- Finished the first half of Backyard Leaves last night. Dang, that is a neat pattern. I could knit leaf repeats all day long. No time for pictures though.

- The Knit & Crochet Show is in Oakland this weekend & Amtrak is sponsoring a Stitch & Ride train to get there. Sounds like a lot of fun, and I’m a big fan of taking the train into the Bay Area. Still can’t decide whether I should go or not. I’m thinking probably… especially if it is going to rain again this weekend.

- Still haven’t had a chance to work on the Weekender any more. Why is it that I seem to have less time now that I’m at home than I did when I was in school? Must get out the sewing machine again soon.

- Had a knitting lunch with Lynette on Tuesday. Very cool to have another knitter at work to meet up with occasionally. And it doesn’t hurt that she is a way awesome person either! So glad I’ve gotten to know her.

- SnB tonight - I remembered this time! :-) Caitlyn & Ruth, I’ll see you there!

- UPS: HATE THEM. They lost my bridesmaid dress for my sister’s wedding this summer. Really. Lost. Technically, they claim to have delivered it. Left it by the front door, they said. Right. No dress by the front door. Neighbors didn’t see anything. My guess is that someone walking down the street saw the UPS guy leave and decided to see what he left. Why on earth would you leave a package insured for $200 by someone’s front door without getting a signature? WHY??? Thankfully I was able to order a replacement dress that will arrive before the wedding (barely), but it will cost me about $75 more than the original dress to have it rushed. And this, after the curtain debacle. Suffice it to say, I will NEVER willingly partake of UPS’s “services” again.

- Off to work, to my spacious (ha!) new cubicle. It is taking some time to get used to the cube world after being in an office for 3.5 years.

Just when I think I have a plan to finish all of the projects I’ve started on, something new comes up. I’ve been making good progress on the front of Salina, working my way through the foot of Jaywalker #1, and pining for the long neglected Snowflake. But, a week ago, a friend did something really nice for me, and in lieu of payment, she said that she’d love it if I would knit her a scarf. Something blue, she said.

I’ve been eyeing the Backyard Leaves pattern for a while, and thought it would be the perfect thing - simple, elegant, and pretty. So, on Saturday I bought some gorgeous blue yarn (Karabella Aurora 8), and started knitting.

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I’ve got 8 repeats done so far, 14 or so left to go. After a slow start, I’ve got the hang of the pattern now and am flying through it. I’ve read rave reviews of the pattern in blogland, and I have to say, I agree. This pattern is brilliant. The edging is by far the best scarf edging I’ve ever seen, and the leaf pattern is amazing in its simple beauty.

Was anyone else a bit freaked out when they started knitting this pattern though? Cast on 10 stitches? That couldn’t be nearly enough! And the chart looked a bit foreboding too. But, lo & behold, everything worked out perfectly.

I’m going to be working on this scarf until I have it done, then back to finishing up my other projects.

Sewing is not like knitting. It can (and does!) take forever for me to knit something, but it doesn’t bother me much, because for me, knitting is more about the process. Don’t get me wrong, I love the end result, but I mostly knit because it is relaxing.

Sewing, on the other hand, is all about the end result. It kills me to have a pile of fabric pieces cut and ready to be sewn together, and not have time to sit down and finish the project. Also, sewing? Not terribly relaxing, as evidenced by the choice words that escaped my mouth several times last night. But, I still love to sew. I think for me it is the challenge of creating a three dimensional object out of yards of fabric by cutting it into different shapes and putting the pieces together.

So, last night I hauled the sewing machine out and started putting the pieces of the weekender bag together.

I only had a few hours to work on it, and didn’t get very far. I completed the two large pocket panels and all the cording I’ll need for the rest of the bag. This is going to be one loooong project. Every piece needs to be pinned, basted, and sewn multiple times (once to apply cording, once to apply the heavyweight Timtex lining, and once to apply the fabric lining). Just applying the cording to the top of the pocket required about 6 passes of the sewing machine (plus one more the time I messed up and had to rip).

