Making a stand

A couple of weeks ago I wrote in an e-mail to a friend that I was really happy that spring was finally here, and that it came right before I cracked.



Needless to say, I spoke too soon, as the past week and half have been filled with snow, icy blasting winds, and rain that is just above freezing--so when it hits you it feels like water but it is so cold it chills you instantly. I'm not taking it anymore. Last night I wore my Mary Janes with leggings and no socks. This morning I refused to put flannel sheets on my bed. I put the t-shirt sheets on instead, which is smart because they are warm when it's cold and cool when it's hot (and makes a stand without making me cold, like the no-socks act did last night). And I made the Rochefort Chapeau from the Purl Bee:



I don't know what it is about the Purl Bee, but I am powerless to stop myself from making just about everything on their site. Maybe it's the way they perfectly capture my aesthetic or the stories and inspirations behind the projects. Joelle Hoverson, author of Last-Minute Knitted Gifts, is the brain behind Purl and the Purl Bee. Whenever I have knitting stress or am feeling uninspired, I look at that book and I feel better.



I saw the Rochefort Chapeau when it was first posted and thought, "Oh, that's cute, but I don't really need to make it." Ha. It worked its way into my head until I couldn't stop thinking about it and was mentally pawing through my stash to find the yarn. The great thing is that the Purl Bee has helped me bust so much of my stash. As much as I would have liked to use the Blue Sky Alpaca and Silk that Whitney used, I knit mine with one skein of Plymouth Wildflower DK in navy blue and one skein Patons Grace in white. It will be a great spring hat, if spring ever decides to come.





In case it doesn't, I have yet another pair of mittens to wear.

Tweedy Mittens from the Stitch'n Bitch 2007 calendar (designed by Missa of kpixie, my favorite online yarn store)
Yarn: Reynolds Whiskey, one ball each of light blue and orange
Source: The Elegant Ewe
Needles: Brittany Birch US size 7 dpns
Modifications: I knit with two strands held together, since I couldn't find the yarns called for in the pattern and no other worsted weight yarns had the right shades of blue and orange that I was looking for. I did a gauge swatch to make sure, and if you have this pattern, you might want to mark down that the gauge is supposed to be five stitches to the inch. It was accidentally left off the pattern and I found the gauge posted on Craftster by Debbie Stoller, but it is hard to find in the threads.




Another Purl Bee (and specifically Whit's Knits; so is the Rochefort Chapeau) inspiration:


The Granny Chic Crocheted Hat
Yarn: Less than one ball of Manos del Uruguay kettle-dyed wool
Hook: Clover US size I crochet hook
Modifications: None.


I still need to block it but so far I love it. It will be a good transition hat between winter and my Rochefort chapeau. Part of the reason I love the Purl Bee so much is because most of their patterns are for small items that travel well. When I'm commuting to school I need something small that travels well and that I can pick up and put down quickly when I knit during class breaks.



What is this new yarn, you ask?

A couple of weeks ago I went to a concert in Northampton, MA. What else is Northampton, MA? Webs, of course! I was really good, considering they have an entire warehouse that is open to the public. This is Kangaroo Dyer Silk and Alpaca Laceweight. I bought Evelyn Clark's Estonian Wrap pattern to go with it, but I realized this yarn will make a perfect Icarus. Since I've been doing some serious stash-busting lately, I think it's allowed. Also, when I go back to Webs in a couple of weeks to see the Yarn Harlot, I am going to buy a little more yarn. Carefully planned, all with projects in mind, and with a very definite spending limit.

Everything's Coming Up Daisies

The posts should be getting more regular as I get back into my work and school schedules (blah...). I also haven't had much to post even though I've been working on several projects (and on most days, just sitting on the couch watching Northern Exposure and knitting).


First, a couple of Christmas presents from two of my favorite knitters:


A beautiful wrap from my Aunt Nancy, "for when I'm studying." The colors aren't very true to life in this picture, but the natural light was weird this morning what with some quick flurries and then the sun trying to come out.

