Troubles

I tried on my mom's socks and they did not fit. Her feet are about the same size as mine, so I can check, and I could not get them on. So, I went up a needle and a half, to a size US2.5 (I have no idea what the mm is) and now they should be fine. I just need to get them done by Christmas or she may be getting them on the needles. I have also purchased the pants for my dad.

I may have also started my sister-in-law knitting. I gave her a DVD, yarn and needles and invited her to SnB next week. So, she will also be getting a knitting kit for Christmas.

Christmas

is just around the corner and I need to get cracking on buying gifts. So, here is my planned list so far:

Mommy: Pretty Petals Socks and shirts
Daddy: pants
Bruce: pants
Kristen: shirts
Hunter: Thomas and puzzle-done
Kira: quilt (in progress)
Arianna: shirt and stuffed animal
Mama Mary: fingerless mitts
Char: ?
Uncle Jim: pajama bottoms
Mama and Papa Rose: gift certificate

So, here goes!

Christmas Gifts

OK, I know I said the only present I was going to be knitting was my mom's sock, but my grandmother asked for a pair of fingerless mitts. I left my Flames fingerless mitts in the kitchen last night, she used them this morning and asked if I would make her a pair. Only she wants them a bit further in the fingers and black. This woman has no color sense.

Pretty Petals Socks

Well, so far everything is going good with the socks. I have had to add new sections twice now, but it is not too much trouble yet. The pattern says to work the petals pattern for 5 repeats, but I think I will only do four. I am using 2.25mm needles and it is knitting up fairly quickly. See:














I just hope they will fit my mom!

Malabrigo and Moths

Just lovely. I get a good pattern from a friend (available online for free) that I think will make my mom a very nice Christmas present. She is the only member of my family I bother to knit for because she is the only one who appreciates and actually uses the stuff. So, I dig through the stash, find my Malabrigo yarn, purchased at the Kanawha City Yarn Company about a year ago and prepared to start winding it. Bear in mind I own neither a ball winder or a swift, so I have to wind by hand.

I immediately discovered the problem when I was left holding two frayed ends. I hoped it was an isolated problem and continued on. After the same thing happened three more times, I decided I needed to wait until the next day and go to the store.

At KCYC, after telling Sarah, the owner, about the problem, she set it up on her ball winder and swift and commenced winding. We then discovered that the
d#$% moths had done considerable damage. I lost probably about 3-5 yards from pieces too small to bother knotting and will have to splice about 8-10 times while working on these socks. My only consolation at this point is that it can't get much worse (I hope I didn't just jinx myself!!).

Busy, busy, busy!

Sorry for not posting for a few months, but I have been insanely busy with both work and school. I am working 40 hours and taking full time classes, so it has been a hectic few months. That, however, has not stopped me from knitting up a storm. I have several projects finished and a few still on the needles.

One of the projects still on the needles is the Spring Forward Sweater. I am about halfway done with the front, with the arm shaping coming up soon. I also cast on a cabled hat, but don't have any current pictures. I decided that my Flames socks should become fingerless mitts instead and still have a ton of the yarn left. Here is

what they look like:

Pretty nice, huh?

I am also working on another pair of socks. They are Kroy stripes in pastel colors. The toe of the first sock was a little wonky and I just finished the gusset decreases on the second sock.

Recently, one of the LYS went out of business. The owner was retiring to spend more time with her grandchildren. So I was able to score some very nice yarn at half off. I went a bit nuts on the Cherry Tree Hill and bought several skeins.

I lucked into two different kinds on yarn, CTH Silk and Merino DK and CTH Silky Kidd in the same colorway and knit a scarf with the two yarns held together. I chose garter stitch so the main focus would be on the yarn and not the pattern, but I was not bored at all! I am apparently easily amused by the color changes! It is finished, but I do not have a good picture, so this will have to do for now:

Pictures!

It is about time I posted some pictures of my knitting. I have recently finished a few items, made progress on one and am about to cast on another. So, here we go!

