Gambling

no no i'm not gambling with money. But I'm taking chances.

So you see I finished Broadripple and currently have zero socks at hand. That WON'T do. How can I have no socks at hand!?

So then I want to try a few things. First I thought I want to try a Cookie A pattern, and then I also thought I wanted to use my Louet Gems. But there's a problem. The first pattern I queued from Cookie A is Gothic Spire (surprise surprise). I think the yarn and the pattern match, but I still think my Gothic Spire is a dark rich purple (or burgundy maybe), not French Blue.

On the other hand, I thought Scrolls in my queue would look great in French Blue. So... here's what I did.

Noro Kureyon Sock on Trystero so that I can try a Cookie A pattern.



And French Blue Louet Gems on Scrolls. Since I wanted to try out the Louet.



As you can see I'm taking a huge gamble here. Firstly I don't know how Trystero will turn out with Noro. I have no idea how the colors would work either.

Secondly, I'm knitting two socks at once, toe up on two circs with Scrolls. (Louise!~ two socks, toe up, two circs!!) Considering that I did half my work on Broadripple on two circs, and that's all, it's a huge gamble I say. Plus, this is toe up. For the record I haven't finished a single pair of socks from toe up in my short knitting history. I took an extremely long time casting this one on. For some reason my fig 8 cast ons were very ugly. It's not as nice and neat as the first time I've done it (on a sock i never finished). I spent a night and day at it, and my eyes were terribly sore by the time I was ok with them. For socks that had almost blinded me, they had better be finished!

I guess I've never been exactly the reserved sort, and would probably attempt to bungee jump and knit at the same time one day. But I think this is a huge gamble and I sure hope the efforts pay off, so Sock On Ayu~

Broadripple

I've never changed needles so many times in a project. I started Broadripple with my Harmony dpns. I love the needles because they were so smooth and pointy~ They were the ones who helped me decide I should get the circ set too haha



And then subsequently I wanted to use a smaller size on the sole. This would prove to be difficult if I continued to use dpns because I will be carrying an extra needle around. Plus, I would need to use a different set because I won't be able to tell the Harmonies apart. So I thought I'd finish both socks to the heel, and put them on dpns, and then work them together.



I learnt a lot from this project because it's the first one I've done with two socks at a time. I still prefer the dpns, but now, with all my yarn entangling problems solved, I think I just might be able to finally finish my socks if they are on circs in future.



Broadripple is done with Cascade Fixation. It started on 3.25mm Harmony dpns, and is finished with 3mm (for heel and sole) and 3.25mm Addi Circulars. Broadripple is designed by Rob Matyska and the pattern is available here.

honeymoon cami

First of all, remember this kitty?



She might have found a new home! She's staying with her prospective family now and if all goes fine during the week, they will keep her! Let's keep our fingers crossed for her~~ :)

In the meantime, I've finished Honeymoon Cami.





Honeymoon Cami is designed by Julia Trice. The pattern is available here. This was made with Elann's Luna Endless Summer, with Knitpicks Harmonies, 4mm. :) More photos are available here.

meowth

This little kitty needs a home.



More info here and pictures here. Please help if you can! :)

on the needles...

Oh wait, look what came in my mail last friday.



:) I bought it from StuckinIllinois at etsy and it's just so cute! She's got lots of other cute bags there and look at the lining of the bag!



It's really spurring me on to finish my sock and start another project (yes ANOTHER! - but at least i'm trying to wait until I finish my current sock)

Right, anyways, finally I'm going to talk about some knitting and I'm still turning the heel on Broadripple. Susan has taught me a way to manage the two balls of yarn and not get the project tangled after every row. I've finished my Bunny but then I've started another project. Anouk is on my 'tv project' needles.



To be honest, I made this with Mang in mind. My mum has this strange perception that she'd (my cat not my mum) look cute in a little pink dress or a baby pink halter, and it's sorta filtered down to me. Ok this is not pink, but it's cute little dress all the same. The adjustable waist is a plus point but I realized yesterday that my cat comes in a bigger size. I have no idea how big a 3mth old baby is, and can't imagine a 6mth old. So, I just did the smallest size ever. The two pieces in the pattern are now joined and the collar is worked.

