Yarnography Friday: Noro Silk Garden Salad

Posted on 02/29/2008 by Andrea | Comments (2)
Filed under : Knitting, Stash, Yarnography

On the menu today is a salad made from delicious Noro Silk Garden, with raspberry and plum and tomato orange with a side of deep dark pumpernickel, all resting on a bed of healthy dark greens.

Noro Silk Garden, how I just want to eat you right up. This was an impulse buy, I must admit. It's the first time I've given in to the temptation of Noro Silk Garden and it's because I just couldn't resist this colorway. I'm not sure what to make with it: a scarf, a hat?

The green stuff is my Stow Away Bag, in progress. I'm just starting on the handles, which means I'll be done well in time for the Double Ewe String Bag Sale. I was originally making the Saturday Market Bag from MagKnits, but I didn't like how it was turning out. I can't entirely blame that pattern because I do think I made a couple of ill-advised modifications. But I liked how Mom's Stow Away Bag was turning out and decided I wanted to make one too.

It's Leap Day, it's Friday, it's the last day of the dreaded February. The sun is sort of shining and the snow is sort of melting. There are fresh tulips on my desk. Life isn't bad. Hope you're having a good Friday too.

Yarnography Friday: Sockotta + Ireland

Posted on 02/22/2008 by Andrea | Comments (1)
Filed under : Knitting, Yarnography

I'm happy to report that after a week of pain, I finally feel like a human being again. I have no idea what happened to my shoulder blade/upper back area, but it was BAD. It's still not back to normal, but it's getting a lot better.

So I don't have much to talk about, knitting-wise because I haven't been up for doing much with my arms. I worked a little bit on my Saturday Market Bag for Kelly's bag sale, but once I started casting off for the top part of the bag, I realized I hated it. The circumference of the bag opening way way too small.

Plus, my mom was knitting her bag, the Stow Away Shopping Bag and hers was so much better. So I have to go to Double Ewe and pick up the Stow Away pattern and rip out mine and start over.

, originally uploaded by AMK.

Anyway, back to Yarnography Friday. Two very lovely things in this photo: sock yarn, and travel books for Ireland. Yes, Brad and I are going to Ireland in April for 12 days. I am so excited I can hardly stand it. I'm picking out sock patterns and I'm going to buy some sock yarn so I have plenty of socks to keep me occupied during all that travel time. Plus I think it'll be cool to have some "Ireland socks" to remember my trip by. Here are some possible socks I'm thinking of making:

- Chevrolace Socks from Knitty
- Naive Socks (because they're cabled; I've gotta make some cables if I'm going to Ireland)
- Aquaphobia socks (could be a good use of some of the Koigu I've got stashed)
- Marina Piccola (I just love this pattern, especially with blue yarns as shown)
- And of course something from New Pathways for Sock Knitters (not sure which one, yet, but I'm intrigued to try at least one of her new sock constructions)

This weekend some serious trip planning needs to be done! April is coming up exhilaratingly fast. Happy weekend, everyone!

Too burned out to even think of a title for this post

Posted on 02/15/2008 by Andrea | Comments (6)

I'm going to have to pass on today's Yarnography Friday. Something is wrong with my shoulder blade and I've been in pretty excruciating pain today. I actually think it might be repetitive stress injury from working too much in a non-ergonomically-correct computer setup for the past couple of weeks. I've been a bit frantic with a deadline at work.

But who wants to hear about injuries and work and stressful deadlines, especially on a Friday? And especially when there's a new edition of Yarnival to read?

This month's Yarnival is edited by Miz T and it's chock full of interesting links, the vast majority of which I still haven't gotten around to look at. And my very own Mom has her zipper tutorial linked to in it, so that's cool. So welcome to anyone who's come here from Yarnival!

Tomorrow, I'm going to introduce Mom to the wonders of Double Ewe Yarn (she wants to get in on the string bag sale). Then we're probably going to head over to the Mall of America for the Knit Out and Crochet, which is supposedly going to be the biggest gathering of knitters and crocheters ever. If we get there by 2:30, we'll be able to see the fastest knitting/crocheting competition. I just think it'll be funny to see the Mall of America overrun with knitterly type people. I can only imagine what the tourists will think.

Yarnography Friday: Felt. Yum.

Posted on 02/08/2008 by Andrea | Comments (0)
Filed under : Yarnography

It's Yarnography Friday and darn it if I didn't completely forget to take some luscious yarn shots this week. So here's an oldie but a goodie.

, originally uploaded by AMK.

This is some Jamieson's 4-ply shetland wool that I used to make a felted bag for my sister for Christmas. Good stuff.

This week has pretty much kicked my butt. Work stress (deadlines, bah humbug), Spinning class injury (I wish it was yarn spinning, but it was cycling spinning. Although I wonder how I could injure myself spinning yarn. Maybe I don't want to know). General exhaustion.

The only knitting I managed to fit in all week was to finish the last bit of the St. Mawes sleeve. And the instant I finished the knitting, I managed to spill most of a bottle of beer all over my couch. The perils of drinking and knitting! At least the knitting was spared, and I guess those cushion covers needed to be washed anyway, right...?

I want to start working on the Saturday Market Bag this weekend. Double Ewe Yarn is having a string bag sale - knit a string bag using yarn from their store and then bring it in during the sale in March and any yarn you can fit in the bag is 20% off. What a great idea!

Here's hoping you (and me) have a work-less, injury-less, relaxing weekend!

Let me look into the future...

Posted on 02/04/2008 by Andrea | Comments (2)
Filed under : Knitting

Last time I thought I was almost done with St. Mawes, I was in for a rude awakening. So let's say I'm cautiously optimistic that the end of St. Mawes is in sight. I finished all but about two inches of the re-knitted sleeve during the Superbowl yesterday. So I finish my sleeve cap, bind off, and start sewing. And then if I have been a good girl and I'm not due for any more bad karmic payouts, the thing will actually fit Brad. I hope.

Speaking of the Superbowl, this is the first year I've ever been into it at all. I paid attention to the last few playoff games (I'm not really sure why... I guess because there's nothing good on TV these days?). I predicted somewhat flippantly quite a while ago that the Giants would play the Patriots in the Superbowl and nobody really believed me. Maybe because I know nothing about football and because I wasn't basing the prediction on any fact or knowledge whatsoever? Possibly.

My precognition ended there, however. I predicted the Patriots would win, and they lost. I also predicted I'd be done knitting the St. Mawes sleeve by the end of the game and I didn't make that either.

Ah well, I tried.

As long as I'm talking about the Superbowl, this was by far my favorite of the ads:

Yarnography Friday - handspun goodness

Posted on 02/01/2008 by Andrea | Comments (4)
Filed under : Yarnography

Handspun yarn, so delicious it thinks it should hang out with the dessert bowls and wine glasses:

originally uploaded by AMK.

I also photographed my rainbow yarn. This was probably the first thing I ever spun that I could in good conscience actually call yarn.

A couple more photos here.

And I just want to point out that we're now a member of the Yarn Pr0n Fridays webring. So click on the little links off to the right there to see what other Friday yarnography goodness there is out there. You won't regret it.