No, really, I do! This is the beginning of Hugo the Couch Potato Monster by Rebecca Danger. As I type this, I’m about halfway through knitting the body of Hugo using Berroco Comfort Chunky yarn. It’s my first time using double pointed needles (EVER) and my first time knitting a monster. It’s exciting times going on here!

This particular monster shall be going to my one and only momma and any following monsters shall be going to my super secret knitting project recipient!

That’s right! There’s a super secret project going on here at Miss Vicious Knits. Details to follow within the next couple of days!

What are you working on? Have you ever knitted a monster?

I’d like to think I was born to knit, that it was just naturally in my genes and I didn’t have to work hard at it. That statement would be a bold faced lie.

I started knitting when I lived in Virginia, in the late summer/early fall of 2008, with a friend because at the time I was seeing a therapist who suggested that my friend and I needed an activity to do together other than drinking coffee and eating cupcakes (both of which we were really good at.) So out of the blue, we decided to pick up knitting.

My first yarn was one of the Lion Brand chunky yarns in a burgundy color and I was determined to knit a scarf. I knew I could do it. But after getting frustrated and packing up my needles for a cross country move, the knitting kinda stopped. Until I unpacked the work one day in San Diego (where I currently reside.) It was like the knitting bug bit me in the ass. I was obsessed with garter stitch scarves made out of whatever yarn I could find at my local Joann Fabrics. And then I got introduced to the fancy yarns. Ohhhh the fancy yarns. I love them.

Fast forward to now and I knit because I don’t have a social life. My discoid lupus keeps me cooped up inside. I’ve read tons of stories about people with discoid lupus who have an active outdoors life but ever since I was diagnosed, I fear the sun. I fear new lesions on my face and the stares that I feel like I get when I do go out. Knitting gives me a productive activity that makes me feel that my life isn’t being totally wasted by being inside.

I now knit to give gifts to people. I knit lace shawls and get a huge kick when I give them away and the receiver is in awe of what I have done. Damn right I can knit!

So how did you start knitting? Why do you knit now? Let me know!

Also, I have an exciting project that I’ll be introducing in my next post. Be on the lookout for it!

This post was inspired by Erron, one of my Twitter Knitter friends, who writes at her own knitting blog, Knit Love. You can read her original, inspiring post here.

I finished my Certain Shade of Green shawl. It’s warm, it’s comfy, but it sheds. It doesn’t change the fact that I love it to effin’ pieces. Although would I recommend the pattern? Well, I’m not sure. I think with a different yarn, the pattern would have been easier. But I’m really not a fan of doing extra work on a wrong side. Give me complicated decreases and increases on the right side and I’m fine. But ask me to do the same on the wrong side of my work? It makes me want to throw in the towel.

So yeah, shenanigans with that? Over and done with. NEXT PROJECT?

The Gingko Shoulderette Shawl by Maggie Magali! And guess what? IT ASKS ME TO DO WORK ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE SHAWL! But it’s alright because I’m using Madelinetosh Sock yarn in Nectar.

This particular colorway reminds me of Amy Winehouse’s ballet slippers and how I imagine they’d look after being dirtied by the city streets of London. It’s coming together fantastically so far and I’m really pleased that I decided to do this particular pattern for the one and only Miss Jillian. And up next? Who knows! I may or may not have some big, secret plans for my knitting (and blogging) future!

So what are you working on? What is making your knitting fantasies come true? What is on your needles this Wednesday?

I’m not going to lie, I’ve cheated and had a cigarette here and there. I even had one this morning! (Tisk, tisk.) But I’ve decided that, for now, I’ll only be allowed to have two cigarettes. I can have one in the morning, and one right before I go to bed. And once I’ve conquered doing that, I’m going to only do one a day. AND THEN NONE A DAY! If I can quit smoking, I CAN DO ANYTHING!

And since I decided that I was going to quit smoking, I thought I’d do something REALLY nice for myself as a reward. I decided to knit A Certain Shade of Green Shawl by Fiddle Knits. I’ve been sitting on this pattern for months now, thinking that I’d knit it once all the Christmas knits were finished. And then I kept getting requests to knit things. So finally I said “NO MORE!” and now it’s MY TURN! I’ve pushed aside all projects to knit this wonderful, cozy, warm shawl just for me.

