3 Hats and a Supermoon

So my fiance works at a small private school. Every year they have a Fall Festival to promote community and raise some money. As part of the fundraising, they have an Artisan Fair which consists of parents and students selling anything from art to soaps to unique clothing. This year, I decided to have a booth at the fair. This will be my first craft fair and I am a little nervous. What if nobody likes my items? What if no one buys anything? What if, what if, what if. These what ifs are part of the reason I have never sold my items at a craft fair in the past. All that self-doubt getting in the way.

 I resolved to kick self-doubt aside and just do it. It was time to be brave! Currently, I have a pretty big FO (finished objects) bin sitting in my closet. In this bin lies random items that have never found a home. I have quite a number of items for women, but none for children and/or men. So I got to knitting and whipped up three new hats for kids.

I haven’t blocked them yet, but they are looking pretty good. I am still contemplating on adding pom poms to the yellow/orange and the teal hats.

In other news, did anyone catch the Supermoon last night? My iPhone was not the best tool to capture this awesome event, but if you squint real hard you can almost see it in the picture.

          

Hope your Monday is off to a great start!

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Finished Objects Friday!

Striped Newborn Hat and Socks

Yarn: Deborah Norville Simply Sock Yarn (wool blend) in Woodsy Green and Burgandy

Made on US size 1 needles 

   
Café au Lait Tam

Yarn: Peruvian Alpaca Yarn

Made on US size 5 16″ circular needle

  
    

Happy Friday!  

New Yarn!

Last week I stumbled upon a sale on yarn.com (WEBS). Lately, I have been trying to be on a budget. However, the prices were too good! I like WEBS as they have a good selection of affordable yarn and they ship super fast. I ordered last Thursday and my goodies were in my mailbox yesterday! Here is what I got:

 
 Valley Yarns Huntington in Light Grey Heather, Bluestone, and Sunset ($4.79). This yarn is a merino wool/ nylon blend and quite soft to touch. I thought the Sunset color would be a little more orangey. In any case, it blends with the other colors just fine.

 I also got 7 skiens of Cascade 220 sport ($4.75!)  in Blue Velvet and Primaverra. This yarn is intended for On The Blue a simple pullover by Isabell Kraemer. I am in need of some sweaters so hopefully the yarn and pattern gel together into a beautiful creation😊. 

Anything arrive in your mailbox lately?

Weekend Re-Cap: Tour De Fat

Happy Monday everyone! Did you do something fun this weekend? We did! Saturday we attended the New Belgium Brewing Company’s annual bike festival called Tour de Fat. The day starts off with a costumed bike parade through Golden Gate Park. We dressed up like Full Moon Party-goers. I know…Not the most creative. To be honest, I didn’t have any costumes on hand that were suitable for bike riding.

After the ride there was a fun festival which included beer, music, lawn games, and crazy bikes to ride.

Got to love a sunny Saturday afternoon in the park :).

How Do You Like Your Directions?

Who likes new projects? I do! I do! Instead of finishing my other 3 WIPs, I started the Cafe au Lait Tam by Kathryn C.  I am using the remaining of my Alpaca wool purchased during my trip to Peru.

I really like this pattern as it gives you a choice of following a chart or written instructions. I may have mentioned this before, but I much prefer written directions when knitting (unless it is color work). My brain processes the letters and numbers way faster than the symbols. This is most likely due to the fact that I am more accustom to reading the written code rather than chart symbols. When I read chart symbols I often am translating the symbols into knitting language in my head ( ” Oh the o means to yarn over!”). To me it is kind of like speaking Spanish (not my native language).  For awhile, I translate from English to Spanish in my head making communication way less efficient. Same with chart symbols. They just slow me down. I guess over time I could become more skilled at this task. However, to be honest, if I have a choice I most likely will pick written instructions over charts.

When knitting, what format of directions do you prefer? 

Exploring Angel Island

On Saturday, we took a little day trip to Angel Island. The island is located about 6 miles north of San Francisco and is only accessible by ferry. Initially, I was a little nervous that it would be too foggy, but the clouds cleared and we had some great views by mid-afternoon.

