My brother got married, scary. . .

This past weekend my parents and I went down to Austin, Texas for my older brother's wedding. It was held on Saturday at 2pm. All I have to say is that the wedding was beautiful and Texas is WAY too hot for my tasted. Heh, seriously I nearly died in the 111 degree weather. Below are two images from the wedding. I'll post one of the couple when the professional ones are up.


And a picture of boy/FH and I at the wedding. No, boy/FH is not Jewish. I was sooo happy that he could be there with me. it was also nice to see him, because we hadn't seen each other since my graduation in May. The wedding was held by a Rabbi, but mixed both Alicia's Christian background and my brother's Jewish background.


Sorry, no knitting this time, but maybe later. I am currently losing my mind with two shows within a month of each other. Shoot me. . . <3

Socks and holiday knits. . .

Yes, I said holiday knits. It's almost May and the holidays will be here sooner than you think. As I've said in the past, my family celebrates the holidays over Thanksgiving. This means I need to start knitting right now, considering my family has become accustomed to hand knits as gifts. below are some of the yarns I've pulled so far. I have already received a request for socks from my sister, but she wants them out of a colourway of STR that I don't currently have. Gotta love requests.

y destash quest has continued. i am working on a bulky hooded jumper out of my Icelandic that has been sitting in my stash.

I am also knitting a pair of Spring Forwards out of some handspun I purchased a while ago. I think they're turning out well so far.

This snood is also a holiday gift. This is for my grandma who lives in Jerusalem. I need to finish it by August because thats around the time they go a visit her annually. The yarn is Paton's Silk Bamboo in Plum.

And lastly, I am also working on a pair of Wendy Johnson's Diagonal Lace Socks in Wollmeise 100% SW Merino in the colourway Brombeere. This yarn has been sitting in my stash for over a year and a half. it was time to drag some of it out and use it. This is an extremely easy sock to knit and I can take it to class with me and not have problems.


Alicia's socks are done and drying. Hopefully tomorrow I can ship them down to Texas to her.
I am also almost done with my first wholesale order. It will be shipped out hopefully within a week. =)
Boy finishes up on the 8th, while i finish up on the 13th. I then graduate the 16th, oh joy. I hope he can spend the summer with me, but it all depends on whether my sister will move out of the condo early. It doesn't seem like she will, UGH!!! Frustrating situation.

Ahh spring. . .kind of. . .

Claudia's colors for this month's package for the Wollmeise Sock Club is definitely bright and colorful. But unfortunately, it didn't match the weather outside. It was snowing, yep snowing. I had just gone up to see boy and go see a movie. When we exited the theater, it had begun to snow. =P

Over spring break I went down and visited my brother and his fiance, Alicia, for 5 days. Unfortunately I was sick the entire time and couldn't get pictures. After that, my parents picked me up from O'Hare and we went to the condo. On Saturday my dad and I went downtown to Navy Pier, which was a lot of fun.
Here is a picture of the ballroom at Navy Pier. Lake Michigan was gorgeous!

Picture of part of the skyline. It was such a beautiful, clear day.

Okay, yes, this is a picture of Mac's butt, but I guarantee there is a good reason for it. While I was home, we took Mac to petco for a bath and a trim. Usually we take our dogs to Petsmart, but they don't do that good of a job on Mac when it comes to trimming. So after we took him to Petco and they did an amazing job! No one has ever trimmed his butt this well. It is sooo wonderful!

I have also been working on some very simple projects right now.


New news is that I will be moving into my sister's old condo, which is much larger and nicer. I now get to find a job before I graduate in this area. I hope it won't be that hard. I am meeting up with an advisor who will help me spruce up my resume and help me with my job search. But, I am staying in Iowa, hopefully for a few years until the economy gets better. I mean, Iowa's unemployment is only 4.6%, which is low compared to the rest of the country.

Gotta Love the cold and snow

As you probably know, I love the cold and adore snow. I wish we had gotten the large amounts of snow that went just slightly north of us. My parents and Boy got that and I was slightly disappointed it missed IC. So, plans have been changing quite a bit lately. My Valentine's Day was kind of boring. I watched movies all day. Boy was in upstate NY attending a memorial for his cousin who was killed on the 6th. And we're not going down to visit my brother for spring break, we're probably just gonna go to my parents condo in Chicago. It should be fun though.