I’m on skein 3 of Knit Picks lust-worthy Sugarbunny yarn in wine. It’s lust-worthy. I said it. The yarn is SUPER soft and is knitting up very nicely. There’s only one downside – This 80% Merino 20% angora yarn from heaven sheds like crazy. I’ve got little wine red fibers all over my apartment and clothes. It’s like I’ve got a little soft bunny shedding on me every time I knit with it. Now knitters, don’t let this discourage you. In fact, use it as a challenge! How much extra fluff can you collect on yourself? If you have enough to make a one inch ball, you’re the winner!

Alright, so, can you tell that quitting smoking is making me a little crazy? I mean, what nut ball would make shedding yarn into a challenge?

Knitters, have you ever smoked? Have you ever tried to quit smoking? What did YOU do to quit? This little ball of fidgety-ness needs YOUR HELP!

Let’s keep me honest and give me some ideas to help keep me motivated to quit smoking, eh?

I’m absolutely loosing my mind over hats (and not in a good way.) Hats. I’m done with ‘em. For Christmas Knits I had to knit about 13 (if not more) and I am so sick of hats. Although I did discover a good, reliable hat called the Regular Guy Beanie. It’s a quick knit, easily modifiable, and looks good on just about everybody.

Thankfully, now that the hat madness (and Christmas knitting madness) is over, I can choose what I want to knit. I finished a Tattered Shawl by Sachiko Burgin for my best friend, Kristi, and I also finished a coffee cup cozy by Sweatshop of Love. I completed yet another Travelling Woman by Liz Abinante for a co-worker’s sister and I have the most glorious plans for a skein of dreamy cashmere yarn that my friend, Nicole, gave to me for Christmas. The new year has me feeling excited for the chance to knit new and glorious things and for stash busting. Which I DESPERATELY need to do.

But for now, hats can suck it. NO MORE HATS… for now…

But with Christmas inching closer and closer, I keep getting last minute requests. And I’m feeling a little burnt out on knitting. I know, I know, I can’t believe it myself. Burnt out on knitting? Me? That’s unheard of! But I don’t even want to look at yarn, let alone think about the projects I’ve got stacked up that must get done before the Evil Holiday.

I keep having to do multiples of the same boring project. Plain hats, simple stockinette scarves and shawls, or shawls that aren’t challenging. I’m just waiting for all of the “boring”/mindless knitting to be finished so I can do something more exciting.

I’m a bored knitter. I’ve been carrying around the same scarf for the past couple of days and actually sighing at it. Who sighs at a scarf? Well, apparently I do.

Sighable scarf

The scarf is simple and mindless and it’s just knit stitch after knit stitch after knit stitch. Blah blah blah.  And of course, knitting at home is just a test in patience because I’ve got a six month old kitten who wants to be all up in my business. Zzyzx, the kitten, is the most adorable baby ever. But he has learned that Mama’s yarn is fun to play with. And that it really bothers Mama when she’s working to have to pull her working yarn out of baby’s mouth.

The Baby Zzyzx

Well this has been a rambling post, huh? I think I mainly just wanted to bitch about my wanting to knit something more exciting and share a picture of my cat.

I’m a crazy-cat-knitter-lady, aren’t I? How is YOUR Christmas knitting going? Do you have any four-legged-fur-babies that like to get in your face while you’re knitting?

Since I last blogged, I finished off the following:

1 Traveling Woman Shawl

2 Holden Shawlettes

2 Boneyard Shawls

3 Cabled Hats

AND 2 Regular Guy Beanies

That’s ten projects in the past month. I’m flying through these Christmas knits but honestly, I can’t wait until the Christmas knitting is over and I can get to, what I like to call, the” Knitter Christmas.”

I’m sure you knitters know what I mean. The Knitter Christmas is when you have finished knitting all of those Christmas presents for friends and family and you finally have time to knit things for yourself and/or your knitter friends who have all been knitting things for their loved ones too. I have a ton of things I’d love to knit.

