what’s on the bookshelf? knitting edition

The other day we covered the crochet books I own, now it’s time for the knitting ones (the list is shorter…maybe)!

Hannah's Crafty Books

 

This Jane Austin Knits magazine is great — my parents got it for me when we had Christmas in England a few years ago.

 

Jane Austen Knits

 

Here are some of the designs found inside:

Jane Austen Knits examples

 

Jane Austen Knits examples

I really want to do some of those wraps/shawls in particular!

Next up is Knitting in the Old Way, which I got in an attempt to learn how to magically come up with perfect patterns without having to think too much.  So far I haven’t had success.

Knitting in the Old Way

 

Knitting in the Old Way example

 

Next up are a couple of books by the fantastic Arne & Carlos, 55 Christmas Balls to Knit and Easter Knits:

55 Christmas Balls to Knit

 

55 Christmas Balls to Knit examples

I love the idea of either the Christmas balls or the Easter eggs as gifts, don’t you?

Easter Knits

 

Easter Knits examples

 

My friend bought the next single pattern for me along with some yarn so I could make her one.  It wasn’t too long ago!  It was a difficult knit for me at that time but I was proud of the result:

bajada

 

Next up is Sock Knitting Master Class from which I learned little — the DVD was nice but to be honest I like using YouTube for tutorials.  There was some good beginner info in there though that’s worth getting!  I haven’t completed a pair of socks from this yet but I plan on it!

Sock Knitting

 

Sock Knitting example

 

The Cool Girl’s Guide to Knitting was a nice companion to the crochet version, and it has some cute beginner patterns in it:

Cool Girl's Guide to Knitting

 

Cool Girl's Guide to Knitting example

 

Cool Girl's Guide to Knitting example

Next up is a great reference book given to me by the wonderful Nicky from D’NALI and it is so useful!  It’s got patterns as well as technique instructions and different stitch patterns:

Vogue Knitting

 

Vogue Knitting example

 

Vogue Knitting example

 

Next up is Last-Minute Knitted Gifts, which I have not yet used.  There are some super cute things in here, but I’m not so sure about last-minute…

Last-Minute Knitted Gifts

 

Does this look last-minute to you?

Last-Minute Knitted Gifts example

I really do like this scarf/head wrap though:

Last-Minute Knitted Gifts example

 

Well that’s all for today, thanks for stopping by!  I’ll have one more of these book posts and then it’s back to projects!  See you soon!

mmmeeeeeeeehhhhhhh…

I’m sick.  I think it’s allergies.  My brain is all foggy from multiple medications.  I can’t muster up the energy to to serenely work on my Citrus blanket or my garter stitch blanket; all I can do is stare at them (and I wouldn’t want them to get covered in snot, anyway):

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I’m also staring at the TV while Chris plays a game, Kleenex in close reach:

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Might try to take a nap and sleep this off, but it’s kinda hard to fall asleep when your head feels like a mysteriously heavy balloon (super uncomfortable).

In other news, Chris, Mom and I are making progress with wedding plans.  It’s for realsies like 3 1/2 months away, so it’s way past time to get busy!

Also, coming up on Friday are our yearly staff evaluations at work, and I’m nervous.  The executive director of our organization is going to be there this year, and even though she’s super sweet, it’ll be a bit intimidating; I feel like I’ve worked hard this year and I want my boss and the executive director to think so, too.

As far as the summer goes, last week had temperature highs in the 100s, but this week it’s cooler — the highs are mid 90s.  Is that bad when mid 90s feel cool?  We’ve had lots of strong late afternoon/evening storms, too (typical for summers here):

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That’s out our front window.  My car says hi.

Well that’s all for today.  Hopefully I’ll get back to crafting when I’ve stopped being sick.  See you soon (and happy 4th of July)!

needle gauge pendant from Debra’s Garden

I saw someone on Instagram who had one of these from Debra’s Garden and I immediately went to get one.  Much more handy and portable than those giant needle gauges I had before.

needle gauge pendant

 

I think it’s really cool, it kind of looks like a shell to me.  I got the Champagne color with the heart key ring.  Maybe it will end up on the necklace that holds my thread cutter pendant.  It’s too small to have metric numbers for each one but since I’m an American I’m used to the alphabet sizing.

