don't just stand there, bust a...

one of the things i did while i was rfhs was go through the yarn stash to see what was what.  one of the stash bins stores left over yarns from all of my knitting projects.  while organizing the bin, i discovered a gob of  various bits of sugar 'n cream.

there was a time when i bought a few balls of sugar and cream every time i went to a joann's or michael's.  which resulted in this...

various lily sugar 'n cream yarn

yup.  39+ balls of sugar 'n cream.

some of it was because i knitted a throw rug many years ago.  some of it was to knit a set of pac man washcloths for the big guy when he went to college.  and some of it was just because.

i alloted quite a few balls of s 'n c for another throw rug that is currently on the needles, but there are still quite a few leftover and non leftover sugar 'n cream balls of yarn to contend with.

after a little thought i decided to experiment.  i have never found a practical washcloth pattern.  there are washcloths with hearts on them, or wild geese designs or lacy ones or golden snitch ones.  but i wanted a washcloth that felt a little softer than a loofah, not as soft as store bought.

i grabbed what was left of a lime green ball of yarn, cast on 48 stitches on the suggested size 7 needle and knit one of my all time favorite stitches, seed stitch.  i knit until the yarn ran out which made for a long in width, short in length washcloth.  though the seed stitch gave it that nubby feel i was looking for, after a few uses, the washcloth stretched out to much to be useful.  hmmmm...

thank you gifts

for the next washcloth i cast on 38 stitches with a size 6 needle.  the results of this experiment was much better.  i discovered this width with a length of 7 inches was the perfect size washcloth.  and since the knit was tighter due to the smaller needle size, the washcloth held its shape and nubby-ness.

pretty in pink

so off i went, knitting one washcloth after another.   i decided a washcloth and a beautiful bar of soap would be the perfect thank you gift for those who had been covering for me while i was rfhs.  then i needed to knit a washcloth for each of the girls.  and finally a new one for myself.

the beginning of the face cloth

another discovery i made was that sugar 'n cream was to rough to use on my face.  so i looked through my stash and found a couple of balls of knit picks cotlin yarn.  i cast of 48 stitches on a size 5 needle and knit away.  the cotlin and seed stitch together made a wonderful face cloth that scrubs my face squeaky clean without taking off the first few layers of skin.

best friend washcloth

i doubled the cotlin to make a washcloth for my sweet friends best friend.  38 stitches on a size 6 needle.  the colors were sage green and dark cream.  nice color compliment and she loved the wash cloth.

all in all, i am pretty pleased with these experiments, as well as the ability to get rid of some stash.  and though i am trying very hard to  knit from my stash, i find myself checking to see if knit picks is having a sale on cotlin, just so i can have some yarn for face cloths around, you know, just in case!

here comes peter cotton...

easter at the girl house means loads of chocolate and the ever coveted, jelly-ish jelly beans from See's candy.  This easter was no different.  lots of chocolate and gobs of jelly beans.  but i usually slip a little something else into the easter baskets.  when we first moved to the capitol, i got season passes to the local water park and some lovely beach towels.  it made for a fun way to spend the hot summer.   or it could be something as simple as an iTunes or amazon gift card for music or kindle books.

this year the theme was socks.  while i was recovering from hip surgery (rfhs) i went through and catorgorized my yarn and hibernating projects stash.  one of the hibernating projects was this...

yarn: crystal palace panda cotton solid

pattern: leaf lace socks - evelyn a clark

which is the partner of this....

when the lys closed down many years ago, the proprietor  had knitted the green sock to show off the yarn and the pattern.  my sweet friend fell in love with the sock.  unfortunately, there was no green yarn left in that yarn type, so she chose her next favorite color from the yarn that remained.  hence, the two different sock colors.

i was a little concerned about the pattern, i thought it was beyond my skill level.  in her respectfully drone way, the proprietor advised i just follow the pattern and it would all work out.  so i did and it did!  to this day, i still hear her voice in my head whenever i start hyper-ventalating about a supposed difficult pattern. i have learned to just followed the pattern and let it work out.  the up side is my sweet friend loves the sock and i finished a long hibernating project!  double yay!

in further news, this morning marked the passing of this years easter.  i started the day with my favorite breakfast, toasted bagel with sliced hard boiled egg...

i used one of the last of the easter eggs to make this delicacy which was very tasty, btw.  it made me question why the coloring of hard boiled eggs is done only at easter.  why not the rest of the year?  new techniques can be experimented with so future easter eggs can be more colorful, artistic, fun!  i am seriously considering coloring eggs throughout the year, experimenting with new methods to put to use for future easters.  suggestions welcomed!  i won't mention that i am thinking of making bagels!

done with you

it seems a bit anti climatic now.   i am not sure what i was working on the last couple of weeks that prevented sharing of the FO's.  but it did.

the ridge cowl, purl soho

the cowl that never ends is DONE!  though i would have liked to have put it in a tub of soak to "bloom", my sweet friend was extremely anxious to have it keep her neck warm in the mornings.  so i let her.  and she loves it. she keeps it in her bag so she can whip it out at any given moment in order to wear it.  and i have to say, it looks great on her...

