Fun, fun and more fun

I've been pretty negligent in my posting. I received my "Pay it forward" gift last week and never posted about it. Moriah really outdid herself with my package:

Look at what a great graphic she came up with:

I think I might just have to steal that for my PIFs! And the soap was so wonderful! Thanks again Moriah!

I've been working on assorted dishcloths myself in preparation for my part of the dishrag tag. Y'know, finding a pattern that is interesting yet quick to knit. However, my team's box seems to have gotten lost on it's way to me from California! Ugh! Oh well, the race is over - Congrats to the winners! - but I still want to get the box so that everyone in my team gets a turn at it. Hopefully it will turn up soon. No pictures of the cloths I've made as I have gifted them to ladies at work.

I've been working on my chevron scarf and it's coming along nicely. I'm more than half way through the yarn and should have a finished product relatively soon. I'm waiting until that time to take a final picture and then post. It's going to be so pretty! Question is, do I keep it or gift it? Not sure yet. We'll see when it's done.

Lastly, I was playing around on knitter crack and somehow came across this pattern. How could I resist? Let me start off by saying that I used stash yarn to complete it and it just took 1 1/2 days. So quick and easy too! Wanna see mine? OK. . . . . .



I used a pale green Paton's Grace - it took less than a skein to make. Really this was such a fun, quick and entertaining knit. The fact that the yarn I used is a cotton yarn actually makes it, dare I say, wearable. Let me tell you, the fit is really nice and it's comfortable. I was really surprised as I thought it would never work as a garment. HAHAHAHAHA. I was thinking that I would make an I-cord and use elastic thread in the center of the I-cord to make it more wearable (vs. the ribbon).

Whodda thunk it?

ADDED 9/9/07


Click here to create your own painting.

Crazy, CRAZY I tell you!

Yep, that would be me. Crazier than a LOON! So, not only did I already have too many UFO's on the needles throughout this house, not only am I expecting my team's box from the Dish Rag Tag this week, not only do I need to complete my Hogwarts Sock Swap 2 sock. . . . . .I started a Chevron Scarf. I don't usually fall prey to the "it" project (I still have not knit a jaywalker or a clapotis) but this one, I just couldn't pass up AND it's from stash yarn. Bonus!

I know, I KNOW. I stink. I can't help it though. Everyone has all those beautiful scarves everywhere on the blogosphere and in Ravelry. Have you seen these things? How could I resist?

So, want to take a looksy? Here it is:

You can see a couple of more shots of it on my Flickr page. It's about 3 or 4 times longer now and I can't put it down. It's an addictively easy and fun knit. I see a couple or more of these at some point in the future but hopefully not before I finish a couple of other things.

Hopefully.

Now, don't you want to make one too? C'mon, you know you do!

Six degrees of. . . . . . DRACO?

So, over at my Hogwart's sock swap they are having a contest about connecting certain characters to Draco Malfoy ala "6 degrees of Kevin Bacon". You can read all about it on this post.

So, anyway, I love playing these kind of silly games so here goes:

I decided to start with Mad Eye Moody

1. Mad Eye Moody is ordered to protect Harry Potter by the Order of the Phoenix.

2. Harry Potter is Sirius Black's godson.

3. Sirius Black's cousin if Bellatrix LeStrange

4. Bellatrix LeStrange tortured Frank and Alice Longbottom (couldn't find a picture of them)

5. Frank and Alice Longbottom are Neville Longbottom's parents

6. Neville Longbottom is a classmate of Draco Malfoy

Tee hee. That was fun. It will be interesting to see how many different paths are taken to connect the characters. . . .

Speaking of the swap, I have cast on and knit past the cuff (yeah I'm going cuff down this time) on sock #2. . . . .but I spent some time on the crack site last night and now I want to cast on for a chevron scarf (I have 2 koigu's picked out already) AND Flair. All the stores and magazines are showing trapeze cropped jackets and I think Flair would fit the bill. Problem being, what yarn to use? I have some black cotton ease that I was thinking of and I also have some malabrigo in this color. The black would probably be better for a fall and winter cardigan though, huh?

