Sanguiknity

Revive, Poor Blog, Revive!!

2009-07-09T22:06:00.018-06:00

I deeply apologize for the enormous gap in my posting. Deeply. I will make it up to you with a long post with plenty of photos.

However, this won't be a knitting-heavy post, because I haven't actually done a whole lot of knitting in the last 2 months, but I have been busy!

For those of you who don't know, I an going to start medical school in Colorado this fall (yay!) and also got accepted for the Air Force Health Professions Scholarship Program, which will pay for tuition, books, fees, and health insurance, as well as provide a $2,000 monthly stipend and a $20,000 signing bonus, in exchange for 4 years of active duty service. Sounds like a good deal, right? I think so, but there are certainly those who think that the military restrictions that I'll have to deal with later on aren't worth the money. I don't regret my decision, but realize that my feelings about the AF may change later on, depending on the situation. Who knows... Anyways, as part of the program, HPSP students have to attend Commissioned Officer Training at Officer Training School in Maxwell AF Base in Montgomery, AL for a month. My class was May 26 to June 26.

COT is basically an introduction to the military and the AF combined with a whole bunch of leadership training. It was hard sometimes, but I had a lot of fun and met some cool people :) I'm sure most of you have seen some sort of movie or TV show that had military training in it (Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket is a popular one that comes to most people). Let me assure you, it was not like that for me. Similar, but definitely not as harsh. Some elements (like the yelling, the marching, waking up at 4:30am) were present, but others (like the cursing, insulting, random push-ups in the mud) were not. Thank goodness.

(Our drill sergeants looked like this sometimes, but not too often and weren't ever that close to our face.)

On our very first day at Maxwell, right off the shuttle bus from the airport, there was a drill sergeant yelling at us. And OTS staff yelling at us. Lots of yelling. Lots of standing at attention while we were processed into COT. Right from the beginning, I got yelled at 3 times. 1) My hair was not pinned up above the collar. 2) The hair tie I used to tie my hair up was a bright blue scrunchie (yes, I still use these, don't laugh) instead of the authorized black/brown I was supposed to have. 3) I had forgotten to take out my extra sets of earrings (women are only allowed to wear 1 pair of stud earrings) and I had a necklace on. I was a little freaked out, because my dad had gone to COT back in the 1980s and he told me it was pretty easy back then. Apparently, they had made it a lot harder in recent years. That's what I get for listening to expired advice from my dad and for not doing my own research!

At one point during the first day, I was standing in line waiting to go through the first step of in-processing, when I realized that I had grabbed the wrong papers (we had been given 30 seconds to set aside our luggage, find our in-processing documents and IDs, get $20 for meals, and get in 2 single file lines, while fixing our appearance to military standards - tucking in shirts, putting on close-toed sneakers, etc.). We had basically been told not to speak or move when we were at attention, so I was literally panicking because I didn't have the right documents, which were in my luggage outside, and I didn't know how to get the attention of a staff member without getting in trouble. After a minute, I finally squeaked out a "Sir, permission to ask a question," to an officer walking by and stammered out that I had the wrong papers and needed to retrieve the right ones, may I go outside to get them?

Looking back on that moment, I just laugh at myself and all of us during that day. I'll admit it, at the time, I was scared stiff of making a mistake and getting singled out by the drill sergeant or by OTS staff. Nobody likes being punished in front of a bunch of strangers/future classmates, right? But, we were all making mistakes (except for the few people who had prior military service) and nobody remembered who the heck was who later on. And really, was the yelling that bad? Not really. It didn't matter how much they yelled at you, you still graduated in the end (if you passed the classes and stuff) and you weren't physically harmed in any way. And actually, the yelling was more like "forcefully correcting" after the first day, which wasn't so bad. They never paraded an individual's mistakes in front of everyone else, they just corrected and moved on. Sooo... in retrospect, it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. I do remember a couple severe yelling sessions during COT, but I was thankfully never on the receiving end of those.

As for daily life during COT, we did not live in multi-person barracks with bed inspections and 10 toilets without stalls. We lived in 2 person dorm rooms - think college dorms, but nicer. We didn't even have communal bathrooms; each room had a shower stall, toilet, and 2 sinks. And room inspections? Nope, we had maids make our beds and clean the bathrooms every weekday. There was one inspection while we were in class much later on, but I think they just wanted to make sure we didn't steal their laptops. We also did not have dorm chores or anything.

Meals were a little more strict. For the first few weeks, we had to eat "tight meals" everyday. Tight meals are basically eating at attention: backs straight and off the back of the chair, heels together and feet at a 45 degree angle, napkin in left hand on lap, utensil in right hand, no talking, and plates and glasses arranged in a certain way on the tray. At each meal, we had about 5-10 minutes to eat and leave. Some of us strategized and ate easy-to-eat foods, like mashed potatoes, twice a day, everyday, for 3 weeks. The food was cheap, about $2-3/meal, but you got what you paid for. Let's leave it at that. Later on when we earned more privileges, we didn't have to eat tight meals, but still had the same time crunch.

Oh my goodness, I am so excited to eat this banana.

The "duty day" lasted from 5am until dinner at 6 or 7pm every weekday. This is the time that we have physical training, lectures, and small group class (flight class). During this time, we're not allowed to go back to our dorm room without permission and class was required unless you were on sick rest. The typical day went like this:

Wake up at 4:30am to get dressed in the dark, because we're not allowed to turn on the lights until 4:40am.
March to physical training.
Physical training 5-6:15am.
March back to dorms and shower/change.
March to breakfast.
Breakfast 7-8am.
Lectures/flight class 8am-12pm.
March to lunch.
Lunch 12-1pm.
Lectures/flight class 1pm-6pm.
Dinner 6-7pm.
March to dorms.
Personal/study time until sleep.

Days weren't really hard, but they were mighty long and sleep deprivation was probably the biggest problem in the beginning. Lectures were in a giant lecture hall that practically sang you to sleep, especially if it was after lunch or some exercise thing in the hot Alabama weather. The seats were all made of nice, soft, red cushions and the one air conditioning unit for the entire building seriously failed if it was particularly hot. Common nicknames for the lecture hall were The Big Red Bed and the Coma Dome. We weren't allowed to fall asleep in or ditch class, so if you were sleepy, the proper thing to do was to stand at the back of the room and take notes from there. Lectures and flight class were all basically about leadership, teamwork, or AF history, but mostly leadership and teamwork.

Ah, those early morning runs...

I am always at the back of marching formations since we're organized by height.

This was one of our last days of lectures. We're pretty happy.

A flight mate catching up on some sleep between lectures.

Our flight room.

Other than than the lectures, we got to do a bunch of hands-on leadership and teamwork exercises, which were really fun!

We got to go through the Assault Course, which is a series of different obstacles. There were a couple that I wasn't able to finish, but all my flight members, including me, rocked the monkey bars, which I didn't think I'd be able to do. It was awesome!

Bar walk thing.

High crawl.

Me on the right with my Assault Course buddy on the left, who was one of my favorite people at COT :) My warrior face needs a little work. I tend to laugh a lot at inappropriate times.

There was also Project X, which was a bunch of different scenarios where there is a physical obstacle/puzzle that we have to solve in teams of 6. These scenarios are military related, usually having to do with an escape or evasion from enemy forces or some sort of a rescue. For example, a team has to cross a wide, fast-moving river (i.e., no person or piece of equipment can fall in the water) that has a few "rocks" (pillars) in it. The team is given a few pieces of equipment, like logs, metal cans, boards, or ropes and has to finish the obstacle in less than 20 min. Sometimes you have to transfer ammunition or a wounded person to the end spot. For Project X, flights were given 5 scenarios out of a total of about 23. The rest of the scenarios were used for LRC.

The Leadership Reaction Course used the rest of the puzzles not seen during Project X, but there was a leader assigned to each team during a scenario and that leader's actions were evaluated by a staff member.

