Jeans and Sneakers

Stayed up late to finished two toed sock #1.  It’s done.  I don’t have any pics yet, as I haven’t even sewn in all of the ends.  The toe for a heel thing works, but it leaves a hole (at least when I do it) at each corner, and needs to be sewn up.

And also, The Phantom of the Opera movie that came out last year or whenever it was, totally blows goats.  The only good singers in it were Raoul and Mme. Giry, who I kicked myself for not immediately recognizing as the quidditch coach from Harry Potter, but more importantly, who also played Queen Mab and The Lady of the Lake in Merlin.  Duh.

Bed time!

So I went to Knitters Nite Out tonight, and it was fun! I got there and everyone who showed up for the night was already there. They were all older women, but very lively! There was a constant bustle from before I went in until I left. And as soon as I went in, I was invited to share in it all! I was immediately swept into a conversation about my project. Very fun time. I fully plan on going from now on.

The new Knitty is out!! Weird, they’ve got a lot of winter-ish patterns. . .but there’s one that I’ve got to make that will actually use up some of the yarn in my stash that I had no idea what to do with. . .Topi. I had totally planned on knitting myself an army style hat once I decided that I like the one that Rob wears, and found that I couldn’t find one in any store that fits my head. The best solution was to knit one. I’d planned on trying to come up with a pattern sometime after the slew of socks gets done. But someone’s made one for me! How wonderful! So add this to the To Knit list.

I’m tired, but I’ve got some time before bed, and my knitting motivation has been renewed by being around other knitters! Hopefully I can make some serious progress on this stupid sock!

Seriously, it seems impossible to make any worthwhile progress on these socks.  I’m still on sock #1 and I started it on Saturday!!!  And!!!  I’ve only gotten about an inch past where the heel will be, once I finish the rest of the sock and come back to it.  When I found this pattern, I thought it was ingenious. . .and maybe it would be in a yarn that didn’t shrink once each row comes off the needles.  But this yarn with it’s elastic content, and it’s harsh-to-my-fingers cotton seems to negate logic and only make about 70% of the progress you’re actually knitting. . .so you end up with less than you feel like you should have, and it’s taking FOREVER!!

I kind of can’t wait to be done with these.  I think if I ever choose to use Cascade Fixation, it will be for a much smaller (or at least more entertaining) pattern.

Another friend of mine is considering commissioning me to make him some socks.  (HI BAY-SAN!)  I laughed out loud when he asked me because he was like “if you’re successful i’ll commission some socks”.   I was like, what do you mean if?!   :P  Rob said I should charge him extra for doubting.  Haha!

Did I mention that I caved and bought a yarn swift online last night?  I found an online coupon for joann.com and got 40% off my order, making the total cost a meager $47 including shipping, which is quite a deal on a wooden swift!!  I’m supAr excited.  I was going to get a ball winder too, but I think I’ll just get one from Karen.  I like giving business to small shops.  :]  Besides, her prices are good, and I don’t have to pay shipping charges or wait for the item to arrive.

Tomorrow night is Knitters Nite Out!!  I can’t wait, I’m so excited.  I’ve got my chair all ready and everything!  I was actually thinking about knitting a cover to go over my folding camp chair, so that it’ll still be portable, but much prettier.  I’d probably just knit up something to go over the existing fabric of the seat, so as to not lose any stability, but maintain portability.  We’ll see.  It might have to wait until I’ve got a crazy yarn stash and nothing to knit.  For now, I’m up to my ears in projects that I’ve started, and ones that I’m planning, so I’ll wait.

One of the blogs I read, Fig and Plum, recommended a book series called His Dark Materials not too long ago.  I’ve been thinking about seeing if they had them at the library ever since she mentioned it, but I never got around to it.  Yesterday my hands hurt from knitting the Cascade Fixation and I was sad that I didn’t have anything to read.  That lead to a conversation with Rob about books that I want and he ended up getting the set for me at Amazon.  YAY!  I’m excited about them, can’t wait until they get here.

While I was looking at those, I also came across The Dark is Rising set, at which I’m baffled.  I don’t understand how I could have grown up an avid reader and not come across this set earlier.   It sounds right up my reading alley, and apparrently is well reputed.  I’ll probably get that after I finish His Dark Materials.

