Love, Life and Knitting.

Intarsia

2011-01-07T11:21:00.006-05:00

Intarsia: I do not think it means what I thought it meant.

So I'm working on a sooper-sekrit project right now. It's a big hunk of intarsia knitting in a Kaffe Fassett pattern. It's been rife with problems.

It has mitered corners. This means I have to knit corners that look roughly like this:

And then you fold them to get this:

But I didn't understand the directions as written. Now that I know the goal, the spartan directions are perfectly clear.

Apparently, I didn't read the directions clearly the first time I tried knitting them. This could have been related to the following facts:

I started it on Sunday, during the 1:00 [American] football game.
I continued working on it through the 4:00 and 8:00 games.
All of this happened at DH's parents' house.
DH's dad bought, and was steadily working through, a handle of Captain Morgan.
DH has mad bartender skillz.

It doesn't take Sherlock to deduct why I had problems with the pattern.

Well, I finally figured out that the increases for the mitered border had nothing to do with the interior intarsia field. So the corners were finally correct. But the field itself was so tight and unevenly knit... and damn, was I tired of interminably twisting those damn yarns with every stitch.

from the front:from the back:

look at that beautifully-wrapped, carried yarn! The only problem is:

I found this video a helpful refresher course. Watch it, and do not do as I have done.

Stage 1.5: Tequila

2010-09-25T21:39:00.008-05:00

My dear, sweet friend died yesterday. It was her wish. I am heartbroken. I had so many plans. She gave me a wedding scrapbook; I was going to surprise her with it when I had finished filling it out. I had just picked up a set of photos at Costco yesterday to send to her... I had the card ready to mail when I received the news of her death. I don't know what to do with the photos now. I wanted so much to share them with her.

I have grieved lost relationships. I still feel grief over a couple of them -- those people I grieve losing are still living, as far as I know (I don't know. I rely on the shaky premise that if they die, someone will remember to tell me. It's not the best method -- simply the best available. I just sort of vaguely hope they're alive and well, knowing I can't know). I grieve because I love them, and sometimes I think the grief will be with me as long as I love -- and as I live, I love. Sometimes I daydream about accidental meetings and happy reconciliations (unlikely, but it might happen!). But this -- I know she won't ever be there. I promised to send her pictures from my first dinner party, and it breaks my heart that she won't see them. I am thankful I got to speak to her last week -- last week! -- she kept telling me how happy it made her to know how happy I was about the china. I just thought there'd be more time. I thought we'd have weeks, at least... if not months. I thought there'd be more time.

DBF took me out for lunch and stuffed me with steak and soaked me in tequila. It was good. In retrospect, I think she would prefer I be pickling myself in Champagne than tequila... but there is time for that. I need to go shopping -- there is no option but to show up at her funeral impeccably turned out, with a gorgeous purse and devastatingly fabulous (yet appropriate) shoes.

I wish she could see them.

wedding gift

2010-09-14T22:03:00.003-05:00

I received a wedding present in the mail today from my friend. It is the money she and her husband had saved to travel to attend my wedding. The long illness has made her unable to walk and too frail to travel. I knew she wouldn't be able to come, but I had held out a small hope that she might recover enough to come. Now it is final; she will not be there. She wants me to use the money to buy my wedding china, so I will have it to remember her.

I am overwhelmed. I cannot process all the emotions that are running through me -- I'm happy about the china, sad that she will not be there, grieving that she is dying, delighted by her gorgeous and thoughtful packaging, warmed by her loving thoughts, guilty at the hugeness of the gift, grateful, melancholy, frustrated... I just can't think about it. I have to call her tomorrow to let her know it's arrived. For once, I have no idea what to say to her.

I'm knitting An American in China socks using Sanguine Gryphon Little Traveler in colorway "Scotland." The linen-stitch sole is beautiful, and probably hard-wearing, but tedious. Every 4-6 rows knit in the round, I have to double back and knit short rows across the soles, in order to compensate for the tight gauge of linen stitch. Since I am knitting them using magic loop method, this leaves holes. I wrap on the sides I can, but it leaves holes at the other side. I'm hoping they won't be glaring deficiencies in the final product. The colorway is gorgeous -- I have held onto this yarn for several years, waiting for the right project. I didn't even knit socks when I bought it, but I figured I'd get around to them at some point. And lo, I have. Pictures at some point.

Precious

2010-07-24T19:49:00.010-05:00

So I went in an estate jewelry store today. I knew I couldn't buy anything, so there was no danger in me looking.

And then I saw it -- it whispered to me from its velvet-lined box.

It sparkled from across the room, its soft siren voice asking me to come closer, to be nearer, to come and see...
It lay nestled in soft black silk velvet, its box tilted open. As I came nearer, I felt my heartbeat quicken.

I stood before it. I looked down at it. And when I saw, I wanted to wear. I wanted it. I wanted to possess it, to have it, for it to be MINE. I could not remember wanting anything in my life as badly as I wanted it at that moment.

My desire ran on a knife's edge.
I exhaled slightly. My mouth felt dry. I bit my lip.

In an instant, I recognized it as my precious. I knew it because the thought that ran through my head with wild passion was, I would sell my soul to have this.

And then I thought, well... maybe not sell it as such. Maybe mortgaging it at a reasonable rate. On a non-recourse loan. After my lawyers have read it.

I asked to try it on.

As the saleswoman opened the clasp, I knew it was too small. This tiny Victorian beauty was made for wrists smaller than mine. She slipped it onto my wrist and closed the clasp. It fit perfectly. It was light and sparkling. They were stars of diamonds. My constellation... my perfect tiara I had searched so long to find wasn't a tiara at all. The perfection I had sought was here, now -- it was real, now. It was bright dizzy delight of champagne and sensual earthy pleasure and it belonged here, now, with me.

It was so right. It was the inherent rightness that makes you think, "this is so right."

There was never any question that I had to give it back. At the same time, it was almost painful having to admit to myself that I had to take it off. It was like something that had come out of a blissful golden afternoon, stayed through the jasmine-scented night and --

gone.

It was not mine. It felt like heartbreak, that it could not be mine. This beauty, this delicate sparkling beauty, that I would adore -- that I would love as much as a person can love something so cold. It felt like having come home, only to be asked to leave again.

My beautiful bracelet.

Maybe in another life...

Miss Manners Disapproves of This Post

2010-07-15T16:59:00.007-05:00

I do not like these socks.
The yarn is Elann Harlequin. It is cheap, rough and full of sadness.
Alternately, these may be incredibly durable, hard-wearing and economical... yuck.

Many people think etiquette is a bunch of stuffy rules for rich people who have nothing better to do than show off what fancy manners they have and lord them over the ill-informed masses. No. Etiquette is there to help you navigate social situations so that you (a) at best, avoid inadvertently hurting other people's feelings, or (b) at worst, don't leave people thinking you're a horrible, callous, insensitive and/or boorish person. I screw it up a lot... but I do try to get it right, and the intention must count for something.

I feel like I've been immersed in etiquette esoterica lately, with massive party-planning underway. It's wrapped up in every detail from how to address the envelopes to who sits where to who wears what. This little-used knowledge is far beyond my basic childhood primer, which consisted of:

how to talk to old people
how to introduce two people who don't know each other

and, the all-time favorite

how to eat without being a disgusting pig with whom no-one wants to dine -- because if you are, you will eat alone for the rest of your life and won't have any friends and because you have no friends won't be invited to any parties and because you're not invited to any parties you won't have any pretty dresses and because you have no pretty dresses you will have to stay home in rags like a poor person's help and eat alone at your piggy trough with your face in the slop, and you don't want that, now do you, Courtney?

Nonetheless, there are countless books and consultants available to fill the etiquette esoterica gap (cf Crane's Blue Book, Emily Post). Thanks to them, even the rudest of us can learn to not be complete assholes when it comes to dealing with other people. Even if you don't know what the exact protocol is, you probably have a vague idea that there is a protocol out there, somewhere, and someone who knows it.

Another function of etiquette -- and perhaps the favorite for detail-oriented, melancholy types -- is that a breach of it is a wonderful outlet for righteous indignation. Think about how much satisfaction it gives you, when you feel slighted, to think, "I can't believe she said/did that! She ought to know better!" Suddenly the slight doesn't sting so much, because obviously the deficiency is in the other person. It's magical.

There's a reason you don't invite people to your bridal shower if you have not invited them to your wedding -- it makes you look like a greedy, gift-grabbing hussy. It says exactly what you were thinking, namely, "I want to include her but I don't want to invite her to my wedding." The non-invitee's feelings will be hurt, and she will think you're an inconsiderate, greedy, gift-grabbing hussy.

Which you are.

Which Emily Post is too polite to tell you.

Anyway, here's some knitting:

Summit in Lisa Souza Raw Silk.

Baby Surprise Jacket -- FINISHED!

2010-07-06T08:30:00.004-05:00

The Baby Surprise Jacket (knit wiki link) that I started back in May of 2008 is finally finished. The knitting had been completed for a long time but it lacked buttons. I found some wonderful 1940's-era buttons at Accessories of Old. At time of writing, there are 11,927 Baby Surprise Jackets documented on Ravelry. If that's just the number that have been started and recorded in the past 2-3 years, imagine how many there must be actually out there in the world since the pattern was first published in 1968.

yarn info:
Salsa by Dancing Leaf Farm

Worsted / 10 ply

55% Mohair, 45% Wool

Fiber, fiber everywhere... and no time left to spin.

2010-03-29T12:49:00.010-05:00

These are the eggs I have for breakfast.
The names of the hens that laid them are written in pencil.
I know EXACTLY where my food comes from.

I miss spinning. I miss the rhooooom-whirrrrrr-whirrrrr of my wheel. I miss the hypnotic treadling and the clack-clack of the footman-treadle join.... which, come to think of it, might be something that needs fixing.

My poor wheel -- my beautiful, shiny wheel -- has been sitting under a striped sheet for a long time. No one has recently wiped it down with oil after a long spinning session. No one has checked to see that it hasn't been suddenly attacked by termites. I am guilty of spinning wheel neglect -- the only saving graces are that (1) I cared for it very well before it went into the corner with a sheet and (2) it has been kept out of the sun and inside a climate-controlled house, where the temperature and humidity never vary significantly, thanks to the ridiculously complicated HVAC systems.

I know it hasn't suffered physical harm, but I still feel like I've fallen down on some sacred duty... It's times like these that I'm pretty sure I don't deserve a wheel as gorgeous and well-made as mine. My wheel was lovingly made by hand, and now it sits in a corner, unnoticed. One would think that I'd at least have the decency to drape it in a hand-loomed shroud, not a cheap twin-XL sheet leftover from the two years of undergrad that I lived on campus.

I have gigantic plastic storage bins full of fiber -- hand-dyed silk hankies, mounds of fluffy buffalo down, piles of silky angora, three whole alpaca fleeces, goat and sheep fleeces in various states of nature, prime first-clip mohair, and seemingly endless balls of dyed top in various blends of merino/silk -- in an endless holding pattern.

I am not a skilled spinner. I am proficient, but I have not practiced enough to be truly skilled.

With Spring in the air and a definite house-moving coming up, I pause to reflect on this.

Do I need to keep my beautiful Reeves wheel? Do I need these pounds and pounds of fiber that may never become yarn?

Is it something I can let go? Perhaps it was important in the past but I no longer feel the need to cling to it. Maybe it is something unnecessary and weighing me down. Is it something I need to shed? Will I regret the absence of something I barely noticed (except with vague feelings of guilt)?

I am thankful to have owned and had the pleasure of working on such a marvelous, luxurious wheel. It's sorta like having had an exotic sports car in your garage, that you drove once for five miles, detailed and fussed over, and then put on those special curved tired blocks and under a cover, and haven't jingled the keys since. I know how nice it is to spin on a Reeves wheel.

But if I don't spin regularly, why do I have one? I'd get much more use and enjoyment out of an etching press. And I know there are spinners out there who drool over, covet, and would cherish having this wheel.

I'm not going to make a hasty decision on this, but right now I'm leaning toward selling my wheel and getting rid of my fiber stash. I don't think it's necessary at this point in my life.

Notes from the Inside

2010-03-22T15:42:00.010-05:00

Day 453. No cars in the parking lot this morning, except those that have been parked there for nigh on two years. It's 10am. Where is everyone? Aren't they working today? Am I alone here?

Day 462. Rain today. Think today is Monday, but can't be certain. At times, I'm pretty sure it's Thursday. Don't ask the clients for fear they'll think I'm crazy. Postman came by today, so today is definitely NOT Sunday. Unless they started Sunday delivery and I was so busy working I didn't notice. The adding machine still has a 9+4 keypad in the main section (1-9, 0, 00, 000, .) I have used approximately 2,356 meters of adding machine tape since my time here began. Have processed God only knows how many returns. Well, God and my timesheet.

Day 245346836. Think porcelain coffee cup is permanently stained from green tea. Have possibly measured out life in tea-spoons, but lost count and therefore cannot be certain.

Day 23478! (23478 factorial) . I woke from my nap on the office floor. I had a dream that I was... knitting. I think that's something I used to do, a long time ago...

Day 235φq09Φ20456ЖΔ². Am nearly out of yarn.

Cookies for Africa -- Easter Cookie Giveaway

2010-03-15T21:36:00.004-05:00

Cookies for Africa is an online bake sale to raise money for ChildAlive, a nonprofit that buys mosquito nets for children in Western Africa. I know the woman who runs Cookies for Africa; she is incredibly kind and generous, in addition to incredibly talented.

She is trying to raise awareness for her fundraiser by giving away cookies. The cookies are totally free, with no strings attached. The ulterior motive is, of course, to raise awareness for the charity. To enter, all you have to do is leave a comment on her blog entry for the giveaway. I won her St. Patrick’s Day cookies (swiped picture below); they are as delicious as they are pretty.

Have you been to Becky's blog yet? Have you commented? DO IT NOW! WIN COOKIES!

Knitting in the Time of Taxes

2010-03-09T07:10:00.009-05:00

The Baltic Sea Stole is chugging right along. Er, it was, when I had time to work on it. Progress is slow lately because most of my waking hours are spent calculating how much money ~~Big Daddy Plantation System~~ the government is ~~stealing~~ taking from ~~its sharecroppers~~ my clients*, and trying to mitigate the damage as much as legally possible.

This means I don't get a whole lot of sleep; I work long, long shifts; knitting is therefore squeezed into remainder time, and there isn't a lot of that until mid-April. Anyway, here's what I've been up to:

not exactly 3 feet long.

Lisa Souza Petal, 50/50 silk/merino, colorway "Sapphire." Gorgeous, isn't it? It feels as beautiful as it looks. Can't wait to block it out.

Oh, and that carpet on which it is resting? Yeah, that's in the latest annex to Knit Goddingdom, a province known as The New House. More on that later.

*Note from the editor: the "Taxation = Slavery" rhetoric has been deleted from this post.

Tuesday Eye Candy

2010-03-02T10:35:00.005-05:00

Like I said, we have a LOT of catching up to do! Future posts include the knitting workshop I recently attended with Anne Hanson of Knitspot.

Welcome back! Here's some eye candy to tide you over until a meatier post comes along.

This is Araucania Ranco Multy. It's a semi-coarse sock yarn that I bought for its colors.

I knitted it up into a half-width Clapotis. It turned out okay. I was not satisfied with the texture, and therefore do not recommend Ranco Multy for this project.

I've been knitting LOTS of socks! I haven't yet taken photos of all of them. Here's an in-progress look at a pair of candy-striped beauties with yarn from Holiday Yarns.

My current project is a Baltic Sea Stole, using a pattern Pearlsmother sent me in a Knitters Tea Swap some time ago. I'm using Lisa Souza Petal, a 50/50 silk merino in colorway "Sapphire." It's soft, gorgeous and has perfect stitch definition. Below is a picture of the beginning. I've been trucking along on this and have about three feet now, and will post an updated picture soon.

Stay tuned!

Etsy and the art of FAIL

2010-03-01T23:34:00.015-05:00

I was surprised this evening to see Health Care as the featured story on Etsy's front page. Figuring it couldn't possibly be about the current US healthcare debacle, I clicked on it. I was wrong.

What followed was a watered-down, left-leaning synopsis of the current state of health care legislation in the United States. It provided no salient details while it omitted a lot of important ones. It was how you might explain the healthcare debate to a third-grader, while trying to stay neutral. The problem is, nobody can stay neutral when discussing such a politically-charged issue. And third-graders aren't going to make informed decisions.

Regardless of your stance on the issue, it has no place on Etsy. What's next, reproductive rights and the art of handmade? I can see it now:

Reproductive Rights: An Etsy Guide.
Since many of our patrons and sellers are female, we thought we'd discuss reproductive rights. The right to an abortion is an issue that affects many people. People have differing opinions about this. Right now, Roe v. Wade legalizes some types of abortions. Some people don't agree that this should be the case, but they have not been successful in overturning the Supreme Court decision. We here at Etsy thought we'd do a five-part series on abortion, to let you know the ins and outs of women's reproductive rights and how it might affect your life.

