the one that got away?

we are on break from the quarter at work right now, and i took the first half of my time off and translated it into a road trip to nyc.  on saturday i had to entertain myself solo for about an hour while my traveling companion got a hair cut, so i went vintage shopping.

i hit three shops in an hour, and the last one, A Little Wicked, was by far the best fit for me.  they have great pieces, and they buy (thus stock!) pieces in my size range.  prices we not at all bad for vintage in nyc. sorry nyc, dc will always have better prices for vintage.

i did go home with a yellow gingham number that i am very excited to wear soon, but i have been pining after the dress i left on the rack.  i certainly hope someone as rescued her because she is a lovely thing indeed!

look at those polka dots!!!
i justified leaving her behind because she is probably a size or two larger than what i need, and i was trying not to be a spending nut.  still, i pine.

other shopping highlights include a fabric trip to Mood, a pilgrimage to purl soho, and a last minute purchasing of buttons for my current knitting project at M&J trimmings.  one can buy from all of those places online, but there is nothing quiet like going to the shop in person.

i have a lot of sewing in my future!  the balance of my break, however, we be spent gardening and visiting with family who are coming in from out of town.  good times, indeed.

still life with crochet hook

i have been crocheting.
i know! she's kicking it old school! it has been very fun, and i think i need to crochet myself some slippers.

several things...

my mum broke her wrist. please send positive thoughts/prayers/whatever in her direction so she can get back to work and back to her own knitting quickly! (hey. at least i put work before knitting there.)

this weekend rW and i started to watch Mad Men on dvd and i am rewatching with him Six Feet Under, which i adore.

clipping coupons has become very addictive, and i have two new favourite related things... Redplum and Restaurant.com. the former is good for coupons as well as free offers, tips, and suggestions. the later is better for folks in a high population density area for best selection.

okay.
i have a confession.
i have been reading.
reading instead of updating. i have kept the crafting, but because i have been reading i have had less blogging time. there. i confessed.

and now i will say there will be few updates again for a bit because i tech a show at the end of the week.

too much. (part II)

see that fine pair of preppy bags*? yeah, i only own one of those. the other sitting next to it belong to my #1 girl... my cousin. she drove out thursday for a very last minute visit.

it was great!
while this visit was the exact opposite of my mum's in terms of amount of stuff smooshed into 2.5 days, it was just as enjoyable. highlights...

i took jess to Plato's Diner in College Park. she declared their ravioli The Best Ever.

we shopped. well, window shopped. very little buying was done. we just looked at baby stuff at buybuy Baby and Ikea and hit The Container Store as well. there was some buying at Ikea. jess thought it was pretty amusing that she (the pregnant lady who doesn't even really like wine) was buying wine racks.

i bought an underwear drying hanger thingy that looks like a green octopus. it is absurd, but i love it.

speaking of absurd things you love, we had a nice visit with our aunt, uncle, and cousin. we even bought along rW to be judged by them. (ha.) there was dinner and conversation. and wine. we took a trip to the "art gallery" to see our little cousin's photos from her art show, and rW got to look at a box of old 45s my uncle had in the basement.

speaking of rW, he took jess and i out for italian on saturday night. he and i don't usually have pasta so we sort of had to hunt to find a place. we ended up at Ottelo's in dupont. i think the whole Ottelo's experience need its own highlights section.

• through a series a judgement errors, we ended up in dupont on the day of the Pride Parade. this would have been fine, and maybe a little fun, if i had not been confused about the location of the restaurant. we had to cross the parade twice because of my 'oops'.
• our aunt called in the middle of our wandering and confusion and left a message saying she hoped we did ot get caught in the parade. thanks, AUnt C. but at least jess can go home saying she saw drag queens, lesbian hot-rodders, and the gay square dancers.
  