Does anyone know of anything that would hold open a paperback book so you can read it and have your hands free?  I’d like to knit and read at the same time, like I do with movies, but paperbacks have a funny way of springing off whatever heavy object I can find to try to hold the pages open.

I took a nap today after dinner, and slept for about 3 hours.  I have no idea if I’ll be able to sleep now, but I think I might.

So this weekend flew by. . . and I slept through a great deal of it, being my first weekend after my first full week of work. The sleep was much appreciated, but at the same time felt like a waste. I only got one of my Karen socks done, and then it was Saturday, and I was running off to the yarn store. I swear I was destined to find that place because they had the Blueberry Cascade Fixation that I thought it’d be impossible that they’d have. And I finally got the size 4 needles, and apologized for not showing up to the knitters nite out on Wednesday. I’m ready this week!! I’ve got my chair and money ready! But anyway, I came back home and started on my friend’s Two toed sock. And at the correct gauge, the sock crawls. I spoke to my friend, and thankfully, he wants shorter cuffs than the pattern calls for, so there’s some saved time there. I want to finish his socks so I can get back to mine!! The first of Karen’s socks came out so nice that I can’t wait to wear the pair! And then of course, on to the Jaywalker socks. . . .and somewhere along the lines I’ve got to finish Rob’s mom’s sweater, and knit up a pair of socks for Rob. . .!!

When I went to the yarn store on Saturday, I forgot to bring my Cherry Tree Hill yarn with me to ask if Karen would wind it into a ball for me, since I don’t have a ball winder or swift. Which got me really wanting to see if I could make a swift, and maybe even a ball winder. I completely understand how they work, and could easily make them if I had suitable materials. But therein lies the problem. I went to Home Depot with Rob, and we couldn’t find hardly anything to make a swift with. I probably could have made the crappy table top ones that look like ass and take up a ton of space, but I don’t want one of those. I want, and have the knowledge to make, one of the pretty umbrella swifts. So it really pissed me off when I was all ready to go buy things to make one, and couldn’t. That’s just stupid. I didn’t even look for anything to make a ball winder with. And it’s really not worth the effort and money it’ll cost me to try and find parts to make them on the internet, so I’ll probably just end up buying them somewhere. :[

Work is getting more comfortable, as my employers and I get used to eachother, work flows more smoothly. Also, I can start answering some questions customers have when they call on my own, so I don't have to ask them for everything.

I cleaned the room today, so maybe I'll actually stick to one of my flighty plans and actually do some yoga tomorrow. I figured, if I could do yoga twice during the work week, and knit the other three nights, and then maybe do some more yoga one day on the weekend, or at least get outside, I'll be better off.

Last night Rob asked me if I could cook Beef with Egg Noodles soon. I think it's his favorite dinner that I cook. Not that he's had a chance to sample much else that I've cooked. . .I haven't really experimented in the kitchen all that much, and when I have, it's been the same things, stir fry, beef with egg noodles, some cookies, and once I made a really great alfredo sauce that I definitely want to have again soon. Oh, and the two times I've made Thanksgiving dinner. But I'd like to cook more often, and different things. I can't wait until May. More boxes are packed and labeled in the living room, and we're getting excited as the month goes by. :]

My first full week of work is officially over.  It’s not even technically Friday anymore, which just goes to show that the weekend has begun.  I got paid, and that’s grand.  I have everything all taken care of, and that’s grand too.  This weekend, I plan to knit.

I’m almost done with Karen’s Sock #1.  I might force myself to finish it tonight, so tomorrow, after I come back from the yarn store, I can start #2.  On second thought, I’m going to the yarn store to get the ever elusive size 4 dpn’s, and to see if Karen’s got Cascade Fixation in Blueberry. . .a color I think is closer to what my friend had in mind for his socks.   So I’ll probably want to begin on his socks when I get home.  But that should be ok, because then I can come back to my sock after making his, and not get bored with my socks.  I hope she’s got the blueberry.

Other than that, I think I might try to cost the materials to make a yarn swift, and see if I can’t make one cheaper then they’re selling them for on the internet.

I’ve been having bad dreams the past few nights. . .and I don’t know why.  I can’t remember the one from last night, just that it was disturbing.  I know the night before that I had a dream that my family members died, one by one, and the night before that, I had an unsettling dream with Gene in it.  Hopefully tonight I can get a good night’s rest, and not have any.

