Wip-ed.

Wiped, indeed. Summer is coming to a close and fall is peeking around the corner of the next block. I am ready for it. This summer has completely wiped me out, intellectually. I spent the last three months researching like mad for this fall exhibition I am curating at Bryn Mawr College. This project turned out to be a massive undertaking--a six month project (at least!) that had to be done in a mere three. Insanity. And plenty of stress. It is finally nearing completion, and I couldn't be more thankful. I have a week left to finish it and then everything has to go off to the professional printer's. One week left. Eek. The exhibition postcard has been finalized and is being printed, which is pretty exciting, but it's the first thing of the exhibition that is in concrete form, so I'm a bit nerved over it. So there it is. In all of its... glory? The opening date of the show is September 25, and it runs through January. I have an opening speaker and everything. It's an actual... event. And public, very public (bites nails).


Speaking of WIPed, I feel like I owe y'all an update on my knitting. There has been so little blogging these past few months, but I've actually been knitting rather steadily the whole summer. First, of course, there are lots of single socks. Eight, to be exact. It is getting to be that time when I am yearning to have pairs, so I might actually be ready to knit some mates. For those interested, the eight socks are, clockwise from the top:

:: Pink Fancy Monkey Socks :: Fleece Artist Seawool in Light Pink
:: Lemongrass Pomatomus Almost Kneehighs :: STR Mediumweight in Lemongrass
:: My Bloody Valentine Socks :: Hello Yarn Merino Sock in Hush
:: Skyblue Giotto Socks :: STR Lightweight in Blue Moonstone
:: Red Robin Socks :: Woolley Boully Meanie Sock in Red Robin: Bird, Nest & Eggs
:: Giotto-With-the-Flow Socks :: Sundara Sock in Grey Green over Mint
:: Child's First Sock :: Fleece Artist Seawool in Buttercream
:: Rum Runner Socks :: Yarn Pirate Merino in Rum Runner


In addition to a bunch of single socks, I have been knitting piles of sweater parts. I've had 10 balls of Rowan Silk Wool DK in my stash for awhile now, and though I had plans to knit something else with it, inspiration struck and I decided to knit the Wide Collar Cardigan from Jo Sharp Knit 3. I'm knitting it at a completely different gauge to create a less stiff, more loosely draped fabric, and I must say, it is turning out beautifully. The only problem is I have run out of the 10 balls, and I'd guess that I still need another 4 or 5. D'oh. And the wide collar is taking for-EH-ver to knit. 1x1 ribbing for about a scarf's length... ugh. So, this beauty is taking a little siesta while I wait for funds to acquire more Silk Wool. I have maybe 2/3 of the collar left to knit and the right side. All else is done and waiting patiently in a gorgeous aqua-colored pile to be seamed. This will be a pretty little early fall sweater, when it is finished.


Meantime, I have convinced myself to pick up the black sheep of my old WIPs, the ol' Central Park Hoodie in Rowan Yorkshire Tweed. You know, the pattern craze from last fall... finally, finally, it might actually be finished soon. I have the right side to knit, then it can be seamed up and all that will be left is the hood and the button band. Well on it's way to becoming wearable!

I have big, big sweater-knitting plans for this fall, involving, you guessed it, the fabulous new designs from the latest Interweave Knits. Tangled Yoke? Yes please. Minimalist cardigan? Serve it up. And the Tilted Duster? Yes, yes, and yes some more. Now comes the impatient wait for the stipend checks to begin rolling in again to replenish my yarn supplies. Until then, I'll be finishing up my WIPs and yearning for fresh bags of Rowan Felted Tweed and Kid Classic and Berroco Peruvia.

Happy weekend, all!

Sockapalooza'd!

I'm rather late in showing off my great new Sockapalooza socks, but I really, really love them, so I figured better late than never!


