My 2008 knits in review

When I created this mosaic of my finished projects, I couldn't help thinking that I had knitted more this year. I was not wrong, I have knit more, I just had not FINISHED everything! We are not going to talk about what is STILL on the needles. What are my New Years Resolutions you ask?

1. Examine what is on my needles unfinished, frog what I do not like anymore and finish what I think will work.
2. Get pregnant
3. Knit more socks for me
4. Get pregnant
5. Clean out all the clutter in the house
6. Get pregnant (Time is a wastin!)

And the first project to be finished in 2009??


This is going to make a certain 6 year old girl really happy, when I finish her. Deadline? January 3rd, 2009.

I wish you a happy and safe 2009 with much success!

Foggy Day Schedule???

Growing up in the Central Valley of California there is a love hate relationship with fog. Parents hate the fog and kids love it because that meant Foggy Day Schedules at school. There were many winter mornings while living in the Central Valley, that I would wake up, turn on the TV to the local Public Television station and watch and wait for my school name scroll along the bottom of the screen telling me that I could go back to bed for another hour and a half! If memory serves me, school would start around 10am on Foggy Days. Now that I am a grown up (sort of) there are no more Foggy Day Schedule for me, so today, I made one up!

This is a picture of San Jose fog…


Now here is REAL fog, the stuff from home (Central Valley of California) that we call Tule Fog...

And honestly, that is good visibility right there, I have driven in much much worse fog.

I will be posting about knitting later this week, Happy Knitting!

Won't you help little Sophie??

This is Sophie, she is a soft sweet thing that is missing an ear cause well, I ran out of yarn! That little bit you see is not enough to get half way down the last ear. So if anyone out there has a little bit of Cash Vero Aran weight in what I believe is the light pink they call Rose #11 please help little Sophie to get an ear so she can make a little 6 year old girl happy.

PS... I have attempted to buy another ball of this yarn at my LYS, but they are out of stock. Besides, I only need a small amount.

Merry Christmas

I am happy to report that all my Christmas knitting is DONE and wrapped. I only knitted 7 gifts this year which is lower than the previous years, so that helped. And this is my new Christmas tree, it is a fake for several reasons. We do not have a lot of space in the living room for a real tree that is wide at the bottom for one. This tree is 6' tall from base to tip top and is pre-lit with white lights and has a decorative urn base. So when I found this narrow tree I knew I had to have it, it fits perfect in the living room.

I wish you a safe and happy holiday season!

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

Well, not really a chicken dinner, but I thought it was funny. Not sure where I have heard that before, but it sure stuck in my head. The lucky person to win my Birthday Blog Contest is.....

JANET

Janet is a knit blogger from Texas and has a beautiful and inspirational blog Twisted Knitter.

And for the answers.

1.What happened when Sensei and I went to Disneyland?
I got sick, I mean really sick. We ended up staying at the hotel 2 extra days so I could get rest and meds before traveling home.

2.What color do I dislike?
ORANGE. I wore orange in high school almost everyday because I was a cheerleader and that was our school colors. It is not a flattering color on me.

3.Where did we go and what did we do for Sensei’s birthday?
We went to the Superbike races at Laguna Seca and rode in the Official Pace car. It was the most exhilarating experience that I have had, that track is really something.

4.What song did Juanita sing at the karaoke contest?
She sang Lady Marmalade and was FANTASTIC! If you have not seen it yet, click here.

5.Where did I take my niece and nephew when they stayed with me?
Looking back on it, too many places for such a short trip as it turned out. But we had a great time at the Oakland Zoo, Chuckie Cheese, Drive-in Movie to see Wall-E and a couple of parks to play. I can't wait to get them next summer.

Everyone, have a fabulous weekend!

Happy Friday, another FO!

It started out looking like this...

and then a few days later....

Pattern: Changeling Cowl

Source: Modified from Pashmina Cowl in Last Minute Knitted Gifts

Size: 13" long
Materials: Manos del Uruguay Manos Silk Blend

Colorway: 3105

Amount: 2 skeins -300 yards ( 1/4 of the 2nd skein left)
Needles: US 7 / 4.5 mm
Start Date: November 23, 2008
Finish Date: December 6, 2008

I am really happy about the way that the colors DID NOT POOL. I am not a fan of pooling at all, so this yarn made me happy and it was a pleasure to knit with, even in the dark! This is going to be a Christmas gift, so hopefully I will get modeled shots later, that is if I can find my charger to my digital camera...oops.

