28 July 2007

twisty taupe

cablesi worked at the store today, and we had a good sales day. but i had an even better knitting day. i cast on for the swatch on this baby at 10:15 AM, and i bound off before i walked out the door at 6pm. one more holiday knit down!

what is it, you may ask? why, it is a loss-proof scarf, of course. or a neck tube, if you prefer. but don't call it a cowl because it is for a man, and men don't think cowls are very manly. the details....

Cherry Garcia Cabled Neck Tube
designed by Adrian Bizilia
published on www.HelloYarn.com
neck tube
knit in Madil "Iceland" (1 ball #264 Natural, 100% superwash wool) on a 16" addi turbo circular needle.


started: july 28, 2007
finished: july 28, 2007

why is it called Cherry Garcia? well, the hand spun yarn the designer used was a pinky blend that fit the name. mine is a little more sedate. and it is obviously a gift because taupe does nothing for me!

i learned one important thing with this project. i hate those "U" shaped hook style cable needles. give me my straight one with a divot. please!

in other holiday knitting news, i finished the second ball of Foliage for the seed stitch scarf. and the verdict is in... i'm going to have to use at least part of a third ball. i want a healthy gift scarf, after all. after i get a decent length, whether or not i use the full third ball will be decided by how "over it" i am with working in the seed stitch.

27 July 2007

mutant she-devil of doom

i took my car into the dealer to be repaired this week. unfortunately, the dealer will not be repairing my car because they seem to think i don't have a brain between my ears.

an example of this, you ask?

today i replaced the light bulbs that illuminate my rear licence plate. no, i did not, in fact take my car to the shop to have the bulbs replaced. that was something the technician decided he needed to do for me.... or was going to until i told him where to shove it. why did i tell him to put his light bulbs where the sun don't shine?

1. i own a screw driver, and i know how to use it.
2. light bulbs cost $4.72 at Pepboys.
3. my thumbs are, in fact, opposable.

the whole operation took me 15 minutes to complete (that long because i grabbed the wrong screwdriver the first time) and as i mentioned, cost $4.72.

did my hands get dirty? yes.
did i break a nail? no.
would it have been worth the $70.00 (no joke) they were going to charge me? heeeeeeell no. not as long as i have opposable thumbs.

and, really, people... if i were the kind of gal who could spend $70 replacing a light bulb, don't you think i would drive something other than a used 2002 Hyundai Accent? nothing against a Hyundai--i love mine. but come on, don't you think i would at least go for the Elantra? or get frisky with a Tiburon?

oh, no.
no thanks, i want a used Accent!?!

right.

25 July 2007

block party

unblockedhere is a little taste of my soon to be complete crocheted squares throw. here you see unblocked squares, and below we have squares being blocked. because these squares are worked in the round, they desperately need to be blocked to achieve a good square shape.

because, really, who wants a wonky throw? certainly not i!

i find myself to be on topic this week. over at Knitting Daily they are discussing the wonders of blocking and blocking techniques.

blockedi personally like to wet block my items. (fully soak, wring out in a towel and pin down when damp.) i will steam block knitting if i am in a hurry, but i never steam block crochet because it makes it act out in unkind ways. i think it has to do with the nature of crochet stitches--each one is an independent little entity. as opposed to knit stitches that form a united front. independent = mind of its own.

i am using my yoga mat to pin down my blocking. this means i can only do four squares at a time. so i have one more full batch of squares plus one last friend to block before i can sew these darlings together.

then i get to crochet a border. yippie. i need to start gifts sooner in the future!

in other news, i have a new keyboard. my poor old keyboard started a fight with a jar of pickles and lost. i know. a tragic briny death. sigh.

happy 100!

one ballcan you believe it? we have made it to 100 posts! in much less than a year! obviously i have been an active little knitter and crocheter!

here's a little knitting progress check to honor the occasion.

i finished the first ball of yarn on the seed stitch scarf. seed stitch is a little tedious, but is it ever pretty! it really makes this yarn work, too.

when you see (and feel) Berroco Foliage on the ball it seems a little cheap. well, the price tag is small, so you can't fault it too much. but the seed stitch gives Foliage some integrity. it goes from borderline novelty thick and thin to lovely texture just like that. and the drape is fantastic.

i don't know if i would make a whole sweater out of this particular yarn, but i think it has potential for accessories.

i'm not sure if two balls will be enough to make a healthy scarf. the jury is still out, but at the price, i think i can "splurge" on a third ball to make a nice holiday gift.

24 July 2007

rib-it! rib-it!

tonalita scarf not to be confused with rip-it! rip-it!

i finished the first holiday scarf! i love quick big needle knitting. i know these aren't monster needles, but when you have been working on US 2 for socks, a US 9 feels like a broomstick in your hand.

the details...

