Simply irresistible!

A few weeks ago, I went to Ariadne and spent an afternoon knitting with Molly Ann and Jennie.

Jennie was knitting a super cute Alan Dart toy (a sleepy hedgehog). The pattern was in Irresistible Gifts to Knit, which is filled with toy patterns from Alan Dart.

Now despite the fact that I've never knit a toy in my life, I couldn't resist and I ordered the book a few days later. And I got it today! Everything is SO cute! See the hedgehog! There's also a fantastic pirate, a very cute elephant, not to mention Noah's ark, Mr and Mrs Noah and a whole bunch of animals.

My favourite pattern, though, is defnitely the Yuletide Gnomes. Adorable!

So yeah, I've never knit toys, but now it's all I want to knit. I wish I didn't already have 162 items in my Ravelry queue because I'm about to add a dozen more.

(BTW, if anyone wants to order the book, I got it here for 11.95£ including shipping.

New yarn for your pleasure

WARNING: I'm going to talk about the May shipment of Lotus Yarn's sock club! Stop reading now if you don't want to be spoiled!

Ok, before I talk about the new yarn, I want to mention two patterns that I've discovered on Ravelry recently (thanks to the option that allows you to look at what your friends put in their queue!).

Numéro Un: Le Lapin Noir (Sorry I don't have a non-Ravelry link. If you're not on Ravelry, you need to get an account now!). Isn't it beautiful? I've never tried intarsia but this really makes me want to try it. And I'd probably use the same colours too, they're perfect.

Numéro Deux: B-side cardigan (non-Ravelers click here). This one showed up on many of my friends' queue so I have a feeling it's going to be très popular.

I also really like this pattern (here also), which I found on Lime and Violet's Daily Chum. Simple, yet very pretty.

Ok, so now I'm ready to show the yarn.



Pretty? I think so too. The name of the yarn is "The Clash" and it's 100% Superwash merino. I'm not sure which pattern I'll use with it. I think I may actually just knit it in plain stockinette and see how it looks.

Oh and is it bad that I can't wait till the June shipment already?

Shopping!

Yesterday, I realized that I had a gift certificate to Effiloché that expires on May 30th. So, what other choice did I have but to use it, right? Not to mention that I had to go to the store right in front of it to get a new passport picture.

Speaking of which: I know everyone thinks their passport pic is ugly, but mine truly is the ugliest! No one ever told me I had one eye so much higher than the other! It's almost on my forehead! Man! But oh well, the pic has been taken, it's now in the hands of the passport people (btw, fellow Canadians, don't you just love the new simplified passport renewal process?)

That being said, I'm sure you want me to get back to the point: the yarn! I looked at my Ravelry queue to figure out what project I wanted to knit soon that I didn't have yarn for. I found one: the Montego Bay scarf! I figured it could be a good project to bring along on a trip (aren't I the planner!) So I bought this beautiful Sea Silk:



It's going to be a beautiful scarf, let me tell you! I'm itching to cast on for it right away.

I had money left on my gift certificate so I also bought this:



Handmaiden Casbah. 80% merino, 10% cashmere, 10% Nylon. It's going to be the most comfortable pair of socks ever. If I use it for socks. We'll see.

I am ashamed!

This is going to be a quick post because I need to go to work in an hour. Here's a FO!



Pattern: No pattern. Plain stockinette socks.
Yarn: Opal feelings, colour 1704
Needles: 2.25 mm bamboo dpns

I am very happy with them, they're very comfortable and cute. I just wish the brown sequence didn't go so long (it's actually a lightish brown, followed by a slightly darker brown, followed by the lightish brown again, but it just looks like a huge brown stripe).

That being said, I am ashamed. When I uploaded the pic in my Photobucket FO account, I realized that this pair of socks is only my SECOND finished project this year!!! The only other thing I've made in 2008 is a pair of fuzzy mittens (which I have lost, btw).

I know I had lost my knitting mojo for most of the year and there was a lot going on in my life, but seriously, two FOs by May? It's crazy!

I'm hoping to have #3 soon, as I have wound the yarn for Cable Net sock #2. It will probably take me a long time to finish them because of all the tiny cables, but I'll do my best.

Two FOs. I can't believe it.

Summer of socks 2008

These days, all I want to do is knit socks. Mostly because I want to use my sock yarn, so I can buy new sock yarn without feeling guilty.

So I decided to join in on the fun of Summer of Socks 2008. It starts on June 21st, until September 1st.

