A blog about my life, knitting, and other stuff.

April 30, 2010

Update from the Webmaster

Okay, the blog seems to have been migrated successfully, but for some reason, comments are disabled for all old posts. Not sure why that is, but you should be able to comment on any new posts from now on. As before, email webmaster@rose-kim.com if anything else is amiss.

April 29, 2010

Heartbroken

I just got a call from the Seattle Animal Shelter. Rufus's owner has contacted them and we have to relinquish him tomorrow. I'm happy for him but so sad for us.

A Word from the Webmaster

This is Wes, IT support/webmaster for Rose-Kim Knits. With Blogger's shutdown of FTP support, we'll be moving some stuff around. Hopefully, things will go smoothly, but we may run into some hiccups ahead. If something breaks for you, please send an email to webmaster@rose-kim.com and we'll see what we can do. Thanks for your patience.

Thursdays are for What the Hell is This?

After the death of Bigfoot his wife observed a traditional period of mourning.

April 28, 2010

Fiber Gallery Annual Sale

I just wanted to remind any readers in the Seattle area that the Fiber Gallery's sixth anniversary sale starts Friday at 11 am. We have tons of clearance yarns that will be available at 40% off. All other yarns will be 20% off. The clearance yarns are some very nice yarns from Noro, Debbie Bliss, Brown Sheep, Trendsetter, Cascade, Rowan and more. Don't miss it!

Friday, 11-6
Saturday, 10-6
Sunday, 12-5

Fiber Gallery
7000 Greenwood Ave N
Seattle WA 98103

April 27, 2010

Knitting!



While my life right now is mostly "grr, grrr, bark, bark, BARK!" I have been getting in some knitting time. I finally finished the last stupid hat from this stupid giant skein of yarn. Hat knitting is definitely my zen. I ended up knitting for much longer than I should have without resting and my thumbs have been kind of sore. But I started some new things.

Erin and I are having a very casual knitalong for the Celtic Bunny Hat from Toots Le Blanc for our podcast listeners. You just need to cast on by the end of the month to be entered in a prize drawing. I finally got around to starting mine this weekend. The merino/angora yarn, also from Toots Le Blanc is delicious.



I also wanted a project that didn't have a chart. So I finally cast on for the Mondo Cable Cardi in Dream in Color Classy, Black Parade.



It feels like it's been forever since I started a sweater.

April 25, 2010

IK Preview, Summer 2010

It's up. I am underwhelmed. You?

April 24, 2010

Rufus



We got a new dog today. Meet Rufus T. Firefly. The kids named him after the Groucho Marx character in Duck Soup. He's a black lab mix from the Seattle Animal Shelter. He's fully grown and about 60 lbs. He and Isabella seem to be getting along pretty well. There's been a lot of running around and playing so far today. He's a bit of a barker so we're going to need to work on that.

Welcome to the family, Rufus!

April 23, 2010

Girasole





Pattern: Girasole by Jared Flood
Yarn: Rowanspun Aran, 800 grams
Needles: US10.5 Addi Turbos
Notes: I didn't make any changes on this pattern. It was a very fun and fast knit until I hurt myself. Then the edging took forever. It's about 65" across. The sofa it's pictured on is 70". I blocked it minimally by spreading it out on a queen size bed and putting in a few pins. I could have stretched it out quite a bit more but I didn't see the need.

April 22, 2010

Doubleknit #36

It's up.

Thursdays are for What the Hell is This?

Well, darn. Back in June of '08 I said I wasn't going to buy the pattern for a dissected rat because I was holding out for the fetal pig.





Thankfully the pattern isn't available yet. You can buy a completed fetal pig, or get the patterns for the rat, frog or the Easter bunny.

April 21, 2010

This is a Big One

Today I turned 40. I wish I was one of those thoughtful, eloquent bloggers who can philosophically reflect on the meaning of such an event with touching insight. But instead all I can think is, "Holy shit, I'm 40!"

In other very big news, I finished Girasole last night.



Here is Wes holding it up for me. He's 5'9" so you can make your best guesstimate how big the blanket is. This is pre-blocking. I have it soaking now but couldn't wait to show you all.

April 20, 2010

Peanut the Third, Earthtones Edition



Pattern: Peanut the wee elephant from Last-Minute Patchwork + Quilted Gifts
Notes: Back in 2008 when I made the first version of Peanut Denise asked for one in earthtones. I immediately went out and got the batik to make this elephant for her. I cut out the pattern. And then I let it sit for well over a year because...I can't say. I am lame. I finally put the poor fellow together in January during my sewing bee. And then it sat forever around the house because...I don't know. I am lame. Anyway I finally got the poor little fellow to the post office and off to Denise. Or more importantly to Kira. And I'm so glad I did.

