Finally, an FO pic!

Here it is - Razor Cami, as photographed by Teresa. I also finished my Rowan sweater this morning - it's washed and being blocked. Hopefully I can get some pictures of it tomorrow if it doesn't rain. I've still got a ton on the needles (another Rowan sweater, my so called scarf, Silk Garden beanie, FBS....plenty to keep me busy!)

Happy Holidays all!

I am alive, I swear. But with the hesitation to blog at work and the lack of interest in blogging at home....well, y'all don't get many updates. So let's fix that.

Work: going well, thanks for asking. I'm a little stressed because the 2 main projects I've been participating in have become my own. It's become a panic of "OH no, what if I forget something? What if I leave out that control or that form or....something I haven't even thought of yet?" My concern about my abilities as an engineer has lead me to order Process Fluid Mechanics, An Introduction to Fluid Dynamics, Transport Phenomena, and Unit Operations. All used of course! I have my own library at work now. Feel free to ask me what all of those mean - I've come up with alot of good cooking/baking analogies :)

Creative stuff: I've been writing alot more. And playing around with GarageBand (trying to make up for the shortcomings of my mic). Though I am starting to feel like I'm stuck in a rut of bitter songs. Eh. Eventually it won't be so all-consuming and I can write less bitter songs. Patience or something. Knitting has been ongoing as usual - as is no surprise I have a ton of projects on the needles (all packed to take home with me for the shutdown next week) Life in general: These past few weeks have been rough-ish. The commute is definitely starting to affect me - after over an hour of driving to get home and having to go to the post office every night to pick something up (yes, I know I could sign for them to leave it but that hasn't worked out too well in the past), I've become incredibly crabby and short-tempered. I finally broke the news to my landlady last night that I'll be moving closer to work after my lease ends. I just can't do it anymore. It's only 30 miles (as someone who grew up in an area where towns are more spread out, driving generally doesn't bother me), but 30 miles of traffic going at most 30 mph tends to induce a murderous rage in me. And I just can't joke about it anymore. Maybe I could write a song about it....

The last few weekends have been fairly eventful. Dinners with friends, movies, concerts, slumber party (yes, I said slumber party). I checked out Bizarre Bazaar for the first time - lots of interesting stuff from jewelry to T-shirts to devilishly scary looking elves. I also went to a friend's holiday party as a volunteer photographer - which only heightened the desire to upgrade to a digital SLR. I'm looking forward to going home - sleeping in will hopefully help me kick this cough I've had since October. And I'm trying to get as much recording and knitting done as I can before I get back to LA....we'll see how that goes :) And eventually I'll get around to posting some FOs!

And, randomly:
Upon deleting spam message entitled "disapointed about what happened last monday": Yeah, me too (what did I do last Monday? What did I do this Monday? What day is it?)
Glancing over to read the box of binder clips: "Diversity Product Solutions" - everyone deserves their own kind of binder clips. Sure.
Listening to iPod while reading technical reports: Boy am I glad I used the educational discount to get my iPod.
Upon viewing this link: Hmm....

I hope all of you are well - enjoy the holidays, whatever you celebrate :)

Memes and quizzes

Because I really don't have much else to post about - aside from playing with GarageBand (thanks to copy and paste, I now have 2 guitars!) I finished the Razor Cami, but I'm going to add an edging and then find someone to take a picture of me wearing it so I can post it. Now it's back to the Rowan Sweater which has been languishing all year. And some socks. Maybe another Claptois....

Fig And Plum had a great post asking about Etsy stores. Here are some of the ones I particularly liked:

LingGlass
PhotoGlassWorks
Tadworks

On to the memes and quizzes!

Stolen from And She Knits Too! and MimKnits.

Can.
Only.
Type.
One.
Word.
No.
Explanations.

