Post 76, Chilly Willy

Mother Nature is giving us a preview of things to come. Tomorrow there are several activities to keep me busy in the city, Renegade Craft Fair, Celtic Fest and lots of knitting. To top it all off the high temperature will be a hot 62 degrees, YEA! Wearing short sleeves and sandals at the Celtic Fest is about apropriate as swimming on Christmas day in Arizona. Did I mention that autumn is my favorite season? I'm looking forward to apple picking, yarn dying, pumpkin carving and some good live music concerts. Then again, being that this is Chicago, we could have a heat wave next week, it's happened before. Today was the first time in 5 months that Bella wore her coat on a walk, I'm guessing it was good timing for Rachael and I to have gone biking around the Chicago Botanical Gardens yesterday.


Sock one of the revived Pomatomus is done and thanks to my West Wing Season 5 DVD set I'm at the heel flap of number two in one night. I've decided to rename the sock, Pomatomus is just not right, it's too simple, this yarn screams for something more unique, colorful, perhaps Europomus. Sure it sounds like a disease but it looks very european, colorful, funky and oh so gaudy.

Post 75, Pomatomus Revived

When you have nothing to do, you can get alot done. I woke up this morning and seriously had nothing to do, no list of errands or a desire to go anywhere. I almost went to see a movie and the thought, Eh, not today. I did make a quick visit to Joann's to get some fabric on sale for a neighbor, some icky acrylic yarn to make some more Coral Reef Hyperbolic space examples and then dashed over to Target for some odd bits. Before and after my quick trip I had the Pomatomus reincarnated into this:
I'm totally in love with this yarn. I picked it up on a whim at Knit1 a year or so and really hadn't thought about it since, until last night. When picking out new trial yarn I really didn't want to have to wind it up into a ball. I used to buy yarn and if didn't come in a ball I would wind it up as soon as possible, now I prefer to leave it in a lovely little twisted skein and let it stew for awhile. So last night when I was digging around in my sock yarn drawer I came across this Trekking XXL, color 100. This is a very unusual yarn, it has a subtle color change that is not produced by space dying like what you might see in a Regia type yarn.

Up close the yarn is actually a four ply yarn with every ply being a different color that subtlety changes shade and even with that each ply changes color by the way it was spun, not dyed, I think. Talk about going the extra step. I don't know if all of their sock yarns are made like that but it really works when knitting a lace pattern and wanting some color changing yarn. This time around the pattern in the Pomatomus really pops. I had originally made a swatch sample using my usual size 0-1 needles and it had a really nice feel, like real store bought socks, but the gauge was too dense. I upped the needle size to a 2.75 MM, and while it is a little looser and fits the pattern requirements, given the twisting of the knit stitches it won't really matter. When it comes to the foot I think I will go down to size 0's to give the sole that yummy department store sock feel. Oh and another thing, about my new DPN sock needles, I read about the Knit Picks new sock needle set on the Yarn Harlot's blog, so of course I really wanted to try them. I love them! It's taken me awhile to loosen my grip on the needles, they were starting to hurt my hands, now I know why I bend my bamboo's. I've also realized I miss the sound of knitting needles and these make a very subtle clicking sound, so old fashioned.

The only problem I have with these needles is that they are so close in size, literally down to a .25mm difference. If you don't close that snap nice and tight when those needles spill out you're going to have a difficult time matching the sizes again. I think I correctly figured out the right sizes, I'll have to double check and if satisfied I'll mark them somehow, maybe nail polish dots?

Post 74, Kapoot

You shouldn't struggle when knitting, I don't like projects that fight me. So, with great hesitation, I frogged the Pomatomus sock. Basically I had turned the heel and got past the gusset when I tried it on and found the heel section way to big and loose. I remade the heal and instead of using the the heel in the pattern, and tried a twisted stitch heel to pull it in and make in dense and tight, but still it just wasn't right, I was even going to decrease the gusset stitched more than was designed.

I think part of the problem was I didn't read the label and the yarn is in fact DK weight, which was why it fit so well around my chunky calves and was really loose around the foot. On the other hand I really like the pattern and was getting really good at memorizing it, so it will have to wait for some other sock yarn.

