Catching up on things

Summer is always an opportunity to dive into things wholeheartedly. I like submerging myself in things. I'd say 'immersing', but since I don't come up for air, submerging is probably more accurate.

I've finished the Irish Lace Scarf. Soaking it was an interesting tactile experience. So was knitting it, actually. It felt and looked like I was knitting dust bunnies. I leave it to your imagination how to describe the 'shawl coming out of warm water bath'.

The gansey is moving along nicely. I hit a small snag when I started the sleeve with a star pattern, then realized it should be a tree. Rather than frog 16 rows, I decided to do a bit of minor surgery. Another knitter in the family, who shall remain nameless, accidentally deleted the 'before' photo, but here's a picture of the corrections mid-stream. Star on the left needle, tree on the right needle! The swap took me just over a half-hour, and that sleeve is now done. I hope to start and finish the second sleeve this week.

But this morning, I finished some mittens for Terri Shea's upcoming book.....

And yesterday, I began using the new database I've constructed (using OO Base) for Classical Writing accounting/invoicing/royalties stuff. I had two hurdle to surmount. One involved my own stupidity (bad figures give bad data ... fortunately, the bad figure was only in a note to myself, not to a customer!), but the cause of the other problem is still beyond me. How can an automatically incremented record ID produce duplicate numbers?

Now, to go see if I can finish editing Chapter 3 of Herodotus. And then make sure the answer key has answers that pertain to the contents of the chapter. Fun!!!

On the Way Home from Church

Happily Surrounded by Yarn

Have you ever had one of those days where you finished a project and wondered what you were going to work on next?  I have, and I really like to know what I'll be doing next.

Lately, I don't even have to wonder.  On Monday, I worked on four projects.  Yesterday, I worked on three projects. Filia also worked on one of them for me, and got it into proper shape for next Tuesday's knitting class (allowing me to work on another project.  Maybe, just maybe, she'll grow up to be my Twin in the Closet?  Just think of everything I could get done with a Real Twin!  But no, then she wouldn't get her socks done.  And she did finish one yesterday -- and didn't have yarn for the second with her, which is why I threw my sock to her.) 

The At Sea gansey is coming along beautifully.  I've one 'tree' motif to knit, and then I can start in on the back.  After the back comes the neck, and then the sleeves, and then ... it'll be done.   The lace scarf is about half-done, and the traveling socks?  Well, those are traveling, and don't count.

When I'm not knitting, I'm wandering through Open Office Base tutorials, dreaming of a nice and tidy way to keep all the records I need for my Customer Service, Editor, and Accounting hats.  I have much to learn, but it's nice to take a summer and see what I can figure out. 

There's other things on my to-do list, but these are the ones that give me the most delight. (Bringing order to the chaos of an unformatted book comes close, though.) 

What are YOU doing this summer that delights you?

And the winner is ...

Eileen! Congratulations, Eileen. I've contacted you via your blog, and will get the yarn off to you when I know what to put on the address label.

I've made progress on 3 of my 4 projects this week. One class sock is two tail weaves away from completion, the gansey is less than an inch from the top of the armhole gusset, and the scarf is one orthodontist appointment (braces removal) further along.
We're wrapping up our school year, and the summer is stretching ahead of us. It's not exactly vacant, though. There are SO many things to learn. I could learn SQL and database design (spending lots of time to make bookkeeping take a little less time), or I could potter about in the yard, or I could practice harp lots, or I could completely declutter the house, or ... so many possibilities. I also need to at least pretend to plan out the high school years for my kiddos. What Spanish curriculum do I want to use for Filia? What will I do for Latin 3 for Filius? And then there's history and literature ... eeek! The reading of it isn't a problem, but the discussing thereof is another matter entirely. Now that things are getting 'transcriptable', I find myself staring at the large gap between my own high school history class (sit through class, do homework involving copying down sentences from the book, take multiple choice open book tests) and the possibilities inherent in homeschooling. My tendency is to expect a doctoral dissertation from a 9th grader, I fear. Maybe Filius could read some of Suetonius in Latin and write an original paper on it...

Thank goodness Math is easy. Singapore NEM 3b and 4a, and we're set!

What Happened?

I am a monogamous knitter. Those who know me know I have one, perhaps two, projects on the needles at a time. A project to work on at home, and if it's not portable, a project for traveling.

Tuesday night the realization struck me that I had not two, nor even three, but FOUR projects on the needles. How did that happen?

Let me explain. No, that would take too long. Let me sum up.

