Scout's Knitted Swag

Hey you!

2006-02-20T05:39:00.000-08:00

Yes YOU! Do you still have this on your bloglines?

If so go re-subscribe to where I am now!

Okay? :)

http://www.scoutj.com

I'm so proud to present.....

2006-02-03T05:44:00.000-08:00

My new home!

http://www.scoutj.com

Please do me a favor and do two things. Go over and say hello, let me know you can comment, tell me how much you love my new site and then make sure to hit the subscribe feed so you can keep up with all of my knitty goodness. I don't want to lose anyone in the transition! Go on! Go look dangit.

I've had this design in my head for such a long time it's really exciting to see it come to fruition. With the amazing help of Noelle it's finally up and running. There are a few things to tweak, especially for anyone who still uses IE. (Go and get Mozilla!) Just ignore any weirdness you might see. That'll be fixed as time goes on. For now, I'm live baybee!

I'll send a few e-mails out but for anyone who has me in KAL or anything like that can you change my URL to this new one please?

I should win an award

2006-02-02T19:34:00.000-08:00

for the most fraternal pair of Jaywalkers out there. Cara & Kathy? Don't you think? I mean, of course they are different sizes and the one I just finished used smaller needles for the ribbing. But dayum! That's some pooling if I've ever seen it! This second sock fits perfectly. I still altered the pattern with the toe decrease and the number of stitches I used in the graft. Otherwise, 76 stitches on size 2.5mm worked like a charm. Aren't they lovely? *snork* Actually, they are super comfy and will be great house sockies/slippers. Click to see a bit better.

Here I am running away from this pattern! Although. You know what? Now that I got the gauge down I'm super tempted to use my other skein of Socks That Rock to make another pair. Somebody stop me! Or maybe I'll just do one of those simply patterns I posted yesterday?

Anyway, I'l be at the shop tomorrow from 10-3 if anyone wants to come visit. I'm off to decide what my next project will be. Because you know, I can not sit here and watch TV without knitting! The horrors!

Kid in a Candy Shop?

2006-02-02T07:54:00.000-08:00

Is it wrong to join a group just because I like the button? I saw this on Margene's blog this morning and was completely hypnotized into joining. "Seeee these pretty colors???? Come and beeeeee a part!" Plus, Lolly is so damn sweet and cute I'd probably join anything she organized. She also left me a comment the other day inviting me to take part. I think it's a really cool idea too. I'm a total sucker for colors.

Time to get dressed and hit Village Wools with Mona and our girls to pick out my yarn for Odessa. Come on now. Who else is doing this with me?

Sockapal-POLL-za!

2006-02-01T17:06:00.000-08:00

Let's pretend you're my super secret recipient of the socks I'm going to make for Sockapalooza. Which one of these Interweave socks would you like the best? Click to see them better and then vote!

Maybe do me a favor too and comment and tell me why you chose what you did. Also, if you have made any of these let me know too. I'm hoping my experience with this is a little bit smoother than the Jaywalkaholic trauma. Thanks Knitster friends!

Odessa.......so purty!

2006-02-01T12:53:00.000-08:00

This was what I wanted to make for the Knitting Olympics! I'm so excited that Grumperina got it up at MagKnits so quickly. I'm all over this one. So much so in fact I'm starting one more team.

Who wants to do a KAL with me? I've never knit with beads before and with how busy crazy my life is, this truly will be a challenge for me. So don't give me any crap about it being too easy. M'kay?

Now I'm so excited about the Olympics!

**Edited to add - if you want to join an Odessa KAL go on over here or here!

Fo Shizzle!

2006-01-31T13:55:00.000-08:00

So far today I've gone for a run, been to the shop for a staff meeting, went and worked out at the gym, got Supergirl from pre-school, picked up lunch at Whole Foods and hit her gymnastics class all in this shirt. I loved the looks I got.

Don't be messin' with a knitter man! Don't I look angry?! I think I need a few more of these shirts. We all need pissed-off-picture-posts wearing these. That should be our next knitting meme. Wear it proud and wear it loud I say!

Stitch 'n' Bitch
Stitch 'n' Bitch
Stitch 'n' Bitch!!!

Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument

2006-01-30T17:40:00.000-08:00

A lot of times on Saturdays T. will take the kids out on adventures without me. It's usually my time to get a bunch of stuff done and he really loves taking them out to explore. Also, I get way too nervous watching them so they have way more fun without the nervous mama around. Since you seem to enjoy seeing pictures I thought I'd leave you with a few amazingly beautiful ones before I go try and finish my Jaywalker.

Tent Rocks is an amazing place. I mean, really. Breathtaking. I love the middle one where you can just barely see the kids.

To do or not to do

2006-01-30T05:13:00.000-08:00

that, my friends is the question. I never do memes. Yes, I started my own once, but very rarely do them myself. Since Jenny tagged me and I woke up at 4:39am this morning I decided what the hell.

Instructions: Remove the blog in the top spot from the following list and bump everyone up one place. Then add your blog to the bottom slot.

KimberliNY
Unraveling
Knitorious
Woman Obsessed
Scout's Knitted Swag

I'm tagging anyone who wakes up at 4:30am and has the time to do it.

What were you doing 10 years ago?
I was married to T., teaching high school English and living outside of Boulder, CO

What were you doing 1 year ago?
Pretty much what I'm doing now! Running around like a mad woman taking care of my family and exercising and knitting in my free time.

What were you doing 1 hour ago?
After waking up at 4:39am completely on my own I was still in bed contemplating getting up so I can run before my crazy day starts.

List five creative things you want to achieve this year:
1. Do more sewing - possibly another quilt with my kids' clothes
2. Finish the super-secret project C, and I are working on
3. Make a cute pair of wristwarmers I can wear running
4. Learn to Spin
5. Knit with something I've spun!

List five snacks you enjoy:
1. Stacey's Pita Chips
2. Almonds
3. Dried cereal
4. Snap peas
5. Cheese

List five things you would do if money were no object:
1. Move to France
2. Take a family trip to Ixtapa Club Med
3. Have a personal trainer work out with me every day
4. A personal chef
5. Not worry about the price of clothes and look for sales when I shop

List five bad habits:
1. I bite my cuticles
2. I have a trucker mouth
3. I get frustrated very easily by stupid people
4. I am impatient
5. I don't dust

List five things you like doing:
1. Knitting
2. Working out
3. Stitch 'n' Bitch
4. Eating really good food
5. Making other people smile/happy/laugh

List five favorite gadgets:
1. My MP3 player for running
2. Satelite radio
3. My Gaggia Espresso Machine
4. My cute mini-kacha-kacha
5. Laptop with wireless

Name one thing you like about yourself:

I think I'm really fun to be around.

There memeyfriends. You happy now?

To Heel and Back

2006-01-29T16:08:00.000-08:00

This second pair is just flying. I love how they are coming out so much better I might, I repeat might, even consider using my other Socks That Rock to make another pair. Seeing as I already have some of this Prove it All Night I will just have to think about it. I'm so in love with this yarn.

Today all of us went for a hike up at Elena Gallegos. I guess we actually call it a rike since we run a lot of the way. My kids are amazing and can pretty easily run about a mile straight up a mountain. Since Margene likes the scenery shots I present you with this one.

This is probably one of our favorite hikes. In order for the mommy to go, the kids had to agree to no rock climbing since it completely freaks me out. What I don't see, won't make me nervous.

On my way up there and back I actually brought my nitting in the car and got quite a bit done. I know you are probably getting sick of jaywalker pictures but I'm just finally liking them so I want to share. See how much better this one fits? Click to see it better. How'dja like that heel flap!?

Okay, we're going out again for dinner. We're hitting out favorite Mexican joint with two of T.'s good friends/biking buddies and their wives. Seeee yah!

Jaywalker Redux

2006-01-28T14:33:00.000-08:00

Since #2 is behaving much better I decided she could say hello. She wanted you to see how pretty it is today so I took her outside to show you. I did the ribbing like I said on 1's and I like it so much better. I switched to the 1.5's afterwards and the tension is right on.

Have a great Saturday everyone. I'm off to see how much I can get done before we go out tonight. We're out with some friends to Mona's joint Gulp (Graze) for a few martinis and then a new restaurant for dinner. It feels like forever since I've been out with T. sans kids.

Vodka, cranberry & Sprite

2006-01-27T18:23:00.000-08:00

The drink of a champion right? That's all I needed to finish up my first Jaywalker. Jeezum crowbait what a pain! (Those of you from New Enlgand know that one) It's done and it's far from perfect. I don't like things not being perfect. It's one of the things I like about knitting. I have control over fixing things. However, after restarting this three times I pretty much gave up and went with it knowing I'd just change the pattern for the second one. Yeah, you read that right. Got a problem with that? I'm going to use my 2.5mm Crystal Palace Birches with 76 stitches and I think that should be perfect. Instead of frogging I'm going to have 2 different size socks. I figure they are a good pair to learn on and I already have another skein of Socks That Rock waiting for me in my stash basket.

Here is my first one. I told you she wouldn't get any publicity until she behaved a bit more and was completed. Click to see just how ~~ridiculously big~~ beautiful they are.

I altered the pattern some to fit my foot better. Probably nothing anyone would really notice. First, I made them shorty socks. I don't like really tall socks. Next, I decreased some more around the gusset because I felt it was too big. Then I decreased the toe a bit differently. I did the every other row until it was up to my little toe and then every row until there were 12 stitches left. I haven't really liked the look of the toe on a lot of them I've seen because I think it's too squared off for me. I did the kitchener stitch on those 12 and really like the look on my toe.

Big sigh of relief. This sock should have been done about 4 days ago. I'm off to chef up another drink and cast on my second sock. Wish me luck.

**Edited to add - I already cast on and am almost done with the ribbing. I decided to go down to 1's for the ribbing then I'll go back up to the 1.5's for the rest. I think I'm going to like this better. The ribbing will stay nice and formed. Stay tuned!**

How ironic

2006-01-26T08:28:00.000-08:00

that the day I decide to finally create a new home for my blog, Blogger goes completely wonky.

This is a call out there to anyone and everyone who has a Typepad Blog. I'm trying to customize a new one and am not seeing how to do my own HTML. Or, do you have to have the most expensive account to do that? How do I add my own buttons etc?