I had to stop knitting my shawl because I finished the first skein and hit a snag. . . all of the other skeins I bought were an off white cream colour and not the white of the first skein. I just happened to use the only white skein for the beginning of the project. Soo, I need to go an buy some more of the white before I can continue.
I have been knitting though. I have finished a couple of projects below. I finally finished my dad's hat last night while watching the Oscars. Yay! It's soft, thick and beautiful. I hope it fits!

I also did some destashing and knit a slouch out of some Misti Alpaca Sport Weight yarn that I have had for years! It's a forest green colour and neither pictures show it very well. I have 2 more skeins left I believe and need to figure out what to do with them.

Mac was very reluctant to model it for me, but I managed to get a cute picture!

I also started another slouch based on one that Scarlett Johansson was wearing in a picture I saw. The first one is being knit out of Cascade Eco Wool, same as my first Ailidh hat. I'm hoping to make adjustments with Malabrigo for the second one before I write the pattern down.

Well, I need to finish going through my Marketing notes, because I have an exam in less than 2 hours. Ugh!
There was also an update in the shop on Saturday. Enjoy!

Rain??

Today is a beautiful gloomy Monday. I love two kinds of days, gloomy rainy ones and crisp white snowy ones. I love over cast skies and cooler to cold weather. Those are both ideal to me. The snow is melting and it feels like spring, even though it's only February. Quaint eh?

I have been slowly but surely been working on my wedding shawl.
Details:
Pattern: Shetland Triangle
Yarn: Baby Cashmerino
Color: white
Needle: US 5 24" and 32"

Apparently the orange beanie That I knit a while ago doesn't fit my dad's head properly. Sooo, while I was home over the weekend I picked up some Debbie Bliss Como in grey and a set of US 13 circulars and cast on. The hat is 52 stitches and will be a basic beanie. The yarn is awesome and soft to work with, if only the skeins had more yardage.

Of course this post would not be a proper post unless I had a photo of my beautiful baby boy. He's enjoying the cooler/warmer weather, but not the rain.. This dog hates rain, baths and any other source of water that gets on him, except snow. odd dog.


For spring break I'm going to down to Austin to visit my brother and his fiance for a few days. it should be fun. =) Boy was supposed to come with but he never gave me an answer and I said screw it I'll go alone. Life does go on.

Hello 2009!

Yeah, I know I haven't posted in a while and I am sorry. I haven't really had the urge to get on and post, considering I really haven't been knitting this past month. I spent my first week and a half here at home playing World of Warcraft and waiting for my grades. This past week and a half, well the first part of it was spent in my parents condo in Chicago with my parents, boy and the animals. We had a lot of fun. Boy and I went downtown and visited Tiffany's (bought my wedding band) and the Apple Store. It was COLD, but fun. This past week we've been back in Rockford enjoying rented movies and the snow. Today I had my colonoscopy, fun fun, the nurse had to stab my hand twice before she got a vein for the IV. It wasn't horrible, the prep kind of sucked, but it's over. Tomorrow boy goes back to school, classes begin Monday, I'm sad. =( My mom also guilt tripped me into agreeing to get my wisdom teeth out on Monday. . . the fun just keeps coming.
Well, some good news, the HAWKEYES WON our bowlgame!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GO HAWKS!!!

Yesterday, boy and I picked up my new and permanent engagement ring (2 pics below). I always wanted a sapphire ring and this is just gorgeous!!!!!!! Yes, my parents know, his still don't, but we have time to wait (3 years ugh!!).

And another pic of my dream ring!!

Still alive and kicking. . .

Don't worry, I'm still here. =) Homework and studying have taken over my life. One more semester until my undergraduate career is over. That is a very sad thought for me. What will i do without college and naps and sleeping and and and and and college!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Anyways, onto what I've been up to. Winter break officially begins tomorrow for me. it started today for boy. Sigh, schmuck. I have the hardest and most stressful final this semester tomorrow at 4:30pm. yay for me. I went up to Cedar Falls and picked boy up today. Mother nature decided that I needed a challenge while retrieving him. It snowed the entire time, yep snow. At first it was dusty snow and then it became wet and thick. It took me 3 something hours to get him. Usually it takes about 2 something. Ugh.

