Stitches West 2012

I like to sample and test knit, so when our friend, Purlswannahavefun asked us to help knit a few hats for The Knitting Ranch's booth (320-322) at Stitches West, I said sure.  Hats are quick and easy. Unfortunately I forgot to take modelled pics of the blocked hats, so I only have unblocked hat pics. For the blocked hats, make sure to stop by The Knitting Ranch's booth.

Pattern: Porom by Jared Flood aka Brooklyn Tweed
Yarn: Lana Grossa Evento
Needles: Size US 7 & 9

The yarn, a cotton/wool blend was rather interesting.  It felt like the core yarn was cotton and the fuzzy stuff was the wool.

The second hat knit up was:
Pattern: Regina (free on Ravelry) by Carina Spencer
Yarn: Lana Grossa Alta Moda Cashmere
needles: Size US 10 & 10.5

The hat had a really fun construction and I'll definitely be knitting up my own.  The free pattern is one of those "gaugeless" hat patterns where you don't really need to swatch first.

This year I finally took a class at Stitches West, Anne Kuo Lukito's Turn Socks into Gloves. She's the designer of Crafty Diversions.  It was a nice short (3 hrs only) fun class.  So instead of going on Friday and Saturday, I did Thursday and Friday. My test glove from the class is that partial mutant blue thing by the t-shirt in my Stitches haul pic.  I was a good girl and didn't buy very much.  Believe it or not, the only purchases I made were the project bags and some buttons for a pair of fingerless mitts in my knitting queue.  The Malabrigo Dos was from the Malabrigo booth, The gorgeous skein of blue fingering yarn from The Knitted Wit was "payment" for helping her dismantle her Interweave Lab booth and the beautiful Handmaiden Yarn Camel Spin was my payment for the 2 Knitting Ranch sample hats.

There are still 2 days left for Stitches West, so if you can make it, go and say hi to all my friends at the Blue Moon Fiber Arts booth (Irishgirlieknits, tapmouseknits2, hizKNITS, Leianne and Sockateer Cockeye).

A Trio of Irish Girlie Knits Patterns

I swear I knit more than just Irishgirlieknit sock patterns, but it just so happens that I can blog about a couple of them now.

First up is a pattern that she's released before, but she's been updating her patterns to her newer format. I knit this sample pair last month for her.

Pattern: Burst
Yarn Provided: Plucky Knitter Primo Fingering in French Twist
needles: US 1 (2.25 mm) circular needles
pattern size: medium IIRC or to fit her mom's feet

Next up is her pattern from the Sock Knitters Anonymous January Mystery KAL on Ravelry. I actually did this one for me for fun.  No sample or test knitting here.

Pattern: Blathnat
Yarn: Fleece Artist Sea Wool in Pixie from the now closed Yarn for Socks online store
needles: US 2 (2.75 mm) and 1.5 (2.50 mm) dpns
pattern size: medium
mod: carried the "flowery" lace pattern down the foot an extra repeat, causing the "stem" pattern to be a little short.  I had been debating with myself if I wanted a long stem or not, but I figure if I knit this pattern again, I'll do the pattern as written w/the longer "stem" on the foot.

In between Blathnat clues, I decided to cast on another one of Irishgirlieknit's patterns, this time the free Honey Badger pattern.  The pattern is quick since the sock is mostly in stockinette stitch. I'm done with the first sock and steadily progressing on the send.

Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks that Rock lightweight in Crabby McCrabbypants
needles: size US 1.5 (2.50 mm) dpns
pattern size: medium

I still do crochet, by the way.  I'm slowly working on a lap blanket that I started when I had been called in for jury duty last fall.  I usually work on it during the monkeys' dance classes only, so I'm finally past the halfway point.   

Pattern: Over the Rainbow baby blanket
Yarn: Stitch Nation Bamboo Ewe  in Twilight, Mermaid & Beach Glass - Not machine washable! So I'm calling it a lap blanket for me & not a gift for the next baby in my circle of friends & family
Hook size: K

Just a FYI

From an organizational stand point, I've decided to move my make up posts over to my new make up blog.  (Link also on the side bar to the right along with my Mary Kay site.) At some point I'll delete the ones without knitting content from this blog.

Mary Kay vs MAC eyeshadows

I've been looking online and there are hardly any comparison swatches of Mary Kay's (MK) mineral eyeshadows with their supposed MAC eyeshadow duplicates except for one youtube video for certain. So I decided to swatch what I have to see what I would get.  All pics taken without flash next to a window.  All the rectangular pans are Mary Kay, all circular pans & pots are MAC .

