I'm so sorry

Amelia - I'm sorry I got distracted for so long and left you all alone.  I've never stopped loving you - and now you're becoming such a lovely sweater.  all 80% of you.  so little left to go - then we can go everywhere together!  

Ok, so this picture is pretty crappy - but it's hard when it's all crammed up on a circular!

Thursday?

Oooh, I can't believe it's almost Thursday already!  I'm at the midpoint of my week of vacation and it's about to tip to the downhill slide back toward work!  I'm just doing a "staycation" which has been pretty great - lots of knitting, waking up without an alarm, puttering in the yard (although today's puttering turned into a knock down-drag out fight between me and an alberta spruce that needed to be moved, but apparently didn't want to be!  I won, by the way.  Assuming it lives - I guess if I messed up too many roots, and it dies, it wins, in a weird kind of way.)  Anyway, my mom came up to visit on Tuesday (she drove all by herself to "the big city" and didn't get lost- I'm so proud of her!) and we went to the Antique Barn, two thrift stores, and a little antique consignment shop just outside my neighborhood - she was inexhaustable!  It was a fun time, and I learned a few things - namely that I'm doing to her exactly what she always does to me - remembering things from 10 or 15 years ago and assuming that nothing has changed.  In my case it's that she talks about knowing how much I hate pink and won't eat oranges - both of which were highschool things that just don't apply anymore.  In her case, I still assume she wants her sweaters to all be off-white and hit her right at the waist.  Well apparently, like with me, things change - she's 58 now and feels like she's got little lovehandles (she's tiny tiny and totally doesn't, but I know you can't convince people of things like that) and even though she tried on the cutest little red cardigan that fit her exactly the way I thought she wanted a sweater to fit, and it looked great, she said "oh, it's just too short."  Whaaat?  And she said that she thinks she ought to wear more color.  Whaaat?  So I guess my issues with picking knitting projects for her are wrought with more confusion than I previously thought!  Hopefully the shell I'm making for her won't seem too fitted for her taste (although it's sleeveless, so I know there will be a cardigan tossed on over it.)  And I know it's designed to be a bit long, so I guess I don't have to worry about that anymore either!  Heck, maybe I should dye the thing when I'm done with it!  

Oh, and by the way, Amelia's sleeves are finally joined with the body, and I've cast on for Anemore mitt #2!  

It takes two baby...

...but I only gots one.  

However, one, when it comes to stripey socks, is enough to make me pretty damn happy for the time being!  I decided to just knit the whole skein and hope it ended up tall enough.  Kinda, but not really.  I think knee socks sort of need to come up to the point where your calf starts decreasing, but these sort of end a bit before that.  I fear they'll end up slipping down and being saggy, which may also be cute in a japanese sort of way.  I dunno - I don't think the solution is to make them tighter with elastic thread, but maybe some of that clear gripper stuff that's recommended for those unbelievable lace socks in the latest Vogue.  

Anyway, now that this is off the needles for the time being, I really need to get back to the Gabriella before Mother's Day rolls around!

All drunk on Noro

There's nothin' like coming home from work to find 3 parcels all piled up for you on the table!  I mean one parcel is enough to make me giddy!  Today it was the highly anticipated box from Little Knits - Catherine and I went in on an order because she fell prey to the Zuma, like the rest of us, and I fell prey to the Kureyon sock on sale for like 45% off!  I bought 4 balls and tried to add on 3 more via an email to customer service, which thankfully (kinda) didn't "take" - so I didn't end up with 7 balls of Noro, but just my original 4.  I'm totally taking back that "thankfully" part - I must be going through the angry stage of grief right now, because suddenly I'm all pissed that I didn't get more!  Ok, but there IS more - box #2 was some Silk Garden that had been haunting me since I saw it on the Rav destash board!  I successfully held it at bay for about a day and a half, but this Arienne sweater that I faved months ago kept calling to me - it makes me crazy happy and I really really need to make my own!  The fact that this sweater  has such a fantastic chevron stitch pattern and everyone has been making it in solid colored yarn is just incomprehensible to me.  I mean look at this one!  Obviously this Noro was meant for me and my own ziggy zaggy sweater!  It's shades of red, orangeish, and pink - and of course, in Noro fashion, a bit of brown, blue, and greenish thrown in.  I'm so taken with it!  Oh, and now Webs has the nerve to tell me they've got discontinued Noro colorways all discounted!  if any of you buy it all up just because I put in a link, I'll hunt you down!

