The pattern I wanted to write.

I was looking at the newly added patterns on ravelry and found the Summer Gold Cardi. The pattern used to make the sweater looks remarkably like the one I was using o try to make my Lace Crop Sweater, but done much better. Wriiten by Arja Viitala, it's so beautiful.

She has other pretty patterns too. This one was only published in Finnish I believe. It may be the same for the others...but it's late and all good witches should be in bed.

Prototype Crop Sweater, Niyaz, Threadbanger, & A New New Jerseyan

My new Library Media class started today. This morning I was very excited, but I know that when I have a week that is particularly heavy with chores and work and I can't knit or read I will wonder why I got myself into this again. I do want to be a librarian, I just hate homework! I sound like my students, but its true:) And now for the knitting...

I'm not totally in love with this, but I'm happy I made the attempt.

I'm working on the next, hopefully more likeable version of the pattern. Changes...
Cotton to Alpaca (Berroco Ultra Alpaca)
Longer length for body & sleeves
All seed stitch to 1 by 1 rib - it looks much better.
Shawl collar
Lace @ the raglan increases as well (by the armpits:)
We'll see.





While wandering the internet I came across this site I didn't know about. Threadbanger seems to be a site for creative, possibly rock oriented DIY type people. The site boasts a forum where readers share their DIY objects, a blog updated regularly, and video & instructions on how to make a lot of the stuff mentioned on the site. Most of it is sewing, but I'm very interested in that so it was cool. I found this demo turning a band t into a totebag posted by "Zanooka". Very awesome site!





Niyaz's new album, Nine Heaven's is out. The lead singer is Azam Ali, she's this unbelievably gifted musician with an incredible voice. She also does solo work and other music projects.

photo pilfered from allaboutjazz.com

Here's a video of a performance of a song, The Hunt off the last album.

Finally...my friend's doctor advised she head to the hospital and will be induced (is that how you spell that?) within the next 24 hours.
The blue and yellow cotton baby surprise with the duckies was for this baby. I was ofcourse going to be happy for her, but I didn't realize how excited I'd be to meet this little person. She is one of the most amazing people I've ever met, and I love her, so that has something to do with it, but I think I was and still am so interested in her journey through this part of her life because I want it so badly, and I'm just facinated by the whole thing. She's the first close friend of mine that will be a mother, and I hung on her every word when she was discribing how she felt, what she needed to do during her pregnancy. Keep Alyssa and her family in your thoughts, and I want to be the first to say, Welcome to Jersey, Little G!

9 Days Left!

I am so ready for summer to come. I want to get out of work. My school seems to be disintegrating structurally, mirroring the same errosion in the behavior in some of the staff. People are treating others with such disrespect that I've found it very frustrating, and can't seem to put some issues aside.

School is also very difficult. I'm constantly reading (and knitting at the same time), but it's so much work right now with work from work and other things. My mother helped me grade my students' finals b/c it just would not have gotten done in two evenings. Thanks, Mom!

Aurora, my mother in law who recently passed, left us quite a challenge in her home. She kept everything, even stuff people just shouldn't keep...old bills, old catalogues, etc, use your imagination. Hopefully we'll be heading out in a few moments to do some more work over there. The week she dyed we were there from early in the morning until seven or so each night working non-stop.

On the knitting front. My other friend is having her baby shower next week so I need to have these two things done... the Cotton Baby Surprise and this Easy Ripple Baby Blanket






Hopefully all this will be done before next Saturday.

If time allows, Mom, Pepper, and myself will be taking part in the World Wide Knit in Public day next Saturday after the baby shower. We'll hopefully be going to the knit out at Stix-n-Stitches. Go to the Knitting in Public web site and see if a place near you is holding an event.

Other than that, I've started a sock, my first!



And I'm still working on writing a pattern...this lace top down thing...eh...I don't know...









Crappy pictures, but you get the idea.

Big Update:

The View was great...the show was nice, but it was so great just to spend the day mom, sis, and me.

School (my job) is going well. "Reese" will most likely fail this year. He's doing almost no work in language arts. There's nothing more we can do. We offer to stay after school, we offer to be in early (and are every day). You can lead a horse to water, I guess. I hope he pulls thought. It's just that retention is district policy and if one doesn't pass one stays back. I don't like it.

School (college) is slow going. I feel like the semester will never end. It seems liek my private life keeps getting in the way of me having time to do my assignments, but when I put my personal life aside things get crazy, my apartment gets dirty.

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Now for knitting...
So my co worker and my friend are both pregnant...my co worker is having a girl in late June, and my friend a boy about two weeks late if all goes as planned for both. For the girl - Emma...
I've already made a cropped baby sweater (I think it's Debbie Bliss) out of this new cotton by Lions Brand.



I still need to add trim - maybe a crochet lace. I seamed the arms with I-cord.



I still want to make her a reversable blanket, so either garter or (hopefully) a reversible braid cable stitch.

For the boy who doesn't officially have a name yet. I used Caron Supper Soft to make a (I believe Debbie Bliss) striped hoodie. The sleeves aren't done, but i'm well on my way.



I'm almost done with a baby surprise out of that same cotton from Lions Brand.






I want these duckie buttons from this new store Yarn Diva. Very nice people! I still love Stix though:)

I am also finishing a blanket.



I got the idea from Stick-Legged Girl's Cotton Ease Baby Blanket. I did garter instead of her stockinet and casted on 75 instead of her 29. No, I have not finished mine yet, but on the baby front, no dice for me yet, so I have time. My friend's blanket is made out of Bernat Baby Coordinates in mint.



Moving away from babies. I started this Feather and Fan Wrap a while back out of Wool in the Woods Bobcat as a prototype for one I want to make my mother.



I'm trying to make a top down lace cardigan...



We'll see.

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Finally...some cute animals.
Mr. Grimm Witch and I went to the Bronx Zoo this past week while he was on vacation. We had such a great day.









More on flickr.