Wordless Wednesday: Vancouver Island #2

This quick trip has provided me with pictures to post for the next little bit



Canon PowerShot SD1100 IS
19/9/2009

More Finished Objects

I don't quite know why but I'm drawn to more of these small projects - I do one of them and then settle in for knitting on a project that takes more time.

I finally finished the Embossed Leaves Socks that I started back in April - the hang up was that I didn't want to spend the time casting on (or so it seems). So when we went to visit Cory's relatives it was all I brought and I wouldn't let myself cast on with the sweatermaker yarn until the Embossed Leaves Socks were finished (including weaving in the ends). Worked like a charm. Here is a photo of the first sock - I haven't taken a picture of the pair yet - but trust me they are done like dinner (well not tonight's dinner but let's not get too picky).





I've knit two mini-sweaters - the second one is a mini-baby surprise jacket. I swear, Elizabeth Zimmerman was a genius to come up with the original (which I intend on knitting).





I made another one of the knitted flower things with a button in the middle. I meant for this one to have 6 petals but ran out of yarn after 4. It is adorning my knitting basket for the time being.



I've had a spurt of bookmarks this past weekend... Not quite sure what I'll do with them but they were enjoyable.


Backbone Bookmark


Gertrude Bookmark (ravelry link)


and the Sylvia Bookmark (ravlery link)


And finally, I've cast on the SweaterMaker Socks using the Yarn Harlot's Basic Sock Recipe from Knitting Rules!



In terms of blogging - that's all I got, pictures and not a lot of words. I've been a bit under the weather for awhile (sore throat that comes and goes) but it has gotten worse this past weekend. Still just a cold, and a mild one at that (knock on wood) - but enough to cause me expend all of my energy on a paper that I'm writing for a class and not leave me enough to think of much to type here. As always, yardage requirements etc. are on Ravelry. If you aren't on Ravelry and want details on where to find the pattern, yardage etc send me a comment and I'll get the information to you.

ECF: Sweatermaker Yarns

I somehow restrained myself at Uptown Yarns - I got two skeins of hand dyed sock yarn - Simply Sock by Sweatermaker Yarns. I've already wound the top skein into a ball and am swatching. If anything it is even more beautiful in a center-pull ball... I'm going to just do a basic sock out of Knitting Rules! by the Yarn Harlot. I am so excited about how this will knit up that I barely want to take the time to type this. I've already scoped out how to obtain more of this awesome yarn without travelling back to Vancouver Island - it appears to be available at Fun Knits (this link is as much for me to remember as it is for you guys - right now there is some lace weight available)

Wordless Wednesday: Vancouver Island #1

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17/9/2009

This is just the start of the beauty that is Vancouver Island...

Wordless Wednesday: The One With the Weird Grass

Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi
18/06/2009

The One With a Lot of Finished Objects

Just over a month ago one of my childhood best friends, that I've managed to stay in contact with over the years and across a distance, had her first child. This summer I had meant to knit a stockpile of things but the summer flew by (where did it go? I start TAing tomorrow!) and all I got was a list of queued and favorited items on Ravelry. So the kiddo was born and I had nothing knit! I dropped all of my current projects and knit a little set of accessories - booties, legwarmers, mittens, and a hat. I mailed it off on Friday - I hope it all fits him. I don't know baby sizes very well - and I don't know how well he fits the averages...



I also made another set of booties but they look like they will fit a doll so I sent them home with mom for the doll that she is dressing for a church bazaar or donation or something



I worked on and finished a lace scarf for one of Cory's aunts - it is the Trellis Scarf from Interweave knits. I think she'll really like it - we go to visit her this Wednesday in Comox





And you may remember that in May we re-did the floors. Well my favorite red chair kept loosing it's felt pads so I made some booties for it and they stay on. At first they seemed really noticeable but now they seem to belong.



Winter is coming so I made myself another hat. The colours are so off in this picture that I almost don't want to post it but I might as well. Anyone have tips on photographing red? Anyone know why it seems so difficult?



And then I got on a kick of knitting small things - started this Friday and may continue today too. Essentially I wanted to tidy my stash in Ravelry of small quantities of yarn but I have some arbitrary idea that the amount has to go below say .1 of a skein before I'll designate it as all used up - when I suppose I need to change that to some yardage amount. Anyway, small items.

