Pirates, ahoy!

Ren fest soon, yay! Working on some last minute accessories to complete the pirate wench look (that will be inaccurate anyways, but who cares). For you purists, yes I know that pirates and renaissance do not go together. However, our fair has a Pirate Invasion Weekend just for fun. Currently trying to work on a mug holder (one that slips over your belt and holds a tankard) that matches my outfit. Ok, not match, but at least look ok. No luck on rav, so guess what? Making one! Using Patons SWS, it is discontinued, but I'm going to test it in other yarns. I know this felts well and I need something sturdy. If I have time (haha, time. whats that?), I want to make my mug cozy to match  my outfit, especially as that will be more visible. But for now, start small. I forgot how much frogging is involved in "creating" a project, even for one as wee as this. Really puts a damper on things, but I will finish it! Some of you might wonder why I don't just purchase one there. And I might do that anyways (the leather shop down there is heavenly). But I'd like to wear the mug in, I might be tempted to bash a rude patron if I were carrying it. When (no if, damnit!) it is finished, I will post instructables :) Whats on your needles?

Dear blanket, screw you. Love, me.

A friend of mine bought yarn for me to make a baby blanket with. No rush, she just wanted one on hand for a gift (she was thinking grandkids and knowing how old her kids are, I have loads of time). I started this once, dropped a needle, gave up and stuffed it away. Now because the darn yarn is in the way, I'm making it again. It's basically a giant dish rag. I have the pattern posted somewhere, need to update tags on my old posts yet but if you are impatient, here is a pattern link of the blanket:  http://www.lionbrand.com/patterns/L20088.html?noImages=0 

I'm not following it to the letter, I'm using Red Heart Buttercup yarn and ohhhh does it SUCK! It sticks to my dry skin, knots are almost impossible to pick out because you can't see through all the fluff, and it grabs onto every stray hair and lint ball in the air and doesn't let go. It is quite fluffy and soft, but I would hate to have it for anything other than a photo prop. I'm using size 17 needles so hoping it goes fast. The halfway point will be when I get to the second ball, we'll find out just how big it turns out then. In the meantime, I'm just going to curse at this knot that is preventing me from finishing a row with TWO STUPID STITCHES LEFT. Maybe this will inspire me to finish my ugly hat!

Current WIP

I feel like I've been neglecting this blog, and I totally have. But I've been busy doing ALL THE THINGS and seemingly getting none of them done. Working on a Unicorn Hat by Brittany Tyler for the kid, and I'm going slooowww  on the horn. I couldnt decide what I wanted for the mane and horn, should it all be the same colours? should the horn match the hat? I'm making the horn in a lovely purple shade, but I'm not sure what to pair it with in the mane. It is to be a gift for the hellspawn for finishing her state tests, she practiced her butt  off in school and at home for them. Hoping she did well, but either way she deserves to know that I'm proud she did her best. And Ive realized I've never knitted her something. I've made things and ended up giving them to her, but nothing specifically for her that ended up being given to her. I'm also planning on using some stash to make Tit Bits by Beryl Tsang. I'm hoping I can donate them locally. Also in the works is the Tilting Tardis Cowl by Marilyn Phillippi (you need a ravelry account to download it, totally worth it if you havent signed up yet). I'm not a Dr watcher, never seen an episode. But I like the look of it and it would make my friends day to have one of those show up in the mail. And that doesnt include the dozens of pick up projects that will be planned and dropped and possibly picked up and actually made. Spring is here and with warmer weather coming, it means smaller projects and camp chair knitting in the breeze. Also, I'm on Instagram! I know, I'm disgusted with myself, but there are lots of others posting their yarns, knits, and crochets on there too. You can follow me under the name priestessraven and I post weird stuff I find amusing too. I'll post pics of my completed works too :D

Knit Frustrations

I'm trying to knit my stash, I really am. But I want to make hats and guess what? My size 10 dpns are MIA. No trace, not on any project, not hiding in any project bag, not even stuffed in a pattern sleeve for travel. Gone. And of COURSE every pattern I want to flipping make uses size 10 dpns!!! Bah..

