Contest Alert

Head on over to McKnitter's blog and enter a contest. It's super easy, she's looking for vacation suggestions in the comments. Check it out!

Update/ Lace

Hello everyone. I keep saying that I am going to abandon this blog, but it continues to get traffic every day. SO, instead, I'll be periodically posting something for y'all to look at when you show up, with another reference to the blog I now use most often. kay?

Here's what I'm working on now. It's my Fern Lace Stole and I'm almost half way finished! Yaay!

If you'd like more details, you can click on over to Clandestine & Candour. While you're there, you can subscribe =)) (hey, a girl can be hopeful, right?)

Take care, I'll be sharing more stuff in the days to come.

Sleep, Breathe and Knit

Oh yeah, and sometimes I eat a bit =) But the former 3 seem to be all I do lately. The sleeping is real nice. After having such a hard time sleeping for so long, it's such a relief to be able to relax into sleep.

The knitting is nice, too. I didn't realize I could finish a pair of socks that fast. I really like these. They look a little similar, but different. They are very comfy and that's what's important.

You can I've cast on for pair number 3. There were only 10 stitches on the needles in this picture, but now, I'm very well along into the first cuff.

I would like the start my second sock some where close to the same spot as these since it's a self striping yarn. One of the Knit Picks variety. I don't recall the name or even the color. I've had it in a ball waiting to be knit for like a year and a half, at least. Too long. It's a little rough on the hands now that I've gotten used to the bamboo stuff, but these yarns always soften up greatly once washed. (as you all know, so why did I bother to say so? hmmm?)

Well.... we'll see how I keep up the pace. I would like to at least start pair number four this month. That'll be a serious record for me. I don't think I've knit 4 pairs in 6 months before! The weird thing is, you'd think I'd be getting tired of making socks, but it seems to be the reverse. I won't be able to keep up this pace forever, but I can see me making lots more that I have been.

Yaay for Socktoberfest!

Hey Everyone

Check out my Socktoberfest Socks! 1 1/2 pairs so far! Yaaay!

Feeling Better

I want to start this particular post by thanking all of you who left comments on my last post. I'm doing lots better now. I've been reading a couple of good books about how to talk to yourself in the positive instead of the negative and it really helps my attitude. I still have lots to learn, but I'm on the right track.

On a lighter note, here is the "so far so good" shot of my sock in progress. I'll be turning the heel next, when I actually pick it up again. Can't read and knit at the same time very well, and I have 2 books to read, well 1 and 2/3's since I've read at least 1/3 of the first book.

I really thought I had more to say, but I guess I didn't! Hmmm.... I must be processing what I've read so far or something. OH well, maybe it'll come to me later.

OH yeah, I found the other balls of this yarn. Where? In the place I keep my sock yarn, duh, I just didn't think it'd be on the bottom for some reason. I probably put it down there to hide it from myself so I wouldn't think about how many times I tried to knit with it on my cruise. Wow just "voicing" and I started clenching my teeth, I think I have some tension about that, ya think? dang -- cleansing breath and let it go. I think I'll go and figure that one out! ttyl!

Posts from Winter '06

Monday, January 08, 2007

Hasta La Pasta, Blankie!

SO, long, it's been GOOD to know ya, SO long..... blah blah blah, I don't remember the next line. oh well. It's true. This has been a pretty satisfying knit all and all. Just when I thought I was going fast, I wasn't. Just when I thought I was going slow, I wasn't! A little confusing, yes, but always a surprise down the next row.







A very pleasing stitch pattern, I think. I really like the colors now, that I've aquired an eye for them. The yarn, scrumptous, of course.

Pattern: Warm & Cuddly Baby Afghan
From: Quick Knitted Afghans pg 64
Yarn: Shine in Worsted Weight - Knit Picks
Colors: Crocus and Grass




Just as soon as it was dry, and photographed, I lost no time in wrapping it up like a giant candy.

Making it look all pretty, and so much LESS purple next to it's paper. Too bad, but, that's ok. It only looks slightly pinkish that way.