PIF exchange

OK,so you all know that I am in the Dish Rag Tag right? So, we are off and running and I was reading my team's forum so that I could participate with my team mates and find our just where we are in the race. So I started to do a little blog surfing among my team mate's blogs. I found information on the PIF Exchange from Alicia who found it from Alaina who got it from Jody. I was able to join in from Moriah's blog. So, just reading that last couple of sentences should give you a 'sense' of what it's all about. Here is the gist of the exchange (taken blatantly from Alaina's blog).

PIF Exchange

This exchange is based on this gorgeous movie with Helen Hunt in it called 'Pay It Forward'. How many of you out there have had a chance to watch it? O.K. If you've yet to see the movie, this is what the PIF Exchange is all about......


"Here is how it works! I'll send a handmade gift to the first 3 people who leave a comment on my blog requesting to join this PIF exchange! I don't know what that gift will be yet, and you may not receive it tomorrow or next week...LOL... but you will receive it within 365 days, that's a promise! and it will be something yummy!! The only thing you have to do in return is pay it forward by making the same promise on your blog..."

So the first 3 people who leave a comment on my blog, will get something made for them by me! I can't wait to see who you are! I should be able to come up with something good for you all, just you wait and see! Let me know you want in and if you are among the first 3, you'll be in! I'll need your email address when you comment so that I know how to reach you to obtain your address, ok?

Join in and then just pay it forward!

Finally some more knitting

OK, OK, so I am finally feeling better and can't sit down to a proper post. I have been up to some knitting during this brief run-in with a summer cold. I've worked on my Hogwart's Sock Swap and have almost completed sock number 1. Unfortunately, b/c this time around the swap isn't a secret one, I can not post progress pictures (RATS!) The time will have to wait until the pair is done and I ship them on to their new home. I need to keep up the pace so that they are done quickly and so that I will be ready for the race!

I need a quick but nice dishcloth pattern. Any suggestions ladies?

Lastly, my last Hogwarts Sock Swap pal had forgotten to include my needles in my package (oops!). Well, last week I got my needles and they were SO WORTH the wait. I got Lantern Moon Ebony DPNs. Wanna see? Take a look!



Beautiful, no?

Thanks so much Sandy!

I feel crappy

My body is shaky, I'm sick to my stomach (on & off) and I have the headache from Hell. My nose is stuffy, my throat it scratchy, I have a crappy cough AND I haven't gotten a good night's sleep in a couple of nights. Had to stay home from work (after being cancelled on Monday and probably having to call off for tomorrow- crap we need the $$) and did NOT step foot out of the house for a single thing today AND it didn't drive me crazy! (Normally I would at least have to walk out on the deck or in the yard at some point.

BUT. . . . .

I DID start on the first sock for my pal's HP sock for Hogwarts Sock Swap 2. I would show you a picture of them except that this time around we KNOW who are pals are (we are doing a direct swap - she knits for me and I knit for her). Therefore, if I post a picture, there's a good likelihood that she'll see them and that would be no fun. . . . .

I can say that I knit the cuff and about 1 1/2 inches of the leg (so about 2 1/2 inches) which doesn't seem like a lot but I WAS after all sick and everything. . . .

I won't go too much into detail except to say that the beautiful Rio de la Plata in my last post will be the body of the socks and there is an alternate yarn for the cuff, heel and toe. Is it bronze? Is it silver? Is it variegated? I can't say. SOMETHING has to be a surprise, right?

I am surprised that I went cuff down. But, I found THE pattern and feeling sick and all I didn't want to think about how to convert it from cuff down to toe up. Oh well, that means that I will probably have some yarn left . . . . . maybe for opposite socks?

We'll see.


Oh, in other knitting news, I FINALLY found a new knitting group since moving. I foudn them through meetup and I FINALLY got to go to a get together on Tuesday night. What's nice is that this is a new group so it's not like I'm joining an already established group, y'know? They had only had 2 meetings prior to this one so everyone is still getting to know everyone.

It will be good for me. I missed having that.

OK, I'm getting dizzy again so I am going to go call off for tomorrow and lay down.

