2nd annual yarn diet...

Moving has, once again, made me realize that my yarn stash is a bit larger than I would like it to be. The last apartment was full of closets, six to be exact. It was perfect for hiding storing things. My new place, on the other hand, has just enough closet space for two people. Well, AF and I aren't really two normal people. He has a collection of tools that has already occupied an entire closet. Plus, camping gear stealing away a third of another. So far, we have agreed that our clothes will share a walk-in closet in the hallway.

Guess where my yarn stash has been for the last month...in the living room! Yup, I've got my big blue rubbermaid tub, busting at the seams, sitting in the way. It's just waiting for a new home. I also have other bits of yarn under my bed. Ideally, I will be able to make room in the hall closet for all of the yarn...but, it's looking kind of grim in there.

So, in another effort to thin things down, I contemplating another yarn diet. Last year, my diet lasted from January 1st, through my birthday. I need to think about whether I will do the same amount of time...My other thought is to tie it to the amount of my stash that I actually knit. For instance, the yarn diet will be over when I complete X number of projects using yarn from my stash.

happy holidays...

I'm really enjoying this holiday season, and I think I know why...No knitted gifts this year! Yup, I just been able to enjoy the season.

I finished the two stockings for AF and I...just haven't figured out where to hang them. I have until Sunday. I got AF a couple of small gifts this year. Instead of wrapping them, I will put them in his stocking.

I haven't done much other knitting. Instead, I have been reading The Chronicles of Narnia. I'm hoping to see the movie this weekend. I have 4 days off, so I should be able to fit it in. I'm also trying to get the last few boxes unpacked. Since AF and I are in an apartment, we're hoping to not do too much damage to the walls and such. So, we still have to make some decisions about whether to hang shelving on the walls, or to buy another bookshelf. Until we decide that, there will be a few boxes with odds and ends to figure out...sounds like a good time to go to IKEA!

Well, it's shaping up to be a very busy weekend. AF's family will be in town. We will be spending Christmas Eve with them. Then, we're going to my brother's house on Christmas day...I get to see my new nephew! (that sounds so weird) Then we will go back to AF's sister's house.

Stash enhancement...

Who could possibly resist Rowanspun 4-ply? I think the answer must be no one, myself included! Elann, sold out of most colors in under an hour. I ordered 15 hanks of Swarm and 10 hanks of Lunar. I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do with them. But, I'm sure I'll be able to find some inspiration in the book that I ordered this morning.

Unfortunately, I haven't been making much progress on Lucky this week. I had said that I wasn't going to have any holiday knitting...I spoke too soon. In a fit, I have decided to make AF and I Christmas stockings. Since, we're still not sure if the new apartment will have enough room for a tree, I figured I needed some kind of decorations. I started the first one on the bus Monday morning, and cast off last night right before going to bed. Since I will not be blocking these, I should be able to seam the first one tonight and cast on for the second...I'm still hoping for a tree, though.

just in time for another weekend...

I'm trying to get back on track...AF and I successfully moved all of material goods into the new apartment. But, most things are still in boxes awaiting their new place in the world. Why, you ask? Well, two days after we moved, we jumped in a car and drove to Michigan for Thanksgiving. It was a long drive. We left last Wednesday at 5pm, and arrived at AF's father's house at 6:15 Thanksgiving morning. AF did all of the driving, through snow and white-out conditions. Our time in Muskegon was fairly enjoyable, but I'm glad to be back in DC.

I have made some progress on lucky. I have finished the right-front, after ripping back to the point where the shaping began. I still had some extra stiches this time, but the three extra look much better than 10 extra. I have also started the left-front and will be starting the neck shaping this weekend. I'm not sure how much time I will have to knit this weekend, since unpacking should really be my highest priority.

on hold...

All knitting is officially on hold until I've moved into my new apartment. My attention span just won't allow me to focus on knitting and packing at the same time. So, to make sure that all packing is complete by the time I go to sleep on Saturday, I have to give up knitting.

Right now, the apartment looks like a war zone. The only room that looks "normal" is the bedroom. The worst part is that our entire hallway is lined with boxes, leaving little clearance for walking. At some point on Saturday, these boxes will need to be stacked in the livingroom so that we can move furniture out of the apartment. I'm feeling a little nervous about this move...We pick up our moving truck at 8:00 on Sunday morning and only have it until 5:30. Anything left after that will have to fit in a car.

Oh well, wish me luck...

lucky, my @$$...

I did absolutely no knitting last weekend. I spent hour after hour packing up my belongings. This situation wasn't completely my choice. See, Thursday afternoon, I had a meeting, away from my office, in another building. It was supposed to start at 1pm and last an hour. Well, when I finally make my way back to daylight, it was almost 4! Argh! So, I had to decide whether to make the 20 minute walk back to my office (where I had left Lucky), or to go straight home...Hmm, guess what I did. So, Lucky sat in my desk drawer all weekend.

I picked the front piece up again Monday and continued working on the neck and arm shaping. With all of the decreases, I started flying through rows. Well, that's where my lucky ran out. I finished all of the arm decreases...But, I will have about 10 more decreases that need to be made on the neck edge. Huh? According the schematic in the book, the two edges should meet at a point. That's not what mine does!

So, I searched through the knitalong and found this post. It made me feel better because I wasn't alone, but it still doesn't solve my problem. So, I could do what the designer suggested in her response, or I can try to work out the row-by-row directions...Knowing me, I will take the time to work this out, and end up re-knitting the front.

4-day weekend...

Yup, that's what I'm looking forward to. I'd love to say that I'm going to spend most of that time knitting, but I really don't know if that's going to be true. I've been sick all week, so the first thing I'm going to do is try to get some extra sleep.

Next on the agenda will be packing...AF and I are moving to a new apartment. We put a deposit down a couple of weeks ago, and we should be able to get into the place early next week. That should give us a week to do some painting and moving before we go to Michigan for Thanksgiving. I think that if I get a lot of stuff packed early, I might be able to keep myself from freaking out about this move. So, this weekend, I'll be packing up books/magazines and probably some other small housewares that I can live without for the rest of the month.

Finally, it's also my Mom's birthday...She usually doesn't make a big to-do about it. But, she does wait until the very last minute to tell the family what she wants to do for her b-day. Hopefully, she's already been thinking about it.

If/When I do find time to knit, I hope to make some progress on my Circular Shrug. I put it down for a while because I have been dreading the 5-6 inches of 2x2 ribbing that needs to be completed. Instead, I've been working away at Lucky. I finished the back last weekend, and have been making steady progress on the rd front.