FO Friday 135

Happy Friday everyone! I've had a pretty uneventful week, which is sometimes a good thing. Quiet weeks of mindless work and home watching TV or movies is good for the soul, don't you think? This week is much of the same I think, which is all right for me. We've started work on our basement bar (a basement in southern California...odd, right?). Luckily it's already a complete bar, including bathroom, wet bar, and even fireplace, but my husband is fulfilling a dream of his and turning it into his very own tiki bar. I'm guessing much of this weekend will be working down there when we're not out enjoying the sunshine. It will be years until he has it complete, but the beginning stages are exciting and changes will happen fast. I'll be posting pictures along the way on my Instagram (@candyskein) if you're interested in following along. I'll try and post a few WIP pictures here too, if any of you are interested in the process.

As far as FO Friday is concerned, I do have something to finally show you. I showed you my Variance cowl on the blocking mats awhile back, but never showed you completed pictures on. I kept forgetting to get my husband to take pictures for me and each time I thought of it, it was too late in the night to get anything good. It's a lovely pattern by Lisa Mutch (Northbound Knitting) who I adore. Her patterns are gorgeous, simple and timeless IMO.


I used Hazel Knits Artisan Sock in Ruby Love.

Share your FOs!

FO Friday 131

Hi everyone! Happy Friday! My days are all screwed up and I almost forgot about this post due to my husband being on vacation from work all this week. In fact, it's after midnight right now, so I won't even need to schedule this as I usually do!

As promised I have my cowl to show you, but unfortunately it didn't dry in time so I'll have to so it to you next week off the blocking mat. This isn't a great picture for color (the last picture was accurate as the sun is blowing the color out in this picture) or the cowl for that matter, but I did want to prove to you all that it IS finished. It just needs a few ends woven in and it will be ready to wear. Unfortunately, it's warm enough here right now that we're going to the beach today, but one the next chilly night, I'll definitely be wearing it! This was a fun, easy and quick pattern to make and I'd definitely recommend it.

Project details:

Pattern: Variance by Lisa Mutch
Needle size: US 4
Yarn: Hazel Knits Artisan Sock in Ruby Love

Share your FOs!

Work in Progress Wednesday 136

Hi everyone! I hope you're having a great week! I have some awesome news since I last talked to you. We went to an estate sale on Friday afternoon and found a Singer 403A sewing machine from around 1960. It hadn't been used in over 12 years, so I was a little nervous buying it, but I couldn't pass up the price. It even has the original cabinet! I took it into a local sewing machine repair place and they said it just needs a serious cleaning (obviously) and a little love and I get it back on Friday! I'm sooo excited, I can't wait!

I have a few new things to show you today for WIPW!

First off, I started a new cross stitch! I'm making this for my studio and the pattern is called Fair Friends. It's by The Frosted Pumpkin Stitchery and is one of their older patterns. As you can see, I've finished the cotton candy (candy floss for those on the other side of the pond) and the corn dog. I have the caramel apple started there. I'll keep the final guy a secret until it's finished. ;)

This beautiful pattern is Variance by Lisa Mutch. Lisa is the owner of Northbound Knitting and is awesome! If you haven't checked out her simple yet sleek/elegant patterns before, please do! I'm using Hazel Knits Artisan Sock in the colorway Ruby Love. I started this last Thursday and it's going great. It's an easy pattern that is only a two row repeat and makes a simple, yet lovely long cowl.


That's it for me today! I'll show pictures of my sewing machine when I get her back at home! Have a great rest of the week everyone!

For those that are new to WIPW, to share your WIPW post with us, just fill out the Mr. Linky below. Despite it saying you must comment, don't feel as if you do. That is something Mr. Linky automatically adds. I just ask you to check out a few of the links posted to see what everyone else is working on and comment there if you can. Everyone loves feedback and a little encouragement on their projects! Also, please link back to this post in your post to get the word out! The more the merrier!

FO Friday 44

Happy Friday! I have a busy weekend ahead, but fun. Comic Con is this weekend, and I think we'll be going for a few hours on Saturday. We haven't decided and at this point have been to it so many times, we don't stay too long. I get a little uncomfortable in crazy crowds, and if you've ever been to Comic Con, you understand why I don't hang out days on end. I feel like a sheep being herded. On Saturday night, we're hanging out with a few tiki friends on Sunday, we're driving up to Huntington Beach to another tiki event. As I said, it should be fun but crazy busy. We'll see if I survive!

