Strung Out

Here are the finished Broad Street Mittens.... glittens!

the Boyfriend is getting his Christmas present a little early- as long as I get to rewrap them for Christmas morning. :D

You might notice that the mitten part looks different from the pattern... Instead of doing a pointer mitten top with a loop on top, I did a common sock-decrease pattern (decrease 4 every other row, grouped on the ends.) I also crochetd loops to lie flat, rather than stick up on top, so they wouldn't snag on things, and I reinforced the loops by making half-hitches on the loops to make it stronger. Finally, I sewed down about 1/2 of the ribbing on the mitten, and it flips back great.

And of course, the shamrock buttons just rock!

finally, the handspun that I finished today (this is the faux cashmere I dyed blue and fuschia. Of course the color is off, but it's fairly close- maybe just a little lighter :) 92 yards

This is Liz's fabulous vest... I was a bit of an enabler, and sort of "challenged" her to finish it by today... (she started it last week! Yes, you can all be ridiciously jealous with me) In case you want more Sit and spin pictures, head over to her blog at http://knitandspincrazy.blogspot.com/

At the Spin and Knit at Elizabeth's house... it was so much fun!

And finally, the hobo gloves I made for Chris. I have to go buy size 4 needles to make the mitten tops for these.

This is 2 ozs of the blue and pink spun up... the color really stinks in this picture, but I'll have to wait for daylight to rephotograph it.

Here's the purple colonial I finished spinning last weekend... look how even it is! I think I'm ready to start some crazier spinning soon

Sorry guys- I'm turning on the word verification for comments, since I've been getting spammed in old postings.

This doesn't mean you have to have a Blogger account to leave a message- you can still leave anonymous messages- but now before it goes through, the comment box will have a picture of warped looking letters and/or numbers. You'll have to type what you see in the box, and presto- chango! Comment left.
:D

I really had a relaxing, wonderful fall break. After coming back from Chicago, I did some research on my Note topic, wrote an outline, worked on my cross and my close for my trial on Wednesday, and chilled. Oh yeah, and I knit. :)

I'm partway through a pair of Broad Street Mittens for my boyfriend... they'll be an early Xmas present (he's already seen them) I originally was going to keep it a surprise, but I made the most common Broad Street mistake- I used size 2 dpns for the ribbing, and switched to size 3's for the rest of the glitten. Apparently the designer meant for size 2 to be used for the hobo glove, and size 3's for the mitten top. yeah. whoops.
I didn't figure this out until I finished the entire left hobo glove, and I was irritated, to say the least. On my hand, the glove was really baggy. I panicked about ripping it out and reknitting it, when who knows whether it would fit either way! So I ruined the surprise, and had him try it on. Fortunately it fits much better on him, than it does on me- so no ripping was needed.
Even better- I found these great buttons to hold back the mitten - dark green shamrocks edged in gold (he's a double Domer- technically he'll be a triple Domer)

Also over the weekend I finished spinning the rest of the purple colonial top (the same stuff that I used in the purse) I'm thinking I'll make another felted purse for someone for Christmas- I have about a half ball of grey left. I also started spinning up one of the 4 oz. dyed rovings... the blue and pink one. I'm almost half way through... pictures will follow soon :)

I took the plunge! I've steam dyed some yarn and roving- although I missed the summer workshop, I think I did a pretty damn good job.

1 skein patons (middle and right) Classic Wool- merino dyed in turquoise, brilliant blue and royal blue... the bit on the right also has fushia, and the bit on the left is some of the let over blue faced leicester that I navajo plyed last week

4 ozs of (faux cashmere) roving dyed in fushia, brilliant blue and turquoise

the (faux cashmere) roving dyed in 2 colors... fushia and brilliant blue, colored while it was bunched up.

here's some of the beautiful Blue-faced Leicester (did I spell that right?) spun to a medium or thin uneven weight... it turned out beautiful and so soft! It's about 150 yards... I think I'm going to spin up another 150 yards and make a hat- maybe even more, to make another cable scarf... either way, this project will be a while off :)

glamor shot of the felted bag... isn't it cute?

I've felted the gray and purple BurlySpun/ homespun bag from a few days ago, and I crocheted a few flowers out of the homespun. It's really cute, and maybe I'll post a picture tommorow after my callback.

:) wish me luck!

In 7 seconds I saw a stadium full of fans fall from intense joy. Waves of students rushing the field were pushed back, and then left the field after the loss. In 7 seconds, we lost the likelihood of being in the National Championships, but we learned what it is to lose well. When the players walked off the field, the crowd started chanting for them again, "We are ND." I admit... I got a little teary.

I can't wait to see what Weis does after he's had a round or two of recruiting.

I put in a site meter a few days ago- and I was surprised to see how many people read my blog from faraway places... Nova Scotia, Canada, United Kingdom, Poland, Australia, Norway and Singapore! (that would be emy... I love the felted monkey!)

