the search is on

After Ryan's hat, I want to knit something large-scale for myself. I'm thinking sweater, since I've decided that I need to stop wearing hoodies all the time. (To demonstrate the extent of my hoodie-wearing habit, realize that a friend in photo club with me has ONLY pictures of me in a hoodie, wearing glasses and with hair in a pony tail. He has some 50 shots of me and tends to only take 2-3 shots of me at any one event. Two years, about 25 separate events, and I'm found wearing the SAME THING EVERY TIME.)

So, yes. A sweater. For me. That is warm, since I am Queen of the Cold. I'm looking for something fitted-ish, classic in style or at least not crazy enough to only be able to wear it for one year, and not overly hard to knit.

I've been debating Blaze from knitty.com. However, I'm pretty sure I'd want to add long sleeves and I'm not sure if that would work with the 16-round pattern. And I can't figure out what size to knit. I fall right between sizes small and medium and have a long torso, so I tend to add length to anything I knit. I suppose I could knit a few more rounds of plain ribbing, without the zig-zag at the bottom. And I might be able to add half a repeat as well. Hrm, ponder.

I also really like this cardigan, but I tend to have issues with buttoned sweaters uh, gapping. And I think this one would have the same problem.

Wendy's Somewhat Cowl, long sleeved version, is another option that I rather like. Not sure I could afford the suggested yarn, however.

Any other suggestions? The Sexy-Little-Knit-Along has some great ideas, but I find it VERY hard to search the blog to find the patterns that they have suggested and/or have knitted in the past.

Procrastination, how I love (and hate) thee

Apparently, I suck at up-dating at a regular basis. I feel that this is a result of my need to include pictures with my posts. The fact that I have an awesome digital camera, am a founding member and secretary of the Photo Club, and clearly LIKE photography seems to have no impact on the whole dragging camera out, finding the item I want to photograph, arranging the item in some sort of not-so-boring manner, taking the picture, uploading the picture (which requires disconnecting either my wireless mouse or my printer [and which I will forget to plug back in and then spend 10 minutes cursing as I try to figure out what is wrong with my mouse and/or printer]), editing the picture, and loading it to Blogger.com.

That is, unless, I am putting something off. Currently, I'm putting off calling my parents (it is Sunday, I call on Sunday. Otherwise, my mother will call to tell me that my cat wants to go outside. Again. After coming in 5 minutes ago. While that all might be true, THERE IS NOTHING I CAN DO. Nothing. But she will call and tell me that. Or that my sister stained her placemat again.)

Where was I? Oh, and homework. I have an article to read on Lithic Stone Tools and Stone Tool Technology. After reading the article, I must write up an abstract and some sort of notebook entry on the article.

Clearly, blogging comes first.

And sadly, pictures are NOT forth coming in this entry, unless you want to see close-ups of weeds in my yard. (They are pretty weeds, though.) If you so desire, leave a comment and I will share.

I've finished the major work of Sizzle. Finished on ... Thursday? Wednesday? Don't quite remember. But back and front have been knitted. Then the shoulder seams were grafted, the side seams mattress stitched. I just need to neaten out the edge of the neckline and do that part of the finishing. But. YAY! It fits! It is pretty! I can wear my very first major-knitting project. (Good thing, with the amount of money I spent on it. A pair of socks that doesn't work out... well, that's not so bad. And you could re-knit without killing yourself. Multiple times.)

I've finally, finally finished the heel of Tina's socks (the purple with white/black checkered strips). I knit that heel three times and I messed up on the short rows the third time. I'm trying to decide if I want to rip and reknit. Again. The only reason you can tell is cause the stripes didn't quite line up as they should.... I think it makes the sock more special. I also don't wanna deal with the heel anymore.

I've start swatching with the Lorena's Laces that I won a long, long time ago from Moth Heaven. I think it is finally time to knit a pair of socks for myself. This makes me happy.

Pictures next time, I promise. And is there anything you want me to photograph? I will consider requests.

you'll see boys

So, the sixth sense sock is moving along... but is undeniably too small for my feet. I don't want to frog and start all over- I'm getting about 10 stitches to the inch when I should be getting 8.5. Moving up a size in needles might not do that much good. I could add another pattern repeat to the number of stitches to cast on, but then I get the problem of attempting to do math when I get to the heel again. Shouldn't be too hard, but I don't wanna rip. If they fit my roommate's tiny feet (and she'll actually wear them) , I'll frog and start over.

The lace hasn't moved any farther, since I screw up too many times if I look away from that one. I'll have time to work on that at the beach.

I actually get a vacation this summer! Wahoo! The Boyfriend's family has a house in the Outer Banks and he's having friends down for the first two weeks after finals. I've got to work on Sunday, but will drive down on the 8th and drive back on the 12th.  

In other news, visited Whipple Dam on Sunday with the Photo Club. (Or rather, two other members of the photo club. Turn out, not so great. Shots, great.) It was really nice out, after a loud thunderstorm that morning and rain all day on Saturday. A bit too buggy for my taste, but I'm told I have high standards.

I love the following shot. I happened to glance at the park's rules and regulations and found definitions of some of the things forbidden- pets and snowmobiles, in particular. I didn't read the whole thing and couldn't get a picture that would let me read it later, but I wonder if they later forbid equines and bovines, or could one bring cattle to the park?



I want to cast on Opal sock yarn and start those. I knit a swatch tonight while watching a dress rehearsal/preview of Much Ado About Nothing. I got about 10.5 stitches per inch on US size 2 needles. I don't think that's normal. (Specially when the band tells me 8 stitches to one inch on US size 1 needles.) What to do, what to do? I think I'll just knit another swatch. I've discovered that I can't NOT knit. (And that's how I know that knitting is a disease.) Maybe toe up socks would be the solution, cause I could just keep increasing til they fit? Suggestions?

(Side note: If I want people to read my blog, I should start leaving comments on other people's blogs. (yes, I do like to state the obvious.) But... I feel like I'm butting into the "adults' time" since the average age of a knitter who blogs is NOT 20. So, am I too young to 'fit in' the knitting blog circle(s)? Or do I just need to keep leaving comments and post lots of pictures so people come back to see how projects are progressing? Again, suggestions, my non-existent audience?)