 

We brought our bikes with us and spent most of the day riding along the perimeter of the island and visiting the historical sites. I thought the bike path would be a little flatter, but what was I thinking? Nothing is ever flat in San Francisco😕. We got off to a little bit of a challenging start (I may have fallen off my bike), but we soon got into the rhythm of the rolling hills.

  Our first stop was the Immigration Station. Angel Island was known as the “Ellis Island of the West ” from 1910-1940. The island was the first stop many saw when arriving to America. The historical fact that resonated with me the most was how horrible the Chinese immigrants were treated. Often the Chinese people were kept in the camps for weeks upon weeks just because they were Chinese. I love my country, but some of our history is downright shameful.

                                         Angel Island was also home to many soldiers starting as far back as 1863. During World War II, upwards of 1400 men were housed and trained on the island. In 1962, the army base was decommissioned. They left all of the structures so now you can explore the old barracks, jail, and museum.

We also did a short hike up to the top of Mt. Livermore. The Sunset Trail was about 2.5 miles and was moderately strenuous. Along the trail we got great glimpses of Marin, Tiburon, San Francisco, and all the bridges in the area. All and all, we had a great day. If you are ever in the area, I recommend a visit.

WIPs on WIPs on WIPs

There is a lot going on in my project bag. I don’t know what is up with this week. My hands have wanted to dabble in a variety of things. Generally I am a pretty monogamous project knitter. However, some of these projects have emerged from my efforts to de-stash.

WIP #1- Striped Baby Socks

Another pair of baby socks are on the needles. I swear my size 1 DPNs are going to be worn out by the end of the year. This time I am using the rest of my Debra Norville Serenity Sock yarn to whip up some striped footwear. Aren’t they cute? It is hard to believe people start so tiny.

WIP #2- Alpaca Heaven

I began my secret project with the alpaca yarn I picked up in Peru and OH MY GOODNESS! Knitting with this yarn is like knitting with clouds! It is sooooo soft. I wish I had bought more so I could have a whole alpaca wardrobe.

WIP #3- Vibrant Textures Cowl

Mix extra sock yarn and a desire to try new stitches and you get a pretty interesting result. I think I am going to try and get all the colors of the rainbow in this project (minus indigo). Only purple and orange to go!

Happy Thursday!

Finished Objects Monday?

Forget Friday these objects needed three more days to achieve perfection!

So what’s completed?  I finished my Pinwheel Blanket. It is not as big as I would have liked it to be, however, I needed to wrap it up. Why? 1) I was loosing steam. Fine yarn and tiny needles are No Bueno. 2) I am visiting the mommy-to-be this afternoon and I really wanted to give it to her in person.

I used a different edging than the pattern called for (4 rows purl, 4 rows knit, 4 rows purl) to create a flatter edge. Blocking also assisted in decreasing the curling up of the edges. Despite this, one section was a little stubborn.

I will most certainly use this yarn again. However, I am thinking a smaller project like socks.

I also had made this cute little diaper cover. Sorry there is no pattern since I made it by trial and error. I need to get better at writing stuff down!  This baby is predicted to be a big one so I am hoping she fits inside (at least for a month or two).  

I hope all of my American readers has a nice long Labor Day weekend! I know I did. Happy Monday!

Knitting and Relationships

I think it takes a special kind of significant other to be with an avid knitter. Not only do they have to sacrifice space (so you have somewhere to keep your stash), but they must also deal with random stops at the LYS you just “happen” to pass. Significant others also have to deal with you stopping to analyze every piece of knitwear in the store. And if this person is extra special, he/she might even look at every stall at the craft fair with you sans complaint.

However, there are bound to be times in which he/she might not be as generous with the patience.

Scene: My fiance and I sitting on the couch watching TV:

Fiance: Can you put your knitting away?

Whit: [turns to him with a crazy look in her eyes] WHAT??!?!

Fiance: Put it away… it is bothering me. Plus I can’t snuggle with you.

Whit: I think you want to snuggle too much. Besides we’re watching TV. What am I going to do…just sit here?

At this point he gave me a disdainful glare. Reluctantly I put my knitting on the coffee table. As much as I didn’t want to, when someone asks you for a snuggle you should just do it. If there is anything I have learned it is that compromise is the key to any lasting relationship.