April 18, 2010

Til the Cows Come Home



After over two and a half years I'm trying to finish the free motion quilting on my cow quilt. I'm terrible at it and slow to boot. But I don't care. I want it done.

In Cinemaphonic Quadrovision!

Wes and I saw this amazing trailer for a spoof of Blaxploitation films on the District 9* DVD. I'm sure it's funnier as a trailer than an entire feature but I thought I'd share.



*District 9 is a pretty incredible movie. A little more gooey than I care for. Great characters, story and storytelling. Really worth seeing.

April 16, 2010

Crepes!



Older son is home sick today. He asked if we could make crepes for lunch. Sure, why not? The batter is so simple he could easily have made it himself. It took a few until I got better at spreading the batter out on the griddle without making bald spots or leaving really thick spots. Very yummy.

Soaker for Abby



Pattern: Frantic Mama Knitted Soaker Pattern
Yarn: Cascade 220 in Granny Smith (50 grams)
Needles: Addi Lace Clicks in US4 and 7
Notes: Abby, a knitter from Purlygirls, asked for help knitting soakers from this pattern for her baby boy due in June. It's a completely easy pattern to knit. I didn't do the greatest job on my kitchener across the crotch so there's a bit of a line there. I don't think the baby will notice.

April 15, 2010

Thursdays are for What the Hell is This?

This week we have a mash-up of "wearable art" and "string art." I call it "wearable string."





And so cheerful!

April 14, 2010

I'm Back, Baby!

Check it out!



Knitting with actual progress! I'm on the edging of Girasole. It's very slow going and I can still only knit for a little over an hour at a time.

And look!



A knitter from Purlygirls is expecting in June and asked us to help her make soakers. It's a good use for some leftover yarn and a chance to try the Addi Lace Clicks. They are perfect for this project since you have to change needle sizes a bit. I love them.

April 12, 2010

Doubleknit #35

The new Doubleknit is up.

April 11, 2010

Standard Knit



We made a trip to Kinokuniya, our local Japanese bookstore this weekend. I looked through lots of crafting books and while they were all pretty I didn't think I saw anything I needed to take home. I even thought to myself, "I shouldn't get anything unless it makes my heart race a little." Then I pulled a book with a very inauspicious name off the shelf, Standard Knit. It's a book of such simple sweaters--nearly all garter stitch--and I don't understand the instructions and yet it made my heart race a little. Take a look.

How Shakespeare Could Have Been Different





April 8, 2010

Thursdays are for What the Hell is This?

A little late posting. Sorry!

Everything old is new again. It's Yarngina 2.0.



Many thanks to Jenna F. for sending me this item!

Urlesque

I love Urlesque. It keeps me up to date on the latest internet memes and craziness. For instance, yesterday it showed me this, M&M's portraying pop culture figures in "moderately awkward situations." Or this video of a Taiwanese boy on an American Idol type show singing the most amazing rendition of Whitney Houston's I Will Always Love You. I hope someone shows this to Dolly Parton! The singing starts about a minute in.

April 7, 2010

The Bad Boyfriend

If you've seen me in the last week I apologize. You'll have heard this already.

Before leaving on vacation I got the greenlight to start knitting again from my OT. 15 minutes at a time, then rest for 2-3 hours. Add 5 minutes each day if there is no pain. I was so happy to get this news and yet...I haven't been knitting that much. Knitting is now like a bad boyfriend to me. I love it but it hurt me a lot. Can I trust it again?

Over the course of my vacation I built up to 45 minutes of knitting with no pain. Then on Monday at Purlygirls I kind of wasn't keeping track of the time as well as I should have. Add to that using a computer all day which I did not do while on vacation. Tuesday mid-morning I started to have pain in my thumb and wrist again. Not a lot but something and it has me very scared and sad. To top it all off the sweater I started for vacation, Lloie's Cardigan, was coming out too large so I ripped out the first three or four inches. Now it's too small. I will have to rip it out again. This is very hard since it took me a week to do what I would normally accomplish in a day.

I did find something fibery while at Disneyland. Spinning wheels in Sleeping Beauty's Enchanted Castle!



It was moving and under glass so it was hard to get a decent shot with my phone.

April 4, 2010

Muppety Easter

This video should be pre-screened before showing it to the very young or the very sensitive.

The Most Expensive Happiest Place on Earth

So we went to Disneyland with the boys for five days. When we came up with the plan we didn't tell the kids thinking it would be an awesome surprise. When we finally told them it went like this.
"We're going to Disneyland!!"
"Awww. Do we have to?"

