Sunday, May 22, 2011

GIVEAWAY!!

So, despite not having many followers, it feels like when you run a blog dedicated to a particular thing, you should have a giveaway. I've been wanting to do this for a while, and now that I am planning to blog regularly, there couldn't be a better time than now to give away lots of good stuff! So, I give to you, my first giveaway:




You could win the following:
1. Stitch Nation full o' sheep in Little Lamb [155 yards of peruvian wool]
2. Bernat Mocasic in Spectrum [209 yards]
3. Desiderata Farm Alpacas wool [50% alpaca, 50% merino. 3 ply, 110 yards] MADE IN NEWFOUNDLAND.
4. Briggs and Little Tuffy in Ecru. [215 yards] made in New Brunswick, Canada!
5. Briggs and Little Tuffy in Forest Green [215 yards] *pre balled*
6. a handmade faux baby cable hat in cranberry red + ivory

Not Pictured:
7. your choice between either one Hiya Hiya circular needle or the price equivalent in Hiya hiya crochet hooks, depending on your craft of choice. [ the needles are more expensive, so you'll probably get a few hooks]
8. I realize a lot of this happens to be white yarn, so i will include the following for your dyeing pleasure:
- a few packets of koolaid
- your choice in color of TWO[2] Knitpicks Jacquard Acid Yarn Dyes



HOW TO WIN:
1. Leave a comment, and please include a valid email so I can contact you if you are the winner.
2. Also include what color Jacquard dyes you'd like to recieve if you were the winner. :)
3. You MUST be following this blog to win. (not my tumblr)
4. If you have found this via tumblr and are uncomfortable providing an email in your comment, leave your tumblr name instead. Do not change your username, if I can't find you, i will choose a new person.

Winners will be randomly chosen with the help of random.org, on June 19, 2011. This giveaway is international.       Happy knitting/crocheting/spinning/dyeing, and good luck!



ps. Follow the jump to check out some close ups on the goodies.

Abalone KAL








Every now and then, the girls at The Rooms tend to do a KAL that lasts a month but in reality can take longer because some projects are hellish. This time around, we've decided to do Abalone, a short sleeved cardigan that you could also alter into a vest. Abalone doesn't button up, it rests against your body with a curved hem, it's really quite nice.
Another awesome thing about this pattern is that it doesnt come in S,M, L, etc. you get to adjust it yourself by measuring from nipple to nipple, and comparing that to your gauge. I have never actually bothered with gauge before, nor have I ever made a swatch until this project, so it seemed intimidating to me. If it feels the same way to you, don't even worry about it, it's not nearly as difficult as it may sound. Anyway, in the end you'll have a garment perfectly tailored to fit your body.
I only just finished the increases, so theres' nothing too interesting to show you as of yet, except..

Malabrigo Rios is awesome. Awesome. You can see in the second photo posted above how shiny this is, and all the photos capture the diversity and variation in the color. Almost every stitch ends up a different shade of blue. The color I purchased is called Aguas. There are a few negative reviews on this yarn, but ultimately it all depends on your preferences. I find the fact its silky/slippery more convenient because it makes it easier to work with, and looks nicer. All in all if you're a Malabrigo fan, check it out, for sure.

- Cind.

Friday, May 20, 2011

Wendy Knits and the Shetland Pi Shawl

So i've been following a site for a while now - or should I say spooking, as i have never commented on anything there yet, oops. Anyway, the site is Wendy Knits, and if you happen to enjoy knitting, siamese kitties, the occasional giveaway, and complex looking lace patterns with simple instructions, this is one site you have to bookmark.
Wendy is fantastic when it comes to the design of beautiful lace projects. I considered myself a newbie when it comes to lace, as I haven't done many things, and nothing on a large scale. A hat here, a cloth there, an occasional yarnover. That was before I tried out one of her patterns. It was written in such a way that even a completely beginner could understand these. I was really happy about it.

So, last night when I couldn't sleep, I decided to cast on the Shetland Pi Shawl - because you can never have too many projects, amirite? I'm on Chart C already, 288 stitches around thus far. This thing gets pretty large, but also so beautiful.

