knit's a living....

Still not done…

2010-03-07T08:19:00.000-06:00

I finished the socks, but have really surprised myself by making them too big. I blindly followed the instructions and didn’t consider how long my feet (or other average feet) actually are. Dumb. I am really getting my money’s worth out of this Happy Feet yarn (very nice, BTW). So this morning I will rip back one of the toes and re-do. Shouldn’t take long.

It has been about 35 degrees this past week in Minnesota and I am not surprised to tell you that I saw the first dude wearing shorts. No kidding. This is the time of year when there are people wearing down jackets, boots, hats, and mittens, and others wearing shorts. I don’t know what spring fever looks like in other parts of the country, but this is what it looks like in Minnesota. I am getting a little spring fever myself. We were at our local home improvement store (Menards) and they’ve got landscape blocks for sale in the yard and the indoor garden supplies are also all on display. I anticipate needing a boat load of Miracle Gro – and any other similar products – to bring my rabbit ravaged yard back from the brinks.

Been a while...

2010-03-04T20:58:00.009-06:00

I finally have a little something to show off....and by a little something, I mean just a little.

Here are the Columbine Socks from Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles by Cat Bordhi. I had to rip back much of the second sock because I did an extra stitch pattern (is that what you call it? the whole fourteen row repeat that creates the columbine lace pattern) on the leg of the sock. I was nearly half finished with the foot. And while it does not normally take long to knit socks, and these needles and yarn are really great, I was very slow with these. I am hoping that the leg is not too wide - I sometimes have a problem with knitting so loosely that even a size 0 creates too large a sock if there isn't sufficient ribbing...I want to give these to a friend who is a big fan of Birkenstocks and fun socks. I'd like to make something for a few of my gal pals this year.

And I can't believe it, but I have a few long suffering projects….these sea mineral mittens have been in the works for well over a year. They are a beautiful stranded pattern from www.spillyjane.blogspot.com – she creates some really beautiful mitten patterns. You can just see the little orange waste yarn that is holding stitches for the thumbs. That's all that's left.

Needles: Addi 0s
Yarn: Nature Spun Sport in primarily in Bamboo and Nervous Green

And see that lovely blue yarn? That's Berroco Ultra Alpaca - gorgeous, comfy, squishy yarn. I made Dashing Mitts and the Columbia Beret from this and I think I will make a cowl with what's left from the yolk of a lovely sweater from Custom Knits by Wendy Bernard. Love it.

However, winter's nearly done and I am nearly done with winter. In an effort to keep my spirit up and weight down, I have been doing a cardio kickboxing class 3 x a week for the past 6-7 weeks or so. It's a great mental boost.

And tonight I am watching Harry Potter and working on my sock. The husband went to bed at 8:20 - no kidding. So, I am on my own...blogging, knitting, watching...

Columbine Socks and Minimalist Cardigan

2010-01-11T08:12:00.010-06:00

I started knitting the Columbine Socks from Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles by Cat Bordhi. These are knit from Happy Feet on size 0s Addis. This is my first pair of socks with a lace pattern and it is moving along really well. I finished the first sock in a week, and unfortunately have to work for a living and to get back to reality.

The lace pattern, up close...

Minimalist Cardigan
And finally a photo of the Minimalist Cardigan from Interweave Knits. This was knit in Andean Silk from Knitpicks, colorway Fedora, on size 7s.

This turned out fairly well - not quite like I expected though. Both the body and sleeves got longer. Good thing it was originally a 3/4 length sleeve or I'd have been ripped the sleeves back by now. I do really like this sweater and might like another one, but I am not doing that much moss stitch again for a LONG time. I don't mind the switching back and forth between knit and purls, but I like more variety. I need to buy some kind of sweater clip to keep the front together too - otherwise, I spend too much time adjusting it all day.

Winter in Minnesota can be very long and get old fast. The days are short, the snow is deep, streets are a mess, and the wind chill below zero. We got going early with the cold weather and snow early this year. So, what to do keep up good mental health this winter? We got a new TV - and have been watching lots of good movies. It seems to be foreign film month at our house. I highly recommend Broken Embraces - with Penelope Cruz and directed by Almodovar. Just watched Coco Before Chanel with Audrey Tatou - also very good. And Female Agents with Sophie Marceau - a WWII movie about French female spies based on a true story. Oh, and White Ribbon - a German film about the strange goings on with children in a small village just before WW1. And The Orphanage - a movie about a woman who returns to live as an adult with her husband and adopted son to the orphanage in which she grew up.

Other than that, we're getting ready to brew beer again, starting back to kickboxing classes tomorrow, reading, and knitting. Pictures soon....

New Mittens for Dad

2009-10-25T15:24:00.005-05:00

The first sweater I made back in 2005 was a deep purple raglan. It was made in pieces requiring seaming. I was lucky enough to discover Elizabeth Zimmerman's books within the first six months of knitting, but not in time for my first sweater. I knit the sweater back and forth on long straight needles. I didn't know yet the benefit of working on circulars for both flat knitting and knitting in the round. But the sweater turned out beautifully - my seams turned out really wonderfully. I used Vogue Knitting for reference. Constantly. And as a consequence, I don't mind seaming at all. That sweater was made from Lamb's Pride Worsted - and holy cow, is it a warm sweater.

I made these mittens for my dad from Lamb's Pride. It might be the first time I've used it since my first sweater. I don't know why I haven't used it more - it's easy to work with, has a great little bit of fuzziness to it from mohair, and is sooo warm. This is the first project I have made for my dad.

Needles: size 6 Clover bamboo dpns
Yarn: Lamb's Pride Worsted in Charcoal

The are mittens from Knitting New Mittens and Gloves by Robin Melanson. They just need a button for the flip top and they're done. I adjusted the length on these three times. For some reason, I made these very, very long. They needed a lot of shortening. The book is wonderful - great ideas for interesting, yet useful designs, and a smattering of patterns that could easily become stand-bys. Knitting New Mittens and Gloves is a great. I will be adding that to my shopping cart at Knit Picks. Knit picks is currently running their 40% books sale and I think I am going to pick up a few items before the sale ends on November 2. Definitely on the list is Alice Starmore's Book of Fair Isle Knitting. I've borrowed that from my library several times and now with its new publication, I can own my own. It is a great reference book, loaded with technique and tips, and enough info to design your own sweater.

I have been thinking of some new ways to occupy myself this winter that aren't working or thinking about working - either at my job or on my house. I'd also like to meet a few people. I've been looking into some book clubs at my area libraries. There are several to choose from - a mystery book club, a knit lit book club, and many that don't have a theme. Second on my potential new activities is a sewing class at Craft Planet, a LYS a few blocks from my house. I am still taking real classes for my grad program, so I don't want to overdo it. That said, I am confident there's more time for fun in a day.

I sold my scooter and bought a sew guitar and amp with some of the proceeds. Oy vey....it is loud in here. But fun, so who cares! I am tapping my feet and bobbin' my head.

Gentleman's Plain Winter Socks

2009-10-25T15:09:00.008-05:00

Sometimes projects feel like they finish themselves. I wonder if that's because with some persistence, it is inevitable that things will come to an end. Projects seem to be finishing themselves while sitting in my knitting bag. I've recently finished mittens, socks, a sweater, cutting my pile of unfinished projects by over half. Here is another pair of socks. These are the Gentleman's Winter Socks from Knitting Vintage Socks by Nancy Bush.

Wool: Sock Ease by Lion Brand
Needles: size 0 Addi circs (magic loop method)

These were originally being made for a gentleman, but he said something about adult men not wearing striped socks. He may have also said something about a cheshire cat. So, I made them to fit a ladies size 8 and they fit perfectly! Adjustments include a sturdy slip stitch heel and that's about it. I've also picked up some Lana Grossa Meilenweit Tweed in a great tweedy brown and some Plymouth Yarns Happy Feet for yes, more socks.

October in Minnesota is really beautiful. I work on the Mississippi River - right on the river. I walk on a foot bridge over the river most days of the year. I also see a wild turkey in the work parking lot nearly every single day. (One day I nearly drive over him, but that's another story) And October is usually beautiful. Walks over my lunch hour make me hanker for apple cider, homemade breads and stews. But this year....

Please take note...there are green leaves and snow in the same picture. The leaves hadn't really begun to change. And then the green leaves froze and dropped to the ground. It going to be a long winter.

Next posting...newly finished mittens for my dad from Knitting New Mittens and Gloves.

Mittens for dad and minimalist cardigan

2009-10-04T21:33:00.006-05:00

You might think I am getting a good start on Christmas presents for this upcoming Christmas. But these are actually mittens I 'gave' two years ago. I think. In my defense, I did make some flip top mittens for my dad before, but they were horrible. Really floppy and I needed a good pattern.

So, here are some mittens out of Knitting New Mittens and Gloves/ The cable on the top is a staghorn cable. I might need to shorten these just a bit, but that should be fairly easy. Oh yes, and I need to make the other mitten. I am not usually afflicted with disinterest in a second sock or mitten, so I am not worried about that.

.

And a good shot of the flip top:

And that's me and the husband in the background at our wedding - 11 years ago.

Needles: Size 6 Clover Bamboo dpns
Yarn: Lambs Pride Worsted in Charcoal

And here's a whole mess of moss stitch (Minimalist Cardigan from Interweave Knits - Fall 2007). I must admit to getting a little tired of this stitch, but I think I will be really pleased with the results.

And I will have to give the full story on 'after thought arms' from Wendy Bernards' Custom Knits book. The Minimalist Cardigan pattern had you making the sleeves separately, but I am not very good with seaming and was intrigued by her instructions on how to pick up arms, make custom sleeve caps, and knit the sleeves down. One arm down and one to go.

Hopefully I will have some finished projects soon - I have a number of things in the works.

End of the season

2009-08-30T07:57:00.011-05:00

Our yard is really coming together nicely. We always seem to do more work on the yard toward the end of the season that at the beginning. I think it is because we've always got pressures to keep working on 'more important' things during the first part of the season. But this year, we NEEDED to do a significant amount of heavy work - including getting get rid of a huge and awful pile of wood along the side of our yard that was riddled with gross mushrooms and creating a major eyesore. So, thanks to a couple of bagsters (3 cubit foot bag type dumpsters), the wood is almost gone. And we've planted a vibernum hedge that will hopefully grow very quickly to provide some privacy. We still need to put some edging of some sort along this or it will be really difficult to mow. It looks great, but you know what? 60 privet hedges showed up in the mail yesterday. My husband placed the order and he did not think it went through, but here they are. They come from an online nursery - very small with no dirt - in a dormant state. But they started to sprout on their way to our house, so they need to get into the ground. I guess I know what I will be doing today.

Our sienna maple is just two years old and look how big it has gotten:

It is getting to be the end of planting season in Minnesota, but we've taken advantage of low prices on shrubs.

And a little giant arborvitae, potentillas, and a red twig dogwood - these are a little more well established - maybe five years. And we put in the retaining wall, steps, and cobble stone sidewalks. The potentillas are great because they give yellow flowers all summer long.

And we just created this little corner for a that evergreen and a few perennials. You can see a tarp and some junk in the background. We're building a deck there first thing next fall.

And here is a smoke tree and two hibiscus. I need to get some pots for the hibiscus, so I can bring them in and out of the house. And the smoke tree is going in the front - as far as I know now.

And a weeping Japanese cherry tree, diablo ninebarks, and alpine currants (also just a couple years old!). And we're getting a new drive way poured next spring. I can't wait to be able to shovel a real driveway instead of gravel.

But the real winner of the season is going to be our soffits and fascia. They were damaged in a storm two years ago and we hadn't fixed them - we were having a difficult time finding them and weren't looking forward to the work. But we placed a special order for them and you can see them all wrapped in plastic on sidewalk in the above picture. They are slowly but surely getting on the house. The high wire act isn't very much fun - ladders and hanging off the roof by the skin of your teeth. But it will be done!

I am nearly finished with the back of the minimalist cardigan - more photos soon!

And I know....another new template for the blog layout.

Making progress on minimalist....

2009-08-16T09:36:00.006-05:00

or making minimal progress? "Making progress"....this phrase has somehow gotten woven into my regular speech and it has got to go! 'We're making progress' or 'I am making progress' with fill in the blank - projects or tasks at work, yard work, house projects, you name it. And I am tired of if. I am tired of thinking of my life in milestones toward completion of some work that needs to be done by a date that feels like it was picked out of the ether. These self-imposed deadlines are no doubt the result of feeling like things don't get done, but boy, can it suck the fun out of things. I have an inordinate amount of yard work that I'd like to get done this year, along with new carpeting in the living, purchasing new couches, finishing the ceiling in my dining room, getting a walk in closet finished upstairs, and generally having the house poised for projects to do in the winter. This house under constant renovation is a real strain and I want to be living like a normal person again. Maybe the solution is a shift in thinking - some kind of paradigm shift. I will let ya know how that goes.