Here’s My Knitter Christmas Knit List:

For Myself – A Certain Shade of Green Shawl by Fiddle Knits

For Miss Kristi - A Kindle Pocket and a Tattered Shawl by Sachiko Burgin

For Miss Kim – A Pair of Mittens (My first ever mittens!)

and For Miss Jillian – a shawl (which I haven’t quite decided on the pattern )

And of course there are a million things I want to knit once I don’t feel so obligated to knit everyone EVERYTHING before Christmas. And I must admit, knitting last-minute hats are a great way to stash bust. And yeah, ok, I feel really accomplished knowing I only have a couple of things left to knit for Christmas. But the Knitter Christmas is what I’m REALLY looking forward to this holiday season.

What about you? What have you been knitting? Do you also celebrate the Knitter Christmas?

But Miss Kim reminded me of something. She said to me tonight “are not! [Referring to me calling myself a small fish] Yous Miss Vicious for fucks sake! You are immense in yarnballs and attitude “

And she’s right. I AM Miss Vicious. I might not make huge waves in the knitting community but I do some kick ass work and have made some awesome knitting friends. I can power out shawls like you cannot believe and even though I might get frustrated with a project, I never give up. I have conquered sweaters and lace shawls and have even attempted to design a thing or two.

One day, yes, it’d be nice to be a big fish (Oh-hello-Stephen-West-fame), but maybe for now, I can settle for being a kick ass small fish.

With that being said, What the Fuck has my problem been lately? Every morning on my commute into work I’ve thought to myself “I need to write a blog post today” and instead, I’ve been procrastinating. Because I felt like I’d already written some awesome posts and that I had plateaued. How disappointed have you all been, knowing that I haven’t written a sassy new post for you to read? I know you’ve been dying to hear about my finished projects.

Using custom dyed AtKnitsEnd yarn for my mom's Christmas shawl

Since the last time I posted, I finished the From Dawn Till Dusk Shawlette by Tetiana Otruta, created a wrap based off of a cowl called A Cowl with a Little Twist by Linda Frydl, finished a Zig Zag Shawl by Marion Bulin, finished New Moon Shawl by Anita Grahn, and started two christmas projects. BOOYAH. I have been a busy bee for the past couple of weeks. Not to mention that on Monday I plan on participating in the At Knits End Knit-A-Long featuring the Holden Shawlette by Mindy Wilkes.

How have you darlings been? Working your fingers to the bone? Knitting up a storm? Lusting for a new Miss Vicious Knits blog post? Tell me all the juicy gossip!

This Project... Oh My...

And I can’t help but feel like I am stuck. I almost don’t even want to knit anything! How horrible is that? I am a knitter! I am known for my knitting! I’m known for being sassy and quick and getting shit done! But this project? It sits on the needles still. And those other projects? They just sound like doom.

Darlings, what do you do to get yourselves out of the dreaded knitting funk? I need some help!

I kept pictures of the finished Live Oak Shawlette to myself until Friday and then posted them on Twitter. But you can see them here now too!

Blocking Live Oak

And here’s another close-up of the detail…

Close Up

And now we come to the motivation portion of Motivation Monday…

In a little over 13 weeks, it’ll be Christmas. Did you realize that? I’ve never been one of those people who freaks out about that up until this year. This year I’ve got 12 projects to complete before Christmas. I’m starting to think I didn’t think this through. All summer I randomly gifted my finished shawls instead of planning a little bit better. And now it’s hit me that every single day up until Christmas I’ve got to knit my little fingers to the bone.

I have 9 shawls, 1 hat, 1 cowl, and 1 scarf to complete. So for the next couple of weeks I’ll be blogging about those projects. Sneak Peaks? Nope. You shall get none until Wednesday! Or if you follow me on Twitter, you’ve probably already seen them. Cheeky monkeys.

What’s keeping you motivated to keep knitting this Monday? Are you stressing about Christmas Knits like I am? Or were you a smart bunny and knitted those gifts throughout the summer? How many gift knits do you need to do?

Keep knitting, my darlings. We’re gonna make it through this holiday season if it kills us!