Firstly, I got a package in the mail. My giveaway win from Pink Sky Studio came in! It's so cute- I am now ready to make a little teapot tea towel with her sweet little embroidery pattern. Oh interwebs, how kind you can be!
I also have been getting busy on the sewing front. My machines are HOME though I still haven't plugged them in. Baby steps. I did wash all of my gorgeous Heather Ross fabrics, and they're in the dryer now. I started ironing everything for my next big project, the super secret gifts I am making for my bridesmaids. No photos on the blog, methinks, but I am very excited to get going on them! And I went to JoAnn's today to pick up a few patterns. And fabric. G came with me, and we selected two really lovely home dec fabrics to use in Project Nest! Now I've cleaned up most of the windows, it's time to hang some curtains. Although there are curtains in the guest room, courtesy of one of George's former renters, and some in the master bedroom... the rest of the house has bare windows. I picked up a nice burgundy silk (ok, a polyester silk look-alike, but it's washable). That will look really swank in our dining room, when we take down the paper over the chair rail and paint the top part of the wall silver. The bottom is currently a nice colonial blue, but instead of keeping the blue we might change up the look and go with a steel blue or even a real gray- I think with the deep curtains it will look very modern in there, and I am sure will give us great pleasure on the rare nights we don't just eat in the living room!
I also picked out a cutesy big plaid in cream, two shades of sage green, and shades of deep pink for my craft room. I could repaint the room cream again, or I could go with the very pale sage. Either way, all the colors look very nice with my deep gray sofa (and I can make rose-colored pillows to match!).
We had a pretty big yard sale today. Massive amounts of our duplicate belongings, extraneous kitchenware, and lots of other things are all gone- some sold, the rest donated to Goodwill. We feel so much lighter, and the basement and garage are suddenly much more navigable.
As if all that were not enough excitement for the day, I made a delicious chicken, cauliflower, and potato curry... and finished Clapotis. My third, but who's counting? It's delightful, and I think I will not block it, to keep it's subtle drape. My resident photographer has promised me some photos tomorrow, once he returns from a birthday party and I come back from the Quilters Unlimited quilt show at the Dulles Expo Center. So exciting!
On one final note, I wanted to recommend a little local establishment. Instead of cooking the curry last night, G picked me up from the metro and we went to Yorktown Bistro, here in Arlington and not far from the house. It's very open inside, with nice enough decor, and the cuisine is fairly traditional Italian. Oh oh so delicious! My chicken parm was one of the best I've had, and G enjoyed his three cheese ravioli. The homemade tiramisu was stellar, and we were particularly entranced by their specials on wine bottles. All in all? The perfect date night. They do takeout and rent out space, as well... we might have more decisions to make than we originally thought, when it comes time to plan our rehearsal dinner!
Showing posts with label Clapotis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Clapotis. Show all posts
Saturday, June 06, 2009
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Ups and Downs
Yesterday was awesome. A mysterious package... no idea what it could be... and it turned out to be my wedding gown! But I had evening plans, and G was around, so I couldn't open it and play with it until today.
So today was great. G was going on a trip with some buddies, so I made us a hearty breakfast of eggs and toast and turkey bacon. I went to the gym with my gym buddy, and got in a solid workout. And tonight is Stitch 'n Pitch- I am so excited! I don't even know what projects to bring- my clapotis is half-done already, so I have this irrational fear that I'll finish it and need another project. Unlikely, but it's always good to be prepared!
I was supposed to spend my afternoon cleaning up the craft room, but I didn't. I tried on my wedding gown. And here's the big downer of the day- it is too small. Not a TON too small, but the damn thing definitely won't zip up all the way. My resultant profanity was immoderate and colorful.
Now, I know I've gained some weight lately. It's not pleasant, but it's true. I've been cooking healthier, and exercising, but not enough. When I moved out here closer to the suburbs, I cut out most of my walking commute. And I knew that this was a possibility with ordering the dress EXACTLY to fit, instead of going up a size- I was afraid to go up, since it would then assuredly need alterations all around, instead of just a quick hem. And now I'm in the minor predicament of altering myself to fit the dress, or the dress to fit me.
