sunday veg

wow it seems like the weekend lasted forever (which it never does). i managed to go to two really good concerts this weekend. my friend called unexpectedly on friday to tell me that his professor had given him two tickets to the franz ferdinand show at the greek theater and asked if i wanted to go. hello- free concert and good music? i was so there. franz ferdinand put on a really fun and energetic show. the only bad thing was our seats because we sort of let a group of people sit in our seats (they were already there) and just moved down a couple of seats. but then during the show, the people who actually had our seats came so we had to move back to our old seats but instead of two people from the other group moving, only one girl moved. so basically my friend and i were sharing a space for only one person. but it was fine. the people next to us looked like they were in junior high and we didn't want to split them up. yeah, we're that nice.

saturday i had tickets for green day at the home depot center. traffic getting there was so bad and parking cost $20, but the show made up for it. it was super fun and energetic the whole time and am i the only one who thinks billy joe is kind of cute? it was also one of the most elaborate shows i've ever been to, with fireworks, flame thrower effects, and loud firecracker explosions. they were really great live and i would recommend seeing them if you get a chance.

quick movie reviews: a history of violence was interesting (in a good way) and the acting was top notch (with the exception of the kid who plays his daughter. i just didn't buy it) and the plot was intriguing but not fantastic. worth it just to see ed harris being creepy and viggo's naked butt (yeah you heard me). wallace and gromit was excellent! it totally worked as a full length and it was funny (love that british humor). i also think that the wallace and gromit films (and aardman stuff in general) has the best sound editing and effects. it's always so crisp and clear and real sounding. i don't know what it is but it's always excellent.

i did a good bit of knitting this weekend on the atacma sweater. i finished the front earlier this week and just finished the back tonight while watch desperate housewives and grey's anatomy (this week's was SO good). and in finally took some pictures for you, so enjoy.


this is the front, all laid out and pretty. it could use a good blocking but i'll worry about that later.


close-up of my first ever successful short row shoulder.


and a super close-up of the lovely atacama yarn so that you'll go buy some. :)the colors are pretty true here and are just divine in person.

and before the yarn diet started, i had ordered a couple books from amazon. i had been hearing so many good things about melanie falick's handknit holidays that i just had to get it. and i saw the debbie bliss book on kristine's blog and knew it would be the perfect thing to get me to the $25 free shipping mark. free shipping = slow ass delivery but i finally got the books on thursday. savannah chik was cool enough to make an album of the whole book and i took just a few pics of some of the projects i really like for you.











i haven't read through the whole thing yet but everything looks inspiring. the only thing i would say it needed was more pictures of the projects. i mean there were a lot of pictures but there were a lot of projects where i thought a close0up or a back view pic would have been very useful. other than that it's gorgeous and totally worth adding to the library. it's starting to get a little cooler here and all of the halloween stuff is out. i love love halloween and love this time of year. my pumpkin carving buddies moved out of state this year so i am not sure what i am going to do. i might just suck it up and carve one on my own. pumpkin patches are the best, too! all i have to say is yay for fall.

sneezy

i have been sluggish for the past couple of days. it all started yesterday when i gave blood during the blood drive at work. now i've given blood before and besides the ew factor, i'm usually fine. but this time, midway through, i started to get super nauseous and hot and i felt so lame cause they had to come put ice packs on me and give me juice. and let me tell you, i felt really sick but i didn't pass out. yay me. and they made me sit there for more than half and hour and my poor coworker waited for me. so i have been out of whack ever since then even though i am sure the blood's been regenerated and all that. maybe it's just the freaky humid weather that's messing with me, but i hope to feel back to normal soon.

the blog has been bland lately without pictures because i left my camera in the car and i keep forgetting to bring it up with me when i go in. swear i will try to bring it up before the end of the week. i just started the waist shaping on the back of the tshirt sweater and it's looking nice. i can't tell if the colors are pooling weird or not and i was too lazy to work from two skeins at once. i think it'll be fine and i am cool with the spontaneity of variegated yarns.

and hello- i looked at the bank account today and where did all the money go? i am so on a yarn diet starting right now. seriously folks, i need to save some cash and i have so much yarn at the moment. i keep getting packages at work and my boss is making fun of me because he knows what's inside. so you heard it here. NO YARN. don't tempt me with sales or new patterns or gorgeous finished items. i can't. seriously, yo. you need to help me be good.

heading off to bed now as i have a big day tomorrow. we're going to see a history of violence and i have to be rested up for my dear viggo. nighty night!