I didn't enter the "most knit socks" contest, because I'll be lucky if I finish two pairs (I am still planning on knitting other things). I also didn't enter the "vacation" contest, because my vacation will be in September, most likely.

I just decided to set my own personal sock knitting goals. I would like to finish the second Cable net sock (I'm actually hoping to finish it before the Summer of Socks starts, but we'll see). And then I'd like to knit three pairs of socks. Not sure I can do it, but I sure will try.

I WILL NOT BUY ANY SOCK YARN UNTIL THE END OF THE SUMMER.

The Lotus Yarn sock club yarn doesn't count because it's already bought. Oh and I still have some gift certificate from Effiloché that I might use to buy sock yarn. Ok screw what I just wrote, I will most likely buy sock yarn. Which is why I need to knit socks.

Speaking of which, did you see the Knitty surprises? The sweater is very nice (Tempest), but I don't think I'll ever knit it. But the socks (Froot Loop) are already in my queue!

Ok look at the time. I need to get ready for work (of course that happens when all I really want to do is look at patterns online or knit!)

New camera! New IK!

I got a new camera! Woohoo! I LOVE it! I've been playing with it quite a bit, but I haven't taken any good knitting-related pics yet so I don't have anything to post. But it's great. It's a Canon Power Shot A720 IS.

I'm almost done with my plain vanilla socks, so I should have a pic to show soon.

In other knitting news, the preview for the summer 2008 issue of is up! I gotta say I'm pretty disappointed in this issue. It's just not my style. But if there are any IK-designers reading this, don't feel bad, it's definitely a case of "it's not you, it's me". People are raving about the issue on Ravelry.

There is one pattern that made my heart beat a little faster though. As soon as I saw it, I knew it was love. Yes, I am totally talking about the Apres Surf Hoodie. IN LOVE I AM. It's beautiful. I want one.

And just like that, it became item #148 in my Ravelry queue. It will probably get made sometime in 2026...

Go Habs Go!

The Habs won!!! The Bruins are going to play golf!!! The last game was fantastic too, we won 5-0. I just hate the fact that we even needed a 7th game, but oh well. At least we won. It's just too bad that some people don't know how to celebrate. Seriously people. It's a great sport, but it's still JUST a sport.

Ok back to knitting. Or I should say, back to blogging. I am sad to report that my beloved camera died a couple of days ago. It wasn't a great model (Nikon Coolpix 4600), but I liked it. It came to France with me. Twice.



It even took pictures while I was in the air:


It met Tori Amos:


(I really need to get my hair cut again. And to lose weight.)

And it took lots of knitting pics.

R.I.P. Nikon Coolpix 4600, you will be missed. That being said, it completely stopped working after almost 3 years. My boyfriend's google-fu found out that many owners of that particular model had the same problem after exactly 2 years and 2 months. I guess I'm lucky that mine lasted a bit longer. But still, it sucks that so many people had the same problem at the same time. I don't think my next camera will be a Coolpix...

First spin!

On the left: My first try at spinning last Saturday
On the right: What I made yesterday

Do you see a difference? I still don't like it but I think I'm at least getting better.

On spinning and free patterns

I know I still haven't posted about the spinning class. I was hoping I would have good pics of some great yarn I made, but nope, almost a week after the class, I still suck! But the good news is that I don't suck as bad as I did last Saturday!

I realized that spinning is like anything else: some people are talented and "get it" right away. Apparently I'm not one of those people.

I may sound bitter but I'm not. It will take practice and I'm ok with that, though I'm usually a quick learner so not getting it right away is quite frustrating.

That being said, I *did* take pictures of my first yarn and the last one I made (which is already a lot better. I'm making progress). Unfortunately, my batteries died and we the "charged batteries" box in our house is empty. So pics will have to wait. The good news is that I have found a project for my first yarn: A stuffed sheep! My yarn actually looks a bit like the Ozark.

Oh and I don't want anyone to think I didn't enjoy the spinning class. I did! It was lots of fun and the instructor is super nice!

Now let's talk about free patterns. I'm sure most of you know that Magknits is gone. Many of the free patterns are available on Ravelry though. I also found out on Ravelry that some of the free patterns that used to be offered free on the Knitting Daily site are gone. That includes Kate Gilbert's super cute Peapod Baby set. I panicked at first because I looked into my pdf patterns and I didn't see it. BUT I printed it a long time ago so at least I have a copy. I love that pattern. Anyways, I'm not going to get into the reason for the disappearance of the free patterns (I only know it has something to do with contracts - I don't blame the designers at all). There's a long thread about it on the Ravelry forums.

