So I finally finished my not-so-fiery-kinda-watery bolero (IK Summer '05) in Wool Ease Blue Mist. I appealed to every religious pantheon for a decent fit. While I actually attained proper gauge (which was no small miracle, given the number of times I changed needles and had to frog and re-frog), being the space cadet I can be, I mistakenly cast on for the smallest size. While I'm certainly on the shortish-smallish size, I think the last time I was a 31" bust was in pre-pubescence. Not that I'm endowed, because I'm certainly not. (Hey, they may be small, but they're hard-working, employed boobs! They grew two babies into big, healthy toddlers!) I'm just kinda broad, is all. Broad enough that 31" for a bolero was going to require serious appealing to any and every deity in order to fit. By the time I realized what I'd done, I was starting to pick up stitches for the edging and was wondering why the piece looked so eensy-weensy. That would be because it indeed WAS eensy-weensy! I started to sweat bullets as I tried it on (and ironically enough, that had nothing to do with our 90 plus degree heat, not that I'm complaining; I'm grateful we're not dealing with any hurricanes) and held my breath and chest and arm flab in...and let out a sigh of relief. It fit! Okay, it's a little tight, but all the better to hold the arm flab in check, right? The actual color is somewhere in between the overexposed and underexposed shots, and the neckline isn't so droopy IRL. I sorta wore the bolero to death today, so the neck line went on strike. How is that possible (ie: wearing wool!) in 90 degree weather, you might ask? Well, the class I attend at the university is built like a cryogenic lab; the temperature in the room is never allowed to surpass sub-Arctic temps. So much the better for me...I get to beat the heat AND show off my knitting??! What could be better? It's like Fantasy Island! This was a totally fun and quick knit, and I've already got two more shrug-ardigan morphs in the queue...you guessed it, to wear on Fantasy Island. Hey, you have to take advantage of opportunities like this in the tropics. I've sort of used that as my excuse to justify my, ahem, lack of (any) progress on Christmas gifts. Come on, I still have four more months, right?? And I already finished a few gifts (Okay, okay, two, but that's a hell of a lot more than the none I managed to craft last year, right? Although, I hadn't learned to knit yet last year, and maybe that would've made a difference in my ((lack of )) motivation/procrastination cycle. But I digress...) In some semblance of Christmas spirit, I at least finished the holiday dishcloth (please excuse the beheaded Suzy Ducken) I'd been working on. It's so lame that I'm not sure that it counts as a legitimate FO, but if it's off the needles, it's here, so there you have it. Up next, Glampyre's minisweater aka" the boobholder", but I really don't want to have to launch into another discourse about the lack thereof and their duly employed status. Just suffice it to say that they will be held in this cute shrug.
I have a definite predilection for starting with dessert first with today being no exception. Chocolate chip cookies would have been preferred, but the lack of chocolate chips in the pantry made it a stretch. I felt in need of something rich and buttery (did I also mention my penchant for butter?), so Chinese almond cookies it was. The dynamic duo assisted in the kitchen (again, another stretch). Mr. Ace cracked the egg and cut the butter, all the while interjecting, "Wow, mom, that's a LOT of butter." (I noticed, kiddo.) Miss Owee mainly tiptoed around the kitchen, terrorizing us by almost stepping into the mixing bowl on several occasions. But, as the recipe promised, the cookies were indeed rich and buttery and oh-so-delectable. I, in turn, feel like a good mom, have quelled my need for saturated fat, and while the little ones happily munch, can sneak in a few moments to get down to the real meat and potatoes of this blog. Up first, Padded Footlets from Interweave Knits Summer '05, in Dancing by KnitPicks. The colors are more subdues and muted IRL. This has been my first foray into the world of lace knitting, and so far, the induction hasn't been too bad. I had to frog the first pattern repeat several times, but I think I might finally be getting the hang of it. It's also been my first attempt at reading charts. Which I was initially inept at (hence, aforementioned multiple frogging) but slowly improving at. I might even venture to say that I now prefer the chart to the written instructions. (Such a knitter wanna-be poser, I know. Even I cringed when I re-read that last statement. )I'm not sure that these pics better highlight the lace work, but I blame that on my sucky photography skills. ie: the dark photo with invisible heel lace work and subsequent overexposed shot with invisible heel lace work.I've also been making progress on my sanity-can-too-be-yours dishcloths. I have to say that I'm a little disappointed with the way this is turning out; this Christmas Sparkle looked so much prettier all wound up in the skein than it does knitted up. Probably my newbie knitter choices are to blame...perhaps basketweave might have done the color scheme more justice than garter stitch??Luckily, this one's just for personal home use, but I somehow can't get rid of the thought that it looks like Christmas just vomited all over my dishcloth. Cookies, anyone?