Maybe it's just me, but I can't see any way in which that would be appropriate. Frankly, I'm not that comfortable posting that fake paragraph here, on my blog. Did it make your blood boil a little bit? Do you find it offensive that I've even mentioned abortion in an uninformative, neutral fashion on my knitting blog?

It illustrates my point perfectly, doesn't it?

I would not want to direct buyers to my Etsy shop, encourage them to poke about the site, only to have them balk at the political discussion. It's not what you look for when you're shopping for a party dress, or a landscape painting, or some vintage housewares. I would like a disclaimer at the top of the article that Etsy in no way represents the political views of the individual sellers. Better yet, why not represent no political views at all, and keep that stuff for the editorial coffee break?

I commented on the article that discussion of such a divisive issue was inappropriate for a community of the handmade. That I enjoyed political discussion elsewhere, but Etsy was not the place for it. Two minutes later, the editors had deleted my comment -- no wonder it had been the sole dissent.

I repost the quote I have kept on the sidebar of my blog, in which I still firmly believe:

"If all mankind minus one were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind. . . . But the peculiar evil of silencing the expression of an opinion is, that it is robbing the human race; posterity as well as the existing generation; those who dissent from the opinion, still more than those who hold it. If the opinion is right, they are deprived of the opportunity of exchanging error for truth: if wrong, they lose, what is almost as great a benefit, the clearer perception and livelier impression of truth, produced by its collision with error." -- John Stuart Mill, On Liberty

Etsy welcomes discussion of topics -- as long as you foster discussion that agrees with them. Maybe Etsy should run for Congress -- they'd fit right in.

It's disappointing and disheartening to see this from a site I had liked so much. I'd write them a letter and explain why I don't want to shop there any more, or why I am considering closing my shop and not putting up the new listings I had planned, but I know they won't actually care. They're going to go right on in their happy, green, urban, veganized, shiny, sterilized, unilateral, and in some ways ignorant, world. Etsy in no way represents my political beliefs, and I want no part of it.

XXX

Your regularly scheduled knitting blog will resume shortly. We have a LOT of catching up to do.

Christmas, In a Nutshell

2008-12-31T14:29:00.011-05:00

Cookies:

teensy tiny saucepan
for reducing black raspberry jelly down to jam.

sheep cookies (because I can)

Then I cut out a LOT of snowflakes.

(l) black raspberry jam cookies
(r) red raspberry jam cookies

peppermint cookies

slightly blurry Christmas tree.

I sewed buttons on the Autumn Leaves Capelet:

And I cast on for Anne Hanson's Starlight Lace Wrap.

That's all for now -- see you guys next year!

Zoe Sock Shawl

2008-12-19T10:01:00.002-05:00

The Simple Yet Effective Zoe Sock Shawl is finished! Here's slightly blurry proof:

There was one minor snag (da dum dum) discovered during blocking:

Not a dropped stitch... just a pull... that somehow created a hole.
This is what you get when you let your finished objects
sit on your desk, fall on the floor, get shuffled around,
snagged on things, and be generally neglected
while you wait a couple weeks to find time to block it.

The yarn bled substantially blue during three lukewarm soaks with Eucalan. On the third bath, it was still bleeding. I figured I'd run out of patience before the dye stopped running, so I squeezed it out and blocked it. The good news is that the yarn is a super-sturdy superwash -- I did a lot the things you're not supposed to do to your woolens to see what would happen. I filled the basin with lukewarm water while the shawl was in the sink. I squeezed it and then squeezed the water out hard, before giving it a gentle wringing each time.

Three wringings later, the yarn looked no worse for the wear. Were it made into socks, it is my professional opinion that this stuff will wear and wash like... well, not like iron, that tends to get a bit rusty with washing... more like it will wear like stainless steel... that is, without the scratching and the need for polishing and the picking up fingerprints... You know what I mean. It's some tough, tough yarn for as squooshy as it is.

Overall, I'm pleased with it. The pattern shows off the hand-painted aspect of the yarn. The YOs give it a little definition. My only complaint, which I suppose is true of most triangular garter-stitch shawls, is that it's difficult to wear draped over one's shoulders. I wore it using the old Pashmina trick: put it over my shoulders take the tails under my arms and square knot the tails behind my back.

Here are some final blocking photos:

Happy Late Belated Monday!

2008-12-17T12:35:00.003-05:00

Hurrah! I have successfully rigged up a substitute computer for processing photos! We can now celebrate the Monday update only a few days late.

Update on Thing One and Thing Two... it is with a heavy heart that Coco and Bella have gone to a new home. I was about to write "Coco and Bella have gone to a better place," which is technically true, but then my friends would look at me suspiciously every time I wore my white fur hat.

No, it turns out that while I was sad to see them go, my allergies were not -- in fact, my sinuses decided to throw a party and stay open 24/7 to celebrate the cats' departure. Mom held out for a while... until she discovered that she was allergic to the kittens, too. We had no idea what to do with them -- they were rescue cats, so I couldn't very well haul them off to the pound.

I could not live with them. Mom could not live with them. Mom's housekeeper, whose beloved cat died many years ago, thought they were precious.

They are now clawing their way through my mother's housekeeper's furniture, clinging to her screened-in porch and running madly around her living room in the middle of the night, much to the delight of all. Coco and Bella are thriving; Mom's housekeeper loves them; Mom's housekeeper's home is under constant threat of imminent shredding. All's well that ends well; thanks be to God; God Save the Queen; Knees Up Mother Brown, Nobody Expects the Spanish Inquisition!

Speaking of Monty Python, here's my sweater so far:

I could not be more pleased with how the torso turned out. It fits perfectly. Brava, Ms Chau, for an excellent pattern.

view from back

Now with 50% More Sleeve Action!

The lesson I have learned is to only adopt pets to which I am definitely not allergic. Fortunately, I am not allergic to alpacas. I learned a few days ago that there are rescue alpacas available for adopting, not thirty miles from where I live...

To be continued.

Best Balaclava EVAR.

2008-12-09T10:30:00.000-05:00

First, she brought us the Bokaclava (ravelry link):

Now, Anne-Marie Dunbar introduces the Cthuluclava (ravelry link) and -- my personal favorite -- the Dracoclava (ravelry link).

I love the bold, confident sculptural quality of Anne-Marie's knits, as well as her attention to detail. Note the sticky-out tongue of Bok and the finely-worked scales on the forehead of the Dracoclava.

The Bokaclava pattern is a free download, either Ravelry or website. It is also available in a child size. The Cthuluclava and Dracoclava patterns are £3.00 (GBP) apiece and available through ravelry downloads and her website.

fine print: I am not in any way affiliated with Anne-Marie Dunbar; I have no monetary interest in promoting her work. Just a fan. :-)

Pardon me -- your 1337 isn't showing.

2008-12-08T14:36:00.009-05:00

I finished knitting the torso of the Noro and alpaca top-down raglan cardi. I'm super-pleased with it so far. The fit is just right -- yay, Laura, for an excellent pattern! I took pictures of it this morning. Normally, it takes me a little time to sit down, download the pics from the camera, fuss with them in Photoshop to get them color-corrected (that's why you often see a grey card in my pictures - that's a Neutral Gray 5 card). Things might take a leeeetle bit longer this time:

My lappy says something like this:

Actually, my particular BSOD tells me that it has something to do with the memory. I ran diagnostics and my lappy failed March A, March B, March X, and March Y tests. I don't know enough about computers to know exactly what this means, but past experience tells me that this probably isn't good for the files I haven't backed up.

Alternatively, I can pop out the keyboard and start jabbing at my computer's innards with a #17 straight needle and see what happens.

I went into Eleganza yesterday because, despite my calculations that ensured perfect fit, I messed up the yarn requirements for my Top-Down Raglan Cardi. I need more Noro Silk Garden #47 (yarndex closeup), lot P. I was hoping that Kristi might have a ball or two leftover, but no such luck. I looked for another yarn that I could use as a substitute, but no luck with that, either. I checked Ravelry stashes but no one had any listed for sale/trade. So last night I bought two skeins of #47, lot V on Ebay. Even if the dye lots are not exactly right, I am confident that I'll be able to tweak them to make them work.

My main tweak so far for this sweater: I took the remnants of my last skein of #47 and divided them into sections by color. There were 5 distinct color changes in all. I then cut each color section exactly in half and wound each piece into a little ball, so I have 2 equal sets of 5 colors in little bitty balls. This way, I can knit each sleeve with one set, so the sleeves have the same colors/equal stripes.

While I didn't get what I originally wanted, my trip to Eleganza was not entirely without success. I bought a bag full of yarn to make another top-down raglan cardi:

3 sk Noro Silk Garden #226 (grey - blue - purple) (yarndex link)
1 sk Manos Wool #04 (turquoise) (yarndex link)
1 sk Cascade Lana d'Oro 1066 (blueberry)
1 sk Cascade Lana d'Oro 1069 (purple)
2 sk Noro Cash Iroha #108 (chocolate brown)

Arrrgh, I want so badly to show you guys pictures of these yarns together! I'm very excited to play with them and make them into a jewel-toned sweater! Here's a quick collage to show you roughly what they look like together, until I can get a proper picture:

The Silk Garden #226 has little bits of the robin's egg blue in it (picked up by the Manos #04), along with a larger portion of blues that go beautifully with the Lana D'Oro #1066. The Cash Iroha (background of the picture) picks up the deep chocolate/coffee colors in the Silk Garden.

That's all for now; keep your fingers crossed that I'll either get the lappy sorted out or rig up another computer for transferring/editing my pictures.

Bed isn't made; needles are crying.

2008-12-04T17:08:00.005-05:00

I haven't knitted in four days.

My knitting bag goes everywhere with me, following my purse with a persistent optimism I thought only belonged to dogs. I don't have the heart to tell it, "not today."

My wheel sits idle. It accepts the dust that slowly settles on it, patient as the tree and maker that birthed it.

Bags of roving slouch together, wondering whether they'll ever be predrafted.

The brown sweater is locked in a holding cell, awaiting judgment. Any day now, it may find that there is not enough Noro to knit the sleeves. Conversely, it might get 3/4-length sleeves. If by some miracle, I find another skein of Silk Garden in the same color and lot, it will get a reprieve and receive full-length sleeves. Or, it may be sent to the frog pond (not likely, it has a good ~~lawyer~~ knitter on its case).

I've started drinking caffeine again.

And it isn't even tax season yet.

I fear I may be going ~~insane~~ insaner.

Relativity

2008-11-24T13:01:00.003-05:00

As much as I would like the title to be a clever pun referencing upcoming holidays and time spent with family, it is not. This post has to do with -- surprise! -- relativity.

(N.b. physicists should abandon this post immediately before they start cringing)

I first learned about relativity in elementary school. I used to sometimes go to a local college library and read books in the Children and Young Adult sections (since it was a small college library, these sections were actually two facing shelves). One day I picked up an illustrated book about Einstein's Theory of Relativity (actually, it was about special relativity, aka SR or STR) and sat engrossed for some time. The book illustrated, literally, the train example. It made sense.

At the other end of the spectrum is this wikipedia article, which is full of scary math. I define scary math as that which has abandoned all use of numbers. Oh, I can do it... but there's a reason I wasn't a math major in undergrad.

Even so -- even without using impressive multivariable whatsits and exhausting the greek alphabet -- I understand relativity.

Yesterday, I stayed home. I took care of the dogs, I did massive amounts of laundry, I prepped appetizers for Thursday (American Thanksgiving, which is the day on which we celebrate obesity and honor ourselves by ingesting improbable amounts of food, stressing our insulin production to the breaking point, and prepare ourselves for a winter of bitching about how we don't know how we gained ten pounds since October) and I cleaned the house. My family also has a tradition of Wednesday Night Dinner -- a large meal for immediate family the night before Thanksgiving -- so that means even more food preparation. Yesterday dragged on. I went from finished task to finished task -- and still, the clock seemed not to move. Around 9pm last night, I flopped down on the sofa to finished knitting the Simple Yet Effective Shawl. I did a tubular bind off, which felt remarkably like moving the sea one teaspoon at a time, and went to bed.

This morning, I woke up late. I did all my usual morning routine things -- but somehow, it seemed as though the clock had sped up. Time was outpacing me. Breakfast, shower, hair-drying -- the clock ticked by faster and faster. Each time I blinked the clock jumped forward five minutes. Even as I sit here at my desk, feeling as though I just woke up, it's already afternoon.

There are a few conclusions one can draw from my experiences of the past two days: One, I suppose time has to balance out from yesterday. Two, I don't have any pictures of knitted things to show you. Three, if you figure out a way that I can wash and re-block my Firmaments Shawl without it taking an entire afternoon to pin out, please let me know*.

*I will accept calculations IFF they lead to a successful and reproducible time-warp phenomenon.

New yarn and stuff

2008-11-21T11:08:00.003-05:00

Plus, evidence of a finished project:

Show and Tell

2008-11-17T10:23:00.009-05:00

It's Monday, and that means it's Show and Tell Day here at courtneyknits!

First up, the Simple Yet Effective Shawl by Laura Chau.

The name says it all. Knit in alternating sections of garter and stockinette stitch, with stitch markers to remind me where the YOs go. Mindless knitting at its best. I plowed through this thing last night while watching the Redskins game. Towards the end of the game, which was so totally exciting, I found myself knitting with my eyes closed. Turns out that's a pretty effective way to get some rest without actually falling asleep. The knitting was just enough to keep me marginally awake -- this is important when you're at someone else's house and snoring might not be the best way to show you're having a good time.

Speaking of good times, I knitted while I was out at tea yesterday with Anne and Angela! There were a few people who couldn't make it, and we missed them, but we still had fun. Three knitters with sandwiches and scones and sweets and a bottomless teapot -- hurrah!

After tea, I went shopping and bought two new sweaters and a smashing new red felt hat at Sky's the Limit in Frederick, MD. It's a really cute boutique with a fun collection of trendy clothing (such as Tulle and Kersh) with a smattering of hippie thrown in. I will try to remember to post pictures of the hat -- it's my new winter love. Apologies to DBF -- I'm afraid hats will always come first.

I was so busy knitting on my shawl yesterday that I neglected my other pet project...

Next, we have the Top Down Raglan Cardigan by Laura Chau. Hmmm... apparently it is not only Show and Tell day, but also Knit Things By Laura Chau Month! That's right! I'm declaring it official. Now go to her site, clicky on the patterns and cast on, brave knitters (and chicken knitters! her patterns are super-easy! You will love them!)!

Top-Down Raglan Cardi by Laura Chau
Knit using Noro Silk Garden and Adrienne Vittadini Donata.

I'm knitting the 36-38" size so I can wear it as a layer over another shirt.

Quick change of subject: if you haven't seen it yet, the new Twist Collective is out and there are some gorgeous, fun things in there. Vivian and Ice Fantasia caught my eye.

Do You, Yarn, Take This Pattern...?

2008-11-10T10:27:00.012-05:00

So I started knitting up this yummy Zoe sock yarn (ravelry link). While discussing it with DBF (a definite muggle), I had a mini-revelation. I held up this swatch to him and complained, "I love the color, but I can't see the pattern for the colors."

He said, "I see the pattern. The colors are secondary."

DBF, for as wonderful as he is, is not a color person. I, with my freakish color sensitivity, am. This solved a question for me. There were times that I saw beautifully knitted shawls, in gorgeous colorways, but I couldn't see the pattern at first because the color shifts leapt out at me first. I couldn't understand why the knitter chose that yarn for the shawl, when it wasn't (to me) a good match. After DBF's comment above, I realized that maybe to the person who knitted it, the color and pattern and everything worked together perfectly.

Well, that hadn't happened for me with this yarn... at least, it hasn't happened yet.

But I've seen it in another's project! Laura K knit a pair of socks using Zoe Sock in the same colorway, Acadia. They are a perfect marriage of yarn and pattern (link to her Ravelr y project page).

Laura's Acadia Socks
Socks knitted with Shalimar Yarns Zoe Sock, colorway "Acadia"
on US 1.5 / 2.5mm

And I wanted to create something like that -- where the yarn worked with the pattern, and the pattern worked with the yarn. I did not want one fighting for dominance over the other. It occurred to me that the finest projects often take the yarn and show it off to its best advantage.

With that in mind, I dove down into my stash and started rummaging. I pulled out four skeins of Noro Silk Garden, color 47. One ball of this I had frogged from an enthusiastic attempt at an entrelac pillow cover, conceived without regard to whether I'd actually want either said pillow cover or anything in those colors. In another Rubbermaid container, I found three balls of Adrienne Vittadini Donata (70% alpaca, 30% acrylic) in brown, smushed together with several balls of brown Jaeger Fur. The latter is possibly one of the most expensive fun-fur style yarns ever. I purchased it while in the throes of knitting and fulling stuffed toy hedgehogs. I have no idea what I'm going to do with it. But let's leave the Fur for now...

The Silk Garden and the Donata looked pretty good together (no, really, they do)... and using both of them, I might actually have enough to knit a cardigan. I did a Ravelry search for cardigans using Silk Garden. The first to come up was Laura Chau's Top-Down Raglan Cardigan. I read the pattern; I estimated yarn amounts; I printed out the pattern and cast on.