What 29 cents will get ya these days

Only the best legwarmers EVER!  My friends from Columbus came down again last weekend and we went eating and thrifting, as we are wont to do.  I picked up these faire aisle legwarmers, got laughed at by them, and plunked down 29 cents to make them mine.  Yeah, 29 cents.  who prices this stuff?  I think they pretty much kick ass, and the BF said I look adorable today, so blleeeaah!

In knitting news, I got my Gabriella pattern in the mail earlier this week and started it (as you'll recall, this is plan B for my mother's day present.)  I feel like I started the darn thing about 3 times!  First of all, you have to cast on 188 stitches - it's easy to doubt yourself when counting that many stitches - so I counted and recounted, then did a couple rows, then decided that I probably should have cast on with a bit bigger needle so that the bottom of the sweater didn't feel tight.  So I ripped it out and cast on again, then forgot to put in the stitch markers, which meant that my ribbing was off, so I had to tink back.  Sheesh - finally I'm on track and have about an inch or so done.  Yeah!  It's going to be beautiful.  The pattern was written for Lorna's Laces Pearl, which is quite pricey (it is silk and bamboo, and hand dyed, so I'd expect as much) and I chose this pattern because it fit the bill for looking good on my mom, and because the Frog Tree cotton/silk blend that I already had for her would easily transfer.  The designer's project is the only one up on Ravelry, so while I'd love to add another in the yarn it was designed for, I just can't.  I never feel bad about subbing yarns, but I think because I've PM'd both the designer and the Lorna's Laces rep when trying to track the pattern down, I feel closer to it - like they're frowning on me!  

I needed a second pair of size 7 dpns for my Amelia cardigan so I went to The Yarn and Needle in Centerville this morning, because I was down that way.  I'm mentioning this, not because I want flack from you Emily for my ever increasing stash problem ;), but because I've heard so many bad reviews about this LYS, and I wanted to put in a positive shout out for them.  I've even talked badly of them in the past because of their not always friendly staff.  But I've got to say that the last two times I've been there, it's been just fantastic!  Today an older, very stylish looking lady with short gray hair was working - I didn't catch her name, but I know it wasn't the owner (who, I believe is the one who people have problems with.)  She was super sweet and so helpful and just all around friendly.  I mean it was really really great.  So don't be all down on the Yarn and Needle! That's my 2 cents.

Goodbye Flutter Sleeve Cardigan

...really, it's not you...it's my mother.  Not that it's my mother's fault that she's so darn petite, or that this sweater just isn't going to be able to be made from the pattern without mods to take her petiteness into account, but I think it's best all around if this sweater and I call it quits.  At least I only got through the whole back before I stopped and took some measurements.  ugh.  only the whole back.  This sweater would look great on my mom if I had some super measurements of her and could start the ribbing right under her bustline, where it should fall (instead of probably down around the top of her jeans, where it would currently fall.)  Yes, I know I could get those measurements, but I'd still totally  have to start over.  and I don't wanna.  I'm just going to rip it.  And I found the perfect replacement - I decided that a nice shell made from this yarn would be fantastic for the Mother's Day season, and would also be something she could wear to work with a little cardigan over it maybe.  Moreover, shells are far less dependant upon precise waist shaping for a proper fit.  and that's key right now.  So the one I totally fell in love with - Gabriella, by the wonderful Ann Weaver, is playing very hard to get!  She designed it for Lorna's Laces and it's only available in stores.  The one that I found (the one she links to on the Rav pattern page) wants to charge me something like $4.80 shipping for a $4.50 piece of paper.  whaaa?  I PM'd the master behind Lorna's Laces and she gave me some leads - but this is going to take some phone calling.  Or, I suppose I could order if from the place that'll charge me out the ass for shipping, but also tuck in some of that Lorna's Laces Lion and Lamb or whatever that was that Sam waved in front of me for weeks while making her Meret beret!  then the shipping would sort of be hidden away and the pain would be eased by some lovely silk and wool!