Knitty Winter 2014 Short Review

The newest issue of Knitty was published yesterday and it's the 50th issue! At first glance, I wasn't impressed by many of the patterns but now that I've looked them all over, I think this is a quality issue with a few standouts. I'm going to keep this post (and any other reviews) short-ish by just sharing my favorite patterns.

I don't actively dislike any of the patterns in this issue but there are quite a few that I love! With 22 patterns, there's bound to be a few winners, right?

Tauriel socks by Josiah Bain. These are inspired by Peter Jackson's original Hobbit character Tauriel, about whom I have mixed feelings but I think these socks are so beautiful that my feelings about her don't matter at all.

Minetta cardigan by Kristen Kapur. I am crazy about this vintage style fingering weight cardigan. I want to crop this and knit it with no ease to wear with dresses.

Smithfield pullover by Amy Cristoffers. I can't get over how comfortable and cushy this sweater looks. I think it's perfect for wearing on a rainy day, cuddled up on the couch with a cat or three, coffee, and knitting.

Folie à deux by Becky Wolf. This pattern for a dress or sweater with long, short or mid-length sleeves, a scoop or crew neck, and uniform, graded or no stripes is so versatile that it will flatter anyone.

Drogo slippers by Ashley Knowlton. Inspired by the awesome Khal Drogo of the Dothraki people in Game of Thrones (or the A Song of Ice and Fire book series by George RR Martin), these are double-knit seamless slippers that look super cozy.

Wavedeck shawl by Kate Atherley. This dk weight shawl simply looks pretty and cozy and that's all I want sometimes.

Dr. Quackers by Elizabeth Collins. There's something just a bit off about this little duck that I can't put my finger on and that's what makes me like him. He looks like the perfect toy for a kid to fall in love with for life.

Knitted Gloves by Franklin Habit. These are the Stitches in Time pattern for this issue and they look cozy with the textured stitch pattern that looks like it would trap a nice amount of air to keep my hands warm. There's something interesting in their simplicity.

Cosi Cosa cowl by Julia Farwell-Clay. I don't usually care for long cowls but this one is lovely. I think it would be a great pattern to use with a semi-solid hand-dyed yarn or even something lightly variegated.

Trio of Scale by Amy O'Neill Houck and Miriam Felton. I'm not much of a crocheter but I really like this cute little granny square necklace. This clever pattern is actually a 3-in-1 combo that uses a single granny square in with differing yarn weights and hook sizes to create a necklace, pincushion and pillow.

Those are my favorite patterns in the newest issue of Knitty. What did you think of the 50th issue of the internet's favorite free knitting magazine?

WIP Wednesday!

So, I recently reorganized my stash and it's monstrous. Since it outgrew its cabinet confines in June, I decided that a stash-diet was in order. I started on July 1st and I plan to make it last at least a year and longer if necessary. This is a picture of my organized stash, which might not seem huge until you consider that I live in a one bedroom apartment and don't work. I've already bought this yarn because I liked it, so why not use it already?

Not included in this picture is the huge pile of project bags with at least 25 projects inside them. Some of these things have been on my needles for years, including a cardigan for my mother that will be three years overdue in January. Making things even worse is the fact that I'm working on one relatively new project and I've got three things that need casting on for winter gifts rather than catching up on old projects.

Project: Skypin' in the Swamp
Pattern: Simple Skyp Socks
Designer: Adrienne Ku
Yarn: Knit Picks Stroll Sport (discontinued) hand-dyed by me in Go Gators!
Needles: US 2/2.75mm Chiaogoo Red Lace for magic loop one at at time
Notes: These are my October Sock Knitters Anonymous challenge socks for variegated yarn. These are too late for prize eligibility but I want to get them finished before the Gators play in the Birmingham Bowl on January 3rd with our brand new head coach.
I've got 48 rounds to go on the foot and then a quick toe. I might finish these this weekend!
This is the first time I've tried the Fish Lips Kiss Heel and I have mixed feelings about it. I think I wrapped one too many stitches on each side and so it's a little large. I also don't feel like it's any easier to make than any other heel, though it wasn't any harder either. I'll give it another chance so I can form a proper opinion, but I don't think this will be my default heel in the future.

Tease Tuesday!

Are these Florida Gator colors?

Back Out of Hibernation Yet Again - and For Good This Time!

Hello again!

I'm gonna do this for real this time, I promise! My final exams end in two days and I'll only have class two days a week next semester so I really have no excuse except for laziness and that's no good.

Schoolwise, I'm almost done with my final exams. There's one in Ecology, one in Evolutionary Biology, and one in Primate Biology (lab and lecture combined). I've already finished with an A in scuba diving, an A in Ecology lab (a separate class) and a B in Vertebrate Zoology (lab and lecture combined).

Next semester, I'm taking Methods in Aquatic Ecology and lab with my Vertebrate Zoology professor who rocks, Physics I and lab online, and Microbiology and lab but I'll only be in class on Tuesdays and Thursdays! This is the first time in something like two and a half years that I won't be on campus for five days a week.

After the spring semester I have three classes left! If everything goes well and the scheduling works out that means I can graduate next December! It's been so long and I've worked so hard that I can't wait to get my fancy piece of paper and get on with the rest of my life.

At home, I turned 26 in July and Mike and I celebrated our six year anniversary! We also made two trips home to Orlando and Universal Studios to see the awesome Harry Potter areas.

Here's Gingotts Bank and the fire breathing dragon on the top. The accompanying Escape from Gringotts ride is absolutely amazing, as is all of Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley.

