Can she knit it?

Yes, she can!

I have knitted a hammock. I'll let that sink in a bit.

That's right, a full-fledged, person-sized hammock for my enjoyment in the backyard! It was a bit trying at times, but since I was doing it as another "homework project" I persevered.

I'm going to copy/paste my homework submission now, because I worked really hard on it, and I don't think I could write it over again very well tonight. (Don't mind the HP dorkiness.)

Hello Professor! LNS of Slytherin, turning in my Transfiguration homework … a HAMMOCK!

I began this adventure with some closet-dowel, 8’ of 2x2 pine, and 800’ of 0.5” nylon rope. {Aside: If someone happens to know a good whittling spell, it would have been a big help, because doing it the muggle way (with a big ol’ knife) gave me blisters.}

I tried to cast yarnio, but the rope just gave a little wiggle and flopped down again. So, I tried to be more specific: Yarnio Hammock, no dice. One more try: YARNIO GARTER DROP-STITCH HAMMOCK and that did the trick. The unwieldy rope behaved like nice pliable yarn, and my giant kniting needles went to work (seriously, 1.5” in diameter, that’s huge! {which is also what she said}).

Along the first edge, I cast on through the spreader bar (pine 2x2, sanded, drilled with 30 odd holes, and stained walnut). Then the spell really went to work, and it created a nice open net with a lot of stretch.

The ends from the cast-on were ~4’ long, so they could be lashioed to 3” solid steel rigging rings. I also used some muggle eklectical tape to carefully keep the nylon rope from fraying. Fire was also employed.

Once the knitting was complete and attached to both wooden spreaders, I enchanted some smaller cording to lace itself through the edges in order to stabilize the structure. It worked like a charm (obviously) ;-)

And, lest you think that this is only for decoration, here I am putting my feet up and relaxing before the July classes start up.

Thank you professor, for your encouragement and input! I really enjoyed this class :-D

Holy Backlog Batman! (4 of many)

Here's another little project that was a homework assignment, but also highly useful and needed. It's a pouch, made out of cascade 220 superwash, and emblazoned with an apple logo (from the Tech Guy Sock Pattern).
It's used for, you guessed it, wrangling various bits of technology. All of these were churning around in the spin-cycle that is my big canvas bag, so to keep them from getting dirty and/or damaged they now all reside together in this simple drawstring pocket.
P.S. I wonder if I can sell this idea to apple? I mean, I could never keep up with the demand, but I'll bet they could charge $30 for one of these, even if it was mass produced.

Holy Backlog Batman! (3 of many)

Huzzah for mini sock swaps! I recently participated in the Reducio mini sock swap and, pictured above, is what I received from my lovely Spoiler. That is the fluffiest, loveliest cotton yarn I've ever come across and I'd love to make, well, anything out of it! The awesome inverted holly will be decorating my table top christmas tree this year :-) Not pictured were the little Toblerone treats. Because they were eaten.
This is the package that I sent to my spoilee. She got a mini weasley sweater with her initial on it (and some little Lavender buds) a couple socks (one quidditch and one regular house sock) and some other applicable goodies.

[Side Note: The sweater counted for HPKCHC homework, because it had a monogram on it! Sweet!]

I really liked participating in this swap, and I think I'll do it again in the future. It made going to the mailbox fun again!

Holy Backlog Batman! (2 of many)

Um, yes. It is a wand-tip protector. This is the toy wand that came in my stocking this past Christmas and I needed a quick and easy homework assignment.
Besides, I keep accidentally setting off the Lumos charm whilst rummaging through my bag. It makes the muggles suspicious you know ;-)

Also, there's no need to mock the dorkiness. I'm well aware of my situation. I have decided to adopt the "embrace it" approach, and I recommend that you all do the same.

P.S. Is this the wizarding equivalent of a pocket protector? Oh lord, I think it is. ::facepalm::

Holy Backlog Batman! (1 of many)

This little beauty is my doily version of the Jared Flood Hemlock Ring Blanket. My prize winning doily I might add! Seriously, is there anything better in this world than having your work appreciated by people you love and respect and admire? It fills me up with knitterly pride :-D.

I used crochet cotton (cardinal and gold, of course) and my newly acquired (on sale!!) addi turbo size 0 circular. It wasn't tedious until the picot edging. ::GROAN:: I have long entertained the idea of making this in the intended blanket size, but that border has made me think twice about it. I already have one giant blanket project languishing in the corner, sending me forlorn, neglected vibes; it sure doesn't need a partner to commiserate with!

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to all you Dads, Grandpas, Uncles, Godfathers, etc. out there!

I'm spending the day with my dad, watching baseball and grilling up some dinner. I might also take this opportunity to cast on something for my dad, most likely to be a Christmas gift. His mom (my late grandmother) was a marvelous knitter and accomplished crocheter, so he has the proper appreciation for yarny goodness, which makes him a great person to knit for!

Unfortunately, we lived clear across the country from my grandparents and she passed away before I was bitten by the knitting bug. I sort of hope that she is peeking down from time to time to see how my projects are going. (Lots of love Grandma Rose, and I really appreciate all of the time and effort you put into the little sweaters you made for me when I was just a tot. Especially the red one. With the little scotty dog buttons.)

Ravelry has eaten my blog.

I figured out where all of my blogable content is going. Right on to ravelry.com.

So, my plan of attack from now on is to post things here first. Simple eh?

Let's start with my Cable and Bobble Mitts.

These are going to be turned in to the HPKCHC (that's Harry Potter Knit and Crochet House Cup, for you muggles). They are my herbology homework, which was supposed to incorporate bubbles (a.k.a. bobbles) this month. Twelve bobbles, present and accounted for!

These were knit to pattern specifications [Side Note: this is code for "I'm too lazy to look up what the needle size and pattern gauge were."] but I used some of the reclaimed sweater yarn that was used last summer in my Cable and Bobble Scarf project. (I also used this yarn to make my dad a hat. He loves it. He also wears it with no regard for the weather. As in he wore it driving a few weeks ago, when it was 100 degrees outside. Sigh. Parents.)

I might have enough yarn left to make myself a headband (or Calorimetry, those are quite popular on rav) and then I'll have a complete set!

See, that wasn't so difficult now.

Dear Blog,

Where did all this time go?  I really haven't posted in over a month?  Wow.  I am such a slacker!  

I think I mentioned that I was participating in a great big knitting competition/game on Ravelry (way back before this unplanned hiatus).  Well, it has been immensely fun, but bad for the blogging, because I've been putting all of my blogable content on there, and not here.  For shame!

I have recently made:  a wand tip protector, (no real purpose IRL, oh well, it's shiny and pretty) a scrub cap (see last blog post, prior to absence), a fancy-pants doily (the doily version of the Jared Flood Hemlock Ring Blanket, and it WON A PRIZE ::insert happy dance::!), a fluffy white tree-skirt for a table-top christmas tree (with silver buttons!), a blue market-bag for hauling groceries, and a mini weasley sweater that got sent to my Reducio swap buddy (along with a couple mini socks).  Whew!