And from Susan, a pair of cabled fingerless gloves in this bright cheerful color of Malabrigo (which is one of my all time favorite yarns and I want a house made out it).

Susan also gave me a skein of Malabrigo and a free pattern from Patternworks to make this one skein crocheted scarf (it's also the One Skein Scarf from The Happy Hooker). I made it on Christmas Day, while watching movies with the family, after all the gifting and eating was done.

These are my awesome stash-busting new-wave Daisy Stitch Hand Warmers from The Purl Bee. (Can you tell I am a child of the eighties?) I used about half a skein of each color, all leftover from other projects--the pink, black and white are Lamb's Pride Worsted, and the green is Malabrigo. Let me tell you, as cute as they are, Daisy stitch is not fun. Sometimes it's downright painful. But, these aren't very long and it's a great way to use up stash yarn.

A (blurry) close-up of the stitch:

Pattern: Daisy Stitch Hand Warmers from The Purl Bee (free!)

Yarn: About half a skein each of four colors; in this case, pink, white, and black Lamb's Pride Worsted, and green Malabrigo

Source: Stash

Needles: Susan Bates Quicksilver US size 8 dpns, Brittany Birch US size 7 dpns

Modifications: Because I don't always read directions, I striped the black along with the others even though I don't think the pattern calls for color A to be included in the stripes.

So, back to the grind of school and work. However, this is the year that I finish graduate school (one semester down, three to go) so I'm trying to have a better attitude about it. Work is fine, it's just involves being somewhere other than my house. Susan and I discussed this yesterday when we met for book- and yarn-buying and had delicious pastry at Bread and Chocolate in Concord (go there, right now, and buy a creme puff. You'll thank me). We are definitely both homebodies who would prefer to be at home curled up with books and crafts than doing just about anything else (except buying books, yarn, and pastries).

Anyway, hope your new year is off to a great start, a year full of books and crafts (and, if you are like Susan and I, lots of quality time at home).

Thrift Score

I always poke in the half-hidden bins that hold a myriad of crafty things at thrift stores, hoping against hope that there will be some excellent yarn in them. Usually there are just some tangled balls of 1980s acrylic (see, if it was from the 1970s or earlier it would at least be cool colors) in several pastel shades. Not this time! I found three skeins of Bernat Glenspun English Tweed in a dark blue at a local consignment shop:

This, my friends, is 100% wool, superwash no less. And the label claims it was actually spun at a mill in England. The three skeins together cost me 75 cents.


My Christmas knitting project for myself:


Pattern: Cabled Purse from Last Minute Knitted Gifts
Yarn: Celestial Merino by Lucy Neatby, 1 skein Scarlet
Source: The Elegant Ewe
Needles: Clover bamboo US Size 3 dpns
Modifications: I used dpns instead of the 12" circular needle called for in the pattern. I also ended up knitting the cabled part twice, because I grabbed a set of US Size 6 dpns and didn't notice until I was on the last round of the cable chart. Oh well. It was something simple and pretty to keep my mind occupied during the hectic days surrounding Christmas and New Year's.



There hasn't been much new knitting around here, since I'm trying to clean stuff out and get organized. The organizing itself leaves slightly less time for knitting, and half-finished projects are reappearing (above is the Bird Seed Scarf from the Purl Bee that I've already shown you, but I decided I would like some more birds. Who wouldn't?). I'd like to finish them before I start anything new, especially because the second Secret of the Stole starts in a couple of weeks.

Here's my swatch:

This is done on US Size 2 bamboo needles (instead of the US Size 3 needles recommended) but I like the way it looks so I'm keeping it.

Here's the yarn I'm using:

It's Habu Textiles Extra Fine Merino. Each cone comes with 747 yards, and is only eight dollars at The Elegant Ewe in Concord. They only have this brown color, but I like it. Also the tips from Nautical Knitter, the SotS II designer, recommended natural earthy tones. The yarn is beautiful although it's very thin (hence the smaller needles). It shows lace beautifully though, and has a slight haze to it.

