Ups and Downs

This week has been a strange up and down week. Medical issues were up and down and same with knitting. This picture is my haul from Estes Park. I really want to cast something on using that yummy Alpaca.

WIPS

1. Still have not started the 2^nd sock of the Mablesock. I need to face up to facts and add this to my UFO list. Can you say second sock syndrome?
2. The bird is still in time out. This is another one that should be listed as UFO.
3. I am still in the gusset of the Hermione’s Everyday sock. I did not touch this project this week. Too many other projects going.
4. I finally made it to the striping rows on the Daybreak. I have 5 black stripes now.
5. I dropped off the 5 completed preemie hats at Children’s and I started making more hats out of my last leftover skein of sock yarn STR Bella Coola. I have completed one and think I have enough yarn for 2 more.

UFOs

1. Yeah one more UFO down. 12 UFOs listed on Ravelry! Which one should I tackle next?

Purchases

1. I bought a skein of cotton sock yarn to see how that will work. I think my sister is interested in that.
2. I did sign up for the Tempted Club which is burlesque themed.

Queued

1. From just browsing and listening to podcasts, I added the following projects: Celaeno by Rosemary (Romi) Hill, Mountain Ash by Kate Gagnon Osborn, Froot Loop by Kristi Geraci, Saroyan by Liz Abinante, Debussy Shawlette by Corrina Ferguson

FOs

1. I actually started working on an ancient UFO. I pulled the Granny on Edge out of hibernation on Monday when the weather turned cold. I finally sewed all of the blocks together and weaved in the ends and finished the border rows. WOW! I can’t believe that it is finally finished. Yeah one more UFO down.

Life views

This is why I love living near the mountains. This is a view that I get sometimes on my way to work.

I had so much fun at Estes, especially because I was there with friends. I thought that the Vendor barn was a little bit less then I imagined, but maybe next year will be better, since I know what to expect.

WIPS

1. Still have not started the 2^nd sock of the Mablesock.
2. The bird is still in time out.
3. I am still in the gusset of the Hermione’s Everyday sock. I actually keep making mistakes with this sock. I didn’t do the heel in the pattern, because I didn’t realize I was supposed to, I had the SSK and K2 together mixed up, and I added one extra row of knit in the gusset. Oh well.
4. I finally was able to cast on the daybreak. Yeah! However, I have not been able to knit on this nearly as much as I want to. Life keeps getting in the way.

Purchases

1. I purchased 5 skeins from the Estes weekend. 2 were from Textiles a Mano, a skein of 1100 yards of fingering weight merino and a skein of Alpaca (so soft!). I also acquired a skein of lace weight from Lambspun and 2 skeins for a pair of socks from the Stitchin’ Den (the LYS in Estes).
2. I think that I signed up for a yarn club. We will see…

Queued

1. I added the citron for the lace weight from Lambspun which is in a violet color way.
2. I also added the Anemie as a possibility for the alpaca yarn that I purchased. I think that the yarn is a fingering weight.

FOs

1. I finished 3 preemie hats from my leftover Madeline Tosh Sock. I didn’t have enough yarn to do enough I-cord for the 3^rd hat to tie in a knot, but that is fine. I am going to the hospital next week. I wanted these 3 hats finished by then so that I can take a picture with all 3 together before they disappear. Mission accomplished!

Events

1. I came across another preemie hat project, Remembering Remy. I started making the preemie hats that I have been making because of Project Sweet Caroline. Now I am torn, I will still give the 5 hats that I just finished to Childrens, but the next ones I make I will send for the Remy project.

Healthy Steps

1. My goals this week are to take my lunch at least 3 times per week and to exercise 10 minutes a day. Last week I did take my lunch to work, this week not even one day. I still have not started exercising.

Spanish Lessons

1. I still have not finished lesson 8. I find it harder to do these lessons in good weather, because I want my windows open in the car. I do these lessons in the car on the way to or from work. The other problem is that I have just been too tired lately.

New Things

Things in other areas of my life are getting out of control. I have decided to add new sections to help get some things started.

WIPS

1. The problem with starting the 2^nd sock of the Mablesock pattern is that the Hermione sock is on the needle that I need for this sock. I have order another needle from my LYS, since it is a popular one with me, but it has not come in yet.
2. I finished one preemie hats from my leftover Madeline Tosh Sock and started the 2^nd one. I may have enough to do three total.
3. I have added the belly patch, beak, and eyes to the bird. I had to place it in time out when I tried to add the brows. I am not very happy with this one. I can’t get the bird to look right.
4. I am finally onto the gusset of the Hermione’s Everyday sock. I am not sure what it is about the heel flap that I don’t want to do. Maybe it is that it seems to take forever. Of course it will when I only do one or two rows at a time.

