An Unfortunate Goddess

I've come to realize, as summer's almost over, that I do not knit much durring the season. Something about the weather prohibits it, and makes me forget that there's such thing as a winter and a need for knitted things.

But I do have a list of projects that I'm planning on starting/finishing once I move back to school in a few weeks: 1) I am finishing the Alien Illusion scarf. I have to, there's no if, ands or buts about it, it will be done when winter gets here so I can wear it like the dork that I am. 2) A sweater/cardigan, I bought 1100 yards of Cascade 220 in a gorgeous heathered green and I simply have to use it. It's making me insane just sitting there in a ball, staring at me like it does. 3) Maybe a skirt? I'm not sure about this one but I've found a couple patterns for lace skirts, and while it may be a lot, a lot of work, I do believe it would be fun. 4) a pair of fishnets. I'm going to a wedding in November and need something to wear with this cute 50's looking black dress, and the fishnets would be the perfect pairing, something whimsical and irreverent enough for me to don. 5? Am I on 5? 5) a hat. So boring, I know, but I would love a hat to go with the "Animal scarf" that I have. Same color and pattern maybe, just in hat form?? I'll have to figure it out and find the yarn.

I think that's enough project for me to start on right now. Any more and I would go into overload and curl up on the floor in a ball trying to dig a hole in the floor with my needles.

Am trying to find somewhere to get the "Animal Scarf" pattern published, if I figure out and get a cool looking hat to go with it I'm sure it will be easier.

I'll keep you updated!

Well heck yeah man, my first felted project is done and, not only is it the eyesore I always wanted it to be (and that Devin loves) but it actually turned out pretty cool. I'll post pictures as soon as I can, but I wanted to say that I love this bag.

Not the colors, of course, but the design itself. The fact that it is reversible is kind of awsome, while it may not seem like the look of the bag would really change form side to side, it really does. I think I might even make myself one in slightly more sedate colors. Like blues and greens and maybe some grey or brown. I'm not sure, I'll have to think about it and plan a little bit.

In other fine news I'm going to be making Ira a sweater. I've claimed I would never, ever make a sweater. I just don't think I have the patience. But here I promised Ira I would make him a sweater. And not just one either. I have a sneaking suspicion that he'll be comissioning me to make at least one more if the first one turns out well. And a scarf.

I kind of like it though. I get to play with yard I don't otherwise have the money for. Instead of trying to find something I like that doesn't cost a lot I can just have Ira pick pretty, pretty yarn for me to play with.

Ah the life of a college knitter

The past few days I've been swatching and writing out a pattern for the felted purse I had mentioned for my sister. As soon as I finish it and have it turn out well I'll share the pattern here.

Felting's kind of fun. I mean, I realize everyone is doing it right now (how sad is that?) so it's lost some of its rebel appeal, but there's still a lot of fun to be had. Especially when you begin to play with all the methods you can use to felt something.

Here at school I don't have access to a top-loading washer, all of them are the energy-efficient front-loading kind that are nice to your clothes and who's doors lock when you press the start button. So we've had to look for other alternatives...

Miss Vicky had read about a stove-top method that involved boiling the item in a vat for a while, or you boil it, then take the pot off and agitate it with a toilet plunger or old washing plunger but we threw this out in favor of something that we could get our hands into, and didn't have to find a brand new plunger.

So, we had to do more research. That was how we found a method where you used 2 pots (one of hot tap water with some baking soda or laundry soap in it, and the other ice water) and flip your piece from being agitated in the hot water to being shocked in the cold.

This method is very time-consuming, and doesn't necessarily work the best, we got things to felt, but not the nice, tight felt we were looking for. So, instead we started to get creative: we beat the pieces with a whisk for an industrial stand mixer while in hot water, we sent them through a dish sanitizer, we boiled them, we shocked them, we did everything we could think of but stand on top and stomp on them.

And then we threw them into the washer.

I need to be kept away from the yarn store.

Madison has this amazing yarn store called Lakeside Fibers, it's huge. I mean, like two levels, complete with cafe in the back. It's amazing. And I want too many things when I go in there.

This morning I picked up four hanks of Cascade 220 in California (#7826), Flamingo (#7805), Magenta (#7803), and an unnamed blue (#7919). As soon as I swatch I'll finish writing out a pattern for a striped felted purse for my younger sister for her birthday. She's been after me for months now to make her a fun purse with a cell phone pocket.

Otherwise I got 9 oz. of a natural colored cotton chenille for a baby bath blanket. I figure I should start stocking up on the baby things because it's only a matter of years before everyone starts having kids, and I want to be prepared.

The beach bag is coming along nicely, I've managed to make it to the mesh portion and am pleased with what's happening, the gauge is larger than called for, but I like it. It looks fun and beach-like. Soon I'll be able to post a picture or two for you. I still think it's a god-awful color, but my mom liked it when I was knitting it the last trip home (mom doesn't know it's for her that I'm knitting it though, so keep that quiet).

I also have to tell you about my latest soire into the world of the things that happen before you knit with your yarn: I dyed my first skeins! I used Kool-Aid to do it, because it was cheaper and seemed more mistake-friendly than acid dyes, plus I'm not exactly careful all of the time, and didn't want the worries acid dyes come with for my first attempt. I used grape, strawberry starfruit, arctic apple and lemon-lime flavors, and directions I found in a Stitch 'n Bitch book. The grape and strawberry went on one skein, the arctic apple and lemon-lime went on another; the results were cool: the apple/lime one fades from cream (the original color of the yarn) to lime to a muted seafoam-esque color, and the grape/strawberry goes from dark purple to a medium pink. The purple/pink one could have used more kool-aid though, I would have liked the colors to come out richer, they're a bit pastely.

I have no idea what I'm going to knit with them though, since I only made one skein of each.

I've been researching spinning and how to process raw fleece the last few days. I'm scaring my friends. They're afraid I'm going to start pricing sheep, not just their fleeces. I'd like to start with just some roving and try to master spinning first though, before I get into the processing and everything, still not quite sure what that all involves. Besides, I'm still just a lowly college student and am supposed to be paying rent... if only I could pay rent in hand-knit/spun/dyed scarves...

A few months ago I bought a bunch of balls of Ticker Tape yarn in what I thought was an awful array of colors (bright yellow, green, pink and purple, the color scheme was called Tropical and is now discontinued)but I didn't have anything bright, and I figured I could find a use for it down the road, plus, because it was discontinued it was on sale. So there sat what I came to think of as a brightly colored monstrosity. But monsters are awsome, and I found a use for the yarn.

Today I learned a provisional cast-on method and started the kitchen sink bag from my favorite pattern website, knitty. It should be finished by Mother's Day.

I hope.

I have to alter the pattern because of the yarn substitution: size 15 & 17 needles instead of 9's, 60 cast on stitches intead of 76; and so far I've frogged the bottom 4 times (twice I screwed up, twice I decided the bag was the wrong size) so, we'll see.

This is the first entry in my new knitting blog. I wanted a blog just for my knitting and everything that comes of yarn and needles.

Over the next few days I'll be updating a bit with some info about me, and my current projects/obsessions.

Stay tuned, and hope I don't get tangled in my stash!