More Gift Photos

I got the pictures of my grandmother's Veyla.

I did these without buttons. I modified the pattern to graft the cuffs together. After I've had some time, I'm going to make a pair of these for myself to wear at work.

Once one more package gets delivered and opened I'll be able to share the last of the knitted gifts.

Well Finally

Now that Christmas is over, and gifts across the country have been opened, I can finally share with you some of the super top secret knitting I've been up to.

First up is a blankie I made for my nephew Kyle (relative by friends). I started this back in early July according to my Ravelry project page. In my defense, I designed this as I was knitting, so sometimes the blankie would sit and marinate while I sorted out the next step.

The yarn is Knit Picks Crayon, which was lovely to knit with and is deliciously soft as a blankie. I have plenty left over for the upcoming twins due it late May (to a different family).

Under Sea Baby Blanket

The report is that Kyle loves it. I hope this thing gets loved to death. It's just about the right size to be a cape for a toddler...

Next up is a pair of Veyla by Ysolda Teague, made for Val (Kyle's Mom). The yarn is Shibui super sock in a lovely deep purple. The "buttons" are snowflake obsidian beads from my stash.

Veyla for Val with David's present underneath

 I made a second pair of Veyla for my grandmother using the Zombie Cherry yarn that I dyed during late summer. Sadly, I forgot to get a picture before I sent them away, so I'll have to wait for my mom to snap one.

I still have two secret projects that I can't share, since I only got 2 of 3 packages out on time. So I'm going to leave you with this really strange picture I managed to get of Westley. I like it. It's deep.

The Eternal Mystery of the Cat (c) 2011

Who Wants a Swancho?

The super top secret knitting continues at Casa del Westley. Sadly, I've been doing little but super top secret knitting, work, and ignoring chores.  Soon, however, I will begin selfish knitting again and will be able to share with you. I want to get the better part of a sweater done while I'm off of school, and have narrowed my choices down to the following:

Ashfield Cardigan by Melissa LaBarre, from New England Knits, done in Cascade 200 Sport (purple, don't remember if it's 8885 or 8886).

Drawstring Waist Cardigan from Vogue Knitting, done in Sierra Pacific Crafts Katyil (the same yarn as my purple cabled sweater).

Lowry Pullover from KnitScene, done in mystery Danish wool blend that I got in a swap.

Mythos from Knitty in Elann Baby Silk (Oxblood).

Lazy Weekend Sweater, done in a recycled red wool/cotton blend, rescued from a very unfortunate Old Navy sweater.

OK, so I haven't narrowed it down much. I'll work on it.

And, so this post isn't all text, here's an apt cartoon for the season.

Baby It's Cold Outside!

We've been having a cold snap, and today it never got above freezing. Even with all of my wooly items, I'm cold.

It's so cold the spider webs have frozen. Which is really quite pretty (and means that the accompanying spiders have moved out).

It's finals week, and I've got one exam left to go (Thursday, statistics, not looking forward to it). With the term wrapping up, I've been able to get a bit more knitting done. Sadly, it's almost all super secret gift knitting, so I can't post any pictures for a while :-(. I am going to work on getting pictures of my finished shawl collared cowl (which it has been too cold for, I need the extra bulk of a full scarf). I am working on one shop model for FNC. I'll get pictures up as soon as that's done an delivered, hopefully this weekend.

A New Look

To commemorate the rainy season here in the PNW, I've given the blog a face lift. Now you can all share the rainy days with me.

Definite Signs of Startitis

I must be getting better physically, because I'm starting to get restless where knitting is concerned. I've got 3 patterns on my desk right now, I started a new project on Thursday that's almost complete, and I'm already planning my next project. Added to this, I'm not working on the large project that's been dragging on and on for months.

Unfortunately, two of the projects I'm working on (the large one and the almost done new one) are holiday gifts for readers of this blog, so I can't tell you anything about them. Except that they're both awesome. I can tell you about my next project.