• by the time we got to Ottelo's, it had started to rain and we were sort of soaked. it took us some time to recover, and the wait staff seemed too anxious to make us order 3 minutes after we waked in the door dripping.
• my arugula and radicchio salad was the best ever.
• did i mention the attentive wait staff? they were super friendly and great, but i found them edging on annoying. we had 2 waiters, the host, the water server, and a runner from the kitchen all after us. and they were making me feel self-conscious and high maintenance because they would bring me things i didn't ask for like i was acting like a princess to get them. at the same time, they were teasing me! i am not a fan of being teased by people i don't know.
• all that being said, the food was good and they were super nice, so i would probably go back. i think i would just not wear a dress and hope more frumpiness would help.

finally, i am excited jess got to come out now because i wanted to see the little baby bump. she didn't look pregnant the last time i saw her, so this was sort of cool. i should get to see her one more time before the big arrival day. it seems silly, and i know she is having a baby, but seeing the change makes it sink in more.

oh, yes. and reminds me that there is a lot of knitting to be done! the knitting updates won't be as frequent because some of this baby goodness is going to be a surprise.

which reminds me, i have finished the knitting on 2 store models. now i just need to sew them up. yay!


*for the record, there is nothing wrong with owning a preppy bag. i will say the preppier navy and green belongs to jess and the cream one is mine--a gift from jess at her wedding rehearsal dinner.

cheers

happy memorial day, all you US folks. i spent the holiday in a fashion highly atypical for me--mostly relaxed. and doing some personal shopping.

i decided it was time to replace some glassware after i broke a piece last week (my first of the 15+ i am now missing). i have very bad luck with my glasses and other people. in the last 7 years i have lost many, many pieces by the hands of my various roommates. see that one lone black stemmed wine glass? that is the last of a set of 6. i also used to have four martini glasses and four margarita glasses, but my landlord (or maybe the property manager) stole them from my last apartment when i was moving*.

i made do with what i had for a couple years, but when i could no longer serve wine to myself and a guest, something had to change. i did splurge a bit getting the martini glasses, but the four of them and the six wine glasses all together cost less than $20. go World Market! yay Ikea!

i also started a new project despite May being the month of finishing. i started a scarf from my stash because i wanted something purely mindless to knit while relaxing on memorial day. it is hard to pay attention to sweater armhole decreases and a guest at the same time.

it is the "Men's" Rustic Scarf from Last-Minute Knitted Gifts. either joelle hoverson is obsessed with naming things especially for men, or the publisher was afraid people without brains would not notice the man-oriented items in the book. odd.

i am knitting it from stash yarn, and i have no definite plans for the finished project yet. maybe i am starting my holiday knitting without knowing it!


* i left my glasses over night and planned to pick them up the next day because the car was full and i didn't want to break them. i came back the next day to people stripping my hardwood floors and my glasses missing. i had 2 weeks left on the lease, and i was fully paid up. (!!!!!)

hey big spender

the picture is a mitten i finished a few weeks ago. i just like it and wanted to share. it doesn't have a mate yet. boo on me.

ahem.
i'm going to talk about myself for a bit. there aren't really rules for the blogging i do here, so hang in there with me while i have some me time.

life has been super crazy, and i have felt much more like a worker bee than a person for the last 4-6 weeks. so i went out and got a little indulgent to help make me feel a little more like a person. my idea of "indulgent" is laughable, but i am on an artist's budget, you know.

ahh, cotton knit. how i love thee. i hit target this week and got myself some new shirts on sale. 1 black tee, 1 black tank, 2 (very acidic happy!) green tees, and a new skully shirt. i think the last time i bought myself new clothes was back in october or november, and it is starting to show.

i really need new jeans, but with the weather finally turning and my skirts looking longingly up at me from my drawer, i may be able to put that off until the fall clothing urge hits again. new black tees make it that much easier to resist the temptation.

that and the fact that trying to simultaneously be a woman who feels good about herself and try on jeans is a near impossible feat, i think i will save the heroics for the future.

my real splurge was a few new books.

that's right, i am reading again.
i started out by icking up Tropic of Cancer again, and i have made some progress this time around. i had to put it back on hold lately because my head has been too full for a stream of consciousness frolic through Paris that utterly lacks a plot.

instead have been reading the copy of High Fidelity that rW gave me. he was going to lend me his copy and instead surprised me with my very own. i love the film, so it is safe to say the gift will get well used in my "rereading" cycles. it is a fast read, and it is very fun to see the differences between the book (set in london) and the movie (americanized and set in chicago).

