bag 'n' trash -- home of monster yarn

Knitting Free Post

the other day, i mentioned that when i should have been concentrating on my olympic event, i was partying with needlepoint.  i even brought it to the closing ceremonies *gasp* but was shamed into keeping it in the bag (which is fine, since it would have gotten in the way of the drinking of beer).

anyway, jackie asked to see it anyway.  and who am i to say no to jackie. 

so this is the piece that i've been working off and on for a few days now.  it's a door stopper kit that i purchased in bermuda. i love this little pink house. 

i finished this piece ages ago.  it needs to be properly blocked and framed.

(i found this piece at the bottom of a bag, so i needed the mouse and camera to keep it flat).

finally, this piece is the largest i've ever attempted and it's almost done.  unfortunately i've run out of the sky blue cotton, and i'm going to be a little short on the white of the house.  so this piece will continue to be on hold at least until the summer when i go back to france.  (i think i bought this canvas a good 10 years ago).

and because i'm a born multi-tasker, i crocheted a couple of hand soap cozies last night. 

(i wonder if these are kitschy enough for stitchy?)

that's all for now.

I'm a Winner

yes i am.  because i got a gold medal at cara's olympic closing ceremonies party (you know the one -- the one with the topless barbie).  and if i have a medal, it must be true. 

as you've all heard already, the party was great.  there was good food, fun conversation, and beer (and topless barbies).  but it was also educational.  here's a couple of things that i learned.

1.  grumperina knits really tiny thing.  really she does!  we all ooh and aahh about how beautiful her work is and how prolific she is, but the real truth is that her shawls ... they're doll shawls.  we know, because we saw one.  her socks?  tiny little baby socks.  really.  the hats?  fit on my thumb.  craziness.  this of course takes nothing away from her exquisite work.  it just gives one pause.

2.  carole's husband dale is a trooper.  he's nice, and funny, and comfortable among 30,000 women who talk about yarn.  plus, he brings the beer and the bottle opener.  do not invite carole without dale.  carole's nice and all, but she doesn't bring the beer.

3.  there is WAY more drama in blogland than i could ever imagine.  where have i been?  do i not read the right blogs?  has my habit of skimming long posts come back to bite me in the ass?  WHY DON'T I KNOW MORE?!   eh.  i'm so out of the loop.

4.  all drawings and contests are fixed.  i did not win one prize on sunday.  and i'm bitter about it.

Citius, Altius, Fortius

"The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph, but the struggle. The  essential  thing is not to have conquered, but to have fought well."

one more day, and i'm not going to finish.  and that's ok.  i was distracted (i made a pair of house socks, and worked on some needlepoint).  there were times when i doubted i could continue, but continue i did.  i fought through the disgust, the incessant frogging, the knots in the skanks when pulling the strands apart.

i have 4 more sections to do, and then see all of those little strands?  i-cord.  thousands and thousands of feet of i-cord.  i'll finish.  but not by tomorrow.

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i made a button.  like bode, the expectations were high, but i fell short.  if you fell short, but had a good time anyway, feel free to help yourself.

Blasphemy?

wanna see what i've added to my library lately?

i'm wondering if this has anything to do with being surrounded by 34,261 tiny skanks of yarn.

D is for

DOG

rocky is my greg/peter/bobby that i adopted when i married my mr. brady (except that my mr. brady isn't gay).  he's accepted my marcia (well "mark") and jan and cindy as best as an old dog can.  i never thought of myself as a dog person, i always thought dogs were too high maintenance and needy, but this guy is a trooper.  he's funny, sweet, and loves his ham and cheese.  and he doesn't lay on my knitting.  can't beat that.

It'll Take a Miracle

claudia wants pictures.  she wants proof that this thing is the mess that i say it is.   well let's start with what i like about it. 

the first fair-isle section.  i did it once, frogged it in it's entirety then frogged it several times more as i kept messing it up -- not enough stitches, wrong color combo, looked ugly -- you name it.  it took 2 days.  i've made blankets in 2 days, so you can understand my frustration at my lack of progress.  but it is pretty. (the ridge in the middle is a folding line). 

here's what the whole thing looks like so far.

do you honestly think that blocking will help? 

Does Not Bode Well

like bode miller who has one last chance today to get a medal, i am feeling the pressure.  it feels like i spent the whole entire weekend knitting this stupid scarf.  and i'm no where close to finished.  and can i just say?  i hate how it's turning out.  it looks shoddy.  i can't imagine that it'll ever look nicely finished.  but i will carry on. 

1. because i'm not a quitter (well i am, but i try not to be)
2. because the yarn cost me $80
3. what the hell else am i going to do with 45,641 tiny little skeins of needlepoint yarn.

i'll have pictures soon.  i've lost the will to even take progress pics.

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on a totally different note -- colleen celebrated a birthday the other day

go wish her a belated happy birthday!

