Not now - She’s already here! PLEASE. Pretty please?

I’m amazed by the yardage of the Cotton Gima - the first ball took me through 2 good size swatches and more than 50% of the back of the tunic. This is soothing stockinette at it’s best, and a bit more visually enjoyable knitting than tactile, although my fingers are intrigued by something different too. I’m enjoying the textural quality of the Gima and watching the stitches form under my fingers, and the gauge is big enough to be sheer and allow the inches to flow from the needles rather quickly - very satisfying. Florence has been my go-to wind-down project of late. It’s working up as expected with a bit of negative ease - so the fit will be different than the orginal with it’s lovely feminine drape, hopefully the snug fit won’t be too much when coupled with the sheer fabric. Ruth says that this project requires a certain spirit of adventurousness, so I’m letting go and having fun with that!

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Now playing: Asobi Seksu - New Years
via FoxyTunes

Sometimes, colors come in groups around here. Last week, green & white, this week it’s lavender:

I have no lavender-colored garden creatures to show you, but I hope the real thing will suffice!

A swatch - which you may think you have seen before - but truely, this one’s new. I have no idea what happened to swatch #1. It disappeared to the place where all lost sock mates etc. go (around here that could mean Sweeter’s belly, but I’m hopeful that’s not the case here!), and I had not washed it yet or recorded gauge. So, after giving up hope that it would turn up in time to be useful - I pulled out the needles and swatched again:

Habu Cotton Gima (#2!) for Ruth’s Florence.

The swatch has been washed and dried and measured - and safely stowed in it’s rightful place. But here are the digits for back up - just in case!

@ 25 sts/4 inches on US5’s - slightly larger than the stated 26 sts/4 inches, but I think it will be fine. As Ruth states, measuring gauge for this yarn is a rather tricky thing. But if my math is right, it should fit just about perfect - hurray for serendipity!

The lovely lavender swatch reminded me of a long standing WIP in the same pretty shade.

This one has been shelved for well over a year, but an hour (or two) worth of finish work and it is nearly wear-worthy - just a few more closures to go! Hurray for seemingly instant FO’s!

And for lavender!

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Now playing: Tori Amos - Purple People
via FoxyTunes

Sock!

Kirsten’s Belvedere. Sock #1 in progress, completed this evening.

And, sprouts!

Red Lettuce - also just beginning to poke their heads up in other areas and in pots indoors are Kale, Tarragon, Cucumbers and Zucchini, Leeks and Marjoram.

And S is for Saturday tomorrow - What a nice way to end the week!

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Now playing: The New Pornographers - Myriad Harbour
via FoxyTunes

I mark 2007 as the year that I became a Knitter. I think we all have our own definitions, for me, I became a knitter when I learned to knit. I became a Knitter when I began to care about and enjoy Knitting as much as a craft - the history, the cultural references & techniques, the possibilities - as I did the act of making stitches itself. My spinning has taken a backseat to my knitting ever since I picked up a spindle, and I think some of that has to do with the timing of it all - I learned to spin a little over a year ago but I am as yet a spinner, and a beginning one at that. I enjoy spinning every bit as much as I do Knitting, but I still often fumble through the act itself - my feet treadle like crazy, I’m aware that I’m overspinning but can’t seem to stop myself, and sometimes my hands can’t keep up. I haven’t yet reached the point where my brain and hands connect and I have more control - and am ready to absorb all the background technique, history, and art that are involved in making a beautiful and useful yarn. It will happen - those brief moments where it all comes together give me confidence - but I think that as with my knitting, it will take a certain amount of experience and experimenting until I’m able to get to that point.

Last fall, I stalled out with my Spun Stitches project (not with the concept, just with the spinning of this particular yarn), and felt incapable of setting it aside to work on something else. As a result, it has been on my wheel now for months, literally. I’m a bit embarrassed to admit exactly HOW long. Except for one brief hiatus to spin the local blend yarn (a very small amount of roving meant that it would be a momentary distraction and would not really divert my attention from the Ocean/Allison yarn). I’m in love with the Blues and Greens, the fiber and the colors and the concept of spinning for a shawl. But the merino-tencel, which I enjoyed spinning so much for the fire-y Kayley socks, was not playing as nicely this time around and required such extensive & obsessive pre-drafting to be able to keep a fairly consistent laceweight single going, that I simply lost my enthusiasm I guess, I can’t find a better explanation for it. I have missed my wheel though and I have been wanting to get back to my spinning for what seems like ages now. And so, finally, due to the wiles of the spinning of some very talented people, and the urging of a Twisted Threads member, who said, “Oh it’s no big deal! Just write down your settings and put it all aside for a bit! Spin something small and fun to get yourself going again! You can come back to your big project again when you’re ready.” I guess I just needed to hear it.

