biggeek

May 09, 2008

May's sock

I wasn't going to share this with you. I wanted to wait until they were all done. But what the heck. Here is the start of May's sock:

Yes, I realize that they are a bit "elfish". They will be great at Christmas time! It's the Pippi Kneestocking Pattern from the 1st Stitch and Bitch book. I don't know what it is about knee socks and me. They knit up so fast! It could be the size 3 needles. It could be the easy stockinette stitch. It could even be the thicker yarn.

I had this yarn in my stash for a while. It is Wool Ease. I don't know for the life of me why I picked these colors so long ago.... I could have got this when I was pregnant. Pregnant women don't always think straight. I found the yarn while I was rearranging my little craft space. It's a shame to let it go to waste. Well maybe not...
So there you have it.

I also wanted to plug my friend Margaret's new etsy shop. She makes the most beautiful bracelets in the whole world (at least I think so)! I got one for Christmas:

Here it is on my wrist:

Isn't it the coolest? She's so talented. You can find her here. They may seem pricey, but oh my are they worth it! All you Mothers out there, get your hubby's to buy you one! It's our weekend after all!

Enjoy!

Posted by beth at 12:39 PM | Comments (2)

May 06, 2008

Finished Socks

YAY!!! I got them done on Sunday. 4 days over my deadline. Am I worried?
Specs:
Pattern: Log Cabin Socks from Hand Knit Holidays
Yarn: Jager Como
Needles: US 5 - 2 circulars
Notes: Loved the pattern, they knit up quick. I used this yarn because:
A) it was in the sale bin at my lys (3 bucks a ball)
B) it was similar to the yarn spec'd in the book
C) it is PURPLE!
I am not sure I would knit socks with this yarn again (it may even be discontinued). It felt like I was using pencil roving plyed with very thin elastic thead. I don't have much left over. Enough for my "scrap" bin.

I love the little "dandylion" in the middle of the picture

What a glorious day! The sun finally came out so I could take a picture

Sorry about the garden hose. Did I mention it was a glorious day?
It was also my birthday! YIPPIEEE!!!!!!!! I had a really nice day not doing much of anything. OH, but my husband got me this:

While I may not like everything in here, it is inspiring.

Posted by beth at 12:56 PM | Comments (13)

April 29, 2008

I don't think I am gonna make it...

I really thought I would have them done before May.I have one sock done. Oh well, like I said, this is my personal goal.

Sorry for the crappy photo, I took it this morning and it was quite grey outside. I have started the second sock and I should have it done quickly. I probably would have had it done this weekend. But I was busy all weekend. I have decided to make part of the laundry room in my basement a little craft/hobbie hands/knitting/spinning whatever room. It is turning out pretty good! It took me most of the day Sunday to sweep the floor, move some stuff around, rearrange. All that good stuff. My hobbie hands was taking over the upstairs! Not a pretty site. I will take a picture soon. If you want to see it. Nothing fancy, but it makes me feel more organized.

Oh and the weather was beautiful this weekend too!

Posted by beth at 12:48 PM | Comments (7)

April 23, 2008

New Sock

Remember back when I said I wanted to make a pair of socks a month?
Well April is almost over. I better get my rear in gear right?

I thought I would pick a sock pattern that uses bigger needles.

The Log Cabin Socks from Hand Knit Holidays is doing the trick. I am almost to the toe and I am not obsessively working on these!

I bet I have them done by the end of the month. My last pair stretched into April. But that's ok. This is my personal goal.

I am already thinking about May's sock. I think I want to make these

Posted by beth at 12:42 PM | Comments (10)

April 18, 2008

Free Pattern alert!

You guys are awesome! Thanks for the Happy Anniversary well wishes!

And because I love each and everyone of you I thought I would share a pattern I designed. I made this up when I was trying to figure out what to send Kris her birthday present. I always like to send her something she can't get in Norway. So I sent her some handspun yarn:

and made up these:

These photos are courtesy of Kris. Thank you! Those are her very own hands by the way....

Here is the pattern:Warm Hands for Kris Pattern
It is a PDF file and if I can figure it out it will be on my side bar.

I know, how many patterns are there out there for more fingerless mitts! Well I believe you can never have enough.

I hope the pattern is mistake free, if not just shoot me an e-mail:
sandawich(at)hotmail(dot)com and I will try and help you though it.

Well, what are you waiting for? I expect to see some fingerless mitts pictures e-mailed to me pronto! Oh and a knit-a-long, and Ravelry Maddness.....

Have a great weekend! Over and out!

Posted by beth at 12:51 PM | Comments (11)

April 15, 2008

Happy Blog Anniversary to ME!

WOW!!!! 4 YEARS!!!!
Can you stand it? Probably not.... When will she go away?

Ha! Never!!!

I had this great post all set for today, but due to technical difficulties (I suck at internet stuff) That will have to come later.

I was going to post a FREE, yes FREE pattern! That is my problem. But don't worry, as my gift to you faithful readers, I will have the pattern up this week.

So what can I talk about instead? Well I got my socks done!

Kinda nifty huh? I did run out of yarn 2 rows from the toe. Can you believe it? So I just made a longer grey toe. They will be in my socks, who cares. Let's just have another look at them

Do you see anything strange about the sock on the left? The naked eye probably can't spot it, but I know it's there. A mistake, sigh, yes, I have made a mistake and I didn't rip it out and fix it! Whatever... Can't see it? Here you go:

I'll have you know I shaved my legs just for you so that I could take this shot. Feel lucky, They were really bad.

Okay, lets get your mind off the mistake and look at some pretty hand spun

mmmmm.... alpaca..........mmmmmm........

Little more than 5 oz. of pure heaven. Yep, I have been doing a little spinning.

Ok. Gotta go. I will have pattern up this week. Promise!
(Kris you know what it is already....)

Posted by beth at 01:00 PM | Comments (17)

April 08, 2008

Crochet's bum rap....

Yeah, I think that crochet is totally getting a bum deal these days! I do agree there are some very unflattering patterns, but those are coming few and far between! Have you seen the Crochet Me book? Fabulous!

My friend Margaret was buying her yarn (to make the Boteh Scarf) at a local yarn shop. The person working there asked her what she was making and she told them a crochet scarf. You would think she had dog poo on her forehead! I can’t remember exactly what she said, but she totally put crochet down. Now if I owned a shop and wanted to actually have people buy something I would never put down some ones craft of choice. I would do it in my head! (of course!)

I went to a shop to buy yarn a little while ago, I mentioned crochet and the woman waiting on me crinkled her nose! EEEK! Sigh……

Well I am rekindling my love for crochet again by finishing my Boteh Scarf

Specs:
Pattern: Boteh Scraf from Interweave Crochet (spring 07??)
Crochet Hook: F
Yarn: Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock - 2skeins - Purple Iris

I have a lot left over on my second skein. I think next time I will add a few more "triangles". I can use up the left overs on my scrap sock yarn granny square blanket!

Oh by the way... I have even started another one!

Posted by beth at 12:37 PM | Comments (20)

April 02, 2008

That's the last time I post about them...

Wow! I think it’s totally funny that when I don’t talk about knitting, nobody comments. So I will try to keep my posts to strictly knitting… But I really love Flight of the Conchords!!!! And those were really funny!

Right then. Moving on. I finished my Raisin Beret. Not too happy with the results. I think it’s too slouchy for me. Makes me look like this guy:

Sam Kinison and I separated at birth? You decide.

I thought the pattern was great up until the decreases for the crown of the hat. The pattern has a mistake in it and it’s really hard to fix mistakes when you are knitting lace. To tell the truth I ripped it out and started again about a week ago. Sigh……

I think it looks much better on Mr. Louis don’t you?

Who is he? Why he is my friend! He is married to the lovely and talented Margaret! She makes the most fantastic shoes!!!! (I will have a pair some day, oh yes, I will)

Mr. Louis and Mr. Big Geek like to get together and sniff glue, ahem, they like to make models of WWII aircraft. We decided it would be a good idea to all get together and do

“HOBBY HANDS”

Doesn’t that sound like fun? Even not so little Big Geek got involved. So did Mr. Louis and Margaret’s dog Cody! (who has her own myspace page by the way, Cody that is)

No she didn’t crochet the blanket….

So we all got together this Sunday to do Hobby Hands and have a little Pot Luck Supper! Secret Lentil was supposed to come with Mr. Lentil, but they crapped out. Too bad for them. (We still like you guys) I made homemade Mac and Cheese and Chocolate Cake. Margaret made chicken and asparagus. YUM!

Here we all are doing our hobbies:

That't the husband and Mr. Louis

That is not so little Geek and Margaret. Notice the lovely Calorimetry on her head??? She loves it.

So Margaret is a new crocheter and she wanted to start a new project. She picked the Boteh Scarf (Spring 2007 Interweave Crochet). I decided to join her and make the scarf too.