Someone please help!? I'll love you forevah! I'll send you a cool Knitty Car Magnet if you help me too.

I'm off to meet Ramona for coffee and Target and will be back in a bit. The girly has requested that we get Don't Break the Ice. Remember that game?

Rain! Snow!!

2006-01-25T13:05:00.000-08:00

I know this might be hard for some of you out there to understand but it makes us so happy here in Albuquerque when it rains/snows because it never does. Click that to see it a bit better. I honestly can not remember the last time it rained.

What this means to me is this; crappy weather outside means it's okay for my kids to watch a lot of TV right? Normally I'd feel guilty about letting them watch a movie midweek but hey! It's raining! Right now is 2:00pm. The girly just went down for a nap and the boy is about to get home. (Early release day) I figure we're going to have leftovers so I don't have to cook. I will go to bed around 10:00pm. In my mind that's a good 8 hours of knitting right!? I have Surface, Grey's Anatomy & Fear Factor TiVoed and Project Runway is on later. What a fun day. We'll just have to hope that the Scoutlets play along or "Dey're owt!" (Poor Heidi Klum)

Ready?
Set?
KNIT!

Morning Y'all

2006-01-24T07:28:00.000-08:00

I actually slept in this morning and it was so lovely. First of all I would love fo everyone reading this to go and sign up here and support the Boycott of So Fast So Sleazy.

The other bit of news is that I just signed up for Sockapaloooza. I'm excited to be a part of this one. Maybe I'll make my pal a Jaywalker? Ummmmmmm that would be a NOT! If I can't get a pair to fit me I don't think I'll be trying to fit a pair virtually on a Pal.

My goal today is to finish my first Jaywalker. I'm already to the gusset so I think I might be able to. I'll slip the girly some Benedryl at nap time so she sleeps a loooooong time. Oh stop. I'm just kidding. Stitch 'n' Bitch tonight. I love Tuesdays. It's really fun to have my girls to look forward to every week now.

Okay, off to get my ass in gear for the day. Girl day with the girly.

!!!!!!!!!!!

2006-01-23T16:23:00.000-08:00

Holy crap y'all! I e-mailed Chantal this morning to let her know about our kick-ass group and voila! I can't wait to see if we get somew new blood.

Pass it on Yo!

2006-01-23T14:37:00.000-08:00

Go here, post it in your Blogs and pass it ON! You hear me????

Just for you Ramona

2006-01-22T09:13:00.000-08:00

Breaking news! Ramona, we got the sponsorship. Noooo.... not a sponsor, sponsorship for our team. I'm proud to present, my final addition to the Olympics.

This team has been made especially for those of us who have had to rip out our Jaywalkers at least one time. See all of the smileys that are banging their heads there on Cara's KAL? I'm talking to you. We may not even be knitting anything for the Olympics either. We're just going to bond together and share memories over our frustrations of the Jaywalkers and have a drink together. Or two.

** Remember that Scout has a sense of humor and is in no way making fun of alcoholism. It's just that these socks have seriously driven me to drinking. I even bought a bottle of wine the other day and I don't even drink wine!!!**

Fine! Be that way!

2006-01-22T05:50:00.000-08:00

What? No one is going to join my team? If that's the case I may be pushed over the edge and have to join this team then.

I hope you all will accept that responsibility if it comes to that....At least the girls of JenLa have my kind of sense of humor. See I know a lot of you are Sandbaggers out there. "Ohhhh I'm just a beginner! I doubt I can do something that difficult!" *Trots off and whips off Charlotte's Web* Get it? Come on now. Be honest and join my team.

Shall we revisit the Jaywalker dilemma? If anything pushes me over the edge it will be these flipping socks. I have never struggled like this to get gauge in my 25+ years of knitting. I was going to post this whole funny picture of my Jaywalker that I literally just cut and put to the the side. I refused to frog it. I'd rather buy a whole new skein of yarn than wind that back up into a ball again for the third time. But no. I'm not giving this sock any more publicity until it's behaving like it's supposed to. Once it's being a good little sock again I will reward it with some Blog time. After almost crying at the store yesterday to Franzie, the Sock Goddess, she finally found me a pair of 2.50mm Crystal Palace Bamboo DPNs. For some reason, these are nice and slick and are a million times better than the Brittany Birches I was using before. I love them. And more importantly? I'm hitting gauge baybee! As not to jinx it, I will refrain from talking about it anymore. Maybe 3 is the magic number. We shall see.

I wanted to also talk again about how much fun it is to work at the store. I have already met all of the other Abq Knitters with whom I have been e-mailing and blogging with over the last year. It's so cute how they all come in and ask if I'm Scout. In the past few days I met Rebecca, Jeannie & Cynthia. Then, the funniest one was on Friday when Chris from Stumbling Over Chaos called! I had just walked into the store from grabbing the girly from pre-school and the phone rang. When I answered it I heard, "Oh Hi Jamie......ummmmm this is Chris from Stumbling Over Chaos!" It cracks me up how we all introduce ourselves by our Blogs. She was calling to buy another one of these awesome circular needle cases that we carry that are made my a local woman. If anyone wants one they are $35.00 and are the most kick-ass way to store your circular needles. They come in about 4-5 colors. ( Purple, royal blue, teal and ummmmm red?) I hadn't even noticed them until she e-mailed me about them. Let me know if you are interested because we will need to let this woman know to get a bunch more made.

I'm starting my own damn team

2006-01-21T06:20:00.000-08:00

Who wants to join? I've been trying to come up with what I'm going to knit for Stephanie's Knitting Olympics. I know you are all dying to find out. However, I have a lot going on dammit. Yesterday at the shop the girls scoffed at my choice as they knew it wasn't really a challenge to me. But give the girl a break. I'm busy and want to still play! Therefore I have received some major sponsorship to start up my own team who will sweep the Olympic medals. Just you watch. I'm proud to announce.....

sandbag

One entry found for sandbag.
Main Entry: ²sandbag

Function: transitive verb

1 : to bank, stop up, or weight with sandbags
2 a : to hit or stun with or as if with a sandbag b : to treat unfairly or harshly c : to coerce by crude means <are raiding the Treasury and sandbagging the government -- C. W. Ferguson> d : to conceal or misrepresent one's true position, potential, or intent especially in order to take advantage of
- sand·bag·ger noun

I'm not even going to go into anymore details. Feel free to Google it. You'll know if you're meant to be on my team or not. We're going to take over the Olympics man!

I'm curious

2006-01-20T05:04:00.000-08:00

After making 3 pairs of socks with no gauge or needle problems at all this whole Jaywalker thing has me a bit frustrated. I started on 2's with the 84 stitches. Frogged that and went down to the 76 on 1's. Yesterday I bought the Susan Bates sock set and switched to metal DPN's which are soooooo much better but I'm afraid now that the sock won't even fit on my feet! Anyway. This led me to wonder what everyone out there likes to use when making socks. Now I know it depends on what yarn you're using but let's just make Scout happy and go with what you use the most okay?

Take the poll and leave me some feedback. Can I have some Jaywalker feedback too please? I have a size 9 foot that isn't crazy large and I think I made a mistake in going with the 76 stitches. Good thing I'm only doing short ones. Last night my T. said, "Looks like someone's getting a nice pair of socks!" @*#%@!!

Wanna know something else?

2006-01-19T12:20:00.000-08:00

I'm tired of doing my girls hair everyday. Oh I know. Those of you with boys or those who can't wait to have a little girl would have a hard time believing that. But trust me. Some mornings I can barely get myself together let alone another little person. I love her hair too. However, I was feeling pretty damn lazy today which inspired a trip to Jungle Cuts where you can basically get a free week off from hairdoin' for the low cost of $10.00 including tip. I mean, what a brilliant idea huh?

You know what this means right? Well, let's add up 5 minutes a day x 7 days and that equals a good 35-40 minutes I'll gain on knitting this week. Minus the aggravation of doing the hair too and I'd say that's well worth $10.00.

Now I'm off to find my extra-super-strong-hold hairspray so those braids don't move an inch and I get my week off dammit. I wonder if she'll sleep sitting up in a chair so they might last more than a week?

Mucho better

2006-01-19T08:03:00.000-08:00

Imagine that. When I actually use the proper needles you can see the proper pattern. Whouldathunk!? I'm totally digging this pattern. It's super easy to remember and fun to watch. I think I'm actually going to get some plastic needles today because suprisingly, I'm not liking my bamboo 1's. I got the Susan Bates sock set DPN's and am in heaven!

Oh yeah, I also spent the morning creating a Blog for our Stitch 'n' Bitch group. Aw yeah.

And if you have yet to see this, click it and go support the cause! Damn you SFSE!!

STITCH 'N' BITCH

2006-01-18T13:20:00.000-08:00

Stitch 'n' Bitch
Stitch 'n' Bitch
Stitch 'n' Bitch
Stitch 'n' Bitch!!!

Am I going to get in trouble for saying that now? /sarcasm

So I think our Stitch 'n' Bitch should win some sort of prize for having the most people at one time casting on for Jaywalkers. Cara, you are more than welcome to take this picture if you want too. Although, we're missing 2-3 more people in our group who cast on yesterday with us. How cool is that? We had 8 of us last night casting on. Click all pictures to see bigger.

We all had so much fun watching the pattern emerge and knew we'd have a hard time stopping last night. Well, those of us that didn't have to frog and start over that is. Yeah. For some reason I started mine on 2's thinking it'd work. I knew I had to frog after receiving this e-mail from Cara.

Frog. That's my advice. Do them on 1s. Why did you decide to do them on 2s anyway? Are your legs/feet particularly large? Did you try them on?Frog. That's my advice. Do them on 1s. Why did you decide to do them on 2s anyway? Are your legs/feet particularly large? Did you try them on?

She was so nice in that e-mail wasn't she? She could have said, "What the hell? Get a clue and follow the damn directions okay?" So Miss Scout learned her lesson and now has a pair of Jaywalkers that look much better. If my tummy would behave I might get some knitting done today. I'm finding out I'm not completely better yet.

Back to Stitch 'n' Bitch. Here are the rest of the girlies who were knitting but just not the Jaywalkers. It's all good! We still love them. ;) Look at my student Debbie who learned how to knit just 2 weeks ago! She loved my Booga Bag so much she decided that had to be her first project ever. She was so damn happy after I helped her pick up the stitches last night. But look at her bag! She's rockin'!

