Things that are green (besides me)

So, I've been pondering Dye-o-Rama projects since getting my partner earlier this week. Unfortunately, all the color preferences info was lost, but it's okay, because I asked my pal what she likes, and it's cool colors. Which is good, because I dig cool colors, too. I have decided to try to do self-striping yarn. Since I don't have a warping board and am too lazy to make one, last night meant reskeining the yarn the lazy bastard way. First, I figured out how long I wanted the skein to be - I settled for between 40-50 feet. I measured out a bit of guide yarn in some leftover acrylic, tied it into a loop, and looped it in a rather crazy manner around my bedroom: Around the back of my chair, over one of my bedposts, around the corner, over the vaccuum handle, back around my chair. When you live in an apartment and down own a dining room table let alone dining room chairs, you are kind of limited in how you can do this.

Then, came the hour and a half of looping the sock yarn around the crazy path. After that, I secured it with more acrylics so that it won't get tangled, and divided into 4 (hopefully) even sections. I am considering using the imersion method with a pot on the stove this time, instead of the usual microwave method I've used before. I think I am going to use blue, purple, and two shades of green - one sort of 'kelly green' and the other a brighter green with more yellow in it. The yarn is currently soaking in a bucket, but I really don't want to mess around with it while my roommate's home.

I also finished the orange-pink-yellow April Project Spectrum sock. It now joins the other 5 Second Sock Syndrome socks on the shelf... Well, at least 3 of them have the second sock of the pair on needles. 2 of them even have lots of green in them!

I also have a new button, courtesy of someone I know from Farscape fandom, Dalequan. She's a crocheter and trying to get the hang of knitting and just started a blog. Thanks for the button!

Things that are green? Well, to start with, Tallahassee:


That's what you'll see off the back of my porch. The apartment building I'm in backs right up onto a small bit of woods. It's nice, because it means we don't have to deal with annoying neighbors (Except for the McStompersons) or people driving by. And that isn't even very green. Tallahassee has laws about building heights and whatnot being below the tree line. It was a nice change after moving here from DFW area Texas, where they cut down almost all the trees, and those left are poor excuses for trees - either dead in the winter due to cold or dead in the summer due to drought and heat.




I also have a very special pillow that's green. A friend made this for me one year for Xmas. Yes, it is a lime, yes, it says 'fuck' on it. It really was an extremely fitting present for me.

Now, May being green and all, I will have no problems with projects this month. One thing I hope to have finished is a green sweater I have been working on for Dulaan but that has been languishing. I have the body finished and one sleeve complete - now I need to finish the second sleeve, attatch them, and make the hood. Last year May was my crackdown month for Dulaan, but since I've joined other knitting related projects this year, it's been suffering. I will at least fill the fairly large box I've got. My count so far is a pair of child's socks, a scarf, a hat, and 3 pairs of mittens.

Another hope is to finish at least one of the second sock syndrome socks with green in them.

Finally, I also intend to work on this:


My first attempts at Entrelac. It is a lot easier than I thought it will be. I'm using the Danica pattern from Knitty, except I'm not using 2 alternating colors of yarn. What I am using is the 3 balls of Noro Kureyon in one of the colorways new for 2005. I saw it in a store several months ago and bought 3 balls, not having a project in mind. Unfortunately, I don't think 3 balls will be enough - this is almost an entire ball alone. Entrelac EATS yarn like crazy. But it's okay - I found an ebay auction for 1 1/2 balls of the yarn in the same colorway. Although it doesn't really look it from the picture, most of the colors in this yarn are shades of green, with some browns, black, grey, and teal thrown in. If I had enough money, I'd probably try to make a sweater out of this yarn.


Last but not least (damn, this update is getting big, isn't it? I don't know how people can update their blogs daily with posts and pictures, it takes me forever), My Sockapaloooza socks have come:


I would've taken a picture with them on, but I was out running errands this afternoon so my feets got flipflop grunge on them. But! They're very nice, from Sarah in Sacramento. The pattern is sort of an alternating rib, and the yarn is Knitpicks' Dancing. Which was an awesome choice, considering I have been curious about this yarn for quite some time. It is a similar cotton/wool blend to Sockotta, which I love, and now that I have a pair, I can see how they feel and wear (Ironically enough, I ordered some dancing earlier this week because it was a frighteningly cheap price, so I couldn't resist. This is just really kind of serendipitous, because from what I have now seen of the yarn thanks to Sockapaloooza, I think I like it very much). I also dig the colorway - greens, purples, blues, and a bright yellow - my sockpal says on the postcard that she was worried it might be too pastel, but no way, it's actually one of the colorways I like best of the Dancing ones.