Sock it to me baby!

Ok, what is with the weather? This weekend was beautiful and in the 80's - hello walks in the park in shorts and a tank top! I even set out a nice spring wardrobe but when I woke up...IT WAS RAINING AND IN THE 40's!

Boo hiss.

On the bright side, there was a rocking thunderstorm last night! And after wearing black and grey to work today and watching tv under blankets and a hoodie, I forced myself to pick up knitting needles and make something.

I began knitting....a nose warmer!!

APRIL FOOLS!

It is the toe of a sock. That's right, I FINALLY picked up my needles and started making a sock - from the toe up! The beginning was rather frustrating and small, but I pushed through and now have the beginning of a sock!

I'll keep you posted on its progress :)

Knitty.

Apparently February is my month to discover and declare new goals for this year/my bucket list...

I like to knit. Duh. But lately, I've been so distracted with work and sleep (I loooooove sleep!) that I haven't been able to keep up with working out, playing with Elphie, reading, AND knitting. What does that mean? It means I need to make another goal to get some of this stuff done!

Not only am I going to knit a pair of socks this year, but I'm going to finish all the knitting projects I started last year and left unfinished because I got distracted. Here's a list of projects I need to complete from last year:

-DONE: Donation hat. Just a little something to help out a kiddo who needs to keep his ears warm this winter.
-Blanket. It's gonna be big and soft and purple! I'm already half way there.
-Pot holders (for the kitchen!). That's right - a ridiculously easy project that I never completed.
-A bikini. Believe it or now, I'm knitting a bikini. I started it last summer with the hopes of wearing it before the chill of autumn set in, but it got thrown to the wayside. Now that I'm taking a kickboxing class, I'll have even more motivation to finish it for summer.

I also accrued a few knitting books last year that I hardly looked at, so I'm hoping to knit at least one thing from each book this year too. I'll keep you posted on that one.

Enjoy the snow wherever you are! Until next time...

Sock Troubles

Last week, I decided to take some time for myself and hit up a local knitting shop (something I've been dying to do since I got my first paycheck). The closest shop to me is the Kirkwood Knittery, so I grabbed my wallet and drove on over, telling myself that I would only buy yarn for Christmas projects right now. I follow a few knitting blogs and most of those knitters waited until the last minute to get their knitting done last Christmas, so I decided that I would not back myself into that kind of pickle. I went in and only allowed myself to buy 4 skeins of yarn and after a nice conversation with one of the employees, I was invited to come back for their Thursday knitting night from 7-9. I had every intention to go back for the knitting night, but then I ended up falling asleep after dinner, so to make up for it, I knitted for the rest of the night...and got no where.
I had decided to try my hand at making a pair of socks; I've been wanting to since January and just haven't gotten around to it, so last Thursday was my night. I got pretty far and was just about to make the heel of the sock when everything fell apart. I had double pointed needles going every which way, some parts of the sock growing in size when others just stayed the small size they were and then it was over. I set down the failed attempt at a sock and walked away. Now I have to rip it all apart and start over or just leave the ruined project where I left it. But the latter is not me, so I'll be starting that project over again shortly and HOPEFULLY I'll have new socks to show for it sooner than later.

The Knitting Machine Strikes Again

I finished my hat! It's a modified version of the Felicity hat which is very hipster but with a bit of my own style thrown in, and it only took me 3 days to make! I used sizes 5 and 7 circular needles for the hat and instead of purling the first round for the brim to roll up, I knit 13 rounds of seed stitching to make a cool design. All-in-all, I think it turned out very well! Especially since this is the yarn I tried to use for the two failed hats I mentioned in a previous post. Third time really is a charm!

Also, I splurged and bought eye shadow in a new, funky color, which happens to match my hat. Normally I don't venture to try new eye shadows, but I saw the idea in the April issue of InStyle Magazine (part of my journey to dress and look my age) and decided to give it a whirl. Just apply dark blue eyeliner thickly to upper and lower lids, smudge it with a brush, apply Revlon's Venetian Blue eyeshadow over the eyeliner, slap on some mascara and voila! A new look in seconds. Score. Here's some pics so check me out. No, seriously, check me out. [Thais link takes you to where that exact quote is said on the homestarrunner.com page; a website I used to frequent in high school and a specific quote I use to this day. It's pretty funny if you have some time to kill, but has nothing to do with make up.]
Until next time...

I'm a knitting MACHINE!

I've had knitting revelation: knitting with circular needles is SO easy. Once I learned to knit, I only knitted two projects with regular knitting needles. The other um-teen million projects I've made with circular and double pointed needles and almost forgot what it was like to knit with regular needles until the other night. I was teaching myself how to knit a cable pattern and used regular needles and it was SUCH a hassle. The needles were long, awkward to hold, and I was shocked at how weird it felt to use those needles. I guess that means I'm just a natural at making circular projects (ie: hats, socks-even though I haven't tried those yet, but I've got a good feeling about it).

Speaking for circular projects, I made ANOTHER hat!

And its bright green! (shocking, right?)

It's not for me, believe it or not, but I could definitely pull it off if it was mine...