I was knitting the Minimalist Cardigan this week. I see my photo features the same book I used in the photo last week! I don't take much time taking these photos, but at least the photo isn't taken on the couch next to me as so many are. I frequently set my project next to me (laptop on my lap), grab the camera and take a few shots and call that good. And I think I keep looking at the front of this book not just because of the patterns, but because I think I want my hair to look like the model's hair on the cover! It could happen...

This brown is so pretty. The moss stitch too is a good one to use if you've got any wrist or arm strain from keyboarding or other repetitive stress activities, because are moving back and forth so much. I still really love the color for fall and just recently got a gold silky tank top that should go beautifully with this brown.

So, other things to look forward to....I am selling my Honda Ruckus scooter, because I don't feel safe on it any more and I want to use the proceeds get the husband a new guitar and amp just for the fun of it; I am taking 1 of 2 more classes this fall to finished my masters (perspectives of adult development) and the instructor is very relaxed and creative - I think I will be journaling this fall if that tells you anything!; and I am planning on doing a long weekend camping trip to enjoy the colors and do some hiking before winter.

And I will leave you with this....it has been 90 degrees with matching humidity the past few days - all around icky. This picture was taking in Minneapolis, MN out my kitchen window in January 2009. Yup, 20 below zero - I think the windchill that week was 35 below zero. Scary cold.

Here's to enjoying the rest of summer!

Minimalist Cardigan

2009-08-09T09:20:00.011-05:00

I am taking what I hope is a very small break from the Flutter Cardigan to cast on the Minimalist Cardigan because I wanted to have something that I didn't need to pay close attention to while watching a movie. The Flutter Sleeve Cardigan has only the front bands to knit and some finishing work. The bands are something else - they will require some very careful mattress stitching of the band to the body of the left and right fronts.

And then the long band that will need to be stitches to the body?

See how you use some reserved stitches from the waist and knit a long band up the front?

And here's the beginning of the Minimalist Cardigan from the Fall 2007 Interweave Knits. Fall 2007 was a great issue - I have made the Tilted Duster from that issue and have a few others marked for future knitting. The color in this first picture is very accurate - I sometimes run into trouble with my camera. The deep brown moss stitch is going to be beautiful in the fall.

Size: 39
Yarn: Knit Picks Andean Silk in Fedora (it has a great fuzziness - its an alpaca, merino, silk blend)
Needles: Size 6 Addis

And The books in the background.....Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book. I just picked that up at the library yesterday. I bought it for my tween nephew for his birthday and thought it looked pretty good. There's nothing that says I can't read kids books - I read all the Harry Potters so why not branch out into other kid's literature? And the other book....Knitting New Mittens & Gloves by Robin Melanson. I also got this at the library, but think I am going to need to buy this. This has a wonderful variety of patterns - creative and unexpected, folk, clever and unexpected and a few patterns that I could see as great standards to always fall back on. I learned about this book from a fellow blogger, Knitting with my Mothers's Hands, on one of her recent posts.

And on a personal note, I have had minor bad luck for weeks and I hope things are going to change. I got a notice from the City of Minneapolis for out of control lilacs in the alley. I cut them by the requested date and still got a fine. So, I went to court to dispute the charge. (The fine was pretty small, but annoying - $134). The judge was condescending and treated me like a naughty little girl. But the most annoying part is that a neighbor was there for a similar ticket. Well, now he knows who I am and came down to my house to talk with me after court and he thinks the city is conspiring against the citizens, and that they are perpetrating fraud and wants me to work with him to fight the man. I am guessing he is about 40 years old (but looks much older from smokin' and drinkin') - well, the best part of this story? I also got a letter from the guy's mother asking me to join forces with them. Oy vey.

And then my brand new car (Suzuki SX4) was vandalized and backed into. I had not made the second car payment yet when this happened. And even though I think the two things happened at the same time, Allstate processed this as two claims. Yes, two deductibles.

And then my wallet went missing at work (big public University campus)on Monday afternoon. I realized it was gone in about two hours. By the time I called the bank, the criminals who I now think actually pick pocketed it out of my purse had made 11 fraudulent charges - at four gas stations. So, I had to cancel everything. And the only reason I had a VISA with me that day? Because I needed it to pay the $993 charge at the auto body shop to get my car back. That meant I could not get my car. But in the end I hope this was nothing more than annoying - the bank fixed everything, I got my car, and wasn't out any money. But a word of advise....know what's in your wallet. I knew exactly what was in there, so I knew what needed to be canceled immediately and where I was at risk. I even canceled my health insurance card and library card.

And last but not least, thanks to Zel, the Grimm Witch for blogging advise on how to get a picture into my header. Cool! Now I just need to find a good pictures that matches this template. I am still working on the right layout and I am not loving anything that's canned, so I might continue to work on my own and make incremental changes over time.

Flutter Sleeve Cardigan

2009-08-02T21:00:00.005-05:00

The Flutter Sleeve Cardigan from the Spring 2008 Interweave Knits mag is about 75% finished. The bulk of what's left is finishing work - the band and the tabs. The finishing is going to be kinda difficult.

Here's is right front side to give you a sense of the cool short row shaping. And lots of increases and decreases at various intervals.

This is what I needed to do to keep track:

Each number is a row (knit or purl depending on odd or event) and each I is an increase row. Each number with a circle around it also has a decrease on the neck edge. There was a lot going on 'at the same time', which often gets confusing for me. And the BO 5, BO 3, etc is just the shoulder shaping for reference. I like to check off each row as I complete it on more complicated patterns too.

Yarn: Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool - beautiful, but this stuff is awful to wind, super sticky.
Needles: size 3, 6, and 7 needles

Ok, I am off to knit quietly for an hour or so. I worked hard in the yard today (despite being up at 3 am again). I am taking action to improve my sleep - including quiet time at night, no eating late, and getting some exercise, and let's not underestimate the power of drugs. Herb tea and valeriun herb (not together) are also on the menu tonight.

More Simple Ribbed Socks

2009-08-01T02:49:00.012-05:00

Here's yet another pair of socks...another pair of Simple Ribbed Socks and I think this is the Madder Ribbed Sock from Knitting Vintage Socks. I've made a number of these since I stopped blogging regularly, so I am kind of guessing based on the heel. I can't tell by the toe or heel flap, because I almost always do the same heel flap (s1, k1, purl back) and toe (k2, ssk, knit to end, kt2, k2, repeat). This appears to be the Horseshoe Heel or Dutch heel, which I like very well. Creates a nice little cupped shape that hugs the heel.

Nice horseshoe or Dutch heel.

I think the yarn is going to be very nice - doesn't have a nice texture? It is very soft. It is Knit Picks Essential Tweed. The bummer is that one skein isn't enough and there is sooo much left of the second. I hate all those leftovers.

The striped socks on the left are the same pattern in Trekking XXL on size 0s. Trekking is a great sock yarn - very durable and it gets softer with washing. The Flutter Sleeve Cardigan in the background is my current WIP from Interweave Knits on some Elsebeth Lavold yarn - silky wool I think. I should have pics of that fairly soon!

If any of you are looking for a great sock book, Knitting Vintage Socks is it. It has great instructions, some very nice simple patterns that will become standbys, and some other really nice and interesting patterns.

Oh, and it is exactly 3:00 am in Minneapolis here and I am sooo sick of insomnia. But being up at this time, I saw something I've never seen before though. There are only 588 Ravelry users online. I am sure that this interesting tidbit is not worth how I am going to feel when the sun finally comes up. I am getting crabby. And it is August freakin' 1st today. That stinks. Pretty much everything stinks at 3 am.

I have been doing a little online shopping in the middle of the night and can't believe I need to start thinking about fall clothes. I would like to have a more interesting, good looking and well fitting wardrobe this fall. I don't like shopping, but like to have a good looking wardrobe and this year, I am going to put a little more effort into putting together some better looking styles. I think thrifting is going to be a key in getting some more interesting stuff. And stylish shoes.

New template and Gentleman's Plain Winter Socks

2009-07-26T21:54:00.011-05:00

Bear with me while I work on a new template- I may continue to make a few changes. I like this layout and would like to have a photo in the header, but I am having trouble finding how to change the size. If anyone can give me a suggestion, I'd very much appreciate it. But I have very few readers left after taking such a long break from blogging!

Here's a pair of socks finished recently: Gentleman's Plain Winter Socks

From Knitting Vintage Socks by Nancy Bush
Lion Brand Sock Ease - yarn seems pretty durable, but not tested yet.
Addi Size 0 circ - magic loop method. My new fave.

And here's an interesting heel. And by interesting, I mean I don't like it. It seems to fit snugly, which I like - but it seems a little too snug. Can you see how the heel is turned on just about five stitches? It just seems too small. These I knitted for my husband, but he said something about grown men not wearing striped socks. hmmph. This is a good pattern though - a good standard. I like the basic patterns in Knitting Vintage socks too - the simple ribbed sock. There are many, many possibilities starting with that pattern. One modification on the socks shown here...I almost always adapt to a k1, slip 1 heel flap for extra durability.

Since I have been away so long, I have a number of completed projects that I can use to provide me with writing fodder for awhile.

Been away....

2009-06-21T21:06:00.007-05:00

I haven't been blogging lately - I've continued to read my favorite blogs, but it also seems that others are slower to post as well. I wonder if it is the summer weather. It could also be the extensive list of projects we have to complete before winter. I thought maybe a new look would inspire me, so I picked a new blog template.

Since my last blog, I have finished three pairs of socks and started two more pair. But today, I got into it a bit...I picked up Mason Dixon Outside the Lines - great patterns and those two are so funny. I also started reading Green Apples - a knitting blog regularly. She had a great post recently about how she styles her knits - inspiring. I have been inspired to start thrifting again and was inspired to start a new project and plan a couple of others.

I picked up Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool in spruce for the Flutter Sleeve Cardigan from the spring 2008 Interweave Knits and am about 2/3s finished. I also bought Andean Silk in Fedora (chocolate brown to make the Minimalist Cardigan also from Interweave Knits. And I bought Cotlin in planetarium also from Knitpicks for a pattern from - you guessed it - Interweave Knits - to make the Sleeveless Tuxedo Top.

The summer has been whizzing by and I have only been camping once so far, but at a great park - Perrot State Park. We're planning on a return trip to see fall colors and get in some more camping. Here's our massive tent with remote controlled lighting being pitched:

And the husband, reflecting on the upcoming weekend. So cute.

That's it. I took only a couple of pictures.

Knitting content coming soon....pictures of the Flutter Sleeve Cardigan

Kreative Blogger Nominee!

2009-03-21T14:14:00.007-05:00

I was nominated awhile back for Kreative Bloger award by Lupie and am finally getting around to responding in the way I'd like! Thanks to Lupie for letting me know she enjoys reading my blog - there is such a great community of knitters out there sharing tips and projects that adds a very fun element to knitting. I don't knit at a LYS or do any type of craft night (and not really sure that's my thing anyway), but I do enjoy keeping up with 'my knitting blogs'.

Lupie is the founder of Lesser Known Skeins and was good enough to include me with this group from nearly the beginning: Knitting with my Mother's Hands.

I'd like to nominate the following blogs - this is just a sampling of some of my favorites. There are so many blogs out there with great content and I also included a couple new-to-me blogs - listed in no particular order.

Heathen Housewife
Dances with Wool
Librarian-in-Training
Little.Yellow.Different.Better
Scottish Lamb
Hobbygasa
spillyjane knits
Exercise Before Knitting

Here are the rules for the nominees:
1. Copy the award to your site.
2. Link to the person from whom you received the award.
3. Nominate 8 other bloggers.
4. Link to those on your blog.
5. Leave a message on the blogs you nominated.

This feels odd to give people I don't know a blogging assignment....so, have fun if you have time!

On a personal knitting front, I have lots to catch y'all up on - I finished some woodsman's sock and Ingenue (in 8 days!! - and I got to wear it once before the Minnesota weather shifted from winter to spring-ish. You can't actually say winter is over yet, we could still have 20 inches of snow that will melt in 2 days and flood the entire town.). I finished a Simple Ribbed Sock from Knitting Vintage Socks. I really wish I didn't knit so loosely - I absolutely HAVE to use 0's to get a sock with even just 60 cast on stitches to fit properly. I am also starting to pay closer attention to the heel choice for socks - I really like the horseshoe heel. I might start experimenting with different toes too. It snugs the heel nicely. I usually knit socks with two Addis, but I bent one to the point of annoying, so I have been making this pair of socks with the magic loop method and it is quite easy. I really only knew of the concept, so I making it up as I go.

The sea mineral mittens are on hold because I need another skein of Nature Spun Sport in Bamboo. I've also hibernated the Knit Down Jumper from the Knit Stitch - I just don't care for the Cestari Yarn. It is very hard to knit with. I tried Addis and Clover Bamboos and that yarn just makes my hands tired.

This has been a beautiful day - 50 degrees in March in Minnesota! I raked leaves, am baking a ham, bought new walking shoes, picked up MI-5 season 1 from the library, will work on my second sock, and probably knit and watch a little tellie tonight.

