so soon

this isn't a knitting post so much as it's a omgimmovinginamonth post. aaahhhhh! so in exactly one month i will be returning to nyc. i've been living in lincoln, ne for a little under a year, i moved here because i was so sick of the city and lincoln is where my boyfriend is from. the best way i can describe it is nyc was this irritating friend/boyfriend that after 6 years i had just had enough of. so loud, rude, dirty, takes all my money....but now i am crawling back. nyc, please take me back?! i made a mistake! we needed that break to really see that what we had was special.

while i am so excited to get back, i'm also really sad to leave lincoln. my boyfriend won't be moving with me when i do, probably a few months after. we've done long distance before, but it is just the worst thing ever. and i have become increasingly emotional over the years, so i fear for the breakdown i will probably have on the plane from ne to nyc. i've even had friends volunteer to fly over just to go back with me...they know my nuttiness. another reason why i love them! i've also met some lovely ladies here by joining my first knitting group! i feel very lucky to have met them.

i'm so excited to get back to nyc for all the same reasons i was ready to leave it. i miss the crazies, the walking, the weather, everything! even the subway....kinda. i don't have a job lined up quite yet (yikes!) but i will be returning part-time to the yoga studio i worked at before i left. i miss my yoga peeps so much. i can't even!!! i know i'll miss alot about being here, there is just a normal way of life here that you NEVER get in the city. and while i think that is what i want eventually, right now i feel like i need the energy of the city. i feel like i just learn so much living there, just walking down the street.

i'm just so scared that the transition will be really hard. i don't take change well at all, and yet i feel like it's all i do, movemovemove changechangechange. ooooh well. gotta do it while i'm young(ish)!

here are a few pics of my nyc self, relaxing in central park...this is one of the rare moments where there is actually nature around, such a novelty! ;)


and here is me so ready to leave nyc. this is how i felt taking the subway all the time haha i look crazy!!! i guess i fit in ;)


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jazz hands!

oh how i love armwarmers. they are super fast, easy and i know i'll use them, well probably use them. this was an interesting pattern because they were knit flat, i think next time (there will be a next time) i'll knit them in the round. but it was nice to practice my mattress stitch! i think this is the first time i actually got the hang of it, and i love it! now i just wanna seamseamseam.

i dyed the yarn myself, and this particular yarn base i've found takes color really lightly. everything is kind of pastely, which i don't hate. i'm thinking these will be a gift, for who, i'm not sure! :)

i'm going to try and make my f.o's more organized!





pattern: Irish Hiking Scarf Armwarmers by Delia Rau Cholakian

yarn: my hand-dyed ;) (worsted weight)

needle: sz. 7

started: april 24, 2009

finished: april 25, 2009

i have a couple more skeins i dyed along with this one, not sure what i have planned for those yet. one is an orangey/yellow and another is purpley/pink. i'm a dyein' fool lately!

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acrylic hurts my teeth

finally! i have finished the cowl my mom asked for around christmas time. i knew it wouldn't take long (a few days) but still, i kept putting off. do you ever have those projects looming and it's almost painful to cast-on for them. i think in this case, it was the acrylic. ooooooooh the acrylic. my mom picked out the yarn herself, it was just the color she wanted! and not being a knitter, i don't think she cared if it was wool/acrylic/dog hair. and no joke, knitting with acrylic hurts my teeth! it's like nails on a chalkboard or biting ice cream. yikes. but it came out really nicely! it's very springy and squishy. thanks vanna!


snuggly!


and wouldn't ya know, i sold a hat on twitter! well, kind of. i had a picture of a cowl on my head and someone asked if i could make them a beanie! i was happy to oblige. they actually wanted the above cowl to be made into a hat....but being that i do not like to stray one STITCH from a pattern, i just picked a different hat. :) and i think i just found what my dad and brothers are going to be getting for christmas. the brother-in-law hat! you can't go wrong, and if i do it in wool of the andes that's 3 presents for $6!!!!! ooooh yeeeeeeah.

i really like the basketweave, and attached is a tag i bought from a friend's etsy shop! so cute!






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who needs a knitting machine?!

you would think i would be sick of cowls by now, but they are one of my favorite things to knit! they are quick, easy and i'm guaranteed to use them! maybe not so much now that it is warming up but still. this is the darkside cowl and i dyed some cascade 220 i had for it. the original color was a wheat/tan color. i used some pink and chartreuse on it, and i quite like the result!