It's for someone I worked with this spring. I've made a very similar hat for myself and someone else I worked with during the spring, but those were fuzzy and multi-colored. All three of them have turned out well and I keep revising the pattern as I go along and it just keeps getting better :)

My next knitting project is going to be a combination of hat styles and hopefully it will turn out how I want it. I'll keep ya posted. And then maybe I'll try my hand at a pair of socks. I'm also thinking about knitting a blanket...so many choices and so much time to try it all! Can't stop this knitting machine!

April showers bring May flowers

Hey y'all! I am back in Washington enjoying time with my boyfriend and pup. The spring season went by ridiculously fast and I can't believe I'm done. My last 2 crews were awesome and a challenge. I had a Venture crew from California who were a ball to be around (the awesome ones)! Every dinner, they wore fun hats/headgear such as bunny ears on Easter Sunday, or shark and fish hats (and they got me one! So exciting!) We all got along really well and it really made me want to be a part of a venture crew once I settle into a more permanent location. My last crew was the challenge because the kids never really talked and the adults only talked sometimes, which can be really weird, especially at the beginning of the week. By the end of the week, they started talking more, but for some reason they didn't believe that I could swim...which is silly because I work on THE OCEAN. In the end, they had a good time and that's all that matters. But I am VERY glad to be back with Aaron and Elphie. 

Speaking of the pup, I was worried that Elphie wouldn't remember me because I've been gone for 3 months, but at the same time was attempting to mentally prepare myself for starting over with her. Turns out, she DID remember me! :0) She ran outside and jumped into my arms when she saw me and has been back to following me around ever since, as though no time has passed between the day I left for the airport and now. What a comforting feeling! And even though she's a small dog, she still attempts to protect me when I am in "harms" way. Whenever Aaron turns me upside down and I yelp or if he starts tickling me and I scream, Elphie will rush over to wherever I am and try to get in-between me and Aaron or will just jump on my lap and try to stare him down. She backs down very quickly, but it's very cute and reassuring that she'd at least come to me if I was seriously hurt. And she's got a good memory too- she remembers all the tricks Aaron and I taught her. She can wave goodnight, shake, rollover, fetch, lay down. Now I've gotta make her a better protector dog ;)

Since I've been back with Aaron and Elphie, I've been counting my blessings. After being gone so long from the ones you love, you start to remember to not take them for granted and you realize just how important they are in your life. Whether it's Elphie silly puppy smile or actually being able to hug Aaron whenever I want to, I didn't really take into account how crucial they are to my happiness. And I don't ever want to be away from them for that long ever again. Unfortunately, I don't get the same privilege with the rest of my family and friends, but I'm still very grateful for the time we have spent together and am very much looking forward to seeing everyone again someday (hopefully sooner than later)!  

In recent knitting news, I've been a failure. I was on a roll making cool beanies for a couple friends and I made a cool slouchy hat and was even teaching other people how to knit when it all fell apart. I tried making a fuzzy, lacy beanie for Jillian, but it turned out looking like a Chinese rice-picker's hat. Then I tried making a blue slouchy hat with a neat band that looks like a strap, and, unfortunately, got a huge rice-picker hat again. I think the problem was that both the patterns start from the top-down instead of from the bottom of the hat to the top and so I have sworn off all hat patterns that are top-down. I've also taken a temporary hiatus since my last knitting fiasco but I'm gonna get back to the needles this week and knit up a beanie or two and then perhaps move onto bigger and better things like wicked-awesome socks, or maybe even a toasty warm blanket. I'll keep you posted once I decide!

(rice-picker's hat)

(learning to knit parties)

Now, you're probably wondering what I'm doing with the next few months of my life. That makes two of us. I'm in Washington till the end of the week and then we're going to La Grande to visit some of Aaron's friends. Then...who knows. There's talk of a job offer for Aaron in Wyoming, maybe Wisconsin. We're also waiting to see if he gets his captain's license in time to work the summer in the Keys. We've got our fair share of waiting to do before we figure out what's going on so cross your fingers and hope for the best!

Until next time...

Party like its 2009

I hate making New Years Resolutions. Most people, including myself, forget about the resolution by mid-February and find a new reason (spring break, Lent, a vacation) to follow up with their broken resolution. Because of this, I have never made a New Year's Resolution, until this year. And this year is the only exception! I have learned to knit and almost made an entire scarf until I messed the stitching up beyond belief and tore the whole thing apart. Now it is once again a lump of yarn sitting on my shelf. I enjoy knitting and would love to be able to knit things for my friends and family AND myself (I got a sweet book for Christmas with knitting tips and cool patterns. I have my eye on some wicked cool socks...) so I have come up with this resolution to get myself rolling. If I can finish at least ONE thing, it will surely provide the accomplishment and confidence that I need to become a knitting fiend! 

My New Year's Resolution: To start and finish knitting an entire something (sock, scarf, blanket, etc.).

Things I'm hoping to see in 2009:

-A "grown up" paycheck

-No sunburns

-Christen

-STL

-Myself volunteering more 

-Getting rid of stuff I don't use (clothes, books, etc.) and not buy more stuff I don't need

-Living simply so others can simply live

-Keeping off the 10 lbs. I lost in 2008

Good luck with you and your resolutions! I'm gonna go start on mine. Until next time...