Sunday, October 28, 2007

Focused...

All my knitting has been halted. All my energies are focused into knitting those 8" square pieces that will be sewn together into blankets for the victims of the recent fires in San Diego. I have made about 10 now, and surprisingly, it isn't get old, like I thought it would.

Here is what some of my squares look like:



I am using only leftovers of 100% acrylic yarn, in case people have allergies.

Some of you may recognize the yarn from my Doctor Who scarf in the batch in the photos.

I met up with the woman responsible for this project along with members from her knitting group and others from Ravelry Saturday morning. It was VERY nice. And Panera, where we met up, even donated coffee and bagels to our cause! It was awesome.

I will probably continue to go on Saturdays to conitnue to drop off my squares and to make more.

Here is some updated information about the project:

newly constructed blog:

http://www.sandiegowildfireblankets.blogspot.com/

Send Donations To:

GeorgeAnne Smith - San Diego Wild Fire Blankets - PO Box 261859 - San Diego, CA 92126

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Knitting for San Diego fire victims!

As I am sure you all know, I am now a part of the Raverly revolution. Through Raverly, I now below to a group of knitters who live in Southern California and the San Diego area. Even though the fires aren't out yet, one of these ladies has already organized a "charity" [she is not taking money] for knitters to band together and help the fire victims.

She wants us to knit and send/give her 8" squares (mostly acrylic/RedHeart yarn) washable squares to sew together to make blankets to give to these people who have lost everything.

I personally and stopping my other knitting projects to take up this project. There are over 1200 homes that have been destroyed in San Diego county...I don't know if there will be anyone in the San Diego area who doesn't know someone who has been effected. I just found out today that one of my co-workers lost thier house.

PLease e-mail me at sg1fan at yahoo dot com and I will get you the information on where to send your squares:

She has posted some links on square ideas:

In case someone needs links:

http://www.crochetpatterncentral.com/directory/8in_squares.php a great resource for crochet

http://www.knittingpatterncentral.com/directory/motifs_squares.php for knitters

And someone posted this easy pattern for knitters:

If you use US 9 needles with Red Heart super saver:

CO 30 st
k 4 rows garter
odd rows: k to end
even rows: k4, p22, k4
when work measures ~7", k last 4 rows garter

Someone else posted this pattern:

Here's another easy way to make 8-inch squares.

CO 1 stitch
Row 1: Knit in front and back
Row 2: Knit in front and back of first stitch; knit second stitch.
Row 3: Knit in front and back of first stitch; knit to end.
Continue in this fashion until one of the sides measures 8 inches.
DECREASING ROWS Row 1: Knit to last 2 stitches. Knit 2 together.
Continue in this manner until you have 5 stitches left. Bind off those stitches.

I do not know how many crafters read this blog, but I thought I would put it out there...

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Knitting While San Diego Burns...

First off, can I just say, it is shit like this that let's me know I am loved. I have gotten so many calls from friends and loved ones concerned about my welfare with the fires burning around San Diego. On the maps they show on TV, I am in an evacuation zone. I have called my local police, and we are not to evacuate. The nearest fire(s) are about ten miles away to the south. I am completely packed and ready to leave if the situation and/or the winds change.

I have no idea what national/world coverage of these fires have been...it has been the only thing on TV here in San Diego since Sunday night. Almost 400,000 people have been evacuated from their homes and my mind boogles at the amount of possible loss. Luckily, at this point there has only been one death and around 30 serious injuries.

I did not sleep at all last night, just some naps...can I be honest...I was afraid that if I slept, I would be woken by the sound of the police/firemen banging on the door saying GET OUT.

Called my office in Poway for shits this morning...I got voicemail...I was happy until I realized our voicemail could be offsite and not at the actual office. I hope I still have a job.

Having said all that, my only solice has been to knit. What else in the hell am I going to do? My mind just races as I franticaly think about my situation and wondering about my co-workers and friends and if I still have a job. As the night progressed, the projects got more and more simple. I am now working on my Harry Potter Slytherin school scarf...simple stockinette stitch in the round. I can do it unconscience. I am using my knitting to salve my anxiety...

It still seems so unreal what is happening here.

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

FINALLY!

Last night, it happened...I got THE invitation...the invitation to join Ravelry.

Holy CRAP it is so much better than I ever imagined!I can describe and put pictures up of projects I am working on or have completed and I can find other people who have done the SAME projects. I have also joined a number of groups. I am so excited. Ravelry is SO the next crack. I am actually torn, do I knit or do I explore Raverly more...add more projects, catalog my needles, line up future projects...WOW!

I have also, through a knitting podcast , Cast On, found a place where I can put all my books in an online database and share with others, like Ravelry...all I need is one for music and I will die happy cataloging all my stuff!!!

In other knitting news. I talked to J_. I asked if she was still wanting the Hufflepuff scarf. She said she had decided not to do the HP thing for Halloween, but she would like one in the future. She wants to learn how to knit and I would love to teach her and get her to the point where she can knit her own. I think she would rather have one made with her own hands after I teach her.

So...I have begun ripping out the yellow and black Hufflepuff scarf I was 3/4 done with to redo it to the specs of the Slytherin I am about 1/2 done with. I just like it so much better.

Anal rentention can SO be a bad thing...

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Yarn Whore Part 2...Potter Scarves Part 3

Yarn Whore Part 2

So I have bought more yarn. NO...I don't want to hear it! One of the ladies at the yarn store gave me a gift certificate as a late birthday gift and everything in the back sale room was 50% off this weekend...so THERE!

What did I buy? Got me some more sock yarn two colorways of the same yarn. It is Bebe Color Superwash (aka TOTALLY machine washable) wool. I found the colorway examples on the internet. I have the colors 0057 and 0046. See below:



I also bought another skein of the main color for mom's sunflower purse as I realized one would not be enough.

