Neptunite - Roman God of the Sea

Named for Neptune, the Roman god of the Sea, Neptunite is a relatively rare mineral that was only discovered in the last century. Thank goodness for this discovery, as these Neptunite Socks that Rock socks are one of a kind and so precious! Can't wait to have them complete! (in between all of the other projects I'm working on!) Oh well, as NK assures me over and over, it's all about the process!

In Olympic News, I'm one sock down, Sock Two to go! And, as a bonus, the first sock fits perfectly! That's always a good sign. I'm thinking about switching the colors around for the second sock (which I'll be starting tonight), as I'm running short on the Stonewash STR, so want to play it safe. I think that will add a cute touch, none the less, to have Prickly Pear as the main color.

Here are some pics:

Stash Update! Stash Update!

I had a dr appt yesterday, so, as my local knitting store out here in the OC, Cozy Ewe, was having a yarn sale (15% off all RED yarn), and they are located within blocks of my dr office, I figured I really needed to stop by to support them. I mean, I NEED red yarn, right? Of course I do! I also needed to enter the monthly drawing, so had that excuse also. I ended up spending more time in there than I had planned, and left with a few new additions to my stash. One of which is NOT red, but was calling my name, so I had to add it to my cart. It was the last one left of its color, so it would have been lonely had I left it there. ( I am sounding like NK!)

Lovely Socks that Rock in Torridon, with hints of gold, brown, lavender, green:


















And, because it does have a "hint" of red in it, I received 15% off this beautiful hand painted sock yarn by Art Yarns:

I also wanted to say "thank you" to NK for the lovely Goat Milk Soap she gave me this weekend as a get well present. It's one of the most lovely smells I've ever smelled in a soap - sweet Honeysuckle! Thanks also to my good friend S, for the lovely read - She's Come Undone - by Wally Lamb, as I'm enjoying it quite a bit! I'm recoving from ankle surgery nicely, I will say, and have only a little over 2 weeks left on crutches (possibly can be off of them on March 4th!) Of course, will probably be walking with a cane for several weeks after crutches, but the crutches will no longer be a part of my wardrobe at that point, that's all that matters!

The good thing about all of this, as Lindy at Cozy Ewe said so eloquently, "Thank God for Knitting!"

The Ups and Downs of It All

Yes, I am up late. It's 2:44 a.m. on the little clock next to my desk here at home, and yes, I am an insomniac! Mainly because I took a nasty fall tonight and came down hard on my left ankle, which, for those of you who don't know, just had surgery perfomed on it last Thursday! So, I woke up midway through the night, ankle throbbing, and what came to my mind? The Blog! Yes, girls, the blog! I thought, I might as well post my updates instead of wasting valuable time lying awake in bed, right?

So, on the Olympic home front, I am making some headway on my Fair Isle socks. I changed the pattern up a little bit here and there, as I had to adjust for my increasingly large ankles and also wanted to change the patterning just above the heel a bit. All in all, it add's a little difference to the socks that make them a little unique and one of a kind.

Here's a sneak peak:
The very different colors of the Prickley Pear and the Stonewash really make for an interesting and lovely mix, almost as if this should be its own colorway (Prickley Stone? Pear Wash? Peach meets Stone? Or perhaps it should be named Rainbow Bright, as this is what it reminded me of. :)) What do I know about naming a colorway of yarn? Nothing. Let's leave that to the people who know what they're doing, I guess!

And yet another sneak peek....














and still another....














Also wanted to say thanks so much to S for bringing over the lovely flowering bulb last weekend! I'm attaching some photos, as it's gorgeous!

Will post more photos near the end of the week. knit on!

Flower Basket Shawl - the specs

FO Specs:

Pattern: Flower Basket Shawl, Evelyn Clark pattern, from Fall 2004 Interweave Knits

Yarn: STR Neptunite, 2 skeins and then some (a bit from another skein, from which I will eventually make socks)

Needles: Size 8 Bryspun Circulars, until they broke (see previous post), and then some susan bates aluminum size 9s because that is what I had

Mods: The pattern called for a stoppage after completing 8 flower baskets, which would have merely made a big scarf. I wanted a SHAWL, a substantial shawl, so I kept on keeping on until I had 15 repeats of the pattern, and THEN followed the finishing instructions. Result? A big, enveloping, loving shawl.

Who for? My mama. No one deserves a hand-made shawl more. She is a truly amazing woman, and I am going to see her in 2 days - gosh, I cannot wait. S. and I are visiting she and my dad in Montana.




