Knitting Olympics

Yep, I signed up! Call me crazy, I probably am, but I decided I just wanted to be part of this! It'll be a great challenge for me! I had a little hard time deciding on what to knit, but I finally decided on knitting a lace shawl. I started the Second Mystery Shawl ages ago, but never finished it. I will finish it, that's not the question. But actually having a deadline on knitting something is ok with me!

Now, I need the help of the few people that read this tiny blog! I haven't made up my mind yet on which lace shawl to knit. I don't really know how to put up an actual poll, so you'll just have to vote through the comments (knowing the tiny amount of people reading here, I guess that won't be much of a problem).

Anyway, the possibilities :

1. The Snowdrop Shawl by the Yarn Harlot (at the same time organizing these Olympics!)

2. Lovely Lacy Shawl

3. Daisies Shawl

4. All Tangled Up (Kiri)

I would really appreciate it if you would all go and vote! I'll keep this open for about a week or so, and then decide!

More updates later! :D

Still no pictures of actual knitting. Sorry guys. There isn't much knitting going on. Actually, right now I should be sitting on the couch knitting on the cardi for my mother. But I HATE it! Yep, I'm honest enough to admit that I really don't like the yarn (can you imagine I have 2 more full cones of it? Was I stupid or what? I should get away from textured yarns all together 'cause I don't like knitting with them. When am I going to get smarter) and it's hell to knit with it. I'm using huge needles - did I ever mention how much I hate anything up 4 mm? Ok, maybe I can handle 5 mm as well, but anything as high as 8 or 9 mm is really out of my happy range! - and it's not advancing at all. Adding that the yarn bleeds. So Yuck!

Worst of all : little me here promissed my mom her cardi would be done by the weekend! By the weekend! Hell! I have done about 10 cm. That's it! I was hoping it would go quicker with the big needles. But nope.

Oh well, I'm back to knitting something I like for another 20 min or so before I crash early tonight. I'm on the verge of getting ill, and I have a whole day of helping out at the riding school ahead of me tomorrow, so I really need to rest! Next Monday is going to be total day off FOR SURE! Nobody to get me away from that one, I swear!!!

Vogue

No knitting today, my mom told me I didn't have time to knit this afternoon 'cause I had to paint the house. Yeah, right. I'm not going to rush. I'm home for the second day now! I have 3 more months to go! I am going to do this, hopefully this or coming week. But please, don't rush me!!

Anyway, I've been considering buying the new Vogue Knitting magazine, but well, there's only one pattern I really want to knit (after seeing the contents of the magazine) and I'm thinking it's just to much for a magazine you will hardly knit from. Anyway, what I like :





This is the one I really like! I don't really have the boobs to fill it up like this, but other then that I could wear it!







Like this top, though without the pockets. Though I've never worn tops like this before.










I would make it shorter for sure, but other then that I like cuddly vests like this.







Yes you all, that's it! I might consider the cabled hat, but I think that's it. So is it worth it to buy this magazine? I mean, I really, really like the first pattern, but it's still a lot of money for just one pattern, right?

By the way, I love the way this girl comments on patterns and all, I hope she doesn't mind I'm "stealing" the idea a bit! :D

Off now, I've been trying my new spinning wheel, and I want to spin some more before I'm off to the riding school!

More knitting!

Yesterday evening I got some knitting done. Well, first of all, to prove to Doni I haven't forgotten about the "Mog-socks", a little progress picture :

See, I haven't forgotten aobut you! The first sock is done, and I'm almost finished with the first repeat on the second sock! They do look awfully big to me, so it's possible you'll have to rip them a bit and redo the toe, I hope you don't mind, but I would rather have them a bit big then to small!

Another work in progress are the Shadow socks for the SixSocksKAL :

The colours are more acurate in the close-up. It's simple superwash sock yarn. I regret now using a 2,5mm addi instead of 2mm, but it's ok. I hope to finish these soon.

And here's the first of a whole set of wrist warmers I have to knit :

Sock yarn, superwash (Arnell), 2,5mm round needles.

I'm using a basic pattern made up out of a variating of other patterns, and added the little lace for fun. Well, I want to have fun while knitting these. I need to make 7 pairs like this (well, maybe with another fantasy to them) for my mom, and then I need to knit 5 more pairs in some kind of purple colour. It's for the childrens play I'm in. I'm playing one of the 7 witches and my mom wants us all to wear these. I have 6 more weeks to finish these, though I give myself 4 weeks (this one included). I finished this glove in about 2 days, so I should be able to make it, right?

The cardigan for my mother is not getting anywhere at all. I just don't feel like knitting it, while I just promissed her to get it done by the end of the week! Yikes! I'm thinking of dropping the lace pattern and just knitting it raglan style on big needles. The yarn can do with it. I'll take some pictures tomorrow!

Thanks for those interested in my possible sock yarn. I can do 2 kinds : 100% merino (handwash) or 70%wool, 30%poly (superwash). Both are nice. I'll try to get some pictures of the yarn I already did (and knitted up) and I'll try to dye some more in the coming few days.

