Scraps and computer problems!

*sigh* So the main reason why I haven't bothered to actually blog much so far this year, is because I haven't really done much interesting in the world of crafts. The only interesting projects I've been working on are either secrets or scraps. I've spent a whole lot of time trying to catch up on my Granny Bacon eternity scrap blanket...also known as solid rectangular granny square. It's actually become so big now that I can use it while sitting in my chair, and it is warmer than any other blankets we've got in the livingroom...not really surprising since it's about 60% wool scraps...

I almost managed to empty out the jar with scraps, but now I've started to fill it up again after roaming through my acrylic bags...there's so much icky scraps in those...

But the other, more complicated reason why I haven't bothered to blog to much lately is because I've been having computer problems...again. I swear, this laptop of mine have given me nothing but headache... I'm never buying a laptop from Dell ever again...or a computer with Windows 8 for that matter... It's been constantly a mess of freeze-ups and internet cut-outs, from the very start... I regret not calling up Dell sooner.
Two days ago, I decided to do back-ups of my important stuff because it started to stall again, and Bård figured that it was about time we rebooted Windows on it yet again. And good god that was a good thing to do! Wouldn't you know, yesterday when Bård got a call from the delivery guy that his new desktop was at the door, my laptop froze up completely and we weren't able to do shit with it. I were going to get Bård's old desktop when his new one arrived, so I've jumped from that shit to this shit. And this thing is shit because the monitor I'm using is crap and a half!

So, I spent a whole hour on the phone talking to a swedish guy at Dell, trying to fix this problem. He ended up sending me a new harddisk and new Windows disks that'll hopefully get here tomorrow at the earliest.

But Lizzy, I hear you say, this has only been the last couple of days, what about the entire month of january then? Welp! My danged laptop have had this problem where it stops pinging in certain programs...one of which has been Dropbox, which is the program I use to transfer the pictures taken with my phone to my computer so that I can blog them. This happened in early january, so getting the pictures off my phone have been too much of a hassle to be dealt with.

While I've been without a stable computer, I've frogged and restarted the "Fåvangkofte" jacket for my mother, but because of all this stress, I haven't been able to make much progress on it, sadly. But I'm getting there. Do not like to work this pattern with this yarn and colours though...

Scrappy New Year!

Woop! I have totally given up on blogging every day over here, I just don't have the motivation anymore, so please excuse the long breaks inbetween each blogpost.

Anyway! It is 2015 suddenly, not only that but it is my birthday as well! Nothing exciteing happening today though, I'm just gonna stay in, craft and enjoy my pizza.

I haven't really done much important crafting at all this year...or at all since I came back from visiting my parents over the holiday. I just couldn't get myself to focus on anything cause I was stressing too much with crafts before christmas, I couldn't find time to stop and breathe and do something for myself. So this past week I've done nothing but scraps.

I've spent DAYS working on my Granny Bacon eternity scrap blanket. Just look at all of the scraps I still need to work into it!

It's so much! I haven't touched the blanket since summer, and the scraps have just been builing up, so much that I've had to get a bigger container for it...henche the glass jar. So far, I've managed to work about 9 rounds into my blanket since I started just before new years eve.

The reason why it has taken so long, is because I'm russian joining them all together. That limits me to use scraps that's from 30cm (11,8") and up, when I've used scraps from 10cm (3,9") and up before. So I need to measure them all up and toss out the ones I can't use. All of the shorter ones, I've collected in a bag and I might use them for a scrap yarn bowl.

Trying to use every single bit of scraps. I hate tossing yarn away, no matter the lenght or quality. So I'm also using the longer scrap bits in a certain wool weight for a different scrap blanket. A normal granny square blanket.

I've got tons that I need to work up on this end to, it all just keeps piling up and makes my whole crafting nook like a mess. There's also very few bright colours on these...so far. Might be a very gloomy granny square blanket. There's loads of scraps to get from these for my Granny Bacon blanket as well, so they kinda flow into eachother.

AND EVEN AFTER ALL OF THIS!!! There's the bag of leftover yarn from the mystery advent scarf... I need to do a couple of sock pairs and so on from those though...but I need to sort them all out so I can use the smallest ones for these two blankets.

*sigh* I think I need to make 2015 the year of scrap and storage busting...

Advent scarf KAL almost over!

Phew! I am done with the christmas presents, I am done with the decorations and the cleaning and whatever else this holiday brings. I am even done with Christmas Eve!

...so now I've gotta do it all over again...except for the presents...

Now that I am more or less free from chores and stress, I can turn to my knitting again. I've yet to start a real project though since I'm trying to get the scarf KAL done. Part 19 comes out tonight and I am ajour.