Pictures coming soon.

While I was browsing Laura Chau's site, I also saw the simple yet effective shawl. This is knit using fingering weight/sock yarn. It may the the solution for the Zoe Sock... stay tuned.

Shalimar Yarns Zoe Superwash Merino Sock Yarn

2008-11-05T09:34:00.002-05:00

Shalimar Yarns has come out with a new 100% Superwash Australian Merino sock yarn, called Zoe Sock (ravelry link). It's 450 yards per skein and available at Eleganza Yarns. Kristi has dyed it up in some gorgeous colorways, and sent me a skein to take for a test drive. I'm going to knit it up into something awesome!

Shalimar Yarns Zoe Sock (ravelry link), colorway, "Acadia,"
100% Superwash Australian Merino
Sock/Fingering Weight, 450 yards
handpainted, available at Eleganza Yarns.

wound into a cake.

LOOKS: Visually, I can't say enough good things about the colorway. The colors are vivid and in great combinations. I saw some of Kristi's other colorways and they are equally beautiful.

TOUCH: So far, I've swatched it. While it is not the absolute softest merino yarn I've worked with, it is pleasing to handle and plenty soft. It strikes the right balance between softness and durability, especially for a sock yarn. I have no problems with having it next to my skin. It has a great squoosh factor. From a purely tactile perspective, it would make a pair of socks that are pleasing to knit and a pleasure to wear.

The thing is, I don't knit socks. I like wearing hand-knitted socks, but not so much making them. I've tried, and I much prefer knitting lace. So... what can we do with this sock yarn?

Ideas for knitting this yarn:

Diamond Fantasy Shawl by Sivia Harding (sivia)

The Crocus Pocus by Susan Pandorf (pandosu)

Rivolo scarf by Anne Hanson (knitspot)

Tiger Eyes Lace Scarf by Toni M. Maddox (bockstarkknits)

Now with 300% MORE YARN PR0N!

2008-11-03T10:13:00.010-05:00

It's Monday, and you need to look at pretty yarn.

First, let's take a trip to Kiparoo Farm, in Adamstown, MD.

Kiparoo Moonlight, in dark purples

Kiparoo Moonlight in red-purples

Kiparoo Glitter in indigo

Next, we'll review results from Steph's awesome Halloween Destash party. Thankfully, I took less yarn (I think) than I brought.

mystery yarn, oatmeal color, 3.7 oz
looks like mostly wool wrapped with nylon.
purchased at MD Sheep & Wool.

mystery wool, 100% wool.
laceweight, on a BIG cone.
weight, including plastic cone, is 1lb, 4.4oz

blue loopy mohair boucle, 3.6 oz

knitted roses! I can't wait to use these, maybe on a black
cardigan or wrap. Nicky Epstein would be proud!

Back to Kiparoo for a bit, to show you Silk Road, a 50/50 wool/silk. It's heavenly to touch, next-to-the-skin soft (even for me, the itch-a-holic).

Kiparoo Silk Road, 50/50 wool/silk
264.0 yards (241.4 m), 150g.

Knitted up, it looks like this:

Huckleberry Ascot,
from Interweave Knits Holiday 2007.

Coming up next: I'm test-knitting and reviewing Shalimar Yarn's Superwash Merino Sock yarn!

Discontent

2008-10-23T12:37:00.008-05:00

I noticed last night that I have not knitted in almost a week. From about the 14th until a couple days ago, things were frenetic at work. I was too tired in the evenings to knit -- at least, that's what I told myself. Last night, however, I had time to sit quietly on the sofa with my knitting bag and reflect. I did not want to pick up my knitting.

Oh, it's not lack of desire to knit -- I want to knit -- and it's not lack of enjoyment -- I love to knit. No, this is no knitting ennui.

As I sipped my ginger beer, I realized that I do not like any of my current projects.

Cherie Amour feels like a chore I've left unfinished. It's not entirely flattering, but it is functional. I knitted flutter cap sleeves for it, but as I went to sew them on I re-evaluated my simple bind-off and I'm not sure I like it anymore. And as I held up the sleeves in the mirror, I'm not sure the cap sleeves do anything for it.
I took the cardigan for Mom out of hibernation about a month ago. I have been working on it in fits and starts. It's mostly that I dislike working with the yarn. It was fine when I started it over a year ago, but since then I have developed a general dislike for working with novelty yarns. I keep thinking that the colors and herringbone pattern are lovely -- if only it weren't fuzzy. It would be great worked up in an aran-weight wool.
A few months ago, I put down a navy basketweave sweater (Sirdar 1521) that I had started for my nephew. The yarn is great, the pattern looks wonderful, but it is S-L-O-W going. I couldn't justify the time I'd spend knitting a sweater that the child -- who, at 18 mos, has a larger wardrobe than I did as a teenager -- may never even wear. The blankets I made for him have been well-loved. When he gets older I'll knit him hats and mittens and things.
I cleaned out my in-process knitting bins (those 8x12x6" canvas organizing bins you get at Target) and found: the completed Short Row Ring Wrap, the still-in-process Two Socks on One Circ "Sugar Maple" socks, a nearly-completed Baby Surprise Jacket (which needs only seaming and buttons), the beginnings of a hat I told Bryan I'd knit him about a year ago, sundry balls of leftover yarn in various fibers and sizes, and a sachet of dried lavender.

So, the logical gears started turning... since I knew what I do not enjoy knitting, I needed to figure out what I do enjoy, and focus on that. I thought about the projects that I liked best -- the ones in which I either loved the yarn, the process, and/or the finished product.

My favorite finished objects are the Firmaments Shawl (ravelry link), the Icelandic Yoke Sweater (ravelry link) and the Crinoid Shawl.

The Firmaments shawl is the most beautiful thing I've made, and I actually enjoyed the process.

The Icelandic Yoke sweater was a breeze to knit; careful planning ensured that the colors and shaping turned out just right, and it's nice and warm in the winter. It is what made me love Elizabeth Zimmerman. I'd really like to knit another one like it and steek it so I have a cardigan.

The Crinoid Shawl was possibly the most boring thing I've ever knit. It was a brainless knit the whole time. But the finished object is stunning; I enjoy wearing it and I get a lot of compliments on it.

Based on these criteria, my next project(s) will be: a wrap/shawl, probably involving some kind of lacework. It may also involve a cardigan or jacket that I can throw on around the house to keep warm in winter.

Also, I decided that it's not worth suffering through knitting with a yarn I don't like (I will make an exception for Mom's fuzzy jacket, because that was promised before I had better judgment; the sooner I get that thing finished, the better). I pulled out a skein of Silk Road (50/50 wool/silk) and wound it into a cake. I had so much fun last night sitting there with the beautiful skein around my knees, cranking the ball winder, watching the second part of John Adams.

I don't have pictures of it yet (that's on the agenda for tonight: download pictures from camera!). But to make up for it, here's a good old-fashioned apple pie that I baked for DBF's family last week:

the little blobs are supposed to be acorns, to go with the oak leaves.

Hooray for fall!

You knew it was going to happen

2008-10-12T22:54:00.003-05:00

I made three stops on the Countryside Artisans tour.

I don't even have to tell you, do I?

Story (and photos) to follow.

Doing My Patriotic Duty

2008-10-08T18:08:00.006-05:00

I am trying to single-handedly stimulate the US economy. Oh, sure, many people are cutting back... and what am I doing? SPENDING! BUYING THINGS! PROPPING UP THE FIBER INDUSTRY!

It's not like I'm Warren Buffett or anything; I don't exactly have billions to pump into KnitPicks, Etsy or my LYS. But... in the wake of spending a significant chunk of my savings on my wheel (and getting it here), it somehow made logical sense in my brain that what I needed -- despite the two large, full, 100-~~gallon~~liter Rubbermaid containers in the lower level that argue otherwise -- is brand-spanking new roving!

Finn sheep Lambswool.
Photo and roving from matahari spinnery.
"Finnsheep/ Finnish Landrace: Native of Finland;
this wool is semilustrous with long staples and crisped silky handle (24 micron)"

Wensleydale roving, 4oz.
source: ibid.
longwool, wonderful. I think I have some Wensleydale somewhere
but I can't remember...

And this one is just way cool:

Black Diamond, Carbonized Bamboo fiber, 4oz.
source: ibid.
from matahari's description:

"Black Diamond is a Bamboo carbon fiber. Bamboo fiber is carbonized through baking at high temperatures producing an all-carbon fiber with the exact same shape. Black Diamond is resistant to ultra violet rays and possesses anti-odor properties. It also adjusts well to humidity and dryness. Black Diamond is a dream to spin. The top glides from your hand and the natural gun metal grey color is mesmerizing. Blend it with your favorite grey or black wool for amazing results. this fiber will keep you up late dreaming!"

Black Diamond sounds like a challenge to me. I'm eager to get my hands on this and give it a whorl... (sorry, couldn't help it).

ADDENDUM: Of course, I'm also keeping in mind that in a post-economic-apocalyptic-OMG-PANIC!!!! world, the knitters, spinners and weavers will come out on top. We can barter endlessly with fiber. The farmer-fiberists will trade for something they can't grow (fibers not on their farm, finished goods they don't have time to make); the urban/suburban-fiberists will trade exotic fibers or finished goods for something they can't raise (fleece/meat). We'd all be able, whether through production or trade, to produce sufficient clothing and fleeces to keep warm even if there is no heating. We could live on lamb kebabs and goat's milk.

In a worst-case scenario, the world will go for the fiber-loving community. I'd even open up my own fiber bank. It shall be called the First Bank of Roving. It would not only be awesome, but also probably true. And I would grow rich on fiber! MUAHHAHAHAHA! Yes, the perfect plan. Now all I have to do is wait for the market thingy to drop another 5 gazillion points by lunchtime.

Also, we are now accepting deposits at the First Bank of Roving. Your fiber deposits are insured by the Empress of Knit Goddingdom for protection against moths for up to five years. We will be soon offering a wide range of Fiber Bank services, including moth-protection deposits, stashing, stash-enhancement, and hope to branch out into in-house spinning services. First Bank of Roving: for all your fiber-stashing needs.

Political Head-Scratching

2008-10-06T10:30:00.004-05:00

I will try to make this the ONLY thing I say about the so-called Bailout Bill on this blog. It is relevant because it has to do with fibery goodness.

Sec. 325. Extension and modification of duty suspension on wool products; wool research fund; wool duty refunds
The tariff relief (duty savings) is intended to benefit U.S. worsted wool fabric producers that use imported fibers and yarns as inputs, as well as U.S. tailored clothing manufacturers that use imported fabrics as inputs. This provision was originally introduced as a bill in December 2007 by Reps. Louise Slaughter (D-NY) and Melissa Bean (D-IL). It extends current law provisions until 12/31/14, and in some cases to12/31/15. The 2010 to 2015 cost is estimated to be $148 million.

My representative voted Nay... which shows that Congresscritters actually listen to their constituents, even when they have little idea what's actually going on in the world outside the Capitol. And you can guess how strongly I felt about the bailout bill when I opposed something that contained a benefit to a segment of the fiber industry. But my opposition to the bailout bill is a subject for another blog.

I posted this because I thought it was a strange, strange project to tack on... if you're interested in finding out more, there's an excellent "Top Ten Pet Projects" list on the taxpayer.net link below.

Source: taxpayer.net, courtesy of stabbycat.

YouTube Saturday - Whitcoulls and Mason-Dixon Knitting

2008-10-04T07:42:00.007-05:00

here's the Whitcoulls ad a Ravelry CPaAG user shared. ~~I think~~ it's for a ~~grocery store~~ chain of bookstores in New Zealand (thanks, Anonymous, for the info!). Whitcoulls Ad, "Don't Take Your Love to Town":

And, the sensation that has been sweeping the For the Love of Ravelry board, from Mason-Dixon Knitting, it's "Pardon Me, I Didn't Knit That For You."

Additions to the Family

2008-10-03T22:15:00.003-05:00

There have been some additions to the family.

First, there was the adoption of the Two Horrid Fluffy Things. I try to stay away because when I'm near them I start sneezing madly and my sinuses set up blockades, but apparently these Horrid Fluffy Things have some sort of mind-control device that makes me want to come near them. It's as though no matter how much I don't want them around, I can't help but check compulsively whether they have sufficient kitten kibble and a full water dish. I'm not sure of the exact nature of this mind-control device, but I suspect that it has its roots in their teensy tiny barely-audible cries of, "meep!" whenever I'm within striking distance. And I somehow find myself within striking distance of their SHARP POINTY TEETH! fairly often.

I present, for your inspection, Thing One and Thing Two:

Thing One, Domestic Longhair, aka "Bella"
Bella enjoys batting around the little green ball with the orange
thing that rolls around inside it, gnawing on my finger and
cuddling up against me. Her life goals include leaving me covered in white cat hair.

Thing Two, Domestic Shorthair, aka "Coco"
Coco has already developed a love-hate relationship with the
fluffy-ball-on-a-long-spring toy and in her spare time enjoys
attempts to groom my hand with her sandpaper tongue.

A few days ago my sister-in-law gave birth to a baby girl, so now I have a niece!

Then, later this evening, a box arrived. I opened it and was engulfed in packing peanuts. Took me half a day to dig my way out; I was forced to subsist on nothing but Ghirardelli dark chocolate squares with creamy mint filling....

I'm in a much better place, now. More to follow!

OPEN SEASON on Fall (and/or) Fiber Festivals.

2008-10-02T14:38:00.006-05:00

So I'm sitting here having tea and a chocolate biscuit (not a cookie -- the box clearly says that it is a "butter biscuit with pure dark chocolate") and was thinking that I needed to post a SUPER IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT TO THE NORTH AMERICAN FIBER COMMUNITY.

It's October, which means it is Festival Season.

I asked my boss if I could have tomorrow off to go to the Waterford country festival (near Lucketts, VA), and he said yes (go super-awesome boss-man!). The 65th annual Waterford Foundation Festival runs October 3, 4 & 5, 2008 from 10 am to 5 pm. I haven't been there before but it has a reputation for bringing some particularly fine craftsmen and their work.

Also this weekend is the Fall Fiber Festival in Montpelier Station, Virginia (aka BFE, VA). It is a fiber festival and sheepdog trials. I went last year and almost came home with some cashgora kids. We'll see what happens this year.

The second week in October is the Countryside Artisans Autumn Studio Tour. You can read my entry about last year's Autumn Tour here.

There's something called Rhinebeck something-or-other, but I'm not going this year, so it's obviously not that big a deal. ;-)

And then there's the Shenandoah Valley Fiber Festival, 25-26 October, 2008, from 10a-5p.

Be prepared for lots of fibery, festivalian goodness coming your way!

My New Baby

2008-09-29T12:23:00.004-05:00

Is coming later this week. After years of waiting, I finally bought a spinning wheel!

all photos by kathkol

She's coming all the way from Michigan... a Rick Reeves 24" Saxony. I'm so excited I can barely stand it.

It's Banned Books Week!

2008-09-29T09:28:00.007-05:00

We interrupt your regularly schedule knit blogging to bring you an important announcement: the American Library Association is celebrating Banned Books Week, 26 September - 4 October 2008. Hie thee to the library and check out some scandalous, inciting, dangerous books!

Celebrate the freedom to read!

Also, read Fahrenheit 451 if you have not already done so -- immediately, if not sooner. You can thank me later.

Top 100 Most Challenged Novels of the 20th Century

Ulysses, James Joyce
Burned in the U.S. (1918), Ireland (1922), Canada (1922), England (1923) and banned in England (1929). Source: 3, p. 66; 5, pp. 328-30; 10, Vol. III, pp. 411-12; 557-58, 645

(Just because you can't understand it is not reason to burn it. Lack of punctuation is not a reason, either, no matter how many commas are missing. There are, I have been assured by Mr Jasper Fforde, a number of literary detectives currently trying to locate the whereabouts of the missing punctuation.)
The Lord of the Rings, JRR Tolkien
Burned in Alamagordo, N. Mex. (2001) outside Christ Community Church along with other Tolkien novels as satanic. Source: Newsletter on Intellectual Freedom, Mar. 2002, p. 61.

Apparently book-burning remains a popular activity, despite evidence that burning books does not make them go away. Please help stop this wanton destruction of work. READ A BANNED BOOK!

Fall reflection

2008-09-26T20:14:00.001-05:00

There is something comforting about bringing out the electric kettle, diving into the stash of teas, and reinstating the favorite mug after its sabbatical in the cupboard by the kitchen sink. The temperatures have dropped into the low 60s and I've pulled out my favorite brown tweed woolen sweater. It's not really cold yet; autumn is in full swing, although the leaves have not begun to change. The wind tonight tells me that winter is on his way, and will come regardless.

I wanted to say something about the stone floor in the kitchen, but a stone floor is a stone floor -- much like my feet, it seems to enjoy being perpetually cold, regardless of the season. Maybe all a stone floor really wants for is a woolen floor cozy. But then, the floor wouldn't gather any character. The stones in the floor have a slight sheen in the high-traffic areas of the kitchen; I suppose each trip to the fridge or quick peek in the pantry buffs and polishes and infinitesimally wears them down.

