Crafts

I finished my very first knitted sock. See?

I also managed to cast on the second sock and get through the ribbing and the first inch or so of the leg. (It was a very, very long rehearsal last night.) The weather’s so icky, tonight might just be a good night to put a fire in the fireplace and do nothing but knit…and make some fancy, chocolate-y coffee.

Oh, dear. Now I’ve gone and done it. It’s only 10:30 in the morning, and I have to work all day, but now I just want to go curl up on my comfy chair with a warm blanket, a crackling fire, a mocha and my knitting…and my puppy!

OK, this is the reason why I didn’t add “start fewer projects” to my new years’ resolutions…I found sock yarn. Yes, I know, socks have been a very popular thing for knitters over the past year, which is perhaps why I didn’t bother. But then I found a yarn that I couldn’t resist. It’s hunter, navy and white, with a splash of lime green, and it creates patterns while you knit with it. (That link will take you to a sample sock, which it similar to, but not exactly like, the sock I’m knitting.) What will they think of next? Now, having never knit a sock before, I probably should have just found a pattern and stuck to it, but I couldn’t find one I thought I’d want to wear when it was done, so I’m kind of making it up as I go along. All the hard part is done: I’ve knit the cuff and leg, turned the heel, and I’m about half-way down the foot. Of the first sock. :) I’d post pictures, but I haven’t been home enough to take any. Trust me, it’s cute.

Today I finished not one but two cross-stitches. The one on the left was the one I just posted about. I brought it in for framing this afternoon (and purchased supplies for a new project, of course). I decided that before I started a new project I ought to just take a peek at the unfinished projects in my closet…and found the one on the right. I had finished all but about 2 hours worth of ribbon embroidery on it 5 years ago. Yes, you read that right, five entire years. Now that’s some serious procrastination. Why did I put it down with only 2 hours of work left? Who knows – I might have had to finish something as a gift, or maybe it was just because I wasn’t very good at ribbon embroidery at the time, and it seemed very daunting. How do I know it was five years ago? I apparently was very optimistic. The embroidery was at the top, and I always sign my pieces at the bottom. So before I scrolled to the top to finish the wisteria, I signed it. Maiden-name initials and everything. I think I’ll leave it that way, anyway, because I don’t have the heart to re-sign it. Unlike some of my unfinished projects that I don’t much care for anymore, I still love this one. The sentiment reads, “Kind hearts are the garden, kind thoughts are the roots, kind words are the blossoms, kind deeds are the fruits”.

It’s a very strange feeling to finish two big projects in one day. Even if the second one was mostly done. Very strange.

My sister-in-law, Jeannie, got me the All-Paper Camera kit for Christmas! It’s a pinhole camera that’s supposed to work…assuming I manage to put it together right. So far, I’ve only gotten to step 8 of the casing. If you want to see pictures, head to my craft pages…

Oh, and if you’re ever in Syracuse and in need of a good meal, head to Coleman’s Irish Pub. It’s about as close to authentic Irish food (and atmostphere) as you’re going to get on this continent. It made me want to go back…

I can knit in the dark! Well, I guess maybe it doesn’t really count, since there was plenty of moonlight…but I was actually able to start the scarf I’m working on while we were driving last night. Good thing, too, since I was having a hard time staying awake.

I showed my mom the yarn I wanted to buy, and she pulled her spinning wheel and a basket of wool out of the basement. I think I’ll still buy the yarn for this vest, but I would like to learn how to spin. It’s actually very rhythmic and relaxing, once you stop thinking about it. I’m not very good at it yet, as you can see from this example. Although, I suppose the fact that it holds together fairly well when you tug on it a bit is something…

I actually did get a part in Sound of Music – as a nun. It’s a small part, but it will still be fun. Unfortunately, thinking I hadn’t gotten a part, I agreed to accompany a children’s theater production of Guys and Dolls. So, I’m going to be very, vey busy this fall. If I had to go to every rehearsal for Sound of Music I would literally have a rehearsal for something every night of the week except Sunday. But considering it’s such a small part, I imagine I won’t have to be at every rehearsal until closer to the performances…I hope!

Last night I realized that I had totally screwed up a sleeve I was almost done with all the way back at the beginning. The only way to fix it was to rip it all out. The only thing worse than ripping out a sleeve is ripping out a sleeve done in Fair Isle (two colors). The only thing worse than that? Ripping out a sleeve done in Fair Isle on double-pointed needles. I just took ’em out and ripped…all the way back to the ribbing. I did manage to pick up the stitches there, though, so at least I didn’t need to re-do the ribbing. Funny, though, I was determined to at least put back part of what I had ripped before I went to bed, but it went so much faster than the first time I did it I managed to get even further than I was before I’d ripped. Maybe I’m just finally getting used to these dratted double-pointed needles… I actually finished the sleeve on my way in to work. (Thank goodness for car-pooling!)

See? Another project finished. I can too finish things occasionally! I have so many projects that are “almost done”, I will hopefully finish several things in the next week or two. Of course, only one person was really hassling me about it…not mentioning names or anything…just someone who lives in my house and isn’t a dog. :) So, now that I’ve finished that project, I can start another, right?

I took a break from the very warm, heavy afghan I’m knitting to go back to my sweater, which is all finished except the sleeves. It’s not hot enough out for the A/C lately, but it’s too warm to be sitting with 3/4 of a thick afghan on your lap! After using 13mm needles and two strands of yarn, using one strand of yarn on 4.5mm needles is like switching from little-kid crayons to big-kid crayons. And it’s faster, too! I’m done with one cuff and partway through the second just while watching the first half of the football game last night. I finally decided to do the cuffs flared, like the pattern described, since I won’t be wearing the sweater often enough to be annoyed by the excess fabric.

…I’m reading about other people crafting! OK, the spider has been at the top of my blog for far too long… Between being busy at work and feeling icky, I just haven’t felt like blogging. I think it’s just allergies gone very awry, but it still sucks to not feel well just as the weather is starting to turn fall-like and wonderful. So, I’ve been reading a lot. I found a book at my local needlework shop about a month ago, and hadn’t read it yet – the shop owner talked me into buying it, but it’s a murder mystery, and I’ve never really been into mysteries. (Except that one year in grade school when I read the entire Nancy Drew series and the Hardy Boys series…) Well, I started reading it Monday night, and couldn’t put it down until I’d finished it – unfortunately, that was well after 1 a.m.. Yesterday on my way home from work, I stopped at Borders to see if they had any more books from the series and found two more – I’m halfway through one of them already. I had to force myself to stop reading at a reasonable hour so I could go to sleep. And, there are at least three more in the series that I haven’t been able to find yet. The main character owns a needlework shop, and reading about all the wonderful projects that people in the book are doing makes me want to craft – except I want to find out whodunit, so I can’t put the book down. What a pickle. :)