Undercover Cat

It's Saturday morning and I had buttermilk in the refrigerator. Just not quite enough, so I decided to try a trick I'd read in a cookbook: take 1 cup of regular milk and add 1/2 tablespoon of lemon juice to it. Wait to thicken.
It worked like a charm.


We were getting ready to sit down and enjoy some lovely made-from-scratch pancakes when I noticed a suspicious-looking lump at the opposite corner of the table. It was moving. It was vaguely cat-shaped. I could see Morgana clearly, but Merlin was missing.


Sing to the Mission impossible theme music:

Sneak up on those pancakes
Sneak up on those pancakes
Sneak up on those pancakes
Sneaky Cat!

Fortunately, we got there before he did.

Then, there was some more excitement as I frogged my Plaited Points sock. Partway up the foot, I had to finally admit that 6 st/inch is very different from 8 st/inch, particularly when you start out with 66 stitches and have really skinny feet. I loved the color (Mountain Colors Bearfoot in Ruby River, pretty!), and I was so proud of myself for getting Judy's Magic Caston right and working my first toe-up star toe. Alas...
Riiiiiiiip.


This is my new toe-up project: Back to Basics from Fall 2007 knitty, I believe. In Opal Rainforest (I love Opal yarns!), color: Hummel.
I used Judy's Magic Caston again, and here is the result. I'm happy again.

Fooooooood!

It looks like the severe weather has come and gone. Yesterday, it snowed like crazy, then it rained. The cats didn't want to miss out on the action. They watched the snow and wished they could be in it. Being indoor cats, they have no idea how cold it is, and I doubt they would actually enjoy it. But it's fun to watch.


This morning, the sidewalks were iced over, and I didn't want to be outside either. Working from home is fun, particularly when you have feline help. Busy season has begun for accountants across the US, and just like last year, I present a picture of our tax specialist: Merlin J. Fuzzbutt, CPA. I do taxonomy, he does our taxes, and everybody has fun.


And then, I had a kitchen attack. Not just a little one. I'm talking the full-blown cookies and food kind. Behold the results: chocolate-chocolate chip cookies (with cocoa, chocolate chips, AND melted chocolate!) and pasta with sun-dried tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, and green beans. Very yummy.


Now, I'm going to sit down and knit. I haven't done any of that today or yesterday, but I think my mojo is coming back.

Winter Storm Warning

We have another winter storm coming through tomorrow. That's about the fourth one this winter. Most people seem to be sick of snow, but I love it. Not when I have to drive in it, mind you, but when I can be inside and watch it coming down? Love it. And being able to work from home when the weather gets really bad helps a lot.

Not to mention that commuting time becomes knitting time. Let's see if I can get the second Fuzzy Foot finished tomorrow and a Pleated Points sock cast on!

Rolling along

I've been on a domestic kick lately. Yesterday, I made pancakes from scratch. Today, I made pizza from scratch, sauce and all. And I've been knitting.

My first Fuzzy Foot is done. They're so funny before felting! Enormous. I could probably wear it as a hat if I tried.


And then there's the sock I cast on yesterday. It's for the Sock Knitters Anonymous January knitalong. It's the beaded mystery sock. The beads are a kind of see-through iridescent, and I'm halfway down the heel.

Picture with flash (closer to the actual color)


Picture without flash, to better show the texture and beads. I'm loving these socks so far.


And... I got the batt I ordered. 3 ounces of purple-black-glittery goodness. It has all sorts of stuff in it, bamboo, sari silk, glitter... and it's beautiful. The color is Witchie Woman, and I can't wait to spin it up.


I want to spin it using a drop spindle because it'll make the experience last longer. I think I'm in love.

In not-so-good news, my glasses broke while I was trying to clean them, so I get to spend the money on a new frame. I was due for an eye exam and new lenses anyway, but now, I have to buy a frame too. Oh, well. It's one of those necessary things... I can't see a thing without them.

I'm on a roll!

And more stuff off the needles! I finished my Mad about Plaid socks on Wednesday night. These are my first socks for the year 2009, and I love them. They fit perfectly, and the slip stitch pattern was so much fun to knit. I just wanted to keep going and going.


Have a closeup of one sock.


And of the toe. These socks are so happy colorful, I just kept taking pictures of them!