It is time for apples and cider and fires outside, for picnics and golden orange burnt amber rust fiery warm and turning the knife-edge of cold, for sharp inhalations and the scent of fall everywhere. Knitting feels more at home now -- although it is a constant throughout the year -- as though it were easier to understand making something warm when one wants, at that moment, a little more warmth -- easier than it was in the slow, hot days before, when warmth was too abundant. Of course, winter brings us slow and hot in different forms; in the wintertime, we slowly sip our hot drinks, relishing its warmth from within -- warmth that dispels the coolness outside.

In this way, humans are rarely at home in their environment: when it's hot outside, they crave cool inside; when it's cold outside, they crave warmth within. The few exceptions are those perfect days of fall (and sometimes spring). For me, fall is the season of perfect balance.

Balance is a recurring theme in my life -- primarily in my artwork. Visual balance -- whether of color, size, weight, value -- is paramount to my work. Balance is important in my spiritual views and in my philosophy. Perhaps that's why I love fall so much. Fall is the fulcrum point of the seasons.

Wooly Bullies

2008-09-25T07:39:00.001-05:00

Adventures in Lace Blocking

2008-09-21T07:08:00.009-05:00

So you want to learn how to block a circular piece of knitted lace, hmmm?

Then you may or may not have come to the right place.

Actually, this is not really a lace-blocking tutorial. It's not exactly the anti-tutorial, either. It's sort of a mid-tutorial. It has little instructional value and also contains little or no destructional value. It's not Lace Purgatory (that's where you are while you're knitting something like this), but it's... it's a Tutorial for Wafflers (holding inside all political commentary, starting... NOW).

I was so excited when I finished knitting the Firmaments Shawl.

Voila, the finished piece of lace:

it doesn't look like much, does it?

If you find your finished piece of lace looks rather like a disappointing amorphous blob (see photo above), rest assured, you have done nothing wrong. Yet. You'll find out shortly if you have messed up in your knitting. Rest assured that you will, in the coming segment, have plenty more opportunity to mess it up completely.

(Still holding inside all political commentary)

Technical notes: the grey foam block thingies are pre-cut exercise matting bought at Lowe's (a home improvement chain store, for my out-of-country readers). They are found in the flooring section and come in a package of four. I figured four of these large blocks would be sufficient space for blocking my shawl...

The first thing to do when blocking a piece of lace, if you want it to look good, is to chuck it in the sink.

Please note that it's a good idea to be extremely gentle with your piece, depending on fiber content. This requires a degree of common sense and research into your fiber. If you're using non-superwash wool, don't chuck it in there with hot water and soap, mash it around, agitate it thoroughly and rinse in cold water. To find out what this does, please reference Nicky Epstein's Knitting Never Felt Better.

I was less than super-careful when washing this piece because it's silk and alpaca. Silk is incredibly strong and near-indestructible (except by its enemy, MONSIEUR SOLEIL! Keep your silks out of the sun unless you want them to disintegrate) and alpaca does not felt readily. I used a teensy amount of Seventh Generation brand liquid dish soap, filled the sink with warm water, added shawl, let soak for a few minutes, drained; squished, rinsed, washed with a little human shampoo, rinsed with a little human conditioner.

So I have a wet blob of alpaca and silk.

Next, I started to stretch it out on the blocks and realized the blocks were not large enough. I went back to Lowe's and bought another package of foam blocks. To get the appropriate size, I cut the new blocks in half, and half of those halves into quarters:

I pinned the center, then started working in the cardinal directions, pinning opposite sides (e.g. pin north, then south; pin east, then west; NE, SW; and so forth).

Fully pinned out:

The Firmaments Shawl
SPECS:

Yarn: Valley Yarns 2/14nm Alpaca/Silk
Pattern: Emily's Firmaments Shawl by Bonnie Sennott
Yardage: unknown until I bother to weight the remaining cone
Diameter after blocking: YES.
Awesomeness factor: +++1
Ends darned in neatly: no comment! this interview is now OVER.

I let it dry overnight and unpinned it the next day. I don't have after-blocking photos yet, but, as with most things, I'll have them eventually.

Ravelry - Completely Pointless and Arbitrary Group - Swhap Dooks!

2008-09-10T21:42:00.005-05:00

just had to share the awesome amigurumi that [knittinglibrarian](person) made for me. The swhap's [sic] theme was "Pirates and/or Ninjas."

This is my pirate-themed Ravatar:

Ergo:

Frenchie, the pirate frog, blissfully unaware
that a cupcake-throwing ninja is about to attack...

slightly off-topic

2008-09-09T13:10:00.003-05:00

I bought a set of INANIMATE stickers from modcloth, a fun indie and retro-style clothing store.

It's one way to have a grownup version of Richard Scarry.

Firmaments Lace Shawl

2008-09-08T12:02:00.006-05:00

This is the shawl that never ends --
Yes, it goes on and on, my friends.
Some people started knitting it,
Not knowing what it was
And they'll continue knitting it forever just because
This is the shawl that never ends--

At least, that's what I tell people when they ask what I'm knitting.

Firmaments Shawl, Day 532

I cut the Fountain Lace section a few repeats short today. I fear the shawl is now growing beyond my control. I'm hoping today's action will help to at least curb its growth once it is in the blocking stage.

Firmaments Shawl, Day 540

Partway through the edging. I am beginning to have doubts about curtailing the Fountain Lace section. Perhaps it would have been better to do five more repeats of the chart. But, dear God, I could not have done five more repeats of Chart C! I fear that I will never have a restful night's sleep -- one without the page full of the same chart, over and over again, always trying to highlight a finished row -- and the highlighter ink never sticking! Would I have been haunted, night after night, by the Fountain Lace chart's taunting rows?

No, I had to stop at six repeats. It was for the shawl's own good. Too many more and I would have put it down altogether. I needed to start the edging, to know that there was -- there truly was -- an end in sight.

The double-pointed needle recommendation for the edging is a dangerous choice. I put a point protector on one end. That cut the risk of losing all the stitches when the shawl was in transit by half. It does nothing, however, for ensuring that the shawl does not escape while in transit. I'm currently using my "Don't You Wish Your Girlfriend Could KNIT Like Me?" knitting tote, and that seems to provide enough protection. I still keep an eye on it, though. I can't risk it springing out and engulfing an innocent bystander. Something about the alpaca part of the yarn that I don't trust...

Firmaments Shawl, Day 542

The shawl has been surprisingly quiet lately, as I slowly work my way through the edging. It makes me nervous, that this has been going a little too smoothly. I know that there is a graft up ahead, to join the beginning and end of the edging into one continuous piece.

And then -- I almost don't want to mention it -- the blocking. I know it will resist that. I suspect that the shawl may be in secret negotiations with my camera, which turned up recently after having been put in a drawer and forgotten for several weeks. Perhaps the camera was out doing reconnaissance, and used its advanced mind-wiping technology to make me forget about it, and think that I had simply forgotten where I put it. I will have to keep a closer watch on that camera. I'm not too worried, though, as long as I can keep it in sight; I know where its batteries are.

Pratchgan 2008 - MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

2008-08-17T11:10:00.003-05:00

link to cherryred's post, with pictures!

WE DID IT! <--clicky for awesome write-up and photos

Three cheers for Shirley, for organizing and sewing up this wonderful creation!

(I know I'm not the only AMKG Raveler thinking: I can see my squares! SQUEEE!)

If you were wondering, I did the E in "ATEN'T" and the square that's -- starting at the bottom left corner, two over and three up -- the black and yellow twisty cables. It has a label on it that identifies it as "B.S. Johnson's Patent Automatic Pasta Cooker and Rib Take-Away Window."

And now for something weird.

2008-08-09T08:17:00.006-05:00

Last night I dreamed I met the Yarn Harlot.

Not to insult the Harlot, but that hasn't exactly been a long-standing desire for me. I've been meaning to go to her events, and I've been meaning to read her books, but so far all I've managed is a half-hearted blog-stalking. Granted, the bits of her blog I've read have been hugely entertaining. I like reading her blog because it inspires me to knit more: The Harlot's knitting; why aren't you?

So it was kinda weird when, last night, I dreamed that I was walking along a path on a beautiful stretch of land really similar to what I saw in pictures of her trip to Newfoundland. She was standing there and she smiled and she asked me to do something for her: spell out the word "laugh" in glitter and icing. It was surprisingly difficult. I had to do the serifs in icing and the lines of the letters in glitter, in these big, playful loopy letters. I accidentally smudged icing on her baby (she left her few-months-old baby lying on the ground for some reason), and I apologized, and she said it wasn't a problem. When I finished, there was a group of people there and they cheered. And we all had cupcakes and were happy. And then I woke up.

What I've taken from this is that the world needs more cupcakes. And I'm going to go work on that shawl now.

brief update

2008-08-06T11:22:00.004-05:00

This post is a bit of a cop-out, since it's mostly just to say, "hi, I'm not dead, and I haven't stopped knitting."

So there you go.

Chugging along on the Firmaments Shawl. I am now on the third (last circle)... and even though I knew at the last increase I was doubling the amount of stitches, I'm still not used to how long it takes just to knit one round.

Pictures soon.

Unrelated: I spent a happy half-hour (or so, I don't remember how long it actually is) this morning watching Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.

Fashion Notebook

2008-07-25T13:10:00.006-05:00

Following up on Harper's Bazaar "140 Best Accessories" story:

21/21
The gauge swatch jab would be too easy. Just marvel in the horribleness.

17/21 - Hey, hey, hey, it's...

They took Dumb Donald's hat, overdyed and felted it for a fresh look for fall '08.

photo cred (l) Dan & Corina Lecca

It Begins...

2008-07-21T17:06:00.002-05:00

"Perhaps I ask too large --
I take -- no less than skies --
For Earths, grow thick as
Berries, in my native town --

"My Basket holds -- just -- Firmaments --
Those -- dangle easy -- on my arm --

"But smaller bundles -- Cram."
- Emily Dickinson

Insubordiknit Spinning Workshop (part I)

2008-07-14T06:11:00.002-05:00

Hey, if I'm already dividing a post into more than one part in the title, you know it's going to be good.

Under the expert instruction of Jacey, my weekend went a little something like this:

1. In the beginning, there were tables laden with roving. And Courtney saw this, and said, "Awesome!"

2. Then Jacey taught us how to spin super awesome stuff. This is just the beginning. I haven't photographed everything I spun this weekend yet.

to find out what I did with these batts and roving,
tune in next time!

3. And now for something completely different:

A tall glass of awesome
aka Clementine's Lime-Basil Elixir.

The food at Clementine = Awesome+1. Even this food snob was delighted. I'm only sad that I don't live closer. Of course, my waistline probably thanks me; if I lived closer, I'd probably just stay there and eat all day. But if you're anywhere within a half-hour's drive, it's totally worth it. The thick-cut bacon sandwich with asparagus, field greens, tomato and thick slices of white cheddar... magnificent.

ZOMGEYEBALLZ!

2008-07-07T12:02:00.006-05:00

You may be wondering why my internal monologue is set to a continual, "SQUEEEEEEE!".

On second thought, I hope you aren't wondering that, because if you were wondering that, that would mean you could understand my internal monologue and that would probably be really bad. Oh, and by the way, I think your new haircut is really flattering. Please totally forget what my internal monologue said earlier -- and no, that is not -- NO IT IS NOT a lie. SHUT UP, INTERNAL MONOLOGUE!

*ahem*

Anyway, the constant SQUEEE! is because I am signed up for Insubordiknit's artyarn spinning workshop this weekend. It is Jacey's last workshop before she packs up and ~~leaves and takes her profound spinning knowledge with her~~ moves to the midwest. I will learn to make wicked cool yarns that are actually knittable/crochetable.

I already have this vision of spinning up a black sparkly yarn with needle-felted 3D kissy lips (a la the eyeball yarn) and maybe some black feathers and calling it, "Voulez-vous crochet avec moi?"

No, I don't have a wheel yet. Patience, young Grasshopper. I'll get one some day (hopefully sooner, but since I'm about 80% sure I want a Schacht Matchless, it will probably be later).

BUT SRSLY YOU GUYZ! Check this stuff out!

image from / property of / spun by insubordiknit.com

I will be sure to take lots and lots of pictures and eventually put them up in a post for you -- so look for that next week!

New Beginnings

2008-07-04T07:50:00.001-05:00

Hey, it looks like somebody was bitten by the fangs of the Cast-On Fairy*, or hit over the head with its wand, or something like that. I became so tired of knitting #$(%*#% dishcloths. In the back of my mind, I knew I was just biding my time until THE NEXT BIG PROJECT came along.

So, the other Saturday I was in Eleganza and I milled around the store for a bit... I started flipping through the Spring/Summer 2008 VOGUE Knitting. I saw the Medallion Top. Kristi had the yarn in stock in two potential color choices (the blue is my first choice, but I'm happy with the iced lavender). I bought the magazine and the yarn. NEXT BIG PROJECT: FOUND. 8-st Cable? 2 cable needles at once? Bring it on!

I bought some other things, too... such as the Stitch of the Day perpetual calender. Swatch in progress is from the Yarn of the Month Club, which ships out samples of yarn enough to make a full-size swatch and satisfy the knitter's lust for novelty. It's great because you don't have to commit to a full skein, or stand in the yarn shop fondling it, thinking, I think I like it, but what the hell am I going to make with it? and will I like it once I start knitting with it? Thank you, Yarn of the Month Club, for enabling me to fill the gap I created for myself. ;-)

Olive by Zaol

100% Tencel Color 1224 8 sts/inch on US 2s.

I love my Jenkins #2s. Check out those tips!

I'll have better photos up once I have some time and remember to shoot photos in daylight.

Medallion Top from VOGUE Knitting Spring/Summer 2008
Cascade Pima Tencel (50% Peruvian Pima cotton, 50% Tencel)
Color 9514 -- color altered in this photo -- still not right but close enough

Sirdar 1521
Reynolds Kids Wash Day Wool
100% Superwash wool (and soft!)
Color 5623

closeup of the pattern.

*The Cast-On Fairy is begging for an illustration, isn't it?

Knit One, Purl One, Drop One

2008-07-03T06:01:00.003-05:00

Cast On, Cast Off.

Knitting needles don't kill people; old ladies do!

If you haven't heard it already, here it is, from Tim FitzHigham.

It's probably my favorite thing since Tea Partay.

EZ and MM, don't talk to me 'bout jerks like them
That 50 Cent, he ain't no better
He can't even make a nice Aran sweater.

Knitting for Horses

2008-07-01T14:18:00.000-05:00

interesting (1) | disagree (1) | love (5)

photos from camillavalleyfarm

I suppose I could knit this in the round and then steek it...

Stitch 'n' Pitch at the Nats, 20 June 2008

2008-06-23T13:20:00.005-05:00

yes, yes it is.

text messaging (n): the slow, agonized death
of English grammar at the hands of the ignorant.

txt msg + ballpark proposal = FAIL, you cheap bastard.

Ben's Half Smokey = Delicious
(Ben's Chili Bowl, on U St in DC is the best thing that
ever happened to late-night noshing)

What do you call cheese that isn't yours?

Matsuri + cable = FAIL

Matsuri + lace = WIN

ballband dishcloth about to consume the outfield.

Jane's Sunday Market Shawl makes a bid for freedom.
It's made in Malabrigo Silky Merino (ravelry link).
I'd probably jump after it.

oh, we're still here.

finally.

fun with juxtaposition.

Oops, I Did It Again.

2008-06-18T09:45:00.011-05:00

I was perusing Ravelry this morning and saw this lace shawl. Keep in mind that I am at a weak point right now for lace. I was, as Jane Austen (?) so wonderfully put it, "seized by a freak at breakfast" and was tempted to run down to the basement and rifle through my lace knitting patterns and cast on right then and there. Then I remembered that I didn't have any laceweight wound up into cakes or balls. Pfffft.

Firmaments Shawl by Bonnie Sennott.
Image swiped from Ravelry to show you
how freakin AWESOME this thing is.
Image property of aedes.

Ah, back to my story. So I was perusing Ravelry when I came across the Firmaments shawl. It's inspired by an Emily Dickinson poem. Ravelry link. Webs link.

So, I, uh... clicked on the link to Webs. I looked at all the lovely colors of Valley Yarns 2/14 Alpaca Silk (Webs link. Ravelry link). And then I must have blacked out -- because next thing I knew, my AmEx was out of my wallet and I confirmed an order for one cone of black, one cone of french blue and one emailed pattern (ok, technically, my AmEx didn't even make it out of my wallet, but it must have ventured forth, because I'm one of those people with a freakish memory for strings of numbers... and somebody typed that number and its expiration date in while I wasn't looking).

Did I mention the yarn comes on half-pound cones? Cones = No Winding. Cones = Instant Cast-On Gratification. Cones = FULL OF WIN.

*sigh* I need to get some sleep. If I get some sleep, I might actually do my work instead of browse Ravelry patterns and buy impulse yarn. Beautiful, soft, silky impulse yarn...

