Lucky Thirteen - Self-Imposed Year of Projects: Shit happens, someone has to deal with it, and who you gonna call? (Updates #12-#16)

It's been a hot minute. I'm aware. I'm very aware. But, as the title says: Shit happens, someone has to deal with it, and who you gonna call?

But first, the knitting...

 

Finished Objects (FOs)
1. Irma Hat: started 23 December 2023; finished 15 January 2024
2. Baby Blanket: started 28 October 2023; finished 14 March 2024
3. Dishcloth: started 25 February 2022; finished 20 April 2024

All that time I was away and all I finished was a dishcloth. And promptly started another one. It wasn't much but it was something.

 

Works-In-Progress (WIPs - these are carried over year after year, if needed)
1. Wink: started 5 January 2015
2. Shetland Neck Wool (support spindle): started 8 September 2017
3. Returning: started 14 January 2018
4. Faerie Mountain Fibers Crazy Batt (EEW Mini): started 13 April 2018
5. Granny Square Blanket: started 28 April 2018
6. UW Ski Hat: started 11 July 2018
7. Purl & Loop Weaving Project: started 28 August 2018
8. Mixed BFL (Annie): started 18 March 20229
9. Lakeline Tank: started 18 March 2022
10. Socks: started 28 September 2022
11. Bonbon 2: started 15 October 2022
12. Star Stitch Shawl: started 8 June 2023 (link to the kit)
13. Vanilla Socks: started 7 October 2023
14. Rose's Wrist Warmers: started 10 February 2024
15. Baby Blanket: started 26 March 2024
16. Plain Hat for Little Man: started 20 April 2024
17. Dishcloth: started 20 April 2024

Given that I've been away awhile, my timeline is going to be a little wonky but I did do some actual knitting.

My Lakeline Tank is still in a state of not being finished. I need to do the edging around the neckline and the armholes. I did actually try it on, though. I thought it was going to be a bit longer than it actually turned out but I think it'll still be fine. The armholes and neckline are perfect fits, which I wasn't expecting. I was expecting that I was going to have issues getting my arms through but it turned out well, with respect to the sizing of the armholes. Now that I've actually tried it on, I might be more inclined to do the edging. 

I pulled out the plain pair of Socks that I'm knitting out of Malbrigo Sock for Little Man. I finished up the heel flap and am working on the gusset decreases and down the foot. His feet are HUGE so I wound up making them shorty socks, which is fine. I'm still on the first sock, though.

I also pulled out the plain Vanilla Socks that I'm knitting out of West Yorkshire Spinners Signature 4-Ply. I finished up the leg on the first sock, did the heel flap, the gusset decreases, and am now just working down the foot. This is my dragalong knitting so it tends to go places with me (like trips in the car or work or Knitters Guild meetings). The photo is before I started the gusset decreases. I had just turned the heel at this point. At work.

 

I'm also working on another baby blanket. I think this will be the last one for awhile. Hopefully. We don't know the flavor of this one so it's more gender-neutral colors: blues, greens, along those lines. I'm only about 6" in and I've already found a K2tog that wasn't supposed to be there but it's better than finding a dropped stitch a few inches back. 

Oh, and because of who I am as a person, when I finished the dishcloth, I immediately started another one and when I got bored of it, I started a hat for Little Man. 

I also fed the stash. I picked up a skein at our last Knitters Guild meeting and then I won one of the door prizes so yesterday, a friend and I went to the shop so I could spend my $25 gift card. I thought about spending it the day I got it but most of the items they had for our meeting contained silk, which is a big no-no for me. So the shop was a better option and I found a few items that insisted on coming home with me.

Honestly, for someone that is a self-diagnosed yarn addict, I have been really good lately. And by "lately," I mean the past few years. 

Anyway, moving on......

OMGLSFWTFBBQ

Items for ME (FTW!)
1. Musselburgh (any weight - check pattern for details)
2. Danu Fingerless Gloves (fingering weight, possibly Koigu Painters Palette)
3. Stranger Things Hat (worsted weight, possibly Malabrigo Rios)
4. Wilf's Hat (worsted weight, probably Psych Ward Yarns)
5. Dumbledore's Christmas Socks (fingering weight, in Opal Dumbledore)
6. Antler Mittens (worsted weight, probably Knit Picks Swish Worsted)
7. Flax (worsted weight, Misti Alpaca Worsted)
8. Park Slope (fingering weight, Mountain Colors)
9. Fili Socks (finger weight, Holiday Yarns Flock Sock that I dyed)
10. Classic Octopus Hat (worsted weight, two contrasting colors)

