Monday, August 30, 2010

FO: Phineas News Socks













The Specs:
Pattern: Phineas by Rosemary Waits (Quietish Designs)
Yarn: Knit Fit Knitting Footapy in "Daily News"
Needles: Addi Lace US 0
Mods: Did a slip stitch heel using the formula from Knot Another Hat. That's really the only change I made. The rest of the pattern was easy to follow, and I only do the slip stitch heel because it's longer lasting for me.
Thoughts: This might be my new favorite pattern. It's a good pattern, and works well for some nice work knitting. I think that next time I knit this (yes there will be a next time) I should go down to a US 00 needle, so that I can make the sock fit a little better without having to shorten the foot length.

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

FO: Test Knit: Classic Hooded Jacket #101



Bad blogger, no cookie. I suddenly realized that I had never posted about this completed object. Ladies and Gentlemen, my finished Classic Hooded Jacket!

Stats:

Pattern: #101 Classic Hooded Jacket by Phoenix Bess
Yarn: Berroco Ultra Alpaca in 6289 Charcoal
Needles: US 4 and US 6 (3.5 and 4 mm respectively)
Started: September 2009
Finished: May 2010

Thoughts: I did enjoy doing this test knit. It is a beautiful pattern, and the yarn is ultra soft. The styling is forgiving, and I like that Phoenix constructed the sweater to be knit in one piece, and then the sleeves are picked up and knit down. It was a fun project. Realistically, I only spent about 2 months of actual knitting time on it. It really is a fast knit, but I started it when I should have been doing my Christmas knitting, and then got sidetracked with school

I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a great style and a super warm yarn. Next time I knit this (and there WILL be a next time) I will certainly branch out and try it with something shiny, like a silk blend.

First Fiber Dyeing




As promised, here are the photos of my first foray into fiber dyeing.

The Specs:
Fiber: Louet South African Top
Dyes: Jacquard Acid Dyes
Dye Procedure: Kettle Dyeing

Overall, I am quite pleased with how this turned out. Please note that it is not quite as florescent as the larger photo shows, but no amount of photo editing can really show the blends of colors. If you will, simply imagine shades of lavender, glass blue, and some pine-y undertones. The close up is a little bit closer in shading, with the softer hints of grey.

Would I do it again? Sure! I had fun just letting it dye away, and I didn't experience any felting, which was what I was most freaked out about. And I even took notes, although next time I think I will use more dye because I would prefer more jewel tones in my spinning fiber. :D

Monday, August 23, 2010

The Week of Yay!



Yay #1: Alcariel, from Round the Twist was celebrating her 1 year anniversary of doing video casts, and drew my name for a giveaway. The prize was this skein of lusciousness. It was a door prize at The Loopy Ewe's Spring Fling, when Alcariel was there. This is a spiffy Fleece Artist Saldanha lace weight, which according to a Fleece Artist Rep is 800m/125g, (but according to Ravelry, is 1197 meters of yarny goodness)and is 100% Superwash Merino. Imagine that, a shawl that is actually washable. it was a special Handdyed color, and I have not been able to find a name for it. Any ideas?


Yay #2: While I was at work on Saturday, I was able to complete the heel turn and flap for my Phineas News Socks. I am hoping to have these done as my August 12 Socks Project. Do you think I can get these done? It looks like I've got about 4 more inches of patterning to do (I think I will do probably 3 more chart repeats) and then the ribbing.

Yay #3: I've been running. Ran twice last week, but didn't get up early enough this morning to avoid the doomy heat and sun. I am so far able to run about 1.3 miles (WITHOUT walking!!! or stopping!) I feel like I am getting better. And I did yoga yesterday.

Now if only I wasn't craving cupcakes.....

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Yes, Bacon Makes EVERYTHING Better, even Reading.

Wild Olive, oh, how I love thee!

Reading through my massive blog feed, I found this spiffy set of bookmarks from Wild Olive. Do you see that? IT'S BACOOOOOONNNNN!!!!!!

I need to make these on principal. Just sayin'.

Thursday, August 12, 2010

My Day Has Gotten Infinitely Better!

1) Alcariel, from Round the Twist with Carin videocast, drew my name for a giveaway! It's so exciting to win something! and it's laceweight! and it's gonna be mine! *super squeeeeeeee*, Alcariel, I emailed you, just look for the email from Pandora's Slave.

2) I, in my infinite wisdom accidentally ordered the wrong shirt from Shirt.Woot. I really needed a women's L, not a man's L. Now they don't normally do exchanges when you order the wrong size, but apparently I got super customer service, and they are going to allow me to get the correct size. So, as a special thank you, please go to Shirt.Woot and buy some shirts! For your info, the shirt I ordered the wrong size in was "It Came Out Of Nowhere" which was designed by Aled Lewis. Trust me, anything Doctor Who related makes me happy. And this is no exception.

3) The South African Top that I kettle dyed is almost all dry, and I am especially excited because no felting occurred. This is the first spinning fiber I have dyed, so I was a little worried it would be a horrible day gone wrong. As soon as I figure out how to braid it so it looks pretty, I promise pictures.

In the meantime, here is a picture to make everyone happy.

Saturday, August 7, 2010

Little Ray of Sunshine

This T-shirt made me think 1)I need it and 2)CraftyCoug needs it

As created by Splityarn. Loved by all

Friday, August 6, 2010

Stash Fun








So, I had a mini vacation this past week, took a few days off and headed over to have some fun. Here's the awesome loot of awesome-ness!

Okay, so the picture of the sheep is a t-shirt I scored at an LYS called Wooly Bully that shows the grading of a sheep fleece (why yes, it DOES resemble the Good Eats cow/pig/sheep prime cuts diagrams...)

The black yarn blob is actually some reclaimed yarn that my buddy CraftyCoug scored for me in one of her thrift store excursions. I haven't checked the yardage yet, but it's soft, and *gasp* black...which is amusing because I had to borrow some of this same yarn in order to do Sackboy's mouth last year.

CraftyCoug also procured some chartreuse Angelina fiber by Bryson Distributing in the color "Limetreuse" for me from Paradise Fibers when she had gone over there. I think I will try to spin it up with my merino tencel from WoolGatherings.

I also bought some Louet South African Top, from a lovely place called Cashmere Cottage Yarns, along with some Schoppel-Wolle pencil roving in color 1967 (super original name there...) which is a split of black and grey.

I had great fun, and also got some good loot!