Knitting: It's a flurry or fury?!

So this weekend, I spent a large part knitting! YAY! I did get massive amounts done although don't have much to show. Here's the breakdown.

1. Friday, met up with Julie and some other ladies I didn't know for Friday knit club at Temptations. Had a nice time where I officially finished the last 5 decrease rounds of the pirate hat. Picture still to come.... I then started working on my 2nd pair of Ampersand socks, with the lovely ST-1 colorway. Only after several rounds I must have stopped paying attention because my count was off. I corrected and went back to it and a round or 2 later was off again. I decided the socks had had enough that day, so they went back to the bottom of the bag. I then pulled out one of the Noro Entrelac gift bags, I had started and did a tier of that. Then we ordered lunch, ate, packed up and left.

2. I went to winterfair with Scot. It was a total blast. Bought lots of goodies. Some Sangria mix, Margarita mix and all sorts of dips and hot sauces(for Brian) and a lovely piece of pottery. It's called a Brie Baking dish, but you can bake anything in it really. It's just specifically sized for Brie.

3. After winter fair I was a slight bit exhausted, but we went to the North Market anyway because they were having a craft extravaganza. Lots of handmade stuffs, but I didn't get anything cause frankly I was too shopped out by that point. But I did run into my friend Adrienne from Crafty Beavers, whom I hadn't seen in years. Then we got some Pho and went back to Scot's.

4. Then I headed out to Cath's house for the rest of the day and knitted my head off. I worked on Brian's hat. It's the Chullo from the Holiday Gifts issue from Interweave. Stranded colorwork, my fave! It's turning out well, but at some point I made a booboo and now I have to tink about 4 rows back. :( So, as it was later in the evening and I couldn't bear it, I put that project away. I pulled out the Noro Entrelac again and finshed the next tier, bottom triangles and the bottom. It finished up quite nicely and is ready to be felted. However, I want to make a few more and felt them all together. These are really easy bags, although after making 2 of them now, I'm really not crazy about the construction. They are top down and I really don't like how the bottom is made, it's kind of different/odd. But since I haven't seen the felted piece yet, I'm not sure if I'm counting chickens early. So then I think, maybe I should felt it first before I go changing the design? Anyway, that took me late into the evening and then I went home.

I unpacked my goodies from the day and went to bed.

Sunday there was NO knitting to be done. Instead I put up the christmas tree, went to buy stuff for christmas tree, then I decorated. And made supper. I barely watched any TV and was pooped and went to bed early. My fingers are ready for more knitting, so hopefully I can start incorporating it back into my evenings.

So again, I'm posting my list. Trying to stay on track.

1. Finish sweater vest for dad (back is done, just need a front)
2. Finish 1 slipper for Sarah (1 is done)
3. Finish 1 slipper for Mom (1 is done)
4. Mittens for the boys (this is a maybe)
5. Something for Addison, maybe a little hat/mitten set
*6. Hat for Brian (half done)
7. Hat for Scot
8. Hat for a friend
9. Hat for a friend
10. Slippers for a friend
11. Something for my boss (am thinking a felted bowl)
12. Aunt Lisa's purple Hedgie (needs stuffed, felted, sewed)
*13. Noro Entrelac Felted bags for friends need about 6-8 (2 done)

Knitting: Oh YES I am!

So after a bit of a hiatus with the start of fall... I've jumped back into knitting full force. It's a good thing. I'm amped up, I'm ready to finish stuff. I've had thoughts of pulling WIPS out of hibernation and getting them done. That being said, I am still having a bit of castonitis, too.

I was fortunate to have a nice long 5 day holiday break. I started a hat Tuesday night at Panera with Brandy and Becky. I finished it on Wednesday. It's for my BIL, Patrick. I hope he likes it. It needs some serious blocking though because my stranding was a little tight and it's a bit puckery.

Then on Thursday, while Turkey was in the oven, I was trying my hand at designing another sock. I pulled out the Harmony Guides, Lace and Eyelets book. I have a lovely variagated yarn that I purchased in Portland at Sock Summit from Hazelknits. I decided on a cast on of 60 and started this pattern with a 12 stitch repeat. Well 2 repeats into it, I realized it wasn't going to work. The design was completely lost. :(

So I moved on to another pattern which was a 20 stitch repeat which fit perfectly with my 60 stitch c/o. :) So I've done a full repeat, but I'm not totally sold on this one either, yet. So I set it down. Then Turkey was done and there was the eating and the bloating (j/k). And I decided to go with something I knew. I'm jonesing to have another pair of socks, stat! So I pulled out more yarn from Sock Summit, Blue Moon Socks that Rock in the ST-1 colorway. It's lovely shades of gold, green, orange, red and brown. Very FALL! I could totally see this yarn in a nice leafy design, however, I decided to use this in a Cookie A pattern. I pulled out Baudelaire which was on Knitty sometime back, but it was a toe-up sock... and frankly I wasn't in the mood for toe up (I don't know why). So I said to myself, "Sock INNOVATION!" Pulled that out and found a pattern I thought would look nice with a variagated yarn, "Rick." Friend Lindsey made one of these and it looks pretty awesome, so I decided to give it a go. It's a 60 stitch cast on, so I started. I made it through the cast on and did like 1 or 2 rows of the pattern and it was time for bed.

On to Friday. Met up with Cath and Jimmy at Staufs in the afternoon and brought ST-1 Rick along with me. I did about 3 more rows and just was NOT happy with it. I was really not liking the SSK through a YO. It wasn't fun, I was tense, my knitting was tight. Rick and I weren't seeing eye to eye. I stopped.

I pulled him out, left the cast on and went with something I knew very well, the Ampersand (with mods). I wanted a tighter sock than the first pair. I used the 60 cast on I already had instead of a 54. I used US2 instead of US3 and it's coming along nicely. I made it through the heel flap and turn and picked up the gusset stitches, did a few rounds of decreases and then went to bed.

Here's where castonitis comes to play. While I was working that sock I watched a repeat of Bones in which she's wearing this lovely grey cabled hat and me things I NEED that! And I have this gorgeous skein of Purple Highlander I've been dying to use and it will match my new purple vest! Perfect! Anyway, I have been good and haven't casted on, but my fingers they are definitely twitchy!

And I've really been wanting to make Brian a new Chullo hat. His is a store bought one a few years old and it's seen a better day. I thought of surprising him with one, he rarely pays attention to what I'm doing anyway. So I could work on it and he wouldn't necessarily be the wiser. For a few weeks now, I've been surfing for "free" patterns and I've found a bunch of crochet versions, but little on knitted versions. Still searching.... So Sunday, I tossed him my Interweave Holiday Knits and told him to see if there was anything in there that looked cool. And don't you know the pattern he picked is a Chullo hat by Kenny Chua. I totally forgot that it was in there. I laughed and said I was planning on making you one of those already!

So, I went to the stash and pulled out a bunch of WOTA Kettle dyed colors I had purchased some time back and that project never came to life, so I asked him to pick colors. He didn't really give me any good suggestions, so I think I'm going to just make it up myself and he can live with it. One thing for sure, the boy likes colors, so I think it will be good. And I am twitchy to start this project, too!

But I'm going to finish that sock first. Then look out! Hats! Hats! Hats!