There is no other option but to start a new sock. I can either A-choose another yarn and redo the Potatomus or B-choose another yarn with a pattern already choosen for it. I have some more lovely sock yarn from New York that I still haven't touch Jitterbug and some Fleece Artist. On the other hand, I have this lovely bundle that I just purchased and I'm dieing to play with it.


Now doesn't that look lovely! The minute I read about the yarn with real sterling silver in it on Knitters Review I just had to have some, it is the perfect mix of my jewelry background and knitting passion. There is a lovely little sock pattern called Snowflake Lace Sock that I saw on Magknits that would be perfect, on second thought, I should hold off until winter comes to make these socks. I just a vision of myself knitting them, the snows falling outside and I'm watching my fireplace DVD with my dog on my lap, all nice and cozy. I'm really tired, can you tell? I was at the Hideout Block Party this evening, I didn't wear the right shoes and my feet hurt. I saw the movie Once this week and am now a big fan of Glen Hansgard, of The Frames, and tonight I saw them live.

I like the way they set up the stage with such a picturesque view of a sanitation building.

Oh, look, I finally got my shit together and made my own banner. The picture is mine too, taken during my last visit to the Fold.

Post 73, Grrrr!

Some more words of wisdom from Peggle. Seriously, what are the odds that one of the most addictive games online would have such wise words for us knitters.

Linda's on Ravelry, when will it be my turn, I wanna join too! There are 6700 people ahead of me, yea that's alot, on the other hand there are 13,000 people after me. On to other things. I fell good right now, I was putting off a couple of things this summer, some tasks I needed to do, I don't know why, I just did. Well they are done and sent off into the world and the burden is off my shoulders. Also, I have enough students in one of my classes this fall, so that's a go, and my date per year ratio is rising. So far the late summer is turning out OK, who knows what the fall will bring. I've been having some issues with my current sock. I'm using some DK weight glitter sock from Cherry Tree Hill. I picked this yarn up in New York and thought the color combo was kinda cool, definately not something I had in my collection. I hear about Cherry Tree Yarns all the time, yea the glitter thread is cool, the colors interesting, but the yarn, rough and a little itchy, more of a hiking boot sock. I've chosen to do my first Pomatomus sock, and really love the design of the pattern, but when you have a slightly thicker sock that's a little rough, the twisted knit stitches Cookie is fond of putting in her patters makes it feel very, ah, durable. The heel design didn't work too well with the yarn, it was too big and stretchy so I ripped it back and redid the heel flap using a twisted Stockinette stitch pattern. I guess I should start working some more on the Habu bag, that evil EVIL bag.

Post 72

In the last month we have been blessed with the seasonal release of the new Interweave Knits and Vogue Knitting. If my memmory is correct Vogue came out first and then IK. I get Vogue mostly because I want to see what they predect to be fashionable in the knitting world, and then I get IK to have practical knitting patterns. Well, when you see a unique pattern you try to remember it, and then when you see it again reincarnated in another magazine, red lights! What do you think?

IK is on the left and Vogue on the right. Now I didn't inspect it completely and I know there are probably some structural differences, but come on guys, what are the odds of having two sweaters at the same time with such unique designs?
I finished the garter rib socks, aka Army/Navy, made with mill ends Lorna's Laces purchase during the Windy City Knitting Guild visit. I think I'm over the spaced-dyed yarn craze. I'm gotten to a point in my sock knitting adventures that I'm looking for unique patterns and you can't usually use hand-dyed yarn with them because the patterns don't show well and is a waste of time. I do have some lovely sock yarn that I purchased in NYC and at Stitches and it's becoming a challenge to find patterns that will look good with the dye jobs. I don't have pictures of the finished socks yet, those I will post later along with the specialo yarn I just got in the mail.