Part 10

(Extra part that I added between part 10 and 11)

Part 11

Part 12

Part 13

Part 14

Part 15

Part 16

Part 17

I ran out of green yarn for the last two rounds on part 17, so I had to supply with another green tone I had lying in my scrap bag... It's not really that noticable, luckily...but the flash makes it horribly obvious.

You'll just have to wait a little to see part 18. It it finished, but I need to get into the next part before I can get a clear picture of it. Right now, it's scrunched up, and I did make an error while knitting, so I'll have to fix that with embrodery.

Other than the KAL, I've been snail knitting a hat for myself with some yarn I've dyed. I tried to make camo yarn, but failed...

 

Mysterious advent knitting!

Yesterday was the start of probably the most awesome KAL (knit-a-long) that'll ever exist!
The big advent mystery knit hosted by dearest Bittami through her Facebook page.

This is so cool and so awesome, I really don't have any words. We started off yesterday, but before that, all we knew was the recomended yarn and needle size and the fact that it'll be a looooong scarf. It consists of 20 parts that we will be handed from now until the 19th of december.

We were supposed to get the first part at 6pm yesterday, but it was released early, so I had to hurry up with my chores so I could get started too. I had used the whole day, digging out scrap yarn and winding it all up into neat yarn cakes.

I finished off the first part fairly quickly, and I'm using SO much scrap yarn for this thing! SO MUCH FUN!

The next part will be released tomorrow, so while I'm waiting, I'm working on a hat for my friend Nina. She asked me if I wanted to make one for her, and then she ran off to buy yarn for it. She's all about that blue!

As soon as I'm done with this hat, I'll move on to a sweater for the baby girl for another friend of mine. I ordered yarn for it earlier this week and it arrived today! Beautiful Merino!

I'm on vacation!

...kinda... My mother is dragging myself and my aunt to Oslo, the capitol of Norway for a few days, so I won't be able to get much updated in the upcomming week. We're only staying there until thursday, but I'm not bringing my laptop, only my phone and tablet, which aren't the best mediums to blog on. So instead of me going quiet again, you'll now have a little warning. Ain't that neat?

But to keep things yarn related, I'll give you guys a little update on the Granny Bacon scrap blanket. It's slowly growing. It's pretty much the only thing I'm working on right now, it's easy to work on and easy to put down if I need to do something. It's pretty much mindless, even though I need my eyes, so I've started listening to podcasts again!

 

I can't use my smallest scraps, that's for certain, so it'll be heartbreaking having to throw them all out when I finally get to them. I've also managed to save four more huge scraps. For the record, I'm only saving scraps of a certain weight and fiber. There's several scraps in the picture above here that's way too long for my tasting, but they're odds and ends of different fibers and thickness (I work the thinner ones double if you were wondering) so I don't have much use for them.

On a different note. While I was roaming through the bedroom, looking for my bag and also my summer dress, I found the missing watermelon colored skein for my mindless shawl! I thought this was lost forever or atleast still at Oppdal somewhere, but all along, it was hiding behind my gigantic trunk.

 While I was winding this up, my yarn winder broke while winding it up though...which sucked! Took me forever to get to the problem. You see, there's a bolt keeping the cogs in place inside the machine. But there's so many things in the way so it's pretty much impossible to get to where it's supposed to be. Took me forever to get it taken appart, but putting it back together was a quick fix. It even stopped wobbling!

GREAT SUCCESS!!!

Bowling ball of yarn!

Took me forever, but I've finally finished up frogging the scrap blanket! I'm left with what I can only describe as a bowling ball out of yarn!

It measures 71cm (28") in the round and weights in about 1,3kg (2,86 pounds). That equals to 26 50gr skeins or "normal" skeins.

Now I just need to decide on a stitch and start all over again!

Ugly yoga scrap socks!

My appologies to you if you have phobias for feet.

I'm a sock person...or atleast I've become a sock person in my older years...and I'm still only 25 here... When I was a child, I was more of a bare feet person, but as I've grown older, I've become more and more obsessed with socks. Expecially wool socks or homemade socks if you like. Since I picked up the needles again, 4-5 years ago, it has just gotten worse. I wear my wool socks every day, all year around, so I'm very happy that we got cold floors in this appartment.
I don't wear socks because my feet are cold, no, I wear wool socks because it's comfy and cuddly. I even sleep with them! But in the warmest of summer, it can get too much, even for me some days... And I do miss sleeping with my wool socks on, but if I put them on, I wake up in the middle of the night and gots removes thems.

Then suddenly, I came across this one blog that said she had made yoga socks to wear during those warm summer nights! And it felt like I was struck by lightning! Ofcourse! Why haven't I thought of that yet? Didn't take long though before I casted on a pair. No particular pattern. I used 3mm needles to get them a bit tighter, 50 stitches and worked 1k, 1p ribbing for the whole sock pretty much.