Pattern details:
Pattern: Mad about Plaid
Yarn: Brown Sheep Company Wildfoote
Needles: US #0
Modifications: None
Comments: These were fun! After the initial frogging of the too-large-foot, they zipped right along. The first skein of Wildfoote really was defective, the second skein didn't have all those knots and underspun and shredded pieces. We'll see how it wears, but otherwise, it seems like a decent all-purpose sock yarn. If the purpose is socks. Eh, you know what I mean, I'll shut up now and have more caffeine.

The yarn for my next two projects is wound into balls and ready to go. And I found a knot. Fortunately, it's only one.


But how come knots are almost never in a place where it's easy to work around them? Like, at the beginning or end or the exact middle of a hank of yarn? Oh, well. I'll just weave in the extra ends.

First FO of 2009

Not too bad, huh? Considering I have 2 pairs of socks on the needles (after frogging a third) and don't have too much knitting time because it's busy season at work. But it's cold out. Yesterday, it was 1 pathetic degree Fahrenheit. I know it's colder in other parts of the country, but that's enough for me, thank you very much. And Mr. Batty needed a hat.

Hat laid out flat.


Hat from the top.


Action shot of hat.


Why the color only came out black in the last picture is beyond me. I guess there's a reason I'm no professional photographer.

Pattern details:
Pattern: Nordic Hat Three Ways from The Knitting Man(ual) -- the simplest version of the pattern, obviously.
Yarn: Karabella Aurora 8 in black
Needles: US #5, 16 and 24 inch length
Modifications: none
Comments: Really, really fun to knit. Aurora 8 creates a smooth fabric that I love. And I'm realizing that I'm turning into a loose knitter. I used size 5 needles and got gauge. These days, I have to go down a needle size or two!

Progress and Riiiiiip

I got a package from my friend Linda yesterday! It was little and cute and came from a goth store in Leipzig, so I knew it was going to be good. But I had no idea how good! If you click on the picture to get a better view, you'll see that these are buttons. They have a spider on one side and a bat on the other. Awesome reversible bat/spider buttons, and enough for a cardigan! I'm really, really excited about these and will be looking for the perfect goth cardi pattern to display them -- bat side up, naturally.


It's freezing out. Today, it was cold, but tomorrow, the low will be 1 F, and that's without the wind chill. So I'm knitting a hat for Mr. Batty. It's a pattern from The Knitting Man(ual), which I can't recommend enough. It has very wearable patterns for men, and the models look like real people. Oh, and the yarn I'm using is black, not some washed-out gray. Beautiful, dark black. As you can see, it's coming along nicely.


Also coming along nicely was the Mad About Plaid sock. I was beginning the toe decreases sometime last Sunday and was looking forward to casting on sock #2 when it suddenly hit me: 18+22 is not, nor will it ever be, 30. Which was really unfortunate, because 40 meant that I had not decreased 10 stitches after picking up the gusset, which meant that the foot of my sock was now huge. So... riiiiip.


I put the sock in time-out and cast on the hat. Now, I'm ready to get back to sock knitting, I think. But I had to get away from this glaring evidence of my lack of mathematical prowess. At least for a bit.
Pretty socks, though! I love the way they're turning out.

Bad Skein?

I have a question for all of you who have knit with Wildfoote sock yarn. My experience with Brown Sheep products has until now been limited to Lamb's Pride Worsted and Cotton Fleece, both of which are very nice. Now, I'm knitting socks with navy Wildfoote, and I'm less than impressed. I had to cut out a whole section where the yarn had unraveled and the plies looked all shredded. In other sections, it looks like one of the plies snapped, they'll hang off the main yarn in unsightly lengths of a quarter inch to an inch.
So, my question: Is this normal for this yarn, or did I just get a bum skein? I like the idea of being able to knit a pair of socks for $15, but if this is not an exception, I know I can get good quality yarn for $3-7 more.

Great Psychedelic Scot!

What's this? It's orange and variegated and dark blue, and it looks like it almost glows in the dark.


Great Psychedelic Scot, it's a sock!
Imagine a bunch of hippie Scotsmen under the influence of hallucinogenic substances. Now imagine said Scotsmen trying to pick tartan colors. Maybe this is what they would have come up with.
It's bright and obnoxious and I love it. Not to mention that these socks are using up all sorts of leftover sock yarn. Bright-as-all-getout socks and stash reduction, all in one go. Gotta love it.

