FO: A Cowl'd and Frosty Morning

I finally have a finished project! Not on the needles, not in a bag, but all done and finished.

Pattern: Cowl'd and Frosty Morning (Rav Link)
Yarn: Malabrigo Chunky in Stonechat

I LOVE this pattern, and will probably make another in a different color. It only took me a couple of days and if I had sat down and worked on it for a couple of straight hours, I could have done it in one day.

I've always been in love with the Stonechat colorway and I finally found a good use for it! This cowl is soft and I like the way it falls. Its just the right diameter around my neck so I don't feel like I'm being strangled, but it still keeps me warm. I'd highly recommend this quick knit!

Bad blogger!!

Hi everyone!

I have THREE WIPs to show! But not today :) Maybe tomorrow...

In other news, I have decided to start another blog. I was thinking, this blog is called Bricklayer KNITS, it is a KNITTING blog, and I don't think people come here to read about my running, eating, etc. So I started another blog for that. Head over to Hit The Bricks for those adventures, if you are so inclined. I've only been at that one for a week or so, and it still needs some work. Otherwise, stay tuned for knitting content over here.

Hope all is well :)

-Michelle

A call to arms

Please check out this site!!! Thousands of women are doing it, it feels so good!

FO: Beckett's Comfy Blanket

Finally! I couldn't show you this FO because the recipient's mom is a reader of the blog. I gave him this blanket today!!!!

Its the Bunny Hop Blanket (Rav link), named so because the original blanket was made with Bunny Hop yarn. I used Berrocco Comfort, which is my favorite yarn to make baby blankets out of... its so soft, and machine washable! All my new-mom friends love that ;)


I love that it looks great on either side.


I used three skeins of Comfort, almost exactly. This blanket was super easy to make. I took a little break from it during the Olympics when I was working on my Knitting Olympics project. And then Mr. Beckett came early! So I hustled to get it done. It was still a little late (he is 6 weeks old!), but better late than never! The pattern calls for 6 repeats of the diamond pattern... but I did 4. I remember my friend telling me once that she likes baby blankets a little on the smaller side, so they can be carried around and used as security blankets when the kids get a little bigger.

Brady also likes this blanket, which says to me that I may need to make him a blankie of his own...

So exciting that Beckett decided to take his blanky on the road with him today!


I'm working on another baby blanket right now! I know a LOT of new moms and moms-to-be. Its so fun and exciting!!!

No knitting today...

I do have an FO that I can't show just yet.

I have a running FO that I am proud to show off, though! This past Sunday was the final race in the Wild Rover Series that I worked hard to be able to complete. The weather was awful... 40s and rainy. But I reminded myself that I ran in the half-marathon in the same weather, and this was only 5 miles. Honestly... if I hadn't run the previous two races, I may have bailed. Doesn't it look like I'm having fun?



The prize was this 3 piece medal... one piece for each race.


This is what I was training and strengthening my leg for! That last race was only 5 miles... but felt like a huge accomplishment. I was happy just to finish, to be honest. I was even happier to see that I finished two seconds faster than I did last year, and that was in gorgeous weather! The verdict is in, I run better in the rain and the snow! A special THANK YOU to my good friend Shaine and her boyfriend Tommy for braving the rain and coming to meet me at the finish line. Support means so much!

The thrill of victory... and the agony of defeat.

Well, one out of two ain't bad.

I was going for two medals this past Sunday. In my last post, I shared my goal for the Yarn Harlot's Knitting Olympics, to finish the Darkwood Cardigan. I had 17 days to do so. Now, I'm sure that there were times in those 17 days that I could have been knitting and wasn't, but I knew I had no plans for Friday night and Saturday during the day and was planning on using that time as catch-up. Until...

We had a little repeat performance of New Hampshire weather damage on Thursday. A crazy wind storm blew through the Granite State and parts of Massachusetts, leaving almost 300,000 without power in NH and over 100,000 in Mass. We did not have power from Thursday night til Monday afternoon! Luckily, we borrowed a small generator from a friend, but it was literally only hooked up to the burner so we could heat the house and shower. We didn't even have any light! So try as I might... I did not finish the cardigan. So sad. I still have the hood, weaving in ends, and buttons to do. I actually debated staying up late to finish on Sunday night, and then realized that I never got any buttons! So aggrevating! So, I cut my losses and went to sleep. But as you can see... I REALLY tried... *sigh*

Knitting with a headlamp!