I love being helpful. And although in some areas of life I have no difficulty saying 'no', I'm a sucker for knitting things. And helpfulness collided with a design I am working on (despite the fact that I am *not* a designer), plus a traveling knitting project and a class sample ... well, there are four things on the needles. The 16x8" lace swatch on a spare set of needles doesn't count. My daughter is going to finish that (after she finishes her socks and sweater), or else it will get frogged. Except Frog Tree Alpaca doesn't frog well, so it may just quietly disappear. Or get bound off. What does one do with Unloved Swatches, anyways? Or even Loved Swatches?
You, spinning wheel, with the half-spun bobbin. Shush.

The Bohus mittens, at least, are finished. They were a slightly finicky knit (the palm sides are beige and unpatterned, and the mittens are worked in the round with no spare strands on the palm side), but knit up surprisingly quickly. The yarn came out of my stash and was acquired from four states - CA, OR, MN and MD - and three generations of my own family plus a friend. Does that make these interstate multigenerational mittens?

A Monday morning blog giveaway!

Aren't these pretty? And "these" happen to be Spud & Chloe, a lovely worsted yarn in superwash wool and cotton from Blue Sky Alpacas. (Don't ask me where the alpacas are in this. I think maybe they watch.) ((Spud and Chloe also comes in a fingering weight and a bulky weight. But these are worsted weight, aka 'Sweater'.)

If you'd like the yarn, leave a comment by Friday, May 22nd. I will use my handy-dandy, much-beloved HP11c to generate a random number, multiply it by the number of commenters, and that person will be the winner!

Yarn!!!

When I'm making a pointed attempt not to knit (an unusual event, but necessitated by being between projects and not having the yarn for the next project yet), SOMETHING has to be going on. Reading books is one way to pass the time, or cleaning, or decluttering, or organizing ...

but if one is just back from Shepherd's Harvest and has roving, the obvious thing to do is SPIN!

Yesterday, I spun. I think the yarn is heading for a lace shawl. A Knitted Veil is in the running, but I'm not sure if it will work with the variation in color, or if I'll have enough.

Today, I will knit. (Dances in glee) Three boxes came in the mail today -- one with books, one with cassette tapes about books, and one with yarn.

Yippee!

Back from Shepherd's Harvest

What is Shepherd's Harvest, you ask? It's a sheep and wool festival! And what do you get at sheep and wool festivals? Wool fumes!

But before I show you the wool fumes that came home with me, let me show you how far we live from Shepherd's Harvest. (I should have taken a 'before' picture ... it would have showed one ball of yarn and two needles.)

Yup. About that far - minus one meal eaten in the car, plus reading the mail we picked up on our way out of town. And some time just watching the road go by. (I probably spent some of that time knitting ... my hands may have forgotten to tell me they were occupying themselves)

I was a good girl this year. (I usually am. Some people tell me I'm disciplined and have self-restraint.) I didn't have anything particular in mind to buy -- unlike last year, where my quest was to find White Laceweight Yarn for the Sanquhar Gloves. The quest ended with an order to KnitPicks. Laceweight just isn't a good seller, apparently. I can't really complain, as a skein here and a skein there last me a good long whlie.

So this year, knowing that I have OODLES of knitting just waiting to descend on me, I didn't want to overload myself with projects. And yes, a yarn purchase means a yarn project. Stash is for leftovers. And since I have plenty of yarn to play with - I could probably knit mittens for 2-3 months out of my stash (with no guarantees as to authentic colors for ethnic patterns) - I knew I didn't need to buy yarn. Really. So that left me with buying roving. Like I bought last year. But of course, roving must be spun before it's knit, and that takes time, so I don't need a LOT of roving. Just enough for a project or two.

And I didn't get the merino/silk blend in a dark charcoal. Ahhhh... that was gorgeous.


No, I got another ball of roving that called my name. See this? It says Shetland on it. And I like Shetland. Shetland Lace, Shetland/Fair Isle patterns, Shetland sheepies, Shetland weather.... all good. I get a bit sea sick, so if I lived there I like to think I could knit all winter and listen to improving lectures. One has to dream, right?




So, this called me. To show you just how LOUDLY it called, here's a bit of the ball draped over my arm. Yes, I was wearing that. (And yes, that's the shawl I spun and knit last year).

Spinning doesn't count as knitting, so when my knitting projects begin to arrive, it won't count as a project on the needles. Isn't that clever of me? (Nods head) I thought so. I rather like it.


In the meantime, I have a dishcloth to finish, and the second of these. Green Meadow Mittens, from Poems in Color. (A Knit from Your Shelf project!). It's not near as fiddly as I thought it would be, but I would much rather knit a sweater than a cardigan or mitten. The palm side is plain, and the colors are Not Carried.

Yikes.

Wordless Wednesday

Only 24,682 stitches left! The shawl is moving along nicely, and I hope to get the edging started today. I can squeeze in two hours of knitting today so I can get to the edging, right?