I thought it would be cute to use some small bit of the miles of extra green I have left, for a little garnish.





Then it was into the bag with it. How does she look, y'all? =)*) All purty and dressed up for the daynce. heh heh heh, shucks and garsh

So, it's Fare the well, sweetie baby blanket, I hope your new girl loves you! byeeee








...and hello new project! -- well until I get to the LYS for laceweight stuff --

(since I feel all NEKKID with no knitting project)


Hill Country Yarns

Strawberry Swirl

I've been waiting for ages to use this yarn, yaay. I think I should always have a sock going on the side, from now on. k? Should cut down on monotony once in a while.

Sunday, January 07, 2007

The Remains of the Yarn

Here are the remains of the yarn.

The two pieces left from stitching up the sides.

Of course I had to use the purple, since I couldn't have made the green blend in with the border so easy.


And of course you remember the tiny bit that was left after finishing the top.

I should admit that at both corners of both borders I weaved in the ends in such a way as to start the stitching, partly to conserve yarn, and partly really give it added strength at the corners - if you would call them corners? I guess they are the corners of the body of the blanket. Something like that.

It had been in the plans for me to be posting pictures of the blanket as a whole, all weaved in, washed and blocked. But NO! Thursday night, all my late nights caught up with me and I was hit by a very angry flu bug. 2 days of forced rest later, and a probably drug induced feeling of sorta wellness (Excedrine Migraine, how do I love thee?) I still haven't weaved in the rest of the ends, which means it hasn't been washed or blocked either. Hopefully I can weave in the rest of the ends today, and possible do the wash/block thing, too, which would (theoretically speaking) mean there may be pictures in the morning. (we'll see how that goes)

For now, mainly I could use a few postive thoughts, (or whatever you call it)lol and I'll get back to knitting, soon. =)

Weaving in Ends? CHECK!
Washing? CHECK!
Blocking? next =) and CHECK!

WOO HOO PIX TOMORROW BABY!

edited again to add:
yes, I know it's tomorrow already, but that thing is taking FOREVER to dry. So I put it out in the sun for a bit. Now it's half dry and half damp, it's been turned damp side to the sun, now and SOON we will have new pix.

Thursday, January 04, 2007

Believe it or Not

Guess what? I have enough yarn! Here's what I had left after knitting the left border and the first row of the the top border. It was about at this point in time that I started to suspect that I may have enough yarn and that my order to Knit Picks may have been premature.

uh.... OOPS! and OH WELL! lol That's ok, I got myself a little present in that order, so I don't regret it. After all, I have 2 and a half balls of the green left, so I may as well have 2 balls of the crocus to match, right? I can always put yarn to use =)


Here is an artsy fartsy shot showing what it looks like right before I started knitting the top border.

Remember me saying that getting a good detailed shot of the whole blanket is hard? Well, it doesn't get easier on an overcast day when the blanket is even bigger.

So I figured I'd make it more interesting than detailed and pretend I am some awesome famous photographer who can show depth instead of detail and make people say, "OOOOO!" and "AAAAAAHHHHH!" and "Isn't that interesting?"

You don't have to burst my bubble on that fantasy, ok? lol




For all of you that love to get lost in the wrong side of this stitch pattern, here's YOUR artsy fartsy photograph showing depth AND detail.


(and YES, I'm aware of my weirdness, don't worry, I'm highly medicated on caffiene and antioxidants)






For those of you that don't love artsy fartsy so much but still enjoy they hypnotic properties of the reverse side of this blanket, your photo is here.


Zone out all you want!

And finally to totally freak out all the people who are very scared of running out of yarn....

I present, the end of the line. A line so close to being just short of the end of the line, that it boggles the mind.