Seeing as how she is a newbie crocheter I thought I would get a jump on the pattern and see if there were any obstacles with it that would make her scream and pull out her hair. I had like 4 triangles done when we got to the house. Not to show off or anything…… It was fun! I couldn’t put it down! Margaret picked a yarn that perhaps shouldn’t have been picked for this project. But she is handling it like a trooper! (she picked the new Noro Sock yarn)

Here is a nice close up shot:

I am have like 12 triangles done as of today. I should have this done by the end of the week!

Wow, long post, but I thought I should make it up for the Conchords post.

Over and out.

Posted by beth at 12:51 PM | Comments (16)

March 24, 2008

Happy Easter Everyone!

I know I am a little late, but I hope everyone had a nice holiday.

It didn't feel like Easter this year for some reason. It was way early for one. I don't get Good Friday off so that is a second reason...

And for a 3rd, it was COLD! Don't get me wrong it was beautiful both days but man was it cold!

I thought I would share some update photos with you of my current projects!

I did weigh my other sock, thank you all for that suggestion. It seems that I will have enough. I am just going to go for it. If I run out then I will have a longer grey toe than I wished for, but that's okay.

I am going to show you 2 pictures I took of my 2nd sock. I love the digital camera's and how you can see right away what your pictures look like. Here is one with my flash on (I forgot to turn it off)

Nice colors huh? This seems almost like what the colors really look like. Now here is a picture with the flash off:

Nice artsy shot. But I took this just a moment after the other one! CRAZY!

I have also been plugging away at a shawl that is great mindless knitting

Now that picture does not look anything like what the real color of the yarn is. AND because I bought so much of that mystery 100% unknown fiber I decided to crank out one of these:

It's the Raisin Beret. I thought it was a good choice for this yarn. It has a great drape to it. Also I saw that Terhi had made one and it is truly brilliant.

The color of the yarn in this photo is more accurate. So there you have it. A bunch of nonsense about the way my camera interprets colors. Who cares!

Posted by beth at 12:52 PM | Comments (3)

March 19, 2008

Gee I hope I have enough...

Well I have one sock done

I am not going to weave in the ends of this one yet. I may need to start over.....

Why?

The above picture shows all that I have left. I am not sure if that is a good perspective. How about me holding it?

Hmmm........here is another view

I really don't know if I have enough of the grey for a matching sock. So I thought why not do the opposite on the second sock and use the grey for the cuff, heel and toe? Will I have enough?

I haven't started the second one yet. I decided to think about it and work on my mystery yarn shawl instead. I am on a second ball of yarn and it is getting bigger! No picture until it is done.

So do you think I will have enough to finish the second sock?
Stay tuned...

Posted by beth at 12:42 PM | Comments (13)

March 10, 2008

New stuff...

I don't believe I thanked any of you yet for your well wishes when I was sick! Thank you!!!! I have been crazy busy at work too as my co-worker is out for a week and a half and I am doing her job and my job. EEEK! Busy Busy, so if I don't get back to you it's not that I don't love you. I just don't know if I can. I will be better soon.

So I started a couple of new things this past week. I have been holding out on you. I had set a personal goal for my self of knitting a pair of socks a month and it looks like I may achieve my goal this month. Do you want to see it?

This is either the ugliest sock in the whole world or the coolest looking. I am opting for the coolest. I recieved this yarn as a swap from a Ravelry person for a book. I think it was a good trade. She sent me some sock yarn that didn't look like it would make a pair of socks with one skein, so I thought I would combine it. I am sorta liking the results. The pattern is from Cat Bordhi's book "Socks Soar on 2 Circular Needles" It is the Columbine Peek sock. I have made these before and I like the pattern. I am on the foot now as you can see...

*Note* I am actually knitting these on 2 circulars, but put them on double pointed needles for the photo so you could see it better.

Next up:
I went to a local AC Moore this weekend looking for some yarn for Kris (not having good luck with it Kris, but I will e-mail you)

I spotted a bin full of mill ends. So I pawed through it and found this

I bought 2 bags as there were 3 skeins in a bag. Here is what the bag said:

Do you see at the bottom? It says "Unknown Fiber" hmmmm....... It looks really hairy to me to be acrylic. Could it be alpaca? A blend? Well whatever it is I got 100% of it!!

Here is a close up tell me what you think:

I will be doing a test in the washing machine with this stuff. It probably is acrylic. With the way I am going these days it prolly is acrylic. But that's okay. It is knitting up nice. I thought I would start a shawl with it:

Yeah, I know, I have like 3 shawls already in the works. But this is a no brainer. I wanted something I could knit on while watching Lost. This fits the bill

Posted by beth at 01:01 PM | Comments (11)

March 06, 2008

Too cute not to post

I think he hates me.....

I don't know maybe not....

Yeah, he definately hates me....

I feed him, pet him, scoop his litter. The least he could do is look happy about it.

Wow, I make one hat and then everyone starts having babies!!!! I hope I can keep up.

Posted by beth at 12:34 PM | Comments (14)

March 03, 2008

Hi There! Remember me???

Cooties have officially invaded my house last week. But all is well now. Phew! I was SICK! But I am back and feeling great!

I don't know how I did it, but I finished my socks

Course I probably won't be able to wear them until next winter...it's going up to 55 degree's today!

I love these socks boy

Specs:
Yarn: Lion Brand - Wool Ease in light grey and little bits of purple heather
Pattern: Canyon Hiking socks from Greeting from the Knit Cafe book
Needles: US 3 Circular - 2 of them

I also managed to knit a couple of baby hats!

Close up:

Don't worry.... I totally de-cootified these. We wouldn't want the baby to get it...

Specs:
Yarn: Lion Brand Wool-Ease
Pattern: Umbilical Cord Hat from Debbie Stoller's first book, and the skull pattern from her latest book
Needles: US 5 Circular

Posted by beth at 12:41 PM | Comments (14)

February 19, 2008

Not a heck of a lot going on....

Bought a car last week. Was sick last week. Finished one sock last week. That's bout it.

What kind of car?

2005 Hyundai Accent, 2 door, BRIGHT RED (not my choice, but you don't have a lot of options with a used car).

I am excited.
;-)

Posted by beth at 12:27 PM | Comments (16)

February 11, 2008

New project announcement!

I have started a new project! Yeah yeah....

I think I have a winner!

This is the Canyon Hiking Sock from the book "Greetings from the Knit Cafe". I have wanted to make these for a really really long time. I also have notice a few people out there have had some success with using Lion Brand Wool Ease. So why is this a winner? Well I believe Wool Ease has some Acrylic in it! And it's freakin cheap.

Oh and another reason this is a winner... I am actually at the heel! I am using size US 3 circular needles and they are zipping along. It also helps that it is all stockinette (sp) stitch. I always seem to zip through all the knee socks I have ever knit. So why does it take me ages to knit a regular sock??? I think the fussier the pattern, the potential for procrastination. I don't know if that makes sense to any of you. I sometimes get bored with the busy patterns.

Any way, I love this sock. It will be warm as hell, but I don't care. I could use them on a day like today. 9 degrees. BRRRRRRRR

I am also using my local library more to check out books! I got a couple of duds (in my opinion) and here are a couple of gems:

I love this book! I may even have to buy it. It is still available on Amazon.

Here is another one that I am not to crazy about the style of the sweaters as I am the stitch patterns. It is an early Alice Staremore:

I must have been Norwegian in a past life. (right Kris?)

We just got news that we need a new vehicle. Sigh.... I was hoping for our car to last until spring. Looks like we need one THIS WEEK.

So I will be visiting the library and using up my stash to try and conserve $$$$ (Not that I need anything new (ahem) )

Posted by beth at 12:41 PM | Comments (11)

February 08, 2008

Roza Socks are finally done

These took some time, but I really love them. The photo's dark and I can't help that. It's a grey yucky day. I took this picture at work, so I have a new background! The industrial carpet!

Specs:
Pattern: Roza's Socks - Interweave Knits
Yarn Silja Sock yarn given to me by the lovely Kris
Needles: US 1 Circulars (2)

Oh! Apparently I make people smile AND I make their day!

Both Laurie
andChristie gave me these awards and not only do they in turn make my day and make me smile but so do these gals:

Maryse
Lisa
Katie
Meg
Annie
Kris
Missa
Holy Crap! I forgot her name!
Toni
Shannon

Who da thunk?

Posted by beth at 12:47 PM | Comments (12)

February 05, 2008

I reallly need to focus....

I have all these projects with just 1 mitten, or 1 sock or part of this or part of that done. Sigh...... I think I just need more time! Yeah right.

What has caused my mind to wander? Yet again? I am so into this mitten thing! Also I keep looking at the Vanna's Choice yarn that doesn't seem to be dwindling....

I thought I would try a new pattern with the above yarn and see what I came up with:

Yes. This is the Matrix Mittens. I really love the pattern, but I don't like the square edge at the top. I am more of a pointy mitten gal.