The kids had never been to Disney and I think they thought it would be nothing but princesses, pixies and baby stuff. They changed their tune once we got there.

We stayed at one of the Disney hotels, Paradise Pier. It wasn't anything too special but it was an easy walk to Disneyland and California Adventure.

A few things I would suggest if you're thinking of going. One, get this book. It is an excellent guide to all things Disneyland and really explains a lot about how to best take advantage of all the parks have to offer. It features touring plans that seem really crazy and draconian at first but after a few hours at the park you realize that you must have a plan or all your time will get sucked up by, "I dunno, what do you want to do?" and waiting in lines. The book explains how the Fastpass system works. I was amazed by all the people who didn't understand and/or use Fastpasses at the parks. Only a handful of attractions offer Fastpasses. They are a timed admission to a particular ride. Instead of waiting in a huge, long line you go into a special jump-to-front-of-the-crowd line. The trick with Fastpasses is that even though they give you a one hour window, say 11:30-12:30 to enter the attraction, they actually work anytime after 11:30 until the end of the day. Once 11:30 rolls around you can get another Fastpass. Or if your Fastpass isn't good for several hours you can get another after two hours. Grab up all the Fastpasses you can early in the day and skip all the long afternoon and evening lines.

You should also make all your dining reservations long in advance--weeks in advance, if possible. There is nothing worse than being tired and hungry with tired and hungry kids and having to wait an hour or two to eat. All the food in the park and Downtown Disney is pretty mediocre and insanely expensive. The only good meal I had was the Big Thunder Ranch in Frontierland. For $20 per person, less for kids, you get all you can eat BBQ ribs and chicken, corn bread, beans and cole slaw. The service was also the best of any of the restaurants in or around the parks. Normally I don't spend $20 on lunch but I'd rather spend $20 and get a good meal than spend $10 on a crummy one. Keeping the kids well fed was crucial to enjoying ourselves. Once anyone gets hungry and cranky (parents included) it all went downhill fast.

Staying so close to the parks made it easy to take a break midday when it was hottest and the parks were the most crowded. Wes took the boys swimming at the hotel and I would take a little nap. Made the evenings a lot nicer for everyone. And we could head back to the park with a pocket full of Fastpasses and jump all the lines.

We would go the Disneyland right when it opened each morning and go straight to the Matterhorn. It always has really long lines and does not have Fastpasses.Then we'd hit Space Moutain and grab Fastpasses for later since it is Older Son's favorite ride. Younger Son is afraid of absolutely everything and went on very few rides. In the morning the lines are still pretty short and you can go on several rides with very little wait. At 10 am California Adventure opens. The favorite attraction is Toy Story Midway Mania. It doesn't have Fastpasses either and gets huge lines. Although the lines moves very swiftly we would head straight there. It's right next to California Screamin', the roller coaster I posted the video of yesterday. I'm very height-phobic and the 107 foot drop had me too scared to ride so Wes went with Older Son. Once I got the report back that it wasn't so bad I decided to try it myself. It has a 55 mph take off. Whoa. I kept my eyes closed for most of the first ride. Each time I rode it I kept my eyes open more but I still closed them for the take off and the huge drop.

My favorite attractions at DCA were Muppet Vision 3D, Turtle Talk with Crush and California Screamin. The Muppet movie combines a 3D film with animatronics and live puppetry. It is loads of fun and very silly. It's perfect for all ages. Turtle Talk with Crush is an amazing real-time animated chat with Crush from Finding Nemo. Audience members can ask him questions and he interacts with the audience. It's all animated in real time. It's utterly charming and completely fun. Also great for all ages.

At Disneyland I loved the Big Thunder Railroad. It's a relatively tame roller coaster but a really fun ride. Space Mountain is a roller coaster completely in the dark. It's a little more stomach-dropping and very exhilarating but not for anyone who is afraid of the dark.

Last tip is save Splash Mountain and Grizzly River Run for the end of the day or before heading to the hotel. You can get completely soaked and it's not fun riding on roller coasters in wet underpants. Believe me.

This was my first trip ever to Disneyland and I really loved it. Despite the crowds and the heat and the long lines it really is a fun time. I dragged Wes and the boys to some silly attractions like the Enchanted Tiki Room and the Peter Pan ride. I tried to get someone to go on the Dumbo ride or Mr. Toad's Wild Ride but no one would. And I think an adult going on either of these rides by herself is borderline creepy.

So my Disney advice in a nutshell: Have a plan!

April 2, 2010

April 1, 2010

Thursdays are for What the Hell is This?

I like to call this week's collection "Puffy in All the Wrong Places."







I've always wanted a dress that makes me look like I'm covered in lichen and sprouting moss all over my thighs.