SPT: 011708

today, i had to walk home in the rain.
turns out my new shoes are waterproof.
i'm gonna dry off and start another loaf of no knead bread.

---Today's Video---

Travis - Why Does It Always Rain On Me

A is for Alpaca.

I finished the lil' number just in time to give to my long-time friend Bryan for X-mas (it was kinda belated). We've been friends since we were in high school, and he's the only childhood friend that I still talk to on a regular basis. So, his gift had to be pretty nice. I used the yarn I was kinda hoarding for myself in a fit of LMGS (lastminutegiftsyndrome), although I hated to see it go, I know it will be loved in it's new home.

Pattern Particulars
Pattern Source: The Fidget by Robin Dodge for One Sheep Hill
Needles: Clover Takumi US size 10.5 straight
Materials: Misti Alpaca Chunky in Color #1000, vintage buttons from stash.
Time: Just a few hours.
loved: The stitch pattern! i will absolutely use it again!
hated: That I had to frog it about two or three times.
mods: None, really, I used the second option and just sailed through.

I'm sooper dooper happy with the fidget. I may have to order some more Misti Alpaca to make one for myself now.

---Today's Video---

Mates of State - Goods (all in your head.)




<3
knitxcore.

No Knead Bread!

Since I finally have fancy dutch ovens, I took a stab at the no-knead bread everyone's been gabbing about. It's seriously the easiest recipe ever, it just takes some time for the bread to rise. I skipped the cornmeal step (don't do that), and that lovely loaf above was stuck to the pan in a bad way. Don't worry, we still ate it. It was just a bitch to get the lil' klingons off of the pan when cleaning time rolled around.

I read about it on the NotMartha blog awhile ago, and found a ton of links with different recipes. Ultimately, I used the most popular one from the NYTimes:

Recipe: No-Knead Bread
Published: November 8, 2006

3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
¼ teaspoon instant yeast
1¼ teaspoons salt
Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed.

1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 cups water, and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.

2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.

3. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.

4. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.

Yield: One 1½-pound loaf.

Easypeasy, right??? The only thing I did differently was switch the all-purpose flour to whole wheat (well, that and the cornmeal thing). Honestly, if it hadn't stuck I would have felt like a master chef. I guess I could try again on Sunday?

In true KnitXcorE style, I have a NoKneadBread video:




thanx for all the well wishes BTW!!!! i'm feeling a lil' better today :-)
<3
knitxcore.

SelfPortraitThursday

Apparently, once you stop taking antibiotics, you get sick. FUNTIMES!

I'm a Rabid Anti-Dentite!!!

If you can't figure out what the crazy apparatus behind me is, or figure out why I'm wearing a bib and there's no lobster in the picture, it's because I've been hangin out at my *awesome* dentist's office.

The story begins:

The Friday before X-mas, I went to work like any normal day. By about 5 o'clock, I felt like death. My face was throbbing and the was a big purple bubble on my gums. Turns out big purple bubble means, "Remember that broken tooth? Well, now you have an abcess!". Gross! The pain was unbearable, and I was deathly afraid it was going to break, so Dave took me straight from work to the emergency room. They pretty much confirmed it was an abscess, gave me antibiotics and pain medicine, and told me that I couldn't go to the dentist until it went away.

So, I was basically doped up through Christmas.

Anyway, the abcess is gone. Yesterday, I finally had my dentist appointment. He poked around for a few minutes, left for about 20 minutes, and came back with a game plan. As it turns out, I need a root canal, filling, and a crown... ON THE SAME TOOTH! I'm pretty excited :-( My appointment was supposed to be tomarrow, they called today and re-scheduled for the 18th. Fun TiMeS!

FIN.