The first item is my Grass and Violets tank top. It turned out great, even if the pictures are a bit odd. There was no one to help take the pics, so they are of my reflection in a mirror at my parents.

As you can see, it turned out a little shorter than I had intended. Here is a nice close up.

I also finished my worsted weight socks. I had to redo the heel of the second one after developing a massive gap between needles during the instep decreases, but it was smooth sailing after that. I finished the second sock at the SnB and was going to wait until I got home to graft the toe, but the lovely Nadine offered to do it for me and did a great job. Thank you, Nadine and happy birthday!

Next up is my Spring Forward sweater. It has been going good. The stitch definition is showing up better, but I am having a little trouble with the decreases for the sleeves. Still, I am almost finished with the back.

Tonight, I am going to cast on for another pair of socks. I am going camping this week, and socks are a good travel project. Plus, the colorway is called 'Flames' and I find it delicious to be knitting flaming socks in front of a roaring campfire! The yarn is more of Cyndi Bolt's. This time it is 402 yards of superwash wool. I am thinking of doing a seed stitch instead of the stockinette stitch I usually do.

More Hours

Due to a change in the work schedule at Allevard Springs, I am now working 40 hours a week: a four-midnight shift on Tuesday and Wednesday, and my usual midnight to noon shifts on Saturday and Sunday. I can definitely use the money! Even though I am now living with my grandmother and am not paying rent, I still have bills to pay. A loan that I still have about a year and a half left to pay and two credit cards. However, I did decide to take both loans after all. I can use the excess to pay off my credit cards. They are both in-store cards, but they build up fast!

In knitting news, my tank top is finished! I have to take some good pictures and post them later. I have started working on the Spring Forward Sweater from Creative Magazine. I am not entirely happy with the yarn I chose. The Caron’s Simply Soft is not showing up the stitch definition very well. But, I am not going to frog; I am too far along and can live with it.

I am also working on a pair of basic boot socks in worsted weight yarn. I turned the heel of the first one on a bus and the second one in a movie theater before the show started.

School is going pretty good. I think having more than one class in the summer is a mistake, because you have so much coming at you at once. We have studies from the U.S. Civil War up the Cold War at present in just three and half weeks. I had my second test today and did okay (I hope). I am actually looking forward to the Fall semester starting.

A Load Off

As mentioned before, I am a History Major at Marshall University. I am hoping to get my BA in History in a few years and then receive my MA in Museum Studies. I have begun sounding out museums in the area to see what and who is hiring and their requirements for employment.

Well, a large step has now been taken. When I first started college, frankly, I was stupid and lost me financial aid eligibility. Now, I have finally gotten it straighted out and am back in good standing. I have offered a grant and two loans. The grant is automatic, but I will have to choose which of the loans I want. Getting them both is overkill. I don't need $6,000.

The tuition and fees will equal about $3,000. When I got online and saw the amount I was being offered, I immediately called my mom, even though it was 1:30 in the morning. Luckily, I get my night-owl tendency from her and she was still awake. So, as long as I don't screw up again, I should be good!

Long Time, No Post

Jeez, I did not realize how long it had been since I posted here. Therefore, I have a lot to post and will probably spread it across a few days. In fiber news (what else) I finished my Marsh socks at the end of April and will not be worrying about doing the rest.

I don't like knitting more than a few things at a time, and I currently have a tank top, a sweater, another pair of socks, and a hibernating dishcloth on the needles. At the moment, I am mainly knitting on the tank top. It is beautiful! It is 50% cotton and 50% rayon and is a very shimmery green and purple. See!












It was hand dyed by a local independent spinner, weaver and dyer named Cyndi. I mentioned in a previous post that I had put some yarn in layaway in December. Well this is it! I have over 1200 yards, which is a good thing, because it is a lighter weight yarn than the pattern calls for. I am knitting a plain stockinette stitch tank, mostly because this is the kind of yarn where a simple pattern is best.

In other fiber news, the first weekend of April was the River Cities Fiber Guild's annual retreat. I was unable to stay the full time due to work, but many others stayed all night. It was held at a local church camp, so there where plenty of beds. Several of my friends from the guild were there, as will as a few people I didn't know.

