Sleep is Good

I muscled through my day today, somewhat in a fog. Not a stitch knit, nor bit of fabric sewn. I'm hoping that yesterday's craftiness makes up for the lack of it today.

At our guild meeting last night, I thought I'd work on a pair if simple socks. I didn't plan things out properly, though, since I made it to the end of the sock, and didn't have the second ball of yarn in my bag to knit. Poor planning.



I actually like this yarn more than I expected to. It's Paton's Kroy that I bought at a big box store, and figured I needed to get out of my stash. It's not the softest yarn, but I like a yarn with a little tooth for my socks. Now if only I could find the second skein...

I tossed the sock yarn cabinet, thinking it was there.


No luck.

I wasn't terribly worried, and figured it was in my basket downstairs, but it wasn't there either. If you see it, will you send it my way?

Yesterday morning when I should have been sleeping, I also worked on a couple of little bags. My friend Joyce had one of these at our guild retreat a few years ago, and I've been thinking of it ever since. When I saw the pattern at a quilt store this summer, I snatched it up. It's called "What's In Your Bag" and I just love it.


That black area on the front may not really show up in the photo, but it's a clear window so you can see the inside.

Two of them went together pretty quickly out of a few scraps I had sitting around. There are some things I'd like to change about it, but love the idea. I ordered a bunch of zippers this weekend and feel a burst of sewing coming on.

Turns out, you can operate an iPhone from the outside of the plastic. That opened up a whole realm of possibilities and really got me thinking. A perfect little purse for your iPhone? It might be right around the corner. I'd also like to see what it's like with a mesh front similar to Namaste's Oh Snap bags.

So I'm curious. Made a bit larger to hold a small project? Smaller for a notions bag? What kinds if things would YOU put in a little zippered pouch? What size is the perfect size? This inquiring mind wants to know.

But today, without a crafty moment of my own, I'm going to catch up on some of that sleep I missed out on earlier in the week. Sleep is good.

Burning at Both Ends

I was awakened at 1am this morning and couldn't make myself fall back asleep. I tried reading, flipping and flopping in bed, and playing on the iPad. Nothing worked, so I gave in and got out of bed.

I will have to admit, that even though I'm extremely tired, that I've been very productive today. There's something to be said for burning the candle at both ends.

Hopefully I can get some solid sleep tonight and entertain you with photos of my productivity tomorrow.

In a Flash

I was excited to post that I've finished my first garment of the year tonight, but then I realized it's actually my second adult garment. Last week I knocked off a vest for my friend Matlie. I can't show you pictures yet, because the knitting is still a surprise. She knows she's getting a vest, and even knows the color, since it was her yarn. . . but doesn't know exactly which vest pattern I could have chosen. We're supposed to exchange presents on January 15, but since we've never met a deadline yet, you may have to wait some for the big reveal.
Tonight, I finished a Philosopher's Wool sweater. I'm totally smitten with their colors and kits. Tonight's finish makes my sixth kit that I've finished from them, and I have two more in the stash to knit up. No one needs that many boxy sweaters, so I've knit some in trade, given some as gifts, and this will be the second one for me. I improvised a bit, and am pretty happy with the shape of the sweater. I'm a bit disappointed with the color change in the yoke. . .in my improvisation, I didn't realize there was such a dramatic color change between the two black balls of yarn I was using. I've got a pretty noticeable line where the change happens, but I'll live with it. This was never intended as an heirloom garment, and I plan to snuggy into it when I'm knitting in my chilly basement this winter or running out to the market for dinner supplies.
The directions say to use liquid dish detergent to wash the sweater and clean out the spinning oils from the sweater, and to expect water that is quite black looking. After doing this a few times, I know what to expect, but it's still a surprise. On the first soak, I put my hands in the water to gently move the sweater around, and it was so dark that I couldn't see my own hands! I think I wound up rinsing it at least four or five times until the water was clear enough for my liking. Instead of the baby oil that the recommend for the final rinse to replace the lanolin in the sweater, I use a bit of scented massage oil. I like the scent better, and the one I use is an organic product made by a company who's owners I consider friends. I suppose you could wash with any of the wool wash products on the market, but I always follow the Philosopher's Wool directions when I knit one of their sweaters.
Officially, this makes two adult sweaters done in 2013. If the rest of the year goes by as quickly as my knitting has this week, it'll be gone in a flash.
Here's a tease until I can get some proper photos to add to this post. . .

And Done.

The cowl, a hat and the week. The hat may get a do over, but the rest went pretty well.

