Spring Blooms

I don't really have much knitting to update you all on, but I do have some flower pictures and a furry woodland creature picture I can show you. I cleaned all last night. I took some before photos, but I didn't finish cleaning, so the after photo will have to be taken later than I thought. Once I get the roll of film developed, you will be able to see the mess that is my little space.

DBF and I went to the local arboretum the other day and shot some pictures. There were some very pretty dogwoods blooming and bleeding hearts and columbines. The azaleas were out too. There were even...
Bunnies in bloom! Gotta love long lenses that let you get close without scaring the poor thing away. The dogwoods were pretty, but the wind was blowing, so I guess you can call this an "impressionistic" photo.
I also tried to take some abstract photos and played around with moving the camera while the shutter was wide open. This was the result...
Those were red peonies. Kinda interesting. And finally, I mentioned the bleeding hearts. They were very pretty.
Oh, by the way...legal stuff...all these pictures are mine, all mine! If you use them, I shall stab you with knitting needles when you least expect it! You will trip over yarn! You will open a pack of magic cards that only contain:

Are you scared? You should be, you should be...

Hopefully I'll have some knitting updates soon. I have to finish cleaning before I can get my film developed. Once I do though, I'll have all kinds of pictures to post.

Knit on...

Ah, the Weekend

I really need a digital camera. I have been seriously looking at buying a Nikon D70 since my poor Minolta has now sold out to Sony. Why do I need a digital camera? One Name: Harlot.

I did see the Yarn Harlot on Saturday morning before driving my grandmother to the airport in Louisville. I couldn't let her be so close and not go and see her and the sock. My sweater really wanted to see the sock. It had just been finished Friday night with the nice sari silk bottom border and it needed a day out. It was rainy and drab, but the sweater did go and meet the sock. I even did a twirl model for the Yarn Harlot. It was a good morning.

Here's a few pictures of the sweater pre-sari silk. I also need a digital camera for this too. Maybe I'll get on the Harlot's site and you'll be able to see the full thing before I go and get film developed. Time will tell.
Meet the Paradise Fish Sweater before she was all sewn together. Pieces everywhere!

There she is all sewn up. She had to be finished at work, so just don't mind those geologic maps she's sitting on.
There's a brief shot of the inside of the sweater. I did make it reversable if I so ever desired to wear it like that. I doubt that will happen though. And finally...

One of the most unflattering pictures taken of me in a while! I didn't even have the energy to suck in my gut. The sweater is now edged in a nice red-hued sari silk which added another inch and a half to it.

The pattern for this sweater is very easy. I cast on 95 stitches for the front and back panels. I worked K5P1 rib for 23 inches for the back and the front was K5P1 rib for 16 inches. K5P1 for 46 stitches. K2Tog. BO 1 stitch. K2Tog. K5P1 rib till end. Keep K2Tog on each side to create the V-Neck. The sleeves are just 36 stitches cast on, K5P1 rib, increase on each side every 4th row until you have 84 stitches. Then work until arms measure 20 inches. Sew 'er up and you have a sweater. I know I'm an awful pattern writer. I just made it up as I went and it turned out pretty good.

Now, I want everyone to meet Shivan Dragon. He's an old Magic card who is going to start travelling with me. Shivan enjoyed a day at the horse races on Thursday (he was already red, else he might have gotten scorched as well). He was eyeballing the horses as food, but I reminded him that if he wants to come along anywhere, he needs to behave.

For another knitting update, here's Nautie so far!
He's a cute little squid! Here's Kathy's bag I was talking about the other day. I just love the flowers!
They were cross-stitched on after all the knitting was done. I'm going to have to make this bag now! And here's Kathy's cute little Amigurumi lion:
And what about those baby robins from the other day? DBF snapped this picture of them on Wednesday. They're even bigger now.

There's the weekend in a nutshell. I'll get more pictures as soon as I get some film developed. I have to get my picture of the Yarn Harlot up here!

Knit on...

