Destashing madness

I am up late, doing my Night Nurse Insomnia craftiness and internet browsing.  I randomly ran out to the garage to my very sweet but neglected of late, crafting area, to retrieve randomly mixed yarn media.  Novelty yarns galore with some Lion Brand Landscapes (previously washed from a dog induced mess in the garage last year, so it is slightly fulled to itself... oops  My dogs literally climbed a shelf, tore down a tote and started spreading my yarn everywhere... by mess I didn't mean stinky mess...just rubbed into garage floor with the dogs... so I threw away or washed and dried what I thought could be salvaged) and I grabbed a large crochet hook and viola... destashing baskets... Basket one in progress, I feel many more to come...

Finally a Camera! Yay for holidays!

DH bought me a Canon PowerShot camera... not my fave in size or looks but it has some nice features and 10x OPTICAL zoom, 12 megapixels... So I can finally add pictures to my posts.  I am currently knitting my second sock, technically.  The first I recently frogged.  I quit knitting it mid foot last year because when I went to get out of the car at the high school for my daughters track meet, I lost my needle and didn't have any more that size at home. Luckily I found the needle last month in the pocket of the door of my car. Needless to say, since I frogged my sweater a few weeks ago, I feel liberated enough to rip out other WIPs that could sacrifice their petty non-knitted existence for the use of the yarn... haha.

So, I picked up my book Sensational Knitted Socks (previously thought of by me as being confusing as heck ...) picked out Garter Rib Socks (eyed up on Ravelry) and am mid way through the instep of my sock with Regia variegated sock yarn.  I have big calves and big feet. I  followed the instructions but it seems the heel and instep are too wide.  I would probably decrease the stitches in the next set.  I do love the colors of this sock though!  I can't wait to finish so I can actually complete the second one and contemplate knitting up some hats and such.  I might take a break between socks but I would fear my tension would be off if I don't knit one after the other.

But my  head is swimming with ideas for spats, for lacy wristlets, and hats! I stopped at sports authority today and swooned over the knitted hats... trying to remember ideas for patterns.  Hence my sordid desire to throw down my sock once its done to do the hat...


Random image to prove this is my blog may appear here<--

Alas I long for a camera again

I broke our camera this summer on this beautiful trip to Cooper Lake in Cooper Landing Alaska. When we were at the waterfall across the lake my hubby tossed  handed me the camera after coming down from the top of the waterfalls.  It landed on a rock, it works but the screen is broken and there is no viewfinder so...

I am focused on stash-busting.  I drool at my WEBS catalog and the only thing I think I will allow myself to buy is a ball winder.  My thoughts are that if I can wind all my totes full of yarn into nice balls in symmetrical sizes it might help my storage and my knitting in the long run... but I am staying away from buying more yarn.  Thrift shopping doesn't count however! I just nabbed four skeins of Classic Elite Bubbles the other day. 

So I frogged the nearly completed back of my cardigan sweater I was working on.  I discovered that it was far too large, believe it or not!  So I used the yarn (Northampton from Valley Yarns: Dark Grey) to make In a Twist Wristwarmers (Claire Compton in A Knitters Bible).  The only thing is? The yarn is SOSOSOSOSO elastic, it stretches to gargantuan proportions.  I don't know whether I knit it too loosely or just that this yarn is that way.  I bought a front load washer last year, which kinda ruins machine fulling for me... So I attempted hand fulling to no avail. Boiling hot water, tons of swishing and scrubbing and swishing... it still stretches to beat heck.  Tempted to wash and throw in the dryer...

Otherwise on the stash-busting and Christmas Season front, I am making Korknisse!  I come from a Strong Danish Heritage and so these really appealed to me, but not only that they are so cute!  I am using yarns that I got at the thrift store and never used!  I wish I had a camera... When I do get one (DH should take the hint and get me one for Christmas if the DD#1 and DD#2 do a good job helping him shop...haha) I will take pictures and edit these posts.

I am finding myself wanting to make several things for this stashbusting.  Bags crocheted with odds and ends of yarns.  Leg warmers in multicolors.  Wristwarmers in multicolors.  Crocheted hats, knitted hats, dishcloths, dishtowels, facecloths, etc etc...

Also on the warm and fuzzy home front, we decided to can the after thanksgiving turkey soup I made.  We canned four quarts.  I don't know why I didn't do this sooner in my life?  Saves wasting soup after people get tired of having it for days! A gallon put away for a rainy day!  I still have to redo my failed jelly, though I think I will sample a small jar and perhaps it will serve well as syrup!

Well time is winding down and its my day to start the work week.  I work nights at a hospital in Anchorage, so I usually nap at this time but since I slept in I think I will retire to the couch and my korknisse knitting...

I never seem to remember that this exists

All summer I decided that crafting would take a backseat to all the more important summery things to do in Alaska!  I hiked, biked, canoed, camped, took road trips, visited with family, enjoyed the fair, planted and harvested my first garden, soaked up the many days of sun, played at the Alaska Raceway Park and just forgot that I knew how to do anything with my hands other than fish, eat, and hold a paddle or an alcoholic beverage on occasion!

Now winter has set in, and boy has it ever.  The snow hit and stayed, a first in the many years I have lived here.  The bitter cold has already gotten us down to -20 and its not even December yet! I really wonder what our new year will bring if this is how our winter has begun.

As for crafting, I have several things going on right now.  I feel defunct I guess.  I have a caliormetry in Noro going, a sweater in Valley Yarns grey merino wool (when I realized it would be huge on me, I set it aside), a nylon corded purse in black but it is a bit misshapen and hence must be frogged, some socks that I think I will have to pick up again, and some cotton dishcloths.  I have plans to do some sewing, but right now my house projects are taking up a bit of my downtime. 

Instead of spring cleaning I am winter cleaning.  I did my living room, and have cleaned out and rearranged every cupboard in my kitchen.  The pantry and storage under the stairs I will save for later.  My room and bathroom and walk in closet are the biggest project.  I bought red paint, its delicious! for the living room, I plan on a plum/eggplant type paint for the kitchen... I want to paint leaves, trees and birds against the crimson in a pecan/light taupe/tan color in the living room, I am redoing an old mirror we found at the thrift store, that turns out to be oak for above the mantle of the fireplace.  I want to paint ravens and ribbons and stars in my kitchen, and I have plans for a Native blue/purple tone bathroom with symbols and bear tracks on the walls.

My room, I want to paint red as well.  My bathroom upstairs I am not sure of the color scheme I want to go with, but plans exist to redo that and the girls bathroom as well as their rooms.

I have Christmas looming on the horizon, but never seem to be able to sit long enough to knit anything.  Time used to be that I would be knitting all the time, in the car, in line anywhere, sitting at an office, at a friends house...waiting at the restaurant... my husband thought I was crazy... made me leave it in the car once, and when we got in the bar/lounge, a woman was knitting AT THE BAR! I eagerly pointed that out to him... haha.

Well, I really want to keep this blog up, I dropped my Olympus camera on the edge of Cooper Lake this summer when we were canoeing/exploring... it was supposed to be shock proof but the rock proved the claims wrong! So I don't quite have the ability to take pictures until I buy a new camera at some point.