Knitten Knots

Berry Stained Feet

2007-06-26T07:48:00.000-07:00

Big Feet, Little Feet

Wook at the wittle toes... I'm not sure these will be big enough for the intended recipient but I am completely delighted with the miniature simplicity of these newborn socks. And from leftovers to boot!

And these bad boys are all mine...I'm sure you'll recognize the Anastasia pattern from pepperknit even though my rushed morning photo doesn't do it justice. I've got to say this is an extremely well-fitting sock. I was a bit concerned about the shortrow heel but it's a perfect fit for me!

Project Specs
Pattern: Anastasia by pepperknit
Yarn: Delicious berry flavored koigu - I've lost the original band so have no idea what the actual color is - sorry!
Needles: 2.25mm DPNs
Comments: I really enjoyed this knit - I don't like too much action in a variegated yarn pattern so this was just the right amount of detail for me. Not to mention, it is super-intuitive making for some relaxing, satisfying knitting. And did I mention the fit? Perfect for my foot at least... :-)

Pattern: Steph's NewBorn Baby Socks
Yarn: Koigu leftovers!
Needles: 2.25mm DPNs
Comments: Cute, quick, fun!

Seamless Circles

2007-06-14T07:22:00.001-07:00

No seasonal knitting around these parts...

I finished up this EZ seamless yoke sweater last weekend and have been patiently waiting FOUR days for it to dry. This will be nothing compared to the four months or so before I can actually wear it of course. :-)

I swiped the circle yoke chart from the Enid cardigan in a recent Interweave. I don't have the magazine in front of me at the moment - possibly Fall 2006 or Winter 2007.

You can see the edge of our new vegetable garden in a couple of these pics - so far we've got onion, radish, beet, carrot, romaine, spinach...

and BABY GREENS coming up...yum. These should be ready to start cutting next week and I can't wait. Don't they look delicious?

Project Specs
Pattern: EZ seamless yoke sweater from Knitting Without Tears
Yarn: Body: MacAuslands Woolen Mills 100% wool (brown tweed - they don't actually have color names) and I used about 4 hanks; Yoke: Briggs & Little/MacAuslands Woolen Mills 100% wool
Needles: 4.5mm circs
Comments: These seamless sweaters are always fun to knit and I'm very happy with how the circled yoke came out. I wanted something a little less traditional and the Enid cardigan fit the bill perfectly. The only slight problem I had was that I wanted to fair isle the circles so this results in some long floats that needed to be tacked down. That being said the inside is not as neat as I would like but I can deal... The absolute best part about this sweater is how much it cost - check out MacAusland's pricing - this was one AFFORDABLE project. There wil definitely be more seamless sweaters in my future. :-)

Inspiration?

2007-05-30T09:19:00.000-07:00

I can't believe how long it's been since I've posted!! We've been digging in a new garden which has been eating up a lot of my free time but I never meant to let it go this long...

I am having a real problem with inspiration and also decision making when it comes to knitting. I've completed a scarf from Victorian Knitting Today but I haven't blocked it yet cause I just can't decide if I like it or not!

When I first got going with this, I was in mind of seaweed with the colors and the pattern but I've kinda lost that as it went on. I am in desperate need of a project that I absolutely LOVE.

I'm also ready to start the yoke on my latest EZ seamless sweater but can't decide on a yoke pattern - let me know if anyone has any ideas!! Let's just ignore all those dandelions gone to seed in our back yard.

But where the knits disappoint, the pets never do - check out Otis and Niblet enjoying one another's company. Otis was actually wet from a swim but that little cat just cannot get enough of the big guy.

Back with a Blanket

2007-04-16T10:00:00.000-07:00

Well, hopefully some of you have missed me while I've been away from the blog!! I never intended to take so much time inbetween posts but my grandfather passed away so I spent quite a bit of time on PEI and then just didn't get back to a normal routine til, well, now. I've been doing a bit of knitting...

This was to be a baby shower gift for a friend but I'm having second thoughts. The pink/purple combined with the feather/fan - is it too much? I'm thinking maybe. Plus it's not quite as soft as I hoped it would be...hmmmm. I'm not sure what to do with it. In a plain color and a softer yarn, there would be no question.

The intended giftee is a knitter so perhaps even if she doesn't like the busy nature of this blankie, she will appreciate the work?? Whatcha think?

Project Specs
Name: Feather & Fan Baby Blanket
Pattern: A simple feather/fan stitch across 154 stitches with 8 rows of garter at start/end and 5 sts of garter at each edge. The feather/fan I used was:
Row 1: knit
Row 2: purl
Row 3: (k2tog) 3 times, *(k1, yo) 6 times, (k2tog) 6 times* repeat from * to end of row. The last repeat will end with (k2tog) only 3 times.
Row 4: knit
Yarn/Needles: I used worsted acrylic for this project so it could be tossed into the wash but a more luxurious yarn would have made me happier in the end as it is not as soft as I would like. Needle was a 4.5mm circ.

Welcome to Munchkin Land!!

2007-02-27T12:30:00.000-08:00

Remember These??

Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww...

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Yum...sigh.

Memory Lane

2007-02-21T10:44:00.000-08:00

I find myself in an unusual situation this week. Every single project I'm working on is a repeat. Brad got a new pair of heavy socks - the same basic pattern I use for almost all his socks. I've tried others but these are the best fit for his foot and are great for TV knitting. My only complaint is my camera's apparent difficulty with shades of green - these are an emerald heather that I can't seem to get quite right.

Also on the repeat list is an EZ seamless sweater for myself in the same brown heather as the one I made my brother for Xmas. I'm thinking there will be a colorwork yoke on this but haven't ironed out any details yet. Plenty of time to figure that part out...I've only just finished one sleeve and started the body.

And, finally, I'm reknitting my latvian mittens (graph 15 for those wondering) in a larger size. So far they're a perfect fit and I much prefer the cuff minus the navy side bands.

Mitten Rip

2007-02-06T08:33:00.000-08:00

Taking a quick shot of this new latvian mitten just before I frog it - it's too small. I managed to delude myself all the way to this point that blocking would "make it fit"...silly girl. So it's getting ripped...

The bright side is that the reknit will be an opportunity to do a few things a little better. This time I'm going to knit the cuff without those dark blue stripes down the side. I'm going to keep them on the palm cause it just makes things neater and doesn't require frustrating figuring to make the patterns fit but the cuff pattern will fit perfectly in the new size and I think look better as a single piece. Also, my 3-color stranding was a little sloppy so this second attempt should be much neater...cross your fingers for me!

Knitter's Block

2007-01-30T10:52:00.000-08:00

Do you ever get it? Lots of yarn, plenty of patterns but no inspiration...I was on the verge of resorting to some striped potholders Sunday when I found these Elf Hats from Handknit Holidays. They're a super quick project and have just the right amount of whimsy.

Brad and I decided to spare you the spectacle of modeled shots. These will be for the ski slopes...you always need a silly hat for a ski day.

Saturday was a fun day spent at London-Wul taking a drop spindle class. Tanya organized lunch beforehand so I finally got to meet a fellow blogger and the rest of the Moncton crowd. A great group of girls! I forgot my camera but Tanya has some posted on her blog and she's also been spinning up a storm!!

The class was great - I was a little slow to catch on but managed to spin up a bit of something resembling yarn by the time it was over.

And, of course, I'm completely hooked. I bought a bit of fibre to practise with although I'm a bit worried about how to deal with the color so that I end up with something pretty and not a brown muddle.

This is some merino/silk...

And this is a bag of polworth...wish me luck!

Project Details:
Pattern: Elf Hats from Handknit HOliday
Yarn: Briggs & Little Super 100% wool (1 ball each light grey, dark maroon and pink)
Needles: 8mm circ and DPNs
Comments: My yarn did not match the gauge specified in the pattern so I had to upsize Brad's hat by 8 stitches or 2 sizes (he's got a large head) and I also started decreases on the hats 1-1.5 inches earlier than stated in the pattern to accomodate the extra decreases due to resizing and also to accomodate difference in row gauge.

Kitten Mittens

2007-01-25T07:38:00.000-08:00

Eunny's Anemoi mittens make me happy. I love these. They're baby alpaca so I've re-christened them the "kitten mittens" cause I seriously feel like I'm walking around with a couple of kittens keeping my fingers toasty.

These have not been blocked - they went straight from the needles to my hands so I guess they're just going to have to block with wear cause they ain't coming off.

Anyone who is thinking about making these - I say go for it! They're a great fitting pair of mittens and I really enjoyed the non-repetitive chart - wouldn't want everything I knit to be non-repetitive but it was kind of like making a puzzle or something. If you like that kind of thing (and I sure do), you'll enjoy this project.

And they were finished just in time cause someone rilly, rilly, rilly wants to go play in the snow!

Project Details:
Pattern: Eunny's Anemoi Mittens I made the size Small.
Yarn: 100% alpaca bought at Cricket Cove - 1 skein of chocolate/1 skein of cream with enough left over for a child's hat or mittens
Needles: The recommended 2mm and 2.25mm.
Comments: Absolutely love these - one of my favorite projects. Not sure how well the alpaca will hold up with a lot of wear but the warmth and softness are a huge bonus. One issue I had was that I used the recommended 2mm needles for the first cuff and found it was too tight (I can barely get it over my knuckles. On the second mitten, I used the larger needles for the cuff and it was a much better fit - this may have been due to the yarn I was working with or the tightness of my ribbing.

Petites Mitaines

2007-01-16T07:47:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine recently had a baby and I've been quite negligent with the knits what with Xmas and all so I finally cast on some little mittens for her.

The stitch pattern is either fleur-de-lis or peeled banana depending on your perspective...

I decided to go with the thumb-less, corded version rather than the usual cuff mainly because it looked more feminine and also babies don't need thumbs on their mittens anyway, right?

I hope they keep this little one cute and cozy this winter!!

Project Specs:
Pattern: Petites Mitaines en Fleur-de-lis from Favorite Mittens in the 0-6mos size
Yarn: Knit Picks Palette - same colors I used on my latvian mittens back in Dec.
Needles: Bamboo 2mm DPNs
Comments: This was a fun and quick knit. Not having to knit thumbs made this much less finicky than it could have been - to be honest the worst part was having to knit the little i-cord ties! I would definitely turn out another pair of these in future.

The Pool's Fine...

2007-01-06T11:17:00.000-08:00

I did one last London Wul lace scarf last week...this was actually a reknit of some HandMaiden Cashmere (Devon's Touque Kit) that I had knit into a skinny scarf last year. I found the skinny scarf curled too much and didn't want to "waste" cashmere so I actually knit right from one scarf to the other rather than ripping and reknitting. Blocking took care of any kinks...

Ordinarily pooling would be an issue for me but in the case of this scarf/yarn, the pooling actually worked itself into a zigzag pattern and didn't bother me all.

Can you believe it's January in the Maritimes and we've got no snow? It's actually raining out today. I quite enjoy winter snow so although I know a lot of people are probably appreciating the mild weather, I'd like for things to get back to normal. The ski hills are a mess at the moment. :-(

My next project is a pair of Eunny's Anemoi Mittens. Love these. I'm using a chocolate brown and a beige 100% alpaca. It's a bit splitty but is so so soft.

I would normally use 5 DPNs for a project like this but I didn't have any bamboo in the appropriate size and found the metal needles too heavy - they were really distorting the join stitches. So I switched to 2 circs - unfortunately one of them has a rough join so I'm having all kinds of equipment troubles on this project. Will be so worth it though...

Happy Holidays!!

2006-12-20T09:46:00.000-08:00

Bigsy wishes you all a Merry Christmas!!

All gifts are finished and wrapped so I've finally got time to pull together a little blog entry. First up are a couple of twin scarves. This was such an easy TV pattern that I did it twice. They are going to sister-in-laws on both sides of the family.

My brother is getting a seamless sweater from EZ's Knitting Without Tears. I had a laugh at this picture - it looks like a miniature sweater - it's actually a men's LG - about a 48" chest.

It's the saddle-shoulder...please ignore the pine needles on the floor - we were near the Xmas tree (and my house is a disaster right now).

I made the mistake of not deciding on the hem color before starting the sweater so added it later and had to hand-stitch it down - it still looks fairly neat but the stitching was kind of a pain after completing a "seamless" sweater. :-)

My mom is also getting a sweater - this is Grace from DB Cotton Angora. It's actually a beautiful shade of sage green but try as I may, it looks grey in photos. I'll try to get a pic of her wearing it over the holidays - it looks great on and is super cozy.

Finally my own personal favorite. Latvian mittens for another sister in law. Sigh...I love them.

I striped the palms rather than carrying the pattern all the way around - should make for a sturdier, longer lasting mitten.

And the guts cause I know folks like to see them...

They fit me perfectly! Do you know how hard it is to give these away??

See you all in 2007!!!

Project Specs:
1. Twins Scarves
Pattern: A freebie from: The Woolworks/London-Wul
Yarn: London-Wul Shepherdess (60% merino/40% angora) for the pink and another London-Wul blend that I think was polworth/angora for the grey.
Needles: The recommended 5mm - I used bamboo.
comments: An easy, satisfying TV knit. And a good way to great yardage out of a single skein. I believe these were 120m skeins and I used one for each.

2. Seamless Sweater
Pattern: Saddle-shoulder seamless sweater from Elizabeth Zimmerman's 'Knitting without Tears'
Yarn: 100% wool from Briggs and Little in Brown Heather - they sell by the pound so a very affordable gift. I believe it took about 6 skeins total.
Needles: 4.5mm circs throughout
comments: I really enjoyed knitting this - the body and sleeves were great for TV knitting and you feel really clever as you begin to work the saddle seams. I will definitely be making more seamless sweaters!

3. Cabled Sweater for Mom
Pattern: Grace from Debbie Bliss 'Cotton Angora'
Yarn: Jaeger Shetland Aran in a special dye lot (sage green) bought from eBay - $65USD per pack - I've got about 3.5 balls left over so got some great yardage.
Needles: I was able to get gauge on the recommended 4.5 and 5mm.
comments: An extremely cozy knit and I would definitely use the Shetland Aran again if it holds up well to wear. There were a couple mistakes in the pattern and they only gave one version of the sleeve which is a bit narrow through the wrist in my opinion for a size LG sweater...other than that, a great project with very satisfying results.

4. Latvian Mittens
Pattern: Kurzeme Mittens from Lizbeth Upitis' 'Latvian Mittens' - chart 108
Yarn: Knit Picks Palette - there is plenty left from the 3 balls for 1 or 2 more pairs of mittens.
Needles: 2mm bamboo
Comments: It was a challenge to get these started properly - just to sort out the charts for the size I was making and to lay out the stripes but I'm very happy with the end result and will definitely be making more. Next pair is for me!!!

Long Suffering Bigsy

2006-11-10T11:19:00.000-08:00

Christmas knitting season is in full swing here and no one knows what that means better than poor Bigsy.

Bigsy has the misfortune of being approximately the same size as mom's little dog Jack and also of being too fat to escape. I actually think he's starting to like it tho...I may even have heard purring this year. Either that or a really low growl...

Project Specs
Pattern: Stripes & Paw Prints from Patons booklet "Another Dog's Life"
Yarn: Briggs & Little Heritage 100% wool in Washed White, Navy, Teal Heather
Needles: I went up to 5mm for the ribbing and 5.5mm for the body
Comments: This is the same sweater I made last year for Jack cept I did the striped/name version this year instead of the paw prints. I also went up a needle size cause last year's sweater was not very stretchy for getting paws and head into.

Latvian Smackdown

2006-10-30T06:57:00.000-08:00

Mom's green sweater is almost completed. I just need to sew in the left sleeve and side seam. I am VERY happy with this project - I think she's going to love it and that it will be a good fit. I've got a few qualms about the DB pattern mistakes and the sleeve sizing but I'll not get into that at the moment. I'm planning to finish it up this week but I keep getting distracted by this:

I finished the first of this pair up on Saturday (minus the thumb) and have been patting it and admiring it ever since. It wasn't until I took this picture that I realized there is a big honking mistake. Why did I not see this before? Why did I sew in the ends at the mitten tip - why, why, why? That is what I get for feeling so smug I guess. I'll have to dig out the ends and rip back a couple inches to correct it. If it was one stitch I could live with it but an entire row is too much. Sulk.

(Updated with error: The very top flower has a line repeated in the bottom petals for those who are having trouble spotting it.)

And the Winner IS....

2006-10-23T07:14:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm officially 30 and the TTAAL contest is officially over!

The lucky winner of the Fleece Artist yarn is Rita!! Rita I have no email or website for you so please send your mailing details to knittenknots@hotmail.com so I can send out your prize. Thanks!!

Here are the correct answers for those who are wondering:

Week 1 - Twilight Zone Edition
#3 was the lie - I was NOT patted on the head by a ghost although I realize the other options were just as (if not more) far-fetched and that it probably says something about my psyche that I believe I've possibly seen a UFO and a sea monster.

Week 2 - I Was Almost Killed Edition
#2 was the lie - I did NOT open a taxi door into oncoming traffic - I was appalled at how many of you thought I was this stupid actually. Thanks guys! ;-)

Week 3 - Yarn Buying Expedition Truth
#2 was the truth - I bought the prize plus a few other things for Christmas presents. I did not go hog wild though I was sorely tempted and it would have been extremely easy to do. Great little shop!

Your Prize and the Final Question/Countdown...

2006-10-17T07:46:00.000-07:00

I visited London Wul this weekend (1.5 hours away) and picked up the contest prize. It is a gorgeous hank of "Peter Rabbit" from the Fleece Artist. This yummy stuff is 250m of handdyed bliss (70% angora, 20% nylon, 10% wool) - the colors in this picture are fairly accurate too.

If you are anti-angora or don't like the colors, I can offer up some DGS sock yarn to the winner instead - it's perfect for Jaywalkers.

I was going to post some pics of the finished fronts of the DB cardi but I'm going to try to push through and finish it by the weekend so decided to wait. Instead you get the final installment and last chance at a correct guess for the Lies contest.

