Blank

I don’t know what my deal is these last few weeks. No inspiration. Period.

I can’t think of anything to blog about. I have no lasting interest in any knitting project. I think about cooking or attempting to sew or organizing one of the many things I have to organize but then lose interest the minute I have the time to actually do something. I must be in a mood.

I am not sure what brought this on. The internet has kind of been stressing me out lately. I am a member of around 15 online communities. I have 5 email addresses. I subscribe to 206 blogs. I just can’t keep up. It is not like this is new but for some reason lately, I feel overwhelmed.

So I decided I needed to post to give myself a little jump start. Here are some random quickies about my life:

• I have some trips coming up. Next week I go to Utah for some much desired family time. The following week I am in the San Fransisco area for a conference. Then in May comes the big trip. I will be joining sister Kara for 17 days of travel in London, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Paris. I have been to London before but none of the other places. I don’t think I can express how excited I am for this trip. The fact that I get to experience it all with my very much missed and much beloved sister is like the best kind of icing on the cake.
• Sometimes I daydream that while in London I will meet London Calling Bachelor Matt. I quite like his cheeky British self.
• Why did no one tell me about how good Buffy the Vampire Slayer is until recently? I am on season 3, thanks Netflix (and Ashley for inspiring me to put it in my queue.)
• For all you Mac users, does anyone else use your photo booth as a mirror?

• Is is just me or do my hands look HUGE in this picture? Also, I am not possessed, trust me, I am just trying to figure out this hat I started. It is a slouchy hat and I am trying to determine if I casted on the right number of stitches. I suspect I might have cast on too many but am thinking that with a little elastic at the hem I might be okay. I don’t know, this little debate is making my interest in this project wane a bit. But I do want to knit it so we shall see…

So there you go, a wee little look into my life. Now I really should go catch up on blogs, email, Ravelry, Facebook, Flickr, etc. But then again, maybe tomorrow. At least I updated my blog eh? Baby steps.

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Fountain Hat

Sometimes I get these impulses. When the Fountain Hat became a free pattern on Knitting Daily, I decided I needed to knit it…right then. Within one day I had ordered the yarn, in three days I casted on, and two days after that I had this:

Since spring is around the corner I thought a nice season transition hat was in order. Made out of sock yarn, this hat is a great light-weight knit. I love the shape of the hat and found it a really simple and quick knit. My favorite part about this hat is the gathered top giving it some volume at the crown.

This picture is a little fuzzy but you get the idea.

Project Stats

Pattern: Fountain Hat

Source:Interweave Knits Spring 08 Staff Project/Knitting Daily

Yarn: ShiBui Knits Sock Yarn, Mulberry (1 skien)

Needles: US 4 dpns

Mods: The only addition I need to make is to add adding some elastic to the ribbing to give it a more secure fit.

Notes: The pattern calls for 2 skeins of sock yarn but I only used one (and even had a nice mini-egg of yarn left over…mmm, mini eggs).

So there you go, my new spring hat. Impulses aren’t all bad I guess.

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Out of Season

So yesterday I went running in the park near my house. I don’t even know how to describe how beautiful it was but suffice it to say it was sunny and warm. People were walking dogs and playing catch with their kids. Picnics were being eaten and ice cream trucks were welcomed. It was divine. This morning I wake up to this:

I am so confused. How am I supposed to keep the seasons straight when they mess with my head? Yesterday I was wearing short sleeves and open toed shoes. Open toed shoes!

I have always had a problem with adjusting to the seasons and mostly when it concerns fashion. Blame it on my Hawaiian upbringing. I didn’t own a coat until college. I wore the same clothes all year round without thought to color or fabric. I almost never wore socks (except for that time in the late 80’s when it was really popular to wear gap t-shirts and matching socks–I was all over that trend.) Now, I have been living with the seasons for a good time now, you would think I have gotten the hang of it. But how do you get the hang of something that is so fickle and inconstant?

As for knitting, I also haven’t quite gotten the hang of seasonally appropriate projects. My newest project, the Justina dress, has fall written all over it. Alpaca wool, olive green color, did i mention knitted dress…and here I sit, knitting away at a project that by the time it is done, will look a tad silly to wear outside.

I am almost done with the first half of the skirt. I am loving the pattern so far and the yarn…

I am in love with Berroco Ultra Alpaca. The color I am working with is really hard to get an accurate photo of but hopefully this picture gives you an idea of what it looks like. In person the color is a bit deeper, there are hints of rust and yellow that make the olive green base richer. The yarn is soft and produces a great warm fabric. Like I said, this whole project is the very definition of a fall knit.

I am tempted to keep it on the needles but slow down the progress a bit. I am really enjoying knitting it but I also want new stuff to wear for spring. I long for short sleeved tops made with skinny needles. I even have an idea for an original design rolling around in my head that I am itching to try. But what if ignoring Justina leads to its demise? Argh. So what do I do folks, press on?

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