Penelope's Got Nothing On Me

2008 in Review

2009-01-01T13:19:00.005-05:00

Wow, I barely posted this year. I knew I hadn't posted much, but I didn't realize I had less than one page. Wow.

But that won't stop me from posting my annual Year In Review!

STUFF THAT HAPPENED ON THIS YEAR:

- started my first dance class

- released my first dance instructional video

- joined ravelry (come say hi: I'm jessdr)

THEMES FOR THE YEAR:

- all dance, all the time

- knitting for babies

- knitting gifts, rather than for myself

- knitting in obsessive spurts: knitting a whole lot, then not at all, then a whole lot, then not at all

- knitting mostly from stash

- updating ravelry but not my blog

THINGS I MADE THIS YEAR:

- Chicken Viking Hat #3, modeled here by Alex, as part of his Thanksgiving Turkey halloween costume

- Baby Surprise Jacket, for the lovely Margot:

THINGS I SPUN THIS YEAR:

Nada. Zip, zero, zilch.

IN THE FINISHING BASKET:

- Hooded Carrying Bag from Debbie Bliss' Essential Baby in Knitpicks Andean Silk

This is going to be a gift for my cousin's new baby, Thomas. It's such an adorable pattern that my sister (who isn't even planning to have kids any time soon) told me I should start making one for her now! However, it reminded me of why I tend to get grumpy at Madame Bliss. Her patterns often fail to tell you WHY you're doing something. Her instructions often leave you in the dark about why you're doing something. For example, this one tells you to bind off three stitches, seemingly for no reason. It turns out to be for the overlapping portion of a lapped zipper, which is fine, but there is no mention of the lap except hidden in the instructions for sewing on the zipper. And god forbid a book of patterns would include a design schematic...

All that said, it is so cute and such a fun and easy knit that I'm going to have to make another one for my other cousin's new baby, Carter. However, I think I'll do provisional cast-ons for the lower edges of the body and sleeves, and put stitches on stitch holders instead of casting off for the other edges of the body and sleeves. That way, I can do three-needle bind-offs for the lower edge of the body and sleeves, and only have to sew the sides of the body and the zipper.

I just need to block and sew in the zipper.

- Hopeful

I thought it was finished before, but it was just a little too short-waisted, and a short-sleeved alpaca sweater wasn't exactly the smartest choice. So I did the secret-ninja snip, unravel, knit, and graft to add an extra two inches at the waist, and then unravelled the lower end of the sleeves and made them 3/4 length. It looks great, but I still need to tighten up the grafting stitches and block. I think I used a smaller size needle for the midsection, but I'm hoping it won't be too noticeable after blocking. If it is, well, I can always redo the secret-ninja part.

- Clapotis #4 in Knitpicks Andean Silk

A gift for my great-aunt eleanor. Just have to weave in the ends and drop the stitches before I see her for our post-xmas visit this weekend. I think Clapotis is better in a single, but the drape of this yarn is so nice that it doesn't loose too much from its plied structure.

THINGS I'M STILL WORKING ON:

- Sideways Rib Cowl/Hood in Plymouth Baby Alpaca Brush

A gift for my gramma. I'm hoping to finish this before our post-xmas visit this weekend, but I'm not sure it'll be ready. I have a backup plan in case it doesn't work out, luckily.

- Autumn Rose

I've been "swatching" (i.e, knitting a sleeve) this one, but I'm having some trouble with my color selections. They look fabulous on the skein:

but they look a little funny in the swatch. The light peach just looks like a dingy off-white

Choosing colors for this pattern is tough, since you have to choose:

- three different color groups, all of which have to look nice together. In the original color scheme there are reds, dark blue/green/black, and a continuum of yellows and greens. I choose teals in place of the reds, reds in place of the blue/green/black, and a continuum of oranges and browns in place of the yellows and greens.

- colors for each family that have the same relative values (lightness/darkness) as in the original pattern. I.e., in the red group, you need a medium, medium-dark, and dark color). Making it more complicated, the values need to be consistent across color groups. So the if the medium red is similar in value to the darkest yellow, then that relationship needs to be the same in the new color scheme as well, or the colorwork pattern doesn't "read" as well.

-colors that look nice in all the pairings that appear in the colorwork pattern. This is where I'm running into trouble. The colors look great on the skein, but in the rows where peach and dark maroon appear together, it looks just awful.

- Eiffel in Knitpicks Andean Treasure:

I always loved this pattern, but knitting with hemp never attracted me. I hear it softens nicely with wear, but why both with something that doesn't feel good in your hands while you knit it? I decided to make a winter-weight Eiffel instead. Alpaca is REALLY warm, so I figured the nice open, eyelet pattern would balance that out. I gained some weight after I started this project, so I'm a little nervous about fit. I've been procrastinating checking the fit, since, if it's too small in the bicep, I'll have to start over.

- Sunrise Circle Jacket:

I made some progress on this one this year, but the math is off on the left front, and I haven't felt like figuring it out. I'm a little worried that the fabric might be a little too floppy for this pattern, but the color distribution looks so much nicer with the looser gauge... I might have to punt it and use this GORGEOUS yarn for something else...

- Haiku in Knitpicks Merino Style

I started this as a baby gift for my cousin's baby Carter, but I think I might make him a carrying bag instead. It's cuter, and a non-washable yarn might not be the best choice for a newborn. And I love this yarn so much that I think I want to make myself a sweater out of it, as originally planned.

IN THE TIME OUT BIN:

- Serrano

I love this pattern, but I think I made a math error somewhere, and I'm not sure about the fit. Have been feeling too lazy lately to check it out properly.

- Retro Throw

I just haven't felt like working on this lately. It was supposed to be my sister's graduation present, but it came out somewhat smaller than planned, and as my sister and her fiance are TALL (5'11" and 6'7", respectively) a teensy throw blanket didn't really seem like the best choice. I WILL finish it before their wedding, I swear! (Luckily, they haven't set a date...)

- Rising Flames Socks

No progress since the 2007 in review post. I've ripped out the instep twice, but they're still tight. The third time is probably the charm. But as much as I enjoy ripping out (hence, the blog title), frogging lace is a pain in the bum, so I think I'll let it rest for a little while before I tackle it.

- Blissful Jacket

I finished knitting the pieces a year ago, and seamed them up not long afterward, but for some reason, I just can't make myself finish adding the pinstripes. I also ripped out the collar - I wasn't wild about the shape. Will try with a different needle size to see if that helps. I think part of the reason I can't make myself finish this is that I HATE the yarn (Debbie Bliss Aran Tweed). Hate it hate it hate it. It's scratchy and full of knots, and it was expensive. Yet another reason why I get grumpy at Madame Bliss. Maybe I should have used Cascade 220 tweed...

If I don't make any progress on this one by next year's review, maybe I'll move it to the "things I may need to give up on category. Speaking of which:

- Lelah Top

This was supposed to be a gift for my sister, and it is embarrassing how long I have let it go.

THINGS I MAY NEED TO GIVE UP ON:

- Improvisational Cardi

This was a 2007 project. It's my own design, but I had some fit problems, and I don't have enough yarn to really fix it. I haven't decided if I want to frog it and make something else with the yarn, or revise my design.

- Juno Regina

I'm using smaller needles (to suit my yarn substitution), and it came out very narrow (about 11" vs. 16"). I'm also not sure the color is right for me. It has a nice range of bluish greens that suit me well, but it also has some more foresty, yellow-based greens. I'm in love with the yarn, but I don't know that I'll be in love with the FO.

And I'm not sure I'm a lace kind of a girl. I love working with tiny needles, but laceweight yarn makes my hands kind of sore.

THINGS I'VED FROGGED:

- Syncopated Brioche Hat:

I just didn't love it. The colors in Shepherd Sport were much greener and browner than in the Lion & Lamb I used for my Clapotis, in which the blues were more dominant.

NEW TECHNIQUES I'VE TRIED:

- knitting with laceweight yarn

ITEMS I WANT TO MAKE IN 2009:

I've accepted that my dance business is going to take the front seat this year, so I won't be getting in as much knitting as I used to, but I do have some modest goals for this year.

- I'm mostly concerned with finishing the projects I'm working on now, especially Autumn Rose, Eiffel, the Sunrise Circle Jacket, and blocking Hopeful

- more yarn - I want to get back into spinning this year

- I'd like to make myself a warm hat/hood/balaclava. It has been chilly out there!

THINGS I WANT TO LEARN/TRY/ACCOMPLISH:

- reduce my UFO list

- get a better handle on color selection for colorwork

Another Baby Knit Photo

2008-11-20T16:39:00.003-05:00

Also, here is the lovely Margot, sporting her baby surprise jacket:

Chicken Viking Hat Seen in the Wild

2008-11-19T11:17:00.006-05:00

(click on the photo to see it full-sized)

Modeled for you by the always adorable Alexander as part of his Halloween. He appeared as Thanksgiving Dinner, complete with roasting pan, turkey baster, and cranberry sauce.

If you want to make your own, check out the free pattern by Sarah Mundy.

This is my third chicken viking hat. Two were baby-sized for Alex and Elena, and one adult-sized for Ryan:

YES WE CAN!!!

2008-11-05T12:03:00.002-05:00

I generally try to keep politics out of my knitting blog, but I just have to say that I am so proud of our country today.

It's not just about our first black president (which is amazing!) or the major policy shifts we can expect (which we need so much). It's about what this says about us as a people.

The best life advice I ever received was: Behave like the person you want to be, and, over time, you will become that person.

That's what I saw in the American people last night. For so long, we have been stuck in "survival mode", acting out of fear, and worrying primarily about "me". This is a normal response to trauma, but it's not a healthy way to live.

Last night, our actions said that it's time to move on and start behaving as if we were the country of our national mythology. One that is dedicated to liberty and justice for all. One that believes that who your parents are should not dictate what you can achieve in life. One that believes that, while personal responsibility is critical, when we live in a community (whether town, country, or world) we have to live up to our responsibilities toward each other.

We do have a long way to go, and we can't just sit back on our couches and expect it all to be done for us, but we have made a wonderful beginning. And if we can harness even half of the energy that made this election possible, we can shut down guantanamo, fix our healthcare system, get the financial system back on track, and start earning the trust of the rest of the world again.

Hopeful tweaks, BSJ, colors selected for Autumn Rose

2008-01-21T15:39:00.000-05:00

I did the secret-ninja snip, knit, and graft to lengthen my Hopeful. I'm very pleased with the fit now. I think I used the wrong size needles, though: I started with size 6s but the fabric looked too loose, so I frogged back and switched to fives. I think 6s were the correct choice after all. Oh, well. It shouldn't be too noticeable once I even out the tension on the transitional rows (particularly the grafted row) and then block it. (The rest of the sweater was blocked in September, so it has had a chance to relax, while the inserted section hasn't.)

My next step is to make the sleeves longer. I'm not sure if I'll take them to 3/4 or full-length. It may depend on how much yarn I can get my hands on. Knitpicks is discontinuing this yarn and they're out of grey. I contacted a user on Ravelry who has two balls in her stash, but I haven't heard back yet. I'll be crossing dye lots, but I think it won't be obvious if I use the same dye lot for the entirety of both sleeves, rather than switching part-way through the body, for example. We'll see!

I'm also working on a baby surprise jacket for a family friend's coming baby. I'm going to need more yarn. I've ordered more of the gold, light turquoise, and orange. I've got plenty more of the brown, burgundy, pink, and teal, but I think it really needs a turquoise stripe before I use any more of the darker colors, so I'm waiting for the additional yarn to arrive. Here's what I've got so far:

I'm tempted to use the wrong side, since I love the mini-stripes you get on the wrong side when changing colors:

I've also selected the colors for my Autumn Rose:

I'm sitting on my hands to prevent myself from casting on (or even swatching!) before I finish the baby gifts and at least one of my in-progress projects. The yarn is Knit Picks Palette, which I love, especially now that they have more tertiary colors and heathers. The colors are:
Reds: merlot heather, garnet heather, red
Blue-greens: marine heather, calypso heather, tidepool heather (these were xmas gifts from my mom)
Oranges and Tans: brindle heather, fawn, apricot, peach, golden heather

The photo doesn't do the colors justice. The blues are much more blue-green and zippy than they appear, the reds are much richer (and move towards brown), and the oranges transition more smoothly. The oranges and reds just POP against the blues. Every time I passed by the table I had laid them out on, I was struck by how great it looked.

2007 in Review

2008-01-03T09:00:00.000-05:00

Here's my annual New Year's Day post.

2007 was a big year personally, but not a big posting year.

NOTE: this post is going to replace the 2007 items in my Finished Objects sidebar. Click on the pictures to link to the appropriate posts, which often have more pics.

STUFF THAT HAPPENED ON THIS YEAR:

- bought our first condo

- made the transition from semi-pro to full pro bellydancer, including teacher training, giving my first workshop, and my first student

- released two episodes of my video podcast on dance composition for belly dancers, Taktaba

- quit my new job and went back to my old job (YAY!!!)

- attended six weddings (including my sister's) and a baby shower

- went to France

THEMES FOR THE YEAR:

- being really busy and not blogging

- knitting a fair bit, but not completing many things

- considerable restraint in yarn shopping

- colorwork, and a general color awareness

- spinning

THINGS I MADE THIS YEAR:

- Tubey #2 in Karabella Aurora 8

This is also the first sweater I've made that has my husband's raving approval; in his words: "I'd buy this one for you in a store".

- Odessa in Knitpicks Merino Style

- Target Wave Mittens in Beaverslide Dry Goods Fisherman Weight Wool

- Droplet Hat in Beaverslide Dry Goods Wool/Mohair blend

- Snowflakes and Arrows Vest

- 2 hats for Afghans for Afghans

- Banff for Afghans for Afghans for Afghans
re-sized for an older kid and re-gauged for McTaggart Tweed

- Snuggly Red Blanket

I finished knitting this over two years ago (maybe closer to three...) and have been using it since then (it's even gone in the washer once or twice), but I didn't get around to weaving in the ends until recently.

- Northern Lights Mittens

The pattern was from KnitPicks, but doesn't seem to be available anymore. They ended up bigger than I wanted, so they weren't warm enough (too much free space inside = not enough insulation), so I gave them to my mother-in-law, who has bigger hands. I'm crazy about the pattern, though, so I'll try it again, although probably in just brown and turquoise.

- Teapot Onion Dome Tea Cozy

(my own design. Pretty much just a Sideways Shortrows Hat with gaps for the handle and spout (white only). When they get all steamed up, hear them, well, smell! Made from two yarns that I spun myself. The brown was my very first yarn ever, done on a drop spindle, and the white is my first wheel-spun yarn. Speaking of which:

THINGS I SPUN THIS YEAR:

- White Lamb's Pride Wool
Came with my spinning wheel. I thought I had photos, but apparently not.

- Thimbleberry roving from Beaverslide Dry Goods

Haven't figured out what I want to make from this yet. Maybe a cozy for the great big (but poorly insulated) teacup/strainer that lives on my desk.

THINGS I'M STILL WORKING ON:

- Sunrise Circle Jacket

I re-gauged this one, and am not sure the fabric is stiff enough for the design...

- Improvisational Cardi

My own design - having some fit problems. I haven't decided if I want to alter it or learn to love it the way it is. (It actually looks fine on, but since it's both tighter and shorter than I had in mind, it looks like a completely different design.)

- Serrano

I pulled the needles from this one for another project, and just never picked it up again. I need to do a sanity check on the sizing before I go much further.

- Retro Throw

Just slow going.

- Rising Flames Socks

I've ripped out the instep twice, but they're still tight. The third time is probably the charm. But as much as I enjoy ripping out (hence, the blog title), frogging lace is a pain in the bum, so I think I'll let it rest for a little while before I tackle it.

- Oatmeal-colored wool yarn

Spinning that up on my Babe's Fiber Garden Pedal Pusher:

IN THE TIME OUT BIN:
Items in need of finishing or adjustment.

- Blissful Jacket
I finished knitting the pieces a year ago, and seamed them up not long afterward, but for some reason, I just can't make myself finish adding the pinstripes. I also ripped out the collar - I wasn't wild about the shape. Will try with a different needle size to see if that helps.

- Lelah top for my sister

Or did I finish this? I can't remember... I think it wanted to be taken in a little at the overbust...

- Hopeful

This needs some extra length in the torso, and I will probably make the sleeves long. (Alpaca/cashmere blend is gorgeous, but completely inappropriate for short sleeves.) This one received the husband seal of approval.

- Juno Regina

I'm using smaller needles (to suit my yarn substitution), and it came out very narrow (about 11" vs. 16"). I'm also not sure the color is right for me. It has a nice range of bluish greens that suit me well, but it also has some more foresty, yellow-based greens. I'm in love with the yarn, but I don't know that I'll be in love with the FO.

- Synopated Brioche Hat

My own design. I don't like the decreases, and it doesn't quite cover my earlobes, so I'm going to rip it out and make it deeper.

THINGS I MAY NEED TO GIVE UP ON:

Haven't worked on this in at least a year, maybe two... Perhaps I'll make a snuggly something out of this yarn instead. I have plenty.

- Tubey #1

I think I'd like to redo this one with some cable detail around the neckline.

- Hush Hush Chemise

Why did I think a knitted nightgown with no waist definition would be a good idea?

NEW TECHNIQUES I'VE TRIED:

- wheel spinning
- brioche stitch (syncopated)
- applied i-cord
- i-cord cast-on
- knitting with beads

OTHER FIRSTS:

- first mittens

NICE PEOPLE I MET:

- Jenn from Brooklyn, a fellow bellydancer who hosted a fabulous yarn crawl at the Yarn Harlot's book release party in NYC.

- Jen from Calgary, whom I met on Jenn-from-Brooklyn's yarn crawl.

- Jody from FL, whom I met after her SP9 punted.

ITEMS I WANT TO MAKE IN 2008:
Many still pending from my end-of-2006 list.

- Autumn Rose, probably in blue/greens and browns (maybe with some red)

- Apricot Cardigan
I have some yummy Karabella Aurora 8 in hot pink that would be perfect for this.

- Hex Coat from Knitting Nature

- Whisper

- Eiffel

- Sweet Mary Jane from Knitpicks (apparently no longer available)

Have yarn, will knit.

- a big cozy handspun something

THINGS I WANT TO LEARN/TRY/ACCOMPLISH:

- REALLY getting a handle on fit. Not just how to make a sweater with the desired dimensions, but how to decide what those dimensions should be.

- Get an understanding of collar and neckline shaping. Again, not so much how to produce the desired shape, but what shapes produce what results.

- Explore stitch patterns. I really enjoy texture, but since they add bulk to the garment, I end up working in stockinette more often than not.

- Play with color some more.

Not-quite-finished Object

2007-10-18T15:40:00.000-04:00

Well, I finished and blocked Hopeful:

Unfortunately, it's a little short in the torso. It needs another 2ish inches of straight work between the hip decreases and bust increases. Blocking seemed to help, but once it's on, the body curves take up all the length. Oh well, I'll just have to do my secret-ninja cut/knit/graft thingy. But not anytime soon.

Ambrosia works up into a lovely Hopeful, but isn't really a ideal yarn for the project. Alpaca is just too warm for a short-sleeved sweater (duh). It also gives me the pricklies against the skin. (It's not at all rough; in fact, it's buttery and silky. But something about alpaca just prickles me.) I may have enough yarn to knit it down to 3/4 sleeves. If not, I can always wear it with a jacket.

I have to say, though, I love this pattern. The design is adorable, and the construction is so clever. I'm just wild about shortrow sleeve caps: there's no seaming, and the shape is perfect.

Also shown in the photo:
- Una
- a blanket I made from Red Heart Light & Lofty over two years ago, and whose ends only got woven in this week (after the photo was taken)

My well-aged post: Tubey, spinning

2007-09-09T21:48:00.000-04:00

Well, here's a post I started back in February, and I've finally located the photo that goes along with it.

Somebody call the papers, I have an honest-to-goodness FO to report:

My inaccurately-named Tubey #2:

The name is inaccurate because, while this is the second Tubey I started, it's the first one I finished.
Stats:
Yarn: Karabella Aurora 8 (sorry, I forget how many skeins)
Size: Small, and I probably should have gone with a medium, but even though it's very clingy, I still love it. I just block it a little wider when I'm going to wear it to work. (UPDATE 9/5/07: small turned out to be a good thing - I've lost a fair bit of weight since I made this, and Tubeys need to be form-fitting.)
Needles: Swallow casein dpns and Denise casein circulars (size 6 or 7)
Gauge: 20 st./4in. The row gauge changed considerably (13%) between the two needle types.

I changed the color combination twice AFTER I started knitting, which involved several froggings of most of the torso section, and a secret-ninja cut-and-graft on the elbows. (I must have knitted 2-2.5 times the surface area of the sweater in the process.)

This is also the first sweater I've made that has my husband's raving approval; in his words: "I'd buy this one for you in a store".

Like a lot of what I've knitted, this sweater is closely associated with certain points in time. I cast on the weekend I decided to quit my job (back in September), knitted most of the shrug section during the particularly stressful last few weeks of my time there, and then finished it in the month-long, at-home vacation I took to recover after I quit.

Lessons learned on this project:
- just because the colors look good in a heap doesn't mean they'll look good in stripes: stack the balls in the stripe order you have in mind to make sure the transitions don't look wierd
- a sweater that looks fitted on someone with a smaller bust-to-waist ratio will look clingy on me, even when we have the same bust measurements
- clingy can still be really flattering
- check your row gauge on BOTH needle types
- Aurora 8 stands up remarkably well to frogging, but doesn't like a lot of friction in the knitted fabric

In spinning news, I did my very first plying. This is the Thimbleberry roving my SP7 Rainy sent me from Beaverslide Dry Goods. Marnie MacLean's post on balanced plying was a huge help. It's a very, ahem, "designer" yarn, but I still love it. I think I'll make a tea cozy for my Bodum tea press
it makes two big cups (about a liter in all), so I always have to throw a towel over it if I want my second cup to be warm.

In still other spinning news, it was a very spinnerific birthday (back in February). My birthday itself wasn't particularly fun: I had been up most of the night before with stinky stinky work, so I was fuzzy all day, but then I had sushi and went to bed early, and I do like to sleep, so it wasn't an unpleasant way to spend my birthday evening. Plus, we celebrated the Saturday before, so the day itself wasn't so important. However, my family gave me some wonderful spinning gifts:

My mom sent me some Beaverslide wool/mohair roving in Natural Black, and my sister and her boyfriend (feels like a brother-in-law already) sent me some in Mountain Twilight.

My dad and stepmom contributed towards my very first spinning wheel: a babe's fiber garden pedal pusher. This is like their production model, but instead of ordinary treadles, it uses the "pedal pusher", a semi-exercise device meant to simulate walking for the housebound. It does give you a light workout for the calves: not enough to make you too tired to spin, but enough to gently work your muscles and get your circulation moving. I spun up and plyed the 4oz (?) of Lamb's Pride roving that came with it.