Here is the back side:

And just to overload you, here are shots on my hand:

Why people, do I feel the need to knit with Acrylic? I am going to give these another shot, but I am going to modify the top of the mitten to a point. AND I am going to knit with good old fashion wool

I guess I should mention that I do have one Roza sock done and I am at the gusset of the second. Home stretch. I should have new socks to wear by the weekend!

Posted by beth at 12:56 PM | Comments (12)

January 28, 2008

Mitten Progress

I have been crazy trying to figure out this pattern. I think I finally have it and I am not sure I like what I got so far.

I think this came out too small for my hand. Am I surprised? Not really as I hardly ever check my gauge. Here is another shot. See if you can spot the difference

This is the thumb side! If you look really close you can see a thumb on the left. I am pretty proud of this because it does look invisible.
Here is a close up of the thumb

Here it is on my hand

I wanted to put a lining in this so it is way to small. This literally fits like a glove!! Ha ha! I had many challenges with this pattern. And I do love a challenge. I knit this with size 5 needles. I think I am going to go up a needle size, try and neaten up my floats, and go for it again. This was my practice mitten.

While I was scratching my head trying to figure it out, I got some progress done on my Roza socks. I am almost at the toe!

Sorry for the crappy pictures.

Posted by beth at 12:27 PM | Comments (12)

January 21, 2008

Inga - DONE

Specs:
Pattern: Inga Hat - Link was given on previous posts
Yarn: Araucania Nature Wool in Green and Dark Grey
Needles: US 3 16" circulars and US-5 16" circulars

This hat didn't come out as tall as I thought it would be. I LOVE IT! It is very soft and very warm.

Because I am now getting a little too confident...I thought I would start some of Anna Zilboorg's Magnificent Mittens!

I have ripped this out already and started like 3 times. And yes, it's the same yarn as Inga.

Sigh.... I guess I got too cocky...

Posted by beth at 12:44 PM | Comments (15)

January 16, 2008

Inga Progress

Holy tall hats Batman! I hope this looks better on me than it does on Heada! I am now at the decreasing part of the pattern. It seems a little snug on me, but I am hoping a good blocking will help.

I snuck in a quick knit this weekend:

Specs:
Pattern: House Beanie - Charmed Knits - Ravenclaw colors (according to my son) The colors may be off. But hey, he likes it!
Yarn: Vanna's Choice - Lion Brand - 100% Acrylic
Color: Royal Blue and Chocolate Brown
Needles: US 5 circulars and US 7 circulars - 16"

I started this hat on Friday night and finished it on Sunday night. He loves it.

I did a little yarn shopping this weekend as some of you may know.....
One of my favorite LYS is closing for a couple of months. So she has to clear out the inventory. 50% off everything in the store.

I didn't do too much damage. I got some Dale of Norway Helio to make the Norwegian Socks in the Folk Socks Book and some Dale of Norway Baby Ull to make the Skull Isle Hat and Mitts from Debbie Stoller's new book. Oh and I got some Regia sock yarn. The Kaffe Fasset colorway kind. I plan on going this Saturday and next Saturday. Got to stock up. At these prices!

Posted by beth at 12:48 PM | Comments (9)

January 11, 2008

Wahooo!!!!!!

I got my camera last night!!! I am back baby with the pictures!

Okay here we go. I got an FO and I am thinking that Fair Isle is a GREAT THING. Or is this stranded knitting?
I dunno, but I am obsessed.

I want a pair of these in every color possible. I think they look a little "Elfish" whatever

Here is a close up. Why? BECAUSE I HAVE A NEW CAMERA!!!!

Specs:
Pattern: Herringbone Mittens
Yarn: Lion Brand Wool Ease (Cranberry Red and White)
Needles: US 6 DPNS

I think the red "bled" a little into the white. Not from the dye of the yarn but from the fuzz. I kept the pom pom off because I thought it would get in the way when wearing. I like the pom pom, but I just left it off

I think in my last post I told you I started the Inga Hat

I can show you a progress photo. Why? BECAUSE I GOT A NEW CAMERA!!!!

Okay, I will stop.

Don't you love the pattern on this???

Now this is a pattern I will have to try other combinations of.

Oh, my camera. It's a Cannon PowerShot A560. Oh and I took these pictures this morning. They don't look yellow like my last camera made them look! I love this thing.

Posted by beth at 12:36 PM | Comments (21)

January 08, 2008

Did ya ever wonder?

I see so many lovely Finished Objects everyday out there on the internet. Incuding mine! Hee hee...

But did you ever wonder what they look like a year later???

Well today is your day!

Remember this?

and this

Looks so nice! Well here it is after a year living with a 10 year old.

Oh my....

I think the cat got at it after the first week.....Thank goodness he LOVES this hat.

Well I didn't get my camera over the weekend. I didn't feel like going to the mall. I am hoping this weekend. So I may fill in the spaces with some then and now pictures.

I did finish my Herringbone Mittens and I must say they came out quite nice! They even look like the picture. Well except they are red and white...I am feeling a little cocky so I decided to start THIS.
Yes pretty ambitious.

Posted by beth at 12:38 PM | Comments (6)

December 31, 2007

If a tree falls in the woods and nobody is around to see it...

Will you hear a sound? Is that how it goes?

Or if a pair of Dashing’s fell in the woods and no one is around would you pick them up?

I would. These are the husband's Dashings. I did indeed finish them on Christmas Eve. He knew about them so they didn't get wrapped. I really like these. I may even make a pair for myself. I wasn't too happy with how the thumb came out. But I cleaned up the holes a bit.

Don't these look like logs though?? That is the reason for the title of this blog post.

Or put THAT in your pipe and smoke it..... Pipe tobacco of course..... I am not sure how flamable these are....

They do look much better on though don't you think?

yes that is my arm. Husband wasn't up for a photo shoot.

Specs:
Pattern: Dashing from Knitty - Link above
Yarn: Lion Brand Wool Ease - Hunter Green
Needles: US 5 DPN's

Onward.

I was going to do a year end wrap up, but I really don't need to bore you with my lists of things that I will probably never make right? So I leave you with a new project I am working on:

These are the infamous Herringbone Mittens sans pom pom (I feel it will get in the way)

I'm getting better at my stranded knitting aren't I??? Love this pattern! I am struggling a bit at with the thumb. Hope to have that worked out soon.

I am also hoping by next weekend to have my new digital camera.
So in closing, I want to thank all of you for your Christmas wishes! And I hope you all have a Happy New Year!

Posted by beth at 12:32 PM | Comments (11)

December 20, 2007

The heat is on.....

Yep! I am almost done with the Christmas shopping and Christmas knitting! I can't wait to be done and start something for my self for a change. Oh wait... I did that. (see below)

One hat for teacher. Check.

I actually knit this a while ago and stuck it in a bag with other items to use for just this case.

Specs:
Yarn: Noro Silk Garden
Pattern: One Skein Noro hat from a yarn store
Needles: US 8 DPN's and US Circular (16")

More Calorimetries. Check.

The Green one is spoken for. I gave it to Julia and she forgot it so I at least got to take a picture of it! The green one and the yellow one are my hand dyed yarn. The multi colored one is one of my new favorite yarns. Patons Wool/Soy. LOVE the colors! Can't tell you who they are for. It's a secret. Shhhhhh

More Wristies. Check.

I have written the specs for these so many times that I don't feel like doing it anymore. I can't tell you who these are for either. Don't even try to get it out of me.

Now to make my life even more crazy I thought it would be a good idea to start a pair of Dashing’s for the husband.

I sure hope I get them done in time.......and that they fit.....

Oh and to top it all off. I started a pair of Roza's socks for my self.

I figure I need a good peaceful project for when all my presents are wrapped and I want some quite time.

Phew! I am tired!
;-)

Posted by beth at 12:46 PM | Comments (6)

December 17, 2007

Manly yes... But I like it too!

I love this pattern! Oh, it would help to share what it is right??
Specs:
Pattern: Manly MittsYarn: Vanna's Choice 100% Acrylic (I love this stuff!)
Needles: US 4 DPN's

I made these for my best friend for Christmas. She has promised not to look at the blog until after Christmas. I hope she doesn't peek.

Here are a couple more shots:

The inside the mitten shot:

I am getting better with my stranded knitting. It still looks a little wonky, but over all I am pretty pleased with these. I will be making more of them.

I went to a Ravelry Group Meet Up with some fellow Central New York Knitters! I had a blast and will be going lot's more! I saw Erin and Jill and met Paige. There were other girls there too who are blogless and I didn't get to say hi to all, but the vibe was totally cool! I can't wait until the next meet up!

Posted by beth at 12:27 PM | Comments (11)

December 06, 2007

See how I am?

I spoiled you all last week! Well it has been a busy week. Lot's of snow here in Central New York, little big geek has been home sick for 3 days with strep. Poor kid was sick on a snow day! But he is on the mend.