Ok, last chance to win some yarn! Contest ends tonight at Midnight. I will draw the name in the morning and post the winner. Need a last minute Christmas gift? Enter, you could win.

I am IT now...

I was tagged by Jasmin on this meme. What I’m supposed to do is find the 4th picture folder on my computer. I’m to put the 4th picture from that folder on my blog and tell 4 facts about the photo. Then tag 4 other people and comment on their blog letting them know they are IT!

1.This was taken the day after Thanksgiving 2008

2. Pictured is Sensei and his 4 year old niece Tia.

3. Tia LOVES to take pictures, I mean LOVES it!!

4.On that day at Sensei's dad's house, there must have been 25 people in the kitchen and living room all at the same time. Four of the five brothers in Sensei's family were there with their family's and I learned how to make "real" macaroni and cheese.

Ok, Carrie, Janet, Kristi, and Janice...You are all IT!

Oh yeah, you all still have time left to enter the contest!

Baby its cold out side...

This week so far feels to me like the coldest it has been since I have lived in San Jose (4 years.) It has been in the low 4o's and that is really cold for the Silicon Valley. With all these cold days I am sure these will come in handy!

Pattern: Toasty

Source: A Friend to knit with

Size: Adult

Materials: Plymouth Yarn Royal Cashmere

Amount: 125.0 yards

Needles: US 7 / 4.5 mm

Start Date: December 5, 2008

Finish Date: December 9, 2008

Christmas gift for my best friend. She has skinnier hands than me, so they will look much better on her. This yarn was nice, but I would not run out and seek to buy it again, well unless there was some really wicked good sale, maybe.

Only three days left to enter the Birthday Blog Contest. All the answers can be found in my past blog entries. The person who answers the most correctly wins, in the event of a tie, names will go into a hat and a winner will be drawn. What am I giving away? Yarn of course. What yarn, well, it will be a choice of Socks That Rock, Malabrigo or Rowan Kid Silk Haze (NOT my new Sundara yarn-sorry.) Contest will be closed December 19th at midnight. Winner will be announced on My Birthday, December 20th. Email your answers to: twistedstitches71 AT gmail DOT com

1.What happened when Sensei and I went to Disneyland?
2.What color do I dislike?
3.Where did we go and what did we do for Sensei’s birthday?
4.What song did Juanita sing at the karaoke contest?
5.Where did I take my niece and nephew when they stayed with me?

Turn A Square

This past weekend I Turned A Square.

It was so nice, I did it twice!

Pattern: Turn A Square
Source: Brooklyn Tweed (Jared Flood)
Size: Adult
Materials: Cascade 220 and Noro Silk Garden
Amount: 40g Cascade and 25g Noro Silk Garden
Needles: US 6 / 4.0 mm and US 7 / 4.5 mm
Start Date: December 14, 2008
Finish Date: December 14, 2008
Quantity: 2 Hats

This hat is super simple and super quick, I did 2 in one day (Yes, that means I did NOTHING else but knit, jealous??) The first one, I had some technique issues and by the time I did the second one, that was all worked out. The second one however does not change color enough in the stripe sections to be noticeable even though they really did change color. Over all I am happy with them and I hope my brothers will be too!

And don't forget my Birthday Blog Contest. Who doesn't like to win yummy yarn? And Christmas is so close, you can win and give it as a gift too (I won't tell) Contest ends midnight December 19 and the winner will be announced on December 20th.

Happy Monday...I got yarn!

Look what I found on my desk when I came into work this morning???

And this is what I found inside...

The Life Aquatic

Sundara Winter Seasons Yarn Club shipment

50% silk - 50% merino wool

500 yards, 150 grams

Now, what to knit with it??? Any suggestions, please comment, help a sista out!

Yes, it is that time again, my birthday blog contest. I like the scavenger hunt type of contest, it is my blog and my birthday, so that is the format again this year.