Yep, this is going to take a while. I guess I just have to live with it, and get used to hauling out my sewing machine a few nights a week until the project is done.

Next up, handles and the large front and back panel. Wheee!

Presenting the Elongated Corded Rib socks!

All ready to be sent off to their rightful owner, just as soon as May rolls around. I’m a little sad to have to send these off, because I really like how they turned out. The yarn, the pattern, the lovely proportionate short row heel - these may be my favorite socks that I’ve knit so far. But, I know I have to give them up. And, they are a bit big for me, so no use keeping them for myself! I’m reminded of something that Ashley said during her quest to create the perfect sockapalooza socks for her pal - “it is a good rule of thumb for gifts in general, not just socks: give something that the recipient will love, but that you are also a teeny bit sad to part with.” So true!

Sock Details:

Yarn: Louet Sales Gems Opal Sport Weight in Neptune (2 skeins)
Pattern: Elongated Corded Rib pattern, from Sensational Knitted Socks (my new favorite sock book)
Needles: Size 3, 8″ metal dpns
Modifications: Replaced flap heel with short row heel
Thoughts: Love the yarn, love knitting socks on size 3 needles (bless you, my sock pal, for not requesting socks knit on size 0 needles!), love the pattern, love the book. Can’t wait to see how my sock pal likes them!

And, on another note, thank you for all the kind words and thoughts about Todd. Thankfully, he’s doing much better after a couple of days of rest. He’s gotten some of his memory back (still can’t remember skiing at all), and is back at work today. I’ll be keeping a close eye on him for the next few months to make sure there is nothing unusual happening, and before we go skiing again next winter, we will definitely be purchasing ski helmets.

What a weekend! Lots going on, knitting and not. Forgive me if this post seems somewhat random… I need to learn to post more frequently with less stuff in each post.

First, a HUGE thank you to all those who suggested new names for my blog! I got some awesome ideas, and had a hard time choosing the winner.

[drum roll please…]

And the winner is… Cathi of In The Pink, with her suggestion of “On Pins and Needles.” The name works perfectly for a (mostly) knitting and sewing themed blog, and, ironically, also describes my state of mind as I await my bar results. I’m hoping the state of mind thing is only temporary though!

I’ll be working on getting my new site up over the next couple of months - stay tuned!

In other weekend news, my Sockapaloooza socks are now finished! They are happily blocking away right now. I’ll get a nice picture of them when they are dry.

There was another trip to the fabric store over the weekend too. After reading and rereading the Weekender bag pattern, and much fondling of the gorgeous Amy Butler fabric that I purchased, I decided that my decision to ignore the pattern instructions and buy lightweight fabric was very unwise. So, I found some nice heavy home decorating cotton in a mod black and tan print with a coordinating black “O” print lining.

It isn’t as springy as the floral fabric, but the pseudo-geometric print is very me. The AB fabric will be put to good use as a Madison bag instead. That pattern is much more suitable for a lightweight fabric.

Of course, I couldn’t resist getting started. After nearly 4 hours of pattern layout and cutting, and approximately 60 pattern pieces later (I kid you not), here’s what I’ve got…

Fun, eh? Just wait until I start sewing it up!

We also headed up to Northstar at Tahoe to ski today. The day started out great… got to the mountain just before 10, hardly any lift lines, got in a couple green runs to warm up, headed off to do a couple of blue runs, and went back to the green run so we could meet our friends at the bottom of the chair lift. A great start to the day. Then, about halfway down a really easy run, Todd crashed - a bad, scary crash (two full flips). And for no apparent reason - we were going a reasonable speed on an easy run, and there were no other people or trees around. I was terrified that he had broken bones, or worse. But, after resting for a minute, he got up and skiied the rest of the way down the run.