So that's why I haven't blogged in a few weeks. But I haven't let it put a damper on my crafty-style. I've inherited a lifetimes worth of plastic canvas and yarn (I'm not 60, I swear!), so expect some cool stuff. I've started a Fidget with my Chumky Misti Alpaca from Loop, I'm awful at paying attention, but I refuse to use a row counter for a 4-row stitch pattern. Maybe I'm a knitting sadist? Santa brought me not one, but two cast iron dutch ovens that I can't seem to stop playing with and a blooming tea set (a la Marie Atoinette)that I'm waiting to use until we can have a proper tea :-)

Seinfeld-Jerry is a rabid anti-dentite.

<3

knitxcore.

Happy Holidays!!!

some crazy things have happened this week, i'll update you all in the new year...

but for now, enjoy your holiday!

Sufjan Stevens - Put the Lights on the Tree



<3
knitxcore.

spt+fo.

I've decided to combine Self Portrait Thursday with my most recent FO, Foliage from Knitty.com.
I finished this hat sorta late (late in my house means after 11pm, lol) last night, and didn't have the energy to take any "good" FO pics, sorry. This lil guy is going to be wrapped up and put with the X-mas pile, eventually.



Pattern Particulars

Pattern Source:Foliage From Knitty.com
Needles: Susan Bates Size 9 16" pink metal circular, Addi Natura Size 8 16" circular
Materials: Rio De Plata Wool Multi
Time: About 5 hours
loved: the pattern!!! i had a bad experience once with a top-down hat and swore i'd never do one again. Foliage has renewed my faith. hated: knitting lace, I have the attention span of a walnut.
mods: The Rio was a weird weight, so the worsted pattern wouldn't cut it. I used Size 9 needles and did 2 and 1/2 lace pattern repeats with 6 rows of ribbing before the BO. It fits kinda slouchy, exactly how i wanted.

I'm super duper excited right now! I have possibly the coolest cake ever, in the oven. I was going to wait to show you my finished cake but you need to go buy this pan, NOW! (while it's on sale for $14.99) Martha Stewart is a genius!!!

Martha Stewart Igloo Cake Mold - Macys.com



I'll take pictures of mine when it's finished, and give you all the gritty details.

<3
knitxcore.

Reading Level.

found @ CallingonKahlo.

Cash Advance Loans

Self-Portrait Thursday.

All the cool kids are doing it.





For those of you who don't know, it's been snowing in New Jersey. Today, I had to walk in the wet, mushy leftovers to get home from work. I'm already down three pairs of shoes this week. As soon as I walked in the door, I put on some tea(Tazo Joy) and my coziest PJ pants.
lifeisgood.




<3
knitxcore.

icandothefriv.

Inspired by some of my favorite bloggers, I gave the Frivoli pattern a shot.

Pattern Particulars
Pattern Source:Frivol by Debi Tuttle
Needles: Clover Takumi Straight Needles Sz. 8
Materials: Naturally Tussock 8-ply in tan.
Time: About 4 hours
loved: the bobbles!!!!
hated: that i used a light color. i'm going to attempt this hat again in a dark green.

CabLE CloSE-up:

This lil' guy is the first finished X-mas gift!!!! We'll see how many get finished in time :-)

Jenny Lewis can't do the friv, but she can do frug (and the robocop):

Rilo Kiley (circa 1999) - The Frug



<3
knitxcore.

Yarn Crawl: A Mini-Series II

Our adventure continues, and leads us to Philly's infamous South Street. Punk Rockers, homeless folk and drug dealers pepper the street. Fortunately, I'm wielding the only weapon a knitter needs; my Addi-turbos. Despite the dingy streets and sketchy folk, a beacon of hope shines through.



Loop was my favorite shop of the day, no contest. Everything was in tidy cubbies, the staff was awesome, and they sold a certain blogger's hand-dyed yarn. The store was comfortable and inviting, plenty of places to sit and knit or just gush over the newest Rowan pattern book. My purchase at Loop include (but are not limited to); some amahhhhhhhzing Misti Alpaca Chunky, The new Men's book from Rowan, and some super secret christmas fun. Even though I never wanted to leave, we had to make our way down South Street past the Magic Garden towards our next 2 stops...



<3
knitxcore.

greyowl's ganomy.

