SQUAWKER GIRL KNITS

Cabled Quasi Crews

2011-01-01T16:46:00.002-05:00

Socks, that is....

For some strange reason, everything I end up knitting is a “quasi” something ~ it isn’t quite this or that. So when I set off to knit up some simple cabled socks, out came this pair: not quite crew length but more than anklets.

Size

Foot circumference: 9 inches (23cm)

Cuff length: 3 inches (7.5cm)

Will fit an average woman’s foot (US shoe sizes 7-9)

Yarn

Premiere Yarn Serenity (50% Merino, 25% Bamboo, 25% Nylon); 230 yds (210 m) per 50g skein

Needles

US Size 1 (2.25mm): 2 circular needles, preferably one 16 inch and one 24 inch OR set of US Size 1 (2.25mm) DPNs

Gauge

7 sts and 11 rows = 1 inch in stockinette stitch

9 sts and 14 rows = 1 inch cable pattern

Notions

Tapestry needle

Cable needle

Abbreviations

C2B- slip 2 sts to cable needle and hold in the back, knit 2 sts, then knit 2 sts from cable needle

Cable Pattern

Rounds 1-4: *P4, K4; rep from * to end

Round 5: *P4, C2B, P4, K4

Rounds 6-9: *P4, K4

Round 10: rep round 5

Round 11-14: *P4, K4

Round 15: *P4, K4, P4, C2B

Cuff on Circs

Cast on 64 sts and divide evenly across 2 circular needles, making needle 1 the 16 inch needle & needle 2 the 24 inch needle. Join in the round without twisting.

Cuff on DPNs

Cast on 64 sts and divide evenly among 4 needles. Join in the round without twisting.

Begin with 6 rounds of K2P2 ribbing.

Begin Cable Pattern for a total of 3 repeats, with the 3^rd repeat ending on round 14

Heel Flap on Circs

On needle 1

Row 1: Sl 1, K1, repeat across

Row 2: Sl 1, P to end

Repeat these two rows 15 times, or 30 total rows

Heel Flap on DPNs

Row 1: Sl 1, K1, repeat across needle 1 & 2, so that sts from both needles are now on 1 needle (32 sts total)

Row 2: Sl 1, P to end

Repeat these two rows 15 times, or 30 total rows

Turn Heel

Row 1: Sl 1, K to last 8 sts, K2tog, K1, turn

Row 2: Sl 1, P to last 8 sts, P2tog, P1, turn

Row 3: Sl 1, K to 1 st before gap, K2tog, K1, turn

Row 4: Sl 1, P to 1 st before gap, P2tog, P1, turn

Repeat rows 3 & 4 until all sts worked, 24 sts remain

Heel Gusset* on Circs

With needle 1, pick up 16 sts going towards instep (towards needle 2)

Work in established cable pattern across instep sts on needle 2

With needle 2, pick up 16 sts going towards heel (towards needle 1)

Now transfer sts evenly so there are 32 sts on needle 1, and 56 sts on needle 2 (12 sts transferred on both sides of needle 2)

For decreasing, begin with needle 2.

Round 1: K to 2 sts before pattern, K2tog, cont in pattern to last 16 sts, K4, SSK, K10; needle 1 knit across

Round 2: work across needle 2 in pattern being careful to knit the leading and trailing sts without decreasing; knit across needle 1

Repeat these 2 rounds until needle 2 has 32 sts total

Heel Gusset* on DPNs
Knit across heel
Pick up 16 sts going toward instep
Work in established cable pattern (row 15) across instep stitches ending at last 4 sts, K4
Pick up 16 sts towards heel
Now transfer 12 sts evenly onto needle 1 + 3 so that you now have:
Needle 1- 28 sts
Needle 2- 32 sts (this is the instep)
Needle 3- 28 sts

For decreasing, Round 1:
Needle 1- knit to last 3 sts, K2tog, K1
Needle 2- knit in pattern to last 4 sts, K4
Needle 3- K1, SSK, K to end

Round 2- no decreases
Continue round 1 and 2 until there are 16 sts on needle 1 & 3

*A note about picking up gusset stitches:
In order to pick up the first 16 sts going towards the instep, you have to knit across the turned heel to get yourself to the correct side. You could just pick up 16 sts towards the instep, but the you would need to purl across the instep, which would create an extra row in the pattern repeat. No big deal if this is how you approached it, as it won’t add any significant length.

Foot on Circs

Cont working sts on needle 1 in St st and in pattern for needle 2.

Work until foot measures approximately 1 ½ inches from the desired finished length.

Foot on DPNs

Cont working sts so that needle 2 is in pattern and needle 1 & 3 are in St st. Work until foot measures approximately 1 ½ inches from the desired length.

Toe on Circs

Round 1: Needle 1- K1, SSK, K to last 3 sts, K2tog, K1; Needle 2- K1, SSK, K to last 3 sts, K2tog, K1

Round 2: K all sts

Repeat these 2 rounds until 24 sts remain (12 sts each needle)

Toe on DPNs

Round 1: Needle 1- K to the last 3 sts, K2tog, K1

Needle 2- K1, SSK, K to last 2 sts, K2tog, K1

Needle 3- K1, SSK, K to end

Round 2: K all sts

Repeat these 2 rounds until 24 sts remain.

Finishing

Cut yarn, leaving about 12 inch tail. Graft toes using kitchener stitch. Weave in ends.

Viola!

An Ode to the Blog

2007-02-13T12:46:00.000-05:00

Oh, poor blog, how I forgot thee

Your whimsical ways have gone astray

As I must be serious about my studies

And leave the needles and yarn at bay.

Oh, poor blog, that hath gone the ways

Of the Google's Blogger anew

I have no patience to play

And emend the blog that went blue.

The Squawker, the knitting, and my humor will be back when we uncover ourselves from the books.

Secret Pal Goodies!

2007-01-14T21:33:00.000-05:00

Yay! Thank you, SP! You have done it again! You have fine tuned your Mission Impossible tasks by stealthily leaving another package at our front door. Although, the BBDS did help provide you cover. Her barking and usual attack mode at the sound of the doorbell won you some time to get away without a trace!

I ended up having a dream out the KnitPicks Andean Silk. My mother was knitting a scarf with it in stockingette stitch and it wasn't curling! I was amazed for two reasons: 1. That the stockingette wasn't curling one bit and 2. My mother was knitting!

One thing not seen here is the Trader Joe's peanut butter cups...(insert Homer voice over here)mmmm...peanut butter cups.... And where did you get those fruit snacks? They are awesome! The earrings are just as delicious!

Thank you, SP!!! Hope to meet you soon!

Miss Me?

2007-01-09T16:16:00.000-05:00

It's been a while since I've stopped by. Despite being on school break I didn't get as much knitting done as I would have liked. But I did manage to squeak out a couple of things. I have one pillow done... so instead of the saggy testicle like pillows from Kohl's I now have one large firm testicle in an oversized sack. Yup, that's right. The pillow itself is great, but I overestimated the size of the knitted panels. There is about an inch of fabric hanging down. Oh well, it's still a great supportive pillow!

And, I also finished another pair of socks! I love knitted socks. I announce that I am officially addicted. This pair is made of KnitPicks Dancing. Here is the pair that was for and modelled by The Crazy Cat Person:

Speaking of cats, this here is a picture of The Crazy Cat Person's 19 year old cat! This is The Lum. Her real name is Pennie. When she was younger, she was one squishy round cat who laid around all day long. Along comes old age and she suddenly dropped about 13 pounds courtesy of hyperthyroidism. She still looks pretty good for an old girl. But don't try to talk to her. She can't hear you. She can't even hear herself and so her meow's have reached the same decibal level as a jet engine. Well, not quite.... but you get the idea.