Post 71

Not much again on the knitting front, though I did do a little corner of the Sarcelle and it's looking very nice and an interesting pattern. Doing more house cleaning and organizing, blah blah. I read an article on line about the 5 most addictive computer games and one was called Peggle and of course I had to try it out. What a fun game and talk about great graphics, makes me feel like kid again all rainbow bright and my little pony fun. I did come across this during a trial of the game: Isn't that the coolest thing! Some game designer geek actually got it right on the ball(of yarn), so to speak. HeHe! This is the finished pair of Thelonis Socks, AKA one of Cookies Patters From Hell, you really have to invest some time into these, pay attention of have several row counters going at the same time. All in all, it was great and was my first time trying the Regia Stretch yarn and boy do I like it, just great for fat leggers like me, I only wish it came on more interesting color choices. Now that I have a new camera cord there are so many things I want to show you, but one day at a time, going to spread it out for maximum entertainment. Even though Stitches was a couple of weeks ago and went and bought some yarn online tonight, something new I hadn't even heard about until I read about it on Knitters Review. Three hints, 1. It's white, 2. It Sparkles, and 3. It's sock yarn. Will be photographed when it arrives sometime in the next week. Have reorganized the yarn cabinet abit, I had to go out to the Container store to get another magazine holder, right now I actively get Vogue and IK, alot of the time Spin-off, Wild Fibers and Selvedge and occasional Piecework and some crappy other knitting magazine for some reason, and now I'm running out of space. I think I need to banish the spinning supplies to a box in my room so I can have more room to let the yarn stew, marinate and then breathe.

Post 70, Whoa Nellie!

And I thought today was going to be boring. We got one hell of a storm today, whosh and all of a sudden it was a down pour, I looked outside and it was like seeing a video from the caribbean during a hurricane. The storm went by fast and I think another one is lining up, this is the damage it did in my neighborhood.


Sad little pidgeon got it's wing hurt and cant fly.

Now for some long delayed pictures:
Funny animals I have, especially the dog, how does she do that with her legs?





And now from my Stitches Midwest trip:
How come the knitters couldn't do some sort of chalk art work like the Wizard World Convention people?

Now those are big needles.

Pure fug and it wasn't even the worst.

More to add to my stash.


Now a quaint little picture I took on my visit to the Fold in Marengo a couple of months ago with Adrienne and Linda, there's a little lamb under that tree.

Post 69, Eh?

Not being productive, bad knitter, BAD! I went to guild last night and that helped rejuvenate me a bit, just a bit. Still can't load pictures because of the MIA camera cord and the one I bought online hasn't arrived yet, so much for trying to save 20 bucks. I did have enough time to do this:
Apparently I'm making good use of my free time eh? Ok, I cleaned room, cleaned kitchen (an on-going project), now I think it's time to reorganize the stash and books, do I really need the Knitpicks catalogue circa 2003? I've started the second Army/Navy garter rib sock and that's coming along, still haven't picked up the Habu bag, it's EVIL, and I made a little swatch of the Sarcelle wrap in chocolate brown lace, yummy. Pictures sure would make blogging easier and prettier to look at.

Post 68, #49

Pick up the new Vogue Knitting and do me a favor, check out pattern 49. It's nothing I would make, very Joseph and the Amazing Technicolored Dream Coat to me, but there is something kinda of fashionista-pretty about it, then look at the sizes. This skirt should you choose to make it can be done in 3 sizes, small, medium and large. I don't know about you but my definition of a large waist size is not 30 inches! Just to keep you educated, the US standard clothing waist measurement for a girls size 14, not women's, but little GIRLS is 26.5 inches or what Vogue knitting calls a small. Oh and the pattern is definately designed to be worn by adult women. On ravelry there are 9500 people ahead of me, bummer, but over 6200 behind me, yea, that's alot of knitters, holy shit. Tomorrow is STITCHES MIDWEST! Rachael and I (the unemployed) are jumping the gun and going friday, I've never gone on a friday, first booth, Blue Moon! and maybe this year Qiviut.......or Buffalo......yum. I've got to find my camera cord, or maybe I should buy another one, because I've got some great pictures, I think I caught a hawk baby...I'll post and then you'll have to decide.

Post 67

10,435, that's where I stand. Two days ago I was 10,698, that's an average of 131 people accepted a day to Ravelry. At this rate they will accept me in 81.6 days, or OCTOBER! Ugh, the pain of wanting to be accepted in the knitting world.

