Tag Archives: Schaefer Yarn

Aug 1

Catching Up

I guess it has been awhile.  Wedding preparations have been taking over most of my life, so I guess I will give you a list of what’s been happening around here:

  • I switched blog – as you can already tell.  I’m still trying to figure out how to make it pretty.  So bare with me on all the changes that’s going to happen around here.
  • We have two more “new” vehicles.  I gave my old car to David’s mom who doesn’t have any transportation, and bought a ’03 Passat GLS Wagon in Red with black interior and heat seats!  The other one is a Kawasaki touring bike.  David uses as his commuting bike and we ride to go places once in awhile.
  • We went to the Red Sox vs. Yankee Game last weekend.  Yankee killed the Red Sox, but we had a good time, even though it was completely way too hot to do ANYTHING.
  • David made me a raise bed outside the gate, and I replanted all the cantaloupes and only one died, and the rest are thriving!  And my herbs are going crazy!!!  I cut a bunch and gave it to Archiknist and another bunch to another friend at work.
  • I finished Woodland Shawl, but haven’t block it yet.  Maybe this weekend.
  • I started a Schaefer sample and am hoping that I can finish it this weekend.  We’ll see.
  • David is away for his Bachelor Party – White Water Rafting in Maine.  Yes, the man has weird taste for his party, but hey, at least he is having fun.
  • David’s mom and step mom and my female families are in town for my shower.  So excited to see everyone!
  • I had my second fitting for the gown, and this time, I took pictures!  However, can’t post it here since you never know when that sneaky groom is going to read this.  Maybe I will password protect it on my next post.
  • Wedding invitations were done and mailed last week.  I know quite a few family members and friends had gotten them, which is a good sign, since I mailed the whole box of invitation up to the Wellesley Island Post Office so they can hand cancel the stamps.  As far as I know, they were perfect as perfect can be in my standard. :)
  • When we went to the Sox game, we took a detour to WEBS, and WEBS Bead Store.  It just happened it was the Northampton Side Walk sale and I bought a bunch of Classic Elite Inca Print for $2/skein!  Seriously!
  • I joined Ravelympics, which is knitting one or multiple items that is challenging for me during the Olympics.  I chose a lace shawl in 17 days.  Am I nuts?  Maybe.
  • Engagement pictures are coming in the mail.  Suppose to be getting them tomorrow :) .  Can’t wait.

That’s all I can think of right now.  My camera battery had died and I can’t find the charger.  I have been using a back up camera, which is okay, but not as good as my regular one.  I better get going to find myself a charger on ebay or something before I’m completely pissed at myself for losing it.

Enjoy your weekend!

May 21

Happy Birthdays!!

This week is birthday week for Sunflowerfairy and Archiknist. We had cakes for both of them. One of the cakes is an ice cream cake from Ashley’s and one is vanilla cake with chocolate icing from Julia’s. YUM. And as one of the birthday giveaways, Sunflowerfairy had a little drawing at SnB for her “Shut p and Knit” mug and I won! :)

And I started another shawl to keep p with 2klace as I am pretty behind on this whole knit lace 51% of the time thing.

This is beginning of the Woodland Shawl. I actually had quite a few repeats done earlier, but after consult with Archiknist, we both decided that the 89 stitches the pattern called for is too small for a shawl, it was more like a scarf. So I frogged it tonight and re-cast on for extra 4 repeats for total of 137 stitches. we’ll see how this one goes. I’m using Schaefer Andrea again for this project as I have quite a few left overs and I really enjoy with the yarn. Plus the color is just gorgeous!

So David and I are going up to 1000 Islands this weekend to take care some wedding stuff, plus to see a house for potential vacation home. What are you doing for memorial long weekend???

May 18

Kiri

Without further ado, as promised -

Pattern – Kiri by Polly Outhwaite
Yarn Used – 663.5 yards of Schaefer Andrea in Julia Child
Needles – Harmony size 4
Gauge – N/A
Knit – April 08, 08 to May 11, 2008
Modification – None.

This pattern was very easy to knit. It starts from the top center and works its way out and down. It is a fairly quick knit compare to some other shawls or stole I made before. It can get kind of boring towards the end though with lots of stitches.

The yarn is divine! It is easy to work with and absolutely gorgeous! It’s good that I have three more skeins and I can’t wait to work with them.

Isn’t it pretty? Now, onto the next project!

Mar 11

What Have I Been Up To?

Schaefer Swatches!

