Sunday, February 29, 2004

I took advantage of this extra February day to finish one of my pending projects:

That's my father-in-law's knee warmer, ready to be delivered.  I'm modeling it OVER my pants this time, to spare you the glare.

I missed my guild's weekend yarn shopping trip to Grand Rapids in order to do the mom thing -- there were three basketball games to attend.  On our way home from the third game, I talked my family into running by the button store.  Why?  Because I needed some buttons, silly!  Oh, you mean, why did I need buttons?  Well, I've been doing a bit o' knittin'.  A big bit o' knittin', actually.

Remember the garter stitch rectangle that was my Einstein Coat?  Well it's a tad more than a rectangle now:

I worked on the second sleeve during the Oscars tonight.  Another couple of days, and this one will be done!  Unfortunately, I still need buttons, because the ones I picked up today were the wrong shade of blue.

And the second set of buttons I bought don't show very well in this next photo (they're that iridescent, mother-of-pearly sea-shelly kind of thing, and match the yarn perfectly):

Nor does the yarn, which is teals and purples with sparkly gold and silver -- Trendsetter Dune in color 86.  When did I get that, you ask?  Um, Friday.  It was kind of an impulse buy.  I'm making a fluffy, sparkly sweater, which is very unlike me, but my hormones are all out of whack, and I couldn't help it.  Here it is so far: 

It's missing the back, and sleeves, and the collar, but I was so excited about it that I had to sew the buttons on already.  More photos to follow, as the sweater progresses (which will be quickly, at 3.5 stitches to the inch).

So how could I have not seen ANY of the movies nominated for Best Picture?  Of all the nominees listed here (link removed), the only ones I've seen are Pirates of the Caribbean, Cold Mountain, Finding Nemo, and Gone Nutty.  I need to put down my knitting and get out more.

Sarah

Thursday, February 26, 2004

The asymmetric sweater I wore on Tuesday is from the Spring/Summer 1993 issue of Vogue Knitting.  Here's what it looked like in the magazine:

I went to the TKGA National Convention in Pittsburgh a number of years back -- must have been around 1993, because Vogue Magazine had a display with models from that issue, including this exact sweater, which I fell in love with.  Apparently I was less anal back then.  I still love it, but if I made the sweater again, I would probably even out the bottom.  And make it longer. 

Where are that woman's hips?  She's obviously never had any children. 

Point of interest (or not):  I had an asymmetric haircut in the mid-80s, but it looked awful.  There's a surviving photo around here somewhere, but I'm not going to spend any time looking for it.  Nor am I going to show it to you if I ever DO find it.  In the photo, I'm wearing a dress with enormous shoulder pads.  Like I said, mid-80s.

Susan brought her finished Entrelac bag (from Introduction to Entrelac) to the Beginning Finishing class yesterday:

Pretty in pink!

And Suzy brought her finished pillow (from Beginning Knitting):

Ooooooooh!!!!!

And during the Entrelac Design class tonight, Lois whipped out her Toe Up Socks:

Hooray!

Sarah

Tuesday, February 24, 2004

Just a quickie today.  I was at the elementary school most of the day -- Jr. Great Books in the morning, general classroom help in the afternoon, and Science Fair in the evening.  I'm beat!

Here's what I wore today:

Why look!  It's asymmetric!

Sarah

Monday, February 23, 2004

First, a clarification from yesterday's post (which was dated "Sunday, February 20, 2004" until a few seconds ago -- is anyone paying attention?  I wasn't).  When I expressed dismay at the terms "ASSYMETRIC" and "HANDYED", I was appalled at the spelling, not the idea of asymmetry or hand-dyed-ness. 

My buddy Irene reminded me in yesterday's comments that I once knit an asymmetric sweater from a pattern in an old issue of Vogue Knitting (back when it was the best knitting magazine out there -- but I digress).  Indeed I did knit one, and I still have it, and I even wear it once or twice a year.  I may even wear it tomorrow, so be on the lookout! 

WARNING:  Run-on sentence ahead.

Having been reminded of this asymmetric sweater of mine (okay, it's not really asymmetric, but it has an uneven bottom -- on purpose), I was feeling it necessary to expound on left-brained-ness versus right-brained-ness (I'm taking liberties with -nesses today), and how Sally Melville put something in her Knit Stitch book about left-brained people (that would be me) liking order and symmetry, and right-brained people being "enthused by the off-beat", and that there are lots of left-brained people who like asymmetry, but that a small percentage can't stand it and won't like her sweater with the asymmetrical bottom, which I don't, so I was happy to classify myself as a firmly left-brained individual, until I read Irene's comment that reminded me about MY asymmetric sweater, which I DO like, which means I'm not as firmly left-brained as I thought.  Or didn't used to be, anyway.  Aha!  Maybe I've changed!  Maybe I used to be chock full of off-beat enthusiasm, and now I'm liking my order and symmetry all by itself, thank you very much.

But, if I like order and symmetry so much, how is it that I can write such crappy, run-on sentences?

