NaNoWriMo and stuff

As if I didn't have enough on my plate, I have joined NaNoWriMo this month. So I will be light on the blogging, but I do plan to get back to my Monday posts. Just wanted to stop by and let you know I am alive and knitting:)

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Little Shawl, I Heart You!

Grading papers is a drag when you realize your students need a writing course in addition to the actual subject of the class. It will be fine. I'm self-medicating...with knitting! I started the Sagano shawl, three times, because well...the first time I forgot my stitch markers ad the second time I dropped a stitch. Everything's on track now, and I am even knitting with yarn I had abandoned due to color. But I think I am gonna love this shawl...and small shawls in general. I can see a bunch more in my future as wonderful neck coverings :)

Until next time...
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Whoa, Nelly!

I have been really busy lately. What's new, right? But I've started TAing an Urban Studies class on the city, and while my responsibilities aren't too cumbersome, the professor is a bit challenging. This + teaching + web job + dissertation has left very little craft time. What's a girl to do? Start something new of course! Cosmicpluto Knits published a new pattern, the Sagano Shawl, and for once, I knew I had to make it immediately!

Pretty, no? So I bought the pattern and wound the yarn. I will be working on this as my bus travel project as soon as I complete my mystery project :) I'm very excited to make this textured beauty. I also need to find an hour a day to work on my sweater projects, because I can't lug those on the bus and they are not getting finished...sigh.

Until next time...


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Resume: Bento Box Quilt

Friday night, I wanted to quilt, desperately, but I need to work on my lecture, and then I went to a bonfire. Saturday, I continued working on my lecture, went to a barbecue, but the need to quilt lingered in the recesses of my brain...lurking, waiting. Saturday night, I chose to go to a party with a newish, kinda sorta friend, which lasted until 7:30 the next morning, so again no quilting. Yesterday, I would not be denied. Lecture finished...Bento Box quilt resumed! I sewed together the strips last night, and this morning finished assembling the quilt top! Woot! Now to figure out a backing fabric and binding :) Yay!

Strips Waiting to be Sewn Together
Until next time...
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Happy Early Fall!

It's been wild and wooly chez moi, but with summer officially coming to a close today, I am back and ready to blog! What better way to return than with a WIP update! I have been crafting all summer, but really not finishing much...alas. I'm going to make a real effort to finish something by the end of this month. Here's hoping! Behold, my current projects (from oldest to newest):

My Central Park Hoodie
I figured it would be nice to have black cardigan for Fall in RI. It would be great to have this to wear on these chilly days! If only I had actually knit on it this summer. Now it's cold and I have no lovely cardigan to put on. Concerted effort is going to this project! Really :)

Tie-Back Shell
Messed up the lace on this one three different times :( After frogging it and restarting as many time, I finally caved and just put in a bazillion stitch markers. Now things are on track, but I needed a break from the counting. Will resume shortly.

Alhambra Scarf
A small carry-along project to work on when I don't want to lug large sweaters with me. As such, the knitting is going quite slowly, which is fine. No deadline on this one.

Berry and Bramble Cardigan
Saw this in IK Fall 2009, and immediately got the yarn from my stash (cannibalized from the Pea Coat disaster!) and cast on. Several issues with this pattern due to poor knitting situational choices...but I will get back to this as it looks gorgeous, and the color is to-die-for! Can't wait to wear it with nice pants and heels :)

Mystery Project
I can't really talk about this one, but I will say it's small and portable. If you want to know what it is all about, you can find it on Ravelry.

There are other projects that are hibernating, and as I finish these, I will rescue one of those from obscurity. Also, look for an Etsy announcement in the coming months!

Until next time...
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The End of Summer

I have been on hiatus. Working two jobs plus free-lancing can really take a way a girl's will to blog. And how! I have quit one job, and replaced it with a teaching job! I will finally fid out if I enjoy being a professor. It's an Art History survey from Prehistoric to Gothic, which should be fun. It has also given me inspiration to create some fiber arts! Here's what I plan to work on this fall. Thanks to Nova for asking the question!