So this is how the contest goes, below are the questions, email your answers to: twistedstitches71 AT gmail DOT com

All the answers can be found in my past blog entries. The person who answers the most correctly wins, in the event of a tie, names will go into a hat and a winner will be drawn. What am I giving away? Yarn of course. What yarn, well, it will be a choice of Socks That Rock, Malabrigo or Rowan Kid Silk Haze (NOT my new Sundara yarn-sorry.) Contest will be closed December 19th at midnight. Winner will be announced on My Birthday, December 20th

What happened when Sensei and I went to Disneyland?

What color do I dislike?

Where did we go and what did we do for Sensei’s birthday?

What song did Juanita sing at the karaoke contest?

Where did I take my niece and nephew when they stayed with me?

Good luck!

One hot mess...

My birthday and Christmas is fast approaching. If anyone out there has me on their gift list or would like to add me to their list of people to buy for this year, I have a suggestion for you...

That is 100% cashmere in a wicked tangled mess! What does that mean? I need a ball winder and swift. Could I wait just a day or so to go to my LYS to wind this hank of cashmere? Nooooo, I had to hand wind it my self so I could cast on a Christmas gift. But instead of casting on, I am trying to untangle! %#$@ OK, stop laughing!

Like I Need A Hole In My Head...

I wanted to go to a movie, a chick flick to be more accurate. Sensei, although very willing to accept my movie choices for the most part was not thrilled about seeing the Changeling.

So I called my friend Karol and set a plan. But that is like 2 hours with sitting and no knitting, not something I can do easily. The only projects that I have working currently are not dark movie theater friendly, cables and lace, I think not. Unfortunately I was no where near home where my rather large and out of control stash is currently spilling over into other rooms of the house and pick out some yarn and start a dark movie theater knitting project. What is a Dark Movie Theater Knitting project you may ask? To me that is this seasons hottest accessory, a cowl, plain stockinette in the round. Currently I have two others working but they are not Dark Movie Theater Knitting, has cables and the other is double knit. Fortunately I was at my LYS when I made the movie plans and I strolled over and picked out some yarn to start ANOTHER project (the 7th now on the needles, but who is counting?!?) I purchased 2 hanks of Manos del Uruguay Manos Silk Blend and I was already carrying with me a 16" cable US 7 needle (doesn't everyone?) so I was good to go with the Dark Movie Theater Knitting. Now, here is a tip about Dark Movie Theater Knitting so you may be more successful, sit in the back row of the theater. Why do you ask? So when you drop a stitch you can use the light from your cell phone to see when picking the stitch back up with out drawing attention to yourself. Oh and it is most helpful if you have someone to hold the phone open while you are picking up your dropped stitch otherwise you may have to resort to the Daniel Day Lewis-My Left Foot move.

The movie was good, a true story that spanned the late 1920's to the early 1930's about a woman who's child had been kidnapped and her fight against the LAPD to find her son. I really thought that I was going to break down and cry several times, I usually do, however I did not in this movie. Trust me, it is a moving/touching story, but to bring me to tears, not this time.

The cowl, I was going to call it LINAHIMH (Like I Need A Hole In My Head) Cowl, but after writing this blog post, I have decided to rename it Dark Movie Theater Cowl.

Oh and I need to mention, Angelina is wearing some fierce red lipstick in the movie. I have been in search of the best red lipstick and by god I think that was it on screen. Some please tell me what brand she was using in the movie!

This will be my last blog post until after Thanksgiving, I will be with out Internet for a few days. And my birthday is next month, time for another contest-giveaway. I like the "scavenger hunt" type of contest, answer questions from my blog to win a prize. So keep an eye out for that. Have a safe and and Happy Thanksgiving!!

Au Revoir and Danke

Sunday I attended a going away party for a fellow knitter friend of mine, Jeni. She is moving to Omaha, NE to be closer with her family. Jeni is a great knitter, designer and friend. She was one of the first few knitters that welcomed me when I started knitting and I will always be grateful to her for her kindness towards me, I will miss seeing her weekly at the Boba Knitting. Wow, this is starting to sound like an obituary...she is very much a live, you can see here and here (forgot my camera so I have to direct you to other blogs) and she will be back for visits and for STITCHES!! Jeni, don't forget to knit our Hazel Knits sock yarn in time for Stitches. So that was the Au Revoir part, now to the Danke part...