Just wanted to share that with you guys.  There’s more cool stuff on that website too so click above and check it out!

Thanks for stopping by!

colorblock blanket progress

In May 2014 I started making a knitted colorblock blanket, and it’s sat untouched for a few months.  I’ve picked it back up, and I’m about 2/3 through with the body of the blanket.  The simple garter stitch is relatively quick (for knitting, that is) and will provide a nice stretchy blanket when complete.

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This, like my Coming Up Roses hat that I’m also working on now, is made of KnitPicks’ Comfy Worsted, a really soft cotton.

That’s really all I’ve got today.  I know a garter stitch blanket isn’t the most exciting project in the world but it’s enjoyable to have a repetitive pattern sometimes that’s easy enough for me to simultaneously watch TV with subtitles (Chris and I have been watching some anime lately).

Thanks for stopping by, see you soon!

a day in my life

If you were ever curious about what my days consist of, this will not be a very good example.  I picked what I thought would be an average day to do this, not realizing that it wouldn’t be an “ordinary” day at all…

I get out of bed at 7:00.  To me, that’s early, and I need tea to wake up properly.

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The dog is usually laying on my feet when I wake up:

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After I quickly get ready, my ride to work is usually about 13 minutes, unless this happens:

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And in Columbia, SC, that’s a common occurrance.  Especially near my house, which is close to a major train yard.  The worst is when they stop on the tracks — I always feel guilty when I’m late to work because of that.

I can’t really show pictures of what I do at work for confidentiality reasons, but I’m an LPC-I (a licensed counseling intern, which after 2 years will become a full LPC license) working at a clubhouse style day program that focuses on psychosocial rehabilitation for adults with serious mental illnesses.  It’s a hard job sometimes with the overwhelming amout of things to do (we’re currently understaffed) but it’s also rewarding in its own ways.

Most days when I get home it’s just me and the dog because my fiance works late, so I’m trying to spend that time productively by taking care of myself physically (I’m starting to jog) and mentally (using coping skills).  This is my corner of the living room:

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I like to watch movies or TV shows or listen to audiobooks while I knit & crochet, or sometimes I’ll sit here and read or take a nap.

This day was special — in the evening Chris made homemade biscuits and whipped cream and we had strawberry shortcake with strawberries straight from a local farm that my mom gave us:

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This was essentially my dinner, and we ate while catching up on one of our favorite TV shows:

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A few rows of blanket knitting were accomplished, as well:

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And the day continued to get more unusual… Roofers had been working on the back half of our roof the previou week — just some routine maintenance — but they dropped a pallet of shingles through the ceiling in our back room (where we keep the fridge, washer, dryer, 3 bookcases full of books, my sewing machine, a big wooden desk, & Zero’s kennel).  Strips of ceiling and insulation are hanging down a bit from the split the shingles made when they fell, and while I was knitting happily, Chris informed me that the storm outside was causing water to leak into that same back room.  He poked holes in the ceiling in a few places so that he could catch the water in buckets rather than it just rolling down the walls onto the floor, and we moved all of our books and bookcases into the dining rooom:

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We’ve called the landlord multiple times about the leaking water but he didn’t pick up and hasn’t responded to our messages (he already knew about the hole in the ceiling and is sending someone in a few days, but we need it to be quick now with the water damage added on — it’s super humid back there and smells awful).  I’m getting pretty mad about it, to be honest.  In the meantime I’m just taking lots of extra allergy medicine so that hopefully the mildew and mold from the water damage won’t get to me too much.

So, that was a not-so-average day in my life! Hope it didn’t bore you to tears — I know I’m not that exciting but sometimes I really like it that way.  🙂

Thanks for stopping  by, hope to see you soon!