Socks and Beta Blows

2006-12-16T09:38:00.000-05:00

So I thought I would switch to the new Blogger Beta because, well, what the hell? Everytime I log on to Blogger I was prompted to switch. I kept putting it off because I didn't want to spend hours playing with HTML and templates. I wish I had continued to listen to myself. As you can see things have changed here. Some for the better (color) and some for the worse (links, sidebar items, and just about everything else). Just when I thought I got the basics of HTML and CSS down, Blogger Beta has changed how it does things "to make it simple". Ha! I can't figure out for the life of me how to get my links back up with their buttons, not to mention how to get rid of the green bar across the top of my title header. So over the next week or so I hope to get these things squared away and have the original links and other items back up. If you don't see them, it means I am still struggling.

I finally have a pair of knitted socks that fit me perfectly! The picture doesn't show the exquisite fit only because they are ankle socks which would mean you'd have to see my hairy legs. (I haven't shaved in like, oh.... weeks... and don't go "Ew!" because I have good reason. I have sensitive, dry skin that irritates easily and it's now winter.) But take my word for it: these socks are perfect! I put every bit of knitting effort into them, even breaking a needle and precariously having to fix dropped stitches because of it.

The socks are made with Katia Mississippi yarn in the Khaki/Citrus colorway.

I haven't washed them yet, but they are a cotton/acrylic blend that is machine wash and dryable. The first pair of socks I made that the DH wears as slipper socks went through the wash. Mind you, not of my doing... DH did a load of his laundry and machine washed and dried these wool socks. I was surprised to see that only the heel felted a bit. He says they shrunk a tiny bit, not enough to effect the fit.

Can you believe I have absolutely nothing on the needles right now??? I must get moving and get the needles in gear. I must take advantage of all the knitting time on school break!

Oh, and an animal update: Handsome has become a very brave boy. His Grammy won't like hearing this because she thinks we starve our 20 pound cat, but last night he was hungry enough to come down into Doggy Land and ask to be fed. Both the DH and I just about fell over when we heard a little meow while sitting on the couch and turned to see Mr. Kitty walking over to us. Not one ounce of fear as he casually sauntered over to us with his famous swagger. Fortunately for him, BBDS was already asleep as it was 10PM. And yes, Grammy, I went upstairs and fed him. His ribs are no longer poking out.

Knitaversary

2006-12-07T13:40:00.000-05:00

I have officially been knitting for one year. That flew by! My knitting trials and tribulations have fortunately been kept to a minimum, and have only found myself in one yarn tangle. I managed to knit 2 afghans, several baby sweaters, a tank top for me that didn't fit, another sweater (that did fit), a pair of socks, and a big nipple (you know, that hat).

I finished my last final today. I somehow, by sheer miracle, got a 91 on it. I say this is a miracle because very little of the test questions pertained to covered class material. Not sure exactly why that was done, but at least its over. I am awaiting one more grade for a pharmacology paper that my 4.0 is resting on.

So I mentioned briefly that my SP9 pal is a daring girl. Yes, indeed she is! She risked her identity (and her life, according to the BBDS) to give me my lovely gifts. This kamikaze left the gift on my front steps, then ran for her life back to her car. I caught her car as she was pulling away, then noticed the package on the steps. I had no clue as to what it was, and was afraid to open it as it could have been a bomb. (Ya, a bomb...haven't you watched those forensic shows?) But I saw through top of the package and noticed yarn. Come to think of it, though, it still could have been a bomb...especially if it was from someone who knows me. How easy would it be to just throw yarn over the bomb? I'd snatch yarn out of an alligator's jaw. Why an alligator would have yarn is beyond me, as they are cold blooded and can adapt to their environment and probably wouldn't knit... but still...I'd be going for the yarn. If the yarn is ticking, well, I might have second thoughts. Included in my gift is the lovely sock yarn you see below, as well as Reese's and hot chocolate! The Reese's is pretty much gone...

KnitPicks Memories in Prairie. Perfect!!!

Thank you, SP!

Well, I can hear my needles calling me name and the couch calling for my ass... I must take advantage.

Quack Quack

2006-12-04T14:04:00.000-05:00

I actually have several things I should post but will have to come back later this week to post the rest of it. Here are the DH's duck feet with my first complete pair of socks! He's actually been wearing them as slipper socks around the house and says they are warm and wicking. The wicking was a big deal, as he thought hand made socks would make his feet sweat.

My Secret Pal has proved she is a daring participant of SP9. She must live locally because she hand delivered my gifts to the front door. I didn't see her, but saw her car roll away. I love what she got me, and I will post pictures later this week.

The kitties are all done with school. I'm not, but they said they've had enough and prefer to spend their day relaxing in place of studying. I can't blame them. I look forward to having several weeks of laying around as well.

Rabbit, Rabbit!

2006-12-01T15:33:00.000-05:00

It's the first of the month, people, so you know what that means... say your Rabbits for good luck. He he.

The schitzo knit-a-thon is complete. I am down to just one project. Two of the finished objects are here:

The Roomy Baby Cardigan Part Deux

The Cabled Afghan

As I am working out the kinks on my adaptation of the Roomy Baby Cardigan, I decided that I would knit another one in the 12 month size. I used Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino (yes, the stuff my LYS was discontinuing because it wasn't good enough!) and it's very soft. I have some left to make another one, which I will at some point as the sleeves are what needs to be resized. Look how tiny they are at the wrist! Yikes... at least it's ribbing so it stretches. And I got a bit carried away with buttonholes. There's 9 stinking buttons on this little sweater.

The afghan is made from Caron Simply Soft. Not sure if I would use it again. Perhaps if they made a chunky version I would use it to make another afghan. It shows the cables nicely. For anyone thinking cables are hard and intimidating... think again. This was my first attempt and it came out marvelous!

I'm trying to inspire these girls to knit.

But as you can see, they were much more interested in just wearing my knits and posing for the camera. They gave me an extensive list of items they need knitted. Not sure when I will get to it, but eventually it will find its way on the needles. And do you notice the Nipple Hat? She loved it and took it home, nipple and all. (But I didn't point out the obvious nipple atop her head. She's only 12!)

Stay tuned for the socks...they will be appearing on the DH's duck feet on a computer monitor near you.

My First Sock and First Turkey!

2006-11-25T09:08:00.000-05:00

How often do those two things get blogged about together?

So I have successfully completed my first knitted sock. It's lovely! It feels softer on the foot than in the hands. And even the DH is convinced a pair of knitted socks is something he needs.

It looks great on his foot... a perfect fit!

A bit baggy on mine, but oh so comfortable!

I know I am potentially committing sock suicide here, but I am not casting on for the next sock until I get that damn afghan done. Just a little ways to go on it, but it's dragging on.

Off to the turkey....

Looks good, but it got cooked with one of the plastic bags inside. No one knew until after they ate their meal, and no one tasted any plastic. I must say, though, that something felt very wrong about cooking a turkey. I guess I prefer my meat to have no resemblance to the animal it was so that I don't feel so bad about it dying (and especially how it died).

I haven't shared anything about the Big Bad Doggy Sister here in a while. Here is another picture to further prove just how "bad" she is!

That was her on Thanksgiving morning. She was not getting up off her bed for anything. She didn't even lift her head when I came down to see her. What a life...I'm jealous!

The Sock Expedition...

2006-11-21T20:31:00.000-05:00

...has begun!

I can't say yet that it's been difficult, but as you can see I've only finished the leg portion. I have yet to attack the heel, which is what I plan to do right after I finish this post. I am using Silvers Sock Class and loving it!

I'm liking the yarn, too. It's KnitPicks Memories in Yukon. It's knitting up to a thick winter sock in nice blues. Perfect for jeans! (Although I will likely be wearing them with the blue velour pajama pants I wear, like, every day). I really like the Brittany dpns, too. Although the ones I have are 7.5 inches long, a bit too long for socks I must say.