i just spent an evening in short row hell. i am finally up to the shoulder shaping on the atacama tshirt sweater and decided that i wanted to figure out how to short row shape ths shoulders so that i could do a three needle bind off. sounds simple right? no- kept messing it up and the directions i was using were a little vague. i mean, i understand the concept but i was confused as to where i should turn my work. at first i kept turning at the same place because my directions told me to work until i had the number of stitches i wanted bound off on my left need. well the pattern tells me to bind off 8 stitches every other row 2x so i was turning it at the eight stitch mark twice. what i finally figured out was that the second time round, i needed to add the bound off stitches together so i was turning when the number of stitches on the left needled equalled the total number of stitches i should have bound off at that point (8 + 8 = 16 st). i had to rip a few times but i finally figured it out and now i can forget it and relearn it when i do the back piece.

i've been having headaches on and off today and i seem to be on at the moment. i gotta go take something or i'll never get to bed. and i have to feel good cause i am giving blood tomorrow and my blood buddy (ew) just caught a cold and won't be donating with me. so i need my strength to face icky blood giving alone. i'm not particularly scared of needles but who really wants a big one stuck in their arm, right? send yarn to pad my fall in case i pass out. :)

i believe i am the wind

so i saw serenity last night (all by my lonesome i might add) and i thought it was really good. i do think people who may have never seen the tv series might not be getting the whole story but overall, i thought it was very well done. the dialogue was top notch and it just makes me so sad that the show didn't last. imagine, we could have had YEARS of firefly episodes. but at least we got one last hurrah with the movie. and for your viewing pleasure is a pic of my friend in the jayne hat i sent her this week. she lives in boston now so we couldn't see it together but she was there in spirit. happy sunday!

the sands of time

dang- this week has been going by so slowly. time is going slowly and i am so happy that friday has finally come. what do i have planned this weekend? well, tonight i have a date with my friend to see the king tut exhibit at lacma. this exhibit is so popular that we had to make and appointment to get in. i don't think i've ever made an appointment to get into a museum. i also plan to knit this sweater:


(it's from the ella rae book #1 if you want to know) yeah i saw it in a catalog and couldn't resist. then combined with the fact that i saw the yarn in person last weekend and it was YUMMY, clinched the deal. i found a great price for a bag of yarn here and got it a couple of days ago. i swatched last night and cast on for the front.

other than that i just want to chill out, maybe do a little shopping, catch up on tv show, and of course, go see SERENITY. go go go. you know you want to. i bet you a nickel you'll like it. :) happy weekend!

a cunning feat

lookee i finished something. i bet all you readers forgot what a finished object looks like here at chez fun. info...

JAYNE HAT

pattern: combo of this pattern and this one
yarn: brown sheep bulky in spice (red), rust (orange) and lemon drop (yellow)
needles: 10.5 16" clover circs
pattern notes: i combined the two popular patterns for jayne's hat into one to get my hat. i cast on for the craftster pattern hat (my first time using cable cast on) but used a decrease method similar to the one from superfly (spiral decreases). and the earflaps i only made 16 stitches wide (instead of the 20 that the craftster pattern was asking for). all in all, a very quick and satifying experience. i finished the hat in one evening but i still need to make the pom pom, which is why i did not include it in the picture. i've never actually even made a pom pom but i am thinking that it's not that hard. i feel so much better finishing this before serenity comes out. i am not planning on wearing it to the movie, however, since i'll be alone and i'd rather not call attention to myself. but everyone should go to the movie so it makes big bucks. friday, y'all. be there.

i spent the entire weekend doing pretty much nothing. did a bit of shopping and i bought two pairs of jeans. this is huge news for me since i never find pants that fit and my old jeans have holes in them. holes, people, and not on purpose. i seriously need to do some fall shopping. more pants and more shirts and some boots. i feel like, well i know that i am wearing the same clothes to work every week. i am sure my coworkers would love to see me in some new duds. hopefully i will get to do some more shopping next weekend.

besides that, i was quite productive this evening, as i went to my friend vanessa's house and watched a crapload of tv. saw grey's anatomy, desperate housewives, the west wing and the family guy. lots of good tv viewing on sunday nights this season.

ooh and we saw flightplan on friday. let's just say it wasn't too good. the acting was good but the plot was just poor and the twist wasn't great and there were just too many plotholes to hold the thing together. my friend's mom kept calling it panic plane and that sums is up pretty well. i'd save my buckeroos for something better if i could help it.

let the good times roll

sigh- it seems like it's been such a long week, but it's almost over. lots of excitement this week, including thunderstorms and emergency plane landing in la. luckily, none of these events ended tragically. in fact, the thunderstorms and rain were really cool. i love fall and winter and even though los angeles has a pretty pathetic season, i can't wait for it to start. what else have i been doing this week? watching tv. that's all i've been doing really. about a million shows started up again this week and i was on a quest to watch all of my favorites, along with a few new shows. i just finished last night's season premiere of lost, which was awesome. no spoilers so don't fear, but i love it and am so glad it won the emmy (even though deadwood and six feet under are pretty awesome, too). i also managed to watch csi tonight and i was happy to see the whole team together again. but gil still had that annoying beard i think. so far none of the new shows is turning out to be really interesting to me. i did miss my name is earl though, and plan on catching it next week. bones was just ok (the main character is kind of annoying) and everybody hates chris was pretty funny. i really don't know if i will be able to keep up with all of the tv watching. it's exhausting.