The WELPS course was like LRC, except that it was in a huge field that had a bunch of small numbered concrete circles in the ground and each team was given a compass and a series of clues to find the endpoint. Our compass was broken for the first 2 scenarios, so we were just wandering around lost for a long while. And I was on the team that had to low crawl everywhere, so my uniform got all wet and a little stained. On the last scenario, our flight got a compass that worked, so the last team at least finished their puzzle.

That's me in the very back. Crawling.

Our awesome Flight Commander, Capt Smith. I came to AL wanting to hear a Southern accent and his was my favorite! Well, he was also one of the only staff members with a Southern accent.

We also had a simulated deployment for 2 days and 2 nights. Maxwell has a "tent city" set up where we sleep on cots and eat MREs and do fun stuff. During the first day, we acted out a field hospital, which was called E-MEDS, and we did a high ropes course. During E-MEDS, everyone was assigned a position in a hospital, like chief nurse, surgeon, administration, chaplain, security, etc. I was a patient, which wasn't as exciting as being a hospital staff (in my opinion at least), but it was fun and I got to scream and yell in pain (as my flight mates can attest - they heard me throughout the entire tent-hospital).

Tent city. These were our sleeping tents. They each had two A/C units that made the hot air warm.

This is my broken wrist. I was driving a truck near an IED blast. There was more blood on it, but the surgeons patched it all up and put a "cast" on it, so it got messed up a little.

The high ropes course was pretty fun, even though I'm not that great with heights. We first had to climb a cargo net to a small platform and then drag ourselves across a single rope to the next platform. Next was the frog crawl, where we drag ourselves across 2 ropes. Next was walking up a single metal cable with ropes to hold on to on each side. Then sidestepping on a single cable with a rope in front of us. Then crossing a rope bridge with gaps in-between each step. Then hand-walking down a rope, then swinging across to another cargo net, catching the net, climbing the net to the final platform, and zip-lining close to the ground, where your flight brings you a ladder and you climb down. Zip-lining was the funnest part!

We also did a rock-climbing wall, which I couldn't complete, because I have no upper-body strength. At all.

I'm pretty close to ground in this shot. That's why I'm all smiles.

There was also a high walk, which was a horizontal wooden pole set 40 feet in the air, on which we have to walk to the end and back. Usually, I ignore my fear of heights (because it'll only get me anxious) and I do ok in high places. The ropes course was evidence of that, since I did ok. But when I got to the top of the tower and looked out over that stupid pole, I just froze. I was really scared. We're supposed to walk with our arms straight out to the sides, but I didn't let go of my safety line the entire time. I couldn't even speak to the staff member next to me and I think he could tell I was about ready to burst into tears, because he just kept encouraging me and telling me I did a good job, even though I clearly didn't. After I repelled down the side of the tower, I was so upset with myself that I just started crying. It was embarrassing, but my flight mates were really supportive and nice to me. There were some really great people at COT :)

Me being a scared-y cat.

I can't tell who this is, but I'm pretty sure it's me because I'm one of the only ones who held on with both hands.

We were also supposed to do a litter carry (carrying stretchers with people on them) through the same Assault Course we did earlier, but the weather was so hot and humid, they canceled that and instead taught us how to build a big tent. That was on the last day of our simulated deployment.

Look at me being all helpful.

Since the litter carry was cancelled, we spent some time taking pictures on the last day in tent city. Our flight is so cool.

The ladies of Bravo Flight.

Medic truck.

As we progressed through COT, we gained more privileges, such as getting to go off-base during weekends in civilian clothes. We ate at some good restaurants and even got to see a baseball game (Go Biscuits!!).

We are so excited to get off the base and explore the awesomeness that is Montgomery, AL.

We went to this same restaurant (Dreamland BBQ) at least 3 times. It had good atmosphere and we even saw a few OTS staff members there too.

Five dollar ice cream sundaes at the baseball game.

We got in for free, I think because it was after the 7th inning.

Watching the end-game fireworks.

Flight dinner with our flight commander during the last week at another barbecue place called Texas Roadhouse. It was really good!

On the second to last day at COT, we had a graduation ceremony, where they handed out awards and officially graduated the class. The last day, we had a graduation parade, which basically just reviewed what happened the day before, but showed off all our marching skills and military bearing and whatnot to our families and friends. I had a small role in the parade, which meant extra parade practices for me, which meant a really nice, dark farmer's tan on my face, neck, and arms. Yay.

Waiting for graduation to start.

Bravo Flight after graduation.

And then I finally got to fly back home, arriving at 11:30pm and with half my luggage missing. But, Delta Airlines delivered it to my house in 2 days, so I can't complain too much.

My silly portrait picture.

Falcon Squadron rocks, man! This was right after our graduation parade.

And that was COT. It seems to be a total blur when I think about it. It took forever to end, but was over before I knew it.

(* All pictures were taken by my flight mates. I used my camera once at COT. To take a picture of my dorm room. Boring!! *)

May was mostly filled with me trying to finish up stuff at work and pack for COT.

As for actual knitting (which is why we're all here, right?), I've made some progress on that purple acrylic scarf in my last post. I finished up one skein of yarn and am now halfway through a second skein. I'm not going to post a picture, because it's pretty much the same as it was last time you saw it, but longer.

I finished the purple silk scarf for my swap partner back in May and sent it off in my partner's package. I'm pretty proud of it - it was the first knitted piece I have ever blocked and my first finished lace project (don't even get me started on that dern baby blanket). Even though it was silk and I read that it should be pinned and then sprayed with water, I considered it to be pretty tough, so I wet blocked it anyway. I forgot to take a picture of it after blocking, but I did take a photo of it after I had it all folded and tied up for my swap partner's package.

Pattern: Chevron Plus One by Arlene's World of Lace (free)
Yarn: thick-and-thin mulberry silk averaging at a DK weight that I kettle-dyed with purple drink mix and food coloring
Needles: US 6, metal
Size: CO 19 sts and skipped the red box in the chart. 3" wide and 47" long.
Made For: Swap Partner in Color Swap 3 (Kelly)

Swaps and Scarves

2009-04-20T15:46:00.006-06:00

I have two more swaps to document! Actually one and a half, because I'm mailing out a package later this evening after work.

These are so much fun :D

The first is the Journal Swap. I was paired with jennsa75 and we put together packages for each other. Jenny is really into the Lord of the Rings movies and sock knitting, so it was actually kind of easy to find things that I thought she'd like :) She also has a blog and posts a lot on the Ravelry forums, so it was easy stalking her ;) Here is the package I sent her:

a plain composition notebook that I decorated with tissue paper and her initials. We were also supposed to inscribe the journal with a writing prompt, but I couldn't make up my mind, so I included little cards with a few different prompts inside of the journal.
a cute little purple and silver notebook
post-it notes
a pack of ball-point pens, 2 mini gel pens, a mini pen that has 4 different colors
lots of chocolate and some strawberry chinese candy!
a skein of light fingering yarn that I dyed in yellow and 2 shades of purple in a self-striping pattern (It's the first time I've attempted to make self-striping yarn, so we'll see.)
a tin of little stitch markers
2 tins of hand cream
a brown beaded candle (which I used mostly to fill up the space at the top of the box... I wasn't really sure if she needs/likes candles.)
3 LOTR bookmarks, 2 of which have the One Ring tied at the top
used copies of the LOTR trilogy, which she hasn't read yet (these were my brother's who used to be obsessed with LOTR also - but I haven't read them.)
treats for her silly cat

This is the really really cool package Jenny sent me:

a really pretty red-velvet-y journal inscribed with a quote from Gertrude Stein that actually reflects a problem I often have when writing and a note with a very thought-provoking writing prompt :)
a b-e-a-utiful skein of Malabrigo Merino Worsted in the Glazed Carrot colorway, which I love!! This is my first skein of Malabrigo, and I love it!! It is perfect for A Better Bucket, which she also included (I was actually looking through the project gallery for this pattern a couple days before I got the package, so this was perfect!).
a mini-book called KnitKnacks, which includes a list of signs that indicate when knitting and yarn have taken over your life.
a pack of pens in a bunch of cool colors
a pack of cute sticky notes with a little chick on them
plain black stitch markers
yummy Dove milk chocolate
a box of TAZO Organic Chai tea
a cute vintage-y magnet

Here’s a close-up of the yarn, magnet, and journal (sorry for the weird color, these pictures were taken at night):

Next up is the Other Hobby Swap, where we recognize and fuel each other's hobbies other than knitting/crocheting. And also suck other people into trying out our own hobbies... unintentionally ;) In this swap, our spoiler was different from our spoilee, but we all knew who they were.