I also knit and finished a pair of house socks. The yarn came from carrie of Funky Carolina. it's part of the handspun club she offered some time ago. I LOVED IT!!! She spun me shetland into a sport weight sock yarn. I couldn't put these down. They are sooo soft!!!

Here is my new ring, which I picked out and have been wearing since it's arrival. It's not official (as in parents don't know?), but I'm planning a 2010 wedding. yeah, okay, let's move on to more fiber stuff. (band is sterling silver, stone is a .47 lilac spinel, ring was handmade on etsy by jewelscurnow) I have a thing for handmade items. =P I'm getting boy a handmade titanium ring. =)

I LEARNED HOW TO RBAID MY FIBERS!!! I know this sounds sad, but it took me for frickin ever to figure out!!!! Now, I'm content. =P

New Camera and a winter wonderland

As part of my Hannukah gifts, I received a brand new Nikon camera. I have never owned a really nice camera before and to be honest I LOVE IT!!!! Below are some photos I took today in the snow. The camera is so much fun and takes wonderful photos! It has 18x optical zoom vr, 10.1 mega-pixels, etc.
Mac entranced by a squirrel in the trees.

A cardinal at the bird feeders 20 feet from me.

Tree in the front yard at least 10 feet from where I was.

Photo of the backyard as the sun was going down.


I love snow!! I hope everyone had a wonderful week off and a great weekend. Yesterday was boy and my first year anniversary! =) He got back to Iowa in one piece, I hope everyone else did also.
And all of my projects and homework is done!!!!! Very very very happy about that one. Thanksgiving break = homework time.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!

It's been an interesting week for me. I have gotten most of my homework and projects done, only a few left to finish. I also went to the gastroenterologist to figure out what's wrong with me. The doctor believes that it is IBS, but to make sure it's not IBD, I have to have a colonoscopy. . . yeah I shouldn't need one until I'm 50. . . I'm getting it done at the beginning of January. Tomorrow however I will be getting a lactose intolerance test done at 7am. . . joy. Gotta love this ugh. . .

I hope you guys are having a great holiday!! <3

Ahhh, November

Sooo, it's been a bit brisk, rainy and even snowy here in the Midwest. Over this past weekend, my parents, sister and I were supposed to attend the Ohio State vs Northwestern game @ Northwester. The weather was cold, windy, snowy and rainy. Sooo, instead we just went and saw the condo my parents are buying in Lincoln Park and hung around downtown. I LOVE Chicago! Below are two pictures of the living room and the kitchen of the condo. It's basically a large apartment in Lincoln Park. The areas behind the building are gorgeous.


While we were in Lincoln Park, I found my dream house. Yep, huge and gorgeous! This house is worth around $3 million. Yeah, better start saving those pennies. Heh.

I have been doing some knitting lately. On Monday I started a lacy slouch in my Skye Sock Yarn in the colourway Lich. I finished it at 1:30 am this morning, washed it and blocked it on a plate. I worked 5 1/2 inches of the lace pattern and luckily when it blocked, it expanded. I love how it turned out! It didn't take much, I still have 72% of the skein left!



Boy and I are trying to work out winter break, etc. We'll see what happens. I just can't wait until Thanksgiving Break! I whole week off!!! Yes, I have to put up with family, but a whole week off!!!

New Website!!

MacYarns.com is now open for business! I hope you guys like the website. i tried to keep it very simple and clean. I love the green in the background.

Here is a mosaic of some of the products in the shop right now. Lots of new colourways!!

I am currently working on another Old Shale Scarf in Woodland Sock Yarn in the colourway Jasmine. The sock below is probably going to my dad, with a mate of course. The yarn is Paton's Kroy Sock. I hope I have enough yarn, these new skeins only have 166 yards, which sucks.

The leaves are all falling and the trees are becoming bare. I love autumn and winter, so the transition is gorgeous to me. The weather is also turning colder now. It's supposed to snow Saturday. Yay snow!!!

Here is a picture of a sunny (70 degree) day on the way back to my moped after my production class. Pretty eh?


