2005 in knits

It's funny how I was so looking forward to finishing my Christmas gifts so I could finally knit something for myself. Well after Christmas, I started two projects: a hat for my boyfriend and a baby blanket for a pregnant friend ;)

I actually finished the hat and will give it to the giftee when I see him on January 2nd. I'll post a picture then because I'm currently camera-less at my mom's house until Monday.

So I think 2005 was a pretty good knitting year. I finished 20 projects. I made my first sock (and many others) this year. I tried fair isle (though I have yet to finish a project with that technique). I've done a bit of lace too. But the best thing about this year is that I had the chance to meet other knitters. And they're all fantastic.

Hopefully, 2006 will also be filled with knitting goodness. I'm hoping I can finally make a sweater that I'd want to wear. And I should really try cables. I'm not scared of them at all (doesn't look really difficult), so I don't know why I haven't done them before.

Currently on the needles: fair isle socks, a bag and a baby blanket. Mona has really inspired me to try to make Veronik Avery's short row hat. I'm itching to start it now (I brought yarn for it at my mom's). And I want to make felted clogs for my boyfriend and for me. And many other things.

I wish you all a very happy 2006!

Done, done, done, done and DONE!

The gifts are knitted and wrapped. Two of them will be given out tomorrow, the other three will be on the 25th.

I wish you all happy holidays. Merry Christmas to those of you who celebrate it :)

Will I be done on time?

Yes, I think I will be done on time for Christmas. Of course, I had to accept the fact that I wouldn't knit all the gifts I wanted, but those I wanted the most to finish will be... I think.

What I have left:


A scarf for my godmother. This one is pretty much done as it is long enough to be a scarf. But I'll add a few more inches if I have the time.


These are socks for my godfather. I finished the first one... I think it was on Friday (oh and I used Mona's toe decrease from her sock pattern in the latest IK. LOVE.IT.)

And this is a WIP that I'd really like to be working on right now but it'll have to wait until after the holidays I think:


(This is half-sock #1 of the Best of show pair from Socks Socks Socks. I'm pretty sure I won't be able to wear them until... I don't know, 2007? But I love what I have so far).

And to end on a non-knitting note, here's a pic I took last Saturday, the day after a big snowstorm hit Montreal:



Ok time to go back to the sock knitting!

Quickie

I was in the metro today, coming back home from work and happily knitting on a sock. At one stop, a lady came up to me and asked me if I had knitted my hat myself. I said yes and she told me it was beautiful.

Awwww!

Bunny clothes!

I made the 5 hours baby sweater but I wasn't entirely satisfied with it, so I gave it to my stuffed bunny instead:



It looks cute on him doesn't it?

I only have 1.5 pairs of socks left to make before Christmas. I think I'll be able to make it. Then I'll try to make something for my boyfriend (either a hat or felted clogs, not sure yet). And then I'll only make things for ME for a while. I've made about a million pairs of handknitted socks this year and I only own two pairs. And I've made a bunch of fuzzy feet last year and I don't even own a pair. That, my friends, need to change. I'll be selfish in 2006, but I promise that if people ask me to knit them something, I'll offer to teach them how to knit it themselves.

Yummy Yarn

I don't have much time to post, but I do have a couple of finished objects to share.

First, I finished my sister's socks:


And I also made a new Silk Garden Beanie to replace the one I lost last year:


(I know, bad picture)

You can find the pattern for the hat here.

On Friday, I went to a store called Paisley Textile (it's on 7489 St-Hubert in Montreal). People on Montreal Knits had mentionned that she sold Fleece Artist yarn. Well she does! Unfortunately, she didn't have that many colours left when I went (she told me she'd receive more next week) so I only bought one skein to make socks for my mom. But I will definitely go back to get more for me. Hmmmm yummy yarn.

Home and safe

Well I'm not in Mexico as planned. I actually took a plane to NYC this morning, but then I got paged at the airport only a few minutes before I was going to board for Cancun. The weather is too bad, the award show is canceled and I was sent back home. So I took a plane back (and had to run quite a bit to make sure I wouldn't miss it). Oh well. I'm just happy I'm not in the middle of a hurricane right now.

So I did not go to Mexico BUT I got great news: one of my good friends is pregnant! I'm so happy for her. And of course I want to knit something for the baby so if you have any favourite baby pattern, please do share them. She's only seven weeks along so I have plenty of time.

She lives quite far away from me (she's in New-Brunswick, I'm in Montreal). She usually only comes here a couple of times a year, on business trips. She'll be here in November and then who knows when I'll see her. I unfortunately don't have much time off from work to go there and visit (not to mention NO MONEY!). And she won't be able to come here when she's farther along in her pregnancy. And then she'll be on maternity leave for a year.

I was hoping I could finish something for November, but with all the Christmas knitting I still have to do, I don't think it'll be possible. So I'll probably end up making whatever I will be making for the new baby. I'm so excited!!!

How do you say knitting in Spanish?

Hola!

I'll start with non-knitting content: I'm going to Mexico! But those of you who are going to see me at the next knitting meetup (probably on Sunday) shouldn't expect to see a tan, as I'll only be there a couple of days. I'm leaving Wednesday at 6am (yikes!) and I'll be back on Friday. And I'm not going to spend the days on the beach, I'm going there to cover the MTV Video Music Awards Latin America. Woohoo! It should be a lot of fun. Yes, I will take pictures.

Speaking of pictures, here's one that I took at the knitting meetup last Sunday (one week ago):



You can see the lovely Mona holding the original Clapotis. Of course, I didn't only meet the creation, I also met its creator. But I didn't talk to her much because... well I just don't talk much in general.

I'm making good progress on my sister's socks. I'm not sure I'll have the second one finished before I leave on Wednesday, but I may finish it before the meetup on Sunday (which means I'll have to find a new project to bring... probably socks cause I'm predictable like that).

I should really go to bed because it's late, but before I do, I need to ask for some suggestions. I have 600m of Alpaca Peru (Luxury Collection).



I'd like to make a shawl or wrap, something like that. I think. I could probably get a few more skeins of it if I need it. Any idea for a pattern? I wouldn't mind paying for one, as long as I don't have to buy a whole book just for one pattern (can't afford it right now).

Speaking of books, I went to the bookstore with the boyfriend yesterday and I casually showed him a couple of knitting books that I liked. Hey, my birthday AND Christmas are coming up, the poor boy needs some ideas ;)

Ps/Thanks to those who helped me solve my spam problem :)

Let's call it the knitting room!

I had to spend THREE HOURS in a waiting room this morning. But the good thing is that I managed to finish half of my sister's Christmas present:



One lady there asked me what I was making and then she told me I must have a lot of patience, which was very funny considering she had been waiting as long as I had while doing nothing. I think she's the patient one ;)

I also made this scarf:



I has everything you absolutely HATE about yarn: It's sparkly, fuzzy, not soft, very fushia... I love it anyways :p

I also crocheted a red skinny scarf just because I saw some in the stores and didn't want to pay for them. I suck at crochet dammit. I'll post pics later.

In other fun knitting news, I finally managed to go to a Wednesday night meetup! Yay! And I didn't have to leave before the end. Double yay! I met a few knitters that I had never met before, which was great, and saw some of the lovely regulars, which was also great.

Lastly, in blog-related news: why the f* do I keep on getting SPAM in comments and how do I prevent this? It's very annoying. As soon as I make a post, BAM, I get two or three anonymous comments that say "Hey, that's a lovely blog you have. Now please come visit mine *adds link to a hunting blog or some other non-knitting related site* Now if it had happened only once, I would have thought it's simply a visit who likes to hunt (and to blog about it) and who also appreciates reading about knitting. But it happens all the time, with different blogs, and always a few seconds after I post. SOMEONE MAKE IT STOP!!! :(

I'm still alive and well!

Finally, an update! I swear I'm not neglecting you on purpose, dear millions of readers, it's just that lately life has really gotten in the way. My job still takes a lot of my time (I'm thinking about trying to find a new one but I don't have time for it. I can't win). And I got this new boyfriend that I like to spend time with :)

But I'm still knitting. I'm mostly trying to succeed in my "Everyone gets socks for Christmas this year" mission. But it seems pretty unlikely that I will. It's all right.

So far, I finished my mom's boyfriend's socks. I also finished the Go with the flow socks that will go to my godmother.

I've been working on the Best of show socks from Socks Socks Socks for my mom:



They're taking me quite a bit of time and I'm not used to Fair Isle so there definitely are some mistakes in there, but I know my mom will be happy nonetheless.

I've also started socks with some Regia self-striping yarn for my sister while at the last knitting meet-up.

I also want to make a pair for my godfather (probably using thicker yarn). My boyfriend and my best friend Pierre will get socks or a scarf if I have time to make them. We'll see.

