I hate snobs, but I'm finding very difficult to avoid becoming a yarn snob. Last weekend, I went to my LYS (local yarn store), and I got me some 100% wool yarn and I knit my son a winter hat. That stuff feels soooooo goood!
Because of this, I've decided to scrap the Dr. Who Scarf. I was almost halfway through it. Not entirely, though. I've decided to gradually going to accumulate enough Brown Sheep Co. Nature Spun Sport Weight the pattern calls for to do this up in the proper fiber. I actually don't mind. The pattern writer saw an actual prop scarf from the show and modified the actual colors. DH was loathe to tell me this, but in a way, it is a good thing he told me because after knitting with that very soft and wonderful natural fiber yarn, I really did not want to go back to that squeaky and scratchy acrylic yarn.
I'm going to print out a new pattern and accumulate the yarn.
Right now, I've also gotten half of my tank top done. I'm doing the Mudflap Girl tank from Stitch 'n' Bitch Nation, but it's in pale yellow and it won't have the mudflap girl on it. I'm not ready to try intarsia quite yet. I just want to learn how to make a garment.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Monday, January 15, 2007
Ahh, the Good Old Days
A long time ago, back in the Decade that Good Taste Forgot (aka the 1970's), an unholy fusion of yarn and aluminum created the Crocheted Beer Can Hat. I remember seeing one of these things at my neighbor's house, made from Hamm's Beer cans and pink, white, and green variegated yarn. I remember seeing people wear these chapeau's in public.
Thanks to Stitchy McYarnpants, you can now make your own crocheted beer can hat. Remember kids, if you want that authentic 1970's feel, use only the cheapest acrylic yarn in variegated colors (Red Heart Supersaver) and use only aluminum from the cheapest of beers. Schlitz, Old Milwaukee, Hamm's, and Red, White, and Blue are good choices for this.
Ahh, the good old days...Shag carpeting, dark wood paneling, macramé, polyester leisure suits, disco, CB radios, and fashioning hats out of aluminum cans and cheap-o yarn.
Thanks to Stitchy McYarnpants, you can now make your own crocheted beer can hat. Remember kids, if you want that authentic 1970's feel, use only the cheapest acrylic yarn in variegated colors (Red Heart Supersaver) and use only aluminum from the cheapest of beers. Schlitz, Old Milwaukee, Hamm's, and Red, White, and Blue are good choices for this.
Ahh, the good old days...Shag carpeting, dark wood paneling, macramé, polyester leisure suits, disco, CB radios, and fashioning hats out of aluminum cans and cheap-o yarn.
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Adventures in Sock Construction and Candle Making
Yesterday, I knit my first sock. I am very, very proud of myself. ::ms. ann does the happy dance::
I knitted my first practice sock on some crappy, squeaky cheap worsted weight acrylic yarn with dpn's (d0uble pointed needles), but the damn thing fit and the only thing I have to watch when I do the real deal is the ribbing. I totally got the turning of the heel and shaping the gusset and didn't have to frog anything. Of course, this sock is this pukey shade of heather green, it makes my foot sweat, the yarn is so cheap, the ankle cuff is loose, and it has no mate, but, like I said, I am proud of the damned thing. :)
I am jonesing to do other things to break up the monotony of the Dr. Who scarf. I think I want to make a winter hat for my son. I was thinking of doing either the "Hot Head" hat from the first Stitch n Bitch book or the other hats from SnB Nation.
Today, I made my first candles. Last weekend, I purchased a "starter kit" which contained 1 pound of palm wax, scent, dye, a pouring pitcher, three votive molds, nine votive wicks (all primed), and a thermometer. I also went to Goodwill and scored myself a used double boiler (for melting wax), some used metal utensils, and I found some nifty looking tins that could potentially be used for container candles at a later date.
