Going Home

Who says you can't go home again? I recently went to visit my sister in Laguna Niguel and since Bakersfield is on the way, I stopped for a short (one hour) visit with my cousin. My mom was with me and she suggested we drive by our old high school. Yep, I went to the same high school (and junior high!) as my mom, exactly twenty years later. Above you can see one of my favorite spots, the East High Auditorium. I was in Drama (so was my mom, does the apple fall far from the tree?) so I have many fond memories of plays and musicals held there. I can still see the lines of people waiting for the doors to open. I can even remember snippets of conversations as we hurried by to get into our costumes and make-up. Oh, the memories!

In Da Hoodie

It's finished! I am completely done with my Neck Down Hoodie. The pattern is from Knitting Pure & Simple. I used fabulous Brook Farms Yarn wool and silk blend Four Play yarn and size 7 and 9 needles. It feels great on and I can't wait to wear it. You might be thinking I'll have a long wait for cool weather since I live in California, but not so! I work in a very cold office and so I'll be wearing it later this week...ahh! I started this project in March, soon after coming back home from Stitches West where I bought the yarn. I wove in the ends and attached the button on Friday. It was a pretty fast knit considering I didn't work on it for much of March and April. I recommend it to anyone that doesn't mind lots of knit stitch.

Waiting for Habu

Last month I went to Petaluma's yarn shop Knitterly with some of my fellow Chicks (Hi Cathy and Janice! ) and their friend (Hi Shar!) We had a great time learning to read Japanese knitting patterns and trying on all the great samples. I spent my life savings (well, not really but it felt like it) on some sweater kits. Now I'm impatiently waiting for my swell yarn to arrive. I've been checking the porch patio everyday to no avail. I believe my package is 3 business days overdue. I would absolutely love to order more kits, one for a bag in particular, but I need faster gratification. Okay, I've got go research Habu retailers...Bye!

Fawkes in Socks

This is the yarn I dyed to make Gigi Silva's (Monkey Toes) Fawkes pattern. The pattern was inspired by Dumbledore's phoenix from the Harry Potter series. I looked and looked and searched high and low for a colorway reminiscent of the mythical bird that rises from the flames.
Finally I decided to dye my own to get the exact colors I wanted in the exact order I wanted and the exact stripe size I wanted.

Considering that hand dyeing at home (by a someone new to the process no less) is not an exact science, I am well pleased with the result.

I am finished with the first sock and well on my way on the second. I'm trying to finish them before the end of May to enter them in Socktopia's May theme "Hot Feet". Wish me luck, please!

April is for Anklets

This year I committed to finishing one pair of socks a month for the Sock-a-Month group on Ravelry. For April, that pair had to be anklets. I chose a pattern that I received in a swap last year. The yarn I got from a sock kit swap a couple of years ago. The yarn is Marion's Sock Yarn from Germany. I like this pattern and think the yarn was a good fit for it. The toe is not my favorite, but I wanted to, for once, work a pattern exactly as written!

Single Sock Syndrome

I never thought it would happen to me. Okay, it has happened to me before, but I never thought it would happen again. I like to knit and I like to finish projects. I also love symmetry. So how could I fall victim to SSS (Second Sock Syndrome)? I blame it on my iPod and Ravelry. There are so many great patterns out there in the knitting world, especially for socks. I hear about this pattern and see that pattern and find these oh-so-convenient links. Last month I had five socks on needles at once. I finished one complete pair (see post below) and one sock each of the other 4 patterns I was working on. Leaving me 4 mates to knit up. Now we're in April and I have committed to knitting at least 2 new sock patterns this month. See how my dilemma grows? I will faithfully cast on one pair tonight (the Nutkins) and another pair tomorrow (April Mystery Sock) and when will I work on my second socks from March? Now that my training time at work is over, I have four less knitting hours each day. I predict knitting insomnia for the next few weeks.

This Just Woven-In

I just finished my Jaywalker's. I joined a group on Ravelry to knit one pair of socks a month. Each month has a theme and Jaywalker's was February. I duly cast on in February but so late in the month, I couldn't have finished them. I was working on the No-Purl Monkey Socks with my local CWS group. Now that both pairs are finished I can cast on my March socks. Yes, I know it's beyond the ides of March, but it is earlier than when I started in February!

About these socks:
Yarn: Knit Picks Bare Fingering 100% Merino hand-dyed by me
Needles: Knit Picks DPN's size 1 (2.25mm)
Pattern: Jaywalkers by Grumperina on Magknits
My rating: Love them! The fit is great and the color is very eye-catching (I'm calling them my Gigi Jaywalkers because they remind me of Gigi's grandmother's house in the 1958 musical)