Archive for July, 2009
July 31, 2009 at 8:14 am
· Filed under Crafting, Jeff ·Tagged england, Jeff, gift, birthday, stamp, birthday gift, fantasy, neil gaiman, dave mckean
Back when Jeff and I were first dating/engaged/married, I really shouldn’t have set the gift-giving bar so very high – an engraved pocketwatch, hand-knitted gloves, a framed print of his favorite painting – those are all brilliant ideas. And boom-boom-boom right in succession, I used them up.
I’m screwed for the next 50-some years.
But not quite yet. For our anniversary (which was in May but we just celebrated it a couple weeks ago and yes that’s a whole ‘nuther story), I found a cool product through Neil Gaiman’s blog: a Royal Mail stamp set featuring illustrations/design by Dave McKean and descriptions by Mr. Gaiman himself. Jeff is a *huge* Neil Gaiman fan, and a huge-er fantasy literature fan, so I thought it was right up his alley.
So I ordered a presentation pack (and ultimately received two, actually – but once again that’s another story) and set about finding the perfect way to display it.
With a little lot of help from a graphic-design-inclined coworker, we came up with the idea to lay it all out, collage style, on a large frame. 6 stamps, and a card with Gaiman’s text on one side and a massive, beautiful illustration on the other (this is where having that extra set ultimately came in handy). After a Saturday morning in Michael’s and an afternoon toiling over my Exact-o knife and self healing mat (with the layout sketch by coworker in hand), I came up with this:
That’s an 18×24 frame. The background (lighter paper) is acid-free archival stuff, and the darker brown matting paper is richly-textured and I found in the scrapbooking section.
Perfectionist that I am, the layout is looking really crooked to me in the photos above, but (honestly!) when you see it in person there’s no crookedness to be found.
This glare-filled image of the illustration really doesn’t do it justice:
(So why am I showing it?)
Gaiman’s text is, of course, absolutely brilliant. Jeff loved reading it 
So even though it was two months late, I hope it was worth waiting for. He sure seems to like it, at least, and that’s all that matters.
But for the next 50 years, I’ll be giving him underwear and t-shirts for every event.
Permalink
July 30, 2009 at 8:04 am
· Filed under Cooking, Knitting ·Tagged ballwinder, blt, cascade, dinner, food, green beans, Knitting, navy blue, stockinette, sweater, swift
I figure if I’m going to the trouble of knitting 1500+ yards of navy blue stockinette for Jeff, the least he can do is help me out with the yarn winding.
Of course, being a guy with a love for all things gadget-y, this was no great hardship for him. It’s almost like a video game, after all – it spins! And is fun to look at! And can be very frustrating!
In just a few short minutes, he’d turned six of these:
into this:
Just by winding…
(ooh messydesk alert!)
and winding…
and winding:
What can I say, he’s a real trooper. Willing to put all that (10 minutes) of work into the creation of his own sweater! Golly gee whiz…can you imagine? 
Of course, I’ve already started said sweater – just over 1 skein’s worth, actually. But as it is a completely uninteresting tube of stockinette stitch – 200 stitches around and about 7″ long, I’ve neglected to photograph it. I’m sure you can picture it in your mind (and it’s breathtaking!) (movie reference anyone?)
On a completely different note, last night I was so excited in anticipation of our nummylicious dinner that I photographed it (also we were eating early – ~7:00, and actually had some light in the kitchen):
That’s a BLT – TJ’s asiago bread (I haven’t baked bread in a couple weeks now 
just been too busy), turkey bacon, romaine lettuce, tomatoes, light mayo and TJ’s light Jarlsburg cheese.
NOM.
And to accomodate our resident sodium-aphile, TJ’s organic green beans which I steamed with soy sauce:
SO delicious. I saved half of my sandwich and it’ll be my lunch today (along with baby carrots and a couple of plums). It’s only 9:00 but I’m already looking forward to it!
Permalink
July 29, 2009 at 8:22 am
· Filed under Knitting ·Tagged blue, finished object, fo, Knitting, lace, purple, ravelry, shawl
The other day I mentioned that I had a few other FO’s to share, but I didn’t want to bombard y’all at once.
I’m sure it will come as a big surprise to no one that Miss Havisham (aka “Gail“) is finished:
And oh, how I love her.
I must admit that yes, this is my third blue-and-purple triangular shawl in less than a year, but can you blame me?
Although I must admit, there were a few times when I wondered – briefly – if this pattern wasn’t more trouble than it was worth.