she wears it with a little more sass then in this picture, makes it a little more of her own.  however it is worn, it looks great and i am really pleased with how it came out.  the yarn is very light but warm and gives the cowl a lot of movement.  whenever she wears it i am  amazed at how great it looks.  but i will never make another one.

maybe i should qualify that by saying i love the pattern and i love the yarn, but i will never put them together again.  ever.

berroco foilo yarn, pearl and mount desert

the pattern called for a bulky yarn.  and though i like the movement this thinner yarn gives the cowl, i had my challenges with the yarn and the pattern as a unit.  i think if the yarn had been bulky the stitch pattern would have been easier to read and i would have been able to keep track better.  yet this yarn is so lovely!  lovely to work with and even lovelier to wear.  i still have a ball of each color way left over and i can't wait to figure out what i should use them for.

still, the cowl is done, my sweet friend loves it and i can move on to other knitting.

which i did.

neck and neck with finishing the cowl, i finished the first sock in the pair i am knitting for myself.  it is wonderful and i love it!

zig zag lace sock
colorway, nemo

the last couple of pairs of socks have been for the big guy and the best sister ever.  both pairs were short, sport type socks which means they were basically a few rows of cuff, an immediate heel flap and turn and then the foot of the sock.  just basic knitting.  i had forgotten how i love to knit socks with a lacy pattern.  something with a little interest and design.  especially when knit with a soft, squishy yarn, which makes it even more fun.

the pattern was one size fits all and i was concerned it would be a bit small, but it is really the perfect size.  i have already turned the heel and finished the gusset on the second sock.  which is very exciting since it means it is almost done.  which means i would then have a pair;  which means i can wear them!

the last thing i made was a baby hat.  i don't knit for babies but a friend of ours is having a baby in march and i thought it could use a hat or two.  so this is the first...

baby hat with top knot
sidar snuggly

this was a very quick knit.  it is easy to forget how small people are when they are born which makes their articles of clothing small.  as well as being easy and quick to knit.  hopefully she and the baby will like it.

my gauge was off a smidge on this one so it came out a little bigger than i planned.  i am thinking of knitting another hat that will be smaller.  different pattern, different gauge.

but it won't happen until next week, after the valentine knitting is done!

may i introduce to you...

the last couple of christmas' i have made hats for everyone in the girl house.  even the big guy, though he is a guy and technically doesn't live here.  last years hat was the vermonter, which was a very quick knit, considering i am the slowest knitter on the planet.

as i was wondering if i should continue with the hats for christmas tradition, the best sister ever made it quite clear she was expecting a hat for christmas.

that being said, i decided  it was going to be a slouchy hat.  i had been wanting a slouchy hat for awhile.  i had already started searching ravelry, favorite-ing quite a few slouchy hat patterns.  in the end, the pattern i chose for us came to me through a classic elite yarn email.  it was the fresco simple slouchy hat.   i saw it and knew it was the one.

hat for the best sister ever.  colorway, sea green

fresco refers to the classic elite yarn used.  i am not one for using the suggested yarn on a pattern, but i had also received an email from Webs which listed discontinued fresco yarn colors at 50% off.  the least i could do was take a peek.  plus, the yarn was a blend of wool, baby alpaca and angora.  so yummy.   there were three color ways listed i was willing to gamble on, a different color for each of us.  so i made the purchase, hoped the yarn would would be wonderful and arrive before christmas.

which it did, just barely.  and it was all shades of wonderful. soft and warm.  the colors were much richer than the online color swatches.  i loved it and i knew the girls would.  now i just needed to knit it up perfectly.  no pressure.

while knitting,  i was concerned others would not be as enamoured with a slouchy hat as i was.  or maybe they wouldn't like the yarn, or the color i had chosen for them.  so i just continued knitting.

hat for my sweet friend.  colorway, fern

though i missed the christmas deadline, i knitted all through christmas weekend.  my sweet friend kept asking what i was knitting.  i kept giving her vague answers.  and then the first hat was done.  this one was for the best sister ever.  and she loved it.  she thought it was the perfect hat.  she wears it all the time.  it is warm and she loved the color.  and she loves bragging to all that her sister knit it for her.  relief.

on to hat number two.  this one was for my sweet friend.  it happened to be the same colorway pictured on the pattern.  which is an ideal color for her.   it is beautiful.  though she is not prone to hats, she does wear this one.  she loves the color and rocks the style.  it looks great on her.  relief again.

my hat.  colorway, mallard blue

now on to the third hat, mine.  other than a technical challenge mentioned in an earlier blog, this hat is a dream.  i love the color.  it is a mixture of both blue and green, like the duck it is named after.  it is rich and jewel like.  and it slouches just the way i wanted it to.  i love it.

for the moment i am glad to be done with the hats. but even more, i am thankful for our silly little tradition.  i get to knit a bit of love for those i love while keeping heads warm during the cold winters. as well as bringing much joy and delight.  and that, after all, is the most important thing.

it's been a hard...

in the past few days i have finished the first sock, have finished the never ending cowl and whipped up a baby hat for a friend.   pictures, etc., to come.

