Final SP12 package

Hello all of you out there in the blogosphere! I'm sorry that I've largely disappeared but I wanted you to know that I am alive and well. I've just been dying a bit under the start of grad school. I've earned a day off today so I'm finally starting getting back to some things. Hopefully there will be updates on my knitting here very soon but in the mean time I have send out a thank you to my secret pal! I received her final package last week:

A crochet hook key chain (I can totally use that!), a pattern for baby Mary Janes which I've been eyeing and some Zig Zag sock yarn. What a great pal she's been. Now I just need to find time in the knitting queue for all the sock yarn she sent... :) Thank you very much Amy!

No more monkeys doing yoga on the bed!

Hello all! Lots to share with you guys as I've been very productive in this past week or so. However, I have the new and shiny syndrome and the earlier FOs will have to wait for the one I did this afternoon. This would be a sewing FO that I've been wanting to do for months and months now but particularly since I ordered the most fun fabric ever last month that just screamed to be used. So here is my latest sewing creation finished in basically an afternoon:

The pattern is based on Amy Karol's "Simple Tote" from Bend The Rules Sewing. The main fabric is aptly called Yoga Monkeys, aww. I made a few mods to the pattern. Namely I reversed the the wide and length dimensions on the tote and used the same fabric for the entire outside. I made different handles to have the outside fabric on the outside and the lining fabric on the inside of the handles too. I also did not put in a pocket.
I see lots of these my future and highly recommend them to others who are getting into sewing (super simple!). It's the perfect size for a sock WIP!

SP strikes again!

Yesterday I got to come home to a wonderful surprise in the mail:

The yarn is Hacho and made in Peru. I've used the brand before but never in the sock yarn variety so it'll be fun to play with. And aren't the stitch markers cute? My name and a heart, awww! And don't they look suspiciously like the stitch markers I ordered previously from Robyn's Nest (packaged the same way too!). My pal is Canadian so I have a sneaking suspicion that might be where they came from... hmm... Anyways, I love them!
Thanks SP!

Warm babies

I don't remember when the last time it was mentioned on the blog, and I'm certain you've seen hardly any progress shots but last night I finished the Duffel Coat from Debbie Bliss' Essential Baby. And the best news of all? I finished it before the baby outgrew it! Hooray! But of course, you don't really want to hear me talk, you want the cute baby pics so I'll leave it at the fact that it was knit with Debbie Bliss Rialto on size 7 and 3 needles.

Isn't that cute? And to add to the photo-y goodness, look what came to my house today! Unfortunately, only 2 skeins are for me (though a 3rd I'm doing the knitting on, just not keeping it) :( Guess which ones

Baby bib cuteness

Just something to brighten up your day. One of several of my knitting pieces to be gifted sans photo was a baby bib o' love given to baby J of the blue cabled blanket fame. I'm told by his mom that they are absolutely wonderful and fit better than any other bib she has. And as a treat she's given me some photos to share with you all of the bib in action:

Who can resist that face?

Lettuce Knits

While I was in Toronto mainly to do this

(That's graph theory for any one curious. My talk was on random graphs and the probabilistic method and the picture is the sample space for all graphs of order 3), I'm sure you are wondering what kind of yarn I walked away with.
While I had every intention of spending Saturday afternoon durring the free time yarn shopping a group of my friend's was going to Wonderland and as I love big scary rides to death, I just could not pass up the opportunity to go. So I was left with about an hour of shopping time Sunday morning before I left. I dug up the phone book and as it turns out there was a yarn store just a few blocks from where I was staying that I walked mere meters from on several occassions. And of all the yarn stores in Toronto I happened to luck out and have it be this one

It was quite the honour to get to go inside. Unfortunately it really is about the size of a large closet and there was a class going on so I couldn't see the back half of the store where all the dk+ size yarn was but I did get to swoon over all the beautiful sock and lace yarn they had. It was rather amusing because just after I stepped in two ladies came in from out of town and one looked to the other and said "I can't believe I'm actually in this store", lol. I tried to explain that to the other conference goers and exactly what a "legendary" yarn store is but they really didn't buy it. But we know :) There were three things that walked away with me.

Some koigu. I've been wanting to buy koigu again for a long while but every store whose had it has never had colours that really inspired me. These ones absolutely did. Then there was more sock yarn

Socks That Rock lightweight in Atomic #6. Yes, I know I have an order of STR coming my way but I couldn't pass it up. It spoke to me and so I had to take it home. And then immediately cast on for another pair of socks (help! I have so many unfinished pairs!)

Not what I was expecting at all once knit up but I dig it :)
Then there was a kit. Not just any kit. But THE kit for the Tulip baby sweater made out of Dream In Colour Classy. It takes quite a few colours so they wind off just enough of each colour for you so that it doesn't cost you an arm and a leg. I've been feverishly knitting on it since I got home and in three days it looks like this (please ignore all the yarn bits hanging out)

Now, it's supposed to be 6-9 months but we all know I'm a reckless knitter who never swatches yet always uses the recommended needle size despite the fact that I know I knit ridiculously tight. So it looks more new born-ish. Thankfully there's a girl baby coming in September. I hear that babies tend to come newborn sized so it should be just great :)
So yes, that was the most important part of my trip to Toronto. Fun no?

SP 12 question backlog

Hmm... it seems I have a backlog of secret 12 pal questions to answer. I had all sorts of great posts planned for the past week and then I get to my conference and there's absolutely no internet access. None at all for the whole 5 days. Needless to say there were many unimpressed students over that fact. (Though the rest of the conference was just lovely! I had a splendid time) So I feel that i should catch up on posting by giving the question answers first:

Question 3: What do you consider the perfect amount of stash?
Well, that's a very hard question because there are lots of things to consider. Firstly, I need to be able to store it in my room which has room for about a shelf and two plastic bins of yarn. It should have all the main colour families in every weight of yarn. And in those weights, the appropriate amount for a project of that type (i.e. a sweater's worth of worsted, 1200ish yards of laceweight for a shawl). And ofcourse bonus sock yarn in all the funky colours.

Questions 4: What yarn (that you don't have/haven't used) would make your stash "complete"?
I'm sure it's a pipe dream but I'm love some Wollemeise sock yarn and enough sea silk for a decent sized shawl.

What yarn do you never want to be without?
In sock yarn, Lovesticks and Yarntini. In other weights, Debbie Bliss Cashmerino, I go to yarn of choice.

Question 5: Where is your favourite place to go for vacation/holiday?
Me, I'm a fan of the cruises. Once you've been on one, it's hard to not want all of your holidays to be on one. I've been on two caribbean, a Mexican Riviera and a Greek Island cruise.

Where is one place you'd like to go?
Just one place? I suppose the top of my list would have to be Paris. I love French and am a hopeless romantic.