This little guy is at the very top of a tree on a TINY branch taking a nap... I was doing the dishes and looked out the window and there he was so I ran got the camera, opened the window and zoomed into getting him because he was in the neighbors tree on the other side of their yard... but aint he cute just sitting there sunning? :)

This is my swatch blocking for the pair of socks that Ive decided I wanted to make. Of course designing them myself with using the toe up formula from knitty.com...

OMG LOOK!!! That is my FIRST crochet cast on THAT ACTUALLY WORKED!!! And it came undone easily!! :) I found a site (cant remember where nor cant find it now) that said just crochet AROUND the needle and then your loops were already on them. Well I doubled the needle, ie held both ends together, and then crocheted around so that the crocheted cast on was nice and loose. This morning I took it off and was HAPPY with how easy it was and if I had to do it again I will because in the past I failed miserably each time Ive tried doing them...

Here is the first toe that I did, nearly finished with the short row shaping. I did each toe seperately to get ready to pick up the stitches and then I joined them together on my two circular needles. I was going to do both at the same time but just sort of started the first and kept working on it and then went OOPS! Ill do the second one when Im finished.... :)

Heres the two toes with the stitches picked up and the first row of the pattern worked and look at those BEAUTIFUL stitch markers. I was gifted those by Annarella Check her stuff out shes brilliant. :) .... But see those socks are being worked at the same time on two circular needles. Ive just split the stitches in half which happens to be 64 total so I got 32 on one and 32 on the other. Front of the sock is on one needle and the back is on the other. You just work the 32 sts from the first sock drop that yarn pick up the yarn for the other sock and knit the 32 sts for that one turn the sock around so your working the other side now and repeat. Once you get the hang of it, its so easy to work both at the same time and you never get the single sock syndrom and all your socks will have partners. Now its only up to you to finish them or you will just half half done partners. hehe

Not entirely why I took this picture just felt I had to, perhaps to show you the inside of the toe? or maybe to show them on the circular needles? I dont know really! But thats me socks as of now.... Again Im writing what Ive done so I can do a pattern if anyone wants..

Now Im off to go shopping and come back and knit on my socks.. Last night I made soup with a little help from Mark and it turned out YUMMIE!!! Having some more tomorrow night just dont fancy more again tonight even though I could... instead Im going to eat it for lunch today. AHAHAHAHAHA Btw, its ham tater cabbage soup with some mixed beans and carrots..... its yummie and thick and loads to much on in it. :)

I know 3 of those people.... hmmm is that a good thing or not? Doesnt really matter I kinda like thinking I may look like a famous person.... haha

Well its gotten cold here now... Thankfully I knit my hat just in time as well!! :) Ive gotten comments while I have worn it how people like it and when they find out Ive knitted it say they would like one as well.. Thing is people have asked me to knit for them, I always turn them down. They offer to pay but yet I turn down why is this? Probably because no one realises the time and money it involves and while I knit for fun I never want it to feel like work. So thats why Im more easily to say no thanks I dont knit for others... Makes me sound highly selfish but I am more then happy to spend money of my own and time of my own and happily knit away and give a present to someone I know and love thats not a problem!! I just wont knit for people I dont know and offer to pay me becuase it seems like work in my mind..hmm.... Though one guy did comment on my hat said he liked it and had one similar at home. I said thats nice but you dont, becuase I made mine... His reply was "but yeah mines designer" I laughed and went may be, but so is mine, its a Jenn design because I did it all on my own thanks... he gave a smug smile and left it at that.... pft I dont care if you spent 100£ on a hat and I spent what 4£? I cant even remember what I paid for the skein.. but thats not me point.. me point is I MADE IT! HA!

So I still havent casted anything on my needles its been almost a week.. OMG! Whats wrong with me you ask? Ive turned into a book worm thats whats wrong.. that ever growing pile of books is starting to grow smaller... Ive read 2 books this week, well Im half way through the second one I know alot of people would have read it by now but I do read slightly slow even if Im always reading the book....

Book I read earlier this week was A Theory of Relativity by Jacwuely Mitchard I really liked the book, didnt want to put it down and couldnt wait till I woke up in the morning to finish reading it, which seems odd becuase I thought the book was scatter brained and sort of went from talking about one thing into talking about another thing. The story itself is about two families fighting for custody of this baby girl named Keefer. Her mommy and daddy died in a car accident and the moms brother (babys uncle) is one trying to get custody while cousins of the father are trying to fight for custody. Sad story but good. Would I recomend it? yep I would!

