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I Heart Yarn 19 May 07

All this free time is making me go knitting crazy! I love it! I actually got to go the LYS yesterday, for the first time in who knows how long. It’s been a few months at least. It was a wonderful experience just to browse, fondling many of the yarns and thumbing through the books. Sometimes I think I’m around yarn so much with all the dyeing, that I forget how much I really like this stuff.

I did pick up a few things at Village Wools yesterday, including this Debbie Blish Cashmerino Chunky in a deep red color. It’s super nice stuff, and I’m planning to knit up an undisclosed baby item as a gift for some friends who are expecting. (Past due now actually!) You guys know who you are! ;) I think it will look pretty sweet, and I’m looking forward to working with this yarn, because it’s so unbelievably soft and buttery. Yes, buttery.

I also got a copy of the fabled book, Knitting Without Tears, by the knitting legend herself, Elizabeth Zimmerman. I’m planning to make a Seamless Hybrid Sweater (much like this one by the talented Julie Frick) over the summer, and I figured I should get the instructions first!

Oh, and somehow 6 skeins of Cascade 220 wandered into my shopping cart the other day and are now on their way to me. It all happened so fast, I don’t really remember it, but I’m pretty sure I gave into the bad angel on that one. (But at only $4.89 a skein, I just couldn’t say no.) I place all the blame on Jared, with all his gorgeous sweaters, how could I not be tempted to learn sweaters for myself?

Then to top all the yarny goodness off, my Tree Scum Handspun from Anne arrived today. It totally makes me weak in the knees. Just to look at it and know that it was spun from roving blows my mind. It’s a beautifully spun yarn, with very even singles and plying, and the colors are phenomenal. I’m super excited to cast on my for first handspun experience, I think it’ll be a good one.

my first handspun (well I didn't spin it...)!

Now the hardest thing I have to decide is which project to cast on for first! (Oh and don’t worry Mom, I’ve actually gotten 5 rounds done on the Garden Shawl in the last few days, so I’m not neglecting it entirely!)

And what would a Saturday afternoon be without a sky picture? Today’s picture was taken just moments before hail started pelting my street in a torrential downpour. This is only 5 minutes after there were no clouds in the sky. New Mexico weather is weird stuff…

I did manage to have a little panic attack when it started hailing, since hail and I don’t have a very good history. (Google the 2004 Socorro Hailstorm if you don’t already know what happened). But all is well, because I have a garage now, and was able to get my car into safety in mere moments. Then it promptly stopped hailing. Yeesh!

I’ll leave you with some shots of the kids dogs, since I think it’s been a while since I’ve had obligatory dog pictures on the blog. I got them some new collars today, aren’t they sweet? (You know you’re living in the fast lane when you get excited over new dog collars). I had to bribe Emma with her chew bone to get her to take a picture…she’s such a diva. And Dallas? Well give him a toy and he’s pretty much oblivious to everything around him.

the only time she lets me take her picture...

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go make a pile with all my new yarn and roll around in it.

PS: All the Ravelry invites are spoken for, sorry if you didn’t receive any love from the random number generator! Just be patient a little longer ;)

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Adam

in albuquerque, dallas, emma, knitting, patterns, schnauzers, sweaters, the lys, the stash and works in progress

Time Is A Luxury…That I Have Now! 16 May 07

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You know, it’s amazing how much I can get done when I don’t have homework! Last night I managed to cook dinner, dye yarn and relax for a bit, all in the same evening! I could really get used to this no work after 5 PM gig. ;)

To top it off, I got to open the windows to let in the breeze from some evening rain, and witness this beautiful sunset. Isn’t it gorgeous? I looked outside and realized that the color of the sky matched my roses! These brilliant bursts of color don’t last too long, so I dashed outside to get a picture. It’s actually the 2nd night in a row we’ve had rain, which makes both my garden and me happy. Although anymore nights of rain will most likely cause the local populace to begin to go crazy from the lack of Vitamin D, so hopefully we’ll have a nice sunny day soon.

In knitting news, I finished my Broad Spiral Rib socks, and I love them ever so much. There’s just something about this yarn and the pattern that makes me want to wear them all the time. I haven’t even pulled them off my feet long enough to give them their inaugural wash! They were a blast to knit, and I couldn’t wait to finish so I could wear them. All in all, it took me a little over 3 weeks to finish them, which I think is a good pace for me. That puts me about on track for a pair a month, which I think will be my new goal. If I accomplish that, by this time next year I’ll have more handknit socks than normal socks!