I Cast On

True, it's from stash (so I'm using up, not consuming more, that's good, right? right?. . .) Also true, it is the one skein knit along that my guild participates in each month (that makes it social, community building knitting. . .) And yes, it will probably be a Christmas gift for my aunt (to add to my ever growing stash of gifts already ready for the holidays of 2013 which is impressing the heck out of me and makes me feel so darn organized. . .)



But when I add this beauty to the UFO list that went from thirteen to eleven yesterday along with the crochet project I had forgotten to add initially, I'm suddenly back to thirteen again. Boo.

Even Toshi is Tired

Why is it that the last day of vacation seems to be the busiest? I know I lost a couple of days due to a stomach bug, but come on!

As I head back to work tomorrow, I'll be missing the lazy days on the couch and my list of personal to do items. I've got a huge list waiting for me at school that I'd like to complete before I leave on Friday. We'll see if I can make it disappear.

Today didn't seem all that hectic, since I was at home for most of the day. But my day was filled with heaps of laundry, cleaning up loose ends, finishing a few more UFOs, and some pampering. I left the house for the pampering, and a one hour turned into an hour and a half. . .and I was later than expected on my way home for my knitting class. From the looks of Toshi tonight, you'd think she spent the day running circles around me, or had a rough time guarding the house. Alas, she was napping most of the day. I'll be thinking of her tomorrow when my students and I will be wishing for her list:
sleep on the bed
bark out the front window
sleep by the front door
sleep by the back door
bark and run upstairs

I think I could take a few more days of a life like that, you?

I shared what I think is an interesting tip with one of my knitting students tonight. She's working on her first shaped garment, and it has a lace panel right where she's binding off and decreasing for the front. When I'm working a particularly challenging pattern that has me stumped, I graph it. Using knitters graph paper (honestly any graph paper will do) I graph the section that I'll be working and binding off. Then as I read through the directions line by line, I highlight the stitches I'm binding off. A quick check across the row to ensure I have matching increases and decreases helps me keep my stitch counts on target and lets me adjust on paper before I begin knitting. If you try this, remember, when you highlight a stitch you've bound off, don't forget to highlight it in the remaining rows, and work from the stitches that are left when you continue your bindoffs for your neck, for instance.

Off to sleep, the alarm rings early tomorrow, and I wouldn't want to disturb poor Toshi, she's whipped.

Health, Education, Plan

It's the end of New Year's Day, and I can't seem to not be surprised at how the time seems to slip through my fingers. Can it really be that the passing of hours from one year to the next really doesn't mean anything?

The year 2012 brought me less Joy, Self, and Completion than I'd hoped. It brought loss and service to others and a bit of scattered startitis. Not that I'm complaining. Overall, I'm pleased with much of what I experienced last year. I do miss a good friend who passed away this fall, and wish I'd completed more of what I'd hoped to.

Regardless of your thoughts on resolutions and change in the new year, I hope that 2013 brings you and yours all that you hope for and more.

In keeping with last year's post, I'm picking three new words for my year.

Health. Education. Plan.

My mental health, physical health and spiritual health have all been a bit neglected recently. Not that I'm in ruins, but it hasn't been a priority for me. Putting health forward in my thoughts may help me to plan more healthy meals like I made for dinner tonight--Hoppin' John Bowl with Red Hot Tahini from theppk.com




It may also help me to better prepare for the half marathon I intend to complete again this October.

As a teacher, education is always present. . .but often for others. I have a student teacher beginning her work with me soon, and I'd like to be sure that I take advantage of her time in my classroom to learn too. Also, there is much I'd like to learn about in many areas of my life. Maybe even share some of that here in my much neglected space on the web.

I'm contemplating a Julie and Julia-esque look at one of my favorite knitting books about mittens. That could come to play in this too, but will take some dedicated time and planning.

Oh yeah. . .that one.

My time seems to be running through my fingers lately. I want to make the most of the time I've got free from responsibilities and do the things I really want to devote my time to. I've been finishing up UFOs, and have already packaged and wrapped some things for next Christmas. It feels good. I'm enjoying this small burst of productivity. I desperately want to cast on for a new project, but I'm holding firm for awhile yet. My thirteen UFOs still hold some appeal for me, and I'd like to have a thoughtful progression into my next project. A plan. A plan for my knitting. Honestly, my finances too. . .and my exercise and eating and instruction and . . .well, I think you get the idea.

Here's a shot of my first finished item from 2013--the one that brought my UFOs closer to being single digits. A Tomten sweater knitted with scraps of icelandic wool from a friend.




So. How about you? Resolutions? Plans? What are your hopes for 2013? I'd love to compare notes.