... I've been feeling so-so about it. But the sane part of me thinks, "just finish the pair and move on... they'll make great hanging around the house socks... and the Harlot held one of them in her hands!"

Mmmm.... what would you do? Or maybe a better question is "What would the Harlot do?"

Thursday, October 18, 2007

Well, who is this? (and Part 2 of the road trip)

Yes, it's me, Jenny Girl. I know I have been MIA for over a week. Please accept my apologies. After posting at the convention about part 1 of me and Suzy's road trip, I caught a nasty cold over the weekend, and was out of commission for a while. Plus I had a paper due for school, and some knitting to get done. School is over until January, so expect a lot of posting to be going on. Plus my weekends are more free, so hopefully I'll get more knitting done. It's all about the knitting baby! So, on to part 2 of me and Suzy Girl's road trip to LYS.

Well, we only have two within walking distance of our work, so our next stop was Rosie's Yarn Cellar on Locust between 21st and 20th streets in Philly of course.
http://www.rosiesyarncellar.com



That's our friend Lucy posing with the Rosie's sign. She accompanied us on our walk. Rosie's is cute, but a little claustrophobic. It is very small and the yarn is everywhere, neatly organized of course. Rosie's has a nice selection of both high and low end yarn, including some great sock yarn selections. And there is always a sale basket, that I just have to rummage through. Even the sale stuff is good quality.

Rosie's also carries, books patterns and all types of knitting notions. The staff are friendly and helpful. Sorry but sometimes going into a LYS is uncomfortable. Don't make me feel as though I don't belong. Because then I certainly won't buy anything. Anyway, I ended up buying more sock yarn


I want to make something fun with yarn. A fun sock sock pattern, so I'm going to search on Ravelry. That's another time sucker upper. I can spend hours on Ravelry, that's nothing else gets done!! Love the site, I just have to set myself up properly.

Well, I have to go or else the job that allows me to buy yarn is going to kill me. BTW, tomorrow, Suzy Girl, myself and knitting novice (http://stringandstitches.blogspot.com/) are going to meet The Yarn Harlot (http://yarnharlot.ca/blog/) at Borders. We are so excited. I took the day off from work, and Suzy took a half day. Plus I get to see knitting novice, who I never get to see. Yeah!
TTFN!

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

And a good time was had by all....


No, that's not what I brought home from Stitches but.....

My first trip to Stitches East was in a word.... FUN!!!
My knitting buddy(Knitting Novice) and I took advantage of a bus trip sponsored by the Bucks County Knitter's and Crocheter's Guild (I think I got that name right) so we could check out the Marketplace on Saturday. Sadly, Jenny Girl had some other commitments and wasn't able to join us.

Can I just say YARN!! Beautiful yarn, every where you looked.
I did a little advance planning Friday night so I wouldn't just wander aimlessly... but I think I did a little of that anyway. I went with a budget in mind and printed out yardage and yarn specifications for a couple of projects I have waiting in my Ravelry queue. I knew that at a minimum I was coming home with some sock yarn and after that it was whatever else took my fancy... within reason of course.

So we visited booth after booth, and we fondled and we fondled some more.






One of Knitting Novice's purchases is just the coolest thing. A tube of little colorful yarn balls (yarn candy) to make a scarf. It's knit length-wise, stripes, with fringe. Really clever and cute!!


And I bought a little bit more than I planned... maybe... but it was a once a year opportunity so I had fun.



And we even got a teeny little sample of lace weight Malabrigo as a give away. It's so cute!! I'm keeping it on my desk at work as my stress reliever. Whenever the boss get's on my last nerve I just give it a little squeeze and pet and all is well.


Yup, a good time was had.

Friday, October 12, 2007

What's Going On....

So it's been a busy week as Jenny Girl shared in her last post. Work, work and more work! But I did squeeze in some knitting time here and there (gotta' love that train ride) and have a few things OTN this week to share.



I started the Nine-to-Five socks, a free pattern offered by Nicole Hindes http://http://allbuttonedup.wordpress.com/2007/06/23/ninetofive/
in some chinese wool I bought off Etsy from Bamboo Village.


And becasue one sock is never enough I also found myself casting on my Trekking XXL. This pattern is another free pattern you can find on the web (notice a theme here??), Campfire socks from Cider Moon http://http://cidermoon.com/cm0120.html




I have a aran cabled scarf in Plymouth Encore as a new WIP.


And just for fun, I made my littlest dupey doo, a worsted weight sock for around the house to see how quick a worsted weight toddler sock knit up. It goes quick, so I'll be making some slipper socks for all the grandkids this fall. Here's the single little one I finished last night.


oh.. and one last thing, have I mentioned I'm going to Stitches East tomorrow??

