wicked wicked socks!

The socks are evil....they possess powers....they make the wearer do things she's knows she shouldn't do....they made me lose my mind (but I love them anyway).

The day after I finished the socks... I had big plans....I was going to run out to Starbucks, grab a chai tea and come home and paint my bedroom and bathroom. As soon as I put those socks on, the phone rang...my friend is inviting me to meet her for coffee.... despite the afore mentioned good intentions... I say "SURE! I'll meet ya for coffee!"....but hey, maybe an hour of painting time lost right? And that would be true if I hadn't made a detour to the Auto Mall on my way home...so .... 7 hours later.... I own this:



What's the problem you ask??? What got painted???? NOTHING!! Did I actually sell my old car first? NO. Did I trade it in? NO. Did I do careful research and comparison shopping like I normally would...NO...well some but not nearly enough!!!!
(Ok, I have been thinking about it...looking a little) But I had no intention of doing what I did this weekend!
And worst of all... my poor sister was waiting for me to help with her socks... instead we drove this baby to lunch and over yummy pasta on the patio we stared at this thing until we'd convinced me that it was pretty enough to buy. Not to mention how nice it drives and.... oh my lots of room for hauling yarn around in!

Which brings me back to the beginning.... it was the crazy chocolate socks that made me do it!

ta da....chocolate socks!

So, today I was supposed to get a lot done around the house.... I didn't really do that...but I did get a lot done on that second sock!!!

Thanks again Susan for the chocolate yarn....these socks are just yummy!

I ordered the ChaCha sock yarn by Susie that is advertised on the secretpal9 blog it's it's beautiful, can't wait til it gets here!

Next.....

I actually took this picture a couple of days ago.

Must not succumb to the second sock syndrome!!!!

Indiana U!

I received a postcard today from my Secret Pal!!! Yahoo! It is of a very cool painting and came from an art museum at Indiana University. My Pal...(you go girl) is touring grad schools!!! Wow! YOU GO!

Thanks so much, I love the card!

Rats!

I kept looking at the sock...and the directions...and thinking, huh, something doesn't seem right with the gusset decreases.....Well....Duh!!!! Now that I'm almost finished with the dang thing it hits me.... I decreased every round instead of every other round! Wellllll I do believe I'll leave it and call it character! hehehe And then I'll try to get it right on the second sock unless it looks too weird then I'll do that one wrong too! :)

must pay closer attention to detail! hehehe

from the leg....

we move to the heel flap...

and the heel turn....

And....on to the foot.... and almost done!!!!!

sock update

Well, after knitting the cuff, and the leg and a few rows of the heel flap, I decided to check size to see if this baby would fit...baggy at the ankle!!! Dang. So I ripped....I ripped all five inches of that thing. And after about 10 attempts at casting on (because by then I was just tired and being picky), I finally was happy with it and continued.... tonight I have almost finished the heel flap...and, I'm happy with the fit so far.... (I decreased my cast on from 64 to 60 and I think I'm knitting a little tighter). Here's what it looks like:

I love the colorway...
and the yarn!

Today, my sister cast on her very first pair of socks... it was sock lesson day! Well, it was shop for pals day too...and so, we did... SOOO much fun!!!!

What do ya think she's thinking here?

I think she's had just about enough of the knitting/blogging .... "Please mother, please get me a snack"

Happy weekend!

I liiiiike it!!!!

This: is my newly cast on sock....with my yummy chocolate colored yarn which my very nice chocolate swap pal Susan, sent me. I absolutely love it already!




Yes, you see it right, five double points....I'm used to using two circulars for my socks, in size 5. these are like size 2 1/2 us....yikes! But... I love it! I might switch and work it on 4 dbl pts...but...we'll see how long it takes to get used to all these sharp pointy things. My cat, obviously elderly .... came dangerously close to losing an eye last night when she jumped onto my lap!!!! double yikes!!!



This is a dilemma for me....I love this stitch, I love this yarn (manos del uruguay, my so-called scarf on US 11.) But for the life of me I can't happily bind off... I mean, I'm happy to bind off...but I haven't been happy with my bind off...not any of the 5 or 6 times I've bound off....only to undo my bind off. Does anybody out there have any ideas? I know it's best to bind off in the pattern stitch....but I'm not sure how to make that work...so I tried to bind off in knit then I tried to bind off in purl...and visa versa and versa visa and it just looks like doo doo.
Any ideas? Please?


So, that's what I'm working on.

Ok,I'm also working on this: A Christmas present




And this: Another Christmas present


And I finished this....


and....after taking half of these pictures, I got tangled in my sock yarn and jammed about 3 of the pointy little things into my foot....ouch.... ok, not clear into it... but it still smarted...
so take my advice....know where those pointy sticks are at all times!!!!

happy knitting.

patty's contest

My Favorite:

Actor - oooh I guess it depends on if we're judging on acting talent or just raw attraction....at
any rate I think Denzel fits the bill for both pretty well. But I like the Doctor on
Lost (Michael Fox)...and Michael Scofield's brother on Prison Break too hehehe (I'm not
that picky any of the three will do), oooh Gerard Butler, Phantom
Actress - hmmmm toughy... Meg Ryan, Shirley Maclaine, Joan Allen, Diane Keaton
Animal - I have a cool cat, and a cool dog and even a pretty cool goldfish...don't make me
choose.
Band - hmmmm jeez don't make me choose....I like Bob Seger, Bruce Springsteen, etc...etc..
Tim McGraw, etc...etc... no rap, no hiphop.
Beverage - hot: Starbucks non-fat Chai Latte with one extra shot of Chai
cold: Diet Cherry Coke (for now)
Book - Yarn Harlot: The Secret Life of a Knitter
Bubble Bath - citrus scent in the hot tub under a starry sky! Not a big bubble bath person.
Candy - Do I have to choose? Can't I just love them all?
Color - Blue or Purple or Burgandy, or Green, or....are ya starting to see a them here?
Flower - for scent Gardenia, hehehe "Don't you think daisies are the friendliest flower?" - Meg
Ryan, You've Got Mail.
Food - Do people really play favorites here??? hmmm my grandmother's lasagna or anything
she ever cooked for that matter.
Lip Balm - Burts Bees cherry flavor is nice.
Lotion - mmmm Citrus scents from Bath and Body
Movie - Something's Gotta Give, Family Stone, As Good As it Gets, Terms of Endearment,
Phantom of the Opera
Song - Cheryl Crow's version of Sweet Child of Mine (Is that the name of the song or just the
chorus, I'm not sure.)
TV Show - right now....Lost, Prison Break, Without a Trace, Law and Order
Vacation Spot - I'm still searching for it.

