Craftylilly

The Red Ranger is 6!

I can't believe it.  My eldest baby is 6 years old.  I love my son.  He's such a sweet boy, and has such a wonderful imagination.  He's also a budding photographer.  He's the one who has taken the most recent shots of me wearing the latest FO's.  It's hilarious.  When I asked him to take a picture of me wearing the Sloane Vest he said, "So Mommy, do you want a picture with the shirt and your face, or just the shirt.  Maybe I should do both..." 

Happy Birthday, little man.  Your family loves you, and you're Mama's favorite photographer. 

If you're a spider, be afraid!

I declared war on the cobwebs setting up shop in my house.  It would probably be more accurate to call them "cobcities."  I swear to you that these cobwebs had skyscraper webs, and a light rail system.  Why did they get so out of control?  Well, since we've moved to this house, 3 1/2 years ago, I've been a bit intimidated by the vaulted ceilings.  I must live in one of the tallest and steepest houses.  All the ceilings are high in the house.  The staircase is insanely steep.  When we first saw this house, I was a bit shocked by the steepness of the staircase.  So, the spiders have pretty much had their way with the ceilings.  I've been able to battle them enough to make it presentable, bit today I decided that the cobcities were going to experience armageddon.  Spiders everywhere felt a disturbance in the force with the power of a very long broom, chairs, and a taller husband to get all the cobwebs.  I now have web free corners. 

Perhaps all this zeal had to do with the theme of the Red Ranger's birthday party tomorrow.  We're holding it at a local wildlife museum.  RR picked a "Creepy-Crawly" party.  The party coordinator called the other day and told me that the party guests will have a chance to see a tarantula, black widow spider, and cockroaches.  I'm itching all over just thinking about it, and so the cobwebs had to go.

And the pictures?  Well, I thought pictures of cobweb destruction would be a bit too violent for this blog, so I thought I'd share two recent FO's.  I whipped up a lace bookmark from the the One Skein Wonders book that I sent off to my words and bookmark swap partner.  I also sent the Virginia Woolf book too.  The second picture is of a Lauryn Wrap which was the free gift for renewing my Rowan International subscription.  I used the Rowan All Seasons Cotton which I love, and modified the wrap by casting on 55 stitches instead of 85 to get a longer nicer wrap.  It's for a friend of mine, and I hope she will like it.

 

Still here, taking a breather between shindigs

I'm still here, just enjoying the short break before the celebrations continue with RR's birthday this coming weekend.  I've got nothing of note to share other than mother's day was nice, and the weather is warming up nicely. 

A small film digression, RM and I just saw Into the Wild, the Sean Penn movie based on the book written by Jon Krakauer which chronicles the true story of a young idealistic young man whose journey lead him to Alaska where he loses his life.  I read the book last year and really liked it.  I didn't think the movie is as good as the book, but I did enjoy it.  The movie seemed to focus more on how the people who met Chris McCandless were affected by him, whereas the book wrestles with what he was trying to find out in the wild.   I will say that the soundtrack and Eddie Vedder's music is amazing.  So, I thought I'd share this video.  You can get a preview of the movie, and listen to one of Vedder's fantastic songs. 

The Quickest Knit in the West

There's nothing like knitting with some huge needles, and supchunky yarn.  The real estate that one can cover with yarn and needles like that is unreal.  As a general rule, I'm not a huge fan of the chunky knit.  Most of the time I don't think the finished product looks polished.  I do love the speed in which the project whizzes by, however.  For example, I knit a Sloane Sweater Vest from the book Yarnplay in just 10 days.  I probably could have knit it in only 3 or 4 days if I only had more crafting time.

Project Specifications:

Pattern:  Sloane Sweater Vest by Lisa Shobhana Mason (Ravelry link)

Yarn:  Rowan Big Wool Fusion - 3 balls

Needles:  Size 17 circ

Mods:  I modified this to be knit in the round.  I like to reduce seaming when I can, especially with such a chunky knit. 

