NANNERS!

I've got a new favorite sock yarn - Dream in Color STARRY!
OMG - this is heaven to knit with. Beefy (NO string), pretty and it does NOT split! The pattern I'm using is by Wendy Johnson (Wendy Knits) and it's her Nanners Socks - too cute and easy enough for my tiny little pea brain.
Here they are in progress:



Grab yourself some Dream in Color, your fav needles and c'mon and join the rest of us Nanners!

UNCLE, UNCLE

OK - I've said it. I'm done screwing up socks. While I was able to complete my first pair just fine, the second has messed me up big time. When I went to start knitting in the round again - the front and back didn't match up. WTF!



SO - I started knitting a lace shawl. Girasole by Jared Flood. An absolutely GORGEOUS shawl that I hope I can finish. So far, so good. Sheri at the Loopy Ewe was kind enough to offer a 20% discount to anyone purchasing yarn for the KAL. I LOVE THE LOOPY EWE! Not only phenominal promotions, but uber fast servicee.
Anyway, here is the start of my shawl:



I read on one of the Ravelry forums that you should NOT use dark colors when knitting lace shawls. I don't know about you, but I LOVE the look of this dark color. This is Malibrigo Sock yarn in the color "Persia" and I love the subtle varigation and the darkness of the color itself. I'm tired of listening to other people. I'm going to knit what makes my heart SING.

HAPPY KNITTING to all!

I am NOT a total failure!

I DID IT!



I finished my first ever toe up socks!
See - I'm not a complete failure!

And Salem approves - which is what its all about anyway...

Giving Birth

OMG!! I did it!
I knit a toe up sock!
After starting and frogging FIVE (yes, 5) times, I have finally produced my very first toe up sock.



I feel like I've just given birth.

BUT alas, now I need to go and knit another one...

Brand New Day

I thought I would try once more to get a grip of toe up socks. I belong to Ravelry and I'm part of an amazing and supportive group of socknitters working their way through Wendy Johnson's awesome book "Socks from the Toe Up". I have a sock in progress and I'm loving it!



I love this yarn!! Yep, I'm a pink girl and this is Koigu KPPM. I love the "beef" of the yarn (no thread knitting for this girl) and it's actually behaving itself. I dropped a stitch last night and was able to retrieve it and fix the pattern back (sort of, but it looks OK).

YAY!

Now if only I can turn that heel...

The Frogs - They are a' Croakin!

Have you ever felt SO stupid about something?

I am there, right now!

For the life of me, I have yet to get a toe up sock to work.

First attempt: Nanners Sock



The pattern was gorgeous and was working - but the YARN was a PAIN!! It split, it un-twisted, it was NASTY! I know some folks love this yarn (and I LURVE the worsted version of this yarn) but I won't ever buy the sock yarn again.

Second attempt: Plain Vanilla Sock



Looks good, huh?
You didn't see the heel.
Yes, I have a high instep. My feet felt like a size 20 body that had been stuffed in a size 10 girdle. UGH! I tried to rip it out to just the mid-point, but ended up ripping it all the way back.

So, here I sit.

I THINK I know what I did wrong and how to fix it, but I'm catatonic right now. I may work up the courage to try again. Tomorrow...

Playing in the Dyepot...

Even though my rotator cuff is torn (from the fall - long story), I'm trying to do enough creative things that I don't go crazy.
One thing that I can still manage quite nicely is knitting. Lately, I've been obsessed with SOCKS!
For months, I have been drooling over Wollmeise yarn. Unfortunately, it is an elusive as a unicorn. So, I've given up. NO, no - not knitting socks, just finding Wollmeise.
So, what's a gal to do?
Why, dye her own!
With the help of Sheila over at Wool2Dye4, I got some soft, yummy yarn bases. I got out my acid dyes and proceeded to create.

First attempt - Caribbean!



Loved it! Sorry about the picture - I don't know why it's so dark.

Next, my knock off of Baristo:




I can't wait to knit this up!

Lastly, what I call a Study in Scarlet:



This yarn gave me fits! It's supposed to have pumpkin orange in it, but the fire red kept bleeding and bleeding and covered up most of the orange. I still love it - the reds go from bright, to rich, to deep. I have 2 of these skeins so they will be destined to become a shawl.

Not bad for an old broad!

I'm going to have to try this again. Stay tuned...

A Meme...

Never done one, but there's always a first time! Yes, I'm a MEME VIRGIN!
This was nabbed from my fav knitting blog, Wendy Knits.

Use the first letter of your name to find a word for each of the following:

Your Name - Denise
Four letter word - Damn
Boy name - David
Girl name - Delilah
Occupation - Dentist
Color - Dusk
Beverage - Dr. Pepper
Something found in a bathroom - Dryer (as in "hair")
A Place - Detroit
Reason for being late - Death
Food - Donuts
Something you shout - DANG!

Life is slowly getting back to normal. Hope Old Man Winter stays away!

The Ice Storm Cometh

I thought I would try and resurrect my poor blog. I thought that Hurricane Ike was going to be the extent of our severe weather for awhile - WRONG!! This ice storm was EVIL. Nothing like being without power for three days when temperatures are in the teens. By the time the power came back on, I couldn't feel the end of my nose or my toes! At least you can knit by candlelight.

The front yard:



The back view:



The sun is shining today and things are starting to melt. Let the clean up begin!!