I never thought I’d be the type of knitter to have 3 different projects on the needles.  Who was I kidding?!  If only I finished as much in life as I do in knitting, I’d be much better off. . .Still, to have so many things going on at once. . .but I couldn’t help it!!  I wanted to try Karen’s pattern (from my new lys) so badly!  And I’ve put off working on my friend’s two-toed socks until A) I can get some advice on the gauge I’m knitting up, and B) I have money so that I can buy different sized needles should I need.  *sigh*

The job’s been good. . .things were a little rough yesterday and today, since my boss was gone and I’d finished the work he’d left me, I got a little bored.  But I found things to do and made it through alright.  I think I like it here.  The people seem like good people.  That’s really important to me.

I’m all tuckered out. . .just thought I should probably hop on and update.  Sorry there’s no link for the pattern on the new socks I started, Karen gave me the pattern that she designed herself, and I think she usually charges for it, (or at least keeps it at her own discretion who she gives it to.).  :]

I think I actually like this job.  They’re really great people to work with.  Today was my first full day and I stayed up late last night, so I was extra worried.  This morning I was running pretty late because I had to ask the roomate to move his girlfriend’s car. . .he had parked it in front of me without leaving me enough room to get out.  So I didn’t end up going to 7-11 to get anything for lunch.  But to tell you the truth, it wasn’t that bad.  They give me freedom to file things in a way that makes sense to me, and I pretty much always have something to do.  I was clock watching today a little bit, but that’s in my nature.  The day didn’t drag on like it used to at my last job, so hopefully it’ll stay that way.

Tomorrow and Wednesday might get a little crazy, my boss, the owner, is going to some radiant heating classes.  I guess it’s kind of like a seminar or something, but he’s not going to be in the office.  That should prove interesting, since the phones were pretty heavy today, and I heard one of the other guys saying that they’re probably going to be pretty heavy tomorrow.  He had a reason, but I don’t remember what it was.

I’m holding off on progress with the Two Toed Socks, until I can get back to Knitworks.  I want to ask Karen if my gauge is supposed to be the way it is, and show her that the pattern I’m working off of calls for size 4 needles, even though the yarn label itself says 4.5 mm.  In the meantime (I just typed meattime, lol), I think I might start up Karen’s basic sock pattern.  I wore my Easy Thin socks yesterday, and I wanted to wear them again today, but I have to wash them still.  I want lots and lots of socks!

Or I might knit up Sonnet a little more.  I think Rob’s Mom’s birthday is in May, so I’ve got a little over a month to finish it.  I still think if I finish it early I’ll end up giving it to her early too.  :]  She told her relatives about how I made a beautiful sweater, talking about the Golden Tunic, so I think she’ll appreciate a sweater made for her.  :]

I like making the titles of my posts the lyric of the song I have stuck in my head at the moment.  :]

Yesterday I woke up and decided it was time to get some needles for my friend’s Two Toed Socks.  I remembered that I saw a yarn store close by when Rob and I went to subway one day, so I headed on over there.  I’m so glad I did!!  The store is owned by a wonderful woman named Karen, and I spent about an hour and a half in there talking with her and browsing her wares.  Her store is definitely my favorite now, and she has “Knitters Night Out”s on Wednesday nights.  Awesome!!  I’ll definitely have to go to one, but she said to bring a folding chair because the event is getting quite popular and there’s usually not enough.

So I got needles for the socks, and At Knit’s End by the Yarn Harlot, and  some Cherry Tree Hill sock yarn that is absolutely gorgeous, Karen’s own basic sock pattern (free, she’s so nice!) and a finishing needle.  I think I got a unique colorway of the supersock yarn too, because I can’t seem to find the colorway on the site, and it’s got no name on the label.  Karen said it came with a potluck order of yarn.  Yay!  Once I saw it, I had to have it, and now I’m pretty sure that I’m going to do the Jaywalker socks in that yarn, and do Karen’s pattern with the Magic Stripes.  Of course, all after I’ve done my friend’s Two Toed socks!  I cast on for those last night, but I ended up ripping it out because my caston was too tight and didn’t stretch at all, I definitely have to get used to this elastic yarn. . .it’s tricky.  So I’ll probably cast on again tonight, and see if I can make it any better.  Also, Karen told me that the Cascade Fixation is knit up on size 5-9 needles, not size 4’s like I thought.  After talking with her about it, I ended up buying a short set of size 8dpn’s.  But when I cast on, the sock leg looked enormous.  I don’t know, I’ll have to see.

