Pattern for Spring Knitting

I get those advertisements in the mail for one free magazine all the time. I usually send them back if it's something I'll at least flip through. If it's knitting related I always send for it, you never know when a pattern might come in handy. This time they sent me a free pattern too. So cool. That's the way to get me on board and subscribe!

It's called Knit 'n Style. Anyone heard of it? Me neither. I automatically filled out the reply card and then saw the pattern. It's one that I would actually knit:



Simple, no buttons, perfect for my office when it's just a touch cool in the mornings. The yarn called for is brand new: Plymouth Yarn Super Taj Mahal, 70% superfine merino, 22% silk and 8% cashmere. It's safe to assume that this is going to feel luxurious. So a little research with the help of Google and the cheapest I can find the yarn is $85 USD for package of 10 balls and I'll need at least 14 because I'm what you call a big girl. If I were to buy all 14 individually it would be at least $133 USD.

I don't know about you but I can't remember the last time I paid that much for a sweater. I know that the merino/silk/cashmere is expensive but wow that's a lot. Maybe I'm just cheap. I'll have to wait for this yarn to be out for a few months and then see what substitutions can be made for similar results.

No I'm not cheap, I'm resourceful/frugal/sensible. Besides, for $133 I could fill a cart up at Target with clothes for our son. That I could do without blinking an eye . . .

The Skin I'm In

If you're looking for knitting just skip today's post. I'm still working on the sweater and the front looks exactly like the back. I'll try to get back to knitting related stuff tomorrow.

Yesterday I had an appointment with a new dermatologist. I've been living in my new home for almost two years now and I've been putting this off - with valid reasons. I am covered head to toe with freckles, moles, beauty spots, angel kisses (my mom's favorite term), whatever you want to call them I've got them. I've been fair skinned all of my life and this is just something you deal with. Lots of sunscreen, hats and in the shade as much as possible. No matter what I do I still get more. Just in case you don't believe me:


Yup, everywhere. Here's a close up on my forearm (just ignore the blond arm hair please):


A few years ago I got a couple small ones on my toes and then one on my pinkie finger. I thought it was just dirt at first. Silly me. I'll spare you a shot of my non-manicured toes.


So I've been seeing a dermatologist regularly since I was in junior high. It's a fact of life. When I first went in they removed 3 moles and everything came back normal. I moved to Chicago, got a new dermatologist and he decided to take 4 moles that caused him concern. These were the same 4 moles that the first doctor said were fine, hadn't changed at all. No worries though, it's better to be safe than sorry. Those moles weren't cancerous either.

Fast forward to yesterday. I wait 45 minutes just to see the doctor for maybe 5 minutes at the most. He looks like a kid in a candy store when he first sees me. Immediately he decides that 1 has to go. I ask him about one that I can't see that well and he says he wants to take that one too. After less than 5 minutes he walks out. All in all he wants 3 moles removed. The same 3 that the past 2 doctors said were fine. The kicker to this one is that he doesn't do the surgeries all in one day. He wants me to come in 3 separate times to have it done. Now that's pushing it buddy. That means I'm going to have some sort of stitches for more than 6 weeks with a toddler at home and a traveling husband. Not exactly convenient.

I put off this appointment for so long because I know that as soon as I see a new doctor they get all excited and just start picking the ones they think look the worse. To me, I know they are just being cautious because I'm a walking caution sign for skin cancer but I think I have enough scars for this lifetime. I've accepted the fact that I'm not the bikini type - having a baby kind of decides that for you. When people ask what happened to me when they see a scar I have resorted to telling them that it's a bullet wound from our time living in the city. At least that's more exciting.


Public Service Announcement: If you have any moles you should use the ABCDE method for checking them often. It's easy to remember and exactly what every dermatologist uses to determine if it should be removed and tested.

A - Asymmetry, Is it shaped symmetrical?
B - Border, Does it have a definite border?
C - Color, Is it just one color?
D - Diameter, Is it smaller than a pencil eraser?
E - Evolving, Is it exactly the same and unchanged?

If you answer NO to any of these questions you should get checked out just to be sure, especially if the mole has changed. Don't let my little rant sway you. I happen to be covered in these but most people just need to visit the dermatologist only a couple times in their lifetime when questionable moles appear. A family member of mine got checked out a couple years ago and even though he didn't think it was a big deal. It was cancerous. If he had waited much longer they might not have got it in time.

I may complain about the removals but it sure beats having cancer!

Book Review: Crazy Aunt Purl's Drunk, Divorced, and Covered in Cat Hair

This must be the longest title for a book I've ever read. The full title is:

Crazy Aunt Purl's Drunk, Divorced, and Covered in Cat Hair: The True-Life Misadventures of a 30-Something Who Learned to Knit After He Split

It's very wordy, kind of like the author. I first stumbled across Laurie's blog a couple years ago and I've been a constant reader ever since. She's just hilarious. I love the words that she makes up and it's so much fun to read about her adventures as a transplanted Southerner living in LA. I had tears streaming down my face when she posted the news of her oldest cat, Roy's passing. I can still recite the story of how he got his name by heart. I even made my husband read it.

