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I'm going to make a separate knitting blog. I don't write that much about my knitting here because I know it has a limited audience. However I'm falling far behind on writing about the things I'm creating every day, let alone taking pictures to show off my work. *This* journal feels more personal and I mostly post friends-only.

Since joining Ravelry.com I've gotten more enthusiastic about keeping project notes because it helps me stay organized, and I'm finding the notebooks and photos from other other Ravelry users to be a goldmine of useful information. So, I'm over on Vox, add me if you care about knitting geekery:

http://blazaglory.vox.com/

It's a boring Friday at work so I started cleaning my office. Over in the corner, covered in dust, I have a picture frame with multiple older photos of me, Dan, and our pets (two of which are no longer alive.) I was struck by how young our puppy looks in these pictures--indeed, we had just adopted her when I took these photos, probably only had her a week or two. She looked skinny and had much less white around the muzzle compared to now. This month, Charis turns approximately 9 years old. It was 8 years ago that we got her and she was estimated to be 1 year old then.

We don't buy frisbees anymore, as we learned way back when that Charis doesn't play nice with them :)

Yesterday I received a little package from DiscountYarnSales.com that I've been awaiting for over a month--a bag of Vicki Howell's "Love" yarn, from Southwest Trading Company. "Love" is 70% bamboo, 30% silk, and simply gorgeous. I chose a light turquoise/seafoam color that seems to glow in my hands. I knitted up a test swatch for a sexy vintage sweater I'd like to make and here's the test, all washed and dried:

I can't seem to replicate just how lovely and dreamy this blue is; I've tried all kinds of lighting and Photoshop manips and it's still not quite what I see here in person.

Need to take more project photos. I actually have finished quite a few things that haven't been photographed yet. I'm too busy wearing them.

It is really quite bizarre to look up at the local news and see your house on tv. Jim Foreman of King 5 was just standing out there interviewing people about the truck that crashed into the side of our neighbors' house across the street. I looked out the window and sure 'nough, there they all were! Yeah, a truck had completely crashed backward into the side of Tuy's house, bashing a hole in the wall/siding. Well, that fucking sucks!

Jim Foreman, sheesh. Charis barked at him.

Please admire my skein of Manos in Flame (or Fire, it's color 115) that Dan gave me for Christmas:

It's so pretty I can't even believe it. I'll probably need another to make the scarf I want because I want to try something kind of intricate and lacy. Yum.

So, about a year ago I completed my first sewing project since Jr High--a leopard print fleece doggy bed for Charis. At first she seemed to love it, sleeping in it much of the time. Then the last time I took the cover off to wash it, I must not have "fluffed" it just right and she has totally abandoned her bed. I can't make her use it anymore. So the other day I took it down to the basement to get it out of the living room. Just went down and found my kitty Leolo all snuggled up and sleepy in the bed. I'm so happy! I didn't think he'd want it because it smelled like that nasty old dog. Well, I think we should tuck it into a nice perch for a cat who appreciates homemade goods :)

Not much else going on except I'm looking forward to our party on Friday. Not sure who all will be around since it's right after Thanksgiving but I don't mind if it's a small crowd. More time to actually talk to people I want to see!

We just had a naked man streak through the library. He was tackled by police outside and they took him away in a a straightjacket and an ambulance. I'm not sure if it was "the" naked man who's been terrorizing campus this quarter. My student at the front desk saw it and she said he didn't look like a frat boy playing a prank.

Hope that's the end of the wackos for tonight, as I have to work until 9 and close the library.

Last weekend I took my first foray into yarn dyeing--using Kool-Aid!

How fun! It was really easy. I bought 4 skeins of "bare" wool (the white skein in the front of the photo.) Kool-Aid just gets sucked right up by the yarn, leaving clear water behind. The blue and mottled purple/red should make a nice lacey scarf for Mom. The green is for a project that needs bright green yarn that I've been unable to find in stores. The reds I think are pretty (Blastin' Berry Cherry and Black Cherry) but I'm sure could be found professionally dyed elsewhere for less effort. I need a hot pink and none of the colors at my local Safeway or QFC really cut it. It was funny checking out at QFC--the cashier was really excited that I was buying so much Kool-Aid and was still talking about how wonderful it is as I was walking out the front door :) I didn't have the heart to tell him I'd never actually drink the stuff.