All right, back to the house cleaning and finishing-up-of-old-projects. Not only are the number of unfinished projects embarrassing, so is the size of my stash (especially my fiber stash, which I contribute to as if I was a person who spins on a regular basis. Obviously, this is not the case). So after the finishing-up-of-old-projects, there must be some stash busting with a capital S. Wish me luck in both endeavors.

Golf and Birdies

"Birdie" is a golf term. If you're really desperate to know what it means click here.
I made these golf club covers for my dad's birthday next weekend. I made him a set of five or six a couple of years ago, in Red Sox and Patriots colors, but he lost a couple of them on the golf course (hey, at least he's using them). These I just made with some scrap yarn I had hanging around.

They knit up really quickly in Lamb's Pride Bulky. The pattern is one I kind of made up, based on my bad experience with the golf club covers from Suss Cousins' Hollywood Knits (I've said it before, I love her designs but I have never knit one of her patterns that I didn't have to change in some way because of gauge or other issues).


Unfortunately, I still feel that my pattern is too close to the original or else I would reprint it for you here. I've been scouring the new wave of men's knitting books that have come out, looking for great guy patterns, and I'm surprised I haven't seen any other golf club covers. As far as I'm concerned, this is one of my most successful guy knitting projects ever (and you don't have to worry about fit!).

Pattern: My own, inspired by the Golf Club Covers from Hollywood Knits
Yarn: Odds and ends of Lamb's Pride Bulky
Source: Probably all from Patternworks
Needles: US Size 10, these ancient aluminum ones I inherited from my mom
Modifications: So many I call it my own pattern



I actually finished the knitting aspect of the Bird Seed Scarf a couple of weeks ago, but several attempts at embroidering the birds on made me very cranky.
It hit me while I was riding the T that I should cut out my sketch of the bird, pin it to the scarf, and stitch around it. So simple, but this was literally the sixth or seventh time I had tried to embroider it. I tried to use the yarn I used for the scarf, but it was picky and stuck to the fabric. I switched to embroidery thread and I really love the effect. I just have to do the other end, and decide whether to do anymore. I kind of like how it looks with just the ends decorated.




I also finished another scarf this week but I forgot to take a picture of it in the craziness that is my Sunday mornings. I only have a few hours to get ready for work and do some chores and knitting, so I never get as much done as I would like. Today was especially bad. I mentioned that I had kind of been in a knitting funk, and I'm not sure that's cleared completely. This morning I felt like The Kid Who Can't Knit (or Sew). The golf club covers knit up pretty quickly but I've been busy and haven't had the time to do the actual knitting, and seaming them up, with all their shaping, is not fun. I finished the second one this morning, finished embroidering the bird you see above, and started a second bird which looked nothing like a bird so it had to be ripped out. Then I tried to work on the Secret of the Stole, but I had to redo the first row of the fourth clue three times. Three times!!! I was almost in tears. I never get like that about knitting.


Anyway, the crankiness continued for awhile (a few too many people cut me off on the way to work) but I had some comfort food for dinner and I've gotten my homework done, so I can look at wool and craft blogs until closing. I also just realized that I have one more row on my second Clessidra and then I can do the heel. Then it's just the foot, which goes very quickly. I only have one class this week, and just one day of my internship, and then it's the holiday--that's something to be grateful for too.

