Okay...I've been a very bad girl, in terms of forsaking my main passion...crocheting...I think Aunt Ann had it right when she said that I'm one determined female..( Well that wasn't her exact words...but, that's what it boiled down to..) And, maybe I am? Anyway, I worked through my little difficulty with k2tog. I can do it..but, I ran into ANOTHER problem while tackling the fan and feather...Now, I'm getting MORE stitches on the needles than what I'm supposed to have. I'm NOT in the least worried over it. I figure I'll figure out the solution to the problem soon enough. SO, NOT a big deal...And, I'm okay with that. I think it's just part of that learning curve...and everyone knows all about that critter, do we not?
Okay, now to get you all caught up...
My order from Knit Picks arrived just eight days after I placed it! I was delighted with how expedient the delivery service was...and the yarn is just gorgeous! No, I haven't done anything with any of it...except for wind down one of the yanks...( I LOVE how soft and silky the alpaca feels against my fingers!!! And the Stream Blue is GORGEOUS!!! I LOVE that shade of blue!) However, I had a problem...I found using to kitchen chairs back to back didn't work to well...not to mention the fact that I also had Molly trying to get at it...Yes, I know that's strange- a dog gunning for the yarn...but, Molly thought it was a toy! ( Dad thought it was comical....then again, he was praising Molly to the skies for her devious behavior over it! Oh yes, Miss Molly thought she was the Over grown Puppy Sensation that was a grippin' the nation, as it were...Then again, HER Human Papa was telling her what a good baby she was! LOL...- Which is a good thing in her world, I suppose...Molly DOES adore her human Papa...although HE sometimes can't decide if she deserves a good babying, or a good scolding!) - So, that means bellying up and getting one of those fancy yarn winder thingies... ( Then, next comes finding just the PERFECT patterns to use the stuff and make something wicked cool for those I picked out the yarn FOR..)
Now, for what's ON my needles...well, my size 7's....I'm nearly finished with the squares for the Paraquet baby blankie pattern ( It's in one of those Bonus Bernat books you can get at Wal Mart for the Bernat Baby coordinates Sweet Stripes. The 97 cent one...) - I've got 30 of the 36 squares it calls for completed and assembled. I'm working on square 31....- However, I had an extra expendature to make so I COULD complete the project..a size 7 circular needle. I had a bit of a problem with that, as it were...Wal Mart OR Michael's West didn't have 'em. SO, I had to make an extra trip....which in and of itself wasn't a bad thing. (Yes, I know....I gripe and groan about extra expendatures and the like...but, in this case, it was a trip I didn't mind making...- seeing as I was in the down town/ Delano area, anyway.- Had to go to SRS....)Anyway, I stopped in at that new yarn shop here in town....Twisty...( Well, don't tell the lady that owns it, but, Dad's taken to calling it "Warped and Twisted"...I just call it Twisted.) - Let's just say that I COULD get my self into DEEP financial doo-doo if I were to frequent there too often....Wowza...the yarn that lady's carrying is gorgeous, to say the least...and it's the high end stuff I drool over and wish I could afford... Noro, the Rowan, Debbie Bliss, Berocco...all that yummy good stuff....Not to mention the needles.. Anyway... I HAD to have that circular needle to finish off the blankie for "Little Britches"...and Point Protectors were needed...okay, I can justify that $10 spent as necessity. But, I DID splurge...I broke down and bought some Noro Kureyon...( Color 188.).... With the express intent of making a winter scarf with it for me..( Yes, I actually bought yarn intended for something for me, for once.) The kicker is, I don' t think two balls of the stuff is going to be enough....- And, at $8.50 a pop... I'm naturally a little concerned at the total expendature for THAT intended project! ( Ugh...Brilliant Move, Genita Lee! YOU didn't do your homework, did you, girl?!) - SO, yeah, for the foreseeable future, you're going to hear me getting all drooly over what I see, and wish I had as I shop there...LOL...
Now, for what my fingers are grooving on lately....the feel of the stuff, and how it works up...Okay, yes, once again, I'm going to be torking off the fiber snobs again....but, hey, a girl does what she's gotta do to keep the addiction going, right? ( And in a way that her wallet isn't going to hate her for it!) So, here's the short skinny of it, Nita style....