Squawker needed to have her new picture posted, so here it is! She squawks a Happy Thanksgiving to all, and send all left over turkey to New Hampshire...

Progress!

2006-11-17T20:11:00.000-05:00

Finally... some progress around here! I have not been posting as frequently as I've been tied up with school work and the schizo knit-a-thon. But it has paid off...for now. My work is never done, but I feel like a lot is behind me.

I have knitted the quickest piece ever in my history of knitting: the cowl neck sweater. Take a look:

Pretty good, eh? But I have a feeling you are wondering why is it called the cowl neck sweater when it isn't a cowl neck? Good question. I ran out of yarn. I had to cut the neck short. But I compensated well, as it looks great like it is.

WARNING TO ALL FIBER SNOBS: this is made of...acrylic! (gasp!) It's Bernat Softee Chunky. I think each skein cost around $2.75, and I used 11 skeins... so this cost me approximately $30.25. You certainly can't get a sweater like this at the mall for that price.

One thing I must point out is that I broke all the rules of Big Girl Knits. Big Girls are not supposed to wear chunky yarn knits. I am also a Boob Big Girl... and we aren't supposed to cover those babies up in anyway... oh, well, I broke the rules for a great looking sweater.

Off on the other front... school... just 3 weeks to go to the end of the term. Yay! So far looks like I will maintain my brainiac status with a 4.0. Yes, that's right, people... a 4.0. In grad school. (Sorry, had to put that shameless plug in for myself).

But I can't take all the credit with these grades. I get help from the kitties.
Shady knows her phenanthrene opiod narcotics well.

And Mr. Kitty has learned everything there is to know about diuretics.

After a hard day of studying, Shady takes the time to relax:

And Mr. Kitty becomes drunk with knowledge:

I, on the other hand, suffer headaches... which I couldn't seem to capture on picture.

Lost in Knitting Schizophrenia

2006-11-14T20:57:00.000-05:00

I have only 4 weeks left in this school term, which means I have a lot to do and tons to study. Yet I have felt the obsessive need to start knitting several things. I have the afghan (still) in progress, which is a Christmas gift I am making for a coworkers daughter. It's my first paid knitting endeavor. I have also knit another Roomy Baby Cardigan, but still have the buttons to sew on, so that won't be posted until then. The reason I haven't got around to those buttons is because I started working on a cowl neck sweater for myself. Its coming out quite nice, and is knitting up quickly. I just have 1 1/2 sleeves and the cowl neck to do. And I also bought some Lion Brand Suede to make pillow covers for the couch. I couldn't help myself because A.C. Moore was having a sale on the LB suede and I hate my couch pillows. They are sagging and bunched into little stuffing balls. It's like laying your head on a big testicle sack. Figures... thats what you get from the fake sale items at Kohls. A.C. Moore had some nice pillows that were only $6 each! I now just have to come up with a pattern for the covers. I'll fit that in somewhere between studying, work, and blogging!

I was told to watch for my first SP9 package! I can't wait! And neither can Squawker! She just loves knitting items that come in boxes!

Looking for this?

2006-11-05T10:48:00.000-05:00

Google has some great features. I found out that I can see what people are searching to link to my site. Two queries outside the obvious have been used. The one that makes sense to me is my KH user name, however it is not the most used search term.

I laughed when I saw the search term used the most. "Outdoor Pervs".

I don't get how that search term links to Squawker Girl Knits. As far as I know, there aren't any outdoor perv's hanging out here on my knitting blog. At least none that I know of! And do these outdoor perv's knit while they are being perverted outside? Are they wearing knit clothing? Are these people looking for girl's who squawk and knit?

I'd image that they are disappointed that the only porn on this site is yarn porn. And the only girl squawking is Shady!

People never cease to amaze me.

Suggestion:

2006-11-01T20:38:00.000-05:00

Forget Vogue International or Rowan for interesting knit designs. Instead, do a simple Google Image search. Type in "knit". Or just click here to see what you get!

Nipple Head

2006-10-27T13:41:00.000-05:00

Enough said.

News Flash: BBDS Eats Cat Food

2006-10-26T11:20:00.000-05:00

Poor Miss B... of all the animal children, she is the most exploited on this blog. There's her foolish picture on the sidebar... and now word is out that she will eat cat food. Actually, she loves cat food. It's one of the things she goes for (besides the cats) when she breaks into Kitty Land. I brought the cat food bowls downstairs to be washed, but stopped to talk with the DH on my way to the kitchen. Miss B decided that she would help clean them herself, licking every bit of dried up canned food she could get. (Please note her stylish Vera Bradley collar)

Here she was trying to get the cat food bowls out of my hands.

Onto the Knitting Front

I have finished the second cardigan for my friends' youngest daughter. Of the two I made for these girls, this one is my favorite.

This is also a Miss Bea design by Louisa Harding. I think her designs are very cute for kids. And they are quite easy and quick. This cardigan is made from Rowan Denim in the color Tennessee. This yarn is 100% cotton, and feels like denim jeans. I didn't like knitting with it as the ply's were very loose and frequently got caught with the points of the needles. But it turned out beautiful, and I would use this yarn again just based on its outcome alone.

Google Me!

2006-10-22T08:54:00.000-05:00

Yay! I finally made it to the Google database! Yay!

You can type in "squawkergirl", "squawker girl" , "squawker girl knits" or any other combination of squawk, squawker, knit, etc and there I am. I feel so important now...sigh!

The Torture Ride

2006-10-19T16:40:00.000-05:00

AKA... The Ride to the Vet.

Fall brings in the cool weather, the colorfully changing leaves, and the trip to the V-E-T 25 miles away. 25 loooooonnnng miles down the highway and then back roads to Dr. Bailey. Oh, that's 3 long trips...because I can't have the dog go with either cat, and I can't handle two screaming cats in the car.

First to go was Squawker. She did her usual crying alternating with a torturous squawk down and back. Then it was the Big Bad Doggy Sister... the 72 pound tough girl who shook the entire way and then hid under two chairs in the exam room. And finally, it was Handsome, my boy, my first love. Typically he meows the whole way down and back like his kitty sister, and at the vet he socializes with the other cats, easily forgetting the ride in the car. (He's a friendly boy, ya know. Remember, he hung out with the Winter Hill Gang in the city).

But this time, something changed. Something was different about Handsome during that ride. He started with the meowing, then meowing with emphasis, and then screaming. I would alternate between talking to him and plain out ignoring him, because I wasn't sure which was better. Turns out neither, because when we got onto the highway he began to spin in circles at a furious rate in the carrier, sending the carrier rocking from side to side. And he would howl while spinning.

During the visit, he was the bravest of the animal children in the exam room. He ventured out from the carrier and sniffed the room. But he was not interested in heading into the back room like he normally does where the resident cats hang out.

The ride back was no better. Again, on the highway, his spinning begun then he abruptly stopped while placing his paws on the side of the carrier. At first glance, I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me because he appeared to be upside down, hanging onto the top of the carrier. And sure enough, as I noticed his face was laying in the wrong direction and I could see the white stripe of his belly clear as day I knew that he placed himself on his back. He stayed this way until we got home. It was quite dramatic.

When I got him into Kitty Land, he sauntered out of the carrier with is normal swagger and headed for the food dishes. All was back in order and right side up.

A Field Trip

2006-10-17T11:33:00.000-05:00

Remember being in school and going on a field trip, how exciting it was to go some place other than school on a school day? The most exciting field trip was in the 6th grade. It was to an area amusement park and it was for pure fun. No learning required. I was so excited about that field trip that I made a contruction paper chain of rings, so as each day went by I tore off a ring. Once the last ring remained it was just a day away... it was very exciting to finally get to that last ring (probably because there were about 60 rings to start with). Some kids may know these construction paper chains as a way to count down to Christmas. Well, I used it for the field trip.