I had some family obligations this weekend so I missed my 1st guild meeting ever! It was the annual gift exchange. I know I have mentioned that we get some fiber back in May. We can either spin it or get mill spun yarn. I chose to spin mine this year and knit up a couple of things:

Yeah, they are nice and all... but guess what I got???? I wish I could show a picture but I can't because the light is bad! So go trot over to Carla's place and check it out.

OH MY GOD DOT COM!

This is what I got! Can you believe it? It is so so beautiful! I LOVE IT!!!! Words can not describe.... well yes they can! It's gorgeous
Thank you Carla!

Okay, back to my stuff.
Pattern for the hat is from One Skein Wonders
Yarn: My own handspun. Alpaca/Merino Blend
Needles: US 6 Circular (I think)

Pattern for the Wristwarmers: Wisp of the Mist Wrist Warmers From Compassionate Knitting - Tara Jon Manning
Yarn: See above
Needles: US 5 Dpns

Okay, back to Carla's shawl. I am going to take pictures of it this weekend!

Did I mention that I love it and I want to marry it?

Posted by beth at 12:37 PM | Comments (9)

November 30, 2007

Wow 3 in one week!

Can you stand it? Probably not.

But I think you will stand this. As most of you know, I fell in love with the Calorimetry pattern from the Knitty Winter 06 issue. Why it took me so long to fall in love, I dunno. I am always on the look out for a cute, quick pattern to make for my girl friends for Christmas. Usually I keep mum about it until after they have received them. But I don't care this year. (sorry girls - I know not ALL of you read here..)

ANYWAY

I am sure many of you have noticed that this pattern (which is VERY well written) is a teesy bit big for the average mellon.

A visual please:

What? Did you expect me to model it? Not a chance. The bottom one was done following the instructions exactly. The top one was done with fewer stitches. Just so you don't think this is an optical illusion, here is a different shot:

Now, some of you good people out there may need the bigger size. I know of one of my girl friends that this will work for. She doesn't have a big head, just a lot of hair. For me the bigger size didn't work. So a little early gift to you are my mods for this:

Cast on 100 stitches, repeat row 5 - 11 times more (40 sts between markers and 30 sts at each end) then repeat row 7 - 13 times more.

*****NOTE******
I forgot to mention that I used US size 6 needles. I guess that would help huh?

This is a much better fit for us more small headed gals.

Up next: I will finally reveal my holiday exchange project for my guild! (It's sweet)

Posted by beth at 12:32 PM | Comments (8)

November 28, 2007

Operator Error

So Do you wanna hear about my stinker? That sounds a bit obscene...
Well perhaps I should show it first:

Is this not the ugliest thing you have ever seen? Look away if you must. I understand.

I guess I need to explain. These are the Target Wave Mittens from Knitting Nature by Norah Gaughan. These are AWESOME mittens. I am totally not putting down the pattern. OH NO! It is a great pattern. I am totally blaming this on operator error. And the yarn. I am trying to use up the Vanna's Choice yarn that I have left over from the Mosaic Mitts. (I will probably be using it up by making another pair of those...) These just look miserable! I am not even going to fix this or make another pair. I didn't explain what I am not happy about with this mitten. See the thumb and how "bunchy" it looks? Also there isn't a smooth line from the rings at the top to the start of the rings of the thumb. It just looks sloppy. Sigh.....

How about an up close shot of how pathetic it really looks:

**** UPDATE******

Paul hit the nail on the head. The thumb totally looks like a cow's utter! Thanks Paul!

Well I guess we can't all have a winner everytime right? These are going in the "ugh" catagory in Ravelry.

Next up: More Calorimetry's and I will share with you how I figured out how to make this SMALLER!

Posted by beth at 12:07 PM | Comments (12)

November 26, 2007

Holy Crap dot com!

My Camera SHIT THE BED!

yes.

I borrowed my Dad's camera and took a lot of pictures. I will have blog fodder for the next couple of days.

I finished my Mosaic Mitts! (a while ago....)

I really like how these came out.
Specs:
Pattern from Interweave Knits Holiday 2006 - Mosaic Mitts
Yarn: Vanna's Choice - Lion Brand 100% Acrylic
Needles: US 4 DPN's

I think I would make these a little shorter than the pattern called for. They end almost to the end of my middle finger. I would make the thumb shorter too. But these will make a good Christmas gift. I know someone with long hands....

Here is another nice shot

I think a good blocking is in order though...

Next up: I have a total stinker of a mitten! I HATE IT! And I can't wait to share.

Posted by beth at 12:54 PM | Comments (15)

November 09, 2007

Too many fingers in the pot

Is that how the saying goes?

As usual, I have many projects going at once. My other mitt is this far along

I can't believe that these aren't done yet. Of course if I didn't start other projects then I would have them done right? Oh but that is boring. Well to me that is...

I was supposed to meet up with a couple of other bloggers this weekend for "Steek Fest". What is that? Well steeking is a technique used in Fairisle knitting where you cut the fabric to add sleeves or other such things. Lauren was going to be the gracious host (she still is...it just was postponed) and Carla and I were going to drive down. We are all a little afraid of cutting our knitted pieces so we were going to start small and knit this teddy bear sweater. I kind of panicked on Tuesday when I didn't have anything started yet. So I immediately started. I have the body of the sweater done and still have the sleeves to go:

I really like this fairisle thing! I forgot how much fun it is! So anyway we had to postpone (due to me) and we will be getting together soon and steeking (sounds naughty....)

I also am working on my super secret project for my gift exchange in my spinning guild. This is all I will show:

fun fun!!!

Posted by beth at 12:33 PM | Comments (5)

November 05, 2007

Flurry of activity

I love it when I can't decide what to work on first! Means I am out of a slump. Which I don't think I ever was really in....

ANYWAY...

I finished up a mosaic mitt this weekend and started the other one:

I am thinking for my next pair of modifying the pattern as it is way to long in the hand. I mean I might as well make it a mitten! I think the author has very long fingers.... I know someone with very long fingers.... perhaps this will be a gift!

I also had to wip out a Calorimetry for my friend Carol at work. It's her birthday today and she loves it. I gave her the orange, blue, green one:

I have already frogged the red, pink, purple one as I dropped a stitch. CRAP. I can't tell you enough how much I love this pattern! This is one of the quickest things to knit and they are cute!

Posted by beth at 12:41 PM | Comments (8)

October 30, 2007

Finally! A project to get me excited again!

Not that I wasn unexcited with the socks, but you know that pesky second sock syndrome.....

Anyway, I have been wanting to make these for quite some time

What is this project and why am I so excited?

1) These are the Mosaic Mitts from Interweave Knits Summer 2004 and Holiday 2006. I always thought these looked fun to make. The thumb looks kinda huge, but I don't mind. It will keep my thumb warm.

2) I am excited because I get to try something I haven't tried before and that is Mosaic knitting. At first I was stumped at how to join the second color. But when they said "IT'S EASY" they really mean it. You only knit with one color per row. And you slip the stitches that are in the other color. It all works out when you get a couple of rows into it. Another reason I am so excited is the yarn I am using.

Are you ready? It is 100% acrylic! YIKES! But I love it! I got it cheap too. It's Lion Brand Vanna White something or other. The colors are pretty cool. AND I can wash this in the machine!

Can't beat that!

Posted by beth at 12:34 PM | Comments (16)

October 25, 2007

Finished Socks

YAY! They are DONE! And the large footed gal in New Jersey LOVES them!
Which is very important. Now I can move on!

WOW, what a hectic week I have had! I went to NYC Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday with the large footed person mentioned above. As always she is a very good NYC guide and hostess. I finally went to Central Park! I have never done that before! It was awesome. The trip was for work, but after work I got to play. Which wasn't that much play as I was tired. I decided to take a walk Tuesday night by my self (which was great too) I found my self at a Barnes and Noble. I love book stores.

Here is what I picked up

OH MY GOD DOT COM! I love this book! I want to make just about everything in it. Which is why I bought it. Well that and Missa has a totally rockin pattern in it. So when to find the time to start something new from this book and get all my Christmas knitting done too!

Groan.... something has got to give!

Oh and for some reason, I am not getting e-mail notifications about all your lovely comments! I will try and get back to you all soon if I can. It is so much easier to reply to your comments from my e-mail than looking it up on the blog! Please don't think I am mad at you, I just haven't had the time.

Okay gotta go drool over this book. What to make first.......

Posted by beth at 12:55 PM | Comments (7)

September 21, 2007

Funny thing...

Lately it seems for me that I like to make one sock then do a quick little project and start the other sock

Doesn't this look like a smile?

Or it could be that it is September and I am trying out some quick patterns for Christmas gifts! Ooops! Now you know what you are getting! Well, not all of you. This is the famous Calorimetry. Tell you what, this is a great quick project! I used my own hand dyed yarn and am very pleased with the color combo! You may see many girls walking around Syracuse with one of these on after Christmas! Well not many, maybe 5 or 6 or 7.... Drat. I let it slip again. I also wipped up one, yes one, of these with some of the left overs:

I got tagged for a meme by Lauren. I best get my butt in gear.