Now to FO Friday!

As for the sake of Year of Projects, this is my first completed project from the list. I forgot to blog this past Sunday, so I'm counting this post as this week's.

I bought the buttons for my cowl this week. I went with wood ones, that are a little smaller than I would have liked, but for the size of my buttonholes, these were as big as I could go without having issues. Overall, I love it. The colors are great, and I think the wood of the buttons really bring the orange color out in the yarn. I can't wait to wear it. Unfortunately, I live where it doesn't get too cold, so may have to wait until we go up to the snow on vacation, or on cold rainy days at home.

I also like how it's a little big. It makes it a little less claustrophobic feeling, as I can imagine some cowls are. That was one reason why I had been hesitant to make a cowl up until this point.


Materials Used:
Size US 8 needles
Malabrigo Worsted (colorway: Plena)
Pattern: Pedestrian Crossing Cowl
5 wood buttons

This is the cowl unbuttoned

This is the cowl buttoned

And here I am wearing it. I thought it would be odd if I was in a tank top and cowl, so I put on my jacket. Let me tell you, I was SO HOT, as it was about 80 degrees F in my house.

Share your FOs!

FO Friday 43 and My Thoughts on the End of an Era

Happy Friday! I'm ready for the weekend, but I must say, I'm not ready for Harry Potter to end. I know this is a knitting and crochet blog, but please bear with me.

Although I'm a little on the old side to say that I grew up with Harry Potter (I'll be 32 this year), it has been very much a part of my life. I started reading the books when there were only 3 in the series, and since then have seen almost all the movies on opening night, and went to book 5-7's midnight book release parties. I obviously own all the books and movies, as well as figures, statues, clothes, etc. I'm a HUGE HUGE HUGE fan of HP, and it makes me teary eyed to think that it's over. Sure, we can read the books again, or watch the movies but it won't be the same. We won't wonder what comes next, or how the movies will compare to the books. After the last book, I was pretty sad, but there was always the movies left to look forward to. I pretty much bawled at Part 1, but I knew that I still had Part 2 to look ahead. What now? To me, there will never be another book, movie, intellectual property, that I will feel apart of like I do with Harry Potter. I look forward to watching the last movie this weekend (I decided not to go to the midnight showing, because I wanted to make sure I felt good and enjoyed it, instead of being tired and grumpy), and dread it all the same. I plan to bring TONS of tissues, since just the thought of it, and the trailer makes me cry. This may sound stupid, but I feel like there will be a feeling of loss when it's over. I plan to read all the books again, and watch all the movies in a long marathon (when Part 2 comes out on blu-ray), but it will never be like the first time. So, I want to thank J.K Rowling for making such an incredible story, for shaping people's childhoods and for making Young Adult fiction what it is today. Without you, I wouldn't write Young Adult books. Heck, I probably wouldn't even be a writer. I'm not ashamed to say that Harry Potter has shaped a part of me...and I already miss Harry and the gang.


Okay, enough of that. Thanks for sticking through it (if you did). On to FO Friday.

These are really crappy pictures, so I'm sorry for that, but I was so proud to have finished my cowl I had to share before it was finished blocking. I still have the buttons to pick out, but seeing as I was dreading the buttonholes, it's a feat to have finished. As you can see with the button hole picture, they suck, but I think they'll do. They're a little smaller than I wanted, and for some reason, two of them have yarn running through them, but if I find the right buttons, I can make it work. At least they're there, and when the cowl is on and buttoned, no one will know, right? Sorry for the semi-cheat post, since it's not 100% officially done. I'll share it next Friday as well, so you can see it completed.

Share your FOs!

Year of Projects: To Start a New Project or Not...

That is the question, right? As I sat down this morning, ready to knit, I realized that the few WIPs I've been switching back and forth to are at stopping points. Now, not good stopping points mind you.




You see, I'm working on my cowl (seen above), which is the Pedestrian Crossing cowl. I like this cowl, love the yarn but I'm at a crappy part. What's that you ask? Well, if you follow the blog for WIPW and FO Friday, you'll know it's the button holes. You see, these are the first button holes I've ever had to make, so I'm a little nervous. The instructions are a little funky and I'm afraid of ruining it. I know, I know, I can always frog back to before the button holes, but I'm scared. That's right, scared. I just need to get over it, because I seriously have the button holes and then a few rows of garter stitch before I can cast off. Sounds easy, right? Well, we'll see.


