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By kilax, September 27, 2011 6:22 am

I was going to wait until our new camera* came today to show you my new scarves from Erin, but I am incredibly impatient… so BlackBerry photos it is!

Awhile ago Erin was browsing The Limited website and saw this scarf (below) she thought would go perfectly with this top from Banana Republic. She was right! I love that top (if it wasn’t so expensive I would buy it in every color). And I love the scarf! 

When she sent me the link I asked if she thought any scarves would go with this other blue top from Banana Republic. I like the top, but felt like I was “all chest” in it, and I didn’t have a decent necklace to make it look better (plus, the wrap makes weird lines across my body). 

I think the blue scarf really helps the top!

Thanks again, Erin!

So, here’s a little piece of information that shows how little I know about fashion – I have only ever tied scarves one way – slip loop style**. I only have two other scarves that I wear! A cat one and another blue one (duh, I am just realizing now I could have tried that one with this blue top). And I always wear them in a slip loop. 

Well, The Limited scarves came with a handy dandy guide on “Fashionable Ways to Wear a Scarf.” So I have been trying the adjustable knot style.

click either guide (here or below) to see larger

And I remembered I saved this page of scarf ideas from the October 2008 issue of Women’s Health. It would be fun to try the “casual triangle” with a square scarf!

Can you believe I pulled this from a magazine almost three years ago and have never used it though?! Lame! Lame lame lame. 

Erin and I were discussing how scarves can be kind of expensive. We’re planning on going to Transworld’s Jewely, Fashion and Accessories show in October to check out the scarves there (and jewelry! and accessories! ha ha). 

What is your favorite place to buy scarves/accessories/jewelry? Any recommendations on places to buy inexpensive (decent) scarves?

It seems like a lot of my jewelry came from NY&Company! I used to shop there a lot. Not so much anymore. 

*Another Canon ELPH, in orange! Oh, and it has all the features I wanted too. I am really happy I can afford a new (minimalist) camera right now.
**I only know that it is called slip loop from the guide that came with the scarves!

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By kilax, January 18, 2016 8:39 am

Just finishing up a little holiday gift knitting on the car ride to see my family for Christmas, no biggie d…

Ha ha! I ended up liking the yarn I used so much to make this hat, that I got a few more skeins in different colors to gift them to family members for our Christmas celebration this past weekend.

I got the yarn on the 8th and gave myself seven days to finish three hats before we left on the 15th. Accomplished! (with a little work in the car, ha)

I’ve used the same pattern for six hats now. I asked my snister to bring the other two hats I’ve made so I could get a photo of everyone with their hats together.

Aunt Sue, Snister, Grandma Tiger, SiL Amber, (Future!) SiL Alyssa, Mamba

I’m going to make two more hats with this pattern and yarn then move on to something else (hopefully, if I have time with the move!).

It was great to see my family this weekend! It’s rare that I get to spend time with all of my siblings and their partners together, so it’s a treat when it happens. I hope it happens again before we all go to Alaska in June!

My snis, my older bro, me and my younger bro

Us with James

My nephews

Matching scarves! (We needed those scarves! The high on Sunday was -4°F!!! My family said the hats are VERY warm. Ha ha, good!)

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By kilax, March 24, 2015 6:23 am

The scarf Data was modeling last week wasn’t actually Waldo inspired… but Wisconsin Badgers inspired!

With Rachel (who’s a Badgers fan) visiting last weekend, and March Madness going on, I thought it would be humorous to knit these for her cats, Leo (above) and Sox (below).

I expected them to be annoyed by the scarves, but Rachel said they didn’t mind and ended up sleeping with them! Aww!

I was eager to move on to another project, after I finished the cat scarves. But what? When I finished the infinity scarf for my snister in February, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to work on, so I started another scarf with the same pattern. I enjoyed working on it for a good month (it’s almost done now), but I got a bit bored with it. It was just the same pattern, row after row after row after row. This time, I wanted to try something that had a bit more variety, and would be done quicker (ha – that scarf has hundreds of rows, and I picked a new project with 61 rows!).

So I looked around on Ravelry and found this pattern for monogrammed dishcloths. I’ll be seeing my maternal grandmother in April and knew she would get a kick out of them! I often buy her handmade soap, so why not some handmade cloths to go with?