Don't have Ravelry? CLICK HERE
What's that wool?: Knitpicks Bare Shadow Lace

ps. This is the perfect yarn. It's a 2 ply laceweight with 880 yards. EIGHT.HUNDRED.AND.EIGHTY. for $5.50/hank. You are robbing them blind, thats the only way to describe such a heavenly deal. Its so light, nice to work with, your projects will feel like strands of air. Its also perfect for people who like to dye, as it is called bare for a reason.

Expect in the near future a blog post + photos on my recent adventures in the world of spinning, plus dyeing with koolaid, as well as a giveaway! It will be a small one as it is my first, but still quite swell if I do say so myself.

Take care,
Cind.

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Gabriels Wings.

Despite being in the midst of review for my finals, I've been knitting non stop the past week. It's nice to be able to knit a few rows[or 50] and not experience discomfort/pain from my wrist to my shoulder. I have a lot of catching up to do, it sounds reasonable to me! haha.

Unfortunately, I only have webcam photos to share with you today, as my camera battery is dead. I need to buy a camera of my own, eventually. In the meantime, they aren't terrible photos, so I shall share.

This is something I cast on a little while ago, and that I tend to knit on and off. I usually only work on it when I am watching Supernatural. Actually, I chose this project in honor of one of my favorite characters from the show, Gabriel/Trickster!
As you can see, it's a combination of stockinette and garter stitch separated by YOs and also has a center stitch. Its a very easy to memorize pattern, and even after putting it away for a week, I whipped it out one day in the car and had no trouble recalling where I had left off.
What is this? This is Gabriels Wings, which can be as big or as small as you desire, something I like a lot about this pattern. Dont have Ravelry? CLICK HERE
What it's knit with: Noro Kureyon Sock in S150.
This yarn often has points of being inconsistent, it turns into roving at some points, but with that aside, it is very easy to work with. It may be rough, but it doesn't feel irritating on my hands when I work with it. Its the kind of yarn where you touch it and never want to use it, but it really isn't so bad. A judge a book by its cover kind of thing, if you will.

All in all if you want a rewarding yet mindless shawl pattern, i'd recommend this one.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Well, i'm back at last. I had to take a 3 month hiatus on knitting due to a mixture of a carpal tunnel flare up, as well as a mountain of stress to go with it. Lots of school work to be done. I will make an effort to blog regularly from now on.

Friday, March 18, 2011

"Doctor Who" scarf update


It's about time I post an update on a project I started a little while ago - a Doctor Who scarf, done for commission. It is going to be ~10 feet when all done, and today it broke the 7 foot mark.
This has taken maybe 5 hours so far, I wasn't really counting so i'd have to think it over, but its probably something like that. I usually watch a movie when im working on this, and i'm hoping the next time i put one on and work on it, it will finally be finished and given to its owner.

It is knit on 6.5mm needles, done in garter stitch like the original scarf. I used misc. acrylic yarn, all purchased at michaels. I chose to use acrylic so it would be less expensive for the person and also so it would be easier to take care of. If you need to wash it, just toss it in. When a scarf is this long, you really don't want to have to go through the whole handcare thing. Anyway, here is the photo i took for this. Its the scarf hanging over the door of my bedroom.



And, of course, here is a photograph of the original Tom Baker scarf, from which this scarf is inspired.


Cheers!

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Hedera

So, I began knitting a pair of socks with my KIP pals for a March KAL.

A lot of us ended up knitting Hedera, a gorgeous lace repeat sock, which is simple to remember. It is really good for beginners who don't want to do a plain sock, but also aren't confident in their lace skills. Well, this sock is perfect for anyone really. I'm not new to lace or socks, but I chose this as a challenge. It turned out to be really simple, but I am enjoying knitting it!
I'm hoping that doing a pair as a KAL will enable me to actually come out with a pair of socks instead of just one. Now, if only I could actually finish these by April.
I will probably do a post on these once i am finished both of them, but in the mean time here's a peek:

Friday, March 4, 2011

sock knitting [ and why it isnt as intimidating as it seems]

Firstly, a quick hello to my new followers! :)

Next, since I began knitting, there was always one thing I was worried about, one thing that I really didn't feel like I should dare attempt. That, my friends, would be knitting a sock. I am not certain what it is about a sock that seems to cause knitters to drop their needles where they stand. Their faces seem to imply they would rather give up knitting forever than create some warmth for their own feet!
Well, even now, I'm still not certain what it is about socks that is so scary. The closest I could come to would be the heel, which is created with short rows, which really aren't so frightening after all!

