Food Instead?

I wonder what everyone else eats for dinner during the week. Are most people on some kind of food plan, or is dinner time a really important time for expression and bonding. I've tried this week to mix it up enough to distract myself from the tragic parts of my life. The crab quiche worked the first night. On the second night it wasn't as effective.
Tonight I tried to grill some pork ribs. I'll have to finish the ribs in the oven tomorrow.

They were meatier than I thought, so in order to finish with dinner before bedtime, we ended up with spaghetti.

It was tasty but not what we had our mouths ready for, and it didn't mask my....but I digress.

I've tried to create a variegated skein out of strawberry kool-aid. It was supposed to be kool-aid version of the dip-dye method seen here. But it turned out like this. Notice how I tried to steep the last piece (at the top) for a shorter amount of time in a last stitch effort to achieve something close to what it was intended to be. I don't even mind the orange instead of pink (I still can't understand how this happened). It should work fine on my little coco brown.

I'm not too concerned, because I've seen even the most jacked up looking skeins turn into beatiful works of art. Let's hope this once does justice to the Baby Surprise Jacket it's intended for.

I can DO this.

I CAN do this.

I can do this.

I can do THIS.

Ok, so the truth is that by the third pattern repeat, I was able to figure out how to work in my mistakes. Can you tell? Well, even if you can, I moving on.

Regarding the spinning. The lady at the LYS said that my first strands would be clumpy. Boy was she ever right. I'm using the Park and Draft method, as suggested by Harlem Purls, which when incorporated with the spindle instructions yields progress. Still very challenging though. My wool is not very slippery, but I'm getting the hang of it. This is what I have so far.


I'm not getting how to rid the strand of these spots that are too coiled but at the same time rid the strand of spots that aren't coiled enough. Truthfully, I'm surprised I have a strand at all.

I'm having to mix these new things with some extremely simple projects like this just to keep my confidence. Ciao for now.

Something New!

No, I'm not marrying a white man. But, oh man! I've been wanting to blog so much lately. I've been so inspired when cruising through the blogs of my fellow needle crafters. Only thing is, if I don't knit/crochet, there will be nothing to blog about.

I promised myself that after my last project I would learn something new.

Here's my failed attempt at learning lace. I think that if I can do this shawl, I can really call myself a knitter.


I stuck with it, and started a successful swatch at the LYS. I really didn't need them, it was just the moral support that made my 30th try a success. No really, about 5 minutes after I sat down, I realized that I had read the instructions for one of the stitches incorrectly. After this realization, everything went smoothly. Well, if you don't consider the conversation that was forced on me by this hired home-schooler. She thought it important that I not be too graphic when discussing the birds and the bees with my son. She's researched just how damaging this could be. This was only after her teenage son became a teenage parent. I didn't think it at all necessary to tell her that I myself have 2 BD's. I mean, did I want the conversation to go any further?


The swatches are done in sizes 2, 4, and 6. I think I'll do my shawl in the 6, even though the knitting is harder to handle (for lack of a better term). I think the results will end in a lacier finish. The pattern called for some thread like stuff, but this is the laciest that knit pick gets. It'll do.

I also called myself learning how to spin with a drop spindle. I'm not gonna rush this. but I do want to learn.

Both of these failures caused me to cry out for stockinette therapy. I started this Long Line Jacket from Louisa Harding's Modern Classics. Ahhhh.

And finally, it is with great regret that I must inform you all that the toddler locs were unraveled. The sand was just getting to be too much. After washing it 3 times, when retwisting, grains of sand were still coming out onto my fingers. Yuck! I couldn't stand the thought of knowing that stuff was still in there. The sand was down to the core and would not be moved. Even after combing all her locs out, and washing twice more, she still went to school the next day with sand levitating at the tips of every puff ball. We will try again, but when?

Happy Mother's Day

This one especially goes out to the single mother, the mother who just lost a child, the heartbroken, the mother who has to plan her own mother's day celebration (cause God loves a cheerful giver and so do you) or has no celebration at all, and the mother who won't stop giving even though that child could care less. Happy mother's day, ya'll. I feel ya.

