Monday, November 26, 2007

So many projects...

Just a quick note to say I'm working like crazy on Christmas presents, and I'm not getting anything fun done for myself.

Except, I'm in Ravelry...it's so neat! I love being able to look up a yarn and see what people have used it for, or a pattern and see what people have done with it. I resisted it as long as I could, but there's no going back now.

Monday, November 19, 2007

Hat headaches

Argh! For some reason, I just can't make hats to fit my head.

I made the Koolhaus hat from the IK gifts issue, and it's just too short. My sister loves it, and she would love it as a gift, but I can't give her a present that doesn't really fit. So, I'm going to give it to my 7 yr old cousin--he's very precocious, and I think he'll enjoy the cables :)

Next I tried to make Urchin from the Fall 07 Knitty. It was super easy and quick and cool...but it didn't fit my head, even as a jaunty cap. I ripped the whole thing out and will try to make it bigger. Argh!

I'm working on my third Wisp, and I'm really loving it. Who would have thought that yo/k2tog would be so fun? It's the perfect gift for non-knitters, since it looks so complicated :)

I also finally got a monkey off my back that's been sitting there for 3 years...silk and cashmere. 3 years ago, I was at a friend's house drinking port. We were talking about spinning, and she asked if I could spin up some silk and cashmere for a sweater for her. Under the effects of the port, anything was possible, so I said sure, no problem. That resulted in my buying 2 (!) drum carders, 2 lbs of silk and 2 lbs of cashmere, and a bunch of dye.

I dyed it all up, then proceeded to try to blend and spin it. It was horrible: neppy, static-y, time consuming.... So, I decided to buy some preblended silk/cashmere and try to spin THAT. Well, suffice it to say, I decided to pick up knitting as a form of avoidance :) I ended up with about 500 yards of worsted weight yarn and many pounds of fiber hiding around my apartment.

Finally, lightning struck. While I was surfing Webs a couple of weeks ago, I saw a worsted weight silk/cashmere yarn for only $5.99 a skein! I bought a sweater's worth and shipped it to my friend's house. I feel so free!!!

Sunday, November 11, 2007

Wisp-y

Sooo...my last attempt at knitting Kid Silk Haze ended up in disaster: itchy palms, a rash, etc. But, I have 10 balls of it in various colors, so I really wanted to use it up. Therefore, last week I decided to try it again. Strangely enough, no rash! I finished one violet KSH Wisp, and I'm 2/3 done with another in Pearl KSH. I think I'll do at least one more in Wicked (black) for a co-worker.

I think that the lack of allergy is possibly due to the dry weather. Maybe when it was humid, my palms were too sensitive. At any rate, I'm loving it!

I finished the Koolhaus hat, but doing all those little cables really did a number on my wrist. I won't be making another one of those anytime soon, unfortunately.

I'm probably going the scarf/slippers route this Christmas for the rest of the family presents; I just don't have enough gumption to make fancy lace for people who don't really appreciate it.

Speaking of lace, I'm pretty excited for the Make One year of lace to start. I love lace, and it's not a bad idea to have several finished projects ready for giving, should the need arise :)

In other news, I'm starting fertility meds (hence the lack of recent posts). One of them has "suicidal thoughts" as a side effect--eek! At work, there are some pretty despicable and possibly illegal things being done by congregants. I'm going to have to get out of there soon. All in all, things are pretty scary around here, but at least I can still knit!