Wool & Words

Join the CD Swap and send your fave tunes around the country...or the world!

In other news...

I want to knit everything! Currently on the needles:

1. The Wool Peddler Shawl
2. Baby Blanket avec Pocket
3. Socks

Impatiently Waiting:

1. Market Squares Bag...because I want to get some entrelac experience to knit
2. Forest Path Stole (in IK Fall 2004--an entrelac lace shawl--a potential Main Street Yarns & Fibers Knitalong!)
3. Class Sample Shawl
4. Lace Edge Hankie (class project)
5. Lace Pocket Book (class project)
6. Kimono Shawl

I want to knit it all! I've been showing enormous self restraint--my LYS got a shipment of Lorna's Laces last week and I've been itching to get some for socks! The only justification I can muster for getting some is that I've got to get knitting on my Sockapal2za socks (note to self: add that to the list above)...I want more hours in the day!

But duty calls--off to run some errands, do some laundry, grade some papers and read some diss related stuff....maybe I'll get to knit around 10 tonight!

Posted by KnitNut at 01:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

In case you were wondering...I have been a busy knitting bee!

First, for the sock lovers--my teaching socks, a pair of short cuff house wearabouts:

For the Summer of Lace-sters, two projects.

The Wool Peddler's Shawl from Folk Shawls:

And the Viennese Shrug:

And just for fun, a baby blankie from Vogue Knitting on the Go: Baby Blankets:

Whew! That's a lot of knitting going on! I've also got a sock in Sockotta on the needles--the second in a pair.

The Viennese Shrug, unfortunately, is on the back burner. The Wool Peddler (which is slowly creeping toward its lace border so that I can really get my Summer of Lace cred), is a gift for a friend and needs to be finished asap. The blankie is for a September baby. It is now my chatting knitting, since it's pretty much round and round. If you're wondering about that pattern, it's the one with the stripes and the bear in the pocket (if you have that book). I decided to forgo the stripes since I'm really not in the mood to deal with those ends! I'm using Cotton Fleece for the blanket, one of my faves. The Wool Peddler is in Lamb's Pride Superwash, not necessarily my ideal choice, but the color was so perfect (Shane's Red) and it's washable AND I'm wearing Superwash on my tootsies (those little short socks) and I'm comfy, so I figure the shawl will work out well. The Viennese is in Dale Svale.

All of this delicious yarn! Yummy!

Stash Exodus and Enhancement

I succumbed to the Cotton Ease frenzy (I've actually been eyeing it for some time), so I have to clear out MORE of my stash. Watch for new sale listings (see link in the sidebar) next week.

Back to the knitting!

Posted by KnitNut at 11:10 PM | Permalink

Posted by KnitNut at 08:52 PM | Permalink

Supreme Court Rules on Private Property Rights

Very, very sad day for the economically disadvantaged nationwide.

Posted by KnitNut at 11:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Reading Ann's Prom shopping saga prompted me to pull out this photo. That's me, circa 1985, at the annual Sophomore Sweetheart Dance.

My mom had this habit of waiting until the day of the dance to take me dress shopping. I have to admit that it wasn't as annoying as it could have been; sometimes, I didn't really know if I was going to be able to go until the last minute (my dad was kinda strict). Still, it was always a hectic day. We'd go to the department stores, I'd try on dresses and settle on one that was appropriate and affordable, we'd do shoes if necessary, and then we'd go over to the florist to pick up the corsage for my date (in this case, my "cousin" by marriage), and then there was the hairdo, makeup (generally sparse), and getting to the event. Sigh. I was usually exhausted, but the dances were attended and pictures were taken.

Looking at this picture today, I'm struck by my eyes. My hair is much shorter, thinner, and greyer now. My body is not so thin. But my eyes, even lined a bit by wrinkles, still hold, I hope, the same joy at living. Because even though the dress was late in coming, and maybe wasn't quite what I would have wanted, I was happy to have it, blessed with loving and caring parents, and happy in the moment.

Posted by KnitNut at 09:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

On Saturday, we were supposed to take the wee ones for their shots.

Steve went into the garage to get them. I came to help. One kitty was quickly apprehended and put in the very large carrier. One kitty went on the lam.

Wanna guess who the runaway was? Hint: he's the one who yawps loudly.

I just love this pic of Spike

Granola (or Nollie, for short) was easy pickins. Spike would not go quietly. He would not go gently. He just wouldn't go. So he stayed. And Steve and I took Nollie for the indignity of shots, deworming, and an appointment for a --SHHHHH!-- snip.

When we got home, we put Nollie in one of the upstairs bathrooms until we can get one of the bedrooms "kitten friendly" for the duration of their indoor stay. Spike continued to elude capture...until Monday morning, when Steve nabbed him while sleeping.

Pics when I get up there again to see my little boys. They are precious as can be!

Posted by KnitNut at 10:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

I'm finally at a place where I can, without dropping into catatonic hysteria (my own special brand of hysterics--this is where you're so hysterical, you're immobilized), take stock of where I am with regard to my dissertation work. So today, after lunch with a few members of my dissertation support group, I'm going to assess what bits and pieces were scattered around, collect them in one place, and set about rebuilding. I think all will be fine and that this little interlude may help me to achieve some much needed clarity.