Reinspired

2009-03-02T18:15:00.006-06:00

I got a nice little package in the mail a week or so ago from Knitpicks. I took advantage of the 40% off book sale and picked up Custom Knits, Selbuvotter, and Best of Vogue Knitting. As much as I like Knit and Tonic, I thought I might not like the book that much. I don't know why...I think it is discouragement from projects like the Tilted Duster that take a long time to knit, have skin tight sleeves, and are almost perfect. Bummer. That's a reason I like Elizabeth Zimmerman so much. I bought Custom Knits almost entirely because I liked narrative and photos on Wendy's blog. But Wendy's patterns are beautiful and kinda hip and sassy and from reading the patterns, the designs look like they will be fun to knit, I'll learn a few things, and have projects that turn out well. Wendy's clearly got her own style, but her pattern designs are rooted in concepts from Elizabeth Zimmerman - a personal fave.

My first Custom Knits pattern? Ingenue - I started this 3 days ago:

And check out the close up of the neck, sleeve, and waist stitch pattern:

Couldn't be easier.

Size: small
Gauge: 4 (giving me a slightly larger than small sweater)
Yarn: Berroco Ultra Alpaca in Spiceberry (I love that you can find the names of yarn on the web instead of those boring numbers)
Needles: size 8 circs - Clover bamboo

Ingenue is very similar in construction to Frances, which just shows how versatile a well designed pattern can be. Better picture of Frances:

Yarn: Cascade 220
Gauge: 4 stitches/inch
size: completely winged it by trying on regularly
Needles: size 8 circs - Clover bamboo
Hair: I got it cut - thankfully - it was a little much. Granted it was 7 am and the hairspray hadn't calmed down yet.

And huge news! I learned from Knitting in Color that Alice Starmore's Book of Fair Isle Knitting is going to be reprinted and available in August. I pre-ordered mine from Amazon. I can stop requesting this from interlibrary loan at the library.

American Swedish Institute and Frances Revisited

2009-02-16T20:25:00.008-06:00

I went to the American Swedish Institute last Friday with my mom for the Bohus exhibit. The exhibit itself was great - wow, what amazing work. I wish I could have taken pictures. This was all I got:

However, this clever knitter captured everything before she got busted with her camera: The Heathen Housewife. It is definitely worth checking out the Heathen Housewife's photos and those on the ASI site - this knitting is amazing.

Ok, finally....a FO. Frances Revisited:

Yarn: Cascade 200 Heathers
Pattern: Frances Revisited
Size: difficult to say - I knitted about 4 stitches to an inch on size 8s
I knitted this over Christmas on size 10s and didn't like the gauge, so I redid it on smaller needles. This was a very easy pattern to modify - knit from the top down until it fits over your neck and bust, then put some arm stitches on a waste yarn and carry on. This is a free pattern by Beth Silverstein - pattern available on Ravelry.

Bad pictures, but I was anxious to get something posted! Now I have to take some picture sof the Columbia Beret, women's mittens from Opinionated Knitter, and a lace cowl. I am getting there - getting caught up!

Violence of the Lambs!!

2009-01-02T17:58:00.006-06:00

That's the tag line from the movie Black Sheep? It's such a very funny New Zealand horror (comedy) about some sheep gone mad, mad I say! So funny.

Anyhoo, it has been 6 weeks since my last blog. I don't know. I haven't been inspired to say much lately, so tonight I decided that if I tried to blog about something, maybe I'd take a few pictures and post some of my newly finished projects. I finished the Columbia Beret - so dang cute - and some matching mittens from Opionated Knitter and a short little neck gaiter from Exercise Before Knitter- more details to follow. Color is a beautiful purply maroon.

And I have knit and unknit and reknit Francis Revisited in Cascade 220. I looked on Ravelry and saw others using 220, but I hated the gauge on a size 10. So, I took it apart and reknit on size 8s. Since it is knit from the top down, it is completely rescalable (don't think that's a word) and it is turning out quite nice.

I haven't finished the sea mineral mittens yet.

And I got a huge gift certificate from Knit Picks from my mom and dad, so I need to do a little planning and then shopping. They are having their semi-annual 40% off book sale until Feb 10th or so.

And what else...oh, I am going to a Knitting Exhibit on Friday with my mom (and Nordic glass) at the American Swedish Institute. The exhibit is called Radiant Bohus Knitting. Full report on the weekend.

Josephine Top Complete

2008-12-15T18:29:00.006-06:00

I picked up the Josephine top and finished it this weekend. And it turned out beautifully.

And the back:

This is the Josephine Top from Interweave Knits from summer 2007. I can't remember the yarn now, I do know that I used a size 4 harmony circular. The sizing if I remember correctly was size 36 and 40 and I wanted 38, so I added a few stitches on the side and made the small for the top. I had to do the neck edging twice (the first time I picked up too many stitches and it wasn't quite right) and I did once sleeve cap twice (I misread the instructions and also picked up too few stitches and the sleeve was too tight). Overall, I am very please with how this turned out. I must remember now to make the mistake of being worried something will be too small and choose to make a larger size. I need to do a gauge swatch well, check and double-check, and go for it. This is supposed to a summer dud, but I didn't finish it in time. Oh, and I also decided to do the cord in a single chain crochet stitch and it turned out just fine.

I put this outfit together this morning, then went to scrape and warm the car. While I was waiting in the car in -8 below zero temps, I changed my mind and came in an opted for the Tilted Duster - a much better choice for the weather. I had to use a space heater in my office today. Yikes, it seems early for these temps even in Minnesota.

Knit Lit

2008-11-30T16:18:00.007-06:00

I have a respectable collection of books related to knitting. I have a small shelf dedicated to it - I have Vogue Knitting (required reading for how-to's), three Elizabeth Zimmerman's and an assortment of Nancy Bush, Meg Swansen, Alice Starmore, Gladys Thompson, Sally Melville and more...just to give you a sense of my appetite for knitting content.

I have been knitting since 2004 (somewhat fanatically) and I have just learned about a whole new genre of reading related to knitting (new to me that is) - murder mysteries set in a knitting environment. Once I stumbled upon it, there's so much out there. Truth be told, I was unaware of the number of murder mysteries with a theme.

Pins and Needles by Monica Ferris - I love murder mysteries/detective stories and this was good. The book takes place in my hometown - Minneapolis/St. Paul - so I liked that. There was a shop called Crewel World in the book, which sounds great. I wish I had a shop like that...there was an antiques roadshow vibe when someone's will was being execute and enjoyable characters. I picked up two of these at the library and will start the other one later tonight (Framed in Lace).

Most overrated book I have read lately - in any genre, knitting related or otherwise is Friday Night Knitting Club. Gadzooks, this was soooo telegraphed. I can get into a sappy story, but this was a really obvious story. The review said 'just like Steel Magnolies', so I knew what I was getting into, but I just didn't like the main character that well. I didn't dislike her, but liking her was critical to this story being effective. I even imagined Julia Roberts as the main character - because of the Steel Magnolias review and because I had heard she'd attached herself to the film version of this book - and that didn't even help. I knew what was going to happen, but it didn't stop me from groaning when they got around to the inevitable end.

There as many more knitting related mysteries by Monica Ferris. I also see some by Mary Kruger. And then there are the mystery bookstore mysteries, the chocoholic murder mysteries, coffeeshop murder mysteries....who writes all of these??? who reads all of these??? I am sure I will burn through many of these and then move onto to something new.

2008-11-30T15:50:00.008-06:00

Work in progress:
Knit Down, Made to Measure Jumper from Sally Melville

Needles: Clover circs, size 8
Yarn: Cestari in blackberry

I've made this sweater before from Nature Spun worsted and it is a quick knit. I've had this Cestari in my stash for awhile and was wondering what to do with it. I am curious to see how this washes and wears. It has a rough feel to it, but I've read on other blogs that it gets softer after washing. If that's the case, I will make the cobblestone pullover in Navy for my husband. I picked up this yarn at $4/skein when my LYS marked it down for a quick sale.

And check out the great beer in the background of the photo. Ommegang Chocolate Indulence - wow, this was an amazing treat - dark chocolate, dark malts, a fruitiness to it. Chocolate and beer lovers - this Belgian treat is for you!

I am still working on the Sea Mineral Mittens below and they are going quickly. The pattern is available for free on Spillyjane's blog. My second mitten looks better than the first. It has been awhile since I have done stranded knitting and the key is LOOSE CARRIES! Spillyjane also has some great other mittens - Polska Mittens are beautiful.

I found a great website: Twist Collective. This site is an online magazine with beautiful photography and patterns. Two cool thing's about this site - you can buy online (not that novel, but convenient none the less) and the designers are compensated more fairly than in other venues for their patterns. I want to make a number of patterns from this site: Gytha and Postwar Mitts. I'd like to find a brick and mortar store where I can find Dale of Norway Baby Ull for the mittens, but I have struck out so far.

Sea Mineral Mittens

2008-11-07T23:16:00.003-06:00

The Sea Mineral Mittens are very fun to make. The pattern is simple to follow and changes frequently enough to make it interesting. And I love the colors.

I don't usually end up with puckering on stranded knitting, but I am noticing it a bit on these. I think it might be because of the gauge. I've used sport weight for fair isle before, but on a size four needle and on a much larger scale (yolk of a sweater). I am trying to be conscious of carrying LOOSELY - and my joins could be smoother. I think I am going to revisit Estonian Knitting and Vogue Knitting to refresh my memory about the best way to join new wool for this.

We had our first snow today - we had a little accumulation this morning, but it didn't stick. I have been wearing a lot of my knitting lately, but that's the only thing I am enjoying so far. The days are so short and it gets more and more difficult to get any exercise. hmmph. I will try to be positive - I have a party tomorrow with friends. Three couples are bringing meatloafs! and the other two are bringing other food and the hosts are boasting 8 gallons of homebrewed beer. I seriously hope we don't make a good dent in it, or I might be sleeping over at their house. Should be fun. And we have lots to celebrate this week with the election!

New Mittens

2008-11-04T21:43:00.006-06:00

Here is a newly finished pair of Woodman's modified sock:

Pattern: Woodman's Socks from Opinionated Knitter
Needles: size 6 dpn Clover Bamboo
Yarn: one complete skein of Raggi in the varieted (just a teeny bit left) plus leftover cream Raggi from a previous pair

And I started a new pair of mittens from Spillyjane - they are called Sea Mineral Mittens. I can't believe this pattern was available for free - it is a beautiful pattern and so far I also think it is beautifully written. Very simple to follow.
I am using Nature Spun sport weight in bamboo, eucalyptus, natural, nervous green and plum line.

Pattern: Sea Mineral Mittens by Spillyjane
Needles: size 0 addi turbos
Yarn: Nature Spun Sport Weight

Here is an abandoned swatch with different colors: bamboo, nervous green, storm, French clay...I thought the French clay (an orange) would be a great splash of color, but with the scalloped edge these looked too much like curtains from the kitchen I grew up with.

Tilted Duster - modeled at last

2008-10-22T19:07:00.005-05:00

We had a cold and drizzly day today in Minnesota. I think there was even a little freezing rain at one point. A good day to wear a new sweater - and I got several compliments on it too! One of my colleagues said she was inspired to get out some wool from her stash. She is from Australia and she said everyone knits there - it hasn't been her experience to find many knitters here in the states.

Here's the overall view of the long awaited Tilted Duster.

Back view:

And side view:

I had made a few unintended changes. First of all, overall it turned out a little small and sleeves were very small. Also, I was unable to pick up the required number of stitches for the neck and there's no way it would layover itself as it did in Interweave. I think I am going to make an I-cord so that I can close it at the bust. I am going to make another one one of these this winter in a larger size. I love the pattern and I like the way the sweater hangs in the skirt section.

And look at my lovely dinner...I am waiting for it at the moment, london broil with asparagus. mmmm....
London broil:

Losing it?

2008-10-19T16:57:00.010-05:00

I think I am losing my marbles. I found my camera...under the couch. I don't know what this says about my housekeeping. I should have known it was near my little rabbit warren. Since the house is under renovation, I have very little organized space. So, this little area of my couch has my bills, my books, my cookbooks, and my knitting bag piled up on and around this little section. It is all set off by the task light my husband bought for me awhile ago. It is nearly the only place in the house where a person can see enough to read really well. I'd take a picture of it to show y'all, but it is too messy.

I started a pair of Woodsmen's Socks for my husband. I sure hope he likes them - he doesn't seem too impressed so far. But he did pretend to grab them, so maybe he is secretly happy about them.

Pattern: Woodsmen's Socks from Opinionated Knitter
Needles: size 6 dpn
Yarn: Raggi

And check out my new blocking station in the laundry room (currently one of the nicest areas in the house).

Here's the Einstein:

And see the difference between the previously knit yarn and the newly knit yarn?

I just got some new buttons yesterday and hope to get those on soon.

Ok, now for something fun. My husband found a website that allows you to take a photo of yourself and insert your face into hairstyles from various years.
Here I am in 1968:

This is my favorite...extra long neck.

