Knifty Hat

I happen to be the type to knit in public all the time, everyone in my dorm knows I knit.  One day, a guy from my dorm sees me working on something ( I was actually crocheting) and asks "Oh my God!! Could you make a wool cap!!!"  I told him I didn't have wool but could probably make him something.  I pulled out my knifty knitter and got to work.  I asked him what colors he wanted, and all he said was that he wanted Earth tones.

Well, here is what I came up with---

So I am thinking that I have to knit for this guy again. For the entire day that I worked on this I have been showered with compliments.  When I finished that hat I was tackled with him yelling "I love you".  He also gave me a massage after.

My only complaint about this experience is that now half my dorm wants hats.  I really need to get started on my Christmas presents and work on other things I owe people

Give Away

Another blog, The Function Key, is giving away this necklace!!  I'm not sure how long the competition is going, but may as well go for it!!

Sari Silk

Anyone read the post where I first said I bought Sari Silk from the hunger site?  Well I know have made something with it.  A GARTER STITCH SCARF!!!  Uncreative I know, but whatever.  

I actually knit this long ways so that any stripes in the scarf would be longer, rather than colors pooling in chunks.  To do this I cast on as many stitches as I could (this thing is long) and then knit..and knit...and knit.  

Also a few things on the yarn.  First of all, it smells a bit funky, but I got over it.  Also, it will likely shed on you a bit.  A lot of people said that this yarn is near impossible to work with, but i thought it was fine, not the most versatile thing, but it was workable.  One more important thing to know is that there was grass and bits of plastic in it.....I just picked it out and it was okay...but still weird.

WISP IS DONE!!!!

Ok, my wisp was done a few days ago. but now it has been blocked, has buttons, and i have pictures!!!
In light of this accomplishment I have a few thoughts
1) This should not have taken so long...I got lazy.  in fact Withing 2 days of finishing wisp, i finished another project
2)Lace weight is fun, but it takes a while to get the hang of (my gauge was all over the place)
3)I need to start using lifelines
Well, enjoy the pictures!!

post that it sorta unrelated to knitting

Hi, I feel like blogging, but there is no news in my knitting world.

Then again, I do have big news otherwise. I mentioned before that I had a job interview at a local daycare. I love working with kids and I am working on a degree in Family Studies. Well I didn't get that job. I DID on the other hand interview for another job, that I did get. I am now working at the Children's Museum of New Hampshire. Boo yeah.

In related news, I no longer work at a college dining hall, also boo yeah.

Also I am getting close to done my wisp!!!

Selling Knits?

So during my faceboking recently, I noticed an add for Artfire.com, a website for selling various handmade products (kinda like Etsy). That ad has gotten me thinking, could I sell some knits? Upon looking around on the website, I noticed that while many of the products are goregous, there are also a lot of things that are very....blah. And somehow all the blah stuff sells. I saw one garter stitch scarf, made with 100% acrylic, and when the colors were switched for stripes the knitter didn't care which side all the color nubs went. That scarf was priced at $50.....I have sold ones of better quality than that for about $15. This makes me think...maybe I could sell some basic knits. This could be an amazing way to get some extra cash. The trouble would be actually finishing the stuff I knit (I am so distracted right now when it comes to knitting).

Also interesting, through the excursion to artfire, I found a pattern that I must have. Seen above is the slouch hat by Pixiebell. I have to knit this. So far I can't find this girl on Ravelry, but all of her designs and patterns are amazing. The pattern looks simple enough, actually almost looks similar to one on my urchin hats, only longer. If only I knew how to place short rows, then I could do this. I know how to do them, but not how to get them to do what I want. *sigh*

Past projects

So over last summer, I made a bunch of little projects that i never blogged over yet. Some of them are on my ravelry, but some aren't even posted anywhere....till now!!