I've really gotta get cranking on my gift projects. I'm on sleeve #1 of one sweater, and have about 1/4 of another on the needles, and haven't even cast on for Dad's sweater (which will take forever since it'll be big) and Mom's scarf. Let alone the things I wanted to make for Craig & Katie's baby (due in December) and my boss' impending arrival (that should be after the new year so I've got time).

Oy. Halloween is coming soon. I think we're dragging out the nurse and doctor outfits and making them "menacing" and "insane" just for variation.

TV night tonight for me. ANTM is on soon, then lost, then Top Chef. I'm not having much of a social life these days.

I'm excited; we're finally getting started on creating our combo sewing/crafts/computer/ebay/library room that we've talked about for a while. We both need workspace, organization, and clear flat work surfaces other than the kitchen counters & table. It's starting slow because the cutting table at Home Depot was out of order so we skipped buying the lumber today, but things need to be painted first anyway. The theme will be... well I guess it'll be crafty pirate :) The walls & ceiling will be cream colored, the window trim will be bright red, and if there's any room left for decoration after we cover the walls with shelves and storage, will go sorta nautical & pirate-y. Yay! So I patched all the holes in the wall, will let that dry, and then sand (and probably patch some more).

I know this will bore the non-knitters on my friends list, but I've been thinking alot about my growth and personal preferences that have developed in my short time as a knitter and I think it's nice to recognize how things grow and change as skills change...

I was cleaning out my closet because the hanging shoe rack had broken and collapsed in a heap on the floor of my closet, obscuring the useful things I need like boots and shoes. I found a big plstic bag full of this super-bulky yarn that I bought but am never going to use, so I decided to put it up on ebay, along with another lot of boucle that I must have gotten on some sale but I know I'll never use. So why did I want this and think it was cool at the time and now let it take up space in my little house?

I took my first knitting class, a series of three weekly classes, last February. The whole thing clicked with me in a wonderful way, and I started all kinds of projects, using my "class member" store discount to supply the projects. I thought it would be great to make a thick, cozy blanket to curl up with on the couch, and started knitting in earnest.

Then my skillz got better and the couch throw was set aside for more exciting projects. And now, at less than a year knitting I know that I:

--Will never knit a blanket unless it's for a newborn, because, how fucking boring and time-consuming!!!
--Prefer interesting yarns with lumpy, tweedy, or different textures
--Love exploring colors and trying things I might not normally wear because the color itself, winding through my fingers, gives me joy
--Like interesting patterns with cables and lace, but hate too much colorwork
--No more bulky! I don't need the quick payoff of a bulky, unflattering knitted object and would rather use finer yarns and smaller needles
--Yet I get annoyed by "fussy" stuff, like knitting around in a tiny tube for glove fingers or little sleeves
--I hate seaming sweaters and will avoid patterns that call for it, or try to remake the pattern so I can avoid it as much as possible. Top down, in the round, my fave!

I think there was more but I can't remember, but I just felt it interesting that I've developed some very strong feelings over less than a year of practicing this craft, and I'm sure it will change and grow. My newfound love of yarn color and texture is a joy that I can't even explain.

the Romantic

Thanks for taking the test !

you chose BY - your Enneagram type is FOUR.

"I am unique"

Romantics have sensitive feelings and are warm and perceptive.

How to Get Along with Me

Give me plenty of compliments. They mean a lot to me.

Be a supportive friend or partner. Help me to learn to love and value
myself.

Respect me for my special gifts of intuition and vision.

Though I don't always want to be cheered up when I'm feeling melancholy,
I sometimes like to have someone lighten me up a little.

Don't tell me I'm too sensitive or that I'm overreacting!

