27 Knitting Days Left

There are 27 knittings days until Christmas. That assumes that you can knit right up until (and including) the 25th. I'm making progress in the knitting. I finished up one pair of mittens and I'm starting something else to go with them. The something else is somewhat of a mystery at this point. It might be a neck warmer, it might be a hat, I just don't know yet.
Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens
Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens
Brown paper packages tied up with strings
These are a few of my favorite things

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas...

...Everywhere you go. Yep, I'm singing, badly.

It must be time to take some pictures because I don't have a photo to add to this post. I've made some dents in the Christmas Knitting list

1 1/2 mittens - done (I have this vision of the FINISHED stamp from Monster House coming down over the top of the photo)
1 fingerless mitt - done
Christmas Around the World hat - done
Hat and Mittens for SIL - Yarn bought

Funny story about that yarn... well funny to me anyway. My brother in law (Adam's sister's husband) took me to a yarn store. Now the poor guy has never seen a yarn store before. The original idea was that he would drop me off at the store, go work out for an hour, then come back for me. After seeing the size of the store, BIL decided no one could possibly spend a whole hour there. Hee hee! It turns out he was extremely interested in how things are knit and was really helpful in picking out colors for his wife. Now I just have to finish the projects!

Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I am thankful for...

1. My husband. I don't know what I would do without him. He's my best friend and the one I share everything with.

2. My 2 beautiful daughters. They are the reason I get up in the morning (and why I sometimes get up in the middle of the night!) I am stunned that I could love someone so little so much.

3. My husband's and my families and our extended network of friends. We may complain about family, but they are always there when we need them. :)

4. My job

5. Dairy-free chocolate and other substitutes. :)

6. Shaving cream is an incredible invention. It can keep husbands cheeks feeling nice, plus it entertains kids forever!

7. Free knitting patterns! (Hey, it's a knitting blog, what do you expect?)

8. My cell phone - I don't know what we did without them. I feel so much more safe while traveling.

9. Coffee. When Lily wakes up at 5am and won't go back to sleep, it's the only thing that gets me through the day. :()

10. Last, but not least, it's snowing outside and I love the snow.

Sock It To Me Again Questionaire

Dear SITMA Partner,
Here are the answers to my questions. You left a comment asking me to email you, however I don't have your email either. :) You can email me at jessica DOT p AT mx3 DOT com

1. How long have you been knitting? Do you consider yourself beginner, intermediate, advanced? I've been knitting for several years, I really don't remember when I started exactly. I would say I'm an intermediate knitter. There really isn't any knitting that I won't try.
   
2. How long have you been knitting socks? I've only been knitting socks since last April. I'm not sure what took me so long! I started out with a lace sock and have gone from there.
   
3. What are your favorite fibers to work with? wool, alpaca, silk - anything soft really.
   
4. What is your favorite color? I love blues, greens, reds...
   
5. What are your current WIPs (works in progress)? I'm working on Snowflake fingerless gloves, a recycled silk scarf and a lattice cabled hat. I also have a baby hat that is in time out right now for having the wrong gauge.
   
6. Name your favorite yarns, (brand, fibers, colors, etc.). I am totally in love with Pagewood Farms fingering weight yarn right now. It's beautiful and comes in a huge skein. I also really like Lorna's Laces. I'm open to any colorway... I'm in a bit of a blue/red color rut so I'm open to change. Edited to add - I am currently in love with Rowan yarns. Not necessarily their patterns but I love love love their yarns.
   
7. What are some yarns/fibers that you stay away from. I stay away from dark colors if I'm the one doing the knitting. My eyes go kind of crazy knitting with dark colors. That being said, I wear a lot of black and brown.
   
8. What is your family situation? (Married, kids, pets?) I have a husband, 2 little girls and a cat.
   
9. Name some of your hobbies. Knitting, reading, knitting, baking
   
10. Name some of your favorite movies? I love chick flicks because I rarely get to watch them. It's kid movies or action/adventure most of the time at our house. :)
    
11. Do you like to read? Yes! Right now I'm reading "Eat Pray Love." My little sister has gotten me to read almost all the books her book club has read.
    
12. Do you collect anything? Willow Tree Angels. My 3 year old names them after the people in our family.
    
13. Do you own an iPod or mp3 player? nope. But Hint hint I think that would be a great gift!
    
14. What are your favorite type of knitting needles? I like wooden needles for socks and lace, but Addie turbos for thicker yarns.
    