My awesome spoiler was bradymom29, who is also the creator and moderator of the group. This is the package she sent me:

Crystal included:

A beautiful skein of hand-dyed handspun BFL in autumn/earthy colors, which I love!!! Crystal also thought it was perfect because of the colorway name, “September,” I think because I first learned to knit last September :) The yarn also had a pin from the Twilight saga books, which is one of my current obsessions ;)

A set of beautiful size 4 wooden DPNs from Darn Pretty Needles stained in “Original” colors.
White Knit Picks fingering weight yarn and Wilton’s food dyes for one of my hobbies - cool! I haven’t tried Wilton’s yet. These were in the pretty red heart box :)
Cute office supplies!!! In the blue pencil pouch, there were a mechanical pencil, a mini pen, 2 mini highlighters, a mini stapler, and 2 mini scotch tape dispensers. They’re so cute!! There was also an awesome super-highlighter star dubbed “Parasite Pals,” which appeals to my microbiology side as well as to the office supplies collector inside me ;) There was also a pack of pretty stationery paper and envelopes.
Two packets of beautiful origami paper for one of my other hobbies. Yay!

Hand-made blue/green beaded stitch markers from her hobby.

She made a bag of doggy cookies, which smell good even to me ;)

Human edibles: Coconut curry chocolate, which I have never had and am excited to taste! Three flavors of loose leaf tea - ginseng peppermint, tea of inquiry, and pomegranate and a tea infuser-contraption-thingy :)

A cute pair of knee socks with pink robots on them! I don’t have very may pairs of knee socks, but these will fit in perfectly with my wardrobe because I only have maybe 4 pairs of white socks - the rest are all pretty colors!
A Washington post card and a card explaining the package :)

Since I haven't sent out the package for my spoilee yet, I'm not going to post it here, in case she looks.

And now for some actual knitting content (with pictures!).

I started the Yarn Harlot's One Row Handspun Scarf as my mindless-watching-TV project, but am using cheap acrylic instead (Red Heart Multi in Shaded Purples).

I like how the color patterning is working out, but the scarf is so scratchy!!! Yuck! I considered frogging it to make a hat or something, but I read online that acrylic can be softened up by washing and maybe some drying, so I'll try that.

Another project I'm working on is a purple lace-y scarf for another swap partner in the Color Swap, which is a secret swap, so I can't say who. I started with some undyed 100% mulberry silk yarn from Ebay and kettle-dyed it with Grape Cool Splashers, dried, then decided to overdye it with purple food coloring. I'm suprisingly really happy with the subtle color variations that I ended up with! (I'm not sure if you can see it in the photos.) The pattern is the Chevron Plus One scarf chart. This isn't my first lace project, but it will probably be the first one I finish (haha, remember that baby blanket from waaay back when?? I think I've knit 2 rows on that since I last blogged about it).

The scarf is developing this kinda cool folding pattern along the YOs, but I'm going to block it out when I'm done so it'll lie flat.

The yarn is very soft and a little thick and thin, averaging around a DK weight. To be honest, I was a little disappointed with the quality of the yarn when I first received it, but it was cheap, so I guess I can't complain. It has some leaf and plant fragments dispersed throughout, but I'm able to pick them out as I knit, so it's OK.

P.S. I used the Long Tail Cast-On for the lace scarf and... I like it!!! Everyone was right: it was so much faster than the other cast on methods I've used and I think I'll stick with it for most projects.

Pay It Forward... With Crafts!

2009-04-09T13:06:00.003-06:00

I got this from That Crafty Bitch blog (Katie, who is the in Lesser Known Skeins group on Ravelry) and I think it's an awesome idea!

The first five (cinq) (cinco) (5) people to respond to this post will get something made by me.
This offer does have some restrictions and limitations so please read carefully:

1. I make no guarantees that you will like what I make. (No refunds… no exchanges!!!!)
2. What I create will be just for you, with love from me.
3. It'll be done this year (2009).
4. I will not give you any clue what it's going to be. It will be something made in the real world and not something cyber. It may be weird or beautiful. I may even create something totally unbelievable and surprise you!! Who knows? Not you, that's for sure!
5. I reserve the right to do something extremely strange.
6. In return, all you need to do is post this text into a note/post of your own and make 5 things for the first 5 to respond to it.
7. Please send your mailing address (if you don't live close to me in Denver, CO) to sanguiknity at gmail dot com or you can PM if you're on Ravelry (ID: sanguiknity).

IMPORTANT: This offer is null and void if I do not see you post your own note to pay this forward.

Presents!

2009-03-27T16:33:00.002-06:00

On Ravelry, I have discovered these fun things called "swaps." Some of them are like secret-santa-type gift exchanges, some of them are not secret, and some of them have partner pairings.

I got so excited, I have joined, like, 5 of them. I like ordering things online, because it's like getting a present when it comes, but with swaps, it really is a present!

My first swap completed was the Chocolate Group's Local/Regional Swap, where either the yarn or chocolate had to be local. It was a secret swap. Since my partner (SpiderSpins on Ravelry) has already received her package, I'm going to post pictures of it here. First, it's important to note that she likes black widow spiders, because I tried to keep with that theme in my package, starting with the actual box itself!

Inside, I got her:

a box of truffles from Stephany's (a chocolate company started in CO)
4 pieces of Hershey's Organic Chocolate
lucky Chinese candy (mostly because the wrappers were red and she said red was her favorite color)
black, red, and white ribbon
the result of my first time dyeing silk hankies
some nylon firestar for her new drumcarder
thick-and-thin merino yarn hand-painted by me in shades of red
1 skein Berroco Comfort in black
2 balls of Peaches & Creme cotton in subdued earthy-type colors, since that was another favorite color combination of hers
treats for her cat
a couple spider-related patterns

My swap package came from SierraSkier (blog) on Ravelry, who gave me a TON of chocolate of all different sorts!

She got me:

2 skeins of soft and beautiful yarn (Melody Superwash by Jojoland) in a really pretty blue-green color
truffles imported from France that she bought at her local health-food-type store. These look similar to the truffles that Whole Foods sells, which are really good!
a milk chocolate bar with peanuts and jalapenos
tequila-flavored chocolates
Longhorns chocolate with pecans and caramel, which looks really tasty
a Yorkie chocolate bar that says “It’s NOT for Girls,” which is funny, because anytime someone says something isn’t for girls, you know girls are going to try it anyway!
a hand-written letter explaining everything!

I have another swap package going out tomorrow, which is also exciting! The people in the Journal Swap group were put into pairs, and my partner was really on top of things, so her package really needs to go out soon!

Scrunchable Scarf 2 And The Jayne Hat (Yay!)

2009-03-15T16:54:00.003-06:00

Some actual knitting content! Finally!

I finished the second Scrunchable Scarf that I started on my East Coast trip.

Pattern: Scrunchable Scarf by Susan McConne (free)
Yarn: Lionbrand Homespun in Lagoon
Needles: US 10, bamboo
Size: CO 17 sts. I used up the entire skein so it ended up being 7 ft. 5 in. long.
Made For: the gift stash

I used to hate working with Lionbrand Homespun, especially since it has terrible stitch definition, but I really like how it looks in this pattern. And, I have to admit that the yarn is very soft and this scarf is so squishy! I've heard rumors that it pills and sheds, but I haven't seen it yet. Then again, I haven't really handled this scarf very much.