Yes. Two hours of knitting on a quiet Saturday (the weather is cooperating ... outside work is not calling on this cold, threatening-to-drizzle day) is easily done.

The Latin curriculum we use is Henle. I've seen several, and tried a few of them out on my guinea pigs. I used Latina Christiana and Henle to teach myself Latin (not that I'm proficient, or fluent, you understand), and used the same with my children. We tried Oerberg's Lingua Latina, which is a wonderful book, but becomes a terrible teaching tool in my hands. I am not an inductive teacher, and I do not have inductive children. We all love Familia Romana, though, and highly recommend it for reading. Wheelock's was just too scattered for me after Henle's very sequential presentation of grammar. But it's a good book too. For next year, I should probably join the LatinStudy list and find something fun to translate with a group. I don't know that we'll go on to Henle 3. To do it well will, I think, require less grammar instruction and more discussion of speeches. Talk of discussion makes me run for my knitting and find a cozy corner to sit and listen.

Hmm. What shall I knit after the shawl, if my other knitting doesn't materialize?

April Update

April is here. My blog has not been here.

And I don't have any pictures to show you.

It's called a Shawl. A circular lace in tiny yarn, better known as the Shetland Tea Shawl. It's been on my list to make since I first laid eyes on A Gathering of Lace, and I decided I was going to make it. I should have it finished in a month or so, if other knitting doesn't pop up and bump the STS to the back burner. Other knitting is supposed to pop up .. so don't hold your breath for finished pictures. If my estimates are right, I have 75,600 stitches left.

School is starting to wind down. We've finished Diogenes: Maxim, are working on the review exercises in math, and are close to the end of Logic and Science. Latin ... well, there's always more Latin to learn. Results of the NLE Level 2 show that my Latin Scholars are Magna Cum Laude, which delights my teacher's heart.

Spring is actually springing. The grass is green, the trees are budding, and Filius got in a strawberry bed. He's looking forward to ripe strawberries later this season. I'm looking forward to them too. Fresh asparagus is on my list of delicacies as well, but not his. Yet. I'm not sure if I should tell him how good it is.

Earlier this month a semi pulled up in front of our house with an order of grains, cereals, dried fruit, and nuts. Mmmmm! I have discovered how to make almond milk -- an excellent substitute for milk in creamy soups. Filia loves the almond pulp left over, so there's no waste whatsoever. We all love dried Bing cherries, and fresh ground whole wheat beats store-bought flour any day. We're overflowing in so many good things!!!

And that's it for April.

March Update

Where did the month go? It hasn't disappeared into the black hole that is Facebook, nor did it vanish into Ravelry. I must have done something, then.

That's right! I knit. I knit (let me go check Ravelry) the Meadow Flowers Shawl. I knit my wee little Minimitts. I finished knitting the Maikell Stole. And I did some test knitting.

Aren't the minimitts cute? I thought about calling them Double Knit Miniature Christmas Tree Ornament Mittens, but no project should have a title longer than the item is big, so I shrunk the title.

This month has definitely not been a home month. I'm leading a Bible Study on Habakkuk, teaching some young girls to knit another day, and have just started teaching an adult Beginning Knitting class. My, was that fun! We've two weeks left in that, and I am excited to see what my students will be doing by then. As this is the first time I've ever taught a beginning class, I'm also putting together handouts and such-like.

Another first happened today. I put in an order with Country Life Natural Foods, and will be a truck stop on their route. Wow! Me -- a truck stop. I get a warm fuzzy feeling just thinking about it. The order was definitely necessary ... I ground the last wheat berries today.

Taxes happened this month, too. That gobbled up a day (and wiped out a cartridge of ink ... I still need to print out some forms, and then copy them. Why does Minnesota need the entire Federal return?)

School is slithering along slowly. Filius took a Lego Design class over the school spring break, and enjoyed it. We're ready to begin the last writing project in Diogenes: Maxim, in the last chapter of NEM 3A, trotting along nicely in Henle (oh, the NLE happened in March as well), and it seems like Traditional Logic and Apologia will never end. Why is it that the subject I enjoy the most happen in the morning? Hmmm. I wonder.

One of the last things we do in the morning is read. The Story of the Greeks is what I've been reading lately. While I read, Filia works on her home exercise plan, and Filius groans about sit ups, push ups, and the like. He's actually made serious improvement in the sit up arena, but getting the proper form for a push up is proving tough. Stretching is also a, well, stretch for him. Sit on the floor with your feet straight out? Yee-Owch! It doesn't help that Filia is as flexible as a wet noodle. She can sit on the floor, legs straight in front of her, and her nose reaches mid-shin when she bends over.