And I've already decided that I'm NOT knitting for Christmas next year. There are so many things that I'd like to make for myself and call me selfish but I know I appreciate the knitting items more than anyone else :)

Go with the flow

I'm on vacation!!!! Weeee!!!

I think it's the first time in my life -- ok not in my life but since I've finished school -- that I've taken a week of vacation without having anything planned. My goal this week is to sleep, watch movies, make spaghetti sauce, KNIT... and some snogging with this new boy I've been seeing.

I spent a good part of this evening finishing sock #1 of a pair of Go with the flow (from this summer's IK).



The pair is going to be a Christmas gift. I'm just not sure who's going to get it yet.

Tomorrow = knitting meetup! Yay! And since I'm on vacation, it means I won't have to leave early, woohoo! Hope I'll see some of you there :)

Socks and other things

I feel like every post I write starts with "I'm so sorry for not updating". That's because I am.

My life has been so weird lately. Lots of feelings, lots of stuff happening. Nothing dramatic but enough so that I don't have much time to myself. But I'm ok, really.

I've been working on the Go with the flow socks from this summer's IK.



They're going to be a Christmas gift, I'm just not sure who's going to get them.

I'll probably see some of you on Sunday :) Cheers!

Lesson in blogging

Today's lesson will be "How to increase traffic to your blog". You have two options:

1. Write witty and/or funny and/or intelligent posts.
2. Have your blog mentionned in a very popular blog

I knew my wit wasn't enough to bring in 91 visitors a day. Wow! Sorry it happened on a day I really had nothing to say :p

***

I ended up going to today's meetup and didn't regret it at all. Because everyone is so nice. And seeing people is healthy. Plus, I was able to see Lee-Ann for more than 30 seconds.

I took a few pics. I wanted to post them but I always feel bad posting other people's pics even if they did see me taking it. So they're aware that I plan on posting them. So yeah, I decided I wouldn't post them until I saw this:



Hmmm. Could it be? (For those not in the know, Molly-Ann got her wallet stolen while we were there). Seriously, I have no idea if that person took it (I'm still hoping Molly-Ann will find it somewhere in her bag. I have this theory that some bags have this vortex that sucks objects in and spits them out at random. I know my bags do).

***

And just in case some people are worried about me (sorry about that), I got a lot of rest this weekend and I feel much better. My mood still goes up and down and up again but right now I'm feeling ok. <3

A quick update

Hello world!

There is a reason why I wouldn't be able to stop going to the knitting meeting: everyone who goes there is so nice. Thanks to everyone who replied to my last post (Montrealers as well as everyone else of course). I meant to reply to everyone individually but I barely have time to breathe right now.

I requested a day off on Sunday, which will do me good for sure. I'm not sure yet if I'll be in Montreal, but if I am, I'll see some of you at the meeting (and for once I won't have to leave at 3!).

Silence

I finished Hubert's sock:



I'm working on #2. If I keep up at this rate, I won't be giving away many knitted gifts next Christmas.

In other news, today was knitting meetup day, which happened at the Second Cup on Monkland. My tiredness and depressiveness makes it difficult for me to attend any sort of gathering or to do anything at all, really, but the last time that happened to me I isolated myself for months and I'm trying really hard not to let that happen again. But then I realize just how boring of a person I must seem. So I'm not sure what's best, really. Do I keep on going to keep me sane or do I not go so I don't subject other people to my presence, because I do realize that I'm no fun to be around these days?

I can be such a drama queen in online journals. I think I just need to take a little break. Especially since I just admitted on my blog, which some of the Montreal knitters read, that I'm really a sociophobic fruitcake. What a winner.

All that being said, seeing Veronik's blue shawl (the one that she gave to Margaret) at the meeting, as well as Molly Anne and Anny's shawls-in-progress made me want to make one too. So I'll just add that to my list of things to make sometime. Later.

All your yarn are belong to us

Someone posted this in the Knitting Livejournal community:



I thought it was funny, even though I really shouldn't be laughing at people who make English mistakes because it's not their first language. God knows my English is far from prefect (yeah I noticed the typo, I just thought it was deliciously ironic).

And I wish you all a very useful knitting time.

***

In the knitting news:

1. I gave the baby hat to my friend. She loved it. I'm happy.

2. Clapotis is definitely being frogged. I'm not sure what I'll do with the yarn. I'm in no rush to use it right now. I will, however, go out and buy yarn to make a better Clapotis. Oh yes I will.

3. Poster boy girl is going well. I think.

4. I've been so busy lately I've had no time to blog and even to knit that much. And I feel like it's going to be the same until I can finally take some vacation mid-August.

Baby!

Next week, I'm having dinner with a friend who's going to have her first baby in August. So I made her this:



Awwww. Isn't it cute? I hope she'll like it.

***

If you want to win a shawl knitted by Veronik Avery or cool yarn AND give to a good cause at the same time, I urge you to check out the Montreal Knits blog. Details are all there. Go now!

***

And now, ladies and gentlemen, here's a little praisin':

I bought a Denise needles set a couple of months ago. Unfortunately, I broke one of my cords (it was a total accident, I swear!). I had heard that you could get a replacement if you sent 1$ for postage to the company, but since I live in good ol' Canada, I figured I'd email first to ask if I need to send extra postage. Well the lady who answered my email asked me to just email her my address and tell her which cord I broke and she'd send a replacement to me. No postage to pay. Now that is good customer service. And I LOVE my Denise set. Therefore, I recommend it to everyone. Go buy it. Now.

Too hot for socks

So yesterday was Knit in public day and I met with three Ms -- Mona, Molly and Mary -- in a coffee shop. I LOVE TO KNIT WITH OTHER PEOPLE! There, I said it.

I actually got a lot of knitting done yesterday, at the meet and afterwards. I finished the socks:


(I only wore them long enough to take the picture. You can't wear wool socks when it's 30 degrees (Celsius) outside, no matter how soft and comfortable they are.

I also casted on for the Poster Boy bag from Stitch N' Bitch Nation. Except mine will be Poster Girl (or something else entirely if I can't make it work). Yay, Caro's doing Fair Isle! Of course, I'm nowhere close be making these gloves, but I'll get there... someday.

Random annoyance: I'm on a yahoo mailing list for a knit-along, and it looks like one of the members is on vacation right now. So every time someone sends a message to the list, we get an automated "I'm away on vacation" reply. Every time! Grrrr!

Look at it and weep...

...because this, my friend, is a work of art:


Feather and fan sock from Socks Socks Socks, made with love and some yummy Fleece Artist sock yarn.

Sock #2 is on the needles. The sad thing is that it's now way too hot for wool socks. But no sock in the world, no matter how pretty it is, is going to make me wish it was winter right now.

Do you KIP?

June 11 is International Knit in public day!



I'll make sure to do some public knitting on that day! If any Montrealer wants to participate, let me know and we'll meet somewhere. Hey maybe the weather will actually be warm and sunny then and we'll be able to finally meet outside!

Just one more stitch

I changed the name of my blog, because I didn't like the last one. Not sure about this one either, but it does describe me well. I can't count the number of times I went to bed wayyyy too late... "Just one more stitch", I'd say. Yeah.

I was in big need of retail therapy last night so I coupled it with sock therapy and got myself a new book:


It's Socks Socks Socks, edited by Elaine Rowley. I LOVE so many of the patterns in that book.

As you can see in the pic, I've already cast on for a pair: the feather and fan socks, inspired by a recent post in The yarn harlot's blog. I'm using the fleece artist yarn that Amanda, my not-secret pal sent me. I had never knitted with size 1 needles before. Tiny. And I realized that I must be a tight knitter, which isn't good when you're dealing with tiny little sticks like that. Oh well. You may also have noticed that my needles are aqua. I think that makes me cool or something.

Of course, while I was in Chapters yesterday, I couldn't help but look at every single book in the knitting section (is it just me or it's getting bigger every week? not that I'm complaining or anything). I had seen it numerous times before but I had never really looked at it. But last night I did. Meg Swansen's A Gathering of Lace. I LOVE IT! I WANT IT! IT'S 45$! Eeek. Ok, I want it. I'll get it. Someday. I badly want to make a shawl anyways.

Another book that I want. Except this one wasn't in the store, unfortunately. I doubt I would have resisted. Socks! If, by chance, there's a millionnaire reading this, it will be my pleasure to offer you the gift of giving by letting you buy me a few knitting books. I also accept yarn. Email me. We'll talk.

I finished the RibbonXback top from Knitty!



Analysis

1. It is not flattering. I should have made the XS.
2. You can't see it but it's sort of see-through. Ooops.
3. It should have been longer.
4. I should do more crunches.