This is the end of BOTH remainder balls from both the left and right sides. I did no calculations, no fancy measurements, it is pure coincidance, accident, random good happenstance. It's nice, it's rare, I know, so I wallow in my freakishly random good happenstance. =)*)

Just so you know, I'm using the scrap that wasn't part of either left side or right side border skeins to stitch up the side borders to the middle. I have JUST enough for that as well. How, random and freakishly good is that? yaay

Wednesday, January 03, 2007

LOOK! The Borderths of InTHANity! hahahahaha!

Now he'll NEVER catch uth! hahahaha

As you can see, my trusted photographer's assistant is doing an excellent job of impersonating a kitty cat.

She's definitely already a fiber snob, she knows the good stuff when she feels it.

Stho! What makeths me inthane over my borderths?



Well.... see the yarn ball on the left, compared to the right? Right ball is one skein. Left ball is one skein after knitting the right side of the border.

So... logically after knitting the left side of the border using the skein on the right, I'll have the same basic amount as the one on the left.

Do you think that's enough to knit the top border?

Am I INTHANE, or did the word THINK ethcape my mouth? I think it'ths NOT enough. We'll have to wait and THEE about that, but it totally thuckths.

ANYWAY, here it is in it's giant squareness, knitted from border, across the top to join the border for stability and to make it easier to move it around.

It's not easy to photo this thing in it's entirety, but this will have to do.





I tried the join as I go strategy and it didn't work so good, so I ripped back a couple rows of it and left a couple for a good anchor.

Now, to start the left side.

Looks like I'll have to buy more yarn, but I can't just order the ONE skein, right? hmmmm..... time to start thinking what I want from Knit Picks. (ah rats) hahaha

Monday, January 01, 2007

The Final Countdown?

It's 9:55 am, I haven't started knitting but I kept knitting after midnight and got down to 7 repeats. I haven't had breakfast and I'm going to snag a shower before I start knitting again. I'm hoping to be able to get thru the 7 repeats needed today, I did 7 yesterday even though I seemed to be in some sort of odd time warp. Why is it that some days you can knit SO fast and other days it seems like you are going JUST as fast but progressing OH so sssllllooooowwww? Since I can't make much sense of it I just attribute it to being in my own personal time warp.

The topmost marker is pinkish and marks the repeat for 10 to go.

The middle one marks the 21 spot.

I forgot the other one, but scroll down and you can find that answer.

I'm starting to plan the border, which is simple garter stitch, but I'm thinking of attaching it as I go, instead of stitching it up at the end. We'll see how that works out, or not.

I probably won't get to start knitting until after the munchkins get lunch (somewhere around the time I get breakfast) hmmmm, maybe I should do breakfast before I shower so I don't pass out? (Ya THINK?!)

Once I get a few repeats done, I'll check back.



10:28 am and 7 repeats to go

1:30 pm with 5 repeats to go wooo hooo yaay refill the coffee and knit some MORE weeee!

3:07 pm with 3 repeats to go except 3 is now the new ZERO so I'm DONE with the repeats!!!!

I'm not cheating even tho it seems so, because if I don't stop NOW (or 2 repeats back) I'll run out of the purple (crocus, I think) and I probably will anyway. (anyone have a spare ball of worsted crocus Shine in their back pocket? hahahaha)

Now I start the border. (after a couple of chores and one errand) I WOULD try the green as part (like the sides) of the border, but it scares me as the border. (I tried it to begin with and I nearly threw up, so NO to that)

scratch that! I found ONE MORE BALL OF CROCUS! yaaay I should have plenty

posted by JustApril @ 9:55 AM 7 comments

Posts from Fall '06

Winter Storm/Watch Socks

Fittingly, the Storm Watch Socks were being cast off just as the 1st major Winter Storm blew in last night. It rained all night as the temperature dropped. Lightning blasted closer then further and closer again. As I drove my daughter to school this morning, the temperature went from 34 degrees to 31 and just like that, everything was frozen. The sleet began to pelt the house at the same time, I was informed upon arriving home. The sleet came down harder and we started to see snow flurries swirling around playfully in the midst of it's more serious cousins. The leaves on the just turning leaves on the crepe myrtle tree looked slightly glittery in the diffused light of the almost white sky. In the end, the gregarious snow annoyed the scowling sleet into submission giving the impish flakes free reign to twistingly fly, float and fall according to their individual fancies.

posted by Aprilynne @ 11:26 AM 11 comments

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Storm Watch Socks So Far

Well, I'm getting there. I've had lots of interruptions, so my really fast start sort of stalled out. I guess being sick for most of two weeks can do that for ya. ha

Anyway, here they are to date, they fit SO perfect so far and they feel so buttery. Fiber-wise they feel better than anything I've had on my feet so far. I'm not sure why but it's true.