After a sufficient amount of torture, Filius likes to curl up on the couch. Canis also likes to curl up on the couch. Especially on a blanket on the couch. Unfortunately, he also has a bit of an attitude when it comes to Filius (or Vir, for that matter.) He gets rather upset when his 'cushion' moves and will snap at any exposed flesh. Filius would rather vacate the premises than lose his nose (even if I promise to protect him), so he has been practicing the art of Escaping While Keeping the Blanket. I'm not sure how he does it, but it's worked the past three days.

One of these days, spring will spring, and we won't need blankets to stay warm. Until then ... we thank God for blankets, and hot cocoa, and tea

That's right! I got my first order from the Republic of Tea this month. Mmmm, I like their Republic Chai, and the cinnamony Rooibos tea. A pot a day keeps the allergies away!

Tax copies await. Whee.

Photos, anyone?

I have been informed that my blogs posts have been a bit technical lately, so this one is going to be as untechnical as I can make it. Pictures are very non-technical.

First, we have a picture.
Then we have another picture. This arrived in the mail today. It's a little more pink than it looks.

And lastly, socks.

There! Nice and non-technical.

Shhhh... knitting is happening

Knitting is happening, but nothing too spectacular. There's test knits that I really shouldn't be blogging about, stockings that I have no photos of, and lace shawls that are going to take quite some time to knit.

The stockings - Teri Shea's from Piecework - are done. They came out large, as I suspected, but they're not too bad with the extra 4 decreases I snuck in between the calf and the ankle. And they are warm! Cold legs in bed? Pop these stockings on, given them an extra tug up, and your tootsies will stay nice and toasty.

After the stockings came the Maikell Shawl. My sample swatch came out a bit small, but I didn't have any intention of working a 2/28 laceweight (fine laceweight, at that) on anything much larger than a US 3 needles, so I planned for an extra repeat widthwise, and to knit until it 'looked long enough.' Turns out I might have been able to get away with a size 4 needle, but at 6 repeats in I've about 18" of shawl (stretched) done. 12 repeats, as called for in the pattern, will simply not suffice. And that is going to throw off the entire border.

Sniff. I'm going to have to wing it. See, in a traditional Estonian shawl, the border is worked in two pieces. Two, because the knitters used 10" straight needles. And they worked the border by casting on a few hundred stitches, working 10 rows or so in a pretty lace pattern, casting off, and then SEWING the cast on to the center of the shawl. Since the needles were just 10" long, there wasn't enough room to knit the border in one piece. So, two sides of the shawl would have one border sewn on, and the other two would get another, identical border.

Planned insanity. But they did quite nicely at it. And if I were getting gauge, I probably would too. Seams are overrated as regards difficulty and finickiness.

But to add one multiple in width and oh, 8 repeats in length? And then add in the fudge factor of X border stitches to Y shawl stitches? No. I may change my mind in about 14 more repeats of the pattern, but at the present, it seems good to me to study the fudge factor in the book, stare at my shawl, and then in a good light and with a modern circular needle, pick up a few hundred stitches. No, make that several hundred stitches. I think the book mentions over 300 ... and that's for half, and with less rows than I'm going to make. THEN I can count those several hundred stitches and figure out my Secondary Fudge Factor, which will ensure that the lace motifs come out even.

But that won't be for another month or so. Lace isn't usually a fast knit, and nupps aren't for the speed knitter either. This has both. (Of course. Who would work a nupp without lace?) I'm hoping to have enough yarn (and the good news, Rachel, is that I found another nice fat ball of it upstairs. Yay!) but if not? Well, I can always do it borderless. That would be a pity, designwise, but I wouldn't be distressed not to knit the border rows.

Since the shawl isn't particularly traveling knitting, I made a pair of legwarmers for Filia. And since there was leftover yarn, and I didn't want to put it into my stash, I knit a tube of 2x2 rib until there was about 6" left, then turned the two into two half mitts. How? Bind off both ends of the tube in a contrasting sock yarn, then find the middle of the tube, turn THAT into two new ends, and bind those off with the contrasting sock yarn as well. Voila! Ankle/wrist/handwarmers to coordinate perfectly with the legwarmers!

No pictures of those either.

My mom is really enjoying our Sample Skeins Subscription from Elann. Every month they mail us (me) FIVE SKEINS of yarns that they will be selling at nifty prices throughout the next month. With those five skeins (about 10 yds in length), we can sample, doodle, pet, etc, the yarns before they go on sale. And with the color card included, we can see what the actual colors are! I've been a good girl and haven't ordered any this year, but mom is keeping up her end of the economy and has been picking one a month. She's doing good, too. The January Yarn is already knit up and being worn in a shawl. I'm not sure what she plans to do with her February yarn.