First up, MK Amber Glaze vs MAC Amber Lights.  Of all the MK vs MAC shadows I've swatched, these two were the closest match and I would say they're pretty dead on.

MAC All That Glitters vs MK Honey Spice with MAC Naked Lunch thrown in for comparison.  I've seen mentions online that MK Honey Spice is a dupe for MAC All That Glitters and I have to politely disagree.  They're close, but not exact.  I threw in Naked Lunch to see if I can find another MAC eyeshadow that MK Honey Spice would be a dupe of, but Naked Lunch is a little pinker and sheerer. It's possible that there's a limited edition MAC eyeshadow that MK Honey Spice is a dupe of, but I don't own it.

MK Midnight Star vs MAC Deep Truth - swatched just for the heck of it.  Close, but MAC Deep Truth goes on blacker/darker.

MAC Rice Paper vs MK Moonstone vs MAC Shroom -The Moonstone/Rice Paper comparison has been made online, but again I disagree with this one. Rice Paper has always been on the subtle side of shimmer and is less yellow gold than Moonstone. Shroom is a little closer to Moonstone, but I was surprised Moonstone is frostier and less sheer.

MAC Satin Taupe vs MK Granite vs MAC Smoke & Diamonds (limited edition).  MK Granite is a little lighter, grayer & beiger ("greige") than MAC Satin Taupe.  MAC Satin Taupe has a definite plum undertone to it that Granite doesn't have.

MK Sweet Plum vs MAC Sketch - Again, this comparison has been made online and again I disagree.  Sketch is much more intense/darker than Sweet Plum. Both are great shades, though Sketch requires a light hand and many layers with much blending for it to not be too much for me.  YMMV, of course.

MAC Wedge vs MK Hazelnut with MAC Kid (now dc'd) and MAC Rich Flesh (limited edition) thrown in for comparison.  Hazelnut is similar to Wedge and Kid, with it being closer to Kid, but not dead on.

Price Comparison (Prices in US dollars pulled from both websites as of the date of this post):
Mary Kay mineral eyeshadow pan (0.05 oz) - $6.50
Mary Kay compacts (mini, regular, pro) - $16, $18, $35
MAC eyeshadow pan (1.5 g/0.05 oz) - $11.50
MAC eyeshadow pot (1.5 g/0.05 oz) - $15
MAC eyeshadow palettes (2-pan, 4-pan, 15-pan) - $7, $7, $16


Product Disclaimer:
All MAC eyeshadows purchased in full retail with my own money over the course of several years.  All Mary Kay eyeshadows except Moonstone were purchased with my own money at my Mary Kay Consultant discount rate.  Moonstone was purchased in full retail with my own money prior to becoming an independent consultant for Mary Kay.

Random Knits

The last of my post-holiday gift knitting is done for awhile:

pattern: Phydeaux Embraceable Cowl/Scarf
yarn: Bernat Roving in Rice Paper
needles: size 17

pattern: Phydeaux Asterisque Cowl
yarn: Lion Brand Wool Ease Thick & Quick in Grey Marble
needles: size 19

A friend of mine just had twins so I knit up a quick pair of baby hats.  The green & white to represent the University of Hawaii colors and the pink & white because my friend loves pink.

pattern: Magic Coffee Baby Hat
yarns: Knit Picks Comfy worsted in Jalapeno, Lion Brand Cotton Ease in Snow & Berry
needles: size 6
mod: only one stripe

I'm doing a little selfish knitting at the moment.  Irishgirlieknits is the designer for this month's Sock Knitters Anonymous mystery KAL & we're currently on clue 3.  I'll be sharing a pic when we're done. Join us for the fun!

Corella Tam & then some

While I've been off a week with the Monkeys, I've been busy with knitting and a few other things.

 unblocked tam

I finally finished my Wooly Wormhead Mystery KAL for at least one of the hats.  This is my second shot at this since my row gauge on my first one was too long and I errantly decided to go up instead of down a size. Evidently I'm not as big-headed as I sometimes think I am. LOL!