That’s what I have been up to! I am almost done! Schaefer Susan is a very generous skein and it is really feeling like I have this yarn and project FOREVER. But Alas! The end is in sight! (No pictures because it is just the same as the other… Nothing more to see – Oh right, maybe when I am finally done with it and I’ll take the picture of the pile.)

On the wedding invitation front – I found the perfect paper! But they are OUT OF STOCK! DOH! I have to call the store tomorrow to find out when they can get them in. My third floor is empty so it would be a perfect place to do my wedding invitations!

On the store news – I’m working on the business plan whenever I can. And I’m getting my taxes done so I can get some down payment!!! It’s just feeling like it’s taking forever!!! Blah. But I want to do it right, so I’ll take my time with it.

Well, on that note, I should go and work on that swatches project. Until next time, go check out the new Knitty. My friend Michelle has a pattern published in this issue!!!

Jan 30

Cocoa Swap Topic of the Week #4

What is your most memorable vacation? Where did you go? What made it memorable?

Well, I think every trip we went up to 1000 Islands for vacation is memorable, but the one in 2006 was the one David and I got engaged, so I guess that’s the most memorable. And of course when I went to Germany to meet up with David, that was a very memorable 2 day weekend I’ve ever taken for sure.

I also finished the swatch for the scarf, but no pictures yet. The pattern isn’t too bad, but I think I’ll have to pay attention to it for a little while before I get a hang of it.

Completely random thought – I LOVE MYTHBUSTERS! Yes, I know, I am dorky.

Jan 27

Cocoa Swap Topic of the Week #3 & Piggy

What is the most ‘random’ memory you have from your childhood?

Hmmm… It’s actually a dream. My first dream I ever remembered. I think I was still in grade school. The dream was that I was a ninja along with few other ones, we were stuck in this maze and trying to find something or save something, but it was dark and I can barely see. The whole dream basically was me running around looking for this “thing” with the other ninjas.

I don’t know why I still remember it, but I just do.

I finished the piggy today. So excited!

Pattern – Curly the Pig by Rebecca Hatcher
Yarn Used – 1.5 skeins of Beaumont Yarn (special yarn made for me from my friend)
Needles – Option size 2
Gauge – N/A
Knit – January 19, 08 to January 27, 2008
Modifications – None.

It was a super quick knit. I think it would have been faster if I realized earlier that I can convert the pattern to knit it in the round. I really like this pattern and I’m sure I’ll be making it again, for myself.

After finishing the piggy, I started stringing the beads onto Susan so I can start the Undulating Waves Scarf.

Instead of using the thread and needle method, I used one of the dental floss threader and string the beads that way. It was super easy. Soon I had this:

Isn’t the yarn just pretty? I thought so. I better go swatching.
Jan 26

What Have I Been Up To?

So I have dramatically slow down on blogging lately. I couldn’t really justified blogging when I should be doing research. But tonight, I’m taking a little time off so I can update everyone on what I’m up to and the progress of some knitting.

Last weekend, Knelley, Acambras, Costumchick, JennM and I went over to Anphoe‘s house for some unofficial SnB get together. We had SO MUCH FUN! We all got there around 6pm and didn’t leave till 2am!!! We all brought food as well and everything was delicious!

Even long after the get together, I would still think about all the conversation we had and laugh to myself.

On the knitting front, I started knitting Lola Curly the Pig for my Cocoa Swap swapee as her “Bust the Winter Blahs Buddy”. I hope she’ll like it. I used the yarn my friend who’s family owns a yarn mill’s yarn. She gave me the yarn when I was thinking of making my own wedding gown. Of course, I didn’t end up doing it so now I have 30 balls of the yarn sitting around. It turned out to be a great yarn for this project!

Actually, I’ve made some more progress since this picture was taken – I have finished the body while at Suzy’s last night and I made the four feet today during training.

And while we are on Schaefer, I got my Schaefer Yarn payment for the two projects I made for them:

4 skeins of Andrea – 2 in Julia Child and 2 in Margo Jones, and 1 skein of Lola in green.

Aren’t the color gorgeous? I will be using them for shawls, but I haven’t decided on patterns yet.

Along with the payment, I got the next model knitting project as well. And I have to say I am super excited for this project ever since I got the pattern from Laura.

It’s the Undulating Waves Scarf by Laura Nelkin. It has beads in it and the whole thing is just beautiful. I can’t wait to start this project.