I will attempt to show my Olympic knitting tomorrow. It is going well. Half of two feet done. Whoo-hoo.

Olympic Update

It is definitely Olympic time here at We Heart Yarn. We have three confirmed Olympians in the blogroll, and one who, although she did not officially enlist, is an athlete extraordinairre. We have all been training so hard this past year, and from what I have seen, that training is paying off like crazy.

We all saw from the last post that the NK is really plugging away on her shawl. She is almost on the third part, and I am fortunate enough to be able to testify that it is even more beautiful in real life than digital photos would lead you to believe. Rich, deep color, gorgeous lace patterning, and that attention to detail and beauty that we all love and admire the NK for.

WG, whom I visited yesterday for a short training session, is motoring on her Fair Isle socks, as well. The juxtoposition of the Prickly Pear (which E and I know well, and love) and the Stonewashed denim color are fabulous. They really complement each other well, and are going to be amazing socks. An update came in from the field just a few hours ago, and WG has turned the heel on her first one. She will be fair-isle-ing it before long.

I have made some decent progress since my tangled problem on Saturday. I cut, I wove, and I tried to keep my cool (I did, kinda). I now have two separate yet equal socks on my addi turbos, and they look pretty sweet, if I do say so myself. The colors together are almost regal. I have about 3.5 or 4 inches done on each sock, and, although the bowling tonight is sure to put a monkey wrench in my knitting, I am amtrack-ing it to Montana on Wednesday evening, and forsee quite a bit of knitting time. Speaking of Montana and monkey-wrenches, S and I went to a big open-air high end mall-type thing yesterday to register at a high-end store for the wedding. I am always amenable to book shopping, and there was a big old chain book store in this shopping arena, so we decided to go in, on the pretense of checking out if Chuck Palaniuk's new and horrifyingly disturbing (so I am told) book Haunted is out in paperback (not until April). But, as I am a Stephen-King-addict, always have been, and remembered that WG had sent me a link about a new book of his coming out in the beginning of 06, I decided that all must not be lost. They had the book, Cell, for 30% off! Of course, I bought it, to "read on the train," when knitting wasn't cutting it for me. We got home at 6 or 6:30, and I decided to read a few pages. Four hours later, I am on page 314 (out of 355) and realized that my Sunday contained not one stitch of knitting! Hmmm. Gotta finish this book, or, like Michelle Kwan, I can kiss my dreams of achieving Olympic Gold buh-bye.

Let the games begin....

We have a pattern: The Aran weight Victorian Lace Shawl, freely available on the Elann site.

We have the yarn: Elann Sierra Aran in Russet.

We have needles: alot of them (this counts as a stash confession! Note: double points not included!):

And (drumroll, please!) we have knitting:

Sadly we also have the agony of defeat....there was an error. Not a fatal error, but an error. I frogged. Alas...

We have recovery: Yippy!! I will not be defeated by wooly string and a long metal needle!! NOT! I have successfully completed the first pattern section of English mesh lace. I'm about to advance to a size 9 needle and commence the Horseshoe lace pattern. My friend, Elann shopping partner, and for these two weeks "coach", Tanya, was an incredible help to me Friday night. Without her I would still be in the fetal position with this pattern. Not only that, we had the rare opportunity to hang out for a bit at the local coffee shop Saturday afternoon, and knit on our projects! "Hi" Tanya!!

Fellow Olympians--Knit on!!!

Opening Ceremonies

True to the credo of the Yarn Harlot's Knitting Olympics, the NK and I sneaked into her office shortly after 2pm local time to cast on. A few minutes later, I sneaked out, knowing that, for us, the Olympics had begun. I wish we would've taken a photo or two to mark the momentous occassion; watching the ceremonies last night, it was obvious that Olympians need to document their journey, too.

Thanks to a lot of feedback, and to the artistic eye of my sister, I have decided to do fraternal twin fair isle socks. Each has its own unique toe color, and each will have that as the dominant colorway, snaking up and around the sock. This is posing a set of problems that, had I actually thought things through, I may have forseen. Two skeins of yarn, two toes at once, on two circular needles, one toe blue, one yellow. Striping the secondary color by pulling from the outside of each skein. Do you see where we are headed here? To a complete and utter cluster-f*ck. A very ugle tangle. Very ugly, indeed.