Monkey2 was not in a cooperative mood

Pattern: Corella tam
Yarn: A Verb for Keeping Warm Alpaca Silk in Hyacinth
needles: size 2 & 3 KP circs
pattern size: med

pattern option: Alternate Cabled Cast On.  I like!
mod: 1 extra half repeat in the body

Being in a contrarian mood with my gift knitting, I decided to start a few bulky & super bulky cowls & scarves after the Christmas holiday. I figure they will be an early start for next Christmas or late gifts for those we didn't get to see by Christmas. One is completely done, but the other 2 need to be washed/blocked and buttons sewn on.

Super Bulky Cowl pattern 1: Phydeaux Designs Twist Cowl - Ravelry link
Yarn: Lion Brand Wool Ease Thick & Quick in Fisherman
Needles: Size 19's straights - Stitch & Pitch freebie from 2-3 years back
no mods

Like Monkey2, Monkey1 is too busy playing to model her stole. So all I've got for now is a pic of the stole starting to be laid out for blocking.

At the beginning of 2011, Monkey1 saw a Fashion Knit store sample and wanted to knit it so we bought the yarn & needles.  The pattern is simply to CO 50 sts on size 17 needles & knit until the 2 balls of Karabella Gossamer yarn are used up. Monkey1 started this, but soon found the needle size too cumbersome and the yarn too fiddly to knit. I didn't want this to languish as a UFO, so I've been picking it up off and on throughout the year and finally finished this as well.

Hope everyone is having a happy holiday season.  Happy New Year!

Urban Decay Naked Palettes 1 & 2

When Urban Decay started to give hints online that they were releasing a second Naked Palette, the online makeup world got really excited. I definitely got caught up in all the excitement and rather than wait for others to buy it and post their experiences about it, I succumbed and ordered the Naked 2 Palette along with the other first 4999 buyers of the palette on their website.  

Unlike the Naked 1 Palette, the Naked 2 Palette did not come with a travel-sized Potion Primer.  Instead it came with a mini-Lip Junkie Lip Gloss in Naked (sense a theme?). Also, the first online buyers also got a mini-sized 24/7 eye pencil in a gold color (El Dorado).

Along with a ton of other bloggers, here are my pics of the 2 palettes opened showing their different synthetic brushes.  I was not able to buy the first Naked Palette when it originally came out with a double-ended eye pencil, but did get the later release when they replaced the double-ended pencil which caused innumerable production delays with a basic synthetic eyeshadow shader brush. The Naked 2 brush is double-ended with a fluffy blender brush and a skinnier shader brush.

And here are the eyeshadows swatched on my arm over a very thin layer of UD's Potion Primer.  The Naked 2 shadows are on the top row & the original Naked shadows are on the bottom row.  For reference, the foundation swatch on the left end of the top row is MAC's Mineral Skin Liquid in NC37 & the foundation swatch below it is NARS Sheer Glow in Punjab.

Overall, the Naked 2 palette colors are more taupe-ish & cool compared to the Naked 1 colors, minus the Half-Baked (goldish) eyeshadow which is present in both palettes. But for very cool-toned makeup-wearers, Naked 2 may still be a bit too warm-toned.  Also, Naked 2 has 3 matte shades (Foxy, Tease, and Blackout) compared to Naked 1's 2 matte shades (Naked and Buck). 

My initial verdict is that it's a really nice palette, but if you like warm-tones, stick to the Naked 1 Palette.  I've worn the colors of the Naked 2 palette on their own once & it's okay, but I will need to work with it more and perhaps combine it with colors from the Naked 1 palette to get a look I'll be happy with.

Now switching away from Urban Decay to Mary Kay, below is a swatch sheet of the new colors for MK's Winter 2011.  I had attended an event with my Mary Kay consultant and was able to swatch them for reference.  The eye and lip pencils will now come with a tiny shaper/sharpener in its cap and they'll be a mix of new & existing shades.  However, if you're a fan of MK's Dusty Pink lip liner, you may want to contact your local MK consultant as it looks like they discontinued that shade for a new one called Soft Blush.