This week is a little different - which of these is the TRUTH!?!

While at London Wul, I got to play with and snorgle the excessively charming Finn and admire the handsome though somewhat aloof Angus. Most importantly, what did I buy?

1. I went there to get one thing and one thing only. The skein of Peter Rabbit for the contest winner.

2. I browsed for a long time and finally decided on several skeins of yarn for Xmas presents. Enough for a few pairs of socks, a couple scarves, hats and some mittens.

3. I went hog-wild people!! I bought yarn for 2 sweaters, an afghan, at least 4 shawls PLUS Xmas projects.

I Was Nearly Killed! and a Latvian Swatch

2006-10-11T14:11:00.000-07:00

What do you think of this little swatch? I'm trying to decide if the colors are too "something" for a latvian mitten. I think I may want something more subtle but they may not be for me so I'm confused. Thoughts, opinions please?

And here is the second installment of the Two Truths and a Lie Birthday Contest. Guess which story is a lie and you get another chance to win the grand prize (also feel free to continue to post guesses for week 1's Twilight Zone edition.) The contest is open til Oct. 21st.

TTAAL "I was nearly killed!" Edition

1. My friend Erin and I were both selected to be flag bearers in the Canadian Divisional Figure Skating Championships held in Summerside, PEI the winter of 1993. This was huge as Canadian ice-dancers ShaeLynn Bourne and Victor Kraatz were competing - wooooo! On the way home from our first night of practise, we hit some slush/ice and totalled my parents car. We were lucky to have absolutely no injuries and were able to complete our flag-bearing duties.

2. Brad and I travelled to New York the Summer of 2000 for an extended weekend trip. On Saturday night, we headed out to a couple of comedy clubs where we had a few drinks and lots of laughs. We walked through Time Square until about midnight and then took a taxi back to our hotel. Having had a few drinks and, quite frankly, growing up in a town that doesn't even have a taxi, I threw open the driver's side back door to exit the cab and it was promptly struck by a passing car resulting in a good deal of damage to both our taxi and the car that hit the door. Luckily I was a little slow to exit so was completely unharmed.

3. In the Spring of 1998 (my last year of University), a few friends and I headed to France for a 2-week long vacation. We flew into Paris and drove to the South of France where we spent the majority of our trip. On the drive down, we took a few scenic routes. One in particular was a winding road up into some hills that was essentially one 90 degree turn after another with a deadly drop off to the side. As we approached a sharp curve, a bright blue car with a racing stripe down the center careened toward us obviously trying to break some sort of land-speed record. The driver in a completely controlled fashion neatly sidestepped us and was around the next curve and gone before our mouths had even fully dropped. It was one of those "did that just happen? I think I'm gonna be sick." moments.

Two Truths and a Lie Birthday Contest (Week 1 - Twilight Zone Edition)

2006-10-04T07:50:00.000-07:00

It's birthday month here and I'm trying really hard to stay positive about the end of my 20s. How'd it happen, where'd they go? Sigh...

Anyway, in the spirit of being festive rather than horribly depressed - a birthday contest! Back in August, JulieFricknits played a little game called Two Truths and a Lie. Over the next 3 weeks, I'll be posting a new Two Truths and a Lie every week - spot the lie and post it in the comments and you could win the grand prize. Every correct answer gives you a chance to win. I turn 30 on the 21st of Oct so all entries prior to that date will be included and the prize will be really, really good. Trust me.

The theme of this week's TTAAL is 'Welcome to the Twilight Zone'...

1. In mid-August of 1994, the Perseid meteor shower peaked. On the evening of the 12th, my mother, my little brother and I were lying on a blanket watching for meteors in the flatbed of my dad's truck. After about 20 minutes of meteor-gazing, we saw a strange yellow light similar to that of a plane but moving much faster pass by. We all thought it was a bit unusual and decided to walk to the edge of the yard so we could have another look at it. In the field behind my parent's house, we witnessed glitter falling from the sky similar to what you see after fireworks have gone off. Suddenly 3 horizontal lights became visible about 150ft off the ground, after a few seconds this became 8 lights and started rotating. About that time, we ran like the dickens into the house where my 12 year old brother was hysterical for the better part of an hour. Mom and I may have started running without him - whoopsy.

2. One sunny summer day when I was about 8 years old, my dad, my older brother and I were walking to our favorite swimming spot. We called this place "the rock" because there was a big rock jutting out into the water that we could jump off of - creative naming was obviously not our forte. So just as we're about to scamper over the cape and cool off, my dad (a fisherman) saw something out in the water. It was approx. 100ft off shore and basically looked like a GIANT sea snake. Black on top, white on the bottom and 20-30 ft long at least. We didn't go swimming that day or any other day for the rest of the summer. A couple of years later I was paging through our Childcraft Encyclopedia "Stories of the Sea" edition and saw a drawing of exactly what we had seen surfacing next to an American sub.

3. The second year I was living in residence at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Nova Scotia (love that place) I had a single room. Even though I was a second year student, I still had a couple of 8:15AM classes that I would drag myself to in winter, hurrying back to my room afterward to crawl under the covers for a nap (never was a morning person). One particular day I was lying on my side and just about to fall back to sleep. My hair was in a ponytail and I felt someone lift it gently and set it back down. There was no one in the room with me. That year 4 other girls had their heads stroked by unseen hands in Plessis House.

LOL - so take your best guess at which of the above is the lie. Did I NOT see a UFO, did I NOT see a sea monster or was I NOT touched by a ghost?? Please note: I realize there are perfectly reasonable possible explanations for the above - don't judge, just guess! ;-)

Also doing some knitting - these are Xmas socks for Brad's dad. No way to glam them up - they're your basic work socks. Same ones I always make him...

Summer in a Bottle

2006-09-27T06:44:00.000-07:00

It's been 4 days since I picked up knitting needles. FOUR. WHOLE. DAYS. What could possibly keep me away?

60 pounds of tomatoes
7 heads of celery
several pounds of onions (couldn't keep track through the tears)
40 peppers
3 days of my life
________________________
53 - 500ml bottles
7 - 1L bottles
3 - jumbo 1.5 L bottles

SALSA!!

Knitting resumes tonight.

Grace

2006-09-21T08:18:00.000-07:00

Another Christmas present is well underway - I'm on fire over here people.

This is the completed back of Grace, a very cozy DB cardi from the cotton angora book. I'm using some Jaeger Shetland Aran that I bought from Janette a few weeks ago (great yardage on this stuff). I love the sagey color - although it has looked grey in every photo - I had to saturate this picture to get it to even look green let alone the warm sagey green that it actually is. This will be for my mom and I know she'll enjoy it. The cables and ribbing are making it very luxurious and "cushy" and this yarn has absolutely no itch factor. I want one for ME too!

Fun With Flowers

2006-09-15T08:15:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, I was reading through Heidi's blog and saw that she had done some dying in her studio with goldenrod. Liking what I saw, I decided to give it a try myself! It turned out to be super easy and quite a bit of fun actually.

The first step was to run around the yard collecting my dying material. No sweat - there is an abundance of goldenrod around these parts.

Into the pot it goes... (I just filled my stock pot - not sure how much water this was - it wasn't a very scientific experiment - if I had to guess I'd say it was about 2 gallons.) The information I found online suggested 1 pound of goldenrod to 4 gallons of water to 4 TBSP of alum.

After about 30 minutes of simmering the goldenrod, I strained out the plant material, added about 2 tablespoons of alum and let that heat for 15 mins. Yarn time! I only had one skein to dye and I let it simmer for a little over an 1 hour.

The resulting color is not a bad yellow at all. Inside near the lamp, it has a warm, golden hue.

Outside in the sunshine, it has cooler tones...

Either way, I'm pleased with the result and can't wait to knit me up some yellow socks!

Thanks to Janine once again for gifting me this Knit Picks "color your own" skein!!

Last Socks of Summer

2006-09-12T06:54:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year... Harvest season. Time for bottling salsa and pickles. Packing up the canoe and deck furniture. The leaves are just starting to turn and the mornings are refreshingly crisp and cool.

These are my favorite socks for my favorite time of year. A cozy fitting rib not too heavy for slightly chilly mornings and evenings.

As much as I love the fall leaves, I'm hoping to get in at least a few more weeks of this...

Project Specs:
Pattern: Fine Socks by Briggs & Little
Yarn: Briggs & Little Sport 100% wool
Color: Grape
Needles: 2.75mm DPNs
Comments: I make these socks in both fine gauge and heavy over and over. They have such a comfortable ribbed fit and are perfect TV knitting.

Mousierama!!

2006-09-07T08:11:00.000-07:00

The boys got some new felted mousies today and they were very excited. I barely got a photo of the mousies before they were over to claim their own.

Bigsy decided on the green one...

While Niblet preferred the more "natural" looking gray one...

Their mousie "kill" strategies were also vastly diferent. Bigsy used his ample frame to advantage with a series of crushing manoeuvres.

While Niblet took what I like to call the "nutbar" approach which basically amounts to a lot of flipping and jumping around really fast without any real damage being inflicted to the prey.

So glad I took the time throw together a couple of these - it was fun to watch them play.

Project Specs:
Pattern: Free Pattern by Jo Chandler found at About.com.
Yarn: Scraps of Briggs and Little Heritage 100% wool
Needles: 4mm DPNs
Comments: Results in very cute sort of medium sized mousie with the worsted weight yarn I used. I love the bobble ears - your cats will get months of enjoyment out of one of these little guys. I throw a little cat nip in with the stuffing and it gets their immediate attention.

One Down....

2006-08-31T10:43:00.000-07:00

I'm feeling very ahead of the game today. It's still August and I just finished my first Xmas gift. This has never happened before so let's hope the trend continues... Maybe...just maybe...there won't be maniacal and ill-fated last minute knitting in the car on the way to deliver gifts this year. One can always hope...

Trellis enjoying the cool late summer breeze...

Trellis enjoying the view...

Trellis all folded up and patiently waiting for Xmas morning...

Special thanks goes out to my favorite Guernsey Gal and lace-knitter extraordinaire Janine! Not only did she gift me the yarn to complete this project but she also offered sound advice re: using string for blocking instead of tres pricey blocking wires. It works people!! Thanks Janine! By the way, go check out the Mountain Peaks shawl she just completed. Absolutely gorgeous!

Project Specs:
Pattern: Trellis Scarf from IK Spring 2006
Yarn: Knit Picks Alpaca Cloud, 1 skein, color 04 Autumn
Needles: The recommended 3.75mm circ - I may have been able to go down to a 3.5 in retrospect.
Comments: I really enjoyed this project. It was my first time working with laceweight and although the 7 into 5 cluster just about finished me on the first couple of repeats, I've got to say once I got the hang of those, it was smooth sailing. I almost didn't want it to end. The blocking wasn't bad either once I followed Janine's advice. I just threaded a string down both sides and used it to keep the edges from scalloping - a few pins to keep it taut and it worked perfectly.

Blocking....well, sorta

2006-08-27T19:20:00.000-07:00

Why is it that we always think somewhere in the back of our minds that somehow, someway we will succeed where countless others have failed (or at least suffered). That it can't really be as difficult as all that...

Heh - lesson learned. Tonight I tried blocking lace - the real stuff - for the first time. I've blocked many non-lace projects in the past and figured "so I'll use a few extra pins" to avoid any scalloped edges - it'll be fine - I really didn't see what all the fuss could be about.

Tonight - I cried uncle. Tomorrow - I buy blocking wires.

Saffron (Sans Pill Bugs)

2006-08-22T09:03:00.000-07:00

Well, Saffron is finally finished up and I decided to forego all embroidery. I tried the pattern-suggested bullion stitch flowers and there was pretty much consensus that they were...well...pretty ugly. Based on some suggestions, I gave tiny lazy daisies a go and decided that they didn't work either. In the end, the sweater is quite busy enough without further embellishment I think and I'm happy with it as is - plus there was a LOT less finishing involved minus the flowers...

Speaking of finishing, I generally cringe when I have to pick up stitches for a neck or button band and then end up with a couple "do-overs" but I've finally smartened up and this time I actually measured the button and neckbands marking with contrasting thread every 2 inches - divide the number of stitches you need to pick up by the number of inches you've got and you know exactly how many stitches should be picked up between each little red thread to avoid sagging or stretching of the band. I'm not sure why I try to wing these things - it really was much less painful to do the planning ahead of time (as I'm sure most of you are already aware).

Project Specs
Pattern: Saffron by Kim Hargreaves from Rowan Mag#25
Yarn: Rowan 4ply cotton in color 'Olive'
Needles: The recommended 2.25mm and 3mm
Comments: I really like the finished cardi and I think I will get a lot of wear out of it year-round over t-shirts and tanks. I added 4cm to the length and could have added even a bit more - this is a very short cardi if you follow the pattern specs. All in all I'm very happy with how this project turned out. There is only one nagging detail about this cardi that is frustrating me and that is the cast on edge - despite being steamed into submission about 5 times now, I see it once again rolled up as I was dashing back and forth from camera timer to model mark. It'll pay for that later...

What I Did on my Summer Vacation! (lotsa pics)

2006-08-09T11:14:00.000-07:00

I just got back from a week and a half on PEI...sigh. How I wish I was still there. I did a bit of knitting but there are more exciting things to post about today so here's a little taste of what I did on my summer vacation...

1. Wedding Business
My older brother finally married his long time girlfriend at a beautiful outdoor ceremony and I was there all decked out in my bridesmaid regalia. Here is the happy couple looking absolutely gorgeous on their big day:

And here's me and my dad also looking pretty sharp. Dad is on the water everyday as evidenced by the marked difference in our "tans". I look like a ghost next to all these Islanders.

2. Wooly Stuff
Now on to the wooly stuff... We stopped at:

I tried to get some pictures from inside on the factory floor but it was so dark, they fell a lot short of being there.

In this one you can kinda see on the ceiling a system of wheels and belts - these are constantly turning overhead and seem to run most if not all of the machines when the operator pulls a lever.

Looks at all those bobbins spinning at once - can you imagine if it tangled...yikes.

Did I buy something? You betcha! I got a big parcel of yarn for socks/mittens and I also bought a couple of throws in their new brown plaid colorway which I personally think is to die for. They wrap all your purchases in brown paper with string - for some reason I adore that.

3. PEI...I Miss You.
Near the end of the week, we drove along the coast. Otis and I checked out the windmills at North Cape.

He spent a good deal of the week offleash - lucky boy! - but I had a good grip on his leash up here. Dogs just don't seem to grasp the concept of plunging to their deaths. I mean, seriously, how can an animal afraid to step over the central vac hose bounce around without a care in the world inches from a 40 foot sheer drop?? I just don't get it...

Finally, I think this picture speaks for itself. It's a sunrise from our cottage window

We're booked in again for next year...if I can wait that long.

Wild Flowers

2006-07-18T14:39:00.000-07:00

I spent lunchtime today in the backyard with Otis and while he did this:

I was busy admiring the wild flowers in the "wilder" sections of our property. A lot of them are already fading - it's hard to believe how quickly summer is passing.

I also created a few "wild" flowers of my own. Does anyone have any tips on how to create bullion stitches that don't look like they were stitched by a 5 year old?? I'm a little concerned that the 40 hours or so that it will take me to actually stitch these all over my cute little Saffron cardi will result in an arts and craftsy type disaster rather than the cute, cool cardi I'm going for.

What do you think and BE BRUTALLY HONEST...???
P.S. That's my swatch that I was practising on - I haven't done anything to the actual cardi yet...

Horrible Weather for Pictures...

2006-07-12T07:07:00.000-07:00

Progress continues on Saffron. I've got the back and almost 2 fronts completed. It feels like this project is taking a long time and I suppose it is but I really have not have much time to knit in the last few weeks. I'm in 2 weddings this summer and we had both "stagettes/hen parties" in the last 2 weeks (fun but exhausting). I really am getting too old for partying into the night. It was also almost sunny for a few days last week and we spent the entire long weekend weeding/mulching the flower beds and painting the deck. All of that has seriously cut into my knitting time...sulk.

On Monday I was home sick from work though and popped in Season 1 of Once and Again and the second front was almost finished.

My picture looks crap because it's doing things like THIS outside:

That is hail people...hail! It's July - there should not be ice falling from the sky - end of story.

Updates...

2006-06-22T14:26:00.000-07:00

Knitting time has been scarce lately but I do have a few updates to post. A lot of folks have been asking what Saffron looks like finished up so here is a pic from Rowan 25:

Cute, no? I've got the back finished up and just a couple inches of one of the fronts completed so still lots of knitting and embroidering before I have a new cardi. The back hasn't been blocked yet - I just pinned it down quickly for a picture today.

I'm still infatuated with my new Favorite Mittens book. I've completed one Fox & Geese mitten. It is also unblocked so you might notice a few tension problems where the needle joins were - that should clear up nicely with a quick bath.

I know everyone likes to see the guts so here they are...I haven't done a lot of colorwork so they aren't perfect but not terrible either.

The design for these mittens is really well thought out. One of my favorite parts is the thumb gore increases - check em out. An entire repeat is added at once so as not to disturb the pattern. Very cool...

I'm very happy with my Fox and Geese mitten but the second one might not get finished up til Fall...there are so many I want to try that I might skip around in the book a bit.

Summer Knitting

2006-06-08T07:27:00.000-07:00

Summer is here but I'm honestly not feeling the summer knitting. I've got tweedy wool sweaters and double knit mittens on the brain. Why? Well, maybe there was a sale on eBay and maybe I bought 4 packs of Yorkshire Tweed. I'm weak. But it's so gorgeous and tweedy and the colors are right up my alley. I may have bought a bunch of 4-ply cotton too but I'm not feeling it as much. I'm currently knitting this:

It looks like a heap of not much at the moment all scrunched up with edges rolling but it's actually the Saffron cotton cardi from Rowan mag #25 in Olive. The pattern calls for 25 cm before the armhole shaping but that only brings it to about my belly button. Cute on the 5'10 120 pound model - probably not the look I'm going for. I want it to come almost to the top of my jeans with a little tank underneath so I'm thinking 29cm would do it. What do you all think - good idea? bad idea? I don't want to make it too frumpy but I don't want it to be showing off love handles or anything like that. There isn't any waist shaping so making it longer might make it "boxy"...definitely not what I'm going for. Hmmm...