Pattern: Broad Spiral Ribbing from More Sensational Knitted Socks.
Yarn: Austermann Step → Dark Gray/Light Gray/Turquoise (Color #21). This yarn is “enriched with Aloe and Jojoba Oils”, and although I don’t know if it really helps or not, the socks are very soft.
Needles / Gauge: I think I got 8 stitches / inch with US #1’s. I knitted these with Magic Loop, as usual.
Construction: I knitted these top down, with a K1, P4, K1 cuff, then the spiral ribbing on the leg. I did a slip stitch heel with garter selvedges. For the toe, I used the Round Toe, which I’m now madly in love with. It seems to be the best fitting toe for my feet that I’ve found so far!
Completion Time: Just over 3 weeks (April 21 - May 15)

I also tried dyeing roving for the first time last night! I’ve had a sample on hand for a while, and have been meaning to dye it up. Anne graciously agreed to accept the roving as part of our hand-spun/hand-dyed trade. Now if I could only figure out how to braid it! Anyone know of a good link they want to send my way? I tried to have Scout show me a while ago, but I got lost at, “it’s just like braiding hair!” Not being a girl, or having any daughters, I have no experience in hair braiding, and am therefore inept at fiber braiding.

Anne also picked a lovely custom colorway of Dijon Yellow and Light Gray, which I dyed up in some 1500 MHz Sport Nylon for her. I really love the way these colors go together, don’t you? I can’t wait to send her this yarn and get the lovely yarn that she spun up for me!

I also dyed up a Create Your Skein order for the talented Flint Knits, who is planning to make a Chevron Scarf from these 2 skeins. Didn’t she pick great colors? I really love these skeins together and think they will look awesome as a Chevron. I hear they’re all the rage these days ;)

Lastly, speaking of things that are the rage in the knitting world today, I’m sure you’ve heard of Ravelry by now. It’s an amazing new site that Jess (of frecklegirl) and her husband Casey have been working on. It’s an online knitting notebook/community where we fiber nerds can hang out, interact with each other and geek out over yarns and patterns. I got an invite a week or so ago and have been having a total blast. I know that a lot of you are waiting to get in, and I know many people are frustrated, but I assure you that it will be worth the wait. Jess and Casey have been working hard (really really hard!) to make sure that the site is up to snuff, and that it doesn’t go down in flames when it opens. It will be ready soon though, so try to bear with it just a little longer ;)

Oh yeah, and here’s the part you were hoping would come…I have 2 Ravelry invites to give away to you, my lovely readers. In an attempt to not be stampeded on, or accused of favoritism, I will be giving away these invites to 2 random commenters. Just leave a comment on this post by tomorrow morning at 9 AM MDT, and I’ll randomly pick 2 people to send an invite to. If you currently have a Ravelry account, just be sure to let me know in the comment so I don’t pick you.

That’s it for me, so good afternoon and good luck!

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Adam

in albuquerque, customers, dyeing, finished objects, home, knitting, ravelry, socks and yarn nerd

Why Am I Up? 28 Jan 07

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I really don’t know. It’s 2 hours past my bedtime, and it seems that I still haven’t gone to bed yet, despite the fact that it’s almost 1 AM. I haven’t been up this late…since I was in college! (well in undergraduate school anyway) I’m hoping that the rhythmic clacking of the keyboard as I type this will help soothe me to sleep. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ. Oh, still here? Ok, I’ll move on.

Since I’m a list fanatic (who isn’t?), I’ll give you a rundown of my day in bulleted format.

"hey Dad? more walking, less picture taking.

After waking up, I took Dallas and Emma on a walk to get in my mileage for Runagogo. I didn’t run, because I’m enough of a klutz as is, and adding two dogs and a leash spells disaster. But we enjoyed ourselves and had a nice brisk walk. Oh, and Junior wasn’t with us, because he got adopted! Yup, Junior now has a new home with a very nice family. I’m super excited for him :)
Then I showered up and headed over to the west side to meet up with my Mom for lunch and some errands. We went to a new tea shop near Old Town, called New Mexico Tea Company. It was a super nice shop, and I bought a very cool tea set and some delicious Blueberry Rooibos tea. Plus the owner, David, was super nice and very helpful. If you’re in ABQ, you should check it out!
I also took some pictures of my new socks! Yup, the Malamute socks are done and got christened today. They’re super comfy and I love the way the pattern turned out. It’s the Slip Stitch Ribbing from Sensational Knitted Socks, with an Eye of Partridge Heel. The pattern shows off Georgia’s Hand-Dyed Yarn just beautifully. Aren’t they swank?

my feet approve.