Anyhoo, I'm kind of adrift in the project world because of this, and reading is getting dull because my hands have nothing to do. (I'm weird, can't be helped). So what have I been working on? Arm warmers. I picked up two balls of Lion Brand Amazing because I wanted to try it and got to work. There was a cute pattern on ravelry I liked, but I wasnt about to pay that much for a knitted tube with a button. And in fingering weight yarn, no less, no thanks dear. Matched two balls as well as I could and figured I'd knit til the end for each arm. HOLYCRAPICOLA there is some yardage in those balls. It fits my arm from over the elbow to the knuckles and I still have yarn to go.

crappy in early progress pic

I like it though, means I get warm arms when I'm wearing short sleeves (ya know, when your fav hoodie is in the darn wash and you still havent picked up a spare). Promise to post pics when done, not the "pattern" because a) it was redonkulously simple, just cast on how big around you want it and go and b) this was someone elses idea originally. I won't profit (even if I offer it for free) from someone elses work like that. I'm even filching the idea of button placement, but with a twist. I can't decide between shell buttons and these cute plastic leaf beads so I'm figuring out a way to add both. Again, slight deviation to her work, but will not post how to's.

What else has been going on? Teaching the hellspawn crafy stuffs. Picked up a loom kit at Wally World, all of them have stupid polyester loops though. What happened to the cotton ones you could actually use? But they make nifty coasters in a house that eats coasters.

Urchin in progress, on a pile of blankets she stole and refuses to relinquish 

She enjoyed it, and it's something she can do to occupy herself. I finish it off because I don't want her disappointed and defeated by something as simple as loops. Once she gets the hang of this (more so than now, theres always a few mistakes to fix), I'll show her how to bind off.

le finished object

She's finished two of these now, kit makes four. Once we nab a refill, I'm making some of these myself. I miss doing stuff like this during summer day camp. Boondoggle was another, plastic lanyard might have to make a resurgence. 

My house has been invaded by a mystery yarn. Picked up a mini weaving loom kit (came with the usual acrylic assortment) hoping to replace the shuttle for my other. Of course it was broken, but I salvaged the yarn from it. I won't turn my nose up at Red Heart, it has it's place in my stash same as the alpaca. I found a bunch of pink fluff..

Of course, nothing in there had a darn label. Not even one stuffed inside the ball, not a scrap for a hint of what it might be. And a rav search came up with nada. It's a sparse eyelash with glitter through it, about as soft as most of that glitter riddled stuff is. And I have no idea what to do with it all. One or two balls, a scarf and a hat trim for a kid. But eight? I might have to outfit a doll house in pink everything. There were two or three balls of Patons Cha Cha, but that is at least soft and wearable. Any suggestions for this pink abomination?

Goodbye, 2012. Don't let the ball hit you on the way out.

Back in January, we all had such high hopes for this year. And it didn't start out all that badly. But by the time we got to the second half, I was ready to throw in the towel. November/December made this an awful year on record. My father had a stroke in November. He's doing much better now, back to work and driving, but his speech is still waffly. I know it could have been much worse, and I'm thankful it wasn't. I've gone out there more than I normally would be to help out as much as I can but it isn't enough. My mother is wrung out. Then comes December, all innocent. Worrying already about Christmas (I always do), my grandmother took a turn for the worse. She'd been in and out of the hospital for a while after a fall broke her let. She was transfered to a rehab center to get her walking again and she never made it that far. Another 2 falls and she was back in the hospital. On December 7th, they removed her from the cpap machine, gave her a bit of morphine, and allowed her to slip away in sleep. Several of my relatives made it down in time to say goodbye, my mother wasn't one of them. She had to stay and help my father still and there just wasn't time. She slid quite rapidly down that slope of health, they'd been talking about sending her home again provided she kept recovering like she was. Then just turned and went the other way. My sister called and told her she loved her, I couldn't bring myself to do it. My grandmother is and was a large part of my life. I stayed with her for a few years when I was younger and was always being dropped off there. There were always letters and phone calls and cards and newspaper clippings.Money she'd send and I'd call and yell about it (then send it back in her birthday cards so she could yell at me). She loved the dishcloths my mother and I made. A friend of hers used to make them and when she got to the point where she couldnt make them any longer, we took up the call. I have 3 sitting near me that my mother made, I was going to make a 4th and mail it down. She liked the natural shades and creams best. That washcloth sat on my needles forever, mocking me silently. Why didn't I finish it? It wouldnt have been a challenge, I made those while reading. Yes, other things came up but it wouldnt have been that much a chore to work that in and send them out. But I never did. I finally picked them up again a few days ago. I finished my grandmothers washcloth and started another. She praised how good a job we both did with them, even though my mothers always looked better. On the day she passed, I didn't have a chance to cry. It was my daughters birthday, she turned 9. I could either show up to pick her up and ruin her day with it or shunt it aside and make sure she didn't suffer. To this day, I still havent cried, it's still sinking in. I found the cards she'd sent last year for christmas when we pulled out decorations. One of my sisters found a letter from her in a drawer, long forgotten. The magazine she always renewed came in the mail. I bought a calendar and remembered she'd always send me one (every organization mailed her one, plus she had a couple for christmas). Little things that make you remember her, it didn't hurt to remember. It was just there. She keeps popping into my head. The obituary is printed out and lays next to me, she'd have hated the photo. Always complained they turned out awful.The pictures from this summers visit are still on my phone, we actually got a picture of my two sisters and I with my mother and grandmother. All my grandmothers children got to pose for a picture with her. I almost kept the birthday cards she'd sent us this year. Little signs I should have read, little hints that she might not be with us long, I ignored them all. But she's no longer in pain, she's at peace. We'll say goodbye in the spring and I can visit her, it's not far a walk. I love you grandma, and I miss you so.