My first fitting isn't until the beginning of August. I just bought a bike. I upped my gym membership so I can go to the gym in Gallery Place, near Farragut West, or in Georgetown (they have better classes than my home location, near my old apartment). I can walk home from the metro, which would mean a solid half hour of brisk walking 5 days a week. I started doing the 30 Day Shred, and will keep it up. G and I are biking once a week so far, and surely will do it more now that I remember how to ride. He is very encouraging, and wants to get more fit as well. And I'm trying to figure out HOW on EARTH I can get up 45 minutes or an hour earlier, which would be all I'd need to get in a quick run before showering and work in the morning.
What I'm saying is... it's on. I will lose the 3-4 pounds I put on since buying the damn gown. I will hopefully lose more, since I should be more like 20 pounds lighter overall for my BMI. And I am going to do my damnedest to drop the weight before August- I want that zipper to FLY up my back at my first fitting. I know the tailor has to hem it- I'd like her to have to take in the sucker, too!
I'll keep you posted.
So today was great. G was going on a trip with some buddies, so I made us a hearty breakfast of eggs and toast and turkey bacon. I went to the gym with my gym buddy, and got in a solid workout. And tonight is Stitch 'n Pitch- I am so excited! I don't even know what projects to bring- my clapotis is half-done already, so I have this irrational fear that I'll finish it and need another project. Unlikely, but it's always good to be prepared!
I was supposed to spend my afternoon cleaning up the craft room, but I didn't. I tried on my wedding gown. And here's the big downer of the day- it is too small. Not a TON too small, but the damn thing definitely won't zip up all the way. My resultant profanity was immoderate and colorful.
Now, I know I've gained some weight lately. It's not pleasant, but it's true. I've been cooking healthier, and exercising, but not enough. When I moved out here closer to the suburbs, I cut out most of my walking commute. And I knew that this was a possibility with ordering the dress EXACTLY to fit, instead of going up a size- I was afraid to go up, since it would then assuredly need alterations all around, instead of just a quick hem. And now I'm in the minor predicament of altering myself to fit the dress, or the dress to fit me.
My first fitting isn't until the beginning of August. I just bought a bike. I upped my gym membership so I can go to the gym in Gallery Place, near Farragut West, or in Georgetown (they have better classes than my home location, near my old apartment). I can walk home from the metro, which would mean a solid half hour of brisk walking 5 days a week. I started doing the 30 Day Shred, and will keep it up. G and I are biking once a week so far, and surely will do it more now that I remember how to ride. He is very encouraging, and wants to get more fit as well. And I'm trying to figure out HOW on EARTH I can get up 45 minutes or an hour earlier, which would be all I'd need to get in a quick run before showering and work in the morning.
What I'm saying is... it's on. I will lose the 3-4 pounds I put on since buying the damn gown. I will hopefully lose more, since I should be more like 20 pounds lighter overall for my BMI. And I am going to do my damnedest to drop the weight before August- I want that zipper to FLY up my back at my first fitting. I know the tailor has to hem it- I'd like her to have to take in the sucker, too!
I'll keep you posted.
Thursday, May 07, 2009
Home sick
Sometimes being a little bit sick is the best possible thing. I was feeling really rough this morning- bad enough that I overcame my usual guilt about staying home and called in sick. I really hardly ever call in sick- I feel like the threshold for feeling bad is pretty high to keep me away from the office, unless I'm actually contagious.