This is Cyndi, who dyed the lovely yarn above; Debbie, a very talented spinner;

Ellen, who gave samples of fleece for the goody bags. I helped her write the name of the place where she got them o (Wool Grower's in Columbus, Ohio) on the bags and she gave me several more that were extra.

This is Elaine (on the left) and Grace (on the right). Elaine was actually spinning a large fluffy synthetic fiber usually used for packing material. It was a pure white and she blended in some orange wool with a drum carder and it looked great!

This is Judy, one of the founding members of the guild. She is a absolutely adorable, sweet woman with a very quirky sense of humor

And this is Mitzi, one of the other founding members and Judy's daughter. They own several llamas and got started spinning because of that.

This is Nadine, who is a 'spinning prodigy' to use Grace's words on Ravelry. She has been spinning only about a year and her stuff is phenomenal!

This a Maria, a good friend and an excellent knitter, as shown by the entrelac shawl she is wearing.

Nancy, a very good spinner and knitter,

Sam, who is a very good knitter and is developing into an exceptional spinner as well (blame Nadine, she got her hooked).

Then there is Dana (on the right) and Trish (on the left). Dana has made some of the most intricate socks I have ever seem and Trish spins some of the best yarn. She taught me to Andean ply last year.

Finally, there were several people from a WV guild several hours away. They are the ones that convinced Mitzi and Judy to develop the guild here. I think there names were Linda, Linda, Lynda and Deb.

Ok, there is more to catch up on, but I think I will leave it until tomorrow. It is another pic heavy post.

Just a quick note to say

My Feb socks are done, and I have cast on my first sweater. More details in next post.

Did you know

That they tax you on your tax return? Doesn't that rather defeat the point. Oh, well, thank God for schooling credits, or I would be getting back almost nothing. As it is, I will be getting about $600.00 from state and federal together. I plan to pay off a few outstanding debts (like paying Cindy for the yarn I have in layaway) and will sit on the rest to supplement my income when things fall short on payday. You'd think with two jobs, I would not have this problem! But, I don't work full time at either job, so that is not the case. I just need to hold out until my lease expires in July and find a cheaper apartment. Hopefully, cheaper will not equal rat-trap!

In fibery news, my February socks are going good. They are two-by-two rib in two striped white and green. Will be great for St. Patrick's day and Marshall games. I was doing them in stockinette stitch, and had already turned the heel, when I realized that they would be too big. So, I frogged them and started again. They should fit fine. The striping made picking the gusset stitches a bit tricky and at one point the stripes are off, but no one but me could really tell. I will post pics when the first sock is finished.

Tomorrow is the birthday of both Jon, and my great-grandmother, Mamaw Crow. Jon will be 26 and Mamaw will be 100. Mine and Jon's second anniversary will be later this month. I don't know what to get Jon, except for more art supplies. His drawing skillz are amazing!

Winter Weather

Question I was asked at the gas station today "When did we move to Canada?" The Tri-state region of West Virginia; usually a region of moderate temperatures protected from much snowfall by the mountains around us. Well, not today. It started snowing late last night and has not stopped all today, except when it switches to freezing rain, that is.

Right now the entire area is covered with snow and ice and everyone is praying the power doesn't go out. I got up around 1:00 this afternoon, called Taco Bell to see if the paychecks were in (they were) and hauled my but out of bed to go get and cash mine. After a brief stop at the gas station mentioned above, I got on the road. Now I work a good way from where I live, but it usually only takes about 20-30 minutes to get to Taco Bell. Today it took a good hour. Luckily, my credit union is right next door to Taco Bell.

I finally got my check cashed and headed to Walmart to get chili fixings. If this isn't chili weather, I don't know what is. I visited Jon while there (he works in the electronic dept.) and headed home. The roads were a bit clearer, so it didn't take as long. I then started the chili in the crockpot (I love that thing) and started a new loaf of homemade bread. My last attempt at bread fell flat a bit; it was still raw dough in the middle. This one turned out fine, though.