In other news. . .there are packed boxes in my living room as I type this, and the *one* storage closet in my house is empty of most of their grooming products!  Rob and I are so excited!  I don’t know if that means that they know where they’re going, or if they’re just getting ready, but it shows that they’re taking the May 1st deadline seriously, which was something that had me concerned.  YAY FOR STUPID ROOMATES MOVING OUT!!

I’m worried again about work, this time because it’s my first week of full days, and I’m worried I’ll get bored, (not to mention cold, I freeze being there just 4 hours. . .).  Hopefully things will go smoothly.

The Socks Are DONE!!! I pushed and I pushed, and I made myself finish them today. :] (The pattern is not on the knitty.com site, it’s just what I happened to be browsing before I decided to take pictures) I give you, Easy Thin Socks:
I have serious issues with this pattern. But I’ll try to be nice. First. . .she tells you to cast on 73 stitches, but then tells you to arrange them on 4 dpn’s in such a way that if you followed the directions, you don’t have enough stitches. If you knit this pattern, start off by putting 20 stitches on needle 1, not 22 like it says. I didn’t knit it in two different colored yarns, so I didn’t have to worry about switching colors.

It might just be my own inadequacy, being a beginner sock knitter, but I’m pretty sure something was funny during the turning of the heel, and on the second sock I ended up with one stray stitch on one side of the heel that I didn’t know what to do with while I was still working the multiple stitches on the other side. :[ I remember that happening with the first sock too, but I have no idea how I avoided getting extra stitches on that first side. . .So the socks don't match in more ways than one, I definitely didn't knit them the same.

Picking up the stitches at the sides of the heel flap went alright. With the exception of the second sock and all those extra stitches I ended up with, they ended up in extra picked up stitches, that I had to decrease to match with the other side.

The toes were easy enough, but they're placed oddly. They're kind of like, diagonal to how your toes actually are (horizontal). I'm pretty sure that's how the pattern is supposed to be though, and not any fault of my beginner's status. It's kind of annoying on the first sock, my stitches were looser, and the sock is baggier around my foot, so when I walk, the toe twists a little bit. The second sock though, with all of it's mistakes, fits better. I knit a tighter stitch, and overall the sock just fits better. I wouldn't really recommend this pattern.
Not bad for my first pair though! I'm pretty sure that my next pair will be much better. . .this pattern was made by some woman somewhere, and not necessarily checked for errors. I have two patterns I'm planning on next. One is the Jaywalker pattern that I'll probably make in the Magic Stripes yarn that I bought the day I went looking for buttons. The other is from Cascade Yarns website, Two-toed Socks. This pattern is like, genius to me. I never thought to make a heel this way, but it's smart, and I look forward to trying it. These socks are for a friend of mine who heard that I was learning to knit socks and immediately wanted a pair to match one of his shirts that he wears out to clubs.

The shirt is black with different sized teal pinstripes. I helped him pick out the yarn for his socks, and he ordered it and had it shipped to my house. I didn't know he had also bought me a $20 gift certificate to YarnMarket.com for my trouble. !!! I don't know what to get!! That's not entirely true, I've got some ideas. The colors are a bit off in this picture, because of my monitor glow, but the match looks pretty good. I'm going to stripe the socks like his shirt. Had enough about knitting yet?

The Job has been good. I'm getting the hang of things, and I'm comfortable there. And they let me play around with a print ad today. We'll see how things go next week, when I'm there full time.

I went to Kohl's yesterday after work to use up some gift cards I got from Rob's Grandma and Great Aunt for Christmas. I didn't even know they were having a sale, and I made out pretty well, got two pairs of pants, a shirt, a shrug (that I should have made, but I bought it, it was on sale), a long sleeved shirt, a makeup kit and a bag of jelly beans. :] I gave those last to Rob. He liked them! Anyway, I’m pretty well off for getting new/more clothes for summer. I’d sorted through my clothes the last time I did laundry and put aside everything that doesn’t fit anymore or I never wear to give away.

I went to Target the other day to get a yoga mat so I can finally start doing that, and ended up getting a bunch of nice comfy stuff. I can’t wait until it’s warm enough to wear everything!

Now I’m going to enjoy my weekend, get back into the groove of these being my only entirely free days to do whatever I want again.