Saturday, August 2, 2014

Belated Update! Finished Project Spam!!!

Been crazy busy with work. Just the usual.

My life is pretty much:

Wake up
Work
Knit
Play Videogames (Rune Factory 3 at the moment)
Eat
Sleep
Repeat

Exciting, no?

But I am going on vacation to Florida in a week, WOO! So more knitting and videogames and no work! heehee! :)

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In the meantime I guess I will share some finished projects with y'alls, in order from most recently complete:


Age of Brass and Steam Kerchief/Shawl (Free Pattern) (My Ravelry)





This is the first shawl I ever attempted to knit. I should have made it bigger because I still have a decent amount of this Manos de Uruguay yarn leftover! But the pattern is SO basic that I got bored of it easily. This is good though, I wanted my first ever shawl to be, well, not complicated! LOL! ;) It was only supposed to be a kerchief size but it was very easy to extend it to make it larger.


Wavy Garden Shawl (Pattern) (My Ravelry)

I love how it turned out! SUPER fast knit and VERY easy to follow pattern. Recommended! Also I highly recommend using the ArtYarns Supermerino yarn. It is INSANELY soft!!!!


I didn't think my photo here is so great b/c it's a bathroom selfie and poor lighting but the author of the pattern seemed to like it and she put it on the ravelry page for her pattern! I feel so honored! First time that has ever happened to me. :3


Shawl being blocked! So cool looking! ;)



Faraway, So Close Shawl (Pattern) (My Ravelry)
From the pattern designer: "This shawl was originally designed as a gift to comfort a friend during a time of much grief. In honor of Infant Loss Awareness Month, each October all proceeds from the sale of this pattern for the month are donated to charities that offer support and guidance to families suffering the loss of a child. In 2012 you helped me to donate $345 to Share. Learn more about Share at http://www.nationalshare.org"
I highly HIGHLY recommend you buy this pattern. Not only is it amazingly gorgeous and totally easy to follow even for a beginner knitter like me, but they donate proceeds from the sale of the pattern in October. So buy it in October when the weather is cooling down and knit an amazing shawl for yourself or a loved one. Or donate to a charity. I plan to do some charity knitting this year! :)


This shawl came from my 2nd and final KnitCrate (I had to cancel my subscription cause it was just too expensive for me, sadly.)


I should have blocked this before taking the photo. Urrrgh. Curly ends bug me. But I was SO excited to wear it out the day I finished it! :D


Yellow Halter Top (Free Pattern) (My Ravelry)

First time knitting with cotton yarn and I messed it up big time. It doesn't fit me, and I had to cut the back strap and serge the ends. BLAH. I may try to salvage it but for now it goes in my reject pile. ;___; Derp.


Two-Direction Scarf (Pattern) (My Ravelry)

I had to wait until I was better at picking up stitches before I finished this project! The yarn and pattern was a Christmas gift to me from my BF's mom. Of course I finished this beast of a scarf in the end of spring/early summer. xD Too hot to wear now!


Really lovely finished product! I actually messed up the transition a bit because I think either the pattern was written wrong or I am just dyslexic, lol!


McCarren Park Cap (Pattern) (My Ravelry)

This was from my May 2014 YarnBox! I didn't like the outcome as much as the designer's finished product. IDK why. The buttons are fabric covered. It's funny because a lot of my friends tell me this is their favorite item I ever knitted but might be one of my least favorites. I don't like the way it looks on me. Reminds me of a goofy elf hat. Maybe my gauge was off.. :(

Derp!


Yellow Alpaca Chunky Cable Hat
(Free Pattern) (My Ravelry)

This was a gift for my BF's mom. I made it a little too big. But it's 100% alpaca so very warm! Will keep her head warm in Colorado winters. :)


Siidegarte Sproinger Hat
(Pattern) (My Ravelry)
My first ever finished project from a YarnBox. (I think it was April YB?) Both the amazingly luscious yarn and pattern came from the box. It was a little tricky since it was my first time doing a three needle bind off and only my 2nd or 3rd time picking up stitches but it was a piece o' cake! I did mess up the 3 needle bind off a bit but that's OK. You can't see the seam cause it's hidden in the back, heehee! ;)

Love the result!



