Meeting Goals

I have met two goals so far before the end of the year. One was to read more than 57 books. 57 was the largest amount of books that I had read in one year. I did that in 1988. I have read 58 books so far this year and maybe will be able to read one more. I have recently read E is for Evidence and F is for Fugitive by Sue Grafton. I really like this series of books and have ordered 4 more from Barnes and Noble.

A second goal that I have met was to knit 12 comfortghan squares for my one Yahoo group called Dishclothsrus. One of the members joins the squares into a comfortghan and each member gets one. I got mine and wanted to help make some squares too.

I made The Basket Weave Square by Mary Dixon:

The Seeded Rib Check by Mary Dixon:

The Vertical Basketweave:

The Seven Inch Square by Suzanne Dye:

The Matchstick Square by Karin Glenn-Miller:

Dorothy's Dynamic Dishcloth by Dorothy Neely:

And, another Basket Welt Square by Mary Dixon:

My last goal is to finish the Noro scarf by Christmas for my husband. I have a goal to knit 30 rows each day until the end of the week. So far I am on track and I think I will make that goal too. It feels really great to meet goals that you set for yourself.

I am pretty much ready for Christmas. My Christmas cards are finished, my decorating is done, and I have all the presents I need. I just need to wrap some presents. I'm trying to do a little each day. I really don't want to have to do much on Christmas Eve day. I want to enjoy two days with little stress.

I did get my Wollmeise order. I really like the colors of the yarn.

From left to right, colors are: Zenzi, Lowenzahn, Poison No. 5, Krauterbeet, and Pfauenauge. I got these 5 for less than I spent on the last 4 I ordered direct. Go figure.

I visited a yarn store in the area called Knitwitz and Sew much more and couldn't resist buying some yarn there.

I got Berrocco Jasper in Red and Black. I plan to make Calorimetry with the Jasper. I also bought Crystal Palace Iceland to make the Earflap hat from the Knitting Daily web site of free patterns.

I was excited to receive the Noro Sock yarn from Webs. I got two skeins to try. Colors are S40 (a blue colorway) and color S164 (greens, brown and gold). I am anxious to try this yarn, but it will have to wait until 2008.

Merry Christmas!

Knitting Away on Projects

Christmas is getting closer and I am not near done getting ready. I still have to decorate. Hopefully, I will be able to do that today.

I have been knitting. Fortunately, nothing is for Christmas presents. I finished my Trekking sock. I really enjoyed knitting this sock and I'm happy with how it came out. The striping effect is cool.

Still working on the Yarn Pirate Sock in Spooky. I am ready to start on the heel.

I have started on the Collinette Jitterbug sock in Gaughin. I love the color of this one. It's funny how the burgundy color in the picture looks like brown to me in real life. I will have to take this into natural light to really see which color is correct.

I have completed one thrummed mitten. I like this mitten and will probably do another after I finish the set.

Still knitting the Noro scarf. I'm concerned that it won't be the size everyone else seems to be getting with this pattern. I usually knit to gauge, but my scarf seems to be wider.

I did get more yarn from the Loopy Ewe. Two more sock yarns (one was free because I became a Loopy Groupie). The one skein is Cherry Three Hill in Caribou Creek and the other is Seacoast Handpaint in Iris Garden. The lace yarn is Wollmeise in Veilchen. I also got one of their darning eggs.

This week I am going to a knitting class at another yarn shop. Can't wait to go to see what yarn they carry. Hope I can resist spending any more money on yarn.

Yarn Diet?

What a wonderful day! We had some snow today. It really wasn't alot, but it was nice to be home snuggled up and warm with no particular place to go. I love days like this. I can read, knit or explore on the computer. I still have a lot of work to do on my computer and I have definately been postponing it too long.