I'm still getting the hang of the twist-to-fiber-mass ratio, but I really like the "designer yarn" I made. I haven't decided what to do with it yet. I'm thinking hat. I spun some of it from the fold like Lucy taught me, some from the end of the roving (which I slighly prefer, since I never got the hang of adding more yarn to the fold), and the rest from the end of pre-drafted fiber using yet another helpful post by Marnie MacLean. For the Lamb's Pride, pre-drafting definitely wins. I'm looking forward to trying the merino/mohair from Beaverslide on the wheel, but I'm not sure how it'll work out: the fibers aren't allways perfectly parallel like they are in the Lamb's Pride: there are some twisty bits (does anybody know the technical term?). On the spindle, I was able to control them reasonably well, but things move faster on my wheel. I'll figure it out. :)

Jessica's Triumphant Return to Blogging

2007-07-17T09:37:00.000-04:00

Wow. I have gone over five months without blogging. This was difficult to understand, since I went on hiatus at the same time that I removed the major cause of stress from my life. I didn't stop knitting, but I just didn't feel a need to blog, and sometimes felt a distinct aversion to it. This was very puzzling to me, and I've only begun to understand it in the last few minutes.

To put it mildly, I had a highly stressful year. To call it traumatic wouldn't be much of an exaggeration. Pressure, frustration, hysterical crying, stomach pain, and lack of sleep were daily features of my life. And while the experience itself was almost entirely negative, it did force a re-examination of my priorities, attitudes, and life goals that most people don't get around to for another 10-20 years, and that many never do. I wish I had reached the same outcome in a more pleasant way, but what I've learned is valuable enough that I don't regret the experience.

So what does that have to do with blogging?

While I was in the stressful situation, blogging was a lifeline. I knit to avoid cracking, and I blogged in order to step into a world that was completely removed from the rest of my life. It kept me going. Blogging was my escape, a positive thing, but I still associated the act of escaping with the need to escape.

Five months removed, I'm ready to step back in. To quote Tank Girl "it's been swell, but the swelling's gone down." I'm not entirely over that experience yet, but I'm ready to start building new associations for blogging and everything else that it had colored.

I won't be blogging as often, and possibly not as extensively, as I did before entering the stressful situation, since I've added some new time commitments since then, but I do intend to do it on a more regular basis.

Coming soon: a post that I started back in February with an FO, spinning news, and more.

Frog Cupcakes

2007-02-08T23:10:00.000-05:00

I frogged two projects over the weekend.

First, the official Penelope's Got Nothing on Me FUG, a truly hideous Paris Loop in Rowan Cotton Braid:

Next, a teeny little baby vest that my mom started for one of us in the late 70s / early 80s. (I didn't take a "before" photo.)

So I have Frog Cupcakes!

I have no idea what to do with the Cotton Braid. The yarn store swatch was so soft, I let it override my judgement. I can't think of anything to make out of this that wouldn't be ugly...

Apparently the baby vest was made out of the *only* nice yarn that existed at the time. It's a soft, loosely-spun 2-ply sportweight wool with green and burgundy bits. Yummy, and precisely 100g. That leaves the question: what should I do with 100g of sportweight? I'm thinking of using it as an accent with something in burgundy.

And now, my "hey, let's finish some stuff, I need something I can wear in the freakishly cold weather, OOOOH isn't Knitting Nature Awesome, wow, I love Beaverslide Drygoods" series of FOs:

Target Wave Mittens in fisherman weight:

I love the yummy springy natural wool. It's not especially soft, but just fine for mittens. (Their wool/mohair blend and McTaggart Tweeds are much softer.) I used between half and 2/3 of the skein.

Droplet Hat in wool/mohair:

I did this pattern in the round, rather than flat. If you try to do the same, cast on two fewer stitches; there are two extra allowed for seaming. I think, like my Odessa, I'll be giving this one away. I need better ear coverage.

Is it me, or do all the neat hat patterns not cover the ears? I think what I really need is one of those huge squarish hats with the enormous ear flaps. Maybe in some super-girly pattern (like snowflakes on a pink background). I'm liking this idea...

In other news, the Snowflakes and Arrows vest found a new home with my mother-in-law. Will post pics next time I see her.

I also frogged and restarted Tubey #2 in Aurora 8:

I didn't like how it was turning out with the needles I was using, so I switched to size 6s. Tubey #1 is 1/3 done, and has been percolating at the bottom of my project suitcase, but I think I'm going to frog it and start over too. I think I'll want to do that with some cable detail.

I've also been doing a little spinning with the Beaverslide roving in Thimbleberry that my SP7 gave me (on the spindle she gave me too).

I was struggling with the merino at first; it drafts very differently from the blue-faced leicester I learned on (also a gift from her). I had been using the inchworm technique (add twist, secure spindle, draft, repeat), which worked nicely with the BFL. It didn't work so well with the merino; I was getting lumps or "bald spots" (several times it was so bad that the yarn broke), and I wasn't too happy with the results. Then I got bold and tried drafting while the spindle was spinning, and it worked much better. I think the tension on the yarn (from the weight of the spindle) helped me control the draft & pinch better. Yay!

In other news, I have some new toys:

That's several pairs of Swallow brand casein dpns in sizes 3,5,6,7,8,9. I don't know if Swallow doesn't make size 4s (could be a metric conversion thing) or if the vendor just didn't carry them, but I don't use 4s very often anyway. I *love* casein, but I don't like doing small diameter tubes with my Denise set; the cables are a little too stiff, so I get laddering with either the two circs or magic loop techniques. I had bought bamboo dpns for the sleeves of my Zig Zag, but they were too slow & frictioney, so I bought a set of aluminums, and they hurt my hands after a while. So when I started Tubey, I ordered my casein dpns, and they are perfect; not too heavy, not too light, soft, flexible, pretty, and they even smell faintly nice. Yes, I smelled my knitting needles!

On the bottom are a set of freshwater pearl stitch markers from Zero. They are beautiful, REAL pearls, and the vendor will give you an extra set of rings for larger needles or for sock-size needles FOR FREE if you ask. Plus, they're CHEAP. Go buy from this lady; she's great.

The blue pouch is a leather changepurse from Florence that my sister gave me for xmas. With its neat spring closure, it's perfect for holidng my stitch markers and yarn needles (which I am constantly using). Thanks Becky!

Poetry

2007-02-02T19:59:00.000-05:00

In honor of the 2nd annual blogger's poetry reading, my very favorite poem.

Brown Penny
by William Butler Yeats

I WHISPERED, "I am too young,"
And then, "I am old enough;"
Wherefore I threw a penny
To find out if I might love.
"Go and love, go and love, young man,
If the lady be young and fair."
Ah, penny, brown penny, brown penny,
I am looped in the loops of her hair.

O love is the crooked thing,
There is nobody wise enough
To find out all that is in it,
For he would be thinking of love.

Till the stars had run away
And the shadows eaten the moon.
Ah, penny, brown penny, brown penny,
One cannot begin it too soon.

knitting progress, posse

2007-01-25T16:23:00.000-05:00

Continuing my "hey, let's accomplish some stuff so we don't feel quite so mauled by our day jobs" sprint:

1- I have finished my Banff:

This was always meant to be sent to Afghans for Afghans, and is intended for a preteen/teenager (on whom it will be baggy and slightly long as the designer planned it, rather than fitted and slightly cropped, as it is on me), but I figured I'd take some pics for posterity. And just look at this yummy yarn:

That's Beaverslide Dry Goods McTaggart Tweed in Cuthroat Trout. Soft, lofty, light-weight, and a great price. I can't effuse enough about this stuff. Plus, I came home from work an hour early the day I took these pics and the apartment hadn't heated up yet, and I was *freezing* until I put this sweater on. Now I think I need one of my own. This took precisely three and a half skeins (vs. the 7 skeins I bought), so I might even have enough left to make my own. I just love this yarn in my hands and on the garment. My only complaint is that it's so springy that it "grabs" my needles and makes my Denise needles prone to unhooking themselves from their cable. Then again, it's a nice frictioney wool, so I don't have to worry about dropping stitches while I get everything back on the needles.

2- I did the applied i-cord (officially my favorite technique of all time) on the front and neck edges of my Snowflakes and Arrows. It is distinctly too big, but it found it a happy home with mother-in-law. She can't adopt it until I adust the shoulder slope to fit her and add the armhole i-cording, however.

3- I made scarf for the red scarf project with my former cronies at the MIT SnB, who collectively made 20 scarves. Mine was actually pretty boring to knit: 60x8ish inches of garter stitch in red heart light & lofty (the oldest yarn in my stash and officially the only acrylic yarn I will ever love, and even then only with the bias of a "first self-designed project" yarn). But I *finished* it (very important to my morale these days) and it was for a good cause, and it was with the MIT SnB, whom I miss very very much since I left the 'Tute.

4- I started some Targe Wave mittens from Knitting Nature. I'm not including the stripes (although I think they're great); I chose the pattern because they're knitted flat, and I didn't have size 9 DPNs (and I don't love the results I get from my Denise kit with the magic loop or 2-circs method). Plus, I really like the look of the big round thumb gusset. I'm knitting those in another Beaverslide yarn (fisherman weight wool in Bison), and will post pics when I have my camera handy (am blogging from RI on a a visit to my mother-in-law). No photos yet, but will post when I have 'em.

5- I have decided to give up on ever wearing my Karen Millen *CASHMERE* sweater. That's the one whose shaping and decorative inset I want to copy:

It's just plain too short for my long torso. If any of you who meet ALL of the following critieria out there who want it, give a holler:
- you have an approximately 36" bust
- you have a short torso (or an average one and don't mind showing a glimpse of midriff when you reach out of your bubble)
- you are willing to patch a teensy tiny hole smack in the front of the sweater (being beautifully made, you could pick out part of a seam, use the yarn to over-stitch the hole, and re-sew the seam with another yarn or thread)
- I know you already (I know you in "real life" or we have *actually interacted* through a blog or knit-along)

Otherwise, I think I will unravel the sweater and harvest the not-unsubstatial amount of laceweight cashmere I'm sure to get from it. Sigh. I love this sweater. It's so soft, such a beautiful color, and so well-made.

6- In random news, here is a pic of Una snuggling with Zig Zag:

Is it me, or do cats have a particularly well-honed taste for handknits, and for fine wool handknits in particular? She is absolutely nuts about an aran sweater my grandmother brought me from Ireland 10+ years ago...

In still other news, my sister the rapper and my husband have informed me that I need to form a knitting posse. We are to have nicknames like Eye-cord (MINE MINE MINE), 8-gauge, and Needles. If you want in, give a holler and claim your name. And, of course, our official theme song has to be Mike Bryant's Knitta Please. I do not, of course, want to step on the toes of the Knitta Please Posse knitting for trees, antennae, etc. in Texas.

Revelation, plus some photos

2007-01-16T09:52:00.000-05:00

I have been remarkably grumpy for the last few months. I've chalked up most of that to job-related stress (and if I didn't feel bad about complaining in a public forum, you would be falling out of your desk chairs with the story I could tell you about Monday). However, I have been getting grumpier and grumpier at my knitting. It's not unusual for a project and me to have a little spat, but we usually give each other some space for a week or two, and then I pick it up and it's like nothing ever happened. Lately, however, I have been holding grudges. I knew something was wrong, but I couldn't fix it. Knitting wasn't making me happy, and frogging (which I usually do with gleeful abandon) was making me feel downright defeated.

It didn't dawn on me until I blogged about Odessa: that was the first project I've completed since September. In fact, I only completed four projects in 2006. Compare that to:
- 17 projects completed in 2005
- five projects I am at least semi-actively working on
- five projects needing finishing or adjustment
- three projects that I intend to go back to someday
- uncounted projects I tried and scrapped entirely (I can think of at least three, so there were probably six or seven)
- a lot of swatching

So while I've done a fair bit of knitting, I don't have a whole lot to show for it, and I think that's what's making me so grumpy. This didn't occur to me at first, since I consider myself a process knitter, and it even made me a little uncomfortable at first. But then I realized: I'm not grumpy because I don't have more FOs to wear; I'm grumpy because part of the experience is the feeling of making something and making progress, and that has been missing from my knitting. I felt a whole lot better when Odessa was done.

In other news:

1- Odessa found a new home with a dance friend of mine who has (as she puts it) "a pea head". Cute, dainty, round head + Odessa = a very nice look. Kind of 30's moviestar-esque. If I ever get pictures, I'll post 'em.

2- I've been working on Serrano. I added about an inch an a half (which is a lot at this gauge), but I am getting some random YOs in the area of the decreases:

I'm going to frog back and be more consistent about those.

2- I finally took some pictures of Banff

I made this (completely resized and regauged) for Afghans for Afghans' fall sweater drive, but didn't finish in time, and it needed to be lengthened by a couple of inches anyway. I'm going to snip & graft (on the stockinette area, after my Odessa debacle), and then send it along in the next batch. I might make one for myself someday, although certainly with far less ease than the pattern calls for.

I've also got a couple of design ideas that I may or may not do anything with right now. However, I did finally get around to investigating some decorative shaping and details that I hope to copy from a commercial sweater I own:

decorative raglan decreases:

(stretched for detail on the left, relaxed on the right)
I need to take a closer look (not to mention a better photo), but it appears to be a combination of decreases, cables, and yarn-overs.

decorative detail:

I thought these was waist shaping, but it turned out to be purely decorative; the number of stitches doesn't change. Still, I might steal this one. They're just k2togs and ssks with staggered YOs. Once I've had the chance to confirm it, I'll chart it up and post it.

Odessa, Serrano, Snowflakes & Arrows

2007-01-15T23:06:00.000-05:00

This weekend + today (alas, I didn't get the holiday off), I knitted up an Odessa. I used my sample skein of Knitpicks Merino Style in Tidepool (later I bought 10 balls from which I will knit a sweater eventually, but it's a different dyelot). I followed the instructions precisely (except for using size 5s for the ribbing), and on Saturday afternoon I had a fetching hat that fit exactly as shown in the picture. That is to say, a hat that doesn't cover my earlobes. So I tried to get all secret-ninja on it and snip out one row, work up from the ribbing and graft it back on.

First official note to self of 2007: don't try to graft on a lacework pattern.
With the corrolary: just because it looks like nice, easy ribbing doesn't mean those ssks and yos can't mess up your grafting.

24 hours and several swear words later, I decided to work from the bottom edge of the hat part (as opposed to the ribbed brim I snipped off) and work the ribbing back down. After incorporating every inch of that ball of yarn (minus the foot or two I wasted rejoining the parts I snipped off), I have a fetching hat that has a wider ribbed edge than I'd like and covers 2/3 of my earlobes. But I have to say, I think it was pretty successful:

I don't know if I'm going to keep it, however. It's a great pattern, but I think it's better suited for Grumperina's cute round head:

than my more eggy head:

(Heh. I'm an egg head!) Or maybe it would have been more flattering if it were looser; I have only worn loose hats in the past, such as:

I think I'll mull it over for a couple of days and send it to Afghans for Afghans if I decide it's not for me. Still, I love the pattern: fun construction, rhythmic "readable" knitting, BEADS, and one-skein-erific.

Also, here is a photo of the Serrano I have been only occasionally working on:

I haven't even gotten to the shaping yet, but my stitch count is somehow horribly wrong, and I've been too lazy to deal with it.

I finally got around to hemming the steeks and blocking my snowflakes and arrows vest, which smoothed out the ripplies very nicely. It also, however, relaxed it. The thing is HUGE: both too long and too wide at the shoulder (although a nice fit in the bust and waist. I can deal with the shoulders by undoing the hem and turning more under, but I'm worried about the length. I re-wetted it with some Eucalan, and blocked it agressively (as Danielle would say):

I appear to have shortened it by THREE INCHES. I haven't taken it off the board yet, though, so I don't know if I've horribly ruined the fit. This was very much an instance of process knitting, though, (and only cost something like $12) so if it doesn't work for me, it's not the end of the world. I'm sure it would fit someone out there and look fabulous. I'd even consider making it again.

2006 in Review

2007-01-01T13:55:00.000-05:00

Like 2005, 2006 was a big year, although not a huge knitting (and especially not a big finishing) year. Highlights include:
- starting a new job in March
- performing more often (I'm a belly dancer)
- launching a video podcast on dance composition for belly dancers
It wasn't the easiest or happiest year I've had, but I have come to a better understanding of what I want from my life, and that's a very useful thing.

NOTE: this post is going to replace the 2006 items in my Finished Objects sidebar. Click on the pictures to link to the appropriate posts, which often have more pics.

THINGS I'VE MADE:

- Zig Zag

My first long-sleeved pullover, and a staple in my winter wardrobe. This was my Knitting Olympics project, which I didn't finish in time.

- Clapotis #3

A gift for my mother-in-law's 60th birthday

- Suri Dream Swatch Stole

This started out as a really big swatch (stockinette with garter stitch edges and inset rectangles of reverse stockinette, which you can't really see), but it was so nice to work with, I kept going. Two balls later, my mom decided it made a wonderful mini-stole when clipped in place with a pin or hairclip, so I gave it to her as an extra birthday present. Apparently she's gotten all kinds of compliments on it.

- Droplet Hat

This was the final gift for my one-skein SP

THINGS I'M STILL WORKING ON:

- Tubey #1

- Retro Throw

- Rising Flames Socks

- Serrano

- Tubey #2

IN THE FINISHING BASKET:

- Snowflakes and Arrows Vest

- Blissful Jacket

- 2 hats for Afghans for Afghans

- Banff for Afghans for Afghans for Afghans
re-sized for an older kid and re-gauged for McTaggart Tweed

- Lelah top for my sister

- Hopeful

- Wrap with Sleeves

I don't know that I worked on this at all this year...

THINGS I NEED TO GIVE UP ON:
- Paris Loop

What was I thinking?

THINGS ATTEMPTED AND FROGGED:

- Green Gables

- a mini version of Print o' the Wave

NEW TECHNIQUES I'VE TRIED:

- hand dyeing with kool-aid

- spinning with a drop spindle

- my first buttonhole

- fair isle and steeks

OTHER FIRSTS:

- posted my first pattern

- participated in the Knitting Olympics (not medaling on my solo project, but leading what I believe to be the KO's only relay team to the gold)

- bought (and then promptly ignored) my domain, Yarngineering

- color awareness (tip: housewares magazines are a great source of inspiration for color combos. I find especially good combos in Crate and Barrel catalogues. I've even started keeping a scrapbook of ideas.)

- participating in my first Secret Pal exchanges (SP7 and the one-skein SP)

- represented Afghans for Afghans at the Boston Knit Out and Crochet Too

- posted two instructional mini-videos online

- tweaked a fair isle pattern to include shaping

NICE PEOPLE I'VE MET:

- Paula, my SP7 spoilee (check out her nature photography)

- Rainey, my SP7 spoiler, and fellow bellydancer

- Shannon, my one-skein SP spoilee, and famous author

- Alison, my one-skein SP spoiler, who lives on a houseboat in the UK

ITEMS I WANT TO MAKE IN 2007:
Well, there are lots of these, but here are the ones that are highest on my list at the moment.

- Sweet Mary Jane from Knitpicks (shop there; they're great).

Have yarn, will knit. This will be my first laceweight project.

- Odessa

- Apricot Cardigan

- Whisper

- Eiffel

THINGS I WANT TO LEARN/TRY/ACCOMPLISH:

- blog more often

- um, knit more

- (from my 2006 list) design my own sweater. I've actually done this once, and it fit really well, but a fitted raglan sweater in bulky boucle is just not flattering, so I frogged it, bought more, and made a blanket instead.

Sorta post

2006-10-11T23:40:00.000-04:00

This is a super-hurried post just because I haven't posted in a really long time. I have no pictures, but here goes:

- I cast on for a second Tubey in Aurora 8 (swoon) using a gift cert my former coworkers gave me as a going away present back in February. (Aren't they the best?)

- I am co-running a KAL for Serrano. Actually, my SP7 Rainy is running it, and I am mooching off her glory and adding the occasional person. I am making mine in mint green Aurora 4, which is loverly.

- Hopeful is done, except that one sleeve was too short (left out a pattern repeat), and I have been lame about fixing it, even though it will probably take all of 10 minutes to fix; I have already ripped back to where I made the mistake.

Why have I been so lame? Because I've started a video podcast on dance composition for belly dancers, and, well, a half-hour program takes a whole lot more than a half hour to film, transfer, edit, and upload. Wish me luck!

We have a winner, a knit-along, a cause, and a spoilee

2006-09-23T17:43:00.000-04:00

Thanks everybody for weighing in on color choices for Serrano. I'll be going with my first instinct, the lovely mint green:

It might be a little heavier than called for, but what's a little recalculating for a knitting geek like me?

My SP7, Rainy and I are hosting a knit-along. Come join us!

Not busy tomorrow (Sunday)? Come see me at the Boston Knit Out and Crochet Too. I'll be staffing the Afghans for Afghans booth until 2pm, and flitting about after that. Stop by and say hi!

I'm several weeks late announcing it, but I have revealed myself to my one-skein spoilee, Shannon Okey. Shannon is a bigwig author (her new book, Spin to Knit is about to be released by Interweave Press), used to live in my neighborhood (although probably not at the same time), and learned to spin from the same person I did: Lucy from Mind's Eye.

Now that I'm revealed, I can show you the gift I made for her:

(Shannon took a better picture)

That's the Droplet Hat from Knitting Nature in McTaggart Tweed from Beaverslide Dry Goods. I did four pattern repeats instead of five to make up for a gauge difference (3.5 vs. 4.5-5 st/in).

I first tried to do a scarf using the cable pattern from the Vortex-Street Pullover, but:
- it was way too big in the yarn I chose, so I couldn't do the whole pattern
- it made a much stiffer fabric than I wanted
- I didn't have enough yarn to make a long enough scarf without cutting the pattern on the sides, and I didn't like my modification.
- the cable pattern didn't "pop" in that yarn at that gauge

I took pictures, but I can't find them, so I think they may have been deleted. :(

Still, I think I'll have to make that sweater eventually; I did my thesis on Vortex-Induced vibration, so I think it's a moral imperative

Oh, yeah, and I started a Tubey in Karabella Aurora 8 (in brown, wine, teal, rust, indigo, and pumpkin), and finished Hopeful, but one sleeve is too short, so I need to redo. I will post pictures eventually, I swear!

Yarn Diet, a poll

2006-09-04T18:15:00.000-04:00

Inspired by my OSSP Ali (not to mention by my hefty yarn purchases over the summer), I am going on a yarn diet.

I can buy yarn only under the following circumstances:
- I have made at least 25% progress towards a WIP (or done the finishing on something in the finishing basket) since my last purchase
AND
- I buy it with a gift certificate (and I may add up to 30% of the value of the certificate ONLY if needed to buy the exact amount of yarn I need for the project I have in mind) OR
- I am buying it to make a gift for someone else for a gift-giving occasion, and nothing already in my stash will do

I can buy fiber for spinning under the following conditions:
- I have spun up all my fiber (I can order when the last batch is spun but not yet washed, but I have to wash it before it arrives)
- I spend no more than $20/month for the fiber (exception: may spend two month's worth

Luckily, I'm going to be filming for the national film challenge with the Postmodern Avengers the weekend of Rhinebeck! Unless, of course, we get assigned the documentary genre, in which case I think that calls for a fiber film...

