News News News!

Lots of things have been happening recently. First, I won 3rd place in the Instructables Homemade Holidays contest with my Venezia Napkin Rings. Somehow, they added it to their front page, then added it to a newsletter (which got me a patch and a bunch of stickers), so lots of people looked at my instructable. I think it's pretty funny that I won a prize for a pattern I didn't make up (and didn't pretend to make up since I had a link to the pattern in the instructible). Anyway, I look forward to the presents!

Also, I am almost done with the Stardust sweater. I even got an e-mail from the author of the pattern and she was excited about mine because it reminded her of the one she made. Being unoriginal, I used exactly the same yarn and she noticed on Ravelry. I look forward to finishing it today or tomorrow. I even bought more yarn to make it again in a pretty white color for a future wedding.

Also, I may be getting a puppy! News on that as it unfolds. Just hope my landlord allows it!

Stardust Sweater

I finally got around to taking pictures of my progress on the Stardust Sweater. Surprisingly, it's coming along really quickly. I began on Tuesday, took a few days break, and took it up again yesterday. Already, I have 12 inches of the back. I was afraid that the stardust lace pattern would be difficult, but it's quite easy. I did mess up on the first part of it, but the few that I made mistakes on are near the arm holes so they won't be noticeable (hopefully) when I am actually wearing it.

I have to say I love this yarn. It is super soft and light and the little bits of glitter are great. I thought this sweater would take forever because I am using small needles and the yarn is very thin, too. Instead, it's super quick! I may even finish this sweater by the end of my weekend (albeit, it is a 4 day weekend, thank you "Human Rights Day" - aka MLK Jr. Day and a comp day).

I was disappointed by the color of this yarn. I was hoping it was more of a steely blue than a baby blue. Ah well, luckily my LYS is having their 2nd anniversary and therefore a 20% off every yarn sale. Maybe they have more of this yarn, or something similar that I can make another from. This would be a great sweater present for someone. I just have to figure out who....

FO Men's Scarf

I finished Craig's scarf! I only used a little more than 4 skeins (seriously, I added on the last little bit while casting off....). Craig loves the scarf, especially how long it is. I had cast on 400 sts, but if you don't want it that long, 300 would do just fine. I'm just glad it's done.

On the bright side, the varigation of the yarn is pretty cool, but on the whole it was a pain to work with. The plys kept falling apart and I caught myself quite a few times missing one or two while knitting. Anyway, it's finished!

Now that my #5 kneedles are empty, I can start on Stardust. I have already gotten 3 or so inches of the ribbing. Pictures to come soon.

Editor's Pick!

I have been very inspired by Liz recently. First, I joined Ravelry, then I joined Instructables to try to win some prizes. I put up my Venezia Napkin Rings this weekend and quickly got many positive responses! (4 or 5 thus far) And this afternoon I checked my e-mail and found out that the editors picked my pattern as one of their favorites. Notice my napkin rings are second on the Featured list! Woot woot!

On to further knitting news, I attended my local Stitch and Bitch last week. It was their eigth annual meeting so a ton of people were there and they did a knitting swap. It was cute, but I felt so out of place. Maybe I'll give it another try, but I felt super awkward.

I am also knitting up a storm on this darn scarf for Craig. It's super slow going, but this will be my last skein (thank goodness). This weekend I also got Craig and my friend/neighbor Ashley into knitting. Pictures probably won't come soon of Craig because he's a tad bit ashamed. But both he and Ashley finished a whole skein of yarn and made scarves. Ashley and I also went to a fabric store and she got "lost" in the yarn aisle and picked up a bunch more yarn. Yay for passing on the addiction!

Happy New Years!

In the New Year tradition, I have made a few resolutions. The first is to update this blog more frequently, as I finish and work on projects. First, however, I have to update many projects that I have finished or worked on in the past month since my last blog post. I have also joined Ravelry and have spent much of my vacation adding all of the projects I've been working on or finished this past year. So pardon any links to ravelry if you do not have an account.

First, I finished the Saartje's Baby Booties. They were super easy and adorable! Thanks Liz for the pattern.


I also have pictures of the Men's Scarf that I have been making for Craig. First, I hate this yarn. It is beautiful (the dark brown picture better shows the true colors) and soft, but the yarn's plys (plies?) come apart easily and you have to watch what you are knitting (my least favorite thing to do while knitting) or else the yarn will split. I also think that I cast on way too many stitches and this scarf will be way too long. Therefore, this scarf will take forever to knit (or atleast it feels like it will take forever). This wouldn't be a huge problem if I didn't need these needles to begin the Stardust sweater that I so desperately want to begin.

Finally, in my classroom I decorate my door for every season/holiday/etc. I have been having a great deal of trouble knowing what to do for January. A Christmas wreath wouldn't work, and what else could embody winter? So I decided that I would have to make a snowflake to hang on the door. After a successful Michaels trip, I bought dowels, white chennile wires, and Lion Brand Wool-Ease Worsted Weight in White/Multi. This yarn is white with glitter throughout it. Finally, after many wire scratches and burns from a hot glue gun (I'm impaitient, what can I say?), it's done! I really like it. Hopefully it will last all year so I can use it in the future. Now I just have to plan for the spring months (any suggestions? I already have a glittery heart for February).

Weebies!

My cousin is having a weebie (read: baby) in Feb! I am a little upset that I won't be able to see the new baby on Passover this April because my break is during March, and it's a little ridiculous to try to get out to NJ for one night. Anyway, I thought I would knit something for the weebie. I went to Michael's to look for soft yarn. I was very disappointed in the selection, all ugly blues and pinks and whites. I really wanted a nice yellow or sage green. Finally, I found an OK yellow yarn, Lion Brand Pound of Love in pastel yellow. Luckily, the tag had a pattern for a hooded blanket. OK, I'll admit it, the picture of the baby on the tag is what sold me on the pattern and the yarn. That baby is so darn cute!

Anyway, here is the blanket thus far. It's super soft, and looks pretty nice! My only complaint is that the picture is of the crochet pattern for the blanket. I was unprepared for the difference in the pattern for knitting.

Anyway, if anyone of my friends decides to have a baby, I'd happily make you something. I decided that this is the nicest kind of knitting. I am making something easy and adorable and I don't have to keep it! I get so sick of knitting things for myself and I don't have time for an exciting knitting project for myself while I'm teaching. Therefore, little easy projects for others are much easier. Yay weebies!

Venezia Inspiration

So I enjoyed knitting with wire so much that I decided to make some jewlery with the rest of the beads and wire that I bought. I searched the internet for something equally as beautiful and I ran across Venezia Redux! It is a bracelet pattern written by the same knitter! The idea is essentially the same, but the knitted wire is wrapped around plastic tubing to keep its shape. Genius. I have successfully knitted 3 thus far.





I like the green/crystal better than the red/crystal because there is more of a contrast with the different greens and crystals. The larger beads are also bigger than the large beads on the red bracelet. Also, I ran out of small crystal beads and the local Michaels had no more, so I bought larger green and crystal beads after making the red bracelet.



My only fear is that they will not fit my cousin's. They didn't fit over my hands with the knitted wire, but I figure my 13 yr old cousin and 15 yr old cousin will have much smaller hands than me. I also have huge hands.