I started on Thursday night and finished on Sunday night. I did the pink one first, and really liked it, then moved on the to multi-colored one. It was my first time working with a skein like that and I had NO idea what it would turn out like. And… I don’t really like it, ha ha! I like the green one the best, because of the color, and because I was holding the yarn tighter, and I prefer the way that made the spacing turn out. Of course, I’m sure my grandma will think all three are great!

I ended up buying the entire alphabet pattern for these dishcloths, because I liked the font style, so it’ll be fun to knit other letters. It’s pretty cool that just by varying whether you are knitting or purling a stitch, you end up with a design!

Comments (29)

By kilax, February 4, 2014 6:27 am

Steven and I were talking about the Mellew Texas Half timing issues yesterday. I know, I know, quit talking about it already… it’s not the end of the world (it isn’t). But Steven actually has some good perspective, because he was at the finish and saw what happened, so I am going to talk about it just a little more. And the point of me writing about this is that our conversation actually reminded me of something else I wanted to talk about awhile ago, and don’t think I ever did (err, I hope not). 

So. There was a timing “truss” set up for the half start. All the half marathoners got through and then the truss fell over due to the wind (luckily no one was hurt!). It was set back up for the 5K start (which was scheduled for fifteen minutes later*) then taken down after the 5K was over. 

Mellew has not said much about what happened (with timing and course distance issues), but I saw in their response on a Facebook post that because their “timing trusses fell” it would take them longer to “consolidate results” (huh?). What happened is a total pain in the butt** and really stinks… but my question (besides why aren’t they being more upfront about all this crap) is why wasn’t there a back-up plan? Why wasn’t someone able to think quickly on their feet and come up with a better way to take finisher times? Yes – safety is the #1 priority. Definitely don’t put that thing up if it’s going to keep blowing over, but was there really nothing else they could do? Was abandoning taking finish times and having an unclear finish line the only answer? Anyone with race director experience… please chime in (what would have done?!). 

SO ANYWAY, Steven and I were talking (because this post is about something else, remember?) and I told him how I’ve always been in awe of the efficiency portrayed by medical and military characters in movies during a time of crisis. People take charge and figure things out. Without much panic. They are trained for emergencies, I know, and yeah, it’s a movie. It’s just always made me wonder why some people are so much better at thinking on their feet… and some just aren’t. Maybe it’s training? Maybe it’s natural? Hopefully that connection to the race made sense. Ha ha ha. 

So… you guessed it. This post’s question is… are you able to think quickly on your feet?

I used to think I stunk at it, but you know what has made me better? Teaching strength class and having to make changes last minute. There is less panic and more “figure this out now, Kim.” I am a lot better. Maybe I am calmer, overall? Nah. I don’t think anyone would accuse me of being calm. 

OH! And since I was talking about the race, I just have to say… damn. Gina and Steve have some fast miles in them. I was probably actually holding Gina back for most of the race. Ha ha. When they get their “real” 13.1 they are going to kick some major bootay. 

And OH! #2 – since there have been two “wah wah wah” posts about the race, expect a cute & fun Luca post this afternoon to cheer things up around here! I swear! I am not a grump (all the time)!

*and probably short too
**especially if they have to go through race photos to get results… and p.s., there was no clock at the finish

And… I have 47 scarves (unless we are counting the new one Gina gave me this weekend?!). The closest guess on the Umbra Little Black Dress Scarf Organizer Giveaway was Katie (@ from Ice Cream to Marathon) with a guess of 45.  Katie, please email me your mailing address at kilax@ilaxstudio.com and I will send the organizer on its way!

Thanks to everyone who played my silly guessing game!

I actually have another giveaway in mind after I see one of my favorite cat ladies this weekend to FINALLY give her her Christmas gift! Don’t want to give it away (literally and figuratively) on the blog, first!

Comments (23)

By kilax, January 30, 2014 12:06 pm

I clearly have a scarf problem. 

Not that I have too many, though! You can never have too many scarves!

The problem is that I don’t have a good way to store them. I was keeping them all in a drawer, and besides not fitting, they were also getting wrinkly and I couldn’t find what I was looking for easily. In fact, I forgot I had some of them. 

