Winner! And Christmas Knitting!

Congrats to cthulhulovesme - winner of the sock contest. Email me your snail mail address and I'll get your goodies in the mail!

I still have finished knits to blog about, but I'm taking a break to talk about my Christmas knitting, 'cause let's face it, if I don't do it now, it'll be January that I'm showing you this stuff. Actually, I can't even show it to you today, since I haven't taken any pictures yet.....anyway...

I've got several things finished that I can't show you (nosy blog readers, ya know!), but there are a few we can talk about. 

Our lovely new neighbors moved down from Chicago last winter, and have two boys - I'm knitting the football hat from Itty Bitty Hats and the Teddy Bear Hood from Kid's Knits for Heads Hands and Toes - they'll both have bears hats! :) 

And I've got this nutzo idea that I can finish two pairs of socks and a sweater for hubby in less than two weeks. One pair of socks has 1 1/2 socks complete and one only has 1/2 sock done. The sweater has the back, two fronts and 1/2 a sleeve done - I think it's doable! 

And then there's my Bristow sweater that I would love to have done to wear on Christmas - we'll see.....

And they're not gifts, but I'm finishing up the Snowman hat from Itty Bitty hats for The Bug (bambino) and some Reindeer booties. I have her Christmas dress and sweater done, I'll show those next time.

And I've matched socks to patterns, and I'll talk more about them soon (hopefully). Off to knit!

Project Ideas and a contest!

I've got more FOs to post, but tonight I need your thoughts. I really, really, really want to do the whole knit a sweater a month for a year, but that's probably just a smidge unrealistic since I have a baby who might demand some attention. I may however, still try, 'cause I'm nothing if not a follower and I have the yarn for at least 40 sweaters in my stash. Yikes. 

But, to "console" myself, I'm going to take on two other projects. For the first project I'll be pulling single balls (or two) of yarn out of the stash, matching it with projects, and bagging up 12 projects, (one for each month) to open the first of the month and knit up. I have the yarns and projects chosen for this venture. 

The second nutzo project will be 12 months of socks. I'm narrowing down my list of sock yarn, but I have too many projects in my ravelry queue to choose. So I need your input.  The yarns I'm considering are listed below. Choose one yarn and pick a sock pattern to go with it. Leave your suggestions in the comments and I'll randomly choose a winner. And no plain old socks - I knit plenty of those. I want patterns, people! Contest closes at midnight CST Friday night. Thanks for your help!

Yarns: 

Socks that Rock Lightweight - varigated

Chewy Spaghetti - varigated

Cider Moon Icicle - varigated

Colinette Jitterbug - solid

Fleece Artist - varigated

Hazel Knits - solid

Knitterly Things Vesper - striping

Koigu - varigated

Madelinetosh - solid

Malabrigo sock - solid

ShibuiKnits - solid

Wollmeise - varigated

Yartini - varigated/striping

Zen Yarn Garden - varigated

Where's the baby?

I've got lots to share, but I wanted to get the baby contest posted, before she arrives! Leave a comment with your guess of date, weight, and length and the winner will receive a prize (knitters and non-knitters are free to enter - I can come up with separate prizes!). Just to be fair - my due date is September 20, and I am not dilated yet.
So - enter away! More to come this week - so long as baby holds off!

In like a Lion

March is here, and with it, my first spring cold. With left me with little energy to knit all weekend. I did finish one project, but you will have to wait for pictures until it has been blocked. But, I did count up the number of projects I took and we have a winner!

I took 18 projects, so with a guess of 17 Chris is the winner!

I hope to be back soon with March goals and whatnot, but I've got to take my congested self off to bed now.

Ketchup

I really have been knitting! Need proof?


Pattern: My generic 72 st sock with heel flap and gusset.
Needles: Chiagoo sz 2.25 mm DPNs
Yarn: Scout's Swag in Zuluknitty.
Dates: Um, September 2007-February 1, 2008.
Mods: none
Thoughts: I love these socks. I love the colors. I love how they sort-of stripe. I LOVE the base yarn. I've worn them twice and it'd be more if I did more laundry. Love. Go get some yarn people. Run! Now I really want to knit up my other two skeins of Scouty-goodness. Yum.



Pattern: Improvised hat - basic hat pattern with garter border.
Yarn: Mission Falls 1824 Superwash wool in the new tricolor.
Needles: Sz 7 or 8 Clover bamboo DPNs
Dates: January 2008-February 1, 2008.
Mods: Hubby really wanted an earflap hat, so that was the original intent. However, after I'd finished the hat part, and was going to go back and add the flaps, he decided he liked it the way it was. Voila!
Thoughts: Love this yarn too - so squishy!



