SP10 Package!

I arrived home to this:


And opened it to find this:
Yes, the package contained all kinds of knitting stuff. Ignore the cluttered kitchen table.

There's a book, a pencil case which makes a great tool holder, stitch holders, a yarn cutter, tape measures, counters, a fuzzy little bundle of Bernat sock yarn...
The Stitch 'N Bitch calendar, a copy of Creative Knitting... I'm so excited, I'm putting together a knitting notebook with various patterns, how-tos and notes. I just have to find one of those photo albums with the sticky pages where you peel back the top. Do they still make those? I guess I could paper clip it all into a regular notebook. I can't wait to go through the four months of pages to pick out patterns, yarns and knitting tips


A magnetic notepad (very handy!), coasters, and notecards..
Lavender bath goodies (my favorite!), a bar of Bath and Body Works Raspberry soap (another favorite)..



And....scrapbooking letters! This is so odd because I was just thinking yesterday that none of my pages had titles to them. I think will fix it. Wow!

SP10 whoever you are, I love you! This was just what I needed....

....because, after I opened it, I realized that I had missed too many classes in one of my classes. I had to withdraw and pick up an hour of independent study so I can graduate and take the bar on time. Self-induced stress: my personal favorite. I'm really good at it. It's my specialty.

The Aforementioned Photo Dump..

Starting with the gorgeous Tofutsies from Kathy...Imagine my delight when opening this. It was pretty remarkable. I think I'll turn it into three or four pairs of Fongs. Is that okay with you, Kathy?



I redid the front room. Mr. Tick has his own big-dog crate coming so he can no longer sleep on the futon, or eat the Dyson or crown molding. I'm ecstatic. I'd show before pictures, but it was too awful to photograph. Here's after. Note the comfy sitting space, plants and stash closet. There's still room for a pack and play when Evie comes to visit. I'm also putting a fountain in there and my stereo so I can listen to my hypnosis tapes and music DH hates. Edited to add: the stereo is broken. Not a huge surprise since we had it in an outdoor closet for a year at our old apartment complex, but still, disappointing.


Now with more cowbell...err..dogs..


Tomorrow, the Second Socks and Project Spectrum CD...

Oh no...

Remember me going on about wanting a colorway to match my Polly-cat, my brown, grey, blue, every cat color ever tabby? It's here:



Maybe I will just email out my etsy wishlist for graduation? I don't need cash, right? Just yarn. Practicality sucks.

I ripped out the Second Socks twice. Then I finally figured out what I was doing wrong with my Baby Cable. It's not complicated but it's just a step up from what I know. I have to keep pushing myself because someday I want to knit up some Whiskers and Pawprints socks.

Bits..

Nothing important here, just some bits. Photo dump coming tomorrow, most likely.

1. I got the most awesome present ever! Tofutsies from Kathy. I think it's colorway 786, a nice blend of orange, yellow and light red. Which is perfect, it's like nothing I have and is not sold in Arkansas (There's a lot of brands in that category, so I'm not super surprised. Though I should be nice, we have a ton of nice brands at the LYSes here: Koigu, Noro, Debbie Bliss, Reynolds, Twinkle, Colinette, Regia, etc. The ones I can't get are Malabrigo, Tofutsies, Cherry Tree Hill, etc.). It's so soft and silky. I have so many exciting sock yarns in the queue (Koigu, Colinette, thechickwithsticks, Yarn Love, Irish Baby Knits)

2. Yes, I stalk blog contests. Money is going to be TIGHT this summer with studying for the bar exam. So the only yarn I will buy until it's over will be Secret Pal yarn. So I rely on my stash, blog contests and my Secret Pals for retail therapy. I debated using graduation money to fund more yarn, but it really needs to go in savings. I have enough yarn to make 7 pairs of socks, and other yarn to make a ton of baby items, hats, etc. I don't have enough Peace Fleece in any one color to make a sweater, but I will likely buy more Baghdad Blue after the bar and find a sweater pattern for the First Sweater. I don't feel bad about blog contest stalking because I've found great blogs and I will more than return the favor to the knitting community.

3. Vegetarian Times in the mail today. Yum. I found about a billion recipes to try. My subscription runs out next month, but I have all these back issues to try out.

