MDS&W Pr0n - Week 7

The last of the STR from Sheep and Wool - Mediumweight in Seastone And yes, I am aware that three of the five colors I bought were blues and greens (Plus the green Footzey Foo heavyweight I used for my Red Dwarf Socks). It was slightly less obvious when I was also picking up pinks and purples for Roxy, but what can I say? I am drawn to them. :D I was hoping to be able to post a triumphant FO picture of my Molly sleeves today, but there was an Incident. I cruised through the second sleeve on Wednesday and managed to actually finish it. I slipped it over my arm to admire it (Pride goeth before...), and I looked at the cuff. Huh. That's really, really big. Way bigger than I expected. I took it off, and compared it to the first sleeve. It was SIGNIFICANTLY wider. I stared at it. I looked at every pattern row, trying to figure out where I went off-pattern. Finally, I found it. Do you see where the arrows are pointing? I anchored those light green loops in the wrong spot on sleeve #2, which gave me 12 of them, instead of 8. (...aaaaaand there's the fall). So, yeah. The ENTIRE cuff was half again as big as it was supposed to be. I had to rip the entire thing out, back to that green row, to fix it. (17 rows, if you are wondering.) On the upside, now that the rows are 2/3 the length they were, they move a LOT faster. I'm back up to the orange row just before the pink I was on when this picture was taken. With any luck (and less foul-ups), I'll have a FO by the end of the weekend. Have a good one, all!

WIP Update

So, I've been surprisingly faithful to one project since last week's WIP Wednesday post. In fact, other than swatching for the Mystery Stole 3 KAL (more on that in a minute), I've only worked on my Molly Weasley Sleeves. Last week, I showed you this picture, but like I said then, that wasn't an accurate depiction of where I was on the project. This is a little more accurate picture of where I was: Since then, I've gotten to here: (And yes, I know this is a crap picture. I'm babysitting, and therefore can't really get everything up to Kris's studio with the good lighting.) I'm hoping that I will be able to finish this up sometime this weekend. I have 4 more rounds left to finish the sleeve on the right, there, and then I need to catch the other one up and finish it. Once that is done, I have to weave in the ends, and voila! On the recommendation of some of my knitting group buddies, I found a denim jacket at Old Navy's website, and I'll be attaching the sleeves to that instead of a sweater. I think they will look really cute with the denim. And the Mystery Stole - thank you all for your input and opinions. Most of you agreed with my feelings, which was that the Charcoal (which I had labeled as "Steel" in the pictures... *sigh*) was the better color. The bead opinion was pretty split, and I wasn't sure which I liked better, either, so I swatched: The bottom repeat has the #901 beads, the middle repeat is without beads, and the top has the #912 beads. You don't see them? Yeah, me either. It looks like they matched the yarn color a little TOO well. Bummer, because I really liked them. That's ok, though - I like the way that the #901's look. And I like the fabric I got on the US3's, so it looks like all I need to do now is wait until the first clue comes out! Think I can get the sleeves done by then? Here's hoping! ETA: And I completely forgot that I wanted to mention this! I saw on Annie Modesitt's blog (while looking for something else) that her husband Gerry has been diagnosed with multiple myeloma, which completely sucks, to be blunt about it. She has a pattern posted for the "Red Carpet Convertible", and she is using the sale of that pattern to help offset some of the expenses of Gerry's treatment. (If you remember the stories of the knitted Emmy dress last year, this is that pattern). So, if you have a couple of bucks, why not pop over there, pick up a gorgeous pattern, and help a knitter who is in a cruddy situation.

