my tummy is upset from an incorrectly labeled packet of salad dressing (that company is going to suffer my wrath in the form of complaint e-mails), so this is a quickie before i go home.

i feel like a fraud blogging this as liane is knitting it, not i. but it is a store project and this is a storesque blog, and i know that you will want to see the progress. If you recall, this is the Free Cosmopolitan Jacket Pattern from Misti Alpaca. it looks really good so far!

my knee socks are marching along. i had to rip out a bit over the weekend due to technical problems, so much of my progress is invisible. i also spent some time at the gym, some time with my beau, some time at the vet, some more time that i can't account for but i don't think i was abducted by aliens of anything sinister. i am in the third round of increases and it fits like a sock!

i cleaned my desk! for a tour of these exciting changes see here and click the arrow that moves RIGHT or put in the search tag tidydesktour in flickr!

Freebies ....

• BROMPTON ... long cardigan!
• Capitan ... cabled cap with brim
  
• Buttercup Beret ... pretty cabled beret
  

Surveys ....

• Vote for the Spring Interweave Knits Gallery (the staff tries on the garments so you can see how they fit)
• Vote for the Interweave Knits Readers Choice Awards (the top 5 patterns will be published in a free eBook on Knitting Daily)

Malo fall 2007

You Designed What?!
questionable design choices from the runways of New York's Fall 2008 fashion shows

• Jill Stuart
• Betsey Johnson
  
• Carolina Herrera (jaunty!)
• Yeoh Lee (quilted ponchos, need i say more?)
• Ohne Titel (should stick to solids)
• Malo
  
• Rodarte
• Missoni (Men)
• Byblos (men)
  

• New York Magazine's 100 Most Hideous Looks
  
• Browse Sweaters from the Fall 2008 Shows

my knee socks in progress ... making calf increases

wrap for my mom's b-day .... last wednesday. gave her another sweater instead. i'll save this for mothers day!

Update ...

finished my stripey leftover yarn socks! they are so eay, i think i should just keep making them, none of them have to match and i'll never suffer from second sock syndrome.

pluto has actually been using his little house for small spurts of time. i guess i got the size right on the second try even though it looks lumpy.

i went to the fiona ellis fair isle workshop on sunday. unfortunately i was too sick and too high on cold medicine to get much out of it. i was falling asleep by the afternoon and had to take off early. still, it was a great course, she was very accessible. i highly recommend it for anyone interested in taking fair isle further or designing their own fair isle.

No, it is not a penis warmer (or that is not it's intended purpose).

I FINALLY started my ribbed knee socks! i don't know why i procrastinate. i kept trying to find the perfect fancy solution to my mulitvalent problem:

• i want the socks to stay up, so they need to be ribbed (i want to wear them with my rubber books, keep my leggies warm and cozy)
  
• i want the colour of the yarn to look as good as it can (or not look ugly and pool in a strane way)
• i would'nt mind if i could make them a cool kind of styleanyway, i tried a K2 P3 rib, but it didn't really work

anyway, i tried a K2 P3 rib but it didn't look great and the stretch wasn't springy. i tried a K1 p1 rib but it looked yuckier. i tried a 2.5 mm needle for the rib but it was too loose. so, it aint glamorous, but for the sake of speed and expedience i decided to go for a K2 P2 rib, the toe knit on a 2.5mm needle and the ribbing on a 2mm. i'm almost at the heel.

Freebies

Misti Alpaca Cosmopolitan Sweater Jacket
this was a very lucky freebie because i thought for sure it was going to be a pay pattern. plus, i've actually seen it in the flesh (or fibre?) it was REALLY nice! we might just have to knit a store sample!

i found these gems in a pile of rowan rejects:

• Adele 3/4 gloves
  
• Hardy cool zip-up cardigan (biker jacket style)
• Cara pocket handbag
  

i love surveys, quizzes, etc:
choose knitting daily's next free pattern


Update

i added a ravelry button to the blog, it links to me. if you want to find me and you are logged in. if you aren't on ravelry yet you should be, it's great!

my third shot at a play house for pluto. don't be deceived by the picture, she didn't spend for than 30 seconds in there.

the cold weather has motivated me to get back to my mismatched scrap socks.

i've started knitting a turtleneck from lopi book 24 with jo sharp silk road aran tweed in ivy, size medium (their sizing is pretty large).

i'm pretty happy so far. i don't like yoke necks, i'm going to do saddle shoulders. the stitch markers are a technique i use to keep track of my increases and decreases. i use them initially to see how many more incs/decs i need to make, how many rows from my last inc/dec. i'll keep them in so that when i knit the other arm it will be the same as the first.

how cool is this little vegetable ?!


on to my negligible achievements this week ....

