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I finally finished the scarf for my dad. I used the Lana Grossa Due Chine I had and just used a garter stitch to hopefully have a quick gift. Well, at least I got in the mail this year (!). I think it looks okay. It was a bit short so I decided to add some fringe to make it appear longer, plus I crocheted around the edges for a more finished look. Not bad for my 3rd scarf (and two were the same baby scarves).
I’m still working on the mittens for my mom, but I sent off the hat today. I was disappointed that it didn’t look as square as Sally Melville’s, but it’s the thought that counts. Now to finish the mittens so I can get IM’s baby blanket done before he’s in college!
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I had a great (well, sort of) trip to L.A. Of course we had delays both directions and I for some reason stayed at the LAX Westin Hotel (the sound of the airplanes was deafening) but otherwise a profitable trip. After going way into the valley and getting a bit lost, Ian and I were able to get to Edith Eig’s La Knitterie Parisienne. It was so cool! I think they actually filmed the DIY show “Knit One Purl Two” there, and not only was Edith Eig there but she loved DS3 and I was able to tell her that I was making her feather and fan baby blanket. I got some beautiful Gedifra Fashion Trend yarn and a couple of notions that I ended up not needing during my trip. Oh, and I was in line behind Mrs. Kotter. Whenever I go to L.A. I always have to have a star sighting, and although I would have counted Edith Eig if I had to, Marcia Strassman worked too. Actually, we drove by at least 2 stars if not 4 you might have recognized in Culver City (one was Maury Chaykin), but I couldn’t remember their names at the time.
I didn’t get much knitting done and we didn’t make it to Suss Designs or Jennifer Knits like I was hoping, but it was a fun trip altogether.
NOTE: I will never spend money in Culver City, CA again. I accidentally went through a light at the end of the cycle, got caught on camera and they charged me $350!!!! That’s all the money they are getting from me. It won’t be that hard, since Dinah’s changed their apple pancake and it’s not worth it anymore.
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I just finished my “knit flat hat” from The Knit Stitch. It looks nothing like the hat in the picture (which looks way more like a pillbox — more square than pointy), and is pretty ugly. I guess it’s good it only took me a week to do it, but I thought it would be a nice Christmas present for my mom and now I’m not sure if I’m going to give it to her or not. I did it in Cascade 220 Superwash which is so soft, but I couldn’t decide what color, so I picked brown so it would look nice with her blonde hair and now I’m not so sure. There is so much pressure at Christmas and I can’t believe I wasted a week on this pattern!
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My kids are so smart! (I’m not bragging, or anything 😉 ) Today, DS2 (almost 2) handed me my yarn and said “knitting!”. How cool!
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I can’t believe it has been a whole week almost since I last posted! Things have been really hard to adjust to since Ian was born, I finally start to get settled and we all get sick. I took three kids (well, DH took two) and me to the doctor this week. Then I get an influx of work from my mom’s job. That is what I really should be doing now, since all the kids are sleeping.
I have had quite a week of knitting, even though we were all sick. I actually started two projects at once, a first for me, and I got the supplies to start a third, but I haven’t yet. I still have my baby blanket on the back burner now, my Father’s Day tie from last year, and now the Hallowig from Knitty, and the Yarn Harlot poncho to work on. I have been really motivated to start the Hallowig by the Hallowig knitalong, which is already over I think, but at least I get to see all the cool wigs. I had an interesting trip to Michael’s the other day, to get the Caron Supersoft that I am using for my wig. Our local Michael’s is right next to the post office and technically within walking distance from my house so I do go there more than I should. Our Michael’s has really improved in the past year. They have a large yarn selection, good knitting books, and have even added Clover bamboo needles, of which I have a large incomplete collection. It’s nice to know I can easily get some supplies if I don’t have the time to trek down to San Carlos (3 freeway exits) or Half Moon Bay (farther, but a nicer trip) or even farther for one of our LYS.
In between knitting, real estate stuff (I’m still no farther on my broker’s license, which sucks), I have been trying to read Al Franken’s “Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them”. For a librarian, I guess I have a typical amount of time to read — very little. It is hilarious, though, even if it is a bit dated. Next on the list is “Poplorica: A popular history of the fads, mavericks, inventions, and lore that shaped modern America” by Smith and Kiger. This one sounds really interesting, if I ever get to it!
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Ponchos are weird. I finally finished my Cascade Pastaza poncho. It is as long as I thought it would be (that is, too long for me, since I am shorter than I care to admit) and hard to get on because it sticks to my clothes. Also, it makes me look fat. This is not to say I won’t ever wear it since it (to quote the movie “Better Off Dead”) “sure is _warm_”, but it’s not entirely flattering to me. And yet I am still planning on making the two other ones I like. Maybe they’ll look better on me. Or maybe I can get into the action I discovered recently — our knitting group met up with the Stitch N Bitch ™ group in the area last Thursday. Apparently one of their members has a booth at a local Farmers’ Market and had a booth at the Stanford Craft Faire. She has started adding SNB ™ members’ items to her items to sell and takes a portion of the proceeds. The ponchos were going for $70 so that would be great to receive, even if I had to give up some of it for overhead.
Also this weekend DS1 and I went to see a friend in the Foster City Community Choir. It was nice and since DS1 loves to sing I thought he would really enjoy it. Unfortunately I mentioned the “snacks” afterwards. So I thought we were having some nice quality time and he was enjoying himself but he was basically waiting for the snacks! I was reminded of the saddest “Roseanne” episode when her daughters take her out to the beauty salon and spend time with her but they just wanted permission to go to a concert. I can’t imagine doing that to my mom, and would be just as hurt as she was if my kids did that sort of thing to me. The good news is that he did really enjoy the singalong part, which I thought he would.
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I haven’t gotten much work done on my baby blanket since Ian wants to be held constantly (not that that is a bad thing), but I was thinking I’d like to finish it for him for his first Christmas. Of course there are a number of things I’d love to finish before Christmas and only so much knitting time! The blanket shouldn’t take too long except it is a lace pattern so I have to think about it and sometimes lose stitches and have to take it back to the right number. I got the pattern from the DIY show “Knit One Purl Two” and the pattern is available on their website as “Edith’s Baby Blanket”. She says you should double strand but I didn’t have that much yarn (the Rowan Cork remnants I have been trying to use up for months now) so I decided to just knit normally and only double strand when I am changing colors. I think it looks pretty good.
I am still working on my Cascade Pastaza poncho, want to start the Yarn Harlot poncho with my black (“sable”) Rowan Cork and I also just ordered some Dale of Norway Sisik so I can start the Hello Yarn poncho. Yes, I am following the fad and hope to finish at least one poncho before the cold weather goes away and/or the fad ends. We have been having unseasonably cold weather here in Northern Calif. so it would have been nice if I had finished the first one by now. Of course there is “no global warming” according to our president, so I must be mistaken at how cold I am. But I digress.
Multitasking 