The second project is a monster I started awhile ago, and then when I joined a monster swap on the Knit Picks Ravelry group, it spurred me on. I've gotten to the point of needing to stuff the body, add the eyes and the belly button. I know it's not hard, and this isn't the first monster I've made, but I'm always a little apprehensive because this really determines if the monster will be cute or not, you know what I mean? I'm not going to share a pic of that one right now, because as I said, I'm doing a swap and don't want to ruin it for the recipient if she's checking this blog. I may just post a close up pic of him for WIPW this next week, but won't give too much away.




So, those are my two projects. Instead of just getting down to business on either, what did I do this morning? I cast on for the knitted skirt on my YoP list. I won't share a picture (though the pic above is the yarn I'm using for it), Knit Picks Stroll in Thunderhead), because all I have is the cast on, so not very exciting. Now I have to sit down and figure out the weird short row instructions before I get started. We'll see how it goes, but I figure once I get the short rows down, it should be easy since it's all garter stitch. ::crossing fingers::

I know I should just concentrate on finishing the cowl and working more on the monster, and I will...maybe tomorrow.

How are you doing on your YoP list? Have you cast aside a project for another? Are you working on multiple projects or trying to finish one as fast as possible to start another?

FO Friday 42

Failure. That's right, this FO Friday is brought to you by F A I L U R E. ::sigh:: You know my cowl? Well, I finished...almost. I just need to do the button holes. The pattern instruction for the button holes are REALLY confusing. Anyone have any tips/tricks/pep talks? I'm using the Pedestrian Crossing Cowl that's a free pattern on Ravelry. So yeah...obviously that means no FO today. :( I was SO excited to finish this too. Oh well, maybe next week!?

Okay, enough of my whining. On to people's awesome finished projects!!!!!

Work-in-Progress Wednesday 48

I can't believe it's Wednesday. The 4 day weeks always screw me up, and this one is no exception. I don't have too much to share, as I'm trying to plug along on the cowl so that I can check it off my list. See, that's the thing about me and lists. My Year of Projects one might seem insanely long (and it is, I don't deny that), but once I put items in a list, I take great joy in crossing them off of said list. That's what made me great at my old day job, as the job was all about lists and organization. Now that a list has been made, I will fight tooth and nail to get them all checked off by next July 1. We'll see how that goes.

Now onto my WIPW:


As you can see, this isn't that exciting. I mean, I have made HUGE progress, and am SO close to being done, but it's just the same two rows repeated over and over. Can you tell I've gotten bored from the same two rows...over and over? LOL, I do like how it's coming out though. I'm about 16" into it, and I get to change it up when I hit 20". I can't wait! Now, to the exciting part. What kind of buttons do you think will look good with this color yarn? Color (and if so, what color?), wood (natural, dark, light?), shiny plastic or dull? Oh, the questions! I hope to have this finished for FO Friday, but we'll see as I have a lot of dyeing to do this week.





I'm also swatching for my Tie Neck Top that I have on my Year of Projects list. I'm using the yarn that the pattern suggests (different colorway). Unfortunately the pattern isn't on ravelry for some reason, so I've linked it to the magazine. It's the shirt on the cover. :)

Well, that's it for me this week. What are you working on?

Please remember to use the new link to your post from this week, overriding the one that Mr. Linky saves from the previous. I've had quite a few links still linking to their old posts, or links that go straight to their blog's URL instead of the actual posts URL. Thanks!

For those that are new to WIPW, to share your WIPW post with us, just fill out the Mr. Linky below. Despite it saying you must comment, don't feel as if you do. That is something Mr. Linky automatically adds. I just ask you to check out a few of the links posted to see what everyone else is working on and comment there if you can. Everyone loves feedback and a little encouragement on their projects! Also, please link back to this post in your post to get the word out! The more the merrier!

Work-in-Progress Wednesday 46

Hi there, all! This week is a good one for me at the Candy Skein workshop, because as I write this, I'm staring at 10 skeins of un-dyed gorgeousness (is that a word?). That's right, be jealous. Honestly, I should be the jealous one, as I will only be keeping one of these skeins, if any at all, the way my Monday night knitting group wants to snap them up before they're even out of the packaging. I figured, I'd share the awesomeness that is the new Delicious yarn from Candy Skein. I hope to have this all dyed up by Monday, to share with you on Tuesday. If you have no clue what I'm rambling about, check out my post from yesterday and the exciting Candy Skein news!

