I Heart Stephanie Pearl-McPhee

Last Thursday I had the pleasure of going to Stephanie Pearl-McPhee's appearance in Virginia- and it was amazing. Just amazing. I had left work early, and made it on the road by 4:30. She was scheduled to start at 7:30, but I wanted to be sure I had enough time to get through rush hour traffic and still get there early so I could get a seat. Incredibly, I made the trip from Germantown to Bailey's Crossing in just an hour (if you're familiar with DC area traffic, you'll understand what a feat this is).

Upon arrival, I was happy to see that this particular Borders had a sizable area set up for the event, right in the cafe area. With two hours to go, there was a decent amount of knitters with coffees and knitting in hand. I worked on a sock, and chatted a little with the two women next to me, Jen and Becca. They were really interesting, and I was glad for their conversation during the long wait.

Before I knew it, people were bustling with anticipation... it was time. First a nice man (I think his name was Daniel?) came out.



He told a funny story about a hand-knit hat he once received. Then he introduced Stephanie, and we all went nutty.



Some brief shenanigans ensued as they adjusted the microphone, and she began. We all listened intently as she warned us about C.H.O.K.E. (Cultural Humiliation Of Knitters Everywhere), and how banks have thwarted knitters. Much of her talk focused on the misconception of who knitters are, and the ignorance of non-knitters. I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard. My only regret is that I didn't bring a tape recorder, so that I could relive it over and over.


I had to get up for work the next day, so I didn't stick around to get my book signed (plus I'm just not into autographs). But it was still well worth the trip! I'm left wondering how much longer until her next book comes out... maybe next year? 2009? I just can't get enough of this woman. Really.

Read This Now!

I laughed so hard I peed a little when I read this article in The Onion. If you're wondering, the answer is an emphatic "No." I don't want babies.

Oh, The Shame!

Yeah, I still haven't done much on my brother in law's sweater. I should be working on it right now, but I thought I would update first. So this is where I'm at:

That's about 13.5" from the back of the neck to the needle. Just 12.5" more to go! Plus the sleeves. And the finishing. I've been keeping a very close eye on my gauge, which has been a consistent 20 st over 4" (knitting in the round is so awesome- I am normally the queen of stockinette stripes). Sorry about my poor photography skills. My husband is playing Bioshock at my favorite photo spot (the coffee table), and I probably shouldn't interfere- lest I incur the wrath of an interrupted gamer. So I made due.

I am super excited that Husband wore his socks for the first time on Sunday!

He says they were a bit loose, but that overall they worked out. I think I'll continue ribbing all down the instep on the next pair to fix that issue.

Well, hopefully next time I'll have made a decent amount of progress on the sweater. I've been lazy lately, but the cooler weather helps get me in a knitty mood. Send me all your good vibes, so that I might not need to rip it back again!

I Can't Count

My brain must have been completely frazzled on Sunday, because I counted my stitches twice and got the same (wrong) stitch count each time. But on Tuesday, when I felt brave enough to pick up the sweater again, the stitch count was perfect. Perhaps I was visited by some sort of passing Knitty Fairy who felt sorry for me?

So I plod on, hoping I don't make any more mistakes on the body, since it's such a pain to go back and fix them. I'm not going to post pictures because (a) I'm ashamed of how little progress I've made and (b) I'm lazy. But mostly it's the shame.

I hate Mondays (and Sundays)

Yesterday, I was looking forward to the start of football season. For one solid hour, minimum, I can sit and knit, with snacky things and an occupied husband nearby. It's so very nice... usually. I had gotten a couple of rounds done on the sweater, and thought it'd be a good time to do a quick stitch count. That's where things went haywire. The count for the back section was off by one, and I could see where I had somehow created an extra stitch about two inches down. A normal person would have just knit two together and moved on. Not me. As crazy as I am, I look at the sweater and all I can see is the goofy spot where that extra stitch was made. So, I ripped it out.

I painstakingly thread some waste yarn just under the mistake, and frogged it to that point. It was a sad moment. And you know what? My stitch count is still off! While frogging the fakey raglan seams, I did something wrong. I can't for the life of me tell where, but it's in there somewhere... another mistake. Fortunately, the seam will hide a tiny flaw better than a vast expanse of stockinette, so I think I can live with knitting two together there.