An added bonus: I get to rebuild my cataloguing system from scratch. I like making systems.

Knitting News

Yesterday I taught a class in the magic loop technique. I am really too ambitious as a teacher: I thought that the best value for money for the students would be to learn how to knit a sock. In 6 hours, I can teach that. I can't, not to folks who've never even thought about making a sock, teach sock knitting in 2.5 hours.

Lesson Learned.

Summer of Lace Report: The going is slow on the Viennese Shrug. I'm only working on it in the evenings. Now that the computer is rebuilt, I should have more evening time for knitting, so progress may begin to show more quickly. The pattern is a bit more complex than I'd initially thought--42 row repeat--so that's also slowing me down. I'll post a pic tonight or tomorrow, but I have to say that it's pretty dull at this point....all that black!

I've been working on a sock (of course) and eyeing my TKGA stuff. There are so many things to do, but I have to curtail my wandering eye. I've got a skirt I need to sew up (the pieces have been cut and waiting for 3 weeks now) this weekend, and if that is sucessful, I'll be cutting and sewing the matching top.

Sewing is fiddly, but it's much quicker than knitting.

Posted by KnitNut at 12:16 PM | Permalink

My Loss is Your Gain

There's something really sad about selling bits of your stash. Even if it's the stuff you know you won't knit with...

Posted by KnitNut at 11:00 PM | Permalink

A lot can happen in a day or two. To wit:

Cari's had a lovely Beauty Pagent that speaks most charmingly to my SKFD.

Tipper's got some bling going on.

Ann's been attending naughty parties.

And me? The new hard drive is installed and partitioned--80GB total. I've also purchased a CD-Rom holder to house my new backup system. Lesson learned...

Yarn Sale will be up tomorrow, since I've got to take some pics again.

Posted by KnitNut at 10:53 AM | Permalink

For the love of all that you deem electronically dear, backup your computer now and backup regularly. My hard drive died this morning, I've lost everything that was on it, and Steve will be installing a new one for me this evening. Thankfully, my dissertation bits were mostly in a few different places, so I haven't lost a lot (that's what I keep telling myself, anyway), but I've lost a year and a half of images, patterns, class notes, teaching materials, music files...I don't even want to think about it right now.

Lesson learned. Thank God for the urge to blog--at least I've got some photos! :-)

Posted by KnitNut at 04:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

The Summer of Lace, that is!

Since I'm feeling kinda lacy, I've joined ranks with Wendy & co. Click on the Summer of Lace button on the right if you want to know what all the fuss is about!

My lace projects:

1. The Wool Peddler's Shawl from Folk Shawls--a gift for a friend--in Lamb's Pride Superwash (Shane's Red). While I'm waiting for the yarn (had to be ordered), I'm working on...

2. The Viennese Shrug from the Summer '05 IK. You know, the one in this picture?

Yarn? Svale. In Black. Which may not turn out to be the best choice, but I love the way it feels. And I want to wear this thing this summer.

3. The Kimono we talked about last time. It's freaking gorgeous, isn't it? Of course, it will have to wait for 1 & 2 to be done, so I'm guessing that it will make its debut early July. Can I wait that long?

Sigh. So much lace...so little time.

On Monday--Yarn Sale!

Posted by KnitNut at 11:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

This

Plus these

Will become this

That's the Kimono Shawl from Cheryl Oberle's Folk Shawls. The yarn is Jaggerspun Zephyr in Sable. The sticks are good old bamboo.

Mmmm....kimono....

Posted by KnitNut at 01:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

I've finished the Tahki Shawl Collared Wrap! The ribbing was endless--I actually finished casting off the collar while listening to Jim Caviezel speak at the Atlanta Diocease's Eucharistic Congress on Saturday. An interesting day in general; Caviezel's talk was particularly moving, although I really enjoyed hearing Jeff Cavins speak as well.

I've got to block and weave in ends...joy and wrapture! LOL

I'm now working on the latest incarnation of the Stripeosaurus--the stockinette and color switching was not fun (note to self: you hate knitting stripes, so just don't knit them), so I'm doing the scarf that graces the cover of Vogue Knitting on the Go: Scarves 2...that's a mouthful, eh? I think I will enjoy this much more.

I'm also still plugging away on the Spearfish, but need to really put all of it aside for the following:

1. A syllabus for my summer writing class which starts on Thursday
2. A website for the same
3. The final group project for the class I'm taking, which ends on Wednesday
4. The take home final exam for the same.
5. The class sample and instructions for the one-circ knitting class I'm teaching next Wednesday.

And let's not talk about the condition of my house...

At least the sun is out today!

Posted by KnitNut at 10:06 AM | Permalink

My Weather Pixie has been looking a bit soggy lately:

Which made wearing these especially welcome today:

But nothing could be cuter or warm the heart more than a Spike

Or a Nollie (Short for Granola):

They're getting so big...and Nollie is a flufferball!

Those socks are a pair knit from Opal sportweight. Quick knit, and I have enough yarn to make another pair! That's my kinda sock!

Posted by KnitNut at 08:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)