4. So sleepy. I had to rip out the Second Socks today. I cast on 44 stitches. I have no idea why. I have decently large ankles, the First Socks were a 60 stitch cast on. So I ripped, it was a skinny ankle sock already with just two inches on the needles. Now I'm working up a baby cable rib sock.

5. Goals this weekend:
a. Finish the rise of the baby longies
b. Knit more on the Second Socks
c. Work on the yard a bit
d. Sleep and hang out with the husband (he's worked until 3 am and then gotten back up at 8 am every day this week..it's been lonely)

Popularity Contest..

I got a lot of fun mail today. My Loopy Ewe order arrived, all gorgeous and cuddly. I scored two skeins of Yarn Love and sample packs of Soak. It's so beautiful. I can't wait to get my needles into it. I also got three swiffer pads from Hippy Housewife. They're made of cute snail fabric with a terry cloth pad on it. So you can rinse and reuse. I already got two of them absolutely disgusting. It's muddy and I have dogs. I don't think I need to say anymore..pictures of all of that to come.

So what makes some yarns so popular? For instance, Yarn Pirate. My next sock yarn purchase will be some Yarn Pirate. Right now though, I have 7 other skeins to get through, well, maybe if I get through 4 then I'll seriously stalk the YP. But back to my question. Yarn Pirate stocked on Loopy Ewe today and sold out in no time. It seems to do that everywhere. Other brands like Yarntini also seem to do the same. Why? What's the allure? I will admit I wanted to see what all the fuss was about so I stalked the Yarn Love and will see if it's all it's cracked up to be.

Other popular yarns, like Socks that Rock are always in stock in some colorways and very popular, yet never seem to sell out within the hour of their stocking.

The First Socks

The First Socks. My feet are all warm and I'm contemplating wearing these without pause. However, that would be disgusting. So I'll work on some more and change socks, I swear.


The toes are not this odd looking in real life. The pointy toed sock was off center on my foot in my excitement to put on the First Socks for the first time.


One more shot because three is a great number...



The mystery FedEx package was a catalogue and huge full sized products from Frontier-Coop. I'm doing a Frontier Co-op and putting in an order on May 17th. Interested? Email me for a link. They sell herbs, spices, tea, Burt's Bees, Jasons Organics, etc. at huge discounts.

Here's my secret pal box from the Lab Board.



And the included new scrapbook:


Ok, that's all I've got. I'm going to cast on for another pair of socks, probably in the Lorna's Laces I have (I think the color is called Crazy Stripe). I'm going to hunt down a pattern that is a little different. I'd like to learn something different, I'm just not sure what. Maybe a baby cable rib with a slightly different heel or toe...

Whoodunit?

There is nothing that irks me more than getting a FedEx notice but no package. Now I'm left to figure out what it might be. I know it's not my Loopy Ewe order, that just shipped today. I know it's not my Hippy Housewife order, that shipped yesterday. I guess it could be my blog contest prize of sock yarn, but I'm just not sure. I guess tomorrow, I shall be surprised, one way or the other.

Tools...

What are your favorite knitting tools? Right now I have needles, some circular, some straight, all bamboo (I think all are Clover), and one tapestry needle. That's it. I also have some very sharp Cutterbee scissors that I borrow from my scrapbooking set when its time to cut yarn. For markers, I use safety pins or bobby pins. Hey, it works. I'm expecting markers in my Hogwart's Sock Swap and I've made do with eyeballing measurements for baby clothes and socks. Believe me, before I attempt a sweater, I'll invest in a tape measure or nine.

I've been rather obsessed with finishing this sock. I should have my first pair of socks done by Wednesday. Then I'm going to beat Branching Out into submission. I think I've got to be doing something seriously wrong. I may have to cough up the change to get some help at the local yarn store. I don't mind paying, but it'd be nice to have a friend to mooch free advice off of. I know it's something simple, I just can't put my finger on it.

I completely forgot about my other hobby: houseplants. I've scrapbooked some, but neglected my 27 houseplants for 3 weeks! Eeek! Everyone got watered today and I'm moving a good portion out to the screened in porch now that it's nice out tomorrow. I plan on putting in some hooks so I can move hanging plants out there as well.