Onto better news... the OTHER medal I was shooting for was the finisher's medal for the first leg of the Wild Rover Series!! This series is so fun. You run three weeks in a row, 3, 4, and 5 miles, respectively. They all begin and end at Irish bars. The shirts are great, the food is great, and everyone's attitude is happy and fun! At the end of each race, you get a medal, and those three medals come together to form one BIG medal! So fun, right? Two years ago I ran the first and third races. Last year I ran the second and third. So this year I said self... you are getting all three of those medals! My biggest concern was not finishing, since I have been battling IT Band Syndrome. But thanks to my good friend and trainer, I have been working on rolling, stretching, and strengthening my legs to make them strong enough to run again! No pain! I was even able to cross the finish line in a dead out sprint against another girl who tried to pass me... and failed. :) Me with my hardware below, 4 miles this Sunday, I hope its just as successful!


And hopefully I can show off my new cardigan before the weather gets too warm to wear it...

New!!

First new thing is a new baby in my life! My friend Kelly had her baby, Beckett this week! I got to meet him last night and he is just gorgeous. Congrats to Kelly and Scott!

Here's me and Beckett :)



Its always so exciting to have a new baby around!

Ok the other new thing is my crazy idea to join the Knitting Olympics! This is different from Ravelympics, which I didn't get around to in time. Knitting Olympics is on the Yarn Harlot's site, the post is here. Cast on during opening ceremonies, finish before closing ceremonies, and the project has to be something that's a challenge for you. I have chosen to knit the Darkwood Cardigan (Rav link). I bought the yarn for this during the summer, printed the pattern, got the needles... just haven't gotten around to knitting it. I think the project itself will be fine, but the challenge will be working on it enough to have it done in 17 days!!!

Watching the dog show...

Its going to be a great day...

Happy Thursday!

I left for work early enough today to stop and get coffee/oatmeal at my favorite nation-wide coffee chain. I decided to go in instead of waiting in the looooong drive thru line. After I paid I walked over to wait for my chai and a pleasant girl saw me and said "I like your hat"


And after I thanked her she said "I bet you made it... I saw you at the register and said 'Hey, that's the Amanda Hat'".

You can't imagine how excited I was, as this has never, ever happened to me! So then I commented on her scarf, which was the Prismatic Scarf and she told me she made an Amanda hat to go with it. I told her it also goes well with the Shifting Sands Scarf, as I made a set for my friend, and we chatted about patterns that show off variegated yarns, Ravelympics, and knit groups. Then she grabbed her latte and left.

I love how a hat that took me all of 5 hours to make can spark a conversation between two knitters to make the time waiting for coffee to pass that much quicker. Its going to be a good day!

And here is a better pic of my Amanda Hat:

Pattern: Amanda Hat by Gina House\

Yarn: Malabrigo Merino Worsted, I believe in Azul Bolita

I made this hat on the train to and from New York from 1/1 to 1/2 of this year. This poor yarn wanted to be the Koolhaas hat so badly, but it was never meant to be... I think it looks great as an Amanda, though :) I am trying to decide what to do with the rest of the skein now, possibly a matching cowl, since as we know, Mmmmmalabrigo is SO soft.

Just another Sunday night

Finding comfort in some Comfort

A WIP and a conversation with my favorite non-knitter

For Christmas this year, my wonderful husband got me these, which I had asked him for months ago. He always pays attention and its always a pleasant surprise:

He has no idea what "frogged" or "ripped" means to a knitter, but he tries to use them in conversation with me. On Sunday, I was working on my sweater (see below) and we had this conversation:

M: You know what? I am SO excited that this sweater fits me so far.
E: Yep, otherwise you'd have to frog it.
M: Oh my God! You know what that means now!
E: Honey I don't really, I...
M: Do you know why they call it frogged? Because you rip something out and the noise is something like "rip-it, rip-it"... y'know, like "ribbit, ribbit", like a frog.
E: Ok, that's weird. So, when you frog something do you call it a lilly pad?
M: No, but that's a great idea. We say we send it to the frog pond.
E: Uh-huh
M: Just ripping a few rows is just called ripping. And when you just have to take some stitches out and you un-knit them, you call it "tink-ing", because "tink" is "knit" backwards, get it?
E: You lost me.