Now what should I do with my other skein of yarn?? :D


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Current Work in Progresses:

Ojo de Dios Shawl by Vanessa Ewing (one of my fave designers!)
(Pattern) (My Ravelry)

Tricky at first. I tried starting this project at the beginning of the year but I got stuck several times and kinda just gave up for a while. I kept knitting the triangles backwards. DPNs can be tricky when you are first learning to knit. >__<;; I think I figure it out though. You have to knit 17 triangles together then I think you pick up and knit along the upper edge and do basic garter stick the rest of the way which is truly quite simple. Pretty interesting how the first part of the pattern is very challenging and the second is like, the most basic knit stitch imaginable. LOL! I love the designer though, Vanessa. She's very sweet and always answers questions! And I looove her work. I want to knit her Noro Skirt next. :3 Aftethought A La Carte Socks
(Pattern) (My Ravelry)

Using my May YarnBox sock yarn in Summertime Sweet by Cherry Tree Hill. Interesting that an engineer came up with this pattern. Yay! Represent! Engineers who knit, lol. I always thought of knitting and crochet as very engineer-y types of activities. Lots of concentration, problem solving, working backwards, and of course, mathematics involved. Interpreting patterns and charts is a lot like interpreting blueprints to me, which I do every day at work. xD Also on this project, I taught myself the Magic Loop method on 1 long circular needle but I have decided DPNs work better for me. Less portable and I love to knit whilst drunk at bars, but I have HORRIBLE ladders with Magic Loop. I frogged this sock and I will re-do on my stainless steel carbon fiber DPNs (lol even my needles are engineer-y.) xD


Click the Read More jump below to see some more pics!




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SPINNING!

I also tried my hand at spinning on my new drop spindle. (It was only $1!) I am not very good at it though >__<;


practice makes perfect right?

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Random yarn photos!

July 2014 YarnBox:

Fiberlady 70% Bamboo and 30% Cotton in the "Relaxing" colorway. Still stumped about what to make out of this. I love it tho.

June 2014 YarnBox:

ArtYarns Supermerino - AMAZING yarn. Seriously some of my most favorite yarn to knit with ever. So soft considering it's 100% wool. This is what I used to make the Wavy Garden Shawl above!

June 2014 KnitCrate:

Targhee Worsted in Muddy Autumn by Blue Moon Fibres ^__^ SUCH LOVE. Lovely yarn to knit with. Not as soft as the ArtYarns supermerino and did smell strongly of dye but thankfully did not run when I wet blocked it and was really easy to knit with, no tearing or breakage. Made for a lovely shawl.

May 2014 YarnBox:

Amazingly beautiful Cherry Tree Hill Sock Yarn

Sunday, May 18, 2014

More Knitting (April YarnBox & KnitCrates!)

Got my April Yarnbox and decided to begin the McCarren Park Cap pattern that came with the lovely lavender yarn!


Fyberspates Vivacious DK in Lavender Haze! Gorgeous! My first purple yarn! ^__^

& This is the pattern in question:

Very pretty! I love the texture of the brim and the tab and the buttons!! Just love everything about it! At first I was worried it wouldn't look good in purple (I am quite partial to the mustardy yellow color the pattern author knitted it up in!) but after knitting some rows, it looks quite nice in purple too! :D

At first I was struggling with my gauge but now I think I am just gonna stick with the Size 4 US needles. :)




Also working on my first ever shawl and about halfway done! It's supposed to be a kerchief pattern but I decided to modify and continue knitting to make it into a shawl. :)


The pattern is called Age of Brass and Steam Kerchief and it's free on Ravelry! :)

Believe it or not I have two other projects in-work too. @__@;;

My April KnitCrate contained this gorgeous yarn:


(2 skeins actually but I was a derp and wound the other and forgot to put the cake in this photo! LOL!)

