One year ago tonight........

I started my first pair of socks. This was the most profound moment in my new knitting career. The first time I ever encountered dpn's!! Yes, after the socks I could no longer stick to just scarves! I was daring to try new and wonderful things! Last year, there were many firsts for me in knitting. First knitting book, SnB Nation. First yarn store I visited, Knit n' Stitch in West Vancouver. Heck, seccond ayrn store I visited was Urban Yarns in Vancouver and that was on Canada Day, when I bought the Cascade Fixation for my tankini! First pair of socks finished, who knows when but I was very proud. First wearable thing I knit, Asana. First FO out of natural fibre (yarn and mohair blend), Hipster. So many more! This has been a very productive knitting year! I have countless FO's, many stories and many dreams. Here is to another year of knitting, be it firsts or just new discoveries. See you in the new year!!! Karen

New member........

Well I hope everyone had a magical christmas! I for one had a great time! Dinner with family, watching the kittens go crazy with wrapping paper............ ah what fun! My favorit gifts include, Weekend knitting (!!!), Gap ballet flats, and a cat book. I am so excited about weekend knitting, I love that book! More about christmas later, what about boxingday??? Well, I braved the crowds with my friend, all for one reason. An iPod nano. Yes, we managed to find two! After running to three stores, we endedup at Future Shop and they had tones!! They even had a line especially for ipods! And what's better than that? We got a free gift card for $20 worth of itunes songs! Woot! So I spent all of yesterday loading it with songs and playing with it. I love it :D. And today I made ti a case! Not a knit one, yet. I used some faux leather and made it a little case. nothing to fancy, but untill I get the hard plastic one that I want this will have to do!

Now I am off to dance around to Michale Jackson! Happy seasons!

So it's almost christmas. Wow. I have been so busy, and have a very sadly decorated house, that it doesn't feel like christmas. I'm sure it will on the 25th, but man it sucks not having a tree!! Of course, it's all for our little kittys. they, by the way, seem to be sleeping non stop these days. Leading up to a busy day of running around in wrapping paper? Who knows. On the knitting front, I am sooooo almost done! just finish one hat, that is over 50% and I'm done! Wahoo! I even blocked my friends scarf. that was an, interesting experience........(I did nothing wrong........... well, at least too wrong) You wanna see?

Tada! A finished set, perfect for my friend. We are planning on giving our gifts on christmas eve, so that will be fun!!

As for other projects, I haven't had time! But I promise I will finish one project for myself! I just don't know what yet.... ah well.

One thing I am excited about is the idea of boxing day. Only the idea, because I don't know fi I will have money for what I want untill christmas day. I am saving for an iPod nano, and so far I have $170. I am hoping withe christmas money (usually a little over $100) I will have enough. if not, I will wait untill the end of january, because then I will have enough for the nano and a good case. I have been researching the nano alot to prepare myself for it. While doing that I found a really nifty case that i fell in love with. It's called the isee nano case. It is a clear hard plastic case that snaps on around the iPod, and protects the screen. It also has a thing that you can wrap the headphones around to make them shorter or into a lanyard. plus it has a clip. I love it, good protection and multi purpose. Of course, i can't seem to find one in canada, but I haven't checked ebay yet....

So anyways, have a happy holiday with family and friends, enjoy watching them open your many hours of love in a simple hand knit item, and stuff yourself full of goodies!!

Time to relax

I think I finally deserve it! After a terrible week of tests (still have one tomorrow), and literally dragging myself out of bed every morning, to class, where I had no fun and the week just became more stressful everyday. Yes, it is time for christmas break!!! All I have left to do for christmas gifts is knit ONE more hat and I'm done! Well then there is the wrapping, but that part is fun!! I have some really cool take-out box style boxes to wrap things in, and I have great plans on how to decorate them (they are plain white) and its just gonna be fun next week! No freaking out about trying to do last min. shopping they day before you have to give some one their gift (last year I was sewing my friends gift up until the min. we had to leave!!). Yes, I can enjoy the holidays. Baking, knitting for myself, playing with my cats, decorating my room (because we can't have a full sized tree, to dangerous with two kitten!), doing things with my friends, visting family....... ah, I can hardly wait! Just have to get through one more early wake up and a math test, then I'm good to go! So on the knitting front, I might as well show you the two hats I finished tonight. And let me tell you, it was not exactly the fun experience I had hope for........ Started hat #1 on tues., to get it done for a friend asap so she could hopefully pay me before christmas break....... finished wed. Showed to her on thurs., she thought it was too big...... so luckly I had started a smaller size for a friend..... gasp! not enough yarn to BO! So unravel a row of the bigger one to borrow some yarn... then about 10 st away from finishing the seccond one I ran out of yarn..... so I used some from my stash, the slight colour difference is not too noticeable.... so I may make a flower in the diff. white yarn to add to the hat.... but yes, be careful when you knit hats! In the end, they do look nice. And I tell yah, they'd better like these darn'd hats! (ok, to lazy to upload again, go to cover your head KAL to see a picture, it's really pretty!) First thing I am going to finish after the holiday knits are done? Why my clap!! All I have to do is some math to figure out when to dec. and I'm good! I'm happy, it goes so nicely with my red pea coat. Then my Gryffindor mitts, then my socks, and finally shimmer! However, I am hoping to fit a hat for myself in there.......... I really like this hat that they selling at The Bay for the olympics, it is white with maple leafs and red stripes. I could easily modify the pattern, I really don't want to spen $30 on a hat that I can make for about $6!!! wish me luck................ Merry Friday to you!! -Karen

Who doesn't love winter vacation??

I am sooo excited, five more days of school!!! I deffinatly need this break, I am always waking up 20 min. late in the morning!!! Plus I will have more time to finish gifts.... but I have made progress! I am 5 out of 7 :D. Go check out the hand knitted gifts KAL to see a picture of my FO's. Unfortunatly, to get my christmas knitting done, I have given up knitting for myself. The reason why I was procrastinating was because I didn't want to knit gifts in school, but I wanted to knit. Then on the weekend I didn't feel liek knitting. And I was sick... and blah blah blah. So now that I am full steam ahead on these gifts, and are so close to being done, I am not going to risk that! Plus I have used 2/3 skeins for my clap. and I need to do some math to see when I should start dec. so I may put that off for a while..... On the plus side, as soon as my gifts are done, I have a whole whack of projects to knit!! I ahve my clap to finish, my razor shell socks, my Gryffindor mittens, and after all that I can finalyl start shimmer! I will have a lot of hand knits to wer back to school in Jan. And if I don't finish, well I'll have something to do!! So, since I am not posting any knitting pictures, I promise so post some cute kitty pictures on my next post. they are growing so fast :D. -Karen

Mr. Brown!

Months, and I mean MONTHS ago, I ordered free fun fur from Bernat. It finally came today! It is very brown and sparkely. What to do... what to do?? The only ideas i have are: - teddy bears - hedgehogs - cat toys Would it be safe to give to a cat? I think my mommy would kill me if they ate any............. lets say no......... What would you do with brown sparkely fun fur??? In other news, no progress on christma gifts *cough*. Don't worry, they don't know what I planned on doing ..... and if I don't finish I can get them somthing else, no biggy. As you can see I am in denial. Thats why I'm blogging, insted of finishing a memoir about myself................ Shhh! BAH! The snow is slushy, and I don't wanna knit christmas gifts........ I need chocolate........