So I may end up calling frogged projects Lilly Pads now, because Erm made it up and its cute.

But I WON'T be frogging THIS:

Its the Textured Tunic with Side Buttons from Fitted Knits by Stefanie Japel. I love this pattern, I love this book, I love this yarn. I love everything about this sweater so far. I love that it FITS. After the Rusted Root incident, I learned that although its a pain to do, its a good idea to take things off the needles and try them on. It also gave me an idea of where to do my decreases for my waist, which I've done. Now I'm ready to increase for my hips. I can't wait to get this one done!!!! This picture here is closer to the true color. My apologies for those messy yarn baskets!

A needle in a haystack...

...or a bobby pin in my bag!

Happy New Year! Looking at other peoples' blogs, it seems like a lot of people had a rough 2009! Here's to a happy, healthy 2010!!!

We started off the new year by heading down to New York City for a great dinner and a show at the Blue Note Jazz Club to see Chris Botti! We took the train, which gave me plenty of time to knit, of course. I took my nice bright blue Malabrigo with me and the pattern for the Amanda Hat (Rav link). I tried to make the Koolhaas Hat (Rl) with it, but after two or three unsuccessful attempts, I decided to cut my losses and try something else. How liberating.

At the end of the hat, I realized I did not have any tapestry needles with me to weave in my ends! I really wanted to wear my hat off the train because it was snowing in Boston, so I had to use my MacGyver skills and figure something out. I rummaged around in my purse and found my new tool:

That's a bobby pin. Don't leave home without it.

I'm alive!

Long break from the blog! Warning: long race recap followed by cute baby/knitting pic at the end.

The last post was made before I ran my half marathon, which I'm happy to say I ran and finished in the time I wanted to! It was slow, but I did it. About halfway through, it started raining, and that rain eventually turned to sleet... and then snow. It was a freak October snowstorm up here, which made finishing that race even better! The bad thing was the injury I limped away with. During training, I broke the cardinal rule of "Don't increase your weekly mileage by more than 10% per week". Toward the end of my training, I noticed my right knee hurting after my long runs. I would ice it and move on, not thinking much of it.

Around mile 6 of the race, it started to feel a little sore. I told my cousin/running buddy but said it would be ok... just a dull pain. At mile 8, I could tell she was dying to run faster, and the knee was hurting more, so I told her to go on without me. The rest of the race was excruciating. I stopped to walk thinking a rest would be good, but then when I tried to run again, it got worse. So I figured, no walking, just hurry up, run, and finish.

At mile 10, I felt a slight snapping sensation on the side of my right knee and stumbled a little. I had to limp over to the sidewalk and slow way down and take a break. And then... I started to cry. I had been waiting three years to run a half marathon. My legs felt great, I wasn't hungry, I had tons of energy. I ate properly in the days leading up to and the morning of the race and now... I really thought I wasn't going to finish. I think if there had been a first aid tent between miles 10 and 13, I wouldn't have finished, so I'm glad there wasn't one. I walked over the bridge I was on and took my last GU at the end of it.

The real weather (read:sleet) started around mile 11. I think I've mentioned before that I actually enjoy running in rain or snow... it motivates me to go faster and distracts me from any pain I may be in. So all my power went toward breathing and motoring along with my busted knee (probably not the smartest thing to do?) to finish the race. As I ran over the final bridge I started hearing the always-welcome "You can do it! Almost there!" and I thought wow, I really am almost there...