I know I said there would be another installment of Yarn Crawl, but I just finished up a hat and thought it was deserving of an FO post. So, the few of you that are biting you nails, waiting to see what Philly yarn shop is next will just have to hold tight for a couple of days.




Pattern Particulars

Pattern Source:Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitter's Almanac
Needles: Crappy Susan Bates Circs (sz. 9, 16")
Materials: Lamb's Pride Worsted in LemonDrop, a pingpong ball.
Time: About 4 hours
loved: not having to look at the pattern anymore.

The hat was for a personal swap with someone on stylemob. she screen-printed a shirt for me, i made this hat for her. i can't wait to get it!!!! if you're not on stylemob, check it out:

and the video for today:

Badly Drawn Boy - Disillusion (directed by Garth Jennings)

RPMs: An FO

I finally finished these lil' buggers. Remember when I first blogged about them in MAY????? After a ton of frogging, and trying to figure out why anyone would do a short-row heel, they're ready to hit the streets.

I made the largest size with a short-row heel and complete spiral pattern, finishing with the pointed toe.

Pattern Particulars

Pattern Source: RPM Socks by Aija Goto via Knitty.com

Needles: Addi Turbo US size 1 32" circular (Magic Looped)

Materials: 1 Skein STR lightweight in Lemongrass.

Time: alot, i started them the first time in May and frogged a lot of times.

Loved: the pattern!!!!! mindless repeats=watching subtitles.

Hated: the short row heel, i don't ever want to do one again.

cuterelevantvideo:

Cornershop - Brimful of Asha

If I can stop fondling this ball of Misti Alpaca Chunky, I may do another installment of Yarn Crawl: A mini-series for tomarrow.

<3

knitxcore.

Yarn Crawl: A mini-series.

We begin our adventure at Reading Terminal Market. (i'm going to skip over the public transportation parts. lol.) It's pretty much a giant farmer's market/grocery store. I picked up some pumpkin spice coffee at Old City Coffee and stopped by Our Daily Bread (an amish bakery) for a donut. There were some many cute lil' places, I can't even begin to start listing them all. My favorites were Tea Leaf, Inc., Flying Monkey Patisserie and of course Old city Coffee.




Our first stop was Rosie's Yarn Cellar, on 20th and Locust-ish. If you didn't know it was there, you'd walk right by it but my lovely "tour guide" knew exactly where to go. They had a lot of stuff in their tiny space. Tons of Rowan and Cascade Yarns filled the cubbies all over the walls, while baskets held more exciting independent fibers from well-known etsy sellers. The people that worked in the shop were super-friendly and helpful, not only with yarn-type matters but our public transit fiasco. I picked up some Rowan 4 ply scottish tweed to make MochiMochiLand's Uh-ohs and some notion-y type stuff for a certain blogger's X-mas gift.

A walk past some adorable rowhomes will lead us to the next shop...


to be continued...

<3

knitxcore.

It's my birthday.

I'm not going to write a sappy retrospective or reminisce about my youth. That's not how we do things around here. I do have some pictures of my yarn crawl the other day that i'll get around to sharing, but for now, let's just party...

Calvin Harris - Acceptable in the 80's

Stuff I did this week.

1. I cut my hair



2. started a ganomy hat for a personal swap via stylemob.



3. frogged about 30% of the secret project because, somehow a ball of worsted yarn got in my pile of DK at the LYS.




4. worked on 2 new things for the shop (they're not finished, i'll list them soon).

5. I saw Hellogoodbye and Say Anything @ the HOB in AC.

WIP Tuesday

1. Another Ganomy Hat (for a personal swap)




2. A secret project, that I'm having yarn issues with.




3. The second RPM sock (from which I'm suffering a giant cast of the SSS)

Plus: the hibernators; Mr. Besotted Scarf, Miss Branching Out, and The Moderne Log Cabin Blanket of Doom.

So, as you can see I really should be knitting. While I do that, you all can watch a video:

Tilly and the Wall - The Freest Man

Squirrel-riffic Snow Hat!

