FO: Anthro-Inspired scarflets & Anthropologie-Inspired Bobble Cable Ascot

* First scarflet, unblocked. Darn it, I forgot to get my photographer to take an official FO pic last week!



* Second scarflet, fully blocked, atop a Gathered Pullover

Pattern: Anthro-Inspired Scarflet by Kim Seio

Yarn: Uruguay Chunky in colorways Sage and Red

Needles: US 8

Amount: ~ 150 yds

Mods: None for the green, added an extra inch or two in length for the red, ultimately I prefer the green scarflet's length

I love looking at Anthropologie sweaters and cardigans, but I know I will never afford that kind of stuff unless I win the lotto one day. And so I happened to stumble upon this scarflet on Ravelry that could afford me the Anthro look without the Anthro price. I finished this in mid January, but I'm not sure why it took me this long to blog about...

I love this yarn deeply, and I'm sad that it has been discontinued. The green was left over from my first Shalom Cardigan, and I ended up buying the red from a fellow Raveler.



And here is Anthropologie-Inspired Bobble Cable Ascot. Try saying that three times fast!

* Unblocked at night...


Pattern: Anthropologie-Inspired Bobble Cable Ascot by Kayla K's Thrifty Ways
Yarn: Chuckanut Bay Yarns 10 Ply in colorway Orange Red
Needles: US 10
Amount: ~ 170 yds
Mods: None

I love how similar this looks to the actual Anthropologie ascot seen here. I think Anthropologie even made one in this color too! It was a fun knit, but it came out a bit loose and big for me. :-( Most likely, I won't be wearing this out that much since the looseness really bothers me. If I ever make it again, I'll be sure to decrease the length so that it will fit more snugly around my neck.

Look at those huge balls!

Anthropologie sends me their periodic emails from time to time, and I literally squealed when I saw this picture.

I love those huge balls of yarn! And the hand-knit looking beret, and hand-knit looking sweater! Sigh. I am a yarn addict, and a sucker for anything that looks hand-knit.

I could use a yarn stool too.

I wonder how much that ball in the background weighs.

How do I make a slipknot?

I went window shopping at Anthropologie last night, and every time I go in, I secretly yearn for this mouse door stopper. This picture is borrowed from somebody else's blog, but the color in real life is actually more bronze and darker. Doesn't he look so cute? *No, I can stop...you...heavy...door!* If you know me, I really love mouse figures and anything to do with cute mice, especially because I was born in the Year of the Rat.

On the knitting front, I finished the waist shaping for Opulent Raglan last night and realized one side looked wonderfully shaped whereas the other side was not. I knew I should have gone with my instinct of decreasing evenly among both sides, instead of taking the pattern literally at its word. So it's back to frogging tonight. Honestly though, I don't feel too sad about frogging with this pattern. Can it be I enjoy it so much that I actually want to prolong the knitting progress? *Gasp* Besides, I need to learn to get out of my lazy habit of not frogging and then ending up with a product that ends up in the back of my closet unworn.

Anthropologie

This past weekend, I went up to Cardiff for the first time to volunteer for this diabetes fundraiser called Tour de Cure. It is a bike ride to raise money for diabetes research. I spent about 5 hours there in a thin hoodie and open-toe sandals. And I was freezing cold for the entire time, not to mention hungry because the event had promised us lunch but then didn't provide enough meal passes for everybody in my group. Hardly, any people came to the event other than the people involved with the ride. So that was quite boring and dreary, but I had a good time chatting with my co-workers and chilling (no pun intended). I even got a free, insulated lunch bag from the casino booth next door which was really cool. I had always meant to buy an insulated bag ever since I started working, but never could find the right one. :-)

Afterwards, bf and I drove up to Encinitas area to explore the shops there. I got to go to the Encinitas Michael's where I picked up a couple balls of Patons Wool and two pairs of Clover needles. It was pretty convenient that it was located right next to Circuit City where he could finally get that last (or second to last) PS2 game he has always been hankering after. After a bit more driving around, we randomly discovered we were in Carlsbad! And better yet, we went into this cool looking strip mall with lots of upscale shops! And there it was! Anthropologie! I had always wanted to go to one since I love drooling over their cute clothes on their website, and now I have finally seen their stuff in person. It's a pity their prices are so expensive because a lot of their stuff is my style. Feminine, classic, and conservative. Sigh.

Look at this sweater I saw there that caught my eye. It is knit, but it really reminds me of Robyn Chachula's Comfy Cardi from the Crochet Me book.

Comfy Cardi by Robyn Chachula

So when I was in the store (and even yesterday online), the price for it was $78, which I would never spend on a little sweater. But today, it wasn't on the Anthropologie website and I was like, oh no, they sold out that quickly!? But it turns out it is now in the Sale section and half off at $39.95!!! Man, I am so tempted to get it in the Emerald color. I am kicking myself for not trying it on Saturday so I could have known which size fits me best. :-( So what should I do now?