one good thing about being a couch potato is that i get to knit a lot. this week i've been concentrating on the saxon braid scarf from knitting on the edge and since it's pretty dull looking still, i'll just post a pic of the cable.


i can't seem to catch the color correctly. it's a very deep red and the color is not as blown out as it is here in the picture. again - the knitpicks sierra is dreamy to work with. the color selection right now is a bit limited but hopefully they're remedy that soon. in other knitting news, thanks to some people, i decided that i needed to make a jayne hat. if you've ever watched firefly, you know what hat i am talking about. the serenity movie comes out in 8 days (!) and i thought that i needed a hat to commemorate the event. i know i won't wear it to the actual movie since i will probably be going alone and don't like to call attention to myself anyway. but you can find a pattern here and another craftster thread about the whole thing. i think everyone should make one so they can look this cool:




i'll be using brown sheep bulky for the hat. i'm not really sure if these are the right colors for it (it's hard to tell in the dvd), and i also ordered one color online that should come shortly. in most of the patterns out there, they say that the earflap should be red. however, i think the hat is mostly gold and orange and i ordered a dark rust color for the earflaps. the yellow is a bit bright but i kind of like it. i might do some yarn shopping this weekend just in case (my bad).

i'm pooped now so off to bed i go but i hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

shiver me timbers

hi everyone! don't forget that today is national talk like a pirate day. don't know what that is? click on the link to find out and get in touch with your inner pirate. i really have a fascination with pirates (like a lot of people, apparently) and just like the idea of pirates. makes me want to watch dodegball again because it has a character in it who thinks he's a pirated. pirate steve (played by the fabulous alan tudyk) is hilarious.

break out

i spent tonight watching two back-to-back episodes of prison break and going through a huge pile of mail that i finally picked up from the post office. another annoying thing about not having a house (besides the no yard, no washing machine and general cramped quarters) is that the mailman for some reason fears leaving things at the door. and when our teeny tiny mail slot box thing gets full (like it did when i went away for a few days last week) i get a note in my box saying "box full." yeah it's full because it's tiny and you shove things in there in an unorderly fashion, crushing magazines and taking up more space then you need to. but i digress. the new post office later hours are lovely and i was able to pick up my mail (which included goodies like yarn, mags, letters- not bills, and a knitpicks catalog). where was i? oh yeah, so prison break is a pretty good show. normally watching the new fall shows is beyond me, unless a favorite writer or actor is gonna be on something, but working at my new job, we're all so aware of what new shows are on and i find my interest piqued. i watched a bit of the new show on the wb, supernatual, last night and it was ok. but i am excited for next week because lost and 24 start again, and probably some others. but don't fear, it's all set to be recorded on tivo so i don't have to sweat it. when did i become such a tv junkie?

the week seems to be flying by and my post seem so late. however i will backtrack a little since i did take pictures from last weekend. as you know, i was home visiting the fam. i did get disgustingly, horribly ill but i managed to snap some pics even in my weakened state. the weather was beautiful up on northern california - cool and crisp and so clean. the weather down here in la is getting cooler but the air is not the same.


flowers in mommy's garden. they're giant flowers though, like the size of my head!


and of course you can't leave gonzo out a trip back home. the cutest dog EVER.

but here's what you really came for. the loot:


i managed to go to three yarn stores while i was at home and bought something at each one. on the far right is the new debbie bliss simply soft book. i bought this and the addi needle gauge over at a new store in san jose called communknity. it's a very spacious and nicely designed store with oodles of rowan, debbie bliss, cascade, sock yarns, and lots of room to knit and sit. it would be a nice place to just sit and chat and knit. i definitely think we'll be back the next time i am at home. but i got to feel the new db astrakhan yarn and it's to die for! i so want to make something with it. actually i'd like to make this:


well maybe i can treat myself to the yarn for christmas. no funds (or room for any more yarn) at the moment. later on in the week, mom and i headed over to uncommon threads in los altos where i scored the rowan classic weekend book (which i really wanted) and the vogue mag (in the $1 bin) along with some encore yarn to make a toddler sweater for a good friend's child.


it's a nice lime color and i promised my mom i'd get it done for christmas. cross fingers. and i really like these two designs from classic weekend:




this would probably look horrible on me but i am attracted to it.

and i forgot the best thing of all. knitting arts was having a sale for 25% off everything in the store for a whole week. i had to stop myself from buying everything in site and got only one thing. a new ball winder! i love that i don't have to sit there winding balls anymore and can make snazzy center pull cakes. now all i need is a swift.