Here I am in 1960:

Gypsies, tramps and thieves....Me in 1974:

And the best one yet? Me in 1978:

I seem to have developed a double chin.

Where is my bleepin' camera?

2008-10-13T20:47:00.004-05:00

I'd like to show off my newly finished projects - Einstein (sans buttons) and the Tilted Duster. But I have no idea where the camera is. The husband might know where it is, but he's sleeping. hmmph.

I finished the Einstein Sweater on natural Ecowool. I only made one small modification - I knit into the back of the picked-up stitches for slightly tighter stitches. I think I picked that up as a tip for socks when you pick-up the gussets. I stopped at my LYS after work for buttons, but they didn't have any. I wanted some plain cream colored buttons and everything was a little fancier than I wanted. More good tips...I followed Sally Melville's tip for washing wool sweaters in a machine and I love it. I soaked the sweater for 45 minutes and then used the spin cycle (refer to Knit Stitch for complete details) and the sweater is nearly completely dry in a day. The soaking also got most of the kinkiness out of my previously knit yarn. My seam up the sleeve is kinda ugly really. I had such messy slipped stitch edges from my pre-used yarn. Those are the only seamed I haven't knit in. I might work on that a bit. And while I was looking for a picture of the Einstein sweater to link to, I found a new knitting blog: Obsessed with Knitting. My Einstein looks a lot like that nice lady's.

I am also 99.9% finished with the Tilted Duster. I sewed in the second sleeve last night and seamed up the seams. The arms are wayyyy too tight, but I can live with it I guess. I am only going to be able to wear a tank top under it. There is no way a shirt would fit under it. And it is just overall a little small. It isn't going to fit the way it fits the gorgeous model in Interweave, but it is still going to be cute. I could show a picture, but....I might make this again with a few more modifications - sleeves knit in the round until the cap sleeves - maybe I would pick up the sleeves and knit down. My seaming on the caps leaves a little to be desired. Oh, and I am going to try to remember to read people's comments about their projects on Ravelry before I start big projects. If I had done that, I would have heeded the advise of fellow knitters and made the sleeves larger.

And so I had to pick up another skein of Raggi wool for another pair of Woodsmen's socks for my husband. I hope he likes these things. I haven't made him very many things because he is a little fussy. I think the Raggi that I purchased today is going to be self fair-isling. I will have the cuffs, heel, and toe in another color - leftover from the first pair I made for him. Knitting pals say Raggi is very nice.

I am back finally....

2008-10-11T08:22:00.003-05:00

I am finally back online. I had to restore the harddrive on my new laptop and it took me a few days to call tech support to learn how to do that. I foolishly didn't have anything backed up anywhere and so I was afraid I was going to look all my pictures and all of my research and papers for my graduate program. I did lose all of that, but I was able to contact my tech person from my former job and he was able to pull my stuff off of backups from my old laptop. The only thing I lost in the end were my summer vacation photos. I am glad I put some on the blog earlier.

And then for some crazy reason, I have been unable to log into blogspot to update my blog. I thought maybe it was because of some security/ad blocking setting in my laptops restored configuration. But I don't think so....I think it was user error. This was all very frustrating.

I still haven't put my Tilted Duster together. I think that's because of fear that it won't fit properly (nervous about tight arms). And I still haven't finished my Josephine top. I started an Einstein Sweater that should be done this week. That went very fast. It was just the mindless knitting I was looking for. I am making it out of repurposed Ecowool that had been a moss knit raglan with a cable up the front that was NEVER going to come together. The downside is that the wool that had never been used looks great and the reused wool was kinky before knitting and the knitting doesn't look smooth. I hope that comes out when I soak and block it.

I went to Oktoberfest in La Crosse, Wisconsin with my best gal pals for the second year in a row. That was the weekend of September 26th. I wish I had taken pictures. What was I thinking???? I have nothing to show anyone - or no evidence shall I say of overindulging! Maybe this was a good thing.

I am adjusting to the change of seasons somewhat reluctantly. I can't stand the idea of winter yet. I need to get out for a walk and be in the weather and realize it ain't so bad. That always helps. I also had a chance to wear an EPS fair isle cardigan and a wool shrug this week. The knitwear it out and in circulation in the wardrobe.

Gentleman's Fancy Socks

2008-09-06T13:23:00.005-05:00

I finished the Gentleman's Fancy Socks from Knitting Vintage Socks by Nancy Bush - just in time for wool sock weather.

Needles: Size 1 Addi Turbos
Yarn: Knitpicks Bare Superwash in Donegal

The picture isn't that great, but I didn't want to take the time for new photos. Fall is definitely in the air in Minnesota and I've been looking forward to making some seasonal recipes. I started marinating sauerbraten that I should be able to make by the middle of the week and I am making bean and ham soup. Lots to do today - taking out the air conditioners, cleaning the yard, laundry, putting away most of our summer clothes....somehow these chores don't seem so bad today with the sunny and cool weather with yummy food on the way. It does seem odd that on Labor Day weekend it was so hot and humid and now we've got lows in the 40s and highs in the 60s/low 70s. Fall started on the first day of school this year. I hope it last a looooooonnnnnggggg time before the snow flies.

See the Josephine top in the background of above pic? I am have a few inches to go on the back and then onto the v-neck front. These latest projects have been taking me a long time to finish. I have been brainstorming about my next project - that I am not starting until the Josephine Top and the Tilted Duster are finished. I might try some mittens from the Estonian knitting book. Or something maybe with the reclaimed Ecowool from a frogged sweater. I also have enough Cestari to make two sweaters (navy or blackberry). I might see what others are doing with Cestari on Ravelry - always a good place to gather ideas.

Laboring on Labor Day

2008-09-01T12:21:00.003-05:00

I haven't had the weekend that I expected, but it has been fairly productive. Productivity was supposed to be the theme of this weekend, but factors have conspired against the progress we expected. We were going to paint a rubber roofing compound on the dormer of our house. We never intended to do it Saturday, then we chose to do other work yesterday and now the weather is hideous today and it would have to be an emergency for me to spend the day working outside today. Hot, humid, just gross. We were going to scrape and paint our front steps yesterday and realized that the project is in the category of 'hurry up and wait'. We scraped and realized we had to apply spackle. So, that was done. Then we wait. And now today and spackle still isn't done and we're expecting rain tomorrow. Which means this project is going to take a week. Spackle, wait, sand, primer, wait, paint, wait, paint wait. Insert rain at least twice. Everything's like this.

I cleaned the basement yesterday and got rid of a lot of things and organized others. I threw away probably 12 pillows yesterday - I had no idea I had them. And I found a big plastic bin with one sweatshirt and one pair of jeans. What a waste of space. I found an air cleaner, food dehydrator, beer brewing notes, a bundt pan, a popover pan. And I have a TON of laundry to do to prepare for a huge trip to Goodwill.

After cleaning the basement, I cleaned myself and plopped in from of the TV and watched the 1963 version of The Haunting with Russ Tamblyn and Julie Harris. Spooky. I should be able to finish the Gentleman's Fancy Socks today - I finished the leg, turned the heel, and finished the gussets during the movie.

I'll probably do some more knitting today while I am doing all this laundry. Maybe a little cooking - should be a decent day. But I have the usual mixed feelings about Labor Day - sad because summer is over and apprehensive about starting another class and work getting into full swing. There are still so many things that I wish I had finished this summer. C'est la vie.

The new school year and fall are coming

2008-08-30T07:52:00.008-05:00

I thought I'd share my progress on the Josephine Top and my Gentleman's Fancy Socks from Knitting Vintage Socks. The first photo shows the overall progress and is taken of the back. I knit the bottom in the round and separated after knitting a row. The eyelet round looks good and the pattern on the back doesn't look as pronounced on my top as it does in Interweave Knits.

This shows a highlight of the pattern and I expect it to block out nicely.

As I was reading blogs last night, I see that the Yarn Harlot is making the Josephine Top too. She had some trouble with a portion of the instructions that say 'at the same time and separately' - I will have to pay close attention to that when I get there. I am going to find a long sleeve slim fitting shirt to wear under this so I can get a little use out of it this season.

And here's my gentleman's fancy socks. I want to wrap those up shortly because sock weather is right around the corner and I love the look of these. I think they're going to look great with my brown Dankso clogs.

And then I need to put the Tilted Duster together - I can't believe I have set that aside for so long, but I wanted to wait until it wasn't such a hot mess on my lap during the warm summer months.

School starts next week and the throngs of freshman are on campus walking around in packs with a sort of stunned look on their faces. They are busy making friends and establishing themselves in their new environment. They are trying on new personas and figuring out how to be away from home. It is all very exciting really - I like this time of year. The leaves on the trees will be changing color soon and campus gets more and more beautiful until the snow flies. That I am not ready for - not yet anyway. We've got a gorgeous warm and sunny long weekend (staying indoors because the Republican National Convention is in my town) and we're going to work on house projects.

No knitting and no keyless entry

2008-08-28T21:38:00.012-05:00

I just got back from a week camping at St. Croix State Park and had a great time hiking and sitting around a campfire. We recently purchased a bunch of new camping equipment including a new Coleman Weathermaster:

The new tent has a battery powered light that is operated by remote control. Can you believe it? The technology. But it did not have keyless entry - that would have been super cool. We also got a new camp stove:

We had great food - hamburgers, bratwursts, macaroni and cheese. Real camping, you know?

And here's the fire tower I was too scared to climb:

The park suffered storm damage on July 11th - a storm came in at 8 pm just as the camp was filling up and the main campground and surrounding trails were hit by 70 mph winds. The camp lost power and cars were blocked in by downed trees. Rangers had to use car headlights to see to cut back and remove the trees that were blocking cars. Campers occupied every single building including the bathroom and gift shop for safety. Large sections of the park are scheduled for clear cutting because the trails are not safe. We were standing on a trail, I heard a creak, I pointed, and Mark yelled 'run' and we ran as fast as we could as a HUGE tree fell behind us. I told the ranger and she calmly said 'oh, that happens all the time'.

We hiked to a CCC site - from 1931-1939 unemployed men worked at sites as part of a relief program. Here's the fireplace from their rec center at the current St. Croix State Park.

And here's the Kettle River:

And no knitting all week long. I have made good progress on the Josephine Top and will have a picture of that soon.

I started my new job on Monday - this position looks very promising.

Progress

2008-08-12T21:50:00.005-05:00

I have made progress on three fronts. First I have made progress on the Josephine top from last summer's Interweave Knits.

I was having trouble making any progress because I wasn't happy using open stitch markers instead of the rings (I need to use markers to make doing the pattern easy for myself) and I wasn't happy using Addi Turbo needles. The Addis were much to fast for this project and I was struggling to hang onto the project. I stopped at Depth of Field today and picked up the necessary accoutrement for adjustments and I am now set. I picked up the project last night after finishing the Woodsman's socks and I thought 'something's got to change with this'. I switched needles and I am cruisin' now. I must say that I am surprised about how well I like these needles. It is a size 4 Harmony bamboo and it is speedier than Clovers are at first, but the real treat is the flexibility of the plastic part - wow, very flexible. I thought the Clovers were fine until I tried these. I love 'em.

More progress...I have a new laptop. It is a Gateway something or other and that too is great.

But the real progress is track lighting in my hallway.

I am finishing things.....

2008-08-11T18:01:00.010-05:00

I finished a pair of Woodsman's Socks from the Opinionated Knitter. I have made these once before and I made some modifications for this pair. These are for my husband and I think I will make him a few more pair. The socks are featured with Wrap Style by Pam Allen and Ann Budd during some kind of inventory reduction sale. I got it for about $5 - what a deal. I might be inspired to make something out of there.

Yarn: Jarbo Raggi Wool
Needles: size 6 dpns
Pattern: Woodsman's socks

I made the heel with a slip 1, knit, turn, slip 1, purl back - this makes a very sturdy heel which is important for a thick wool sock that might be rubbing inside of boots and leather slippers in the winter.

I also made the cuff with a 1x1 ribbing before switching to a 2x2 ribbing. And I skipped the garter stitch section on the ends of the heel flap. I know...several modifications...but EZ would say 'be the boss of your own knitting', right?

And look Sue, no holes:

I finished celebrating my going away with colleagues last Thursday where we had an ice cream sundae bar and and I got a couple very nice gifts. I work with graduate programs and my colleagues gave me a mug made by a third year graduate student in art:

And then the really thoughtful gift was the little bird below. The picture isn't very good - you can't really see that it opens up and has a note inside. It came in the pretty box with birds next to the mug. This was given to me by my friend at work - she's the one I made the lace leaf scarf for back in December as a thank you for how supportive she's been to me this past year...now going on two years.

I finished handing off most of my project work today and am detaching very nicely from this job, am clearing my head of this work and starting to think about preparing for the next position. Although that's just on my to-do list (much closer to the start date).

I will have be starting lots of new things in the coming weeks...have any of you read Eunny Jang's editorial in the new issue of Interweave Knits? All about fall and the beginning of things. That will be true for me this fall.