Post 66, Ravelry

I want to be in Ravelry, all the cool knit bloggers are in it, why can't I be in too?? I feel like I'm in school again wanting to join the cool table at lunch and just not understanding why I'm not allowed, blah! So I signed up for this raverlry knit site the minute I heard about it at the time the person who told me about it was 56 from the top and had signed up 2 months previous, this is where I stand today:
You signed up on July 18, 2007
You are #18190 on the list.
10698 people are ahead of you in line.
3517 people are behind you in line.
33% of the list has been invited so far

Um, this is a knit site too!
So I borrowed a book from a friend because I've got the book reading desire right now (it comes and goes, mostly depending on the availabilty of interesting books that strike my fancy) so this is what I'm currently reading:

It's the dog days of summer knitting-wise and I don't alwaus feel the need or the desire. It doesnt help that of the three projects on the needles, not one interests me with the passion to get it done NOW! You know how that is, forcing yourself to knit. I thought I would be good once I finished the Thelonius socks and not start another pair even though by my own 4 allowed project rules, socks are always acceptable, I haven't yet. (It's a daily battle) This book will keep you going when you have no desire to knit. If your really just want to relax with some good soothing music and maybe a little drink-drink, this will keep the knitting fires in your from going out. I didn't even know someone had written a book on the history of knitting in American, how cool is that, now I don't have to go back to school to write it, because that's what I've always wanted to do. I'm thinking I'm going to need my own copy now for my knitting reference library. I had always thought that circular needles was a developement of the 20th century but there are several references of them before then, and not as circular knitting (i.e. knitting in the round that can be done on double points) but actually notated as circular needles, how cool!

Post 65, Some More Crazy

It's an indisbutable fact that knitters are a little crazy, I admit it and I'm a hard core knitter. I'm enjoying my time off and have been busy discovering how much day time tv sucks and looking around on ebay. I picked up a great first edition hard back copy of Barbara Walkers pattern book (oops that was really from Alibris.com), a lovely emerald green eel skin wallet to replace the one I was using that was my mom's (it's a sentimental thing) and then I saw this:
A complete set of vintage ivory knitting needles. Ask yourself how much you would pay for them. I tried a couple of bids, and if I wasn't off work I would have seriously thought of continuing bidding, they ended up going for $152.50, ouch! But as I see it, it's not like you can buy ivory everywhere, and knitting needles to boot, well, I wish I had the money to buy them. The craziness was up there with the bidding for the Alice Starmore Tudor Rose book, like I said knitters are crazy. Well the Thelonius socks are finished and I'm making so head way in the Habu bag for my grandmother, other than that I've been working on some sweater finishing in which I am a little behind on, my bad, things came up. ta ta for now!

Post 64, Scrap That

Spoke too soon, the yarnstore thing didn't work out. Don't get me wrong working with yarn was fab, with with customers fun, some people I found a little catty, but maybe this is a good thing. I did get some serious knitting done on the train and the second Evil CookieA Design sock is in the home stretch, but what to do? It's hard to get all happy and knit when you are soo blue. I guess it's time to sign up for unemployment, blah.

Post 64, So Here's the Thing

So here's the thing, the company I worked for for the last year, over spent their budget so to speak and made me a victim of budget cuts. So I was jobless for the first two weeks of July until I fell into a part time job. At first I was sad, and then I was mad (am still really mad for them making me go through the whole job search and no insurance hassle). It's been hard for to turn it around and try to see the sunnier side of this, but I think I see the light, albeit health insurance-less. I'm working part time in heaven, no I'm not dead, I'm working in a yarn store! And after talking to lots of friends and getter their opinions, I'm going back to school so to speak and get a certificate in web design. As my friend Rachael said, she's very computer technically and can write code, but she never realized that blue and orange didn't look good together. So it was suggested that I take my BFA degree combine it with a web-design cert and hopefully I can take that somewhere. In the yarn store I'm surrounded by some very creative people and hopefully that will jump start the juices again. So that's it. I hate having to commute by train again, but at least I'm making way on my Thelonius sock. Oh, and can you say DISCOUNT! I think my friends think I'm going to buy out the store or something, but it's like when I work in jewelry, I thought I liked it all, but being around it all day, you look at some of the yarns differently, and what you thought you liked you don't really and what you thought you would never buy, you think you might

Post 63, Yup

It's official, knitters are a crazy bunch. I did not win that book on eBay, some lucky person got it for the low low price of $120, I may be weird but I'm not that crazy. I looked all of the web and that actually was a good deal, but since I've never seen the book in person, well I thought of all the lovely yarn that could be bought instead. Oh well.