So today my work SnB group went on a field trip to an area yarn shop. The LYS, as previously mentioned, is full of yarn snobs and several of the women in the SnB are intimidated. (As once pointed out by the Crazy Cat Person... their money is as green as anyone elses, so screw them! Amen!) They didn't know that just over the state border was another great store, which I have also mentioned in previous posts.

We spent two hours there pawing over all the fabulous yarns. I used the trip to search for SP9 yarn, and found something that I hope my SP will like. And surprisingly, I was not the top runner in yarn purchasing. I came in second at $95. (The top spender forked over about $120). So what did I get, you ask? Here it is:

And here Squawker sniffs it over, ensuring it worthy of being added to the stash

I bought the Classic Elite Yarns Second Edition which had several designs that I liked. The cover has a great cabled cardigan that looks like it would be very cozy around the house. There is also a pull over v-neck sweater that would great with a t-shirt and jeans. One design I totally am baffled by: the Asymmetrical Cardigan. This thing looks like you dressed yourself in the dark, or while you were drunk... actually it looks more like both!

On the yarn front, I got 10 balls of GGH Scarlett... 2 in a sage green and 8 in a medium shade of taupe. I couldn't resist this one... its so soft and lightweight that I thought it would be perfect for a summer tank. Next is the 5 hanks of Classic Elite Flash... I love the variegation on this line of yarn that I had to get more. I plan a little girls sweater for it. And finally, I bought 4 balls of some french mercerized eqyption cotton in a deep blue. I'm not sure what the brand is; I have never seen it before and the label is mostly in French. But The Hub Mills Store is full of unknown yarns and lines that didn't make it to the market.

I also recently placed an order with YarnMarket that should be here this week. I can't wait! More sock yarn... for all the sock that I have to learn how to knit!

The Felted Flop

2006-10-14T16:47:00.000-05:00

Several months back I decided that I was going to make a felted bag in the round. I also was going to make the pattern as I went along, envisioning a rectangular base with tall sides that angled outward from the bottom up. Instead I got a big floppy mess that doesn't hold its shape despite careful drying in the "right" position. This was back in July. Since then, the bag has sat on my dryer (along with my dining room placemats that needed to be steam ironed, haven't gotten to that either) with it's handles on top, waiting to be finished.

I even got a fabulous fabric to line the bag:

One of the reasons this project has pretty much come to a screeching halt is that the remaining steps require hand sewing. I can't sew. I just learned how to sew buttons, so I am not sure why I thought lining a rectangular bag and attaching handles was such a good idea.

Procrastination is the Name of the Game

2006-10-13T13:23:00.000-05:00

I am so good at procrastinating. Today I am spending the day studying and attempting to understand the ovarian and endometrial cycles in depth, but finding myself looking for other things to do. I am actually contemplating housework...which I hate doing (except vacuuming with the ever-powerful, almighty Dyson). But I'm doing my best staying here at the computer. And knitting is totally out of the question right now, even though I can clearly visualize the afghan draped over the chair and the cardigan on the coffee table and can almost hear the needles whispering, "Come pick me up! Come wrap yarn around me!"

Several minutes ago I went downstairs to heat up some lunch and came back to find that Squawker had taken over.

How cute is this?? Too bad she couldn't do the heavy duty reading and tell me all about it after.

And then there is Handsome Boy. But he's under the impression that we can't see him since he's tucked his face under himself. Nope, I can't see you, Handsome!

Mr. Pibb Lives On

2006-10-12T14:47:00.000-05:00

When I was 16, I went to Disney World with my family. It was the first big vacation that required air travel, and the first time out of New England.

One of the things I remember vividly is the novelty of this new soda, Mr. Pibb, that my brother and father would get out of the soda machine in the hotel. All it was was the southern version of Dr. Pepper, so I wasn't interested.
(I'm not into drinking things that taste like ass. And, no, I have not personally tasted ass... but it's what I would imagine it to be like). But seeing that they could not get this stuff at home, they drank it daily.

Anyhow, several years after that vacation, I happened to bring up this Mr. Pibb. No one believed me that such a drink existed! Where are my family's memory banks stored? Obviously not in their brains.... but anyhow... I digress.

I had called Coca-Cola, Inc and asked them if this drink existed, or was I out of my mind? Yes, it sure did exist, I was told, but only in the southern regions of the country. I was unable to get them to send me a 6 pack, which I wanted as solid proof, so my family was just going to have to rely on my word. And I think they did.

But here, my pretties, lies more evidence of Mr. Pibb. On my recent vacation to Florida, I spotted this sign advertising Mr. Pibb at the Seminole Hard Rock & Casino food court. It may have taken me 14 years to get this evidence... but I am glad I finally have it!

And now I move on to the vacation:
As some may remember a few posts back, I mentioned that my DH and I were taking an anniversary trip to Florida to watch the UFC fight between Tito Ortiz and Ken Shamrock. Not many people on a whole know of this sport, but I suspect that it will become quite mainstream in the coming years. For those who have no clue what this sport is, check out this site.

We stayed at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida. When we got there, the receptionist stated our reserved room was not available. Why, then, do we bother with reservations as Seinfeld had pointed out? But they did have another room available, but it's on the second floor. I didn't bother to ask why that might be a problem, so I said we'd take it. But here is why the second floor was not desirable:

Yup, that is what we looked at for three days if we wanted the Florida sun to shine into our room. Oh, well... we didn't spend too much time in there anyhow.

I thought I'd also share some of the fight pics. Although the pictures don't show it, we had great seats. The Hard Rock Live Arena is just the right size for an event... and even though our section was not the most expensive, our view was unbelievable.

This is the famous Octagon, where all the bloody action takes place

Here is one of my favorite fighters, Tito "The Huntington Beach Bad Boy" Ortiz entering the ring

And this is just before Tito(in the white shorts) took Ken Shamrock down to the ground and kicked the crap out of him for the knock out

Oh, right, this is a knitting blog!

Sorry for the digressions...so here is some knitting news to satisfy the yarn hungry:

I will post the Roomy Baby Cardigan pattern in the coming month. You can get the original (not the one I tweaked) through a link posted on the original blog post if you can't wait for my version. I also hope to develop some great women's sweaters... with focus on the "big girl". Unfortunately, I have so much on my plate that they may be slow in coming.

I also began to distribute my blog cards on my travels. I hope some knitters down along the east coast come visit!

I am almost finished the second girls cardigan for my friend's youngest daughter. Knitting on planes really passes the time, but I highly suggest that you buy two seats to do so comfortably. I was squished between the DH, who is a big guy, and another really big guy who talked to me the whole ride. But somehow I managed, and the time just flew by! (No pun intended, he he)

For the Men

2006-10-06T21:24:00.000-05:00

Ok, who said knitting was just for the ladies?

Check this video out!

Secret Pal 9 Questionaire

2006-10-05T21:00:00.000-05:00

I have received my SP9 match up, as well as messages from my Secret Pal and that has reminded me to post the answers to the questions. So here they are:

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with?I love anything soft. And preferably machine wash. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like? Anything scratchy.
2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? The original packaging
3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? I’ve been knitting since December 2005 and learned with this DVD. Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced? Intermediate.
4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? No
5. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products, etc.) Anything light and not too perfumey
6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Unfortunately. I also have an ice cream and bakery tooth, too. Favorite candy? Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.
7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Scrapbook. Do you spin? No
8. What kind of music do you like? Big Band, Alternative (Hard) Rock Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD) Yes
9. What's your favorite color(s)? Purple and Green, and the colors of autumn. Any colors you just can't stand? Black
10. What is your family situation? Married, no human children. Do you have any pets? Of Course@!
11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos? All of the above
12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? So far, sweaters
13. What are you knitting right now? Afghans, child cardigan
14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts? Yes
15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Circular Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? Wood for dpns, aluminum for circs
16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift? no
17. How old is your oldest UFO? This one took me a minute… had no idea what UFO was. 6 months
18. What is your favorite holiday? Don’t have one
19. Is there anything that you collect? yarn
20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? A simple sock tutorial What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have? Vogue Knitting, Interweave Knits
21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn? How to knit socks
22. Are you a sock knitter? A wannabe What are your foot measurements? Calf - 18 inches, Ankle - 9.5 inches (proof I don't have cankles, thank you very much!), Foot length - 9 inches
23. When is your birthday? July 29th

Ting a Ling Cardigan

2006-10-02T20:46:00.000-05:00

Yay! I am finished with my first knitted Christmas gift. So I am 50% done with knitted Christmas gifts. (That means I am only knitting two items for you math whiz's out there). The Ting a Ling Cardigan is for my best friend's 3 year old daughter. I think it came out nicely, but I am still favoring that Seed and Garter Stitch Stripe Cardigan.