I fully support my favorite LYS's, Purlescence Yarns and Bobbin's Nest, and you too should support your favorite LYS, it is good karma. But there is no reason that our favorite online stores can't get some love too. Remember this purchase by my boss? Well Kathy Elkins of WEBS was alerted to my blog post and commented. To my surprise she enjoyed the story and wanted to thank me for "creating" a huge sale, a few days later I received this...
A very nice "thank you" gift no? In the package is seven balls of Valley Yarns Hadley, a 50% wool and 50% silk blend in the Elderberry colorway (the picture is showing it a little darker than it really is) also included is a Lantern Moon silk project bag a pattern for a shawl and scarf that I can use the Hadley with and a nice handwritten note card. It was all unexpected and very gracious, thank you Kathy, see you at Stitches West?!?

Now, my latest project that I have cast on for...

Yes, it is red, my favorite color and I realized that I have not knit anything for myself in red. So I am now. The yarn is Plymouth Suri Merino that I bought at Purlescence Yarns almost two years ago. It was my surprise birthday present from Sensei that year. I went into the shop and and they said, "Oh Lisa, there is an envelope for you here" and when I opened it I found a gift certificate for $100 from Sensei. I know, all together now, AAHHHHHH. At first I was going to knit the Refined Raglan from Interweave Knits Winter 2006 but after reading some of the Ravelry posts about the yarn being REALLY warm, I thought that a pullover would not be the best option. I am hoping to have this done and ready to wear for Thanksgiving. Here is to best laid plans.

Happy Halloween

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

This is me many many many years ago when I was waiting tables. I had fun seeing the reactions of my customers when they looked up from their menus!

It's all Eleanor's fault

When I came into work late this morning from my weekly DMV appointment I found this on my chair. What’s that you say? that box can’t be full of Noro Silk Garden, there has to be packing materials in there to fill space? Ummm, NO.

It all started a little over a week ago when I wore my Lady Eleanor Stole to work. Here comes my boss walking down the isle by my cubical and she sees her.

She grabs it hold it up and declares it the best thing EVAR and asked how many balls of yarn it took and how much did it cost. She paid me compliments and stated that a chair or couch throw 3 times wider than my stole would be fabulous to have. When I broke the news to her how much I used for my stole and the cost, she admired it a little more then laid it down and quietly walked away. Then as a stroke of fate or whatever you want to call it I get an email notification from Webs like 3 minutes after my boss walks away that Noro has discontinued 4 Silk Garden colorways and were selling them for $5.79 per ball. Are you F’ing kidding me?!?! So I called her back to my desk and showed her the email. I explained to her that you rarely see this yarn this cheap and if she wanted to buy the yarn then I would knit her the throw (more like an afghan.) I emailed her the link where she could buy the yarn and said I could not promise a delivery date but if she wanted me to knit this, here was her prime opportunity and not to wait to long to make the decision, the yarn will go fast. Little did I know when I made that statement how true that was.**

A few hours later, she walks by my desk and says, “I ordered the yarn,” with a big smile on her face. She proceeded to tell me what she ordered:

Boss: So this (Lady Eleanor) took you 15 balls right?
Me: Yes
Boss: And I would like it this long but three times wider.
Me: OK (doing math in my head)
Boss: So that would be 45 balls.
Me: Yes…
Boss: I ordered 60, 15 of each color, use what you need and keep the rest.
Me: WOW, ok (then I was speechless, I know that is hard to believe, but I was)

That box is FULL of Noro Silk Garden for the project that I will be calling Koo Koo Eleanor! Berroco has a blanket/throw pattern that is called Koo Koo and I am blending that pattern with the Lady Eleanor Stole.

**Webs sold over 4000 balls for the discontinued Noro Silk Garden in 4 days. Did any of you take advantage of that sale!

Orange ya glad??

It is amazing to me with my major dislike of the color orange, that I am STILL knitting with orange! But I ran across the Kürbis pattern and could not resist, it is too cute to not knit.