Here's the back:



***

I still haven't decided if I'm going to join the Secret Pal 5 thing. I had so much fun in the past two SPs that I really want to do it again, but money is a bit tight... hmmmm. *ponders*

Ah well. Probably not.

***

Meeting the Montreal knitters on Sunday, weee!

Did you miss me?

Honey, I'm home!



I gotta say that it was much more work than a vacation. I worked 12+ hours every day (yes, on weekends too) and I visited Paris in the morning and on my only day off (the Sunday before I left). I got back home last night at 9:30 but it felt like middle of the night to me so I fell asleep right away. I got up at 6:30 this morning thinking it was the middle of the day of course.

I was working in Paris' Red Light district, can you believe that? The street was like this: sex shop, porn DVD store, office, peep show place, yarn store, more sex shops, french hookers...

Hmm did I mention yarn stores on my street? Yep. But unfortunately, they were always closed whenever I had some free time to actually go out. So no French yarn for me. I worked a little on the ribbon top while I was there, mostly while watching bad French TV in my hotel room at night (now i'm not saying that all French TV is bad of course, only whatever was playing between midnight and 2am. I did get to see Lost in Translation, one of my favourite movies ever, though).

Next Sunday = knitting meetup! I really can't wait. I doubt that the ribbon top will be finished, but maybe if I knit non-stop until then... ;) (Unfortunately, I have to get back to work tomorrow and Thursday so that's leaves me only a little bit of knitting time since Sunday).

Special message for Lee-Ann: I just learned the news while reading past messages from the montreal yahoo group. I'm keeping you in my thoughts and wishing you the best. I know things will be all right for you. Oh and I refuse to believe you're 38, just like I refuse to believe that any of the girls in anti-wrinkle cream ads is a day over 25.

Markers and ribbons

I finally got around to taking pics of my last Secret Pal gift:


Some yummy Lamb's pride, bamboo circular needles, beautiful stitch markers and equally beautiful earrings. There was also a notebook with cute cats on it but I forgot to add it to the picture :(

A close-up of the stitch markers:



***

Yesterday, I went to my second knitting meetup. And once again, I had lots of fun (I think I talked a little bit more this time). There were six of us, all happily knitting, talking about tattoos, piercings and the habit that old people have of talking about constipation all the time.

I had made a mistake in the fleece artist socks and frogged them. Instead of starting over, I decided to cast-on for the ribbon top from the current issue of Knitty. I am loving this project. It's going on quite fast. I think it'll come with me to Paris.

Progress:



I'm already looking forward to the next meeting!

***

So this blog is taking a two-weeks break! See ya around the 23rd!

I sock a lot

I finished the socks at the beginning of the week but I was too busy to post a pic until now. Here it goes:



Very comfy. They'll keep my feet warm in the plane on Monday.

And I began a new pair, with the Fleece Artist yarn that my Secret Pal sent.

Did I say Secret Pal? No, I mean Amanda, my not-secret-anymore Pal!

I got another great package on Thursday. Not only did I get a card which revealed her identity, I also got a bunch of cool stuff! Unfortunately, the batteries of my camera died so I don't have a pic (maybe tomorrow). I got two skeins (1 red, 1 black) of Lamb's Pride Worsted so I can make the Poster Boy bag from SNB Nation. I also got the necessary needles to make it (bamboo of course, now I'm addicted ;) ). I got a cute notebook with cats on it. AND I got some awesome stitch markers and a pair of earrings that come from Amanda's online store, Homebaked. The earrings match perfectly my favourite ring and necklace. I love everything and I'm pretty sure that I got the best Secret Pal out of all the participants. :p

I have no willpower

I know I said I wouldn't cast-on for the second sock before I had worked on some other WIPs, but... well let's just say I'm only a few inches from decreasing for the toe on sock #2.

But it's not my fault, I swear! My mom kept teasing me for wearing just one sock yesterday. But but mom! The sock WANTED to be worn!

The good thing about that is that I'll have a new pair of socks to bring with me to Paris. YES!

Sock Therapy

This week has been full of ups and downs.

But I've had some good news: I'm being sent to Paris for two weeks to help on a project there. I'm so happy, since travelling is my favourite thing in the world (yes, I do like it more than knitting, but only slightly ;) ). It's silly because I'll be working the whole time I'm there, long hours every day, so I won't even have time to visit anything much. But still. I'll be in Paris!

Now I'm trying to figure out what knitting project to bring. I'll be finished with sock #1 for sure, but my goal was not to start #2 until I have at least one of my other projects done (does a frogged project count? Because I think I'll frog my baby blanket soon). I think I'll bring sock #2 on the trip, but I need something else in case I finish it (hey, I will be there for two weeks). I don't want to bring my current WIPs. So what else? More socks, maybe? A shawl? I'd like to do a shawl. Or maybe a top. I like the ribbon top from the current Knitty. *ponders*

***

In other news, I've been depressed lately (what's new?). Suffering from big self-esteem/body image issues. I'm not gonna go into it here, as I'm trying to keep this mostly knitting-oriented (I use my Livejournal for the annoying whiny posts). But I realized that there is such a thing as knitting therapy. You can't be depressed while you're knitting purple socks. Try it, I dare you.



It works.

(I know there is more blue than purple in the sock, but I tend to notice the purple more than any other colour).

***

Finally, in other news, the fabulous Lee Ann has a brand new blog. It's funny, it's witty, it's perfect... the only thing missing is a link to my blog really ;)

Speaking of links, I need to post my favourites in the menu of my own blog. Someday, I promise. For now, back to the sock therapy.

One round of applause for Montreal knitters

I had a fantastic time at the meetup today. I don't think I had ever been in a room with so many knitters before. Now that I think of it, I don't know any knitters (other than those of you I met today of course) so I never see any unless I'm yarn shopping.

It was just great to meet so many women who are passionate about my favourite hobby. It was fantastic to see other people's work (and to touch their yarn, I really couldn't resist).

I had been in a knitting slump lately and going there made me want to get back into it in full force (hopefully I'll have a whole sock to show at the next meeting).

Things I learned today:

1. Gauge is not pronounced how I thought it was.
2. Knitters make cute kids
3. Jo's husband knows I exist
4. Pink is a great colour for socks
5. I actually enjoy the "who are those freaks?" looks that people give to a group of knitters in a public place

Oh and there was also a discussion on shrugs. I think the consensus is that they are not liked, but I'm still undecided on the subject.

Traditions

Keeping up with the tradition*, here's my mini-review of IK's summer issue.

I thought there were a lot of cute things in this issue, but not that many things I want to make. I'm more of a fall-winter girl when it comes to knitting anyways.

Did you guys see the lace baby gown on page seven? If that thing won third prize, I want to see the second and first place! Wow!

Ok now the patterns:

One-button cardigan: I really like the way it looks on the picture on page 17 (when the model is sitting down). But it's terribly unflattering on the other pics. I definitely don't need a cardigan that will make me look bigger, unfortunately.

Isis wrap: I'm still not sure what I think about wraps, shrugs, boleros and all these things that I can tell apart one from another. Sometimes I think I really need one to go over summer dresses, other times I don't like the way they look. I think the Isis wrap is pretty, but I don't like the way it ties up.

Summer Sundress: I love it. It's very pretty. I wouldn't make it though.

(I'm going to make a little pause here to say how much I dislike the bathing suits on page 27)

Bed and bath duo: I LOVE THIS! I think it's my favourite thing from the magazine!!! But it would take me a lifetime to make, so I'll just look at the pretty picture.

Two-tie striped cardigan: I think I would consider knitting this, but maybe in different colours.

Viennese Shrug: It doesn't do anything for me.

Padded footlet: I prefer real (longer) socks. They're cute though.

Sketchbook cover: Very pretty and original. I don't think I'll be making it but it would be a good way to use leftover yarn I think.

Polka-dot bag There are about one million bags I want to make and I don't like this one enough to add it to the list.

Lacy Kerchief Scarf: Nothing to say about it, really. It's ok I guess.

Triada Scarf: I really disliked it when I first saw it worn as a cowl on the picture, but I love the way it looks as a little caplet thing.

Acorn Camisole: I don't really like it but maybe if I saw it in another colour, I'd change my mind.

Fiery Bolero: I can't decide what I think of it.

Premiere Pullover: I like it, but it really doesn't look summery to me. It's cute though.

Buffalo Girl: I've never seen anyone wearing something like that in the summer. I know it can get cold in the evening, but I don't think I'd wear that.

Lace Lead Pullover: Definitely not a summer item! But I LOVE it!

Fan Clutch and Fun Fur Collar: So not my style

Sleek Ribs Tank: No opinion.

Dylan Goes Electric: I LOVE that sweater! Too bad I don't knit for men.

Shoulder Shrugs: I think I like the one by Mary Jane Mucklestone the best, but I can't say any of them screamed "Make me!" to me.