I let this heffa at my not so LYS calculate the amount of yarn I would need for my Sloppy Joe sweater. I was like wow, what customer service! I should have known. I ended up with two more skeins than I needed. I mean, I could understand one, but two? Well, now my stash has grown by one skein of lavender Cotton Fleece. That's right, I said one. I took this opportunity to make me and HP a matching set. Oh yeah, I sewed up the side seams completely.

HP went for her "first" retouch this weekend. I quote first because I had to do something before our next appointment. Her new school has this sand box that she just loves. I'm a germaphobe and am extremely concerned about ring worm and the baldness that it could ensue. She's been rolling around in the sand like an animal and the staff seems to think it's soooo cute. Ew, gross. I've threatened to withhold her after-school snack if I find her dirty from head to toe one mo gin. This and putting skirts on her seems to have worked. She doesn't like the sensation of the sand directly on her skin for some reason but doesn't mind getting her pants and new locs encrusted with this sand that doesn't exactly look brand new.

Anyway, I've tried to wipe the sand out but just had to scrub her head on Monday. I tightened the locs the best I could, but she doesn't like to wear a scarf either. So, this is what it looked like by Friday night.


Shannon put it back together on Saturday, and she slept with a scarf for most of the night. A long night it was with two pee-pee accidents and all. Pray for me ya'll, and I'll pray for you.

Now that there are two loc'ed heads in the house, I'm going to have to perfect my self-maintenance techniques. I've done it myself before, but you know how that goes. This time it wasn't too bad. I got pretty much all of them tightened. I thought I'd try to give myself some braid crinkles. Wrong idea. What could have been a good thing, ended up being a display of disorganized frizziness. That's why you see me with the up do in the above pic.

Big Catch Up

A lot has transpired since my last blog. First off, I've finished Sloppy Joe. I think that I've done a pretty good job. The only mod I made was to the sleeve increases. For my size I began to to increase every 5th row after 68 stitches. The other way would have produced sleeves way to long. I have to also give a hand slap to the designer, Louisa Harding that the width of the sweater be 44 inches. What a typo!

The design does include these split sides, but looking at the picture I don't think this suits me. I may consider sewing them up.

I mean, I like the way the sweater fits and all. It's very comfy and I love the yarn, but it's not as sloppy looking as it was on the model. I studied the picture of her and noticed that she wasn't very blessed in the boobs area. Although the sweater does not fit me tightly at all, I definitely think that it's not as loose as it was supposed to be. However, going up one size would have been a mistake. I guess I'm just not that into sloppy. The rib pattern is very cool.

I am also performing a major experiment. I mean, after the post before last you probably new this was coming. So, here's the beginning of my journal on Locking Tots. Hmmm, is this a good idea? Well, here are some pics on how it started out. Here's HP sitting on the couch. She felt very cute on this day and asked me to take a picture with her rocking the fro.

About a week later, she's sitting in the chair of my stylist, Shannon. Every day debris was stored up in the fro.

Here's HP Getting her neck and head massage,

Please take note of the glamorous-ness of Shannon. These perfectly groomed back length locs are exactly what we're going for, so HP is in good hands.

She's just been shampooed.

She didn't fidget or anything the entire time (about 1 1/2 hours).

Here she is half way clipped.

And now almost completely clipped (the reason I pay to have my hair maintained, Shannon is very meticulous and never neglects a single hair.)

Getting her under the dryer was a different thing, we eventually got the 4 pillows to stop slipping.

And, voila. HP loves it, and so do I. She's feeling it.

I must admit though, that after one week, she looks quite scruffy. But she's still just a beautiful.

She started pre-school. Where we live, pre-school is not free. You have to shop around for it like a daycare. She flipped out when I didn't let her out at the same school her brother went to. He-he-he.


Here she is with her new principal. You can tell the locs have shrunken back and stuck to her head a little. I tried to dress them up with barrettes.

She's already made a friend.And, believe it or not, she's sitting in circle time (in this case square time). She asks me everyday, if she's going to school. I'm so happy she loves it!