I have seen the Harlot

I went to see the Yarn Harlot, aka Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, and she is quite nice. I wore the paradise fish sweater that I finished last night and she made me model it for her. I twirled around in the green and fuschia sweater, just plain thrilled that I had met the Harlot.

I was not able to stay for her talk however. I have to go drive my grandmother to the airport. Oh well. I'll have pictures of my Harlot encounter soon. I even got to hold the famous sock. It was a nice sock and I think she and my sweater really hit it off.

Anyways, gotta get to the airport now.

Knit on...

Sunburn and Lost Money

Ah, Spring is here. Next weekend is the Kentucky Derby and all in the state are planning their parties and blowing money at the best racetrack in the state: Keeneland. I was one of these people yesterday. I went in with 50 bucks and I came out with 12. I didn't win a single bet. That was my worst betting luck at Keeneland in, well, ever.

DBF however was picking the winners left and right! He came out about 30 bucks ahead by the end of the races I think. I should have bet what he was betting! Of course, if I had done that, the horses would have lost. I have a tendency to curse people :oP

After the races, we took my grandmother out to dinner and then DBF and I headed off to poker night. I sucked. On the bright side, I did finish the last sleeve on the paradise fish sweater. I got it all sewn up this morning before I started work and now I'm weaving in the bazillion ends (yes, that's a lot) and getting it ready for the sari silk yarn to be attached to the bottom. Even without the silk, the sweater looks pretty good. It fits fairly good, but I do need to lose some of my belly fat. I'll work on that...

Pictures will be up either tomorrow or on Monday, depending on if I wake up in time on Saturday to post. The Yarn Harlot is coming in tomorrow, but I don't think I'll make it to her talk. Oh well. Jane is taking my book to be signed. Hopefully Jane will get her picture on the blog.

I also got very very sunburned yesterday. I hurt like hell. Just thought I would share. I better get some work done.

Knit on...

Yes, I Am Killing Time...

What kind of knitting needles are you?

You are plastic.Futuristic, milky, and silky, you are willing to go where no crafter has gone before. You can do just about anything, with strength agility, and pretty colors to boot! While you are good at slipping and sliding out of sticky situations, remember to stay where and when you are needed. Don't overdo it on star gazing when there's earthbound knitting to be done!
Take this quiz!

Ironically, I use plastic needles a lot, mainly because I can't afford better needles right now. I do love my few bamboo needles though. I got all my plastic needles second hand though. Gotta love huge lots on ebay auctions.

Speaking of wanting something, I really want this book...I know I have mentioned it before, but I really, REALLY want this book! I think I might grab it next paycheck. Knit on...

An Actual Knitting Update

OK, so without further ado, let me introduce you to the sleeve that caused all the problems....it's now all done and I've got about half that much done on the second sleeve now.
I also promised you some pictures of my dragon cross stitch. I finally drug this poor thing out of the drawer and dusted it off. I've only been working on it for four freaking years now. I might want to finish it sometime. I guess the Stashalong has gotten me motivated to finish some unfinished projects, even if they aren't knitting related.
This weekend was also full of drinks and what not. I don't know why I decided you need to see the cooler, but there it is, along with a quick shot of the inside fridge door at the hotel. Caffeine and booze, you just can't go wrong there...unless you decide to knit while drunk. I refrained from doing this I might add.
DBF and I also picked up two books from the speaker who was at the photography weekend. His name is Tony Sweet. While we didn't agree with his judging, he still shoots some interesting shots. He's all about filters. Here's his two books.

But what about Nautie you ask? The little squid is coming along, but alas, I have not taken any pictures of the little guy yet. I'll try to get some pictures of him soon. I also want to get a picture of Kathy's new purse she made. It's so pretty. I want to make one now. I'm trying to convince her she needs to start blogging some of her projects. She's uber talented.