This is Bev & Carole's tribute to the late Johnny Cash. We're so mature aren't we?

Oh Socks That Rock

2006-01-17T11:12:00.000-08:00

How do I love thee? I really think that this colorway is my most favorite yarn ever. Click to see it bigger. I mean, how can you go wrong with pinks, blacks, greys & fuchsia? Hard Rock. To. Die. For. Is this not the prettiest yarn?

Since the lighting completely blows where we knit, most of us are casting on before tonight because the Abq girls are starting our own Jaywalker KAL. It should be a blast. I'll remember to bring my camera to document the momentous occasion.

Now that I have my ribbing done I'll be a good girl and go back the the criss-cross scarf for the girl. Carole already threatened me not to knit more than the ribbing since I yelled at her not to either.

I'm so in love with this yarn. I really need to go and buy some other colors. I think I'll make my T. a pair after mine.

I'm alive

2006-01-17T07:47:00.000-08:00

Got a bit more sleep last night and definitely feel better. I ate some toast and am going to even brave some coffee now that something is in my tummy. I have a huge headache from no caffeine yesterday. Thanks for all of the well wishes. I'm just happy it was just a 24 hour thing. I'm even hoping to maybe go to work for a few hours. We'll see how I feel in a bit.

Now, on to knitty goodness. I did happen to finish the boy's socks two nights ago. They turned out great. They are a little bit too big in the calf but it's okay. He loves them. The girly had to model hers too.

I loved all of the ideas for the 2 day knitting contest. No one really won since I didn't get to knit for one of those days. However, if I had to pick the one I liked the best I would have to say that my girl Bev would win. I love these little bags. I will have to make one soon. So I'll be picking up something fun for you from the store okay?

What I did start the other night after the socks were done was this fun scarf I saw on Knitty Gritty. I'm using some Bernat Cottontots I bought for that baby sweater I have yet to make. Shhhhhhhh.

The first criss cross row was a bit awkward but then it's a breeze afterwards. I think I'll make this for the girly. It's just some stash yarn but pretty cute for a little girl I think. Isn't it a fun pattern? It's supposed to be done with something more like mohair but I think it can work with this too.

Okay. I'm going to go get coffee, wind my Socks That Rock and cast on for Jaywalker so I'm ready to go tonight. Cara, I'm e-mailing you because I have a question about these.

**Edited to add - Here is the pattern for the scarf as requested by a few of you.**

Wish me luck

2006-01-16T16:10:00.000-08:00

I just ate a few spoonfulls of rice. Let's hope this time it stays down. The first time I tried to eat today was not very successful.

You know you're really sick when you're in bed all day and can't even knit. I'm that sick.

Lots of fun. I just also woke up from a 3 hour nap. Fun, fun, fun.

Ughhhhhhhhhhh

2006-01-16T07:53:00.000-08:00

In case you have forgotten? Throwing up is not a lot of fun. No sir. Thankfully, my T. is home for the day and got the kids out of the house by 8:30 and said he'd be gone all day with them.

Ugh.

Maybe this is what I get for declaring it "Ignore your family and come have breakfast with me at Flying Star Day" yesterday?

Good morning lovies

2006-01-15T06:39:00.000-08:00

How is everyone doing today? I'm just happy that I don't have one single thing planned except for a possible bowling outing later with a few family friends. We'll see. I'm feeling like a day filled with knitting and football.

Can I tell you all how much I absolutely love working at Village Wools? Most of my local girls know this firsthand as they have all seen me in action. Friday was so much fun because almost my entire group of knitting chicas came in to see me. Noelle, Ramona, Meredith, Cari, Beverly and Beth all came in. I'm not missing anyone am I? Then on Saturday I had that please of meeting two cool chicas from the *other* group! It was so funny. I walked over to them and asked if they needed any help and they said, "Are you Scout? We're nepenthe & woman obsessed!" I've e-mailed with both of them for a bit now so it was fun to finally meet them in person. I have to say I was very impressed with their ability to stick with their self-imposed yarn diet. They were both good girls and only ended buying magnets for their cars and the new Vogue Knitting which is actually really good this issue. Bobbles and cables are definitely in. Speaking of the magnets, someone saw my blog and called and ordered 4 magnets from Illinois! The women at the shop thought it was so cool.

Okay, here is where I'm asking for some help from you. One of the things I really want to learn about is fiber. I mean, it's probably the one area I need to learn the most about. For example, someone bought some tencel yesterday. I couldn't tell you all of the details that Franzie the owner was able to tell me. It fancinates me! So. If I want to buy one really excellent resource that would go into detail about fiber what would you recommend? I'm counting on you. You hear me!? The teacher in me does not like not knowing EVERYTHING!

Now I am off to finish my boys' socks and watch some football! Oh wait. Also, if you had 2 days to knit something cool what would you knit? I'm starting Jaywalkers on Tuesday but can't go two days without knitting. The person who gives me the best idea will win something. For reals! I'll send you something from the shop. Ready? Go! Inspire me with a pattern and everything.

Cara....we are your friends.

2006-01-13T07:13:00.000-08:00

But I'm a bit worried about your obsession with the Jaywalker socks. Therefore, I have decided to stage and intervention. I told you I was concerned. I know the Jaywalkers are great socks. I'm even about to start knitting my own. But Cara, sweet Cara? We're all worried about you. Are you eating and sleeping? Or are you simply living and breathing knitting these socks? Please take a minute to evaluate your situation because we are all concerned. You do know that there is medication for this? Maybe you have a secret number of these you're going to knit and until then you won't stop? What is it? Ten? Twenty?

Anyway. Just know that we're all here to support you. We will listen to you and hold your hand through this. We can help wean you off of this if you need help. All you have to do is ask. Okay?

Heeeeeeee! (For those of you hiding under a rock, Cara just finished her ~~NINTH~~ SIXTH pair of these wonderful socks! Go check them out. They are all fantastic. She's amazing!)

Wanna know a secret?

2006-01-12T14:38:00.000-08:00

My daughter is taking a nap and I'm sitting in my comfy chair knitting and eating her Fruit Loops. The best part? They are damn tasty. Shhhhhhh. Don't tell anyone okay?

Tell me a secret.

One more...

2006-01-12T07:56:00.000-08:00

(My feed was being totally wonky yesterday so I hope my Blogline buddies got the feed finally.)

I got brave. It took a while to get it to fit perfectly but I did it. I lined my first bag ever. I've easily made about 10 bags and have never lined them. Now that I know how to do it I look forward to making this one again. I really love how easy this bag is to make. Here's my funky mod lining. Cute huh?

Pictures Galore

2006-01-11T07:19:00.000-08:00

Hope you like picture updates because you've got one here. I've been a busy little Scout this week.

Where shall we start? How about I show you what my girl Carole made for my boy for his birthday? You gotta love Wendy's Boogietime.

Here was the whole gang that came to celebrate

Next we're onto some FO's. First we have Cherry Garcia made with some beeyootiful yarn made by misshawklet.

Next we have my most favorite bag I've ever made. I love this so much and can't wait to show it off today. I was going to go with black round handles but I really think I like the look of these natural ones even better. I just have to line it and it's done. However, I'm thinking I may take it out today even without the lining because I'm impatient like that. Here she is. Isn't she gorgeous? Thank you again Allison for your help.

And last but not least.... Cara, lookie!

Socks that Rock. OMG. Prettiest sock yarn ever. Period. I can't wait to cast on my Jaywalkers!

Alrighty. How's that for a picture-post update?! Now I'm off to finish my boy's socks.

Oh wait! One more! Ha. Here are the Sandias once the sun hits them. Almost as pretty as some of Margene's pictures huh?

Meme # dos

2006-01-09T06:46:00.000-08:00

Here's my next fun meme for my readers with the additional brain power of Ana. I posted about it the other day and I've seen a few of you out there posting your pictures but I want to see more. I should have a contest to see who can get a magnet in a picture the farthest distance away from me possible. (That be some good English!) In fact. That is a challenge I propose as of today. I know I have some European readers. China? Japan? Australia? I will send the winner something fun from the Shop if you buy a magnet from Lisa and post a picture of it on something where you live. And photoshopping a car with a magnet on it, in front of the Eiffel Tower will not count!

Here is mine. I live in Albuquerque and have the prettiest view from my driveway of the Sandia Mountains. It's early so you can't see them very well. Maybe I'll do another one once the sun is pretty on the mountains.

I can't tell you how many people comment on my magnet. I love it so much. If you are reading this (and I know at least 100+ people a day read this) consider yourself tagged. Come on y'all. Knitters of the world unite! Get your magent and tell the world you're a knitter and you're cool!

See what happens when I have a Starbucks triple shot latte first thing in the morning? Lots and lots of exclamation marks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What is that saying?

2006-01-08T07:42:00.000-08:00

"Idle hands are the devil's tools"? That was me last night as I sat in my knitting chair and my family started watching "Attack of the Clones". See where it says 142 minutes? I knew I was in trouble because I had forgotten my Booga Bag with my current WIP at the store. I felt all fidgety and knew I had to start something or I'd go nuts trying to sit there all night without something to knit. I immediately grabbed for my misshawklet homespun sent to me by my wonderful Secret Pal Jen and decided to start on HelloYarn's Cherry Garcia. Ramona finished one up a few weeks ago and it seemed like a fairly quick and fun knit.

So all was good in the Scout house last night as I was able to fill my knitting needs as I whipped up almost 2 repeats of the pattern. I know it's kind of haerd to see what's going on there but I promise it's way pretty! Isn't her yarn yummy too?

My only concern is that I don't have enough yarn. I guess I'll just knit until there's nothing left. I could always do some sort of ribbibng on each end with another yarn if it's too short? For anyone looking for a fun project I highly recommend this one. I wonder if it'll ever get cold enough to wear it here!?

Workin' it!