Stash-Diving Results

2008-06-15T09:10:00.006-05:00

I am a-hankerin' after some lace.

I know, after I finished SotS (my first lace project ever), I felt I had my lace fix for the next... ever. That was until I went stash-diving this morning...

The ball is Handpaintedyarn.com Merino Bulky, for Cherie Amour. The big hank is Lisa Souza Lace (100% Superfine Merino), colorway "Sapphire." The two little navy skeins are Reynolds Wash Day Wool, for Sirdar 1521.

I pulled out the Wash Day Wool first, because I thought a baby sweater would be the ideal next project. Then I thought, "what's up next on my Ravelry queue?" And I remembered that Cherie Amour had been top of that list for a loooong time. And then I tried to remember why I hadn't cast on for either of those...

I don't have size 3 or size 9 needles. Seriously. I don't know how this happened. Well, my next step is obviously to hie me to the KnitPicks site and order up some Options tips. What am I going to do, though, until they arrive?

Those Jenkins #2 needles have been itching in the back of my mind for a while now. I pulled out the laceweight drawer of my stash... and what was waiting for me but beautiful Sapphire blue Lace? Off to peruse the Ravelry queue. No worries -- I don't think I'm about to cast on for the Princess Shawl...

No, seriously, I'm not.

Knitting Secrets REVEALED!

2008-06-11T07:39:00.003-05:00

I may look like a knitter, but I'm actually a ninja* (er... kninja. Not to be confused with Knitting Kninja, though). While I'm sitting there peacefully knitting two socks on one circ, I also know that I'm holding 42" of plastic-wrapped steel wire with a pointy, nickle-plated brass needle secured to each end.

Knitters refer to them in public as "circular knitting needles." Manufacturers also print this on the packaging to meet international safety regulations. In the privacy of our Assassins Guild meetings (also known to the muggles as "Stitch 'n' Bitch," or "Ravelry meet-up" or simply, "my knitting group"), we eagerly discuss and display the latest models in double-awl garrotes. Addi is arguably the most popular kninja assassination tools manufacturer in the world; however, KnitPicks Options, with their interchangeable ~~needles~~ spikes and zero-memory ~~cords~~ garroting wires are gaining in popularity.

Occasionally, ~~knitters~~ kninjas contract with specialty makers for custom pieces. I am especially proud of my 32" Jenkins #2 rosewoods. Hand-carved, hand-joined, hand-numbered, with an especially smooth join and exceptionally sharp points for ~~the best lace work ever~~ your most devious projects.

The pretty pretty wool and intricate stitch patterns are only there to distract you. The occasional cries of, "@#$(&$#%^!" followed by intense tinking are for the same purpose. Every once in a great while, usually while working under deep cover, the kninja may actually frog a project just to throw you off the scent.

I most recently had to frog the Baby Surprise Jacket. I didn't want to; I was backed in a corner, with the completed and mistake-laden BSJ staring me down. It had been languishing there for some time, misshapen and ignored, its skipped rows and misread instructions screaming for revenge; I knew I had no choice. I ripped it all the way back to the cast-on, wound the wool (technically wool/mohair) into a ball, and re-cast on.

Things went swimmingly from that point on. Of course, the first time I knit it, I thought things were going swimmingly -- up until the point I had to fold it together and sew the shoulder seams, when I realized that it just wouldn't fit. This time, however, I knew things would be different. Good different.

And now, finally, it is finished. Sort of. I still have to sew up the shoulder seams and find some good horn or bone buttons for it. But the knitting part is over, and the BSJ can be worn in peace. Until the little bugger decides to make mud pies while wearing it... or it becomes a concomitant victim in the age-old saga of Little Boys Destroying Things... in which case Auntie will knit him another.

*this post spawned by one of my friends, who asked me why I almost always wore all black to the gym. I figured the truth would be the easiest reply, so I said, "Because I'm a ninja."

Something Old, Something New, Something in Kentucky

2008-06-09T09:55:00.005-05:00

I took a whirlwind trip to Louisville, KY the other weekend. I flew in Friday afternoon, joined friends for a wedding rehearsal dinner Friday evening, attended the wedding on Saturday, stopped by the reception and flew out Saturday afternoon.

Between my arrival on Friday and the rehearsal dinner, I went downtown to do some sightseeing. I discovered that Louisville revolves around three things:

1. Horse Racing

2. Baseball Bats

3. Penguins

Knitting:

Decided to edge the short-row ring wrap with loopy mohair in the same colorway:

And something new: My grandmother pulled me aside a couple weeks ago and asked me if I knew how to knit dishcloths. Apparently a friend of hers has some hand-knitted dishcloths and loves them, and now my grandmother wants some. Yeah, grandmom... I think I can handle that.

Mohair Madness

2008-05-27T07:11:00.000-05:00

Just a little Tuesday fiber pr0n.

Mohair from Diane Kelly of Firesong Fibers. I washed a small batch of raw mohair fleece in near-boiling water. Hmm, I think I'll update this post later with some good verbiage. But for now, enjoy.

There. That kinda takes the sting out of having to go back to work, doesn't it?

Blue, Pink, Blue, Green

2008-05-24T07:17:00.003-05:00

Spinning:

Moody Blues, 50/50 wool/silk, singles

Moody Blues, 50/50 wool/silk, 2-ply

Knitting:

Short Row Ring Wrap, in Tango (70/30 wool/mohair)
by Dancing Leaf Farm, colorway, "Briar Patch"

ibid.

Outside:

South Hill and Pond, afternoon, before the storm.
this and all following photographs are completely unaltered.

barn under cloud cover

Plying

2008-05-21T12:19:00.000-05:00

Ever since I learned to ply, I've been obsessive about plying my singles.

Srsly, why would I leave a single? Plying makes EVERYTHING better.

a little blurry, but color-correct

But after plying up my Northern Lights singles, I wasn't so sure. This could be because my first bobbin was pretty uneven -- not exactly thick-and-thin, more like thin-and-cobweb-and-sometimes-it-breaks, while the second bobbin is a fairly consistent 1-1.5mm thickness.

2nd bobbin (L) and 1st bobbin (R)

By the second bobbin, I had hit my stride and my fingers knew exactly how to draw out what I wanted. I started getting aggravated when I tried plying the two together. It seems a bit of a waste, plying my "OMG I'm so proud of it!!!" 2nd bobbin with the "I only pretend to know what I'm doing" 1st bobbin, because the end result is an uneven yarn. I'm giving it a bit of overtwist because I'm thinking about using it for socks (and for socks you want a tight twist so it's hard-wearing).

After I had filled a bobbin with the 2-ply, I sat back and evaluated it. I like it... at the same time, I'm not sure that plying brings out the best in the fiber and colorway. I think I prefer it in singles... and since I have about 3-3.5 oz top left, am tempted to spin the remainder as such. Then I'd just wind it all up (along with the already-spun, unplied singles) on my niddy-noddy, set the twist and call it a day.

RECOMMENDED READING: this article (pdf link, the article is free) from Spin Off Magazine on the effect of twist in plying.

Maryland Sheep and Wool 2008 Wrap-Up

2008-05-19T06:54:00.002-05:00

In my hurry to get to MD Sheep & Wool, I forgot my camera. I kicked myself a few times and then got on with the day.

Well, I went on Saturday with the intention of just buying some sheep's milk cheese from the folks at Menhennett Farm. Damnit, I forgot the name of the man who makes it. But he said that this was probably their last year at MD S&W, which made me sad. We had a lovely chat about cheesemaking (did I mention I love Tiffany Aching?), and he walked me through the process, which I thoroughly appreciated. For those interested, Menhennett Farm cheeses are also for sale from Bill Houder at the Town Clock Cheese Shoppe in Gap, PA (717.442.9090).

Cheese transaction completed, I decided that while I was there, it wouldn't hurt to maybe take a stroll through one of the barns. Just to look. I wouldn't seriously be tempted; just observing.

Walky, walky, walky... no temptations... ok, we're good. Hey, I can see the other end of the barn and I still haven't bought anything! Woohoo! GO ME!

Hey... what's that? I made it about 3/4 of the way through when I noticed a familiar stack of Corridale roving crates. I saw the back wall displaying a series of Ashford wheels. The barn I walked into was the one where Stony Mountain Fibers had their booth. I love Stony Mountain Fibers.

So I thought, well, a couple braids of roving wouldn't be bad. After all, roving isn't yarn, and I told myself I wasn't going to buy yarn. And ooh, that's a pretty color... Oh, and I like that one, too. Hey, here's one that's undyed; I could maybe try my hand at that! And then I saw something fluffy and chocolately brown in the corner... BUFFALO DOWN! I had been pondering this ever since I saw their ads on Ravelry. I felt the sample skein. I had to have it. So I bought an ounce of that.

100% dehaired American bison down from Buffalo Gold

Last year, I went on a blue-buying spree. This year was brown (okay, and a little blue).

50/50 wool/silk roving from Chasing Rainbows Dyeworks

Colonial Wool top, "Northern Lights" colorway, from Stony Mountain Fibers

70/30 Alpaca/Tussah from Stony Mountain Fibers

100% bamboo top, "Expresso" (sic) colorway

100% superfine Merino wool

Alpaca/Merino/Tussah, undyed

silk hankies, "Mendocino Hedges" colorway

All told, I had a couple braids of 50/50 wool/silk, a couple braids of Colonial wool, some undyed Tussah/merino/alpaca, some superfine merino, about a pound of 70/30 alpaca/Tussah, 4.35 oz of espresso-brown bamboo top and a 1-oz stack of hand-dyed silk hankies.

And cheese.

And a lamb sandwich in mah bellay.

On my way out, I yelled at lickmysticks (Ravelry link). I did not demand earrings, though. I felt that startling a pregnant woman well into her third trimester -- who likely has the knowing of some obscure fighting skills with knitting needles that she learned during a stint in Needleworth Jail -- was probably enough.

Afterwards, I sat for a little bit with the Western Maryland Ravelers (Ravelry link) tailgate party and waved maniacally at passing buses. Casey, Jess, Mary-Heather and the rest of Team Rav stopped by our tailgate! They had enough grace to not look visibly disturbed at our bubbly over-enthusiasm and cheers of "WOOOO! RAVELRY!!! YEAH!!!"

And just when I thought it was over...

I went back in.

I made a beeline for Tess' yarns. I really wanted to buy seven skeins of silky wool to make the sweater from Pattern #74 that they had displayed as a model.... but I had enough cash left in my wallet for two skeins of sock yarn (you know, now that I'm a sock knitter and everything).

Then I gathered up my purchases, slung 'em into the car, had a wild and bumpy ride going a leeetle too fast over the rutted field of the HoCo Fairgrounds parking, drove to Eleganza and rented a wheel. It was a good day.

Yep, I rented a wheel. You know what that means...

New Post Soon

2008-05-17T06:52:00.001-05:00

With pictures of MD Sheep and Wool acquisitions!

I have a well-dressed nephew.

2008-05-12T10:25:00.003-05:00

front

back

dressing the model

Project Specs:
Pattern: Sirdar 1731
Yarn: Sirdar Snuggly Baby Bamboo
Colorway: 139
Skeins: 5
Size: 1-2 yrs.
see also Ravelry project page.

The pattern was, for the most part, easy to follow. The only difficult part was when I ran into a section that said, "Patt 2tog," and "patt to end." Pattern 2 together? WTF? It took me a while to figure out that they meant, "Do this to whatever stitch presents itself at that time in the pattern." If you're looking at k st, then k2tog. If you're looking at purls, p2tog.

Notes on the yarn: Baby Bamboo is wonderfully soft. It is splitty. At times it is like knitting with giant embroidery floss. Ends left hanging loose will fray; I knotted some of them until I was ready to sew them in (then I just cut off the knot and threaded my needle). Once you accept that it is splitty, it is not difficult to work with.

Other notes: I did all cables without a cable needle, since it was only ever cabling in sets of 2 sts. It takes a little more getting used to when working with a splitty yarn like bamboo. Project is worked in 5 pieces, then sewn together. Placket and collar picked up and knitted after seaming shoulders; before setting sleeves. I did a crochet cast-off to add some rigidity to the back of the neck.

Morning's at Seven, Breakfast's at Seven-Thirty; Hill-sides Dew-Pearled, Necks Pearl-Dewed.

2008-05-09T11:20:00.011-05:00

It rained:

Crest of South Hill

Springtime came to Knit Goddingdom:

The Imperial Pond, looking South

I put on my new gardening shoes:

Royal Horticulture Society Clogs in "Peaches" by Hunter Boots

And I built a compost bin out of palettes, steel L-brackets and some screws.

I also bought steel strap hinges; door to be added.
I love me some power tools.

Sunset on the North Hill:

I finished my Nutkins, and here's proof:

And, riding that wave of accomplishment and desire for a new challenge, I picked up this:

100% merino, 440 yds, colorway, "Blockhead," hand-dyed by Handspun and Dyed Too, on etsy.

And with help from my LYS and Melissa Morgan-Oakes, began knitting two socks at once on a ridiculously long Addi Turbo.

Some ancestor of mine on my mother's side made this table.
There's a story/history that goes along with it.
I don't remember what it is, but I could probably make up a pretty good substitute.

Next time:

MD Sheep and Wool ~~Pillaging~~ Purchases Revealed!
Roving before and after pictures! Silk and wool like you've ~~never~~ probably not often seen before!
And much, much more!

Preview in Pictures

2008-05-07T22:26:00.002-05:00

So I went on vacation

2008-05-04T08:48:00.003-05:00

and forgot to post about it. Knitting happened.

I also went to MD S&W. I forgot my camera, but never fear.

Keep your fingers crossed and do a rain/post dance, and I'll have some new stuff up soon.

It's okay to breathe now.

2008-04-16T09:17:00.004-05:00

There's still work to be done, but at least the mean, scary deadline is past. So the pressure is much, MUCH less. Which means more time for knitting! I'm going to Target tonight and will pick up some Li batteries for my camera. Over the next few days I hope to get some good pictures of the stuff I knitted before the super-crazy-busyness set in, the Nutkins (which are finished! hooray!) and also some pictures of my current work in progress.

Plus, I hope to have some extra-special photo-and-story Knitting Adventure goodness after this Saturday!

Stay tuned -- good things in the works here!

Giardini La Mortella - Fontana Bassa

foto di questo sito

Work is grand.

2008-04-07T19:17:00.012-05:00

Bad things happen when you work 12-15 hours a day, seven days a week. Well, normally I don't get into too much trouble when I'm working this much -- because, hell, I'm at work all the damn day.

First, I start swearing more freely.

Second, I feel justified in buying myself things to offset the crushing suckitude that is working this much.

Example 1: They sell German Chocolate cake by the slice at the grocery store near work. Normally, I'd pass it by without a second thought. But I'm working all day, which means -- I DESERVE CAKE. Cake makes me happy. Happy worker = higher productivity. Cake = increased productivity.

Example 2:
The Nordstrom's catalog came today. I looked through it at lunch. I saw a handbag and a dress that I like. I saw a sexy stiletto pump. Then I saw another sexy stiletto pump. The overworked, sleep-deprived, feverish wheels in my head started to turn.

I want them. Oh my goodness, I'd look sooo good in those. Oh, those are sexy shoes. Damn, they'd make my legs look AWESOME. Where can I wear them... where can I wear those things? Hot damn, I have a bunch of weddings this summer! I could wear the dress, which goes with the beautiful handbag, and the sexy sexy stilettos.

Automatic accountant sets in: that totals $XXXX.

Overworked, sleep-deprived, feverish brain: WANT.

Accountant brain: $XXXX. You are saving your money for a spinning wheel.
Overworked brain: I'm averaging about $XXX in billable hours a day. I made more this week than all of last October. F*** you, budget brain. You can't put a price on me looking gorgeous. I deserve it.

Accountant brain: Bloody hell, I can't argue with that.

Overworked brain: I knew I worked for a reason. Oooooh, I need a hat...
Accountant brain: NO NEW HATS!

Overworked brain: Must have a hat. Wedding = hat. Feathers!
Accountant brain: I'm going to lose this one, aren't I?
Overworked brain: Yep.

So now, in a few days, I'll have a box full of pretty dresses to try on, and a pretty handbag, and some hot new shoes. And then, my friends, I'm going hat shopping. Hopefully after I get some sleep. Eight days to go.

feather and netting fascinator by Simply Devine, UK.

On the knitting front, I'm down to the foot of Nutkin #2. I still haven't bought batteries for my camera. After 15 April (for my non-American readers, that's our tax filing deadline), things should calm down considerably. I'll get back to regular knit-blogging after then.

Sweat, Stress, Hawks

2008-03-28T00:20:00.001-05:00

I'm eagerly awaiting the end of tax season. For the past couple weeks, I've woken up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat, thinking about the work I have yet to do. I'm exhausted and edgy and sometimes I have to remind myself to be nice to the clients. But I'm getting it done; one by one, the returns are going out the door; in the next couple weeks, the last one will leave my desk and I'll do a little happy dance. The Under-eye Circles of Death will fade away; the kettle won't be always on the boil; I'll have time to do normal things like garden and go shopping and just stare out of the kitchen windows and watch the hawks building their nest while I eat my cereal.