Pluto's love nest ... second try. he's not really into it but knows it's there. i haven't got the shape right yet.

and michelle's hat. don't be fooled, the picture looks
good but the fit isn't right. on to version 2 ... but i'm going to felt the latest nest first.

Catching up ....


Freebies

• Patterns for Jo Sharp Silk Road Tweed Aran : Beret, Cabled Shawl Collar Cardigan, Blanket, socks & a tank

i finished a solid coloured version of the sunset cabled beret .... Misti Chunky C815.

i got half wauy through the cable-bobble beret for michelle and the yarn was too thick (although i REALLY like the look!). it was ripped back and after a few days vacation i'm back at it.

and i'm working on a birdhouse for Pluto. my first version didn't work out too well. it looks like a tele-tubby pelt!

Freebies

• fable baby alpaca baby blanket
• Gord & Doug Crochet dolls
  
• Ines Lace Knee Sock
  
• Handmaiden Triplet Toque
  
• Handmaiden Wavy Scarf
  
• Mr Funky Amigurumi Bunny
  

sooooo, what i've accomplished lately ...

i finished katie's hannukah hat!

i finished my dad's hannukah hat! all my hannukah gifts are finished! i wrote & published the pattern for the men's metrosexual toque too (see below).

i'm currently working on designing a cabled beret for michelle. i've also put adise some sock yarn to make knee stockings for myself for utilitarian purposes (looking forward to wearing them with rubber boots!). getting ready to cast on for a winter sweater, an alpaca turtleneck. i think there is also something else lingering in my knitting bag ... i think the sunrise hat in a solid colour. other things are milling around in the back of my mind ..... i have to get back to the babette blanket but i've been warmer this winter than i had expected ;-) maybe the book i'm working on should be titled '100 hats and a spouse'

update ... what's on my needles

i'm sorry i've been neglecting you, work has been busier and now i have to update ravelry as well as my blog. i have discovered a great new vitamin combo: Ester-C and Grape Seed Extract taken together. gse is a powerful antioxidant and it's rocking my world! i also like my new book-lite, it helps my waning energy levels on grey days (especially on days like today when the sun sets at 4:30 in the afternoon). I'm using it right now!

It is quiet here today and i'm working and listening to an audio book download from the toronto public library. i'm working on "The Uncommon Reader". It's kinda funny, it's about the Queen. if you listen to it you'll relate to you knitting habit. My brother also told me about the Teaching Company's downloads , which i'd like to listen to at the gym.



my old friend Rachel came to tow a few weeks ago! i gave her her cashmere hat. she love it! she took it back with her to montreal, where everyone, including the street people, ask her for it.

rachel needed an elephant to leave for her beau. i found one in the basement and proceeded to outfit him for the cold weather.

i finally made John his birthday Kippah. all i heard every time i saw him was "where's my yarmulke?! where's my yarmulke?!" i used handmaiden sea silk, just a smidge needed. the pattern is free.

john wanted his initials in his kippah. my embroidery skills are limited and it took 2 tries to make it look ok. still, i think i did a good job.

now i am back to knitting hats. i did not finish my Hannukah hats in time, so they will be surprise christmas gifts. or maybe just surprise gifts. i just need a couple more after this one and i'm done.

I also finished the gefelt-a-gelt, but it needs to be a gold, sparkly, lame yarn for the coins. still, i see truth in my naturopath's suggestion that i have to go back to making art. i've never been so satisfied with my knitting then when i was making art. i still love designing clothes, but it's a fun distraction, the art is the flow.