Not to mention people from all over the US- I'm very excited to find so many far flung people are reading, and if you have a few moments, leave a message- I'd love to hear about who you are, do you knit, do you blog- Or did you end up here because you were looking for the band named "Strung-Out"?
C'mon... leave a comment- let's not leave it all up to Elizabeth!

Ok- down to business...
I picked up a meme from Larissa - I've been reading her blog for I think a year now, and she's a fabulous artist, an interesting person, and a new mom...
definitely a blog to read.

So anyway- I saw this on her site... and because I'm a dork, I picked it up, instead of reading White Collar Crime (ok- yes, I am reading- just taking a break... I didn't bring my knitting to school... today)

You google "Yourname needs" and list 10. use the quotes.
1. Kristine needs a mentor who knows that (a) change is a predictable series of stages; (b) change is a process; (c) change is individualized; (d) anxiety and uncertainty are a part of change; and (e) people involved in change need personal and technical support. Such a mentor can help Kristine "find[ing] meaning and satisfaction in new ways of doing things" (Fullan, 1985, p. 396). (augh! they're watching me!)
2. Kristine needs two courses to complete her BS from Clayton College (never mind this law school stuff)
3. Kristine needs the lead-time!
4. But Kristine needs help with a paper. (do I EVER! Who wants to help me with research... c'mon- it's legal research! Ok... I don't want to either)
5. Kristine needs to two-way HotSync
6. Kristine needs to make one to hang in the shop (heh- this one was actually from Wendyknits... about the well known yarn-shop owner Kristine)
7. Kristine needs to talk to KT about pop prices at the sleepover (hmmm.... sleepover is code for knitting group, right?)
8. Kristine needs a room mate! (Like hell I do! I don't live very well with others)
9. And that Kristine needs to establish herself as "pack leader" and become "calm assertive" (done and done)
10. Kristine needs to improve her time. (management?)


My favorite is #9... Surprised?

The 1st 3 1/2 inches of my shell... and the shell it's resting on is the template. I'm a little unsure if I have quite enough yarn to finish this project... but I'm pretty sure I do- and I'll know for sure once I finish the next ball of yarn

And just so you don't think I'm jumping into this without a plan...
I don't always knit without a pattern... Here's the measurements I knocked out this morning- although I guess measurements don't equal a pattern, do they? Whoops. :)

Project Specs;
yarn- Lamb's Pride Burly spun in grey and my 3rd homespun (doubled)
size 11 needles
no pattern
time taken- 1 week.

But this isn't finished yet... first I need to make another rectangle to line the bottom, so I get a really sturdy base, and I'm also thinking about a pocket on the inside. But I definetly and going to make a few flowers out of the homespun, I'm unsure if I'm going to felt them or not though.

In other knitting news,
my swatch from last week finally dried! My gauge is... drumroll please...
26 sts per 4in and 32 rows per 4in. Not too shabby, hmm? The frightening thing is that the ribbing gauge is about the same sts across. Although it was wavering between 26 and 27... so maybe it will be a little tighter. I measured out a shell I use under my suit... so it might be leaping onto the needles today!

The trials went fine... could have been better, could have been worse.
At least they're over. At least for a few days.... I've got one more trial on Wednesday- and expert witness trials in November sometime.

But for now, I get to catch up on resumes, research and knitting/spinning.

:)

This weekend I have mock trials- basically my final for my Trial Advocacy class. I'm excited, but a little scared too! Today I'm a witness for one trial, and an attorney for the other... same on Sunday.

So I'll tell you all Sunday night how it went- or Monday morning if there is a bit post-trial celebration!

btw- I got well over 100 hits in the 24 hours after the Yarn Harlot linked to me... not bad, eh?

This is the swatch for the shell I'm going to make... size US 3 for the ribbing at the top, and 5's for the actual body of the sweater. Tonight it gets washed, since I've had some serious problems with not swatching in the past. I mean really, who would have guessed it was more important than the urge to knit RIGHT NOW!

Here's a picture of the Yarn Harlot... mere mortal that she is (I still don't believe that by the way)

Here's a picture of Elizabeth and I, spinning away- in the corner of the room. Look at her smile! You can tell she's having the time of her life!

I was linked by the Yarn Harlot!

If you're traveling from over there..... leave a note saying hello- and a link to your blog (if you have one) I'm a big fan of blogsurfing from comments.

I've had an absolutely crazy week... No spinning around here since the Harlot's visit Sunday. Instead I've been getting my trial notebook and parts together (opening statement, direct examinations, cross examinations and closing arguments) I basically have a final this upcoming weekend.

But even though I've been working hard... I still found some time for knitting!
I've been working on an unpattern for a felted purse.... and started a swatch from the yarn I won from Chappysmom's contest way back when.

I've also started dreaming of lace shawls.... I blame several people- the Harlot, for explaining that lace knitting is the most economical (darn those logical arguments!) Elizabeth, for extolling the beauty and fun of knitting shawls, Ada for finishing the Shaped Triangle Shawl from "A Gathering of Lace." Like I said on her blog... I....must...make....that....shawl.