But the whole thing really made me realize that I can't count on the free patterns I like to be there forever. So I'm going through my Ravelry queue (all 140 items) and I'm trying to save all the free patterns that I may want to knit someday. I suggest you all do the same, you never know. I would hate it if there was a pattern I really wanted to knit and found out it's not available at all anymore!

Long time no see!

I just realized how long it's been since my last post. March 30th! Eeek! Sorry about that.

The good news is that I found the will to knit again! Yay! The bad news is that I have a bad case of startitis and of S.O.S. (second object syndrome). I've been able to manage the startitis and I've only cast on for one new project: a pair of plain vanilla socks using this yarn. After the cables and the fair isle I've been doing, I guess I just wanted something plain and simple.

The S.O.S., however, affects two of my projects. The Cable Net sock still doesn't have a mate. I'm not too worried about it though, I know I'll get back to it soon enough, I just needed a break.

The Bird in Hand mitten also needs a mate. That's more problematic. Now that spring seems to be here *crosses fingers for no more snow*, I just don't feel like knitting mittens anymore. I know I'll get back to them and knit the second one, but it may have to wait until Fall. Or maybe I'll just try and convince the ladies at Ariadne to sell me their sample mitten (though I'm pretty sure they made the right one and I need a left).

Last week, I met Robyn and Angela for a little knitting afternoon. Robyn's grandma and her grandma's sister joined us later on. I got the March Sock Club package that I had bought from Robyn's nest.



It's the Lucky Clover colourway (exclusive to the club), from Shelby B's Designs. It's super soft and I LOVE the colour. It's similar to the yarn I got from Lotus Knits Melanie for Christmas, which I love so much I actually wake up at night to pet it once in a while (ok maybe not, but it's totally something I could do).

The yarn came with a super cute pattern made by Angela (the same one I was having coffee with!), cute stitch markers and a few goodies.

I love sock clubs! I just have to be careful and not get into too many because I have so much sock yarn already! And I'm in the Lotus Yarn sock club that starts in May. Eeep! I need to be careful, I have so much sock yarn already! I'm proud to say that I resisted the sock yarn sale when I went to Ariadne yesterday (Jo, K. and Jennie were there and fun times were had by all!).

I remember last year a bunch of knitters did the Summer of socks. I don't know if people are still doing it this year, but I think I might do it. I need to actually *use* some of the sock yarn I have! Especially since I have some Effiloché gift certificates that expire in June and I may very well use them for sock yarn! ;)

But before I dive into sock knitting, I want to finish the Cardigan for Merry. It's coming along well:



Ok that was a long post. Next time I just need to update more often instead of saving everything for one long post! And next time will probably be soon since I'll be taking my spinning class tomorrow! I can't wait!!!

Seven Deadly Sins of Knitting

Jennifer is having a contest for her 777 posts. We have to list our 7 deadly knitting sins. Here are mine:

Pride: My first sweater was To Dye For, from the Stitch and Bitch. I was knitting it and everything was going well. I was so proud of myself. My first sweater! It's easy! I'm not making any mistakes! And then I got to the sleeves, realized I would run out of yarn, went to the LYS... they didn't have any more in stock and I never was able to find some online. I finished the sleeves in another colour just because I wanted the damn thing finished. But I wasn't so proud anymore.

Envy: Oh I frequently suffer from sweater envy. Because so far, I haven't made one sweater that I've liked. So all of you who are making beautiful, well-fitted, perfectly seamed sweaters: I envy you!

Gluttony: I think my sock yarn stash is starting to show how much of a glutton I am...

Lust: I discovered yarn lust the first time I went to Effiloche and saw the cashmere. And I have indulged, oh yes I have.

Anger: The blue cardigan of doom. Have I mentionned that it's been frogged?

Greed: Jennifer, I can't help but give the same answer you did. I'm extremely greedy with patterns, and knitting magazines. I know I won't make 90% of the patterns I have, but I need them and I'm keeping them! They're mine. My precioussss.

Sloth: The Kiri shawl. I started it in May 2005! And I still think I'm going to finish it someday...

