Ignoring my large life changes for crafts.

I have so much to write about, and yet, don't know what to write about. Partly because I feel like I should be studying, so my day is divided between studying my GRE books and bumming around on the internet. When Dan wakes up, I usually put my computer away (or mostly away) and hang out with him, cooking and watching TV and such. He and Steph, our flatmate, often have their computers in front of them when we're hanging out in the living room, but then I feel strange if all three of us do. It's not like there's a fourth person I'd be excluding by doing this. But usually I pick up some crafty thing. Right now I have three main projects ongoing:

1. I'm reworking my Coachella tank top. You can see what I finished when I followed the pattern here on Ravelry (you'll need a free Ravelry account). Except I finished it quickly, because I got impatient, and of course, it was too short.

It's supposed to be a loose cowl neck, like in the left-hand picture, but it's way low on me. Trust me. In person, it looks like I am trying really hard to show off my sternum. I knit the extra small, but I suppose I needed either an even smaller pattern.. or a very aggressive push up bra! On the right I tucked it up and I might actually tack up the collar this way. As much as I like drapey necklines, I'm not sure I can save the neck on this Coachella without a MAJOR overhaul. Which wouldn't be worth it- I can just knit a second tank top, in a smaller gauge yarn on smaller needles. What you can't see in the photos is how much the armholes dip. In this cotton yarn, this will only get worse, so I'm going to either seam up the bottom of the arm holes, seam the tops, BOTH, or knit inserts at the bottoms of the arm holes (which was my original plan, but I think that will be too annoying and result in more loose ends). Right now, I'm extending the bottom several inches and re-knitting the seed stitch border (because I couldn't find any better border).

2. A cross-stitch pillow kit I bought in Laos (but is from China, although it says the brand is French). It's two Chinese kids kissing, and it's so cute and silly and tacky and adorable. I love it. I'm such an old woman.

3. A tabi sock. I've finished one. The pair will go to Dan. Because I need to count rows, this is harder to do when watching TV or talking to flatmates.

Currently I own 6 skeins of sock yarn that came as a kit to make a pair of anklets each. It's the Fancy Feet kit from Knitpicks, got a good deal for $19.95.  And I have a wee bit of handspun and a bucket of roving. Right now I want to knit a cabled mug cozy (like this one) or two, with all the tea and chai we're drinking. I'm a wuss and the mug is too hot for my hands. And something to send to my good friend Jackie, who is studying abroad in London right now, maybe she'll get a mug cozy- something small, so she won't be pressed for space when packing to go home. I plan to send her a package some time soon. She asked for yarn, and boxed mac+cheese. The Annie's brand that I also really like (a mac+cheese post may soon come).
And I want to knit something for my professor's soon-to-be-born baby. She's due in April. Crazy, right? She plans to come back, finish the semester, then take maternity leave. She said her first child- her son- was late, so maybe her daughter will be too, and she'll wait until the end of the semester.


Back to GRE book!
The rest of my life forthcoming.