Work Slowness

Both yesterday and today the program I use at work has been down.  This has resulted in me getting paid to knit, read books, and drink tea.  It's a pretty good deal.  Anyways, I figured since I had so much free time, I could post about my at-work project.  I basically just started this project because I wanted to try out a new stitch.  I found this one in a book I got from the library.  My current plans are to turn it into a tubular cowl that will wrap around twice.  I have a long way to go.



Knitting, book, and appropriate mug of tea!



Yarn Science!

A friend of mine requested that I make him a hat.  One of the specifications was that it go from blue to white.  So I took this as a great opportunity (and excuse!) to try some yarn dying science!! 
I got the beginner yarn dye kit from KnitPicks as well as some nice white wool and then I set up a lab in my kitchen and got to work!  I first separated some yarn out into 6 equal pieces and then loosely tied them together.  The thought was that I would pull out the sections at different times, and then the ones in the dye the longest would be the darkest.  I first soaked the yarn, made a dye bath, and then started to dye. 
This method worked out terribly.
The yarn in the dye pot got all tangled up and everything basically ended up being the same shade of blue except the one I pulled out after about 1 minute. You can see the results below.

Soak that yarn!

Now soak it in dye!

ermmmmm....

oh boy....

Ok, so I needed a new method to create a gradient from blue to white.  Luckily there is this thing called the internet and it showed me a different way to achieve my goal.  Method 2 involved rolling the yarn up into a ball, not soaking it in water, and then just sticking it straight into the dye.  So the idea is that the color gradually soaks up into the middle of the ball.
This method was much more successful as you can see!

After soaking for about 5 minutes

Yay!

There is actually a gradient!  It is still not quite what I wanted since it is a bit splotchy.  But this hat has a due date that is coming up rather quickly so it will do!

I am currently working on three projects right now as well as this hat.  I am still working on my 2nd Finn the Human, I am making (yet another) octopus, and I am knitting up a cowl at work during breaks.  But I have been finding myself rather busy this summer, so progress on all three of these projects is slow.
More post when I have finished them!

Balls

Narwhal complete!  I had originally planned for my narwhal to be a little longer and thinner, but it wasn't until I was about halfway down the tail that I realized that he was going to be pretty short and fat.  I didn't want to pull out my work, so I went with it.  I showed the finished body to my boyfriend, and he ended up dubbing it a "Narball", which was very appropriate!  (I also hummed this very appropriately themed song all week while I was making this).  Ultimately, the narball ended up being quite cute, even if his body is a little out of the ordinary.

I also made another Katamari!  I finished it in about a day!  Weekends are awesome!

La laaaaaa

la la la la la la la

Katamari Damacy

doo doo doo!

Song!