I spent the whole day organizing and cleaning. Much more cleaning to do, but I'm pleased with myself as it was a productive day. I really should be getting to bed now, more tomorrow!

Might be around a bit more

And I might be finishing up some projects a bit sooner then I thought. I got fired from my job today. Not a big surprise really, after all the problems I had and the total lack of motivation of my side the last couple of weeks.

The feeling at the moment is very dual. I'm very happy to out of that place, I wasn't happy at all and couldn't stand being there any longer. But having to go look for another job scares me sooo much! I have some time though, as I get payed till the end of April and don't have to go to work, so plenty of time to figure things out.

I have a huge list of things I'll be doing in the near future. Now I'll post more about that later as I have to go now. But here's a little question for the very few reading this blog : if I would start painting some yarn - mostly sock yarn - would anyone be interested in buying it from me? Just wondering ...

The big one!

Yep, finally, sitting down for the big update! I still desperately need to work on the look-out of this blog but I figured a proper update had priority! *grin*

Yep, I have been knitting, but not as much as I would want to. There are a few projects to show off though. I don't even remember which ones I already showed, and which I didn't show just yet.

First of all, 2 things I finished during the trip to Germany :




The Alpaca Gloves from Knitscene. I did use different yarn then in the project, but it turned out lovely!









Shawl knitted out of pure wool, matched the nice white hat I knitted just before we left. I used a random cable pattern. This shawl is HUGE and super warm, I love it!







That's it! I didn't get to visit any yarn stores in Germany :(. Boyfriend wanted to go skiing, and when we returned the weather was so bad it seemed better to me to just keep on going till we were home instead of making a stop on the way for a yarn store. There wasn't a yarn store in the little town we were staying at, though I found some lovely sock yarn (Regia and some less know) in the local supermarket! Looking forward to knitting it all up.

Coming home I started working again on the cardigan for my grandfather, but I didn't finish it till the week after New Year. It didn't matter though. This is what I did manage :












Pre-felting Post-felting

Yep, these are the Fuzzyfeet ! One strand of 100% pure wool (store-bought), one strand of 100% mohair, and one strand of glittery thread. They turned out really nice! They needed 2 washings though, to get felted well. But I knitted them in one evening! They were for my aunt who's really happy with them.



This is my grandma with the felted bag I gave her on New Years Eve. Sorry, I don't have a better picture. Same wool of above though in another colour, and I used the Sophie Bag pattern. I would have gave it one more trip through the washer if I had the time though. But my grandma loved it. I'm going to knit one for myself as soon as I get the time!





A last picture of New Years Eve :







My sweet grandfather and me! Lovely, isn't it? :D







Then, I finished the cardigan for my grandfather last weekend :



Knitted out of 100% superwash wool (Arnell), on size 4 mm needles. Need to check the book I got the pattern from. Actually my first big thing I finished! I'm happy, though I could have done a lot better. My grandfather won't notice though, he likes it! :D






Then a few things I finished for myself the last week or so :











The pair of blue socks actually is my first FO of 2006! It's the Conwy pattern from Knitting on the Road from Nancy Bush. With my own handpainted 100% merino.

The other Sock is in Regia, mate need to be knitted. I used 2mm needles and made the leg a bit to big, so it'll be slouchy socks, but that's ok! These actually are my movie socks (I knit on them in the cinema!).

This is a really good start as I already decided this will be the year of the sock for me! I love knitting them and I'm getting adicted to wearing them as well! No more store bought socks for me! Hopefully I can knit quick enough! :D

So I'll be also joining the 200Socks by RoseByAny! More about that in a following post!

That's it for now I think! I'm working on a various amount of socks, and have plenty ideas for posts. I'm planning on taking up posting more often, keep reading please! I'll also try to make this blog look better over the weekend, but it'll be a very, very busy weekend for me with lots of therapy on Saturday (me giving hippotherapy that is) and a jumping competition on Sunday, and lots of sleep in between 'cause I'm really extremely tired these days!

Oh, and Rox! I started on the Second of the SET socks! I'll let you know when they are done! Donni, haven't forgotten about you! Soon you'll have a pair of socks!

Awful day

I was planning on posting a long update tonight, as there is quite a little to tell you all, but then I happened to loose another cell. Yes, another. It's like almost a year since I lost one (that one probably got stolen). My following one was a really bad one and so I decided on spending almost €300 on a new one, one to last me a couple of years. I bought it less then 2 weeks ago. And today I lost it. I just lost it! I'm in tears, upset, with a major headache. I'm feeling so bad. I loved this cell. The best one I had had for ages. Gone. Gone. :'( Another update when I'm feeling a bit better ...

Just wanted to say ...

Happy New Year!!

All the best for the coming year!

I will try to update properly one of the coming days, probably tomorrow. I have pictures to show and things to tell, but right now I need to do some knitting and catch up on some much needed sleep!

Yeah, I do have 1 resolution for the new year, the same one I had last year, I'm going to continue to try working on it!

Thank you to those who wished me a Merry Christmas (Sandra!) / Happy New Year. Haven't been around much, but will be in the near future!

*love*

Ps.: Tried to use another template, and lost all my links and such. Will work some more on the blog tomorrow!