There is a pair of hawks nesting a little ways from the house; they have a nest built high in a little oak tree. In the morning they swoop around the stream and hop around the marsh and glide out over the fields. The other day I watched one of them scoop up a length of baling twine (leftover from seeding and strawing the lawn) and carry it up to their tree -- the twine caught the morning sunlight as it trailed behind, twisted in the wind as it hung fifty feet in the air, secured between landed talons and branch. Together, the hawks worked it into their nest. I hope we have... what's the word for baby hawks? Hawslings isnt' a word. Hawklings is too awkward to say. Chicks? I like Hawslings best. Like goslings, but with less webs, more talons; less paddle-around-the-lake and more hunty-bitey-rippy action.

Hawks make me think of falconing. Have you ever gone falconing? I think it would be a lot of fun. If I were to keep a bird, I would want a gyrfalcon. A white morph gyrfalcon. It would be an awesome pet. Since they're raptors, and semi-wild, it would be on the same scale of awesomeness as having a pet tiger. There's a morbid fascination in keeping a pet that could seriously injure you -- but you have to do it right. Anybody can abuse a dog until it becomes a mean, vicious attack dog. Very few people can actually keep a tiger, which could hurt you no matter how well you treat it. Somewhere in between there is the freakin' falcon -- dangerous, noble, and terribly, terribly cool.

I'm beginning to wonder whether I was a medieval knight in a past life: I have this lovely image of me riding out on my Friesian horse with a falcon on my arm. And I'm thinking about taking a fencing class this summer (after all, why not?). If I had a past life, it's more likely that I was one of the poor medieval peasants, covered in mud and shit, wishing I were a knight.

I've been a really good girl these past few millenia, so now I get to have the charger and maybe even the cool bird, and learn how to wield a sword, too. And, uh, spend my time markedly not covered in shit. Although I don't mind the mud, and I have been known on several occasions to... yeah, probably best to leave that one locked up in the annals of Things That Happened in College history.

Speaking of history, here's a visit from one of my old leather-bound books (remember? bibliophile!):

"The Temple of Karnac," from The Museum of Antiquity, 1882.

I am halfway through the short-row toe on Nutkin #1. After dinner I chugged steadily through the last inch of the foot before starting the toe, and I worked my way until the part where you start decreasing on your YOs... and I just couldn't knit any more tonight. I'm hoping by tomorrow to have one sock completed -- and to have bought batteries, so I can show you how awesome these socks (er... technically, this sock, but it will eventually be plural) are.

This episode of "Love, Life and Knitting" brought to you by: Holy Four-Letter Word, I Haven't Slept in a Long Time!

Stamps, Harlots, Dragons and Pennsylvania

2008-03-25T16:30:00.010-05:00

Things are crazy here. Crazier, I should say.

So, what's new?

Mailed off my Ankh-Morpork Knitters Guild "I'm sending my partner some cardboard for their shoes and I was guilted into putting stuff in the box" swap box to CC. I hope I put enough postage on it...

I work all the freakin' time. I put in 13 hours this past Sunday (Easter, for those who celebrate it). My aunt and uncle, who are awesome, brought some leftovers from the family dinner to the office for me. Deviled eggs, potato salad and four kinds of cake. It just wouldn't be a family dinner if there weren't more desserts than main course and sides.

I have my very own, brand-spankin' new Epi-Pen to carry around wherever I go! It's so thrilling to know that at any time, I could be accidentally exposed to something that causes a life-threatening allergic reaction and I get to jab this handy big honkin' needle into the side of my thigh. As annoying as it is to no longer be able to carry some of my favorite evening bags (I love carrying itty bitty evening bags that are just big enough to hold ID, credit card, some cash and a lip balm), I suppose that, on the whole, having to take a slightly bigger bag along is probably better than dying. Maybe. Last time I died wasn't all that bad; it was the violent, sudden, waking up part that sucked. But that's a bad memory, and we're going to discuss pleasant things now.

There are a lot of exciting things coming up in the local fiber area. First is the Homespun Yarn Party, which I'm sure you've ready about on Ravelry. I wish I could go, but I'll most likely be working.

Yarn Harlot, Live! in a couple weeks.

Kennett Square Extravaganza, to see Franklin.

And maybe, at the end of the month (true story: as I was typing that, I had to backspace, because I typed "at the end of the money"), a Pennsylvania spinning wheel trying/buying tour!

Knitting news:

I've turned the heel and am on the straightaway for the foot of Nutkin. I've started calling them my Dragon Socks, because that's what the colorway looks like, to me.

Jojoland "Melody" in colorway MS29.
Image property of JoJoLand.

Pictures when I remember to buy new Li batteries for my camera.

Spinning Wheel

2008-03-18T10:00:00.011-05:00

I need a wheel. It has moved beyond the point of want and become a need -- fiber artists understand this. I rented a wheel from my LYS, because I wasn't sure whether spinning was going to be a continuing obsession or just a try-it-once, ok-curiosity-satisfied adventure. I'm fairly well headed down the path of obsession. And yet, I'm still reluctant to take the plunge...

I have the money available... sort of. It's earning interest and compounding and growing and doing what it's supposed to be doing. I have this thing, though, about taking money out of my savings. I see savings as what my dad calls, "attitude money." It's what you have in reserve, so if your checking gets a little low, or things get a little strained, you know you have that little bundle in the wings, just in case. It's not meant to be spent; it's meant to be... well, saved. I've taken money out of it before -- to buy art, which I rationalize as an investment -- even though I'm not sure how much the pieces I've bought will appreciate, if at all.

Buying art, up to a certain point, is a bit of a gamble. There are some artists I know whose work will definitely appreciate; others, who knows. There's little way of knowing what will be in demand fifty years down the road -- only educated guesses. I stick to buying what I love; that way, even if it doesn't appreciate significantly, at least I will always enjoy having it around.

Spinning wheels are like little bitty cars in terms of depreciation. Cars are depreciating assets (I hope you've heard this before) -- they lose value as soon as you take it off the lot. There are exceptions, of course, including classic cars, and some Porsches, if you keep them in perfect condition. A used spinning wheel is not going to sell for the price you bought it new, even in perfect condition. Like cars, though, the depreciation is on a sliding scale -- a used Schacht in perfect condition will sell for proportionately more than a used Louet in perfect condition. There is probably more chance of selling a used Schacht than a used Louet, because more people can afford a new Louet. I'm also wondering if the resale market is so small because people don't want to get rid of their wheels, i.e. if you buy a Schacht, you keep it for 20 years. Thoughts on this, anyone?

When I opened the savings account, I had the intention of buying a bear rug. I told myself that when I had saved twice as much as I needed to buy the rug, I could buy one of my choice (probably grizzly. I really wanted a polar bear but there's no easy, legal way to obtain one in the United States).* I had a place for it right in front of my fireplace. Problem is, I sold that house three years ago. Now I have the money, but no perfect place for it, which is why I'm not so keen on it anymore. Priorities have shifted. And I'm afraid of that happening with my wheel -- so important to me this past year, but in a couple years -- who knows?

ATTENTION SPINNERS: Do you have a wheel you love? Did you have a wheel you eventually sold? Tell me about it! comment here or email me at cshopmail at yahoo dot com.

The other hesitation is that I'm a little overwhelmed by choice -- I've researched so many wheels online, from the small craftsmen to the production companies, and I still can't make a choice. So far, all I know is I will probably buy a castle wheel because of its size and portability. My wheel must be portable. I probably want a double treadle, or one with a big single treadle, because I've found plying is much easier using both feet.

The Schacht Ladybug caught my eye because it has a red wheel. It's cute; it's portable; it's relatively inexpensive (for a Schacht). Anyone tried one? Does the red wheel become annoying with time?
The Schacht Matchless is one of my top choices, but on the higher end.
The Ashford Elizabeth is my favorite-looking wheel, but not portable = not an option right now.

I'm also going to need some high-speed bobbins/whorls. I like to spin fingering/cobweb weight yarn. I'll need a Lazy Kate (or two). I found that three bobbins are not nearly enough for me. I like to spin up lots of singles and then ply them at will... I'm going to want at least five bobbins to start.

*sigh* I'm going to buy a new orifice hook at Sheep & Wool (the dogs ate the one I bought last year).

A few of my spinning friends have tossed around the idea of a trip to The Mannings for a wheel expedition. I like that idea better than making a decision at MD Sheep & Wool -- I don't like making that kind of decision on the fly, in a crowded, pressured situation. No matter how laid-back the staff is, festivals and fairs are pressure situations -- there's a time limit built into them.

Not all things with built-in time limits are bad, though. Most weekends I go downtown to a little flower shop and buy myself a bouquet -- does wonders to get one through the winter. Last Saturday I bought a bunch of fritillaria meleagris. The checkered flowers turn white with age. I want to buy a bunch of these and naturalize them down by the stream.

*side note: if you're against fur, it won't do any good to tell me I'm a horrible person. I've accepted this as a part of my animal-loving, meat-eating, fur-wearing personality. I'm okay with you thinking I'm a horrible person; your condemnations cause me no shame or guilt, because that opinion doesn't matter to me. Please keep those comments to yourself, or share them amongst your friends, but don't waste your breath on me. It would be as fruitful as me trying to convince you to wear fur. I'm a lost cause, and happily so.

Political Post

2008-03-13T23:03:00.007-05:00

Disclaimer, since we live in a world of oversensitive pansies who like to misinterpret things and feel like victims and whip out lawyers to sue people over things that don't matter: If you don't like what I have to say, that's okay. I'm not out to deliberately hurt anyone. If you disagree with my ideas, that doesn't bother me. You are as entitled to your opinion as I am to mine. The following is my opinion.

responding to this article, and specifically the following quote:

"Obama's proposal would shift the tax burden toward the rich from low- and middle-income workers. "

He's just telling his voters what they want to hear. Nobody wants to hear that the top 1% of Americans pay 90% of ALL income taxes in America. Nobody wants to hear that low-income workers don't pay jack shit in taxes -- the poorer you are, the more tax breaks you get -- bottom line, they are POOR. The rich are already paying 60-70% of their income in taxes, people -- to take care of people like you. How would you like it if 60-70% of your year was spent working to support people you don't even know? Think about it: seven months of work -- seven months of time spent away from your family, seven months spent busting your ass, seven months under stress to make it work -- sucked out of your bank account and sent off for someone else to squander.

Oh, but it's okay for the rich to pay so much, because they earn so much, right? No. It's called a scale of proportion. Taking 60% of someone's income is taking 60% of someone's income. It's no more right to steal a car from a rich person than it is to steal a car from a poor person. The object changes, but the deed is the same.

So, here we are, with the wealthy not being allowed to keep 60-70% of their earned income. Last time I heard about people working to produce a product that they couldn't keep and from which they could not gain, it was called slavery. This is the slavery with mass appeal and a friendly face -- let's enslave the rich through social engineering and government regulation, and we can all feel good about stealing from them, because they're rich, and we all know that being rich means they must have done something bad, immoral, or evil to get there! So let's take it, because stealing's okay when it's done to someone else! Let's take it, because envy means entitlement!

It leaves me to think: Do you people want it all? DO YOU WANT IT ALL? COME AND TAKE IT, BITCHES. Suck us dry, and see if you like it when the teat drys up and there's nothing left for us to give.

Nobody likes to hear that the wealthy are what keeps an economy going through recession. They are the people who are spending money, buying products, stimulating tourism, keeping people employed. They put money back into the system so it keeps going. The wealthy pay, and they pay, and they pay... and no one wants to acknowledge that, because we need to feel something, instead of think about it.

But that's not what the masses want to hear. They want to hear me say, "Yessuh, I go pay my taxes now. Yessuh, I pay 'em good."

I aten't dead... full edition.

2008-03-07T18:16:00.004-05:00

Last Saturday, I went to tea at Serenity Tearoom (click here for Teamap link) with my cousin and my grandmother. I'm a huge fan of Serenity's teas. They are second only to the Leaf Tea that Lindy sent me from Australia (their Baileys is bar none the most delicious flavored tea EVAR). The food at Serenity is excellent, the teas top-notch and the service impeccable. I have to say, though, that the miniature chocolate éclairs at Cafe Anglais are still at the top of my dessert tray rankings.

After tea, we went shopping downtown. I bought a hat (suprise). It's brown felt, which means it's a cool-weather hat, so I don't know how much I'm actually going to wear it... but I love it.

ETA: I wore it today (7 March) and it was great!

I stopped in one of the little bakeries, PROOF, and bought a brioche à tête to take home. It was fantastic. Yum yum yum yum... I want another. I also bought two cupcakes: one carrot cake and one red velvet. The carrot cake was delicious; the red velvet so-so. I liked the icing on both -- cream cheese, a little tart, not too sweet. Just right.

Knitting News: I finished the capelet. I edged it in Glitter, a mohair/sparkle 2ply. Next step is to find an appropriate closure. I'm thinking about either doing buttons in silver, or having a glass closure made, such as those from Moving Mud. All I have to do is send them a fiber sample. This may work out, since I have total about 4.5" of yarn left, in two pieces.

Eleganza Yarns is participating in a sock design contest. Monetary prizes. Check it out. Entry forms at the shop, as well as this link. Those of you who like knitting socks -- more power to ya.

Chugging along on this little sweater for my nephew... trying to get it done by his 1st birthday (end of March).

On Wednesday I mailed off my Pratchgan squares to cherryred in Scotland!

I was called in to angel for the Ankh-Morpork Knitter's Guild "I'm just sending this box so my partner can have cardboard for their boots and I was guilted into putting stuff in it" Swap. This weekend will be shopping and putting the parcel together. And uh, knitting something for it (such as... uh... dishcloths on size 20 needles).

Other food news: I had lunch at Tuscarora Mill in Leesburg (VA) today. If you go there, have the pumpkin ravioli. I'm not easy to impress... most of the time I eat out, I'm disappointed... and I was impressed with this dish. Pumpkin ravioli with asparagus, roasted parsnips, broccoli and parmesan in a cream sauce. My taste buds were dancing. It was the kind of taste sensation you just want to linger over. I had a bite of my date's portabella burger (get it with goat cheese instead of brie) and that was good, too. Okay, I know this is a knitting blog, not a "wonderful things Courtney's eaten lately" blog... so that'll be all for now.

Next post: MOAR PIKSHURS!

I ATEN'T DEAD

2008-03-05T11:37:00.001-05:00

Just thought I'd let you know. Hang in there, readers. In the meantime, go read Yarn Harlot (as though you needed telling, right?). She has some good stuff up recently on her antics in the woods.

All quiet...

2008-02-26T17:02:00.006-05:00

Swamped with work. I spend my free time at the gym. I haven't even knitted that much. Some progress on the capelet -- I ended up frogging it and going through the pattern. My suspicion is that it's missing some K2togs or K3togs in the middle section, because without the decreases there is nothing to balance out the YOs... which explains why my stitch count was about 40 stitches over what I should have had according to the pattern. So I rewrote it myself and knitted merrily away. I'm almost finished the leaf section and will soon start the "garter stitch to the end" stretch. The pattern is also missing the third buttonhole, but I don't want to rip back just to put it in. If I get desperate, I'll get creative with my scissors...

I know this post is a bit lean, but I wouldn't leave y'all without some sort of fiber- or textile-related goodness...

The Peculiar Aristocrat

2008-02-19T11:20:00.001-05:00

I did this. It gave me wonderful aristocratic titles, but I thought I'd flesh 'em out a little bit with helpful character descriptions.

Countess-Palatine Courtney the Cosmopolitan of Bartonhurst in the River: hosts candlelight suppers with riparian entertainments that are so chic, it's almost painful.

Lady Madame Courtney the Weird of Much Madness upon Avon: runs the best bordello in town, whose motto is, “We do it all. And we mean all. No request too kinky. Do you like pancakes?”

====
I cast on for the Hoja Otoñal (Autumn Leaf) Capelet from Kiparoo. I am in love with this yarn. It's the one I was gushing over in the last post. The capelet got wonky somewhere around Row 18, so when I have a minute I'm going to go through and count stitches on the needles and in the pattern and do a little problem-solving.

I worked on Bryan's Beanie during the Ravelry meet-up last Friday. I was having so much fun chatting that I sort of forgot that I had adapted the pattern for gauge... I was doing the decreases, and didn't allow for the fact that the pattern says: DO DECREASES EVERY THIRD ROW. No problem, chief! I did decreases every third row, plugging away through that 1x1 ribbing and running my mouth to anyone who would listen -- completely forgetting that where the gauge swatch in the pattern is 33 sts x 44 rows = 4", my gauge is 22 sts x 26 rows = 4". Yeah.

I also started working on a long-queued sweater for my nephew (Ravelry link). I'm going to try to finish it for his 1st birthday (end of March).

In general news, my workouts are kicking my ass -- in a good way. I do weightlifting two or three times a week, and have combat class once or twice a week. Bag work is hard on my wrists, even when I wrap them... so we'll see whether I continue that. I'd rather have less-effective punches and still be able to knit for an hour in the evening. :-) It's the busy season at work, which means less time for knitting and blogging. Hopefully that also means I'll try harder to sneak in more time for knitting and blogging. ;-) Until next time...

