Now wasn't that thoughtful?

They made a perfume just for me!

Black Phoenix Alchemy Labs, after years of haunting their site, made a scent I had to have.  Madame Moriarty, Misfortune Teller was too perfect for me to pass up! 
Paired with my new favorite lotion set I end up smelling like a dark, sexy pastry.  I love it rather a lot!

Maybe I should have thought this through better...

In my defense, the move was not official when these all sounded like wonderful ideas.  Now it is...and I'm glad lace shawls (even in progress) pack fairly well.
I may have managed to sign up for five different knit alongs all starting in a two month time frame.  They are all some flavor of shawl, I may have a teeny addiction.  Two of them have a Halloween sort of theme.  The patterns were bought almost instantly in a haze of black and orange. They are the Voodoo kal by Boo Knits and the Vanessa Ives kal by bunnymuff (Penny Dreadful themed?!? Yes please!!!)  Yarn and beads have already been kitted up.

For the Voodoo kal, yes, just basic black.  I think it will be stunning.

For Vanessa Ives, a colorway called Gothic Rose from Dream in Color seemed absolutely perfect!
The third knit along is an ongoing one.  The Elements kal from Erica Jackofsky that I am loving the patterns from. Admittedly, Earth hasn't been started (I have the yarn), Water is still on the needles, but I have the yarn for Air!

The fourth one that starts in October, (and one of the three of the knit alongs that starts on the first) is Wandering Moon.  I don't have yarn for it yet, a warm gray with a sheen to it would be lovely!
And last but not least, is the knit along that I am currently knitting (and keeping up with); Mountain Trails by Leedra Scott.  The following picture is out of focus, unfinished and unblocked, so should not spoil things for anyone wishing to keep the finished item a surprise.

The pattern has been wonderful to knit!  The yarn is Hawthorne Fingering Kettle Dye from KnitPicks in the Conifer colorway.
I'm sure I will absolutely be able to finish all of these...while doing knitting for the trunk show the first week of October, some secret knitting, getting ready for Halloween, knitting up woolies for a winter where is actually gets cold and oh, yes moving at the end of the year. 
At some point, I will also remember that breathing, eating, and sleeping are not optional activities to pencil in when I have time.

It was a knit wear kind of evening...

Last night we went out to dinner with friends.  One was a gentleman newly introduced to the idea of enthusiastic knitters.  I knew this in advance.  I dressed accordingly.

The top is the Date Night pullover.  The skirt is Intolerable Cruelty, (sorry no back shot, but I used black ribbon to lace the back of the skirt).  My purse was also hand knit, (black, felted, not very exciting)  with a shawlette tied to the handles should I catch a chill.  I was lamenting as we headed to the restaurant that I hadn't finished putting the hand knit mini roses on bobby pins to add to my hair.
At one point he asked if there were groups to help people like me; my response, delivered with a huge grin, "Yes, they are called yarn stores." 
He went home that evening under the impression I was crazy.  I am quite comfortable with the idea.

Definitely a successful evening.

Preparations for Halloween Have Begun

A Good Knitting Weekend

The first thing off the needles was my mutant bonfire hat. 

The hand dye I used worked up beautifully.  The hat pattern was simple and worked up quite nicely.
The next thing off the needles was a pair of baby socks for parents who are fans of rival basketball teams.

The last thing off the needles took some will power....and a little wine.

This is my third, decidedly final, LivedIn top.  It took much longer than the other two because while I wanted the finished object, I was completely tired knitting of it.
Which is why this was opened this weekend:

Yes, it has a sheep on it.  The label was a large reason why I bought it in the first place.  It just so happens it is named for shearing sheds in Australia!  Wine and wool!  Quite tasty as well!

So, progress was made. All it took was a long weekend, some minor housekeeping avoidance and a tasty beverage.  This may get repeated again!

Loud and not so loud

My Nerd Girl Yarn got here!!!  With a name like Glow Cloud, it had to come live with me.

It's actually brighter in person.  Definitely not my usual colors, so I was surprised to discover how happy it made me. 
I had it wound up less than an hour after opening the package.

The toe of the first sock I had planned may already be through the increases:

I may have also grabbed yarn for a Rincewind shawl, because I needed one. The yarn got here an hour ago:

It's Plymouth Encore Worsted Colorspun in Green Plum (7762).  Definitely my usual set of colors, (green and purple) and I love it.
At some point I will actually finish something to post, till then, beginnings it is!

A Finished Object Gets an Airing

That's the first LivedIn I finished, made with no ease. (Photo taken while staring into sun. Ouch)

I also finished a Simply Riveting in the Ocean Waves hand dye.  I bound it off yesterday and got it blocking this morning.

I finally decided on a hat pattern for my Bonfire hand dye, I Was a Teenage Mutant is working up beautifully.  My cat graciously shared her sun beam for the photo.

I keep trying to finish more projects from my unfinished objects pile (that is starting to eat the end of the couch), but more than five minutes time at a go is not enough to put a dent in it at this point.  It will happen...just not right now.