So while I debate Saffron's length, I've been reading: Favorite Mittens: Best Traditional Mitten Patterns from Fox & Geese & Fences and Flying Geese and Partridge Feet. I devoured every word of it this week and I never do that with pattern books. But this is not just a pattern book, it's filled with local knitting history and stories about the patterns and who knit them traditionally and how there are only a handful of people who still remember how to make a particular pattern. PLUS it's all traditional stuff from Maine and the Atlantic Provinces not some far flung corner which makes me doubly happy. I eat this kind of stuff up - detail about how people lived in the "old" days really gets me going - throw knitting into the mix and I can't look away. It reminds me of a couple of my favorite books Them Times and Tales from WillowShade Farm.

And those books remind me of some of the old journals out at Brad's family farm. It seems that all of the men kept little journals - just about the size of my knitting notebook and wrote a couple of lines in them everyday - and never more than a couple of lines regardless of what was going on. These go way back to the 1800s and early 1900s and are mostly fairly mundane things about the weather but every now and then you hit upon an entry like "Fenian uprising today. Went down to the shore with guns". And that's it. There is no further detail given and it's not mentioned again. I can blather on for 2 paragraphs about some sock that I'm knitting and they shoot off a two-liner for what certainly sounds like a fairly significant event. They kill me. I want to know everything. I also want to make every single pair of mittens in that book...who cares if the sun is shining and the rhododendron is blooming, I'm feeling the need to cast on some mittens.

Cute Couple, eh?

2006-05-26T08:16:00.000-07:00

Check out my new Jaywalkers...I love em. Very matchy-matchy, no?

I scavenged the stripe rounds to get the dark purple for the heel and the toes and I'm so glad I did...

Brad got new socks too...manly socks.

Don't they make a cute couple?

So the girls were over on the weekend for some Cosmos, snacks and knitting. I do this once a year when Brad is away on his annual golf trip. It was fun! This year I made each of the girls a little gift bag with a warshcloth (knit by me of course), some chocolate, a martini glass, some fun stir sticks and my Cosmo and Blue Lagoon "recipe". I took some pics of the warshcloths but they hadn't been blocked so this ended up being my favorite shot of them. All those bright colors mixed together makes me feel happy.

And just a few action shots of a couple of the attendees...

Michelle working away at knee socks. I think she said she was going to make knee socks with this yarn because she didn't like the colorway and wanted to get rid of it all. Strange that. But it was after a few cosmos so I may have the facts a little "off". ;-) (Check out the new posh yarn she just received - it looks so nice!)

Inica was crocheting on this particular day. She is making an angel afghan...very pretty. Look at that intense concentration...

A few of the other girls were there Pam was restarting an Hourglass sweater. She got knit up to the bust and realized it was too big so ripped the whole thing back. This is her first sweater so painful but she is a trooper. And Linda (who just taught herself to knit last week) was also over. Her first project is a baby blanket - nothing like starting big!! Go Linda! Anyhow, it was much fun - I can't wait til next year!

Project Specs:
Pattern: Jaywalkers by Grumperina
Yarn: DGS Confetti Superwash in color 007.0007 or something like that - it was all 0s and 7s with at least one decimal.
Needles: The recommended 2.25mm DPNs.
Comments: I love these socks - they are a great fit and they were a fun knit. The striping really worked with the Jaywalker stitch pattern - this is probably a sock that I will knit again.

Pattern: Heavy Socks from Briggs & Little
Yarn: Briggs and Little Heritage 100% wool in dark gray
Needles: The recommended 3.25mm DPNs.
Comments: A good solid 3X1 ribbed sock pattern with lots of stretch and a deep heel. I've used this several times with good results.

The Proof

2006-05-13T11:47:00.000-07:00

Finally, my nemesis is completed. The baby blankie was finished up on Wed. night a couple of days behind schedule but it appears that all the cabling and counting was worth it in the end. I'm really pleased with the finished blankie but I will choose a much simpler stitch pattern next time.

The straight blankie...

The chilled out lounging blankie...

And because you can't get more than a picture or two in this house without a cat trying to steal the show, I give you blankie with a side of cat @ss...

The really good news is that we're seeing little Ashlyn tomorrow so there is a good chance I'll be able to get the much sought after blankie with a side of baby shot. Fingers crossed.

Project Specs:
Pattern: #7 Lavender Lace from Baby Blankets - Red Heart Booklet 0116
Yarn: Red Heart TLC Baby - this is a sport weight 3 ply 100% acrylic. I know you're thinking "gross!" and it truly was awful to knit with but it's completely machine washable and is ULTRA soft after washing.
Needles: 4mm circ - I also used a cable needle throughout as I found the yarn too splitty for cabling without a needle
Comments: In all honesty now that this project is completed, I couldn't be happier with it. However, knitting cables with this acrylic is something that I plan never to do again. I don't particularly enjoy working with acrylic on a good day but this seriously took the cake. I think the pattern is attractive when knit up but the only way I would ever put this amount of effort into knitting another one was if I were using a high quality fibre.

My Mission...

2006-05-05T05:58:00.000-07:00

Okay,here's the truth. The truth is that I have been sorely negligent in delivering the soft purple cabley blankie to Brad's adorable little neice. I have done just about anything to avoid working on the blankie the last couple of weeks even though I know it should have been gifted 2 months ago. I've been complaining about how long it's taking to finish when the truth of the matter is that I have not picked it up to knit more than a row or two in at least a couple of weeks. I've seamed up a sweater, knit socks but no blankie. I could make all kinds of excuses about how the yarn is not my favorite, the pattern is too complicated for TV watching, work has been busy but I won't. It ends today.

My mission for the weekend is to complete the purple cabley baby blankie. No excuses.

What is involved in this task you might ask? Well, I've done the figuring...

The blanket is 24 repeats of a 12-row pattern across 250 stitches. Each repeat is about 1.75 inches long. I have 9 repeats left to complete the blankie plus a 1 inch garter stitch border. If my maths are correct (and there's a real good chance they aren't), that means a little over 16 inches of knitting to go. In the photo above, 2 of those v-shaped cables in the middle are 1 pattern repeat. I guess I better get knitting...wish me luck! This thing will either be finished or in the garbage by Monday morning.

Mending Toes...

2006-04-25T07:45:00.000-07:00

This may go down in history as one of the most boring posts ever and for that, I deeply apologize.

Brad has a pair of those shoes that you just slide your feet into - I call them scuffs - I have no idea what someone with an ounce of fashion sense would call them. Anyhow, they have been re-christened...the "sock killers".

These socks obviously need new toes but those of you with really good eyesight will also see a weak point in the brown at the far left that needed duplicate stitching. These were perfectly fine 2 days ago - before the sock killers came to town. Booo! Hisssss! Booo!

An hour or so later...

Am I the only one amused by how squared off unblocked toes are?

Not to worry - I haven't been spending all of my time mending socks. I'm working feverishly on a baby blanket and yet another baby was born yesterday which will also require something fab. I need more baby knitting time - 9 months just isn't long enough somehow.

Oh yeah, and here's a bonus for you. Just a few days after I fixed these toes, he wore those shoes again and blew out a heel. I think it's time for the scuffs to take a vacation...a long one.

Salina

2006-04-12T06:31:00.000-07:00

I finally got up early enough to wrangle Brad into a Salina photo shoot before he left for work hence the headless shots. It was early people!!

My cami is pulled down way too low, I really need a new stylist for these early morning shoots...

I am completely in love with this sweater...I would wear it everyday if it weren't suddenly 18 degrees celsius. Oh Spring, why couldn't you wait just one more week...?

Project Specs
Pattern: Salina from Rowan Vintage Knits (size Medium).
Yarn: Rowan Felted Tweed - used exactly 6 balls just like the pattern promised.
Needles: The recommended 31/4 and 33/4.
Comments: Love the yarn, love the pattern, love the sweater! I got a little confused sewing the cuffs on but in the end they came out perfectly fine.

Good Things

2006-04-03T10:29:00.000-07:00

Today is a good day. Why?

1. The sun is shining and the birds are singing. There were over 40 robins in our backyard Saturday morning - never seen so many in one place before. Then on Sunday the ice broke up in the Head Pond so it is actually looking and feeling like Spring! No more ice!!

2. My good friend Inica crocheted this gorgeous afghan for me! Isn't that a great gift? I LOVE it and have been using it to cozy up and watch TV.

Here are Inica and I. This is a terrible picture - we both look completely pissed off. Wanna know why? Cause we were! The guys had just kicked our @sses at Cranium. I swear we are not sore losers, they are just really annoying winners. Anyhow - thanks for the wonderful (and GENEROUS) gift Inica!!

3. I've got an FO to show off later this week when I have time for a good photo shoot. Recognize ths one?? It's been a while since you all have seen it...

Baddest. Dog. EVER.

2006-03-27T08:25:00.000-08:00

Take a good long look at this picture before continuing... Note how sweet and innocent Mr. Yellow Dog looks - like he would never harm a fly...he lives in peace with all creature bigs and small. Heck, he even shares his bed with a cat... This dog looks just about perfect.

Now I submit to you Baddest Dog Ever Exhibit A. Well, it's the only exhibit actually but CHECK THIS OUT!!

Can you believe this cause I can't?? For 5 years, we have lived like slobs, littering socks on the floor with nary a care and they've been left untouched. Until now...but the part that is really bothering me is why this sock? There are plenty of ordinary store bought socks laying around for the taking - why THIS sock? His only saving grace is that he didn't go through the cable. I think i can fix this - knit up a new ribbed cuff, cut off this mess and somehow kitchener it together. Please someone, tell me I can fix this...

With the loss of this sock and a toe sticking through on another pair, I cast on a new pair of plain ole boring grey ribbed ones for Brad. This is my new TV knitting...about another inch or so til I turn the heel.

And lest you think I'm completely selfless, I've got a little something completely marvelous on the needles for myself...

I saw this DGS Confetti at the yarn store on Friday and it absolutely screamed "Jaywalker!"

Lost Socks

2006-03-20T13:07:00.000-08:00

Following the advice of you lovely ladies and out of sheer necessity, I cast on for the most simple sock ever constructed to keep me company while Lost is on. Another pair of Striped Devotion Socks minus the Stripes from Weekend Knitting.

This time purple heather...

Pretty boring, yes? While I will admit they are not riveting knitting, they are extremely practical both as a Lost project where the absolute minimum of brain power is available for use and as a wearable FO. This is just the kind of simple house sock that I put on as soon as I get home from work to kick around in for the evening. And did I mention how quick they are? In the dark without even trying, you can finish one of these puppies in just a few episodes.

Specs are the same as the first pair - Briggs and Little 100% wool. I've also been working on the baby blanket but frankly it looks pretty much the same just ever so slightly longer. And there has been some sock drama at the house this week (and I'm not talking about a puppet show) but I'll get to that in another post...

Where Have I Been?

2006-03-08T07:57:00.000-08:00

I've been watching Lost. We bought Season 1 last week and I cannot stay away from it. I can't stop watching because 1) I can't figure out what the heck is going to happen and 2) I have a major crush on Matthew Fox - remember him from Party of Five? He's back! On Lost! And more smokin' than ever I dare say...

Anyway, enough about my hot doctor on a deserted island fantasies... ;-) Let's get to the knitting!

I've been working on this:

Which Will become this:

Only about 5 feet to go... I had so much difficulty starting this project. It is 250 stitches wide and I could not for the life of me get the first 2 rows of pattern to work out - my count was off everytime. Then I finally got through them and suddenly everything was obvious. Once those foundation rows are down, it's smooth sailing from there. Still though, I'm going to be casting on a TV watching project tonight. I can't work on this with Matthew Fox wandering the beach...or the jungle.

Weekend Socks

2006-02-20T07:31:00.000-08:00

This weekend was, I believe, the coldest weather we have had yet this winter. Brrrr!! We lost our electricity on Friday night and my feet were cold so I decided thick wool house socks would be just the thing.

I cast on for the striped Devotion socks in Weekend Knitting and by Sunday evening I had a finished pair. They really are warm too!

These socks are knit with an afterthought wedge heel - a technique that was new to me. You can see the purple yarn marking the future heel placement in the above picture - I cleaned up the "jog" that is clearly visible down the left side and made a minor adjustment to place it on the inner leg so it would be less noticebable. The Twisted Sisters Sock Workbook touts afterthought heels as the easiest to replace and I can see why. This pattern in particular switches to 1 row stripes at the heel and toe making it even easier to find your pickup row if you had to redo a heel. This results in a "bullseye" effect but I couldn't pretzel myself into position for a photo of that - you can see it a bit in this next picture.

See all those ends from just one sock!! Ordinarily, I wouldn't have the patience for all that weaving in but I was in a strange mood this weekend plus I had plenty of Olympic coverage to watch.

Finally, the obligatory happy feet shot...I'm not sure I would deal with the striping again but I would definitely reknit this pattern. It was fast, simple and resulted in a good fit.

Project Details:
Pattern: Striped Devotion Socks from Weekend Knitting
Yarn: Briggs and Little Heritage 100% wool in Washed White; 2 shades of green from MacAusland's Woolen Mills 100% wool
Needles: The recommended 4.5mm. I used 2 circs and the magic loop method rather than DPNs.
Comments: I would definitely knit this sock again although the stripes were a bit of a pain - I was working with worsted weight so carrying 2 colors across the back wasn't really an option in a sock - a solid color or something variegated next time.

Head in the Clouds

2006-02-15T13:10:00.000-08:00

I was on PEI this weekend and caught the sunrise as I was letting the dogs out. This is the beach below dad's house. Ordinarily, the water would be ice packed but it's been an unusually mild winter and the ice floes are still pretty far out to sea. Anyhow, I thought I would add my own skyscape to the ones that have been popping up in blogland:

I also managed to visit MacAusland's Woolen Mill while I was on the Island. They make the most beautiful wool blankets and their production methods haven't changed much in the last 75 years. The old water wheel is gone but when you walk inside the building you still feel like you've stepped back in time - the floor and walls are bare wood - the machines look like they've been there forever and everything is clacking away - lots of noise. To get to their little shop on the top floor you have to pass through the production floor - you're literally inches away from the machines as they're running. You can even stand and watch for a while if you feel like it. Seems like a bit of a safety hazard in this day and age but I love it. I highly recommend a trip to MacAusland's Woolen Mills if you are ever on the Island...

Of course I bought a little of this:

The color on those skeins came out a little purplish - they're actually a gorgeous smoky dark blue. Very rich - this time around I got just enough for some socks.

And I got enough of this brown mix to make a sweater...

I really like the green and rose mixed into the brown - gives it a lot of depth. For anyone who has used Briggs and Little yarn, MacAusland's is similar in quality - lots of sheepy bits. Their colors are a bit more vibrant though - particularly their greens. The Cricket Cove shop in Blacks Harbour, NB carries MacAusland's wool and the lady who runs the store was telling me about their ordering process. There are no lot or color numbers on the hanks and MacAusland's mill is not computerized. In order to get a shipment of yarn, she actually has to snip a piece off her samples and send it to them to say what color she wants. Crazy, eh? I love places that live in the past...

So now that I have some new yarn, the question is: what sweater do I make? I've got a few on my mind...what do you think?

There's Demi...Streets and Yos just did a gorgeous one - but I'm not entirely sure it's right for my body type.

From the same Rowan Vintage Knits book, I also like Cherie. It's a crap picture but you get the general idea. This may be more suited to me in fact...

And then there is the Big Sack Sweater that I've been thinking about ever since I saw Anna's finished up last February...my, how time flies!

So ladies...thoughts, opinions, suggestions?? Do you have a favorite? I am wide open at this point...feeling a bit lost for inspiration at the moment.

Bad News...Good News

2006-02-08T07:03:00.000-08:00

Let's do bad news first...Brad's mittens are hideous.

I strongly dislike these mittens. And I can give you 4 good reasons why...

1. I'm not keen on the color combo...Brad's choice.
2. The sneaky Handknit Holiday book took their photos at the most flattering angles. The back of the mitten when the flap is closed is not very attractive at all. (I've also taken my photo only at the most attractive angle if you can believe it...)
3. I made several ridiculous mistakes throughout the knitting of these that actually caused me to have to rip back and reknit on 3 different occasions. Not fun when you're working on a project you're not keen on.
4. By the time I had cast off the second mitten and realized that it was ever so slightly longer than the first (something I would normally correct immediately), I didn't care. So now I have to live with these mittens in my house where one is ever so slightly longer than the other. Bah!

But the bright side is that Brad inexplicably likes them...he really does. And the truth of the matter is that I think they might actually be cute if they were smaller - I would possibly knit these again in the ladies or better yet children's size. But this pair I'm going to try to put out of my mind and move on.

Now on to the good news...I finally steamed the edges of my ribbon scarf down.

I wasn't feeling the head shot this morning so just chopped it off...this would look sweet as a sweater accessory me thinks. I tried throwing one end over my shoulder the way I would normally wear a scarf and it made me look like a clown though so definitely not a wrapper - dangly only.

And finally, what am I working on now? A lace scarf with some alpaca cloud from knitpicks. So far so good although I must have ripped the first couple of repeats 8 times before finally getting into a groove. I think it was a psychological thing - my first foray into lace - plus the fact that I am extremely awkward with laceweight. It definitely takes some getting used to that thin fibre.

I know it looks like a rectangle of fluff right now but blocking is magic.

Project Specs:
1. Flip Top Mittens
Pattern: Flip Top Mittens from Handknit Holiday
Yarn: KnitPicks Wool of the Andes - 2 balls Fern/1 ball wheat
Needles: the recommended 4mm DPNs/3.75mm DPNs
Comments: I would not knit these mittens in the men's size again but I may try them in a smaller size. I think the kid's size would probably be really cute.