After working up a few of those squares for that baby blankie I mentioned for my little second cousin, Duane Lee... I found I LOVED how the stuff knits up...I think it knits up way better than it crochets up, if you ask me.... Not to mention that sparkly ply that's woven into it...it just makes that yarn shimmer and pop when it's knitted up. Not to mention how soft it feels against my fingers as I work with it! ( So, I KNOW with Little Britches thing for soft cuddlies, this blankie may be a favorite, I hope!)
Not to mention the fact that the stuff is wallet friendly....( $3.47 a skein at Wal Mart!) So, I can imagine that it wouldn't take much of it to knit up baby hats and booties- probably less than an entire skein... Not to mention that according to the hoodie pattern in that booklet, 2 skeins to make a baby blanket or a hoodie..- and that's NOT bad... Think about it- go to any store and try to buy those items pre-made, and it's going to cost you a lot more than what it would, if you were to make it yourself!
So, anyway, my next experiment- with out having to spend much to have the necesesary equiptment and materials is going to be experimenting with how the Red Heart Baby Soft, and Bernat Baby Softee knits up...- while getting my hands on those two yarns is no problem...the BIG problem and issue is finding the patterns...( Since I already did my home work on this experiment, in the pre planning/ Pre- Execution phase has already been done, I KNOW I can get the yarns needed at Wallie World...and the needles at Twisted's. - NOT a problem, consequently. But, the BIG issue is finding just the RIGHT, PERFECT patterns....)
Now, the reason WHY I say it isn't a big problem in terms of that is that I don't MIND having to get on the city bus to go get what I need for the experiment/ projects in mind is that I don't have to fool with shipping and handling...I mean really! $2.50 round trip on the city bus is way better than anywhere between $3.79- $10.00 alone for shipping and handling is way MORE wallet friendly, and there's no down time waiting for the goodies to arrive, as it were. Go buy the stuff, and dig in!!! Now, that's MY kind of knitting, and experimentation! - But, finding the PERFECT Patterns is the major problem, issue!
I admit it! I'm VERY picky! Recently, my eyeballs were assaulted and traumatized. I'd thought about picking up Candy Jensen's "Total Baby Knits" at Wal Mart....( I thought, well, hey, I'd heard A LOT of good things about her patterns/ designs for babies and toddlers...It wouldn't hurt to check it out and see what the fuss was....) Well...like I said, my eyeballs were NOT in a good place....While I really liked the little girl stuff in it, I was NOT impressed with what was offered for a little boy...Let's just say I thought it prudent to leave it right where I found it....and I came away with the impression that what I saw was NOT good enough for MY Little Britches, and what I saw was the type of thing that Mom and I describe as SO bad that we wouldn't want little Duane Lee seen in it...even if he were going to a dog fight, and he was the dog, and he'd won! *shudders* Yes! That BAD! Now, if he was a little girl, I'd strongly consider picking it up next trip to Wallie World...But, since I'm NOT in the market for new little girl patterns....I left it right where I found it, thank you! So, if you've got a little tiny boy to knit for, leave that one at Wal Mart...
I was at Michael's West Friday Afternoon, and was there to shop for knitting needles....well, they didn't have what I was looking for. ( Circular needles with a 16" cable/ cord on 'em...double pointed needles....and baby knitting patterns- hats and booties, mind you.) Wait! I take that back, I did find ONE pattern book I intend to go back and get- it had matching hats and socks in sizes that would be just right for Duane Lee, though. I didn't have enough cash on me to get it,though. So, I settled for a couple balls of Sugar n cream, and a dishcloth knitting pattern book- With a heart theme. ( I have the Seed Stitch Heart dishcloth on my 8 straights....and am 34 rows into it....- there are a total of 53 rows in the entire pattern.) - So, I'm almost finished with that little project...but, I REALLY should be getting stuff made up for Duane Lee for this winter,though.
Speaking of yarn...yes, back to THAT subject...( Geez...can we safely say I'm obsessed with that subject?) and speaking of Sugar n Cream...Again, I was suprised with how there IS difference in how the coloration plays up in terms of the contrast between knitting and crocheting....I really really LOVE how the Potpourri Print in the Sugar n Cream knits up..the coloration is just beautiful! I didn't like it as well crocheted- was kind of flat, plain and boring. But, knitted up? OMG....talk about some beautiful dishcloths!!! ( Definitely will make note of that in my knitting journal...) Anyway.....there you have it- the latest in terms of what turns on my fingers, and totally rocks my eyesight in terms of knitting these days!!!