The pattern is riddled with errors and ambiguous instructions – something the designer freely disclaimers – so I knew what I was getting into (but that doesn’t make them any more fun to encounter). I also ran out of yarn with just 7 edging rows (3 rs rows and 4 ws rows) left, but by that point I didn’t really care so I just BO and blocked the shiz-nit out of it.
And how does the saying go? “If you can’t see it from the back of a running horse it doesn’t really matter?” Something like that.
(check out my dramatically windswept hair in the photo above. Hawt, right?)
But when it was all said and done, I’m really glad I stuck with it. I LOVE that lace pattern. ADORE it. It’s so very Victorian, no?
The yarn is, of course, the beautiful Chestnut Bay Fibers single-ply fingering weight that I blogged about here, and I’m more in love with it than ever. I want MOAR MOAR MOAR! MMmmmyummylicious.
More details on Rav, as always.
And finally, a proclimation: The next shawl I make will NOT be fingering weight. May be lace, may be sport, (hell, may even be worsted) but it will NOT be fingering. (Even though fingering weight *is* my favorite, for a myriad of reasons which I will not bore you with today).
Permalink
July 28, 2009 at 1:35 pm
· Filed under Jeff, Rants and Musings, internet ·Tagged about, blogging, feminism, internet, link, mad men, madmen, meme
As soon as I learned about Madmenyourself, I had to madmenmyself:
And then I had to madmenJeff:
Not bad, eh?
Here are our closeups:
Now for a bit of Tuesday afternoon philosophical thought (that and I just finished my lunch so I’ve got a few minutes to kill before I get back to work)
When I was creating these, I chose the looks to most resemble ourselves (ok, ok, I chose the skinny body for myself when the medium body was prooooobbbbably more accurate). On the last step of the process, you choose a background.
Jeff’s background was a no-brainer (who wouldn’t love to work at Sterling Cooper?) but I wavered a bit on mine – 1960’s setting and sexism aside, I guess I “should” go in the secretary’s pool scene. Since that’s what my real job is, or something. But, obviously, I ended up choosing Betty Draper’s kitchen.
What it really boils down to is, I (the real me, not the caricature me) would be much more comfortable in the kitchen than in the workforce. This mental digression was prompted by an excellent blog post by my friend Stefanie. Rather than ramble and wax philosophical about the meaning of life &etc &etc (though, from my strongly skeptical background I’m highly motivated to chalk everything up to biology + chance), I’ll just say this:
To me, feminism is the freedom to do whatever you want with your life.
Am I an anti-feminist because my goal in life is to be a stay-at-home mom? Nowhere am I more comfortable than I am wearing an apron, baking bread in the kitchen. I appreciate that I *could* choose other routes in life, I’m very glad to have the options, but that’s not what I want. But I think that lot of people – people who don’t really understand feminism – would think that I was being ‘repressed’ somehow, by not having a career.
But at the same time, just because my dream is to have an old house and lots of kids and make my own bread, that doesn’t mean that I think *your* dream should be the same.
I detest having roles or definitions thrown onto me. Right now, I’m working in an office making copies and spreadsheets. In a few years (hopefully) I’ll be staying home and raising kids. Does that mean I’m “giving things up” for the sake of this hypothetical family? Sure, in many ways, but not in every way. But that doesn’t mean that my “role” will be Suzy Homemaker – I don’t want a minivan and a McMansion in the suburbs; I’m too much of a hippie for that. (But at the same time, being a hippie doesn’t mean I want to give up on shaving my legs or the occasional trip to Taco Bell). I *can’t* be defined by just one role (or two). No one can. So don’t even try.
So when I made my silly little Internet picture, I put myself someplace that the real me (the Betty Draper side of me, I suppose) would be happy. But I reserve the right to leave the kitchen and go on a hike whenever I want. To me, that’s what feminism is.
Permalink
July 28, 2009 at 8:18 am
· Filed under Cats, Dogs ·Tagged cat, Cats, dog, forced perspective, macbeth, othello, Photography, roxie
…since I’ve blatantly whored out my adorable animals here on the blog.
Sunday was a very photo-filled day for us. Jeff was kind enough to do a shoot involving a sweater and two other FO’s, then be a model for some socks (Jeffsocks, luckily). When one is spending that much time prancing around trying not to look completely idiotic in one’s new thweater, it’s inevitable that some cat- and dog-photos will occur incidentally.
For example…
Cats:
(I call this one, “Forced perspective that makes it look like Othello is huge and kicking Macbeth in the head.”)
(I call this one, “Domestic Violence – the aftermath.”)
(I call this one, “Forced nonchalance.”)
(I call this one, “You can’t go home again.”)
And finally, my piece de resistance…
(I call this one, “Holy shit I got a cat and the dog in the same frame!”)
