Where nothing is working out the way it should. First part of the pie crust for my quiche falls apart during baking (fortunately it was on a baking sheet or I'd have custard all over the bottom of my oven). Then I managed to lose the new bulb I was trying to replace in a string of Christmas tree lights...in the tree. I shook/ removed every single branch on the side where it fell. Nothing. I did eventually find some spares and restored power to the circuit that was affected by the missing bulb, but the whole experience definitely falls under the heading of one of the Twelve Pains of Christmas (check out the very funny animated video here). Dinner really didn't get that much better as I made two disturbing discoveries: 1) the bag of potatoes I'd bought a week and a half ago had turned into a rotting mess and 2) we left the corkscrew at my husband's aunt's house when we went over there for Thanksgiving dinner. The potato situation, though annoying was relatively minor, but I don't like things standing between me and my wine. A new corkscrew will need to be obtained tomorrow or things are going to get ugly. I had planned on felting my slippers this evening but changed my mind after this string of mishaps -- I figured it was probably best not to tempt fate on this one. At any rate the slippers are all seamed and ready to go. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

In my last post I was frantically trying to finish the Wedding Clapotis. Did I make my deadline? Well, if you would look to the sidebar on your right you will see that it's officially off the needles and in the FO pile! I got the piece blocked Sunday/ Monday and handed it off to my co-worker on Tuesday. Overall I'm satisfied with the way it turned out, although blocking the finished Clapotis was more work than I had antipated.
I've never actually blocked lace and had a hard time with pinning out the edges. Also, the room where I blocked my other Clapotis no longer has carpet -- it was so easy to jam pins into the carpet but you can't exactly do that with a hardwood floor. Boo! Anyway it's done and I am very glad to see the back of this project. It had just gotten to the point where it had become more of a chore than something I was actually interested in doing. Granted, I would have been knitting anyway, but I didn't feel the same connection to the project that I get when I'm working on something for myself or when I'm knitting for someone that I care about. I don't know if my co-worker's daughter will wear it during her wedding reception today and frankly I really don't care. However, I will be sure to post a picture if she does end up wearing it.

Fast-forward to the present. I'm in the process of finishing up the knitting for the French Press Felted Slippers in Patons Classic Wool Merino yarn (Mercury). This has definitely proven to be a relatively easy project, and although you do have to make two of everything the pieces knit up quickly on large needles. For whatever reason my m1 increases on the knit sides have produced gaping holes. I'm a little nervous as to how this will affect the actual felting process, so I may may some adjustments prior to sticking the slippers in the washing machine. I hope to get these done either today or tomorrow.

For the time being, though, I'm going to keep the Thanksgiving momentum going and make Pumpkin Creme Brulee and Sage and Onion Stuffing for dinner tonight.

Congrats to all my fellow Twihards! We've made it through a year of waiting for New Moon to come out. Everything I've read so far has been fairly positive. Good thing too because I don't think the director and the studio fully realize that even the slightest inconsistency could trigger riots of massive proportions. At this point the only thing that's standing between me and the next showing of New Moon is the damn Wedding Clapotis. The bottom line is I have to finish the knitting and start the blocking process within the next 24 hours. It's definitely doable (yeah, I've said that before) given that I'm well into the Section 4 decreases. Of course, I just dropped ten stitches typing this post so I'm going to have to do some back tracking. Blah! At this point my only incentive to get this done is the reward of a Sunday showing of New Moon. That being said let me get out of here and get my knit on. Team Edward all the way ;)

As I continue to slog through the last few repeats of Section 3 of the Wedding Clapotis I find I'm thinking about potential projects for the coming months. I've gotten it into my head that I want to tackle knitting a lace shawl for my grandmother. No doubt I'm setting myself up for all kinds of torture in the long run, but as I turn the idea over and over in my mind it occurs to me that this is probably one of the few things I can knit for her. Sizing is definitely a concern as my grandmother and I have very different builds, and since I don't get to see her as often as I would like -- she lives in Southwest England -- I'm not really in a position to get her measurements. I do have one particular shawl pattern in mind: the Mystic Light Shawl by Anna Dalvi (aka knitandknag on Ravelry). Carin of Lime and Violet and Round the Twist fame (aka alcariel on Ravelry) worked on this shawl a few years ago in the Jaggerspun Zephyr and seemed to like how it turned out. The added bonus is that the Jaggerspun Zephyr comes in tons of colors and it's super cheap. So...it looks like there is more lace knitting in my future. Oh joy.

Another pattern I stumbled across while skulking around Ravelry is the French Press Felted Slippers by Melynda Bernardi (aka frenchpressknits on Ravelry). I absolutely love the photos I've seen of the finished slippers. I'm all about form and function and this pattern is put together in such a way that it satisfies both criteria. Yay! These are probably going to get bumped up to the top of the queue because it's getting cold and I need something to keep my feet warm as I roam around the house. Besides, it looks like a quick project. I'm contemplating stash diving on this one, but I may also end up buying some more yarn for this project as I'm already going to be placing an order for the Jaggerspun Zephyr. Yes, thinking is definitely dangerous.

Back to reality and the last repeat of the Wedding Clapotis!

Amazing! The first post in almost two years. Let me preface this by saying that I'm not sure how long this renewed fascination will last. Lately I've felt that I have more to express than I'm actually saying, so this is my way of just getting it out there. Chances are I'll be the only one reading my ramblings, but others may be interested to get a glimpse into my bizarre little world.