i plan on starting the second sock, a more casual hat for AP and a very simple, one skein of bulky yarn cowl for me.

but i find i am stalling at the cast on.

yeesh!

it is the cowl that never ends...

my sweet friend has a box of clothes sent to her monthly.   these clothes are well made chic pieces that can be a bit pricy.  she picks the pieces she likes and sends the rest back within a certain time frame.  in octobers box was a black and white cowl made from a yarn that was 100% acrylic.

my sweet friend fell in love with it.  she thought it was the best thing ever.  i told her i could knit her a cowl since the price for the 100% acrylic yarn cowl was a bit much. i thought buying  an acrylic yarn at a local craft store would be less then purchasing the clothing box cowl.  and my knitting it would be a money saver. she agreed and sent the cowl back.

then began the adventure...

after weeks of searching ravelry for the perfect cowl pattern, she found one that met her criteria.  we were now ready to choose yarn.  i gave my sweet friend the choice of going to a yarn store or going to a craft store for yarn that was similar to the box cowl.  being the daughter of a yarn store junky, she picked a yarn store.  so off to the LYS we went.  the pattern called for an amazing amount of bulky yarn, none of which was catching her eye since the yarn of the cowl she liked was two toned and none of the bulky yarn at the LYS was.  i then suggested getting two different color DK weight yarns which i would hold together as i knit so the cowl could have two colors.  she thought this a good idea, picked out a yarn she liked in two different colors and off we went.

now, every experience i have had with holding two different yarns together while knitting has ended in tangles with me trying to sort through them.  cursing may have been involved.  this time i decided to put the different yarns in seperate paper bags like everyone suggests.  then i could put a bag on either side of whatever chair i was sitting in when kitting.

on to gauge.  i used the suggested needle size and it looked like i was knitting air.  so i kept swatching with smaller needle sizes until i found the size that gave me the drape i was looking for and maybe close to the gauge i needed.  maybe.

finally i was ready to cast on.  but since the needle size was smaller i was concerned i would need to cast on more stitches then called for to meet the 60" length criteria.  technically, if my gauge was spot on, i wouldn't need more stitches.  but my gauge wasn't spot on so the hysterical, non-rational side of my brain thought it best to add a few stitches.  which i did.  to the tune of 100 more.  just in case.

the original cast on called for 196 stitches.  adding 100 to that made it 296 stitches.  obviously, my hysteria got carried away.  i  rationalized it by being concerned about the cowl length.  the extra 100 stitches helped alleviate that concern.

so i cast on half of the stitches (296 IS a lot of stitches) before going into surgery.  i took this project with me since we had to stay in so-cal during the surgery process.  after surgery i finished casting on and started to knit.  and though the pattern is a simple two row stitch repeat, having to knit said pattern on 296 stitches was more than my mind on pain killers could maneuver.  the first inch of the cowl, though fine, reflects my muddled mind.  the spines are fine, but there is some mushiness in-between.   not to mention there is a total of 297 stitches.  yup.  so much for counting while on pain meds.

nearly two months later, i am still knitting this cowl.  the pattern calls for a knitting width of 15 inches;   this would make the finished cowl 60" long and 15" wide.  at first this seemed entirely reasonable.  each ball of yarn produced about 5.25 ish inches of knitted width.  since i had 3 balls of each color i figured that would be perfect, i would hold both colors together, use all 6 balls and when they were gone, be at the needed width.  but as i continued to knit, i realized 15 inches doubled around the neck is good if the neck is as longs as a giraffes, but may be a bit overwhelming for a mere mortal.  i decided finishing the cowl after knitting 2 balls of each color yarn would be fine.  this would have the cowl end up at 10.5 ish inches in width.

i am 1/3 of a  ball of yarn away from being done.  the cowl is currently 7.75 ish inches in width and i can't seem to knit fast enough to be able to finish it.  though the pattern is easy, it can get tricky if i am not paying attention.  i lost a stitch when i added the second ball and never made it up.  for some reason i thought it would be okay until 3-4 rows in i noticed it was really not ok.  so i had to un-knit the 3-4 rows.  which doesn't sound like much until you realize each row is 297 stitches.  you do the math.  yup, tell me about it.

i have gotten much better at reading the stitches so mistakes get caught and corrected much quicker.  and i learned when knitting an item with so many stitches, it is not a bad idea to put stitch markers every so often to make sure the knitting is on track (this came from having to correct the joining of the second ball).

and though the yarn cost a bit more than the box cowl, not to mention my time, i have to say, the cowl is lovely.  the yarn is 90% alpaca and 10% nylon.  the alpaca makes it extremely soft to the touch and the nylon helps it keep its shape.  it holds the stitches well.  the colors are grey and white which makes the cowl interesting and textured.  i know my sweet friend will love it.  i know i do.  i just have to finish the blasted thing!

pattern:  the fluted cowl by purl soho    yarn: berroco folio in pearl and mount desert.

and i shall name them squishy...

i love knitting socks.  and i love knitting a sock with a little bit of a lace design.  it just makes me happy.

i recently started this...