Go with the flow socks: IK has such lovely sock patterns! I really like them.

Baby Gifts: Cute but I don't knit for babies much.

Do you guys think that the shirt in the Elsebeth Lavold ad (p. 53) looks like a Clapotis shirt? I think it does!

Oh and where's the token IK model? She's not in this issue at all (save for the Crochet issue ad). I like her, I want her back! :p The red-head is absolutely gorgeous too though.

*When does something becomes a tradition? I guess doing something twice doesn't qualify as tradition, right? Oh well, let's say it's a tradition-to-be.

***

So, tomorrow's the Montreal knitting meetup. I'm so excited! I'm super shy in groups and it looks like many people know each other already and are experienced knitters. I hope I can fit it. And I have no idea what WIP to bring. Most of them are too big and I need to carry my gym clothes and stuff for work... hmmm. I'll probably end up bringing a sock that I just started.

I'm really looking forward to it.

Montreal Knits!

Yay, there's now a Montreal Knits community! Thanks to Jo for sharing the link. Of course I had to join right away and then I had a silly thought for a button:



Since the Expos are gone, we might as well use the stadium for something ;)

Oh and if you check out the Montreal blog page, you'll see pics of the inside of my favourite LYS.

***

In other knitting news, I casted on a pair of socks, using the pattern on the fleece artist yarn that my Secret Pal sent. But I didn't use the gorgeous yarn, because I want to practice on another pair first.

I did, however, use the bamboo needles. My Secret Pal warned me that I could develop a bamboo addiction. And I gotta say that I really like to hold them in my hands. Hmmm...

Yummy

I have been on a knitting hiatus lately. It's not that I'm bored with knitting, I think I'm just bored with my current projects.

Clapotis is a lot of fun. But it does get repetitive when you're in section three. It is still my favourite current project though, and I'm hoping I can find better yarn for it for the next time (yes, there will definitely be a next time).

Then, there's Kyoto. The lovely Yarn Harlot put it best in her bookbookbook.
Everyone has one -- a knitting monstrosity.(...) What is a surprise is how long the knitter must have ignored the writing on the wall. To get a finished monstrosity, hours and hours of patient denial must be put in.
See, I know that Kyoto is going to be too big. I've known it for a long time. Did it stop me from going on? Noooo. Why? I don't know. I think the idea of frogging it was disgusting me more than the idea of having a much too big finished object. I'm still hoping it will fit my sister. But it's getting more and more difficult to finish it.

Last, there's a baby blanket that I'm making for my friend. Is there anything more boring to make than a baby blanket? I didn't think so.

Now there are a lot of projects that are appealing right now, but
a)Starting a new project means that it will take me even longer to finish the WIPs above.
b)Many of these future projects ask for yarn that I don't have. I just invested in a kick-ass new gym membership so I'm a bit low on funds. So no new yarn. At least I'll try :p

I do, however, have yarn for a few new projects that are really tempting. But my goal is to finish at least one of the current WIPs before I start a new one. We'll see how it goes.

***

Montrealers: If you're looking for the Yarn Harlot's book, there were 8 copies left when I bought mine at Indigo (on Ste-Catherine W) last Thursday. It's a very fun book, and Stephanie rocks (I'm addicted to her blog) so go get it! Of couse, you can also buy it here.

(And for the record, she didn't pay me to write this ;). We don't know each other.)

***

I kept the best part of this post for the end. I got a gift from my Secret Pal! Now I was looking at the Secret Pal homepage, and there are A LOT of participants. What were the chances of me getting the best Secret Pal ever? But I did! HA! Lucky me!


So what do we have here? Let's see: A cute stuffed lamb, a cool little box of mints, a sheep pin, Clover bamboo DPNs (I've never had bamboo needles before!) and the most gorgeous sock yarn ever (with a sock pattern, woo!).

See what I meant when I said that I had other patterns that were appealing to me? I so want to knit socks right now. But I've only knitted one pair so far (not counting the millions of fuzzy feet I made last Christmas) so I think I'll use the pattern with another skein of (less gorgeous but nice nonetheless) sock yarn first, as practice, and then I'll knit with the new gorgeous yarn and enjoy every second of it. In the meantime, I think I'll spend every second of free time petting it.

Les réponses!

Here are the answers to the questions I was asked in this post.

First, Leah's questions:

1. If you were to listen to music while you knit, what kind of music would it be?

I usually listen to my mp3 player when I knit in the bus (at home I usually do it in front of a movie or a TV show or while listening to a radio show). These days my player is filled with Tori Amos mp3s.

2. How do you exercise such restraint walking into a gourmet yarn store?
Well the fact that I'm saving my money for my other passion -- travelling -- really helps. :p That and I have a small appartment. I don't know where I could fit something like 20 huge boxes of yarn. And I feel guilty to have yarn and not use it. I usually always buy yarn with a project in mind, but the problem is that by the time I finish a project, I have thought (and bought yarn for) 5-6 new ones :p

3. can't think of a third one, but you rock nonetheless.
Awww thank you!! You rock too! And don't worry about asking only two questions, Jo and Lee Ann made up for it by asking four ;)

Now, Jo's questions:

1- What did you eat today? No cheating on this one. lol! ;)

Hehe. I don't like to talk about food much (I have lots of food issues). If I remember correctly, today I had a lot of cereals (Special K with Almonds, it's delicious), four rice cakes with peanut butter, two rice cakes with sugar free jelly, a small bag of mixed nuts and dried fruits and a bowl of cottage cheese.

2- What are the books on your knitting table?

Hmmm knitting books! I love them. I have the two Stitch N' Bitch books, Knit Wit, Knitting on the Edge (given to me as a RAOK!), Zen and the art of knitting (given to me by my Secret Pal), Chaleur du tricot (an afghan booklet in French), about 8-10 knitting magazines (mostly IK but some Vogue and Family Circle EK too), "I taught myself how to knit" and "I taught myself how to crochet" (both came with a kit).

3- What's your next story for work?
Well if everything goes according to plan, I should be interviewing P. Diddy tomorrow! It's been confirmed and everything but they can always cancel at the last minute so I can't be sure I'll do it until I'm actually face to him. If not that, I have a press screening on Tuesday and an interview with one of the actors in the afternoon.

4- ok I'm too curious and can't listen to rules! :-P Why did you start knitting?
I'm not sure. I've always liked craft and I figured knitting would give me something to do when I'm bored. At first I thought I'd make scarves and that would be it. No one I knew could teach me how to knit so I gave up on the idea for a few years. Then last year (Christmas 2003), I bought a knitting kit at Wal-Mart and taught myself how to cast-on and knit (no purls). It took me forever to make a garter stitch scarf. Then I found the Stitch N' Bitch book, the knitting community on Livejournal and Knitty and I discovered that there were many things other than scarves that you could make. I've been hooked ever since.

Last set of questions, from Lee Ann:

1. Do you write for pleasure too, in addition to doing it for work? if so, what do you write?

Yes, I do write for pleasure! I mostly write bad poetry (in English). I've also participated in NaNoWriMo these past two years so I wrote two novels (both in French). The first one was sort of Chick Lit and the second one was a Fantasy novel. I'm currently noting a lot of ideas for a third one that I'd like to do outside of NaNo. I also used to be a part of a writing club at work. We'd have a theme every two months and we would write short stories and meet to read them. We all got too busy though so we stopped doing it.

2. What's your fantasy "I want to knit that for me" pattern (or just the type of garment if you don't have a specific pattern in mind)?

I fell in love with Rogue the first time I saw it. I've never done any cables yet but it's a skill I want to learn soon. I know I will make it someday, but I want to make a few sweaters before I try this one.

3. When am I taking you and Jo on a field trip to Bergere de France? :-)

Anytime! :p Seriously, I'd love to go yarn shopping with other knitters and I'ven ever been to Bergere so...

4. What's your favourite food-and-wine combination? (ask Jo...I can't help asking people this question PLUS I follow rules as well as she does ;-)))

I really don't know! I like to drink wine but I'm not a connoisseur. The best, for me, is simply a good meal and a good bottle with a few friends.

***

Feel free to ask more questions, people! :)

***

Andrea posted the following comment in my last entry:

You are a good knitter! Heck, even if all you do is garter stitch and cast on and cast off, that's talent. People don't believe me when I tell them that knitting is just a combination of two stitches. If you can purl and knit, you can do anything.

And I totally agree with her! Everytime people tell me they wish they knew how to knit I try to tell them how easy it is but they don't believe me. And when I post FO in my livejournal, people who know how to knit but who have only done scarves so far tell me they wish they could make things like that. And they can! If they can make scarves, they can make other things too.