So, I decided to dedicate a post with sock heels. Well, unfortunately I am past the heel of my own sock, so i can't make my own post with photos/video, so i'm going to provide a few videos that may help you. Perhaps when I am on the second sock i will do something. In the meantime:



I can't recommend theknitwitch [seen below] enough. all of her videos are simple, to the point, and very helpful for people unfamiliar with stitches.


I hope seeing it done first hand can help those of you who are feeling intimidated by socks to feel fearless and adventurous once more. It really is as simple as knitting/purling, and then well, turning your needles around.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Yarn Review: Cascade 220



I think it is time to do a long overdue review on a yarn that I have grown to love. Cascade 220 is a worsted weight yarn, made of 100% peruvian wool that is durable, heavy, and, most delightful of all for a student like myself, it is reasonably priced! It may be cheap in price, but it's most definitely not cheap in quality.

A 100g skein[pictured above] is equal to ~220 yards. This is a great multipurpose yarn, as it holds up well, and comes in endless tones shades of each color. You can view their color swatch cards HERE, as there are far too many colors to post here. One of the great things about Cascade220 would be their color options. A lot of the knitting i do is done because i find it aesthetically pleasing - after all, first the pattern catches your eye, and then i typically choose not only a yarn that compliments but a color I like, or the recipient likes. So, for me, it is important to have a lot of options to choose from. In this department, cascade does no wrong. There are solids, heathers, quattros, etc. Pictured below is the heathered version of this yarn. If you have no project planned but would like to try this yarn, I would recommend making a heather your first pick, you will not be disappointed.

This is color 9451, Lake Chelan Heather. Gorgeous, right? And the others hold up to the same quality, just really beautiful.


If you are a fan of accessories, toys, or especially feltwork, this yarn is right for you. This is the best felting yarn i've come across so far, actually. I toss it in my washer[top loading, it's pretty old] and even the biggest projects will felt in a matter of minutes. I'm really looking forward to making an oversized felted bag out of this yarn in the future.
Another thing I wanted to quickly mention would be splitting. Splitting is not something I have experienced with cascade so far. It is easy to work with, makes a nice finished project, and I haven't even found a single knot in a skein yet!

All in all, I would give this yarn a 9/10. It is the yarn i turn to when i am unable to afford yarn but really "need" that one color [also known as kid-in-a-candy-store syndrome] for a project I don't really have time to begin.

If you are wondering what this looks like knit up, or are seeking some inspiration, check out the RAVELRY PROJECT PAGE. just to give you an idea of how much us knitters/crocheters love this yarn, it is in over 38000 stashes, and has been used in over 64 000 projects documented on ravelry. Impressive. plug in some words into the search bar to get more specific results, like 'red', or 'hat.

Wondering where to buy this yarn? If you live in NL, check out A Good Yarn, located in beautiful downtown St. John's, on Bates Hill. Jenny is a very genuine shop owner, who is always up for a spot of tea, and to help you with any questions you might have. She stocks some lovely popular, in demand yarns so if you're ever in the area, be sure to stop in for a cup and a KIP! Links to her facebook page, twitter, etc. are available on her website, as well has her hours of operation.

Online, check out http://www.yarn.com/. They are always guaranteed to have a wide selection to choose from. :)

Happy Knitting!



Thursday, January 20, 2011

On tuesday evening, we made pie. Well, actually, post work i was feeling pretty fatigued, so while i skyped with a friend while in bed, my sister actually made this:
Chicken Pot Pie from a betty crocker book i tried to remember the name of but evidently failed.
She claims she can't cook but it came out great, go figure! I think she just lies to get out of doing things, heh



It really was quite delicious. My only problem was- and for the record, not the fault of the cook but of the recipe itself - the fact it was a little bland. salty, yes. Bursting with flavor? not so much. Thus in the photo you can see i added some cayenne pepper to mine. I just like spicy food so much i had to. Cayenne powder, how on earth did i ever live without you?

Next up, i baked cookies for dessert. The recipe was adapted from the one on the side of my Robin Hood quick oats.



