Blogger, what up??

Is Blogger having problems? Some of my photos hosted by blogger are now too big and messing up my template. grrrr! And now my sidebar is centered. I don't see this anywhere in the template either.

To answer my previous question...

Thanks to Faythe and "anonymous" who posted on my blog...there's the answer answer to my previous question.

What is this??

I just took this photo. Unfortunately my batteries lost juice and I can't take anymore! Anyway, this thing is in the sky!! At first I thought it was Northern Lights but really I think it may have something to do with jet smoke. Sorry about that telephone pole there, this was the best angle I could get without buildings in the way. Isn't it weird? It was much more beautiful in person!

Elizabeth loops

I barely remembered to add the little i-cord loops to the top of the Elizabeth purse. Since I've documented everything else, I thought I might as well include this photo. The loops are centered on top of the purse on each side. Later I'll thread a silk kerchief through them partially as decoration, partially to keep the purse closed. Felting to commence tonight.

PetSmart

I went to PetSmart yesterday and looked through their Halloween costumes for the cats. They didn't have anything I was interested in (I saw some others at JoAnn's and got them instead) but I did see some cute outfits in the regular clothing section. Now I have to say, their animal clothes totally crack me up. I mean, how many dogs wear faux fur?? Anyway, one of their simple sweaters was basically a tube...like a leg warmer. It had a strap around the neck area with a pom pom on the back (I'd like to see the dog wearing this one, LOL). Then it dawned on me, I can make this! The leg holes are not complicated at all and this one is a simple rib pattern. I'm sure the ribbing helps with the over-all fit.

While I'm not sure how my cats will react to a turtleneck shirt, it would be fun to make them one. heh. I really am turning into a sad cat lady. Well, as long as I'm crazy too, I guess it'll be OK.

This is the view from the bottom of the shirt showing the neck strap and leg holes. It looks I like can make them by basically making a huge button hole. hmmmm. poor cats.

Ho Hum

35 minutes after I should have left, I'm still at work. I have a customer with issues. Earlier today I asked a customer, "Who is your Internet Service Provider?" He said, "My father."

*sigh* make it stop!!

Elizabeth, Pre Felting!

I was interrupted several times tonight by neighbors knocking on the door for various reasons, but I managed to finish knitting Elizabeth tonight. At one point when I left the purse unattended, Simba fell asleep next to it. It's a challenge to keep any knitting project hidden from him, because he will hunt it down and sleep on them.


Here she is pre-felted:


I'll probably felt her tomorrow.

KnitPicks Yarn

I got my yarn from KnitPicks yesterday. I already started knitting up a swatch for Faythe (that's why the needle is in the pic), since we're going to trade swatches. We couldn't believe the prices were so good, so we ordered several different skeins to test them out.

From the left is Shimmer in Deep Woods, Alpaca Cloud in Autumn, Elegance in Redwood, Shine in Green Apple and Baby Alpaca in Woods. The two on the bottom are Wool of the Andes in Fern and Ambrosia in Mulled Wine. I'll write a bit about each one of them later after I have a chance to knit up swatches. Honest and amateur reviews to be posted here later. :)

Last Night

We noticed lightning last night around 8:00PM and at 1:00AM its accompanying thunder was keeping us awake! (Thanks to Sean Wolfe for letting me borrow this pic.) It was absolutely beautiful ...we saw one long lightning strike over Hillcrest, it lit up the sky like you wouldn't believe and stretched from the heavens to seemingly the ground.

I thought the cats would be scared after one loud crack that woke me up at 1:00AM. But no, they were just fine. Simba was laying on his back in the livingroom and Zoe was stretched out on the arm of the couch. So why does a knock on the door make them jump?

Liz Strap

Other than playing around with a couple different blog templates (nope, not getting anything figured out), coughing a lot and work, I've been knitting a bit. Tonight I took apart a great deal of the double i-cord strap because I thought I was doing it wrong. That resulted in a series of slipped stitches and if you've ever worked with singe i-cord, you can probably imagine what kind of hell dropping a stitch in double i causes. It pretty much ate up most of my knitting time.

Anyway, this is what it looks like. It reminds me of a snakes rattle. Each side of cord is like a tube. It's pretty cool. And, I only need 30 inches of it!

Grammar?

How does this make sense? "Doing the Most Good?" Am I missing something here?

Almost Done with Liz!

Yep, I'm almost done! I need to finish...well who am I kidding. I need to start the strap, felt her, and she'll be done! I'm a little concerned with the tension created on the edges of the purse (the sides curve upward towards where the strap will connect) so I emailed the creator of the pattern and am awaiting a response. I don't mind doing this part over, but I have to do it before felting. I think I've done pretty well, considering I knit almost 350 yards since the fourteenth.

I'll be glad when I'm finished so I can get started on Christmas projects. Speaking of projects, I wonder when my KnitPicks packages is going to arrive??

Bamboo Yarn

Now that my SP knows who I am, I can safely post this yarn without giving myself away. I did everything I could to not give her any clues.

This is Bamboo yarn! Yep, made entirely of bamboo. I bought these to make a purse for myself but haven't gotten around to it yet. It feels much like cotton, but with a tiny bit more...I don't know...squeak? It also has a shine to it - it's really pretty. It's not rough or harsh - I can imagine this yarn draping very nicely when knit up. The only bad thing is it has 77 yards per skein and is not exactly the most cost efficient yarn out there. But still, very cool. I'll definitely buy more.