Lead me not into temptation....

2008-02-12T16:10:00.000-05:00

I already know the way.

I slipped up on my yarn diet this weekend--not only slipped up, but fell on my ass. And I'm very pleased about it.

But first, quick recap and summary:
Saturday, I went to tea in Frederick with Anne and a bunch of her friends. I had a wonderful time meeting everyone. Afterwards, I was heading home to help take care of my baby nephew when I saw some cute things in the window of a boutique. I hemmed (want to go in; parking meter might expire). I hawed (really ought to be going home). I went in... and I emerged victorious. I bought two skirts on sale (woohoo!) and one cardigan that wasn't one sale, but went PERFECT with the brown wool skirt. I think I also liked it because it looks like something I would want to knit.
(tea image from here).

Sunday: two yarn sales. You already know what's going to happen.

1. Dancing Leaf Farm
Picked up another skein at Dancing Leaf Farm of Loopy Mohair in the Briar Patch colorway (the sample is a little bolder than most of the yarn in that colorway actually looks). I like to have it on hand for edging whatever I end up making out of the Salsa and/or Tango.

I also bought a copy of Knitting Loves Crochet -- partly because I do not love crochet and I'm hoping this book will give me a reason to use my multi-pack of hooks for something other than seaming (and fake-seaming à la Elizabeth Zimmerman) -- and partly because it was 50% off. If you didn't know already, I have a huge prejudice against crochet. I think it's usually ugly and screams, "OMG I'M HANDMADE BY A CRAFTING ROOKIE STUCK IN A 1970s TIME LOOP." I bet that there are more aesthetic offenses committed by crochet enthusiasts than any other fiber group.

knitting loves crochet, even if Courtney doesn't.

Ten bucks was about as much as I was willing to invest in finding out if crochet had any redeeming qualities when paired with knitting... or whether it would be the fiber equivalent of Cooperative Learning, the great education debacle of my childhood (if you have questions about the efficacy of Cooperative Learning, ask me. I'll tell you how quickly I learned to hate the stupid kids, as well as anything that smelled of group work). I'm not planning on working any of the projects out of it in the near future, but I look forward to flipping through it.

Rounding up my random purchases at Dancing Leaf were:
- a purple shawl stick (could have also been a hair stick in my longer-haired days), which goes beautifully with my stashed Dancing Leaf Salsa and Tango yarns, in case I make that Ring Wrap thingy (whatever it's called, from Knitter's Winter 2005).
- two grab bags of yarn in random green colors. I know, green is not my thing, but I'm hoping that if I buy enough green yarn, I will make things for my two best friends because they look good in green and I want that green stuff OUT of my stash.
- three bars of Wooly Queen goatsmilk soap (two in Cucumber/Cantaloupe and one in Honeysuckle).

2. Kiparoo Farm
Then we did a quick shimmy over to Kiparoo Farm, where the wind was threatening to blow away everything in its path. Safe in the shop, I picked up a chocolate from one of the many heart-shaped boxes. Mmmmm, chocolate...

and then I saw some yarn tucked in the back corner of the shop. I wasn't planning on buying any yarn; in fact, I was planning on buying NO YARN WHATSOEVER. I picked it up. I held it up in the afternoon sunlight streaming in through the window. I admired the deep burgundies and dark chocolate browns with occasional hints of silver. I opened the big binder of patterns sitting next to the yarn; the very first one was for an Autumn Leaves Capelet in the colorway I was fondling. The model was hanging up on the wall just to the right. Well, who was I to argue with the conspiring forces of Fate?

Kiparoo Farm "Moonlight" (wool/nylon)

Normally, I advise against red+brown combinations -- even the thought sends shudders down my spine. But in this colorway, Annie got it right. The colors work. It reminds me of chocolate-dipped strawberries eaten on a warm summer moonlit night. Wanna see it again?

I also picked up a skein of brushed mohair/glitter yarn in deep, saturated overly-ripe-strawberry red. I figured I could always do a 1" or so border in it. The color in the photo below isn't exactly right... but trust me, it works with the yarn.

Kiparoo Farm "Glitter" (brushed mohair/sparkly stuff)

3. Miscellany
I take back what I said earlier about everything crochet being ugly. Here is the first cool thing I have seen come off a hook:

the Marcel Wanders Crochet Table.

4. Afterward: Remember the cute skirt and sweater I bought on Saturday? I bought these fairly sensible shoes at Nordstrom today to go with them (in brown, of course). I generally have a thing against sensible shoes, but these are actually cute on. Will post pics eventually.

I Has a New Blog

2008-02-11T11:06:00.000-05:00

courtesy of lolinator. it is teh awesome:

http://lolinator.com/lol/courtneyknits.blogspot.com/

(real post soonish, maybe)

Long time, no blogging

2008-02-08T10:45:00.001-05:00

It's been a busy couple weeks here in Knit Goddingdom.

1. BLOGOVERSARY NOTICE: Feb 16.
I'm thinking of running a content and giving away yarn. Anyone interested in free yarn? I have some nice stuff here to give away. It would involve a comment contest of some sort. Details to follow.

2. Ravelry meeting. I met up with some local Ravelers last Friday. It was fun. I finished...

You know what, I haven't had enough caffeine yet this morning to write a cogent post. Check back later... maybe I'll write something up after work.

Finishing Spree

2008-01-28T16:48:00.000-05:00

I'm great at starting things -- not so great at finishing them. Lately, however, I've been on a finishing streak. Ever since I finished my fair isle/icelandic yoke ~~cardigan~~ sweater (I don't even know what I knit anymore), I've been on a tear getting UFOs wrapped up.

I tore through the Pratchgan letter square and will finish the Automatic Pasta Cooker square tonight or tomorrow (I also thought I could call it The B.S. Johnson Patent Automatic Window for Take-Away Ribs). Photos when I'm finished.

I pulled SotS out of hibernation and am almost finished Hint #7 (of 8). I'm knitting through it now a lot faster than I was before. I'm hoping to have it done within two weeks -- preferably in one week.

I also pulled out the Manly Mitts I'm making for my dad -- a pair of convertible gloves in Misty Mountain Farms Prime Alpaca (yummy!). I think I remember the modifications I'm making to adjust the men's XL to his Hagrid-sized hands.

chug! chug!

Will write more later -- I have to go finish things!

one day I'll have a little program written that knitters can put on their desktop;
when they finish a project, they'll have this lovely little validation screen.

Third Time's the Charm...

2008-01-25T22:25:00.000-05:00

for this sweater neck, I hope. I took Jean's suggestion and included some decreases in the neck ribbing. They worked beautifully. The only problem is that I decreased a little too vigorously, and the tight bind-off I used is--well, tight. This means that the sweater will just barely fit over my big fat head; taking the sweater off again threatens acute loss of ears and/or nose and requires Level 8 Dressing Gymnastics to avoid facial/cranial injury (Level 9 Dressing Gymnastics is getting one's butt and thighs into designer jeans without cutting off circulation to one's lower legs -- my signature trick is a half-speed side kick, followed by a roundhouse, one knee, one back kick and a couple power squats).

The other thing is that the neck comes right up to my throat and I have übersensitive skin (it turns red at the suggestion that it might have something it thinks it might not like in its vicinity... how I managed to even knit the sweater is one of the world's great psychosomatic mysteries) -- I'd prefer to have the neck not be so cozy and wear a scarf as necessary. So, it looks like tomorrow I'll rip out one or two rows and bind off. The underarms are grafted and, while they may not be a master work of Kitchener, they don't look half bad. Most importantly, it fits.

Next step is to order some soak and block this baby.

==========

Next order of business: the Pratchgan (see Ravelry). I finished my letter E block and am brainstorming for my original block. I'm going to do some swatching and test runs later and will post pics of the progress. I'm sticking with my plan to do a Bloody Stupid Johnson invention -- btw, did you see the Bloody Stupid Johnson hat on knitty?

I Can Has Fare Ayul Yok?

2008-01-21T12:30:00.000-05:00

It's, ah, very warm. And the good news is that it fits well. All is well, in fact, until we consider the collar. I'm not sure what went wrong at the neck, but it went VERY wrong. My solution is to rip out down to the point where I think the neck ought to be (conveniently located on the top row of a pattern), forgo the ribbed collar and simply bind off. Then all I have to do is weave in the underarms and -- voila! A sweater!

with stylish birch underarm sticks by Brittany (US8)

I can't believe how quickly this knitted up. There are some slight issues with puckering, due to the quick and brutal K1 K2tog decrease row. Next sweater I'd like to have a smoother inter-yoke transition. The good news is that all is smooth between sweater body and yoke.

Proposed neck line:

I was going to make a joke about a standing collar,
but I've got nothin'.

Now that you've finished reading about how mad my knitting skillz are, check out:

the chicken hat story

[via Lime & Violet].

Sweaters and Snow

2008-01-18T13:55:00.000-05:00

I've started on the fair isle part of the sweater, and guess who didn't do a gauge swatch. The gauge is actually fine, because I'm pretty conscientious about not pulling it too tight -- the problem was the composition. I decided, after I knitting a couple rounds, that I didn't like the blue next to the charcoal... there was change in color, but not much difference in value.

The blue is a bit darker -- this is in direct sunlight

So I pulled out the needles, surgically inserted them a couple rows back, then ripped out the blue. I started re-knitting the formerly-blue section with light grey, which was going to be reserved to replace the white highlights. I'm not sure exactly how this is going to all play out, but the good thing is that if it's terrible, I can always rip it out and re-knit it, and all I will have lost is the time I spent knitting it while watching Project Runway (I have cable TV for the first time in my life -- while most of it is crap, there are a few interesting things on).

It snowed yesterday -- all day there were these HUGE snowflakes falling gently down in the first real snowfall of the winter. Since it's now in the low 40s, most of it is melting away, but I managed to take a couple pictures when I woke up this morning.

view from my bedroom window

view from the kitchen window

view from the back porch,
overlooking part of the pond

The snow turned out to be a good thing -- not just because it's beautiful and I had a wonderful time just sitting on the sofa, drinking my tea and watching it fall; and not just because I had the day off work -- because I was home all day, and around lunchtime the Verizon man came by. That's right -- I have internet at home now! Which means eye candy for you guys! Yay!

I No Can Has Interwebs at Home?

2008-01-16T14:42:00.000-05:00

So I woke up this morning and switched on the wireless router and the little DSL light was all blinky-blinky and teh Intarwebnets lights wasn't lit at all and I was like WTF, mate? So I called Verizon and they were like, "haha, we were just kidding. No home interwebs for you until end of month, maybe." and then I was sad, 'cause I have these awesome pictures to share and I can't. Boo hiss.

And while I'm on the "angry wet cat" theme, here's a brief rant:
In addition to my full-time job, I volunteer part-time as the assistant Director of Development for a nonprofit (basically, it's my job to write letters that will persuade large corporations and philanthropic individuals to make significant cash donations). I'm the Director's right hand/admin, so I also field/screen her phone calls and take messages. The past week has been nutso with board meetings and traveling and meet-and-greets and such, so she's been out of the office a lot.

Today, she went home sick (mostly exhaustion, I think). One of her contacts called, and after I explained that she had gone home for the day, the caller said, "Oh, I'll try her cell phone." On Monday, when I said "She's in a board meeting," another caller said, "Oh, I'll call her cell, then." This is not the first time this has happened.

It annoys me that people assume that when they are told someone is unavailable, they have carte blanche to call them on their cell phone. Just because you have someone's cell phone number doesn't mean you have 24/7 rights to them. It's the same as you saying (to someone you wouldn't want in your bathroom with you), "I'm in the shower," and they respond, "Well, then I'll just stand here on the other side of the curtain and talk to you!" It's on my pet-peeve level with people talking on cell phones in restaurants.

I think there are a lot of people who confuse the accessibility that technology makes possible with accessibility to a person -- thinking that since you can reach someone wherever and whenever, you have an intrinsic right to do so. I was raised with the "10 to 10" rule of phone calls: don't call people before 10AM or after 10PM (of course, a good way to circumvent rudeness on the part of others is to turn your phone off when you go to bed and turn it on when you wake up, hoping that no emergency will happen in the meantime). Certainly there are jobs and situations where a person needs to be in constant contact with others... but for most things in life, constant contact is not necessary.

Sorry, I'm Allergic to Humble Pie.

2008-01-15T11:32:00.001-05:00

Fair Isle/Icelandic Yoke/Variously-Named Sweater coming right along. I was almost finished the second sleeve last night when I tried it on and was puzzled that the upper arm was so baggy. Turns out while I was mindlessly knitting last night, I also neglected to count my stitches and just kept merrily increasing every 5 or 6 rows... so instead of 48 sts from the elbow up, I had 54... which, at 4 sts to the inch, makes a good bit of difference (1 1/2", to be exact). So I had the fun fun task of ripping back a good 7" of sleeve last night and starting to re-knit -- with no increases whatsoever.

Problem
As I get closer to finishing sleeve #2 and the point where I join it all together and start the yoke, I'm a bit nervous. I've been perusing the collection of EZ-based Fair Isle/Icelandic Yoke sweaters on ravelry. The examples with pictures break down as follows: a few are excellent, the vast majority are fine and a couple are downright awful in terms of fit. I won't call anyone out on that -- in case they read this and cry all night -- specifically on here.

Results
The good examples are similar to each other in that they have smooth transitions from plain sweater to patterned yoke. The yokes lie flat and beautiful on the shoulders and are worked up in proportion to the wearer. The sweaters are also the proper size and fit for the models.

Similarly, the bad examples have common characteristics: noticeable, distracting puckering at the bottom of the yoke; a yoke that bunches up on the shoulders or leaves a weird puffy-sleeve effect where it joints the sweater (puckering again); and overall neglect to fit the sweater to the body of the wearer. The last bit is negotiable, since people have different preferences on how to wear their clothes, but there are some basic ground rules (i.e. if you don't have a body like Nicolette Sheridan, you probably shouldn't try to dress like Edy Britt. Similarly, wearing gigantic bags does not flatter any body size -- unless that's the only thing that fits).

Conclusion
A few people noted that they went up in needles size when working the Fair Isle section -- my guess is that this is to makes sure they work it loose enough that it does not pucker. As much as I hate to say it, it appears our friends the GAUGE SWATCH is going to make a repeat appearance. That's the only way to know whether I knit differently in this Fair Isle pattern.

Unrelated
There's a reason why people wrap/wear protective gloves with wrist support when training with a punching pad. My skinned knuckles and bitching wrists attest to this.

U Mayd Me LOL!

2008-01-14T10:33:00.000-05:00

I lieu of a real post, here are some things I've posted to the lolravelers group on Ravelry. Pls do not be snorting teh kofee on teh monitrs. kthxbai.

Freedom!

2008-01-10T15:01:00.000-05:00

I now understand why knitters revere Elizabeth Zimmerman.

After reading The Opinionated Knitter and Knitting Without Tears while working on this Icelandic Yoke Sweater, I feel like I have been set free from my knitting, if that makes any sense. A more accurate statement is that I have been set free from some of my former knitting habits that were a bit constraining without me realizing it.

Knitting a sweater body in the round? Oh yeah! I'm already done the body and am ready to start chugging away on the sleeves -- and this is just knitting in the time between dinner and sleep (about 10:00-11:30/12 recently).

I don't know if it's related, but I got a haircut today. A serious haircut. I donated 14" of ponytail to Locks of Love (it was the weirdest feeling to see my stylist standing there, holding my ponytail in her hand). I wish I could show you a picture. It's a reverse bob (aka inverted bob) that in the front comes down to just below my chin, and angles up to a point, like an inverted V, at the back. Suffice to say that I went into the salon with waist-length hair. My hair in back, on the very bottom layer of the cut, at the nape of my neck, is 1/2" long. HALF AN INCH. When my stylist turned on the electric clippers, she said, "DON'T WORRY," which was much-needed. Electric clippers are for men's haircuts; they're what I use to trim my horses. They've never been anywhere near the back of my head.... until today. I feel about 20 pounds lighter. And, let's face it, I look like a model. ::grin::

On a reflective note, this [general nonspecific time period] is a time of intense change for me, and of exciting possibilities. Don't know where all these things are leading, but I'm eager to find out!

Oh, and GOOD NEWS! Internet at home on Tuesday, which means that soon I will be able to upload and share pictures of the Icelandic Yoke Sweater and the haircut and all sorts of things!

Is There a Problem, Occifer?

2008-01-07T18:34:00.000-05:00

I, ah, did a bad thing.

I sort of--while my better judgment wasn't looking--cast on for a... *ahem* sweater.

So far I'm 8" into it and LOVING IT. I'm knitting an Icelandic Yoke Sweater, going by the patterns by Elizabeth Zimmerman in The Opinionated Knitter and Knitting Without Tears. I'm adding subtle waist shaping (achieved by gradual decreases going up from the hip to the waist, followed by gradual increases to underarms), because, after all, my waist is one of my best features and there's no sense in not accentuating the fact (my next-best feature is modesty). I'm following the measurements of one of my favorite sweaters. If all goes well, and provided that I remember how to count, I'm optimistic that it'll work out reasonably well.

