She Who Knits

A new project (with reviews!)

Inspiration struck!

Ok, going to a new quilt shop helped inspiration along, but what's a girl to do when she sees bolts of Amy Butler fabric all lined up on the shelf just calling to her?

I bought a pattern called Take 5.
Five fabrics and Five hours and you have a quilt.
Ok, we'll see about that.

If you are in the Philadelphia/Delaware area, I highly recommend checking out  Quilter's Corner. It's packed with gorgeous fabrics and the staff was super friendly, answering questions and looking up requested fabrics. I felt like I could have spent a lot more time there but knew it would be dangerous to my wallet.

On the same day I stopped at A Garden of Yarn, (located in the same shopping center), who have moved into a newer, larger space. What a difference in the treatment I received. When I walked in I congratulated them on the bigger space and told them the store looked fantastic. The response was a sourpuss look like I just told them I hated knitters. I took a cursory browse around the store and decided I didn't feel like spending any money in a store that didn't even have time to say anything nice to me. I understand they were busy unpacking and sorting yarn, but it's not like I had 100 questions. A little welcoming vibe would have gone a long way.

So I'll make my quilt and I'll definitely be back to Quilter's Corner, but I'll think twice about stopping back at A Garden of Yarn.

Sockapalooza4 Sox

I've finished!
Slightly passed the suggested deadline, but I am done. I would have been finished on time had I purchased enough yarn. That's what I get for trying to stash-bust. Thankfully I only needed the extra hank of yarn for about 3 inches at the toe of the 2nd sock. Because I used Artyarns Supermerino and it's a handdyed yarn the extra hank was slightly darker, but I don't think it is "too" noticeable. Hopefully my sockpal will be ok with it.

When I was looking for the extra yarn, I went to a few of my LYSs, but no luck. I ended up finding it online at FabulousYarn.com. And WOW did they live up to their name! They had a special on the yarn, so including postage, it was cheaper than I would have gotten it at my LYS. Also, the first hank never arrived and since they have an AOL IM name, I instant messaged them and my order was sorted out right then. They had just experienced massive water damage at their store and were trying to assess the damage as well as continue running the business. I was impressed with their great customer service and will definitely shop their site again.

I'll disclose who my sockpal was once she receives her socks. I'm waiting on mine as well. My sockpal had a frightened  puppy incident and had to reknit one of my socks! Apparently her pup seeks comfort in handknits. (Who doesn't!)

Ravelry

I finally got invited to Ravelry. I've been holding off on doing a stash inventory because I have heard what a great tool this beta website is. I can't wait to spend some time going through my yarn and matching it with projects. Just what I need to get a jumpstart on my fall knitting! If you're looking for me, I'm registered as VelocityGirl. :)

Sock-knitting mania

I am SOOOOOO close to being done with my Sockapalooza Pal's 2nd sock. If I knit during prime time TV tonight, i should be ready to drop them in the mail tomorrow morning!

Nothing like a little pressure, right?

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Life of Reilly

So I've been unemployed for a little over 3 months. I haven't started stressing as the money hasn't run out yet. (Ask me again in July!)

I've had a lot of time to do the things that were put off while I had a regular ole nine to five. (If your wondering why none of my blogs have been updated, I used to do it at work!!)

One of the ways I am spending my time is taking classes. The first one I signed up for was a Basic Quilting Class. Next week is my last class, so I'll show off my squares individually before I show off the final quilt.

Class #1 | The Rail Fence

Class #2 | Nine Patch

Class #3 | Log Cabin & Underground Railroad

Class #4 | Squares & Triangles & Variable Star

The remaining classes have been about sashing, actual quilting (stitch in the ditch!) and binding the quilt.

I've been pleased with the class as a whole and have bought fabric for my next 2 quilts already! A log cabin using funky retro prints and a small baby quilt with a Trains! theme. :)

The best compliment was last week when my teacher said I was a real quilter. I may not believe her yet, but my stash might prove her right!

(Once the quilting and binding are completed I'll show off the finished piece.)

"Where she go?"

...as my 3 year old nephew says when someone leaves the room...

Anyone know where Kristine from Digital Yarn went? Her blog is definitely not the same as it was the last time I checked it. It seems to have been hijacked by a random shopping blog!

Just checking that she is ok and all is well with one of my knitblog reads!

sockapalooza 4!

I've joined this round of Sockapalooza! I had such a good time with the Sock Wars and I have plenty of lovely sock yarn in my stash (including some Tess's and some other hand dyed lovely wool). I'll be checking out some new patterns to knit and since it's not due until August, I'll have some time to find the perfect pattern!

When Bad Things Happen to Good Knitters

This is one of my new must have knitting books. With the answers to nearly every knitting conundrum, I've referenced this book more than once in the week that I have had it.  It has great diagrams and helpful hints and is written in a way that doesn't make you feel like an idiot for having a question.  My favorite chapter so far is "The Secret Language of Knitting Patterns". It gives great advice for those of us who are math challenged on how to up-size and change patterns without compromising the garment. Also helpful are the tips scattered throughout the book. This one will definitely live in my knitting bag. It's compact, paperback and 136 pages stuffed with good information for knitters at any skill level.

Amazon.com has it listed at $8.76 which really is a steal. Click here to buy it from Amazon.com.

Stashbusting goodness!

Using the Plymouth Yarns Alpaca Grande that I had left over from knitting the furry vest, I stranded it with 1 ball of Roway Kid Soft in icy blue and Kid Silk Haze in grey that was in my stash. I was inspired by the firey orange Manos scarf pattern from Last Minute Knitted Gifts (you can see a small photo of it by clickng the link).

I cast on 16 stitches on size 13 needles and knit in 2x2 ribbing until I could wrap it twice around my neck and knot it. I fringed with all 3 yarns.  This scarf pattern definitely helps use up the yarn purchased with my crazy early knitting obsession of buying an odd lot of 3 balls of yarn whenever I saw something I liked but didn't have a project in mind.

I've already started my second one with 3 balls of random yarn in my stash. They knit up quickly and are so luxurious since the yarns I am using are good quality, just not a large quantity. Perfect instant gratification projects that are practical!