the pattern is zig-zag lace pedi socks by michele bernstein (sorry, couldn't link the pattern, just the designer).  i thought i wanted a pedi sock for winter pedicures and found this pattern on ravelry.  simple (i can follow the lace chart, which is saying something!), easy to memorize and keep track of.  just enough design to make the sock fun to knit and pretty to look at.  my only challenge is remembering i have to purl in the "knitting row".

though i wanted a pedi sock, i chose to knit the full foot version.  why?  because of this yarn.  i fell in love with the yarn the moment i unwrapped it from its mailing packaging.  what is it?  kells sport from three irish girls, color way, Nemo.  yup.  it is warm and soft and squishy and lovely to work with.  the colors are beautiful and it holds the pattern well.  i rarely work with a sport weight yarn for socks but i could become addicted.  it makes for a much faster knit.  i am almost done with the first sock!  i can't wait to finish them, i want to wear them everyday!!

but, please, don't tell my sweet friend.  she wants me to finish knitting her cowl!

my kingdom for 5 1/2 inches....

i was in the midst of knitting my christmas hat (full explanation in upcoming post).  this was the last  of three hats i was knitting of this pattern and yarn (see above (...) ).

i kept wondering why the hat was looking like a tube and why the yarn wasn't being consumed as it had in the previous two hats .  i needed to knit 5 1/2 inches and then start the decreases for the crown.  just as i got to 5 1/2 inches i realized i hadn't done the increase round right after the 1 inch of 2x2 ribbing,  5 1/2 inches ago. which is why the hat looked like a tube and not as much yarn was being used.

holy knitting blunders, batman!

so i frogged back to the ribbing, picked up the frogged stitches with a size 0 needle.  un-knit for a few rows to make sure no stitches were dropped and everything was where it was supposed to be.  and then i knit on.                                                         

by the end of the day i had knit 2+ inches.  the hat no longer looked like a tube and the right amount of yarn was being used.

yup, that is how we roll here...

resistance is futile...

when we moved into the girl house 4 years ago, we thought it would be a temporay situation.   we thought once i found a job we would find our own place.  but between a and b, life changed and we find ourselves still at the girl house.

since we thought it temporary, we never really made our room our own.  so over the years, as we collected things, we made do with putting them where ever we could.  which made the room chaotic.  a couple of weeks ago, my sweet friend organized her side of the room.  this inspired me to do the same.

this inspiration forced me to deal with all of the yarn i had purchased over the past four years.

yup.

i already have four large bins of yarn items: two actually hold the yarn stash; one holds knitting project yarn leftovers and one holds WIP's that have been momentarily shelved.  as i purchased new yarn, i either used it or put it aside until i could take a picture and list it in my ravelry stash page.

and then there is the sock yarn.  i love knitting socks and i always wanted to be part of a sock club. except i found most sock clubs wanting.  that is until i came across the three irish girls sock club.  their sock club allows me to choose whether i want their monthly sock yarn offering or not.  i really like their yarn so i find myself enticed by their monthly offerings more often then not.  they also have special sales on a regular basis.  and since i have been part of their sock club for the last two plus years, this made for a lot of sock yarn.  take a look...

though the yarn piled here is a bit more than sock yarn, the majority is sock yarn.  sigh...

so i organized this pile, took individual pictures and listed it all in my ravelry stash.  i then put the pile away in my almost overflowing bins before any one came home.  if they knew how much yarn i had, they would 1) demand i knit them socks non stop or 2) never allow me to buy another skein  of yarn.  which would not do because i just received the monthly sock club email from three irish girls. and, as to be expected,  there are a couple of beautiful color way options calling my name.  

sigh...

hello...it's me...

i felt the urge about a year ago as i was perusing the latest edition of knitty.com.  i came across this amazing sock pattern that was designed by a young man from utah.  his patterns are beautiful but it was his blog that hooked me.  it was so teenager, simple and pure.  all i could think of was how much i missed writing and how i should start up again.

but i didn't.

so here i am, recovering from having a hip replaced.  i can't drive for another 2-4 weeks so i find myself sitting around a bunch, watching west wing and downton abbey and knitting.  lots and lots of knitting.

and i think, maybe now is the time.  i hope i can keep up.

everybody's workin' for the...

so i got a job.  yup.  and i am thankful and glad.  it is great becoming part of a new community;  it is great doing something i enjoy and i am having fun.  the challenging side is i am scheduled to work 55 hours a week.  yup.  scheduled.  for 55 hours.  a week.  and i do that, if not more.  yup.  i am an hr slave.

sigh.  so it goes.

but i get to knit.  during lunch, in the break room.  or i walk to the nearby taco bell, buy a drink and sit and knit.  while knitting in the break room the other day, i met another knitter. a young man who makes up his own patterns.  we discovered we have knitted the same boy hats.  small knitting world.