2. Ribbon Scarf
Pattern: Ribbon Scarf from Handknit Holiday
Yarn: KnitPicks Andean Silk - 4 balls Sangria
Needles: 2 - 5mm circs - longest you can find
Comments: This is the second Ribbon Scarf I have knit and I enjoyed both of them. The pattern is extremely straight-forward and simple - great for knitting while watching TV or movies.

It's a Handknit Holiday Extravaganza...well, sorta.

2006-01-26T08:30:00.000-08:00

I don't know if it is the time of year or what but I seem to be stuck in accessory mode. I do plan to get back to work on Salina this weekend though - she's been patiently waiting since fall for her collar, buttons and seaming. So what have I been up to??

This pile of purple curls is my very own ribbon scarf from Handknit Holiday - it is waiting for a good steaming to lay down those edges. I made a red one for my SIL for Xmas and fell in love - had to have one. Plus those loooong rows are perfect for mindless TV knitting.

I've also been working on some things for Brad. I finished his Log Cabin Socks also from Handknit Holiday earlier this week. The photo is really high contrast but I thought it showed the cables nicely so didn't bother to tinker. Of course he's got one of them on practically sideways - ha! I guess that is what I get for catching him on his way out the door and making him change socks so I can snap a picture.

I cast on for yet ANOTHER Handknit Holiday project last night - Flap-top Mittens! These are for Brad and he picked out his own colors. I'm reserving judgement til a little more green is on them.

Oh, and one last thing before I go - Baby E of the DB Poopy/Poppy Bolero came for a visit on the weekend and look what she was wearing!! Awwwwwwwwww...it's a tiny bit big but should fit her well into Spring. Ain't she cute?

Project Specs:
Pattern: Log Cabin Socks from Handknit HOliday
Yarn: Briggs and Little Regal (100% wool) in color beige.
Needles: The recommended 4mm.
Comments: These socks are a great fit for Brad and should be very cozy for wearing around the house - they're a heavy sock so wouldn't be the greatest for wearing inside shoes. Great for a weekend morning though. I'm sure they will get lots and lots of wear...

Four Things...

2006-01-19T10:29:00.000-08:00

The lovely Anna from Knit On a Rock has tagged me for a meme. Just in the nick of time too as I'm low on content this week...I suppose I must have the post-Xmas knitting blahs.

Four Jobs You Have Had In Your Life:
* Figure Skating Coach
* Tour Guide (Atlantic Wind Test Site) - my regular summer job through University
* Fish Plant Packer - an interesting 2 month filler between University and Tech Course
* Computer Programmer/Project Manager

Four Movies You Could Watch Over and Over: (there are far more than 4 but I'll take a crack at it...)
* Chocolat
* Bridget Jones Diary (always good for a pick me up and that Colin Firth...mmm)
* The English Patient
* Twister - don't know what it is about this one but I watch it a lot
* Finding Neverland - had to make it five...actually any Johnny Depp movie makes the list.

Four Places You Have Lived:
* North Cape, Prince Edward Island - truly home
* Antigonish, Nova Scotia - the university years
* Moncton, New Brunswick - the tech school year
* Fredericton, New Brunswick - the work years
* Redwood City, California - a 3 month project stint in the early work years - fun!

Four TV Shows You Love To Watch:
* Arrested Development (WATCH IT!! SO FUNNY!)
* Gilmore Girls
* General Hospital - a true guilty pleasure - what is up with Sonny and Emily anyway?
* Most Haunted - even though it scares me senseless sometimes - I'm so glad I'm not psychic

Four Places You Have Been On Vacation: (some of the big ones are...)
* France/Spain
* New York
* Las Vegas
* Cuba twice (Veradero and Cayo Coco)

Four Websites You Visit Daily:
* These days it's all about the knit blogs - it takes me most of the week to get through my list of must reads.

Four Of Your Favorite Foods:
* Pizza (I can't help it...I like gourmet pizza, frozen pizza, homemade pizza...you name it)
* Thai
* Tortilla chips and salsa (yum! especially homemade salsa...)
* really good pasta

Four Places You Would Rather Be Right Now:
* at home on the couch knitting
* out on a stroll with the dog - Otis
* curled up with a good book (reading Sweetness in the Belly right now - very good)
* on an exciting vacation - skiing the slopes or sipping a mojito on the beach

Four Bloggers You Are Tagging:
If you've made it this far and haven't already completed this one - consider yourself tagged...would love to learn more about you all. :-)

Think Pink...

2006-01-11T08:26:00.000-08:00

Tada! Baby booties and bonnet are all finished up. The bonnet was a really fun project - the booties were kind of a pain but the cuteness factor more than makes up for it in the end. Both were knit with soft pink Calmer which was so nice to work with. (Please note I loaded these up from my laptop so the colors may look completely whacked - they looked good from here but who knows...)

First we have the little bonnet - in the book they have ribbon bows on the sides but I liked it well enough as is...

And here we have the back view stretched over a melon so you can get the full effect...tee hee.

Check out the little flower button action on the booties...

And finally in sharp contrast to these dainty little booties, I've got the socks I finished up for Brad's dad for Xmas. These striped ones are knit in worsted but I also gave him a pair knit in Sport weight and solid grey. These were ones I had made for Brad ages ago but I had made them just slightly too big so was going to have to rip the toes back - the heck with that. Now his dad can enjoy them. He seemed VERY happy to be getting handknit socks - apparently he wears wool socks year round - even on the hottest of summer days!! It's a knitter's dream.

Project details below...

Baby Booties & Bonnet
Pattern: Dainty Booties & Lacy Bonnet from Knitting for Two in the smallest sizes.
Yarn: Rowan Calmer (less than 1 ball for both projects) in Blush Pink color
Comments: The bonnet is an excellent project - quick knit with little finishing required. The booties while a cute finished project required a lot of fussy seaming and sewing in of ends for such a small item. In the end, I would make both again.

Sturdy Work Socks
Pattern: Briggs & Little Heavy Socks leaflet
Yarn: Briggs & Little Heritage (100% wool) in Medium Gray and Bleached White (2 balls Gray/1 ball white) with plenty of left overs.
Comments: This is the second pair of these socks that I've made. They are super sturdy socks meant to be worn when working out in the cold. These bad boys won't wear out anytime soon.

Loose Ends...

2006-01-05T07:14:00.000-08:00

My New Year's Resolution for 2006 is to start knitting my Xmas gifts in July. ;-) Just kidding although I really didn't get much done in the way of Xmas knitting this year. Jack got his doggie sweater and loved it as expected. And almost 1 year old Elise enjoyed her poppy bolero. But the pony blanket really cut into the rest of my Xmas knitting.

I managed to finish this ribbon scarf for my soon to be sister-in-law from Handknit Holidays.

And I've also got a Xmas Clapotis blocking for Brad's mom. I had planned to make her a lace scarf but time was getting short so I cheated...we're heading down to visit them this weekend so Xmas Clapotis is still blocking.

I'm still working on some sturdy work socks for Brad's dad - he loves handknit woolen socks but this is the first pair I've made for him. It's a little nerve wracking because Brad's grandmother knit all of his dad's current socks and she passed away several years ago now. Let's hope mine can live up to the standard.

My sock knitting was interrupted on Monday by this little one. Ashlyn Patricia came a month early to Brad's sister.

I had plans for a baby blanket but as soon as I heard it was a little girl, I got out the needles and cast on for these! This is the bonnet and booties from Knitting For Two. I still need to block and seam so expect some finished pics and more project details tomorrow.

The bonnet is knit all in one piece which I thought was great but check out the fussy booties. It is ridiculous how many ends will need to be sewn in...the pattern calls for you to break and rejoin the yarn several times. Very odd but they should be pretty cute. I'm going to pick up some buttons for them today.

Project Specs:

1. Ribbon Scarf
Pattern: Ribbon Scarf from Handknit Holidays
Yarn: Andean Silk from KnitPicks in Hollyberry
Needle Size: 6mm
Comments: I went up a needle size for this pattern because the Andean Silk gauge was slightly different - however, I ended up using closer to 5 balls than the recommended 4 and the scarf came out quite heavy. If I were to make this pattern again, I'd use a 5mm needle.

2. Xmas Clapotis:
Pattern:Clapotis from Fall 2004 Knitty
Yarn: Andean Silk from KnitPicks in Hollyberry
Needle Size: 5mm
Comments: I really enjoy knitting this pattern. I love that you control the size, length, etc. so easily. This one is about the size of an extra wide scarf - perfect for this time of year.

Happy Holidays!!

2005-12-21T06:58:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone has a Merry Christmas, Happy Hannukah, Happy Kwanzaa or whatever holiday you happen to be celebrating this time of year!! If you aren't celebrating anything, then please just have a nice day. :-)

I was sitting in the living room frantically knitting away on Christmas scarves earlier this week when I heard rustling - naughty kitty was halfway up the tree. Let's hope Santa wasn't watching...

I'm still working away on some gifts - will have pictures after the hustle and bustle dies down. The good news is that a couple of things won't be gifted until the 31st - an extension - woohoo!! Knit on girls...

Nothing Says Christmas Like Tiny Sweaters...

2005-12-08T11:32:00.000-08:00

Last Christmas I made my canine sibling (i.e. mom's dog) Jack a doggie sweater. It was black with white edging and had "Spoilt Rotten" embroidered on the back over a little pocket just big enough to hold a tiny bone. Not that you would ever put a bone into a pocket on the back of dog sweater where they couldn't reach it - that would just be cruel. Oh heck - who am I kidding - we put a little bone in there but it was just to take a picture I swear. Anyway, imagine my surprise when on my last visit home said super-cute sweater came out of the closet for winter use and it was practically threadbare. Apparently, he wears it everyday when it's cold out and what with all the washing, it's started to come undone. Finally a family member who truly appreciates my handknits. For wearing out the first sweater, Jack is getting a brand spanking new one in a thicker and more durable wool to keep him toasty on those cold winter walks. Good boy Jackie - GOOD BOY!!

Doesn't Bigsy look thrilled to be modeling a dog sweater...he actually took it much better than I had expected. There was a period of laying down limply (passive resistance?) and then I think he was trying to kick it off but eventually he accepted his fate and I was able to get a couple of shots.

There are also a couple of new babies to knit for this year and they all seem to be little girls. I made this popsicle pink Debbie Bliss Poppy Baby Bolero for little Elise. I hope she will be cute in it - it matches the pattern measurements but I'm a bit worried that the arms are too long - maybe they just look that way because it is cropped - messes up the expected proportions or something. Anyhow, it was super-fast and will be darling (I hope).

Is it weird that I keep mistyping Poppy as Poopy?? Must be the whole baby thing...

Oh! And before I forget, I got a big yarn order from knitpicks yesterday - expect photos soon - I can finally get the rest of my Christmas knitting underway - hoot!

Project Specs:

Good Boy Sweater!
Pattern: Patons Another Dogs Life Booklet
Yarn: Briggs and Little Tuffy (80% wool 20% nylon) - approx. 1 skein
Comments: If I were to make this sweater again, I would be more careful on the duplicate stitch - I did it a bit too tightly and it puckers ever so slightly. Hard to tell when Bigsy is wearing it like a sausage casing though.

Poopy...er...Poppy Baby Bolero
Pattern: Debbie Bliss Cotton Angora Booklet - Poppy
Yarn: Debbie Bliss Cotton Angora (used about 2 1/2 balls - pattern calls for 4 - the sizing and gauge are correct so I have to ask why does DB always overestimate yardage in her patterns??)
Comments: This was a super fast knit. I tried out a new technique from Vogue Knitting for binding off K2XP2 rib with a yarn needle and loved the outcome. No curling or puckering on the ribbing bind off and it doesn't have that straight edge look which really works out on the curvy Bolero edging. It took a few minutes to get the hang of it but I will definitely be using that bind off again.

Little Ponies and Big Kitties...

2005-11-28T12:45:00.000-08:00

Well, the Pony Blankie was a smashing success...thank goodness cause if someone had said they didn't like it, I may have lost it completely. That border around the outside of the blankie is knit in a strip and then sewn on - it was around the halfway point of the border that I started to wonder why I ever decided to knit a baby blanket with a stupid border that needs to be stitched on. But the main blankie bit with the ponies was super easy so I'm not going to complain about it anymore. Plus it was an extremely affordable project yarn-wise. Of course if you take the time spent stitching border to blanket into account, this project is clearly priceless. ;-) Hmmm...that doesn't count as complaining, does it?

I also spent some time knitting a kitty hat for my friend Alison's birthday last week. We've decided to make last year's ski trip an annual event and she loved my kitty hat from last year so much that I decided she needed her very own for this year. Isn't she cute!?!

I call this one "Happy Kitty"...

A few more drinks at the birthday party and I ran into "Angry Kitty"...note the laid back ears. That is a sure sign of an angry kitty.

heh heh...

Oh - and one more thing - have you all seen Janine's latest pattern?? It is called Candlelight and is perfect for those of you who, like myself, want to try a lace kidsilk haze project but look like a dork in a shawl. I've already ordered my copy and am thinking of a black one for the holidays...check it out!!

Undecided to the End...

2005-11-16T12:01:00.000-08:00

What have I been up to lately?? Well, a good friend of mine is having a baby shower next Sunday and I've been agonizing over what to make her. I finally decided on a baby blanket of some sort and then spent 2 or 3 days looking for a pattern that was not gender specific. Purple is her favorite color and isn't too too girly so I decided the blanket would be purple.

Right...I had a color. Now a pattern...Friday I cast on for a lacy throw type baby blanket and worked about 4000 stitches before I decided that it wasn't appropriate to swear that much while knitting a baby blanket and that the baby would be out of diapers by the time I finished the thing. So I ripped it out and cast on for this...it's called Pony Blocks...whatcha think?? There really is no turning back now even if you all hate it - only one more pony strip and the border left to knit but I like to torment myself over whether I made the right decision or not anyway.

(This is a terrible photo - I was late for work this morning so tacked it to the spare bed fairly quickly - the top of the blankie is cut off - it is 3 blocks high. Crap - I think it's dirty!! How did that happen!?)

I do think the little ponies are cute though...

I'm also knitting on a lace scarf and some log cabin socks - I'll post some pics of them another time. And Salina waits to be seamed and finished while I'm under the baby deadline. By the way, I'm planning to do a baby blanket for Brad's sister for Xmas as well. Possibly something with ducks or teddy bears on it - anyone have any good ideas??

A few (hundred) of my favorite things...

2005-11-07T07:17:00.000-08:00

The lovely and talented Black Olive tagged me for the favorites meme and I've got to say this was kind of a hard one for me. In all honesty, I have a very difficult time picking favorites in anything (maybe cause I'm a Libra?) but I'll give it a shot.

What is your all time favorite yarn to knit with?
Right now I am having a torrid love affair with Rowan Felted Tweed - love working with it and love the fabric it is producing for Salina. My other favorites include just anything containing cashmere. Sigh. That Handmaiden 100% Cashmere I used for this scarf was...um...FABULOUS.

Your favorite needles?
Hmmmm...I'd honestly have to say I don't have favorite needles at this particular point in time. Isn't that horrible?? I don't even own a pair of Addis - *collective gasp*. I know, I know.

The worst thing you've ever knit?
The worst thing I ever knit was a variegated acrylic checkboard giant turtleneck sweater. I actually never finished it - pieces of it are still filling the closet. And by giant turtleneck - I don't mean the sweater itself was big - I mean the actual turtleneck was big enough to make a whole other sweater. Honestly...I'm 5'2 - what was I thinking??

Your most favorite knit pattern? (maybe you don't like wearing it...but it was the most fun to knit)
I like knitting things that have a little interest, a little fun. Clapotis was fun - I loved dropping the stitches. And anything lacy but not too complicated like Orangina is right up my alley too - I like watching the pattern emerge. Cables are always good to add a little interest to a project.

Most valuable knitting technique?
That would be proper finishing techniques. I used to rush through the finishing on a sweater just to have it done and many times I ended up unhappy with a project because of sloppy finishing. I have learned my lesson. I now give finishing the time it deserves and if a project needs to be blocked then it gets blocked. No more impatience.

Best knit book or magazine?
I like to keep Vogue Knitting handy when I'm working on something that I may need reference material for. As far as patterns go, some of my favorites books are Handknit Holiday (wasn't expecting there to be so much in it quite honestly), Rowan Vintage Knits, Knitting for Two. And of course magazines like Interweave Knits always have something worth checking out.

Your favorite knitblogs?
I read a lot of knit blogs but I do have a few favs. In no particular order:
1. Anna - an extremely talented designer/knitter who is constantly posting new projects and techniques. Anna was one of my first knit blog "friends" and she is an absolute gem.

2. Fluffa's projects are always stylish and beautifully finished. And her photography is wonderful.

3. Sweet Georgia has some of the best photography that I've seen. I only recently happened upon her site and was very impressed with her projects and pictures.

Other sites that I check out almost daily are:
Domesticat, Knit and Tonic (so funny!), Knitting on an Island, Lolly (sweetest girl ever), Mustaa Villaa, NOthin But Knit, PassioKnit, Streets and Yos. I'm going to stop there - I could go on and on quite honestly.

Your favorite knitwear designer?
I'm a big fan of Kim Hargreaves for stylish, wearable designs. Alice Starmore's Fisherman Sweaters are incredible and intricate - like works of art quite honestly. And, of course, there are several budding knitwear designers right up in my favorites - Anna does lovely and very creative work and Wendy has some great designs as well.

The knit item you wear the most? (how about a picture of it!)
While these are not the most attractive thing I have ever knit, they do get a LOT of wear cause they're so soft and warm! They're my Fleece Artist mellow yellow socks.

Happy Halloween!!

2005-11-01T06:51:00.000-08:00

Otis was a good sport through what has become the annual Halloween dog torture. In fact he seemed to kind of enjoy his costume this year. It looks like Bigsy even wants in on the costume action (or at least the treats).

