Femme Fatale Socks

I've often doubted the raves of hand-knitted socks from my friends. It's not that I don't believe them, I am just very picky when it comes to socks.

You don't realize the agony I encountered of selecting socks as a first grader. My poor mother would check my room constantly to monitor my dressing progress. I was like Goldilocks with the socks, one was too stretchy, this one too tight -- I would roll my knee socks down my legs into little tubes around my ankles. It was a constant struggle. God bless my mom.

Then I got to wear flip flops for the next 12 years until I moved to Indiana for college. So you can imagine my anxious anticipation when slipping on these hours worth of knitted socks.

Except that they were cozy, snug, stretchy and wonderful! I skated over my wood floors in pure amazement.



Of course I owe part of this to the lovely Schaefer Anne yarn. Additional thanks must go to Lisa for holding my hands during the short row heels, Misocrafty's tutorial, and Emily for teaching me the uber-stretchy EZ sewn cast-off.

Using old springboard diving skills, I maneuvered myself into prime picture taking angles. (Don't Mike's paintings make the best backdrops?)



I even made a small batch of chocolate chip cookies to celebrate.



Now I can cast on for another pair of socks, and work on my ideas for the Mid-Winter Gocco Swap. I'm in the process of transferring images in my head onto paper. Sometimes it takes a few revisions. This is very rough.



I know you're not surprised to see my multi-colored sketchbook. You know me by now, right?!


Just as my boss, Susan, was not surprised to see me rocking a lime green sports bra, acid yellow tee-shirt and red sneakers when I joined her for a workout today...

Kaffe Fasset

Rosie's is offering a color-work class using a Kaffe Fasset pattern. After seeing the vest that Wendy will be making, I was this close to signing up. However, I need to be focusing on other things, and watching my budget.

I did borrow Kaffe's book Glorious Knits from the library for fun. After working on my Noro Legwarmers, I think I have enough "crazy colors" going on for right now.

Oh but that vest is so pretty. Perhaps I'll add it to my rapidly growing queue...

Illustration Friday: Plain

Ah, my first Illustration Friday post of the year, for the topic, plain. Did I want to draw anything plain? Of course not. So I included the absence of plain in the rest of the drawing (wink).



And, no. It is not a wedding dress, people.

Also, damn you, lighting! I had to say it. I can't have you thinking I made the watercolors that yellow.

Now I need to start working on my prints for the Mid-Winter Gocco Swap. Do umbrellas count as mid-winter? Please remember I'm a native of South Florida...

Sparkles? Sign me up.

I can see, again! I was in dire need of new glasses. Apparently, my prescription did not change as I was certain it had. You see, my old frames were so heavy, the bridge of my nose non-existent, and earpiece so cracked, that they were sliding down my face and the lenses were not positioned correctly. Oh.

Ta-da! New glasses below. Of course I had to pick a pair with sparkles...



I'm knitting up some Koigu mill ends to create small hand warmers. I love this yarn. It's so springy you could use it as a trampoline.



Lastly, I hadn't picked up my watercolors in awhile. I made a thank you card for someone that was long overdue.



It was so much fun to draw her little creations, inspired from her etsy shop, here.

Pi Topper Chemo Cap

A sweet friend of mine is going through chemotherapy. It's going to be tough, but she has an excellent prognosis and a positive outlook.



Instead of flowers, I sent my friend a hat. Her hair was falling out, and she said, "Screw it!" and got a buzz cut. I'm really proud of her. Mind you, this is a woman who always kept a hairdryer in her car "just in case".



This pattern is special because it was created by someone who understands this experience firsthand. The designer, Corey Laflamme, wanted it to be comfortable, cozy and have a slight pouf at the top to hint at hair underneath. See below? That shaping is not my ultra-flat hair!



I used Rowan Calmer which is cotton and nylon, and good for sensitive skin. I didn't think I'd like it, but it's perfect for hats.

I guess I got her a flower after all. How adorable is that button?



Here's one last shot from the front for -- err, scientific purposes.



As if you didn't already knew I was a ham for the camera, right?

Happy Belated Birthday, Mike!

This beanie was originally started as a Christmas (2006) present. Instead, I finished it just in time for his birthday last week!

Aww, isn't he sweet? He's even posing during the Colts game commercial break. I can't complain, Mike is the best boyfriend, and a most gracious knitting gift recipient.



Here's the side, you can see the pattern better. It's my own, a 2 x 2 rib, and a 4 x 1 stitch for the hat. It's very easy, but gives it a little variety. The yarn is Cascade 220 from Rosie's Yarn Cellar.





Since the hat was technically a Christmas present, I purchased some sock yarn as part of his birthday gift. This is Schaeffer Heather from Loop.



What can I say about Mike? He's the most laid back guy I know, and would do anything for his loved ones. He cooks, cleans the house when I come back from trips, offers to give my friends rides, is a hard worker, a talented artist, a cutie-pie, extremely smart, a top-notch Quizzo player, has a great family, knows that I'm crazy but loves me anyway, and is also a great friend. I don't think I'll trade him in...

Happy birthday, Mike!

Noro Legwarmers

I started knitting the Noro Legwarmers while home in Florida. I tried to create random stripes of color by breaking the skeins up into smaller balls of color.



I still don't have as much variation as I would like, but I'll fix the problem soon. I think only Jenjer Peach will understand this issue, as she is my long lost twin for the love of insane color combinations.

I'm also rethinking how I want them to look. Below is my pasty leg showing off the progress, as well as my favorite new slippers from Aunt Sissy.



I'm thinking I may want to do something more like my legwarmers below. A little looser but not quite Fame.

What do you think?



While you ponder that, I'm going to join Lisa for coffee and enjoy this gorgeous faux spring weather!

Sonny's Quilt

Sonny's Quilt is finished!


I wanted it to be machine washable, so I stitched the heck out of it and tested it out in my mom's washer and dryer.

Luckily I did that, since a small part opened up. My awesome Mom stitched it up while I did a janky embroidery job. It was very quick because I was so excited and impatient to see Brooke and Sonny.



My highschool friends call me "Merce", which is the mumbled form of "Mah-riss" created by an old friend with a thick Puerto-Rican accent. It's probably my favorite nickname.

Here's the photo shoot on my front lawn in December no less!



Here's the finished product! It's not perfect, but Brooke and Lou loved it.



It's the perfect size for Sonny to roll around on the floor and play, when he gets a wee bit older.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, my friends!



I didn't have a chance to wish you a Merry Christmas, so here is a little "tree" I created. (Lisa, the yarn breeding experiments resulted in multiple births!)



I went home to Ft. Lauderdale and spent 10 days with my loved ones. Some highlights included:

Fishing in Jacksonville with some of my favorite kids. (My knitting skills translated into being the master detangler of fishing line!)



Finally using my Lenox Liberty plates from Aunt Marty for Christmas Eve dinner.



Watching Stormy, an African Grey, drink my mom's water because Aunt Kathy spoils him and he only likes ice-water!



Gifting a quilt for Brooke's new baby. (Details later).



Cuddling with my new nephew, Santino aka Sonny aka Cutest Baby Alive recipient for 2007.



Pretending that all of my presents were gigantic next to our teeny tree this year. Disregard that silly human pictured not to scale.



The highlight of the year was definitely falling instantly in love with this little guy. No resolutions this year, but things are looking up already.