I also bought some size 9, 16" long circular needles (also in the sale room) which leads me to...

Harry Potter Scarves Part 3

OK...to review, if you all will remember I am tackling making the scaves for the four different schools from Harry Potter...the ones with the small stripes:



So I had orginially begun with the burgundy and gold Gryffindor scarf...the thing was wide enough to be a sweater. So I rippped it out.

I had a friend request a Hufflepuff gold and black scarf for Halloween. So I cast on 20 less sts and began knitting on size 8 needles, which the pattern AND the yarn called for. I am about 3/4 done with this Hufflepuff scarf and I hate it, too. It doesn't lay well, it is stiff, STILL too wide and it is eating up yarn.

I learned something simple recently with the socks I have been knitting. Go up a size needle needed for gauge...you make a wider, looser sock (aka better fitting for fat feet). I began to think, what if I went up a size needle on the Harry Potter scarf?

That is where the size 9 needles I bought this week come in. I had the yarn for the Slytherin scarf (green and silver). I stopped working on the Hufflepuff scarf and began the Slytherin scarf, casting on 60 sts on the size 9 needle, which is 30 less than the original. I am about a 1/4 done and THIS IS IT. This is what I like and this is how the remaining scarves will be.

Now what do I with the 3/4 done Hufflepuff scarf? It is supposed to go to J_ for Halloween and I will make another for the band. [Here is where I become a bad knitter/person] What I want to do? Rip out the Hufflepuff scarf I have and redo it for the band and not knit the scarf for J_ for Halloween. It is October 14, I would have to finish and get it to her in two weeks. I hate the project, which makes me always put it down and not finish. Am I horrible? I want to pull out of my obligation to knit the one for J_. If you ever wanted to comment in this journal, tell me what you think about this...

Scarf Class

Took a class to learn how to make a short row scarf. I found a picture of what my scarf will kinda look like. It is a pattern from ArtYarns, actually it is scarf pattern p101 on thier website. Here is what the scarf looks like:



I caught on fairly quickly, although I was slipping certain stitches incorrectly and had to rip the whole thing out once...oh well, it happens. But by the end of class I had passed where I ripped out and I really had the hang of it.

The teacher...the knitting DIVA...said yet again that I was a good knitter. It made me happy, I know she wouldn't just say it and that she means it. She is just a fab knitter I take it as a supreme compliment.

So that is it, I think...

Monday, October 8, 2007

Yarn whore

OK...I bought yarn this weekend, and signed up for a class...but I did not go completely crazy.

Why did I buy yarn when I am on a yarn diet?

Because I get paid every two weeks, twice a year a get three paychecks a month instead of two. October is that month...I have some extra money, I chose to pay off bills and buy some yarn..OK?!

So I bought yarn for the class. It is a scarf class, the "Multi Directional Scarf" class. It calls for any yarn with a variagated colorway (changes colors) and it knits up in these diagonals. It kinda looks like this:



Which is a picture I found using Google...although it is different in that it is framed with a strip down each side and there are pom-poms along the bottom edge.

The yarn I chose for this project is Katia Venus yarn and the colorway looks like this:



It looks kinda faded in the picture, but the yarn is a pink to brown colorway and I think it will look fab on me. Yeah, it is for me. If it comes out cool and people like, then I construct for others.

I also bought yarn to make a my mom a purse, which she is really excited about. The idea is all hers, I am just the person to carry it out. She wants me to knit her a purse with a sunflower on it. It will be done in Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Bulky and will be felted. I am adapting a pattern for a purse to created this one for my mom. I will keep you all posted on how it goes.

Finally, I STARTED another project that I already had in my stash. I started the Anne Lace Shawl that is in June of the 2007 365 Knitting-Pattern-a-Day calendar. I have had the yarn for awhile, but had not tackled it. I feared the lace. I have started several small lace things in the past and they all went down in flames. This was no exception...

I ripped this puppy out at least 3 times this weekend. Shortly after the last time, my friend B_ called...also a knitter and suggested doing a life line (where you strand a different yarn through the loops of your knitting on a row you KNOW is correct, then if you have a problem you only have to go back to that line, not rip out the whole piece). It was like one of those V-8 commercial moments where you smack your head and go DUH! I don't know why it didn't occur to me. ALthough I have never used it in the past, I have watched other knitters do it. Anyway, thank you B_...I know have over 10" on my shawl DONE. I will have to take pictures, I can't find a picture on the web.

Tuesday, October 2, 2007

The wild hair...crushed

First a Ravelry update:

You signed up on August 27, 2007
You are #29279 on the list.
7471 people are ahead of you in line.
9281 people are behind you in line.
56% of the list has been invited so far

Look at that...getting so much closer. The closer I get the more good things I hear about it. I can't wait!

So, what was the wild hair I got up my butt?

The throw/afghan I have on my couch is totally SHOT. It is kinda a chenille and in about 1/2 of it the fluff is completely gone and you can only see the thread grid the chenille was attached to...aka you can see through the throw and it isn't protecting the couch.

I though HEY, I'll knit a throw for the couch with some cheap yarn from Micheal's...it has to be cheaper that buying one at Walmart or Target. It isn't...it totally isn't and that is so disappointing even with some of the cheapest, craptastic yarn, it would be like $20...a throw at Ikea...$10. I can't compete with that, ya know?

I guess I could go for the ULTRA cheap Red Heart One Pound skiens of yarn, but dude that stuff is SO bad who would want to sit on it? And why would I want it when I could buy something nicer?

I really wish I had lived in the days when it was cheaper to make it myself :(

And it isn't really like I don't have enough projects.