As for today, well, it was just one of those days where nothing seems to go right. I woke up late, work was a nightmare, and I have a headache. Just in case this trend continues through the evening, I'm not going to risk knitting tonight. Maybe I'll just wind some balls or plan a future project.

I am super excited though- my loving, doting husband has recently informed me that he is going to buy me a rocking chair! I fucking love rocking chairs, more than any rational person should. I suppose it brings up cozy memories of sitting in one of those child-size rockers when I was little. I'm told that I tried to stand up in that chair and fell off, knocking out a few teeth as I hit the floor. Luckily, I was too small to remember this, and they somehow managed to put my teeth back in. But I don't have any plans on trying that again. Anyhoo, I'm stoked and can't wait to get rockin!

No Light in This Attic

Today was one of those days. The kind that involves a lot of frustration and being thwarted by my own jackassary- I accidentally destroyed a $600 product with a razor blade. I’m an asshat. But hey, at least I did all my paperwork right! Then I worked a couple hours of overtime (blech!)

I’ve been putting in a little overtime the past couple days, which I both love and hate: On the one hand, it takes away from my knitting time. On the other hand, I get more yarn money. I try to stay focused on the bit about yarn, but it is so hard when there is a neglected sweater at home. The sweater is coming along, but there’s a lot of time for things to go wrong. Honestly, I haven't done much, I feel so lazy!

I’ve been trying out a few podcasts in hopes that they’ll provide some sort of motivation. I love, love, love Knitters Uncensored- they’ve caused several falling-off-the-chair-from-laughing-too-hard injuries, and Stash and Burn is awesome too. Both do a great job of keeping me awake- and making me feel less homicidal- at work. But mostly they just make me want to buy more yarn and every back issue of Interweave Knits.

Fun side note: I ordered The Best of Interweave Knits when I found it on the Borders website by happenstance. I was hoping that at least some the patterns I wanted would be in it. Later I found the Table of Contents on the Interweave website... no such luck. But it looks like it will still be worth buying.

I'm considering going to Stitches East in October, but I don't know yet. I'd hate to drive all the way up there and not be able to find parking... and driving around Baltimore is a bit sketchy. Maybe I can figure out a way to take the train or something.

That's all I got for now folks. Wish me luck on the sweater (I'll probably need it later)!

Lazy Daisy

I had to wait until the husband returned from his adventures with our camera to post this, so without further ado, here is what's been going on over the past week or so.

I've finished the shawl knit up with the Giotto. It turned out well, and overall I like it, but this is the only picture you're gonna get because the person I plan on giving it too may or may not read this blog. So this is the bottom point of the triangle, and that's all you can see!

Also finished is a pair of mittens for my coworker, who loves to ski. They're just plain, simple mittens- no frills.

There was a patio sale yesterday at Eleganza Yarns in Frederick, MD. I got there early, knowing the good stuff would surely go fast, and it felt like I hit the jackpot. I giggled the whole way home, after buying two skeins of Noro Silver Thaw and five skeins of Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool for under $50!

Since I had the house to myself yesterday, I wanted to get a lot of knitting done. However, my mojo just wasn't there. I wound up spending most of the day slacking off, poking around Ravelry, and watching TV. Luckily, it's a long weekend, and I can make up for wasted time. I did start the sweater for my brother in law, and it's going well. The Felted Tweed is interesting. It's super light- I don't feel any weight while working with it. It's also really sticky and tangles easily due to that, but hasn't created any major issues yet.

So that's where I'm at- a few inches of raglan shaping on the sweater. I knit the swatch on Addi Natura circs, and now I'm hooked on those needles. Initially, I bought them because I can't get bamboo circs in size 4 & 6 at the craft stores, and had to go to my LYS. Usually I buy Clover bamboo needles, but the LYS only had these Addis- and it is so worth the extra couple of bucks. These needles have the quiet warmth that I love in bamboo, but are as slick as aluminum. The cord is nice and limp right out of the package, not the relentless springy coil I'm used to (and yes, I've tried sticking the cords in hot water- it doesn't always work so great). Anyhoo, from now on I'm using the Addis.

Well, it's time to let the husband write up his blog... and get to work on that sweater!