The Sweatshop of Love Blog

I’m doing everything I can to not start my second sock, even though that is all I want to do.

Big Big Big Smile!

And I’m really glad I shaved my legs before taking this picture. I’ve been toting this sock around all weekend, to bead class Saturday and Sweater Club this morning. I’m in love! And all I want to do is start sock number two.

K1P1K1P1K1P1K1P1K1P1K1P1K1P1K1P1K1P1K1P1K1P1K1P1

I have hit a wall with the sweater dress. See those three inches of K1P1 rib? That is three of 24. I even took it to Slumdog Millionaire at the Logan last night and worked on it in the dark, it is that boring. I had to use my phone as a flashlight a few times but I had it under control otherwise. I was thinking I would try to knit half of it before starting my sock, but I think I’m going to knit 10 inches and do a sleeve. I’ve got to focus on this dress if I want to finish it!

I’ve had a pancake craving for a while, but I really think pancakes are food that need to be shared. I waited for PT and we made a delicious brunch of blackberry pancakes and potatoes.

Blackberry Goodness

I don’t know why people make plain pancakes. I just threw in some frozen blackberries. That is it! Would you rather have plain old pancakes or blackberry pancakes? Yeah, clearly no question.

Happy Corn Dog Day!

For dinner we celebrated National Corn Dog Day with some seriously amazing Morningstar Farms Corn Dogs and carrot fries.  PT is not a vegetarian but is just really nice to me. When we go out he orders steak, but on Corn Dog Day? Fake corn dogs do the trick, too.

Pumpkin Brownie Sundae

You can’t have a corn dog and an afternoon of intense basketball action without a sundae. I made pumpkin brownies – a box of brownie mix with a can of pumpkin at 350 for 30 minutes. Seriously amazing with hardly any added calories and no fat. That makes up for the fact that you are putting ice cream and caramel sauce on it.

Tuna Helper Allyson Style

So I’ve been having this weirdo craving for Tuna Helper. Remember Tuna Helper? When I was little my mom always had to work late on Thursday nights, and my dad would make us whatever we wanted for dinner, and I always wanted Tuna Helper. Thinking about the actual Tuna Helper makes me want to puke, but I made my own but cooking some pasta and broccoli, then mixing it with a little butter, milk, and cheddar cheese, with a sprinkle of fake cheese sauce mix I stole out of an old box of fake cheesy potatoes I have for some reason. Dare I say it? SO good. It is kind of like glorified mac and cheese, only substituting tuna and broccoli for sodium.

I’ve got to get ribbing my sweater dress. Sigh. The sun is shining, the windows are open, basketball makes a great background noise and I’m biking to Target later. Great Sunday.

This is my third burrito of the week.

My Lover

Do I have a problem? I chop up some onion and throw it in a pan with some oil. I chop up tomatoes and cabbage and mash up some avocado while that is cooking, then add my pinto beans and some rice to the onions with some taco seasoning. When that is cooked I warm up my burrito wrap, then I dump the beans and rice, tomato, avocado, and cabbage on it, wrap it up, and eat it. Today it was the perfect accompionment to the West Virginia game I’m now watching. Not that I care.

Almost Done!

I’m going to finish up my sock today. I’m working on the top ribbing. I was driving everyone insane last night at Sweater Club because I wouldn’t stop talking about this sock. And my love of entrelac. I love it! I will shout it from the rooftops. I want to buy a car just so I can get a bumper sticker made that says ‘I Would Rather be Entralacing’.

It was sunny and beautiful all weekend, and yesterday, (and today) and that resulted in not a lot of progress with any knitting.In Sunday’s Sweater Club I pulled out the sweater dress after retiring that basically the entire week to work on the socks. I’m working the under arm part, still in moss stitch, for three inches before I start ribbing for the skirt. It isn’t boring as much as I would just rather be entrelacing!

I'm in Love

Isn’t it cute? I love doing it! I wake up early and knit a few rounds while watching The Today Show before work. And see my open window! It is getting chilly, I’m just sitting here with a tank top on but I’m being stubborn. My feet are blistered from all the walking I did today. My legs are sore from all the biking! I’m happy. Chicago and I are working on our relationship. We broke up hard core in January and it is going to take more than a random 72 degree March day to get me back, but he is moving in the right direction.

Sea Food Crazy

It helps that I cracked out the pasta maker this weekend again and we cooked up an excellent sea food pasta dinner. PT was thinking shrimp, but we saw this random bag of, like, octopus, muscles, shrimp, and imitation crab for $4 so we grabbed it. We threw it in the pot with onion, red pepper, broccoli, garlic and tomato sauce and out came a very delicious dinner!

Speaking of dinner, I should get on that. After my afternoon Shamrock Shake (oh yes, McDonald’s and I hung out for a bit this afternoon for the first time in years) my tummy is a little uneasy. It did sound like a great idea at the time, though.

Seriously? Seriously, Interweave? Seriously with the wraps and turns and all that counting? You expect people to be all super pumped about knitting this entrelac sock with this wrap and turn bullshit?

It Is Cute Though

And please take note of my princesses kleenex box.

The problem is that when you knit a sock from the toe up you have to wrap and turn like a crazy person for the heel. You all know how I feel about wrap and turns. And you all know how I feel about the rib down sock heel! I love it so much. But this toe up sock makes so much sense, especially if you have nice sock yarn, you just rib until you run out of the ball, instead of trying to guess and ending up needing the toe to be a different color. Which I kind of like.

God I’m a sock neurotic. Who knew?

Is there any way to knit a toe up sock with a short row instead of wrap and turn heel? I was trying to work it out with I was wrapping and turning and wrapping and turning but I couldn’t. I can’t!

Tara Made Me

I bought this yesterday. One for me and one for Tara. I figure I can get people to come to a class to wind their yarn, right? It is like a business expense. And it is cute.

And I was watering my seeds this morning and I have somem catnip and a lot of camomile! My mints and flowers have nothing going on, and my avocado pit is still very dormant. But it is supposed to be 50 degrees this weekend so that has to help! Even if they are inside.

Back to my heel. I want to finish that bitch before dinner.

I got excited about my entrelac sock yesterday and worked on it for a couple hours during The Biggest Loser, only to have just ripped it out.

Try #1

It is way too big. The pattern calls for size 1s and I wasn’t all about it. Size 4s are ridiculous. I stopped by the store on my way home from work and picked up some size 2s. I want a big sock, but not that big. And I don’t want to be working on these for the rest of my life. I have a sweater dress to finish after all. Tonight’s task is try it with the 2s.

Can you believe it? My stricts size 4s and up policy is getting thrown out the window for socks of all things. After this I’m changing the pattern so don’t worry about reading tomorrow about how I bought size 1s. Not going to happen.