Have you seen this?

Have you seen these knitters? They are fab. No, they're more like FAB. YOU. LUSS.

Clickety and feast your eyes on:
Eunny's Fair Isle Wonder and the fine Cable Shell.
Tweed's Urban Aran.
Amelia Raitte's Sgt Pepper, and Cherry, too.

Mlle Eunny does amazing things with needles and yarn. Her designs remind me of Dumbledore pulling thoughts out of his head with his wand. Eunny's wand is a size 2 addi turbo. Bitchin'. I MUST make that fair isle thingy, and the twisted stitch shell. When her book comes out someday, I will go broke buying yarn for every pattern. Her knits strike me as deceptively simple, finely detailed, and very wearable. There's no over the top, there's no flashy embellishments, there's no chunky-weight yarn.

I've been reading Brooklyn Tweed since I found a link to the Urban Aran a couple of days after he posted it. He's all about construction and (like the Grumpy One) mimics the construction of garments he likes to get the fit he wants. It tickles me pink to read a guy knitters blogs, he comes at designs with a fresh eye. Mostly because there's a huge void in the knit design sector for non-heinous men's patterns and otherwise he'd never knit for himself, but it's a fresh outlook none-the-less.

As far as Ms. Raitte goes, I really love Sgt Pepper, but I'm not sure I could pull it off. I think that in and of its self means I wouldn't, because a garment that flashy requires confidence and style in excess. But, I could do Cherry, baby; I can come out tonight...

I got a present, I got a present

OK, you must sing the title in your most annoying "I got something' you don't got" voice left over from your 5th birthday. I know it's in there, draw it out.

Of course, if you're in SP8, you get presents too, but THIS one is mine, and it pretty much ROCKS. That's right, feast your eyes on this:

My SP8 (Hi! Wave! Cheesy Grin!) sent me a too cute hand stenciled tank top, some yum cherry scented bath salts & petals, jelly pens, stitch markers, a bath scrubby glove, scented lotion, and 4 skeins of juicy orange cotton-ease. I've been contemplating going jogging one of these mornings, a new tank may just send me out the door. Then, I can come back and take a nice cool bath, jump out smelling like a red lifesaver, smooth on some clean scented lotion and work on a new project with my new yarn...maybe Tempting II? Or the MAGKnits Ballet tank? Must swatch.

I've got some knitting to show you, too. Proof of lace. The IK Trellis scarf, semi-pinned out. I'm using the suggested KnitPicks Alpaca Cloud in "Iris."

It's pinned out about 1/2 inch short of the pattern's suggested blocking width, but it still seems a little squinched up to me. Should I pull it out even more when I actually block it? I'm really terrified that the teeny tiny wisp of alpaca "yarn" will snap, and that would call for more cheesecake than my jeans can afford.

Also view my foray into sewing. I found this fabric at the Shalimar House of 66 Cents. That's really what it's called. It's the Okinawa version of JoAnn's, but fabric stuff only. I couldn't resist it, I had to have it, so I bought some. I present to you my DPN roll.

I taught myself a lot on this project about the importance of making sure the pattern is right side up (note the little bird flying upside down), being able to sew a straight line, having at least an idea of a pattern/plan of attack, and measuring what you want to put inside the pockets. That handy flap that keeps the needles from falling out, well, it also forces me to fold over the needle case. I like the needle cases, and intend to keep them in their cases in the roll. Cause I'm quirky like that. In any case, I love it, and will keep it forever. Or at least until I figure out how to do it better!

What a great crafty week. I'm off to play with my new yarn.

Re: The Schnickerties

Well, they hired the other broad. They suck. In retaliation I may or may not have eaten remaining half a batch of banana pudding that was in the fridge. 'Nilla wafers and insta-pud' will solve anything.

I also went to Jusco (the "mall") and bought fabric and a pattern for a little teeny dress. Mind you, I've yet to plug in the borrowed sewing machine sitting on the guest bed, but I figure if I can turn string into a sweater, surely I'm smart enough to morph mere fabric into a dress. We'll see.