This is how I get them from my supplier! Very cool, isn't it?

Okay, now on to WIPW for real now that I've shared the pretty fiber.





I shared my cowl that I had just started last week, and as you can see, I've worked on it but not as much as I had hoped. I was cranking on it, but then my next project caught my attention. This cowl is a very fun, easy, yet can get boring pattern. It's the Pedestrian Crossing Cowl on Ravelry and is a free pattern. Once I memorized the one difficult row, I breezed along. I will say, I didn't realize how it was pooling until I just uploaded this picture! Very cool! Anyway, I had to stop working on it and put the stoppers on the end of my interchangeable needle cable due to the fact that I only have one size 8 circular needle...And that brings me to my next project.





For those of you who checked out FO Friday this past week, you may remember that I cheated a little and actually shared a ball of yarn that I dyed this past week for myself instead of a finished project (I guess it IS called Finished OBJECT, not Finished Project luckily). Anyway, since I had no clue how this yarn would turn out due to how I dyed it, I, as I mentioned, kept it for myself. I decided on The Age of Brass and Steam for the pattern to use with this ball of DK yarn. Since this is my first shawl-like project (it's smaller so I guess more of a shawlette or kerchief?), I needed a little help starting from my Monday night knitting group. Because they are awesome, I had no problems and actually learned a few tricks along the way! I must say, I'm quite proud of my progress and how the yarn is turning out. I can't wait to get to the first major color change. As you can see, each color (as demonstrated in the light blue so far) has a little of the other two in it to tie it all together. Cool, right? I can't stop working on this project, I have to admit.

The great news (at least for my cowl) is that I ordered a set of Knit Picks Zephyr needles this week, as they have them $10 off the set. I really want the Harmony set, but unfortunately can't afford them right now, as almost every penny I have to my name is going into Candy Skein right now (as you can see from the pics above of the 10 skeins of butter soft yarn). I thought $30 was a steal for a whole set! I should have the set on Thursday, and can work on both projects at the same time again. YAY for packages in the mail!

Anyway, that's it for me this Wednesday. Please remember to use the new link to your post from this week, overriding the one that Mr. Linky saves from the previous. I've had quite a few links still linking to their old posts, or links that go straight to their blog's URL instead of the actual posts URL. Thanks!

For those that are new to WIPW, to share your WIPW post with us, just fill out the Mr. Linky below. Despite it saying you must comment, don't feel as if you do. That is something Mr. Linky automatically adds. I just ask you to check out a few of the links posted to see what everyone else is working on and comment there if you can. Everyone loves feedback and a little encouragement on their projects! Also, please link back to this post in your post to get the word out! The more the merrier!

Work-in-Progress Wednesday 45

Hi everyone! I hope you're having a great week. My week is okay...busy. As usual, I'm watching my nieces today, so won't be able to get to everyone's posts until later tonight or Thursday. This is going to be a short post, as I'm super tired only getting a few hours of sleep.





I've worked some on these socks. I'm love love loving the pattern! I think the colors are awesome, too. This is being knit in Knit Picks Felici Caprica.




As you can see, I haven't worked much on these. I'm working on the chart now though, so I have to actually concentrate. Remember, this is a test pattern, so no Ravelry page yet for it that I know of. I'm excited to see it grow. :) I'll have to figure out how to photograph it when it's worth seeing it. This orange is so bright it's impossible to get a picture of it.




This is new for WIPW! I'm working on my first cowl and using Malabrigo for the first time. It's the Pedestrian Crossing Cowl. Alea and I decided to have a little KAL together. It's a fun knit which is nice, but since it's just two rows until the end, it may get a little boring. :) I love love love Malabrigo. I have two skeins of this, and the cowl will only take one, so I think I'll probably make a hat or gloves when it gets closer to winter with the other skein.


For those that are new to WIPW, to share your WIPW post with us, just fill out the Mr. Linky below. Despite it saying you must comment, don't feel as if you do. That is something Mr. Linky automatically adds. I just ask you to check out a few of the links posted to see what everyone else is working on and comment there if you can. Everyone loves feedback and a little encouragement on their projects! Also, please link back to this post in your post to get the word out! The more the merrier!

Please remember to use the new link to your post from this week, overriding the one that Mr. Linky saves from the previous. Thanks!