Posting while waiting for the carpet cleaner to finish....
No pics today, nothing has made that much progress. Next time.
Elfin Lace Shawl
I'm 2 repeats further into the Elfin Lace Shawl. I've finally gotten to the point where I don't have to look at the pattern anymore, which is helpful. I'm getting about 1 repeat done during each 50 minute long lesson, which is good progress for me.
Smooch
I've ripped it out again. I had tried using slip 2k, k2tog (however that decrease is abbreivated), and I didn't like the way it looked. I tried slipping the first stitch as if to purl, and didn't like that either. So... away it went. I'm going to try it as written next... yeah, its got a raised edge. Maybe I'll like it ;) It didn't help either that in the last pattern row I had completed I had missed at least 2 yo's. So, I'm starting over yet again. I'm considering knitting the bottom in the round, dividing for the neckline and then the armholes... Has anyone out there tried that?
And, I'm now part of the official
knit along... grin!
Other Stuff
Its been stormy here. Tuesday night was a wild weather night. I was doing my storm-reveleing (I love thunderstorms!), and watching Letterman when the wind picked up. I figured this would be a good time to grab a flashlight. Flashlight in hand, I was standing watching the weather dude start his breaking-weather-news spiel, when all the power went out. TIMING! I went hunting a radio to find out what he was going to say... I found many radios - none with functional batteries. After finding the 4th, the wind died down, so I finished the row I had been working on (by flashlight) and headed off to bed. To be woken up by the power coming back on at 2am, and off, and on and off. Finally stayed on around 3.
I now have a positive slew of batteries for my radios - I'm set for the next storm!
Its a late post...
I had meant to post both earlier today and over the weekend, but the Little One has been just sick enough to be difficult, and I have been single-parenting since mid-day Saturday. I did get some knitting done, but no writing nor pictures. Finally, I did get some pictures taken today! Especially of the...
FINISHED BABY BLANKET!
Yes, I have a finished object. Its done, and all the ends are tucked in. Ready to be given to the happy infant recipient. I'm happy with the final result, but I stick by my dislike of the boucle yarn. Yes, its reasonably priced, but it is an uncommonly poor-quality for Lion Brand yarn. The picture isn't great - I'll be trying again tomorrow during the real daylight. So... here it is:
Ain't it cool?
Other Weekend Stuff
The Big One and I went to try to get the new Harry Potter Friday night. We had ordered it from her school's book fair, but we could redeem the certificate at Barnes and Noble. So, we hit the Big Bash at the local BN. Very busy. Unfortunately, we didn't stay long enough to get the book that night, as we would have been in the 5th group of people to line up, and the 2nd group lined up at 12:30. It was going to be a very long wait, so the Big One made a very adult decision to wait and we'd go out early the next day. Her _wonderful_ father tried to get it that night for her anyways, but was too late. He took her out first thing in the morning and they picked up the book.
And now the part I'm a bit sheepish about admitting... I had finished it by 7pm Saturday night. With a sick child, and no second parent in the house. Don't ask how much reading time I put in... you really don't want to know. This book is, in my humble opinion, the best of them.
So, to reward myself for both finishing the baby blanket, _and_ finishing Harry Potter... I bought the paraphenalia for Smooch.
Smooch
I started Smooch on Sunday during the Little One's nap. I picked up the Rowan Cotton in a pretty aubergine/dull purple color (I love purple). I knitted the first couple rows, and recounted - somehow I had 12 stitches too many. Oops... ripping time. I got back to it today, and have now passed where I was. (Have I yet mentioned I knit kinda slowly?)
Elfin Lace
No progress on the shawl - since the Little One was sick today (still!) I didn't go and wait during the Big One's cello lessons.
Sitcom Chic-inspired blanket
Since there are a rash of knit-bloggers who are knitting, have knitted, or plan to knit the awesome
Sitcom Chic, published in the cool
Knitty and written by the superlative
Bonnie Marie. (Whew... that was positve adjective overload.) I'm in the last category - Sitcom Chic is on my To Be Started list. However, I did a blanket mostly inspired by the pattern. I saw the Sitcom Chic sweater when I first discovered Knitty and Knit Blogs, and this blanket happened....
I was really happy with it. I did it in Kool Wool from Lion Brand. (I really don't knit everything in Lion Brand yarn, but its inexpensive and handy, and each of these blankets have been in a new yarn from the company that I wanted to try out. Kool Wool = Good. I'd knit with it again.) Oh - that's Tigger looking out the window. I have 2 cats, a black kitty and a calico kitty. Both have longish hair. I love my kitties!
Coming Attractions
Soon, I will have the rest of my knitting gallery up and linked here. I'm working on it. Also, I'm putting a bio together. Just a short one, but I'll explain there why this is Hyvetyrant knits instead of anything else.
OK... getting things going.
I feel like I'm another me-too blogger... which is probably accurate. I have been enjoying reading a bunch of other people's blogs daily, so I'm also jumping in.
However...
There is another, more pertinent reason I'm jumping into blogging about my knitting. I'm out of practice communicating by writing. I used to write fairly well, or at least well enough to not have to stuggle that much to put words together in a fashion I like. But, a while ago I needed to write a formal paper for work, and I had an amazingly difficult time getting my words to work together. So, blogging is a bit less formal, but it should be good practice in writing.
Jumping in there, then.
I'm a full-time employed mother of 2 girls, the Little One at 15 months and the Big One at 9 years. I live on the north side of the Twin Cities in Minnesota. I've been knitting for the last 8 years, but I don't finish much of what I start. I like the planning, and the starting but get easily distracted by new projects. (Maybe keeping track of my progress more publicly will help with my start/finish ratio). My husband and I share the house with the kids, 2 cats and a dog.
Currently, I have 2 active projects on the needles. I have the latest in my list of baby presents for the baby explosion that happened lately amongst my friends and relations. This one is a baby blanket made from one strand of Lion Boucle in Lime Blue, and one strand of Wool-Ease in Hunter Green. I'm following the classic Dishcloth pattern. It looks nice, but it feels really cool. It is soft and squishy. However, I am not a fan of Lion Boucle. The colored part is held in the boucle shape by a slippery black thread. When I pull the yarn to keep my tension even, the colored part squishes up. It also unravells easily. This will be the only project I do with this yarn.
The other project is a beautiful shawl from a kit I picked up in
Handpaint Heaven's last sale. Its the
Elfin Lace Shawl. Very pretty. This is being knit in Cherry Tree Hill's Suri Lace in the Blueberry Hill colorway. I love the blues and purples, but there is this turquoise green in there that is suprisingly my favorite. I look forward to coming across it in the variations. Its a bit finer yarn than I am used to using, but I'm enjoying the experience. The yarn has a nice feel.
I'm knitting this mostly during the Big One's cello lessons. She just started... its so cute. 10 3rd graders in a room all learning to play cello together. I'm impressed with the instructor - he keeps their attention very well, and is teaching them good technique. The other parents in the room all seem interested in my knitting, as well. Its my big KIP moment!
I am being very tempted by the
Smooch knit-along. Maybe I'll be running off to my LYS this afternoon to pick up the pattern and some yarn for it. Its too tempting!
The Big One is learning to knit as well. She is a bit slow, but is getting faster. If anyone has any hints about how to teach kids to knit, I'd love to hear them!
So, there, a real first post. Getting things rolling... Sometime I'll explain why this is called Hyvetyrant Knits, but I'll save something for a low-knitting content day.