So I cross the bridge and the crowd petered out as I ran a quieter section of the race. I noticed that up ahead there was scaffolding and rails and what not, so I figured that must be the end and I was so relieved. I ran into the "chute" (for lack of a better word) and saw the arch up ahead that looked like the finish. I ran toward it and it dumped me out into a huge minor league BASEBALL FIELD that I had to run all the way around to finish at home plate. I thought... what a sick joke! I headed left and around the outside of the field and in my last 100 yards, I really did start to cry again. I'm not ashamed, many runners cry. This time, I cried out of a mix of sheer pain and pride and joy. With one final push I sprinted/hobbled across the finish line and ducked my head to receive the beautiful medal I had worked so hard for. It was one of my proudest moments, ever.

With my mylar blanket wrapped around me, I found my cousin and we set out to find our way back to my car... except I wasn't moving very quickly. Actually, if you have ever seen the show House, I was walking exactly like Dr. House. I could not bend my right leg at all. She went ahead with the keys and I eventually met up with her and we went back to stretch and ice. When I got home, I immediately hopped online to look up what the heck could have happened to my poor knee. Between my research and a personal trainer-friend, I found out that I was suffering from Iliotibial Band Syndrome. Its a common running injury and can be caused by improper training, or weak hip abductor muscles, or a handful of other things. For the next couple of days I had pain that ran from my right hip all the way down to my knee and crossed in front and down my shin. I thought we were going to have to amputate. Too scared to run or do anything else, I avoided all exercise... until today! I did a light speed interval workout for just 25 minutes on the treadmill. I felt good at first and then... the knee pain came back. I'm so sad! I can't give up running, its out of the question! So, I guess I will have to find out what exercises to do to strengthen up the rest of my leg so I can get that full marathon in before I hit my next major milestone... (forty).

I learned two very important things from this race...

1. Listen to your body when it talks to you. It knows more about it than you do.

2. Research your race route! You don't want to think you're done only to be dumped into a huge baseball field!!!

In other news, I have no in-process knitting pictures today. Maybe tomorrow. What I DO have is a picture of the Super-Natural Stripes Sweater from the end of my last post. I was really nervous it wasn't going to fit! But... this picture tells a different story... Toren in my sweater, and his first time in jeans! So cute :) I was very happy to get these pictures!!!

Big hiatus = big post

I'm very into talking in equations today.

I can't believe its been almost two months since I posted! But, I've been quite busy. Here it is, in a nutshell.

I went to Italy with my husband and his family, to see his family. His Dad moved here from Italy to marry his mom, and all the aunts, uncles, cousins, grandmother, etc are still over there. The family farm is still working! We went to Rome for a couple of days, then headed out to the country where we ate and ate and ate and ate. I also worked on the farm one day, pureeing tomatoes for sauce that was sold at the market the next day. It was a really cool trip. I loved Rome, but it was a great experience to be out in the country where the "real" Italians live. Here are some pics:

Me and Erm at the Fountain of Trevi

One of many statue people in Rome

St. Peter's Basilica

View from our hotel room in the country

Italian Family :)

Me and my father-in-law, getting the tomatoes ready

The open market

Me & Erm at the Amalfi Coast

Making friends at the horse farm

Cappucino... only 1 Euro!

I have hundreds of pictures! It was a great trip. I feel so lucky and blessed to have gone to Europe twice in the past year, and now we've caught the travel bug. But no more big trips on the horizon!

I also celebrated my 31st birthday, which I don't have any pictures of. I was spoiled this year. I was taken out to dinner by friends, Erm took me to a French restaurant the night of my birthday and then to Salem, MA the next day (which I've been wanting to do for awhile!). While in Salem I went to Seed Stitch Fine Yarn which is a MUST if you are ever in the area. The owner helped me patiently while I deliberated over yarn and a pattern, and they have a great selection!

We also went to Block Island with friends and rented a house for a couple of nights.

A pretty view from driving around the island

The girls

The guys (I feel like Cat Deely)

Me and Erm before leaving the house

I also have had more time to knit lately, believe it or not. In September I went to Fawn's baby shower and was able to give her this adorable sweater:

I completely forgot to take a good picture, so this was on my lap, in the car, outside the shower

Pattern: Super-Natural Stripes, courtesy of f.pea (f.pea is Fawn Pea... how perfect is that?)