And, of course, I have met my purchasing conditions with some hefty progress on Hopeful (pics coming soon), so I am going to use a kpixie gift certificate my lovely coworkers at MIT gave me when I left to get some Aurora 4, over which I have been salivating for weeks. Whee!

Now, Aurora 8 is officially my all-time favorite yarn. Nothing beats its softness, springiness, and versatility, not to mention the color choices. Except that it's kinda pricey. But when you start getting into the fingering-weight range, yarn suddenly gets a whole lot cheaper. I was thinking of making this lovely:

when I saw Serrano from the latest Knitty:

Fitted sweater, fun lace pattern, HOOK AND EYE CLOSURES? How could I not knit this baby?

The question is, what color? The contenders:

1- color 15 in a lovely mint-to-celery green:

2- color 13 in turquoise, which always looks nice on me. I already have a turquoise Sitcom Chic, but that's a summer-weight sweater.

3- color 6, a nice brown. Would be very versatile, but I'm not sure it would pop the way I this this sweater deserves

4- color 10, a sassy hot pink, which would look *fabulous* with a tank top I own, buuuuuut I already have some Aurora 8 in the same color, which I'll be using for a non-lacey cardi.

5- color 9, a slighly more bubble-gummy pink, which has the exact same pros and cons as 10.

6- color 20, a beautiful pale aqua / baby blue

So many choices! I think this calls for... A POLL!

And if I may end with a word that made me laugh so spasmodically my husband thought I was choking: stashweasel. Just scroll down.

OSSP revealed!

2006-09-04T15:38:00.000-04:00

My One-Skein Secret Pal has been revealed! Ali is a Scot living in England and working in Wales. She spoiled me rotten during this round of SP, and capped it off with this lovely package:

She knitted me a beautiful scarf in silk from Hipknits (drool). Besides being really pretty, it is both warm and cool at the same time; it will be great for transitioning my summer clothes.

Ali also included a tea towel and lanolin soap from Quarry Bank Mill, a living museum of the cotton textile industry. The mill reminded me of the Genesee Country Museum, which I used to visit when I was little as a daytrip from where I grew up in Buffalo, New York.

A final surprise in the box: a package of heart-shaped paperclips. I'm going to use these to mark pages in my knitting books; they're currently full of slips of paper.

Thanks, Ali. You've been a great SP!

In other news, I finished my first skein of handspun this weekend. The fiber, a blue-faced leicester from Copper Moose, was a gift from Rainy, my SP7 secret pal. She game it to me along with a top-whorl spindle, and some merino/mohair blend from Beaverslide, which I must... not... spin... until... other... projects... get... finished....

I took a lesson from Lucy at Mind's Eye, and then spun up the rest after a 4-month hiatus for a new job, business travel, family weddings, and general hosedness. I don't have a niddy-noddy, so I skeined it around two chairs:

When I hand-dyed some sock yarn from my SP7 spoilee Paula, I skeined it around one chair, but the diameter was too small for her swift, and it got all tangled. Sorry, Paula! Will definitely use two chairbacks from now on.

I overspun it, so I washed and weighted it with some hangers. Hopefully that'll set the twist.

This is absolutely beautiful fiber. The color seems to mix a rich medium brown with a glossy grey, and it changes depending on the light. I'd say it's half-way between these two:

The diameter varies a lot, both as a thick/thin texture, and at different points in the skein. You can distinctly see what was spun during the lesson, what was spun that month, and what was spun this weekend. I can even tell where I started to get tired in this weekend's batch! We'll also have to see what the gauge is like; the class yardage is about fingering, but it looks like most of it oscillates around worsted weight.

Still, I'm really happy with it. I haven't decided what to do with it yet, but the color would go beautifully with my winter coat. I may make a hat from it, or use it to trim a hat and mittens.

I also picked up a long-stagnant project: my Hopeful in Knitpicks Ambrosia. This is a much drapier yarn than the pattern calls for, but it's looking pretty good. The yarn has a beautiful fuzzy quality to it: not so much a halo as a fog, particularly in this color (Fog). I have the body completed, so now I'm on to the sleeves and neck trim. A short-sleeve alpaca/cashmere sweater will have a pretty limited season, but since it's going to be pretty delicate, that's probably just as well. :)

I also finished Clapotis #3 and delivered it to a very happy mother-in-law, but we forgot to take pictures. :( We'll get some soon.

I also made an object for my one-skein SP spoilee, but won't post it here until all is revealed.

I decided to do the rising flames heels with gussets, and will try to adapt the technique from the Widdershins pattern from Knitty. We'll see how they turn out.

I attempted a stash cleanup on Wednesday night (while frantically looking for my dance veil, which I didn't find but still swear is in that room). My goal was to get rid of some stuff and organize everything, but I failed miserably. I did manage to pass on three balls of yarn and a pattern. (By the way, if anyone wants an out-of-date wool of the andes color card, let me know. Knitpicks still carries those colors, but they've added new ones since I got it. Free to good home.) The organizing didn't go so well either; instead of nicely arranging everything, I just took bags from the floor and piled them in a wardrobe. the pile is semi-stable, which is an improvement. :0

Tight socks

2006-08-22T14:50:00.000-04:00

I got as far as the shortrow heels for Rising Flames (aka after-the-fact falling leaves) and gave them another try-on.

Owie.

They fit beautifully through the toes and up to the mid-instep (where you see the little white thread), and then get really tight. This is very strange, as I have particularly wide feet, and the ball of the foot is usually the problem for me. I've looked at all the sock patterns I can find online, and all of the shortrow heel patterns instruct you to just knit a tube between the toe and the heel. The only sock pattern I used before that (top-down with heel flap) had me make a gusset. Maybe I ought to rip back to mid-instep, and start doing some decreases towards the underside?

Also, my shortrow heels are tiny. They're just about the right width, but are really short/shallow. I'd expect the heel to come up to just under the ankle bone, but they only make the halfway mark. Are they supposed to be like that? Do I just have the world's tiniest row gauge? If so, is there anything I can do about it?

Sigh. I am probably the only person on earth who gets shortrow wraps, but still has trouble with shortrow heels.

That said, I love the technique (make so much SENSE) and I love this yarn (thanks SP!).

And I've never been one to mind a little frogging. Now if only I had added lifelines...

I really do knit...

2006-08-18T00:00:00.000-04:00

Although my blog might lead you to believe that I only buy yarn.

I got a great big box from Beaverslide Dry Goods this week:
(The shoe I threw in for scale isn't doing it's job. The box was HUGE.)

Packed with beautiful yarn.

Upper Row: McTaggart Tweed ("fisherman weight", which is a heavy worsted to light bulky) in Mountain Mahogany, for a zip-up jacket for my husband.

The middle row, left to right has:
- Fisherman Weight wool in Brown Bison
- McTaggart Tweed in Arrowleaf Balsamwood
- Light Sportweight in Mink Heather (almost a heavy sock-weight)

Lower Row: McTaggart Tweed in Cutthroat Trout for some kind of outerwear sweater for me.

I made a Jo Ann Fabrics run while in Binghamton, NY for my cousin's wedding. The nearest one to me in Boston is a real pain to get to. I bought:
- AN I-CORD MAKER!!!
- Some thread
- ball-point needles and pins (good for sewing knit fabrics)
- several half-price purse handles
- some Sugar & Cream, because it's cheap and I haven't tried it yet.

I didn't buy any, but Jo Ann Fabrics seems to have it's own house brand of medium-quality yarns. As in, yarns with actual, honest-to-goodness natural fibers in them. Some were designer knock offs; one was almost identical to Rowan Soft Baby.

I've also bought two books recently:
- Greetings from Knit Cafe. I'll be honest. I bought this for the red carpet dress pattern, which I was thinking of making for my christmas dress (I'll be on the QM2!) With holiday knitting, I may not get around to it, but I'm hopeful.
- Generation T. this is a fun book on customizing T shirts. Some of it is highly punk, and some is more mainstream, but it's a great source for ideas. And there are a LOT of old T shirts at my house.

Not pictured: a box from KnitPicks with:

- Knitting Nature by Norah Gaughan.
The designs are all wonderful, but I just had to have the chart for the Vortex Street Pullover. I may not make the sweater itself (a-line tunic probably won't be flattering), but I'll find somewhere else to use it. I wrote my thesis on vortex-induced vibration, so I was absolutely thrilled to see a Karman Vortex Street done in cables. I'm kind of miffed that I didn't think of it first, though...

- more Gloss for swatching, and a second skein for some socks
- More Suri Dream Handpaint, so that really big swatch I started can turn into a wrap
- Some Wool of the Andes for charity knitting
- Some Worsted-weight Bare for hand-dying
- Color cards for many of the new yarns

But I *have* done some knitting. Really I have!

Clapotis #3 is done, other than snipping the ends (already woven in) and dropping the ladders. Must.. not... forget.. to... bring... present...

This is the toe of my first:
- socks made of sock-weight yarn (as opposed to sport or worsted)
The yarn is a beautiful hand-dye by my one-skein secret pal.
- socks made without DPNs (DPNs are being used as a stitch holder in the photo)
- toe-up socks
- short-row toe sock
- sort-of-two-at-once socks

I started using Wendy's generic toe-up directions with some customizations. I resized them to my feet (68 st), and decided to use a Turkish (figure 8) cast-on:

That way, instead of using a provisional cast on, the loops attached to the waste yarn are made on the second needle instead. It gave a slightly looser row where the provisional cast-on would have been, but I'm hoping it will block out. It's on the underside of the toe, anyway.

I tried to do the two-at-once on two circulars method, and got seriously mixed up. So what I did was to work the toe of each sock separately up to the end of the short row toes, and then I put them both on the needles and worked from there.

By the time I got past the toe "knuckles", I was getting bored with stockinette, so I googled for some lace patterns. I really liked the lace from Falling Leaves, so I decided to throw it in on the instep and ankles. Lo and behold, it's also a toe-up, short-row toe and heel sock. So even though I hadn't read their directions to start with, I did end up following them. I suppose that (with the exception of the lace pattern), I unvented them. I think I'll call them Rising Flames. :)

I havent had access to my camera for a few days, so I can't post pics, but I'm approaching the heel. Very much looking forward to the short row heel.

I'm making these on size 0 KnitPicks Classic Circulars, which I have to say I love. They are quick like my one and only pair of addis, nice and pointy, and I LOVE the skinny and flexible cable. I have a Denise set and prefer cassein to metal, so I won't be buying the Options set, but I will definitely be picking up some size 1-4 needles. I might also buy a couple of cables and tips in Denise sizes for small-diameter knitting. I love my Denise set, but the cable is not especially flexible, so I've gotten some bad laddering when trying to do magic loop and some less bad laddering with the two circulars method. It is VERY nice that the Options tips and cables are available a la carte.

On my way to and from Binghamton (and at the scenic Comfort Inn), I did some swatching with a previous KnitPicks order:

Left-to right, thats:
- top row: McTaggart Tweed in snowberry (pinker than cuttthroat trout, which is more peachy)
- bottom row: Cotolin, Quarry (with some double-stranding experiments), Twirl, Suri Dream Handpaint

- Some experiments in stripes with some leftover worsted wools
- a full-skein swatch in Suri Dream Handpaint, soon to become a wrap.

Dude.

2006-08-08T17:46:00.000-04:00

These could save many a marriage.

Now if they could only find a way to make circulars...

I have a talented SP

2006-08-07T22:57:00.000-04:00

And not just at picking out great gifts either.

She acid-dyed the lovely skein of sock yarn you see above. I am highly impressed. Not only are the colors rich and beautiful (red, a burnt orange, chocolate brown, and purple), but the transitions are really smooth. (I have a little expierence dying with kool-aid, so I know how hard transitions are.) I thought it was Lorna's Laces at first; that's how great this yarn is.

Also in the box were tissues with a pretty modern floral pattern, a little notebook (just the right size for knitting notes; enough room to doodle, but not big enough to weigh down a purse), and a set of labels that say "made with love".

Thanks SP!

Yarn porn, fall colors, Clapotis, mean lace

2006-08-02T19:20:00.000-04:00

And they say money can't buy happiness.

My WEBS order arrived:

That's:
- Debbie Bliss Merino DK in a seal grey, turquoise, and grassy green. I'm thinking it might make for some pretty colorwork. The grey is darker than it looked online, but I still like it.
- Plassard Coto-lin in pink, brown, and tan
- Not shown: the yarn I bought for my one-skein secret pal (not going to spill it yet).

I'm a touch disappointed; they were out of stock in two of the yarns I ordered, but didn't tell me before shipping. As a result, I'm short one ball of coto-lin for the striped Tivoli I had in mind. If they had called, I would have asked them to substitute another color. Now, I have to place another order for it (and pay for shipping). Next time, I'll make a note to that effect in the comments field when I order. Overall, I'm happy with WEBS though.

As well as a box from KnitPicks with summer closeouts and sample balls from their fall line:

top-to-bottom, that's:
- a whole lotta Main Line (love that yarn; looks a little luxer than Shine)
- Quarry (lightweight alpaca/wool bouclee. The colors are much more vibrant than they look on screen.)
- Suri Dream Handpaint
- Telemark ("good, stout" Peruvian wool in sportweight for colorwork. It's funny; the non-luxury yarns at Knitpicks are always a lot softer than I expect. This one is not soft, but it is not rough or itchy. I wouldn't wear it against the skin, but it also won't be exfoliating my neck like my Debbie Bliss Aran Tweed.)
- Swish superwash (again, pretty stinking soft for regular wool. And washable is *really* useful.)
- Twirl (bulky alpaca/wool boucle. This is not a new yarn, but it's my first ball of it, so I say it counts)
- Gloss (silk/merino fingering weight. Meant for socks, but might make a beautiful lacey or mini-cabled sweater.)

FALL COLORS:

I have to say, I love the colors I picked out. I didn't intend to coordinate them, but I just love the combination of brown, teal/turquoise, rich red. I think I have a fall wardrobe pallette right in front of me, don't you?
- they are all gorgeous colors
- they all say "fall" to me
- I finally found a shade of brown I can wear (the more chestnutty, reddish browns, rather than the more yellowey browns)
- Most of my summer clothese have that brown in it or coordinate (and so will transition into this pallete)
- I bought a pair of adorable and comfy brown suede mary jane wedges on clearance over the summer, which will do beautifully.

Now, I don't usually think of a seasonal pallette, or even do enough shopping in any given season to enforce one. But:
- the pants I've been wearing since 2002 are wearing out (I had several pairs)
- I'm half a size smaller than I used to be (and have my eye on the other half), so I might need more new clothes than usual this fall
- I'm in the mood for some serious knitting this fall, including a couple of pattern ideas.

I think that calls for some planning.

CLAPOTIS:

In other news, Clapotis #3 is done (but I forgot to photograph it, and I'm not going downstairs right now). I'm going to gently spritz-block it before dropping the ladders to see if that would soften up the yarn. MCY silk/merino isn't as buttery as Lion & Lamb, but it's still very nice. I'm hoping a little bit of bloom will improve it.

MEAN LACE:

In still other news, I have started and scrapped by first lace project. I tried to make a mini, scarf-sized Print o' the Wave for my one-skein secret pal. The last thing you send is something you made for them out of one skein of yarn. I figured laceweight yarn goes a long way, so I gave it a shot. I expected to love lace (lots of opportunity for geekiness), but it made me really, really tense. I had a really hard time holding the needles and the fine yarn. Part of the problem is that I let go of the left needle a bit when I purl. I did better when I tried purling as for combination knitting, but I haven't gotten the hang of how to do slanted decreases in combo yet. The other part of the problem is that my only size 3 needles are aluminum, and I'm used to working on casseine: metal is heavier and slipperier. After about an hour of swearing and increased adrenaline, by husband gently suggested that I make something else. He's so smart.

WEBS rocks. UPS on the other hand...

2006-07-29T17:15:00.000-04:00

So, I place an order with WEBS (at fabulous close-out prices) after closing on Wednesday night. It ships on Thursday, and (since it's not particularly far from Northampton to Cambridge), it's due to arrive on Friday.

When I get home (from a lovely soak and massage at Urban Oasis - highly recommended, by the way), it's not there. I check the online tracking, and it claims to have been delivered, and left at the rear door. I check every possible location, but it's not here.

I call UPS, and they say I can't do anything, and I should have the sender place a request for investigation.

At this point, I'm a little cranky, because, not only is my yarn not here, but there's no way the package was left at the back door; to get there, you have to open two gates and walk 3/4 of the way around the house. (Plus, it is completely unsheltered, so if they had left it there, it would have been soaked through from the rainstorm.)

So I call WEBS on UPS' advice, and not only are they pleasant and willing to deal with UPS, they offer to send me a new shipment. I didn't have to ask; they just offered.

Reasons to shop at WEBS:
- it is both a LYS (at least semi-L) and a convenient on-line store
- huge selection
- good regular prices, great sale prices, and a fantastic discount program
- nice, friendly people who want you to be happy

Reasons to use UPS:
- um, it's often the only option

Checking In

2006-07-28T15:17:00.000-04:00

Whoo-eee, it's been a big three weeks. Here's what's up:

1- Frogged Green Gables (yet again. Oh, how I love Calmer's frogability)
I think I need to go back to my gauge swatch and re-calculate the entire pattern: how wide *I* want the neck to be, how many increase rows *I* need, etc. The "pick a size and then increase until it fits" method has just not produced a flattering neckline.

2- Decided to make an extra row and column for the Retro Throw. With my squares coming out at 14", rather than 20". And, while it is a throw blanket and not a bed blanket, the recipients are 5'10" and 6'7". The new blankie (heh heh) will be 4x5 squares, rather than 3x4, and will have a wider edging (skinny stripes, I think). That's 8 more squares to knit (no problem), and 8 more squares to block (yuck). The extra yarn arrived this week, along with some Main Line and Shimmer:

And some size 00 needles from Knitpicks' addi turbo knock-off line. Should be nice for sock knitting.

3- Am 1/2-2/3 through a Clapotis for my mother-in-law's 60th birthday present.

I'm using Mystical Creations Silk/Merino in Dublin Bay. This is a nice yarn. It's soft, has a nice sheen, and comes in a dizzying array of colorways and semi-solids. It's about a half-step down from Lion & Lamb (which has a butterier feel and more sophisticated color transitions), but it's a little cheaper, at least by weight. It only comes in 1/2 lb increments, so the total price is not a whole lot cheaper, but you have enough to make a longer Clapotis or make a hat to match.

4- Ripped out the upper few inches of my sister's Lelah Top, and re-knitted it with short rows. Also used a purl row to turn the upper edge for the elastic casing, and made some i-cord for straps and a sash. I'll be seeing her in a week and a half (our cousin is getting married - whee!), so we're going to do a fitting then. Must remember to block it before then...

Things I'm excited about:

- the lovely yarn I bought for my one-skein SP, which I could tell you about, but then I'd have to kill you. I will say that I bought on close-out (could never have afforded it otherwise) in my first order from Webs, which is due to arrive today - whee!

- my yarn suitcase

I've actually had this for a while, but somehow didn't manage to blog it. It's nice and roomy, has lots of little pockets inside and outside, and, has a telescoping handle and wheels, like a suitcase. Was a gift from my mother-in-law.

- KnitPicks' new fall yarns
I don't think thse have been formally announced, but they show up if you do a yarn search on their site. I'm seeing a trend towards designer knock-offs (tweeds, a nice-looking alpaca boucle) and I like. I like very much. I ordered some sample balls, along with some close-out Main Line.

- Secret-ninja project for my one-skein SP
The august package is supposed to contain something you knitted from one skein of yarn. Mine will be an adaptation of a pattern by a blogger I admire. Again, I could tell you, but I'd have to kill you. I'll just have to wait until she gets it and post later.

- Design ideas
I've had quite a few ideas for patterns lately, but by the time I get the details nicely fixed in my head, I stumble across a pattern for pretty much the same thing. Cases in point:
- The Cambridge Jacket from this summer's Interweave Knits

(So similar to mine, right down to the ribbing at the shoulders!)
- The Center Cable and Rib Pullover from America Knits by Melanie Falick

(okay, I didn't have that cool a cable in mind, but I did have a ribbed t-neck with a center cable in mind, and I did want the cable to be something unexpected)

At first, this was kind of frustrating. But now that it's happened a few times, I'm going to take it as a sign that I'm on the right track, if a little behind. :)

UPDATE: 11:33pm: Knitpicks just announced their new line, and, along with it, an intriguing modular purse/project bag set. It looks like you pack a regular purse, and then it latches on to a project bag (which comes in different sizes). I am highly interested in this, but wonder:
- how does it look when it's latched on? I can't tell from the picture.
- how do the pieces themselves constructed, and how do they look? There is a photo on their web site, but it's not detailed enough for me to get a sense of the qualityl. I love the modular concept, but I don't want to spend money on a cheap-looking bag. That's one thing I love about Jordana Paige's bag; it looks actively nice.

I'm a Bad SP-ee

2006-07-05T09:08:00.000-04:00

Confession time: I've been a bad one-skein secret pal spoilee. My SP sent me the fabulous package below TWO WEEKS AGO, and I've only just gotten around to blogging about it. (I did send a thank-you email earlier though.) I feel bad. But look what I have to distract me from my shame:

That's:

- a skein of Orkney Angora lambswool/angora blend in a gorgeous minty-aqua-robins-egg color (swoon). This passed the rub-against-still-shower-damp-neck test without even a hint of the pricklies.
- a skein of Loiusa Harding Sari Ribbon with such a nice sparkle I might use it for a belly dance costume and not knit with it
- sugar-free dark chocolate
- a cute bookmark
- delicious-smelling soap and shampoo from Lush
- a package of earl grey tea (mmm... bergamot...)
- a nice note from my SP in a "beware of the sheep" card

Thanks, SP, and once again, I'm sorry for the delay posting!

In other news, I've finished the 12 squares of my sister's Retro Throw and blocked 6 of them, but didn't manage to stretch them to 20"; the best I could get was 14x14". That gives me a deficit of 18" of width and 24" of length. I haven't decided how I want to deal with that. I can get some more yarn and make another 8 squares (one row and one column), but that still leaves me a bit short. I was thinking of a border of thin stripes to make up the gap. I don't want to make it any smaller than the 60x80 it calls for; it's a throw blanket, not a bed blanket, but my sister and her boyfriend are T-A-L-L.

Have also restarted my Green Gables in Rowan Calmer. I love this yarn. Between this pattern and Soul, I must have frogged and reknit 4 or 5 times, but the yarn is still soft and elastic. Love, love, love.