Doping

i'm THIS close to being disqualified for being a dope.  yesterday i knitted up the first fair-isle section of the scarf (78 stitches on size 2 needles for 8 inches using approximately 18 different colors of 1 strand of needlepoint yarn).  so very pretty, but oh so wrong.  like competing in the biathalon, but instead of shooting the target, i shot my own foot (not another competitor, mr. vice president, BECAUSE THAT WOULD BE TRULY WRONG) or skied in the wrong direction while spectators screamed "turn around!!!!"  yes, the worse part about it, is that it felt wrong from the beginning.  but i blindly carried on.  dope.

i didn't bother taking a picture of my "unprogress."  hopefully i can make up some time today. 

Welcome To The Dark Side

today j turns 40.  i'm not all that sure how he feels about this milestone, since he's not much of a talker.  i've asked, but he's the strong, silent type and usually just replies "eh, fine" when i ask.  no change in the normal routine today (other than pie for dessert -- j loves apple pie), but this weekend there will be a celebration with his family.  and since he's the youngest in the area (he has a younger brother who lives in VA) there will be mocking.  and that's always fun.  happy birthday love. 

and now for olympic progress. 

it doesn't really look like much.  i haven't made much progress it seems, but it's not a portable project so i think i'll work on this mostly on the weekends.  right now, i'm obsessing about a blemish in the orange section where i knit one stitch using only one strand so i've got this loop hanging on the rev st st side.  i'm contemplating ripping and redoing that section.

that's all.  not very exciting.

UPDATE: i decided to frog everything through the orange bit to fix that loop that was driving me bonkers, only to notice that i had cast on 52 instead of 51 stitches for those sections, so i frogged some more.  it's really for the best  -- i would have bugged the shit out of me.

Olympic Progress

the opening ceremonies at doyle's were a lot of fun.  the team boston organizers had done a marvelous job with the buttons and the torch and the organizing.  they've won the gold medal in my book.  i don't know how many boston area knitters were there, but we did fill up two long tables and caused enough of a raucus to change the image of knitters for doyle's patrons forever.  unfortunately i have no pictures, but i'm sure there will be pictures surfacing soon enough.

because of the nature of my project, with all of the little tiny skanks of yarn, i ended up not starting with the lighting of the olympic flame, but rather the evening chatting and finishing up my latest commuter project:  a neckwarmer made with 2 skeins of noro kujaku in a tiny cabled rib pattern.

however, on day one, i got straight to work.

i organized the little skanks by color, and put them into labeled baggies.

then i got to knitting.

i'm not in love yet.  i'm not sure i even want to go out on a second date, but we'll see.

C is for ....

CAT

napoleon isn't just any cat though.  he's been with me since 1990 when as a 10 week old kitten i brought him home along with 8 week old josephine (she was his "aunt").  josephine died 6 years ago but napoleon is still bright and healthy (he celebrates his 16th birthday next month) and loves laying on my knitting supplies. 

Opening Ceremonies

the opening ceremonies are scheduled to begin in a matter of minutes.  and i'm getting ready.  i've added carole's flame button to my side bar there...

and i've added a link to yahoo sports turin 2006 webpage (here i have it in italian, and french, too).  there's a nifty little tv schedule.  (because i need to know when the biathlon is televised  and don't forget the curling.)

finally, it's time to announce the winner of my olympic event poll.

so the color on color scarf it is. i'm psyched.  because this was the project i was hoping for.  those of you who voted for charlotte's web.  you know i don't think this is ever going to happen.  i'm sorry.  for those of you who voted for the mess in my head...thanks for your faith in me.  the mess in my head is called just that , because well it's a mess.  but the mess will get made some day. 

so i've got my materials together.  i may need to purchase a needle or two (this pattern calls for 3 32in size 8 circular needles.  i have to reread the pattern to see if that's really necessary.)  i need to organize the tiny little skanks.  but even if i can't cast on tonight (i'll be at doyle's and well, i don't drink and knit), i'll get on the stick early tomorrow morning.

LET THE GAMES BEGIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well Loved Yarn

in all of this pre-olympic fervor, beth's unloved sock yarn exchanged almost got forgotten.  almost.

look what suzanne at obsessknit sent me.  and to think i was going to pick up a couple of skanks (or would you call these balls -- hehe)  of this yarn just a couple of weeks ago.  a match made in sock yarn heaven. 

the package to my pal is going out tomorrow.

It Could Be Worse

from kellee

You will sink in a mire. You like to think you're
normal, but deep down you really just want to
strip off your clothes and roll around in
chicken fat.

What horrible Edward Gorey Death will you die?
brought to you by Quizilla

New Olympic Poll

i fucked up on the poll in my previous post and none of your responses were recorded (except that from what i can tell 48 of you voted. i just can't tell how.)

here's a new poll.  i tested this one.  sorry.

