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First FO of 2009

Malvina's Christmas Socks

Well, I finished Malvina’s socks with only a couple hours to spare – literally, finished them up around 11 a.m., and gave them to her around 3 p.m. later that afternoon. She seemed to like them, so that was nice (and blatant flattery post-gifting encourages more product).

Anyway, I have been packing and stuff and I don’t have internets hooked up at the new place yet. I’m getting my uber-cable hooked up on Sunday, but I’m waiting for Robyn to give me their old AT&T modem before I call to hook up internet. I’m getting uber-internets too.

Seriously, I decided to get Direct TV, which is my first experience with satellite, and I hope it is good – don’t tell me if it’s not, I would rather have my spirits crushed on my own time 😛 – and I totally got a year free of Showtime which means: DEXTER DEXTER DEXTER! Also, my three months free of HBO conveniently coincides with the airing of Big Love, everybody’s favorite show about polygamy.

Anyway, so I also ordered some of the new Felici colorways from Knitpicks, which means I will have eight tons of Felici and still haven’t finished the one pair I started. OH WELL. That is my last yarn order until STITCHES I SWEAR IT ON MY DEAD FISH SPARKEY’S GRAVE.

(Did we bury Sparkey or flush him? I can’t remember, it was 16 years ago. I think we buried him in an elaborate fish funeral complete with saluting.)

Uh, yeah, so anyway, I have to go pack 8,234,678 books now.

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Fingerless Mitt Time

I made these while I watched Dexter Season 2 again (totally improved on a second viewing, btw), so I am calling them Rita Mitts after Dexter’s long-suffering girlfriend:

Rita Mitts - complete!

They turned out nice. I like the yarn. I like using the folded over cuff, they’re much stretchier than they would be with a cast on (like long tail or something) edge.

Now I’m working on some other ones that I’m calling Roadhouse Mitts (because I’m watching Supernatural Season 2) that are utilizing the bluebell stitch from Charlene Schurch’s Sensational Knitted Socks. The yarn is some weird stuff I got at the Webs booth at Stitches this year. I think it’s Kangaroo Dyer, but there was no colorway.  And it’s really hard to photograph.

Roadhouse Mitts

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Actually Knitting

So, I am starting to ponder gift knitting for Christmas.  In all honesty, I don’t really think too hard about gift knitting until December 15th and it’s a mad dash of insanity to finish everything up before Christmas.  This dates back to 2005 when I was unemployed and had no money, but totally had a stash! So I sat around in my dark little apartment in San Antonio and knit like a fiend.

Right now I’m working on something else, something that is not for me (I know, right? I am a selfish knitter, yes I am).

Purple Lace Mitt

Just sort of messing around with a pattern.  I’m working on the second fingerless mitt and am about halfway up the cuff. It’s the second time I’m started it, because apparently I can’t count.  I thought that I had cast on 60 for the above mitt, but apparently not, it is actually 54 stitches around. 

The basic pattern is a picot cuff followed by a row of eyelets, then the lace pattern (I think) from the Go-With-The-Flow socks from the Interweave Favorite Socks book. I kind of made up the thumb gusset, but it turned out right, so that works. I have kind of short stubby hands (thanks, Germanic ancestors!) so the hand part of the mitt is a little long for myself. 

The yarn is Pagewood Farms sock yarn.  I don’t think it’s any special line from them; I bought it at TKGA (I think) a year or so ago (whenever TKGA blew through the Bay Area, since it’s different every year.  It was at the Oakland Marriott). There is a lot of it – I may be able to get another pair of mitts out of it for myself, since the yarn sure is lovely.

Purple Lace MittAnyway, it’s coming along nicely – only took a couple nights of television knitting to complete.  There may be something to this fingerless mitt business. 

Other Christmas projects I am contemplating include two pairs of mittens and that’s pretty much it! My friends don’t seem too overly interesting in handknits, so they will most likely not be getting anything in that regard.  I wish I had more crafty friends.  Or rather, ANY crafty friends, haha.

So in other news, it looks like my high school class is actually going to have a 10-yr reunion.  During its 11th year.  Well, that’ s nice I guess.  There are a few people I’d like to see with whom I lost touch after I was done at DVC and moved 2,000 miles away.  Back in those olden days not everyone was on the internets (I KNOW, right?) so it makes more sense that you’d lose contact with people.

I am really sleepy.  I basically am going to go home and eat dinner and watch What Not to Wear tonight.  I am definitely not up for any Friday night shenanigans.  Not that I ever am. 😛Â