Yarn: Blue Sky Alpacas Organic Cotton, 1 ball each: Sand, Sky, and Expresso

Mods: None.

I could be having a gauge problem. Once again, this sweater came out very small. It may fit the baby when he's first born, but I don't think it will fit him for long. I think I'm going to start using a larger needle or knitting the next size up for baby things. Until I figure it out, I'll stick to baby blankets :)

And that's it... for now. I have many things on the needles, a poncho patiently waiting to be blocked, and new yarn waiting to be cast on. I am running the Lowell Sun Half Marathon tomorrow and its supposed to be 45 and rainy!!! Please pray for a dry day in Lowell tomorrow!!!

Coquette Lace Tube Top

I bring you... an FO:

Coquette Lace Tube Top from "Fitted Knits"(Ravelry link), by Stefanie Japel.

Used 3 skeins of Cascade Pima Tencel in black, and some of another yarn with tencel (can't find the ball band!)

Mods: Everyone who knits with this yarn points out that it stretches. I knitted the smallest size and went down a needle size. I used some white grosgrain ribbon through the top eyelets to help hold it up. May add straps.

I love the lace on this top, I love its cuteness, and its comfortable when I first put it on. However, even with the ribbon tied tight to help keep it up, I still had to change out of it after a few hours because it was falling down! This yarn stretches more than I would have imagined. I think this can be solved by adding straps, but I was really hoping to avoid that. However... I want to be able to wear it!

I ran my last race of the summer on Tuesday night. It was 94 degrees and humid and miserable. My cousin and I brought our tank tops in a bag of ice water and changed into them right before the race, which helped for the first mile and a half or so. But it was still so hot! However, it didn't stop me from this:

That's me, signing up for the Lowell Sun Half Marathon! I'm ready to take the next step in my racing. I'm a little nervous about finding time to train, but I think I'll be ok. Its only a half marathon, after all!!

A week of firsts

This week was a week of firsts for me. I made my first project on a sewing machine (picture to come later).

I finished my first shawl, and also my first project with mohair! I cannot believe how warm this shawl is, its so light and airy that I was curious if it would just be for show, but its definitely warm!

Pattern is Aunt Phebe's Comfort Shawl. VERY easy. I wish I had made it a little bigger, but I have yarn left over and may make another one as a gift.

Made with about 1 1/2 skeins of Marvelous Mohair in the Dead Squirrel Color

Mods: None. This pattern is so easy and quick as it is, I didn't have time to think about making changes to it.

Another first, I ran in my first bikini race! I did NOT run in a full bikini. Charlotte and I ran in bathing suit tops and running shorts, and even then, my bathing suit top was a very sporty top and actually felt like a sports bra, so it wasn't too bad for me. There were people who were in full bikinis though, and some guys in speedos! I ran an awful time, which was a letdown after my incredible race a few weeks ago, but it was fun... despite being 86 degrees and humid. It was one of those runs where I pray for rain. I won't flash a bunch of pictures for you, except this one, which I laugh at every time I look at it. I think I was fixing my shuffle, but it looks like someone slapped me in the face!

Yesterday I finished my Coquette Tube Top, but it needs to be blocked before I'm ready to show it off. I knitted a bunch of it at the lake on Saturday with Erm's family. So I leave you with another first... my first time knitting on the water.

My first love

Other than my husband and family and friends, my first love is animals. A few weeks ago, you can imagine how happy I was to pick these two up to babysit for a few days

You may recognize Cody from earlier posts. We babysit him all the time and he always settles right in. Our new guest was his sister, Roxie. Her usual babysitter was off with Mom and Dad, so we offered to take her. I'm not sure there could be two more different dogs. Cody is mellow, snuggly and obedient. Roxie is spirited and always the first in line for attention or anything that may fall on the floor. We had lots of laughs with these two for three nights and were sad to see them go!

Joey getting in the mix

Best friends

Octavious is safe if he stays in the office

Roxie enjoys sunning herself

We returned them to their Mom and Dad a short few days later, but Cody will be back in just two weeks!! Can't wait!