Post 62, This Is Crazy

This knitting thing is crazy. I was listening to the Sticks and String podcast where he was doing book review of Alice Starmore's Tudor Roses, it sounded interesting and appealed to the SCA freak in me, so I thought I would check to see how much a copy was going for, HOLY SHIT! On some sites I was seeing the price as high as 300 dollars, are you effing kidding?

So right now I have a bid on ebay for a brand new copy and the price is really low, but as I have a few hours left, who knows how high it will go. I'm not worried that anyone will bid on it after reading my blog as know one reads my blog I'm sure. Anyhoo, plans are to go downtown tonight for the big fireworks show that Chicago does for the fourth, but a couple of smarter friends and I are going to view the show from the museum campus to the south of the park, it should be less crowded and have nicer grass to sit on, I could care less about the Taste of Chicago and all it's food. I really have been bad about getting any knitting done and there's no excuse, I've made a couple of pieces for the coral reef project, I have so much work to do plus some finishing, bad knitter, BAD KNITTER.

Post 61, Another Day

Here I am again! Life's been very interesting lately and I find myself with some free time on my hands, alot of free time. I just finished up a piece for the coral reef project and can't wait to go the luncheon at the Jane Adams Hull House here in Chicago, more pictures of the creature I made later, I can't find my camera cord. Anyhoo, I finished spinning my first decent and somewhat consitent looking yarn, right now it's drying in the bathroom after a little soaking. The total yardage right now remains a mystery, but when it's dry I'll take a look at it and hopefully have enough for socks? My own hand spun knitted socks, cool. The garden is doing well, I have enough dill and parsely for the whole neighborhood and as of today, harvested 4 cherry tomatoes! Real edible veggies from my own city garden, I'm very excited. Tonight I crack open a box and need to get started on some belated finishing, right now it's a secret on who it's for, but it's the next step in my knitting evolution I think. Now that I have so much time (due to a fiscally mismanaged former company) I can try to finish my grandmothers belated birthday gift, and I don't know, maybe work on my Knitting Masters program that I paid for many MANY years ago and never got to, bad knitter! So I'm off to do a few errands, I want to pick up a new knitting book I'm fascinated with and some cooking supplies, how come I don't have a proper lemon juicer? I made my first and not too bad cherry pie, which my neighbors helped me gobble up. Not bad I must say, I think tomorrow I will make a blueberry pie and maybe some blueberry cordial too, liquor is always good. Oh the mint I have! What mojito's I could make! Obviously I am hungry now. Toodles!

My BAD

I haven't blogged in awhile, well that's putting it mild I guess. I haven't had much to talk about and landlord has been away on business alot so that means no free wifi. I'm stuck in a knitting rut, been working on the other half of a pair of CookieA sock and have onesockitis, which mean I've been in no hurry to finish the second. The Habu purse kit I've been working on for the grandmother's birthday is slow and tedious, the yarn does not like to be rushed and knitted fast, ugh. I haven't picked up the fair isle cardigan, my goal was to finish that before the UK trip, but since the airfare prices are so damn high, I'm not sure when that trip will happen. On the other hand I have been doing some finishing here and there, have a couple of pieces I need to get done this week for a local knitwear author, and am doing some pieces for the Coral Reef project, but that's crochet and doesn't count, right? Last month I did make a visit to the Fold and have found that spinning is easier with different kinds of roving, so thanks to a little Rambouillet I'm off again. That's it for now.

Post 60

You Are a Ring Finger

You are romantic, expressive, and hopeful. You see the best in everything.You are very artistic, and you see the world as your canvas. You are also drawn to the written word.Inventive and unique, you are often away in your own inner world. You get along well with: The Pinky Stay away from: The Index Finger

Post 59

I've got a new baby, meet my new green iPod. (it's really the black one in a green case) I'm in love. Even though it has a case I'm thinking it's going to need a knitted cover for the case, just in case. I'm a smartie too, I saved 50 bucks by asking for an openbox, yea me! No new knitting, except I have three weeks to get the Habu bag done for my grandmothers' Mother's day gift, I spoil her so.