Another plus point about this dress is the pockets. I wanted to try som colorwork and the little bit on the pockets could get me started. I'm considering changing the pattern though. But I have no idea as to what it will be yet, so I'll be working on that next. If you have a suggestion for the design, please do leave me a comment. :)

In the meantime I might make the waist tabs first.

Bunny!

Finally. A knittin FO.



This pattern is really easy and the final product is absolutely beautiful!



I like how the stitches sort of intertwine with a bit of mohair in-between the gaps. The project also lightly drapes and the yarn is so very soft (and white) that I had to call my project Bunny.



Bunny is made with Sublime's Kid Mohair blend with Clover 5.1mm needles. More pictures here.

Elven Blue

I had a simple idea about leaves and flowers for a few days, but I haven't been able to get the leaf beads I saw previously. This started off as a simple ring.



Then since Princesse ended up a earrings and ring set, I thought: why not? So earrings followed.



A glimpse of the whole set

Princesse

There's been some beading going on around here; probably since I told Susan I'd bead 'on monday'. Well I didn't bead on monday but I did do something. SO in order not to overwhelm anyone, I'll just post one by one. (It also helps me post a little more regularly hehe)



I created Princesse when I saw a 'charm ring' in one of my magazines. It was placed on a miniature cat statue and believe me, I was looking at the figurine first. Since I don't have a little cat figurine to pose for me I shall take a picture of my not-very-nice finger.



The pearl beads are more purple than black, and it probably shows better in this picture.



It's the first time I'm using the swarovski rondelles and I guess I just like them a little too much to stop at one ring. Earrings soon followed.



And here's the set.



More to come!

New stuff!

No pictures of wips or fos. Not even of beading or tatting.

But I met mlc today for lunch. She brought little Isabel out and the baby was sleeping so very quietly, we weren't interrupted at all! It's good to see them both though, even if it's for a short while. :)

The reason why I met her today (instead of after 23rd Mar which I'm telling everyone) is because mlc sms-ed me yesterday telling me that she wanted to meet cinnabar, and that she's ready to come out to town with baby in tow. So yes, after my language classes would be a good time!

AND of course, my needles came with her!



Ahhh so much excitement!

I'm fighting the urge to start something new. Oh come on, I'm just trying out new needles right?

And btw I do like the new range of colors in Palette. Here's Golden Heather and Calypso Heather (Love the name!) respectively.





I think this started after I received one of the purpl-y heathers from rain during SP11. :)

As usual, mang isn't amused.

meme!

Kessa tagged me! :) So here goes another meme~~~ heh

These are the rules:

1. Link to the person that tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself.
4. Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
5. Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.

And here are the six non-important things/habits/quirks about myself. (I'll be sure not to repeat anything from the other two memes I did.)

1. I have a lot of lip gloss/balm. One (or more) in every bag, on every reachable surface at home, and a number in my drawer.

2. Although Chinese (or Mandarin rather) is my mother tongue and the language I first used, I started to find it increasingly difficult to converse in the language. It was so bad I almost replaced my second language (Chinese) with my third (French). I learnt German and a bit of Russian after that.

3. I like to pinch a little corner of clothing (or just any random cloth surface like a pillow case or a hem) and rub them together. I've been doing it subconciously for years until my mum told me about it when I was in primary school.

4. I've been a gamer since I was 5. Thanks to my parents who allowed my brother and I to game everyday for two hours (and longer if it's after exams) and exposed me to almost every kind of console available! :)

5. I have a lot of X-men (and X-men spin-offs) comics. But I stopped buying when Rogue started to get together with Magneto. Combined with my Manga, this collection is modest for hard-core collectors, but 'ALOT' according to my friends. (since they currently line my wall)

6. I also have a lot of books. I think the only stuff I don't really read is chick-lit. And er... cookbooks. I guess this is also why it's dangerous for me to walk into a bookstore as much as it is for me to walk into a game or yarn store.

