Monday, January 30, 2012

Comparison: Addi Lace Turbos vs Knit Picks Nickel Plated Circulars

For this review I used 32 inch US size 2 from both brands, and attempted magic loop socks.

Price. The Addis were around $16 and the Knit Picks were around $6.

Points. I'd have to both sets were about equally pointy.

Cable. I like the Knit Picks cable better. It felt like the Addi cable was too stiff, making magic loop a pain. The Knit Picks cable was much more relaxed and easier to manage.

Join. The join on the Knit Picks is a little rougher than I'd like, but it's ok. The Addi join is just a tad smoother than the Knit Picks.

My opinion. I have to go with the Knit Picks. The price of the Addis just is too high for what you get. In my opinion the Knit Picks are just as good, if not better. Also, the Addi US 2 isn't a true US 2, it's actually a US 2 1/2. That kind of annoyed me.

Saturday, January 28, 2012

Yay, More Yarn!

Socks are my favorite thing to knit. And self striping sock yarn is my favorite yarn. So I was beyond excited when a fellow Raveler offered to sell me her skein of Bad Amy in the "Electric Mayhem" color way!! I've never tried Bad Amy simply because her stuff is always sold out. Always.

But wait, there's more. I purchased this skein from Tiffany and about a week later I hadn't received it so I dropped her a note on Ravelry to see if she had shipped it yet. She replied right away explaining she in fact had not sent it out yet due to some unfortunate real life stuff. She apologized several times and promised to send it out ASAP. I told her not worry, I totally understand, no biggie. Well, not only did she mail it out right away, but she sent it priority so I'd have it a little quicker(which was awesome, but totally unnecessary) AND she saw on my Ravelry profile that I want to attempt toe up docks someday, so she sent me FOUR toe up sock patterns by Wendy Johnson!! What a sweetheart!! I'll be keeping an eye on her destash page for sure.

Friday, January 27, 2012

2012 "Goals"

I use the word goals loosely. It's more like things I want to do this year. Goals sound so serious, and these things aren't top priority in my life. Never the less, it's a new year so naturally I've been thinking about the crafting things I'd like to accomplish this year.

1. I'd like to craft consistently this year. The last year and a half was absolutely terrible, and I didn't craft at all for most of that time.

2. Knit 5 miles worth of yarn. I'll be posting a counter from Knitmeter.com on here shortly to keep track.

3. Use up all of the cheap acrylic crap yarn I've accumulated over time. I said in my last post I don't really have a "stash." I guess I mean good stash. Plus using up all the junk will free up a lot of valuable storage space.

4. Learn needlepoint.

5. Learn to spin.

6. Finally set up an etsy shop for all my handmade cards.

7. TRY and knit a sock a month. Not sure I'll be able to pull this off, but it would be nice. I'd be happy if I could finish a sock a month, not even a pair. That'd give me six pairs in a year.

8. Knit myself a sweater. Something I've wanted to do for years.

9. Utilize my books more. I have tons of pattern books that I've never made anything from.

10. Knit a shawl. It'd be my first one.

I know those are mostly fiber goals. I have some more personal goals that have priority over these, so we'll see how many of the craft ones I can achieve. Should be fun! If you have any fiber goals, feel free to share them in the comments below. And Happy New Year!

A Little Stash Enhancement

It's been a long time since I've treated myself to anything, and I usually don't buy yarn just because without a specific project in mind, but when I saw this for sale on Ravelry, I had to have it. (And sock yarn doesn't count as stash anyways, right?) This is Tempted's Glam Girl base in the color way "Gothique." It's a merino, silk, nylon, and silver blend, and it is absolutely gorgeous. Ive been wanting to try Tempted for a while, so I'm super excited to get my hands on this little gem. I can't decide whether I want to knit socks or a shawlette with it. Either way it will be a while before I cast anything on with it.

Thursday, January 26, 2012

New Begginings

So I decided to combine all my blogs into one. My beauty, knitting, and paper crafting blogs will all be in one place. This makes it easier on me to update, and easier on my readers to keep track. It's been a good two years since i updated my beauty blog, and even longer for my paper crafting blog. I hope by combining everything into one, I will be able to stay current. As always, please let me know what you like, don't like, and would like to see. Thanks for everyone's support through the years!
Xo,
Amanda