WIPs, FOs, and the Kindness of Knitties

So, I did actually finish that crocheted scarf that I showed you, and courtesy of the crappy-ass weather we've been having, I've been wearing it quite a bit. Here 'tis: I also finished the Counterpoint scarf I've been working on as a "Congratulations" gift for my friend Hillary, who is off to NYU this fall for graduate school in the vocal performance program. (Classic Elite Lush. A new fave. It's SO SOFT!) I've got 2 WIPs I'm carrying with me at the moment. The Chevron Scarf from Last-Minute Knitted Gifts, in Claudia Handpaints "Eat Your Veggies" and "Caribbean Blue" (They will be the subject of a future YPF post): and the Chrysanthemum Tea Shawl from Doris Chan's Amazing Crochet Lace (FABULOUS book - beautiful patterns. You will be seeing more stuff from it here.) in King Tut Cotton. And finally, a little proof that Knitties rule. I've been working on my Simple Knitted Bodice, and the further I got, the more I worried that I was going to run short on the Berroco Denim Silk I was using for it. The biggest problem with that is that the yarn is discontinued. So, I posted on the board that I was looking for something to work with the Denim Silk to use for the lace bands and the neckline/cuffs/hemline. The wonderful, fabulous, ohsoverysweet Mary Mary came to my rescue - she had some Denim Silk in another color that would work wonderfully with my funky Absinthe green. So, we swapped for it. The package from her arrived yesterday, and in with the Denim Silk (6 of the Creme Caramel, plus one in Carob - any and all leftovers will be combined into something fun), she tucked a little surprise for me. According to her note, Texas is cracking down on license plate frames, so she thought I would be able to get some good use out of this one. I cracked up! I can't wait to put it on my van. Thank you, sweetie. You rule! And your box will be in the mail tomorrow, I promise.

DWTS Elimination and Mid-Week Yarn Pr0n

Wow. I actually called it! Leeza and Shandi in the bottom two, and Shandi sent home! I'm so glad Clyde was safe. I know the judges are pretty hard on him, and I think a lot of his problems stem from the height difference and his rotator cuff issues. His personality is really starting to show while he dances, and I like it. In other news, I found a contest on a couple of other blogs - 5 Minutes for Mom is giving away one of the new Dyson Slim vacuums. So of course, I had to enter. (And yeah, I know I'm not a mom. I have 3 dogs and 3 cats. I need good vacuum power. :D) And I've been a crocheting fiend the last couple of days. I went on a Yarn Safari (as Carrie has taken to calling them) this weekend to Cloverhill Yarn Shop with Carrie and Maryanne, and picked up a copy of the new Interweave Crochet. The Boteh Scarf called to me, as did the Cloverhill sock yarn, which is dyed for the store by Mama E of C*Eye*ber Fiber. They also carry some of her roving, and now that I've seen it in person, I understand why people love her stuff. I resisted the roving this time, but chances are good that there will be some in my future. This is Pistachio Chip: And this is the Boteh Scarf, so far: Isn't it purty? I'm almost done with the main part, and then I just need to do the border.

I've crossed over...

... to the crochet side. OK, so I've actually known how to crochet for a few years, but I haven't done it in quite some time. Then I picked up the new Stitch 'n Bitch Crochet book, and I really liked some of the designs, so I decided to pick up the hooks again. This is the Short 'n Sweet bolero from the book, done in Halcyon King Tut Cotton in Turquoise. I really like how it is coming out, not least because crochet moves so freakin' fast. =) I've got about 1 repeat left around the bottom of the body, and then the sleeves and the edging to go. I'm going to look at it once the body is done according to the pattern and make sure that it isn't too short on me. I have some extra yarn, so I should be fine to lengthen it if I need to. I love this stitch pattern - it's really textural and just nifty. I've also started another project. (You know, because I don't have any waiting over there in my list that have been sitting there for months or anything) Aren't they awesome? What do you mean, you can't tell what they are? Isn't it obvious? =) Anyway, these are my Jaywalker socks, being done in Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in the "Happy Valley" colorway. This is my first time using LLSS, and I freely admit that I ordered this color not only because it was pretty and springy, but because Happy Valley is the nickname of both Penn State (where hubby went) and Westminster College (where I went). So far, I am loving the yarn, although getting everything cast on and arranged on the circs was an adventure, for some reason. And lookie here - I got a package! My awesome, lovely Knittyboard SP bylt (whose identity I figured out by complete accident of fate) sent me these goodies. (The postcard actually arrived before, but I forgot to post it. She sent it to me from her trip to Hong Kong.) On the right of the picture (and in the picture to the right, opened) is a gorgeous green case to hold all sorts of life's (and knitting's) little necessities, and on the right are 2 balls of Elann's Sock It To Me Esprit in a lovely purple and turquoise combination that I am looking forward to playing with. In the middle - check out that label. Yes, folks, that is Hello Kitty yarn! She found that in Hong Kong, and tell me that is not the funniest thing ever. It's a really pretty bright navy blue, and is quite soft. I've got a good part of my stash photographed for the Flash on the first. I just have some oddballs to put together yet. Oh, and thank you for your kind words on my Bloom shawl. Honestly, it's a very nice, easy pattern - who doesn't love garter stitch short-rows on US15 needles? =) And I know, I still owe you a modeled shot. It's a crazy week for hubby at work, so I haven't managed to get him to take a picture yet.