I'm quite the sinner, aren't I? ;)

Happy Easter

Happy Easter to those of you who celebrate it. Easter, for me, usually means that Spring is coming. But I was just outside a few minutes ago and it does NOT feel like Spring! The Sun is shining and all, but it's so cold!

Speaking of cold, I am sick again! Can you believe this? I was sick the first week of March. Then I was fine for a week but my boyfriend was sick. And he's still not feeling better and I caught another cold! I will be spending the day on the couch, knitting.

Anyways. Because it's Easter, here are some links to super cute Easter-themed patterns. I realize that I probably should have shared this a month ago, so you'd have time to knit them for Easter, but there's always next year...

Easter peeps

Easter eggs

Easter egg dishcloth (not free, but it's super cute)

Easter egg basket

Kate Gilbert's bunnies (not free)

Bunny booties

Stuffed bunny

Little birdie

I finally picked my needles back up yesterday while watching the hockey game (we won!). I made good progress on the Bird in Hand mittens. I tried to take good pics, but I found out it's pretty difficult to photograph your own hand well. So I only have crappy pics, but it gives you an idea. I swear it looks better in real life.





Hopefully, I'll get to knit some more tonight, if my arms aren't too sore. I just got home from the gym and I had a GREAT workout! I made sure I stretched really well cause I don't want to get sore like I was last week. We'll see. Oh and by the way, are any of you readers on SparkPeople? I've been semi-active on the site lately so if you want to add me as a friend, I'm Amarillys on there.

Is it spring yet?

Skeins her way is having a Spring knitting goals contest, and while I don't think any Montrealer can truly believe that spring will be back soon (or ever it seems), it's nice to think about the warmer days.

That and I like to make lists.

So here are my knitting goals.

1. Get back into knitting already! I don't know what's wrong with me, I haven't knit since LAST SUNDAY! Not a single stitch! Surely that's not normal. My guess is that the new job is taking all my energy. But I need to get my knitting mojo back.

Ok, now the real knitting goals, things I want to do before summer:

1. Finish the Bird in Hand mittens. Right now, I'm almost at the decreases on the top of the first mitten. I love the yarn and I love knitting it so it should go well. I probably won't get to wear it until next winter though, unless we get snow here until the end of April and we don't want that.

2. Make Cable Net sock #2. I haven't finished a new pair of socks for myself in a LONG time.

3. Finish the cardigan for Merry. I only have a few rows done on the back.

4. Make a pair of plain vanilla socks. Just because I haven't made one in forever.

5. Start the Gilmore vest

That's it! What are your knitting goals?

A day in the North Pole

I don't have many news on the knitting front, so I figured I'd post a few pics from yesterday's snow storm (Tara, see what you're missing while you're having fun in Japan?)









And this is me, a few seconds before I lost my will to live:

Little birdie

I am definitely out of my knitting funk, thank God! I've actually been knitting quite a bit this past week. I'm starting the new job on Monday and I'll have lots of hours (I'm already scheduled full time next week) so I took advantage of the free time I had this week.

I finished the first Cable Net sock! I'm very happy with how it turned out. I would post a picture but I can't get the details to show well so it just looks like a plain old green sock. I'll try another day when the light is better.

I loved knitting the sock but it was a lot of work. So I'm taking a Cable Net break before I start sock #2. I casted on for Kate Gilbert's Bird in Hand mittens. I absolutely LOVE this pattern. It's a pretty quick knit so far and it's just a lot of fun, though I really hated doing the braid. Here's where I am:



I can't wait till I finish them. I'm pretty sure I'll be able to wear them this year. March may be starting tomorrow, spring is not here yet! They are going to be super comfy and I love the yarn I'm using (Frog Tree Alpaca). So soft!

Knitting these mittens made me want to knit a million more. And Aemmeleia just relased her Icewine Mittens as a free download. Coincidence? I don't think so. I love them and I want to make them too!

I've also been slowly working on my Woven Cables scarf. It's going slowly but I still love it. It's a very easy knit, perfect for TV watching.

Go Habs Go!

I was lucky enough to be at the Bell Center last night for the Habs' victory against the Rangers. It was the most amazing game I had ever seen, though it did NOT start well. We were actually losing 0-5 by the middle of the second period! After the second period, it was 2-5, which made me feel better, but I did consider leaving early. I'm so glad I didn't! The Habs scored three goals in the third period and Saku Koivu (aka Robyn's boyfriend) scored the winning goal in the shootout. The crowd went wild! I'm so glad I was actually there to see the win!!!