I guess I didn't express myself correctly when I said I wished I was a good knitter. I mean that I can't wait until I'm a better knitter. And I wish I was better at some things. Like yarn substitution. Most of the time, I can't get the yarn that a pattern asks for, at least not locally. And I never know which yarn to use instead. For instance, right now I really want to make the Juliet Pullover from last summer's IK. But I don't know what yarn to use. It's the part of knitting that my brain just don't get.

I also wish I could see myself more accurately so I could choose a pattern size that would fit me ok.

***

I will end this already super long post with a WIP picture: Clapotis! (I'm halfway through section 3):

An apology and some yarn porn

My Secret Pal mentionned that I hadn't updated my blog in a long time. I didn't realize it had been that long (almost a month!) I shall never let that happen again!

Don't worry though, I'm still knitting happily. Kyoto is going along ok, I only have the sleeves and the collar left. It's going to be way too big though. I'll give it away to my sister I think. I can't wait until I'm a good knitter. *sigh*

I'm also knitting a Clapotis. Oh my God it's so much fun! I'm not using the best yarn for it (Patons Decor), but it's still nice. I'm pretty sure I'll make another one sometime, with better yarn.

***
The lovely Jo asked her readers to ask her three questions, any questions, that she answered in her next entries. I'm a copycat so I'll do the same thing.

ASK ME THREE QUESTIONS. ANYTHING!

***

Now on to the yarn porn. I went to Mouliné today to get yarn for my Secret Pal. That place is so great, I could easily spend my whole paycheck in there! But I didn't! I really admire my discipline. I only got yarn for the gift. Unfortunately, I can't post it here in case my Pal stumbles on my blog. But it's yummy, I can tell you that.

So no new yarn for me. But I took a pic of my knitting corner:



And just so you can see better, I emptied the baskets on my bed:





It's not that big, but it's all MINE! And I don't discriminate, I got everything in there, from cheap acrylic to soft alpaca. I think I'll leave it on the bed and sleep in it tonight!

Kyoto-ing

I haven't updated in a little while so I figured I'd do it today even if I don't have much to report.

I still only have one WIP, oddly enough. But the good thing about that is that the project goes by faster (way to state the obvious!). The back of Kyoto is done and I've began working on the left front. The back was pretty boring, all stockinette for 12.5". But it's now DONE.

My sister loved my poncho and she would like to have one. I don't think I could make it in time for her birthday though (April 2nd). So I may end up buying one for her. I loved knitting it though so who knows?

I'm hesitating between many things for a new project. I want to make Clapotis but I have trouble choosing the yarn. I have no idea what I want. I'm poor so I can't buy expensive yarn. Cheap and nice. That's what I need. I'd also like to make Madli's Shawl from last summer's IK. I'd like to use my alpaca for it but I'd have to go and buy more. I know they sell it at my LYS but I'm scared of dyelots after the poncho incident. I also want to make poster boy from SNBN, but I'd need new yarn for it. I'd love to get the Lamb's pride but you can't find it here. I'd order it but I only need two skeins (1 of each colour) and it wouldn't be worth it to order that little yarn with shipping rates and all. Meh meh meh. Maybe socks then, I have the yarn for it. We'll see.

I've been depressed lately. I always am this time of the year. Thank God for knitting and its therapeutic effects.

Two firsts

I finally finished To Dye For, with a different colour for the sleeves and the collar since I couldn't find more of the blue yarn:



It is quite flawed and pretty unflattering but I still love it because, well, it's my first sweater! I may redo the crocheted collar because it looks weird.



And this is the lacey poncho, that I finished after putting it on hold for a few months (well almost finished, I still need to weave in the ends). You can see the dyelot problem. It's even more noticeable in person. It's too bad because I really like it. So should I try dyeing it? The yarn is something like 70% acrylic, 30% wool. So I don't think I can Kool-Aid dye it. But fabric dye maybe? Will it work or will it totally kill it?

(the pattern is from Chicknits by the way)

So now I only have ONE project on the needles: Kyoto. I'll probably cast on for one or two more things since I like to have three projects going at the same time. I'm leaning more and more towards Phoebe from the new IK. Maybe a pair of socks too. Oh and there's always that Chinese Charm bag that I've frogged twice now. See, for some reason, the yarn keeps on twisting. I've used circulars plenty of times before and I've NEVER had a problem with twisting yarn before. But with this particular yarn (and these particular cheap needles), it twists as soon as I put my guards down. Maybe it's just not meant to be.

Pretty yarn, why do I love thee so?

Earlier this week, I received a package from my lovely Secret Pal and on top of three candy necklaces, a book that looks very interesting (Zen and the art of knitting), a hot stone massage kit (!!!!! how original, I can't wait to try it) and a cute postcard with French words on it (yay!), I had four skeins of the yarn pictured above. Actually, the colour is all wrong (despite attempts to make it more accurate with Photoshop) and it really looks more like this. The name is Alpaca Peru Luxury Collection and it's so soft and pretty! And of course it's alpaca so it looks very warm. Now I must decide what to do with it and that's where YOU come in, dear reader(s). I have 200g/400m/(I think that would be 440 yd). It says "22 STS/27 Rows to 4". Any idea? I'd love to make a shawl but I don't think I'd have enough, unless I make a capelet or something. Would it look good as a shawl? I went to the LYS earlier today (more on that later) and they carry the yarn so I could get more but then I may have a dyelot problem. Hmmmm.

Any ideas? I know I don't want to make a scarf. Or a hat. Or mittens. Hmmm.

***

Did I mention that Andrea sent me three very cute baby blanket patterns?

***

So as I said above, I went to a LYS earlier today. I love to go there but as you all probably know, it's quite an exercise in discipline. I managed to find some nice yarn for my Secret Pal. I won't say more about it in case she stumbles upon this blog. I just hope she'll like it. I was very careful to go with what she likes according to her website so I think it'll be ok.

For me, I got a skein of Phildar Laureate in baby pink. I wanted a dark blue (this is to finish the sleeves of the To Dye For sweater) but I didn't find one that I liked. So I went with pink. I think it'll look cute with the pale blue. I think. We'll see.

I also got some cotton for Kyoto. Now keep in mind that I'm still a pretty new knitter and I'm not always too good at substituting yarns. It's only when I got home that I realize that the yarn I chose was way too thin. But I had looked at plenty of cotton while in the store and it was the only one that I really liked (it's Katia Mississippi). So I doubled it and swatched and it should be fine. Except I now have to go and buy more and the sweater that I thought would cost me 36$ will end up being 72$. Oh well. Hobbies are expensive aren't they? I casted on and I was very surprised to see that I actually really like to work with cotton. Who would have thought?

I didn't buy it, but I think I found a yarn I'd like to use for Clapotis (I found MANY yarns I'd like to use, but this one I can actually afford). It's simply Patons Decor in... I can't remember the name of the colour but it has "Spring" in it. Or "Springtime". It's cute. I think (hope) it would look cute as Clapotis. But I don't want to buy it until To Dye for is finished. Which could happen very soon or in a long time, depending on how I feel.

***

I finished the lacey poncho! At least the knitted part. It's currently "blocking". I'm using quotes because since it's an acrylic/wool blend, I don't know how well it will block. But it's worth a try. This project taught me something: the importance of dye lots. The yarn I used is white. Sort of. I mean, some balls were white. Others were what I could describe as yellowy-white. Now I have absolutely no sense of observation. Therefore, I didn't notice the differences in colours until I was wayyyy into the pattern. Ok, I only noticed when I was halfway done with the second pannel. I then looked at the first pannel and noticed that it was two different colours and I hadn't even noticed. How stupid of me! I still kept on knitting because there was just no way I was ripping it all out. I'm thinking of dying it. Can I do that? I don't think kool-aid dying will work well since the wool content is minimal, but would fabric dye do? I'm ready to try anything. I'll keep you all updated.

***

Wow, this entry is LONG. Are you still reading? I got Interweave Knits earlier this week so I'm now doing what I hope will become a tradition:

Caroline's IK review

Just keep in mind that I tend to change my mind a lot and what first catches my eyes isn't necessarilly something that I'll still like in a few months. And I may end up liking something that I dislike now. So this is today's opinions.

1. Phoebe (this is the pattern for the Yarn Spotlight on p. 7): I think it's very cute and guess what? I just realized that it would be a nice project for my new Alpaca Peru yarn! Hehe.

2. Wear-everywhere Pullover: I love this. But I'd rather not do it in hemp and I'm not sure how it would look in wool. What do you think? Cotton maybe?

3. Fitted Dolman: It's absolutely not my style. Or maybe it's the green, since I don't wear green? No, it's really just not my style.

4. Galway Guy: I have no boyfriend/husband/dad/brother so men patterns don't interest me at all. The shirt is nice though.

5. A Good Bias: Very cute. I think I'd like something like that for summer, since the weather can go up and down sometimes.