Ok I tag (in no particular order) genevieve, susan, emily, rain, mlc and yvette!

Storm

I so wanted to make a ring all of a sudden and browsed through all the ring patterns I had for inspiration. It was so late yesterday and to be honest I was quite sleepy. So I decided what could use less brain power than those buncha-beads rings I see so often?



Ok I realize it was quite tedious but I did enjoy seeing how the ring grew. Storm is done with Light Gray and Black pearl beads, and Smoky Quartz.

Thank You Yvette!

Yvette nominated me for a Make My Day Award! Thank you, Yvette! I'm so honored!



The rule is as stated: Give the award to 10 people whose blogs bring you happiness and inspiration and make you feel happy about blogland. Let them know by posting a comment on their blog so they can pass it on. Beware you may get the award several times.

I had a long thought about this one since I really wanted to pass it on to people who have not seen this award before. If you look at Yvette's blog, this doesn't seem to have travelled much internationally. Some of my nominees are quite new to our circle too. Anyways without much further ado, here are the blogs that Make My Day!

barb

emily

genevieve

ing

hooknneedle

mlc

munyee

phuazzie

rain

ssedro

My So-Called Scarf

My So-Called Scarf done with Hamanaka's Granbia in 6.5mm Addi Turbos.

That's a bit of left over yarn to show the color variations.

I really love the yarn and have already bought more 'just in case' I find time to make a present for a friend! More pictures here.

(Antrelac)ements

HAPPY VALENTINES' EVERYONE!

I finished my vday project in time.

Here it is sans blocking.



Oh and because the yarn is so colorful, there are some parts which were totally not repeated and I am absolutely in love with this little mint triangle. The color only appeared once in all three balls and that makes it all the more special! Note: It doesn't look very minty here but it really is in person.



Here's the first part of the pair, just in case you've forgotten. It's also pictured (although not very well) here.



And here they are together



The reason why I'm calling them Antrelac is really because of our names. (how cheesy actually but well) I chose to do scarves this time for two reasons. One is of course I wanted to learn entrelac. And the other is I felt that I didn't actually make a proper scarf for AS. I mean yea, I did the dark blue one in Zhivago long ago but it felt more like a 'I should make a scarf' rather than something I really put my heart into, with the intention of gifting it. I guess.

Antrelac





Antrelac (pattern: Entrelac Scarf from Allison Knits)
Done with Rowan's Tapestry, Antrelac I in Leadmine and Antrelac II in Rainbow, with Clover 4.5mm circulars.

To the Guy who Exclaimed

Dear Mr. Man,

I am writing to inform you that it was not quite appropriate for you to yell about our knitting in a public place yesterday. And negatively too. Although we were not exactly upset, we were quite perturbed with your behavior. Please also note that your partner was quite embarrassed. Did you notice her sheepish smile? Did you also realize that she scurried away to place her orders because you exclaimed 'Crazy Asians! Knitting in this weather!' thus loudly?

I must apologize that I was confusing you by knitting a scarf. Perhaps I should have been knitting a breezy-looking tank. However, please realize that there are different kinds of materials yarn can be made of. Cotton, bamboo, nylon, silk and tencel are some of them. Not every ball of yarn on earth is made of wool, you know. Also, being Asian and sitting in an Asian coffeejoint doesn't mean that I'll be in the same hot and humid country 365 (+1 every four years) for the rest of my life. For your information, just like you, Asians like myself can travel too.

The data in DSW-Datareport 2006 show that out of the 15 most populous countries, 8 of them are Asian. Furthermore, Asia accounts for over 60% of the world's population. For more interesting information, please refer to the data here. The world today is very much globalized, and races do not label much anymore. If I may reiterate, people, just like yourself, travel.