But by mid-afternoon, my stomach was roiling less, the headache was reduced, and I no longer felt tied to the sofa. I also ran out of American Idol and Dancing with the Stars on our DVR. I even finished the 11th repeat of that darn baby blanket. So I did the logical next thing- started cleaning. I vacuumed, did some windows (since it's the perfect dreary sunless day for it), and did some serious cleaning on the door from the kitchen to the back porch. I am not used to living in a real home- there are just so many things to deal with. In my past apartments, cleaning wasn't that big a deal- you can't have that many windows in an efficiency! Now... it doesn't seem to matter how much I do, it's still not enough. At least after my few hours of cleaning, I'm feeling like now I've made an effort to spring clean, and I can get back to knitting without guilt.
Still on the increases for Clapotis. Well into the last repeat of the baby blanket. 3 loads of laundry done. I'm thinking this is one very successful sick day- and I'm glad I feel better so I can get back to work tomorrow!
But by mid-afternoon, my stomach was roiling less, the headache was reduced, and I no longer felt tied to the sofa. I also ran out of American Idol and Dancing with the Stars on our DVR. I even finished the 11th repeat of that darn baby blanket. So I did the logical next thing- started cleaning. I vacuumed, did some windows (since it's the perfect dreary sunless day for it), and did some serious cleaning on the door from the kitchen to the back porch. I am not used to living in a real home- there are just so many things to deal with. In my past apartments, cleaning wasn't that big a deal- you can't have that many windows in an efficiency! Now... it doesn't seem to matter how much I do, it's still not enough. At least after my few hours of cleaning, I'm feeling like now I've made an effort to spring clean, and I can get back to knitting without guilt.
Still on the increases for Clapotis. Well into the last repeat of the baby blanket. 3 loads of laundry done. I'm thinking this is one very successful sick day- and I'm glad I feel better so I can get back to work tomorrow!
Tuesday, May 05, 2009
Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival
I thought about not going to MSWF this year. "I'm planning a wedding!" I argued. "I have things to do that weekend!" I contended. "I don't need any more yarn, holy crapamoley have you looked at my hideously messy extremely creative craft room!" I exclaimed.
Yeah, of course I went to Sheep and Wool. I didn't even stick to my budget (although I stayed fairly close to the budget I would have set myself, had I really bothered to set a budget). I took some terrible photos of my new acquisitions, which my photographer in residence has nixed. Apparently my practice of tossing yarn on the floor with reckless abandon worked better when the carpeting was beige. Now that I live in home with green carpets in the living room, apparently I should care about this and do something to improve my yarn photography. A pale sheet, for example, would be effective.
Obviously, I was far too excited about WINDING a ball of gorgeous yarn and CASTING ON for a (third) Clapotis to bother with finding a light-colored sheet. But I have been knitting with some Brooks Farm yarn since the Amazing Race last night, and I am in heaven.
The heavenly feeling is largely related to this Clapotis not being an enormous and annoying and why-isn't-it-completed baby blanket. I am at 10.5 repeats out of the suggested 14. It's pretty enormous. I'm thinking 12 repeats may just be the end of it, for me. I did knit the whole way to and from the festival- thanks to my wonderful friend offering to drive.
MSWF is a lot more entertaining to attend with another fiber addict who has totally different coloring from me, but similar tastes in knitting projects. We never had to fight about yarn, since we always were going for different colors. Except for the gorgeous handpainted lace weight, for which I gave in and became a total copycat. I hope we at least pick different scarf patterns for it!
In the end, I walked away with another bunch of Tess Yarn- worsted purple, destined to become a February Lady Sweater. Tess's new Baby Bunny, in Hot Pink!, which I think would be cute for a baby sweater, or maybe even socks. The aforementioned vari-colored lace yarn for a decorative scarf. Two skeins of a mottled green from Brooks Farm for my Clapotis (to replace the hot pink one I made in grad school- it's time to move on). And I found four skeins of a beautiful red laceweight, because I can never have enough laceweight. Or red.
Not a bad haul. And I enjoyed seeing the different breeds of sheep. Definitely a good weekend! Now... back to the increase rows of that Clapotis, before I give in and work on the baby blanket of doom.