Meet the Shawl Collared Cowl by Alana Dakos of Never Not Knitting. I bought this on Friday at Stash as a "hurray for recovery" gift to myself. I will be using my first ever handspun to make a cozy cowl for myself. I've never knit with any of my handspun, so it should be an experience.

Speaking of spinning, it's Spin Day down and Stash, and I'm going to grab my wheel and try to make a dent in the never ending carbonized bamboo from the Tour de Fleece. I'm not quite half way through it. I'll make sure to get an updated picture.

Random Thursday

I've been sick for nearly 2 weeks now, and as a result I am behind on absolutely everything, blog posts included. So I've rounded up several never before seen pictures from my camera and present them to you here in roughly chronological order.

Abbie in the leftover sock yarn basket at Stash.


My finished Chiton Pullover in action. It is very warm!


Abbie and some distant relations at Laughing Planet.


Abbie is impressed by my meal at Laughing Planet. So was I, considering it was vegetarian.


Abbie on my cubicle buddies' very large ball.


A new art installation on Campus. It's...interesting...


A blast from some of our past.


Abbie and Kevin eyeing one another at my desk.


Abbie at the fist Stash Fiber Day. Can you spot her in all the color?


Abbie pretending to be fiber.


Abbie checking out the medical equipment at Student Health.


Abbie helping me with a breathing treatment.


That's all for now. I'm finding no small amount of comfort in the fact that despite being sick and feeling really bad (the flu turned into bronchitis and my lungs won't give up the ghost), I still maintain my sense of whimsy and will photograph Abbie in the oddest places. Take that, microbes!

To Boldy Go

The lighting in the computer lab is terrible.

Just One More

Then bed, I'm tired.

My Weekend Away

A few choice snippets before I completely succumb to regular life.

A Spare Moment

I had my first exam today in evolution, and it was all of 50 multiple choice questions in a subject I'm familiar with, so I've got a few spare minutes on my hands, and thought I come by and photo spam.

Abbie riding in my new purse, which has special Kiwi pockets.


Abbie playing Angry Birds with me on Google+ while on shift in the computer lab.


This is Napoleon, the nervous narwhal, with me at work waiting to go to his forever home...


...which is Stash! Napoleon was done as a sample knit for Simplicity by Hikko yarn, and pattern by Danger Crafts.


This is a neat art display in the new Linus Pauling building on campus, which had it's grand opening last Friday.


This is, apparently, how fried pickles are done in the PNW. They were pretty good, if not what I was expecting. Done with house made pickles, too.


And finally, Abbie helped me with my evolution exam. It's a good thing, too, because there were some questions about Kiwis and their kin. Don't worry, the TA said it wasn't cheating to have a Kiwi's help.

Abbie at Stash

Last week Abbie and I got to go to a pre-opening party at Stash, the new hip place for yarn in town. Stash officially opens this coming Thursday, October 13th. At the party, Abbie was a typical celebrity kiwi and demanded quite a bit of attention, and of course she wanted to see everything and I documented it. So, without further ado, here's a photo collection of Abbie's time at Stash.

The front doors, which look promising.


Welcome to Stash!


Hey look, refreshments.


What a pretty way to see and feel spinning fiber. Can you spot Abbie?


There's a lovely big mirror that makes the small store feel big.


Abbie would like to travel in style in this bag, instead of in my pocket.


Camouflage Abbie!


More little nibbles. Abbie's got quite the sweet beak.


More fun ways to display merchandise, this time locally made buttons.


Here's Peaceful Knitter, the lovely owner of Stash.


There's even an old spinning wheel (non-functional but pretty).


There's knitters in Stash (no Abbie, she was taking a short powder break).


The decorative elements in Stash are truly lovely and inspired.


After all that, Abbie needed a cupcake and some punch, and then she fell asleep in my knitting bag.


We can't wait to go back and visit Stash after it's opened!