I gifted Erin the Umbra Little Black Dress Scarf Organizer for her birthday, and I ended up ordering two of them for myself, as well. They should arrive today, and I am anxious to get them and arrange my scarves so I can actually see them (I will keep the thicker ones in the drawer). Also, I love organizing things. Ha ha.

So! Who else needs a scarf organizer?! I am giving away one of the Umbra Little Black Dress Scarf Organizers! Read below for entry rules (it’s a guessing game)!

Umbra Little Black Dress Scarf Organizer Giveaway Rules

1. To enter – guess the amount of scarves I have! The reader who guesses the closest number of scarves without going over will win the Umbra Little Black Dress Scarf Organizer. If everyone guesses over, the person who guesses the lowest will win! If two people guess the same number, and it is correct, the earliest guess will win.
2. REQUIRED to enter the giveaway: leave a comment telling me how many scarves you think I have.
3. You get a BONUS GUESS (meaning you may guess again) if you have gifted me/made me a scarf (one bonus guess even if you have given me more than one, ha ha).
4. You may leave all your guesses in one comment. 
5. This giveaway is open until 5:00 PM CST on Monday February 3. I will announce the winner on Tuesday February 4.
6. This giveaway is open to all US readers.
7. As always, I will announce the winner in a post and you have to email me to claim the prize, if you win!

Here is a clue picture (click it to see larger). Note, this picture does not include winter scarves, and I am not including them in the number. So you only have to guess for the amount shown in the photo. 

It seems like with all these scarves, I should do some silly scarf challenge. Like, wear them all at once! Ha ha, just kidding. I was thinking more along the lines of wear one-a-day until I run out (not including the holiday ones). That could easily be done!

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By kilax, September 24, 2013 1:01 pm

Remember chain letters? Like, legit, tangible, send something to x amount of people/receive x amount of things in return? Did you ever participate in chain letters?

I felt like I was participating in something like that this week! Or maybe it was just karma. But! I sent a friend a scarf last week, and I received a hand written thank you (so nice!) from her yesterday. I also received a scarf in the mail yesterday! From someone else!

And it’s way cute:

It’s good I received another scarf, because I am woefully low on them. 

Buah ha ha. Nah, you can’t have too many scarves, can you?!

Now… what are your favorite ways to wear a square, silk scarf?

Do people still do chain letters? I saw the recipe type one floating around maybe… five years ago? I just ignored it. Recipes aren’t my thang. Send chocolates and receive chocolates? Sure, I could do that one…

Comments (34)

By kilax, October 25, 2012 10:25 pm

For women, anyway?

Please answer no.

Erin and I hit up the JF&A Jewelry, Fashion and Accessories show today. You pay a very small amount ($5 pre-registered, $10 at the door) and get in to a a huge trade show with jewelry, scarves, purses, perfume, etc. galore. And the prices are decent. 

I’ve gone to this event the past three years! My fave coworker told me about it, so I went with blogger friends Tori and Diane the first year. Then last year with Erin and again with my mom and her mom later in the year. 

Surely, I wouldn’t see anything I “needed” to buy this year, right?

Sigh. 

At first I was like, “Meh, I don’t see anything I like… what a waste.” Then I got to a booth and spent forever there trying tons of things on and loading up a little basket. Oopsie. So really, I do hope my female family members and girlfriends don’t mind receiving jewelry from me… yet again.

I picked up the necklace in the photo above at that booth and threw it on for dinner. It’s so fun! I may or may have not picked up two of these necklaces. Hmm, should I put one on the blog for a giveaway?

Comments (25)

By kilax, December 5, 2011 5:01 am

As a thank you to my readers, I am doing one giveaway a week until Christmas. This is giveaway #3! The giveaways will all reflect different interests of mine, and this one is… fashion!

Note that I said I have an interest in fashion, not that I am fashionable. Because I surely am not! I’ve abused my best friend relationship with Erin and should probably be ashamed of the amount of clothes I had her pick out for me this year, because I trust her fashion judgment better than my own. And despite receiving InStyle in the mail, it doesn’t seem to be rubbing off on me! Hmm. But you guys know I have a few favorite fashion items, starting with… scarves! Bet you didn’t see that one coming! The first item included in this giveaway is a scarf:

The scarf included in the giveaway is new and in a plastic sleeve – I tried on the sample to show it to you guys

I love the simple pattern of this scarf! I actually bought one for myself with a gray, orange, beige and dark blue stripe. Can’t resist the orange!