The antidote to my spinning ennui. 4 oz. (small & manageable!) of handpainted merino purchased at SAFF from The Sanguine Gryphon. I picked this roving because I fell in love with the colors, and it has all the depth and complexity of her yarns. Gorgeous. I realized when I began to spin it up why I loved the colors so much - they coordinate perfectly with many other colors around our home - my walls, chairs and table, pottery and pictures.

I folded the roving in half and split it apart roughly in thirds where the colors seemed to change - I’m loosely planning on a 3-ply for socks, one bobbin from each color section of the roving. The first section is primarily chocolate brown, cinnamon and blue, but also contains tiny glimpses of plum, and green which are repeated in larger segments in the third section (all the way to the right on the chair, and coiled in the picture on the lower right). The 2nd section is primarily cinnamon brown with traces of burnt orange and chocolate.

I think that my knitting will continue to come first most of the time - but for the moment, this is holding my attention quite nicely - and is drafting like a dream! One bobbin down, two to go - I think the spinning love is back, hurray!

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Now playing: These United States - First Sight
via FoxyTunes

Our house is one big WIP (in the last few years we’ve painted, done trimwork, shelves, electric, etc.) and this week my dad came into town to help us frame and sheetrock an unfinished loft over the master bedroom. We worked hard, gained confidence and new skills, new muscles, and a new appreciation for contractors! We have quite a ways yet to go before it realizes it’s potential as a combined creative space for Tad & I (I told him I thought there was plenty of room for a loom, but I don’t think he’s buying it). We accomplished quite a bit, and are exhausted - but ultimately very satisfied, in the way that comes from using your own head and hands to do something useful. And we couldn’t have done it without my dad. Thanks Dad, for your time, expertise & effort - not to mention putting up with some of my pie in the sky ideas of how it all should work!

So, I’m further behind with all of YOUR activities than I was when I started vacation a week ago, I have much reading, eye candy, Ravelry surfing, emails and fiber-related activities to catch up on. Chrysalis II needs casting off, Cinderella needs some assistance from dear Kathryn, there’s been a smidgen of spinning (!!) and there are new designs in the works (some of which I’ll pull you all in on here now that I’ve missed IK’s current submission deadline - somehow finishing sketches and swatches this week just wasn’t in the cards) And, I owe you all many, many thanks for your kind words and support of my P.S. Mitts. Thanks heaps!

Sooo, what’s the biggest WIP (fiber or other) in your life??

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Now playing: Tegan And Sara - Dark Come Soon
via FoxyTunes

First, a quick website update - I’m in process of updating my blogroll and moving it to it’s own page (it’s sorely out of date!). In addition, I’ve added a few sections to the sidebar for links to current favorite knits, posts, etc. so check them out! I think the blogroll can become a bit redundant for regular readers, but this is a way to share what I’m enjoying at the moment. I plan to update these every week or so - Let me know what you think.

Now the knitting!

When I last gave a WIP update, there was a gift knit in process that I had leave off the list as the recipient frequents my blog (not from embarrassment at my growing number of WIPs, though otherwise that certainly could have been the reason! It has been confirmed that although I may enjoy having a few different projects for some variety, 7 or 8 are FAR too many). But now the deadline of gift-giving is past and though I did not finish on time, I was able to share one sock with the recipient and check for fit - it does, and I am close to finishing, and so now I can confess it here to you all!

The pattern is Rivendell, by Janel Laidman (Ravelry Link), and these are for my Sis. I’ll save most of the details for the FO post which I’ll bribe her to model for.

I am loving knitting these socks, loving the color, loving the stitch pattern. The one thing I wasn’t loving was the un-lovely ladders on the foot of the first sock. I have never had ladders like this with DPN’s - my technique (if you can call it that!) of giving the yarn a good tug for the first stitch or two of each needle usually remedies this in stockinette; but no matter what I did, the reverse stockinette just wanted to spread at the joins.