Back on the knitting side of things, I've timed out a tam I was working on 'cause I knit it too big (my row/round gauge was all out of whack 'cause I didn't swatch!) and I'm in the middle of knitting a sample pair of socks for someone. But in the middle of all that, I knit up a quick pair of fingerless mitts from my leftover Malabrigo Twist in Liquid Ambar:

Pattern: 75 Yard Malabrigo Fingerless Mitts
needles: size 8 & 9 Clover bamboo dpns
mods:
- had enough yarn for thumb "sleeves" so didn't bind off those stitches per pattern instructions & instead put them on waste yarn & later knit in a few extra St st rounds & ribbing.
- tubular 2x2 cast on (Ysolda's) & bind off on the body of the mitts - just to practice

Erin's Cowl

I love test knitting for my friends, so I said of course when Cockeyed asked me to test knit a cowl in one of her design series.

pattern: Erin's Cowl - Available as a separate pattern or in a 3-pattern set (the cowl, Erin's hat, and Erin's mittens)

yarn: BMFA Socks that Rock heavyweight in Spruced

needles: size 6 Knit Picks Harmony circulars

mods: none since it was a test knit

Buggin' Out

It seems like quite awhile since I had some socks on my needles, much less a Rockin' Sock Club pattern.

pattern: Buggin' Out by Stephen Houghton (aka hizKNITS)
yarn: Socks that Rock lightweight in Pining for Ewe
needles: size 2.25 mm (US 1) Knit Pick circs
pattern size: men's med/women's large - I heard the pattern ran small

no mods

With my recently completed Cosima, this pair of socks and a super secret test knit, I've been in a kinda green mood. But my next knit is back in the purple realm & I'll share that when I'm done.

In the meantime, if you're in a drugstore, Ulta, or Bed, Bath & Beyond, check out the latest hot item, Revlon's new Colorburst Lip Butter. It's a cross between a lipstick and a lipgloss. Some say it feels like a dupe/doppleganger of MAC's creamsheen lipsticks. Some also say that Revlon's Fig Jam lip butter color is a very affordable dupe for Clinique's Black Honey. I picked Sugar Plum & it's a delightful my-lips-but-better & shinier color for me.  

Hope you are all well. For those in the US, hope your Thanksgiving Day weekend was a fun one.

Cabled Cardies

Finally done in time for winter.  But being in California, the alpaca/wool yarn I used is quite a bit too warm.

Pattern: Cosima
Yarn: Berroco Cuzco
Pattern booklet & yarn bought from the WEBS booth at Stitches West 2009. (Yeah, not an immediate knit.)

needles: size 9 for the ribbing on the cardie pieces, size 10.5 for the main body & sleeves, accidentally (and advantageously) used size 8 for the collar ribbing

Mods:
- Ysolda's 2x2 tubular cast on
- larger size sleeves & armholes - since there were a lot of comments that the sleeves were too small (& too short, but length wasn't an issue for me)
- 2x2 tubular bind off for the collar

Lessons learned:
- Chunky alpaca/wool blend makes for a WARM fabric!  However, this would be good when we go to the Sierras in the winter.
- If several Ravelers make lots of comments on adjusting for fit and the pattern writing edited down to the bare essentials, be prepared to make a lot of your own decisions.
- While having broad shoulders & a non-flat chest will mitigate for the reported excessive collar draping/relaxing of the cardigan after wear, my body type and the sweater silhouette are not the most ideal match, at least for me.

I feel like I'm "that mother" that goes a little too far in making her kids doll clothes. So instead of knitting a top down simple cardigan on worsted weight yarn for Monkey1's American Girl doll. I end up knitting a cabled cardigan knit in sport weight yarn in PIECES to be seamed together w/buttons! The easiest part was the crocheted edging w/the buttonholes. I suppose it's easier than knitting a full-sized Monkey1 cabled cardigan, but still. Sometimes I wonder about myself. LOL!

Pattern: Doll Aran by Berroco
Yarn: Rowan Purelife Organic Wool (discontinued) in Berry
needles: size 4 & 6 circulars
hook: size F

No mods.

Comfort Food

When Irishgirlieknits usually asks me to do a test knit, I usually do and I'm glad I had the opportunity to test knit the fingerless mitts from her current pattern set, Comfort Food.  It was also an honor since the pattern has special meaning for Carrie since it was in honor of her late grandmother, Mimi.

It's the just how life goes that when I started the cowl to complete the set, that an extended family member had also passed away.  So this pattern is quite the contemplative one.

It's been a little warm, so my Monkeys were not in the mood to model any knits for me, but the younger one humored me anyway.

Yarn: Ella Rae Classic superwash in Royal
pattern size: medium for the mitts

needles: size 8 Knit Picks Harmony circs
mods: None since this was a test knit

This set will be a gift for one of the Monkeys' teachers as I have wide hands and plan to knit the larger size in the fingerless mitts pattern

The bb cream trend

BB creams (aka Blemish Balm or Beauty Balm) creams have been getting a lot of discussion recently on a fashion/beauty forum I'm part of . So I decided to do a little online "research" and visited the local Korean market near my work a Korean cosmetics store in the South Bay.