I have been reading. I am getting close to reaching my goal of 58 books read before the end of the year. I have read the following: Thursdays at Eight by Debbie Macomber, Twilight by Stephanie Meyer, Looking for Peyton Place by Barbara Delinsky (this one makes me want to go back and read Peyton Place - God I remember how I hid this so my mother didn't see it), Drunk, Divorced and Covered in Cat Hair by Crazy Aunt Purl (she's not crazy, but a great story teller), The Undomestic Godess by Sophie Kinsella (I love all of her books), Daddy's Girl by Lisa Scottoline, Yarn Harlot: The Secret Life of a Knitter by Stephanie Pearl McFee, and I'm enjoying the books by Sue Grafton: A is for Alibi, B is for Burgler, C is for Corpse, and D is for Deadbeat. When Sue's books came out I had no desire to read them and now I am going through the series and eating them up. What great stories!

These take me to 56 books read, so I only have two more to go to reach the goal of 58. I should be able to do that by the end of December. I already started E is for Evidence by Sue Grafton.

I still need to knit 4 more comfortghan squares to meet my goal of 12 by the end of the year. I have one started so I really need to get knitting with those. Next year I will make my goal 18.

I'm working on two pairs of socks. A pair using Yarn Pirate yarn and another using Trekking XXL. I am also working on my stuffed mittens. One is almost completed and then I can start on the second one. I have to complete the Noro scarf. I'm almost half way done, but it seems like it might be shorter than it's suppose to be. I can order more yarn, but the dye lots may not be the same although it may not matter since I am alternating the yarn.

I have gotten more yarn. Some Vesper sock yarn from Knitterly Things. Two great colorways: Candy Corn and Crew.

From Little Knits I got Noro Transistions at a bargain price. It's discontinued so I couldn't resist. I can make scarves out of it.

I couldn't pass up this yarn from Little Knits. The color is amazing for socks. It's Fly Knits in the Monarch colorway.

And, I got my Yarn Pirate sock club yarn. I like the color, but I'm thinking that I won't renew the sock club when it's done. I have enough Yarn Pirate yarn and I'm not sure that I like how it's been knitting up in the Spooky colorway and hope I don't have the same problem with the rest of the yarn that I have. The colorway is Solstice. It's a pretty blue and purple BFL yarn.

I want to get more Noro Silk Garden yarn for scarves and of course the Noro Sock Yarn to try and I definately want to get more Wollmeise. Except for those, I am going on a yarn diet at the beginning of the year. I have enough to knit from my stash for quite awhile.

Knitting Like Crazy

I finished my Wollmeise socks using the Suzanne colorway and size 2 needles. I am really pleased how these turned out. I will definately be getting more of this yarn.

I went to my knitting class at Kraemer Yarns today and started on my Yarn Pirate socks in the Spooky colorway. I didn't like how the yarn was pooling, so I ripped back to the ribbing and started using size 1 needles. This seems to be making a difference. I will knit more rows and if it looks okay, I will rip back to the beginning and recast on using the size 1's. This is the first time this has happened to me and I don't like it. Why does yarn pool and what can you do to overcome it?

On the more positive side, I got my order from the Loopy Ewe. I got Collinette Jitterbug in Gauguin. Since there seems to be some controvery about the yardage for this yarn, I purchased a half skein just in case. I'll see how this knits up before buying more. I think I will cast on for this sock after finishing the Trekking sock. I also got Claudia Handpaints in Chocolate Cherry. I love her colorways.

I couldn't resist getting a Woolpets kit to try. Hopefully, I will be posting a picture of my completed sheep soon.

Here is a picture of Maggie May after having her hair cut. She is growing up fast and I think she feels that this is now her home and she is the Queen of it. Sometimes I believe that she thinks she is human.

I think I'll keep her. ;-)

CRASH - Went the hard drive

Yes, my hard drive died. I did have a backup (thankfully), except my backup program only saved changes to files - now what good is that? I have the new hard drive installed and retrieved most of my files, but I did lose some. I think I got most of what I really needed back. I am slowly putting it back together, but I do know that I will have a good backup from now on.

Knitting wise: I haven't been knitting much since I have been working on my computer, but I have progressed on my Trekking sock. I am ready to turn the heel.

I have turned the heel on the second Wollmeise sock and will hopefully finish that off this week so I can start on a sock using Yarn Pirate's Spooky. I got the Apple colorway from her as well.

I have started a scarf for my husband for Christmas. It's the Noro Scarf Pattern found on Brooklyn Tweed's blog. I love the striping on it and even though the pattern is mainly k1, p1, it's not boring me. I just started this yesterday and I have gotten pretty far.