1. Yourself: achy
2. Your boyfriend/girlfriend (spouse): waiting
3. Your hair: indecisive
4. Your mother: worried
5. Your Father: elder
6. Your Favorite Item: yarn!
7. Your dream last night: unmemorable
8. Your Favorite drink: tea
9. Your Dream Car: unproblematic
10. The room you are in: fluorescent
11. Your Ex: idiot
12. Your fear: death
13. What you want to be in 10 years? better
14. Who you hung out with last night? Marie
15. What You're Not? squirrel
16. Muffins: poppyseed
17. One of Your Wish List Items: buecher
18. Time: running
19. The Last Thing You Did: walked
20. What You Are Wearing: new
21. Your Favorite Weather: thunder
22. Your Favorite Book: HP
23. The Last Thing You Ate: yogurt
24. Your Life: improving
25. Your Mood: meh
26. Your best friend: many
27. What are you thinking about right now? writing
28. Your car: blended
29. What are you doing at the moment? reading
30. Your summer: where?
31. Your relationship status: paused
32. What is on your TV? TV
33. What is the weather like? office
34. When is the last time you laughed? today

Your Language Arts Grade: 100%

Way to go! You know not to trust the MS Grammar Check and you know "no" from "know." Now, go forth and spread the good word (or at least, the proper use of apostrophes).

Are You Gooder at Grammar?
Make a Quiz

Just a quick post

It's been hectic lately between the new job (which I love) and dating (meh) and trips with friends (woohoo! Bring on the wine!). But, in very exciting news, I'm this close to being done with the Razor Cami. And I love it (I tried it on last night) All that's left is for me to knit the straps and an edging and weave in ends. But I'm really thrilled with how it's turning out (in other words, I may actually wear it)

Which begs the question - what knitting do I bring home with me?

I can't stand it.

Razor Cami and other WIPs

Still plugging away on the Razor Cami - it's going faster than I though. I may finish it by my birthday :) (Not that it matters - a camisole in Northern California doesn't strike me as proper Thanksgiving attire) (Yes, my birthday is on Thanksgiving this year. 3rd time I can remember it happening)

I've also been doing a little spinning - still working on getting an even thickness :)

The start of Intolerable Cruelty from Knitty. Mmmm....tweed.

I also learned the proper way to spell segue thanks to yummyyarn. All this time :)

Stitchy McYarnpants

Seriously? Stitchy McYarnpants? Where has this name been all of my knitting career? It amuses me in the same way my friend reading "CO 16 sts and knit in st st for 10 rows" said "Come on with 16 stitches and knit in stitchy stitchy for 10 rows"

I still die laughing about it.

It's almost as good as Threadbared.

In other news, I'm beginning to question my knitting style. I thought I knit good old-fashioned Continental (since my mom, who taught me, is German). But looking at the diagrams on this site I'm wondering if I a) knit Eastern or b) was at some point knitting Continental and just morphed it into Eastern/Combined....

The sock gets a good view

Photos

This weekend was spent camping, and in Harlot fashion, sock pictures were taken. This is what happens when 3 knitters go camping :) Pictures to come soon!

Tea and then some

So I'm going to be clearing out my tea stash of teas I don't drink anymore. I don't know if anyone out there would want an open container of tea, but let me know because I hate to throw it out! I may post pictures and ask for you to express an interest in the comments or email me. Who knows. I'm a little loopy from the coffee and antibiotics today (which really seemed like overkill at the time)

I sadly haven't done much knitting. I have quite a few started projects on the needles but work has been keeping me from making very much progress. And in 10 minutes I'm expecting a phone call about the job I've been trying for, so let's hope that pans out and I can drop the part time job :)

I finished one of the Fiberflix movies - the 1944 version of Gaslight. I had a stronger reaction to this than I thought I would - particularly with respect to the husband and how manipulative he was. Given that I'm still reverberating from the breakup, it's no surprise relationships should strike a chord with me. I got really frustrated with the female lead ("Leave him. Oh you're such an idiot. Don't believe him!") and felt as though the film dragged in the middle. I was, however, amused to find out the cocky maid was Angela Landsbury. A young Angela Landsbury. Maltese Falcon is up next!

Meme

48 Things You Could Care Less About
1. FIRST NAME? Kate

2. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? Nope. But my middle name is the Americanization of my mom's middle name. That's close, right?