In spite of my love-hate relationship with computers, I decided to bite the bullet and join the rest of the blog-crazed knitting world. I've spent so much time lurking around other knitting blogs that I felt some reciprocity was in order. Thus, I invite you on my journey, where knitting serves as a lifeline in my often-crazy adventures as a stay-at-home mom to two toddlers!
Though it's only August, I've been on a Christmas knitting spree, thanks in large part to the burdensome memory of past Christmas-gift-procrastinated-crafty-UFO's that weigh heavily on my mind. (...I will not procrastinate...I will not procrastinate....I will NOT procrastinate...(!)) My most recently completed FO is a pair of Cable and Rib Socks from the Interweave Knits Fall '05 issue for my MIL, made from KnitPicks Dancing. (Happy, happy, joy, joy dance for free shipping!!) They're far from perfect, but for my second pair of socks, I'm rather pleased with the way they turned out. I'm sure the cables would have been better suited to a monochromatic yarn, but I liked the playful feel of the variegation in Dancing and was itching to test out my new knitting skills with cabling. Although I find self-photographed sock shots rather odd-looking and detrimental to self-esteem (can my feet really be that wide??), I took one to better highlight the design on the instep. This was definitely a very fun knit and I sense many more socks on the horizon (Of course, that could also be because my expanding stash of sock yarn and guilty conscience won't let me do otherwise). I just cast-on for a pair of Padded Footlets from the IK Summer '05 issue with my brand new Brittany size 1 dpns. (Big hugs and kisses to beavergurl76!!) It's my first experience wrapping stitches in short rows, and so far, so good. The lacework on the heel and instep look to require some concentration; definitely a late-night project for after the effervescent tykes are slumbering. For the rare spare moment during the day (when God compassionately gifts me with simultaneously napping children), I'm working on dishcloths in Sugar 'n Cream Christmas Sparkle cotton (Yay for Ben Franklin sales and $1.40 skeins!!!). Simple, mindless garter stitch is incredibly soothing and meditative for me, so I enjoy every chance I get to work on those dishcloths. More pics to follow next time!
I appealed to every religious pantheon for a decent fit. While I actually attained proper gauge (which was no small miracle, given the number of times I changed needles and had to frog and re-frog), being the space cadet I can be, I mistakenly cast on for the smallest size. While I'm certainly on the shortish-smallish size, I think the last time I was a 31" bust was in pre-pubescence. Not that I'm endowed, because I'm certainly not. (Hey, they may be small, but they're hard-working, employed boobs! They grew two babies into big, healthy toddlers!) I'm just kinda broad, is all. Broad enough that 31" for a bolero was going to require serious appealing to any and every deity in order to fit. By the time I realized what I'd done, I was starting to pick up stitches for the edging and was wondering why the piece looked so eensy-weensy. That would be because it indeed WAS eensy-weensy! I started to sweat bullets as I tried it on (and ironically enough, that had nothing to do with our 90 plus degree heat, not that I'm complaining; I'm grateful we're not dealing with any hurricanes) and held my breath and chest and arm flab in...and let out a sigh of relief. It fit! 
Okay, it's a little tight, but all the better to hold the arm flab in check, right? The actual color is somewhere in between the overexposed and underexposed shots, and the neckline isn't so droopy IRL. I sorta wore the bolero to death today, so the neck line went on strike. How is that possible (ie: wearing wool!) in 90 degree weather, you might ask? Well, the class I attend at the university is built like a cryogenic lab; the temperature in the room is never allowed to surpass sub-Arctic temps. So much the better for me...I get to beat the heat AND show off my knitting??! What could be better? It's like Fantasy Island! This was a totally fun and quick knit, and I've already got two more shrug-ardigan morphs in the queue...you guessed it, to wear on Fantasy Island. Hey, you have to take advantage of opportunities like this in the tropics. I've sort of used that as my excuse to justify my, ahem, lack of (any) progress on Christmas gifts. Come on, I still have four more months, right?? And I already finished a few gifts (Okay, okay, two, but that's a hell of a lot more than the none I managed to craft last year, right? Although, I hadn't learned to knit yet last year, and maybe that would've made a difference in my ((lack of )) motivation/procrastination cycle. But I digress...) In some semblance of Christmas spirit, I at least finished the holiday dishcloth (please excuse the beheaded Suzy Ducken) I'd been working on.
It's so lame that I'm not sure that it counts as a legitimate FO, but if it's off the needles, it's here, so there you have it. Up next, Glampyre's minisweater aka" the boobholder", but I really don't want to have to launch into another discourse about the lack thereof and their duly employed status. Just suffice it to say that they will be held in this cute shrug.