Ok- deep breath. The shawl will have to wait- hopefully this new project will last me until Thanksgiving... when I bet I could get my mom to get me an early Christmas present. She loves the fact that I knit.

Ok- in final news... there was a news article about the Harlot... I got an unnamed mention... I am the knitter who ripped apart a perfectly good Ann Taylor sweater to reknit it.
Sounds sane to me...

** just a quick note, and then I'm off- The Elizabeths are calling me to the dark side.... lace shawls- I've heard once you've crossed, there is no return. The pull is strong... and then I saw this
I MUST MAKE THAT SHAWL!
Ava was nice enough to email me back, to tell me (the shawl that must not be named) is from A Gathering of Lace... which we all know is the Seirenes call.

(The Seirenes (or sirens) lured passing sailors to their death with their bewitching siren-song. Those who heard the haunting melody lost all thought of Home and languished on the Sirens' rock until they died. Or they forgot their sailorly craft and shipwreck ensued.- Odysseus wanted to hear their song, so he was lashed to the mast of the ship, so he wouldn't leap overboard in an attempt to get to the half women, half birds)

Sounds familiar, doesn't it- Lost all thought of original purpose, and languished on the rock...
yep. I think I'm going to have to be restrained too.
I'm blaming the Elizabeths and Ava- thank you so much!

(I hope you were reading that title in the Comic Book Guy's voice from Simpsons-if you don't know what the heck I'm talking about, just ignore the woman behind the curtain)

Culled(okay, copied word for word) from the Chicago Tribune Online edition (today's)
"Nicolas Cage, who was once set to star in Tim Burton's doomed Superman project, hasn't let go of the Man of Steel.The Oscar winner and his wife, Alice Kim Cage, became the proud new parents of Kal-el Coppola Cage on Monday morning, Zap2it.com reports.For those scratching their heads about the latest weird celebrity baby name, Kal-el is Superman's original Kryptonian name before he was adopted by lowly Earthlings Jonathan and Martha Kent and renamed Clark Kent."

The poor, poor baby- ok, so he's a baby to a very wealthy family - but the name is so sad. Either this kid is going to grow up the biggest Superman fan EVER, son of the biggest Elvis fan EVER- or he's going to rebel and have everyone call him Lex. As in Lex Luther... Superman's nemesis.

By the way, this just adds to my theory that most actors aren't about the craft, really they just want attention. Lots and lots of attention.

I had such a good time yesterday- first at the book signing, and hanging out at Sit & Knit, and later at dinner with Stephanie, Jack and Kim (owners of the Sit & Knit) and Dorothy- winner of the drawing. It was so generous of Jack and Kim to invite me along, they were wonderful hosts- I will be haunting their shop from now on- did I mention how much I love that place! Stephanie is a fabulous storyteller, not that I should be surprised about that, but she is so expressive, in gestures, movements, voice and tempo. I was absolutely enthralled, just sitting and listening (and laughing) to Stephanie and Jack (who is also quite a storyteller).

I'm at school right now (and all week long) so it's unlikely that I'll have many pictures posted- I didn't even take that many- and I forgot to get one with me in it! D'oh! But Elizabeth has a few pictures she might share with me, if I'm really nice : )

in knitting news- I realized I only have 3 projects on needles, not counting 1 crochet project- Oh, how far I've fallen! So I cast on for a felted bag with grey Lamb's Pride burly spun- it's super bulky. I originally bought the yarn in a shop in LA, the one and only time I was out there, visiting my aunt. I made a lacey scarf out of it, and it itched me the 2 times I wore it. So it was frogged, and is starting life anew. I'm going to top the bag with my purple homespun... and maybe grace it with a flower or two. We'll see. But this whole lack of projects is serious! So I'm going to relist my project priorities... after I'm done working on trial ad.

and if anyone cared- the golf lesson on Saturday was a success- a beautiful, sunny day, an 1 1/2 lesson with a PGA professional, and I can actually hit the darn golf ball! But don't tell Chris- he might want to go to the range before it snows... and right now all my free time is dedicated to knitting and spinning.

off to go read Evidence!

**update** I did not have a lesson with a PGA touring professional... I had a lesson with a PGA certified instructor- still a really great lesson, but without the outrageous price tag ;)

So I spent time today working on writing up the mini-handbag I made a while ago, the one people suggested I submit to Knitty... and I sent it in- today was the deadline.

It took Knitty 1 hour and 2 minutes to reject it. ouch.

But that means I can edit it and submit it to SPUN magazine by October 14th... and if it's rejected again, I'll post it here for free. Unless I find somewhere else to submit it. :)

I'm going to bring it to the Yarn Harlot's book signing tommorow, to ask a few close and personals to give me their honest opinion.... if you are know for discriminating taste, fabulous style and attention to detail- I want to meet you tommorow. Capice?