UGH!

CRAP!

As IF I needed another sock yarn to fall for. . . .along comes this beauty. Now, when it comes to kettle-dyed worsted, I am all about my malabrigo or manos. They are amazingly soft and FABULOUS with their colorways. Rio de la Plata hadn't really impressed me with the texture of their worsted or their colorways. So, I had never really thought of purchasing them for any worsted projects. Now, today I am at the LYS (don't even think it, I can't believe that I had ANY reason to be there - but I did so there!) looking for sock yarn to make my pal her Ravenclaw socks (blue and silver or bronze seem to not be in my color repertoire) and I came across THIS:

I thought to myself "Self, THAT is the perfect blue for Ravenclaw socks!" So, I grabbed it and upon closer inspection of the tag, I noted that it was from Rio de la Plata.

"Huh?" I thought to myself. It MUST be scratchy & blotchy. I felt it. It was soft. I looked the color over. It's a "semi-solid" but doesn't have any glaring areas of stark white anywhere to be found. I was intrigued. Then the shop owner noticed what I had in my hand and said "I just got that in. I'm knitting these out of one of the multi-colors." Then she proceeds to show me a pair of embossed leaves socks she is working on in a great moss, palish orange, mint and cream colorway. PERFECT for embossed leaves!

I asked if I could feel the sock. She agreed and I felt it. It was soft. It was sturdy. It was. . . . .GOOD! So, I now have the blue sock yarn and I think I know what pattern I am going to make but I need to find a corresponding silver or bronze sock yarn. Sigh. I wanted to stay away from that and really wanted to try to do a variegated or self patterning colorway since she got a pair with stripes and alternate heels in the Hogwarts Sock Swap #1

but I couldn't resist this yarn. I think there might yet be ANOTHER sock yarn for me to obsess over. God help me (uh, help us all - wait until you see this stuff you guys).

So, the question that now stands before me and therefore YOU, how should I do these so that they aren't the same as her first pair? Here are my thoughts. . . .

#1) Use bronze instead of silver (book colors vs. movie colors)

#2) Attempt (notice I say attempt) to do a lace sock. sigh. I should write her now and tell her that I am going to be late already if I take this option.

#3) I don't know of any other options. . . . .


So, HELP?????!!!!!?????

I'm so excited!

Yeah, I got my Hogwarts Sock Swap package today - just in time to see the movie tomorrow! Did I tell you all that I am seeing it in IMAX and that the last 30 minutes are in 3D? It was worth waiting until tomorrow for me. . . . anyhow here are my lovelies. . . . .

Here are the detailed pictures:

Sandy did a great job matching them up, don't you think? Well, she did a great job overall. I LOVE everything in my package. Here are some more goodies:










I REALLY can't wait until tomorrow (and of course Friday) now. I am so excited! Thanks again to Sandy for a great package and Rebecca for a fab swap!

I'm in again!

So, I mailed my Hogwarts Sock Swap Socks and package yesterday. It'll be there no later than Thursday - woo hoo! So, I went to the Hogwart Sock Swap Blog and I found this:

Yep! I'm a glutton for punishment - er, or maybe just for Harry??? Anyhow. Why don't you join in? You know you want to. Go look at all the cool packages that people have been receiving on the first swap. Don't you want in on some of that action? Yeah, I thought so. . . . . go on over and join in on the fun. sig-ups began on July 14th but they are still openings left. Hurry up before the classes are all full! tee hee!

Hogwarts Sock Swap 2 Questionnaire
Second Years

1. What Hogwarts house have you been sorted into?
I remain a Gryffindor. Different test - same result. Go Red and Gold!

2. Shoe size? Foot length? Foot circumference?
Size 8 - 10 inches long - Circumference is 10 inches

3. List your three favorite sock yarns.
a. Cherry Tree Hill
b. Socks that Rock
c. my all-time fave - Koigu

4. Would you like to try a new brand of sock yarn? If so, which brand? ADDED 7/18/07: WOW! I just found this pattern and I want to try some of the sockpixie sock yarn to make it now. LOVE IT!!!!!
I would LOVE to try Scout’s Swag sock yarn. Or, hmmmmmm, ooh, ooh I would love to try Fleece Artist - I’ve tried other yarns from them but not their sock yarn. But, really, I like trying new yarns especially from the little, local yarn dyers.