When the announcement came out that her book was was almost ready to hit the stores I wasn't sure if I wanted to buy it. We have very little in common:

She's divorced with no children, I'm happily married with a son
She's from the South, I'm from the North East
She lives in LA, I lived in Chicago and now in Central NY
She has an obsession with new shoes, I wear the same pair every day until they're worn out
She has a long commute & works in an office, I work out of my home
She runs into massive traffic issues, I might run into a delay due to a tractor in the road

Very different perspectives on life. But I must say that I can relate to her. Her fear of being social and going to social events is spot on. I can't say that I'm afraid but it is much easier to stay home, much more comfortable. Even though when I do go out with friends I have a great time and always say that I should do that more often. It's very comfortable to stay home and not venture out, especially now with a toddler at home. You just never know when a meltdown is right around the corner and it's just easier to deal with that in your own space.

OK - back to the book. It's a very quick read with several patterns in the back for ANY level knitter. I would have liked a few recipes to be included too but maybe her next book will be more cooking related. I read my copy cover to cover while delayed at the airport. I had to keep myself from laughing out loud many times. My giggles got many strange looks. Her decent after the divorce is touching and very real. Her discovery of herself and network of friends is even more inspiring. Maybe "empowerment" is the best way to describe her path. Her identity was rolled up into a neat little package and when the wrapper came off, all of her issues came spilling out. It was an honest story, sad and comical just like real life.

I decided to post a book review today because it's a great book to read by all knitters but even better for those of us that just need to move out of our comfort zones and live a little. It's priced well and thoroughly empowering and entertaining at the same time.

Starting That Resolution List Early

Last night I got thinking about how it's already November. I did fairly well on my Resolutions for this year so I think it's time to get started on my 2008 list (all craft related of course). After listening to a few Knit Picks podcasts I came up with my first one:

1. Learn how to knit using two circular needles

I really like this one. I do like using DPNs but I don't care for the spacing they tend to leave in my work. Using circulars seems to help this but there's always the decreasing stitches that you have to use DPNs for. I'd like to learn this technique and see if there's a big difference in my finished work.

Techniques are a great place to start for resolutions because you can always build many projects off of them. It's better than being project focused in my opinion because there's no pressure or deadline associated with it. I just want to learn it and try it out on a few projects. See? No pressure.

A Post on Saturday?

Well, since I joined up with the NaBloPoMo I am required to post every day. I don't think I've ever posted on a Saturday before. This could because my weekends are filled with playing with my son. Here's Will showing us his big mouth:


DSC00440
Originally uploaded by Angela & Gerald

But I am happy to report that the back of my first adult sweater is officially done and I've already cast on the front. So cool.


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Originally uploaded by Angela & Gerald

Finished Object - Basic Hat

Pattern: Basic Hat from March 2, 2006 entry from the Knitting Pattern-a-Day 2006 Calendar
Yarn: Wool-Ease sportweight (discontinued) in Wood #232
Needles: US 6 circulars and DPNs
Time frame: about 4-6 mights of knitting

Inspired by the Warm Up America initiative, I contacted our local Rescue Mission to see if they needed any specific hand knit items. They requested hats for adult men since many items that they get are not suitable for a man. I then realized that I could not possibly meet their need myself, I just knit too slow. So I contacted my peeps over at Knitting Help in the Charity section and they all have risen to the challenge! I've already received hats from 2 people so I got motivated to finish the one that I was working on. My husband liked the hat and said it was manly enough. YAY! Here it is modeled by my husband:

Happy All Saints Day!

We always have options for costumes because you never know what's going to work and what's going to horribly fail. For example:





The pirate costume was great in theory but when it came to reality it failed. The shirt was too tight, the strings on the shirt were dangerous for a toddler to be near and the scarf was just not practical (who will tie a scarf around a toddler's neck?). The hat was unwearable and the pants were too thin and too short for our cold weather. Off to Plan B:




Bumble Bee costume. Absolutely adorable, very comfortable and practical for our cold weather. He loved running around the front yard. The only problem with this costume is that his daycare/school is kept very warm all day so we would have been unbearably hot in this costume all day. So . . .




Back to an old favorite: Batman. It's a t-shirt and shorts with a Velcro cape on the back. Perfect to wear underneath the bumble bee costume when outside and very comfortable for school during the day.

We ended up not going trick or treating this year because he still goes to bed so early at around 6:30 pm (sometimes earlier). It wasn't even dark by then so we just watched for kids in our neighborhood and played. Next year should be a great time to go. Even though the weather was great last night we didn't get too many kids. I'm not sure if it's just not in style anymore or if parents are trying to keep their kids from eating the candy. Maybe more are just going to Halloween parties instead . . .

As a I kid I went trick or treating every year until I was at least 16. Then it was just getting dressed up in dark clothing and preparations for the egg fights. It was such a good time!