Speaking of stash reduction, this is one Christmas Foot, aka Fuzzy Foot, out of more leftover yarn. Yes, I'm really serious about my yarn reduction for 2009! And yes, it's sideways. Silly basic camera software... won't let me rotate images.


My excitement may have affected Morgana. Look closely. Yes, there is a cat in this box.


Both ends are open, it's the perfect cat tunnel. When they were smaller, they both used to fit in a Coke box. Now, one Coke box fits one cat. And this box is pretty darn big... it contained a whole cat bed!

New Year's Resolutions

It's that time of year again! So... what am I going to do in 2009? Here's the new list!

1. Entrelac. Still haven't done it, still want to, it's time I did.


2. Knit more than 1 sock at a time. Toe up, top down, doesn't matter. Two at a time, any way.


3. Knit more non-sock objects. I'll always have at least one sock on the needles, but my stash needs to shrink.


4. Shrink the stash. Knit down 2 bins and one bag of sock yarn. Smaller house, less space.


5. Sell non-fitting clothes on eBay. Already did a huge purge (8 bags donated to charity!), but there's more.


6. Work out regularly. It's not healthy to sit on my butt at work and at home and just stuff myself all day long. But hey, at least I managed to go vegetarian!


7. Spend more time running games. It's fun, it's social, I don't do it enough.


8. Start my holiday knitting early enough to actually finish by the holidays.


9. Cross stitch and do some spinning. I've neglected both.

That's it for me, anything else will be extra. How about you? Are you making resolutions this year or just hoping for something good?

Either way, I hope you have a Happy New Year, and that 2009 has much of the good and little of the bad in store for us.

Knitting... and Cats

There has been knitting. A few months ago, I subscribed to the Sugarbee sock club... the wonderful person who sells Politically Incorrect Yarns, which... how can you not love the name? I mean, come on. And she has colorways named after mixed drinks. The one for the Beachcomber Socks was called Sex on the Beach. Great name!

And great yarn -- with a fun to knit pattern to boot. I showed this to the owner of the LYS near work, and she couldn't stop asking questions about it. I mean... blues and browns, with slightly greenish bits. Like water lapping at the shore.


And look at the fun pooling. Beachcombers, pooling, get it?


OK, you can stop cringing now.


Pattern Details:
Pattern: Beachcomber Socks by picnicknits
Yarn: Politically Incorrect Yarns and Fibers 100% Wool Sock in Sex on the Beach
Needles: US #0
Modifications: I made the shaft 8" long because I like tall socks and my skinny legs and tiny feet don't use up much yarn. I still have enough left over for footie socks, I think!

And now, some kitty cuteness. Merlin and Morgana cuddled up, taking a nap together. They're over a year old and they still love each other!


There has been some holiday knitting, but... ahem, it's blocking upstairs. Can't show pictures of it quite yet. Well, at least not here. If you want to take a look at it in its unblocked state, go check out its project page on rav.
Apologies to all who are not on ravelry. I just can't have the recipient peeking.

Post-Holiday Knitting

The holiday knitting is done. I can't quite post pictures of it yet because it hasn't been sent out yet (yes, I was late again this year), but soon. I have already switched to post-holiday knitting and will be posting pictures soon.

There has been a lot of cooking and baking too. We had one of Mr. Batty's friends from work over for dinner, and I made Tortellini Indulgence, AKA Tortellini Rustica with a pound of smoked mozzarella in it, and pumpkin pie. It was very tasty, but something went wrong with the crust. The directions said to cover with two sheets of aluminum foil and bake until golden. When I lifted the foil, I noticed to my utmost horror that the butter was bubbling, and the crust was... boiling! Now, this was supposed to be pumpkin pie, not latkes (which I have made successfully), so clearly, there was something wrong. Maybe I shouldn't have folded the edges of the foil under quite so tightly.
Anyway, after I removed the foil, the crust fried. The pie itself was very good, but the crust was on the crispy side. I'm usually a pretty good cook, but there is something about pie crust that gets me every time. I guess it's my Achilles' heel.

We had a good time, ate a lot, and it was a very nice, very quiet time. I got a flannel nightgown, and the robe is still on its way... I love flannel. It's warm and cozy and comfortable. Mmmmm, flannel.

