spring is here April 29, 2008

though you wouldn’t know it from the weather lately. I’m speaking more on my nesting tendencies as of late. I, as I’m sure most girls did, used to have an elaborate plan of what my future home would look like. Of course back then it was 5 stories tall with a giant aquarium built in the center that you could scuba dive in and a laser security system… my needs have changed somewhat, but you get the idea. Maybe it’s because we’re the gatherers, the ones who need a place to settle, but women do seem to enjoy making a space their own, and within the next few months I should finally be able to have my own place. I’m so excited I could pee. This impeding move has inspired a massive surge of nesting, starting with paint swatches.

the colors aren’t so primary in real life… more earthy in tone, and very seventies. I’m not absolutely set, but I do know the bathroom must be yellow. Not sure why, but it must be. I’ll wait until I actually find a place to make my final decision, but I do know that I want to be surrounded by bright colors.

Another thing that has been popping into my head is all the stuff you never think about needing when you’ve lived with your parents for so long. The main thing is linens. My parents have about 30 years of sheets and towels, so I’ve never had to think about needing my own kitchen towel. They’ve always existed in the closet. I’m not sure why, but having my own linens seems to really solidify my independence, and to celebrate I’ve decided to embroider a couple of sets of tea towels using these patterns:

you can tell I’ve already dug into them. They can be found here, and they’re absolutely amazing. They come on a re-usable iron-on transfer sheet, and the image stays after the ink is used up so you can still trace them. Right now my favorite is the veggies with the mix and match faces (although the space girls are a close second).

I would have to say the most exciting accumulation in preparing for my own space is what the post fairy brought me this morning.

it does say medication enclosed… I’m telling myself he used it for packing material

looks exciting, doesn’t it. Maybe this shot will make more sense.

it’s a photo enlarger! I had been planning to buy one in the indefinite future, and had just checked on ebay to see what they were currently going for when I found this baby. There was no reserve, and the auction ended at only $115, with your’s truly as the victor. From what I can tell, it’s in perfect working order (except missing the base board, which I was aware of when I bought it), and it came with lots of goodies.

What I am really excited about is it can hold medium format negatives (2 1/4 x 2 1/4 inches as opposed to 35mm) and comes with a separate lens that is necessary to print from them (since the negative is so much larger you need a wider lens to get the light in focus all the way to the edges). I’m just giddy at the fact that I’ll be able to set up my own darkroom once I have my own place. I do have a studio now, but for me the photos have always fueled the work and focused my thinking, so finally having a place to print will be exquisite… even if it is my bathroom.

anyway, that’s all the excitement for now. hopefully next week I’ll have some embroidery samples to show you, and maybe a finished mitten or two!

’bout time April 22, 2008

sorry for the little vacation. I had forgotten what a time suck “real jobs” can be. I think I’ve started to get used to the new schedule, so things should start to get a little more regular around here. My knitting has suffered a little during the new job adjustment, but I have managed to get some things going.

Exhibit A:

I finished serenity (ravelry link). I used about 4.5 skeins of Tatamy Tweed Worsted in turquoise to make the smaller size. Overall I’m very pleased with this. It was a fun knit: not too demanding but definitely required my attention. I really love how the edging turned out.

(you’ll have to excuse the color in the top photo. Apparently my camera decided to eat the color in only that image)

Along with this I had to whip up a pair of booties for the new baby

I think these might even be cuter than the first ones. Some little teal buttons and these will be all set. I normally try not to knit the same pattern too often (a massive fear of boredom) but these booties are just perfect. They’re so adorable you could just puke, and they knit up fast. I was able to finish this pair while watching Romeo + Juliet (that is, in between sobbing and swooning. I have to admit I have a soft spot for Leonardo DiCaprio. That face, plus an extremely talented actor, who can’t love him?).

To round out this baby package I’m planning on knitting up a little toy elephant. I love Ysolda’s patterns, and this little guy is just too cute. The baby shower is set for sometime in May, so hopefully I can whip him out pretty quick.

On other knitting, I’m trying to get a head start on Christmas knitting. My mom’s mittens are coming along steadily.

The pattern is chevalier. I am making some adjustments to the pattern. Nothing major, just making them suit my needs a little better. I’ll be sure to post them once I finish. I also broke my yarn diet the other week.

The top is Cascade 220 in a lovely olive heather. Eventually it will become mittens for my father, as part of his Chistmas present. The bottom is appropriately called Yummy. This is some of the best smelling sock yarn, and it’s in my favorite colors. There was no way to resist. I justified the purchases by saying they’re part of my contribution to Project Spectrum (which they do fit into the Earth months) and part of it is for a gift. So I don’t feel too guilty.

But I do feel slightly guilty about this

Introducing Frankie, Jr. My old ipod bit the dust due to my own stupidity and impulsiveness. The headphone jack was messed up, and I had read somewhere that you could just crack open the ipod, push the jack back into place, and it’d be good as new. Instead of researching how I should properly go about this, I just pried the thing open… and the hard drive fell out. Needless to say it didn’t want to work after that. But now I have this little baby, which I think is a little more appropriately sized for my music needs. I had trouble filling 30GB, and 8GB allows me to put only my favorites on it. And I think this one is a little more difficult to crack open.

up next: Paint swatches, a new table, and nesting fun!

FO sho’ April 17, 2008

Just a quicky, cause it’s gettin’ late

ah… The beauty of cross country bus trips. I was able to finish the pair during my adventure (and vow never to set foot in Atlanta ever again). These round out my project spectrum tasks for “fire”. Now I’m all fired up (hah!) for “earth”, and have found myself really attracted to browns and greens, which works out perfectly. And yet what did I start last night?

Serenity. In my defense, I don’t know the sex of the fetus, and this was the brightest, most gender neutral color I could find. I’m almost finished with the first chart, and it’s proving to be much more exciting than the other blanket.

And to fully round out my domesticity, I give you cake.

This past Friday was my father’s birthday, and the cheapskate that I am, this was his present. I typically am the designated cake-maker (and baker in general), and I figure if I’m making it as a gift I should go all out. I used this recipe and was very happy with the results. I have a feeling this will be made many times more.

I start my new job tomorrow, so wish me luck!

eta: apparently I was an idiot and added this as a page instead of a post. But all is fixed now, and hopefully I’ll find some time this weekend to show all my new stuff.