After we finished the run, I thought he should probably rest for a while, so we headed to the lodge and sat down. While we were resting, he started acting really out of character - he kept asking me what had happened, and he couldn’t remember where we were or how we got there, or that we had driven up to the mountain with another couple. At first, I thought he was playing a late April Fool’s joke on me, but he was completely serious. We sat a while longer and had lunch, and by the time lunch was over, I knew something was really wrong - he was really quiet and seemed confused about everything. We took the gondola down the mountain to the first aid station to see the doctor. The entire way there, Todd kept asking me where we were going, and why he needed to see a doctor. By that point, I was really scared that he had a serious head injury from the crash. The doctor was able to see him right away, and said that he had a very bad concussion, and had no short term memory capability, and that we’d have to stay in the clinic for monitoring until he started to recover from the concussion, or if that didn’t happen, we’d have to go to a local ER to get CT scans done in case there was internal bleeding in his head. I don’t think I’ve every been so worried - head injuries are very scary.

The next few hours were awful. He didn’t understand what he was doing in the clinic, and kept asking where we were and what had happened. Finally, he started to remember a few little things, like the doctor’s name. What a relief! Late in the afternoon, the doctor discharged him because he was improving, but said that it would take a while for a full recovery, and that there was still a possibility that he could get worse.

So, right now we’re home, and thankfully Todd is doing better (not great, but better). We’re both pretty shaken by the whole incident. Todd will probably never remember the moments before the accident or the following several hours, and he’s still confused about why he had such a bad crash on such an easy run. He’s also trying to remember the past few days, which seem to have been lost, at least temporarily. The whole incident was very frightening, and I can’t even put into words how happy I am that it wasn’t any worse. We are very, very fortunate.

On Sunday, I finished the first of the Sockapaloooza socks. I was hoping (unrealistically) to get two socks out of one skein of the Opal Louet Gems yarn - after all, in the latest issue of Interweave Knits, the lacy anklet pattern only uses one skein for a pair of socks! Nevermind that these aren’t anklets, aren’t really lacy, and most importantly, are about two sizes bigger than the Interweave pattern. Ah, optimism - one day it will be my downfall.

Fortunately I was able to determine that I was running short on yarn before I started the second sock. Read it and weep:

Yeah, I was a little off on my yarn estimate! Thankfully I was able to get another skein of the same yarn to start sock #2. I’m hoping to be done with it by the weekend.

There’s another sewing project on deck too - Amy Butler’s Weekender Travel Bag. I wasn’t able to find her Sunbloom fabric anywhere, but a local quilting store carries some of her Charm line, so I’m using a lighter weight cotton with heavier interfacing. Hopefully it will work!

I also got Amy’s Madison bag pattern - it reminds me of the Zelda knitting bag, which I adore but can’t bring myself to buy. So, I’ll make one instead!

Keep those blog name suggestions coming! I’ve abandoned the Domestic Adventures idea (”sounds like a parenting blog” “sounds kind of kinky” “I just hate that name”), and have gotten some other great names. Get your entry in by Friday for a chance to win some yarn!

Blogging is really no fun when your blog host is always having issues, you can’t upload pictures, and you have to hit the publish post button approximately 43 times before the post really does upload. I’m FED UP with Blogger!

So, here’s the deal… I’ve been messing around with WordPress a bit, and am ready to move to a different site. But, I also plan to change the theme of my blog a bit. I’ve been doing slightly less knitting lately, and more of other crafty/domestic projects, like sewing, cooking, and home decorating, and come spring, I’ll also be doing some gardening.

This is where I need your help - I need a new blog name that is more suitable for including all of my hobbies, preferably something with an available .com or .net URL. After hours of thinking about it, I was only able to come up with one name that I kind of like: Domestic Adventures.