the second week into the job, i went to the car to drive to work and noticed things looked a bit odd inside the car, like everything had been rummaged through.   i have this habit of leaving the windows down an inch or so.  well apparently someone worked that inch or so to break into the car.  as a rule i don't leave many things in the car.  but the day before, i had left my trusty yellow tote in the car.  in the trusty yellow tote were a bunch of work files, various little cosmetic type bags filled with items like band aids, neosporin, wipes, extra phone charger, all my cool pens and markers and, most horrifically, my knitting bag.  the thief left the bunch of work files, but took everything else.  including my knitting bag.  and inside the knitting bag was a lovely pair of socks i was knitting for my sister.  i had just turned the second heel, which meant i was on the home stretch. needless to say, i was beyond unhappy.  not only for losing my trusty tote, which i adored, but for losing my knitting.  why would anyone take knitting?  especially since the knitting pattern was left with all the work stuff!  it's not like the thief is going to finish knitting the socks!

this happened almost two months ago and as you can see, i am not quite over losing my knitting.  i have thought of going to the local knitting stores in hopes some non-knitter who may have come across the trusty yellow tote that had a blue and white flowered bag with knitting inside would have taken it to an LYS since they didn't know how to knit.  but it just sounds so...desperate or irrational to do that when i should be letting go and moving on.

i have had my sister pick out a new sock yarn from the ones i had in my stash.  and i will find a suitable pattern for her that will look good in the yarn.  but...

and so in honor of the socks that will never be finished, here is a picture of the one that was finished and the one i was working on.  deets:  sock yarn:  panda cotton;  colorway(s):  misty green and dotty pastel ( i was making one in each colorway; long story);  pattern:  soybean sock by christobel seneque.  lovely pattern, easy to memorize, worked well with the softness of the yarn and it was really cute.   i may make it again using this yarn.  but i will never leave it or any other knitting  in the car again!

socks, socks, socks, socks...

i now understand why people love to wear hand knit socks. it is like walking on a little slice of heaven that keep feet and toes toasty warm.  there is a strong temptation to wear hand knit socks 24/7, which is good in theory, but.....  how do i know this, because after years of knitting socks for other people, i have finally finished a couple of pairs for me.  yeah. so excited. here are the deets...


the first pair is a short sock, knit from crystal palaces panda cotton print. this yarn is mostly bamboo, some cotton and a touch of elastic.  i came up with the pattern myself, and i am not thrilled with it.  one, the pattern is to big and the yarn is very soft and floppy which makes for a big, soft and  floppy sock.  two, since the sock is big, soft and floppy, it slips and slides on my foot, which is a bit annoying.  i even washed them by machine and threw them into the dryer for a few moments in hopes they would shrink up.  no such luck. they trick me into being semi-fitting, but once i wear them for awhile, turn back into big, soft and floppy.  and, since they are short, my ankles get cold.  but i learned a lot about pattern making, which i will hopefully retain for the next time i decide to punt on a pattern.

i got the yarn during the lys', "last month in existence sale", last summer.  for some irrational and un-explainable reason i thought one 170 yd ball of yarn would be enough yarn for two short socks.  i have no idea what i was thinking because if i had thought about it for more than two seconds, i would have realized this wasn't enough yarn and purchased accordingly.  as it was, i did not realize it wasn't enough yarn until i was rather close to the toe of the first sock.  since i no longer had the lys, i had to find a reasonable facsimile yarn.  to the web i went where jimmy beans had gobs of this yarn for dirt cheap (since it was being discontinued).  so i bought a bunch to make it worth the shipping charges.  unfortunately none of the colors matched what i had previously purchased.  so necessity being the mother of invention, i decided i would make the cuff and toe out of one color with the body of the sock out of the other color.  then i would flip the scheme on the other sock.  i have done this before with very cute results.  except it was better in theory then in reality for this colorway.  not real excited about it.  and though i like the feel of the yarn, it splits...a lot.  which can be a bit of a challenge when k2tog or ssk-ing.  so on the whole, i give these socks a 4 out of 10.


the second pair was on the needles for over two years only because knitting gift projects was more of a priority.  the yarn is a sockpixie merino sock and the colorway is collette.  i have to say, i love this yarn, as i love all of sockpixies yarns.  the colorway was from her french women writers series.  being a huge collette fan, i am thankful i answered the call of the yarn.  the yarn itself is soft and squishy, easy to work with, looks great when washed, durable (read below) and beautifully dyed, even when the colors pool (which i really don't worry about).  i am sorry sockpixie yarns are no longer consistently available, because i am a big fan.


the original plan for this yarn was to knit a pattern from charlene schurchs, sensational knitted socks.  since i had recently completed a 4 stitch pattern, i wanted to expand my horizons to a 6 or more stitch pattern.  so i picked a pattern, cast on, and knitted away.  the 2x2 rib looked GREAT in the colorway, but would lose its spirit once it got to the actual pattern.  so i frogged, picked another pattern and repeated above. i did this about five times, even consciously acknowledging on the fifth try that the 2x2 rib looked great while the pattern fell flat.  after the fifth frog, the light bulb went off...the colorway looks great in a 4 stitch pattern!  duh!!  so i picked a 4 stitch pattern and the socks came to life.


the openwork rib pattern was simple with a touch of yarn-overs for some interest.  plus it was easy to memorize and keep track of so i could take it with me everywhere.

i find that socks knit from this book are a gem.  their construction makes sense, they are easy to knit and the finished product wears well.  if there wasn't an abundance of amazing sock patterns available, i would be quite content to knit every sock pattern out of this book.  i would even consider learning the toe up method...well, not really.