"Can I take it off yet??"

In knitting news, I'm almost to the cap shaping on sleeve #2 - there is a good chance I could have a finished Salina by next week.

29 For the First Time...

2005-10-26T12:50:00.000-07:00

Last Friday, Oct. 21st was my very first 29th birthday and all I have to say is where did the last 10 years go? It feels like maybe I stumbled into a time warp of some kind and lost a few years - possibly during university. Anyhow, Brad arranged a dinner party for me at a restaurant here in town and invited 25 of our friends to join us. I had THE BEST TIME!! I think this picture is evidence that fun was had - this is apparently the closest I came to looking directly into the camera all night. Strange, that. Anyhow, I think we're clapping because the wait staff had come out and sang the Happy Birthday song to embarass me...yeah, I'm pretty sure that was it.

(I'm the one in the middle for those unfamiliar with the side of my head.)

So a birthday wouldn't be complete without a little yarn gift and Michelle did not disappoint. She got me the most gorgeous Fleece Artist dreadlocks and mohair. I've rolled them into balls already and they are GORGEOUS! And she came across a little trick for those living in Fredericton - the craft college sells undyed Fleece Artist yarns for $12 - yes, that's right folks. $12 - this would retail for close to $40. You just need to get someone enrolled in the craft college to buy it for you. Clever girl that one.

Finally - a Salina update. The back and front are both finished. And the first sleeve is almost to the cap shaping - won't be long now...and the weather is perfect for it. I need a nice quiet weekend to get this one done.

Cozy Cleavage....

2005-10-17T06:00:00.000-07:00

This article was sent to me by a fellow knitter this morning and I just had to share...it starts off, "It's not at every cocktail party that the hostess is telling you to play with her boobs, but then again, it's not every hostess that has such fantastic ones."

Read on here...trust me this is good.

Update (Oct. 19th)
Wow! What are the odds of this? Janine just informed that the "bits" mentioned in the above article are the new surprise pattern just posted to knitty.com. Crazy timing!

Knitty Pattern

The Moss Stitch Blues

2005-10-14T09:58:00.000-07:00

The back of Salina is finally finished up - the sun is not supposed to come out for a few days so I figured I might as well take the picture anyhow! I had a few issues but nothing too major and they were all reflective of my own knitting technique - the pattern is great. It seems that my left-slanting decreases are much sloppier looking than my right-slanting ones so I ripped the armhole shaping a couple of times finally deciding it was as good as it was gonna get. Let me tell you - I cannot wait to finish this one up and wear it! It's been perfect sweater weather this week.

After finishing up the back last night, I cast on for the front. The first 16 rows of the sweater are moss stitch and being a "thrower", it takes me a fair amount of time to get through 1600 stitches of the stuff. So you can imagine my dismay when after finally getting through those moss stitch rows, I noticed this.

3.75mm needles. Arrrrgggghhhh - bonehead!!! The moss stitch is meant to be knit in 3.25mm needles and is noticeably larger than the back band. Oh well, at least I didn't get any further before realizing. So I'll be ripping and moss stitching again tonight. Very, very carefully this time. I may even have Brad double check before I begin - this is the second time I've done this although I only got 2 rows in before noticing last time. This is the first weekend in a while that we have no plans to do anything or go anywhere - sounds like heaven - I may even get Salina's front finished up if I play my cards right.

Vicki Needs....

2005-10-13T06:46:00.000-07:00

Saw this on Anna's blog and thought it was cute.

Care to find out what you need??
Google “[your name] needs” and list the best.

1. Vicki needs to learn about "she bang" magic
2. Vicki needs to pay the rent, and without community approval she might as well go home to the cult
3. Vicki needs boys pants...
4. Vicki needs to realize that dogs are not little people in furry costumes (OK - this one actually scared me a little)
5. Vicki needs a Vixen Grand Polaris with electronic slewing. Nothing less.

2 Cats and a Lady

2005-10-05T12:14:00.000-07:00

Lady Salina finally has some photo-worthy progress. I don't think I picked the needles up all weekend but managed to get to the second set of bust increases last night while watching a couple of taped episodes of Prison Break.

Salina is from Rowan Vintage Knits. I'm using the recommended yarn (Felted Tweed) in Herb. Love this yarn - it makes such a nice stretchy fabric - I think it will be gorgeous to wear although possibly a little itchy. Adele was kind enough to setup a Salina-a-long so if you're interested in seeing what the other girls are up to or in knitting your very own Salina - check it out here. Herb is a very popular color so our photos all kinda look the same at the moment - haha!

And because I don't have much to blog about today, I offer cat photos and a little bit about my guys. They were doing a little window hunting this morning when I snapped these shots.

Bigsy - a shy guy, prone to self-mutilation with an amazing grasp of the English language. Loves people but is deathly afraid of strangers. Favorite hiding places are under the bed and in the basement behind the water pump. Is quite possibly the world's cuddliest cat and is in constant competition with mommy's knitting.

Niblet - a highly acrobatic, light-obsessed rascal with no grasp of the English language whatsoever. If curiousity were going to kill a cat, it would surely be Niblet. Despite, or perhaps because of his devil-may-care attitude, Niblet is a real charmer. Word to the wise, do not leave your water glass unattended in the "Niblet zone".

Never on Time

2005-09-29T10:24:00.000-07:00

I wish I was one of those people with perfect timing. Me - I'm always so early that I sit around twiddling my thumbs forever or, more likely, I am late. We're not talking the party's already over late but 5 or 10 minutes late at least is the norm. It's a terrible habit, I know.

So why should my knits be any different, right?

I present to you "Too Late":

Orangina languished on the blocking board for the better part of 2 weeks and now it is too cold to wear her. Oh well, something to look forward to next Spring. She'll probably be a better fit by then anyhow - did I mention I joined the gym? And spent valuable yarn money on 12 sessions with a personal trainer? Yes, this knitting girl is taking her recent expansion seriously. There is a history of hypothyroidism in my family so I'm always watchful of any rapid weight gain - in this case, I'm sure it's the amount of time I've been sitting on my rear both at work and at home this year that has brought on twenty pounds but I should be taking better care of myself anyway.

And here we have "Too Early":

It's too cold for a tank top but still not really cold enough for a scarf. Story of my life... This yarn has been next to impossible to photograph and the rainclouds this morning did not help. I love the colors - very rich although the photos aren't really reflecting that.

The prizes for last week's contest are all ready to send out tomorrow...I've got to say it's a little hard to let them go but it will be good for me. Build character and all that...no photos since I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise. I've been knitting on Salina but no progress shots yet as I'm only about 8 rows into the moss stitch waistband! Should be significant enough for pictures by early next week...

Project Specs:
For Orangina aka "Too Late":
- pattern from Glampyre Knits (love it)
- yarn was recommended Rowan 4ply cotton in White
- love the look of the lace and it was fun to knit too
- I would do this again but would add an inch or so to the lace next time to make it a bit longer

For Cash Scarf aka "Too Early":
- pattern stitch was Flemish Block Lace from Vogue Knitting on 3.75mm needles
- yarn was super luxurious 4-ply 100% cashmere from Hand Maiden (so so soft)
- I would use this yarn again in a heartbeat probably with a different stitch pattern though
- Flemish Block Lace is not really suited to a scarf; the stockinette at the edge tends to curl it a bit

And The Winners Are....

2005-09-21T11:13:00.000-07:00

The contest is now officially closed. :-) Thanks for playing everyone! The correct answer was Flemish Block Lace.

Prizes will be sent out next week to:

1. Netter for being the first to answer correctly.
2. Li gets the consolation prize for being right on her heels.
3. Anna get a prize for being the first to put a guess out there and, well, just for being Anna.

New Contest Clues

2005-09-21T05:58:00.000-07:00

Well, there were no correct guesses on the contest yet so here is picture of last night's progress...

And a brand new CLUE!

This is the book the lace stitch pattern came out of.

This is a huge clue since there are only about 10 lace stitches in here... Send me an email if you think you know the answer...there is some yummy yarn up for grabs ladies!!

Karma in a Contest

2005-09-20T09:59:00.000-07:00

I received a really cute package in the mail yesterday from Kim's Knitting World. She had a contest a couple of weeks ago to guess how much yarn was left-over after completing Katie. I didn't even win and I still got a prize!! She sent me a really cute card with 2 puppies and a kitty (right up my alley), an ice cream sundae stamp (yum!), a gauge check (much needed) and the cutest little sock-shaped point protectors (sock-shaped nuff said). If you haven't been to Kim's World - what are you waiting for? She's smart, funny and a darn good knitter. Not to mention designer..."Sexie" from Stitch n' Bitch: Nation? Yeah, that was her!

Anyhow, I thought it was really cool that I got such a nice little consolation package - I didn't even win the contest!! So, I was inspired to have a little contest of my own and keep the good karma going.

I started a scarf last night - grabbed a skein of the most delicious HandMaiden 4 ply 100% CASHMERE(!), a lace stitch pattern from one of my books, cast on 31 stitches and started knitting. Pictured below is said scarf - 3 pattern repeats in.

*******************CONTEST********************
Can you guess the name of the lace stitch pattern I'm using?? If you're the first to guess correctly, you get a prize!!

EMAIL ME WITH YOUR RESPONSES: knittenknots@hotmail.com

(Click the picture to enlarge...)

I'll post a new picture and clue every day until someone guesses correctly assuming no one gets it today! Happy guessing!
**********************************************

What Have I Been Up To??

2005-09-13T07:10:00.000-07:00

It's been a while hasn't it? My camera was forgotten in a friend's car and I FINALLY got it back. It was a long, long week without it. So what have I been up to??

Well, Orangina is still creeping along. The second panel is completed and I've got about 4 inches of ribbing to do before I can seam. I would probably have her finished by now but we've been having a lot of movie nights recently and I needed things I could do with little light and even less brain power. Lace was out of the question.

So I made a Sophie last weekend while Michelle and I watched the Gilmore Girls, Lost Boys, Bridget Jones, and plenty of Most Haunted - love that creepy show. (The color on this photo is very accurate. Kind of a light purple.)

I also managed to finish up Brad's campfire socks and am very pleased with them. I'm planning to make at least one pair for his dad for Xmas. He is out in all types of weather on the farm and truly appreciates wooly handknit socks.

I realize a back view of a pair of socks is not really necessary - haha! - but I wanted to show off the heel stitch. Plus the rear view photo had more "flair" on the part of the model - you'll note the turn out on the foot - nice touch Brad. Well done.

I've also been very busy doing something else recently.

I've got 4 big jars and 2 small of dill pickles put up and with 5 batches of salsa under my belt on the weekend, I'll be bottling up 6 more batches tonight and then that is it. No more pickling for this year. If 11 batches of salsa sounds a bit excessive, rest assured we will be gifting about half of it! :-) But that still leaves half of it for us to eat...yum.

Project Specs:
For the Socks:
- Briggs and Little Heavy Sock pattern 3X1 rib
- Briggs and Little 100% Heritage Wool in Brown Heather and Natural White
- Love this pattern and love these socks. Might try adding some reinforcing thread on the neck pair to help those heels last a little longer.

For the Bag:
- Sophie Bag from MagKnits (http://www.magknits.com/warm04/patterns/sophie.htm)
- Made with Briggs and Little Heritage 100% wool
- I may throw Sophie back into the wash to felt a bit longer. It could use a bit more structure.

For the Dill Pickles:
- I used this recipe from Epicurious.com (http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/230707).
- I've never made these before but they were simple and smell great. I will definitely let you know how they taste in a couple of weeks. I threw a few hot dried chilis into the small bottles.

For the Salsa:
- It's a family recipe. Send me an email if you'd like to have it.

Filler...

2005-08-30T07:02:00.000-07:00

Well, there's more bathroom renovating than knitting going on at the moment. I could post a picture of the 3 or 4 inches I've got completed on Orangina panel #2 but really it's the same as last week's picture - just a little shorter so I won't bore you at least not with that particular item. I could also post pictures of our recently gutted bathroom but that is just too depressing. Instead...

The lovely Jacqueline tagged me for a meme last week that I thought was definitely worth thinking about...

5 Things I Miss From Childhood:

1. The Skating Rink - we spent 3 or 4 nights a week at the skating rink plus weekends when I was a kid. I figure skated and both of my brothers were hockey players. This may seem like a strange thing to miss but there are so many great memories! I loved being on the ice and they had the best hot chocolate ever.

2. THE BEACH - my parents' home is up on the cape right above the beach. A 30 second walk and you're there. I love the beach in all kinds of weather. A cool fall day where you need a blanket wrap is my favorite though - to sit down there with a book and your dog while the waves crash had got to add years to your life.

3. Childhood pets...our dogs Sparky, Lady and Cuddles - I cried myself to sleep for 2 weeks when Lady died. I was 24 and we got her as a pup when I was in grade 5. She was such a good dog.

4. Extended Family - I don't live that far away - about 5 hours but I still don't see extended family as much as I would like. Everyone within a mile of mom and dad's house is related to us and it seemed like all us kids were about the same age. Growing up with my cousins living next door was great - there are so many happy memories of games we used to play - even some of the fights we had are fun to remember. There were actually enough of us to have ball games and the best days were when dad and my uncles would take a break from mending nets or traps and come over to play a few rounds.

5. Last but not least I miss believing in magic. Santa Claus, the Toothfairy, the Easter Bunny - one year Santa left sooty boot marks all through the house and Rudolph left half of his carrot in the snow outside the window - now that was excitement. And of course, we can't forget Halloween - I miss getting dressed up and going trick or treating. It's makes me sad that most kids don't get the chance to trick or treat these days. I still decorate the house for Halloween and Otis always puts on his doggy costume for a walk that day...not sure what he'll be this year. In case you think I'm kidding, here's the photographic evidence that proves I'm completely cracked. ;-)

Here we have the best of the costumes. SuperOtis! His super "powers" include the ability to pee 50 times on a half hour walk, super sonic hearing that can detect the opening of any bag that may contain food within a square mile, and powers of attraction that are irrestible to little cats who scare the heck out of him. Sadly, cheddar cheese is his kryptonite.

And here we have the worst of the costumes. Otis the Friendly Ghost. That is a pillow case but Brad thought it looked like an old pair of underwear - even Otis seems to sense this is not a cool costume. They can't all be winners folks.

ORANGEina??

2005-08-24T12:18:00.000-07:00

Ok, so it isn't orange but it is indeed the first panel of Orangina. I want a black one now too.

I cast on the second panel EARLY this morning. Otis somehow got locked in the basement last night - not sure how that happened but I think the cats had something to do with it. Anyhow, at 5:45AM he was crying for help - we found him at the top of the basement stairs with his head as far as he could get it through the cat door - he's an 80 pound golden retriever so we're talking back of the ears max. The cats were watching him with amusement so I figure they either shut the door intentionally locking him down there for entertainment value or they were thinking "what an idiot, why doesn't he just come through the cat door." In any case, I was up so I figured I might as well get some knitting done - it was actually a very nice way to start the day but I don't think I'll do it again tomorrow.

As promised...

2005-08-16T07:10:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of modelled pics of Peace. Sorry no head shots this morning - was still in a state of "bed head". Anyhow, as you can see, she's a wee bit on the tight side. It actually fits quite like the Rowan photo but I was going for something with slightly more ease.

Stand back folks - those buttons could pop at any moment. ;-)

It doesn't look terribly bad unbuttoned but as soon as I start moving about, the gap widens considerably. The color in this photo is the "most true" - the buttoned shot came out a bit too glaring.

Project Specs:
* Peace - Rowan, Mag. No. 25 designed by Kim Hargreaves
* I knit the second size and used approx. 7.5 skeins (115m/skein) of Rowan Cotton Glace (100% cotton) in Spice (color discontinued - I got mine from Janette's Rare Yarns on eBay)
* The stockinette on Peace was broken up by tons of shaping - I didn't particularly care for the look of the K3togtbl decrease but in the end, I no longer notice it and, quite frankly, I don't know of a subsitute that would achieve the same darted effect without changing the gauge.
* I made no modifications to the pattern - just knit it through as is.
* If I were to make this cardi again, I would plan ahead and do a 3 needle bind off or grafting on the shoulder seams - I found my shoulder seam to be a bit bulky when sewing in the set-in sleeve.

How'd That Happen?

2005-08-15T06:23:00.000-07:00

So, first of all the good news - "Peace" is finished. And I'm very happy with it. It's just the sort of thing I would throw on with jeans and wear and wear and wear. So that brings us to the bad news. It's almost a full size too small. How'd that happen you might ask - didn't you check gauge? Didn't you measure it against a favorite sweater to ensure it had the correct amount of "ease"? Yes, I did all of those things and have since come to realize that that favorite sweater is now also too small. The problem, sadly enough, is not that the sweater came out too small but that I have come out too big. Crap.

So it's back to working out. I've been incredibly lazy this past year and it is showing obviously - why do I always think it won't catch up with me? I was on the treadmill at the ungodly hour of 6:30 this morning but managed to get a few shots of Peace hanging over the dining room chair before I headed out to work. I'll have a couple of modelled shots tomorrow - Brad left for work early this morning.

(Click to Enlarge...)

What do you think of these buttons? I wanted something plain but not sure these were the right decision...

Oh yes, almost forgot - I also got a parcel from Amazon this morning - I used that gift certificate to get Fishermen's Sweaters by Alice Starmore. I haven't made it through the entire book yet but WOW!! There are some absolutely incredible and classic designs in here - several will be making it into my knitting bag in the not too distant future.

The Power of Suggestion...