SNOW!

That's right, enormous, floofy, all-caps SNOW. Not just a little, but lots and lots of it. It started falling Friday afternoon, continued through Saturday, and most of today. This picture was taken this morning... there has been more snow since. Not good for being outside, but wonderful weather for staying inside and getting domestic.


The cats enjoyed their spot on top of the fireplace... we didn't light it, but they like it up there anyway. They lounged, Mr. Batty and I flopped around the house, I knit. I'd love to show you the Super Secret Holiday Knitting. Unfortunately, I won't be able to until after the holidays.


So instead, I will show you pictures of the other thing I like to do with my free time: Cooking! See this orange stuff? That's cream of carrot soup. Cream of roasted carrot, to be exact, and it's wonderful on a cold day. Thick and yummy and... well, very orange.


Speaking of thick and creamy, behold this year's egg nog! It's thick and golden and made of all-organic ingredients. Well, except for the booze. It's amazing how much more flavor an organic egg imparts. We can really taste the difference.


And what would the holidays be without cookies? In our house, they have to be bat cookies, of course. Christmas Bats! I have red and green sprinkles and I was going to decorate them, but Mr. Batty isn't feeling well and I like the way they taste as-is. So no sprinkles on these cookies. But they're bats!


We also made a couple of ghosts. These are the Ghost of Christmas Past cookies. Because we have to have something geeky in there, right?


I'm going back to my holiday knitting now. It's Sunday... must knit faster.

Firsts and Knitting

I have been busy. The holidays are approaching, and people at work are trying to get all of their ducks in a row before taking a few well-deserved vacation days. And then, there are the other preparations... you know... baking, and knitting!

Last week, I baked the first pizza in our new home. My deep dish pizza pans (aka cake pans) were in storage, so I used a baking sheet. It came out very nice.



And let's not forget cookies. These are ginger crackles. They came out looking exactly like the picture in the recipe, which is a first. And they taste good! We took them to our monthly Call of Cthulhu game yesterday, and I ate about 6 or so. There's something about cookies, I just couldn't stop.


I told you I'd been knitting, and I wasn't making that up either! The Pomatomus socks I started when my parents came for a visit are done. My mother claimed them, so these will be sent off to Germany soon.


They took me almost a month, but in my defense, there was the small detail of the move. I found the pattern annoying at first, but after I was almost done with the first sock, it clicked, and things moved quickly from there.


Pattern Details:
Pattern: Pomatomus by Cookie A.
Yarn: CTH Supersock in Dove
Needles: US #0 (skinny ankles run in the family!)
Modifications: None. They fit my mom perfectly as written. How cool is that?

There is some secret Christmas knitting I can't show you, but this is the current sock from the Sugarbee Studios Sock Club. They're called Beachcombers, and thee colors and wavy lace pattern really make them look like sand and water. Complete with pooling, heh.


OK, I'll stop the puns now. I'm on sock #2 and it's coming along very nicely. Maybe I'll get done just in time for this month's installment!

Thanksgiving, Part 2... and House!

The number of boxes is shrinking, and it makes me very happy to see an increasing amount of floor space. The cats, on the other hand, are enjoying the vast amounts of crinkle paper. Morgana in particular was having a great time.


My new kitchen is quite a bit smaller than my old kitchen. You're looking at the whole thing! There's relatively little space for food in the cabinets, but there's a Whole Foods within a 5 minute walk, and they're building a Trader Joe's across the street. I guess I can afford to suppress the worst of my hoarding impulses.
The appliances are awesome, by the way. Gas stove, amazing fridge, and a great microwave. Yay!


My craft corner is also nearly complete. The second bedroom has my Ott Lite, my comfy chair, and all of my knitting/crochet and cookbooks in it. The entire closet is taken up by yarn, fiber, cross-stitch stash... I'm planning on reducing that drastically. We have very little closet space, and it doesn't seem entirely fair that I'm taking up the bigger of 2 closets with craft stuff. The yarn diet is going well, by the way -- I haven't bought yarn in over a month!


The cats love our two story windows. We have a loft-style living room with lots of light, and the fuzzies have figured out how to jump from the fireplace onto the window sill. It's a new favorite spot.


