Clue 3

Done!

P.S. Sorry about the blue chenille bedspread clashing with the lace design.

Back in Black

This past weekend was all about Mystery Stole 3. After discovering my first clue's wonkiness I stewed for a couple of weeks. Did some procrastination knitting. Then on Saturday evening I sucked it up, and in the course of 24 hours knit 72 rows. I'm now halfway through the third clue, and hope to finish it today. Here it is at the end of clue 2:

My goal is to be caught up for the fifth clue - and the theme reveal - by Friday. To that end I'll be shortening the fourth clue. Because really? My attention might waver - clue 4's chart looks kinda monotonous - and I'd find myself casting on Ariann (I'm this close) - or 17 other projects from my Ravelry queue and that would be that for poor ole MS3. So good bye stole, hello scarf!

I have to admit I'm still waiting for the satanic message to pop out on mine, though. Have any of you seen it on yours? Because I'd really hate to miss it. For those of you wondering what the heck I'm on about: in a nutshell a woman in the MS3 group caused quite a stir when she posted to the group and to her blog - scroll down to the end of the post - that she was wondering if the theme had to do with "the man downstairs." This is the best troll action I've seen in awhile, and makes me giggle. C'mon, cutesy names for Beelzebub? That's funny.

Bang your heads, knitsters. Hope you're working on something fun.

Found It

Long Lost Scarf

Recently I discovered this simple mesh scarf I crocheted three? four? years ago wadded in a corner of my yarn closet. Whoa. I'm having a moment like David Bowie did when he said he can't remember the year 1970.

Pattern: Open Season from the fall 2003 issue of Family Circle Easy Knitting
Yarn: Classic Elite Lush - 1 skein color 4413 black
Hook: Maybe an F or a G? I do like a good F.

Central Park Hoodie

I've found the strength to finish the hood and button band. Next up: seaming. As soon as that's done I'll post a proper recap of the Project That Broke the Sweater Curse.


Triangle Purse

Thanks for all your compliments on my Triangle purse. I'm glad you liked it. Me, I like it so much I'm making another one. In black. For decoration I'm gonna sew on a cool 30s lucite button I bought at Stitches West.

Ariann

I'm swatching tonight!

Fiendish Find of the Week

Skull-A-Day

Project Spectrum Sunday

Girly Girl

Pattern: Triangle by Pick Up Sticks!
Yarn: Cascade 220 - 2 skeins 7805 (MC) and 1.25 skeins 9404 (CC)
Needles: US 10 Addi 24" circs
Mods: Because I'm a symmetry fan (i.e. mental, since the bag is felted and it matters not), I subbed ssks on the right side when decreasing. Omitted the over-stitching around the top and handles.
Rating: 100 million heart candies

Just below my cynical, spooky exterior hides a gooey, twee center that's surprising even to me sometimes. Take this bag. That I knit it - in pink! and red! together! - is an example of my submerged girliness. (It's also what led to me to dress in what I call Amish Punk - thrifted 50s floral patterned dresses with black stockings and my Doc Martens boots - for years...but I digress.)

When I saw the pattern at Stitches West I thought, that's kinda cute, bought it and forgot about it. Fast forward to a few weeks ago, when I craved a mindless project to fill in between my Mystery Stole (stalled on row 100) and CPH (stalled on the button band). It fit the bill, so I worked on it at knitting group. Mindlessly. Two days ago I finished it, felted it, threw it on the top of the dryer to dry and forgot about it. Then yesterday, as I was checking it for dryness, I discovered I love it soooo much.

Over the years I've owned scores of vintage purses with this exact shape. They've been black patent leather, or faux leopard print fur, or dark navy leather, or black velveteen. But never pink. And red. Together.

So, if ever you're channeling Hello Kitty or June Cleaver and looking for a purse to make, this is the pattern for you. It's easy. And just so gosh darn cute.

Gothic Leaf Scarf

Pattern: Gothic Leaf Scarf by Sivia Harding
Yarn: Claudia Hand Painted Yarns fingering weight in Navy Olive - 1.5 skeins
Needles: US 4 Bryspun circs
Size: 6" x 60"
Mods: None
Rating: Yippee! A FO!

Hot off the blocking board! My first Gothic Leaf is finished. Cheshire Catlike, the pattern proved elusive as I was photographing it. (I had all sorts of arty photo op ideas, but finally resorted to ye olde knitting on the pillowcase trick for the closeup.)