And finally, I present to you the Jayne Hat!! Woo!!

I'm excited.

Pattern: Jayne Cobb Hat by Dryope (free)
Yarn: Red Heart Ltd. Super Saver Solids in Cherry Red, Bright Yellow, and a bright orange (I can't remember the exact name)
Needles: US 8 bamboo circulars (16 in.), US 8 plastic
Size: small
Made For: my shiny self :)
Modifications:

Work with yarn doubled
CO 80 sts in the round in orange.
K1P1 rib for 3 rows.
K for 2.5 in.
K for 3 in. in yellow
Decreased 10 sts each row (every 8, 7, etc... sts) for several rows (I don't remember the exact number.)
K2tog until ~10 sts left.
Picked up 22 sts for earflaps.
Stockinette for 4-5 rows.
Decreased 2 sts on each side every 4 rows.
Made a sad little pom pom out of too little yarn and accidentally layered the colors because I wasn't thinking ahead. Boo. (Lesson Learned - thread all yarn colors into the pom-pom-maker-discs at the same time, not one at a time!)

Well, it didn't turn out exactly the way I had pictured. It's a bit tight (I really don't remember my rationale for using US 8 needles because I'm already a tight knitter...) and the earflaps are way long, but I'm still really happy with it because I figure Ma Cobb wouldn't have freaked out if it wasn't perfect :D

That picture was taken at work today, which is where I finished it a few hours ago during some down time. I don't usually bring my knitting to work, because I don't think it's appropriate where I work, but I thought it'd be ok since it's Sunday and no one else is here :)

Yay :)

Free Pattern PDF Redo

2009-03-12T14:54:00.005-06:00

So I've decided that I don't really like Scribd and I moved my lone pattern PDF to Box.net, which was suggested by Amybel (who sells cute knitted/felted bags and recently won a faboo blog makeover by Summer's Blog Designs!).

So I have put a link to the PDF download site in the sidebar. If you click the link, you can both preview and download the file.

I think that's a lot easier and simpler than using the giant PDF viewer, even though it looks kind of cool.

Free Pattern PDF

2009-03-11T13:45:00.006-06:00

I (kind of) figured out how to make my pattern into a PDF download using a site called Scribd.

So here's the Staggered Neck Warmer in a PDF viewer. You won't be able to save it to your own computer unless you have an account at Scribd, but you can print it by clicking "More" and "Print."

I've been testing this thing like crazy today, but please let me know if this doesn't work. I'm going to try and find another free file-hosting site later on to see if it works better, but if any of you know of one, send it my way!

Staggered Neck Warmer Pattern

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Crafts & Hobbies How-To Guides & DIY knitting free knitting patter

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Random Fiber Stuff I've Been Doing

2009-03-01T17:07:00.005-07:00

So I got around to dyeing my first handspun (100% alpaca, single ply, bulky-super bulky) a couple weeks ago, but haven't posted the results yet. Here's what I did:

1. Soaked yarn in pot filled with water and a splash of vinegar. Low heat on stove.

2. Mixed colors: 3 packets lemonade/1 cup water, 2 packets orange/0.5 cup water, 1 packet pink lemonade/0.5 cup water, 1 packet strawberry/0.25 cup water.

Inspiration: Orange Rose

3. Microwaved dyes in tupperware for 2 min. Added yellow, orange, and pink in random parts of pot. Added red in one part of pot.

(If you squint, you can see the tiniest bit of pink in the center.)

4. Observed helplessly as red slowly spread throughout the entire pot, overtaking other colors.
5. Let dyebath exhaust on the stove. Let water come to boil for ~ 1 min to allow alpaca yarn to felt a little. (Background: I read somewhere that alpaca does not make a good single, as it has a weaker memory than wool. Someone on the Spindlers Yahoo group said that she slightly felts her alpaca singles when washing/setting the twist.)

6. Let yarn cool in dyebath for a few hours. Mmm... fat red worms in warm milk... the cornerstone of every healthy breakfast ;)
7. Washed and rinsed yarn in a little detergent and warm water. Did something you're never supposed to do when washing and drying feltable yarn: agitated yarn in water and wringed out water by twisting yarn (again, to help it felt slightly).
8. Let yarn air dry. Forgot to take picture of finished skein.
9. Wound yarn into a ball, releasing some over-twist.
10. Forgot to take picture in good daylight, rushed to take picture in fading light of sunset. (Many apologies.)

There is a LOT more red in the yarn that I wanted. It looks pink in the picture, but I can't see any pink in person - most of that is actually red.

Lessons Learned in the "Hot Pour" Method of Dyeing Yarn:

Less volume of water = more control over where the dye goes. This applies for both the dyebath itself and the water that goes into mixing the dyes.
If I did this again, I would probably start with the red and add it a little at a time to one or two spots. Then add the pink and orange, ending with the yellow. I'd probably wait until each color exhausted before adding a new color. It would take longer, but it would be worth it if the color turned out how I wanted.

Here is a progress picture of the Scrunchable Scarf I started on my trip to the East Coast.

I'm going to use the entire skein of Lionbrand Homespun, so it'll turn out pretty long. It's taking me a long time because I only work on it a little bit at a time.

Over the past month or so, I've been expanding my drop spindle collection. I had been storing them in a drawer with my unspun fiber, but I didn't want them to get all dented up (especially the new ones from ButterflyGirlDesigns, so I came up with a new way to store them:

I cut out a long piece of foam board and punched holes with a knitting needle. I tied loops with scrap pieces of yarn.

From left to right:

Butterfly Girl Designs: top whorl, Millefiori glass - 0.6 oz
Butterfly Girl Designs: top whorl, Murano foil glass flower - 1.4 oz
Butterfly Girl Designs: top whorl, Murano foil glass flower - 1.4 oz
Heavenly Handspinning: top square whorl, with "Sanguiknity" burned into it - 1.6 oz
Ma's and Pa's Spindles: top whorl, toy wheel spindle - ~1 oz
Ma's and Pa's Spindles: bottom whorl, toy wheel spindle - ~1 oz
unfinished top whorl, toy wheel spindle. I forgot from where I bought it.

I also bought a cheap skein winder from theknitstore on Ebay, so now it's easier to wind skeins for dyeing.

And just for fun, here's another picture of Berniece. I was taking a picture of her from my balcony.

I'm Back!

2009-02-15T14:24:00.006-07:00

Hello internet world!

(Be prepared for a photo-heavy post!)

Sorry for so few posts in the month of January and no posts in February until today! I'm not sure if you all know, but I am in the process of applying to medical school and have just passed over the last big hump - the interviews... dun dun duuuunnn...! I had a couple interviews last year during the fall and winter, but the bulk of them occurred during the last week and a half when I took a trip to the New York/Boston area. I would love to go to school in New York City, although I have no problem going to the brand spankin' new campus here in Denver. I actually didn't take a great many photos during the trip, but here are some:

The famous lobby of Grand Central Station. Ahhh... the hustle and bustle of NYC...

This is me, my dad's Aunty Amy, my dad, and my dad's cousin Kenneth (from left to right) at a really yummy Burmese restaurant in Greenwich Village.

Mmmm... dessert at a cake shop in Little Italy. Black Forest cake and almond-flavored hot chocolate. Both were delicious! I actually don't like cherries in candy or cake, and had completely forgotten that Black Forest cake contained cherries, but there wasn't very many in that slice. Mixing the whipped cream into the hot chocolate made it overflow - it didn't come that messy :)

A huge food market under the 59th Street Bridge. The place is absolutely beautiful and a lot of their food is labeled by country of origin, which makes it interesting to look around. I've read that it's a little over-priced, which doesn't really surprise me, since it looks so high-end. Obviously, the (really huge) chocolate section was my favorite part. There were shelves and shelves of chocolate from all over the world.