And should I be saying "asymmetric" or "asymmetrical"?  I dunno, but I DO know that I shouldn't be saying "ASSYMETRIC".  Or "HANDYED".

Speaking of asymmetry (WARNING:  Please don your sunglasses before viewing the next photo!):

If you squint, the glare from my thigh won't be quite as blinding.  This is my second (and final, hopefully) attempt at my father-in-law's Knee Warmer.  I'm done with the fancy-schmancy short row knee cap part, and just have 34 rows of 2x2 rib left to go.  Exciting, eh?

And here's something a little easier on the eyes:

This shows the colors of my Fair Isle Cardigan more accurately.  Oooh!  Ahhhh!

Sarah

Sunday, February 22, 2004

WARNING:  A worse than usual, highly unfair, and heavily opinionated rant follows:

I got the new Knitter's magazine in the mail on Friday.  This is what it looked like:

That's a big gouge that goes all the way through to page 24.  Nice, huh?  My first thought was that I was going to have to fork over an additional $5.50 to buy another copy at the bookstore.  Not to fear, though -- I don't think I'll bother.  Now, I haven't read any of the articles yet, but based on a quick flip-through, here's my take on this issue -- and please note that these comments are completely the opinion of me, myself and I, and it's fine if you disagree with any or all of us.

First off, I would just like to say that the photo on page 3 is simply stunning (except for the huge gouge in the model's midsection -- but I think that's exclusive to my copy).  Unfortunately, if you forget that you saw that photo, then you'll probably be wondering what the heck the rest of the sweater looks like that's  partially shown on page 57 -- there's no bottom to it, and there's no reference to the earlier picture. 

The first pattern in the magazine (on page 40), called "Trendy Pullover", is downright scary.  And don't forget to turn to page 43 to get the full view of the ghastly sleeves.  I'm sorry, but I had a violent negative reaction to this "sweater".

Did anyone at Knitter's notice that the jacket and skirt shown on pages 50 and 53 are WAY too big for the model? 

Page 61 -- Do you think it would be possible for us to actually SEE the stitch pattern on that beanie?  (And look -- another partial shot of that pretty white sweater!).

I actually like the poncho on page 63, which is weird, because I'm very anti-poncho.  It looks very sweater-y instead.

Page 63 -- Grommets in my sweater?  Mmmmm -- no.  With my luck, I'd put them in too tightly, and the surrounding stitches would be distorted.  And no one (and I mean NO ONE) needs to peek at my belly.

Page 71 -- Those sleeves are a teensy bit too long, don't you think?  Oh, the ones on page 59 are, too.  Is that in fashion now?  Pity.

Page 77 -- Gorgeous, but what's with that whompin' big stretched-out stitch right smack in the middle?

Page 91 -- Pretty, but my eye was drawn to what looks like a yarn tail sticking out of the cuff on the model's right wrist.

Page 92 says (and I quote): "Lorna enjoys having time to design and be creative since selling her company."  Now, I know who Lorna Miser is, but I bet there are a lot of folks out there who don't.  Don't you think it would have been helpful to mention what company she sold?  It's Lorna's Laces, by the way.

And the page that sent those fingernails screeching down that chalkboard:

Page 112 -- "ASSYMETRIC"?  "HANDYED"?  Egad! 

Sorry.  I just had to vent.  I'm afraid I'm gonna have to let this subscription lapse, just like I did with Vogue Knitting.  I'm just not sixteen years old anymore. 

Me-ow!

Okay, let's move on, shall we?  Here's what I did this weekend:

This is the 'Berry Cute' Hat, and it is, isn't it?  This concludes the fruit and vegetable portion of my knitting!

And here are the first two sections of the Fair Isle Cardigan from Meg Swansen's Knitting, with my color substitutions, with which I'm very pleased (hooray!):

These colors aren't photographing very accurately.  I'll get a picture in daylight eventually.

That's it for today.  Thanks for listening. 

Sarah

Thursday, February 19, 2004

Note to Rob:  What are you talking about?  It hasn't snowed recently.  The sun has been shining every day.  That ice rink used to cover the whole driveway and the front porch.

Yesterday I inundated you with photos, so I could clean out my camera.  Today, you get words so I can clean out my brain.  If you can make it to the end of the post, I'll throw in a couple of reward photos for you, but you can only look at them if you read and understand EVERYTHING in between.

Betsy (she of the felted bag and knitting needle collection from yesterday) asked me what I know about sets of interchangeable bamboo circular needles.  My answer?  Nothing.  Does anyone out there have any information?  I've only seen the Boye Needlemaster and the Denise sets.