Poll: Olympic Event

UFO Smackdown: Three down!

so my goal before the start of the olympics was to clear out my UFO basket.  mission accomplished.  (i haven't finished mariah, but she hasn't been languishing in UFO hell for very long).  here's FO number 3. 

i started this project almost 2 years ago.  the bag pattern is from the crochet insert of IK Spring 2004.  i used the totally wrong type of yarn (lionbrand homespun -- although i did get gauge) and added stripes.  it's far from perfect, but i like how it turned out.  it'll make a decent project bag.  i like the pocket.

so now i'm ready ... except i haven't selected an "event" yet.  here are the candidates:

1.  charlotte's web:  i purchased the pattern and yarn before i was even a blogger.  it was the project in vogue at the time and i jumped on the bandwagon without considering that i wasn't all that excited about the project (although i did fall in love with the idea of knitting with 5 different variegated colorways of koigu).  i've tried to knit this thing on several occasions and have failed.  i've even "practiced" the pattern on larger needles with worsted weight scraps to see if my hands can get the hang of it, and i always fuck it up.   the challenge here:  not giving up yet again and the time constraints.  although i knit on the train, this is not a commuter project so i'd really only have 1+ hours a night to work on it (not counting weekends).

2.  color on color scarf from scarfstyle:  i love this pattern and i purchased the "kit" of yarn last year and just have never got around to making it.  the pattern isn't difficult but i don't think this is much of a commuter pattern (although more so than the web).

 

3.  another afghan from my head: inspired by denyse* schmidt's beautiful quilts, i've been messing around with an idea for an afghan for our bedroom.  predominantly off-white with small squares of variegated color (yes again!).  i have some of the yarn picked up, but need to find a suitable off-white yarn and still need to do a little swatching.  oh, and do some sketching.  it's a big project (done on big needles though) and of course totally not portable.  here are some of the yarns.

so which one should i do?

*if you can't figure out how to pronounce my name just remember that maryse rhymes with denyse.  see?

UFO Smackdown: Two Down!

thank you all for your extremely kind and enthusiastic response to FO number 1.  i am very touched and really quite surprised to get such a reaction.  extremely surprised, even (sorry, i'm not much of a writer).  a couple of you asked what pattern i used, or if i would write up a pattern.  well, the thing is, there is no pattern.  i had a stash of yarn that i wanted to use (it was either use it or try to get rid of it on ebay) and a friend's wedding to commemorate.  so i started knitting.  i'll jot down a few notes though for anyone who wants to make their own version. 

in the meantime , here's FO number 2, my mitred square afghan.  no pattern this time either although i did plan a little better.  this one is staying home.  i've been working on this one for over a year, off and on.  it measures 48x62 and is trimmed with 3 rows of single crochet in deep red and purple (after trying several different types of borders during melanie's knitting shower).  yes, i am obsessed with variegated yarns.  it's a sickness, really.

one more FO to go (a much smaller one) and i'm ready for the olympics!

UFO Smackdown: One Down!!!

it's done!  my random log cabin.  this bugger ended up being 60 x 57 inches and was made up of 16 squares.  i used 9 different colors, 5 variegated, 1 solid, and 3 "heathered," and each square was made up of 5 different colors.  unfortunately i didn't have a "plan" until halfway through knitting the squares so it didn't turn out EXACTLY like i would have wanted.  but it's done.  and it's warm.  and it's actually prettier in person.  and i think my friends will like it.

2 more projects to finish before the 10th.  since this one was the big one, i think i can do it.

Mini Meme

kellee tagged me for this meme and like her, i too am obsessed with my little car.  my very tiny little car.   mini, in fact. 

her name is miss scarlett.  she's english, you know.  say hello.

the thing is, there's nothing about her that makes her uniquely mine.  i don't have any bumper stickers.  i don't like them, they ruin a perfectly good bumper when you try and scrape them off (and i paid extra for the retro chrome bumpers too).  and i don't have enough back windshield for stickers from my alma mater(s).  besides i've been out of school for too long for it to be meaningful.  fuzzy dice hanging from the rear view mirror would totally obscure viewing due to the diminutive size of the windshield.  i guess i could put a magnet on her back end, but look how petite it is.  it would overwhelm.  plus i don't like those either (except for carole's ball of yarn).

i guess what makes her uniquely mine is the junk inside.

the dunkin donuts cup (any coffee cup actually -- black no sugar).

the big ass bag that i cart to and from work every day that holds papers, notes, lunch, knitting, magazines, books, the daily metro paper for the suduko puzzle, and anything i could possibly need for my 4 hour daily commute (give or take). 

the radio dial set to 1200 AM boston's progressive talk station.   the mini may be red, but the heart is blue.

the next 4 commenters ... i tag YOU!

 

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