5. Do you prefer variegated or solid sock yarn?
I have few solid sock yarns so I wouldn’t mind trying some of the “semi-solids” that are out there (Sunshine yarns on Etsy - oooooh). But I usually go variegated. I prefer patterned or striped over true variegated. I have “pooling” issues. I like repetitive sequencing. (My OCD rears it’s ugly head)

6. What colors would you like to add to your sock yarn stash?
Um, how about some fun semi-solids like apple or lime greens, warm yellows (not bright), or some deep (jewel-like) purples.

7. What kind of sock patterns do you gravitate toward? Lace? Ribbed? Fair Isle?
Anything but Fair Isle. I’m not into color work especially on something as small as socks.

8. Do you have any allergies? (smoke, animals, etc.)
Nope, but I can smell smoke a mile away.

9. Will your socks be exposed to cigarette smoke or animals as you knit them?
Nope. I have a dog but she doesn’t get up on my bed or furniture so they won’t have dog hair on them.

10. Are you willing to have an international Hogwarts Sock Pal?
Sure! I think it would be awesome!

Oh so, DS is at a cool hands-on kids camp this week that is doing all sorts of activities with them. Anyhow, they are going to see "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" get this. . . .on IMAX! So, I asked if parents could attend as well and they said Yep! So, I will be seeing it in IMAX (the last 30 minutes on IMAX is in 3D!!! How cool is that????!!!???)

Where have I been??? (photo heavy)

I can't believe that it's been close to a month since I have posted. WOW! Even though, that post really doesn't count as it was just passing on info rather than a true post. What can I say? It's summertime and the living is busy! DS has been swimming in the neighborhood swimteam. Practices everyday except Fridays and Sundays and swim meets every Tuesday. That takes a chunk of time but it's so fun! Plus, it keeps him physically active which is a huge plus. I only wish that I knew how to swim. Sure, I can save my life but do a butterfly stroke? Hahahahahahaha!This was at his first swim meet. He so excited, can you tell? The participants have their swim team numbers written on their arms and it was ironic that DS's was 10 (his age - well they do that for everyone so that they swim in the proper age group) and 65 (his individual swim team number - also the year of a VIP's birth - um hum we WON'T mention whose! >wink< 'nuf said.) So that's reason number 1 for the busyness of this summer. Next, we've been going on quite a few weekend drives. As a family, we all enjoy drives. Long, lazy, strolling rides where you go off and "explore" your local areas. If we had been a family in the 50's, you would have been able to see us in one of those Chevrolet commercials. Y'know the ones I mean . Yep, that would be us driving around on an "adventure".

You may recall the trip to New Bern where I ran into Lolly? That would be an example of our adventures, just getting into the car and going. We recently visited Wilmington, NC and had a great day there as well. While there we walked around and saw the sites and found an amazing Italian Ice/Gelato shop. Mia's Italian Ices & Gelato on Front Street is quaint and cozy and has a FABULOUS Mango italian ice. So good, that after getting some and walking around, we went back for more! Funny thing is that the folks ahead of us the first time at the shop? They had come back for more too! So here are a few shots of our visit to Wilmington.



That same day we stopped at Carolina Beach on the way back from Wilmington. I got a few of my fave pix of the summer (so far) while we were there.



So, anyways, as you all can see we've been very busy. Knitting? Well, I do knit as we drive so there has been knitting. The HP Sock Swap socks should be in the mail this afternoon or tomorrow at the latest. I will photo the swap contents prior to mailing. I've picked up an old friend or two that have been patiently waiting to be worked on and I whipped up a couple of CE baby hats for a coworker's wife expecting twins (I forgot to photo those - darn it!).

We have had more adventures and my family just left yesterday after visiting for a week so, hopefully I will post again later today or tonight. We will be leaving EARLY on the 4th (Happy B-Day USA!) for our summer vacation - Williamsburg, VA and Outerbanks, NC so, if I go MIA that's what's up! DH has already found out shops in both areas for me. Yeah! Any suggestions of shops from you guys?