On the second sock I attempted to close the gap - and settled on wrapping the yarn clockwise for the first stitch instead of counter clockwise, then purling the next stitch as normal. This produces a twisted stitch if purled as normal through the front leg on the next round, so on each following round I inserted the working needle through the back leg of stitch (still the right leg, it just presents at the back of the needle due to the clockwise wrapping on the previous round). A trip through my old IK issues tells me that this is the way that combination knitters form their purl stitches (I never knew that!) Are there any combination knitters reading? Are there advantages/disadvantages? I’m curious! I know I’ve seen some good resources, I’ll have to hunt them down. Anyway, this was supposed to be brief! Working the stitches this way at the start of each needle drastically improved the laddering on the second foot - though it’s still not perfect, I’m hoping any remaining visual evidence will block out. I’m nearly done, so we will see soon enough!

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Now playing: Chuck Ragan - Its’s What You Will
via FoxyTunes

My first (though somewhat dull!) goal for Wardrobe Refashion has been to work through my dreaded mending pile… The pile stored in a bag, both out of sight and out of mind for the past year (or two) except on the occasions when I have added something to it. Well, I finally dug through the horror of my closet and all the other stuff (Dry cleaning…. Laundry…. Goodwill), to the very back, where the mending bag was stuffed - here it is among the other piles in all stages of sorting! (piles. Yes, I know… I have never once been accused of being a neat freak.)

The contents:

3 pairs of pants in need of hemming
3 sweater/shirts with underarm seam issues
1 tank sweater with underarm seam issues also
1 shirt in need of a button
1 pair of pants in need of a button (Tad’s)
1 dress in need of hemming
1 sweater with holes for mending (or frogging. Time will tell)
Not Pictured:
1 hanging blazer in need of a button

Once I saw this list and how minor some of the repairs were I was a bit embarrassed! But sorting through them got me motivated to take action, particularly this:

Do you see that (click for big)? It’s a STAPLE. When faced with a ripped hem at work, one must use any available provisions to prevent tripping all over oneself - whether those tools come in the form of scotch tape or staples (Staples work better if it won’t damage the fabric; I’ve tried them both.)

Hurray for hemming!

I started with the stapled pair since that seemed the most, well, ridiculous, and finished hemming all three pairs of pants.

Then, since I deemed it would only take another 5 minutes, if that, I returned a small button to the top of this blouse:

And then decided to tackle the underarm seams on this black turtleneck sweater - just shameful, I tell you. One side was a simple straight seam (albeit neatly mattress-stitched at a gauge of something like 20 sts/inch - Oh my eyes!), but the other required a crochet hook as well and some minor surgery!:

Then, since I got the most difficult one out of the way, I fixed the tank too!

Well damn - 6 down, 6 to go. That wasn’t so bad (Have I redeemed myself slightly in your eyes? My closet’s actually clean now - honest)!

I do have some other (more fun!) things planned for my 6 months of Wardrobe Refashion, but if I didn’t start with the mending pile, you can all guess where those nicely hemmed pants would be come June. Yep - still in the back of my closet.

Next up - The completed Sari-Scarf has been deemed too scratchy for my neck, but I have some re-fashioning plans to make it soft & wearable! The Remington Cardigan also saw some seaming and mending time this weekend and I expect to have a full report before too long.

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Now playing: Michael Cera & Ellen Page - Anyone Else But You
via FoxyTunes

From the soundtrack to Juno - What a GREAT movie! Highly recommended if you get the chance, check out Tad’s review for the scoop!

I have been knitting a lot over the last month or so without much to show for it, it seems. In addition to the projects listed below, there is another lovely sock that I’ve been itching to make and which I have started at least 3 times, only to be forced to accept that despite my determination, I need a smaller set of dpns. It still is shocking to me that with the wealth of needles I’ve inherited that there are sizes I actually do not have, and this includes many of the smaller ones. I’m not complaining though, in a few weeks this will be my excuse for picking up a set of multiple sizes of dpn’s, so that I won’t run into this issue again!

Enough about the socks that I can’t show you, here is an update on the rest of my WIPs!

P.S. Mitts: 100% - FO post and pics to follow - the pattern will be available via The Sanguine Gryphon in the near future!

Teva Durham’s Slip-stitch Jacket: This one is mid-way through the back (the first piece). On the isolated occasions when I have worked on this project, it moves very quickly. I need to focus on completing the back so I can get a better sense of how it will look, that might get me more excited about it.

Chrysalis II: In process with another irresistable colorway of Gryphon’s beautiful Gaia yarn - I’m about 1/3 of the way through and loving it as much as the original. I am working on some Chrysalis related information and media which will be available here in the coming weeks. In the meantime, word has it that Gryphon has dyed tons of Gaia in some gorgeous new colorways, completely drool-worthy!