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miracle of miracles!

so the project i started in my last post....yeah, didn't happen. i had my heart setting on doing a cute little baby bag for the baby shower last night, and i was even starting that a bit late. but that knot/tangled mess got the better of me, there was just NO getting it out. i was thisclose to setting it ablaze!!!!!!! but i was too busy trying to figure out how i was going to whip something up in less than 24 hours.

so tuesday night at about 6pm i sat down to some dancing with the stars (go lil' kim!) and i cast-on for a baby hat....and about two hours later i was casting-off (oh snap!!!) ok so i was feeling good, i still had about 20 hours to find something to go with it. baby booties! at this point i was too tired and i figured i could finish the booties during work the next day...and wouldn't ya know, i did it! wow. never again my friends! are you THINKING you might have a baby sometime in your life? ok well, i'm casting-on right now then. :) here are the little products (done with my hand-dyed!)






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brace yourself

i've done it again. waited until the very LAST moment to get going on a gift. :( oh noes. last night i cast-on for a baby shower gift that is on wednesday, aaaaaaaahhhhhhhh! (i don't think the recipient reads this, but if you are having a baby shower on wednesday, look away!)

and to make matters worse, i decide to use some yarn i have that is so knotted, i don't know what i was thinking. this knot is BONKERS. it is not for the faint of heart. here is the beast, i'm not sure i'm going to even be able to get it undone to use for my project.

*sigh*


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i've been busy

finally! got some pics while the sun was out, whatwhaaaaat! wow, take a look at that grass, or on second thought, don't! so i haven't weaved the ends in yet, but here they are! i love them, except.....they don't stay up :( i'm going to have to add some elastic or something to the top. they are very cozy just not snug enough, and they are a little too big around the knee.


pose!


and here is what happens after i walk a few steps. eeek!


those ends will hopefully be weaved in within the year ;) hehe. in more dyeing news, i have a few more skeins dyed! and already sold one and it isn't even dry yet! :D

here is wonderland...


and lolly...


folks, i have discovered the art of sprinkle dyeing and i LOVE it. there is no turning back! i want to order my weight in bare yarn, good thing i just got my tax return wahoo! ok, i feel itchy to go dye some more...have a happy holiday weekend!

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knitknitknitDYEknitknitknit

i got my hands on some more bare yarn and dyed another skein! i kind of want to try and dye more than one skein at a time, but i don't think i have figured out a very good method yet. i use one pot, multiple colors, oy. it gets a bit hectic and messy. i'm thinking i need to invest in more dye pots....good will here i come! here is my newest creation.....mint tulip!


and come undone...


i've only dyed bare yarn from knit picks and i think i'm going to try some new places, i really want to try some more silk. yummmmmmm. i only have one more skein left at home, so i better order soon!

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tease

here is a blurry photo of my finished thigh highs! (this is what happens when i'm half asleep with horrible light!) i'm going to take some better pictures tomorrow :) so you can see them in all their glory!


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so good i could eat it

behold, my newest creation. i bring to you.....Caliente Creamsicle!!!!! i quite like how this turned out, i just kind of played around with the dye and tried my best to get the colors to blend. i'm still pretty new/inexperienced at this dying thing. i don't really pay toooooooooo much attention to the yarn/dye/vinegar ratio, but i think that's what makes it fun! and unique. the deepest color is a burnt orange and the lightest reminds me of those flinstone's push-pops (yummmmmm!) i'm going to put it up on etsy and see if there are any takers, but if not i can see some knee highs in this yarn's future. :)


up close and personal...


can't ya just smell it?!

p.s. i talked to my mom last night and she was wondering if i ever knit her that cowl and that pair of evangeline's i told her i would around xmas. oops. sorry mom! i'm going to get right on that....seriously.

on a side note...The Supreme Court in my neighbor to the east, Iowa, just ruled today that gay marriage is and will be legal in the state!!!!!!!!!! awesome.

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better together

these babies are flying. i decided to make them matching, and i think they are coming out quite nicely. They are a little baggy around the knee, so i think i'll keep that in mind for the next pair (oh yes, more to come!) i stopped doing socks a few months ago and had no interest in really picking them back up...until now! the sock bug has gotten me again, but this time i'm all about the knee socks and thigh highs. just in time for summer! ;)

i'm also having so much fun dyeing lately, i think i'm going to order some more bare yarn to keep myself occupied in the kitchen. i can honestly say i use the kitchen more for dyeing than for cooking.

here's the progress on the thigh highs...


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