and i can show you my secret knitting. the person this is going to has no idea about the blog so i should be safe. it's the saxon braid scarf that's on the cover of knitting on the edge. i am using the new knitpicks sierra yarn and it's yummy. the yarn is bouncy and light but i do think it would have been nice to use something with a little more drape, like the decadence from knitpicks. but for the price, it's super fab. i'd like to make myself a sweater with it. and i know the picture is crappy, but it's late and there's no light. sue me.


there is errata for this scarf (that took my awhile to find) but it's working up fine so far. i can't wait to drop the stitches and make the fringe. i only wish that the pattern was charted. it's so hard to go back and forth because her cable abbreviations are different than what i am used to so it takes me awhile to look up what the hell 2/1 rpc means. and i am too lazy to chart it. c'est la vie. alright this post has taken all night so i am going to bed now. tomorrow is thursday, which is one day closer to friday. yay! oh and i am cutting my hair cut this weekend so if anyone can thing of any cute hairstyles for an asian girl, holla. i need a change.

the world's a little loco

so there was a bigass power outage in la yesterday afternoon. of course everyone panicked and got grumpy (wasn't it strange how when you were in grade school, the second the lights go out, people start making a big fuss and freaking out?). this was similar only people in la feel the need to jam up traffic more than usual. i stuck it out at work for about and hour and our power was turned back on. shortly after that, however, the internet and network servers went down so i couldn't do much and finally just packed it up and left for the day. i spent a lovely afternoon chilling on the couch and watching a dvd of layer cake. not bad, but i don't understand why there was a huge fuss that sienna miller was in the film when really she barely took up 10 minutes of it. i just don't get the appeal of her but i am not one for blondes anyway.

and thanks for all the well wishes. i am feeling a lot better today. looking down still makes me a bit queasy but at least i can lay down and sleep relatively well. and i knit last night for the first time in a week. just more stockingnet on the mohair scarf and some secret knitting. well back to work i go. i am going to try and upload some pictures tonight so that these posts won't be so dull. later!

damn kim novak and her weird shaped head

dear readers, i need to keep this short because this past week has been hell. i was struck down mysteriously on monday with a case of vertigo, which i hope that none of you ever experience. the world really does spin round, making you nauseous and unable to stand. i spent most of monday on my side trying not to hurl. tuesday was better and i got some meds so i thought the worst was over. however on wednesday i was ill again and could not even stand up. let me tell you, if there was a hell, this would be mine. you are constantly dizzy and unbalanced. you can't read, knit, sit up, or really even watch tv. i think i got some virus or something but no one knows for sure. i actually had the whole week off and am spending it with my parents. thanks goodness i took the time off cause there is no way i could get to work much less work a whole day. and here my parents can take care of me. i am a bit better today and can walk around a lot more. just can't turn my head too fast or look down or up. hopefully i will be better tomorrow so i can make the 5 hour drive back to la. i have to go lie down now but i will write again when i can. :)

sticky fingers

as i said the night before, i decided that it was high time to try a little yarn dyeing on monday night. i stocked up on plenty of kool aid (boy it's cheap) and got to work.


oh yeah i made a big ol' mess in the kitchen. i don't know if anyone remembers but i had a crapload of brown sheep lamb's pride in brite blue that i was using to make a ribby cardi. well i ripped that due to sleeve issues and i just could never get behind the color. it was too "brite" with not enough depth. i didn't think i'd ever wear it. well kool aid to the rescue!

i used mostly a mix of berry blue and grape to get a sort of darker blue/purple variegated solid. i went with the microwave method which was somewhat difficult because i could only fit a small pan in my microwave, meaning i had to do one skein at a time. my measurements weren't precise and i kind of guesstimated with each batch. things turned out alright, however, as everything looks like it matches.


it was super hard to photograph but i really like the color. it's darker and variegated. if i had to do it again, i would buy lots more kool aid. i was running out at the end and one mini skein came out way more purple than any of the others. and i tied some of my skeins with white yarn and they came out a really murky color. i think this might be because the grape was so dark but it wasn't saturated. luckily my yarn was already colored so this just added some depth and interest. i would definitely use something brighter if i was using light yarn and i would use about twice as much kool aid to get it saturated. but for this project, i think i am satisfied with the results.


and look at what i got from knitpicks! yes three hanks of their new sierra yarn. it's bulky and yummy and so fun to knit with! ooh and i bought a bunch of color cards. their new fall yarns are so luxurious and gorgeous. go get some! but this might end up being a pressie so i can't post too much about it. however, here is a picture of my swatch.


well i am off to see my parents for a week. hope everyone has a safe holiday. i'll try to post from home if i get a chance!