Coffee Cozy the first - don't like it so much


So I made another one - Coffee Cozy the second - I like this one much better. I needed at least one of these cozy things because one of my travel mugs heats up a lot if you put a hot beverage in it. Plus it had a logo on it that I didn't like and that was peeling off. So I made the cozy to go over it.



The madness continued in the form of two stash busting flowers - not sure what I'll do with them - perhaps put a magnet or a pin on them...





And finally, something that was supposed to be a coaster that turned out too big. Which really isn't that surprising because the pattern was for a trivet and I should have either used a thinner yarn than called for or cast on a smaller number of stitches. Will do the next time. Now it is under a pot in my study and looks great there. What I really liked about this pattern is that it shrinks equally in width and length because it is knit in the round - so I didn't have to guess how many more (or less) rows I had to make relative to the width so that it would felt square.



I'm lazy so I'm not putting up pattern and yarn details - those interested can either email me or look on Ravelry (username: Catiecat). I have explicit details there about yardage etc because I weighed the items so that the requirements are accurate.

Still knitting on the epic mitered square blanket - but it is large so I can only work on it on days that are pretty cool.

Oh and I finished another sock - the mate to this one.



I haven't weaved in the ends or tried it on - I'm scared, plus the first one didn't fit well. The instructive part of the project is that I now know that I much prefer a gusset to a short row heel. I need more space in the instep and at the ankle than a short row heel provides. The project had bad mojo or juju or whatever - it took me a good month just to bind off after completing the ribbing! Oh well, it is done and over with.

And to end, I've been watching a lot of Buffy episodes - somewhere in season 6 now - because I can't stand most of the summer television stuff. Luckily shows start soon and hockey too.

ETA: and in all this I forgot another finished object (that's what I get for not posting these things as they were finished - or at least in the week they were finished...) - some more feline dim sum for a friend's cat - apparently I've got good catnip and Dixun had killed beyond repair the last one I made. How could I say no to such a request?

Cat Blasphemy

I wasn't going to post today but Chris's post made me reconsider - Urlesque Announces a Day Without Cats on 9.9.09

Seriously? All I have to say on the subject is:


Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi
23/04/2009

On another note - iPods confuse me. 3 years ago I thought my mini had kicked the bucket so I bought an iPod video - which I use a lot and which now has kitty teeth marks thanks to Zoie carrying around the knitted case while the iPod was still in it. A month or so ago, out of curiosity I plugged the mini into the computer and it started charging (didn't do that 3 years ago). Then yesterday it seemed like the iPod video was having issues - the center button was stuck. I was all set to open the sucker up tonight (voiding any warranty that it might have - but I think I'm out of warranty because I don't remember getting the extended warranty) and I looked at it this morning and it was working again - the button is still slightly depressed but it works... I don't understand but that doesn't matter - it works.

In other news, I am knitting away - mainly on baby items because my best friend (who I've known since we were about 5 years old) had a sweet little boy. I don't want to post pictures yet because I don't want her seeing - though I don't think she has a reliable internet connection... Still slogging away on the blanket and some other things - my ravelry page is up to date (username Catiecat). I hope to mail the stuff to her this week and post lots of pictures by the weekend. We'll see if this actually happens though.

Things Are Looking Up...

I made the Basic Sandwich Bread from Gluten-Free Baking Classics by Annalise G. Roberts. It turned out amazing (on my first try!) and I'm hopeful that I will have good gluten-free bread that doesn't cost an arm and a leg.

At the start of the cookbook she gives you tips and tricks to help make your attempts successful - and she doesn't just give you recipes, she tells you why the different flours are necessary and what they do for the taste/texture/etc. so that you can, with experimentation, adapt your favorite recipes to be gluten-free.

Personally, I'm going to attempt to make my Grandma Gross' Peanut Butter Cookies and her Sand Tarts. Come Christmas I will miss the Sand Tarts. If/when I do figure out the adaptations I'll post both the original and the adapted versions here.

I'll definitely be trying more from this cookbook, and will let you know how it goes - but honestly, if I only ever make the bread recipe I will still consider this cookbook money well spent.

Wordless Wednesday: I've been knitting and I'll show you more later this week or next

28/8/2009
Canon Powershot SD1100 IS