Post 58

Spring has sprung officially and I made a beeline to Home Depot yesterday after work and bought my first batch of flowers. I am a geranium freak, they are the only flowers I can grow in the front of my house with it's peculiar lighting, and better yet, geraniums like me and I can keep them alive and growing well into autumn!



















This year I'm trying to go for a more european look and hung little clay pots along the fence by my gate entrance, I think it looks quiant and adds alot to the area since it's near my neighbors staircase and is blah.














Funny thing happened while at the Depot buying the plants, two groups of landscapers got into a fight for plants, yes, effing plants, we're not talking an argument, but fists, how stupid, there were enough to go around. So today was the Lorna's Laces tour for the members of the Windy City Knitting Guild. Don't laugh, but I got up early and was there by 8, it wasn't schudeled to start until 10, but I know they only allow 20 in at a time and if there is something in particular you're looking for you need to prepare, I wasn't the first person, I was number 10.

Boy did I score, I was looking for Lion and Lamb to make another Clapotis and picked up 5 skeins in a great teal colorway, and there wasn't that much there to begin with. If you were a sock knitter, this was your heaven, Beth had tons of sockyarn, heck you could have gotten enough of one colorway to make a sweater. This is what I got, the three bundles on the left are for Linda, the blue yarn and group to the right is mine, the Lion and Lamb is the stuff at the top. I love the new watercan from the Depot!














I curse the neighbor that gave the squirrels peanuts last year, they are digging up everything looking for them, and after I spent so much time last evening sweeping the sidewalk and making everything look pretty. I'm like a little ole italian lady sweaping her cracked grey sidewalk, my goal this year is to wear the outside broom to a nub.

Post 57

I did not mean to not blog, FIMS is MIA. Well actually, landlord was over last week, we had some issues with a finicky lock and needed to talk about the lack of proper lighting etc. and guess what I found out, landlord is FIMS! We talked about encrypting the signal and us having access, it's only fair since we do all the gardening. So I'm blogging at a friends house while babysitting. I have a new savings fund, the "I need a new iPod fund". I have decided that my old pod needs to be replaced due to damage, lack of storage and the fact I can't load any new music because when I go past song 2606 it freaks out. So I'm whoring myself (the knit kind of whoring, dirty filthy minds you have) and picked up a couple of finishing projects. I have learned I don't care for British patterns, both of which these were. The first was a fluffy white chenille baby pod looking thing, poorly designed but easy to seam since the fluffy yarn is forgiving, no need to go completely crazy and perfectionist, unlike project 2. This was one heavy sweater! 21 balls of mostly alpaca/silk weighs alot! The pattern was simple, with fairly straight lines and simple design, it's a Debbie Bliss, but the knitter knitted the neck band twice as long as needed, so out that came, and made the evil decision of picking black. I HATE BLACK ALPACA! It's beautiful but a royal pain in the ass to seam, you can's see shit, the light does something funky to the color and the fiber so this project took me longer, but I am very proud of my crochet join, it's clean and neat and I would consider myself an expert at this now.

Oh and by the way double crochet in english is not the same in american, FYI! The last touch for finishing required a double crochet around the edges, but in american it's really a single crochet and chain1, just in case you wanted to know. I picked up those two a couple of weeks ago but put off doing them until the last minute, because basically I forgot.

Last week we had a freak bit of snow.

The big tree around the corner from the house keeled over and died, taking part of a roof and a Benz with it. My neighbor John and I figured it was at least a hundred years old, now there's a big hole on the sky.

I think, I hope, I'm wishing Spring is almost around the corner? I had two major projects planned for the summer, and one is down, cleaning and organizing the space under the back staircase and storage shelves, oiy my back muscles hurt. Chicago has a unique house style, usually the 2-3 flats you see also have a backstair case. If you're lucky the backstaircase is in good shape, if your luckier it's enclosed, which mine is and has a nifty little storage space under the first landing. So summer isn't here, spring barely is and I already have one major pain in the ass projects over!

I returned some crappy yarn I purchased at Joann's, I had plans to make Dentist neighbor a baby blanket, but after 6 inches of 100% pure acrylic, I just couldn't do it, the yarn was so nasty, so hideous feeling, it was unnatural.(she got the green sweater) I returned the unused balls and bought some fleece to make a dog crate pillow, which Bella quicky claimed as her own, I swear she did this herself!

