...MonkeyKnits... A Knitting Blog

Little bitta knittin'

Long time, no post. Well, you should take that as a sign that I am being a good student and doing my homework. I have a test this week and two next week. I am being a book worm instead of a knit-wit.

That said, tomorrow is our second meeting of the Vermillion-area Stitch n' Bitch. I feel like I should bake cookies or something. What's a good "knitting" food? Tea and scones? Mmmm...

The poncho is coming right along but I already feel like I might run out of yarn. There's still a ton left at elann so I may just break down and order some extra. I could certainly make a sweater out of this yarn. I really like it. There are a few patterns I've been eyeing that would work with this yarn. Maybe after my birthday...

In sad news, I think the Get Togetha that my knitting group has been planning for months and months is going to be put on hold. It's really bittersweet. I have some issues (beyond my control) that changed my plans at the last minute. I had been planning on meeting my girls in Indianapolis for a long weekend and going to visit the guys at Threadbear. Things changed though, and now I can't go. I think we've decided to postpone until more people are able to go... Looks like we're going to plan something for spring. I really was looking forward to going. *sigh*

That's all I know today. I'm going to go knit a few more rows and then I'm hittin' the hay. G'night!

Whatcha Up To?

Now that my biochem test is over and I no longer feel like I'm going to puke from stress, I can tell you about what I have been working on this past week... It hasn't been much because I've been busy with school, but I snuck in a little bit here and there.

WIP #1: Gap-style skinny scarf. This one is actually crocheted. I'm not sure what possessed me to crochet it, but I just got the urge. It's turning out weirdly. I think the "cast-on edge" (is that a crochet term, too?) is longer than the next row so the edge looks frilly and strange. I may have to frog. Or I may just leave it. Who knows.

WIP #2: Poncho-rama. I am loving this Skyline yarn. It's so "squinchy." It's really light and spongey. The poncho is not coming along very quickly because I haven't really been working on it too much. I've been busy working on...

WIP #3: Sorry, can't tell you what it is! It's a surprise! You will really like it when you see it... But that won't be until after Christmas. I really wish I could show you because it's hella cool! Soon, my little ones... Soon...

I also have to seam the baby blanket and my own swatch blanket. All my knitting girls sent me swatches (Fluffa style) and I'm eventually going to sew them all up into one blanket. Just haven't gotten the time (or motivation, if you really want to know!). Right now, my focus is on school so I apologize in advance if the blog becomes very non-knitterly. These next few weeks probably won't be very productive, knitting-wise. But you will want to continue to check in as there are a few fun knitting-related activities planned, including a weekly SnB session and a visit to a coupla famous knitters of the male persuasion... Stay tuned!

Stitch n' Bitch!

Last night was the first meeting of the Vermillion (SD) area Stitch n'Bitch. The three founding members (Amanda, Kelsey and myself) met last night in the Student Center, grabbed a couch and started knitting. We got a few weird looks, but we kept on knitting! Amanda and I have been going to the same small school and "talking" online in our online knitting group for over a year and this is the first time we've met. It was pretty cool! And Kelsey is very cool, too. She graduated from the U of M (Minneapolis) and I went there for a few years so we had that in common. The conversation flowed smoothly and I got the feeling that the three of us would get along quite well.

Next week, we are meeting at my house. I think we'll be able to make it a weekly thing. And hopefully, we'll be able to recruit a few other knitters (or a few non-knitters that we will be able to convert!). It's so fun to knit and chat with other knitters... You know, people who actually understand the power of yarn and the excitement of starting a new project. When I try to talk to John about it, his eyes glaze over and he tells me I'm silly. Those non-knitters just don't understand!

Retraction

I need to issue a retraction and an apology. A while back, I posted about my "knitting sweatshop." I stated that I employed "unskilled" laborers in the form of my mother and my aunt to help with a baby blanket I was making. I would just like to say that my mother is not "unskilled." She is very "skilled." In fact, she is almost finished knitting a very nice set of pillows she started last time she stayed with me. I will post pictures here as soon as they are done. Also, I apologize for any hurt feelings or confusion that post may have caused.

To reiterate: My mother is very skilled. She is NOT "unskilled labor." I apologize for suggesting otherwise.

Love you, mom!

No time to knit!

I have two tests this week: one in microbiology and one in biochemistry. That means I have to study. That really cuts into my knitting time. But I am taking time out tomorrow night to attend the very first Vermillion-area Stitch n'Bitch! Me and Amanda and another girl from our town are the founding members. We're hoping to recruit a few more people by knitting in public. I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow. Until then, I will be hitting the books hard!

From mailbox to swatch in record time!

My elann order arrived today. That was so fast! I placed the order on Thursday. It's Monday. What a pleasant Monday morning surprise. It went from the box to the needles immediately upon arriving home. And I swatched up and got 3.25 st/inch. Just right for the pattern. Now I just have to remember where I put the pattern, and I'll start my Poncho! Oh, and by the way, the gorilla is just helping me hold down the swatch. This guy helped me model it...