elephants and tigers

hey all. i just got back from seeing the wonderful rachael yamagata play at the hotel cafe. the place just recently expanded (though still pretty tiny) and had no a/c, so we were all squished together and sweaty. rachael's wonderful music was worth it though. i just love her voice. this weekend was quite the concert weekend, as i went to see jason mraz with dave matthews band also last night. it was my first time at the home depot center in carson, ca, and it was a decent big type venue. but parking, holy crap, it cost $20! what's up with that? and everyone was tailgating and blocking the parking spots and driveways of the lot. i mean, i'm all for having fun, but get out of the way of my car, yo. my favorite line of the night was when we were all waiting for the encore and it was taking forever and they guy behind us yells, "encore, bitches!" we had a good laugh at that one. but dmb was so fun and energetic and wee jason mraz we great to see, as usual. and now i am back at my sweltering apt. a couple of weeks ago the weather seemed to be cooling down but then it went right back up. it was over 100 degrees yesterday. that is so wrong.

saw the brothers grimm on friday night in burbank. i have to say that i liked it and had a good time. i think it got a really low score on rotten tomatoes but i think i kind of went in without too many expectations so i enjoyed it. matt damon has horrible hair in it though. ugh. we really wanted to see the constant gardner (or the secret gardner as hannah likes to call it) but we realized on friday that the release date had been pushed back to the 31st. it looks really good and has my girl crush, rachel weisz, in it and hottie ralph fiennes, too. it looks pretty intense and i hear that it's excellent. hopefully i will be able to see that here before i head back up to northern ca for the long weekend.


as promised, a picture of monette so far. she's grown pretty fast and i am almost at the halfway mark. kidsilk haze is a dream and now i know why people become addicted to it.

update- did a little yarn dyeing on monday night. pics to come!

pink flamingos

they've been showing re-runs of wonderfalls on the logo channel lately and i've set the tv to record them all (since my roommate left and took her copy of the series), and it's just so brilliantly funny and irreverent and i am so so sad that it was cancelled so soon. i think i like a friend like jaye (the main character). oh at least there's dvd.

this week has just been dragging but so slowly. i think it's the hot hot heat (not the band) that it making me so lethargic. i come home to a sweaty apartment and it just makes me want to go to sleep. still knitting on the lacy rowan scarf. i do like me some boring stockingnet to watch tv to. they still haven't come to fix the my walls so i haven't taken the aygyle vest out in awhile. i wish they'd hurry up so i can clean my room and get back to normal.

hopefully i'll have some progress pics up this weekend. tomorrow night i am off to see the brothers grimm. should be fun. at least there'll be a/c. toodles!

summer of pork

well another weekend has come to a close. it was too short, as always but i'll take what i can get. let's see, on saturday i met up with friends and went over to see the basquiat exhibit over at the moca. it was a pretty large exhibit and lots of people were out for it. then we heared over to amoeba records because one of my friends had never been. this place is the best for any cd you might be looking for and dvds, too. it's just massive and if you ever have a chance to go (i think they have 3-4 locations in ca) you totally should. i was good, though and didn't buy anything. i seriously need to stop spending money if i am ever going to pay off the credit card debt. but i did place one wee order to knitpicks on saturday before i decided to stop spending. you'll see what i got once it comes in. and later that night, i caught a screening of redeye in burbank. i thought it was very entertaining and supsenseful and just fun (if you like thriller type movies). and it was fun to see the audience react to what was happening (yelling, clapping, etc) and i do love me some cillian murphy. my friend's mom thinks he's too creepy but that doesn't bother me. and sunday was spent mostly in orange county helping my good friend find a wedding dress. did you know how many really fugly wedding dresses are out there? it's amazing. and what's up with the whole strapless ballgown/princess/prom dress look? i just don't get it. luckily we found this cute shop in her town and had some really beautiful dresses. she'll be going back with her mom in a week or so to take another look. cross your fingers that she comes back with a dress.

not much knitting was actually done this weekend. seems like i have been thinking about knitting more than actually doing any lately. but i did buy some lovely yarn that i'll let you all look at.


drool drool


this is a close up of the 100% wool yarn. it sort of reminds me of the rowanspun line, which is kind of foamy and slightly felted.

this gorgeous box of wool is from beaverslide. i've been wanting to try their yarns for awhile ago and they had a sale a couple of weeks ago and i could not resist. i bought 3 colors, the magenta and beige color are enough for sweaters while the two greens i only got 2 skeins each of. everything is the 90% wool 10% mohair yarn except for the lime green one (that's 100%b wool). i haven't knit any of it up yet but it's just really lovely yarn. the colors are amazing and it's softer than i thought it would be. it's got the same texture as peace fleece (which some people find rough but i am ok with). speaking of which...