Is it Halloween yet?

For most people, Halloween is ages away.  The local craft stores have their Halloween holiday stuff out though, giving a trip for pillow stuffing a slightly gothic turn.
As it's vaguely Halloween all year around our house, I figured it wouldn't be too out of place to start decorating.

The package says some of the bits should glow in the dark.  We'll see how well this evening.
Once I get some tacks I will be able to put up the first stringer of lights I got.  Sadly, the blood shot candy eyes will have to wait till the holiday baking begins.

My excuse for buying more Halloween decorations is that most of ours are old and beginning to fall apart.  The actual reason?  I love Halloween!

There is almost an embarrassing amount of yarn here

Please note, I did say almost.  While cleaning out the downstairs coat closet, I discovered five boxes, shoved out of sight and forgotten after our last move.  One of those boxes was full of yarn (two others held finished objects and fabric).   I re-discovered six sweaters worth of yarn. Six!  There were three sweaters in progress!  One was ripped out, one set aside to finish later, and one was completed twenty-four hours after being exhumed from the bottom of the box.

The ends aren't woven in, the knitting is finished, and it fits.  Definitely a win.
I am also still working on the Bovary socks by General Hogbuffer.  The yarn is KnitPicks Chroma in Lupine, not my usual choice of colors.  Loving them totally!

Quite a bit of my available time is being spent knitting up samples out of a friend's hand-dye for a trunk show at the local yarn shop in October, (I don't have official dates so no links yet). 
I've finished hats in both Blue Jay and Robin using the Barley pattern from TinCan Knits.

Tequila Sunrise is being used to the Elijah pattern from Ysolda Teague.

Ocean waves is wound up in anticipation of being cast on for a shawl, I think.

Bonfire, (which is what I have been mentally calling it) was my special request.  It waits for me to figure out which hat and mitts I will be making for myself out of it.

And because I am a terrible glutton on multiple levels who cannot resist certain temptations, there may be four shawl knit alongs worth of yarn (and their required beads) winging their way towards me.  I know I said I would be buying no more yarn, but that was before a Vanessa Ives and Voodoo knit alongs went live.  Then there was the Hogwarts themed one I found, so of course I needed to show my Ravenclaw colors!
There is at least one other skein I will be showing off once it arrives, bought in a moment of fangirl need.
Really, that needs to be it because there are six projects to be finished the first week of October and then twenty others (an accurate number, I made a list) that I endeavor to have done by November.  Why yes, I do believe I may be a bit insane? Why do you ask?

I finished another one...

Being short waisted(as well as not overly tall) and making this LivedIn with short sleeves probably helped.  I used Shine Worsted in Butter Pecan (discontinued ages ago) and Cream.  It doesn't look as lovely flat as it does on, but I haven't woven in ends or washed it yet so it's not ready for wearing.  When I did try it (as soon as it came off the needles) the loose gauge and very soft yarn gave it the look and feel of the perfect summer tee shirt.
I am almost to the point of separating for the sleeves on the third one on the needles and I pulled out a third Date Night that I had cast on and left to languish.  Darling Son creatively described my hoard of unfinished objects as an "armada of ufos"... I can't really argue.

Due to the high temperatures and high winds lately, my garden has been less productive than it was at the start of the season.  This was the average every few days:

Not a gob of produce, but it was consistent enough to forestall a run to the grocery store for about a week.   Now, with minimal blooms, there is minimal fruit and there is no "shopping the garden" for dinner.  I'm hoping once it cools off a bit they will start producing again.  I am missing fresh, sweet tomatoes warm from the vines tossed with cucumbers with actual flavor...till then, store bought it is.

I bought a few skeins...

In my defense, KnitPicks was having a sale and aside from a couple of skeins of sock yarn, this is probably the last yarn purchase for the next five to six months.  This haul will net me; two sweaters, five pairs of standard size socks, a pair of striped thigh highs, and two beaded lace shawls.  These have been added to the stash as projects in labelled zip top bags with everything except the required needles, which is what most of my yarn stash is; projects in potentia.I also got a few skeins to stretch yarn already in stash so I could make another LivedIn.

The golden tan color is a discontinued shade called Butter Pecan. I plan on using the Fibonacci number sequence to blend the cream color into the body of the sweater.
Then, a friend kindly brought me a few skeins of her hand dye.

From left to right those are: Tequila Sunrise, Blue Jay and Robin.  Tequila Sunrise is going to be made into an elephant toy to put on the bar. I may already be planning for said pink elephant to have a feather boa and a tiny martini glass.  Robin and Blue Jay will become hats and mitts for Daughter and Son, respectively.
Amidst all this incoming yarn (there was a little spinning fiber too, but I forgot to take pictures), I did manage to finish another sweater.

I finally completed the Namaste I've been working on since...February? Maybe March? I know most of it was knit in April.  I adore the finished piece, it was just not an overly engaging thing to knit, so it took me a wee bit.
That leaves two cotton tops on the needles that need to be finished before I get to work on the winter wear I've been letting languish in the summer heat.