The Yarn Harlot, aka Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, is coming into Kentucky on Saturday. I have to take my grandmother to the airport on Saturday and will then be 1.5 hours away! I want to go there so bad, but unless I can convince Grandma that she needs to be at the airport three hours before her flight, it doesn't look like I'll be able to get there. So, I think I have come up with a solution. If I can get the paradise fish sweater completed by Saturday, I will dress a red-haired raggedy ann doll in it and send the doll with a box of bourbon chocolates. Jane has offered to take my book to get signed and also carry the doll with her to represent my willingness to be at the talk. If I can't be there to get on the Harlot's blog, perhaps the doll will be able to! Gotta get working on that sweater sleeve though. I've only got 8 inches and I have 12 more to go still. I can do it!

Well, I really should get some work done. I'm taking a day off tomorrow from work to go watch the ponies run. Hopefully I won't lose much money at the track!

Knit on...

The Weekend in Pictures

OK, so this weekend was about photography. After getting my film pictures back last night, I was very dissappointed, but at least my slides turned out good for the competition. So, here is the weekend in what decent prints I could use:

This is where we stayed. It's a very nice lodge and it's a historical site as well. Pretty close to the big waterfall and everything too (this is the Cumberland Falls state resort by the way). It also had some pretty yellow and white irises. I took a few snapshots of those as well.

Before setting out to shoot some wildflower pictures, DBF showed me what my little cousins had given him for Easter. Isn't it cute?
So, after eating some bunny shaped sweet tarts, we hit the trails in search of exotic wildflowers. We both got some shots of pink lady slippers, trilliums, mayapples, and other wildflowers. Nothing too exciting. I was very upset with how my wildflower pictures turned out on the print film, but here's a couple of pictures of a trillium and a grouping of bridal veil ferns.

The next two pictures are about tripods. As lazy as I was by the end of that last trail, I stopped trying to set up good shots of mayapples. So, lesson learned...don't waste the film, just set up the darned tripod.

The trails were also beautiful this weekend. I was fascinated by the tree growing out of the big boulder.

Oh, and the most amazing thing has been occuring in DBF's front yard: Baby Robins! Yes, a pair of robins decided to nest very close to the front door of the house. This is what they looked like just before we left for the weekend.
And this is what they looked like by the time we got back! There's even a third one now!
And here they are with mama bird or papa bird. I can't tell the difference between them!

So there you have it! That was my weekend in pictures. Tomorrow will be the knitting update. I will have pictures of the sleeve that caused all the trouble even. Also, pictures of my dragon cross stitch in progress. I suppose I should get some work done this morning. Why work when you can play with pictures? :oP

Knit on....

And Now for the Magic Side of Knitting Magic Girl

AKA, to Rathi or not to Rathi?

He eats land, yes, but he's a freaking 5/5 for 4 mana!

I'm building a dragon deck. I know, it has a snowball's chance in hell of being a tournament quality deck, but it's just fun. So far, I know Hunted Dragon and Shivan Dragon are in and possibly Niv Mizzet, but what about my friend, Rathi Dragon? He's a tricky one. If I have some mana acceleration, he's not as bad as what he seems to be right now. So, what to do?

Aside from the dragon theme, the deck is packing 4 Flames of the Blood Hand, 4 Char, 4 Lava Spike, 4 shock, and if I play blue. then it'll have Electrolyze in there as well. It's a burn deck with dragons. Yep, very simple.

OK, for the knitters out there, I know I have probably completely lost your attention. But if I haven't, then let me update you on the works in progress. I'm about 4 inches into the first sleeve on the paradise fish sweater. I haven't touched my sock and I have no intention of touching it until the sweater is done. After the sweater, I think I'll make a garter stitch scarf just because I want something easy. I'm also working on my four year dragon cross-stitch piece. I might get that done in another year. We'll see. It's very pretty. If I can remember to take my stuff over to DBF's, I'll get some pictures.

Oh, and over at DBF's a robin pair has made a nest and there are two litte baby birds. Three eggs were laid, but it looks like the third one isn't going to hatch. I love the pretty blue eggs though. DBF discovered the nest and has been taking pictures. I took some pictures last night when I went over to watch Amazing Race (close call for the hippies). I also brought over my video camera and we shot some footage of the baby birds. I left the camera with DBF so he could get some footage of them as they start growing. Poor mama bird probably wishes we would leave her alone.