Pattern: Fingerless gloves from Weekend Knitting - Ann Budd
Yarn: Knitpicks Wool of the Andes in Mist - about 1.5 skeins
Needles: Sz 7 or 8 Clover bamboo circulars
Dates: January 2008-February 1, 2008
Mods: None!
Thoughts: He seems to really like them and has worn them on the few cold days we've had.


Pattern: 1x1 ribbed scarf, inspired by all the other ones in the world.
Yarn: Noro Silk Garden, and I can't remember the two colors.
Needles: Sz 8 Clover Bamboo
Dates: October 2007-February 25, 2008
Mods: None
Thoughts: Don't know why it took me so long to finish, but I love it. My only complaint was with one ball of Silk Garden that kept pulling apart, leaving me with way too many extra ends. Wore it today and got tons of compliments. It really is pretty.


OK! Now that I'm all caught up with FOs, I wanted to share some fun with you. My LYS is having a retreat this weekend. All knitting, all the time. I'm really hoping to come home with some more finished objects. But a little wager has arisen. Apparently there is a pool to see how many projects I will bring. Funny, right?

In keeping with all fairness, I think y'all should get a shot at a prize too. So, you are invited to take your own guess, and the winner will receive a little goodie from the stash. To keep it fair, let me tell you that I currently have 40 WIPs. I hope to finish up two of those before we leave, but no promises. However, there is always the possibility that I will start new projects (at least I can admit this, right?).

TO PLAY:
EMAIL your guess to knitnlit AT gmail DOT com, with the subject line CONTEST. I will not open those emails until I get home on Sunday night. The contest will close at 4 pm CDT Sunday afternoon. Please do not leave guesses in the comments - I will see those, and I don't want to be swayed! :) And, if you know me IRL, you are welcome to play along too.

I think this post is long enough, perhaps I'll be back tomorrow to show you some of the new projects I've started recently, but it'll more likely be next week. Until then, happy guessing!

Single Sock Seeks Same

I've started to worry that I've accidentally joined the Single Sock Liberation Movement. Although I am in great company, I was not expecting this detour.

Fortunately, I managed to finish a pair this week.



Pattern: generic top-down sock
Yarn: Lang Jawoll - 2 skeins
Needles: Sz 2.25mm ChiaGoo DPNs
Mods: n/a
Thoughts: I'm not a huge fan of this yarn. I'm not sure why exactly I don't like it, but it may have something to do with the "superwash" (though I've used other superwash wools before and they haven't felt like this).

I made no attempt to match the stripes, so I'm pretty pleased that they're close.

Not to worry single sockers, I've got more single socks en route!


Oh, and I suppose you want to know about the countertops? The are indeed concrete (can't sneak anything past y'all!) and my random number generator (hubbo) choose Louise! Congrats Louise - email me with your address so I can ship out your box. Unfortunately, I don't have any good shots of the kitchen, so you will have to wait a tiny bit longer. I'll try to take lots tomorrow!

Eye Candy Friday (and a contest!)

It's been too long since we've had any good eye candy. How 'bout some yarn porn?


The Knittery Merino Cashmere, Yarntini, and Gypsy Knits, all from The Loopy Ewe. I may have to buy some new sock needles to take advantage of this goodness!

And what's that I spy they're laying on?



Could it be a countertop?

But what kind of countertop is it? (And if you already know, please don't ruin it for everyone else!)

Submit your guesses by midnight CDT on Monday August 6. If more than one person guesses the correct answer, I'll draw a name. What do you win? Dishcloth cotton, of course!

We have a winner!

Carol c'mon down! Carol - email me your address so you can get your goodies!

I entered everyone who put some shade of green into the basket - it's really hard to determine which shade is exactly correct, but according to Behr it is Grass Cloth.


And look, there are two cabinets up! Woo Hoo!

BTW - I think it is totally weird that both Stephanie and I are painting our kitchens almost the same color! What are the odds?

Must run - we're off to see Harry Potter at midnight! Dorks!

Kitchen contest!

First, an update.


All of the joint compound has been applied, and the texture is done (more is done than the picture shows). This is all that has been done this week though. :(

We are hoping to have the cabinets installed this week, and to do floors, and perhaps countertops next weekend. Fingers crossed that things start to move more quickly.


Now, the contest!

We painted the kitchen today. What color did we paint it? Guesses should be detailed - just guessing white (as an example) may not be good enough. The more detailed you are, the better chance you have of winning! (I'll give you a hint - we used Behr paint.)

In the event that more one than person guesses correctly (or close to correctly), I'll draw a name.

What can we win? Dishcloth cotton, of course, for your own mini kitchen makeover! (Non-knitters - if you win I'll come up with a different prize.)

The contest will close at midnight PST Monday, July 9. Winner (and paint color!) announced on Tuesday.

If you happen to know what color it is, please, don't ruin it for everyone else! I'm looking at you friends and family whom I may have told!