It's a good light day

So you get some pictures! I've had some new yarn for a while but never took pictures of it - first, this is "Blueberry Wine" from Hill Country Yarns. (Purchased from Discount Yarn Sale.) I would say that "Blueberry Pink Lemonade" would be a more accurate color name; I still like it but it is not at all what I was expecting (and yes, I know hand dyed yarns vary).


Also from the same company, "Prairie View" (though in my book it's "Huskies"):
I also scored some Fleece Artist for 40% off from Simply Sock Yarn. "Midnight" is a mix of deep purples and blues:

And "Marine" is bright blues and greens:
The Fleece Artist is calling to me. Must. Knit. Christmas. Presents. First.

I hate it when I do that.

Works-in-progress Wednesday

But first, a couple of finished objects to show you:
The if-it-is-a-girl hat. I still need to go buy something to make the if-it-is-a-boy hat.

And, my finished pair of mittens. They are fine for a first pair, but next time I will definitely alter the pattern a little to fit my hands better.

Now, on to the in-progress:

We have a dark-but-clear photo and a bright-but-blurry one. Take your pick. (As always, click to see a larger photo.) You'd be able to see the pattern much better if I was actually wearing the finished sock, but at the moment I don't feel like contorting myself to take that sort of a photo, so you're out of luck.

I also have a pair of socks that I just cast on so there's not much point in taking a picture, and a few Christmas gifts on the needles but you can't see those for obvious reasons.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Stuff and Things

("Stuff and Things" is, by the way, the name of a secondhand store in Oregon.)

I have too much stuff. I have mentioned this before, and I have thought it for some time, so why do I still want more stuff? It is human nature to be selfish and greedy and to not be thankful for the things that one already has. Americans in general have too much stuff, and yet we are never content. A Bible verse that really struck me is Ecclesiastes 5:11:

As goods increase, so do those who consume them.
And what benefit are they to the owner except to feast his eyes on them?

I tend to make resolutions throughout the year, not just at the beginning. I resolve to be more grateful for what I have, and to do my best to focus on those things rather than on the things which I don't have.

Along those lines, if someone you know has too much stuff, you might consider giving a donation to Samaritan's Purse or some other charity in their honor in lieu of a Christmas gift. I personally have never done this because I am always afraid to step out and do something different. However, I think I will do this for a few people this year. I know that I would be thrilled if, for example, someone bought a goat for a poor family in my name. They could use a goat much more than I could use more sock yarn, I'm sure.

Yes, yes, I'm still alive.

Last night my husband and I went to the symphony. We have been four times, and going by our last three visits we average about once a year (the first time was several years ago). Last night we saw Grieg's Peer Gynt, John Williams' The Five Sacred Trees (a bassoon concerto), and Schumann's Symphony No. 1 in B-flat major. Peer Gynt was outstanding, I was really enthralled by it. I was unimpressed and bored by The Five Sacred Trees, though there were some good parts in the second movement. Honestly I believe that a large part of my feelings toward it are because it is modern (1993); I don't care for a lot of modern classical music. Schumann's symphony was good, but it didn't "speak to me" like some music does (Beethoven's Ninth, for example, or Mozart's Requiem). I am really glad that I got to hear Peer Gynt performed but I went away feeling a little disappointed that the rest of the concert wasn't as good.

These all were led by a guest conductor, Arild Remmereit, and I thought he was really good. He was very animated and seemed very good-natured - I saw him wiggling his eyebrows at several musicians before the concert started - and I was impressed that he only used a score for the bassoon concerto.

The baby is definitly reacting to sound now; after that first cymbal crash in Peer Gynt he woke up and started jumping around.

Last year for Christmas we were given a Seattle Symphony gift certificate and we used part of that to buy tickets to see the Cowboy Junkies in April. I'm really looking forward to that, and we still have a balance left so we'll get to go see another concert as well.

I had a really good, really long blog post written up in my head last night but unfortunately this is all you get....

Works-in-progress Wednesday

Here we have a hat for our baby (if it is a girl). It's Rowan Cashsoft aran, which is wonderfully soft; I just grabbed it from my stash but I think I may have to go buy another ball in a boyish color for the if-it-is-a-boy-hat.
Here is some great (for me) progress on sister M's socks. These are in kid mohair and they are turning out very fuzzy and snuggly feeling. The mohair is kind of annoying to work with so I can only knit with it for so long before taking a break.


And last but not least, my very second mitten ever. I am doing this one on 40 stitches instead of 44 and I think it's going to be a much better fit. That means I have to rip and reknit the first one....

It is only through great willpower that you don't see a partial baby sweater here today. I've already got most of it planned.

Note also that there has been no progress whatsoever on the Grey Sweater II or the Little Child's Socks. What's it to you?

Spinning

Recently I have started itching to spin again (like I don't have enough other things to do). I spun in high school on a homemade wheel similar to this one, but it is long gone. After some brief research it looks like a "real" wheel will cost me around $350 (and that's the lower end) so I guess I'll have to start up with a drop spindle (which start around $10-15).

My daughter, the knitter.

This morning F was drawing with her markers, and as usual, after a few minutes became bored and started playing with the caps (on, off, on, off...). My husband noticed she had taken two caps and was sitting on the couch, holding one in each hand and rubbing them together over and over. He asked what she was doing and she signed "knitting". Of course.

Cravings.

I have had a craving for ice cream for days. Weeks, maybe. Specifically, I've had a craving for Snoqualmie Gourmet ice cream. This afternoon I went to Country Village to get a scoop and, horror of horrors, the restaurant that serves it had closed early today. Sigh. So I had to settle for some Ben & Jerry's. Not as good as the Snoqualmie Gourmet, but it (mostly) took care of the craving. I'm still hankering after SG's pumpkin ice cream.

As you may have noticed, I completely forgot about Works-in-Progress Wednesday last night. Here you have a finished sleeve:


And a rather short sock:
(I figured out part of my dark photo problem. The pictures look lighter on the camera than they do once I move them to the computer. Phooey.)

Now that I have started posting regularly about my progress I am embarrassed about how slowly everything is going. I realize that I have other commitments, but it still seems like I should have more to show each week.

Today I bought yarn for a secret Christmas project. I would post about it but I know the intended recipient reads my blog. So you'll just have to imagine some Brown Sheep worsted until after Christmas.

Socktoberfest

Well, Socktoberfest is officially here. I have decided that my goals for this month are:

a) to finish sister M's socks. These have languished on the needles for months (she asked me to make them for her back in March) and I've finally decided that toe-up is not going to work for this pair. When I next attempt toe-up socks, it will not be with kid mohair.

b) to finish my Little Child's Socks from Knitting Vintage Socks

c) make the Thick Woodsman's Socks from Knitting Around

d) learn the two circulars method of sock knitting, and

e) attempt toe-up socks again.

Obviously, I have too many goals. Especially because we are going to go on vacation for two weeks and I've got a million things to do before we leave. But maybe I can do three out of five....