And one of these months, I'll probably see something I 'need' to get. But with cobwebby laceweight, one doesn't need to purchase yarn all that often. Speaking of cobwebby ... one of Colourmart's latest offerings came in at over 15,000 yards/lb. Teensy!!! (For comparison, that's over 1600 yds/50g) Colourmart could be dangerous. Fortunately, they have free shipping, so I don't 'need' to order all sorts of things 'while I'm ordering.' That's how I escaped with just one cone of yarn in my order to them last week.

It'll be traveling knitting, and I need a traveling project.

Really.

Doesn't everyone knit lace shawls in mohair for traveling projects?

Oh.

Report!

How *is* everyone doing with their 2008 Knit From Your Shelf Goals?

I finished a project from my shelf - the Nachaq.

I did not get another project started :( so I have flunked the 'Always Have a Project From Your Shelf On Your Needles' portion of the year. I'm not too concerned, however, since I am diving into the world of test knitting and have decided that juggling test knits, travel knits, and Shelf knits is unreasonable. Especially when my travel knits are Norwegian Patterened Stockings. They're not my typical travel knit, but they work. I have great plans for finding a quiet lighted corner at the church Super Bowl party and getting much knit.

I also added a book to my shelf - Poems in Color. If this keeps up -add a book, use a book -I will not 'clear' my shelf of unused books.

Next on the agenda is the Maikell shawl from Estonian Lace. I started a swatch and got nice pointy needles to work it on. I hope to get going on it more in early February.

Today we're experiencing a January Thaw. It was warm enough to go for a decent walk (2 miles) with the dog (who hasn't been out, except to go out, since what, October?) and the front walk is actually drying out in places. Hooray for Filius, who has kept it faithfully shoveled!

Knitting Away

Rather like Anchors Aweigh, but different. Although tomorrow I will be picking up my anchor (you know, the knitting box I'm never far from?) and heading Up North for a while. A class to teach, some cashmere to come home with ... that sort of thing.

Since the slippers departed, and the Nachaq got finished (but not photographed yet. It's lurking in the depths of the aforementioned anchor), a sweater has jumped off and off my needles. Quick knits are fun, and wool sweaters are warm. This one isn't my usual waterproof, densely knit, stranded efforts. That probably has something to do with its short lifespan on my WIPlist.
Data:

• (Rosemary's Middle Sweater, size small, + Rosemary's Small Sweater, size large)/2, from Green Mountain Spinnery.
• Yarn, Knit One Crochet Too Arabesque in Toffee. 10 balls and a bit. Yay for Elann!
  
• Needles, 10 1/2 US
• Gauge, 18 sts/4" and I never even looked at the row gauge.
  

A sock is my only project on the needles now. Saturday will see the beginning of a twined hat, and Monday should see the beginning of something else. So my only logistic problem is ... what do I do if I finish the sock before Saturday at noon? Maybe I'll have to read a book, or something.

Speaking of books, with the completion of the Nachaq, Arctic Lace is now a 'used book' from my bookshelf. I'm not sure what I'll make next. Something lacy, with the cashmere I'm getting tomorrow? Or something Bohus-y, from my fingering-weight stash? It'll probably be one of those two things. I certainly don't have enough stash yarn to pull off Russian Prime in anything larger than a Barbie size.

Responsible parenting has landed me in the realm of Facebookians. Curious thing, that.

Slippers!!!!

This could also be called

The January Jinx

and if I were smart, I might swear off knitting for the rest of the month. I'm not that smart, though. I will use the remaining 20 days of this month as an opportunity to practice the Maintenance of an Even Temperament in the Face of Adversity (Even That Occasioned by One's Own Idiocy Stupidity Mortality).

This year I have knit some mittens I am calling The Frogged Project. And with that, begun last Monday, the January Jinx began. Knitting was going beautifully, until I got to the stranded section above the ribbing and discovered I had the wrong number of stitches. Starting with the cast on. Frog, and re-knit. I dove into the stranded section with delight (one can only take so much ribbing, after all) and was doing dandy until I was drawing to the close of the mitten. And there I discovered that it was Way Too Long. A bit of digging revealed that there was a bit of a gauge problem ... the item needed to be Severely Blocked, so while I had stitch gauge nicely, the row gauge was Severely Off, and smaller needles were called for. Frog back to the ribbing. Stick tongue out at knitting. Proceed. Later on in the same project, I picked it up to do some knitting, glanced at it to make sure I was where I thought I was, and knit merrily away. 400 stitches later, I glanced down to see if I was ready for the next part of the pattern ... and discovered that all 400 stitches needed to be frogged since I was ready for the next part of the pattern when I picked up the knitting.

Pffft.

Next, I knit a beehive hat. It was great and grand, until I washed it. Then it grew so that it sat on my shoulders and would have fit a kitchen trash can. I frogged it and reknit it while it was still damp.

