My two favorite things to sniff.

Hi all, just popping in briefly with some Fiberlicious! action on this fine Sunday morning. I mean, what better time is there to think about all of the best kinds of expresso than a cool, sunny Sunday morning?


Here are my two favorite forms of Expresso. Yum. While I am still working diligently on sweaters, I am getting the urge to knit socks again. Could it be the imminent onset of Socktoberfest? So, I picked up two balls of Rowan 4 Ply Soft for a little I Love Gansey action. That should satisfy my need for a sock on the needles. And those teensy cables should keep me occupied, too.


Speaking of sweaters and diligence, this little stack of buttons is the only thing remaining between me and a finished Central Park Hoodie. So very, very close. And I can't think of a better thing to do while drinking my Sunday morning expresso than putting the final touches on a pre-fall sweater.

Happy weekend, all!

Fiberlicious: Ooh, Shiny, Eee Pretty! Edition

Few words will be necessary for this post. The title and these photos of the gorgeous Yarn Nerd merino/tencel blend sock yarn I recently acquired from the talented Adam speak for themselves, I believe. And Adam, in the event that I haven't thanked you profusely for the shiny, shiny, pretty swap goodies, I thank you, profusely!


That's Shiny, there on the left. And there's Pretty on the right. (Sorry, Adam, I might have re-named the colorways in a fit of eee-xcitement!) There was no chance in resisting the allure of this yarn. I mean, is finishing the Central Park Hoodie in this decade truly necessary?


Hey, look! Now I have a shiny, shiny, pretty sock! Yes, yes, another one to add to the pinwheel. I mean REALLY, is there any huge rush to finish a *pair* of socks this millennium?


Check out this fabulous new sock pattern: it's a free one forthcoming from Beth of good-natured ribbing, so be on the lookout for it!


Ooh pretty: a sweet little wavy cuff sans ribbing, my favorite!


Ooh this is new: a short-row toe with a kitchner'd closure on the bottom of the foot. I like this technique! I was always concerned that the kitchner ridge would be bothersome on the foot bottom, but you can't even feel it!

Dare I even make the claim that the Central Park Hoodie will make it's long overdue appearance in the next post? I daren't. But perhaps...

Happy Friday, 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!

Fiberlicious Friday: The Sencha Edition

My favorite thing about this post is that Ashley and I are using the exact same fiber (color and all!) for our respective Fiberlicious Friday posts, but we've come up with completely different interpretations! Salad? Tea? Proves once and for all great minds think alike AND differently all at the same time.

And I've been completely blown away by the creativity popping up in the Fiberlicious! Flickr group. I'm glad to see I'm no longer alone in my bizarre penchant for photographing yarn as delectables!

Happy Friday, all!

Tart.

What an appropriate description of my life, these days. Tart. Not really very full of sweet, blithe, happy-go-lucky freeness that I have for so long associated with the summer months. No, these summer days are more aptly described as tart. My knitting time has plummeted to an all new record low, so I'm lucky if I even have a spare moment to glance longingly at my sock pal's half-finished sock, much less be able to knit more than one round at a time. Gee, at this rate of work and study, I may have to ditch fronting the Single Sock Liberation Movement and spearhead the Half-A-Single Sock Movement. Half a sock? I have one of those! Hope my sock pal likes anklets!


Luckily, Fiberlicious! continues to inspire me, so I may have more yarn-as-delectables to post than yarn-as-knitted-wearables to show you for the next few weeks. Though my tart mood has had me seeing reds, and I am feeling inspired lately to knit with the gorgeous merino/cashmere sock yarn that Nora so graciously and generously sent me a few weeks ago. Of course, the sheer lack of free time may inhibit actual knitting with these beautiful reds, but nevertheless, they are inspiring. I have great plans for some beautiful red Roza's socks. But for now, those reds make some nice yarn cake decoration pieces.

And thanks VERY much to all those who weighed in on the issue of awkward variegation of my sock pal's socks. The consensus, provided by those variegated-yarn lovers more qualified on the subject than I, was that the socks should go on. And so they shall. Now, where's that spare moment in which to knit them?

Sweet as...

Fiberlicious! An update for those interested: Fiberlicious! isn't limited to Fridays. Initially, I was going to establish a "Fiberlicious Fridays" thing, but that's sort of silly. You should post when the fancy strikes you. No need to put rules and restrictions and days of the week on this. Also, there's a button, now, for those who are kind enough to advertise this silly idea of mine on their blogs. Feel free to take one, just please link it to your own server, yaddah, yaddah.


Okay, real reason for this post: a Sockapalooza sock update. In the wake of a series of unforeseen decisions, I was forced to scrap the double set of Marigold socks. Now, I stand by my love for this pattern and my desire to have a garden sock drawer filled with blooming Marigolds (I already have very definite plans to knit another pair of Marigolds in some STR Sunstone). But I decided that the All Things Heather yarn just wasn't fit to be Marigolds. It's just a little too fine to knit up ruffly. That said, I've decided that I couldn't just scrap the yarn altogether. It really is perfect for my sock pal, I think. She likes pinks and purples AND she prefers variegated yarn over semi-solid. Check and check. This yarn fits the bill. So, I decided to try another sock pattern that I've been eyeing, knitspot's Rococo Socks. Love them. And the pattern suggests using a finer weight yarn. Check.


Here's the part where you have a good look and tell me if this was a good move. The socks are coming along rather slowly, as the pattern is not the easiest to memorize, and the yarn is pretty fine, so there are more stitches that usual. But I've finished one foot and am about to begin the leg. There is a bit of awkward striping of the dark purple sections of the yarn, but I think it works with the pattern. And my sock pal DID say she liked variegated yarns, so surely she likes the variegated effect (insert liberal amount of paranoia from one who doesn't like variegated yarns so is unduly concerned about variegation). What's the consensus? You likey?

And thanks so much to everyone who helped me do a little destashing. It's much appreciated, given the absence of grad student stipends during the summer months. And there are still a few things left in the pot, so if you're interested go have yourself a look. Destashing pot this-a-way.

Have a manageable Monday, all!

Fiberlicious Friday: Tess Limeade Edition.

Just popping in to say hi before I return to my regularly scheduled program of working on the Women in Archaeology exhibition or studying for prelim exams. Oh, um, or watching the first two seasons of Lost. That's right, I made it through the first three seasons of the Wire in a scarily short period of time. We're talking mere days. And if you haven't seen the Wire yet? See the Wire. So good. But addictive. And while I wait impatiently for the fourth season to wrap up and get released on DVD, I watch Lost. And after Lost, it will probably be Deadwood. Oh, and preparing for prelims, of course. Can't forget about that.


And hey! Because I have copious amount of free time on my hands (insert liberal amounts of sarcasm here), I take photographs of yarn as if it were edible. It's this series I've been doing for awhile now (check out the entire series here), sort of unconsciously, and then at some point I realized I was taking lots of photographs of yarn as if it were, well, food. So what does one do when one realizes they have a bizarro photographing habit? They start a Flickr pool for said bizarro photographs and they encourage others to participate in taking their own bizarro photographs! And then they create a day (and who doesn't like Fridays, right? Sorry, Eye Candy Friday) when they post said bizarro photographs on their blog. Ta-da!

For those who are on Flickr, come join Fiberlicious!
For those without Flickr accounts, there's always Fiberlicious! Friday. Or, really, Fiberlicious! Any Day of the Week, Whenever You Feel Like It! And if you're participating, feel free to nab a button from the sidebar.

Why? Because sometimes yarn looks good enough to eat. And who doesn't need more fiber in their diet?

Have a great weekend, all!