TOK Halloween Swap

Compo or Campus

I like this hat. It seems to get nicer the more I wear it. I am thinking about changing the name to campus and knitting it in some nice fall colors for back-to-school (shiver).

Last of the Summer Wine

I just finished writing a knitting pattern at the request of a fellow Raveller. It seems he has always wanted a hat similar to the one worn by the character, Compo, on the television show, Last of the Summer Wine. Since I love Brit Coms myself, I couldn't resist the challenge to create a pattern for him. I am sure he will fold the brim up like the character in the show. I will wear mine in the more modern fashion of brim down. I've knit it twice myself, and it came out great. I am looking for testers now to make sure that my lingo is clear, and also to double check the l/xl size decreases. The hat looks great on my DH and my DD. Here are some pics:

Handmade Sock Club

Sock clubs sound like a lot of fun to me. You pay a bunch of money and each month or two you get a package that includes yarn and patterns. To a non-obsessed knitter, it might sound crazy to let someone else decide what yarn and patterns you will buy and knit, but to those of us who never-stop-knitting, hoard yarn, and fall asleep thinking about lines of knitting like a computer programmer might think about code, it sounds like a great idea.

And then I stop and think about it.

Great idea? Why? What is it about my lifestyle that makes me think its a great idea to relinquish control of my knitting? Are things that hectic that I cannot take the time to buy the yarn and patterns that I want to knit?

The truth is, I already own the yarn. Yup, I am a card carrying member of yarn hoarders-r-us. Hello, my name is Julz...

Over the past few years, my knitting friends and I have been on several "yarn crawls." They are like Bar Crawls, only the buzz you get is so much better.
We meet in darkness. The only sound is the soft shutting of doors as we cram into cars ( why are images of circus clowns popping into my head?) in the wee hours of the morning.

Our destination may be 200 miles away, or might include several stops, but one thing is for sure-we will buy yarn. We will buy lots and lots of squishy, soft, smooth, fluffy, silkie, luxurious yarn. And it will cost. Some yarns cost as much as 80 or 100 dollars or more for one skein. We justify its purchase- "it's for a gift" when we know we have just the place for it on the top shelf of our Stash Closet.

These adventures in yarn buying are a lot of fun, but just like all things in life, this too must end. I finally realize at if I keep buying yarn at this rate, my stash will be greater than my life expectancy.

Enter Lindsey. Lindsey is my KFF (knitting friend forever). Lindsey is a genius. She realized she has a lot of sock yarn, and a lot of patterns. She put the two together and made her own sock-of-the-month club. Fo free!!!

I am copying her. I asked her. She said she doesn't mind (thanks Linds).

I spent an hour yesterday cataloging my sock yarn and matching each to a pretty pattern. I found out that I am crazy about lace and need to stop buying fun variegated sock yarns! ( oh wait, the whole point is to stop buying yarn. Period. ) okay, so that should make it easy.

I can't wait to start not buying yarn!!!!

TOK Valentine swap goodies!

Chloe's new ring

Heading out for the Christmas party. Chloe is knitting her new ring that took me exactly 11 minutes to knit and felt!!!

TOK Christmas swap

I just got the motherload! woot woot.
I just opened up my swap package from the Tiny Owl knits Christmas swap and guess who my spoiler was, the wonderful Stepanie Dosen herself! So, I am sitting here listening to her album, looking at all of my goodies and thinking about which wonderful pattern I will knit first!
Check out all of the goodies she sent me!