I just read Tideland, and watched the movie. In both, there's a part when the protagonist frees a talking squirrel from being stuffed and sewn. Somehow, that translated into me really wanting a hat with squirrels on it. It's a damn shame I didn't realize I was using size 6 needles on a size 8 sorta project until I was completely finished and went to put away the needles.



This was my first attempt at knitting anything from a graph into the round, and I don't think it turned out too badly. But, unfortunately, since my gauge was off (thanx for not being numbered Addi-turbos!) he's being sent away to the ol' Etsy shop to make some other squirrel enthusiast smile.

If you haven't seen or read Tideland, here's a quick overview:

And if you haven't checked out the shop yet:

<3>

C is for cookie....

that's good enough for me.




These lovlies are from a recipe in the Martha Stewart Halloween Magazine. They're pretty easy to make, and quite delectable. I usually make heavy, iced, shortening cookies shaped like bats on Halloween but I decided to give these a shot (I'll probably make the other ones anyway). There are tons of cute lil' decorating ideas and recipes throughout the issue, and a pretty awesome use of white cotton candy.




I don't know what's wrong with that etsy link, it worked for some and not others. You can get to the shop by just typing in knitxcore.etsy.com, if the link is still messed up. I hope to get some more things listed soon.

Cookie Monster absolutely approves of Martha's cookies.

<3

knitcore.

it's open!!!!!!!!!

I kind of kept it a secret, but the first item is in the KnitXcorE etsy shop!!!!!

I'm so ProUD!

TheAbsentKnitter rox....

Because, not only did she send me some awesome stuff:

But, she also put up a sweet tutorial on how to make *awesome* star pillows on her blog:

I made this one with some fabric Dave picked out about 2 months ago. I have a few sewing WIP's laying around and I was apprehensive to start something new, but the pillow went super fast, and I already had everything I needed.

I don't really do any sort of patchwork, and I still flew right through this project. It was a lot of fun watching the star shape up. My only regret is that I may not have stuffed it enough. I can always go back and fix that when I'm feeling ambitous, maybe I'll just toss it in the dryer and see if it fluffs up.

To make one for yourself (or just revel in Karen's awesomeness), check out her blog @ TheAbsentKnitter.

halfapair=onesock

The first RPM sock is complete! I'm kinda proud of this lil' guy, he's my first sock where an actual stitch pattern was involved. I also got to try a short-row heel (and then sew up the disgusting row of holes) and a fancy-dancy pointed toe.

I started a pretty awesome hat this week, but i had a nasty migraine all day so I didn't take any WIP pictures. You'll see it soon enough. Hopefully it will be the first item in the long awaited Knitxcore's etsy shop. maybe.

I feel like a post isn't complete without a cute video, and it keeps you all coming back. So today you get this:

Tender Forever - Magic of Crashing Stars



<3
knitxcore.

Post Modern Music Monday

I don't have any FO's or WIPS to share today. But, since everyone responded so well to my last post about music, I've decided to make Monday's post music oriented.

Last Tuesday, I went to see Rilo Kiley with Art in Manila and Grand Ole Party in Philly. The show was awesome, even though I hated the venue. So, since you all couldn't be there, I hunted down some videos to share.

Rilo Kiley - Silver Lining




Art In Manila - Set the Woods on Fire



Grand Ole Party - Bad, Bad Man




Rilo Kiley was amazing. Absolutely one of my fave bands, and it was my first time seeing them live. They covered a Jenny Lewis and the Watson twins song, and an Elected song, pretty fresh!

Art in Manila was pretty cool, they do a lot of calmer stuff, so there wasn't a whole lot of ass shakin' going on but, still a good time :-) I didn't know it until we got there, but Orenda Fink from Azure Ray was in the band. I, of course, loved them just by proxy.

Grand Ole Party, was indeed that! They sort of had a Gossip-y, YeahYeahYeah's thing going on. The singer also played the drums! I've been to a ton of shows, and I've never seen it before, it was pretty awesome.