3. WHEN DID YOU LAST CRY? Sigh. Yesterday. Breakups take forever to get past.

4. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? Yes, when I write with a ballpoint pen on college-ruled paper. It looks bad when it gets bigger.

5. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCHMEAT? Sadly, lunch meat kind of grosses me out.

6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? Totally. I'm awesome AND modest. Well, 1 out of 2.

7. DO YOU HAVE A JOURNAL? Sitting neglected under my TV

8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yep, but barely.

9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? Definitely no. Heights freak me out (which makes rock climbing an interesting outing)

10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Lucky charms :) I wasn't allowed to have sugary cereal as a kid. College dorms were heaven.

11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? Nope, I wrestle my foot out.

12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? Yes, but I have trouble believing it sometimes.

13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR? Pistachio. Because it's getting harder to find. And I like a good challenge.

14. SHOE SIZE? 8 1/2 to 9. Depending on how badly I want the shoes.

5. RED OR PINK? It depends. I'm leaning more towards red now.

16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? An unwillingness to let go.

17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Right now? My ex. Which is bad.

18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? Hahaha.

19. WHAT COLOR PANTS, SHIRT AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Offwhite shirt, brown slacks, brown shoes (I had an interview today)

20. LAST THING YOU ATE? Chicken Picatta. Eh.

21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? Someone's meeting.

22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Hard to get off the wall red.

23. FAVORITE SMELL? Hmmm....flowers maybe. People can smell nice too.

24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? Someone at work about missing equipment.

25. THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE YOU ARE ATTRACTED TO? Smile, then eyes, then height (I like my heels)

26. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON you stole THIS from? Sure :)

27. FAVORITE DRINK? Sake cosmo.

28. FAVORITE SPORT? Dance. Dance is a sport, right? To watch - football. Maybe. If there's beer and a college involved.

29. EYE COLOR? Blue

30. HAT SIZE? Medium

31. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? Yes and they're driving me crazy right now.

32. FAVORITE FOOD? Zankou Chicken and the garlic sauce.

33. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Happy endings. My imagination gets the better of me with scary movies.

35. SUMMER OR WINTER? Winter. More knitwear.

36. HUGS OR KISSES? Both please.

37. FAVORITE DESSERT? Creme brulee.

38. WHO IS MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Hmmm, anyone bored?

39. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? No idea.

40. WHAT BOOKS ARE YOU READING? The Glass Castle, The World is Flat, Assassination Vacation (I have a short attention span)

41. WHAT'S ON YOUR MOUSE Pad? What mouse pad?

42. WHAT DID YOU WATCH LAST NIGHT ON TV? Gaslight - on DVD.

43. FAVORITE SOUNDS? Rain, thunderstorms.

44. ROLLING STONE OR BEATLES? Beatles.

45. THE FURTHEST YOU'VE BEEN FROM HOME? Germany.

46. WHAT'S YOUR SPECIAL TALENT? Hmm...I can do a train whistle with my hands. Sometimes I'm really good at being the person who doesn't overthink things in lab (along the lines of "So why can't we just put it on its side like this?"). Neither of those are very exciting special talents :)

47. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Bartlesville, OK

48. WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? I shamelessly stole it from january one.

Soctoberfest, Stash Enhancement, and FOs

Socktoberfest!

In spite of my relative inexperience in knitting socks, I've accumulated quite a stash. My current projects are the leaf socks from an older issue of Interweave Knits (I'm not sure where the pattern is right now, these have been sitting in my basket for quite some time) and some basic toe up socks from Trekking and Regia yarns. I haven't made alot of progress yet!



I gave in to temptation (better known as retail therapy these days) and bought some Socks That Rock and Lorna's Laces (bought from yarn4socks, which is offering a Socktoberfest discount!) - two sock yarns I've been eyeing for quite some time!