One of the places I interviewed was at Columbia P&S. I was born in Babies Hospital at the Columbia campus, but my family and I moved to Colorado when I was only 3 years old.

A couple medical students at Columbia ate lunch with all the interviewees on the 10th floor of Bard Hall, Columbia's dorm. The view from the 10th floor terrace of the Hudson River and the George Washington Bridge was beautiful :)

Of course, I had to check out a yarn shop in the city and Knitty City was the closest to our hotel:

It was small, but it had a lot of really cool yarns I hadn't ever seen in person, including Malabrigo, Dream in Color, Claudia Hand Painted, Koigu, and Lorna's Laces. I picked up one skein of Sheep Shop Yarn Company Sheep Number One in color GO4P

and one skein of Madeline Tosh Worsted in Ginger.

After my interview in Boston, my dad and I visited Walden Pond near Concord, MA. It was quietly pretty and very peaceful. Struggling across the ice-covered trail path, we made it all the way around the pond, managing to fall once each.

But, even though my trip to the East Coast was fun, it was nice to be back home, in my own bed and not having to live out of a suitcase :)

As for a knitting update (with no pictures... sorry!), I am almost done with my Jayne hat. I've decided to frog the earflaps because I made them too huge! They keep knocking into my shoulders, so I'm going to decrease the number of stitches I pick up. Then I just have to make the pom pom and weave in the ends :) During my trip I brought along some simple knitting - Lionbrand Homespun to make a second Scrunchable Scarf. I kind of like how the yarn looks in this stitch pattern and the stitch is simple enough to work with Homespun, since it's splitty and hard to frog.

Hats!! And Head Things...

2009-01-29T21:37:00.008-07:00

For everyone wondering why the heck I'm not knitting with all the b-e-a-utiful yarn I recently stashed, I will let you know. When I first started searching all the knitting patterns on the internet, I came across the Jayne Cobb Hat patterns and I knew that I wanted to make one for myself because I love the Firefly TV series and the Serenity movie. So, I recently promised myself that I would not start another project until I finished a Jayne hat. Unfortunately, I couldn't start the Jayne hat because I was knitting another hat for a friend with the same yarn I planned to use.

But, I finally finished the hat for my friend and here it is:

(It huge on me, but that's good since it's for a boy with a big head.)

Pattern: Ribbed Beanie by Woolly Wormhead (free)
Yarn: Red Heart Ltd. Super Saver Solids - I can't remember with exact color name, but it's a bright orange.
Needles: US 8, bamboo circulars
Size: Large
Made For: Britt
Modifications:

CO 80 sts with yarn doubled.
Worked in 5x3 rib for 7 inches.
Started decrease rows as listed in instructions, except used p2tog instead of k2tog for the first 2 decrease rows.
Decreased until 10 sts left. Because I’m lazy. And tired.

Britt is a huge fan of the University of Tennessee football team and these are their team colors. Here's a closeup of the logo I duplicate-stitched into the side:

US 8 needles are kind of small for 2 strands of worsted weight, but I wanted a thick fabric so that it would be more durable and denser for warmth.

I got to start the Jayne hat a couple days ago, and looking through all of the different patterns, I didn't really find one that I really wanted to use. A lot of them call for bulky weight wool, which I don't have... Haha, I only have Red Heart acrylic in the right colors. So, I'm just making it up as I go along. I haven't finished it, but will post pictures and write out what I did when it's done.

I also made a little progress on the Quant headband:

You know, a little progress ;) It's turning out kind of cool... I think the color changes in my yarn aren't gradual enough to look as nice as the one the designer (Star Athena) made, but it's still fun.

Cameras, Cast-Ons, and a Finished Object

2009-01-16T20:02:00.010-07:00

Look at my new toy!

(I know, a terrible photo taken by my laptop camera. It's a Canon SD1100 IS. Here's the Apple Store website for it.)

It came in the mail a few days ago :) I gave my old camera to my brother. It was a good camera, but a bit heavy and slow for my taste. This one isn't lightning fast, but it's very slim. And pretty :)

And I finally finished the second wrist warmer. I used a Cable Cast-On for this one so I can't even get my hand into it.

Pattern: Women's Hand/Wrist Warmers by Joelle Hoverson (free)
Yarn: Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Worsted in Orange Creamsicle
Needles: US 6, aluminum DPNs
Size: Small! But mostly because of my tight knitting. CO the recommended 32 sts and followed instructions for the most part, but did 12 rows after the thumb opening.
Made For: someone else (not sure who yet...)

Here's another thing I've learned in my knitting: So far, I have been using the Knitted Cast-On (another explanation here), which is the first method I learned. I recently figured out, from reading the instructions for River, that it's more of a lace cast-on method - I had previously noticed that the cast-on edge was quite loose after knitting from it, which is why I've recently been searching for a new "default" cast-on method. Additionally, I have just learned from this Knitty article that I have been Knitting On With A Twist; i.e., I have been transferring the new stitch as if to knit (with needles parallel), rather than as if to purl (with needles antiparallel). Transferring stitches the other way would make the cast-on edge tighter.

Anyways, I've read that a lot of knitters prefer the Long-Tail Cast-On, but I'm not really sure why. I've tried it, but it just seemed too complicated (especially since you have to estimate how much yarn you need) and I did not like how the yarn tail kept unraveling. It seems to me that there are other methods that are just as stretchy, strong, and neat. One other positive that I see though is that it seems like a very fast method.

So, I've found a new "default" cast-on: the Cable Cast-On, which I learned from the video on the Knitting Help website. Yes, it's a bit slow and hard to work, but it's neat and stretchy, but not flimsy.

I think maybe I'll just have to keep practicing more.

First Free Knitting Pattern! - Staggered Neck Warmer

2009-01-04T12:47:00.018-07:00

I'm calling this my first free pattern because I'm still tweaking the first pattern I posted (I've discovered that I don't like non-reversible scarves).

Thus, I present to you the Staggered Neck Warmer!

So a few days ago, I was thinking about all the different stitch patterns I had learned and looked at so far. I really like reversible stitch patterns, mainly because I'm still knitting mostly scarves, and I like uniform stitch patterns like moss/seed stitch. And if I only have to knit one row, it's a plus, so I don't have to figure out which row I'm on after I take a break (believe it or not, I knit the wrong row on the Seeded Rib Easy Reversible Scarf and inverted the ribs in the last part of the scarf).

So I came up with a staggered 2x2 rib stitch that would also create columns of garter (also staggered), instead of columns of stockinette like in regular ribbing. The good thing is that it's completely reversible, thick, and stretchy both vertically and horizontally. It's a great alternative to regular ribbing or plain garter and has a really nice texture to it. It could be used wherever you need a thick, textured fabric that also has plenty of ease. And you only have to knit one row if you have stitches in multiples of 4 + 2, but it's super easy to use in any number of stitches as well. The negative thing is that it might get boring for more experienced knitters and even for beginning knitters.

Yarn: Lionbrand Homespun (I think - yes, this was another unlabeled yarn I bought, but pretty though, right?? I wish I knew which colorway it was...).
Yardage: I'm not really sure. I used what looked like half a skein (~80-90 yards).
Needles: US 10
Gauge: 14 stitches in 2x2 rib unstretched = 4"; 24 rows in garter unstretched = 4"
Size: 4" x 19" unstretched

CO 14 sts
Row 1: (K2, P2) x 3, end with K2

Repeat this row for 18-20 inches, until it fits comfortably around your neck.