Suzanne has been patiently waiting for an explanation of how I did the short row shoulder shaping on my Bed & Breakfast sweater.  Patterns often direct the knitter to shape the shoulders by binding off stitches at the armhole edges.  This results in stair steps of bound off stitches, which are a pain to sew together.  You can work short rows instead.  Instead of working to the end of the row, turning around, and binding off "X" (some number of) stitches, try stopping "X" stitches before the end of the row, turning around, and continuing on with the pattern, ignoring those skipped stitches (as if you had bound them off) until the final row, when you can work all the way across the shoulder.  Does that make sense?  When you're done with all the knitting, you have live stitches which form a nice smooth slant instead of those nasty stair steps, and you can either bind them off and sew the shoulder seam, or do a three needle bind off in lieu of a seam.  I work my short rows by wrapping a stitch just before I turn the row around, and then hiding the wrap (if desired) when I work the final row back across all of the stitches.  If you want more detailed instructions for wrapping and hiding stitches for short rows, leave me a comment and I'll put that in an upcoming entry.  Suzanne, if you want something more detailed, I wrote down what I did on each row of my Bed & Breakfast shoulders, and can e-mail that to you if you'd like.

Sylvia asked about the cast on I used on my Have Fun! Scarf.  I wanted it to match my bind off, which is the traditional bind off whereby you knit two stitches and pass the first one over the second.  That bind off forms a row of horizontal "V"s along the edge, which looks exactly like a crocheted chain.  Therefore, I used the crocheted chain cast on which can be found on page 29 of Vogue Knitting, or page 75 of the Reader's Digest Knitting Handbook (by Montse Stanley) (among other places), although neither book calls it the crocheted chain cast on, of course.  It's the one with the crochet hook.  Then, to make the bind off row as loose and stretchy as the cast on row, I used a larger needle.  Well, actually, I used a crochet hook for that, too.  Did you know you can bind off with a crochet hook in your right hand instead of a knitting needle, and then you just have to hook that second stitch through the first one?  Very cool technique, and results in a much more even bind off.  Just make sure the crochet hook is the same size as your knitting needle, though, or your bind off will be too loose or too tight.  Oh, but we wanted a loose bind off on the Have Fun! Scarf, so I used a bigger crochet hook.  I used 4.5 mm needles and a 6.0 mm crochet hook (I knit loosely, so used a smaller size than the pattern recommended). 

Still with me?  Okay.  Let's go on . . .

Vanessa asked if I was going to be selling the pattern from my Toe Up Socks class.  I want to, and I actually have a waiting list of people who asked when I talked about the socks before, but I have some problems.  First problem:  I'm borrowing the cast on technique and the bind off technique from two different designers.  I received permission to use the cast on, but am still waiting for permission to use the bind off.  Fruitlessly, apparently.  Second problem:  I've developed this pattern to work best with one long circular needle, and I think it's quite cool, but requires a bit of explanation rather than just a pattern, so I'm not sure I could write it up traditionally.  I knit a pair, using the same technique, on a set of double points, but it's a bit more awkward, and the cast on is nigh impossible.  I'd kind of like to turn my class notes into a series of workbooks someday, so I can help people through every step of the projects.  Maybe the toe up sock one would be a good one to start with.  All of my classes are available as Virtual Classes, which work as if you paid for the class but couldn't attend.  For the regular cost of the class, you get my detailed class notes and my full support via e-mail, along with digital photos or really bad drawings, if necessary.  I don't currently have much in the way of illustrations in my notes, but am happy to provide whatever is needed.  I commit to helping my students with their class project from start to finish.

This one actually has to do with the TKGA knit-along.  Larissa asked whether I include the stitches on the needle when I measure my knitting.  My answer?  No.  Those stitches on the needle could become the "V"s of knit stitches or the bumps of purl stitches, depending on what happens on the next row, so I don't usually count them as a completed row -- they're part of what comes next.  When I'm counting my rows, I don't include them either -- I just count the rows of "V"s (or whatever) below the needles.  To test this, look at your knitting the next time you start a new piece.  After you've cast on and knit one row, you should see one row of "V"s underneath the needle (on the knit side), and a row of stitches on the needle.  One row of "V"s equals one row knit.  The exception to this is with color knitting.  If the row of stitches on the needle is white, then that counts as one white row.  Blows my theory, but there you have it.  (Oh my gosh!  Go listen to Larissa's interview on NPR, and then check out her sculpture gallery -- particularly the knitted typewriter ribbon.  How cool!)

How are you doing?  We're in the homestretch now . . .

Tamsyn threw me for a loop at my Seamless Sweater Design class tonight, asking me a simple question that I had to think about before I could give her an answer.  I was talking about different edgings -- knit 1 purl 1 ribbing, seed stitch, and garter stitch, specifically, and how they react next to stockinette stitch.  I was talking about how seed stitch and garter stitch are a little wider than stockinette stitch, but that knit 1 purl 1 ribbing is narrower.  In the next breath, I mentioned that you typically use a smaller needle or fewer stitches when working a border in any of these stitches, before moving on to the stockinette stitch, to keep things in proportion and to prevent "pooching" at the transition line (sorry to use a technical term -- you know what I mean, don't you?  If not, ask).  Tamsyn stopped me and asked why you would need a smaller needle with ribbing, when it's a narrower stitch pattern -- shouldn't it require more stitches to equal the stockinette stitch?  I had to stop and think, and Tamsyn wasn't just going to take my word for it, so I dug deep into the recesses of my mind to an article I had read just this morning (luckily, because my retention isn't much longer than that) in the Threads compilation called Hand-Knitting Techniques, which explained that the stitches in ribbing are larger than those of stockinette stitch because they require more yarn, on account of the extra distance the yarn has to travel to move back and forth as you switch between knit and purl stitches.  So to even things out when moving from ribbing to stockinette stitch, you change needle sizes and/or stitch counts.  Got it? 

