Celtic Knots and Heads...

No, not Celtic heads!  Styrofoam, actually...

 

Yep, not everyone can say that their husband got them their very own head for Mother's Day!  Really, I was very happy, because now I have something to model my hats (other than me).  She looks less scary with a hat on, don't you think?

On to Celtic Knots...  They are what have been keeping me so busy that I haven't had much time to blog (well, that and oversleeping, but I'm going to go with Celtic Knots).  Anyway, if you remember, I was wanting to check Celtic Knot Cables off of my Knitting Bucket List.   Well, here is what I have, so far...

Yay!  This is my new favorite thing to knit!  Of course, it really strains my eyes (since I have to follow a pattern - which I then have to turn around and do completely backwards).  So, after 20 inches or so of this I might be over it! 

Oh, by the way, try to ignore my foot in the picture, I had to get a really close up shot so you could see the cables!   

Waiting Room Hats, Yarn Shops, Cables and Thumbs...

Yeah, only in my world are those things NOT random!

So, I found out the 2 good things about sitting in a doctor's office waiting room 2 hours from my home...

1.There is a lot of time to knit (I made 2 hats in 3 days that week)!  I would have pictures, but the only camera in the house with batteries in it is in my daughter's room and she is still asleep (I am waking her up in just a few minutes, I promise)!  Plus, I am really tired of being the hat model for these pictures.  I really need one of those scary plastic heads.  Never thought you'd hear that in a sentence, did ya'? 

and...

2.They actually have yarn shops near big cities!

I mean honest to goodness yarn shops where they just sell yarn and yarn related objects.  You have to understand, the only place in my hometown that you can buy yarn also has a pharmacy, a lawn and garden department and sells groceries!  We don't even have a Hobby Lobby that's not 45 minutes away!  There are a few people who spin there own wool and sometimes sell it.  I don't mean to exclude them, they are my heroes, but I am talking about a whole store with just yarn and knitting needles!

Needless to say, I was in Heaven... until I saw the prices!  Yep, I would love to buy 100% silk yarn imported from Italy and beautiful Alpaca yarn that was spun so recently I can still hear the alpaca baaing in the back yard!  Wait, do alpacas baa?  Maybe they bleat?  Anyway, whatever they do, they are a little too expensive for me.  It's hard to be a yarn snob and use nothing but all natural fibers and all that when you have a Red Heart Super Saver kind of budget!  :/  Actually, I hate Red Heart Super Saver, but like I said, not too many choices around here. 

So, I told my husband I could check "Yarn Shop" off my knitting bucket list.  Yes, before you ask (like my husband did with an "Are you kidding?" kind of look on his face), I do have a knitting bucket list.

Which leads me to the last two random things in my title...

Cables and thumbs.  They are the next two things on my list that I want to conquer.  Now, I already know how to cable, but I don't mean just any cable.  I mean this cable!




Not my picture, I haven't actually made this yet!


It is a pattern I found on a blog called Storm Moon Knits.  I love Celtic knots and have been wanting to do something like this for a long time.  The only problem is, I am left-handed and I knit very backwards.  I don't just mean normal left-handed backwards, I mean some wierd way I found on YouTube when my right handed friend was trying to teach me to knit.  It is really odd and it works for me, but it makes most patterns come out really wierd (hey, another good excuse for not using a pattern!).  So, we will see how this goes.

The other knitting bucket list thing I am trying to learn is a thumb (I mean the kind in a glove, I do know what a real thumb is)!  I have also been looking on YouTube for this.  If anyone knows the best way to make one, please let me know! 

By the way, I did get one thing at the yarn shop!  Size 11 bamboo double point needles!!  Yes, they do deserve 2 exclamation points!!  I have to thank my Mom for these, though.  Either she wanted to thank me for driving her to the doctor twice in one week (even though it was her car and her gas) or she just wanted to get me out of the shop before I drooled all over the crazy expensive Italian silk, but she bought them for me.  So, thanks Mom! 

Just Keep Knitting, Just Keep Knitting...

Just keep knitting, knitting, knitting.  What do we do?  We knit, knit...

Sorry, Nemo flashback.

Where was I?  Oh yeah, knitting!  I've actually gotten some knitting done (well, half-way done).

Here is my current project...

I know, it is way too warm for a hat like this, but I love the yarn (Yarn Bee - Melody Bulky) and it is winter somewhere in the world!

Here is the project I was working on until the cool, colorful yarn lured me away...

It was supposed to be a baby blanket, but unless Larry the Cucumber and his wife are expecting a son soon, I think it is a bit long.  :/  I am thinking of adding random color stripes and just making a really big, crazy blanket.  I don't know.  Maybe it is meant to be a shawl. 

By the way, my next project is going to be a Kindle Cover that looks like the TARDIS!  I think I'll have to keep that one for myself!  I will keep you posted.

Fell Off The Wagon, Again!

Don't worry, I didn't get hurt!  :P 

I just haven't been getting up early... or blogging much... or exercising...

I bet Skinny Pilates Lady will be mad at me.  She won't say anything, though.  She never does.  She's cool like that. 

Anyway, I have been knitting.  I got done with the Shamrock Kindle cover and have now started a giant striped purse.  Not sure what it's going to turn out like, but here it is so far...

The seed stitch part (the tannish part around the edge) will be the top.  I love seed stitch, by the way.  I always thought it would be a pain to do, but it turns out really nice without having to remember much of a pattern. 

This is some of my Yarn Fairy yarn.  So I'm not exactly sure what it is made of.  I am pretty sure it is mostly wool because it won't burn.  At least, it won't stay on fire.  Yes, I set the end of it on fire (on purpose).  Stephanie Pearl-McPhee (a.k.a. The Yarn Harlot) said to do this (carefully!) in one of her books.  You see, wool isn't exactly "fire-proof", but it is "fire-resistant".  It will put itself out.  Whereas acrylic will basically melt, like plastic. 

Knitting with someone else's yarn got me thinking about yarn as an art medium.  I know, I must need more coffee if I am starting to think really deep thoughts about yarn!  But seriously, yarn is like paint or clay to a knitter (or crocheter).  Two knitters may look at the same yarn and see two very different projects.  Like, my yarn fairy saw a hat and I saw a small pouch.   I looked at green and white acrylic yarn and saw a cell phone pouch and a Kindle cover.  My husband's Grandmother (she was a crocheter) would have seen a baby blanket or a baby sweater and hat.  Yarn is the medium and the artist makes it what it is going to be.  Pretty cool, I think.

Ok, off to drink more coffee before I start thinking deep, philosophical thoughts about my knitting needles!

Ummm... Hmmm... Well...

Yeah, I have nothing to say.  Nothing wise and wonderful or even remotely interesting.

So, to save you from my rambling on about nothing today, I have provided these great links to check out!

They are some very cool knitting supplies I have found, of course, on Etsy.  I recomend you buy all of these for your favorite knitter!  You don't happen to know a knitter, do you?  :P

http://www.etsy.com/listing/84690229/knitting-bowl-organization-wool-crochet?ref=cat2_gallery_12

http://www.etsy.com/listing/86456184/mini-stitch-markers-knit-girl-and?ref=cat3_gallery_10

http://www.etsy.com/listing/58269153/sheep-knitting-needle-gauge-bamboo

http://www.etsy.com/listing/91297138/scrabble-tile-stitch-markers?ref=cat3_gallery_35

...and one not on Etsy, but still awesome...

http://www.amazon.com/Double-Bamboo-Knitting-Needles-Pieces/dp/B000IG7TQY

So, go check them out!