2006-01-07T07:16:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was my first day of work and it was great. It was like I've been there forever. I walked in and basically they just had me start working. I watched Meg (one of the four owners) write up one sales and then I was on my own. I felt 100% comfortable and could pretty much help everyone who walked in with the exception of the woman with the eyelash shawl who had *put it down and forgot where she was* as she pulled out the most tangled mess of eyelash I've ever seen. I even found myself saying, "Sometimes you just have to decide to cut your losses and cut that all out and start over." I happily passed her over to a coworker who knew the pattern she was attempting. They all thought it was funny that I fully admitted to my OCD tendancies and will spend all of my free time straightening up the yarn. I'm going in today from 1-5 if anyone wants to come visit! Please!? So yeah. I totally will love working there. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they buy a new space just down the street from me so it only takes me 2 minutes to get there instead of the 15. Also, Beth from my Stitch 'n' Bitch came in and bought a few things and we spent forEVER winding up a hank of sock yarn.

The other thing is that I'm worried I'm coming down with a cold. Dr. T. told me to take the day off from working out so I'm following his directions and taking it easy. Blair has some birthday money to spend so I think I'll just go out and do that with him this morning. Thanks for all of the birthday wishes!

So yeah.... 1-5 today! Who's coming in!?

Happy Birthday to my big boy!

2006-01-06T07:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday baby! May all bad luck slide off that buttered nose throughout the next year. (tradition in our house is to butter-Earth Balance each other's noses on Birthdays) We love you so damn much. I can not believe you are 7 years old! Such a big kid.

I'll play this one!

2006-01-05T14:03:00.000-08:00

I'll preface this by saying I'm Jewish and this is supposed to be FUNNY!

If you haven't seen JenLa's Blog yet you must go check it out and play. This is like Go Fug Your Avatar.

My avatar is called "The shiksa celebrates Hanukkah for the first time." Isn't her outfit hot!? She even brought a bacon cheeseburger to the party! She brought enough to share with everyone else too but was a little confused when they politely declined.

Go ahead... it's FUNNY! Or is my humor not appreciated? Hummmmmmmm..... do I delete it? Or can my reading crowd handle a little offensive humor? Maybe this post will self destruct shortly.

Holy crap y'all!

2006-01-04T15:31:00.000-08:00

Um, weirdest day. I got a phone call at 12:00pm today from one of the owners of the local yarn shop where I'm frequently found. (Village Wools for those who don't know) Totally out of the blue, they asked if I could work for them. I was speechless. I hadn't said a word to them and am not even looking for a job. With my two kiddos and the two other bigger kiddos I watch in the afternoons I'm already pretty busy. I immediately freaked out a bit wondering how it could even be possible to make it work. I send people there all of the time and they know I started the Albuquerque Stitch 'n' Bitch group but how that came to offering me a job I don't really know. Oh yes, let us not forget my charming personality!!! That's the ticket! Anyway, after going in and talking with the owners and talking with T. I called them back and told them I could work Mondays 10-2, Fridays 11-3 and Saturdays off and on when they need me. She agreed right there on the phone and I'm going in this Friday! The cool thing is that all of the women who work their have kids, know what it's like and are very understanding and flexible about working there. They said that all of their kids grew up in the shop. I didn't realize it's 30 years old.

So yeah. I um, have a job in a yarn shop! How CRAZY!? And to think I was going to possibly join that stashalong. No way dudes!

And the winner is.....

2006-01-03T13:38:00.000-08:00

Emy!

How freaking cute is this bag? This one in particular belongs to Allison. I know a bunch of people made these over the past year but hers really caught my eye. There's a whole long thread about them on craftster.org if you're interested in making one. I know, it's a knock-off but man....I just had to make it! And who the hell pays $150-$200 for a knitted bag!? I'm using Twillys "Freedom Wool" in #405. My picture below doesn't do the color justice at all. It's so much prettier in person. I also got some cool, black retro fabric for the inside and want to do a black ribbon with black handles. It's going to totally rock!

Thanks again Allison for the inspiration.

Also! Look what my best girl made for me. We're both having a hard time getting the lighting so look at the one on the website.

Isn't that yarn gorgeous? It's from kpixie and it's called Karaoke-color 278. I love it so much. The pattern is on their website for free too. When I get a better picture of hers I'll post.

Let's play a game!

2006-01-03T07:21:00.000-08:00

Who knows what I'm making? Carole and Laurie can not play because they know the answer already.

I took a teeny break from the boys' socks to make this because I just had to have it. Go ahead....see if you can figure it out. It's actually a pretty easy one.

Ready?

Set..... GO!

Happy New Year!

2006-01-01T06:55:00.000-08:00

A special shout out to Cara at January One. Happy Birthday sister! To all my knitty friends out there, may 2006 treat you kindly.

The guilt can be released

2005-12-30T19:39:00.000-08:00

So my good friend Kelly is not getting a knitted baby gift right now. I just can't bring myself to knit a baby thing right now! I'm being totally selfish and really want to knit the Jaywalkers with my Stitch 'n' Bitch girlies. I'll knit her something when I feel like it in a few months. There's something about the pressure of getting it done. You know? I'm such a rebel I hate being made to do anything. Not that I was being made to do it, but I was forcing it too much and wouldn't have really enjoyed it. Instead, sweet baby Grace will be getting these:

Some of my most favorite baby gifts from when my own girly was little. Those Little Taggies are brilliant. And yes, I know how easily I could make one of those. Don't even say it okay? They're bought, wrapped and ready to ship and I'm happy about it dammit.

Plus, I just bought some of this Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock yarn in Black Watch. How yummy is that!?

I just need to put the gifties in the mail tomorrow and stop worrying about this present, finish my boys' socks and onto Jaywalkers!

Go buy one now! (New MEME!)

2005-12-27T14:03:00.000-08:00

I bought mine at my LYS-Village Wools a few weeks ago and it went right onto my car. I'm hoping it gives off the impression, "Back OFF or I'll stab you with my kntting needles!"

Maybe I need some help for my agressive tendancies? Anyway, I want everyone to unite and have a cool knitting magnet on their car. Mmmmkay? Click on the link and you can buy one there. (Thanks to my Secret Pal 6 recipient Eyow for finding this!) I haven't been able to figure out where else you can buy them. I was at Village Wools today and Carole got one too but I'll post about that later. I'm on a total yarn bend. Somebody's gotta stop me!

Edited to add: Ana had a great idea for us all to buy these, put them on our cars and post pictures of them! I think that's way fun so I'm tagging anyone who reads this. Yah hear me!?

Finito

2005-12-26T15:36:00.000-08:00

One down one to go. I can't believe how much easier it is to make socks once you've knocked out a few pairs. Here is the boy a little bit ago.

I've already casted on sock #2 and am a few rows into it. I hope to have them done in a few days.

I hope everyone had a good weekend and enjoyed celebrating or not celebrating whatever it is you do or do not celebrate!

Bwahhhhaaaaaa!!!

2005-12-22T14:25:00.000-08:00

I just saw this on Goodkarmago's Blog and it's hilarious!

Pimp My Nutcracker

Here is mine. He's hot!

Option #6?

2005-12-21T07:15:00.000-08:00

Make a pair of socks for the other child who feels left out of knitting swag! This other kid of mine is pretty cute even when he's super tired like he is in this picture.

We trekked on down to Village Wools two days ago and I let him pick out his own yarn. His favorite color is red so it wasn't very hard for him to pick out the yarn. He picked out the same yarn that I made his sister's socks out of this Lang Jawoll Jacquard. I'm digging on this colorway. Now that I've made a few pairs of socks they are such a piece of cake. I actually really enjoy knitting them. Whoulda' thunk?

I thought you'd all like to see my other child next to our Christnukwanza tree.

Isn't he a cutie? Hence the name! Okay, time to get a move on.

Blargity Blargh

2005-12-19T06:45:00.000-08:00

Isn't my One Skein Wonder pretty? Isn't the Melting Grape Popsicle beautiful? Too bad it's cutting off the circulation under my arms in those pictures. Yep. These linebacker shoulders are too damn big. Or actually, my lovely husband didn't do a great job measuring when I asked him to take my shoulder to shoulder measurement.

Now what to do? I blocked the crap out of it and it's stretched to it's limit. I refuse to frog it. I know I could probably frog the ribbing and add some stitches but I'm not even sure I want to do that. The yarn is a bit delicate (Where the silk and wool are spun together) and I don't know how it would hold up to frogging after I've blocked it. It's probably only about an inch too tight. Maybe not even that much. What would you do? My choices are:

1) Screw it. Cut off the circulation under your armpits! Pain is beauty!

2) Find someone to give you the money for the yarn and make another one.

3) Force your 3 year old to wear it.

4) Frog the ribbing, add some stitches and make it bigger. Not fun, but best option.

5) Give it to Carole and make her fix it for you because she loves you and would do that for you if you whined enough.

~~Also, it's only 7:55am on day one of Christmas break for both of my kids and I'm already ready to strangle them. How the hell am I going to make it 2 weeks and 2 days? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?~~

They can go to the drop-in daycare at the gym so I can run! Woot!

Oh, but they are cute aren't they? Happy Holidays to all my crafty friends out there!?

Knitting is punk rock!

2005-12-15T07:21:00.000-08:00

That's what I told my neighbor sk8tr grrl yesterday as I taught her how to knit. I made a little trip to Hobby Lobby and bought her some cool Camo yarn, needles and a little bag so she'd be all set. Then we started with the basics. You can't go wrong with Camo yarn and both Stitch 'n' Bitch books can you?

She was a quick learner and kept saying, "This is so easy!" (Umm, ignore how tired Ms. Scout looks. It was a long day)

The cutest thing was when I handed her what I had bought for her and she gave me the biggest hug. She was even holding the needles like a pro within minutes.

It really feels unbelievably satisfying to teach a 12 year old a skill they will continue using for the rest of their lives. She had so much fun with it and said she'd be taking it everywhere with her. That's when I told her that knitting was cool and she had better tell everyone that. Repeat after me, "Knitting is punk rock!"

I've been busy myself working on the One Skein Wonder. I love Noelle's yarn. Yummmy. It's super soft and so damn pretty all knit up! I had my boy model it for me this morning.

I hope to finish it today so I can wear it this weekend to my holiday parties. Then I really need to make that baby sweater. Or should I make those socks for myself out of that gorgeous Cherry Tree Hill yarn I got? (the middle colorway). Baby sweater or socks for me? hummmmm whatcha think? I'm pretty sure I'm going to make Grumperina's Jaywalkers with my Abq girls. We're going to do our own little KAL. That yarn will work right? I didn't even look.

Sweater?
Socks for ME!?

