The Sandcastle

Holiday Knitting Done!

*waves*  Hullo.

I couldn't be more pleased to report that the knitting part of the holiday knitting is done, done, done!  Granted this was more of an accomplishment last year, but it feels good anyway.  I'll post pictures once the end-of-semester work is equally done, but for now, a list...

1.  Gus's Hagrid Feetz are felting as I type.

2.  Marie's shawl is completely finished and requires only wrapping.  Turned out pretty good.

3.  Wee somethings for the NH folk also only require wrapping.

Also done, but will probably get re-worked:  Fire and Ice gloves (they're blocking now; I don't like the way the thumb turned out on the Fire glove, though - a wee tadpole project for post-end-of-semester).

Currently on the needles:

1.  Glenesk.

2.  Age of Aquarius Sweater

3.  A wee something that I may or may not finish in time to include it in the box for Susan.

After those fiddly Fire and Ice gloves, I really want to do something simple in biggish yarn.  Not that Pakucho organic cotton counts as "biggish," but Catha's sweater may be next.  *ponders*  The Glenesk and Age of Aquarius are both slightly fiddly (although nothing is as fiddly as having three balls of yarn attached to four needles with the rest of the glove flopping about on multiple stitch holders, making up a pattern whilst Pseudo tries to a) help and b) get affection, often simultaneously).

Anyone else having trouble getting into the mood for Midwinter Festivities this year?  Well, ask me again tomorrow, when grades are finally filed and the administrative stuff is over for the year.

I'll post pictures of the finished stuff soon; in the interim, have a holly jolly time :)

~ Sand

It's Finals Week!

Howdy, world!  *waves*

Finals week, and what's the assistant professor doing?  A wee bit of knitting, and a whole lot of work.  Only in-progress stuff this week, as - yow - I'm underneath a stack of stuff a mile high, with more coming in. 

So - in the 20 minutes before I have to head to campus, I decided to Order My World with Vivaldi's mandolin concerti (thank you, Robert!) and an in-progress update.

In-progress:

1.  The world's biggest Hagrid Feetz, for 'Gus's Midwinter present.  (He knows he's getting these; Rebecca requested them because she's the official footwarmer and his feet are cold!!  Also, when anyone I know has their feet measured, they know what's coming.)

Footz #1 is done; footz #2 is cast on. 

Pattern:  Fuzzy Feet from http://www.knitty/com
Yarn:  Noro #50-something
Needles:  US 10.5
Yarn Source: http://www.halcyonyarn.com
(from the Great NE Fiber Tour)

These are over 15" long, unfelted.  Tres mutant.

2.  The snowperson's shawl for Marie is still unedged.  *sigh*  No pics yet.

3.  Fire gloves underway.  I sent the transitions socks that I got mad at this summer to the frog pond to score a couple of these colors; the rest of the yarn is the same as in the Ice glove:

You can barely see the second Eliza Doolittles in the bottom left.  Also pictured:  the dough trough Dad sent for my birthday (Sagittarians rock!) and the yarn Susan sent which fortuitously arrived on said birthday ("5 points for Gryffindor, for sheer dumb luck!") - she bought it at the Bath Farmer's Market from the woman who raised the sheep - joy!  It's lovely squooshy stuff; what shall it become?  We know not yet.  She calls the colors "Sunset on the Clam Flats."  (Have I said that I miss New England in the last five minutes?  I miss New England!)  She has a great eye for color - she found the light blue in the Ice glove, which I never would have thought of.

Also still-in-progress and awaiting the end of grading:

1.  Weaving in the ends on Trellis2.  I MUST mail this to Colleen, asap!

2.  The Glenesk patiently awaits the return of my attention - I'll finish the Midwinter gift knitting and the Fire glove and get back to this.

3.  The Age of Aquarius sweater also eagerly anticipates the end of grading.  I've kept my promise to set it aside for now, though - that's some seriously slow knitting.  (The Glenesk, believe it or not, actually goes faster.) 

And just in case you were worried that I'd lost my scholarly self under a pile of yarn, I'm nearly ready to start writing my essay on Stein, Serial Composition, and the Question of "Genius" (tentatively titled "Play it Again, Alice" - with the requisite post-colonic scholarly dull to be determined).  Perhaps I shall actually get to the Hamlet essay as well.  It'll be great, if I ever get there!

Ok, my twenty minutes are up.  I wish you all merry days, and to those of you connected to academia in some way, congratulations on being (nearly) done with the semester!

*waves*

~ Sand

Fire, Ice, and Warm Hands!

Howdy!

I'm more than a little late getting started on Sandy's Warm Hands Knitalong, but better warm hands late than never, I say :)

First up, the Eliza Doolittle wristwarmers, based on the Voodoo wristwarmers but with a twist - a braided cable, inspired by my friend Noel's foray into experimental sock cuffs:

.

Yarn: Cascade Lana d'Oro alpaca (discontinued); 1 110-yd. skein 
Needles: US 7 
Pattern: original-ish; heavily inspired by other patterns.

Next we have the first in a series - this is the "Ice" glove of a pair that will be "Fire and Ice" until the yarn budget recovers enough that I can get more and make the mate for each.

Palm-side:

Yarn: 
Grey:  Peruvian Highland Wool from http://www.elann.com 
Colors:  Noro Cash Iroha from http://www.halcyonyarn.com
(from the Great NE Fiber Tour) 
Needles:  US 5 dpns 
Pattern:  Original

The "Fire" glove will be the same grey with colorwork done in intense burnt orange, a deep rosy garnet, and the same purple.  The grey is left over from the rune sweater, and the Cash Iroha is left over from the Weasleys Go To Maine scarf.  (More Cash Iroha, more often!)

Anyway, at least both WRISTS are warm (I've started another pair of the Eliza Doolittles, which also sometimes get called "Dickensian Prostitute Gloves," from a color that's slightly more me.  This pair will go to Rho when mine are finished, but for now I'm the chica with the bad wrists, so I'm breaking them in, so to speak!) and my LEFT HAND can be warm.  So I'm technically not quite there with the "Warm HandS" project, but "Warm Hand" will have to do until the semester's over!  :)

Wishing everyone a merry day,

~ Sand