Ok....I admit I hate to choose.....I've have a 20 year career which requires me to make a lot of big decisions...and I have no problem with that...but don't make me choose a restaurant, or a favorite color...etc. I don't know why. :)

sp9sp9s9sp9sp9

I heard from my pal yesterday.....ha ha....ha ha....and, I got my pals info too. That makes it official! It's almost started hehe. I'm so excited...and I don't get excited!!!! Yay!!

My spoiler wants to know if I want hints about who she is.....I'm going to try...so...hard... not to go looking and trying to figure it out!! I did so good last time, I didn't try to find out...honest, but ...I figured it out by accident just before the end of sp8. (sorry Rachel hehehe)

Must. Not. Blog. Snoop!

heatherly's contest, jody's questions, tali's birthday...yay

1. Where is your favorite knitting spot?
I curl up on my oversized chair or loveseat! But... I'll knit anywhere, anytime.
2. If you suddenly could never knit again (shudder) - what would you do instead?
First, I'd probably cry a little .... then I would probably start reading more, and getting a little
more exercise!! hehe
3. If you could travel anywhere in the world - where would you go and why?
I think Italy.... or any and all of the mediterranean countries... I don't know why, I'd just
really love to go there. I love the architechtural style.
4. When you were little - What did you want to do "when you grew up?" Are you doing it?
I always thought of some sort of medicine, either human or animal. I thought I'd be a nurse
or a vet. I'm a PA so I guess I am.
5. What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?
mmmm I like the maple nuts, or butter crunch....and rocky road. Yummy! (oops that's more
than one isn't it)

Block!?!

I think I'm having a blogger's block....keep thinking I need to post...but don't quite know what to say.... those who know me will be dumbfounded with this. I don't usually have a problem with speechlessness :-).

Anyhoo.... I'm still here....knitting a bit but .... having a bit of a block here too I think... another first.

I am looking forward to receiving my pal's info for sp9 though....hopefully soon. I've been shopping....now I just need to know who my pal is and what she likes hee hee.

SP9 Questionnaire

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?
I do believe I like the "natural fibers" the best....but it depends on what I'm doing I guess. I'm not into the strictly acrylic or eyelash types. I like Manos Del Uruguay ALOT, also Cascade. I'd love yarn that's local to my pals area, I love the hand-dyed/homespuns etc.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? My SP8 pal made me two cute fabric needle rolls, my long needles are in a cute vase.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced? I learned briefly as a child, picked it up again last January, self taught via Knitting for Dummies and a lot of help from my knitting friends and lass's. Maybe an intermediate beginner.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? I recently started an Amazon wish list but haven't added much to it.

5. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products, etc.) I love the pumpkin spice/cinnamon type scents for this time of year for candles. Orange/mandarin bath products are nice, lavender anything that's not overpowering and not baby powder scented.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy? hammy with the exception of licorice I never met a candy I didn't like! I do prefer milk chocolate over dark....However I've recently tried some very nice dark chocolate.

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin? It seems that knitting has taken over my spare time...I sew a little (mostly little knitting related items) and I don't spin yet....But I do want to learn to spin!

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MPH? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD) I like anything but rap or hard rock, and yes it can play MPH.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand? I don't wear a lot of the bright reds or bright orange, Burgundy is ok and most other colors are fine too. Nothing that I really hate, but I'm not all that into the nouns. My house is in green/purples and neutral shades.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? I'm a single mom to a grown son. I have an elderly Siamese cat who recently moved indoors because she's not handling the weather very well anymore. Oh and I have a goldfish that the cat has her eye on.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or pinches? Scarves....Gloves (not mittens), not a hat person but I like to knit them for others, and uh...yeah not a poncho person.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? So far, I seem to like it all! I've knitted felted bags/purses, a couple of sweaters, a few washrags, a lot of scarves, and 4 or 5 pairs of socks. And hats...hats are fun to knit!

13. What are you knitting right now? finishing up an enterlac scarf, the "my so called scarf" (herringbone stitch), an afghan, a sweater, the UFO mentioned below, and I always have a sock in progress!

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts? Oh yes....yes I do. Handmade is best!

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? I'm learning that I like the Addi turbos, and I like bamboo and I like both, straights and circulars depending on what I'm knitting. I really like a pointy end on my needles though.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift? Oh I wish. I really am starting to need a winder.

17. How old is your oldest UFO? maybe a couple of months...it's a sweater tank that is a little smaller than I'd like it to be...so I haven't finished the last crocheted row at the bottom.

18. What is your favorite holiday? I like them all I think. But Christmas is the one my family usually gets together for... so I probably like it the best. And, I love making/buying gifts!

19. Is there anything that you collect? Yarn....needles

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn? Fair Isle.

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements? Oh yes!

23. When is your birthday? (mm/dd) Feb. 7th.