now.
the books i got myself.
i picked up a copy of Breakfast at Tiffany's because i was inspired by gwen.
i bought the compact hardback for a few bucks more because there are 3 other Capote short stories in that edition. i am warming up for when i finally let myself read In Cold Blood. i know i can't do it until i am low stress enough not to get all worked up by the violent and horrible parts.

moving on.
new knitting/crochet book! i bought a sock book.... Stitch Style Socks. i don't actually own any sock books. all of my socks have been knit from free patterns or books that contain all variety of patterns. i have just never found one that is overall special enough to make me want to buy it. this one grabbed me with the cover project--houndstooth check socks. there are also some neat slippers, a pair of chunky cabled leg warmers, and knee-high skull socks. lots of fair isle and intarsia in this book, which are two techniques i want to get into more.

finally, something frivolous.
Dictator Style: Lifestyles of the World's Most Colorful Despots. this one is pure fun for designer. it is gross, opulent, and over the top. it seems sick to want to see pictures and read about Nicolae Ceausescu's bathroom or Manuel Noriega's christmas tree, but it takes design and mindless fun to a whole new level for me. plus, sometimes you just need something to be outraged about.

(and to tell the truth, it was $3 in the bargain bin.)

in addition to reading more, have also taken up cross stitch again because i have a project i want to make for a future new person. i forgot how fun it can be! i'll post pictures on my needle craft once i extract a promise from someone that he won't ruin the surprise for his wifey. ahem. (you know who you are!)

too much to share

i have so much to share after my holiday trip to ohio that i cannot put it all into one post. well, i could, but it would be very long and tedious to download for some folks because this kitty likes to take pictures to share with the audience at home. this blog being primarily about yarny arts, i will start with the serious stash enhancement this holiday season brought to me.

i am well fortified against boredom during my upcoming yarn diet thanks to my generous friends and family! thanks, guys!


first we have a skein of Dream in Color Classy in the "Spring Tickle" colorway. (yes, i know i am obsessed with this green) this baby came from my pal madhatternalice by way of a gift certificate to The Loopy Ewe. smart man that guy.

i saw this over on wendy's blog, and i decided i needed to give it a try. it is labeled as worsted, but she has been able to knit it to a sport gauge for socks. on the hank, the yarn looks like a light worsted. very similar in thickness to our next friend....

this is a skein of Cherry Tree Hill Super Sock DK in the Fall Foliage colorway, also from my gift certificate to The Loopy Ewe. i bet you are noticing that i have ordered a lot of heavy weight sock yarns. well, yes. i currently have yarn for 11 pair of socks i will be knitting in 2008, and only 3 of those are not fingering weight.

i need something to change it up! a little instant gratification can be good for the knitter's soul.

this came from my dad. it is a skein of Plymouth Happy Feet i picked up at work when i bought his presents to my mum for him. call it a "finder's fee". only one skein because i am going to knit it up into the Purl Beret, not socks.

i am interested to see how this stuff is. it is very inexpensive (retails between $6-$7) and the colors are fun. i may have a new cheap sock yarn crack!


from santa in my stocking via my mum. this is a skein of RubySapphire Ruby Sock in the "Tamber" colorway. hand painted delight! it is wondrously soft and the color is one of my obvious favourites--pink and green combo. yum.



my mum and i went to her two LYS, and while out she bought me three skeins of Noro Kureyon. we don't carry Noro at the shop, so this is a little treat. i am going to use it in the Lizard Ridge afghan. i have a goal to knit one up for myself by the time i turn 30. gives me a couple of years to buy and knit all that yarn into squares.

from both of my parents--knitting books! we like to give each other books in my family. i got one for each of my parents this year, and they went a little crazy making sure my shelf got fuller too! i am very excited. i flip through them when i can't sleep. you know, the way people flip through the j crew catalogue.

kitty = big geek.


finally, a little gift to me from me. this is a skein of The Alpaca Yarn Co.'s Paca Peds in the "Harvest Time" colorway. my mum also got herself a skein of this yarn in their "Fireside" colorway. it was hard not to get that one for myself too, but i can live vicariously through her!

up next... the knitting i did while i was away! wheeee!

coy? who, me?

it is official. the Manos del Uruguay project is finished. too bad the recipient is one of my close girlfriends and a blog reader. no pictures for you until december. oh, the suspense!