These beauties were made by my sock pal, Julia of Moon Tea from a shade of Koigu that suits me absolutely perfectly. And they're Roza's socks! Yay! I love this pattern, and it was literally the next one on my list of socks to knit... excellent choice, Julia! (Though, now that I have one pair, I feel the need to have many, many more so they remain as the next on my list of socks to knit).


And look at all the goodies she included in my package! On the left are some super-crafty sock blockers made specifically for my sized feet that Julia cut from IKEA placemats. So cool! And some delicious, natural bee hand balm! Yum, yum! Thanks for the great package, Julia!


And I feel especially lucky to have gotten these socks because they are Julia's first pair of knitted socks. Yes, the first pair ever. I can imagine that these babies were difficult for her to give away... I am sort of nostalgic over my first pair of socks. And she did a terrific job on them, being her very first pair! Great job on the learning to knit socks in the name of Sockapalooza, Julia!


The computer remains incapacitated and I have only a mere two weeks left to finish my exhibition (opening September 25), so blogging time continues to be nearly nil. I have been knitting when time permits, and I'll have some pre-fall sweaters to show off soon, I hope. I can already tell that my summer sock knitting is falling by the wayside, and I am gearing up for fall sweater knitting.

I'll check back in soon with a WIP report on the nearly finished sweaters...

Til then, happy Sunday everyone!

Fiberlicious Friday: The "Where Are They Now" Edition, or, The Most Overdue Blog Update Ever.

Hi friends. It has been quite some time since I've last checked in, and what a hectic and befuddling couple of weeks it has been. I have joined the ranks of the computerless, as the troublemaker ECC knocked coffee into my year old (and not yet paid for) Macbook a few weeks ago. My, what a difference not having a computer makes on one's presence in Blogland and Flickrdom! Hello, vanishing act. Not to mention that much of my summer exhibition work was lost in the process, which means I've been scrambling at work to redo what was lost, rather than take blogging breaks. Ah, well. Life goes on, with or without one's computer, and so here I am. Finally. Said broken computer is still, well, good and done in, but I've finally caught a spare moment at a public computer to pop in with some well overdue Fiberlicious!-ness. Today I am servin' up a cool treat of sorbetto, of the Yarn Pirate Rum Runner variety (the first installment of the Yarn Pirate sock club). Deelish!


Speaking of the Yarn Pirate sock club, as many of you know by now, Georgia was kind enough to endorse my Good Soapworks of Athens soapy goodness, and she included a mini soap in the first installment package of the sock club. I had a lot of fun working with her, and I really thought it was awesome of Georgia to include me! AND speaking of Good Soapworks of Athens, the Etsy soap shop has been officially closed in order to make way for the new and improved Good Soapworks of Athens Soap Shop! An independent website! The new soap shop is run entirely by my mom from Atlanta, GA. She has the facilities to keep all soaps in stock all the time. And without all of those exorbitant Etsy fees, we are able to offer cheaper soap, so go check it out! As for me, I'll still happily do soap swaps with people, but I will no longer be selling it, but my mom will happily supply everyone's soapy goodness needs!


So, there's where I am now. I am hoping that with Michael's return from France on Tuesday (with our household's laptop deux in tow), I will be able to return to regular blogging, and perhaps I'll even be able to regain my commenting mojo. And where is the yummy Fiberlicious sorbetto these days? In glorious, perfectly pool-less stockinette sock form, that's where!


I just couldn't resist the lure of the Yarn Pirate sorbetto. And I am in love with the sock it has become. I used the Hello Yarn Simple Sock pattern that she gives away free with her sock yarn. See the awesome short row toe raised bind-off? Love that.


And, of course, nothin' but short row heels here! I should also point out that you should not be fooled by the above photo into thinking I had finished a pair of socks. The sock on the other foot is my My Bloody Valentine sock. The Single Sock Liberation Movement continues (and now you can join it here)!

Up next: I get Sockapalooza-ed by an awesome pal!
Have a happy weekend everyone!