( Read more... )

I was SOOO close to finishing the Clapotis, my drop-stitch scarf/shawl, but ran out of yarn near the end. Of course, the one color I need was out of stock at Knit Picks. It finally arrived today and I sat right down to finish. It's now damp, blocked, and laid out on the bed to dry (it's long, I couldn't fit it on my kitchen counter). There are certainly flaws, but nothing that really matters since A) it is meant to roll up and curl and B) it's just a scarf, jeez!

Closeup:

Made with a little more than 3 skeins of Knitpicks Memories 100% Merino wool, fingering-weight, in Geranium.

The soap I made last night had some interesting changes overnight. The copper color is really coming out nicely, though the top swelled and bulged in a few areas, adding an odd texture to the top. That shouldn't really matter. I think it must have gotten extra warm, perhaps from adding so much mica?

BTW, several people asked if I sell my soap. I do, I have a little shop on Etsy.com. Check it out if you'd like, Soap Crush (and there are also tons of other neat crafty items for sale on that site, I know where I'll be looking for Christmas gift buying).

I'm back in the soap-making business. I made one tonight that I sooooooo hope will turn out because it looks absolutely gorgeous poured in the mold. I used mica color but this time, mixed the main color right into the lye water, and the swirl, with some oil to disperse things better. In the past I've had problems with the mica color not mixing well, and then bleeding out when the soap is used.

I haven't got a name for this yet, but it's a sweet, slightly woody blend of oakmoss, rosewood, and sandalwood, with a coppery base color and cappucino swirled in the pot:

The lighter color should darken a bit because there's some vanilla in the sandalwood fragrance.

I also played around more with micas while waiting for the oils to cool, and tried dipping my soap stamp in gold mica, then stamping one of the end pieces of the oatmeal cookie soap I made about 10 days ago:

It's hard to see from this photo just how shiny and iridescent the stamp mark is. I like it!

I need to get back into regular soapmaking, for Christmas presents, and to sell a bit on the side and make spending money for my winter trip to Mexico. Unfortunately I'm nearly out of some of the basic oils and need to head to Zenith Supply for some Palm and Coconut oils.

Mmmm, pancakes!

I don't have alot to say, really. We had a lovely 3-day weekend at the cabin. I feel kind of sad when I have to leave there because it's kind of my mental sanctuary, where I can turn off the busyness in my life. I got alot done on the two sweaters I'm knitting, as well as finished the cigar gloves. I don't think I like making gloves, at least ones with fingers--too fussy! At least I gave it a try.

I cut my hair really short yesterday. Maybe a little shorter than I would normally choose but I don't mind and I know within just 2 weeks it'll be at a perfect length. It took 30 seconds to fix my hair this morning, which left me lots of time to make a fresh salad to take to work for breakfast.

Things are ramping up at work because the new school year starts tomorrow. Eek. Also today a patron brought in a baked DVD that she had checked out. Yes, the woman's son had put the DVD in the oven. The DVD is fine so apparently they can be cooked, but the plastic cover did not fare so well.

We went to the cabin this weekend. I feel wonderfully peaceful. More update later after I catch up on email, LJ, etc. In the meantime, here's a cute squirrel out on the Key Peninsula:

I'm making progress on the Simple Knitted Bodice sweater. Got to the point where I could take the sleeves off the needles and join the fronts together. I tried it on and it fits--yay--which is good because I'm using a lighter weight silk/wool yarn and smaller needles than the pattern calls for, requiring some recalculation and guesstimation on the size to knit.

Up next, I'm ready to start on the chevron lace waistband. I need smaller needles than I have, though, so hopefully they will arrive in the mail asap so I can "carry on!"

Robert Irwin's "9 Spaces 9 Trees" art installation which used to be located at the Public Safety Building is being relocated to the lawn behind my workplace. It's been interesting watching the progress since it's right outside my window. Essentially the old lawn was built above the parking garage so they have to do alot of roofing and sealing to make sure things don't leak into the garage below. Nothing has happened there for weeks, until today when I came in and saw tons of workers and this giant crane-like thing. It dawned on me that pouring concrete must have been the next step and since the concrete workers have been on strike there was nothing else that could be done. The lawn space is between the west side of Odegaard Library and the Henry Art Gallery.

From my office window: