For Patterns
I just finished my Tropical Dream scarf:
I made it out of Felicia Knock hand-painted 100% wool yarn:
Felicia is a remarkable young woman who does amazing things dyeing wool material and yarn, and making hooked rugs. I met her at the Lunenburg Farmer's Market last October, which is where I bought the yarn. It's just beautiful.
The pattern is 198 Yards of Heaven. I made it before, out of Good Karme Farm yarn, and have found that I have worn it a lot this winter. It's a nice little scarf.
Wow, it's been a month and a half since I posted anything! Fascinating.
I have been crocheting on my Spincushions crochet-along, and I finally got caught up (well, nearly; I haven't done this week's square yet), when I discovered I am running out of the yarn. The good news is, it's still available. The bad news is, I haven't got a clue how much yarn I'm going to need to buy to finish it. So I'm going to finish using what I've got and then wait to see how many more squares there are, which should give me some idea of how much yarn I need, and then I'll buy it.
I finished my April Showers socks:
They're actually more lime green than what you see in the picture. My iPhone gives my pictures a blue cast and I am not smart enough to edit it out. Since they were for me, I knit a little tube to wear with them - that goes on my right leg, above the sock. My brace is quite high and bare skin rubbing on the plastic brace is yucky.
These socks are only 6" high. They are really pretty, but short. The lace pattern has flowers on the foot, umbrellas over them, rain falling above the umbrellas, and a raincloud floats at the top. The back of the legs has lightning all the way to the top, and continues around the ribbing.
Next thing on the list: the Harriet cardigan from A Fine Fleece, by Lisa Lloyd. I just have the lace part on the bottom and one repeat of the pattern on the back done, so no picture yet. Maybe next time. It's a pretty easy and fun knit, so far. My friend Lynne is also knitting Harriet, but she has the back nearly done. She has more stick-to-it-iveness than I!
I finally got caught up with the rest of the April Showers sock knitalong, getting through Clue #5 before Clue #6 (the last clue) comes out on Friday:
There's little flowers, and umbrellas, rain, and a lone cloud up in the sky. On the back, lightning flickers up and down the leg. It is maybe a July thunderstorm rather than an April shower.
While I wait for Clue #6 to come out, I'll crochet a little on my In a Spin sampler afghan. I'm on Week Seven; everyone else is on Week Twelve. Oh well, I will get it done eventually.
Lynne has caught up and surpassed me in our Harriet cardigans. Yikes! I better get a move on! :)
I keep telling myself that.
In knitting news, I finished the My Little Pony socks:
Aren't they disgustingly cute? Rest assured, no My Little Ponies were harmed. It just looks like I am wearing their hides.
I'm on to my next socks:
These are April Showers socks from Knitters Brewing Company, and it's their Mystery Sock V, which means the completed sock is a mystery for the duration of the knitalong. Mine are in Sockaholic Mint Julip, and I am currently on clue 2. Everyone else is on clue 4, but I had some horsin' around to do first ... I am catching up pretty quickly, though. There are two more clues to be given, so you can still join! We'll be done by the end of February.
Lynne and I are working on our Harriet cardigans from A Fine Fleece, she in teal tweed yarn and I in purple Jo Sharp DK wool tweed. (The book's out of print or I'd link it. So is the yarn, I think.) So far we have only gotten the border on the back done. Here is mine:
Lynne brought me tulips:
I think this means we're engaged. :)
(Thank you, Lynne!)
Nicky is still not amused.
I even tried his favorite catnip mouse, but no. He just curled himself up tighter and sighed. Cat depression in a horrible thing to see.
So, I didn't tell you about my socks. I'm using Lang's Jawoll Magic (75% superwash wool, 25% nylon) that I got in Nova Scotia at Have A Yarn in Mahone Bay. The color is creatively titled "84.0009", which isn't much help. It's like a pastel rainbow. I will look like a herd of My Little Ponies gave their hides so my feet will be warm:
I'm trying out a new pattern which is just like my old pattern, but it is somewhat different. It's "Wise Hilda's Basic Ribbed Socks", and I like it.