Permalink
July 26, 2009 at 4:56 pm
· Filed under Knitting ·Tagged cardigan, cascade, cotton, Crafting, fo, hey teach, Knitting, knitty, merino, sierra, sweater
Jeff and I have had a really nice day today. We made two important – and fun ! – stops: Borders and Knitty Couture.
That pile of Cascade is to make one of EZ’s seamless sweaters for Jeff. And the books? Well, there was a “buy 4 get the 5th one free” deal, plus we had a 15% discount.
Two are mine, two are Jeff’s, and one is “ours”. I’ll let you figure out which is which 
(Side note – the Yarn Harlot’s book is a show of soidarity, in light of her recent strife. I wanted to help somehow. Plus, this was obviously an unacceptable hole to have in my library.)
I used our little shopping adventure as an excuse to test-drive my latest FO, my Hey Teach! cardigan:
(the skirt was just for the modelling session – I changed into jeans and my Born flip-flops for actually going out, and the sweater worked just as well worn casually as it did dressed up).
This is honestly (and surprisingly, if we’re being honest) one of my most favorite knitted items to date. I feel like it turned out exceptionally well.
(hmm…the fronts look a bit crooked there, but that’s just how I was standing. I assure you they’re perfectly even)
The fit turned out spot-on, save a bit of gaping at the buttons which I’m sure will work itself out over time, given the nature of the cotton/merino Cascade Sierra (a yarn which is, btw, an absolute delight to work with. I WILL use it again.)
And – I’ll just go ahead and say it – the workmanship was great as well. The seaming, especially, I’m proud of. And the reason for that is twofold: 1)it was well done, technically (I didn’t get a photo of the side seams but you’ll just have to trust me 
) and 2)I didn’t let the damned thing sit in my knitting basket for two months before doing the seaming.
Ad did I mention the fit? Amazing. Great. I don’t usually favor sweaters without waist shaping (I like to show off my one good asset – my waist!) but I’m glad I didn’t let that deter me from this.
Ooh and the buttons! None of thepictures of them on the sweater came out, but you can see above how adorable they are. Those are actualy dried flowers within the acrylic. Found them (and 5 other sets of contenders for this sweater, if I’m being perfectly honest) at Jo-Ann’s. Very Anthropologie-esque, no?
It really is a shame that, per my self-appointed rules, I must now pack this away until we go to Minnesota. I can’t wait for this cardigan to become a wardrobe staple!
Tomorrow – it’ll be either bad pets, or two MORE FO’s (can you believe it?). Haven’t decided yet.
Permalink
July 24, 2009 at 8:24 am
· Filed under Knitting, Miscellany, life ·Tagged awesomeness, commute, Knitting, sock, socks, St. Louis, strangers, train
Yesterday I was on the train heading home, like always…sitting there, knitting and listening to my mp3 player.
Suddenly I heard someone behind me say (loud enough I could hear over the music) “Are you knitting a sock?”
I have *never* heard that question on the train before. Over the months I’ve heard lots of others:
“Are you knitting a dog sweater?”
“Is that crochet?”
“What are you making?”
” Is that a blanket?” (“Yes a very tiny tube-like blanket. It’s for my snake.”)
“Are you expecting?”
“Are those for a baby?” (in reference to a nearly-completed Jeffsock – men’s size 10, brown yarn, stockinette)
“Is that cross stitch?”
“What are you doing?”
“Did you know nobody does that anymore?”
But never – in over a year of train-riding – have I heard “Are you knitting a sock?”
After replying in the affirmative and expressing my gratitude at the gentleman’s astucity (erm, I think that actually came out like “OMFG yes! thank you thank you thank you!” but that’s less suave-sounding). Ben (because I found out his name because I’m cool like that) told me his sister is a knitter, so he’s in the know. I’m so grateful to Ben and his sister.
Then the guy next to Astute Ben said “And I bet that you only knit socks on the train, right?”
At which point I died because OMG he seriously must have been stalking me. It was uncanny. So I replied in typical Kate manner “OMFG yes! DUUUUUDE stalker! How did you KNOW?! WOW! I only knit socks on the train. I knit sweaters and shawls and stuff at home! ” (followed by more gibberish, of course)
Right about now, if Ben and Tony (oh cause I found out his name too) had been normal people they would have avoided eye contact with me and then at the next stop they’d have discreetly moved to the next car. But they are Astute Ben and Awesome Tony, so they didn’t. In fact, they continued to talk to me, even though I’d already proven myself to be a pitiful, socially stunted excuse for a human.
I like Ben and Tony. They’re from Pennsylvania (I found that out too) and in St. Louis for a convention. And they GET ME. They really GET ME.