I got a huge box from my Lab Board Secret Pal. The dogs and cats got a ton of toys, I got a new scrapbook. I also got a major haul from our next door neighbor's garage sale: two skirts, two pairs of nice work shoes (Nine West and something else..the only time I buy leather is at garage sales or resale shops), a picture frame and two rolls of nonskid drawer liner. I also bought my end of my Cat Lover's Secret Pal (which is not really a secret since I'm matched up with the person whose matched up with me, if that makes sense) which I'll wrap and mail soon. I have a garage to clean out for a garage sale for my charity and a retreat/yarn/scrapbook room to get together as soon as Tick's crate gets here. Needless to say, pictures are coming...looks like a busy next few weeks..

Some answers..

Here's a few answers to some recently posted comments.

" Does your husband play World of Warcraft?"

No, he plays Vanguard. It's like WOW, but with less teenagers playing it. He used to play Everquest. In fact, he made a living off playing it, a fact he reminds me of. I made him quit to get a "real job". I'm a big meanie, apparently.

" You might just get that yarn ball winder from your SP10 so don't run out and get one yet!"

Wha what? That makes my yarn heart all happy. :) I hope so, but I understand if I don't. My SP is going through a seriously stressful patch at the moment. I realize right now I have a TON of yarn but very few knitting tools. I don't even own a tape measure.

In good news, my ebay sales are funding a new crate for Tick. So the room he's been living in will be mine again. I think we know what that means. Yarn haven! :)

That's all I've got. I finished one paper and started on another. Then I stalled out. I need more research. I've got one main article right now, and that makes it look like plagarism. So, I think I've got to do some digging or change topics. The current topic is the use of humor in mediation. In case anyone wanted to research for me. Any takers? ....didn't think so! :)

Flair!

Remember my new obsession to find a pattern with Blue Sky Cotton as a recommended yarn? Here it is. It's so very Camille, with the tons of buttons (hello etsy wishlist, I'm sure I've got some buttons on there!) and flared 3/4 length sleeves. I think I shall flare the sleeves a bit more and find some amazing buttons to make this my own..

Now I just have to decide what color to make it. I'm torn between thistle and tomato. Tomato is so Razorbacky, which would be good for Friday gamedays at the office to get in the spirit but still be jeans business casual. Thistle on the other hand, is very Camille. I just don't know. I also don't know why I like to randomly talk about myself in the third person. It doesn't happen in reality, just in blogging. I like to see my name in print, it's one of my oddities.

I'm up at 5:30 in the morning polishing off a bag of Wild Oats Coconut Cashew cookies. Life is good.

My husband offered me the use of his ATM card for garage saling purposes. I think I'll be a nice wife and just go back to bed though instead of taking advantage of his temporary lapse in sanity. He came to bed at 4 something after a long night of online gaming. Everyone should marry a dork, they're the best kind of husbands, I think. Then again, my bias is clear.

In other knitting news, hopefully the second sock will be done this weekend. I do have 60 pages of papers to churn out, so I may stick with random bits of mindless baby knitting and finish the sock during the hour before the movies on Sunday (my husband is convinced you must go to the movies 1 hour before the start time to get a good seat, this means 1 hour of nothingness, then the 45 minutes of previews, then the movie...it's about a 3 hour process).

Yarnage

I think it's time for more pictures of baby Evie and yarn. Two of the cutest fluffiest things in Arkansas and I have pictures of them..

Here, in the hat I made from this pattern, is Evie. She's also modeling a shirt from the Children's Place. The yarn used was my nemesis, Manos Cotton Stria.


The state of the socks. Ignore the pizza boxes and bits of lawschoolyery. Cross your fingers that I don't run out of yarn.

The newest project, longies in Llamajama chunky merino. I had to do my first knitting calculations. This is knitting up so much better than I expected. It's my first single ply yarn and I initially hated it but it's turning out gorgeous and very tight. Perfect for cloth diapering. I'm glad I got over my prejudice. It's much like Malabrigo and Manos is described and I'd hate to miss out on more yarn. We can't have that!



Latest yarnage: Sting colorway in this etsy seller's shop. Just the end of the skein poking out in the cedar chest, waiting, expectant. Gorgeous. I have no words. This will be socks for the Hogwart's Sock Swap.


I just noticed that this is sock yarn. It's my last month from the Irish Baby Knits Yarn of the Month Club. My subscription ran out, but this is a HUGE skein.


My teeny haul from Hand Held in Fayetteville. The Silky Wool is hand wound because the shop keeper had a fight with their yarn ball winder and lost. I couldn't complain at $4 a pop. I need my own winder. Check out the Koigu! ooooh ahh!