Posted by beth at 12:40 PM | Comments (11)

September 11, 2007

Progress is good right?

So I AM making progress on my Cascading Leaves Sock.
I AM really enjoying the pattern.
But why does my head turn so easily?
I can be very faithful, but sometimes it's hard....

I have been wanting to make this in a bad way for a long time. I thought I even had the right yarn, but I think this is too thin. The pattern calls for size 8 needles. The pattern also calls for handspun yarn. Perhaps I should do as the pattern says.

Perhaps I should finish the socks first. I am so fickle.

Posted by beth at 12:30 PM | Comments (11)

September 05, 2007

Nothing beats a nice long weekend....

So I can start a new project!

Or 2.....

I have started 2 pairs of socks! Not both the same, mind you, but 2 different pairs of socks.

Let me show you the first pair:

I have finally found the yarn that I feel is best suited for this pattern! (in my humble opinion) I am making none other than the Cascading Leaves Socks by Jeanne Townsend! I tried to make these socks before with a very busy varigated yarn. I think that light colored yarn or a solid color works best for this pattern. These socks are for my large footed friend in New Jeresy. She is VERY excited about them (don't worry Lemon, I have not forgotten about your socks, they will come) Now, I would have had a lot more knitted on these socks this weekend if I hadn't started this sock:

What is this lovely sock? Why it is one sock from the book: Knitting Lingerie Style - Joan McGowan Micheal! Love this book. And no, I won't be knitting my self a bra. But the book has some other very lovely things like these socks. I believe they are called the fishnet stockings or something like that. Yes, the picture of this sock looks quite nice doesn't it? Well let me give you a little backstory on this. Guess what yarn I used? Lion Brand Micro Spun! Not a great choice for a sock. Why? IT'S ACRYLIC YARN! What was I thinking? It does fit though. Except the ribbing at the top. That doesn't fit. Why? The pattern said to go back to size 3 needles for the ribbing. Well my fat calves can't take the strain so I will be doing the ribbing in size 6 thank you very much. Oh and did you see the big hole at the heel? No? Let me show you:

That is easy to fix. I will say this though, I do like this version of the toe up sock. It has you picking up your stitches instead of yarn overs. We all know how good I am at those! (thanks for all your comments too!)

So I am not sure yet if I will be making the matching pair of the purple socks......stay tuned.

Posted by beth at 12:35 PM | Comments (9)

August 31, 2007

Let's talk about Yarn Overs, shall we?

They drive me NUTS!

I would have had actual knitting content today, yes, I started a pair of socks, but had to rip them out because of today's topic.

I have lots of books.

I have lots of knitting books. (It's my hobby right? I don't golf...not that there is anything wrong with golf...I am getting away from topic here)

Anyway...

This is how I make a yarn over:

Thank you Vogue Knitting. Do you know how many types of Yarn Overs there are? I may be wrong here, but there are several. Especially in England. At least English patterns say what they are!

Yarn Forward (YF)

The yarn forward looks like the Yarn Over that I do already. Next we have the Yarn Round Needle (YRN). Whoa! Could this be anymore difficult? Sure, the picture makes it look SO easy!

Then we have the Yarn Over Needle (YON) Which looks the same to me as a Yarn Forward, but it's between a knit and purl stitch.

Thank you Debbie Bliss "How to Knit" for that.
Next I have the Domiknitrix Book. This is what totally got me out of whack. I hope it doesn't sound like I am dissing the English people I am not. I love that they call them different things! (your great!)

But it makes sense! Especially if I am knitting the Charade Sock from here (it's in the side bar). Yes this makes perfect sense now. NOT!

Here is one more Yarn Over:

Thank you Debbie Stoller, Stitch and Bitch Book. This is they way I make mine.

I am not sure if this little rant of mine made any sense, but I guess the question I have is:

When I slip the next stitch as if to purl, knit the next stitch, YO, pass slipped stitch over both the knit stitch and the YO, it doesn't work the way I do my YO's. But if I do them the Domiknitrix way it does. I guess I should just shut up, quit being a baby and suck it up. Right? Yeah. I thought so.

Oh and a big thank you to Smudge! He held up all my books while I took pictures. He didn't like it. He was not harmed in anyway durning this. He may tell you differently, but he wasn't.

Have a great Holiday Weekend!

Posted by beth at 12:32 PM | Comments (14)

August 28, 2007

Finished Sock!

Yes, I pushed my self to get them done. I love the color of this yarn, but I am not all that crazy about the pattern. Here is a detail of my short row heels:

They don't looks soooo bad.... I really didn't like the bind off the pattern called for. It is the "sew bind off" or something like that:

When they are on it isn't noticeable, but when they are off they are kinda wavy... ah well. Would I make them again? Perhaps. But I will try another short row heel option. I know they are out there!

They are still cute. I'll keep um.

Specs:
Yarn: Colinette Jitterbug - Color: Fruit Coulis (1 skein)
Needles: US 1's - 2 circulars
Pattern: Toe Up Socks from the Summer 2007 Interweave Knits Issue

Okay, so I have 1 more gift certificate from my birthday.... It is to a yarn store. $20 bucks. What do I get? I don't need sock yarn... But the new Rowan book is out! So I get that. LOVE IT! Wanna see what REALLY REALLY wanna make? You know you do.

I will even buy the yarn for this! But not that color. I tried a mini swatch to see if I could figure out the pattern. Did!

Oh and while I was there guess what else I got?

Yep, some sock yarn. It wasn't that expensive! Shut up!

Posted by beth at 12:09 PM | Comments (11)

August 22, 2007

Hi there! Remember me? I'm your blog...

Yep, I have been swept away.... By what?

Well, I will let you in on a secret. Have you heard of a thing called Ravelry? Why of course you have. Silly. Yes, my invitation has shown up. Well apparently it showed up in April, but I must of tossed it out. Jeesh! And here I thought I was just left out. But really, your invites will come. And when they do you will be sucked up in it just like me. If you read this here blog and you are already on Ravelry well you will see that I am not all that caught up or savvy with it yet. But I am getting there. Oh and I am not that hard to find. Just look for Big Geek Beth.

I have been knitting and crocheting though... Here is my sock and my blanket:

I have finally turned the heal on this damn sock. I can't wait until it is done and I can move on to something else, which really never stopped me before.

Posted by beth at 12:48 PM | Comments (9)

August 16, 2007

Beth, stop teasing the cat!

You know he want's to......

Okay, so I can't stop working on my scrap sock yarn granny square blanket!

Kinda hard to tell how big it is, but it is getting bigger. It's not quite a lap throw yet. I am running out of yarn! It actually is turning out really cool. This could have looked like total crap, but I am mixing up the colors pretty good. This is the yarn I have left:

When all the yarn is gone, I will put it aside until I have more to add to it. I even worked a little on my sock! I am to the dreaded short row heel. I bet I have it finished by the weekend.

Here is Smudge looking over the blanket. He has to smell everything!

Posted by beth at 12:28 PM | Comments (12)

August 06, 2007

Mama's got a brand new bag....

So I didn't get a lot done on my sock this weekend...

See? Why is this?

Lots of reasons. First, my son got back from a weeklong trip with his grandmother. I missed him like crazy! They did a trip through "Elderhostel" that took them to Colonial Williamsburg, Jamestown and Yorktown. He had a great time. It was his 10'th birthday too while he was away! HE'S 10!!! OH MY! Anyway, he is back and I couldn't stop hugging him!

You would think that with him gone for a week I would have a ton of knitting time to my self! Nope. We did yardwork, ate GREAT food, and hung out with friends! Oh I did manage a few rounds of my Scrap sock grannysquare blanket:

Kinda hard to tell how big it is, isn't it? Here is a shot with my feet in it to show how big it is

Perhaps that is why my sock is not done! I can't put this down!

Which brings me to the title of this post. I like to hold on to some of my gift certificates for a while. I got a gift certificate from my friend "T-Bone's" great store "Razzberry" which is in Armory Square here in Syracuse NY. She has a ton of fun stuff. This certificate was from my birthday! I found a perfect knitting bag for me:

I love this store! Here is a detail:

Yay for new bags!

Posted by beth at 12:34 PM | Comments (11)

August 01, 2007

Oh dear, I forgot to blog......

Where does the time go? Really I have been meaning to post, but....

Anyway... I have some sock progress! These socks seem to be going a lot slower than what I am normally used to. I can crank them out in a week and half usually. These are taking a month! I have one sock done and the other going:

I am still on the fence about whether I like knitting toe ups. I can see the benefits, however, I do have holes on one side of my short row heel. Perhaps I will get better at that as I go along. The holes don't really bother me much. They aren't that big.

There has been a lot of crochet going on around blogland. And if you didn't know, that is what I did before I learned to knit. I love crochet and I am really happy that there are so many good patterns out there now! So while I have been checking out other blogs I came across Peeve's site and found her wonderful crochet granny square blanket using leftover sock yarn! What a GREAT idea!