OK, there's the update. I have a photo club meeting tonight and I'm skipping town for the weekend as of tomorrow, so no posts until Monday. I'm sure I'll have a bunch to report then. Plus I'll have my dragon deck finished :oP

Knit on...

Of Crotch Noodles and Unitarian Jihad

Last night was a much needed stitch and bitch session for me. I went over to the usual place, had the best baked brie of my life, and obtained elightenment by ways of chocolate machiato cheesecake. It was a very good evening. While we stitched and bitched, we talked about water aerobics, which led to crotch noodles, which then led to the Unitarian Universalist Jihad. Yes, conversations were good. I found a website that allows you to generate your Jihad name and I am: Sister Logging Chain of Looking at All Sides of the Question. Here's the link if you want to try: http://homepage.mac.com/whump/ujname.html Also, for more information about the Unitarian Jihad, please see the following: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2005/04/08/DDG27BCFLG1.DTL

We all might have stabbed the Junior Club if they didn't quit giggling after their margaritas. As Jane said last night, the sign of a true woman is to be able to have a glass of wine and not turn into one of them.

I finished the back panel of my paradise fish sweater last night as well. Now it's on to the sleeves. I have almost 2 inches of sleeve number one done. I have another stitching and bitching session at noon today at work, so more will be done on the sleeve and some more work will be done on Nautie.

I woke up at 4 this morning to lightning striking very near the outside wall adjacent to my bedroom. I think it might have hit the car next door. It was not the usual slow wake-up that I prefer. So, ::clears throat:: Maggie, I almost died today!

I'll get some pictures tonight when I go watch Amazing Race with DBF. This has to be a non-elimination round tonight. They haven't had one all season! We'll see. The hippies are in back, so I'm concerned about my team. DBF's team MoJo is doing quite well. Now why won't the frat boys just get eliminated?

Well, I better get some work done before running errands for the big annual meeting coming up.

Knit on...

Weekend Update and Pictures

I had a pretty good weekend. DBF and I went to my family's get-together and pigged out on all the food there (what are points again?). After that, we waited for our stomachs to settle then went out to the driving range to practice our golf swings. I know that I am still sore today from that. Hopefully I'll get in better shape. Yesterday, we played magic and sorted my very unorganized cards. That was a chore. I still have a ton more to organize too. Oh well. I'll be working on that tonight. DBF played his new mono red deck last night and it seemed to have some troubles at first, but once he tweaked it a little more, it was rolling against all my decks. Not sure why it wasn't working for him before those tweaks. Oh well.

Tonight I'm going to finish organizing my cards and then I'm going to begin to work on my decks. I have some tweaks for the Niv-Mizzet deck and my black/white deck that I need to make. Also, I want to work on just a fun dragon deck. It probably won't win very much, but it will be fun to play anyways.

Now for knitting. Here's the update on the paradise fish sweater. It's about 15 inches long now, so it's getting there. Hopefully I'll finish the back panel in the next few days and can then start working on the sleeves.

I also started a new project. Yep, that's Nautie from Knitty.com. Isn't he cute? He's very small right now, but he will be growing more and more while I'm here at work. I think he's just too cool. I like how the yarn is creating a stripey pattern on the little guy too. Now Kathy and I just need to work on our trilobite stuffed animals. Hope it turns out as cool as Nautie.

Sorry the pictures are blurry, but you get the idea.

Well, that's it for now. I should probably get some work done. Those are some pretty bad looking storm clouds outside my window. Glad I brought an umbrella today.

Knit on...

Happy Easter!

Happy Good Friday, Passover, and Easter to everyone. I'll be away from the computer for the holiday, so good wishes to all. Here's a funny cartoon to start the holiday.