I cast on with the Silky Wool and about screamed. I cannot for the life of me figure out Branching Out. I worked the first row and did not have three stitches to knit at the end. Only two. So I ripped, started over. Same thing. Repeat FOUR times. I calmly gave up and will reattempt when I figure out what my problem is.

In other news, I have some Yarn Love from the Loopy Ewe on the way, in two different colorways. It remains to be seen what I'll ship out to my Secret Pal and what I'll stash for myself. Let's be honest. It's all mine.

Frogging Earth

I recently finished sock #2 and frogged sock #1 to redo it into sock #3. While knitting with my freshly frogged yarn, I noticed how "off" it is. It doesn't twist like fresh yarn, it has the same stretch in the rib as sock #2, but something just isn't quite right from all the previous knits and purls that it held that are now no more. It's yarn, but it's not quite the same as the original.

That's what I was thinking about today as I drove home. In less than a day, a construction company bulldozed a new path off the boulevard and up into the treeline. The earth is a beautiful clay color, full of a ridiculous amount of rocks, just like my yard. It was all so quick. I'm sure the new subdivision will be pretty, but it won't be the same. It's frogged.

So that's what I was thinking about today. It's so quick to rip something out and so slow to truly create something the right way the first time...sometimes things don't fit back together.

Changing topics, the trip to Fayetteville was amazing. I have a gorgeous niece. I had a lot of fun burping her and waking up several times during the night to help with feedings. I hope I helped get her sleeping better. My sister's husband was able to sleep through the night because I was the feeding co-pilot.

The yarn store in Fayetteville, Hand Held was amazing. The house it's in is so cute, very well laid out and well stocked. The Koigu and Manos selections were incredible. I wanted to bury myself in the Blue Sky Cotton. Seriously, I have got to find patterns for all three brands of yarn. I picked up two skeins of Koigu in a very non-Camille colorway (it's a light blue one, nothing loud and parrot colored this time) and some Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool for Josh's grandma's Christmas scarf. It was 40% off and I should probably send my sister for another skein. At $4, that's a ridiculously cheap Christmas present, that I shall knit into this. I seriously am contemplating signing up for one of their classes and taking a few Saturdays up in Fayetteville to spend with them. There's a Knit-Out two weeks from now at the Square that I might try to drop in on. It's dangerously close to finals though.

Pictures to come of the niece and Koigu. My house is a disaster, so I have plenty to do besides knit sock #3, but I might just stick with the sock.

Winner winner chicken dinner

I won another blog contest!. I love blog contests because I've found some of the BEST hidden knitting blogs by participating. Even the ones I haven't won, I still read. I hope to have my own blog contest sometime. I'll offer a fabulous prize, like a sweater made from homespun dog hair yarn. Seriously, I have enough white Akbash hair that I should start an etsy shop. But I won't. I'll spare you.

And no, just because I won a contest doesn't mean I'll avoid the yarn shop. That would be just silly.

My dog ate the Dyson cord. He no longer has out of the crate privileges. The Dyson is going with me to Fayetteville so my brother in law can mend it. It was REALLY dumb that I left the vacuum out. I'm lazy, obviously, too lazy to put it in the closet. Tick also scratched the crown molding pretty good. I'm hoping my dad will come by and help me rip it off and put up another piece.

Tonight I'll finish a sock and these longies. I'm so excited. Then it's on to the next sock and next baby project. When I get to "me" projects, I'm not sure. Maybe I could do three projects at once. Baby gear is pretty mindless knitting, around and around and around. So it's feasible. I need to make the other Kitty Pi that I bought Big Kureyon for. I cast on and then shoved it in a bag. My goal this month is to make our house more pet friendly. The cat bowls are being moved on top of the washer, I'm putting up a baby gate so the dogs can't get to them. Things like that..

I am very excited about going to Fayetteville. I can't decide what I'll buy at Handheld on Saturday. Then again, people who go into yarn stores knowing what they want worry me. I've heard there's Koigu, which is non-existent in Little Rock/Conway so far as I know. It doesn't look like it's always in stock. I should leave money with my sister and force her to go buy it for me when it is there. I'll probably have Ace with me (large white crazy Akbash of a dog) so it will be a quick trip, followed by a stop at the Square to see if the Farmer's Market is in session and then out to Elkins to see the niece. Can you tell I miss Northwest Arkansas?

