Something New...

I got my Ravelry invite on Thursday, and spent the entire day on the floor of my living room organizing my stash, my projects, and my photos. I ended up, based on the advice of ravelers, frogging my $1.50 cardigan, in hopes of designing something a little more fitting.
Friday I sat down with a ball of yarn, size 4 circs, and a pad of graph paper. It's Sunday night, and I've finally come out of a pretty severe knitting kick with two cardigan fronts, and the first 5" of the cardigan back. It's a fitted cardigan, with slipped stitch rows in a herringbone pattern.


This photo gives you a better idea of the cardigan's shape. It's quite a bit smaller than I want it to be at the moment, but the knitted gauge and blocked gauge are very different, and I'm hoping pretty hard the gauge swatch I'm relying on holds true.

Problems

...with the computer are keeping me from doing what I want to blog-wise. I'm hoping to be fully operational by the end of the week, but I may be able to limp along with a knitting related blog post tomorrow or Thursday.

In the meantime, I'll show you what I did last week while I wasn't knitting

This is my Lilac & Lace skirt, which is up on my Etsy.

I have a long circle skirt with a tie, which I love. This version is too short for me (the skirt measures about 14" to the cotton hem, 17" to the lace edge) but I think it is terribly adorable

The lace detailing was pretty tough, though. I had to cut it from a longer bolt of lace, which took some time. Then I put the seams right along the lace edge--a meandering seam rather than a straight, quick one. But I think without those little details this wouldn't be a very nice skirt.

I have read

And I have napped. And I will not spoil, but will say two things:

1. I was neither all right nor all wrong about the things I said last night.
2. I cried. Twice.

An hour and a half

...until the Deathly Hallows. I've been careful to read only the safest, spoiler free speculation

I have, from about the third or fourth volume thought one particular thing about how the series will end, and I will find out in a few hours if I am right. It has to do with Ron.

Ron, who is the younger brother of a Quidditch captain, two head boys, and two of the most eminently entertaining characters, and most successful businessmen in the series. Ron, who is the best friend of "The Boy Who Lived" and "The Chosen One." And whose other best friend and love interest is "the best witch in her year". Ron, whose little sister, even, is more popular and a better Quiddich player.

Ron, who saw himself in the mirror of Erised alone and best of all his siblings and competitors. Who has never been best or first or "chosen" or the hero.

I think in the final book Ron will get his opportunity to be a hero. But I think it might cost him.

Of course, this is all idle speculation. I also think Snape was acting on Dumbledore's orders, Malfoy doesn't have the proper stuff to be a real Death Eater, Neville and Bellatrix will go wand-to-wand, and I want to believe Harry is not a horcrux, but i'm not entirely convinced.

I'm sorry

Whew! It's been a long time.

First, there was vacation. I wasn't really around a computer for much of it. But I returned from California a little tanner, and with a haircut last Thursday/Friday. (It was a late flight. I still don't want to talk about it.)

This past week I've been holed up trying to do some work for the Etsy shop, and looking for a new job. So, I'm sorry for not posting.

But hey, here. Look at what I did:

I finished these socks. These are made of the Regia that I got on sale in Broad Ripple. they were double knit, just for an added bit of challenge.

I also fell down the Mystery Stole 3 rabbit hole a couple of weeks ago. I blame the Harlot.

I pinned it out for photos when I was done with clue 1.

Aren't the details nice? The yarn is a beautiful burgundy. It's Jagger Spun wool/silk courtesy of my all-time favorite LYS. (It's the only one in the town where I went to college, and where I learned to knit. I think we all have a soft spot for our firsts.)

Here it is, not pinned out, but with clue 2 complete. I'm just a bit behind. Clue 3 hasn't been started, and clue 4 is out tomorrow, but there will be two weeks between clues 4 and 5, so I think I'm pacing myself pretty well.

Also, I want to take this opportunity to say happy 19th birthday to my sister. Unfortunately, she has to wait until 12:01am Friday night/Saturday morning for her present. I can't wait, either.

Vacation?

Yesterday I spent 6 hours in an airport and didn't get anywhere. At one point I thought I might be successful--I even got on a plane. But, alas, it didn't happen.

Apparently when one of the guys down on the tarmac runs a conveyor belt into the side of the plane that's...well, that's bad.


So today I get to try again. I have a flight from Indy to Denver, a short layover, and then I'm off to San Diego, where I plan to knit, go to Disneyland, and find a LYS in which to buy sock yarn (an aside--I have a thing about getting sock yarn from all the states. It's a rather new thing, as I only have 4 states complete--Indiana, Illinois, Massachusetts, Colorado)

With all the extra wait time yesterday I've made a good deal of knitterly progress. However, I haven't had the opportunity for pictures.

So please allow me to distract you with these pictures I took a couple of weeks ago while I was unable to knit:




Updates soonish: falling down the MS3 rabbit hole, another shawl, and real double knit.

Independence Day

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States.

Happy 231st birthday, America.

Excellent

When the knitters take over the world:

My sister will now be one of them. Seen here is her first bit of knitting, which she learned to do this afternoon.

From Bad to Good

So I had some wonderful plans on Friday to visit my friend Tarah in Bloomington and see one of my favorite shows. I was pretty excited, but some unforeseen circumstances ended up keeping me from going. Good thing I got this in the mail to take the edge off this disappointment:
These were from some very nice people from Eel River Marketing who sent me this beautiful bamboo yarn. They do a lot of work with soy products there, not only yarn and fiber, but lotion, hand creams, and candles.


I also began swatching the Kashmir. I'm still not telling you what it's for, though.

Additionally, I spent Saturday with my dad's family. My grandparents were in town, and though I forgot my camera you can just picture me having fun and watching fireworks on the lake.

So all in all, I think I've redeemed Friday night to have a good little weekend. I'm still going to see Who's Bad in August, though.