While we're on the subject, have you ever wondered why ribbing pulls in like it does?  Well, I'm gonna tell you (sort of)!  Have you ever noticed how stockinette stitch (knit across, purl back) gets all curly when it's worked flat?  It curls toward the purl side (the bumps) on the sides, and toward the knit side (the "V"s) on the top and bottom.  I read somewhere about why the stitches tend to curl in the directions they do, but I can't remember where I read it or exactly what it said, so just take my word for it that it happens.  Regardless -- if the sides of the knit stitches always curl to the back, and if we realize that purl stitches are just the back sides of the knit stitches and therefore curl in on themselves, it follows that, as you go across a row of ribbing, the knit stitches curl to the back and the purl stitches curl to the front, and the whole fabric just compresses width-wise.  Does that make sense?

Cut me some slack -- it's 12:22 a.m. and I'm trying to explain technical stuff here.

Did all of you Interweave Knits subscribers get your apology in the mail today?  They admitted to messing up the layout of the latest issue, by sticking the 16 page crochet supplement in the middle of a sweater pattern and breaking up an advertisement.  They sent an apology, a copy of the ad, and a bonus pattern for a capelet that is already on their website here (see the Round the Capelet pattern in the "From This Issue" box).  Interesting.  I had to do a similar thing recently, when I was misquoted in a newspaper article and had to e-mail or call everyone I knew to set the record straight (see my 11/23/03 entry if you want the whole story). 

And finally . . .

Linda sent me a link to a fascinating-sounding book.  Check out Visions of a Huichol Shaman at http://www.museum.upenn.edu/new/publications/index.shtml.

Judi sent me a link to an article from yesterday's San Francisco Chronicle.  You can read it here.

And now, if you've made it this far (and there will be a pop quiz at the end to see if you were paying attention to everything up to this point), here's your reward:

I didn't do any of the knitting, but I did the finishing for my friend Mary (it's for her daughter).  Isn't this gorgeous?  It's the Shirt Style Cardigan from Debbie Bliss Easy Knits.  Stunning.

And here's why I fell off my yarn diet:

Thirteen beautiful skeins of Jo Sharp Silk Road DK Tweed in the color Celestine, which is a lovely purple with little flecks of pink and black.  85% wool, 10% silk, and 5% cashmere.  And it's mine, ALL MINE!!!!!!!!!!!

And I LIKE it.

Okay, pop quiz time -- at what point in the previous volumes and volumes of text did you give up and scroll down to the photos?  CHEATER!!!!!!!!!

Sarah

Wednesday, February 18, 2004

Warning:  LOTS of photos today.

Thanks for the nice things you all said about Bed & Breakfast!  Suzanne, I promise I'll answer your question about the short row shoulders soon, but I've got too many things to show today.  For example:

Betsy sent me a photo of her finished bag from my Introduction to Entrelac class:

Yay, Betsy!  And check out her cool collection of knitting needles!

At the Toe Up Socks class tonight, we achieved feet!  Here are Sheila, Angie and Tamsyn, yucking it up:

A close up of Sheila's and Angie's finished sock feet:

And Tamsyn's cute pink foot:

You can see Susan's sock on the table there, but I forgot to get a photo of Cheanne's.  And I forgot to take a photo of Susan and Cheanne!  Everyone had feet before the end of the evening (okay, everyone had feet to begin with, but you know what I mean!).

Earlier today I finished my third Have Fun! Scarf from Sally Melville's Knit Stitch book:

It's identical to the one I made my sister for Christmas -- maybe a little wider.  I had fun trying to get a shot of me wearing it.  This one turned out pretty well (I AM smiling, Sharon!):

This one, not so well:

LynnH told me I need to lighten up for my photos, so this one's for her:

And for Sister Number Two, who was surprised to hear that we still had snow here in Michigan, here's the view out the front door (including the skating rink at the end of the driveway) . . .

. . . and out the back door . . .

Yeah, we still have snow.

Sarah

Tuesday, February 17, 2004

At tonight's Guild meeting, Sharon and LynnH put on quite a show, complete with frou-frou stoles:

Actually, their program was on knitting software, and was very thorough and informative.  Sharon put together an excellent handout with lots of useful links, and LynnH demonstrated Sole Solution, Sweater Wizard and Sweater Design software.  Great job, ladies!

And thank you Tracy, our illustrious (and very pregnant) Vice President and Program Director, for coming up with the idea.  As promised, she wore a finished Anjuli tonight:

I forgot to see if there were any loose ends hidden in those sleeves.

And, as promised, I wore Bed & Breakfast tonight:

Hooray!

Yes, it needs to be blocked.  I'll do that later. 

