Yarn take two.

This is the same yarn I posted the last time. To get rid of the white spots (which I hid in that photo) I dumped it into a bath of red kool aid. So now the yarn isn't pink, but reddish-pink. I'm very happy with it. You can still see some very light spots, but after carefully looking at them, I think it's safe to say they are LIGHT pink.

I reskeined this last night, which means that I took the skein I dyed and made it into a new skein that is a different size. That way the "chunks" of color don't group together, and instead the colors interact with each other. The photo isn't very true to color, it's a very light red, not orangey, but the interaction of the colors is pretty realistic.

I think I reached my goal of doing a semi-solid pretty well.

I'm finished with the gusset decreases of my Sunshine sock. Back to work now... but hopefully a more reasonable day, not 14 hours.

Deal of the Day

Today Old Navy has ribbed tank tops on sale for $2. I went at 11:00 after LTS, they open at 10:00- the selection was almost completely picked over white was more or less all that was left. I managed to find 2 Smalls, and then went for my secret weapon- the children's section. There I found 2 XL! And on the way out of the dressing room got another AS. So that's the limit of 5.

Old Navy makes these really long now (I don't like that for normal clothes) but it's perfect for skating- cover up my big butt! I also really like skating in these tank tops, so I am very pleased.

Retail value: $37.50
Sale Price: $10.00
What I paid: $0.60

That's right: 60 cents.
Last week I got an email from the mall list serv (I knew signing up for this would be worthwhile) with a offer for a free $10 gift card- no strings attached at all. So all that I paid for was the tax.

I have a lot of work to do today (blah) but I think today will be better than the rest of the week was. 3 hours on the ice this morning, and game night tonight!

AAAAH!

I am so stressed. I've been going to bed incredibly late, waking up at a normal time and working 12-14 hours a day. The pay is NOT good enough for this, but I can't turn it down when I have nothing else in sight.

I just want a day to sit, knit, watch TV- anything but work ALL day long.
Kevin has even been eating lunch downstairs so he can spend time with me on his lunch break- I eat at the computer while working...

Thank God for skating in Detroit next week. I cannot wait.

Kettle Dying

I tried to do a semi-solid dye method yesterday. It didn't work the way I wanted. The first pot I didn't get ANY color on the underside at all- just the surface that I could immediatly see. Urgh.

I so I made up another pot and got about 75% coverage. Why are there so many white spots?

So I made up a third pot for immersion- this time there was no kettle dye method at all, I wanted full coverage. Grr- STILL white spots.

So now I'm trying to decide if I should keep it as is and just see how it knits up. I think it's going to be strings of 7-8 stitches though, so probably not that nicely. Maybe I should dunk it in some Kool-Aide to over dye it. Kool-Aid seems to have better coverage than the Wilton's dyes I've used.

I do really like the pink though. Pink is fun, and pink socks are very fun.

Finished the first brown sock... have done the ribing for the next one.

Knitty Summer 2009

I'm almost done with my first Ain't No Sunshine. I did the whole thing on US 1.5s so my wrists are really hurting :( How big where these supposed to be? I'm getting 9.5 st/inch- way smaller than the pattern and even still, maybe the foot could be a bit smaller, but I'm mostly happy with the cuff (There is a weird pucker at the top of the heel... ) I like them a lot though, and though my Marlene socks had a small cable twist in them, this is probably the first real cable sock I've done.


The new knitty is out :)
One of my traditions from livejournal was to post my opinion about each pattern. I love looking at Knitty patterns but rarely make them- the only ones I've ever made have been socks. And when I used to knit in college I didn't make socks.

I'm not sure what I think of winter patterns in the summer. Will they put summer patterns in the winter issue?

So Summer 2009:

The Deadliest Crab:
Cute crab, would not knit this.

Diamond Halter:
Pretty- maybe something I would wear when I was thin in high school or college. I wonder how much support the knit fabric would offer though, and I feel like it would sag a lot in the back when a halter is made at such a large gauge. (Obviously halters are generally knit fabrics- but super tight thread knit ones). The ribbing doesn't look very good on the model, so I doubt it would look great on most people.

Annette:
This is one of those things I don't get. I've never seen anyone where anything like this. It's like a garment made for the sake of knitting a garment. I don't really like the stitch pattern.

Elenka:
Super cute. I need a girl to knit for.

Miss Honeychurch:
I don't like the shaping of this one either. I feel like it would sag pretty badly.

Kingdom and Verdigris:
Very pretty- look like WAY too much effort.

Rani:
first off- I think it's funny the URL is Trani. These are very pretty, and while I like fingerless mitts I don't get the point of these. Don't sleeves do this?