The candles, I will say, were crap. They're hard, and they look all crystallized, and they only burn down the middle. I followed the directions exactly, but when I looked at my supplies vs. the instructions provided, they gave me enough dye and scent (which doesn't smell like much of anything), for 8lbs of wax. The dye and the scent are divided in to four squares, one square being for 2 lbs of wax. The instructions called out to use 1 square of dye/1 square of scent. So I ended up using twice the amount of dye and scent than I needed. The instructions said that the "kit" only had one square each of dye and scent. Next time I do this, I will buy a block of wax, my own dye, and my own scent. I also want to try gel candles.
I have a Flickr account where I will be posting my own pictures of the various things I've made. I suppose I should upgrade to the paid account and then I can have as many pictures as I want and organize them.
Later. I have to get to bed now.
I knitted my first practice sock on some crappy, squeaky cheap worsted weight acrylic yarn with dpn's (d0uble pointed needles), but the damn thing fit and the only thing I have to watch when I do the real deal is the ribbing. I totally got the turning of the heel and shaping the gusset and didn't have to frog anything. Of course, this sock is this pukey shade of heather green, it makes my foot sweat, the yarn is so cheap, the ankle cuff is loose, and it has no mate, but, like I said, I am proud of the damned thing. :)
I am jonesing to do other things to break up the monotony of the Dr. Who scarf. I think I want to make a winter hat for my son. I was thinking of doing either the "Hot Head" hat from the first Stitch n Bitch book or the other hats from SnB Nation.
Today, I made my first candles. Last weekend, I purchased a "starter kit" which contained 1 pound of palm wax, scent, dye, a pouring pitcher, three votive molds, nine votive wicks (all primed), and a thermometer. I also went to Goodwill and scored myself a used double boiler (for melting wax), some used metal utensils, and I found some nifty looking tins that could potentially be used for container candles at a later date.
The candles, I will say, were crap. They're hard, and they look all crystallized, and they only burn down the middle. I followed the directions exactly, but when I looked at my supplies vs. the instructions provided, they gave me enough dye and scent (which doesn't smell like much of anything), for 8lbs of wax. The dye and the scent are divided in to four squares, one square being for 2 lbs of wax. The instructions called out to use 1 square of dye/1 square of scent. So I ended up using twice the amount of dye and scent than I needed. The instructions said that the "kit" only had one square each of dye and scent. Next time I do this, I will buy a block of wax, my own dye, and my own scent. I also want to try gel candles.
I have a Flickr account where I will be posting my own pictures of the various things I've made. I suppose I should upgrade to the paid account and then I can have as many pictures as I want and organize them.
Later. I have to get to bed now.
My first scarf 3
Just thought I'd post a picture of my first scarf ever. This was knitted on Size 13 needles with Lion Brand Wool-Ease in Grass. As you can tell by the sides curling, it is done in stockinette stitch. I knitted this in April/May 2006.
Sunday, January 7, 2007
I Knit, Therefore I Am
Okay. This is supposed to be a place for me to bitch, but I am also getting very much into knitting and I also want to test the waters of candle making. So this might end up being a knitting blog more than me venting about the stuff in my life.
Right now, I am working on a scarf for my husband. It's not just any scarf, its a Dr. Who Scarf. Not just any Dr. Who Scarf, but the Season 16 Scarf. I think I might be biting a lot of, since this is a very long scarf, and this is something I will be working on for quite awhile. This is a project that will test anyone's patience, because the scarf, according to my husband, is over ten feet long and nothing but garter stitch throughout. The only thing that is keeping things interesting is the fact that there are so many color changes.
There are some differences between my version and the one in this pattern. When I went yarn shopping, the only place nearby that I could find the Lamb's Pride Nature Spun Sport Weight wanted almost four dollars a skein for it and this scarf calls out for a total of 23 skeins and I didn't have $92 to drop on yarn (being that it was close to Christmas and all.) So I did some hunting around online and in the local craft stores and other places that sell cheapo yarn. Herschnerr's sometimes has some good deals on yarns, but their selection is limited. The biggest problem I had was finding yarn in the correct size that matched the colors that are in the scarf.
