Saturday, September 30, 2006

I am ecstatic. Debbie Stoller, the renowned goddess of the modern world of craftiness (er, one of several goddesses) has selected my pattern to be a part of the new Stitch n' Bitch book. I am going to be in Stitch n' Bitch. Stitch n' Bitch is going to be including me.
I don't know what else to say without gloating so I'll just stop. The pattern is for a fancy little hat, but I'll not spoil the surprise!

Sockies:
























Okay, so I really don't have enough accomplished to imply the plural yet, but the progress so far is nice. They are (rather, it is) wooly enough to be warm and snuggly, yet the gauge is loose so that these socks won't be too bunchy or hot. I'd really like to try this pattern again with solid sock yarn, as I think the sporadic yet colorful "lint surprises" kind of take away from the elegance of the fair isle detail.

Aye, what's this? It looks like a back, just chillin' out on my uber-diy blocking board!

Eww, check out that gross uneven tension on the vertical stripes. I've got to go back with a crochet hook and fiddle with that. Then, cast on for the front pieces!
I'll elaborate on this project in the next post. For now, it's a secret. ;)

(And yes, I do have an unbelievably long torso.)

posted by Sally Sue @ 8:43 AM 4 comments

Wednesday, September 20, 2006

I promised a WIP update, and I guess it's well overdue.
Currently occupying my #5 dpn's is one electric kneesock with nothing to finish but a toe. Evidently it has shocked itself into a coma, for I haven't been able to get a viable response out of it for days. Either it regains consciousness soon or it is doomed to perish, incomplete, in the single life for eternity.
The red sweater, on the other hand, is very much alive and growing. I'm psyched about how cute it's turning out; if I thought it was at all acceptable to wear a vest outside of my antiquated Catholic school I might actually leave it as-is. But alas. It yet awaits a pair of short sleeves and a ribbed neck band. Ready for the knitting-because-what-else-would-I-do-on-the-night-before-four-tests-in-my-surfboard-boxers shot? Here it is:























I started another pair of socks, too. They're going to be wonderful: blue with just enough tan colorwork to make them visually interesting. I'll post pictures once I have a bit more progress.

Finally, my last work-in-progress happens to be a fantastically planned (okay, I drew it on a piece of notebook paper ... but that is a lot of planning, for me. What, numbers? I'm unacquainted with the concept.) cardigan. I have a clear vision of it turning out terribly cute, the shaping is going to be superb, and the back is well on its way to being finished.

And this is all you're getting.















Cheers!

posted by Sally Sue @ 6:38 PM 3 comments

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

It's Autumn. It's time for cranberry walnut pumpkin bread...



















(Yeah, the cream cheese filling is purple. I can't remember the last time I baked without food coloring.)

and for woolen tweedy socks...


















...and for the new Knitty!
I'm particularly enamored by Serrano, Intolerable Cruelty, Red Herring (who doesn't love Cookie's photography?), and the stitch pattern on the Cable Net socks. But nothing compares to my astonishment, followed by reverent awe, followed by overpowering excitement when I saw this article. I guess I never really considered the possibilities double knitting yields, but I have a feeling I'm going to have a lot more to experiment with from now on. The thought of two socks at once on one set of dpn's makes my heart flutter with anxious desire.

In other news, the best moment of my life occurred a few days ago when I realized that a craft store I hadn't exploited for fabric paint in over a year now carries a larger selection of yarn than my closest LYS. I seriously think I must have made the clerk quite uncomfortable by spending a good fifteen minutes making my way through the many, voluptuous aisles, literally touching every enticing ball of yarn within arm's reach... and then repeating the entire procedure several times. The only conflict I really saw was that the best moment of my life was quickly turning into that horrendous episode where I begin to think that maybe $16 for a 50-yard ball of laceweight fluff is a good idea (whoever Lorna is, I had an urge to kiss her).
Then I remembered that I, as an individual, am very stingy. I did get two substantial skeins of reasonably-priced wool:

















Which I stashed. You don't think I already have an idea for this yarn, do you? It was so soft. These tranquil colors, bless my unfortunate camera's poor sight, really bring out the best in each other. Just think of a fair isle hat--I must say, the mind reels pertaining to possible projects with this warm, alpaca-esque yarn--but truthfully, I kind of just like it how it is all wrapped up in the skeins. They bring me a sense of peace and contentment: "ooh, I have soft pretty yarn, in my possession and everything."

I've already made this post too long. I'll talk about WIPs on a later day. Love!

posted by Sally Sue @ 9:17 PM 1 comments

Sunday, September 03, 2006

Tagged by Anushka!

List 10 things you want to do. Today, tomorrow, next week, next year, or before you die. Then tag some other people.

1. Buy yarn. Lots of it. Soon. My diminutive stash is becoming most uninspiring.
2. Polish the Haydn C Major Cello Concerto this semester.
3. Fly a plane across the South Pole.
4. Memorize the words to a Neutral Milk Hotel song so I can sing along real loud.
5. Train myself not to waste so much time on the computer.
6. Take a road trip with my friends.
7. Play cello underneath the stone bridge at the park so it echoes.
8. Go back to Kenya
9. Visit all my favorite places in the world again, taking the insight and maturity I've since gained with me
10. Cultivate a lifelong relationship.

I tag... you!

posted by Sally Sue @ 7:29 PM 0 comments