Monday, October 8, 2007

Saying Goodbye is Hard

I knew all along they weren't for me. But still it's hard to say goodbye. I got used to seeing them in my knitting bag. I could take them out and look at them whenever I wanted. So, while it's exciting that I have finished 2 pairs of socks recently, I got a little attached, so it was hard to let them go... my problem children - the faux fair isles and the better behaved pink-orange Tofutsies.

Problem children went home with #2 DD. I knit them using Schoeller & Stahl Fortissima Socka. It's a self-striping yarn that creates a faux fair isle pattern. After much consideration I had decided that I'd wanted the socks to be twins.... yes, paternal twins, not fraternal twins. With the fair isle patterning it just seemed like it should. So, after completing the 1st sock, I did my best to cast on for sock two with the same color sequence and just when I was beginning to feel pretty good about it.... the cream/green color change went haywire. After some frogging and finagling I got to a point where again, I was feeling pretty good about it and.... f#%*&@!!!! A knot appeared when I was starting the heel flap!! Where the yarn had been cut and tied, an entirely new color sequence began, ending any hope (or desire) I had for the pair to match.



But #2DD has had her eye on them and just happened to buy 2 new sweaters, from that Sara Jessica $20 and under line last week, one of which is a pretty shade of blue and another a pretty shade of green. The socks matched the sweaters perfectly, so off they went with her to their new home in NYC.



The better behaved pinky-orange Tofutsies were perfect for #1DD, she gravitates toward those colors, she's a pink girl and she's going through a tough time right now so I put them in the mail to her, hoping they'd cheer her up. Apparently, a new pair of handmade socks can't solve every problem, but they can really make your feet happy.



And, both girls, home for a visit last evening to help celebrate their brother's birthday, well what did they have on their feet?? Mom's socks..... came home for a visit too.

Sunday, October 7, 2007

On the road

Hi everybody! Suzy Girl and I are currently attending a convention in Philly, so we are taking the blog on the road. Or at least as long as my battery holds up for today.
Very sad about the Phillies :( But what are you gonna do? At least they won the division which they haven't done in 14 years. So on to the rest of football season (Colts 4-0) and the start of hockey season. Go Flyers! Now on to more important stuff like knitting.

So Suzy Girl and I took a road trip to some LYS like 2 weeks ago. We had some extra time in our work day, since we are such hard workers, and went at lunch. After getting off the El at 5th & Market and taking in some history,



we went to Fabric row (4th street below South), and visited Sophie's Yarns. The shop is light, airy, spacious, and beautiful. Old wood floors, and a friendly owner. Nice selection too.



A lot of her yarn is Great Adirondack Yarns, which are beautiful and sometimes a little pricey. I always like the yarns that are $45 per skein. She does have other stuff as well, like I think some Rowan, Cascade, and others. Just go and look around. Please don't expect me to remember these important details 2 weeks later :) I can't remember what I did 2 days ago.

Anyway, I was able to find some beautiful, soft and reasonable yarn for a nice scarf though. It's Misti Alpaca, and it was $14 a skein. I got two for the scarf. Sophie had one of these scarves knitted up by her mom, and it was nice. Especially with the soft yarn. Sophie said this company is pretty new, and I believe she just started carrying it. The pattern for the scarf is a reversible, ribbed, seed stitch. Here is an old picture , since my scarf has grown since. I'll post that at another time.


I actually have the scarf in my bag as we speak, because you can't go to a convention without bringing some knitting with you :) Suzy bought some sock yarn yarn at Sophie's, but I'll leave that for her to post. She also brings some knitting with her to this convention. And guess what? It's another sock! Surprise surprise! She is obsessed and I love her for it. Okay well, my battery is getting low, and since my laptop is middle-aged, I have to go. I'll try and post more soon.
Love ya!
TTFN!

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Yea! Me and Suzy Girl are on Ravelry

We have made it to Ravelry! Yippee-Kiyae (you know Bruce Willis from Die Hard) Anyway, now we just need the time to set ourselves up properly. All our photos, and stuff. I was just thinking in the shower this morning, that I have all this stuff to do:
-Watch or listen to Phillies games
-Iron clothes and clean the house
-Write a paper for school (I am a coasting Senior, but I still have to write a paper)
-That work thing everyday
-Catch up on T.V. and read my book before I have to return it
-Attend conference for 5 days
-And of course knit, which is a given. Do I even need to put that in the list?




BTW, you should know I have committed myself to knitting a baby project for someone, that is due by Christmas. This of course is in addition to all my other projects, like socks for myself, and my mom. A scarf for myself. Another baby project for my buddy at work. The list goes on and on. I think I just need to take some time off work, so I can knit :)
Talk to you later!
TTFN

Monday, October 1, 2007

OMG!! I can't believe it!!!

You signed up on July 27, 2007
You are #21116 on the list.
265 people are ahead of you in line.
16820 people are behind you in line.
54% of the list has been invited so far

Oh yeah, and congrats to my boys of summer: