Darn it - Not so everlasting.

I always mourn the loss of a handknit, but I don't think anything is worse than finding a hole in a handknit sock.  The amount of time for the original knit, how much I love every pair, it's just too much.

I've lost a few socks over the three years that I've been knitting socks. I've attempted to darn them, but I'm afraid of my darning skills and me pulling the sock back out of my shoe and seeing an even bigger hole.

The sock is question this time are my Wineberry Rose Socks in Dream in Color Everlasting sock. (Not so everlasting, I guess.) I don't blame the yarn, I'm rather harsh on my socks. I wear them to work, and these pair were probably worn every week since I finished them last September. I take it thats about 65-70 wears in the past year, in tennis shoes.

Ill attempt to darn these as well, but I think they'll be retired to house socks. No more work for them.

May Your Spring Be Green

The SO, my uncle, some others and I stopped by the Japanese Biotanical Gardens last weekend. (It's less than 5 minutes from the new MadTosh store).

May your spring be as green and lovely.

WIP Wednesday - Knit - a - long!

Hello again. I've gone back to work full time, and the stress had sent me into a knitting frenzy for a while The blog kind of went to the wayside for a bit, and well, the housework did too.

I'm getting my groove back and I have a lot to show. I've joined a few knit-a-longs and my forever sweater ardielse is almost done! (No pictures of her though, she is just too close to being finished. Just the bottom hem is left, and then the finishing and modelling the beauty.

So instead, here are the KALs I'm working on:

The Holden shawlette with a small KAL group I really enjoy. I don't have a good recent photo, once it gets too big its really hard to photograph on the needles. I'm about ready to start the lace section

And everyone's favorite infliction at the moment: The Color Affection Shawl. I'm knitting mine in Madelinetosh Merino Light. (A new MadTosh store opened in Fort Worth!!!) And the most interesting thing happened. I picked out two colors at the store to go with the skein I purchased at the FiberFest last month. The green and the blue skeins are the same colorway (Cousteau) bought at two seperate times. They are going to go SO WELL together. SO EXCITED!!

For more WIP Wednesday, make sure to check out Tamis Amis

FO Friday: My Little Pony Feet

I finished my figit socks this week. This pair really reminds me of old school My Little Pony. They are just so punk rock girlie!

This is my second pair of socks from String Theory Colorworks. Their stripes are amazing! I tried my best to get the hot pink just right in the photos. And another round of applause for some great photo taking by a very patient SO. 

For more FO Friday, make sure to check out Tamis Amis!

WIP Wednesday: Hands and Feet

I have several of the same WIPs going on this week without much progress, so I thought I would share just my latest. I know it's springtime, but I couldn't resist doing some colorwork. It was just calling my name. I started a pair of Endpaper mitts. The colorwork makes the knitting go so fast!

I'm making this set out of Berroco Ultra Alpaca light. These are going to be perfect for work. My workplace is freezing and its nice to be able to keep my hands warm and still be able to type.

See the cute little project bag? I made it! I'm so proud of how my progress is going with the sewing. I kind of went overboard on making project bags, so I put the extras that I made in my etsy shop.

For more WIP Wednesday, make sure to check out Tamis Amis!

DFW Fiber Fest Fun!

As I teased yesterday, I finally am going to show off all the goodies I got at this year's DFW Fiberfest. I've missed the past two years because of work responsibilities, so I just had to make the most of it this year!

First off, Madelinetosh had a huge booth and I ended up in their corner more than once. I picked up some Tosh Merino light and and two skeins of their worsted merino cashmere blend. 

They also announced they are opening a store in Fort Worth!!! Good thing it is a bit of a drive over there, or my pocketbook would be empty.











Two skeins of The Alpaca Yarn Company Astral. It's a tencel and alpaca mix. It's so shiny and soft.

I picked up some beautiful wool from a local farm out in Lancaster, TX too. Brooks Farm Solona in the colorway Sol. It's more of a blueish-green. The color of this one was hard to capture in the photo.

And of course, since I'm trying to learn how to spin, I picked up some great fiber as well. Both are BFL, which was reccommended to me as easy for a beginner because of the long staple.

The beautiful purple is from Wooly Wonka Fibers and the blue and brown is from Two If By Hand.






I had so much fun finally being able to go to my local fiberfest. Now to spin/knit all these goodies up!

WIP Wednesday: Feeling Red

As I looked into my WIP bag this week, I noticed something... I think I might be feeling a bit red. First up is a new set of stockinette self-stripey socks using Cherry Tree Hill in the colorway Black Cherry. The photo is via my new photobox setup my SO gave me for my birthday. Isn't he wonderful?

Next up is my Adeilse. She is growing slowing but steadily and is about 4 inches below the arm now. By the time I finish this one, the summer will probably be in full swing here in Texas. It was already 85 and humid this past weekend. She'll be nice in the fall though. 

Also in the picture is my new cake bag. Isn't it adorable? My brother bought it for me as a birthday gift at the DFW fiberfest. If you come back tomorrow, I'll show you all the great other goodies I got there. (Hint: It'll be soft and wonderful!)

Oh, and one more piece of news! I got a GREAT deal on a sewing machine that I've been eyeing for a while. I'm going to learn to sew! Oh, the project bags I could make....

Oh, and don't forget to visit Tami's Amis for more WIP Wednesday!

Holly Jolly Sunday #4

Hello everyone! It's another Holly Jolly Sunday! This week I finished another washcloth for my Christmas box. This one is a basic feather and fan and was a super quick knit. I finished this one in only a couple of hours.

I also finished a little Dinosaur from the book Teeny Tiny Mochimochi. This little guy only took me an hour to make! I honestly made this one to keep me company at work, but I think these might make great stocking stuffers for Christmas too.

I also wanted to mention this is my 100th post on the blog. I just wanted to thank you for coming by and cheering me on. The online community is just so amazing and I just love you guys. I'm adding the linky again this week. If you're working on an early Christmas gift or a gift in general, feel free to link. I love visiting everyone's blogs.

FO Friday: Dark Wingspan

This week I was finally able to finish my Wingspan. I used almost every scrap of yarn on this baby. I had only a yard left! I was definitely sweating it towards the end.



Wingspan is recommended to be knitted in a sock yarn with long color changes. Instead, I chose to use a self-striping yarn. Cherry Tree Hill Fingerpaints Self-striping in the colorway Name Your Poison. (Love that name!) I definitely am glad I chose the yarn I did. I think it makes my own version even more my own.

 I also chose not to block the shawl out to sharp points at the end. I'm loving the right angles of the triangles. Hopefully, I'll be able to post some modeled pictures in the near future.

For more beautiful FOs, make sure to check out Tami's Amis!

WIP Wednesday: Little Ninja

 We recently painted our bathroom a beautiful greyish blue a few weekends back. My old grungy hand towels are so old they're from my old college dorm room days. So, I decided to knit up a nice bright blue hand towel. It's a simple basketweave stich pattern in Sprout 100% cotton. I've never used this yarn before, but its knitting up very soft and squishy. I might end making a couple more.

I also tried out my first crochet project. I've been drooling over little amigurimi for a while now. Here is my first attempt at making a little ninja.

For more WIP Wednesday, check out Tamis Amis!

Holly Jolly Sunday #3

It's a Holly Jolly Sunday indeed! This week I finished my first washcloth and placed it in my Christmas box. This particular beauty is the Lacy Dragonscale washcloth and it was quite fun to knit.

The Christmas box is no longer empty and that seems like both a large and small accomplishment. Large, because I love being prepared and starting is the hardest part. Small, because there is so much still to do. I'm starting easy with the washcloths, but who knows what else will end up in that box before the fateful day? I have some ideas, but yall will have to stay tuned.

Are you knitting a gift or an earlier preparer for the holiday season? Add your blog post! Let's cheer each other on throughout the year.

FO Friday: Just a square

I've been rather proud of myself when it comes to FO Fridays, and have been consistently finishing at least one project a week for quite some time. Sadly, every great streak has to end and I don't have a true FO to show this week.

Not to be beaten, I pulled out my old Neverending Sock Blankie WIP and added a few squares. I added that Dreamy yarn from my monkey socks and a few mystery squares from minis I had got from some swap or another from a while ago.

Something was cast on and cast off, right? I think that should count as an FO!

In furrier news, my brother has been claiming I have been showering Tippy in favoritism. She was getting all the love on my blog and poor Kera hadn't been seen for a while! So, here is a cute shot of Tippy AND Kera sporting their March-themed bandanas that my mother sent them.

For more FO Friday, of course march on over to Tamis Amis!

WIP Wednesday: Wingspan Redux

It's WIP Wednesday again! I'm still working on two larger projects, so I don't have any new WIPs to show. However, everything has grown significantly!

My Wingspan has doubled in size.  I just finished the fourth triangle out of eight.  It's a super simple pattern and the short rows really give it a cool look.

 Ardelise has grown significantly too. I've really been chugging along on this knit and I'm really enjoying it. I'm knitting it up in DK weight yarn, so its taking a bit longer to make progress, but it'll be a great cardigan for the light winters we have down here in Texas.

I'm already worrying about having enough yarn to finish. I bought the yarn on clearance and they had *exactly* enough.  I'm hoping doing 3/4 sleeves will help make sure I have the right amount to finish. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

This week's pet photo is suprisingly not Tippy. Aptly named Fidget was really interested getting in the way of my photos last night. He finally let me take my pictures after he had his own portrait done.

For more WIP Wednesday, make sure to check out Tami's Amis.

Sea Turtle Stitch Markers

There are some new turtle stitch markers now available in my Etsy shop. I absolutely love turtles, and when I came across these adorable sea turle charms at the craft store I just had to make them into stitch markers.

They're now available at Be a Knitwit! Designs.