Tridactyl:
Um- these are just weird. WHY?
"These odd looking creations provide the warmth of a mitten, with the dexterity of a glove. Thus, getting out your keys, turning radio dials, pulling the break lever on your bike, and even answering your cell phone are all possible while your fingers are kept warm! Amazing!"
How do they have the dexterity of a glove? It seems like it would be so ackward to keep your fingers apart like that. And I do think mittens are a bit warmer than gloves, but seperating out your fingers kind of takes that away. (And isn't the arguement for toe socks that they are warmer than regular socks? Isn't that the opposite of the mitten/glove arguement?)

Morning Glory:
Cute- impractical for my lifestyle.

Treetop socks:
These are alright. I'm not a huge fan of the pattern, but it might be the color. I'll have to see what other people do with it. I don't think I'd make these.

Outside In:
I really like this, and I think it's a clever way to avoid a ton of purling (which I don't mind, but is kind of painful on my wrists with tiny needles). I'm not sure I'm crazy about the line of YO in the middle- too many holes for a sock maybe. But this one is going in my ravelry queue.

Mermaid Socks:
I like these ones a lot. These also went into my rav queue, however, they remind me of Potomatus and I hated making those (but love how they look) so I might not get to them eventually.

Cold Mountain Stole:
Very pretty. When I get back to lacework this might be something I consider.

Entomology :
Love this one! I haven't tried beads yet, but they seem very popular lately.

Urbanista and Trilobite:
Nice enough, wouldn't make it.

Time to breathe

I finished my assignment last night at midnight. I thought I'd get the whole day off today, or at least until they can assign me something else. Sadly I woke up to an email asking me to "fix" some of my work- in a manor that I pretty much thought was a change in the parameter of the original assignment, or at least the way it was explained.

Oh well, not morning off. For 3.5 hours I worked my butt off to get this done by noon- I finished 3 minutes before then. (That's when they needed it by.)

So I've had some breathing room this afternoon. I vacuumed and did laundry- things that have been very neglected as I've been crazy for 2 weeks.

I did a bit of knitting. And I made a drawstring bag. I hope to make a few more of these, as a way to keep projects together. I can put them all in a basket upstairs, and Kevin won't know he is over run with yarn. This one is the perfect size for a ball of yarn and a sock in progress, but it doesn't fit the pattern. I need to make it a little bigger.

With it, my "Ain't No Sunshine" sock. I'm now at the point I was when I ripped the other one out. It's taken me 2 weeks to get there- the other sock took 3 days... I hope for more knitting time tonight, but we are going for sushi too! The sock blocker is one of the ones Kevin made for me.

I long for knitting...

... how can I tell I'm not getting enough knitting time in? (Other than the fact that neither the sweater or sock are growing.) I long to make a blanket. I've been looking at lots of blankets on Ravelry in my 30 second breaks (this is one of those).

I HATE blankets. BORING! Who wants to knit miles and miles of knit stitches? ME! I just want to knit.

This morning I finished my sample unit for the company I used to work for, so hopefully they will accept that and I can write a full unit. I am also super busy with freelance company #2, though not nearly as hectic of a schedule as last week. Tonight will be a very late night, but it is my fault- this morning I worked on other things (that needed to get done), and this afternoon I have been procrastinating, plan to go skating, and watch SYTYCD. No wonder nothing is getting done.

I also heard back from freelance company #1 some feedback on a lesson I wrote, and it was very positive. Since they were somewhat critical of one of my other submissions, I was very happy to hear they really liked this one. That bodes well for future assignments.

I had planned to post a picture of the Ain't No Sunshine sock, but alas, I've procrastinated enough, so here is another boring entry without a picture.

In skating news- I thought I had managed to not pull my hamstring yesterday, but today it's aching like crazy. Guess I can't handle attitude position. (While spinning it's the hip flexor that yells at me, but the next day it's the hamstring.) But it's exciting to have the start of a layback. Not that I'll EVER do one of those.

No progress

Today was a day where nothing got done. I'm still ridiculously exhausted from not sleeping all week. Last night we went to the Robert Earl Keen festival at the Iowa City Arts festival. That was worth staying up late for (although, we were home by 11:00!!) It was a fantastic concert, though I must say REK needs to learn to enunciate a bit, some things were tough to understand, and Kevin and I knew many of the lyrics. He sang all my favorites (except Merry Christmas from the Family- but that's to be expected) and kept it fairly family friendly for someone who sings mostly about beer drinking. And I managed to experience something I never thought possible in Iowa- listening to someone make fun of Lubbock. I had a really great time, but it made me very homesick.

