Fiber Mania

This is my week of Fiber Mania! I met Bev (AKA emmasdaughter) at the College Street Café in Clinton on Monday. I think we might make Mondays a regular meeting! Then I met Vanessa (AKA DivaMissV) at Panera’s on Tuesday. I hope to make this semi regular too! Yes yes, I know! Three days of knitting (because we can’t leave out the Rome Wednesday’s group!) might be a bit much (especially when MissV and I forget all about the time and leave poor hubby sitting in the parking lot for HOURS! Sorry MrV!!). But I think I’m going to need the inspiration. I’ve got a lot going on:

The Sock Madness:
The Mother has roped me in to some sock insanity. We’re in the “Pair-a-Month” challenge on Ravelry. I joined a few months late, and the Mother has convinced me I need to catch up. I have 5 and a half pairs done. So in the next 5 months I have to do 6 more pairs. August will be tough to double up on this challenge (see madness below), and Sept and Nov are reserved for the Pentathlon. But if all goes well, this should be no big deal (so sayeth the madwoman).

Ravelympic Madness:
The Ravelympics – sign up, choose an event, cast on during the opening ceremony, cast off by the closing ceremony. Mom has convinced me I can knit a sweater in 17 days. You know, its insane and an almost impossible task, but I’m going to go for it!

Secret Surprise Project:
This one isn’t going into Ravelry, and I have to get some yarn for it. But it shouldn’t take too long.

Claire’s Jawbreaker:
I’ve finished the back but the front is giving me some trouble. I just have to concentrate for a bit. I hope to have this done for her way before Rheinbeck (crosses fingers)

The Super Secret Super Exciting Project:
This one is going to throw a wrench in all my plans! I’m so excited about it that I’m obsessively tracking my LoopyEwe delivery (see above). I just can’t wait for the yarn to arrive so I can get busy!

The Shawl(s):
I got it in my head that I wanted to spin and knit a shawl for myself in 2008. Then I thought I’d spin and knit 2 shawls for 2 of my girlfriends. Well, that might have been a bit ambitious. I’m not even all the way thru the first 4oz of fiber. Its just been too hot an humid to spin! The stuff just felts in my fingertips! So I’m not sure I’ll get THREE done, but I do want at least 1.

Whew, that’s a lot of stuff!

Why you shouldn't decide to do a DIY Holiday the last week of November...

I rather dislike giving presents that really have no function or just doesn't fit into someone's life style... Like I have a rather nice porcelain picture frame from a friend's mother that is quite lovely, but it happens to be covered in Irish proverbs and a whole lot of shamrocks. Which would be fine, if I was Irish. But with a long incomprehensible Polish last name, it some how doesn't really fit me or my home decor.

Two of my really good friends have gotten engaged to wonderful guys, and I wanted to make them some thing special for the holidays... and a really late engagement present. Suddenly it struck me - nice soft warm crocheted throws! Function, style, and the DIY aspects of it all made sense.

Too bad I only got the yarn last week.

A whole week, and you might think I have gotten somewhere... alas no. Apparently I have been having a pattern issue... or rather a pattern interpretation issue. I started one pattern, a simple sc/tc combination worked in rows across. Sounds simple, but I could not get the foundation chain right for the life of me. Tried it like 4 times, nada. Couldn't get it to add up right. Fine...

So I switch to a granny square pattern... looked really nice, but it did have one main issue... the pattern itself was not symmetrical. Which when I finished a block, it looked great, but the nonsesicalness of it not being even was driving me up a wall. I mean, why on earth was it not the same on both sides?!I did it like 4 times, and still made no sense.

On to the third set! I went to my trusty favorite block book, 200 Crochet Blocks, which I should have just done in the first place. Did a couple of demos in the yarn I'm using (Lion Brand Color Waves in "Pebble Beach" and Red Heart Casual Cot'n in "Black Grape" - not the greatest stuff to work with, but hey, I'm cheap!) and found 2 blocks I like so I can alternate them.

So I have 3 3/4 blocks done. Out of 40. I think these might be more New Years gifts... or even Valentines Day at this rate. Sigh... but should be making more progress that I have some idea of what's going on.