Yeah, of course I went to Sheep and Wool. I didn't even stick to my budget (although I stayed fairly close to the budget I would have set myself, had I really bothered to set a budget). I took some terrible photos of my new acquisitions, which my photographer in residence has nixed. Apparently my practice of tossing yarn on the floor with reckless abandon worked better when the carpeting was beige. Now that I live in home with green carpets in the living room, apparently I should care about this and do something to improve my yarn photography. A pale sheet, for example, would be effective.
Obviously, I was far too excited about WINDING a ball of gorgeous yarn and CASTING ON for a (third) Clapotis to bother with finding a light-colored sheet. But I have been knitting with some Brooks Farm yarn since the Amazing Race last night, and I am in heaven.
The heavenly feeling is largely related to this Clapotis not being an enormous and annoying and why-isn't-it-completed baby blanket. I am at 10.5 repeats out of the suggested 14. It's pretty enormous. I'm thinking 12 repeats may just be the end of it, for me. I did knit the whole way to and from the festival- thanks to my wonderful friend offering to drive.
MSWF is a lot more entertaining to attend with another fiber addict who has totally different coloring from me, but similar tastes in knitting projects. We never had to fight about yarn, since we always were going for different colors. Except for the gorgeous handpainted lace weight, for which I gave in and became a total copycat. I hope we at least pick different scarf patterns for it!
In the end, I walked away with another bunch of Tess Yarn- worsted purple, destined to become a February Lady Sweater. Tess's new Baby Bunny, in Hot Pink!, which I think would be cute for a baby sweater, or maybe even socks. The aforementioned vari-colored lace yarn for a decorative scarf. Two skeins of a mottled green from Brooks Farm for my Clapotis (to replace the hot pink one I made in grad school- it's time to move on). And I found four skeins of a beautiful red laceweight, because I can never have enough laceweight. Or red.
Not a bad haul. And I enjoyed seeing the different breeds of sheep. Definitely a good weekend! Now... back to the increase rows of that Clapotis, before I give in and work on the baby blanket of doom.
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
Holiday gifts
I think now that it is officially January, I am safe posting some holiday gifts. I knitted pretty hard this year, but since almost all of it was for gifts... well. I would like to note that my only resolution (besides drink more water, which I try and fail at every year) is to knit for myself. I have only one sweater that I knitted myself, although I do have lots of scarves and hats. I just give everything away. So this year? The year of Me. At least until August, when the holiday gifts start up again.
Either way, here's the pictures you've been waiting for with bated breath.. hah.
First up is the Menorah pillow I knitted for my Dad for Chanuka. The pattern is from Handknit Holidays, and the yarn is the KnitPicks Wool of the Andes. I needed *way* more yarn than called for... because it was an enormous pillow. Who cares about gauge? The Ikea pillow form was perfect.
Next is the Christmas Stocking for my sister. Heather converted... well that's a long story. So anyways, I tried to be a supportive big sister. Besides, she was using a DOG's stocking- it may have been pink, but it was possibly the ugliest little stocking ever. Now she is rocking the high-class fair isle! Yarn is also Wool of the Andes, and the pattern is a little leaflet on Make-Your-Own stockings. If I'm good later I'll look up the title- I purchased it in a yarn store in Bloomington, Indiana and haven't seen it since. Too bad, cutest pattern ever!
Also, check out the stocking before doing the afterthought heel. That is a really entertaining concept, I have to tell you.
Dad's pillow was actually the most time-consuming project, mainly because I can be a real idiot and managed to sew the back on backwards the first time. It's all i-cord edging, so that was exciting. On the plus side, I did a better job sewing it together the second time. But in terms of the most enjoyable project, I'd go with Mom's shawl. Everything I knitted this fall was fun, but I couldn't get enough of her shawl! I would try and go back to knitting something else and fail, simply unable to stop knitting the easy lace pattern. It's the Adamas pattern from KnitPicks, in KnitPicks Shadow. The color looks true in the photos, and it only required two skeins. I am economical! I know I posted the picture already, but until I can get one of my Mom wearing it...