The Good, the Bad, and the Seed Stitch

I missed the trick-or-treaters today. (New Hampshire only has two or three places that have daytime trick-or-treating the Sunday before Halloween, and of course the sprawling metropolis of Manchester is one of them). I promised myself that when I quit the yarn store I would never work another Sunday, for many reasons, one being the trick-or-treaters. But here I am (in my new shirt that says "Spooktacular," courtesy of my mom). I love Halloween.
I'm also sick. The cold has morphed into this skull-crushing-scraped-raw-throat-achy-ears sickness that no cold medicine has an effect. Aspirin is about the best I can do. I don't really talk anymore, I just croak. (Maybe a good excuse to skip Evaluation class tomorrow...we'll see how I feel in the morning).
So, being sick this weekend, I didn't get much done. I was going to clean my room (seriously), finish up a couple of knitting projects and try a new technique for colorwork. Instead I slept a lot. I love naps but I don't take them very often; I really need my sleep so I always try to get seven or eight hours a night, and I save naps for special occasions. I know that sounds weird, but I actually have good memories of special naps. I also have to be careful with naps because sometimes I wake up cranky instead of refreshed. But since this cold hit me I've been exhausted, plus some of the cold medicine made me nauseous, so I just slept a lot. You know you're tired when you start falling asleep over your knitting.
Anyway, Friday was a great day. Susan came down and we went to Fabric Fix, where I got some great herringbone fabric (for a roll-up needle case or a bag) and some excellent vintage-y ribbon. Then we had lunch at Jewell and the Beanstalk, which is as adorable as ever and the food is great too. I'm going to try to study there sometime. It has to be less distracting than my house (with all the yarn beckoning) and the library (books! books! books!). Afterward we went to the Yarn and Fiber Company, where a ball of Sereknity sock yarn caught my eye and demanded I give it a good home. They will be a pair of Jaywalkers, although I'm tempted to try another design. I have two in the works for socks and another for a scarf. We ended the night with knitting and Gilmore Girls and some wine. Perfect.
I did manage to finish the second clue for the Secret of the Stole this morning before work, and I have been working on another project. When I first saw the Bird Seed Scarf I thought, that is beautiful and such a good idea. Too bad I don't have yarn like that in my stash. But then I went to see Trina at The Elegant Ewe and had some yarn to return, which gave me a credit, and the next thing you know I suckered myself into 60" of seed stitch. I love the way it looks but man is it a pain. Luckily I'm almost done. Pictures soon, I promise. I also finished the Thrummed Mittens.

What a Feeling

I apologize for the sideways picture. I was uploading these just before I left for work and didn't have time to rotate it (actually, I didn't have time to figure out how to save the rotated picture in stupid Windows Vista). I knit these hats for an auction to raise money for my aunt's church. One skein each of Lion Brand Thick'n'Quick in lime green and light blue. The pattern is Elf Hats from Handknit Holidays, the earflap version (I would like to warn you that the earflap version is not nearly as pointy as the other one. It's not very clear from the pictures in the book; I like how they came out but I was expecting them to be pointier). The green one is size 2-4 years, the blue one is child's large/adult small.
I feel compelled to share with you my interesting improvisation (partly because I giggled at myself while doing it and kind of wished there was another knitter around to laugh at me). I didn't have size 15 DPNs (the closest was 11) so when the stitches were too tight around the circular needle I would knit off a few stitches on a size 15 straight and transfer them back to the circular needle. Kind of tricky and not recommended, but each hat only took me one hour (maybe another half hour for the pom poms and braids) and the yarn was very thick so it worked out.



Also completed:

Super Easy Legwarmers from Last Minute Knitted Gifts (the inspiration behind the Purl Bee)
Yarn: 1.75 balls Cascade 220 in a denim blue (I cut it really close and scrounged the remainder of the yarn from the first legwarmer and what was left from the dog sweater for the second legwarmer), 1 ball Doceur et Soie in light blue and 1 ball Madil Kid Seta in light blue (those last two are the same type of yarn; I used one for each legwarmer. There is a very slight color difference but it's not really noticeable knit up with the Cascade 220. I have the first printing of LMKG and there are some mistakes, such as recommending one ball each of Cascade 220 and Madil Kid Seta)

Source: Patternworks and The Woolery

Needles: Addi Turbo 12" circular US Size 8

Modifications: None
Legwarmers are great. This was reinforced when my mom and I watched Flashdance on Friday.

There has been more knitting going on, lots more. Unfortunately I was also added to Ravelry this week and I have three big assignments coming up (although Ravelry took preference) and this is all I have completed. I am on the second clue for the Secret of the Stole, which is pretty good considering the third one only came out this past week. I spent Friday afternoon with the lovely ladies at the Yarn and Fiber Company, and managed to get through a large chunk. I also realized I made a (large) mistake which I refuse to rip out and I am now claiming is a design alteration. A skein of Dream in Color Smooshy sock yarn in Beach Fog followed me home from the store.