I have a few gripes with this cardigan. First is that there are no formal buttonholes. The buttons are just pushed through the seed stitch band, which wasn't that simple.
Second gripe: the shaping. See those bulges under the armpits? The body was shaped with increasing to the arm hole, making a slight V. I was wondering how that would end up, and I must say I am not crazy about that either. I picture this being bulky and bunched up on the recipient.

Here is my artistic view of the cardigan:

And this is the cardigan from the pattern book I used, Miss Bea's Band by Louisa Harding.

There are a lot of very cute items in this book. I stuck with the yarn suggested (Rowan Handknit Cotton) in the pattern to keep things simple. I used the same pink for the ruffle trim, but changed the body to a light blue.

The One Year Anniversary

2006-10-01T20:19:00.000-05:00

Today is my one year wedding anniversary. And can you believe that I forgot to defrost our cake top? I had even been making mental notes to myself for weeks to remember to take it out of the freezer. Oh, well. We'll have the cake tomorrow I guess.

I married a man that I didn't believe exsisted. Trust me, he has his faults, but I could not have found a more caring, loving, kind, and funny (yes, BT, I am calling you funny! Imagine that!). It took me so long to find him, and what's ironic is that I've been in his "circle" for many years. We knew of each other's exsistance for 6 years or so before we went on our first date.

Anyhow, we couldn't have asked for a better day on our wedding. The weather, which can be a gamble in New England, was absolutely gorgeous. The details turned out perfectly, and I think we threw a wedding people actually enjoyed being at. We still receive compliments this far out, so I guess we did a good job!

Our ceremony was very personal. We wrote our own vows and kept things short and sweet. I forgot the part of the vows that included the kiss. I began to walk off the pulpit and was pulled back for the grande finale.

The guest list was small. Here we are gathered outside on the church steps for a group photo after the ceremony:

One of the things that I was very proud of was the flowers. I decided that I would do all of the center pieces and personal flowers myself. So I ordered over 1000 stems of roses, snapdragons, calla lilies, and other fall flowers from a wholesaler. They arrived two days before the wedding, and the day before they were arranged by the help of my parents. (They had no confidence in themselves, but they did great!) No one (other than a few I told) knew that the flowers were done by amateurs.

Here is a sample of the centerpieces:

Anyhow, the past year has flown by. It's made me think of how you just never know where you will end up in any given amount of time. If you had asked me 5 years ago where I would be today, it certainly would not have been this. I never would have said I'd be married, living in New Hampshire (of all places!), own a dog (and a German Shepard at that!), going to graduate school, and obsessed with knitting. But I wouldn't trade it for anything.

The Shorty Compliment (AKA: The Not Quite A Hat Hat)

2006-09-27T20:12:00.000-05:00

I keep checking YarnMarket for Mission Falls 1824 yarn in Ink and Cornflower, but they remain out of stock. So here is the not quite a hat hat, sitting pretty on my computer speaker, with Panda keeping watch.

Even though I haven't finished it completely, I will post the pattern here. It's quite easy, and you will be able to easily adapt it to fit any size head. Just adjust the number of stitches you cast on based on gauge. For example, my gauge for the hat is 5 stitches and 8 rounds in slip stitch pattern = one 1 inch (or 2.5cm for those of the metric persuasion). My head size is 23 inches. So 5 X 23 = 115. HOWEVER, I cast on 110 stitches because the slip stitch pattern is loose and stretchy. How did I decide to go with 110? Well, no scientific or mathematical reason really... it just seemed like the right amount!

So, then, my suggestion would be to decrease (or increase) by 4 stitches for each inch (or 2.5 cms) for your cast on. Got a 22 inch head? Cast on 106 stitches. 20 inch head? Then it's 100 cast on stitches. (You need an even number of stitches, which I why I am giving the 4. Again, it's a stretchy hat, but feel free to go with whatever you want!)

Also, if you want a shorter hat, then when working the decreases, decrease every 4th stitch.

The Shorty Compliment

Materials: 1 ball Mission Falls 1824 Wool in Ink (MC)

1 ball Mission Falls 1824 Wool in Cornflower (CC)

Size US 8 (5mm) double pointed needles (recommend using 5 dpn's)

Tapestry needle

Gauge: 5 stitches & 8 rounds = 1 inch

Size: Fits a 23 inch brainiac cranium, or a Ladies Large

Key: K = knit

Sl 1 = slip one stitch

Sl 1 PW = slip one stitch purlwise

WYIF = with yarn in front

K2tog = knit two stitches together (decrease)

Pattern

With MC, cast on 110 stitches. Spread cast on stitches evenly among four needles. (Here's a trick: start off with a US 8 [5 mm] circular needle in a 12 or 16 inch length. When the circular gets too long once you begin decreasing, switch to the dpns.)

Round 1: Knit

Round 2: *K1, Sl 1 PW WYIF, repeat from *

Round 3: *Sl1 PW WYIF, K1, repeat from *

Repeat round 2 & 3 for 5 more rounds.

Change to CC

Round 9: Knit

Round 10: Knit

Round 11: *K1, Sl 1, repeat from *

Round 12: Slip the slipped stitches, knit the knit stitches

Repeat Rounds 9 - 12 five more times.

Change to MC

Round 33: Knit

Round 34: Knit

Round 35: *K1, Sl 1, repeat from *

Round 36: Slip the slipped stitches, knit the knit stitches

Repeat Rounds 33 - 36 two more times

Round 45: Knit

Round 46: NOW DECREASING WILL BEGIN. *K5, K2tog, repeat from*

Round 47: NO DECREASES, work as for round 11

Round 48: Work as for round 12 but decreasing with a K2tog every 5th stitch

Repeat Rounds 45 - 48 three more times

Change to CC

Round 60: Work as for Round 45

Round 61: Work as for Round 46

Round 62: Work as for Round 47

Round 63: Work as for Round 48

Repeat this pattern until one stitch left on needle. Take last stitch off needle, tie off as if binding off last stitch. Pull yarn through the top center to inside the hat.

Weave in your ends.

Viola!

My Personal Adventures as Wonder Woman

2006-09-23T08:10:00.000-05:00

As some of you know, I was Wonder Woman as a child. Well, I was in training, actually, and the most serious of stunts I was able to perform was to eat popsicles while simultaneously getting it to drip down to the elbows. And I was really good at it. I think I may have had several costume changes during those years thanks to Wonder Woman's mother, who kept the supply at par. Even though, at 4, the costume was just these: I was still able to begin my training without the magic lasso, the super strength giving belt, and the bullet deflecting bracelets.

But then I got too big to fit into my underroos, and they just didn't make them for older girls. And it was next to impossible to find them for adults (let alone big girl adults) except for a random stumbling upon a website that has restored my capabilities:

Yes, Ladies and Gentleman, the Wonder Woman Underroos are back! And they fit me! And so now, when I clean the house, study, study, and more study, do the grocery shopping, take care of our animals, pay the bills, work, and cook dinner, and all of the other things I do but am forgetting about I will be wearing these. This way it will be obvious of my capabilities, that I am Wonder Woman Domestic, the new realistic version of her.