i bought a skein of this because i'd never seen it in person. the color is gorgeous (it's kamcatcha seamoss) and so varied and heathered. i think i might have to make a sweater out of the peace fleece for sure. i also have a bunch of bartlett yarns that i got in a swap once, and i think i like the beaverslide and peace fleece more. just by touching them on the skein, they seem softer, but that's just my two cents.


almost forgot about this one. i bought 6 skeins of debbie bliss maya from a swap board and it's so nice. i love the sublte variegation and the single ply goodness. i couldn't capture the color that well and my camera was making it all look bright red, but you get the idea.


here's the beginning of the dale sweater. i'm actually supposed to switch needles sizes now, but all of my 7 circs are in use. i tried to stop by my lys to get another pair, but they were all out. i'll try again later this week so i can get moving on this.


so i worked on this instead. it's monette from the rowan vintage style book made from kidsilk haze. i've been working on it for awhile now, but teeny yarn and teeny needles goes pretty slow. i wansn't sure about the colors at first but now i kind of like them. i know they're kind of odd together but i think my friend i am making it for will really dig the colors. i really want to start working on cyd again, but she takes up a lot of room with all those intarsia bits and right now my bedroom is a mess. they changed all the plumbing in my building to copper pipes (which has been making the water taste and smell absolutely disgusting. i hope it goes away). but they had to tear out all the pipes, meaning my room looks like this:


it wouldn't be so bad except that they moved my bed to the middle of the room to knock down the wall and now it's just chaos. i can't bring myself to spread cyd all over the floor just in case they decide to move more stuff around when they replaster . that's about all that has been going on lately. oh and i had to contact rowan about my fall mag. i don't know if they didn't send it but i emailed inquiring about it and someone replied saying that it would go right out. don't you hate it when you have a subscription but the newsstand gets it first? what's the point? oh c'est la vie.

the end of an era

my roommate moved out today. don't worry- we don't hate each other or anything. she's moving to boston to go to graduate school. she will be the second roommate i've lost to that darn city in less than a year. something about me must make people move east. so now i am couchless and am forced to sit in the papazan chair to watch tv. i had to rearrange some stuff tonight so not too much knitting was done. i did work on my argyle a bit (oh and for those who were interested, it's from jaeger jb31)and i made a swatch last night with some araucania nature wool. i'm dying to start something new and not too hard so i am going to try this yarn with the sweater below.



i love the variegated solid color of the nature wool so i hope this turns out pretty. i tried it on two needles sizes but haven't measured my gauge yet. i made the swatch last night while watching alexander. let's just so that the movie is really long and um, i wouldn't want to see it again. sweet dreams, all!

on the brink

of exhaustion, that is. this past weekend was such a whirlwind of events; i hardly had time to breathe at all. there were 2 bbqs, a birthday bar thing, helping a friend pack to move far away, and a going away dinner. not to mention that half of that took place in orange county (traffic gods, why have thou foresaken me?) compounded with not sleeping well (imagine dreams with maniacs wielding chainsaws), the heat, and staying at work an hour late today and you have one pooped puppy. i'm not complaining, though, as i had a good time this weekend. but really i just want a weekend to sit and chillax (as my friend would say) and, oh i don't know, knit. i'll spare the details but here are some pics from the weekend:


that's jana with the magic bullet (not to be confused with the silver bullet). it's hard to explain but it's sort of like a mini blender. there's an infomercial.


sniff sniff both koren and adrienne (my roomie) are leaving me for the east coast.


and that's cindy the dog. she's so cute but you can't leave food face level or she'll go for it.

but i have been thinking about knitting at least. i had to pry myself away from the computer tonight not to buy some more yarn. it took a lot but i NEED to save money. and hello- i have way too much yarn. i need to just tell myself that there will always be another sale, right? and all the fall mags are coming out and it's just getting me excited. did you see the new fall yarns from knitpicks? i think i might order the color cards with my paycheck next week. it's almost as good as buying yarn. and if i just have to buy something else to get me past the $30 free shipping, well then so be it.

and my roommate is moving out this week so the house is a mess. it's sad she's going but i wish her luck in boston (i hear there's some great yarn over there- hint hint). well it's time for my bed now. sweet dreams everyone. let's hope i dream about piles of yarn tonight. :)

day after day

this week seems to be going by like molasses. i am so happy that tomorrow is friday. the weather seems to be getting a bit cooler here in la, but just slightly. it still takes ages for my to air the apartment out every night. the heat always makes me feel more sluggish and i have spent the whole week lounging on the couch. with all this laying about you'd think i'd have gotten a lot of knitting done but i really didn't. i am still trying to get the groove back so i am taking is slow. i did manage to work on my argyle vest tonight though. i finally finshed the increases and can work straight on the back. i'd done about 5 rows this evening when i noticed this:


wtf?! that's not part of the pattern

i don't know what i did but there's a gaping hole (i see you feigning ignorance just to make me feel better, but hello, that thing is huge!). there's no way i am ripping sticky intarsia yarn so i'll just seam the hole up later. much later. and here she is whole:


look at me! i'm lumpy because i am covering up a bunch of tangeled yarn balls!