It came with the Jasminda Shawl pattern. It also came with a wraps per inch tool which is useful for identifying yarn which you have no clue what weight/type of yarn it is... and also some little cookies which unfortunately I didn't really like but oh well! I really just wanted the yarn and the pattern. The tool will be so useful though!


Jasminda Shawl Pattern (very difficult at first, see my Ravelry project entry for it for details on how to overcome the first few setup rows! @__@;;.)

Right now I am torn about my Knitcrate vs. Yarnbox subscriptions... Part of me likes YarnBox better for some odd reason probably because I just want yarn and I don't care about extras (although the tool I got in my April KnitCrate was fantastic!) and also YarnBox seems more professional for some reason. I like the fact that I can access my account and adjust color preferences and subscription type whenever I want. Whereas for KnitCrate, I can't do that without calling them or requesting a new billing link. Kinda weird. They do have store accounts but it's separate from their subscriptions....so odd to me! But I understand it's a small family business so yeah... not the end of the world. I think I will wait to see what my May KnitCrate and Yarnbox items are before judging! :)


Saturday, April 19, 2014

Yay Portland

OK guys and gals as promised, here are some photos from my trip! :)


I *think* this is Mt. St. Helen...or maybe the pilot just lied to us. :P


Hilariously awesome carpet in the Portland International Airport...I even got the matching socks! :)


Yep, that's a gigantic fish stuck in those bricks. Southpark Seafood Restaurant. So good I went twice! Their cheese plate is soo good!


Trying on clothes in a thrift shop! Buffalo Exchange.


Totally amazeballz ramen I had the last night I was there! At Shigezo.


Some yarns I scored at Knit Purl PDX.


Hilariously cute sign in bathroom at Masu restaurant.


View from my hotel room!

Click the jump below to see more photos! :)

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Voodoo donuts!


Trying on clothes at the Bettie Page store. The girls there were SO nice! :)


Lunch at Broder near the Hawthorne neighborhood! I wanna move there! :)


Me looking derpy in my suit after presenting to like 200+ people. @___@;; stressful!


AMAZING chirashi and SUPER FRESH sea urchin (uni) sushi at Masu. Celebrated the night after my presentation with this meal, hehe.


Another shot looking out the window from my hotel room. 14th floor at the Hilton downtown Portland...


Octopus Pasta. The pasta was so tender and tasty but it was too spicy! >__<;
I even finished knitting a hat on the plane! xD


Went to an EPIC HUGE thrift shop called House of Vintage there and I REALLY wanted this cute dress but it BARELY did not zip on me. >__<;; one size too small!
Some of the items I did score on my trip. :) All vintage! Needs dry cleaned so badly. The skirt on the left is maybe from the 80s/90s and it's dry clean only. Bah. The dress on the right is 100% wool made in Italy vintage from the 60s! I am soaking it in Eucalan which I HIGHLY recommend to anyone who wants to wash 100% wool, 100% alpaca, and other such fibers!


More little treasures I found thrifting!


Delicious pasta!


An outfit I bought from the thrift shops. Most of it is vintage.


Cute "N" size batteries I purchased at Spartacus...I can use them in my vibrators ;P


Pretty vintage dress I bought but when I washed it the dyes bled. >___<;;
Brunch my friend had at Broder. Swedish style lunch and breakfast. :)


Found this at the thrift shop but I did not buy it...I just took a photo cause I loved the art-work. :)


Myself and my good friend Maria who drove ALL the way from Seattle, WA to be with me in Portland, OR for the weekend! We went to college together and worked on the Cube Satellite project together called COPPER which launched last year and is up in orbit now! :)



THE END!

Hope you all enjoyed my little travel picspam! :) Portland is a beautiful city, people there are so nice, lots of great food + shopping, and I WANT TO MOVE THERE! But it's so expensive. >__<;;