I like this pattern, but it definitely does run small. I made the medium (in theory, a perfect fit) the first time, and it was TINY. Not just having a fair bit of negative ease, but stitches-stretched-out, don't-wear-this-to-work tiny. I cast on for the large this time, and will be doing some extra increases to make up for being a hair off-gauge (5.25 st/in, rather than 5).

SP7 Revisited

2006-05-31T22:28:00.000-04:00

Eeeee!!!! I have another package from my SP7 pal. She says she forgot to mail it. I say she knew how much I like to spread out the fun. (My mom and I are both notorious for celebrating our birthdays for 2-3 weeks.)

Rainy sent me:

Some GORGEOUS raspberry merino for spinning (it's a much brighter color than it looks in the picture), a CD full of belly dance music (we're both dancers), and a cute postcard. Thanks, Rainy! The first box was spoilage enough, but you just don't know when to stop, do you? :)

In other knitting news, I haven't done much knitting. In fact, I haven't picked up needles or spindle in almost two weeks (gasp). Life is just getting in the way. Between working longer hours than I used to, getting some exercise or dancing in every day, and actually cooking dinner and doing some cleaning (double gasp), the clock keeps turning to 10:30 (or 11:30, or 12:30) by the time I put tomorrow's lunch in the fridge.

I don't know how I've made it this long without knitting. Have you ever accidentally missed a meal because you were so busy, and been completely fine (other than the stress of the business) until you realized it, at which point you became a grumpy, shaky mess? That's where I am, except that it makes me more sad and lonely for my yarn than grumpy. My husband has been asking me for days if something's bothering me, and I've been at a loss. I wonder if that was it...

My goal for this week (in addition to eating right, exercising, sleeping, and laundry) is to knit at least 10 minutes in bed each night.

That said, I do have a couple of squares for the Retro Throw done:

You might ask why I show three completed squares today, and four earlier in the month? Well, the first two were a bust. Sportweight yarn on size 10 needles makes a pretty wussy blanket, so I've been double-stranding.

And, in honor of my SP7 spoilee, Paula and her gorgeous nature photography, a double rainbow seen in North Cambridge a week and a half ago, over the scenic condo construction next door:

Finally, the chicken viking hat has been spotted in the wild:

(where "in the wild" = on the head of my sister's fiance Ryan)

One-Skein SP Post

2006-05-10T23:42:00.000-04:00

For my one-skein secret pal:

1. Which yarn is most like your personality (you can be specific or general with your answer- brand, type, color, fiber, whatever)?
Merino wool: I'm gentle and nice to be around, but also "lofty" and energetic, interested in everything (honestly, is there anything merino truly CAN'T do?) and I benefit from a little extra care. Plus, I firmly believe that good quality and workmanship (i.e., character and living your life) is more valuable than flash.

2. What is your favorite color yarn to knit/crochet with?
I use blue, red and pink most often. I like most jewel tones and pastels. At the moment, though, I'm obsessed with peach/salmon and robin's egg blue.

3. Have you ever used variegated, or magic, yarns?
I use variegated yarns ocassionally, and mostly for variegated-suitable projects: Clapotis, socks, etc.

4. Do you tend to favor certain fibers when choosing yarns?
I love soft wool and cotton. Alpaca is silky on the hands, but gives me the prickles when I wear it, so I don't use it very much. I don't mind a _little_ synthetic blended into a yarn, as long as you can't feel it. (Rowan Calmer is a good example)

5. Do you prefer to work with center-pull or traditionally wound balls of yarn?
I generally go center-pull, but am flexible.

6. Have you ever worked with organic yarns or are you interested in trying them?
Haven't used them, but would definitely be interested.

7. How many and what projects have you made in the last year?
17 finished objects in 2005, plus 8 I didn't finish :
http://jessdr.blogspot.com/2006/01/year-in-review.html
In 2006, I've completed ZigZag, made most of Snowflakes and Arrows, started Tubey, started and frogged and restarted Green Gables, and have a Retro Throw in progress.

8. Will you be knitting any gifts this year?
Oh, yes. I'm working on one right now, and have another on the schedule for August, not to mention holiday knitting...

9. What is your favorite one skein project?
Feline Dim Sum (Julie Falatko's and my own)

10. How much yarn do you have in your stash and how do you store it?
A modest, but respectable stash: less than 10 sweater-quantity batches, four batches of sock yarn, 20-30 yarns in smaller quantities (mostly single balls I bought to play with). Most of it lives in boxes, bags, and drawers, all stuffed into a shirt-sized wardrobe.

11. Do you have a yarn in your stash that you love so much you can never use it or part with it?
No, but the best yarns usually need to age a little before I know what they want to be.

12. Do you knit less or differently in the summer?
Yep. I knit slightly less (spending more time outside), and tend to knit summery garments.

13. Do you belong to any knitting groups (online or offline)?
Yep, the MIT Stitch & Bitch

Gush

2006-05-08T21:28:00.000-04:00

Forgive me, readers, for I have sinned. It has been very nearly a month since my last post. Between traveling, dancing, and writing the document that wouldn't DIE, I've managed to get some knitting in, but not blogging.

So imagine my surprise when my nearly-month-old post received not just a comment, but a comment from, ahem, the Yarn Harlot herself.

Now, I am not the type to get star-struck. In fact, I once hitched a ride with Aiofe Clancy after a Cherish the Ladies concert (she and her husband saw me running after a shuttle bus I had just missed, took pity, and drove me all around Weston, Massachusetts for half an hour looking for a T station), and managed to hold up a very normal conversation and not jump up and down in the back seat.

So I was highly surprised:

a- to find myself tongue-tied during the book signing after Stephanie's talk in Cambridge in April. I had serious difficulty explaining that my name was not Crystal (who had lent me her yarn harlot book, which I kept for months, spilled diet coke on, and dipped in the bathtub, before I finally bought her a new copy, keeping the old one with her name in it for myself).

b- by how giggly-fan-like I got when she included the picture of Team MIT on her blog entry about that talk

c- that I literally DID jump up and down and run to tell my husband when she commiserated about steeking here yesterday.

So now that I've admitted to being a silly, giggly fan (for shame!), I'll take it the whole nine yards:
Steph, thanks for writing. There is just nothing like your work to make a knitter feel _understood_. I even made my husband read a few pieces from your first book, and, while I think he still doesn't get it, he does finally understand that not only am I the only one like this, but there are enough of us out there to demand our own genre of humor. And thanks also for making me (a former library employee) laugh hard enough to dip a book in the bathtub.

Now, on to some actual knitting content:

1- I haven't done a single thing on snowflakes and arrows. I was mad at it, and then it got really warm in Boston. I'm ready to make up, but I think I'll wait until early fall, when it'll be closer to wool-wearing season.

2- I started Green Gables in a baby pink Rowan Calmer. I ripped out Soul to harvest the yarn. I will always love Soul as my first cables project, but I don't think it would ever have been flattering, even if I did get it to fit (or figure out how to work short rows into a solid-cable project). I made this down to the under-bust (it's top-down) and ripped it out three times (once as written, once without the decreases, and then once with increases) before deciding to just make the next larger size. Haven't gotten around to that yet, though. At risk of repeating myself, I LOVE THIS YARN. It is essentially the summer equivalent of Aurora 8: soft, stretchy, and wonderful in every way. Doesn't come in as many colors as aurora 8, alas.

3- I started the Retro Throw as a graduation present for my sister the rapper.

I'm wondering if there might be an error in the pattern. It's a blanket knit with a sport-weight yarn on size 10 needles. (?!?!?) Not only did I not get anything even CLOSE to gauge, but when I knit up a square just for the heck of it, it used a LOT less yarn that the pattern said it should per square. Plus, it's really flimsy at that gauge. I've worked two squares double-stranded, and that gives a much nicer hand, but is still a slightly finer gauge, and appears to be taking slightly MORE yarn than the pattern predicts. I like it best this way, so I'm just going to do it, and will order more yarn if I run out. (Stripes are great for hiding dye lot differences!)

Good night for now. I'll leave you with an image to ponder:

My sister's graduation (this morning) closed with a somewhat corny, over-the-top rendition of New York, New York by one of the school's vocal groups. And the faculty of the Steinhardt School at NYU, joined by this year's distinguished alum award recipient, Judy Blume, did a kick line. It was awesome, it was hysterical, and I got it on video.

You heard it here first. :)

First (real) steeks

2006-04-10T22:34:00.001-04:00

So, before I enter into this diatribe, a disclaimer: I have cut my knitting before. My attempt at resizing Asana for a new gauge didn't work out fabulously well, so I ended up using the cut & sew method of resizing. That said, I haven't done any traditional steeking before. With Asana, it was a case of "well, I still have enough yarn left over to make another one, so what the hell." With Snowflakes and Arrows, it was fate. And man, how cruel Fate can be.

You see, I knitted up a lovely Snowflakes and Arrows, with Kim's very helpful advice from the knit-along, and adding my own side-seam-area decreases:

Working some lovely snowflake fair isle, if I do say so myself:

And then, about 14 inches into the center-front opening, I cut two and a half rows of steek, instead of the center purl bumps of steek:

The word panic took on a new meaning last night.

I promptly re-crocheted to re-secure the cut portion, and I think it's going to be okay, but MAN was that stressful. I knit most of this vest in a foreign state, commuting 500+ miles without my husband of 9 months, and sometimes under adverse circumstances (including a lovely bout of stomach flu).

So while the $12ish that I spent on the yarn for this is utterly expendable, quite a lot of who I am as a person is woven into this thing. It contains me panicking when I realized how much more of my time my new job takes vs. the very loose 10-6 my previous lovely and fun but not long-term-challenging job required of me. It contains me realizing that most of what was making me sad was the fact that my husband wasn't waiting for me at (my temporary) home. It contains me realizing that, even though I wouldn't be doing anything even remotely resembling my job title for a good 6 months, the technical writing that I'm doing now is helping to keep afloat a company that pays 100% of my healthcare costs, whose owner says good morning to me every single day, and that gives me a supervisor who tells me at least once a week how happy he is that I took the writing burden away from him.

For that reason, I really, really, want this vest to survive, so it can be a tangible memento of a difficult but still useful and positive time in my life. I rediscovered knitting in a similar during a really really hard time. Its place in my life has grown beyond occupational therapy, but every piece I've made is a record of who I was at the time, and a reminder of what I can accomplish. Including getting through a botched steek, I hope!

SP7 revelations, Snowflakes and Arrows

2006-04-04T21:38:00.000-04:00

SP7, my very first round, is over. I still can't get over how much fun it was. It was like Christmas, except with less time pressure. Even better, I got to shop for another knitter, and have another knitter pick out wonderful things for me!

Here are my SPs:

Spoilee: the charming and talented Paula. She knits some fabulous socks, takes beautiful nature photos, and had the perseverence to reknit her Seamus THREE TIMES until she was happy with it!

Spoiler: the thoughtful and psychic Rainy. She is also a belly dancer and serenity fan, and did a fabulous job of making me feel special, encouraging me, and making me squeal like a 2nd grader at her own birthday party.

Strangely enough, I think I actually ran across Rainy's blog during SP7; I think I linked there from Atla's blog. Atla is a member of the, ahem, Tubey Knit-Along I'm running.

In other news, I've reached the snowflakes portion of the Snowflakes and Arrows vest:

I love fair isle, although the snowflake chart is a little tricky to follow. This pattern is pretty cool, but FULL of mistakes. If you are even thinking of attempting it, you may want to check out the knit-along, where Kim posted some solutions.

Now, for no particular reason:

The Yarntainer, which my wonderful husband saw, realized would be useful for knitting, and bought for me without any hinting or prompting whatsoever:

Unavision:

Long-Awaited Photos

2006-03-25T18:54:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the delay, everybody. I'm still a little short on time, but here are some pictures:

Gifts from my lovely SP

My finished ZigZag (post-mortem to come later)

Snowflakes and Arrows Progress

Modifications to the Snowflakes & Arrows pattern: it was written without shaping, but was evily photographed pinched in at the waist, leading me to believe it had a lovely corset-like fit. I added decreases along the sides, and I think they're both subtle and shapely.

Yarn from the lovely ladies at kpixie. 12 balls of Karabella Aurora 8 (swoon) in hot pink, probably for a cardigan. 3 balls of SWTC Bamboo for their ballet top pattern.

Discussion to come, I promise. I just can't say when yet. :)

My SP rocks, and I have been lame (and also a turtle)

2006-03-19T21:27:00.000-05:00

I've been very lame about posting, since I've just started a new job that has me commuting to another city this month, and the company-provided accomodations (while lovely) lack internet access. The neighbors are very kindly sponsoring this post. This post will also be 100% picture-free, since my camera is in Boston.

Anyway, text is better than nothing, and it's been WAY too long since I sent a great big thank you to my SP (not to mention an update on my knitting et al), so here goes.

SP, you rock. Not only do you send me presents (which doesn't GUARANTEE that I'll like you, but doesn't hurt), and not only do you pick out really cool and perfect-for-me things to spoil me with, but everything you have sent (presents, letters, emails, blog comments) feel like a form of encouragement. I mention that I'm curious about spinning, and BAM, you send me a spindle. Both of us being belly dancers, you send me a book on the history of dance in the Arab world. I love all of the things you've sent me, but what I love most is the silent "I want to support you in this thing that interests you". That is a truly wonderful thing.

For the rest of you, guess what my SP sent me!

Box 1 (my birthday present, which arrived in Boston on my first day in DC):
- Serpent of the Nile by Wendy Buonaventura
This is a book on the history of women's dance in the Arab world, and particularly about western Orientalists' fascination with it. I have wanted this for a long, long time, and my SP didn't even know it!
- Yarn Harlot: The Secret Life of a Knitter by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
Absolutely hysterical, and it can come in handy when trying to explain certain knitting-related things to certain husbands.
- a bar of the best sugar-free dark chocolate I've ever had. (Trader Joes, baby!)

Box 2:
- KnitPicks Shadow lace yarn in Grape Jelly, to be used for
- the pattern for Sivia Harding's Hanging Garden Lace Stole
(gorgeous, and looks like FUN)
- a packet of Russian Caravan tea, which I haven't brewed yet, but smells like a really nice lapsang souchong (my favorite!)

and I'm sure I'm forgetting something, but since it's late and the boxes are five states away, I hope she'll forgive me.

In other news, ZigZag is done! I finished it a week and a half after the Knitting Olympics ended, and then lamed out of snipping the ends until this weekend. Turtle Power!

I also started Snowflakes and Arrows, and have done four repeats of the arrows. Fair Isle is FUN!

Turtle Knit-Along

2006-02-27T15:20:00.000-05:00

Did you try your best to finish your Knitting Olympics project, but not manage it in time?

Are you still committed to proudly crossing the finish line, even without the lure of the gold medal?

That, my friend, is the true Olympic Spirit!

Join me for Mafia's Turtle Knit-Along:

Relay Gold, Individual Disappointment

2006-02-27T12:46:00.000-05:00

Well, the Knitting Olympics are over. And what a big 2+ weeks it has been, including:

- a week-long illness
- not one but TWO birthday parties (for me)
- a road trip
- a train trip
- a belly dance performance
- some serious sister time
- a job offer
- transition plans related to said job offer
- the "launch" of my knitting website, Yarngineering

and of course, a whole lot of knitting.

The MIT Relay Team was a smashing success:

(modelled here by our Anchor Danielle)

But, alas, Zig-Zag isn't finished. I'm done with the body and 90% of the first sleeve. I'm disappointed that I didn't finish, but I feel really good about the way I did it. I chose something that was a real challenge and strove for the gold, but I didn't sacrifice my standards. I ripped out 4" of the front chest, and dropped 2-4 stitches 20+ rows to fix cable mistakes FOUR TIMES. I didn't finish in time for a medal, but I did do something wonderful and without sacrifice. And I'm not done yet! The medals may already have been awarded, but I'm going to keep going until I cross the finish line too.

And yes, there will be pictures.

Olympic Update, New Web Site!

2006-02-24T13:30:00.000-05:00

Well, I've finished the body and about 4" of sleeve one, and I'm pretty worried. I was sick all last week, and while I spent three whole days at home, I slept most of that time, so I actually got LESS knitting done than if I had been well and going to work.

The sleeves are going very slowly. My bamboo double-points are way too sharp for this yarn, so I switched to the 2-circulars method with my Denises, which was a little too laddery, so I switched to a three-circulars method with my denises (I bought an extra pair of size 6 tips a few weeks ago!), which is much better but SLOW. I'm going to Windsor Button this afternoon to see if I can pick up a blunter pair of dpns.

With only a couple of days to go, I'm nervous, but, in the true Olympic spirit, I'm not going to give up. I have a 5-hour train ride tonight, so hopefully I can make up some of the gap.

In other news, I picked out a design name and registered its domain. Yarngineering is born! At the moment, I've only got a placeholder page that points here and to my steamed bun pattern, but I'll add more content there in the not-too-distant future.

And now, for something completely unrelated, I give you the Best Lunch Ever: veggies and dip with a side of crabmeat, and followed by two perfect strawberries. Yum Yum Yum. And I got everything from the supermarket salad bar, except for the crabmeat which came in a nice little ready-to-eat packet. The crab would have been even tastier with a little lemon and dill, but it was great plain.

Ball 4

2006-02-14T12:58:00.000-05:00

I have no time to blog today, but I finished the fourth ball of Merino Style for ZigZag. I'm getting pretty close to done with the body section.

Day 3's progress

2006-02-13T12:12:00.000-05:00

As of bedtime on Sunday night (technically Monday morning), I've got 10 or 11 inches of ZigZag done. I took a picture after finishing Ball 3, and then forgot to upload it, so you'll have to wait until tonight for pictures. The 10-11" also includes a fair bit of Ball 4.

I've had a bit of wrist strain in two days of solid knitting (including extremely frequent cabling without a cable needle), but I've got a better sense now of when to stop and rest, and when I can pick it back up again.

This isn't going to be easy (particularly considering my upcoming commitments), but I think I can do this.

UPDATE 8pm:

Last night's work

First 36 hours

2006-02-12T04:59:00.000-05:00

Here's what I managed so far:

- six inches of Zig Zag:

I've used exactly two balls of Merino Style so far.

- the first of two squares for My Relay Team's blanket:

I'm not sure I love this, and I still need to add a border, but it was my first try at mitred squares, and it was pretty fun to make.

First Hand Dyes

2006-02-10T17:21:00.000-05:00

In other news, my very first hand-dyes:

I used KnitPicks Dye Your Own sock-weight merino. It's not a wildly good quality yarn, but it's perfectly decent. I was underrconfident of the colors, and made them all bolder than I meant to (particularly the green in the blue/green colorway), but I still like how they turned out.

The method was based on the multiple-jars-in-one-pot-of-water method fromDianna's tutorial (which also inspired the red colorway) and used the stripe length math from Eunny's. I used water-to-vinegar-to-kool-aid ratios from Barbara's tutorial.

In short, here's what I did:

- estimate how long I wanted each striped section to be, and how long the full cycle of color repeats would be
- wind a skein as long as the full cycle (this is LONG. I did it in a huge rhombus around four chairs)
- tie off the skein to mark where the colors change
- soak the huge skein in a vinegar and hot water solution for half an hour or so
- mix 6 oz water, 2 oz vinegar and 1 packet of kool-aid (the sugar-free kind) in a large jar and mix very well. Repeat for all colors. Add more dye mixture, in these proportions, if desired
- place the jars in a large pot, in a bath of cold water several inches deep
- place each section of the yarn in the appropriate jar. Add enough water to cover the yarn well, and give it a very gentle, but thorough, stirring to mix.
- turn on the heat under the pot (I did it on medium), and bring the water in the pot (but not the dye in the jars) to a simmer. Stir the yarn very occasionally, to make sure the dye circulates
- it's done when all the dye has been sucked up into the yarn. The liquid in the jars will either turn milky or clear. The picture below is ALMOST ready (and has a cool steam effect):

- Let the yarn cool (or put on a sturdy oven mitt) and dump the yarn carefully into your (clean and bleach-free) sink. Let it sit for a minute.

- Gently wash and hang to dry as usual. (I used cold water and Eucalan)
- wind into a ball or skein. I think self-stripeys look particularly adorable on a skein. Plus, it will entertain your cat no end.

Tips:
- make your color change markers nice and obvious. Once your yarn gets wet, it's harder to guess
- choose jars with plenty of room. I used a 26 oz jar for about a 1.5oz section of the skein, and it was a bit too small.
- choose jars of approximately the same height. Otherwise, the dye from the taller jar will travel down the yarn and mix into the lower one. If you're stuck with different heights (as I was), allow the yarn to dip down below the lip of the lower of the two.
- use rubber gloves when handling the Kool-Aid powder and mixed dye
- artificially-sweetened drink mixes like Crystal Light work just fine
- the yarn is going to absorb all the dye in the water, so the actual dilution doesn't matter, but the total amount of dye does. Add as much water as you need to cover the yarn, but make sure you mix it well.
- if you take the yarn out of the jars before it's milky/clear, it might bleed onto the other colors

Recipes:

Red colorway:
Largest section, appx. 2 oz of yarn: 3 packets of Cherry, 1/2 packet of Grape (dark red)
Med section, appx 1 oz of yarn: 2 packets of Wyler's Strawberry-Kiwi and 1/2 packet of tropical punch (coral)
Med section, appx 1 oz of yarn: 3 packets of Lemonade (yellow)

If I make this again, I'll include more Cherry and less Grape in the dark red, omit the tropical punch from the coral (for more of a peachy pink), and maybe use 2-2.5 packets of Lemonade.

Blue/Green colorway:
Largest section, appx 2oz of yarn: 3 packets of Ice Blue Raspberry (turquoise)
Small section, appx 2/3 oz of yarn: 3 packets of Watermelon Kiwi (green)
Small section, appx 2/3 oz of yarn: 2 packets of Wyler's Strawberry-Kiwi and 1/2 packet tropical punch (coral)
Small section, appx 2/3 oz of yarn: 3 packets of Lemonade (yellow)

If I make this again, I'll use 2 packets of Watermelon Kiwi for a green that's more lime than grass, and omit the tropical punch from the coral, for more of a peachy pink.

Let the Games Begin

2006-02-10T14:12:00.000-05:00

I have no words better than these

If I may excerpt (shamelessly copying the idea from Mafia):

The Knitting Olympics Athletes Pledge

I, a knitter of able hands and quick wits, to hereby swear that over the course of these Olympics I will uphold the highest standard of knitterly excellence.

I will be deft of hand and sure of pattern, I will overcome troubles of yarn overs and misplaced decreases. I will use the gifts of intelligence and persistence (as well as caffeine and chocolate) and I will execute my art to the highest form, carrying with me the hope for excellence known to every knitter.

I strive to win. To do my best, and to approach the needles with my own best effort in mind, without comparing myself to my fellow knitters, for they have challenges unique to them.