When I finish a sweater, there's always something I'm not happy with, that I would do differently if I could knit it again.  In this case, I would:

• Make the correct size to begin with (ahem).  I know HOW to make sweaters fit, I just have trouble applying what I know to my own sweaters.  I set out to make the smallest size because that's what fit me in the shoulders.  I forgot about my hips, however.  And notice that the shoulders are too wide for me after all, so what the hell do I know? 
• The smallest size had a shorter border at the bottom -- the more elongated border would have looked more elegant, I think.  And I failed the Melissa Leapman test of lining the hem up with the cuffs for the most flattering look.  So, a longer sweater body would have been better.
• And as for the sleeves, I wish I had finagled the pattern so there was a column of knit stitches running the length of the seam, with the increases radiating (?) out from that column -- that seam would have looked a lot neater.

I'll add these thoughts to my notes, so that if I make this sweater again (which I may, actually), I can incorporate these changes.

Regardless, I love the sweater, especially the color (red!!!), and will get a lot of use out of it. 

And it's DONE!  Cross this one off the list!

Sarah

Monday, February 16, 2004

I'm determined to finish Bed & Breakfast.  On Sunday, I knit and blocked the extension panels for the body:

Today, I sewed one of them in, and started attaching the second one.  Here's an in-progress shot for you:

And here's a photo of the other, finished side:

You can see the little blips in the bottom edge where I wasn't as careful as I could have been in lining everything up (BAD knitter!).  When I get a chance, I'll press everything to help even it out.  I'd like to wear this to the guild meeting tomorrow night.

I've also been working on Mary's Shirt Style Cardigan (from Debbie Bliss Easy Knits).  No knitting -- I'm just sewing it together.  I'll show you when it's done.

I've picked up three more finishing jobs in the past week.  I've got to quit including them in my project list, since they aren't really MY projects.

I'm going to shuffle that project list in a day or two -- stay tuned.

Sarah

Saturday, February 14, 2004

Happy Valentines Day, and Happy Birthday to Sister Number Two!

In honor of the day, I only worked on red items.  Here's the second sleeve of Bed & Breakfast, freshly pinned to the blocking board:

Looks remarkably like the first sleeve, doesn't it?  This is the first time in a long time that I've only had to knit two sleeves for a garment (knock on wood!).

And at the Second Saturday Knitters' Night Out at Yarn for Ewe, I started and finished this:

Not quite the berry hat I was scheduled to make this month, but a berry hat nonetheless!  Another Kid's Fruit Cap from Ann Norling, this time of the strawberry variety.

And while at the knit-in, I got to meet Susan in person, who I had met on-line thanks to a comment I made on Emma's blog a month or so ago.  Hi Susan! 

AND while at the knit-in, I bought two skeins of yarn (ack!) -- some gold Dale Heilo and some red Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Worsted -- both intended to be used for Entrelac pillows my sons requested as I was tinkering around with Entrelac swatches this past week.  Details to follow.

AND while at the knit-in, I resisted buying nine balls of Jo Sharp Silk Road DK Tweed in a gorgeous purple color (Celestine).  I resisted because I decided I needed more than nine balls, but after spending some time looking on-line this evening, I'm thinking that nine birds in the hand just might be better than a dozen in the bush.  Marcia or Wendy, if you're reading this, would it be possible for you to bring those nine balls to the knit-in on Tuesday, and I'll write the store a check?  Thank you!

And that officially blows my no-yarn-buying pact.

I found a place to make myself out of Legos thanks to a link on Rob's site:

My husband thinks it's an eerily good likeness.  Make your own Lego here (sorry, link removed)!

And I found this (link removed) thanks to MYKP's blog -- very, very fun!  I clicked on "quicktime 300" to view it, rather than downloading it.

AND, my mom loved her hooded scarf.  Hooray!

Sarah

Friday, February 13, 2004

I'm posting in the morning, which is extremely rare, since I am NOT usually functional in the morning (on account of all that knitting and not enough sleeping).  I skipped a couple of nights of blogging because I was trying to get some notes written and proof-knit for the first session of my Entrelac Design class, which was held last night.  The notes could have been better (and will be, shortly!), but I think the class went well.  We started swatching, and in the next session we'll start designing based on our swatches, and in the third session we'll actually start knitting (finally!).  Lois came, and brought her finished bag from my Introduction to Entrelac class:

I LOVE the colors she chose.

Backblog appears to be down, which means I don't have any comments.  Sharon (who also came to the Entrelac Design class) and I were just talking about blogging etiquette, and I mentioned again that I think I rely too heavily on my comments, and have considered getting rid of them.  I should watch what I wish for, right?

Oh.  I see they're back up all ready. 

Phew!

Oh, and one more thing . . .

Darn!

Sarah

Tuesday, February 10, 2004

Kathy K. sent a link to a better way to darn socks than I had suggested in my February 02 posting.  You can see it here.  I haven't read it all the way through, but it looks like it would work just fine.  There are some great photos, although they aren't included with the printable version.  Warning -- if you print directly from the website, without clicking "Print Version Here" first, you get 12 pages which include the photos but which chop off the right half (as opposed to the left half, not the wrong half) of each page.  Go ahead -- ask me how I know.

