I Give You... Notre Dame du Grace

It's complete. I'm actually wearing it - left on from the impromtu photo shoot. Just finished it, 2 minutes before the photo shoot, during the last minutes of "Pride and Prejudice" (the BBC version) on PBS. Gotta love Jane Austen. So, yeah, it's done. Kinda weird. There is this kind of void that comes over you when you finish a really big project, or one that you've worked on for a long time. Almost like you can't believe that you're actually done, because it's been so many hours of work and thinking of it and not working on it, and feeling like you should be.

But I'm glad it's done. In just under two months. Should've been one month, but silly me I'm afraid of the finishing. Amazingly, it went really well this time. I didn't have to rip it out once. Scary. Maybe, just maybe, next time the sweater bits won't languish unsewn for a month. Hmmm.

And just to prove a point, here's me wearing my new Austermann socks the other day (which, coincidentally, were not lucky for the basketball team).

And here's my sock on my foot, in my new tennis shoe (Valentine's present from my wonderful niece and nephew in Jersy - thank you so much).

So, as you can see, the socks do in fact fit into shoes. And are worn out, in shoes. Just to prove that I do in fact wear the multitude of socks that I knit.

I feel like

I'm not accomplishing anything. But in reality, I am. For example, last night I finished the sloggy sleeves for my Notre Dame sweater. Yay! Nothing I could really get excited about because I know that the next step is sewing in ends. Yuck. But they're done and that's one step closer to a complete sweater. And that's definitely a yay.


And I finished the Embossed Leaves socks. Which puts me ahead on my Sock-a-Week project. Double yay. They're just so dang pretty to look at.
And I started my new sock today. I'm using my very very pretty "Monet" yarn from Cherry Tree Hill. So pretty.
BTW, the color in the photos is so wrong it's not funny, but it's after dark in NE Ohio in the middle of January, it's the best it's gonna get for this post. Hopefully next time it'll be better. It's "Bartholomew's Tantalizing Socks" pattern from the "New Pathways for Sock Knitters" book by Cat Bordhi. Holy craziness in this book. Like take a look at this "baby" sock that I tested like the book suggested. Gussets totally not in the "normal" place. So cool. Not baby sized, but who cares, it's hot pink. So, see, I have been getting things done, it just doesn't feel like it.

A New Goal

Not much to offer today. Had a busy weekend at work - 11 games in less than 48 hours - and therefore didn't get much knitting done. The Steelers game didn't help either. I started the sleeves during the football game, and have gotten this far: Less than 6 inches. Very uninspiring. It's good that I'm doing both at one time, I'm running out of steam for the double seed stitch. Need to hurry up and finish these so I can block them. Last night I started the second Bellatrix sock, and got this far:
Most of the leg. Here's a close up of the pattern. Still loving it. And over on Ravelry, I found a group to join - the Weekly Sock Group. The idea is that you knit a sock a week, from stash, for at least 6 months. How cool is that. Last night, I went through my sock stash and found that, I have enough sock yarn to complete 6 months of this challenge and a little bit more. So by the time this is all done, I'll be able to re-stock. Anyway, I figured that this would be a good way to use up my gorgeous yarn that I love and adore, in a more timely fashion.

So here are my own personal rules.

1. A week begins Monday and ends Sunday.
2. Time is able to be made up in the following week, as long as the next sock is finished too.
3. Challenge time: 30 weeks. Which would put me at 15 pairs of socks by July 27. I know it's more than 6 months, but I like the number 15.

So, I'm counting last week as the first week, because I did complete a sock. Wish me luck.

First Project of the Year

And it is... the Bellatrix Socks by Gigi Silva. I first stumbled across the pattern this summer, but didn't have the right yarn. I mean, the pattern is based on a Harry Potter character, and although most of you think I'm a dork for loving HP, it had to be just right. Enter Black Purl. As soon as I saw this yarn on the Loopy Ewe, I knew that I HAD to have it. It was just so gorgeous. And then once it was in my hands, I knew, it had to become Bellatrix. And then I had to wait because I had so many other things going on. So behold, Bellatrix.

Seriously, for those of you who have read HP or have seen the last movie, is this yarn not absolutely perfect? It is rare that a project works out so well that the yarn is perfect for the pattern and ends up looking better than you hoped, and this is how this sock is for me so far. That's how far I got yesterday. The leg went SUPERFAST! (as Leo would say). Love it!

I also managed to finish the front of the Notre Dame sweater - there really wasn't that much left. So here's where it stands.

I'm going to replace the stitch holders with waste yarn, this after realizing that it still needed to be blocked, and I think that the plastic holders won't fare as well as some yarn. But I think it's coming along very nicely. Onto the sleeves.