2005-08-03T07:39:00.000-07:00

So yesterday I'm innocently reading through Li's blog. But it's not an ordinary day at Domesticat. There are pictures of incredibly refreshing looking beverages posted. Mint Juleps to be exact. Mmm...minty drinks...whatever you do don't scroll down to her strawberry icecream from last week, you'll really be in trouble. So naturally I get a hankering for a mojito because, well, let's just say it. I'm easy. Why deny it...someone says "hey, let's go out for some nachos after work"...I'm not the girl saying "well, I really shouldn't - my diet you know". I probably should be...but I'm not. So, it's decided - we're having mojitos tonight (last night). First stop: liquor store. Second stop: grocery store for mint and limes. Third stop: another grocery store for mint? Where the heck is all the mint? Any other day, I would tripping over mint in the freaking aisles. No mint at the second store either but I cornered a stock boy and he got me some from the back of the store. Nice boy - he saved me from a third stop and probably 10 more minutes of muttering and searching frantically in the produce department. So, after all this, I have to say that last night's mojitos were well worth the trouble. Yum.

Now, on to yarn. My order came in on Friday and I was not disappointed.

First out of the box was some white Rowan 4-ply cotton - this is going to be used for Orangina. Actually, I'll probably put Peace on hold to fit in Orangina and get some wear before summer is over.

Next out, 10 balls for Jaeger Trinity silk/cotton for a Cozy. Obviously, I'm going to have some left overs here - maybe enough for another small wrap. I love this neutral color.

And finally, my first fall purchase, Rowan Felted Tweed for Salina in the same color as the Vintage Knits picture "Herb". This color is as nice in person as it looks in the VK photo - I couldn't be happier with it.

A Quick Poll

2005-07-27T09:39:00.000-07:00

So I get to work yesterday and there is a little present waiting for me. A gift certificate for amazon.com from the account team of a project I wasted a weekend of my life on a few weeks ago. Hey - I'm not complaining - a gift certificate is better than nothing - keep the presents coming!!

The question remains - what to do with it. I'm leaning toward a magazine subscription - which would you subscribe to? I have a feeling the one I'm leaning towards is going to be a total runaway but thought it would be interesting to see what y'all think.

Amazon Gift Certificate
Which Magazine would you subscribe to?

Interweave Knits
Vogue Knitting
Knitting Universe
Other - leave the name in the comments please!
Subscriptions are a waste of money - buy a book

view results

Easy online poll builder - free!
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Peaceful Things...

2005-07-22T07:00:00.000-07:00

I'm trying to have a zen sort of day after spending most of the week sulking that vacation was over. Just a few things to share.

Peace Cardi is coming right along. The back is complete along with the Left Front (pictured laying on top of the back). Last night I got to the end of the waist decreases on the Right Front. I think I'm really going to like this cardi. The color in this photo is pretty true - quite a spicy orange - it'll look great with dark jeans and a white tank.

And a few more vacation pictures - one last hurrah.

A picture of Otis and his best friend Angus cooling off on the beach at mom and dad's on PEI.

This one was taken from North Cape - you'll notice if you click on the picture to enlarge it, there are a couple of windmills in the background. There are about 12 up there now with plans for plenty more. PEI is going green. For anyone interested in learning more, click these links:
PEI Wind-Hydrogen Village Project
Atlantic Wind Test Site
(I was a tour guide here during University summers - great bunch of guys - they practise what they preach, let me tell you. It's great to finally see them get some attention and funding!!)

And finally, the sunset - well, this is actually a picture facing almost East so this is the very edge of the sunset. That old ramshackle cottage seemed very quaint to me for some reason. With the sea as a backdrop, it somehow becomes charming.

It Just Wasn't Long Enough...

2005-07-18T10:08:00.000-07:00

So I'm back from vacation...I've traded in cool ocean breezes for suffocating humidity. The tranquil quiet of a seaside cottage for an air-conditioned office. A blanket on the beach for an ergonomic roller chair. Oh GOD - let me go back!!! What have I done with my life?? Surely, I can come up with a better way to spend my time and still make $$$. I watched Office Space again this weekend and it may have had a negative impact on my work attitude. Or it could just be the end of vacation blues.

Time to relive...

Here's me riding a bike while not at work - you can see the sandy West Point, PEI beach stretching out behind me...sigh.

Here's me (a little tipsy if we're being honest) feeding a cute little tame bunny while not at work. He wandered around the cottage lawns all week - you can see from my pathetic "wrap" that I really need to get to work on a Cozy. I'm ordering the yarn today...no more beach towel shawls for me.

Oh vacation...how I miss you. I'll be drowning my sorrows in a yarn order this afternoon. I'm hoping to find something for a Cozy, an orangina (my last summer knit), maybe a little sock yarn - I'll see what's on the menu at Janette's, Woolworks and Yarnwerx and go from there.

Knitting progress - I started the second campfire sock on the drive home - I'm about 1 inch past the leg stripes. Apparently, that is how much sock ribbing I can do in about 2 hours in the car. I spent the rest of the time snoozing. Sunday we spent avoiding the heat in the basement watching movies (Boys on the Side, Office Space, The Italian Job, Sleepy Hollow). It was difficult to knit - Mr. Biggs is very happy that I'm home and has decided my lap is where it's at but I did manage to get the back of the Peace Cardi completed while he napped upstairs and I'm just above the waist decreases on the left front. I've been measuring things and it's looking like a good fit so far!

Not Exactly Fun in the Sun...

2005-07-12T11:59:00.000-07:00

...but wonderful all the same. We're vacationing in my hometown on PEI this week - I'm originally from North Cape and we're staying at Driftwood Country Cottages (about 10 mins from there). Normally we'd stay with mom and dad but we're here for the whole week so it's nice to have some space of our own to entertain and stretch out in. So far we haven't had much sun - lots of stormy, cool weather but I'm not complaining. I'll take the cool Gulf breeze over suffocating humidity anyday! :-)

As far as knitting goes, I've completed the first campfire sock and it's a perfect fit! Here it is enjoying the view from our cottage window...

I've also been working on the Rowan Peace Cardi - I'm just about to start the armhole decreases on the back. I've struggled with the shaping on this one. The pattern has the decrease shaping reversed and matches k3tog with k3tog tbl. k3tog and k3tog tbl are not a very good match and come out noticeably different. I actually was going to rip back and try something else but decided to put it away for a few days before doing it. When I brought it back out this week, I thought "Meh, I can live with it." so I'm forging on although I may try some different things with the front as it will be more noticeable there.

So back to vacation...

If you ever make it to the Island, I would highly recommend Driftwood Country Cottages in Tignish - the cottages are lovely and right on the beach. There is plenty to do in the area as well - including MacAusland's Woolen Mill where you can walk the factory floor literally inches from the machines - crazy! I will definitely be stopping there for some shopping on our way out and will try to get some pics. Their wool is fantastic and has some great colorways - I particularly like their greens.

And if you're lucky enough to get some blustery weather while you're on the Island, you can head to North Cape and watch some Irish Moss harvesting. When we were kids and a "moss storm" came in, the entire family would head to the shore. Dad would work with the horse and the rest of us would work with rakes, etc. to gather up the moss. Us little ones spent more time playing than working of course but when I smell the beach in blustery weather, it brings back fond memories of PEI. Dad is retired now but both of my brothers have work horses that they take to the shore to harvest when the moss comes in. They were out today...

This is Jason out on his horse - they just happened to get hit with a big wave as I snapped the shot.

Jason coming out of the water to dump the scoop (that metal thingy dragging behind the horse picks up the moss in the water).

Finally, a close up of Jason and his horse. They've been out most of the night - coming in for a few hours this morning to eat and rest. There are certain conditions that bring the moss in to shore and they don't come often so these guys will squeeze as much work as possible into a day or two before the winds take it out again.

My younger brother Ricky has also been out with his horse most of the night - this is a picture of him and my cousin Scott on the shore this morning. Ricky is the one holding the horse reins. In case you're thinking these guys are crazy to be out in this weather all night, they can get about $1000 per truckload so it can make for a great couple days work if they bring in several truckloads.

Anyhow, so far vacation is going great...I can finally get caught up on my blogging!! I'll be posting more vacation pics and knit progress shots later this week.

What do you do on the hottest day of the year??

2005-06-28T11:26:00.000-07:00

So let's talk about Saturday... Saturday was almost 40 degrees Celsius WITH extreme humidity and no breeze whatsoever. That kind of weather makes you want to melt. That kind of weather makes your clothes stick to you and your hair look like something a bird might call home. So what might an enterprising young Canadian woman do on such a day you might ask - surely she headed for the beach? Surely she didn't spend the day seaming and felting wool?? What can I say - I'm a sucker for punishment...

This is the Tab-Top Tote from Felted Knits - knit up in Briggs and Little Heritage wool (Red Heather) - I added 10 stitches to the cast on and about 3 rounds to the increases to make it a bit bigger. If I were to do this again, instead of adding extra tabs to account for the extra stitches at the end, I would space out the existing tabs as the top came out a bit busy. My favorite part of this project was the double-bottom. The second bottom panel was knit seperately, then you pick up the purl rows from the bottom of the bag and connect the bottom of the bag to the second bottom panel with a 3 needle bind-off. This made for a wonderfully smooth and sturdy seam.

Pre-felting...

Post-felting...

What's inside?? Felted Knits of course! And a swatch for Rowan Peace Cardi...

So, that's the end of the knitting content for today but I do have a self-deprecating story and some cute pet pictures to come for those of you who are interested.

Self-deprecating story first. We do not live in town - our house is out in the country and because of that we've got a pretty large backyard. Large enough that we don't mow with a "push" lawnmower. We've got a "ride-on" mower. This weekend, I decided that I would like to learn to ride the "ride-on" mower. It sounds like a very simple thing but there are lots of intimidating little knobs and levers that could cause much confusion for someone who has never done such a thing. Brad was very patient and explained all of the knobs/levers - I hopped on the mower and off I went! Now, a "ride-on" mower is not exactly a speedy machine so I did a huge slow circle of the backyard and as I was coming up the far side - I see Brad yelling something to me but I can't hear over the noisy engine. He continues to yell and then starts striding purposely toward me. I can't believe it - I'm sure he's being incredibly chauvanistic and is on his way over to tell little ole me how to "properly" mow the lawn. I'm getting ready to roll my eyes and tell him I'm a grown woman and just because this is the first time I've been on a "ride-on" mower, it isn't the first time I've mowed a lawn so please just let me do it my way. He's gets close enough for me to hear and before I can get a word out, he shouts with an amused grin "PUT THE MOWER DOWN!" Oh. Crap. Apparently, I'd just been driving around the yard - wasn't mowing a darn thing. Blush.

And now the cute pet pictures. Remember how I said Saturday was a make you melt sort of hot day? Well, you would think that the "boys" would want to have lots of space - maybe even spend the day in the cool basement? You would think so but this is what they did instead...

First, we've got Bigsy and Niblet. Understandable - cats generally enjoy warm places and although I thought it was a bit much for the heat, I didn't really think twice about it.

But later that day, I see Bigsy and Otis sharing the dog bed. This is much stranger since Otis does not enjoy the heat at all.

Finally, I walk into the room and see this! haha! Apparently Bigsy makes a better pillow than the pillow.

That's a Wrap...

2005-06-21T06:47:00.000-07:00

Mary is all wrapped up. Heh - sorry I couldn't help it but I promise that is the last of the "wrap" jokes. The pictures don't exactly do her justice - I had just pulled her out of a bag at SnB so I'll try to take more once she's washed and blocked. I was a little too excited to get them posted.

I'M NOT READY YET!!

The front view...

The rear view...I'm gonna shorten those ties - they're ridiculous.

Side View?

Whirling Dirvish View...

So with Mary finally finished up and languishing in the closet (far too hot for this type of sweater at present). I was wrapping...er...I mean wracking my brain for a new project (groan...I know that one was bad). I decided it was time to stop putting off a knitting bag so I'm making a felted tab top tote from Felted Knits - it's about half way up the sides so shouldn't take long to complete at all - a red tweedy color. Believe me - it's nice to do some mindless knitting in the round after all that k6,p6 ribbing. After that probably Honeymoon Cami - tis the tanktop season.

You're Gonna Be Jealous if you Read any Further... (just sayin)

2005-06-14T11:04:00.000-07:00

So I get to SnB last night and Michelle had a surprise for me - check it out!!

(start drumroll please...)

My Brand Spanking New Hand-Crafted by Michelle Needle Roll

Here it is casually splayed open to reveal the goodies within.

Another shot with my new (did I mention it's dark pink on light pink?) needle roll partially rolled up - showing just a hint of needle slot (naughty roll indeed)...

All rolled up...

Then we've got the standard half fold pose...(did I mention I love my new needle roll?)

And finally the full fold which in some ways looks even neater than the full roll...I may have to call this my new needle fold instead of roll. Hmmm...

Thanks Michelle! I clearly LOVE it.

So that was my excitement last night. Oh, and I've finished the sleeves for 'Mary' finally - now I'm working on the ties which are 30 inches long but only 3 stitches wide so not so bad. THEN I can start blocking/seaming. I suppose I should start reading the pattern fully so as not to get surprised by 60 inches of "tie" at what I thought was the end of the project. Although, why the ties would be a surprise I can't say, since they're quite clearly visible in the photo...oh well...that's another discussion altogether.

I actually spent today working from home - will be free to knit very shortly and get those darn ties finished up. So, for anyone who has ever wondered what your pets do while you're at work? Here you go...

They nap. Some prefer shoes, some the sofa, some specially designed pet tent beds but without a doubt they are napping. Actually, I don't think napping quite captures it - by definition a nap is not meant to last upwards of 8 hours - let's call it hard core sleeping. Otis has been squeaking out sleep barks all day - hilarious!!

Knitting on the Water...

2005-06-13T07:24:00.000-07:00

Well, I did not finish 'Mary'/ribby wrap - still have a bit to knit on the second sleeve before I can start blocking/seaming. The sleeve WILL be finished up tonight at SnB though - in fact, I'm not leaving Michelle's house until Mary's sleeve is finished. Maybe I should have brought a sleeping bag...

Anyhow, Brad and I went out in the canoe this Saturday afternoon. And while he did this:

I did this:

The result:

Special thanks to Bigsy for allowing the use of his tail to demonstrate the scale of the campfire sock.

A few items of note:
1. It's not the greatest picture so I wanted to stress that that is not a teeny-tiny fish dangling from Brad's line. Well, actually it is a teeny-tiny fish albeit a plastic one. Just a lure...no fishies were harmed in the taking of these photos. Actually, no fishies were harmed at all on Saturday. ;-) We had hotdogs, watermelon and smores for supper.

2. In the first photo of me knitting, that teeny spec you see behind me is our house across the river. I was really, really, really sore Sunday morning after that paddle.

3. For the more "eagle-eyed" among us, I will confess that my campfire sock knitting was sitting in a nasty plastic Jumbo Video bag. However, given that I was in a canoe, I think this can be forgiven.

The Home "Stretch"...

2005-06-10T05:18:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm on the home stretch and I do mean STRETCH with 'Mary' or, as Anna has termed her, the Ribby Wrap (try saying that 5 times fast). Just one sleeve to go - can I finish it up this weekend? I'd sure like to.

Check out how the rib springs in once it's past the needles...this pattern and yarn have got some serious stretch factor.

I'm not really sure how to go about blocking it though - at first I was thinking I'd block it to lie flat but I'm not sure if that is the right thing to do or if it should "cling" a bit - I don't want it to lose it's "sproingy" quality entirely. Oh well, maybe I'll seam and then block so I can get a look at a before and after - hmmm...maybe that is tempting disaster, it's definitely going to need a block of some kind. I'm sure it'll all work itself out. Has anyone ever blocked giant, sproingy cotton angora rib before??

I haven't been posting much recently since I didn't think anyone would be interested in seeing 1/4 of a sleeve - oh wait, there's 1/2 a sleeve - 3/4s done... ;-) Even I'm getting to the point of wanting the rib to end. Hopefully, there'll be some finished photos early next week.

I did get a couple of new books recently. I've been browsing through and they're quite informative. The Craft Night Girls are going to start doing a lesson in something the first Monday of every month. When my turn comes around to be the "teacher", I'm definitely going to do kool-aid dying (the sock book has great instructions). Nice and messy!!

Cross-Over Cardis Require a Lot of Knitting...

2005-05-31T07:11:00.000-07:00

It feels like I've been knitting on 'Mary' (the cross-over cardi) forever. I know it hasn't actually been that long but I feel that I should be at least starting the sleeves at this point and yet, I'm not. The back is completed and I'm about 2/3rds up the second side of the front. Apologies for the poor photo - I was rushing off to work this morning so threw the fronts on the first place they would fit. Anyhow, I was doing some figuring on the weekend whilst sulking over not having completed the front and discovered that the repeats up to where the side shaping start (just below the needle on the side in progress) require approx. 5600 stitches so armed with that knowledge and the fact that I'm constantly switching from knit to purl stitches, I've decided that I'm more than happy with my progress so far. It's not so bad. It's that darned stretchy rib that makes it looks much smaller than it is and defeats my sense of accomplishment!

Also started on what I'm calling the campfire socks last week. We tend to have a lot of backyard campfires in the summer and I needed a project that I didn't mind getting "smokey" so chose a 100% wool brown heather to work on a pair of heavy woolen socks for Brad. As you can see I made HUGE progress on our first campfire night completing a whopping 9 rows or so before Otis ran away from home and we had to send out a search party. He has NEVER done this so we were freaking out looking for him. We found him about 20 mins later "feasting" - I won't bother to say on what. Trust me, you don't want to know...suffice it to say that it was not the freshest of dinners.

The Long Weekend...

2005-05-24T12:41:00.000-07:00

Ah, the long weekend...weather was wet and horrible but who cares - I had 8 knitting/crafting friends come over on Sat. for an afternoon of knitting, a potluck, a pitcher of Cosmopolitans, and some crappy 80s/90s movies. Brad was away so we took full advantage and camped out in the living room. I was going to make a big deal of asking everyone if it was ok to post their pics but realized today that noone had looked at the camera anyhow so here are the tops of several heads. (Projects in the pic are a pink "shoelace" yarn scarf and a neopolitan icecream baby blanket. Both very cute.)