I forgot to mention yesterday that I'll be posting the Hooded Scarf as a free pattern in the near future.  Cool, huh?

Larissa has made progress in the TKGA Knit-along!  ANY progress is good progress, right?

I've made enough progress on the corrugated ribbing for my Fair Isle Sweater to take a photo.  See?

(Oh look!  There's my toe!)  I've monkeyed heavily with the colors of this sweater.  I originally ordered the exact colors the sweater was photographed in for the book (Meg Swansen's Knitting), but when they arrived, I learned that "natural black" is actually dark brown.  Ick.  I tweaked the colors a bit, knit the ribbing, and wasn't happy with the result.  I'm trying again -- hopefully the old adage about the third time being a charm is true -- I'm tired of knitting this ribbing!  Here's a close-up of the colors -- a little washed out by the flash, but much more accurate than in the previous photo:

And now you can see why this sweater falls into the green category -- there's a little teeny bit of green in it!  Hey -- I've gotta keep this knit-by-color thing going, you know?

Sarah

Monday, February 9, 2004

Today, I hab a code id by dose*.  My head feels all fuzzy. 

Speaking of fuzzy heads, here's my mom's hooded scarf, which will hopefully be mailed to her tomorrow:

And from the back:

I watched Meg Swansen's Fair Isle Vest video today.  What gorgeous scenery!  No mention of the balance stitches I was having trouble understanding, but since the project was a pullover vest and not a cardigan, they wouldn't have applied.  I re-read the description of balance stitches in Meg Swansen's Knitting, and it still didn't make sense to me, so I pulled out Sweaters from Camp, which had a better description, and it dawned on me that balance stitches do nothing more than make sure symmetry is achieved on either side of the cardigan front.  In other words, for a knit 2 purl 2 ribbing, you would add an additional knit 2 at the end so the ribbing looks the same at either end.  Duh!  I was reading WAY too much into the description in Meg Swansen's Knitting. 

Mica chose to take a little snooze.

I'm off to do the same (I choose to snooze).

* Translation:  Today, I have a cold in my nose.

Sarah

Sunday, February 8, 2004

Lookie!!!  Another Cameron's Cap!  Too cool!

I did a LOT of knitting this weekend, most of which was un-photo-worthy.

I cheated and started the second sleeve for Bed & Breakfast (not on the current to-do list, but I was trying to get a few mindless projects on the needles).

I started the second Have Fun! Scarf, so it's ready to work on at this Tuesday's knit-in at Sheila's.

I found a little more yellow yarn, and made the Steps and Ladders Face Cloth from one of my Heirloom Knitter books:

I have a bunch of these books -- Heavenly Cotton Face Cloths Vol. 1 and 2, Heavenly Cotton Hand Towels, and Heavenly Cotton Soap Socks.  The items within make great (and quick!) gifts. 

I cast on for Meg Swansen's Fair Isle Cardigan, but am stuck trying to understand her explanation of "balance stitches", so I'm going to watch the accompanying video tomorrow to see if she goes into any more detail there.

I finished my father-in-law's Knee Warmer in time to present it to him at his birthday dinner this afternoon, which turned into a surreal event involving a Japanese steakhouse, my father-in-law sitting on a folding chair with his shoe off and his pant leg rolled up above his knee, me kneeling at his feet skootching the knee warmer up his leg, and my husband off to the side with a camera.  Passersby probably thought it was a wedding reception with a really ugly garter.  Unfortunately, the knee warmer was too big, which I was pretty sure would be the case.  I'll need to start from scratch, but have a better idea of what it needs to look like now.

I worked about five rows of Cree, but since I wasn't amongst my Intarsia Support Group friends, I petered out quickly on that project.

My mother is in need of a new winter hat, so I cheated some more and pulled out the original, half-knit Hooded Scarf (in white) and finished it tonight while I was watching the Grammys.  (Was it just me, or did Joe Perry look exactly like Mike Doonesbury from the Doonesbury comic strip?)  And then I tore out the last three inches because I hadn't been paying attention and messed up the shaping. 

Like I said -- a lot of knitting.  I don't feel like I've made much progress, though.

I noticed that a bunch of my latest projects have involved the use of a slipped stitch selvedge -- the Face Cloth, the Einstein Coat, and the Hooded Scarves.  In the case of the Face Cloth, the i-cord edging was attached to the slipped stitches.  The selvedge of the Einstein Coat facilitates the picking up of stitches, and on the Hooded Scarves, its purpose is purely decorative.  In my classes, I usually tell my students to ignore selvedge stitches unless they serve a distinct purpose.  In my opinion (and I'm backed up by a bunch of my reference books), you can't pick up stitches or sew proper seams if you only have half as many stitches on the edge as you have rows in your knitted fabric.  So I find it interesting that I've been using selvedge stitches in so many projects lately.  Even Bed & Breakfast calls for a garter stitch selvedge, which I went ahead and used because I trust the designer (Kathy Zimmerman).