The Memorial

I went to Aunt Marti's memorial yesterday and it was beautiful. She really has done so much in her life. It was a sad time for most of the family, but it turned into a celebration by the end of the day. We all went to my cousin's farm after the service and watched a video of Marti talking about some of her life's experiences. I should be getting a copy of that once they burn more DVDs. We all ate and drank in celebration, just like she used to do. She was always about throwing parties whenever she had the chance, so we all found it fitting that her memorial turned into a party to celebrate the woman that she was. I'm going to really miss her, but I think she'll be watching over me and DBF as we travel places.

I knit a little before the memorial to take my mind off of the finality that morning was going to bring. The paradise sweater is now 14 inches long. Only 10 more inches to go and then I'll make my way to the sleeves. I put the sock away yesterday. I want to finish the sweater, then I'll start working more on the sock.

My grandma is planning on staying almost a month up here. I was going to help her with her afghan, but she said that my cousin liked it how it was and said it didn't need any more work, so it's now in her possession. Oh well. Tomorrow is my big family Easter gathering. Of course it's supposed to rain. It rained this morning and is supposed to rain tonight too. Rain, rain, rain. You might never see the 6 skeins of wool-ease in the back of my car :oP

I'm still a little scattered right now dealing with not seeing Aunt Marti anymore. I think I'll have to go visit Uncle Chuck soon and take him out to dinner. DBF and I got to talk to him a lot yesterday. I think Uncle Chuck really likes DBF.

I'll get some pictures of the WIPs soon. Right now there's not too much change from what you've seen. Well, back to work. Blah.

Knit on...

In Loving Memory

Thought I would share the obituary that was in the paper today.

PULLEY Martha Jean , 85, died Mon., Apr. 10 after a short illness, surrounded by her loving family. She was born June 14, 1920 in Columbus, OH; the daughter of Herbert and Leilya Law. She attended Northwestern University and University of Illinois before graduating with a degree in dramatic arts from University of Iowa in 1941, where she was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta sorority and Theta Alpha Phi drama honorary. She married Charles H. "Chuck" Pulley on July 3, 1942 and moved to Lexington in 1952 when Mr. Pulley took a position as general manager of Irving Air Chute Company. In her early years in Lexington she acted frequently in theatre productions with The Studio Players. Her lifelong love of travel brought her to the Lexington Travel Center in the 1960's, where her knowledge and expertise provided memorable travel experiences for her hundreds of friends and clients over the next 30+ years. She became the owner of Lexington Travel Center in 1970, opening branches in Frankfort and Ashland, and organized the first visit by private citizens to the People's Republic of China in 1978. During her more than 30 years in the industry she traveled extensively in Europe, Africa, India, the Far East and throughout North America, managed annual regional conventions of medical groups and was a member of the Lexington Business and Professional Women's Association. She and her husband maintained homes for many years in Vail, Colorado and Rio Verde, AZ, where they shared a love for the mountains, skiing and Native American art; becoming avid collectors of prints, sculpture, pottery and Navajo rugs. She shared her passion for foreign travel, her love of Southwestern art, British mystery, Big Band music, good food, dry gin martinis and fun with her many friends and extended family. In lieu of flowers, donations are suggested to Habitat for Humanity.

I cut out all the extended family stuff in case they don't want their names printed on the internet which I do understand. She was an incredible woman and I am greatly going to miss her. I might have to have a dry gin martini even if I don't like them, just to have a toast to her. I really do miss her already. I hope she's having a nice martini right now.

In loving memory, from your niece,
KnittingMagicGirl

Nautie KAL

Yes, I have decided to join the Nautie KAL which is dedicated to knitting the new ammonite and orthoceras pattern on knitty.com. I'm excited, can you tell?

On Monday, I learned that my aunt Marti died. Her funeral will be tomorrow and I have to go pick my grandma up at the airport for it today. Grandma has just started to knit again after a many years hiatus from knitting. I'm glad she's getting back into it. She's working on afghans right now. She's trying to figure out a crocheted border to it, so I'll have to help her out some there.