So back to today- I left open my work screen and got done today 1/3 of what I had to do on last Wednesday and Thursday, but that should get me a bit of a jumpstart on the week. I have 140 items due Thursday, for comparision last week I had 120 items in those two days (plus about 1 hour on Tuesday that I was able to work when I got the assignment). This week should involve much less lost sleep, if only I can sit down and be productive. Fortunately, this week is also a subject I'm less familiar with (so it's taking longer) but if I had this subject area first- I don't think I would have made it through last week in time. Additionally, I have an assignment with yet another company that I HAVE to get done by Wednesday- and that is writing, not just aligning. Writing requires much more creativity, and I'm having a bit of writers block as I've had so much exposure to items I think of a good idea, and realize someone else had it first. I just finished a month of lesson writing, so sometimes I'm the person who had it first- but you can't write the same thing for two companies.

I called about the job applications at ACT (for the Specialist positions) and they have them now (they didn't get them the first time). My former AVP called over to the hiring managers for me, so I'm hoping I at least get an interview. This is a high enough job, that even though it is hourly and would be a step down on the ladder it should be challenging enough to be interesting.

In knitting news- I'm about 2 rows further into my "Ain't No Sunshine" socks. Brown just seems a strange color to pick for these, but I think it looks pretty nice.

We are still dog sitting and I don't know how much this teeny 9 lb dog should be eating. He is used to at will feeding, and Elsa thinks that's a marvelous way to take his food, so we can't leave it down. He'll eat if I hand feed him, but if Elsa is outside (he is scared of outside unless we go with him) and we set it down, he'll eat ONE piece, and then stop. That surely isn't enough.

I need to go back to the "comically small portion diet" my weight is back on the rise. I refuse to be overweight again!

Ain't No Sunshine

Actually there is a lot of sunshine- the rain has stopped and my fingers are crossed it will stay away long enough for us to go see Robert Earl Keen tonight. The title refers to my sunshine sock, which I started in a green/yellow colorway. Once again, choosing a variegated yarn fought with the pattern and I have ripped out another cuff of a sock. I recast on in a semi-solid brown color. Knitting with dark yarn is tough- hard on the eyes. I did the ribbing last night while we waited for the Squirrel Nut Zippers.

Iowa City is having their Arts Festival, which explains all the music. The Squirrel Nut Zippers blew a fuse (transformer? The whole city block was dark) so they started 2 hours late. I was exhausted already from a very very busy week (hence no blog posts- 11 hour work days take the blogging away) so we only stayed for 3 songs :( But we got great sushi and ice cream with friends. Tonight is Robert Earl Keen and I am SO incredibly excited. I miss all the great music I listened to, and went to concerts to hear, on a regular basis in Texas.

We are dog sitting so we have a second dog in the house. He is an adorable little dog who is very needy- won't go outside without us, and wants his balls thrown constantly. Elsa really really wants him to play with her, but for the most part he won't. She chases after him when he is running for his ball- but Basie really could not care less that she is around. Poor Elsa.

I have another busy week freelancing, so maybe not too many posts. But I'm not at a point where I feel like I can turn down work, so I'm willing to give up my entire life for it.

Lazy Monday

In knitting news: I cast(ed?) on for Sunshine, another Cookie A book pattern. Cookie A is without a doubt my favorite sock designer. Not only are all her socks gorgeous, they fit me :) We must have similar feet. For now, St. Moritz is sitting in time out where I decide if going back down to the tighter gauge was a good decision or not.

I met my friend Courtenay today for ice skating and shopping. We skated for about 30 minutes when my tendonitis in my right foot really started to bother me. It was likely because we were mostly doing laps, something I rarely do, and something that mimics walking more than other skating does. Walking does me in too. Anyhow, I hope the tendonitis isn't going to be a reaccuring thing, because I've been enjoying being pain free.

I goofed around and tried to do some figures- just circle eights on all 4 edges. HAHAHA. First off, after coming home I found out that the new tests require you only do 1 circle, and not retrace- so on my forward edges I'd likely be fine, on the backward edges I couldn't get enough speed and needed to toe tap down to push myself through the rest of the circle. When I tried to retrace though, I'd be spot on for just a little bit, then like 4 inches away from my tracing, then back on. I managed to always come back to the same center though :) But for anyone who hasn't done them FIGURES ARE HARD!

Before going skating I had a training meeting. This is the 2nd I've had (and the second company I've done freelance work for since I got laid off) if this is going to be a thing, I've got to find a speakerphone! Ouch my neck hurts, and it can't possibly be good for my shoulders to have to use them to hold the phone in place. I tried to you my hands, but it's hard to do that for that long.

Tomorrow is the EIFSC board meeting. I'm really debating if I should be a board member this year. Membership is due at the end of June- if I don't have a job, I'm not sure it makes sense to pay $75 for a club membership, especially since if I'm not taking lessons I definetly won't test- and that's really the only thing I need the membership for. But of course, if I'm not a member, I can't be on the board...