I'll let my readers make the call. Are baby gifts like wedding gifts where you have a year?

The Rockstar is in da house!

2005-12-12T06:12:00.000-08:00

Well, not exactly a rockstar but most definitely a Knitstar! Some of you may remember this cool, hip, guitar strap from Knitty's Fall '03 issue and not have put it together that this is also Knitty Gritty's own Vickie Howell.

Before we get to the interview let's start this off right. To celebrate the end of Vickie's Blog Tour I'm serving up my own creation of Christmas Cosmopolitans to all of my readers. Go ahead and grab one and let's go.

As I've mentioned before, I grew up knitting. As soon as I heard the buzz about the new show on DIY called Knitty Gritty I set my TiVo up for a season pass and was immediately hooked. To this day I still record the shows and always learn new knitty tricks. The crazy-busy, mama of two recently finished wrapping up shooting seasons 4-6 of the show and has just released her first book titled New Knits on the Block. You can even buy a signed copy if you want.

With another new book in the works as well as a new TV show it sure as heck doesn't look like she'll be slowing down any time soon. Let's see exactly what our favorite knitster grrrl has to say shall we?

I know that you do other needle crafts. In what order did you learn those? (I asked her this because everyone says it's harder to learn how to crochet after knowing how to knit)

Jeez lady, I don’t remember my crafty chronology. ;-) Ummm…I think I learned to hand-sew first when I was about 6 or 7 and then over the next few years I learned how to cross stitch, crochet, embroider, punch embroider, machine sew, plastic canvas and then finally, knit.

I have knit my whole life and can't wrap my mind around crocheting. Do you do a lot of that?

Not anywhere near as much as I knit but my 3rd book will be on crochet, so that’s soon to change. I’m actually really looking forward to dedicating some time into experimenting with it!

Have you always been such a crafty mama?

Yeah, I guess so. I was raised by a crafty mom so it was inevitable that I’d become one myself.

List your top 5 most favorite Knitting Books that you have used over and over again.

In no particular order: Stitch N’ Bitch Nation (Debbie Stoller), Loop-d-Loop (Teva Durham), Weekend Knitting (Melanie Falick), Simple Knits with a Twist (Erika Knight) & Vogue’s Big Book of Knitting.

My husband is asking me to ask you what music do you like to listen to when you knit. (We're listening to the new Bob Mould that inspired this question!)

Well Hubby, I don’t have any special knitting music per se —I usually just put my i-pod on random and put my needles into motion, yo. ;-) As I’m typing this I’m listening to this amazing song called “Salome” by Pigeonhed (a band that my friend just turned me on to). Lately though, I’ve been revisiting Radio Head’s Kid A (one of my all time faves) and listening to a lot of White Stripes, The Dandy Warhols, The Decemberists, LadyTron and Gwen Stefani (‘cause ya know, a little pop never hurt anyone.)

Do you get into a knitting slump during the summer or do you just grab the needles and whip up a bikini?

Living in Texas you would think that I’d avoid knitting during the ridiculously hot summer months, but that has yet to happen. When I’m not knitting something work related (I think I knit the dude’s Brimster Beanie that’s in the current Knit.1 during the summer), then I’m most likely working on a bag or a smaller project. This past summer my son wanted a “wristband o’ power” to match his black low-top Chuck’s for the first day of kindergarten, so of course I had to oblige.

How did Knitty Gritty come about and how did you become the host?

The show’s production company, Screen Door Entertainment, had sold the idea of a knitting show to DIY. When their original host plans fell through, they hit the internet in search of someone new. They literally Googled for “Hip knitters” and a logo for one of the Stitch n’ Bitch groups I started came up. They e-mailed me and to make a long story short, two days later I flew to L.A. to audition and shortly after was offered the job.

Are you enjoying it? It seems difficult to juggling everything you have going on in your life, how do you do it all?

Yes, I love what I’m doing and yes, it’s really difficult balancing it all. I don’t sleep a lot, ingest a lot of coffee and diet coke, have a cocktail now and then and rely greatly on my daily chats with my best friend Tammy (aka keeper of my sanity). I don’t always do the best job of juggling, but I’m learning.

Tell us a little bit about your new book New Knits on the Block. It must be so exciting to be published!?

It’s really exciting! I’ve always wanted to write craft books so really, it’s a dream come true for me. NKotB was a labor of love for me, so I’m thrilled that people don’t seem to think it sucks (or if they do, they’ve kept that fact to themselves…which I greatly appreciate).

What do you have coming up in the next few months that we have to look forward to?

Hmmm….well, This Saturday (the 17th) I’ll be a guest author at the BUST Magazine Craftacular in Brooklyn (www.bust.com), I have a (sewn) hot water bottle cozie (I know, random) coming out in the February issue of Budget Living and the TV show I co-host (Stylelicious) with the other Austin Craft Mafia members starts airing in the spring. Other than that, I’ll mostly be traveling to promote this book, decorating my new house (woohooo!) and working on the crochet book. There’s other stuff I know that I’m forgetting about but if you’re interested, you can always go to www.vickiehowell.com for the scoop.

Lastly, what do you love about knitting the most?

I love that it gives me something to do with my hands when I’m sitting “still”; I love that it helps me relax while simultaneously creating something beautiful; I love the community that it’s afforded me (holla out to the MEOWers!) and most of all, I love that I’m still constantly challenged and inspired by it.

A great big thanks to Vickie for taking the time to answer all of our Bloggy questions on the virtual tour. I wish you tons of luck with all of your crafty endeavors. Just make sure that when you do your real book tour you get your crafty-self here to Albuquerque so we can all meet you.

Socks 'n' Clocks

2005-12-11T18:08:00.000-08:00

Today was a busy craft day dans Chez Scout. This morning we did our annual holiday clocks for the kids' teachers. Every year I buy inexpensive clocks from Target for about $4.00 and the kids do beautiful water colors that I put into the clocks as the face. The kids love making them and the teachers love getting them. Perfect. Click the picture to see a bit better.

During the soccer game (Which we lost... BOO!) I got a bit of knitting done and finally finished my socks for Miss Bee.

I love how they turned out all funky and mismatched with the stripes. Thanks to my girl Carole who ran over here to swap some needles with me, I was able to get them modeled. Lucky for me she has the same size foot as Bee so I was able to use her throughout the process. These are my first adult socks!

I'm off to cast on the

Melting Grape Popsicle to make a One Skein Wonder. Noelle? You there? ;)The yarn is wound up and ready to go.

3
2
1
Cast ON!

Public Service Announcement

2005-12-09T08:48:00.000-08:00

Whatever you do? Do not, I repeat, do not learn how to needle felt. Beverly was right. It's highly addictive and you immediately find yourself wondering what you have that you can needle felt. I am supposed to be running right now. The dog has been patiently waiting for a good 45 minutes. What have I been doing you ask? I realized in the middle of the night that my mitered felty bag needed a little flower on it. Don't you love when you're thinking about crafting in the middle of the night when you are supposed to be getting rest? I rushed home after dropping my daughter and Carole's daughter off at pre-school to do this. It's too cold right now to run anyway isn't it? Maybe I should just go and see Carole at work and get a pumpkin scone and a latte? One 1/2 pump of chocolate, triple shot, non-fat, no-whip latte to be exact and I am so, not high maintenance!

Oh hell. I'm going to go for a run. Then maybe the scone? Did you know that those damn things have like 22 grams of fat? Why does everything that tastes so good have to be so bad for you? Oh well. I'm off. Chulo will be happy at least.

Wow

2005-12-08T19:14:00.000-08:00

First of all I want to thank those of you who have already participated in the knitting meme I posted about yesterday. It's been so much fun seeing where everyone parks their tush and gets their knitting groove on.

This afternoon I had a needle felting party! Thanks to my fabulous Secret Pal Jenn I got a Fiber Trends needle felting kit that I got to test out today. I made a felty bag a few years ago for my son and it's basically just sat in a toy box unused. I decided it was the perfect thing on which for me to learn my new mad skilz. Beverly came over to felt a bag she wasn't too keen on and a cute secret other thingamajiggy. It took about 2 stabs of the felting needle before she exclaimed, "This is so cool! Ramona was right! This is so easy. I love it!" My girly got in on the action and had fun playing with the roving. Then Shelby, my cool neighbor, sk8tr girl showed up. (She and her brother come over now in the afternoons while her parents are at work) She totally loved it and almost did one whole side of my bag. I am going to teach her how to knit next. Check out the action here. If you're related to Beverly in any form don't look because I don't know if one of these is for you! You have been warned.

These are the pictures of my bag. I need to retake them tomorrow in the natural light. Not bad for my first time doing it huh?

Tag! You're it!

2005-12-07T07:06:00.000-08:00

I'm starting a knitting meme and I want every single person who sees this to post in their Blog and tag 5 other people okay?

Get your camera and take a picture of your favorite knitting spot. I want to know where you are as you create your masterpieces. Come on. Indulge me!

Here is mine. I sit in the living room on my throne where I can see and hear everything. The kids can be playing or hanging out and I'm right here with them and even have my laptop too. Nothing makes me happier than multi-tasking. I mean, I can knit, watch my kids, watch TV and have my computer all right there in front of me while I sit on my tush in a comfy chair. Life is good.

Now, I expect to see lots of pictures of peoples knitting spots! Pronto!

Edited to add: I'm having fun tagging all of my knitty friends. I can't help it. I think this will be fun!

Edited again to add: Wow. Who knew there were so many people against memes!?

Knit on!

2005-12-05T12:24:00.001-08:00

Guess who is the last person to host a virtual interview with Knitty Gritty's own Vickie Howell? Check it out!

That's right. C'est moi! She's doing a cool blog tour for her new book

So next Monday please make sure you stop by to say hello and see the riveting interview between Vickie and me. If you are interested to see the rest of the tour here they are:

Monday (Dec.5)- http://www.Craftychica.com

Tuesday (Dec. 6)- http://knit1.typepad.com/1knit1der/

Wednesday (Dec. 7)- http://stellaland.typepad.com/knitblog/

Thursday (Dec. 8)- http://knitandtonic.typepad.com/knitandtonic/

Friday (Dec. 9)- http://alison.knitsmiths.us/

Saturday (Dec. 10)- http://www.lollygirl.com/blog/

Sunday (Dec. 11)- http://boogaj.typepad.com/knitting/

Monday (Dec. 12) - ME!