I had to start immediately:

I have quite a bit of left overs:

This blanket of mine will either be brilliant or hideous! I guess we will just have to wait and see.

Speaking of crochet, I picked up this book last night:

OH MY GOD! I can't wait to start the punk bunny!

Posted by beth at 12:41 PM | Comments (16)

July 11, 2007

I'm outta here baby!

Yep, I am leaving tomorrow for California! Just me and little geek this trip. His first ever plane ride! It will either be very thrilling for him or very terrifying. Hoping for thrilling.

I want to show some finished stuff before I left. I got a lot done this weekend! Heck, I even cleaned! Well sorta....

I got the jaywalkers done for my friend in Jersey

They are at their destination, but the recipient
has not seen them yet. I hear that she will love them.

While I was procrastinating on the socks, I wipped up this cute little beret

It is from the book "Charmed Knits" Harry Potter Stuff. I love this book! I love Harry Potter stuff! The yarn is Cascade 220, leftovers, and definitely not Harry Potter colors, but I thought the hat was cute. I am not really liking the back, and I think it is a little small.... Here is the back

see how bunchy it is? I think it spreads out a bit upon wearing....

I also plied my guild holiday project wool. Now this is nice:

It is going to be hard to give this up. I don't know the yardage because as I was counting, I was interrupted. It's a dk/sport weight and now the challenge is what to make with it.

Finally, I started a new sock to take with me on my trip. It's a toe up sock. I have never tried one before and I really like it!

Perhaps they will both be done by the time I get back!

See ya!

Posted by beth at 12:54 PM | Comments (12)

June 29, 2007

1 sock and 1 cute cat

Yep, one down, one to go. Every time I knit a pair of socks, I am just fascinated by the construction. I mean did the person who invented the hand knit sock slap their head and say: "I am truly gifted and brilliant for coming up with this idea!"

Lord knows I sure would.

I love this picture:

And no, he is not ready to pounce on the 1 finished sock. But it sure looks like he does.

Posted by beth at 12:47 PM | Comments (11)

June 21, 2007

Busy blogger, no lazy blogger this time

Yes, it's true, I have been busy. But I alway manage to squeak in some knitting time.

I have a progress shot of my purple shawl:

I think I am going to take my time, again, with the edge. I think I want to do a few repreats at a time. I think I am not liking knitted on lace borders. (groan.....) I am going to try and actually finish this and not let it die in my ufo pile.

In the mean time I had my large footed friend from New Jersey go to the yarn store Knit-A-Bit and pick up some yarn (ON SALE!!!) and send it to me so I could knit her and her friend a pair of socks!

She has good taste:

That is Colinette Jitterbug and Lorna's laces! Don't know the colorway's, who cares! Look at it! I have decided to start a pair right away:

Yep, I decided she needs a pair of Jaywalkers. I am thinking the cascading leaves socks would be good for the green yarn.

Okay so that isn't all. As payment for me knitting her these socks, she threw this in the bag for ME!!:

Swoon! I think this will be my summer of socks! I really don't need anymore, but it is so pretty! The blue is the yarn with the aloe in it. I forgot the name of the yarn company. The middle yarn is more Colinette Jitterbug (sorry, don't know the color way) and the end is Trekking.

I have to get busy!

Posted by beth at 12:33 PM | Comments (17)

June 12, 2007

What a lazy blogger I have been!

Thank you for all your sweet comments about my socks. They really are beautiful and I can't wait to wear them.

As soon as they were done though, I moved on. I had to.

What am I up to now??

A new shawl! From Victorian Lace Today. I am a lot further than this picture shows. I am almost done with the main part and will soon start with the knitted on lace border. I hope I don't run out of steam like I did with the round shawl. I haven't given up on that... (john) ;-)

The only challange with this is not the pattern. That is easy. It's the yarn. 70% Kid Mohair. Sure it looks pretty all wound up in a ball, but it is pure EVIL. Just when you think you are going at a good pace, you drop a stitch. Yep. I am unknitting a couple of rows right now, but I should be back on track soon. No life lines for me, no sir. Why would I do a smart thing like that?

Posted by beth at 12:27 PM | Comments (14)

June 04, 2007

Pretty Socks

Specs:
Yarn: Rowan 4 ply Botany - Purply heathery color - 2 1/2 balls
Needles: US Size 2 DPNS and US Size 2 Circulars
Pattern: Spiral Boot Socks from Interweave Knits Summer 2007 issue

These were very easy. The pattern is well written and easy to follow. I would highly recommend anyone afraid to try these, not to be afraid.

They are my favorite socks right now. I was going to take a picture of them in a pair of boots, but it was like 90 degree's this weekend! So sorry, no highly stylized photo shoot. (ha ha)

Posted by beth at 12:30 PM | Comments (36)

May 30, 2007

Magic Sheep Day 2

I touched the stuff and it is fluffy. But I don't think I can spin it.

And while we are at it, you know you want to see my Spiral Boot Sock's progress again don't you?

Almost to the heel!

Posted by beth at 12:28 PM | Comments (9)

May 29, 2007

Presents and Progress!

Wow, that holiday weekend went fast didn't it? I hope everyone had a great kick off to summer. I did! It all started on Friday night when I got home to a package from Kris. When ever I see a package from Kris I get very excited. She sends the nicest things! This was a birthday gift from Kris. I believe my birthday was celebrated all month long (as it should be...)

anyway.... here is what she sent:

Sorry about the dark picture, it was a sunny day, but the sun was behind a cloud. Isn't it the prettiest sock yarn you have ever seen? It is Norwegian sock yarn and I can't pronounce it, I won't even try. Okay here goes: Hargenflargen Sock yarn. I think that is what it is called Ha Ha.... I love the colors of this. It has reds, purples, greens all mixed up. I am thinking of making the ever popular Monkey Socks.

She also included this in the package:

I put him together while my son was out of the house. Hey, it's my present right? I want all the fun! I thought it would be fun to see the sheeps progress on a daily basis.

Here he is after I put him together:

Poor naked sheep!

Okay, here he is after like 4 hours:

and here is a close up of his cute face

Now when I woke up this morning, he needed a shave. I didn't take a picture. I thought I would tonight when I get home from work.

If only it were a real sheep and real wool! If only he could mow my lawn!

What's next? Oh yes, progress! I thought I would be done with my Spiral Boot Socks, but alas, it wasn't meant to be:

But I am getting there.

Thank you Kris for the lovely birthday present! I love it!

Posted by beth at 12:35 PM | Comments (10)

May 21, 2007

You know I can't sit idle...

I am here to show you my new project!

I bought some yarn at a rummage sale a couple of weeks ago. Really pretty yarn. Rowan 4 ply Botany in a beautiful light purple color. I got 4 skeins for 5 bucks! (sorry, had to brag... but that is a steal) I thought cool! I can make those "Anna Socks" from last fall's issue of the Rowan magazine. So I started them

I am cruising along on these socks and reading the pattern and not really noticing any decreases in the pattern. Wanna know why? THERE AREN'T ANY. . Now to me that is a big alarm. These freakin' socks will totally bag at the ankles. Of course they don't in the picture because they have little clothes pins attached in the back. Am I right????

So along comes the new issue of Interweave Knits. Some cute stuff in here my mind says. What do I see? But the Spiral Boot Socks! I must make those SPIRAL BOOT SOCKS! They won't bag at the ankles. Wanna know why? There are DECREASES in the pattern.

These socks are going to be wonderful! I frogged Anna. It just didn't work.

And look! I am using 4, yes 4 double pointed needles!

Posted by beth at 12:43 PM | Comments (18)

May 17, 2007

Introducing....

Klaralund!

I LOVE MY NEW SWEATER!!!!

I would even MARRY my new sweater.

Here is the back:

Specs:
Pattern: Karalund from Cornelia Tuttle Hamilton's Book 2
Yarn: Noro Silk Garden - 9 skeins (it called for 10, I have enough to make a hat!)
Needles: US 8 circular

I would SO make another one of these! I was way easy and it is very flattering, I think....I have it on today and I am sure I will have to put it away until fall. But that's okay, I got to wear it once right?

Posted by beth at 12:32 PM | Comments (28)

April 24, 2007

You know what they say about a girl with big feet don't you?

BIG SOCKS!

Yes, super secret knitting now can be revealed! I made my friend in New Jersey a pair of socks for her 40th, yes 40th birthday. Cause we all know once you get old like 40, your feet start getting cold. That's not true.

Anyway... She has big feet doesn't she? Well as she should. She is a tall drink of water! 6 foot I believe, so she deserves her big feet. If they were any smaller she would look funny. A while back I asked my friend to send me some measurements of her feet. This is what I got:

Not much to go by. But I did my best. Her feet don't really look like that. Wait a minute. I have never seen her feet, they could actually look like Fred Flintstone feet......