Gothic Leaf is one of those easy to intermediate patterns that either helps a newbie lace knitter get the hang of what they're doing or provides a simple knit to the more advanced. The directions are straight forward, the chart a 20-row (WS purl rows included) repeat, the pattern easily adaptable for making either a scarf or a shawl. For this scarf I cast on 39 st, with a 3 garter stitch border on either side of the pattern. I thoroughly enjoyed knitting it up, and confess that I'm still enjoying making the shawl sized version in linen, too.

The colorway makes me purr. Doesn't it look reptilian? Mrowr.

* * *
Hey, as soon as you're on Ravelry, please let me know! My id is "knitdevil". I'm gradually learning my way around the site; this week I'm uploading more of my stash and *gasp* being sociable and joining a bunch of groups. I've also been in an organizin' mood, and have sorted my patterns and fleshed out my queue of to-be-knitted projects. Yesterday I wound up a bunch of yarn. Ah, the possibilities waiting to burst forth. They include:

+ Toe up socks in Artyarns Ultramerino 8
+ Cashmere Cowl No. 2 in Posh Camilla
+ Ariann in Berroco Ultra Alpaca
+ Montego Bay in Alchemy Bamboo
+ Georgiana Scarf in Chasing Rainbows Tussah Merino

Of course, now that I've blogged about them, I'll cast on something completely different. You know how it goes.

That's it for now. Hold onto your hats, though, because tomorrow I have another FO to tromp out. It's madness around here, I tell ya, sheer madness.

Clue One Done

Last night I finished the first Mystery Stole 3 clue. Here it is in all its funky glory. I fear there's a baaaad mistake about a third of the way up; can you see it? Sigh. Am I ripping back? Heck, no.

To divert myself from mooning about the imperfections of my creation, here's a cute story.

Last Saturday Tom and I are in the car going to get groceries. Up the block we pass a young, male neighbor who's wearing skimpy shorts and tennis shoes, working in his front yard, lugging a wheelbarrow full of something.

Tom: Look, a stud muffin.
Me: (thinking quickly) Oh, hon, I don't need to look. You're my stud muffin.
Tom: No, I'm more your stud jelly donut. Your stud danish.

Happy knitting!

The Days Are Full

Cookie A.

What's been going on lately? Well, last Friday I took a toe-up sock class Cookie was teaching at Unwind. Ellen and Barbara took it, too, and with their help (and vestigial memories from knitting my Frankensocks with Mary last fall) I managed to finish my practice sock within the three hour class.

I'm a bad blogger, and spaced taking my camera, but Ellen has posted about our fun time here. (For your amusement she's included a photo of me looking positively bedbug crazy next to her gorgeous self.)

Cookie did not disappoint. She was very patient, she made herself available to everyone, she adjusted the pattern to our knowledge level...she ruled. She also taught us a sewn bind off, which yers truly thinks is as nifty as a slice of Pie and Burger's coconut creme pie.

Mystery Stole 3

There are 6,688 members. (Yarn Harlot joining near the end was a call for everyone to jump in the pool - yay!) USA Today is interviewing Melanie. What a phenomena.

I'm still on clue 1, row 90. I guess that officially makes me a Slow Bee (thanks to Bonne Marie for the button).

It's fun, not knowing what will come next, and I'm enjoying the pattern so far. There are lots of guesses about what the theme is, but I'm content just to watch the stitches form.

Mick Harvey

I've been listening to One Man's Treasure non-stop. And yes, I kinda have a crush.

Three Websites Rivaling Ravelry for My Attention

Thanks go to Marie for...Smart Bitches Who Love Trashy Novels. Lordy, this one's funny.

Stop, You're Killing Me! Great resource if you're a hard boiled gal like me.

Television Without Pity has been a personal fave for a while. Hilarious and mind boggling. And the snark's served hot.

Pass the Wasabi

Knowing that I find knitted/crocheted food delightfully whimsical, Mary presented me with this cute sushi wallet kit for my birthday. A couple of weeks ago I needed something to offset all the lace I've been knitting, so I dug it out of stash, sat down and whipped it up.