I also discovered Jannette's eBay store - where I bought 10 balls of this Rowan tweed to make Intolerable Cruelty. The Cherry Tree Hill came from the yarn crawl with Pasadena SnBers last weekend - you can see I was relatively good to make up for all the online stash enhancement :)



And finally, I haven't just been buying yarn - I've been squeezing in some knitting too. I managed to finish the yoga socks I've been working on, along with a dishcloth from Mason Dixon Knitting. I really liked the yarn I used for the yoga socks (Katja Danubio?), but its fuzziness does hide the stitch detail. The dishcloth was a very satisfying project and finished in the course of a Harry Potter marathon a few weekends ago (there was much snacking in between - it didn't really take me 4 movies to finish it).


Whew. Sorry for the disjointed feel - I'm starving!

Soctoberfest, part 1

From Lolly, the Socktoberfest questionnaire:

• When did you start making socks? Did you teach yourself or were you taught by a friend or relative? or in a class? I started making socks a couple of years ago, and made pairs for two friends of mine from college. I taught myself, using the pattern in Weekend Knitting, and just sort of winged it (this is my approach to all knitting really).
• What was your first pair? How have they "held up" over time? I'm not sure if they've held up.
• What would you have done differently? I would have learned more about making heels and fitting to feet. I have vague recollections of them not fitting one of the intended recipients.
• What yarns have you particularly enjoyed? I have to say I love Koigu, though I haven't made any socks from it yet. I've only actually made one pair of socks from sock yarn (and those have already been gifted by my ex - apparently there's a sock curse as well as a sweater curse!). I really like the chunky socks I made from some multicolored yarn I got on sale.
• Do you like to crochet your socks? or knit them on DPNs, 2 circulars, or using the Magic Loop method? I prefer DPNs, but I've been trying to get back into using 2 circulars. I made one pair that way and was really pleased with the results. I haven't tried the Magic Loop method yet, though I bought an extra long circular needle with my last KnitPicks order to try it out.
• Which kind of heel do you prefer? (flap? or short-row?) I like the look of a flap heel, but I prefer to knit toe-up (as I have a problem sometimes with running out of yarn). The last 2 socks I've started are destined for experiments in toe-up flaps.
• How many pairs have you made? 6 - and I have 3 more on the needles! Pictures to follow soon.

I really have been knitting...

I promise I have been knitting. But with the new computer and the exploded social life, I haven't sat down to take pictures yet. More to come with pictures of FOs, WIPs, and SE. Oh, and that Socktoberfest questionnaire too!

Knitting Obsession

A video, found via the Yarn Harlot's blog.

I finished Claptois! I'm really pleased with it, and glad I finally finished it. It's been over a year since I dyed the yarn and started knitting it (it has oddly lasted as long my relationship that just ended.) (Yes, I do have too much time to think! It's only been a week.)

Yarn: Hmmm, merino? I can't find the tag. Hand-dyed in a dyeing class last spring.
Changes: I followed the pattern for the most part, except for cutting out a straight repeat. So it's 12 rows shorter than it would be otherwise. Still long enough
For the future: I don't know if I'd make this again. I love how it looks, but it felt like it took forever. Patience is not one of my virtues!

And just for my amusement:

My 10 Names Meme
1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: ( pet and current street name) Marie Magnolia

2. YOUR MOVIE STAR NAME: (grandfather/grandmother on your moms side, your favorite candy) Helga Rolo (that's my favorite candy today - had it been yesterday it might have been SourPatch Kid, KinderEi, who knows)

3. YOUR “FLY Guy/Girl” NAME: (first initial of last name, first three letters of your middle name) L. Joa

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal) Blue Dolphin

5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born) Joanna Bartlesville

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first name, first 2 letters of mom’s maiden name and first 3 letters of the town you grew up in.)
Lewkascbar

7. SUPERHERO NAME: (”The”, your favorite color, favorite drink) The Blue Saketini

8. NASCAR NAME: (the first name of both your grandfathers) Robert Gerhard

9. FUTURISTIC NAME: ( the name of your favorite perfume/cologne and the name of your favorite shoes) Annie Oakely Sanku (I don't really have a favorite shoe...)

