What? You still knit?

I realized as we were packing for our Fall trip, that I had no hat that worked just right with what I was bringing. It's sort of amazing how many of "us" knitters often are the ones lacking in the handknits! (The Yarn Harlot was just talking about this). So, I found the right yarn and knitter-friend Anne steered me toward a pattern she had written.
Perfect!
The hat took me just a little bit longer then the flight to Seattle to complete and I love the combination of the yarn and pattern.
Details:
Pattern: Kanikara (The Monk Hat) Rav link here.
Yarn: Be Sweet, Thin "Black Light" (i.e. Grey to the normal person) 1.25 skeins, about 125 yards, give or take.
Needles: Size 8
Notes/Mods: I decreased the pattern by one repeat, and went down a needle size. I'm not the biggest person and I wanted a fitted hat. Perfect! The yarn is not spun consistently, so it's perfect for a hat/mitt/scarf type project, I would never knit a sweater from it, as I hit some reallllly thin spots along the way.
Overall, I would and will be using this pattern again, the Tall Guy picked out a skein of Malabrigo in the Sealing Wax colorway while we were on vacation and I think this pattern will be just right for what he wants. Thanks Anne!

Pac Mid West...

I'm not going to bore you with too many photos of our vacation... here are just a couple for you to see why I was so enamored with this part of North America...


We were in Seattle for three days (no photos here) and then took the scenic route from Seattle to Vancouver. The pics above and below are from this drive... It was a gorgeous day and we were in awe of the views...
On our first day in Vancouver, we took a drive (we could have walked, but didn't quite realize that until we got there!) over to Stanley Park. This is a very large park where the aquarium, several boat clubs and other outdoor activities for the city are (think Central Park with better views) are. The below photo is looking towards North Vancouver and is a completely "normal" view for the citizens of the city.
Since we were so close to the site of the 2010 Olympics, we decided to take a day trip up to Whistler/Blackcomb and check it out. Really, it was a normal ski town, but it was still cool to see the work going into the area for the upcoming events, and even saw a team having lunch! Overall, the trip was a great adventure. We spent time with family, saw parts of the world we hadn't seen before, met some very nice Canadians (If ever in Vancouver, hit the bar named "The Greedy Pig", trust me!) and came back recharged and ready to go for the holidays. Or so I hope.

What's in a name?

As many of you know, I got married over a year ago and while I hadn't thought that much about it, I've spent the last year working up to changing my name. What a painful process!
I know full well that the Tall Guy could give two hoots about what I did with my name, but finally, after the 5th or 6th (or 12th...) time of having confusion about what name a given joint account was under (vet, car repair, etc.etc.etc) I decided to bite the bullet and today was my big adventure to shed the name.
Truth be told, my now maiden name has never held a big place in my heart. That part of our family is small, and really with a first name of Pia (a family name), I'm somewhat convinced that half of the people I know rarely even ever use my last name. Still, it feels a little funny to suddenly have to start signing my name with four less letters and three less syllables. When hyphenation was suggested, all I could do was laugh! Talk about painful!
Anyway, when the decision came down to it, I really don't see my feminism as defined by retaining my last name. As the man at the bank quipped today "So you're just changing from one man's last name to another", the whole thought was put fully into perspective.
Thanks, Edwin at the bank.

hello hello!

I am, indeed alive.
I just haven't had a ton to say, and have spent a weekend in Detroit and a week in Seattle and Vancouver since we last spoke.
I have, however been knitting and promise to share as I start gearing up for the cold weather and holiday knitting is in full swing.
Pictures and fun stories coming, pinky swear!

Mmmm dinner

I'm trying to get in the habit of cooking ahead/prepping ahead and all round more organized dinner eating. The Tall Guy and I get home from work about 6ish, which isn't late, but when I cook from scratch, as I try to do more of now, dinner doesn't hit the table til close to 8pm some nights and what one doesn't need is me hannngry! (hungry=angry for me!)
Last night while cooking one dinner, I prepped for tonight as well. The Tall Guy thought this made for a cool picture, so now you also get to see inside our refrigerator. Yikes!
The recipe is from Food Network's Cooking with the Neely's and is here. I did sub Soy Chorzio for the real stuff which you can now find in not just Whole Foods or Trader Joe's but I found it at Giant!The great thing about making a casserole tray for dinner for the two of us is that even though the Tall Guy eats a decent amount...there's plenty for leftovers for the rest of the week!