This is what most people expect Wonder Woman to look like. Unfortunately I do not even come close... but now I will get the appreciation that I deserve for all of the capabilities that I have! Had it not been for my new found Wonder Woman costume, I would still be the boring suburban wife that I thought I would never become.

All hail Wonder Woman Domestic!

Yearning for Yarn

2006-09-22T12:56:00.000-05:00

Alright, I give up completely. I just can't stop myself. It's like ice cream... I just can't do without. A short while ago I received an email from KnitPicks advertising their sale on some of their most popular yarns. Their prices are great even without the sale... so all the more reason to shop with 20% off!

Here's what I got:

11 skeins of Main Line in Dusty Lavender
11 skeins of Shine Sport in Butter (mmm....butter)
2 skeins of Essentials Solid in Dusk
2 skeins of Essential in Grass
2 skeins of Essential in Pumpkin

Mr. Kitty gave his seal of approval on all of the yarns I picked out.

What a Handsome Boy!

2006-09-20T21:17:00.000-05:00

Just look at him:

Isn't he the best looking boy around? As promised to my Handsome Boy, this post is all about Mr. Kitty. He was getting a little jealous that Sister was getting so much attention here on the blog. So here he is. Handsome Boy was the first loyal and loving man to enter my life.

I was summoned to this boy back in October 2000. I had had plans to adopt an adult cat, but not for a month or two. But one morning I woke up with a strong urge to get a cat that day. So I bought some cat supplies and headed out to a shelter I had been donating money to.

There were only 6 cats at the shelter that Monday. I had in my mind that I had to have an orange cat and there was just one. He was a skittish thing with a bifurcation defect of his nose. The shelter worker felt he was not a match. There was no other cat that was drawing me in. The worker asked me about my lifestyle (no, she wasn't hitting on me, you pervs), my work schedule, noise levels in the house, etc. Some of which I had to lie about as my landlord had said after I signed the lease that no animals were allowed. This shelter had to have proof of animal cohabitation. So I told a grand story of having my own living quarters at the parents house. You know, like it was Buckingham Palace.

Fortunately, my license still had my parents address on it, and I prayed that my mother would be quick enough to go along with the deception. Especially since she had no fore warning and she's not particularly smooth on the down low.

So after I stared and stared at the cats behind the bars, the worker pointed to this black and white cat on the bottom left corner. "He's the one," she said, "he's such a love." I looked at him and thought, Hmmm... I don't know. He's not what I pictured. But I had driven all that way, and by God, I was going home with a cat. So I said I would take him. His name on his ID card was "Skimmy". Eck!

And the Gods and Goddesses listened to my prayers. My mother was quick on the uptake and lied the best cat lies she ever uttered in her whole life. Somehow she managed to maintain the Royal Palace facade, maybe even saying the Queen Mum would approve. And so I went home with this big black and white.

Once I got home, I decided that his name was no longer "Skimmy". I have no idea where that name came from, especially since he was an abandoned cat that someone brought in. He was clearly not feral, as he was loving and friendly, and didn't have his balls (he was not intact as the delicate people would say). But he did bring proof of his outdoor life with him: he was loaded with fleas, ticks, and intestinal worms.

Mr. Kitty was the name I was calling him while I was trying to figure out what it would really be. And it just stuck.

After taking him to our vet, he soon got better, and like all other living and breathing creatures in our household, he gained weight. (He's 18 pounds!) He also made tons of friends with the local Winter Hill Gang through his large apartment windows. Even though he was part of a gang, he is the most tenderhearted creature I have ever met. Mr. Kitty wants to be friends with all other animals, and has yet to figure out why the Big Bad Doggy Sister doesn't like him. (Meanwhile, you'd think he would work on his survival skills for when the BBDS manages her way up to Kitty Land, but he has yet to get it right). He began asking for a sibling in 2003, and he received his sister, the Squawker.

Here he thinks he is hiding from her, ready to attack:

Here he checks his right side to make sure he's well concealed:

And then his left:

Here's a bird's eye view, pretty much the same one that sister saw as she looked at from above on the bureau:

Mr. Kitty likes to think he's in charge, and we don't argue. We just keep the truth to ourselves. Right, Squawker?

I'm In! I'm In! Secret Pal 9, that is.

2006-09-18T21:36:00.000-05:00

Woo hoo! I'm in! I'm in! I missed out in past Secret Pals, but I just signed up for Secret Pal 9. I just love getting yarn in the mail, and even better... it's yarn I will be surprised with! Can't wait!

This is a short post, but I will be back soon because Handsome Boy has found out that this blog is named after his sister and there's even posts just about her so I promised him a full post filled with just him! (His Grammy will be so happy to see that as well.)

The Not Quite a Hat Hat

2006-09-14T19:17:00.000-05:00

I am blaming my big fat head on this one. I had estimated that I had enough yarn left over from the Shorty Scarf to make a matching hat. I guess I was estimating based on an average woman's head size, which is roughly 20 inches. I measured my uber grande intellectual noggin at 23 inches (no wonder I'm so smart!) and cast on the stitches needed for the gauge. It was coming along nicely, and what a bonus! It even fit!

But, alas, I do not have enough yarn to finish it. And I'm not so sure I want to order more yarn. Maybe I will just redo this in some yarn I am positive I have enough of.

Perhaps I could market this hat to the Hare Krishna's. I'm sure they have a knitting magazine made especially for them, right?
That size hole at the top would be perfect for them. No more hat head!

I've also learned I have a cowlick at the crown of my head. Jeez...when was someone going to inform me of this??

Oh, Foxy Lady!

2006-09-10T16:08:00.000-05:00

I see you, heh, on down on the scene...ooh, Foxy Lady!

Here she is! I finally got her on film! (Well, digital) She's absolutely beautiful, and finally made a full fledged appearance above her wood chip pile den.

She took a little nap, even feeling relaxed enough to stretch out.

I think if you click on the pics you can get them to show more detail on your monitor. I tried to get as close as I could without scaring her. We didn't want her to feel threatened (Sadie is bad enough) and want her to keep her den in our backyard.

Last night I heard her kits yipping, and earlier this morning she was out but went running when she saw the dog. When I was taking the pictures from out back, she eventually turned and looked at me. I stayed as still as I could while she watched me. Then she casually got up and went over the to the other side of the wood chips. We spotted her later, back on top of her den, so I was happy to see my presence didn't keep her away.

Crazy Cat Person, if you only stayed a few more minutes you would have seen her live and in person! Damn your naps!

P.S. I broke the yarn vows. KnitPicks was having a sale. I am saying it here, in a non yarn related post, so hopefully no one catches me!

Yarn Addict Going Cold Turkey

2006-09-05T20:10:00.000-05:00

........hopefully.

Here's why: If I keep buying yarn then I will go broke. That's pretty straightforward.

Seriously, there have been and will be some changes financially that just have to put yarn last on the list. Here are the top ten reasons why I must go cold turkey:

I'm going back to school. And grad school is expensive! Over the next two years, I will shell out close to $30,000 on tuition, books, and the never ending fees that colleges seems to drum up.
I am working less. Instead of the typical 32-44 hours I was working, I will be down to approximately 24-28 hours a week. And maybe less some weeks depending on the amount of school work that needs to be done.
We bought a new car. YAY!! Good bye white bread Corrolla... hello challah bread Subaru!
We bought tin tile for our kitchen backsplash and the dining room ceiling. That cost $1100. The next Discover card bill will be atrocious!
I booked an anniversary/birthday trip for the DH. That cost another $1100 for just airfare, event tickets to the UFC re-match between Tito Ortiz and Ken Shamrock, and hotel. This is not including meals, etc. Again, that Discover bill will be something fierce.
DH wants to put a tile floor in the kitchen. Which I am all for... I hate the vinyl floor we currently have, which doesn't clean well at all. But that will cost us, I am sure.
We have added another monthly bill to our repertoire: life insurance. Well, we hope, actually, as we haven't had the mandatory blood and urine tests and medical record reviews by the insurance company registered nurse. You never know, but they can always try to find a reason for denial. But my guess is they won't, so this one stays on the list.
You know, I do have a lot of yarn. Quite a bit. Some I have no idea what I plan to do with.
We still owe another $600 to our wedding photographer. Urg! That's a whole other story for a later date. If I can tolerate it.
There's always something that you don't anticipate, so I will leave that as my last reason.

