I'm here... really!

Just a brief update, since it appears that someone does actually read this, and wonders about my presence on the earth when I vanish for a bit. I recieved an email from an old high school chum who asked about my tank progress. It seems that Mr.F gets bored enough to follow these things from time to time.

So, for SF, and anyone else checking in... I'm here. And the tank is still on the needles. It was done at one point, but trying it on lead to ripping out the straps to make them longer, and ripping out the bottom hem to make that A LOT longer. So I'm still poking along on it. (The whole project lost it's velocity when I didn't have it done by Solstice.)

Speaking of Solstice - it was fantastic! Sarah came up to join us in the festivities, and we had a fabulous time. Someday I'll get around to posting pictures, but if you're wanting to see them NOW, click on the Sarah link and look at hers.

OK, so where the hell have I been? Right here, typing away. It seems that a completed draft of my dissertation is due to my committee on July 12. Yikes! Yes, I've been working on it for a looooong time now... but I've been poking along. Now I am in the fast lane, trying to speed along. (It feels like I may be driving a 4-cylinder up the fast lane in the Alps, but I'm definitely leaning on the gas pedal, and not coasting anymore.) So, I'm a bit out of touch these days. But the good news is: I really can see the light. I have a list of deadlines, and I will meet them, by god! And then? Then I will be done, my friends.

And when that happens, you are all invited for drinks!

Tank progress

If the micrometers of work I'm accomplishing on a daily basis constitute prgress, I'm making it. Goodness, this is getting boring. If anyone ever reads this, I'm sure they have fallen into a boredom-induced coma. But I shall persevere, just as I shall finish this tank. See, the back is openning up nicely. That's something.



Unfortunately, I keep finding little mistakes. These things happen, right? Ugh - they drive me crazy. Nothing major, like dropped stitches (which I would definitely fix) - just little visual oopses. They displease me, but I'm ignoring them in the interest of time and sanity.

Tanking along...

Here's the latest:


As you can see, I've begun the back split. It's going well, except that either side of the V is in a completely different stitch. I simply could not replicate the lovely slip-stitch pattern from the knit side over on the purled side. Oh well. I am satisfied for now that the stitches on either side are consistent. I'd muck around with it some more if I wasn't in such a hurry. But alas, I am rushed, so this will suffice.

The Tank Rolls On

I'm making progress... almost done with the waist decreases. Once the decreases are done, I'll start the divide on the back. Last night I managed to knit in not one, but two bars. I'm on a mission, a mission to knit.



While knitting in bar #1 (a wonderful local joint specializing in potpies - YUM!), a friend and I were discussing our crafty endeavors. She said that she tried her hand at sewing, figuring she should be able to do something "domestic". That got me to thinking... isn't being "domestic" about running a household efficiently? If that's domesticity, by definition, I have to think that crafting is no longer a domestic activity. Spending $75 and 3 weeks to make a sweater that you could buy at Target for $15? Not efficient. No, I do believe that being crafty may now be considered a luxury, in more ways that one. What would our foremothers think?!

Today I met with a glorious, unbelievable windfall. Unfortunately, it was the direct result of the company my sister works for going under. She's in merchandising for a chichi company that makes party dresses for little girls. Apparently the soccer moms aren't doing their capitalistic duty, as the company ceased to be financially viable and was dissolved. The upshot of this is that the now-former employees were given permission to help themselves to the leftovers. So today my sis pulled up with a trunk full of huge bolts of silks, satins, and all manner of fancy fabrics. For me! She's doesn't sew, so in exchange for a promise of a skirt or two... the fabric is all mine! Oh my. I am now swimming in miles of luxury fabric... I just can't believe it!

Tank mission: day 2

I have this sense that by doing a daily update, I'll get more done and finish this project quickly. Bear with me!

I have finished the pattern rows at the bottom of the tank and started on the decrease rows. You can see the pattern in this picture:

I'm designing as I go, and trying not to be scared. Why must I be so obstinate about using patterns?

Tank challenge!

A little background... every year, there is a huge festival to celebrate summer solstice here in Seattle. It is kicked off with a big crazy parade, featuring all manner of talent and insanity, followed by 2 days of street fair extravaganza. In a city full of summer street fairs, this one is the pinnacle. I love the solstice fair. It's a big, fun deal, and I look forward to it yearly.

Also yearly, I have some sort of pre-solstice freakout about something that I absolutely must make. 2 years ago, I NEEDED the perfect bag to carry (I finished it the midnight before the fair). Last year, I think it was a skirt. I know it needed to go with the tiara I would be wearing. This year, I have determined that it is imperative that my tattoo be visible for the fair. Now, when getting my tattoo, a part of location selection was that it NOT be visible most of the time. So it is in the very center of my back, and never visible. This is the challenge. Not finding any commercial tops that are low-cut enough in the back, I've undertaken making myself one. Not only am I trying to whip up something wearable in two weeks (and I am a notoriously slow knitter)... I'm also designing it myself, more or less as I go. So, we shall see. I will post pictures as I go, but right now it's just 5 rows on the needles. I'm knitting it in Brown Sheep cotton fleece, in a color called "Nymph" - seems a fitting color to showcase my knitting pixie. Here's a swatch:

I really hope this works! Stay tuned...

2-ply Sunshine

Remember this?
It's now this:
At some point in the *hopefully* near future, it will be a pair of socks for a friend of mine. For now, it's a big squishy skein of delight.

In other spinning, I finished up the remaining fiber from my first attempt at dyeing. I am so enamoured of this yarn! Perhaps everyone feels that way about their "firstborn" fiber.

I finally got a bunch of sachets whipped up this weekend. Some will go to a friend, as promised a month ago, and some will be saved for a project Sarah and I are working on. Shhhhh, we'll talk about that later.
Don't even ask about knitting... I'm just as behind on that as I am on my dissertation. Perhaps someday I'll figure out how to wedge 18 more hours into a day... then I'll be just about set!

Much school, little crafty

I've been remiss about taking pictures of my latest work, which should be remedied this weekend. Of course, I also haven't had much time to get much craftiness done lately. This weekend needs to see some sewing happen. I've got curtains to hem, and satchets to whip up. (C.K. - I haven't forgotten!) Hopefully a bit of spinning will transpire as well.

Today is the last day of classes, which means I've been up to my eyeballs in grading and student emails. But, things are winding down, and now I'm getting a bit weepy over saying goodbye to this quarter's crop. (Well, maybe not weepy.) It's been a good quarter, and this group of students has been fantastic. I couldn't have asked for a more supportive bunch to have during a quarter that saw me disappearing not once, but twice, for funerals in NY. They've been great!

In small but mildly exciting news, I'm narrowing down a date for my dissertation defense! Should be the 2nd week in August... though picking one actual day is going to be tough. 5 committee members, 5 different schedules... this could get sticky. But, it'll happen, and I should (*hope*pray*) be a doctor by my 29th birthday.