i love these socks and find every excuse to wear them.  and since i am from northern california and can legitimately wear socks with my birkenstock sandals, i show these socks off every chance i get.  yup, being a sock knitter is pretty fun!

i'm dreaming of a...

since relocation, i have been looking for a job non-stop. seriously non-stop.  so a week or so before christmas, when i was totally stressed about lack of funds for holiday celebrating, i realized i had time to knit.  like, time to knit actual christmas presents without having to stay up all night.  and since the people i was knitting for worked during the day, i could knit all day on their presents and they would never know!  wow! a novel concept.

the goal was to use yarn from my stash.  everyone in the girl house needed items to keep their hands warm.  i knew i had some rowan cocoon in the loveliest shade of gray (#803-scree) that i could use for fingerless mitts for my favorite sister. i looked through ravelry for a pattern and found joelene wiggins' "cabled fingerless mitts" pattern and decided to give it a whirl.  it is a lovely pattern that was a easy, quick knit.  and i mean quick.  as the slowest knitter on the planet, when i can knit a pair of mitts in three days, that is a quick knit.

i did do some mods though. i made the mitt longer as a whole, cuff was a total of 3 inches long;  added an extra cable repeat so the mitt hand would be longer;  added 2-3 rows of ribbing to cover the fingers more; did extra rows on the thumb, and switched cables on the hands so they weren't the same.  they came out wonderfully.  the yarn is warm and soft with just the right amount of bulk to hold the pattern but still comfortable to wear.

my sweet friend saw what i was knitting for her aunt and fell in love with them. in fact she wanted to wear  them all the time.  the original plan was to make her  mittens out of a frog tree sport weight alpaca that i had in my stash, and use sock pixies - pixie warmers pattern.  but it just wasn't calling my name.  i started it and it seemed so airy and light i felt it wouldn't keep the hands as warm as the cocoon would.

and though i am not fond of making the same pattern twice, i knew she loved the pattern and the yarn.  so i scraped some money together and bought another skein of cocoon.  this time in a beautiful teal (#813-seascape).  and they are stunning.  i love the color and so did she.

thankfully both girls love their mitts and wear them all the time.  which brings me to the big guy.  who walked in the door two days before christmas and announced he could really use a black beanie.  seriously!?  you couldn't have let me know sooner?

so i dive into my stash.  first off, i don't have any black yarn so i go for some misti alpaca baby suri alpaca and silk in a dark gray.  i tried it with a couple of simple rib patterns but it wasn't calling my name. so using some christmas money i bought a hank of malabrigo twist, but not in black.  after a bit of thought, i decided to exchange it for a hank of black since black was what he wanted, instead of a colorway i wanted to knit with.

the pattern was elizabeth heath-heckmans, "the boy hat".  a wonderful pattern;   another quick and easy knit.  the only thing was it came out a bit short.  since the big guy isn't living in the girl house, i was unable to measure the hat on his head while it was being knitted.  and though i measured the big guys head numerous ways to ensure i would get the beanie length correct, it was much shorter than i anticipated.  a case of should have trusted the pattern instructions.  he likes and wears it, but it does need to be longer.

after the holiday celebrations, i decided i needed a pair of fingerless mitts.  i had long lusted over the maine morning mitts in claire parks "book of yarn".  my plan was to use some rowan cashsoft aran in a very delicate pink.  got the right gauge and off i went.  for a little while.  after knitting with the bulky yarn and seeing how soft and wonderful it was, i wanted something like it.  so i frogged what i knit, added a cashsoft dk in a very delicate lavender to the mix, got the right gauge and off i went.  i was in love.  i was concerned they would be a little stiff since two strands of yarn were being used and hoped they would soften up with wear/use.  they were and they did.  i love them.  i wear them all the time.  i did not bind off in pattern so i have a ridge at the top.  i sort of like it, though in the future i will probably bind off in pattern.

it was nice to knit things in time for holiday gift giving.  the recipients really appreciated it.  still could use a job though!

(oh, and btw, i only have one sister. just in case you thought i was playing favorites!)

and so it is christmas...

i am living in a girls house.  no i haven't been sent there because of the bad things i do, but because my life has changed.  my sweet friend and i relocated to my sisters house which is about 1.5 hours from where we used to live.  the big guy is still there, staying with friends who offered a room so he could continue the life he is making for himself.  and the person who used to be my husband lives on the coast across country from here.

so we are experiencing new perspectives.  i am relearning things that somehow got lost in the shuffle.  and i am trying to be at peace.

knitting helps.  it keeps me focused and quiet; creating something lovely for someone,  maybe even me.

and though i know everything happens for a reason and it will all work out in the end, this transition makes me feel blurry and unfocused.

and so i keep knitting.  i have most of my knitting items here;  i think there is a box of knitting books in storage which i could probably locate if needed, but for the most part, i have what i need to continue creating things.  and i have the love and support of my children and friends.  that is quite a gift at christmas.  may your holidays be as full.

somewhere beyond the sea...