Finally down to real knitting. I only have three active projects and they are taking forever so no need to talk about them. This Saturday is the Lorna's Laces tour, so some of the ipod fund will go toward sock yarn, which I'm sure there will be, I love a good bargain and the chase to be in a room stuffed full of yarn,oooooooh!

Post 58

It's that time of the year. Yup, another one down. Anyhoo, yesterday was the book signing at Loopy Yarns in the south loop, it's up high on the list of favorite LYS's. Amy Singer was present to sign copies of her new book "No Sheep For You", but I picked up "Big Girl Knits" instead. All of my other friends have it, big girls and small girls alike, they pointed out that it has great info on choosing patterns to fit your body, so I finally got it, and yes there are several patterns I would make in there. So once again here's another picture of a yarn store with Linda in it, I prefer being behind the camera.

And a shot of the store for you none Chicagoans.

I picked up another skein of sock yarn, but I'm sticking to the idea that it has to be something new, that I don't already have. I am only allowing myself to buy yarn if I already have a project in mind, not just for the hell of it. My name is Yarn Snob, and I'm a sock yarn addict. True to my 4 project limit, I finally settled down on a sock pattern, Thelonius from my IM bud Cookie. I had a couple skeins of Regia Stretch in a light slightly varigated blue, and I'm loving it, perhaps I have found the perfect yarn that will stand up to the vertically challenged legs? (pun intended)What I really hate about knitting is the variety of yarn and projects. It's common for me to fall in love with a pattern, buy the yarn, get 50% of the way through and have the overwhelming desire to start a new one, I'm not lazy, there's just not enough time to get it all done. When I'm knitting I can't stop my mind from wandering to the next project possibilities, there's simply not enough time in the day. What would be a good thing to do is simply knit more, but not be a hermit about it. The females in my family are very strong, very creative and very stubborn, we have never had a problem staying home by ourselves and doing our own thing. Wouldn't it be great to find someone to pay me to stay home and knit? I had the resolve to get my bike in shape this summer and head out to the local coffee shops to just hang and knit, but the damn gentrification had come full circle to Wicker Park and they will be, by the end of the year, closing the local coffee cafe/hang out and be cool place, damn effing banks, do we really need one on every corner. What we need on every corner are yarn stores! There are lots of coffee shops here in the city, but not many have those comfy grunging couches that you can linger on for hours, all for the price of a cup of coffee. Well, I have big plans this summer for the garden in the back, with all my coffee equipment I could start my own knit/coffee joint!

Post 57

My neighbor next door is having a baby in two weeks, neighbor is a very good fancy dentist, neighbor gets handknitted baby wrap sweater, I get a discount on dental work? I hope so. This is only the second baby thing I've knitted, it's the EZ Baby Surplice Sweater from the new VK done in Sage Green Cotton Fleece. I love that yarn, it is so soft and easy to work with, and this is the first thing I've remembered to put my label in, yea! I actually got the sweater all wrapped up and then realized I for got to photograph it, so I had to unwrap and then rewrap again.

I finished this little scarf last night, I started it on the plane to NYC. We learned this Indian Cross techinique at the last Windy City Guild and I was dying to try it out, light weight yet warm, good for this time of year when Chicago can't decide which season it wants to be in.

The other project I started in NYC will be frogged, it was the right sock yarn for that pattern. I've decided I'm allowed to have four WIP's at one time, sweater, lace, sock and emergency knitted gift (which at anytime can be substituted with a fast project I can't wait to do) Right now I have the Fair Isle Cardigan, the Kool-ade dyed flame lace scarf, I need to pick out sock yarn and I have no emergency knitting. Not bad. I picked up a couple more repair projects, though they look to be just "I'm to lazy to finish, can you piece it together for me" items, easy peasy, I haven't looked at them yet, I hope I don't have to block. Well off to SNB I go, I don't think I'll stay too late, I'm battling a wicked head cold, I thought I won today(I took a sick day yesterday to be safe and try not to contaminate the office), but I'm afraid it might migrate to my voice/throat tonight.