Hourglass Sweater

Although it doesn’t seem like I have been knitting, I really, really have. I started and finished the hourglass sweater from Last Minute Knitted Gifts. I thought I had ordered some maroon ON Line Marley superwash wool from elann.com. When it came, I saw I had ordered some sort of beige color by accident. Damn you dropdown menu!

I couldn’t use the boring yarn for the sweater I had planned, which was the Chicknits Cutaway sweater, but with some adjustments so it looked like a sweater I saw at Anthropologie. SOOOO, I decided to make my first attempt at a regular, non summery knit. It turned out pretty good. A little big, but I think I can shrink it a bit if I wash it again, but on warm. The neck is a tad Flashdance, even with adding some extra rows because I had been warned, but I really like boat necks, so I am sure I will wear it. I think it will fit better once I get a boatneck long-sleaver to wear under it.

The color was too boring, so I decided to make some flair. I was looking at a Boden catalog and saw some cute flower pins. Why buy what you can make? I stopped at JoAnn Fabrics on the way home from work, raided the remnant bin of all sturdy fabric that wasn’t totally butt ugly, and viola! Flower pins. I have a ton of fabric, so I think everyone I know is going to be getting some of these whether they like it or not.

Totally on a side note, for those of you who did not watch The Office tonight, I feel sorry for you. You are missing out on the funniest TV show EVER.

Bawk Bawk Bawk Chicken

T minus 3 days and counting…..

Not many people have ever been in my house. I don’t know why. Maybe it is because it is always a mess, and we don’t invite people over. Maybe it is because we smell, or people don’t like us. Whatever it is, it is not a frequented place by those who do not live there. But, for those of you who have seen inside, you may remember a large Chicken. Not just any Chicken, but a Peruvian water pitcher Chicken. Red glaze, about 2 ½ feet tall. Totally kick-ass.

When we were packing to move, my plan was to take the Chicken with in the car. But, the cats eventually took up all the room and we had to pack the Chicken and send it with the movers. I spent almost an hour packing the Chicken. Special trip to U-haul to get a big enough box. Bubble wrap. Half a box of packing paper. BIG BLACK SHARPIE LETTERS MARKING IT “FRAGILE.”

Now I am sure you know where this story is going. When we were unpacking, Steve let out an “Oh, no” with a little fear in his voice. The Chicken didn’t make it. If you looked in the box, it’s head seemed ok, but everything below the neck was shattered. The moving company said that because they didn’t pack it, they were not responsible for it breaking (nice, huh?). I immediately called my mom (she was the one who bought it for me). She tracked down a new Chicken. He is coming on Saturday. Long live the Chicken.

Pretend this is last week......

Imagine that it is Saturday....last Saturday. Gee, I wonder what Jamie and Steve are up to? Well, seeing that it is Memorial Day weekend (remember, you are pretending), we decided to take a little road trip. We went down to Tubac to check it out. It was pretty cool. Kind of like the southwest version of Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. Galleries, home-y stores, pottery, fountains. Crap. You know, the usual. There were lots of things that we wanted to get, but of course can't, until we get a house. A copper sink isn't going to do us any good in the apartment.

On our way down there, we stopped at the San Xavier Mission. It was beautiful. They are doing some renovatoins, so parts of the outside are not visible, but the inside makes you forget about the outside. I didn't take any pictures inside. The Catholic guilt that I have been trying to supress for 10 years took over, and I was worried that it would be disrespectful to the people who were really praying in there. Plus with the monsoons, I didn't want lightning to strike. Safety first.On the knitting front, I finished the One Skein Wonder (Nature Wool, #8 needles) from Glampyre. I think it is cute, but I wonder if I will ever wear it. Working with all guys leaves me open to ridicule on a daily basis. This may be too over the top for them.

Crafty, Crafty

Ok, the moment you have all been waiting for. I bought a cable thingy. I have a ton of picutes to share, but I will start with the crafty things that I owe to Sarah and Dana. Over the next few days I'll pretend that it was last week, and then post those pictures.

Ok, then. Here is the tube top that I finished a few weeks ago (note: please, if somone can tell me how to turn off the date on my pictures, it would be greatly appreciated). Don't let the cuteness of the photo fool you. It, of course, does not fit and looks completely ridiculous on. I came to the conclusion today that I am done with summery knits because 1) I can never get them to fit and 2) who the hell wants to wear a sweater in the summer in Arizona, even if it is sleeveless? So, I will be turning the tube top into a pillow this weekend.

And here is my first attempt at embroidery. It is a fish. Basically, I found a picture of a goldfish that I liked, drew it bigger on some paper, traced it onto temporary iron-on interface, and embroidered it onto a t-shirt I got at Target for $7 (Mossimo, oh lala). I don't think I have ever done it before, but it was really easy, even though it took me 12 hours to finish. Steve had the flu that weekend, so I had plenty of time. I just read the book from the Jenny Hart stitch-it kit, and went to town. I like it. It fits. That is a new concept for me. Plus it was WAY cheaper than knitting.
Obviously, I am having a difficult time with the pictures, so I am going to stop here. I think you get the idea. Toodles.

Nothing to Report

I haven't posted for a while because I have nothing to report. Well, I guess I do. We did some stuff this weekend, and I got a replacement cable for the camera. Too bad Steve transferred stuff from our home computer onto his new work laptop, and now we no longer have an internet connection. I started some more knitting. Not like it will fit, though. I just don't feel like sharing any of it now.

I am in a bit of a bad mood from the weekend. One (or two) too many days off. Too much time to think about all the changes we have had and how living in Tucson leaves much to be desired at times. It is taking a while to accept that the social network I/we had in Austin is no more, even if we didn't take full advantage of it all the time. It is nice to have the option. It is frustrating that we are becoming more and more financially secure, but that our quality of life has gone down hill. I think all of that crap, plus the whole depression of the Hurricane being played over and over on every channel, plus the fact that our apartment is like living in a cave and it feels like 5pm all the time, has taken it's toll over the weekend. Hopefully I will stop feeling sorry for myself soon and have some more interesting stories to tell.