Book I am currently reading is The Divide by Nicholas Evans It is a story of a girl on the run from the FBI for acts of ecoterrorism, when finally found shes been murdered. Im just over half way through the book and again I dont really want to put this one down either... I just want to find out more and more... Its not normally a book I would buy but its from the same guy who wrote The Horse Whisperer and I remember reading that in highschool borrowing it off of my english teacher after whatching the film and JUST HAVING to read the book... I loved the book just as much if not more then the film.. And so far this book isnt a let down.. :)

Last night we had to go over to the bfs sisters house to return her computer that he fixed up for her and I found she had The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom I read Tuesdays With Morrie (again borrowed from my english teacher in highschool) and I really liked the book I think I actually have that one out front I remember buying it but I dont remember if I lent it to someone and never got it back Ill have to look another day... But anyways I have heard from many people about the five people you meet in heaven being a must read book. I have looked for it on ebay and when and if your able to find a copy goes for stupid amounts of money and I wont pay more then about 4£ for a book... So soon as I seen she had it I begged if I could borrow it and of course she said I could so thats my next book after I finish the one Im reading now.. :)

Alright theres me update, no knitting at the moment just lots and lots of reading....

*October 30, 2006*

I was checking out Beverleys blog and she had a quiz on there of what colour should your hair be? So I went and took it, now I have to laugh at the results becuase I have dyed my hair in the past and when I did I went as close to a purple colour that I could get to without actually going purple.... now Ive thought about going the whole hog and dying it purple over the summer but decided I should behave and have my natural colour hair, why? I havent a clue! I suppose because I think I should act grown up and not like a spotty teenage punk any more? hmm perhaps.. but anyways heres my results. :)

Your Hair Should Be Purple

Intense, thoughtful, and unconventional. You're always philosophizing and inspiring others with your insights.

See my little diamonds?? :D These were knitin Rowan 4 ply cotton on 2.75mm needles. I got the patternish wrote down as what I did. Toe up socks. Basic help from knitty.com very happy with them!! :) Short row heels as well...

Just another view of them from the side, showing the heels, and the underfoot... they look a bit slouchy there, I know, but really they arent, they are a great fit, I have yet to wear them out for the day, but I am sure when I do they will be fine. :)

And a close upish of the pattern on the socks themselves. :) (and a slightly larger foto eeks...)

Now enough about the socks, lets get on to my hat!! And yep, I wrote down what I did for this lil guy as well, okay its more of a beanie then a hat but there you go. :) Was knit using Cascade 220 on 4mm needles. I will eventually take pictures of me wearing this thing but at the moment no camera is coming near my head... not when I look like Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer and have a very dry flakey nose.... no no no.....

Its got a 2x2 rib on the edge and then mirrored cables going around with a purl 4 ridge between each cable. I was trying to find something to suit Mark and in the end had given up seen the mirrored cabled look in my stitch guide and just went yeah Ill do that worked out the maths casted on and went a knitting.... I like my end product. Mark wont wear one like this, so he will get a store bought hat, and to be fair, he probably would have endedup with on anyways after he lost the hate I could have knit for him if I could have found something he liked.... Men are fussy... regardless what they say!

Im not alway serious I swear! HAHA But I do hate taking pictures of myself, so this is my "I feel like a really big dork pose"... But look its my finished sweater!! :)

This is my "I am finding this highly amusing now pose"... But this is only another shot of the sweater this time with the arms properly pulled down. I just finished the dishes as well...

Top down vneck raglan. Plain stocking stitch. Took about 2 week and a little over 7 50g balls of Artesan Alpaca. I love the feel of this sweater, its my fav now I think! :) I have 2 and a bit balls left becuase I got 10 thinking I would need them all. Im not sure yet what to make with them but Illmake something.

I also finished my purple socks. I havent taken pics of them yet so Im going to make you all wait for those. I just finished them this morning!

I HATE having to take pictures of myself. I feel like a complete and utter idiot! With that being said when I took these it was due to wanting to start the sleeves and Mark wasnt home from work. But this is my sweater! :) Well that WAS my sweater before I added a neck line and sleeves.... I havent washed it yet so theres no finished pictures. But this is what I have so far of my sweater. :) Isnt it pretty, Im ever so excited that I can look like a complete prep and all to my own doing!

Here are the start of my toe up own design socks! :) I was going to do a lace motif style on them. But I decided I rather liked the diamond look to them and thats what I have done. I took these the other day so I do have a bit more knit then this and I am nearly ready to knit the heels. I am working both at the same time as you can see! :)

Heres is the toe of the sock, this is the purled wrap overs, and I find they are neat on both the outside and the inside... and that leads me nicely to the following....

This is the knit side of wrap overs. The last I think it was two I did the knit two together through the back of the loops and I should have done that from the start, even though it doesnt say to, it just makes a neater edge on both the inside and the outside.

I got the generic toe up pattern off of www.knitty.com They also say to use a crochet cast on, I am RUBBISH as them, so I just did a backwards loop cast on over a bit of string on the needle and that held my loops so I do have a visible seam under the toes, but Ive put these socks on to try and make sure they are fitting nicely (and they are!) and so far I have no issues because the seam is sitting nicely in a spot that doesnt bother. :) not to mention on the inside there isnt a large thick seam to bother me anyways. :)

Now there are the pictures and the update, as you can see Mark installed photoshop for me so that I can at least resize and edit my photos, woo hoo! :)