SP6 Loot and some WIP's

I got my first package from my new Secret Pal today, and boy was it a doozie!

I got a crazy orange plastic tote full of yarn!


It also had some nifty Halloween cards and some super nice fancy stitch markers.


Just look at all that yarny goodness! There are three balls of orange cotton ease, one of noro keruyon, one of "new wool", a skein of blue Sockotta, and three little skeins of recycled silk. That plastic tote really came in handy today too since it was raining like crazy when I went to the post office. (We got the remnants of hurricaine Rita)
Thanks Secret Pal!! That was awesome!

While I had the camera out I figured I'd show you guys some of those new things I started. Here is the Lacy Baby Blanket from the 50's knitting pattern book:

I know it looks kind of freaky and uneven, but I have it jammed up on 24" circulars and I was trying to stretch it out over a black chair so you could see it. The original pattern was written for fingering weight baby yarn. I'm using a heavy worsted Plymouth Encore Colorspun. The swatch I made for this washed up and evened out to look super nice so I'm just trying to trust the swatch. Of course right now I can't FIND the swatch so you'll have to just take my word for that...I think it was abducted by kitties.
Here is the Noro Silk Garden #211 Ruffles scarf:

Couldn't you just die with the awesomeness??? I love this thing.

The Heartbreak Of Startitis

There is a reason you hardly ever see a finished object on this blog lately. I have contracted a case of Startitis. Yes, friends...Startitis: the inability to stop starting new knitting projects when you get tired of knitting the current ones. It happens to everyone at some point, and before you know it you're like me: over ten projects on the needles and more that you can't wait to start. They call to you at night from the yarn room. (or closet as your case may be) "Knit ME!!!" they say, "That thing you're knitting now is so old and boring! I'm new and different and fun!"
Here is what's on the needles now:
1) Klaralund waiting for seaming
2) Half done second pink sock
3) First Mom sock needing bound off (lost in a handbag somewhere...must search and rescue)
4) Half done second geek sock (also MIA in a handbacg or drawer somewhere)
5) Almost done first green sock
6) Julia's Poncho I quit working on when the weather got hot because it's fuzzy and sweat-inducing
7) Cheap-Fab throw I quit working on for the same reason
8) 30% or so done Ruffles Scarf in Pink Cashmerino
9) Half done Ruffles Scarf in Silk Garden 211
10) Top-Down V-Neck Raglan sweater almost to the sleeve separation point (I'm too lazy to put it on stitch holders and try it on to check)
11) Irish Hiking Scarf I tried to finish for someone for xmas last year. I failed to finish it in time and never touched it again...maybe I can finish it before xmas and give it to him this year?
12) The Lady Eleanor Entrelac Stole...I'm on my 3rd or 4th ball of Kureyon and the entrelac is losing it's charm. zzzzz
13) Lacy baby blanket I just started for my niece-in-law (husband's much older sister's daughter) from a 1950's knitting pattern book we found while cleaning out the In-laws' house. The baby is due by c-section Nov. 3rd. I can so do this if I don't get distracted...but, we know how that goes.
14) I forgot this one and had to come back to add it. I started a green scarf with a pine tree looking pattern panel down the center a couple weeks ago. I can't decide if I hate it yet or not so I haven't frogged it, but I haven't worked on it again either. haha
15) I forgot this one too! There is a 35% done Wavy scarf (from knitty) hiding in the yarn room.
These are things I want to start like NOW, but I'm trying to control
the madness and not start any of them until I finish SOMETHING:
1) Corrugated Asymmetrical Pullover from Loop-D-Loop in the big size for me and the little size for my son's little sister. I also want to make the hat, but I can't think of anyone I'd be able to get to wear it. haha
2) I bought yarn for the Koigu Gypsy Shawl again. I used up all the original yarn I bought for it on socks and what-not. This time I'm going to try it in the black Baby Alpaca Silk that's on sale for $2.50 a skein at elann right now (Shut up, I so needed that yarn...you just don't know) I managed to blow up the horrible chart and made myself some notes so I think things will go much more smoothly this time around. I tell you it's gonna work!
3) There is a lacy baby sweater and a hat and booties in the 1950's pattern book that go with that blanket.
4) I have a skein of Treking XXL in color 100. It is trying to decide if it wants to be socks or a hat. I'll let you know when it tells me.
Let this post serve as a warning. Don't listen to those voices that tell you to start more stuff. Just tell them to sod off and go knit on your second sock. Trust me.