And just to finish up this post, I have some random pictures to show you:

This is Andes Peppermint Crunch chocolate. This picture is for missburrows, all you Choconots and Frenemies out there! (it’s okay if you don’t know what these means… But if you do, mmm.. Chocolate!) I can’t get enough of these chocolate patties :)

This picture is for Archiknist. My Peru llama/alpaca hangs out with me at work. He stands on top of my monitor and is one of the things that makes me smiles when I am stressed at work.

Stay tuned for my hot cocoa week #2 questions and some yarn from NYC!

Jan 5

Honeycomb – Completed

Pattern – Honeycomb Socks by Chris Carroll for Schaefer Yarn
Yarn Used – 0.5 skeins of Schaefer Anne in Purple and Green
Needles – Option size 1
Gauge – 9 sts per inch
Knit – December 24, 2007 to January 05, 2008
Modifications – Lots. But I’m writing the directions and sending them Schaefer Yarn so they can update the pattern to the way I did it.

Overall this pattern isn’t too hard. Once you figure out the special stitch, it’s a piece of cake, plus it’s easy to memorize where you are once you get a hang of it. The special stitch is always done on the purl stitch.

I was rather frustrated at first when I started because I had to rip back so many times. But once I realized that it wasn’t me, I paid a lot more attention to the pattern and making notes on what I would do differently. Laura from Schaefer was happy with what I did and had asked me to write out the modification I did so she can implement to the pattern. I’m glad my hard work is being recognized.

By doing this pattern, I learned that a knitted in the round gauge and a flat gauge can be very different. I’ll be doing all my gauges differently now for knit in the round projects. I also learned the Kitchener Stitch. Click to go to the Knitty tutorial. I really like the pictorial Knitty provided. I had heard horror stories about Kitchener stitch, but it was so easy! It’s not easy to memorize but it’s not very complicated. So glad I had the opportunity to try it.

And no, I didn’t line up the colors intentionally. It just happened. I probably couldn’t even plan it to make it happen!

On a completely different topic, you probably noticed my side bar looked a little different. I reorganized the order and I added a Work in Progress bar, courtesy of Ravelry!!! If you have Ravelry and you would like the status bar, just click here and ask for it. Speaking of Ravelry, I figured out how to add tab and reorganize my forum page. It’s pretty nifty. Oh, and I also added my Finished Object Gallery – it’s a slideshow from one of the widget. I had an album in Picasa Web called FO and just linked it and it works! missburrows had suggested me to use treasurelicious, which I had considered, but when I saw the slideshow widget, it was just easier.

Tomorrow, I’ll probably get back and work on the much deserved Irish Hiking Scarf… It’s only been on the shelf for only a year…

Oh, and did I tell you that my puppies are pushy and likes the bed more than I do?

Jan 1

"Merry, Happy Birthday, Year."

“I think I covered it all!” Said David as he slowly walk down the hallway at midnight to go to bed – as he put it – “Way passed my bed time!”

The dinner was fantastic last night and we didn’t wait too long, which was good. I had the Victoria Crown Fillet with the horseradish crust and baked sweet potato was my side. I also tired their Sangria and it was delicious! :) We went home and watched some HGTV until 11:30 and then watched the Dick Clark’s Rocking 2008 show. I was glad to see him back, not to say that I’m a personal fan or anything, but just to see him healthy enough to host another year of the ball drop show in NYC is a very nice start of the new year.

On the way home from dinner last night, we stopped by to see the Fantasy of Lights. It was their last night of showing. Here are some of the displays:


The welcome tunnel


The lighthouse


The carousel


The deer crossing us overhead


Little village


Giant wreath

This morning I woke up and made pancakes, and worked some more on the Honeycomb. Here is the progress:

And since I was taking pictures, I took one with the new organization in the cubby hole:

So inspired by my fellow knitter friends, here is a summary of what I’ve done in the knitting world in 2007:

Falling Leaves – my Summer of Socks 2007 KAL, first sock KAL, first pair of socks using magic cast on toe up technique, first pair of toe up socks and first 2 socks in 2 circulars needles. For those folks who don’t know what that means, it just means I made two socks at the same times using two needles.

Swan Lake (MS3) – my first lace project, ever! my first stole, first beaded knitwear, first mystery knit along.

Cabled Pullover – my first sweater that required seaming. All pieces have cables all the way through and I learned how to cable without the cable needles. Best trick ever!

Petrol and Petrol Modfied – Vests for my dad. These didn’t really take that long, but they sure did feel like they took forever because of the forever stockinette stitches. They did however earned me Harmony :) .

Hemlock Ring Blanket – It is a gorgeous blanket, despite the fact I had a lot of problem with the yarn, but I got my money back, so no complaints. My mom absolutely loved it. She took it home the day after it was completed.