i can say that the little ball at left is all i have left. isn't Bramble a pretty color? yum. and the wool was fun to knit with.

so that brings the completed gift count to 11. i have 2 active gift projects on the needles, and i need to start one last crochet project. we will see if anyone else sneaks on the last minute list.

on thursday i went to lunch and christmas shopping with my galpal A. she and i hadn't had big kid one on one time in awhile. her hubby was at work, the little one was in daycare, and she didn't have class. it was great. we ate. we shopped. we laughed.

i scored both my father's birthday gift and his "purchased" holiday gift. once i finish his 2nd knitted gift (the log cabin socks) i should be done with him. stocking excluded, but i always do the stocking gift last minute. he can be hard to buy for.

obviously.
i don't do last minute. he pushes me to it sometimes, but i love him anyway.

i need an idea for my grandmother. past winners: cotton night gowns, handmade scarf, crocheted dishcloths, frozen beer mugs. i need some new suggestions.

throw a dog a bone!


ps- the completion of this project puts me at 51 finished objects for 2007.

fabriclious

i went fabric shopping with my gal pal littleC. we are friends from grad school, although we were never in the program at the same time. HQH (our mentor) gave littleC to me as an assistant when i returned to design a show, and i instantly took a shine to her. she is "little"... well, because she is, and because she is like my kid sister in the program (she is a first year and i just graduated last may), even though we are the same age.

we are both goof balls from the midwest, and our adventures are always fun. today was no exception. we hit four local fabric stores and had an awesome lunch. there was much success in the land of swatching for both of our shows. swatching is "the hunt" in fabric shopping. you dig through all the fabrics, clip a small pieces off the bolt, and after elevating your blood sugar over a fine lunch, lay out everything you have beside the renderings and choose which swatches are in, and which are out.... to be all heidi klum about it.

it is a lot of fun, but swatching will wear you out. you feast on sights, sounds and textures for a few hours while moving through busy stores frantically. you can see why lunch is such a vital part of the process.

i took a few pictures of the display windows. i love the crazy tie dye because they look so happy.



these colored silks make me think of the ubiquitous tailor in fairy tales. and that description of how wealthy the king is because he had such fine colored silks.




ps-i totally covet the orange embroidered silk at the top of the page. if only i had a reason to use it. sigh....

in the continuing saga of yarn and disappointment...

i am grumpy. ebay is letting me down in ways it has not before. i love ebay for my higher end yarn needs, so i decided to try buying some other craft related items. pictured is the awesome yarn that arrived today. it came super fast and the colors are just as fantastic in person as on screen but (and there is a big but) the posting title and description stated that this would be a 10 ounce skein.

the skein that arrived is only 6 ounces. i need the additional 4 ounces to make the gift i intend to crochet from this awesome cotton boucle. i emailed the seller, and we will see if she can send me more. i hope she can, but i won't hold my breath because it is hand painted by the seller, and she may simply not have any more stock. if she tries to dye more, the colors probably won't match.

the second ebay disappointment is still floating in the ether. i ordered a set of interchangeable circular knitting needles on january 27th, and they still have not arrived. i'm giving it until wednesday before i start jumping up and down on the seller. by then i should be done with my sweater, and i really want to cast on for a hat.

keep your fingers crossed for me. especially about the cotton yarn. it is just perfect for a project, and i really want it to work out.

snow daze

dress rehearsal was canceled tonight. it started to snow and everyone in the greater DC metro area began jumping up and down screaming "the sky is falling! the sky is falling!" it has since stopped snowing, and i am certain that our show's director is sitting a home grumbling and swearing.

i don't mind the cancellation because the costumes are in good shape. and i get some extra time to do other things i need to get done. something i did today that didn't need to be done, was pick up some on sale yarn for future projects.

i had to make a return at arundel mills on my way back from baltimore, so i had a chance to hit the sale. pictured above is the yarn that will eventually be two scarves, two hats, a little summer sweater, two dish clothes, and a pair of socks. the more exciting find than the inexpensive yarn, was the large hole pailettes. and only for $1.96!

i have never found them in a store, only online, and they are usually two or three times more expensive. they will be part of a fun sparkly hat from the first stitch'n bitch book.

enough playing hooky. time to be a big kid and do some real work.