Fuzzy Monsters and Rice Cakes

Some new project fun: I've temporarily put aside my second attempt at 'Mystery Afghan' so I can try and figure out how I somehow gained seven stitches while following the directions.

So I pulled out the 'Fuzzy Monster' mod for the Fuzzy Lamb pattern and I'm trying to make a green monster for the Mini Monster. If it goes well I'll make some more and back stock them for my friend Mouse for her con-going adventures.

I also scored some great pictures of MiniMonster "Getting Piggy with it" with his rice cakes. Sour Cream and Onion in case you're wondering.

Tilmani and I are crossing our fingers to catch up with Nana J too, so that we can get a sitter for the monster and go for a "Date" this weekend.

Go to Starbucks, the Expensive Yarn store, The Candy Store, Starbucks, and Outback... ohhh bliss.

Nospheratu!

The Mini Monster has cut one of his two upper front teeth, and the other is immediately on it's heels! This was a rather exciting development for us, and kind of funny timing if you consider the teeth on the traditional Nospheratu vampire, and Halloween's rapid approach.

I've purchased some candy for the Trick or Treater's, but I'm not entirely sure if I have enough. I bought two boxes of full sized bars, none of the fun sized ones for me, and definitely no DumDums.

I always hated getting DumDum's when I trick or treated, I dunno about the rest of you but they just never had that much appeal for me. They just make your mouth sticky and don't taste all that great. It was kinda like getting pretty much any form of 'bad' candy. Like *shudder* Necco Wafers.

I realize that they're cheap candy, but Halloween and Christmas only come once a year, and if I have an excuse to dress up and get candy (speaking from Kid-view) I want to do it in STYLE. I mean most kids around here are already going to be sulking because they'll need to wear warm coats over their costumes, so I don't see it hurting to give them 'real' candy bars.

Mini ones also always seem to be a little stale, I've never understood that.

I just hope they actually get to eat them. I used to work with a woman... I'm sure most of us have met the type. The aging woman desperately trying to pretend she's still Sweet Sixteen. She dressed in clothing that was too small, wore too much makeup, bleached her hair to straw... and boasted about how whenever she and her son went trick or treating she'd trained him to give the bag to -her- afterward, so she could take all the 'good' candy. ((Her phrasing)). He got the dumdums and the Necco wafers, she got the Reeses, the Chocolate Bars, the Baby Ruths... you name it.

I never told her but that always -really- made me mad. I understand checking your kids candy to make sure that it hasn't been tampered with, but that's an entirely different animal. As an adult, if you want Halloween candy THAT badly, go buy yourself a bag.

Chantilly Lace and a pretty face...

So after my relative success with the "I'm Blue" Doily/Afghan/Round... Thingie, I'm absoloutely itching to try another high complexity project, and I'm giving some serious thought to diving into a lace project. I don't technically have Lace Weight yarn, but I do have some fingering weight Alpaca, which isn't -that- much heavier. It will however make the "FO" ((Finished Object)) come out larger than if I knitted it with almost thread thin laceweight.

I'm debating some patterns from ravelry/yahoo group designer MMario, who makes some really incredible patterns, and furthermore, offers them to knitters for free. He does accept donations, but they aren't required.

I'm debating between "Spanish Armada", which has the advantage of having both written instructions AND the usual chart, or "Threadfall" Which is chart only, but -seems- relatively clear. Both are knitted on round needles, though the resulting project will actually be a square.

Of course then again I could do my "Mystery Afghan" again, and maybe stash bust some of my green Manos del Urugay.

HMM. Choices Choices!!

I'm Blue da ba dee ba da dah

So one of the yarns I bought at the Sheep and Wool Festival was some naturally dyed homespun. Actually I bought two different blues, but only one of them became an issue.

The darker blue yarn immediately 'showed it's true colors' on winding, staining Tilmani's hands and mine. It continued in this bent when I started knitting with it, attempting a 'Mystery Afghan' pattern I'd been given a while ago.

My fingers were blue, my nails were blue, my palms were blue... my NEEDLES turned blue...

Oh and the couch cushion started to turn blue. JUST by having the ball of yarn sitting on it.

Needless to say after this discovery, I bound off what I'd done instead of trying to switch colors and continue, and went through the work of doing what apparently HADN'T been done properly to begin with, and got the extra dye rinsed out. Or that's what I'm hoping anyway. I put it in the bathroom as an attempt at blocking, and you guys might laugh because we actually used one of our baby gates that's not currently in action.

Have a look!