These self-knitting needles were in a shop window in Diagon Alley. They were really moving and clacking like metal needles!

Since you guys probably didn't come here to hear about my life and schooling, here's a quick recap of my recent knitting projects. I've been busy!

PS: click the links under the pictures for the Ravelry project pages with more pictures and pattern and yarn information.

My Shapely Alien Boyfriend Cardigan

Yup, I Made Another Ruffle Scarf

Penny Dreadful Echo Flower Shawl

Dobby Style Sockmark

Not a Demon Baby Hat

Herd Walker Zombie Toy

Road Trip Salomas Slippers

Secret Swap Rick Socks

Jaywalking in Snow

Seaside Stripes Hadley Hat

River Shannon Socks with bonus Riku cameo!

Oscillating Ungulates Hat

Fernweh Sockhead Hat
Completed just today on a study break, as evidenced by the crappy university bathroom selfie. Sorry! Fernweh is German for faraway sickness, as in the need to travel. Since the yarn is my San Diego souvenir, it definitely creates feelings of ferweh.

You know what's really bad? I knit at least 10 headbands for my mother that have no pictures or project pages and I have four projects that haven't been photographed in their completed state. Oops! They probably need finishing of some sort and then I'll take and share proper photos.

Thanks for reading!

WIP Wednesday

I've made some decent progress since my last WIP Wednesday post, but these projects are slogging along. My ADD makes project monogamy difficult, but I know that's how I ended up with 25 projects in various states of completion.

I do have a small confession though. *blush* I've been cheating on these projects with multiple others! Last week, my mother asked me to make her a few headbands that are comfortable to wear while she's growing out her hair. Of course, I've gotten carried away and made four so far with many more on the way. When I get the entire batch finished, I'll share. I'm also working on organizing the stash. If I can crawl my way out of that mess, I'll share that too!

A Dalek for Baby Tyson

Pattern: Exterminknit
Designer: Penwiper
Yarn: Knitpicks Brava Worsted in Silver and Black
Notes: Now that I've finished the body and appendage knitting, all I have left is to weave in an absurd amount of ends, attach the appendages, stuff the body and knit the base. If I buckle down I'm sure I can get this finished by the end of the week!

The Answer is 42!

Pattern: Hitchhiker
Designer: Martina Behm
Yarn: Froebe Fibers Hand-Dyed Sock Yarn in Watermelon Bombe
Notes: I'm only up to 28 teeth and this is just dragging. I flew through the first 20 or so teeth but I'm just not excited by this one anymore. That said, I'm determined to finish this. If I aim for three teeth a day, I can get this finished by Sunday!

Friday Favorite!

Hi dear readers!

I'm in a very happy mood today and I'm over-caffeinated, so I'll probably be overly generous with exclamation points in this post. Sorry! (See, there I go already sprinkling in exclamations where they don't belong.)

This post accidentally morphed into a school update, so feel free to skip this wall of text to the knitting at the bottom of the post!

Today is the first day of my spring break, which I desperately needed. In the last four days, I took four exams and my brain feels like pure mush. This ridiculously cram-packed week is why I didn't have time to write a WIP Wednesday post or photograph my existing finished object from Tease Tuesday. I know I did well on at least two of my exams, though I don't have my grades yet.

I managed to register for my fall 2014 classes and got the exact schedule I was looking for, which is a great thing! As I get closer to graduating, the availability of my advanced courses gets smaller and smaller. Most of the classes I'm now taking are only offered in one lecture and lab time per academic year with a maximum enrollment of 24 students! I'm actually very excited about my schedule that includes evolutionary biology, ecology (with lab), vertebrate zoology (with lab) and most exciting of all, primate biology (with lab)!

The primate biology is a special topics course taught by my faculty advisor, who I'm currently taking for behavioral biology. He researches the evolutionary origin of the physical ability for speech in humans by studying bonobos and chimpanzees, the effect of vocalizations on group behaviors in chimpanzees and the use of combined vocal and physical communication (Do you ever talk and gesture at the same time? So do chimpanzees and bonobos!). He's an engaging lecturer with a laid-back style and a sense of humor and his passion for the subjects he teaches is clear, so I love attending his classes.

I was also offered the opportunity to be a peer leader in chemistry because of my high performance! Peer leading at KSU is basically being available as a tutor for credit instead of pay. I took the offer as a huge compliment, since that means a person in a leadership position thinks I actually know what I'm doing (though I do, of course, know chemistry 101 and 102 well enough to score all As in lecture and lab). It's also possible I was recommended by a wonderful professor that has been casually mentoring me for about a year. Sadly, she keeps trying to recruit me into the biochemistry major, but that's just not for me and I think my refusal causes her a bit of disappointment. I will not be taking this opportunity, since I have a 15 credit hour course load and I don't need the class. I'm also a horrible teacher so I wouldn't really be much use to those students.


Finally on to the knitting content!

Fridays will be used to highlight anything fiber related that has caught my eye, be it yarn, a pattern or designer and maybe even a specific project.

This week's favorite is Anthi by the fabulous Hilary Smith Callis.

How adorable is this sweater?! From the keyhole to the ties to the slightly puffy cap sleeves, I just adore this pattern. It's a free pattern in the 2014 Spring + Summer Knitty and my size requires less than two skeins of fingering weight yarn, making it possible to use a luxury yarn and still be economical. I'll definitely be looking for yarn to knit this at Stitches South in a couple of weeks!

Tease Tuesday

Whale buttons!