I have no idea what to say next, so I guess I'm done.

Sarah

Thursday, February 5, 2004

Dorothy joins the TKGA knit-along!  Anybody else want to join?

I finished a project from my list today!  Margaret hired me to re-work the hood on her Wonderful Wallaby, so I did.  See?

Cute yarn.  There wasn't a label, but I suspect that it's Plymouth Encore.  What a fun pattern this is.  One Christmas, I made nine of them in various sizes for all of the children in the family (all boys), plus one extra for the girl my mother-in-law used to babysit.  Hmm.  Now I can only think of four kids who were in the family at that time, plus the girl, which makes five.  Maybe that's one of those stories that gets better as the years go by.  I could have sworn it was nine . . .

Whatever.

I sense another photo essay coming on . . .

Lookie what my mailperson left for me today:

I wonder what it could be?  Let's look:

Ooh.  That's the Philosopher's Wool sweater I loaned the guys last year.  And what's underneath?

Aah.  The Noro Silk Garden (#74) for my Entrelac Jacket!  Pretty!  And what else?

Oh cool!  I had asked for Knitting for Anarchists for Christmas, but nobody got it for me (but I did get a lot of OTHER cool knitting books!).  And there's some black Lamb's Pride Worsted that my student Betsy was looking for, and the other Philosopher's Wool sweater I loaned the guys.

How fun!

And now, the moment you've all been waiting for . . . the next installment of the Brown Purse Diaries!

You can just shoot me now.  Right now.  Why?  Because I'm an idiot.  Because I can't be trained to keep my knitting covered up.  The evidence:

Due to unforeseen circumstances, the completion of Your Basic Bag will have to be delayed until I can figure out who I gave the rest of that cone of yarn to.  I'm in need of a few extra yards.

Poop. 

If this had happened on Sunday when I couldn't find my happy place, both the bag AND the cat would have been hurled out into the snow.  As it stands now, both are currently in hiding.

Poop poop poop poop poop.

Sarah

Wednesday, February 4, 2004

Sharon e-mailed me today to bring me up-to-date on her progress for the TKGA knit-along (hooray, Sharon!).  One thing she mentioned was that she xeroxed her instructions.  That's something I've been meaning to mention, but keep forgetting.  One of the requirements is to include a copy of the TKGA instructions in the notebook you submit to the judges.  I think it would be a good idea to make a copy and put them in the notebook right away, before they get written on or crinkled in your knitting bag.  If it's too late for a nice clean copy, you can always contact TKGA and have them send you another one, which they will do free of charge.

I washed and blocked the Eggplant Hat today.  It looks much better than it did in Sunday's photo.  See?

And here's what I was working on today:

Hard to see, unless you know what you're looking at.  It's a knee warmer for my father-in-law, who had his knee replaced a year ago and asked me to come up with something to keep it warm this winter.  I'm using this pattern, which I found by Googling for "knitted knee warmer pattern".  If you Google the same, you can find the lovely site I found that made me raise my eyebrows and wonder why a woman would WANT to lick her own leg.

I've been known to smell my knees, but I've never licked them.

Sarah

Tuesday, February 3, 2004

Another exciting photo essay, with a cliffhanger this time:

While rearranging the piles in anticipation of tonight's knit-in at my house (which I missed most of, on account of having to attend Son Number Two's school concert), I decided it would be best to actually deal with some of the things that were IN the piles, rather than rotating them amongst all the hidey-holes in the house.

Your Basic Bag wanted its lining.  Seeing as how the sewing machine was in a neighboring pile, and the thread and scissors were in a pile next to THAT, it didn't seem like an unreasonable thing to try to accomplish.

First, I applied the pinking shears to the lining fabric (which I remembered to wash, dry AND iron yesterday):

Gaahhhh -- so much BROWN!

(So are pinking shears supposed to make your thumb go numb for an hour afterward?  Perhaps mine need some kind of lubrication.  They're brand new, and rather stiff.)

Son Number One, upon his return from school, was alarmed to see me at the table working on this:

"What is that, Mom?"

"Why, that's a sewing machine, son.  Don't be afraid."

I'm pretty sure I'm supposed to be pressing my seams flat, but the ironing board is downstairs in the basement, and it's just a purse lining, for crying out loud.

The nice thing about sewing is that when you run out of brown thread, you can just switch to green, and it doesn't matter.  You can't do that with yarn.

Will she finish the lining of the brown purse?  Can she remember where she put the BUTTON for the brown purse?  Will she be able to sew the lining into the brown purse without poking a hole in the back of her middle finger like she did when she sewed the velvet ribbon on the Jacket with Velvet Trim?  Will she ever tell us what those other projects are over there in the sidebar that she's SUPPOSED to be working on this month?  Will she ever find the happy medium between yesterday's foul gray mood and today's extremely hyper giddiness?

Stay tuned for the next exciting installment of . . . The Brown Purse Diaries.

