Holiday Knitting

I'm trying to create a mostly Handmade Holiday here, and have quite a few things in various stages of completion.  Of course, I have no pictures right now, and it is grey and rainy outside, so I don't think pictures will be coming this morning.  But for my own list-loving heart (and the hope that on January 1st, I will look at this list and have everything on it finished) here is a summary of what I hope to accomplish this month:

• Snowflake Hat
• Snowman Hat
• Cars Hat (2)
• Rosebud Hat
• Fish Hat (3?)
• Mad Bomber Hat
• Socks for Layne
• Stockings (2)
• Fetching Mitts in purple
• Gold Scarf for Mom

Now, all of these save two have been started and several only need some finishing so I don't think I am completely crazy.  Just a little crazy.  But I only have one more paper to write for class and then I will be finished with that.  I will have lots of devoted knitting time in about a week.  This looks doable.  Maybe.

And I will finish with a gratuitous Fluffy Dog Picture:

Finished!

One more project off the needles!  I give you my first pair of Toe Up Socks:

 These are the Diagonal Lace Socks by Wendy Johnson from the book Socks from the Toe Up.  It is also available--for free!-- on Ravelry.

What I learned:
*  Judy's Magic Cast On.  Love this, and it truly does seem to be magic.  Although since this is my first pair of toe-up socks, I have really no other cast on to compare it to.
*  Jenny's Surprisingly Stretchy Bind Off.  This is awesome, and so simple. 
*  There are different ways to M1, depending on if you want a right-leaning or left-leaning increase.  Now, the pattern does not state this.  It just says to M1.  So I did, but halfway through the first toe, it looked kind of messy.  I did some Googling and figured it out, which is good because you need to increase for the heels.  I don't know why this didn't occur to me, as I know that decreases are paired, but it didn't. 
*  I kind of don't like M1s.  They are fiddly, and I am not used to the motion so I feel like I'm not really smooth at them.  I'm sure I'll get used to them, but right now they are a new skill and it usually takes me a little while to warm up to a new skill.

I also mirrored the lace pattern on the second sock, so the diagonals face opposite directions as opposed to both socks leaning one way.  Overall, I like the socks and am happy with the way they turned out.  I'm not sure if I will keep these for myself or gift them at the holidays.  It really depends on how much more knitting I get done!

Don't you love it...

...when this:

becomes this:

The yarn is Malabrigo Rios and I love the Glazed Carrot color so much that I am thinking of knitting a vest for myself in it.  I've wanted an orange vest for some time now, and this might just do the trick.  What I've been wanting is an orange puffer vest, but I think a lovely v-neck in this would actually be better than that.  However, my yarn budget has been blown for this month, so I must wait until next month and hope that my yarn store still has about five skeins of this amazing color left for me.

Trying this again

Goal: going forward, to update blog with some any frequency.  So, to start, I finish with a gratuitous cute picture of a little fluffy dog.

This is Fred, sitting on a table.  I'm not sure when this became acceptable behavior in the house, but this isn't the first time he's done it.  It isn't even the first picture I have of it.  And Fred isn't even the only dog who does it (although he is the only dog who does it on this particular table--right next to the yarn.  After his Peep's heart, I tell you.)  But here it is, Fred on a table.

Harry Potter Yarn!

I am so excited to to get this yarn!  These are the Lorna's Laces Shepard Sock Limited Edition colorways int he Harry Potter Houses of Hogwarts inspired colors, and the Voldemort color.  There is a lot of grey in all the colorways, which is very fitting.  It really does remind me of the house colors against a castle wall.  The colors in the picture are fairly true to life.  They are, from left to right, Loyalty, Ambition, Bravery, Intelligence, and He Who Must Not Be Named.

Now I have to find just the right pattern for each color...

Staying up way past my bedtime

Tonight, in celebration of Mike's birthday (and my HP obsession) we are going to the midnight showing of Harry Potter.  It means being up later than I have been up in years.  It means that I had to take a nap this afternoon.  And it means that I will probably feel the effects of the lack of sleep for two days.  But I am so super excited, I can barely stand it!

I worked in a bookstore when one of the books (Half-Blood Prince) was released, and the store hosted a huge 'after hours' party for kids.  The store stayed open past midnight to open the boxes of Harry Potter books (even the boxes had the Harry Potter logo on them, spelled with the iconic lightning bolts), and we had stations set up where kids could play different games while they waited for midnight.  Everyone was excited, and I'm sure many many kids stayed up all night to find out what happened to Harry and the rest. 

And now, well, like the tag line on the movie posters reads, it all ends.  Sigh. 

Another Attempt

Okay, I'm trying this again.  Blogging, that is.

Mike is deploying, and I figure that this will be a good way for him to see what I'm up to while he is away.  Crossing my fingers that it will 'take' this time.