Catching up on my yarn purchases, My Loopy Ewe shipments have arrived. One was Austermann Step, Claudia Handpaints in Pepperment Mocha, and more Trekking Yarn.

I purchased Sheepaints in Grapes and Autumn forest from the Loopy Ewe. With my next order, I will become a Loopy Groopy!

I couldn't resist this yarn from Three Irish Girls:

Colorways are Guinevere and Maureen.

Last, but not least I have been reading a lot of good things about Black Bunny Fibers, so I purchased the Fog on the River colorway from her. It is 50% arcott/30% lincoln/20% alpaca. Watermelon Ice is also another colorway I got and this is 50% merino wool/50% tencel.

I have a few more yarns on order and except for getting more Wollmeise and possibly more Noro yarn, I plan on starting a yarn diet in the new year. I will be working part time from January to April 15th (yes doing taxes), so my knitting time will be reduced. This is a great time to start using up my stash.

Sockaholic?

I am still working on socks. I finished the STR Fire on the Mountain Socks. I really really liked this yarn. It was very nice to work with.

I have one sock completed in the Wollmeise Suzanne Socks and have started on the second sock. Wollmeise is definately my favorite sock yarn.

I just had to start the Trekking XXL socks since everyone seems to like this sock yarn. I love how it is striping.

As a diversion to socks, here is my stuffed mitten from the Kraemers class. It's not all that difficult to knit and I have the experience on double pointed needles from knitting socks. I am using Kraemer's Summit Hill yarn for these mittens.

Still getting sock yarn in the mail. I got my order from Little Knits of Opal and Trekking XXL.

And also an order from Simply Socks of Fleece Artist and Meilenweit:

So, when will I stop buying yarn? Soon, I must stop soon.

Sock Club yarns have arrived

It's fall and the yarn is falling into my mailbox. I joined the Yarn Pirate booty club and got my October yarn. It's called Killer Bees and it's a great color. I also got circular needles, a button and sticker. What a great treat!

I also received my STR Yarn for October. It's from the Raven series and it's called Lenore. The pattern is from the Yarn Harlot. The color of the yarn is dark, but it is deep purple color. I just love it. Note the spiders - they came with the yarn.

I was also excited to receive my Morehouse Farms Verona Shawl kit. Can't wait to begin knitting this one. I got the color aster.

Wollmeise yarn also arrived this week. This is the order that came directly from Germany. I just love the colors and can't wait to order more. Maybe next time, I can get some from the Loopy Ewe.

Looks like I have a lot of knitting to do.

Socks in Progress

I am still knitting socks. I really love them and I can't believe how easy it is and how rewarding it is to knit them. I have finished one sock and I'm working on the second sock of the pair of the Fire on the Mountain colorway from STR. I love the feel of this yarn so much.

I have knitted past the heel on the first Wollmeise sock in Suzanne. The side of the heel is better on this sock, but I read about another trick to get rid of the holes on the side. I will have to try it on my next pair of socks.

This is definately my most favorite yarn. Thank heavens that Wollmeise now allows you to order direct. Even though the yarn is coming from Germany, the price is about the same as ordering from the Loopy Ewe. I ordered 4 skeins from them. There are more colors that I want. I will watch the Loopy Ewe for sneak ups, but may still order direct. I want to wait for my first shipment from them before ordering again (If I can stand waiting).

I was able to get Trekking XXL yarn from Little Knits. I received my shipment last week and will post pictures later this week. I also ordered Opal sock yarn from them. My next pair of socks that I will be knitting is definately going to be the Trekking.

However, I have to get sidetracked a bit from socks. My local yarn shop (Kraemers) is having a class this Saturday on stuffed mittens. Apparently, they are also called thrummed mittens. The Yarn Harlot posted on her blog about these mittens back in 2004. So, I am taking the class. We even have homework in order to prepare for class. Can't wait to see how this turns out. If it goes well, these may be great for Christmas presents.

Can't finish off without showing an updated picture of Maggie May. She gets groomed on Tuesday, so she will look different then. It's hard to believe that she will be 10 months old on Monday. Happy birthday Maggie May!