10.WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother/father’s middle name ) Johanna Edward

Stash enhancement and a few changes

Regia Canadian Fashion colors, from Petra. Thank goodness all forms look alike, the owner speaks English, and they accept Paypal. Such beautiful colors!

Stash enhancement from the Bay Area (see Teresa's blog for more details about the stores we visited) I loved Commuknitty (source of some of the Rowan tweed above) and Stash (source of much temptation).

The small bit of angora I got from Skein Lane's closing sale. I hadn't been there in years - Skein Lane was the first 'real' yarn store I visited, where I stood shaking as I handed over my credit card for my first yarn purchase :)

Sock yarn from sweetgeorgia yarns. I'm in love with their colorways - I can't wait to start working with these yarns!


Finally, more sale yarn from A Mano. After this, I'm going on a yarn diet. My personal yarn store is overflowing!

I finally did some reorganization of my blog - taking down all the other blog links and replacing them with patterns, tips, techniques, and stores. I may replace them, but I find there are so many on my NewsGator page, it would be almost unmangageable!

Finally finished

These socks were supposed to be done months ago. MONTHS ago. Just another ad for Knitter's ADD folks!


Yarn: Um, some navy blue sock yarn? The label is in the middle of the last ball....

Pattern: Gentleman's Fancy Sock from Knitting Vintage Socks


Modifications: Oh, thousands. Modifications to make them the right size were countless. I didn't like the full length of the leg, so I cut out 30 rounds. The length was going to be for a foot size smaller than that of the intended recipient, so I added 10 rounds. However, the toe was the major problem. I didn't like the length of it - if I have something patterned I want to continue the pattern more than I want a plain toe. So I did decreases every round instead of every other - a look I generally prefer. I had to rip out the toes twice in order to get the length right (don't try picking up navy stitches in poor lighting. Unless you have a large glass of wine nearby).

Lessons learned: After completing the first heel, I learned what that little spool of yarn I'd thrown aside was for. Needless to say, only 1 heel is reinforced :) This was also my first heel flap cuff down that wasn't done in a bulky yarn (for a sock to later be felted).

Stash enhancement photos coming soon!

Why buy clothes....

When you can spend all your money on fabric to make clothes?

Or multiple orders of the same yarn because you forgot you'd already ordered it a month ago. Something to be said about slow shipping....I now have enough Regia Nations to make 3 pairs of socks. Or maybe a pair of knee highs.

Musing

Potential. I think women in general see potential (maybe men too. Not being one, I can't speak to that). For instance, my shelf of yarn. When I look at the collection of wool and cotton and mohair and nylon, I see more than just the colors and textures and fibers (though the colors are pretty distracting). I see more than the work that went into making each yarn. I see the work going into them to make something new - another step in the transition from wool on a sheep's back to a sweater on my back. I see socks, scarves, shawls, sweaters, and undefined finished objects. The more dangerous place to focus on potential is relationships. As I filled in a friend on what happened last year, I think about this. I think about it alot when I'm writing songs, as I'm stuck in a bitter relationship song rut. There are other references - skin and bones of love won't make a meal. You can never love enough for two people. You can never change people. You can stretch them like a rubber band to make them hold you, but as the years go by (and the rubber undergoes irreversible transitions to a more brittle state) the initial infatuation dies up and they snap. And you fall. Sometimes you fall hard. You learn not to fall in without looking, and that the only person you can change is yourself. And that sometimes it's not worth it to change yourself. It's better to spend time with those who accept who you are and make no complaints that you are too dramatic, too clingy, too demanding. It's better to stand up and say, "I deserve better. I'm not demanding, I'm saying I'm worth more than this." When you are endlessly impressed that you get a phone call every night, you realize you spent 5 years settling. You spent 5 years neglecting yourself and maybe that's why you haven't been happy. You've been going through the growing pains of re-learning to prioritize yourself before others. And it's a good thing. To look around a new place and see all the potential for what you could do for yourself. The things you want to create, the changes you want to bring, the lofty goals. It's a good realization. And about time.