High School Reunion

2008-08-08T21:12:00.005-05:00

My reunion was great. Here is a group shot and a shot of me with the gal pals. It was at a beautiful park, very little planning involved, potluck, great weather and good time had by all. I wish a few more people had attended, but those of us who did attend had a great time. Our high school English teacher came too - ugh....you think they could have sent a representative from the school that actually liked us. But it was something to laugh about.

I wonder when I will ever get back to some knitting content here. I don't seem very inspired lately. I have a few unfinished projects and I don't know quite what's going to trip my trigger. I have been reading tons of books though - two Harry Potter books in a week, a couple Janet Evanovich books, and The Thing about Jane Spring by Sharon Krum. This last book listed was very fun - it is about a tough as nails lawyer who wants a man in her life so she transforms herself into Doris Day and makes it her mission to succeed in love. I read this rather quickly, but the vibe of the book has been staying with me.

Scarf is nearly done

2008-07-13T09:27:00.006-05:00

Nearly done with my scarf.

That lovely table was given to me recently from my dad and grandma. I think it is probably about 75 years old or so - just a guess. It has a little hinge on the underside and the top flips up. Here's the stem:

I went to the Blue Nile Restaurant for an amazing Ethiopian meal and Belgian beers with friends last night. The food was served in the traditional manner so we all got to try everything. I am feeling the effects this morning of too much frivolity last night. My stomach is even a little sore from laughing. I think I might need to go swimming to clear my head and snap out of it.

I started reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince a couple days ago. I can feel the Harry Potter grip on me again. The first time it happened I read the first 3 books in two weeks. Now I think I am headed down this path again - the timing is not right for this! I need to write three papers for my research methods class before the end of the month. Ugh. Why can't I be gripped with enthusiasm for that?

...

2008-07-08T20:27:00.010-05:00

After I finished my class, I decided to do some leisure reading and picked up The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. This was an all-around incredible book - I started it at 10 pm on Sunday night and finished during my lunch hour on Monday. This was just the thing I needed. Something really accessible after reading a book on research methods for the past three weeks. The protagonist Christopher has autisim and tries to solve the mystery of a dog murdered in his neighbors yard. It was a frightening and funny tale as he learned secrets about his family. I would highly recommend this. I only know of one person who read this - she liked the book, but has worked with kids with autism and said the ending was disappointing. We didn't have a chance to discuss it, so I don't know what she means. Maybe I will learn more later.

I also read Dark Victory, an autobiography of Bette Davis. Not too good as far as old Hollywood celebrity autobiographies go. Nowhere near enough dish. Pretty dry. Probably true for the most part. I wanted to read the dirt on Bette and Joan Crawford's rivalry. Boring.

My next reading will be a quantitative research article in the field of human resources development. I can't wait to finish these papers so I can sell my book back. I still haven't recovered emotionally from spending $101 on the book.

In addition to an accessible book, I got some really fun yarn this weekend to make an easy scarf. I've been having a hard time finishing some gentleman's fancy socks from Knitting Vintage Socks, the tilted duster and a lacy tank from Interweave. My MIL and I went to Borealis this weekend and each bought two skeins of Araucania hand dyed wool from Chile- and we were both compelled to cast on almost immediately. Our local yarn lady told us it looks great in seed stitch and we cast on identical scarfs - 27 stitches on size 8s in seed stitch. Aren't the colors amazing? My scarf is in the blues and Sue's is in the other with the golds. The picture doesn't quite do the colors justice.

I am just a little into my second of two skeins:

And here's the tip 'o the day from the yarn shop: if you want to do a seed stitch scarf, always cast on an odd number of stitches. This way you always start with a knit stitch. Duh. Then you don't have to think too much.

I also picked up a couple skeins of cream colored worsted weight Raggi. This is some pretty cool yarn - very fluffy and superwash. I am going to make some heavy weight winter socks with a cable pattern. Again, recommended by local yarn lady - she says her husband loves his Raggi socks and wears them while doing winter hiking. I'll make up the pattern based maybe on Elizabeth Zimmerman's woodsman socks with cables instead of ribs.

We also finished applying a new rubber roof to the top of our dormer. By 'we', I mean my husband and FIL. This was a much needed project because we were getting a little leaking on our back wall each winter. I'd show you a pic, but I am too scared to go up there. This was mercifully and uniquely a project that was significantly easier than we anticipated. This NEVER happens to us.

Meme - 10 years ago

2008-06-29T09:14:00.000-05:00

What was I doing 10 years ago?
I went on an archaeology dig in Scotland on a project digging Roman hill forts from the University of Manchester (where I took two showers in four weeks!). It is amazing what becomes ok in a no time flat. It was shortly after Princess Diana died and people were still talking about it quite a lot. We drove through Ewan McGregor’s hometown every morning on the way to the dig site where I bought what I think were tallow and bone marrow pasties and candy bars every morning. Yuck. I was so hungry that month.

I attended my 10 year high school reunion, which means I am attending my 20th later this summer. My friends from school started a yahoo group to start sharing info and photos. I am on a strict weight watchers diet – 22 points per day until the reunion. I want to be down 10 pounds in 7 weeks. I have lost 4 lbs. in three weeks so far. Seems reasonable. It could happen.

I graduated from college with a degree in anthropology at the University of Minnesota after a long haul. Apparently attending college full-time for five years with too many majors to count (music, German, English, journalism to name a few) was insufficient, because I continued taking classes in the evening for another five years. However, the jobs listed below were daily reminder to finish the damn degree.

And I got married after having shacked up with my husband for 7 years. It was a teeny wedding – highly recommended. There were about 10 people in attendance and about 35 for dinner. Shacking up for several years was fun too – I’d also recommend that

What are 5 things on my to-do list today?
Trim the lilacs and the bridal veils, go to Menards for mulch and door hardware, start cleaning since my in-laws are visiting next week, procrastinating doing my homework, pay bills.

Snacks I enjoy:
Anything chocolate, hot chocolate, chocolate almond ice cream, peppermint bon bon ice cream, almond joy candy bars, chocolate rice cakes with a smear of peanut butter, any kind of fruit smoothie, popcorn popped on the stove (in my Whirlypop).

Things I would do if I were a billionaire:
Hire professionals to finish my house while my husband I traveled. Oh wait…a billionaire? I’d move

Places I have lived:
Maplewood, MN
Stillwater, MN
Oakdale, MN
St. Paul, MN
Minneapolis, MN
La Crosse, WI
I wish I have lived in more places

Jobs I have had:
Dairy Queen confection preparer and server (this was the best job – I was just 16, ate ice cream constantly, never gained a pound)
Sales lady at the Gap, JCPenney, and a boutique
Emergency room admitting clerk
Receptionist
Sandwich maker
Waitress
Health insurance claim analyst
Assistant to the queen bee of a historical society
University bureaucrat

Consider yourself tagged and please let a comment if you choose to complete this meme so I can read your responses!

My grandma

2008-06-17T20:43:00.002-05:00

My grandma passed away at age 98 last Friday. I would like to share a couple stories about my grandma.

In about 1976 Grandma came to stay with me, my brother, and my dad back while my mom was in the hospital having surgery. When my mom called from the hospital to find out how we were doing, I wasn't too happy about the menu situation. I told my mom that I didn't know what grandma was making for us, but I think they call it "home cookin'". Now, my mom made home cooked meals for us every day - to the extent to serving us hot breakfast all through high school. But grandma's cooking involved rutabagas, parsnips, turnips and who knows what else. This I was concerned about and very glad when mom came home from the hospital. But grandma took great care of us, despite all these foreign root vegetables.

I am going to post a photo taken back in January. My folks, my husband and I visiting grandma while she on Christmas Day while she was rehabbing in a care center. She liked my Norwegian hat and wanted one JUST LIKE MINE to wear home when she got sprung back to her apartment - in a week. I knitted like mad at my in laws and she did indeed get to wear her hat home. One of my younger cousins Mollie suggested that I just give her mine and tell her it was a new one just for her (she's good at figuring out time saving strategies!), but then I would not have had this great photo.

Grandma celebrated her 98th birthday in March where she proclaimed she was going to live to be 100 years old. She had a great time surrounded by children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. My grandma had a very generous heart in any situation. She was surrounded by family and friends for her entire life - she always loved a party.

Father's Day and my gardening

2008-06-14T08:50:00.007-05:00

I finally took a great picture. It is of a perennial called Blue Loveliness Self Heal. This will be my wallpaper for awhile on my laptop.

Also my two clemetis (clematisses? clematii?) have started blooming:

And we're having the first full summer with Ninebarks and to my surprise, they are blooming. I had no idea there would be flowers.

Happy Father's Day! We're off to my folks for fried chicken and mojitos.

Christmas knitting and unfinished work

2008-06-14T08:08:00.005-05:00

It has been a long week and will continue to be a long month. I have a summer class that starts next week for three full days and then for three more full days a week later called using research in education. I had been debating about what to do whether to take more time off for vacations or take this class. The weather has done absolutely nothing to cooperate so I decided to take the class. So, I have been reading the $101 book getting ready for the first day. $101 for this fairly small book - it was a little hard to hand over the cashola for that. So, given all this deep thinking I'll be doing, I figured I needed some easy knitting. I started a hat for a gift - I think it is the very warm hat from Opinionated Knitter. I am using my favorite yarn for this - Nature Spun Worsted Weight in scarlet and charcoal. Depending on how this works out, I will maybe make this double thickness. Although I really like having a tassle. This will be the beginning of some presents. Maybe people will see some things that end up under the Christmas tree.

I don't want to get too far away from these other unfinished projects because it is so hard to get back into them later. I have three projects in this state of unfinishedness - which is a lot for my usual knitting style. I like to see how the projects turn out and usually finish things up. The tilted duster is difficult to finish because I am nervous about how it is turning out. The arms are pretty tight - I did see others on Ravelry discussing this, but went ahead with no modifications. I also had a difficult time picking up the number of suggested stitched on the neck, so it doesn't lay as it should. It flops over more into a shawl collar, which I guess is ok. I only have finishing left. One sleeve is on and I can tell the fit is not doing to be so great. Oh well, I am on a diet. The skirt part will be flattering though.

And I have a sock to finish - in Knitpicks Bare Donegal - very pretty.

And I started the Josephine top - it a fairly easy pattern to follow, but I am a little nervous about it. I think it is is the lack of big success with the tilted duster. I find that I get the best results with EZ patterns when I really understand what's happening. I do really like the yarn - I am using hempathy in a gray (not too crazy about the color yet)

As I look at these crummy pictures, I don't know why they are so oversaturated - ok, well I know why, I just don't know how to fix it. And I am completely uninspired to take good photos.

New closet

2008-06-08T12:21:00.005-05:00

We have a new closet nearly finished and all we need to do now is put in shelving and access doors. Those two spaces on the left are access to our whirlpool tub, so we need to be able to get in there in the future in case of electrical or water problems. See the nice light? This is going to be our linen closet and once I get linens moved into this closet, that means we have vacated different closet space for clothing - a very much needed space. (That and a few trips to Goodwill.)

I just watched Sweeney Todd and I can't believe the number of fingerless mittens. Helen Bonham Carter and Johnny Depp wore several different pair of them throughout and Johnny even had a pair of leather mitts, but of course I have been interested in the knitted versions. There was a lace mitt and something that looked like seed stitch. Very nice. Aside from the fingerless mittens, the movie was very good - I had not heard the music before which I liked well. I really liked Helena Bonham Carter's acting and singing who claims she can't sing, but I thought it was great for her character.

Lutea Lace-Shoulder Shell

2008-06-08T09:04:00.009-05:00

I finished the Lutea Lace-Shoulder Shell and it has been too cold to wear it. It was rather difficult to get gauge and in the end I used a size 8 so that I could get a size 38 instead of 36 or 40 which are the sizes the pattern provided. The sizing turned out pretty well.

As per usual, I decided to do something and have gone perhaps a little overboard, but that's my way. I have been walking about 20 miles per week for awhile now, but I haven't been seeing the results that I'd like to. That coupled with the original pictures of myself in the Lutea Lace Should Shell has inspired me to get serious about weight loss. So, I dived back into group fitness classes and started on weightwatchers points again. This requires a little bit of self-confidence, because the instructors and many of the fellow exercisers are under 25 years old. I have been doing water aerobics, cardiodance, and yoga.

The yard is really coming along with all the rain, but it's been difficult finding a window of opportunity to clean the yard. There are grass clippings and spinners from maple trees everywhere. Here are some pictures mainly for the benefits of my out of town relatives who haven't seen the summer landscaping lately.

Bridal Veil

Ninebark and Russian Sage

Red Twig Dogwood, Potentilla, and Little Giant

Niobe Clematis

Wilkommen, bienvenue, welcome

2008-05-13T17:17:00.004-05:00

I've been offline awhile now - many computer troubles, finishing my OD class, and who knows where the time goes anyway. But tonight....I am going to see Cabaret at the Ordway Center in St. Paul. This is a step up culturally for me from the MN Rollergirls which is held right next door to the Ordway. But, this does have 'mature themes and sexual content'. So that's good.