S-crap..

I've been on a bit of a scrapbook kick lately. That and mindless sock and longie knitting. I should have this sock finished tomorrow and will frog the first one. It's nothing complicated, just my first sock ever in Collinette Jitterbug in Lagoon, a simple 2x2 rib. I can't wait to wear them.

One of the wondercats dragged the longies out of the knitting basket, covering them in dog hair. No matter how much I sweep or vacuum, there's always hair this time of year. So I don't fight it too much, I get it all up on the weekends. Fortunately, my sister is a dog/cat person and isn't too fidgety about these things. I'll lint roll it and then we'll wash it during the great wool wash this weekend. I can't wait to meet my niece. She's absolutely gorgeous with dark hair and dark eyes.

Scrapbook pictures on the way.

The hat that never was..

I'm normally not a multiple posts per day person, but I just found out about this and don't want to put it with the good news post. My husband's work colleague, who is one year older than him, died of cancer today at the age of 29. He had been to MD Anderson and finally was put in hospice yesterday. Oddly enough, my Law and Psychiatry professor talked about his battle with leukemia and how great places like MD Anderson are today. I thought about "J", and hadn't in awhile.

I feel bad because "J" was a liar. Everything in life he exaggerated. He discussed having a several hundred dollar motorcycle helmet and buying all his clothes from New York, even though I saw them in Target. So when I heard he had cancer, I thought it was just another story of his. It wasn't. We didn't know him well, he came over to the house for our annual cookouts, he worked with my husband, and that was the extent of it. Still, we're young and I think this is the first non-suicide death that we've been through as a married couple.

I had purchased a hat pattern and some Debbie Bliss Cashmerino to make Jonathan a hat. I never started it. I'm going to finish it and find a place to donate it. Maybe I will make two smaller hats to send to China for orphans. I'm not sure. I've never had yarn that meant so much before, if that makes any sense. I'm going to have to think on this for a bit.

9 and a half pounds...

of niece. My niece, Evie Michaela was born this evening. My sister, Lindsey birthed with no epidural or IV medications. Holy cow. That's a big baby, her first, both sides of the families first grandbaby, and I'm just in awe.

So, I think I better finish up these longies, eh? I'm heading up there this weekend, so they'll be done. I have cat buttons to put on them as well. Hopefully someone will have another Peace Fleece co-op soon. I need a few more skeins of Baghdad Blue for me and more buttons for general cute baby projects. I love the look of their handpainted buttons, very Old Worldish. Makes me feel all Slovenian. I know I'm only half Slovenian, but I'd like to feel more connected to that.

Ok, I'm being yowled at. Cats need food: who knew?

Swaps and Contests

Lately, I've become a little obsessed with swaps and contests. Right now I'm only in one swap: the Hogwarts Sock Swap. It should come as no surprise that I'm a Slytherin. Slightly evil, with a competitive streak a mile wide: that's me! I'm very excited to whip up more socks. And an excuse to buy sock yarn is just what I needed...right?

I also just won a contest! I'm excited because I've never won anything before and I need new music, so it's rather fitting that I won a mix CD from Heather of What's Cluttering My Couch.


And the Hogwarts Sock Swap Questionaire:

1. What Hogwarts house have you been sorted into? Slytherin

'Well, no one really knows until they get there, do they, but I know I'll be in Slytherin, all our family have been - imagine being in Hufflepuff, I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?'

2. Shoe size? 9.5

3. Foot Length? 10ish inches
   

4. Foot Circumference? 9 inches right below the ankle
   

5. List your three favorite double-point needle brands, including size and length.

a. I only own one set of DPNs, they are Clover, bamboo, size 2, 6"

b. So I'll put here that I would like to try metal DPNs, I saw some reasonably priced ones on Knitpicks, I think. I really prefer shorter lengths of DPNs, 6" is about right.

c. Dream needles would be the Lantern Moon Sox Stix.

6. Would you like to try a new brand needle? If so, which brand? Size? Length? I'm not sure. I'd like to try knitting socks on circulars, so maybe some of those.
   

8. Are you willing to have an international Hogwarts Sock Pal? Sadly no, I have one for Secret Pal and I love her to death. However, each package is $25 to ship, so I can't really afford another international Pal, though I would consider a Canadian, since postage is almost the same to there or a Pal in a country that has Global Priority shipping (my SP's doesn't, so that's why it's been so steep, though it's been worth every penny!).
   

