Happy Halloween!

(Imagine finished Pumpkin Sock #1 here)

The sock is willing, but the server is weak.

Progress on the Pumpkin socks is slow. I knit a little every day, but the ribbing just goes on and on. I like the way they are turning out, though. And when I say they, I mean sock #1. Sock #2 is a distant dream, although I suppose it would be a good idea to put the ribbing on waste yarn, knit sock #2 up to the ribbing, and then switch back. Then my life will be all ribbing, all the time, instead of stressing about remembering the changes I make to the sock body when I get to #2.

I tried it on this morning and learned that I should have knit about 1" of plain stockinette before beginning the ribbing to make them really comfy.

I am also working on the Adamas shawl at home. One row takes 20 - 30 minutes so it is not a good "knit a couple stitches and then set it down" project anymore. I have 14 1/2 sets of diamonds done now. The picture shows 16 sets of diamonds before starting the edging - we will see how much yarn I have left. Maybe I should add a lifeline at the 16th repeat. All in all, I am completely in love with it, and completely in denial about the 2 mistakes I know are in it (so far).

There will be a big announcement in tomorrow's post - stay tuned!

I am back from Vegas and all in one piece! I left Friday about 6:30, after finishing laundry and making a stab at tidying the homestead. Got in around 10, but then got lost in Henderson for an hour. You would think that after 5 years I could remember how to get there. Saw lots of friends on my way to Whimsy, and they were happy to see me too. Got dressed up in something wenchy and went to work selling clothes. There was some great new designs this year. The drizzle that I drove thru near Baker arrived in Vegas about 3pm, and then it cleared up, and then about 7 or so (right around dark), it started pouring rain, and there was thunder, lightning, and wind. We got the clothes in, threw the tarps up, and closed down. I went home with Deb and Trinidad (who I stayed with last year). We threw our sodden clothes in the laundry and went out for dinner. We stayed up talking for a while and I got some knitting in.


This is sock #1. I am really enjoying this pumpkin yarn (still more orange and less red in person), although I like the way the colors stack in the toes and heels more than the striping in the foot. But the colors aren't pooling in big patches, which tends to bug me, so I am happy. The yarn itself is smooth and soft. I am starting to pick up the short rows, and need to make a decision about the leg pattern (if any) I want to use. I think it might be fun to do the whole leg in 2x2 ribbing and use up all the yarn, and then turn the cuffs down. I was fooling around with the Mermaid socks, tried that, and liked the effect. It also solves the problem of whether or not to increase for the calf and make knee socks.

Friday night and Saturday morning had more of the same - amazing, fearsome, stormy weather. Henderson (south of us) got marble-sized hail. It abated about 10 and we got the word that Faire would open at 12 instead of 10, but was still on. The weather for the rest of the day was quite nice, and the crowds started by late after noon. I worked hard, ate many meat pies, and we bartered Guinness for bloomers with the ale wench. Did quite a lot of flirting and flouncing, but no real takers. I did enjoy viewing all the kilted patrons. Did a little shopping, but I have most of the faire gear I "need". I found an awesome tankard at Moonstruck - it has a deer on it (pictures someday), and a pottery teapot from Lodema the Potter. Saturday night I could barely knit for tiredness (we closed at 10) and slept well.

Sunday was also gorgeous, and finally we saw real crowds. The place was Puh-acked. We finally got the last of the stock out and were busy, busy, busy. For my part, I was busty, being in a better fitting bodice now that I am all skinny. We closed around 5 ish (the hordes of patrons were still shopping with a vengeance, trying to make up for missing Friday night and Saturday morning). We did a little wage-bartering and I was wayyyy overpaid in clothes and $, but still we are all happy with the arrangement and I will be back next year, with bells on! Said goodbye to Todd, Judy, the kids, and the bulge (due at Christmas), and wished them a safe drive home to AZ. I was finally back at the apartment about 8 (got lost again, Deb had to come rescue me).

Left around 10am Monday morning, right on schedule. Took the scenic route down Flamingo to the freeway, missed all the construction traffic (repaving mostly, and in the other direction). Saw the coolest thing - the dry lake outside Primm was filled with water (it actually flooded the freeway on Saturday morning, so I couldn't have left early anyway). It looked really really neat to see this huge lake in the desert. It was clear and sunny in the desert, not a cloud in the sky, until I got to Hesperia and drove straight into a wall of cloud, under which were San Bernardino and Riverside.

Got home around 2, chatted with the neighbors, watered the roses, and took a NAP. Then I was up and off to yoga at 6. Took Julie's beginner class (worked on warrior and sun salutations), Scott's deep stretch class (lots of shoulder stretches), and managed to stay for Laura's Meditation class - the whole 25 minutes!!!!! But then I was beat and it was home to bed for me.

Now I am back at work, and getting so much done, as you can see :) Whimsy will be at the Dickens Festival in the Bay area this year (4 weekends starting Thanksgiving) so I am thinking of driving up for a day there, just to hang out. I haven't ever been to that show.

Ta Da! The mermaids are all done. Cuffs bound off, ends worked in. The top sock (the first one I knitted) is much more gold and the bottom sock is more blue. I love them both to pieces.













Now that they are done, I can move on to ....






Pumpkin socks! This is the pumpkin pie yarn from RubySapphire (Etsy). This is a crappy scan - it looks very coral, when the color is really a bright happy pumpkin. I am getting about 18st / 2", so I will knit them on #0 needles like the mermaids. I am making up the provisional cast on right now.

This weekend is Faire, so I will try to post again on Tuesday. Unless I don't come back. The way work is going, that is looking like a better option every minute. I would need to come in and sneak Fishy IV out.

Weekend doings: Well, Saturday was the Angel Fair in Pasadena. Mandy and I took soap and lotion and the spinning wheel. It was... interesting. We were amazed and surprised that the first 2 things that sold were the Menorah soaps, and that we received a special order for several more. Only one Angel shaped soap sold. How odd. Mandy strapped me to the chair to keep the Hare Krishnas from abducting me, but she needn't have worried.

I spun quite a bit of the purple BFL roving (that will be the silver and purple shawl - someday), and fielded many, many questions about spinning. We decided that I need to put out a change jar and only demo when somebody plunks their quarter down - like the fortune telling automaton at Disneyland. We heard a new spinning observation - someone said "oh, what you're doing is just like making ice cream". I was speechless, if you can imagine that. Otherwise, it was a nice day - good weather, good company, good neighbors. Except for the woman undercutting our soap prices right across from us.

Sunday's to-do list included doing my math homework, doing laundry, cleaning up the house, going to yoga and making soap. Here is what really happened:

I knitted the heel, all 4 repeats of the arch lace panels, and began the ribbing. For those keeping score, you may be interested to know that this is sock #2 of the pair - sock #1 has been largely done since last Wednesday (I left the ribbing unfinished and on the needles until I knit this one to the same stage - I want them to be the same height!).

I also listened to Prairie Home Companion, watched 2 specials on Ben Franklin, all 4 episodes of "The 6 wives of Henry the 8th", 2 episodes of "Carnivale", and the first part of "Casanova" on PBS. A good day.

Friday I leave for my annual pilgrimage to the Las Vegas Ren Faire http://www.lvrenfair.com/ where I work for Whimsy (a clothes booth). It's a good time.