However, if I am having yarn DT's then there is always the back up plan. eBay! I can use my PayPal account towards some yarn. And nothing better than money earned through sales on eBay to go towards purchases on eBay. You never miss a dime this way.

Return of the Spider

2006-08-31T14:24:00.000-05:00

It's back.............

And this time he's showing us his belly!

The Baby Cardigan!

2006-08-30T20:48:00.000-05:00

Woo hoo! Success! Well, 98% success...

This cardigan didn't take me long at all. It was quite easy and was adapted from this blog. I didn't follow the stripe pattern described, but instead used ribbing at the cuffs and waist, seed stitch in the blue, and garter stitch in the green. I placed 6 button holes down the front instead of 5.

I used Classic Elite Yarns in Premiere. I found this yarn to be super soft and very economical.

I initially had these buttons picked out for this cardigan:

But they are too big. I will have to find something smaller and hopefully just as cute.

So why just 98% success? I meant to make a 12 month size. I ended up getting a 24 month size. Which is fine, in the big picture, because the person I made this for will eventually fit into it. Unfortunately Liz's son Elias is only 4 weeks old now!

I really did get gauge: the gauge meant for the original pattern. Stupid me... I should have done my gauge swatch in seed stitch, as this makes up most of the stitching, instead of the garter stitch called for in the original. Oh well! It still came out quite cute, if I don't say so myself.

Yarn Candy for your Drooling

2006-08-28T13:40:00.000-05:00

Aahhh... nothing like new yarn! And nothing like yarn that was on sale!

Today I went to the LYS, that specializes in high end yarns and notions, to pick up an extra skein of Classic Elite Premiere for the baby cardigan I am knitting. I also needed an Addi Turbo size 8 in the 40 inch length for an afghan I will be making for someone at work. So while I was there I looked around and came up with a fabulous idea! Why not make another baby cardigan out of Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino? Excellent! I chose girl colors this time, even though I do not know any baby girls that could wear it. Maybe I will in the future.

And here it is, for your viewing pleasure:

I also received my first order from KnitPicks last Friday. I ordered sock yarns even though I have yet to knit a sock. But here is the inspiration:

I do have one complaint about my LYS. They are the snobbiest yarn snobs I have ever encountered. I know knitters who refuse to knit in acrylics, polyesters, and nylons. I know knitters who will only knit with certain animal fibers. And even I have caught a touch of the snobbery bug myself, but try only to buy at a discount or on eBay. But these people top the list!

The store carries mostly natural fibers and most skeins and hanks are priced over $10 each. I was looking at a new yarn they had on display that was 100% fake fibers...and the employee ran over and pointed out, "You know, it's acrylic!" Like I might not want to even be touching it. And the owner never greats me as she does the other custumers. Well, actually she used to great me until she realized that I mostly shopped their discount and discontinued sections. She actually had made the comment to me on my previous trip that she noticed I always head to "the loft" (the discount section). The Debbie Bliss I bought today was being discontinued because they felt it wasn't high enough quality for their store. I was surprised to hear they thought Debbie Bliss wasn't high end...hmph! Shows you what I know. I was also told today that the Classic Elite Premiere I'm loving right now will also be discontinued. I will be watching for it in their loft section, much to the owners chagrin! He he.

There was another shopper looking around and chatting with the owner. He wasn't from the area, he was from Massachusetts, and shopped the stores outside of Boston. (Oh, had I only been a knitter when I lived in the city! All that yarn! All those LYS's!) He stopped at some silks and cashmeres and cut the owner off midsentence: "Oh my! One hundred and twenty five dollars?" He was incredulous! Immediately the owner and another employee (one that I do like) defended the price, pointing out that it had a lot of yardage. I'm not sure how many yards that hank of cashmere was... I would guess around 400. But I found the exchange humorous. I am sure he will go back to his LYS's in Massachusetts.

Well, I must go off and knit, but here is a picture I had to share. The Handsome Boy and The Squawker cuddling together on my bed. It's a bit fuzzy, and they wouldn't recreate the scene to allow me to get a better shot.

Snakes on a Plane? Nah... how about Spiders in a Garage?

2006-08-23T15:29:00.000-05:00

This post is so off topic, but I just had to share. I found this lovely creature hanging out in front of the garage door this morning:

This sucker is between 2 and 3 inches long, large enough that the detail on its body is very clear. It's web, which didn't show up in the picture, was at least 2 feet around. You can see a thick part of web right behind it. This was the exact same spider that was hanging out on our basement wall several weeks back. I am glad to see that it moved it's home to the outside world.

Does anyone have an idea what type of spider it is?

What? My name is... Who? My name is... Slim Shady!

2006-08-16T21:16:00.000-05:00

She is laying here squawking at me to make sure everyone knows her name really isn't "Squawker". It's Shady. Squawker is the nickname myself and her Daddy have given her because she doesn't meow like other cats. She squawks. She squawks a lot. If I ever figure out how to add audio to this blog, I'll put her on here so you can hear for yourself. It's quite unique. She also has this patented move called the "Tuck and Roll". When she is excited and squawking at us, she will drop her front end down and roll her head onto the floor (or what ever surface she is on). Sometimes it's the "Triple Sow Cow Tuck and Roll" where she does three of them right in a row with a highly skilled and coordinated effort.

And notice those paws? They are quite something! She has two extra toes on each of her front paws. They are fully functional, claws and all, and she uses them to her advantage. She can whap her brother a good one, and I highly suspect that they were used as threats against the Big Bad Doggy Sister during a recent encounter.

Shady was not the name I picked for her. Her previous owners named her this when she was born in February of 1999. I didn't get her until August 2003, when someone at work had an acquaintance who was moving and couldn't take her with them. If you ask me, these prior owners were not true animal parents. I'd live in my car before moving to a place that wouldn't allow her. But that worked out much to my advantage.

When I told my mom about her (also another cat nut, I guess the apples never fall far from the tree) the first thing she said was, "Did they name her after Eminem?" I still laugh at this... because who would make that connection? Ironically, Shady was born the same month and year that Eminem made his debut. But there was no connection. She was simply named after her grey blue coat.

My first FO!

2006-08-13T21:21:00.000-05:00

I am so proud of myself! My first non square/rectangle item is finished! I decided that my first knitted garment would be the Double Eyelet Rib Tank from the Tahki Summer 2006 collection. It was categorized as EASY and thought it was the perfect summer tank for me.

The project started off without a hitch. I got the correct stitch gauge on my first try, even with using a different yarn than what was recommended. My row gauge was a bit off, but not terribly off, so I left it alone. I wasn't going to drive myself crazy knitting 20 gauge swatches to get the row gauge exact. Besides the pattern gave instructions to knit the length by inches, so it was very easy to compensate.

I chose a yarn from my ever growing stash: Debbie Bliss Cotton Angora in Dusty Rose. It's a lovely pale pink and incredibly soft. It was wonderful on the hands while knitting. It also shows the stitch details nicely as well.