First off....isn't this thing sooo cute. The owl is made by a few cables, meaning it could easily be incorporated into a sweater pattern or what have you. Took me a few minutes to make the owl....then about an hour to search for buttons

This bag was made for my friend Rachel. I had a ton of crummy red heart yarn that I didn't like, but she thought it was fine (haha, how easy it is to please a non knitter). You can't see it too well, but the strap is like a candy purple color. I did the handles with a simple i-cord and 2 strands of yarn. My boyfriend's mom thought it was amazing that it looked like a rope (ok, she is a knitter, but easily amused apparently)

This is my favorite. A case for my usb drive. In real life the pink is a lot brighter, but whatever. THis was my first project with a button hole!

Technically this was crocheted...not knit. But hey, its my blog and I will post whatever I want! I am really proud of how this came out. Whenever I wear it I get a ton of comments (even though my boyfriend thinks it looks silly)

So now I have just proven that I can be productive.

New Yarn, that is also good for the world

So I am trying to become a bit more eco conscious and also I love any thing that can help people. I also need cool stuff to knit with. Well how can I combine this? RECYCLED SILK YARN FROM THE HUNGER SITE! This yarn is fair traded and helps women in India and Tibet. Its using scraps that would normally be thrown away, so now there is less i the landfill and less new yarn being made. The profits go towards buying food for the hungry. And this yarn is really cool looking. I have also got a few more things from the Hunger Site recently, like jewelry and bags. Also, on the homepage to their website, if you click on a link, the money made from advertising goes towards food for the hungry. So just click the link, and people get food, it only takes a few seconds!

Now the only question is....what to knit?

Ugh....bored

So lately, I have not been able to focus at all on knitting, or much of anything else. i have about 3 projects on my needles, and have no ambition to do any of them. To make this worse, Summer is over, and I now have school (of and text book shopping.....there goes like $300, think of all the yarn I could have had).

Also, while I am talking about the world of non-knitting me...I have a job interview in 2 days. I want to work with kids, so stuff like daycare experience is great for me. I already at home have gotten daycare work, but wasn't able to find any at school (hence me flipping burgers at a dinning hall). SO in a few days a I may either have 2 jobs, or I can quit at the dining hall. I haven't decided yet, but hey, I am excited about the interview!

Urchin

I must say that I am obsessed with this pattern. I have made 3 for myself, and 2 for others. The pattern is Urchin by the amazing Ysolda Teague. If you haven't seen her patterns yet, then you have to look them up. I like this especially because it is free (I hate paying for patterns, especially when I have no idea how much 4 euros is).

One super neat thing about this hat, is that I finally found a thick and thin yarn. They don't sell that kinda stuff at A.C. Moore or places like that. This was my first purchase at a real yarn store (also where I bought my yarn for wisp)

SO I now how a funky chunky hat for all to admire!

The bow on the side was just from a ribbon that was on a bag from Aerie, which I refused to throw out for months before it found a home on my hat

Wisp!

Whoa, 2 post in a day. CRAZINESS!

So I have recently started my first lace weight project. I am using Kidlin lace weight yarn, because it was a beautiful, fuzzy, and actually affordable lace yarn. The pattern called for Rowan Kidsilk Haze....but not at $15 a ball (hehe). This yarn is mohair, linen, and nylon blend. The pattern for it is Wisp. It is so simple yet so elegant. Also, I plan on wearing it buttoned at a caplet (see the bottom picture of it). I am so excited about this, although I know that it will take me FOREVER. Time to learn patience

NOOOOOOO!!!!!!!

So, since my last post...and actually even before that, I have finished some really cool projects, and I took a few fabulous pictures (ok, most of them were taken in my bathroom and look slightly myspace-y....more than slightly). Well...I can't find the cord that attaches my camera to my computer. WHYYYYY! So I can't show off here, on Facebook, or on Ravelry. I even crocheted something that looks really good.

Well, luckily, I do have a picture of at least one of my projects on the computer. I have a friend, and I owed her a crafting favor (we trade off projects all the time) and she took a picture of it.