A Photo Dump

Does anyone else ever have yarn envy? Maybe stash envy would be a better term. I see blogs of fellow knitters with brands I've yet to fondle and I turn a little green. Someday...

So here's a catch-up post. My first ever project isn't pictured yet. I know once I haul the alpaca hat and scarf out of the closet I will want to wear them. In April. So I'm putting the insanity off for just a bit. My poor neighbors are really going to wonder.

Here is a Calorimetry in Manos del Uruguay Stria. I HATED this yarn. It has a natural wave to it, which makes the knit stitches and purl stitches hard to distinguish. However, it wears so so soft. I'll end up buying more and knitting baby stuff out of it, I'm sure. I did this one in grape, bought a skein of the pink and did one pink and grape and one solid pink. Then I made an elf hat out of the rest of the pink. Picture of that to come...



The socks. These are my first socks. I took a class at my LYS that my husband bought me for Valentine's Day. The socks are still not done. Here's why: I invented knitting. No, seriously. I had my own version of knitting before this class and didn't know it. So the first sock (the smaller one in the second picture) was knit using my own knitting method. This method involves twisting the stitches tight and backwards with the yarn in the left hand. My LYS mentor set me straight, so the second sock on the sticks is done the way normal people knit. The small sock will be frogged and redone. The yarn is Colinette Jitterbug in Lagoon. I love this yarn.. Thank goodness because it's been two months of knitting...



Finally, we have the longies for my niece Evie. Seed stitch trim, simple 2x2 rib, on circs first, then DPNs. I had a slight crotch problem (teehee!) that I think I know how to fix next time. I made two small holes when I kitchenered. The yarn is Sheffield Odyssey, also ridiculously soft. It will be interesting to see how this washes. My sister is using it for cloth diapering. I wanted to make a matching sweater but won't because it's April, and I don't think I have enough yarn left. I might do another elf hat.



Here's the knitting basket. There's more Collinette and some Lorna's Laces waiting to be socked.

Here's my yarn financier. And husband. His shirt says "Trust me, I'm a Ninja." I wouldn't trust him, even though he is a ninja.

My projects, so far...

I lied, I'm still obsessed with knitting. It's good though that I can switch back and forth to scrapbooking, zoo-wrangling*, dog rescuing**, house cleaning, general laziness, or law studying.

So here's my second project. I knit this around Christmastime, for my here-any-moment niece, Evie Michaela. She's the first grandbaby on both sides of her family and the first niece on both sides, so she will be SO spoiled. My youngest sister, her mom, Lindsey, is the one who forced me to knit. She is a cloth diaper fan, as am I now, and she said someone in the family had to learn to knit so they could make soakers. So this was my first soaker. The second one was in a blue colorway and looked just like this except there is not a purl rip in the middle, just at the "kitchener"*** join.

It's from this pattern. The knitting was top down on circulars, which I was frightened of at the time. After that I was frightened of DPNs, which I also got over. Now I'm frightened of cabling. Hopefully I'll tackle that knitting phobia soon. :)




You can see where I twisted the ribbing in this photo.

And here's the finished product. The two bumpy purl rows were not intentional. I accidentally knit on the purl side while talking to my mother on the phone on the top purl row. The second purl row is my kitchener. Yikes. And yes, the leg holes are uneven. Still, for a newbie knitter, it's not bad.

Before the soaker I knit a hat in Misti Alpaca. I just don't have any photographic evidence of it, yet. It's cold enough today..in APRIL, in ARKANSAS that I might pull it out of storage. Brr. After the soaker I knit a short scarf (I'm impatient) another Misti Alpaca hat for my husband, another soaker, a Kitty Pi (photo in the mash of links below) about four Calorimetries, and I have a sock in progress, a soak to rip out, and some longies in progress.

*We have two dogs (Ace, a 90 lb Akbash <--think white Labrador Retriever with some extra hair and a curled tail, or google, they're gorgeous, and Tick, a 55 lb black Labrador Retriever, who came to us weighing 20 lbs at 6 years of age, and covered in ticks...bless his heart) and two cats (Mr. Lulu, who is a male Maine Coon who sometimes is cut by the groomer to look like a lion, he's from Spain where a friend brought him back after serving as an au pair for her college professor's family, and Polly, a little pretentious grey/brown tabby girl). I refer to all four collectively as "the zoo". Most of my dreams of perfect colorways are inspired by my cat's coats. Someday I'll find the perfect brown, grey variegated sock yarn that reminds me of Polly, and laceweight that goes from black to brown and back like Lulu.