While I engage in this pursuit of excellence and my own personal, individual best, I also swear that I will continue to engage with my family in conversation, care for my pets, speak kindly with those who would ask me to do something other than knit, and above all, above every stitch thrown or picked, above every cable, every heel stitch, every change of colour, I swear this:

That I will remember that this is not the real Olympics, that I'm supposed to be having fun and that my happiness and self-worth ride not on my success....

but on my trying.

Let the games begin!

- by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, the Yarn Harlot

Olympic Training

2006-02-08T23:49:00.000-05:00

I've completed my swatching for Zig Zag:

I'm substituting KnitPicks Merino Style for the incredibly pricey (but doubtless lovely) Lana Gatto Feeling. In theory, the two have the same gauge in stockinette. However, when I did swatches in pattern, I got a very different gauge.
The pattern is supposed to knit up to 23st./4in. double-stranded. I got closer to 20. I did a single-stranded swatch, and got 24st./4in. I blocked the two, and will have to do a final check when they dry. The row gauge is SPOT ON, although I'll need to double-check that as well after it dries.

Single-stranding also has a few other advantages:
- it gives a much nicer fabric. The double-stranded swatch is very stiff, since it's essentially an aran weight knitted on size 6s.
- it uses less yarn. I might even have enough left over to make another garment. Yay!
- it is infinitely easier for the cabling without a cable needle method. Doing that with double-strands is a serious pain.
- it is much more comfortable to knit. With the double-strands on proportionally small needles, I felt like I was wrestling with the yarn.

In other news, I had my a spinning lesson today with Lucy from my most L of LYSes. It was extremely helpful; I finally understand what I'm doing. It'll obviously take some practice before my hands get the hang of it, but I feel very well equipped for that practice. I spun a few yards of yarn using the drop spindle and Blue-Faced Leicester my lovely secret pal sent me:

Thanks, SP; this is really fun!
Lucy also showed me how to spin on a wheel. I had a really hard time using the double-treadle model we started with, but got the hang of it much more quickly when we switched to a single-treadle Saxony style. I think I'm going to need one of those in a few years...

It is awfully late, so I won't be showing pics of MY FIRST HAND-DYEING. I'll post those soon...

Tubey Shrug

2006-02-04T18:35:00.000-05:00

I've finished the shrug portion of my Tubey:

I'm very pleased with the fit. I haven't decided yet if I'm going to let the sleeve ends roll, or if I want to add an edging. I think I'll put that decision off until I've finished the body, and can look at the garment as a whole.

Next step: recalculate the number of stitches to pick up.

Hooray for Knitted Food and Pretty Hats

2006-02-01T11:42:00.000-05:00

The February issue of Magknits came out this morning, and there are two designs in there that I absolutely love:

Sushi by Amy Polcyn

Hooray for knitted food!
[shameless self-promotion]Check out my steamed bun pattern[/shameless self-promotion]

Odessa by the always fabulous Grumperina

There are precious few elegant knitted hats out there, and this is my favorite.

Stash and Geekery

2006-01-31T20:10:00.000-05:00

Okay, only three pieces of it are actually stash, since the rest of it is earmarked for specific projects. My HUGE BOX from KnitPicks (which cost less than my Clapotis) included:

- 18 balls of Merino Style in Vanilla for Zig Zag

- 1 ball of Merino Style in tidepool, for hefty swatching in preparation for a design project (I already have a batch of this for the sweater proper, but got nervous about the amount needed for prep)

- 2 hanks of sock weight Color Your Own, for my first try at hand-dyeing

- 9 balls of Pallete in: black, blue, pool, and sky for Snowflakes and Arrows (which is very stinkfully photographed, both flat and on the model, to imply shaping, but actually has none. I'll take that as a challenge.)

- a bottle of Eucalan

- The pattern for Snowflakes and Arrows

- The book Simple Socks: Plain and Fancy, which totally rocks. It's all about understanding construction, rather than following patterns.

That reminds me. I've been meaning to start an Amazon book list, and maybe a series of articlettes called Knitting for Engineers. The more I think about it, the geekier knitting seems to me. Yes, it's about beauty and drape and the way the fiber feels in your hands. But if you think about it, there's so much more to each of those things. What makes a design beautiful? Why does one swatch drape differently than another? Why does one fiber feel different? These can all be understood, at least to some degree, and that adds another layer of pleasure to seeing a beautiful design, admiring how it drapes, and enjoying the feel of Alpaca in your hands. Plus, the process of coming to understand them is incredibly fun.

Woohoo. (and owie)

2006-01-30T23:46:00.000-05:00

So, once again, my secret pal rocks. She sent me my February package EARLY, and not only was it beautifully decorated:

it was full of wonderful things:

The pictures are unfortunately dark, but here's what was in there:
- a pretty postcard
- a ball of Trekking sock yarn (in a lovely dark color that seems to be a mix of black, burgundy, and dark green: subtle and neutral, but still interesting!)
- a set of gorgeous Brittany size 1 double points in birch. (lux-ur-y)
- Knitter's Little Helper hand balm from Blue Sky Alpacas (and was there anything on the questionnaire about having the world's driest skin? No. Maybe they should rename this Psychic Pal. Seriously, SP: when I was a kid, my skin used to get so dry that it would literally _bleed_ in the winter. Even with 2-3 lotionings a day, it still gets pretty dry. This is so very much appreciated!)
- oolong tea candy (at 3g of sugar for the average piece of hard candy, these are just the right amount for special-occasion treats, since I can only handle one at a time, but these are so special that just one is enough to savor)
- pretty beads
- brass pin stitch markers
- finally (and this is the most tickles me most with its sillines and usefulness) a postal-style stamp saying "certified work of art"

On a less-unexpected note, my color cards from Beaverslide Dry Goods came today, and boy, oh boy.

Almost every color they have is one of my colors. They have a nice mix of brights and more muted colors, but they're all fairly cool in undertone, and just plain pretty. Considering the quality, price, and personal and eco-friendly production, what's not to like? I'd say they complement KnitPicks nicely within that price range: both have basic, classic yarns at excellent prices, but KnitPicks goes for smoother, more polishes looks, while Beaverslide goes for a more organic, slightly rustic look, both at similar (and very low, particularly for the quality) prices. Wow-e-wow.

Finally, and lest I collapse in paroxysms of joy, two big ouches:

- I had to write a check to the Commonwealth for $715 yesterday. Stinky tax software that shall not be named didn't include income I earned at an internship in Texas in 2002 towards my Massachusetts taxes, and I got audited. Now, I have no problem paying my share. However I absolutely hate finding out several years later that I owe money, and not only taxes, but a good $100+ in interest, and ESPECIALLY because software that claims expertise screwed up. I'm hoping that I can get that refunded, in accordance with their accuracy guarantee. The other thing that really bothers me is that this whole thing was caused by the fact that my employer at that internship (which shall remain nameless) overpaid me, through their mistake. When I noticed that (back in the fall of 2002, just after I returned to Boston) they had given me an extra paycheck, I called them and asked what to do, and they said to send them a check for the extra money. So I did, right away. Then, in 2003, they sent me a letter, saying that I owed them more money. Apparently, my second-to-last paycheck had the wrong end date, so I had a few days more pay than I was entitled to. So I agreed to send them the wages for the days I had mistakenly been paid for A YEAR EARLIER. But then they wanted me to reimburse them for the federal taxes on the extra wages they had paid me. Now, I did not have, and had never had, this money in my possession, and they had paid it because of their own mistake. It took me several phone calls to convince them that getting that money (which, again, I had never even seen) back from the federal government was their problem. And then, quite some time later, I got corrected W-2s. Which prompted an audit, which prompted the bill for $700+. Once again, I have no problem paying what I rightfully owe, but G*D D*MN IT! I wish this would just END. Sigh.

- I have two large blisters on each foot. I've been walking to and/or from work (3 miles each way) several days a week lately, to plump up my stats for the MIT Fitness Challenge. Today, I forgot to bring my proximity card (which lets me leave my office building after 7pm without setting off the alarm). I realized this at 6:58, and had to rush to get out before the alarm was activated, and, in the process, forgot to put on my athletic socks. As a result, I walked home in sneakers and kneehighs, which, let me tell you, don't do much to reduce friction. The real problem, though, was that I didn't start feeling it until I was five minutes from home. Now I have blisters the size of dimes on my heels. So, while I may have logged 120 minutes today, I may be laid up for the next day or two while I heal. :(

But I do have kickass presents to keep me company. :)

Poop.

2006-01-29T22:09:00.000-05:00

Well, darn it. I lost my individual templates. Oh well. I guess you'll have to survive without knowing what I had on my ipod at the time, or which projects I was working on concurrently.

That said, it was for a noble cause. You see, ladies and gentlemen, I am a reformed bandwidth thief. Some of the images on this blog were hotlinked to other sites (meaning that when you viewed my blog, you were downloading images from someone else's site). I always gave the image credit and a link to the original site, and thought that I was doing the right thing copyright-wise by referring to the original image, rather than making a copy of it in my own space. I didn't realize, however, that this cost the other site's owner bandwith, which they sometimes have to pay extra for. To all of you out there whose bandwidth I may have stolen: I thought I was respecting your copyright, but I was wrong, and I'm sorry I hurt you.

If you've done the same, it's not too late to repent. Click here to read more:

(and no, don't hotlink the button)

So what does this have to do with my blog? Well, I spent a few hours on Saturday going through my posts to identify hotlinked images, download and upload them to my own web space, and update the image references. In the process, I accidentally chose "republish blog" instead of "republish index", so I've lost my post-by-post modifications.

On a few happier notes:

- I have some Tubey progress. I'm finished with the back, and almost done with the first sleeve.

This is going S-L-O-W-ly, probably because I'm using the 2-circulars method. I have nothing against double-points, except that they tend to fall out of my knitting bag. Plus, I didn't have a set of size 5 circs, but did have two sets of size 5 Denise points (I bought an extra pair, since I use 5s or 6s most often). I find that pulling the neeedle through kills some time. Plus, I'm changing balls of yarn every row, which also eats some time. That said, this yarn is so beautiful, I'm drooling at every stitch.

- I gave spinning my first try, using the drop spindle and blue-faced leicester my fabulous secret pal gave me. I didn't do too well, but did manage to make quite a fun cat toy:

I'll be taking a lesson at Mind's Eye, my most L of LYSes, in the near future, whose owner is quite a talented spinner.

No, Wait! Go Team Cable!

2006-01-25T13:15:00.000-05:00

Hrm. I'm thinking about laming out of the vest in favor of Zig Zag.

Danielle kindly pointed out that there seem to be pattern errata (including a complete absence of shaping in the instructions). Add that to:

- captaining (and, if necessary, co-anchoring) the MIT Relay Team
- sisters visiting over the long weekend
- a sweater to partially reknit for one visiting sister while she's here
- a dance performance
- not one but TWO birthday parties (for me) in two different cities

and all of a sudden trying a new technique on tiny needles with a not-completely-trustworthy pattern that may require redesigning to add the shaping I BOUGHT IT FOR sounds less "noble challenge", and more "what the hell are you thinking?"

Behold the power of blogs. You can vacillate about something in your head for hours, but once you put your thoughts out there, everything becomes clear. I'm defecting to Team Cable.

Go Team Fair Isle!

2006-01-25T01:56:00.000-05:00

After much consideration, and with my thanks to everybody who voted in my poll;, I'm choosing the Snowflakes and Arrows Vest for my Knitting Olympics entry:

I think the learn-a-new-technique-and-produce-something-in-16-days goal fits in nicely with the Olympic spirit. Plus it reminds me of the Dale of Norway Olympic sweaters. :)

That makes me a part of USA Team Fair Isle. Woo Hoo!

Go TEAM!

I may also be joining the soon-to-be-formed MIT Relay Team

Wow.

2006-01-24T00:41:00.000-05:00

My goodness. As of this post, 31 people have voted in my knitting olympics poll. I didn't think that 31 people had actually read my blog. You have all been holding out on me! (The poll is still open, by the way.)

I still haven't decided what to knit for the Knitting Olympics, although I think that I will have to pass on Sweet Mary Jane. I will definitely make it someday soon, but I think that making a lace cardigan in 16 days is a recipe for some serious hand cramping.

I've ordered the yarn for Zig Zag and the Snowflakes and Arrows vest, and I already have the yarn for my cable project, so that's not going to be a factor in my decision. They all have their merits.

Zig Zag: This is really beautiful, the stitch pattern is fun, and I really want to have this sweater. And having it soon would be nice. At the same time, I feel very confident about the stitch pattern (I swatched a few repeats of it earlier in the fall), and the construction makes sense to me. So while it certainly isn't mindless, most of the challenge in this would be in completing it on time.

Snowflakes and Arrows: I'm interested in this mostly because I really want to try fair isle. I think learning a new techique and completing a garment in 16 days fits nicely with the Olympic spirit. I think I'd wear the finished product, but I'm not sure. I like the look of it (fitted and kind of corset-ey), but I don't know if I have anything to wear under it. I'm a process knitter, and the yarn cost under $15 so it's not a huge deal if I don't wear it myself. Plus, I really like the USA Fair Isle Knit Team button. :)

Self-Designed Cable Project: I love cables and have been meaning to give design another try. Plus, I think I'd get serious guts points for this. Then again, this is something I want to do really well, so I'm not sure that giving myself a (very tight) time limit would be respectful of the project.

Sigh. I'm leaning towards Snowflakes and Arrows at the moment, but maybe I should let it percolate for another day or two. Or at least until my yarn arrives.

In other news, I finally got around to blocking the Blissful Jacket. I've sewn the shoulders, and am about half-way through the collar. Has anyone else come to love that wet sheep smell? I'm not sure if I should be proud or if its a sign that things have gone too far...

Stitch Pattern Video for My So-Called Scarf

2006-01-21T17:38:00.000-05:00

For Roxann and the other members of the Clapotis Knit-Along:

A video tutorial on the stitch pattern from My So-Called Scarf.

Small Version (6.3 MB)
Larger Version(16 MB)

You'll need Quicktime to view it. The larger version is much easier to watch, but is a fairly large file. You may have better luck downloading it to your computer, rather than watching it directly in your browser. If you do watch it in the browser, it may take a minute or two before the viewer even appears, so be patient. Or cast on a few stitches while you wait, so you can follow along!

The stitch pattern I'm demonstrating here looks like:

The yarn used in the picture is Manos del Uruguay, which Stacey's pattern calls for, in the Granite colorway.

The yarn used in the video is McTaggart Tweed, a fisherman-weight (heavy worsted) wool from Beaverslide Dry Goods.

On that note, here's a picture of Una snuggling with the Beaverslide yarns:

If you haven't already, please vote in my poll.

Knitting Olympics! (A POLL)

2006-01-19T21:53:00.000-05:00

So, I'm thinking about joining the Yarn Harlot'sKnitting Olympics. The goal is to pick a knitting project that would be difficult to complete between the opening and closing of the Olympic Games (16 days), but to do it anyway. I am all over this. Hell, I made Sitcom Chic in 10 days!

So here are the contenders:

1- Zig-Zag:

This is beautiful and the stitch pattern is fun.

2- Snowflakes and Arrows Vest:

This would be my first fair isle. I've never worn a vest, but this one has nice shaping and has an almost corset-like look to it. Plus, the yarn is CHEAP. ($11 or $12 for the entire project)

3- Sweet Mary Jane:

This would be my first lace project, and I already have the yarn.

4- A self-designed jacket with some fair-isle-style colorwork.

5- A self-designed cabled something-or-other. Probably a fitted pullover.

Let me know what you think:

More tasties

2006-01-18T22:40:00.000-05:00

In all the secret pal and pattern publishing excitement, I completely forgot to mention:

I got a good chunk of the back of the shrug portion of Tubey done:

I made two hats for Afghans for afghans:

Although I didn't get them finished in time to get them to San Francisco for the January 20th shipment.

And I got a shipment from Beaverslide Dry Goods

On the right is the worsted-weight Wool/Mohair blend in Whitetail Fawn. On the left is the fisherman weight (heavy worsted) wool tweed in Snowberry.

Markerless Instructions for Steamed Bun Cat Toys

2006-01-17T22:53:00.000-05:00

(This is a rewrite of the steamed bun pattern for those who prefer not to use stitch markers on double-points. If you are comfortable using them, you may want to try the markered version here)

My first pattern!

INTRODUCTION:

This pattern was inspired by the fabulous, precious, hysterical Feline Dim Sum cat toys by Julie Falatko, found in the Spring 03 issue of Knitty. Julie wrote patterns for spring rolls and wontons.

My favorite dim sum dish is steamed buns (bao zi), hands-down. Plus, the swirly ridges you sometimes see on the buns (especially the pork-filled ones that my favorite restaurant serves) where they are pinched together reminded me of the swirly ridges you get at the top of some hats. So when I decided to make Julie's toys as a Christmas gift for my Step-aunt (loving owner of four cats), I couldn't resist designing my own.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

- A great big thanks to Christine of the bliu blog for test-knitting, for her extremely helpful feedback, and for lots of ideas for different filling flavors.

- Thanks also to Rudbeckia Hurta, for her treatment of knitted circles on her blog, Learning Curves.

NOTES:

These instructions may seem long, but don't be daunted! I included a lot of pictures and notes because it’s the little details that make this pattern work.

This is knit in the round, from the bottom up. You start by knitting a circular base. Next, you do a purl row to help turn the edge between the base and the sides. The sides are knit straight upwards in stockinette. Blocking at this point is optional, but helpful if your base looks squarish (mine certainly did). It also helps keep the bottom of the bun relatively flat. The top is just a set of decreases, placed so that they swirl around in a spiral pattern. There is a pause for stuffing after two decrease rows. (This is important: if you stuff too early, you won't be able to keep it all in there. If you stuff too late, you won't be able to place the stuffing and catnip properly.) The last stitches are cinched closed, and voila!

This pattern is for the pinch-topped, pork-filled buns. Also included is a variation for buns filled with red bean paste, which often have a red spot on top:

Check out the "variations" section for other filling ideas.

MATERIALS:
- MC: about 30 yards of Knitpicks Wool of the Andes, (shown in natural), or any cream-colored worsted-weight yarn. You can use any fiber you like, but if you use synthetics, be sure to let the catnip spray dry at each step, since it won't breathe!
- CC: about 2 yards of Wool of the Andes in red (red bean variation only)
- a packed double-handful of batting, cotton balls or fabric scraps for stuffing
- 1-3 Tbsp catnip, to taste
- catnip spray (optional)

NOTIONS AND TOOLS:
- a set of double-pointed needles, size 6 US (4mm)
- yarn needle

GAUGE:
The gauge is not that important. Mine was about 5st/in. Choose a needle size that gives you a nice tight fabric.

VARIATIONS:
You can represent different fillings for your steamed buns by selecting a different CC. Here are some ideas by Christine.
- pickled vegetables: variegated greens
- bbq pork: variegated burgundy/pink/brown
- lotus seed paste: dull tan
- sesame seed paste: shiny black

INSTRUCTIONS:

- co 6, distribute stitches on needles. Join.

Base:
(NOTE: you will be increasing on each round. The goal is to distribute the increases irregularly so that you don't get distinct lines of increases, but evenly enough that it doesn't become lopsided. I used the distribution below, but you can do it however you'd like, using the number of stitches added as a guide.)

1st Row:
- k1, kfb, k1, *kfb 3 times*
[4 st added, 10 st. on needles]

2nd Row:
- kfb, k1, kfb, k1, kfb, k3, kfb, k1
[4 st added, 14 st on needles]

3rd Row:
- k1, kfb, k3, kfb, k2, kfb, k2, kfb, k2
[4 st added, 18 st on needles]

4th Row:
- k2, kfb, k3, kfb, k4, kfb, k3, kfb, k2
[4 st added, 22 st on needles]

5th Row:
- kfb, k4, kfb, k3, kfb, k3, kfb, k4, kfb, k3
[5 st added, 27 st on needles]

6th Row:
- k5, kfb, k6, kfb, k6, kfb, k6, kfb
[4 st added, 31 st on needles]

7th Row:
- k7, kfb, k7, kfb, k6, kfb, k7, kfb
[4 st added, 35 st on needles]

8th Row:
- k8, kfb, k8, kfb, k7, kfb, k8, kfb
[4 st added, 39 st on needles]

9th Row:
- k9, kfb, k9, kfb, k9, kfb, k8, kfb
[4 st added, 43 st on needles]

10th Row:
- k8, kfb, k7, kfb, k8, kfb, k8, kfb, k7, kfb
[5 st added, 48 st on needles]

- p around [48 st on needles]
(NOTE: This row creates the purl ridge that creates a nice corner on the bottom)

Sides:

- slip the first stitch of the next row.
(NOTE: This creates a smooth join at the purl ridge)

- k around in stockinette until work measures 1.5 inches

Blocking: (optional, but useful if your base still looks squarish)

- Stretch your bun-in-progress over a cylinder of suitable size. You can either leave it on the needles, as I did, or put the live stitches on some waste yarn. Mine really benefited from some tension, which I added by looping yarn around the needles and around the mouth of the jar to keep it taut.

- Spritz generously with water, and let dry

Top Setup:

- * k6, k2tog* to the end of the row [6 st. decreased, 42 st on needles]
- * k5, k2tog* to the end of the row [6 st. decreased, 36 st on needles]

Stuffing:

The goal here is to make a two-layer stuffing. The inner layer is extra-tasty catnip. The outer layer is batting that gives it bounce and keeps the catnip firmly inside.

- Form a disk of batting, and place in the bottom of the bun.

- Form a rectangle of batting as wide as the bun is high, and as long as the circumference of the bun. Place along the inside walls of the bun. You should now have a nice little well. Spritz with catnip spray, if desired.

- Fill the well most of the way with catnip, then add a little plug of batting. Spritz with catnip spray again!

- Form another disk of batting and place on top. The batting should be a little taller than the sides; you want it to be stuffed in there with a little tension, and you'll still be knitting a little more height onto the bun.

Top:

- * k4, k2tog* to the end of the row [6 st. decreased, 30 st on needles]
- * k3, k2tog* to the end of the row [6 st. decreased, 24 st on needles]
- * k2, k2tog* to the end of the row [6 st. decreased, 18 st on needles]
(NOTE: If you want to do the red bean variation with a red spot on top, switch to red yarn at this point.)
- * k1, k2tog* to the end of the row [6 st. decreased, 12 st on needles]
- * k2tog* to the end of the row [6 st. decreased, 6 st on needles]

- Draw yarn through the live stitches, and secure.

Finishing:

- If you want to do the pork-stuffed version, weave the yarn in and out of the row below and tighten. You're trying to get a puckered effect; steamed buns often have a pucker where the dough was pinched together!

If you want the red bean version, go for a smoother effect as you weave it in.

- Weave in (or otherwise secure) the loose end on the bottom.

- Spritz with catnip spray if desired, and let dry.

Serving:

Best served in a steamer basket, with Julie's spring rolls and wontons:

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License.

That means you can make copies to share or derivative works for non-commercial purposes, as long as you give me credit, and license any derivative works under the same terms. Contact me if you'd like permission for other uses.

