Last Post of the Year

Wow - another year is over. A lot happened this year. For one, I started blogging. I got a new job. We got a new car (and had to say goodbye to a good old car). No one in my family died. I became a knitting fanatic. My needlework suffered mightily. My scrap booking slowed down a lot. We explored the northern coast of California and became familiar with Southern Oregon. Did I mention I became obsessed with knitting?

Let's get the latest finished objects out of the way, shall we?



Heelless Sleeping Socks for my mother-in-law. Yes, I was in a rut. There's one additional pair to follow. The pattern is from Knitting Vintage Socks by Nancy Bush. These are the easiest things to knit, and they are soooo comfortable. I will make more of these in the future, no doubt. The yarn used was Scarlet Fleece It's Tubular X2 in the colorway Favorite Jeans. Knitted on size 3US needles.



A pair for me - Interlacements Tiny Toes in Reds Plus (#205). All other info is the same as the previous pair.

Charity knitting - Chemo Hats from Knit Picks, yarn is Knit Picks Shine Sport:


Colorway Sand


Colorway Orchid

I also knitted Christmas ornaments - mini socks. I also knit a Sock Blocker Key Chain Sock for my MIL.





It takes approximately 35 minutes to complete one sock. I really learned to appreciate the 2 hours of commute time on weekdays.

Also, for my mother's birthday, I made her an Advent Calendar. She loves the albums I put together for her, and this year I went all out. Last year, I removed all the negatives and slides from her house. The place is devoid of humidity (she lives near Palm Springs and either the air conditioner or heat are going). The Bay Area is very moist compared to her region, and we don't have the dehydration unit in our house. My Dad loved to take pictures, and had a thing for slides. I brought home 18 reels of slides - 1800 pictures. There were about that many negatives as well. I have been a busy bee. Anyway, after some restoration work (dust, scratches, fading, etc.) I came up with a small selection of goodies from the early years and slapped them in a book with fancy paper and ribbons and such. Here is the title page, as an example:



If you want to see the rest of it, you have to go here. I have to admit, it's probably my finest work to date as far as "creating" an album.

This was a rough year, and I am thankful I discovered the community of knitters. The craft and those that belong to it made my world a much richer place. I certainly improved my skill level, and have truly begun to appreciate the feel of a well crafted wool sock. I almost wish it would stay cool enough year round so that I could always enjoy my knitted creations. Alas, I love my sandals far too much. My stash, which was insane prior to the beginning of the year, grew enough so that I am now scared. I really need to bust it out in 2008. Having a real job again should curtail my shopping sprees. Then again, as long as I have Internet access, I'm still in trouble (Loopy Ewe order placed tonight - 4 more skeins - damn, but they were pretty).

Thanks for stopping by and seeing what I am up to. Drop a comment every now and then. It's fun to get them.

Happy New Year!

Still alive - I think

Yes, it's been forever since my last post. I started a new job Oct. 22nd, and it's been interesting. I was very used to setting my own schedule and prioritizing. Not so much anymore. Combine that with a trip to Las Vegas, a trip to Idaho and just the usual stresses of life, and well, I'm what you would call "behind".

I have been busily knitting away on my commute every day. I have around 2 hours a day on the train, so that allows for some decent knitting time. I have finished a several pairs of sleeping socks and mini socks for Christmas ornaments. I also finished a couple of chemo hats, started the Einstein Coat, and made a dent in my husband's sweater.

I am enjoying my new job very much. It is a renewable energy finance company, and they hired me to run the mortgage division. This is my third start-up in this field, and it gives me great reasons to get up every day. The guys I work with are wonderful and very supportive. Even with the market being in such distress, due to the niche factor of the product, I truly believe we will be successful and prosper. The only drawback is that I am up before 6am and home hopefully by 6pm. It makes for a very long day, and I always worry about wearing myself down. There are consequences when I let that happen.

With Christmas a week away, I was very pleased with myself that I was able to get my little gifts off to Norway for my aunts. This year it was mini socks that could be used as ornaments. They love that type of thing. I sent a pair to each of my aunts, and also a pair each to my two surviving uncles. It's been a few years since they got something fiber related, so that should be a good thing. They came out so cute.

I also did some for friends, which went out in my husband's annual "What Were They Thinking" Christmas CD. For the last 3 years, Hubby has put together some of the worst Christmas music ever made. It can't be intentionally bad, meaning that when it was recorded they intended for it to suck wind. He's including a Christmas Pageant piece this year from an elementary school band performance. Parents suffer so much for the sake of their kids. There are some real winners this year, which I am sure will delight several recipients (under the age of 15 - they love this stuff). A friend of ours puts out the "pretty" Christmas Cd, and Hubby's is the antithesis. It all balances out in the end.

I bet you want to see what I have been working on. I am not up to date on my pictures so this posting will be for some of the stuff I finished in November. In the immortal words of Peter Pan, "here we goooooo..........."



Yes, another Chemo Hat. The yarn is Knit Picks Shine Sport in the colorway Violet. The pattern is free from Knit Picks.



From Knitting Vintage Socks, these are Heelless Sleeping Socks. The yarn in Scarlet Fleece in the colorway Easter Basket. Beautiful yarn, easy pattern. In fact, so easy, I have repeated it 4 times!



Here is another one of the those "times". These are also made with Scarlet Fleece, in the colorway Wrangler.

I have another pair I need to post that I finished up earlier this month, and then there are the 28 or so mini socks. Too cute!

I'm being a bad girl and posting while on my lunch hour. Next time there will be a link to an album I created for my Mom for Christmas - an advent calendar. Sorry, no knitting, no stitching. Just paper, ribbons and embellishments. Yes, I scrapbook too. It's a wonder I have time to sleep or eat.

More to follow - stay tuned!