Sarah

Monday, February 2, 2004

Okay, now I have to apologize for my misleading apology yesterday.  Many thanks to those of you who leapt to my defense, but no one had complained about my Mr. Peanut comment -- I was just afraid my mommy would be ashamed of me.

And I would also like to say that getting old sucks big ones.  Let's just say that I'm currently in the throes of a mammoth mood swing, laying waste to anyone and anything in my path.  You might want to stay out of my way.

Look what I finished today (minus the buttons) -- the Jacket with Velvet Trim!

Before you go telling me what a great knitter I am, please remember that I didn't knit a stitch of this sweater -- I just did the finishing.  But you CAN tell me what a great finisher I am!

And on Saturday, while it was still January, I got to some good stopping points on a couple of projects I knew I wouldn't get done by the end of the day/month.  Here's the first sleeve of Bed & Breakfast:

The vertical (up and down) column of shiny things consists of the safety pins that mark my decreases and some row counts.  They won't come out until after the second sleeve is finished. 

I'm convinced the body of Bed & Breakfast is going to be a bit too snug, so when I pick up this project again I'll knit some narrow side panels to add to the body.  The armholes are square, and will easily adapt to a revised body width.

I'm having issues regarding fit lately.  I'm very good at making sweaters that are a little too small or a lot too big.  For example . . .

Here's the completed bottom panel and the completed right front (with female buttonhole revision) of the Einstein Coat:

Damn!  I forgot to put something in for scale again.  Well, look -- there's a strand of yarn.  It's Lopi.  And the sweater is that much bigger than the yarn.  See?  And the shiny things are safety pins again.  I'm the queen of safety pins.

I went ahead with the larger, 50" version of the Einstein Coat (I was waffling between the 46" and the 50").  This is so easy to knit, that if it turns out to be TOO oversized, I'll just tear it back and make the smaller size.  I won't have to tear out the bottom panel, except for the last couple of inches.

And finally, today's photo essay.  Kathy (the sock knitter in yesterday's entry) recently asked me about the proper method for darning socks.  Since I conveniently blew out one of my own yesterday, I thought I would share my technique with you.

First, identify the sock that needs to be darned:

Then, hold it over the nearest trash receptacle, say "Darn!", and let it go.

Thank you, and have a nice day.

Sarah

Sunday, February 1, 2004

Sorry if I offended anyone with the Mr. Peanut comment in Thursday's post.  I try so hard to be elegant and sophisticated at all times, but mostly I fail miserably.

I ignored the Superbowl today.  I know, I know, that was very un-American of me, but I would rather be knitting, and I was following a chart . . . 

A new month means new projects for the knit-by-color plan I've implemented.  The new projects will go into the sidebar Monday, and the old projects that didn't get finished will be placed on the back burner.  They'll move back into place once I finish this month's colors.

Here's one I did finish:

The quicky little Eggplant Hat, which needs to be blocked, poor thing. 

I would have finished Your Basic Bag, too, but when I started to cut the lining out, I realized I hadn't washed the fabric yet, so it's now been relocated to the tower o' laundry.  The observant among you will have noted that Your Basic Bag was in my Finished Projects for 2003, but that didn't include the lining.  When it's done, I promise I won't put it in Finished Projects again.   

The first new project I'll introduce you to is Cree, which is this month's white project (look closely -- there's white in there).  Here's a sneak peek:

Goodness gracious sakes alive -- is that Intarsia?  Why yes it is.  It's a knit-for-hire project for the same woman I knit Sicily for -- she's an Intarsia addict.  Today was the first meeting of the Mid Michigan Knitters Guild's newly formed Intarsia Support Group -- and quite possibly the last meeting, because Sweatergirl, the instigator of this Group, finished her Intarsia project already and has sworn never to knit another one.  I made it through the torturous three inches of 1x1 ribbing and fought my way through one motif's worth of the chart.  Not bad for a day's work, eh?  Of course, my knitting day started at 10:30 a.m. and ended at 10:30 p.m., which allowed for a lot of knitting.  And un-knitting, but we won't talk about that.

And I did another Entrelac Swatch with the next portion of yarn from my skein of Noro Silk Garden (#74):

This will be for my Entrelac Jacket.  The top one is the newest swatch.  Can you believe these are both from the same ball of yarn?  And there were still a few colors I didn't get to yet, but not enough to do a third swatch with.  I'm liking all of these colors, and I got approval from "You look mousy in brown" Irene, so I'm ready to place my order!  For those of you not in the know, my dear friend Irene once told me right to my face that I looked mousy in brown -- and I was wearing a chocolate brown cardigan at the time.  I've avoided it like the plague ever since (I'm easily influenced).  But there's not much brown in this skein of yarn, it will be surrounded by all those other beautiful colors, and I can always remove it from the skein when I get to it, can't I? 

Finally, my friend Kathy sent this photo of a sock she designed and knit recently:

The yarn was purchased from ThreadBear to use with the Fiesta Mitten pattern, but it decided it wanted to become a sock instead.  Isn't it pretty?

That's all.  Too sleepy to go on.  Twelve hours of Intarsia will do that to you!

Sarah

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