I'm trying to find sources online cause I'm really excited about this yarn. So far, this is what I've found:

Classic Elite Yarns
Royal Yarns International

Did You Know...

Disney produced an animated film called The Story of Menstruation:

"Educational film, made for International Cellucotton Co.; delivered on October 18, 1946. Through animation and diagrams, the film discusses the female reproductive organs and follows development from babyhood to motherhood. A popular Disney film for girls in school for several decades."

source: Snopes.com

Disney's Story of Menstruation

Update on Elizabeth

Trying to get back into the knit habit, I've been knitting away on Elizabeth. This is supposed to be a knitting blog, after all. Yeah yeah, my personal stories and pics take over, but isn't that what makes it interesting?

I've finished approximately 30% of the body of the bag. I know the handle is going to be quite an adventure - if I remember right, it's a double I-cord! Though the pattern is boring, I wanted to post a pic to compare to the original photo. Last time I took a picture with an oreo cookie for scale. Unfortunately, *cough cough* said cookie and its siblings are long gone. From now on, I'll use a soda can; I'm sure I'll always have one around. Now keep in mind the last pic I showed you was looking from the top down into the bottom of the bag. I'm not sure why I chose that angle so this time I layed the bag down flat.


I also realized if I took a photo of the black bag on a dark background, the stitches would pop out a bit more, rather than looking like a black blob like last time.

This bag is gonna be HUGE before I felt it. HUGE I say!!

Speaking of getting back into the habit (not the greatest segue), I'm contemplating taking an intellectual property class at UCSD. I love going to school and learning new things but I've never done it while working full time. Though it's just one night a week, I'm sure it will be a bit of a challenge to adjust to. While it should help in potential careers or promotions, it will also help with my CLA continuing education requirements. And there's a chance my employer will pay for tuition. Yay! Well, we'll see. :)

On the Bear Front...

Ummm....ok...


Thug Bear


Which Dysfunctional Care Bear Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Secret Pal 5

Well, Secret Pal 5 has officially come to an end. Actually, I think the official end was Sept 1. I sent a package at the end of the month (I'm such a slacker) and a second small package from Amazon due to arrive tomorrow, or has possible already arrived. Package Tracking isn't working at Amazon's site. Anyway, I hope this was a good experience for my pal K. Anne. Faythe and I have been eagerly awaiting our pals from Secret Pal 6. Yes, we're that nerdy.

Speaking of nerdy (not really) here's some pics from work. Paul (L) really enjoys discussing the intricasies of customer service with Chad.

Er, I don't know why he always looks stunned when someone takes his picture. Like a bear in headlights. GET IT, A BEAR!! HAHHAHAHAHA! (ok, only those in the know get it. sorry)

Paul has a hard time really telling us how he feels. Come on Paul, let's not be shy!

Unfortunately, Paul moved to San Francisco. Bye Paul, it was nice working with you! Of course, you'll be telecommuting and I'll "see you" online often, but it's just not the same without you.

While I'm sharing pictures of people I love that work far away, here's my good friend Joel (rhymes with Noel). I just love her to death!

My New Best Friend

Well, here it is. The Anti-Fat is set up. At this point it's in cramped quarters in the diningroom (I still need to rearrange some things) but I can definitely use it. There is some obnoxious squeaking, a metal on metal sound, but I'll either figure it out or just let it go. Cool thing is it's facing the TV. Do I sound tired? Guess it's because I just got off the A.F.

Lacey Cowl

I want to make this cowl with the alpaca lace yarn I bought from KnitPicks. This is the pattern I mentioned in my last post from the book Weekend Knitting. The camisole is also part of the pattern, but I don't think I'll make it this time around.


I tried to get a close up of the pattern, I'm not sure if it's really going to show well. I can't wait for my order to come in!! If I like the yarn, I'll order more for Christmas projects.

Finally!

After knitting a couple nights on the Elizabeth bag, I used up an entire skein (that's in Cascade 220) and managed to knit the bottom and about 14 rows up. I have two more skeins but I think I may need at least one more. It doesn't look like much but since this is supposed to be a knitting blog, I took this photo with an Oreo cookie for scale. (Not that an Oreo cookie really shows the size but...well I just so happened to have an Oreo cookie in my hand.)

Anyway, this looks like it's going to be a pretty good sized bag. Since it's supposed to be felted, I'm sure it'll be huge when I'm done knitting it. I'm looking forward to an end product though, I really want a good size shoulder bag that I can put books in.

Faythe and I decided to work together to test out some Knit Picks yarn. She and I both ordered several skeins this weekend with the intention of testing them out and rating them for real people i.e. amateurs. Keep your eye out for review on both of our blogs.

I ordered some lace yarn. I really want to try out this pattern for a cowl in Weekend Knitting that Faythe got me for my birthday. It's a really pretty lace pattern that looks the same front and back.

I got a postcard yesterday from a SecretPal 5 Angel - all the way from Belgium! While I've technically been in Brussels (train stopped there but I didn't get off), I don't know what it looks like. The card sure did remind me a lot of Brugge, though, where I stayed for three nights. It is SO pretty there! This is one country I would definitely visit again.


Kimberly sent me the card, thank you Kimberly!! But, I don't know who you are! Can you post your blog url? I'd love to see who you are!