Tonalita Ribs Scarf
no "designer"
pattern found on a store model at Knit + Stitch = Bliss

knit in Trendsetter Yarns Tonalita (2 balls of #2349 Bright Multi. 52% Wool, 48% acrylic) on size US 9 addi turbo needles.

started: july 21, 2007
finished july 23, 2007


stitch detailthis one was fast and fun. i love it so much that i almost don't want to give it away as a gift. i guess that means i really should give it away because it will be an awesome gift.

i don't know if i mentioned this, but i am trying to have a Mostly Handmade Holiday this year. i'm pretty broke $$-wise, and i get a discount at the shop. so handmade gifts it is! i'm going to be an awesome knitter before the year is out.

in my relentless drive to get handmade gifts done (i know it is july but i have a long list and i am not a fast knitter) i have started the next scarf. this one will go very quickly because it is knit on even bigger needles than the Tonalita Ribs. the inches you see are the result of about an hour total of rather unfocused knitting (i was on the phone for some of it). i even ripped back once. so, yeah. it will be a quick little seed stitch scarf.

seed stitch

23 July 2007

it's raining... yarn?

swatchtoday as i was having a walk around my block, i discovered this little oddity near my driveway. a crocheted cotton swatch! on the ground! all by itself!

spooky.

i decided the yarn gods are sending me a sign. i'm not sure what the sign is just yet, but i thought i needed to record the moment. when i trotted out with my camera to take the picture and inspect the piece more carefully, i realized this isn't just a swatch. see the little hook? apparently this is an earring.

a poor, misguided crochet swatch earring. and now a lost one, at that.

odd.

in other news, i watched High Fidelity last night, and this means the Tonalita scarf has doubled in size since i took the photo yesterday. i am officially well into the 2nd ball of yarn. yay.

toby woke me up at 5:30am today by discovering that he can reach a window from my bed. fourtunately i can fall back to sleep easily. i'm glad he is out and about finally and not hiding under the bed all the time. he actually sat under my chair last night while i was watching the movie and knitting. i'm enjoying my house guest.

22 July 2007

i am a good friend.

scarfyes, indeed i am. for two reasons.

1. i have begun my holiday knitting
2.i am keeping a house guest in my tiny domicile for 2 full weeks.

i am sure there are others reasons, but those are the best two i have at the moment.

this is the promised fiber post!
see! i am knitting! this scarf is going to be a holiday present for one of my friends. i have two candidates for the recipient. it depends on the final outcome. i have another scarf i am starting soon, and that will decide who gets which. i know... odd. but i sometimes think the personality of the finished pieces should tell me the future owner.
yarn
i really like this particular yarn knit up in this rib. i don't know what this rib is called, but i love it! you can love it too. here's the pattern for my scarf...

Cast on 25
Knit 4, Purl 1, repeat across, ending with a Knit 1.
repeat!
bind off, and ta-da.

this yarn is very cool in general. it is called Tonalita, and it is made by Trendsetter Yarns. it is self-striping, but the stripes aren't perfectly regular. they blend together in fun ways. i really like this particular colorway because it has unexpected combinations.

fun!

tobyhere's my house guest. he likes to hide underneath things, and in this photo, he thinks he is "hiding" because his head is beneath the blanket on the bed. silly kitty.

as i said, i get to enjoy him for 2 weeks because his main man is on assignment out of state. i am sort of doing a favor for thehairyape by taking the kitty, but i do love toby so it isn't really a hardship. kittything = cat lover. and good friend.

one more time with feeling

reefer madnessi promise that this is the last of my shameless self-promotion posts related to Reefer Madness. but, really, if i don't promote myself, then who will? ha!

first up we have The City Paper review by Glen Weldon here. it is mixed. i think the overall idea is "ehh, go see it. especially the square guy in the bow tie" (Larry, pictured at left) Keith did get props for his driving obsession with the show--simplify it so it doesn't suck the way past productions have.

the real love coming my way is from Brad Hathaway over at Potomac Stages. you can read his review here.

and i would like to take this oppurtunity to say that while Potomac Stages isn't regarded as the top reviewing organization on the planet by any means, i strongly respect one thing they always try to do--um... at least mention the design. they are an online publication so, they don't have certain concerns that are entirely unrelated to content that print publications have. like the number of inches they have been given in the style section and the cuts that will make a review fit.

so they are at a slight advantage space-wise, but i also think that they try just a tiny bit harder to touch on the whole production. and i appreciate that. i am not just saying this because this review was good for me. i am saying it because it is true. now the Betrayal review had not word one about my costumes, but they really paid some mind to the lighting, which was a starring element in that show. (unlike the costumes) and that is what i mean. they pay attention and talk more about the production then the life history of the author or carp on about past productions.

so... thank you!

remember that fiber related post i promised?

tonight!