Then make a row with 2 buttonholes. I made them 3 sts wide:
K2
(Slip 1 st from the left to right needle knitwise with yarn in back.
Move yarn to the front of work and leave it there.
* Slip 1 st from the left to right needle knitwise.
Slip first slipped st over second slipped st and off the needle.
Repeat from * two more times.
Slip the last remaining slipped st back to the left needle knitwise.
Turn your work and bring the yarn to the front.
Tightly CO 4 sts onto the left needle - one more st than you bound off. I used a Cable Cast-On.
Turn your work.
Slip one st from the left to right needle knitwise.
Slip the last cast-on st over the next st, then slip this st back to the left needle knitwise.)
K1, P2, K1
Repeat instructions between (the parentheses) to make a second buttonhole.
K2

[Other buttonhole options can be found here. The instructions above were adapted from Buttonhole 5 - I just had trouble with the Twisted Purlwise Cast-On.)

Work two more rows of (K2, P2) x 3, K2.
BO

Sew two buttons onto the end opposite of the buttonholes. (I used two wooden beads and sewed them on with doubled embroidery thread because I couldn't find good buttons.)

And there you have it! Easy, right?

(Since this is my first complete pattern ever, any and all suggestions and criticisms are welcome!)

The Scrunchable Scarf and Something I Learned

2008-12-29T14:31:00.010-07:00

So, here is the purple Scrunchable Scarf, all finished and ends weaved in.

Pattern: Scrunchable Scarf by Susan McConne (free)
Yarn: purple mystery yarn, bulky
Needles: US 10, bamboo
Size: CO 17 sts. It's a bit short (less than 4 feet long) because I bought less than a full skein.
Made For: my friend Jeanne

Remember how I complained about how the yarn (which I'm pretty sure is Lionbrand Homespun) was bunching up because the thicker parts kept getting pushed back? Well, I finally discovered that I didn't have that problem if I just held the yarn correctly. Yes, fellow knitters, I have been holding the working yarn between my right thumb and pointer instead of wrapping it around my fingers. I am ashamed after having read countless books and websites illustrating the correct way to hold the yarn and yet still holding the yarn the wrong way. Well, at least I learned.

So for now, I'm an English knitter, but am trying to learn Continental whenever I'm working on a simpler stitch and with a yarn that doesn't split so much. It's kinda awkward, but maybe I'll get the hang of it. It seems very useful when ribbing or double-knitting.

My name is Mallory and I am a fiber-holic.

2008-12-27T20:01:00.007-07:00

Admitting the problem is the first step!!

The next step is to show off what I bought :D I bought these a little while ago, but finally got a Saturday with good light, so I could get good pictures. (Today was a huge picture-taking and internet-updating day.)

Blue Moon Fiber Arts had a 15% off de-stashing sale and I just had to take advantage of that, since I had never bought from them before. I got Icelandic in Basan. It's quite soft, but my yarn smells a bit like vinegar... The colors I got were brighter than those on the website, which I was quite happy with!

I also bought 2 skeins of Twisted in Tigers Eye. It's really pretty!! (I love tigers!)

You remember when I gushed over some yarn from Dragonfly Fiber Design in an earlier post? Well, I bought some. Woo! Here's the merino lace in Auburn. Pretty browns and purples blending together :)

And here's 3 skeins of soy lace yarn in the Tea Rose colorway. Pale yellow with a little bit of shine.

I also got a holiday present from my brother (i.e., I picked it out and my brother gave me his credit card number so I could order it). It was banana silk yarn from an Ebay store that sells natural yarns from Asia, including recycled sari silk and wool/silk blends. The yarn itself is quite cheap, but the shipping is high, so I would recommend buying multiple items. Be nice and they'll give a great shipping discount (I got 4 skeins shipped for the shipping cost of a single skein).

Ok, now I won't buy any more yarn.

You Spin Me Right Round

2008-12-11T16:07:00.011-07:00

Yippee! Look at what I got in the mail the other day:

Cool, huh? The Etsy store I bought it from burned my knitting title into it. It's 12" long and weighs 1.6 oz. It's much easier to use than my smaller circular spindle. See what I did?

(pretty, huh?)

It's my second handspun - merino superwash in metallic gray and a little purple. I'm not really sure what weight it is... kinda light-worsted I think... Oooo, look how even the thickness is... Wanna know my secret?

It's pencil roving! Ha! No (pre-)drafting required! Actually, it was pretty nice to just get used to the action of spinning without having to worry about fiber thickness or little nubbies/veggie matter that might be in it. I purchased my roving from an Ebay store called The Special Tea Shop. She has TONS of fiber (in addition to other crafts like jewelry and soap-making). You can buy 1-oz packages or bundles up to a pound in weight. She has excellent communication and ships like lightning. I put her on my favorites list :)

A month ago, I bought some "loose roving" from another Ebay/Etsy seller called fraydknot. This was before I had even gotten my hands on a spindle (I think this fiber and my first spindle arrived at around the same time). If you've looked at the pictures from her store, you'll see two things: marvelous colors (sunlight helps, I'm sure) and the fiber has not been combed or carded - not a good place for a beginner to start. I bought 2 different colorways from her for a total of about 5 oz.

This one is called Rose Marie.

When I first received it, I had no idea how to spin it, so I spun the white alpaca first. Later, I asked some friendly folks on Ravelry how I would get started. They said that it would probably be better for it to be combed/carded but that it would be possible, but difficult, to spin straight from the bundle. Now, hand carders and fiber combs cost around $50 or more (though I just found mini hand carders for $11...), so I started thinking about just selling or trading off the fiber. But last night, I decided to give it a whirl. I spun straight from fiber handfuls. Sort of. At first, I grabbed the more linear pieces, but those started running out, so I set down the spindle and started "drafting out" some of the remaining clumps of wool by teasing them out into longer pieces. Then I kept spinning. It was a little slow, because I had to inch the twist up the fiber clumps to "capture" all the frays and curls into the twist, but I think I'm getting used to it! The yarn is wildly uneven, definitely novelty yarn, but I think it looks cool! The beginning part is much more uneven than the parts I spun later.

It's taking me a while, so I'm still not done with the 2 ounces I bought, but it's nice that I can actually spin it instead of trading/selling it off.

As for actual knitting, I've finally finished something! Well, technically, half of something. I have started a pair of the Hand/Wristwarmers and I've finished one of them. However, I found that I was knitting really tightly, I think because it was my first time using DPNs and I didn't want loose stitches at the needle joins and I didn't want the aluminum needles to fall out. So... it is too small - I can force it onto my wrist, but it's pretty tight, especially around the hand/palm. But, seeing as how they're my first mitten-type-things, I don't want to rip it all out, so I think I'll finish the other wrist warmer and give them to someone with smaller hands.

I s'pose this incident demonstrates the value of swatching and determining gauge...

I also started Quant, an entrelac headband, with the Cool Splashers-dyed yarn I showed a while back. I'm not extraordinarily far, but I'm getting used to it. Here's what I have so far:

Impressive, eh? Haha... I stopped at the first diamond, because I wasn't sure how to "pick up and purl" the 6 selvedge stitches on the base triangle. I searched some entrelac tutorials but none of them really explained it. But today, I found the Knitting Help video on "picking up stitches and knitting" that demonstrated it really well. So I'll try that next. If anyone has other tips/explanations, feel free to comment :)

And one last thing... I picked up that "Simple" Blanket that I started long ago and frogged back to the row below the lace row. It's still on hold though, because there are so many cool things I'm starting. Ha, if you haven't noticed, I seem to have knitting/fiber ADD... I have 5 WIPs (well, 4, I just need to weave in the ends on the purple Scrunchable Scarf), have started spinning and dyeing, and I have over 300 projects in my Ravelry Queue. Eh. At least I'm having fun :)

Hey, look - it's Berniece!!

Puppy pictures! She's so cute :D

More Yummy Yarn (That I Can't Have)

2008-12-08T22:07:00.006-07:00

I'm pretty sure I looked through these two fiber stores for at least 2 hours at work today. I'm such a bum sometimes.