Hopefully I'll be back on today. . . . .

Oh I am so IN!!!!

How cool is this???

I'm getting boring, huh?

Sheesh! I am getting so boring that reading my own posts puts ME to sleep! Sorry guys. I just haven't gotten back into the swing of things. I guess that happens to a lot of bloggers but I did like getting comments and now, barely any. Hmmmm. I know, I know the comments aren't the reason I blog. Truly they aren't. I know that you all are out there and that is comforting. I blog to feel a sense of self, to understand what's going on in my world, to record today and what my life is like and about. But. Still. It was nice to see all the different people and their blogs that were including themselves in my little world. . . .ok, no more of that. On to what blogging is really about.

Hey, lookee, there ARE pictures to be shared:

First up is a photo of my Hogwarts sock swap socks. Almost done! Whoopee! I am knitting them in tandem because I decided to add some increases at the calves. They are a simple 3X1 rib until above the ankle and then I slowly increased to a 3X2 rib. Question for you all out there. . . How would you finish these off? Just, bind off? The ribbing is already there so I guess so but, I wanted them to look, y'know, finished. Can I picot edge with ribbing? Should I just bind off and not worry about it? Your suggestions are respectfully requested (how's that for comment begging? ;-> ) I am making them from Lorna's Laces Sheperd Sock in the "bee stripe" colorway. That swirly yellow stripe thing going up the foot of the sock was purely the colorway. I noticed that that was the point where they switched from gold to black. Seems they had a bit of extra gold. I kind of like the effect though. Don't you?

Now onto a spoiling for me! Here's the totality of my package from my FABULOUS Knitter's Tea Swap 3 spoilee, Jessica:

Isn't that some wonderful stuff? I got 3 different loose teas from the English Tea Store, many, many tea bags of assorted Stash teas, some organic honey lemon sticks, 3 different typed of tea cookies/treats, some dark chocolate (heaven) covered pretzel bits AND. . . . .my very first, ever Claudia's handpainted sock yarn. Woo Hoo! Here it is closer up:

And again:
Thank you so much for your generosity Jessica, it was amazing to have you as my pal. Hopefully you will like my package as much as I enjoyed yours!

Last, but not least, I leave you with a gratuitous family picture of us during Memorial Day weekend while out geocaching. This is a picture of us after finding our 100th cache:



We had so much fun that weekend!

I am so excited about this one!!!!!

I just joined this swap and I am so super excited I can't stand it! For my secret Hogwarts pal, here is my questionaire:


Hogwarts Sock Swap Questionnaire

What Hogwarts house have you been sorted into?
Gryffindor! Go scarlet and gold!

Shoe size?
8.5 women’s US

Foot Length?
10 inches (that seems so looooonnng!)

Foot Circumference?
9 inches (really? REALLY?)

List your three favorite double-point needle brands, including size and length.
a. Lantern Moon - 5" size 1 - rosewood
b. Lantern Moon - 5" size 2 - rosewood
c. Brittney - 5" size 1

Would you like to try a new brand needle? If so, which brand? Size? Length?
I really prefer knitting socks with wooden needles (less slippery) and I like to use the shorter needles (easier to manage). I have gotten used to size 1 or 2 needles for socks as well.

If you are a RAVENCLAW, do you prefer the colors in the film or the book? Do you have a strong preference?
N/A to me (but I prefer the movie colors just for the record)

Are you willing to have an international Hogwarts Sock Pal?
Sure.

So, anyhow, this is such a cool, cool swap b/c
a) who doesn't love a swap
b) who doesn't love a sock swap
c) you get not only socks but a new set of needles and a matching set of stitch markers
d) Harry Potter rules!
e) even if we have to say good-bye (sob, sob) to the series, we get a cool pair of handknit socks to comfort us for our loss (boo hoo hoo!)

So, what are all you sock knitters waiting for? Go join! Even if you aren't an HP fan, what's not to love about getting/sharing socks?

Right?!?