This is what I hate most about using the best, hand washing. Oh well, these are only small items that will dry quickly.

Whew, for some reason I'm bushed. Could it be my 45 min commute, or staring at the computer all day without success. My MsgBox macro keeps halting the macro group, I can't quite figure out how to maximize help features in my database, and, I've hit writers block (in a techie way) when it comes to this database tutorial I'm writing. But low and behold something has got this look on my face. The credit goes to one good ass song after another (sorry for cussin') on Yahoo! Music Adult R & B station.

I'm working on the first sleeve for Sloppy Joe. It keeps going on and on. I suspect I'll be finished by oh say, Sunday. Ciao!

My Hair, Her Hair

To anyone who cares or who has ever wondered (I'm talking about by family and friends or those who know me personally ya'll), this is why I locked my hair. You've undoubtedly seen me in every hairstyle known to black woman. Because of this, I made a pledge to my unborn daughter to never straighten her hair. When she was born, I new that I couldn't put the responsibility on her alone to keep my pledge. I remember when I was about, oh 6, 7, or 8, Laverne (our beautician) burned me so severely with her shaky hands that I had to go to the doctor to get prescription antibiotics. After I healed up, we went right back to her, or someone else, I can't remember. I can't be mad at my mom, because we (black women) have all struggled with what is beautiful for so long. I don't want to struggle anymore. I promise to stay nappy like God made ME, and to always, when I look in the mirror, see the beauty he did when he created me. If I have one ounce of low self esteem, how will my baby girl ever realize how strong she has to be. This post is dedicated to her and to every girlfriend and cousin who've been programed to believe that their natural hair is ugly. I love you.

Please click HERE, please.

Sloppy Joe

I finally got a chance stop my this new yarn store in Davis. Knitter's Playground. I love it. When I get another chance, I'm going to go there and knit or crochet. The place was so inviting and very friendly to HP (they have a kids play area that comes with kids). I just wanted to look, maybe get some eyelash yarn for a school project D is working on. I came across so many great selections that I just decided to focus on one upcoming project. That'll keep me safe. So, I decided on some Brown Sheep Cotton fleece. I remember this yarn! I just finished a project from the authors of Barefoot Knitting. They use this yarn exclusively. The pattern from Modern Classics called for Louisa Harding's Nautical Cotton. Well, I just found a very good substitution and I think it's turning out wonderfully. I started on Saturday, and I'm about 3/4 way finished with the front. How exciting.





Oh yeah, a new addition to the family. Isn't Keisha just fabulous.

Crochet Me Magazine

Ok, ok! The page can not be found. I get it. It's probably because too many people are tyring to get onto the website at the same time. I mean, we've waited longer than the whole winter for the new Spring issue. A very long wait. And, even though I check the site every day to see if spring patterns are here, there's nothing people, nothing. And now I've gotten an email saying the issue is out and I can't even log on to the website. Grrrrrr. Just had to vent.

Kimono Done!

Well, here she is. Seen here with a cute Nartjie skirt.

The fabric glue recommended to secure the weaved in end worked so well that I became inspired. The brand I chose yields a strong hold without leaking through to the other side of the fabric (I guess it's supposed to work like that). I reinforced the edges (excluding the neck) with some 3/8" textured ribon. This should prevent this very stretchy fabric from stretching out of shape when worn.

I also took this opportunity to make a button band, made out of a strand of the actual yan.

The buttons couldn't have been more perfect.

So, that's the finished product, all ready for Resurrection Sunday. Seen Ahhh, this reminds me of the day they told me, "It's a girl."

Kimono

I'm almost done with this one. The Tess pattern calls for a ribbon closure almost at the neck line. I didn't like that one. The markers are where some hook and eye closures are going to be. I hope that I can find some cute ones and I know that this means a trip to several stores. Oh well, a labor of love. The ends are still hanging out because this yarn calls for some fabric glue to secure the ends. I still have plenty yarn left over for ruffled cuffs that I hadn't intended to install. I wanted to use the left over for the ruffle on another Monica Tank (see last post). HP has tried the kimono on and even though the fabric is cute it still doesn't seem girly enough. I torn right now. Any suggestions?