 Green and Yellow Turtles

 Simple Sea Turtles

And my personal favorite, Silver and Blue Sea Turtles

Holly Jolly Sunday #2

I promised to show my work on my first Christmas gift washcloth this week to put in my Christmas box. I actually completely forgot to cast one on until Friday night! Good thing yall are holding me accountable!

I picked the Lacy Dragon Scale washcloth, a free pattern off of Ravelry. These washclothes are a great chance for me to try out a whole slew of different stitch patterns.

I have to say, while the Dragon Scale pattern looks complicated, its very easily memorized. And I'm really loving the Dishie yarn.

Are you working on early Christmas gifts, or just a gift in general on your blog? Let's cheer each on. I promise to visit! If you do link, all I ask is that you try to visit a few of the other links that might be there.

FO Friday: Monkeying Around

This week I finished my Monkey socks! These are my first set of Monkeys by Cookie A. I can see why people find this pattern so addictive, and they fit like a dream.



They were knit up two at a time in Dream in Color Smooshy with Cashmere in Flashy Mint. If you remember about a month ago. I was absolutely raving about of much I was in love with this yarn. And that was just when it was in the skein! As socks, the colors play great with the stitch pattern and they are super comfy.  And comfy socks are pretty high on my list of things that are awesome.

They are delectably smooshy. I might have a new favorite pair of socks!

For more beautiful FOs, make sure to check out Tamis Amis!

WIP Wednesday: Wingspan and Ardelise

This week I started Wingspan for a Knit-a-long in the Fiber, Friends, and Fun Swaps group.  I'm using Cherry Hill self-striping yarn in the colorway Name Your Poison. I love the colors, but I'm a bit sceptical of their claim of "self-striping". Seems more varigated to me, but it is gorgeous in this short row shawl.

 

I finally got to work on my Ardelise! It's breezing by once I got past the collar and picked up the stitches. I'm really, really hope it'll be ready before it gets too hot down here to wear it.

And, of course, what is becoming my obligatory picture of Tippy. I swear I have other pets, but Tippy is just SO photogenic.

For more WIP Wednesday, make sure to check out Tamis Amis!

Keep it Simple Gardening Swap

I recently joined the Keep It Simple Swap group on Ravelry and joined my first swap! The theme for the swap was spring gardening. It was SO HARD to keep every thing I got my partner under wraps, but I didn't want to ruin the surprise.  But she got her gift today, so I finally get to share!

My swap partners favorite colors were purple, so I picked her up a pair of purple gardening gloves, some seeds for purple flowers (morning glories), and of course some Texas Blue Bonnets. I also made her a set of lavender stitch markers from my etsy shop. She also said she loves fingerless mitts, so I purchased a set of mitts off her queue and had them printed on some nice cardstock. And finally, my swap member asked for some teal yarn, so I picked her up some Claudia Handpainted in teal to make her fingerless mitts with.

I had so much fun putting together the package to get shipped out, I'm definitely going to participate in more swaps!



A Holly Jolly Sunday #1

If you've been reading my blog for a while, you've probably noticed my lack of stick-to-it-ness.  There have been mutliple things I've started to do and just haven't followed through on. This time, I'm going to rely on you and having a group of people working along side me to help motivate me.

This is my Christmas gift preperation box.  As you can see, its not very prepared. I just purchase eight skeins of Dishie from Knitpicks to get started on my Christmas gifts this year.  I always end up rushing at the last minute and not having as many things finished as I like.

This year, things will be different! If I make my dishclothes and other gifts throughout the year, I'll be prepared. Maybe even make those Christmas stockings for the SO and I that I've been drooling over for the past two years, but have been too busy knitting last minute gifts.

How am I counting on you? I'm going to add a Mr. Linky to the bottom of this post and every Holly Jolly Sunday post after. Please link your own blog if you are working on Christmas gifts, or just a well prepared knitted gift in general. I promise to visit! If you do link, all I ask is that you try to visit a few of the other links that might be there.

Let's cheer each other along with extremely early holiday cheer! And join me next Sunday to see if I've made any progress on my first dishcloth.



FO Friday: Calorimetry and a little sweater

Shibani requested a cooler hat than the wool ones I had made for the summer time, so I whipped her up a silky wool version of Calorimetry. The ribbing doesn't have the same stretch with this yarn, so it works more like a cool bandana. Here she is being a good sport and letting me take a photo.

Next up is my version of the Springtime Baby Cardi for a baby shower for this weekend. This little thing practically flew off the needles. I finished it in less than a week and it only took one skein of Berraco Vintage. After all that the baby shower was postponed a week. Maybe I should add a hat with the extra skein of Berraco I bought...

And for Fiber Arts Friday, my spinning is vastly improving once I figured out the tension on my wheel. This is 100% peruvian wool roving from knitpicks that I've been using.  Any one know some good patterns for using thick/thin handspun?

To enjoy more Fiber Arts Friday, hop on over to Wisdom Begins in Wonder and for more gorgeous FOs, stop by Tamis Amis. Happy Friday everyone!