I've now worn them two nights allready and I must say that it's successful!

 

But other than finishing up these, there's not much to document from me. Minecraft and Mario Kart 8 has sucked me back into the world of games for now, and I'm enjoying it while I still can since I don't have any major projects that has a timer set on them. I do pick up my summer pullover and work a few rounds now and then though. But there's no more progress on my dishcloth designs, sadly.

Scraps all day long!

Scraps, scraps, wonderful scraps!

So! I've just finished the first yoga scrap sock! Pulled out the most boring colors from my wool bag and worked up this thing! I was lucky enough to pull out exactly enough yarn for a pair! That's skills, man! I'm gonna start the second one now. I've managed to misplace most of my 3mm DPNS, so I'm currently stuck with using only four on these. I'm used to work them both at the same time, expecially when I'm using scraps because I need it to be exact, so I had to stop a row showrt on most of the colors I used, just to be sure... So it could have been a little bit longer  for my taste... But hey, it's night socks, who cares?

Looking at them, lying flat like this, they look horrible and you don't really know what it is...

But then you put them on and it's like someone took a sock and chopped off the heel and toe!

They're horrible to wear on our floor since it's all cold tiles, but they'll be awesome and snug in bed! And it's always a smart thing to keep your feet and ankles warm, even if it's summer, expecially if you got bad legs, cramps or other pains caused by cold. Personally, I do have knee pains, but I'm going to wear these just because full wool socks are a bit too warm in bed even for me during the warmest of summer...but it's so comfy!

Big bag of scraps!

Today has been another lazy day for me, don't really have much progress to document on my current projects either. But I'm really in the mood for starting a new project! I've got some ideas allready for what to make, and it will most likely involve my big bag of scraps here!

A few months ago, I cleaned up and sorted through all my scraps and I managed to shorten two bags down to one. But it's stuffed! Mind you, there's no acryllic in this bag.

Not too many fun colors though... I'm hoping to work up a pair of "yoga socks" of some of the 100% wool that's located in the bag to the right. I love wearing wool socks, all year round, even sleeping in them. But summer is too warm for that, sadly. Though, resently, I read a blog where someone recommended yoga-socks for summer use for the wool sock maniacs, and it opened a whole new world for me! I need to try this!

If you got more scrap yarn ideas or patterns for me, let me know! I don't have enough yarn in here for a blanket though.

Latest projects!

Well now... It has been over a week since my last update on this blog... I am SO good!

I didn't really have much of a reason for this hiatus either...maybe except for this past weekend. You see, the 17th was Norway's national day over here, and also the 200 year anniversary for when we got our own constitution, so it was a big thing! Usually, I've gone to my parents for that day to celebrate it in my home town. But this year, since it was the 200 year anniversary, they were moving the celebration and the...parade? thingy...up in the mountains and my parents were going to celebrate it in Levanger and join in on that...parade...thingy...thang...along with my ex-sister-in-law and my oldest niece. So I was left straded, with no real place to go and people to celebrate with... But my brother, my sister-in-law and my two youngest nieces, which lives close by. Their kindergarden was going to join in the same parade in Levanger, so they offered me to come and stay with them over the weekend.

SO! Ofcourse you gotta dress up nice during this festive day, and usually, I'd wear my bunad (our national costume), but since mine is back home at my parents place...and also a tad bit too small for me, I ended up just using a normal dress. Ofcourse I needed accessories. What I've allready shown on my blog here, is this bag. I needed something to hold my wallet, camera and phone.
I used the Quinn Cabled Bag pattern from Ravelry and used leftover yarn from my Jackie sweater, Drops Nepal. It turned out a little bit wider than the pattern though, I ended up with 14 stitches too much.

I also figured that I needed a pair of socks. After a quick search, I found these lace, lightly ruffeled socks that was just perfect! The yarn here is Silja, the same as my Batman sweater.

As if this weren't enough, I also made myself a pretty little hair ornament! I knitted three flowers in leftover cotton yarn, representing the colors of our flag, and crocheted two green whines in more leftover cotton. No real pattern here.

Also a little snap of them in my hair.

The last completed project that I got to show you guys right now, is the granny square blanket that I made for Pepsi. It didn't take long to work this blanket up, with a 4,5mm hook and three skeins of yarn, it was a quick fix. Two skeins was Amazing from Lionbrand and the last skein was Eco Wool DK from Sirdar. He was obsessed with the Amazing skein that was sent to me from Drunk Uncle June earlier this year, so I just had to make something for him with it.

 

That's all for now! Currently I'm working on dishcloths to fill the time before my next project. If you are wondering, I'm working up a good bunch of the bleached cotton yarn for these and I'll be posting pictures soon!