Stitches West ... Oh My!

Saturday morning started off cloudy and grey, but I didn't care because I was headed to Stitches West! I've never been to this extravaganza before and was excited to see what it was all about.

My friend and I headed out early and made pretty good time driving down to Santa Clara. We found the convention center, parked the car, and followed the swarm of people leading inside the building. I figured even if I didn't know where I was going, they did. We found the Market and after purchasing our tickets, our adventure began.

I've never seen anything like it! There were hundreds of booths, thousands of people, and yarn everywhere. It was a fiber dream come true. We started down one row of booths, finding the knitting doctor and the stuffed bear charity project (sorry, I can't seem to remember the name right now). We'd only explored one and a half rows before it was time to watch the fashion show, which was excellent.

About half way through the day, we passed a spinning guild booth and stopped to watch the women spinning their beautiful yarn. Next thing I knew, one of them was showing be how to spin using a drop spindle made out of CD's. This was one of the things I really wanted to try at the show and I may be hooked already, even though I'm not quite sure I know what I'm doing yet :) They were generous enough to send me home with one and a little ball of roving to practice at home. Let's see what I can make now!

Hundred of people at the show were carrying around huge (and I mean huge!) carts and bags filled with yarn, roving, needles, and everything in between. Compared to them, I was pretty good and only walked away with the yarns in the picture. I was so happy I found the Liza Souza booth and was able to fondle all of her wonderful hand-dyed yarn. I did pick up a few skeins as a souvenir. I was also really impressed with the Blue Moon Fiber Arts booth. If only I knew how to knit socks! Hmmm, maybe that will come sooner than I think.

Is that a sleeve???

So, what did everyone do last Sunday? I'll tell you what I did. I slept in, made breakfast for my boyfriend and I, and then sat down to watch the Daytona 500. Now, I'm not a huge racing fan, but my boyfriend is and sometimes I like watching the races with him. And, I have to admit that the last couple of laps were pretty exciting watching Tony Stewart come so close to winning!

Of course, while he was glued to the TV, I pulled out my knitting bag to play with my yarn. I had knit two gauge swatches to decide which size needles to use for the Silk Shrug. I pulled them both out and I sat, with ruler in hand, counting my stitches as the Car of Tomorrow zoomed around the track. All of a sudden, I realized that there was no need for the second swatch (size 6 needles). My first swatch (size 5 needles) had the correct number of stitches! Instead of waiting, I could have started the sweater almost a week earlier.

Needless to say, I cast on that very night and here is my progress so far. It may not look like it, but this is the beginning of the first sleeve. I'm already starting to increase stitches going up the arm and can hardly wait to see what it will look like. I know it will take a while for me to finish, but right now I'm like a kid in a candy store. All I want is more, more, more!

The Grammy's

So, what did I do Sunday night? After spending part of the day working on a presentation for work, I sat on the couch and watched the Grammy Awards. Keeping one eye on the TV and the other on my knitting, I was able to finish my ribbed scarf! I love how the colors in the yarn flow together and make this simple scarf look more complex than it really is. The yarn did all the work for me :) The yarn I used was Crystal Palace Taos (004 Mirage). One of the ladies at Marin Fiber Arts told me to bring the scarf in once I was finished so hopefully I'll be able to visit them this coming weekend and show off my work.

While I'm at Marin Fiber Arts, I think I'll ask them about cables and see if they can recommend a good beginner pattern for me so I can learn how to make them. I'm just fascinated by all the intricate cable patterns I see on sweaters in the store and want to know how to make them. I know, I know, I already have my first sweater planned, but it doesn't hurt to think ahead!

Speaking of sweaters, I also finished my gauge swatch for the Silk Shrug I'm going to make. I used a size 5 circular needle to make the swatch. I've never worked on such small needles before and I struggled at first, but after the first few rows it got much easier. I hand washed and blocked it last night so all that's left is to measure my stitches and see how close I am. I've already gone up one needle size from the pattern since I know I'm a tight knitter.


I just recently found out that my step-father is going to have hip-replacement surgery in two weeks. This means that my Mom and I will be sharing the duties of taking my brother to basketball games and my sister to ballet lessons since they are at the same time. This shrug seems like the perfect project to take with me while I'm waiting for them!

Chicks with Sticks

It seems that the knitting bug has bitten me because it seems like all I want to do with my free time is knit! I even brought my knitting with me to watch the Superbowl on Sunday. I'm sure all the guys were looking at me like I was crazy. Who is this girl that would rather play with a ball of yarn instead of watching the most important football game of the year?

Part of the reason for my excitement is that I finally purchased the yarn I'm going to use to make the Silk Shrug. It's a beautiful shade of blue called Sapphire and it's so so soft. I tried to purchase the yarn at my local yarn store, but unfortunately they didn't have enough and wouldn't be able to get it for a few weeks. I was so anxious to start the sweater that I ordered in online through kpixie. They were amazing. I ordered the yarn on a Saturday night and it was in my hot little hands Thursday night! Isn't it pretty? I've already starting stitching my gauge swatch and hopefully I'll be able to start the sweater soon.

Last night my friend Liz and I finally made it to Chicks with Sticks in San Francisco. It was a lot of fun. There were around fifteen or so women and a couple of men all sitting around and chatting while they worked on their various projects. One woman was making the cutest knit hearts for her family for Valentine's Day. Everyone was super friendly and I don't know whether it was the good company or the lychee lemon drop I had, but I was knitting faster than normal :) I think we'll definitely be going back soon.