I got a Tardis mug from my husband for Christmas, which you can see in that picture, a little. The Tardis disappears when you pour hot liquid in it:
As you can see, I have drunk half a cup of warm liquid. Mmmmm, cinnamon vanilla tea from Stash!
Did you notice my needles? They are different. They are called Karbonz Needles:
They are US size 1.5 (2.50 mm), a size I did not have (well, a size I could not seem to find), and Barb got them for me when she went to Stitches East in Hartford. I really love these needles! From the Webs website (you can order them from Webs; they are becoming more well-known in local stores, too -- Cashmere Goat in Camden has circulars in stock, I believe):
"Knitter's Pride Karbonz 8" Double Pointed Needles have the spectacular flex and tensile strength of carbon fiber, the same material used in aerospace engineering, with a smooth, warm feel that's easy on the hands. These lightweight carbon needles have shiny, smooth, nickel-plated brass tips, flawlessly tapered to a perfect point."
They are also reviewed on Webs' blog.
I have half a sock left to knit. I hope it warms up soon! If it doesn't, Nicky will sleep himself to death.
Sorry, I got bored with my blog, and I meant to kill it off. Quietly, you know? Some people really can't give up, and I am one of them, apparently.
All five of you who actually read my blog (you know who you are) will be happy, and the other 150+ who come for the free patterns will be happy too, because I'll probably continue posting new patterns, rarely. And I am glad that I can be of some small service to you :)
So you can look forward to posts about my wonderful, amazing knitting (snicker, snicker), and my cat pictures, and whatever else pops into my head. I will not be posting everyday; that got really boring, but I will post occasionally. By that I mean at least one post per week.
To close, here is the requisite cat picture -- he's mad at the world. It is 0˚ outside.
Mice 51 and 52 are done:
Lynne is coming over to stuff the last eight mice this weekend, and I will take a picture of all of them before giving any away.
My Child's Mendocino cardigan was frogged, sorry to say. There was a mix up with the yardages given for the put-up. Ravelry said they were 98 yards per skein, and I had 5 skeins, so I was fine. Then I noticed that my yarn was running out faster than it should be. I was only one and a half inches up the back and my third ball of yarn was half gone, and I knew that at that rate I was going to run out of yarn. So I read the ball band, and it said Organik was actually 89 yards. That meant that I actually had 25 yards less than I needed for the sweater, not 40 yards more than I needed, as I had thought. Oh well, it is a learning opportunity. Should have read the ball band and not depended on Ravelry! Organik probably is 98 yards per ball now; the company has changed hands and I imagine the put up is different. Or someone may have dyslexia over on Ravelry. Sorry, Georgia, you won't be getting your sweater this Christmas! I am sure you will like what we gave you, probably more than a sweater :)
I've been crocheting a lot this week. Sorry I don't have pictures. I have one block done and one block to go in the In A Spin crochet-along, with another week's square coming out today. I've also been working at finishing my Scrap Yarn Afghan thingy. I just have a little more scraps to finish up, put an edging around it -- with other scrap yarn, of course -- and call it done. Then I can start a worsted weight scrap yarn afghan :) I think I'll use a ripple stitch for it though ... I'm getting tired of the granny square.
Poor Nicky. The weather's sucky. He is vastly Not Amused.
Here's his glamour shot:
Oooh la la!
Heh. Pin-up posters for the girl kitties.
It's a big day! Mouse 50 is rolled out:
Woohoo! He's a darling boy, isn't he?
I got my 6" square done for the In A Spin crochet-along. Gem Star is pretty, and although it looks slightly askew in this picture, rest assured it is not:
Actually, it took me longer to do this little six-incher than to make all the previous squares, even though two of them were twice as big. I just couldn't seem to get my brain wrapped around it or something. Then there was the size issue; Gem Star was only about four inches across when I did it the first time and I had to fiddle with two border rows to get it exactly at six inches.
I worked a little on the blue cardigan too:
It's pretty :)
There are some truly great books coming out next year! Check these out:
1. 100 Scandinavian Motifs: The Knitter's Directory by Mary Jane Mucklestone. (There's not even a cover image yet.) You know if MJ makes it, it has to be good. I already pre-ordered this book. She's taken 100 of the best designs from Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, and the Faeroe Islands, and showcased them with a hand-knitted swatch, with easy-to-read charts and a reverse colorway. She has included five designs at the end of the book. I can't wait! Coming out September 10.
2. Scandinavian Christmas Stockings: Classic Designs to Knit for the Holidays by Mette Handberg. Following in the same Scandinavian line, this is a collection of brightly-colored Christmas stockings, complete with an alphabet for personalizing each family member's names (or dogs and cats!). There's also a nice collection of stocking caps, patterned mittens, and leg warmers, too. And don't worry, you'll have time to knit them; the book comes out July 1, 2013.3. How Tea Cosies Changed the World by Loani Prior. I put this book on here because I love the title, hehe. I don't even have a tea cosy, and I don't have the patience to make one. I'll just have to drink my tea fast! But for those people who love to make them, this book is the ticket. The author has an outrageous imagination. I'd kind of like to see the "Betty the Burlesque Dancer" tea cosy. (Now that's a sentence I never thought I'd write!). Loani Prior's fans can try their hands at a knitted purse, or a double-knitted scarf. If nothing else, this book is creative and funny! It comes out June 1, 2013.
4. Free-Spirit Shawls: 20 Eclectic Knits for Every Day by Lisa Shroyer catches on to the bug for knitting shawls that's got everyone knitting. Socks did it a few years ago. Ravelry's most poular patterns of all time has 13 of 35 patterns for shawls. They fit everyone, they're relatively easy to knit, and they make great gifts. I don't know if anybody ever wears them, but knitters do, and nobody else really matters, right? The book is divided up into Color, Lace, Simplicity, and Texture. This book is coming out May 21, 2013.
5. Patterns for Pooches by Anne Burton is based on the designs she's sold successfully on line, designed from necessity: she brought home a Boston terrier pup named Bean, and he didn't like the frigid Nebraska winters. She knew some basic crochet and set about making him sweaters. (This book is for crocheters only.) Her style is simple, with a quirky sense of humor! It comes out May 1, 2013.
6. Light and Layered Knits: 19 Sophisticated Designs for Every Season by Vicki Square. I like Vicki Square's books, and this one looks as good as the rest! These designs are fluid and fashionable, sized to fit almost anyone, and they are good for layering in a casual or workplace setting. Good for summer knitting, they are knit in silk, linen. cotten and bamboo. I think this looks like a fantastic book, with styles that are truly wearable. It comes out just in time for summer knitting, too: April 30, 2013.
All the orange fluff is done! (It's actually corriedale.)
This was fantastic to spin. I would have gotten done sooner, but NaNoWriMo got in the way a bit.
I started plying it up last night.
I am so very pleased with this yarn. It's just wonderful. I'm going to make socks with it, because who doesn't need some hunting socks for safety? hehe. It's actually a pleasing shade of orange, not the blinding sort of orange that makes yelp in surprise. It is going to be fun to knit!
Time to get your advent calendars out!! The first day already flew by me, I didn't even write my blog yesterday. That's why I left Sundays open, hehe.
Last year I made a musical advent calendar using Spotify and put it on Facebook. That was fun, but doing it two years in a row would be boring, I think. This year I opted for advent calendar software from Jacqui Lawson, which is easier, I must say.
The Christmas movies will start tonight, I think. We'll watch at least one a day through Christmas. The Muppets Christmas Carol has become my all-time favorite, I think. What Christmas movies do you like?
Mouse 49 is done:
I got the right front of the little sweater done:
It was nice of Nicky to help out holding it up!
I worked on the In A Spin CAL, finishing the Wheel Lattice block for week two:
Isn't it pretty? I like it. It's a 12" square and next week's square is only 6". Of course there would be a 6" square, aand two 12" squares to during the final weeks of NaNoWriMo. Of course. And as soon as NaNoWriMo is over, all I have to do is a 6" square. Of couse. But!! I knew that might be the case when I signed up for it! So I put my crochet hook in four-wheel-drive and persevered!
And finally, NANOWRIMO IS OVER!!!!!!!! Yay!! I succeeded in writing a novel that was 50,278 words in length. Now I'm going to file it away so I never have to look at it again. It's that bad.
I learned from doing NaNoWriMo that I can write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days; or more importantly, I can write every day like it's my job. Because people, writing is really hard work. Really hard. You have to push yourself to do it, write when it's the last thing you feel like doing, write when you know it really sucks, write when you don't even know what is going to happen next. You just write anyway. Every day you write though, you're getting better. You just don't think you are.
Kind of like physical or occupational or speech therapy. You can't get better at anything if you just give up.
This book might be a good puzzle for you: Exercises in Knitting, by Cornelia Mee. The Kindle edition is free, but there's no illustrations and there's no key to help you understand the terminology.
I had to use my search engine to figure out the publication date (sorry, my brain was fried by writing NaNoWriMo). "MDCCCXLVI" translates to 1846. Before the Civil War. Yikes.
Cornelia Mee is the "Authoress of a Manual for Knitting, Netting, and Crochet Work", and she published her third thousand (!) in London on Fleet Street.
So it's no wonder that my feeble little brain can't figure out what "First row: -- Seam 4 stitches, cast on 6 stitches, seam 4, cast on 6 stitches, and repeat," means. Upon further perusal, I think "seam" and "seamed" means "purl" and "purled". Just a hunch.
Even the titles are difficult to figure out. What the heck is a "penwiper" and why would you want to knit one? It's knit in three colors of "German wool." I somehow want to make one.
Unfortunately these are just pattern stitches I think; the number of stitches don't seem right to cast on. A comforter only takes 39 sitches. On the other hand, maybe a comforter is a kind of scarf. On the other other hand, there are pattern for garments (I know this because there are sleeves): there's a pattern for an "Under Spencer". Interesting!
Anyway, sometime I think unraveling Cornelia Mee's projects would be quite stimulating. But not right now!
Or more appropriately, Things I Used To Do Before NaNoWriMo Sucked All My Energy and Time Away.
1. Knit. I used to like to knit. Remember during the Ravelympics when I knit a whole Aran sweater in 14 days? Yeah. That was easier than writing.
2. Spin. I used to occasionally spin fiber into yarn.
3. Read. I remember reading, dimly. I think I used to like it.
4. Listen to music. I think music is wonderful ... and if I make it to the end of this month, I plan to listen to it again.
5. Write interesting blog posts that are not lists of one-word items.
I think I need a pep talk. Here are some by a few of my favorite authors:
My novel is titled "Je Ne Sais Pas" which means "I Don't Know", hehe. Sheesh. Another week to go!
Are you stuffed after that wonderful dinner? Time to put your feet up and knit!
Heeeeere's Mouse 48:
I got my other, bigger square done in the In A Spin crochet-along:
Today we get another square to make. So exciting!
My Mendocino cardigan is going slowly, due to Thanksgiving, NaNoWriMo, and stuff:
I'm only making a size to fit someone two or three years old, and I'm using aran weight yarn; why is it going so slow?? It's coming along, though. It'll speed up after November 30th!
First, you need a centerpiece:
(This is from Karen, and she is rocking the Dr. Who Thanksgiving.)
Then you need some food, especially turkey:
(from Sparknotes)
Get your plate ready:
(from Dr. Who Overdose)
Who brought pie?!
(from All New Issues comics)
Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!
What a charming title, right? I must have been feeling really unimaginative when I came up with that one, sheesh.
Anyway, it's another hat pattern, and though it is pictured in purple and white (I used lupine and natural Bartlettyarn), it looks fantastic in more manly colors too, and it's a pretty quick knit for the holiday season.