The Knitting
Berry and Bramble Cardigan
Central Park Hoodie
Tie-Back Shell
Gentleman's Sock with Lozenge Pattern
Gentleman's Half Hose in Ringwood Pattern
Gentleman's Winter Sock with Dutch Heel
Karma Skirt

The Quilting
9-Patch Quilt
5" Square Lap Quilt

The Crocheting
Crocheted Hair Nets

The Spinning
Spin 4 oz mohair/wool to DK (drop spindle)
Spin 8 oz icelandic wool to DK (drop spindle)

What are you working on this fall?

Until next time...
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End Radio Silence!

Where have I been all summer? Working two jobs and a dissertation. Thus, I haven't been keeping up with my blogging which is sad, because I have been crafting like a fiend! Anyway, to reacquaint you with who I am, I thought I would take you a journey. A journey to my first surfing experience. A journey which is still ongoing!

Today I went to Newport, RI in search of Second Beach where local surfers own the waves any day, any time. My day started at 10:36 with the local trolley I take to get to the bus depot downtown. Today was VJ Day (VJ = Victory Over Japan...seriously, I am not making this up!) so the buses were on a holiday schedule. By 11:20, it already felt like it had hit 90, and I was melting. After an hour plus bus ride, I arrived in cool breezy Newport refreshed and ready for my adventure. Or so I thought. As I stepped off the bus to the Cliff Walk, the heat and humidity slapped me all over my face, neck, shoulders, and back. Uh-oh!

Here's what I got to look at as I started to regret my lack of a water bottle:

View from the Walk

Cliffy

Whirlpool?

Ugh! I can't see the water for the trees :)

Rock you, mister!

I'd come visit, but I like my neck in one piece, thank you very much!

So sweating and very uncomfortable, I made my way the one mile around to the first beach...nicknamed...First Beach. Teehee...

First Beach

That boat looks so much smaller on film

I was so tempted to just lay out my towel and jump in the water here, but no...I was supposed to find Second Beach and its score of surfers. So I soldiered on, passing two snack shops and finally succumbing to a grilled chicken sandwich and a root beer. Then, I began the TWO MILE death march from the end of First Beach to Second Beach. Upon hearing this distance, I thought back to the Newport Information Tech who swore it was a mere 1/4 mile from the Tennis Hall of Fame...clearly he thought Second Beach was First Beach...boy was he wrong! Sigh... Anyway, now it was matter of pride, so I put on my game face, and decided that no matter how far it actually was, I would get there and surf, damn it! But it hurt...a lot...and I was dying of thirst...did I mention the 90+ degrees and burning hot sun?

The Walk to Second (read: Death March) begins

Death March feels like a cake walk...but it's a little uncomfortable heat wise

Death March feels like death...but look! Pretty flowers...

OMG! Is that shoreline? Really? Not a mirage? Or dehydrated hallucination?

Wha? I thought the Chasm was in MA...whatever, I've got beach to climb down to.

Having spotted the shoreline, I knew I was home free! I stopped for a Del's lemonade which I ate/drank while pottering around in the water as I sought out the surf crowd. One there, one way down there...one in the parking lot packing up. Hmm...where are the surfers and these so called impromptu lessons? The short answer...no waves today, so no myriad of surfers, no impromptu lessons, no surf chick moment for me. But it was a pretty beach, and I did a bit of knitting. So all was not lost. And I found the beach! Really that was victory (HA!) enough :)

Second Beach! Finalement!

Surfers? Anywhere? Hello?

Hee hee...water, that tickles...not in public!

Around 4 pm, the waves came...as I was packing it in.


So, I will have to return to Second Beach at some point to actually meet some surfers and get a lesson or two, but I probably walked off everything I ate today and half of my Love It Coldstone concoction last night! A good day, all in all!

Fare Thee Well

Until next time...
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