I LOVE THEM!




Storm Watch by Sunshine Yarns

I really love this color way.

It looks all stormy to me.

OH, I nearly forgot, we're leaving town for a few days, so I'll respond to all the comments next week.

Where am I going? Well, my best friend's new business burned down over the weekend and it was a total loss. The real bad part of it is that her parents owned the building and it wasn't just one place, it was like a little shopping center with several little businesses that employed about 40 people total. Her parents also had their business in there, as well, and they had so many keepsakes in there, like vintage baseball cards and book collections etc... it's sad.

So, we'll be there the next few days for support and my DH is going to help them pick out new computers suited to getting back on their feet to some degree. He's so sweet =)

Well, see y'all soon!

Thursday, November 16, 2006

Trying to Cheer Myself Up

the picture got lost on this one, but you may recall it?


Well, I can see some of these more than others. I always WISHED I looked like Terri Hatcher, she's so cute. I used about the silliest photo of my I could find on my third try. You should have seen some of the freaks on my first two. One was a very very very VERY scary drag queen who's had too much collagen - and the first one on my first try was Angelina Jolie hmmmm YEAH RIGHT! I think not. Maybe the eyebrows? Anyway, I just kept trying different photos to see what I got. I got Greta Garbo on my first two, which was cool, she's cool.

OH, why do I need cheered up? I've been SO sick. Monday night I started feeling achy (while at the grocery store - fun, eh? - at least my DH was with me, sweetly) I was OUT all day Tuesday which is my DH's day off and my sis who lives here, so that's handy at least. I was MOSTLY out yesterday, too, and I'm sorta not up today, but not in bed either. If this throat would just STOP HURTING!!!!! I'm to the point I want to tear it out and throw it away. If only that would help.

****sigh****

I was making good progress on my mindless socks, I did a couple of rounds on each last night while watching the finale of Dancing with the Stars. DH was rooting for Mario and I Emmit, I guess I won? I actually thought that any of the final 3 could easily deserve it. I liked different aspects of each one.

Anyway, I'll show pics of my socks, soonish - stay healthy out there, this throat junk is NOT fun!

Saturday, November 11, 2006

Stockinette Stitch Comfort

No pattern, no rules, no thinking, just knitting.

***sigh***

It's what my mind deserves and needs, mindless stockinette in the round. Around and around, knitting like the wind.

Yarn: Stormwatch by Sunshine Yarns

By Dani of Knitting Sunshine

The Etsy shop was down for maintenance when tried to visit it today, Saturday, but maybe it'll be back up before too long. She has awesome colorways.

Anyway, on the home front things are better and worse - don't ya hate when that happens? Yeah, well in THIS home things are better, at least!

Is it just around here, or are there lots of people losing their minds at once? Just curious.

Wednesday, November 08, 2006

The Neverending Jaywalkers - Done!

They are finally finished! I can't believe I finally finished them! I'm SO glad. SO... Now I can make myself some plain jane socks and knit in mindless stockinette stitch for miles. Maybe I can have them done before the next cold snap.

Have you ever wondered what happens to the Kitchener Stitch if you put just a tiny bit too much rum in your Pepsi? Well if you've ever wondered the answer is, Half Backwards Kitchener Stitch.