I'm going to try my hand at designing a pair of socks. I have a skein of Spirit Trail sock yarn that looks like fall (November, since the colors are gorgeous but muted) and none of the patterns I've looked at seem to fit.

Lastly, Susan and I are getting together this week to knit and buy yarn! Woot!

It's Hip to Be Square

I finished one sock for my aunt's birthday in November. The pattern is Merino Lace from Favorite Socks and the yarn is KnitPicks Essential.

Next up is my mom's lace wimple, from Lace Style.

I have to say I am addicted to granny squares. I inherited this yarn (old school original '70s acrylic in green, gold, and light yellow) and a few completed granny squares from my aunt Nancy (not the same aunt who is getting the socks) a couple of years ago. I wasn't as good a crocheter then and I had a hard time figuring out the construction of the granny square. This was before the publication of Cozy Crochet and The Happy Hooker, my two favorite crochet books, and also before The Purl Bee was invented. Friday night I sat down to work it out, and thanks to this great tutorial from The Purl Bee I finally got the hang of it and I am in love. Also, miraculously, my squares match the ones that were already completed, and I now have a stack of fifteen squares (I told you I was addicted. Plus crocheting is much faster than knitting). I think I need somewhere in the ballpark of 39 squares, but I could be pulling a random number out of nowhere. I also have to figure out how to attach them (just sewing them together seems kind of boring to me.

In other news, this is my last week in Plymouth working at the library. We just moved all my stuff out of the apartment today (my family members were really not impressed with the amount of yarn I have accumulated). Classes start in two weeks at Simmons (my mom, grandma and I went down to visit on Friday, which was fun, but I am really glad I'm not living in the city), and I start work at Northeastern that week too. I have reference librarian training at Daniel Webster College on Friday. It's exciting but I will miss the people and places of Plymouth.

Also, with four graduate classes, two jobs, and an internship, when I am supposed to knit?

Stash Busting Like Whoa

Completed:

Felted Mohair Ballet Slippers from Felted Knits
Yarn: KnitPicks Wool of the Andes 4 skeins (about 2 skeins leftover) in Fern and Mulled Wine, and less than half a skein of Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Worsted in Sage and Medieval Red, respectively
Source: KnitPicks and stash
Needles: Addi Turbo 24" US Size 13 circular, Susan Bates 29" US Size 11 circular
Modifications: None other than yarn substitution


I really learned my lesson with these slippers: putting a pair of jeans in the washer with them speeds up the felting process considerably. It took two times to felt the slippers for my mom (the red ones) but only once for my grandmother's (the green ones). However, it worked out for the best because my mom has smaller feet and needed that second felting to get them smaller. (My felting obsession has been refueled by the purchase of the special issue of Felt put out by Interweave).

Completed:

Sleeveless Tuxedo Shirt from the Summer 2007 issue of Interweave Knits

(Sorry about that lower photo, it makes my eyes hurt, but it shows the placket in pretty good detail. It's not that wonky-shaped in real life, I don't know why it looks like that).

Yarn: Less than one cone of Brown Sheep Cotton Fine in Twilight Green

Source: Stash

Needles: Susan Bates 24" circular US Size 2, Crystal Palace bamboo US Size 2 straight

Modifications: Gauge adjustment, yarn substitution (woo-hoo for stash busting!), knit in the round instead of separately and then seamed, added 2" in length, added waist shaping.

Awkward bathroom mirror shot, but you can see that it fits like a dream.

You can see the true colors better here.