Pattern: Slip Stitch Ribbing from Sensational Knitted Socks. Eye of Partridge Heel. Top Down Construction, over 66 stitches.
Yarn: Yarn Pirate Superwash Merino, in the colorway Malamute.
Details: Addi Turbos US #1, Magic Loop, 2 weeks time.

I did manage to get a nice Saturday Sky picture, even though technically it’s being posted on Sunday. (Don’t you just love how I’m always late with these things?)

After all the excitement on the West Side, I came home, ran some errands and made some dinner. Chicken Parmesan, mmm!

Nice relaxing way to spend a Saturday eh?

Ok, I think I’ve managed to make myself sleepy so I’m going to hit the hay now. I’ll try to dream of electric sheep.

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Adam

in albuquerque, exercise, finished objects, knitting, schnauzers, socks and yarn nerd

Drop Your Weapon! 14 Jan 07

10 Comments

And the internets break into resounding cheers, because Jack Bauer is back! That’s right, in less than 15 minutes, Day 6 of 24 premieres! I can hardly wait I’m so excited! I’ve been waiting for a 24 fix ever since that wretched cliffhanger back in May…it’s so unfair of Fox to leave us hanging for that long! I might not even get any knitting in, that’s how intense this premiere will be. Did I mention it’s 2 hours tonight and 2 hours tomorrow night?

I did manage to get some Saturday Sunday Sky pictures from the Petroglyphs National Monument today. I figure that such lovely pictures a day late are worth more than a crummy picture of a cloud and the tree in my front yard on time.

I’ve lived in Albuquerque all my life and I still get goosebumps when I see this view. The Sandias were in top form today, complete with snowy caps! And that brown house belongs to my parents, aren’t you jealous of their view? Happy Knitting and remember,

PUT YOUR WEAPON DOWN!

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Adam

in albuquerque

Better Late Than Never 02 Jan 07

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Happy New Year!

I know I’m a bit late, but it’s the effort that counts right? I hope everyone had a Happy New Year, and that you spent it doing something you enjoy, with the people you like to hang out with. I spent New Year’s Eve with my brother (who was very sad his fiancee was visiting a friend in TX) and another friend. It was fairly low key, we mostly just watched some movies and ate good food. Then at midnight I enjoyed a glass of cheap champagne and Emma gave me a kiss. It was a much better New Year’s than most, just like Christmas was better than usual this year. I didn’t really do anything different, I just suppose that my attitude on life has changed a lot recently. And even though I was still a bit bummed to be spending New Year’s without a lady companion, I was more optimistic than I’ve been in recent years. So to wrap the previous year up, and to help start off the New Year, here’s my recap of 2006.

Knitting

2006 was a bit year for me in the knitting world, as it was after the start of 06 that I really got into knitting. I began to be amazed by what I could do with my hands and some free time. Suddenly I could make scarves, hats, socks and blankets, and have lots of fun doing it!
Some of my favorite knitted items include Emma’s Dog Blanket, the Felted Apple Tote, and my first pair of socks. I also knitted a few scarves, some hats and a couple more pairs of socks.
For more details on my knitting exploits in 2006, check out my Knitting Recap set on Flickr.

Dyeing

2006 was also big in another aspect of knitting…Yarn! I started experimenting with hand-dyeing and hand-painting yarn, and even started a little shop!
I learned a lot about dyeing techniques, and have evolved and refined my process greatly over the past few months. I have a lot of new stuff that I am working on too, and I can’t wait to debut it!
Also, as a teaser, I’m going to be opening up my own storefront and changing the business name fairly soon. I’m still working on getting everything just right, but I can’t wait to unveil the new shop for you!
Finally, thanks to everyone who has supported me, either through encouragement on the blog or by buying my yarn. I appreciate you guys a lot, and wouldn’t have gotten to where I am now without your help and support!
For more dyeing pictures, check out my Dyeing Recap photoset on Flickr.

Personally

Dallas and Emma took a quick wrestling break to wish you a Happy New Year!

2006 was a very big year for me personally too. In the span of a few short months, I graduated from college, started a new job and started work on my Masters in Electrical Engineering.
I also moved back to Albuquerque from Socorro, changed churches, and my parents moved from the house I grew up as they started a new chapter in their lives.
To round it all off, I adopted Dallas, my wonderful Standard Schnauzer who is the sweetest companion to both me and Emma, even if he can be a wild child at times.
Oh yeah, and one year ago yesterday I started this humble little knitting blog. Happy Blogiversary to me! And thanks to you for all the visits and comments!

Wow! I can’t wait to see what next year brings. :)

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Adam

in a nerd's life, albuquerque, dyeing, finished objects, history, holidays, knitting, snow and yarn nerd