So, my plans for the rest of today and all of tomorrow is simply to veg, knit my February socks and watch my fave TV show, Most Haunted, on Youtube. I finished my Wavy scarf last night and will hopefully post pics tomorrow. I also began my February socks. They will be green and white striped. The cuff, heel and toe of one will be green and the cuff, heel and toe of the other will be white. Beyond it is just two-row stripes. I will probably post pics of it tomorrow also.

New Obsession?

I have created a monster! No, actually I have created bread:

My first loaf of homemade bread! It tastes better than store-bought and is healthier, what with the no preservitives. I used this recipe and it can out good after I called my grandmother a few times for advice. The directions did not say to add water.

Also, my January socks for the Great 2009 Sock Off are finished and feel and look great.

Yah!

For more hours at work. A slight emergency with scheduling gave me am additional 8 hours at my security job. The down side is those 8 hours are attached to the next eight. Translation: I have to work a 16 hour shift, go home and sleep for 12 hour and come back in for another 12. Oh, well, at least I will be able to pay the rent. I really hope we get the stimulus check they are talking about in the next couple months. If I can just get my credit cards paid off, I will be much better off!

Onto fiber related topics. My first pair of socks for the year are going quite good. One is finished and I am about half done with the heel flap of the other. It helps that several people have uploaded episodes of one of my fave TV shows onto YouTube. The show is called Most Haunted, and as the name suggests, they spend the night in haunted locations. It is interesting and can be scary at times. A lot of people believe it is fake, but some stuff is hard to fake.

Random Thoughts

I am very happy because I finished this hat Sunday morning while at work. It was my first time knitting cables, and they came out very well. I started using a cable needle but ended up using a 5in dpn for most of it. I wore it this morning while walking to the post office. Cold or not, I was not going to waste the gas to drive a block!

A few days after Christmas I entered into a trade with a knitter on Ravelry. I traded her some roving I decided I would probably never use for the Yarn Harlot's Never Not Knitting page-a-day calender. We were both beginning to to wonder if it got lost, because she mailed it on Jan 2 and it still had not arrived. She got the roving last week. But there it was this morning, in all it's harloty glory!

I am getting a bit peeved at my landlord. I paid the rent on Jan 3 and the check still has not cleared. If he lost it, I am not writing another one. Once it leaves my hands, it is his responsibility.

Once again I am going to sing the praises of my crock-pot. I don't get paid until tomorrow and the cupboards are bare. So what did I do? Simply dug the leftover chili from where I froze it last week, stuck it in the fridge to thaw and there you go, two meals in one Ziploc bag. After I cash my paycheck, I am planing to make beef stew. All I need is beef, a few potatoes, baby carrots and seasoning.

It feels weird not to be starting class today. I was not eligible for financial aid and was unable to pay the tuition. So, I will have to take a class in the summer and reapply for financial aid after I get my tax info from last year.

You will probably (hopefully) be seeing a lot of socks on this blog this year. On Ravelry, on of the new groups I have joined is the Sock Challenge of 2009. The challenge is to knit 1 pair of socks per month in 09. I thought it sounded cool and I have enough sock yarn to last me about 4 months. I am almost finished with the first socks, the YH basic sock recipe, and have queue the next pair, a cable pattern based off of the basic sock recipe. They will be knit in Cestari sock yarn, colorway Green Heather. I have managed to avoid casting them on until I finish the first pair.

I also cast on a scarf for myself. I realized that I have knit about six scarves, and never kept one for my own use. So, I am knitting the same pattern as Kara's Christmas scarf, but in four colors instead of two. I am using remnants of another finished project. It is Oasis Yarn Aussi Wool.

Late Christmas Post

I can't believe I forgot to post the drama around my boyfriend's scarf. At the October meeting of the River Cities Fiber Guild, one of the guild members, Beth, brought in some remnants of yarn she had sitting around. I liked a skein and ball of a blue/purple/pink variegated yarn and a plain light blue yarn. I had already decided to make a scarf for my boyfriend, Jon, and this yarn was perfect. I am a very lucky knitter, in that Jon loves vibrant colors, mostly in blue and purple.