Can you tell I'm just a little bit excited? And may I add, is she not the cutest damn thing ever?

Sweet!

2005-12-04T20:04:00.000-08:00

The new Knitty is up and it seriously rocks. And, it's so cool to actually virtually know some of the contributors! Check it out. That's an order dammit!

Oh secret pal!

2005-12-03T16:17:00.000-08:00

You there? Look!!
I got my package today and you are the most rockingest Secret Pal EVER. I immediately called Carole and told her what I got. Actually, the funny part is that my husband and kids got it at the mailbox and he came in asking me who you were because his best friend is from there with the same last name! We need to talk and see if you guys are related. That would be way too weird. Did you know I am from VT and went to UVM? Soooo strange. Also, my son's name is your last name too. Did you know that!?

Thank you so much for all of the amazing gifts. I can not wait to get going on some of the things you've sent me. I especially love the smell of your yarn. I ran out of that nag champa and had to buy a different brand and it was horrible compared to that one so I can't wait to use this. henachick, you have made this experience so wonderful. Thank you thank you thank you! Mwuah!

Wait....do you know my girlfried Jess? She's married to Shay with 3 kids? Now that would be too weird! I can't wait to talk with you!

One down

2005-12-01T18:33:00.000-08:00

One to go. Lookie Bee!

The funny thing about these socks is that I've used about 5 different patterns to make this one. I used the basic Regia pattern with about 4 other Nancy Bush patterns from Knitting Vintage Socks. I changed the toe decreases and then did a Kitchner graft instead of just pulling the tail through the last stitches. Pretty damn fancy huh?!

Time to cast on the next one. I'll tell you, kid's socks are way easier. Thank goodness her foot is only a 7.5! I'm determined to get this next one done in 7 days.....

My girl

2005-12-01T07:57:00.000-08:00

This morning in bed while we were snuggling my girly said, "I love my beautiful mama who makes pretty socks out of pretty yarn." Can I get an Awwwwwww?

Speaking of socks I'm almost done with the first one. The Thanksgiving madness took over my life and I didn't get a lot of knitting done. I think I'll be able to finish it today and start on the next one. I really need to get that baby sweater going but I have a really big problem. You see, there is unbelievably talented knitter/spinner/dyer named Noelle. She's EVIL! She came to Stitch 'n' Bitch on Tuesday with a bag of the most beautiful yarn I've ever seen. Damn her!! Anyone who knows me knows I love purple. This is what she had the nerve to bring.
How could I pass up Melting Grape Popsicle!? I told her the only way I'd buy it is if she helps me make a One Skein Wonder out of it. Go to her shop and buy stuff!

So now what? Baby sweater or OSK? Hummmmmmmmm.

Edited to add: I get quite a few daily hits and I want to know who you are! Will you please say hi??? Pretty please with sprinkles?

No knittin' here!

2005-11-23T16:23:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd make a Thanksgiving post to let y'all know what I'm up to. I'm really looking forward to tomorrow. I am having 20 people here for dinner. There's my family, the Knitizen family and her in-laws, T's best friend and wife, his brother and his wife, their mom and her new boyfriend and another good friend and her family. I have already made my cherry chutney and my sweet potatoes. Tomorrow I do the turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes. Everyone else is bringing the rest. Sound pretty easy to me. Friday, T's best friend's mom is babysitting so we can all go out, Saturday we are going to a Lobos NCAA Championship soccer game with a huge group of people and I think Sunday we might go out with Knitizen, her T. and her in-laws sans kids. Maybe I'll breathe again on Monday? It's all good. Oh yeah. I have a new job too. I agreed to watch my neighbor/friend's 9 & 12 year old for a few hours in the afternoon while she closes up her store. She's paying me really well and they are great kids. Can't beat that.

I'm posting this recipe again for anyone looking for a new sweet potato recipe. You must make this. That's an order. I promise it's a keeper.

The sweet potato recipe came from Aunt Bee's Mayberry Cookbook by Ken Beck and Jim Clark.

Robert E. Lee Natural Bridge Sweet 'Tater Pone
Alice and Jim Schwenke--Houston, Texas
"A special treat when made with sweet 'taters grown in the Darlings' garden near Old Man Kelsey's woods."

3 cups grated raw sweet 'taters (about 3 medium sized)
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup chopped pecans
1 cup milk
1 egg, beaten
3 tablespoons butter (I used margarine)

Grease a 1-1/2 quart baking dish. In a mixing bowl combine the sweet 'taters, nutmeg, sugar and 1/2 cup of pecans. Add the milk and egg. Pour into the prepared baking dish and sprinkle with the remaining pecans. Dot with butter. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 to 60 minutes.

Serves 4 to 6.

Oh wait! I've turned the heel and am working on the gusset on the sock. Woot!

Can we tawk?

2005-11-21T18:30:00.000-08:00

I'm a newbie at this sock knitting. (I've knit forever but just not socks!) I've only made one pair and those were pretty basic. So basic in fact, that there wasn't anything fancy about the heel flap at all. I simply slipped the first stitch and knit across the row and slipped the next stitch and purled the next row. Nuttin' fancy about that at all. I had no idea that there were all kinds of different ways to even knit a heel flap. The sock I'm making right now is the basic Regia sock pattern and this heel is the Dutch heel:

Dutch Heel: Leaving the 30 instep stitches on needles and using CC , work heel flap back and forth over remaining 30 sts in heel stitch of your choice.

Regular heel stitch :Row 1 sl 1, * k1, sl 1* repeat from * across ending with k1

Row 2 sl 1, purl across

Work even in heel stitch until heel flap is about 2.25" long.

I know the reason behind this is to have a more durable heel that won't wear out. Got it. It's kind of a pain to purl the slipped stitches but it's doable. I don't know how much I love it though.

Can all of my kick-ass knitting friends tell me what heel flap technique you like the best? I'd appreciate it as I see many more socks in my future.....

I'm in love.....

2005-11-20T12:02:00.000-08:00

with this Opal Rainforest Collection! Last night Carole was over and as we cried our eyes out over The Notebook I was knitting. Every few rows I got more and more excited exclaiming, "Look how pretty! I love this yarn!"

Isn't it purty??? And yes, I know it's supposed to be a sock.

By the way, if you have yet to see that movie....get a box of Kleenex and watch it. We highly recommend it. Off to knit during nap time!

Haaaaaa!

2005-11-18T19:36:00.000-08:00

Fun stuff! I'm such a dork!

Why I'm a Lustful Wench

2005-11-18T06:40:00.000-08:00

I'm stuck. What do you do when you have something you are supposed to knit at the same time you have something you want to knit? Right now I'm torn. One of my very good friends is about to have a baby. The one I mentioned before. I am totally excited to knit this sweater from this summer's IK. Is that not the cutest thing you've ever seen? The problem is that I'm lusting after a knitting bag. One of my online girlfriends is amazingly talented and has been making these bags. I mean, look at this bag! And this one! Or even this one! Do you see my problem? I told her she's evil for making me so lustful.

I mean, what do I do? Oh I know. I must have the bag. The damn baby can wait for a sweater right? She won't even be able to complain about being cold anyway? I even bought the yarn already for my evilbagmaking friend. How have I not seen all the cool new Rainforest sock yarn from Opal? It's such cool stuff! I got some of this

to make her a pair of socks in exchange for a bag. Isn't it purty? I think it's funny to have knitting be such a magical skill to possess. Whenever another crafty friend can do something else I can't I always just say, "I want one! I'll knit you something!" Do you do that too? Or am I the only lustful wench out there like this? Maybe don't answer that.

I guess this post has been my own little therapy session. My new mantra will be, "I will not feel guilty for knitting socks first."

Have a good weekend y'all!

My turn!

2005-11-14T06:05:00.000-08:00

Okay. I know I'm not some huge blog with millions of readers but I'd still like to see where everyone is who checks me out. Even if you are just taking a quick peek will you add yourself with a picture to my map please!? Click the link and voila!

I'll love ya forever!

I think I need to change the blog title...

2005-11-12T09:35:00.000-08:00

To Scout's Knitted and Beaded Swag!

I have a new obsession. I've wanted to make jewelry for as long as I can remember. Lately I've been looking for certain things and can't find them or they are way too expensive. So, like always, I figured I could just make what I wanted. I went to Walmart to buy the basic things I'd need to make the necklaces and earrings myself. Today I also hit the bead shop. Um. Very. Dangerous.

I made these all in the last two days. I LOVE them. The swirls and red ones are for best girly Carole and the green ones are for another girlfriend. I'm wearing the purple earrings and the pretty purple necklace and I'm so happy to finally have some pieces I like. The pictures don't do the beadwork any justice. The colors are all so pretty. I already gave 3 ne
cklaces away that aren't pictured here. I'm such a freaking dork aren't I?

Not too shabby for my first pieces huh? Click on them to see the bigger pictures.

Then, a good friend came over last night and I let her pick out her own beads to make her a set of matching earrings and a necklace. She had a business meeting up in Santa Fe this morning and was going to wear them. I'm pretty happy with how they cam out.

My baby girl also picked out her own beads for a necklaces.

And finally, I just finished this purple, Classic Elite, Lou Lou scarf and made a necklace this morning when I woke up to match the earrings I made yesterday. Don't they all look good together?

It's soooo much fun. You can't tell I'm having fun with this can you?

Schweet!

2005-11-09T16:29:00.000-08:00

A big thanks to Noelle who suggested the sweater she made from Interweave Knits Summer 05'. Here is the one she made. And this is another one that peskyapostrophe made that I'm in love with because it's pink. It is totally perfect and I can't wait to start on it!

And, I actually can ask her questions if I don't understand what the hell the pattern is saying. *insert evil laugh*

SOS

2005-11-09T06:46:00.000-08:00

Readers? Please help me. Someone on my Bloglines posted the cutest mohair baby booties recently and I want that pattern! Anyone know what it's out of. Oh wait..... Last Minute Gifts? Also, what is your most favorite, fairly easy, infant sweater pattern? I have a really good friend who is about to pop and since she's back East she needs warm clothes for her babe. Please? Help! I need some inspiration. I've hit some sort of knitting slump. I think all of those scarves sucked out my knitting creativity since they completely lacked creativity. Has anyone seen my knitting mojo? Send it back please. Thank you! I'm counting on you. Yes YOU!