Feline Dim Sum Variation: Steamed Bun

2006-01-17T22:28:00.001-05:00

This pattern has been moved. It's now here. Sorry for the inconvenience, and enjoy!

Jess

Free Pattern: Steamed Bun Cat Toys

2006-01-17T22:28:00.000-05:00

Ladies and Gentlemen, Children of All Ages, I present to you...
(drum roll, please)

My first pattern!

(NOTE: if you'd rather work without stitch markers, try this version)

INTRODUCTION:

This pattern was inspired by the fabulous, precious, hysterical Feline Dim Sum cat toys by Julie Falatko, found in the Spring 03 issue of Knitty. Julie wrote patterns for spring rolls and wontons.

My favorite dim sum dish is steamed buns (bao zi), hands-down. Plus, the swirly ridges you sometimes see on the buns (especially the pork-filled ones that my favorite restaurant serves) where they are pinched together reminded me of the swirly ridges you get at the top of some hats. So when I decided to make Julie's toys as a Christmas gift for my Step-aunt (loving owner of four cats), I couldn't resist designing my own.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

- A great big thanks to Christine of the bliu blog for test-knitting, for her extremely helpful feedback, and for lots of ideas for different fillings.

- Thanks also to Rudbeckia Hurta, for her treatment of knitted circles on her blog, Learning Curves.

NOTES:

These instructions may seem long, but don't be daunted! I included a lot of pictures and notes because it’s the little details that make this pattern work.

This is knit in the round, from the bottom up. You start by knitting a circular base. Next, you do a purl row to help turn the edge between the base and the sides. The sides are knit straight upwards in stockinette. Blocking at this point is optional, but helpful if your base looks squarish (mine certainly did). It also helps keep the bottom of the bun relatively flat. The top is just a set of decreases, placed so that they swirl around in a spiral pattern. There is a pause for stuffing after two decrease rows. (This is important: if you stuff too early, you won't be able to keep it all in there. If you stuff too late, you won't be able to place the stuffing and catnip properly.) The last stitches are cinched closed, and voila!

This pattern is for the pinch-topped, pork-filled buns. Also included is a variation for buns filled with red bean paste, which often have a red spot on top:

Check out the "variations" section for other filling ideas.

MATERIALS:
- MC: about 30 yards of Knitpicks Wool of the Andes, (shown in natural), or any cream-colored worsted-weight yarn. You can use any fiber you like, but if you use synthetics, be sure to let the catnip spray dry at each step, since it won't breathe!
- CC: about 2 yards of Wool of the Andes in red (for red bean variation only)
- a packed double-handful of batting, cotton balls or fabric scraps for stuffing
- 1-3 Tbsp catnip, to taste
- catnip spray (optional)

NOTIONS AND TOOLS:
- a set of double-pointed needles, size 6 US (4mm)
- 6 stitch markers
- yarn needle

GAUGE:
The gauge is not that important. Mine was about 5st/in. Choose a needle size that gives you a nice tight fabric.

VARIATIONS:
You can represent different fillings for your steamed buns by selecting a different CC. Here are some ideas by Christine.
- pickled vegetables: variegated greens
- bbq pork: variegated burgundy/pink/brown
- lotus seed paste: dull tan
- sesame seed paste: shiny black

INSTRUCTIONS:

- co 6, distribute stitches on needles. Join.
(NOTE: Christine found it easier to distribute the stitches evenly on three needles, or in groups of 8-16-8-16 on four needles. These configurations put most of the markers away from the ends of the needles, so they're less likely to fall off.)

Base:
(NOTE: you will be increasing on each round. The goal is to distribute the increases irregularly so that you don't get distinct lines of increases, but evenly enough that it doesn't become lopsided. I used the distribution below, but you can do it however you'd like, using the number of stitches added as a guide.)

1st Row:
- k1, kfb, k1, *kfb 3 times*
[4 st added, 10 st. on needles]

2nd Row:
- kfb, k1, kfb, k1, kfb, k3, kfb, k1
[4 st added, 14 st on needles]

3rd Row:
- k1, kfb, k3, kfb, k2, kfb, k2, kfb, k2
[4 st added, 18 st on needles]

4th Row:
- k2, kfb, k3, kfb, k4, kfb, k3, kfb, k2
[4 st added, 22 st on needles]

5th Row:
- kfb, k4, kfb, k3, kfb, k3, kfb, k4, kfb, k3
[5 st added, 27 st on needles]

6th Row:
- k5, kfb, k6, kfb, k6, kfb, k6, kfb
[4 st added, 31 st on needles]

7th Row:
- k7, kfb, k7, kfb, k6, kfb, k7, kfb
[4 st added, 35 st on needles]

8th Row:
- k8, kfb, k8, kfb, k7, kfb, k8, kfb
[4 st added, 39 st on needles]

9th Row:
- k9, kfb, k9, kfb, k9, kfb, k8, kfb
[4 st added, 43 st on needles]

10th Row:
- k8, kfb, k7, kfb, k8, kfb, k8, kfb, k7, kfb
[5 st added, 48 st on needles]

- p around [48 st on needles]
(NOTE: This row creates the purl ridge that creates a nice corner on the bottom)

Sides:

- slip the first stitch of the next row.
(NOTE: This creates a smooth join at the purl ridge)

- k around in stockinette until work measures 1.5 inches

Blocking: (optional, but useful if your base still looks squarish)

- Stretch your bun-in-progress over a cylinder of suitable size. You can either leave it on the needles, as I did, or put the live stitches on some waste yarn. Mine really benefited from some tension, which I added by looping yarn around the needles and around the mouth of the jar to keep it taut.

- Spritz generously with water, and let dry

Top Setup:

- *pm, k6, k2tog* to the end of the row [6 st. decreased, 42 st and 6 markers on needles]

- *slip marker, knit to last 2 st before next marker, k2tog* around. [6 st. decreased, 36 st on needles]

Stuffing:

The goal here is to make a two-layer stuffing. The inner layer is extra-tasty catnip. The outer layer is batting that gives it bounce and keeps the catnip firmly inside.

- Form a disk of batting, and place in the bottom of the bun.

- Form a rectangle of batting as wide as the bun is high, and as long as the circumference of the bun. Place along the inside walls of the bun. You should now have a nice little well. Spritz with catnip spray, if desired.

- Fill the well most of the way with catnip, then add a little plug of batting. Spritz with catnip spray again!

- Form another disk of batting and place on top. The batting should be a little taller than the sides; you want it to be stuffed in there with a little tension, and you'll still be knitting a little more height onto the bun.

Top:

- *slip marker, knit to last 2 st before next marker, k2tog* around. Repeat until 6 st. remain on the needles [decreasing 30 st. over 5 rounds] Squish the stuffing down as you go, and add more if desired.
(NOTE: If you want to do the red bean variation with a red spot on top, switch to red yarn when 18 st. remain on the needles, then continue in the decrease pattern until 6 st. remain on the needles.)

- Draw yarn through the live stitches, and secure.

Finishing:

- If you want to do the pork-stuffed version, weave the yarn in and out of the row below and tighten. You're trying to get a puckered effect; steamed buns often have a pucker where the dough was pinched together!

If you want the red bean version, go for a smoother effect as you weave it in.

- Weave in (or otherwise secure) the loose end on the bottom.

- Spritz with catnip spray if desired, and let dry.

Serving:

Best served in a steamer basket, with Julie's spring rolls and wontons:

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License.

That means you can make copies to share or derivative works for non-commercial purposes, as long as you give me credit, and license any derivative works under the same terms. Contact me if you'd like permission for other uses.

I love my secret pal!

2006-01-17T17:08:00.000-05:00

The title says it all. Wow. Wow, wow, wow.

Update: 10pm EST: picture:

(before this update, I was only able to say that because I didn't have my camera I wasn't able to post pics, but that I couldn't wait to blog about this.)

My secret pal sent me the most wonderful package. Inside there was (in order of discovery):
- a card with a drawing of a belly dancer
- a bag of loose tea (China Black Special - yum!)
- a pretty hanging ornament, made of blue beads with an oragami crane
- two skeins of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in Black Purl (LUXURY)
- a glow-in-the-dark sheep
- a pair of evil eye beads
- a drop spindle
- some blue faced leicester for spinning

AND she decorated the shipping box!

Wow, wow, wow, wow, wow, wow, wow.

I opened it at work, and I had this silly grin on my face, and one of our student employees came to my desk, and I had to blurt out "sorry, I have presents".

Secret Pals Rock

2006-01-13T19:32:00.000-05:00

I'm participating in my very first round of SP, and it is a blast. My spoiler secret pal is so sweet, and the hostesses have done a great job of matching us up: she's also a bellydancer, she also likes celtic music, she also likes tea, and she's also a Firefly fan (although they must have had psychic powers for those last two, since I didn't mention them).

I can't tell you much about my spoilee, since she could stumble upon my blog somehow, and I wouldn't want to ruin the surprise. I will say, however, that giving surprise gifts is oodles of fun! I'm practically sitting on my hands to avoid talking about it. I do have some very general plans I can discuss without ruining the surprise, though. I hope to send my pal:
- a purchased item she specifically mentioned
- a purchased item related to a knitting interest of hers
- a homemade item related to a knitting interest of hers
- a homemade item related to a non-knitting interest of hers
- a homemade item that I have a good inkling she'd enjoy

What's really cool is that:
- one of the purchased items comes from a small operation that I really like and am pleased to support
- one of the purchased items is something I've been curious about and will get a better look at before I send it to her
- one of the homemade items is something I've been very interested in making
- one of the homemade items is something I want too, so I'll make both of ours at once!

MUST... POST... BEFORE... I... REVEAL... DETAILS...

For My Secret Pal

2006-01-11T00:22:00.000-05:00

Hi Secret Pal,

Here's some information about me, as the SP7 organizers asked me to post it. I think I did a decent job of telling you what I like here, but would also enjoy you sharing what YOU like, so don't feel too limited by my preferences.

One more thing: I like used/remaindered books and hand-me-down items, so feel free to give from your own stash or bookshelves, rather than buying new things.

Jess

1. Are you a yarn snob (do you prefer higher quality and/or natural fibers)? Do you avoid Red Heart and Lion Brand?

I'm a semi yarn snob. I generally prefer animal fibers (I love merino best), and I appreciate excellent quality things, particularly artisanal yarns. At the same time, I think KnitPicks is the best thing since sliced bread, and I do have a soft spot for Red Heart Light & Lofty (I designed my first sweater in this, which was the absolute wrong choice for the design, but I still like the yarn), Lion Brand Wool-Ease for slipper socks, and Lion Wool for felting. That said, I strongly prefer basic yarns over novelty (of course, there are always exceptions: there are some really beautiful quality and unusual novelties I admire, particularly among the handspuns).

2. Do you spin? Crochet?

I don't spin, but would be interested in trying drop spindle spinning. I have dabbled in thread crochet for lace making, but am much more excited about knitting.

3. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?

I have a Denise Kit, which has its own case. I keep my other needles (mostly double-points) in ziploc baggies in an accordion folder.

4. How long have you been knitting? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?

I learned to knit when I was very young, but didn't rediscover it until 2000, when I was going through some very hard times, and was moved by the scene in Like Water For Chocolate, in which Tita finds comfort in knitting through the night. I would say I'm at a high-intermediate level. I'm an adventurous knitter, and I like a challenge or to try new techniques.

5. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?

I do, although I tend to use it as a "things I may want to look into later" list, rather than a "things I really really want" list. My knitting and design list is at:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wishlist/3EMH911TEM4N1/002-2068788-6032810

6. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.)

I love vanilla, pumpkin, or spices, or other "baked goods" flavors for candles, etc. For bath products, I love citrus and citrus blossom scents, lavender, and nutty and spicey scents.

7. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?

I have an insulin condition, and follow a low-carb lifestyle to keep it under control. That said, I love sweets, so feel free to send me low-carb or diabetic-friendly sweets. I'm not wild about the Russel Stover Net Carb variety, though.

8. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do?

I do beaded embellishment, mostly flatwork and fringe on belly dance costumes.

9. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)

I am a semi-professional belly dancer, so I listen mostly to belly dance music (Arabic, Turkish, and American-traditional-style). I also love celtic music (particularly but not exclusively Irish; I used to play the tin whistle) and classic bossa nova. I'm also exploring bluegrass, and love any music where the artist's soul really comes through. Surprise me! I can play MP3s on my computer or ipod.

10. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand?

I absolutely love electric blue, teal, turquoise, pinks, tomato red, wine, and mint green. According to the Color Me Beautiful analysis I did in middle school, I'm a Winter, meaning that I look best in jewel tones and icey pastels. I rarely look good in brown, orange, or muted or dusty tones. If you could describe a color as bright or crisp, it's probably a good choice.

11. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?
I am recently married, and have one cat.

12. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?

I wear scarves, hats, and gloves/mittens. My coat is brown and ivory with strong grey tones. I'm generally anti-poncho, but I have been known to wear the occasional capelet, as long as it's not overwhelming (sleekly-fitted, delicate, etc.).

13. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with?

I LOVE Karabella Aurora 8 (or anything from the Aurora family), Lorna's Laces (gorgeous colorways), and Over The Rainbow Yarns silk/merino blend.

14. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?

I'm not wild about acrylics, with the exception of Red Heart Light & Lofty. I find that, although Alpaca is softer to the touch, I often get fewer "pricklies" from a good-quality wool. I don't like scratchy wools, however, I just worked with with Debbie Bliss Aran Tweed, and I wasn't thrilled: awfully scratchy for the price.

15. What is/are your current knitting obsession/s?

I am in love with cables at the moment. I've also been meaning to try out fair isle colorwork, make some more socks, and get futher into sweater design..

16. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?

I'm all about sweaters lately, but I also like socks and wraps. I'm feeling the jackets at the moment, but I'm not sure how long that will last.

17. What are you knitting right now?

I'm just finishing up the Blissful Jacket from Interweave Knits Fall '05, and the Lelah Top. I'm currently swatching for Tubey (still in the yarn selection process)

18. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?

Sure.

19. Do you prefer straight or circular needles?

Circulars!

20. Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?

Depends on the application. I have a Denise set in Cassein, which are great for most size 5-15 applications. For smaller diameters, I like Bamboo for slippery yarns and aluminum when I need speed.

21. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?

I have a winder, and my husband is making me a swift for my birthday, at least in theory...

22. How did you learn to knit?

My babysitter (a professional ballerina) taught me when I was young (6,7,8ish).

23. How old is your oldest UFO?

From early 2003, I think, although it's in the semi-permanent time-out basket. I'm not sure it's worth finishing. My oldest truely-working-on-it project is from the spring of '05.

24. What is your favorite animated character or a favorite animal/bird?

Powdered Toast Man from Ren & Stimpy.

25. What is your favorite holiday?

That's hard to say. I'd have to vote for Chrismas, since the money you spend on yarn comes from both your knitting budget and your xmas budget. :)

26. Is there anything that you collect?

Nope, although I really like earrings. I'm allergic to nickel, though.

27. What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

Interweave Knits.

28. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on?

Addis in smaller sizes (0-4 with long cords for the Magic Loop, or in normal lengths in pairs for the two circulars method), Loop-D-Loop by Teva Durham, anything by Barbara Walker, Jean Frost Jackets, Designing Knitwear by Deborah Newton.

29. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?

Fair Isle, hand dyeing, and pattern design techniques.

30. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?

I like making socks a lot, but have done most of them in sport weight, rather than true sock weight. My feet are size 8-8.5 wide (US).

31. When is your birthday? (mm/dd)

February 26th (right in the middle of the SP7 date range!)

My so-called scarf

2006-01-09T23:55:00.000-05:00

Here are some pics of My So-Called Scarf, on a very happy recipient (don't you just love those?):

On David

Lovely close-up of the texture

One more

Tubey Yarn Selections

2006-01-05T15:51:00.000-05:00

Argh. The more I consider yarn choices for Tubey, the less certain I get. Here's what I'm considering:

1) Karabella Aurora 8 in stripes, in one of the following color combos:

a) Black MC with red, dark teal, turquoise, brown, sand:

This was my first thought. It would go with pretty much everything I have, and has similar amounts of contrast to Cassie's choices, so it'd be pretty likely to work well, as long as I place the colors well. I've been photoshopping the colors in the pattern picture, and let me tell you, color placement makes a BIG difference. If I put the bolder colors at the bust and lower hip and the more receeding colors in the midriff, it really plays up the hourglass fit. If not, it looked downright tubby!

I plugged these into the random stripe generator, which is a really handy tool. You tell it what colors (approximately) you have, and what stripe widths are acceptable, and how many rows you'd like in all, and it generates stripe patterns (both a picture and a written pattern) for you. This is really helpful for "test-driving" color combos, since you can refresh the page over and over again to see different combinations. This helped me get some really useful guidelines. For example, in this color combo, I like stripe designs that have a lot of teal, but I don't like ones that put brown next to red. I'm not sure I'm wild about this combo. Then again, the generator doesn't have a rich dark brown like the brown yarn, so maybe the wussier brown is biasing me...

b) Turquoise, Orange, Salmon, Yellow, Mint, and Tan:

This was inspired by some turquoise, orange, yellow and green yarn my friend Francesca picked out for a baby blanket. It would have been the coolest-and-most-baby-appropriate-without-being-stereotypical baby blanket color scheme ever, except that she ended up keeping it for herself. :) I'd probably use Salmon, Mint or Turquoise as the MC. Tan is the most obvious choice, but it may not be as flattering as a bright. The random stripe generator came up with some niiiice combinations for this one.

c) Salmon, Peach, Rose, brighter Rose, Tan and Sand:

I LOVE these colors, but most of my fall/winter pants and skirts are black, tan or denim, so it wouldn't really GO with anything I own (except for a pair of khakis I don't quite fit into at the moment...) I have always wanted a camel-colored pencil skirt, though, and those would look FABULOUS together. I'm SO tempted, but I think I'll stick with something that goes with my _real_ wardrobe. The random stripe generator consistently gave really gorgeous results for this combo. Sniff, sniff.

d) Blue/Greens:

I'm not sure if I'm wild about these. Maybe with three or four colors instead of all six?

e) Purples:

I'm also not as wild about these, but Carrioke's looks great in purple.

f) Purples and Greens:

Again, I'm not wild, but it could be nice.

2) Some GORGEOUS merino/silk handpaint from Over the Rainbow Yarns, to do without stripes:

I lovelovelove this yarn. It's so soft and shiney. I get spot-on gauge with size 6s, but I'm not sure it's elastic enough for Tubey. I'm going to try it with 5s and see how it turns out.

3) KnitPicks Andean Silk in Cranberry

I was going to design something with this, but now I'm thinking I may do a Tubey variation with it. Maybe cable the body, instead of ribbing it, and adding a cable along the top edge of the shrug opening, to frame the neckline? I'll probably save this for my second Tubey. (Listen to me; I haven't even chosen yarn yet, and I'm already talking about doing another!)

Sigh. So many choices, so few available Denise cords.

Blissful Jacket, Tubey swatches

2006-01-03T21:50:00.000-05:00

First: my fabulous stitch markers:

These were an xmas present from my mom, and came from Gibson Girl Design

I've made a _lot_ of progress on the Blissful Jacket (from Interweave Knits Fall 2005). Here are some pics:

The back

The fronts-in-progress. For once, I had the good sense to work on both at once, so they'd both be the same length, although I actually managed to screw it up and do two extra rows on the left side. I caught it in time to fix it, though.

The first buttonhole

Some of that lovely reverse stockinette stitch.

I'm slightly embarrassed to say that I'm doing this in the exact yarn and color the pattern calls for (Debbie Bliss Aran Tweed #03). I'm a sucker for the color. The true color is actually a much darker teal than it looks here (and than it looks in the magazine), but I just love it.

That said, I'm not thrilled with the yarn; it's on the scratchy side. For a jacket, rather than an against-the-skin sweater, that's no biggie, but for something so expensive, I'd like something softer. (That said, I did get a good deal on it on discountyarnsale.com.) If I had to do this again (and with such a great silhouette, I might), I'd probably choose Cascade 220 Tweed. I only touched it once, but I think the Cascade was much softer.

I've also been swatching for Tubey. My first thought was stripes in Karabella Aurora 8, but then I remembered that gorgeous silk/merino handpaint from Over the Rainbow Yarns I had in my stash... Here are my first swatches:

It's really beautiful, but is knitting up a little drapey and see-through so far. I've tried size 6, 7 and 8. The 6s aren't bad, but I'm going to try 5s and see what I get. My understanding is that a certain springiness is desirable, particularly to avoid saggy back. Aurora 8 is nothing if not springy. :)

p.s. I'd like to add another shamless plug for the Tubey Knit-Along I'm hosting.

Year in Review

2006-01-01T13:34:00.000-05:00

Wow. This has been a big year in many ways (ahem, I got MARRIED), and particularly a big knitting year. I'd say that I went from an advanced beginner to high intermediate over the course of 2005.

NOTE: this post is going to replace the 2005 items in my Finished Objects sidebar. Click on the pictures to link to the approproate posts, which often have more pics.

THINGS I'VE MADE:

1- Cowl:

2- Red drop-stitch scarf:

3- Big red fuzzy blanket:

Okay, I haven't actually snipped the loose ends yet, but it has been in use by us and by Una, so I'd say that counts as an FO. :)

4- Sitcom Chic, my very first completed (and not then ripped out) sweater:

This was the first thing I ever made in the yarn the pattern called for

5-Asana:

This was the first pattern I recalculated for a different gauge yarn. I made it out of cotton-ease left over from sitcom chic, to wear as a twinset. Shown here on my wedding day.

6- Clapotis Capelet:

I intended this to be a full Clapotis, but was short on yarn, so I made what I could and then sewed it up.

7- Soleil:

8- Tivoli:

My first sweater in the round

9- Momvoli

A Tivoli for my mom, and the first sweater I ever knit for someone else. I still don't have a finished picture.

10- Clapotis #2

This was an exercise in pure knitting luxury, made with Lorna's Laces Lion & Lamb.

11- Blackberry

A gift for my sister. This may actually need some frogging. Becky wanted a buttonhole, rather than a brooch closure, and I didn't put it in quite the right place. It's wearable, but I may frog the last 1.5" of the border and move the buttonhole next time I'm down there. However, I am extremely proud of the fact that I was able to lengthen the sleeves over an inch just by blocking.

12- My So-Called Scarf

An xmas gift for my sister's boyfriend

13- Chicken Viking Hat, baby version:

14-A pair of felted cala lillies:

15- A pair of felted irises:

I didn't get any finished pics, but here they are hanging upside down to dry. Here also is the pair hanging to dry:

16- Feline Dim Sum

Including the spring roll and wonton published by Julie Falatko in Knitty, as well as the steamed bun I designed myself.

17- Chicken Viking Hat, adult version:

THINGS I'M STILL WORKING ON:

1- Wavy scarf
No pics available.