Materials:
•Bartlettyarn or Christopher Sheep Farm yarn: 1 skein each Color A (main color) and Color B (contrast color)
•size 7 16-inch circular needle
•size 7 double pointed needles
•a tapestry needle
Hem: With Color A and circular needle, cast on 96 sts. Join, being careful not to twist sts. Place marker to mark end of round. Work in stockinette stitch for 24 rounds. Form Picot Edge: (yo, k2tog) around. Working in stockinette, join Color B and complete Trim chart 1; work 1 round plain in Color A; work Snowflake chart 2; work 1 round plain in Color A; work Trim chart 3. Break off Color B. Work even in Color A until 6 inches or fesired height above Picot Edge.
Decrease for top: Work as follows, switching to double pointed needles when necessary.
Round 1: *k 2, k2tog* around.
Rounds 2 - 7: Knit around.
Round 8: *k 1, k2tog* around.
Rounds 9 - 12: Knit around.
Round 13: *k 1, k2tog*around.
Round 14 - 16: Knit around.
Round 17: *k 1, k2tog*around.
Round 18: Knit around.
Round 19: *k2tog* around.
Break yarn, pull end through all remaining stitches and pull to tighten the top together. Weave in all ends on the inside. Sew hem to inside of hat. Attach pom pom or tassel if desired.
Glossary and Abbreviations:
K = knit
p=purl
st(s) = stitch(es)
k2tog=knit2stitchestogether
Download 2-Color Hat.pdf (206.3K)
I felt bad about not spinning last week, so I vowed to spin at least one day this week, and that's what I did. I spun one day.
To prove it, I took pictures.
Here is some predrafted roving:
Here is what I spun in an hour:
Looks about the same, no? Sigh.
Here is the itty bitty amount of fiber that I have left to spin:
I'd say NaNoWriMo is the reason, but it's not, really. That only takes me a couple hours to do. I think I'm just a slow spinner (I can hear Sharon in the background saying, "Ha!").
I will try to spin the rest of the orange before the end of 2013. Really, I will.
I read a short story a long time ago, when I was living with Carney, about a family that had turkeys. The parents had to go away for a few days and left the much-older sister to look after the two little boys. She was to make sure that they took good care of the flock of little baby turkeys that had just arrived.
The author spent a hilarious page or two describing how the baby turkeys became featherless, plucked by the boys probably. Anyway, it was their fault, and was the sister mad. The poor little turkeys were shivering, so Big Sister sat the boys down and proclaimed that they had to learn to knit turkey sweaters. Sobered by the thought of their father's wrath when he saw the shivering turkeys, they did just that. With Big Sister's help, they knit little turkey sweaters all day and night, and the turkeys stopped shivering.
Wish I could remember who wrote that story; they deserve a medal.
Somehow when I searched for 'turkey sweaters' I came up with something different, like this:
(photo from Late Night with Jimmy Fallon blog, 2009)
Or this:
(photo from fufufashions.com)
I guess turkeys wearing sweaters isn't really any weirder than what we wear or make our dogs wear.
Yesterday I began my first Crochet-along, or CAL as it is known. I am so excited! I don't really crochet much, although I used to back in the 70's and 80's, but you can believe I've forgotten how to do most of it long since. I know that, because I was trying to make this crocheted scarf about four years ago, and I couldn't even figure out the pattern, so I quit. I've still got the poor half made thing upstairs somewhere; if any super-duper crocheter wants to come by and save it, or teach me what to do, I'm ready.
Anyway. I'm using Knit one, Crochet Too's Paintbox and a size I/5.50mm hook:
The In A Spin CAL starts off, very sensibly I might add, with two simple blocks to use as a guide, to measure the other blocks, to know how many single crochets should be at each edge so when it comes time to join everything together I don't go nuts. This is the smaller square:
It's 6 3/4" square, which is a little bit bigger than it should be, but I'm using worsted weight instead of DK/8-ply weight yarn, and a 5.50mm hook instead of a 5.00mm hook, because I like the fabric it makes better. I think it'll be ok. It's only an afghan; I'm not trying to fit a sweater or anything. I could have used a hook a size smaller to get gauge, but I like how my square looked and felt at this gauge, and I like how easily the hook flowed with the stitches, too.
There's actually two squares this week; a 6-inch square and another 12-inch square just like it, but twice as big. The rest of the weeks will have only one square, I think. The best part: if I get wicked confused and can't figure out how to do something, there's a Ravelry group that I can go to for help!
