Crossed the finish line

Well folks, it's official!  I have finished my Olympic knitting challenge with days to spare.  This year I challenged myself to a pair of color work knee high socks.  I wanted to improve my color work skills and I'm pretty sure I accomplished that.  These socks really flew off the needles although I feel like the second ones took longer because I kept misreading the chart and having to rip back a needle or two and redo it. 

When I first saw this pattern my initial reaction was "I have to have these" and "Wow, it only takes that much yarn?"  I have enough yarn leftover to make several hexipuffs for my Beekeeper's Quilt so it's a double win.

I do not have a great picture of the back yet.  It's a little difficult to photograph your calves by yourself.  :)

I really think I could have knit the entire sock on size 2 needles.  You can't see it from here, but my left toe is a little loosey.  This pattern was nicely written, it was easy to follow and even if I hadn't been against the clock, I think it would have been fast anyhow.  :D

Olympic Knitting Day 12

I feel like this second sock is taking forever even though i have only been working on it for a few days.  I really shouldn't complain as it is a hand's width away from the heel.  I feel like if I have the colorwork done by Wednesday night I can easily finish my sock before closing ceremonies on Sunday!

Knitting Olympics Week 1

Well I've wrapped up the first week of the Olympics with one finished sock and am several inches into number 2.  :)

Finished sock; it fits and I really love it!

WIP sock #2.  It took me a little push to get into it.  It isn't so much second sock syndrome as my fingers were a little fumbly with the 4 needles again.  Everything about sock knitting is super about balance!

I've had a lot of fun cheering on our swimmers and gymnasts this week and look forward to the track events!

Olympics Day 7

I wasn't able to work a lot on my sock today, reality got in the way :D  But I was able to finish the heel and start work on the gusset.  Unfortunately my elbow has been bothering me (perhaps marathon hours of knitting?  :D ) so I called it an early night for knitting.

I feel like my body has been being a poop this week.  First what I'm pretty sure are shin splints and now my elbow.  Luckily they are things that get better with some rest and a little relaxing, but it sure makes me feel a little old :)

Olympics Day 6

My sock has been flying off the needles quite rapidly.  I am really excited about it.  :)  Here is my progress as of today!

Olympics Day 3

I've been glued to my TV today watching the Olympics.  :)  My favorites from today so far have been the rookie beach volleyball girls.  They did fantastic!  I also watched my first ever water polo match (okay, watch is giving me waaaay too much credit; it was on and I flicked my eyes in its general direction a few times).  Synchronized swimming was awesome, a few swimming trials and of course, gymnastics.

I joked to my husband that knitting intarsia during the Olympics makes it difficult to always watch when I want to.  So I have to plan my breaks a bit and be cognizant of what is coming up to catch the good stuff.  But I've been making do, take a peek!

It even fits!  :)

There are a few spots of tighter knitting but overall it is turning out better than I hoped!

Beekeeper's Quilt

So I decided that I am crazy enough to try my hand at the Beekeeper's Quilt.  I hemmed and I hawed and I drooled over all the other finished projects and their beautiful various combinations.  What got me in the end is that while it's a big endeavor, it's also one that can be done in small chunks and then piece by piece put together without ever having to sit down for one giant pain in the butt seaming session.  (I could never do a quilt I think; I could put all the small parts together, but I'd lose it once it came to sewing the whole queen sized thing together)

I have about 10 hexipuffs done and today I put together a little cluster.  I'm lucky that I have enough odd bits of yarn to create color clusters that go together.  My first happen to be a pink/purply combo with a taupe middle.

Right now my second cluster are blues but I might be a little more hardpressed to find the right weight yarn to make a lot.  I have enough for the three 'main colors' but the off ones be  need some help.  I know that these are supposed to be made out of scraps of yarn, but I'm a little tempted to order lots of sock yarn from KnitPicks and just go to town.  :D

Also, outfit of the day!

Oh I suppose last last thing.  :D  While out shopping with a girlfriend yesterday I realized that sometimes no amount of sucking it in will ever make a super cute clingy leopard print jersey dress ever look good on this post-baby body.  I think the only time I could have pulled it off was in highschool.  :D  I'm officially too old for the junior's section :D  The plus side is that my skirt collection increased by 2 :)

Outfit of the Day and FO!

There's something to be said for running around in sweats in the morning at the park and then getting prettied up for later.  Especially on a hot summer day when skirts feel like a cool must.  :D

I used to wear necklaces all the time, but it feels like I don't wear them as much.  I bought this fun necklace last summer from Etsy. 

Last night I also finished a cotton summer dress for Little Miss.  It's a little on the big side but I'm hoping it will shrink a bit in the wash (100% cotton yarn!) and it'll fit for awhile at least.  She can always wear a tee under it as well.

It's from a Lion Brand pattern.  Normally I dislike knitting flat and then seaming, but when I started this dress I wasn't in the mood for trying to put it all together :D  While seaming up the sides I added inside pockets instead of doing them on the outside.  I also thought it would be fun to have the pockets knit in the contrasting color.  It was a really quick knit and I'd love to knit her a collection of them seeing as she lives in dresses this summer.  :)

April Wrap up

It hasn't hit  me like a ton of bricks yet that in 19 days (O.o!) there will be no more school, it will officially be summer, it will be three months of children 24/7, it will be three months before one starts kindergarten and the other begins her foray into the education system and three months of what I hope to be some sort of calming down.  I mean summer is all about relaxing, right?  (I hear you laughing in the background :D )

I keep thinking that summer is going to be filled with nonstop activity but really...it's pretty tame in comparison to some people I know.  A few days to celebrate my cousin's wedding,Vacation Bible School, a week of camping, my SIL's wedding...not too much traveling and insanity. 

As you know last week I finished up a sweater and needed something to occupy my hands on the drive out of town Saturday.  I had one leftover skein of Knit Picks Full Circle wool that was just begging to be made into a hat.  I figured why not.  I had already used its other sad leftover half skein to make a Cabbage Patch sweater (I will put the bare bones instructions in another post).

Awhile back I had knit Tiny Owl Knits pattern Orchids and Fairy Lights.  It's a beautiful pattern and I just didn't have enough yarn to do it justice.  It worked okay, but I think I only did half the amount of repeats needed and so it is more of a beret than a beanie.

Original

New version

Looks way better, right?

So now I have no guilt about throwing myself into an intense shawl pattern :D  I also have heard from my friend about what kind of baby sweater she'd prefer and so I'll be peeking around on KnitPicks for a washable yarn since it'd be silly to give her a newborn sweater that will felt :D  Oh!  And I finally got a better picture of my last sweater.  With buttons!  :D