Petal Dishcloth – my first dishcloth ever. It is a cute and super fast pattern. Made it with wool and my Christmas Swap partner is using it as a doily for her candle that I got her.

Diamond Spires Shawl – Second shawl, but using a DK weight yarn. This was a model knit for Schaefer Yarn. Loooove the yarn. First model knit for Schaefer Yarn.

Baby Cable Rib Neckwarmer/Headband – I knitted this in under TWO hours! Fastest knit ever! I made this for my new German friend who I got to know through the Christmas Swap. She had sent me a beautiful package for Christmas and I in term returned the favor.

Christmas Ornaments – I made a grand total of 18 of them!!! And I got Anphoe, JennM and Knelley all hooked on making them!

Vine – It was a super fast knit and my second pair of mitts. They were a very fast knit and was for my future SIL.

Knitted Tees – I knitted three of those for Farmhouse Yarns. It was the first model knitting I’ve done and first top down knitted shirt I’ve made. Unfortunately I forgot to take pictures of them, nor blog about them for some reason. Oh well. Carol said she’ll get them back before June so maybe I’ll get some pictures then and I can put it on my Ravelry.

Phew~ there you have it. My knitted items for 2007. My other knitting accomplishments in 2007 includes:

  1. I joined Ravelry.
  2. I started going to Thursday SnB, which I wish I’ve done earlier. The ladies I sit and knit with are amazing. I’m grateful for having them as my friends. My Wednesday buddies, don’t worry, you are still my friends – without you guys, I would have just rot in my own apartment! ;) (According to the Yale’s Daily, I started going to SnB because I had no friends…)
  3. I got a Yarn Wall!
  4. I joined my first ever swap, got burned, but my second swap was wonderful. Through the swap, I have now three new friends – Irene, Andrea and Robin.
  5. I had multiple projects on WIP at the same time!!!!
  6. I started a KAL (Knit Along). Although I haven’t yet started the project yet…
  7. I organized my knitting pattern into sleeves and put them all in a binder.
  8. I received a swift as birthday present so I never had to ask David to help again… hmmm… I think I just figure out why he got me a swift…

I’m sure I forgot some but that’s all I can think of now. Besides the above, I also started following some food blogs, mainly on gluten free recipes and am very inspired by it. I also made a wedding webpage and planned most of the wedding, pick out the bridesmaid dress, sent out the save the date, and started a registry.

For 2008, here are some of the things I would like to accomplish:

  1. Finish all the wedding knitting on time.
  2. Reduce 20% of my stash by making more projects.
  3. Finish Irish Hiking Scarf.
  4. Finish Secret of the Stole I.
  5. Finish Aspen Top Down Sweater.
  6. Continue to model knit with Schaefer – although I really need to manage it so I don’t overwhelm myself.
  7. Start Autumn Rose Pullover – Fair Isle here I come!
  8. Felt something. May it be clogs or bags.
  9. Learn to spin if we move and have more room.
  10. Learn to dye if we move and have more room.

Well I think that’s a lot to do already! I better get cracking!!! Besides the knitting goals, here are some of my other goals for 2008:

  1. Be nice. Not to say I’m not nice, but sometimes I’m not, especially when I am losing my patience, which leads to no. 2
  2. Be patient.
  3. Complete all wedding details by mid-August. We’ll see how this one goes…
  4. Experiment with gluten free cakes – maybe I can make the wedding cupcakes?? Or at least have the recipes to do it? We tired Baby Cakes at NYC, they were good, but we weren’t completely thrilled with them.
  5. Spend more time on my business. I know I can do it, but it’s the motivation part of it… Knitting? Work? hmmm which one to pick?

I’m sure I have more, but this is what I got so far. If i remember more, I’ll sure to add them into the list.

Have a Happy, Healthy, Safe and Superb New Year.

Dec 30

Honeycomb Update

So I sat on my butt all day to work on Honeycomb, and here is the first sock in it’s full glory:

Ta-da!

Here is the view off my foot:

Now I’m going to bed, because in 50 minutes, it will be a special day. But before I leave, just let me show you how outrageous Mick is sometimes:

That is me sitting OVER him on the coach because he refused to leave my seat! No, I’m NOT sitting on top of him, those are just my legs and my monkey blanket over him. Soon he go too hot and moved down, with a big sigh.

Here is a picture of my pretty girl being pushy:

Even when she is pushy, she is so darn cute, especially with those cute little bows! (can you tell I can’t get over how cute those bows are on her?)