Mice 46 and 47 are here!
They're so cute!
I finally finished my gray and white marled wool socks:
They look warm and cosy.
Then it was time to finaly, finally start the Childs Mendocino Cardigan by Alice Starmore. I've been thinking abouth this sweater for months. I chose yarn from my stash to do it in, but I needed to finish a bunch of things first, and yesterday I finally started.
I'm using Fiber Co,'s Organik, which is 70% organic NZ wool, 15% Baby Alpaca, and 15% silk, in the color called Deep Sea Blue. It is a lovely shade of blue, very striking, and the silk in the yarn dresses it up a bit, gives it a sheen, and I think the finished cardigan will move with the wearer in a way that will be fabulous. If we can ever get her to slow down long enough to try it on, that is. It's for a little girl who has the most beautiful blue eyes you ever saw, and this shade of blue will look stunning on her. It's for Christmas, so shhhhhh ....
Here's the start of my gauge swatch:
And here's the start of the right front of the sweater:
Doesn't look like much so far, but it gets better! Actually, it's a pretty easy knit, for an Alice Starmore pattern.
You may have noticed that I reached the halfway point in my NaNo novel yesterday. I think it's really funny that they call 50,000 words a novel. More like a novella, I think. I've been writing the bare minimum of 1,667 words each day, mostly because I don't really have a story to tell. They call people like me "pantsers", flying by the seat of my pants. I don't know what the heck's going to happen next, so it's always a surprise!
I'm going to make a baby blanket, maybe two next year. Our family has a baby coming: my nephew and his wife are expecting, and that, my friends, is the knock of opportunity. I also didn't make a baby blanket for my niece and her husband's baby, because I was in the hospital at the time. She is two years and almost three months old now, and I'm think she might need a big-girl blanket. You know, for blanket forts and such.
To crochet? or knit? In blocks or strips? Or whole? Lacy? (Seems to me that lacy designs would get their fingers caught, and I don't want to be responsible for yanking kids' digits askew.) Cables? Colorful? What colors?? Make it up, or follow a pattern? (I never designed a baby blanket before.) The possibilities are endless.
I've seen a lot of baby blankets that I like. I've thought of a few I'd like to design. But, as a person who has never had kids before, and I really don't interact with them much -- I prefer kids when they're about 10 or 11 or older; I am the grumpy old lady of children everywhere -- I ask you, what makes a good baby blanket?
It's fun to go through my stash of patterns!
Oat Couture's Curlicue Coverlet
Adventure games have been a big part of my life, especially Myst and Riven, two games by Cyanworlds.
I loved Myst when it first came out. We had just had a new-fangled thing called a 'CD-Rom' installed in our Apple computer, I think it was a Quadra or something. We fired it up and fell into the marvellous world that was Myst.
A little later Riven came out; it was even more beautiful than Myst had been. Wahrks sunned them selves on the beach; I used to just sit in this one place I found, high up, and take in the sights and sounds of this make-believe world. For me, it wasn't about solving puzzles or finding answers, it was about the beauty of the world. From then on, every game that came out from Cyanworlds, I pretty much just read the walkthrough to get to see the beautiful images (sorry, puzzle-makers of Cyan, the game just got in the way of ... the game).
It was my ideal picture book, with sounds and sights, with my lights turned off and my earphones on, I could go to Riven (or whatever made up world it was that day) -- no matter if I couldn't smell or taste or feel anything, it seemed real to me.
Still does. Now I have Myst and Riven on my iPhone. Can you believe it? The fan community used to laugh at the idea when it first arose, long before there was such a thing as apps for your phone. I still go in, and I still don't solve the puzzles, but I enjoy the scenery.
Here it is:
Notice how it looks exactly the same as it did last week? Yeah. I didn't spin at all this week.
Damn you, NaNoWriMo.
Don’t wish your life away or try to live in the future as someone hoping to look back on the past. It’ll only rip the space-time continuum. I’ve done the math.
-- Kevin Kaiser
author of @WriMo: A 30-Day Survival Guide for Writers