I'm sure some knitting might pop up this week. I'm just about finished my first RPM sock, even though the heel is a lil' heinous :-(

<3
knitxcore.

It's the Great Pumpkin!

It's eighty-five degrees here in South Jersey today but I'm still pretty excited to show off my first official fall FO. I tried to take a really artistic picture, complete with faux tealights, if you want a full color no frills affair, just scroll down.

Pattern Particulars
Pattern Source: Pumpkins by Jordana Paige for Knitty, Fall '05.
Needles: Clover Takumi Straight Needles US sz. 10.5 and Clover Takumi DPN'S sz US 11

Materials: 1 Skein each of Lamb's Pride Worsted in Oatmeal and Rust
Time: Maybe 3 hours???

Loved: Instant Gratification!!!! This really is a one night/weekend sorta deal. I sorta love the vine, too :-)
Hated: Sewing all the wedges together

Mods: I was not about to sew the top on, after sewing all the other pieces together. I got out my trusty felting needle (from a YarnPunk Kit), and just felted the crap out of it. I also used the needle to define the wedges a lil' more, because I noticed a few on Ravelry were kinda shapeless.

Even though I'm roasting here in NJ, I'm sure most of you are starting to experience fall. What better way to start it out than dusting off a gem like this:

Charlie Brown

Add to My Profile More Videos

there's way more than 8 weird things about me.

I have been tagged by Crafty Andy:

OK, here are the rules: Once tagged, you must link to the person who tagged you. Then post the rules before your list, and list 8 random things about yourself. At the end of the post, you must tag and link to 8 other people, visit their sites, and leave a comment letting them know they've been tagged.

Eight Things about me:

1. I'm quite a fan of how old people dress. The whole thing; house shoes, cardigans, thick glasses. If you're over sixty, you've possibly inspired my wardrobe. Which leads to my number 2:

2. I'm probably the biggest fan of Mama's Family ever! There's something about the innocence of 80's sitcoms, before you could say "bitch" on TV or spend hours googling your own name, that seems to be missing in modern society.

3. I love Jazz & Folk music. Not the modern weirdo Kenny G. crap (no offense to any fans!), but real soulful jazz. Think Nina Simone, Otis Redding, Bob Dylan, and Vashti Bunyan.

4. My name is French as are my great grandparents, but my obsession goes far beyond that. I can't speak a word, but I love to watch french movies, listen to french music and drink wayyy more coffee than I should at times. I know sometimes, it gets on Dave's nerves but the culture is just amazing to me. When no one else is home, you'll definitely find listening to music I don't understand or watching a movie very closely so I won't miss the subtitles whizzing by.

5. Sometimes, when I talk I think people are just waiting for their turn to say something.

6. I have quite a big collection of records but, no record player.

7. I have a secret love affair... with my crock pot.

8. I pretty much need a routine or a list, otherwise i would just walk into walls, babbling incoherently all day.

I can't remember which of you have already done this, so if you haven't consider yourselves TAGGED!!!

<3

knitxcore.

FO: Baby Surprise Jacket!

It's finally finished!!!

Pattern Particulars

Pattern Source: Baby Surprise Jacket from Spun Out #1-B by Elizabeth Zimmermann.

Needles: Addi Turbo US sz 6 24" circular.

Materials: 3 skeins of Woolbearer's Hand Dyed Kona Superwash.

Time: just a lil' here and there, over a week.

Loved: that I had no clue where the seams would be until row 80. modular knitting is awesome.

Hated: absolutely nothing, this was a fun, no nonsense knit.

This came out wayyyyy better than I ever could have hoped!

<3

knitxcore.

The BSJ is done... sort of.

Believe it or not, in the next few days this amorphous chunk of knitting will become a cuddly new baby jacket. I'll save all the details for the final FO post. I just wanted to let everyone know I'm alive and knitting.

P.S.- Has everyone seen the new Knitty.com? Here are 4 reasons why we'll be eating microwave burritos for dinner @ casa de KnitXcorE for the next few weeks.