As you can see, we have a lot to be grateful for this year. For the first time ever, we both have real jobs. Our families are doing well. We have cats, a new home, and a shorter commute. I hope things stay good for us, and that the situation around the world gets better soon.


A happy belated Thanksgiving to all... I'm off to start visiting the blogs of my online knitting friends, for whom I am also grateful. It's been over a month, but now I have time to catch up!

Thanksgiving, Part 1... and STASH!

First, some pre-moving things. Here is the Halloween SP gift that simply amazed me: Purple bat, roving, and happy spooky socks! It got to me right before we moved. Such pretty yarn, and did I mention the purple bat bowl? Oh, and there was also this purple bat bowl! Yes, I love it.
The chocolate didn't make it into the picture, though... yum.


Second, I am grateful that we have a roof over our heads, and that our new home is warm and cozy. I need to get a water heater replaced and the phone isn't connected yet, but other than that, everything works and is making us happy. Some pictures of the fuzzies in their new lair coming up!

Before I show pictures of our new place and our Thanksgiving dinner, though, I wanted to share why I need to be on a stash diet. As we were getting ready to move, it all came together in one place. Yarn stash, fiber stash, everything. Doesn't look so bad, right?


That's because you're only seeing the satellites. Here is the Main Attraction. Aaaah!

The scary thing? After I took these pictures, I found more yarn.
I need to go on a yarn diet.

Settling In

We are settling into our new place. No phone or internet yet, many things are still in boxes, and somehow, my socks ended up in storage. And then there are the cats. They are having a high old time with the crinkle paper the movers used to wrap our kitchen stuff. But the fuzzies are having a hard time with the bedroom forbidden zone. Now that we no longer have a basement, we have to be careful about allowing them access, or they'll expect to sleep with us all the time. And there is no sleeping with Merlin. He cuddles to the left, he cuddles to the right, he cuddles around and around. All night long. Not that we're getting that much sleep anyway... Merlin has been very yowly and talky of late. Happy but vocal.

Pictures coming as soon as I get my computer set up. Stay tuned for knitting, cooking and new home decor!

Crafty Content (Pictures!)

The house sage continues. The closing on our house is approaching, and we have had an offer accepted on a lovely condo. The Purchase & Sale is next week, the inspection today. My parents are here, which means they'll get to see the place -- it's beautiful.

In the meantime, I haven't been lazy. Or rather, the moving, lawyer-calling and packing stress has led to increased crafting/cooking activity.

Exhibit A: Very heavily iced cinnamon buns (yum!)


The Pomatomus sock is growing. The pattern is beautiful, but I find it annoying to knit. It's not difficult, it just requires constant counting, and when you're too tired to count, you mess up. But the result is worth the effort.

Exhibit B: Pomatomus Sock


Merlin kept getting in the picture, so you see Sock with Cat. My mother saw the sock, tried it on... well, now it's for her. It has been claimed.


I've also been crocheting. I love, love, love the fall issue of Interweave Crochet! There is maybe one pattern in the whole magazine I don't want to make. This is a closeup of my Stone Scarf, my first ever crocheted item that looks like it will keep its shape throughout. No unexpected stitch fluctuations.

Exhibit C: Stone Scarf


I'm crocheting it out of Kureyon Sock. The stuff almost killed my hands when I tried to knit with it, but it's not bothering me too much when I'm crocheting. And look at those colors!


As you can see, there's a lot going on around here. For now, I'm spending a lot of time with my parents, knitting/crocheting/cooking whenever I get the chance, and try to get a bit of breathing space every once in a while. Soon, I'll be moving, cats, stash and all!

SOLD!

No, I'm not talking about the opening line of the Phantom of the Opera. Our house is under agreement, the P&S has been signed, and we have a closing date in mid-November. Mr. Batty and I are scrambling to either find a house/condo we want to buy, or, failing that, to line up temporary housing so we don't have to sleep under a bridge. It's... intense.

I've been knitting and crocheting a lot, but haven't had the time or energy to post pictures. It doesn't help that some of the knitting is secret, what with birthdays and the holidays coming up. I apologize in advance for the spotty updates on this blog, and for my seeming disinterest in everybody else's -- I still care what you're up to, I promise, but I'm more than a little preoccupied with this moving thing. We're trying to pack up and move an entire household in less than a month... aaaaaaaaaaah!