Yesterday, I came to the conclusion that I have a child sized head. In circumference at least. I broke down and tried on Kaylee's tam, since my hair wasn't in a pony tail. And it fit. But not in length. So, I'm thinking that I'm going to make it again, with fewer cast on stitches and more increases so that the top, patterned part is the same, but it will fit her head. Maybe then, I can give her the hat I promised back in November. Here's Mom modeling it.

She's so going to kill me when she sees this. So leave comments on how cute and very Scottish she looks.

Happy 2008

Happy New Year! I had meant to post yesterday, but I didn't get around to it. I had a nice quiet New Year's, lots of football, a couple movies, and some Bailey's. I know, it's not the traditional champagne, but I don't really like champagne. I managed to get a whole bunch of knitting done. This is how far I am on the Notre Dame sweater:Yeah, that's the front piece. That means, in a week, I am halfway done. Insane. I have a feeling that my hands will soon launch a revolt and I will start to have symptoms of arthritis. Might need to slow down a little - rrriiiiggghhhttt.

And, on Sunday, I decided that I wanted to make a hat for Kaylee. Again. And I did. Yep, one last FO for 2007. The knitting was done in an evening. A long evening, but an evening none the less. And then I blocked it on a dinner plate and went to bed. I had decided before I started that I wanted to add a pom-pom and not finish with an I-cord. What do you think?It's my first attempt at a pom-pom. Totally digging it. Not sure I would put it on a hat for myself, but then again, this is for a toddler. It really doesn't fit Pooh Bear, but he was the best I could do (Pooh Bear was made for me by my Aunt Ginny when I was little, my brother and sister also received one each). Alright, so onto the mandatory year-end wrap-up. So my lists of 2007:

Knitting Firsts:
- socks
-stuffed animal
- lace
-sweater (although started in 06, I didn't know how to finish until 07)
- mittens
- tam
- Fair Isle
- pillow
- Elizabeth Zimmermann pattern

Things I learned about knitting:
- I hate knitting with cotton, and it doesn't like me either
- I'm horrible at setting in sleeves
- I don't like corrugated ribbing
- Frogging is good
- Swatching is better
-I love Fair Isle
- I can, in fact, have the patience to complete a scarf
- I love socks

Knitting Goals for 08:
-EZ sweater
- finish a lace project
- more socks
- a scarf for myself
- design a pattern myself

2007 was, all in all, a pretty good year. There was some not so good stuff (Dad's illness, best friend moving away) and some really great stuff (Mason and Sarah being born, watching C4, Elliott and Kaylee growing, actually working at the same school for more than one year). Here's hoping that 2008 can have more of the good, and less of the bad for all of us.

My Definition of a Good Day...

Is getting to stay in the training room on a 90 degree day due to lack of outside activity. And yarn presents in the mail. And feeling like I have accomplished something. And not going to the hospital to see a loved one.

So today was all of that, which means, that by my definition, it was a good day.

A good day because my dad came home from the hospital. He had a few issues on Monday that put him there, and much to his dismay they didn't let him leave until today. He's doing better, but we're going to have to keep an eye on him from now on.

Most of my athletic teams were away today, and as of right now, we don't have a football game scheduled for this week (big broo-ha-ha, let me tell you!) so the team watched film. So I got to take care of some non-fall sport athletes and make heel and lace pads (very exciting stuff). Didn't get around to sorting my paperwork. For some reason, alphabetizing 350+ physicals and other assorted medical forms does not appeal to me. Wish I had a little secretary fairy to come and do it for me.

Went to Knitting on the Square to get some white Encore for the edging of Baby Sarah's blanket. Not that I'm anywhere near to being done with it to start the edging, but that's besides the point. Got some wool wash too - for the very smelly Samus sweater that I finished in January and still haven't had on for more than a minute. Yes that's right, disbelieving family members, I am going to wash the sweater, and then... I will wear it! Kate, the shop owner, was very forthcoming with tips and new methods today. I'm very excited to try her way of knitting and purling on something other than the Peapod. But more on that later.

So, after I got home from a reasonable good day, I pull in the driveway to find a nice, long box leaning up against the door. What could it be? Yay! It's my swift, ball winder and pretty new yarn from WEBS!!! Made a good day better. So I immediately (immediately after eating dinner and talking to Jersey brother on the phone) set it up and started winding. Wound all my sock yarn - which means that the lonely Jaywalker will soon be lonely no more, which includes the very pretty Lorna's Laces that I got to make socks for my mom (Tahoe colorway, if anyone is interested).

See the pretty yarn balls I made?

And then, I petted my new Valley Yarns "Berkshire", which is a heavy worsted, wool/alpaca blend in then Colonial Blue colorway. So pretty. Can't wait to start the Notre Dame sweater.

And then I knit a bit. And in that bit, I managed to finish the back of the Peapod!!!! Pictures tomorrow maybe, I'd already taken a bunch and put them on the computer and didn't feel like doing it again.