(clockwise from top) 1. Urchin by Ysolda Teague, 2. Woodins by Anna Hrachovec, 3. PPR (my personal fave) by Nathan Plante, and 4. Diamond Waffle Socks by Danny Ouellette

<3

knitxcore.

Roller Skating is awesome.

Everyone knows I've lost it, I'm completely obsessed with the past. Today, I got to revel in nostalgia @ the Roller Rink. That's right, KnitXcorE on roller skates! The rinks haven't changed much since I was 10. Everything is a puke-tastic shade of neon, it smells like feet and burnt pizza and you still do the hokey pokey. AMAZING! It was like being in the most ridiculous time warp ever. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera and had to snap a quick one with my phone.

The Baby Surprise Jacket is coming along nicely, I'm on row 60, out of about 110 (a lil' more than half-way). I'm using a hand dyed yarn, so I'm using alternating balls of yarn to keep the colors from pooling. I can't wait to finish it! Once it's finished I can pick my sock back up, b/c I'm out of row counters :-( I'm too paranoid to just count the rows myself, so that's not even an option.

And to all of you that don't think roller skating is cool, I have one word... XANADU!

You Spin Me Right Round...

I'm halfway through my first RPM sock and just about to start the short-row heel flap. It's also my first time doing the magic loop method, which I love! I got kind of nervous and cast on for the baby surprise jacket instead of finishing the sock. It's not that I can't do it, but I've already frogged the thing once and that's not common around casa de knitXcore. I think I'll finish the jacket and revisit the sock when I'm done. I really love the Socks that Rock colorway (thanx MP!), and the pattern is actually a fun knit but i refuse to screw it up again.

If anyone has done the short row heel or has any pointers, shoot me an e-mail?

Without further adieu, I leave you with this post's namesake as interpreted by KIDS Incorporated.

I really miss the eighties.


<3

knitxcore.

A Not-So-LYS Adventure.

Yesterday, MidnightPurls and I stopped by WaWa for some delicious iced coffee and hit the road. The not so LYS was having a sale and we pretty much needed to go. With my RPM sock in hand, we made the hour trip to lovely, HISTORIC (every sign on the way said "historic") Mt. Holly. Woolbearers was the first yarn shop either of us had ever been in, and after knitting for few years, has moved twice. The new location is bright and overwhelming, it even has a real store front! I had all intentions of buying enough Rowan Wool Cotton to do the Sesame Sweater from Magknits, but by the time we got there it was completely sold out. So, after ten different choices of project and yarns, I decided on some of Woolbearers own Hand Dyed Superwash Kona to finally make the Baby Surprise jacket. I'm sure you've all noticed I have a thing for green, and there's a certain shade of green that's considered "robbie green" in my household. I wanted to make sure the jacket was feminine (it is for a girl) but, I also wanted to make sure that there is no doubt in anyone's mind that it had come from me. The "I'm Falling" colorway was exactly what I needed!

I'm so happy we decided to go, and that MP was cool with driving to come get me and then driving all the way there. Thanks to MidnightPurls and Woolbearers!

Salad Sweater!!!!!!

It's finally finished! I'm sooooooo excited! This is the first sweater I've knit that I won't have to hide.

Maybe it was Elizabeth Zimmermann's "pithy" instructions, or the tasty Malabrigo named after food but something clicked this time.

Pattern Particulars
Pattern Source: Seamless Raglan from Knitting Without Tears by Elizabeth Zimmermann
Needles: Clover Takumi 32" Circulars US sz. 8, Addi Natura 16" circulars US sz. 8

Materials: 5 skeins of Malabrigo Worsted Merino in Lettuce (from Misocrafty's de-stash) and one in Glazed Carrot (from Webs).
Time: I didn't actually time this project but I did start it in June.
Loved: the ease of the pattern and the perfect fit. Because EZ pretty much forces you to pay attention to the gauge, you shouldn't expect anything less.
Hated: nothing. I want to knit like, 300 sweaters now.

Even Jesse Spano is excited, see?

<3

knitxcore.