i needed a little mindless tv knitting so i whipped out those socks i started way back when and continued with the ribbing.


i thought i'd stick my foot in it for a different perspective

i don't want the cuff to be too short, so i figure another inch or two will have to be done before the heel. my hands get kind of achy after working a few rows on these teeny needles so i don't get that much done at any one sitting, but it's perfect knitting for watching dvds. which reminds me that i finished bride and prejudice tonight. i had some expectations of this film, as it was directed by the same woman who did bend it like beckham. sadly this film lacked the charm and freshness of beckham and kid of steered us into cheesy territory. it's supposed to be a bit of a throwback to bollywood films (of which i am not really familiar) so i can't really compare them with any expertise. i didn't think that they captured the essence of mr. darcy very well (no one can compete with colin firth - and who else thinks that the new movie remake with keira knightly looks bad?). he seemed less proud and stubborn than clumsy and awkward. maybe it's just my snarky nature but i couldn't get into the lavish dance numbers and longing looks either. martin henderson is a bit of eye candy, though, and the costume design is gorgeous. i'll stick to the a&e classic, thanks.

and i was bad today and bought a crapload of yarn from beaverslide. they have a sale going on until aug 10 and i have always wanted to try their yarn. but i have a bad habit of buying too much yarn at once. instead of buying just like one sweaters worth or a few skeins to try, i bought 2 sweaters worth and 4 extra skeins to play with. the madness must stop. i'll show you the goods when they come!

bit of a slump

where have i been? i've been at the frog pond! yes i have been ripping some of my projects out. why? i don't know- i just wasn't really feeling them anymore. the love was gone and i was stuck with a heap of yarn that i felt obligated to knit. just having all of those half-finished projects was really starting to stress me out so i decided to do a little cleaning.

first i ripped the blue ribbed cardi. the sleeves were really starting to annoy me and i just knew that she didn't feel right. i only had the sleeves to go so i thought i'd just plow on and decide later if i liked her or not. but my sleeve issues seemed to be a sign to just stop. so i did. and i ripped and this is what is left.



and remember that orange thick/thin seed stitch scarf i made awhile back? probably not but i ripped that, too. it was simply too wide and airy for my taste. riiiip it went. i'd like to make a chunky cabled scarf out of it someday.



and my chevron tank? well i couldn't bear to look at her anymore without straps, a little too small, and in too dense of a fabric, so i tossed it. i'm sorry but i just couldn't rip her out again. i know this is awful but i feel so much better.

as you can tell from the lack of knitting content, i've kind of been in a slump lately. however the fall season is coming and the new fall patterns are so pretty and inspiring. i have no doubt that my knitting mojo will return. i also ordered some debbie bliss soho recently along with some rowan cork and polar. i am itching to start something new but i'd really like to get some more progress done on what i already have on the needles. not out of obligation but because i really want to have the finished project. so on the front of the burner are cyd and a vest for my dad. i'd like to finish my scarf style scarf but i am still trying to track some more of the discontinued color of muench touch me. until then, it'll just have to wait. one more thing to put the groove back in my knitting is that my rowan membership gift came!



2 balls of kidsilk haze in trance and a scarf pattern. this yarn is sooo lovely i could sleep in it. the kit alone made the membership worthwhile. i can't wait to see the new rowan mag. see- the magic's coming back already.

merry go round

my poor little blog, i have been neglecting you. it's been so busy lately i feel like i have barely enough time to get everything done. and hot. did i mention that it was HOT in the valley? my apt normally gets a bit warm in hot weather but it's been so hot that in the evenings when i got to bed at midnight, it's still 80 degrees in the apt. i shower at least twice a day now. i mean, my hair's squeaky clean but i really want some cool breezes to blow in soon. it's so hot that the thought of knitting with hot wool just makes my cringe. there's knitting news but let's get through the other stuff first.

last weekend (or maybe 2 weekends ago) i went down to san diego for comicon. every year it gets bigger and bigger and every year it just seems like i am never prepared for it. this year was no different and my roommate and i headed down there on friday to just wing it. luckily our friend jared was a superstar and let us stay at his place for the weekend. one of these years, we'll have enough money and forethought to book something a little nicer. i'd love to go all four days one year. there's just so much stuff and cramming it all in one weekend never seems like enough.

sadly, we were still in line to get into hall h when bryan singer was on. the usual suspects is one of my favorite movies and i really wanted to see him. poo. luckily we were able to get in later and snagged some awesome seats for the kevin smith talk. he was hilarious and brilliant, as usual. i can't wait for an evening with kevin smith 2: evening harder. ha! and he also introduced richard kelly, director of donnie darko and southland tales (which smith will be acting in.