Garter Brim Toddler Hat

Apparently this never got published and was eventually eaten in drafts. Yay, right? Anywho, here's the pattern again!

note this was a tester, the pattern is fixed to make it the right length before decreasing

Lion Brand Wool-Ease (or any yarn of a similar gage)
Size 5 (3.5mm), 7 (4.5mm) circular needles and a set of 4 size 7 (4.5mm)dpns
darning needle for end weaving

note: I have very loose garter ribbing, so much so that I had to go down to a 5 just to match with the st st on the 7's. If you are a tight knitter, you may want to start with a 6 or a 7, it's all on how you knit.

Using the size 5 circ, cast on 70 sts, Starting with a purl round, work garter in the round for approx 1" (about  3 ridges). Starting with a p row gives it a neater edge, but thats just my opinion. Switch to size 7 circs, and work in st st until piece measures 4" from beginning edge.

Dec rows:

Rnd 1: K8, k2tog - 63 sts

Rnds 2 and 3: K

Rnd 4: K7, k2tog - 56 sts

Rnds 5 and 6: K

Rnd 7: K6, k2tog - 49 sts

Rnds 8 and 9: K

Rnd 10: K5, k2tog - 42 sts

Rnds 11, 13, 15, 17: K

Rnd 12: K4, k2tog - 35 sts

Rnd 14: K3, k2tog - 28 sts

Rnd 16: K2, k2tog - 21 sts

Rnd 18: K1, k2tog - 14 sts

Rnd 19: K2tog - 7 sts

Cut yarn, weave in through sts, fasten off. Weave in ends. Tada! Hat!

Squishy Mug Hug

Not to be confused with my cup cozy, this little squishy piece of knitting is made for your fav handled mug. Uses those odd ends of bulky weight yarn (the kind thats almost super bulky, not the heavier aran weight ones) and one funky button. We all have odd buttons, that one that was too pretty not to buy, but too pricey to buy an entire set of them. Or you might have re purposed them from that beat up blazer thats too worn for even donating. I've snagged some very nice buttons that way, even some from old coats. I had this ball of mystery yarn lurking in my stash for some time, no label, wound into a ball, thrift store buy. It mocked me forever, finally made a toddler hat out of it and had leftovers. Hated the idea of not using it, had yet to make a mug hug for myself, and voila an idea was born! This is easily adjustable to what you need for width, I like one wide enough to cup the mug in my hands painlessly. You may prefer just something to soak dribbles from the brim (it happens, not quite awake and that first cup of coffee).

bright and cheery, the red kind of dominates the pictures but it isn't that bad in real life

Now, I'm not sure what kind of yarn this is. It's either Loops & Threads Charisma or Deborah Norville Serenity Chunky. But any yarn of that comparable weight will work just fine. 

also needed:

• size 11 (8mm) straight needles
• one button (larger decorative, size depends on whats left over. you'll see don't rush me)
• matching thread or embroidery floss and needle for attaching button

Cast on 7sts (this depends on how wide you want your hug to be. Make sure it's an uneven number)

Row 1: K1, p1, rep to end of row, ending with a k1

Repeat row 1 til desired length has been reached. Now this should be the hug stretched around the mug itself, you want it nice and snug fitting. Once it reaches the perfect length, bind off in pattern. 

Button tie: 

This is where the creative part begins, you may only have a few inches of yarn left, thats plenty! What you do is draw the yarn through the edge of the mug hug, in the middle. Nobody likes an uncentered button. Don't pull it all the way through, thread it back through the other side of the stitch so both raw ends are on the wrong side of your hug. Knot the ends together, resulting in a loop large enough to accommodate you're chosen button. If not, might have to dig through the stash again, I did. Tada, matching loop for your mug hug!

see? nobody can tell you didn't icord, crochet a chain, or do any of that yarn wasting stuff

also can double as a large cuff bracelet