I've got about 13 inches in the paradise fish sweater done now and of course I left it at home this morning. My brain is scattered for sure. Last night, DBF and I went and played some poker and I drank a very good margarita. Sorry, Aunt Marti, I just cannot drink a dry gin martini like you used to do. It tastes like gasoline. I finished 9th in the tournament and DBF won it. We're on a winning streak! He won a commissioned painting from a very good artist in town, so I can't wait to see how that looks.

My mind is numb. Too much has been going on since Monday. The family is arguing amongst themselves, but that happens whenever anything major happens. I'm going to show my love for my aunt and my uncle and grandma. Wish me luck, I'll need it...

Knit on...and knit nautiloids...

Edited on 6/7/06: Needed a place to stick this button so that I can put it on my sideboard. Ignore if you wish.

New issue of Knitty is up!

Yep, I'm not too crazy about most of the patterns on there right now (hopefully the surprise section will produce some goodness), but I have fallen in love with the stuffed nautiloids! Of course I'm a paleo buff and these just drew me right in. They're awesome. I will be making one of these as soon as I get some size 4 DPNs.

And here the cute little living fossils are!

The paradise fish sweater is now about 11 inches long for the back panel, so it's getting there now. I've got two amigurumi bunnies finished and the scarves are almost done now. Tomorrow is SNB, so I'll be able to get a bunch more done then too.

DBF and I went hiking yesterday and it was a wonderful day. We hiked, we took pictures, I got sick, then we hiked some more. I am so out of shape it's not even funny, but I made it! The waterfalls were beautiful, but very flooded because of all the rain we've had the past few weeks. I think we're at flood levels now. The big fall was muddy and tearing apart trees and all kinds of other objects (we saw many basketballs, footballs, Folger's cans, etc...). All in all, it was a wonderful day. It was good to get some exercise and spend some good quality time with DBF. We need to go hiking more often. If it just wasn't so darn cold like it has been. Maybe next weekend we'll go hike again, who knows what the weather will be then.

Well, I should get to work.

Knit on...

Edited on June 7, 2006: Needed another button space

Stash Pictures Finally

OK, I finally have the stash pictures ready for you all! It only took a week for me to get pictures and get them downloaded :oP So, ready or not, you have been flashed by my stash!

This is the organized part of my stash. This includes 12 cake skeins of chenille, 25 balls of wool of the andes in several colors, 6 balls of crayon in dark blue, 1 ball of fortissima socka, two balls of Knit Picks sock yarn (forget which kind), 11 balls of Pia wool, 16 balls of superwash merino in purple and lavendar, and three skeins of homespun in gothic, plus some other scraps. OK, next up is...
These are two balls of yarn that Erica gave me when she was my secret pal. I think they add well to the decorations of knitting needles, crochet hooks, and pictures (grandma in the frame by the way :oP and a very good bottle of wine) I still haven't figured out what to do with this yarn. It will be an accent on something I believe. Up next...
Lamb's Pride Worsted in Spring Garden. One hank has already been balled, the other still sits there. I think this will be made into a hat. Next...
The lone ball of Sari Silk unrefined. Kim traded this to me. It will be accenting the paradise fish sweater. Next...
You didn't believe me when I said I have yarn in my desk drawers at work, did you? Well, here you go. This is where the acrylic lives and Kathy and I make afghans out of it. the rainbow yarn is the scarves in progress for my cousins. That was just drawer one...
It ran over into drawer two... The only yarn I didn't get a picture of was the six skeins of wool-ease in my car, but it's been storming the past few days, so you'll eventually see that one. Now, for the updated pictures on the WIPs:
Paradise Fish sweater back.
Paradise Fish Sweater back with pastel Amigurumi bunny.
My first Amigurumi bunny. Yep, I'm still dying of cuteness.

And this is Kathy's WIP which is a boa yarn hat and scarf. Very cute I might add. Yep, the office has been overrun. They better not move us any time soon :oP

There you have it! My stash, my WIPs, and even Kathy's WIP. If I didn't fry your computer from having too many pictures in one post...

Knit on...