All kinds of crafty

Did you know that I cross-stitch? It's actually the first real craft I learned. I was taught to crochet when I was eight, but I just made really long chains because I could never remember how to turn it. My mom taught me to cross-stitch (both she and my aunt do beautiful stitching) and I still really enjoy it, although it's not as portable as knitting. I made this a few years ago but I just got it framed a few weeks ago. I was waiting to post it until snow seemed more like a possibility. I love it because I always say that it "smells like snow..."

This is the Mini Wrap Skirt from Crochet Me: Designs to Fuel the Crochet Revolution. Let me tell you, I love this skirt and I haven't even worn it yet. I was really surprised to see that it's only in a few queues on Ravelry, but it's fun to be one of only a few people wearing it. It was easy and very quick. I can't remember all the details (I actually finished this one awhile ago and forgot to blog it), but I used my beloved Clover Soft Touch hooks in Sizes F and I, three skeins of Red Heart Super Saver in black and one skein in claret.

Detail of the bottom edging:

A Socktoberfest wrap-up:

I managed to reach my goal for Socktoberfest, which was to knit two pairs of gift socks (which I can't show you yet, but I hope to have them up on Ravelry soon!), knit the Apple Picking Socks (see previous post) and finish up this pair. I had one done but wanted to finish the other so it wouldn't languish in the stash until forever, and Socktoberfest provided the perfect reason to finish it up.

Classic Socks from Yankee Knitting

Yarn: Plymouth Sockotta, one ball

Source: Patternworks

Needles: Crystal Palace Bamboo dpns, US Size 2

Modifications: None.

Just when you thought I'd given up berets....

Porom by Jared Flood
Yarn: Jamieson's Double Knitting, grey, one skein

Source: stash

Needles: US Size 6 and 8 16" circular needles, US Size 8 dpns

Modifcations: none

Soundtrack/Movies: Persepolis, Northern Exposure



I love love love this hat. It is perfect and warm but it still breathes, it hides bad hair, and I believe it holds the secret to world peace. The pattern is easily memorized but not boring, and it knits up very quickly (after I finished it, less than 24 hours after starting it, Boyfriend turned to me and said, "you knit really fast!").

I am so close to being done knitting my Christmas presents. Of course, there are still other presents to make, but I'll tackle those after I finish the knitting. I am also so close to being done graduate school. Only the knitting and crafting will help me get through it...

Oh Fall

I love fall. Do you know what happens in the fall, boys and girls? Socktoberfest. That's not the only reason I love fall, but we don't have enough time for the whole list--it's really long. Yesterday was full of some favorite fall activities--apple picking, visiting the last of the yard sales, and enjoying the beautiful weather. There is also a new favorite to add: corn mazes! There is nothing more fun than trying to find your way through a corn maze while eating a delicious cider doughnut and trying to avoid being run down by yelling boys.

But back to the knitting. I know some of you are saying, "Caitlin, need we remind you of the Summer of Socks? Or in your case, the Summer You Knit Two Measly Pairs of Socks and One Didn't Even Count?" *

I remember. But:

• I was only in school for half of the Summer of Socks, whereas now I am in school for the whole month of October. I do a lot of sock knitting on the bus and in class.
• I love socks + I love October so this = Soctober participation.
• Lots of peeps are getting handknit socks for Christmas. November is cutting it a little close for me, so this is good motivation to do it now.
• No rules! (Not that SoS was entirely rule-ridden)
• It's a great stash-busting exercise
• I am already well-entrenched in sock knitting (at least 3 pairs are on the needles)

*The pair was finished before the Summer of Socks officially started.

A Very Crafty Christmas

Crafty because I made most of my gifts (and actually finished them) and because I got crafty stuff for presents. Despite my best efforts, I still had to sew up the little notebook I made for my dad on Christmas morning before he woke up, but considering some of my past Christmas fiascos--last year everyone got presents still on the needles--that was nothing. So the Victorian women had it right; handmade Christmas gifts should be started no later than July. We'll see how it goes this summer in the middle of two intense graduate classes.

I think I've shown you all the presents I gave away (except for a couple, which I forgot to take pictures of before I sent them off--maybe I can convince the recipients to take pictures for me), so here's what I got:

• The Stitch'n Bitch Page-a-Day calendar from my brother
• The Daring Book for Girls from Bethie (This book is amazing--I've already learned how to do the whistle with your two pinkies. I only wish I had it when I was younger, although I got similar stuff from a variety of other books. Amy has a great review of it here)
• Knitting Vintage Socks, a back issue of Interweave Knits, the Tree Sweater and Rusted Root pattern by Zephyr Style, Cookie A.'s German Stockings pattern, and the Blue Sky Alpacas Crochet Sweater pattern, from my parents via Kpixie
  

From left to right:

• Mama Llama hand-dyed Merino Tencel
• Black Pearl Yarns DK Cashmere
• A set of casein DPNS, US Size 2 (I'm really curious about these, and they are very inexpensive--I'll let you know how they are)
• Three skeins of Hemp for Knitting AllHemp3, to become the crocheted market bag from Crochet Me (the book, which I highly recommend)
• Again, all from my parents and bought from KPixie