Last night, while watching part II of the BBC/Masterpiece Theatre adaptation of Jane Eyre (w00t! for the ending! The priest gets on my nerves) I realized that I had gotten up to 8" above the hem without any decreases. Whoops. So I ripped back and knitted it all again.

I'm working in Cascade 220 Heathers, and I love that I am working on size 8s -- this sweater feels like it is just flying by. Of course, I say that now, before I've knitted the sleeves. I wonder why it is that sleeves seem to take soooooo long to finish. Most likely, there's a ripple in the space-time continuum when someone starts knitting a sleeve -- the further along the sleeve you get, the more that ripple starts ripping at the fabric of time, and, by the time you get past the elbow, you've managed to knit yourself into an alternate time field. Way to go; now you're knitting for an eternity.

Perhaps we should make sleeve-knitting part of the punishment for the incarcerated set -- it would give them plenty of time to think about what they've done. By the time they reach the cuff, roughly 2/3 will be crying about how very, very sorry they are and they promise to be upstanding citizens as long as please, please Ms. Courtney, don't make us knit another set-in sleeve.

knitting it in these colors.
the end-product will not look so
"I'm making a 4th of July Sweater, Hurrah!"-ish.
Promise.
I don't do that sort of thing.
If I did, I'd say it was for Bastille Day, anyway.

Alas, I have no pictures to show you, because of the whole no-internet-at-home-right-now thing. Content thyself with the color swatch, and hopefully by the time I finish, I will have internet access set up. Or conversely, I will have internet access set up by the time I finish. Either would be okay.

Ah, as an added bonus, here's a scan of my pattern and game plan:Life Principle #4: Always use pretty stationary,
even when scratching out basic calculations
and especially for grocery lists.

I Said 'Do You Speak-a My Language?'

2008-01-04T11:57:00.000-05:00

So I spent a little time last night translating this pattern into English. I have a small obsession with Evilla Artyarn, even though I've never seen any in real life. The colors are magnificent and I want to make something with it.

If you want to test knit the Mettes Kaffetaske pattern, here you go. All I ask is that you leave me some feedback as to whether it worked.

***Begin Pattern***

Bag knitted with ~100g Evilla Artyarn.

Finished measurements: ~22cm wide x 30cm high x ~8cm deep.

BAG:
CO 48 sts on needles (#5? 5mm? 5 needles?)
Knit 30 ___ st st and [something something -- "slut med en retpind?"]. I think you need to knit a rectangle and bind off.

Pick up now 15 sts along the short side, 48 sts along the long side and again 15 sts along the short side.

Join and place markers. Begin rounds:
1st round: K 1 round st st.
2nd round: K2, Inc next st, K46, Inc2 next st, Inc2 next st, K13, Inc2 next st, Inc 2 next st, K46, Inc 2 next st, Inc 2 next st, K13, Inc2 next st.
3rd round: K 1 round.
4th round: sort of like round 2; I didn't feel like writing all that out again.

You now have 142 sts on the needles. After this, K all rounds until you have the desired height of the bag.

Handle: Something about beginning with markers... K18, BO16, K55, BO16, K37.
K18, CO 30sts over the place where you BO16 last time, K55, again CO30sts at the other BO row, K37.
K about 25 or 30 rounds and BO.

[A couple sentences I don't understand]

Felt it. I assume you know how to felt. And I hope that's what the directions said to do, otherwise you're going to have an evening bag instead of a small tote.

You now have an awesome bag.

***End Pattern***

With skilz as mad as these, you'd think the offers to hire me as a translator would be pouring in...

May Impair Your Ability to Operate Machinery / Read Knitting Patterns.

2008-01-02T14:38:00.000-05:00

Baby Surprise Jacket #1 is finished (grrrr... I wish I had pictures to show you). It doesn't exactly look like the pictures in The Opinionated Knitter. It looks more like the BSJ's cousin--or perhaps its first cousin. It could definitely pass for a regimental coat. I'm not sure exactly where I went wrong, but I'm sure it has nothing to do with the fact that I knitted most of it while enjoying ~~a glass of~~ ~~a bottle of~~ some Louis Roederer.

imagine this very small, worked in garter stitch in a deep coral.
with slightly shorter sleeves.
that's what it looks like.
image from gatling-gun.

Ah well. I figure I can always pick up and add a couple more rows of garter and do a new set of buttonholes. Who knows, maybe I'll be the first to make a double-breasted BSJ.

Also, after searching Google Images for pictures of regimental coats, I'm thinking of doing another Baby Surprise Regimental Jacket in proper colors (powdered wig not included).

I'm Just a Girl Who Cain't Say No...

2007-12-31T13:11:00.000-05:00

...to yarn, anyway. Last Friday Anne and I set out on the super-fabulous Great Winter Yarn Crawl '07! I had researched a long line of shops to visit in MD, but we ended up hitting four -- which turned out well because we were able to take a leisurely place and enjoy each stop. I apologize for the lack of pictures... still working on figuring out how to get them off the camera and onto my computer at work.

First stop was Dancing Leaf Farm (Barnesville, MD). I bought a skein of Salsa (wool/mohair) that Dalis had laid out in a Christmas display of red and green yarns. The red color I bought is really more of a deep coral -- a saturated orangey-pink sort of red. If I haven't waxed euphoric about how wonderful Dalis' colorways are, let me repeat it: GO SEE HER YARN. You will want to take it home with you and look at it and have it be yours forever. I also bought a hardbound copy of The Opinionated Knitter. Put the yarn and book together and what do you get?

A Baby Surprise Jacket for my nephew! It's about 1/3 done now, knitted on US4 needles. It's my first EZ experience and so far I love the ease of garter stitch and the simple pattern. I knit a lot of it last night while watching the Masterpiece Theatre version of Jayne Eyre (mmmmmm, Rochester....). Which reminds me of this:

from signals
link to shirt)

I liked The Opinionated Knitter so much that I went to Borders yesterday morning and bought a copy of Knitting Without Tears (20% off coupon put to good use!). These will get more use after I explain Winter Yarn Crawl Stop #3...

Winter Yarn Crawl Stop #2: Forestheart, Woodsboro, MD. As we drove past Forestheart, I said, "That must be it. It looks like an artsy place." You will know you have arrived when you see the purple mailbox, purple roof and a purple van parked out front. The inside is jam-packed with all sorts of fiber art and craft-related activities and supplies. There is a wall of cones of weaving yarn; a huge section dedicated to rug-hooking; a section for glass beads and bead-making; various assorted fibercraft magazines, including back issues of Spin Off; a lower section for spinning and dyeing... It's roughly organized, although many things seem to be wherever they landed. Shopping there is a bit like going through your aunt's garage or attic -- you can rummage around and find something you want -- except you have to pay for the stuff you take with you.

I have wanted to try rug-hooking for several years but held off because (1) like I need another hobby and (2) supplies aren't cheap. Mary had a small kit that I thought was adorable and I decided to take the plunge and buy it. I also bought a book, The Art of Rug Hooking, because the featured rugs were beautiful, and a small perforated-paper cross-stitch Santa ornament (I used to do a TON of counted cross-stitch when I was little and I love working on paper -- these little kits are the kind you can do in an afternoon and feel good about finishing a project).

the finished rug-hooking kit.
yay sheep!

We stopped for lunch at The Vintage Coffeehouse on Main Street in Mount Airy. Their coffee is delicious and the interior is everything you think a coffeehouse ought to be: funky, warm and comfortable, with friendly staff and good food.

Winter Yarn Crawl Stop #3: Knittin' Chicks, Mount Airy, MD. This place is set a little back off the main road in a bright traffic-middle-line-yellow building. Inside is bright and cheerful with well-organized yarn just waiting for you to pick it up. I really liked this store. The owner, Dalia, is enthusiastic and helpful. It would be a great place to sit and knit. I picked up a skein of Cascade 220 Superwash Heather in a ruby color; I fell in love with it.

Remember that copy of The Opinionated Knitter I bought a few hours previously? Well, while fondling the Cascade 220 Heathers, I decided to knit myself a yoke sweater using Elizabeth's Percentage System. The body will be the deep claret color (4008?), with the Scandinavian-patterned yoke in grey, charcoal and deep blue (4009?). I can't wait to cast on for this one...

Also worth mentioning: Dalia had set out her finished body for the Noni Medallion Travel Bag. This thing is HUGE. She said that before felting it's roughly the size of a small country.

photo from noni

And when you see it finished, it's gorgeous. Anne bought the pattern for it, so I might wait until she's taken it for a test-drive before I think about attempting it.

By the time I settled on yarn colors for my EPS yoke sweater, the sky was starting to get a little dark... we headed off for our last

Winter Yarn Crawl Stop #4: Diane Kelly, Firesong Fibers, Cooksville, MD. Diane has a beautiful studio in her home. It's the best and most organized I've seen. She raises angora goats and Blue-Face Leicester sheep. I bought one washed Young Adult mohair fleece from a Reverse Badger girl -- a stunning black and white mix -- and two raw yearling mohair fleeces that are such wonderful golden colors and of superior fiber quality. Next step is to buy some combs (Diane recommends the two-row small Louet hand combs) and also to wash the stinky fleeces at some point. I am so thrilled to have them and look forward to spinning them.

All in all, it was a wonderful day. Plus, the places we didn't get to are in the Baltimore area, so that can be another day's journey!

Finished Holiday Sweater (brought to you by We Hate Sheep)

2007-12-27T11:45:00.000-05:00

Instant Holiday-Knitting Gratification... I saw the link on Ravelry but didn't try it out until I saw Crafty Gryphon's masterpiece. Here's my latest FO. I call it,

"I Can Has Nu Lite-Brite Pls?"

The chipper elf conveys his holiday cheer
at having tangled those lights you spent three hours
carefully winding onto those plastic wheel thingys from Frontgate.
Also, nothing says, "Hey... Do you smell that?
Is Grandma burning the Christmas turkey again?
Damn it, Helen! Just for once, I'd like a bird
that wasn't fossilized for Christmas dinner. Is that too much to ask?"
like socks roasting on an open fire.

make your own holiday heirloom sweater at We Hate Sheep.

Mittenz: Now With INVISIBLE FINGARZ!!!

2007-12-26T14:24:00.000-05:00

During the Christmas Gift-Induced Panic Sequence, I started a pair of convertible gloves for my dad. I'm using Knit Pick's Men's Convertible Fingerless Gloves as a base reference. Even after adapting the gauge, the XL still isn't large enough for his freakishly large hands. You can see all the details on its Ravelry project page. For non-Ravelers, I'm using the beautiful brown and grey alpaca I bought at the Fall Fiber Festival (sweet, the VA site already has the 2008 dates up. Mark your calendars!). I figured the alpaca, knit on US3/3.25mm needles, should make a nice warm pair of gloves that he can wear while driving his tractor or seeing to the cattle in the winter.

Mmmm, I love knitting with alpaca. I'm tossing around the idea of getting a mini-herd in a few years. I probably won't (have to get a new horse first), but I'm going to think about it.

Spinning news: my roving from loop arrived and it is gorgeous. I'm hoping to start spinning up the Glowing Hearth tonight.

Switching tracks--inspired by Chateau Petrograsm:
In lieu of knitting pictures (working on that, kids), here's some fun with art and alcohol.
The other night I tried a bottle of Clos du Bois 2005 Pinot Noir. It tasted like this:

Silky smooth, but
ultimately lacking in body,

with a slight acidic bite at the finish.

Last Saturday night I had a bottle of my old standby, Moet & Chandon White Star, NV. It tasted like this:

"Happiness" by Richard Henson, from art.com

Christmas morning we had a bottle of Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame 1998 ~~for~~ with breakfast. It tasted like this:

"Exhilaration" by Ulrike Martin, from ebsqart.com

Looking ahead: Winter Yarn Crawl this weekend, plus a visit from the godparents (aka the coolest people EVAR)! Stay tuned...

Solstice Celebrations!

2007-12-21T16:13:00.000-05:00

(sung to "Happy Birthday to You")
Happy Solstice to Me,
Happy Solstice to Me,
Happy Solstice to Court-neeeee!
Happy Solstice to Me!

Since I'm not Pagan, I figure I can celebrate Winter Solstice any way I like. I decided that the right and proper way was to buy myself roving on Etsy.

100% Merino "Cowboy Cool," 8 oz.
from CJ Kopec Creations

40/40/20 Bamboo/Alpaca/Merino plus some sparkly stuff "Midnight Magic," 3 oz
from loop

Bamboo/Alpaca/Merino
"Glowing Hearth," 6 oz total
from loop

I also completely finished moving out of the rental and into the new house. I moved into the rental on 21 June 2006 (Summer Solstice) and moved out 21 December 2007 (Winter Solstice). It wasn't planned that way, but interesting how it turned out.

Internet access isn't set up yet at the new place. So... posts will have to be done while at the office. Hopefully soon I will figure out a way to get pictures off my camera/laptop and onto the blog -- I've done a lot of spinning recently -- just finished up 6 oz of 70/30 Merino/Tencel 2-ply Fingering and a I-Think-It's-Blue-Face-But-Can't-Remember 2-ply Worsted.

Also, I finished Spawn of Thrummed Mittens yesterday! Woohoo!

Random note: I'm looking forward to trying a magnum of Belgian Beer... the 2007 edition of La Chouffe. I'm not a huge beer-drinker, but since it was a gift I feel obligated to open it (hey, we all make sacrifices).

So, if there's no blog post before, I hope you have a great Yule/Solstice/Christmas/Hanukkah-Was-Two-Weeks-Ago- And-We're-Having-Chinese-Food-On-the-25th Holidays!

Christmas Knitting: Screw It.

2007-12-19T15:15:00.000-05:00

10 minutes ago, I had the brilliant thought: whatever I finish before Christmas morning becomes a gift. Whatever I do not finish by Christmas morning will mean I'm one step ahead for Christmas 2008.

1.5 minutes ago: I realized that I have nothing to give my brother for Christmas--my brother, who is the second-most difficult-to-shop-for person in my family. Begin alpaca manly glove marathon knitting! Or other similar non-wool project that he probably won't wear anyway!

30 seconds ago: Nothing for ten-month old nephew. Seriously? A knitter with nothing for a ten-month old baby?

Begin Gift-Induced Panic Sequence. Happy Holidays, y'all.

General Yammering. Not Much Knitting.

2007-12-18T15:55:00.000-05:00

Moved house this past weekend; lots of knitting and blogging were ~~accomplished~~ thought about. Moving actually not finished; the movers are coming back this coming weekend to bring the furniture that was in storage to the new digs. There is a Christmas tree outside; my family is going to decorate it on Christmas Eve. I'm making Beef Wellington for dinner, with garlic mashed potatoes and glazed carrots. The Beef Wellington is my brother's special request--one that I usually ignore, since it's so labor-intensive, but now I have this wonderful 48" Wolf range to cook on, so I figured I had better make use of it. If you are a serious cook, you will love a Wolf range. It really is that much better.

I spent the past few nights doing this: Behold, the dutch oven full of chicken corn chowder with andouille sausage. Are you imagining it? Good. Now it's at a simmer. I turn the knob to high and in less than 2 seconds, it's at a full boil. I turn the knob down to low, and it stops simmering. Boil. Simmer. Stop. Boil. Simmer. Stop. Repeat until the novelty wears off, or someone yells that at this rate, we're never going to eat dinner.
I roasted a pork loin, and used the integrated probe. It's genius, albeit a little fiddly to plug in when you're trying to lift the probe flap thing with an oven mitt.
It has a setting for proofing dough. It will keep the oven at 80°F. No more worrying about finding the right temperature spot in the house to put your bowl of dough.
After flipping through the instruction manual, I'm pretty sure that there isn't much this thing can't do.

Anyway, I was thinking about finishing up the sweater I was knitting for my mom (as a non-specific present) for a Christmas present. It's the "Belled-Sleeved Cardigan" I have on my Ravelry projects page. The trouble now is I have to figure out where I left off. I think it was on the armhole decreases on one of the front sections. What this really means is: An adventure awaits! That, and I will learn to mark on the pattern where I stop working the next time I'm planning on putting a project down.

I'm also trying to finish the second of the pair of "Spawn of Thrummed Mittens" for mom for an Xmas gift. I'm almost to the part where I hold stitches for the thumb. Should be no problem to finish these up.

Just finished up some online Christmas shopping for dad. I bought an assortment of things from Gardener's supply, including some composting accessories, a plastic mulch mat for increasing tomato yield, and a "Summer of Salads" lettuce seed mix.

My spinning buddy Anne (hi Anne!) came up with the brilliant idea to have a yarn/roving crawl in the week between Christmas and New Year's. It's like a bar crawl, but infinitely better, because being drunk on fiber involves far more giddiness and far less hangover than the alcoholic variety--for about the same economic impact, with lasting satisfaction. We're still working out the details, but I will be sure to post pictures of the adventure.