AtomicKnits

Summer Flies

This is a shawl I just finished knitting out of some handspun I made a couple of years ago. My friend, Gail, gave me this pattern and it looked like a pretty fun, quick knit.  There are a lot of different stitch patterns that keep it moving and interesting. The half-circle shape and the picot edge are also pretty interesting.

A lot of people I have shown this to have pointed out that they like this knotted openwork section the best. I think, especially with the weight and texture of my handspun, that this section makes it look kind of hippie-ish, and I don't like that. I do think the color I picked was spot on, it makes the shawl look like a sun.  The color is more accurate in the picture below - more orange-y golden.

Summer Flies
Pattern Source: Holly and Ella Knits
Yarn: Merino/Silk Handspun
Needles: US 8

This isn't your house.

Please fasten your belt before you come into the office.

Ice Queen

Yeah, so it's been a little while. I have completed many knitting projects that I have not posted about here. I'll write more about happened later, but here's a project now! This is Ice Queen, and it is a lace cowl with beads. It's very light and fluffy, but very warm at the same time. It's a bit too warm to wear it now, and it is a bit sophisticated for my casual style, but it was a fun project to work on. I couldn't really put it down. My friend Gail picked out the most perfect beads for this project, and I really enjoyed adding the beads as I was knitting. I couldn't wait to get to a beaded row. This cowl is pretty cool, because you can wear it around your neck like above, or...

You can wear it over your head like so. I don't know if I will ever wear it like this, but if I am really cold I might. This IS a fun project and it moved fast, and I definitely recommend it if you like beading and using super nice yarn (if a little slippery). The only part where I was like "omg when is this going to be OVERRRRR!" was right at the end when I was doing the beaded picot cast-off. That lasted forever. The results are stunning, but it did take me about three movies to get through (not in a row). I was happy to finally get to this one. I remember I bought the yarn for it about 4 years ago.

Ice Queen
Pattern Source: Knitty Winter 2007
Yarn: Rowan Kidsilk Haze
Needles: US 7 & US 5

Pomatomus

Here's something. It has been a while, but I have been knitting. It's been taking longer for me to finish projects lately, because I have been focusing a little on many things instead of A LOT on one thing. Anyway, here is a pair of Pomatomus socks. This patterns is one of those really popular ones that I hadn't knit yet.  When I started these I was ready for more of a challenge and a pattern that I had to pay attention to.

I received the yarn I used for these socks in a knitting swap package from hokkapokka. I'm not sure what the fiber is, but I *think* it's mostly or all alpaca.  She dyed it herself in this really nice green color that didn't pool at all when I was knitting it.  I really liked how the color turned out.

I have other projects completed that I need to take pictures of and post. I want to blog more about things in general, but I'm so out of the habit. I also want to give the blog a serious makeover. I have a lot of ideas for that too.  Now that the rainy season is pretty much here, I might have some more motivation to be at the computer while I'm home.

Pomatomus
Pattern Source: Knitty Winter 2005
Yarn: Hand-Dyed Mystery Yarn from hokkapokka
Needles: US 2

Some Girls: My Life in a Harem

Some Girls by Jillian Lauren was not a work of literary genius, but it was a pretty good story and quick read.  This story spans about 18 months and describes the author's experiences while being a "party guest" for Prince Jefri of Brunei. I liked how Lauren seems to have no regrets about this part of her life, and doesn't necessarily describe her experience has a sex worker as being a "bad" thing.  What I was disappointed about was the fact that I didn't feel like the author was in a better place or learned any important lessons at the end.  I feel like she just went over to Brunei, got tons of money, and then proceeded to blow it all on fashion and still have no clue about what she wanted to do with her life. I can't blame her for the gobs of money part, but I would have bought my luggage at Target instead of Louis Vuitton and saved the rest.

The House of the Spirits

The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende is a pretty epic book.  It's about the lives of the Trueba family and their lives in Chile during a pretty tumultuous period of time. The patriarch, Esteban Trueba is pretty much an asshole.  His character grows and changes throughout his life, but still a giant A at the end. All of the women in this story are great with the exception that they let Esteban boss them around. The women all have a magical side, and it's unclear whether it's entirely charm or maybe some real magic.  I like that!  The writing is also very rich which caused me to have to re-read parts, especially at night, but made for an excellent time. I would recommend this book to anyone to likes reading about families (especially women's relationships) and political history.

The Alchemist

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho was pretty cool.  It was a very quick read, and it had a lot of good lessons to learn. The story is about following your dreams.  Something that I, personally, am really scared of doing.  It talks a lot about what can happen to you if you don't follow your dream, and the awesome things that can happen to you if you do.  It didn't talk a lot about what you have to do to overcome all of your fears before you can follow a dream, which, I guess, is what I'm really looking for. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who thinks they are just average and not meant to do anything great. This story definitely reinforces the fact that everyone does have a purpose, and that purpose only needs to be important to YOU. Sometimes we need to be reminded. I know I do!

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows was recommended to me by one of the ladies at my knitting group.  She described it as "such a sweet book," and it is exactly that. I really liked it. It was a quick read, all of the characters were nice people, and there was a love story.  There was also a lot of history about the German occupation on Guernsey during World War II.  The story was told entirely in letters, so that was pretty cool, so everyone sounded all flowey and quaint. I hope they make a movie out of this one, and get some really hot guy to play the male lead.

Children of the Mind

I finally had a chance to read the 4th and last book in the Ender Quartet, Children of the Mind, by Orson Scott Card.  I think this one is my third favorite in the series (my least favorite being Xenocide). I am pretty happy with the way things ended up - happily ever after for the most part.  I don't really have that much to say about this, it was a good read. It pretty much just tied up all of the open story lines pretty nicely, which is kind of annoying, but I am satisfied.

The Lacuna

This month's book club pick was The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver. I was really excited to read this book, because I have never read one of Kingsolver's books. Everyone I know that has says they are great. Characters in the story included Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo, who I learned a lot about in college. I thought this book was pretty good. I really liked the main character, Shepherd. He grew up in Mexico with his mother, and eventually became the cook for the Rivera household. He was also a cook/secretary for Leon Trotsky, who sayed with the Rivera during his exile from Russia. Toward the end of his life, he moved back to the states and became a successful writer. He became a product of his surroundings by the end of the story for sure, and that was sad.  The way that Kingsolver writes completely lets you into the Shepherd's mind. I was really captured, and I liked him. One of the things I really liked about this book was the way it contrasted Mexico and the United States during the World War II era. It was interesting to read about the differences between the people and the governments of these two countries.  Also, if Shepherd could have had more love affairs with dudes on the down low, I would have appreciated that too.