From left to right:

• Two skeins Claudia Handpaints Fingering Weight Merino in colorway "Toast," to become the Friday Harbor Socks in Knitting on the Road
• One skein of Shetland Cobweb yarn (Beth's response to this was "You really are crazy, aren't you?")
• One skein of Blue Sky Alpacas Suri Merino in Snow, the yarn called for in the Crochet Sweater pattern above that I am absolutely desperate to make. I decided to get one skein so I could have an easier time finding a suitable subsitute yarn (the Suri Merino is $16 a skein) and thinking I could just make a hat out of this skein, but I have touched it and it is delicious and I must have this yarn for my sweater. I think. I'm going to swatch and see how it is in crocheted form and remind myself that there is no way I can afford this yarn for an entire sweater. (Also from my parents, also from Kpixie)
  
  

• On top, the crocheted and embroidered house purse kit from Make Make
• The Sushi coin purse kit from Pick Up Sticks (also from my parents and from Kpixie)

It's a good thing I have a break from school to get some serious crafting done!

The killer icicles outside my window

"Those icicles have been know to kill people!" -Ralphie's mother in A Christmas Story



Hope you all had a great holiday, and my belated present to you is on its way: the Owl Cable scarf, which would match the Owl Cable hat perfectly (that was my inspiration). It was a birthday present for my aunt, who loves owls, and unfortunately I forgot to take a picture. I'll see if I can't get her to send me one.

Time to get knitting!

Good Things

I sent these off yesterday to afghans for Afghans:

The green vest is made of Brown Sheep's Nature Spun Worsted, and the pattern is the Child's Vest from Knitting for Peace. There are also two pairs of socks, a child's and an adult's, knit from locally raised and spun worsted weight wool. The pattern is Classic Socks from the Yankee Knitter.

This is an excellent organization and a very worthy cause. Their current campaign is for newborns (please click on the link above for details). It's nearly the season of thankfulness and giving, and it always makes me so grateful for everything I have that I want to give to others. I'm even considering a new take on donating to charities as gifts for others: knitting something for charity, taking a picture, and donating it to an organization in the name of someone I would otherwise buy a gift for. Then I could tuck the picture of the item into a card telling them that I made this donation in their name. If you are interested in charity knitting, check out Knitting for Peace. It's an amazing book full of information and patterns.

Finished:

Thrum Mittens Kit from Fleece Artist

Yarn: Fleece Artist Blue Face Aran and Merino Sliver roving

Needles: Brittany Birch US size 4 DPNs

Pattern: on the label!

Modifications: None

I have gotten more done, but it will have to wait (a birthday present for a friend!) Check out my tutorial (the previous entry) for making your own suede slipper soles for felted slippers! They make great presents!

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.

Rough Week

I really just wanted to hide under the covers all week with the cat.*

But I didn't. I sucked it up, I was a big girl, and I made it through. It was a week of three assignments due for school and the final week at one of my jobs. I quit the job because it was making me crazy--I literally developed a twitch in my left jaw, and another one above my right eye. It was really interesting. I was averaging five hours of sleep a night, plus whatever I could grab on the bus. I was always in a bad mood and hating everything, including school, which is part of the reason I took the job in the first place. I was almost in tears about stupid little things, and even though it was killing me, I felt really guilty about quitting this job that I didn't even like.

Luckily, those feelings of guilt have passed. (Thanks in part to the Wool Tour, which was amazing.)





Also luckily, I have been finishing things (I received my yarn for the Secret of the Stole, and I swatched, but I have to pick up beads and needles tomorrow). Tomorrow I will post pictures of the yarn and swatch, and also all the yarn I bought on the Wool Tour, but first, some (finally) FOs:

Never Wimpy Wimple, from Lace Style (A Christmas present for my mom)

Yarn: KnitPicks Shadow in Vineyard Heather, 1 ball (the pattern calls for two, and I only had a little left, so I would recommend you buy two if you are using this yarn--especially because it's mail order. I have more than enough to make a nice lacey fall scarf for myself with the other ball since it has such great yardage)

Source: KnitPicks
Needles: Inox 16" circular, US Size 2

Modifications: (giant dramatic sigh) I knit this entire thing twice. Yes, twice, and it is on size 2 needles. At first I thought I was getting a larger gauge (and honestly, I was getting a little sick of knitting the bottom edging) so I cut it a little short and it turned out too small. So I knit it twice. On size 2 needles. (What can I say? It was my fault for playing fast and loose with gauge the first time, and I love my mother and I didn't want her to have to cram her head into the thing. It would mess up her hair and she doesn't like that).

Flame Wave Socks from Favorite Socks

The stitch pattern is a little hard to see (even in person) but it's still cool.

Yarn: Cascade Fixation, green stripe (not the official color name), 2 balls (I never would have believed it. Those balls are smaller than my clenched fist, but they pack a lot of yarn).

