2008 To-do's

I can't believe that 2007 is almost over... I don't do 'resolutions' but there are a few things that are top of my list for 2008.

1. Get a dog. Working on that one now and hoping to adopt Charlie... all prayers and crossed fingers are welcome! If not Charlie, there will be another 4-legged friend to adopt soon.

2. Join the 365 Days Challenge on Flickr. I'm hoping that a soon-to-be-new camera will help with this, and the challenge will motivate me to learn how to use all the features of it.

3. Get my new studio room in order and start using it. I haven't decided any personal goals for 'creating' but I finally have a space to dedicate and want to use it.

These are all for me... and I'm sure there will be other themes, but for tonight as the New Year approaches, those are what I want to document for myself and my own accountability.

Can't wait to get started!
JavaNut

Another Melly Bag

I made another version of Sharon's Melly bag but experimented with contrasting colors... I love the way it turned out! L was enthralled with my felted bags when she was visiting so I decided to make one for her - unfortunately not done while she was here so it's en route to Romania now. I know she'll love it - in all her USA shopping, she bought mostly brown and green.

This one was made with Paton's Classic Wool Merino (doubled) so it smaller than the 'original' but it's still a good size. The Paton's felted really well (one cycle thru the wash) except the cream didn't felt as much as the other colors. I've heard that sometimes white doesn't felt in some yarns - anyone know why??



Christmas knitting is almost done (I'm a bit slow on posting!)...

A goal for 2008 is for better and more frequent blogging... working on some ideas for that now.

Happy Knitting!
JavaNut

Lovin' the Bags!!!

Here's a collection of a few recent bags... I've really enjoyed felting bags, but how many can one make?? We'll see... I've just cast on another one!

The top bag is the Ali Bag from She Knits - a great pattern and design by Sharon Dreifuss. I love the color combination and never would have thought to braid and felt the I-cords for the 'belt.'

The small purple bag is the Melly bag, also from She Knits and was a gift for a Christmas swap. I deviated from the pattern by making the cable design purple and really like the way it turned out. I think this is my favorite of Sharon's designs. I can't remember the yarn - I think it was Paton's Classic Wool which was a much lighter weight than the actual pattern (used Lamb's Pride Burly Spun) so I kept the stitch pattern the same and had a small, cute bag from it.

The black, gray, red & white was a birthday gift for E. I hope she liked it!! The bands at the top and the shoulder strap style were copied from the Ali bag... the rest I just made up as I went. It was made from Knit Picks' Wool-of-the-Andes.


I suspect there are many more bags in the future... who would have thought that "ruining" good knitting could be so much fun!!

In the meantime, a few non-felted Christmas gifts to finish...

Happy Knitting!
- JavaNut

Baby FOs

I've had a few items languishing at the 'almost done' for a while
and finally got motivated to complete them! Good thing... lots of baby boys joining the world over the next several weeks!

This poor little set has been short one bootie for a while and I finally got the other skein to make its mate. It's the cable hat/bootie set from babyknits Hats & Booties: 15 sets for Noggins and Tootsies


And then there's the 'teeny-tiny' baby sweater which is from my favorite book of baby patterns - Erika Knight's Simple Knits for Cherished Babies. This one is made from Rowan's All Seasons Cotton.

Now it's off to start swatching... twin baby boys due to arrive soon. I'm thrilled for the expecting couple, but I really wish they were having girls. I love the baby boys, but girls' sweaters are so much more fun to knit!!!

In the meantime... countdown for finishing all that Christmas knitting!

- Happy Knitting
JavaNut

A few FOs...

I've been working hard on some Christmas Knitting...
Two pairs of Fetchings for coworkers. I never saw much use for fingerless mitts (living in California might have something to do with that!), but recently our team's admin at work was commenting on cold hands and how hard it was to type. She even mentioned bringing in old gloves and cutting off the fingers! So... that made for an easy project.

I used Malabrigo for the first time... WOW! my new favorite yarn! I liked it so much I got another skein to make another pair for a coworker who has circulation problems and her fingers often turn white when it's cold. She has long, thin hands so the brown pair is slightly elongated.

And finally... my second Clapotis. I never posted my first one... the yarn was a beautiful bamboo in different purples. The drape was amazing, but too 'drapey' for the pattern. This is with a lace weight merino. If I were to make Clapotis again I would use fingering, but the lace weight absolutely worked. This was given to one of my Romanian visitors - I hope she likes it!

Happy Knitting!
- JavaNut

New Sights...

It's been so long since a post... not for lack of knitting or other creative endeavors, but I loaned my camera to my visiting house guests and haven't had a chance to 'borrow' it back to take pictures of my projects... not that I've had much time for knitting in the past few weeks!

L & C are visiting from Romania. I've been trying to get L here for a visit for 3 years now... she just finished her first year of medical residency and it was a happy surprise that she was able to get a visa. C is here on her first vacation in seven years. She's had a difficult summer so this trip was a much needed respite. They're here for a month and it's truly been an experience of a lifetime for them.

We've been taking them all over the Bay area, introduced them to every ethnic food they could imagine (and then some!) and everything else we can think of... Here are a few pics from our recent adventures. It's been fabulous weather for November/December!!


Santa Cruz & L at Monterey... I love living here!


Lisa, C, me & L at Mt Tamalpais
Lisa, C, Vio & L from the top of Mt. Tam's East peak

Happy Knitting!
-JavaNut