Pattern: Kürbis Baby Hat
Source: Sonnentaler

Size: fit a head of about 39 cm circumference

Materials: Cascade Cash Vero and Knit Picks Telemark

Amount: 0.75 skeins = 73.5 yards of Cash Vero in Rust (Orange) and

0.05 skeins = 5.2 yards of Telemark Cilantro Heather (Green)

Needles: US 6 / 4.0 mm and US 7 / 4.5 mm

Start Date: October 22, 2008

Finish Date: October 27, 2008
Quantity: 2 Hats

This is a very easy and quick pattern to knit. The directions are clear and easy to follow which is important. I chose Cash Vero for a couple of reasons, one, it had a great pumpkin color and two, it is sooooo soft. The blend of merino, microfiber and cashmere makes it nice to wear next to your skin.

The top of the hat is knit with Knit Picks Telemark which is a sport weight so I held the yarn double to get the proper thickness. The recipients of the hats? Co-workers. No one in my immediate family have babies or toddlers, so one co-workers baby, Allicyn got the first one, she is 8 months old.

And the second hat went to my boss' niece, Genevieve, she is 2 years old.

She wants to be like her Aunt Patty, typing on the key board and making important phone calls!

I think the girls are way cute with the pumpkin hats no? Ok, I promise, this is the last orange I am going to knit with for a very long long time!

Go Giants...Go Bears

Pattern: Basic Sock
Size: US Woman's 8-1/2

Materials: Panda Silk
Amount: 1.25 skein Orange 0.5 skein Black

Needles: 2.0mm US 0 Hiya Hiya Circular 40” Magic Loop Method

Start Date: September 20, 2008 (approx.)

Finish Date: October 19, 2008

As a Thank You/Birthday gift to my boss, I made her these GO GIANTS!! Socks. She has given me tickets to see the Giants play many many many times and for that I am thankful. She is very warm blooded, her office you could hang meat in, seriously. She has admired many of my socks that I have knit in the past, but always commented that they were too thick for her. So I set out to find a really lightweight yarn that when knit would not produce too dense of a fabric but still sturdy enough for a sock; Panda Silk fit that bill nicely.

I CO 76 sts, knit with black for 1” of 2x2 ribbing, 1 round of knit in black so that the color change would be smooth then start with orange. The total length of the cuff and leg is 4”. I did a slip stitch heel flap for 2” and turned the heel in black. Picked up stitches with orange and did the gusset decreases knitting until I reached 7.5 inches from heel to beginning of toe. Knit one round in black and began toe decreases. Kitchner when 20 sts remain. She put them on and they fit her perfectly and she loved them. I guess I get to keep my job for a little while longer! (joking)

As I have mentioned before, I am not fan of orange, but I like my job and my boss, so I sucked it up. My dislike for orange started sometime during my teenage years. I was a cheerleader for many years and all the teams that I cheered for were Orange and Black. On any given week during my high school years, I could be found in my uniform at least 3 days a week. So I am a little burned out on orange, besides, I look horrible in orange, I am a winter.

Senior year, Varsity Cheer, Selma High 1990

All hail to Selma High, Our sons and daughters sing.... (I can't remember the rest of the song!)Go Bears! Cheer Forever!

Happy Anniversary

Happy Anniversary to my dearest Sensei. Though I can't stand when you leave wet towels on the bed after your shower, leave the kitchen cabinet door open after getting a glass and leave the TV on all day long, I love you for many many reasons. You make me laugh on a daily basis, especially when you do those little dances! This past year has been emotionally trying on the both of us, but it has brought us closer than ever. Besides, who couldn't love a guy who brings her a 3 Splenda wet cappuccino every morning?!?!?

Happy Anniversary!!

My weekend in photos

SATURDAY
I went to San Francisco and met my mom, older brother the cop, sister-in-law and my nephew at Lefty O'douls in Union Square for lunch, drinks and college football games on TV. Giving a big shout out to Fresno State beating UCLA and an even bigger shout out to Notre Dame beating Purdue. Way to go Irish!!! Since the Irish won, that started the weekend off on a good note.

Then my family went to the Dodger vs Giants game and sat in my companies Club Level Seats while a co-worker and I sat in other seats at the park.

This is my family, right to left, mom, brother, nephew and sister-in-law.

In all the times that I have sat in those seats I have never gotten a chance to see a celebrity, but they did... Steve Perry.