It's the perfect project for a new knitter/felter. (Felter? Felt maker? Person who felts?) Super easy to knit and assemble (two hours tops), this little (roughly 7.5"x 5") bag makes a great carrier for my iPod. The only detractor is the sushi itself; the white yarn (as white yarn is wont to do) didn't felt, and my California roll ended up looking more like a birth control device than something you'd want to dip in soy sauce and nibble on. Ah, well, so it's an artistic interpretation of sushi, right?

Pattern: Sushi Wallet from Pick Up Sticks!
Yarn: Included in kit
Needles: US 10 Addis
Mods: None
Rating: 3 out of 5 California rolls

Other food patterns to dig into and enjoy:
Regina's meat series - Seriously, what's not to love about felted cheeseburgers? (check out her June 19, 2007 post, "Felt the Meat")
Jean Greenhowe's Jiffyknits - Ms. Greenhowe makes spaghetti and meatballs, boiled eggs, cookies...and you can, too. (also, some scary ass clown dolls, if you're into that sort of thing)
Rachel Matthews' Knitorama - Feel like a crocheted pint of stout? Or how about a jelly roll? If so, here's the book for you.

Minty Fresh

Swiped from La, I couldn't resist this meme, mainly because it jives nicely with something I mentioned yesterday. Yeah, the English major in me loves thematic jiving.

Time for SCATTERGORIES, amigos.

Here are the rules:
+ Use the first letter of your name to answer each of the following.
+ They MUST be real places, names, things…NOTHING made up.
+ If you can’t think of anything, skip it.
+ Try to use different answers if the person before you had the same first initial.
+ You CAN’T use your name for the boy/girl name question.
+ Have fun!

My name: Madge
1. Famous singer/band: Metallica
2. Four letter word: Muck
3. Street name: Mulholland Drive
4. Color: Magenta
5. Gifts/Presents: Money (does this make me shallow?)
6. Vehicle: Mustang
7. Things in a Souvenir Shop: Muscle tees
8. Boy Name: Michael
9. Girl Name: Megan
10. Movie Title: Matador (mmm, young Antonio Banderas)
11. Drink: Mojito
12. Occupation: Mud Wrestler, Maestro, Moll
13. Celebrity: Matthew Modine
14. Magazine: Maximum Rock n Roll
15. US City: Moscow, ID
16. Pro Sports Team: Maple Leafs
17. Reason for Being Late for Work: Medical emergency
18. Something You Throw Away: Metal shavings
19. Things You Shout: Move it!
20. Cartoon Character: Minnie Mouse

Now for a *spoiler alert.* If you're shy about seeing the latest Yarntini sock club offering, avert thine eyes.

It arrived yesterday. The Mint Mojito colorway is in a 50 wool/50 tencel blend, and comes with its own cocktail recipe! Also included in the box were itty bitty US 1 rosewood DPNs (my dpn collection just got a lot posher), Erika L. Seelinger's Cricosaura sock pattern, and Yarntini's signature giftie, flavored lip balm. Mint, of course. Yeah, this time the package is pretty nifty, so call me appeased. Yay.

If the Anti-Social Shoe Fits

Has it really been a week since I last posted? Zounds. I owe everyone email, too; apologies if you've left a comment or emailed me recently. The strands of blogland are getting away from me, like an errant ball of (insert favorite yarn here) that's rolled under the couch. Today I'll try and catch up a bit, so without further mumblings...

Yesterday six of us Anti-Social Knitters met at Wen's house for a potluck lunch, knitting, crocheting and a yarn swap. I was a total spaz, and clicked only these random photos. (I'm blaming flakiness on the 90+ degree heat we're having. My brain has melted.) Ellen will have her recap up soon, too, and I'm sure her photos will do a great job of showing our shenanigans.

Wen

Ellen and Marie

La and Zoe

Yarn Swap-o-Rama

I restrained myself, and didn't roll in or drool on the yarn. I did bring home three goodies:

1,000 yds. Lorna's Laces Helen's Lace in Tahoe

400 yds. of Schaefer Yarns Esperanza in Tink

1 lonely skein of Nashua Handknits Creative Focus Worsted in Natural

We really are a fun bunch, so if you're in the Los Angeles area and are interested in joining in on future ASK events, please give a shout out to La so she can add you to our email list.

Okay, that's it for today. Stay tuned this week for mysterious stole workings, a grudging acknowledgement of semi-appeasement, fun with apricots, and another example of socktardedness.