I don't have any pics to show at the moment, but I am nearly done with the Tilted Duster. I have to pick up stitches for the collar and then that's that. I finished all but the collar in just a couple weeks. Cascade 220 is so easy to work with. I have to say, even all that ribbing didn't slow me down. And I am almost done (three of four lacey shoulder pieces to go) with the Lutea Lace-Shoulder Shell. That's being done on size 7s in Plymouth Fantasy Natural in a red. It might be my first tank type item that I really like. I tried it on mid-way and not too bad...the cotton isn't quite as figure-forgiving as wool.

I hope to have some camping pictures soon too. We picked up a bunch of new camping equipment. We have backpacking gear, but we're about to hit the woods in style - in a 12x18 foot tent. I found a propane propelled blender - for margaritas in the woods. I also found stainless steel bar service. The main motivation for all the new stuff is so we can camp easily and frequently for long weekends and use our telescopes and binocs.

Not much to report

2008-04-10T16:39:00.004-05:00

I am started another pair of socks from Knitting Vintage Socks. They are turning out really well - using Knitpicks Bare on size 0s circulars. I translated the pattern from dpn's to circs and this is an easy task. If this seems conceptually confusing at all, just read Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles by Cat Bordhi and you'll be set.

I am taking a break from these socks to start the Tilted Duster from the Fall 2007 Interweave Knits. I am using Cascade 220 and I hope I can get gauge with either 8s or 10s (recommended, but I knit fairly loosely). I bet I have some straight 9s - I haven't knit on needles this large in eons and I am looking forward to this going fairly smoothly. If it turns out I need 9s, I may need to wait till tomorrow - we're having yet another Minnesota weather advisory and the closest place to my house has bad needles. We started with rain, not slush, and windy. Everyone in Minnesota's getting a little more than sick of winter and can't wait to feel some warm sun.

Winter house progress: my new living room ceiling.

ta da!

Desert Sand Socks

2008-03-25T21:40:00.004-05:00

I attended what I thought would be the most boring grant writing seminar for faculty writing NIH and NSF grants – I am not a faculty member and I will never be writing an NIH or NSF grant. But it was chock full ‘o writing tips. That with the book on writing that I am reading (rather than writing my research paper) has given me tons of great tips. The best one is to start writing down little bits of things – thoughts, observations, memories to mine for future reference. This promises to be the best ever non-detectable low-tech way of not listening to a boring meeting. There’s no teacher coming around to look over my shoulder and see that I have written down something about some dude in a lime green suit – I am not kidding, a totally normal looking guy with a lime green suit with too short pants and a too tight waist.

I also brought with me (Minnesota style syntax) the best ever things to keep me busy during the seminar:

• Starbucks gift card (one a.m. coffee and one decaf, no whip, sugar-free, low-fat mocha)
• Small notebook (for notation about the weirdos)
• Articles printed out on innocuous white paper that I read for my research paper
• And Bird by Bird for lunchtime reading.

I need to think ahead like this more often. Low-tech meant though that I couldn’t google the nutritional content of my lunch.

I was able to wear my new socks to the seminar too – and my feet were so hot.

I am dreaming of a white Easter

2008-03-23T13:42:00.005-05:00

I woke up at 4 am and waited until 5 am to get out of bed. I wanted to make sure the Easter Bunny had had an opportunity to leave me chocolates. I came downstairs, not to find the Easter weather, but a continuation of the snow storm that had started Thursday evening. We've got about 10 inches on the ground. It seemed more likely to have a Santa sighting – or possibly Chinese New Year. I had served Chinese take-out to my Easter guests (my in-laws).

Having guests also meant having a forced house cleaning – a two-person, five-hour ordeal. I did more steps than was advisable with my ankle still recovering, but we made major progress. We moved our TV and couches from the dining room into the living room and actually made headway on getting the place kinda clean-ish. I look around and it is hard to believe what I now consider ‘clean’, but I am indeed pleased the progress.

I finished Drunk, Divorced, and Covered in Cat Hair this morning at 6 am. It proves that I can still finish something. I actually read an entire book – granted it was a very funny book and related to my favorite hobby, but still…it was a whole book. And a finished a sock. I haven’t been able to finish much of anything lately. I have been an intermittent visitor of Crazy Aunt Purl’s blog and her book is fabulous. The author, Laurie Perry, is so funny and she writes about things we’ve all felt, but no one usually says these things out loud.

Here’s the first sock:

Yarn: Cascade Yarn: Wildfoote in Desert Grass
Needles: Size 1 Addi Turbo Circulars
Pattern: Ann Norling’s adult basic socks

I am supposed to be writing a research paper on high involvement organizations for my organization development class, but instead I have started another book. Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott. This is a book of instruction of about writing and life. The premise is that in order to write, a writer must write. Anne’s advice is like a quote from the movie (one of my faves) Throw Mama from the Train “a writer writes’. Her brother, when he was 10, had an assignment to write a report on birds. He had three months to write it and was beginning the report the night before the report was due. Their father, a writer, said ‘you must write this bird by bird, buddy, one bird at a time’. The irony of reading a book about writing while the deadline for my research paper looms has not been lost on me. While I am only about 25 pages in, I already love this book. I wonder if I can weave this in directly to my research topic. Doubtful. But like Laurie Perry, it is Anne Lamott’s honesty that makes this so accessible.

Lastly, I got folk Style by Mags Kandis from my in-laws. The book is posing by my new trim in my new living room. Check out the craftspersonship. That’s right. The Mr. made that. We don’t need no stinking professionals.

I knit, and then knit again, and again, and again

2008-03-14T19:30:00.006-05:00

Sometimes the easiest or most routine thing turns into a head scratcher. I have made many pairs of socks and thought I'd like another pair - a nice easy project. So, I started the columbine socks from Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles and I started on Addi Turbo 2s. These looked very large and it was increasingly clear that these would be hanging around my ankles. I took that sock apart (this would be a process repeated three times). Then I started on some Inox circular 1s - which I had forgotten how much I hated because the joins are so poor I can't get the sock to move freely over them. And they have four distinctly different tips. And these were looking significantly smaller - much too small. And I have made socks on these before with a similar number of cast on stitches, so I didn't know what to make of that. Wildefoote seems similar in gauge to the Trekking XXL I have been using lately. Then I unraveled those and headed to Borealis Yarns to find some different needles and consider a different pattern. I thought I'd try the adult basic sock pattern from Ann Norling. It is an easy versatile pattern that I have done several time in three different gauges. This seemed safe enough.

I did learn something new though from the nice lady at the yarn shop. She tells me that that Addi 2s are actually a size 2.5 to the rest of the knitting world which might explain my gauge trouble. She also said that Addi 1s are more of a 1.5, so I picked up a 24 inch and a 32 inch (because that's all they had - this becomes important later). She said that these are the only two needles whose size is not what it appears. I got home and got to work on a plain ol' 3x1 ribbed sock with 64 stitches cast on my new Addi 1s. My gauge was good and they looked good - nothing exciting, but at least I was getting somewhere.

Wildfoote is splitty anyway, but all the knitting and reknitting had taken a toll on the yarn, so I had to cut my losses and ditch some of it because it was a mess. But, I was reading a blog about the magic loop method and the 32 inch was long enough for that and I tried that for awhile. It worked well enough and I don't know yet if I like it better than using two circs, but I will continue to try that a bit.

I knit and reknit the heel about a total of four times - once after I had picked up the gusset stitches, knit a few rounds, and realized I had dropped one of the end stitches from the heel. I cannot figure out why I have been having so much trouble - this is the longest it has taken me to make a pair of socks and I am still not done with the first one. I didn't have anywhere near this much trouble on the first pair of sock I made. But I do believe that this first sock is coming to an end soon. I haven't taken any pics lately, more later.

Other than my lack of any real progress on projects, I had a midterm on Monday and have been spending many hours studying and will be working on a research paper next. And spring keeps making some wimpy attempts at arriving and we're all ready for it to make its real arrival.

I may never get better…

2008-02-27T21:05:00.006-06:00

Because there's really no reason and I have no incentive. I have been getting a ride to and from work every day, my laundry is done, my dinners are prepared, my whirlpool tub is in use every evening (although I have to run my own water…hmmmph). I have been living in the lap of luxury since I sprained my ankle. My husband's been so helpful. I am off my crutches now and am still using a brace, but I can't really walk around much. I did walk up the block and back this afternoon. Woohoo! That's a far cry from the daily 10,000 steps goal, but I am moving again.

I ventured out on my own on Sunday to Borealis and decided to use up the rest of a gift certificate. I bought Brown Sheep Wildefoote yarn in desert grass for socks (Columbine Peak from Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles by Cat Bordhi), some Rauma Finullgarn in two shades of blue to make some Estonian mittens from Folk Knitting in Estonia, and enough Cascade 220 in one of the heathers in a beautiful dark blue (2424). I am going to start swatching to make a v-neck aran cardigan from the Opinionated Knitter. These should be some good projects. I also received some Knitpicks Bare Donegal to make socks.

I was thinking of Francis the other day – does anyone else know Frances of Bedtime for Francis fame? Or Bed and Jam for Frances? Frances is a badger who is a fussy eater and her mom gives her all the bread and jam she can eat. You know what happens? She gets sick of bread and jam and starts eating all the good things her parents give her. And sometimes she doesn't like to go to bed and gets her parents to do all kinds of things for her before she goes to bed to avoid going to sleep. I was amazed that I couldn't find any of the recordings of this book on you tube. I wonder what happened to my little records. I was thinking of her because I was having a little bread and jam last night after my whirlpool. What a life…

Now for a very weird coincidence. When I googled for Francis, you know what I found? A knitting blog called BreadnJamforFrancis. Spooky. I have to read this woman's site – she cooks, she carmelizes pears, she writes, she knits….

Nothing on the needles

2008-02-23T15:55:00.010-06:00

I can't believe it, but I don't think I have any unfinished projects at the moment. I have wrapped several things up in the last couple weeks. I finished two projects - Dashing Mitts from Knitty. This is a free pattern.

I can't remember what this yarn is though and seem to have lost the band. hmmm....oh, well.

And then the big news....I finished the Gaffer's Gansey. It still needs to be blocked and I will post a picture of this modeled after the blocking is complete. I am so pleased to have successfully steeked armholes. I have steeked the front a cardigan before, but haven't been successful with the sleeves. I really like the ease of picking up stitches for the sleeves and then knitting down. I didn't want the pressure of having to steek and to get the sleeves just right.

Pattern: Gaffer's Gansey from Knitter's Workshop.
Yarn: Wool of the Andes
Color: Sapphire Heather
Needles: 7 circulars

Here is it on my 'couch'. I can't believe I am posting this beautiful sweater on that stinkin' couch. (We're in the midst of a renovation and I am using the most awful furniture.).

Here are some closeups of the body, neck, cuffs...

And this is how much yarn I have left from this project:

I thought for sure I was going to run out.

Tomorrow I have tickets to the Minnesota Rollergirls - flat-track rollerderby. The bout starts at 7:30 - rollerderby on a Sunday? I will definitely be up past my bedtime. These bouts are super fun - the half-time show is usually polka or the MN Unicycle Club. Tomorrow it is a band called the Corpse Show Creeps. And the Rollergirls do a Knit for Charity thru Crafty Planet. I will have to check that out sometime, but until then...I always think I want to try out to be a rollergirl after a bout. Photos including a bruise gallery are here.

Now, I need to decide what to start next. I have plenty of yarn and just need to make a decision of what I want to work on. Something easy and mindless? socks? Estonian Mittens? an EPS sweater? tomten coat/jacket?

Dream date....down the drain

2008-02-19T18:53:00.006-06:00

The last time I blogged I was carrying on about going out for Valentine's Day. I was so excited about the day when I woke up on February 14th. I thought 'you know, I should do a load of laundry before work'...I wouldn't have time in the evening, maybe I wanted to wear something in the laundry. Who knows. On the way down the stairs, I fell and missed the bottom two steps and landed in a crumpled heap at the bottom. That got the day started. The mister was up in a flash to my rescue and I crawled to a couch....where I sat for the next five days with the brief exception of a trip to the doc where I got the good news that I had no broken bones. But I was off of my feet completely with a badly sprained ankle.

I was though waited on hand and foot while the mister played chief cook and bottle washer. You wouldn't believe the service I got....so, I took a few pics.

Here's my lunch on day two of convalescing:

Can you see the fresh cracked pepper on my cole slaw?

And while the new recipe for black bean soup was simmering away in the crock pot, a cake emerged:

While he has never decorated a cake before, he says this is EXACTLY how he wanted this to turn out. It is a red velvet cake with butter cream frosting. mmmm....

I wasn't able to knit much the first two days because my ankle was elevated and I was n't in a position to do much but watch TV.

Over the weekend, I finished my dad's mittens:

Yarn: Cascade Autunno
Pattern: Fits like a...glove by Nancy Lindberg
Needles: size 6 Clover bamboos

Now, I have about 6 weeks of recovery and watching calories with this reduced activity.