But first, an explaination. My friend for some reason has been asked to make a lot of Harry Potter scarves for various Hogwartz houses. Her little brother wanted a Hufflepuff scarf......seriously? Everyone else either wants a Gryfindorr or Slytherin scarf, except for a few weirdos who want Ravenclaw. For all of you who do not remember obscure details from all the Harry Potter books (this wasn't even in the movie), the house you were put into had something to do with your personality. Gryfindorr meant you were brave/ a main character. Slytherin meant you were evil or something (I think it was the pure blooded wizards technically). People in Ravenclaw were smart. And now we come to Hufflupuff...... as long as you were a nice person and tried really really hard to be a good wizard, you would get in....and my friend's little brother aspires to be int his house. I'm sure that when the Hufflepuffs got their grades, rather than getting a letter grade, they got a shiny sticker. Also, the scarf looks like a bumble bee, at least J.K. Rowling could have picked better colors.

Ok...that was long and geeky..anyway, now the scarf! Picture is kinda dark

Frogging

So today is my first day frogging a project.....oh fun..... Well I am not enjoying this one bit. I hated knitting this, and I hate frogging it. Its the Valentine Candy Pillow from Domiknitrix. Its a really fun pillow but I hated making it and never ended up stitching it together. Its also the first pattern that I decided to pay for, so I now feel extra bad

At least I really like this froggie!

My lacy shrug

so i am finished my first garment and I am suuuuuuuper happy with it. Technically I finished it last week but hey....I don't care. The pattern is the ribbed lace bolero.....and it is such an easy pattern and really customizable. Most of my girlfriends are gonna get one, and possible with different lace stitches than the pattern.

So not the best picture ever, but I didn't do a full photo shoot or anything. This picture was really just so that I can brag to facebook. But this got me thinking that I should do a photo shoot of all my knitted items. At this point I realized I had given most of them away....... dammit. So I am now deciding that I will take tons of pictures every time I finish something. This way I an have a full album to show off what I have done

In other knitting news, I am working on 2 bags. One of them was something I just started knitting with no pattern, it sat around for a few weeks, and I am picking it back up again. Its pretty big, in fact I could easily make it a pillow case, but I will see (*this could be the beginning of an original pattern!!). The other bag is from a pattern I have been dying to try for a while now, the weekender. This is for a friend but I am going to have to make one for me.

Well, ttfn (yay winnie the pooh reference)

why can't i crochet?

So I probably enjoy finding patterns more than I enjoy making them. One issue is probably because knitting bulks up relatively slow, unlike crochet, which works up fast. Also, I just found I hat that I really really really want(http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=195823.msg2068448#msg2068448)

Now I have a friend who crochets, but I kinda don't want to ask her to make it only because we are both extremely competitive with our crafting and I don't want her ti get the idea that crocheting is better than knitting....also recently she broke down and learned to knit, while I still *kinda* can crochet....but not well at all (you do not want to see my granny square attempts). This girl also already made the shawl for my mother's wedding that I was gonna do, but then couldn't find the perfect knit pattern. I was gonna make her one thing that actually never got done (first I made mine and realized that I HATED the pattern, and could not pull myself to make another in the color she wanted)

Also, while knitting patterns can be hard enough to read, I swear you have to be a super spy or something to decipher a pattern for crochet.

Knitting Blog for me!!

So I read enough knitting blogs that I may as well make my own....I had another one for a bit but then I realized I spelled the name wrong.....so yeah, time for a new blog. SO for a first post I may as well talk about me any my knitting.

i learned to knit about a year ago, but only really got really into it last November. Over all I would say that I am very unadventurous when it comes to knitting...if that is even a real word. I tend to try easy stuff, but I am getting better, in fact just this Sunday I started my first big lacy item and my first garment..... more on that when it is done (I know that anticipation must be killing everyone reading....... which is probably no one).

I have a good sized yarn stash, and a huge queue on ravelry (my name in there is gumandskittles). I think I have more fun thinking bout what I will do rather than actually doing it.

So I guess that is all for now....buh bye