Mainly because I'm too lazy to go get the camera, you'll see no photographic evidence, but I swear it's true: I'm knitting lace. Inspired by Sarah, I put faith in my ability to yarn over, and have begun the IK "Trellis Scarf." It's a tricky little thing, lace. Plus, I HAD to pick a pattern with "Knit 7 tog" in it. What's that all about? In truth, they found a way to really jazz up the k7tog, but as I didn't write it, I won't divulge. However, I'm feeling quite cocky because I've progressed from working only 3 sts at a time before checking the pattern to working a whopping 6! SO STOKED. Not too cocky for lifelines, tho!

All your comments on the Orangina helped me out a lot! I've decided to just keep going with the plan, and am 3x3 ribbing my heart out. Granted, it's teeny cotton, so my hands can only take so much. I figure I'll find a tank or something and just let 'em hang out. It is the SEXY Knitters' Club for a reason, right?

Sexy?

As a member of the Sexy Knitters' Club, I decided to knit Orangina. Glampyre has a kicky little pattern here, all cute, and sexy too. I'm not sure this falls into any of those categories:


Granted, the photo's not that great. I'm finally a TRUE knit blogger, having taken pictures of myself under the key conditions:
1. Late at night...
2. In some stage of either a. undress or b. jammie-dress...
3. Headless...
4. In the bathroom mirror...
5. With either a. flash reflection or b. camera shadow... (extra points for both)
6. Wearing a piece of (partially) knit-wear in some stage of construction.

I'm not too sure where to go with this one. I have some ideas. I could keep going as planned and knit from here down in ribbing. I could keep going in the lace pattern and figure out a way to add in waist shaping; basically creating a new pattern of a lace shell. I could frog and do either of these ideas in a bigger, (more boob-friendly) size. I could frog and find something else to do with the yarn. Oy. Given that I want a top I will actually wear, and, ideally, admit to having made, this turn of events is NO BUENO.

What would you do?

Holy Shnickerties.

I have a job interview tomorrow!

Crap, does this mean I have to, like, wear real shoes, not flip-flops? Must dig in the abyss of closet for non-plastic, non-thong, non-primary colored shoes.

Cross your fingers and all that good stuff.

Summer Montage

OK, so you weren't feelin' the meme. I guess I'm so awesome, I'm beyond description with only one word. That's what you meant, right?

The past few weeks have been pretty active. What's happened? Well, the 2 biggest things:
1. Lt and I celebrated the first anniversary of our marriage in New Orleans. So much has happened in the past year, that it feels like it's flown by! We've been together for over 6 years now, and we still have as much fun as ever. I love you baby, and can't wait to see what's ahead!

2. I turned 28. Is that old? I'm in my middle late-20's now. What's that all about. Where did my early 20's go? I feel like Cameron Diaz and Christina Applegate in the dressing room scene of The Sweetest Thing. Why does my entire arm wave, isn't it supposed to be just the hand? And what the hell is that thing following me around....oh, wait. That's my ass. Oy. No more cake for me.

Some other things we did over the past few weeks:

We visited a traditional Japanese craft village...


...where we saw the World's Cutest Shisa Dog. Shisa are guardians, one goes on each side of an entry way and they chase bad spirits away and trap good ones inside. This one was viciously cute:


We saw "sculpture." No, that's not a vanquished slug, it's a beni-imo, a japanese sweet potato with purple flesh. It tasted like a sweet potato, but with the texture of a baking potato. They love them, and even use them as an ice cream flavor, it's actually not bad.


We saw the smallest pineapples on earth. How cute are they!


We spotted a Russian Roulette toy. Gee, if that isn't the creepiest and most- inappropriate stocking stuffer ever, I don't know what it. You don't believe me? Look:


We celebrated my birthday. So did you. Probably with a bbq and fireworks: I'm a 4th of July baby. What? That's not for me? There was YUM red velvet cake courtesy of Kristy, and YUM chocolate cake courtesy of the Lt.


There were also contraband sparklers and blonde curls.


We went to the beach. We got a crazy sunburn. (This would be an example of why never to let Ashley use her "handy dandy" sunscreen stick on your back. She really sucks at that.)


This made us sad.


All was not lost! We got sandy noses and hermit crabs:



And this made us happy.


Ah, summertime.