Happy Valentine's Day

2008-02-13T20:21:00.008-06:00

I have been wearing mismatched scarf, hat, and mittens for awhile now - heavens. And I had just the solution. I made a winter set with a headband from Lolly, neckwarmer, and mittens from Opinionated Knitter from Cascade 220 Quatro in Fiji - bright pinks - Valentine's Day for me. I had to take photos of myself...

The headband: CO 90 stitches, join, and knit around 5 rounds, purl 2 rounds, and then mix and match knit and purl rows as desired, purl 2 rounds, knit 5 rounds, cast of. Size 6 circ, 16 inches, Cascade 220.

Neckwarmer: CO 80 stitches, knit 5 rounds, purl 2 rounds, increase 10 stitches evenly across first knit round, mix and match purl rounds as desireds, purl 2 rounds, knit 5 rounds, cast off. One end is slightly tighter so that it snugs around the neck a bit. Size 6 circs, 16 inches, Cascade 220.

Mittens: These are the ladies mittens from Opinion Knitter, very easy to make and the chevron pattern on the ribs is essential. It adds some warmth and texture, very pretty, and definitely worth the little extra time.

I finished the Little Child's Sock from Knitting Vintage Socks by Nancy Bush.

Trekking XXL, size 0's I think. I would use 1's on this the next time and the heel might be a little snug. They are blocking now, so I didn't want to try them on.

I gave my dad a piece of yarn for Christmas taped into a card. I hope this doesn't become a trend - giving people pieces of future gifts. And it wasn't even a piece of yarn that I planned to use. I found some 100% Merino wool called di.ve Autumno by Cascade at Borealis Yarns. It is super soft and I am making fingerless mittens with a flap. These are turning out really well so far - they look like they are for some huge paws!

Tomorrow's Valentine's Day and I have dream date. The mister and I are going to The Heights Theater to see a 1926 version of La Boheme starring John Gilbert and Lillian Gish. The Heights is a great old theater with a Wurlitzer organ that rises up from the front of the stage before the movie starts. Sometimes they play before the movie, but since this is a silent, the organ will be playing throughout. The organist watches the movie and makes it up as she or he goes along. The last silent movie I saw was accompanied by a bejeweled organist w, Kim, as wearing teal evening gown - she was amazing.

Here's the original movie poster:

My husband is pretending that he'll 'endure this', but I know he's gonna love it.

Sad....dead batteries

2008-02-11T23:15:00.001-06:00

The batteries on my digicam are dead and my knitting bag is out of spares. And I have so many new small things to show off.

I thought I'd show off two pair of recently completed pair of socks.

Pattern: My own design based on the simple ribbed socks - I think this might what others call a mistake rib stitch.
Source: Knitting Vintage Socks by Nancy Bush
Yarn: Trekking XXL
Needles: size 2 circs

You can tell it is winter in Minnesota - wow - them's some white gams.

Here are the originals:

Pattern: Simple Ribbed Socks
Source: Knitting Vintage Socks
Yarn: Wildefoote
Needles: size 2 circs

I found a designer who is new to me and I love her work. The designer/distritor is Arnhild. Check out these amazing patterns for stranded knitting. Just to whet your appetite and to remind me that these are in my queue:

Just so there's no mistake - this is a photo from Arnhild's website. I haven't decided on a yarn and colorway yet. Arnhild also sells a great book of patterns called Raumagarn which contains English interpretation provided I think by Arnhild. This book is definitely 'on my list'. It is inexpensive (under $20) and I have missed out on a few books by waiting and then they go out of print. I am not missing this one!

Well, these ain't the best pics, but I haven't been posting much lately and wanted to do something. I should be getting batteries tomorrow and will be able to show off the Child's Socks from Knitting Vintage Socks, mittens from the Opinionated Knitters, and headband from a pattern by Lolly of Lolly Knitting Around and a coordinating neck warmer.

Sun Dogs

2008-02-02T15:21:00.000-06:00

I don't have much to report on the knitting front. I had to remove the sleeve of the Gaffer's Gansey last weekend and I haven't gotten back to it. I needed to give my wrists a rest. Spring Semester started for me this week and I am back in class taking Organization Development - this class runs until 920 pm. I should be well into my jams by that time. And I can't believe we call this spring semester when the weather's been like it has been. Sixteen below zero last week. But I saw the most amazing thing in the sky last week - Sun Dogs! If I didn't know what this was, I would have thought I had been transported to another planet. It was -16 below zero with a windchill of about -25 - and very sunny at about 8 am - apparently great conditions for sun dogs. I wish I had my camera, but I was in my car and I had to pull over to stare into the sun. I know...you're not supposed to do that, but I couldn't help myself. Here are some pictures of what I saw - but I have to say that what I saw was even more dramatic than these photos. What I saw had the best elements of each - there was a full rainbow connecting the two false suns - it was amazing. And the two false suns were much bigger than what's shown in these photos - they were shifting and moving as I watched and they almost looked like there were flames coming up out of them.

This bottom photo was taken in New Ulm, Minnesota - which is not far from my home. New Ulm's a fun little place to visit - home to Schell's Beer and Hermann Heights Monument.

More knitting next time....

Hubris

2008-01-23T23:37:00.000-06:00

Pure, unadulterated hubris. I had 30 rows of 2x2 ribbing for the cuff of the Gaffer's Gansey, when I thought 'wow, that looks like too many stitches'. I didn't count the stitches on the second sleeve figuring I had to have picked up a pretty close number to the first sleeve - there had to be about 12 stitches too many which is over two inches. The sleeve was amputated tonight. Reknitting to commence after I take the time to make sure I really understand what happened.

Rorschach Sweater, blogging, and the deep freeze

2008-01-20T09:48:00.000-06:00

Rorschach Sweater
I finally finished the Rorschach sweater. It was almost finished last year without buttons or a belt. I wore it a few times and the neck drooped down a bit in the back and it didn’t seem to want to stay remotely closed in the front. So, I added a garter stitch belt and belt loops. I did NOT like where the belt sat and this made me look too large around the middle. So, I took that off and added 5 tab buttonholes and buttons like are shown in Knitters Workshop, but that was somehow worse than the belt. So, my husband suggested one button at the top and I decided to take off all but the top tab buttonholes and buttons and this might be the best so far. He probably knows more about knitting than he ever thought he needed to. This sweater isn't the most flattering, but I do like the pattern.

Rorschach Sweater

Back:

The back turned out fine - the bottom is just a little rumpled I think.

Yarn: Nature Spun Worsted Weight in aran and black
Needles: size 8
Pattern: Rorschach from Knitters Almanac.

Has anyone else made this and run into these problems? The look of the sweater is kinda retro and overall very nice, but it has been awhile coming together.

2008 Knitting Goals:
* Now that I have a little traffic, I want to improve the content of my blog. I'd like it to be more interesting.

* I'd like to improve my technical skills with blogging. There are some things I see on other websites that I'd like to know about. For example, I want to figure out how to have slide shows of groups of photos.

* One of my knitting goals is about to be realized - successful sleeve steeks on a drop shoulder sweater.

* Making more gifts.

* I don't have too many unfinished projects, but I'd like to wrap up a few things. (But wrapping up the 2007 projects in 2008 already makes me look super productive this year!)

* I'd like to make the an aran sweater from Elizabeth Zimmerman's Knitter's Almanac, but alter it to have raglan sleeves. I need to decide on the right yarn. I am kinda over Nature Spun - a little too bouncy, and Cascade 220 sometimes seems a little lightweight, Knit Picks Wool of the Andes does seem pretty nice - but they don't have the color I have in mind. I might check out schoolhouse press - anyone recommend the rangley or Quebequoise?

To answer a question from one of the previous comments - yes, the hats that my grandma and I are wearing are the Fiber Trends swirls hat pattern. My grandma seems to be a big hit - the bulk of the first comments I have one my blog were about grandma. Putting grandmas on your blog feels like cheating a bit - the cute factor is so high - it is like putting kittens on your blog! But thanks for the nice comments - it was fun to make and fun to give.

Deep freeze
It was -16 below zero in Minneapolis today. Sometimes, it can be fun to be stay gather supplies and hunker down to stay inside all weekend and have a good excuse for doing not a whole lot of anything. There's no walking for exercise going on, no easy running around to get a few things done, and the sun is so damn bright - it is deceptive - it looks like it should be great weather, but no. So, it is a weekend of staying inside. On the upside, I have a great TV series from the library 'Monarch of the Glen' and it is a very fun show and a good show to knit by. Highly recommended. For anyone who watches this show, isn't Kilwillie one of the best characters on TV?

We also like making some great dishes during the cold and wintery weather. The mister made an Alsatian pork and kraut dish from the Joy of Cooking.

He used a pork tenderloin roast so it was very lean and the sauerkraut included fresh cabbage, beer, carrots, and caraway. It is very yummy - and dishes look so nice in the giant cast iron. Good diet food.

More projects finished up and another one well in hand

2008-01-12T16:38:00.000-06:00

I had the good fortune this week of being able to give away two gifts. The first was to my grandma which I blogged below. The second was a gift to Alicia, a work colleague. She has been so helpful to me during a difficult year in a new job and I wanted to do something to thank her, so I made a scarf. I hadn’t made a scarf since probably two years because they’d become a little boring. I decided to try my hand at an easy lace pattern. The yarn was very nice and soft – I generally work with Cascade 220 and Nature Spun and this was a pleasant change of pace. The blocking did wonders for the lace pattern too.

Lace Leaf Scarf

Yarn: Knit Picks Andean Silk
Needles: size 9 Clover bamboos
Pattern: A winter edition of Family Circle Easy knitting – probably Fall/Winter 2006

Alicia seemed to really love the scarf and she told me the next day that the scarf was the first thing her husband noticed when he was her at the end of the day.

I finally got around to finishing the Moccasin Socks from Elizabeth Zimmerman’s Knitter’s Alamanac. The yarn would have been prettier had I worked this with a traditional sock pattern. Because the sock is worked back and forth in rib rather than in the round, the pattern ended up looking more like urban camo than some nice. I love grafting/kitchener stitch, but there aren’t often opportunities to do this for more than 10 or so stitches. The bottom of the sock is grafted together along the entire length of the sock and you can see in the picture that I grafted too tightly. These turned out a little large too, so they are good bed socks or warm socks for walking in the winter. The yarn is nice though – I usually use Trekking XXL for my socks and this too was a nice change.

Moccasin Socks

Yarn: Lang Jawoll Sport
Needles: size 4 Addi Turbo circulars
Pattern: Moccasin Socks

The Gaffer’s Gansey has been coming along really well. I love the pattern on the chest. I have completed seven repeats of the ‘v’s’ and my best guestimate is that I will complete 10 of them. I completed what you see in the pictures in about 10 days and I have slowed down for two reasons. First, I am kinda nervous that I am developing tendonitis in my right wrist. I blame my laptop keyboard and not knitting (because, come on, seriously, knitting wouldn’t hurt me, right?), but still….And my second reason is that I am also a little nervous about steeking sleeves. I have successfully completed crocheted steeks before in an EZ fair isle cardigan that worked well, but I did have a sleeve disaster two years ago. I am still emotional about it! But I feel pretty confident about the pattern. I also wish I had started this with a metal circular rather than bamboo– I’d be able to knit a little more easily with that given the yarn. I wanted to get started and this was all I had in the house. I hope to show some picked up stitches on a successfully steeked armhole on one of my next posts.

Gaffer’s Gansey:

Gaffer’s gussets:

Yarn: Knit Picks Wool of the Andes in Sapphire Heather
Needles: size 7 Clover bamboo circulars
Pattern: Gaffer’s Gansey from Elizabeth Zimmerman’s Knitting Workshop

None of the pictures reflect the color very well. I am not the best photographer, but that's my best for now. I took a pic of a good yoga book that I just picked up from the library. I have never really done yoga before and it seems like a good starter book. I have made a resolution to get up earlier so I can do a few more things in the morning, like a little yoga.

I finally posted on Zimmermania and the result has been many hits from around the world – so cool. Now my mom isn’t the only one reading my blog and having so many more visitors makes me feel like I need to spruce up my blog, hence a few more photos of FO’s and a WIP. Thanks too for the comments.

When your grandma asks...

2008-01-09T22:57:00.000-06:00

As those of you who read this know, my grandma has been under the weather since about Thanksgiving. She 97 years old and we thought this was 'it' - she thought this was 'it'. Well, she pulled through and is excited about going home to her own place. Once she got out of the hospital, she's been in a care center. We visited her on Christmas Day and she liked my hat - in fact, she said she wanted one exactly like it to wear home from the care center back to her apartment. Well, I had quite the knitting project to do in the course of the next week. And the photo below gives evidence of my progress:

Neither of us thought we looked too great in the photo, but the care attendant was good enough to take the picture. I thought I might be pushing our luck with a full scale photo shoot. After all, grandma had to spend one more night there. Actually, grandma really liked all the people there. She's a trooper!