So I ended up spending about 40 dollars at Hobby Lobby for some of the dreaded Red Heart Super Saver in Worsted weight, because that was the only brand that had all the colors I needed. I really, really wanted to do this with the proper size and proper fiber, but Hubby made me feel better when he said he didn't mind what yarn I used. He was just happy to be getting one that looked like the real deal. See, when he was younger, his mother took it upon herself to make a Dr. Who scarf, but she crocheted it and she didn't bother to find out what the correct colors were or what the pattern was. (But then again, she never bothers to ask any of us what we want for Christmas. She just buys whatever she thinks we want and she can't comprehend that if she doesn't want us to return what she buys us, then maybe she should actually buy us something we'd actually use. I have gift cards to places I don't shop at, because she won't ask what kinds of places I'd like to shop at. But I digress.) So, DH had this albatross of a Dr. Who scarf hanging around his neck that he was embarrassed to wear in front of his geek friends.
This scarf, I should mention, was something I originally wanted to knit for him as a surprise, but given the size and scope of this project, there was no way I could hide the materials from him or do it when he wasn't around. So I told him I wanted to do it.
Anyway, besides using the squeaky, acrylic yarn (which, now that I think about it, is probably not such a bad thing for a scarf this long, since I shudder to think about how difficult it would be to block out this thing when it's done), I had to alter the pattern to CO (cast on) 50 stitches on a size 6 needle to obtain gauge.
I don't have a picture yet, mainly because I'm not feeling very well today, but I will post pictures of my progress soon.
Right now, I am working on a scarf for my husband. It's not just any scarf, its a Dr. Who Scarf. Not just any Dr. Who Scarf, but the Season 16 Scarf. I think I might be biting a lot of, since this is a very long scarf, and this is something I will be working on for quite awhile. This is a project that will test anyone's patience, because the scarf, according to my husband, is over ten feet long and nothing but garter stitch throughout. The only thing that is keeping things interesting is the fact that there are so many color changes.
There are some differences between my version and the one in this pattern. When I went yarn shopping, the only place nearby that I could find the Lamb's Pride Nature Spun Sport Weight wanted almost four dollars a skein for it and this scarf calls out for a total of 23 skeins and I didn't have $92 to drop on yarn (being that it was close to Christmas and all.) So I did some hunting around online and in the local craft stores and other places that sell cheapo yarn. Herschnerr's sometimes has some good deals on yarns, but their selection is limited. The biggest problem I had was finding yarn in the correct size that matched the colors that are in the scarf.
So I ended up spending about 40 dollars at Hobby Lobby for some of the dreaded Red Heart Super Saver in Worsted weight, because that was the only brand that had all the colors I needed. I really, really wanted to do this with the proper size and proper fiber, but Hubby made me feel better when he said he didn't mind what yarn I used. He was just happy to be getting one that looked like the real deal. See, when he was younger, his mother took it upon herself to make a Dr. Who scarf, but she crocheted it and she didn't bother to find out what the correct colors were or what the pattern was. (But then again, she never bothers to ask any of us what we want for Christmas. She just buys whatever she thinks we want and she can't comprehend that if she doesn't want us to return what she buys us, then maybe she should actually buy us something we'd actually use. I have gift cards to places I don't shop at, because she won't ask what kinds of places I'd like to shop at. But I digress.) So, DH had this albatross of a Dr. Who scarf hanging around his neck that he was embarrassed to wear in front of his geek friends.
This scarf, I should mention, was something I originally wanted to knit for him as a surprise, but given the size and scope of this project, there was no way I could hide the materials from him or do it when he wasn't around. So I told him I wanted to do it.
Anyway, besides using the squeaky, acrylic yarn (which, now that I think about it, is probably not such a bad thing for a scarf this long, since I shudder to think about how difficult it would be to block out this thing when it's done), I had to alter the pattern to CO (cast on) 50 stitches on a size 6 needle to obtain gauge.
I don't have a picture yet, mainly because I'm not feeling very well today, but I will post pictures of my progress soon.