In retrospect, I must admit that I have no idea where you have travelled from, and perhaps the heat must have spoilt your mood for the day. Do be informed, however, that you must have fellow countrymen/women who knit, and must be appalled if they heard of your biased comment. I urge you to think before you exclaim about crafters in future, for we knitters unite with our needles whether they are straights or circs or dpns, bamboo or metal or plastic, regardless of race, language or religion.

Yours Sincerely,
The 'Crazy' Asian Knitter

Beading around

Actually I'm very proud of my. first. tatted. earrings.

Tadaaa~~~~!

Flight of Fancy



And aside from this there are two other pairs of earrings

娃娃



娃娃 or 'Doll' is made with Russian Jade bead and silk tassels. This is just in time for the lunar new year heh!

Lilac Hints



I just wanted to try out the colored wires and play with an alternative form of wiring. So I came up with Lilac Hints.

And of course I have some bookmarks done. The other day while doing research, I realized I needed a few bookmarks.

Actually, a few of them.

AS also wanted one so, if I could find appropriate beads, I could make him some book thongs.


From top: Lagoon, Tribal and Tabbed.
All beads are glass beads. Lagoon is a metal squiggly bookmark; Tribal is leather-corded and Tabbed's a book thong made from double-satin ribbon.

And on the knitting front, I think I'm a bit paranoid. I have a bad feeling that I won't be able to finish my second Antrelac in time. Keeping fingers crossed but with the hike in research work these days, it's getting difficult.

Tats-it weekend~

I bought a Japanese Tatting book the other day, and went tatting over the weekend. (of course, a few stitches were made on the neverending wips. but i'll come to that later.)



Who knew I'd have new wips! Luckily they aren't knitting projects and are much smaller. And of course these wips are better than the 'incomplete project' pictured, because they are worked in sections, so I can just finish as section as and when I can without having to worry about remembering where i stopped. I think I'm getting the hang of tatting and it seems much easier the more I practice. I'm still not confident enough to use the pretty threads I bought but I think soon I will. This also makes me not give up on spinning as well. Practice Practice Practice.

Meanwhile yes, here are some pictures of all those in progress.

Wisp

Seems like the least progress here (actually it's not, broadripple is. Then again I also haven't don't anything on my Lily of the Valley) but the pattern is really easy, and nice. I love the yarn as always. It doesn't take long to do a single repeat either.

Broadripple

I have about 12 rows on the second sock left and then I will be moving on to the heels of both socks.

My So-Called Scarf

I'm so in love with this yarn, I'm already planning to make a similar scarf for a friend. The yardage is better than I thought too.

Antrelac Part II

I love the color whooo~~~~ I can't wait to finish this so that at least I have my vday gift all done and in time.

Well tat's about all for now. Will be working on my thesis today so I don't think there'll be more crafts until late in the night perhaps.

Latest Updates on War on Startitis

Aloha!

Welcome to this morning's edition of Knews@ennairdaknits.

First up, Ayu's War on Startitis. In the early hours, Ayu seemed to have been blessed by the Goddess of Cast Off. She was able to finish up on the first entrelac of the pair she's been working on. Although victory on the shawl was much later than expected (since there were two occasions of mistake correction and frogging), she was able to heave a huge sigh of relief by mid-day.




Antrelac Part I in Rowan Tapestry's Leadmine with Clover 4.5mm.

Before Antrelac I is blocked, Ayu needs to cast on and finish up Antrelac II. "So that they are a pair, and I'll get the same length," she mused. "As some of you might have know, I've been fighting Startitis. So, I thought this would've been a good counter-attack."

Unfortunately, her casting-on of one project triggered the vengence of Startitis. And the results.


From Left: My So-Called Scarf in Hamanaka, Antrelac Part II in Rowan Tapestry (Rainbow) and Wisp in Sublime Kid Mohair Blend.

"What is there to do?" says Ayu. "It's the domino-effect."

Ayu is not available this morning for further comments. It's been reported that she's gone quite crazily addicted over the stitches in all the projects, and is hoping she would be granted an additional three pairs of hands by the Goddess of Cast Off before things go haywire. In our speculation, she's already there.