and i was got my roomie hooked on firefly, so we were both stoked to see the serenity panel. the footage for the new film looks great. i can't wait to see it. the only cast member who wasn't there was alan tudyk, who was on broadway doing spamelot, but the cast and joss whedon were funny and smart and just seemed like a fun group of people. here are a couple of shots from that panel:


they play brother and sister on the show


captain, my captain

we also went to the chronicles of narnia panel, which looks really amazing. must remember to read the book again before the film comes out. and here is just a variety of shots from the weekend:


nice display case of blythe dolls. i have a thing for dolls on display. i find them so creepy- i just have to take a picture.


this was drawn in front of my very eyes by the talented aaron renier, whose book, spiral bound, i bought.


and of course, the obligatory storm trooper.

i was going to go into knitting but i find that this post is way too long as is and my room is way too warm. knit content to come soon!

beauty and the geek

i am not sure why i titled my post that but the beauty and the geek reunion was on last night and i saw part of it. my roommate got me to watch some of the show, and it was somewhat entertaining, even if i think that the premise is pretty horrible. but i haven't posted a real post in so long. i've just been too lazy, that's the truth of the matter. but now it's like so much time has passed i don't even know if it's worth talking about some of the stuff i wanted to.

let's see, last sunday i volunteered for an organization called boarding house mentors, that teams up kids with "mentors" at my work. i don't have a mentee yet, as i started here too late to sign up, but there was a surfing workshop and i asked if i could just come help, and they said yes! let me just say that i am not athletic, coordinated, or even in shape but for some reason i thought this sounded like a good idea. it was a lot of fun and i swallowed so much salt water, and it was scary, too. but no sting rays or sharks got to me and i made it out in one piece. but i did get sunburned in weird places (like me knees) and was so sore the next day that i could not lift my arms above my shoulders. it was horrible, but i am doing much better.

not much knitting has been going on. it's just been so hot lately that i don't want to pull out the wool. i want to finish my vintage velvet scarf but the extra yarn i ordered hasn't come in and my emails to the store have gone unanswered. this worries me. (note- i just called the store i ordered it online from - in june - and "someone will get back to me.") normally i wouldn't worry, but this color is discontinued and i was just happy that they had it. looks like a might be sol.


i started tblue ribbed sleeve yet again, this time with a selvedge, so hopefully i will be able to do my increased and not have it come out looking like crap. only time will tell.


and this is a swatch that i made for a vest i plan on knitting my dad. it's in dale of norway falk, which i got on sale at kaleidoscope yarns. the yarn is washable wool and softens up quite a bit after washing. it's nice. but the vest i was planning on making is from the best of knitters arans and celtics book (sorry no pic of it). but if you have the book, it's the wall street cables vest. but i am not sure if it might be too busy for my dad. it's cabled all over and i don't know if he's an all over cable kinda guy. if anyone's seen this pattern and has a comment, let me know.


and this is some recycled silk that i got this week in the mail. sorry the pic is kind of blurry but you know how those nighttime photo shoots can go. i am not sure what i plan on making from this. either an unbiased bag or a different sling type bag. but the colors on this are really gorgeous. i like to just look at it and pet it.

this seems to be the slowest day at work right now. half of the office is out and it's so quiet. after work tonight my roomie and i are driving down to san diego for the fun fest known as comic-con. it's going to be good this year. we're planning on seeing kevin smith, the serenity panel, and bryan singer! i'll probably also end up picking up some good books from top shelf comics and other goodies.

i'll try to take some good pictures to show you all next week. have a fun weekend!

finally i belong

i got an email from rowan today, telling me that i needed to sign up for a subscription, and i did it! i've been wanting to do it for awhile now but just haven't for some reason. but the free gift right now is make from the gorgeous kidsilk haze so i couldn't resist. i chose trance, a lovely pale blue shade for my gift. all the fall magazines are starting to come out and i am going a bit crazy. i want to knit them all, but i am still knitting things from last year. i'll never catch up, geez.

i promise to write a more detailed post soon. things have been a little crazy lately with little knitting going on. have a great day!

ps

stuff posted on the swap/sale page. :)

tragedy

my heart goes out to everyone in london right now. i have friends who live in london that i haven't heard from yet. my thoughts are with you all.

ps- and can the u.s. news please stop for just one second and think about the people who were attacked instead of if we might be attacked next? sheesh.

on the road again

well i am hitting the road yet again after work today. my parents were initially supposed to come down to see me, but they couldn't find anyone to take care of our dog so i am coming up instead. i packed a bunch of knitting (does anyone else pack way too much knitting when they go on vacation?) and will be gone until tuesday.

have a fun and safe holiday!