2- Hush-Hush chemise

3- Wrap with Sleeves from Rebecca #12

Looking ahead

4- Hopeful

5- Blissful Jacket
I just cast on for this on the night of the 26th, and don't have any pictures yet.

6- Lelah Top
This was going to be a Christmas present for my sister, but there was no time. It's nearly done. I made half of it on the way to Buffalo for Christmas, and the rest of it on the way back. I'm still waiting for her to send me a measurement before I add the elastic, straps and sash, but if the fit is right, the knitting is actually done:

THINGS I NEED TO START OVER OR GIVE UP ON:

1- Soul

My first cables project. Knitted while my husband read me Harry Potter (is he great or what?). WAY to big & saggy.

2- Paris Loop

For a while, I thought the FUG was due to the poor fit, but now I realize that it is just hideous in this yarn. Pity.

NEW TECHNIQUES I'VE TRIED:
- um, blocking
- magic loop technique
- short rows
- cables
- lace (granted, it was easy lace done in sportweight yarn)
- resizing a pattern for a different gauge yarn
- resizing a pattern for fit
- cut-and-sew method for adjusting fit (not traditional steeking, but the same method)
- felting

OTHER FIRSTS:
- Ahem, BLOGGING!!!
- knit-alongs
- understanding the importance of blocking
- understanding the importance of presentation when gift-giving
- having a stash!
- better understanding how to substitute yarns of different fibers (alpaca vs. wool, etc.)
- realized that, while alpaca is softer to the touch, I get fewer "pricklies" from good-quality wool

GOALS FOR 2006:

ITEMS I WANT TO MAKE:

Tubey

I think I'm going to need a couple of these. Striped, solid, cabled...

Whisper

This has incredibly interesting detail.

- Zig-zag

I'll probably use Knitpicks Merino Style for this one

- Sweet Mary Jane from Knitpicks (shop there; they're great).

Have yarn, will knit. This will be my first laceweight project.

- Bulky turtleneck
I still have some redheart light & lofty (the only 100% acrylic yarn I ever loved) left, and I still think it would make an incredibly snuggly sweater.

THINGS I WANT TO LEARN/TRY/ACCOMPLISH:

- design my own sweater. I've actually done this once, and it fit really well, but a fitted raglan sweater in bulky boucle is just not flattering, so I frogged it, bought more, and made a blanket instead.

- try more complicated cablework

- publish a design (even if it's just on my blog). I actually took excellent notes on my steamed bun pattern, and hope to have those posted soon. I may also publish my adult resizing of the chicken viking hat (the designer published it with a creative commons license, which allows derivative works with credit).

- make some wardrobe-enhancing items. I mean stuff that I'll wear all the time, like I did with the Sitcom Chic and Asana twinset. The Blissful Jacket falls into that category, and I hope Tubey will be too.

- hand-dye some yarn

Decisions, Decisions

2005-12-30T17:34:00.000-05:00

As I have mentioned several times now, my lovely cousins Ashley & Scott gave me a kpixie gift certificate for Christmas, and I am determined to spend it on some Karabella Aurora 8, my all-time favorite yarn.

The original plan was to use the Aurora 8 to make Tubey (see also my knit-along).

However, I'm not so sure. Here's why:

- I have some gorgeous yarns in my stash that would make lovely Tubeys, although not striped. I could use:

my lovely Andean Silk in Cranberry. I was going to use this for a design project.

this gorgeous silk/merino handpaint I bought from Over-the-Rainbow Yarns. I was going to make a turtleneck out of this, since it's so soft (and completely prickle-free).

- I ran across this fabulous cardigan, which also would be great in Aurora 8:

What to do, what to do? Opinions?

Tubey knit-along

2005-12-29T14:09:00.000-05:00

I'm hosting a knit-along for the very first time! If you're interesting in making the Tubey sweater from the Winter 05 issue of Knitty, join us! It'll be a place to ask questions, help each other out, and cheer each other on.

You can find the knit-along here.

Gifts!

2005-12-28T09:06:00.000-05:00

Whew! I did so much gift knitting, I didn't get to do much blogging. You know how that is, when you've finished everything you've committed to with two weeks to spare, and then you think "oh, I can manage another item or two, or FIVE". Anyway, here are pictures of the things I finished, photographed, and uploaded. More will come soon.

The Chicken Viking Hat, Adult Version:
(modelled by Ryan, brother-in-law-to-be)

GQ pose

Sideways

Close-up

Feline Dim Sum:
(modelled by my step-aunt Selena)

Shown as-served in a steamer basket with chopsticks. You can just see the menu I included.

Close-up. The far one on the lower level of the basket is a steamed bun, which I made up myself. I'll post the pattern soon.

Also coming soon: a picture of my dad's cat attacking the steamer basket. What better compliment is there than that?

Felted Flowers from Pick-Up Sticks:

Cala Lilies for my grandmother

Not-yet shown:
- a pair of felted irises for my great-aunts.
I'm not sure if I got a picture of the finished product. I do have a picture of them hanging up to dry somewhere, however...
- My So-Called Scarf
- Lelah top (in progress). I did half of this on the drive to Buffalo, and half of it on the way back.
- iPod cozy
- probably three other things

Flowers, Dim Sum Redux

2005-12-20T17:36:00.000-05:00

I'm approaching the end of my Christmas knitting (except for the Lelah Top I've barely made any progress on for my sister). Here are some pics:

Felted Irises and Cala Lillies from Pick Up Sticks:

These are old pictures. I've got two Irises and two Cala Lilies done, and one more Iris with only one petal. That's one each for my grandmother, two great aunts, and my mother-in-law. I'm working on the optional leaves, but they're going SLOWLY, so I may punt them. I really want to get the felting done tonight, since we're leaving for Buffalo on Thursday.

Feline Dim Sum from an old issue of Knitty:

Shown here are spring roll and wonton wrappers. I plan to add the "filling" (batting & catnip) tonight.

My own variation on Feline Dim Sum: a steamed bun! Halfway done, in a mid-knitting blocking step:

If this turns out well, I'll publish the pattern here.

These are for my crazy-cat-lady of a step aunt. I'm also putting together a cute little dim sum menu with pictures and the characters for those foods.

A moment of fame

2005-12-15T09:01:00.000-05:00

Dude. I completely forgot about this, but I have knitted before an audience of hundreds (actually 3 or 4 audiences of hundreds).

My babysitter taught me to knit when I was 6 or 7, but I didn't really connect with it until I was 20. I would occasionally knit a couple inches of rectangle (I use that term loosely), but never worked on an actual project. The one exception was this:

In 1994, I played the role of Beth in Little Women with the Ghostlight Theater Company in North Tonawanda, New York (just outside of Buffalo). I spent an entire scene knitting. I don't remember if it was in the script, or if I thought my character wasn't the type to just sit around doing nothing.

I knit the front of a kid's sweater in a variegated dusty rose acrylic, with black intarsia bunnies on it.

Yes, you read that correctly: my first actual project was INTARSIA!!!

It was a pattern from The Beatrix Potter Knitting Book by Pat Menchini, a collection of very traditional (and in some cases stodgy) English designs.

Some were inspired by Beatrix Potter's books, and some depicted their characters. This was a simple pull-over with the Flopsy Bunnies on it.

And, no, I didn't think that dusty rose acrylic and black bunnies went together. They were what I had on hand, and I wanted to knit. I had only one pair of needles, and the gauge was completely inappropriate. I had also relaxed quite a bit as a knitter. Between the two, the fabric was so loose it was almost see-through, and a toddler-sized sweater would have fit an eight-year-old. That is, it would have fit if I had made the back and sleeves and found an eight-year-old willing to wear a dusty pink acrylic sweater with black intarsia bunnies on it.

As hideous as it turned out, it was an important experience because:
- I was a process knitter even then. I knew from the beginning that what I was making would never be a wearable garment, and I didn't care. I just wanted to knit.
- I learned a tricky technique before I knew enough to be afraid of it. And if I'm not a completely fearless knitter, I am a pretty low-fear one.
- I knitted before hundreds of people, AND I CAN PROVE IT (I have it on tape somewhere; probably at my mom's house)

And while I'm at it:

You are interchangeable.
Fun, free, and into everything, you've got every
eventuality covered and every opportunity just
has to be taken. Every fiber is wonderful, and
every day is a new beginning. You are good at
so many things, it's amazing, but you can
easily lose your place and forget to show up.
They have row counters for people like you!

What kind of knitting needles are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Chicken Viking Hat!

2005-12-14T01:11:00.000-05:00

They're both done, minus weaving in the ends (which makes a difference for the drumstick toes)!

Voila:

Adult version:

(pattern coming soon; I'll need some pattern testers, though!)

Baby version:

Plus, some yarn I bought at Windsor Button for last-minute xmas additions:

Specifically, those are:

- Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in Grey Dawn for Knitting for Boozehag's Lelah Top

- Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride in Periwinkle and Lemon Drop, to use in conjuntion with Knitpicks Wool of the Andes in Grass and Natural to make Pick-Up Sticks felted flowers, in Iris and Cala Lilly.

- Lion Brand Lion Wool in Sage for Feline Dim Sum by Julie Falatko. I'll be using this for the eggroll pattern, plus the wonton pattern in Wool of the Andes in Ivory, plus a self-designed pattern (coming soon!) for a sweet bean steamed bun in Ivory Wool of the Andes with Cranberry Alpaca Silk for the "dot" from the red bean paste.

Heh. I'm a Fairy Princess!

2005-12-12T22:10:00.000-05:00

The Fairy Princess

You are youthful, cheery, and exuberant with a
sunny disposition and a mischievous sense of
humor. You are very lively and are always up
for a good bit of fun. You have a deep love of
nature and animals.

Role Model: Titania

You are most likely to: Convert a pumpkin into a
useful mode of transportation.

What Kind of Princess are You? - Beautiful Artwork (Original Music is BACK!!!)
brought to you by Quizilla

How odd. I always thought I was the lizard queen!

Photo Essay

2005-12-11T02:33:00.000-05:00

I replaced the batteries in my camera, so here are some pictures of progress I've described but not photographed:

1- Chicken Viking Hat, baby version:

2- Chicken Viking Hat, adult version (adapted pattern to be published once it's done):

(as of about 5pm today)

(not color-accurate, but shows the texture well)

(main hat finished, as of 2:30am. unfortunately crack-headed look with dark circles, etc.)

3- Grumperina's iPod cozies:

4- Hopeful by Jenna Adorno:

5- Blocking Soleil and Momvoli:

6- Una, sleeping on a blanket I made out of Red Heart Light & Lofty (the only acrylic yarn I ever loved) about a year ago:

7- Yarns from Over The Rainbow

Also, my lovely cousin-in-law Ashley and my cousin-in-law-in-law Scott:

gave me my Chrismas present early: a gift certificate to Kpixie. I'm going to use it to buy some Karabella Aurora 8 to make Tubey. Whee!!!

There are no words

2005-12-09T18:42:00.000-05:00

for what a lucky, lucky girl I am.

I have yarn.
I have new yarn.
I have beautiful new yarn.
I have lots of beautiful new yarn.
I have lots of beautiful, different new yarn.
I have lots of ideas for my beautiful different new yarn.

Unfortunately, my camera batteries died. So here are the vendor's pictures:

1- Karabella Aurora 8 in peach (color 32, I think):

(picture shamelessly stolen from the wonderful people at Kpixie, who have a great price on this yarn and quick turn-around times to boot.)

I'm using this for the baby version of the Chicken Viking Hat The color is just a touch brighter than I had in mind, but it still says "flesh" to me.

This is a fabulous yarn: stretchy and warm merino that's softer than cotton. There is no such thing as The Best Yarn, only the right yarn for your project and tastes, but this has to be one of my all-time favorites, and it's so VERSATILE!

Oh yeah, I've done some work on that project:

I didn't like the top shaping (my own fault, not the pattern: I resized for 0-6 mos), so I frogged back to the start of the decrease section and reworked it since taking this picture. I've also done one of the two drumsticks (picking up in a circle is HARD!), but not the toes yet.

2- Karabella Aurora Bulky in color 9:

This is for the adult version of the Chicken Viking Hat that I'll be adapting for Ryan. I decided to go bulky to keep the goosebumps in proportion, but I think it will be warmer (and faster to knit) than the worsted version. Plus, I like this color better. While the worsted's color 32 has a nice peachy flesh tone to it, this one really reminds me of drained-of-all-blood raw chicken in the butcher case.

3- Over the Rainbow Yarns Silk/Rayon handpaint:

This colorway is called Aztec 2. I have this in mind for a summer-weight Clapotis, maybe for my animal-hair-sensitive mom. Or maybe I'll keep it. :)

4- Over the Rainbow Yarns" Silk/Merino handpaint (called Gemini, I think):

This colorway is called Winter Blues. It's a little less electric in color, but just lovely. I'm thinking of a fitted turtleneck with 3/4 sleeves, like this. This is an incredibly soft yarn that gave me NO PRICKLES at the neck, so it's a wonderful choice for a t-neck. It's a light worsted weight, and may also be a good choice for Clapotis, although it's a "twisty" 2-ply, rather than a single, so it will have a slightly different texture than a more cylindrical yarn.

5- AND, I have some Rowan Soft Baby in Cozy (fleshy, peachy ivory) and Buttercup (yellow) that was my first selection for the Chicken Viking Hat, but it's fuzzy, which doesn't say raw chicken to me. Unless I think of something else I want to make with it before I make it to the post office, I'll be returning it.

6- AND I have some Debbie Bliss Aran Tweed coming for the Blissful Jacket from Interweave Knits (Fall 05):

I'm slightly embarrassed to admit that I'm making this in the exact yarn and exact color shown. In my defense, that blue is very much my color, and was part of what attracted me to the pattern in the first place. Plus, I've always wanted to knit a jacket. I got a great price on this yarn from discountyarnsale.com, but it was special order, so it took a very long time.

7, 8 - AND I have some KnitPicks Merino Style in Tidepool and Panache in Cloud coming in the mail any day now. The Panache is for The Little Wrap:

I want to make this to wear to a holiday party, over my Karen Millen cherries dress:

(looking at this dress, can't you see why Tubey is my sweater?)
The dress was a gift from my mother-in-law, to wear to the rehearsal dinner.
Then again, maybe I'll hoard the Panache for a while and stick with my black shrug. Opinions?

Wow. I don't want to think about how much I've spent on yarn in the last couple of months. But at least some of it was for xmas presents!

Tubey! Tubey! Tubey!

2005-12-05T12:41:00.001-05:00

My lord. It's my sweater:

It's Tubey from The winter issue of Knitty

Ok, it's not MY sweater. I didn't design it or anything. However, that is totally my neckline and my fit. Graceful, body-skimming-but-not-tight, face-framing, sexy-without-cleavage, long-waisted enough. Plus, it's got clever but simple construction. Woohoo! I will probably make it with 3/4 fitted sleeves, instead of the bells.

Need to source yarn NOW. Some ideas:
- cute stripey version, similar to as shown, but probably different colors. I would LOVE to use Aurora 8 on this (so soft!) but it's a little pricey.
- solid version in something luxurious-looking, with a halo or sheen, and maybe in ivory or red for holiday wear. KnitPicks Andean Treasure has a nice sheen to it, but I'm not sure if it's springy enough.

Other patterns I like from the winter issue of Knitty: Kate, Forecast, Tempting II, Blanche-Neige (without the fun fur, please!), Bristow, Mrs. Beeton.

And, oh yeah, an FO:

This is My So-Called Scarf in lovely Manos del Uruguay (colorway Granite) for my sister's boyfriend David. I just love it. It's soft and springy, warm and not in the least bit girly-looking. I cast on 40 stitches instead of the recommended 30, so it would be a little over 7" wide (rather than the very girly 5" the pattern produces). It took about 2.5 skeins, done on size 11 needles.

And, oh yeah, I cast on and knit a good chunk of Hopeful by Jenna Adorno. I've just started the waist increases, and have used 2 balls of Knitpicks Ambrosia, out of an estimated 6 or 7. No pictures yet, but I'll add those soon.

And, oh yeah, I blocked not one but THREE items since my last post:
- Soleil (steam-blocked with a wet pillowcase)
- Momvoli (ditto)
- Blackberry (soak-and-shaped. Instead of knitting on another 1" on the sleeves, I decided to see if I could block it out. It was still damp this morning, so we'll have to see!)

Recommendations for Ali, Part 1: Patterns

2005-11-28T15:40:00.000-05:00

This post is for Ali, a newish knitter who is getting ready to branch out. Here's a nice picture:

(Ali & Anup)

I was going to send this by email, but I realized:
- other newish knitters might also be interested in this info
- other knitters might have other suggestions to add
- my blog could use more traffic :)

Ali mentioned that she had been doing hats and scarves, and was interested in trying something new. She said she might want to try something similar to my Clapotis capelet:

Here are my recommendations for "advanced beginner" projects:

1- The Paris Loop by Stephanie Japel

This is really easy: you knit in a tube, using progressively smaller needles to make the tube narrower as you go. I made a particularly horrific one of these, through bad yarn selection and poor fit.

The yarn it calls for has been discontinued. The designer recommends Lion Brand Homespun (not my favorite yarn) as an inexpensive substitute. I'd say anything of an appropriate gauge with some texture to it would probably work. If you want to go this route, I'd print out the pattern and the designer's FAQ, and take it to a yarn store with you. The shop ladies should be able to help you find something suitable.

2- Picovoli (a refinement of the Tivoli pattern) by Grumperina
I've made two Tivolis so far, using the original pattern, and both in KnitPicks Shine:

(Momvoli is done, with the exception of blocking, but I don't have a recent picture.)

3- Tempting by Jenna Adorno

This is really cute, and the pattern is very straighforward. The yarn it calls for is pricey, but Knitpicks Andean Silk would be a good substitute. (Seriously: $16-$22 vs. $36-54)

4- Tie One On, mellow version, by nona

Coming soon:

Part 2: Online Magazines and Suppliers
Part 3: Helpful Resources

Stash Sta-Stash Stash!

2005-11-10T20:54:00.000-05:00

I love stash. It's like endless possibilities. My stash is pretty paltry, compared to what others have described, but this one is mine. :)

The newest additions:

FROM KNITPICKS:

I didn't mean to go all Christmasey, but there you have it! That's:

- 12 skeins of Alpaca Silk in Cranberry
This is all for me! I'm going to design a sweater for this. My only criteria: cozy yet fitted.

- 2 skeins of Wool of the Andes, natural (the equivalent of 4 skeins of regular WOA).
I was planning to make some cabled handbags for my sisters, a la Michelle-Nicole, but with different styling: no bows, and very different handles. That may or may not happen; they're not big on small bags.

- 1 skein of Wool of the Andes in Grass
That is for the stems and leaves of Pick Up Sticks' felted flowers. I bought the Iris and Calla Lily patterns. I may make them as an extra xmas gift for someone-who-shall-remain-nameless-since-she-may-read-this.

I am very surprised by Wool of the Andes. It is MUCH softer than I expected. I might actually be able to wear this against skin, and I am PICKY when it comes to scratchy. It's very lofty too.

FROM WOOLCOTTS:

- 1 ball of Rowan Calmer in Slosh
This is for an iPod cozy (using Grumperina's pattern) for my honorary brother Dudley

- 2 skeins of Manos del Uruguay in Granite
This is for a toasty-warm scarf for my other sister's boyfriend David. The goals were warm and manly. I think we can accomplish that. :) Manos, being a single-ply, has a very organic look to it. I'm thinking of using the My So-Called Scarf pattern, which is an interesting stitch pattern, and should play up the rugged look of the yarn.

Xmas, and.... The Chicken Viking Hat!

2005-11-09T09:36:00.000-05:00

Okay. I said a while back that I wasn't knitting any Christmas presents this year. How things change!

THE CHICKEN VIKING HAT:

I mentioned the Chicken Viking Hat ito my brother-in-law-to-be while we were visiting him and my sister in NY. While I'm on the subject, here's a picture of the lovely couple:

He thought it was very cool, so I asked my sister if she thought he'd wear it. Apparently, he asked her that same night if she thought I'd make it for him!

I am very very excited about this project. First off, it's hysterical. Secondly, it looks not too brainless and not too hard. Thirdly, it's a baby hat, so resizing it to adult size will be a fun design project.

WARM FUZZIES:

Since I was giving Ryan a gift this year, I wanted to give my younger sister's boyfriend something too. I asked Melanie for ideas, and she told me that he loves super-warm winter gear, and buys new hats, gloves, etc. constantly. I mentioned the possibility of double knitting someting (essentially knitting a second hat inside the first one), and she got really excited. I'm still waiting for info on items, sizes, colors, etc.

iPOD COZY:

I will be making an iPod cozy for my declared-brother, probably using Grumperina's pattern. I swatched up some cotton, to avoid static, but it wasnt' nearly elastic enough. I'm going to do a test run with some leftover Alpaca Silk, but may buy a ball of Rowan Calmer (nice elastic cotton) for the finished product. Ooh! Maybe that'll be a good use for my Woolcotts store credit...

Clapotis Pics

2005-11-08T23:31:00.000-05:00

Wrapped like a scarf

Wrapped like a shawl

Extended

Just look at that sheen!

Beam.

Clapotis!

2005-11-07T15:36:00.000-05:00

Well, Clapotis is finished. She is beautiful, and bringing her into the world was in itself an act of beauty.

I used Lorna's Laces Lion & Lamb in Forest (a discontinued color), and this is officially the SWEETEST YARN EVER. So soft. So shiney, such beautiful color distribution. I had a teensy bit of pooling, and it looked like I MEANT to do it that way.

I followed the pattern to the letter, with two exceptions:
- instead of using stitch markers, I purled the stitched to be dropped (as the Australian aborigines say: the more you know, the less you need)
- I twisted the stitched on either side of the purled stitch on both sides, not just on the knit side, I think this looks more even. Plus, it gives your brain a little more of a work-out.

I used size 8 needles and 3.5 skeins. I had a tiny little ball left afterward (maybe 1/2" in diameter), without doing extra increases or straight sections. I haven't measured it yet, but it makes a nice small wrap. If I had had the full four skeins (I split an order of seven skeins with my yarn buddy), I might have done an extra couple straight sections for a little more length. still, I can wear it over my shoulders and under my elbows like a stole, and I can wrap it all the way around my shoulders too.

I wore her outside for the first time yesterday with jeans and a teal poorboy. She was lovely. I wore her purl-side-out. I like both sides, although I didn't realize that Kate Gilbert meant the purl side to be the right side until I heard her on KnitCast, so I still think of the knit side as the "right side". I do think that the purl side has better "grip", so it's less likely to slide while you're wearing it. Both sides have excellent grip.

I was shopping in Target, and a lady around my age came up to me and asked me, not if I had made it, but WHERE I GOT IT! What a compliment! I told her I had made it myself, and she said I had done a very good job.

Beam!