So was are bb creams?  In short, they're an alternative to tinted moisturizers that also provide some type of skincare benefit.  According to many beauty blogs & youtube reviews, BB creams began when a German dermatologist created a cream for his patients post-laser skin treatment.  The Asian cosmetics companies, especially those in Korea, took the concept and ran with it. They're available online through Amazon.com, eBay (though care is needed to avoid the fake ones) and Korean and/or Asian stores in major US metropolitan areas.  They are are now slowly popping up in cosmetic brands in the US as well.

My favorite sources of bb cream review sites are the BB Cream Queen blog and this one.  They go into the multitude of brands out there.

Compared to some other beauty bloggers, my bb cream collection is actually not that big. But before I discuss the brands I've tried so far, I'd like to point out that some of them were samples and/or gift-with-purchases (GWP's). From left to right are:

- MAC Cosmetics Prep & Prime Beauty Balm BB Cream - Not a true BB cream. It works great as a foundation primer.  It's currently only available on MAC's online site.  I purchased this after I used up my regular MAC Prep & Prime SPF 50 face primer.

- Dr G Gowoonsesang Brightening Balm Cream - on the recommendation of the Koreana Market sales associate (SA).  This is my favorite in terms of oil control for my combo skin. It's a little gray on initial applicaton & also a bit lighter than my skintone.

- The Face Shop Power Perfection BB cream - on the recommendation of the The Face Shop SA.  There are up to 4 The Face Shops in the South Bay now (Santa Clara, Milpitas, and San Jose). Actually sheerer than Dr G & not as good oil control, but a little less gray.  Also, the only one that made me break out so far.

- Missha Perfect Cover BB Cream in #27 - Shade-wise this is the closest to my skin tone, but the oil control isn't as good as Dr G. Missha is one of the most popular brands used the US because it's got the broadest range of all the Korean cosmetic companies.  It's still rather limited though. Most brands only have 1 to 2 shades that have a gray or pink cast on initial application.

- Missha Perfect Cover BB Cream in #23 - This is actually a first-time buyer GWP for ordering from the Missha US website.  Full-size! And it also came in a travel size set that was another of my GWPs. It's lighter than the #27 of course, but mixed with the travel size #31 (not shown) that came in the GWP set, I can  get closer to #27.

- Missha BB Boomer - This is a "primer" before the BB cream.  It's got shimmer & a slight pink cast. I'm still undecided on the benefit of this, but it may be useful in the cooler months under the bb cream for more moisture. 

- Missha Signature Real Complete BB cream - Also part of the travel-size set GWP.  I haven't tried this yet.

Not shown are the little samples I got from Sephora for Boscia and Dr Jart+ .  Unfortunately I forgot to ask the SA which Dr Jart+ sample she gave me as Dr Jart+ has 2 different versions. The Boscia has little glitter flecks which I don't like. It's sheerer than the other bb creams I've tried & has no oil control whatsoever.  Dr Jart+ was also a disappointment as it's the sheerest of them all & also had no oil control. 

Here are most of the BB creams swatched on my arm not blended out.  For comparison purposes, I've added my foundation shades on both ends.  Starting left to right:
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish liquid in NC37, MAC's BB cream, Boscia, Dr Jart, Dr G, The Face Shop, Missha #27, Missha #23, Missha Signature Real, Missha BB Boomer, NARS Sheer Glow in Punjab and a NARS Sheer Glow sample in Syracuse.

Here they are again blended out a little bit, but not as much as I would on my face.

I blended the creams out a little more to get closer to my actual application process & then took a pic of the swatches over an hour later.  Unfortunately my sunlight got covered by clouds, so my lighting isn't the same.  BB creams tend to oxidize over time, some more than others. This usually tends to help the bb creams match skin tones better, but it can also make it harder to determine which bb cream to buy.

I haven't found my holy grail bb cream, but I've come closest with my Dr G & Missha #27. And I'll still need to experiment by mixing them together.  I'm good for now & probably won't buy more for awhile.  I may or may not buy the other most popular bb cream out there, the Skin79 Hot Pink.  Interestingly enough, it hasn't been that popular at the Koreana Market so they stopped selling it.  They do have the Missha brand, though not the full range of colors all the time.  I hope this helps if you ever come across these.

I'll be back to crafting in my next post.