I have finally completed the Treeline Cardigan from the Purl Bee. The worst part is that I have had the knitting finished for a few weeks, and I even dyed the cotton snap tape (my closure of choice) before I went on vacation. I was nervous that it wouldn't work so I put it off, but Friday I bit the bullet and pinned and hand-sewed the tape on. It took me all the way through the 1954 version of Sabrina and the better part of an hour-long episode of the fabulous show Mad Men to finish it (I went up and down both sides of the snap tape to make sure it was secured properly). Anyway, it was worth it. I have a beautiful sweater that fits perfectly and doesn't make me look like a gorilla and I learned some interesting new techniques.

Pattern: Treeline Striped Cardigan from the Purl Bee

Yarn: Manos del Uruguay, 4 skeins each light brown and light blue

Source: Stash and one skein of brown was from Knit New London

Needles: Clover 8" (yes, 8") circular US Size 8, Addi Turbo 32" circular US Size 8

Modifications: Added enough stitches to adjust pattern for 42" chest (the original pattern only goes up to 38"), left off some repeats for the button band, added 3.5" to the length, added 1.5" to the arm length, maybe a few other changes here and there (I kind of just did them as I went along).

I'm almost done Leo's Christmas sweater. I got both sleeves done on Friday at the open mic at the Bridge Cafe, and I even read one of my poems! Exciting for me, since I never read my stuff. I'll post that next week, hopefully along with lots of other finished projects. Next up, something for me: Fiber Trends' Landscape Shawl in the excellent organic Irish wool I bought a few weeks ago.

Woohoo! Vacation

Completed: the Elisa Nest Tote (with a close up of the stitch pattern)

Pattern: Elisa Nest Tote from the Purl Bee

Yarn: Butterfly 10 mercerized cotton 1 skein

Source: Pearl's Yarn Shop

Needles: Crystal Palace bamboo U.S. size 9 straight needles, aluminum dpns U.S. size 6, Clover size F crochet hook

Modifications: Yarn substitution, added two inches to the length of the bag

A great pattern and a great bag. It's very stretchy and will hold a lot, but the holes in the lace are small enough that most things won't slip or poke through. Excellent summer knitting and really quick to knit.

I only made a couple of purchases at the Knitting Guild of America's and Crocheting Guild of America's big exhibition/market thingy they held here last weekend. A beautiful sweater pattern from Tess Designer Yarns and these two skeins of yarn from the Irish Ewe. They are going to be a worsted weight Landscape Shawl. They are from organically raised sheep in Ireland, and they were spun at one of Ireland's three remaining woollen mills (no wonder I couldn't find any yarn when I was there last summer).

The glorious KnitPicks order arrived. It is intended for two pairs of felted clogs, one pair of socks, a baby sweater, and a lace wimple.

Completed: Retro Rib Socks (and a somewhat blurry closeup of the pattern)

Pattern: Retro Rib Socks by Evelyn A. Clark (from Favorite Socks)

Yarn: Regia 4-Ply Tweed, 2 balls
Source: Patternworks Yarn Shop

Needles: Crystal Palace bamboo dpns, U.S. size 2

Modifications: My gauge was a little off, so I followed the woman's size instead of the men's even though their for my uncle. It should be all right, since his feet are just a little bigger than mine and these are just a little big for me (that is my very exact scientific measuring system for the people I knit socks for: a little bigger for the men, the same size for the women except my mom, who is a little smaller)

And, a little sewing:

This is the sun hat from Lotta Jansdotter's Simple Sewing book (simple, except for the part where I wanted to throw my sewing machine out the window). The outside fabric was leftover from a tote bag I made my mom for her birthday, and the lining is from an old pillowcase. I'm very proud of myself for figuring out the problems, and I managed to get it done just in time for our vacation at the lake this week.

So, I still have more Christmas in July projects (and July is rapidly approaching its end). I figured out a couple that I can take to the lake with me (tricky, since I'll be in close quarters with most of the people I have to make presents for) and I am starting the Tuxedo shirt from the Summer 2007 Interweave Knits for myself in an extra cone of Brown Sheep's Cotton Fine I found in the stash.

But before we head out, I have lots of packing. Including figuring out just how many projects and books I can fit in my suitcase.