Monday, January 1, 2007
Embracing My Inner Narcissist
My name is Ms. Ann O'Malley. Actually, that's not my real name. Ann O'Malley is a pseudonym, a play on words, if you will. I will leave you to figure out what words I am playing with.
This is not my first blog. I've actually been blogging for over 5 years, most of that on my own domain, using a blog engine I installed and tweaked myself, designing my blog's clothes myself, too. I decided to stop blogging on my own domain and become anonymous. Why? Mainly because of my job. I'm also very anti-social and don't like dealing with people much. People suck.
I've also become very lazy over the past couple of years. I don't have the time nor the desire to maintain and design a blog on my own domain. I've got more important things to do.
Some people are snobby enough to proclaim that people who use something like Blogger and use Blog*spot instead of their own domain are a bunch of fucking snobs. Fuck them. You're posting words on the internet. Get the fuck over yourself already. Bloggers are nothing more than a bunch of narcissistic attention whores with an over inflated sense of self importance.
So why am I doing this? Why risk being called a hypocrite? I need a place to vent and to express myself creatively where I don't have to censor myself because someone from work might have found my blog or risking offending someone. For quite a few years, I've had to bite my tongue because I was part of a community that tended to lean in the opposite direction I tended to lean when it came to things like politics and religion. I'm tired of censoring myself. I'm sad, though, that it comes down to doing something like this because of a bunch of shrill harpies with no lives other than the internet.
For anyone who actually finds this and wants to comment, it's open. I don't expect anyone to see this, since this is not listed. I think I enabled comments for anyone. If not, oh well. I'm too damned lazy to change it.
Some things you should know about me:
This is not my first blog. I've actually been blogging for over 5 years, most of that on my own domain, using a blog engine I installed and tweaked myself, designing my blog's clothes myself, too. I decided to stop blogging on my own domain and become anonymous. Why? Mainly because of my job. I'm also very anti-social and don't like dealing with people much. People suck.
I've also become very lazy over the past couple of years. I don't have the time nor the desire to maintain and design a blog on my own domain. I've got more important things to do.
Some people are snobby enough to proclaim that people who use something like Blogger and use Blog*spot instead of their own domain are a bunch of fucking snobs. Fuck them. You're posting words on the internet. Get the fuck over yourself already. Bloggers are nothing more than a bunch of narcissistic attention whores with an over inflated sense of self importance.
So why am I doing this? Why risk being called a hypocrite? I need a place to vent and to express myself creatively where I don't have to censor myself because someone from work might have found my blog or risking offending someone. For quite a few years, I've had to bite my tongue because I was part of a community that tended to lean in the opposite direction I tended to lean when it came to things like politics and religion. I'm tired of censoring myself. I'm sad, though, that it comes down to doing something like this because of a bunch of shrill harpies with no lives other than the internet.
For anyone who actually finds this and wants to comment, it's open. I don't expect anyone to see this, since this is not listed. I think I enabled comments for anyone. If not, oh well. I'm too damned lazy to change it.
Some things you should know about me:
- I rant a lot.
- I swear a lot.
- I spout my opinions whether they are popular or not. I don't care if they're popular or not. They're my opinions, and if you don't like my opinions or the fact that I spout them, then you're in the wrong place. Don't let your browser's back button hit you in the ass on the way out.
- I hate sheep. Not the animal. I hate people with the sheep mentality. I wasn't born to follow everyone else. I have a mind of my own and for some reason, this scares the shit out of people. I've alienated myself from other groups of people because I refused to follow what everyone else was doing. I've lost people who I thought were friends because I took an unpopular stand on something. I don't care that I lost them as friends. I believe that if someone around you can't respect your right to your own opinion, then to hell with them. I can sleep at night knowing that I took an unpopular stand or stood up for a friend. How do you people sleep? I believe that it is in my DNA to rebel.
- I am cynical.
- I am a natural born skeptic.
- I question authority.
- I don't give a shit what you think of me, either.
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