So, hopefully the main problem with the pics is just that I needed new batteries. Hopefully. And hopefully today you'll be able to appreciate the beauty of my yarns the way I do. I've completed the quick project with that reddish-gray stuff. My mom laughed at me because I took the socks and hat back after I finished with them. I told you what happened with the hat. I just want to keep an eye on them while they're being worn. Ahhh, making hats and socks are so satisfying to me cause your kids need this stuff.

Have you checked out the latest knitty.com? I've already devoured this cute Monica tank that was supposed to be a party gift for a party today. I'm sorry, but I don't feel like making the 1.5 hour drive. And now the top belongs to HP. They probably wouldn't have appreciated it anyway. And yes, we are going to be wearing it with a tutu. I'm going to make a denim and chocolate one to wear with jeans. I was just using what's left over from some Bernart Softee Baby from those blankee making days.

Also to be worn with a tutu is this soon-to-be kimono. This will be made with Tess yarn that I got from the Stitches convention. This is my first project with yarn that I got from that convention. I got myself a ball winder and had a lot of fun with it. You CAN NOT use it with this yarn. The yarn lable says that you need a "real live person or a swift." I didn't try either of the kids, and it took me about a week to untangle the mess. I'm already impressed with working up what looks like yards and yards of ribbon. So, I'm over the tangle. The worked up fabric feels great, but sliding the yarn between my fingers is uncomfortable.

That silk that I bragged about kept breaking on the ball winder. Grrrrrrr. I'm going to complain to the maker. If they don't compensate me some how there will be hell to pay.

When my boy was tiny, whenever we were about to leave my parent's house my dad would whisper something in his ear. I would demand that he tell me what he said and would even threaten him with capital punishment. But, he would still say with that cute smile, "I'm not telling." Well, take a look at these colors. Clue: Almost every primary color in 100% Peruvian wool, HP will be starting pre-school soon.

I'm not telling!

I'm sorry because I know that this picture is unacceptably blurry. But, I had to show you. I've lost the label to this yarn. So, I don't know who makes it. All that I know is that I like it. And, since I know exactly where to get it from, I'm sure there will be more. It knits so beautifully. It's texture soothes you. The strand is so perfectly tubular. There is however, this one stripe of grey that torments me. I love it so, and there's just not enough of it. When I hold it between my fingers, as soon as it appears, it disappears. I don't think I've ever seen a gray this beautiful. Could it be like the clouds disappearing right after a rain storm at dusk? Grey so satisfying. I got this yarn to make my son a pair of red socks. He loves red. And I don't love it so much. So, this was my compromise. Then I decided that he needed a hat more. He likes it but wishes that it was a little longer. A simple 2 x 2 rib with spiral decreases at the crown. I wanted to make it longer but...

...as soon as I finished it he wore it to school and left it there. It's been there for two days now in that cluttered desk and I'm starting to loose my patience. We'll be lucky if somehow it's protected from sharp pencil edges and uncapped pens. Grrrrr. After the hat, there still seems to be plenty left for socks. Could this be the ball of yarn that I dreamed about that never runs out? Here's a better picture of the yarn with me at work. And this is after the hat.
My yarns go everywhere I go all the time. Do yours?

I've finally finished HP's sweater. I was so determined for it to turn out exactly as the models that it almost did. What do you mean, you say? It fits exact, and this is not necessarily desirable when making clothes for toddlers. We wore it the very day that it came off the needles. I get so tired of trying to make this girl be still for pics. Here's a shot of the back anyway.

Oh yes, I turned another year older last week. I thought it would be amusing to the kids to see the appropriate number of candles on my cake. Oh my God, it almost set on fire. The caramelized part was still tasty.


This is the top for my lucky silk. I don't have quite enough, but I'm sure I can find a blend able hank for part of the bottom band. Don't hate non knitters/non crocheters. Maybe you'll be able to find one of these hanging on rack somewhere. Peace.