Then I made slippers. Slipper one went beautifully. Slipper two went along nicely, right up until the second round of the 'upper.' At which point I realized ... hey, the FIRST slipper didn't look like this. Uh-oh.

And the January Jinx hit me. Cast on, frog, finish project. Repeat.

So, I finished the second slipper, frogged the upper of the first, reknit it (it's quite tricky to knit the upper of a slipper when the center of the sole is seamed. And I just sliced through the cuff. My ends were woven in too well, and hidden and snagged in the little tube quite secretly) and then today?

Today, I *felted* the slippers. I felted them with great watchings. Check every 5 minutes? No way! I checked every 2-3 minutes. The familial consensus is they're a bit large, but I'm not putting them in for another 2 minutes. Nuh-uh. They fit the circumerence of my foot snugly, the length is just a smidge long, and the opening is loose. They will do.

And my old ones are in the TRASH.

I suppose I could rescue them and cut out pieces, roll them up, and let my son use them in his marshmallow blaster. But I don't think so.

The Postman Cometh

The postman brought me three boxes of goodies on Monday, but I forget what the third one was. It wasn't my new knitting book :( which I need like I need more yarn.

But wait ... I did get more yarn! This is a Very Important Yarn Box. The primary purpose was to get yarn for a Sweater Filii ... but in the lower half of the box, you see Slipper Yarn. Slippers are on the agenda as soon as I get a test knitting project done (ideally, tomorrow), and re-knit a Beehive Hat (ideally, tomorrow also.) My toes may be warm on Monday!




The other box was really a padded envelope. Inside the envelope were two pieces of cardboard, taped together neatly. And labeled. With a clue.

Out came the scissors (since I had an inkling what might be Inside Here, and had no intent of just ripping the cardboard AND contents into smaller pieces). I carefully sliced the tape all around, reverently lifted a piece of cardboard, and saw ...


I won't be knitting slippers on these. Mittens and lace, anyone?

Oh, that's right. I already have something on the needles. But that will pass -- hopefully by early February.




My Nachaq is sidelined at the moment, but it's looking good. I'm not to the half-way point yet, but I was getting there once upon a time. It's sulking in my knitting box at the moment while I'm working on test knitting (THAT was the other package I got on Monday. More yarn!) and a class sample.

2008 Wrap-Up and 2009 Preview

Last year was the Year of the Monthly Mitten. My goal was to make a pair of mittens each month. And how did I do?

38 pairs of mittens, plus 4 'demo' models that don't quite make pairs. Can that be called 40 pairs? Probably not. Especially since 2 mittens are so demo they don't have thumbs. I may make matches for one of them sometime this year. The other will probably have a productive life in my collection of Things Not To Do (And The Colors Not To Do Them With) for classes.

2008 was also the year of the Puritan Reading Challenge. Mom and I both endured to the end. Mom is actually still enduring, closing in on the final pages of the last book.

I had fine intentions of calculating how many yards/miles of yarn I had knit up, or how many pounds. But my kitchen scale lives in the kitchen, and I was not faithful in weighing my finished projects. That's not going to happen. But despite acquisitions (most of them from helpful enabling friends), I think my stash is lighter than it was at the beginning of 2008. I certainly didn't order as much yarn as I did the previous year. (I think. Maybe I shouldn't think too hard.)

2009 promises to be an interesting year. The gentle nudges of a few friends have bumped me into Designer Status, despite my pleas that I am not a designer. Thanks to a well-connected friend and a Ravelry group, I am beginning to do some test knitting. And thanks to the same friend, I will be teaching a class or two not located at my LYS. Which is sort of scary, if you think about it, since I've only ever taught one knitting class even AT my LYS. The things I like to teach about are perhaps too strange for this area? Aren't there thousands of knitters dying to spend a year knitting a lace shawl on 000 needles with thread it takes a magnifying glass and good lighting to see?

Let me close by sharing a tip I learned (the hard way) this morning: When knitting socks with dpns of the sort with stiletto tips, one ought NOT scratch one's nose with a knuckle on one's index finger unless one's thumb is firmly placed on the uppermost tip of the free dpn in that hand.

Ouch.

Why I Am Making New Slippers

I am not making new slippers for a variety of reasons.

1. I need more than one pair.
2. I got tired of the color of the old ones.
3. My feet grew and don't fit in the old ones.
4. My feet shrank and don't fit in the old ones.
5. I wanted to knit something and couldn't come up with any other project.
6. I'm participating in a '365 slippers 2009' knit-a-long.
7. I found a new pattern I just had to try.
8. I found a new yarn I just had to try.
9. I'm so fashion conscious I have to change slippers every 2-3 years.
   

No, I have a Very Good Reason for making new slippers as soon as the yarn arrives. My old ones are falling apart! I'm sure some people use that term loosely, but I have pictorial evidence asserting the veracity of my statement.