Purchases

1. I received my Loopy Ewe order. I purchased 2 skeins of Malabrigo sock (eggplant and black) for the Daybreak shawl and I purchased a skein of Madeline Tosh Sock in Saffron and a skein of Caper Sock by String Theory in Spice color. I don’t remember if I realized that Caper Sock is another MCN when I purchased it, but I hope it works out. This yarn is so soft and yummy.

Queued

1. I realized that I was using the favorites and the queue wrong, so this week I moved most of the items marked as favorite to my queue and removed them from my favorites. I then organized my queue better and added folders to help find items.

FOs

1. I finally weaved in the ends and blocked the Holden Shawlette. I really liked this shawl, it was my first and it is a nice size. This was the first time that I actually blocked an item. I used blocking wires and T pins.
2. I finished the Summer Mystery Shawlette and I even blocked it. I am a little disappointed in the size, it is very small, I guess that is why it is called a shawlette, but so is the Holden. However I used one size larger needles on the Holden, so that probably helped. I blocked it again because I didn’t like how small it was and now it is more reasonable.
3. I finished the Betiko as well, making this week the week of blocking and the week parade of finished shawls. I still don’t like the yarn, it is too itchy.

Events

1. Estes Park Wool Festival is coming 06/11/2011. I need to stop spending money before I go!
2. For Camp Loopy I have decided to do the Daybreak in Malabrigo Sock. I have decided on Black and Eggplant. The colors are wonderful!

Healthy Steps

1. My goals this week are to take my lunch at least 3 times per week and to exercise 10 minutes a day.

2. I started Spark People. Not sure how that will turn out. My goal is to get a C25K program going, but I will try the 10 minutes of exercise a day first to get started.

Spanish Lessons

1. I am working on learning Spanish. I have already completed Level I of the Pimsleur Spanish Lessons. I found the Level II discs at my local library. I have the first half of the discs, but it is going much slower than the first level. I am stumbling over the words now and find that the lessons are going too fast. But, I am trying to persevere. I am on lesson 8 of Level II.

Progress

This week seems so long. I still am not sure what day of the week is the best day to post. So, far this experiment is working out very well. I find that I want to touch each active WIP, because I want to have progress for each of them. Otherwise at least one of these projects would be sent into hibernation.

WIPS

1. I have finished the 1^st sock for the test knit. This project is not a secret so I am going to say that it is the Mablesock pattern. Not sure when I will cast on the 2^nd. I don’t like the yarn (The Sanguine Gryphon Bugga) as much as I did in the beginning. I liked it when I was knitting it for a shawl, but the more the yarn is handled the more fuzz builds up on the yarn. It might just be me, I may not like the MCN blends. I will see as I have one more MCN skein from Fibernymph.
2. I have cast off the Summer Mystery shawl! Now, I just need to weave in the ends and block it.
3. Since there is left over yarn from the SMS, I am using up the remainder by doing some more preemie hats. I have cast on the first one. I am hoping to get 2 out of the leftovers.
4. On the bird, I have the body at the point that I need to stitch on some of the other components.
5. For some reason I must have thought that 3 active WIPs and an unknown number of UFOs was not enough so I started a new project. I cast on the Hermione’s Everyday Socks with my Scout’s Swag Sock yarn in Pomegranate.

UFOs

1. I am so happy. I removed 2 items from this category and have finished them! At a minimum I have 15 projects left.

2. One of the 15 projects is the Lizard Ridge, which I know for a fact I will not finish. (The blocks have a much tighter cast on edge versus bind off edge.) But I am not sure what to with the 6 blocks that I have already completed. I am thinking that I should sew 2 blocks together and then felt them to try making totes.

Purchases

1. It arrived! I actually caught a Wollmeise update. I purchased a Gelb/Orange grab bag. I received We’re Different versions of Küken and Clementine. Okay now what can I knit with them? Must wait!
2. I bought another new circ. I was missing the actual US size #1 (2.5mm). I purchase this in the addi Lace, because I do like the sharper needles now.

Queued

1. I have added the Batik shawl to my queue because I am thinking that the WD Clementine might want to be a shawl.

FOs

1. Yay, I finished an afghan from last year! It is so funny, but I made one of these for my hubby, but I am always using it. So, he keeps saying that I stole his blanket. I finally made one for me and now my baby wants it. Maybe I will have to make another one.
2. Finished the set of preemie hats from my leftover STR Lemongrass yarn. I have been grouping these by the yarn, instead of creating a project for each hat. I suspect others have not been logging these hats at all. I was very surprised to only see 109 projects listed for the pattern.

Events

1. Estes Park Wool Festival is coming 06/11/2011. I can’t wait and I hope the weather is good!
2. The Loopy Ewe is moving to Colorado, need I say more!
3. Speaking of the Loopy Ewe, they are doing a Camp Loopy. The first task of three is to complete a two color shawl, scarf, or cape. I have the Daybreak already in my queue, so this would be perfect. The only problem is trying to figure out what colors to use.