Here is a picture I took of one of my socks next to her sock:

Just to show you the scale of it all. Wow! It's a Big Foot sighting! Whoa! Okay, enough of me going on and on about her poor feet. I sent the package yesterday. She got them today and took a picture

Happy feet! They fit perfectly I am told!

Specs:
Yarn: Knit Picks Simple stripes in burgandy, tan, brown
Needles: US size 2 - 2 circluars
Pattern: From Cat Borhdi's book - Socks soar on 2 circular needles
This was the quickest pair of socks I have ever done. It took me a week and a day to complete. Obviously I wasn't knitting all the time.....

Posted by beth at 12:26 PM | Comments (19)

April 20, 2007

Good stuff

What a freakish week this has been! Sunday my furnace shit the bed (all good, just a little fix) but still it couldn't have come at a worse time! We got a good snow fall here in Central New York. It was the tail end of the Noreaster (spelled right?) that hit the whole east coast. So I am freezing in my house (until 11 the next day..) Had to shovel out of the driveway to get to work, witnessed a transformer blow the next street away from me. That is a weird thing to see. Then the really horrible news from Virgina.....a true tragedy.

I just didn't feel like blogging this week. I have been knitting though. Oh yes. I have some progress photo's to show of my new sweater!

Can you tell what it is yet? Come on, I bet you can. Ok. I will tell you. It is the infamous Klaralund! Do you know how many people have made this sweater? Me either, but I know it is a lot. I have the front and back done. I am working on 1 sleeve. Got one more to go. I had to put it aside for some super secret gift knitting. Which I will share next week. Don't want to give away any surprises now do I?

I leave you with my cat, Smudge. Here he is showing you the left over snow from the storm on Monday. Yes Monday. We still have snow.

There is a light at the end. It's going up to 70 degree's for the next 3 days! YES!

Posted by beth at 12:29 PM | Comments (11)

March 21, 2007

Hi There!

Guess what?

Yep! I got it done! I actually finished it up on Sunday, but I didn't have any buttons. Silly me thought I made only 8 button holes, but I made 9 (just like the pattern said) and I only bought 8 buttons. I couldn't get any more because I bought the last 2 on the rack! So I have an odd button on the top. Here is a detail shot:

Specs:
Pattern: Feminine Puff sleeve cardigan from Fitted Knits (I think that is what it is called)
Yarn: 5 balls of Brunswick Yarns - 100% Monsanto Acrylic (OH MY GOD!!!! Yes, it's 100 % Acrylic - more on that later...)
Needles: US 5 Circular and US 3 Circular

I loved knitting this sweater. Why oh why did I knit it with acrylic yarn? Well, it was in my stash (I had 14 balls of this stuff) I bought the yarn when I was just starting out and I didn't know any better. Actually it isn't bad yarn, but I think I might like this sweater better if I used the yarn called for in the pattern which was Knit Picks Merino I think. That's pretty cheap too. Would I make another one? You bet. I am not sure I love this sweater and it may be the acrylic. The long stretches of stockinette stitch got pretty tedious, but that was okay. Next thing you know I was at the waist shaping. I had some difficulty with Row 17 on the lace panel. I am not sure if it was the pattern or operater error. Probably the second. So I just winged it. I probably would make this a little longer too. I am just not that comfortable showing my belly fat.

Okay, the next picture is quite funny. "D-Rock" my son (his new name) wanted to try the sweater on. Of course I had to take a picture:

and this too

He asked me if I was going to put this on my blog.

Silly boy.....

Posted by beth at 12:29 PM | Comments (24)

March 13, 2007

The new sweater

Yep! As promised, this is a shot of my new sweater in progress. It is none other than the puff sleeve cardigan from Stephanie’s great new book Fitted Knits! I am actually a lot further now. I am at the lace part at the bottom! This sweater is knitting up fast! Woo hoo! New clothes!

Specs later when I am done with the sweater.

Posted by beth at 12:28 PM | Comments (16)

March 09, 2007

I am a busy girl!

Wow! I have been away for a couple days down in NYC and NJ for work. Whenever I go away I try to hit a new yarn store. If I can't get to a new one I try to go to an old favorite.

I tried to get to School Products because they have that fabulous lace merino yarn that is dirt cheap, but sadly I couldn't make it there.

I did however FIND a GREAT yarn store in the town I was staying in. I swear, I can SMELL yarn from a mile away. My friend and coworker had me stay in beautiful downtown Westfield New Jersey. It's a quaint little town smack dab in the middle of New Jersey. Well, I am not one to sit around my hotel room and mope. I like to explore. I found a great little shop called Knit-a-Bit on 66 Elm Street! (Second floor) The owners of the shop were so friendly and nice. This is what I picked up:

Collinette Jitterbug! It is VERY bright, but that is why I bought it. I went back the next day and picked up the new Rowan magazine too.

If anyone is in that area I would totally recommend the shop. Great yarn! And great poeple. Go buy yarn from them!

I was hoping to show some status shots of the sweater I started, but I will have to do that next week.

over and out.

Posted by beth at 12:33 PM | Comments (14)

February 26, 2007

You asked for it....

Nice huh? I think I am a little bow (?) legged though...

And here I am again with a cute little dress and some combat boots

Here is a nice heel shot

such fine detail.

Here is what Suki thinks

She thinks I am too old for combat boots.

Thanks to my hubby for the top two shots.

Posted by beth at 12:36 PM | Comments (25)

February 22, 2007

Did you think I got stuck in a snow bank?

Nope! I was too busy finishing up these

So this is the only picture I have to show today. For some reason, the picture I took of the back is not working correctly. Which really is okay. Do you know how hard it is to take a picture by your self with these things on? I think I have 20 pictures. NO LIE.

I will take a picture of the back over the weekend when the lighting is better. Because you know, it's all about the lace panel and the heel stitches. The front is boring.

But they are DONE!

Oh and this is all I had left:

Not bad eh? I love it when I don't have a lot left. Oh! Here are the specs:

Pattern: Over the Knee Socks from Hand Knit Holiday's
Yarn: 4 balls of Silja Superwash Sock Yarn in Cranberry - got the yarn from Kris
Needles: US2 - circulars (2 of them)

I would knit these again in a heartbeat. They didn't take any longer than the shorter socks. I just didn't work on them constantly. I do have other things to do......

;-)

Posted by beth at 12:19 PM | Comments (19)

February 16, 2007

Enough already!

That was my house yesterday morning. Look to the right. My mail box was knocked off by the snow plow and the husband pushed it into the snow bank. Lovely.

Here is a shot last night looking out my front door

I tried to find a shot that showed what it looks like with out snow and this was all I could find:

Excuse the sock. But hey, it's knitting!

I am so sick of this snow! I am sure everyone in the northeast is pretty sick of it.

Okay, on to the knitting. Just so you know that I am not too busy shoveling or slacking:

They will be done by the weekend! (i hope....)

Posted by beth at 12:54 PM | Comments (17)

February 12, 2007

Don't get excited!

No, I didn't make this. And you will either love it or hate it. I love it in a weird grandma kind of way. What is it you ask? Well it is a crochet jacket of sorts. I got it at my new favorite vintage store right here in Syracuse. I bought it so I could "figure" out the pattern. I haven't done that yet because I am half way done with my second over the knee sock! YAY!!!!!!!

Okay back to the point. I really like this jacket thingy (above). It is made out of yucky acrylic yarn, but we can remedy that with cool yarn, cool colors, cool shape I may have a cool jacket.

Just thought I would share seeing as how I don't have anything else to show you. Let me know what you think.

Thanks to Carla for taking the picture.

Posted by beth at 12:23 PM | Comments (17)

February 06, 2007

New project news

I figure, I finished a sweater, I can treat my self and start a new project right? Forget about the shawl. It's on vacation (I forget who I told that to....)

I started these:

Actually it's just a "this" right now. What is "this"? It is the beginnings of the Over the Knee Socks from Hand Knit Holiday's! I am actually a lot further than this picture. I am now on the foot almost ready to decrease for the toe! I am really really hoping I don't run out of yarn. I don't think I will.

I am also really hoping that "second sock syndrome" does not set in. This would be a bad one for it. Although the sock is going rather quickly seeing as how I started it last Sunday. I am not going to let it happen! The other sock will be cast on immediately!
Over and out.

Posted by beth at 12:41 PM | Comments (16)

January 31, 2007

Holy crap! I am on a roll!

Why?

Yes! It is! A FINISHED SWEATER!!!!!!

I have been so jealous of everyone lately finishing up sweaters and such that well, I just had to do it myself.

I think I started this during the summer. I finished it this weekend. All I needed to finish was the sleeves. Let's take a closer look at the sleeves:

Huzzah! ARRRRRRGGGGG! AVAST! And all that. Yes it's the skull pattern from Hello Yarn. I think I should post this over at the along

Now, let's see, the specs are a little vague:
Pattern: Top down cardigan pattern from Glampyre (sorry no link - I am being lazy)I decided to keep it a pull over

Yarn: Uh, um, dunno. But it's 100% Wool (Candide I think) it's got a bit of the barn in it you know.