I knitted the front and back along quite quickly and finished blocking it this morning. Then I set off to watch my DVD "The Complete Beginners Guide to Knitting" by Nici McNally (it's great!) to learn how to seam it together. So right after dinner tonight I learned the mattress stitch and seamed the tank up effortlessly. I weaved in the ends, and viola! This is what I got:

Shows some great cleavage, huh? Unfortunately, even though I have the cleavage to show, it wasn't the look I was going for. Urg! One thing that I forgot to mention was that I added an inch to its length thinking that I needed it. I'm not sure why, because I have a short torso. I've always had a short torso. I must have been under the influence of ice cream or something when I made that decision.

I'm trying to look on the bright side of this. I did get the stitch gauge right on, and so the width around the piece fit well.

Anyhow, this is how it is supposed to look:

If you want it, it's yours. It's incredibly soft and comfortable. Here's the measurements (laying flat): 22 inches width, 24 inches from shoulder to hem. I wear a women's size 18 top, so if you have a longer torso than me this should fit wonderfully~

Breaking My Vows

2006-08-11T16:34:00.000-05:00

I'm talking my yarn vows. As some of my KH friends know, I vowed several weeks ago to abstain from yarn shopping. I have plenty of yarn, so much that I decided I was downsizing the stash and sold some on eBay. (Dont' worry, it wasn't anything good).

My yarn vows came from an incident involving innocent yarn winding at the LYS, and I came out with $130 worth of goodies. I think I may have ordered some Rowan Denim from yarnmarket.com after that, but I didn't count it. It was for a project I had decided on before the vows. So I needed to get that.

Even though I took these vows, I still cruised the net in search of yarn porn. A girl can look, right? I wasn't getting any goods, just looking. And in my cruising I found another LYS. I was so excited! How could I have not known of this place! Especially since it is close to my hometown, and in the same city as the college and university I attended.

The Hub Mills Factory Store is in Lowell, Massachusetts. They are the distributors of Classic Elite Yarns, which I have had recent fantasies with. They also carry antique spools, which I am sure were just left overs from the mills heyday. So I had to go and see it for myself, not to mention it is a bonus to go into the old mills in Lowell. (For those who have been living under a rock, Lowell is where this country's fiber mills were booming in the mid to late 1800's and early 1900. Lowell is rich in fiber history). You can visit their store at www.hubmillsstore.com and order discounted Classic Elite and their antique spools. For those of you who love the antique spools, they were in great shape and had great patina!

So back to breaking my vow. Guess how much I spent. Go ahead. I'll provide some pictures to help you guess.

This is what I got:

6 skeins Cascase Yarns Sierra in a rich rust tone

10 skeins Classic Elite Yarns Premiere in Dried Cherry

10 skeins Classic Elite Yarns Flash in Aster

10 skeins of something call Patina. The label is in all Chinese (or maybe Japanese. Who knows, I can't read either)

So what makes me feel better is that everything I got was at a discount. ( I can hear the DH now: "Oh, good! You even saved us money!")

The Patina was 3.50 each, Flash 2.75, Premiere 4.00, and Sierra 4.30! Even Squawker had something to say about that!

I ask you, how could I not???

For those who like a challenge:

2006-08-04T06:40:00.000-05:00

Listen up!

Do you feel like you are in a knitting slump? I've got a great idea! I challenge all knitters to create their own piece. It can be anything: a sweater, a scarf, a hat, a bag, a blanket, a toy... you name it. So long as you create it without a pattern.

AND

Not only can you be patternless, you must include a technique that you have never used before. So if you're a beginner it might be just simple increases and decreases or a new stitch pattern; if your an experienced knitter it could be enterlac or something very intricate.

My first self challenge is this scarf. It was the first time doing intarsia and crochet. See the pattern further down this page. I have left over yarn to make a matching hat. (Which I haven't done yet, as I am not sure what stitch pattern to use). I have another self challenge in the works, which I will post once I get it done.

So who's in?

My Knitting Failures

2006-07-28T08:57:00.000-05:00

I have been knitting for 8 months now. I have knit countless scarves, afghans and blankets, and a few prayer shawls. These required no shaping or delicate stitching. They were mindless and fast.

I thought that a poncho would be a great start into something more challenging. The pattern I picked out was a Lion Brand men's oversized turtleneck poncho, but I didn't like the yarn the pattern called for. So I picked a different yarn, still a cheap yarn, that had a different weight. I had found a formula for adjusting the pattern based on the gauge of the yarn to be used. It was quite simple to calculate the adjustments. And so I started knitting.

The poncho was to be knit in two pieces: the front and back. They would be sewn together, then the turtleneck would be picked up and knit last. Shaping essentially consisted of binding off to shape the shoulders. And then I got to the part that did me in: neck shaping. This required me to join new yarn and knit both sides at the same time. I was totally befuddled and did what I thought was right, but ended up getting two pointy edges with the wrong number of stitches. But I finished the front piece and laid it out to see it in its entirety. This thing spanned the width of my living room and looked nothing like the diagram provided. But the dog thought it made a great rug, and so I left it on the floor for her for the night.

I moved onto another prayer shawl as it was a safe knit.

I replayed in my mind how I was supposed to do the neck shaping as opposed to how I really did it and decided to go on with the project. I even consulted my friends on KnittingHelp and gained back the confidence to move on. But I thought maybe it be best to stick with the numbers the original pattern called for despite the fact that my gauge and yarn were different. I had to compensate somehow for the front piece that was two times the correct size! I cast on for the back piece and knit for several inches.

I moved back to the prayer shawl when I saw that the second piece was a 1/4 the size of the first.

Would I really wear this poncho? Had it turned out the way I envisioned, I absolutely would. I pictured it to be warm and cozy, a great fall weather alternative, and something my friends all wanted me to make for them.

But looking at the progress and it's inevitable outcome, I wouldn't even dress a hobo in it. Come to think of it, a hobo wouldn't want to wear. It was hideous.

I folded it up and placed it in the corner of my living room stash (there was no room in the upstairs stash) where it stayed for about a month. I just recently moved both pieces to the trash, and the left over yarn is up for auction on eBay.

The prayer shawl is still in the works.

Oh, Balls!

2006-07-21T09:11:00.000-05:00

How many balls do you have? My guess is I have easily over 130, which by some would be too few, whereas others can only deal with 2 at a time. I don't even know what I am going to do with many of them. There are a few that I have some plans for. Particularly the soft ones.... The scratchy balls I just don't know what to do with! Have any suggestions?

And I am constantly feeling all my balls. How can you not touch such wonderfully soft and silky balls? Oh, the places they will go! I could have them draped over my lap, or hanging from my shoulders when they are new creatures after being transformed by way of my sticks.

I know there is a lot of ball feelers out there. I have seen you. You try to do it secretly, quietly so that no one knows of your delights. Yet we all know what each other are doing. You may be the type to speak about it only on message boards and chat rooms, or you may not speak of it at all for no one can know how obsessed you really are. And that's ok, just know that there is support out there for you from people like me.

So I ask again, how many balls of yarn do you have? (What did you think I was talking about, you perv?)

What the heck am I doing?

2006-07-19T09:59:00.000-05:00

I am totally new to this blogging thing...and I wonder why do people do this? I don't even know why I am doing it! One theory is that we are all self absorbed and think everyone wants to hear all about ourselves. Another is that our society is a bunch of voyeristic patrons looking for the next best "show".

Seeing that I am not a reality tv junkie, my vote is for theory number 1. Atleast for my reasons for being here.

Why am I Squawker Girl? If you are looking for me to spill some government secrets you are out of luck (although I do enjoy government conspiracy theories, but more on that later). Squawker Girl comes from my pretty Russian Blue mix cat who squawks instead of meow's. And she squawks a lot!

So things I will squawk about (in no particular order):

School, specifically my return to school
Work, because I wish I didn't have to
People that make no sense to me (this is my polite way of wording)
Knitting, because I'm obsessed
Scrapbooking, but the knitting has taken over
My animal children: Sadie, Shady, and Mr. Kitty
Anything else I feel like rambling about