Exhibit A



















Exhibit B























Then there's Exhibit C, the half-mitts I made last night. Four skeins of yarn used in four single-skein projects in four days!

And nothing on my needles for tonight's New Year's Eve Party. I think I need to start some socks on my new needles.

The Last Christmas Present

It came! It came!

My husband's Christmas present to me arrived in the mail yesterday. And, in a fit of perfect timing, he picked up the mail on his way in to work, JUST before The Tube was popped into our box. So when I went to the post office, the only thing there was The Tube.

Behold, the contents of the tube. Aren't they pretty? They're even Christmassy colored. And such a nice little bag to store them in. After reading the warning on the packing slip, I am wondering if the bag is made of Kevlar.

But I can't blame the company for including the warning. People can get so lawsuit happy these days, I suppose a wise company makes provision for that. And since you may, at some time in your life, experience the euphoria of finding a set of these needles (sans packing slip), permit me to share with you some Necessary Information.

Signature Arts, LLC's knitting needles are intended for knitting purposes only. The knitting needles are sharp and should be handled with care, stored with the pointed end down, out of the reach of children, and should not be left on the floor. The knitting needles should also be carried with the pointed end down. The knitting needles should not be used in a moving vehicle due to the possibility they could cause the puncture of persons or air bags in the case of an accident. The knitting needles should not be stuck in the ear or in other body parts. Signature Needle Arts, LLC hereby disclaims liability for all claims for damages other than for damages provided for in the Uniform Commercial Code for breaches of warranties. Signature Needle Arts, LLC's liability shall in no event exceed the price of the knitting needles.

I'd like to go on record and note that never, EVER, have I become so distraught over a dropped stitch or other knitting accident so as to puncture persons or air bags. My children will bear witness to this. Now, if an air bag was about to explode on my knitting? Puncturing it might cross my mind. Self-defense, you know.

In most situations, I'm a law-abiding citizen, and quite willing to go along with suggested safety precautions. But I simply cannot countenance the idea of carrying these needles point down. Or storing them that way. It just won't work. And please, no one tell the airlines about the moving vehicles part.

But, on to the needles. There they lay (on the floor, sorry), just waiting for a project. Or at least a swatch.


The swatch of the day used Colourmart's 3/28NM Cashmere Heavy Laceweight. Oh, I like the needles. I was a wee bit concerned they'd be heavy ... but let me share some figures.

• KnitPicks Harmony dpns - 4g
• KnitPicks Metal dpns - 20g
• Signature Needles dpns - 12g

They'll do just fine. I did a lozenge/bead swatch, and had so much yarn left over I decided to do a swatch from Estonian Lace. A single Lily of the Valley swatch, as a matter of fact. With the dreaded NUPPS!

The first two nupps on the bottom are 5 stitch nupps. The next 4 are 7 stitch nupps. I like them better... and the last two were even easy to work.

Please, no one mention the fact that one does not make a lace shawl on 6" dpns. It's a sad reality. But these needles are going to be greatly used for socks and mittens.

Catching Up

The needles have been busy, and I'm afraid I haven't been writing my post-Christmas letters the way my to-do list has been telling me.

I have been decluttering, however. I sold a book on Amazon.com! (One less book to knit from my shelf out of) and immediately bought a book on Amazon.com. I did *not* (picture extreme self-restraint) pre-order the reprinted Alice Starmore Fair Isle book. Too much of a good thing leaves the children unfed and the bills in a pile on the kitchen desk. And putting the book in my Amazon cart so I don't forget about it doesn't count.

As those of you who know my mom may have guessed, I got a knitting book for Christmas! It is sitting within arm's reach of my knitting chair, and despite the time I have spent with it, I'm still not sure what my first project will be. But it's a good book. I used the Blueberry pattern from it for a scarf using the fuzzy alpaca from my Knit Picks Alpaca Sampler. I have my doubts about how well it will stay blocked, but even unblocked, it makes a nice skinny scarf.

Also from that sampler, I've made the Treasured Neckerchief. If you have plans to make that pattern, check for errata, drop the first 8 rows of section 2 (the second second section mentioned, not the first) and don't be concerned if you're confused. I'll be happy for the company.








The blocking neckerchief reminds me of nothing more than a tapeworm. The color is gorgeous, and it is a nice quick knit. And one skein, as advertised! (Even with what I think are 16 extra rows.)

But on to the Beautiful Knitting.

First, let me introduce Wisteria. Wisteria is a quick knit, with lots of gorgeous cables and plenty of speedy stockinette. I think I could wear this sweater out quickly. It's warm, it's cozy ... and yes, I did shorten the sleeves. I have a pet peeve with sweaters that attack my dpns.