As you can see everyone was deep in concentration the second the camera came out. They all look so serious, don't they? Don't be fooled...
(Projects in the pic are a blue/green french market bag being knitted up by Michelle, a hand embroidered throw which was absolutely gorgeous, a teddy bear cross-stitch so cute! and a pair of slippers - first one was finished by day's end.)

Max came over to play with Otis and he even gave knitting a go...had some trouble handling the second needle though. He may turn out to be better at crochet.

So what was I working on through all of this?? Most of the day I worked on 'Mary' although after the second Cosmo, I had to take a break for fear of what might happen - finished up the back on Sunday.

This is by far the stretchiest thing that I have ever knitted...I was far too lazy to block it yesterday so I just held it out to demonstrate - pretty crazy, huh?

I don't know how I thought it would be but I was surprised at just how stretchy the rib was - I think it will make a for a really great fit over a cami.

Things I've Been Doing Instead of Knitting...

2005-05-16T06:49:00.000-07:00

First things first...the mellow yellow socks are complete and their mellowy, yellowy fluffy goodness brings a big smile to my feet.

Now...you might ask, it's been more than a week since your last post. What on earth have you been doing all this time? Well, sadly, there has not been any other knittng progress to mention. I've been:

1. Wishing I was knitting while I painted ceiling tiles (try to never do this).
2. Wishing I was knitting while I ran a 5k for the Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada.
3. Wishing I was knitting while I painted dark colored trim.
4. Wishing I was knitting while I painted bright red walls.
5. Wishing I was knitting while I spent hours at the mall with house guests.
6. Wishing I was knitting while I cleaned my house in preparation for house guests.
7. Wishing I was knitting while I painted ceiling tiles (second coat - almost as bad as the first).

But tonight is SnB so there will be no wishing tonight. I'll be knitting bay-bee!! That's right...I'll be knitting swatches all night - woohoo! Ah, crap. Oh well, at least tomorrow I will know what I'm going to knit next and what size needles I'll need to use...that is some sort of progress, right?

Workin' It!

2005-05-05T07:22:00.000-07:00

Well, all the worrying was for naught. Clapotis is finished and I've got tons of yarn left - certainly enough for a small scarf and I didn't remove a repeat (thank goodness cause it would have been too short if I had)!

Anyhow, most of these pics were taken at work this morning - oh yeah, baby - I'm wearing it. I finished up the knitting last night and only had 2 ends to weave in - how cool is that - I wish I could buy all my yarn in 600m hanks. It needed to be blocked but dried super fast - perfect attire for our freezing office. I may make one in every shade of the rainbow so I can wear a Clapotis everyday!! Anyhow, here are the pics.

First, we've got the home shot taken by Brad - he always manages to make me look like a cow. Well, maybe not like a cow but he adds at least 10 pounds even when I try to do the sideways skinny illusion stance. The man is a master.

Now, some shots from the office...this is how I've been wearing it (not like the first shot).

And this is my over the shoulder glamour puss shot...um...yeah...sure it is. Glamour puss...right.

So, since it was only 9:30PM when Clapotis went to the blocking board last night, I couldn't help casting something on. Mellow Yellow socks!! These are so soft and fuzzy and knit up amazingly quick on 5mm needles at least until I got to this point and now the pattern is confusing and sucky so wish me luck tonight... The yarn and pattern are from Fleece Artist - I'm using a double strand of MO and Bluefaced Leicester in Mellow Yellow.

A First!

2005-05-04T09:51:00.000-07:00

Before I get to the "business" of the day, Brad sent me the cutest quote this morning:

"Know Yourself. Don't accept your dog's admiration as conclusive evidence that you are wonderful." -- Ann Landers

I had never heard this one before and laughed for about 5 mins. So then I got to thinking about the the cat equivalent of this quote. Maybe something like this?

"Know Yourself. Don't accept your cat's disdain as conclusive evidence that you are NOT wonderful."???

Anyway - The lovely Anna tagged little ole me today! This is a first and boy did she pick the right topic - books!!

Warning #1: I can go on and on and on about books.
Warning #2: There is no knitting related content in this post but Clapotis will be finished tonight so expect stylish pictures tomorrow!
Warning #3: Don't say I didn't warn you.

1)Total number of books in your house:
Hmmm...far too many to count...somewhere in the hundreds I suppose. I've been an avid reader far longer than I've been an avid knitter. :-) I majored in English Lit. at University so have some large tomes from those days along with everything else I've accumulated over the last 10 years or so. I don't mind parting with books that aren't special to me - I've sent out a number of them through bookcrossing.com (very neat site/concept) but the majority of them do stay with me.

2)The last book you bought was:
I was at the bookstore last Thursday and came home with Isaac's Storm by Erik Larson and The Iliad.

What possessed me to buy the Iliad? Not sure...I was walking by, saw it there and realized that I've never read it in full. So I compared a few translations and went home with the one that appealed to me most - it's the "epic story of Troy" for anyone who is wondering.

I've been looking for Isaac's Storm ever since I read Devil in the White City by Erik Larson - I really enjoy his writing style. The man does years of research about an event and then writes an historically accurate account of what happened. You'd think (at least I thought) that that sort of thing would be a bit dry but he pulls it off without seeming textbookish whatsoever. Isaac's Storm recreates the worst natural disaster in US history - a hurricane that wiped "6000 souls and the town of Galveston off the map" - through the telegrams, letters and reports of Isaac Cline - a meteorologist of the day. Sounds like an interesting story to me... Also, the day before this I put through an online order for 2 knitting books: The Twisted Sisters Sock Workbook by Lynne Vogel and Vintage Knits by Sarah Dallas. Fun!

3)What was the last book you read before reading this?
The last book I read was The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood. I'm a big Margaret Atwood fan and had never read this particular novel. It was not my favorite but pretty good. I'm currently reading My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult - it's our bookclub pick for this month (about 8 of us get together once a month to discuss a book) - it's quite good so far - about a 13 year old girl who was conceived to be a donor to her older sister who has a rare form of leukemia. It's very captivating and a bit heart rending at times - I hear the ending is going to be difficult to read. Should be plenty to discuss...

4)Write down 5 (or 6) books you often read or that mean a lot to you.
In no particular order:

1. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad - I must have read this novel a dozen times over the course of my undergrad. It is short but brimming with imagery. I've dissected it over and over again and always seem to find something new. "The horror, the horror!"

2. Devil in the White City by Erik Larson - the full title is actually Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness At the Fair That Changed America. How cool is that? This book was excellently written and I finished it feeling much smarter than when I began.
It is set in 1890s Chicago and follows the lives of 2 men: Daniel Burnham (architect of the 1893 Chicago World's Fair) and H.H. Holmes (one of America's first serial killers who used the circumstances of the Fair to his advantage). You will learn a lot reading this book and it carries an interesting cast of characters including some young, later-famed architects of the US (you'll recognize the names).
One interesting factoid that I was not aware of was that the very first Ferris Wheel was unveiled at the Chicago World's Fair in answer to the Eiffel Tower which was the highlight of the 1889 World's Fair in Paris. It seems odd in this day and age to compare a common Ferris Wheel to the Eiffel Tower but I guess it being the first one would have been QUITE a scene and it was apparently VERY large.

3. Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood was another book that I could read again and again. It is a fictional account of the life of Grace Marks who in 1843 was convicted for her part in the murder of her employers (at age 16). It's very well written and not as dark as you would imagine from my description - gives a good glimpse into society of the time. Also by Margaret Atwood on my could read over and over list are: Oryx and Crake (her latest), and The Handmaid's Tale (The Blind Assassin is excellent too!).

4. Ishmael by Daniel Quinn is in the category of life changing novels. It offers a whole new perspective on the issues facing humanity like overpopulation, pollution...etc.

I think I've gone on long enough with this now... :-)

5. Oh wait! One more - Testament by Nino Ricci - I just read this book last year and it was really worth the time - it is an alternate version of the life of Christ or at least a view of him as an everyday person living out his life not the Bible version of things - it was very appealing.

6. And one more. Lest you should think that I don't read anything fun (I just realized the list is relatively heavy with 2 books involving murders(!)). How about The Barrytown Trilogy by Roddy Doyle? It's actually 3 novels: The Committments, The Snapper and The Van. I was literally laughing out loud at the Rabbitte family antics. Reminds me of some folks I know! :-)

If you've made it to this point and are still awake, it's OVER and I did warn you!

5)Who are you going to pass this onto and why?
I will be passing this on to Crafter's Addiction, Knitting on an Island, Domestically Challenged if they don't already have it. Anyhow, these girls seem like interesting folks and I'm curious to see what they like to read. Sorry guys... :-) I'm curious about what Knitting Wench is reading too but I believe she's got a sore wrist so I won't trouble here with any more typing that blogging already takes!!

How Many Knitters Does it Take...

2005-04-26T10:04:00.000-07:00

...to untie this freaking knot? The correct answer is 3. The first 20 mins of Sn'B last night was spent working on Al's shoelace type yarn that had the most confusing knot I've ever seen. In our defense, it was a very tight knot.

The rest of the night, I spent working on this...

I know I'm pretty late to the Clapotis party but it's a great pattern (very fun to knit) and I'm looking forward to finally having one of my very own. I found the perfect shade of espresso bean brown on our shopping trip to Cricket Cove. It's a 50% wool/50% cashmere blend and came in a GIANT 600m+ hank. I have to admit, I was a little disappointed when I saw the price tag (it was $75 and seemed a bit much) but some crazy person had hung this gorgeous stuff on a NAIL!! A cashmere blend casually hung on a NAIL!! It may even have been rusty...

In any event, at some point, this rusty nail had damaged the hank breaking about 8 strands so I got a huge discount on it and walked out a very happy camper. I was a bit worried about the damage but once I started balling it up, it all turned out to be at one end (as I had hoped and the shopkeeper had assured) and I got 8 teeny tiny balls and 1 giant one that should be plenty to finish it up.

Now, because I know that I will never find anything even remotely close to this yarn in that shop or any other (it didn't even have a brand label on it), I'm almost certain to run out. Especially now that I've come out and said it - I should have just carried on confidently. Drat. Maybe I'll play it safe and leave out one of the repeats on section 3. Hmmm...did anyone go over on yarn with Clapotis??

NBaT Is Finished and Yarn Hags Hit the Road!

2005-04-21T06:37:00.000-07:00

nbatgood
Originally uploaded by knittenknots.

I finished seaming on NBaT last night and I LOVE it! It was a perfect fit and actually seamed up quite nicely once I stopped being a space cadet and paid more attention to the stitches that the TV. I am really happy with everything about the T except a tiny problem with the neckline - it's a bit "floopy"...came out slightly wider than I had wanted (had to pull a few rows out of the back to get the right length and that is where the extra stitches came from). It still covers my bra straps so I'm fine with it but would like to tighten it up just a bit so it doesn't gap out when I'm moving around. What would you ladies suggest? I'm thinking once this puppy gets wet, it's going to be more of a problem. Should I try running some yarn around the neck edge to tighten? Should I take apart one of the raglans and bind off the neckline with a smaller needle? I haven't weaved in any ends yet so this wouldn't be as bad as it sounds. Anyhow, I'm planning to debut NBaT at craft night next Monday if I can wait that long - it's so soft!!

This has been a very exciting week stashwise - the Yarn Hags hit the road on Tuesday afternoon for some serious stash additions. First stop:

Red went a little wild at Briggs and Little but who can resist - it's so darn affordable and smells all sheepy!!

Then it was on the road again headed toward Black's Harbour, NB where there is a great little yarn store called Cricket Cove.

I love this little store. We spent 2 hours in there just walking around looking and touching - they've got koigu, Noro, Rowan, Jo Sharp, Karabella...all sorts of Alpaca and Mohair and, yes they have Cashmere. And, yes, I bought some. Just enough for a hat or scarf of course.

So, all in all, Yarn Hags Hit the Road was a smashing success - there is too much new stash to list but you'll be seeing it in the coming weeks. I can't wait to get started on something new!

Getting Closer...

2005-04-19T06:23:00.000-07:00

Went to Craft Night last night and will have pics to post later of the scarves completed by the new knitters (very cute) - they are now completely hooked. It was fun and surprisingly productive...even with a glass of wine under my belt I was able to complete the final sleeve for NBaT. And here is the proof:

Now, you may be thinking: "HEY, that isn't the NBaT sleeve" and really it isn't - I changed the top of the T a lot - used ribbing instead of that gorgeous hem (not sure why I did that now that I see all the others looking so sharp) and I also made a raglan sleeve and a wider, lower neckline. Will this all blow up in my face and have me looking completely ridiculous? Most likely. But only seaming will tell...and that starts tonight. My fingers are crossed...

Got some more fun mail yesterday. I traded a couple of balls of my purple Calmer for CathyZ's pink flamingo. It is so cute. I'm thinking I have enough purple left (3 balls) to make a purple/pink striped child sized cardigan so maybe a Xmas present for someone...

And finally, late last week, I decided to try out my Eucalan wool rinse sample on a gigantic blast from the past AlmostFO that has been sitting in my closet for at least 3 years. I loved the pattern BUT I was young and foolish so didn't swatch and didn't think about the fact that without waist shaping, this would look like a giant sack on my short self. So...long story short, the sweater came out WAY too big. I have learned the error of my ways since those dark days and I thought that maybe I had enough experience now to "fix" it so out came the Eucalan. This was my first experience using it and I learned a few things:
1. Eucalan wool rinse really does contain eucalyptus.
2. Eucalyptus soap does not taste like eucalyptus cough drops at all.
3. Teeth are not the proper tool for opening LIQUID soap packets.
4. Even blocking can't fix everything.

The sweater is still too big (especially across the shoulders) but I have managed to shrink it to a size suitable for walking the dog or puttering around the house/yard. I blocked it and then while it was still damp (because I had nothing to lose at this point), I put it through 10 mins intervals in the dryer until it was a reasonable fit - there was a bit of acrylic (25%) in the wool but it still lost several inches off both the length and width. So while I wasn't able to pull off a wool miracle, I will finally be able to get some use out of this sweater. It was an early project and took me MONTHS to complete so that is a good thing.

Just Don't Panic...

2005-04-13T06:09:00.000-07:00

Well, first off I need to apologize to Anna... I was in a panic about the length of the neckline on my Nothing But a T-Shirt and I sent her an email that just went on and on and on about it. Only because she's a knitting genius who can design her own beautiful striped Sally though so that makes it ok right?? Sheesh...

Anyhow, moments after hitting Send on my "woe is me, whatever shall I do email", I thought "Hmmm...is it really THAT long?" and for some reason had the presence of mind (finally) to go get one of my favorite t-shirts and measure it against that. I'm blushing as I say this but they were in fact, the same length. To be perfectly honest, my favorite t-shirt was actually longer than the one I've been in a panic over. Yes, I probably do need professional help or medication of some sort - I tend to get very jumpy just before a project is about to come together. So, my ridiculous fit of unfounded panic has now subsided and here is a picture of the progress thus far. I may need to rip a few rows on the back still but nothing as major as what I had thought was going to happen.

In less neurotic news, look what came in the mail on Monday(!) - it's an absolute gem - if you enjoy the Harlot's blog, you'll really love the book. I'm still cracking up over page 25...hee hee!

True Bliss...

2005-04-07T06:23:00.000-07:00

More stash arrived yesterday! This is actually the last of my order so the goodie trail ends here. For now...

Wanna see?? Wanna see??

First out of the box was some Debbie Bliss Cathay - it is absolutely gorgeous yarn (50% cotton, 35% microfibre, 15% silk) - so soft and silky. I can't wait to use it. It comes in some fantastic jewel tone colours but I decided on white for a summer tank top - Honeymoon Cami is what I have planned for it unless something else comes along before I get started. Suggestions are welcome...

And I finally got my DB Cotton Angora for 'Mary'! I fell in love with this pretty wrap cardi the first time I saw it so am definitely looking forward to getting this show on the road.

So that was it for yarn stash but am I the only person who is completely enamored with the little samples that are included in yarn orders?? I am completely tickled when I get to the bottom of the box and there are all these tiny goodies.

One very useful one that came in this order was a Eucalan no rinse wool wash sample - I've been wanting to try that out so now I can.

In other knitting news, I've got the back of my KAL t-shirt finished up to the armhole decreases. This is where the modifications I'm making start to get tricky. I'm not really a "modifier" by nature so this might be a complete disaster - we'll see. No pics today since it's just a big purple rectangle with bites taken out of the sides. So far so good...

Stash and Swatch...

2005-04-04T06:16:00.000-07:00

Well, Friday was a very exciting day at the mailbox. My knitwerx.com order came in - yay!! Complete with a hand written note and several samples - gotta love that kind of service. Anyhow, these were the goodies waiting for me when I got home from work on Friday - made my day - ah, who am I kidding, made my week!

I'll start with the least exciting item - I like to work my way up. I got some Emu Superwash sock yarn not because I necessarily needed more sock yarn but because they were having a great sale and I thought I would give it a try it. The pics from this morning were terrible (raining out) so it looks pretty blue but it's actually a dark green mix for man socks.

They also had a great bargain price on Silky Wool so I got enough to make myself something in purple. This might end up being a Clapotis but I'm not 100% sure yet - I really would like a chocolate brown one after some shopping I did late last week. I got a brown tweed skirt that would look really nice with some kind of brown wrap. Hmmm...I could always have a purple one AND a brown one.

Finally, I got some DB Cotton Angora in "Raspberry" to make a couple of baby sweaters for Xmas. Everyone seems to be having little girls and the yarn color is perfect - not quite as popsicle pink as the photo but close. I'm planning to make 2 Poppies from her Cotton Angora book. So that was it from knitwerx but there is a woolworks order that should be here next week that has some stuff for me(!) and will be enough to keep me busy through the Spring for certain.

So, even with all the new yarn in the house, I did manage to stop myself from casting on Xmas presents and did a bit of work on my purple wool socks. I imagine this will get tossed aside for my summer knitting now to be picked up sometime later in the season and finished for fall weather. I'm turning the heel on sock #1...