I am a Sock Machine

Honestly, one sock on the needles isn't enough anymore. I have to be working on more than one sock because I have all of this neat sock yarn to try out.

I have finished the Luna Park socks and I'm very pleased how they turned out. I do have another colorway and will try that out at a later date.

As I was finishing up this sock, I cast on for another pair using Socks that Rock in the Fire on the Mountain colorway. I had been using this yarn with another sock pattern and didn't like how the sock was coming out. That was in my early sock experience days when I was a greenie to sock knitting. I rewound the yarn and decided I needed to try it again. I really like how the striping is coming out. I like this yarn a lot. It seems heavier than the Online and Luna Park yarns, but it's still a Fingering weight yarn. I am ready to pick up stitches for the heel.

I have been having problems with the heel. The stitches on the one size of the heel seem to be larger than the other side and as a result, I have a gap in the yarn. I have gotten some advice from knitters in the Yahoo forums I belong to and they have referred to two books I already have. One is Nancy Bush's Folk Socks and the other is Queen Kahuna's Crazy Toes and Heels. They are great books to have and have a wealth of information in them on knitting socks. I highly recommend both books.

Once I finished the Luna Park socks, I cast on another sock using Wollmeise in Suzanne. This yarn is like butter! I love it so much. I have two other skeins of Wollmeise that I got from the Loopy Ewe and now I must have more. It's hard to get since whenever the Loopy Ewe has a sneakup, it goes quickly.

I didn't go to Stitches. ;-( The Baltimore marathon was going on at the same time and I was afraid that I would have trouble finding a parking space. So, we didn't go. Next year we will plan better and maybe go down overnight or go on Friday.

Meet Patsy and Morris

I would like to introduce Patsy and Morris. Aren't they the most adorable toys? I got them from Little Cotton Rabbits . Julie does such a great job with these. The detail is amazing. I was so excited when I was able to get two of them.

More sock yarn. Ravelry is just great and one of the great things about it is that if you find a yarn you like on the site, you can trade or buy it from someone. I saw the yarn on Lolly's blog. I loved the colorway and knew I had to have it. She calls them her Autumnal Equinox socks. I searched on Ravelry and found someone who had the yarn and asked where she bought it. She was willing to sell or trade, so I bought two skeins. How wonderful.

It looks like I may be able to attend Stitches in Baltimore this Saturday. I will take my camera and report back. Sock yarn is definately on my list of things to get. I am scoping out vendors that I want to make sure I visit. This will be my first Stitches event. I am so excited!

Luna Park - How I love this sock yarn!

I have been knitting away on my Luna Park socks. On this sock, I have been perfecting my sock knitting even more. It's interesting how I am getting more and more confident on knitting socks and learning more as I go along.

I am enjoying this so much that I am already picking out what sock yarn I will use next. I haven't come to a decision yet, but I'm close. I really want to finish this pair up by the end of this week. I don't need a fancy pattern. The basic Patternworks sock is enough for me right now.

I have been working on comfortghan squares. I should have no problem getting a dozen completed by the end of the year.

Simple Garter Lace Square:

Elegant Lace Square:

Double Broken Rib Square:

I know that I will need to block these before sending.

I haven't been buying too much new yarn lately. I may be going to Stitches East, so I am waiting to find out if I will definately be going.

I did get some Wollmeise yarn from the Loopy Ewe. I was able to snag three skeins of yarn. I had some yarn in my basket and was checking out other yarn, when next thing I knew the yarn was gone. I quickly added these three skeins to my basket and checked out. I want to become a Loopy Groupy! I just love this online store.

The colors are from left to right: Spice Market, Suzanne, and Pfefferminz Prinz. I can't wait to try this yarn. Maybe one of these will be my next sock?

I was also able to buy some limited edition yarn from Sundara Yarns. They are both 100% superwash merino yarn.... Yummy!

Swirled Prussian

Crushed Cherries

I really love Ravelry. It's so cool to be able to see different yarns and what people have knit with the yarns. I was even able to buy some yarn that I saw in someone's stash. We worked it out and it should be on it's way by the end of the week. Can't wait!