I’d like your input on the name, so I’m having a little contest. Here’s what you have to do:

By 5pm PST on Friday, March 31, Send me an e-mail with:

1. A new and improved blog name for me

AND/OR

2. A note telling me whether you love or hate the name “Domestic Adventures”

On Friday night, I will choose a blog name. If I pick your suggested name, I’ll be sending you some sock yarn! If I decide to use my own suggestion based on the comments, I’ll pick a random person from all those who sent e-mails to receive the yarn. Got it? Good!

As requested by Lynette… a modeled picture of the skirt I sewed.

I’m pretty pleased overall with how the skirt turned out. I learned a few new things, including how to do an invisible zipper, lining, and an invisible hem with my sewing machine. I’m not super excited about the fabric, but it is very professional looking. It will be great for the 3 times a year I have to dress up at work. :)

I also created an invisible zipper tutorial for Sew I Knit, which I’m going to post here as well. You know, just in case any of you knitters decide to take up sewing, and need to learn how to sew an invisible zipper!

First, the new and improved short row heel for the sockapaloooza sock:

Yes, the flap heel has been frogged. In its place, a new, more proportional short row heel. Not only does this heel look better, I have a feeling it will fit better too.

The sock had quite an adventurous weekend as well. Most of the heel/foot knitting was done in the car on Saturday, as we were sitting in traffic trying to get to the California Capital Airshow. It took us an hour and a half to go about 2 miles! Finally, we gave up, and postponed our trip to the airshow until Sunday. Having learned our lesson, we took the light rail and bus on Sunday. Much easier than fighting traffic!

The sock (and I) got to see some pretty cool planes. Very little knitting got done at the airshow though. I was too busy marveling at the performances and all the amazing aircraft. Between Todd and I, we ended up with over 400 pictures from the airshow… a few of my favorites are below.

The sock and a fighter jet

The sock and a WW2 war bird

A war bird in flight

A biplane

Simulated Blackhawk rescue

The Blue Angels

A C5 Galaxy cargo plane - this thing is HUGE!

The Sockapaloooza sock knitting has begun! The socks are the Elongated Corded Rib pattern from Sensational Knitted Socks, knit with Louet Gems Opal in a pretty sky blue color.

[FYI - SKS is a wonderful book with dozens of neat sock patterns that will work for almost any yarn gauge, color (solid/stripe/variegated), sock knitting technique (4 or 5 DPN, 2 circs, magic loop), and foot size.]

The only problem is the heel of the sock… is it just me or is this an unnaturally large heel? To give you an idea of the actual sock size, the dpns are about 8 inches long.

I realize that the ribbing pulls in quite a bit on the leg and the foot of the sock, so that may be affecting the scale of things a little, but the heel just looks completely out of proportion to the rest of the sock right now. I don’t quite understand, because my gauge is right on, and I’ve followed the pattern exactly. But the heel just looks enormous and out of place to me. Unfortunately, my sock pal’s feet are a couple of sizes larger than my feet, so I can’t get a good idea of how these will fit her by trying them on myself. The sock isn’t overly huge on me, and the ribbing allows for a little leeway in fit, but I’m still worried that my pal will end up with baggy heeled socks. Not good!

I’m debating whether I should rip the heel and use a short row heel instead. If anyone has thoughts or suggestions, please let me know!

I’m really enjoying this pattern. I love how the ribbing looks when it is slightly stretched, and I’m hoping that because the ribbing is stretchy it will fit the recipient perfectly. This is also a very simple stitch pattern - a 4 stitch, 8 row repeat, and only two of the eight rows deviate from 2×2 ribbing. Total mindless knitting, yet still quite pretty! Love it!

The most difficult part of the sock so far was picking up stitches around the heel flap. You can see in the top picture that there is a 3-st garter stitch border on the heel flap. I had a bit of a tough time figuring out how to pick up stitches on the edge of the garter stitch. If you do it wrong, you end up with big gaping holes at the edge of the heel flap! My heel flap preference is a slipped stitch edging, which makes it much easier to know where to pick up the stitches, and is virtually hole-proof.