And cashmere. One cute little sample swatch of a lozenge with a single bead in it, all blocked out for your cosideration. I think this yarn has a future as an Estonian Lace shawl. Or maybe something from Heirloom knitting. Although the mittens made from a double strand of it were gorgeous -- 13.5 sts per inch leave one with plenty of room for detailed stranded patterns.

Tomorrow I may have a picture of the Last Christmas Present. It's from dh, and is in the mailstream somewhere. Will it arrive today?

I'd better go find out.

Let's Consider That Stash

Here is a picture of the yarn corner of my craft room. It's a bit, shall we say, populated? for a person who doesn't particularly have a stash. But truly, the only things there are more than one skein of are things that were given me by destashing people. Really!

Christmas hasn't changed that much. I got two lovely samplers from my mom, with 21 skeins between the two of them. And would you know, there are no duplicates in the lot? And nothing in the samplers duplicates anything that I already have. I call that Careful Planning!












I think I will take the four-skein bag first. Those are such gorgeous colors! The other bag is nice, too ... and it calls to me loudly of MITTENS! The colors are better in person.

But I am using stuff on hand. I finished the half-mitts, and took pictures (with macro!) of the silk/cotton swatch. It needs to be worked on bigger needles.

A cashmere swatch in 2/28NM is utterly gorgeous. Next in my swatching sights is the 2/28 silk!

A Russian Prime sweater in 10/28 cashwool is also calling to me.

The second day of Christmas ...

The Christmas spirit really gets a hold of some people in strange ways.

Others prefer to lounge around in new finery. So I may present, at long last, the Not-So-Secret Christmas Present. Planned in the open (because it can be a bad idea to knit something for a teen girl if one hasn't pre-approved the design) and knit entirely in secret. Do you know how long it can take to knit a sweater at 7 stitches per inch only working after a teen bedtime?
Now that the Secret Thing is off my needles, the knitting seems to be going ever so much faster. (Funny how switching projects whenever Filia is out of the room can really make standard knitting drag.) Yesterday I did some swatching with a silk/cotton yarn from Colourmart, first with 2.75 mm needles and then with something around a 6.5 US. (Old needles, too big for a US 6 and too small for a US 7). I think the yarn would be perfect with a US 5, but HORRIBLE for anything resembling a nupp. It is calling me for a summer shawl, though. (sigh)

On the needles currently is the second half-mitt in a cashmere wool blend. The sample skein Colourmart sent has more than enough yarn for two halfmitts -- in fact, it looks like I could make three out of it. I really like the yarn, which I'm working up on US 5 needles, but could probably stand to be worked looser.

The yarny goodies are abounding of late. Yarny goodies for Christmas, yarny goodies arriving in the mail yesterday, and needlie goodies set to arrive in the mail some day soon. And I'm ordering more yarny goodies on Tuesday!

I'd better get to knitting so I don't develop an official stash! Leftovers are one thing, but a stash?

In which evidence of sewing activities are produced

Christmas knitting always goes so much more smoothly than Christmas sewing. It's true I can sew, but I am not by any means a seamstress. It's not that sewing is a necessary evil, but sewing is not knitting, and I am not exactly competent with it. (Exhibit A: My husband did not get a homemade sweatshirt this year, because I read the layout wrong and ended up not having enough fabric for the front of the sweatshirt. Exhibit B: Plastic bag in craft room closet containing all the pieces for a nice flannel shirt (except it's chambray, I think) except the left front. I got the layout right, but the fabric shrunk in the pre-washing so there wasn't enough. And the fabric stores around here haven't had any of that fabric when I've looked for, oh, the last 5 years or so.)

But sometimes, I get things right. Observe Filius, in a custom-made pair of pajamas. "Polar fleece, please, because it's nice and toasty warm." The front is in the front, the plaids are reasonably matched, and the length of the pants is right around the ankles. Which means they'll be short in a few months, but he has socks to take care of that.

Next, we have Filia. Filia thought a nightgown might be nice this year. Something orange/pink and floral. Maybe even like her dear mom's Prairie Dress (which is made of blue and pink sprigged flannel and has always existed as a nightgown.) Filia tried mine on, pronounced it Good, and protested having to surrender it.
She now has her own. The thing is voluminous -- 7.5 yds of 45" wide flannel for a floor-length version, and a bit less for the calf-length. Before the yoke gathers, I think it had a circumference close to 8 ft. Which means, of course, that AFTER the gathers, the hem still has a huge circumference. Perfect for tucking one's legs up under nice toasty flannel. Here's a nice neckline detail, because I'm still having too much fun plaing with macro on the camera.

And what's even better? It's the same size as mine. That meant I didn't have to copy and cut out new pattern pieces, and if she ever decides she's not the snuggly flannel type ... I have a new nightgown!

I'm easily pleased.