So, it's been awhile

Again, I have been slacking in the blogging department.

In my defense, I started a new semester with 5 literature classes. If I actually did all my reading, I'd be reading, on average, 200-350 pages a day. It's a lot.

On top of that, Life has certainly been dealing out the crazy lately.

I have, at least, managed to get one thing done: the Concentric Stripes Cardigan from ravelry, and I even finished it in time before the baby was born.

Apparently, however, I'll have to add pictures later.

I am also apparently suffering from a massive case of startitis. I have about four things on the needles/hooks right now and just can't wait to start an afghan, a cardigan, some socks, and some wrist warmers despite the half finished scarves and hats still in progress (yes, there are multiples of each) and the bit of lace I tried knitting while under the influence (note to self: beer plus lace knitting is not the best combo).

However, instead of going home to knit, I will be heading back to class in a scant 15 minutes, to waste the rest of my afternoon listening to professors prattle on about Romantic-era notions of "freedom" in terms of wacked-out poets like Coleridge or discussing random, disjointed essays about marionettes (personally, I can't think of anything more creepy than a marionette. Except maybe a clown-marionette).

i don't feel much like posting today

but i will anyway.

it's one of those days where my fingers are itching to do stuff, but my bed is really comfortable. that's right, i'm still in my jammies. i could knit in bed, or read, but what i really want need to do is put my laundry away before i have to endure any more ribbing from my hubby, and clean up the kitchen and dining area so i can start my january sewing projects.

winter colds are really vicious. i'm still fighting one from december 28th. maybe that's why my bed feels so nice today... and i haven't had any caffeinne yet, either, so that could be contributing as well.

the important thing not to let myself get trapped inside my own head today. scary place, that is. yoda, i apparently am.

so, random list:

1. should a finish reading a book i'm not really all that into, simply because i'm 75% done with it already?

2. how much ribbing is sufficient for a hat?

3. is a stripe of purple too girly for a baby boy's sweater?

4. i really want to make dinner tonight, but a don't want to go to the store.

5. i kinda want to spin, but that's not really a bed-friendly activity.

6. etsy is a bad place when you're craving handmade stuff. or good, depending on your viewpoint.

7. fresh-baked bread makes really good french toast.

8. flannel is really, really cozy.

9. i'm on a bulky yarn, rainbow color kick.

10. i also need to find something to make with it other than hats and scarves

11. that is all, my friends.

progress proceeds apace

so i knit most of yesterday (with a few beers, winky wink) on the baby sweater and i'm almost done with the first sleeve. the concentric stripes baby cardigan is an ingenious pattern. you knit the yoke in one piece, then in one row, knit part of the front, all of one sleeve, across the back, all of the second sleeve, then the other side of the front. then you just pick up and knit the rest of the body, so, no seams!

wow....

i just sat and stared at the screen for five minutes.

so, with no further comments today, i'll leave you with this little nugget:

nothing is better than homemade bread, real butter, and a bit of honey.

so far, on track

yeah, yeah, it's only january 5th, i know.

but, i finished my first project of the year! granted, i started it in october last year, but whatever. i'm still proud of it. unfortunately, it's not the last of the christmas yarn projects.

grandma's beaded shawl - it's a bit short, but grandma likes them that way, so i hope it'll be okay. there's 5 frickin' tubes of seed beads on there that i had to pre-string and work in as i went. it's probably the second-most-epic project i've ever done (the first being the 120 square wedding afghan, and the third being the other wedding afghan).

these photos are all post-blocking....

and a close up! beads, beads, more beads

this whole cone is gone.... i have 6 beads left and a one-inch ball of silk. all finished.

in other news, i finished ALL my christmas sewing shopping, and i hope to report the first bag will be finished by the end of the month. that would be the goal, after all. i had also hoped to be wittier today, but i still feel quite under the weather. 'epic' is the word of the day apparently, because there's not other way to describe my headache!

and, shown here, is the first few inches of the concentric stripes baby cardigan from ravelry. it's my first sweater! so far it's going okay, but i need longer needles. badly. there's no way double-that-amount of stitches is going to fit on that needle. i'm feeling kind of cocky (spare me, oh knitting fates), but so far, this sweater has been CAKE. i've done three new techniques already (knit 2 together, yarn overs, and changing colors) and i'm having no problems. maybe i'd better knock on the coffee table, just in case.

and no, i have nothing to announce. the sweater is for bairloch's friend, who is expecting in march. trust me, if and when our own blessed event occurs, i will not announce it on the blog (well, not first, anyway).

p.s. jon stewart? hilarious.

happy new year!

the most overused title in blogging today!

so, 2010 was a big year. at the start of 2010, i had a fiance, a six-month-old kitty, and a career. then, i had a nervous breakdown, quit my job, got married and gained a whole new family, moved, learned to knit, went back to college and got a new job.

big improvement from last year. (well, everything except the hubby. he was just as wonderful back then, too).

so it seems i have a lot to be thankful for this year. we're comfortable enough to eat what we want, when we want, we have friends and family that love us, and while we're not financially "gifted" enough to go out and buy a new car tomorrow, we can puruse our own hobbie and leisure activities.