But this is a knitting blog and not a hockey blog, so here are some knitting news for the Montrealers out there. Mouliné is having a big spring sale! Some of the yarn is 60% off! I have to resist though. My yarn closet is starting to get full, I just got new yarn and I still have some gift certificates to Effiloché.

I forgot to mention in my last post that I got the Spring Interweave Knits. There are mixed reviews online, but personally, I think it's a great issue. I think the Auburn Camp Shirt, the Flutter sleeve cardigan, the Mirabella cardigan and the Printed Silk Cardigan are absolutely cute. The socks are in my queue. And I also like the Fountain Hat though I'm not sure it would look good on me. What do you guys think about it?

Yummy yarn

Last weekend, Ariadne had its Valentine Day Massacre Open House Party. Unfortunately, I was working on Saturday night so I couldn't go to the big party, but I did stop by yesterday and had a lot of fun.

I got to see again the beautiful Bird in hand mitten made by Molly Ann.



I decided I wanted to make a pair exactly like that (they are so soft, warm and comfy!). I bought the yarn and this morning I got the pattern as a "I got a new job, yay" gift.

Ariadne had a little yarn tasting in the afternoon. I got to bring home a few samples and I'll knit little swatches to see how they knit up. I'm especially interested in how the tweedy yarn softens up when knit and washed because I find the sample a little bit rough. Oh, do you want pictures?







I spent the afternoon knitting on one of the store's couches. I took the Woven Cables scarf out of hibernation and I actually enjoyed working on it. I don't know why I hadn't touched it in weeks. Muswell enjoyed knitting it too:



Thanks to everyone who congratulated me on the new job. There is one very bad thing about it though: I will probably be working every Wednesday and Thursday nights, which means no more Knit nights. I'll probably try to go to the Sunday afternoon meetups. That being said, if any of you are free to knit during the day and want to meet up somewhere, drop me an email: amarillys at hotmail.

I actually have to give my two weeks notice and I'm a little bit nervous. I feel bad for quiting after only three months, but I'm not leaving because I'm unhappy, I'm leaving because I got an offer that was too good to refuse. I hope my boss will understand.

In other news, the Habs are playing against the Rangers tomorrow night and I will be there! Robyn, maybe I'll see you! :)

The things you do...

A few days ago, I received an email from Veronik titled "Too much yarn". I was sure it was a joke email... how can someone have too much yarn?

Well some people do! Veronik wanted to get rid of some yarn and she asked if I could help her. Of course I said yes, cause I'm nice like that. It was a difficult task, but I managed to help her with this burden. :P

I stopped by her house yesterday afternoon and I had a lovely time picking yarn with Angela. I came home with this:



Yay! Free yarn! My favourite thing is this:



It's 100% wool and it's such a pretty colour. I have enough for a vest and Angela suggested the Gilmore vest. I really like it so I think we have a winner. Here's a closeup of the yarn again, just because I like it so much:



I also got a bag of cotton-linen, that I think is really pretty:



I have nine balls of it, if I remember correctly, but I'm not sure what the yardage is. I'd like to make me a summer top, but I'll have to try to figure out how much there is in one ball first. Or maybe I could make a cute baby outfit. We'll see.

I also have a huge cone of navy wool. I need to find a project for that too. The rest are just pretty balls of yarn that I just had to take home with me. Thank you so much Veronik, you're a very generous person! :)

***

In other (off-topic) news: it looks like I'm going to switch jobs again. I wasn't looking for a new job, but I got an offer that was just too good to refuse! It's going to be great to have more money (I'm still not rich, but I definitely won't have to count every penny anymore).

***

To get back on-topic : I haven't been posting my WIPs lately mostly because I've gotten bored with them. My woven scarf has been put aside, probably until next Fall. I still like it, I just don't feel like knitting a scarf right now.

I'm frustrated with my socks. I've turned the heel and I'm not sure I get the next part. I was probably just tired when I read the instruction and I'll get back to it soon.

I started the Cardigan for Merry but I only have a few rows done. I'll probably post a pic soon.

Destiny

Every year, I lose a hat. This year, so far, I've been lucky. But I have lost my mittens. My cute and warm pink angora mittens. *cries* I'm not 100% convinced they're totally lost, I think they could still be in the house, but I can't find them.

But just when I thought that I should cast on for a new pair, Knitting Daily releases the White Witch Mitts pattern.



I am totally, 100%, in love and I want a pair NOW.