The second item is earrings! I love earrings. I thought these would be fun to wear to work or out and about. And of course, I bought a pair for me too. One for me… one for you…

And lastly, the third item is not really a fashion item, but something I consider a must for the cold months… or for anyone who has cold feet* – two pairs of fuzzy warm socks (size 5-11)!

I have lots of pairs of these types of socks, and I wear them all winter long when I am bumming around the house, since we keep it at 65° or something silly like that (I actually like the cold!). 

Hmm, kind of a random assortment of things included in this giveaway, but hey – I mentioned that I am pretty random with my gifts! I do feel bad that this a gender-focused giveaway, as the first one was. Men, please feel free to enter and give these to your partner, sister, mom, that nice lady in the office… And actually, you could wear the socks, if you have smaller feet! And now that I think about it, that scarf would look really handsome on a guy! I should have got one for Steven!

Fashion Giveaway Rules

1. One reader will receive the scarf, earrings and two pairs of socks. 
2. Required to enter the giveaway:  leave me a comment letting me know what your fashion style is, or if you are as clueless as me!
3. Optional extra entry: share this link on your blog and leave an additional comment letting me know you did.
   
4. This giveaway is open until 5:00 PM CST on Friday December 9. I will use random.org to select the winner. I will announce the winner on Saturday December 10. 
5. This giveaway is open to all readers.

*The real kind, not the figurative kind.

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By kilax, November 17, 2011 6:54 am

• My biggest accomplishment this week has been not getting a headache on Wednesday, so I could go to my strength class. I got bad headaches on Monday and Tuesday and had to cancel exercise classes for both nights. So much for my big comeback in exercising. Does anyone else get regular headaches?
• I am at a new workstation in my office, with a different monitor, and I think the monitor may be causing the headaches. Or just the fact that I am back at work spending so much time looking at a monitor, after a week off from it. I was computer free most of the time we were in NYC. And loved it. Do you love taking a break from your computer from time to time?
• I am kind of upset about my work situation right now but don’t want to go in to it until I have more details. The good news is that on my new floor, I sit by the head of my organization and she asked me out for a lunch date! Now, I don’t think this is because of anything awesome I have done, but because she is from Iowa, and so am I, but hey, I am excited for the opportunity to chat with her one on one.
• I didn’t buy too many souvenirs for myself in NYC – just a few marathon related things (two tees, gloves and arm warmers), an Astoria shirt, and some scarves. I mean, come on, when the scarves are 5 for $20, I have to get some, right? The new scarves required setting up a scarf drawer when I got home though – I was hanging them up before, and now my closet is full! Fortunately I had an empty dresser. Which clothing items do you hang up, and which do you fold (and put in drawers on or shelves)?

From the top, the “York New” (ha ha), white, gray, purple (looks more blue in this picture), blue and red ones are new. The others I’ve bought this year, and the silk ones were all given to me.

• I was able to buy a few holiday gifts while we were in NYC too. I really loved shopping in Bryant Park, with all the unique little giftshops. I suppose the same people come back year after year in the shops, but I felt like I was finding a lot of little gems.
• I need more red shirts. Erin got me this really cool necklace for my birthday, and I only have one red summer shirt and one red winter sweater. Could I wear the necklace with a black top?

• What is everyone doing for Thanksgiving? We’re staying here, and having a meal with our friends. I will miss my family, but am happy we don’t have to travel.

Comments (14)

By kilax, October 24, 2011 6:30 am

The example in number 4 above describes my feelings perfectly. And that’s all I will get in to about that.

I really hope my new work detail (whenever it starts) will be a refresher for me. And the vacation to New York City should help too. And maybe the excitement of the upcoming holiday season.

In other news, Erin and I went to a fun jewelry and accesories show on Saturday. I got this necklace and earrings set for $6!

I also got two new scarves, two hats, and a few holiday gifts for people. I know a few people think I am overdoing it with the scarves, but look – I don’t have one on today!