Okay....whatever

2005-11-06T08:24:00.000-08:00

I don't know why this bothered me but it did. Yesterday I went to the Weems Artfest with a friend and while at a cool pottery booth I noticed a funky scarf on the saleswoman. I asked her if she made it and she said, "No, a friend did back a few years ago when this became popular." It was a pretty basic eyelash/ribbon scarf but it was a really cool ribbon yarn. I asked her if I could see it and she obliged. I was just trying to figure out what the yarn was exactly since I couldn't spot it right away. She then said, "Well this is very hard to knit with." This, of course, totally offended me. I know it shouldn't have really. But it did! What made her think I didn't know how to knit? I couldn't help but say, "Well, this is what I do." Implying, THIS IS MY LIFE. Even though it isn't really but I was annoyed with her. She then changed her tone and tried to explain what the yarn was but I was alreaday done paying attention to her. I even had a cool funky handmade scarf on too. The only credit I'll give her is that I think she was drunk. She was talking about how they had liquor in the back of their truck to keep things interesting......um.....okay.

Look!

2005-11-03T07:28:00.000-08:00

I think the picture says it all. I can't wait to see who my secret pal is because I must have the best one out there!

Thank you so much again. I now need to felt up a cute bag so I can play with the needle felting! I got the bug when I saw them do it on Knitty Gritty. If you haven't seen this show it's a must. Vickie Howell is just so damn rockin'!

Secret Pal!!!

2005-11-01T20:28:00.000-08:00

You totally rock. Seriously. I will post more details tomorrow with pictures. Let's just say my best friend was here yesterday and was completely jealous of my rockstar secret pal!!'

Thank you!
Thank you!

Testing

2005-10-31T07:29:00.000-08:00

I finally figured out how to make a cute icony thingamajiggy next to my URL at the top. Cool huh?

The big questions is....

2005-10-29T09:42:00.000-07:00

how many more scarves can I make this month!? The one I just made for myself was actually really fun to make. I took 3 different strands of leftover yarn I had and used my ballwinder to create my own funky yarn. I needed one to go with my cute new hat I bought at Target for $1.99. I think it works perfectly. My girlie wanted to show off another scarf I made last year out of scraps too. It just happens to match a hat that was just given to her by one of her friends.

More like Scarfoberfest here

2005-10-25T18:34:00.000-07:00

My good friend Sharon bought 4 balls of really funky, pretty yarn to make her a few scarves. I love that she just wants basic, skinny scarves and they look so cool in just a simple garter stitch. Here are the two I made her over the past few days. The green one is in Lou Lou by Classic Elite. It's such a cool yarn isn't it? I love how it turned out.

Then I just finished this one in Tokyo by Filatura Di Crosa and I loved knitting with it. It's so soft! I think the gold specks are my favorite part. I highly recommend getting some of this if you see it anywhere. Here's the simple garter stitch scarf on size 17's just like all the others. I only cast on 8 stitches for this one.

I think I only have one more scarf to go and then I can decide what I want to make for myself. I hate to admit I love the mindless knitting of pretty garter stitch scarves. .....I'm not the only one am I? I actually have some of that Lou Lou in a pretty purple. Maybe I'll just keep on with my Scarfoberfest theme until November?

Socks Redux

2005-10-20T18:43:00.000-07:00

I have been very patient in waiting to make my next pair of socks because I have other things on the needles. I couldn't wait any longer and had to at least get the yarn for the socks I want to make myself. I mean, it is Socktoberfest after all. I bought some Lorna's Lace Shepard Sock in Irving Park and it's absolutely delicious. Isn't it gorgeous? I'm going to make Whitby out of Knitting on the Road by Nancy Bush. But first I have to finish this scarf. I thought I could tonight but we're making smores instead!

C'est moi!

2005-10-19T07:46:00.000-07:00

I am usually very careful about posting pictures of myself online but I figured I'd post this for a bit so some of you who don't live locally can see just exactly who Scout is. Ignore the fact that I look extrememly tired and have no makeup on. Damn..... I probably shouldn't be posting this. Maybe it'll be one of those *This post will explode in 24 hours* kind of posts? Here I am a few days ago wearing another scarf I made during nap time for a good friend.

needles: size 17
yarn: Calypso by Southwest Trading Company - 6 taupe
stitch: garter
cast on: 20 stitches

Voila!

Also, I had a really fun time at my Stitch 'n' Bitch last night. We had 10 women there and it was a great group. I hope that some of the other Abq. knitters can come and join us soon even though I know there are a few other groups that meet. I wish we could all knit together! We even had two women come all the way down from Santa Fe to join us. The funny thing was that at least 3 of us were working with boobie type scarves. Ramona was working on the Knitty Boobie scarf. Carole was working on the Casey scarf. I was cheating with this beautiful yarn from Classic Elite called Lou Lou that has bobbles right in the yarn! It was a boobie type of a night.

Time for a run and I'm going to try finishing up that hat for my friend A.

Oooooh!!

2005-10-12T20:55:00.000-07:00

It's late and I sent T. out with Chulo for a walk and to pick up the mail and lookie what I got. Thank you Secret Pal! I'm so excited to check it out and see if I can really do this. Now that I'm into socks I'd love to make my own self striped yarn. How cool would that be?

I have to admit I looked to see where the package came from.....did you know I just moved from NH? Hummmmmm.

Thank you thank you!

Socks 'n' Clogs

2005-10-09T21:11:00.000-07:00

It's truly sad that I'm so excited over my $1.99 ebay purchase of these clogs so my girly can not only show off her handmade socks, but also so she can have shoes just like me!

I mean, come on. You have to admit they are damn cute. I immediately had to grab the socks so I could see how they looked. She was happy to model them for me.

Not bad huh? I'm so proud of myself it's kind of silly. They are just socks. But rockin' ones!

Also, I ran into Beverly yesterday at Village Wools when I brought Jessica to check out her new passion. I bought some Plymouth Yarn Eros Glitz and there is nothing I can't whip up with my size 17's in a few hours. I needed a birthday present and I think it was the hit of the party. I simply cast on 10 stitches and knit the whole 65 yards in garter stitch. Perfect gifty. It cracks me up that all the people couldn't believe I made it and during nap time to boot.

My first pair of socks are done!

2005-10-05T16:08:00.000-07:00

Wow. The second sock was way easier once I knew what the hell I was doing. Since I live in clogs I really want to make a pair for me. However, I'm making a hat for my sweet mama friend A. over at smallhand as a swap for a new knitting bag she is going to make for me. I'm so glad I finally made myself do this. Can someone please tell me how the hell do you block them? They look like they need to be. I also ordered a pair of black clogs for my girly off of ebay so she can show off her new socks. She kept telling me, "Mama! I'm so PROUD OF YOU!"

Check it.

She had to try them out a bit.

I'm afraid I may be hooked on socks now.....

So cool....

2005-10-04T08:31:00.000-07:00

I taught my favorite neighbor girly/ babysitter how to knit this weekend! She's 12 and is as cute as a button. She was so excited to learn and knit all day on Sunday. We sat out on her back proch and knit as we watched the Balloon Fiesta balloons take off. I started her off with just some black yarn I had and then thought it'd be cool for her to learn how to add in a color. I showed her the rockstar scarf from knitty and we went with that.

Look how proud she is!

Too funny

2005-09-29T17:54:00.000-07:00

We just had our newly resuced dog Chulo fixed today. He's home now and all drugged up and not really feeling too hot. My daughter, who will be 4 in March is not happy with the fact that she can't really play with him. She just said, "Mama? When do we get his balls back on?" HAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!

Poor Chulo. We've only had him a week and he was just finally beginning to trust us. I'm sure he's thinking, "What the hell are these people DOING to me!?"

It rained therefore I knit

2005-09-28T17:14:00.000-07:00

For those of you who know what the weather is like here in New Mexico you know that it's pretty rare to have a whole afternoon of rain. This afternoon was the perfect opportunity to finish my sock. I even got laundry folded and put away too! Amazing.

Here she is.

And my rockin' girly checking out my work.

Time to cast on for the second one before I lose interest.

I guess I should also state that they really were easy to make. Thanks to this sock tutorial and help from Laurie at my Stitch 'n' Bitch I was able to visualize the heel flap and heel turn and get through it with only frogging once. I wish I had made these when we lived in New Hampshire!

So close!

2005-09-27T05:38:00.000-07:00

I know that for many of you this is a total bore.... but for my first pair of socks I'm going to document this dammit! At this point I just need to measure her foot so I know how big to make them. In fact, as soon as I hit *submit* I'm going to do it.

Here is my first heel flap and heel turn. It was really fun to see how it all came out.

Not bad for my first time huh?

I am going right now to measure that foot. Oh yeah... ignore how dirty Cameron's feet are. We live in NM and my kids never put shoes on.

So Far So Good.....

2005-09-20T16:07:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I had to frog 2 times until I got the hang of knitting with dental floss. The first time I didn't like the look of the cast on. The second time I caston the wrong number of stitches. Third times a charm right? I convinced my daughter to let me see how they fit so far.

Aren't they cute? Not her toes! The socks! I love knitting things for the first time. Tonight is Stitch 'n' Bitch and I hope to have the heel turned and on to the rest of the sock before I go to bed tonight. The only problem is that I am about to make a few cocktails for Carole and myself. Drinking and heel turning probably doesn't go together does it? Especially when we're drinking these......

I guess we'll just have to see. Hey Secret Pal. There's something else you now know about me! I love my vodka!

Stitch 'n' Bitch

2005-09-19T13:27:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow night at 7:00pm at Flying Star on Rio Grande. My girl Carole will be able to knit with me. Yahoo!

Be there dammit.

Secret Pal!

2005-09-13T15:56:00.000-07:00

Well hello there! I guess I should warn you that I'm a total wise-ass so forgive me if you don't get my humor. Here are my questions for the thingamajiggy.

Mwuah!
&hearts

1. Are you a yarn snob (do you prefer higher quality and/or natural fibers)? Do you avoid Red Heart and Lion Brand? Or is it all the same to you?

If I'm being 100% honest? Yep. Me=total yarn snob. Sorry. All you have to do is take a look in my Blog here and you'll see what I like knitting with!