Source: The Elegant Ewe
Needles: Susan Bates Aluminum (I think) DPNs, US Sizes 5 and 4

Modifications: None

For some reason these socks took me nearly four months to knit. I started them in June, a month after I'd picked up Favorite Socks and drooled over it enough to realize I had Cascade Fixation in my stash. Another bonus was that the yarn is mostly cotton (a really soft pima cotton), and it was basically the only kind of knitting I wanted to touch when I was sweating through the summer. It wasn't too light-colored, so I didn't have to worry about getting it dirty, it was small and portable, and (I'm a little ashamed to admit this and now I really don't understand it at all) I didn't really care about them all that much, so if anything happened to them I wouldn't be that upset. I really loved the yarn and the way they looked, but it took me awhile to fix the pattern in my head. I also had to redo the foot of the first one (I decreased too many stitches; the pattern didn't specify the separate needle stitch counts and my math skills are awful, apparently).

I pulled them out from time to time, but it seemed to take awhile for me to make any progress. So when I finished the first one awhile ago, I was happy but I wasn't thrilled to start the second one. Now, I do not get Second Sock Syndrome. For me, the second sock usually seems to go so much faster that I am really happy to get to it. The issue is casting on the second one right away (which can be really tricky, when my first inclination is just to put on the first one and dance around or wave it in people's faces). But when I do, it's that much easier to keep my momentum going, and I'm more likely to bring it with me places because the tricky casting-on business is done.

I did cast on right away for the second one of these, and I knit four rows, and promptly dropped it in favor of other more exciting knitting (I'll show you one of these very soon). Oh well. At least I did come back. (I'm very loyal. And stubborn).

(Don't mind the weird face. I swear I wasn't trying to be cool or anything, I just had to bend at an awkward angle to make it more of a head shot and then I realized the picture was being taken).

I was looking at Amy's blog and she posted a link to this pattern, which I just fell in love with. (I just realized you can't really see the stitch pattern in my picture so you probably want to click the link. I assure you, mine looks like that). I also happened to have two skeins of Blue Sky Alpacas' delicious Organic Cotton (man I miss working at the yarn store sometimes--I don't get fabulous yarn cheap anymore...) that are two slightly different dye lots, enough that I can't use them together. I had already decided to make one of the cabled scarfs from One Skein with one of them, and I was trying to find a hat to go with it when I found this. I used a size J Clover crochet hook (I didn't have a K, at least not in my Clovers, and I am obsessed with them) and it took my whole ball. I finished it in two nights while watching Dancing with the Stars with my mom. I might have been able to finish it in one, but I messed up and had to rip back. Also, since the ball I was using had been destined for another project that I frogged, the ball was in pieces and I had a lot of ends to weave in. Oh well. It was fun and very quick, and I know I'm a hat person and really enamoured with crochet right now, but I highly recommend it (if you're not a hat person, it's a great gift--very quick).

Wow, this has turned into quite an epic entry. Anyway, more tomorrow about the Secret of the Stole and the Wool Tour. Hope everyone has tomorrow off and has a good day. :)


*He got under the covers of his own accord. One of his favorite games is jump on the bed while my mom is changing the sheets and dive under the covers. Then he rolls around and attacks from under the sheets and purrs like mad. He is a strange cat.

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?

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 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?

Oh, the sheep-y goodness...

The first picture is the sum total of my purchases at the New Hampshire Sheep and Wool Festival (and Alpaca Fest!). The second picture is a close up of the roving: 2 2 oz. hanks of hand-dyed Corriedale in the colorway "Summer Fields" (I couldn't resist) from The Sheep Shed at Mountain View Farm; 2 4 oz. balls of hand-dyed Romney from "Maggie" (that's the sheep's name!) at Brimstone Hollow Farm (those are the green and yellow balls; Brimstone Hollow has the best colorways); and one 4 oz. ball of white Romney roving (I forget where I got that one). The last picture is a closeup of the amazing yarn I bought (and the roving kind of snuck in): from the bottom, one skein of hand-dyed sock yarn from Balland Skein; one skein of sock yarn from Spirit Trail Fiberworks, and one skein of the "Bunny Blend" merino and angora yarn.
It might look like a lot, but I was very smart this year. The past three years I've gone kind of crazy and just bought whatever I loved, but this year I planned it out. The roving was Romney and Corriedale because that's easy to spin (and my spinning skills are still developing). The sock yarn was kind of expensive, but not too much more expensive than commercial sock yarn (considering you usually need two skeins) and socks take a long time to knit (I do, anyway) so it's a good investment. The angora skein was also kind of a splurge, but for a long time I've had this angora scarf planned in my head, like the one Rory wears in the fourth and fifth seasons of Gilmore Girls (it's white and lacy with a little bit of fluff). I've been searching for the perfect yarn for awhile and I hadn't found it...till now.

I've finally finished my senior thesis, and after I get through with packing and moving and graduation and about a million other things, I will finally be able to seriously knit again. I have been sewing, and my practice dress came out great (pics soon to come) but I miss knitting.