Olympic hopeful

Well, I've decided to plunge headlong into the madness. Most of you are aware of the Yarn Harlot's Knitting Olympics. I considered it for a few days and have finally determined that I will participate. Here are my choices, project wise:

Picovoli because I've never knit a sweater
Hourglass Sweater because it's a little cold for Picovoli, and I look best in boat-neck sweaters with waist shaping
Embossed Leaves Socks, because I've never followed a chart

I'm leaning towards the Hourglass Sweater...I think....

What do you think?

I've already attempted to post about this twice, but both times my computer had a fight with the internet and lost. Hopefully this time I can actually tell you about it. *Ahem*

Here is the slipper in all it's hugeness. I'm showing it the hot dip it's about to take. Somewhere I read that people add vinegar and dish soap, so I just went along with the crowd. A squirt of this and a splash of that, along with the washing machine set on HOT.

Here they are together, pondering their possible demise (ok, so maybe I was stalling a little, and decided to take gratuitous pictures of the event)

I threw them into a pillowcase (which turned out to be my white Ralph Lauren one, but who can think at a moment like this?), and rubber-banded it shut so that I wouldn't have fiber clogged pipes.

Here is one of the slippers after only about 4 minutes. Remember this when you go to wash your sweaters!!

After a spin cycle to get all the water out, I set them out to dry. They needed a little bit of pulling and prodding to get them to match, and they'll probably need a little more, but that's it! It was quite simple. Now I just need to coat the bottom with some rubberized stuff from Lowes, shave all the fuzziness down, and they'll be ready to hit the mail!

Pattern: Mohair Ballet Slippers from Felted Knits (Interweave Press)
Needles: #15 circulars
Yarn: Brown Sheep Nature Spun in Onyx (I think!)
Modifications: Since my grandma is into simple and elegant, I didn't use Mohair at all. Instead I held a double strand of plain wool all the way through, and it worked well.
Cast on: January 1st
Cast off: January 2nd

Something I've been forgetting to blog about is this:

I bought this handpainted spindle and roving from Annie May. She got this to me very quickly. Her stuff is affordable, the spindle is beautiful, and the plain wool is super easy to draft. Perfect for a beginner like me!

Also, check this out! Yup, It's coming in the mail. I really only bought the spindle to learn drafting, and to be able to get my "spinny urges" played out while I saved up to buy the wheel. If I like the wheel enough, my next purchase will be this type. Babe's aren't the prettiest out there, but I like them for the following reasons.

• They're lightweight and portable (since I'm moving to Germany in the summer)
• They're inexpensive (because what if I don't really love spinning like I expect to?)
• They are durable, since they're made of PVC

Some people may consider them to be not a "real" wheel, but for my purposes at this point in my life, this is perfect for me.