What this boils down to is not enough training. I am like some brash young snowboarder, who knows she knows what she is doing, so forgoes the all-important practice runs (ie swatching), focusing instead on the partying and autograph signing (ie knitting on other projects), and realizes all too late that this Olympic run is much, much different than her home mountain. Oh, well. I know what I must do. It involves snipping yarn, and estimating yardage (eeek!) and winding a third and fourth ball. A project for this afternoon.

I will say, however, that both toes were casted on by the end of the opening ceremonies last night.

Let's Go for the Gold

Hey, WG - glad to hear you have done some gardening already this season - my yard keeps trying to whisper sweet nothings in my ear, asking, "wouldn't it be nice to get your fingers in my dirt? wouldn't it be grand to weed me? dontcha want to PLANT SOMETHING, lady?!?!" (strange when my garden calls me "lady." it's bad enough to hear it from the checkers at fred meyer, but my own garden??? come on!) To which I reply, "well, honestly, NO. I got some knittin' to do.

Which brings me to my very own Olympian task:

Project? CHECK (Fair Isle socks).
Pattern? CHECK (Alina Egerman pattern complete with Gail Marrachi heels).
Yarn? CHECK (Socks that Rock).

But which colorways, and in which combination? I was just looking at and fondling my (growing) STR stash, wondering whether I should go for two more-or-less "straight" colors, or if I should throw a more wildly variegated yarn into the mix. As I put yarn after yarn together, one stood out. Fire on the Mountain. It looks damn good with the Olivenite. Damn good. But, the Olivenite looks damn good with the Spinel. Damn good. Can anyone help me out here? Before torch-lighting time on Friday? Gals? WeHeartYarn-ers? Anyone?


my three yarns


and closer

On a very exciting note, the mystery project has arrived. It was for my mother, for her birthday (almost a month ago now, but who's counting?). I made a Flower Basket Shawl out of STR. She received it today - whoo-hoo! I will post photos later this week - it really turned out to be quite a beaut, if I do say so myself, and I am both pleased and surprised it arrived in Big Sky Country so quickly. They really do live in what can only be described as "the boonies." Breathtakingly beautiful boonies, but, compared to Portland, or Cleveland, definitely boonie-rific.

I LOVE this time of year!

So, I arrived home tonight, just as darkness was setting in, pulled into the driveway, and noticed the flat of primroses I had purchased 3 days ago. Yes, it is primrose season here, and they are so beautiful this time of year. I just love them, and they seem to love my garden, so the two of us go hand and hand. I felt a little sick at the thought of them sitting there an additional evening, in that large and lonely flat, so although it was dark out, and really not optimum time to be planting primroses, I decided to plant. I would work by the light of the moon (and my outdoor lights). Ha ha. I just love this time of year, where it's warm enough to plant primroses, yet still has the briskness of winter. I could almost see my breath tonight as I planted away, rubbing my fingers through the wet soil, but I loved every minute of it. I love this time of year!

On to new knitting news...

I signed up for the Knitting Olympics. What am I thinking????? Like I don't have enough projects on the needles, I know, but I just needed one more, I guess. Just one more fix, just one more! I am teaming up with S to knit the Fair-Isle socks Alina Egerman Blue Moon pattern, and, of course, as S is, I am using Socks That Rock yarn, in Stonewash and Prickly Pear . I was going to make Fair-Isle mittens, but the yarn and pattern have not arrived, ughhh, so I have decided to put those off for another day.

Will update more this weekend....Knit on!

Calling All Olympians...

I guess this is as good a time as any to admit that I have joined the Knitting Olympics. (drumroll, please)

I will be a first-time Fair-Isler sockmaker, using the Alina Egerman Blue Moon pattern, and, of course, Socks That Rock yarn. Many thanks to WG and NK for not only encouraging my new yarn acquisition, but for picking out the colors. Ooh, it's gonna be great. (Oh, and S, don't worry - I am merely replacing that yarn which I have already used this year).

So, other Olympians in the We Heart Yarn family? I know there is at least one...

Oh, and E, I am digging your hood with two shovels, girl.

So friggin cool

The hood of Rogue really is. It was perhaps the most fun thing I have ever knit. Grafting those cables together and then the live stitches to a selvedge was a fun challenge. It doesn't look perfect, but better than I thought I could get it. Plus, blocking cures all. Next, we attack sleeves... We are determined to do them in the round, and tempted to do two-at-once like socks. However, that might involve more needle purchasing than we're willing to commit to.

Superbowl, Schmooperbowl, I wanna knit!

I covet your socks, NK. So fantastically beautiful - you better watch that cat; she looks like a sock thief to me!