Merry Christmas in July

Woot. Christmas in July is in full swing. Progress: I finished my dad's birthday socks (his birthday is in November), my grandpa's birthday socks (July), and my brother's birthday beanie (September). I have one sock done for my uncle's birthday (also September) and the second one is in progress (luckily it's going faster than the first one). Also, I've started my mom's Christmas socks.

Specs:

Grampy's birthday socks

Pattern: Classic Socks by the Yankee Knitter

Yarn: Lion Brand Wool-Ease in Charcoal and Green, one ball each

Source: Michael's

Needles: Aluminum dpns, US size 5

Modifications: --

Dad's Birthday Socks

Pattern: my own combination of the Yankee Knitter Classic Socks and Cat Bordhi's basic socks from Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles

Yarn: Step, color Hunter, one ball

Source: Patternworks Yarn Shop

Needles: Two Addi Turbo 24" circular, US size 1

Modifications: Combining two patterns, using circular needles instead of dpns

Bro's Birthday Beanie
Pattern: Striped Stocking Cap from Hip to Knit

Yarn: Sirdar Legend DK, one ball each of black, grey, and chartreuse

Needles: Susan Bates 16" circular, US size 6, and one set of aluminum dpns, US size 6

I'm using Regia 4-ply Tweed for my uncle's socks, and the pattern is the Retro Rib socks from Favorite Socks. I love the way they are coming out. My mom's socks are made out of the Step yarn as well (it's wonderful--great colors, and it has jojoba oil and aloe in it to make your hands soft as you knit and to make the wearer's feet soft), and the pattern for those is from Favorite Socks as well, the Cable Rib pattern. I made myself one Cable Rib sock last year while I was in Ireland, most of it knit on buses while traveling around (I don't usually suffer from Second Sock Syndrome, but for some reason I haven't gotten around to the other one this time).

Hopefully my large KnitPicks order, entirely of yarn for Christmas/birthday presents, makes its way here before I finish these two pairs--these are the last two presents I have yarn for.

The last picture is a work-in-progress shot of the Elisa Nest Tote from the Purl Bee. I'm using Butterfly Super 10 cotton and size 9 needles, and it is flying along. It's perfect summer knitting: cotton, an easy but elegant stitch pattern, and going quick. I'm hoping to finish it tonight so I can bring it to the TKGA and TCGA conference tomorrow (well, not the conference itself, but the market....should be dangerous!) which is being held in Manchester this weekend. Susan is coming down and we are going to see all there is to see (and probably buy a lot of it...) But first, finishing the tote, and then bringing one of the socks to the Bridge Cafe's Open Mic tonight.

Baby Love, Take Two

The gifts were a big hit. From the top, the Tiny Treasures hooded cardigan pattern from Family Circle Baby Knits, a close up of the pattern, the Be-Ribboned Bonnet from One Skein Wonders and baby booties from Knitting Pretty, and the Estonian Lullaby Baby Blanket from Fiber Trends. The sweater is made out of Encore DK and the main modification was a huge reworking of the gauge (I used size 2 and 3 needles as recommended, but I had a wildly different gauge so I did the math for the gauge I was getting and it worked out fine. I think I would have had to go down to size 000 needles to get their gauge, which would have made the knitted fabric much too stiff).

Christmas in July progress: my grandfather's birthday socks are complete (pictures tomorrow), I'm hoping to finish my dad's birthday socks today as well as my brother's birthday hat. I also cast on for my uncle's birthday socks and those should be done by this weekend. I'm figuring out more presents and placing my Knitpicks order today as well. However, I've been thinking about making more presents that aren't necessarily knit. Partly because knitting with wool in July is uncomfortable and partly because I can't find good presents for people (thinking specifically about that person, what they would wear or use and what they need or want) that are knit. I would rather give a good present that they will appreciate and enjoy than something that I enjoyed making but will sit around, sad and unused.