**I am the President of Arkansas Labrador Rescue, Inc. (those are the dogs we saved last year in a collage, they're all adopted). Our website is here.

***My first two kitchener attempts were so bad they looked like purl rows. I am the type of knitter to not rip it out and fix it, but I leave it. Would you call that organic, or just lazy? I think you can definitely see where my knitting has improved.

An Obsession?

I guess knitting is not an obsession of mine. If it were I wouldn't be able to put it down and churn out some scrapbook pages. I finished five pages yesterday and two today. I'm about to send more photos to Target to be developed. The internet is a great thing, I always forgot to drop "real" film off, now I just click and send.

But back to knitting..I have until next Saturday to finish up baby knitting for my niece Evie. I'll go see her then, she'll be born on Tuesday, at the latest. I will finish the longies this weekend and debate what colorway to pick for the shorties and cast those on. I also want to try a lace border on the shorties, I think.

My sock has been frogged. It was traumatic to rip it out, but I did and feel better for it. I've started the heel flap yet again. I figured out my mistake. The nice lady at the LYS said I must have picked up too far away from my second needle, creating the gap. She said to pick up an extra stitch really close to prevent that.

Pictures coming...promise. Not that anyone is reading this anyways, yet.

History..

So why do I knit?

I knit for the connection with the past. I knit for the meditative value of it. I knit because it's pretty. I knit because I need color. Specifically...


I knit for the connection with the past.

My knitting sensei has been knitting for 70 years. When I think about that, it makes my jaw drop. In sock class she told me how she first learned to knit, she took a bus to the town square with her sister where a lady would sit and teach you how to knit. There were no patterns. Knitting has been done the same way for centuries. As the ladies at my LYS say, there's only the knit stitch and the purl stitch. Everything else is just a twist. Now, we are lucky to have the mindboggling variety of resources we do, types of materials, and patterns. But back to basics, it's the same as centuries before.

Right now I'm working on some longies for my soon-to-be niece Evie Michaela. I plan on taking them with me when we go to the hospital. As I sit in the waiting room, how many others have sat in hospitals, just knitting while they waited? It's a connection.


I knit for the meditative value of it.

I'm about to begin studying for my bar exam. In my preparing for the bar book it talks about doing "relaxation rituals." To be a relaxation ritual, something must be repetitious, repeat the same muscle movement, clear your mind of distracting thoughts, and you may find yourself repeating the same word(s) repeatedly. That's knitting! Doesn't get much plainer than that.


I knit because it's pretty.

The whole process of knitting is gorgeous. The smoothness of the needles, the color of the yarn. I'm a variegated yarn freak, I love watching to see what the colors will do. The sock I'm working on is making kind of a pixelated effect between the teals and the spring greens. The smell of the wool, the feel of the yarn. The look of a spun up ball or a skein. The whole thing is gorgeous. I almost forgot the color explosion of a yarn shop. I love opening the door of my LYS.


I knit because I need color.

I have always been disappointed with adult clothes. They're in such drab colors. Sock yarn totally fixes that problem. No one need know about my obsession with hot pink and blue. It's hidden. When I feel bad, a bright beaded bracelet, shiny earrings, or handknit socks are something to glance at to cheer me up. For awhile I'd go get acrylic nails and have them painted some gorgeous spring tulip shade to glance at and smile. Color improves everyone's day. The world needs more of it: knit.

Earn Knit to Own It

Here's the inspiration for my blog name.

G. LOVE AND SPECIAL SAUCE lyrics

Who in the beejesus am I?

Name: Camille
Location: Little Rock, Arkansas (Maumelle, actually)
Profession: Law Student by day, wife and mother of two dogs and two cats at night
Famous Quotes: "Nar"

I like knitting and I hate pollen.

Yesterday's knitting disappointed me. I was all set to pick up stitches on my sock. When voila! I dropped a stitch, couldn't for the life of me pick it up and then two holes formed on the corners where my calf meets the top of my foot. The option to rip it out involves me ripping out the whole heel flap. It's sad. Pictures forthcoming..film at 11.