Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Black Shawls of Doom

Oh happy day! I have finally finished the second Curved Shawl by Jane Sowerby that my coworker ordered for her sister. This one turned out much better than the first, what with reading the chart correctly and doing double joins all along the edge instead of singles like I did last time. The first one really did turn out fine, it just didn't look quite like it was supposed to.

Now I just have one more shawl to make for her. Thankfully I convinced her that a different pattern would be good because I think if I had to do this pattern again, I'd scream (nothing wrong with the pattern its just kinda boring after the first one and tedious after the second). Originally I was supposed to make her 1 Curved Shawl and 2 Myrtle Leaf Shawls, both from Victorian Lace Today. And instead I've done 2 Curved Shawls (the sister decided to give one to a friend and I got to make her another) and 1 Myrtle Leaf, which took forever and bored me to tears by the end of it. I'll admit, I had to rip back 10 full rows of the thing cause of my not reading the chart correctly. That sucked....a lot. So instead of the Myrtle Leaf I'm doing the North Roe Shawl by Dodlie. It has a similar leaf motif, is smaller, and does not have a picked up border *thumbs up* Its going well and is an easy pattern to memorize (this of course completely belies the fact that I had to completely rip back the first repeat of chart 1). I'm hoping to capitalize on my finishing jag and get this one done by the end of next month. And then I can work on things with color!!!!!!

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

USA wins Group

WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! The shawl is done!!!!!! It took almost exactly two months to finish from cast on to final blocking. The final bead count was roughly 9,500 ^_^. And, and my picture of the shawl is now featured on Ravelry, which I am sooooo very excited about.

I won't be able to gift my cousin with it until I head to my parents from my birthday next month, but I figure that gives me plenty of time to show it off to absolutely everyone I know :)

I have been in a finishing mood as of late, which I know means I need to work on projects as fast as possible before it packs its bags for greener pastures. Of course the thing I want to finish the most I don't have anymore yarn for. Thankfully I just need one more skein of Bristol in black, which is very easy to find, but now I must throw myself on the tender mercies of the post office. Move faster damn it!

I could also justify starting two other shawls, one because I'm being paid for it (not a lot but whatever) and the other because...well its new yarn and a cool pattern. Except in both cases I need a size 7 circular needle.....WHICH I DON'T HAVE! So again I am waiting for things to arrive in the mail. *sigh* I love knit picks needles and they are cheap, which is a really good thing right now, but really if it weren't for the money I would have just gone out and bought an Addi needle (stupid job, start paying regularly again *kick*). So instead I'm working on these for M:







































Cross-Country Socks by Ingrid Hiddessen done in Mini Mochi Intense Rainbow.

Thursday, June 17, 2010

a PSA

I will come right out and say it: I REALLY dislike glassed in porches. I mean seriously, your walking down the sidewalk and you look over and you can just tell that that was never the intent of the design. Its ugly, ugly, ugly. And this is because they were installed by a contractor and not a design person (this is not to say that people who design for a living do not make ugly things, because they most certainly do). I think what annoys me even more is that I have, on occasion, see a very well done filled in porch. So its not a law of nature that says they have to be bad, just a law of window department of your local mega hardware store. Take a little time and effort people. Its your house, and generally the entrance to your house, so take a little pride in it and do something nice!

This rant was brought up by a project I'm working on. Client is moving the entrance of their house and I am working out how to make it stand out. A glassed in porch was suggested as a potential solution....ummmmm no. Thankfully my idea of a wrap-a-round porch looks many times better.

Saturday, June 12, 2010

Kitties and a ton of beads

My kitties do NOT think I should sleep in on the weekends. 7:45 comes around and there is suddenly a lot of meowing and stomping all over me. Its so incredibly difficult to ignore their pointy little feet digging into my side. -_- Maddex has also picked up this fun new trick of sitting on the back of the couch and putting his claws into my scalp. Why?!?!

I'm down to the edging on my beaded shawl. I just have to pick up another, oh 765 beads. Which puts the total bead count for this thing in the range of 10,000 to 9,500 beads....Yes I'm well aware that people think I'm nuts. ^_^ I can't wait to see what this looks like when its all blocked out. I am so lucky to have crafty friends. T only smiles a bit when I ask her if I can come over to borrow her carpet. But then I taught her the joy of piecing, the process of taking big pieces of fabric and cutting them into little pieces of fabric and then sewing them together to make a big piece of fabric. Of course if her mother comes over that could be interesting to explain. See I do most of my blocking on my bead, but since this thing, unblocked, is as big as mine last shawl finished.....I really don't think its going to fit. And so a trip to Plano is in my future.