I included water but did not have any eggs in this recipe. They came out flat but i think it was best they did, kind of added to the flavor. They were absolutely delicious. I added flax seed and such. I had two, everyone else had some and then the following morning i packed them up into a container and brought them to school with me. I was only there briefly for one period[45 minutes] When i went to collect my container it was completely empty! I was so glad people liked them. I'll definitely be bringing more things into school. I'm considering bringing in some shortbread cookies shaped like various animals [best cookie cutters i ever invested in, thanks wilton!] with a bit of melted chocolate drizzled like a border. If I have time on sunday evening it is a will do.

Knitting
I am working on a pullover. Decided to make it striped in navy blue and light grey.

as you can see i am not very far. Knitting 40" of plain stockinette ith 246 sts per row gets a little tedious, so i cant do very much at a time. It's more of a lazy evening/school/late night Psych watching project more than anything else.

I am going to cast a hat on once i'm done writing this though, just to get my 4th hat for the month done. 4 hats a month is such a simple thing to do. I'm glad i can do them quickly so i have time to do other things.

My rug hooking is coming along nicely. The only problem i am having is the crochet hook is really hurting my fingers. I need to try out the latch hook i have, I suppose. I almost have his head done though!

As you can see there are a lot of gaps in the head. I'm still getting used to positioning the crochet hook in the best place to punch the holes so i don't get that gap. Hopefully the body will have less spacing.

Finally, I made some granola tonight. I wish i had taken the time to go to Bulk Barn and pick up more nuts and seeds however it was 10pm when i began making this, so i used some peanuts, sunflower seeds, oats, flax seed, maple syrup, a bit of oil, and some misc. seeds from a trail mix i had lying around. Unfortunately those 5 extra minutes i left them in while i ran upstairs kind of caused it to burn a little. Its a bit crunchier than i'd hope but it is still entirely delicious and i intend to enjoy it all week long. I am trying it out with some cranberry yogurt and a few fresh blueberries.

It tastes as good as it looks, yes.


All this foodmaking has put me into good spirits, I have to admit. Something so simple can really relieve all the stress you were feeling. I have accomplished a good bit the past few days. I am having no difficulty with school work either which is fantastic.

It has been such a long, tiring week, so i'm glad i can finally just finish this math homework off, and rest alll day tomorrow[not working, yay!] Work today was so busy as we had a lot of new kids, i had two new kids alone at the junior table where i work most of the time.

Off to get that finished so i can hopefully get to bed early for once.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

The possibility of having "too many" hobbies

I am the kind of person who has to constantly learn new things. I am not satisfied with the knowledge i have. It feels like every other day I have sparked up some new habit or idea that I absolutely must carry on with or bring to life. It basically settles into my brain with the grip of a strong man and does not let go. It turns into a priority instead of a simple thought/suggestion, and not only must I do it, I need to do it as soon as possible.

For example, the other day I realized I wanted to get back into gardening. After doing it for a full season, I was very disappointed when I didn't have the opportunity to repeat it again in spring/summer of 2010. I have always been interested in trying container gardening. So two days ago I went and picked up a fluorescent light for my indoor greenhouse. The only issue is i have misplaced my seeds someplace. I may pick up a few bulbs as well and give them a whirl. I just want some herbs now that i'm getting more and more interested in cooking. I'll probably go around after i get off class tomorrow morning and look around for some things.

I've also been debating learning rug hooking for a long time now, and after youtubing it lat night it of course latched onto my head. Thus right after work today i drove up the road to Michaels craft store and bought the supplies. I'm not happy with the fabric i bought. I got linen as there was no burlap and i didn't have time to go anywhere else, but in the end it is just too tightly knit together. Not having fun pulling my crochet back up through the linen. I will finish this off and hopefully find something a little easier to work with next time. I'm really liking it so far. It is not something difficult to catch on to. I also really like the fact it is entirely free hand if you want it to be. I feel more accomplished knowing i just came up with something off the top of my head and went for it. Not that i'm promising anything incredible, mind you. I will probably use some of my tarn[t shirt yarn] on my next project, and make a rug of some sort for my mother

Here is my current project, started tonight:

it will be a robot, or so i hope.

Monday, January 10, 2011

Resolution Update: Learning to Cook + boxing day sale books

I am sad to say that I haven't had time to cast on another hat yet, though i have KIPs on both Wednesday and Thursday evening, so I will probably get my 4th hat of the month done on one of those days. Mittens aren't going much better, as I have to wait to order as a group from Knitpicks with the rooms group. I'm debating using Palette for a pair of mittens that require a lot of colorwork, as it would be cheaper to order from there, but perhaps i'll use something thicker. I guess I could always line them for warmth, though.