6. Flowered Waistcoat: I don't like it.

7. Vintage Pink Cardigan: Très cute, very girly. I'm a sucker for pink girly stuff.

8. Bear Claw Blanket: Véronik Avery is probably my favourite designer and I think the blanket is pretty. But 19 skeins of Koigu Premium Merino? I wish I could, but I can't.

9. Ballet Wrap: I love this (pink again!). But I'd like to see more pictures of it (made by other people). I think I don't like the dress she has on underneath and I want to see it worn with something else.

10. Border on the Extravagant: Woo more pink! I like it but I'd do it without the upper pockets.

11. Skye Tweed Vest: See #4 (the model made me smile though)

12. Parfait Play: I like baby stuff because many of my friends are having them, but I'm not into kids stuff right now. Maybe when my friends' kids will be older...

13. Grand Plan Capelets: Of the three, my favourite would be the burgundy one but I don't care for them much.

14. Cable-Eight Top: I don't like it much.

15. Bi-Color Brioche: Probably my favourite thing in the magazine. It's SO pretty! It looks complicated though.

16. Wave Skirt: Very pretty but I think if I were to make a knitted skirt, I'd do the eyelet skirt from Knitty.

17. Cable Rib Socks: Oooooh pretty. I <3 socks. I just love the pic of the model knitting in her pajamas. Something I do often.

18. Paisley Lace Shawl: I like it, but there are so many shawl patterns that I like more that I'll most likely pass on this one.

19. Heads-up Hats: I think they have a weird shape.

20. Amish Oval Rug: It's nice but I don't think I'd want to knit a rug right now.

That's it for the spring issue. I love IK and I already can't wait for the Summer issue! :p

I sock

So my first pair of socks is done!



They're not perfect. They're too big (my fault for not swatching). But I still <3 them and I want to make more. And everyone is SO getting socks for Christmas next year (well this year... it just seems like next year).

***

In other news, my job is interfering in my knitting. :p Lately I've been working odd hours (not to mention long hours) and my schedule just doesn't agree with my LYS' schedule. And I need to buy yarn! Yarn to finish my sweater, yarn to begin Kyoto and yarn for my Secret Pal (though I don't know what to get her at all). Oh well. The good thing is that I'll be spending next weekend in Montreal (the first one since my mom got sick at the beginning of January. She's much better now so I feel ok spending a weekend here) so I should be able to buy then.

Oh and since I mentionned Secret Pals... it looks like I'll be getting something in my mailbox soon. Yay, I'm so excited! Thank you Secret Pal!

Days like this

I've had a bad bad bad day. So I decided to shop at KnitPicks to make me feel better. I added a lovely handpainted yarn called "Happy Dance" for Clapotis to my Shopping cart. Then I decided to get some Wool of the Andes in coal and in mulled wine. It came up to a little over 17$ (I had 2 skeins of each colour). Fantastic! Even with the exchange rate it's a pretty good price.

Then they added almost 10$ for shipping. POO! And Canadians are not elligible for the free shipping for orders over 30$ thing or I would have happily ordered more.

So I did the only thing that was left to do. I deleted everything from the shopping cart and did some virtual shopping instead. My wish list now goes up to 232.53 (I didn't even try to convert to Canadian dollars). Oh to be rich :p Of course, since it was only virtual shopping, I added a pair of Addi turbos in every size available :p

Knitting Envy

I am at a point in my knitting life where I want to start so many new projects, I'm going nuts. I have many almost-finished objects, which is very exciting because it means I'll be able to start new ones soon! :p

I'm almost done with sock #2 of my first pair. I *may* finish it this week. Or I may keep it for next weekend when I'm coming back here (I'm at my mom's right now).

The lacey poncho is also going well. I think I have 8 pattern repeats and then I'm done. Leave it to me to finish my first poncho just as no one is wearing them anymore. Haha.

To dye for: I've been meaning to go to a LYS to get more yarn to finish it for a few weeks now but I can never find the time. Since I can't find the exact same colour I've used, I think the sleeves are going to be a darker blue, and the crocheted collar too. I'm not sure how it will look, but it's worth a try. I can always frog it all if I don't like it.

Oh and remember the blue yarn from La Bobineuse that was turned into a shawl which I decided to frog a week or so ago? I'm using it to practice crochet and I'm making a scarf. Very simple but it's soft and warm. It's not exactly the look I was hoping for though so I may start it over. We'll see. It's cute the way it is too.

As for the wish list, here are a few things I want to make next:

-Clapotis. Yes, the clapper. Everyone keeps talking about it, about how much fun it is and posting pictures and well, I want to be a part of the fun too. I just need to find the perfect yarn for it.

-Kyoto. It's on Knitty and in Knit Wit. It's very cute. I want it black and pink. And I want it now.

-Arm warmers. I don't know why, I suddenly decided I needed a pair. And when I say need, I mean need. I love the ones in Stitch N' Bitch nation so I may make them. I rhink I'd want to use the purple yarn I got at La Bobineuse but I'll have to swatch to make sure I can get gauge first.

-Socks. Because I bought cute sock yarn that I want to use. But I think I'll do arm warmers before I make more socks. But I need to make lots of socks because I've already decided that it's going to be everyone's gifts next Christmas.

-A shawl. I really need one for the office, even though it's getting warmer out. The office is often colder during the summer anyways. I love Madli's Shawl from issue #something of Interweave Knits. But I'd love to use the yarn I got in the last Secret Pal thing and I don't have enough of one colour (I have 4 balls of red and 4 of green but I don't want to mix the colours) and I don't know where to buy more. So I'd need a smaller shawl pattern if I wanted to use the yarn. The Flower Basket shawl maybe. Or the capelet from Stitch N' Bitch Nation.

*sigh*

Oh and I'm not even going to mention the Poster boy bag and the yoga mat bag from Stitch N' Bitch Nation, a cute summer top from last summer's IK and the eyelet skirt from Knitty. Not to mention that my mom said she'd love to have a scarf to match the Chinese Charm bag I made her for her birthday. That made me very happy because it means that she loves the bag :) That also mean that I should buy some more Silk Garden in #84 (and make sure I have enough to make another hat like the one I lost at the hospital. I loved it so much!)

See my dilemma? What to make, what to make... I wish I could become a multi-milionnaire and quit my job and knit all day. With luscious super expensive yarn. Yum.

***

Knit.1 or Caroline is getting old

The second issue of Knit.1 just came out. Now I remember when I saw the first issue. I picked it up at Indigo and sat in a chair there to browse through it. I ended up not buying it. I didn't like the layout of the mag at all. And I didn't like the patterns. Too much froufrou (and I love froufrou) and fun furs and funky stuff. And I usually love funky. Damn it, what's wrong with me?

And then I went online and saw the teenagers and the women in their early 20s raving about it. They loved the patterns. And I hated them.

So when I saw issue #2, I did like with the first one. I sat and looked at it. I must admit that I liked a few patterns. But I disliked most of them. And this is when it hit me:

"Caroline, this is targeted to young people. You hate it. Therefore, you're really getting old".

Oh well.

Secret Pal!

Woohoo, I got my Secret Pal name! Yay. Now I just need to investigate to figure out what to give her. Hehe. :p

And if the person who has my name is reading this, here's the little survey we had to fill out:

1. Are you a yarn snob? Do you avoid Red Heart and Lion Brand? Or is it all the same to you?
While I do prefer natural fibers, I am NOT a yarn snob. I knit with everything, as long as I like the colour and texture of the yarn. Red Heart is not my favourite brand but I don't avoid it. And we don't really have Lion Brand here, except for fun fur (which I'm not a fan of).

2. Do you spin? Crochet?
I don't spin (maybe someday!). I'm trying to learn to Crochet. I've made a pair of slippers so far (which you can see in a previous post).

3. Do you have any allergies? (smoke, pets, fibers, perfume, etc.)
I'm allergic to pets (*cries*), cigarette smoke, the ocean (weird I know) and band-aids.

4. How long have you been knitting?
For about a year, but the obsession began last summer.

5. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?
No! Maybe I should get one!

6. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.)
Hmm. Cucumber melon. Pumpink and spice. Fruity stuff.

7. Do you have a sweet tooth?
Yeah but I'm always on a diet.

8. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do?
Well like I said, I'm trying to learn how to crochet. I'm also trying to finish my travel scrapbook. I love photography. And I want to learn how to sew someday.

9. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)
I love Tori Amos, Björk, Howie Day, Placebo, The Dresden Dolls, Beck, Rasputina, Franz Ferdinand, FrouFrou and a bunch of others. Lots of French-Canadian artists too (Yann Perreau, Stefie Shock, Daniel Bélanger, Jorane, Dumas and many more). And yes, I have mp3 players.

10. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer?
This is difficult to answer because I love colours and my favourite ones vary constantly. I love reds, pink, purple, blues. I love green but it doesn't look good on me so I never wear it.

11. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?
I live by myself. I visit my mom and younger sister every weekend these days because my mom was sick recently and I want to take care of her. As I mentionned, I'm allergic to pets so I don't have any.

12. What are your life dreams? (really stretching it here, I know)
Happiness? Maybe to be able to get close to people.

13. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with?
I love Noro yarns. But I need to try more nice yarns before I can decide on this one.

14. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?
Scratchy yarns. No fibers in particular.

15. What is/are your current knitting obsession/s?
Bags. Scarves and hats. And I'm obsessed with just about a million projects.

16. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?
Bags

17. What are you knitting right now?
I'm finishing a lacey poncho, a pair of socks (my first socks!), the To Dye for sweater (I just need to buy more yarn)

18. What do you think about ponchos?
I'm probably one of the few knitters who actually think they're cute.

19. Do you prefer straight or circular needles?
Both

20. Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?
I dislike plastic (except for my Denise). I like metal. I want to try bamboo.

21. Are you a sock knitter?
I'm on my first pair but I love it. It never gets boring!

22. How did you learn to knit?
I learned the basics with a "I taught myself how to knit" kit that I got at Wal-Mart. I learned the rest with Stitch N' Bitch and online.

23. How old is your oldest UFO?
I started it at the end of June 2004 and I'm not sure I'll ever finish it. It's an illusion scarf.

24. What is your favorite animated character or a favorite animal/bird?
Animated: I like Emily the Strange, Daria and Betty Boop. And the Simpsons. My favourite animals are cats. I love them. But they make my throat close.

25. What is your favorite holiday?
Christmas

26. Is there anything that you collect?
Postcards

***

I decided to FROG the blue shawl. I just don't really like it. I think I want a fancier shawl. Something like Madli's shawl from IK. I just need to get the yarn.

Right now there are so many things that I want to make that I end up not starting anything. It's probably a good thing since I already have a lot on the needles.

I finish my friend's scarf, which is "Mom's Sophisticated Scarf" from Stitch N' Bitch Nation. I adapted it for bulky yarn, so it's not exactly the same. I really like the way it came out and it's very soft. Unfortunately, you can't see the details well on the picture.



I'll be sending it to her this week. She doesn't know she's getting it. She's always been there for me and she's so nice to everyone, I think she deserves a little unexpected gift :)

I also took the lacey poncho out of the bag it's been sleeping in since November I think. I think I have nine pattern repeats left to do on it. I can do it.

And I began sock #2.

That's all for today Caroline's wonderful world of knitting.

I'm a hooker!

Remember yesterday's post where I wrote that I didn't get crochet, despite many attempts?

Well I sat with instructions, yarn and a hook yesterday and for some reason, it just clicked! I therefore present you with CARO'S CROCHETED SLIPPERS!



Aren't they cute?

Thanks to everyone who's given me baby blanket ideas. Keep them coming! Andrea I'll get in touch with you.

Pregnant!

No, not me, I'm very far from being pregnant actually. But my friend is! Yay! I'm not suuuuuuuuuuuper close to her, we mostly keep in touch by email. But still, of course I want to knit her something.

I found some cute yarn in a perfect baby-whose-gender-is-not-yet-determined colour. And now I want to make a baby blanket. I think. The question is: what pattern should I use?

There was a cute (free) pattern close to the yarn in the store (Wal-Mart) so I took it. But unfortunately, it was crochet. Damn! I don't get crochet, unfortunately. I've tried, and I will try again. But I'm not sure I'll be able to crochet an intermediate crochet pattern before her due date.

So anyways, that's where you all come into play. If you have a favourite baby blanket pattern, let me know what it is! I don't mind paying for a pattern, but I'd rather not have to buy a whole book. I'm still not sure how many people are actually reading this blog, but hopefully I'll get a few suggestions. Oh and even if you don't have a suggestion, please post a comment just so I know you're reading :)

***

The Orphan Sock or Caroline will never learn

Months ago, I spontaneously bought this skein of Bernat Sox in purple-blue-green-pink. There was a sock pattern on the label and it said that one skein was enough for a pair. Being a beginner (still am really), I thought it was cool and bought the yarn.

Of course, I then realized that the pattern on the label was for kids sock. I don't have a kid and I'm selfish so I wanted the socks for myself. But it was clear that I'd need more than a skein for a pair of adult socks.

"No problem, I'll buy another skein sometime later", I thought and went on my merry way, knitting other stuff (mostly fuzzy feet for loved ones). Then a few weeks ago, I decided to knit socks and I picked up the Bernat.

The sock is BEAUTIFUL! I love it. Even though it's acrylic, it's very warm. I can't wait to make myself a pair in wool, it will be sooooooo warm. Anyways. But while the sock is nice, I soon realized that two would be better. So I went to Zellers, where I had bought that first skein. Bernat Sox yarn extravaganza! They had every possible colour... except the purple-blue-green-pink. Of course. Today I went to Wal-Mart. Lots of Bernat chunky, Bernat cotton, Bernat satin. No Bernat sox. Poo.

Now I may be able to find the yarn in another Zellers or in a Wal-Mart in Montreal, who knows? But if I don't, the sock will remain an orphan, which would suck (pun totally intended).

***

Mommy wants to learn how to knit

My mom got out of the hospital last Tuesday, but she won't be going back to work until the end of February, at the earliest. She sleeps a lot, but she also has lots of free time (especially since we're all spoiling her to death and doing all the chores... of course she totally deserves it). So last night she asked me if I could show her how to knit! Yay! She bought some chunky yarn and size 10½ needles today and I tried to teach her. Things I realized:

1. I'm a lousy teacher
2. Just because knitting was easy to learn for me doesn't mean it's easy for everyone (though that may be due to #1)
3. Having taught myself how to knit with English books and websites, I don't know the French terminology at all.

That being said, she managed to do a few rows of her scarf, but she won't hold her needles like I do even if I keep on showing it to her again and again. Oh well. Whatever makes you comfortable I guess.

She ended up telling me that she was much better at crochet. I asked her to show me and guess what? She's as bad a teacher as I am! :p Or maybe we're both very poor students ;)

***

I want to change the name of this blog. Caroline's Knitting Adventures is just this silly name I thought of when I registered. I want something shorter so I could make buttons. I like things like Jo Knits but I'm not a copycat so I won't use Caro Knits ;) If anyone has an idea, let me know.

The post with lots of pictures

The Tsunami Relief Challenge is over! Thanks to everyone who participated. The final total is 507$ + one undisclosed amount. YAY! You all rock. :)

Of course, I'm sure you all want to know who's winning the Noro, right? Ok, ready?



Congratulations to Andrea! (I'll get in touch with you sometime tomorrow as it's getting very late and I need to go to bed soon).

***

Here's a pic that shows some recent purchases:



As you can see, I finally got my set of Denise, after months of wanting them! Yay :) I adore them. You can also see the yarn I've been lusting over for some time now, Phildar coquine. It's so cute. I'm going to make a scarf out of it. And last, my new little stuffed friend. I just couldn't resist when I saw it in the store. It was only 10$CDN, and half of it went to the Red-Cross. A good deal, I tell you.

You can see it wearing my Gryffindor beanie here (I look like hell right now so there's no way I'm modelling it myself):



And you can see here that I've already put my Denise to use:


A shawl I'm working on with yarn from La Bobineuse.

***

I went to Mouliné today, hoping to find some Noro Silk Garden. See, I lost my Silk Garden beanie at the hospital. *cries* I loved that hat so much. Unfortunately, they don't carry it. I still have half a skein left and I need only one skein for the hat. So if anyone has a half-skein of colour 34 lying around and you want to get rid of it, let me know :) (Only if you have leftovers though, if you have a whole skein, make the Hat for yourself, it's lovely.)

So yeah, I went to Mouliné and even though they didn't have what I was looking for, I didn't come out empty ended, oh no. It's a good thing that the store isn't close to where I live, or I'd go broke. It has sooooo many luscious yarns, I wanted to buy everything. I didn't though. But I got some Irish wool as well as lovely sock yarn, which I shouldn't have bought.

Why not?

Because I'm almost done with my first sock:


Made with cheap Bernat Sox. It's cute. But how on earth will I be able to make the second sock with the Bernat when I have the other cute new (75% wool) yarn? Self-control, Caroline, self-control.

***

PSA

The girl in charge of Secret Pals 4 is looking for French speaking participants. There are some people from France who are participating and their blog is all in French.

***

Montrealers:

The Indigo bookstore on Sainte-Catherine street has their Suss Kit at 75% off. They usually go for 30$CDN. Now I'm not a fan of the patterns, but they all come with yarn and a pair of Size 9 bamboo needles. The purse one also has handles and there are some kits that have ribbons I believe. I don't think I'll buy any, but I figured some of you could be interested.