So my sister-in-law snapped this from her seat about 10 seats away

Steve Perry (former lead singer of Journey) was very nice to my family and signed autographs and seemed happy to chat, he just didn't want to pose for a picture, something about he had a year left, yada yada yada. Not sure what that was all about. But my co-worker and I sitting in the lower box seats on the right side of the field did get to see Vida Blue, you have to be BIG baseball fans to know who he is, but this is him...

Yes, I Kinneared him. It was too late to get a picture and autograph with him, so this is the best that I could do.

SUNDAY

Sensei and I were guests of Mazda at the AMA Superbike races at Laguna Seca. Getting these passes was good timing, it was Sensei's birthday too!

This pass is what I like to call, "Ain't no where here you are gonna get denied access Pass," or as Sensei liked to call it, "I AM the shit Pass!"

The suite was located on Pit Row, stocked full of food and drinks gratis. There was indoor seating with 3 TV's showing parts of the track not visible from where we were and then outdoor seating looking onto the track. I met some Mazda factory people, good people to know, because I scored this for Sensei and I...

Yes, that is me in the Official Pace Car and the driver took me around the track going REALLY REALLY fast. It was the most awesome experience I have EVER had. Sensei loved it as you can see...

He said that this was the best birthday he ever had.

The bikes were going speeds of about 180 mph in the straight aways. This link will show all the pictures at Laguna Seca if you are interested in seeing more.

Just a Thursday night in San Francisco

So last night my friend Juanita (fabulous singer) and I went to San Francisco because I called in and won tickets to the annual Alice 97.3 karaoke contest at Ruby Skye. I blogged about it here and to be honest, when I blogged about it, Juanita was the first person I thought of to go with. We headed north after work, found the place, parked the car and got something to eat a Max's and then proceeded to the event. After watching several people, some scared, some drunk, some tone deaf and think that they are the next best thing and then some, well all I can say is-bless their hearts they tried. Then this happened...

The embeding thing is not working, click here to see




The crowd went wild, no other person got that great of a reaction, the night was GREAT!! Yay Juanita!!!

So you think you can sing?

I know that I can not sing, that is for sure. Just because I can't carry a tune to save my life does not mean that I don't still sing, just ask Sensei. However, I like to see others sing, those who sing well and those who are train wrecks. Yes, I am referring to karaoke. Never would I be able to drink enough to get up the nerve to participate, but I won tickets to a huge karaoke event at Ruby Skye in San Francisco hosted by Alice 97.3. The winner of the event receives $1000!!! The contest is Thursday, September 25th, so if you think you can bring out your inner Diva and have the attitude and the pipes to get on the Ruby Skye stage and want to compete, contact me and the second ticket is yours. I will be there to cheer you on! Besides, you can win a $1000, Stitches is coming soon, that can buy a whole lot of yarn!!!

Pattern: Helena

Source: Knitty Summer 2008

Size: 2 yr old

Materials: Rowan Wool Cotton in Clear colorway

Amount: 4 balls (615 yrds)

Needles: 4.0mm/US 6

Start Date: August 31, 2008

Finish Date: September 12, 2008

A co-worker of mine has been trying for a baby for years only after learning that they were unable to conceive, they were graced with the opportunity to adopt a young unwed girl's baby. Alicyn Kate was born in February 2008. I knit an infant hat for my co-worker for the baby with a promise of something bigger later. Well, this is the "bigger later."

Helena from Knitty Summer 2008 will be my “go to” baby/toddler sweater pattern from now on, it is a great pattern. I opted to do buttons instead of ties. Rowan Wool Cotton is a GREAT baby yarn, it show great stitch definition, supper soft and it is machine washable (gentle in cold water.) Baby's mother only request was that it was an icy blue color to match her babies eyes. Hopefully when the weather turns colder, baby will have grown enough to wear the cardigan this winter. I will be sure to get action shots then.

Now to non-knitting news....

I cut my hair! Cutting my hair is sort of a big deal. I am not that disciplined in several areas of my life and keeping my hair styled and cut is one of them. So enjoy it while you can! I did not dye it, just cut, but it does look a bit darker than usual. I have had mixed reviews from friends, mostly in the "Love it " column.

These pictures are of the second day after the cut. It is much shorter in the back than the front and I chose to get some heavy bangs this time. It has been years since I had bangs, we are talking early 1990's.

Ok, later this week, more knitting... I am seeing lots of blue in my future!