I ordered three colors. The swatch is a camel color -- it's the darkest one I ordered. The other two are lighter. One is "sand" and one is "cream." The main color is going to be sand with some sort of camel/cream detailing along the border. I don't have a real plan yet. I'm thinking it will come to me as I go along. The swatch knit up nicely, but I can tell that this yarn has the potential to snag on any little thing. Hopefully it will wear well because I want to get a lot of wear out of this bad boy!

Poncho Villa?

I said I wasn't going to buy anymore yarn for a l-o-o-o-o-n-g time. But you guys bugged me and begged me and bothered me. "Join the Ponch-o-long... All the cool people are doing it. Don't you want to be cool, too?" Alright, already! Twist my arm! I'll make a poncho!

Actually, one of the reasons I learned how to knit was so that I could make a poncho. I've always wanted one and I don't think I've ever had one. When I was little, my cousins and I would play at my Grandma's house. She had a toybox full of cool toys, but we had the most fun playing with these two crazy skirt things. I remember they were made out of terry cloth with the most obnoxiously loud print. They had a pom-pom trim fringe along the bottom and a "waistline" that zipped up to about 19" or so.

Depending on what kind of mood we were in, those skirts were either skirts, strapless dresses or ponchos. I remember finally growing too big to zip them up all the way as a skirt and either zipping it halfway or being resigned to accept it as a poncho. I guess that was the beginning of my desire to be a poncho-wearer.

As fate would have it, the stars have aligned and I'm at the perfect point in my life to wear a poncho. I have the skills necessary to make one. I have the support of my friends and peers. And when the shipment arrives from Elann next week, I'll have the yarn as well. *gulp*

Happiness Abounds!

I *finally* got the thing I ordered on eBay almost one month ago. I purchased it on August 22nd and it just arrived today. The seller went out of town for two weeks just as the auction ended and didn't inform me, the buyer. I was not happy. But, now it's here and all is well. I left her "neutral" feedback... That's not too nasty, is it? It's the first time I've left anything but good.

Anyway, I am so excited about my new arrival. But I'm also bummed because I want to share my excitement with you all. Sadly, the finished object is a surprise for someone who reads this blog so I have to be a bit tight-lipped about the whole thing. Hopefully, I'll whip right through it and be able to post FO pictures in a few weeks... I will keep you posted.

Other things I'm working on: I just cast-on for another felted Daypack, this one for ??? I'm not sure yet. Maybe a gift or maybe for me. I guess I'll know when it's done. I've also been carrying around some Regia sock yarn and two circs in my backpack in case I have downtime while I'm on campus. Hasn't happened yet. I'm also almost ready to sew up the squares for Angie's blanket. I've got Pam's Daypack all packaged up and ready to be mailed. And I even made her a little coin purse thing... See?The way the picture looks, it looks like the coin purse is bigger than the Daypack... It's not.

It feels good to be finishing up all these projects! And I'm really noticing an increase in the speed of my knitting. Yay! I have to go to work now. Four hours of sitting in the computer lab and trying to struggle through my Biochemistry homework. Sounds like a blast to me! At least I'll be getting paid.

Fall Knitty!

Have you checked out the Fall Knitty yet? Well, what are you waiting for? Get over there!

And, while you're there, would you buy me one of these or one of these? It's almost my birthday, you know!

My Camera's Back!

Well, just like I promised, the camera is back to its rightful home, and here I am to post the photos. Shall we?

Let's start with the fair. Here's a picture of the two beautiful alpacas I saw there. Aren't they the cutest? And the softest! And they have super long eyelashes and really pretty eyes.

Here's a picture of a chicken with a crazy hairdo, and a duck with a crazy hairdo and three girls with crazy hairdos. Actually, lots of kids (girls) were running around like this. They were called "Fair-Dos" and they were $15. What a deal! Fun for kids... And super fun for mom to try to wash out before school starts the next day!

I also saw a few knitting-related things (besides the alpaca). This woman had a booth and was selling gorgeous handspun yarn. It was so soft and so beautifully dyed. Makes me want to take up spinning... until I remember how much knitting I have waiting for me!

Speaking of, I finished my first comissioned item. The felted Daypack is finito! It looks great -- mind if I toot my own horn? I was so worried that it wouldn't come out right because I used a single strand of yarn and the bag was really, well, thin. The swatch felted "okay." I hand felted it and there were a few slightly thin spots in the swatch. Fortunately, the bag felted beautifully in the wash. It's a great size, a great fabric and a great success. I really think the buyer will be happy. And I think she'll be surprised that it got finished so quickly. I know I am. That thing practically knit itself. It took me about a week. I'm thinking, "Christmas presents?!?" The pattern is super easy and the yarn -- Brown Sheep Nature Spun -- was so nice to knit with. All in all, a very pleasant experience. I sure wish the photos could really capture the texture of the bag. The purple parts used Plymouth Flirt and there is a little bit of Fun Fox (?) around the top. Very funky, very cool... What do you think?

In case you're wondering what that "thing" is in the top of both photos... I tried to design a felted bag and this was a foiled attempt at making a mitered rectangle. My decreases were all off. So, now it's a funky, felted table runner on my dining room table. No use in wasting perfectly good Kureyon, right?

I do have more photos, but I will save them for later this week. For now, I am going to start stitching together the baby blanket I've been working on for Angie. Ta-ta for now!