Dragonfly Fibers has really beautiful colors and is actually pretty affordable. If I hadn't already spent lots of money on Ebay and Blue Moon Fibers (hey - they had a de-stashing sale!) and the Knitting-Warehouse (it was also on sale! And tigers are my favorite animals!), I would totally buy her Auburn Squishy Lace Yarn. Mmmmmm!!! Pretty browns mixed with touches of deep purple - an excellent color combination :D This Summer Kisses Sock Yarn is also really pretty. Another genius color combo!

Sanguine Gryphon Fiber Arts not only has an awesome name (wink!), but also has really nice earthy and rich colors with names like Fig Tree, Ice Flower, A Fire is Smoking, Sharing Immortality, and... Nasal Explosion? Hehe...

I just read a Ravelry thread today talking about how the name of the yarn/fiber can actually have an effect on its appeal. I completely agree! I think that naming a colorway can be pretty important and some names can "entrance" people, as one poster said, and when you're selling fiber, entrancing people can pretty good for business ;) Especially when most of them have fiber addictions already!

First Yarn Dyeing Experiment! + Lessons Learned

2008-12-04T13:44:00.014-07:00

Before I dye my handspun, I decided to try dyeing some yarn I bought a while ago (on sale too!) with Kool-Aid-type stuff. So at the store, there were two brands of drink mix: Kool-Aid and Cool Splashers. The Cool Splashers were 50% cheaper (read: 10 cents less) than the Kool-Aid and contained more ounces of powder per packet, so, being the cheapskate I am (usually), I bought the Cool Splashers ;)

The yarn I used was one ball of white Novita Florica sport weight wool (50 g, 1.75 oz). It was also superwash, which I think is a good idea if you're dyeing yarn for the first time. You can stir and disturb the yarn all you want and don't have to worry about felting :) (Which is probably why sock yarn is so popular to dye!)

The first thing I did was to re-skein the yarn into a super long loop. Here it is twisted into a long hank:

(With winter coming, my bathroom was the only one with enough light to give a good picture... which is weird because it's on the north side of the house.)

Then I soaked the yarn in 1/2 cup of vinegar and enough water to submerge it all. Fiber floats, so I weighed it down with some ladles. I'm not sure if that's really necessary because of capillary action, but I did it anyway.

Most people say to soak it for at least a half hour. I let mine sit for an hour and a half. Meanwhile, I prepared the dyes. The general rule of thumb is 1 packet per ounce of yarn, but I wanted super-bright colors, so I emptied 2 packets of strawberry, orange, and lemonade into three separate glasses and added 1 cup of the same liquid in which the yarn was soaking plus 1 extra tablespoon of vinegar. Pretty colors!

(Pom Tea is awesome!)

I then divided my yarn loop into three, roughly equal sections and submerged them into the glasses.

Then, I filled the pot with water and put it on the stove:

Unforunately, the glass with the orange drink mix cracked and orange dye leaked into the pot.

After leaving it like that for about 10 min to let the yarn soak up the dye a little more, I took it all out. The yellow dye was pretty much exhausted (not much could be done about the orange...), but the red wasn't quite done.

So I decided to finish it all with the microwave. Here they are after microwaving on high for 2 min x 2.

You can see that the color has pretty much gone out of the liquid, leaving it cloudy or clear. The water was still hot, so I let it cool in the glasses/plate for the better part of a day. I then took it out, rinsed it with cold/room temp water. No color leaked out. It was pretty cool! I let it hang to dry, with the red hanging at the bottom, just in case.

Later, I decided that the yellow section was not strong enough, so I re-dyed that section. I microwaved 2 cups of water + 1/4 cup of vinegar for 2 min and mixed in one packet of lemonade drink mix, submerged the yellow section of yarn, and let it sit for about a half hour. By that time, the dye was exhausted. (Additional internet surfing revealed that drink mix is one of the easiest things to dye yarn with and you may not even need vinegar or very much heat at all... unless you're impatient I guess.) I let the water cool a little and then washed the yarn in warm water, which turned out to be a mistake because a little of the red/orange bled into the yellow section. It's not really that noticeable in an individual strand though. Here it is after it dried (sorry for the yellow-ness of the picture again):

And... (drumroll please...) here it is re-skeined into a smaller hank:

I've realized that there's really no reason to re-skein like this if you're going to knit from it because you're just going to have to re-wind it into a ball. However, I think the idea is to see all the different colors next to each other. And I have to agree with Presents Knits: yarn really is prettiest in the hank :) I liked these colors so much I made it into my blog header, yay! (PS - image edited with Picnik, a genius online image-editing website, which is, of course, free!)

And finally, lessons I learned:

Don't use cheap wooden chopsticks to mix the dye. It absorbs some of the dye and the splinters (because they're cheap) get caught in the yarn. Use plastic utensils instead. I switched to disposable spoons halfway through.
Using the microwave is a lot easier than using the stove. Especially if you're cooking-impaired like me :) And if you are going to use the stove, get a big enough pot so the water comes close to the level of the dye in the glass/jar.
Don't use cheap glasses. They crack.
For Cool Splashers drink mix, 1-2 packets of strawberry is probably enough for an ounce of yarn. Use 2-3 packets of orange and 4 or more of lemonade to get saturated color. Or maybe try Kool-Aid for the yellow.
Until you know that the color won't bleed (especially in warm/hot water), rinse each section of color separately.

Here are some sites that helped me get started:

Sonja Record made it really simple. No pictures though.
Debi Tuttle's microwave method + color samples!
Barbara Harris-Pruitt has instructions for both microwave and stovetop + color samples on white and gray yarn.
Eunny's method for making self-striping yarn.

Hello Blogger-People!

2008-12-03T16:17:00.004-07:00

After a little research (and creating accounts on a number of different blog sites), I've decided to move my blog from Mindsay to Blogger. Mindsay is very nice, extremely user-friendly (it has improved a great deal in the time I've been there), has some great people, and I feel a loyalty with it since it was my very first blog site (for my "regular life" journal), but it doesn't have nearly as many features as Blogger does... although I've just noticed that Blogger does not have an Undo/Redo option on the Create Post page. Additionally, Mindsay requires that people sign up for an account in order to comment, which is unfortunate.

Out of the few (free) blog sites I looked at and sampled, Blogger was perhaps the most user-friendly and intuitive to navigate.

So, here I am :)

I had so few posts on my Mindsay blog that I just copied and pasted them over to this one (since Mindsay isn't on the list from which to import posts).

A Couple New Projects and... My First Handspun!! Yay!!

2008-12-03T16:07:00.003-07:00

So I've started a couple new projects. I am ignoring that darn baby blanket for a while because I found a few mistakes that I made 4 rows ago and I don't feel like ripping it back right now. Boo.

Anyways, here's the scarf I'm making for my dad:

And I just realized that I took a picture of the "wrong side" of the scarf. The other side is the actual stitch, but this side looks pretty cool too I call it "Dad's Brown and White Rice Scarf." (I'm not actually sure if he'll like it... he already has a scarf and my dad likes to keep things simple... usually.)

Yarn: Love Knit (Brown Sepia 1205), Caron Dazzleaire (Off White 2615)
Needles: US 15

Holding the two yarns together, CO 16 sts
Purl one row, substituting a K1 for the last st
Row 1: sl1 wyif, *K1, P1, rep from * until last st
Row 2: sl1 wyif, P rest of row, substituting a K1 for the last st
Repeat Rows 1 and 2 until desired length achieved, ending on Row 2
BO

* sl1 wyif = slip 1 as to knit, with yarn in front

I also started the Scrunchable Scarf:

[Note: Because of my sleep/work schedule, I have been "forced" to take pictures at night. I don't like the pictures I took with flash, so you are stuck with these yellowed photos.]

The pattern's real easy and very pretty, and the yarn is very soft, but not too easy to work with. The loopy parts keep getting pushed back and scrunched up. I bought it from Ebay without a label, so I don't know which brand it is. Eh, we'll see how it goes.

