J - 5

Yes, the Ravelympics are starting in... 5 days! I have the perfect yarn, I've swatched, I even have spare time, but yes, I'm waiting (and excited!) to start the project with my knitting friends Team Montreal Area this coming Friday at 9pm ! I guess this is part of the fun! I can only imagine how the athletes must feel just 5 days from the start of a lifetime experience such as the Olympics.

Here's my swatch and the needles set aside, all patiently waiting to become Monkey socks!

So, in the meantime, I have to put that spare time to good use. I started to knit a gift for my cousin's baby boy. He was born last August and I haven't seen him yet. So far, it is a very fun knit. It's called Striped Outfit for a Stripeknight and is a free download on Ravelry. I think it is super cute and I picked the same color as in the pattern. I think that these 3 colors are the perfect combination for a little baby boy!

Happy Ravelympics everyone!

FO: One-legged Monkey

That was an interesting photo shoot. How hard would one think it is to take a picture of your own foot?

I just finished knitting my first sock (just one - not enough yarn left)! It was very interesting and I have to say that I am proud of this achievement!

This yarn is interesting because it makes the heel stand out and let me see very well the different parts of a sock.

Now, I'm ready for the Ravelympics. According to my calculation, I have to knit twice as fast as I did for this single sock and I will be able to knit a pair of socks in 17 days!

Good night!

The winner is ...

Thank you for visiting my blog and celebrating with me Anyone Can Knit... first anniversary!

The winner is...

Congratulations Chantal! Let me know what pattern you choose and I will "gift" it to you with much pleasure!

Have a great weekend everyone!

My blog is one year old...

I thank you all for visiting and leaving comments! It is such a pleasure to connect with all of you who form our wonderful knitting community!

To celebrate the event, I decided to have a little contest! All you have to do is leave a comment at the end of this post. How about writing about what will be - has been! - your first FO in 2010 and what you like the most about it?

You have to comment before midnight (EST) Wednesday night, January 20, 2010 to enter in the contest. There will be one random winner! The prize will be given to you through the Ravelry gifting feature. If you win, I will "gift" you the pattern that you selected (up to $7) on Ravelry. I’ll announce the winner before Saturday, January 23, 2010.

I really look forward to see what is keeping you busy and, of course, the pattern that the winner will choose!

Thanks again for visiting!

P.S.1 I have to mention that the contest is inspired by Knittymuggins who did a similar contest just a few days ago.

P.S.2 I'm having a LOT of fun knitting my first sock as a training for the Ravelympics! Which I should get back to now...

VK Winter 2009/10

How did you like the last VK?

I bought it for this pattern, but I prefer the photos at 50 villapeikkoa.

Then, how about those great mittens from another of my favorite blogger at Elliphantom Knits?

I also like those two:

Unfortunately, I don't plan to knit any of them in the short term. Have a great Sunday!

I think I have a new love!

Just to say that I think I will love knitting socks. It is so delicate. I love those little tiny metal needles. The pattern and the yarn are both fun!

Have a great Friday everyone and for those who are interested to make a little donation for Haiti to the Red Cross, here is the link: http://www.croixrouge.ca/article.asp?id=33901&tid=001.

Happy New Year 2010!

Happy New Year 2010 everyone! May this new year bring you love, health, happiness and of course, a lot of time for knitting!

There it is, my first FO for 2010! Like the pattern pointed out, these fingerless mittens come pretty close to instant gratification. They were knit in less than two weeks which is a great achievement in my case!

Pattern: Fetching by Cheryl Niamath (Knitty)
Yarn: Filtes King Extra, less than 2 skeins
Needles: US 8 / 5.0 mm
Color: Pink (2991)
Start to finish: December 2009 - January 2010
For: Me
Modifications: CO 40 sts instead of 45. Regular BO instead of picot. The two modifications were made in accordance to many comments I read from other knitters.

At first, I was not sure about the yarn because it gives an aspect quite different from the other Fetchings I had seen. The stitches stand out more than I had expected. I also found the yarn to be splitty when I casted on, but it was fine after that. In the end, I think my Fetchings are really pretty! This is a very warm pink. Final verdict: totally happy with them!

Now what is next? Socks! Today, I start training for the Ravelympics. I have some beautiful yarn that was given to me as a gift more than a year ago by Marie-Michèle at a knit night. It's so pretty! It is Lorna's Lace in a nice combination of pink, purple and blue. It will be used to knit one sock. I want to try knitting a whole sock before I knit a pair during the Ravelympics. I'm a little scared about the foot part. With 17 days to knit a first pair, there is no time for technical problems!

I have to go buy new sock yarn for this project. Probably next Friday. If you have suggestions for a yarn that is not too expensive (it will be my first pair of socks after all, you never know how they will turn out), feel free to make suggestions! I think I'd like a solid color but with darker/lighter shades in it... The pattern is Monkey and the motif is really beautiful in itself.

I also bought a copy of Vogue Knitting on my way back from work last night. What a great way to start the weekend!

A great weekend to you all!