Thoughts:  I've knit with Big Wool before and liked it.  Big Wool Fusion is no different, but I like the way the yarn is dyed.  I wasn't sure I was going to like how the color was going to look knit up when I saw it in the ball.  The yarn kind of looks like it was spray painted with dye.  However, once the yarn is knit up, the color looks like it has depth and character.  The pattern is very basic and simple.  What gives the vest some spice is the chunky yarn.   Overall I found this knit to be a very satisfying quick project. 

The Celebration Death March Begins

With the turn of the calendar, the Craftylilly family begins to put on our celebration caps for a very long two months.  This year it started a bit early with PQL's preschool auction.  I put a lot of work into working on the raffle piece of the auction and am very pleased that the event went well, and a good amount of money was made for the school.  Today is my parents' anniversary.  Happy Anniversary, you two!  Then we've got Mother's Day, RR's 6th birthday, my dad's birthday, RM's birthday, my birthday, Father's Day, and RM and my 10th anniversary.  You'll find me at the end of June, passed out on the couch, with a noisemaker clasped between clenched teeth, a lampshade on my head, and only the vaguest idea of what hit me. 

Due to all the celebraton prep, I haven't had much time to take pictures and share some odds and ends I'm working on.  I have been working on some things though.  I've got a wrap started for a friend of mine.  Her birthday is coming up, and I decided to knit a Lauryn wrap from the pattern and yarn that Rowan international sent me for renewing my subscription.  It's a nice knit; the dropped stitches provide some interest, but the knitting is easy.  I'm quite a bit further along than this picture shows.  I modified the pattern a bit after reading about other knitter's experiences knitting it.  I'm making it not as wide so it will be longer. 

I'm also still dabbling with chainmaille.  I just completed this little bracelet.  I took an orphan art bead, and then paired it with a "Lacey Chain" chainmaille pattern that I got from a wonderful book called Chains by Becky.  The pictures and instructions on how to work the chains are excellent.  I'm thinking of trying my hand at some other chains as outlined by this book.  Now to just find a spare moment.  *cue ironic cackle here.*

Of Bacon and Bibs

I had fun reading all of your traumatizing film scenes.  Many of them I had forgotten about.  If any of you are interested in a good scary movie, RM and I just saw El Orfanato (The Orphanage).  It's a decidedly creepy movie in the vein of The Others or The Haunting. 

Speaking of things slightly left of center, take a look at the summer tote I bought at Target last week.  Who wouldn't want a pool tote with a bacon and eggs applique?  Just looking at it makes me chuckle.  The kidlets have swim lessons this summer, and this tote is the perfect size for some knitting, sunscreen and pool cover-ups.  Ah summer knitting, I'm beginning to anticipate the possibilities.  I'm thinking lots of lace, and perhaps a Cece.

And to go back to bacon for a second, have you all seen the latest Anticraft?  It's a bacon issue.  Check out this bacon scarf.  I started laughing out loud when I saw it.  I think I want one.  I've never tried double knitting.  Perhaps knitting myself a bacon scarf will be a good way to try it out and get a laugh at the same time.

In all seriousness, I finished up a couple of bibs for a friend's new baby.  This baby has been kept in the NICU for a week now due to birth complications.  My family, as well as PQL's whole preschool community have been very concerned.  I've been focusing prayers and positive energy into the knitting of the bibs.  I'm a firm believer in the power of positive thought and prayer, so if you are willing, send a little to this family.   

Childhood traumas: the movie edition

The Red Ranger will be 6 years old in a month.  I can't believe it.  It's amazing to me that he's almost 6.  As he gets older, and has more play dates and outings with friends I'm starting to think about how to deal with the increasing non-family influences.  A lot influence comes from TV, movie, and video games.  With that in mind, I started reflecting on the movie experiences that traumatized me when I was a child.  I thought I'd share them with you set up in handy Top 5 form.