20 July 2007

fix

i can now see why so many people get hooked on many many knitting/crochet/craft/whatever blogs and communities. because when you stick to a few, the broken promises start.

i'm as guilty as the next person. it has been nearly three week since i did a fiber related post, but i have posted actual content of interest to someone. okay.... so that someone is my mom, but she counts too!

i guess i am disappointed because i'm not getting my fix. What Not to Knit and What Not to Crochet keep redesigning their layout, but no new posts. Crochet Me is on a revamping hiatus, and finally the long awaited june surprise is up on The Anti-Craft.

I think this is why i started reading Wendy Knits. she updates a lot, and because it is the Summer of Socks, she has lots of pretty pretty to share.

so what's my excuse? since i am 2/3rds finished with the throw and you are yet to glimpse more than the yarn in a bag? well, lighting mostly. i have a hard time photographing my projects well in my usually dim little apartment, and this one is extra tough because it is becoming big.

so i promise i am taking it to work with me today, and i will lay it out in the well lit classroom at the back of the store and snap a few pics. hopefully i will have this darling finished by the end of next week! (6 squares down, 3 to go!)

i need to start my holiday handmade goodies!

19 July 2007

flash!

jimmy and maryWashington Times not as Righty as Previously Accused!!!

flash!

Pot Brassieres New Fashion Hit for 1936!

and now the stock market!
click!


the Times review is out, and they were surprisingly kind to the show. the Times pretty much pans anything slightly to the left, and you could say that political satire like Reefer madness is a bit lefty. you can read the review here.

then again, almost no one in America today gives two hoots about pot compared to say... immigration. or terrorism. so maybe the power of this piece is more quaint and entertaining than subversive.

anyway, check out the review. i get a nice healthy full sentence. funny thing is that the reviewer liked my least favourite costumes in the show the best! hm. different tokes for different folks.

heehee.
i made a weed joke.

18 July 2007

hello Mr. and Mrs. America and all the ships at sea!

hearst
let's go to press! flash!

Washington Post Not as Lefty as Previously Accused!

flash!

Hipster Youth Love Pot and Parody!

and now the weather!
click!

erm....
let take off my 1930s journalist hat for a minute. whew! the reviews are coming out for Reefer Madness. they are mixed, but that is usually the case. the good news is that you can see a picture of Bobby and Chan! please admire her trashy make-up and ample décolletage. i adore that woman.

if you would like to read the reviews, you can Peter Marks' Post review here.

and Missy Frederick over at DCist chimes in here.

funny thing is that thehairyape introduced me to Peter before the show. this made me very nervous because who really wants to shake hands with the designer they are about to critique? we both had a nervous laugh over it and i squeaked out a little "be nice" with a giggle.

talking about looking like the girl who just fell off the turnip truck from ohio!

17 July 2007

one man's trash

the bar is openon saturday i went on an adventure with my friends A and R and their cutie pie little boy. they moved out here last week, and the adventure was... local yard sales!

i wasn't that interested in the sales, more so the company, but i was very happy to lend my knowledge of the area to my friends so they could find the things they need for the new apartment. well, i should say i was not very interested in the sales until we hit out last stop, an estate sale.

the house was so cool, and the things they were selling were awesome. lots of antiques, art, and kitsch from the 50s, 60s, and 70s. that's where i found this guy!

his nose lights up when you plug him in! i think it is the best $3 i have spent in a long time.

i promise a real fiber-related update soon.

13 July 2007

oh so mad!

reefer madnesswe open my next show this weekend. if you love camp, musicals, drugs, or propaganda go see Reefer Madness: The Musical!

the show is based on the 1936 propaganda film of the same name. the cast is wonderful, and i happen to be rather partial to the costumes. ahem.


Reefer Madness: The Musical
by Kevin Murphy and Dan Studney
Directed by Keith Alan Baker
on The Studio Theatre 2ndstage
press opening Sunday July 15, 2007


to read more about the show or buy tickets, go here.

ps- happy friday the 13th.

09 July 2007

still here

i am still here. i'm not intentionally placing the blog on a mid-season hiatus.

for one, i have been extremely busy with work, and secondly the day after my last entry i suffered a major personal setback.

i don't talk about the details of my personal life here, so it will suffice to say that it has knocked the wind out of my sails. but i'll get it together eventually and you will see regular updates again.

send me some positive thoughts.