i love yarn overs.  they're cute, they're decorative and they are easy to do.  they were in the first item i knitted.  i think they add a little something to a project.  and they are the first step to lace knitting.

i have always been drawn to knitting lace, heaven knows why since i can't read charts.  but ever since i started knitting i have been entranced by lace patterns. a hint of lace is what draws me to a pattern. i have books on lace and have downloaded gobs of  lace patterns. i look at them longingly, aching to cast on, until i break out into a cold sweat when reading a pattern that is all charts.  sigh.

a few years ago while participating in my first swap, i was introduced to the pattern "blossom".  this is a easy lace pattern shawl.  it was designed for hand maiden sea silk yarn which is a beautiful yarn made of silk and a sea weed derivative.  it is beautiful, believe me.  my swap buddy gave me a hank of the yarn and suggested the pattern.  i was mesmerized.  the yarn was so amazingly blue and shimmery.  and the pattern!  it was nothing but double yarn overs!  i was in heaven.

but i didn't cast on.

i can't remember how it happened, it must have been because i was working at the LYS and the yarn was on sale, but i decided to make my mother the blossom shawl out of elsbeth lavolds silky wool.  this is a tweedy looking wool, but very soft when knit up.  and when it is washed, it is quite lovely.

the shawl took me quite a while.  i couldn't figure out how to keep track of where i was in the seven row repeat.  and i couldn't find my rhythm in the various double yarn over and k2tog patterns so was continually having to rip my knitting;  i also had a challenging time reading my knitting so when i made a mistake i couldn't figure out where i made it, i just knew a mistake had been made because the pattern ended incorrectly.  somewhere in the fifth repeat of the pattern  i got to a place where everything was correct, i knew where i was and i put the project aside.


fast forward two-ish years. i decide it is time to clean up some unfinished projects so out comes blossom.  i figure out where i am, glance at the pattern and off i go.  amazing what a few more years of knitting experience teaches you. not only did i find my rhythm in the various double yarn over patterns, but i could also read my knitting and correct my mistakes.  amazing!  i was so thankful.  so i finish the shawl and gift it to my mother;  who loved it!  the color and fit were perfect for her!  she couldn't wait to wear it to church!

(commercial break for some yarn deets:  yarn:  elsebeth lavold silky wool;  color:  #24, claret (discontinued); yardage: 192 yds per skein; close to 3 skeins used.)

finishing my moms blossom meant i could now start mine.  eagerly i cast on the sea silk.  quickly i discover how slippery silk is.  wow!  i was instantly thankful i had made blossom out of a heftier yarn first because this yarn was so slippery on the needle.  stitches regularly slip under the markers or under other stitches so i have to pay attention to which stitch is where and are they all accounted for.

but can i tell you how beautiful this yarn is.  it is like running water.  the picture doesn't do it justice since it does not catch the light or the oh so slight variegations in the yarn.  it is so lovely.  and it shimmers.  the picture is one repeat over half-way done.  i am at the stage where i think i will have gobs of yarn left over and then the pattern explodes into bigness and sucks up all the yarn.  pretty soon it will barely fit the 26" circulars it is on.  at that point i will need to be very careful not to make mistakes.  knitting back over hundreds of stitches to correct a mistake is not my idea of a good time!  but on the other hand, i can't wait.  it is closer to being finished then not being finished, which makes me more anxious to finish it which makes me more prone to make a mistake.  sigh.  i'll keep you posted.

a whiter shade of...

i have this thing about weird greens.

i am not really drawn to the color green much, but it seems to be drawn to me. and it can't be a regular green, it has to be a weird shade of green. it seems that i can wear weird greens, they look good on me. which is an odd and good thing since weird greens are usually the last thing to sell on a sale/clearance rack. whether it be for clothes or yarn.

i have always wanted to knit the paris loop which calls for bulky yarn. and while the lys was having its "last month in existence sale", i thought i would check out the bulky yarn shelf. and what was on it but this...

yup, weird green yarn. gobs of it. thankfully it was a yarn i have always wanted to work with, classic elites sprout, a 100% organic cotton yarn. i usually find cotton yarns a bit rough but this one is soft and cuddly so i was glad to have the opportunity to work with it.

so i cast on. and even though the pattern said it fits every body, i decided to add 20 stitches. just in case.

bad idea. this pattern turns out big, very big. so big that when i first tried it on, it slipped off my shoulders and landed on the floor big. it would have been big even if i hadn't added the 20 stitches, so with the 20 stitches it was even bigger than big.

so i went down to the local joannes fabric and got some cord. i wove the cord in and out of the 2nd row of knitting so i could tighten up the poncho as needed and ta-da! it fits!

i am so glad. because i love the way it turned out. the pattern is so easy it is like a knitting vacation. and i loved working with the yarn. it felt good going through my fingers and it knit up really well. the poncho felt soft and comforting in my lap as it became bigger with my continued knitting.

my original concerns in knitting with a cotton yarn is that it would not be soft and it would not have enough give. both unfounded. the yarn is very soft and has lots of give. as well as being pretty warm. i thought cotton would be a nice, light wrap for summer, but because of the yarns bulky-ness it is heavy and and keeps me warm, even with our cool evening windiness.