Top 5 disturbing film scenes when I was a child:

1)  The Black Hole (1979):  My parents took me to see this in the theater.  I was 5.  This was right about the time that Disney started putting out more mature films than the animated movies or movies like Freaky Friday and the Herbie movies.  My parents were as shocked as I when a robot kills a main character with a rotating blade hand.  I freaked out, and was quickly ushered out of the theater.

2)  Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981):  I think you all know the scene that freaked me out.  Here's a hint, a ceremony, an opened ark of the covenant, and Indy and Marion tied up. 

3)  Poltergeist (1982):  The whole darn movie scared me, and still scares me.  I have a serious fear of clown dolls still.  I'm not even kidding.

4)  Michael Jackson's Thriller video (1983):  I saw this for the first time at a friend's house at her birthday party.  Yeah, very scary for my 9 year old self.  Now, I love this video and the choreography.  At 9, a scary faced Michael Jackson was terrifying.

5)  Watcher in the Woods (1980):  For some reason the ghostly little girl with the bandage around her eyes freaked me out.  Bette Davis is scary!  We used to watch this at sleepovers.  Very good sleepover scary movie.

So now I'm curious, what movie and TV scenes have traumatized you?

A plug for a podcast

If you haven't already found it, I'd like to introduce you to an awesome crafting podcast, Craftypod!  Sister Diane covers all sorts of crafts and has wonderful interviews with all sorts of creative and crafty people.  I've gotten inspired by many of the episodes.  The latest episode's theme is "Men Who Craft" and includes my own cousin, Adam.  Adam's wife, Kayte is also an extremely crafty person with her own craft blog, Love Forever.

Check it out!

A sad heart benefits from knitting salve

I want to thank everyone who stopped by and offered words of comfort to us.  The loss of Wiji was sudden and unexpected.  We mourn her, but sharing stories about her, and cuddling Hazel and Ranger have helped a lot.  Wiji's passing marks the end of an era for RM and I.  We adopted her and Ashe a year after we were married.  They were my first pet cats, and our first pets together and as adults.  Now, they are both gone, and RM and I are coming up to our 10th anniversary.  We know we aren't newlyweds anymore, but for me, Ashe and Wiji reminded me of those early years, before the kids.  I will always miss them.

Wiji's loss sent me to my knitting.  I'm so thankful to have crafting to help me when I'm feeling sad or anxious.  The stress and sadness of the week led me to complete my Shalom Cardi in record time. 

Project Specifications:

Pattern:  Shalom Cardigan by Meghan McFarlane (Ravelry Link)

Yarn:  Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Chunky (6 full balls)

Needles:  Size 11 circs

Modifications:  I shortened it up, as the pattern designer states that this cardi is for someone who is a tall 6 feet.  In order to do this, I took out 2 rows between the decreases and increases in the body section of the cardi.  I also have a garter stitch bottom hem of 6 rows rather than 10.  The other thing I did was a single crochet edge on the bottom edge of the armhole.  This tightened up the stitches and makes it look more polished.  Also, I decided to forgo putting in a button and buttonhole, and am using a pretty pin to close the top instead. 

Thoughts:  I really like this little cardi.  It's the perfect little something for a spring day.  I like working with the Cashmerino too.  It's really soft to the touch.  Plus, with a pattern name of Shalom which means peace, I got a little solace from this sad week.   

Saying goodbye

We said goodbye this morning to our beloved kitty, Wiji.  Yesterday she fell off the landing of our second story and sustained a spinal cord injury that made it so she couldn't bear weight on her back legs.  The vet tried giving her steroids to reduce swelling.  We were all hoping that her leg function would come back with a reduction in swelling, but she didn't get better but in fact got worse.  With a sorrowful heart, PQL and I went this morning to say goodbye.  I am comforted that her brother Ashe who passed away 2 years ago will be there to meet her on the other side of the rainbow bridge.  We will miss her. 

Wiji - 4/1/98 - 4/15/08