2. Do you spin? Crochet?

Nope!

3. Do you have any allergies? (smoke, pets, fibers, perfume, etc.)

I am allergic to cats actually and really, really can't stand the smell of smoke in anything.

4. How long have you been knitting?

I probably started knitting when I was 8? So what is that? A long time? I mean, 27 years. I grew up ski racing in VT and all of us girls learned how to knit so we could make cool hats!

5. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?

Nope.

6. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.)

I love vanilla and light flowery scents. Nothing too strong. I love Nag Champa incense.

7. Do you have a sweet tooth?

Not really. If I'm going to eat something sweet I'd pick twizzlers, gummy bears and swedish fish over chocolate. I am not a chocolate lover!

8. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do?

I like to do a lot of stuff. I haven't had a lot of time really to do anything lately though. I used to be a teacher so I'm pretty crafty. I do like cooking a LOT.

9. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)

Do I have to admit it really? I'd say I pretty much like what most teenagers like right now. (And I'm 35 with two kids! HA!!) We have satellite radio so I listen to a lot of hip-hop & R&B. I get endless shit for my musical taste. I mostly like fun music with a good beat and good signing. I really like most anything as long as it's not too hard or country.

10. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand?

I love purples, blues, pinks, teal, black and really dislike most autumny colors. I don't own anything in the brown, yellow, orange color range!

11. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?

I've been with my husband for over 15 years and we have a son who is almost 7 and a daughter who will be 4 in March. One fish if he's still alive! We have some allergy issues and had to get rid of our dogs a few years ago.

12. What are your life dreams? (really stretching it here, I know)

Right now I'm in the process of applying to become a consultant for a company where I'd be teaching teachers how to be more effective in the classroom. I'm pretty excited about it all. Otherwise I just want to live to see my kids grow up. Awwwww.

13. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with?

I like yarn that is well made and pretty. I think Noro Kureyon is possibly my favorite yarn. Well.... Manos too! I loved knitting with my Fiesata yarn too. I like a lot! I also like really funky, well spun yarns like some of the links on my blog.

14. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?

I don't really knit with synthetic yarn.

15. What is/are your current knitting obsession/s?

I'm starting a pair of kid socks right now. We'll see how that goes.

16. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?

Things that don't take forever or are too complicated. I CAN do it, but with my life it's nearly impossible to get challenging knitting done.

17. What are you knitting right now?

Socks!

18. What do you think about ponchos?

Eh. So last year? I like some of the cute boobholders out there though.

19. Do you prefer straight or circular needles?

Circs!!! Addi Turbos are super yummy.

20. Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?

Depends on the yarn really.

21. Are you a sock knitter?

Trying to be!

22. How did you learn to knit?

My Mama who passed away almost 13 years ago.

23. How old is your oldest UFO?

Oh gosh. Um. At least 25 years old!!!

24. What is your favorite animated character or a favorite animal/bird?

Huh!? I honestly can say I don't have one!

25. What is your favorite holiday?

Thanksgiving for the food!

26. Is there anything that you collect?

Pretty yarn.

27. What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

None.

28. Any books out there you are dying to get your hands on?

Not really. I need some basic sock patterns though!

29. Any patterns you have been coveting, but haven't bought for one reason or another??

Not that I can think of at the moment. Maybe I'll add to this later.

30. What are your foot measurements, and what kind of socks do you like?

I wear a women's 9.5. YOu know? I used to be a whole size smaller before I had kids! Damn kids.......

Oh, I don't think I have a sock preference! I have never worn a pair of hand knitted socks so I can't really say. Living in NM I don't wear them for most of the year and when I do, I wear clogs. Anything cute!

Another way to help.....

2005-09-05T12:31:00.000-07:00

Back on Track Care Packs
Hurricane Katrina refugees are without and in need of our help. Perhaps you have already donated $$$ or offered your services in some way.

However, many of us are unable to physically help.
Since the victims must be able to carry their belongings the idea ofproviding a backpack stuffed with necessities is my core goal. As a mother of four, I am particularly aware of the needs of families.

I am asking everyone who reads this to purchase a backpack (or donate a gently used one). Please fill this pack with any of the items on the FEMA approved list.

Join the Back on Track Care packs Yahoo Group or email backontrackcarepacks@yahoo.com for more info.
--Kia Grant

Who's going to hold my hand?

2005-09-04T11:40:00.001-07:00

I'm going to be a brave girly. I'm going to knit socks. I can not, for the life of me, figure out what pattern to use, but I have the needles and the yarn. Dontcha think it's pretty yarn? I have found this cool sock tutorial and it definitely makes sense. Now I just need to find the perfect pattern. Anyone who reads this? Do you have a good one for me? Bueller? I'm askeered.

Give a Little

2005-09-02T14:27:00.000-07:00

Check it out:

Hooray!

2005-08-26T13:44:00.000-07:00

Have I mentioned how much I hate seaming these little suckers? But hey..... they are DONE!

Here is a close up of the cute pink fish button.

Onto the next project! Do I dare say socks? Maybe I should finish my daughter's bolero I started months ago!?

Progress!

2005-08-24T13:35:00.000-07:00

Here they are as of two days ago.

As of yesterday I had one seamed and one to go. I hate seaming these things!!! Then I just have to attach the teeny tiny button on and I think I'm done with booties for a while.

I'm thinking of socks next? Not too sure though. I'll post pictures of these as soon as I can force myself to finish seaming the other one.

Okay

2005-08-20T12:51:00.000-07:00

So. My son's teacher was pregnant and I brought her these booties on the last day of school. It was my first Debbie Bliss pattern and I think in general, her pattern sucked! I'm a very visual person. I guess she thinks that anyone who buys Adorable Knits for Tots: 25 Stylish Designs for Babies and Toddlers doesn't need help in visualizing something like this. Luckily, I just happened to see a similar pattern in another book of hers for beginners where they did show what it looked like pre-seaming. I don't know, maybe it's just me but I like to know what I'm knitting before I knit a pattern. I would have never imagined they'd look like this!

Anyway, they turned out really well and she loved them. Her baby was really teeny so she has yet to put them on him. She said she'll send me a picture as soon as she does. So, in the meantime, we have this example.

Ah ha!

2005-08-20T08:28:00.000-07:00

I'm walking out the door and will come back to this. But for now I'll post the picture of the adorable booties I made for my son's kindy teacher who had a baby boy this summer.

Currently I'm making the same pair but in a really pretty cranberry color. I love this Rowan Cotton Glace. It has such a great feel to it.

I'm leaving now.... REALLY!

Is this thing on?

2005-08-20T07:49:00.000-07:00

It can't be possible that I haven't updated this since February! Is that true? Yikes. I haven't been knitting very much but I know for sure I've completed a few things since then. I need to find the pictures and update this thang. I'm feeling the cool weather in the air which means it's time to get motivated again to knit. I'm also going to be joining the Secret Pal 6. If anything, that will get me motivated to get some new projects going.

Actually..... the thing that will really get me going is when Carole moves here!! I can't wait to have her here to knit with. You'd think since I started the Albuquerque Stitch 'n' Bitch I'd be getting my butt there but life has just been taking over everything. I'm going to make an effort to update this some more today and finish knitting these baby booties that were supposed to be done about a month ago! I'll find the other ones I've completed and post them. They're from Debbie Bliss' Adorable Knits for Tots.

Kids are calling so I'll be back in a bit!

Wow...

2005-02-03T19:03:00.000-08:00

Sure's looking fancy up in here! Thank you my sweet girlfriendy! Now I feel like I should make this a real blog and not just post pictures! Hummmm What to talk about? Well, I'm really struggling with what kind of felty bag I want to make with my PippiKneeSock's yarn. I'm probably thinking too much about it and should just cast-on a bunch of stitches and go wild. However...I really want to make something cool! I dunno. Maybe I'll be inspred soon enough. I guess I could always go down to Village Wools and use my Holiday gift certificate.

What would you do with 150 yards of that gorgeous wool? Huh?

Inspiration Faery??

2005-02-02T06:15:00.000-08:00

This Ribby Cardi Feels like it's going to take forever and in the mean time I've decided to make something with this beautiful handpainted yarn from PippiKneeSocks.

Isn't it gorgeous? I think I'm going to make a cute little bag and felt it and possibly a matching scarf or hat but I haven't decided exactly yet. All I know is that I'm taking a short break on my Ribby.

But, go look at Pippi's website. She's sooooo talented.

C'est fini!

2005-01-30T14:59:00.000-08:00

I finished the back about a week ago and am already about 5 inches into the left front-side. Here's the back!

I swear this is going to take forever to complete!

Finally!

2005-01-06T07:48:00.000-08:00

I got around to felting up a strap to cut and use to attach the handles to my mitered bag. It's done and I'm still not 100% happy with the handles. Oh well, I'll leave it alone for a while and decide at another time if I want to do something else. Here it is.

And, here a picture of how far I've gotten on the Ribby Cardi and a better picture of the yarn I'm using on the arms. It's going pretty quickly.

I hope the have the back done by the end of the weekend.

Change of plans

2004-12-28T06:09:00.000-08:00

Okay, forget the previous post. I guess everything's on hold until I make this sweater for moi.

I am doing the ChicKnits Ribbi Cardi Knitalong with a bunch of other people and was threatened by Carole to wait until she was ready to start. Since she's ready, and coming to see me in a few weeks I decided to start working on it pronto. I don't usually knit with such small needles and it hurts! I think it's funny that the bigger needles actually feel better on my hands. Maybe they'll get used to it?

The yarn I'm usuing is a heather grey for the body and a pretty, heather purple. It is the Peruvian Collection Highland Wool from elann.com. Here's a picture that isn't so great. Maybe I'll try and take another one later.

I'll update as I get further! Wish me luck and patience as I'll need a lot of it with this project. Just knowing that C. is doing it too will keep me on track I think....

Next on my list...

2004-12-24T08:52:00.000-08:00

Here are the next few projects I have all lined up with yarn and everything. Click on the pictures to find out more about each pattern.

I'm working on this one right now for me from the Yarn Girls Guide to Simple Knits:

The following patterns are from the new book by Debbie Bliss called Junior Knits.

For Cameron

For Blair

For Cameron

Which socks should I make???
	web socks
	pgr dream socks
	pair of socks
	broken cabled rib

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