Another FO!

I can't believe I finished another project! Check out my Spiral Hat (101 Designer One-Skein Wonders)! It was fun to knit plus the yarn was super dreamy. If you haven't knit with Dream in Color. I highly recommend it. The colors are gorgeous! The worsted weight is called Classy. I should note, however, that I haven't washed my hat yet, so you will have to wait and see how well the color holds.

This hat brings my total FOs of the months to SEVEN! This is all thanks to the Harry Potter Knitting/Crochet House Cup on Ravelry. I was hoping to knit 52 projects in 2009, and it now looks like that might actually happen! I think I will definitely pull through since my OWL consists of 20 Mason-Dixon Washcloths. If I only knit 1 project in June (real life might get in the way of House Cup knitting) and six projects again in July (for my 6 classes), I will have knit 34 items for the House Cup! Wow. I guess I need to go buy more yarn! ;)

Color Stranding Here I Come

I just knit my very first color stranding project! This this little baby hat turned out well, I am inspired to knit the Knit Picks Andean Chullo hat kit I purchased a few months ago.

I started knitting this hat at the perfect time too. I found out recently that my friend's wife is pregnant! I foresee myself knitting more baby stuff in the near future. I do feel limited by knitting only lightweight non-wool items though, since the family lives in Florida though. Hmmm.

Look At That Girl Go!

Wow, I can't believe how much the Harry Potter Knitting/Crochet House Cup is keeping me motivated to knit! I have made 4 projects this month and I am planning on finishing 3 more projects before the end of the month! I am really loving seeing the finished products. Here is a little Gryffindor Bookmark I knit from Charmed Knits. I left off the fringe, because I detest making fringe. I always seem to make a mess and the product always seems bunched and sloppy. I knit the bookmark in worsted weight, so it is too bulky for most of my (fiction) books, but it is perfect for textbooks and other books, which I am not concerned about putting force on the binding.

Felting Is Fun!

Last night I finished my very first felted project! I made a Royal Crown for my Ancient Runes class for the Harry Potter Knitting/Crochet House Cup. I was super nervous about the whole felting process. I was concerned that (1) the project wouldn't felt too well and I would have to wash the project a couple of times (which would have been expensive since I pay by the load at my complex), (2) I would break the washer with excess lint (yes, the project was in a zippered bag that had a safety pin holding the zipper and a rubber band tying the bag tight, but I was still concerned), and (3) the tennis balls I put in the washer would go crazy and bounce out of the washer. Yeah, none of my worries came true. Maybe I should stop worrying about zombies taking over the world.

Anyway, felting is so much fun! I highly recommend it! I am now inspired to finish my Christmas Rainbow Surprise stocking (all I need to do is the stupid i-cord, I hate i-cord, it is so boring). I want to see the project shrink and be super cute like my crown.

Keeping Up with Class

As I blogged about previously, I have been quite busy with classwork for the Harry Potter Knitting/Crochet House Cup on Ravelry. This group has really lit that fire beneath me to not only start projects but to finish them! I have been working on a few exciting numbers including the Hurry Up Spring! Armwarmers. I am loving this project. I remember when I first saw this pattern in Stitch 'n Bitch Nation, I thought I would never be able to knit them. A year or so later, I bought the Noro yarn for the project, but I still only looked at the pattern in awe. This pattern had several intimidating factors to it including having to knit 2 similar objects and having to knit thumb gussets (what in the world is a thumb gusset? I kept asking myself). Well, it has been about 4 years since I first looked at the pattern, I knit one armwarmer. Parts of the pattern are challenging (I do need to doublecheck the pattern chart with every cable, so I make sure if I am supposed to have the cable needle in front or behind), but it is doable. I must admit that I keep putting on the one armwarmer and admiring my handiwork. I can't wait to see what "impossible project" I decide to knit next!

The Times They Are A Changin'

If you asked me two weeks ago how I felt about KALs, I would have said they are good for some people, but not for me. Normally, I can't keep up with them (if there is a deadline) or I immediately tire of the project at hand (nothing is more aversive for me than everyone knitting the same thing). Well, I must admit that my tune has changed thanks to the Harry Potter Knitting/Crochet House Cup on Ravelry. I think a healthy dose of competition is encouraging me to knit like the wind. I finished my Bella's Fingerless Mittens yesterday and am now starting the Hurry Up It's Spring Armwarmers. I just keep thinking about how I can earn my house (Gryffindor) more house points.

Okay, enough chitchat! Back to knitting!

Thank Goodness It's Friday!

Phew! This has been a ridiculously long week. I returned to Gainesville at 3AM on Monday and proceeded to have a clinic assessment on Monday, my tbi (traumatic brain injury) final exam on Tuesday, and my multivariate statistics final exam on Wednesday. Oh yeah, and I had a stack of therapy patients throughout the week too. Anyway, now that the weekend is here I can focus on what is important, namely knitting. :) A few months ago, I joined the Harry Potter Knitting/Crochet House Cup on Ravelry. Today was the first day of the (summer) semester. I joined the Muggle Studies class and am now working on Bella's Fingerless Mittens. The assignment is to knit/crochet a project based on a muggle television or movie. For the five of you who don't know, Bella is a character in the Twilight book (and now movie) series. As someone who spends an obscene amount of time in heavily air conditioned buildings, these fingerless mittens will be a godsend this summer. The hotter it is outside, the colder it is inside.

Also, I promised some pictures from my latest Wool Girl Sock Club kit. Here is a picture of all the goodies! Ain't it awesome! The yarn is Curious Creek Fibers and there is a whopping 493 yards in that skein. I am excited to knit the kit's sock pattern, but I also want to buy some more and make other projects, since the color is gorgeous and has amazing yardage.