I think I rather like it, actually, on Jaywalkers at least, because it sort of marries the toe to the rest of the sock. Anyway, this affect is accomplished by doing the same thing to both the top stitch and the bottom one. In other words you slip off the top stitch as to purl and put the yarn in knitwise then slip the bottom stitch off purlwise and put the yarn into the next stitch knitwise - over and over - the same two steps - instead of alternating and you get a tiny little row of reverse stockinette =) even if you didn't have the rum.

I'm rolling my Stormwatch yarn into a ball RIGHT now, just chomping to cast on my second pair of fake Socktoberfest socks - fake b/c Socktoberfest is over everywhere but in my head. Sock on peeps and knit OUT!

Friday, November 03, 2006

I'm Extending MY Socktoberfest Indefinitely =P

OH I didn't want Socktoberfest to be gone so fast =( So I refuse to let it go yet. I'm keeping Socktoberfest going in my head until I've done at least 2 more pairs of socks! Assuming that I can EVER finish these! What is my deal? It seems that even when I knit for hours (not uniterrupted, of course) but still, I'm knitting a bunch, ok? It seems like they hardly progress at all. So... in spite of being a serial Jaywalker, the next pair of socks I do will be plain old mindless Stockinette stitch - and then I may do the Garter Ribbed pattern, b/c it looks very cool - Then I think I'll make the Dublin Bay pattern for myself.

I know I have been talking up the whole Bamboo sock idea and I really can't wait to get some Bamboo socks on my feet and try out the no tired theory on them. HOWEVER, Texas may bet getting an actual Winter this year, and I am actually cold! yaay - So I must have some wool socks first. Don't I have some wool socks yet? Well... yes and no. I have the lovely first Jaywalkers, but I never finished darning them. My first pair of socks were just a tiny bit too small, so I gave them to my sister. And they fit her like they were made for her, maybe they were? She loves them so much that she wears them all the time. I have a feeling she'll eventually be a sock knitter, too.

So I've revisted my love of Sunshine Yarns. Look at these gorgeous colors, people. I saw 'Stormwatch' my heart skipped a beat. Not only is blue my favorite color, I LOVE stormy skies and lightning and all the color play that comes along with them. So this was a no brainer buy. As for Neopolitan, c'mon - how gorgeous is that going to be as socks? TOO gorgeous!


Then there is my Bamboo yarn! I noticed yesterday that this yarn is surprisingly similar to the colorway of Stormwatch! So, it's no surprise that after I saw it at "Yarns Ewenique" a few weeks ago, that I couldn't stop thinking about it. So when I finally had a dollar or so (haha) I went and got it! They had another purply colorway, oh.... what was the name of it? Something witty with 'Purple' in it - ah, too bad, it's gone forever out of my head. But this particular colorway is called "Intensity". I think this yarn will make a very interesting Dublin Bay Sock =)



In Assimilation news, my brother, 2 of 7, has come all the way to the dark side. Check out this gorgeous handpainted alpaca that has an inspecific project planned for it! It's wonderful, yes? Just think, he's only been knitting a couple of years, and sporadically at that, and here he is suddenly a yarn conniseur! He found this at the "Shabby Sheep" in Downtown Dallas.


Color me proud. **sigh**



Check out this cabley good scarf he is knitting for himself. Can you believe the very first cable he did was the one at the beginning of this thing? He's totally got the cable pattern memorized already, too. Amazing! It's a pattern I made up on the fly, but, I think it's pretty cool looking. I'm sure it's been done before, but hey - whatevah =) I don't recall the exact fiber content in this one, but it's definitley wool. I think it's Merino, but not sure. It has enough lanolin to moisturize your hands after you've been knitting a bit! I know that much.

Oh, I would totally link everything, but I seem to be getting sick, so I don't feel like it. Maybe next time, better get back to knitting or napping, not sure which =)

There's a button for Sunshine Yarns in the sidebar if you want to shop Dani's awesome stuff.

See y'all when the Jaywalkers are done, I don't think I can show my face until then! lol knit faster knit faster! aaaaauuuugggghhhh - bye

posted by Aprilynne @ 10:35 AM 15 comments