Anyway, this entry is not about knitting but cooking, rather. I have taken it upon myself to learn how to cook properly.
I have made a couple of things the past little while. I've decided the only way to expand my cooking skills, and to eat more/new things, is to just dive in and try a ton of new things.


Corn Salad
peaches and cream corn, peas, red onion, 1 tbsp ranch dressing, red bell pepper


The entire meal:
corn salad, sweet and spicy sweet potatoes, and steak stirfry strips marinated in the leftover sweet n spicy sauce i made. It doesn't look like a whole lot but I was so full after eating this. My sister had hot wings instead of steak, her loss.


I am really impressed with how everything has tasted so far - not that any of the things I have made so far have been complicated in any way, of course. This weeks creations will be a much larger amount of sweet potato soup, chocolate chip oatmeal cookies, shortbread cookies, and chicken pot pie. I'm looking forward to it. I want to get more simple things accomplished before I attempt moving forward with more..interesting things [Read: hard]


And in other news once again, I have finally spent just about all my gift card money. I had 125 bucks in chapters gift cards, and I figured it wouldn't go very far but I somehow managed to get 20 books out of it!

Heres a photo and a list of my purchases:




I know you can probably read it anyway but:

1.Dr. Jeckyll & Mr Hyde and Other Strange Tales by Robert Louis Stevenson
2. Heart of Darkness & Tales of Unrest by Joseph Conrad
3. The Professor Charlotte Bronte
4. Journey to The Centre of the Earth by Jules Verne
5. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
6. Tess of the D'urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
7. Lady Chatterlays Lover by D.H Lawrence
8. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
9. The Metamorphosis + other stories by Franz Kafka
10. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
11. Lullabies for Little Criminals by Heather O'Neill
12. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
13. Every Man Dies Alone by Hans Fallada
14. Wolf Woman Bay + other stories by Ed Gorman
15. The Unexpected and Fictional Career Change of Jim Kearns by David Munroe
16. Empress of Asia by Adam Lewis Shroeder
17. The Weight of Heaven by Thrity Umrigar
18. Great Novels by Charles Dickens [ contains several of his novels]

All in all not so bad. I am not buying another book until I clean up my shelf and actually read more of the books on said shelves. Every purchase makes me pleased because i actually have a small library and it grows all the time. However, I should stay on top of that and organize it properly before I dare invest in another shelf.

anyway, things to do. I wish i had more time to blog but alas. This month is all about beginning the things I want to do, see which ones i want to continue and which ones im not interested in after all. Next month I will deal more with time management and organizing it all.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

52 Hat-A-Long + the end of the holidays

It seemed so abrupt, the end of the holidays. I suppose it was because in the end, it never felt like a vacation in the first place. It was very rainy the past few weeks, even on christmas eve it was miserable. However, today we had sunshine! It has been so long since the shine shone that my eyes could not adjust, i was just squinting, even with my sunglasses on!

52 Hats in 52 Weeks
I have 3 out of 52 hats done so far. I have a lot of other things to work on so I figured I would get a head start. Sadly I can only dream of having the time to do that any other month. more than likely, i will fall behind, but that's all you can do.
Here are some photos of the 3 hats.

Godrics Hollow


Slouchy Ridges Hat


Heartfail


365 Books in 365 Days
I just finished my third book. I'm aiming for 30 a month rather than one literally every single day. I don't have a lot of time to read or do much else, but yeah. I started an account for my novel reviews. I'm not sure how to write them so perhaps with more experience i will share.

1. The Black Dudley Murder by Margery Allingham (a tad dragged out but interesting all the same)
2. The Sea by John Banville (dreadful, was painful to get through. Plenty of words with no real plot value or character growth imo)
3. Slow Man by JM Coetzee (pleasant, would read again)



School
Picked up my schedule today. I have:
math level 3 with Dave
biology level 3 with Chad
human dynamics + something i forget with Ann
Enterprise with Ron
and i guess i will be doing nl studies off the record.

Went to the doctor today and got a clean bill of health. My vision couldn't be better, my blood pressure is perfect, cholesterol is fine (this was a relief as all three are common in my family) They were things I had been wondering about for quite some time so it is good to know I am actually quite healthy.