it only seems fair, then, that since 2010 has given me so much, i should ditch my usual resolutions (the same ones i've had for nearly 10 years: work out more, eat healthier, procrastinate less) in favor of something a little more concrete.

so, here it is:

as crazy as it sounds, i've already done my christmas shopping for next year. well, some of it. i've gotten all the raw materials, divided them into ziploc gallon bags (thanks for the idea, yarn harlot!) and i will do a bag a month. each month, as well, i'll finish a project i've already got started. for january, the space invaders scarf. february, the honeymoon shawl. etc. etc.

i know i can keep the first one. one bag a month is completely doable. the second one? we'll see. i get distracted by new yarns and projects all the time.

have a good year, everyone.

cats and dogs, living together...

points for the reference. ^

and brace yourselves, it's going to be a long post today.

so here's what's going on at our place right now, in reference to the title of today's rant:

that would be lucy and clarisse, apparently getting along. it seems that if i am present, and we can keep the dog out of the cat food and the cat out of the dog food, we will have peace. it's not so bad, really. they're adapting well. besides, it was easier and cheaper than letting the poor pup stay in a kennel for a week and a half. now, instead of laying around in her crate all day, she can lay around on the couch.

christmas, i think, was a smashing success, although i didn't get a few things done on time. the one person (my loving hubby) was very gracious about it and i turned the other one into a christmas/january birthday present. so i have a little more time, though the damn thing is sucking my life away.

here's a funny story for you though... the 23rd of december, i was sewing away on a practice reusable shopping bag in preparation for making one for my brother, because it had been a long time since i had worked the pattern. well, it turned out pretty well, easy, and fast, and apparently i got a little cocky because this is what i did next:

what you see on the right is a proper pattern piece. the handles are on the sides, and the space is in the middle. what you see on the left is, well, not. the handles are in the middle and the space is on the side. i could've dealt with this mistake, but there was one major flaw.

no matter what, the pattern pieces have to match. which means i either need two of the one on the right (preferable) or two of the one on the left. there ain't no workin' it any other way.

and i didn't have enough fabric.

i never thought i'd say this: wal-mart to the rescue! they had 1 yard left on a bolt on the clearance table. talk about christmas luck!

i didn't get a picture of the finished rams bag - it even has a pocket it can fold itself into, but here are the ones i made for me, at various points in the past.

the veggie one on the right is the first one i made, a looooong time ago, but i cut the fruit one out at the same time. the kitty one was the practice bag and i just finished the leaf one the other night when i was bored out of my mind with this stupid soul-sucking crochet project i'm working on.

and the linings:

i think i'll make one for everyone next year. they cost about $5 each, so i'd still have some money to play around with for everyone, but they're sturdy, quick to make, and environmentally responsible.

i've invented other chores for myself to avoid this crochet project i'm working on, but i think it can't be helped anymore. i must return to it, for 40 minutes at least, at which time i will be eating lunch and preparing to embark for work. whoopdeedo. love you all!

crunch, crunch, crunch

i wish it was a cereal thing.

instead i'm feeling the holiday pressure, and the final exam pressure, all coming down at once. it's monday night, which means i will be studying until my caffeine buzz from my Stash White Christmas Tea (spectacular stuff, love it, especially with a 3-second squeeze of honey) wears off, and i will be studying tomorrow, both before and after work, then i will be going to two finals on wednesday, coming home and finishing two (hopefully three) christmas presents, one of which i have to completely re-chart.

i know i don't blog about this kind of stuff usually, but i couldn't help sharing. i did some christmas-presents-for-myself shopping last weekend because it was so cold outside and i wanted more cozy things to wear to work, so i sort of did this...

it's not my fault. i'm helpless and weak in the face of words like "extra-fine merino" and "fifty percent off." i got the sweaters for about $6 each though, so i don't feel so bad. one of them is a brooks brothers sweater.

i made some more headway on christmas presents too. this is the five-spice hat from the crochet me! website through interweave, and as a pattern review, it was pretty easy to follow, though it had a couple major drawbacks. it is pretty though, isn't it?

one: there's an error in the pattern. to fix it, don't do any decreases in round 15 and follow the rest of the pattern as directed.
two: gauge was nearly impossible to get, if you're a tight crocheter, like me, you may want to configure some way to do a size up.
three: instructions on the different stitches used (slip stitch front and back loop, slip stitch decreases) aren't given in the pattern, so you should know how to do them before trying it.

if i made it again for myself (and i'm going to), i'm going to make it just a tad bigger and definitely longer. the earflaps on this one are my addition, and i made it in a yummy thick-thin wool called "licorice."

it's for a twelve-year-old girl, so i hope she likes it!

i don't know why i'm speaking so technically about projects tonight. to keep this one simple, it's for a sixteen-year-old girl and its an adaptation of a knit pattern called "just enough ruffles." wool of the andes bulky, colorway "spumoni."

again, blogging with cell pictures stinks. i wish i had my camera fixed!!

i don't think i'm going to be able to get my father-in-law's scarf done on time. i hope he understands.

more tea. more studying. more crocheting.