So I wrote down my blog URL on a slip of paper and gave it to them, and told them they’re about to become famous on my tiny little corner of the Internet. So Ben and Tony, if you’re reading this – thank you for making my day! I hope the rest of your trip is going well (even if the convention isn’t an especially fun one).
Yes, I think yesterday’s commute was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
(PS – everybody should go to Tony’s site and check out his awesome artwork – the pastels especially are my favorites)
Permalink
July 22, 2009 at 8:29 pm
· Filed under Family, Jeff ·Tagged birthday, celebration, Jeff, love, photos
That’s the age Jeff will have to live to, if he still wants to consider his life “less than a quarter of the way over.”
That’s my convoluted way of saying…he’s 26 today.
2-6. Which is more than 2-5,which is what he was yesterday. And it’s WAYYYYY more than 2-3, which is what I am. Yeah, I married an older man. Which I think makes me a trophy wife. Or something.
He’s the best husband I could ever, ever ask for.
(October 2005, first picture I ever took of him with our first digital camera – the first bit joint purchase)
He’s incredibly sweet…
(A couple summers ago, in our second Kirksville apartment)
Nerdy beyond belief….
(touring a cave in Arkansas, March 2006)
And smart as a whip….
(college graduation, December 2007)
And he’s even got a special look…
…one which I’m very familiar with…
…which says “Katie you’re ridiculous but I love you anyway.”
And you know what? I love him too. More than anything in the world.
Happy birthday to the very best husband in the entire world! I love you more than a million
Permalink
July 22, 2009 at 9:56 am
· Filed under Home, Knitting, Miscellany, life ·Tagged fiberphile, Home, Knitting, projects, shawl, yarn
It’s been silent around here lately, for 3 reasons:
1) Secrecy
2) Laziness
3) Shock
1) I still can’t talk about yet. That’s the definition of secrecy, you know. But I CAN say I’m super duper excited about something. This:
And that’s all I can say. Which isn’t much, I know. I can be mysterious at times, no?
2) needs no explanation. I’ve not been blogging, but I’ve been knitting. Gail (which I’ve named ‘Miss Havisham’ for reasons that make sense only to me) is coming along quite nicely.
Of course, right now it just looks like a blob – as all babylace does. But it has potential.
3) is because, for the first time in my life, I am the owner of yarn that’s too nice for me.
That’s my bathrobe-clad arm holding 1 skein of Fiberphile laceweight alpaca/silk/cashmere blend. You’ll know it’s me because of the clawed-up armchair and dog toys all over the floor. (any other self-respecting person wouldn’t show that mess)
The yarn was a gift from my mother. I could never dream of being able to afford such luxury for myself (at least, without selling the cats or something). It’s too good for me and, for now, too pretty to knit with. For the past few days I’ve been walking around the house in a daze, yarn on my shoulder, patting it absentmindedly. This is, I imagine, not unlike having a newborn baby. Except without the pain and crying and pooping.
But that’s not all….more to come, this afternoon! (Because y’all know, once I start talking I can’t shut up)
Permalink
July 10, 2009 at 8:19 am
· Filed under Knitting ·Tagged choice, etsy, hand dye, Knitting, pattern, yarn, yarns
The votes have been carefully tallied, and between the input of y’all, and on my old blog where I cross-posted this, AND from my husband (::exaggerated sigh:: “Knit whatever makes you happy.”) AND from the dog (“Snwarfle!”), we’ve arrived at the following tally:
Looks like Gail has won it by a hair!
So now I can tell you - that one was my favorite all along
But there’s something else I can tell you, too: I fully intend to knit every shawl posted yesterday.
I even have the yarn for most of them.
For the Springtime Bandit:
That’s Berroco Ultra Alpaca Light – a gorgeous and squishy sportweight.
For the Little Arrowhead:
Yummy Fearless Fibers light fingering weight (this is the same stuff I used for my Stardust shawl a year ago, with much success). Or maybe this:
That’s Bare Sheep yarn superwash fingering weight in “Blue Period”, and if I’m being perfectly honest with y’all…this may be too pretty to knit. I’m just not sure I’m ready to part with it yet.
And for the other two (Onerva and Heartland)? I’ll be dyeing my own:
(Squee!)
Or at least, that’s the plan as of right now…we knitters are a notoriously fickle and indecisive bunch.
Tonight I plan to finish my Hey Teach and set it to blocking, then I’ll cast on for Gail – I’ll have plenty of knitting time tomorrow, as I’ll be watching all 5 Harry Potter movies in quick succession (Any St. Louis’ers want to join me? I’ll make brownies…)
Permalink
Older Posts »