Cinderella: Stalled due to frustrating mistakes on my part - that bunching you see on the right side in the second photo is real. I need a hour or two of focussed time, and perhaps some bribed assistance from Kathryn.

Sari Scarf: This project is the non-thinking one! Which also, ironically means that it gets very little attention in favor of the more fun ones. I was in REI prior to Christmas and found myself in front of a wall of both “handknit” and actual handknit scarfs, hats and mittens, and I noticed a scarf made from recycled sari silk… I have had two skeins of the stuff in my stash for about two years, purchased for a downstream SP who disappeared. I kept it thinking it would be fun to play with at some point, but never got around to it. I wanted to find a creative use for the yarn, but in the end, this yarn is all about the riot of color! I was drawn to the simple garter stitch scarf in the store, and there was the solution - Stashbusting, mindless knitting, bright colors!

Solveig Hisdal’s Festjakke: This project was waiting for me to do some maths to calculate the waist shaping that I wanted to add. Yes, I said ‘was’! The gauge on the body was looking a little loose to me, so I checked my gauge against my swatch, and it is MUCH larger on the actual sweater (as in one whole stitch per inch larger, which at this gauge means @ 5 extra inches of width - so much for making it smaller!). Oh dear. Ripping is required, but is worth it to get this one right - and at least I haven’t gotten very far, what you see here represents just a couple hours worth of knitting. The only way I can explain this difference between my swatch in the same size needles and in the round is that the body of the sweater is much larger therefore giving my hands much more room to move. I don’t think it’s worth swatching again; I will go down a needle size and see where I’m at.

Ocean-Allison Yarn: still in progress, nothing exciting to report. You all have been seeing progress on this one for months -I make no predictions on how much longer it will take me to finish, but I will say that Shannon’s spinning pics have got me motivated to dedicate some more time to my wheel!

The Remington cardigan: This is a new one you all haven’t seen before, and it deserves it’s own post. It came to me nearly complete and I am doing some work to finish it up - all it requires is seaming and a collar, some buttons and blocking:

What are your current WIPs? If there are more than one, what’s your favorite?

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Now playing: Desaparecidos - Greater Omaha
via FoxyTunes

I pinky swear that I will NOT start another project, until I finish one. In this particular case, that would be both mitts. One mitt only counts as 50%. Even though I’ve suddenly lost my motivation as it’s near 80 degrees today. They tell me it will get cold again next week and I’ll be wishing I went ahead and finished them already.

I pinky swear that I will resist the temptation of some incredibly gorgeous yarn that showed up on my doorstep yesterday (even though I already took some pictures because it’s so lovely.)

I pinky swear that I will provide some much needed WIP updates in the coming days, thus reminding myself that I have plenty of irons in the fire already and I do not (DO NOT) need to start anything else. Somewhere along the way this fall, all my big talk of focussing on single projects until they’re complete went right out the window.

Ok, enough on what I’m NOT going to do - Here’s some detail about this project!

I’m working these mitts in The Sanguine Gryphon’s Eidos 100% merino sock yarn in color Meno. The technique I’m using is a modified version of Two Ended Knitting (or Tvaandsstickning), where one knits with two ends of yarn, sometimes and in this case, from the same ball of yarn. The ends are used alternately throughout, one stitch in the first end, one in the second, producing a soft, thick fabric. Traditionally, the two yarns are twisted as they are knit, but some modern knitters choose to work this method stranding each yarn in the same hand throughout the piece - this is the method that I am using here.

I love the way the technique distributes the colors of this lovely handpainted yarn giving it a more muted, speckled look. I think my enjoyment of the interplay of the colors will help with the finishing! I’ve been playing with this technique quite a bit lately, and ways to incorporate purl stitches and “embossed” type designs. These will be quite simple though, the Two Ended technique being the only defining feature of the glove - I think with this colorway, it’s enough.

The mitts don’t have a name yet… I was thinking about P&S Knitter’s Mitts as their intended purpose it to keep my hands warm while knitting - P&S for Plain&Simple or…. for Pinky Swear.

Hmm - there’s an awful lot of swearing and pledging going on around here…. Does anyone else find themselves doing this more and more as the end of the year approaches?

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Now playing: Death Cab For Cutie - Blacking Out The Friction
via FoxyTunes