Minimal Knitting Content Ahead

I have been knitting a bit, but it doesn’t look like I’m making much progress. I am though - I think I have just one more repeat of the houndstooth before I start the decreases to finish off the head. I should be ready to start the arms by the end of this week, if I manage to get some knitting done in the evenings.

I was going to take a photo of the minimal progress, but then I didn't. It's been a week. I'll just post this today.

I’ve started an organization project: I’m going to re-tag all of my flickr photos. I’m slowly deleting all of my existing tags, and will start replacing them soon. It’s kind of annoying, but it will help me find the photos I’m looking for. I wish flickr made it easier to reuse tags, so then I don’t end up with 3 or 4 variations of “knit”.

Otherwise I’ve been spending my time reading cheesy romance novels (and finally started the book for my bookclub. More on that Thursday.) and now playing a web-based MMO gamed called Glitch. It’s really fun! You can either sign up for beta access (mine took about 2 weeks or so) or if you already have a friend with beta access they can send you an invite. I think the limit is 3 invites per person, and I still have all of mine… hint, hint!

Then there is Diablo III, which I will pick up more now than Mr. TEK is home in the evenings again, and Civ V. It’s a wonder I even get out of my chair!!

We also had scare with Duke this week. Onions. Which are poison to cats. *sigh* Why does he like to eat poison?

He's fine, we didn't even have to take him to the vet, but we did call (twice) just to be sure.

Knittyboard Swap Finished Object

I can hardly believe it is September already! I have been knitting all summer despite the record heat. And today I have a finished object for you! It’s not the shawl; I still haven’t gotten photos of me wearing it. Perhaps I will be inspired to get some when I get home from work tonight. I’ll have to find my tripod and remote shutter release.

Today’s finished object is a Monster I knit for the Knittyboard Farewell/Boardwarming Swap. I received a set of beautiful knit coasters that match my kitchen from helsbels. She even worked on them while she was at the London Olympics!

For my recipient, I wanted to send something to hug. I ordered some Malabrigo Chunky yarn and decided to make a quick monster. It was supposed to have ears, but I got down to the wire and chose antenna instead. I cut out felt circles to make the black safety eyes stand out against the dark yarn, and did a simple mouth.



As usual for me, I picked-up and knit the stitches for the arms and legs instead of sewing them on after, so they are a little crooked. Oops. The yarn did not pool as I expected, which is certainly good.

All in all, I love how this guy turned out. Each one seems to have its own personality.



Details-
Pattern: Gabby the Garden Monster
Yarn: Malabrigo Chunky  #247 Whales Road
Needles: US 10
Ravelry Link

Catching Up

I know that I’m a sporadic blogger. There are times where I just don’t feel like digging deep to find something, anything, to write about. I’ve started to use mindbloom.com to try to get myself organized and actually do stuff, but work stuff, home stuff, and fun stuff. That is what pushed me to write this post. If you use mindbloom, contact me, I’ll add you as a friend. I don’t have any friends added on there. So let’s catch up on my summer of awesome!

Knitting: I finished the Schieffelin Point Shawl, which was a huge undertaking, especially working with alpaca silk yarn in 95˚+ heat. It turned out beautifully. I have not taken photos of it since it has been blocked, but I do have photos of it pinned out.







Once I completed the knitting on the shawl I immediately cast on for a new Monster. I’m going to be knitting two monsters for friends that gave me gifts last year, and I did not reciprocate. I might also knit necklaces for them; I already have the yarn and probably the beads for it. I have some Jaggerspun Zephyr 2-ply in a lovely cream color that I think would love wonderful with some pale lavender beads or maybe a bold red bead. I’m starting now, so it will be done with plenty of time before the holidays.

Cycling: We have biked 560 miles so far this summer! We are +187 miles over last year at this time, and are on pace to ride over 800 miles. That is some serious biking, and we are pretty well lined up to reach our goal. If we have a couple 100-mile weeks, we won’t have any trouble reaching 1,000.



We have added to our gear, switching to clip-in pedals and shoes. I have to say they are the ugliest most expensive shoes I’ve ever purchased. But they work, once I got used to wearing them. There were several “almost” falls, I wrenched my shoulder pretty good the second time we went out with them. It’s tough riding sometimes. I found out I have asthma, not too bad, and it only bothers me when biking hard.

I really haven’t done any other crafting. Most of my free time is take up by cycling or playing Diablo III.

Happy Halloween!

Today’s a great day to debut my most recent finished object: an un-named Toy Box Monster!

Knit from Rebecca Danger’s Big Book of Monsters, it is too cute! It’s not quite finished; Mr. TEK thinks he needs a tongue, and I need to get some red felt for it. This little guy is destined for a new baby, due in March 2012. I modified the pattern quite a bit, and I’m so happy with how it knit up. I used Classic Elite Liberty Wool in Rainforest (#7893). It took 2.5 skeins. I really liked working with the yarn, though it could be kinda splitty.

My changes:

• Cast on and initial increases. I tried 3 or 4 times to get the cast on and the increases started on the bottom of the monster. It did not go well at all. It just looked messy. Instead I used a toe-up sock technique, knit up a square, then picked up stitches around the 3 edges without live stitches. From there I was able to increase to have the right number of stitches. 
• Lengthened the body. I thought the ball shape would be too small, so I made it more of a pill shape. 
• Pick-up stitches for arms and legs. I hate hate hate hate hate seaming, so instead of knitting the arms and legs and sewing them on, I decided to just pick-up stitches and knit the limbs directly to the body. For me, and my lack of finishing skills, it looks cleaner and has a smoother transition. 

The specs:
Pattern: Toy Box Monster from Rebecca Danger’s Big Book of Monsters
Yarn: Classic Elite Liberty Wool- Rainforest #7893
Needles: US5
Ravelry Link

The Monster Without a Name

The knitting is done. Forgive the crappy cell phone pic. Better photos are coming!



Why, yes, this was taken in my car.