Ok I think that's all for tonight!

Quick update before work

I want to thank you all for your good thoughts and encouragements concerning my mother. The doctors think that she has basilar migraines, a rare form of migraine that usually affects teenage girls (I kept telling my mom that she looks so young she gets teenage disorders).

BASILAR MIGRAINE - A form of complicated migraine headache that is characterized by the addition of bilateral visual symptoms, paresthesias, confusion, stupor, rarely coma, aggressive outbursts, slurred speech, double, vision, and vertigo. Alternating hemiplegias (one-sided weakness) have also been attributed to basilar migraine. May also exist with only some of the aforementioned symptoms as a "partial basilar syndrome."

She is doing better now but she still has lots of trouble sleeping and she barely eats. She got out of the hospital yesterday. I'm still worried, but I'm also relieved that she doesn't have a tumor or something like that.

I spent last Thursday through Sunday with her in the hospital. I almost finished my first sock while she was sleeping and got to talk to a knitter who was visiting her husband.

Concerning the TSUNAMI RELIEF CHALLENGE, you have until tonight, midnight (Montreal time) to send me an email with the amount of your donation. I will most likely draw the name of the winner tomorrow as I had planned (maybe even at midnight tonight if I'm still up). Good luck!

There will probably be a new post with pictures sometimes soon.

Update

Hey.

I haven't been updating much lately because I'm going through a difficult time. My mom was admitted to the hospital last weekend. They don't know what she has and everything is just very scary.

I will be back to blog world sometime in the future I'm sure.

As for the tsunami relief challenge, don't worry about it. I will definitely give away the Noro to one of you wonderful donators. It may be a little later than I expected though (then again, maybe not, we'll see how things go). Sorry for not sending everyone an individual thank you note, but I'm sure you understand.

Just send good thoughts to my mom if you can ok?

Socks!

After spontaneously casting on for a blue shawl that I had to put on hold for a lack of long needles, I spontaneously cast on a sock. My first sock! Unless you count the Fuzzy Feet as socks, but I don't :p I'm using a basic pattern on the Lion Brand website (I'm too lazy to link it right now) and I'm using some cheap yarn. Bernat Sox in a cute purple/pink/green/blue colourway. I've heard bad things about this yarn, but I've had it in my stash almost since I've learned how to knit so I figured I might as well use it for Le premier bas. The colour is very cute though.

***

----> Take a look at my menu: the total for the Tsunami Challenge has doubled! Yay! :) You still have 10 days to participate (Deadline is midnight on January 20th). Click the link on the menu to see the details.

In a dream

Last night I dreamed that I had finished my sweater and it was beautiful. I was so excited that I wore it right away and went to work. When I got there, I realized that I had forgotten to weave the ends in. Ooops. :p "Ehh... it's part of the design!"

***

I always have a list of "Things to knit next" in my head. Right now, among the things I want to knit soon, are a modified Chinese Charm Bag, the Klaralund sweater, a scarf made of gorgeous yarn that I will buy sometime soon and a yoga mat bag.

But often, instead of starting one of these million of projects that have been in my head for quite sometime, I impulsively cast on for something else. I did that last night. I used this gorgous blue yarn that I got at La Bobineuse:



And I started a shawl using the KnittingGeek Shawl Workshop.

The yarn is bulky so it's not a fancy shawl but it's incredibly soft and will hopefully be warm. I plan on using it at work where I am *always* cold, even in the summer. I'm using Size 15 needles. I was able to get quite a bit of it done last night (it knits up very quickly as you can imagine), but I'll have to wait until I get my Denise to continue, as I don't have long enough needles to go on. I should get my set sometime next week I think.

***

Gryffindor beanie is currently blocking. That yarn (100% merino, unknown brand) soften up quite a bit when it's washed.

***

Now I need to stop blogging and tidy up the appartment. I've made room to store my mini-stash in the living room (it's all over the place in bags right now). I'll eventually need to buy some baskets or boxes or something. I love yarn. Yes, I do.

Knitting journal

This is something I've been meaning to post since it was first posted on the Knitlist.

Cool webpage with downloadable knitting tools (Knitting journal, Stash Organizer, Needle Organizer). It's really neat, check it out!

***

Tsunami Relief Challenge Update (for more info, see my January 3rd post)

The total so far is 217$ (+ one undisclosed amount). Thanks to those of you who have donated, you're all wonderful. You have no idea how happy I am everytime I see "Tsunami Relief Challenge" as the subject of an email in my Inbox.

The challenge is still up until January 20 so I encourage you all to donate and maybe win some Noro at the same time (it's beautiful I tell you!) :)

***

I have finished my Gryffindor beanie. I can't post pictures right because I've ran out of batteries (it still needs to be blocked anyways). I don't like it as much as the Silk Garden beanie, but it's still cute and at least it fits with my warmer scarf.

I am still undecided as to what I'll do with the sweater. I think I'll probably bind off the sleeves and try to stretch them a little when blocking. We'll see how it turns out. I just don't want to spend that much energy trying to locate more of the yarn, especially since it doesn't even have a colour name on the label. I don't know.

***

I have been reading more and more blogs and adding them to my favourites lately. I really need to make a favourite blogs post and to link it in my menu...

Karma or something

I think the universe wants to punish me for even thinking about buying yarn while I am supposed to not buy anything that isn't necessary.

I was very nervous about the yarn I need to finish my first sweater. I'd need only one little ball. So I went to my LYS. No more. And I can't find it online either. I don't really know what to do.

It is Phildar Laureate 200 in a very pale blue. There is no colour name but there is a number: 72H113. I know not many people read this blog and this is very far-fetched, but if *anyone* has an extra ball of this, let me know.

I really don't know what to do. I guess I could rip it out and make a shawl or something. :( I also thought about buying a ball of a darker blue and just finish the sleeves with a different colour. I think I wouldn't have minded doing that If I could have added some of the darker colour to the body somehow. I'd probably do the single crochet around the collar with the darker yarn too. I don't know. Another possibility would be to bind off the sleeves as they are now and try to stretch them when I block. I don't mind 3/4 sleeves, but I don't think it would look good on this sweater since they're bell sleeves.

*sigh*

More about the challenge

(For more details, check out my previous post)

In order to get more participants, I also posted about the challenge in my Livejournal. I have also offered to make a scarf or a booga bag out of the yarn if a non-knitter/crocheter happens to win the yarn. This offer also stands for any non-knitter who may happen to stumble upon this blog :)

Thanks to those of you who have already emailed me. You rock.

My little part...

Ok I am completely stealing this idea from the wonderful Stephanie. I encourage you to check out her January 3rd post and to participate. Her mittens are fabulous. :)

Stephanie if you read this, I hope you don't mind that I'm stealing your words.

This is the "Tsunami relief challenge". For one week do this:

1. Each and every time you think about buying something...ask yourself if it is a need (food, water, shelter, medicine or safety) or a want. Be honest. Yarn is not (sob) necessary. Latte's are not necessary. A seventh pair of shoes? Fabulous pair of new jeans? Eating out? Could you skip a haircut? Search yourself and ask, do I need this, or would the money be better spent on someone whose home, or village...or children, were just completely swept away.

2. At the end of the week (or sooner...if you don't need that much time to think about it) Donate the amount of money that you didn't need to an organization that helps the people affected by the tsunami. There should be no reason why every single person who reads this blog can't find at least a dollar.

MSF Canada (Doctors without borders)
MSF USA
MSF International
Canadian Red Cross
American Red Cross
International Red Cross
Oxfam Canada
Oxfam America
Oxfam International

3. After you donate, email me the amount of your donation (amarillys@hotmail.com), your name and email. PLEASE WRITE "Tsunami Relief Challenge" AS THE SUBJECT LINE TO MAKE SURE I DON'T ACCIDENTALLY DELETE YOUR EMAIL. I don't care how much your donation is and I don't need any proof that you made the donation. (I believe that that planet would smite you for lying about this sort of thing) I'd like to know the amount that you gave only so I can keep a running tally in the sidebar. I'll know that whatever you give is your best effort, given your unique circumstances.

4. On January 20 (Canadians, please remember that the Canadian government will match donations until January 11), I will take the names of everyone who has given something, I'll randomly draw a name and I'll mail the winner a prize. Unfortunately, I don't have the skills to make wonderful mittens like Stephanie, but I will give you materials so that you can make yourself a little something:



Yes, I am giving away my beloved Noro Kureyon. *breathes* I adore that yarn and I hope one of you wonderful people who will donate will adore it too. It is colour 148. And three skeins are enough for a booga bag. Booga bags are cool. So donate and tell me about it! :)