The picture is here.
Blogger is behaving well.
It is nearly done.

And so, there is the start of Haiku -- though that pic comes from a few days past, I'm much further along now. I was playing with Paintshop too, having fun with borders and picture frames. I don't think I'll do it again -- at least not regularly -- too much effort! And it's cutting into my knitting time!

But back to Haiku -- I'm dead on the gauge (the way the pattern is written, it's really impossible to not be), but the sweater seems so big. I've knit it in size 1-2 -- but when I compare it to the little green sweater (which is about a size 2), it seems to be so much larger. So...I don't know. I'm going on faith from this point forward.

Blogger seems to be eating any pics I upload. *mutter* So I will upload that tomorrow maybe.

It's been a busy week -- not a lot of time left over for knitting, though I do have the cherry scarf down to one more repeat. If I get a little motivation (and if the hockey games ever end on the tv), I'll maybe pick it up and finish it off. I did whip up the hat to go with the little green sweater (pics will come later, I hope). And, I started a new sweater, Knitty's Haiku, which I'll hopefully have done before my daughter and granddaughter arrive on Thursday.

I did get a nice compliment yesterday. I work for a public school system and was meeting with one of the school principals. He said to me, "You know, this district is much to small for someone of your caliber and talents." Add this to last week's compliment when the trainer at the course I was taking asked me if I'd attend an upcoming conference and make a presentation.

Oh yes, my ego is swelling beyond all reasonable borders now. So I suppose it was only right that Blogger brought me down to earth.

Hopefully you can make out the above...they're a couple of stitch markers that I've made for my secret pal....but I'm not sure if they're good enough to send (a common problem with most anything I make). There's also a third one, but it has her name on it so I left it out of the pictures.

Anyway...whatcha think?

Separated at birth? You be the judge...



The one in the pink hat is my grandaughter Anna -- I'm not sure who the one in the green is...but I couldn't get over that they had the exact same expression on their faces (and for basically the same reason).

So, since I whipped up that scarf & hat last week, it would seem likely that, buoyed by my success, I forged on with the scarf.

Yeah, not so much.

Instead, I rattled off this little pattern with the results (at least the sweater) in the picture. I started it Friday night and finished the knitting last evening. The little hat will follow -- it's about half done right now. I wasn't sure how big it would work up -- I'm guessing a generous size 2. Which is a little large for anything I need right now, but it can be tucked away for a few months. Overall, I'm happy with it -- my stockinette needs a little more eveness as my tension seems at time to vary. And I still have one seam to sew (ugh). But still -- it's sweater shaped, so I'm content!

And the scarf? It languishes on the needles, not even given the dignity of hiding from sight in the basket -- rather, it's draped across my footstool where I last dropped it in frustration. However! I am going away for a few days -- three days of training for a report writing software...sort of. The whole session ended up not being what I anticipated (and requested). But I'm hoping that I'll walk away with at least some knew information that I can apply to what it is I really want to do (ie. I'll train my own damn self!). But on the plus side, my husband has a few days off and will join me in the city for a few nights. And the scarf? I'll bring it along and promise to complete at least one pattern repeat before I get home.

Once more my somewhat less than uber photography skills have been used for your viewing (dis)pleasure.

If you can't tell from the picture, that's a hat and scarf -- and it really was a lot cuter in person. I whipped them up for my grandaughter, who will be 4 years old in a few days. They went out in the mail today, so hopefully I'll get a picture back before too long to show them being worn.

Now, a word about me being a grandmother -- and I always feel compelled to explain this. I am in my early 40's, but am already the grandmother to two beautiful little girls. While the arithmetic would work anyway, there is a side story.

Not so many years ago, my husband and I came to terms with the fact that creating our own biological child would be highly unlikely. Actually, maybe we never came to terms with it -- to me that suggests a much more noble and gracious view than we came to have -- maybe we just accepted that it's the hand that was dealt. Didn't like it, still don't like it, still cry about it some days. But, life moved on.

In any case, we decided to adopt. And so we did. Two lovely little girls, sisters, who were at the time aged 6 and 3. A downside to adopting older children is one I only realized when they were grown. I know most parents say their kids grow up too fast, but ours really did....we got short changed by 6 and 3 years of time. And, even though I was 26 when I became a mother...it was a short 13 years later that I became a grandmother. And while I adore my granddaughters, I do stumble over calling myself Nana.

1. Are you a yarn snob (do you prefer higher quality and/or natural fibers)? Do you avoid Red Heart and Lion Brand?

No, though I think I'm evolving into one. Right now, I have a huge stash of yarn that came from my grandmother when she passed away, my mother-in-law when she passed away, my mother when she moved in with me, and, of course, what I'd amassed over a lifetime (though I blame the other 3 if anyone asks =) . Much of the yarn is not super high quality, though there are some treasures in there that make me go "oooh" when I come across them.

2. Do you spin? Crochet?

I don't spin, but I do know how to crochet.

3. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?

Knitting needles are in a wicker frog. It was a gift from my mother a long time ago -- and it was a perfect size for needles. It's actually not that great a solution as the needles get all mixed up, but it sure is full! Crochet hooks eventually find their way back to a little case I have for them.

4. How long have you been knitting? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?

I remember being a very little girl -- maybe 5 or 6 -- and having two sticks tied together with a piece of yarn and being quite convinced that I had mastered knitting. But I really didn't learn until maybe 10 or 11 -- probably for a Brownie badge. I would say my skill level is intermediate.

5. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?

Nope.

6. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.)

I love the scent of cloves for candles and such. For bath products, I like vanilla and light floral scents. I don't care for lavendar.

7. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?

Oh gosh, yes. Favourites are black licorice, peppermints and clove-flavoured candies.

8. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do?

I dabbled with scrapbooking once -- and stencilled my daughter's bedroom. Oh, and I took a cake decorating course (and almost always decorated my kids' birthday cakes). But that's about it.

9. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)

I am completely eclectic in my tastes. On any given day, I might listen to the White Stripes then Stan Rogers then something classical then Travis Tritt and follow it all up with Def Lepard. My stereo at work, and my computer at home, can both play MP3s.


10. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand?

My favourite colour is red. I don't think there are any colours I can't stand.

11. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?

I live with my husband and my mom has a mother-in-law suite downstairs. We have two grown daughters, both of whom have a daughter (ages 1 & 4) and all of whom live far to far away from us. There are two dogs in the house -- Gracie and Casey (named before they lived together!).

12. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?

Occasionally I wear scarves, but the climate here is such that hats and mittens aren't really needed. I haven't worn a poncho since grade 5, and have no immediate plans to change that. =)

13. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with?

No real favourites.

14. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?

None

15. What is/are your current knitting obsession/s?

Knitting magazines -- I can't seem to pass one by.

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

Scarfs -- quick, easy and to the point.

17. What are you knitting right now?

A scarf! (And a sweater, and a couple of pairs of socks....)

18. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?

Yes!

19. Do you prefer straight or circular needles?

Both are fine depending on the need.

20. Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?

I've never tried bamboo -- and I have no preference between aluminum and plastic.

21. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?

No

22. How did you learn to knit?

Probably my mom or my grandmother taught me (likely both of them).

23. How old is your oldest UFO?

My age less 10 or 11 years? Of the ones I could actually still locate....a pair of socks that I started last summer.

24. What is your favorite animated character or a favorite animal/bird?

I have a soft spot for Tiger -- because he danced with me at DisneyWorld. Favourite animals -- dogs & horses.

25. What is your favorite holiday?

I like Easter -- probably because spring is my favourite season.

26. Is there anything that you collect?

Besides yarn, no.

27. What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

No subscriptions, but I almost always end up buying what's on the news stand.

28. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on?

Tahki Kerry -- there is a pattern for a vest in the latest issue of Knit'n Style. I would love to make it, but I really want to try it in the "right" yarn, which I can't find locally.

29. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?

I'd like to know more about how to alter a pattern -- throwing in a few extra stitches and rows doesn't always do the trick.

30. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?

Yes -- though not quite a sock finisher, yet. My foot is 11" heel to toe and 11" around (I think I have square feet!).

31. When is your birthday? (mm/dd)

03/24

I'm not really enjoying this scarf much. I keep messing up the pattern, and I'm not crazy over the yarn. Still, though, it's turning out okay (I suspect you'd have to try to make the pattern look bad) and hopefully will improve substanstially upon blocking. I'm just not enthusiastic about it. I keep telling myself that its a learning experience and I'm learning something from it as I go. And, it's another couple skeins of yarn gone from the stash -- so that's a good thing.

I've been sorely tempted all evening (or at least the parts of the evenint when I wasn't playing EQ2) to drop the scarf and whip up something for Lisa's birthday. I even got so far as to cast for a hat....but I put it back down. This scarf comes of the needles before anything else goes on.

So there.

I like doing jigsaw puzzles, so I was especially happy to get two for Christmas. One of them, in the picture over there --->, looked particularly challenging. It was a sphere - a globe, certainly unlike any jigsaw puzzle I'd ever done before.

And more unlike any other than I originally thought, because when I opened the box, I found that the pieces were all numbered. Assembly was simply a matter of putting them all in order and sticking them together. I suppose one could have turned all the pieces over and not looked at the numbers -- but I have not nearly that amount of willpower.

In any case, it was the fastest I've put together a puzzle in ... well in ever I guess. And it was still kind of fun -- but challenging? Not so much.

I wasn't happy with how the pattern I referred to in my last post was turning out. Could be my yarn, the colour or texture of it, but more likely was my skill, or lack of it. In any case, I wasn't doing the pattern justice -- so it was frog time once more and back to the browser.

Where I found this pattern. I'm quite pleased with how this is going.

Now I need to work on my photography skills -- the colour on this picture is wrong, but that's because I fiddled with PSP to try to make the picture brighter. And my staging seems so....well, staged. My camera's no great shakes to begin with, and I'm no great photographer -- so when you combine poor equipment, no talent and a decided lack of skill...you get a picture like this. At least I remembered to take off the lens cap. (Not that I can take credit for that though, because the camera yells at me when I forget.)

There is a teensy little bit of work left -- weave in a few ends -- but I'm calling this one complete. The yarn is, as I've mentioned, a "bargain brand", but overall I'm pleased. I certainly like the result -- I think the cables pop really nicely -- and I really like the colour. On the dowside, I ended up short (finishing at 7" X 50.5"). And the yarn itself is very stiff -- so it's more of a "fold in front" than "wrap around the neck" kind of scarf. It will find a home somewhere, I hope.

So, moving right along, it's on to more stash busting. I have slightly less than 5 balls of an acryllic/wool/mohair combination in a really lovely burgandy combination. I tried, briefly, cabling it (using the same pattern as the pink scarf) but quickly realized that wasn't going to work out (the cables just....melted). So I'm looking for a lace scarf pattern. I'm trying out this Diamond Scarf pattern right now -- but I'm not overly thrilled. The original is lovely, but my attempt (bearing in mind I'm using a different yarn and different needles) is, I think, falling a bit short. I'm going to complete at least one full repeat of the pattern and then decide.