I am sitting here, at bedtime on a Sunday, wearing something very special. What could be so special to keep me up past 10 on a work night, when I can feel a cold coming on (come on, zyban - work for me!)? How about a sleeveless Rogue! That's right, people, all my girl needs are sleeves. She's going to be a great fit, of that I am sure. Now, I am not a perfect person, and I am not a perfect knitter, so, unfortunately, I do not have a perfect hood, but let's not dwell on the sub-par, eh?



Oh, and E, no problem - it's about time you are the slacker in this knit along. After all, this is such a fantastic project, and such a knitting-affirming challenge, that you should not feel pressured. That being said, come on, girl, get to work! (hee, hee) Hope all the fantastist tv fiction helped lessen your frustrations regarding those dentistas.

I do have a complete FO to talk about, too, which really kind of surprises the heck outta me, because I feel like I just started these, but I'm not going to fight it. The ever-lovely Prickly Pear Jaywalkers are now complete and will most likely be sitting pretty on my own two feet tomorrow. I took 'em outside for a photo shoot today, because, and I don't want to shock anyone, but it was SUNNY IN PORTLAND TODAY. No, I am not smoking crack. It was a beautiful day.



I also have a photo of someone else's project to post - my sister got home from a trip yesterday, and on the trip, had completed her first sock. Gorgeous. Absolutely fabulous. And, as they were knit in the KnitPicks sock yarn, Dancing, it is appropriate that she is busting a ballet dancer pose on our coffee table.



Now, something else came "off the pins," so to speak, this weekend. I will be talking about it, but not until next week, because she is shipping out tomorrow for Big Sky Country, and I want the recipient to be a bit suprised. She most likely will, because the reason for the gift is almost a month past. Ah, well. Punctuality is overstated - it is much more of a surprise if it is not on time, right? Shhh! It's a secret. Ok, I'll show you a hint:

Rogue beginnings

Well, due to a last-minute freelance writing project, I didn't get any more Rogue done this week. (But I had prior emergency dispensation from S so I'm not in trouble.) So I thought I'd post archival footage of Rogue's first day of being. Oh, how my little baby has grown.














I have worked on my Jaywalker socks now and then, mainly on the bus and last night/this morning. On Friday I realized after a few inches of the cuff that they were too tight to get over my apparently (according to Shannon and Iris) high instep. So I frogged back to just before the heel and increased by 8 sts. I turned the heel last night. They are stripping perfectly on the top part now and seem to fit (see below). I'm almost ready to start doing the jaywalker pattern all the way around. That will be the true test.


Despite these lovely little gems, I'm in a wicked foul mood because the aforementioned writing project threatens to turn seriously sour. Anyway, my response to this is an overwhelming urge to lay in bed knitting while watching sci-fi. Tonight we've been through Stargate Atlantis, Star Trek Enterprise and Far Scape. As well as a few inches of sock cuff. Without knitting I would be a sloppy mess. What a fabulous hobby - a balm for the soul. No dark mood can stand up to the cheery colors of Prickly Pear STR. Right?

We Heart Canada!!!

Look what came in the mail on Saturday! Woo hoo! This lovely 400 yard skein of 100% merino sport weight yarn in the 'Fondant' colorway came from SweetGeorgia yarns!! Check out Felicia's blog for more loverly fiber eye-candy! Thank you Felicia!!! I'm loving it!!!

Look at more of it:

Even sweet Gibson is getting in on the yarn action!

On the knitting front, I have been working on the cable socks from Melanie Falick's Handknit Holidays. I am using Elann Uros Aran (undyed) and size 5 dpn. I'm making the women's size, but will make the man's size for me next time, as they are a wee bit snug.

There's that sweet Gibson again! Just checking things out. Such a sweetheart he is!

That is it for now. Happy knitting!!!

Has Anybody Seen My Yarn?

Has anybody seen my Yarn?
(this poem is based on a true story and loosely based on the poem "Has Anybody Seen My Mouse")


I had pulled it out, for just a minute,
Admiring the colors, the greens and blues in it,
And while I glanced away, just for a split second,
(as I had heard some sort of mysterious crash),
I looked back to find the yarn was gone,
just like that, in a serendipitous flash!

What had happened? Was I losing my mind?
Had the yarn disappeared, right before my very eyes?

It was then that I spotted him, such a mischievous cat,
It was then that I realized this had all been just an act.
He had been after my yarn all along!