AND... now for a pretty exciting bit. I just spun my own skein of yarn!!! I bought some undyed alpaca fiber from Ebay (where else??) and used Megan LaCore's Videos (1 2 3) to guide me.

So here's the fiber. I pre-drafted a little to smooth it out and take out some leafy/veggie matter. I didn't get all of it out, so my yarn's a bit dirty. Eh. I still think it's cool I intentionally left the fiber a little uneven to make the yarn sort of thick-and-thin (intentionally = I just didn't try very hard to even it out because I knew I wouldn't get it very even in the first place, it being my first time spinning and all). Also, here's my drop spindle!

And, here's half of it spun up.

Here's all of it wrapped around a chair back and twisted into a mini hank. (As you can tell, like a proud mama, I took TONS of pictures of my first handspun )

Then, I heated some water on the stove in two big pots to near boiling. I squirted a little Dawn dish soap into one and carefully submerged the yarn into it. I let it soak for a few minutes and then carefully (!) transferred it to the other pot of water only and let that soak for a while (I read that disturbing the yarn too much can felt it). Then, I took it out, wrapped it in a clean towel, and squeezed it to take out some water. In order to let it fully dry and to set the twist in the yarn, I hung it up overnight and weighed it down with a can of Progresso soup. But, I think I put too much twist into the fiber - some parts of the yarn kinked up on itself and when I took off the can of soup, the hank didn't hang straight and twisted a little (i.e., it wasn't balanced... I think this is the right terminology).

And finally, I re-wound it into a much longer skein to prepare for dying.

I haven't done the dying yet, but will post pictures up when it's done.

That's it for now!

[Note: Originally posted Nov 24, 2008 on my previous blog.]

One of My Favorite Yarn Stores

2008-12-03T16:05:00.002-07:00

Well, ok, so I actually haven't bought from this store yet, but I've been practically drooling over it for the past few weeks. It's called The Painted Tiger and the woman who owns and runs it hand-dyes all of her yarn. She specializes in sock (fingering) yarn and her signature color is single- and multi-rainbow(s). As a sample, here are some links to ones that I really like:

Bulky- Aurora
Lace- Electric Blue
Worsted- Autumn Leaves

There are so many more that I like too AND she just added some new ones!

Anyways, I haven't bought any yet because it's a little pricey, even though some things go on sale, and I'm a little short on funds currently... even though I have a job... weird how that happens.

Actually, let's not lie, I know what happened. I just spent a week buying yarn on Ebay. Five medium to large packages total. Probably more than $200 in all. I told you I went crazy!! BUT most of them were really good deals, I swear! I'll put up pictures of some of the cool ones I got. (Which reminds me, I need a header image for this blog.)

So no actual knitting content in this post. I did make some headway on the blanket, but not enough to really take pictures and show people. I also started a scarf for my dad, but haven't gotten super far.

[Note: Originally posted Nov 11, 2008 on my previous blog]

An Introduction (Part 2): My Knitting Experiences So Far

2008-12-03T15:38:00.008-07:00

For some reason, I got a sudden urge to knit one night when I was at my mom's house and saw her pile of yarn. It's weird, because I've seen her yarn before and never had any desire to start knitting or crocheting (which is what my mom does). I got so excited, I stole some of her yarn, looked up some diagrams and videos online, and started knitting a little square in garter with a pair of cheap bamboo chopsticks and a small ball of blue. I was pretty proud of myself

Later, I google-mapped the closest yarn shops to me and -- yippee!! There's one just a few blocks away from where I work. It's called Lamb Shoppe. A day or two later, I went there after work and was amazed at all the different textures and colors and materials of yarn. I touched freakin' everything in that store. I ended up buying a pair of straight bamboo needles, a pair (I bought just one, do I still call it a pair?) of circulars, and, of course, some awesome yarn. I got two colors of Misti Alpaca Chunky in Eggplant and Chartreuse Melange and one color of Lamb's Pride Worsted in Orange Creamsicle. They were all a bit pricy (especially the alpaca), but it was my first yarn buy, so I figured it was ok to splurge a bit.

Here are the alpaca colors. I love love LOVE this color combination and the yarn is super soft. I still haven't figured out what I want to make with it though.

Here's the Orange Creamsicle. Not so hot on the feel -- it's a bit itchy, but the color won me over. It's very pretty

Then, I started searching patterns for my next project. Oh, the patterns! So many cool things to make. I settled on the Meringue Zig Zag Scarf and decided to use a skein of soft, cream-colored yarn I had stolen earlier from my mom It took me a couple weeks, but here it is, finished last month:

(I've noticed that knitters love these angled shots, especially to show texture... ooo texture!)

I was little inconsistent in the way I switched between the zig-zagging sections, so it's more curvy where I started, and then the turns get sharper in the middle and the end. Also, I did YOs as the increases, which created little loops on those sides. Apparently, I need to learn more increases. I intentionally left the fringe uneven and wrinkly.

Here's me being all ANTM with the scarf:

Well, after my first encounter buying yarn... I couldn't stop. Since then, I've been searching dozens of patterns online and buying yarn from Hobby Lobby, another LYS called Strawberry Tree, and another giant shop called Ebay. Ack! I have more yarn than I can possibly knit in the next several months (especially at my rate, which is really slow). But it doesn't make me depressed (like when I buy nice shoes and realize I'll probably wear them once in the next year or two and not any time soon). I get to sort through them and touch them and take pictures to put on my (relatively) new Ravelry account...

Speaking of which, my Ravelry username is immortaltiger007. I have very few pictures up there currently (they're VERY similar to, i.e., the same as, the ones in this entry) -- I'm working on that!! I might have a few more yarn pictures up on the stash page pretty soon.

So right now, I'm working on the Simply Elegant Baby Blanket for a coworker's new baby, who was born in July. It is taking me forever though and I swear I started and re-started this blanket at least 4 times already. I finally got to the last row of the first repeat last week and am almost done with the second repeat. Perhaps it'll be done in time for the baby's children.

Hopefully, I'll get more knitting time soon

[Note: Originally posted Nov 5, 2008 on my previous blog.]

An Introduction

2008-12-03T15:30:00.003-07:00

OK, so after years of ignoring knitters and all things yarn-inspired, I have finally become obsessed with knitting. And, since knitting blogs are all the rage, I decided I'd start one to chronicle my trials and tribulations and put up pictures of my progress (what's a knitting blog without pictures??).

Of course, every knitting blog must have a catchy, yarn-related title/username. I first came up with Mallory Knits. Sigh... so many blogs start with [Name] Knits already. Hm... how about Mal-Knits? Nah, then it just implies bad knitting. Titles with my name are out. So, like the uncreative dork I am, I googled "words with nit." I'm sure you see where I'm going with this. Affinity, eternity, infinite, insanity, nitpicky, opportunity... then I saw sanguinity.

Sanguine (adj): (definition adapted from Merriam-Webster)
1: bloodred
2: consisting of or relating to blood; bloodthirsty
3: having blood as the predominating bodily humor; having the bodily conformation and temperament held characteristic of such predominance and marked by sturdiness, ruddy complexion, and cheerfulness
4: confident, optimistic, hopeful

— san·guine·ly adverb
— san·guine·ness noun
— san·guin·i·ty noun

It's a word I remembered distinctly from a Firefly episode and definition #4 is a pretty accurate description of my attitude towards this new hobby. And thus, my knitting blog was born:

Sanguiknity
the hopeful adventures of a knitting novice

Perhaps it's too much story-telling about the blog title, but I thought it was interesting. Plus it may help to explain the definition to people who define sanguine as "bloody." Yes, knitting needles can be dangerous, but I really hope this definition does NOT describe my future knitting adventures.

Anyways, I guess we'll see how this goes.

[Note: Originally posted Nov 3, 2008 on my previous blog.]