Anyone have any recipes that stay happy in the fridge for a few days (i.e. cooking on a Sunday for dinner Wednesday?)

The February Bandwagon

7,008 (and I'm sure more as I hit "publish") knitters can't be wrong... After years of toying with yarn choices, I finally cast on for my own February Lady Sweater.
Here's a photo of the original from Pam's website Flint Knits.
(saved to my server)

While I don't wear the vintage clothing I did back in high school anymore, I love this sweater's nod to the 70's, especially in this color.

Here's my version in progress...
While I've played with the color some, I don't think my camera is doing this any justice, it's a bit more kelly in person. The yarn is Miss Bab's worsted weight in the verdigris colorway (I think).

So far, I can see why there are over 7000 of these babies on Ravelry alone. It's a great pattern, based off of Elizabeth Zimmermann's baby sweater that is holding my interest, but is also just right for couch/TV knitting. I'm so excited to get this done as Fall has arrived in D.C. with a bang!

Hello Fall!!!

Crafty Bastards was yesterday and the weather could not have been more perfect. Of course, this also made for some super crazy crowds, but I was happy to see the vendors appeared to be doing well, and I ran into lots of people I hadn't seen in some time. I was sad to miss Paula Woolarina with her new baby, but will hope to track her down soon!
When I ran into Malia, she had a special treat for me!How gorgeous is this handspun?
It's 100% Alpaca and I think it will become either a cowl or a pair of mitts. Check out more of her handspun and other creations here!

Whew...

Well, it's official, the third of my best girls is all married, meaning that the last wedding of the season is done. Whew. Yve and Al's wedding was in Hampton Beach NH, about 15 minutes from my Dad's house. It was such a fun night! We don't have another wedding until April and while they have been tons and tons of fun, dudes. I'm tired!

Highlights included a mashed potato bar at the cocktail hour (yes, exactly what you would think, mashed potato in a martini glass and you put a huge assortment of toppings on it)
Seeing my bestest friends (I've been so spoiled this year!!!) and a general all around good time.

If you had looked closely, you would notice that in the mashed potato picture, I'm wearing the newest Damson. You can't knit just one.

Of course, the Tall Guy and I can't sit still long, so we'll be in Detroit for Columbus Day and Seattle/Vancouver/Victoria the last week in October. Lots of plane knitting time!

The cupcake quest continues

Yesterday, Jessie and I had a grand adventure. It pretty much revolved around food and knitting all day. Awesome. In between some quality couch time, we walked to Georgetown so I could have my fist Baked and Wired cupcake. Not only do I think I've found the absolute winner of the best cupcake in DC, but this is a great coffee house and full range pastry shop that won't be kaput the day the cupcake bubble bursts.My cupcake was vanilla with chocolate frosting. Yum. The ingredients tasted fresh and were definitely decent quality. The cake was dense, moist and just right. It also wasn't super sweet. Here's Jessie with her Red Velvet cupcake as well.
Later in the evening we went to the AFI to see Julie and Julia. Funny enough, I like the movie SO much more then the book. I think Meryl Streep did an amazing job. Amy Adams? Eh. Could take her or leave her.

Random aside: A few weeks ago I was trying to put a bandanna around Annie's neck (something she normally loves). This day, however, she was clearly annoyed with me and didn't want me to finish putting it on. I left her like this for awhile.

Why Hello

It would be fair to say that on Sept 1, in DC, autumn arrived with a bang. It's been brisk, chilly and rainy the last week and a half or so. I suppose this bodes well for my knitting projects, but really, did we have a summer?

I have been knitting, even if I haven't been blogging.
This is from my friends Mike and Shel's wedding last weekend. For knitters, the shawl I'm wearing is Damson by Ysolda Teague. It's a fantastic knit and I'm about to cast a second one on as we speak. It only took a week, a skein of sock yarn and not a lot of concentration. All of these things make it a great knit right now as my brain continues to be overwhelmed by the daily chores of being a Federal employee. (Please don't think all feds don't work, some of us are getting are butts kicked right now!)
It would appear that a large number of my friends have decided recently to take the next step. Congrats to those who have gotten engaged recently, especially today's addition. I don't think it's super public yet, so I won't name names... only know that I couldn't be happier for you both! Yay!
And in the meantime, those of you that really only read this to look at pictures of my crazy dog.. here's Annie from a recent day where she decided the blanket was on the couch not as a means to keep the dog hair off the furniture, but as a way to keep her toasty. Awesome. Anyone want a free dog?