again, no pictures. it's late. i'm tired. and my arm hurts in a variety of places. but, the cable pocket shawl is currently taking a relaxing soak in my tub. i'm pretty pleased with it, considering i didn't expect it to be done on time (half a shawl in two days). anyhow, the remaining knitting list is as follows: one snowflake sock, the remainder of the shedir hat, and a pair of fuzzy feet.
the worst part of all this? i watched all four harry potter dvds to keep myself occupied, and now i really want a weasley sweater. is it bad that i've never actually made a sweater, and yet now i have three definites (rogue, hourglass, and tubey), along with a couple i'd like to make but don't have the yarn for, like, a weasley sweater, the venezia pullover from interweave, and that eiffel from the latest knitty? oh yeah, and i'll be making the anemoi mittens soon too. apparently this new year, i'm planning to be some crazy ambitious knitter, with a bunch of sweaters, and my first real colorwork. whoo.
well.. with the work knitting at least. and the baking too. and pictures! i took pictures!
i'd still like to make a pair for myself sometime. maybe. i have the yarn, we'll see if i can bring myself to make a sixth pair. by the way, next year when i decide to knit for a bunch of office folk, someone talk some sense into me, please.
boss scarf, rolled up all nice and neat. i'm still not sure that he'll wear it, but whatever. what else was i going to get him, anyhow? last year i got him some diet pepsi (he's seriously addicted to the stuff). maybe i should have rolled the scarf around a can of it or something. well, too late for that, eh?
but that doesn't mean don't read! (i know, pictures are fun, but it's been foggy and drizzly all day, there hasn't been any sort of natural lighting to be found.)
another reason for the lack of pictures is that yesterday, i knit a lot. so much, in fact, that my elbow started to hurt again. there was minimal knitting today, though i did manage to fill some time by making soup (potato leek, yummy), and pouring through cookie recipes to figure out what i'm baking this week.
here's the question - el scarfo bosso (don't know if that's proper in any language, but it's more fun than saying "boss scarf" all the time) is currently at 68 inches in length, unblocked. probably a blocking will add a few inches. said guy is a little bit taller than me, possibly just about 6 feet tall. can i bind off, block, and assume it'll be a good length? for the record, i've never seen this man wear a scarf. i asked his wife for an opinion, so she's where the scarf idea came from.
i have enough yarn left that i could go longer. i don't really have time, but i'm willing to give up some sleep. i'm going to ponder it overnight, and decide tomorrow. for now, i have to go weave in the ends of five pairs of fetching, and wrap them up. and i'll try to work on the potentially doomed shawl for the not-quite-mother-in-law. maybe bulky yarn won't hurt so much. damn knitting elbow.
one snowflake sock is completely done, hurray! unfortunately, it did turn out a little bit on the roomy side. i should have swatched, but i felt like making a swatch in the round of the lace bit was basically the same as just knitting the sock. oh well. it's not tragically large, just not as snug as i'd prefer it to be. and my mom very likely has chubbier ankles than i, so all this worrying may have all been for naught.
enough complaining for now..
in preparation for my fake knitalong, i swatched today. i don't have the pattern yet, but the gauge should be 4.5 stitches/inch and 6 rows/inch. i started on size 8s. ha. i really have become a loose knitter! anyhow, i switched to 6s, still not happy. frogged the swatch, started over with 5s.. and finally got gauge (mostly).
before washing.. it's a little lumpy. and you can see the spaces between the stitches. the gauge was a tiny bit off, 4.4 stitches, and more like 5.8 rows. which i think is fine, if it winds up a little roomier than 39", that won't be tragic.
look at what the mailman (or possibly woman) brought me! a box of rogue-to-be! (getting new yarn didn't cure my cold, but it sure perked me up.)
i have nothing but good things to say about kpixie - the price was less than i'd expected to pay, the yarn is beautiful, and the shipping was remarkably fast. they even packaged it with colored tissue paper - maybe everyone does that (i've only ever ordered online from knitpicks before, and they certainly don't), but it made the package seem that much more fun and personal. i did initially have a problem with differing dyelots. contacted them about it monday evening, they got back to me within two hours, and the very next day, they sent out replacement yarn of the correct dyelot, along with an addressed and stamped envelope for returning the rest, which all arrived today. what more could i possibly ask for? =)
now i just wish i were finished with my holiday knitting so i could get started on my sweater. i've refrained from buying the pattern, because i know that once i have it.. i'll have to start winding the yarn into balls. and then i'll have to swatch. a swatch never hurt anyone.. but as soon as it's swatched, i know i won't be able to stop myself from casting on. we can't have any of that, as i need to abide by fake knitalong rules. (are there rules? they probably involve starting at the same time as your partner in crime..) i am reading up on the yahoo groups knitalong though - since i've never actually made a sweater before, or done any advanced cabling, or a hood, it might be a good idea to see what i'm getting myself into.
too much babble, let's have another picture! for your viewing pleasure, a very blah picture of the very blah boss scarf in progress.
the color is pretty bland (and manly?), the pattern is pretty bland (and as unfrilly as can be), so i think this will work. my gauge hasn't changed drastically - the bottom section has been washed and blocked, and the top hasn't. the yarn is ella rae classic, color 103, 100% wool. the lys owner says it's basically cascade 220, in muted, slightly heathered colors, and sold as a center pull ball. good enough for me, hopefully the boss will like it too.
and, for the boss' wife, i finally finished the mini-skull tote. (i have no idea why vox is hating this picture. maybe it's just me?) i managed to not pay attention very well when i was doing it though, so the skull is a little wonky. and i still need to line it, but that can wait until i visit my mom for thanksgiving, so i can use her sewing machine. with any luck, she'll offer to sew it in for me. (i've no skill with the needle and thread.) embarrassing fact of the evening: that papyrus plant is about as healthy looking as all my other plants. clearly, i did not inherit the green thumb that all the other women in my family seem to have.
no, i haven't started another sweater (hello, looming pile of unstarted unfinished holiday knitting), but i did order the yarn for one. isn't it lovely?
holiday knitting: not doing so good. onto my third pair of fetching. just scored a single ball of cashmerino aran on ebay for cheap, so i'll be making a total of 5 pairs - i may keep the 5th for myself, or i may gift it to a friend who i thought i was going to make a scarf for (i can make a pair of these faster than a lace scarf, obviously.) halfway through the shawl. (that's good, right?) still haven't managed to finish the mini-skull tote. (boring and tedious. we hates intarsia just a bit.) that leaves 2 simple scarves (not even started yet), basically two pairs of socks (also, not started yet), and possibly something for a baby, though that's looking less likely. less than two months. oi.
i was supposed to officially get the first half of the cable shawl finished this weekend, and finish knitting that damn skull tote, before i got started on tubey. what actually happened was just a bit different..
oh, and tubey? yeah, started that. nothing much to show yet - a gauge swatch in which i did not get gauge, and about an inch of the back started. i really do still need to finish that skull tote though - i'll need the leftover yarn from that for some of my stripes.
to prove that i haven't completely stalled out on the holiday knitting..
that's it for the cabley pictures for now.. with any luck i'll have more progress soon..
