everything came in hanks ...

well, yarnwise, that is. all my yarns came in hanks. i do not mind hanks, as a ballwinder and swift are just as permanent as my other furniture.

so, this weekend was SAFF. i started to plan attendance a couple (or few) months ago.

i won't dilly dally on details, but i will share photos of my yarn purchases. if you want to know the specifics of any yarn, just click on any photo and it will take you to flickr with all my notes.
















i saved the best for last ...


i had a fabulous time in fletcher and asheville ... not a single disappointment. the first day (at saff) was rainy ("whatever!). day 2, in asheville, visiting the local yarn shops, ... the skies cleared and it was the perfect autumn day.

yes, i got a lot of yarn. but, each yarn was purchased with either a project in mind, or as a gift.

funny thing ... all yarns purchased at saff, except for the brown silk above. i guess, i have access to what i call "shiny label yarns" all the time, so going to a fiber festival gives me the opportunity to snatch up stuff i cannot find in a retail shop.

should be in bed ...

... but instead, i'm updating. i am leaving for SAFF in the morning. i think i have my knitting bag packed, and haven't given much thought to clothes.




i had wanted to finish my central park hoodie. but i did not get the buttons sewn on yet, and i don't want to haul a big bulky sweater anyways.











i had wanted to finish my legwarmers ... which, i may actually do on the ride there, so they made the cut and are in the knitting bag.

i. am. knitting. acrylic. yarn. on. long. straight. needles. shivers ! the yarn is james c. brett's marble. i like the colorways, and it's soft.





and i did knit some fabulous hats (with bonne marie's cassidy's cap pattern and cascade 220.

i've made several hats with this pattern and i love how cute it is. so, perhaps, if it's cold at SAFF tomorrow, i may be wearing one of three versions i've knitted of this cap.

by the way, that's not my beautiful hair ... it's the model's ....

who you gonna vote for?

... i don't know yet, but perhaps a site like this or this might help.

photo credit and maker: mom
crochet project available at lion brand's website.

bad record keeping

next weekend is saff. and you know how it is ... you wanna make something new to wear to the festival. i don't have anything new, but i do have something old (2006) that i never properly finished ... my central park hoodie.

i dilly dallied on which buttons to use for the closure. i finally decided this morning which buttons to use, which means i have to change my button holes. sigh.

it's not the effort of ripping and reknitting that's going to kill me, it's the effort of finding my notes to see which size denise needles i was using for this project ... and possibly finding out that i didn't even bother to write it down.

you'd think with a blog, a flickr account, and now ravelry, i would have those notes somewhere !

editted: found pattern with notes, and i did not write down my needle sizes (smacks forehead)! so, i'm gonna go with the needle size the pattern says to use. geeez.

it's socken season!

... though, it's always socken season en mi casa. i have read threads on different message boards on various knitting related websites, people posting, "why knit socks?" i never leave an answer. it's one of those things that if you have to ask, you probably don't need to.

but, for those of us who do knit socks, and lots of socks, we have wonderful events like lolly's socktoberfest, and ravelry's year round sock knitter's anonymous.

and sometimes, no event is needed because the reward is happy feet ...


basic top down 64st sock on 2.25mm needles in sockotta.

and after a basic sock such as that is finished, i often feel the need to get another one on the needles. some people only work on one project at a time. those people probably finish what they start. me? i need variety ...


basic top down 68st sock on 2.25mm needles with tofutsies.

the basic socks are mandatory, as they provide a break from knitting socks like this one.


the last sock here is komet from ravelry .
komet is one of the design options for this month's challenge on sock knitter's anonymous. though this design is not particularly challenging, the pattern is not written for novice knitters, and the fit can be a bit tricky in a pattern that incorporates both lace and cables. my favorite thing about this pattern is its dimensionality.

komet knitted with 2.5mm circs and jaeger's matchmaker merino 4 ply.

some accomplishments ....

last weekend, i went home to visit my parents. sometimes i don't travel very light (usually when i'm driving vs. other modes of transportation). i only visited for a few nights, but packed like i was going to be there for a month!


i have this not so irrational fear of being without a project. it's happened before. you know how some people get kinda itchy because they have not eaten? well, i get way bitchy if i'm without a project. (mind you, that is just the "top" layer of yarn possibilities.) i probably packed enough yarn for 6 pairs of new socks, plus the various projects in my wee knit pouches. yeah ... for a 3 day visit!

i did not get as much knitting done as i hoped, but i did finally manage to find a solution for my harmony needles.


click picture for details
that is a 'worm bag' from bass pro shops. the size is right, the price point even better ($10 for bag plus extra empty pocket pages). now, i'm not running around like a poor knitter with my harmony needles and components in one giant ziplock. it's a great system, and a tidy solution.

in other knitterly news, i have finished knitting three hats! all the same pattern, but still, three hats ! perhaps this weekend pictures will be taken ....

bedtime reading ...

yay! a wonderful surprise left on my doorstep today ... interweave's new _color STYLE_!

i really enjoy interweave's series of books, ie: folk socks, lace style, knitting from estonia, etc ..... this is just another in the series of great patterns and techniques.

so, after i finish watching my episode of MI-5, i'm going to get into bed with some colorful knitting.

update regarding camera: it's still holding on, probably because of the threat of replacement. i still don't know what i want though. research takes a lot of time.