Children's Items/Knitting for others
1. Flax Light for Little Man (fingering weight, using the yarn I dyed for him)
2. Pig for Earle & Duane (worsted weight, Molly Ringwald?)
3. Hippo for Sweet Girl (fingering weight, purple & pink of some sort)
4. Replacement toy for Sassy Girl (she's requested a cow so I'll need to see what I can find)
5. Hipster for Little Man & Stormageddon (DK weight, Anzula Cricket)
6. Regular Guy Beanie (Aran weight, Malabrigo Twist that I dyed)
7. Dandy Sir Cephalepod (any weight)
8. My Little Slug (worsted weight, any color)
9. Knitted Knockers (DK or worsted, neutral colors)
10. C*nt Dishcloth for Rachel (worsted weight, any color as long as it's cotton)
11. F*ck Dishcloth for Rachel (worstedweight , any color as long as it's cotton)
12. Santa Hat (worsted weight, red and white)

Utilitarian/Household Items
1. Pop Blanket (worsted weight, preferably superwash, Knit Picks Brava set?)
2. Holiday Countdown Stockings (worsted weight, bits and bobs)

Other Fibery Endeavors:
1. Stash Fit
2. Create a project bag inventory of some sort
3. Update library inventory (on Ravelry)
4. Update stash inventory (on Ravelry)
5. Stitch markers: make kits and individual sets for Etsy shop
6. Destash as necessary/needed (because I'm allergic to silk and I'm super mad about it but it is what it is...but that means the silk has to go and I'm still super mad about it......)

 

So last time I was in here, I had just had the gallbladder forcibly evicted and was still in recovery. I'm basically fully recovered at this point except that I pissed off the hernia gods and my hernia has been acting up. ::sigh:: If it's not one damn thing it's another. So my ducks are not in a row because they're still squirrels at a rave. 

The addition is going as well as expected. The best part is that the pool and hot tub are in a usable state, meaning there are still things that need to be done in the room to qualify it as "finished" but the pool and hot tub are connected, heated, chemicaled, and going.

The office space has hardwood and closet doors and such but the bathroom is still missing the loo and urinal. There's also some electrical work that needs to be done. The screen has been hung in the theater. We still need to get carpet installed (I think that's May 3rd) and the speakers need to go up, among some other things. But it's all getting there.
 

 

I thought I had photos of the office space with the hardwood but it looks like I do not...just the theater space with the screen up. Husband and I painted all the baseboards for both the office and theater space. I still have some touch-ups to do  because of the finishing nails and such but that's not an immediate thing I need to do right now. 

A couple weeks ago I cut Husband's hair and gave Stormageddon a trim (Little Man's hair is quite long and he won't let me touch it). That was all fine and all until the next day at school...

Husband got a phone call from Stormageddon's teacher saying that he took himself over to the garbage can with his scissors and hacked a chunk out of his hair. 

I mean, at least he took himself over to the garbage can....

So, he wound up getting "tiny hair" again, which he was less than pleased about. I think he's cute as a button but that's me. I don't say that just because I'm his mom, either.

Little Man and I went to see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince in Concert at the Overture Center in Madison a couple weeks ago. I was supposed to go with one of my college besties but she is an OR nurse and screwed up her back moving a patient so she was unable to make the drive down.

I'm pretty sure we also had Easter weekend in there. We went to Husband's parents' house the day before Easter and spent some time with them. That evening I went out with my high school bestie and another friend of ours to Naughty Bitch Drag Bingo, which was Bingo (obviously) combined with a drag show, and the prizes were adult *ahem* toys. We had fun, which is the important part, of course. The tall Queen on the left is high school bestie's hairdresser. Their stage name is Anita Million. And look at those heels! I can barely walk in flats, let alone anything with even a teeny heel....and then there are those!

And then Easter happened and the boys made their Ikea Easter Bunnies. Clearly this was before the haircutting incident with Stormageddon.

Additionally, I picked up my 22k new girlfriends on Friday. They are currently getting acclimated to their new hives, hopefully releasing their queens. I'll go out in a day or two and double-check that the queens have been released. I might have to do a manual release for one of them because the damn cork broke while I was trying to pry it out of the queen cage. ::sigh::

And, because this scared the holy shit out of me Friday night:

Don't worry, the damn thing is fake. I was in the bathroom while we were out to dinner on Friday, turned around, jumped about a mile in the air because I saw this little thing on the ground. It's name is, apparently, Hooty, and it doesn't bite. Good thing but it still scared the hell out of me. 

Anyway, given how things have been going recently, I'll be in when I get in. I hope you've had a lovely few weeks :)