I have also changed my mind about my reward: I am going to buy the pattern and hardware to make the backpack tote from Liesl at disdressed. I realized (because I spend a lot of time thinking about my stash, and how to use it, and how to use it in the patterns that I love in the books and magazines that I collect like it's going out of style) that I have the yarn to make the floaty tank with the crocheted yoke from the Summer '07 Interweave Knits. Woot. (Also, the bag will be really useful and flattering, as opposed to a tank top I might not wear and am not sure would look good on me so I should not spend the money on the yarn--I'm thinking of a different pattern in the same issue, not the one I'm planning on making as a stash-buster).

Lastly, and this may sound as though I have fallen off the wagon but I haven't, I cast on for the Lace Rib Cowl from the Purl Bee last weekend. As explanation for why I cast on for a new project when I promised I wasn't going to do that, only for Christmas presents, I needed a break from the Treeline Striped Cardigan. I finished the cardigan last weekend, but it is a little wonky in places and needs to be blocked (and it needs some sort of closure--I'm thinking cotton snap tape like they suggest). Anyway, at first I wasn't sure that it was going to fit well, and the only other project I had was my dad's socks and he was home (how dare he? haha). So, I needed a project, and there was the remainder of my Jade Sapphire silk and cashmere from my Rose and Wine mitts (from the Winter '07 Interweave Knits), looking all beautiful with its soft shades of light, dark, and medium pink, and there was the free pattern on the Purl Bee. What's a girl to do? Cast on, of course. It's lovely, and it's taking awhile, so it will be my at-home-when-other-people-are-home-too-and-I-can't-work-on-their-presents project. And it's the last one, I promise.

Baby Love and Christmas in July

Tomorrow my mom and I are going to a baby shower for her friend's daughter, who used to baby-sit me. The top picture is a corner of the blanket I made, the Estonian Lullaby pattern from Fiber Trends. I also made a baby bonnet and booties and a sweater (the sweater is going to be from my mom), but my computer and/or camera is being weird and won't load the pictures.
I am so close to finishing the Treeline Striped Cardigan from the Purl Bee (although I may need to run to Knit New London, my new favorite knitting store, for one more skein of Manos del Uruguay wool in quail), but the cat has bogarted it and doesn't seem to have any intentions of giving it up. I don't have the heart to move him so I'll work on my grandfather's Classic Socks (a birthday present) for now.
This brings me to my next idea. For the past few Christmases (and birthdays, and this past Mother's Day, and most other gift-giving occasions) I've driven myself crazy with making presents for people. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy making the presents, I think it is more meaningful and they appreciate my gifts, it's usually cheaper than buying presents and I hate the mall. I have great reasons for making presents. It's the methodology that's questionable. I'm always up late the night before the Big Day, up early that morning, and hidden away during most of the day (sometimes even during the celebration) trying to finish presents. Every year I say, "It's going to be different this year," without actually doing much to change anything. Last year I did a little bit more planning, which was good, but I still gave people half a pair of socks (not very useful) and partially knitted bits still on the needles (which led to jokes like, "So I have to finish it myself?") and then on Christmas I spent the rest of the day (and two weeks afterward) finishing them. Not fun.
I read somewhere that Victorian women also made all of their Christmas presents, but they realized how much time it would take and so they started in July. That's what I'm doing this year. This makes sense on so many levels: I have eight birthdays between now and December 25 to make presents for on top of Christmas presents, I'll be living at home in the fall and so knitting presents for my mom and dad would be tricky and involve lots of hiding in my room, it will save me money at Christmas by spreading out the spending, I'll have time to fix mistakes and block and even wrap the presents. My plan is to only work on these presents for the month of July, except for Saturday and Sunday (I'll be at home, but I'll still try to work on presents for those I don't live with) and the last week of July. That's our family vacation, and nearly everyone I'm making presents for will be there. So I'll push to get most of it done before then, and as a reward I'm thinking I will let myself order the yarn for one of the cute summer tops in the summer issue of Interweave Knits (I have priced out several of them with KnitPicks yarn...very affordable, very dangerous...)
Progress so far: two birthday presents on the needles, and I've purchased yarn for another present. I have also planned out most of my other presents. Christmas in July will be fun...right?