15. What knitting notion could you not live without? Stitch markers and measuring tape. I never have uninterrupted knitting time so I need all the help I can get.
    
16. Who are some of your favorite designers? Cookie A. I think Cat Bordhi thinks in some loopy backwards wonderful way. Seriously, how does she come up with some of that stuff?
    
17. Do you subscribe to any magazines? (Knitting or otherwise.) No, but I've started intermittently buying Interweave Knit
    
18. When is your birthday? 9/11/77
    
19. Do you have a "wishlist", (on Ravelry, Froogle, or Amazon)? Not yet. I didn't realize Ravelry had a wishlist function yet. Must check that out.
    
20. Do you have a Ravelry ID? knittingupnorth
    
21. If you had a sheep, what would you name it? $Money$
    

I'm Such a Blonde

I'm feeling like a total dork. I just realized that I wrote this post about my new hat I just finished and I posted it to the wrong blog. A sock making blog. Now to be fair, I am subscribed to about 8 blogs. But seriously. Sheesh!

Anyway, here are the details:
It's the Lavendar Lace Beanie from 101 Designer One Skein Wonders. The pattern called for one skein of 131 yds, however, it took a lot less than that. The yarn is worsted weight Naturally Sensation - 70/30 Merino Angora. It's really a bit more subdued in color than this picture - more of a burgundy. I'm totally in love with this yarn. I've bought enough for the recipient of this hat, a extra skein of red for a hat for me, and a skein of purple for a hat for Lily. I'm hoping I'll have enough left over from my skein to also make a hat for Addie. It is some good stuff!

Sweater Weather

"Mom, I am so embarrassed. I can't believe you dressed me in this!"

The temperature has finally dropped to "sweater weather." Officially it's 37 degrees F right now. These are the finished shots of the Cottage Creations' Babies & Bears Sweater. I have almost enough yarn left over that I may do a hat as well - I'll probably need to add a contrasting stripe though to make sure I have enough yarn.

These are the mittens I made to match. Pattern is "Fittin' Mittens." Can you tell which one I did first? Pretty sad! I made the second one slightly larger which seemed to make the thumb go much better. The first thumb was so tiny I had barely picked up the stitches and I was decreasing.

A Yarn Bender

It seems I've been going on a bit of a yarn bender recently. It just occurred to me that I've been buying yarn with the intention of making a lot of Christmas presents. However, I'd better get going if it's going to happen. Also, I'm feeling a bit disorganized about the whole thing. I'll do what I always do when I'm feeling disorganized, I'll make a list. If I'm really on top of things, I'll take pictures and add them in!

Recycled Silk Yarn - 2 skeins - scarf for Mom
Wool/Acrylic blend in pink & brown - Cottage Creations Sweater for Addie
Lace Weight in gray - I don't know... maybe a Secret of the Stole. Maybe something completely different.
Varigated pink fingering weight merino wool, superwash - 437 yds. - I have no idea... perhaps socks for all the girls in the house? It's a ton of yarn in one ball. I had to buy it, it was calling my name. Pink, superwash, who could ask for more?
Red/Orange/Maroon sport weight wool - possibly socks or mittens for my Christmas Around the World Secret Pal
Pagewood Farms Denim - Blue Varigated Fingering Weight - I dunno, I'm thinking fingerless mitts... but I need to find a good pattern.
Pagewood Farms Reds - I think I might make something for myself out of this.
Jaywalkers for D - I need to finish the second sock.
Knitted ornaments - Knitted & Beaded Christmas Ornaments from Leisure Arts - I think I will be whipping up a few of these for my Christmas Around the World Secret Pal.

I also have to fix my nephew's Christmas Stocking. He pulled a loose string and somehow the entire heel came out. I have no idea how that happened!

All that in 2 months! Whoa!

Sock It To Me

Here are some pictures of the socks I made for my SITM pal. I found a model that had the correct size foot!

A fun, in-progess, shot. The socks are Small Capitals from Sensational Knitted Socks, made with Soxx Appeal from Knit One Crochet Too. I really like the pattern. It's toe up which I know makes some people crazy, but I kind of enjoy it. It was a 8 row repeat of 12 stitches so it wasn't until the 2nd sock that I was able to go without following the pattern religiously. The book is fantastic if you don't have it. Each sock has a "recipe" that you can customize to get the right sizing.