Saturday, June 01, 2002

Didn't have time to blog at all yesterday - it was busy busy at work, for a change. On my way out in a few. Shetha's in town, and Jackie, Marney and I are going to lunch with her. I am going to remember to bring my camera, so hopefully there will be decent photos later today.

Thanks to all for the very nice comments and compliments yesterday. I get all giddy when I see so many! And to answer a question - no, I'm not going back to the baby blocks right now. That will have to wait until someone very special is having a baby. (Hell, it might want until it's ME, those suckers are going to take so long!) First I am going to sew up Mom's sweater, and then there are plenty of things to choose from: booties to go with brand-new Lily's strawberry cap; the Rowan "Flame" tank with some alterations to suit the sparkly black "No Smoking" (I kid you not about the name) yarn; possibly another Rowan tank for Leanne's birthday (July 7, but we'll be away until a week alter); the cute purse kit (which didn't come in colors as cute as shown, but I still like better than the cushion they used to have) that came with my brand-new Rowan International membership - the possibilities are endless!

One more thing - is anyone using the "Bloggar" program and having trouble publishing? I keep getting an error that the posting went fine but it couldn't publish.

Thursday, May 30, 2002

OK, I am so excited about finishing Ginger that I don't even are that I look kinda scary in the pics below! Given the trouble I had with the back length at first, I am really pleased with the way this came out. Can't wait to wear it out somewhere, maybe with it's friend, the cardigan!



Well, I think the re-knitting of the bottom of the tank and the haircut were successful!

I finished the tank last night before the haircut, and when I tried it on (without sewing up the seams of course) it seemed just right. Hallelujah! Tonight will the true test, blocking and sewing, but I am pretty suire it's going to go OK.

And the haircut went equally well. I love the salon, and the guy who cut my hair was really good. He told me I could pretty much wear my hair any length I wanted, so he'd be happy to help me grow it out. And he complimented the color, which I do myself. Said it was just right for me. Always nice to hear. He ended up just kind of taking out some of the bulky spots which were growing in because of the curl, and just for fun he blew it straight and showed me how to do so. I was pleased, because I kind of wanted the option to be lazy and go curly, or put a little effort in and have a sleeker look. So, here's how I looked when I got home:



I really liked it, and Ryan nearly lost his mind - couldn't stop staring all through dinner. I joked that he must feel like he's cheating because it's such a different look. He also took this picture of me and my little kitty that I can't resist sharing, since she's so cute.



This morning I got up a few minutes early so I could try my hand at recreating the straight look, and still have time to soak my head and go curly if I failed. I must say, I didn't do so badly! Especially considering I had to actually buy a round brush last night for the first time in a hundred years. Between the short hair and the curly hair, I haven't owned one of those in ages! It didn't come out exactly as straight as he did it, but it's pretty good if I do say so myself.

If you've made it this far, you've probably heard all you want to about my hairy adventures. So I will leave you and bid you good day!

Wednesday, May 29, 2002

Had to post again because I just came across something too useful not to mention! Jennifer has described an incredibly simple way to keep track of cable rows and the rows in between increases and decreases (are you listening, Jackie?) without buying anything. Check out her blog for the details. I can hardly wait to start doing this.
Quite a lot of drama on my end at last night's Stitch-n-Bitch! I finished the back of my tank, bound off the shoulders together, and discovered a deadly mistake - the back was several inches shorter than the front. Argh! I think I committed a cardinal sin - I followed the pattern closely but stupidly forgot to make sure the back and front were the same length (regardless of what the !@#$# pattern said to do) before starting the armholes. The length from the armholes up was AOK, but from there down, not so much.

Before I could frog or cry, Debbie (a.k.a. Stitch Doctor) saved the night! She astutely realized that since I was knitting in stockinette, I could actually pick up stitches a row or two into the bottom, unravel the cast-on edge, and knit down from there. She did the picking-up, I did the unraveling, and though it was a bit tedious, it was far less so than frogging the whole side of the sweater!

Now I am knitting down from the bottom and it's amazing - absolutely seamless. Debbie, you are my savior! I knit a couple of rows this morning before my shower, and a few more on the bus. I should be able to finish it off tonight or tomorrow, depending on plans. Hopefully the waist shaping won't be a problem. I'm banking on that. Will let you all know how it goes.

The other drama last night was saying goodbye to Carolyn! The inimitable Ms. Chunky was in fabulous form, and even brought her camera to document the occasion. Check out the pics on her site! The third one down is me happily knitting away at the last bits of my tank strap, blissfully unaware of the danger to come, with Debbie sitting next to me, equally ignorant of the fact that she would soon be pressed into service as the Stitch Doctor! Boy is my hair floofy. Which brings us to our next topic...

I am getting a haircut tonight, at a kind of pricey place. But since I haven't had it cut since March 1, I think I am justified in spending a bit more than usual. Not to mention that I am in the throes of the awkward growing-out stage and cannot bear to have someone do a hack job on me. The cut's at 8:15, so think of me then. :-) If I'm pleased, I will post photos tomorrow.

Tuesday, May 28, 2002

I thought it was about time I gave you all a TSU (turkey sandwich update.) Today I had a turkey sandwich with pepperjack cheese. I asked the deli man to give me about half the usual amount of turkey, explaining that I just can't eat it all and feel bad wasting it. He did a pretty good job. I got a more human-sized sandwich and finished the whole thing, and even had a bit of room left for an orange. Much more pleasant.
Back to work after four lovely days off. It's not quite as bad as I thought, but I'd rather still be relaxing!

Had a really fun, relaxing and somewhat productive weekend. Did some shopping, did some knitting, did some eating, did some drinking, did some other stuff that just isn't appropriate to mention in a knitting blog, and generally had a great time!

I'm up to the second side of the "v" on the back of the Ginger tank, and if I can figure out how to reverse the shapings and not screw it up (I frogged it three times on the roof deck of Ryan's apartment building yesterday) I should be finished with it tonight at Stitch-n-Bitch. Of course, silly me left the front of the tank sitting on the cedar chest at my house, so unless I stop at home before S-n-B, it's going to remain a UFO!

Actually, I think I will make it a point to stop at home, since I really want to put it together with other people around. I've never actually had anyone show me how to mattress stitch, and I kinda want an "official" lesson. I've looked at pictures and figured it out mostly for myself, but listening to Marney explain it to someone last week gave me the sneaking suspicion that I could be doing it better.

I'm looking forward to the S-n-B tonight, but also somewhat sad because it is going to be our dear Ms. Chunky's last NYC Stitch-n-Bitch! You west coasters are lucky - soon she'll be gracing you with her presence. Carolyn, I haven't known you all that long, but I will miss you very much!

In other sad news, I was totally jonesin' for some Ronnybrook Farm yogurt this morning, to mix with granola, and I went to the Central Market at Grand Central station, and the Ronnybrook Farm stand was no longer there! Their yogurt is so good - it's not overly sweet, but very flavorful, particularly the maple-vanilla. I usually buy it at the greenmarket at Union Square, but since I was coming from Brooklyn this morning, I thought I'd get it at Grand Central. Waaah! I was forced to go the supermarket and buy regular too-sweet yogurt. I just wrote to the info email address to find out whether they are gone for good.