In terms of knitting, I am wearing my first color project and my first hat. Grandma's hat is much better than mine - my stranded knitting has improved since I made that hat. I used cascade 220 for grandma's hat and used nature spun for mine and the cascade seems to be better.

Winter sets in

2008-01-02T20:53:00.001-06:00

I am still in the midst of two full weeks off of work and it is everything I knew it would be! I had a great time with family and friends and am now planning on enjoying the next four days at home.

I will have a few more photos of finished projects in the next post. I managed to finish one project, start and finish another, and start a third. I started the Gaffer's Gansey for my dad-in-law. Everyone approved of the color and I've made great progress in the past 7 days.

Sue, my MIL, gave me a great Lang engagement calendar of American folk cats. You can see that in the photo above. We trekked out on Saturday to Delafield, WI to the Knitsch - a very cute knitting store with friendly staff where I bought some Cascade 220 in fuschia for a yet to be determined project. Our shopping was delayed by a day because of 8 inches of snow that fell on Friday. It was so beautiful - here's the aftermath:

There was amazing bird watching over the weekend - we saw 17 cardinals at one time!

Ok....the big event of this year's holiday season was my husband's 40th birthday. He got wonderful gifts to commemorate the big day. His folks gave him a telescope - something he's wanted for as long as he can remember. Can you believe the size of this thing:

And my folks gave him enormous binoculars. Do you think the neighbors will be nervous?

Sue and I got in hours and hours of productive knitting while being kept company by the kitties, Tobey and Wiley. And isnt' Tobey the cutest? He's doing a little birdwatching.

Since the photo of the Gaffer's Gansey was taken, I have finished a few more inches of the body and I will be making my second attempt at doing steeks sleeves. My first attempt was unsuccessful - the arm holes were too deep, the sleeves were too long and I tried several attempts to salvage this to at least be able to wear the thing aroung the house, but to no avail. Let's hope this is more successful. I have a few more tricks up my sleeve since I tried this last. More project updates next time.

Oy vey, Christmas is almost here

2007-12-18T20:29:00.000-06:00

Christmas is less than a week away and I am looking forward to two glorious weeks away from work. I think those were my exact words in looking forward to a week off at Thanksgiving. We will be spending the official holiday in Minneapolis and then heading to Wisconsin for a few days - during which time we will be celebrating my husband's birthday. It is a big one, but I won't disclose it out of respect for his advanced years.

My mom-in-law just is recovering from getting her spleen removed. For an organ with such a low profile (what the hell is if for?), it sounds like it was connected to every other organ she has. So, she's laying low recuperating. Probably seeing some Andy Griffith, maybe a little Elimi-date. We'll see if we can get some candids at Christmas. I am sure she'll be back to her socks before you know it. Here's the offending organ:

For those of you who know me, I had to use this sketch drawing of a spleen because I can't look at the real deal. Sue's a trooper though - I am sure she'll be ready for the holiday cheer and ready to put this whole thing behind her by the time we get there. She's just taught her sis how to knit socks. I need to get everyone to use their digi cams so I can blogs their projects.

The Hollyberry Lace Leaf Scarf:

This is turning out beautifully. I can't wait to see it blocked because it is a little floppy at the moment. This is my first experiment with lace and I have unknit as many rows as I have knit. I keep getting one extra stitch and then I am unknitting. This requires some concentration.

The pressure is off of finishing this before Christmas because it just won't be done, so why try? To quote Homer Simpson, "kids, you tried your best and failed miserably. The lesson is 'never try'." A finished product will come together over the holidays. I have to finish this scarf, a pair of socks, and get some plans together for the Gaffer's Gansey. I can't believe I nearly forgot....that gorgeous quilt in the background was made Mr. Knits a Living's grandma (aka Granny). This is just one example of her beautiful quilting.

And then I fell in love with this yarn:

To make some fingerless mitts:

These are "Dashing: from Knitty:

I am going to use Berroco Ultra Alpaca in color 6280. I hate it when colors are numbers. There are so many people thinking up names for lipstick, nail polish, paint....why can't all yarn have names of the colors?

I am waiting for pictures to be sent to me from my folks so I can blog our Sunday b-day bash. I wonder if they feel guilty for not following through on a commitment they made to me.

A Study in Scarlet

2007-12-05T19:19:00.000-06:00

I named this sweater A Study in Scarlet named after a Sherlock Holmes book published in 1887. It is the first book by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to feature Sherlock Holmes. I think I will read that next.

I nearly finished this sweater last year, but finally did the last bits recently. This is an Elizabeth Zimmerman EPS sweater done in Nature Spun worsted weight in the color Scarlet. This pattern was developed from the Opinionated Knitter. I love how I can make my own patterns. The cuffs and bottom hem are in a knit/purl pattern and the collar is in a k2p2 rib. I also put in bottom hem in gray. I wore it today for the first time - to work - and zowie, was I warm. My mittens are felted with Scarlet trim - just a coincidence, but I am very color coordinated this day. Featured lipstick to coordinate: Earth Red.

Here are close ups:

This was great fun to make. This was the first pattern I made with the EPS system, I liked the tidiness of drafting the underarms together, experimenting the hem and patterns for cuffs and collar was fun, and the fit turned out just how I wanted it.

And lastly, here's a snap of Minnesota winters. You can see the very beginning of snow on the ground in the background. This was Thanksgiving morning and the pic above is not even two weeks later - 5 degrees and 10 inches of snow with more to come.

Knitting hangover

2007-12-04T21:38:00.001-06:00

Have you ever had a knitting hangover? It isn't pretty. I was up until 2 am working on my sock from Knitting Vintage Socks and watching a TV series Kidnapped. I got the DVD from the library and became immediately addicted. Well, this is the aftermath on the next day.

I had been hoping to get my yarn from Knit Picks on Saturday to get started on the Gaffer's Gansey for my dad-in-law during the first Minnesota snow storm. We got about six inches and no new yarn. It did finally arrive today - during our second snow storm, and we're scheduled to have two more by Saturday. Yikes - it is going to be a long and snowy winter. I had a 90 minutes commute home from work - to travel 4 miles. I could have walked home faster. Have I mentioned that I hate taking the bus? But when I got home, I had more problems. The yarn...not good, as we say in Minnesota.

The color for the Gaffer's Gansey is probably too bright for a man. I will have to wait to see the verdict from the recipient.

And my clumsiness with rolling up a hank of lace weight? Also, not good...

But my new project is off to a great start. I am making the Lace Leaf Scarf from the Holiday 2006 issue of Knit Simple out of Andean silk from Knit Picks in Hollyberry. I was going to knit it with the lace weight (seen in the mess above) but I am too mad at that yarn at the moment to include it with this project. After dismissing the lace weight Alpaca Cloud from Knit Picks, I thought I might include the Misti Alpaca in the scarf (seen below). But you will see I am sticking with one yarn - and regular knitting needles to boot. Very old school! This will be a gift for a good colleague at work - someone who has been very generous with her time and support.

In closing, I feel compelled to share with you that Wiley (the cat knitting on Thanksgiving) has developed a large ego after seeing himself on the web. Tobey, his brother, feels he is a much better model and better behaved. I can't say I agree with the better behaved part, but he is a charmer...

The camera adds a few pounds, right?

Back from Thanksgiving

2007-11-27T18:23:00.001-06:00

Just a couple quick pics from Thanksgiving. It was a great week spending time with family and relaxing.

Here's my mom-in-law mastering the kitchener stitch:

Here are her finished socks:

Here's Wiley knitting:

Here's me on Thanksgiving morning - Mark and I had a nice long walk in preparation for all the calories later in the day. This is my first color knitting, first dpn project, and first hat - all in one. I made this a couple years ago.

There are many other Thanksgiving pics that are posted on Flickr. This should be a good month. My father-in-law has requested the "Gaffer's Gansey" sweater from Elizabeth Zimmerman's Knitting workshop.

What a great choice he made - I have had my eye on this pattern for awhile now. We ordered Wool of the Andes from Knit Picks and I am anxious to see that wool. This oughta keep me off the streets during the month of December when I can't stand going near any store for any reason. I will keep y'all abreast of my progress - (especiallly you Steve!)

Moldova, Malaysia, and Manitowoc….oh my!

2007-11-21T09:18:00.000-06:00

I am amazed that in the first days of having a blog, I got comments from knitters in Malaysia, Moldova, and Manitowoc. Thanks to Rain from Malaysia, Nadia from Moldova, and Mary from Manitowoc!

It is getting cold in Minneapolis now and we're just making the real turn from fall into winter. The only good thing about this cooler weather is that I get to start wearing more of my woolie projects. Here is my favorite pair of mittens:

And here's the back:

Project: Norwegian folks mittens from Folk Mittens by Marcia Lewandowski

Yarn: Brown Sheep worsted weight

Needles: I think they were 3s

I finished these mittens last winter, but just recently added a liner with sport weight wool. They are significantly warmer now and the wind doesn't blow through them much. The only thing I don't like about wool mittens like this is that they are slippery on the bus. I don't need to be falling down on the bus while trying to clutch the posts. I am still not adjusted to the bus again. I rode a scooter to work until just recently and loved the 10 minute commute. It takes me 45-60 minutes and two buses to travel 4 miles to work. I know others who knit on the bus, but I have two rather short bus rides and it is difficult to get going on anything. I could walk there in 70 minutes.

Here's my scooter:

I wish I was still riding it - it is cs cool. And I get to park right next to the building I work in on a big University campus. I have the best parking in the warmer months. Until then, I have probably five more months on the stinkin' bus.

Ok, back to knitting....the pair of Norwegian mittens was a learning experience to get good with color knitting and mittens in general. I had just learned to knit and my father-in-law ordered Folk Knitting in Estonia by Nancy Bush for me. It just arrived in the mail not long after the Christmas when I learned to knit. Very cool. This book was too advanced for me and I - size 0 needles for crying out loud! I didn't think I'd ever get there. I think though that my next project will be from that book though. My socks from Vintage Socks are on 0's and I am ready!

Vintage Socks in Fall Leaves

2007-11-18T12:46:00.001-06:00

Most of the leaves have fallen off and the yard needs one more good cleaning before the snow flies. But until that time, the leaves have made a nice backdrop for my most recent project.

Yarn: Trekking XXL
Needles - size 0 circulars
Pattern: Little Child's Socks from Nancy Bush's Knitting Vintage Socks

I really love the color of the yarn and these might be the best socks I have made yet. The gauge and tension is really nice on the size 0's. The pattern is (so far) easily adapted from dpns to circulars. I don't read the entire pattern frequently enough. I usually just jump in and figure that I can figure it out on the way. I haven't had enough bad experiences with that method to change my approach.

Thanksgiving is just a few days away and I am looking forward to one entire glorious week away from work. The husband and I have Wednesday all to ourselves at home. Thursday will be with my family for all the traditional fixins. My mom makes an amazing Thanksgiving spread and we always have the same menu- or we all have a collective meltdown if we don't see our favorite dishes being served. (The cranberry/walnut salad had better be there!)

Then off to my husband's family for five days. I hope the weather's gorgeous and safe. We will be driving to the lovely Kettle Moraine area of Wisconsin. I imagine we will eat good food, drink good beer, maybe play some games, get in a few good brisk walks (or maybe even a hike), I will supervise the kitchener stitch on Sue's (my mother-in-law) socks, and maybe finish the above socks. Have good Thanksgivings!

First Fair Isle Sweater

2007-11-15T18:13:00.000-06:00

I finished this project at the end of last winter - with only enough cool weather to wear this once before spring sprung. This was knit with Nature Spun sport wool on size 4 circulars. The size was developed using EPS. I also made up French cuffs for this. This is nearly identical to the cream version in yesterday's post without the steeking and the buttons.

Camera obscura

2007-11-13T22:37:00.000-06:00

Hey, the camera's not so tough! I took pictures of many of my projects this evening. The photos are alright, but I want to work on getting more accurate color. I thought I'd start by showing some of my earlier projects and work up to my latest and most favorite project to date. But it turns out that my most recently finished project had the best photos. So, here she is.....the Elizabeth Zimmerman fair isle yolk EPS sweater. I am going to post this on Zimmermaniacs and see what others think. It was a first for several things - my first crocheted steeks, my first buttonholes, an i-cord around the entire thing....all in all this took about 8 weeks and I think it is lovely. I wore it to work once - with jeans - and got a couple of compliments. Next stp.....more attractive/creative photos. Until next time....

My first post!

2007-11-13T21:25:00.000-06:00

This is my first post and I have just created this blog tonight. This will no doubt go through several changes until I am satisfied with the look. I have decided to post a pic from one of my favorite vacations with my husband to learn how to do this. It is beautiful Lake Superior.

Now, I need to learn to use my digital camera and can't wait to start getting some good pics of my FOs. I will have pictures of socks and sweaters that I have done over the past couple of years. I started knitting three years ago now and it feels like yesterday! My third project after two scarfs was a three color, fair isle hat, knit on dpns. It was off to the races after that.