Miscellany

My quest for a true craft-room continues.

I finally managed to sell off the Bowflex that some of you might have noticed lurking in the background of the Craft Room photos. This freed up much needed book space!

Once I had all my knitting books organized, it was off to Target for some Simply Shabby Chic containers. I am so madly in love with Target, and that line of stuff fits my house so well. They have a bunch of different style containers that are perfect for different needles. I even got something (not pictured) that sorts my DPNs! Brilliant! The random circulars are in the box on top, straights in the box on bottom, and the cloth container to the left is the official WIP box. Sorry, I've got a few top secret projects, so no photos of what's inside for now...

In a moment of rare organizing frenzy, I even finally got around to putting all my loose paper patterns in a binder - in sheet protectors no less. I suspect I may have been hormonal...

Here's a photo so you can see the full-on YARN CORNER!

Everything knit-related in one spot. I can't begin to tell you how happy that makes me.

Now, the more observant of my readers may be noticing that very... colourful.. poster in the background. Forgive the knitting deviation, because I love to talk about this thing.

Way back when, when Jeanne and I were fledglings at community college, I used to spend quite a lot of time in the local library. On their third floor, they had an ongoing booksale - most paperbacks were 25 cents a piece. For whatever reason, this library had a disproportionate amount of bodice-ripper covered romance novels for sale (please note - I love romance novels, I loathe only the super clinch covers; this is in no way a stab at romance novels or authors :)). Somewhere in my demented college brain, an idea began to form...

Cut to a week later, where Jeanne and I buy about 20 books from the extremely amused librarian. She didn't ask what we were going to do, we didn't tell. We spend an afternoon cutting off covers and arranging them to our liking. We confronted difficult existential questions such as: do we put all the pirates together? a line just for Indian-themed romances? do we put all the "Savage" titles together or sprinkle them throughout? A little duct-tape, and we had a poster.

Of course, a duct taped poster doesn't look very good, even for an ironic craft-project. So we had it framed. To recap: 20 books at 25 cents a piece... 5 bucks. Getting the sucker framed? 60 bucks. The looks on the faces of the people at the framing shop? PRICELESS.

So now I am the proud owner of a $65 romance novel cover poster, and I love it.

Anyway, back to the knitting. I've finally gotten around to working on the February (really March) sock kit from Socks that Rock. Tales of needle sizing woe had kept me away, and the first time I tried to knit it with the recommended size needles, I got a toe that would have fit Bigfoot. I tried again, using size 0s until the heel and leg, and got this:

Back heel shot:

It's gorgeous, but damn is it hard to get that leg over my heel. Least. Stretchy. Cable. EVER. Still, it's a reasonably fun pattern (although I have no desire to knit a sock on 0s ever EVER again), and I'm already working on the second one. It's interesting to see how the colours start to spiral once the needle size changes.

Finally, (and boy isn't this a long-winded post), a hint of the Project of Madness:


Looks innocuous, doesn't it? A simple little cabled sweater... Google "Morrigan Sweater," (it's from No Sheep For You) and then come back.

Back yet?

Have I ever mentioned how much I HATE cabling?

I'm doomed.

Coming soon: Why the hell I took on this crazy project, and hopefully more socks!