Secret Pals 5&6
Ok, so SP5 is over, but I got one more package from my super secret pal Aimee!

I lurve the lamb beanie baby. In fact, I'm getting quite the sheep/lamb toy collection around here. People keep getting them for me. They are starting to outnumber the gnomes.
This is how I figured out who my pal was before the reveal this time:

Aimee had recycled an envelope that someone had sent to her. I'm a nosey, curious sorta gal so I removed the tape holding my address down and tah dah! There was hers in sharpie marker bleed right underneath it.
I've already contacted my new spoilee, and been contacted by my SP for SP6 so we're off and running on that again. I love doing these. YAY surprises!

Oh, if you're way into Halloween all year long like I am or if you're the Secret Pal of someone who loves Halloween, check out these fab dishcloths and the mug I got at WalMart this morning:

They had plates to match the mugs, but I figured that might be overload. lol The cat DOES sort of look like our cat Bungee.

Knitting Content
I need to STOP STARTING NEW STUFF right this minute, but oh god...there is so much I want to knit. I started ANOTHER ruffles scarf this time in Silk Garden 211 I had left over from some xmas scarves last year. At first I thought it was going to be a xmas gift but now I'm selfishly gonna keep it. ha!
I'm going to make the hat shown as the "swatch" for the Corrugated Asymetrical V-Neck from Loop-D-Loop with the fab red Crystal Palace bulky yarn that Aimee sent me. That might end up as a xmas gift unless I get all greedy and decide to keep it.
I also started a v-neck raglan sweater. shhhhh....that's for me too. lol
I need to update my FO gallery with the Branching Out scarf and the fringed Celebrity Shawl, but I still haven't gotten good pictures. That will be a top priority once we get finished with all this furniture moving.
I'm not even gonna talk about the socks.

SP6 Questionaire

The questions are the same except for the last one so for questions 1-28 I refer you to my sp5 questionaire from a few months back. Nothing has really changed except that now the cd stuck in my car stereo is The Ditty Bops.
29. Any patterns you have been coveting, but haven't bought for one reason or another??
Not especially. The last batch of patterns I was coveting were in the Loop-d-Loop book, and I'm waiting for that to arrive right now. I would like a general sweater design workbook type thing, but I haven't found one I like yet.

Bees!
To read about the bee drama we had over at the In-Laws' place yesterday and see some pictures that Steve took of the aftermath, go read this post on my Livejournal.

Labor Day

Boy did we ever labor today!
I'm going to be glad to go to work tomorrow to get myself some rest. Today we had to get everything of any value out of the In-Law's house. someone tried to break into it last night so we figured it was a good time to get moving.
On the bright side, I have a good idea where I'm going to put all the things they've given us. One of those things is an awesome cedar chest with a "moth-free guarantee" letter inside the lid :) Hello, meet the future home of all my rovings which are currently in a closet in tied up trash bags. There will be pictures as soon as it's in place and everything is all cleaned up. Right now it's sitting in my garage with a bunch of other things.
There hasn't been a lot of knitting going on here since the moving/packing/cleaning started. I'm starting to work on some xmas scarves. Two ruffles scarves out of different yarns so far. I don't want to talk about them too much just in case the people I'm planning on giving them to read this.
I spent a lot of time today re-arranging my small dining area in the front room. It had a table and 4 chairs there that we never used for eating. We're slobs. We eat sitting on the couches or at the counter in the kitchen. We only need a table at Thanksgiving and Xmas and the one we use for then isn't that one. So now it has this little flowery rocking chair from the In-law's house, an ottoman, a little marble topped table, and a magazine rack full of magazines. The table has been pushed up against the opposite wall and will now be my crafty desk. The only concern I have is that taller people will try to walk over there and end up hitting their heads on the light fixture. It's hanging kind of low because it used to be over the table and I can't fix it myself because it has chains that need to be cut to resize it. Oh well..tall people need to stay out of my office/sitting area anyway. haha
Pictures and more actual knitting content to come soon.
Still no word on who my secret pal 5 was. :(
SP6 starts soon! YAY!