Needles: US size 8 circulars and dpn

It is a little snug, but I love it! Thanks you Carol for taking my picture at work! (note to the boss: it was at lunch....)

Posted by beth at 12:22 PM | Comments (27)

January 23, 2007

I've been holding out....

Yes, I have. I have another FO! And this is a cute one!

One of my coworker's daughter had a baby in October. A girl! I have been wanting to make the baby bonnet by Erika Knight for the longest time. I made the bonnet ages ago and I finished it right before New Years. I didn't show a picture because I wanted a shot of it on THE BABY! Right?

Here she is, Baby "A"

okay it's a little big for her.....

Okay so it looks like it's swallowing her.

Well I am looking at the photo and "HEY MOM" you got it on backwards!

I probably should have sent her these for instructions

Because it's so cute here is a side view:

and

That's alright. She will grow into it and hopefully a new picture with the bonnet on correctly will be here soon.

She is still cute eh?

Posted by beth at 12:36 PM | Comments (13)

January 15, 2007

Avoidance issues....

Why oh why can't I finish my shawl? WHY? WHY WHY?

Because it's boring and stupid. The shawl that is. I am bored to DEATH with it.

So what have I been doing in the mean time?

and

Specs:
Pattern: Wisp of Mist Wrist Warmers (say that 3 times fast...) from Compassionate Knitting by Tara Jon Manning
Needles: US 5 DPNS
Yarn: Hand dyed by me

Love this pattern! You can crank these out in no time. In fact I am on my 3rd pair! You can knit these and put them away for that last minute gift. God I sound like a dork.

PS: Thank you so much for the comments on my socks! Wow! You guys are great!

Posted by beth at 12:34 PM | Comments (18)

January 09, 2007

Socks..... DONE!

Finally. I finished something. And I like it.

Specs:
Pattern: From Knitters's Socks Book. (dunno the exact name or pattern)
Yarn: From my Dye-O-Rama pal. I don't even know if it is machine washable.
Needles: US 2 Circulars

I wish I had made the leg part a little longer. They almost feel like ankle socks. Whatever. They are done. Let's look at them again...

Okay, so these are off the list of works in progress. I really need to finish that shawl don't I?

Posted by beth at 12:30 PM | Comments (22)

January 03, 2007

So much for making promises to my self

What do you do if you have pretty much a WHOLE day to your self. A WHOLE rainy, damp Saturday that is.....

Yes, I pretty much stayed in my jammies, didn't shower until about 4PM. No kid around. Husband was around but he didn't bother me. I did take a break to eat.

So I started this mitten last Saturday. I am up to the thumb. Guess what? It's too small! GROAN................and sigh...............

I was doing so good too

I like the palm of this much more than the hand. My cuff and first couple of rows came out so good too.....

So what am I going to do? I am going to frog this, but I thought I should at least document my disaster. I am going to use a bigger needle and loosen up a bit.

I'm okay with this.

Posted by beth at 12:17 PM | Comments (9)

December 29, 2006

End of the year round up!

Yes, it is almost over. I just looked over my list of goals for this year and I did horribly! That’s ok though. Here is what I wanted to do last year:

- knit 4 sweaters.
- knit 2 shawls
- knit 1 vest
- knit 1 lacy scarf
- knit 1 caplet
- knit a bunch of socks
- knit some fairisle mittens

I also wanted to finish up some projects:
- pink crochet scarf that I started on “Uncommon Threads”
- Rebecca Sweater – Apricot Jacket
- Ruffles Scarf
- Shawl made from left over yarn
- a couple other unmentionables because they are still “gifts”
- gauntlets from a Rowan Magazine

Well, let’s see how I did:
- I have knit NO sweaters (I have 2 to finish…)
- I have knit 1 shawl and I am almost finished with another (not bad….)
- I have really thought about knitting a vest, but never got around to it
- I did knit a lacy scarf on REALLY BIG NEEDLES (it counts, wait, I knit 3 lacy scarves...)
- I don’t think I want to knit a caplet anymore. (Are they so last year???)
- I have only completed 2 pairs of socks (I have 3 more socks that need mates….)
- I didn’t knit any fairisle mittens (but I am going to)

I did finish 1 thing on my unfinished list
The gauntlets from the Rowan Magazine (wow – there is hope for me)

Now it may seem that I perhaps should set some more realistic goals. But it’s my list. I can do what I want right? I don’t think this year was a bad year, I have to say that my spinning has much improved thanks to Lolly and her Project Spectrum. I probably wouldn’t have forced my self to spin if it wasn’t for her great “along”

So what did I accomplish?
- 2 pairs of socks
- spinning
- 4 Pirate Hats (WOW! I am getting good!)
- 1 very ugly hat made out of equally ugly acrylic yarn
- spinning
- 1 pair of wrist warmers, 1 pair of gauntlets, 1 pair of Fetching wrist warmers
- 1 crochet scarf
- 1 lacy angora scarf, 1 lacy/bulky alpaca scarf, and 1 lacy (Weekend Knitting) scarf (that’s 3 scarves people – oh wait, that is 4 scarves!)
- more spinning
- 11, yes 11, 1 skein hats!
- 1 Muff (for your hands, to keep warm…oh get your mind out of the gutter)
- 1 Little Arrowhead shawl
- did I mention spinning?
- 4 pairs of mittens
- 1 Umbilical cord baby hat
- spinning

Phew! I am tired! What will be on my list for next year? Hmmmmmmm….. I am thinking…….

Have a wonderful New Years! Kisses and Hugs to all!

Posted by beth at 03:32 PM | Comments (14)

December 28, 2006

Survival

Yes. I have survived. The holidays.
I wanted to have a nice picture of our tree and say nice things to all my blogging friends but I just didn't have time. Sigh.......There are only so many hours in the day and well something had to give.

Anyway... I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and I hope you all have a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!

Guess what? I didn't finish my hubby's hat in time! But that's okay. I wrapped it up and gave it to him anyway. It's not like I haven't done it before. (right Lemon?) I did finish it though.

I am really happy how this one turned out. It is probably the best one I have done so far. I am really liking this fairisle thing. As long as it is in the round.

specs:
Pattern: We Call them Pirates from Hello Yarn
Yarn: Dale of Norway Haulk in Army Green and Maroon
Needles: US Size 3 circulars

My son loved his hat too! I finished it in plenty of time.

The cat said: "I'm outta here"
Specs
Pattern: We Call them Pirates from Hello Yarn
Yarn: Dale of Norway Falk (Bright Red and Black)
Needles: US Size 3 circulars

I also made some mittens out of my very own handspun!

Specs:
Pattern: From the pattern book by Anne Budd
Yarn: My own handspun tencel/merino (dark blue) 100% Alpaca (light blue)
Needles: US Size 6 Double pointed

These are a gift. She has really long hands and I hope they fit. I also made her this hat:

Specs: Noro 1 skein hat
Yarn: Noro Shinano (from the sale bin) Color #1. It has nice flecks of blue and pink and others.
Needles: US Size 8 Double Pointed and circular

Well there you have it. My hands didn't turn into claws. I wouldn't allow that. I also DID NOT finish my shawl like I told one of my commenters. But I will finish it. It is next on my list. Promise. I also have a sweater, 2 pairs of socks, another sweater......the list is endless. But I will not start anything new until they are done. You heard it here!

I am hoping to post tomorrow for my year end wrap up. I need to go through my list of goals and see if I achieved any of them. I think I did about a 1/3rd. If you don't hear from me, HAPPY NEW YEAR and thank you so much for commenting! I see a contest in the new year!

Love to all!

Posted by beth at 12:13 PM | Comments (7)

December 14, 2006

Somebody stop me please....

I can't stop. I will soon have claws for hands.... From left to right:
Mitten's for my son's teacher. I think they need a little embellishing. He told me she wears a lot of grey. So she get's grey mittens. Another hat! This one is for ME!!!! I buy a lot of odd ball skeins of yarn from that sale bin at one of my favorite LYS. This is from that bin. Can't beat Noro for making a good looking hat. Finally on the far right is a very floppy, very big, yarmulke for a friend at work. I think I am going to make a smaller one as his head isn't that big. Husband said it looked like a doily. Oiy.

I am almost done with both father and son Pirate hats! I just need to finish the lining. They don't suspect a thing. Of course I am staying up WAY too late to finish these. I hope they appreciate them! I will take a picture on Christmas. You will have to wait until then!

Gotta go! I am so behind on my shopping! Too busy knitting.....

Posted by beth at 12:38 PM | Comments (17)

December 07, 2006

I think I may have a new career...

I think I should work for Santa in his workshop

I finished these this weekend! I forgot to mention it. I am a Christmas present machine! Okay enough tooting on the horn. They are just mittens for goodness sake. Woo hoo!!!

Specs:
Yarn: 100% alpaca from some alpaca farm near Rochester, NY. I bought it at an Alpaca show last year
Needles: US 5 double point