i find myself wearing it all the time. yup, i'll have an order of weird green please. thanks!

btw: this last picture does not reflect the actual color of this garment. the middle picture is a much better representation of the actual color. just so you know!

trying to make the grass grow greener

i like plants. i think they add something to a home.

for a long time i had a whole window sill of african violets. there wasn't a good windowsill for them in the new house. they gave it a good try, but the sun won out in the end.

late last summer, we got a puppy who chewed and dug out all of the house plants i had thriving in a corner of the dining room. thankfulluy i was able to salvage one of the christmas cactus'.

she then started on the outside succulents and begonias. i wasn't happy. but, like babies, puppies have no clue. especially this one. so i continued to water and fertilize those poor stumps of plants, hoping they would come back.

the winter storms took care of winter watering. and i started watering and fertilizing after the rains finally stopped. yesterday i went onto the patio and walked out to these.

i love begonias. they are funny little plants that never give up. they are so glad for some attention and care, they just bloom their happiness.

and thankfully they survive being chewed by a puppy.

now if i could do something about the roses....

the beat goes on...

the last month the lys was open for business they had a sale. it started with merchandise being 30% off; then 40% off and finally 50% off. and though the end of the sale meant the end of the lys, the sale, and the lys, was pretty fun while it lasted.

i had gone into the store a few times during that last month. most of the time, just to sit, knit and chat while i still had the chance. but these visits always turned into scouting for yarn opportunities. and since the yarn was on sale, i would sometimes pick up a ball of this, a skein of that, knowing that my big purchase(s) were yet to be decided. finally, on the last week the lys was open, i purchased big.

sock yarn was my first choice but it was also the first to go, which meant i needed to get creative on what type of yarn i was willing to make socks out of. to this end, i bought panda cotton and bunny hop.

my sweet friend came to shop with me and fell in love with the "leaf lace sock" sample the owner had knitted up. only one sock was knitted which meant if my sweet friend wanted a pair to wear, i would need to knit the second sock. so the pattern was purchased as well as the panda cotton yarn it was knitted in.

i have a total jones for frog tree yarn. i also have a shawl jones. coincidentally the lys had quite the selection of frog tree. they also had a sample of "the scallop shawl" which just happened to be knit up in a frog tree sportweight colorway that was on the shelf. so to indulge both jones', i purchased the pattern and the yarn. the purple frog tree was purchased during one of the scouting visits. it was the last ball in that colorway and just to lovely to pass up!

the last yarn i purchased that day was some classic elite sprout. i love shawls and poncho type garments and had always wanted to knit stefanie japel's paris loop which calls for bulky yarn. which sprout happens to be. so there you have it.

this purchase was well within the "budget" i had set for myself. which meant i had money left over. how lucky was that? it also meant i could go back to the lys to make some last minute purchases. so two days before the lys would close forever i found myself back at the store. i decided on two skeins of raspberry/lavender frog tree which complimented the dark purple frog tree purchased earlier with hopes of pairing both in knitting some fingerless gloves. i also planned on checking if clara parkes book of yarn was available since it has a pattern for fingerless gloves i find myself consistently drawn to. much to my surprise, one copy was available. and at 50% off! score!

so with this final purchase, along with many hugs and thank yous, i said goodbye to the lys and its owners one final time. i miss them all terribly but am thankful for the time we shared together.

the end of an era...

the LYS closed this week.

it is the end of an era. after six years of having an LYS within walking or biking distance from my home, i now have to drive to another city for my knitting needs. this makes me sound like a whiner, i know, but my local LYS was part of my knitting community. it may not be easy to replace.

the LYS was my supplier, my teacher, my part time work place and my refuge. i learned from the owner(s) and from my fellow knitters. having a knitting community was fun. it was also my safety net. i knew if i needed an explanation or found myself in a mess of trouble, someone at the LYS would guide me out of it. and i would learn something along the way.

my LYS community supported and challenged me. they oohed and ahhed over items i made and suggested things i would never think of making, but then would, and successfully, too! they kept me abreast of the newest patterns, the coolest yarns and the juiciest local news.

how can that be replaced?

i will miss my LYS, but more than that, i will miss the camaraderie of fellow knitters and the combined knowledge they are so willing to share.

best of luck in your future endeavors, LYS owners. you will be greatly missed.

in the still of the night...

i should not be allowed to make knitting decisions between midnight and 6am. though they are usually technically sound, they keep me awake way to late.

this morning's decision was frogging the hat from hell, yes the r2d2 hat. the big guys christmas present. the one that was supposed to take two-ish days to knit.

i thought of taking pictures of how the hat looked...which was cute, a bit pinched due to the strands on the inside being a bit tight, they were neat, but tight. i also thought of taking pictures of the piles of tangled, frogged blue and gray yarn, but it was very late, or early depending on your perspective, so i will leave it to your imagination on how tangled and twisted the yarn looked; sort of a combination of that weird octopus creature that pulled frodo out of moria and davy jones' beard, only in blue and gray.

sigh. so i am starting over. this time instead of strand knitting i will knit stripes and embellish once the hat is done. don't worry, i will keep you posted...