Update: Boy and I are talking. You see, love was never the problem with us, an online game is, among some other things. We'll see what happens. When we're good, we're really good, when we fight, we really fight. Unfortunately he's going home for Thanksgiving, his mom jumped right on it and bought plane tickets the moment she heard we broke up. Yeah, bitch. Anyways, I still need to fix my door. Luckily the jam is perfectly fine.

Shut up shut up shut up!

Yes, the apartment is clean!!!!!!!!!!! I spent most of the day today finishing up. I even screwed up my knee in the process. I have no idea what I did, but I'm going to try pain killers and a heating pad tonight. It hurts!! Mac came to me when I hurt it and kissed me and hugged me to make me feel better. He's such a sweetheart.

This was it earlier today, that was actually a lot cleaner than it was, yes very sad. So the question is: why did you clean it? Three reasons:
1.Sanitation
2. Boy is allergic to mac, so it helps with his allergies
3. Inspection tomorrow

To be honest, mainly 3 as sad as that sounds. =/ sorry boy. . .

I also knit something! Yesterday I started the birthday cowl in some Malabrigo that had been sitting in my stash for about 2 years, yeah. . .I finished sewing the edge this morning, gave it a nice hot bath and laid it out on my CLEAN table to dry. Key word there: CLEAN.

Tuesday Mac and I went up to see Boy in Cedar Falls to return some stuff he left over the weekend. he always leaves something, while cleaning I kept finding his socks everywhere. . . *cough* yeah. It was also Rosh Hashanah and I took the day off, not that I'm religious or anything. Ha Ha! Before we left, I forced Boy to go get his handknit socks and model them for me. He politely lifted his jeans up without even being asked and stood there freezing as I snapped the picture. He is definitely being well trained. =)

I am also working on another pair of dummy socks. These are Silkie Socks That Rock in Scottish Highlands. Gotta love the picture of my hot spiced milk with chocolate syrup in it while outside Java House. I LOVE hot spiced milk, unfortunately they took it off the menu and you have to special order it. *sigh* I'm also loving this cooler weather. It's wonderful to wear a hoodie outside and feel the crisp air on your face. Yes, I love fall, leave me alone!

Ok, off to put the heating pad on my knee and work on my mittens. I have also taken my dad's socks out of hibernation, well they're in my backpack right now, but I drag them to class! That counts right?
Also, applauding Sarah Palin tonight, she kicked ass! Yes, I'm a Republican, not a crime. . .I also hate the Cubs. . . not a crime to be a White Sox fan. . . =P

This is going to be a short post with lots of pictures. I'm tired and want to go to bed soon. I have been dying up lots of yarn for Stitches Midwest and even had to order more. I'm mainly dying yarn back in Rockford because I have things the next 3 weekends. I hope to see some of you guys there.
Talking about dyed yarn, the yarn below needs to go. I'll sell each skein for a low discount of $13. Each skein has 400+ yards and are all superwash. Message me if interested.

My otherorder of Handgefaerbte.com and Spunky Eclectic club packages were waiting for me when I got back to Iowa yesterday. I love the Handgefarbe colours and adore the Romney wool Amy sent. *drool*


While I was home I took a visit to The Fold and found this, a Blue Moon Fiber Arts skein of sport weight with 620 yards. I heard holiday gifts for Boy, my dad and brother. 620 yards!!! Yeah, it came home with me.

I have been knitting a lot lately. I have a plain vanilla pair in my handgefaerbte.com Merino extra fine. The colourway is Raptor's Tower. You get 574 yards! I may have enough left over for another pair. Wow. . .

I am also trying to finish some of my holiday gifts before school starts. Ugh! Below is the first, yes still first, sock of my mom's Brigids. I love how they're turning out and the colour is perfect for her.

I have also changed to the handspun given to me by Sarah of Bellaknitting.com. The colourway is Tulips from Spunky Eclectics fiber club. I believe it is from 2007. The wool is corriedale and I LOVE how it feels. I wish it would stripe more, but oh well. She'll like them anyways,

It is now 6 days until I see Boy again. I miss him a lot. =/ I also miss Mac who is in Rockford staying with my parents while I'm gone for a few days. It's soo lonely here. =(