Scarves Galore

I know...I know...it's been way too long since I last updated. But not to worry! I am still crocheting/knitting. Recently, I've been leaning towards knitting more after I discovered the Irish Hiking Scarf pattern online. I love that pattern so much I am working on my 3rd scarf. Usually, I get bored by a pattern after one time, but surprisingly I find this pattern to be comforting yet still interesting.

Projects made:

First Irish Hiking Scarf - Used 2 skeins of Patons Classic Merino Wool in Dark Grey Mix. This even included thick, fluffy fringe. It was the first time I ever made fringe, and I gotta say, I love it! It really feminizes the scarf and makes it so much prettier! (Pictures to follow soon, I promise!)

Second Irish Hiking Scarf - Used 2 skeins of Patons Classic Merino Wool in Chestnut Brown. Again, same pattern. I will gift it to my co-worker Debbie for her birthday next week. It's a bit sad that is beginning to get warmer here in San Diego, but I suppose she can always use it when fall comes around again.

Third Irish Hiking Scarf - Used a little less than 2 skeins of Patons Classic Merino Wool in New Denim. For my father. I think it will be a perfect match for his blue Dallas Cowsboys jacket. However, I will leave off the fringe in hopes of making it a more "manlier" scarf. I only have a little bit of yarn left, and I'm afraid it won't come out to 60" as I had hoped. The other two scarves were about 57" before adding 3" fringe to both ends.

In other news, I finally trekked down to downtown La Jolla two weeks ago and bought a bottle of Soak Wash from Neroli in La Jolla. It is a upscale lingerie boutique. It's a rather strange place to buy something intended for my handknits/handcrocheteds. The LYS nearby, Knitting in La Jolla, only carried Eucalan, but the bottle she offered me looked really old and disgusting. Sure, it was $5 for about 14 oz. but I decided to fork over the $15 for the better quality and better smelling Soak from Neroli. In the end, I bought the Limited Edition scent called Celebration. It is a heavenly smell. The best part is that you just mix one teaspoon of it with 1 gallon of water. Put in your clothing and let it soak. Then you just pour the water out and roll in a towel to squeeze out the water. And dry! No rinsing! Makes handwashing stuff much more enjoyable! :-)

Speaking of washing, it also led me to buy this sweater drying rack from Bed Bath and Beyond this weekend. I bought two so they can stack on top of each other to save space. It works better than the pop-up dryer I bought from Linens and Things. Unfortunately, that one wouldn't fit on top of my dryer, and when popped up, it couldn't seem to support the weight of a water-laden sweater without tipping over. But hopefully these ones will work out! I also got a fabric shaver from Target and spent an hour shaving my favorite red shrug last night. Am I a dork to love these laundry inventions?

In crochet news, my bf got me a pattern booklet at my LYS in Mission Valley. It is for making amigurumi Pooh & Friends characters. For amigurumi, it looks amazingly like the real Pooh! Luckily, I know I have some gold and red Patons wool in my stash that will be perfect for making Pooh.

A preview...

He also spoiled me with this Candyland Winnie the Pooh edition board game yesterday. When I was in 2nd grade, it was my favorite board game. And childhood dream to one day own it! Hehe.

So that's what I have been doing lately. That, and browsing Ravelry like a mad woman. Man, do I love that site! So many things to learn and read about!