I also completed the Clapotis shawl (from Knitty) for my dearest friend Sharyn. There's definitely a purple theme this holiday season! The yarn is a really neat one from Dark Horse- acrylic for my vegan friend, but soft and cozy. I already posted this picture as well. So much for new and exciting!
Sadly, that's all there is for now. I am working on a second Adamas shawl- this time I think I'll keep it for me. It's the flame-kissed oranges and reds handpainted silk from the show in Virginia, and I'm trying to decide if I can get away with wearing orange. Hoping to finish that by Saturday, so I can wear it over a little black cocktail dress to the work holiday party. I also began a sweater for myself, with the yarn set aside for another one to follow. Both are work appropriate, so here's to finishing them in time to wear them this spring to the office.
Hurray for knitting! And the year of knitting for me!
As a sidenote, my little Handknit by Mikaiya business is picking up. I did my first craft fair and sold a kitty hat and a scarf on the spot, as well as orders for two more scarves and another hat. I also sold six kitty hats at the last few anime conventions through my costuming friends. Fantastico! Now I need to knit up some more inventory...
Either way, here's the pictures you've been waiting for with bated breath.. hah.
First up is the Menorah pillow I knitted for my Dad for Chanuka. The pattern is from Handknit Holidays, and the yarn is the KnitPicks Wool of the Andes. I needed *way* more yarn than called for... because it was an enormous pillow. Who cares about gauge? The Ikea pillow form was perfect.
Next is the Christmas Stocking for my sister. Heather converted... well that's a long story. So anyways, I tried to be a supportive big sister. Besides, she was using a DOG's stocking- it may have been pink, but it was possibly the ugliest little stocking ever. Now she is rocking the high-class fair isle! Yarn is also Wool of the Andes, and the pattern is a little leaflet on Make-Your-Own stockings. If I'm good later I'll look up the title- I purchased it in a yarn store in Bloomington, Indiana and haven't seen it since. Too bad, cutest pattern ever!
Also, check out the stocking before doing the afterthought heel. That is a really entertaining concept, I have to tell you.
Dad's pillow was actually the most time-consuming project, mainly because I can be a real idiot and managed to sew the back on backwards the first time. It's all i-cord edging, so that was exciting. On the plus side, I did a better job sewing it together the second time. But in terms of the most enjoyable project, I'd go with Mom's shawl. Everything I knitted this fall was fun, but I couldn't get enough of her shawl! I would try and go back to knitting something else and fail, simply unable to stop knitting the easy lace pattern. It's the Adamas pattern from KnitPicks, in KnitPicks Shadow. The color looks true in the photos, and it only required two skeins. I am economical! I know I posted the picture already, but until I can get one of my Mom wearing it...
I also completed the Clapotis shawl (from Knitty) for my dearest friend Sharyn. There's definitely a purple theme this holiday season! The yarn is a really neat one from Dark Horse- acrylic for my vegan friend, but soft and cozy. I already posted this picture as well. So much for new and exciting!
Sadly, that's all there is for now. I am working on a second Adamas shawl- this time I think I'll keep it for me. It's the flame-kissed oranges and reds handpainted silk from the show in Virginia, and I'm trying to decide if I can get away with wearing orange. Hoping to finish that by Saturday, so I can wear it over a little black cocktail dress to the work holiday party. I also began a sweater for myself, with the yarn set aside for another one to follow. Both are work appropriate, so here's to finishing them in time to wear them this spring to the office.
Hurray for knitting! And the year of knitting for me!
As a sidenote, my little Handknit by Mikaiya business is picking up. I did my first craft fair and sold a kitty hat and a scarf on the spot, as well as orders for two more scarves and another hat. I also sold six kitty hats at the last few anime conventions through my costuming friends. Fantastico! Now I need to knit up some more inventory...
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