Finished Objects

Okay, as promised here is the gallery of my recently completed objects....Some of them aren't quite "finished" yet, but the major stitching is done. It doesn't really seem like that many, but if you add them to the previously mentioned finished objects it's not bad.

The Odessa.

I love this hat. I'm glad I let Clare talk me out of the tacky plastic beads I found. I think it's gorgeous, but it's been stored for a time when I go back to my regular hair:









The Brown Crocheted Hat.

I started this over a year ago. The yarn moved to LA with me from NY (it's Lion Brand Wool Ease). After I started the hat it was my constant companion. It went with me to grad school, and spent a lot of time under the seat of my car, but the recipient's birthday was fast approaching and I wanted to get it done. I beat the deadline, but haven't heard a word from her for months. I'm a bit worried, she's got cancer and isn't taking the steps she can to deal with it properly. Hopefully, she's okay and she'll get this hat one day.




The Speckled Navy Blue Scarf.

This is some more yarn that moved to LA from NY. I loved it when I bought it, but at the time I was only crocheting. It's a lopi style yarn and not conducive to crochet, at least not the pattern I had planned, so it was stored with disgust. I then saw Nic with a Collinette scarf on and thought that pattern would work for this yarn, and here it has new life. It's warm and comfy, 100% wool with polyester flecks, I think.



The French Market Bag.
I'm really excited about this one. More yarn that relocated with me. Cascade 220 that I puchased before I knew about Cascade 220. I liked the color and the feel. I didn't like anything that I tried to crochet it into, so into the stash it went. I saw the French Market Bag and thought of it. I started it the night before my last hair appointment. I figured it was a foot of stockinette on a circular, perfect for 8 hours of sitting still. It went quickly. I like it as it is, but can't wait to felt it......I will wait because I've got to pay to felt and I want to make FuzzyFeet and I will felt them all at the same time, the FuzzyFeet are a WIP now. I used a little Reynolds Lite Lopi for the handles because I thought I would run out of the Cascade, but I think the color contrast is nice. And I've got enough of both colors left over to make a little bag to go with the French Market.








And those are all of my FOs for now. From the FuzzyFeet I'll go back to the socks, and a shawl I started. Maybe one day I'll work up the nerve to try the pattern in the Interweave Knits mag I was looking for. Incidentally, Karen had it in her stash! Yay! The pattern scares me even more now though. :)

Hope you've all had a great week!

Happy Birthday Christine!

Stash Balancing?

So, I've been making things from my stash. In the beginning I bought yarn because it was nice, or soft, or I was obsessed with the color...as I've matured in my yarn purchases, I try to buy for specific projects. In the past few weeks I've actually started and completed some of those projects and was excited about the decreasing of my stash...and then I went shopping.

Now, I didn't spend a ton of money, only one thing wasn't on sale, but I think I had more come in than go out. I think I'm fighting a losing battle with this. Anyway, here are my purchases, with explanations about what I plan for each one...if I do indeed have a plan. Later, I'll show you the finished objects (FOs) that I produced during this buying period,and you can tell me if I've balanced.

Here we go:

I'll start with two FOs. I decided to participate in Knit for the Cure this year. I did it last year and felt like my donations were underappreciated, but I had an aunt go thru a lumpectomy, chemo and radiation this year and come out the other side wonderfully. So I knitted for her...this a cowel from the Last Minute Knitted Gifts book. The book calls for a pure cashmere yarn, not yet in this lifetime have I been able to afford to give away a cashmere item...I used Simply Soft. I believe Antique Rose is the color.



I also made the kitty from knitty.com. I'm not crazy about the cat, and the pattern was a bit difficult, but my friend made it all worth it. She was having a hard weekend and I thought it would cheer her up....of course I didn't get it to her until a week & a half after the bad weekend, but it's the thought that counts, right? She and her husband loved it....if she had a blog I'd link you to it here. ;) I believe they named him Frank.




Now the yarn purchases, most of it was for socks. I like socks. I've been trying to finish other things so I can focus on socks for me. :) All the yarn below is for me, me, me! I went on a yarn store jaunt with Nic, who has finally gotten her website up and running. Please check it out. Her needles & pants/knickers (underwear) are amazing, I told her that I could work for the rest of my life and not make a needle like she does...esp the white flowers on black & the landscape. Okay, on to the yarn.....

Regia, $5.45 for two balls...no, I'm not kidding. AND they came packaged in ziploc bags just like I use!!!! I got these, and the Lamb's Pride at A Major Knitwork. I loved that place. Would be willing to go back to the Valley to shop there. I'm going to make Fuzzyfeet . Although, since it's ninety degrees again, yes I said 90, I don't really NEED them. Ugh! Where is the winter?



Here are a couple of balls of Cascade Fixation that I'm going to make little short socks out of...I hope. The girl in the yarn store said I should be able to....nice price, eh?


Then there was the Suss sale on Superbowl weekend. Apparently, it was only for two days. Odd. I got some $3.00 hanks/skeins there. The hanks are this really soft cotton/acrylic blend and they will be a stripped scarf. They were the only four of their kind that I saw...I feel lucky. The other three are a mercerized cotton that I started a motif scarf out of months ago. Danielle and Carlin had a bet going that I wouldn't finish it, so I picked it up recently and started to put it together. I hated the color combo, and decided to get these three to see which one would replace my varigated choice...the red won out, but since I will use less red than the other colors, I have more motifs of the other colors to make...I think this will be my last motif piece for a while. The other one I want to do out of the book is connected as you work, so I'm good there.





And last, but certainly not least the Rowan Cashsoft DK, that has turned into an Odessa with shiny black beads. It will be bagged and saved until I cut my hair off again, it looks weird and misshapen over the braids.





Okay, so it does not seem that I have balanced...but at least I am finishing things! Honest, I am...pictures to follow soon!

The Voice of Reason

Alright, so Dix put into words that sinking feeling I got after I published this blog.

I need to vent, but I don't want to be that whiny complaining friend everyone dreads getting emails from. So, I need to know, do I keep it to myself and do the safe thing and take the blog down? Do I take the blog down and continue to bitch and moan to all of you? Or do I say fuck it and keep the blog up?

I'm taking a vote, please chime in at any time.

thanks,
tb

No New Knitting News

At least I don't think I have any. I finished the brown hat (crochet) but can't get in touch with the recipient, so it sits in my living room. I also made a chemo cap out of the lavender Simply Soft Clare gave me. It's a small one, but I like the way it turned out. Maybe I'll have pictures later this week. I also started a brown man-sized chemo cap to donate. As soon as it's off the needles I'll start these out of some deep chocolate brown Lamb's Pride I got last weekend. I went on a jaunt with Nic to the Valley, and we stopped at four yarn stores I think. I got all sock yarn, all on sale except for the Lamb's Pride, but it was a good price, I think. My favorite of the stores was A Major Knitwork. Nice little place, great mother & daughter owners. Excellent prices & sale items. Nic got Crystal Palace dpns for $6.90 a set....I think. Age it seems...

I finished up Tara's sweater this weekend as well, and worked some more on my camera bag....knitting up on size 3 circulars, I'm kind of excited about it. My socks are on hold until I finish the last chemo cap I'll be working on for this month.

I've started a blog to rant/vent (difference?) about my job. There's a link there, Life at The Fund. Let me know what you think, comment as much as possible. I need all the feedback I can get so that I don't start to think these people are right and I'm just stupid and incompetent.