Pictures soonish, I promise. Just not tonight. :)

Week-old photos

2005-10-27T17:18:00.000-04:00

Well, I finally got the pics I mentioned last week. Here they are:

All sewn up, but lacking a border

Sleeve detail

Since then, I've added the border (including a buttonhole), and had a fitting. It looked fantastic on my sister. The edging sits high on her neck like a collar, and I but the buttonhole lower than I had planned. Between the two, it sits on her like a tailored bolero jacket, rather than a slouchy snuggly cardigan. I'm going to lengthen the sleeves by about three rows (3/4" or so), but otherwise, it fits beautifully. Of course, I forgot to take pictures of the fitting. Sigh.

I've also been working on Clapotis:

I've done a lot more since then; I'm up to the third dropped stitch. It is absolutely gorgeous. I had a brief concern about the yarn: next to the brown duvet and in artificial light, the greys look much more brown than they do elsewhere and in daylight. I absolutely love it, though.

And now, for no reason:

Camoflauge cat.

Quote of the day

2005-10-20T23:05:00.000-04:00

Gauge swatch? I don't need no stinkin' gauge swatch! - knittykitty on You Knit What?

I did half the seaming on Blackberry (thanks to Danielle for the good advice), and hope to have the other seams sewn, the picked-up edges done, and the whole thing blocked by Sunday, when I'm going to NYC to see my sister, and hopefully give it to her.

I also did about four inches of Clapotis while mad at Blackberry's seams.

Alas, you won't get any pictures. I did take them, but can't find the cable for the digital camera. I'll bet the cat stole it. I had some incriminating pictures of her shedding on wedding gifts on there.

Jessica Needs

2005-10-15T01:43:00.000-04:00

Blantantly stealing an idea from Danielle:

Jessica Needs:
(results of googling "jessica needs)

1- Jessica needs to keep her mouth shut sometimes instead of just blurting out whatever is in her head
(context: Jessica Simpson)

2- Jessica needs cash
(context: Sarah Jessica Parker, and no Sex & the City movie)

3- Jessica needs a bit of time off by herself to process things
(context: profile of sisters in need of a foster family)

4- Jessica needs an adoptive family that is very structured.
(context: another girl in need of a foster family. Is something going on here?)

5- Jessica needs to change direction... and fast
(context: some Jessica's dating journal)

6- Jessica needs to keep her effin hands off my boy.
(context: Jessica Simpson)

7- Jessica needs you!
(context: Sponsoring Jessica Zaluzky, motorcyle racer. Rock on!)

8- Jessica needs fake titties and then she would be perfect.
(context: Jessica Simpson. Sigh.)

9- Jessica needs to get a kidney fast so she can live her life like she used to.
(context: "Saving Jessica" by Lurlene McDaniel, whose work has been called "pathetic", "melodramatic" and "lightweight" by Library Journal)

10- Jessica needs anything she wants.
(context: the blog of a Hilary Duff fan named Jessica)

Happy birthday, Becky, and congrats!!!

2005-10-12T21:21:00.000-04:00

My lovely sister, Rebecca:

Shown here in her first of three bridesmaidings this year (TAKE THAT, PROVERB!)

Shown here with our uncle Brian and our sister Melanie, the rapper

not only has her birthday today, but SHE'S GETTING MARRIED!!!!

I am incredibly pleased, not only because Ryan makes her happy, not only because they're great together, but because I really, honestly like him. He's a great guy, and is going to make a great brother.

Rebecca is the lucky recipient of Blackberry, which I hope to have done in the next couple of days.

Ryan, the lucky man, is the super-nice guy I mentioned in my cheese-loving post back in May.

Blackberry pics, L&L!!!

2005-10-08T23:19:00.000-04:00

Here is my Blackberry progress, in all it's glory:

laid flat, and apparently incredibly interesting to Una

Wiht fronts laid approximately in place

The mostly-done sleeve I did on the way to New Hampshire this morning (mmm... cables...)

The Knitting Deities have blessed me. I have not one, not two, but THREE gorgeous yarns for THREE fabulous projects in my newly-dubbed stash. You've already seen Ambrosia (for Hopeful) and Shadow (for Sweet Mary Jane), but now I have Lion & Lamb for Clapotis #2 (fall edition):

Ok, not all of it is for me. Half of it is for my yarn buddy in CA, who also wanted to make a Clapotis in this colorway. The pattern for Clapotis calls for "a little more than three" skeins of L&L. Considering how pricey it is, an extra skein really makses a difference. So instead of buying 4 skeins each, we bought 7 to split. Whee!

Not only is this beautiful, soft, light-weight yarn, but the colorway is perfect. It is #37, "Forest", which no longer appears on the Lorna's Laces color card, but which Angelika's Yarn Store convinced them to bring out of retirement for us. (Thanks, Angelika!)

I spent literally months looking for just the right yarn and colorway for this project. Most of my clothing is either turquoise, teal, or red, so I looked for something that had turquoise, red and black in it. I found Noro Silk Garden #211 (as seen in this photo from Knotology):

which had all the right colors, but the yarn was somewhat scratchy against my neck. I am very sensitive to these things.

After looking and looking I found another that had those colors, but it was hideous. (I won't say where.) Finally, I decided not to try to go all matchy-matchy, and started looking into other options. Once I let go, I found the perfect thing. The many colors in Forest will look great with my turquoises, teals, jeans, and blacks. Plus, I strongly suspect they'll work with my reds as well.

Oh, great Yarn Dieties, Rulers of all Fiber! Now that I have been so blessed, may I be deserving of thy luxurious bounties of yarn. (Specifically, may I avoid flying through Clapotis, and remember to savor every stitch of this gorgeous yarn.)

Flying Blackberries

2005-10-07T11:25:00.000-04:00

Fastest. Sweater. Ever.

My yarn arrived on Wednesday. On Wednesday night, I did the pattern math and cast on.

On Thursday, I worked the entire back and both sides of the front.

I'm half-way done. Dude.

I reached the half-way mark 27 hours after starting the project. And in that time I also:
- worked a full day
- got 7 hours of sleep
- had a leisurely dinner at Legal Seafood
- did six loads of laundry

Process knitter though I may be, I'm beginning to understand why people love bulk yarn.

(pictures coming soon)

Yarn!

2005-10-05T18:11:00.000-04:00

Mmmm... not one but TWO shipments from Knitpicks, arranged nicely for ogling:

Thats:

Andean Silk in Slate (top)
to be used double-stranded for Blackberry, as a birthday gift for my sister. I get the perfect gauge on the needle size called for (11st, 14rows on size 13s) when double-stranding. Plus, I end up with a bulky-weight alpaca/silk/merino sweater for under $50!

Ambrosia in Fog (outside)
for Hopeful for ME

Shadow in Vineyard (front)
for Sweet Mary Jane, also for me. That was a total impulse purchase, but how often can you blow $10 on a project (and that covers yarn AND the pattern) and get a full-sized garment out of it? It's lovely, and the pattern fee is donated to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation

Alpaca Cloud in Horizon (top)
just to play with. :)

And now, for no reason, Una:

Showing her appreciation for fine woolens

Revealing her true evil nature

Momvoli adjustments

2005-09-28T10:30:00.000-04:00

I had my Momvoli fitting on Saturday (alas, in another state, and without my camera). It fit fabulously, but was a little long for my petite Lovely Mother. I frogged back to where the waist increases end, and am working on a hem.

This was going to be a Christmas present, but since she was in town for her birthday, it's ready more-or-less-now, and it will be great to wear in the fall, it's turning into a late birthday present.

This means that I'm not knitting anything - NOT ONE THING - for anyone for Christmas this year.

At least, not yet...

Hwarf, Hwarf, Hwarf

2005-09-26T12:42:00.000-04:00

So, what's the nicest way to be woken up at 3am? Why, to hear your precious kitty, leaning over the side of your bed, coughing up TWO hairballs onto your knitting. This happened to me last week. Luckily, it was in a plastic bag, so most of the hairball slid down the side, but the swatches close to the top did get defiled. They were okay after a washing (and I guess it's good to wash your swatches) but eeeuuuuwww.

That was not one but two hairballs out of THREE in the same week. And this from a cat who hasn't coughed up more than eight in the five years I've had her. Yuck.

Dare I say it?

2005-09-23T17:25:00.000-04:00

Momvoli is done! At least, pending a fitting this weekend, plus blocking and possibly edging.

I fixed the sizing problems I had with my own. It's just a tad too tight on me, but should fit my smaller mom nicely. Plus, it's very nicely shaped.

Fitting pics coming soon!

Next steps: work on my Rebecca #12 Wrap With Sleeves until my Knitpicks Ambrosia comes for Hopeful, and until my sister chooses her birthday present pattern.

Momvoli pics

2005-09-21T10:43:00.000-04:00

Here are pics of my mom's Tivoli in progress. These are from Sunday, and I've done another 2.5 or 3 inches of the waist decrease section since then.

Stats:
Yarn: Knitpicks Shine in Orchid (when I took the pictures, I had used 1.5-2 balls. I'm estimating 4-4.5 for this one)
Needles: size 5 denises
Stitch gauge: about 5.5 st/in

I made the yoke according to the 31" bust version of the original pattern (since replaced by Picovoli in MagKnits). However, I added an additional two increase rows to bring it up to the bust size I wanted. This time, I'm following Grumperina's advice to the letter, and using much more negative ease than I used for my own I am very pleased with the fit so far:

Momvoli laid flat

Close-up

My mom, the supermodel

Doesn't that almost work as a layered crop top?

Tivoli #2, Hopeful obsession

2005-09-19T10:43:00.000-04:00

I finished my Tivoli while in Buffalo, where my lovely mother POUNCED on it. She is several sizes smaller than I am, and my Tivoli was a tad loose as it is, so I managed to escape with my sweater. However, she did extract a promise from me: a Tivoli of her own for Christmas. Luckily, I had some KnitPicks Shine in my stash (I love having a stash) in the perfect color: orchid.

She came to visit me in Boston for her 55th birthday (honestly, does this woman look 55? I don't think so.)

and by the time she left, I had Tivoli done to the try-on point (just before you start the waist shaping). I took pictures, but forgot to transfer them from the camera, so you'll have to wait. It is officially precious.

My own Tivoli has been worn three times, and is starting to look saggy. When recently-blocked, the looseness was drapey and pretty, but now it's leaning towards sloppy. I should have taken Grumperina's advice. However, most of the sag comes from the shoulders stretching out. I think if I give it a nice firm edging (crochet, maybe) that might stabilize it nicely. I'll have to wash & reblock first, but will keep you posted.

I found my yarn needle, and wove in the ends on Soleil. I'll block it tonight or tomorrow, and post pics. I did end up ripping out the edgings, and redid them in single-crochet. For the neckline, I crocheted three out of every four stitches. This laid nicely flat, and since there were so many crochets in a row, it didn't look as sparse as every-other stitch.

My next obsession: Hopeful by Jenna Adorno.

I really, really like this pattern. In fact, before I stumbled on it, I drew something similar in my own design notebook. (Hopeful has much more interesting detail than my sketch, however.) Then I saw Katie's Hopeful, and I was hooked.

What I love about this pattern:
- it's a gorgeous garment
- it's dressy enough for work (in fact, it's a touch dressier than what I usually wear)
- it looks like it'll be fun to knit
- NOT 100%, but 120% percent of the pattern price goes to a breast cancer research fund. Seriously. You pay $5, and she donates $6!

After rifling through my swatch archive, and debating over color cards for about half an hour with my mom, I decided to make this in KnitPicks Ambrosia in Fog. I absolutely adore that yarn, and this will be a great project for it. Plus, it'll be CHEAP! Under $50 for a sweater in alpaca/cashmere!

Drool.

Tivoli!

2005-09-08T22:22:00.000-04:00

Here she is, all done:

Yarn: Knitpicks Shine, Turquoise (although I'd call it more of a teal)
Needles: size 5 circulars (from my Denise set)

She's a little loose, particularly in the back:

Grumperina suggested giving it at least 2" of negative ease, and I went for closer to an inch and a half. I had to round up or down, and the looser option gave me better numbers for dividing. Plus, my gauge might have bit a little loose.

Oh well. If I had to do it again, I'd probably do it at least two inches smaller, but I do like it as it is. The looser fit is ladylike, and the extra drape in the back is kind of pretty. I have been thinking of doing a variant with some lacework at the yoke and/or hem.

That'll have to wait, though; I'm working on one for my mom now. She loved mine and wants one for Christmas. I cast on for it yesterday in Knitpicks Shine in Orchid She wears a smaller size than I do, but I'll be sure to keep it closer-fitting for her.

If I do say so myself, S-M-R-T! When I resized the pattern, I made the underarms too wide, showing my bra edge and framing that underarm flab... I fixed it, not by frogging, but by grafting! I took a yarn needle and stitched up four stitches on either side of both armholes, narrowing it nicely. Invisible, if I do say so myself:

I finished Tivoli on my way to Phoenix for a conference last week, and also did lots of swatching up of my KnitPicks samples. Mmm... alpaca. I'll post pics later. I am completely enamoured of Ambrosia, Panache, and Andean Treasure, and am sorely tempted by Alpaca Silk as well. Must... plan... wardrobe... carefully... before... buying... yarn!

I also finished the doublecrochet neck edging on Soleil:

I didn't love it. It did have a nice lacy look, but it closed up too much of the v-neck. I ripped it out (is it frogging if it's crochet?) and redid it in single crochet with a crochet three, skip one pattern, that both laid flat and looked pretty nice. I couldn't find my yarn needle, so I haven't woven in the ends yet, but hopefully I'll get to wear it once or twice before the weather turns. I also have a vague idea for a cardigan in mind, and extra cherry Shine in my stash.

I love having a stash.

Frogging Soleil

2005-08-23T12:16:00.000-04:00

Well, I frogged back to the neckline split on Soleil and re-knitted, with 4 stitches fewer on each strap, removed from the shoulder side. I am very pleased with how it turned out. I did the armhole edgings in single crochet, and am working on a row of slipstitch, followed by a row of double-crochet, on Alexandra's recommendation. Will post pics when I'm done.

Notes: I did see a little bit of wear on the yarn after frogging. However, it only shows on the strand, not in the finished garment. Whew!

Tivoli is at the "crop top" stage, and is looking and fitting fabulously. The armholes are too big (showing the edge of the bra, if I move around too much), but I'm probably going to edge it anyway, so there's a lot I can do about that. I'm thinking of picking up stitches and making the sleeves just plain longer. Whee!

Brrr!

2005-08-19T16:31:00.000-04:00

My office is cold. Really, really cold. And my cube is right under a vent, so I am always FREEZING at work. This has some pretty funny results. Last week, it was in the 90s with very high humidity, when the filmiest cotton t-shirt was uncomfortable outside, I was dreaming of alpaca.
Worsted-weight alpaca.
Lofty, worsted-weight alpaca.
Spongy, lofty, worsted-weight alpaca.
Spongy, lofty, cabled worsted-weight alpaca.
A spongy, lofty, cabled worsted-weight alpaca turtleneck.
A spongy, lofty, cabled worsted-weight alpaca turtleneck with sleeves long enough to tuck my hands into.

Mmmm... feeling better already.

And now, for something completely off-topic:

Your Linguistic Profile:

65% General American English

15% Yankee

10% Dixie

5% Midwestern

5% Upper Midwestern

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

This makes a whole lot of sense. I grew up in Buffalo, NY (where the in-city, well-educated accent is as close to american standard english as you get), live in Boston now (Yankee central), and have also spent a summer in Houston (hence, the Dixie contribution).

Tivoli Progress, Soleil Finishing Annoying

2005-08-18T10:43:00.000-04:00

First, the good news: I worked another couple of inches on Tivoli, and not only is the fit good so far, the neckline does seem to be deep enough. It's hard to tell, though, since I had it on my Denise cables, which were a little tight. Being under the bust line, they might have been pulling down on the garment a bit. We'll find out! In the meantime, here's a pic:

The finishing for Soleil is bugging me. I tried the recommended single-crochet edging, which I didn't love. I pulled it off and tried double-crochet, which gave it a lacier look. It looked fabulous at first, but if you don't do every stitch or every-other stitch, it looks really obviously uneven. The problem is, every stitch is too many (so it gets all stretched-out and ruffley), and every other was to few, so it was gathered and pinchey. I did the whole neckline, putting double-crochets where they needed to be to lie flat, but the spacing was just too irregular. It looked really ameteurish. I couldn't get a good detail shot of the double-crochet, but here's what I could come up with:

I ripped out the doubles, and put back the single-crochet edge. It looks better to me now; maybe I just didn't do a good job the first time. I may try it with a picot edge, instead...

Here's a shot of it on. As you can see, the fit is pretty good. Unfortunately, it's at a bit of an angle, so you can't see the shoulders very clearly. They are too wide for my taste; they'd be much more flattering if they were thinner.

I may frog to the neckline split and do some decreasing on the outer edge. Alternatively, I might try hemming the armholes instead of edging them. That'd probably be too bulky.

Tivoli

2005-08-16T13:16:00.000-04:00

As promised, here are some pictures of my Tivoli-in-progress:

photographed without a flash

photographed with a flash

I'm using KnitPicks shine in Turquoise (which I'd consider more of a teal; the actual color is halfway between those in the photos) and size 5 needles. I'm two skeins into it, just under the armpit. I tried it on, but it's hard to tell at this point. The neck may be sitting higher than I'd like. I'm going to do another skein's worth (hopefullly to under the bust line), and see how I like it.

I have a plan if I need to frog and redesign. A few things I can do:
- make the shoulder shaping closer-set. If I used the same number of stitches, but redistributed them so fewer were in the front and back, and more were in the sleeves, then the neckline would sit lower on the chest, and the sleeves would be deeper.
- I may make longer sleeves (true cap sleeve may not be flattering on me). I could do this using shortrows (so the part of the sleeve under the arm has fewer stitches that the part on top of the shoulder). Alternatively, I could put the sleeve edge stitches on a holder (instead of binding them off) and then pick up the underarm stitches and keep going.

Of course, it could turn out to be fabulous as it is, and need no adjustment whatsoever. :)

Stash, Knitting Insomnia

2005-08-16T12:21:00.000-04:00

I now officially have a stash. Previously, I had a ministash: I'd buy one ball of yarn at a time to play with, and then throw it in a storage bin. If I bought more than one ball of yarn, it was for a particular project, which I'd begin right away (although not necessarily finish...)

Now, however, I have not only bought multiple balls of yarn, and for which I haven't started the projects, I have bought yarn for which I DON'T HAVE A SPECIFIC PROJECT!!!

Here it is:

That's a few dozen balls of KnitPicks Shine
(My couple dozen random single balls and WIPs aren't shown. I'll try to get a group photo up in the future.)

The turquoise (which I'd call teal) is for Tivoli (pictures later), but the orchid (fuscia), cherry (red) and sky (blue) are not yet committed!

Some preliminary ideas:

- Orchid: I have six balls, which is what Tivoli calls for. I may do another Tivoli with some interesting patterns at the neck and/or lower edge. Maybe some eyelet work, or maybe thread in a wide ribbon, tied with a bow?

- Cherry: I bought 17 balls of this, and have used 4 1/2 so far for Soleil, so I have just over 12 left. I'm thinking I'll make a cardigan to form a twinset. However, I probably won't edge it with Soleil's lace pattern. Too matchy-matchy.

- Sky: I have 13 balls. My original thought was some kind of 3/4 sleeved, v-neck. For a few years, any time I went clothes shopping, (and no matter what I was looking for) I'd come home with a blue v-necked sweater. I have been without one for going on two years. It would be really nice to have one again. Then again, I might also prefer a more fall/winter weight v-neck.

I had a bout of Knitting Insomnia last week. (That's when you can't sleep because you're thinking about your projects.) I had an idea. One thing that I really like about Soul is how corset-like it looks, with diagonal ribs on the side, and vertical ones in the center:

(Soul is in the Needs Adjustment bin for the time being...)

That got me thinking. What if I were to do a 3/4 sleeved square- or sweetheart-necked sweater with a bodice like that? That could make a very feminine, dressy top. Instead of vertical ribbing in the center, however, I'm thinking of a vertical pattern of eyelets. This needs some thought/prototyping.

Opinions/Ideas/Advice?

Soleil!

2005-08-16T11:50:00.000-04:00

I finished the knitting for Soleil last week, but have only just gotten around to taking pictures. Here's my baby:

Still to do:
- unseam the shoulders
- block
- reseam the shoulders
- buy a size D crochet hook...
- do the crochet edging

Considering the half-assed job I did of the resizing, it fits beautifully. the shoulders seem to get wider at the very top, which doesn't look great. Hopefully a combination of tighter bind-off, careful blocking, and better reseaming will do it.

S-M-R-T

2005-08-05T00:32:00.000-04:00

I am so smart! I am so smart! S-M-R-T, I am so smart! - Homer Simpson

So, I noticed during the increase sections of Soleil that I was getting some holes under my M1s. (The sort where you pick up the bar between two stitches.) I noticed the same thing in Sitcom Chic, but there the holes made a pretty eyelet pattern, so they came out as more of a "design element".

In Soleil, they don't look so good. But then I realized: although I had been twisting the picked-up stitches, I was untwisting them when I knitted them on the next round! Twisting them properly would tighten up the hole. I tried this on the next increase round, and it looked great. But I already had several inches with the holey M1s.

Time to frog? Nope!

Being the clever, clever (and so modest) girl I am, I dropped down to the picked-up stitch, then re-picked it up with a twist, and then reknitted it with a twist. Then I reknitted back up the column, and gave the fabric a bit of a tug to even out the stitches.

Voila! It looked as good as if I had done it right from the beginning.

Now, I know I'm not the first person to use this method, but I did come up with it all on my own, and I must brag. S-M-R-T!

The pics I took of this process didn't come out, but I'll update the post once I've had the chance to take some new ones.

Update: August 15th. A picture of the holes (but, alas, not the dropping and re-picking-up process):

Your Knucles Say "Cobra"

2005-08-04T23:05:00.000-04:00

So, I really like to knit. To the point that I rarely watch TV anymore: there's very little on that I find more interesting than my knitting. That said, audiobooks and knitting go really well together. Mens et Manus.

I am truly addicted to audiobooks. I have a two-books-per-month subscription to Audible, and it's gotten to the point that I sometimes can't sleep unless I am listening to a book.
(BTW, if you happen to subscribe to Audible, tell 'em jmdruadh sent you.)

I listen on my iPod mini, Cobra Bubbles (named for the character from Lilo & Stitch). Considering how much time my audiobooks and knitting spend together, I'm starting a new sidebar, called On Cobra Bubbles. There, I'll keep a list of titles I've got on the 'Pod, and those I've recently finished.

Which color should I use for Serrano?
	Mint Green
	Turquoise
	Brown
	Hot Pink
	Bubblegum Pink
	Aqua/Baby Blue

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Which Project should I knit for the Knitting Olympics?
	Zig-Zag
	Snowflakes and Arrows
	Sweet Mary Jane
	Self-Designed Jacket with Colorwork
	Self-Designed Cabled Thingy

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