I tried to catch him, oh how I tried....
I knew he was somewhere about the house.
I looked under the bed, under the couch, under the table and throughout all the shelves.
Under the sheets and under the bar
Has anyone seen my yarn?

It’s just a small skein, silk blend mohair to be exact,
In blues and greens, as I mentioned previously,
Is it true that he has gotten away with this, I wondered?
Is it true he could have been this sly and sneaky?

He must be somewhere, as I frantically searched
Pulling on my hair so hard it actually hurt.

I decided I would ask Abby, my beloved schnauzer,
hater of all things “cat”,
“Have you seen my yarn?”
She looks the other way, pretending to ignore me…

Could she be in on this too, I wonder?
Or is she just pissed off at the cat for always trying to steal her thunder?

At this point I’m not sure, so decide to ask the question again, in another way….
“Have you seen the cat?”
She looks at me like I’m speaking a foreign language.
“You know”, I say, “the one who lives here?
He’s overweight, has a big, white belly, black nose, always trying to bite your toes….”

This sparks some interest!
She looks at me and lets out one lonely “bark”,
and motions her head toward the closet,
the one that’s down the hall, and known for being very, very dark.

The closet, could she be mistaken?
I slowly look up to see the closet door slightly ajar.
Hmmm, I wonder, could the cat really have pried the door open just that far?

I slowly make my way down the hall,
Tiptoeing, as quietly as a mouse…
Still, I felt my footsteps could be heard throughout the house!

I sneak right up against the closet door,
Slowly peek in, my eyes moving about,
I see nothing at first, except complete and utter darkness…
I think to myself, could the dog have led me astray?

I was just about to look away,
When just then, I spot a hint of yellow,
And I focus a little more
Could it be the cat’s eyes looking back at me, I was thinking,
Then, all at once, something bolts at the door!

And quick like a bunny, fast like a flash,
Just like that,
I reach down and grab him~
I catch the sneaky cat in his well-planned act!

I hold on to him tight, and take him into the next room,
Should I torture him right now, I wonder,
or should I question him and make him squirm?

I decide to interrogate him, ask him some questions
Would he face me in this instance, did he know my intentions?
I hold him up, where I can see directly into his eyes,
When then, much to my surprise, I see an ever so tiny piece of my yarn coming out of his mouth, just near his whiskers.

I give him the “eye”, which for me is pretty bad,
The cat knows I mean business at this point,
he knows I’m especially mad.

I pull on the yarn, ever so slightly, letting him know I’m serious.
He lets out a cough, the hairball type,
I become even more furious.

I set him down, not on the carpet,
but on the hardwood floor,
where he continues to have a hairball fit, much to my horror.

This goes on for several minutes,
while I impatiently wait for this to quit,
And finally I think to myself,
I have had it, this is it!

I reach down and yank at the yarn,
which is now halfway out of his mouth.
Much to my surprise, though, it’s longer than I thought plausible….
He has eaten the entire skein of my blue and green mohair!
How was this even physically possible?

I pull and pull and pull on the yarn, and the yarn just seems to be endless,
Until finally a giant portion of the skein is revealed.
It was then that I realized…
The cat had obviously considered my yarn a delicious four course meal.

I look at the cat in utter amazement,
I was speechless, none the less,
I looked at the dog, and she, of course, looked away,
She was probably in on this as well,
She looked pretty guilty, as far as I could tell.

So, I slowly sit down, holding my wet and
now mutilated skein of yarn,
Ruined, none the less,
My poor heart sad at the thought of it.
I was devastated, I must confess.

I looked down, and the cat just looks at me, with those eyes and blank stare.
I can’t decide at this point whether to comfort him for feeling so ill,
or to scold him for eating my beautiful mohair.

After sitting there for awhile, thinking it over,
A light bulb suddenly clicked!
I decide there’s a positive to this story after all,
I could use this whole situation to my benefit.

I grab my coat and car keys, (and my purse, of course),
and climb into my car,
I realize then that things could be so much worse!

A trip to purchase more yarn won’t be so bad, in fact.
As I reasoned in my mind
Yarn diet? I forgot all about that pact
As I made the, oh so familiar drive.

Maybe there’s something on sale,
Maybe they have the needles I’ve been dreaming about,
my mind was racing like crazy,
By the time I reached the store,
I was so excited I could scream and shout!

Mad at my cat for eating my mohair?
Nah, that’s ancient history!
As I head home with a full bag of yarn and a happy heart,
The day with my cat is only a mere memory.