The only problem was, I didn't know how much of the yarn I had. Of the variegated, there was a good-sized yarn cake and a small hand wound ball. I cast on 28 stitches in garter stitch. I thought at first to use 2x2 rib, but had just finished a 2x2 rib for my aunt, and was about sick of it.

I worked diligently on the scarf, around other projects until December 23. The days preceding this had been unusually warm and rainy, but that night the temperature dropped drastically and the although the rain had stopped, the roads were icy. I was on I-64, having just left my grandmother's, when I became stuck in a massive traffic jam.

It turned out that a cherry-picker truck had overturned on a bridge and was blocking all 4 lanes. I didn't know that then, but after sitting for about 20 minutes, I fished Jon's scarf out of my knitting bag. I figured it would be best because the other projects I was working on all required counting and it was to dark to see well. So, this is what I did:

I ended up stuck in that traffic jam for two hours! Still, I got a lot done. After I finally got home I stretched out the scarf to measure it. I had only about 2 yards of the variegated yarn left and only 40 inches. After an initial bit of panicking and use of language unbecoming a knitter, I figured out what to do. I took the blue yarn I received from Beth and continued on the cast off end for 5 inches. I then undid the cast on edge and added the blue yarn for an additional five inches. I didn't have much time to add the extra inches. I was due to meet Jon and go to my parents for Christmas morning at 9:00. I ended up finishing at 6:30.

I could not believe how good it looked! It looked like I had actually planned that from the beginning. I told Jon about it and he didn't believe it either.

Crock-pot cooking

works for me! I finally got around to cooking something other than chili. I like it, but almost 2 weeks of eating it is enough. So yesterday, I bought a 3.75 roasting chicken and made chicken stock, which is now in the freezer. I am currently using the chicken to cook a slightly modified version of the Crockpot Lady's Brown Sugar Chicken. Except I am making it with the already cooked chicken. Here's hoping it goes well!

Happy Birthday to Me!

Today I turn 26 years old. And what do I have planned for myself today? Cleaning my apartment. Two weeks of night shifts from eight at night to eight in the morning means my apt is trashed. I have already cleaned the bathroom and took down the Christmas tree. I am planning to clean and organize my spare room. I have a two bedroom apt, but the front bedroom only contains my stash and the various junk that is not immediately needed after moving.

So, everything is going in boxes and is going to be neatly stacked (I hope). While doing that, I need to wash about three loads of laundry. The laundry facilities are a bit touch and go around here. There is only one washer and dryer and they are shared by all 8 apts in the building. I have an advantage in that I don't work days. So, I tend to wash clothes when most other residents are at work.

Now it is time for the Christmas recap. I had several things on my list that I considered necessities, not just stuff I wanted for the heck of it. One such item was a slow-cooker. I got a 5-quart Rival Crock-pot from my grandmother and have already used it twice. Both times I made my dad's chili. It is easy and very cheap. All you need is 2-5 cans of Luck's Pinto Beans, a 16oz can of tomato sauce, a packet of McCormick chili seasoning and a pound of hamburger.

1. Mix the seasoning in a 1/2 cup of water.
   
2. Add the tomato sauce.
   
3. Open the cans of beans and put in slow-cooker.
   
4. Add the seasoning/tomato sauce mix.
   
5. Brown the hamburger and add to mixture in cooker.

6. Allow to simmer for 1-2 hours.

7. Enjoy.

I decided to make to chili because it was easy. Also, all ingredients totaled about $6.50. I just made a weeks worth of food for the price of one combo at McDonald's! It tasted just like my dad's too. I ended up calling him about 3 times asking for instructions :).

Here is what it looked like in the Crock-pot:

And this is what it looked like in the bowl:

It tasted just like my dads.

Earth to Jenny

Just a quick post so you know I haven't died. My internet connection is somewhat spotty right now, but I intend to have a real post in a few days.