I also took the time this weekend to swatch my Calmer for the Nothing But a T-shirt KAL. I've got to admit, I cannot get guage on this stuff. I went all the way up to 6mm needles and I'm still way too tight in horizontal guage. I ended up with 22X28 on 6mm but I do like the drape at that size so I think the plan for me is to get out the calculator tonight and start doing some "figuring" to make this work. There is no way I'm going to get down to 19 stitches. My only concern with going this route is that as I get more comfortable with the yarn, my guage may loosen up a little. Oh well...we'll see what happens. I'm loving the calmer despite guage woes - it's just so darn soft.

As far as the t-shirt itself goes, I'm planning to cast on at craft night tonight if I get time. Can you believe I've had 2 friends ask me to teach them to knit in the past 2 weeks?! They're both going to be there tonight so I might be doing more helping than knitting today. I love when someone wants to learn though! I've got another friend who was knitting casually almost as obsessed as I am now...it's highly contagious.

Right...so...back to the Nothing But a T-shirt KAL. I'm planning some "customizations" to the t-shirt design. I didn't have any contrasting Calmer (or a good idea) for a logo on the t-shirt so I decided to add a scoop neck - I think I'll get more wear out of a scoop neck and without the logo, it will be something to break up all this bright purple. I've also decided to add ribbing to the waist, armbands and neckline - the scoop neck may need a bit of ribbing to keep it in and I just like the look of it - saves me whip stitching later as well - my hand stitching is atrocious. So, I'll let you know how it goes tonight with the calculator - fingers crossed that I don't muck it up too badly.

Baby's Got Bag...

2005-03-29T07:25:00.000-08:00

Right…so…Zeeby’s bag was finished up just in time to take along on the drive to Brad’s parents for Easter dinner. Here I am just as we’re about to head out the door with my finished Zeeby…

Of course, it’s always more interesting to find out what is IN the bag…so I won’t keep anyone in suspense. It really isn’t all that exciting...

Yes, it’s socks. With Spring in (ahem) “full bloom”, I am still knitting woolen socks. Granted they are brightly colored purple socks but woolen nonetheless. There is still snow on the ground though AND my spring/summer stash hasn’t arrived yet. I finally ordered it all last week and I cannot wait for it to get here so I needed a small project to keep me busy until then. Still waiting on my Calmer to get here as well. I have a feeling the next 2 weeks are going to be pretty exciting as far as the mailbox is concerned. So in case anyone would like to see what late March/early April looks like in the Maritimes, here you go…

Oh - the horror. Isn’t that just a little depressing? It’s almost April and there is still snow, the ice on the headpond hasn’t even broken up yet. But to be honest, the weather this weekend was gorgeous – sunny and relatively warm (notice there is only a jean jacket being worn in the first picture) so we are making progress.

Now back to Zeeby - I really like it. I haven’t blocked it yet – trying to decide if it’s even going to be necessary after a few outings – it’s already shaping up after just one trip. It isn’t a felted bag so can’t really support a lot of weight – no heavy books for certain but it’s just right for a small project like socks. I’ve only got 2 lingering concerns: 1. The potential for stab wounds when I'm carrying my needles around (since it isn’t felted). 2. That Niblet (naughty kitty) is going to worry the detail stitching on the front right out of the bag – I’ve already caught him at this once and he appears to be quite a talent.

I didn't mean to do it...

2005-03-18T09:44:00.000-08:00

I didn't mean to start a new bag when my orange bag isn't even close to finished yet but I couldn't help it. I was having a movie night (with a few glasses of wine) and needed something I could knit without looking (or requiring too much brain power) - ribbing was just too risky. So I sat down with my knitting books thinking I would start a felted project but then I saw Zeeby's bag in Stitch N' Bitch and thought...hmmm...that looks like just the thing. And it knit up soooo quickly - I'm just a couple inches shy of having the front panel completed. Briggs and Little wool flies along. I'm using a bright blue (which has a little more green in it than this picture shows) and am planning to use lime green as the contrast color - probably. Anyhow, I didn't bother to swatch for this type or project and am a bit wide (about an inch) so will probably add an inch to the length so it doesn't mess up the bag proportions. It's going to be a knitting project bag and should be big enough to hold most projects - it'll be about 16X13.

I also found another use for my stitch markers - they make great anchors for pesky rolling stockinette edges!!

In other news, I managed to get some lovely purple Calmer (zeal) on eBay and am expecting it to show up in time to start Nona's Just a T-shirt knitalong on April 1st. I can't wait! It'll be nice to start a new project I can wear - I've been caught up in hats, socks and bags for far too long.

Coming Along...Rather Slowly

2005-03-15T06:17:00.000-08:00

I didn't get nearly as much knitting completed this weekend as I had hoped. It seemed that things kept coming up to interfere...housework, walking the dog, completing my bookclub book for this week's meeting, housework, housework. However, I did manage to complete the backgammon board that I started last week and got a couple inches of the bag started. It's been really difficult to get a good picture of the colors on this project - the orange has been coming out blaringly bright - these ones posted today are actually pretty close though. As you can see the board still needs to be blocked...it's a pretty bulgy rectangle at the moment. Anyway, I like it more than I thought I would - the bag will be really useful I think with or without the board attached. The board appears to be a bit massive in this pic but it's actually only about 19" X 10" - the angle of the picture has distorted it a bit.

This is a close up of the cartridge rib used on the bag. I really like it - lots and lots of texture.

In other news, I think I may have finally been able to score some Calmer for the just a t-shirt Knitalong. I'll know for sure later today...

It's All Fun And Games....

2005-03-09T06:47:00.000-08:00

I started on the Weekend Knits backgammon board and bag last night. My intarsia is very rusty so it was slow going for the first few points. Anyhow, I'm not 100% happy with the colors - I wanted something a little funkier as far as the green goes but I think it will do. They're not coming out very well in the pictures but I really like the orange so I'm planning to do the bag in that color. The board is going to need some serious blocking once it's completed but so far so good.

I joined nona's Nothing But a t-shirt knitalong yesterday and am looking forward to starting on that project in April. I found a serious sale at yarnforward.com on a cotton/viscose/silk blend so I'm going to pick up enough of that to make both the knitalong t-shirt from magknits and the Honeymoon Cami from knitty.com. And of course, it comes down to colors again...I like them all!! Decisions, decisions...

Odds and Ends...

2005-03-08T07:37:00.000-08:00

I'm in that stage between projects (blocking the checkboard sweater out of my mind completely now) so thought I would post a picture of my dog Otis and cat Bigsy being naughty. They are not usually alllowed on the bed but Brad was out of town and mommy is a pushover so there they are - on the bed. If you look closely, you can actually see part of the checkboard sweater balled up on my nightstand so it IS in fact knitting related content.

I spent last night balling up 3 skeins of Briggs and Little wool to start the Backgammon Board and Bag from Weekend Knitting. I think it is adorable and would have been great to take along on the ski trip if I'd had the presence of mind to make one earlier in the year. Anyhow, I don't have the lovely shade of green they used (I believe it's called Pistachio) so I'm going with Rust, Evergreen and Natural White. Not sure if that will be too much contrast or not - I'll start with the board and just rip it back if it doesn't look good. I did a couple of swatches last night and decided I'd need to go down from a 4.5 to a 4...I was just a bit big. I'll post some progress pics tommorrow - should have the board well underway by then and could use some opinions on color...

I'm baaccckkkk....

2005-03-07T11:36:00.000-08:00

Sigh...I'm back and what a WONDERFUL vacation! I wish we had another week to spend...we were at Sunday River in Maine, US and the ski conditions were fantastic. I've been looking at this picture all day to try to regain my vacation glow - coming back to work after a week off is daunting to say the least.

Just a few vacation shots before I get to the knitting part...here I am on the slopes. The day was a bit snowy so the shots are somewhat blurry.

My friend A and I standing at the top of one of the peaks. We had a blast!

I had big plans to make progress on all sorts of knitting projects with my time off (brought a HUGE bag of knitting along) but we were so busy on the trip that I just didn't have time to make much headway. However, speaking of headway, I did cast on a hat for Brad on the way down - his "devil horns" don't look all that threatening in the picture - they're a bit droopy - but that is a rather ominous looking forked tail peeking out from the jacket. Brad just doesn't pull off the "dangerous" look very well I guess. :-) It was EXTREMELY cold on this particular day so our faces were well covered as you can see.

And, lastly, here I am on the lift wearing the kitty hat although it's a bit difficult to see anything beyond the giant purple goggles! Not the most attractive pairing but we had fun so who cares, right?

I can't wait to go again next year!

Anyhow, even leaving the country, I did not score any yarn for my stash. We were stormed in for a couple of days so I didn't get to do a whole lot of exploring for a LYS but I'm going to pull together an online order from WoolNeedle Works later this week so that will lessen the disappointment.

I did do some knitting on the weekend after we got home - I finished up the back of the checkboard sweater and got the ribbing plus a few inches of pattern completed on the first sleeve. It's one of those projects that I'm just not excited about anymore though - the checkboard pattern is getting really, really tired - but I've come this far and I WILL finish it. I'll wear it walking the dog if nowhere else - haha!

Red Rover, Red Rover...

2005-02-26T15:13:00.000-08:00

Frightening angle but had to get a shot of my red roving hat in. They're quite fun as they knit up super fast. The i-cord is still a bit kinked but it will straighten out shortly. I used tassles instead of pompoms on this one since they're a bit faster to pull together. At the moment there isn't anything ridiculous or obnoxious protruding from the top of the hat and this may need to be remedied. I am undecided...

We leave on our ski trip tomorrow and in anticipation of finding a "great little yarn store" on the trip, I pulled together a list of yarns to look for - sadly, there are few options (aside from 100% wool - not that I have anything against 100% wool) in this neck of the woods so anything special must be ordered online which just isn't the same. I stopped the list when I ran out of paper - obviously, I would hardly buy all of this at once but I felt it important to have a complete list "just in case"...in case of what is unclear but I have a complete list nonetheless.

Debbie Bliss
- I have been coveting "Mary" from the Cotton Angora collection for a while now. I'll be on the lookout for the Cotton Angora book, as well as, about 13 skeins of banana.

Sock yarn
- koigu! I've heard so many great things about koigu but of course it is nowhere to be found around here. Hopefully, I can snag some out of town...I'd like to try the Crusoe socks from knitty.com.
- I'd also like to find some cool self-patterning yarns. The only thing I can get around is Kroy Socks.

The Cashmere Pullover from Weekend Knits is on my wish list. It calls for 9 skeins of Classic Elite Indulge (100% cashmere - yum!!) I'm not sure what color I would go for in this, the pattern uses a tan/gray natural looking blend but I might like something a bit darker like orange or red...although that may possible obscure the patterning contrasts. Hmmmm...

The flower washcloths from Weekend Knits are just too cute - they would make a fabulous Xmas gift wrapped up with some handmade soaps. They each require 1 skein of Crystal Palace Cotton Chenille (100% cotton) to complete.

I fell in love with Peppermint Twist from Stitch N' Bitch the moment I saw it. Love the colors. It seems to be hard to find Rowan yarns anywhere in Canada (even online) so since we're heading south of the border for skiing, I'll freak out if I find Rowan Cotton Glace - the sweater requires 7 skeins bubbles #724, 2 skeins glee #799, 1 skein passion #805 and 1 skein of Phildar Sunset indien.

Also, from Stitch N' Bitch is the Pinup Queen sweater - it's a very flattering design and I would love to try it. 8 skeins of Classic Elite Lush is the yarn used in the pattern and they went for color #4407 which is a soft blue - gorgeous!

After seeing a very sharp looking completed Big Sack Sweater on another blog (Amelia Raitte: My Fashionable Life), it's been decided that I must have one. Again with the Rowan though - Rowan Homespun Chunky (7 skeins #982 Green Waters - I'd love to find some and try it although considering it's 100% wool, I can probably work out a substitute if I don't have luck.

The last item I've had my eye on in Stitch N' Bitch is the Chinese Charm bag - it's just too cute. Noro Gemstones is the yarn used and I haven't seen it ANYWHERE yet - it uses 6 skeins of #8.

And, of course, like everyone who has ever picked up knitting needles, I must have a Clapotis (see knitty.com if you've been living under a rock recently). I'm thinking some Noro silk garden would be nice for this pattern - possibly in colorway #84 or #35 or maybe even #88.

And last, but not least, I'm turning my mind to summer knits and love the Honeymoon Cami from knitty.com - it's made with GGH Mystik a cotton/viscose blend and requires 5 skeins.

Wish me LUCK!! :-)

A little bling...

2005-02-24T07:08:00.000-08:00

So last night I started making some beaded stitch markers and I just couldn't stop. I got a little carried away and ended up with all of these. They are clumsily crafted with second rate, cheapo materials but I LOVE them all. I can't wait to start Clapotis so that I can use them!! All this time I've been using thse flat little plastic discs as stitch markers - I'll never go back - NEVER! So this is all of them together....terrible picture really but it was nighttime and apparently the kitchen tables gives off quite a glare.

But who am I kidding - this is how they'll really end up. And, frankly, I think it's much more pleasing to look at them in a big jumble like this.

Last night I also finished Brad's socks and was less than impressed with what I found. Apparently, when I had him try the first one on, I didn't pay close enough attention to how he was pulling them up and the heel was not properly positioned (not sure how he managed that) but now that I've finished up the second one, rather than 2 perfectly fitting socks, I've got 2 perfectly matched socks that are about half an inch too long. Woe is me. I hate ripping stuff back but I think it will need to be done. Sigh...I will never be at peace if he's walking around in baggy-toed socks.

Bought some Kroy Socks yarn yesterday to knit myself a pair of self-stripers but that and the dreading sock toe ripping will have to wait until after vacation. I'm planning to start my very own roving hat tonight and then try to get Brad's second hat in before we arrive. It's a 6 hour drive so should be no problem. I'm trying to decide if it would be too cheesy to make my hat match his but with red as the main color or if I should go for a different stripe pattern on my own...I'm leaning towards something different.

Putting off sock knitting...

2005-02-21T06:07:00.000-08:00

I'm just about to turn the heel on sock #2 - the second one seems to have gone much faster and I hope to finish it up today. But I'm at the point where I have to pick up stitches and I find that to be the most tedious knitting task of all. So it's sitting there on the couch and I'm sitting over here on the chair - complete standoff.

I've got 2 hats I want to get through before we leave for our ski trip on Sunday though - devil horn hat for BF and roving hat for me - the rule is, I cannot start the fun colorful hats until the grey sock is complete. This may sound harsh (or maybe just ridiculous) but if I don't finish it now...well, you know.

I really dislike making entries without a picture so here is Bigsy enjoying the felted guilt mousie one more time...slurp!!

Yum!

The Second Sock Blues....

2005-02-21T05:57:00.000-08:00

(original post Feb. 15th)
Well, I think the Valentine's Day Socks will need to be renamed afterall - I only finished the first one on Sunday and thought BF would understand if I didn't skip work for 2 days to finish the second one. Although it kinda sounds like a perfect week to me. Well, honestly I haven't even started the second one yet - I've got a bad case of the second sock blues. The first one finished up and FIT (woohoo!). My moment of triumph and then I realized "now I have to start all over again" - ugh. No offense to the sock - the foot part was actually quite fun but 9 inches of plain ribbing on the leg with 1 ply yarn wasn't exactly my dream project. Note to self:Next pair of socks must have something interesting happening on the leg. So instead of handknit socks for V-Day, BF got my version of dinner and movie - a BBQ cookbook (he's very good) and a promise that the next movie night is my treat. He got me some lovely flowers and a pound of Butler's chocolates - so, so good. A few years ago, he travelled quite frequently to Dublin,Ireland for work and would always bring me home a little box of Butler's so now they're my favorite special occasion treat.

I'm a bit disappointed with my sock picture - socks don't look like much without a model - I'll have a happy feet shot once #2 is done.

Ugh...time to go cast on another GREY sock now.

My very first sock...

Roving Hats, First Times and Guilt Mousies...

2005-02-11T08:58:00.000-08:00

First things first, I completed BF's big head roving hat last week but didn't have a picture to post - this is it in all it's pom-pom glory...I know it looks like something for a 10 year old but trust me, he loves it. You've got to have fun hats on a ski trip.

Roving Hat Completed

I also completed the felted guilt mousie last week. He came out pretty cute - the free pattern is available here for anyone who's got kitties that hold a grudge.

Guilt Mousie Completed

Bigsy was an immediate fan...

Bigsy likes him...

And Niblet eventually got in on the fun so it looks like I'm officially off the hook. Phew.

Niblet likes him too...

Now, on to the Valentine's Day socks. I honestly don't think I'll have them both completed by Valentine's Day but they are going to retain the name regardless - maybe I'll have a highly productive weekend and surprise myself. I'm a little over halfway through the first sock - just very nervously turned the heel - looks good so far - no ridges or holes so that is good. This is my very first pair of socks so I'm crossing my fingers that they will be a comfortable fit.

My very first sock...nervous turning.

The little invalid...

2005-02-02T13:47:00.000-08:00

Awww...poor kitty. This is Niblet - he is about 7 months old and was neutered today. He's doing his best to make me feel horribly guilty about the whole situation by looking as pitiful as kittily possibly. I feel awful.

The little invalid...
Cats always have a way of getting back at you though don't they? He could not eat after 10PM the night before surgery so I had to take the food up for BOTH him and his kitty brother Bigsy - short for Biggles short for Mr. Bigglesworth- because frankly, Niblet can't read the names on the bowls. They crowded around me in feline panic as I dumped the food back into the bag and then it appeared to be forgotten. I am SO naive. The next morning as I'm heading downstairs to get the kitty carrier (luckily with my boots on), I stepped in guess what? Yes - a protest poop. Unbelievable. There's no definitive poop proof and neither one of them is talking but I'm sure it was Bigsy.

Anyways, to make a long story short - I think I need to go knit some catnip mice for my little invalid...